Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Endocrinological and subjective stress responses in children with depressive, anxiety, or externalizing disorders

Abstract In this study, we used a stress test to investigate endocrinological and subjective stress responses of 8- to 14-year-old children with internalizing or externalizing disorders and healthy controls. The sample (N = 170) consisted of clinical and community children. Parents were given a diagnostic interview to diagnose their children's psychiatric condition. We measured saliva cortisol and subjectively experienced arousal in children before and after the Trier Social Stress Test for Children. Children also rated their performance immediately after the stress test, and 1 hr later they rated their positive and negative thoughts about this stressful event. Children with internalizing or externalizing disorders exhibited a blunted cortisol response compared to healthy controls. Depressed children rated their test performance lower and reported more negative thoughts after the test in comparison to healthy controls, anxious children reported more arousal before and after the task, and children with externalizing disorders reported more positive thoughts. In regression analyses, cortisol and subjective stress responses were both predictive of psychiatric disorders. The study extends previous work on the relation between psychiatric disorders and children's stress responses to an experimentally induced stress task by including a broad range of psychiatric disorders and by integrating endocrinological and subjective stress responses.
Somatotopic organization of cortical fields in the lateral sulcus of Homo sapiens: Evidence for SII and PV

The human somatosensory cortex in the Sylvian fissure was examined using functional magnetic resonance imaging to describe the number and internal organization of cortical fields present. Somatic stimuli were applied to the lips, face, hand, trunk, and foot of 18 human subjects. Activity patterns were transposed onto three‐dimensional magnetic resonance images of the brain so that the location of activity associated with the different stimuli could be related to specific regions of the cortex. There were several consistent findings. First, there were three regions of activity in the lateral sulcus associated with stimulation of the contralateral body. The most consistent locus of activation was on the upper bank of the lateral sulcus, continuing onto the operculum. The other two areas, one rostral and one caudal to this large central area, were smaller and were activated less consistently. Second, when activity patterns in the large central area resulting from stimulation of all body parts were considered, this region appeared to contain two fields that corresponded in location and somatotopic organization to the second somatosensory area (SII) and the parietal ventral area (PV). Finally, patterns of activation within SII and PV were somewhat variable across subjects. Repeated within‐subject stimulus presentation indicated that differences across subjects were not due to inconsistent stimulus presentation. Comparisons with other mammals suggest that some features of organization are found only in primates. It is hypothesized that these features may be associated with manual dexterity and coordination of the hands, a characteristic generally restricted to the primate lineage. J. Comp. Neurol. 418:1–21, 2000. © 2000 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
The Household-and Aggregate-Level Fertility Consequences of China ’ s One-Child Policy

The One-Child Policy is often perceived as a government-mandated quota system. Recent research acknowledges regional incentives allowing women to have more than one child. The policy was actually an individually tailored pricing system varying within each woman’s life cycle. I document and exploit this variation to find that the policy: only affected women whose first child was a girl; did (not) reduce the number of girls (boys) born per woman; and caused a minor decrease in aggregate fertility. Data on ultrasound availability suggest that the second finding, but not the first, results at least partly from prenatal sex selection.
Early changes in interferon signaling define natural killer cell response and refractoriness to interferon‐based therapy of hepatitis C patients

