Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Seasonal and Spatial Distribution of Extracellular Enzymatic Activities and Microbial Incorporation of Dissolved Organic Substrates in Marine Sediments

Seasonal and spatial distributions of extracellular enzymatic activities and microbial incorporations of dissolved organic substrates were followed in sediments of the brackish water Kiel Bight (Baltic Sea, Federal Republic of Germany). Enzymatic hydrolysis of polymeric organic compounds was determined by means of fluorogenic substrates (4-methylumbelliferyl-β-d-glucoside, l-leucine-4-methylcoumarinyl-7-amide hydrochloride); incorporation of dissolved organic substrates into microbial biomass was measured by using tritiated substances (acetate, leucine, and thymidine). Based on a recently developed core injection technique, substrates were injected in microliter portions into undisturbed sediment cores. Enzymatic and incorporation activities underwent strong seasonal variations related to the enrichment of organic material in the sediment surface following sedimentation events. The input of the phytoplankton bloom during autumn caused stimulation of both enzymatic hydrolysis of polymeric organic compounds and microbial incorporation of dissolved organic substrates. Following input by spring phytoplankton bloom, mainly incorporation activities were stimulated. In late spring the development of the benthic fauna obviously greatly influenced microbial activities. During summer individual periods of high microbial activities were observed which might be traced back to short-term sedimentation events. The high microbial incorporation of leucine and thymidine during winter demonstrated that the nutrient supply rather than temperature is the dominating factor determining microbial production. Stimulation of microbial activities arose from the sediment surface and spread out relatively quickly into deeper horizons. Generally, the sediments were characterized by distinct patterns of interrelationships between the individual parameters of microbial activities measured.
Failed sperm development as a reproductive isolating barrier between species

Hybrid male sterility is a common reproductive isolating barrier between species. Yet, little is known about the actual developmental causes of this phenomenon, especially in naturally hybridizing species. We sought to evaluate the developmental causes of hybrid male sterility, using spadefoot toads as our study system. Plains spadefoot toads (Spea bombifrons) and Mexican spadefoot toads (S. multiplicata) hybridize where they co‐occur in the southwestern USA. Hybrids are viable, but hybrid males suffer reduced fertility. We compared testes size and developmental stages of sperm cell maturation between hybrid males and males of each species. We found that testes of hybrid males did not differ in mean size from pure‐species males. However, hybrids showed a greater range of within‐individual variation in testes size than pure‐species males. Moreover, although hybrids produced similar numbers of early stage sperm cells, hybrids produced significantly fewer mature spermatozoids than pure‐species males. Interestingly, an introgressed individual produced numbers of live sperm comparable to pure‐species males, but the majority of these sperm cells were abnormally shaped and non‐motile. These results indicate that hybrid incompatibilities in late sperm development serve as a reproductive isolating barrier between species. The nature of this breakdown highlights the possibilities that hybrid males may vary in fertility and that fertility could possibly be recovered in introgressed males.
International differences in nursing research, 2005-2006.

PURPOSE To compare the characteristics of nursing research being done in different countries, using data from studies published in nonspecialty, English-language nursing journals. DESIGN Data for this cross-sectional analysis were retrieved from a consecutive sample of 1,072 studies published in eight leading English-language research journals in 2005 and 2006. METHODS For each study, data were extracted on the characteristics of the study participants and authors, study focus-specialty area, funding, and methodologic attributes. Studies from 15 countries or regional groupings were compared. FINDINGS International differences in authors, participants, and study characteristics were typically large and statistically significant. Studies that were focused on nurses were especially prevalent in Europe, Australia, and Canada, whereas patient-centered studies were most common in Asian countries and the US. Qualitative studies were predominant in Norway, Sweden, and the UK. Asian nurse researchers, by contrast, undertook mostly quantitative studies, and were especially likely to conduct intervention research. Significant country differences existed in the omission of demographic (age and sex) information about participants, with omissions most prevalent in the UK and Ireland and least prevalent in Asian countries. Research funding was reported for 62% of all studies, ranging from 13% in Turkey to over 75% in Canada and the US. CONCLUSIONS Although this study had several limitations, especially with regard to potential biases in the sample of studies from non-English-speaking countries, this analysis of over 1,000 nursing studies indicates many important inter-country differences in the focus, methods, and authorship patterns of nursing research published in leading journals. CLINICAL RELEVANCE Because research "informs" practice, international differences that exist in the focus and methods of nursing research have implications for nursing practice in the respective countries.
Effects of spironolactone during an angiotensin II receptor blocker treatment on the left ventricular mass reduction in hypertensive patients with concentric left ventricular hypertrophy.

