Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
In vitro fertilization outcomes in treated hypothyroidism.

BACKGROUND Levothyroxine has been shown to enhance pregnancy outcomes in women with hypothyroidism requiring in vitro fertilization (IVF). However, the precise magnitude of these benefits remains to be determined. In particular, it has yet to be clarified whether levothyroxine may fully overcome the detrimental effects of hypothyroidism or, conversely, whether affected women remain at reduced prognosis for pregnancy outcomes. METHODS Patients who underwent IVF-intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) over a 3-year period were reviewed. Cases were deemed eligible if they were diagnosed with clinical or subclinical hypothyroidism and were receiving levothyroxine. Controls were two subsequently age-matched euthyroid women for every case. Both cases and controls were selected only if serum thyrotropin was ≤2.5 mIU/L. RESULTS In total, 137 women with treated hypothyroidism and 274 controls were included. Baseline characteristics of the two study groups were similar with the exception of body mass index, which was slightly higher among the cases (22.9±3.9 vs. 21.9±3.3 kg/m2, p=0.013). Most IVF-ICSI cycle outcome variables were also similar, with the exception of a higher rate of cancellation for poor response (3.6% vs. 0.7%, p=0.04), a longer duration of stimulation (10.9±2.2 vs. 10.1±2.0 days, p=0.001), a higher proportion of women failing to obtain viable embryos (17% vs. 7%, p=0.006), and a lower fertilization rate (75% vs. 86%, p=0.017) among cases. Conversely, the clinical pregnancy rate per started cycle, the implantation rate, and the live birth rate per started cycle did not differ; they were 36% and 34% (p=0.93), 28% and 22% (p=0.11), and 30% and 27% (p=0.50) in cases and controls, respectively. Subgroup analyses comparing women with (n=79) and without (n=58) thyroid autoimmunity and comparing women who were diagnosed with overt hypothyroidism (n=70) or subclinical hypothyroidism (n=67) failed to identify relevant differences. CONCLUSIONS In our population, IVF-ICSI outcome was not significantly hampered in women with adequately treated hypothyroidism. The magnitude of the detected differences in cycle outcome was mild, and we failed to document any differences for the most relevant outcomes, i.e., pregnancy rate, implantation rate, and delivery rate. In conclusion, adequate levothyroxine treatment maintaining thyrotropin serum levels below 2.5 mIU/L may overcome the detrimental effects of hypothyroidism.
Low-normal free thyroxine confers decreased serum bilirubin in type 2 diabetes mellitus.

BACKGROUND Bilirubin may confer cardiovascular protection because of its strong antioxidative properties. Both thyroid dysfunction and the diabetic state affect bilirubin metabolism. Here we tested whether low-normal thyroid function affects serum bilirubin among euthyroid subjects with and without type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). METHODS Serum total bilirubin, thyrotropin and free thyroxine (free T4), transaminases, insulin sensitivity (homeostasis model assessment), and lipids were measured in 74 T2DM and 82 nondiabetic subjects with thyrotropin and free T4 levels within the euthyroid range. RESULTS Bilirubin was positively related to free T4 in T2DM subjects (r = 0.370, p < 0.001), but not in nondiabetic subjects (r = 0.047, p = 0.68). In age- and sex-adjusted multiple linear regression analysis, free T4 was found to interact positively with the presence of T2DM on serum bilirubin (interaction term: β = 0.251, p = 0.024). This interaction remained present after additional adjustment for alcohol intake, aspartate aminotransferase and insulin sensitivity (interaction term: β = 0.222, p = 0.043), or alternatively for cholesterol and triglycerides (interaction term: β = 0.203, p = 0.057). CONCLUSIONS Lower free T4 levels within the euthyroid range confer decreased bilirubin in T2DM. Low-normal thyroid function could enhance atherosclerosis susceptibility in T2DM by decreasing serum bilirubin.
Neutrophils have a protective role during early stages of Leishmania amazonensis infection in BALB/c mice

