Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Brain Metabolite Changes in Patients with Relapsing-Remitting and Secondary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis: A Two-Year Follow-Up Study

Magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) provides the unique ability to monitor several disease-related pathological processes via their characteristic metabolic markers in vivo. In the present study metabolic compositions were assessed every six months over the period of two years in 36 patients with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) including 21 relapsing-remitting (RR), 15 secondary progressive (SP) patients and 12 normal subjects. The concentrations of the main MRS-detectable metabolites N-acetylaspartate and N-acetylaspartylglutamate (tNAA), creatine and phosphocreatine (tCr), choline containing compounds (Cho), myo-Inositol (Ins), glutamine and glutamate (Glx) and their ratios were calculated in the normal appearing white matter (NAWM) and in selected non-enhancing white matter (WM) lesions. Association between metabolic concentrations in the NAWM and disability were investigated. Concentration of tNAA, a marker for neuroaxonal integrity, did not show any difference between the investigated groups. However, the patients with SPMS showed significant reduction of tNAA in the NAWM over the investigation period of two years indicating diffuse neuroaxonal loss during the disease course. Furthermore, we found a significant increase of Ins, Ins/tCr and Ins/tNAA in WM lesions independently from the course of the disease suggesting ongoing astrogliosis in silent-appearing WM lesions. Analyzing correlations between MRS metabolites in the NAWM and patients clinical status we found the positive correlation of Ins/tNAA with disability in patients with RRMS. In SPMS positive correlation of Cho with disability was found.
Changes in the thyroid gland of the male emballonurid bat, Taphozous kacchensis (Dobson) during the reproductive cycle.

Copyright: © Bansod and Dhamani, This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial No Derivs License, which permits use and distribution in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, the use is non-commercial and no modifications or adaptations are made. The thyroid gland showed marked seasonal variations in weight, quantity of colloid and epithelial height during various phases of reproductive cycle. Suggesting the thyroid gland to be inactive during sexually quiescence period and active during breeding period similarly to the testicular cycle. The body weight, thyroid gland weight and testis weight in sexually active bats is higher as compare with sexually quiescence bats. It is suggested that in Taphozous kachhensis the positive correlation between thyroid gland and testicular cycle occurs only during the phases of the reproductive cycle when the body weight and testicular activity are also closely correlated.
Effects of corticosterone treatment in laying Japanese quail

1. The effects of exogenous corticosterone on plasma corticosterone concentrations, body weight, food intake, the percentage of birds that laid an egg each day and egg weight were measured in laying Japanese quail. Data were collected from birds in the week before corticosterone treatment began, during a 21-d treatment period, and in the 22 d after treatment ended. 2. Groups of quail were treated with corticosterone at three different concentrations in their drinking water. Corticosterone intakes were calculated for each bird and birds were then assigned to 4 intake groups. The groups were 0 (control group), 0·31–0·60, 0·61–0·90, 0·91–1·50 or >1·51 mg corticosterone/bird/d. 3. Plasma corticosterone concentrations in the 4 intake groups increased from around 1 ng/ml on the day before corticosterone treatment began to maximum mean concentrations of 13–18 ng/ml on day 14 of treatment. Mean corticosterone concentrations did not change between day 14 of treatment and the day after treatment ended, and had decreased in only one of 4 intake groups one week later. 4. Mean body weight in the highest intake group remained significantly lower than in controls 22 d after corticosterone treatment ended. Whilst there was no clear effect of corticosterone on food intake during treatment, mean food intake in the three highest corticosterone intake groups was significantly lower than in controls in the week after treatment ended. The percentage of birds that laid an egg each day and egg weight were both decreased by corticosterone, and the percentage of birds that laid an egg each day remained significantly lower in the highest corticosterone intake group compared with controls in the third week after treatment ended. 5. It is suggested that elevated plasma corticosterone concentrations in quail after treatment ended were maintained by a hyperactive hypothalamo–pituitary–adrenal axis for at least one week. Although none of the negative effects of corticosterone were evident in the group of quail with the lowest corticosterone intakes, the findings of the present study show that corticosterone treatment can affect birds for up to several weeks after corticosterone intake ends.
Prevalence and risk factors of peripheral vascular disease in a selected South Indian population: the Chennai Urban Population Study.

