Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Live Vaccine Use and Safety in DiGeorge Syndrome

OBJECTIVE: Live vaccines are generally contraindicated in patients with DiGeorge syndrome (DGS), a congenital disorder characterized by cellular immune deficiency. Vaccine utilization and safety in this population are not well described. This study examined vaccination patterns and adverse events following live immunization (AEFLI) in these individuals. METHODS: A multicenter retrospective cohort study was conducted in subjects with DGS confirmed by fluorescence in situ hybridization assay (chromosome 22q11.2 microdeletion). Live vaccine-preventable illnesses, vaccination coverage and timeliness, and AEFLIs in the 56-day window after live vaccination were examined. Bivariate and multivariable analyses assessed the impact of demographics medical history, timing of diagnostic confirmation, and preceding immune function on vaccination patterns and AEFLIs. RESULTS: Of 194 subjects, 77% and 75% received measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) and varicella vaccines, respectively; 58% completed recommended vaccinations by age 19 to 35 months. Adverse events occurred after 14% and 20% of MMR and varicella vaccine doses, respectively. Most events were minor, few were serious, and no deaths were reported in post–live vaccination windows. Although early diagnostic confirmation negatively affected live vaccination coverage and timeliness (P < .001), baseline CD4% did not differ between subjects who did or did not receive live vaccines by 12 to 18 months. Among varicella vaccine recipients, those with a subsequent adverse event had a lower preceding CD4% (24.8% ± 7.3%) than those without (35.5% ± 11.7%) (P < .05); no CD4% differences were observed with MMR vaccination. Fourteen unvaccinated subjects experienced live vaccine–preventable illnesses. CONCLUSIONS: Live vaccines were frequently given and generally well-tolerated among patients with DGS with mild-to-moderate immunosuppression.
Atividade sexual na espondilite anquilosante

OBJECTIVE: To assess the sexual activity of patients with ankylosing spondylitis, correlating it with disease activity and functional indices. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Thirty-two patients with ankylosing spondylitis and 32 healthy controls were assessed regarding pain, fatigue, sexual activity (by use of pictures of seven sexual positions), disease activity (by use of Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index - BASDAI), and functional capacity (by use of Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Functional Index - BASFI). After the interview, the patients were divided into two groups: group A (with sexual activity) and group B (no sexual activity). RESULTS: Group B showed statistical association with longer disease duration (P = 0.01), and higher BASFI (P = 0.0007) and BASDAI (P = 0.03) scores. No correlation was observed between age and functional capacity. Man lying on his back and woman on top was the most frequent, enjoyable and least painful position. The position with the woman on her back and a man lying on top was the least chosen. Control individuals reported a higher frequency of sexual activity, longer duration of intercourse, and less pain and fatigue; the reported frequency of orgasms, however, was similar in both groups. CONCLUSION: The chronic nature of ankylosing spondylitis, with poor functional capacity and higher disease activity, interferes with sexual intercourse. When sexual activity was possible, orgasm and sexual satisfaction did not differ from those of healthy controls.
Implementing and Evaluating Evidence-Based Treatments in Schools: Successes and Lessons Learned

This pilot study presents a community's attempt to enhance their school mental health partnership by collaborating with a university to implement the Youth Experiencing Success in School (Y.E.S.S.) Program, a school mental health program composed of evidence-based treatments (EBTs) for children with disruptive behavior problems (Owens et al, in press). The study sought to replicate the effectiveness of the Y.E. S.S. Program and evaluate treatment effectiveness under high university involvement conditions (HUI: services provided by university graduate students) and low university involvement conditions (LUI: services provided by community professionals). HLM analyses indicated that the rates of improvement for the HUI and LUI conditions did not differ significantly for any treatment outcome variable. When these two treatment groups were combined, teachers reported that treated children demonstrated significant improvements in symptoms, social functioning, and classroom functioning, whereas control children on a waiting list did not. Results replicated some of the positive effects of the Y.E. S.S. Program and offer grounds for optimism that, with sufficient technical support, EBTs can retain their effectiveness when delivered by community professionals in schools in under-served communities. Successes and lessons learned from the process of transporting EBTs to the community via a school-mental health partnership are presented.
Merging virtual objects with the real world: seeing ultrasound imagery within the patient

