Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Adulterated and Counterfeit Male Enhancement Nutraceuticals and Dietary Supplements Pose a Real Threat to the Management of Erectile Dysfunction: A Global Perspective

ABSTRACT Erectile dysfunction prevalence globally is noticeably high. This is accompanied by an increase in the use of nutraceuticals for male enhancement. However, the global market is invaded by counterfeit and adulterated nutraceuticals claimed to be of natural origin sold with a therapeutic claim. The objective of this article is to review male enhancement nutraceuticals worldwide with respect to claim, adulterants, and safety. The definition of such products is variable across countries. Thus, the registration procedures differ as well. This facilitates the manipulation of the process, which leads to widespread adulterated and counterfeit products without control. The tele-advertisement and Internet pharmacies aided the widespread sale of male enhancement nutraceuticals, unfortunately, the spurious ones. Finally, based on literature, most of these products were found to be adulterated with active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) and mislabeled as being natural. These products represent a major health hazard for consumers due to lack of clear regulations.
Pathological and anatomical abnormalities affecting buffalo cows reproductive tracts in Mosul

A study was conducted to assess the type and prevalence of abnormalities occurring in the female reproductive tracts of 405 buffalo cows slaughtered at Mosul abattoir. Out of the 405 buffalo genital tracts examined, various abnormalities with different degrees of severity were observed in 216 (53.3%) of cases. Twenty two (5.4%) were pregnant and the remaining 41.2% (167/405) were macroscopically normal. The most common abnormalities encountered were endometritis 50 (12.3%), ovarobursal adhesions 26 (6.4%) and hydrosalpinx 20 (4.9%). Other abnormalities recorded were follicular cyst, luteal cyst, cystic corpus luteum, paraovarian cyst, ovarian sarcoma, inactive ovaries, senility anestrous, pyosalpinx, hemosalpinx, obstruction of oviduct, salpingitis, double oviduct, hydrometra, mucometra, pyometra, permetritis, parametritis, uterine edema, perimetrial adhesions, parametrial adhesions, parauterine abscess and uterine tumor. Histopathological examinations in this study revealed that reproductive tract lesions seem to be an important problem with possible subsequent infertility and sterility in buffalo cows leading to animals slaughtered.
Red Blood Cell Folate and Serum Vitamin B12 Status in Children With Sickle Cell Disease

Purpose To determine red blood cell (RBC) folate and serum vitamin B12 levels in children with sickle cell disease, SS-type, and to evaluate the associations of these nutrient levels with growth and hematologic parameters. Patients and Methods Subjects enrolled in this prospective, cross-sectional study were recruited from one tertiary care setting. Complete blood counts, measurement of red blood cell (RBC) folate and serum vitamin B12, anthropometric measures (height, weight, skinfold measurements), pubertal status, and 24-hour dietary recalls were obtained from 70 patients ages 1 to 19 years. Results Low RBC folate levels were found in 15% of the children. Fifty-seven percent of the sample had inadequate dietary folate intake. Three percent of the children had low serum vitamin B12 levels. All children and adolescents sampled had adequate dietary intake of vitamin B12. Both RBC folate (P = 0.01) and serum vitamin B12 levels (P < 0.01) decreased with increasing age. Conclusions More than half of the subjects had inadequate intake of folate from food, and despite daily folate supplementation, 15% had low RBC folate levels. Low serum vitamin B12 levels were rare, and dietary vitamin B12 intake was adequate. Additional research is needed to explore the effects of improved folate status, the need for folate supplementation, and the relationship of folate, vitamin B12, and homocysteine levels and the risk for vascular damage and stroke in children with sickle cell disease.
Behavioral / Systems / Cognitive Visual Topography of Human Intraparietal Sulcus

Jascha D. Swisher,1 Mark A. Halko,1 Lotfi B. Merabet,1,2 Stephanie A. McMains,1,3 and David C. Somers1,4 1Perceptual Neuroimaging Laboratory, Program in Neuroscience and Department of Psychology, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, 2Center for Noninvasive Brain Stimulation, Department of Neurology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, 3Neuroscience of Attention and Perception Laboratory, Department of Psychology, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, and 4Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, Massachusetts 02129
Interactive comment on “ Spatial and temporal variations of the concentrations of PM 10 , PM 2 . 5 and PM 1 in China ” by Y