OBJECTIVE The epidemiology of peripheral vascular disease has rarely been studied in non-European populations. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence and risk factors of peripheral vascular disease (PVD) among South Indians. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS The Chennai Urban Population Study is an epidemiological study involving 2 residential areas in Chennai in South India. Of the 1,399 eligible subjects (> or =20 years of age), 1,262 (90.2%) participated in the study. All of the study subjects underwent an oral glucose tolerance test and were categorized as having normal glucose tolerance (NGT), impaired glucose tolerance (IGT), or diabetes. Peripheral Doppler studies were performed on 50% of the study subjects, and PVD was defined as an ankle-brachial index (ABI) <0.9. RESULTS The prevalence rates of PVD were 2.7, 2.9, and 6.3% in individuals with NGT, IGT, and diabetes, respectively The overall prevalence rate was 3.2%. Known diabetic subjects had a higher prevalence of PVD (7.8%) compared with newly diagnosed diabetic subjects (3.5%). PVD was uncommon until middle-age and then the prevalence rate increased dramatically. Univariate regression analysis showed age >50 years (odds ratio [OR] 6.3, 95% CI 2.1-20.6, P<0.001) and hypertension (OR 2.7, 0.9-7.3, P = 0.08) to be associated with PVD, whereas smoking and serum lipid levels showed no association. Multivariate regression analysis identified age as the most significant risk factor for PVD. Of the 90 subjects who had coronary artery disease (CAD), only 6 had PVD, and the positive predictive value of the ABI for CAD was only 30%. CONCLUSIONS The prevalence of PVD in this urban South Indian population is considerably lower than that reported in European and U.S. studies and is in marked contrast to the high prevalence rate of CAD reported in this population.
Parametric Investigation of Thermoacoustic Instability (TAI) in a Rijke Tube: A Time-Delay Perspective

This paper presents a novel deployment of a recent mathematical paradigm for predicting the thermo-acoustic instability (TAI) of a Rijke tube in the relevant parametric space. This benchmark problem in combustion science has been studied for over 1½ centuries with phenomenal achievements both in theoretical and practical fronts. The new paradigm is called the Cluster Treatment of Characteristic Roots (CTCR), which is originally developed to assess the asymptotic stability of Linear Time Invariant (LTI) Time-delayed Systems (TDS). A notorious subcategory within LTI-TDS is called “Neutral TDS”, which matches the characteristics of the linearized dynamics of thermo-acoustic instability. The CTCR is shown to reveal a non-conservative and exhaustive linear stability map of the Rijke tube within the space of its geometric and operational parameters. We present a review of this paradigm as well as several case studies to demonstrate its capabilities and some encouraging comparison with the earlier literature. This paper is a concept document and it is prepared with the intent of providing a breeding ground for studies beyond its present coverage.
Multiple Arabidopsis genes primed for recruitment into C₄ photosynthesis.

C(4) photosynthesis occurs in the most productive crops and vegetation on the planet, and has become widespread because it allows increased rates of photosynthesis compared with the ancestral C(3) pathway. Leaves of C(4) plants typically possess complicated alterations to photosynthesis, such that its reactions are compartmented between mesophyll and bundle sheath cells. Despite its complexity, the C(4) pathway has arisen independently in 62 separate lineages of land plants, and so represents one of the most striking examples of convergent evolution known. We demonstrate that elements in untranslated regions (UTRs) of multiple genes important for C(4) photosynthesis contribute to the metabolic compartmentalization characteristic of a C(4) leaf. Either the 5' or the 3' UTR is sufficient for cell specificity, indicating that functional redundancy underlies this key aspect of C(4) gene expression. Furthermore, we show that orthologous PPDK and CA genes from the C(3) plant Arabidopsis thaliana are primed for recruitment into the C(4) pathway. Elements sufficient for M-cell specificity in C(4) leaves are also present in both the 5' and 3' UTRs of these C(3) A. thaliana genes. These data indicate functional latency within the UTRs of genes from C(3) species that have been recruited into the C(4) pathway. The repeated recruitment of pre-existing cis-elements in C(3) genes may have facilitated the evolution of C(4) photosynthesis. These data also highlight the importance of alterations in trans in producing a functional C(4) leaf, and so provide insight into both the evolution and molecular basis of this important type of photosynthesis.
Microbiological assessment of saliva from children subsequent to atraumatic restorative treatment (ART).

