Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Dental caries and body mass index by socio-economic status in Swedish children.

OBJECTIVES The aim of the present study was to evaluate the association between dental caries, childhood body mass index (BMI), and socioeconomic status in Swedish children. METHODS The study cohort consisted of 2303 10-year-old children with data on socioeconomic status, BMI at 4, 5, 7 and 10 years of age, and caries at 6, 10 and 12 years of age. Anthropometric measures were carried out by trained nurses according to standardized routines. The occurrence of caries was registered from county records, and the children were classified into one of five socioeconomic clusters based on their census registration address. RESULTS Caries prevalence decreased with increasing socioeconomic status at all ages, whereas childhood BMI and proportion of overweight/obese children were unrelated to socioeconomic status. Obese, but not overweight, children had more caries affected teeth than non-obese, and BMI had an independent, though weak, effect on caries variation in multiple regression. Interestingly, overweight/obese 4-year-olds, who had normal body weight at 5, 7 and 10 years of age, had significantly less caries than children who had normal body weight from 4 to 10 years of age. CONCLUSIONS Overweight and caries prevalence are significantly associated in Swedish children. However, the association is weak. Nevertheless, the concept that child dental services and child welfare services can benefit from joint programs is supported.
The clinical characteristics of obsessive compulsive disorder associated with high levels of schizotypy

Objectives: This study aims to examine the characteristics of obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) associated with high levels of schizotypy. Methods: Using the Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire (SPQ) with 177 individuals with OCD, patients with OCD and high levels of schizotypy (OCD-HS) were compared to patients with OCD and low levels of schizotypy (OCD-LS) on a range of clinical characteristics. Self-report and clinician-administered instruments were used. Results were adjusted for the severity of OCD symptoms, age, marital status and comorbidity using logistic regression. Results: Patients with OCD-HS were younger and less likely to have been married. OCD-HS was associated with higher rates of symmetry/order obsessions, ordering/arranging compulsions, checking compulsions, co-occurring major depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance use disorders and greater general psychopathology. Previously reported associations, such as higher total scores on the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS) were not significant when adjusted for differences in demographic variables and comorbidity. Conclusions: Patients with OCD-HS were associated with specific OCD symptoms and comorbid conditions and may warrant a specific treatment approach.
Genetic determinism of δ3-carene in maritime pine using RAPD markers.

An F2 progeny of maritime pine (Pinus pinaster Aïton) was used to investigate the mode of inheritance of δ3-carene using a quantitative and a qualitative approach. A previously reported genetic map constructed with random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers made it possible to locate one major quantitative trait locus (QTL) accounting for most of the phenotypic variation of this trait on linkage group 5. In the qualitative approach, the "C" locus that controls the relative quantity of δ3-carene (C+ for the richness allele and C− for the poorness allele) was found to be strongly associated with RAPD markers in the same genomic region of linkage group 5. The colocation between the QTL and the "C" locus suggests that a major gene or closely linked loci affect the variation in δ3-carene expression. Key words : Pinus pinaster, terpenes, QTL, RAPD, linkage analysis.
Treatment of peri-implantitis using an Er:YAG laser or an air-abrasive device: a randomized clinical trial.

BACKGROUND Non-surgical peri-implantitis therapies appear to be ineffective. Limited data suggest that ER:YAG laser therapy improves clinical conditions. The present study aimed at comparing the treatment effects between air-abrasive (AM) and Er:YAG laser (LM) mono-therapy in cases with severe peri-implantitis. MATERIALS AND METHODS Twenty-one subjects in each group were randomly assigned to one time intervention by an air-abrasive device or an Er:YAG laser. Clinical data were collected before treatment and at 6 months. Data analysis was performed using repeat univariate analysis of variance controlling for subject factors. RESULTS No baseline subject characteristic differences were found. Bleeding on probing and suppuration decreased in both the groups (p<0.001). The mean probing depth (PPD) reductions in the AM and LM groups were 0.9 mm (SD 0.8) and 0.8 mm (SD ± 0.5), with mean bone-level changes (loss) of -0.1 mm (SD ± 0.8) and -0.3 mm (SD ± 0.9), respectively (NS). A positive treatment outcome, PPD reduction ≥0.5 mm and gain or no loss of bone were found in 47% and 44% in the AM and LM groups, respectively. CONCLUSIONS The clinical treatment results were limited and similar between the two methods compared with those in cases with severe peri-implantitis.
Alcohol consumption and other maternal risk factors for fetal alcohol syndrome among three distinct samples of women before, during, and after pregnancy: The risk is relative

