Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Changes in physical activity behavior and the development of body mass index during the last 30 years in Norway

Body mass index (BMI; kg/m2) has increased markedly in the last decades. We hypothesized that highly physically active persons both at work and at leisure would be resistant to weight gain. The hypothesis was tested by analyzing Norwegian cross‐sectional data collected in the period 1972–2002. Participants were 214 449 men and 206 136 women (aged 20–70 years). During the last 30 years in men and the last 15 years in women, a systematic larger BMI increase per year was observed in the sedentary [regression coefficients (SE) in men 0.060 (0.004) kg/m2 and women 0.137 (0.012) kg/m2] compared with highly physically active groups [regression coefficients (SE) in men 0.036 (0.00 4) kg/m2, and in women −0.001 (0.039) kg/m2]. Analyses were robust to adjustments for age, smoking and education. There was a larger absolute net increase in the prevalence of obesity among the sedentary compared with persons performing light, moderate or heavy physical activity (PA) at leisure. PA level in women both at work and in leisure was not associated with weight gain during the last decades. This association was less evident among men. Men and women who were lightly, moderately or highly active at leisure were less likely to be obese compared with those who were sedentary.
Effect of dietary turmeric and cinnamon powders on meat quality and lipid peroxidation of broiler chicken under heat stress condition

Two hundred and fifty male 1-day-old broiler chicks (Ross 308) were used to investigate the effects of dietary supplementation of turmeric and cinnamon powders on meat quality and lipid peroxidation of broilers under heat stress condition. The five treatment groups were control (recommended temperature for Ross 308), heat stressed (32 ± 1 ˚C from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM during finisher period) and heat stressed birds fed with 0.50% turmeric, 0.50% cinnamon and a blend of cinnamon and turmeric (0.25% turmeric + 0.25% cinnamon). The results showed that there were no significant differences between the treatments for ether extract, ash and crude protein contents of thigh meat at 42 day of age (p > 0.05). Heat stress decreased the pH value and dry matter (DM) content of thigh meat, whereas the consumption of all experimental diets (turmeric, cinnamon and both of them) compensated the decreased pH and DM values due to heat stress to some extent but could not restore them to the level of control treatment (p < 0.01). Furthermore, the thigh meat lightness was increased under heat stress (p < 0.05). The thiobarbituric acid reactive substances and free radicals scavenging activity were increased in thigh meat of broilers reared under heat stress (p < 0.05), while these parameters were reduced by the combination of both plants (p < 0.01). It was concluded that heat stress reduces antioxidant properties and quality of thigh meat and dietary supplementation of turmeric and cinnamon powders together can remove the detrimental effects of heat stress on meat quality.
Development of Contractile and Energetic Capacity in Anuran Hindlimb Muscle during Metamorphosis

Anuran larvae undergo water‐to‐land transition during late metamorphosis. We investigated the development of the iliofibularis muscle in bullfrog tadpoles (Rana catesbeiana) between Gosner’s stage 37 and stage 46 (the last stage). The tadpoles began staying in shallow water at least as early as stage 37, kicking from stage 39, active hindlimb swimming from stage 41, and emerging onto shore from stage 42. For control tadpoles kept in water throughout metamorphosis, muscle mass and length increased two‐ to threefold between stages 37 and 46, with rapid increases at stage 40. Large, steady increases were found in femur mass, tetanic tension, contraction rate, and power between stages 37 and 46. Concentrations of ATP and creatine phosphate and rates of the phosphagen depletion and the activity of creatine kinase increased significantly, mainly after stage 43. Shortening velocity, tetanic rise time, and half‐relaxation time varied little. Energy charge (the amount of metabolically available energy stored in the adenine nucleotide pool) remained unchanged until stage 43 but decreased at stage 46. Compared with the control, experimental tadpoles that were allowed access to both water and land exhibited 1.2‐ to 1.8‐fold greater increases in femur mass, tetanic tension, power, phosphagen depletion rates, and creatine kinase activities at late metamorphic stages but no significant differences for other parameters measured. In sum, most hindlimb development proceeds on the basis of the increasingly active use of limbs for locomotion in water. The further increases in tension, mechanical power, and “chemical power” on emergence would be advantageous for terrestrial antigravity performance.
Relation of body mass index in young adulthood and middle age to Medicare expenditures in older age.

