Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effect of cyclodextrin charge on complexation of neutral and charged substrates: comparison of (SBE)7M-beta-CD to HP-beta-CD.

PURPOSE To understand the role of charge in substrate/cyclodextrin complexation by comparing the binding of neutral and charged substrates to a neutral cyclodextrin, such as hydroxypropyl beta-CD (HP-beta-CD) with 3.5 degrees of substitution, and an anionically charged cyclodextrin, such as sulfobutyl ether beta-CD ((SBE)7M-beta-CD) with 6.8 degrees of substitution. METHOD HP-beta-CD and (SBE)7M-beta-CD were evaluated in their ability to form inclusion complexes with neutral compounds, as well as to cationic and anionic substrates in their charged and uncharged forms. The complexation constants (Kc) were determined via a UV spectrophotometric technique, by monitoring the change in substrate absorbance upon incremental addition of a concentrated cyclodextrin solution. The role of electrostatic interaction was probed by observing Kc as a function of solution ionic strength. RESULTS Neutral molecules displayed a stronger interaction with (SBE)7M-beta-CD compared to HP-beta-CD. In those cases where the guest possessed a charge (positive or negative), HP-beta-CD/substrate complexes exhibited a decrease in complexation strength (2 to 31 times lower) compared to the neutral forms of the same substrate. The same was true (but to a larger extent, 41 times lower) for negatively charged molecules binding to (SBE)7M-beta-CD due to charge-charge repulsion. However, positively charged molecules interacting with the negatively charged (SBE)7M-beta-CD displayed a similar binding capability as their neutral counterpart, due to charge-charge attraction. Further evaluation through manipulation of solution ionic strength revealed strong electrostatic interactions between substrate and cyclodextrin charges. In addition, the studies suggested that on average two sulfonates out of seven may be involved in forming ionic attraction or repulsion effects with the positive charges on prazosin and papaverine, or negative charges of ionized naproxen and warfarin. CONCLUSIONS Presence of charge on the cyclodextrin structure provides an additional site of interaction compared to neutral cyclodextrins, which may be modified using solution ionic strength.
A prospective study of cigarette smoking initiation during college: Chinese and Korean American students.

OBJECTIVE The present study was a prospective investigation of baseline influences on initial smoking and transition to established smoking among college students who had not smoked prior to college. DESIGN Included were 267 participants in a longitudinal study of tobacco use. Students of Chinese (52%) or Korean (48%) descent were enrolled during their freshman year in college. Data for the present study were collected during four annual in-person interviews. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES (1) Initial use of a cigarette reflected having first smoked a cigarette (more than a puff) during college. (2) Established smoking was defined as having smoked at least 100 cigarettes. RESULTS Over the course of the study, 25% of baseline never-smokers tried their first cigarette, and 9% became established smokers. Overall, men were significantly more likely to experiment and progress to established smoking. Baseline alcohol and drug use, behavioral undercontrol, and parental smoking predicted smoking experimentation but not established smoking. Students of Korean ethnicity were more likely to become established smokers. However, acculturation was not a significant predictor of experimentation or established smoking after accounting for the effects of other predictors. CONCLUSION These findings suggest a need for efforts to prevent smoking uptake among Asian American college students.
Copositive Symmetric Cubic Forms

1. G. Faber, Bermerkungen zu Satzen der Gausschen theoria combinations observationum. Sitzungsber Bayer Akad. Wiss. 1 (1922) 7-21. 2. R. von Mises, Iber einige Abschtitzungen von Erwartungswerten, J. Reine Angew. Math. 165 (1931) 184193. 3. P. R. Beesack, Inequalities for absolute moments of a distribution: From Laplace to von Mises. J. Math. Anal. Appl. 98 (1984) 435-457. 4. G. H. Hardy, J. E. Littlewood, and G. P6lya, Inequalities, 2nd ed., Cambridge University Press, London, 1952.
Information needs and information competencies: a case study of the off-site supervision of financial institutions in Brazil

