Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Neopterin and Soluble CD14 Levels as Indicators of Immune Activation in Cases with Indeterminate Pattern and True Positive HIV-1 Infection

Background We aimed to evaluate the roles of the plasma immune activation biomarkers neopterin and soluble CD14 (sCD14) in the indirect assessment of the immune activation status of patients with the indeterminate HIV-1 (IHIV-1) pattern and a true HIV-1-positive infection (PCG). Methods This cross-sectional and descriptive study included eighty-eight patients with the IHIV-1 pattern, 100 patients in the PCG, and 100 people in a healthy control group (HCG). Neopterin and sCD14 levels were determined by competitive and sandwich ELISA methods, respectively. Results Mean neopterin and sCD14 levels among those with the IHIV-1 pattern were significantly lower than among the PCG (p < 0.001 and p = 0.001, respectively), but they were similiar to those in the HCG (p = 0.57 and p = 0.66, respectively. Mean neopterin and sCD14 levels among the PCG were found to be significantly higher than among those with the IHIV-1 pattern (p < 0.001 and p = 0.001, respectively) and among those in the HCG (p = 0.001, p < 0.001, respectively). Neopterin did not have adequate predictive value for identifying those in the PCG (area under the curve [AUC] = 0.534; 95% CI, 0.463–0.605; p = 0.4256); sCD14 also had poor predictive value but high specificity (100%) for identifying those in the PCG (AUC = 0.627; 95% CI, 0.556–0.694; p = 0.0036). Conclusions While low levels of these two biomarkers were detected among those with the IHIV-1 pattern, they were found in high levels among those in the PCG. These two markers obviously cannot be used as a sceening test because they have low sensitivies. Taken together, we suggest that neopterin and sCD14 may be helpful because they both have high specificity (92%-100%) as indirect non-specific markers for predicting the immune activation status of individuals, whether or not they have true positive HIV-1.
Why do older women delay presentation with breast cancer symptoms?

Women who delay their presentation with breast cancer for three months or longer are more likely to be diagnosed with later stage disease and have poorer survival. Older women, who are at greater risk of developing breast cancer, are also more likely to delay their presentation. Factors associated with delayed presentation were assessed in 69 women (>65 years) with breast cancer. Previous factors identified for women of all ages were confirmed (having a non‐lump symptom p=0.003) or strengthened (non‐disclosure of symptom discovery to a relative or close friend p=0.001). Additional factors for delay in this older group included reservations about seeing their GP (p=0.02) and fear of the consequences of cancer (p=0.04). These factors should inform the design of interventions to reduce delays. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Dual tree complex wavelet transform for sleep state identification from single channel electroencephalogram

This work analyzes the suitability of spectral features in the Dual Tree Complex Wavelet Transform (DT-CWT) domain for EEG signal analysis by propounding a DT-CWT based feature extraction scheme. Unlike discrete wavelet transform-DT-CWT ensures limited redundancy and provides approximate shift invariance. To demonstrate the efficacy of DT-CWT for EEG signal analysis, it is applied in conjunction with spectral features to devise a feature extraction scheme for automated sleep staging from single-channel EEG. Our findings suggest that spectral features can distinguish between various sleep stages quite well. The p-values obtained by one-way analysis of variance (AN0VA) and graphical analyses also corroborate with this fact Thus, spectral features in the DT-CWT domain may be used to characterize EEG signal. Furthermore, this work can assist the sleep research community to implement various classification models to put computer-aided sleep scoring into clinical practice.
Runoff and Erosion Following Field Application of Beef Cattle Manure and Compost

