Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Contribution of perceptual fluency to recognition judgments.

Following a shallow (count vowels) or deep (read) study task, old and new words were tested for both fluency of perception and recognition memory. Subjects first identified a test word as it came gradually into view and then judged it as old or new. Old words were identified faster than new words, indicating implicit, perceptual memory for old words. Independently of this effect, words judged old were identified faster than words judged new, especially after shallow study. Eight experiments examined the possible causal relationship between perceptual fluency and recognition judgements. Experiments 1 to 4 showed that fast identifications per se do not promote old judgments. Accelerating the identification of test items by semantically priming them or making them come more quickly into view did not affect recognition judgments. Experiment 5 showed that the usual association of fast identifications with old judgments is not an artifact of item selection because the association disappeared when the identifications and judgements were segregated into different phases of the test task. Experiments 6 and 7 showed tha the likelihood of old judgments increases directly with the pretested perceptibility of test words, but only after shallow study. Experiment 8 showed that the dependency of recognition judgments on perceptual fluency continues to hold when the requirement to identify the words before judging them is eliminated. We conclude that fluency of perception contributes to recognition judgments, but only when the fluency is produced naturally (e.g., through perceptual memory) and explicit memory is minimal.
Amprenavir and didanosine are associated with declining kidney function among patients receiving tenofovir

Objective:To examine the effect of antiretroviral agents and clinical factors on the development of tenofovir-associated kidney dysfunction. Methods:Observational cohort study of HIV-infected patients receiving tenofovir in an HIV clinic population. Patients' kidney function prior to initiating and while receiving tenofovir was evaluated in relation to other antiretroviral medications and demographic and clinical characteristics. Decline in kidney function was assessed by the glomerular filtration rate (GFR) as estimated by the Cockcroft–Gault (CG) equation, which incorporates weight. Logistic regression analysis was used to examine factors associated with GFR of > 90, 60–90, 30–60, and < 30 ml/min per 1.73 m2 while on tenofovir. Secondary analyses used the simplified Modification of Diet in Renal Disease (MDRD) equation. Results:Among the 445 patients initiating tenofovir, 51 (11%) developed a decline in kidney function. In multivariate analysis, there was a significant association between decline in kidney function and concurrent use of amprenavir [odds ratio (OR) 3.6; P = 0.045] and didanosine (OR, 3.1; P = 0.006), age over 50 years (OR, 4.4; P = 0.03), and lower baseline weight (OR, 0.95/kg; P < 0.001). Patients identified with kidney dysfunction by the MDRD equation did not fully overlap with those identified by the CG equation. Conclusions:Didanosine and amprenavir use, increased age, and lower baseline weight were significantly associated with risk for kidney dysfunction among patients receiving tenofovir. GFR results using the MDRD equation were inconsistent with those using CG, which highlights the impact of including weight in the estimation of GFR among HIV-infected patients.
Antimicrobial susceptibility of Campylobacter jejuni with special reference to resistance patterns of Canadian isolates

Agar dilution antimicrobial susceptibility testing of Camphylobacter jejuni showed that erythromycin, clindamycin, nitrofurantoin, and gentamicin were the most active compounds, inhibiting 90% of the isolates at a concentration of 1 microgram/ml or less. The frequency of high-level erythromycin resistance was 1%. Erythromycin-resistant isolates showed cross-resistance to clindamycin. All strains were inhibited by chloramphenicol at less than or equal to 8 micrograms/ml. About 20% of the isolates were resistant to tetracycline at 4 micrograms/ml. All strains were highly resistant to novobiocin, bacitracin, vancomycin, and trimethoprim and resistant to rifampin. The minimal inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of metronidazole ranged from less than or equal to 0.5 to 128 micrograms/ml. The susceptibility of strains to sulfamethoxazole and polymyxin B sulfate was markedly influenced by inoculum size. The MICs of polymyxin B sulfate were significantly higher at 42 than 36 degrees C. All strains were inhibited by nalidixic acid at 32 micrograms/ml. In the penicillin group, ampicillin was the most active compound, inhibiting only about three-quarters of the strains at 8 micrograms/ml. The cephalosporins as a group showed only moderate to poor activity, the most active cephalosporin being cefotaxime, which inhibited about 90% of the strains at 8 micrograms/ml. The use of antibiotics in selective media is discussed.
Studies of the Toxicological Potential of Capsinoids: IV. Teratology Studies of CH-19 Sweet Extract in Rats and Rabbits

