Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effects of haemodialysis and continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis on P300 cognitive potentials in uraemic patients

The aim of this study was to determine the effects of haemodialysis (HD) and continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) on P300 cognitive potentials in patients with chronic renal failure (CRF) and to find out if P300 potential is a valuable marker for following subclinical cognitive disorder. This study was performed in 42 patients with chronic uraemia, of whom 25 were on HD and 17 on CAPD, and in 25 healthy subjects. All the subjects were investigated in terms of P300 cognitive potential obtained from auditory stimuli with the oddball paradigm and the Mini-Mental State (MMS) examination. Patients undergoing HD were evaluated before (pre-dialysis) and after (post-dialysis) standard HD treatment. P300 latency was longer in HD patients than in the control group and CAPD patients. The MMS score was greater and P300 latency was shorter after a standard HD session when compared to pre-dialysis values in HD patients (p < 0.001 for both values). There was a negative correlation between P300 latency and MMS scores, and a positive correlation between P300 amplitude and MMS scores. In conclusion, P300 is useful for evaluating cognitive function in uraemia, even in asymptomatic patients, and CAPD is superior to HD in the management of cognitive impairment.
Low plasma taurine and later neurodevelopment

Dietary taurine intake may explain the benefits of both breast milk and preterm formula to neurodevelopment. Low plasma neonatal taurine was associated with lower scores on the Bayley mental development index at 18 months and the WISC-R arithmetic subtest at 7 years. Currently it is not mandatory to add taurine to infant formulas.
Spin Offs, Diversifikation und Shareholder Value : Eine empirische Analyse europäischer Unternehmensabspaltungen

Zunehmende Ressourcenknappheit und ein sich stetig vollziehender Wandel in der Unternehmensumwelt stellen die Unternehmung vor immer neue Herausforderungen. Das Management ist gezwungen, die Fahigkeit zur Adaption an sich verandernde Bedingungen zu entwickeln und die ihm zur Verfugung stehenden Ressourcen einer moglichst effizienten Verwendung zuzufuhren, wenn es im zunehmendem Wettbewerb um Finanzmittel an den Kapitalmarkten bestehen mochte. Dies verlangt das Setzen organisatorischer Prioritaten. Es bedingt das Losen von Ressourcenbindungen dort, wo deren Einsatz nicht effizient ist oder die Umweltbedingungen dies verlangen. In jungerer Vergangenheit kommt in Europa der Transaktionsform des Spin-offs eine zunehmende Bedeutung zu, wenn es darum geht, Unternehmen an veranderte Umweltbedingungen anzupassen. Trotz ihrer erheblichen praktischen und wissenschaftlichen Relevanz sind Spin-offs bislang jedoch nicht hinreichend aufgearbeitet. Es fehlen neue Einsichten und Orientierungshilfen, um den Spin-off auszugestalten und seine Potentiale im Hinblick auf die Steigerung des Unternehmenswerts nutzbar zu machen. Die vorliegende empirische Kapitalmarktstudie bietet in zweierlei Hinsicht Hilfestellung. Sie zeigt zum einen mit Hilfe der Ereignisstudienmethodik auf, dass Spin-off-Ankundigungen den Unternehmenswert auch in europaischem Kontext positiv beeinflussen. Zum anderen wird empirisch belegt, dass Spin-offs untrennbar mit dem Diversifikationsphanomen verknupft sind und sie entsprechend nicht isoliert beurteilbar sind. Die aus der Diversifikationsforschung abgeleiteten Erfolgsfaktoren erklaren einen substanziellen Anteil der gemessenen Aktienkurseffekte. Die entwickelten Modelle erlauben somit eine genaue Prognose des Spin-off-Erfolgs und damit eine fur die Unternehmenspraxis unmittelbare Nutzbarkeit der gewonnenen Erkenntnisse.
Association of metabolic gene polymorphisms with tobacco consumption in healthy controls

