Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An Electrophysiologic Correlate of Ouabain Inotropy in Canine Cardiac Muscle

Action potentials were recorded via intracellular microelectrodes, together with recordings of isometric-contractile tension, from isolated trabecular muscles of canine ventricle. The effects of administration of ouabain solution in concentrations varying from 1.7 × 10−7 to 5 × 10−4 M were recorded. The early inotropic effects of ouabain (increase in contractile force) were accompanied by changes in configuration of the action potential identical to those associated with interval-dependent potentiation in the control state, that is, abbreviation of phase 2 and lengthening of phase 3, without significant change in duration of the action potential. The progressive administration of ouabain, while associated with contractile enhancement of the regularly stimulated contraction was also accompanied by a loss of the contractile increment associated with poststimulation potentiation; this loss of interval-dependent potentiation corresponds to a loss of interval-dependent alteration of the action potential. Thus, both interval-dependent contractile potentiation and ouabain inotropy correlate consistently with phase 2 abbreviation of the accompanying action potentials.
Diabetes and the risk of prostate cancer

The relation between diabetes and prostate cancer risk was investigated in a combined analysis of two hospital-based case–control studies conducted in Italy and Greece, between 1985 and 1997. Cases were 608 men with incident prostate cancer, and controls were 1008 men admitted to hospital for acute non-neoplastic diseases. No material association between diabetes and prostate cancer was observed, with a multivariate odds ratio (OR) of 1.07 (95% confidence interval (CI) 0.68–1.66). Compared with men without diabetes, there was a non-significant increased risk of prostate cancer in those diagnosed with diabetes within the last 5 years (OR 2.04), while the ORs were 0.96 and 0.78 respectively for a diagnosis of diabetes 5–9 years and ≥10 years ago.
Orthoses as Enablers of Occupation: Client-Centred Splinting for Better Outcomes

Background. Orthotic intervention (splinting) may have become an end unto itself in the minds of therapists and clients rather than the means to enable optimal occupational performance. Some policy makers and payers seem to hold the belief that orthoses/splints are mere technical aids and as such do not require professional skill and expertise. Narratives. Three client stories demonstrate how iterative collaboration and follow-up help achieve client-identified objectives. Discussion. Client input is an important component of the process and an orthosis must fit into the person's lifestyle, especially if required for long-term use. Six essential considerations when providing orthoses to meet occupational goals are emphasized: client-centredness, comfort, cosmesis, convenience, less is more and follow-up. Use of the Canadian Occupational Performance Model for intervention planning and as an outcome measure is demonstrated. Practice Implications. Orthoses that are thoughtfully designed with client input and carefully constructed can make a difference in a person's life by relieving pain, providing protection and joint stabilization and enabling valued occupations.
Triatominae in Furnariid Nests of the Argentine Gran Chaco

ABSTRACT: Triatomines (Hemiptera, Reduviidae) are bloodsucking insects involved in the transmission of Trypanosoma cruzi, the causative agent of Chagas disease, an important public health problem in Latin America. The triatomine species found in sylvatic habitats generally play a limited epidemiological role compared to domestic species, but they may act as a reinfestation source of dwellings after insecticide spraying and have to be carefully considered in control strategies of Chagas disease transmission. The objectives of this work were to carry out a survey of the sylvatic triatomine species colonizing Furnariidae nests in a typical area of the Chaco region of Argentina during the winter and to study the parasites and natural enemies associated with the collected triatomines. Sixty-three triatomine specimens were collected from Furnariidae nests (Coryphistera alaudina and Phacellodomus sibilatrix) randomly selected within the study area. Fifty-four were identified as Psammolestes coreodes, seven as Triatoma platensis, and two as Triatoma infestans. Specimens of T. infestans and T. platensis were found in one nest. The first finding of instar nymphs of T. infestans x T. platensis in a sylvatic habitat is reported. For the first time, sylvatic collected specimens of T. platensis were found infected by T. cruzi. Triatoma virus was found in one Ps. coreodes specimen.
Physicochemical characterization of a new pineapple hybrid (FLHORAN41 Cv.).