Data were obtained from three samples of women of childbearing age. One sample of women is from prenatal clinics serving Plains Indian women. The second sample is of women from the Plains whose children were referred to special diagnostic developmental clinics, as their children were believed to have developmental issues consistent with prenatal alcohol consumption. The third sample is of women from South Africa, each of whom has given birth to a child diagnosed with full fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS). Data across samples conform to expected trends on many variables. For example, the maternal age at time of pregnancy, a major risk factor for FAS, ranged from a mean of 23.5 years for the prenatal clinic sample, to 23.8 years for the developmental clinic sample, to 27.6 for the sample of women who have delivered children with FAS. Other variables of maternal risk for FAS expected from the extant literature, such as high gravidity and parity, binge drinking, heavy intergenerational drinking in the mother's extended family and immediate social network, and length of drinking career, were compared across the three samples with variable results. However, normative measures of drinking problems are unreliable when reported across cultures. An unexpected finding from this three‐sample comparison was the differential risk found when comparing U.S. women to South African women. Women in the U.S. Plains Indian samples report a high consumption of alcohol in a binge pattern of drinking, yet there is less detectable damage to the fetus than among the South African women. Body mass index (BMI) and lifelong and current nutrition may have a substantial impact, along with the above factors, in relative risk for an FAS birth. The level of risk for producing a child with FAS is influenced by environmental and behavioral conditions that vary between populations and among individual women. Also, because many syndromes are genetically based, there is a need for full behavioral and genetic histories of the mother, family, and child being studied. Collecting extensive behavioral information as well as genetic histories will provide the requisite information for making an accurate diagnosis of FAS. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Efficacy of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) for progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP).

Progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) is clinically characterized by vertical gaze palsy, postural instability with falls and poor response to dopaminergic drugs. We evaluated the efficacy of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) with open-label 5 Hz 5000 pulses for ten days over the supplementary motor area in seven PSP cases. Progressive Supranuclear Palsy Rating Scale (PSPRS) is improved by 7 points compared to the baseline (pre=48, post=41, p<0.05). rTMS might be a therapeutic tool to treat neurological sign of PSP.
Molecular Analysis of a Carbohydrate Antigen Involved in the Structure and Function of Zona Pellucida Glycoproteins1

Abstract A lactosaminoglycan-associated antigen is associated with a carbohydrate moiety of all three zona pellucida (ZP) glycoproteins of pig and rabbit but is absent in the mouse and rat. A monoclonal antibody (PS1) recognizing this determinant was obtained by immunizing mice with a porcine ZP glycoprotein isoform purified by two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Conditions known to remove O-linked or sialic acid carbohydrate moieties (alkaline reduction; O-glycanase or neuraminidase enzymatic cleavage) did not remove the carbohydrate epitope. However, treatment with endo-β-glycosidase, endoglycosidase F, or combinations of neuraminidase plus β-galactosidase, totally removed the determinant, indicating that it is associated with a poly-N-acetyllactosaminoglycan structure present on an N-linked oligosaccharide. Molecular morphology studies using immunofluorescence and confocal microscopy techniques demonstrate that the PS1 antigen is localized at the surface of the ZP. Confirmation of this localization was obtained through studies that show that this antibody will inhibit homologous sperm binding to the pig ZP. Additional analyses using modular contrast microscopy and immunocytochemistry demonstrate that this carbohydrate-associated antigen is localized in discrete layers throughout the ZP matrix. These studies are the first to demonstrate the presence of a lactosaminoglycan type carbohydrate moiety in all three ZP proteins using a monoclonal antibody that appears to be involved in sperm recognition and structural organization.
The Leptospira interrogans lexA Gene Is Not Autoregulated

