Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Development of valsartan-loaded gelatin microcapsule without crystal change using hydroxypropylmethylcellulose as a stabilizer

To develop a valsartan-loaded gelatin microcapsule using hydroxypropylmethylcellulose (HPMC) as a stabilizer, which could improve the physical stability and bioavailability of valsartan, the gelatin microcapsules were prepared with various ratios of gelatin and HPMC using a spray-drying technique. Their solubility, dissolution, thermal characteristics, crystallinity, and physical stability were investigated. The bioavailability of drug in valsartan-loaded microcapsule was then evaluated compared to drug powder and commercial product in rats. The microcapsule with gelatin and/or HPMC enhanced the solubility and dissolution of drug compared to valsartan powder. Among the formulations tested, the valsartan-loaded gelatin microcapsule at the weight ratio of valsartan/gelatin/HPMC of 1/2/1 gave excellent drug solubility of ∼ 2 μg/ml and dissolution of 70% at 1 h. The crystal state of valsartan in this microcapsule was changed from crystalline to amorphous form during the spray-drying process and maintained as an amorphous form at 40°C for at least 3 months, indicating that it was physically stable. HPMC in this microcapsule could inhibit the recrystallization, resulting in stabilizing the amorphous form of valsartan. Furthermore, it improved the oral bioavailability of valsartan compared to valsartan powder and gave the similar AUC, Cmax, and Tmax values to commercial product, suggesting that it was bioequivalent to commercial product in rats. Thus, the gelatin microcapsule with HPMC would be a more effective and stable oral delivery system of poorly water-soluble valsartan.
Risk factors for Neisseria meningitides carriage in a school during a community outbreak of meningococcal infection

Summary As part of the management of an outbreak of meningococcal infection, 119 school contacts of an index case were swabbed for nasopharyngeal carriage. In a cohort study, risk factors for Neisseria meningitidis carriage were ascertained by means of a questionnaire, completed by 114 (96%) of those swabbed. Twenty five (21%) cultures were identified as ‘neisseria positive’; of which there were 18 (15%) Neisseria meningitidis isolates, 2 (2%) Neisseria lactamica isolates and 5 (4%) showed contaminants only. Two (2%) carriers were identified as harbouring the implicated outbreak strain. Single variable analysis identified six statistically significant risk factors for meningococcal carriage; increasing age, female sex, manual social class, personal smoking, regular attendance at a discotheque and rhinorrhoea. Multivariate analysis, using logistic regression modelling, found that of these six variables only age, sex and social class remained statistically significant when the other factors were controlled for. Nevertheless the role of smoking, social events and respiratory/viral infections in nasopharyngeal carriage, and other plausible mechanisms whereby age, sex and social class might exert their effect, could usefully be investigated further.
Mothers' mental representations and their relationship to mother-infant attachment.

The association between the constructs of mental representation posited by object relations theory and attachment theory was studied through an assessment of adolescent mothers' mental representations and their infants' security of attachment. Forty-two pregnant adolescents were given the Adult Attachment Interview (George, Kaplan, & Main, 1985) to assess their modes of attachment, and the Krohn Object Representation Scale for Dreams (Krohn & Mayman, 1974) to assess object-representations. When the 42 infants were 15 months old, they were videotaped in the Strange Situation (Ainsworth, Blehar, Waters, & Wall, 1978) with their mothers. Subjects were primarily low-income African-American and Hispanic mothers and infants. As measured by the significant association between classifications on the Adult Attachment Interview and the Krohn scale (p less than .001), the adolescents' attachment and object-representations were highly related. Both attachment and object relations were also significantly related to infant attachment (p less than .001 and p less than .01, respectively). Results suggest that the concepts of mental representation proposed by object relations theory and attachment theory overlap and that mothers' mental representations have heuristic value in predicting mother-infant attachment.
Proposal of a New 18F-FDG PET/CT Predictor of Response in Rectal Cancer Treated by Neoadjuvant Chemoradiation Therapy and Comparison With PERCIST Criteria