We describe initial results which show “live” ultrasound echography data visualized within a pregnant human subject. The visualization is achieved by using a small video camera mounted in front of a conventional head-mounted display worn by an observer. The camera’s video images are composited with computer-generated ones that contain one or more 2D ultrasound images properly transformed to the observer’s current viewing position. As the observer walks around the subject, the ultrasound images appear stationary in 3-space within the subject. This kind of enhancement of the observer’s vision may have many other applications, e.g., image guided surgical procedures and on location 3D interactive architecture preview.
FEV1/FVC in Diagnosing Airway Obstruction in Indian Population

Background. FEV1/FEV6 has been proposed as a cheap, reproducible and valid alternative to FEV1/FVC in spirometry. No Indian data exists on its utility to diagnose airway obstruction. Aim. we sought to determine a fixed cut off of FEV1/FEV6 to diagnose obstruction corresponding to FEV1/FVC < 0.70 proposed by GOLD guidelines. Method. Spirometry was done on patient referred to a tertiary centre in India. Age, sex, height weight were recorded in addition to spirometric variables like FEV1, FVC, FEV6. The sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values of FEV1/FEV6 were determined with respect to gold standard of FEV1/FVC < 0.70. Results. 467 spirometries were analysed after meeting the ATS acceptability criteria. Considering FEV1/FVC < 0.7 as being the gold standard for obstruction, ROC curve was used to determine the best corresponding cut-off for FEV1/FEV6. The area under the curve was 99.3% (95% CI: 98.1–99.8%), and the FEV1/FEV6 cut-off, corresponding to the greatest sum of sensitivity and specificity, was 73%. For the total population, the FEV1/FEV6 sensitivity, specificity, PPV, NPV were was 95.7 %, 94.2 %, 87.5 % and 97.9 % respectively. Agreement by Kappa value between two cut offs was excellent 0.89 (0.87–0.91). Conclusion. FEV1/FEV6 < 73% is a new reliable spirometry index to diagnose airway obstruction in Indian population.
A clinical audit of the implementation of the tuberculosis screening tool amongst clients who are on anti-retroviral therapy in the eThekwini local municipality clinics

Background : Tuberculosis (TB) is a global public health concern and is identified as the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the population infected with Human Immune Deficiency Virus (HIV). South Africa (SA), particularly the KwaZulu-Natal Province, is burdened with persistently high rates of both TB and HIV infections. In an attempt to improve TB and HIV co-infection outcomes the South African health care system has adopted the World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines for intensified TB case findings in all HIV positive individuals for regular screening of TB symptoms in order to promptly diagnose and treat active TB disease or to exclude TB for initiation Isoniazid Prophylactic Therapy (IPT). IPT has proven effective in preventing TB disease in People Living with HIV or AIDS (PLWHA). This critical first step of TB symptom screening is regarded as the intervention that could significantly reduce the challenge currently faced with TB-HIV co-infection. The study was conducted in selected eThekwini Municipality Primary Health Care (PHC) facilities with the focus on an investigation to determine the extent of the implementation of the TB symptom screening tool in HIV infected individuals, in addition to identifying treatment initiation or further investigations based on the tool implementation. It has been found during the literature review, that there is a lack of research in SA to show that this critical first step in TB identification has been investigated, yet one in six South African’s is HIV positive and the incidence of TB-HIV co-infection is not declining. Methodology : A quantitative, descriptive approach was utilised to conduct a retrospective patient chart review. A multistage cluster sampling technique comprising three stages was implemented to identify the sample. There was a random selection of clinics, and the required number of client records was obtained through convenience sampling from the selected clinics. Results : The findings of this study revealed there is inadequate implementation of the current national and provincial TB protocols. The study provides varied levels of information about TB symptom screening in HIV infected individuals in the PHC clinics of eThekwini Municipality. It was observed that Health Care Worker’s (HCW) in some facilities carried out TB symptom screening to an extent. However, the inconsistent and partial application of this screening tool warrants improvement to facilitate the broad success of TB-HIV care strategies.
Receptor heterodimerization as a novel mechanism for the regulation of Wnt/&bgr;-catenin signaling