CONTEXT Increasing prevalence of overweight/obesity and rapid aging of the US population have raised concerns of increasing health care costs, with important implications for Medicare. However, little is known about the impact of body mass index (BMI) earlier in life on Medicare expenditures (cardiovascular disease [CVD]-related, diabetes-related, and total) in older age. OBJECTIVE To examine relationships of BMI in young adulthood and middle age to subsequent health care expenditures at ages 65 years and older. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS Medicare data (1984-2002) were linked with baseline data from the Chicago Heart Association Detection Project in Industry (CHA) (1967-1973) for 9978 men (mean age, 46.0 years) and 7623 women (mean age, 48.4 years) (baseline overall age range, 33 to 64 years) who were free of coronary heart disease, diabetes, and major electrocardiographic abnormalities, were not underweight (BMI <18.5), and were Medicare-eligible (> or =65 years) for at least 2 years during 1984-2002. Participants were classified by their baseline BMI as nonoverweight (BMI, 18.5-24.9), overweight (25.0-29.9), obese (30.0-34.9), and severely obese (> or =35.0). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Cardiovascular disease-related, diabetes-related, and total average annual Medicare charges, and cumulative Medicare charges from age 65 years to death or to age 83 years. RESULTS In multivariate analyses, average annual and cumulative Medicare charges (CVD-related, diabetes-related, and total) were significantly higher by higher baseline BMI for both men and women. Thus, with adjustment for baseline age, race, education, and smoking, total average annual charges for nonoverweight, overweight, obese, and severely obese women were, respectively, 6224 dollars, 7653 dollars, 9612 dollars, and 12,342 dollars (P<.001 for trend); corresponding total cumulative charges were 76, 866 dollars, 100,959 dollars, 125,470 dollars, and 174,752 dollars (P<.001 for trend). For nonoverweight, overweight, obese, and severely obese men, total average annual charges were, respectively, 7205 dollars, 8390 dollars, 10,128 dollars, and 13,674 dollars (P<.001 for trend). Corresponding total cumulative charges were 100,431 dollars, 109,098 dollars, 119,318 dollars, and 176,947 dollars (P<.001 for trend). CONCLUSION Overweight/obesity in young adulthood and middle age has long-term adverse consequences for health care costs in older age.
Early administration of pyrrolidine dithiocarbamate extends the therapeutic time window of tissue plasminogen activator in a male rat model of embolic stroke

Tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) is used in fewer than 4% of patients after ischemic stroke because of its narrow therapeutic time window. We tested whether pyrrolidine dithiocarbamate (PDTC), a drug with multiple mechanisms to provide neuroprotection, can be used to extend the therapeutic time window of tPA. Three‐month‐old male Sprague‐Dawley rats were subjected to embolic stroke in the area supplied by the right middle cerebral artery. tPA at 10 mg/kg was given intravenously 4 h after the onset of stroke. PDTC at 50 mg/kg was given via gastric gavage at 30 min or 4 h after the onset of stroke. Two days after the stroke, neurological outcome was evaluated and the right frontal cortex area 1 (Fr1), an ischemic penumbral region, was harvested for analysis. PDTC given at 30 min after the stroke reduced infarct volumes and improved neurological functions no matter whether the rats received tPA. PDTC also reduced tPA‐increased hemorrhagic volumes. Consistent with these results, PDTC in the presence or absence of tPA treatment attenuated the increase of proinflammatory cytokines, oxidative stress and matrix metalloprotease 2 activity in the right Fr1. However, PDTC given at 4 h after the onset of stroke did not improve the neurological outcome of rats treated with or without tPA. Our results suggest that PDTC given at an early time point but not in a delayed phase provides neuroprotection against embolic stroke and may be used to extend the therapeutic time window of tPA.
Exploration of genetic architecture through sib-ship reconstruction in advanced breeding population of Eucalyptus nitens

