Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Cardiac adrenergic activity is associated with left ventricular hypertrophy in genetically homogeneous subjects with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.

UNLABELLED Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is a genetic disease caused by mutations in genes encoding sarcomeric proteins. However, other genetic and possibly also environmental factors modify the phenotypic expression of left ventricular (LV) hypertrophy. The present study investigated whether cardiac adrenergic activity affects the severity of LV hypertrophy in genetically identical patients with HCM. METHODS The study population consisted of 21 patients with HCM caused by the Asp175Asn substitution of the alpha-tropomyosin gene (TPM1-Asp175Asn) and 9 healthy volunteers. LV mass and segmental wall thickness were measured with MRI. Presynaptic cardiac adrenergic activity was measured with (123)I-metaiodobenzylguanidine (MIBG) SPECT. Global and segmental washouts of (123)I-MIBG were calculated. RESULTS Global myocardial (123)I-MIBG washout was faster in patients with TPM1-Asp175Asn than in healthy volunteers (50% +/- 9% vs. 37% +/- 8%, P = 0.001). In linear regression analysis, global (123)I-MIBG washout was associated with the LV mass index and LV maximal wall thickness index in HCM patients (r = 0.512, P = 0.018, and r = 0.478, P = 0.028, respectively). The mean (123)I-MIBG washout was higher in LV segments >/= 15 mm thick than in LV segments < 15 mm thick (56 +/- 10 vs. 49% +/- 10%, P = 0.002). CONCLUSION In patients with HCM sharing the same causal gene defect, the degree of LV hypertrophy is related to (123)I-MIBG washout, suggesting that cardiac adrenergic activity modifies phenotypic expression in HCM.
Central nervous system DNA fragmentation induced by the inhibition of nuclear factor kappa B

AGEING of the central nervous system (CNS) is characterized by a progressive apoptotic loss of neurons that may be in part due to impaired neurotrophin signaling mediated by such elements as the transcription factor nuclear factor kappa B (NFκB). To support this hypothesis, we inhibited nuclear translocation of NFκB in vivo by injecting a proteasome inhibitor (PSI) directly in the CNS lateral ventricle of rats and then measured fragmented DNA in various CNS areas as an index of ongoing apoptosis. Our results show that after PSI injection there was a significant inhibition of NFκB activity in vivo that resulted in the appearance of fragmented (apoptotic) DNA in the CNS of rats. These results suggest that alteration of NFκB may cause apoptotic cell death in the rat CNS during ageing.
Weight requirements for return of menstruations in teenage girls with eating disorders, weight loss and secondary amenorrhoea

Aim: To investigate the weight requirements for return of menstruation in teenage girls with eating disorders (ED), weight loss and secondary amenorrhoea. Methods: Growth charts from the school health services and measurements of weight and stature at assessment and during follow‐up were obtained for 127 girls with ED, secondary amenorrhoea and subsequent return of menstruation. Measurements were used to estimate weight and body mass index (BMI) before puberty, at menarche, at the highest weight prior to the onset of the ED, at the last menstruation preceding amenorrhoea, at the lowest weight during treatment, and at return of menstruation. Results: Before onset of the ED, the girls were taller, heavier and less lean than the population average as evidenced by standard deviation scores (SDS) for weight, height and BMI above zero. Weight loss started from an average weight of 58.9 ± 9.8 kg (mean ± SD), a last menstruation occurred at 51.5 ± 6.9 kg, the lowest weight during treatment was 45.6 ± 7.0 kg and menstruation returned at 52.9 ± 6.0 kg. Return of menstruation occurred within a wide weight range. However, if weight at return of menstruation was expressed in SDS, it could be predicted by a linear regression on weight SDS at loss of menstruation (r2= 0.76; p > 0.001).
Quality of life and its relation with disease severity in Behçet's disease.

