Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An analysis of the Saudi health-care system’s readiness to change in the context of the Saudi National Health-care Plan in Vision 2030

Change management studies have emphasized the significance of an organization’s readiness for change and transformation and have recommended strategies to affect change. Organizational readiness for change is a multi-faceted, multi-level, and multi-dimensional activity; its most important aspect is organizational members’ willingness to accept and implement change because ignoring the human factors may result in resistance and failure. Through its National Transformation Program 2020, the Saudi Arabian government is attempting to effect radical changes in the structure and function of its health-care system to achieve quality care and effective service delivery. The aim of the present review is to discuss the Saudi health-care system’s readiness to change that Saudi Arabia intends to implement by 2020, based on extensive review of different reports, documents, and empirical studies in the field of organizational readiness for change. The study concludes that if organizational readiness for change is high, resources are available, and situational factors are aligned, members of organizations will take the initiative to change, exert optimal effort, demonstrate greater determination, and engage in more cooperative behavior that may lead to efficient and effective implementation of the Saudi health-care transformational plan with fewer complications and less resistance.
Increasing effort without noticing: A randomized controlled pilot study about the ergogenic placebo effect in endurance athletes and the role of supplement salience

Purpose Previous research shows that endurance performance can be enhanced by placebo ergogenic aids. This study investigates the ergogenic placebo response, which we define as an increase in objective and physiological effort without an increase in subjective effort, in competitive cyclists. The primary objective of this study is to explore the role of supplement salience in the ergogenic placebo response, while the secondary aim is to assess whether believing to have taken an inactive placebo supplement attenuates the desired ergogenic effect. Methods We employed a double-blind placebo-controlled study design and compared a high salience (pudding) to a low salience (capsules) ergogenic placebo supplement and to a no treatment control group. Thirty-four male athletes (30.0 ± 5.7 years) performed two self-regulated time trials on an isokinetic cycling ergometer, one without intervention serving as a baseline and one with intervention according to group assignment. At both time trials, power output (objective effort), blood lactate (physiological effort) and the rating of perceived exertion (subjective effort) were measured. Results Receiving a high salience supplement can increase physiological and objective effort without a proportional rise in subjective effort, suggesting a decoupling of perceived exertion and endurance performance. Low salience and control group both showed no such ergogenic placebo response. Athletes’ belief concerning the true nature of the ergogenic aid (inactive placebo vs. ergogenic supplement) did not influence the ergogenic placebo response. Conclusion High salience placebo ergogenic aids can elicit enhanced performance without the athlete noticing (exertion), and deception of athletes seems unnecessary as even believing to have received an inactive placebo supplement maintains the ergogenic placebo response.
Causes of Permanent Severe Visual Impairment and Blindness among Jordanian Population

PURPOSE: To report the causes of permanent severe visual impairment and blindness among Jordanian blind people. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study was conducted on 1422 legally blind or worse vision people of all ages who attended the ophthalmic division of a medical committee for evaluation of disabled persons from July 2013 through November 2014. They were divided into two age groups: adult group (998 cases) and childhood group (<16 years, 424 cases). Patients presented reports from their ophthalmologists detailing their eye examination including best-corrected visual acuity, slit-lamp examinations, and if applicable, intraocular pressure, dilated ophthalmoscopy, and visual field and the primary cause of visual impairment. Blind defined as best-corrected visual acuity < 6/60 (20/200) and/or visual field of 20° or less. RESULTS: Retinitis pigmentosa was the most common cause of blindness among adult group (29.7%) followed by diabetic retinopathy (19.9%) and glaucoma (15.8%). Congenital whole-globe malformations were the most common cause of blindness among childhood cases (16.7%) followed by retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) (15.8%) and retinal dystrophies (13.9%). Overall, blindness related to genetic diseases, illnesses, and trauma was present at 56.5% (803), 41.7% (593), and 1.8% (26) of cases, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Genetic diseases such as retinitis pigmentosa, diabetic retinopathy, and glaucoma were the dominant causes of blindness among adults, while whole-globe malformation, ROP, and retinal dystrophies were the dominant causes of childhood blindness. These major causes of blindness should be considered in future public health and nongovernmental organizations strategies for blindness prevention in Jordan.
Acceptability and Feasibility of Sharing a Soapy Water System for Handwashing in a Low-Income Urban Community in Dhaka, Bangladesh: A Qualitative Study

