Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Eating attitudes and depression in a Turkish sample.

OBJECTIVE The aim of the current study was to investigate (a) the relationship between eating attitudes and depression and (b) the differences between male and female university students eating attitudes and depression. The participants of the study included 127 female and 142 male Turkish university students. METHOD Data on depression and eating attitudes of students were collected by using the Turkish version of Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and Eating Attitudes Test (EAT). RESULTS Significant correlation coefficients were found between depression and eating attitudes scores of the students. The results indicated that there was a significant difference between eating attitudes scores of females and males. However, findings also revealed that gender did not lead to any significant difference in the depression levels of university students. With regard to the MANOVA no significant association emerged between eating attitudes and depression as a function of gender and age. Results of the study were discussed in the light of cultural context.
Interleukin-10 promoter polymorphisms in Southern Chinese patients with systemic lupus erythematosus.

OBJECTIVE To study the genetic association of interleukin-10 (IL-10) promoter polymorphisms in Southern Chinese patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and to investigate possible associations with clinical manifestations of the disease. METHODS DNA was extracted from 88 Chinese patients with SLE and 83 ethnically matched controls. The IL-10 promoter region between positions -533 and -1120 was amplified by polymerase chain reaction, and polymorphisms were detected by restriction-enzyme cleavage. RESULTS No significant difference in the allele or haplotype frequencies between SLE patients and controls could be demonstrated. The *A and *C alleles at the -597 position were linked to the *T and *C alleles at the -824 position, respectively. However, when clinical features were examined, the *A allele at the -597 position and the *T allele at the -824 position were significantly associated with lupus nephritis, by chi-square analysis (P < 0.001, odds ratio 4.19, 95% confidence interval 2.02-8.71). Similarly, the haplotype -1087*A/-824*T/-597*A was also associated with renal involvement (P < 0.001, odds ratio 3.62, 95% confidence interval 1.80-7.31). CONCLUSION IL-10 promoter polymorphisms are not strong determinants of susceptibility to the development of SLE, per se, in Southern Chinese individuals. However, IL-10 genotypes are strongly associated with certain clinical manifestations of SLE and may have a role in predicting disease prognosis.
Interleukin 4 in inflammatory bowel disease and mucosal immune reactivity.

BACKGROUND & AIMS Interleukin (IL) 4 has immunoregulatory and anti-inflammatory activities, but little is known about IL-4 in the human gut. We investigated production of IL-4 by isolated lamina propria mononuclear cells (LPMCs) from normal and inflamed intestine and its capacity to modulate local immune responses. METHODS IL-4 levels were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in cultures of control and inflammatory bowel disease LPMCs, and the effect of IL-4 on LPMC proliferation and interaction with IL-2, IL-1 beta, lipopolysaccharide, bacterial antigens, superantigen, and antibodies to various T-cell receptors was investigated. RESULTS Various stimuli induced LPMCs to produce IL-4, but inflammatory bowel disease cells expressed IL-4 messenger RNA and secreted protein in significantly lower amounts than control cells. IL-4 failed to stimulate proliferation by fresh LPMCs, but a vigorous dose-dependent response was observed after preactivation by phytohemagglutinin, IL-2, or IL-4. When added to fresh LPMCs, IL-4 inhibited IL-2-induced proliferation. IL-4 amplified proliferation to IL-1 beta, lipopolysaccharide, peptidoglycan-polysaccharide complexes, staphylococcus enterotoxin A, and antibodies to the CD3 and CD28 receptors but not to tetanus toxoid. CONCLUSIONS Decreased production of IL-4 in inflammatory bowel disease may cause defective immunosuppressive and anti-inflammatory mechanisms and may contribute to disease pathogenesis. The ability of IL-4 to differentially modulate LPMC reactivity probably influences mucosal immune homeostasis.
Incremental LLE for Localization in Sensor Networks

