Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Hematogenous bacterial meningitis in an intercellular adhesion molecule-1-deficient infant mouse model.

Mice genetically deficient in the gene encoding for intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) production were compared with wild-type mice after injection with Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) or Streptococcus pneumoniae. The incidence of Hib bacteremia was greater in the ICAM-1-deficient mice than wild-type mice (P = .007), but mortality was greater for wild-type mice at 24 h (P = .03). In contrast, the incidence of S. pneumoniae bacteremia was equivalent but mortality was greater in ICAM-1-deficient mice at 24 h (P = .0003). More ICAM-1-deficient mice had cerebrospinal fluid cultures (CSF) positive for Hib (P = .04), whereas all animals at sacrifice had CSF cultures positive for S. pneumoniae. CSF white blood cell counts and histology of the meninges and cochlea were no different between groups for either organism. ICAM-1 deficiency may be protective early in Hib infection but has a detrimental effect in S. pneumoniae infection.
Repeatability, reproducibility, and agreement between three different Scheimpflug systems in measuring corneal and anterior segment biometry.

PURPOSE To assess the reliability of three different Scheimpflug systems and their agreement. METHODS Eighty-four eyes of 42 patients were examined with three Scheimpflug devices: the Galilei G2 Dual Scheimpflug Analyzer (Ziemer Ophthalmic Systems AG, Port, Switzerland), Pentacam HR system (Oculus Optikgerate GmbH, Wetzlar, Germany), and Sirius 3D imaging system (Costruzione Strumenti Oftalmici, Florence, Italy). The central corneal thickness, maximum anterior and posterior corneal elevation, anterior radius of curvature, total higher-order aberrations, and anterior chamber depth were evaluated. Repeatability and re-producibility were evaluated using coefficients of variation and intraclass correlation coefficients. Interdevice agreement was assessed by Bland-Altman comparison analysis. RESULTS The three Scheimpflug systems had excellent repeatability for central corneal thickness, anterior radius of curvature, and anterior chamber depth (coefficients of variation being less than 1%). Repeatability for anterior and posterior corneal evaluation was good for the Pentacam HR and Galilei G2 (coefficients of variation < 10%) and excellent for the Sirius 3D (coefficients of variation = 0). Reproducibility was excellent in the three devices, (intraclass correlation coefficient of more than 0.9). Interdevice agreement was excellent (P > .05) for anterior radius of curvature, central corneal thickness, and anterior chamber depth, but was poor (P < .05) for corneal elevation and higher-order aberrations. CONCLUSIONS Reliability was good to excellent in the three devices for all measured variables. Interdevice agreement analysis suggests that measurements for anterior radius of curvature, central corneal thickness, and anterior chamber depth, but not for maximum anterior and posterior corneal elevation and total higher-order aberrations, from the Sirius 3D and Galilei G2 can be interchangeable with the Pentacam HR.
Safety and Immunogenicity of a Novel Recombinant Simian Adenovirus ChAdOx2 as a Vectored Vaccine

Adenovirus vectored vaccines are a highly effective strategy to induce cellular immune responses which are particularly effective against intracellular pathogens. Recombinant simian adenovirus vectors were developed to circumvent the limitations imposed by the use of human adenoviruses due to widespread seroprevalence of neutralising antibodies. We have constructed a replication deficient simian adenovirus-vectored vaccine (ChAdOx2) expressing 4 genes from the Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis (AhpC, Gsd, p12 and mpa). Safety and T-cell immunogenicity results of the first clinical use of the ChAdOx2 vector are presented here. The trial was conducted using a ‘three-plus-three’ dose escalation study design. We demonstrate the vaccine is safe, well tolerated and immunogenic.
Association Between Thyroid Disorders and Colorectal Cancer Risk in Adult Patients in Taiwan

Key Points Question Are thyroid disorders associated with colorectal cancer risk in an East Asian population? Findings In this case-control study that included 139 426 adults in Taiwan with or without a diagnosis of primary colorectal cancer, both hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism appeared to be associated with a statistically significantly decreased risk of colorectal cancer diagnosis. Meaning Given these findings, it appears that biochemical in vivo research and epidemiologic studies are needed to further clarify the nature of the association found between thyroid disease and colorectal cancer and may potentially advance the therapies for colorectal cancer.
Staging early cervical cancer in China: data from a multicenter collaborative

