Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
SEVERE MALARIA IN SUDANESE CHILDREN: CLINICAL ASPECTS AND PROGNOSIS IN HOSPITILIZED PATIENTS

Objective: To asssess the epidemiology, clinical presentations, disease mangement, outcome and risk factors associatted with severe malaria in children in four hospitals in Sudan. Methods: Follow-up prospective design was used to fulfil the objectives of the study in four hospitals: Omdurman paediatrics hospital, located in the capital (Khartoum) compared to Madani, Gadarif and Sennar hospitals located in other states. The results: Total admission of severe malaria was 543 children representing 21% of all paediatric admissions, and 12% of malaria outpatient cases. Median age of children with severe malaria was 48 months. 93% of children with severe malaria died before the age of 9 years. Case fatlality rate was 2.6%. The risk of dying because of delay was four times more than when there was no delay , 95% CI (1.5 – 14.3). Other risks of death were severe malaria associated with coma, inability to sit or eat and hyperpyrexia. Omdurman hospital in Khartoum State in the capital, had the highest case management performance percentage compared to other regional hospitals. Conclusions: In view of this, it can be argued that deaths due to severe malaria could be reduced by improving health management and planning with the redistribution of resources (including consultants) at the central and regional levels and the conduct of proper training programs on the management of severe malaria at all levels. Raising the awareness of parents about seeking treatment for malaria early in order to avoid unnecessary deaths is vital.
A nonprimate animal model applicable to zidovudine pharmacokinetics in humans: inhibition of glucuronidation and renal excretion of zidovudine by probenecid in rats.

The monkey is considered the best animal model to study the pharmacokinetics of zidovudine (azidothymidine, AZT) because humans and monkeys eliminate 60 to 75% of AZT by metabolism to the 5'-O-glucuronide (GAZT), in contrast to other experimental animals, which excrete most of the drug unchanged in the urine. It has become increasingly difficult and costly to use monkeys in research. Therefore, we undertook studies to determine the suitability of the rat as an alternative animal model to study the pharmacokinetics of AZT. In the initial experiments, [3H]AZT was administered i.v. at doses of 19, 60 and 187 mumol/kg to male Sprague-Dawley rats with intact bile ducts. The respective values (mean +/- S.D.) for total clearance of AZT were 2.4 +/- 0.2, 2.3 +/- 0.3 and 1.8 +/- 0.4 l/hr/kg and for renal clearance were 1.7 +/- 0.2, 1.8 +/- 0.4 and 1.5 +/- 0.4 l/hr/kg. The renal clearance of AZT was approximately equal to renal plasma flow of rats (1.5 l/hr/kg), suggesting that in addition to filtration, AZT is also efficiently secreted in the kidney of the rat. The respective values for volume of distribution at steady state were 1.3 +/- 0.2, 1.0 +/- 0.2 and 0.84 +/- 0.19 l/kg (P less than .05) and elimination half-life were (harmonic mean) 0.55, 0.44 and 0.46 hr. Urinary excretion of AZT as unchanged drug in intact rats accounted for 70 +/- 6, 79 +/- 6, and 83 +/- 12% of the dose, whereas only 0.7 to 0.8% of the dose was recovered in the urine as GAZT. Rats with exteriorized bile ducts, the proposed alternative animal model, were given an i.v. dose of 60 mumol/kg of [3H]AZT. To test the effect of a concurrently administered drug on the elimination of AZT in the model, some rats with bile duct cannulas were pretreated with probenecid, a known inhibitor of AZT elimination in humans. Urine and bile were collected to quantify the formation of GAZT. GAZT was identified by fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry as the major metabolite of AZT in the rat. GAZT excretion in the bile and urine accounted for 11 +/- 3% of the dose in saline-treated rats, compared to only 1.4 +/- 0.3% in rats treated with probenecid (P less than .001). (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Nitric Oxide Mechanism of Protection in Ischemia and Reperfusion Injury

