Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Impact of Sex and Gender on Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a common functional bowel disorder characterized by abdominal pain and change in defecation pattern. This review addresses the topic of possible sex (genetic, biological) and gender (experiential, perceptual) differences in individuals with and without IBS. Several observations make the topic important. First, there is a predominance of women as compared to men who seek health care services for IBS in the United States and other industrialized societies. Second, menstrual cycle-linked differences are observed in IBS symptom reports. Third, women with IBS tend to report greater problems with constipation and nongastrointestinal complaints associated with IBS. Fourth, serotonin (5-HT3) receptor antagonist and 5-HT 4 partial agonist drugs appear to more effectively diminish reports of bowel pattern disruption in women with IBS as compared to men. This review examines sex and gender modulation of gastrointestinal motility and transit, visceral pain sensitivity, autonomic nervous system function, serotonin biochemistry, and differences in health care-seeking behavior for IBS.
Influence of Octreotide (SMS 201–995) and Insulin Administration on the Course of Blood Pressure After an Oral Glucose Load in Hypertensive Elderly Subjects

Pretreatment with a somatostatin analogue, octreotide (SMS 201–995), prevents postprandial blood pressure reduction in the elderly. We hypothesized that this beneficial effect on blood pressure is caused by an octreotide‐induced suppression of insulin secretion. We studied the effects of octreotide and insulin administration on the course of blood pressure after oral glucose loading in 10 healthy hypertensive old persons (mean age 73 ± 3 years). Octreotide was given in a dose of 50 μg subcutaneously (sc) (time = −30 minutes). Insulin was given sc in a dose of 0.3 U/kg body weight (time = −10 minutes) and glucose was given orally in a dose of 75 g in 300 mL water (time = 0 minutes). Plasma insulin concentrations remained essentially unchanged after placebo and rose to a maximum level of 58 ± 6 mU/L following insulin administration. The course of blood pressure was not different following glucose loading with high or low plasma insulin levels. These data indicate that the effects of octreotide on postprandial blood pressure reduction in the elderly are unrelated to the inhibition of insulin secretion.
A review of technological and clinical aspects of robot-aided rehabilitation of upper-extremity after stroke

Abstract Cerebrovascular accident (CVA) or stroke is one of the leading causes of disability and loss of motor function. Millions of people around the world are effected by it each year. Stroke results in disabled arm function. Restoration of arm function is essential to regaining activities of daily living (ADL). Along with traditional rehabilitation methods, robot-aided therapy has emerged in recent years. Robot-aided rehabilitation is more intensive, of longer duration and more repetitive. Using robots, repetitive dull exercises can turn into a more challenging and motivating tasks such as games. Besides, robots can provide a quantitative measure of the rehabilitation progress. This article overviews the terms used in robot-aided upper-limb rehabilitation. It continues by investigating the requirements for rehabilitation robots. Then the most outstanding works in robot-aided upper-limb rehabilitation and their control schemes have been investigated. The clinical outcomes of the built robots are also given that demonstrates the usability of these robots in real-life applications and their acceptance. This article summarizes a review done along with a research on the design, simulation and control of a robot for use in upper-limb rehabilitation after stroke. Implications for Rehabilitation Reviewing common terms in rehabilitation of upper limb using robots Reviewing rehabilitation robots built up to date Reviewing clinical outcomes of the mentioned rehabilitation robots
An Examination of Satisfaction, GPA, and Retention of First-year College Students from Rural Communities at a Small Public Technical College