Background In 2018 the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) revised the staging system of cervical cancer. This study aimed to assess the quality of staging early cervical cancer in China before the revision. Methods This multicenter retrospective study included 34 tertiary hospitals in China. Medical records of patients with cervical cancer who underwent primary surgical treatment between January 2010 and December 2015 were reviewed retrospectively. All patients were clinically staged according to the 2009 FIGO staging system. Eligibility criteria included: histopathologically confirmed cervical cancer; 2009 FIGO stage IA–IIA2 based on 2009 FIGO staging system; primary surgical treatment including extrafascial, type II or type III radical hysterectomy; radical trachelectomy; with or without pelvic lymphadenectomy; regardless of surgical route via laparotomy or laparoscopy; and complete clinical and pathological data. Patients who received non-surgical treatment, neoadjuvant treatment, or those with incomplete data were excluded. The accuracy of clinical staging was assessed by comparison between clinical and pathologic stage using the latter as the reference standard. Results A total of 23 933 cases of cervical cancer were identified and 12 681 fulfilled the inclusion criteria. Of these patients, 69.6% were staged accurately, 9.4% were clinically understaged, and 21.0% were clinically overstaged. The accuracy of stage IA, IB1, IB2, IIA1, and IIA2 was 90.0%, 87.5%, 57.4%, 20.3%, and 25.5%, respectively. The causes of stage inaccuracy were as follows: vaginal involvement (62.3%), maximal tumor diameter (24.6%), extent of cervical stromal invasion (7.1%), parametrial invasion (5.8%), bladder or rectal infiltration (0.1%), and distant metastases (0.1%). Conclusion The accuracy of staging early cervical cancer in China was suboptimal before the revision of the staging system, especially for IIA1 and IIA2. The most common reasons for staging inaccuracy were vaginal involvement and tumor diameter.
Expression levels of cathepsin L and cystatin C in a hyperglycemic environment were associated with aortic aneurysm development in a mouse model

Objectives Diabetes mellitus (DM) attenuates the development of aortic aneurysms (AA). This study investigated the expression of cathepsin L and cystatin C in a hyperglycemic environment, and the influence of these proteins on AA development. Methods Mice were divided into AA and DM+AA groups (n=30 per group). DM was induced by injection of streptozotocin; AA was induced by injection of angiotensin II. Doppler examination was used to measure aortic diameter, and Weigert’s elastic stain was used to detect elastin degradation. Cathepsin L and cystatin C in aortic tissue were examined by western blotting, immunohistochemistry, and polymerase chain reaction. Results Aortic diameter in the DM+AA group was less than that in the AA group, and elastin fragmentation grade of the aortic wall was reduced in the DM+AA group. More cathepsin L-positive cells were observed in the AA group than in the DM+AA group; conversely, more cystatin C-positive cells were observed in the DM+AA group than in the AA group. Both protein and mRNA levels of cathepsin L and cystatin C showed similar trends to those observed in immunohistochemistry. Conclusions Expression levels of cathepsin L and cystatin C in a hyperglycemic environment were associated with AA development in a mouse model.
Viral load and clinical manifestations of hepatitis E virus genotype 3 infections

A fraction of plasma donations undergoes hepatitis E virus (HEV) RNA screening since late 2014 in France. The aim of this study was to determine the frequency of HEV RNA as well as the viral load and the evolution of genotype distribution over a 3‐year period (2015‐2017) in asymptomatic blood donors in comparison with symptomatic patients routinely diagnosed. The overall detection rate of HEV RNA in plasma donations was 0.10% during the 3‐year period, with a median viral load of 717 IU/mL (range: <60‐168 000 IU/mL) in the 189 samples found HEV RNA positive. One hundred and twenty samples (64.4%) were successfully HEV genotyped. Most strains were HEV3f (n = 54; 44.3%) and HEV3c (n = 46; 37.7%). The genotype distribution was not different throughout the 3‐year period and we found no association between the genotype and where the blood donors lived (P = 0.96). The HEV genotype distributions in infected blood donors and symptomatic patients were similar. However, the symptomatic patients had a higher viral load (median 282 000 IU/mL; range: <60‐136 000 000 IU/mL; P < 0.01) than the blood donors. Overall, asymptomatic blood donors and patients with symptomatic hepatitis E had similar genotype distributions but the blood donors had lower viral loads.
Family resemblance for fasting blood glucose: the Jerusalem Lipid Research Clinic

