Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The role of occlusal stress and gingival infection in the formation of exostoses on mandible and maxilla from Neolithic China.

Exostoses on the mandible and maxilla is a frequently observed bone growth of controversial aetiology. The aim of this study is to analyse environmental factors that may stimulate the formation of exostoses on different regions of the maxilla and mandible. Sixty-six well-preserved crania from Neolithic China were studied for the presence of buccal exostoses on the maxilla (BE) and lingual exostoses on the mandible (LME). Other oral health indicators, such as occlusal wear on molars, pathology of temporomandibular joint (TMJ), carious lesions, calculus accretion, periodontal disease, and antemortem tooth loss were recorded. Buccal maxillary exostosis was unusually common on the Neolithic skulls from China, which thus resemble the Sinantropus crania described by Weidenreich (1943). We report a significant Spearman correlation between BE and LME (rho = 0.54, P < 0.00001), suggesting a partially shared aetiology of these two types of exostoses. The highest correlations between either form of exostoses and any oral indicator of stress were found for pathology at TMJ (rho = 0.46, P < 0.0001 for both types of exostoses). Smaller but significant correlations were observed between LME and the age adjusted wear rate on lower molars, as well as between BE and indicators of oral/dental pathology, e.g. caries, calculus, periodontoses, and antemortem tooth loss. Both types of exostoses tended to increase in frequency with age, although a significant trend was observed only for BE. We conclude that formation of exostoses is a complex process that can be invoked by any agent causing damage and inflammation of gingival tissue. However, severe occlusal stress, which is often manifested in TMJ disorder, is the main environmental factor leading to exostosis development in genetically pre-disposed individuals.
INTEGRATION OF QUALITY, HEALTH AND SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS IN CONTRACTOR ORGANISATIONS

Organisations of all types are increasingly implementing management systems for quality, health and safety and environment for many reasons including the fulfilment of legal obligations, a better image for stakeholders and the wider demonstration of concern for society. In the majority of cases, these management systems are being developed around the certification and accreditation requirements of quality standard: ISO 9000, environmental standard: ISO 14001 and also the health and safety standard: BSI-OHSAS 18001. These standards have developed individually, independently and at different times fulfilling unique demands. However, the structural similarities in the standards have led to the evolution of integrated management systems (IMS). UK construction contracting organisations have implemented such management systems and are international pioneers in IMS development. Research also finds links between sustainable construction themes and the integration of management systems. This paper investigates the application of IMS in UK contracting organisations. Research critically analyses the various different concepts, approaches and models being developed for IMS.
Different patterns of language activation in post-stroke aphasia are detected by overt and covert versions of the verb generation fMRI task

Summary Background Post-stroke language functions depend on the relative contributions of the dominant and non-dominant hemispheres. Thus, we aimed to identify the neural correlates of overt and covert verb generation in adult post-stroke aphasia. Material/Methods Sixteen aphasic LMCA stroke patients (SPs) and 32 healthy controls (HCs) underwent language testing followed by fMRI while performing an overt event-related verb generation task (ER-VGT) isolating activations related to noun-verb semantic processing or to articulation and auditory processing, and a covert block design verb generation task (BD-VGT). Results BD-VGT activation patterns were consistent with previous studies, while ER-VGT showed different patterns in SPs relative to HCs including less left-hemispheric involvement during semantic processing and predominantly right-sided activation related to articulation and auditory processing. ER-VGT intra-scanner performance was positively associated with activation during semantic associations in the left middle temporal gyrus for HCs (p=0.031) and left middle frontal gyrus for SPs (p=0.042). Increased activation in superior frontal/cingulate gyri was associated with better intra-scanner performance (p=0.020). Lesion size negatively impacted verbal fluency tested with Controlled Oral Word Association Test (p=0.0092) and the Semantic Fluency Test (p=0.033) and trended towards a negative association with verb generation performance on the event-related verb generation task (p=0.081). Conclusions Greater retention of pre-stroke language skills is associated with greater involvement of the left hemisphere with different cortical recruitment patterns observed in SPs versus HCs. Post-stroke verbal fluency may depend more upon the structural and functional integrity of the dominant left hemisphere language network rather than the shift to contralateral homologues.
Physical Fitness in Children with Type 1 Diabetes Measured with Six-Minute Walk Test

