Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Long-term Visual and Ocular Sequelae in Patients With Congenital Cytomegalovirus Infection

Background: Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is the most common congenital viral infection in the United States. Visual and ocular sequelae in adolescents and adults who are congenitally infected with CMV have not been well studied. Better understanding of the long-term visual and ocular sequelae can help with early detection, intervention and appropriate educational accommodations. Methods: This study evaluated 237 patients (77 symptomatic, 109 asymptomatic and 51 control) who underwent a series of age-appropriate ophthalmologic, audiologic and neurodevelopmental examinations from 1982 to 2013. The frequency and etiology of visual impairment and other nonophthalmologic findings were recorded for each patient. Ophthalmologic findings were tabulated, and risk factors for abnormalities were analyzed. Results: Fourteen of the 77 (18.2%) symptomatic and none of the asymptomatic and control subjects had severe visual impairments (P ⩽ 0.006). Moderate visual impairment did not differ between symptomatic and asymptomatic subjects. Three asymptomatic subjects had retinal scars. The most common visual or ocular sequelae in the symptomatic group were strabismus (23.4%), chorioretinal scars (19.5%), cortical visual impairment (14.3%), nystagmus (14.3%) and optic nerve atrophy (11.7%). Three symptomatic patients had delayed visual deterioration because of later occurring retinal disorders: peripheral retinal scar, rhegmatogenous retinal detachment and Coats’ disease. Conclusion: Symptomatic CMV patients experienced more ophthalmologic sequelae and significantly worse visual outcomes than asymptomatic CMV and control patients. Later occurring retinal disorders were found in symptomatic patients, and there is no clear evidence that CMV can reactivate in the retinas of children who were congenitally infected. Major risk factors for severe visual impairment included symptomatic status, optic nerve atrophy, chorioretinitis, cortical visual impairment and sensorineural hearing loss.
Attraction Controls the Entropy of Fluctuations in Isosceles Triangular Networks

We study two-dimensional triangular-network models, which have degenerate ground states composed of straight or randomly-zigzagging stripes and thus sub-extensive residual entropy. We show that attraction is responsible for the inversion of the stable phase by changing the entropy of fluctuations around the ground-state configurations. By using a real-space shell-expansion method, we compute the exact expression of the entropy for harmonic interactions, while for repulsive harmonic interactions we obtain the entropy arising from a limited subset of the system by numerical integration. We compare these results with a three-dimensional triangular-network model, which shows the same attraction-mediated selection mechanism of the stable phase, and conclude that this effect is general with respect to the dimensionality of the system.
Anomalous Statistics of Bose-Einstein Condensate in an Interacting Gas: An Effect of the Trap’s Form and Boundary Conditions in the Thermodynamic Limit

We analytically calculate the statistics of Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) fluctuations in an interacting gas trapped in a three-dimensional cubic or rectangular box with the Dirichlet, fused or periodic boundary conditions within the mean-field Bogoliubov and Thomas-Fermi approximations. We study a mesoscopic system of a finite number of trapped particles and its thermodynamic limit. We find that the BEC fluctuations, first, are anomalously large and non-Gaussian and, second, depend on the trap’s form and boundary conditions. Remarkably, these effects persist with increasing interparticle interaction and even in the thermodynamic limit—only the mean BEC occupation, not BEC fluctuations, becomes independent on the trap’s form and boundary conditions.
The Familial Mediterranean Fever (MEVF) Gene as a Modifier of Crohn's Disease

