Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Influence of socio-economic status and environmental factors on serologically diagnosed Japanese encephalitis cases in the state of West Bengal, India during 2005-2010

Objectives: The main aim of the current study is to examine the influence of socio-economic status and environmental factors on serologically diagnosed Japanese encephalitis cases in the state of West Bengal, India during 2005-2010. Materials and methods: A total of 648 blood/CSF specimens were collected and/or referred from the suspected AES cases, admitted in the different medical colleges and hospitals of the state during the year of 2005-2010. These specimens were subjected to JE Mac ELISA to determine the actual JE case amongst these AES. The association of the socio-economic status and environmental factors with the serologically diagnosed JE positive cases was studied by a statistical analysis through Normal Deviate test or Z test. Result: Out of 648 specimens, only 175 (27.0%) specimens were reactive to JE IgM antibody, of which 60.0% were from the male individuals and 40.0% from the female population. Major cases were observed in the age group of 0 - 10 years; followed by 11 - 20 years. Regarding literacy, only 58.3% cases had no education and 41.7% were from the literate with varying level of education, i.e., from primary level to post gra- duate level. A total of 65.7% cases were from low income group where as only 34.3% cases were from high income group. Regarding house type, 62.3% cases lived in mud house and 37.7% cases lived in the brick house. In most of the cases (74.3%), persons were living in close proximity to rice fields/lakes/ponds. 69.7% cases were found to occur in the monsoon and post-monsoon period whereas 30.3% cases were reported in the pre-monsoon period. Conclusion: Our study concludes that socio-economic status and environmental conditions were statistically significant contextual risk factors for serologically diagnosed JE incidences in West Bengal where JE is proved to be endemic in nature and such study constitutes a new report of this kind in the region.
Oral lesions in a group of kidney transplant patients.

AIM To assess the prevalence of oral mucosa lesions (OL) in a group of kidney transplant (KT) patients, and analyze possible OL associations with one another and with drugs use and relevant clinical and laboratory variables. METHODOLOGY Transversal study, in which consecutive KT patients from the nephrology outpatient service at a General Zonal Hospital were examined. The prevalence of several types of OL was assessed, and their possible statistical associations with one another and total leukocyte count, renal function, the simplified oral hygiene index (S-OHI), cyclosporin-A (CsA) dose and blood levels, and nifedipine use was analyzed. A logistic regression model was used to analyze the association between gingival hyperplasia (GH) and CsA dose and nifedipine use. RESULTS Fifty (55.6%) men and forty (44.4%) women were studied. Sixty percent of the patients had at least one OL. Oral candidiasis (OC) was found in 18.7%; 13% had lesions clinically compatible with hairy leukoplakia (CHL). An association was found between OC and CHL (P<0.05). Saburral tongue (ST) was found in 22% of the patients and gingival hyperplasia (GH) in 49%, which was distributed as follows: Grade 1 in 11 (12.2%); Grade 2 in 26 (28.9%), and Grade 3 in 7 (7.8%). Logistic regression results showed an association between GH and poor oral hygiene (P< 0.001), but not to either CsA dose or blood levels, or nifedipine use (P=0.075). CONCLUSION Sixty percent of the KT patients had at least one OL. The association between GH and poor oral hygiene corroborate the need for oral hygiene practices supervision in the transplant patient.
Organization of human ACAT-2 gene and its cell-type-specific promoter activity.

Acyl-CoA:cholesterol acyltransferase (ACAT) plays important roles in cellular cholesterol homeostasis. Two ACAT genes exist in mammals. We report here the genomic organization of human ACAT-2 gene and analysis of its promoter activity in various cell lines. The human ACAT-2 gene spans over 18 kb and contains 15 exons. Three transcription start sites and one poly(A) site are identified by the 5'/3'-RACE. In addition, the human ACAT-2 gene is linked to the insulin-like growth factor binding protein 6 (IGFBP-6) gene in a head-to-tail manner with a small intergenic region of about 1.2 kb. The 5'-flanking region of human ACAT-2 gene contains many potential cis-acting elements for multiple transcriptional regulatory factors but lacks TATA and CCAAT boxes. Using promoter-luciferase reporter assays, we demonstrate the transcriptional activity of ACAT-2 gene promoter is high in Caco-2 cells, especially after these cells become postconfluent and behave as intestinal enterocytes.
What Does 2‐Dimensional Imaging Add to 3‐ and 4‐Dimensional Obstetric Ultrasonography?

