Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Genetic, enzymatic and metabolite profiling of the Lactobacillus casei group reveals strain biodiversity and potential applications for flavour diversification

The Lactobacillus casei group represents a widely explored group of lactic acid bacteria, characterized by a high level of biodiversity. In this study, the genetic and phenotypic diversity of a collection of more than 300 isolates of the Lact. casei group and their potential to produce volatile metabolites important for flavour development in dairy products, was examined.
An Indigenous Plant Food Used by Lactating Mothers in West Africa: The Nutrient Composition of the Leaves of Kigelia Africana in Ghana

Although the leaves of Kigelia africana are used to make a palm-nut soup which is consumed mainly by lactating women in many parts of sub-Saharan Africa, little is known about the nutrient qualities of this underutilized and underappreciated plant food. Leaves of Kigelia africana, called “sausage tree” in English and “nufuten” in the Twi language of Ghana, were collected in Kumasi and analyzed for their content of nutritionally important fatty acids, amino acids, minerals, and trace elements. The dried leaves contained 1.62% fatty acids, of which α-linolenic acid and linolenic acid accounted for 44% and 20%, respectively, of the total. Protein accounted for 12.6% of the dry weight and, except for lysine, its overall essential amino acid profile compared favorably to a World Health Organization protein standard for school children. Kigelia leaf contained considerable amounts of many essential elements, including calcium (7,620μg/g), iron (161μg/g), magnesium (2,310μg/g), manganese (14.6μg/g), zinc (39.9μg/g), and chromium (0.83μg/g); selenium, however, was not detected. These data indicate that Kigelia africana leaf compares favorably with many other commonly-consumed green leafy vegetables such as spinach and provides a rational basis for promoting the conservation and propagation of the plant and encouraging its wider use in the diets of populations in sub-Saharan Africa.
Brain regions underlying response inhibition and interference monitoring and suppression

Response inhibition and interference monitoring and suppression are two important aspects of cognitive control. Previous functional imaging studies have suggested a common network of brain regions underlying these cognitive processes; the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), the ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (VLPFC), the dorsal cingulate (dACC), and the parietal cortex (PC). The relative contribution of these regions to these cognitive subprocesses, however, has not been determined. Based on previous findings supporting a role for dACC in the monitoring of conflicting information within a stimulus, we hypothesized greater activity in this cortical region during interference monitoring and suppression relative to response inhibition. On the other hand, as response inhibition is characterized by differential cognitive processes such as control implementation, top down modulation of the response, expectancy, and inhibition of behavioural response, we hypothesized increased activity in the other cortical nodes of the cognitive control network relative to interference monitoring and suppression. To this end, we conducted an event‐related functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study in 57 healthy volunteers using a task preferentially involving either interference monitoring and suppression or response inhibition. Accuracy for response inhibition was lower than for interference monitoring and suppression. Imaging data showed activation in DLPFC, dACC, VLPFC, PC for both conditions. Comparisons between the two conditions indicated greater activation bilaterally in DLPFC, VLPFC and PC during response inhibition, and greater activation in the dACC during interference monitoring and suppression. These results extend previous findings by suggesting regional functional specialization within a cortical network supporting cognitive control.
Validation of commercial assays for measurements of trefoil factor family peptides in serum