Neutrophils are involved in the early stages of immune responses to pathogens. Here, we investigated the role of neutrophils during the establishment of Leishmania amazonensis infection in BALB/c and C57BL/6 mice. First, we showed an accumulation of neutrophils between 6 and 24 h post‐infection, followed by a reduction in neutrophil numbers after 72 h. Next, we depleted neutrophils prior to infection using RB6‐8C5 or 1A8 mAb. Neutrophil depletion led to faster lesion development, increased parasite numbers and higher arginase activity during the first week of infection in BALB/c mice, but not in C57BL/6 mice. Increased susceptibility was accompanied by augmented levels of anti‐L. amazonensis IgG and increased production of IL‐10 and IL‐17. Because IL‐10 is a mediator of susceptibility to Leishmania infection, we blocked IL‐10 signalling in neutrophil‐depleted mice using anti‐IL‐10R. Interestingly, inhibition of IL‐10 signalling abrogated the increase in parasite loads observed in neutrophil‐depleted mice, suggesting that parasite proliferation is at least partially mediated by IL‐10. Additionally, we tested the effect of IL‐17 in inflammatory macrophages and observed that IL‐17 increased arginase activity and favoured parasite growth. Taken together, our data indicate that neutrophils control parasite numbers and limit lesion development during the first week of infection in BALB/c mice.
DEVELOPING A PRIORITIZED LIST OF INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES: THE SPANISH EXPERIENCE

Objectives: Selecting technologies for formal assessment poses a great challenge to health technology assessment agencies. This study aims to contribute to the creation of a reference framework for the identification, filtering, and prioritization of new and emerging technologies which could be demanded in clinical practice within the next 1–2 years. Methods: Technologies were identified using a prevalidated systematic Medline strategy. They were classified by medical specialty and then sent to selected professionals belonging to the medical units or areas responsible for their application, until there was a minimum of three participants per health care setting. A self-administered questionnaire was drawn up and health professionals were asked to: (1) assess the degree of innovation of the technologies, and (11) score their foreseeable clinical impact on the basis of predefined prioritization criteria (n = 4). Intra-rater reliability was analyzed using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). Results: The Medline search yielded 246 potentially relevant technologies. When analyzed by health care area or unit, sixty-eight were deemed to be high-impact innovative technologies (median score >6), with ICCs ranging from 0.03 to 0.83. The final list resulting from the aggregate analysis comprised fifty-one technologies. Conclusions: This study constitutes an innovative contribution to horizon scanning, providing a systematic and reproducible basis for the identification and selection of relevant new and emerging technologies based on the views and values of health professionals involved in their use. In our opinion, the current proposal could be helpful and useful to many other organizations worldwide, serving to complement already existing strategies.
Immunity in urogenital protozoa

Innate and adaptive immunity play a significant role in urogenital infections. Innate immunity is provided by the epithelial cells and mucus lining along with acidic pH, which forms a strong physical barrier against the pathogens in female reproductive tract. Cells of innate immune system, antimicrobial peptides, cytokines, chemokines and adaptive immunity in the reproductive tract are evolved during infection, and a pro‐inflammatory response is generated to fight against the invading pathogen Trichomonas vaginalis, a primary urogenital protozoa, the etiological agent of human trichomoniasis, a curable sexually transmitted infection. The involvement of the urogenital tract by other protozoal infections such as P. falciparum, Trypanosoma, Leishmania, Toxoplasma, Entamoeba histolytica and Acanthamoeba infection is rarely reported. Trichomonas induce pro‐inflammatory and immunosuppressive responses in infected subjects. Multifactorial pathogenic mechanisms including parasite adherence, cysteine proteases, lipophosphoglycan, free radical, cytokine generation and Toll‐like receptors appear to interplay with the induction of local and systemic immune responses that ultimately determine the outcome of the infection. However, the involvement of urogenital pathogen‐specific immune mechanisms and effect of normal local resident flora on the outcome (symptomatic vs. asymptomatic) of infection are poorly understood. Moreover, immune interactions in trichomoniasis subjects co‐infected with bacterial and viral pathogens need to be elucidated.
Developmental potential of selectively enucleated immature mouse oocytes upon nuclear transfer