AIMS The aim of this study was to evaluate mutans streptococci (MS) in the saliva following use of the atraumatic restorative treatment (ART) technique. METHODS Sixteen 5-7-year-old children had restorations using the ART technique and employing FUJI IX glass-ionomer cement as the restorative material. Decayed tissue was manually excavated without local anaesthesia, being careful to avoid discomfort. Saliva was collected for microbiological assessment using Kit Caritest MS before treatment, one week, four weeks and one year after ART was used. The procedure for saliva collection, incubation, storage, and comparative reading of MS counts followed the manufacturer's instructions. The data were statistically analysed, using non-parametric tests (Wilcoxon Signed Ranks and Sign Test) at a significance level of 0.05. RESULTS The results showed a significant reduction of MS levels in saliva when comparing the results before treatment with those obtained one week (95.95%; P = 0.003), four weeks (93.27%; P = 0.000) and one year (95.56%; P = 0.002) after ART. CONCLUSIONS It is concluded from the results that the ART technique proved satisfactory and appeared to have produced a significant and sustained reduction in levels of MS. These results need to be confirmed in a larger study.
Outcomes following percutaneous coronary intervention in patients previously considered "without option": a subgroup analysis of the PACIFIC Trial.

OBJECTIVES The present study assesses clinical outcomes in patients from the Potential Angina Class Improvement From Intramyocardial Channels (PACIFIC) trial of percutaneous transmyocardial revascularization (PTMR) who had previously been considered "no-option," but who subsequently underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for continuing symptoms. BACKGROUND Patients with advanced symptomatic coronary artery disease who are not candidates for coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) or PCI comprise an important group, for which no established treatment is currently available. These patients have been described as having "no option," and are currently targeted for various experimental therapies. One such proposed therapy, PTMR, was recently examined in the PACIFIC trial. A subgroup of patients in this trial subsequently underwent PCI, although to initially qualify for the study they had previously been considered as unsuitable for PCI and as having "no option. " The therapeutic benefit of PCI for patients of this type is unknown. METHODS A retrospective analysis was performed on data obtained from all subjects of the PACIFIC study who underwent PCI within the 12-month follow-up period. RESULTS Ten subjects originally randomized to PTMR and 11 subjects from the medical treatment group underwent PCI. Most had undergone at least one prior PCI and at least one CABG, and there was a high prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors. Despite excellent immediate procedural success, PCI resulted in only modest, statistically nonsignificant increases in mean exercise duration, small improvements in angina status, and no significant improvements in quality of life. CONCLUSIONS These data suggest that PCI provides only marginal-if any-symptomatic benefit in these patients.
6th World Congress of the World Society for Pediatric Infectious Diseases (WSPID)

The 6th World Congress of the World Society for Pediatric Infectious Diseases (WSPID) was held in Buenos Aires, Argentina between 18 and 22 November, 2009. This is one of the biggest pediatric infectious disease assemblies in the world and it brought together pediatricians and pediatric infectious disease and vaccine experts. Numerous topics about pediatric infectious diseases were discussed during the congress. The scientific program focused on vaccines and vaccine-preventable diseases, including epidemiological and vaccine efficacy trials and updates on topics of childhood infectious disease. We summarize the current knowledge about some childhood vaccines and vaccine-preventable diseases, including rotavirus vaccines, conjugated pneumococcal vaccines (PCV-7, PHiD-CV and PCV-13), varicella, pertussis meningococcal and pandemic H1N1 vaccines. The next WSPID congress will be held in Melbourne, Australia between 16 and 20 November 2011.
Childhood, adolescent and adult age at onset and related clinical correlates in obsessive–compulsive disorder: a report from the International College of Obsessive–Compulsive Spectrum Disorders (ICOCS)