OBJECTIVE Since Behçet's disease (BD) is a systemic vasculitis, it may deteriorate the quality of life of the patients. We aimed to investigate the relationship between the disease severity and the quality of life in patients with BD. METHODS We studied 195 BD patients and 195 healthy controls who were matched with regard to age, gender and socio-economic status. Krause score was calculated to assess disease severity, while Short-form-36 (SF-36) and The World Health Organization Quality of Life (WHOQOL-100) were used to evaluate the quality of life in BD. RESULTS The overall SF-36 and WHOQOL-100 scale scores, as well as their domains were significantly lower in BD patients. In BD patients, "general health", "role-physical", domains of SF-36, and "psychological", "level of independence", "environment", "environmental-public" domains of WHOQOL-100 showed significantly negative linear correlations with Krause scores. In BD patients with arthritis, the scores of "general health", "physical functioning", "role emotional" domains of SF-36, and the scores of "psychological", "level of independence" and "social relations" domains of WHOQOL-100 were significantly worse than without arthritis. The scores of "pain" domain of SF-36 and "level of independence" domain of WHOQOL-100 were significantly worse in BD patients with vascular involvement, while the scores of "mental health" domain of SF-36 and "psychological" domain of WHOQOL-100 were significantly worse in BD patients with eye involvement. CONCLUSION Based on the evaluation of SF-36 and WHOQOL-100 scores, quality of life is impaired and related with disease severity in BD. Arthritis, eye involvement and vascular involvement seem to contribute to this impairment.
Listening to "flying ducks": individual differences in sentence-picture verification investigated with ERPs.

The present ERP study investigated individual differences in the integration of verbal descriptions and visual object representations. Participants saw pictures of objects (e.g., a swimming duck) after listening to noun phrases describing the same object in the identical state, a shape-mismatching state ("flying duck"), or an incongruent object (e.g., "sliced bread"). Individual differences in the vividness of mental imagery and preference for mental imagery were assessed after the experiment. ERP effects of context arose 170 ms after picture onset, differentiating the incongruent-object context from the other two. The N400 mirrored these context effects. Self-rated vividness of imagery affected responses to pictures already after 100 ms, and modulated the N400 effect. Participants with highly vivid imagery showed larger context effects than participants low in imagery. The context effects at 170 ms were not modulated by individual differences.
Scaling Structure of Electrocardiographic Waveform During Prolonged Ventricular Fibrillation in Swine

Ventricular fibrillation (VF) is the most common arrhythmia causing sudden cardiac death. However, the likelihood of successful defibrillation declines with increasing duration of VF. Because the morphology of the electrocardiogram (ECG) waveform during VF also changes with time, this study examined a new measure that describes the VF waveform and distinguishes between early and late VF. Surface ECG recordings were digitized at 200 samples/s from nine swine with induced VF. A new measure called the scaling exponent was calculated by examining the power‐law relationship between the summation of amplitudes of a 1,024‐point (5.12 second) waveform segment and the time scale of measurement. The scaling exponent is a local estimate of the fractal dimension of the ECG waveform. A consistent power‐law relationship was observed for measurement time scales of 0.005–0.040 seconds. Calculation of the scaling exponent produced similar results between subjects, and distinguished early VF (<4‐minute duration) from late VF (≥4‐minute duration). The scaling exponent was dependent on the order of the data, supporting the hypothesis that the surface ECG during VF is a deterministic rather than a random signal. The waveform of VF results from the interaction of multiple fronts of depolarization within the heart, and may be described using the tools of nonlinear dynamics. As a quantitative descriptor of waveform structure, the scaling exponent characterizes the time dependent organization of VF.
Knowledge and attitude of the population toward cancer prostate Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Aims: The aim of the following study is to assess the knowledge and attitude of men, in our region, regarding cancer prostate and its screening practices. Subjects and Methods: The field work was conducted in Riyadh City, during the period February through July 2011. It was a population - based cross-sectional study comprising 400 men over 40 years. In addition to socio-demographic data, history of the present and past medical illness, history of prostatic diseases and examination, family history of cancer prostate; participants were inquired about their knowledge and attitude toward prostate cancer (PC) and screening behavior using through two different Likert scales. Results: Only 10% of the respondents had practiced a regular PC examination checkup. Their knowledge about PC was poor and their attitude toward examination and screening was fair, where the mean of total correct knowledge score was 10.25 ± 2.5 (51.25%), while the mean of total attitude score was 18.3 ± 4.08 (65.3%). The respondents identified the physicians as the main sources of this information (62.4%), though they were not the main motives for a regular checkup. Knowledge represented the only significant predictor for participants′ attitude. Conclusion: Beliefs and attitudes have a great impact, at every stage of the cancer continuum, this attitudes depends mainly on level of knowledge and quantity of information provided to patients and their families. Such attitudes should rely on a solid background of proper information and motivation from physicians to enhance and empower attitudes toward PC screening behavior.
BMP4 can generate primordial germ cells from bone‐marrow‐derived pluripotent stem cells