ABSTRACT The Wnt pathway plays important roles in multiple physiological and pathophysiological processes. Here, we report a novel mechanism that regulates the Wnt pathway through heterodimerization of the Wnt co-receptor low-density lipoprotein-receptor-related protein 6 (LRP6) and very low-density lipoprotein receptor (VLDLR); the latter belongs to the same protein family as LRP6 and was originally known as a receptor for lipoproteins. Knockdown of Vldlr expression elevated LRP6 protein levels and activated Wnt/&bgr;-catenin signaling, whereas overexpression of Vldlr suppressed Wnt signaling. Moreover, we demonstrate that the VLDLR ectodomain is essential and sufficient for inhibition of Wnt signaling. The VLDLR ectodomain accelerated internalization and degradation of LRP6 through heterodimerization with the LRP6 extracellular domain. Monoclonal antibodies specific for the VLDLR ectodomain blocked VLDLR–LRP6 heterodimerization, resulting in enhanced Wnt/&bgr;-catenin signaling in vitro and in vivo. Taken together, these findings suggest that heterodimerization of receptors in the membrane accelerates the turnover of LRP6, and represent a new mechanism for the regulation of Wnt/&bgr;-catenin signaling.
Assessment of Health Care Waste Segregation Practice and Associated Factors of Health Care Workers in Gondar University Hospital, North West Ethiopia, 2013

Introduction: Health care wastes are of great importance due to its potential environmental hazards and public health risks. The ineffective handling and segregation of healthcare waste can result additional costs related to the disposal of waste if not segregated appropriately. Objective: To assess health care workers practice and associated factors towards health care waste segregation in Gondar University hospital Gondar, Ethiopia, 2013.Methods: Institutional based cross- sectional study was employed and Study participants were selected by stratified random sampling using profession category. Pretested standardized questionnaire and observational check list were used. Result: This study showed that 173 (46.3%) of the respondents had correctly practiced health care waste segregation. Being a nurse profession (AOR =0.27; 95% CI= 0.15-0.51), working more than eight hours (AOR =0.28; 95% CI= 0.17-0.47) and unavailability of color coded containers (AOR =0.18; 95% CI= 0.08-0.38) were factors influencing the practice of health care waste segregation. Conclusion: This study showed that health care workers practice towards segregation of health care waste in university of Gondar hospital is poor. Profession, working hours in a day and availability of color coded containers were factors that affect the health care waste segregation practice.
Hsp90&agr; and Hsp90&bgr; together operate a hypoxia and nutrient paucity stress‐response mechanism during wound healing

When tissues are injured and blood vessels clot, the local environment becomes ischemic, meaning that there is a lack of adequate supply of oxygen and glucose delivered to the surrounding cells. The heat shock protein‐90 (Hsp90) family proteins protect tissues from various environmental insults and participate in the repair of damaged tissue. Here, we report discovery of a new ischemia‐responsive mechanism in which the two Hsp90 isoforms Hsp90&agr; and Hsp90&bgr; (also known as HSP90AA1 and HSP90AB1, respectively) work together to promote cell motility in wounded skin and accelerate wound closure. We demonstrate that Hsp90&agr; and Hsp90&bgr; have distinct and non‐exchangeable functions during wound healing. Under hypoxia and when there is a lack of serum factors, Hsp90&bgr; binds to the cytoplasmic tail of the LDL receptor‐related protein‐1 (LRP‐1) and stabilizes the receptor at the cell surface. Hsp90&agr;, however, is secreted by the cell into extracellular space where it binds and signals through the LRP‐1 receptor to promote cell motility, leading to wound closure. In addition to skin injury, we suggest that this repair mechanism applies broadly to other non‐cutaneous injured tissues.
Identifying unique devices through wireless fingerprinting

