Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
HIV testing for acute medical admissions: evaluation of a pilot study in Leicester, England

Objectives The 2008 UK National Guidelines for HIV testing recommended HIV testing should be offered to all general medical admissions aged 16–60 years in high prevalence areas, and that this should be evaluated to ensure this was effective in diagnosing previously undiagnosed HIV. Methods HIV testing was introduced as a routine test for all patients admitted to the acute medical admissions unit, comparisons were made between the testing rates before, during and after this intervention. Results The pilot was initiated in August 2009. Prior to the pilot the unit was carrying out 15 tests per month. However, when the pilot was introduced 82 tests were being carried out per month with a total of 10 new diagnoses since the start of the pilot. The proportion of patients tested versus those eligible for testing remained low varying between 6% and 22% month by month. 10 patients we found to be HIV positive with a prevalence of approximately 1%, 10 fold higher than the cut off for cost effectiveness used in the guidelines. Conclusions Overall the pilot showed that HIV testing could be delivered without the use of extra resources and is acceptable to patients.
Collapse and repair of replication forks in Escherichia coli

Single‐strand interruptions in a template DNA are likely to cause collapse of replication forks. We propose a model for the repair of collapsed replication forks in Escherichia coli by the RecBCD recombinational pathway. The model gives reasons for the preferential orientation of Chi sites in the E. coli chromosome and accounts for the hyper‐rec phenotype of the strains with increased numbers of single‐strand interruptions in their DNA. On the basis of the model we offer schemes for various repeat‐mediated recombinational events and discuss a mechanism for quasi‐conservative DNA replication explaining the recombinational repair‐associated mutagenesis.
Across the tree of life, radiation resistance is governed by antioxidant Mn2+, gauged by paramagnetic resonance

Significance Decades of functional genomic efforts have failed to predict the ability of cells to survive ionizing radiation (IR). Evidence is mounting that small high-symmetry antioxidant complexes of manganous ions with metabolites (H-Mn2+) are responsible for cellular IR resistance, and that H-Mn2+ protects the proteome, not the genome, from IR-induced reactive oxygen species. We show that the amount of H-Mn2+ in nonirradiated living cells is readily gauged by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy and highly diagnostic of their DNA repair efficiency and survival after gamma-radiation exposure. This spectroscopic measure of cellular H-Mn2+ content is the strongest known biological indicator of cellular IR resistance between and within organisms across the three domains of the tree of life, with potential applications including optimization of radiotherapy. Despite concerted functional genomic efforts to understand the complex phenotype of ionizing radiation (IR) resistance, a genome sequence cannot predict whether a cell is IR-resistant or not. Instead, we report that absorption-display electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy of nonirradiated cells is highly diagnostic of IR survival and repair efficiency of DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) caused by exposure to gamma radiation across archaea, bacteria, and eukaryotes, including fungi and human cells. IR-resistant cells, which are efficient at DSB repair, contain a high cellular content of manganous ions (Mn2+) in high-symmetry (H) antioxidant complexes with small metabolites (e.g., orthophosphate, peptides), which exhibit narrow EPR signals (small zero-field splitting). In contrast, Mn2+ ions in IR-sensitive cells, which are inefficient at DSB repair, exist largely as low-symmetry (L) complexes with substantially broadened spectra seen with enzymes and strongly chelating ligands. The fraction of cellular Mn2+ present as H-complexes (H-Mn2+), as measured by EPR of live, nonirradiated Mn-replete cells, is now the strongest known gauge of biological IR resistance between and within organisms representing all three domains of life: Antioxidant H-Mn2+ complexes, not antioxidant enzymes (e.g., Mn superoxide dismutase), govern IR survival. As the pool of intracellular metabolites needed to form H-Mn2+ complexes depends on the nutritional status of the cell, we conclude that IR resistance is predominantly a metabolic phenomenon. In a cross-kingdom analysis, the vast differences in taxonomic classification, genome size, and radioresistance between cell types studied here support that IR resistance is not controlled by the repertoire of DNA repair and antioxidant enzymes.
Multiparity, perinatal morbidity and mortality.

