Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
C‐reactive protein, tumor necrosis factor α, and interleukin‐6 in dogs with pyometra and SIRS

Objective: To determine the frequency of the systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) in canine pyometra and to evaluate the relationship between C-reactive protein (CRP), tumor necrosis factor a (TNFa), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and SIRS. Design: Prospective clinical study. Setting: Veterinary teaching hospital. Animals: Fifty-three clinical cases of canine pyometra and 19 healthy control bitches. Interventions: Upon admission to the veterinary hospital, history and physical examination findings, including previously defined clinical SIRS parameters, were documented. Blood samples were obtained for hematology and biochemical tests and for CRP, TNFa, and IL-6 analysis. The diagnosis of pyometra was confirmed by histopathology of the uterus after ovariohysterectomy. After surgery, clinical SIRS parameters, length of hospitalization, and mortality were recorded. Measurements and main results: Pyometra dogs were grouped as SIRS positive (30/53; 57%) or SIRS negative (23/53; 43%). Logistic regression showed that CRP was the only parameter that significantly related to SIRS apart from the clinical criteria that define this syndrome. The mortality rate was low (2/53; 3.8%), and conclusions regarding association with SIRS could not be drawn. A positive SIRS status, high plasma CRP concentration, and high body temperature were variables that related to increased morbidity reflected by the length of hospitalization. Conclusions: SIRS was seen in 57% of canine pyometra cases and a positive SIRS status showed a positive association with prolonged hospitalization. The mortality rate was low (3.3%) among SIRS positive dogs, indicating that progression to multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS) rarely occurs in surgically treated cases of pyometra. CRP was associated with SIRS and with prolonged hospitalization. Further studies of plasma CRP may be warranted in canine intensive care cases susceptible to development of SIRS and MODS.
Penetration and Effectiveness of Antiretroviral Therapy in the Central Nervous System

Combination antiretroviral therapy (ART) has markedly reduced morbidity and mortality among HIV-infected individuals but not the prevalence of HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders (HAND). Several conditions may be responsible for the high prevalence of cognitive impairment, including incomplete suppression of HIV in nervous system by some antiretrovirals. Since individuals with HAND have a lower quality of life, worse medication adherence, and a higher risk of death, optimizing treatment of neurocognitive outcomes is an important goal of therapy. Optimization of ART to treat the CNS is limited, in part, by the ability of many antiretrovirals to cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB). Differences between antiretrovirals in crossing the BBB – and by extension differences in their concentrations in the brain – may explain inter-individual differences in susceptibility to HAND among treated individuals. This manuscript reviews relevant data on the CSF pharmacology of antiretrovirals and accumulating evidence that the use of drugs that reach therapeutic concentrations in the CNS are the best options to prevent and treat HIV-induced brain injury. Despite the importance of healthy cognition to the quality of patients lives, consensus treatment guidelines for HAND have yet to be formulated more than two decades after its first description. Formulating widely accepted recommendations for CNS-optimized treatment strategies requires a level of clinical evidence not yet developed but studies are underway to address this shortcoming.
A Study of Pancreatic Exocrine Secretion with Bombesin in Conscious Rats

Bombesin has both direct and indirect effects on pancreatic exocrine secretion in mammals. The latter is mediated through the release of cholecystokinin (CCK). In rats, however, it is unclear whether bombesin's effects are direct or are mediated via release of CCK. This study was undertaken to determine the role of CCK in bombesin-stimulated pancreatic enzyme secretion in conscious rats. Pancreatic flow and protein output were increased significantly, two to three-fold over the basal secretion at 30 minutes after administration of 0.25 ƒÊg/kg/h and 0.5 μg/kg/h of bombesin in rats. Plasma CCK levels were not changed during that period in which pancreatic secretion was stimulated by bombesin. CR 1505, a CCK receptor antagonist, at 50 mg/kg, did not suppress pancreatic exocrine secretion stimulated by bombesin. It is concluded that the effect of bombesin on pancreatic secretion is a direct effect, and not mediated via release of CCK in rats.
25-Hydroxyvitamin D deficiency and risk of MS among women in the Finnish Maternity Cohort