The physicochemical characteristics (pH, total and soluble solids, and titratable acidity), sugars, organic acids, carotenoids, anthocyanins, volatile compounds, and cell wall polysaccharides of a new pineapple hybrid (FLHORAN41 cultivar) were measured throughout maturation and compared with the Smooth Cayenne cv. At full maturity, the FLHORAN41 cv. has a higher titratable acidity and soluble solids content than the Smooth Cayenne cv. The golden yellow flesh and red-orange to scarlet shell of ripe FLHORAN41 cv. fruits are due to carotenoid and anthocyanin levels that are, respectively, 2.5 and 1.5 times higher than those of the flesh and shell of the ripe Smooth Cayenne cv. , respectively. During maturation of the FLHORAN41 cv. , there was an increase in all classes of aroma compounds (mainly terpene hydrocarbons and esters), although their relative proportions were similar in both cultivars at full maturity. Cell wall polysaccharides undergo little change during maturation.
Willingness of patients with diabetes to use an ICT-based self-management tool: a cross-sectional study

Objectives To examine the prevalence of the willingness of patients with diabetes to use a self-management tool based on information and communication technology (ICT) such as personal computers, smartphones, and mobile phones; and to examine the patient characteristics associated with that willingness. Research design and methods We conducted a cross-sectional interview survey of 312 adults with diabetes at a university hospital in an urban area in Japan. Participants were classified into 2 groups: those who were willing to use an ICT-based self-management tool and those who were unwilling. Multiple logistic regression analysis was used to identify factors associated with the willingness, including clinical and social factors, current use of ICT, self-management practices, self-efficacy, and diabetes-related emotional distress. Results The mean age of the 312 participants was 66.3 years (SD=11.5) and 198 (63%) were male. Most of the participants (93%) had type 2 diabetes. Although only 51 (16%) currently used ICT-based self-management tools, a total of 157 (50%) expressed the willingness to use such a tool. Factors associated with the willingness included: not having nephropathy (OR=2.02, 95% CI 1.14 to 3.58); outpatient visits once a month or more (vs less than once a month, OR=2.13, 95% CI 1.13 to 3.99); current use of personal computers and/or smartphones (OR=4.91, 95% CI 2.69 to 8.98); and having greater diabetes-related emotional distress (OR=1.10, 95% CI 1.01 to 1.20). Conclusions Approximately half of the patients showed interest in using an ICT-based self-management tool. Willing patients may expect ICT-based self-management tools to complement outpatient visits and to make self-management easier. Starting with patients who display the willingness factors might optimize programs based on such tools.
Topography-guided transepithelial PRK after intracorneal ring segments implantation and corneal collagen CXL in a three-step procedure for keratoconus.

PURPOSE To present the results of topography-guided transepithelial photorefractive keratectomy (PRK) after intracorneal ring segments implantation followed by corneal collagen cross-linking (CXL) for keratoconus. METHODS In this prospective case series, 10 patients (16 eyes) with progressive keratoconus were included. All patients underwent topography-guided transepithelial PRK after Keraring intracorneal ring segments (Mediphacos Ltda) implantation, followed by CXL treatment. The follow-up period was 6 months after the last procedure for all patients. Time interval between both intracorneal ring segments implantation and CXL and between CXL and topography-guided transepithelial PRK was 6 months. RESULTS LogMAR mean uncorrected distance visual acuity and mean corrected distance visual acuity were significantly improved (P<.05) from 1.14±0.36 and 0.75±0.24 preoperatively to 0.25±0.13 and 0.13±0.06 after the completion of the three-step procedure, respectively. Mean spherical equivalent refraction was significantly reduced (P<.05) from -5.66±5.63 diopters (D) preoperatively to -0.98±2.21 D after the three-step procedure. Mean steep and flat keratometry values were significantly reduced (P<.05) from 54.65±5.80 D and 47.80±3.97 D preoperatively to 45.99±3.12 D and 44.69±3.19 D after the three-step procedure, respectively. CONCLUSIONS Combined topography-guided transepithelial PRK with intracorneal ring segments implantation and CXL in a three-step procedure seems to be an effective, promising treatment sequence offering patients a functional visual acuity and ceasing progression of the ectatic disorder. A longer follow-up and larger case series are necessary to thoroughly evaluate safety, stability, and efficacy of this innovative procedure.
Cognitive changes, critical sessions, and sudden gains in cognitive-behavioral therapy for depression.