INTRODUCTION Multiparity as a medical and social problem has been drawing the attention of gynecologists in many countries, especially those with a tendency towards hyper populations, and simultaneously of clinicians in developed countries who want to examine and prevent all causes of perinatal morbidity and mortality. AIM OF WORK The aim of our research was to examine the influence of multiparty (delivery of six or more children) on perinatal morbidity and mortality. METHODS The study included all women who delivered a child at the Gynecological Clinic of the Faculty of Medicine in Pristina during 1992 and 1993 (a total of 12,532). The limit for grand multiparty was set at delivery of six or more children. The analysis included only those factors which possibly affected the vitality of a newborn. RESULTS Analysis of the national structure showed that multiparity is characteristic of women of Albanian nationality: it is in reverse proportion to the level of education, the number of live births at the clinic is different from the number of live births in the general population, the percent age of hypotrophic children as well as children with lower body mass is much higher in multiparity, whereas parity and cesarean section very rarely have negative effects on the body mass of newborns. The Apgar score of newborns is irrepressibly falling depending on the number of deliveries. Respiratory system disturbances, damage of the central nervous system, congenital anomalies incompatible with life as well as mother and infant mortality are all highly relevant for statistics. CONCLUSION From a medical point of view, multiparity represents an increased risk both for newborns and mothers. Perinatal morbidity and mortality have increased and the high risk for a woman during pregnancy, delivery and puerperium has been simultaneously rising until the pregnant woman's life is highly endangered.
Strength through adversity: Bereaved cancer carers' accounts of rewards and personal growth from caring

ABSTRACT Objective: Many studies have identified negative and distressing consequences experienced by informal cancer carers, but less attention has been given to positive and beneficial aspects of caring. This qualitative study examined the positive aspects of caring as subjectively constructed by bereaved informal cancer carers, a group of individuals who are in a position to make sense of their caring experiences as a coherent whole. Method: Twenty-three bereaved informal cancer carers were interviewed, and their accounts were analyzed using a thematic analytical approach from a phenomenological perspective. Results: The participants were able to identify positive and beneficial aspects of caring. These included the discovery of personal strength, through adversity, acceptance, and necessity; the deepening of their relationship with the person for whom they cared; and personal growth through altered relationships with others and altered perspectives on living. Many participants gave accounts of focusing on these positive benefits when they reflected on their caring experiences. Significance of results: We concluded that benefit finding in the face of adverse events serves an important function in allowing individuals to incorporate difficult experiences into their worldview in a meaningful way, thus maintaining positive beliefs about the world. This has implications for the development of interventions for informal cancer carers and for those who are bereaved following caring.
Why climate change will invariably alter selection pressures on phenology

The seasonal timing of lifecycle events is closely linked to individual fitness and hence, maladaptation in phenological traits may impact population dynamics. However, few studies have analysed whether and why climate change will alter selection pressures and hence possibly induce maladaptation in phenology. To fill this gap, we here use a theoretical modelling approach. In our models, the phenologies of consumer and resource are (potentially) environmentally sensitive and depend on two different but correlated environmental variables. Fitness of the consumer depends on the phenological match with the resource. Because we explicitly model the dependence of the phenologies on environmental variables, we can test how differential (heterogeneous) versus equal (homogeneous) rates of change in the environmental variables affect selection on consumer phenology. As expected, under heterogeneous change, phenotypic plasticity is insufficient and thus selection on consumer phenology arises. However, even homogeneous change leads to directional selection on consumer phenology. This is because the consumer reaction norm has historically evolved to be flatter than the resource reaction norm, owing to time lags and imperfect cue reliability. Climate change will therefore lead to increased selection on consumer phenology across a broad range of situations.
Chronic Traumatic Brain Injury Associated with Boxing