Natural killer (NK) cells exhibit a polarized phenotype with increased cytotoxicity and decreased interferon gamma (IFN‐γ) production in chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. Here, we asked whether this is caused by type I interferon (IFN)‐induced expression and phosphorylation levels of signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) molecules in NK cells and whether it affects the response and refractoriness of NK cells to IFN‐α‐based therapy of HCV. STAT1 levels in NK cells were significantly higher in patients with chronic HCV infection than in uninfected controls. STAT1 levels and induction of phosphorylated STAT1 (pSTAT1) increased further during IFN‐α‐based therapy with preferential STAT1 over STAT4 phosphorylation. Induction of pSTAT1 correlated with increased NK cytotoxicity (tumor necrosis factor–apoptosis‐inducing ligand [TRAIL] expression and degranulation) and decreased IFN‐γ production. NK cells from patients with a greater than 2 log10 first‐phase HCV RNA decline to IFN‐α‐based therapy (>99% IFN effectiveness) displayed strong pSTAT1 induction in vivo and were refractory to further stimulation in vitro. In contrast, NK cells from patients with a less than 2 log10 first‐phase HCV RNA decline exhibited lower pSTAT1 induction in vivo (P = 0.024), but retained greater IFN‐α responsiveness in vitro (P = 0.024). NK cells of all patients became refractory to in vivo and in vitro stimulation by IFN‐α during the second‐phase virological response. Conclusion: These data show that IFN‐α‐induced modulation of STAT1/4 phosphorylation underlies the polarization of NK cells toward increased cytotoxicity and decreased IFN‐γ production in HCV infection, and that NK cell responsiveness and refractoriness correlate to the antiviral effectiveness of IFN‐α‐based therapy. (Hepatology 2012)
The 3′ mRNA I-shaped structure of maize necrotic streak virus binds to eukaryotic translation factors for eIF4F-mediated translation initiation

Unlike the mRNAs of their eukaryotic hosts, many RNAs of viruses lack a 5′ m7GpppN cap and the 3′ polyadenosine tail, and yet they are translated efficiently. Plant RNA viruses, in particular, have complex structures within their mRNA UTRs that allow them to bypass some cellular translation control steps. In the 3′ UTR of maize necrotic streak virus (MNeSV), an I-shaped RNA structure (ISS) has been shown to bind eukaryotic initiation factor (eIF)4F and to mediate viral translation initiation. A 5′–3′ RNA “kissing-loop” interaction is required for optimal translation. However, the details of how the 3′ ISS mediates translation initiation are not well understood. Here, we studied the binding of the 3′ ISS with eIFs. The eIF4A–eIF4B complex was found to increase binding affinity of eIF4F with the 3′ ISS by 4-fold (from KD = 173 ± 34 nm to KD = 48 ± 11 nm). Pre-steady–state analysis indicated that the eIF4A–eIF4B complex increased the RNA association rate and decreased the dissociation rate in an ATP-independent manner. Furthermore, our findings suggest that eIF4F could promote binding of the 3′ ISS with the MNeSV 5′UTR, enhancing the long-distance kissing-loop interaction. However, the association of the 5′UTR with the 3′ ISS–eIF4F complex did not increase 40S ribosomal subunit binding affinity. These quantitative results suggest a stepwise model in which the first committed step is eIF4F binding to the 3′ ISS, followed by an interaction with the 5′UTR and subsequent 40S ribosomal subunit binding.
Escaping away from and towards a threat

The escape response of the cockroach is a well-studied example of sensori-motor behaviour. Cockroaches respond to wind puffs, which may signal a predator attack, by making a swift turn followed by a forward acceleration. We have recently shown that their escape trajectories, measured relative to the position of the threatening stimulus, show preferred directions.1 Previous work has often distinguished between the most common type of escape turn, which begins as a rotation away from the stimulus, and the relatively rare turns initiated towards the stimulus. Here, we analyze these “away” and “towards” responses in light of our recent work on preferred escape trajectories (ETs). We find that the ETs of towards responses show a pattern of frequency distribution similar to that of away responses. The range of the body-turn angles of towards responses, however, is much smaller than that of away responses, being <30° in most cases, which approximately corresponds to the angular distance between ET peaks. This suggests that cockroaches minimize their turn when making a towards response, which could represent an effective anti-predator behaviour that allows cockroaches to reach one of the preferred ETs within a relatively short time.
Airborne observations of total RONO2: new constraints on the yield and lifetime of isoprene nitrates