Introduction. The paper deals with the identification of the information needs and information competencies of a professional group. Theoretical basis. A theoretical relationship between information needs and information competencies as subjects is proposed. Three dimensions are examine: cognitive, affective and situational. The recognition of an information need was linked to the development of competencies to analyse the problem in focus. Methodology. Qualitative epistemology was used and the research strategy was a case study. The research techniques were document analysis, interviews, participant observation, work process analysis and focus groups. Analysis and results. The analysis of critical success factors and the work processes mapping brought understanding of the relationship between the identified information needs and the information competencies developed to satisfy them. Conclusion. Information needs were closely linked to the needs of the work processes and that the competencies developed to attend these needs were closely related to the success factors. The proposed research framework offered a new perspective that had positive results in understanding the main characteristics of the activity.
Wear of nanofilled dental composites at varying filler concentrations.

The aim of this study is to examine the effects of nanofiller concentration on the mechanisms of wear of a dental composite. Nanofilled composites were fabricated with a bisphenol A glycidyl methacrylate polymer and 40 nm SiO2 filler particles at three filler loads (25, 50, and 65 wt %). The elastic modulus, flexural strength, and hardness of the composites and the unfilled resin were measured. The materials (n = 8) were tested in the modified wear testing device at 50,000, 100,000, and 200,000 cycles with 20N force at 1 Hz. A 33% glycerine lubricant and stainless steel antagonist were used. The worn composite and antagonist surfaces were analyzed with noncontact profilometry and SEM. The volumetric wear data indicated that there are significant differences between filler concentrations and cycles (p < 0.05). A trend was noted that increasing filler content beyond 25% decreased the wear resistance of the composites. Increasing filler content increased hardness and modulus and increased flexural strength up to 50% fill. SEM evaluation of the worn specimens indicated that the resin and 25% filled materials exhibited cracking and failed by fatigue and the 50 and 65% filled materials exhibited microcutting and failed by abrasive wear. Based on the results of this study, composite manufacturers are recommended to use a filler concentration between 25 and 50% when using nanosized filler particles.
Aids and adaptations for the elderly at home: underprovided, underused, and undermaintained

A random sample of 140 elderly people aged over 75 was selected from the age-sex register of an urban general practice to assess the provision and use of aids and adaptations in their homes. Many of the aids that the elderly had were faulty, including half of the walking aids and 15% of hearing aids, reading spectacles, and dentures, and up to half of the aids were not used. Yet despite this underuse there were many disabled elderly people who required aids for the bath and toilet. When screening of elderly people is carried out in general practice assessment of aids and adaptations should be included to see that they are provided where needed, are used, and are adequately maintained.
Effects of increased apical enlargement on the amount of unprepared areas and coronal dentine removal: a micro‐computed tomography study

AIM To evaluate the effects of progressive apical enlargement on the amount of unprepared root canal surface area and remaining dentine thickness. METHODOLOGY The root canals of 30 extracted mandibular incisors with Vertucci's type I configuration were instrumented with rotary HyFlex CM instruments (Coltene-Whaledent, Altstätten, Switzerland) up to 4 instruments larger than the first one that bound at the working length (WL). Teeth were scanned in a micro-computed tomography (micro-CT) device before canal preparation and after instrumentation with the 2nd, 3rd and 4th larger instruments. The amount of unprepared surface area in the full canal or in the apical 4 mm as well as the remaining dentine thickness at 10 mm from the WL were calculated and compared. The general linear model for repeated measures adjusted by Bonferroni's post hoc test was used for statistic analysis. RESULTS There was a significant reduction in the amount of unprepared areas after each increase in preparation size (P < 0.01). This was observed for both the full canal length and the 4-mm apical segment. The amount of remaining dentine was also significantly reduced after each file size (P < 0.01). However, dentine thickness always remained greater than 1 mm, even after using the largest instrument. CONCLUSION Apical preparations up to 4 instruments larger than the first one to bind at the WL caused a significant progressive reduction in the unprepared canal area.
Diagnosis of the metabolic syndrome in children

