Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Dietary adherence in Hispanic patients receiving hemodialysis.

OBJECTIVES The study objective was to identify the factors that influence dietary adherence in Hispanic patients receiving maintenance hemodialysis and to determine the differences in dietary adherence between Hispanic and non-Hispanic patients. DESIGN We performed a cross-sectional study using a descriptive-comparative design. SETTING The study took place at hemodialysis centers at Winthrop-University Hospital, New York. PARTICIPANTS The participants were adult patients of Hispanic descent receiving maintenance hemodialysis three times per week for 3 months or more and an equal number of age- and sex-matched non-Hispanic patients. INTERVENTION Information was obtained by a questionnaire about knowledge of the diet, preferred language for education, consumption of potassium- (K(+)) and phosphorus- (PO(4)) containing foods, and adherence attitudes and behaviors. Serum albumin (SAlb), K(+), and PO(4) for the past 3 months were obtained from medical records and evaluated to assess dietary adherence. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE The main outcome measure was a mean SAlb of 3.2g/dL or greater, K(+) of 5.5 mEq/L or less, and PO(4) of 5.5 mg/dL or less. RESULTS A total of 17 Hispanic and 17 comparison patients were included. Both groups were adherent to the diet because their mean levels of SAlb, K(+), and PO(4) were within acceptable limits. Dietary adherence was observed in 76% of the Hispanic patients for SAlb, 88% for K(+), and 65% for PO(4), whereas the rate of adherence was 59%, 88%, and 76%, respectively, for the comparison group. CONCLUSION Both groups were adherent to the restrictions of the renal diet. More patients from both groups were adherent to K(+) than to PO(4) restrictions. Among the factors that probably influenced dietary adherence to the renal diet in this dialysis facility are knowledge of the renal diet, language, food frequency consumption, socioeconomic status, family support, and attitudes toward the renal diet. Patient education provided in Spanish with family involvement is an important element for promoting adherence among Hispanic patients receiving dialysis.
Financial leverage and competitive strategy of cross-listing firms

This study investigates the relationship between financial leverage and competitive strategies based on the investigation into the cross-listing announcements, through which the financial condition of a firm might shape the competition outcome. The empirical evidence shows that cross-listing announcements normally attract positive market responses to cross-listed firms but incur negative market responses to rival firms, especially upon the strategic substitutes competition. Cross-listed firms obtain more positive market responses if their financial leverage is lower, but the firms have no advantages when they are financially constrained. Less leveraged rival firms could weaken the negative impact and even gain positive market responses upon the strategic complements competition. JEL classification: G14, G32, M16
Does Removable Partial Denture Quality Affect Individuals’ Oral Health?

The impact of oral disorders and interventions on individuals’ perceived oral health and oral-health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) is being increasingly recognized as an important health component. This study examined the association between denture quality and OHRQoL in individuals wearing removable partial dentures (RPDs). The study participants were 245 consecutive patients (mean age: 63.3 ± 8.7 yrs) at a university-based prosthodontic clinic who wore RPDs for more than one month. RPD quality and OHRQoL were determined by means of a 100-mm visual analog scale (VAS) and the 49-item Oral Health Impact Profile-Japanese version (OHIP-J49), respectively. Linear regression analysis between RPD quality and OHRQoL revealed that a 10-mm VAS increase in RPD quality rating was related to −2.8 OHIP-J49 units (95% confidence interval: −4.5 to −1.1, p = 0.001), which represents an improvement in OHRQoL. The results suggest that RPD quality influences individuals’ OHRQoL to a clinically significant extent.
Genomic Landscape of Meningiomas

