Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Viability of probiotic bacteria in bioyogurt with the addition of honey from Jataí and Africanized bees

The objective of this work was to evaluate the viability of probiotic bacteria in bioyogurt with the addition of honey from Africanized and Jataí bees, in different concentrations. To prepare the fermented milk, reconstituted powdered milk and lactic acid starter culture were used. The bioyogurt was evaluated at 0, 7, 14, 21, 28, and 35 days of storage. Analyzes of pH, titratable acidity, and selective count of the Lactobacillus acidophilus LA-5 and Bifidobacterium BB-12 microorganisms were carried out. Counting was done, respectively, on MRS agar, in aerobiosis, and MRS-LP agar, in anaerobiosis, with plates incubated at 37°C for 72 hours. Treatments were arranged in a completely randomized design in split plot, with five treatments: without honey; 5 and 10% honey from Africanized bees, and 5 and 10% honey from Jataí bees. Storage times were evaluated in the split plots. In all treatments, bioyogurt showed counts of 107 CFU g-1 lactic acid bacteria. Probiotic cultures remained viable for 35 days under refrigeration (2–4°C). The interaction between the variation factors affected the probiotic concentration in the bioyogurt. The honeys have a favorable effect on the cell counts of the evaluated microorganisms.
The origin of the endothelial cells: an evo‐devo approach for the invertebrate/vertebrate transition of the circulatory system

Summary Circulatory systems of vertebrate and invertebrate metazoans are very different. Large vessels of invertebrates are constituted of spaces and lacunae located between the basement membranes of endodermal and mesodermal epithelia, and they lack an endothelial lining. Myoepithelial differentation of the coelomic cells covering hemal spaces is a frequent event, and myoepithelial cells often form microvessels in some large invertebrates. There is no phylogenetic theory about the origin of the endothelial cells in vertebrates. We herein propose that endothelial cells originated from a type of specialized blood cells, called amoebocytes, that adhere to the vascular basement membrane. The transition between amoebocytes and endothelium involved the acquisition of an epithelial phenotype. We suggest that immunological cooperation was the earliest function of these protoendothelial cells. Furthermore, their ability to transiently recover the migratory, invasive phenotype of amoebocytes (i.e., the angiogenic phenotype) allowed for vascular growth from the original visceral areas to the well‐developed somatic areas of vertebrates (especially the tail, head, and neural tube). We also hypothesize that pericytes and smooth muscle cells derived from myoepithelial cells detached from the coelomic lining. As the origin of blood cells in invertebrates is probably coelomic, our hypothesis relates the origin of all the elements of the circulatory system with the coelomic wall. We have collected from the literature a number of comparative and developmental data supporting our hypothesis, for example the localization of the vascular endothelial growth factor receptor‐2 ortholog in hemocytes of Drosophila or the fact that circulating progenitors can differentiate into endothelial cells even in adult vertebrates.
Inhibiting drug efflux transporters improves efficacy of ALS therapeutics

Research identified promising therapeutics in cell models of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), but there is limited progress translating effective treatments to animal models and patients, and ALS remains a disease with no effective treatment. One explanation stems from an acquired pharmacoresistance driven by the drug efflux transporters P‐glycoprotein (P‐gp) and breast cancer‐resistant protein (BCRP), which we have shown are selectively upregulated at the blood‐brain and spinal cord barrier (BBB/BSCB) in ALS mice and patients. Pharmacoresistance is well appreciated in other brain diseases, but overlooked in ALS despite many failures in clinical trials.
Serologic correlates of immunity in a tetravalent reassortant rotavirus vaccine trial. US Rotavirus Vaccine Efficacy Group.

The correlation of antibody responses (serum rotavirus IgA and neutralizing antibody to serotype G1-G4 human rotaviruses and rhesus rotavirus [RRV]) in a reassortant rotavirus vaccine trial with protection against rotavirus infection or disease was investigated. Most subjects administered 4 x 10(5) pfu of either the serotype G1 monovalent or serotype G1-G4 tetravalent vaccine seroconverted for at least one of the six antibodies (85% and 91%, respectively). However, fewer than one-third seroconverted to any prototype G1-G4 human rotavirus. Analyses of covariance indicated that higher prevaccination neutralizing antibody titers negatively affected postvaccination titers. Significant relationships were found between several postvaccination rotavirus antibody titers and protection, and serotype-specific correlates of protection were identified between anti-Wa titers and G1 illnesses (P = .03) and between anti-RRV titers and G3 illnesses (P < .001). Overall, however, serotype-specific immunity was no more significant than heterotypic immunity, and no specific titer of any antibody analyzed was a reliable indicator of protection.
A Grid Framework for Non-Linear Brain fMRI Analysis