PurposeThe aim of this study was to correlate PERCIST criteria and a new criterion developed in our center that we named PREDIST (PET Residual Disease in Solid Tumor) with tumor regression grade (TRG) classification of pathologic response to neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (CRT) in patients affected by rectal cancer. MethodsSeventy-three consecutive patients affected by locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC) were retrospectively included. FDG-PET/CT scans were performed at staging time and after the end of CRT (mean time 6.5 weeks). The analysis was performed by PERCIST criteria 1.0 and PREDIST criteria based on a new definition of residual disease. We split the TRG system into responders (TRG1-2) and nonresponders (TRG3-5). Pearson chi-square analysis by cross-tabulations was performed. ResultsPREDIST classification was statistically predictive of TRG response (P = 0.004, sensitivity 81.8% and specificity 54.9%). On the contrary, PERCIST criteria was not statistically correlated to TRG (P = 0.128) caused by a very low specificity (9.8%). ConclusionsFDG-PET/CT scan is an accurate tool to predict preoperatively the response to CRT in LARC patients. The novel proposed criterion (PREDIST) seems to be helpful to discriminate responder by nonresponder patients.
Isolated Postchallenge Hyperglycemia and the Risk of Fatal Cardiovascular Disease in Older Women and Men: The Rancho Bernardo Study

OBJECTIVE To determine whether diabetes defined by isolated postchallenge hyperglycemia (IPH) (2-h postchallenge plasma glucose ≥ 11.1 mmol/l with fasting plasma glucose [FPG] < 7.0 mmol/l) increases the risk of fatal cardiovascular disease (CVD) in older women and men. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS In a prospective study, we followed 769 men and 1,089 women, aged 50–89 years, who had no history of diabetes or myocardial infarction and demonstrated no fasting hyperglycemia (i.e., FPG < 7.0 mmol/l) when they underwent oral glucose tolerance testing at baseline in 1984–1987. RESULTS At baseline, 70% of 125 women and 48% of 133 men with previously undiagnosed diabetes had IPH. Over the next 7 years, women with IPH had a significantly increased risk of fatal CVD and heart disease compared with nondiabetic women. This increased risk was not observed in men with IPH. This association was independent of age, hypertension, central obesity, cigarette smoking, HDL cholesterol, and triglycerides (multiply adjusted hazard ratio and 95% CI: 2.6 and 1.4–4.7 for CVD; 2.9 and 1.3–6.4 for heart disease). CONCLUSIONS Diabetes defined by IPH alone is common in older adults and more than doubles the risk of fatal CVD and heart disease in older women. Because the prevalence of IPH increases with age, the use of fasting glucose alone for diabetes screening or diagnosis may fail to identify most older adults at high risk for CVD and should be reevaluated.
Desarrollo del niño y experimentación en ciencias

La investigacion realizada pretende ser un trabajo interdisciplinar de psicologia evolutiva, psicologia educativa y didactica de las ciencias. Se analizan paralelamente dos tipos de datos: unos datos cuantitativos obtenidos de un estudio experimental realizado con 923 alumnos de ciclo inicial y medio de tres colegios de la ciudad de valencia, y unos datos cualitativos recogidos fundamentalmente de la interaccion del equipo investigador con los 32 profesores que trabajaron en el proyecto. Las hipotesis que se plantean son: 1. Podemos detectar diferencias significativas en el rendimiento de los alumnos cuando empleamos una metodologia verbal-visual o experimental manipulativa aunque ambas se disenen y se presenten de forma motivante y atractiva para el nino. 2. Con un criterio evolutivo entre los 6 y 11 anos podemos recomendar preferentemente el uso de una de las dos metodologias en la ensenanza- aprendizaje de las ciencias. 3. La metodologia empleada influye en la retencion de la informacion y por lo tanto afecta a la memoria a largo plazo. 4. La metodologia empleada incide en la motivacion y en el desarrollo de actitudes cientificas. Los resultados parecen confirmar los beneficios del diseno:tratamiento de los contenidos mas experimentacion, trabajando con ninos de educacion primaria (6-11 anos).
Change in the use of breast-conserving surgery in western Washington after the 1990 NIH Consensus Development Conference.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the use of breast-conserving surgery in western Washington before and after the National Institutes of Health Consensus Development Conference (June 18-21, 1990) during which breast-conserving surgery was recommended for most women with early invasive breast cancer. DESIGN Survey. SETTING Population-based cancer registry in the Seattle-Puget Sound (Washington) region. PARTICIPANTS The survey included 13541 women in whom American Joint Committee on Cancer stage I or II breast cancer was diagnosed between January 1, 1983, and December 31, 1993. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE Proportion of participants who underwent breast-conserving surgery. RESULTS From April 1985, after results of a US randomized controlled trial showing equivalent survival in women undergoing mastectomy or breast-conserving surgery were published, to the time of the Conference, breast-conserving surgery was performed on 44.8% of women with stage I and 25.8% with stage II breast cancer. These percentages increased to 54.9% and 35.2%, respectively, during the post-Conference period. While women with stage II breast cancer were less likely than women with stage I breast cancer to undergo breast-conserving surgery before and after the Conference, trends for age and education were attenuated after the Conference. Differences in the use of breast-conserving surgery observed before the Conference between countries of residence and among hospital types were also reduced after the Conference. CONCLUSIONS These findings suggest that the Conference recommendations had an effect on the adoption of breast-conserving surgery, particularly among groups who were previously least likely to undergo such surgery. Despite progress toward the Conference recommendation that the majority of women with early invasive breast cancer undergo breast-conserving surgery, the majority of women with stage II breast cancer undergo mastectomy.
Replacing the nitrogen nutrition index by the chlorophyll meter to assess wheat N status