Aim/Hypothesis. To examine whether children with DMT1 are less physically fit than healthy children and to assess whether an elevated level of HbA1c was associated with decreased physical fitness among children with diabetes. Methods. The study was conducted using case-control methodology. The cases were 100 children with T1DM, 7–17,9 years. Study subjects underwent a 6MWT, where distance measured, heart rate, and oxygen saturation was recorded. Results. Results of the 6MWT for children with T1DM and controls were 601.3 ± 86.1 meters versus 672.1 ± 60.6 meters, respectively (P < 0.001). The cases were divided into two subgroups, one with HbA1c levels >8% and one with HbA1c <8%. Results for both groups were inferior to the controls (P < 0.001). The posttest pulse rate in all subjects was higher than the pretest pulse rate (P < 0.001). Pulse oxygen levels were lower than controls at the pretest measurement (P < 0.001), and for both cases and controls, pulse oxygen levels decreased after test (P = 0.004). However, the change in oxygen saturation did not differ between the groups (P = 0.332). Conclusions. Children with T1D are less fit than matched controls. The level of HbA1c did not affect the physical fitness of children with T1D.
A panel of ancestry informative markers for estimating individual biogeographical ancestry and admixture from four continents: utility and applications

Autosomal ancestry informative markers (AIMs) are useful for inferring individual biogeographical ancestry (I‐BGA) and admixture. Ancestry estimates obtained from Y and mtDNA are useful for reconstructing population expansions and migrations in our recent past but individual genomic admixture estimates are useful to test for association of admixture with phenotypes, as covariate in association studies to control for stratification and, in forensics, to estimate certain overt phenotypes from ancestry. We have developed a panel of 176 autosomal AIMs that can effectively distinguish I‐BGA and admixture proportions from four continental ancestral populations: Europeans, West Africans, Indigenous Americans, and East Asians. We present allele frequencies for these AIMs in all four ancestral populations and use them to assess the global apportionment of I‐BGA and admixture diversity among some extant populations. We observed patterns of apportionment similar to those described previously using sex and autosomal markers, such as European admixture for African Americans (14.3%) and Mexicans (43.2%), European (65.5%) and East Asian affiliation (27%) for South Asians, and low levels of African admixture (2.8–10.8%) mirroring the distribution of Y E3b haplogroups among various Eurasian populations. Using simulation studies and pedigree analysis we show that I‐BGA estimates obtained using this panel and a four‐population model has a high degree of precision (average root mean square error [RMSE]=0.026). Using ancestry–phenotype associations we demonstrate that a large and informative AIM panel such as this can help reduce false‐positive and false‐negative associations between phenotypes and admixture proportions, which may result when using a smaller panel of less informative AIMs. Hum Mutat 29(5), 648–658, 2008. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Pseudomonas aeruginosa 1244 Pilin Glycosylation: Glycan Substrate Recognition

ABSTRACT The pilin of Pseudomonas aeruginosa 1244 is glycosylated with an oligosaccharide that is structurally identical to the O-antigen repeating unit of this organism. Concordantly, the metabolic source of the pilin glycan is the O-antigen biosynthetic pathway. The present study was conducted to investigate glycan substrate recognition in the 1244 pilin glycosylation reaction. Comparative structural analysis of O subunits that had been previously shown to be compatible with the 1244 glycosylation machinery revealed similarities among sugars at the presumed reducing termini of these oligosaccharides. We therefore hypothesized that the glycosylation substrate was within the sugar at the reducing end of the glycan precursor. Since much is known of PA103 O-antigen genetics and because the sugars at the reducing termini of the O7 (strain 1244) and O11 (strain PA103) are identical (β-N-acetyl fucosamine), we utilized PA103 and strains that express lipopolysaccharide (LPS) with a truncated O-antigen subunit to test our hypothesis. LPS from a strain mutated in the wbjE gene produced an incomplete O subunit, consisting only of the monosaccharide at the reducing end (β-d-N-acetyl fucosamine), indicating that this moiety contained substrate recognition elements for WaaL. Expression of pilAO 1244 in PA103 wbjE::aacC1, followed by Western blotting of extracts of these cells, indicated that pilin produced has been modified by the addition of material consistent with a single N-acetyl fucosamine. This was confirmed by analyzing endopeptidase-treated pilin by mass spectrometry. These data suggest that the pilin glycosylation substrate recognition features lie within the reducing-end moiety of the O repeat and that structures of the remaining sugars are irrelevant.
Models for the Generation of Heterogeneous Complex Networks