Familial aggregation of fasting plasma glucose was studied in a sample of families examined at the Jerusalem Lipid Research Clinic. We first examined homogeneity of familial correlations across major origin groups in the Israeli sample. Correlations were generally homogeneous across origin groups, except for mother‐son pairs. The pooled familial correlations were relatively low for unadjusted blood glucose values, and somewhat higher upon adjustment for sex, age, ethnicity, education, seasonality, body mass, cigarette smoking, alcohol consumption and dietary intake. Genetic and cultural determinants of blood glucose were estimated utilizing a path model with 10 parameters to be estimated from a total of 16 correlations. Under a reduced model genetic heritability (h2) was estimated to be 0.18±0.08 and cultural heritability (c2) was 0.10 4±0.02. However, within this population the additive variation could be explained by a cultural model of inheritance without introducing genetic parameters, and most of the variance is due to “random” unmeasured environmental factors. Commingling analysis was also performed, and our findings imply that there is no evidence for admixture in the distribution of fasting blood glucose in this Israeli population sample.
Bacterial scattering in microfluidic crystal flows reveals giant active Taylor–Aris dispersion

Significance The fluid habitats of swimming microbes are characterized by heterogeneous flow, typical of groundwater and marine turbulence, which can augment cell transport in unexpected ways and affect important processes ranging from biogeochemical cycling to disease transmission. Following in the footsteps of century-old light diffraction techniques, the scattering of bacteria in microfluidic crystal flows reveals how cell shape and motility couple to hydrodynamic gradients, giving rise to observed filamentous cell density patterns. Consequently, hindered bacterial mobility transverse to the flow greatly enhances downstream dispersal. These results illustrate the stark contrast of active matter transport with passive Brownian particles and may provide insights into microbial ecosystems, biomedical device design, and the guidance of swimming microrobots. The natural habitats of planktonic and swimming microorganisms, from algae in the oceans to bacteria living in soil or intestines, are characterized by highly heterogeneous fluid flows. The complex interplay of flow-field topology, self-propulsion, and porous microstructure is essential to a wide range of biophysical and ecological processes, including marine oxygen production, remineralization of organic matter, and biofilm formation. Although much progress has been made in the understanding of microbial hydrodynamics and surface interactions over the last decade, the dispersion of active suspensions in complex flow environments still poses unsolved fundamental questions that preclude predictive models for microbial transport and spreading under realistic conditions. Here, we combine experiments and simulations to identify the key physical mechanisms and scaling laws governing the dispersal of swimming bacteria in idealized porous media flows. By tracing the scattering dynamics of swimming bacteria in microfluidic crystal lattices, we show that hydrodynamic gradients hinder transverse bacterial dispersion, thereby enhancing stream-wise dispersion ∼100-fold beyond canonical Taylor–Aris dispersion of passive Brownian particles. Our analysis further reveals that hydrodynamic cell reorientation and Lagrangian flow structure induce filamentous density patterns that depend upon the incident angle of the flow and disorder of the medium, in striking analogy to classical light-scattering experiments.
Clonal sequence tracking reveals TET2-mutated extranodal NK/T-cell lymphoma disseminated independent of Epstein Barr virus

