Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Comparison of the Luria-Nebraska Neuropsychological Battery—Children's Revision and the WISC—R with Learning Disabled Children

This investigation concerned the relationship between the Luria-Nebraska Neuropsychological Battery—Children's Revision and the WISC—R for a sample of 32 children identified as learning disabled. The children's mean age was 9 yr. , 11 mo. ; they were identified as learning disabled on the basis of ability (WISC—R)/achievement discrepancy test scores. The sample was of low average intellectual ability according to the WISC—R and the Luria-Nebraska T-scores. Intercorrelations between scores on the WISC—R and Luria-Nebraska lists were generally nonsignificant, with the exception of language and arithmetic measures on each test. Also, 84% or 27 of the present sample of 32 were correctly identified as learning disabled using a criterion of three or more Luria-Nebraska subscale scores greater than one SD above the mean.
Possible Approach for Serodiagnosis of Ascariasis by Evaluation of Immunoglobulin G4 Response Using Ascaris lumbricoidesSomatic Antigen

ABSTRACT Somatic antigen of Ascaris lumbricoides was purified to homogeneity (molecular mass, 34 kDa) by ammonium sulfate fractionation and successive chromatographic procedures, namely, gel permeation, ion exchange, and high-performance gel permeation liquid chromatographies. The antigen showed strong binding with immunoglobulin G (IgG) inAscaris-infested patients and was cross-reactive with IgE and IgG in patients infested with other nematodes. It reacted specifically with IgG4 (P < 0.001) in 63Ascaris-infested patients, which represented 65% of the total IgG response, though cross-reactivity with IgG1, IgG2, and IgG3 subclasses was observed, indicating the unique specificity of this test system and its potential utility in the serodiagnosis of ascariasis.
Regression of cardiac valvulopathy related to ergot-derived dopamine agonists.

AIMS In a previous echocardiographic prevalence study we reported a significant increase in the frequency of heart valve regurgitation in patients with Parkinson's disease taking the ergot-derived dopamine agonists pergolide and cabergoline versus controls. We followed-up our original cohort of patients to ascertain whether valvulopathy regressed after discontinuation of treatment and/or its incidence increased over time. METHODS Prospective follow-up of 101 patients treated with ergot-derived dopamine agonists included in the prevalence study: 53 given pergolide and 48 cabergoline (64% male; 66.4 ± 8.7 years of age, 11.5 ± 5.9 years of disease, 21.8 ± 5.9 months of follow-up); 55 stopped treatment while 46 continued. The main outcomes measures, were: echocardiographic quantification of regurgitant valve disease, abnormal leaflet, or cusp thickening and measurement of mitral valve tenting area. RESULTS Valve abnormalities regressed in about one third of patients with significant multivalvular and in about half of the patients with monovalvular regurgitation who withdrew; no progression was observed in remaining patients. Patients continuing ergot-derived dopamine agonists showed progression of cardiac valvulopathy: seven new cases with three to four regurgitation grade of any valve occurred during follow-up; this regarded also patients who had been on pergolide for many years. CONCLUSION Owing to the persistence of risk of heart valve damage over time and the lack of its mid-term reversibility in many patients, we believe that pergolide and cabergoline should be prescribed only when therapeutic alternatives with a better risk/benefit ratio are unavailable and the patient has access to echocardiography.
Construction firm practices and manager beliefs regarding the employment and safety of teenaged employees: a North Carolina based study.

