Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Circulating and dietary magnesium and risk of cardiovascular disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective studies.

BACKGROUND Clinical hypomagnesemia and experimental restriction of dietary magnesium increase cardiac arrhythmias. However, whether or not circulating or dietary magnesium at usual concentrations or intakes influences the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD), including fatal ischemic heart disease (IHD), is unclear. OBJECTIVE We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis to investigate prospective associations of circulating and dietary magnesium with incidence of CVD, IHD, and fatal IHD. DESIGN Multiple literature databases were systematically searched without language restriction through May 2012. Inclusion decisions and data extraction were performed in duplicate. Linear dose-response associations were assessed by using random-effects meta-regression. Potential nonlinear associations were evaluated by using restricted cubic splines. RESULTS Of 2303 articles, 16 studies met the eligibility criteria; these studies comprised 313,041 individuals and 11,995 CVD, 7534 IHD, and 2686 fatal IHD events. Circulating magnesium (per 0.2 mmol/L increment) was associated with a 30% lower risk of CVD (RR: 0.70; 95% CI: 0.56, 0.88 per 0.2 mmol/L) and trends toward lower risks of IHD (RR: 0.83; 95% CI: 0.75, 1.05) and fatal IHD (RR: 0.61; 95% CI: 0.37, 1.00). Dietary magnesium (per 200-mg/d increment) was not significantly associated with CVD (RR: 0.89; 95% CI: 0.75, 1.05) but was associated with a 22% lower risk of IHD (RR: 0.78; 95% CI: 0.67, 0.92). The association of dietary magnesium with fatal IHD was nonlinear (P < 0.001), with an inverse association observed up to a threshold of ∼250 mg/d (RR: 0.73; 95% CI: 0.62, 0.86), compared with lower intakes. CONCLUSION Circulating and dietary magnesium are inversely associated with CVD risk, which supports the need for clinical trials to evaluate the potential role of magnesium in the prevention of CVD and IHD.
Distinct Mechanisms of Ethanol Potentiation of Local and Paracapsular GABAergic Synapses in the Rat Basolateral Amygdala

Converging lines of behavioral and pharmacological evidence suggest that GABAergic synapses in the basolateral amygdala (BLA) may play an integral role in mediating the anxiolytic effects of ethanol (EtOH). Since anxiety is thought to play an important role in the development of, and relapse to, alcoholism, elucidating the mechanisms through which EtOH modulates GABAergic synaptic transmission in the BLA may be fundamental in understanding the etiology of this disease. A recent study in mice has shown that principal cells within the BLA receive inhibitory input from two distinct types of GABAergic interneurons: a loosely distributed population of local interneurons and a dense network of paracapsular (pcs) GABAergic cells clustered along the external capsule border. Here, we sought to confirm the presence of these two populations of GABAergic synapses in the rat BLA and evaluate their ethanol sensitivity. Our results suggest that rat BLA pyramidal cells receive distinct inhibitory input from local and pcs interneurons and that EtOH potentiates both populations of synapses, albeit via distinct mechanisms. EtOH enhancement of local inhibitory postsynaptic currents (IPSCs) was associated with a significant decrease in paired-pulse ratio (PPR) and was significantly potentiated by the GABAB receptor antagonist SCH 50911 [(+)-(S)-5,5-dimethylmorpholinyl-2-acetic acid], consistent with a facilitation of GABA release from presynaptic terminals. Conversely, EtOH enhancement of pcs IPSCs did not alter PPR and was not enhanced by SCH 50911 but was inhibited by blockade of noradrenergic receptors. Collectively, these data reveal that EtOH can potentiate GABAergic inhibitory synaptic transmission in the rat BLA through at least two distinct pathways.
Reliability and Validity of the Kessler 10 and Patient Health Questionnaire among Injecting Drug Users