OBJECTIVES:Crohn's disease (CD) has been reported to be more frequent among non-Ashkenazi Jewish patients suffering from familial Mediterranean fever (FMF). Interestingly, functional similarities between the CD susceptibility gene (NOD2/CARD15) and the FMF gene (MEFV) have been described: both belong to the death domain containing protein family, important in the regulation of apoptosis, cytokine processing and inflammation.AIMS:To investigate the prevalence of MEFV mutations in Jewish non-Ashkenazi CD patients and its putative effect on CD presentation.METHODS:Germline DNA of 105 Israeli CD patients of non-Ashkenazi and mixed Ashkenazi–non-Ashkenazi ethnic background was analyzed for three most common MEFV mutations: M694V, V726A, and E148Q. Five patients (4.7%) with a clinical diagnosis of FMF were included. Data obtained from each patient included: age of onset, disease location, and behavior, the presence of extraintestinal manifestations of CD and therapeutic regimens.RESULTS:The overall prevalence of mutation carriers among non-FMF-CD patients was 13% (13/100). A stricturing disease pattern was observed in 56% (10/18) of all carriers, FMF-CD, and non-FMF-CD patients, and in 25% (22/87) of noncarriers (OR: 3.7, 95% CI: 1.3–10.5, p = 0.015). The prevalence of fistulas was comparable in both groups. Extraintestinal manifestations were significantly more frequent among carriers than noncarriers (65%vs 32%, OR 3.9, 95% CI = 1.3–11.5, p = 0.015). No differences were observed in disease location and disease severity.CONCLUSIONS:MEFV mutations are not associated with CD susceptibility, yet the presence of these mutations appears to be associated with a stricturing disease pattern and extraintestinal disease manifestations of CD.
Clinical and Neurophysiological Features of Leprosy Patients with Neuropathic Pain.

Neural pain is a frequent symptom in leprosy disease. There is a paucity of data regarding neural pain diagnostics resulting in common prescriptive errors when neuritis is confused with neuropathic or mixed nociceptive-neuropathic pain. The present study identified important demographic, clinical, and neurophysiological features of 42 leprosy neuropathy patients presenting neuropathic pain (NP). During routine evaluations, patients were selected asking if they had ever experienced neural pain. Data analyses of their pain characteristics, clinical examination results, and both the Douleur Neuropathique 4 Questionnaire and Hamilton Depression Scale scores were used to classify these patients. The most common word they used to describe the sensation of pain for 25 (60%) of these patients was "burning. " In the early stages of the disease and before leprosy diagnosis, 19 (45%) had already complained about NP and leprosy treatment was unable to prevent its occurrence in 15 (36%). Leprosy reactions, considered NP risk factors, occurred in 32 (76%) cases. Knowledge of typical NP characteristics could be used to develop more effective therapeutic approaches for a notoriously difficult-to-treat pain condition.
Lack of Impact of the 2009 USPSTF Guidelines on Rates of Mammography Screening.

BACKGROUND In November 2009, the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) changed their mammography screening guidelines from recommending a screen every 1-2 years for women older than 40 years. The revised guideline recommends against regular screening for women aged 40-49 and recommends biennial screening for women aged 50-74. RESEARCH DESIGN We used autoregressive integrated moving-average (ARIMA) time series modeling to estimate the effect of the USPSTF 2009 guidelines on trends in screening rates. Enrollment and encounter files from the PharMetrics LifeLink+ commercial insurance claims database, years 2006-2014, were linked to determine monthly screening rates. The main outcome measure was mammography screening rates per 1,000 commercially insured women aged 40-49 or aged 50-64. RESULTS The study sample included 493,347 women aged 40-49 years with at least 1 month of eligibility and 658,052 women aged 50-64 years with at least 1 month of eligibility. There were 1,305,375 total screening mammograms from 2007 to 2014. Average monthly mammography screening rates from 2007 to 2014 were 40.4 per 1,000 women aged 40-49 and 54.8 per 1,000 women aged 50-64. There was a temporary decline in monthly screening rates of 11.8% and 11.2% for the 40-49 and 50-64 age groups, respectively, in the 2-month period after the guideline change (January and February 2010), but the rates quickly returned to pre-USPSTF trend levels afterward. CONCLUSION Implementation of the USPSTF 2009 guidelines was not associated with a persistent long-term change in mammography screening rates over the next 5 years, despite a temporary decline of 2 months immediately following the guidelines.
Efficacy of Epratuzumab, an Anti‐CD22 Monoclonal IgG Antibody, in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Patients With Associated Sjögren's Syndrome

EMBODY 1 (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT01262365) and EMBODY 2 (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT01261793) investigated the efficacy and safety of epratuzumab, a CD22‐targeted humanized monoclonal IgG antibody, in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). The studies showed no significant difference from placebo in primary or secondary clinical outcome measures but did demonstrate B cell–specific immunologic activity. The aim of this post hoc analysis was to determine whether epratuzumab had a different clinical efficacy profile in SLE patients with versus those without an associated diagnosis of Sjögren's syndrome (SS).
Loss-of-function polymorphisms in the organic cation transporter OCT1 are associated with reduced postoperative tramadol consumption