Objective. The purpose of this study was to determine whether 2‐dimensional (2D) ultrasonography adds diagnostic information to that provided by the examination of 3‐dimensional/4‐dimensional (3D/4D) volume data sets alone. Methods. Ninety‐nine fetuses were examined by 3D/4D volume ultrasonography. Volume data sets were evaluated by a blinded independent examiner who, after establishing an initial diagnostic impression by 3D/4D ultrasonography, performed a 2D ultrasonographic examination. The frequency of agreement and diagnostic accuracy of each modality to detect congenital anomalies were calculated and compared. Results. Fifty‐four fetuses with no abnormalities and 45 fetuses with 82 anomalies diagnosed by 2D ultrasonography were examined. Agreement between 3D/4D and 2D ultrasonography occurred for 90.4% of the findings (123/136; intraclass correlation coefficient, 0.834; 95% confidence interval, 0.774–0.879). Six anomalies were missed by 3D/4D ultrasonography when compared to 2D ultrasonography (ventricular septal defect [n = 2], interrupted inferior vena cava with azygous continuation [n = 1], tetralogy of Fallot [n = 1], horseshoe kidney [n = 1], and cystic adenomatoid malformation [n = 1]). There were 2 discordant diagnoses: transposition of the great arteries diagnosed as a double‐outlet right ventricle and pulmonary atresia misinterpreted as tricuspid atresia on 3D/4D ultrasonography. One case of occult spinal dysraphism was suspected on 3D ultrasonography but not confirmed by 2D ultrasonography. When compared to diagnoses performed after delivery (n = 106), the sensitivity and specificity of 3D/4D ultrasonography (92.2% [47/51] and 76.4% [42/55], respectively) and 2D ultrasonography (96.1% [49/51] and 72.7% [40/55]) were not significantly different (P = .233). Conclusions. Information provided by 2D ultrasonography is consistent, in most cases, with information provided by the examination of 3D/4D volume data sets alone.
SSVEP-based BCI using Riemannian geometry

Challenges for the next generation of Brain Computer Interfaces (BCI) are to mitigate the common sources of variability (electronic, electrical, biological) and to develop online and adaptive systems following the evolution of the subject's brain waves. Studying electroencephalographic (EEG) signals from their associated covariance matrices allows the construction of a representation which is invariant to study of all estimators conducted on real EEG recording. Working in Euclidean space with covariance matrices is known to be error-prone, one might take advantage of algorithmic advances in Riemannian geometry and matrix manifold to implement methods for Symmetric Positive-Definite (SPD) matrices. Nonetheless, existing classification algorithms in Riemannian spaces are designed for offline analysis. We propose a novel algorithm for online and asynchronous processing of brain signals, borrowing principles from semi-unsupervised approaches and following a dynamic stopping scheme to provide a prediction as soon as possible. The assessment is conducted on real EEG recording: this is the first study on SteadyState Visually Evoked Potential (SSVEP) experimentations to exploit online classification based on Riemannian geometry. The proposed online algorithm is evaluated and compared with state-of-the-art SSVEP methods, which are based on Canonical Correlation Analysis (CCA). It is shown to improve both the classification accuracy and the information transfer rate in the online and asynchronous setup. & 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Automated error detection using association rules

High data quality is important for every application. Inaccurate or inadequate data can lead to inappropriate assumptions, misleading results, bias and ultimately poor policy and decision making. Finding errors and cleaning data is a time consuming process. This paper presents a framework for automatically detecting unusual and erroneous data values in datasets. The main idea is to generate association rules with very high confidence and to identify the cases that are exceptions to these rules. Experimental results show that the proposed framework is able to successfully identify erroneous values in large datasets.
Propofol and methohexital have no significant effect on mucus secretion or clearance in the anesthetized dog