Chronic traumatic brain injury (CTBI) associated with boxing occurs in approximately 20% of professional boxers. Risk factors associated with CTBI include increased exposure (i.e., duration of career, age of retirement, total number of bouts), poor performance, increased sparring, and apolipoprotein (APOE) genotype. Clinically, boxers exhibiting CTBI will present with varying degrees of motor, cognitive, and/or behavioral impairments. The severe form of CTBI is referred to as dementia pugilistica. The diagnosis of CTBI is dependent upon documenting a progressive neurological condition that is consistent with the clinical symptomatology of CTBI attributable to brain trauma and unexplainable by an alternative pathophysiological process. Pathologically, CTBI shares many characteristics with Alzheimer's disease (i.e., neurofibrillary triangles, diffuse amyloid plaques, acetylcholine deficiency, and/or tau immunoreactivity). The mainstay of treatment of CTBI is prevention, however medications used in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease and/or parkinsonism may be utilized.
Diet and body mass, and oral and oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomas: Analysis from the IARC multinational case–control study

Tobacco and alcohol use are the main risk factors for oral and oropharyngeal cancers, yet, dietary habits may also be of importance. Data from a series of case–control studies conducted in 9 countries worldwide (1,670 cases and 1,732 controls) were used to investigate the role of several food groups and body mass index (BMI). Low BMI significantly increased the odds ratio (OR) of cancer more than 2‐fold among ever‐ and never‐tobacco users and ever‐ and never‐alcohol drinkers. After adjustment for potential confounders, high intake of fruits and vegetables significantly reduced the OR of cancer compared to low intake among ever‐tobacco users (OR 0.4, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.3–0.6), although not among never‐tobacco users (OR 1.1, 95% CI 0.6–2.0). Similarly, the protective effect of high fruit and vegetable consumption was present among ever‐drinkers (OR 0.4, 95% CI 0.3–0.6), but not among never‐drinkers (OR 1.0, 95% CI 0.6–1.6). In conclusion, low BMI increases the risk of oral cancer, and vegetables and fruits may modulate the carcinogenic effects of tobacco and alcohol. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Neonatal maternal separation and enhancement of the hypoxic ventilatory response in rat: the role of GABAergic modulation within the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus

Neonatal maternal separation (NMS) affects respiratory control development as adult male (but not female) rats previously subjected to NMS show a hypoxic ventilatory response 25% greater than controls. The paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus (PVN) is an important modulator of respiratory activity. In the present study, we hypothesized that in awake rats, altered GABAergic inhibition within the PVN contributes to the enhancement of hypoxic ventilatory response observed in rats previously subjected to NMS. During normoxia, the increase in minute ventilation following microinjection of bicuculline (1 mm) within the PVN is greater in NMS versus control rats. These data show that regulation of ventilatory activity related to tonic inhibition of the PVN is more important in NMS than control rats. Microinjection of GABA or muscimol (1 mm) attenuated the ventilatory response to hypoxia (12% O2) in NMS rats only. The higher efficiency of microinjections in NMS rats is supported by results from GABAA receptor autoradiography which revealed a 22% increase in GABAA receptor binding sites within the PVN of NMS rats versus controls. Despite this increase, however, NMS rats still show a larger hypoxic ventilatory response than controls, suggesting that within the PVN the larger number of GABAA receptors either compensate for (1) a deficient GABAergic modulation, (2) an increase in the efficacy of excitatory inputs converging onto this structure, or (3) both. Together, these results show that the life‐long consequences of NMS are far reaching as they can compromise the development of vital homeostatic function in a way that may predispose to respiratory disorders.
Dialect Perception by Older Children

The acquisition of regional dialect variation is an inherent part of the language learning process that takes place in the specific environments in which the child participates. This study examined dialect perception by 9-12-year-olds who grew up in two very diverse dialect regions in the United States, Western North Carolina (NC) and Southeastern Wisconsin (WI). In a dialect identification task, each group of children responded to 120 talkers from the same dialects representing three generations, ranging in age from old adults to children. There was a robust discrepancy in the children’s dialect identification performance: WI children were able to identify talker dialect quite well (although still not as well as the adults) whereas NC children were at chance level. WI children were also more sensitive to cross-generational changes in both dialects as a function of diachronic sound change. It is concluded that both groups of children demonstrated their sociolinguistic awareness in very different ways, corresponding to relatively stable (WI) and changing (NC) socio-cultural environments in their respective speech communities.
Influence of ouabain, strophanthidin and dihydrostrophanthidin on sodium and potassium transport in frog sartorii.