Extranodal NK/T-cell lymphoma (ENKTL), nasal type, is an aggressive Epstein Barr virus (EBV)-associated lymphoproliferative malignancy with either cytotoxic Tor NK-cell phenotypes. The role of EBV in the mechanism of lymphoma development has been well-recognized whereas the absence of EBV usually negates the diagnosis. In this intriguing case, however, by tracking the common somatic mutations, TET2 and DNMT3A, we showed that the cutaneous dissemination of the nasal type ENKTL was not associated with EBV. This observation might reshape the understanding of the timing of EBV-involving lymphomagenesis. An otherwise healthy 67-year-old man presented with a nasal tumor, a dark plaque with an erythematous margin on his left cheek, and progressive dissemination of papules on the abdominal skin. Biopsies of both the nasal tumor and facial plaque were taken at the same time. The nasal tumor showed dense intermediate to large-sized lymphoid cell infiltration with coarse chromatin and brisk mitosis. Angiocentricity, necrosis, and pseudoepitheliomatous hyperplasia of nasal epithelium were noted (Figure 1A, B). By immunohistochemistry, the lymphoid cells showed cytotoxic T-cell or NK-cell phenotypes that were negative for CD20, CD4, CD56 and positive for CD3, CD2, CD5(focal), CD8, TIA1, granzyme B (Figure 1C). The tumor cells were diffusely positive for EBV by EBV-encoded small RNA1 (EBER1) in situ hybridization and EBV latent membrane protein 1 (LMP1) (Figure 1D). Additional immunostaining revealed they were negative for CD30 and bF1 while positive for T-cell receptor g (TCRg) (Figure 1E). The skin papules showed the same microscopic and immunohistochemical phenotypes as the nasal counterpart (Figure 2A-C), mostly in the dermis without epidermotropism. Surprisingly, the tumor cells in the skin were negative for EBV by EBER1 in situ hybridization (Figure 2D) and LMP1. Poor RNA quality was excluded due to the good staining of the RNA in situ hybridization control. Additional immunostaining revealed that the tumor cells were also negative for CD30, bF1, and TCRg (Figure 2E). To assess the lymphoma clonal evolution, we employed a next generation sequencing based TCR gene rearrangement assay (LymphoTrack® TRG – MiSeq, Invivoscribe, Inc. San Diego, CA, USA) analyzing the formalin-fixed paraffin embedded samples of both tumor sites. Monoclonality was detected in the nasal and skin tumor. The nasal tumor was predominantly formed of a single clone of lymphoid cells (TCRg: Vg2-Jg1/2; Vg4Jg1/2 with 35-46% of total reads) whereas the major cutaneous clone (TCRg: Vg3-Jg1/2; Vg8-Jg1/2 with 3436% of total reads) constituted approximately 6% of the nasal tumor (Figures 1I, 2I). The major clone in the nasal tumor had an in-frame rearrangement; whereas the major cutaneous clone contained only out-of-frame
United States Pulmonary Hypertension Scientific Registry (USPHSR): rationale, design, and clinical implications

Diagnostic World Health Organization (WHO) Group 1 pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and Diagnostic Group 1' pulmonary veno-occlusive disease (PVOD) and/or pulmonary capillary hemangiomatosis (PCH) are progressive and fatal disorders. Past registries provided important insights into these disorders, but did not include hormonal exposures or genomic data. The United States Pulmonary Hypertension Scientific Registry (USPHSR) will provide demographic, physiologic, anorexigen and hormone exposure, genomic, and survival data in the current therapeutic era for 499 patients diagnosed with PAH, PVOD, or PCH. The USPHSR also will explore the relationship between pharmacologic, non-pharmacologic, and dietary hormonal exposures and the increased risk for women to develop idiopathic or heritable PAH.
Prevalence, intensity and risk factors of tungiasis in Kilifi County, Kenya II: Results from a school-based observational study

Introduction Awareness of the public health importance of tungiasis has been growing in East Africa in recent years, but data on epidemiological characteristics necessary for the planning and implementation of control measures do not exist. The work presented here was part of a larger cross-sectional study on the epidemiology of tungiasis in coastal Kenya and aims at identifying risk factors of tungiasis and severe disease in school children. Methods A total of 1,829 students of all age groups from five schools and 56 classes were clinically examined for tungiasis on their feet based on standardized procedures and observations made about the school infrastructure. To investigate the impact of school holidays, observations were repeated after school holidays in a subset of children in one school. In an embedded case-control study, structured interviews were conducted with 707 students in the five schools to investigate associations between tungiasis and household infrastructure, behaviour and socio-economic status. Results The overall prevalence of tungiasis was 48%; children below the age of 15 years were the most affected, and boys were twice as likely as girls to be infected. The highest risk of disease was associated with the socio-economic circumstances of the individual student at home. The study indicated that mild to moderate tungiasis could be reduced by a third, and severe tungiasis by over half, if sleeping places of children had hardened floors, whilst approximately a seventh of the cases could be prevented by sealing classroom floors in schools, and another fifth by using soap for daily feet washing. Conclusion There is a clear role for public health workers to expand the WASH policy to include washing of feet with soap in school-aged children to fight tungiasis and to raise awareness of the importance of sealed floors.
Quality of life and its correlates among a group of infertile Iranian women.