Objective: To determine whether and to what extent vitamin D deficiency is associated with multiple sclerosis (MS) risk. Methods: We conducted a prospective nested case-control study among women in the Finnish Maternity Cohort (FMC). The FMC had 1.8 million stored serum samples taken during the pregnancies of over 800,000 women at the time of this study. Through linkages with hospital and prescription registries, we identified 1,092 women with MS diagnosed between 1983 and 2009 with at least 1 serum sample collected prior to date of MS diagnosis; ≥2 serum samples were available for 511 cases. Cases were matched to up to 3 controls (n = 2,123) on date of birth (±2 years) and area of residence. 25-Hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D) levels were measured using a chemiluminescence assay. We used conditional logistic regression adjusted for year of sample collection, gravidity, and parity to estimate relative risks (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Results: A 50 nmol/L increase in 25(OH)D was associated with a 39% reduced risk of MS (RR 0.61, 95% CI 0.44–0.85), p = 0.003. Women with 25(OH)D levels <30 nmol/L had a 43% higher MS risk (RR 1.43, 95% CI 1.02–1.99, p = 0.04) as compared to women with levels ≥50 nmol/L. In women with ≥2 samples, MS risk was 2-fold higher in women with 25(OH)D <30 nmol/L as compared to women with 25(OH)D ≥50 nmol/L (RR 2.02, 95% CI 1.18–3.45, p = 0.01). Conclusions: These results directly support vitamin D deficiency as a risk factor for MS and strengthen the rationale for broad public health interventions to improve vitamin D levels.
Advantages and Disadvantages of the Home Setting for Therapy: Views of Patients and Therapists

A qualitative study was undertaken to explore patients' views and perceptions of a home-delivered therapy service. Fifteen subjects with hemiplegia were recruited from one health district, 10 women and 5 men. All subjects had experienced at least three consecutive sessions of both home-delivered therapy and hospital-based therapy in the preceding 18 months. A semi-structured interview was undertaken with each subject. Transcribed data were analysed using the grounded theory approach (Glaser and Strauss 1967). Five main themes were identified: ‘Convenience’, ‘Therapeutic environment’, ‘Social contact’, ‘Control’ and ‘Grateful recipient? ’ Two discussion groups were held with six therapists after the data collection phase to explore their perceptions of the themes emerging from the interviews. The subjects identified convenience and being comfortable within the home as two significant advantages of home therapy. The therapists highlighted the greater relevancy of the home environment for intervention and goal setting. The disadvantages identified by the subjects included the lack of equipment and floor space and the demotivating effect of the home setting. The therapists identified the difficulty of determining control within a therapy session. The study demonstrated that the assumptions about the advantages and disadvantages of community-based rehabilitation services made by service providers are not necessarily experienced by the users of such services.
Japanese high school students' television viewing and fast food consumption

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between daily television (TV) viewing duration and weekly fast food consumption of Japanese high school students.Design/methodology/approach – The total of 325 Japanese high school students from Miyazaki, Japan (148 female and 176 male students and one student with no gender identification) answered the survey in order to assess their daily TV viewing duration and weekly fast food consumption.Findings – The results indicated that low TV viewers spent significantly less money on weekly fast food consumption than either moderate or high TV viewers; and male students spent significantly more money on weekly fast food consumption than female students.Research limitations/implications – Owing to the limited sample size, the results of this study might lack generalizability. Further research on this issue should be conducted in the future.Practical implications – Similar to studies conducted in different countries, the results of the present.
α‐Synuclein oligomers pump it up!

