Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Early effects of normal aging on perseverative and non‐perseverative prefrontal measures

Current neuropsychological research supports a model postulating that prefrontal functions are among the first to decline in normal aging, but this model has rarely been empirically tested with subjects of 65 years or less. This study tests the following hypotheses: (a) A significant decline occurs prior to age 65 in a wide ranging set of prefrontal performance measures and (b) a significant increase occurs on measures of perseveration based on the same prefrontal tasks. A group of young adults (n = 70) aged 20 to 35 and a group of elderly adults (n = 58) aged 45 to 65, group‐matched for education and sex, were evaluated by means of six neuropsychological prefrontal tasks: the Self‐Ordered Pointing Task, the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test, the Porteus Mazes, a Verbal Fluency Task, a Design Fluency Task, and the Stroop Test. Four of the six prefrontal scores and four of six measures of perseveration manifested significant declines in the elderly group, suggesting that normal aging prior to age 65 may exhibit .
On the material depletion rate due to electromigration in a copper TSV structure

We investigate the material depletion rate from a fatal void due to electromigration in a Cu interconnect structure ended by a TSV. Experiments show the formation of a fatal void above the TSV. Its volumetric growth rate is practically constant for an extended period, but at longer times a significant increase is observed. We have carried out numerical simulations to reproduce the aforementioned void growth behavior. The model incorporates the void size dependence on the incoming flux of vacancies due to electromigration. The simulation results have provided a good description for the void volume and for the growth rate increase for the entire time window of the experiments.
Development of the Parental Academic Support Scale: Frequency, Importance, and Modes of Communication

Parent-teacher communication represents a primary form of parental support, a phenomenon meriting significant attention given the connections between support and academic achievement (Thompson, 2008b). A series of studies advance the Parental Academic Support Scale (PASS) to assess the frequency, importance, and modes parents use to communicate support with teachers at the elementary, junior high, and secondary school levels. Phase one details scale development procedures, presents the results of exploratory factor analysis, and advances the PASS. Phase two applies confirmatory factor analysis, examines the frequency and importance of specific supportive behaviors, and implements media richness theory to explore the modes commonly used by parents to communicate with teachers. Implications for teachers, scholars, and school administrators are discussed.
Transcutaneous Electrical Stimulation of Acupoints Changes Body Composition and Heart Rate Variability in Postmenopausal Women with Obesity

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of transcutaneous electric acupoint stimulations (TEAS) on body composition and heart rate variability (HRV) in postmenopausal women with obesity. In this prospective study, 49 postmenopausal women were recruited in Taiwan. Body composition was used as a screening test for obesity (percentage body fat > 30%, waist circumference > 80 cm). The experimental group (n = 24) received TEAS treatment 30 min twice per week for 12 weeks at the Zusanli (ST 36) and Sanyinjiao (SP 6) acupoints. The control group (n = 25) did not receive any intervention. The study of HRV was analyzed by time (standard deviation of the normal-to-normal (NN) intervals (SDNN) and square root of the mean squared differences of successive NN intervals (RMSSD) indices) and frequency domain methods. Power spectral components were obtained at low (LF) and high (HF) frequencies. Body composition and HRV values were measured at the 4th, 8th, and 12th weeks. A total of 40 subjects completed this study. Waist circumference and percentage body fat in the experimental group (n = 20) were significantly less than those of the control group (n = 20) at the 8th and 12th weeks (all P < .05). Additionally, at the same time points, percentage lean body mass in the experimental group was significantly greater than that in the control group (P < .05). SDNN values increased significantly at the 4th and 8th weeks when compared with the control group (all P < .05). At 12 weeks, SDNN value was not significantly different from that of the control group (P = .105). TEAS treatment improves body composition, and has a transient effect on the HRV in postmenopausal women with obesity.
Evaluation of the C-reactive protein serum levels in periodontitis patients with or without atherosclerosis.

BACKGROUND Several studies suggested an association between periodontal disease and cardiovascular disease (CVD). C- reactive protein is elevated in periodontitis patients and has been found to be a predictor of increased risk for cardiovascular disease. Since, CRP is known to play a role in pathogenesis of atherosclerosis, the present study was undertaken to evaluate the serum levels of CRP in periodontitis patients with or without atherosclerosis. MATERIALS AND METHODS A total of 45 patients, 15 chronic periodontitis patients with atherosclerosis (Group A), 15 chronic periodontitis patients with no history of any systemic disease (Group B), and 15 clinically healthy individuals with no history of periodontal or systemic disease (Group C) within age range of 30 to 55 years were selected for the study. PI, PBI, PPD, CAL and radiographic marginal alveolar bone level were assessed in all the three groups. CRP levels were assessed with 'Turbi-latex' kit using turbidimetric analysis. RESULTS The mean CAL recorded was 4.9mm in group A, 4.6mm in group B and 1.9 mm in group C. The mean radiographic marginal bone level was 45 to 50% in group A, 45 to 50% in group B and 90 to 95% in group C. Mean serum C-reactive protein level was significantly higher in group A (8.9 mg/l), as compared to group B (4.9 mg/l) as well as group C (0.9 mg/l). CONCLUSION Within the limits of this study it was concluded that periodontitis may add to the inflammatory burden of the individual and may result in increased risk of atherosclerosis based on serum C-reactive protein concentrations.
Phase II Trial of Gliadel plus O6-Benzylguanine in Adults with Recurrent Glioblastoma Multiforme