The performance of cultivars is strongly linked to the growing conditions that vary according to both controlled and uncontrolled experimental factors. Specifically, there is a need to control the efficiency of N use by wheat, Triticum aestivum L. , to minimize nitrogen losses and deficiency. The nitrogen nutrition index (NNI) is a precise indicator of nitrogen status but it does not suit the users’ practical constraints because it requires time-consuming measurements and destructive plant sampling at a precise growth stage. Here we tested the soil plant analysis development (SPAD) chlorophyll meter as an alternative to the nitrogen nutrition index (NNI). The chlorophyll meter is a more convenient, leaf clip-on device that determines the relative amount of chlorophyll present in plant leaves. We first identified which leaf should be used; we then compared SPAD and NNI data from various experiments. We also followed SPAD measurements around flowering time to determine a common time span of measurements for all the cultivars of a trial presenting a wide range of earliness. Our results show a non-cultivar-dependent, exponential relationship between the SPAD index and NNI at flowering, with a r2 equal to 0.89. This result implies that the SPAD chlorophyll meter can be used as an alternative to NNI to measure N status in wheat. We also showed that SPAD measurements can be taken before flowering, e.g. during heading, to characterize nitrogen status at flowering. This result provides an organizational leeway to experimenters who can then follow more precisely the N status of their trials. Thus the SPAD index is a good substitute for NNI because it is convenient to use.
Parametric Rietveld refinement of coexisting disordered clay minerals

Abstract X-ray diffraction is one of the most effective tools for the characterization of the stacking defects which occur frequently in clay minerals. Modelling of the diffraction patterns of oriented mounts is often used for obtaining structural information about the nature of stacking order. Manual matching of calculated and observed patterns is time consuming and the results are user dependent and especially troublesome if a consistent model of the same mineral measured under different conditions needs to be obtained. It was shown recently that the Rietveld method could be applied successfully for the evaluation of the X-ray patterns of oriented mounts. Nevertheless, this automatic refinement procedure can also lead to inconsistent results if independent refinements are performed that describe the same sample measured under different conditions. One way to solve this problem is the application of parametric Rietveld refinement. For this approach a set of different measurements of the same sample was collected and fitted in one combined refinement by the connection of the structural models via external parameters. These conditions may involve different pre-treatments (e.g. different intercalations), different temperatures or relative humidities and/or different experimental setup (powder or oriented samples). All patterns were fitted in one overall refinement process by the BGMN software. This approach was demonstrated on a mixture of two disordered reference materials and on a set of geological samples. Two different states for each sample were refined independently and parametrically and it was shown that this approach leads to consistent results, saves computation time and may even resolve small structural differences.
Diagnostic work-up of rectal bleeding in general practice.