Individuals from rural communities are less likely to enroll in college and complete a degree than those from non-rural areas. Nationally, rural students comprise one-fifth of college enrollment, and evidence suggests this demographic group has unique needs which may influence retention. This quantitative study examined multiple years of data from the State University of New York Student Opinion Survey for students at a small, rural technical college in Upstate New York to determine if relationships existed between a college student’s graduating high school community type, student satisfaction, GPA, and retention at the beginning of the second year. Binary logistic regression analyses were employed to determine the extent to which first-year retention was explained by self-reported satisfaction and GPA for rural high school graduates. Additionally, multiple t tests were used to determine if differences in satisfaction existed for students from rural high schools versus students from non-rural schools. The results indicated statistically significant positive correlations between students from rural high schools, first-year GPA, and satisfaction with the campus facilities, services, and environment. Rural high school students were also more likely to report that they would attend the university again, had higher overall levels of satisfaction with the college, and were more likely to indicate that the institution was a higher choice for them than for students from non-rural high schools. Recommendations for additional research and initiatives targeting students who graduate from high schools in rural communities are included. Document Type Dissertation Degree Name Doctor of Education (EdD) Department Executive Leadership First Supervisor Kim VanDerLinden Second Supervisor Michael Robinson Third Supervisor Ed Engelbride Subject Categories Education This dissertation is available at Fisher Digital Publications: https://fisherpub.sjfc. edu/education_etd/377 An Examination of Satisfaction, GPA, and Retention of First-year College Students from Rural Communities at a Small Public Technical College
Minimum Wages and the Gender Gap in Pay: New Evidence from the United Kingdom and Ireland

Women are disproportionately in low‐paid work compared to men so, in the absence of rationing effects on their employment, they should benefit the most from minimum wage policies. This study examines the change in the gender wage gap around the introduction of minimum wages in Ireland and the United Kingdom (U.K.). Using survey data for the two countries, we develop a decomposition of the change in the gender differences in wage distributions around the date of introduction of minimum wages. We separate out “price” effects attributed to minimum wages from “employment composition” effects. A significant reduction of the gender gap at low wages is observed after the introduction of the minimum wage in Ireland, while there is hardly any change in the U.K. Counterfactual simulations show that the difference between countries may be attributed to gender differences in non‐compliance with the minimum wage legislation in the U.K.
IS/IT investments and firm performance: Indian evidence

ABSTRACT The importance of assessing the relationships between information system/information technology (IS/IT) investments and firm performance is well acknowledged. However, similar inquiries are found to be under-represented in emerging markets like India, which motivates this work. Based on secondary data, the study assesses the impact of IS/IT investments made by Indian firms over the last one and half decades on their performance. Results indicate that these investments have a negative impact on firm performance manifested through decline in both operating and equity market performance. This has implications for theory and practice, which are also discussed.
Applications of Confocal Laser Scanning Microscopy to Dental Bonding

The introduction of confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) has provided a valuable new technique for the visualization of bonding structures such as a hybrid layer in dentin (Watson, 1989, 1991), In the case of seven commercially-available dentin bonding systems, it could be demonstrated that the CLSM renders considerably more detailed information than the SEM because of its nondestructive nature and because of the possibility of a distinction between components of bonding agents. With most of the bonding systems, measurements of the thickness of the hybrid layer could be carried out when the primer component was labeled with rhodamine B. It was found that this thickness is significantly increased by increases in etching time and only slightly decreased by increases in the drying time of the dentin and of the primer. When rhodamine B was used for dye penetration tests on four different dentin bonding systems, a leakage within the demineralized zone in the dentin was found in each of the specimens. This structure appears similar to that which Sano et al. (1995) called "nanoleakage". The amount of nanoleakage could not be measured by this method. In the case of enamel or ceramic bonding, a penetration zone was found which corresponded to the etching patterns found in enamel and ceramics, respectively. We conclude that CLSM can offer a wealth of new information about bonding morphology and, therefore, should be used in addition to conventional methods so that the maximum information can be obtained.
Immunoglobulin-related (AL) amyloidosis.

The amyloid fibril is the unique component of amyloid substances. Some amyloid fibrils (i.e. AL amyloid) are made up by homogeneous immunoglobulin light chains, and such fibrils are related to systemic and localized primary amyloidosis and amyloidosis associated with myelomatosis and Waldenstrøm's macroglobulinaemia. More lambda than kappa light chain proteins make up the amyloid in these cases, and it appears that lambda-chains are more prone to fibril formation than kappa-chains. Immunoglobulins are thus the precursor protein for AL amyloid, which shows that primary amyloidosis belongs to the plasma cell dyscrasias. Amyloid infiltration of the heart and the kidneys accounts for the most severe clinical consequences of AL amyloidosis. In addition, peripheral neuropathy, carpal tunnel syndrome, macroglossia, skin affections, amyloid arthropathy and autonomic disturbances (i.e. orthostatic hypotension) are characteristic features of the disease. Involvement of parenchymal organs (kidneys, liver, spleen, gastrointestinal tract and endocrine glands) are common to systemic AL amyloidosis and secondary amyloidosis. As protein AA is the major fibril constituent of secondary amyloid, this form of amyloid disease is not related to immunoglobulins. Like other forms of plasma cell dyscrasia, patients with AL amyloidosis are usually treated with cytotoxic drugs and corticosteroids, however, the prognosis is very poor with a reported survival time after diagnosis of less than two years.
Reporting of Diabetes on Death Certificates With Coronary Heart Disease as Underlying Cause of Death in California, 1985-1990