In 1992 nitric oxide (NO) was declared molecule of the year by Science magazine, and ever since research on this molecule continues to increase. Following this award, NO was shown to be a mediator/protector of ischemia and reperfusion injury in many organs, such as the heart, liver, lungs, and kidneys. Controversy has existed concerning the actual protective effects of NO. However, literature from the past 15 years seems to reinforce the consensus that NO is indeed protective. Some of the protective actions of NO in ischemia and reperfusion are due to its potential as an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agent, along with its beneficial effects on cell signaling and inhibition of nuclear proteins, such as NF-κ B and AP-1. New therapeutic potentials for this drug are also continuously emerging. Exogenous NO and endogenous NO may both play protective roles during ischemia and reperfusion injury. Sodium nitroprusside and nitroglycerin have been used clinically with much success; though only recently have they been tested and proven effective in attenuating some of the injuries associated with ischemia and reperfusion. NO inhalation has, in the past, mostly been used for its pulmonary effects, but has also recently been shown to be protective in other organs. The potential of NO in the treatment of ischemic disease is only just being realized. Elucidation of the mechanism by which NO exerts its protective effects needs further investigation. Therefore, this paper will focus on the mechanistic actions of NO in ischemia and reperfusion injury, along with the compound's potential therapeutic benefits.
Frequency and magnetic resonance imaging patterns of tuberculous spondylitis lesions in adults.

OBJECTIVE To find out the frequency and patterns of various lesions in tuberculous spondylitis in adults on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). STUDY DESIGN Case series. PLACE AND DURATION OF STUDY Radiology Department, Military Hospital (MH) Rawalpindi, from September 2006 to March 2007. METHODOLOGY Patients with features suggestive of tuberculous spondylitis underwent plain T1- weighted and T2 -weighted images and T1-weighted contrast enhanced images in both axial and sagittal sections. The data was analyzed in terms of frequency and patterns of various lesions of tuberculous spondylitis causing abnormal signals in spinal and paraspinal areas. Mean + standard deviation were calculated for numerical data using SPSS version 15. RESULTS Out of 75 patients, 39 were females. The mean age was 42.4 years. Involvement occurred through SV1 vertebral levels. Most common involvement was seen in the thoracic vertebrae (40%) followed by lumbar vertebrae. The most common MRI feature was abnormal signal intensities appearing hypointense on T1W and hyperintense on T2W sequences with heterogeneous enhancement of the vertebral body in all patients. The characteristic findings of spinal tuberculosis included destruction of two adjacent vertebral bodies and opposing end plates, destruction of intervening disc, and occurrence of paravertebral and epidural abscesses. CONCLUSION MR imaging of spinal tuberculosis, characteristically show contiguous involvement of two vertebrae along with the intervening disc, skip lesions, and paraspinal collections and provides critical information about the involvement of spinal cord and the extent of the disease.
Nicotine and morphine differentially activate brain dopamine in prefrontocortical and subcortical terminal fields: effects of acute and repeated injections.

Acute systemic injections of nicotine and morphine produce increased locomotion and repeating these injections produces an enhanced locomotor effect. Different lines of evidence suggest that both the acute and sensitized locomotion elicited by morphine are linked to activity in the mesolimbic dopamine (DA) system. The present experiments assessed the effect of acute and repeated injections of nicotine on DA utilization [3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC)/DA] in subcortical and prefrontocortical DA terminal fields and compared these to the effects of morphine. Acute nicotine produced substantial increases in the DOPAC/DA ratio in the nucleus accumbens (N. Acc.) and the antero-medial striatum but not in the dorso-lateral striatum or the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). Repeated injections greatly reduced or abolished the drug's effects in the first two terminal fields and produced an increase in DA utilization in the mPFC. In contrast, acute morphine produced large increases in the DOPAC/DA ratio in both the N.Acc. and the mPFC. Consistent with previous findings, repeated morphine increased its effects further in the N. Acc. and produced a small decrease in the mPFC. Neither nicotine nor morphine produced changes in baseline DA utilization in any site. Finally, repeated exposure to nicotine did not enhance the locomotor response to a subsequent injection of morphine. These findings suggest that nicotine differs from morphine in the way it elicits locomotion following repeated injection and possibly in its relation to DA as a mediator of reward. They are also consistent with evidence for a functional interaction between the effects of DA in subcortical and prefrontocortical sites.
Onset of spontaneous pneumothorax and the synodic lunar cycle.