Oligomeric forms of the Parkinson's disease‐causing protein α‐synuclein are suspected to mediate neurodegeneration, but the mechanisms are not understood. The present study of Shrivastava et al (2015) provides a fresh insight into this old mystery. α‐Synuclein oligomers are shown by a combination of top state‐of‐the‐art biochemical and super‐resolution microscopy methods to sequester the neuronal sodium–potassium pump. Such perturbation of ion currents would ultimately lead to Ca2+ excitotoxicity.
miRNA profiling of human naive CD4 T cells links miR‐34c‐5p to cell activation and HIV replication

Cell activation is a vital step for T‐cell memory/effector differentiation as well as for productive HIV infection. To identify novel regulators of this process, we used next‐generation sequencing to profile changes in microRNA expression occurring in purified human naive CD4 T cells in response to TCR stimulation and/or HIV infection. Our results demonstrate, for the first time, the transcriptional up‐regulation of miR‐34c‐5p in response to TCR stimulation in naive CD4 T cells. The induction of this miR was further consistently found to be reduced by both HIV‐1 and HIV‐2 infections. Overexpression of miR‐34c‐5p led to changes in the expression of several genes involved in TCR signaling and cell activation, confirming its role as a novel regulator of naive CD4 T‐cell activation. We additionally show that miR‐34c‐5p promotes HIV‐1 replication, suggesting that its down‐regulation during HIV infection may be part of an anti‐viral host response.
Levels of Tumor Necrosis Factor-α (TNF-α) and Soluble TNF Receptors in Chronic Venous Leg Ulcers – Correlations to Healing Status

This study tested the hypothesis that excessive tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) levels in chronic venous leg ulcers are associated with impaired healing. TNF-α was measured by two enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays and a bioassay (KYM-1D4) in paired wound fluid samples collected during the nonhealing and healing phases from 21 human patients with venous leg ulcers. Soluble TNF receptor levels (p55 and p75) were also measured. The levels of immunoreactive TNF-α were significantly higher in wound fluid from nonhealing ulcers than in wound fluid from healing ulcers (p in vivo . Although the levels of soluble p75 receptors were significantly higher in nonhealing wound fluid compared with healing wound fluid (p
Differential diagnosis of diseases causing oral lesions in cattle

THE differential diagnosis of diseases causing oral lesions in cattle can pose problems both clinically and at necropsy. Several diseases can be associated with crusting of the muzzle, and erosion, ulceration, necrosis and, occasionally, vesiculation of the oral mucosa. Few signs or lesions associated with oral infection are pathognomonic and an aetiological diagnosis based solely on clinical observation is often not possible. An accurate diagnosis is essential so that any potentially devastating disease is recognised at an early stage. In the UK, the most crucial diagnostic differentiation is foot-and-mouth disease, the clinical signs and lesions of which may initially be confused with a number of other viral diseases, including vesicular stomatitis, bovine papular stomatitis, bovine virus diarrhoea/mucosal disease, malignant catarrhal fever, rinderpest and bluetongue. Competent regulatory authorities must therefore be involved where any diagnostic doubt exists. In such cases, a specific diagnosis must be based on laboratory tests, including virus isolation and serology. This article discusses the differential diagnosis of these conditions, with particular emphasis on the recognition of exotic viral diseases. In addition, it reviews some other infectious and non-infectious causes of oral lesions, such as infectious bovine rhinotracheitis, which may give rise to diagnostic uncertainty.
Suicide reporting in the Swiss print media: Frequency, form and content of articles

All the Swiss newspapers were screened for the target words suicide' and attempted suicide' and all relevant articles were analysed for form and content over a period of 8 months. In 151 out of 208 articles suiclde/attempted suicide was the major topic. Large differences between the newspapers regarding the frequency and format of the articles (e.g. placement on front page) were found. In a few newspapers with a large circulation suicide is clearly treated as a major topic of news sensation. The majority of articles reported cases of completed suicide, mainly shooting and hanging by young persons. Attempted suicide was only reported for persons with celebrity status. This survey shows that there is reason for concern in view of the danger of imitation effects.
Recurrent cerebral ischemia in medically treated patent foramen ovale