Polymorphisms in genes that encode for metabolic enzymes have been associated with variations in enzyme activity between individuals. Such variations could be associated with differences in individual exposure to carcinogens that are metabolized by these genes. In this study, we examine the association between polymorphisms in several metabolic genes and the consumption of tobacco in a large sample of healthy individuals. The database of the International Collaborative Study on Genetic Susceptibility to Environmental Carcinogens was used. All the individuals who were controls from the case‐control studies included in the data set with information on smoking habits and on genetic polymorphisms were selected (n = 20,938). Sufficient information was available on the following genes that are involved in the metabolism of tobacco smoke constituents: CYP1A1, GSTM1, GSTT1, NAT2 and GSTP1. None of the tested genes was clearly associated with smoking behavior. Information on smoking dose, available for a subset of subjects, showed no effect of metabolic gene polymorphisms on the amount of smoking. No association between polymorphisms in the genes studied and tobacco consumption was observed; therefore, no effect of these genes on smoking behavior should be expected. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
A Critical Look at Methods for Recovering, Evaluating, and Interpreting Cremated Human Remains

Introduction General Overview of the Cases Case 1 Case 2 Case 3 Commentary on the Scene and Recovery Scene Characteristics Packaging and Transport Considerations Post-Collection Handling and Preservation Considerations Other Considerations Commentary on Analysis Separating Human from Nonhuman Remains Estimating the Number of Individuals Classification of Cremation Estimating Sex Estimation of Age at Time of Death Estimation of Ancestry Estimation of Stature Personally Unique Features Cause and Manner of Death Lessons and Conclusions Collection Priorities and Bone Preservation Limitations Cautions Acknowledgments References 22
Generalised Pustular Psoriasis Induced by Cyclosporin A Withdrawal Responding to the Tumour Necrosis Factor Alpha Inhibitor Etanercept

We report a 50-year-old male patient with a 15-year history of psoriasis including mutilating psoriatic arthritis, in whom the withdrawal of cyclosporin A induced a generalised pustular exacerbation and a aggravation of the joint condition. Two weekly injections of 25 mg of the tumour necrosis factor α inhibitor etanercept led to a rapid improvement of his psoriatic arthritis, as well as regression of the pustular eruption, while residual erythema was still present. The clinical response was reflected by an increase in circulating interleukin (IL) 10 and a decrease in IL-6 and IL-8 serum levels during treatment. We conclude that etanercept may be a safe and effective therapy not only in severe psoriatic arthritis, but also in cases of pustular rebound after withdrawal of immunosuppressive agents.
Coarsest controllability-preserving plant minimization

Abstract We define a controllability-preserving plant minimization and investigate its feasibility with respect to supervisor synthesis. A recent process-theoretic approach to supervisory control theory identified a so-called partial bisimulation preorder as a suitable behavioral relation to capture the notion of controllability for (nondeterministic) discrete-event systems. The equivalence relation, induced by the partial bisimulation preorder, can then be employed to minimize the unsupervised system, referred to as plant, by obtaining the coarsest quotient and optimize the process of supervisor synthesis. We present an efficient minimization algorithm for computing the partial bisimulation equivalence by partitioning the state space of the plant. We apply the algorithm to several experimental case studies and study the obtained gain.
DEVELOPMENT OF PROSPECTIVE CONTROL OF CATCHING MOVING OBJECTS IN PRETERM AT‐RISK INFANTS

Healthy term infants and infants classified as neurologically at‐risk because of low birthweight and preterm birth were tested longitudinally between 20 and 48 weeks on the ability to use visual information predictively. Reaching for an object moving at different speeds was assessed; the object was occluded from view by a screen during the last part of its approach. At each infant's first reaching session, gaze anticipated the reappearance of the moving toy; however, onset of reaching and prospective control of gaze and hand varied considerably between the normal and at‐risk groups. In addition, some at‐risk infants geared their actions not to the time but to the distance that the toy was from the catching place, causing problems with faster‐moving toys. The two children who anticipated least well were the only two of the at‐risk group who were later diagnosed as having cerebral palsy.
Assessment of tumour response with 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography using three-dimensional measures compared to SUVmax—a phantom study