Abstract. Handwashing with soap at key times is an effective means of reducing pathogen transmission. In a low-income community in urban Dhaka, we piloted and evaluated the acceptability and feasibility of a shared handwashing intervention. This included promotion by community health promoters of a homemade solution of detergent powder mixed with water and stored in a 1.5-L reclaimed mineral water bottle. Community health promoters encouraged sharing of the recurrent detergent cost among compound members. Of 152 participating compounds, fieldworkers randomly selected 60 for qualitative assessment. Fieldworkers conducted 30 in-depth interviews and five focus group discussions among purposively selected compound members. The reclaimed bottles served as an easily accessible dispenser for the soapy water, which could feasibly be retained next to the toilet and kitchen areas for communal use. Bottles functioned as a positive reminder for handwashing at recommended key times. Most compounds (45/60, 75%) shared a common soapy water system and its associated costs. There was reluctance to prepare soapy water for shared use in the remaining 25%. Soapy water was an acceptable hand cleaning agent, with the bottle as a feasible dispenser. It was simple in design, cost-effective, replicable, popular with intervention recipient, and neighboring nonrecipients, and commonly shared among nonrelated households. The need to share expenses and product preparation served as a barrier. Developing a sustainable maintenance system, therefore, is critical to ensuring the public health benefits of handwashing with soap.
Dietary supplemented effects of mannan-oligosaccharides on biochemical parameters of 4 close-bred flocks of Japanese quail breeders

The current study was carried out to investigate the consequences of mannan-oligosaccharides (MOS), a prebiotic, as feed supplement on biochemical parameters of Japanese quail breeders (Coturnix coturnix japonica). Twelve-week-old, 960 birds, belonging to 4 close-bred flocks (CBF), were randomly selected and divided into 4 treatment groups with 3 replicates according to pattern (4 strains × 4 treatment groups × 3 replicates). Birds were fed corn-based basal diet or the same diet supplemented with 0.25, 0.50, and 1.0% MOS for 15 wk. After termination of the experimental trial, samples of blood were taken from randomly selected 3 birds/replicate (1♂ and 2♀) and processed for serologic analysis. The statistical analysis was performed by applying 2-way analysis of variance. The serum concentrations of total proteins, globulin, high-density lipoprotein, and tri-iodothyronine (T3) of Japanese quail breeders were significantly (P < 0.05) higher in MOS-supplemented groups than that of control group; however, triglycerides were decreased significantly (P < 0.05) by MOS supplementation in female birds. Estrogen level in male birds was significantly (P < 0.05) different; however, non-significant differences were recorded in thyroxine (T4), progesterone, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, glucose, albumin, cholesterol, and low-density lipoprotein concentrations in all feeding groups. The significant differences in biochemical parameters by feeding MOS-supplemented diets strengthened our hypothesis that the use of MOS may positively affect the health of Japanese quail breeders.
Tet38 Efflux Pump Contributes to Fosfomycin Resistance in Staphylococcus aureus

Fosfomycin inhibits MurA following uptake by the GlpT transporter of glycerol-3-phosphate in Escherichia coli. In Staphylococcus aureus, plasmid overexpression of the Tet38 efflux pump and a glpT mutant resulted in increased MICs and decreased accumulation of fosfomycin, with MICs affected by glycerol-3-phosphate. ABSTRACT Fosfomycin inhibits MurA following uptake by the GlpT transporter of glycerol-3-phosphate in Escherichia coli. In Staphylococcus aureus, plasmid overexpression of the Tet38 efflux pump and a glpT mutant resulted in increased MICs and decreased accumulation of fosfomycin, with MICs affected by glycerol-3-phosphate. In contrast, a tet38 mutant had a lower MIC and increased accumulation of fosfomycin, suggesting that Tet38 acts as an efflux transporter of fosfomycin.
Target reliability indices for existing quay walls derived on the basis of the LQI criterion