Background: Among patients with a patent foramen ovale (PFO) and a prior cryptogenic ischemic stroke or TIA, the absolute and relative risk of recurrent events is unclear. Methods: We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of clinical studies in any language published up to February 2008. We included studies reporting original data on recurrent cerebrovascular events in patients with prior cryptogenic stroke or TIA and PFO. Two authors independently extracted data and evaluated study quality. Results: We identified 15 eligible studies, four with a non-PFO comparison group. In these four studies, the pooled relative risk (RR) for recurrent ischemic stroke or TIA in patients with vs without a PFO was 1.1 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.8 to 1.5). For ischemic stroke, the pooled RR was 0.8 (95% CI 0.5 to 1.3). We tabulated the absolute rate of recurrent events in all 15 studies. The pooled absolute rate of recurrent ischemic stroke or TIA in patients with PFO was 4.0 events per 100 person-years (95% CI 3.0 to 5.1) while the rate of recurrent ischemic stroke was 1.6 events per 100 person-years (95% CI 1.1 to 2.1). Conclusions: In medically treated patients with prior cryptogenic stroke, while the absolute rate of recurrent events is variable, available evidence does not support an increased relative risk of recurrent ischemic events in those with vs without a patent foramen ovale. Patent foramen ovale closure in these patients cannot be recommended until the results of ongoing clinical trials are reported.
Effect of 12-week Swiss Ball Exercise Program on Physical Fitness and Balance Ability of Elderly Women

[Purpose] This study examined the effect of a Swiss ball exercise program for elderly females on physical fitness and balance ability in order to offer basic data for the development of an exercise program to improve the quality of life and promote the health of elderly females. [Subjects] Sixty-five elderly women aged over 78 participated in this study. [Methods] The subjects were divided into two groups: an exercise group and a control group. The exercise group (n=38) performed a Swiss ball exercise program which consisted of 12 types of exercises required for balance and performance of functions twice a week for 12 weeks. Physical fitness (Sit-to-Stand, Arm Curl, Sit-and-Reach, Back Scratch) and balance ability (One-Legged Standing time, Timed Up & Go) were evaluated. [Results] There was a significant increase in the physical fitness and balance ability of the exercise group. [Conclusion] The Swiss ball exercise program had a positive effect on physical fitness and balance ability of elderly women. We consider that the ball which is easy, safe and interesting to use will encourage the elderly’s active participation in exercise.
‘Drive Safe’ initiatives: An analysis of improvements in mental health practices (2005–2013) to support safe driving

Statement of context Driving can be important for enabling community participation. Mental illness and its treatment may disrupt fitness to drive, or people’s opportunities for learning to drive. This paper reflects on practice improvements in an Australian mental health organization. Critical reflection on practice Occupational therapists identified gaps in knowledge among the multi-disciplinary workforce about service users’ driver status, how to identify and manage driving issues, and how to support their beginning or resuming driving during recovery. Implications for practice The key initiatives: policy and practice guidelines, workforce training, driver assessment and consultation services, and service user information resources — have become embedded supports within the organization for promoting safe driving.
No time to waste—the ethical challenges created by CRISPR