BACKGROUND Angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARB) are now commonly used to treat hypertension because of their beneficial effects on cardiovascular remodeling. However, ARB treatment can not inhibit the left ventricular (LV) remodeling sufficiently, which may be related with aldosterone secretion. To inhibit the action of aldosterone during ARB treatment, the additional effects of an aldosterone blocker and spironolactone (SPRL) on LV hypertrophy in patients with essential hypertension was studied. METHODS AND RESULTS The patients with essential hypertension were randomly divided into 2 groups; 1 group was treated with an ARB, candesartan (8 mg/day), for 1 year (ARB group) and other group was treated with the ARB for the first 6 months and with the ARB plus SPRL (25 mg/day) for the next 6 months (combination group). Seventy patients who underwent echocardiography every 6 months were analyzed and were also classified into 4 subgroups of LV geometric pattern according to the LV mass index (LVMI) and the relative wall thickness (RWT). The ARB treatment and the addition of SPRL significantly reduced the blood pressure, however, both treatments did not affect the LV geometry in both groups. The ARB treatment in the subgroups of concentric LV remodeling (RWT>or=0.45 and LVMI<125) and concentric LV hypertrophy (RWT>or=0.45 and LVMI>or=125) significantly reduced RWT. However, ARB treatment in all subgroups did not affect LVMI. The addition of SPRL only in the concentric LV hypertrophy subgroup significantly reduced the LVMI, despite similar changes in blood pressure. CONCLUSIONS These results indicated that the addition of SPRL treatment during the ARB treatment and conventional treatments is clinically useful to reduce the LVMI in hypertensive patients with concentric LV hypertrophy; however, does not improve the eccentric LV hypertrophy.
Prospective Characterization of Norovirus Compared With Rotavirus Acute Diarrhea Episodes in Chilean Children

Background: Rotavirus and more recently noroviruses are recognized as main causes of moderate to severe acute diarrhea episodes (ADE) in children ≤5 years of age. Comparing epidemiologic and clinical features of norovirus to rotavirus ADE will aid in the decision-making process required to develop norovirus vaccines. Methods: Surveillance for ADE occurring in children ≤5 years of age was implemented in the emergency department (ED) and ward of a large hospital in Santiago and Valparaiso, and in 4 outpatient clinics in Santiago. A stool sample was obtained within 48 hours of consultation for rotavirus detection by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and noroviruses by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay or reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. For ED and hospital rotavirus and norovirus ADE parents were instructed to monitor clinical findings associated with severity until the end of the episode. The 20-point Vesikari score was used to determine disease severity. Results: Between July 2006 and October 2008 rotavirus and noroviruses were detected in 331 (26%) and 224 (18%) of 1913 ADE evaluated. The proportion of rotavirus-positive samples in hospital ward, ED, and outpatient clinic was 40%, 26% to 30%, and 13% compared with 18%, 17% to 19%, and 14% for noroviruses. Mean age and 25%–75% interquartile interval of children with rotavirus and norovirus ADE were remarkably similar, 15.6 months (9–20), and 15.5 months (9–19), respectively. Rotavirus cases displayed an autumn-winter peak followed 2 to 3 months later by the norovirus peak. The mean (interquartile) for the Vesikari score was 12.9 (11–15) and 11.9 (9–14.5) for rotavirus (N = 331) and norovirus (N = 224) ADE, respectively, P = 0.003. Compared with norovirus, rotavirus ADE were more common in the 11 to 16 severity score interval (P = 0.006), had a higher maximum stool output in a given day (P = 0.01) and more frequent fever (P < 0.0001). Duration of diarrhea, presence, duration and intensity of vomiting, and intensity of fever did not differ between viruses. Mixed rotavirus and norovirus infections were uncommon (<1%) and not clinically more severe. Clinical severity of ADE in young infants was similar for rotavirus and lower (P = 0.03) for noroviruses compared with older children. Conclusion: Noroviruses are a significant cause of moderate to severe endemic ADE in Chilean children. Although significantly less severe than rotavirus as a group, most norovirus episodes were moderate to severe clinically. An effective norovirus vaccine would be of significant additional benefit to the current rotavirus vaccine in decreasing disease burden associated with ADE.
Activation of the complement system in baboons challenged with live Escherichia coli: correlation with mortality and evidence for a biphasic activation pattern