Objective: To examine the reliability and validity of the Kessler 10 (K10) and the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ) in a sample of injecting drug users (IDUs). Method: Participants were 103 IDUs with a current substance use disorder accessing a needle and syringe programme. Presence of mental health disorders was assessed using the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI). Results: Both the K10 and PHQ had high levels of internal consistency and concurrent validity. Individuals with a positive screen on the K10 were ten lines more likely to have a current affective disorder, while those with a positive PHQ screen had nearly 14 times the risk. Conclusions: The K10 and PHQ are recommended as brief screening and diagnostic tools for current affective disorders among IDUs.
Computational Experience with an Interior Point Cutting Plane Algorithm

There has been a great deal of success in the last 20 years with the use of cutting plane algorithms to solve specialized integer programming problems. Generally, these algorithms work by solving a sequence of linear programming relaxations of the integer programming problem, and they use the simplex algorithm to solve the relaxations. In this paper, we describe experiments using a predictor-corrector interior point method to solve the relaxations. For some problems, the interior point code requires considerably less time than a simplex based cutting plane algorithm.
ANALYSIS OF ACCOMMODATIVE RESPONSE TIMES USING HISTOGRAM INFORMATION*

&NA; An optometer is described that provides an electrical signal proportional to the amount of movement of the anterior surface of the crystalline lens. Dynamic recordings of this movement were made on a number of subjects tracking predictable (periodic) and nonpredictable target step movements. Histograms of the reaction times definitely show that the accommodation system can reduce its delay time when presented with a predictable stimulus. Typical accommodative reaction times are compared to those published by other authors in the literature. The change of anterior chamber depth, lens curvature, and pupil diameter are related to accommodative target distance by a photographic method and help to provide a clearer understanding of accommodative lens changes.
Gated Residual Recurrent Graph Neural Networks for Traffic Prediction

Traffic prediction is of great importance to traffic management and public safety, and very challenging as it is affected by many complex factors, such as spatial dependency of complicated road networks and temporal dynamics, and many more. The factors make traffic prediction a challenging task due to the uncertainty and complexity of traffic states. In the literature, many research works have applied deep learning methods on traffic prediction problems combining convolutional neural networks (CNNs) with recurrent neural networks (RNNs), which CNNs are utilized for spatial dependency and RNNs for temporal dynamics. However, such combinations cannot capture the connectivity and globality of traffic networks. In this paper, we first propose to adopt residual recurrent graph neural networks (Res-RGNN) that can capture graph-based spatial dependencies and temporal dynamics jointly. Due to gradient vanishing, RNNs are hard to capture periodic temporal correlations. Hence, we further propose a novel hop scheme into Res-RGNN to utilize the periodic temporal dependencies. Based on Res-RGNN and hop Res-RGNN, we finally propose a novel end-to-end multiple Res-RGNNs framework, referred to as “MRes-RGNN”, for traffic prediction. Experimental results on two traffic datasets have demonstrated that the proposed MRes-RGNN outperforms state-of-the-art methods significantly.
THE EFFECT OF PRETREATMENT OF MICROWAVE HEATING ON EFFICIENCY OF HYDROLYSIS TIME AND α-CELLULOSIC CHARACTERISTICS OF PALM OIL WASTE BIOMASS

THE EFFECT OF PRETREATMENT OF MICROWAVE HEATING ON EFFICIENCY OF HYDROLYSIS TIME AND α-CELLULOSIC CHARACTERISTICS OF PALM OIL WASTE BIOMASS. This research is underlied by the needs of various industries for alpha cellulose, especially for the needs of raw material for cellulose nanocristalline, from fiber derived from the most potential waste biomass in Indonesia, namely oil palm empty fruit bunches (OPEFB) and mesocarp fibers. This study aims to find out the effect of pretreatment by microwave heating on the efficiency of hydrolysis time and alpha cellulose characteristics from palm oil waste biomass. To produce alpha cellulose, acid hydrolysis is commonly used with the multistage pulping process method, where the fiber is dissolved into HNO3 mixed acid, 3.5% and NaNO2, heated at a temperature of 90 oC for 2 hours, hydrolyzed and delignified to remove lignin and bleached, then separated from betha and gamma cellulose by dissolving it with NaOH 17.5%. In this study, a preliminary treatment (pretreatment) with microwave heating was carried out before the fiber was hydrolyzed so that the hydrolysis process was more efficient without reducing the characteristics of the alpha cellulose produced. The research results showed that pretreatment with microwave heating can streamline the hydrolysis time from 2 hours to 1 hour, without reducing its characteristics, where the degree of fiber crystallinity (XRD) and the yield of alpha cellulose remain high. Microwave heating with 450 watts for 5 minutes (treatment A) is better than 300 watts of heating for 10 minutes (treatment B). From the results of the study, it can be concluded that the pretreatment with microwave heating can streamline the hydrolysis time of the fiber to obtain alpha cellulose and increase the yield of the produced alpha cellulose.
Mutational analysis and an alternatively spliced product of B7 defines its CD28/CTLA4-binding site on immunoglobulin C-like domain

