Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Development and Evaluation of a Novel Topical Treatment for Acne with Azelaic Acid-Loaded Nanoparticles

Abstract Azelaic acid (AzA) is used in the treatment of acne. However, side effects and low compliance have been associated with several topical treatments with AzA. Nanotechnology presents a strategy that can overcome these problems. Polymeric nanoparticles can control drug release and targeting and reduce local drug toxicity. The aim of this study was to produce and evaluate an innovative topical treatment for acne with AzA-loaded poly-dl-lactide/glycolide copolymer nanoparticles. A soft white powder of nanoparticles was prepared. The mean size of loaded nanoparticles was <400 nm and zeta potential was negative. Spherical nanoparticles were observed by scanning electron microscopy. Encapsulation efficiency was around 80% and a strong interaction between the polymer and the drug was confirmed by differential scanning calorimetric analysis. In vitro drug release studies suggested a controlled and pulsatile release profile. System efficacy tests suggested similar results between the loaded nanoparticles and the nonencapsulated drug against the most common bacteria associated with acne. Cytotoxicity of AzA-loaded nanoparticles was concentration dependent, although not pronounced. The occluded patch test seemed to indicate that the formulation excipients were safe and thus AzA-loaded nanoparticles appear to be an efficient and safe treatment for acne.
The use of SmartPill for gastric monitoring

Testing to define delayed gastric emptying is required to diagnose gastroparesis; rapid emptying is found in other patients. Commonly performed methods of gastric emptying testing include scintigraphy and breath testing. The SmartPill wireless motility capsule (WMC) system is US FDA-approved for evaluating suspected delayed emptying in gastroparesis and functional dyspepsia. The device measures transit in the stomach, small intestine, and colon by detecting characteristic pH transitions; and quantifies pressure waves in each gut region. WMC gastric emptying times correlate with scintigraphic measures. Incremental benefits of WMC testing in patients with suspected gastroparesis include delineation of pressure abnormalities and small intestinal and colonic transit delays. Acceptance of trial data confirming usefulness of WMC testing in suspected gastric motor disorders has been hampered by small sample sizes and design limitations. Ongoing multicenter studies will validate the utility of WMC methods in patients with suspected gastroparesis and other upper gastrointestinal motor disorders.
Monitoring Tweets for Depression to Detect At-risk Users

We propose an automated system that can identify at-risk users from their public social media activity, more specifically, from Twitter. The data that we collected is from the #BellLetsTalk campaign, which is a wide-reaching, multi-year program designed to break the silence around mental illness and support mental health across Canada. To achieve our goal, we trained a user-level classifier that can detect at-risk users that achieves a reasonable precision and recall. We also trained a tweet-level classifier that predicts if a tweet indicates depression. This task was much more difficult due to the imbalanced data. In the dataset that we labeled, we came across 5% depression tweets and 95% non-depression tweets. To handle this class imbalance, we used undersampling methods. The resulting classifier had high recall, but low precision. Therefore, we only use this classifier to compute the estimated percentage of depressed tweets and to add this value as a feature for the user-level classifier.
Swift observations of V404 Cyg during the 2015 outburst: X-ray outflows from super-Eddington accretion

The black hole (BH) binary V404 Cyg entered the outburst phase in 2015 June after 26 yr of X-ray quiescence, and with its behaviour broke the outburst evolution pattern typical of most BH binaries. We observed the entire outburst with the Swift satellite and performed time-resolved spectroscopy of its most active phase, obtaining over a thousand spectra with exposures from tens to hundreds of seconds. All the spectra can be fitted with an absorbed power-law model, which most of the time required the presence of a partial covering. A blueshifted iron-Kα line appears in 10 per cent of the spectra together with the signature of high column densities, and about 20 per cent of the spectra seem to show signatures of reflection. None of the spectra showed the unambiguous presence of soft disc–blackbody emission, while the observed bolometric flux exceeded the Eddington value in 3 per cent of the spectra. Our results can be explained assuming that the inner part of the accretion flow is inflated into a slim disc that both hides the innermost (and brightest) regions of the flow, and produces a cold, clumpy, high-density outflow that introduces the high absorption and fast spectral variability observed. We argue that the BH in V404 Cyg might have been accreting erratically or even continuously at Eddington/super-Eddington rates – thus sustaining a surrounding slim disc – while being partly or completely obscured by the inflated disc and its outflow. Hence, the largest flares produced by the source might not be accretion-driven events, but instead the effects of the unveiling of the extremely bright source hidden within the system.
The rabbit lacrimal gland in vitamin A deficiency.