Accurate inference of relatedness between individuals in breeding population contributes to the precision of genetic parameter estimates, effectiveness of inbreeding management and the amount of genetic progress delivered from breeding programs. Pedigree reconstruction has been proven to be an efficient tool to correct pedigree errors and recover hidden relatedness in open pollinated progeny tests but the method can be limited by the lack of parental genotypes and the high proportion of alien pollen from outside the breeding population. Our study investigates the efficiency of sib-ship reconstruction in an advanced breeding population of Eucalyptus nitens with only partially tracked pedigree. The sib-ship reconstruction allowed the identification of selfs (4% of the sample) and the exploration of their potential effect on inbreeding depression in the traits studied. We detected signs of inbreeding depression in diameter at breast height and growth strain while no indications were observed in wood density, wood stiffness and tangential air-dry shrinkage. After the application of a corrected sib-ship relationship matrix, additive genetic variance and heritability were observed to increase where signs of inbreeding depression were initially detected. Conversely, the same genetic parameters for traits that appeared to be free of inbreeding depression decreased in size. It therefore appeared that greater genetic variance may be due, at least in part, to contributions from inbreeding in these studied populations rather than a removal of inbreeding as is traditionally thought.
“Shopping” for a Mate: Expected versus Experienced Preferences in Online Mate Choice

Modern communication technology has greatly increased the number of options we can choose among in a variety of evolutionarily important domains, from housing to food to mates. But is this greater choice beneficial? To find out, we ran two experimental studies to examine the effects of increasing option set-size on anticipated and experienced choice perceptions in the modern context of online mate choice. While participants expected greater enjoyment, increased satisfaction, and less regret when choosing from larger (versus smaller) sets of prospective partners (at least up to a point; Study 1), participants presented with a supposedly ideal number of options experienced no improvement in affect and showed more memory confusions regarding their choice than did those participants presented with fewer options (Study 2). Participants correctly anticipated that greater choice would yield increasing costs, but they overestimated the point at which this would occur. We offer an evolutionary-cognitive framework within which to understand this misperception, discuss factors that may make it difficult for decision-makers to correct for it, and suggest ways in which dating websites could be designed to help users choose from large option sets.
Cold Shock Response of Bacillus subtilis: Isoleucine-Dependent Switch in the Fatty Acid Branching Pattern for Membrane Adaptation to Low Temperatures

ABSTRACT Bacillus subtilis has developed sophisticated mechanisms to withstand fluctuations in temperature. Membrane fatty acids are the major determinants for a sufficiently fluid membrane state to ensure the membrane’s function at all temperatures. The fatty acid profile of B. subtilis is characterized by a high content of branched fatty acids irrespective of the growth medium. Here, we report on the importance of isoleucine for B. subtilis to survive cold shock from 37 to 15°C. Cold shock experiments with strain JH642 revealed a cold-protective function for all intermediates of anteiso-branched fatty acid biosynthesis. Metabolites related to iso-branched or straight-chain fatty acid biosynthesis were not protective. Fatty acid profiles of differentB. subtilis wild-type strains proved the altered branching pattern by an increase in the anteiso-branched fatty acid content and a concomitant decrease of iso-branched species during cold shock. There were no significant changes in the fatty acid saturation or acyl chain length. The cold-sensitive phenotype of isoleucine-deficient strains in the absence of isoleucine correlated with their inability to synthesize more anteiso-branched fatty acids, as shown by the fatty acid profile. The switch to a fatty acid profile dominated by anteiso-C15:0 and C17:0 at low temperatures and the cold-sensitive phenotype of isoleucine-deficient strains in the absence of isoleucine focused our attention on the critical role of anteiso-branched fatty acids in the growth of B. subtilisin the cold.
Parallel-Data-Free Voice Conversion Using Cycle-Consistent Adversarial Networks