1. National Diabetes Data Group: Classification and diagnosis of diabetes mellitus and other categories of glucose intolerance. Diabetes 28:1039-1057, 1979 2. World Health Organization: Second Report oj the WHO Expert Committee on Diabetes Mellitus. Geneva, World Health Org. , 1980 (Tech. Rep. Ser., no. 646) 3. DeLozier JE, Gagnon RO: National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey, 1989 Summary. Hyattsville, MD, National Center for Health Statistics, Vital and Health Statistics, 1991 (Advance Data no. 203) 4. Schappert SM: National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey, 1990 Summary. Hyattsville, MD, National Center for Health Statistics, Vital and Health Statistics, 1992 (Advance Data no. 213) 5. Harris Ml: Testing for blood glucose by office-based physicians in the U.S. Diabetes Care 13:419-426, 1990 6. National Center for Health Statistics: Current Estimates From the National Health Interview Survey, United States, 1989. Hyattsville, MD, NCHS Vital and Health Statistics, 1990 (Ser. 10, no. 176) 7. Harris MI, Cowie CC, Howie LJ: Selfmonitoring of blood glucose by adults with diabetes in the U.S. population. Diabetes Care 16:1116-1123, 1993 8. Department of Health and Human Services: International Classification oj Diseases, 9th Revision, Clinical Modification. Washington, DC, U.S. Govt. Printing Office, 1980 (DHHS publ. no. PHS 801260) 9. Bryant E, Shimizu I: Sample Design, Sampling Variance, and Estimation Procedures for the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey. Hyattsville, MD, National Center for Health Statistics, Vital and Health Statistics, 1988 (Ser. 2, no. 108) 10. Bush TL, Miller SR, Golden AL, Hale WE: Self-report and medical record report agreement of selected medical conditions in the elderly. Am J Public Health 79: 1554-1556, 1989 11. Paganini-Hill A, Ross RK: Reliability of recall of drug usage and other health-related information. Am J Epidemiol 116:114122,1982 12. Heliovaara M, Aromaa A, Klaukka T, Knekt P, Joukamaa M, Impivaara O: Reliability and validity of interview data on chronic diseases. J Clin Epidemiol 46:181— 191,1993 13. National Center for Health Statistics: Annual Summary of Births, Marriages, Divorces, and Deaths, United States, 1989. Hyattsville, MD, Public Health Service, 1990 (monthly vital statistics report, vol. 38, no. 13) 14. National Center for Health Statistics: Annual Summary oj Births, Marriages, Divorces, and Deaths, United States, 1990. Hyattsville, MD, Public Health Service, 1991 (monthly vital statistics report, vol. 39, no. 13)
YEAR‐LONG CLENBUTEROL TREATMENT OF MICE INCREASES MASS, BUT NOT SPECIFIC FORCE OR NORMALIZED POWER, OF SKELETAL MUSCLES

1. Clenbuterol has been proposed for the treatment of muscle wasting disorders, but its long‐term effects on skeletal muscle function have not been tested rigorously. We tested the hypothesis that year‐long treatment of young (6 months) mice with clenbuterol would increase skeletal muscle mass and in vitro measurements of specific force (Po) and power output.
Heart rate: is it truly a vital sign?