General frameworks for reliability differentiation have evolved over time and are mainly developed for new buildings. However, recommendations for existing quay walls are lacking. In this study target reliability indices for assessing existing quay walls were derived by economic optimisation and by evaluating the Life Quality Index criterion (LQI). In quay wall design, some dominant stochastic design variables are largely time-independent, such as soil and material properties. The influence of time-independent variables on the development of the probability of failure was taken into consideration in this study, because this affects the present value of future failure costs and the associated target reliability indices. The reliability indices obtained in accordance with the LQI acceptance criterion were a little lower than the target reliability indices derived by economic optimization. The target reliability indices obtained for existing quay walls depend on the consequences of failure and the remaining service life. If failure modes of a quay wall are largely time-invariant and already survived the first period of the service life, the residual probability of failure is lower for an existing quay wall compared to a new quay wall. Hence, this should be considered in the determination of target reliability indices. The method of approach to assess the development of reliability over time can also be used for evaluating target reliability indices of other civil and geotechnical structures. © 2019 Taylor & Francis Group, London.
Cardiac mitochondrial metabolism may contribute to differences in thermal tolerance of red- and white-blooded Antarctic notothenioid fishes

ABSTRACT Studies in temperate fishes provide evidence that cardiac mitochondrial function and the capacity to fuel cardiac work contribute to thermal tolerance. Here, we tested the hypothesis that decreased cardiac aerobic metabolic capacity contributes to the lower thermal tolerance of the haemoglobinless Antarctic icefish, Chaenocephalus aceratus, compared with that of the red-blooded Antarctic species, Notothenia coriiceps. Maximal activities of citrate synthase (CS) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), respiration rates of isolated mitochondria, adenylate levels and changes in mitochondrial protein expression were quantified from hearts of animals held at ambient temperature or exposed to their critical thermal maximum (CTmax). Compared with C. aceratus, activity of CS, ATP concentration and energy charge were higher in hearts of N. coriiceps at ambient temperature and CTmax. While state 3 mitochondrial respiration rates were not impaired by exposure to CTmax in either species, state 4 rates, indicative of proton leakage, increased following exposure to CTmax in C. aceratus but not N. coriiceps. The interactive effect of temperature and species resulted in an increase in antioxidants and aerobic metabolic enzymes in N. coriiceps but not in C. aceratus. Together, our results support the hypothesis that the lower aerobic metabolic capacity of C. aceratus hearts contributes to its low thermal tolerance. Summary: Hearts of icefishes have a lower capacity to maintain ATP levels through aerobic metabolic pathways compared with those of red-blooded species, which may constrain cardiac performance and lower thermal tolerance.
Functional role of human interleukin-32 and nuclear transcription factor-kB in patients with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis

Objective: Inflammation and its associated cell signaling events have been well documented in psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. However, the potential for interleukin (IL)-32 and its associated signaling to provoke an inflammatory response or to contribute in the pathogenesis of psoriasis or psoriatic arthritis are still in early phase. This study determined the role of IL-32 and nuclear transcription factor (NF)-κB in patients with plaque psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. Methods: Levels of IL-32 were determined in the plasma samples of patients with plaque psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, and normal healthy subjects by human IL-32-specific Sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. To investigate the role of a transcription factor in these patients, activated NF-κBp65 levels were determined in the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) by highly sensitive NF-κB transcription factor kit. Results: The levels of IL-32 in the plasma samples of plaque psoriasis or psoriatic arthritis patients were found to be significantly higher as compared with the levels of IL-32 present in the normal human plasma samples (P < 0.01). Levels of activated NF-κB were also found higher in plaque psoriasis or psoriatic arthritic patients as compared with the PBMCs of healthy humans (P < 0.05). Conclusions: This study shows the role of IL-32 and NF-κB in plaque psoriasis and psoriatic arthritic patients. Results indicate that IL-32 and NF-κB promote inflammation in patients with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. Disruption of IL-32 or NF-κB signaling event might provide a novel target for the management of plaque psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis.
Dual role of USP30 in controlling basal pexophagy and mitophagy