Formation of isoprene nitrates (INs) is an important free radical chain termination step ending production of ozone and possibly affecting formation of secondary organic aerosol. Isoprene nitrates also represent a potentially large, unmeasured contribution to OH reactivity and are a major pathway for the removal of nitrogen oxides from the atmosphere. Current assessments indicate that formation rates of isoprene nitrates are uncertain to a factor of 2–3 and the subsequent fate of isoprene nitrates remains largely unconstrained by laboratory, field or modeling studies. Measurements of total alkyl and multifunctional nitrates (ΣANs), NO2, total peroxy nitrates (ΣPNs), HNO3, CH2O, isoprene and other VOC were obtained from the NASA DC-8 aircraft during summer 2004 over the continental US during the INTEX-NA campaign. These observations represent the first characterization of ΣANs over a wide range of land surface types and in the lower free troposphere. ΣANs were a significant, 12–20%, fraction of NOy throughout the experimental domain and ΣANs were more abundant when isoprene was high. We use the observed hydrocarbon species to calculate the relative contributions of ΣAN precursors to their production. These calculations indicate that isoprene represents at least three quarters of the ΣAN source in the summertime continental boundary layer of the US. An observed correlation between ΣANs and CH2O is used to place constraints on nitrate yields from isoprene oxidation, atmospheric lifetimes of the resulting nitrates and recycling efficiencies of nitrates during subsequent oxidation. We find reasonable fits to the data using sets of production rates, lifetimes and recycling efficiencies of INs as follows (4.4%, 16 h, 97%), (8%, 2.5 h, 79%) and (12%, 95 min, 67%). The analysis indicates that the lifetime of ΣANs as a pool of compounds is considerably longer than the lifetime of the individual isoprene nitrates to reaction with OH, implying that the organic nitrate functionality is at least partially maintained through a second oxidation cycle.
Perceptual deficits in optic ataxia

Lesions of the dorsal posterior parietal cortex (PPC) typically result in optic ataxia (OA)—a disorder in which patients have difficulty reaching toward and grasping objects presented in peripheral vision, in the absence of primary sensory or motor deficits. It is therefore considered as a human model of the PPC involvement in visuo-manual control. In the early twentieth century, OA was described as part of the Balint–Holmes syndrome. The main aim of most analyses of OA in the second part of the twentieth century was then to isolate a pure visuo-motor symptomatology from the complex Balint’s syndrome (e.g. Garcin et al., 1967; Rondot et al., 1977). In addition, OA has been used over the last 15 years to argue in favor of dissociable functions within the dorsal (‘How’) and ventral (‘What’) streams of visual information processing and visuo-manual guidance (Jeannerod and Rossetti, 1993; Milner and Goodale, 1995; Rossetti and Pisella, 2002). In these contexts, research on OA has focused primarily on visuo-motor functions (‘How’) and has largely ignored visuo-spatial functions (‘Where’). In this chapter, we will review recent accounts on the nature of the well-established visuo-motor deficits in OA and present original data revealing visuo-perceptual deficits in patients with OA. The possibility of a functional relationship between the visuo-motor deficits of OA patients and their perceptual deficits will be put forward and discussed.
Current Academic Clinical Trials in Ovarian Cancer: Gynecologic Cancer Intergroup and US National Cancer Institute Clinical Trials Planning Meeting, May 2009

Objective: To review the current status of large phase academic clinical trials for women with ovarian cancer, address cross-cutting issues, and identify promising areas for future collaboration. Methods: In May 2009, the Gynecologic Cancer Intergroup, which represents 19 Cooperative Groups conducting trials for women with gynecologic cancer, and the US National Cancer Institute convened a Clinical Trials Planning Meeting. Results: The topics covered included the impact of new developments in cancer biology upon molecular targets and novel agents, pharmacogenomics, advances in imaging, the potential benefit of diet and exercise to reduce the risk of recurrence, academic partnership with industry, statistical considerations for phases 2 and 3 trials, trial end points, and symptom benefit and health-related quality-of-life issues. The clinical trials discussed spanned the spectrum of ovarian cancer from initial diagnosis, staging, and cytoreductive surgery to consolidation chemotherapy, and treatment of recurrent disease. Conclusions: Ongoing and effective collaboration with industry, government, and patients aims to ensure that the most important scientific questions can be answered rapidly. We encourage women with ovarian cancer and their oncologists to consider participation in the academic clinical trials conducted by the member groups of the Gynecologic Cancer Intergroup.
Optimal Sample Complexity for Matrix Completion and Related Problems via 𝓁s2-Regularization