OBJECTIVE The objective of this study was to examine the reported practices of construction firms and the beliefs of firm managers/supervisors with respect to employing youth under age 18 and ensuring their safety. PARTICIPANTS The participants in this study were firm representatives from 54, mostly small to medium sized, construction firms in North Carolina. METHODS Survey responses were analyzed for the entire sample and within strata of firm size (1-10, 11+ employees) using descriptive statistics. Percentages and 95% confidence intervals were calculated. Chi-square tests were used to test for statistical significance in differences between firm sizes. RESULTS The findings suggest limits in the adequacy of safety training given to youth in construction, particularly in light of the minimal experience firms require of young hires, that managers' beliefs about the causes of young worker injury are largely focused on worker behaviors rather than on the presence of hazards, and that managers' compliance with child labor laws may be hampered by their lack of knowledge of these laws and an ambivalence toward their usefulness and enforcement. CONCLUSIONS While larger studies are needed to confirm and advance these findings, when considered along with prior studies, they demonstrate the need to improve the safety of the construction environment for youth. The development of new educational interventions by health and safety professionals targeted at construction firms are supported, as are efforts by government regulators to increase enforcement and employer knowledge of the child labor laws.
Narcissistic characteristics and eating-disordered behaviors.

OBJECTIVE There is evidence that core narcissism and the narcissistic defenses have a role in the emotions and cognitions associated with the eating disorders. However, there is little understanding of its relationship with behaviors seen in this population. This study aimed to examine the relationship between narcissism and eating-disordered behaviors (e.g., bingeing and purging). METHOD The participants, 110 women presenting with an eating disorder, completed measures of narcissism and eating disorder psychopathology. RESULTS Associations were found between patients who engaged in excessive exercise and levels of narcissism. There were also dimensional associations between eating-disordered behaviors and specific aspects of narcissism. DISCUSSION Clinical implications and limitations of the study are discussed, and future directions for research suggested.
Numerosity Discrimination in Children With Down Syndrome

To understand the difficulties in mathematics exhibited by children with Down syndrome (DS), this study evaluated the core knowledge of numerosities with a discrimination task adapted from Xu and Spelke (2000). Although continuous variables varying with numerosity were controlled, children with DS discriminated the numerosity 8 from 16, but not from 12. Moreover, their performance did not differ from typically developing children matched either on chronological or mental age. Thus, the approximate numerosity system that recruits parietal lobes (Dehaene, Spelke, Pinel, Stanescu, & Tsivkin, 1999) is efficient in children with DS. These findings point at language-based systems as the source of their difficulties.
Frequency Recovery for Filter-Bank Multicarrier Transmission on Doubly-Selective Fading Channels

In this paper we deal with carrier frequency estimation for filter-bank multicarrier burst transmission over time-frequency selective fading channels. Three open-loop algorithms are discussed, all based on the use of known pilot symbols. The first scheme is derived from the maximum likelihood principle, while the second one consists of its low-SNR approximation, and both of them require knowledge of the fading covariance matrix. The third scheme is ad-hoc and is based on the well-known delay-multiply concept. Theoretical analysis and simulation results are employed to assess the above algorithms in a time-frequency selective mobile wireless scenario.
An Autonomic Nervous System Test of Prognostic Significance in Relation to Electroshock Treatment

J.N A series of articles during the past four years we have reported on a test of the autonomic nervous system which has been especially useful in predicting the clinical outcome of cases treated with electroshock therapy (a, 4). Other studies with this test were reported in relation to asthma (2), loss of abstract thinking in schizophrenia (9, 10), and as a means of demonstrating physiological changes paralleling psychological changes in psychiatric patients (5). The autonomic nervous system test was performed by studying the blood pressure changes and subjective psychological changes occurring following adrenergic stimulation (intravenous epinephrine) and cholinergic stimulation (intramuscular Mecholyl). The blood pressure responses were divided into seven groups and the subjective psychological responses into four. In 1949 we reported (4) on the correlations obtained between this test and the clinical outcome of 100 patients treated with electro-
Decreased glutathione and elevated hair mercury levels are associated with nutritional deficiency-based autism in Oman