Selective enucleation (SE) was applied to germinal vesicle (GV) oocytes by removing the chromatin attached to nuclear envelope, and leaving the liquid contents of GV in the cytoplast. However, after reconstruction with 1/8 blastomeres or fetal fibroblasts (FFs) neither the maturation efficiency nor the frequency of normal (asymmetric) division was improved as compared with completely enucleated (CE) oocytes. Chromosomal aberrations introduced with somatic nuclei were not rescued in SE oocytes either. On the other hand, timing of maturation division in SE GV oocytes, but not in CE GV oocytes, reconstructed with GV‐karyoplasts was like in the control. After maturation and fertilization in vitro, SE oocytes reconstructed with 1/8 blastomeres developed nucleolated donor pronuclei, contrary to CE oocytes. The latter could be rescued with nucleoli‐containing nucleus, but not anucleolate nucleus, from a 1/2 blastomere. SE oocytes reconstructed with FFs contained nucleolated pronuclei upon activation, unlike CE GV oocytes. These experiments show that the ooplast nucleolar material and/or embryonic nucleolus are indispensable for pronuclei formation. SE oocytes reconstructed with 1/8 blastomeres or FFs failed to cleave after activation or in vitro fertilization. Control GV oocytes enucleolated before fertilization seized cleavage at the 6‐cell stage, as oppose to intact GV oocytes, which in 50.9% yielded morulae/blastocysts. These results suggest that ooplast nucleolar material is essential for the cleavage divisions. Activation of cumulus‐enclosed SE GV oocytes matured in hormone‐supplemented medium and fused to 1/2 blastomere‐karyoplasts, yielded morulae, and blastocysts in 45.5% and 23.4% of reconstructed oocytes, respectively. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 75: 1269–1280, 2008. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Elevated serum levels of transforming growth factor‐β1 in patients with colorectal carcinoma

Transforming growth factor‐β1 (TGF‐β1) acts as a potent inhibitor of cell growth and tumor progression but loss of this negative regulation can contribute to tumor development. Some studies have reported an association between disease progression and TGF‐β1 expression in patients with colorectal carcinoma, but their results were not always consistent.
Production of alpha 1,3‐Galactosyltransferase gene‐deficient pigs by somatic cell nuclear transfer: A novel selection method for gal alpha 1,3‐Gal antigen‐deficient cells

The objective of the present study was to isolate alpha 1,3‐galactosyltransferase (GalGT)‐gene double knockout (DKO) cells using a novel simple method of cell selection method. To obtain GalGT‐DKO cells, GalGT‐gene single knockout (SKO) fetal fibroblast cells were cultured for three to nine passages and GalGT‐null cells were separated using a biotin‐labeled IB4 lectin attached to streptavidin‐coated magnetic beads. After 15–17 days of additional cultivation, seven GalGT‐DKO cell colonies were obtained from a total of 2.5 × 107 GalGT‐SKO cells. A total of 926 somatic nuclear transferred embryos reconstructed with the DKO cells were transferred into eight recipient pigs, producing four farrowed, three liveborns, and six stillborns. Absence of GalGT gene in the cloned pigs was confirmed by PCR and Southern blotting. Flow cytometric analysis revealed that αGal antigens were not present in the cells of the cloned DKO pigs. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 75: 1372–1378, 2008. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Immunology in wild nonmodel rodents: an ecological context for studies of health and disease

Transcriptomic methods are set to revolutionize the study of the immune system in naturally occurring nonmodel organisms. With this in mind, the present article focuses on ways in which the use of ‘nonmodel’ rodents (not the familiar laboratory species) can advance studies into the classical, but ever relevant, epidemiologic triad of immune defence, infectious disease and environment. For example, naturally occurring rodents are an interesting system in which to study the environmental stimuli that drive the development and homeostasis of the immune system and, by extension, to identify where these stimuli are altered in anthropogenic environments leading to the formation of immunopathological phenotypes. Measurement of immune expression may help define individual heterogeneity in infectious disease susceptibility and transmission and facilitate our understanding of infection dynamics and risk in the natural environment; furthermore, it may provide a means of surveillance that can filter individuals carrying previously unknown acute infections of potential ecological or zoonotic importance. Finally, the study of immunology in wild animals may reveal interactions within the immune system and between immunity and other organismal traits that are not observable under restricted laboratory conditions. Potentiating much of this is the possibility of combining gene expression profiles with analytical tools derived from ecology and systems biology to reverse engineer interaction networks between immune responses, other organismal traits and the environment (including symbiont exposures), revealing regulatory architecture. Such holistic studies promise to link ecology, epidemiology and immunology in natural systems in a unified approach that can illuminate important problems relevant to human health and animal welfare and production.
Strategies for new and improved vaccines against ticks and tick‐borne diseases