We propose a parallel-data-free voice-conversion (VC) method that can learn a mapping from source to target speech without relying on parallel data. The proposed method is general purpose, high quality, and parallel-data free and works without any extra data, modules, or alignment procedure. It also avoids over-smoothing, which occurs in many conventional statistical model-based VC methods. Our method, called CycleGAN-VC, uses a cycle-consistent adversarial network (CycleGAN) with gated convolutional neural networks (CNNs) and an identity-mapping loss. A CycleGAN learns forward and inverse mappings simultaneously using adversarial and cycle-consistency losses. This makes it possible to find an optimal pseudo pair from unpaired data. Furthermore, the adversarial loss contributes to reducing over-smoothing of the converted feature sequence. We configure a CycleGAN with gated CNNs and train it with an identity-mapping loss. This allows the mapping function to capture sequential and hierarchical structures while preserving linguistic information. We evaluated our method on a parallel-data-free VC task. An objective evaluation showed that the converted feature sequence was near natural in terms of global variance and modulation spectra. A subjective evaluation showed that the quality of the converted speech was comparable to that obtained with a Gaussian mixture model-based method under advantageous conditions with parallel and twice the amount of data.
Early childhood parenting and child impulsivity as precursors to aggression, substance use, and risky sexual behavior in adolescence and early adulthood

Abstract The current study utilized a longitudinal design to explore the effect of early child impulsivity and rejecting parenting on the development of problematic behaviors in adolescence and early adulthood. Using a low-income sample of 310 mothers and their sons, we examined the direct and interactive effects of child impulsivity and rejecting parenting at age 2 on aggression and substance use at ages 12, 15, and 22, as well as risky sexual behavior at ages 15 and 22. Results revealed that rejecting parenting at age 2 predicted greater aggression at age 12 and risky sexual behavior at ages 15 and 22. Early impulsivity had few direct effects on later outcomes, with the exception of greater substance use at age 22. Instead, impulsivity emerged as a significant moderator in the link between rejecting parenting and aggression at all three ages and substance use at age 15. Specifically, early rejecting parenting predicted greater aggression and substance use only for children high in impulsivity. Findings highlight the potential for early child and parenting risk factors to have long-term implications for adjustment, with the combination of high impulsivity and rejecting parenting being particularly deleterious for problems of aggression throughout adolescence and into early adulthood.
Spectrum of Cutaneous Vasculitis in Adult Patients from the Farwaniya Region of Kuwait

Objective: To determine the clinical profile, etiologic factors, disease associations, and the laboratory profile of adult patients with cutaneous leukocytoclastic vasculitis (LV) presenting to the Dermatology Department at Farwaniya Hospital, Kuwait. Subjects and Methods: The medical records of 57 adult patients (>18 years) with biopsy-proven cutaneous LV from January 2004 to June 2006 at Farwaniya Hospital were reviewed. Results: Of the 57 patients studied, 21 (36.8%) were classified as having primary cutaneous small vessel vasculitis. The most common type of skin lesions found was palpable purpura seen in 29 (50.9%) patients. No possible cause for the cutaneous vasculitis could be identified in 21 patients. Extracutaneous involvement was seen in 32 (56.1%) patients of which 29 had joint involvement. The most frequent laboratory abnormality was an elevated erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR). Altered laboratory evaluation in the form of leukocytosis, raised antistreptolysin O titers and urine abnormalities were found in association with systemic vasculitis. IgA deposits were present in 33 patients. Risk factors for chronicity of cutaneous LV were female sex, advanced age, unidentified etiology, absence of fever and presence of joint involvement. Conclusion: The commonest type of LV in Kuwait is primary cutaneous small vessel vasculitis. The most frequent laboratory abnormality associated with LV was increased ESR.
Growth hormone prevents human immunodeficiency virus–induced neuronal p53 expression

Growth hormone (GH) is neuroprotective, presumably through its actions on GH receptor–mediated pathways. Here, we examined the effects of GH using in vitro and in vivo assays of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)–induced neuronal injury. Neuronal cultures were in assays of neurotoxicity induced by supernatants from HIV‐1 tat‐transfected monocytoid cells (Tat supernatant). GH treatment reduced neuronal death compared with untreated cultures (p < 0.001), which was blocked by a GH receptor antagonist, B2036. Tat supernatant–induced p53 expression in neurons was also reduced by GH treatment. Expression of both p53 and GH receptor were increased in brain tissue from HIV‐infected persons compared with controls (p < 0.05). Mice receiving intrastriatal implants of Tat supernatant and treated with GH showed less neurobehavioral abnormalities together with reduced neuroinflammation and neuronal injury compared with untreated animals (p < 0.01). Three acquired immunodeficiency syndrome–defined patients with neurocognitive impairment were serially evaluated during daily GH treatment showing a sustained improvement in neuropsychological performance (p < 0.01). GH prevents neuronal death through its actions on neurons involving a p53‐mediated pathway and also improved in vivo neurological function, indicating that GH may have a role in the treatment of HIV‐induced neurodegeneration. Ann Neurol 2003;54:605–614
Surgery‐based versus radiation‐based treatment strategy for a high metabolic volume laryngeal cancer