We propose a new fingerprinting technique that differentiates between unique devices over a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) simply through the timing analysis of 802.11 probe request frames. Our technique can be applied to spoof detection, network reconnaissance, and implementation of access control against masquerading attacks. Experimental results indicate that our technique is consistent and accurate in differentiating between unique devices. In contrast with existing wireless fingerprinting techniques, our technique is passive, non-invasive and does not require the co-operation of fingerprintee hosts.
Unique and redundant β-catenin regulatory roles of two Dishevelled paralogs during C. elegans asymmetric cell division

ABSTRACT The Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway is utilized across metazoans. However, the mechanism of signal transduction, especially dissociation of the β-catenin destruction complex by Dishevelled proteins, remains controversial. Here, we describe the function of the Dishevelled paralogs DSH-2 and MIG-5 in the Wnt/β-catenin asymmetry (WβA) pathway in Caenorhabditis elegans, where WβA drives asymmetric cell divisions throughout development. We find that DSH-2 and MIG-5 redundantly regulate cell fate in hypodermal seam cells. Similarly, both DSH-2 and MIG-5 are required for positive regulation of SYS-1 (a C. elegans β-catenin), but MIG-5 has a stronger effect on the polarity of SYS-1 localization. We show that MIG-5 controls cortical APR-1 (the C. elegans APC) localization. DSH-2 and MIG-5 both regulate the localization of WRM-1 (another C. elegans β-catenin), acting together as negative regulators of WRM-1 nuclear localization. Finally, we demonstrate that overexpression of DSH-2 or MIG-5 in seam cells leads to stabilization of SYS-1 in the anterior seam daughter, solidifying the Dishevelled proteins as positive regulators of SYS-1. Overall, we have further defined the role of Dishevelled in the WβA signaling pathway, and demonstrated that DSH-2 and MIG-5 regulate cell fate, β-catenin nuclear levels and the polarity of β-catenin regulation. Summary: Two Dishevelled paralogs have both redundant and non-redundant roles in β-catenin regulation during asymmetric cell division in C. elegans.
The cost of interrupted work: more speed and stress

We performed an empirical study to investigate whether the context of interruptions makes a difference. We found that context does not make a difference but surprisingly, people completed interrupted tasks in less time with no difference in quality. Our data suggests that people compensate for interruptions by working faster, but this comes at a price: experiencing more stress, higher frustration, time pressure and effort. Individual differences exist in the management of interruptions: personality measures of openness to experience and need for personal structure predict disruption costs of interruptions. We discuss implications for how system design can support interrupted work.
An exploratory study of visual information analysis

To design information visualization tools for collaborative use, we need to understand how teams engage with visualizations during their information analysis process. We report on an exploratory study of individuals, pairs, and triples engaged in information analysis tasks using paper-based visualizations. From our study results, we derive a framework that captures the analysis activities of co-located teams and individuals. Comparing this framework with existing models of the information analysis process suggests that information visualization tools may benefit from providing a flexible temporal flow of analysis actions.
Human Metapneumovirus Circulation in the United States, 2008 to 2014

BACKGROUND: Human metapneumovirus (HMPV) infection causes respiratory illness, including bronchiolitis and pneumonia. However, national HMPV seasonality, as it compares with respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and influenza seasonality patterns, has not been well described. METHODS: Hospital and clinical laboratories reported weekly aggregates of specimens tested and positive detections for HMPV, RSV, and influenza to the National Respiratory and Enteric Virus Surveillance System from 2008 to 2014. A season was defined as consecutive weeks with ≥3% positivity for HMPV and ≥10% positivity for RSV and influenza during a surveillance year (June through July). For each virus, the season, onset, offset, duration, peak, and 6-season medians were calculated. RESULTS: Among consistently reporting laboratories, 33 583 (3.6%) specimens were positive for HMPV, 281 581 (15.3%) for RSV, and 401 342 (18.2%) for influenza. Annually, 6 distinct HMPV seasons occurred from 2008 to 2014, with onsets ranging from November to February and offsets from April to July. Based on the 6-season medians, RSV, influenza, and HMPV onsets occurred sequentially and season durations were similar at 21 to 22 weeks. HMPV demonstrated a unique biennial pattern of early and late seasonal onsets. RSV seasons (onset, offset, peak) were most consistent and occurred before HMPV seasons. There were no consistent patterns between HMPV and influenza circulations. CONCLUSIONS: HMPV circulation begins in winter and lasts until spring and demonstrates distinct seasons each year, with the onset beginning after that of RSV. HMPV, RSV, and influenza can circulate simultaneously during the respiratory season.
Myocardial Ischaemia-Reperfusion Syndrome

