Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of the Spasticity after Botulinum Toxin Injection Using Paired-Pulse Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation

A 44‐year‐old male patient who was diagnosed with hypertensive hemorrhage of basal ganglia accompanying poor activity of the left limbs for 2 years came for seeking management of spasticity in his left upper limb. After the evacuation of intracranial hematoma, he received regular rehabilitation therapy. We found that he had a better recovery in his proximal limb. However, his wrist and hand joint manifested poor recovery and developed spasticity. Botulinum toxin type A (BTA, Botox, Allergan) was injected into the flexor muscles of the wrist and fingers including the flexor carpi radialis 50 U, flexor digitorum profundus 50 U, flexor digitorum superficialis 70 U, and flexor pollicis longus muscle 20 U (190 units in total) under the double guidance of electromyography and electrical stimulation. Every target muscle distributed the spastic potential when localization. After the injections, stretching and extensive physical and occupational therapy were performed persistently. Two weeks after the injection, the spasticity in his left limb reduced from modified Ashworth scale (MAS) Grade 1+ to 1 in his elbow and wrist and Grade 3 to 1 in his fingers. The condition of the modified Ashworth scale was persisted for 12 weeks [Figure 1, we use 1.5 to displace MAS Grade 1+ to easily demonstrate on the line graph].
Phage-Based Anti-HER2 Vaccination Can Circumvent Immune Tolerance against Breast Cancer

Structural and immunogenic differences between HER2 and Δ16HER2 were determined, and DNA and phage-based vaccines were developed. This vaccine strategy led to breaking immune tolerance in a breast cancer model, allowing for improved antitumor responses. Δ16HER2 is a splice variant of HER2 and defined as the transforming isoform in HER2-positive breast cancer. It has been shown that Δ16HER2 promotes breast cancer aggressiveness and drug resistance. In the present work, we used in silico modeling to identify structural differences between Δ16HER2 and the wild-type HER2 proteins. We then developed DNA vaccines specifically against the Δ16HER2 isoform and showed that these immunotherapies hampered carcinogenesis in a breast cancer transplantable model. However, the vaccines failed to elicit immune protection in Δ16HER2 transgenic mice because of tolerogenic mechanisms toward the human HER2 self-antigen, a scenario commonly seen in HER2+ patients. Thus, we engineered bacteriophages with immunogenic epitopes of Δ16HER2 exposed on their coat for use as anticancer vaccines. These phage-based vaccines were able to break immune tolerance, triggering a protective anti-Δ16HER2 humoral response. These findings provide a rationale for the use of phage-based anti-HER2/Δ16HER2 vaccination as a safe and efficacious immunotherapy against HER2-positive breast cancers.
Relationship between Serum BDNF Levels and Depressive Mood in Subacute Stroke Patients: A Preliminary Study

The aim of this preliminary study was to investigate the potential of serum brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) as a biomarker in poststroke depressive mood in subacute stroke patients. Thirty-eight subacute stroke patients were recruited in this study. All participants underwent the standard rehabilitation program that included 2 h of physical therapy daily and 1 h of occupational therapy five days a week. The rehabilitation period lasted two weeks during the subacute stroke phase. We measured the serum BDNF, proBDNF, and matrix metalloproteinase-9 before and one and two weeks after the standard rehabilitation program. In addition, all participants were assessed using the Geriatric Depression Scale-Short Form (GDS-SF) for depressive mood at three time points. Pearson correlation analysis was performed to determine the relationship between serum BDNF levels and the GDS-SF. The GDS-SF showed significant improvement during the standard rehabilitation program period (p < 0.05). The GDS-SF was significantly correlated with serum BDNF levels at each time point (p < 0.05). These results suggest that serum BDNF may be used as a biomarker for depressive mood in subacute stroke patients. However, further studies with larger study populations are needed to clarify these results.
Evolution of clinical neuropsychology: Four challenges

Abstract Quantitative and evidence-based approaches fail to capture “the whole person,” neglect the important contributions of nonquantitative variables to understanding behavior, and have limitations when assessing individuals who fall outside traditional normative groups. The emphasis on quantitative and evidence-based practices is one challenge facing the profession. The lack of consensual definitions for various domains of interest is a second challenge, because it hinders research, poses communication challenges, and impedes the accumulation of knowledge about human behavior. A third challenge the profession faces is an overemphasis on the biological basis of behavior. Finally, the forth challenge is the impact of technology on practice. Since the 1970s, there has been a rapid advance in our ability to investigate the brain, resulting in a significant increase of information about brain functioning, making it difficult for clinicians to stay abreast of changes in the field. Advances in technology have resulted in “assessments” being completed by nonpsychologists. To place these and related challenges in context, a brief review of the history of assessment and efforts to investigate brain functioning will be presented. It is suggested that failure to meet these challenges will contribute to the demise of the profession. Suggestions for meeting these challenges are offered.
Adherence to Intravitreal Anti-Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (Anti-VEGF) Drugs in Diabetic Macular Edema in an Egyptian Population: A Health Belief Model