We previously reported that the metabolic tumor volume (MTV) of a primary tumor was an independent prognostic factor for survival in laryngeal carcinoma treated by radiotherapy (RT)‐based protocol. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the difference in survival outcomes between surgery‐based and RT‐based treatment in patients with a MTV laryngeal cancer.
Randomized, prospective trial of mycophenolate mofetil versus azathioprine for prevention of acute renal allograft rejection after simultaneous kidney-pancreas transplantation.

BACKGROUND In simultaneous kidney-pancreas (SPK) transplantation, manifestations of renal allograft rejection typically become evident before those of pancreatic rejection. This study compared mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) and azathioprine (AZA) in prevention of renal rejection after primary SPK transplantation. METHODS In an open-label, randomized, multicenter study, patients received MMF 1.5 g twice daily (n=74) or AZA 1-3 mg/kg daily (n=76) for 1 year after transplantation. The incidence of rejection was assessed at 6 months. Adverse events were tracked through 1 year. Survival data are reported through 2 years. RESULTS At 6 months, efficacy results for MMF vs. AZA patients, respectively, were the following: rejection (27% vs. 39%); rejection or death (34% vs. 42%); rejection, graft loss, death, or premature withdrawal (i.e., treatment failure; 41% vs. 55%). Six-month efficacy trends favored MMF, and time to rejection or treatment failure was significantly longer when compared with AZA (P=0.049). One-year efficacy results for MMF vs. AZA patients, respectively, were the following: treatment of renal rejection (35% vs. 47%); renal allograft loss or death (9% vs. 12%); pancreas allograft loss or death (15% vs. 14%). Five MMF patients (7%) and four (5%) in the AZA group died. More MMF than AZA patients developed opportunistic infections (54% vs. 38%), but the pathogens did not differ. CONCLUSIONS Trends for most efficacy parameters favored MMF over AZA, and time to renal allograft rejection or treatment failure was statistically significantly longer for MMF. The use of MMF in the treatment of SPK recipients is a useful advance.
A multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, dose-titration study of oral pilocarpine for treatment of radiation-induced xerostomia in head and neck cancer patients.

PURPOSE To determine the efficacy and safety of pilocarpine hydrochloride for symptomatic relief of postradiation xerostomia symptoms and for saliva production in patients with head and neck cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS One hundred sixty-two head and neck cancer patients who had received at least 40 Gy of radiation (117 patients had received > 60 Gy) with clinically significant xerostomia were enrolled onto a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multi-center clinical investigation. Patients received 2.5-mg tablets for the first 4 weeks, 5.0-mg tablets for the second 4 weeks, and 10.0-mg tablets for the last 4 weeks of the 12-week study. Patients were allowed to titrate pilocarpine or placebo for improvement in symptoms or to reduce side effects. Patients were evaluated for symptomatic relief by questionnaires and visual analog scales (VAS), and for saliva production by sialometry. RESULTS Pilocarpine produced a significant improvement (P = .035) in overall global assessments compared with placebo. There was a statistically significant (P = .020) decreased use of oral comfort agents such as artificial saliva, hard candy, and water. Values for symptomatic improvement in dryness approached significance (P = .057). There were statistically significant postdose improvements in whole and parotid salivary flow in pilocarpine treatment groups versus placebo. All pilocarpine dosages tested were judged to be safe. Adverse experiences were primarily sweating, rhinitis, headache, nausea, and urinary frequency, with the most common side effect being mild to moderate sweating. There were no serious drug-related adverse experiences in any of the pilocarpine treatment groups. CONCLUSION It is concluded that pilocarpine produces clinically significant benefits for the symptomatic treatment of postradiation xerostomia. Best results were obtained with continuous treatment for 8 to 12 weeks with doses greater than 2.5 mg three times per day.