Received signal strength indicator (RSSI) gives a coarse initial measure of the inter-node distance at a low cost without the need for additional equipment or complexity. This necessitates the need for a mechanism to obtain accurate node locations from the noisy RSSI distance estimates. In this paper, an iterative nonlinear manifold learning technique, incremental locally linear embedding (ILLE), has been proposed for accurate node localization. The ILLE considers the one-hop neighborhood around the anchor nodes, as a reference structure. This structure grows iteratively to localize all the remaining sensor nodes in the network. Simultaneous localization mechanism further reduces the computational complexity of localization. Experimental results show that the ILLE is able to localize the nodes accurately in both normal and simultaneous scenarios. The ILLE is found to have higher accuracy in the typical scenario as compared with the simultaneous scenario. Results also indicate that the ILLE is able to localize sensor nodes with an increased accuracy of around 12.36% as compared with the centralized LLE and also outperformed other existing similar localization techniques.
Photodamage in a Mitochondrial Membrane Model Modulated by the Topology of Cationic and Anionic Meso‐Tetrakis Porphyrin Free Bases

The photodynamic effects of the cationic TMPyP (meso‐tetrakis [N‐methyl‐4‐pyridyl]porphyrin) and the anionic TPPS4 (meso‐tetrakis[4‐sulfonatophenyl]porphyrin) against PC/CL phosphatidylcholine/cardiolipin (85/15%) membranes were probed to address the influence of phorphyrin binding on lipid damage. Electronic absorption spectroscopy and zeta potential measurements demonstrated that only TMPyP binds to PC/CL large unilamellar vesicles (LUVs). The photodamage after irradiation with visible light was analyzed by dosages of lipid peroxides (LOOH) and thiobarbituric reactive substance and by a contrast phase image of the giant unilamellar vesicles (GUVs). Damage to LUVs and GUVs promoted by TMPyP and TPPS4 were qualitatively and quantitatively different. The cationic porphyrin promoted damage more extensive and faster. The increase in LOOH was higher in the presence of D2O, and was impaired by sodium azide and sorbic acid. The effect of D2O was higher for TPPS4 as the photosensitizer. The use of DCFH demonstrated that liposomes prevent the photobleaching of TMPyP. The results are consistent with a more stable TMPyP that generates long‐lived singlet oxygen preferentially partitioned in the bilayer. Conversely, TPPS4 generates singlet oxygen in the bulk whose lifetime is increased in D2O. Therefore, the affinity of the porphyrin to the membrane modulates the rate, type and degree of lipid damage.
Characterization of two potentially universal turn motifs that shape the repeated five‐residues fold—Crystal structure of a lumenal pentapeptide repeat protein from Cyanothece 51142

The genome of the diurnal cyanobacterium Cyanothece sp. PCC 51142 has recently been sequenced and observed to contain 35 pentapeptide repeat proteins (PRPs). These proteins, while present throughout the prokaryotic and eukaryotic kingdoms, are most abundant in cyanobacteria. The sheer number of PRPs in cyanobacteria coupled with their predicted location in every cellular compartment argues for important, yet unknown, physiological and biochemical functions. To gain biochemical insights, the crystal structure for Rfr32, a 167‐residue PRP with an N‐terminal 29‐residue signal peptide, was determined at 2.1 Å resolution. The structure is dominated by 21 tandem pentapeptide repeats that fold into a right‐handed quadrilateral β‐helix, or Rfr‐fold, as observed for the tandem pentapeptide repeats in the only other PRP structure, the mycobacterial fluoroquinoline resistance protein MfpA from Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Sitting on top of the Rfr‐fold are two short, antiparallel α‐helices, bridged with a disulfide bond, that perhaps prevent edge‐to‐edge aggregation at the C terminus. Analysis of the main‐chain (Φ,Ψ) dihedral orientations for the pentapeptide repeats in Rfr32 and MfpA makes it possible to recognize the structural details for the two distinct types of four‐residue turns adopted by the pentapeptide repeats in the Rfr‐fold. These turns, labeled type II and type IV β‐turns, may be universal motifs that shape the Rfr‐fold in all PRPs.
Perinatal expression of leptin in rat stomach