Costimulatory molecules B7 and B7-2 interact with T cell surface receptors CD28/CTLA4 and deliver a costimulatory signal essential for T cell growth. However, the structure basis of this interaction is not known. B7 and B7-2 are members of immunoglobulin (Ig) superfamily and their extracellular portion consists of an IgV- and IgC-like domain. Here we report that a naturally occurring, alternatively spliced form of B7 reveals that exon 3-encoded IgC domain is essential for CD28/CTLA4 binding. Mutational analysis of B7 demonstrates a critical role of several amino acids around loops between strands B and C and D and E, for binding CTLA4/CD28. These amino acids are clustered to form a single binding site centered at 201Y. A comparison of the effects of mutations on the binding of CD28 and CTLA4 reveals that CD28 and CTLA4 binds to the same site on B7. These results have important implications on the role of CTLA4 and CD28 in T cell costimulation. The structure of the CD28/CTLA4-binding site also provides valuable information for immune intervention targeted at the B7/B7-2-CD28/CTLA4 interactions.
The Association of Maternal Protein Intake during Pregnancy in Humans with Maternal and Offspring Insulin Sensitivity Measures

ABSTRACT The purpose of this review is to critically evaluate the studies assessing the relations between protein intake during human pregnancy and insulin sensitivity measures in the mother and offspring, and to get a better understanding of the knowledge gaps that still exist. Overall, there is insufficient evidence to conclude about implications of higher amounts of protein intake during pregnancy on maternal or offspring insulin sensitivity. However, studies show a relation between protein quality and insulin sensitivity, such that animal protein may be associated with negative outcomes and plant protein may be associated with positive insulin sensitivity outcomes. There is an urgent need for standardized studies using comparable terminology to evaluate any potential relations between insulin sensitivity in mothers and offspring and truly low and high maternal protein intake while maintaining eucaloric balance to better inform about optimal protein dosage and quality during this period.
Spatial and temporal distribution of visual information coding in lateral prefrontal cortex

Prefrontal neurons code many kinds of behaviourally relevant visual information. In behaving monkeys, we used a cued target detection task to address coding of objects, behavioural categories and spatial locations, examining the temporal evolution of neural activity across dorsal and ventral regions of the lateral prefrontal cortex (encompassing parts of areas 9, 46, 45A and 8A), and across the two cerebral hemispheres. Within each hemisphere there was little evidence for regional specialisation, with neurons in dorsal and ventral regions showing closely similar patterns of selectivity for objects, categories and locations. For a stimulus in either visual field, however, there was a strong and temporally specific difference in response in the two cerebral hemispheres. In the first part of the visual response (50–250 ms from stimulus onset), processing in each hemisphere was largely restricted to contralateral stimuli, with strong responses to such stimuli, and selectivity for both object and category. Later (300–500 ms), responses to ipsilateral stimuli also appeared, many cells now responding more strongly to ipsilateral than to contralateral stimuli, and many showing selectivity for category. Activity on error trials showed that late activity in both hemispheres reflected the animal's final decision. As information is processed towards a behavioural decision, its encoding spreads to encompass large, bilateral regions of prefrontal cortex.
The Determinants of the Leasing Decision of Small and Large Companies