The relation between spontaneous pneumothorax events and synodic lunar cycle was studied in a retrospective analysis of patients with a first or recurrent spontaneous pneumothorax. The study included a total of 244 patients, 203 males and 41 females. The data were arranged along the first (new moon) to 28th day (one day before another new moon) of the synodic lunar cycle. Periodogram analysis revealed a 14-day rhythm, significant for the male and pooled sample. Cosinor analysis found the whole synodic lunar cycle and its 2nd, 4th and 5th harmonics as significant. Maximal accumulation of cases happened 1 week before and 1 week after the new moon. Mechanisms of a putative moon influence are not clear.
The Degrees of Parturient Hypocalcemia and Its Relevance to Other Metabolic Profile Parameters in Downer Cows

At calving time, the cows were monitored and blood samples were taken from jugular vein of 38 cows with parturient paresis and 38 healthy ones. The levels of calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, sodium, potassium, chloride, glucose, triglyceride, cholesterol, albumin, globulin and A/G ratio were assessed to find the correlation between the degree of hypocalcemia and other parameters. According to calcium concentration of milk fever cows (downers), five subgroups (); 5.1-6 as b); 6.1-7 as c); 7.1- 8 as d) and 8.1< as e)) were made and parameters were analyzed statistically as well. Results indicated that serum levels of calcium and phosphorus in downers were lower and magnesium concentration was significantly higher than that of the control group (P<0.05). A significant relationship was observed between level of daily phosphorus intake and k/Ca+Mg ratio and the incidence of milk fever (p<0.05). Calcium and glucose concentration of subgroup a) was significantly lower and higher than the other subgroups. Potassium was negatively correlated with calcium in subgroups b) and d). Potassium was also negatively and positively correlated with glucose and cholesterol in subgroup b). But in subgroups d) and e), potassium was positively correlated with chloride and glucose. So, the researchers of the present study concluded that, hypophosphatemia is a major cause of prolonged sternal recumbency and poor response to routine therapy for milk fever. In addition, negative correlation between calcium and potassium concentration and also the presence of hyperglycemia in severe hypocalcemia (subgroup a)) may intervene with successful treatment as well.
Hepatitis D revival

More than 30 years after Mario Rizzetto and colleagues described a new antigen in livers of HBsAg‐positive patients called the “delta antigen”, a re‐emerging interest in hepatitis delta is currently observed. The state‐of‐the art on basic and clinical research on hepatitis delta was presented during a monothematic conference organized by the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL) in September 2010. Hepatitis delta is caused by infection with the hepatitis D virus (HDV) which requires presence of HBsAg for complete replication and transmission. Recent data confirmed the severe long‐term course of HDV infection with high rates of hepatic decompensation while controversial data on the risk for the development of hepatocellular carcinoma were reported. Pegylated interferon alpha can lead to sustained HDV RNA elimination in about one quarter of patients while HBV polymerase inhibitors are ineffective against HDV. Novel treatment options include prenylation inhibitors and HBV entry inhibitors which are currently in early clinical development.
A clinically based protein discovery strategy to identify potential biomarkers of response to anti‐TNF‐α treatment of psoriatic arthritis

Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) can be treated using biologic therapies targeting biomolecules such as tumor necrosis factor alpha, interleukins (IL)‐17 and IL‐23. Although 70% PsA patients respond well to therapy, 30% patients show no or limited clinical improvement. Biomarkers that predict response to therapy would help to avoid unnecessary use of expensive biologics in nonresponding patients and enable alternative treatments to be explored.
White Matter Damage in Asymptomatic Patients with Sickle Cell Anemia: Screening with Diffusion Tensor Imaging