BACKGROUND Tachycardia, often defined as heart rate >100 bpm, has been utilized as a physical sign of hypovolemic shock among the injured for decades without evidence to support its use as a predictor of injury or significant hypovolemia. We sought to determine whether admission heart rate is a valid predictor of hemodynamically significant injuries. METHODS Trauma registry data from 1998 to 2004 were analyzed with logistic regression to determine whether heart rate was associated with need for emergent intervention for bleeding (laparotomy, thoracotomy, or angiography), need for packed red blood cell (pRBC) transfusion in the first 24 hours, or severe injury (ISS >25) after blunt or penetrating trauma. RESULTS Records of 10,825 patients were analyzed. Overall, heart rate was neither sensitive nor specific in determining the need for emergent intervention, pRBCs in the first 24 hours or severe injury. This was not altered by the presence of hypotension (systolic blood pressure <90 mm Hg) or age in the blunt cohort. CONCLUSIONS Heart rate alone is not sufficient to determine the need for emergent interventions for hemorrhage. Although tachycardia may still indicate need for emergent intervention in the trauma patient, its absence should not allay such concern.
Simple, scalable, and ultrasensitive tip-based identification of protease substrates*

Proteases are in the center of many diseases, and consequently, proteases and their substrates are important drug targets as represented by an estimated 5–10% of all drugs under development. Mass spectrometry has been an indispensable tool for the discovery of novel protease substrates, particularly through the proteome-scale enrichment of so-called N-terminal peptides representing endogenous protein N termini. Methods such as combined fractional diagonal chromatography (COFRADIC)1 and, later, terminal amine isotopic labeling of substrates (TAILS) have revealed numerous insights into protease substrates and consensus motifs. We present an alternative and simple protocol for N-terminal peptide enrichment, based on charge-based fractional diagonal chromatography (ChaFRADIC) and requiring only well-established protein chemistry and a pipette tip. Using iTRAQ-8-plex, we quantified on average 2,073 ± 52 unique N-terminal peptides from only 4.3 μg per sample/channel, allowing the identification of proteolytic targets and consensus motifs. This high sensitivity may even allow working with clinical samples such as needle biopsies in the future. We applied our method to study the dynamics of staurosporine-induced apoptosis. Our data demonstrate an orchestrated regulation of specific pathways after 1.5 h, 3 h, and 6 h of treatment, with many important players of homeostasis targeted already after 1.5 h. We additionally observed an early multilevel modulation of the splicing machinery both by proteolysis and phosphorylation. This may reflect the known role of alternative splicing variants for a variety of apoptotic genes, which seems to be a driving force of staurosporine-induced apoptosis.
Molecular Epidemiology of Streptococcus pneumoniae Isolates from Children with Recurrent Upper Respiratory Tract Infections

A total of 125 isolates were recovered from adenoids and/or nasopharynx of 170 children aged 2 to 5 from south-east Poland; they had undergone adenoidectomy for recurrent and/or persistent symptoms of upper respiratory tract infections. Pneumococcal isolates were analyzed by phenotyping (serotyping and antimicrobial resistance tests) and genotyping together with the clonality of the pneumococcal isolates based on resistance determinants, transposon distribution and multilocus sequence typing (MLST). Serotypes 19F, 6B and 23F constituted 44.8% of the isolates. Among all of the strains, 44.8% showed decreased susceptibility to penicillin and resistance to co-trimoxazole (52.8%), tetracycline (38.4%), erythromycin (53.6%), clindamycin (52.8%) and chloramphenicol (27.2%) was observed. Tn6002 was found in 34.8% of erythromycin-resistant isolates while composite Tn2010—in 16.7% of erm(B)-carrying isolates that harboured also mef(E) gene. Tn3872-related elements were detected in 27.3% of erythromycin-resistant strains. In the majority of chloramphenicol-resistant catpC194-carrying isolates (79.4%), ICESp23FST81-family elements were detected. The genotyping showed that pneumococcal population was very heterogeneous; 82 sequence types (STs) were identified, and the most frequent contributed to not more than 8% of the isolates. Nearly 44% STs were novel, each of them was recovered only from one child. Four STs belonged to one of the 43 worldwide spread resistant pneumococcal clones currently accepted by Pneumococcal Molecular Epidemiology Network (PMEN), i.e. Spain 9V-3, Spain 23F-1, Norway NT-42 and Poland 6B-20, accounting for 12 (16.7%) of the 75 nonususceptible isolates, and five STs were single-locus variants of PMEN resistant clones (England 14–9, Spain 9V-3, Spain 23F-1, Greece 21–30, Denmark 14–32), accounting 9 (12%) of nonsusceptible isolates. A few MDR clones belonging to 6B and 19F serotypes found among preschool children emphasizes rather the role of clonal dissemination of local strains in the community than international clones spreading in the increase of resistance among pneumococcal strains.
MR-guided transcranial brain HIFU in small animal models