ABSTRACT Purpose: To determine the factors that influence the adherence to follow-up and injections in patients with diabetic macular edema (DME) utilizing a health belief model (HBM) as a theoretical framework, and using demographic variables and knowledge about DME as factors that influence individual perceptions. Material and Methods: A structured questionnaire was developed utilizing the six domains of HBM and using knowledge and other demographics as modifying variables. The questionnaire was checked for validity and reliability, and then used to collect data from patients with DME who were candidates for intravitreal injections according to pro-re-nata regimen, and completed one year after the first injection. Univariate and multivariable analysis was performed to identify factors associated with poor adherence. Results: Of all 343 included patients (168 women and 175 men; mean [SD] age, 58[10] years, 71 (20.7 %) patients dropped visits and/or injections during the first year of treatment. Mean number of dropped injections was 1.32 ± 0.65 (range 1–5 injections). Factors associated with non-adherence were unilaterality of the injection (p < 0.001), absence of funding (p = 0.002), higher perceived barriers (p = 0.011), lower perceived benefits (p = 0.015), lower self-efficacy (p = 0.023), and lower perceived susceptibility (p = 0.029). In multivariable logistic regression model, the final goodness of fit with the data of the model was high (χ2/df = 1.81, p < 0.001). Conclusions: Funding and psychological burden are the main controllable factors for compliance to anti-VEGF therapy in DME. Identifying reasons for non-adherence could contribute to a better outcome.
Iterative Cluster Analysis of Protein Interaction Data

MOTIVATION Generation of fast tools of hierarchical clustering to be applied when distances among elements of a set are constrained, causing frequent distance ties, as happens in protein interaction data. RESULTS We present in this work the program UVCLUSTER, that iteratively explores distance datasets using hierarchical clustering. Once the user selects a group of proteins, UVCLUSTER converts the set of primary distances among them (i.e. the minimum number of steps, or interactions, required to connect two proteins) into secondary distances that measure the strength of the connection between each pair of proteins when the interactions for all the proteins in the group are considered. We show that this novel strategy has advantages over conventional clustering methods to explore protein-protein interaction data. UVCLUSTER easily incorporates the information of the largest available interaction datasets to generate comprehensive primary distance tables. The versatility, simplicity of use and high speed of UVCLUSTER on standard personal computers suggest that it can be a benchmark analytical tool for interactome data analysis. AVAILABILITY The program is available upon request from the authors, free for academic users. Additional information available at http://www.uv. es/genomica/UVCLUSTER.
Challenges in Accurately Assessing Prenatal Alcohol Exposure in a Study of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder in a Youth Detention Center

Background Prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) can result in permanent disability, including physical, neurodevelopmental, and cognitive impairments, known as fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). Individuals with FASD are more likely to engage with the law, including being placed in detention, than individuals without FASD. Young people who were sentenced to detention participated in a FASD prevalence study in Western Australia. The diagnosis of FASD requires a multidisciplinary assessment and confirmation of maternal alcohol consumption during pregnancy. Obtaining accurate assessment of PAE for young people participating in the study was challenging. Methods An interview with the birth mother or other responsible adult for young people sentenced to detention in Western Australia was conducted as part of the FASD assessment. The Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test consumption subset (AUDIT‐C), other relevant questions, and documentary evidence were used to assess PAE. PAE was categorized according to the Australian Guide to the Diagnosis of FASD: no PAE reported, confirmed or confirmed high‐risk, or unknown. Results Among the 101 participants, information on PAE was unable to be obtained for 13 (13%) young people. Of the remaining 88 participants with information of PAE, 41 reported no PAE and 47 had confirmed PAE. Conclusions Accurately assessing prenatal alcohol consumption is challenging in any setting, but it is exceptionally challenging when assessed 13 to 17 years retrospectively as part of a FASD assessment for a young person sentenced to detention. Recording and recoding detailed qualitative responses was required to provide an accurate assessment of PAE using the AUDIT‐C. Standardized recording of PAE in antenatal and birth records would facilitate later assessments for FASD and provide opportunities for advice and support for women who continue to drink during pregnancy.
Effects of age on attention level: changes in performance between the ages of 12 and 90