USP30 is an integral protein of the outer mitochondrial membrane that counteracts PINK1 and Parkin‐dependent mitophagy following acute mitochondrial depolarisation. Here, we use two distinct mitophagy reporter systems to reveal tonic suppression by USP30, of a PINK1‐dependent component of basal mitophagy in cells lacking detectable Parkin. We propose that USP30 acts upstream of PINK1 through modulation of PINK1‐substrate availability and thereby determines the potential for mitophagy initiation. We further show that a fraction of endogenous USP30 is independently targeted to peroxisomes where it regulates basal pexophagy in a PINK1‐ and Parkin‐independent manner. Thus, we reveal a critical role of USP30 in the clearance of the two major sources of ROS in mammalian cells and in the regulation of both a PINK1‐dependent and a PINK1‐independent selective autophagy pathway.
Inhibitory Effects of Baicalein Derived from Japanese Traditional Herbal Medicine on SN-38 Glucuronidation.

PURPOSE The chemotherapeutic agent irinotecan is hydrolyzed to its active form SN-38 by human carboxyesterases, but SN-38 is converted into the inactive form SN-38G by hepatic UDP-glucuronosyltransferases (UGTs). The aim of the present study was to evaluate the inhibitory effects of two b-glucuronidase-treated Japanese traditional herbal medicines (kampo), Hange-Shashin-To (TJ-14) and Sairei-To (TJ-114) on SN-38 glucuronidation, and the deglycosylation of baicalin (BG) and glycyrrhizic acid (GL) derived from TJ-14 and TJ-114 to form their respective aglycones, baicalein (BA) and glycyrrhetinic acid (GA). METHODS The inhibitory effects of b-glucuronidase-treated TJ-14 and TJ-114 on SN-38 glucuronidation by human liver microsomes were examined. BA and GA, which were enzymatically converted from BG and GL present in TJ-14 and TJ-114, were examined in the same manner. Furthermore, the enzymatic activities were measured by using recombinant UGT1A1 and UGT1A9 isoforms instead of human liver microsomes. BA, GA, SN-38, and their glycosides/glucuronides were analyzed with an LC-MS system. RESULTS As regards the linear initial reaction rate, SN-38 glucuronidation by human liver microsomes was significantly inhibited by the addition of b-glucuronidase-untreated TJ-14 and TJ-114, but was more strongly inhibited by the addition of b-glucuronidase-treated TJ-14 and TJ-114. The results of LC-MS analysis and pharmacokinetic studies suggested that BA is the main inhibitor of SN-38 glucuronidation. In the Dixon plot, BA showed competitive inhibition of SN-38 glucuronidation, and the inhibition constant was 8.70 ± 3.24 mM. Previous reports, studies of recombinant UGT isoforms indicated that SN-38 glucuronidation was mainly catalyzed by UGT1A1. CONCLUSIONS These findings strongly suggested that SN-38 glucuronidation is inhibited by BA. BA could act as a pharmacokinetic regulating factor associated with SN-38 glucuronidation. This article is open to POST-PUBLICATION REVIEW. Registered readers (see "For Readers") may comment by clicking on ABSTRACT on the issue's contents page.
Pro- and Anti-inflammatory Effects of High Cholesterol Diet on Aged Brain

Both hypercholesterolemia and aging are related to cognitive decline or Alzheimer’s disease. However, their interactive influence on the neurodegenerative progress remains unclear. To address this issue, 6-month-old and 16-month-old female mice were fed a 3% cholesterol diet for 8 weeks, followed by hippocampus-related functional, pathological, biochemical and molecular analyses. The high cholesterol diet did not exacerbate age-dependent cognitive decline and hippocampal neuronal death, and even greatly mitigated decreases of synaptophysin and growth associated protein 43 expression in the hippocampus of aged mice. Compared with young controls, aged mice fed normal diet showed mild activation of hippocampal microglia with increased expression of CD68, a marker of the microglial M1 phenotype, and decreased expression of CD206, a marker of the microglial M2 phenotype. More interestingly, the high cholesterol diet not only improved NLRP3 inflammasome activation and IL-1β expression, but also increased levels of anti-inflammatory cytokines IL-4 and IL-6 in the hippocampus of old mice, suggesting playing pro- and anti-neuroinflammatory effects. In addition, the cholesterol rich diet resulted in a defect of the blood-brain barrier of aged hippocampus, as revealed by increased brain albumin content. These results have revealed both harmful and protective effects of high cholesterol diet on aged brain, which helps us to understand that hypercholesterolemia in the aged population is not associated with dementia and cognitive impairment.
Exploiting Document Knowledge for Aspect-level Sentiment Classification