Meningiomas are one of the most common adult brain tumors. For most patients, surgical excision is curative. However, up to 20% recur. Currently, the molecular determinants predicting recurrence and malignant transformation are lacking. We performed retrospective global genetic and genomic analysis of 85 meningioma samples of various grades. Copy number alterations were assessed by 100K single‐nucleotide polymorphism arrays and correlated with gene expression, proliferation indices and clinical outcome. In addition to chromosome 22q loss, which was detected in the majority of clinical samples, chromosome 6q and 14q loss was significantly more common in recurrent tumors and was associated with anaplastic histology. Five “classes” of meningiomas were detected by gene expression analysis that correlated with copy number alterations, recurrent status and malignant histology. These classes more accurately identified recurrent tumors relative to Ki‐67 index and extent of surgical resection, and highlight substantial expression heterogeneity between meningiomas. These data offer the most complete description of the genomic landscape of meningiomas, and provide broad genomic information that may be used to further stratify meningioma patients into prognostic risk groups.
Adaptive Energy-Based Acoustic Sperm Whale Echolocation Click Detection

Sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) generate a series of broadband impulsive echolocation signals called clicks when diving in search of prey. These acoustic signals can be divided into usual clicks and creak clicks. They have a frequency spectrum that lies primarily between 2 and 18 kHz. In this paper, an adaptive energy-based click detector called the adaptive Teager energy operator (ATEO) is developed. A windowing technique is used to account for the time-varying characteristics of these signals, and the window length is adapted by estimating the interclick interval (ICI). The usual clicks and creak clicks are classified via ICI differences. The proposed method is compared with several well-known techniques using real data provided by the Atlantic Undersea Test and Evaluation Center (AUTEC). Performance results are presented which show that the proposed technique is a robust and efficient detector that can improve the click detection true positive rate (TPR) as well as reduce the false positive rate (FPR).
An Updated Role for Nerve Growth Factor in Neurobehavioural Regulation of Adult Vertebrates

Increasing attention has been focused on the role(s) of nerve growth factor (NGF) in neurobehavioural regulations of adult vertebrates. This interest springs from the emerging evidence that NGF is a "regulator" of physiological processes belonging to the three main homeostatic systems: the nervous, immune and endocrine systems. In fact, the spectrum of action of the NGF molecule is not restricted to neuronal cell types (central basal forebrain; peripheral sensory and sympathetic neurons) but extends also to nonneuronal cells. In mice intermale aggressive behaviour enhances serum NGF levels and promotes its synthesis in some hypothalamic areas. Other types of social events are able to cause NGF release, particularly under stress conditions. The achievement of a social role (dominant vs subordinate) is due to a functional loop involving salivary NGF release-->enhanced production of adrenal hormones-->submissive behaviour-->NGF release. In humans, plasma platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) increases following mental stress. The aim of this review is to give an updated survey on NGF roles in neurobehavioural regulations of adult animals.
Risk factors for depression in elderly people: a prospective study

In 1982‐1983 a random sample of 1486 people aged 65 years and above was generated from general practitioner lists; 1070 were interviewed in the community using the Geriatric Mental State and a Social History questionnaire. The cohort was followed up by interview 3 years later. At year 3 the diagnostic computer program AGECAT diagnosed 44 incident cases of depression. Information from the depressed group's initial and further interviews was compared with a control group (which excluded cases of affective or organic mental illness). Univariate analysis yielded three factors that were significantly associated with the development of depression 3 years later: a lack of satisfaction with life; feelings of loneliness; and smoking. Multivariate analysis confirmed their independent effects and revealed 2 further factors attaining significance: female gender and a trigger factor, bereavement of a close figure within 6 months of the third‐year diagnosis. Some other factors traditionally associated with depression, such as poor housing, marital status and living alone, failed to attain significance as risk factors.
Effect of age on plasma homocysteine concentrations in young and elderly subjects considering serum vitamin concentrations and different lifestyle factors.