ObjectiveAnecdotal reports suggest that propofol (Diprivan) may stimulate mucus hypersecretion in patients without pulmonary disease. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of methohexital or propofol anesthesia on the physical and transport properties of airway mucus in spontaneously breathing dogs. DesignRandomized, controlled, crossover laboratory study. SettingUniversity laboratory. SubjectsFour healthy, purpose-bred female beagle dogs. InterventionsDogs were anesthetized with 5 mg/kg of propofol by intravenous bolus followed by a maintenance infusion at 0.4 mg·kg−1·min−1 or 4 mg/kg of methohexital followed by an infusion at 0.3 mg·kg−1·min−1. Premedication with 0.05 mg/kg of acepromazine was given, and either atropine (0.2 mg) or saline was given by intravenous bolus at the time of induction. Dogs were intubated but spontaneously breathing throughout the experiment. Tracheal secretions were collected after induction and again after 40 mins. Measurements and Main Results The volume of secretions collected on the endotracheal tube during the 1.5-hr experiment and on a bronchoscopy brush over 10 mins during the experiment was measured. Tracheal epithelial potential difference was measured bronchoscopically by saturated agar bridges, and tracheal mucus transport velocity was determined by timing particle transport. The dynamic viscoelasticity of collected mucus was assessed by microrheometry, and secretion mucociliary transportability was measured in vitro. There were no differences in any physical or transport properties of airway secretions that could be attributed to the anesthetic agent. Secretion volume was significantly lower (p < .05) and epithelial potential difference was significantly higher (p = .03) with atropine premedication. Despite this, there were no differences in tracheal mucus transport velocity, viscoelasticity, or secretion mucociliary transportability with either anesthetic agent or with atropine. ConclusionsThis study suggests that neither methohexital nor propofol significantly affects mucus secretion or clearance in healthy dogs.
Effects of chlorpromazine on the cell envelope proteins of Escherichia coli

Chlorpromazine (CPZ), at a concentration of 60 micrograms/ml of medium completely inhibited the replication of Escherichia coli. At concentrations below this MIC, CPZ caused transient induction of filamentation, such that by the end of 5 h, all of the cells were filaments, and by the end of 24 h, only rod-shaped E. coli were present. The reversion to normal morphology in the presence of CPZ was not due to either the degradation of CPZ or the selection of CPZ-resistant mutants. The electrophoretic pattern of proteins extracted from isolated cell envelopes of CPZ-induced filaments as well as from E. coli that reverted to normal morphology was distinctly different from that of the controls.
Fitness trade-off in peach-potato aphids (Myzus persicae) between insecticide resistance and vulnerability to parasitoid attack at several spatial scales

Abstract Insecticide-resistant clones of the peach-potato aphid, Myzus persicae (Sulzer), have previously been shown to have a reduced response to aphid alarm pheromone compared to susceptible ones. The resulting vulnerability of susceptible and resistant aphids to attack by the primary endoparasitoid, Diaeretiella rapae (McIntosh), was investigated across three spatial scales. These scales ranged from aphids confined on individual leaves exposed to single female parasitoids, to aphids on groups of whole plants exposed to several parasitoids. In all experiments, significantly fewer aphids from insecticide-susceptible clones became parasitised compared to insecticide-resistant aphids. Investigations of aphid movement showed at the largest spatial scale that more susceptible aphids than resistant aphids moved from their inoculation leaves to other leaves on the same plant after exposure to parasitoids. The findings imply that parasitoids, and possibly other natural enemies, can influence the evolution and dynamics of insecticide resistance through pleiotropic effects of resistance genes on important behavioural traits.
Trends of fast food consumption among adolescent and young adult Saudi girls living in Riyadh