SUVmax is currently the most common semi-quantitative method of response assessment on FDG PET. By defining the tumour volume of interest (VOI), a measure of total glycolytic volume (TGV) may be obtained. We aimed to comprehensively examine, in a phantom setting, the accuracy of TGV in reflecting actual lesion activity and to compare TGV with SUVmax for response assessment. The algorithms for VOI generation from which TGV was derived included fixed threshold techniques at 50% of maximum (MAX50), 70% of maximum (MAX70), an adaptive threshold of 50% of (maximum + background)/2 (BM50) and a semi-automated iterative region-growing algorithm, GRAB. Comparison with both actual lesion activity and response scenarios was performed. SUVmax correlated poorly with actual lesion activity (r = 0.651) and change in lesion activity (r = 0.605). In a response matrix scenario SUVmax performed poorly when all scenarios were considered, but performed well when only clinically likely scenarios were included. The TGV derived using MAX50 and MAX70 algorithms performed poorly in evaluation of lesion change. The TGV derived from BM50 and GRAB algorithms however performed extremely well in correlation with actual lesion activity (r = 0.993 and r = 0.982, respectively), change in lesion activity (r = 0.972 and r = 0.963, respectively) and in the response scenario matrix. TGVGRAB demonstrated narrow confidence bands when modelled with actual lesion activity. Measures of TGV generated by iterative algorithms such as GRAB show potential for increased sensitivity of metabolic response monitoring compared to SUVmax, which may have important implications for improved patient care.
Enzyme Immunoassayfor Gentamicin

Gentamicin is an antibiotic with potentially ototoxic and nephrotoxic side effects. Because these toxic effects are more common if the concentrations in serum exceed 10 mg/liter while therapeutic effects are decreased if they are less than 2 mg/liter (1, 2), assay of gentamicin in serum may provide information as to whether an effective therapeutic concentration of the drug has been obtained. Gentamicin has been assayed in serum by microbiological techniques (3) and more recently by radioimmunoassay methods (4, 5) that provide a more rapid estimation. Enzyme immunoassay has been applied to assay of several drugs in serum (6, 7) and we describe here an enzyme immunoassay method for assay of gentamicin that is based on a technique reported by Saunders and Bartlett (8). In this technique, gentamicin antibody is adsorbed to the polystyrene surface of a multi-well reaction tray and peroxidase-gentamicin conjugate is mixed with a gentamicin standard or serum in each reaction well. After this competition reaction is completed, the extent of conjugate binding is observed by adding a chromogenic substrate for the peroxidase reaction. The absorbance of the product is inversely proportional to the amount of gentamicin in the reaction well,
Serum Creatinine, Urea Nitrogen And Endogenous Creatinine Clearance Based Glomerular Filtration Rate In Camels To Evaluate Renal Functions

To evaluate renal functions in camel, the study on profiles like Serum Creatinine (SC), Serum urea nitrogen (SUN), SUN/SC ratio was undertaken in institute’s herd of camels (n=250) (Camelus dromedarius) of all age groups, both sexes and three breeds and in addition Glomerular Filtration rate (GFR) of 18 male camels of 3 breeds (n=6 each) with 6 individual replicates (Total 108 observations) were determined. The values of SC and SUN/SC ratio differ significantly (P 0.05). SC was significantly higher in male (P 0.05) in different age groups, while SUN differed significantly (P 0.05) between Bikaneri and Jaisalmeri and Bikaneri and Kachchi breeds. UO and GFR had highly significant (P<0.01) positive correlation ship(r = 0.634). Urine Creatinine (UC) concentration and Total daily Creatinine excreted (TC) did not differ significantly (P<0.05) between breeds. UO and UC had significant (P<0.05) negative correlation ship (r = -0.234). Coefficient of variation within individual for UO, UC, TC and GFR was relatively more indicating less consistency of these profiles. It was felt that under well-monitored and controlled intake of water, GFR could be used to evaluate renal functions in camels.
Changing epidemiology of cholera due to Vibrio cholerae O1 and O139 Bengal in Dhaka, Bangladesh