Purpose: This phase II trial was designed to define the efficacy of Gliadel wafers in combination with an infusion of O6-benzylguanine (O6-BG) that suppresses tumor O6-alkylguanine-DNA alkyltransferase (AGT) levels in patients with recurrent glioblastoma multiforme for 5 days and to evaluate the safety of this combination therapy. Experimental Design: This was a phase II, open-label, single center trial. On gross total resection of the tumor, up to eight Gliadel wafers were implanted. Bolus infusion of O6-BG was administered at 120 mg/m2 over 1 hour on days 1, 3, and 5, along with a continuous infusion at 30 mg/m2/d. The primary end points were 6-month overall survival (OS) and safety, and the secondary end points were 1-year, 2-year, and median OS. Results: Fifty-two patients were accrued. The 6-month OS was 82% [95% confidence interval (95% CI), 72-93%]. The 1- and 2-year OS rates were 47% (95% CI, 35-63%) and 10% (95% CI, 3-32%), respectively. The median OS was 50.3 weeks (95% CI, 36.1-69.4 weeks). Treatment-related toxicity with this drug combination included grade 3 hydrocephalus (9.6%), grade 3 cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leak (19.2%), and grade 3 CSF/brain infection (13.4%). Conclusion: The efficacy of implanted Gliadel wafers may be improved with the addition of O6-BG. Although systemically administered O6-BG can be coadministered with Gliadel wafers safely, it may increase the risk of hydrocephalus, CSF leak, and CSF/brain infection. Future trials are required to verify that inhibition of tumor AGT levels by O6-BG results in increased efficacy of Gliadel wafers without added toxicity.
Apoptosis, Free Radicals and Antioxidant Defense in Antitumor Therapy

Tumor markers are measurable biochemicals that are associated with a malignancy. They are either produced by tumor cells (tumor-derived) or by the body in response to tumor cells (tumor-associated). They are usually substances that are released into the circulation and then measured in the blood sample. There are a few exceptions to this, such as tissuebound receptors that must be measured in a biopsy from the solid tumor or proteins that are secreted into the urine. Despite the fact that tumor markers are hardly ever specific enough to be used alone to diagnose cancer, they do have a number of clinical applications. They can be used to stage cancer, to indicate a prognosis, to monitor treatment, or in follow-up to watch for cancer recurrence. Changes in some tumor markers have been sensitive enough to be used as targets in clinical trials. Tumor markers for diagnosis are used in combination with other clinical parameters such as biopsy and radiological findings. Although there are a multitude of tumor markers, very few of them have found their way into clinical practice because of their lack of specificity. However, some of these non-specific markers have found a place in monitoring cancer treatment rather than in diagnosis.
Judging Proportion with Graphs: The Summation Model

People take longer to judge part-to-whole relationships with bar graphs than with pie charts or divided bar graphs. Subjects may perform summation operations to establish the whole with bar graphs, which would be unnecessary for other graph types depicting the whole with a single object. To test this summation model, the number of components forming the whole was varied with bars, divided bars, reference bars, and pies in three experiments. Response time increased with the number of components for bar graphs but there was little increase for other graph types in Experiment 1. An accuracy emphasis in Experiment 2 produced generally longer response times, but had little effect on the time per summation. The summation operation was not used when graphs were displayed briefly in Experiment 3, although subjects still took longer with bars. The estimated time for a summation operation is consistent with estimates derived from other research. In general, the bar graph is not effective for proportion judgments, and its disadvantage becomes potentially greater as the number of components increases. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Language: en
Effects of perceptual grouping on positive and negative priming

The effects of perceptual grouping/segregation of targets and distractors by means of colour on positive and negative priming were examined in two experiments. In Experiments 1 and 2 we examined whether grouping of target and distractors by means of common colour in the prime display affected positive and negative priming, or whether these effects depend on prime–probe contextual similarity in colour. In addition, we examined the effects of the predictability of target colour in the prime and the probe displays across the experiments using mixed (Experiment 1) or blocked procedures (Experiment 2). The pattern of results was similar in both experiments, indicating that the positive priming effect was determined by target repetition and enhanced by perceptual segregation of target from distractors in the prime display. The negative priming effect was determined by grouping the target and distractors by common colour in the prime display. The results of the present experiments are consistent with inhibition-based models of negative priming.
Cyber-Parenting: Internet Benefits, Risks and Parenting Issues