Manure or compost from beef cattle feedlots can be excellent sources of nutrients and organic matter when added to soils. This study was conducted to determine the effect of a single application of manure and compost on runoff and erosion under no-till and tillage conditions. Tillage consisted of a single disking operation up and down the slope on a Sharpsburg soil which was cropped to grain sorghum or wheat the previous season. Manure and compost were applied at rates required to meet corn fertility requirements. Additional experimental treatments included the application of inorganic fertilizer and an untreated check. The addition of manure or compost to the no-till plots containing sorghum or wheat residue resulted in significant reductions in residue cover. However, residue cover following tillage was unaffected by the earlier addition of manure or compost. Runoff and erosion from simulated rainfall were not significantly influenced by the single application of manure or compost. On the no-till sorghum residue treatments, total solids transport represented 5.1% and 3.3% of the mass of applied manure and compost, respectively. Total solids transport was 1.3% and 1.4% of the mass of applied manure and compost, respectively, on the no-till wheat residue treatments.
Relationship between p53 overexpression and the proliferative activity in hepatocellular carcinoma.

Relationship between p53 protein overexpression and clinicopathological findings and the proliferative activity was studied in 50 cases of hepatocellular carcinoma (34 biopsy and 16 surgically resected cases) using immunohistochemistry. Overexpression of p53 was observed in 26.5% of biopsy cases and 31. 3% of surgically resected cases. Investigation of the relationship between the p53-positive rate and the clinical stage of HCC showed that it was significantly higher in Stage IV (the most advanced cancer; 54.5%) than in Stage I/II/III (13.0%) (p<0.05). Examination of the relationship between the p53-positive rate and tumor differentiation in the biopsy cases showed that p53 was positive in 9.1% of well differentiated carcinomas, 21.4% of moderately differentiated carcinomas, and 55.6% of poorly differentiated carcinomas, indicating that p53 positivity increased as tumors became less differentiated. The p53-positive rate of poorly differentiated carcinoma (55.6%) was significantly higher than that of well and moderately differentiated carcinoma (16.0%) (p<0.05). In the surgically resected cases, p53 overexpression tended to be more frequent in the less differentiated parts of each tumor nodule. In cases with nodule in nodule pattern of HCC, the p53-positive rate was different among nodules with the same level of differentiation. Examination of tumor cell proliferative activity using the proliferating cell nuclear antigen L.I. showed that this indicator was significantly higher in the p53-positive tumors than in the p53-negative tumors (52.7+/-32.4% vs. 32.4+/-15.3%: p<0.05). These results suggest that p53 overexpression may be involved in determining the dedifferentiation and the proliferative activity of HCC. Examination of the surgically resected cases confirmed that p53 overexpression became heterogeneous during the multistep carcinogenesis and growth process of HCC, which is considered to develop from a single cell. This finding suggests that p53 overexpression may be involved in tumor progression.
Columnar organization of directionally selective cells in visual area MT of the macaque.

We recorded from single neurons in visual area MT of the macaque in order to examine the spatial distribution of its directionally selective cells. The animals were paralyzed and anesthetized with nitrous oxide. All MT neurons (n = 614) responded better to moving stimuli than to stationary stimuli. For 55% of the neurons, responses to moving stimuli were independent of stimulus color, shape, length, or orientation. For the remaining cells, stimulus length affected the response magnitude and tuning bandwidth but not the preferred direction. MT neurons were divided into four categories on the basis of their sensitivity to moving stimuli: 60% responded exclusively to one direction of motion, 24% responded best to one direction with a weaker response in the opposite direction, 8% responded equally well to two opposite directions of motion, and 8% responded equally well to all directions of motion. The direction preferences of successively sampled cells on a penetration either changed by small increments or occasionally by approximately 180 degrees. Thus, there is a systematic representation of direction of motion. The representation of axis of motion, i.e., the orientation of the path along which a stimulus moves, is more continuous than the representation of direction of motion. There was a systematic relationship between penetration angle and rate of change of preferred axis of motion, indicating that cells with a similar axis of motion preference are arranged in vertical columns. Furthermore, axis of motion columns appear to exist in the form of continuous slabs in area MT. The size of these slabs is such that 180 degrees of axis of motion are represented in 400-500 micron of cortex. There was also a systematic relationship between penetration angle and frequency of 180 degrees reversals, indicating that cells with a similar direction of motion preference are also organized in vertical columns and cells with opposite direction preferences are located in adjacent columns within a single axis of motion column. Just as in macaque striate cortex where approximately 500 micron of cortex contain the mechanism for the local analysis of stimulus orientation, so in MT approximately 500 micron of cortex contain the mechanism for the local analysis of stimulus motion.
Electrophysiological Correlates of Morphological Neuroplasticity in Human Callosal Dysgenesis