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Ischemic injury to the brain is a common complication of SCA. To better understand the neurologic impact of SCA, TBSS were applied to DTI data to investigate white matter injuries in pediatric patients with SCA. MATERIALS AND METHODS: TBSS comparisons of a range of anisotropy and diffusion measures were carried out between age- and background-matched population groups: patients with SCA with no visible lesions, patients with SCA with mild gliosis, and normal controls. RESULTS: TBSS analysis revealed that both SCA populations exhibited reduced anisotropy and increased diffusivity compared with normal controls in multiple brain regions, including the corpus callosum and centrum semiovale. Furthermore, the results suggest that the severity of SCA is positively correlated with the white matter changes in the corpus callosum. CONCLUSIONS: The study demonstrates that TBSS is a viable technique in detecting subtle white matter damage in patients with SCA whose conventional anatomic MR imaging scans show no, or minimal, abnormalities and has the potential to evaluate the neurologic impact of the treatment of SCA.
Ipsilateral corticotectal projections from the primary, premotor and supplementary motor cortical areas in adult macaque monkeys: a quantitative anterograde tracing study

The corticotectal projection from cortical motor areas is one of several descending pathways involved in the indirect control of spinal motoneurons. In non‐human primates, previous studies reported that cortical projections to the superior colliculus (SC) originated from the premotor cortex (PM) and the primary motor cortex, whereas no projection originated from the supplementary motor area (SMA). The aim of the present study was to investigate and compare the properties of corticotectal projections originating from these three cortical motor areas in intact adult macaques (n = 9). The anterograde tracer biotinylated dextran amine was injected into one of these cortical areas in each animal. Individual axonal boutons, both en passant and terminaux, were charted and counted in the different layers of the ipsilateral SC. The data confirmed the presence of strong corticotectal projections from the PM. A new observation was that strong corticotectal projections were also found to originate from the SMA (its proper division). The corticotectal projection from the primary motor cortex was quantitatively less strong than that from either the premotor or SMAs. The corticotectal projection from each motor area was directed mainly to the deep layer of the SC, although its intermediate layer was also a consistent target of fairly dense terminations. The strong corticotectal projections from non‐primary motor areas are in position to influence the preparation and planning of voluntary movements.
Design of LDPC Codes for the Unequal Power Two-User Gaussian Multiple Access Channel

In this letter, we describe an LDPC code design framework for the unequal power two-user Gaussian multiple access channel using EXIT charts. We show that the sum-rate of the LDPC codes designed using our approach can get close to the maximal sum-rate of the two-user Gaussian multiple access channel. Moreover, we provide numerical simulation results that demonstrate the excellent finite-length performance of the designed LDPC codes.
On the Optimality of Power Allocation for NOMA Downlinks With Individual QoS Constraints

This letter investigates a power allocation problem in a downlink single-input single-output non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) system. Our goal is to maximize the sum rate of users subject to minimum user rate requirements. We rigorously prove the optimal user decoding order, and show that the sum rate maximization problem is convex, which guarantees the globally optimal solution. Numerical results validate the performance gain by the proposed NOMA compared with conventional schemes.
Tolerance to vancomycin in pneumococci: detection with a molecular marker and assessment of clinical impact.

BACKGROUND Vancomycin is often added to therapy for meningitis caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae. Tolerant bacteria without classic resistance that escape killing by multiple antibiotics have been reported sporadically. We determined the prevalence of tolerance to vancomycin in pneumococci and its effect on the outcome of meningitis. METHODS Archival samples of 215 nasopharyngeal (NP) and 113 meningitis isolates were tested for the killing efficacy of vancomycin. Specific DNA sequence changes in a transporter locus were identified for tolerant isolates. Similar tests were conducted prospectively on 517 NP isolates from healthy children. RESULTS In archival isolates, tolerance to vancomycin was detected in 3.7% of NP and 10.6% of invasive isolates. Patients with meningitis caused by tolerant isolates had a worse estimated 30-day survival than did patients with meningitis caused by nontolerant isolates (49% vs. 86%; P = .048); 62.5% of tolerant archival NP isolates harbored a specific sequence change for pep27 and vex2 (P = .021). Prospective analysis of 517 carriage isolates indicated that 8.1% were tolerant to vancomycin and that 82.1% of tolerant isolates harbored the specified marker gene sequences (P = .001). CONCLUSIONS Tolerance to vancomycin exists in the population of pneumococci. Tolerant isolates are associated with meningitis of increased mortality, and these isolates can be tracked by specific marker sequences in 2 genes.
Reducing the risk of breast cancer.