Atmospheric particulates (aerosols) has significant influence on air quality, human health and regional climate changes. Large uncertainties in estimating the aerosol direct radiative forcing exist due to the uncertainties in the aerosol optical properties which were related to the aerosol emissions, profiles, compositions and mixing states. Thus, it’s very important to figure out the temporal and spatial distributions of the aerosols in the regions with high aerosol loadings to better accessing their radiative forcing and regional/global climate effects. This study, which examines the spatial and C8439
Synergistic activation of NF-kappaB by tumor necrosis factor alpha and gamma interferon via enhanced I kappaB alpha degradation and de novo I kappaBbeta degradation

Tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) and gamma interferon (IFN-gamma) are required for an effective immune response to bacterial infection and these cytokines synergize in a variety of biological responses, including the induction of cytokine, cell adhesion, and inducible nitrous oxide synthase gene expression. Typically, the synergistic effect on gene expression is due to the independent activation of nuclear factor kappaB (NF-kappaB) by TNF-alpha and of signal transducers and activators of transcription or IFN-regulatory factor 1 by IFNs, allowing these transcription factors to bind their unique promoter sites. However, since activation of NF-kappaB by TNF-alpha is often transient and would not activate long-term kappaB-dependent transcription effectively, we explored the effects of IFN-gamma on TNF-alpha-induced NF-kappaB activity. IFN-gamma, which typically does not activate NF-kappaB, synergistically enhanced TNF-alpha-induced NF-kappaB nuclear translocation via a mechanism that involves the induced degradation of I kappaBbeta and that apparently requires tyrosine kinase activity in preneuronal cells but not in endothelial cells. Correspondingly, cotreatment of cells with TNF-alpha and IFN-gamma leads to persistent activation of NF-kappaB and to potent activation of kappaB-dependent gene expression, which may explain, at least in part, the synergy observed between these cytokines, as well as their involvement in the generation of an effective immune response.
Stronger transferability but lower variability in transcriptomic‐ than in anonymous microsatellites: evidence from Hylid frogs

A simple way to quickly optimize microsatellites in nonmodel organisms is to reuse loci available in closely related taxa; however, this approach can be limited by the stochastic and low cross‐amplification success experienced in some groups (e.g. amphibians). An efficient alternative is to develop loci from transcriptome sequences. Transcriptomic microsatellites have been found to vary in their levels of cross‐species amplification and variability, but this has to date never been tested in amphibians. Here, we compare the patterns of cross‐amplification and levels of polymorphism of 18 published anonymous microsatellites isolated from genomic DNA vs. 17 loci derived from a transcriptome, across nine species of tree frogs (Hyla arborea and Hyla cinerea group). We established a clear negative relationship between divergence time and amplification success, which was much steeper for anonymous than transcriptomic markers, with half‐lives (time at which 50% of the markers still amplify) of 1.1 and 37 My, respectively. Transcriptomic markers are significantly less polymorphic than anonymous loci, but remain variable across diverged taxa. We conclude that the exploitation of amphibian transcriptomes for developing microsatellites seems an optimal approach for multispecies surveys (e.g. analyses of hybrid zones, comparative linkage mapping), whereas anonymous microsatellites may be more informative for fine‐scale analyses of intraspecific variation. Moreover, our results confirm the pattern that microsatellite cross‐amplification is greatly variable among amphibians and should be assessed independently within target lineages. Finally, we provide a bank of microsatellites for Palaearctic tree frogs (so far only available for H. arborea), which will be useful for conservation and evolutionary studies in this radiation.
RUNNING HEAD : SEXUAL INTEREST IN PREPUBESCENT CHILDREN 1 How common is males ’ self-reported sexual interest in prepubescent children ?