In search for the functional counterpart of the alternative Probst and sigmoid bundles, considered as morphological evidence of neuroplasticity in callosal dysgenesis, electroencephalographic (EEG) coherence analysis was combined with high resolution and diffusion tensor magnetic resonance imaging. Data of two patients with callosal agenesis, plus two with typical partial dysgenesis with a remnant genu, and one atypical patient with a substantially reduced genu were compared to those of fifteen neurotypic controls. The interhemispheric EEG coherence between homologous nontemporal brain regions corresponded to absence or partial presence of callosal connections. A generalized coherence reduction was observed in complete acallosal patients, as well as coherence preservation in the anterior areas of the two patients with a remnant genu. jThe sigmoid bundles found in three patients with partial dysgenesis correlated with augmented EEG coherence between anterior regions of one hemisphere and posterior regions of the other. These heterologous (crossed) interhemispheric connections were asymmetric in both imaging and EEG patterns, with predominance of the right-anterior-to-left-posterior connections over the mirror ones. The Probst bundles correlated with higher intrahemispheric long-distance coherence in all patients. The significant correlations observed for the delta, theta and alpha bands indicate that these alternative pathways are functional, although the neuropsychological nature of this function is still unknown.
IDDM in an Adolescent Patient With Common Variable Immunodeficiency

by a prolonged isovolumic relaxation time and a lower ratio between early and late peak of transmitral flow velocity indicated an impairment of diastolic function. The newborn did not require any treatment, apart from supplemental oxygen therapy for 10 days, owing to mild respiratory distress. She was discharged from hospital at 20 days of life. Clinical and echocardiographic evaluations were performed monthly until 12 months of age. Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy disappeared at 8 months of age. Growth and clinical conditions were satisfactory. Classical presentation of HCM is represented by an asymmetrical septal hypertrophy (3), even though the hypertrophy of the left ventricular posterior wall without chamber dilatation has also been described (4). Our case presents an increased thickness of the interventricular septum and also a severe hypertrophy of left and right ventricular walls, as reported on fetuses of diabetic mothers (5). Concerning the influence of maternal glycemic control on the occurrence and degree of HCM in infants of diabetic mothers, this correlation appeared to be undoubtful in the past (3,4). Recently, echocardiographic studies performed longitudinally on fetuses of diabetic mothers reported that good maternal glycemic control during pregnancy assures a normal fetal cardiac growth (6). Cooper et al. (7) found a strict relationship with metabolic control during the third trimester. On the contrary Rizzo et al. (5) found an accelerated increase in cardiac size in fetuses of diabetic mothers, in spite of a careful metabolic control. The presence of high birth weight, hypoglycemia, and HCM in our case indicates that the effects of hyperinsulinemia are not preventable through the optimization of the HbAlc levels in the third trimester of gestation. More stringent criteria of metabolic control are required from the first weeks of pregnancy to prevent these abnormalities.
The in vivo genotoxic effects of carvacrol and thymol in rat bone marrow cells