An Internet connection has become almost ubiquitous in homes with school-age children in developed societies. The Internet is both a great social and learning tool and full of potential dangers. Without proper parental support and guidance, the chances of children being exposed to these dangers increase. Yet this can cause tension and distress between parents and children. The problem is aggravated because children tend to be more knowledgeable and skilled in the realm of computers than their parents. The major purposes of the study were to show how various factors interact to affect parents' sense of satisfaction about their attempts to help their children benefit from the Internet as well as reduce the risks to which their children are exposed. The major targets were families with children between the ages of 6 and 17. A household survey with a representative sample of 2,579 families was conducted in late 2009. Findings suggest that better-educated parents, the adoption of an authoritative parenting style, more active involvement in children's online activities, and more discussions of the online experiences are factors which are associated with more satisfactory results in influencing children's behavior.
Perceived Stressors of Suicide and Potential Prevention Strategies for Suicide Among Youths in Malaysia

The suicide rate among youths in Malaysia has increased over the years, giving rise to considerable public concern. The purpose of this study was to explore and describe potential stressors of suicide and suicide prevention strategies as perceived by youths in Malaysia aged 15–25 years. A qualitative approach was adopted and 625 students from different states of peninsular Malaysia, including East Malaysia, responded to two open-ended sentence completion questions on a survey. This paper reports on the thematic analysis of the two open-ended questions that yielded textual data. The findings showed that relationship problems, family problems, academic issues, and emotional problems were the top four perceived stressors for suicidality. Some protective factors were also elicited, which could provide insights for the development of prevention strategies of suicide. Some of the perceived stressors and strategies were related to cultural issues and are discussed against the backdrop of the Malaysian context.
Estimation of biofilm, proteinase & phospholipase production of the Candida species isolated from the oropharyngeal samples in HIV-infected patients

Background & objectives: Candida, the most common opportunistic infection in acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), attributes its pathogenicity to its virulence factors, mainly the biofilms, the proteinases and the phospholipases. There is a significant interplay of these factors during the HIV infection. This study was aimed to estimate the biofilm, proteinase and phospholipase production in Candida species isolated from the oropharyngeal samples in the HIV-infected patients. Methods: A total of 126 consecutive HIV-positive patients were screened for Candida growth using oropharyngeal swabs. Identification was done by Gram staining, germ tube test, chlamydospore identification, chromagar and biochemical tests on Vitek 2. Biofilm production was observed on Sabouraud's dextrose broth with glucose, phospholipase production in egg yolk agar medium and proteinase production in bovine serum albumin agar medium. Results: Of a total of 126 patients, 53 (42.06%) showed Candida growth: Candida albicans (n=46, 86.8%) was most common followed by the non-albicans Candida (NAC) (n=7, 13.93%). Of a total 33 (62.3%) biofilm positive isolates, significant production was observed in the NAC species (P <0.05). C. albicans reported the highest phospholipase (n=37/41, 90.24%) and proteinase (n=37/43, 86%) activities in a total of 41 (77%) phospholipase positive and 43 (81.1%) proteinase positive isolates. Interpretation & conclusions: Although C. albicans was the most common Candida species identified in HIV positive patients, the emergence of NAC was of special concern. Virulence factors such as biofilms, proteinases and phospholipases were noted in both these groups. Further research is required for better understanding of the pathogenic role of Candida species so as to aid in therapeutic interventions.
Training and the Early Years Professional: Understanding Visual Impairment.

Despite a significant increase in the incidence of visual impairment (VI) in early years children, research has afforded the subject scant attention. Perhaps as a result of underfunding, research into VI typically adopts a single case study approach, with the training needs of early years professionals largely ignored. This paper seeks to inform the debate by presenting empirical evidence from a questionnaire designed to gather data on the incidence of VI in early years settings and the nature and extent of awareness training available. Data from the questionnaire survey and the qualitative dimensions of the study indicate an increase in the incidence of VI and, despite high levels of interest, a paucity of training on issues related to VI. Concern was expressed with delays in diagnosis, the lack of screening available and the extent to which the differing terms used militate against interagency collaboration.
A systematic gender-based review of physical activity correlates in coronary heart disease patients