ABSTRACT Footprinting and mutagenesis experiments demonstrated that Leptospira interrogans LexA binds the palindrome TTTGN5CAAA found in the recA promoter but not in the lexA promoter. In silico analysis revealed that none of the other canonical SOS genes is under direct control of LexA, making the leptospiral lexA gene the first described which is not autoregulated.
Multiobjective Environmentally Sustainable Road Network Design Using Pareto Optimization

In this article, a bi‐level transportation network design problem with environmental considerations is investigated. To explicitly reflect various requirements of environmental sustainability from planners, total emissions costs and total excessive noise cost are minimized along with total system travel time while performing optimal capacity expansion. To leave space for additional information on decision making for planners and provide a more generalized description of solution optimality, the Pareto optimization approach is adopted. The study proposes a multiobjective variant of a new metaheuristic named Chemical Reaction Optimization as the optimization tool to solve the formulated network design problem. Pareto front approximations have been successfully acquired for each scenario tested using the Sioux Falls network. The results show that the relations between pairwise objectives can change significantly (e.g., from conflicting to aligned) with regard to different demand situations. The newly proposed multiobjective metaheuristic succeeds to produce better approximations of the Pareto front than NSGA‐II with comparable runtime for the considered road network.
UK audit of single photon emission computed tomography reconstruction software using software generated phantoms

The purpose of this study was to undertake an audit of the quantitative characteristics of single photon emission computed tomography software using projection data from an analytically generated software phantom and a measured line source. The phantom consisted of three structures. A uniformly filled cylinder, a series of cylindrical rods of various diameters in a background activity with a rod to background ratio of 2 : 1 and lastly, a set of three concentric rings of activity in the ratio 1 : 0 : 1. The phantom contained no added statistical noise. No attenuation was imposed on the data. The phantom was generated analytically and projections were distributed at six different count densities. A single set of projections from a thin line source was also distributed. These data were distributed to centres throughout the UK. Centres were asked to reconstruct the data using a ‘ramp only’ reconstruction with no additional smoothing function applied. Data were requested for mean and standard deviation in the uniform cylinder, the maximum counts for each cylindrical rod and the mean counts in regions placed within the concentric rings. For the measured line source, centres were asked to measure the full width at half maximum and peak pixel counts for a profile through the reconstructed line. Results from 115 systems were obtained from 100 centres throughout the UK. These provided data from 12 software providers, 11 of these being commercial companies. Data were compared with the known input values and histograms of the distribution of results obtained. Significant differences in quantitative parameters were noted for the different input count densities as well as between suppliers and revisions of software from single suppliers.
Overexpression of CDC 25 B Phosphatase as a Novel Marker of Poor Prognosis of Human Colorectal Carcinoma 1

There is evidence to suggest that CDC25B phosphatase is an oncogenic protein. To elucidate the role of CDC25B in colorectal carcinoma, we examined the expression of CDC25B at the mRNA and protein levels. Reverse transcription-PCR assay indicated that CDC25B was overexpressed in tumor tissues relative to normal mucosa in 6 of 10 cases. Using immunohistochemistry, we identified high expression of CDC25B in 77 of 181 colorectal cases (43%). Univariate analysis showed that high expression was a significant predictor for poor prognosis compared with low expression (5-year survival rate; 59% versus 82%, respectively; P < 0.0001). Multivariate analysis indicated that CDC25B was an independent prognostic marker (risk ratio for death, 3.7; P < 0.0001) even after controlling for various factors such as lymph node metastasis, tumor size, degree of differentiation, and depth of invasion. Furthermore, the level of CDC25B expression clearly predicted the outcome of patients with Dukes’ B and Dukes’ C tumors. On the other hand, CDC25A mRNA was overexpressed in 9 of 10 colorectal cancer cases, and immunohistochemistry for CDC25A showed high expression in 52 of 111 cases (47%), but no significant correlation with prognosis. Our findings suggest that CDC25B is a novel independent prognostic marker of colorectal carcinoma and that it may be clinically useful for selecting patients who could benefit from adjuvant therapy.
The effect of pH on the efficiency of various mold inhibiting compounds.