Ticks infest a variety of animal species and transmit pathogens causing disease in both humans and animals worldwide. Tick–host–pathogen interactions have evolved through dynamic processes that accommodated the genetic traits of the hosts, pathogens transmitted and the vector tick species that mediate their development and survival. New approaches for tick control are dependent on defining molecular interactions between hosts, ticks and pathogens to allow for discovery of key molecules that could be tested in vaccines or new generation therapeutics for intervention of tick–pathogen cycles. Currently, tick vaccines constitute an effective and environmentally sound approach for the control of ticks and the transmission of the associated tick‐borne diseases. New candidate protective antigens will most likely be identified by focusing on proteins with relevant biological function in the feeding, reproduction, development, immune response, subversion of host immunity of the tick vector and/or molecules vital for pathogen infection and transmission. This review addresses different approaches and strategies used for the discovery of protective antigens, including focusing on relevant tick biological functions and proteins, reverse genetics, vaccinomics and tick protein evolution and interactomics. New and improved tick vaccines will most likely contain multiple antigens to control tick infestations and pathogen infection and transmission.
Mining Quality Documentation Data for Golden Outcomes

Increased data reporting requirements, reimbursement changes, and automation capabilities provide new challenges for home health care and public health agencies today. These factors have become the impetus for computerization of practitioner documentation. Standardized documentation systems such as the Omaha System allow agencies to describe client needs, service delivery, and related client outcomes and to generate powerful data when used consistently and reliably in practice settings. This article offers practical suggestions for assuring data quality as well as simple, effective analysis and reporting strategies. Several figures depicting Omaha System documentation data from diverse programs are included as examples.
Modulation of host immune responses to Toxoplasma gondii by microRNAs

To survive successfully, Toxoplasma counteracts the strictly regulated host innate response to downregulate inflammation that could be deleterious for the parasite. MicroRNAs are vital regulators of both innate and adaptive immunity, controlling the maintenance and development of immune progenitors as well as the differentiation and the functions of host mature immune cells. Thus, the complexity of mechanisms underlying the connection between Toxoplasma and host immunity has led to investigations of miRNAs as additional key molecular players. The knowledge acquired from these studies will be useful for aiding the discovery of new targets for diagnosis or therapeutic approaches for toxoplasmosis and insight into the interaction between host and parasite.
Team Building in an Exercise Class for the Elderly

Abstract This study examined the effectiveness of a 12-week team-building (TB) intervention on improving group cohesion and attendance in an ongoing exercise class for the elderly. Among a sample of 12 elderly exercisers, exercise class attendance was monitored before and during the TB intervention, and perceptions of selected measures of cohesion (i.e., group integration) were assessed at baseline and 12 weeks. Results indicated that class attendance increased by 22.2% during the TB intervention. As well, positive trends were evident in perceptions of cohesion. Together, these findings point to the importance of group factors in encouraging exercise behavior among the elderly.
Non‐sex specific genes associated with the secondary mitotic period of primordial germ cell proliferation in the gonads of embryonic rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss)