ABSTRACT The purpose of the present study was to assess the changes in attention level among individuals between the ages of 12 and 90 years. A cross-sectional design was used, with each participant tested once by means of the Mathematics Continuous Performance Test (MATH-CPT). Participants were 496 males and females who were divided into eight age-groups, with each group spanning a period of ten years. Attention level was assessed through comparison with nine variables assessing attention. As people aged, significant reductions in the quality of performance emerged on the five main measures of the MATH-CPT: Two of the four sustained attention variables showed an improvement with age. The peak attention level was in the 30 to a 40-age range, after that, there was a constant decline in the level of attention. The study offers encouraging results with respect to the effect of aging on cognitive functioning and specifically sustained attention.
Exogenous adrenocorticotropic hormone affects genome‐wide DNA methylation and transcriptome of corpus luteum in sows

Stress is known to cause corpus luteum (CL) dysfunction, and stress hormones play a critical role in this process. However, the mechanism remains unclear. In this study, weaned sows were injected with synthetic adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) for 7 d; whole‐genome bisulfite sequencing (WGBS) and RNA sequencing was used respectively to investigate the systematic association between ACTH administration and DNA methylation in CL and its relationship to gene expression. Results showed that ACTH treatment significantly increased the concentrations of Cortisol (P < 0.05). The genome‐wide DNA methylation maps of CL were provided, and the global analysis showed the difference between the 2 groups exists in the chromosomes and feature regions of the genome. A total of 88,559 DMRs were identified and the most DMR‐related genes were gathered in terms of metabolic biologic processes, and some DMR‐related genes were involved in cellular differentiation. Nine differentially expressed genes were screened out of coexpressed genes and 4 DMR‐associated genes that were also differentially expressed (P < 0.05). In summary, our study firstly provides insight into the regulation of ACTH administration on genomic DNA methylation and gene expression in CL. We revealed a remarkable alteration of DNA methylation in CL caused by ACTH treatment, and identified 4 DMR‐related genes that may be involved in the CL function under stress conditions. —Zhao, F. , Wu, W. , Wei, Q. , Shen, M. , Li, B. , Jiang, Y. , Liu, K. , Liu, H. Exogenous adrenocorticotropic hormone affects genome‐wide DNA methylation and transcriptome of corpus luteum in sows. FASEB J. 33, 3264–3278 (2019). www.fasebj. org
miRNA Mediated Noise Making of 3′UTR Mutations in Cancer

Somatic mutations in 3′-untranslated regions (3′UTR) do not alter amino acids and are considered to be silent in cancers. We found that such mutations can promote tumor progression by altering microRNA (miRNA) targeting efficiency and consequently affecting miRNA–mRNA interactions. We identified 67,159 somatic mutations located in the 3′UTRs of messenger RNAs (mRNAs) which can alter miRNA–mRNA interactions (functional somatic mutations, funcMutations), and 69.3% of these funcMutations (the degree of energy change > 12 kcal/mol) were identified to significantly promote loss of miRNA-mRNA binding. By integrating mRNA expression profiles of 21 cancer types, we found that the expression of target genes was positively correlated with the loss of absolute affinity level and negatively correlated with the gain of absolute affinity level. Functional enrichment analysis revealed that genes carrying funcMutations were significantly enriched in the MAPK and WNT signaling pathways, and analysis of regulatory modules identified eighteen miRNA modules involved with similar cellular functions. Our findings elucidate a complex relationship between miRNA, mRNA, and mutations, and suggest that 3′UTR mutations may play an important role in tumor development.
Eustachian Tube Dysfunction and Wideband Absorbance Measurements at Tympanometric Peak Pressure and 0 daPa

Abstract Background: Although wideband absorbance (WBA) provides important information about middle ear function, there is limited research on the use of WBA to evaluate eustachian tube dysfunction (ETD). To date, WBA obtained under pressurized condition has not been used to evaluate ETD. Purpose: The objective of the study was to compare WBA at 0 daPa and tympanometric peak pressure (TPP) conditions in healthy ears and ears with ETD. Research Design A cross-sectional study design was used. Study Sample A total of 102 healthy ears from 79 participants (mean age = 10.0 yr) and 43 ears from 32 patients with ETD (mean age = 16.0 yr) were included in this cross-sectional study. WBA was measured at 0 daPa (WBA0) and TPP WBA at TPP (WBATPP). Data Collection and Analysis: WBA results were analyzed using descriptive statistics and t-tests with the Bonferroni correction. An analysis of variance with repeated measures was applied to the data. Results: WBA0 was significantly lower in the ETD group than in the control group. The WBA0 of the control group demonstrated a broad peak between 1.25 and 4 kHz, whereas the WBA0 of the ETD group had a peak between 2.5 and 4 kHz. WBATPP of the ETD group approached values close to that of the control group. In the control group, WBATPP was only 0.06 to 0.09 higher than WBA0, whereas in the ETD group, WBATPP was 0.29 to 0.42 higher than WBA0 between 0.6 and 1.5 kHz. A differential pattern of WBA at TPP relative to 0 daPa was observed between ears with ETD and ears with otitis media with effusion (OME) and negative middle ear pressure (NMEP). Conclusions: Hence, a comparison of WBA0 and WBATPP can provide potentially useful diagnostic information, and hence can be used as an adjunct tool to evaluate ETD. This is important especially in young children or some adults who are unable to perform maneuvers such as Toynbee or Valsalva during ETD assessment. Further research is needed to verify the results using test performance measures to determine whether WBA0 and WBATPP can objectively determine the presence of ETD or OME with NMEP.
Off-grid Variational Bayesian Inference of Line Spectral Estimation from One-bit Samples