Abstract The organic cation transporter OCT1 (SLC22A1) mediates uptake and metabolism of the active tramadol metabolite (+)O-desmethyltramadol in the liver. In this study, the influence of OCT1 genetic polymorphisms on pharmacokinetics and analgesic efficacy of tramadol in patients recovering from surgery was analyzed in addition to the CYP2D6 genotype. Postoperative patients who received tramadol through patient-controlled analgesia were enrolled. Genotypes resulting in 0, 1, or 2 active OCT1 alleles were determined as well as CYP2D6 genotypes. The primary endpoint was the 24-hour postoperative tramadol consumption in patients with 0 vs at least 1 active OCT1 allele. Secondary endpoint was the OCT1-dependent plasma concentration (areas under the concentration–time curves) of the active tramadol metabolite (+)O-desmethyltramadol. Of 205 patients, 19, 82, and 104 carried 0, 1, and 2 active OCT1 alleles, respectively. Cumulative tramadol consumption through patient-controlled analgesia was lowest in patients with 0 active OCT1 allele compared with the group of patients with 1 or 2 active alleles (343 ± 235 vs 484 ± 276 mg; P = 0.03). Multiple regression revealed that the number of active OCT1 alleles (P = 0.014), CYP2D6 (P = 0.001), pain scores (P < 0.001), and the extent of surgery (0.034) had a significant influence on tramadol consumption. Plasma areas under the concentration–time curves of (+)O-desmethyltramadol were 111.8 (95% confidence interval: 63.4-160.1), 80.2 (65.1-95.3), and 64.5 (51.9-77.2) h·ng·mL−1 in carriers of 0, 1, or 2 active OCT1 alleles (P = 0.03). Loss of OCT1 function resulted in reduced tramadol consumption and increased plasma concentrations of (+)O-desmethyltramadol in patients recovering from surgery. Therefore, analyzing OCT1 next to CYP2D6 genotype might further improve future genotype-dependent dose recommendations for tramadol.
A case–control study of risk factors for colorectal cancer in an African population

The interplay between hereditary and environmental factors in the causation of colorectal cancer in sub-Saharan Africa is poorly understood. We carried out a community based case–control study to identify the risk factors associated with colorectal cancer in Zimbabwe. We recruited 101 cases of colorectal cancer and 202 controls, matched for age, sex and domicile. Potential risk factors including family history, socioeconomic status, urbanization, diabetes mellitus and previous schistosomiasis were evaluated. Conditional logistic regression was used to estimate the odds ratios associated with the different factors. Cases were more likely to have a tertiary education (32.7 vs. 13.4%, P<0.001) and a higher income (18.8 vs. 6.9%, P=0.002). After multivariate analysis, diabetes mellitus [odds ratio (OR): 5.3; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.4–19.9; P=0.012], previous urban domicile (OR: 2.8; 95% CI: 1.0–7.8; P=0.042), previous schistosomiasis (OR: 2.4; 95% CI: 1.4–4.2; P=0.001) and cancer in a first-degree relative (OR: 2.4; 95% CI: 1.2–4.8; P=0.018) were associated independently with colorectal cancer. Our findings suggest that family history, diabetes mellitus, previous schistosomiasis and approximation to a western lifestyle are the predominant associations with colorectal cancer in Africans. This offers opportunities for targeted prevention and hypothesis-driven research into the aetiology of colorectal cancer in this population.
Clinical, Hormonal, and Metabolic Parameters in Women with Subclinical Hypothyroidism and Polycystic Ovary Syndrome: A Cross-Sectional Study.