Activation of the complement system was studied in baboons that were challenged with live Escherichia coli. In the group challenged with a lethal dose (n = 4), the complement activation parameters C3b/c, C4b/c, and C5b-9 increased 13, 5, and 12 times the baseline value, respectively, during the first 6 h after the E. coli infusion, whereas in the group challenged with a sublethal dose (n = 10), they increased only moderately, by 2 to 3 times the baseline value. However, in this latter group, a more pronounced activation occurred at 24 h. Subsequent experiments showed that this second phase in complement activation started at 6 h after the challenge, at which time infused microorganisms had been cleared from the circulation. The simultaneous increase in C-reactive protein with this second phase suggested an endogenous activation mechanism involving this acute-phase protein. Levels of inactivated (modified) C1 inhibitor also increased in both groups, with peak levels of 2.5 times the baseline value at 24 h in the sublethal group and of 4 times at 6 h after the challenge in the lethal group. Thus, activation of complement in this animal model for sepsis occurs in a biphasic pattern, the initial phase mediated by the bacteria and the later phase mediated by an endogenous mechanism possibly involving C-reactive protein. The differences in complement activation between animals with lethal or sublethal sepsis support the hypothesis that complement activation contributes to the lethal complications of sepsis.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Reply: Comment on ‘Association of sedentary behaviour with colon and rectal cancer: a meta- analysis of observational studies’

REFERENCES Ainsworth BE, Richardson MT, Jacobs Jr DR, Leon AS, Sternfield B (1999) Accuracy of recall of occupational physical activity by questionnaire. J Clin Epidemiol 52: 219–227. Campbell PT, Patel AV, Newton CC, Jacobs EJ, Gapstur SM (2013) Associations of recreational physical activity and leisure time spent sitting with colorectal cancer survival. J Clin Oncol 31: 876–885. Colbert LH, Hartman TJ, Malila N, Limburg PJ, Pietinen P, Virtamo J, Taylor PR, Albanes D (2001) Physical activity in relation to cancer of the colon and rectum in a cohort of male smokers. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 10: 265–268. Cong YJ, Gan Y, Sun HL, Deng J, Cao SY, Xu X, Lu ZX (2014) Association of sedentary behaviour with colon and rectal cancer: a meta-analysis of observational studies. Br J Cancer 110: 817–826. Fraser G, Pearce N (1993) Occupational physical activity and risk of cancer of the colon and rectum in New Zealand males. Cancer Causes Control 4: 45–50. Garabrant DH, Peters JM, Mack TM, Bernstein L (1984) Job activity and colon cancer risk. Am J Epidemiol 119: 1005–1014. Howard RA, Freedman DM, Park Y, Hollenbeck A, Schatzkin A, Leitzmann MF (2008) Physical activity, sedentary behaviour, and the risk of colon and rectal cancer in the NIH-AARP Diet and Health Study. Cancer Causes Control 19: 939–953. LaPorte RE, Montoye HJ, Caspersen CJ (1985) Assessment of physical activity in epidemiologic research: problems and prospects. Public Health Rep 100: 131–146. Moradi T, Gridley G, Bjork J, Dosemeci M, Ji BT, Berkel HJ, Lemeshow S (2008) Occupational physical activity and risk for cancer of the colon and rectum in Sweden among men and women by anatomic subsite. Eur J Cancer Prev 17: 201–208. Thune I, Lund E (1996) Physical activity and risk of colorectal cancer in men and women. Br J Cancer 73: 1134–1140. Weiderpass E, Vainio H, Kauppinen T, Vasama-Neuvonen K, Partanen T, Pukkala E (2003) Occupational exposures and gastrointestinal cancers among Finnish women. J Occup Environ Med 45: 305–315. Yates T, Wilmot EG, Davies MJ, Gorely T, Edwardson C, Biddle S, Khunti K (2011) Sedentary behaviour: what’s in a definition? Am J Prev Med 40: e33–e34. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Incorporating historical information in biosimilar trials: Challenges and a hybrid Bayesian‐frequentist approach