SUMMARY At the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (ICDDR, B) Dhaka we studied the trends in cholera for the period January 1992 to May 1995. Vibrio cholerae O139 Bengal emerged as a second aetiologic agent of cholera in Dhaka in January 1993. In 1993, the majority of cholera cases was due to V. cholerae O139, with V. cholerae O1 accounting for a small proportion of cases. During the latter part of the study period (Jan 1994–May 1995), V. cholerae O1 re-emerged as the predominant cholera strain. The predominant age group affected in endemic cholera due to V. cholerae O1 was children 2–9 years old, and the organism was isolated from more females than from males at all ages. In contrast, cholera due to V. cholerae O139 caused disease mostly in adults 15 years and older, which indicated that this organism was new in this population. As with V. cholerae O1, V. cholerae O139 was isolated from more females than males. The initial rapid emergence and predominance of V. cholerae O139 was considered possibly to herald the start of the eighth pandemic of cholera. However, just after a year, the prevalence of V. cholerae O139 decreased dramatically with V. cholerae O1 resuming the role of the dominant cholera strain. The factor(s) contributing to the dramatic decline in prevalence of V. cholerae O139 is not well understood.
Lack of fidelity revealed in an insect–fungal mutualism after invasion

Symbiont fidelity is an important mechanism in the evolution and stability of mutualisms. Strict fidelity has been assumed for the obligate mutualism between Sirex woodwasps and their mutualistic Amylostereum fungi. This assumption has been challenged in North America where the European woodwasp, Sirex noctilio, and its fungal mutualist, Amylostereum areolatum, have recently been introduced. We investigate the specificity of the mutualism between Sirex and Amylostereum species in Canada, where S. noctilio co-infests Pinus with native Sirex nigricornis and its mutualist, Amylostereum chailletii. Using phylogenetic and culture methods, we show that extensive, reciprocal exchange of fungal species and strains is occurring, with 75.3 per cent of S. nigricornis carrying A. areolatum and 3.5 per cent of S. noctilio carrying A. chailletii. These findings show that the apparent specificity of the mutualism between Sirex spp. and their associated Amylostereum spp. is not the result of specific biological mechanisms that maintain symbiont fidelity. Rather, partner switching may be common when shifting geographical distributions driven by ecological or anthropogenic forces bring host and mutualist pairs into sympatry. Such novel associations have potentially profound consequences for fitness and virulence. Symbiont sharing, if it occurs commonly, may represent an important but overlooked mechanism of community change linked to biological invasions.
Diaphanospondylodysostosis (DSD): Confirmation of a recessive disorder with abnormal vertebral ossification and nephroblastomatosis

We report on four patients from three families, with similar radiological findings: absent (or severely delayed) ossification of vertebral bodies and associated anomalies. The babies were stillborn or died soon after birth of respiratory insufficiency. Two patients are sibs (female and male) born to first cousin Malian parents. The two others were non‐consanguineous. This perinatally lethal entity comprises short neck, short wide thorax, and normally shaped limbs. Associated, inconstant anomalies are myelomeningocele, cystic kidneys with nephrogenic rests (in the sibs), and cleft palate. Radiologically, the hallmarks are absence of ossification of the vertebral bodies and sacrum, abnormal position of the vertebral pedicles, which are lamellar and angulated, ribbon‐like ribs reduced in number, narrow pelvis, upward widening of the iliac wings, and unusual tilt of the ischiopubic rami, contrasting with the normal appendicular skeleton. Maroteaux briefly described one of the patients in the 2002 edition of “Maladies osseuses de l'enfant” and three sibs with similar renal and radiological findings were reported in 2003 in this Journal. Combined with the latter cases, these four new patients allow delineation of a specific lethal AR syndrome with ossification defect of the axial skeleton and renal dysplasia. We propose to name this entity diaphanospondylodysostosis. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Arreglos familiares de la población latinoamericana en España: ¿cambios en tiempos de crisis?

La estructura de los hogares de la poblacion migrante difiere a menudo de la de la poblacion no migrante. El papel que han desempenado las redes sociales al facilitar el proceso de asentamiento, asi como los vinculos intergeneracionales potencialmente mas estrechos en las familias migrantes se han senalado como factores explicativos. Sin embargo, los cambios en las condiciones economicas pueden influir en la composicion de los hogares de los inmigrantes ya asentados. Utilizando datos de la Encuesta de Poblacion Activa (EPA) del periodo comprendido entre 2005 y 2012 nos preguntamos como y en que medida, en un contexto de recesion economica, aumenta la propension de los migrantes latinoamericanos a vivir en hogares extensos o multiples. Los resultados sugieren la existencia de una pauta de genero diferenciada y destacan la importancia no solo de la coyuntura economica sino tambien de los eventos en el ciclo de vida a la hora de explicar la probabilidad de vivir en hogares complejos.
Prospective and randomized study of gabexate mesilate for the treatment of severe acute pancreatitis with organ dysfunction.