Recent studies have demonstrated the feasibility of transcranial high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) therapy in the brain using adaptive focusing techniques. However, the complexity of the procedures imposes provision of accurate targeting, monitoring and control of this emerging therapeutic modality in order to ensure the safety of the treatment and avoid potential damaging effects of ultrasound on healthy tissues. For these purposes, a complete workflow and setup for HIFU treatment under magnetic resonance (MR) guidance is proposed and implemented in rats. For the first time, tissue displacements induced by the acoustic radiation force are detected in vivo in brain tissues and measured quantitatively using motion-sensitive MR sequences. Such a valuable target control prior to treatment assesses the quality of the focusing pattern in situ and enables us to estimate the acoustic intensity at focus. This MR-acoustic radiation force imaging is then correlated with conventional MR-thermometry sequences which are used to follow the temperature changes during the HIFU therapeutic session. Last, pre- and post-treatment magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) datasets are acquired and evaluated as a new potential way to non-invasively control the stiffness changes due to the presence of thermal necrosis. As a proof of concept, MR-guided HIFU is performed in vitro in turkey breast samples and in vivo in transcranial rat brain experiments. The experiments are conducted using a dedicated MR-compatible HIFU setup in a high-field MRI scanner (7 T). Results obtained on rats confirmed that both the MR localization of the US focal point and the pre- and post-HIFU measurement of the tissue stiffness, together with temperature control during HIFU are feasible and valuable techniques for efficient monitoring of HIFU in the brain. Brain elasticity appears to be more sensitive to the presence of oedema than to tissue necrosis.
Antecedents and consequences of customer loyalty in Qatar

Drawing insights from the customer value-based theory, the study hypothesises and examines the relationships in the antecedents-customer loyalty-consequences process in a unique context, Qatar. Five divergent and salient antecedents and two important outcomes are incorporated in a single comprehensive study. The antecedents are innovation (a novel one), service quality, trust, satisfaction and switching cost, while the consequences are word-of-mouth communication and repeat purchase. An analysis of a sample of mobile internet subscribers reveals that the five antecedents impact customer loyalty, which, in turn, influences the two outcomes. The study extends customer loyalty theory to a region marked by unique Islamic values and beliefs. Also, the study suggests that in addition to paying attention to a number of traditional drivers of customer loyalty simultaneously, marketers seeking to build and sustain customer loyalty in the Gulf region should also focus on innovation. Implications are discussed.
Approaches for the identification of potential excreted/secreted proteins of Leishmania major parasites

Leishmania parasites are able to survive in host macrophages despite the harsh phagolysosomal vacuoles conditions. This could reflect, in part, their capacity to secrete proteins that may play an essential role in the establishment of infection and serve as targets for cellular immune responses. To characterize Leishmania major proteins excreted/secreted early after promastigote entry into the host macrophage, we have generated antibodies against culture supernatants of stationary-phase promastigotes collected 6 h after incubation in conditions that partially reproduce those prevailing in the parasitophorous vacuole. The screening of an L. major cDNA library with these antibodies led us to isolate 33 different cDNA clones that we report here. Sequence analysis revealed that the corresponding proteins could be classified in 3 groups: 9 proteins have been previously described as excreted/secreted in Leishmania and/or other species; 11 correspond to known proteins already characterized in Leishmania and/or other species although it is unknown whether they are excreted/secreted and 13 code for unknown proteins. Interestingly, the latter are transcribed as shown by RT-PCR and some of them are stage regulated. The L. major excreted/secreted proteins may constitute putative virulence factors, vaccine candidates and/or new drug targets.