The aim of this study was to investigate the in vivo genotoxic effects of carvacrol and thymol in bone marrow cells of rats. In the present study, both carvacrol (10, 30, 50, and 70 mg/kg b.w.) and thymol (40, 60, 80, and 100 mg/kg b.w.) significantly induced the structural and total chromosome abnormalities (CA) for all treatment periods (6, 12, and 24 h) when compared with control in bone marrow cells of rats intraperitonally administered. Both carvacrol and thymol showed similar effects with the positive control urethane on induction of the percentage of structural and total CA at the highest concentrations except the effects of carvacrol for 6 h treatment (70 mg/kg b.w. and 100 mg/kg b.w., respectively). In addition, carvacrol induced the numerical CA at all concentrations when compared to control and at two highest concentrations (50 and 70 mg/kg b.w.) when compared to solvent control. Thymol also induced the numerical CA especially at the highest concentration (100 mg/kg b.w.) for all treatment periods. It was shown that there was a dose‐dependent effect on induction of structural, numerical and total CA for both carvacrol and thymol. Carvacrol and thymol decreased the mitotic index (MI) in all the concentrations and treatment times when compared with control. Carvacrol showed the similar effects with EC on decreasing the MI at 70 mg/kg b.w. for 6 h, at 30 and 50 mg/kg b.w. for 12 h and at all concentrations for 24 h treatment periods. Thymol also showed a similar effect with urethane (ethyl carbamate, EC) on decreasing the MI at 60, 80, and 100 mg/kg b.w. for 6 h and at all concentrations for 24 h treatment periods. Test substances decreased the MI in a dose‐dependent manner. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Environ Toxicol, 2008.
Evaluation of the Influenza Risk Reduction from Antimicrobial Spray Application on Porous Surfaces

Antimicrobial spray products are used by millions of people around the world for cleaning and disinfection of commonly touched surfaces. Influenza A is a pathogen of major concern, leading to up to 49,000 deaths and 114,000 hospitalizations per year in the United States alone. One of the recognized routes of transmission for influenza A is by transfer of viruses from surfaces to hands and subsequently to mucous membranes. Therefore, routine cleaning and disinfection of surfaces is an important part of the environmental management of influenza A. While the emphasis is generally on spraying hard surfaces and laundering cloth and linens with high temperature machine drying, not all surfaces can be treated in this manner. The quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA) approach was used to develop a stochastic risk model for estimating the risk of infection from indirect contact with porous fomite with and without surface treatment with an antimicrobial spray. The data collected from laboratory analysis combined with the risk model show that influenza A infection risk can be lowered by four logs after using an antimicrobial spray on a porous surface. Median risk associated with a single touch to a contaminated fabric was estimated to be 1.25 × 10−4 for the untreated surface, and 3.6 × 10−8 for the treated surface as a base case assumption. This single touch scenario was used to develop a generalizable model for estimating risks and comparing scenarios with and without treatment to more realistic multiple touch scenarios over time periods and with contact rates previously reported in the literature. The results of this study and understanding of product efficacy on risk reduction inform and broaden the range of risk management strategies for influenza A by demonstrating effective risk reduction associated with treating nonporous fomites that cannot be laundered at high temperatures.
Significance of Tumor Capsular Invasion in Well-Differentiated Thyroid Carcinomas

This study examines the influence of tumor capsular invasion on the biological behavior of papillary (PTC) and follicular thyroid carcinoma (FTC) and the prognosis of surgically treated patients. This retrospective cohort study included 350 cases of PTC or FTC from a university teaching hospital. Patient charts were randomly selected and reviewed. The study population was divided into PTC and FTC groups. Each group was subdivided into CI+ (with tumor capsular invasion) and CI- subgroups (without tumor capsule or without capsular invasion). The long-term prognosis was assessed using the American Joint Committee on Cancer pTNM staging and the prognostic index was elaborated by the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer. There were 284 women and 66 men (ages 19–89 years, mean of 44) with an incidence of 53.1 per cent for CI+ tumors. There were no significant differences between the PTC subgroups regarding the short-term clinical outcome and the long-term prognosis. Although patients with CI+ FTC showed lower incidence of lymph node metastasis than patients with CI- FTC, the FTC subgroups were comparable regarding the short-term clinical outcome and the long-term prognosis. Our results suggest that presence of tumor capsular invasion does not adversely influence biological behavior or survival of PTC or FTC. Moreover, the presence of tumor capsular invasion appears to not have significance for the long-term prognosis of patients with PTC or FTC.
Hydrogen-atom tunneling could contribute to H2 formation in space.