Evidence of germ cell derivation from embryonic and somatic stem cells provides an in vitro model for the study of germ cell development, associated epigenetic modification and mammalian gametogenesis. More importantly, in vitro derived gametes also represent a potential strategy for treating infertility. In mammals, male and female gametes, oocyte and sperm, are derived from a specific cell population, PGCs (primordial germ cells) that segregate early in embryogenesis. We have isolated pluripotent SSEA‐1+ (stage‐specific embryonic antigen‐1+) cells from mice bone marrow using a MACS (magnetic‐activated cell sorting) system. SSEA‐1+ cells were directly separated from the suspension of MMCs (murine mononuclear cells) harvested from bone marrow of 2–4‐week‐old mice. Flow‐cytometry assay immediately after sorting and culturing under undifferentiated condition showed 55±7% and 87±4% purity respectively. RT‐PCR (reverse transcription–PCR) analysis after differentiation of SSEA‐1+ cells into derivations of three germ layers showed the pluripotency properties of isolated cells. SSEA‐1+ cells were induced to differentiate along germ cell lineage by adding BMP4 (bone morphogenic factor‐4) to the medium. Regarding the expression of germ cell markers (PGCs, male and female germ cell lineage), it was found that adding exogenous BMP4 to culture medium could differentiate pluripotent SSEA‐1+ cells isolated from an adult tissue into gamete precursors, PGCs. Differentiated cells expressed specific molecular markers of PGCs, including Oct4, fragilis, Stella and Mvh (mouse vasa homologue). Therefore BMP4 is insufficient to induce SSEA‐1+ cells derived from PGCs to develop further into late germ cells in vitro.
Quantitative Measurement of Varicella-Zoster Virus Infection by Semiautomated Flow Cytometry

ABSTRACT Varicella-zoster virus (VZV; human herpesvirus 3) is the etiological cause of chickenpox and, upon reactivation from latency, zoster. Currently, vaccines are available to prevent both diseases effectively. A critical requirement for the manufacturing of safe and potent vaccines is the measurement of the biological activity to ensure proper dosing and efficacy, while minimizing potentially harmful secondary effects induced by immunization. In the case of live virus-containing vaccines, such as VZV-containing vaccines, biological activity is determined using an infectivity assay in a susceptible cellular host in vitro. Infectivity measurements generally rely on the enumeration of plaques by visual inspection of an infected cell monolayer. These plaque assays are generally very tedious and labor intensive and have modest throughput and high associated variability. In this study, we have developed a flow cytometry assay to measure the infectivity of the attenuated vaccine strain (vOka/Merck) of VZV in MRC-5 cells with improved throughput. The assay is performed in 96-well tissue culture microtiter plates and is based on the detection and quantification of infected cells expressing VZV glycoproteins on their surfaces. Multiple assay parameters have been investigated, including specificity, limit of detection, limit of quantification, range of linear response, signal-to-noise ratio, and precision. This novel assay appears to be in good concordance with the classical plaque assay results and therefore provides a viable, higher-throughput alternative to the plaque assay.
Lack of effect of TNFα blockade therapy on circulating adiponectin levels in patients with autoimmune disease: results from two independent prospective studies