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is an imaging technique that can be used to characterize brain physiological activity, usually presented as 3D volumes in function of time. In the context of our previous work in nonlinear association studies in electroencephalogram (EEG) time series, we were able to identify clinical relevant features useful in clinical diagnosis. The use of a similar approach in fMRI, now adapted for 3D time series, is both appealing and new. Such time series analysis imposes challenging requirements regarding computational power and medical image management. In this paper we propose a grid architecture framework to support the typical analysis protocol of association analysis applied to fMRI. The system, implemented using the gLite middleware, provides the necessary support to manage brain images and run non-linear fMRI analysis methods.
Conductance of a subdiffusive random weighted tree

We work on a Galton--Watson tree with random weights, in the so-called "subdiffusive" regime. We study the rate of decay of the conductance between the root and the $n$-th level of the tree, as $n$ goes to infinity, by a mostly analytic method. It turns out the order of magnitude of the expectation of this conductance can be less than $1/n$ (in contrast with the results of Addario-Berry-Broutin-Lugosi and Chen-Hu-Lin), depending on the value of the second zero of the characteristic function associated to the model. We also prove the almost sure (and in $L^p$ for some $p>1$) convergence of this conductance divided by its expectation towards the limit of the additive martingale.
Relationship between parenting stress and children's behavioral characteristics in Japan

The evaluation of a child tends to differ between the mother and father regardless of whether the child has a disability or not, although parents have key information about the behavioral characteristics of the child. The number of reports in Japan, however, is limited. We, therefore, investigated the relationship between the parenting stress experienced by parents of non‐clinical preschool children and the children's behavioral characteristics.
Voluntary wheel running delays brain atrophy in aged mice

BACKGROUND: Physical exercises have been shown to be a surprisingly effective strategy to take advantage of the brain’s natural capacity for plasticity, and prevent brain degeneration in mouse histological studies. In vivo magnetic resonance microscopy (MRM) provides highly resolved anatomical images and allows quantitative assessment of brain atrophy in the aged mouse model. OBJECTIVE: The aim of the present study was to investigate, through the effects of 10 weeks voluntary wheel running, the mouse’s brain atrophy. METHODS: Sixteen C57BL/6J mice, aged 21 months, were randomized to the exercise or sedentary group. Each mouse was scanned in a 7.0-T MRM scanner at two time points: 22 months old baseline and a follow-up three months later. Multi-atlas based brain segmentation approach was used to obtain volumes of 39 brain regions. RESULTS: The results showed that mice in the exercise group had less brain atrophy compared with the mice in the sedentary group. CONCLUSIONS: The results provide new insights into exercise induced brain plasticity in aged animals.
[Study of adaptation and validation of the Practice environment scale of the nursing work index for the Portuguese reality].

OBJECTIVE Testing the psychometric properties of the Portuguese version of the Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index. METHOD A descriptive, analytical and cross-sectional study, for the cross-cultural adaptation and validation of the psychometric properties of the scale. The study participants were 236 nurses from two hospitals in the regions of Lisbon and Vale do Tejo. RESULTS The 0.92 Cronbach's alpha was obtained for overall reliability and support of a five-dimension structure. CONCLUSION The excellent quality of adjustment of analysis confirms the validity of the adapted version to hospital care settings, although there was no total coincidence of items in the five dimensions
Aging and ischemic stroke

people aged ≥ 65 years is projected to grow, the number of incident strokes in older adults is expected to rise, presenting major challenges for clinicians and policy makers in the foreseeable future. Aging and cerebral vasculature. The complex network of the adult brain vasculature measures approximately 370 miles, receives about 20% of total cardiac output, and exchanges 20% of total blood glucose and oxygen. With aging, both cerebral microand macro-circulations undergo structural and functional alterations. Age-related microcirculatory changes are presumably mediated by endothelial dys-function and impaired cerebral autoregulation and neurovascular coupling. Whereas endothelial dysfunc-tion promotes neuro-inflammation, impaired cerebral autoregulation may lead to microvascular injury, and impaired neurovascular coupling fosters a decline in cortical function, all potential targets for future therapeutic interventions. Aging, in otherwise healthy individuals, is associated with numerous noticeable changes in human intracranial and extracranial cerebral arteries that predict the risk of future stroke. Aging and silent cerebrovascular disease. Silent cerebrovascular disease represents structural abnormalities, presumed vascular etiology, on neuroimaging not supported by clinically recognized stroke symptoms. The prevalence of silent cerebrovascular disease increases with advancing age and is recognizable as the following parenchymal lesions: 1) Silent infarcts (silent strokes), prevalence 6% and 28%, exceeds symptomatic stroke by a ratio of 10:1, 2) white matter hyperintensity or hypodensity on neuroimaging represent microvascular disease occurring in 20% to 94% older adults, and 3) cerebral microbleeds indicate silent intracerebral hemorrhages in 38% of general population aged >80 years. These conditions are age dependent and forecast increased risk of future symptomatic strokes (Figure 1). Aging and stroke risk factors. A worldwide population-based study identified 10 risk factors that collectively account for 88% of the risk of stroke in all Editorial
Resetting the Respiratory Rhythm with a Spinal Central Pattern Generator