Background Saudi Arabia has passed through lifestyle changes toward unhealthy dietary patterns such as high fast food consumption. Adolescents and young adults, particularly girls, are the main groups exposed to and affected by these adverse eating behaviors. Objective The aim of this study was to examine the trends of fast food consumption among adolescent and young adult Saudi girls living in Riyadh, and to compare between them. Design In a cross-sectional survey, 127 adolescent Saudi girls (13–18 years) and 69 young adult Saudi girls (19–29 years) were randomly recruited to participate in this study. Weight, height, waist circumference, and hip circumference were measured using standardized methods. Twenty-four-hour diet recall and a face-to-face interview food questionnaire were performed. Results Most of the participants had adequate intake of protein, riboflavin, iron, and sodium, but exhibited low intake for several other nutrients. Among study participants, 95.4% consume restaurants’ fast food and 79.1% eat fast food at least once weekly. Burgers and carbonated soft drinks were the main kinds of fast food meals and beverages usually eaten by girls. Adolescent girls who usually ate large portion sizes of fast food had significantly higher mean waist circumference and hip circumference. Participants eat fast food primarily for enjoying the delicious taste, followed by convenience. Restaurants’ hygiene and safety standards were the main concern regarding fast food for 62.2% of girls. Finally, international restaurants were preferable by participants to buy fast food compared with local restaurants (70.9% vs. 29.1%). Conclusion Our findings provide evidence on the high prevalence of fast food consumption among Saudi girls, suggesting an urgent need for community-based nutrition interventions that consider the trends of fast food consumption and targeted eating behaviors of adolescent and young adult girls.
Institutional and individual factors affecting scientists' data‐sharing behaviors: A multilevel analysis

The objective of this research was to investigate the institutional and individual factors that influence scientists' data‐sharing behaviors across different scientific disciplines. Two theoretical perspectives, institutional theory, and theory of planned behavior, were employed in developing a research model that showed the complementary nature of the institutional and individual factors influencing scientists' data‐sharing behaviors. This research used a survey method to examine to what extent those institutional and individual factors influence scientists' data‐sharing behaviors in a range of scientific disciplines. A national survey (with 1,317 scientists in 43 disciplines) showed that regulative pressure by journals, normative pressure at a discipline level, and perceived career benefit and scholarly altruism at an individual level had significant positive relationships with data‐sharing behaviors, and that perceived effort had a significant negative relationship. Regulative pressure by funding agencies and the availability of data repositories at a discipline level and perceived career risk at an individual level were not found to have any significant relationships with data‐sharing behaviors.
Epidemiologic profiling: evaluating foodborne outbreaks for which no pathogen was isolated by routine laboratory testing: United States, 1982–9

The objective was to evaluate foodborne outbreaks of undetermined aetiology by comparing them to pathogen-specific epidemiologic profiles of laboratory-confirmed foodborne outbreaks. National foodborne outbreak data reported to CDC during 1982–9 were categorized by clinico-epidemiologic profiles based on incubation, duration, percent vomiting, fever and vomiting to fever ratio. From the pathogen-specific profiles, five syndromes were developed: a vomiting-toxin syndrome resembling Bacillus cereus and Staphylococcus aureus; a diarrhoea-toxin syndrome characteristic of Clostridium perfringens, a diarrhaeogenic Escherichia coli syndrome, a Norwalk-like virus syndrome, and a salmonella like syndrome. Of 712 outbreaks, 624 (87·6%) matched one of five syndromes; 340 (47·8%) matched the Norwalk-like syndrome and 83 (11·7%) matched the salmonella-like syndrome. After combining information on known pathogens and epidemiologic profiles, only 88 (12·4%) outbreaks remained unclassified. Norwalk-like virus outbreaks appear as common as salmonella-like outbreaks. We conclude that profiling can help classify outbreaks, guide investigations and direct laboratory testing to help detect new and emerging pathogens.
Protective and Prophylactic Role of Brassicaceae VegetablesExtracts on N-nitrosodiethylamine Induced Initiation ofHepatocellular Carcinoma in Rat Liver

Nitrosamine compounds are known hepatic carcinogens. In the metabolism of nitrosamines, such as diethylnitrosamine (DEN), there is evidence of the formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) resulting in oxidative stress, which may be one of the factors in the etiology of cancer. The formation of ROS may alter the antioxidant system, through measuring essential and non-essential amino acids, the study was undertaken to investigate the Protective and Prophylactic role of ethanolic extracts of Brassica oleracea or botrytis (200 mg of plant extracts/kg body weight) on diethylnitrosamine (DEN) (1 μl/100 g b.wt.) in rats, induced initiation of hepatocellular carcinoma in rat liver, Brassicaceae vegetables are also recognized as a rich source of nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, amino acids (for example, L-alanine, L-aspartic acid, L-glutamic acid, L-glutamine, L-histidine, L-methionine, L-phenylalanine, L-threonine, L-tryptophan, and L-valine) Brassicaceae vegetables have been reported to have anticancer and antioxidant properties.
Arterial oxygenation influences central motor output and exercise performance via effects on peripheral locomotor muscle fatigue in humans