We study the strong duality of non-convex matrix factorization: we show under certain dual conditions, non-convex matrix factorization and its dual have the same optimum. This has been well understood for convex optimization, but little was known for matrix factorization. We formalize the strong duality of matrix factorization through a novel analytical framework, and show that the duality gap is zero for a wide class of matrix factorization problems. Although matrix factorization problems are hard to solve in full generality, under certain conditions the optimal solution of the non-convex program is the same as its bi-dual, and we can achieve global optimality of the non-convex program by solving its bi-dual. We apply our framework to matrix completion and robust Principal Component Analysis (PCA). While a long line of work has studied these problems, for basic problems in this area such as matrix completion, the information-theoretically optimal sample complexity was not known, and the sample complexity bounds if one also requires computational efficiency are even larger. In this work, we show that exact recoverability and strong duality hold with optimal sample complexity guarantees for matrix completion, and nearly-optimal guarantees for exact recoverability of robust PCA. For matrix completion, under the standard incoherence assumption that the underlying rank-$r$ matrix $X^*\in \mathbb{R}^{n\times n}$ with skinny SVD $U \Sigma V^T$ has $\max\{\|U^Te_i\|_2^2, \|V^Te_i\|_2^2\} \leq \frac{\mu r}{n}$ for all $i$, to the best of our knowledge we give (1) the first non-efficient algorithm achieving the optimal $O(\mu n r \log n)$ sample complexity, and (2) the first efficient algorithm achieving $O(\kappa^2\mu n r \log n)$ sample complexity, which matches the known $\Omega(\mu n r \log n)$ information-theoretic lower bound for constant condition number $\kappa$.
The Impact of Families Camping Together: Opportunities for Personal and Social Development

ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of the camping experience on a community of families. The research questions were: What is the meaning of the camping experience? How does the camping experience influence its participants? We used an auto-ethnographic method (two of the authors participated in the camping program) and a questionnaire to conduct the investigation. The research occurred in the Czech Republic with nine families composed of 14 adults and 14 children. Our findings indicate that the interplay among community, spirituality, nature, and family defines such a camping experience. In turn, this leads to stronger family bonds, confidence and self-reliance in the outdoors, and a greater sense of adaptability for the individual.
Tolemerase Reverse Transcriptase Gene Expression as a Tumor Marker for Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Problem statement: Hepatocellular carcinoma will emerge as a major fo rm of malignancy in the coming decades. The continuing high incidenc e of hepatocellular carcinoma, suggests that this disease will continue to represent a global health problem far into the future. Different genes encode for the various components of the human telomerase complex. These components include the human Telomerase RNA Component (hTERC) and the Telomerase Catalytic Subunit (hTERT). Correlation between Telomerase Reverse Transcriptase (hTERT) expression and telomerase activity has been reported in cancer patients. This work aimed to cla rify the significance of human Telomerase Reverse Transcriptase (hTERT mRNA) as a potential molecular tumor marker for Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC). Approach: The current study included 25 patients of hepatoce llular carcinoma (HCC), 30 patients with liver cirrhosis and 25 age and sex matched individuals with normal laboratory and Image findings as a control group. h TERT mRNA was measured in plasma by Real time PCR in all patients samples in comparison with normal healthy controls. Results: The expression of hTERT mRNA by relative unit was 129.10 ±27.6 with range (67.72-69.6) Vs 5245.87 ±2382.48 (2053-12232.90) Vs 92782.76 ±16158 (61783.25-118596.47) for control Vs cirrhosis Vs HCC group respectively. The hTERT expression was significantly with 699 and 33 fold increase in HCC and cirrhosis groups correspondingl y when compared to that of controls p<0.05. Conclusion: It was suggested that this procedure was highly di scriminating between healthy subjects and cancer patients and strongly support t he idea that a valuable diagnostic test for cancer might be developed using this genetic marker in pla sma. However it needs to be combined with other markers in future studies to be more specific for liver cancer.
Dwelling, rescanning, and skipping of distractors explain search efficiency in difficult search better than guidance by the target