Background Adiponectin is an anti-inflammatory and potentially antiatherogenic molecule. Some recent reports suggest that tumour necrosis factor α (TNFα) blockade therapy increases circulating adiponectin levels, but data are sparse and inconsistent. Methods Data from a double-blind placebo controlled study of onercept in 126 patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) and from pre- and post-adalimumab treatment in 171 patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) were used to examine the effect of TNFα blockade therapy on adiponectin. Results Despite expected associations of adiponectin with gender and baseline high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and triglyceride, adiponectin levels did not change over time with TNFα blockade therapy in either group. The mean±SD absolute change in adiponectin levels was −0.23±4.6 μg/ml in patients with PsA treated with combined onercept 50 mg and onercept 100 mg (vs placebo, p=0.60) and 0.28±3.23 μg/ml in patients with RA treated with adalimumab (vs baseline, p=0.66). Conclusion These results do not support a significant effect of TNFα blockade therapy on circulating adiponectin levels in patients with autoimmune disease.
Periodontitis severity plus risk as a tooth loss predictor.

BACKGROUND Tooth loss can be a consequence of the natural history of periodontitis. Stratification of periodontitis severity, risk, and tooth loss exists within the United States adult population, and tooth loss correlates to severity and risk. We evaluated the loss of teeth for a periodontitis-affected population categorized by the combination of severity and risk in which the subjects predominantly did not receive periodontal treatment. METHODS The clinical records of 523 subjects enrolled in the Veterans Affairs Dental Longitudinal Study, covering a period of 15 years, were used. Disease severity, risk level, and the number of teeth lost for each subject were determined. RESULTS A stepwise regression analysis showed that disease and risk scores predicted mean tooth loss rate. The P value for the disease score was <0.0005, and the P value for the risk score was 0.001. The ordinal logistic regression model showed that disease (P = 0.002) and risk scores (P = 0.000) were significantly associated with the probability of subjects losing a specific number of teeth. CONCLUSIONS Tooth loss is more precisely and accurately predicted by the combination of risk score and periodontal disease score than by either score alone. The combined scores may be a surrogate variable for periodontal status. Because the scores are derived from routine clinical measurements, they may be useful for population surveillance and dynamics, practice management, patient care decisions, practice-based research, and the determination of treatment effectiveness and the factors required for successful treatment, resulting in improved oral health and higher clinician productivity and income.
A Lethally Irradiated Allogeneic Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony Stimulating Factor-Secreting Tumor Vaccine for Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma: A Phase II Trial of Safety, Efficacy, and Immune Activation

PURPOSE Surgical resection provides the only possibility of cure for pancreas cancer. A standard adjuvant approach has not been established. We tested the safety and efficacy of a granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF)-based immunotherapy administered in patients with resected pancreatic adenocarcinoma. PATIENTS AND METHODS A single institution phase II study of 60 patients with resected pancreatic adenocarcinoma was performed. Each immunotherapy treatment consisted of a total of 5 × 108 GM-CSF-secreting cells distributed equally among 3 lymph node regions. The first immunotherapy treatment was administered 8 to 10 weeks after surgical resection. Subsequently, patients received 5-FU based chemoradiation. Patients who remained disease-free after completion of chemoradiotherapy received treatments 2 to 4, each 1 month apart. A fifth and final booster was administered 6 months after the fourth immunotherapy. The primary endpoint was disease free survival and secondary endpoints were overall survival and toxicity, and the induction of mesothelin specific T cell responses. RESULTS The median disease-free survival is 17.3 months (95% CI, 14.6-22.8) with median survival of 24.8 months (95% CI, 21.2-31.6). The administration of immunotherapy was well tolerated. In addition, the post-immunotherapy induction of mesothelin-specific CD8+ T cells in HLA-A1+ and HLA-A2+patients correlates with disease-free survival. CONCLUSIONS An immunotherapy approach integrated with chemoradiation is safe and demonstrates an overall survival that compares favorably with published data for resected pancreas cancer. These data suggest additional boost immunotherapies given at regular intervals beyond 1 year postsurgery should be tested in future studies, and provide the rationale for conducting a multicenter phase II study.
Disruption of Notch1 induces vascular remodeling, intussusceptive angiogenesis, and angiosarcomas in livers of mice.