Changing arterial oxygen content (C aO 2 ) has a highly sensitive influence on the rate of peripheral locomotor muscle fatigue development. We examined the effects of C aO 2 on exercise performance and its interaction with peripheral quadriceps fatigue. Eight trained males performed four 5 km cycling time trials (power output voluntarily adjustable) at four levels of C aO 2 (17.6–24.4 ml O2 dl−1), induced by variations in inspired O2 fraction (0.15–1.0). Peripheral quadriceps fatigue was assessed via changes in force output pre‐ versus post‐exercise in response to supra‐maximal magnetic femoral nerve stimulation (ΔQtw; 1–100 Hz). Central neural drive during the time trials was estimated via quadriceps electromyogram. Increased C aO 2 from hypoxia to hyperoxia resulted in parallel increases in central neural output (43%) and power output (30%) during cycling and improved time trial performance (12%); however, the magnitude of ΔQtw (−33 to −35%) induced by the exercise was not different among the four time trials (P > 0.2). These effects of C aO 2 on time trial performance and ΔQtw were reproducible (coefficient of variation = 1–6%) over repeated trials at each F IO 2 on separate days. In the same subjects, changing C aO 2 also affected performance time to exhaustion at a fixed work rate, but similarly there was no effect of ΔC aO 2 on peripheral fatigue. Based on these results, we hypothesize that the effect of C aO 2 on locomotor muscle power output and exercise performance time is determined to a significant extent by the regulation of central motor output to the working muscle in order that peripheral muscle fatigue does not exceed a critical threshold.
Dialysis Delivery of an Adenosine A1 Receptor Agonist to the Pontine Reticular Formation Decreases Acetylcholine Release and Increases Anesthesia Recovery Time

Background Adenosine modulates cell excitability, acetylcholine release, nociception, and sleep. Pontine cholinergic neurotransmission contributes to the generation and maintenance of electroencephalographic and behavioral arousal. Adenosine A1 receptors inhibit arousal-promoting, pontine cholinergic neurons, and adenosine enhances sleep. No previous studies have determined whether pontine adenosine also modulates recovery from anesthesia. Therefore, the current study tested the hypotheses that dialysis delivery of the adenosine A1 receptor agonist N6-p-sulfophenyladenosine (SPA) into the pontine reticular formation would decrease acetylcholine release and increase the time needed for recovery from halothane anesthesia. Methods A microdialysis probe was positioned in the pontine reticular formation of halothane-anesthetized cats. Probes were perfused with Ringer's solution (control) followed by the adenosine A1 receptor agonist SPA (0.088 or 8.8 mm). Dependent measures included acetylcholine release and a numeric assessment of recovery from anesthesia. An intensive, within-subjects design and analysis of variance evaluated SPA's main effect on acetylcholine release and anesthetic recovery. The adenosine A1 receptor antagonist 8-cyclopentyl-1,3-dipropylxanthine (DPCPX, 100 &mgr;m) was coadministered with SPA to test for antagonist blocking of SPA's effects. Results SPA significantly (P < 0.0001) decreased acetylcholine release in the pontine reticular formation and significantly (P < 0.0001) delayed recovery from anesthesia. Coadministration of SPA and DPCPX caused no decrease in acetylcholine release or delay in postanesthetic recovery. Dialysis delivery of SPA into the cerebellar cortex confirmed that the SPA effects were site-specific to the pontine reticular formation. Conclusion The results provide a novel extension of the sleep-promoting effects of adenosine by showing that pontine delivery of an adenosine A1 receptor agonist delays resumption of wakefulness following halothane anesthesia. This extension is consistent with a potentially larger relevance of the current findings for efforts to specify neurons and molecules causing physiologic and behavioral traits comprising anesthetic states. These data support the conclusion that adenosine A1 receptors in medial regions of the pontine reticular formation, known to modulate sleep, also contribute to the generation and/or maintenance of halothane anesthesia.