It has been reported recently that the stomach can produce and store leptin and release it, both into the blood and into the gastrointestinal lumen, in response to food intake. Here, we have followed the ontogenic pattern of leptin mRNA expression and leptin levels in stomach during the perinatal period, which were compared with adults. Leptin mRNA expression was assessed by reverse transcriptase‐polymerase chain reaction, and tissue leptin content by enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay and localised by immunohistochemistry. Leptin mRNA is expressed at low levels in rat stomach in prenatal stages. It increased from 4 to 8 hr of life in suckling rats, an increase not observed in the fasted pups, which were separated from their mothers immediately after birth. Leptin expression rose steadily after birth during the first month of life, with a marked increase from 15‐day‐old rats, followed by a parallel increase in leptin levels from day 21 of life, which was coincident with the change from suckling to a solid diet. The immunohistochemical analysis showed leptin immunoreactivity at different levels of the stomach mucosa, suggesting that during early development leptin could derive from different sources. During the pre‐ and neonatal periods, leptin is mainly located at the superficial epithelium (suggesting maternal origin from amniotic cells and mammary glandular cells, respectively). At the beginning of the chow diet, the stomach produces leptin in the glands (main source from 15 days of life), suggesting an endogenous production of the protein after that period. The present work demonstrates the expression of leptin mRNA and leptin protein in the stomach of neonate rats, and shows that the ontogenic profile of leptin appearance in the stomach during the perinatal period is probably related to the onset of suckling and to the change of diet from milk to solid chow. © 2001 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Modeling the impact of hepatitis C viral clearance on end‐stage liver disease in an HIV co‐infected cohort with targeted maximum likelihood estimation

Despite modern effective HIV treatment, hepatitis C virus (HCV) co‐infection is associated with a high risk of progression to end‐stage liver disease (ESLD) which has emerged as the primary cause of death in this population. Clinical interest lies in determining the impact of clearance of HCV on risk for ESLD. In this case study, we examine whether HCV clearance affects risk of ESLD using data from the multicenter Canadian Co‐infection Cohort Study. Complications in this survival analysis arise from the time‐dependent nature of the data, the presence of baseline confounders, loss to follow‐up, and confounders that change over time, all of which can obscure the causal effect of interest. Additional challenges included non‐censoring variable missingness and event sparsity.
Stochastic Investment Modelling: The Case of South Africa

ABSTRACT The purpose of this paper is to describe a methodology for determining an appropriate structure for time-series models of inflation rates, short-term and long-term interest rates, dividend growth rates, dividend yields, rental growth rates and rental yields and to demonstrate the application of that methodology to the development of a model based on South African data. It is suggested that the methodology used in this paper may be applied to other economic environments.
Protective Efficacy and Immunogenicity of an Adenoviral Vector Vaccine Encoding the Codon-Optimized F Protein of Respiratory Syncytial Virus

ABSTRACT Adenoviral vectors (AdV) have received considerable attention for vaccine development because of their high immunogenicity and efficacy. In previous studies, it was shown that DNA immunization of mice with codon-optimized expression plasmids encoding the fusion protein of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV F) resulted in enhanced protection against RSV challenge compared to immunization with plasmids carrying the wild-type cDNA sequence of RSV F. In this study, we constructed AdV carrying the codon-optimized full-length RSV F gene (AdV-F) or the soluble form of the RSV F gene (AdV-Fsol). BALB/c mice were immunized twice with AdV-F or AdV-Fsol and challenged with RSV intranasally. Substantial levels of antibody to RSV F were induced by both AdV vaccines, with peak neutralizing-antibody titers of 1:900. Consistently, the viral loads in lung homogenates and bronchoalveolar lavage fluids were significantly reduced by a factor of more than 60,000. The protection against viral challenge could be measured even 8 months after the booster immunization. AdV-F and AdV-Fsol induced similar levels of immunogenicity and protective efficacy. Therefore, these results encourage further development of AdV vaccines against RSV infection in humans.
T2 at MR imaging is an objective quantitative measure of cerebral white matter signal intensity abnormality in preterm infants at term-equivalent age.