BACKGROUND & AIMS Notch signaling mediates embryonic vascular development and normal vascular remodeling; Notch1 knockout mice develop nodular regenerative hyperplasia (NRH). The pathogenesis of NRH is unclear, but has been associated with vascular injury in the liver sinusoids in clinical studies. We investigated the role of Notch1 signaling in liver sinusoidal endothelial cells (LSECs). METHODS We studied MxCre Notch1(lox/lox) mice (conditional knockout mice without tissue-specific disruption of Notch1); mice with hepatocyte-specific knockout were created by crossing Notch1(lox/lox) with AlbCre(+/-) mice. Portal vein pressure was measured; morphology of the hepatic vasculature was assessed by histologic and scanning electron microscopy analyses. We performed functional and expression analyses of isolated liver cells. RESULTS MxCre-induced knockout of Notch1 led to NRH, in the absence of fibrosis, with a persistent increase in proliferation of LSECs. Notch1 deletion led to de-differentiation, vascular remodeling of the hepatic sinusoidal microvasculature, intussusceptive angiogenesis, and dysregulation of ephrinB2/EphB4 and endothelial tyrosine kinase. Time-course experiments revealed that vascular changes preceded node transformation. MxCre Notch1(lox/lox) mice had reduced endothelial fenestrae and developed portal hypertension and hepatic angiosarcoma over time. In contrast, mice with hepatocyte-specific disruption of Notch1 had a normal phenotype. CONCLUSIONS Notch1 signaling is required for vascular homeostasis of hepatic sinusoids; it maintains quiescence and differentiation of LSECs in adult mice. Disruption of Notch1 signaling in LSECs leads to spontaneous formation of angiosarcoma, indicating its role as a tumor suppressor in the liver endothelium.
What Have We Learned From the Application of Stochastic Frontier Analysis to U.S. Hospitals?

This article focuses on the lessons learned from stochastic frontier analysis studies of U.S. hospitals, of which at least 27 have been published. A brief discussion of frontier techniques is provided, but a technical review of the literature is not included because overviews of estimation issues have been published recently. The primary focus is on the correlates of hospital inefficiency. In addition to examining the association of market pressures and hospital inefficiency, the authors also examined the relationship between inefficiency and hospital behavior (e.g., hospital exits) and inefficiency and other measures of hospital performance (e.g., outcome measures of quality). The authors found that consensus is emerging on the relationship of some factors to hospital efficiency; however, further research is needed to better understand others. The application of stochastic frontier analysis to specific policy issues is in its infancy; however, the methodology holds promise for being useful in certain contexts.
ÉTUDE DE LA VALEUR NUTRITIVE DE FARINES INFANTILES À BASE DE MANIOC ET DE SOJA POUR ENFANT EN ÂGE DE SEVRAGE

Cette etude a permis de fabriquer deux types de farines infantiles pour enfant en âge de sevrage a partir de produits locaux disponibles et accessibles : le manioc et son derive l’attieke, aliments riches en glucides associes a du soja, aliment riche en proteines. Les farines confectionnees sont nommees FAS (Attieke + Soja) et FMS (Manioc + Soja). L’etude de leur valeur nutritionnelle donne pour FAS, des taux de 13% de proteines, 10% de lipides et 63% de glucides avec une valeur energetique de 394 Kcal. En ce qui concerne la farine FMS (Manioc + Soja), les taux sont de 14% de proteines, 10% de lipides et 61% de glucides avec une valeur energetique de 390 Kcal. La comparaison avec une farine standard montre que les teneurs en nutriments et en energie sont satisfaisantes et conformes aux normes fixees par l’OMS.
Effect of reduced pH on inorganic polyphosphate accumulation by Burkholderia cepacia complex isolates

Aims: Burkholderia cepacia complex (Bcc) isolates causing pulmonary infection in cystic fibrosis (CF) patients grow within an acidic environment in the lung. As exposure to acid pH has been shown to increase intracellular inorganic polyphosphate (polyP) formation in some bacteria, we investigated the inter‐relationship between acidic pH and polyP accumulation in Bcc isolates.