Genetic, nutrition, and environmental factors have each been implicated as sources of risk for autism. Oxidative stress, including low plasma levels of the antioxidant glutathione, has been reported by numerous autism studies, which can disrupt methylation-dependent epigenetic regulation of gene expression with neurodevelopmental consequences. We investigated the status of redox and methylation metabolites, as well as the level of protein homocysteinylation and hair mercury levels, in autistic and neurotypical control Omani children, who were previously shown to exhibit significant nutritional deficiencies in serum folate and vitamin B12. The serum level of glutathione in autistic subjects was significantly below control levels, while levels of homocysteine and S-adenosylhomocysteine were elevated, indicative of oxidative stress and decreased methionine synthase activity. Autistic males had lower glutathione and higher homocysteine levels than females, while homocysteinylation of serum proteins was increased in autistic males but not females. Mercury levels were markedly elevated in the hair of autistic subjects vs. control subjects, consistent with the importance of glutathione for its elimination. Thus, autism in Oman is associated with decreased antioxidant resources and decreased methylation capacity, in conjunction with elevated hair levels of mercury.
24-Week Oral Ganciclovir Prophylaxis in Kidney Recipients Is Associated with Reduced Symptomatic Cytomegalovirus Disease Compared to a 12-Week Course

Background. Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is associated with reduced graft and patient survival among kidney recipients. The highest risk of CMV infection occurs in CMV-naïve recipients of kidneys from seropositive donors (D+/R−). Optimal CMV prophylaxis is not established. This prospective cohort study compared the safety and efficacy of prophylaxis with 12 versus 24 weeks of oral ganciclovir. Methods. We prospectively administered 24 weeks ganciclovir to 31 D+/R− recipients. The control group comprised 39 patients transplanted in the immediately preceding era who received a 12-week course of prophylaxis. All patients received cytolytic therapy within the first month, as well as a tacrolimus-based maintenance regimen. A logistic regression model was fit to examine the relationship between 24 weeks ganciclovir prophylaxis and the odds of developing CMV infection by one year. Results. Groups were matched, though the 12-week cohort had more delayed graft function than their 24-week counterparts (45% vs. 29%, P=0.04). CMV infection occurred in 31% and 7% patients in the 12-week and 24-week groups, respectively (P≤0.01). Mean time to development of CMV infection was 17.5±2.2 weeks in the 12-week, and 22.0±10.0 weeks in the 24-week, groups (P=0.79). Both 24 weeks ganciclovir prophylaxis (O.R. 0.15, 95% C.I. 0.03–0.91, P=0.04) and delayed graft function (O.R. 4.49, 95% C.I. 1.67–36.56, P<0.01) were associated with CMV infection. Conclusions. Oral ganciclovir prophylaxis for 24 weeks is associated with a lower risk of symptomatic CMV disease than a 12-week course in high risk D+/R− kidney recipients.
Generation of constitutive and inducible trans-sialylation dominant-negative phenotypes in Trypanosoma brucei and Trypanosoma cruzi.

Trans-sialylation is a unique enzymatic process that is restricted to some trypanosome species. By expressing developmentally regulated trans-sialidases, these protozoan parasites cleave sialic acids from host glycoconjugates and transfer them to acceptors on their own cell surfaces. The biological function of this process is not understood, but trans-sialylation is expected to be important in the invasion of mammalian cells by Trypanosoma cruzi and the survival of Trypanosoma brucei within its insect vector. Since a conventional gene knockout approach was precluded, we developed a dominant-negative strategy, in which fusion proteins consisting of a bacterial sialidase and trypanosome proteins were expressed in T.brucei and T.cruzi. The strong recombinant sialidase activity shifted the reaction equilibrium from sialic acid transfer to hydrolysis, in this way creating a sialic-acid-negative phenotype. Taking advantage of a recently introduced inducible expression system, we were able to control the expression of sialidase fusion proteins in T.brucei. Reversion of the sialic-acid-negative state to wild-type sialylation was accomplished by selective inhibition of the foreign sialidase, leaving the parasite trans-sialidase unaffected. Both desialylation and resialylation of trypanosomes was rapidly achieved. Our results show that neither T.brucei nor T.cruzi require sialic acids for survival in vitro, ruling out the involvement of sialylation in cell surface integrity. The versatile system introduced here will allow a detailed in vivo study of the role of trans-sialylation during the trypanosome infection cycle. Furthermore, cell-surface sialic acids are implicated in a multitude of (patho-) biochemical processes in other organisms. The quantitative and qualitative manipulation of cell surface sialic acids, by expressing of counteracting enzymes, constitutes a novel approach with potentially broad applications in glycobiology.
Prevalence and patterns of headache in school children in Karachi.