In order to evaluate the safety of CH-19 Sweet extract that contains capsinoids, teratology studies were conducted in pregnant Sprague-Dawley rats (20 rats per group) and pregnant New Zealand white rabbits (17 to 22 animals per group). The test substance was administered to rats by gavage for 11 days on gestation days 7 to 17 at doses of 0 (vehicle), 1.25, 2.5, and 5.0 ml/kg and to rabbits for 13 days on gestation days 6 to 18 at doses of 0 (vehicle), 0.25, 0.5, and 1.0 ml/kg. As the concentration of capsinoids in CH-19 Sweet extract was 72.2 to 75.05 mg/ml, the resulting dose of capsinoids administered to rats was 90.25, 180.5, and 361 mg/kg, and to rabbits was 18.76, 37.53, and 75.05 mg/kg in the vehicle, low-, mid-, and high-dose groups, respectively. In the rat study, no deaths occurred in any group and there were no test substance–related changes or abnormalities in clinical signs, body weight, food consumption, or gross pathological findings. There were no test substance–related changes in the number of corpora lutea, number or index of implantations, index of embryofetal deaths, number of live fetuses, sex ratio, fetal body weight at the end of the gestation period, or abnormalities in the placenta of live fetuses. There were no test substance–related abnormalities or variations in the external, skeletal, or visceral examinations of live fetuses. It was concluded that the test article caused neither teratogenic effects nor abnormalities in the progression of ossification. In the rabbit study, there were no test substance–related effects on clinical signs, body weight, food consumption, or necropsy findings. There were neither test substance–related abortions nor test substance–related effects on the number of corpora lutea, or number or index of implantations. There were no test substance–related effects on the number of dead embryos/fetuses, the number of live fetuses, sex ratio, body weight of live fetuses, or gross pathological finding in the placentas. There were no test substance–related external abnormalities or incidences of visceral or skeletal abnormalities or variations, and there were no test substance–related effects on the progress of ossification in any group. The authors concluded the no observed adverse effect level (NOAEL) of CH-19 Sweet extract containing capsinoids on pregnant animals and fetal development/growth was >5.0 ml/kg/day (>361 mg/kg/day as capsinoids) in rats and >1.0 ml/kg/day (>75.05 mg/kg/day as capsinoids) in rabbits.
An Efficient Empirical Model for Microwave-Induced Average Temperature of Liquid Cylindrical Reactants

Abstract Microwave-assisted chemical reactions have become very popular in preparative chemistry due to many advantages such as accelerated reaction rate, higher chemical yield and lower energy use. In dedicated equipment, however, the microwave units operate as “black boxes” keeping the role of the thermal effects in microwave-assisted chemical processes somewhat obscure. To address this issue, in this paper, we propose a simple mathematical model for computing microwave-induced temperature in a three-media cylindrical structure representing a core element of a typical microwave reactor with the reactant assumed to be stirred by convection flows. The model determines the average temperature of the reactant for the known absorbed microwave power and heating time. To illustrate its functionality, the model is used to compute time-temperature characteristics of water, ethanol, and methanol heated in the batch reactor MiniFlow 200SS. The curve calculated for water appears to be in an excellent agreement with an experiment. This confirms the hypothesis on temperature homogenization in liquid reactants in batch reactors due to convection and suggests that modeling can be helpful in clarifying and quantifying the details of microwave-assisted chemical processes.
The Self-Administered Comorbidity Questionnaire: a new method to assess comorbidity for clinical and health services research.

OBJECTIVE To develop the Self-Administered Comorbidity Questionnaire (SCQ) and assess its psychometric properties, including the predictive validity of the instrument, as reflected by its association with health status and health care utilization after 1 year. METHODS A cross-sectional comparison of the SCQ with a standard, chart abstraction-based measure (Charlson Index) was conducted on 170 inpatients from medical and surgical care units. The association of the SCQ with the chart-based comorbidity instrument and health status (short form 36) was evaluated cross sectionally. The association between these measures and health status and resource utilization was assessed after 1 year. RESULTS The Spearman correlation coefficient for the association between the SCQ and the Charlson Index was 0.32. After restricting each measure to include only comparable items, the correlation between measures was stronger (Spearman r = 0.55). The SCQ had modest associations with measures of resource utilization during the index admission, and with health status and resource utilization after 1 year. CONCLUSION The SCQ has modest correlations with a widely used medical record-based comorbidity instrument, and with subsequent health status and utilization. This new measure represents an efficient method to assess comorbid conditions in clinical and health services research. It will be particularly useful in settings where medical records are unavailable.
Connection between Trimethoprim-Sulfamethoxazole Use and Resistance in Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae, and Moraxella catarrhalis