PURPOSE To compare quantitative T2 relaxometry of cerebral white matter (WM) with qualitative assessment of conventional T2-weighted magnetic resonance (MR) images, to assess the relationship between cerebral WM T2 and region-specific apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC), and to examine WM T2 regional variation in preterm infants at term. MATERIALS AND METHODS The local ethical committee granted ethical permission for this study; informed parental consent was obtained for each infant. Sixty-two preterm infants born at less than 32 weeks gestation and nine control infants were examined at 1.5 T; T2-weighted fast spin-echo MR images, T2 relaxometry data, and diffusion-weighted MR images were acquired. Conventional T2-weighted MR images were assessed by a pediatric neuroradiologist for diffuse excessive high signal intensity (DEHSI) in WM. Regions of interest were positioned in frontal WM, central WM, and posterior WM at the level of the centrum semiovale. RESULTS In preterm infants at term, T2 was longer in all WM regions than in control infants; in infants with DEHSI, T2 was longer than in infants without DEHSI and control infants, with posterior WM T2 being longer than central or frontal WM T2. In control infants, T2 was similar in all WM regions. Frontal and posterior WM ADCs were higher in preterm infants at term than in control infants. CONCLUSION Cerebral WM T2 is an objective quantitative measurement that can easily and rapidly be obtained during clinical MR imaging in preterm infants at term.
Comparison of three procedures for biochemical testing of anaerobic bacteria

The Analytab Products, Inc. (API), anaerobic multitest microsystem (MICRO) was compared with the Center for Disease Control conventional (CONV) thioglycolate (supplemented with hemin and vitamin K1) system and with pre-reduced anaerobically sterilized (PRAS) media as recommended by the Virginia Polytechnic Institute. Growth from a solid medium was suspended to produce standard inocula. Substrates included 16 carbohydrates, indole, urea, gelatin, and esculin. API strips were inoculated in air and incubated in GasPak (BBL) jars. MICRO tests were read at 1 and 2 days. CONV tests at 1, 2, and 7 days, and PRAS tests at 3 weeks. One hundred thirty well-characterized strains of anaerobes (76 gram-negative rods, 16 cocci, 26 gram-positive nonsporeforming rods, and 12 clostridia), including 48 reference strains, were studied. Of 2,600 tests performed, 2,085 (80.2%) showed agreement with all three methods. There was 90.9% agreement between the MICRO and CONV, 84.9% between the MICRO and PRAS, and 84.6% between the CONV and PRAS tests. All MICRO tests were reliable except for indole, which was not sensitive enough, and gelatin, which was very insensitive. The MICRO system permits performance of biochemical tests at the workbench in the average clinical laboratory without the need for expensive equipment and time-consuming procedures.
Neurocognitive Impairment in Children Treated for Cancer: How Do We Measure Cognitive Outcomes?

As the number of childhood cancer survivors grows, more attention on the identification and management of late effects, such as neurocognitive decline, is needed. This study, investigating treatment with central nervous system (CNS) stimulants for cognitive changes related to pediatric cancer treatment, confirmed a common concern. How should neurocognitive decline be measured and followed up after cancer therapy? Multiple pediatric standardized cognitive tests are available, but there is no consensus on an efficient way to measure the most common areas of decline, specifically impaired concentration, memory, and mental processing speed. The authors' report recognized 12 pediatric patients at risk for cognitive dysfunction, of whom 3 tested positive for early neurocognitive deficits using 3 subscales of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—III (WISC-III), which measure working verbal memory (Digit Span), mental processing speed (Symbol Search), and psychomotor speed (Coding). To predict the expected level of performance on WISC-III subscales, the patients' IQ was estimated using the Wide Range Achievement Test—3 reading subtest. Patients were treated with long-acting CNS stimulants and followed up serially using the WISC-III subscales.
Modeling Time-Varying Correlations in Volatility Between BRICS and Commodity Markets