Complex networks are composed of a large number of interacting nodes. Examples of complex networks include the topology of the Internet, connections between websites or web pages in the World Wide Web (WWW), and connections between participants in social networks. Due to their ubiquity, modeling complex networks is important for answering many research questions that cannot be answered without a mathematical model. For example, mathematical models of complex networks can be used to find the most vulnerable nodes to protect during a virus attack in the Internet, to predict connections between websites in the WWW, or to find members of different communities in social networks. Researchers have analyzed complex networks and concluded that they are distinguished from other networks by four specific statistical properties. These four statistical properties are commonly known in this field as: (i) the small world effect, (ii) high average clustering coefficient, (iii) scale-free power law degree distribution, and (iv) emergence of community structure. These four statistical properties are further described later in this dissertation. Most models used to generate complex networks attempt to produce networks with these statistical properties. Additionally, most of these network models generate homogeneous complex networks where all the network nodes are considered to have the same properties. Homogenous complex networks neglect the heterogeneous nature of the nodes in many complex networks. Moreover, some models proposed for generating heterogeneous complex networks are not general as they make specific assumptions about the properties of the network.Including heterogeneity in the connection algorithm of a model would make it more suitable for generating the subset of complex networks that exhibit selective linking. Additionally, all models proposed, to date, for generating heterogeneous complex networks do not preserve all four of the statistical properties of complex networks stated above. Thus, formulation of a model for the generation of general heterogeneous complex networks with characteristics that resemble as much as possible the statistical properties common to the real-world networks that have received attention from the research community is still an open research question.
Understanding multimedia dialogues in a foreign language

The effects of lexical and semantic previews on the comprehension of a computer-presented illustrated dialogue were examined. Based on a multilevel cognitive theory of comprehension, different types of preview were expected to influence specific aspects of the learners' activity. Thirty French undergraduate students of English as a foreign language were asked to study a computerised illustrated dialogue. A lexical preview decreased the frequency of control actions while listening (e.g. pauses, replays) while the semantic preview improved the quality of information recalled. It is concluded that a fine-grain analysis of language comprehension processes can improve the design of educational multimedia products
Nuclear retention of M1 protein in a temperature-sensitive mutant of influenza (A/WSN/33) virus does not affect nuclear export of viral ribonucleoproteins

We investigated the properties of ts51, an influenza virus (A/WSN/33) temperature-sensitive RNA segment 7 mutant. Nucleotide sequence analysis revealed that ts51 possesses a single nucleotide mutation, T-261----C, in RNA segment 7, resulting in a single amino acid change. Phenylalanine (position 79) in the wild-type M1 protein was substituted by serine in ts51. This mutation was phenotypically characterized by dramatic nuclear accumulation of the M1 protein and interfered with some steps at the late stage of virus replication, possibly affecting the assembly and/or budding of viral particles. However, although M1 protein was retained within the nucleus, export of the newly synthesized viral ribonucleoprotein containing the minus-strand RNA into the cytoplasm was essentially the same at both permissive and nonpermissive temperatures. The roles of M1 in the export of viral ribonucleoproteins from the nucleus into the cytoplasm and in the virus particle assembly process are discussed.
The Relationship Between Science Teachers' Understandings of the Nature of Science and their Classroom Practices

An adequate understanding of the Nature of Science (NOS) has become increasingly important for science teachers in the context of the recent curriculum revisions being implemented in Grades R–9 in South African schools. This study explored the NOS conceptions and the influence of these conceptions on the classroom practice of two groups of practising science teachers—a group of three teachers who received explicit instruction in NOS in a semester-long (36 h) professional development programme and an alternative group of three teachers who had not received any explicit instruction in NOS previously. The quantitative data gathered from the responses to a 12-item Likert-scale questionnaire and the qualitative data from semi-structured interviews were analysed to seek the teachers' views on six NOS aspects related to the epistemological and ontological nature of science. A video-taped science lesson of each teacher was analysed using a classroom observation schedule to examine the extent to which each of the six NOS aspects targeted was mediated in the classroom. A mixed-methods approach has been adopted in this study. The results indicate that the teachers who received explicit instruction in NOS displayed better understandings in some aspects of NOS compared with those who were not exposed to NOS instruction. Nevertheless teachers from both groups continue to experience difficulties in mediating informed notions of the socio-cultural influence on the scientific enterprise, the role of imagination and creativity in scientific process and the purpose of and distinction between theories and laws. Implications of the findings for in-service teacher programmes and recommendations for further research are suggested.
Associations between miscellaneous symptoms and symptom dimensions in adults with obsessive-compulsive disorder

Abstract Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a debilitating psychiatric condition with a heterogeneous array of obsessions and compulsions. Although factor analytic studies have identified symptom dimensions comprising the clinical presentation of OCD, many frequently reported miscellaneous symptoms are not considered in factor analytic studies because they do not fit conceptually within a particular symptom category, despite being functionally related. In the present study, we examined the associations between miscellaneous symptoms and OCD symptom dimensions in a sample of 111 adults with OCD. Overall, most miscellaneous symptoms were associated with one or more symptom dimensions in previously identified four- (14 of the 22 symptoms) and five-factor models (12 of the 22 symptoms). In both models, Contamination/Cleaning was the only dimension not related to any miscellaneous symptom. The present results provide information about which miscellaneous symptoms may be related to particular symptom dimensions, which will assist in clinical evaluations and help planning behavioral psychotherapy (e.g., hierarchy development).
Thymidylate Synthase Gene Polymorphism Predicts Toxicity in Colorectal Cancer Patients Receiving 5-Fluorouracil-based Chemotherapy