The term “CRISPR” has gained a lot of attention recently as a result of a debate among scientists about the possibility of genetically modifying the human germ line and the ethical implications of doing so. However, CRISPR is not just a method to edit the genomes of embryonic cells, as the public discussion might have implied; it is a powerful, efficient, and reliable tool for editing genes in any organism, and it has garnered significant attention and use among biologists for a variety of purposes. Thus, in addition to the discussion about human germ line editing, CRISPR raises or revives many other ethical issues, not all of which concern only humans, but also other species and the environment. > … CRISPR raises or revives many other ethical issues, not all of which concern only humans, but also other species and the environment CRISPRs are short DNA sequences with unique spacer sequences that, along with CRISPR‐associated (Cas) proteins, constitute an adaptive immune system in many bacteria and archaea against invading bacteriophages [1]. By using short RNA molecules as a template, Cas makes highly sequence‐specific cuts in DNA molecules that can be exploited to insert genes or to precisely modify the nucleotide sequence at the cut site. CRISPRs were first identified in the 1980s, but it is only during the past few years that scientists realized their potential to edit the genomes of any organism, from microorganisms to plants to human cells and, most controversially, human embryos. The CRISPR/Cas system is not a breakthrough technology in the sense that it enables genome editing; biologists have been using transcription activator‐like effector nucleases (TALENs) and zinc finger nucleases (ZFNs) to edit genomes for some time. However, those technologies are expensive, technically challenging, and time‐consuming, as they require protein engineering to target specific DNA …
AGE-RELATED CHANGES IN MOTOR SUBTLE SIGNS AMONG GIRLS AND BOYS WITH ADHD

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The Egyptian Society of Chest Diseases and Tuberculosis Egyptian Journal of Chest Diseases and Tuberculosis

CRP; NSCLC; PCT; Lung cancer staging Abstract Background: CRP is an inflammatory mediator that is shown to be elevated in different inflammatory and malignant conditions, the aim of the study to see whether the elevated serum CRP is correlated with the advanced stages and increased tumor size of NSCLC after exclusion of patients with high CRP due to infection. Materials and methods: 71 patients with proved NSCLC and 25 healthy control volunteers were selected for the study, serum CRP and PCT were analyzed, results of CRP in patients with NSCLC were compared with the control group, and subgroups were made according to different clinical variables as subtypes of lung cancer, tumor staging and tumor size. Results: The serum CRP level was significantly higher in patients with NSCLC compared to the control group 114.2 ± 60.1 mg/ml vs. 13.4 ± 8.6 mg/ml) with p value <0.001, no significant difference was recorded in PCT level (p> 0.05), there was no significant difference between NSCLC subtypes (p> 0.05), there was a positive correlation between CRP level and tumor size (p< 0.01), TNM tumor staging (p< 0.01). Conclusion: CRP is an inflammatory biomarker that is shown to be elevated in NSCLC and its elevation is correlated with the tumor size and tumor staging but not to subtypes of NSCLC, it may point to poor outcome and poorer prognosis. a 2014 Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of The Egyptian Society of Chest Diseases and Tuberculosis.
FKBP8 recruits LC3A to mediate Parkin‐independent mitophagy

Mitophagy, the selective removal of damaged or excess mitochondria by autophagy, is an important process in cellular homeostasis. The outer mitochondrial membrane (OMM) proteins NIX, BNIP3, FUNDC1, and Bcl2‐L13 recruit ATG8 proteins (LC3/GABARAP) to mitochondria during mitophagy. FKBP8 (also known as FKBP38), a unique member of the FK506‐binding protein (FKBP) family, is similarly anchored in the OMM and acts as a multifunctional adaptor with anti‐apoptotic activity. In a yeast two‐hybrid screen, we identified FKBP8 as an ATG8‐interacting protein. Here, we map an N‐terminal LC3‐interacting region (LIR) motif in FKBP8 that binds strongly to LC3A both in vitro and in vivo. FKBP8 efficiently recruits lipidated LC3A to damaged mitochondria in a LIR‐dependent manner. The mitophagy receptors BNIP3 and NIX in contrast are unable to mediate an efficient recruitment of LC3A even after mitochondrial damage. Co‐expression of FKBP8 with LC3A profoundly induces Parkin‐independent mitophagy. Strikingly, even when acting as a mitophagy receptor, FKBP8 avoids degradation by escaping from mitochondria. In summary, this study identifies novel roles for FKBP8 and LC3A, which act together to induce mitophagy.