Abstract Objective: Many studies suggest that age at onset (AAO) is an important factor for clinically differentiating patients with juvenile and adult onset of obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD). The present international study aimed to assess the prevalence of different AAO groups and compare related socio-demographic and clinical features in a large sample of OCD patients. Methods: A total of 431 OCD outpatients, participating in the ICOCS network, were first categorised in groups with childhood (≤12 years), adolescent (13–17 years) and adult-onset (≥18 years), then in pre-adult and adult onset (≥18 years) and their socio-demographic and clinical features compared. Results: Twenty-one percent (n = 92) of the sample reported childhood onset, 36% (n = 155) adolescent onset, and 43% (n = 184) adult onset. Patients with adult onset showed a significantly higher proportion of females compared with the other subgroups (χ2 = 10.9, p< 0.05). Childhood- and adolescent-onset patients had been more frequently treated with cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), compared to adult-onset patients (χ2 = 11.5; p < 0.05). The pre-adult- versus adult-onset analysis did not show any additional significant difference. Conclusions: The present international multicentre study confirms that OCD onset occurs more frequently before adult age, with approximately one out of five patients showing childhood onset. Pre-adult onset was associated with higher rate of CBT, while adult onset was more prevalent in females.
Using Convolutional Neural Networks and Transfer Learning for Bone Age Classification

The bone age of a child indicates the skeletal and biological maturity of an individual. The most commonly applied clinical methods for Bone Age Assessment (BAA) are based on the visual examination of ossification of individual bones in radiographs of the left hand and the wrist by comparing with standard hand atlas. This kind of method is highly subjective and the performance extremely depends on practitioners' experiences. This paper investigates the use of Deep Convolutional Neural Networks (DCNNs) for the automatic bone age assessment. As there exists no large-scale annotated medical image dataset comparable to ImageNet for medical image analysis, this paper uses transfer learning within DCNNs to perform bone age classifications making full use of advantages of DCNNs. We define various Regions of Interest (ROIs) based on domain knowledge, for each of which a local bone age classification model is achieved by fine-tuning the pre-trained VGGNet with corresponding ROI patches. A final bone age classification is obtained by fusing multiple regional models. The results show that the proposed approach outperforms the current state-of-the-art classification methods in BAA with small dataset.
Restoration of the Acute Insulin Response by Sodium Salicylate: A Glucose Dose-related Phenomenon

Adult-onset diabetics have markedly diminished or absent acute insulin responses to glucose that can be partially restored by sodium salicylate infusion. To determine whether this restoration of the acute insulin response is glucose dose dependent and whether complete restoration can be achieved, adult-onset diabetics with a mean fasting plasma glucose value of 216 ± 20 mg. per deciliter (x ± S.E.) were stimulated with various doses of intravenous glucose. Restoration occurred in a glucose dose-dependent manner. Complete restoration could not be achieved with the maximal tolerable glucose dose (80 gm.). Second phase insulin secretion also improved in a glucose dose-dependent manner. These findings are compatible with the hypothesis that defective insulin secretion in adult-onset, hyperglycemic diabetics is not due to absolute deficiency of insulin but may be a result of defective recognition of glucose signals by pancreatic B-cells—a defect that can be partially reversed by sodium salicylate.
Personality traits as potential susceptibility markers: differential susceptibility to support among parents.