Abstract Background: Trefoil peptides (TFF1, TFF2 and TFF3) are 7–12 kDa molecules, secreted by mucin-producing epithelial cells. Increased serum concentrations have been reported in a number of pathological conditions, which warrants the need for validated commercially available assays. Methods: We validated commercial assays for TFF1-3 and compared results obtained with our in-house assays, using serum from blood donors. Results: Level of detection was: ≤0.008 nmol/L. Measuring ranges were: 0.032–0.51 (TFF1), 0.038–0.76 (TFF2) and 0.019–0.15 (TFF3) nmol/L. Imprecision (CV), judged from the measurement of serum pools in two levels, was below 9% (TFF2 and TFF3) but up to 18% (mean 0.41 nmol/L) for TFF1. No cross reactivity between the TFFs (concentrations >100 nmol/L) was observed. The 95% non-parametric reference intervals were: <0.0032–0.53 (TFF1), 0.099–1.4 (TFF2) and 0.086–0.87 (TFF3) nmol/L. Comparing commercial to in-house assays (n=132), showed biases explained by differences in the calibrators (TFF1 and TFF2). A number of samples showed markedly different results. Conclusions: The commercial assays for TFF2 and TFF3 are acceptable for use on serum samples, while the TFF1 assay revealed a poor imprecision and a too narrow measuring range. Results obtained with the commercial and the in-house assays differed, partly because of differences in the calibrators employed.
Activities of Atazanavir (BMS-232632) against a Large Panel of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 Clinical Isolates Resistant to One or More Approved Protease Inhibitors

ABSTRACT To evaluate the cross-resistance profile of the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 protease inhibitor (PI) atazanavir (BMS-232632), a panel of 551 clinical isolates exhibiting a wide array of PI resistance profiles and a variety of genotypic patterns were assayed for susceptibility to atazanavir and six other PIs: amprenavir, indinavir, lopinavir, nelfinavir, ritonavir, and saquinavir. In general, reductions in atazanavir susceptibility in vitro required several amino acid changes and were relatively modest in degree, and susceptibility was retained among isolates resistant to one or two of the currently approved PIs. There was a clear trend toward loss of susceptibility to atazanavir, as isolates exhibited increasing levels of cross-resistance to multiple PIs. Atazanavir appeared to have a distinct resistance profile relative to each of the other six PIs tested based on susceptibility comparisons against this panel of resistant isolates. Analysis of the genotypic profiles of 943 PI-susceptible and -resistant clinical isolates identified a strong correlation between the presence of amino acid changes at specific residues (10I/V/F, 20R/M/I, 24I, 33I/F/V, 36I/L/V, 46I/L, 48V, 54V/L, 63P, 71V/T/I, 73C/S/T/A, 82A/F/S/T, 84V, and 90M) and decreased susceptibility to atazanavir. While no single substitution or combination of substitutions was predictive of atazanavir resistance (change, >3.0-fold), the presence of at least five of these substitutions correlated strongly with loss of atazanavir susceptibility. Mutations associated with reduced susceptibility to each of the other six PIs were also determined.
[Relationship between physical activity and health examination variables in male workers--new methods to assess physical activity and their applications to epidemiologic research].

Few epidemiological studies investigating the relationship between physical activity and cardiovascular diseases have been performed in Japan. To quantify the physical activity of individuals, a 24-hour activity record was developed to calculate 24-hour energy expenditure for use in an epidemiologic survey. Major physical activity was recorded every 15 minutes during a day and the relative metabolic rate for each physical activity was adopted from data of the Labor Science Institute in Japan. The 24-hour energy expenditure per body surface area was used as an index of physical activity. Reproducibility of this index was examined by retesting subsamples 3 months apart, and good results were confirmed. The association between physical activity and health examination variables was analyzed for the 319 male workers aged 40-49 in Osaka, Kochi, and Akita Prefecture. Twenty-four-hour energy expenditure per body surface area was positively correlated with maximal oxygen uptake and negatively correlated with skinfold thickness, resting heart rate, logarithm of triglyceride, hemoglobin and uric acid. In addition, a newly developed questionnaire on physical activity with 11 questions was administered in Osaka on 1819 male factory workers aged 40-49. From multiple regression analysis, three questions were shown to be significant predictors of 24-hour energy expenditure per body surface area--1. "What percentage of work time is spent on your feet? " 2. "When climbing three floors, which do you usually choose, the stairs or the escalator? ", 3. "How long are you involved in heavy physical labor each day? " The daily physical activity score estimated using the regression equation showed good reproducibility in retesting a year apart. Controlling for age, body mass index, alcohol intake, and cigarette smoking, the score was negatively correlated to skinfold thickness, diastolic blood pressure, resting heart rate, total cholesterol, logarithm of triglyceride, hemoglobin, and uric acid; and was positively correlated to HDL-cholesterol. This cross-sectional study shows that in Japanese there is a significant relationship between physical activity and some health examination variables, and also that the survey methods to estimate physical activity can be useful for further epidemiologic studies in Japan.
Daily home haemodialysis in The Netherlands: effects on metabolic control, haemodynamics, and quality of life.