Ouabain and strophanthidin at a concentration of about 10 –6 molar appear to inhibit the net transport of sodium out of and of potassium into the cells of the frog sartorius muscle under conditions where transport would otherwise occur. This inhibition occurs without significant effect on the resting potential. Dihydrostrophanthidin, also at a concentration of 10 –6 m, failed to show the inhibitory action displayed by ouabain and strophanthidin.
On the computation of two-dimensional DCT

A new fast algorithm for the type-II two-dimensional (2-D) discrete cosine transform (DCT) is presented. It shows that the 2-D DCT can be decomposed into cosine-cosine, cosine-sine, sine-cosine, and sine-sine sequences that can be further decomposed into a number of similar sequences. Compared with other reported algorithms, the proposed one achieves savings on the number of arithmetic operations and has a recursive computational structure that leads to a simplification of the input/output indexing process. Furthermore, the new algorithm supports transform sizes (p/sub 1/*2/sup m1/)/spl times/(p/sub 2/*2/sup m2/), where p/sub 1/ and p/sub 2/ are arbitrarily odd integers, which provides a wider range of choices on transform sizes for various applications.
The Use of Hypertonic Saline for Treating Intracranial Hypertension After Traumatic Brain Injury

The past decade has witnessed a resurgence of interest in the use of hypertonic saline for low-volume resuscitation after trauma. Preliminary studies suggested that benefits are limited to a subgroup of trauma patients with brain injury, but a recent study of prehospital administration of hypertonic saline to patients with traumatic brain injury failed to confirm a benefit. Animal and human studies have demonstrated that hypertonic saline has clinically desirable physiological effects on cerebral blood flow, intracranial pressure, and inflammatory responses in models of neurotrauma. There are few clinical studies in traumatic brain injury with patient survival as an end point. In this review, we examined the experimental and clinical knowledge of hypertonic saline as an osmotherapeutic agent in neurotrauma.
Suppression of dsDNA-specific B lymphocytes reduces disease symptoms in SCID model of mouse lupus

Abstract Self-specific B cells play a main role in the pathogenesis of lupus. This autoimmune disease is characterized by the generation of autoantibodies against self antigens, and the elimination of B and T cells involved in the pathological immune response is a logical approach for effective therapy. We have previously constructed a chimeric molecule by coupling a DNA-mimotope peptides to an anti-CD32 antibody. Using this protein molecule for the treatment of lupus-prone MRL/lpr mice, we suppressed selectively the autoreactive B-lymphocytes by cross-linking B cell receptors with the inhibitory FcγRIIb receptors. This approach was limited by the development of anti-chimeric antibodies in MRL mice. In order to avoid this problem, we established a murine severe combined immunodeficiency lupus model, allowing a long-term chimera therapy. Elimination of the double-stranded DNA-specific B cells by chimera therapy in MRL-transferred immunodeficient mice resulted in inhibition of T cell proliferation and prevented the appearance of IgG anti-DNA antibodies and of proteinuria.
Comparison between a high-resolution single-stage Orbitrap and a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer for quantitative analyses of drugs.