The purposes of this study were to quantify the secondary proliferation of primordial germ cells (PGCs) in both sexes of rainbow trout, determine if a sex difference in the timing of PGC proliferation and eventual pre‐meiotic number exists, and use microarray data collected during this period to identify genes that are associated with PGC mitosis. The experiments used vasa‐green fluorescent protein (vasa‐GFP) transgenic rainbow trout of known genetic sex that allowed for the identification and collection of PGCs in vivo. An increase was observed in the number of PGCs counted in the gonads of both female and male embryonic vasa‐GFP rainbow trout, from 300 to 700° days (water temperature in °C × days post‐fertilization). For both sexes, a statistically significant (P < 0.05) increase in the PGC number was first noted at either 350 or 400° days of development. By 700° days, a 20–50‐fold increase in germ cell number was apparent. No sex‐specific differences in the timing of PGC proliferation or number were notable in any of the families until 700° days. In conjunction, a custom microarray based on cDNA libraries from embryonic rainbow trout gonads was used to identify genes involved in PGC mitosis. Five genes were discovered: guanine nucleotide binding protein, integral membrane protein 2B, transmembrane protein 47, C‐src tyrosine‐protein kinase, and the decorin precursor protein. All the genes identified have not been previously associated with germ cell mitosis, but are known to be involved with the cell plasma membrane and/or cell signaling pathways. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 78:181–187, 2011. © 2011 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Lipovitellin constitutes the protein backbone of glycoproteins involved in sperm–egg interaction in the amphibian Discoglossus pictus

Our knowledge of the molecules that interact with sperm at the egg membrane is restricted to a short list. In the eggs of Discoglossus pictus, fusion with sperm is limited to a differentiated structure, the dimple, offering several advantages for detecting molecules involved in fertilization. Previous studies have identified fucosylated glycoproteins of 200, 260, and 270 kDa located at the surface of the dimple that are able to bind sperm in vitro. Here, we show that dimple glycoproteins and a protein represented by a 120‐kDa band released following gel‐into‐gel SDS–PAGE of both glycoproteins share the same N‐terminal amino acid sequence, which itself is similar to the N‐termini of Xenopus liver‐synthesized vitellogenin (VTG) and the lipovitellin 1. MALDI/MS mass spectrometry indicated that the 120‐kDa band is part of both gps 200 and 270/260. A 117‐kDa major protein of the egg lysate exhibits the same MALDI/MS spectrum, and LC‐MSMS indicates that this is a lipovitellin 1 (DpLIV) that coincides with the 120‐kDa band and is responsible for the formation of the 200–270‐kDa dimers. Therefore, lipovitellin 1 constitutes the protein backbone of the dimple glycoconjugates. In vitro assays using polystyrene beads coated with DpLIV or with its dimers indicate that significant sperm binding occurs only with DpLIV dimers. In amphibians, VTG is taken up by the oocyte, where it releases lipovitellins destined to form yolk. In Discoglossus, our data suggest that yolk proteins are also synthesized by the oocyte. The dimple forms in the ovulated oocyte following the exocytosis of vesicles that likely expose DpLIVs at their membrane. Indeed, in whole mounts of immunostained eggs, anti‐vitellogenin antibodies label only the surface of the dimple. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 78:161–171, 2011. © 2011 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Recent advances of immunohistochemistry for diagnosis of renal tumors

The recent classification of renal tumors has been proposed according to genetic characteristics as well as morphological difference. In this review, we summarize the immunohistochemical characteristics of each entity of renal tumors. Regarding translocation renal cell carcinoma (RCC), TFE3, TFEB and ALK protein expression is crucial in establishing the diagnosis of Xp11.2 RCC, renal carcinoma with t(6;11)(p21;q12), and renal carcinoma with ALK rearrangement, respectively. In dialysis‐related RCC, neoplastic cells of acquired cystic disease‐associated RCC are positive for alpha‐methylacyl‐CoA racemase (AMACR), but negative for cytokeratin (CK) 7, whereas clear cell papillary RCC shows the inverse pattern. The diffuse positivity for carbonic anhydrase 9 (CA9) is diagnostic for clear cell RCC. Co‐expression of CK7 and CA9 is characteristic of multilocular cystic RCC. CK7 and AMACR are excellent markers for papillary RCC and mucinous tubular and spindle cell carcinoma. CD82 and epithelial‐related antigen (MOC31) may be helpful in the distinction between chromophobe RCC and renal oncocytoma. WT1 and CD57 highlights the diagnosis of metanephric adenoma. The combined panel of PAX2 and PAX8 may be useful in the diagnosis of metastatic RCC.