For the approval of biosimilars, it is, in most cases, necessary to conduct large Phase III clinical trials in patients to convince the regulatory authorities that the product is comparable in terms of efficacy and safety to the originator product. As the originator product has already been studied in several trials beforehand, it seems natural to include this historical information into the showing of equivalent efficacy. Since all studies for the regulatory approval of biosimilars are confirmatory studies, it is required that the statistical approach has reasonable frequentist properties, most importantly, that the Type I error rate is controlled—at least in all scenarios that are realistic in practice. However, it is well known that the incorporation of historical information can lead to an inflation of the Type I error rate in the case of a conflict between the distribution of the historical data and the distribution of the trial data. We illustrate this issue and confirm, using the Bayesian robustified meta‐analytic‐predictive (MAP) approach as an example, that simultaneously controlling the Type I error rate over the complete parameter space and gaining power in comparison to a standard frequentist approach that only considers the data in the new study, is not possible. We propose a hybrid Bayesian‐frequentist approach for binary endpoints that controls the Type I error rate in the neighborhood of the center of the prior distribution, while improving the power. We study the properties of this approach in an extensive simulation study and provide a real‐world example.
Experimental study on the efficacy of combinations of glycopeptides and beta-lactams against Staphylococcus aureus with reduced susceptibility to glycopeptides.

OBJECTIVES The combination of glycopeptides and beta-lactams has been proposed as an alternative therapy against infections due to Staphylococcus aureus with reduced susceptibility to glycopeptides, though its role is still controversial. Our aim was to evaluate the efficacy (decrease in bacterial concentration after 24 h therapy) of these combinations both in vitro and in vivo. METHODS Four strains of S. aureus with different glycopeptide susceptibility (MICs of vancomycin from 1 to 8 mg/L) were used. In vitro experiments were performed by means of time-kill curves while we used the mouse peritonitis model for in vivo evaluation. RESULTS Combinations of glycopeptides and beta-lactams showed synergy in in vitro time-kill curves against the four staphylococcal strains, the highest efficacy being detected against the glycopeptide-intermediate S. aureus (GISA) strain (MIC = 8 mg/L) (Deltalog 24 h = -3.19 cfu/mL for vancomycin at 1/2 x MIC and oxacillinat 1/64 x MIC versus -0.56 cfu/mL for vancomycin alone at 1/2 x MIC). On the other hand, no significant increase in efficacy was observed in vivo in the experimental model. The efficacy of the combinations decreased in correlation to the decreasing susceptibility of the strains to glycopeptides, showing only residual activity against the GISA strain (Deltalog 24 h = -1.42 cfu/mL for vancomycin and cloxacillin versus -1.22 cfu/mL for vancomycin). CONCLUSIONS In the in vivo setting we were unable to demonstrate the synergism between glycopeptides and beta-lactams observed in vitro; nor did combinations show antagonism against any of the strains. Though the usefulness of these combinations cannot be totally ruled out in highly specific clinical conditions, it seems unlikely that they will provide a serious therapeutic alternative in most hGISA and GISA infections in the coming years.
Elevated plasma lipoprotein(a) level and its association with impaired fibrinolysis in patients with antiphospholipid syndrome.

OBJECTIVE To assess the significance of lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)], a risk factor for atherothrombosis, and its relationship with fibrinolysis in a cohort of patients with antiphospholipid syndrome (APS). METHODS Plasma levels of Lp(a) were measured in 68 patients with APS (42 primary, 26 secondary to systemic lupus erythematosus). RESULTS Elevated plasma levels of Lp(a) were found in patients with APS compared to 22 healthy controls (p = 0.0001). The significance persisted after comparing Lp(a) levels in 3 APS subgroups (arterial thrombosis, n = 37; venous thrombosis, n = 31; recurrent miscarriages, n = 24) with those of controls (p < 0.0001). Patients with APS with maximal elevation of Lp(a) showed a lower fibrinolytic activity (lower D-dimer and higher plasminogen activator inhibitor) than patients whose Lp(a) was within a normal range. CONCLUSION These findings suggest that Lp(a) may represent a marker of APS and that Lp(a) has a negative effect on the fibrinolytic system that might contribute to the thrombotic tendency of APS.
Data adaptive analysis of ECG signals for cardiovascular disease diagnosis