We analyse the leasing decision of more than 3000 UK quoted and unquoted companies over the sample period 1982-1996. We show that, for the sample as a whole, companies that use leasing are more likely to have tax losses, high fixed capital investment, high debt-to-equity ratio and to be larger than companies that do not use leasing. We show, however, that the determinants of leasing are not homogeneous across firms of different size. For large companies, leasing, profitability, leverage and taxation are positively correlated. In contrast, for small companies, the leasing decision is not driven by taxation or by profitability, but by growth opportunities. We show that small firms with high Tobin's q and those that are less profitable are more likely to use leasing.
Postoperative haemodynamic changes in transplanted liver: Long-term follow-up with ultrasonography

Objective To investigate haemodynamic changes in the transplanted liver without postoperative complications. Methods Colour Doppler ultrasound was used to monitor recipients of liver transplants who had no postoperative complications. The haemodynamic data for the hepatic vasculature were compared at different time-points during the first 4 years after liver transplantation. Results A total of 144 liver transplant patients were enrolled in the study. Portal vein flow velocity decreased significantly from 72.1 ± 30.3 cm/s at 1 day to 44.2 ± 20.1 cm/s at 1 month after liver transplantation. Hepatic artery flow velocity was 61.4 ± 33.2 cm/s at day 1; it then decreased slowly but significantly to 48.3 ± 20.4 cm/s at 3 years after transplantation. There were 81 (56.3%) patients with high hepatic artery resistance index (HARI) (>0.80) and 19 (13.2%) with low HARI (<0.50) measured at least once during the 4-year follow-up examination. Conclusions Decreased portal vein flow velocity was the typical change observed during the first month after liver transplantation. Abnormal haemodynamic Doppler results should be interpreted with caution because they may not be clinically significant and may improve spontaneously.
Natural hybridization and genetic and morphological variation between two epiphytic bromeliads

We investigated the potential evolutionary mechanisms associated with maintenance of reproductive species barriers between V. simplex and V. scalaris through morphological and genetic data. Nuclear genomic admixture suggests hybridization in sympatric populations, although interspecific gene flow is low among species in all sympatric zones (N < 0.5). Thus, morphological and genetic divergence (10.99%) between species can be maintained despite ongoing natural hybridization. Cross-evaluation of our genetic and morphological data suggests that species integrity is maintained by the simultaneous action of multiple barriers, such as divergent reproductive systems among species and differences in floral traits.
Clinical Applications of Wavefront Refraction

Purpose To determine normative reference ranges for higher-order wavefront error (HO-WFE), compare these values with those in common ocular pathologies, and evaluate treatments. Methods A review of 17 major studies on HO-WFE was made, involving data for a total of 31,605 subjects. The upper limit of the 95% confidence interval (CI) for HO-WFE was calculated from the most comprehensive of these studies using normal healthy patients aged 20 to 80 years. There were no studies identified using the natural pupil size for subjects, and for this reason, the HO-WFE was tabulated for pupil diameters of 3 to 7 mm. Effects of keratoconus, pterygium, cataract, and dry eye on HO-WFE were reviewed and treatment efficacy was considered. Results The calculated upper limit of the 95% CI for HO-WFE in a healthy normal 35-year-old patient with a mesopic pupil diameter of 6 mm would be 0.471 &mgr;m (471 nm) root-mean-square or less. Although the normal HO-WFE increases with age for a given pupil size, it is not yet completely clear how the concurrent influence of age-related pupillary miosis affects these findings. Abnormal ocular conditions such as keratoconus can induce a large HO-WFE, often in excess of 3.0 &mgr;m, particularly attributed to coma. For pterygium or cortical cataract, a combination of coma and trefoil was more commonly induced. Nuclear cataract can induce a negative spherical HO-WFE, usually in excess of 1.0 &mgr;m. Conclusions The upper limit of the 95% CI for HO-WFE root-mean-square is about 0.5 &mgr;m with normal physiological pupil sizes. With ocular pathologies, HO-WFE can be in excess of 1.0 &mgr;m, although many devices and therapeutic and surgical treatments are reported to be highly effective at minimizing HO-WFE. More accurate normative reference ranges for HO-WFE will require future studies using the subjects’ natural pupil size.
Factors Associated With Interest in Worksite Health-Related Discussions/Events Among Employed Adults With Chronic Conditions