Abstract There is evidence that a variety of central and afferent stimuli, including swallowing, can produce phase resetting in the respiratory rhythmicity. Also, there are reports about the intrinsic linkage between locomotion and respiration. However, little is known about the interaction between the central pattern generators (CPGs) for scratching and respiration. The present study aims to examine whether the activation of scratching CPG produces phase resetting of the respiratory rhythm. We employed decerebrate cats to apply brief tactile stimuli to the pinna during the inspiratory-expiratory transition. We observed that those stimuli to the pinna not eliciting fictive scratching did not reset the respiratory rhythm. However, when the pinna stimuli elicited fictive scratching, then the respiratory rhythm exhibited a significant phase resetting. We also found interneurons in the medulla oblongata exhibiting phase resetting related to scratching-CPG episodes. This second finding suggests that this type of resetting involves brainstem components of the respiratory CPG. These results shed new light on the resetting action from a spinal CPG on the respiratory rhythm.
Progress in research on gold nanoparticles in cancer management

Introduction: The rapid advancement of nanotechnology in recent years has fuelled burgeoning interest in the field of nanoparticle research, particularly its application in cancer management. At present, there seems to be heightened interest in the application of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) to the management of cancer, encompassing diagnosis, monitoring, and treatment. AuNPs could be used as drug delivery agents that target cancer cells or in gene therapy. These efforts are undertaken in the hope of revolutionizing current methods and strategies for cancer treatment. This review will focus on the current applications of AuNPs in cancer management. Objectives, data sources, study appraisal and synthesis methods, results: objectives, data sources, study eligibility criteria, participants, and interventions, study appraisal and synthesis methods, results are not required, as the study will be a literature review. Just introduction, ethics and dissemination, and conclusion are applicable. Ethics and dissemination: Ethical approval and informed consent are not required, as the study is a literature review and does not involve direct contact with patients or alterations to patient care. Conclusion: AuNPs have many properties that are of great value for the diagnosis and treatment of tumors. AuNPs are small in size and can penetrate widely and deposit on the tumor site, bind to many proteins and drugs, target delivery drugs, and have good biocompatibility. The application of AuNPs in the diagnosis and treatment of tumors is very considerable. In the near future, AuNPs will certainly play an important role in the treatment of tumors.
Interactions of biochar and organic . . . INTERACTIONS OF BIOCHAR AND ORGANIC COMPOUND FOR SEEDLINGS PRODUCTION OF Magonia

The objective of this study was to test the hypothesis that biochar, applied with cattle manure, promotes better development of seedlings of Magonia pubescens St. Hil. The experiment was conducted at the State University of Mato Grosso, Nova Xavantina, Brazil, in 2011. We used a completely randomized design, with twelve treatments and three replications. The substrates formed by the higher levels of cattle manure plus biochar (30%) provided better results of height, diameter and aerial biomass. However, the Dickson Quality Index has not confirmed the quality of seedlings in these treatments. We also observed that the doses of biochar (20 and 30%) when added separately to the Latosol, are not efficient for the growth improvement of the seedlings. Based on the present results, we validate the hypothesis that substrates formed with a mixture of cattle manure and biochar are effective to improve the production of seedlings of M. pubescens.
Positive Affect and Well-Being in Huntington's Disease Moderates the Association Between Functional Impairment and HRQOL Outcomes.

BACKGROUND Positive affect is associated with resiliency and beneficial health outcomes, but little is known about associations between positive affect and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in Huntington's disease (HD). OBJECTIVE This longitudinal study determined the association between positive affect and several HRQOL outcomes in persons with HD. Functional status was examined as a moderator of the association between positive affect and HRQOL. METHODS Participants, with premanifest (i.e., genetically at risk but no clinical diagnosis, n = 50) and manifest HD (early-stage n = 171; late-stage n = 101), completed a measure of positive affect and well-being and several HRQOL measures at baseline, 12-, and 24-month follow-ups. UHDRS Functional Assessment scale indicated functional status. RESULTS Positive affect was associated with better HRQOL for persons with premanifest and manifest HD over the 24-month time frame. These associations were moderated by functional status. For persons with higher functional status, positive affect was associated with better HRQOL, including less depression, lower anxiety, less anger, better social role satisfaction, better executive functions, greater upper extremity function, less dyscontrol, and less concern with death and dying. For persons with lower functional status, positive affect was not associated with HRQOL. CONCLUSIONS Positive affect predicted better self-reported HRQOL over a 24-month period in persons with premanifest and manifest HD, particularly when participnats had better functional status. Interventions to enhance positive affect in HD may have beneficial effects on HRQOL.
Genetic Inheritance of Late-Onset, Down-Sloping Hearing Loss and Its Implications for Auditory Rehabilitation