OBJECTIVES The aim of this study was to investigate whether an increase in total homocysteine (tHcy) concentration with increasing age is due to diminishing serum concentrations of pyridoxal-5-phosphate (PLP), vitamin B-12, and folate. The possible influence of different lifestyle factors on tHcy concentration was considered. METHODS Plasma tHcy, serum concentrations of pyridoxal-5-phosphate, vitamin B-12, and folate, intake of coffee and tea, alcohol, and methionine, as well as cigarette smoking, were determined in 252 elderly subjects (60-87 years old) of the longitudinal study on nutrition and health status in an aging population in Giessen (GISELA) and 99 young adults (20-34 years old) of the study on health and nutrition of young adults (GEJE). RESULTS Mean plasma tHcy concentrations were significantly higher in elderly than in young female subjects (9.7 +/- 1.9 micromol/L vs. 9.0 +/- 1.6 micromol/L, p < 0.05), but there was no difference between elderly and young men (10.6 +/- 2.1 micromol/L vs. 10.7 +/- 2.6 micromol/L). No differences in tHcy were observed between young and elderly subjects after adjustment for serum concentrations of PLP, vitamin B-12, and folate. Multiple linear regression analysis revealed a significant influence of age only in elderly, but not in younger subjects. CONCLUSION Higher tHcy concentrations in the elderly, in comparison to younger women, are due to lower serum concentrations of PLP, vitamin B-12, and folate, whereas within the age group of elderly subjects alone tHcy concentrations increase with age irrespective of serum vitamin concentrations.
Binding of ADAM28 to P-selectin Glycoprotein Ligand-1 Enhances P-selectin-mediated Leukocyte Adhesion to Endothelial Cells*

ADAMs (a disintegrin and metalloproteinases) are a recently discovered gene family of multifunctional proteins with the disintegrin-like and metalloproteinase domains. To analyze the biological functions of ADAM28, we screened binding molecules to secreted-type ADAM28 (ADAM28s) by the yeast two-hybrid system and identified P-selectin glycoprotein ligand-1 (PSGL-1). Binding between the disintegrin-like domain of ADAM28s and the extracellular portion of PSGL-1 was determined by yeast two-hybrid assays, binding assays of the domain-specific recombinant ADAM28s species using PSGL-1 stable transfectants and leukocyte cell lines expressing native PSGL-1 (HL-60 cells and Jurkat cells), and co-immunolocalization and co-immunoprecipitation of the molecules in these cells. Incubation of HL-60 cells with recombinant ADAM28s enhanced the binding to P-selectin-coated wells and P-selectin-expressing endothelial cells. In addition, intravenous injection of ADAM28s-treated HL-60 cells increased their accumulation in the pulmonary microcirculation and alveolar spaces in a mouse model of endotoxin-induced inflammation. These data suggest a novel function that ADAM28s promotes PSGL-1/P-selectin-mediated leukocyte rolling adhesion to endothelial cells and subsequent infiltration into tissue spaces through interaction with PSGL-1 on leukocytes under inflammatory conditions.
GPR17 expressing NG2‐Glia: Oligodendrocyte progenitors serving as a reserve pool after injury

In the adult brain NG2‐glia continuously generate mature, myelinating oligodendrocytes. To which extent the differentiation process is common to all NG2‐glia and whether distinct pools are recruited for repair under physiological and pathological conditions still needs clarification. Here, we aimed at investigating the differentiation potential of adult NG2‐glia that specifically express the G‐protein coupled receptor 17 (GPR17), a membrane receptor that regulates the differentiation of these cells at postnatal stages. To this aim, we generated the first BAC transgenic GPR17‐iCreERT2 mouse line for fate mapping studies. In these mice, under physiological conditions, GPR17+ cells —in contrast to GPR17‐ NG2‐glia— did not differentiate within 3 months, a peculiarity that was overcome after cerebral damage induced by acute injury or ischemia. After these insults, GPR17+ NG2‐glia rapidly reacted to the damage and underwent maturation, suggesting that they represent a ‘reserve pool’ of adult progenitors maintained for repair purposes. GLIA 2016;64:287–299
Predicting Intentions of a Familiar Significant Other Beyond the Mirror Neuron System