ABSTRACT The association between trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole use and resistance among the major respiratory tract pathogens was investigated by comparing regional consumption of the drug to regional resistance in the following year in 21 central hospital districts in Finland. A total of 23,530 Streptococcus pneumoniae isolates, 28,320 Haemophilus influenzae isolates, and 14,138 Moraxella catarrhalis isolates were tested for trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole susceptibility during the study period (1998-2004). Among the S. pneumoniae isolates, a statistically significant connection was found between regional consumption and resistance. No statistically significant connection was found between regional trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole use and resistance among H. influenzae and M. catarrhalis isolates. According to our results, it seems that only in pneumococci can the development of trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole resistance be influenced by restricting its use. However, trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole remains an important antimicrobial agent because of its reasonable price. Hence, resistance to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole among these pathogens needs continuous monitoring.
Treatment of embolic stroke in rats with bortezomib and recombinant human tissue plasminogen activator

Summary Stroke elicits a progressive vascular dysfunction, which contributes to the evolution of brain injury. Thrombolysis with tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) promotes adverse vascular events that limit the therapeutic window of stroke to three hours. Proteasome inhibitors reduce vascular thrombotic and inflammatory events, and consequently protect vascular function. The present study evaluated the neuroprotective effect of bortezomib,a potent and selective inhibitor of the proteasome, alone and in combination with delayed thrombolytic therapy on a rat model of embolic focal cerebral ischemia. Treatment with bortezomib reduces adverse cerebrovascular events including secondary thrombosis,inflammatory responses,and blood brain barrier (BBB) disruption, and hence reduces infarct volume and neurological functional deficit when administrated within 4 h after stroke onset. Combination of bortezomib and tPA extends the thrombolytic window for stroke to6 h, which is associated with the improvement of vascular patency and integrity. Real time RT-PCR of endothelial cells isolated by laser-capture microdissection from brain tissue and Western blot analysis showed that bortezomib upregulates endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) expression and blocks NF-κB activation. These results demonstrate that bortezomib promotes eNOS dependent vascular protection, and reduces NF-κB dependent vascular disruption, all of which may contribute to neuroprotection after stroke.
Ruminant Placental Lactogens Act as Antagonists to Homologous Growth Hormone Receptors and as Agonists to Human or Rabbit Growth Hormone Receptors*

Growth hormone receptor (GHR)-mediated activity of ruminant placental lactogens (PLs) and ovine (o) GH was compared, using cells transfected with full size human (h), rabbit (rb), and oGHRs. All three PLs acted as agonists in heterologous bioassays, whereas in homologous bioassays in cells transfected with oGHRs they antagonized the oGH activity. Despite these differences, oGH and PLs bound with similar affinity to the oGHR extracellular domain (oGHR-ECD), indicating that the binding occurs through hormone site I. Gel filtration of complexes between oPL and oGHR-ECD showed a 1:1 stoichiometry, confirming this conclusion. The oPL T185D and bPL T188D, which exhibited weak biological activity mediated through GHRs, behaved as site I antagonists, whereas oPL G130R and bPL G133R formed a 1:1 complex with GHR-ECDs and bound to h/rb/oGHR-ECDs with affinity similar to that of wild-type oPL. They had no agonistic activity in all models transfected with h/rb and oGHRs, but were antagonistic to all of them. In conclusion, ruminant PLs antagonize the activity of oGH in homologous systems, because they cannot homodimerize oGHRs, whereas in heterologous systems they act as agonists. The structural analysis hints that minor differences in the sequence of the GHR-ECDs may account for this difference. Since the initial step in the activity transduced through cytokine/hemapoietic receptors family is receptor homodimerization or heterodimerization, we suggest that the question of homologous versus heterologous interactions should be reexamined.
Involvement of RpoN in Regulating Bacterial Arsenite Oxidation