OBJECTIVE To determine the prevalence of headache, its different patterns and associated symptoms in school children. METHODS A population based, cross-sectional, questionnaire study, followed by interviews of selected cases and their opthalmoscopic examination was conducted in eight secondary schools from different parts of Karachi to cover all socioeconomic groups. A total of 1211 school children aged 12 to 20 years, were included. The main outcome measures studied were, prevalence of headache, associated symptoms and impact of positive family history. RESULTS The estimated prevalence rate of headache in school children was 85.5%. Of them 43.1% had mild, 46.6% had moderate and 8.8% had severe headache. Nearly half of them (49.6%) had a frequency of 3 or less episodes per month. Majority (58.7%) had no warning symptoms. The most common symptom prior to headache was subjective weakness (19.0%) followed by sensitivity to light (11.5%). The most common site was frontal headache (30.4%) and in 66.7% of the cases it was aching in character. Complaint of noise and light intolerance during headache was reported by 38.2%, 17.1% sought medical advice and only 0.4% needed hospitalization ever. Of those taking medicines (n =424 (41%) majority (82.3%) were self medicated. A positive family history was present in 52.5% children. All selected study subjects were found to have normal optic discs on ophthalmoscopic examination. CONCLUSION Headache is a major health problem in school children. It is inappropriately treated and there is strong impact of family history.
Immunolocalization of the telomerase‐1 component in cells of the regenerating tail, testis, and intestine of lizards

Using an antibody against a lizard telomerase‐1 component the presence of telomerase has been detected in regenerating lizard tails where numerous cells are proliferating. Immunoblots showed telomerase positive bands at 75–80 kDa in normal tissues and at 50, 75, and 90 kDa in those regenerating. Immunofluorescence and ultrastructural immunolocalization showed telomerase‐immunoreactivity in sparCe (few/diluted) mesenchymal cells of the blastema, early regenerating muscles, perichondrium of the cartilaginous tube, ependyma of the spinal cord, and in the regenerating epidermis. Clusters of gold particles were detected in condensing chromosomes of few mesenchymal and epithelial cells in the regenerating tail, but a low to undetectable labeling in interphase cells. Telomerase‐immunoreactivity was intense in the nucleus and sparCe (few/diluted) in the cytoplasm of spermatogonia and spermatocytes and drastically decreased in early spermatids where some nuclear labeling remains. Some intense immunoreactivity was seen in few cells near the basal membrane of intestinal enterocytes or in leukocytes (likely lymphocytes) of the intestine mucosa. In spermatogonia, spermatids and in enterocytes part of the nuclear labeling formed cluster of gold particles in dense areas identified as Cajal Bodies, suggesting that telomerase is a marker for these stem cells. This therefore suggests that also the sparCe (few/diluted) telomerase positive cells detected in the regenerating tail may represent sparCe (few/diluted) stem cells localized in regenerating tissues where transit amplifying cells are instead preponderant to allow for tail growth. This observation supports previous studies indicating that few stem cells are present in the stump after tail amputation and give rise to transit amplifying cells for tail regeneration. J. Morphol. 276:748–758, 2015. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Binding thermodynamics of paromomycin, neomycin, neomycin‐dinucleotide and ‐diPNA conjugates to bacterial and human rRNA

Isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) is a powerful technique able to evaluate the energetics of target‐drug binding within the context of drug discovery. In this work, the interactions of RNAs reproducing bacterial and human ribosomal A‐site, with two well‐known antibiotic aminoglycosides, Paromomycin and Neomycin, as well as several Neomycin‐dinucleotide and ‐diPNA conjugates, have been evaluated by ITC and the corresponding thermodynamic quantities determined. The comparison of the thermodynamic data of aminoglycosides and their chemical analogues allowed to select Neomycin‐diPNA conjugates as the best candidates for antimicrobial activity. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Correlation between the potency of a beta2-glycoprotein I-dependent lupus anticoagulant and the level of resistance to activated protein C