Purpose: The target enzyme for 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) is thymidylate synthase (TS). The TYMS gene encoding this enzyme is polymorphic, having either double (2R) or tri-tandem (3R) repeats of a 28-bp sequence in the promoter region and a 6-bp variation in the 3′-untranslated region (3′-UTR). TS expression predicts response to 5-FU-based chemotherapy, and the expression seems to be determined by the TYMS gene promoter. The aim of this study was to investigate the utility of determining these two TYMS gene polymorphisms to predict the toxicity and efficacy of 5-FU treatment in patients with colorectal cancer. Experimental Design: The determination of TYMS genotypes was performed in tumor and normal tissues by PCR amplification from 90 patients with colorectal cancer who were treated with adjuvant or palliative 5-FU-based chemotherapy. Associations between polymorphisms in the TYMS promoter and in the 3′-UTR gene and clinical outcome of these 90 patients treated with 5-FU based chemotherapy were evaluated individually. The linkage between TYMS promoter and TYMS 3′-UTR region polymorphisms was evaluated and a haplotype analysis was performed. Results: Individuals who were homozygous for the double repeat in the TYMS promoter region had more severe side effects to 5-FU. Patients with a 2R/2R, a 2R/3R, or a 3R/3R genotype had a grade 3 or 4 toxicity rate of 43, 18, and 3% respectively (P < 0.01). The TYMS promoter and TYMS 3′-UTR polymorphisms were in linkage disequilibrium, and the haplotype 2R/ins 6-bp was significantly associated with a high risk of severe side effects to 5-FU. The TYMS promoter and TYMS 3′-UTR polymorphisms were not associated with a response to 5-FU and survival of patients who received palliative 5-FU-based chemotherapy. Conclusions: This study demonstrated that TYMS genotyping could be of help in predicting toxicity to 5-FU-based chemotherapy. TYMS genotyping might make it possible to individualize treatment for patients with colorectal cancer.
Community-Based Approaches to Strengthen Cultural Competency in Nursing Education and Practice

This article explores existing informal as well as formal approaches that address health disparities in the communities where they occur, enhancing the opportunity to strengthen the cultural competency of providers, students, and faculty. A particular focus centers on the community-based participatory research approaches that involve community members, providing opportunities to develop mutually respectful, trusting relationships through co-teaching and co-learning experiences. With community-based participatory research approaches to community involvement in place, the stage is set for partnerships between communities and schools of nursing to collaboratively design, implement, and integrate informal and formal cultural competence components in nursing curricula.
Computer-aided diagnosis for dynamic contrast-enhanced breast MRI of mass-like lesions using a multiparametric model combining a selection of morphological, kinetic, and spatiotemporal features.

PURPOSE Dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (DCE-MRI) is a radiological tool for the detection and discrimination of breast lesions. The aim of this study is to evaluate a computer-aided diagnosis (CAD) system for discriminating malignant from benign breast lesions at DCE-MRI by the combined use of morphological, kinetic, and spatiotemporal lesion features. METHODS Fifty-four malignant and 19 benign breast lesions in 51 patients were retrospectively evaluated. Images were acquired at two centers at 1.5 T. Mass-like lesions were automatically segmented after image normalization and elastic coregistration of contrast-enhanced frames. For each lesion, a set of 28 3D features were extracted: ten morphological (related to shape, margins, and internal enhancement distribution); nine kinetic (computed from signal-to-time curves); and nine spatiotemporal (related to the variation of the signal between adjacent frames). A support vector machine (SVM) was trained with feature subsets selected by a genetic search. Best subsets were composed of the most frequent features selected by majority rule. The performance was measured by receiver operator characteristics analysis with a stratified tenfold cross-validation and bootstrap method for confidence intervals. RESULTS SVM training by the three separated classes of features resulted in an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.90 ± 0.04 (mean ± standard deviation), 0.87 ± 0.06, and 0.86 ± 0.06 for morphological, kinetic, and spatiotemporal feature, respectively. Combined training with all 28 features resulted in AUC of 0.96 ± 0.02 obtained with a selected feature subset composed by two morphological, one kinetic, and two spatiotemporal features. CONCLUSIONS Quantitative combination of morphological, kinetic, and spatiotemporal features is feasible and provides a higher discriminating power than using the three different classes of features separately.