Objectives: Late-onset, down-sloping sensorineural hearing loss has many genetic and nongenetic etiologies, but the proportion of this commonly encountered type of hearing loss attributable to genetic causes is not well known. In this study, the authors performed genetic analysis using next-generation sequencing techniques in patients showing late-onset, down-sloping sensorineural hearing loss with preserved low-frequency hearing, and investigated the clinical implications of the variants identified. Design: From a cohort of patients with hearing loss at a tertiary referral hospital, 18 unrelated probands with down-sloping sensorineural hearing loss of late onset were included in this study. Down-sloping hearing loss was defined as a mean low-frequency threshold at 250 Hz and 500 Hz less than or equal to 40 dB HL and a mean high-frequency threshold at 1, 2, and 4 kHz greater than 40 dB HL. The authors performed whole-exome sequencing and segregation analysis to identify the genetic causes and evaluated the outcomes of auditory rehabilitation in the patients. Results: There were nine simplex and nine multiplex families included, in which the causative variants were found in six of 18 probands, demonstrating a detection rate of 33.3%. Various types of variants, including five novel and three known variants, were detected in the MYH14, MYH9, USH2A, COL11A2, and TMPRSS3 genes. The outcome of cochlear and middle ear implants in patients identified with pathogenic variants was satisfactory. There was no statistically significant difference between pathogenic variant-positive and pathogenic variant-negative groups in terms of onset age, family history of hearing loss, pure-tone threshold, or speech discrimination scores. Conclusions: The proportion of patients with late-onset, down-sloping hearing loss identified with potentially causative variants was unexpectedly high. Identification of the causative variants will offer insights on hearing loss progression and prognosis regarding various modes of auditory rehabilitation, as well as possible concomitant syndromic features.
Stochastic formulation of SPICE-type electronic circuit simulation with polynomial chaos

A methodology for efficient tolerance analysis of electronic circuits based on nonsampling stochastic simulation of transients is formulated, implemented, and validated. We model the stochastic behavior of all quantities that are subject to tolerance spectrally with polynomial chaos. A library of stochastic models of linear and nonlinear circuit elements is created. In analogy to the deterministic implementation of the SPICE electronic circuit simulator, the overall stochastic circuit model is obtained using nodal analysis. In the proposed case studies, we analyze the influence of device tolerance on the response of a lowpass filter, the impact of temperature variability on the output of an amplifier, and the effect of changes of the load of a diode bridge on the probability density function of the output voltage. The case studies demonstrate that the novel methodology is computationally faster than the Monte Carlo method and more accurate and flexible than the root-sum-square method. This makes the stochastic circuit simulator, referred to as PolySPICE, a compelling candidate for the tolerance study of reliability-critical electronic circuits.
Patient Preferences Concerning Alternative Treatments for Neuroendocrine Tumors: Results of the “PIANO-Study”

Abstract Objectives Neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) are rare, slow-growing malignant tumors. So far, there are no data on patient preferences regarding its therapy. This empirical study aimed to elicit patient preferences in the drug treatment of NET. Methods Based on qualitative patient interviews and an analytic hierarchy process, six patient-relevant attributes were analyzed and weighted using a discrete-choice experiment. Patients were recruited with the help of a NET support group. An experimental 3*3 + 6*3 –MNL design was created using NGene. The design consisted of eighty-four choices, divided into seven blocks. Participants were randomly assigned to these blocks. The analysis included random parameter logit and latent class models. Results A total of 275 participants (51.6 percent female; mean age, 58.4 years) were included. The preference analysis within the random parameter logit model, taking into account the 95 percent confidence interval, showed predominance for the attribute “overall survival. ” The attributes “response to treatment” and “stabilization of tumor growth” followed. The side effects “nausea/vomiting” and “diarrhea” were considered of relatively equal importance. Latent class analysis of possible subgroup differences revealed three preference patterns. Conclusions Preferences can influence therapeutic decisions. Preference analyses indicated that “overall survival” had the strongest influence, with participants clearly weighing outcome attributes higher than side effect attributes. In conclusion, mono-criterial decisions would not fully reflect patient perspectives.