Twelve compounds having antifungal activity were investigated at pH levels of 3, 5, 7, and 9 for the effects of pH changes on their relative efficacy against four common mold contaminants. Tests conducted utilized standardized spore suspensions planted on sterile slants of a modified Sabouraud's agar medium containing graded amounts of the antifungal compounds. A majority of the compounds investigated showed a progressive loss of antifungal activity with increasing pH values to the point that some were totally ineffective in the neutral and alkaline range.
Comparison of web-based versus paper-and-pencil self-administered questionnaire: effects on health indicators in Dutch adolescents.

OBJECTIVE The aim of this study is to investigate differences in responses related to (mental) health and behavior between two methods of data collection: web-based (web) and paper-and-pencil (p&p). STUDY DESIGN Within each participating school all third-grade classes (mainly 14-15-year-old pupils) were randomly assigned to either the Internet condition (n=271) or the paper-and-pencil condition (n=261). PRINCIPAL FINDINGS Significant but small differences were found for the strengths and difficulties subscales "emotional symptoms" (p&p>web) and "prosocial behavior" (p&p>web), and carrying a weapon (web>p&p). Perceived level of privacy and confidentiality did not differ between the two modes. CONCLUSIONS The findings suggest that in a controlled school setting, web-based administration of health indicators yields almost the same results as paper-and-pencil administration. To generalize these findings, we recommend repeated studies in other populations and settings.
Changes in Insulin Resistance and HbA 1c Are Related to Exercise-Mediated Changes in Body Composition in Older Adults With Type 2 Diabetes Interim outcomes from the GREAT2DO trial

OBJECTIVE d To investigate changes in body composition after 12 months of high-intensity progressive resistance training (PRT) in relation to changes in insulin resistance (IR) or glucose homeostasis in older adults with type 2 diabetes. RESEARCH One-hundred threeparticipantswere randomized to receive either PRT or sham exercise 3 days per week for 12 months. Homeostasis model assessment 2 of insulin resistance (HOMA2-IR) and glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA 1c ) were used as indices of IR and glucose homeostasis. Skeletal muscle mass (SkMM) and total fat mass were assessed using bioelectrical impedance. Visceral adipose tissue, mid-thigh cross-sectional area, and mid-thigh muscle attenuation were quanti ﬁ ed using computed tomography. WithinthePRTgroup,changesinHOMA2-IRwereassociatedwithchangesinSkMM ( r = 2 0.38; P =0.04)and fatmass( r =0.42; P =0.02). Changesinvisceraladiposetissuetended tobe related to changes in HOMA2-IR ( r = 0.35; P HbA related to changes in mid-thigh muscle attenuation ( r P 0.001). of these relationships present in the sham group ( P . 0.05). ANCOVA models, participants in the PRT group who had increased SkMM had decreased HOMA2-IR ( P = 0.05) and HbA 1c ( P = 0.09) compared with in the PRT group who lost SkMM. in SkMM in the PRT group decreased HOMA2-IR P HbA 1c ( , with those who had in Changes in Insulin Resistance and HbA(1c) Are Related Exercise-Mediated Changes Body Composition Changes in Insulin Resistance and HbA(1c) Are Related to Exercise-Mediated Changes in Body Composition in Older Adults With Type 2 Diabetes.
Dementia and motor neuron disease: Morphometric, biochemical, and Golgi studies

In three patients dementia without neurofibrillary tangles or Pick bodies antedated amyotrophy by several years. The motor neuron disorder in two patients was characterized by terminal bulbar symptoms; in one it was similar to classic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. In two patients, quantitative studies of selected regions of the cortex using a computerized image analyzer disclosed, as in patients with senile dementia of Alzheimer type, a marked reduction in the number of neurons, especially those larger than 90 μ2. The findings differed from those in Alzheimer dementia, however, in that the cells in the substantia innominata were not reduced and the levels of choline acetyltransferase and somatostatin‐like immunoreactivity, determined in one patient, were within normal limits. A variable degree of sponginess of the upper layers of the cortex was attributed to attrition of pyramidal cell dendrites, observed in the one patient in whom Golgi study was successful. Because of severe degeneration of the substantia nigra in all three, the disease in these patients may represent a subset of motor neuron disease or a multisystem atrophy.
Increased Expression of Rab5a Correlates Directly with Accelerated Maturation of Listeria monocytogenesPhagosomes*