BACKGROUND Despite a high epidemiological burden, data concerning the impact of infertility on quality of life are controversial in western countries and little information is available for eastern countries. The aim of this study was to investigate women's health-related quality of life and its correlates in a group of infertile Iranian women. MATERIAL/METHODS In this cross-sectional study, women who visited the Majidi Infertility Center in Tabriz either for treatment or for basic examinations were studied. Structured and measurement-specific questionnaires for health-related quality of life and some psychological aspects of infertility were adapted from previous studies. The data were entered into a computer and statistically analyzed. RESULTS Twelve percent of the women seeking infertility treatment had poor and nearly half had good quality of life. No correlation was found between quality of life and age, length of married life, type of infertility, or length of time seeking treatment. There was a strong inverse correlation between irrational parenthood cognitions and quality of life. Economic pressure and psychological pressure from the community and family were inversely correlated with quality of life. CONCLUSIONS Considering the roles of irrational parenthood cognitions as well as community and family pressure on quality of life among infertile women, it appears vital to plan psychological consultations and educational programs both for infertile couples and their close relatives.
Impact of Rurality on National Trends in Thyroid Cancer Incidence and Long-Term Survival.

PURPOSE Thyroid cancer incidence is rising, possibly secondary to increased imaging and surveillance. Based on rural access to care disparities, we hypothesized that incidence would be greater in urban compared to rural counties with no significant difference in long-term survival. METHODS An observational study was performed on thyroid cancer patients using Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results data (2000-2012). Age-adjusted incidence rates, incidence rate ratios, and survival rates were calculated across rural-urban designations. FINDINGS Incidence rates were 11.2, 9.8, and 10.1 per 100,000 for urban, rural-adjacent, and rural-nonadjacent counties, respectively. Statistically significantly lower incidence was noted in rural-adjacent and rural-nonadjacent compared to urban areas. Five-year and 10-year survival was significantly lower in rural-nonadjacent counties compared to urban counties. CONCLUSIONS Higher incidence and increased long-term survival for thyroid cancer were noted in urban areas compared to rural areas. It is uncertain if rural-urban differences in long-term survival reflect health care disparities, differences in therapy, or other origins.
Comparison of Self-Etching Ceramic Primer and Conventional Silanization to Bond Strength in Cementation of Fiber Reinforced Composite Post

Various mechanical and chemical surface treatments have been proposed to improve the retention of fiber-reinforced composite post (FRCP), but the results are still controversial. The bond strength and durability of a self-etching ceramic primer, which was recently released as an alternative to etching and silane, are not yet known. This study aimed to compare and evaluate the push-out bond strength of different surface treatments of FRCPs after an artificial aging procedure. Four groups (n = 10) were established to evaluated FRCP surface treatments (dentin adhesive bonding; silane and adhesive bonding; hydrofluoric acid, silane and adhesive bonding; and a self-etching ceramic primer). They were bonded with dual-curing rein cement (Multilink N) and stored in distilled water at 37 °C for 30 days, then thermal cycled for 7500 cycles. After being sectioned into 1 mm thickness, each coronal and apical part was evaluated for its the push-out bond strength by a universal testing machine. Each debonded specimen was observed by an optical microscope and divided according to the failure modes. The results showed that silane treatment significantly improved push-out bond strength, but the self-etching ceramic primer did not do so. Additional hydrofluoric acid treatment or the adhesive bonding agent alone did not significantly improve the retention of FRCPs. Cohesive failure of the luting material was found most frequently in all groups.