BACKGROUND GPs have many patients with gastrointestinal discomfort. Among bowel-related complaints, the sign of rectal bleeding is of particular importance in patients aged 50 years and above, as it can be an early sign for serious bowel diseases such as colon carcinoma. Despite many guidelines offered to GPs for screening and early detection of colorectal carcinomas, there is very little information about the actual diagnostic approach to the sign of rectal bleeding. AIM The aim of the study was to collect data concerning treatment strategies used by GPs who treat patients presenting with rectal bleeding. DESIGN OF STUDY Prospective data collection. SETTING General practices in Germany. METHOD Over the course of a year, GPs recorded their treatment strategies in patients presenting with rectal bleeding and associated symptoms. Using a digital practice patient file, physicians participating in the study were able to continuously transmit data electronically to the researchers of the study about diagnostics, referrals, hospital admissions, and final diagnoses. RESULTS During the course of 1 year, 94 participating physicians collected data on 1584 patients. Information about treating rectal bleeding was recorded for 422 patients; 60% of the patients were referred to specialists in internal medicine or gastroenterologists for further diagnostics. A colonoscopy was the most frequently performed diagnostic procedure (46.2%). Twenty-two per cent (n = 93) of the patients--54 of them aged 50 years and above--were exclusively treated by their GP without conducting a colonoscopy or cooperating with specialists. For these patients, GPs diagnosed less severe diseases like haemorrhoids or other proctologic diseases. CONCLUSION By using a study that allows GPs to transmit electronically their findings and data, it is possible to draw a picture of treatment strategies of GPs in patients presenting with rectal bleeding. The high percentage of patients who received medical treatment in consultation with specialists underscores the significance of the sign of rectal bleeding in general practice. The need for further diagnostic measures in patients who have been treated exclusively by GPs has to be discussed.
Antimicrobial susceptibility of Neisseria gonorrhoeae isolates from patients attending a public referral center for sexually transmitted diseases in Belo Horizonte, State of Minas Gerais, Brazil.

INTRODUCTION The aim of this study was to determine the antimicrobial susceptibility of Neisseria gonorrhoeae isolates obtained from patients attending a public referral center for sexually transmitted diseases and specialized care services (STD/SCS) in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. METHODS Between March 2011 and February 2012, 201 specimens of Neisseria gonorrhoeae were consecutively obtained from men with symptoms of urethritis and women with symptons of cervicitis or were obtained during their initial consultation. The strains were tested using the disk diffusion method, and the minimum inhibitory concentrations of azithromycin, cefixime, ceftriaxone, ciprofloxacin, chloramphenicol, penicillin, tetracycline and spectinomycin were determined using the E-test. RESULTS The specimens were 100% sensitive to cefixime, ceftriaxone and spectinomycin and exhibited resistances of 4.5% (9/201), 21.4% (43/201), 11.9% (24/201), 22.4% (45/201) and 32.3% (65/201) to azithromycin, ciprofloxacin, chloramphenicol, penicillin and tetracycline, respectively. Intermediate sensitivities of 17.9% (36/201), 4% (8/201), 16.9% (34/201), 71.1% (143/201) and 22.9% (46/201) were observed for azithromycin, ciprofloxacin, chloramphenicol, penicillin and tetracycline, respectively. The specimens had plasmid-mediated resistance to penicillin PPNG 14.5% (29/201) and tetracycline TRNG 11.5% (23/201). CONCLUSIONS The high percentage of detected resistance to penicillin, tetracycline, chloramphenicol and ciprofloxacin indicates that these antibiotics are not appropriate for gonorrhea treatment at the Health Clinic and possibly in Belo Horizonte. The resistance and intermediate sensitivity of these isolates indicates that caution is recommended in the use of azithromycin and emphasizes the need to establish mechanisms for the surveillance of antimicrobial resistance for the effective control of gonorrhea.
Outcome of anti-retroviral treatment in HIV-infected orphans and non-orphans at an ART centre in North India