Reperfusion is the definitive treatment to salvage ischemic myocardium from infarction. A primary determinant of infarct size is the duration of ischemia. Early reestablishment of blood flow to ischaemic myocardium limits infarct size and reduces mortality. In a paradoxical manner, the return of blood flow to ischemic myocardium may result in additional injury in the area at risk. This condition is known as reperfusion injury, and the damage is more likely when reperfusion therapy is delayed. Even when the majority of the clinical trials designed to evaluate agents for preventing reperfusion injury have been disappointing, therapies to limit reperfusion injury remain an active area of investigation.
A potential physiological role for bi-directional motility and motor clustering of mitotic kinesin-5 Cin8 in yeast mitosis

ABSTRACT The bipolar kinesin-5 Cin8 switches from minus- to plus-end-directed motility under various conditions in vitro. The mechanism and physiological significance of this switch remain unknown. Here, we show that under high ionic strength conditions, Cin8 moves towards and concentrates in clusters at the minus ends of stable and dynamic microtubules. Clustering of Cin8 induces a switch from fast minus- to slow plus-end-directed motility and forms sites that capture antiparallel microtubules (MTs) and induces their sliding apart through plus-end-directed motility. In early mitotic cells with monopolar spindles, Cin8 localizes near the spindle poles at microtubule minus ends. This localization is dependent on the minus-end-directed motility of Cin8. In cells with assembled bipolar spindles, Cin8 is distributed along the spindle microtubules. We propose that minus-end-directed motility is required for Cin8 clustering near the spindle poles before spindle assembly. Cin8 clusters promote the capture of microtubules emanating from the neighboring spindle poles and mediate their antiparallel sliding. This activity is essential to maximize microtubule crosslinking before bipolar spindle assembly and to induce the initial separation of the spindle poles. Highlighted Article: We show that clustering of the mitotic kinesin-5 Cin8 on microtubules controls its motile properties and directionality, and we provide a refined model of how Cin8 performs its essential functions in mitosis.
A study on the demographic and morbidity patterns of thalassemia patients registered at a tertiary-care center of central India

Background: Thalassemia is an autosomal recessive disease. According to the WHO data, there are 269 million carriers of thalassemia worldwide, out of which 40 million are in South East Asia. Objectives: This study was conducted with the primary objective to assess demographic profile of patients with thalassemia at a tertiary care hospital of Bhopal along with morbidity pattern in them and economic burden on the patient’s family. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional, hospital-based study was carried out in the pediatric ward of Kamla Nehru Hospital of Gandhi Medical College, Bhopal. Information regarding the patient’s sociodemographic profile, morbidity pattern, economic burden, and other relevant aspects was collected on a predesigned and pretested proforma from the parents or attendant of all the patients who visited the clinic or were admitted in Kamla Nehru Hospital during July 2014 to December 2014. Results: During the study period, 180 children with thalassemia were identified. Of them, 61.7% were males and 38.3% were females, and 56.7% were diagnosed for thalassemia within first 6 months of age. Religion-wise distribution shows maximum cases 134 (74.4%) were Hindus followed by 37 (20.5%) Muslims, and 9 (5.0%) others. Children with thalassemia showed a higher frequency of illness as compared to their sibling with negative thalassemia history. Conclusion: This study is the first of its kind in the setting of central India, and the results of this study will lead to increased awareness about the different aspects of thalassemia.