Inferring intentions of others is one of the most intriguing issues in interpersonal interaction. Theories of embodied cognition and simulation suggest that this mechanism takes place through a direct and automatic matching process that occurs between an observed action and past actions. This process occurs via the reactivation of past self-related sensorimotor experiences within the inferior frontoparietal network (including the mirror neuron system, MNS). The working model is that the anticipatory representations of others' behaviors require internal predictive models of actions formed from pre-established, shared representations between the observer and the actor. This model suggests that observers should be better at predicting intentions performed by a familiar actor, rather than a stranger. However, little is known about the modulations of the intention brain network as a function of the familiarity between the observer and the actor. Here, we combined functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) with a behavioral intention inference task, in which participants were asked to predict intentions from three types of actors: A familiar actor (their significant other), themselves (another familiar actor), and a non-familiar actor (a stranger). Our results showed that the participants were better at inferring intentions performed by familiar actors than non-familiar actors and that this better performance was associated with greater activation within and beyond the inferior frontoparietal network i.e., in brain areas related to familiarity (e.g., precuneus). In addition, and in line with Hebbian principles of neural modulations, the more the participants reported being cognitively close to their partner, the less the brain areas associated with action self-other comparison (e.g., inferior parietal lobule), attention (e.g., superior parietal lobule), recollection (hippocampus), and pair bond (ventral tegmental area, VTA) were recruited, suggesting that the more a shared mental representation has been pre-established, the more neurons show suppression in their response to the presentation of information to which they are sensitive. These results suggest that the relation of performance to the extent of neural activation during intention understanding may display differential relationships based on the cognitive domain, brain region, and the cognitive interdependence between the observer and the actor.
An in vitro comparison of effect on fracture strength, pH and calcium ion diffusion from various biomimetic materials when used for repair of simulated root resorption defects

Aim: The aim of this study was to compare the effect on fracture strength, pH and calcium ion diffusion from mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) Fillapex, iRoot SP, and Ultracal when used for repair of simulated root resorption defects. Materials and Methods: Three sets of 40 teeth each were used, and biomechanical preparation was done. Resorption cavity was made at 5 mm from the apex. Teeth were filled with different experimental materials. In control group, saline was used. Samples of fracture resistance were stored in an incubator for 3 months and then subjected to the universal testing machine. To evaluate the pH and calcium ion release were checked at 1 day and 1, 2, 3, and 4 weeks intervals. Data were recorded and statistical analysis done by one-way analysis of variance followed by post-hoc Tukey test. Results: Highest fracture resistance was seen in MTA Fillapex followed by iRoot SP, control, and then Ultracal group. Teeth filled with iRoot SP showed highest pH and calcium ion release followed by MTA Fillapex and Ultracal group. Conclusion: Bioceramic sealers showed high pH, calcium ion release, and good root reinforcement potential. Initial dressing of calcium hydroxide followed by obturation with Gutta-percha and bioceramic sealer may be considered as an alternative treatment modality for inflammatory resorption.
Long-Term Treatment with Lopinavir-Ritonavir Induces a Reduction in Peripheral Adipose Depots in Mice

Highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) of human immunodeficiency virus-infected patients is associated with adverse effects, such as lipodystrophy and hyperlipidemia. The lipodystrophic syndrome is characterized by a peripheral lipoatrophy and/or fat accumulation in the abdomen and neck. In order to get insights into the physiopathological mechanisms underlying this syndrome, we treated mice with protease inhibitors (PIs) over a long period of time. Although atazanavir-treated mice presented the same circulating triglyceride concentration as control mice, lopinavir-ritonavir-treated mice rapidly became hypertriglyceridemic, with triglyceride levels of 200 mg/dl, whereas control and atazanavir-treated animals had triglyceride levels of 80 mg/dl. These results obtained with mice reproduce the metabolic disorder observed in humans. White adipose tissue (WAT) was analyzed after 8 weeks of treatment. Compared to the control or atazanavir treatment, lopinavir-ritonavir treatment induced a significant 25% weight reduction in the peripheral inguinal WAT depot. By contrast, the profound epididymal WAT depot was not affected. This effect was associated with a 5.5-fold increase in SREBP-1c gene expression only in the inguinal depot. Our results demonstrate that the long-term treatment of mice with PIs constitutes an interesting experimental model with which some aspects of the lipoatrophy induced by HAART in humans may be studied.
Constitutive Ras activity induces hippocampal hypertrophy and remodeling of pyramidal neurons in synRas mice