Using an independent cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) data set, the authors replicated T. Z. Tang and R. J. DeRubeis' (1999) discovery of sudden gains--sudden and large decreases in depression severity in a single between-session interval. By incorporating therapy session transcripts, the authors of this study improved the reliability of the Patient Cognitive Change Scale to . 75 and found that these CBT sudden gains were also preceded by substantial cognitive changes in the pregain sessions.
Otomycosis: An experimental evaluation of six antimycotic agents

One hundred-and eight-six fungi were isolated from one hundred-and-eighty cases clinically diagnosed as otomycosis. They comprise 59 species of 26 genera of moulds, and 2 genera of yeasts. This large variety of mould isolates provided ample material for in vitro experiments, to evaluate the anti-fungal activity of six antimycotic substances found in the preparations currently used for the treatment of otomycosis. The antifungal activity of clotrimazole and tolnaftate in vitro was evident. For over 94 per cent of the 59 fungus species tested, the MIC was less than 0.1 micrograms/ml, and for 6 per cent it was between 0.4 and 1 microgram/ml. Concerning the other 4 antimycotic substances (iodochlorhydroxyquin, fluonilid, natamycine and polymyxin B sulphate) the MIC ranged from greater than 100 micrograms/ml to 1 microgram/ml for the majority of tested fungi. The clinical observations were mostly in accordance with these findings.
Comparison of EAP Thresholds with MAP Levels in the Nucleus 24 Cochlear Implant: Data from Children

Objective: The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between the electrically evoked compound action potential (EAP) thresholds and the MAP thresholds (T‐levels) and maximum comfort levels (C‐levels) in children implanted with the Nucleus 24 device. Design: EAP thresholds were measured using the Neural Response Telemetry system of the Nucleus 24 device. Twenty children implanted with the Nucleus 24 cochlear implant participated in this study. EAP thresholds were compared with the behavioral measures of T‐ and C‐level used to construct the MAP these children used on a daily basis. For these subjects, both EAP and MAP T‐ and C‐levels were obtained the same visit, which occurred at 3 to 5 mo postconnection. Results: EAP thresholds were shown to fall between MAP T‐ and C‐level for 18 of 20 subjects tested; however, considerable variability across subjects was noted. On average, EAP thresholds fell at 53% of the MAP dynamic range. Correlations between EAP threshold and MAP T‐ and C‐level improved substantially when combined with behavioral measures obtained from one electrode in the array. Conclusions: Moderate correlations were found between EAP thresholds and MAP T‐ and C‐levels for the children participating in this study. However, a technique is described for improving the accuracy of predictions of MAP T‐ and C‐levels based on EAP data combined with a small amount of behavioral information.
Soil CO2 Efflux in a Mixed Pine-Oak Forest in Valsaín (Central Spain)

Soil-surface CO2 efflux and its spatial and temporal variation were investigated in a southern Mediterranean, mixed pine-oak forest ecosystem on the northern slopes of the Sierra de Guadarrama in Spain from February 2006 to July 2006. Measurements of soil CO2 efflux, soil temperatures, and moisture were conducted in nine 1963-m2 sampling plots distributed in a gradient around the ecotone between Pinus sylvestris L. and Quercus pyrenaica Lam. forest stands. Total soil organic matter, Walkey-Black C, particulate organic matter, organic matter fraction below 53 μm, total soil nitrogen content, total soil organic carbon content, and pH were also measured under three representative mature oak, pine, and mixed pine-oak forest stands. Soil respiration showed a typical seasonal pattern with minimums in winter and summer, and maximums in spring, more pronounced in oak and oak-pine stands. Soil respiration values were highest in pine stands during winter and in oak stands during spring and summer. Soil respiration was highly correlated with soil temperatures in oak and pine-oak stands when soil moisture was above a drought threshold of 15%. Below this threshold value, soil moisture was a good predictor of soil respiration in pine stands. Greater soil organic matter, particulate organic matter, Walkey-Black C, total organic C, and total N content in pine compared to oak sites potentially contributed to the greater total soil CO2 efflux in these stands during the winter. Furthermore, opposing trends in the organic matter fraction below 53 μm and soil respiration between plots suggest that in oak stands, the C forms are less affected by possible changes in use. The effects of soil properties on soil respiration were masked by differences in soil temperature and moisture during the rest of the year. Understanding the spatial and temporal variation even within small geographic areas is essential to assess C budgets at ecosystem level accurately. Thus, this study bears important implications for the study of large-scale ecosystem dynamics, particularly in response to climatic change.
Plasmodium falciparum- and merozoite surface protein 1-specific antibody isotype balance in immune Senegalese adults