ABSTRACT This article investigates the asymmetric and long memory volatility properties and dynamic conditional correlations (DCCs) between Brazilian, Russian, Indian, Chinese, and South African (BRICS) stock markets and commodity (gold and oil) futures markets, using the trivariate DCC-fractionally integrated asymmetric power autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity (FIAPARCH) model. We identify significant asymmetric and long memory volatility properties and DCCs for pairs of BRICS stock and commodity markets, and variability in DCCs and Markov Switching regimes during economic and financial crises. Finally, we analyze optimal portfolio weights and time-varying hedge ratios, demonstrating the importance of overweighting optimal portfolios between BRICS stock and commodity assets.
Excitatory amino acid-induced inositol phosphate formation in cultured retinal pigment epithelium

Excitatory amino acid (EAA)-induced production of inositolphosphates (IPs) was studied in primary cultures of chick retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) following in vitro incorporation of [3H] myo-inositol. Glutamic acid (L-glu) significantly increased [3H]-IPs accumulation (215%). L-glu agonists stimulated [3H]IPs accumulation in the following order of efficiency: N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) ≥ L-glu > quisqualate ≥ kainate > (1S,3R)-1-aminocyclopentane-1,3-dicarboxylic acid (ACPD). Stimulation was dependent on external Ca2+. The NMDA-induced response was blocked by (+)-5-methyl-10,11-dihydro-5H-dibenzo-cyclohepten-5,10-imine maleate (MK-801) and 3-(2-carboxypiperazin-4-yl)-propyl-1-phosphonic acid (CPP) and was decreased by the L-Ca2+-channel blockers verapamil and nifedipine as well as by dantrolene. The metabotropic glutamate receptor (mGluR) antagonist (+)-α-methyl-4-carboxyphenylglycine (+)MCPG inhibited 3,5-dihydroxyphenylglycine (DHPG) and ACPD-induced stimulation, which demonstrates the presence in RPE of mGluRs 1 and/or 5, as well as NMDA receptors coupled directly, or through the influx of external Ca2+, to phospholipase C activation. L-glu agonists showed no effect either on basal level of intracellular cyclic adenosine monophosphate, nor on forskolin- or carbachol-induced stimulation of adenylyl cyclase. Since L-glu is released from the retina upon illumination, and receptors for this compound are present in RPE, the activation of the inositide pathway could be involved in the regulation of retina-RPE interaction, which is essential for the visual process.
[Three-year outcomes of the tension-free vaginal tape procedure for treatment of female stress urinary incontinence with low urethral closure pressure].

OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to assess, with long-term outcome, the effectiveness of TVT for stress urinary incontinence (SUI) with low maximum urethral closure pressure (MUCP) and to identify predicting factors for failure in this case. PATIENTS AND METHODS This is a bicentric retrospective study including women who underwent a TVT procedure for grade 3-SUI according to the Ingelman-Sundberg's scale. All patients had a low MCUP defined by PCUM < 30 or by the formula 110-the age+/-20% cmH2O. Urethral hypermobility was defined on physical examination and urodynamic investigations. TVT was the only operation performed. Patients were assessed at three months then at longer term with an average follow-up of three years and ever less than one year. RESULTS A total of 60 women 30 to 78 years old (mean age 55) were so operated. More than third of them (38%) had already been operated for incontinence. Thirty-eight percent had SUI without urethral hypermobility. Thirty percent presented bladder overactivity. The short-term evaluation found that, out of 58 patients, 70,6% cured, 10,3% improved and 18,9% classified as failure. The long-term evaluation, concerning 44 patients, found that 57% remained cured, 16% improved and 27% were classified as failure. Bladder overactivity was cured or improved in more than half of the cases (60%). Ten percent of de novo urgencies were noted, all of which persisted later on. For all that, as much as two thirds of these patients were satisfied with the TVT. Mean age of patients classified as failure, was higher (65 years). Previous SUI surgery did not modify the results. When the MUCP was < 20 cmH2O, success was present only one time out of two. The absence of urethral hypermobility decreased to a significant degree the probability of cure (38 vs. 82,6%, P < 0.01), and more still when bladder overactivity was associated (16,6 vs. 66,6%, P < 0.01). Postoperative voiding troubles constituted a pejorative factor for success of surgery. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION Even if results of TVT with low MCUP are worse, they do not remain less appreciable. When we confront the benefits awaited with this technique compared to the usually described complications, TVT must represent the first treatment of this indication.