The interaction of hydrogen atoms with graphite and aromatic hydrocarbons is widely studied because it plays an important role in diverse areas, such as plasma-wall interactions in nuclear fusion reactors, hydrogen-storage materials, petroleum refining, and H2 formation in space. [5–10] H addition to benzene is the rate-determining step in the surface-catalyzed conversion of benzene into cyclohexane. H atoms can also chemisorb on graphite, although the carbon atom to which it binds has to pucker out of the plane, resulting in an activation barrier of about 20 kJmol . Chemisorption on the edge of a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) is predicted to have a much lower activation barrier and, more strikingly, for some configurations there is no activation barrier for the reaction with a second H atom, yielding either chemisorbed H2 or gaseous H2. [7,15]
Bilateral hemispheric alteration of memory processes in right medial temporal lobe epilepsy

Objective: Functional MRI (fMRI ) was used to investigate right medial temporal lobe epilepsy (RTLE) effects on verbal memory. Methods: BOLD fMRI data were collected from seven right sided MTLE patients (RTLE) and compared with the data previously acquired from seven left sided MTLE patients (LTLE) and 10 control subjects. Twenty two contiguous images covering the whole brain were acquired using an EPI echoplanar sequence. Subjects were instructed to learn a list of 17 words, and to recall it immediately and at 24 hours interval. Group analyses were performed using SPM96. Results: RTLE patients retrieval performances were significantly impaired as compared with the performance of control subjects. As compared with control subjects and LTLE patients, RTLE patients exhibited a different pattern of hemispheric activations and a global decrease in left hemisphere functional activity. Conclusion: MTLE cannot be considered as a model of pure well lateralised hippocampal dysfunction. The verbal memory impairment depicted in RTLE patients may be considered as the witness of a bilateral impairment of the neuroanatomical circuits subserving memory.
Angiogenesis inhibition by transdominant mutant Ets‐1

The expression of transcription factor Ets‐1 is induced in endothelial cells (ECs) by angiogenic factor; and in turn Ets‐1 converts ECs to angiogenic invasive phenotype. In order to control angiogenesis, we constructed a transdominant mutant Ets‐1 (TMEts‐1) which acts as a dominant negative molecule. This molecule inhibited the DNA binding and the transactivation activity of the wild‐type Ets‐1. Stable transfection of murine endothelial cell line MSS31 cells with the TMets‐1 gene impaired angiogenic activities including proliferation, migration, invasion, and tube formation in type‐1 collagen gel. Finally, we incorporated the TMets‐1 gene into a non‐proliferative adenovirus vector, designated as AdTMets‐1. AdTMets‐1 significantly inhibited angiogenesis in the Matrigel plugs injected into the subcutaneous tissue of C57BL mice. These results indicate that TMets‐1 would be a tool for angiogenic inhibition. J. Cell. Physiol. 184:255–262, 2000. © 2000 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Developmental outcomes in young children born to mothers with West Nile illness during pregnancy.

BACKGROUND West Nile virus (WNV) infection is associated with acute morbidity and mortality in adults and children. Information on the effects of maternal WNV illness during pregnancy on early childhood development is limited. This study was designed to examine the relationship between maternal WNV illness during pregnancy and birth and developmental outcomes at age 3 years. METHODS Mother-child participants were identified using a national surveillance registry for women with WNV illness during pregnancy. Maternal and infant health data and relevant family characteristics were obtained through medical record reviews and maternal questionnaires. All infants received ophthalmologic examinations. Child development was evaluated at age 3 years using the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development-Third Edition (Bayley-III). RESULTS As a group, the children's (N = 11) birth weight, head circumference, and infant ophthalmologic examination results were within age expectations; one child was born preterm (gestational age 36 weeks). Mean (SD) age at the time of Bayley-III testing was 36.7 (3.8) months. The group's mean performance on the Bayley-III was at or above age level in all domains, but one child showed a mild delay in the Adaptive domain. The variability observed in this sample (1/53 [1.9%] Domain scores < -2.0 SDs) was consistent with expectations based upon the distribution of Bayley-III Domain scores in the general population. CONCLUSION Maternal WNV infection does not appear to be associated with global developmental delays in young children. These results are preliminary, however, and require confirmation in future research.