In this paper, the line spectral estimation (LSE) problem is studied from one-bit quantized samples where variational line spectral estimation (VALSE) combined expectation propagation (EP) VALSE-EP method is proposed. Since the original measurements are heavily quantized, performing the off-grid frequency estimation is very challenging. Referring to the expectation propagation (EP) principle, this quantized model is decomposed as two modules, one is the componentwise minimum mean square error (MMSE) module, the other is the standard linear model where the variational line spectrum estimation (VALSE) algorithm can be performed. The VALSE-EP algorithm iterates between the two modules in a turbo manner. In addition, this algorithm can be easily extended to solve the LSE with the multiple measurement vectors (MMVs). Finally, numerical results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed VALSE-EP method.
Relationship Between Tactical Performance, Somatic Maturity and Functional Capabilities in Young Soccer Players

Abstract The aim of the study was to investigate the relationship between tactical performance, somatic maturity, and functional capabilities in young soccer players. Study participants were 48 soccer players (14.80 ± 1.5 years) belonging to an extension project at the State University of Maringa - Brazil. Anthropometric measurements of body mass, body height, and sitting height were carried out. The number of years to peak height velocity (PHV) was used as an index of maturation. Evaluations of functional fitness included the following tests: sit-and-reach, Yo-Yo Intermittent Recovery Test Level 1, handgrip test, modified abdominal test, and vertical jumps (Counter Movement Jump and Jump Squat). Tactical performance was assessed through the System of Tactical Assessment in Soccer (FUT-SAT). Multiple Linear Regression models were used to estimate the relative contributions of functional and maturational capacities to tactical performance. The results indicated weak associations between the tactical performance indices and somatic maturity, functional capacity, and anthropometric attributes (r < 0.40). The Yo-Yo Test contributed to 36% of the defensive tactic performance variation in the under 13 category. These results suggest that the level of maturity, growth status, and functional fitness have limited impact on tactical performance of young soccer players.
A Preliminary Study of Carrion Insects and Their Succession in Luanda, Angola

Abstract The study of the arthropod fauna involved in carcass decomposition is crucial for medicolegal forensic purposes. This knowledge is especially needed in countries with high levels of criminality and where the arthropod fauna is still under-recorded and not well known, such as Angola. We present data from the first survey on sarcosaprophagous flies and beetles in Angola, conducted in Luanda over a 17-d period, in the wet summer season. In total, 881 adult and immature specimens, belonging to 18 species, were collected from three pig carcasses that were sampled daily. Three species were not previously known from Angola. The dominant flies were Chrysomya albiceps (Wiedemann, 1819) (Diptera: Calliphoridae) and Chrysomya megacephala (Fabricius, 1794), but Chrysomya marginalis (Wiedemann, 1830), Chrysomya putoria (Wiedemann, 1830), and Liosarcophaga emmrichiana (Lehrer, 2002) (Diptera: Sarcophagidae) also bred on the carcasses. The dominant beetles were Dermestes maculatus De Geer, 1774 (Coleoptera: Dermestidae), Saprinus splendens (Paykull 1811) (Coleoptera: Histeridae), and Necrobia rufipes (De Geer, 1775) (Coleoptera: Cleridae). Because of the hot weather during the experimental period (∼27°C), decomposition was extremely fast. Periods of insect activity on carcasses are presented and comparisons are made with other carrion communities reported from the Afrotropical region.
BCAbox Algorithm Expands Capabilities of Raman Microscope for Single Organelles Assessment

Raman microspectroscopy is a rapidly developing technique, which has an unparalleled potential for in situ proteomics, lipidomics, and metabolomics, due to its remarkable capability to analyze the molecular composition of live cells and single cellular organelles. However, the scope of Raman spectroscopy for bio-applications is limited by a lack of software tools for express-analysis of biomolecular composition based on Raman spectra. In this study, we have developed the first software toolbox for immediate analysis of intracellular Raman spectra using a powerful biomolecular component analysis (BCA) algorithm. Our software could be easily integrated with commercial Raman spectroscopy instrumentation, and serve for precise analysis of molecular content in major cellular organelles, including nucleoli, endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi apparatus, and mitochondria of either live or fixed cells. The proposed software may be applied in broad directions of cell science, and serve for further advancement and standardization of Raman spectroscopy.