Purpose of review The metabolic syndrome, a cluster of potent risk factors for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes mellitus in adults, is composed of insulin resistance, obesity, hypertension and hyperlipidemia. Of significant impact in the adult population, atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease and death are rarely seen in the young, but the pathologic processes and risk factors associated with its development have been shown to begin during childhood. The current review summarizes the work published during the past year in the following areas: childhood obesity, insulin resistance, dyslipidemia, hypertension and type 2 diabetes mellitus. Recent findings Recent studies have revealed the presence of components of the metabolic syndrome in children and adolescents. Obesity has a central role in the syndrome. There is an increasing amount of data to show that being overweight during childhood and adolescence is significantly associated with insulin resistance, abnormal lipids, and elevated blood pressure in young adulthood. Weight loss in these situations results in a decrease in insulin concentration and an increase in insulin sensitivity toward normalcy. With cardiovascular disease, obesity, and type 2 diabetes reaching epidemic proportions, it is of great importance to understand and control the risk factors at an early age. Summary The information obtained during the past year has improved our understanding of the pathogenesis, diagnosis and treatment of components of the metabolic syndrome in children, and potentially could improve the risk profiles for cardiovascular disease as children make the transition toward adolescence and young adulthood.
Optimal Planning of Radial Distribution Networks by Simulated Annealing Technique

A method for optimal planning of radial distribution networks is presented in detail based upon a combination of the steepest descent and the simulated annealing approaches. The object of investigation is the complete network of available routes and the optimization goal is to find the routes that provide the minimal total annual cost. The minimum capital cost oriented solution created by applying the steepest descent approach is used as the initial solution for the optimization procedure that is further improved by simulated annealing to obtain the minimum total cost solution. The method takes into account the capital recovery, energy loss and undelivered energy costs.
Increased incidence of itching and herpes simplex in patients given epidural morphine after cesarean section.

Epidural morphine is commonly used for postoperative analgesia after cesarean section or gynecologic surgery (1). Its frequent side effects include pruritus, nausea, and vomiting; less frequently, ventilatory depression, urinary retention, or dysphoria occurs after epidural morphine (2-6). We have used this technique at our institution for several years and have noted it to be associated with an increased incidence of herpes simplex (HS) type I (labialis). To our knowledge, there are no published reports of HS after epidural morphine; HS after spinal morphine has been mentioned in one report (7). In the present study, we prospectively determined the incidence of HS and itching after epidural or intramuscular morphine in 44 women undergoing cesarean section.
A new anti‐collision algorithm for RFID tag

We present a new radio frequency identification tag anti‐collision algorithm in this paper. The main idea of this algorithm is that we should find the collided bit at first, and every tag contains a register RC, which has length the same as the tag's ID length to store the conflict bit, then all the subsequent processing are based on the conflict bit. In this new algorithm, tag uses a binary pulse string to transfer data to the reader, compared with the traditional query tree‐based algorithms, which is based on the tag's ID; this new algorithm is more efficient and requires fewer read cycles for tag's identification. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Association of body mass index with patients of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Background: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is an important health problem across the globe. A U-shaped relationship of body mass index (BMI) was reported with dyspnea in men and with symptomatic airway hyper-responsiveness. Aim: The current study was planned to assess the association between body mass index and patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Materials and methods: The study was conducted in the Department of Chest Medicine of medical institution. For the study population, we selected 60 patients reporting to outpatient department. Detailed history regarding age, sex, smoking status, duration of disease and severity of symptoms were obtained from each patient. A complete thorough examination of the respiratory system of all the patients was done. The comparison of mean BMI of patients in different staging was done and analyzed statistically. Results: A total of 60 patients participated in the study. The mean age of the patients in the study population was 54.26+2.32 years ranging from 40-80 years. The maximum number of patients was seen in the age-group 50-59 years with frequency of 22 patients. The severity of disease increases with increasing age and these results are statistically significant. Also, as the severity of the disease increases, the BMI of the patients decreases.
RettBASE: The IRSA MECP2 variation database—a new mutation database in evolution