BACKGROUND More frequent dialysis has been claimed to improve clinical outcome and quality of life. METHODS Clinical status was optimized in 13 haemodialysis patients during a run-in period of 2 months with three dialysis sessions a week. Thereafter, daily home haemodialysis (DHHD, 6 sessions per week) was initiated. The total weekly dialysis dose (Kt/V) was kept constant. RESULTS Weekly Kt/V was 3.2+/-0.13 (M+/-SEM) before, and 3.2+/-0.15 after 6 months of DHHD (NS), time-averaged concentration of urea (TACu) was 21.2+/-1.6 mmol/l and 20.1+/-0.9 mmol/l (NS). Urea reduction was 0.56+/-0.05 before DHHD, and 0.41+/-0.06 during DHHD (P<0.0001). Serum K remained unchanged, but significantly less exchange resins were used (P<0.02). Also, the dose of phosphate-binding agents could be decreased. Values for Na, K, Cl, bicarbonate, Ca, PTH, albumin, and Hb remained unchanged. Iron deficiency developed in some patients. Twenty-four-hour blood pressure monitoring showed a decrease of systolic blood pressure (141.1+/-17.2 mmHg before, and 130.9+/-19.2 mmHg during DHHD, P<0.001). Diastolic blood pressure remained constant (82.8+/-7.2 and 76.9+/-10.1 mmHg, NS). Mean arterial pressure decreased from 102.2+/-9.5 to 94.9+/-1.4 mmHg (P<0.02). Blood pressure decreased mainly in previously hypertensive patients. Mean target weight increased 0.8 kg. The amount of antihypertensive drugs used decreased from 1.88+/-0.35 to 0.75+/-0.17 (P<0.005, n=7). Dialysis sessions were much more stable, also in patients with cardiac insufficiency. Quality of life questionnaires (Rand 36, Nottingham Health Profile, Uraemic Symptoms Profile) showed a significant improvement of physical condition and fewer uraemic symptoms. CONCLUSION DHHD compared to conventional thrice-weekly haemodialysis with similar weekly Kt/V results in an improved haemodynamic control and quality of life, but has lesser impact on metabolic regulation.
Patterns of Cognitive and Emotional Empathy in Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration

Objective:To examine the relationship between empathy and cognition in frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD). Background:Theoretical models suggest empathy has multiple cognitive and affective subcomponents, and recent studies suggest that performance on specific cognitive tests may predict empathy. Qualitative behavioral studies of patients with FTLD suggest empathy loss may occur directly as a result of damage to frontal and temporal structures. Method:First-degree relatives used the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI), a measure of cognitive and emotional empathy, to rate 18 patients with frontotemporal dementia (FTD), 19 patients with semantic dementia (SD), 16 patients with Alzheimer disease (AD), and 10 age-matched healthy control subjects (NC). Subjects also underwent cognitive testing. Results:Both FTD and SD groups showed significantly lower levels of empathy than either ADs or NCs. SDs showed disruption of both emotional and cognitive empathy, whereas FTDs showed only disruption of cognitive empathy. Regressions controlling for general cognitive impairment showed 32% of the variance in Perspective Taking score was predicted by Category Fluency (P < 0.001), and 25% of the variance in Fantasy score was accounted for by Phonemic Fluency (P < 0.001). Conclusions:Although cognitive empathy is at least partly reliant on frontal structures, the emotional components of empathy are likely mediated by structures in the temporal lobes.
Postponement of death around Chinese holidays: a Hong Kong perspective.

