Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The GALA study: relationship between galectin-3 serum levels and short- and long-term outcomes of patients with acute heart failure

Abstract Objective: We tested the hypothesis that early measurement of galectin-3 at the emergency department (ED) during an episode of acute heart failure (AHF) allows predicting short- and long-term outcomes. Methods: We performed an exploratory study including 115 patients consecutively diagnosed with AHF in a single ED. Clinical and analytical variables were recorded. The primary endpoint was 30-day all-cause mortality, and secondary endpoints were 30-day composite outcome (death, rehospitalization or ED reconsultation, whichever first) and 1-year mortality. Results: Seven patients (6.1%) died within 30 days and 43 (37.4%) within 1 year. The 30-day composite endpoint was observed in 21.1% of patients. Galectin-3 was correlated with NT-proBNP and the glomerular filtration rate but not with age and s-cTnI. Measured at time of ED arrival, galectin-3 showed good discriminatory capacity for 30-day mortality (AUC ROC: 0.732; 95% CI 0.512–0.953; p = 0.041) but not for 1-year mortality (0.521; 0.408–0.633; p = 0.722). Patients with galectin-3 concentrations >42 μg/L had an OR = 7.67(95%CI = 1.57-37.53; p = 0.012) for 30-day mortality. Conversely, NT-proBNP only showed predictive capacity for 1-year mortality (0.642; 0.537–0.748; p = 0.014). Patients with NT-proBNP concentrations >5400 ng/L had an OR = 4.34 (95%CI = 1.93-9.77; p < 0.001) for 1-year mortality. These increased short- (galectin-3) and long-term (NT-proBNP) risks remained significant after adjustment for age or renal function. s-cTnI failed in both short- and long term death prediction. No biomarker predicted the short-term composite endpoint. Conclusion: These results suggest that galectin-3 could help to monitor the risk of short-term mortality in unselected patients with AHF attended in the ED.
Achromatic Transparency and the Role of Local Contours

In this paper we investigate the role of contours and junctions in the perception of single-plane achromatic transparency. In order to measure the accuracy with which observers encode transparency, a six-luminance stimulus was employed in which the figural properties could be easily manipulated. Accuracy was measured by requiring subjects to select (either by the method of adjustment or by using a forced-choice procedure) the luminance that best completed a simulated transparent filter. The X junctions in the stimulus were destroyed or perturbed in three experiments. Simple occlusion of the junction (experiment 1), and perturbation of the orientation of the contours of the filter as they pass through the junction (experiment 3) resulted in small but significant reductions in performance. On the other hand, a sudden change in orientation of the background (material) contours (experiment 2) resulted in a small but significant enhancement of overall performance compared with the control stimulus. In the forced-choice task, reversals in the polarity of contours (as defined by the brightness order of flanking regions) around the junction were shown to effect large changes in subjects' accuracy in processing transparency. The overall results show that X and Ψ junctions are indeed salient properties of transparent stimuli. The findings suggest that jagged contours with sudden changes in direction are more likely to be attributed to reflectance (material) changes than to changes due to a transparent filter (or to illumination).
Investor Expectations, Business Conditions, and the Pricing of Beta-Instability Risk

This paper examines the pricing implications of time-variation in assets' market betas over the business cycle in a conditional CAPM framework. We use a half century of real GDP growth expectations from economists' surveys to determine forecasted economic states. This approach largely avoids the confounding effects of econometric forecasting model error. The expectation measure forecasts the market return controlling for existing predictive variables. The loadings on the expectation measure explain a significant fraction of cross-sectional variation in stock returns. A fully tradable, ex ante mimicking portfolio generates positive risk-adjusted returns during good economic times over four decades.
Genomic diversity of enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli O157 revealed by whole genome PCR scanning

Enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli O157 is one of the leading worldwide public health concerns, causing large outbreaks of hemorrhagic colitis as well as numerous small outbreaks and sporadic cases. The variability of restriction enzyme-digestion patterns of O157 genomes, which is widely used to distinguish strains in the molecular epidemiology of O157 infections, suggests the presence of some genomic diversity among the strains. Based on the complete genome sequence of O157 Sakai, we analyzed the whole genome structures of eight O157 strains displaying diverse XbaI-digestion patterns by a systematic PCR analysis that we have named whole genome PCR scanning. This analysis identified not only the O157-specific sequences that are highly conserved among the strains, but also revealed an unexpectedly high degree of genomic diversity. In particular, prophages, including Shiga toxin-transducing phages, exhibited extensive structural and positional diversity, implying that variation of bacteriophages is a major factor in generating genomic diversity among the O157 lineage.
Assessment of Quality of Life as Outcome in Dementia and MCI Intervention Trials: A Systematic Review

We conducted a systematic review of the use of quality of life (QoL) measures as outcome in pharmacological and nonpharmacologic intervention trials in patients with Mild Cognitive Impairment or dementia, and their proxies. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were identified from a search of the Specialized Register of the Cochrane Dementia and Cognitive Improvement Group in April 2006. We also checked references and systematic reviews. Primary and secondary end points were screened for QoL-scales, and it was registered whether information on responsiveness was provided. We found 117 pharmacologic and 108 nonpharmacologic RCTs. One of the pharmacologic and 4 of the nonpharmacologic studies used QoL as primary outcome, and 2 and 3, respectively, as secondary end point. Altogether QoL was assessed in only 10 (4.4%) of these RCTs, of which 2 reported on responsiveness of QoL. This review provides evidence that QoL-instruments are seldom used as outcome measures in RCTs in dementia and Mild Cognitive Impairment, and that information on responsiveness is scarce. QoL-measures should be applied more often in clinical trials, as currently no disease modifying drugs are available, although there are valid and reliable QoL-measures for dementia that reflect the aims of palliative care and provide transparent information about patient's and caregiver's treatment benefits. We recommend further research efforts aimed at the determination of the minimal important difference in QoL-scales and the responsiveness of QoL-scales. Subsequently, QoL should be measured as relevant end point, both in patients and their proxies, in all clinical trials in dementia.
Factors Associated with Unwanted Pregnancy

The purpose of this study was to estimate the proportion of unwanted pregnancies (UWPs) and related factors among mothers delivering at all hospitals in Tehran. We investigated, in cross-sectional study 6,394 clients, parental age, education and occupation, interval of live children pregnancies, and rate of abortion. A Chi-square test and Hi-Log linear were used in this study. In this study, 2,443 (38.2%) of all cases were UWPs, of which 4.6% (n = 297) resorted to abortion (p
Molecular therapies in β‐thalassaemia

The β‐thalassaemias have a major global impact on health and mortality. Allogeneic haemopoietic stem cell transplantation is the only approach that may lead to a cure but this approach is not available to most patients. The mainstay treatment for the majority remains life‐long blood transfusion in combination with a rigorous regime of iron chelation. Improved understanding of the pathophysiology and molecular basis of the disease has provided clues for more effective strategies that aim to correct the defect in β‐globin chain synthesis at the primary level or redress the α/β‐globin chain imbalance at the secondary level. Improved understanding of the molecular basis of the disease complications, such as iron overloading, has also provided clues for potential molecular targets at the tertiary level.
Taking a fresh look at the pediatric clinical experience.