Rett syndrome (RTT) is a neurodevelopmental disorder affecting primarily females, with an incidence of around 1 in 15,000 females. In 1999, mutations in the X‐linked gene methyl‐CpG‐binding protein 2 (MECP2) were first reported in RTT subjects, and since that time there have been a number of publications describing cohorts of patients and their mutations. In addition, MECP2 mutations have been reported in patients who do not fit the diagnostic criteria for Rett syndrome. We have developed a new locus‐specific database, RettBASE (http://mecp2.chw.edu.au/), loosely based on the PAHdb website. The aim is to obtain data relating to all known instances of MECP2 variations, including published ta and data directly submitted by one of various means (either by using an online submission form, or by sending the same form in Adobe portable document format (pdf) or Microsoft Word format by email or fax to the database curators). The database has a range of query capabilities, allowing for simple or complex interrogation of the database. To address the issue of patient confidentiality, we have incorporated an Excel spreadsheet algorithm that allows the generation of a unique number based on the subject's name and date of birth. We believe this database will prove to be a useful resource, allowing the development of accurate prevalence data for disease‐causing mutations, providing a catalog of polymorphisms, and potentially allowing more accurate phenotype–genotype correlations to be drawn. Hum Mutat 21:466–472, 2003. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
3D volume‐localized pO2 measurement in the human lung with 3He MRI

A method for 3D volume‐localized quantification of pO2 in the lungs is presented that uses repetitive frame 3D gradient‐echo imaging of 3He. The method was demonstrated by experiments on 3He phantoms containing known concentrations of O2 and in vivo on a group of three healthy human volunteers. The results were compared with those obtained by equivalent 2D thin‐slice and 2D projection methodologies, and were found to be consistent with published results from the 2D projection methodologies (pO2 = 0.09–0.18 bar). Studies performed on the same subject, on three separate occasions, demonstrated a repeatability of pO2 measurement to within 14% using the 3D technique. Experimental differences between the 2D and 3D methods were substantiated with theoretical and numerical analyses of the signal decay, which took into account the effects of out‐of‐slice diffusion as a source of error in the thin‐slice 2D experiments. It is shown that the 2D thin‐slice technique systematically underestimates pO2 when there is significant gas diffusion (factor of 4 underestimate for D = 0.9 cm2s−1 representative of free 3He in air). Magn Reson Med 53:1055–1064, 2005. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Family‐based analysis of MSX1 haplotypes for association with oral clefts

Oral clefts, one of the most common forms of birth defects, are considered to be of complex etiology, including both genetic and environmental causes. To date, however, no particular genetic cause has been confirmed for isolated, nonsyndromic oral clefts. Previous case‐control and family‐based association studies reported an association between an intronic CA repeat of the MSX1 gene and risk for oral clefts. In this study, we identify eight single‐nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the MSX1 gene, and present genotype results for these SNPs in a set of 206 oral cleft cases and their parents. We performed single‐marker and haplotype‐based transmission disequilibrium tests (TDTs), and tested for evidence of interaction between MSX1 haplotypes and exposure to maternal smoking in the first trimester, using a case‐only approach. The haplotype TDT analyses further implicate this gene, or region, in controlling the risk for oral clefts, particularly for cleft palate. In addition, case‐only haplotype analyses suggest an interaction between variation in the MSX1 gene and exposure to maternal smoking. This study encourages further focus on the MSX1 gene region to ultimately determine specific variants predisposing to oral clefts. Genet Epidemiol 25:168–175, 2003. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Genetic variations between indigenous fat-tailed sheep populations