The capabilities of a high-resolution (HR), accurate mass spectrometer (Exactive-MS) operating in full scan MS mode was investigated for the quantitative LC/MS analysis of drugs in patients' plasma samples. A mass resolution of 50,000 (FWHM) at m/z 200 and a mass extracted window of 5 ppm around the theoretical m/z of each analyte were used to construct chromatograms for quantitation. The quantitative performance of the Exactive-MS was compared with that of a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer (TQ-MS), TSQ Quantum Discovery or Quantum Ultra, operating in the conventional selected reaction monitoring (SRM) mode. The study consisted of 17 therapeutic drugs including 8 antifungal agents (anidulafungin, caspofungin, fluconazole, itraconazole, hydroxyitraconazole posaconazole, voriconazole and voriconazole-N-oxide), 4 immunosuppressants (ciclosporine, everolimus, sirolimus and tacrolimus) and 5 protein kinase inhibitors (dasatinib, imatinib, nilotinib, sorafenib and sunitinib). The quantitative results obtained with HR-MS acquisition show comparable detection specificity, assay precision, accuracy, linearity and sensitivity to SRM acquisition. Importantly, HR-MS offers several benefits over TQ-MS technology: absence of SRM optimization, time saving when changing the analysis from one MS to another, more complete information of what is in the samples and easier troubleshooting. Our work demonstrates that U/HPLC coupled to Exactive HR-MS delivers comparable results to TQ-MS in routine quantitative drug analyses. Considering the advantages of HR-MS, these results suggest that, in the near future, there should be a shift in how routine quantitative analyses of small molecules, particularly for therapeutic drugs, are performed.
Analysis on absorbing peak frequency of electromagnetic wave absorption in two low-loss periodically layered dielectric materials

A large absorption of the electromagnetic wave achieves using periodically layered materials with low loss. Our FDTD calculation demonstrates the sharp absorption at discrete frequencies for TM and TE polarizations. These frequencies are called absorbing peak frequencies, which are determined by the characteristic equations related to the transversal resonance in the cross section of the composite material. An equivalent dielectric constant of the composite material is required to solve these equations. One method to estimate the equivalent dielectric constant is based on electrically stored energy in the material, and the other is based on the effective dielectric constant method The absorbing peak frequencies obtained by two methods are compared with FDTD calculation
BENEFITS OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY IN SMALL AND MEDIUM SIZED ENTERPRISES: A CASE STUDY OF A NIGERIAN SME

Research indicates that the use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in organizations offers promising opportunities in order to meet the challenges of an ever-changing environment (Kapurubandara and Lawson, 2006). ICTs, having a remarkable potential to contribute to sustained competitive advantage for businesses, have been identified as key tools in management processes (Ion and Andreea, 2008). In Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs), ICT can be used as a business tool to reduce costs, create stronger links with customers, innovate and facilitate market niche (Kutlu and Ozturan, 2009). This study reviews some benefits associated with the use of ICT with reference to a Nigerian SME and also identifies some problems facing the Nigerian SME sector.
The Evolution of Galaxies on Cosmological Timescales

The 9.2 m Hobby-Eberly Telescope (HET) is beginning science operations. It provides a unique approach to very large telescope development, with high performance at modest cost. The HET is already being cloned in the Southern hemisphere and may be the basis for the development of signi cantly larger telescopes for the new Millennium. We describe the current performance of the HET and of the newly commissioned Marcario Low Resolution Spectrograph (LRS), for which the author is the PI. Projects on high redshift clustering are already underway, and early results are presented here. In particular, the TexasOxford high redshift cluster survey has already yielded several clusters with LRS redshifts as high as z=0.6.
Sensitivity of Ventilation Rates and Radiocarbon Uptake to Subgrid-Scale Mixing in Ocean Models

Abstract The sensitivity of ventilation timescales and radiocarbon (14C) uptake to subgrid-scale mixing parameterization is studied in a global ocean model. Seven experiments are examined that are identical in every manner except their representation of subgrid-scale mixing of tracers. The cases include (i) two runs with traditional Cartesian mixing (HOR), (ii) a run with enhanced isopycnal mixing (ISO), and (iii) four runs in which the effects of eddies on the mean ocean flow are parameterized following Gent and McWilliams (GM). Horizontal, isopycnal, and isopycnal-thickness diffusion coefficients are varied sequentially in the model runs. Of particular interest is the role of the tracer mixing schemes in influencing longer timescale ventilation processes—centennial and beyond—such as deep water mass renewal and circulation. Simulated ventilation timescales and 14C vary greatly between the three mixing schemes. The isopycnal mixing run exhibits the most rapid water mass renewal due to strong diffusion ef.