This study shows markedly different isotype distributions of antibodies to asexual blood stages of Plasmodium falciparum and to merozoite surface protein 1 in clinically immune Senegalese adults depending on the study site. The relationships between immunoglobulin M (IgM) and IgG and between IgG3 and IgG1 antibodies differed in settings where transmission is perennial compared to settings where it is seasonal. This suggests a role for antibody class and/or subclass production and utilization in the regulation of protective immunity to such antigens.
Comparison of management strategies for extreme prematurity in New Jersey and the Netherlands: outcomes and resource expenditure.

OBJECTIVE To quantify differences in resource expenditure in the perinatal period and long-term outcome of extremely premature infants who received systematically different approaches to neonatal intensive care. METHODS Perinatal management, mortality, prevalence of disabling cerebral palsy (DCP), and resource expenditure of 2 population-based inception cohorts of extremely premature infants born in the mid-1980s were compared. Electronic fetal monitoring, tocolysis, cesarean section delivery, and assisted ventilation were used to characterize management approaches. Participants included all live births at 23 to 26 weeks' gestation in a 3-county area of central New Jersey (NJ) from 1984 to 1987 (N = 146) and throughout the Netherlands (NETH) in 1983 (N = 142). Mortality and the prevalence of DCP were the primary outcomes. Numbers of hospital days with and without assisted ventilation were the measures of resource expenditure. RESULTS Electronic fetal monitoring (100% vs 38%), cesarean section (28% vs 6%), and assisted ventilation (95% vs 64%) were all more commonly used in NJ than in NETH. Ten percent of NJ deaths occurred without assisted ventilation, compared with 45% of Dutch deaths. A total of 1820 ventilator days were expended per 100 live births in NJ, compared with 448 in NETH. The increase in the number of nonventilator days (3174 vs 2265 days per 100 live births) did not reach statistical significance. Survival to age 2 (46 vs 22%) and the prevalence of DCP among survivors (17.2 vs 3.4%) were significantly greater in NJ at age 2 than in NETH at age 5. CONCLUSIONS Near universal initiation of intensive care in NJ, compared with selective initiation of intensive care in NETH, was associated with 24.1 additional survivors per 100 live births, 7.2 additional cases of DCP per 100 live births, and a cost of 1372 additional ventilator days per 100 live births.
An experimental study of the flow after shock interactions with cylindrical helium inhomegeneities

A shock traveling in air interacts with a laminar jet of helium flowing normal to the direction of shock propagation. Planar laser Rayleigh scattering is used to study the deformation and motion of the originally circular jet cross-section. The velocity of the jet before the shock interaction is much less than the velocities generated by the shock wave. Thus, the helium jet serves to create a cylindrical bubble of a lighter density gas imbedded in a heavier one. Four different shock Mach numbers (1.066, 1.14, 1.5, and 2.0) are studied. Two different jet/air density ratios are examined by using pure helium in the jet in one case, and a mixture of airlhelium in the other. After the shock interaction, a vortex pair forms from the baroclinically generated vorticity. The experiments measure the velocity of the helium relative to the surrounding air, the spacing between the vortex cores, and the circulation of the vortices. Experiments viewing the reflected shock interaction are also performed. Excellent agreement is found with previous computational studies.
The Quality of Qualitative Research