BACKGROUND Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common endocrinopathy in reproductive age women, yet its clinical presentation shares similarities with several other endocrine disorders such as thyroid disease. Hence, the objective of this study was to further evaluate this association by investigating the clinical, hormonal, and metabolic parameters between subclinical hypothyroidism (SCH) and PCOS. METHODS This is a cross-sectional study conducted in a tertiary care clinic at Cleveland, Ohio, USA. A total of 137 women diagnosed with PCOS by Rotterdam criteria were examined. SCH was defined as thyroid-stimulating hormone >2.5 mIU/L in the absence of symptoms of overt hypothyroidism. The mean age, body mass index (BMI), fasting plasma glucose (FPG), glucose tolerance test, hemoglobin A1c, fasting insulin, a 2 hours insulin level after 75 g glucose load, cholesterol, LDL, HDL, and homeostatic model assessment (HOMA) were compared between women with and without SCH. Logistic regression was used to adjust for age and BMI. RESULTS Among 137 women with PCOS, 21.9% had SCH. Comparison groups were similar in both age and BMI and there was no difference in the mean values of all endocrine and metabolic parameters tested. However, abnormal FPG levels (OR 3.01; CI: 1.12-8.07. p = 0.03) and abnormal HOMA (OR 3.7; CI: 1.14-12.00. p = 0.03) were more likely in women who had SCH than in women without SCH independent of age and BMI. CONCLUSIONS Women with PCOS and SCH are more likely to have impaired FPG values and impaired insulin sensitivity even after adjusting for age and BMI. Hence, close monitoring of PCOS patients for SCH may be beneficial.
Feed the Alien! The Effects of a Nutrition Instruction Game on Children's Nutritional Knowledge and Food Intake.

OBJECTIVE Serious games are a promising venue to increase children's nutritional knowledge in an entertaining format. The aim of this study was to test the short-term effectiveness of the Alien Health Game, a videogame designed to teach elementary school children about nutrition and healthy food choices. MATERIALS AND METHODS To examine the effects of the Alien Health Game, an experimental design with a single between-subjects factor (experimental condition vs. active control condition) was used. A total of 108 Dutch children (10-13 years; 58 boys) were randomly assigned to either play Alien Health using the Kinect sensor for two consecutive days, for 1 hour of gameplay (experimental condition; n = 50), or a web-based nutrition game for the same period (active control condition; n = 58). Participants' nutritional knowledge was assessed at pretest, immediate, and at 2-week follow-up. Food intake was assessed at immediate and 2-week follow-up. RESULTS Participants who played Alien Health had better knowledge of the five most important macronutrients of foods at immediate posttest, but not at follow-up. Participants were better able to distinguish the healthier food item out of two options over time, but this effect did not differ for those in the experimental versus the active control condition. No differences in food intake, neither in the consumption of nutrient-dense or energy-dense foods, were found between children playing both games. CONCLUSION A brief game-based intervention like the Alien Health Game has the potential to improve children's nutritional knowledge in the short term, but may not be strong enough to increase nutritional knowledge and actual eating behavior in the long term. Further investigation is warranted before this game is applied in future nutrition education programs.
Prospective association between added sugars and frailty in older adults.

Background Sugar-sweetened beverages and added sugars (monosaccharides and disaccharides) in the diet are associated with obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease, which are all risk factors for decline in physical function among older adults. Objective The aim of this study was to examine the association between added sugars in the diet and incidence of frailty in older people. Design Data were taken from 1973 Spanish adults ≥60 y old from the Seniors-ENRICA cohort. In 2008-2010 (baseline), consumption of added sugars (including those in fruit juices) was obtained using a validated diet history. Study participants were followed up until 2012-2013 to assess frailty based on Fried's criteria. Statistical analyses were performed with logistic regression adjusted for age, sex, education, smoking status, body mass index, energy intake, self-reported comorbidities, Mediterranean Diet Adherence Score (excluding sweetened drinks and pastries), TV watching time, and leisure-time physical activity. Results Compared with participants consuming <15 g/d added sugars (lowest tertile), those consuming ≥36 g/d (highest tertile) were more likely to develop frailty (OR: 2.27; 95% CI: 1.34, 3.90; P-trend = 0.003). The frailty components "low physical activity" and "unintentional weight loss" increased dose dependently with added sugars. Association with frailty was strongest for sugars added during food production. Intake of sugars naturally appearing in foods was not associated with frailty. Conclusions The consumption of added sugars in the diet of older people was associated with frailty, mainly when present in processed foods. The frailty components that were most closely associated with added sugars were low level of physical activity and unintentional weight loss. Future research should determine whether there is a causal relation between added sugars and frailty.
Biaxial fatigue behavior of a powder metallurgical TRIP steel