INTRODUCTION Historical anecdotes suggest human beings can postpone death around important occasions. Some formal studies have claimed that elderly Jewish men and Chinese women in America postponed death around the Passover and Harvest Moon (or Mid-Autumn) Festival (HMF), respectively. METHODS We examined deaths from cancer, cerebrovascular and heart diseases in the Chinese around four important holidays celebrated in Hong Kong. From computerised data in 1995-2000, the expected weekly deaths for 12 weeks before and after Lunar New Year, Ching Ming, HMF and Chung Yeung holidays were calculated using a polynomial regression model for the three diseases in men and women, under and over the age of 75 years. The differences in the observed deaths one week before and one week after the four holidays were tested by the binomial test. RESULTS There were significantly fewer deaths overall in men before the holidays than after (p-value equals 0.0081), with most of the difference being due to cancer deaths, particularly among men over 75 years of age. For women, there were actually more deaths before than after the holidays. The data, stratified according to age, gender, disease and holiday, yielded only five out of 48 variables with a p-value of less than 0.05, which was slightly above chance, considering the large number of comparisons made. In four of the five situations, there were significantly fewer deaths before than after the holidays; but after Bonferroni correction, only the finding of fewer cancer deaths for men aged over 75 years before HMF was significant. CONCLUSION Other than cancer deaths in males, we found little evidence in this dataset of death postponement until after important holidays in the Hong Kong Chinese population.
Origines biologiques et environnementales de la variabilité de la qualité des fibres de chanvre (Cannabis sativa L.) à destination d'agromatériaux

L’interet pour la culture de chanvre industriel connait un fort developpement en raison du developpement de nouvelles applications a base de fibres vegetales (a la fois fibres xylemiennes et liberiennes). La qualite des fibres et leur rendement peuvent etre modulee par les procedes de transformation mais pourrait etre egalement influencee par des facteurs genetiques et environnementaux. Afin de preciser l’impact de ces facteurs sur le chanvre, differentes varietes commerciales de chanvre ont ete cultivees selon plusieurs modalites de culture et caracterisees aux niveaux de la teneur en fibres, de la taille des cellules et de la composition des parois. Nos resultats indiquent que l’irrigation et les fortes densites de semis ont un effet sur la formation des fibres secondaires (et non les fibres primaires) et induisent des modifications morphologiques et structurales des fibres primaires et secondaires. Ces differents parametres sont susceptibles d’alterer la qualite des fibres industrielles, obtenues apres defibrage mecanique. La spectroscopie infrarouge ATR a permis de reveler que les fortes densites de semis et l’irrigation se traduisent par une variabilite chimique des fibres techniques. Une etude transcriptomique (Fluidigm) a mis en evidence des variations dans l’expression de genes associes a la biosynthese et au remodelage des parois a la fois dans les tissus internes (riches en xyleme), et les tissus externes (riches en fibres liberiennes). En precisant certains evenements moleculaires associes au developpement des fibres, cette etude pourrait fournir des criteres d’amelioration du chanvre pour la production de fibres industrielles destinees a differentes applications.
The Effects of Famciclovir and Epidural Block in the Treatment of Herpes Zoster