Abstract Background: Few Indian studies have reported the long-term efficacy of anti-retroviral treatment (ART) in children and in orphaned, HIV-infected children in particular. Aim: To study differences in outcome of ART in HIV-infected orphans compared with non-orphans. Methods: A retrospective study of 87 HIV-infected children who commenced ART in the period January 2006 to August 2007. The main measures were orphan status, absolute CD4 count and weight-for-height (WHZ) and height-for-age (HAZ) Z-scores. Results: Median follow-up was 33 months. Forty (45·9%) children were orphaned. Orphans and non-orphans had similar baseline median WHZ and HAZ (−2·48 vs −2·63, P = 0·65 and −2·78 vs −2·91, P = 0·77, respectively). The two groups were similar in terms of WHO clinical stage and frequency of severe immunosuppression at presentation (P = 0·88 and 0·25, respectively). After ART initiation, the median absolute CD4 count increased progressively in both groups. Median WHZ and HAZ increased throughout the study period in the orphans and reached −1 at 27 and 39 months of ART, respectively. In the non-orphans, WHZ remained below that of the orphan group, the difference becoming statistically significant from 18 months of ART. The increment in HAZ in the non-orphan group was at par with the orphan group until 12 months of follow-up, after which it fell between 18 and 30 months. Subsequently, HAZ rose but remained below that of the orphan group. Both WHZ and HAZ failed to reach −1 in the non-orphan group. In both groups, 85% reported 100% adherence to ART. Conclusion: The outcome of ART is not affected by orphan status with the extended family adequately supporting orphaned children. Growth of children whose parents are HIV-infected may be constrained despite ART if there is inadequate family support.
Functional networks for cognitive control in a stop signal task: Independent component analysis

Cognitive control is a critical executive function of the human brain. Many studies have combined general linear modeling and the stop signal task (SST) to delineate the component processes of cognitive control. For instance, by contrasting stop success (SS) and stop error (SE) trials in the SST, investigators examined the neural processes underlying stop signal inhibition (SS > SE) and error processing (SE > SS). To complement this parameterized approach, here, we employed a data‐driven method—independent component analysis (ICA)—to elucidate neural networks and the relationship between neural networks subserving cognitive control. In 59 adults performing the SST during fMRI, we characterized six independent components with ICA. These functional networks, temporally sorted for go success, SS, and SE trials as the events of interest, included a motor cortical network for motor preparation and execution; a right fronto‐parietal network for attentional monitoring; a left fronto‐parietal network for response inhibition; a midline cortico‐subcortical network for error processing; a cuneus–precuneus network for behavioral engagement; and a “default” network for self‐referential processing. Across subjects the event‐associated weights of these functional networks showed a distinct pattern of correlation. These results provide new insight into the component processes of cognitive control. Hum Brain Mapp, 2012. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Dual Role of the Plastid Terminal Oxidase in Tomato

The plastid terminal oxidase (PTOX) is a plastoquinol oxidase whose absence in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) results in the ghost (gh) phenotype characterized by variegated leaves (with green and bleached sectors) and by carotenoid-deficient ripe fruit. We show that PTOX deficiency leads to photobleaching in cotyledons exposed to high light primarily as a consequence of reduced ability to synthesize carotenoids in the gh mutant, which is consistent with the known role of PTOX as a phytoene desaturase cofactor. In contrast, when entirely green adult leaves from gh were produced and submitted to photobleaching high light conditions, no evidence for a deficiency in carotenoid biosynthesis was obtained. Rather, consistent evidence indicates that the absence of PTOX renders the tomato leaf photosynthetic apparatus more sensitive to light via a disturbance of the plastoquinone redox status. Although gh fruit are normally bleached (most likely as a consequence of a deficiency in carotenoid biosynthesis at an early developmental stage), green adult fruit could be obtained and submitted to photobleaching high light conditions. Again, our data suggest a role of PTOX in the regulation of photosynthetic electron transport in adult green fruit, rather than a role principally devoted to carotenoid biosynthesis. In contrast, ripening fruit are primarily dependent on PTOX and on plastid integrity for carotenoid desaturation. In summary, our data show a dual role for PTOX. Its activity is necessary for efficient carotenoid desaturation in some organs at some developmental stages, but not all, suggesting the existence of a PTOX-independent pathway for plastoquinol reoxidation in association with phytoene desaturase. As a second role, PTOX is implicated in a chlororespiratory mechanism in green tissues.