Consistent evidence exists for sexual interest in children in non-clinical/non-forensic male populations. However, prevalences for community males’ self-reported sexual interest in children involving prepubescent children have been based on indiscriminate definitions including postpubescent individuals, age-restricted samples, and/or small convenience samples. The present research assessed males’ self-reported sexual interest in children (including child prostitution and child sex tourism) on community level and examined the link between strictly defined sexual fantasies and behaviors involving prepubescent children. In an online survey of 8,718 German males 4.1% reported sexual fantasies involving prepubescent children, 3.2% sexual offending against prepubescent children, and 0.1% a pedophilic sexual preference. Sexual fantasies involving prepubescent children were positively related to sexual offending against prepubescent children. Sexual interest in children was associated with subjectively perceived need for therapeutic help. In contrast to findings from forensic samples, men who exclusively reported child pornography use were identified as a subgroup differing from contact sexual offenders against prepubescent children and men who committed both child pornography and contact sexual offenses against prepubescent children. The empirical link between child-related sexual fantasies and sexual victimization of prepubescent children and high levels of subjective distress from this inclination underscore the importance of evidence-based child sexual abuse prevention approaches in the community. Findings are discussed in terms of their relation to pedophilic disorder.
Matrix metalloproteinase and tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase in serum and synovial fluid of osteoarthritic dogs

Summary To better understand the mechanisms responsible for the pathological processes of osteoarthritis (OA) and to potentially identify a profile of changes that could be predictive of early OA, matrix metalloproteinase-1 (MMP-1) and tissue inhibitor of matrix metalloproteinase-2 (TIMP-2) in the synovial fluid and serum of normal and osteoarthritic dogs were examined. The concentration of MMP-1 in the synovial fluid of osteoarthritic dogs (0.62 ± 0.16), as measured by densitometry, was significantly higher than that found in control dogs (0.42 ± 0.19) (P = 0.03). The concentration of MMP-1 in the serum of osteoarthritic dogs (0.74 ± 0.16) was significantly less than that found in control dogs (0.87 ± 0.08) (P = 0.05). The concentration of TIMP-2 in the synovial fluid of osteoarthritic dogs (46.2 ± 21.9 ng/ml) was significantly less than that of control dogs (122.0 ± 66.5 ng/ml) (P = 0.009). The concentration of TIMP-2 in the serum of osteoarthritic dogs (116.2 ± 43.1 ng/ml) was not significantly different than that of control dogs (95.1 ± 94.4 ng/ml) (P = 0.554). In addition, a phospho-tyrosine immunoprecipitation and mass spectrometry were used to isolate and identify interferonalpha in canine synovial fluid.
FREQUENCY OF ATHEROSCLEROTIC LESIONS IN CORONARY ARTERIES OF AUTOPSY SPECIMENS IN ISFAHAN FORENSIC MEDICINE CENTER

Background: Atherosclerosis of coronary arteries and myocardial infarction are the most common fatal cardiac diseases discovered in autopsies. The fact that formation of these lesions are preventable through exact health care programs necessitates collecting baseline information on the prevalence of such lesions as performed in this study. Methods: In this descriptive, cross-sectional study, from October 2002 to November 2003, during a randomly chosen month of every season, the hearts of autopsy specimens aging 15-50 years referred to Isfahan forensic center (204 specimens) were dissected and fixed in formalin 10% and coronary arteries were sectioned. In case of a definite or suspicious lesion, microscopic slides were also prepared. Otherwise, 3 random slides from each branch of coronary arteries were studied by a pathologist. Then the percentage of vessel obstruction was detected and stages of lesions were classified as fibrotic and complicated. Results: Frequency of atherosclerotic lesions in 204 studied specimens (182 male and 22 female) was 29.4%. Atheromatous plaques were observed in 31.3% of the male and 13.6% of the female specimens. The most frequent involved branches were left anterior descending, right coronary, left main and left circumflex arteries respectively. Relative frequency of lesion increased with age. Conclusion: The frequency of atherosclerotic lesions in this study is comparable to other studies. The difference in relative frequency of atheromatous plaques in both sexes is expectable, probably due to low number of studied women or the low prevalence of atherosclerotic lesions among young women. Keywords: Atherosclerosis, Coronary artery, Autopsy
An Extension of the InSAR-Based Probability Integral Method and Its Application for Predicting 3-D Mining-Induced Displacements Under Different Extraction Conditions