In our previous study, we concluded that an epidural blockade combined with intravenous acyclovir is very effective in treating the acute pain in herpes zoster and postherpetic neuralgia. We evaluated the efficacy of oral famciclovir and epidural blockade on the pain of herpes zoster, compared to acyclovir administered intravenously and epidural blockade. For this purpose, we examined a new group treated with famciclovir and epidural blockade to compare with the group treated with acyclovir and epidural blockade in our previously study. The changes in the intensity of pain, the number of days required for relief of pain, and the total duration of pain were checked. We compared the days required for relief of pain (DRP) and the total duration of pain (TDP) of this group with those of the previous studied group treated with acyclovir and epidural blockade. DRP was significantly less, but TDP was similar. DRP and TDP were significantly lower, if the patients were treated within 7 days of symptom onset. The patients had a shorter DRP regardless of pain type than the previously studied group treated with acycolvir and epidural blockade. For the severe and moderate pain grades, there was a shorter DRP from 100 to 10. TDP was not significantly different for the groups regardless of pain type or grade. We believe that famciclovir and epidural blockade are very effective in treating the pain of herpes zoster, with a view to shortening the period of acute pain, providing similar effects on the prevention of postherpetic neuralgia, and being convenient to administer, compared to intravenous acyclovir and epidural blockade in our previous study.
Communication Tools for End-of-Life Decision-Making in Ambulatory Care Settings: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background Patients with serious illness, and their families, state that better communication and decision-making with healthcare providers is a high priority to improve the quality of end-of-life care. Numerous communication tools to assist patients, family members, and clinicians in end-of-life decision-making have been published, but their effectiveness remains unclear. Objectives To determine, amongst adults in ambulatory care settings, the effect of structured communication tools for end-of-life decision-making on completion of advance care planning. Methods We searched for relevant randomized controlled trials (RCTs) or non-randomized intervention studies in MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, ERIC, and the Cochrane Database of Randomized Controlled Trials from database inception until July 2014. Two reviewers independently screened articles for eligibility, extracted data, and assessed risk of bias. Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) was used to evaluate the quality of evidence for each of the primary and secondary outcomes. Results Sixty-seven studies, including 46 RCTs, were found. The majority evaluated communication tools in older patients (age >50) with no specific medical condition, but many specifically evaluated populations with cancer, lung, heart, neurologic, or renal disease. Most studies compared the use of communication tools against usual care, but several compared the tools to less-intensive advance care planning tools. The use of structured communication tools increased: the frequency of advance care planning discussions/discussions about advance directives (RR 2.31, 95% CI 1.25–4.26, p = 0.007, low quality evidence) and the completion of advance directives (ADs) (RR 1.92, 95% CI 1.43–2.59, p<0.001, low quality evidence); concordance between AD preferences and subsequent medical orders for use or non-use of life supporting treatment (RR 1.19, 95% CI 1.01–1.39, p = 0.028, very low quality evidence, 1 observational study); and concordance between the care desired and care received by patients (RR 1.17, 95% CI 1.05–1.30, p = 0.004, low quality evidence, 2 RCTs). Conclusions The use of structured communication tools may increase the frequency of discussions about and completion of advance directives, and concordance between the care desired and the care received by patients. The use of structured communication tools rather than an ad-hoc approach to end-of-life decision-making should be considered, and the selection and implementation of such tools should be tailored to address local needs and context. Registration PROSPERO CRD42014012913
Medication errors observed in 36 health care facilities.

BACKGROUND Medication errors are a national concern. OBJECTIVE To identify the prevalence of medication errors (doses administered differently than ordered). DESIGN A prospective cohort study. SETTING Hospitals accredited by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, nonaccredited hospitals, and skilled nursing facilities in Georgia and Colorado. PARTICIPANTS A stratified random sample of 36 institutions. Twenty-six declined, with random replacement. Medication doses given (or omitted) during at least 1 medication pass during a 1- to 4-day period by nurses on high medication-volume nursing units. The target sample was 50 day-shift doses per nursing unit or until all doses for that medication pass were administered. METHODS Medication errors were witnessed by observation, and verified by a research pharmacist (E.A.F.). Clinical significance was judged by an expert panel of physicians. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE Medication errors reaching patients. RESULTS In the 36 institutions, 19% of the doses (605/3216) were in error. The most frequent errors by category were wrong time (43%), omission (30%), wrong dose (17%), and unauthorized drug (4%). Seven percent of the errors were judged potential adverse drug events. There was no significant difference between error rates in the 3 settings (P =.82) or by size (P =.39). Error rates were higher in Colorado than in Georgia (P =.04) CONCLUSIONS Medication errors were common (nearly 1 of every 5 doses in the typical hospital and skilled nursing facility). The percentage of errors rated potentially harmful was 7%, or more than 40 per day in a typical 300-patient facility. The problem of defective medication administration systems, although varied, is widespread.