Multiaxial fatigue behavior is an important topic in critical structural components. In the present study the biaxial-planar fatigue behavior of a powder metallurgical TRIP steel (Transformation Induced Plasticity) was studied by taking into account martensitic phase transformation and crack growth behavior. Biaxial cyclic deformation tests were carried out on a servo hydraulic biaxial tension-compression test rig using cruciform specimens. Different states of strain were studied by varying the strain ratio between the axial strain amplitudes in the range of -1 (shear loading) to 1 (equibiaxial loading). The investigated loading conditions were proportional due to fixed directions of principal strains. The studied TRIP steel exhibits martensitic phase transformation from ? -austenite via ? -martensite into ? ‘- martensite which causes pronounced cyclic hardening. The ? ‘-martensite formation increased with increasing plastic strain amplitude. Shear loading promoted martensite formation and caused the highest ? ‘-martensite volume fractions at fatigue failure in comparison to uniaxial and other biaxial states of strain. Moreover, the fatigue lives of shear tests were higher than those of uniaxial and other biaxial tests. The von Mises equivalent strain hypothesis was found to be appropriate for uniaxial and biaxial fatigue, but too conservative for shear fatigue, according to literature for torsional fatigue. The COD strain amplitude which is based on crack opening displacement gave a better correlation of the investigated fatigue lives, especially those for shear loading. Different types of major cracks were observed on the sample surfaces after biaxial cyclic deformation by using electron monitoring in an electron beam universal system and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Specimens with strain ratios of 1, 0.5, -0.1 and -0.5 showed mode I major cracks (perpendicular to the axis of maximum principal strain). Major cracks after shear fatigue had partially mode II orientation (tilted 45° to the loading axes) and afterwards bifurcated into two pairs of mode I cracks. Another shear test revealed a major crack of mode I orientation (parallel to the loading axes). These results are in good agreement to the literature. Micro cracks after shear fatigue were longer than those after biaxial fatigue with strain ratios of 1 and 0.5. Major and minor cracks after equibiaxial and shear loading showed crack branching and crack coalescence. The results on fatigue crack behavior support the assumption that the period of stage I (mode II) crack propagation is much longer under shear loading than under other biaxial conditions due to absence of tensile stress normal to the planes of maximum shear strain under shear loading.
Constant Flux of Spatial Niche Partitioning through High-Resolution Sampling of Magnetotactic Bacteria

ABSTRACT Magnetotactic bacteria (MTB) swim along magnetic field lines in water. They are found in aquatic habitats throughout the world, yet knowledge of their spatial and temporal distribution remains limited. To help remedy this, we took MTB-bearing sediment from a natural pond, mixed the thoroughly homogenized sediment into two replicate aquaria, and then counted three dominant MTB morphotypes (coccus, spirillum, and rod-shaped MTB cells) at a high spatiotemporal sampling resolution: 36 discrete points in replicate aquaria were sampled every ∼30 days over 198 days. Population centers of the MTB coccus and MTB spirillum morphotypes moved in continual flux, yet they consistently inhabited separate locations, displaying significant anticorrelation. Rod-shaped MTB were initially concentrated toward the northern end of the aquaria, but at the end of the experiment, they were most densely populated toward the south. The finding that the total number of MTB cells increased over time during the experiment argues that population reorganization arose from relative changes in cell division and death and not from migration. The maximum net growth rates were 10, 3, and 1 doublings day−1 and average net growth rates were 0.24, 0.11, and 0.02 doublings day−1 for MTB cocci, MTB spirilla, and rod-shaped MTB, respectively; minimum growth rates for all three morphotypes were −0.03 doublings day−1. Our results suggest that MTB cocci and MTB spirilla occupy distinctly different niches: their horizontal positioning in sediment is anticorrelated and under constant flux. IMPORTANCE Little is known about the horizontal distribution of magnetotactic bacteria in sediment or how the distribution changes over time. We therefore measured three dominant magnetotactic bacterium morphotypes at 36 places in two replicate aquaria each month for 7 months. We found that the spatial positioning of population centers changed over time and that the two most abundant morphotypes (MTB cocci and MTB spirilla) occupied distinctly different niches in the aquaria. Maximum and average growth and death rates were quantified for each of the three morphotypes based on 72 sites that were measured six times. The findings provided novel insight into the differential behavior of noncultured magnetotactic bacteria.