The small G protein Ras, which is involved critically in neurotrophic signal transduction, has been implicated in neuronal plasticity of both the developing and the adult nervous systems. In the present study, the cumulative effects of constitutive Ras activity from early in postnatal development into the adult upon the morphology of hippocampal pyramidal neurons were investigated in synRas mice overexpressing Val12‐Ha‐Ras postmitotically under the control of the rat synapsin I promoter. In synRas mice, stereologic investigations revealed hypertrophy of the hippocampus associated with an increase in perikaryal size of pyramidal neurons within the CA2/CA3 region and the gyrus dentatus. Morphometric analyses of Lucifer Yellow‐filled CA1 pyramidal neurons, in addition, demonstrated considerable expansion of dendritic arbors. The increase in basal dendritic size was caused primarily by alterations of intermediate and distal segments and was associated with an enlarged dendritic surface. Apical dendrites showed similar but more moderate changes, which were attributed mainly to elongation of terminal segments. Sholl analyses illustrated higher complexity of both basal and apical trees. Despite significant morphologic alterations, dendritic arbors preserve their major design principles. The synaptic density within the stratum radiatum of CA1 remained unchanged; however, increases in the total hippocampal volume and in apical dendritic size imply an increment in the absolute number of synaptic contacts. The data presented here suggest a critical involvement of Ras dependent signaling in morphoregulatory processes during the maturation and in the maintenance of hippocampal pyramidal neurons. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Comparison of Serum Autoantibodies to Desmogleins I, III in Patients with Oral Lichen Planus and Healthy Controls.

BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVE Lichen planus is a mucocutaneous disease which is relatively common and in 30-70% of patients, mucosal lesions can be seen and known as a precancerous lesion but its etiology is not completely understood. Desmogleins I and III are the main desmosomal transmembrane proteins. These proteins have been identified as the autoantigen of the autoimmune disease. The aim of this study was evaluation of serum autoantibodies against desmogleins Ι, ΙΙΙ in oral lichen planus . METHODS We attempted to determine the etiology of this disease with evaluation of these serum factors. Thirty-five patients with oral lichen planus and 35 healthy controls were recruited and tested for serum autoantibodies against desmogleins Ι, ΙΙΙ and indirect immunofluorescence also performed. Data were analyzed by statistical-analytical methods (Independent sample t -test) with using the SPSS.15 software. RESULTS Serum autoantibody against desmoglein Ι had no significant difference in the two groups ( P =0.31 ) but significant increase in serum autoantibody to desmoglein ΙΙΙ was found in patients with oral lichen planus ( P =0.00) . CONCLUSION It seems that autoantibody against desmoglein III has a significant role in the pathogenesis of oral lichen planus.
Survival of high‐risk pediatric neuroblastoma patients in a developing country

Little information is available about survival of high‐risk pediatric neuroblastoma patients in developing countries. We aimed to assess survival among high‐risk pediatric neuroblastoma patients in La Plata, Argentina. Individuals eligible for our cohort were aged <20 yr when diagnosed with high‐risk neuroblastoma and received cancer‐directed therapy including stem cell transplantation at Hospital de Niños Sor Maria Ludovica between February 1999 and February 2015. We estimated overall survival probabilities using an extended Kaplan–Meier approach. Our study population comprised 39 high‐risk neuroblastoma patients, of whom 39% were aged >4 yr at diagnosis, 54% were male, and 62% had adrenal neuroblastoma. We observed 18 deaths, and the median survival time of our study population was 1.7 yr. The five‐yr overall survival probability was 24% (95% CL: 10%, 41%). In contrast, five‐yr survival of high‐risk neuroblastoma patients ranges between 23% and 76% in developed countries. Survival among high‐risk neuroblastoma patients is generally poor regardless of geographic location, but our results illustrate dramatically worse survival for patients in a developing country. We speculate that the observed survival differences could be attenuated or eliminated with improvements in treatment and supportive care, but addressing these issues will require creative solutions because of resource limitations.