PURPOSE To investigate the morphology, ultrastructure, and protein secretion of the vitamin A-deficient rabbit lacrimal gland. METHODS The lacrimal glands of vitamin A-deficient rabbits and age-matched controls were fixed, processed by standard methods, and examined by light and transmission electron microscopy. Protein secreted by the lacrimal gland was analyzed using gel filtration chromatography and electrophoresis. RESULTS By light microscopy, the glands of experimental and control rabbits were indistinguishable. Electron microscopy showed little effect of vitamin A deficiency on the lacrimal acini, although occasional pyknotic nuclei were observed. The intralobular ductal epithelium was unaffected. Protein concentration and composition were essentially unchanged in lacrimal gland fluid of vitamin A-deficient rabbits compared to controls. CONCLUSIONS The rabbit lacrimal gland is minimally affected by vitamin A deficiency, suggesting species differences between rabbits and rats in the vitamin A requirements of the lacrimal gland. Normal lacrimal gland structure and function in vitamin A deficiency allow for the prompt secretion of retinol on the restoration of vitamin A to the diet.
Analysis of the claim to distinct nursing ethics: Normative and nonnormative approaches

Nursing ethics has been declared to exist only as a subset of medical ethics. If this statement is to be refuted, any defense of a claim to a discrete nursing ethic must clarify what type of moral theory is being held as distinctly a nursing ethic. Several examples of nursing ethical theory are used to challenge Veatch's1 view that nursing ethics is a subset of medical ethics. The methodology used to provide the analysis is to group the ethical theories studied under the topics of normative and nonnormative ethics to provide for appropriate inquiry.
1 PRIVACY IN AGED CARE

The extension of privacy laws to cover private sector providers and the proposal of a National Health Privacy Code highlight the importance of examining privacy issues in aged care policy and practice. Although privacy in health and aged care may also include physical, psychological and social dimensions, it is informational privacy that is the focus of these recent changes. In this paper a range of privacy practices in aged care are examined, drawing on theoretical, policy, practice and research literature. It is argued that aged care policy makers and providers need to move beyond the setting of privacy principles and management strategies, and also examine specific day-to-day privacy practices as they occur in different aged care settings. While privacy is often a valued commodity, the construction of an issue as private can sometimes be seen to limit the expression of diverse identities and to reinforce social inequality.
Design of translactam HCMV protease inhibitors as potent antivirals

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is an important pathogen for which there is a significant unmet medical need. New HCMV antivirals, active against novel molecular targets, are undoubtedly needed as the currently available drugs ganciclovir, cidofovir, and foscarnet, which are all viral DNA inhibitors, suffer from limited effectiveness, mainly due to the development of drug resistance, poor bioavailability, and toxicity. One of the newer molecular targets that has been exploited in the search for better drug candidates is HCMV protease. Our δAla HCMV protease (wild type variant with the internal cleavage site deleted) was cloned and expressed in E. coli. This viral enzyme was used to develop HCMV protease assays to evaluate potential inhibitors. The chirally pure (SRS)‐α‐methyl pyrrolidine‐5,5‐trans‐lactam template was synthesized, which together with the natural substrate requirements of HCMV protease and detailed SAR, was used to design potent and selective mechanism based inhibitors of HCMV protease. The mechanism of action of these inhibitors of HCMV protease was investigated by ESI/MS, and the X‐ray crystal structure of the HCMV protease was used to refine our selective viral enzyme inhibitors to obtain plasma stable antivirals. A novel ELISA antiviral assay was developed which, together with a cytotoxicity assay, enabled us to discover anti‐HCMV drug candidates equivalent in potency to ganciclovir that had good pharmacokinetics in the dog and good brain and ocular penetration in the guinea pig. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Med Res Rev.
Analysis of Inflammatory Mediators and Peritoneal Permeability to Macromolecules Shortly before the Onset of Overt Peritonitis in Patients Treated with CAPD

Objective To investigate whether changes in peritoneal membrane characteristics and inflammatory mediators in dialysate precede the onset of overt infection during continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD)-related peritonitis. Design CAPD patients with a high peritonitis incidence stored every night bag at 4°C. Routinely, each bag was thrown away after two days. Only if patients developed peritonitis, all bags were delivered for study. Thus, two night bags immediately prior to the first peritonitis bag were available for analysis. A control study was done 14 days after recovery. Dialysate samples were measured for TNFα, IL-6, PGE2, 6-keto-PGF lα’ TxB2, and serum proteins. The clearance of β2-microglobulin was used as an indicator of the effective peritoneal surface area. The intrinsic peritoneal permeability was characterized by the restriction coefficient. Results Eight episodes occurred in 5 patients. The night dwells available prior to the first peritonitis effluent were drained maximally nine dwells and minimally one dwell before the first peritonitis bag. Dialysate leukocyte counts exceeded 100 × 106/L only on the day of manifest infection. However, bacterial cultures were already positive at least one day before overt infection in four episodes and in three of these cases two days before. No changes were observed prior to peritonitis for the clearance of β2-microglobulin or the restriction coefficient. In contrast to these permeability characteristics, the cytokines, TNFα and, though less significant, also IL-6, were increased in dialysate one day prior to overt infection, when compared to the values obtained at the control investigation. This was especially evident in effluents drained no longer than two dwells before the first peritonitis bag. Prostaglandin concentrations in dialysate were not different before the onset of manifest peritonitis from the values measured after recovery. Conclusion In this study, the increased effective peritoneal surface area and intrinsic peritoneal permeability during acute infection appeared to be preceded by elevations in the cytokines TNFα and, to a lesser extent, IL-6. These increments occurred only very shortly before the onset of clinical symptoms.
Dementia with Lewy bodies

Dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) is the second most common cause of neurodegenerative dementia in older people, accounting for 10% to 15% of all cases, it occupies part of a spectrum that includes Parkinson's disease and primary autonomic failure. All these diseases share a neuritic pathology based upon abnormal aggregation of the synaptic protein α-synuciein. It is important to identify DLB patients accurately because they have specific symptoms, impairments, and functional disabilities thai differ from other common dementia syndromes such as Alzheimer's disease, vascular cognitive impairment, and frontotemporal dementia. Clinical diagnostic criteria for DLB have been validated against autopsy, but fail to detect a substantial minority of cases with atypical presentations that are often due to the presence of mixed pathology. DLB patients frequently have severe neuroleptic sensitivity reactions, which are associated with significantly increased morbidity and mortality. Cholinesterase inhibitor treatment is usually well tolerated and substantially improves cognitive and neuropsychiatrie symptoms. Although virtually unrecognized 20 years ago, DLB could within this decade become one of the most treatable neurodegenerative disorders of late life.
Complete and Compact 32-Channel System for Time-Correlated Single-Photon Counting Measurements

Single-photon detectors play a key role in many research fields such as biology, chemistry, medicine, and space technology, and in recent years, single-photon avalanche diodes (SPADs) have become a valid alternative to photo multiplier tubes (PMTs). Moreover, scientific research has recently focused on single-photon detector arrays, pushed by a growing demand for multichannel systems. In this scenario, we developed a compact 32-channel system for time-resolved single-photon counting applications. The system is divided into two independent modules: a photon detection head including a 32 × 1 SPAD array built in custom technology, featuring high time resolution, high photon detection efficiency (44% at 550 nm), and low dark count rate (mean value <; 400 cps at -10 °C) at 6-V excess bias voltage and a 32-channel acquisition system able to perform time-correlated single-photon counting (TCSPC) measurements. The TCSPC module includes eight four-channel time-to-amplitude converter (TAC) arrays, built-in 0.35-μm Si-Ge BiCMOS technology, characterized by low differential non-linearity (rms value lower than 0.15% of the time bin width) and variable full-scale range. The system response function of this TCSPC instrumentation achieves a mean time resolution of 63 psFWHM, considering a mean count rate of 1 Mcps.
Do Analysts Tell the Truth? Do Shareholders Listen? An Experimental Study of Analysts' Forecasts and Shareholder Reaction

This work experimentally examines forecasting and trading behavior. Subjects play the role of both analyst and shareholder over the course of experiments consisting of a series of repeated games with or absent con icts of interest. In a stylized trading setting, I test whether standard equilibrium, normative behavior, or limited strategic reasoning best predicts behavior. In the presence of con icts of interest a substantial proportion of subjects' behavior appears non-skeptical in the role of shareholder, though the same subject is deceptive in the role of analyst. Absent con icts of interest, subjects behavior in the role of shareholder is nearer a best response to the same subject's behavior as analyst. The results are consistent with limited strategic reasoning and suggest that simply disclosing con icts of interest does not evoke skepticism of forecasting, nor does the elimination of con icts of interest in itself induce honesty.
The role of learning to read in the development of problem behaviour: a cross-lagged longitudinal study.

BACKGROUND This study investigates the posited relationship between learning to read, and internalizing and externalizing problem behaviours, during the transition from preschool to primary school. METHODS A total of 196 (104 boys, 92 girls) children participating in the Jyväskylä Entrance into Primary School (JEPS) study were followed up six times during their transition from preschool to primary school. At each measurement, the children's reading performance was tested. Moreover, their internalizing and externalizing problem behaviour was examined by means of structured interviews. RESULTS The results showed that problems in reading acquisition predicted an increase in internalizing problem behaviour during the preschool year and first grade, whereas during the second grade they were associated with an increase in subsequent externalizing problem behaviour. Moreover, from preschool to the beginning of the primary school internalizing problem behaviour predicted subsequent externalizing problem behaviour. Later on during the first and the second primary school years, it was externalizing problem behaviour that predicted an increase in internalizing problem behaviour. CONCLUSIONS The results of this study suggested that difficulties in learning to read, and internalizing and externalizing problem behaviours are developmentally linked in a cumulative manner.
Bedform Dynamics in a Rip Current