The antiphospholipid syndrome is characterized by the occurrence of vascular thrombosis combined with the presence of antiphospholipid antibodies in plasma of patients. It has been published that antibeta2-glycoprotein I (beta2-GPI) antibodies, with lupus anticoagulant activity (LAC), highly correlate with thrombosis. Resistance related to antiphospholipid antibodies against activated protein C (APC) is one of the proposed mechanisms responsible for thrombosis. We investigated a possible correlation between a beta2-GPI-dependent LAC (titration of cardiolipin into an activated partial thromboplastin time-based assay) and increased APC resistance in a population of 22 plasma samples with LAC activity. Eleven plasma samples that displayed a beta2-GPI-dependent LAC also showed increased APC resistance. In contrast, only one of the 11 plasma samples with a beta2-GPI-independent LAC displayed increased APC resistance. In addition, a monoclonal antibeta2-GPI antibody and patient-purified immunoglobulin G (both with LAC activity) were diluted in plasma with/without protein C. Both antibodies only displayed a beta2-GPI-dependent LAC in plasma in the presence of protein C. This indicates that the principle of the beta2-GPI LAC-assay was based on increased resistance against protein C. Surface plasmon resonance analysis was used to investigate binding between APC and beta2-GPI. We observed that beta2-GPI was able to bind APC directly, especially in the presence of a monoclonal antibeta2-GPI antibody. In conclusion, our observations show a direct correlation between a major clinical symptom of antiphospholipid syndrome (thrombosis), a diagnostic assay (beta2-GPI-dependent LAC) and a potential mechanism responsible for thrombosis in the antiphospholipid syndrome (increased APC resistance).
Generalized alpha plane for numerical differential protection applications

In this paper, a new generalized alpha plane (GAP) is proposed for numerical differential protection applications. Its performance is thoroughly evaluated for a wide variety of faults simulated in a 500 kV three-terminal transmission line using the Alternative Transients Program. The obtained results reveal that in comparison with the only other GAP reported in the literature, the proposed formulation may lead the differential protection function to have a more well-behaved response in the alpha plane, besides having a rather simpler formulation.
Modeling patients' acceptance of provider-delivered e-health.

OBJECTIVE Health care providers are beginning to deliver a range of Internet-based services to patients; however, it is not clear which of these e-health services patients need or desire. The authors propose that patients' acceptance of provider-delivered e-health can be modeled in advance of application development by measuring the effects of several key antecedents to e-health use and applying models of acceptance developed in the information technology (IT) field. DESIGN This study tested three theoretical models of IT acceptance among patients who had recently registered for access to provider-delivered e-health. MEASUREMENTS An online questionnaire administered items measuring perceptual constructs from the IT acceptance models (intrinsic motivation, perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness/extrinsic motivation, and behavioral intention to use e-health) and five hypothesized antecedents (satisfaction with medical care, health care knowledge, Internet dependence, information-seeking preference, and health care need). Responses were collected and stored in a central database. RESULTS All tested IT acceptance models performed well in predicting patients' behavioral intention to use e-health. Antecedent factors of satisfaction with provider, information-seeking preference, and Internet dependence uniquely predicted constructs in the models. CONCLUSION Information technology acceptance models provide a means to understand which aspects of e-health are valued by patients and how this may affect future use. In addition, antecedents to the models can be used to predict e-health acceptance in advance of system development.
Right and left bundle branch block as predictors of long‐term mortality following myocardial infarction

Patients with acute myocardial infarction (MI) with bundle branch block (BBB) have a poor prognosis, but distinction between left (L)‐ and right (R)‐sided BBB is seldom made in epidemiological studies. We studied long‐term mortality associated with RBBB and LBBB in the TRAndolapril Cardiac Evaluation (TRACE) study.