Recent research results suggest that the risk of breast cancer can be reduced. In this review I will focus on chemoprevention, emphasizing evidence from randomized clinical trials, and in addition summarize the evidence regarding preventive strategies involving surgery and lifestyle changes (Table 1). Chemoprevention Tamoxifen and Risk Reduction The risk of breast cancer is related to levels of endogenous1,2 and exogenous3–5 hormones. Tamoxifen and raloxifene, which are selective estrogen-receptor modulators, can be used to test the hypothesis that the risk of breast cancer can be reduced by estrogen antagonists.6 Tamoxifen is active against advanced breast cancer7 and is .
Spitzer observations of Abell 1763. III. The infrared luminosity function in different supercluster environments

Context. The study of galaxy luminosity functions (LFs) in different environments provides powerful constraints on the physics of galaxy evolution. The infrared (IR) LF is a particularly useful tool since it is directly related to the distribution of galaxy star-formation rates (SFRs). Aims. We aim to determine the galaxy IR LF as a function of the environment in a supercluster at redshift 0.23 to shed light on the processes driving galaxy evolution in and around clusters. Methods. We base our analysis on multi-wavelength data, which include optical, near-IR, and mid- to far-IR photometry, as well as redshifts from optical spectroscopy. We identify 467 supercluster members in a sample of 24-μm-selected galaxies, on the basis of their spectroscopic (153) and photometric (314) redshifts. IR luminosities and stellar masses are determined for supercluster members via spectral energy distribution fitting. Galaxies with active galactic nuclei are identified by a variety of methods and excluded from the sample. SFRs are obtained for the 432 remaining galaxies from their IR luminosities via the Kennicutt relation. Results. We determine the IR LF of the whole supercluster as well as the IR LFs of three different regions in the supercluster: the cluster core, a large-scale filament, and the cluster outskirts (excluding the filament). A comparison of the IR LFs of the three regions, normalized by the average number densities of r-band selected normal galaxies, shows that the filament (respectively, the core) contains the highest (respectively, the lowest) fraction of IR-emitting galaxies at all levels of IR luminosities, and the highest (respectively, the lowest) total SFR normalized by optical galaxy richness. Luminous IR galaxies (LIRGs) are almost absent in the core region. The relation between galaxy specific SFRs and stellar masses does not depend on the environment, and it indicates that most supercluster LIRGs are rather massive galaxies with relatively low specific SFRs. A comparison with previous IR LF determinations from the literature confirms that the mass-normalized total SFR in clusters increases with redshift, but more rapidly than previously suggested for redshifts ≲ 0.4. Conclusions. The IR LF shows an environmental dependence that is not simply related to the local galaxy density. The filament, an intermediate-density region in the A1763 supercluster, contains the highest fraction of IR-emitting galaxies. We interpret our findings within a possible scenario for the evolution of galaxies in and around clusters.
Thermal and Fluid Dynamic Behavior of Trans-Critical Carbon Dioxide Hermetic Reciprocating Compressors: Experimental Investigation

本文建立了一个实验装置,该装置可以一般性分析CO2跨临界制冷循环并专门用于测试CO2往复式全封闭压缩机的样机. 实验数据不仅可以定量比较每个元件,而且可以定量比较整个制冷系统. 本项工作的目的是为了阐述已成型的以CO2作为制冷剂的、工作于跨临界循环的CL15型往复式全封闭压缩机. 同时,该论文完整的描述了实验所用的设备及仪器. 最后,该论文提供了大量不同工作状态下的实验比较结果,不同工作状态包括蒸发温度的高低变化、过热度的改变及气体冷却压力的变化. 实验结果表明该压缩机有一定发展潜力.