T he National League for Nursing's (NLN) fi nal report from the Think Tank on Transforming Clinical Nursing Education (2008) challenges the paradigm of the traditional " clinical rotation " and questions the practice of placing students exclusively in an inpa-tient unit to complete a set of tasks. This report prompted me, a veteran clinical instructor, to take a fresh look at how we structure the pediatric clinical rotation in our undergraduate program and to ask whether assigning the majority of pedi-atric clinical hours on an inpatient unit is addressing student learning needs in light of changing patterns of care delivery. The traditional pediatric clinical rotation in an inpatient unit exposes students to a small subset of acutely ill children and adolescents. The National Association of Children's Hospitals and Related Institutions (2010) reported that in the past few years pediatric inpatient units nationally have been running at only 73% of capacity, whereas the incidence of outpatient surgery has increased by 8.3% and outpatient visits have grown by 18.2%. Today, fewer children are admitted to the inpatient unit; however, they are sicker and have more complex illnesses. A large majority of pediatric patients who were once cared for in the hospital setting now receive much, and in many cases, all of their health care in ambulatory care, community, and home settings. Primary care offi ces and schools are prime examples of settings that have assumed an expanded role in this shift of care. The primary care offi ce provides health supervision, acute and chronic illness management, and the bulk of mental health care for the pediatric population (Kelleher, 2009). The primary care health home, built around a trusting relationship with a primary care provider and a care team, is the starting point for most chil-dren's health care (Marble, 2007). With the average school-age child spending at least 6 hours per day in school, school nurses also play a major role in providing care throughout the school year for children, including those with acute and chronic illnesses. The National Association of School Nurses (2010) noted that 18% of the 52 million students enrolled in school in the United States have chronic health issues, and approximately 75% of schools employ a nurse in at least a part-time position. School-based nursing care encompasses everything from administering acetamin-ophen for a headache to the suctioning of a tracheostomy, as well as counseling for mental health concerns …
Identification of arid soil inducible genes in Pseudomonas fluorescens strain Pf0-1

Identification of Arid Soil Inducible Genes in Pseudomonas fluorescens Strain PfO-1 by Katila Pipitone Dr. Eduardo A. Robleto, Examination Committee Chair Associate Professor in Microbiology University of Nevada, Las Vegas This thesis contains three major sections: introduction, literature review and the project entitled: 'Identification of Arid Soil Inducible Genes in Pseudomonas fluorescens Strain PfO-1'. The introduction section describes a general background, the current and potential applications of P. fluorescens and the main goal of this dissertation. The literature review chapter discusses two main areas. The first area offers insights about different types of in vivo expression technology (IVET) as a tool in gene identification. This section also describes the limitations of IVET, as well as the benefits over other methods for gene identification. The second part of the literature review is a compendium of previously reported genetic factors involved in soil survival. Finally, the last part of this thesis documents the identification of arid soil inducible gene in P. fluorescens strain PfO-1. This study, identification of arid soil inducible genes in Pseudomonas fluorescens, investigated adaptation mechanisms of Pseudomonas fluorescens strain PfO-1 in arid soil. Auxotrophy-based in vivo expression technology (IVET) was employed to identify 26 iii arid-soil inducible genes in P. fluorescens. Based on analysis of Clusters of Orthologous Groups of proteins (COGs), ten genes are involved in metabolism; four genes are engaged in information storage and processing; three are signaling and regulation cellular processes genes; and nine are poorly characterized or hypothetical. Four genes of different functional groups (Pfl01_2143: glutamine synthetase; Pfl01_2660: GTPase Subunit of Restriction Endonuclease like; Pfl01_5595: hypothetical protein; and Pfl01_3972: putative diguanylate phosphodiesterase EAL domain) were inactivated and tested for their influence in soil colonization. Only two of the four strains carrying defective alleles showed slight but significant decreases in soil colonization. The growth patterns of mutant strains carrying defective alleles on Pfl01_2143 and Pfl01_5595 showed a decline in arid soil persistence, which were partially restored in strain derivatives carrying a complementing plasmid. Overall, these results indicate that adaptation of P. fluorescens to soil requires the expression of many genes, perhaps acting cooperatively. We further surmise that nitrogen limitation and metabolism are important factors in soil colonization in arid soils.
Sphingosine 1-Phosphate Receptors Mediate the Lipid-Induced cAMP Accumulation through Cyclooxygenase-2/Prostaglandin I2 Pathway in Human Coronary Artery Smooth Muscle Cells

Sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P) has been shown to exert a variety of biological responses through extracellular specific receptors or intracellular mechanisms. In the present study, we characterized a signaling pathway of S1P-induced cAMP accumulation in human coronary artery smooth muscle cells (CASMCs). S1P induced biphasic cAMP accumulation composed of a short-term and transient response (a peak at 2.5 min) and a late and sustained response (∼4-6 h). The late phase of cAMP accumulation was parallel to the increment of cyclooxygenase-2 protein expression and was inhibited by N-[2-(cyclohexyloxyl)-4-nitrophenyl]-methane sulfonamide (NS398), a cyclooxygenase-2-specific inhibitor. We were surprised to find that the cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitor also inhibited short-term cAMP accumulation even when cyclooxygenase-2 protein expression was not yet increased. More interestingly, the short-term cAMP accumulation was also completely inhibited by pertussis toxin, an inhibitor of Gi/o proteins. JTE-013, a specific antagonist for S1P2 receptors, inhibited the S1P-induced cAMP accumulation. Furthermore, small interfering RNAs targeted for S1P2 receptors significantly inhibited the S1P-induced cAMP accumulation. The cAMP response was also inhibited by specific inhibitors for phospholipase C, extracellular signal-regulated kinase pathways, and cytosolic phospholipase A2. S1P actually activated these enzyme activities and stimulated prostaglandin I2 (PGI2) synthesis. Finally, exogenously applied arachidonic acid and PGI2 induced cAMP accumulation to a similar extent as S1P. In conclusion, S1P induced cAMP accumulation through S1P receptors, including S1P2 receptor and Gi/o protein-mediated stimulation of intracellular signaling pathways involving cyclooxygenase-2-dependent PGI2 synthesis.
Human papillomavirus type distribution among women with cervical pathology – a study over 4 years at Jimma Hospital, southwest Ethiopia

Over the period 1998–2001 women attending Jimma hospital (southwest Ethiopia) with cervical dysplasia were screened for human papillomavirus (HPV), identifying a prevalence of 67.1% in this population. High‐risk HPV types 16 (55.7%), 18 (8.2%), 56 (8.2%), 45 (4.1%), 39 (2.5%), 52 (1.6%), 31 (1.6%), 35 (1.6%), 58 (0.8%), 33 (0.8%), 59 (0.8%) caused severe pathology as single/multiple infection. Strategies need to be envisioned for vaccinating children, young women prior to first sexual contact and preventive screening of HPV high‐risk types.
Evaluation of a novel biomaterial for intrasubstance muscle laceration repair

The authors compare the effects of small intestinal submucosa (SIS) treatment to suture repair with respect to histologic and functional outcomes for complete muscle lacerations in a rabbit model. The authors hypothesized that SIS treatment of full‐thickness muscle belly lacerations would significantly improve muscle function, strength, and regeneration compared to the current standard‐of‐care treatment. Muscle belly lacerations were created in the extensor digitorum longus (EDL) of both hind limbs of each rabbit. After randomization, lacerations were left unrepaired (n = 48) or repaired using a 4‐0 Prolene modified Kessler stitch (n = 48). A flap of SIS graft was sutured into half (n = 24 each) of the repaired and unrepaired muscles forming four study groups. Suture repair with SIS augmentation of complete muscle lacerations resulted in healed tissue that most closely resembled normal muscle in terms of morphology and function when compared to current standard‐of‐care treatments. Active force production in this group reached 79% of uninjured controls 12 weeks after surgery. SIS may have important clinical advantages over suture repair alone and warrants further clinical study. © 2006 Orthopaedic Research Society. Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Orthop Res 2007
Health‐Related Quality of Life: Is It a Good Indicator of Function Post THR?

&NA; The purpose of this study was to explore the impact of health‐related quality of life (HRQOL) measured with the Short Form Health Survey (SF‐36) on Functional Recovery Status (physical and psychosocial recovery status) at baseline, 2 months, 6 months, and 12 months following total hip replacement (THR). A secondary analysis was performed using data gathered from a sample of 271 older adults post THR. Four empirically based hypothesized models were tested. None of the models fit the data, with each having significant χ2 values and χ2 /df ratios greater than 3. Different dimensions of HRQOL at baseline, 2, 6, and 12 months were related to physical recovery status, and none of the 8 dimensions of the SF‐36 was significantly related to psychosocial recovery status. Overall, the results of this study do not support the hypothesis that HRQOL, as measured by the SF‐36, comprehensively explains functional recovery status following THR. Clinically, these findings may be applicable to individuals at risk for poor recovery. They also may prompt practitioners to consider alternative factors that influence psychosocial recovery.
Performance Analysis of Centroid and SVD Features for Personnel Recognition Using Multistatic Micro-Doppler