BACKGROUND/AIMS Exaggerated production of various proteases may account for the late presence of organ dysfunction in acute pancreatitis. This study examined the effects of early administration of gabexate mesilate on the condition of patients with severe acute pancreatitis and organ dysfunctions. METHODOLOGY Fifty-two patients with acute pancreatitis and organ dysfunction were enrolled. The treatment group included 26 patients receiving intravenous gabexate mesilate infusion at a dose of 100 mg/hr for 7 days. APACHE-II score, clinical and biochemical parameters were monitored intensively. RESULTS Coagulopathy ileus, and abdominal pain was significantly improved with gabexate mesilate. Gabexate mesilate reduced the necessity for surgical intervention and peritoneal lavage. The 7-day-mortality and 90-day-mortality rates were also significantly reduced with gabexate mesilate therapy. CONCLUSIONS There are strong indications from this study that early intravenous gabexate mesilate infusion results in improved survival in acute pancreatitis with organ dysfunctions.
Absence of p53 Gene Expression in Selenium Molecular Prevention of Chemically Induced Hepatocarcinogenesis in Rats

Background/Aim: p53 pathway is thought by many researchers to be critically involved in selenium's chemoprevention or in hepatocarcinogenesis. The aim of this study was to investigate the gene expression of p53, p21 and B-cell lymphoma-2 (bcl-2) using preventive and therapeutic approaches of selenium in chemically induced hepatocarcinogenesis in rats. Materials and Methods: Rats were divided randomly into six groups: Negative control, positive control (diethyl nitrosamine +2-acetylaminofluorene), preventive group, preventive control (respective control for preventive group), therapeutic group and therapeutic control (respective control for therapeutic group). p53, p21 and bcl-2 genes on liver tissues were measured using real-time polymerase chain reaction. Results: The expression of p53 was only significant in the therapeutic control. The expression of bcl-2 was insignificant in all the groups. p21 expression was significant in all the groups except the preventive group. Conclusions: The selenium molecular mechanism for liver cancer prevention is not through the p53 pathway. Also, the absence of p53 is not necessary for chemically induced liver cancer in rats.
Effects of Exposure to High Temperature and Feeding Level on Regional Blood Flow and Oxidative Capacity of Tissues in Piglets

To determine to what extent exposure to high ambient temperature and feeding level affect tissue energy metabolism in piglets, regional blood flow and oxidative capacity of tissues were evaluated in sixteen 21.8 ± 2.8 kg pigs. At 5 weeks of age, littermates were divided into three groups and acclimated to the treatment for 25 days. One group was reared at 33°C and fed ad libitum (33AL, n= 6) while the other two groups were maintained at 23°C and either pair‐fed on the basis of the food consumption of their 33AL littermates (23PF, n= 5), or fed ad libitum (23AL, n= 5). Regional blood flow was determined in conscious pigs by injection of coloured microspheres, which were recovered in different tissues after slaughter. Activities of cytochrome oxidase and cytochrome aa3 content were measured in tissue homogenates of heart, longissimus dorsi and rhomboideus muscles, liver and small intestine. There was decreased blood flow to internal adipose tissue (42%) and increased blood flow to peripheral tissues (skin, 44%) and tissues implicated in respiratory evaporative heat loss (diaphragm, 45%, lungs, 59%) at 33°C compared to 23°C, which can be viewed as an effective mechanism for increasing heat loss at high temperature. In addition, the concomitant decrease in blood flow (49%) and slight reduction of oxidative capacities in both muscles at 33°C might contribute to the reduction in thermogenesis, but these effects were also observed when the feeding level was reduced at thermal neutrality (23PF group). In the viscera (intestine, liver), blood flow was decreased in the two groups on a restricted food intake (about 50% of 23AL), independently of environmental temperature. The results suggest that most of the mechanisms associated with the reduction in energy expenditure during warm acclimation are related to the adaptive reduction in food intake.