ABSTRACT Thorpe, A. , Miles, J., Masselink, G. , Russell, P., 2014. Bedform Dynamics in a Rip Current, Proceedings 13th International Coastal Symposium (Durban, South Africa), Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue No. 70, pp. 700–705, ISSN 0749-0208. A Sand Ripple Profiler (SRP) was deployed in a rip channel on a dissipative sandy beach to measure bedform height (Δ), length (λ) and migration rate (Mr) throughout a macro-tidal cycle. Data were collected in significant wave heights ranging from 0.5 m to 2.1 m and water depths of between 0.9 m and 7.4 m. Periods when the rip current was active were identified by comparing measured cross-shore velocity (U) with predicted cross-shore velocity from a bed return flow model. Rip flow was found to commence when offshore velocities reached approximately 0.1 m/s, maximum rip velocity as a 5 minute mean was 0.74 m/s. At lower tidal elevations (h < 2.5 m), in the strong offshore flow of the rip current megaripples were found to migrate offshore (Mr = 0–4 cm/min). When migration occurred in a rip current migration rates were correlated with U with the highest migration rates found in the strongest flows. In non-rip current conditions megaripples exhibited two types of migration behaviour; (1) migrating onshore at a maximum rate of 2.1 cm/min when h was in the range of 2.5 m to 5 m and wave skewness was high and (2) megaripples were stable when mean flows and skewness were low, this occurred at higher tidal elevations when h > 5m.
Phenotypic analysis of human peripheral blood regulatory T cells (CD4+FOXP3+CD127lo/–) ex vivo and after in vitro restimulation with malaria antigens

Regulatory T cells (Treg) play crucial roles in regulating autoimmune responses and immunity to tumors and infectious diseases. However, numerous subpopulations of Treg are now being described and the utility of various Treg markers is being reassessed. Here we report the results of a detailed phenotypic comparison of two supposedly regulatory human T‐cell populations, namely CD4+FOXP3+ T cells and CD4+CD25hi T cells. We find that CD4+FOXP3+ cells are extremely heterogeneous with respect to CD25 expression and that FOXP3+ and CD25hi CD4+ T cells differ in their expression of chemokine receptors (CCR), CD95 and Bcl‐2, suggestive of distinct migration characteristics and susceptibility to apoptosis. Further, we propose that CD25 expression should be regarded as an activation marker rather than as a defining marker of Treg. Lastly, CD4+FOXP3+ T cells activated in vitro with malaria antigen expressed the highest levels of CCR4 and CD95, and the lowest levels of CCR7, indicating that they are most likely generated from effector memory cells during an immune response and rapidly succumb to apoptosis at the end of the response.
Nasal airflow: resistance and sensation

Abstract For many years nasal resistance to airflow measured by rhinomanometry has been regarded as the objective measure of nasal patency. However, recently it has become apparent that this may not be the case. The present study was designed to affirm or refute this view by using large numbers of subjects and observations. Five hundred estimations of (objective) nasal resistance to airflow and (subjective) nasal sensation of airflow where carried out. No correlation could be demonstrated between these two parameters. It is concluded nasal resistance to airflow and nasal sensation of airflow are two separate modalities which are not directly related. The possible reasons for this finding are discussed with reference to previous work on nasal sensation.
Identification of medicinal plant Schisandra chinensis using a potential DNA barcode ITS2

To test whether the internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) region is an effective marker for using in authenticating of the Schisandra chinensis at the species and population levels, separately. And the results showed that the wild populations had higher percentage of individuals that had substitution of C→A at site 86-bp than the cultivated populations. At sites 10-bp, 37-bp, 42-bp and 235-bp, these bases of the Schisandra sphenanthera samples differed from that of S. chinensis . Two species showed higher levels of inter-specific divergence than intra-specific divergence within ITS2 sequences. However, 24 populations did not demonstrate much difference as inter-specific and intra-specific divergences were concerned. Both S. chinensis and S. sphenanthera showed monophyly at species level, yet the samples of different populations shown polyphyly at population level. ITS2 performed well when using BLAST1 method. ITS2 obtained 100% identification success rates at the species level for S. chinensis , with no ambiguous identification at the genus level for ITS2 alone. The ITS2 region could be used to identify S. chinensis and S. sphenanthera in the “Chinese Pharmacopoeia”. And it could also correctly distinguish 100% of species and 100% of genera from the 193 sequences of S. chinensis . Hence, the ITS2 is a powerful and efficient tool for species identification of S. chinensis .