This paper presents a data adaptive technique of cardiovascular disease diagnosis by analyzing electrocardiogram (ECG) signals. The separation of high-frequency QRS and low frequency signal are performed by employing empirical mode decomposition (EMD). Biomedical signals like heart wave commonly change their statistical properties over time, tending to be nonstationary for which EMD is a powerful tool of decomposition. EMD is used to decompose ECG signal into a finite set of band-limited signals termed as intrinsic mode functions (IMFs). Then the low and high frequency components of ECG signals are obtained partial reconstruction intrinsic mode functions and the residual. The related signal processing tools are applied to extract high and low frequency parts to diagnosis the cardiovascular diseases.
Relationship of maternal plasma leptin and risk of pre-eclampsia: a prospective study

Objective: We measured maternal plasma leptin concentrations in 55 women with pre-eclampsia and 487 normotensive women to determine whether elevated leptin concentrations were associated with the occurrence of pre-eclampsia.Methods: Maternal blood samples were collected at 13 weeks' gestation, on average. Plasma leptin concentrations were determined using immunoassay. Logistic regression procedures were used to calculate odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI). Results: Leptin concentrations were 78% higher in cases than control subjects (median 34.6 vs. 19.5 ng/ml; p<0.001). Relative to women with leptin concentrations of <27.4 ng/ml, those with elevated leptin concentrations (≥27.4 ng/ml) experienced a 2.3-fold increased risk of pre-eclampsia (OR 2.3; 95% CI 1.1–4.6). We observed evidence of a strong linear component of trend in risk of pre-eclampsia with increasing maternal plasma leptin concentration. Each 10-ng/ml increase in leptin concentration was associated with a 30% increase in pre-eclampsia risk (OR 1.3; 95% CI 1.1–1.5). Overweight women with elevated leptin concentrations experienced the highest risk of pre-eclampsia (OR 6.4; 95% CI 3.1–13.2) as compared with lean women with no leptin elevations.Conclusion: Elevated plasma leptin concentration and maternal overweight status appear to be independently associated with an increased risk of pre-eclampsia.
High-dose samarium-153 ethylene diamine tetramethylene phosphonate: low toxicity of skeletal irradiation in patients with osteosarcoma and bone metastases.

PURPOSE Samarium-153 ethylene diamine tetramethylene phosphonate ((153)Sm-EDTMP), a bone-seeking radiopharmaceutical, provides therapeutic irradiation to osteoblastic bone metastases. Because the dose-limiting toxicity of (153)Sm-EDTMP is thrombocytopenia, a dose-escalation trial using peripheral-blood progenitor cells (PBPCs) or marrow support was conducted to treat metastatic bone cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS Patients with locally recurrent or metastatic osteosarcoma or skeletal metastases avid on bone scan were treated with 1, 3, 4.5, 6, 12, 19, or 30 mCi/kg of (153)Sm-EDTMP. RESULTS Thirty patients were treated with (153)Sm-EDTMP. Transient symptoms of hypocalcemia were seen at 30 mCi/kg. Estimates of radioisotope bound to bone surfaces and marrow radiation dose were linear with injected amount of (153)Sm-EDTMP. Cytopenias also occurred in all subjects and were dose-related. At day +13 after (153)Sm-EDTMP, residual whole-body radioactivity was 1% to 65% of whole-body radioactivity considered safe for PBPC infusion, 3.6 mCi. After PBPC or marrow infusion on day +14 after (153)Sm-EDTMP, recovery of hematopoiesis was problematic in two patients at the 30 mCi/kg dose infused with less than 2 x 10(6) CD34(+)/kg on day +14, but not in other patients. Reduction or elimination of opiates for pain was seen in all patients. Patients had no adverse changes in appetite or performance status. CONCLUSION (153)Sm-EDTMP with PBPC support can provide bone-specific therapeutic irradiation (estimates of 39 to 241 Gy). Hematologic toxicity at 30 mCi (153)Sm-EDTMP/kg requires PBPC grafts with more than 2 x 10(6) CD34(+)/kg to overcome myeloablative effects of skeletal irradiation. Nonhematologic side effects are minimal.