In this letter, we investigate the use of micro-Doppler signatures experimentally recorded by a multistatic radar system to perform recognition of people walking. Three different sets of features are tested, taking into account the impact on the overall classification performance of parameters, such as aspect angle, types of classifier, different values of signal-to-noise ratio, and different ways of exploiting multistatic information. High classification accuracy of above 98% is reported for the most favorable aspect angle, and the benefit of using multistatic data at less favorable angles is discussed.
Diagnostic Efficacy of Physical Examination, Mammography, Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology (Triple-Test) in Solid Breast Lumps: An Analysis of 1708 Consecutive Cases

The clinical-radiologic-cytologic triplet was used for diagnostic evaluation in 1708 women over 30 years old with a breast lump. All the lumps were subjected to surgery except for 258 cases in which clinical resolution took place within 1-2 months. Seven-hundred and ninety-three out of 1450 nodules removed were cancers. Sensitivity of the clinical, mammographic and cytologic examinations was 82%, 73% and 68%, respectively. It increased to 95% when they were as sociated. Specificity was 63%, 80% and 97%, respectively. The predictive value of positive results of the triple test was 100%. No patient with malignant cytology was subsequently shown to have benign disease. The systematic use of the triple test in solid breast lumps for the early detection of cancer is recommended as a routine procedure. However, participation of experienced radiologists and pathologists as well as physicians skilled in fine needle puncture is required.
Resistance Levels and rpoB Gene Mutations among In Vitro-Selected Rifampin-Resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis Mutants

ABSTRACT The distribution and resistance levels of 189 in vitro-selected rifampin-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis mutants of Beijing and other genotypes were determined. Apart from a higher amount of codon 522 point mutations and large deletions, a spread of mutations similar to that reported for clinical isolates was seen. Most mutations were correlated with high-level resistance; a lower level, or a MIC of <16 mg/liter, was associated with codon 522 mutations. Multiple mutations were detected in two Beijing mutants.
Identification and evaluation of resistance to powdery mildew and yellow rust in a wheat mapping population

Deployment of cultivars with genetic resistance is an effective approach to control the diseases of powdery mildew (PM) and yellow rust (YR). Chinese wheat cultivar XK0106 exhibits high levels of resistance to both diseases, while cultivar E07901 has partial, adult plant resistance (APR). The aim of this study was to map resistance loci derived from the two cultivars and analyze their effects against PM and YR in a range of environments. A doubled haploid population (388 lines) was used to develop a framework map consisting of 117 SSR markers, while a much higher density map using the 90K Illumina iSelect SNP array was produced with a subset of 80 randomly selected lines. Seedling resistance was characterized against a range of PM and YR isolates, while field scores in multiple environments were used to characterize APR. Composite interval mapping (CIM) of seedling PM scores identified two QTLs (QPm.haas-6A and QPm.haas-2A), the former being located at the Pm21 locus. These QTLs were also significant in field scores, as were Qpm.haas-3A and QPm.haas-5A. QYr.haas-1B-1 and QYr.haas-2A were identified in field scores of YR and were located at the Yr24/26 and Yr17 chromosomal regions respectively. A second 1B QTL, QYr.haas-1B-2 was also identified. QPm.haas-2A and QYr.haas-1B-2 are likely to be new QTLs that have not been previously identified. Effects of the QTLs were further investigated in multiple environments through the testing of selected lines predicted to contain various QTL combinations. Significant additive interactions between the PM QTLs highlighted the ability to pyramid these loci to provide higher level of resistance. Interactions between the YR QTLs gave insights into the pathogen populations in the different locations as well as showing genetic interactions between these loci.