In general, an appreciation of the standards of qualitative research and the types of qualitative data analyses available to researchers have not kept pace with the growing presence of qualitative studies in medical science. To help rectify this problem, the authors clarify qualitative research reliability, validity, sampling, and generalizability. They also provide 3 major theoretical frameworks for data collection and analysis that investigators may consider adopting. These 3 approaches are ethnography, existential phenomenology, and grounded theory. For each, the basic steps of data collection and analysis involved are presented, along with real-life examples of how they can contribute to improving medical care. (Am J Med Qual 2008;23:389-395)
The economics of altruistic punishment and the maintenance of cooperation

Explaining the evolution and maintenance of cooperation among unrelated individuals is one of the fundamental problems in biology and the social sciences. Recent findings suggest that altruistic punishment is an important mechanism maintaining cooperation among humans. We experimentally explore the boundaries of altruistic punishment to maintain cooperation by varying both the cost and the impact of punishment, using an exceptionally extensive subject pool. Our results show that cooperation is only maintained if conditions for altruistic punishment are relatively favourable: low cost for the punisher and high impact on the punished. Our results indicate that punishment is strongly governed by its cost-to-impact ratio and that its effect on cooperation can be pinned down to one single variable: the threshold level of free-riding that goes unpunished. Additionally, actual pay-offs are the lowest when altruistic punishment maintains cooperation, because the pay-off destroyed through punishment exceeds the gains from increased cooperation. Our results are consistent with the interpretation that punishment decisions come from an amalgam of emotional response and cognitive cost–impact analysis and suggest that altruistic punishment alone can hardly maintain cooperation under multi-level natural selection. Uncovering the workings of altruistic punishment as has been done here is important because it helps predicting under which conditions altruistic punishment is expected to maintain cooperation.
The evolving role of sirolimus in renal transplantation.

Sirolimus (rapamycin) is a macrolide antibiotic isolated from the fungus Streptomyces hygroscopicus 1 first identified in soil samples from Easter Island. Structurally similar to the calcineurin inhibitor (CNI) tacrolimus (Figure 1), it shares its potent immunosuppressive properties, but with a novel mechanism of action (Figure 2). Initial clinical trials have focussed on its use as adjunctive therapy, substituting for the anti-metabolite azathioprine. However, given that it lacks the nephrotoxicity of the CNIs (cyclosporin and tacrolimus), it has the potential to supplant these agents as baseline immunosuppressive therapy following renal transplantation, and offers the added potential benefit of promoting immunological tolerance. Figure 1. Structure of sirolimus. Sirolimus (rapamycin) is a macrocyclic lactone structurally similar to tacrolimus (FK506). Figure 2. Mechanism of action of sirolimus (rapamycin). CD4-positive T cells recognize a complex of class II MHC and peptide present on the surface of antigen-presenting cells (APCs). This results in signalling via the T cell receptor (TCR) and activation of calcineurin, a phosphatase. Calcineurin dephosphorylates NFAT (nuclear factor of activated T cells) facilitating its transfer into the nucleus where it acts as a transcription factor regulating IL-2 production. IL-2, and other cytokines, in turn promote further T-cell activation and proliferation, following interaction with its cell surface receptor (IL-2R). Of note, T-cell receptor engagement alone is insufficient to produce an immune response. Co-stimulatory signals (prototypically via CD28) are also necessary to produce and sustain a T-cell response. T-cell receptor engagement in the absence of co-stimulatory signals is thought to produce tolerance by inducing non-responsiveness to specific antigens and promoting apoptotic deletion of the activated cells (activation-induced cell death, AICD). Cyclosporin and tacrolimus (FK506) act by binding to their respective immunophilins (cyclophilin/FK-binding protein, FKBP-12) with the resultant complexes producing calcineurin inhibition. The net effect is blockade of IL-2 production, resulting in inhibition of T-cell activation. Sirolimus (SRL) also binds … Address correspondence to: Dr A.N Warrens, Department of Immunology, Commonwealth Building, Hammersmith Hospital, Ducane Road, London W12 0NN. e-mail: a.warrens{at}ic.ac. uk