Attention-based long short-term memory (LSTM) networks have proven to be useful in aspect-level sentiment classification. However, due to the difficulties in annotating aspect-level data, existing public datasets for this task are all relatively small, which largely limits the effectiveness of those neural models. In this paper, we explore two approaches that transfer knowledge from document-level data, which is much less expensive to obtain, to improve the performance of aspect-level sentiment classification. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our approaches on 4 public datasets from SemEval 2014, 2015, and 2016, and we show that attention-based LSTM benefits from document-level knowledge in multiple ways.
Mesoscopic Modeling of the Encapsulation of Capsaicin by Lecithin/Chitosan Liposomal Nanoparticles

The transport of hydrophobic drugs in the human body exhibits complications due to the low solubility of these compounds. With the purpose of enhancing the bioavailability and biodistribution of such drugs, recent studies have reported the use of amphiphilic molecules, such as phospholipids, for the synthesis of nanoparticles or nanocapsules. Given that phospholipids can self-assemble in liposomes or micellar structures, they are ideal candidates to function as vehicles of hydrophobic molecules. In this work, we report mesoscopic simulations of nanoliposomes, constituted by lecithin and coated with a shell of chitosan. The stability of such structures and the efficiency of the encapsulation of capsaicin, as well as the internal and superficial distribution of capsaicin and chitosan inside the nanoliposome, were analyzed. The characterization of the system was carried out through density maps and the potentials of mean force for the lecithin-capsaicin, lecithin-chitosan, and capsaicin-chitosan interactions. The results of these simulations show that chitosan is deposited on the surface of the nanoliposome, as has been reported in some experimental works. It was also observed that a nanoliposome of approximately 18 nm in diameter is stable during the simulation. The deposition behavior was found to be influenced by a pattern of N-acetylation of chitosan.
Prevalence of Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) in Spontaneous Cerebrospinal Fluid (CSF) Leaks: A Prospective Cohort Study.

OBJECTIVE To determine the prevalence of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in a prospective cohort of patients with spontaneous CSF (sCSF) leaks of the temporal bone. STUDY DESIGN Prospective cohort study. SETTING Tertiary referral center. PATIENTS Consecutive sCSF leak patients (21) over a 3-year period. Four patients presented with a history of OSA and 17 patients were prospectively offered polysomnogram (PSG) testing during the initial clinic encounter. INTERVENTION Level I PSG. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Patient characteristics (age, sex, body mass index), apnea hypopnea index (AHI), presence of snoring, and presence of hypoxia (oxygen saturation <88% for >5 min). OSA was defined as mild (AHI ≥5 and <15/h), moderate (AHI ≥15 and <30/h), and severe (AHI ≥30/h). RESULTS The prevalence of OSA in sCSF leak patients is 83.3%. PSG studies were performed on 18 of the 21 patients. There were 15 women and 6 men with an average age (standard deviation) of 56.3 (11.2) years and an average body mass index of 35.3 (7.7) kg/m. Objectively, the AHI ranged from mild to severe (range = 5.7-92, median = 19.8). Snoring was present in 61% of patients and hypoxia was present in 39% of patients. sCSF leak patients with OSA were significantly older than sCSF leak patients without OSA (56.7 [8.3] versus 42.7 [14.5] yr, p = 0.03). CONCLUSIONS OSA is highly prevalent among patients with sCSF leaks. All patients with sCSF leaks should undergo formal PSG testing. Future studies are needed to determine the role of OSA in the development of sCSF leaks.
Is self‐rated health associated with ideal cardiovascular health? The Multi‐Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis

Self‐rated health (SRH) is an indicator of health status—a determinant of health‐promoting behaviors and a predictor of morbidity/mortality. Little is known about the association between SRH and ideal cardiovascular health (CVH), as measured by the AHA Life's Simple 7 (LS7) metrics, or whether the relationship between SRH and CVH differs by race/ethnicity.