Coronary heart disease is the leading cause of death for Canadian men and women due largely to insufficient cardiovascular fitness gained via physical activity. Thus, health promotion efforts should be directed at increasing physical activity levels in both men and women living with heart disease. These efforts should be informed by research identifying the key correlates of physical activity that influence the uptake and long-term maintenance of physical activity among men and women with heart disease. The objective of this article was to provide a review of physical activity correlates in men and women with heart disease by sourcing information from eligible gender-based studies on physical activity and heart disease. The social ecological model was used to organise the physical activity correlates at the intrapersonal, interpersonal, institutional, community and policy levels. Despite certain methodological challenges and inconsistencies across studies, findings indicated that physical activity in men and women with heart disease is largely influenced by intrapersonal correlates. Specifically, physical activity in women with heart disease is more influenced by physical barriers, while physical activity in men with heart disease is more influenced by psychological issues and social support.
Seeking support: researching first‐year students’ experiences of coping with academic life

Students’ transition to academia comes with a number of challenges which, if inadequately addressed, may negatively affect their academic performance and psychological well‐being. Hence, the question of support becomes critical and has been reflected in the variety of practical measures to provide support with learning and facilitate newcomers’ integration into higher education. However, while forms of institutional aid have increased and diversified in recent years, the kind of support the students actually need and prefer to use – from the pool of available resources – remains insufficiently understood in current research. To address this gap, this paper advocates a social network approach to first‐year students’ experiences of coping with academic life and suggests an agenda for further investigation, which would contrast support ‘from above’ and support ‘from below. ’
Atypical long-latency auditory event-related potentials in a subset of children with specific language impairment

It has been proposed that specific language impairment (SLI) is the consequence of low-level abnormalities in auditory perception. However, studies of long-latency auditory ERPs in children with SLI have generated inconsistent findings. A possible reason for this inconsistency is the heterogeneity of SLI. The intraclass correlation (ICC) has been proposed as a useful statistic for evaluating heterogeneity because it allows one to compare an individual's auditory ERP with the grand average waveform from a typically developing reference group. We used this method to reanalyse auditory ERPs from a sample previously described by Uwer, Albrecht and von Suchodoletz (2002). In a subset of children with receptive SLI, there was less correspondence (i.e. lower ICC) with the normative waveform (based on the control grand average) than for typically developing children. This poorer correspondence was seen in responses to both tone and speech stimuli for the period 100–228 ms post stimulus onset. The effect was lateralized and seen at right- but not left-sided electrodes.
Rhymes as a window into grammar

Child language displays phenomena that are uncommon in adult languages. Consonant Harmony, i.e. long distance consonant harmony of Place of Articulation, is one such phenomenon. There are several Optimality theoretical accounts of Consonant Harmony, all involving constraints that are highly ranked at the early stages of development, such as REPEAT (Pater 1997) or AGREE (Pater & Werle 2001, 2003), but with development these constraints are demoted to a lower position such that their presence is no longer felt in later stages of acquisition. As this phenomenon is specific to child-language and virtually unknown in adult languages, the question is whether the constraints that play such a dominant role in the early stages of acquisition are child-specific and made redundant in the course of acquisition or are the constraints still available under specific circumstances in phenomenon usually characterized as ‘the emergence of the unmarked’ (TETU) (McCarthy & Prince 1994). Thus, the central question that we want to investigate in this paper is whether these lowranked constraints can ever surface after the initial stages of acquisition. We focus here on an approach to account for the phenomenon of Consonant Harmony, developed by Fikkert & Levelt (2004). They view Consonant Harmony as an epiphenomenon of the general development of Place of Articulation (PoA) features in children’s early productions. In their study, the development of PoA from five children between the ages of 1;0 and 2;11 was investigated. They coded all target words and all forms produced by the children
Inhibition Mechanisms of Mitochondrial Permeability Transition by 4-Hydroxytamoxifen: Protection of NAD(P)H and Thiol Group Oxidation

Abstract The effects of 4-hydroxytamoxifen (OHTAM) on the mitochondrial permeability transition (MPT) induced by Ca2+ plus peroxynitrite (ONOO−) or phenylarsine oxide (PhAsO) were studied to clarify its mechanisms of MPT inhibition. Ca2+ plus ONOO− induced mitochondrial swelling, membrane potential (Δ Ψ) depolarization, and Ca2+ release. OHTAM, when preincubated with mitochondria, prevents those events, and if added after their induction this drug promotes a time-dependent reversal of Δ Ψ depolarization and Ca2+ release associated with MPT induction, because these events are also inhibited by cyclosporine A (CyA). Preincubation with OHTAM also inhibits thiol group oxidation associated with the MPT promoted by ONOO− and allows the NAD(P)+ to recover their reduced state faster and in a higher extension. The mitochondrial swelling and Ca2+ release after MPT induction with Ca2+ plus PhAsO are inhibited by OHTAM; similarly to CyA, the oxidation of NAD(P)H induced by this combination is also inhibited. According to these data, the MPT inhibition by OHTAM may be related to its antioxidant capacity and the binding to target protein components of the MPT, preventing the oxidation of NAD(P)H and thiol groups, an event that increases the sensitivity to MPT induction.