Underground extraction can be roughly classified into three types, i.e., subcritical, critical, and supercritical extraction, in accordance with the geological conditions in the overburden and the geometry of mined-out areas. In 2016, we proposed an approach based on the interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) technique and the probability integral method (PIM) for the cost-effective prediction of 3-D mining-induced displacements (abbreviated as InSAR-PIM). Due to the inherent assumption of critical extraction in the PIM, the InSAR-PIM method performs well in predicting the 3-D displacements caused by critical and/or supercritical extraction, but poorly for subcritical extraction. In this paper, we first propose a generalized PIM (GPIM) by modifying the traditional PIM with a simplified Boltzmann function. We then replace the PIM of the InSAR-PIM with the proposed GPIM to develop an extension of InSAR-PIM (referred as to InSAR-GPIM). The InSAR-GPIM was tested in the Qianyingzi coal mining area, China. The results show that the InSAR-GPIM-predicted horizontal and vertical displacements caused by subcritical, critical, and supercritical extraction agree well with the in situ observations, with average root-mean-square errors of about 0.032 and 0.050 m, respectively. These accuracies represent improvements of 60.9% and 59% when compared with the accuracies predicted by the InSAR-PIM in the horizontal and vertical directions. The results indicate that the InSAR-GPIM is capable of accurately predicting 3-D mining-induced displacements under different extraction conditions (i.e., subcritical, critical, and supercritical extraction), and it performs much better than the InSAR-PIM in the case of subcritical extraction. It is therefore believed that InSAR-GPIM will have a wider scope of applications than the previous InSAR-PIM.
Potential effect of 6 versus 12-weeks of physical training on cardiac autonomic function and exercise capacity in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

BACKGROUND Exercise is an important part of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) treatment. However, it is not know about the minimum effective time of physical training that could beneficially modify the cardiac autonomic modulation (CAM) and exercise capacity in these patients. AIM To contrast the potential effects of a physical training program (PTP), for 6 versus 12 weeks, on CAM by linear and nonlinear heart rate variability (HRV) indices and exercise capacity in COPD patients. DESIGN Prospective randomized controlled trial. SETTING Outpatient pulmonary rehabilitation. POPULATION Twenty moderate-to-severe COPD patients were randomly assigned to either a training group (N.=10) or a control group (N.=10). METHODS HRV at rest and during submaximal test was determined by linear (rMSSD and SDNN) and non-linear indices (SD1, SD2 and sample entropy [SE]). In addition, key responses were obtained during cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET), the walking distance (WD) during the six minute walking test and submaximal constant speed testing (CST). PTP consisted of 30 minutes of aerobic exercise training on a treadmill, 3 times per week at 70% of CPET peak speed rate. Patients were evaluated on baseline, 6 and 12 weeks. RESULTS Significant improvements in HRV indices, WD, as well as, other physiological responses were observed after 6 weeks of the PTP and maintained until 12 weeks (P<0.05). However, after 12 weeks, the SD1 index demonstrated an additional improvement compared with 6 weeks (P<0.05). Peak oxygen uptake and dioxide carbon production improved only after 12 weeks (P<0.05). Interestingly, the 6th week-baseline delta (6th week-baseline) of WD, SDNN and SE were significantly higher than 12th week-6th week delta (P<0.05). CONCLUSION These results indicate that beneficial changes on cardiac autonomic modulation in conjunction with improvement in submaximal functional capacity occur in the first 6 weeks of PTP in moderate to severe COPD. CLINICAL REHABILITATION IMPACT Short-term rehabilitation (6 weeks) is an effective sufficient time to beneficially modify important outcomes as cardiac modulation and exercise capacity in COPD patients.
Bang for the Buck: Gain-Loss Ratio as a Driver of Judgment and Choice

Prominent decision-making theories propose that individuals (should) evaluate alternatives by combining gains and losses in an additive way. Instead, we suggest that individuals seek to maximize the rate of exchange between positive and negative outcomes and thus combine gains and losses in a multiplicative way. Sensitivity to gain-loss ratio provides an alternative account for several existing findings and implies a number of novel predictions. It implies greater sensitivity to losses and risk aversion when expected value is positive, but greater sensitivity to gains and risk seeking when expected value is negative. It also implies more extreme preferences when expected value is positive than when expected value is negative. These predictions are independent of decreasing marginal sensitivity, loss aversion, and probability weighting—three key properties of prospect theory. Five new experiments and reanalyses of two recently published studies support these predictions. This paper was accepted by Yuval Ro.
Models of self‐governance in schools: Australia and the United Kingdom