Blood samples were collected from a total 816 sheep of both sexes in three Iranian fat-tailed breeds (Sangsari, Makoei, indigenous sheep on firoozkouh mountain) serum, plasma and erythrocyte were separated and were frozen at -20°C. Variation in their blood proteins, albumin, haemoglobin and transferrin were examined to characterize the breeds and to obtain genetic relationship among them. Only transferrin was polymorphic in all breeds investigated; while albumin was monomorphic for S allele and haemoglobin was fixed for the B allele in three breeds.
Vasopressin released within the central amygdala promotes maternal aggression

Vasopressin regulates important aspects of social behaviour. Although vasopressin is more prominent in the expression of male social behaviours, we recently demonstrated its role in the fine‐tuned maintenance of maternal care in lactating rats. Here, we investigate the involvement of brain vasopressin in the regulation of maternal aggression in lactating Wistar rats selectively bred for either high (HAB) or low (LAB) anxiety‐related behaviour. The genetically determined elevation in vasopressin mRNA expression was confirmed within the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus of virgin and lactating HAB rats and was additionally found in limbic brain areas. Lactating HAB dams are more maternally aggressive as part of their generally higher level of maternal care compared with LAB rats. Using intracerebral microdialysis, we describe increased vasopressin release within the central amygdala, but not the paraventricular nucleus, during maternal aggression only in HAB dams. Moreover, the release of vasopressin within the central amygdala was positively correlated with the display of offensive behaviour. Blockade of local vasopressin actions by bilateral administration of a selective vasopressin V1a receptor antagonist into the central amygdala reduced maternal aggression in HAB dams, whereas synthetic vasopressin increased the low level of aggression in LAB rats. Vasopressin receptor binding within the central amygdala or the paraventricular nucleus was similar in HAB and LAB females. In conclusion, vasopressin is an important neuropeptide regulating maternal aggressive behaviour, thus further extending its involvement in female social behaviour. Differences in intracerebral vasopressin release within the central amygdala rather than local vasopressin receptor binding contribute to the level of maternal aggression.
Cardiovascular Complications of Calcium Supplements

There is longstanding concern that calcium supplements might increase cardiovascular risk in patients with renal impairment. The Auckland Calcium Study suggested that the same problem occurs in older people taking these supplements for prevention of osteoporosis. Our subsequent meta‐analyses, (which followed protocols finalized before the data was available) confirmed that calcium supplements, with or without vitamin D, adversely affected risk of myocardial infarction and, possibly, stroke. Several groups have re‐visited these data, consistently finding an adverse effect of calcium on myocardial infarction, not always statistically significant because some meta‐analyses have been under‐powered. Whether or not an adverse effect of calcium plus vitamin D on myocardial infarction is found depends on whether two specific groups of subjects are included—those in the Women's Health Initiative who were already taking calcium at the time of randomization, and subjects from an open, cluster‐randomized study in which baseline cardiovascular risk was different between groups. Vitamin D alone does not affect vascular risk, so it is unlikely that differences between calcium alone and calcium plus vitamin D are real, and they are more likely to result from the inclusion of studies at high risk of bias. The mechanisms of the adverse cardiovascular effects are uncertain but may be mediated by the increase in serum calcium following supplement ingestion, and the effects of this on vascular function and coagulation. Available evidence suggests the risks of calcium supplements outweigh any small benefits on fracture incidence, so the case for their use is weak. J. Cell. Biochem. 116: 494–501, 2015. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
The Elements of Statistical Learning: Data Mining, Inference, and Prediction, 2nd Edition

by E.T. Jaynes CAMBRIDGE, CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS, 2003 727pp. $65.00 HARDBACK ISBN 0-521-59271-2 The Fundamentals of Risk Measurement by Chris Marrison BOSTON, McGRAW-HILL, 2002 415pp. $44.95 HARDBACK ISBN 0-07-138627-0 The Elements of Statistical Learning: Data Mining, Inference and Prediction by Trevor Hastie, Robert Tibshirani and Jerome Friedman NEW YORK, SPRINGER, 2001 533pp. $82.95 HARDBACK ISBN 0-387-95284-5