ABSTRACT Prominent models of overt and covert visual search focus on explaining search efficiency by visual guidance. That some searches are fast whereas others are slow is explained by the ability of the target to guide attention to the target’s position. Comparably little attention is given to other variables that might also influence search efficiency, such as dwelling on distractors, skipping distractors, and revisiting distractors. Here, we examine the relative contributions of dwelling, skipping, rescanning, and the use of visual guidance, in explaining visual search times in general, and the similarity effect in particular. The hallmark of the similarity effect is more efficient search for a target that is dissimilar to the distractors compared to a target that is similar to the distractors. In the present experiment, participants have to find an emotional face target among nine neutral face non-targets. In different blocks, the target is either more or less similar to the non-targets. Eye-tracking is used to separately measure selection latency, dwelling on distractors, and skipping and revisiting of distractors. As expected, visual search times show a large similarity effect. Similarity also has strong effects on dwelling, skipping, and revisiting, but only weak effects on visual guidance. Regression analyses show that dwelling, skipping, and revisiting determine search times on trial level. The influence of dwelling and revisiting is stronger in target absent than in target present trials, whereas the opposite is true for skipping. The similarity effect is best explained by dwelling. Additionally, including a measure of guidance does not yield substantial benefits. In sum, results indicate that guidance by the target is not the sole principle behind fast search; rather, distractors are less often skipped, more often visited, and longer dwelled on in slow search conditions.
Tea drinking and the risk of biliary tract cancers and biliary stones: A population‐based case–control study in Shanghai, China

Biliary tract cancers, encompassing tumors of the gallbladder, extrahepatic bile ducts and ampulla of Vater, are rare but highly fatal malignancies. Apart from gallstones, etiologic factors for biliary tract cancer are not clearly defined. Several epidemiologic studies have suggested that consumption of tea, especially green tea, is protective against a variety of cancers, including gastrointestinal malignancies. As part of a large population‐based case–control study of biliary tract disease in Shanghai, China, we evaluated the effects of tea consumption on the risk of biliary tract cancers and biliary stones. The study included 627 incident cases with biliary tract cancer, 1,037 cases with biliary stones and 959 randomly selected controls. Study subjects were interviewed to ascertain data on demographic, medical and dietary factors, including tea consumption. Forty‐one percent of the controls were ever tea drinkers, defined as those who consumed at least 1 cup of tea per day for at least 6 months. After adjustment for age, education and body mass index, among women, ever tea drinkers had significantly reduced risks of biliary stones (OR = 0.73, 95% CI = 0.54–0.98) and gallbladder cancer (OR = 0.56, 95% CI = 0.38–0.83). The inverse relationship between tea consumption and gallbladder cancer risk was independent of gallstone disease. Among men, tea drinkers were more likely to be cigarette smokers, and the risk estimates were generally below 1.0, but were not statistically significant. Further studies are needed to confirm these results in other populations and clarify the hormonal and other mechanisms that may be involved. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Spontaneous breathing trial in T‐tube negatively impact on autonomic modulation of heart rate compared with pressure support in critically ill patients

Spontaneous breathing with a conventional T‐piece (TT) connected to the tracheal tube orotraqueal has been frequently used in clinical setting to weaning of mechanical ventilation (MV), when compared with pressure support ventilation (PSV). However, the acute effects of spontaneous breathing with TT versus PSV on autonomic function assessed through heart rate variability (HRV) have not been fully elucidated.