Objective: Worksite health promotion interventions have the potential to reach half of Americans nationally, but low participation rates hinder optimal intervention effectiveness. This study examines factors associated with employee interest in worksite health-related discussions/events. Method: We analyzed cross-sectional survey data from a representative sample of employed adults in California with one or more chronic conditions. An ordinal regression model was developed. Results: Employees who reported more interest in worksite health-related discussions/events had higher coworkers support, perceived greater value from learning health-related knowledge and getting practical tips from others, and reported higher interest in health discussions/events held in community settings. Conclusion: Efforts are needed to enhance the culture of worksite health and encourage communication and support among workers. Practitioners should consider connecting different settings to enhance reach and accessibility, and applying multiple delivery strategies to increase employee interest and engagement.
Polymorphisms in Genes Involved in the NF-κB Signalling Pathway Are Associated with Bone Mineral Density, Geometry and Turnover in Men

Introduction In this study, we aimed to investigate the association between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) within two genes involved in the NF-κB cascade (GPR177 and MAP3K14) and bone mineral density (BMD) assessed at different skeletal sites, radial geometric parameters and bone turnover. Methods Ten GPR177 SNPs previously associated with BMD with genome-wide significance and twelve tag SNPs (r2≥0.8) within MAP3K14 (±10 kb) were genotyped in 2359 men aged 40–79 years recruited from 8 centres for participation in the European Male Aging Study (EMAS). Measurement of bone turnover markers (PINP and CTX-I) in the serum and quantitative ultrasound (QUS) at the calcaneus were performed in all centres. Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), at the lumbar spine and hip, and peripheral quantitative computed tomography (pQCT), at the distal and midshaft radius, were performed in a subsample (2 centres). Linear regression was used to test for association between the SNPs and bone measures under an additive genetic model adjusting for study centre. Results We validated the associations between SNPs in GPR177 and BMDa previously reported and also observed evidence of pleiotrophic effects on density and geometry. Rs2772300 in GPR177 was associated with increased total hip and LS BMDa, increased total and cortical vBMD at the radius and increased cortical area, thickness and stress strain index. We also found evidence of association with BMDa, vBMD, geometric parameters and CTX-I for SNPs in MAP3K14. None of the GPR177 and MAP3K14 SNPs were associated with calcaneal estimated BMD measured by QUS. Conclusion Our findings suggest that SNPs in GPR177 and MAP3K14 involved in the NF-κB signalling pathway influence bone mineral density, geometry and turnover in a population-based cohort of middle aged and elderly men. This adds to the understanding of the role of genetic variation in this pathway in determining bone health.
Mesenchymal stem cells expanded in human platelet lysate display a decreased inhibitory capacity on T‐ and NK‐cell proliferation and function

The use of fetal bovine serum (FBS) for the culture and expansion of mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) limits their possible clinical applications. Although some recent studies recommended substituting FBS with human platelet lysate (HPL) for the expansion of MSCs for clinical use, the functional capacity of the expanded cells has only been partially explored. 10% FBS and two other commercial FBS‐containing media (MesenCult and MesenPro) were compared with 10% HPL‐containing medium for their ability to support MSCs expansion and immunomodulation. We demonstrate that HPL sustained MSC proliferation and expansion in vitro. However, the cumulative cell numbers recovered were comparable with those obtained in MesenPro medium. Moreover, we show that HPL alters the expression of some relevant MSC surface molecules, namely the DNAM‐1 ligands PVR and Nectin‐2, the NKG2D ligand ULBP3, the adhesion molecules CD49d and αvβ3 and the fibroblast‐associated protein. In addition, MSCs cultured in HPL displayed impaired inhibitory capacity on T‐cell proliferation to alloantigen and NK‐cell proliferation and cytotoxicity. Finally, they showed decreased constitutive PGE2 production while IL‐6, IL‐8 and RANTES secretion were upregulated. These results imply some limitations in the use of HPL for the expansion of MSCs to be used as immunomodulators in clinical applications.