The final decade of the twentieth century saw a major shift to self‐governance for schools in many countries, including the UK and Australia. This trend is underpinned by the assumption that greater autonomy will lead to improved educational outcomes. The impact of self‐management on principals and schools is now well documented but much less attention has been given to the implications for governance, a significant omission as the process of decentralisation transfers responsibilities to governing bodies rather than school principals. Reviews the main issues of governance and illustrates them from the research in England and Wales and in Australia. It joins the debate about the appropriate balance between governance and management for governing bodies and examines the lay/professional interface in school governance. It assesses governors’ role as representatives of school interest groups and concludes by setting out a research agenda for governance in self‐managing schools.
[Studying school beginners in western and eastern Germany: allergy trends and sensitisations 1991-2000].

AIM Aim of the study is to examine the hypotheses of a steeper increase in allergies and allergic sensitisations in East than in West German children between 1991 and 2000. METHOD Between 1991 and 2000 we yearly repeated cross-sectional studies (SAWO: Study on school beginners) and asked 36,645 parents about diagnoses and symptoms of allergies in their six-year old children (response: 79 %). The study was done in Leipzig, Halle, Merseburg, Magdeburg, small towns in the Altmark region, Duisburg, Essen, Köln and Borken during spring. An allergological investigation was included 1991, 1994, 1997 and 2000. Dermatologists diagnosed a prevalent atopic eczema, administered a skin prick test (n = 7,229) and blood was taken for the determination of specific IgE antibodies against common allergens (n = 7,714, RAST). Odds Ratios (OR) for trend were calculated separately for the data from East and West Germany and are given along with their 95% confidence intervals. RESULTS Allergies and their symptoms (exception: atopic eczema) were less prevalent in East German children born before the reunification than in West German ones. In East as well as in West Germany bronchial asthma was diagnosed more often in 2000 than in 1991 (OR East: 2.42 [1.78-3.28] West: 2.07 [1.43-3.00]). In contrast the prevalence of atopic eczemas was more than halved between 1991 and 2000. Of all symptoms and diagnoses of allergies only hay fever and its symptoms showed an upward trend in East Germany which was steeper than the trend in West Germany (OR East: 4.41 [3.17-6.13] West: 1.74 [1.19-2.57]). This can partly be explained by a parallel trend in sensitisation against grass pollen. CONCLUSION The spatial and temporal pattern of the allergic diseases bronchial asthma, hay fever and atopic eczema in six-year old children from Germany is different. The expected steeper increase of allergies in East than in West Germany could only be shown for hay fever.
Effect of chelated and inorganic trace minerals on fungal growth and aflatoxin synthesis in liquid medium

The effect of copper (Cu) at 5 and 10 mg/L, iron (Fe) at 5 and 10 mg/L, selenium (Se) at 1 and 3 mg/L and zinc (Zn) at 10 and 20 mg/L each in organic (chelated) and inorganic form in basal media (liquid), was studied on fungal growth and aflatoxin (AF) synthesis under laboratory conditions. The results revealed that inorganic Cu at both levels and chelated Cu at lower level had higher fungal biomass. The AFB1 production was higher (p<0.01) in media amended with organic Se at 3 mg/L and inorganic Se at 1 mg/L than the media without Se supplementation. Mycelial dry weight was significantly (p<0.01) higher in media with inorganic Zn at 10 mg/L than media without Zn supplementation and the mycelial dry weight of other groups were found to be intermediary. The total AFB1 production in 100 ml media was significantly (p<0.01) higher in media with inorganic Zn at 20 mg/L than media without Zn supplementation and the total AFB1 production in 100 ml media of other groups were found to be intermediary. The fungi may not utilize the minerals in chelated form as efficiently as its inorganic counterpart, for AF production in the feed.