Previous studies have shown that Listeria monocytogenes (LM) modulates phagocytic membrane traffic. Here we explore whether Rab5a, a GTPase associated with phagosome-endosome fusion, is related to phagosome maturation and to the intracellular survival of LM. Stable transfection of Rab5a cDNA into macrophages accelerates intracellular degradation of LM. Morphological studies confirmed that phagosome maturation and phagosome-lysosome fusion is enhanced by overexpression of Rab5a. Down-regulation experiments using antisense oligonucleotides targeted to the Rab5a mRNA efficiently reduced Rab5a synthesis, reduced phagosome-endosome traffic, blocked phagosome-lysosome fusion, and extended intraphagosomal survival of LM. Down-regulation of Rab5a had no effect on LM internalization. Down-regulation of Rab5c had no effect on phagosome maturation and phagosome-lysosome fusion. The results indicate that Rab5a controls early phagosome-endosome interactions and governs the maturation of the early phagosome leading to phagosome-lysosome fusion.
Impact of Vocal Cord Paralysis on Cricoarytenoid Joint

To demonstrate structural changes in the cricoarytenoid joint after recurrent laryngeal nerve paralysis, we performed a laboratory investigation of fixed arytenoid cartilages from adult humans obtained during laser surgical arytenoidectomy in cases of bilateral vocal fold paralysis, analyzing the articular cartilage, the joint capsule, and the attached laryngeal musculature. Ten arytenoid cartilages from adult humans were studied by means of histology, as well as scanning and transmission electron microscopy. After long-standing denervation (>6 months), all arytenoid cartilages showed degenerative changes in their joint surface structure at various levels of intensity. The articular surface revealed fibrillation in some places, demasking of collagen fibrils next to the joint surface, and formation of chondrocyte clusters near the joint surface. All specimens also showed muscle atrophy. We conclude that long-standing recurrent laryngeal nerve paralysis does not result in ankylosis of the cricoarytenoid joint, as assumed, but the articular cartilage undergoes structural changes comparable to those in osteoarthritis. Structural changes in the articular cartilage and in the surrounding musculature hamper efforts at joint function recovery, as do procedures aiming solely at either medialization or lateralization of the vocal fold.
Interactions between the extracellular domain and the extracellular loops as well as the 6th transmembrane domain are necessary for TSH receptor activation.

OBJECTIVE The molecular mechanisms of TSH receptor (TSHR) activation and intramolecular signal transduction are largely unknown. Deletion of the extracellular domain (ECD) of the TSHR results in increased constitutive activity, which suggests a self-inhibitory interaction between the ECD and the extracellular loops (ECLs) or the transmembrane domains (TMDs). To investigate these potential interactions and to pursue the idea that mutations in the ECD affect the constitutive activity of mutants in the ECLs or TMDs we generated double mutants between position 281 in the ECD and mutants in all three ECLs as well as the 6th TMD. DESIGN We combined mutation S281D, characterized by an impaired TSH-stimulated cAMP response, with the constitutively activating in vivo mutations I486F (1st ECL), I568T (2nd ECL), V656F (3rd ECL) and D633F (6th TMD). Further, we constructed double mutants containing the constitutively activating mutation S281N and one of the inactivating mutations D474E, T477I (1st ECL) and D633K (6th TMD). RESULTS The cAMP level of the double mutants with S281N and the inactive mutants in the 1st ECL was decreased below the level of the inactive single mutants, demonstrating that a constitutively activating mutation in the ECD cannot bypass disruption of signal transduction in the serpentine domain. In double mutants with S281D, basal and TSH-induced cAMP and inositol phosphate production of constitutively active mutants was reduced to the level of S281D. CONCLUSION The dominance of S281D and the dependence of constitutively activating mutations in the ECLs on the functionally intact ECD strongly suggest that interactions between these receptor domains are required for TSHR activation and intramolecular signal transduction.