In this study, we examined whether parents are differentially susceptible to support from their spouse and adolescent child depending on their personality traits, and whether differences in susceptibility to support among parents, in turn, are linked to the quality of support parents give to their children. Participants in this three-wave longitudinal study were 288 two-parent Dutch families with an adolescent child. Fathers were on average 43.9 years old (SD = 3.7 years), mothers were 41.7 years old (SD = 3.3 years), and adolescents (50% girls) were 14.5 years old (SD = 0.8 years). We found that the association between support from children toward their parents and subsequent support from parents toward their children was more pronounced for parents high on Openness, for better and for worse. Extraversion, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, and Emotional Stability did not emerge as markers of differences in susceptibility. Also, parents did not differ in their susceptibility to support from their spouse, nor were differences in susceptibility found a year later when using data from a third wave. We found very modest support for differential susceptibility, only for Openness, and depending on the source of perceived support and on the timing of measurement.
Overload-protection methods for switching-mode DC/DC converters: Classification/ analysis/ and improvements

Switching-mode DC/DC converters must be protected against overload, to prevent failure of the converter or the external current-carrying hardware. This paper collects, classifies, analyzes, and evaluates the known protection methods, and describes a new negative-feedback frequency modulator which prevents short-circuit-current runaway. Test data prove the effectiveness of the new scheme.
EFFECT OF BREED AND PARITY ON GROWTH PERFORMANCE , LITTER SIZE , LITTER WEIGHT , CONCEPTION RATE AND SEMEN CHARACTERISTICS OF MEDIUM SIZE RABBITS IN HOT CLIMATES

This study aimed to investigate the differences among four medium breeds of rabbits (Rex, New Zealand White, California and Baladi Red) in productive performance and semen characteristics. Hundred twenty does, 7–9 months of age and 3–3.5 kg body weight from Rex, NZW, California, and Baladi Red. The numbers of 360 parities were analyzed to evaluate breeds effects. Traits studed were litter size and litter weight at birth, at14 days and at weaning. Mortality percentage from birth to weaning was calculated. Also, the analysis concerned 5120 ejaculates from 80 bucks from the 4 breeds of rabbits. The recorded traits were: pH, ejaculate volume, sperm motility, concentration, total number of spermatozoa per ejaculate, percentage of sperm normalcy and percentage of sperm abnormalities. The volume of each ejaculate was registered and an aliquot was separated for further analyses. Breed effect led to significant (P≤ 0.05) effect on litter size and litter weight at birth, 14 days and at weaning. Parities had significant (P≤ 0.05) effect on litter size and on litter weight at birth, 14 days and at weaning. California does recorded largest litter size and heaves litter weight at birth, at 14 days and at weaning. California does recorded significant higher conception rate (%), lower number of services per conception and lower mortality rate compared to the other breeds. Mean values of total ejaculate didn't differ (P>0.05) among breeds. California Bucks tended to have larger ejaculate volume, higher motility percentage, lower abnormal percentage and higher total live sperm compared to the other breeds. Key Word: Rabbits breed, parity, birth and weaning traits, semen characteristics, in hot climates.
[Susceptibility to lung cancer in Chinese is associated with genetic polymorphism in cytochrome P4502E1].

OBJECTIVE To investigate the genetic polymorphism of cytochrome P4502E1 (CYP2E1) as a susceptibility factor for lung cancer in Chinese population. METHODS The genotype frequencies of RsaI restriction fragment length polymorphisms were analyzed in 92 lung cancer cases and 137 frequency-matched normal controls. RESULTS The CYP2E1 c1/c1 genotype was found in 72.8% of lung cancer cases, which was significantly higher (P < 0.01) than that in controls (54.7%). By multivariate analysis, this genotype was found to be associated with a 2.5-fold increased risk of lung cancer (adjusted OR 2.5, 95% CI 1.8-3.8). Stratified analysis suggested an interaction between CYP2E1 c1/c1 genotype and cigarette smoking. The odds ratio (OR) for the CYP2E1 c1/c1 genotype, cigarette smoking and both factors combined was 3.9 (95% CI 1.1-15.2), 4.1 (95% CI 1.1-15.9) and 7.9 (95% CI 2.4-29.4), respectively. The interaction between CYP2E1 c1/c1 genotype and pack-years of cigarette smoking followed the same pattern, with a markedly increased risk in the heaviest smokers. CONCLUSION The CYP2E1 c1/c1 genotype is a susceptibility factor for development of lung cancer in Chinese and there is an apparent gene-environment interaction between the susceptible genotype and cigarette smoking.