ABSTRACT In this study with the model organism Agrobacterium tumefaciens, we used a combination of lacZ gene fusions, reverse transcriptase PCR (RT-PCR), and deletion and insertional inactivation mutations to show unambiguously that the alternative sigma factor RpoN participates in the regulation of AsIII oxidation. A deletion mutation that removed the RpoN binding site from the aioBA promoter and an aacC3 (gentamicin resistance) cassette insertional inactivation of the rpoN coding region eliminated aioBA expression and AsIII oxidation, although rpoN expression was not related to cell exposure to AsIII. Putative RpoN binding sites were identified throughout the genome and, as examples, included promoters for aioB, phoB1, pstS1, dctA, glnA, glnB, and flgB that were examined by using qualitative RT-PCR and lacZ reporter fusions to assess the relative contribution of RpoN to their transcription. The expressions of aioB and dctA in the wild-type strain were considerably enhanced in cells exposed to AsIII, and both genes were silent in the rpoN::aacC3 mutant regardless of AsIII. The expression level of glnA was not influenced by AsIII but was reduced (but not silent) in the rpoN::aacC3 mutant and further reduced in the mutant under N starvation conditions. The rpoN::aacC3 mutation had no obvious effect on the expression of glnB, pstS1, phoB1, or flgB. These experiments provide definitive evidence to document the requirement of RpoN for AsIII oxidation but also illustrate that the presence of a consensus RpoN binding site does not necessarily link the associated gene with regulation by AsIII or by this sigma factor.
Predictors of early neurological deterioration in patients with acute ischaemic stroke with special reference to blood urea nitrogen (BUN)/creatinine ratio & urine specific gravity

Background & objectives: Early neurological deterioration (END) occurs in about 20 to 40 per cent of patients with acute ischaemic stroke and results in increased mortality and functional disability. In recent studies relative dehydration has been found to be associated with END in patients with acute ischaemic stroke. This study was conducted to identify factors useful for predicting END and to assess the role of blood urea nitrogen/creatinine ratio (BUN/creatinine) and urine specific gravity (USG) as predictors of END in patients with acute ischaemic stroke. Methods: The present study was an observational prospective study. Various parameters comprising demographic, clinical, laboratory and radiological variables along with stroke severity were assessed and studied as predictors of early neurological deterioration in 114 consecutive patients presenting to the Emergency department during 2012. BUN/creatinine >15 and USG >1.010 were studied as markers of relative dehydration contributing to END. Results: Of the 114 patients enrolled in the study, END was observed in 25 (21.9%) patients. National Institutes Health Stroke Scale score (NIHSS) ≥ 12 at admission was found to be an independent risk factor for END. Amongst markers of relative dehydration, BUN/creatinine >15 at admission was found to be an independent risk factor for END, as also USG >1.010. Also, cerebral oedema and size of hypodensity >1/3rd of the middle cerebral artery territory on cranial CT were observed to be independent risk factors for END. Interpretation & conclusions: Our study findings highlighted a possible association of relative dehydration, as indicated by BUN/creatinine ratio >15, with END along with other parameters like stroke severity at presentation, extent of hypodensity >1/3rd of the middle cerebral artery (MCA) territory and cerebral oedema. Dehydration being a treatable condition, the use of BUN/creatinine >15 as a marker of relative dehydration, can be helpful in detecting patients with dehydration early and thus play a role in preventing END.
Antibodies neutralizing peginterferon alfa during retreatment of hepatitis C.

To the Editor: Peginterferons are widely used to treat chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, an important cause of liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma.1–4 We describe a patient who did not have a virologic response to peginterferon and had a virtual absence of circulating peginterferon alfa-2a but had neutralizing antibodies against interferon alfa. A 38-year-old man with liver cirrhosis (Child–Pugh class A; score, 5) was referred to our hospital for evaluation of his chronic HCV infection. He had had no response to a 16-week course of treatment with peginterferon alfa-2b and ribavirin during the previous year. We enrolled him .
Couple childbearing plans and births in Sweden

We use data from a nationally representative sample of Swedish couples to estimate effects of partners’ childbearing plans on the rate of subsequent childbearing. Only 11% of the couples in this sample expressed plans in opposite directions (plan to have a child versus not to have a child), but 24% had differing levels of certainty about their plans. Of the couples in which both partners said they definitely planned to have another child, 44% had a child within two years. If neither partner planned to have another child, less than 2% of couples had a birth. The figure was 6% if the partners had opposing childbearing plans. Thus, both men and women exerted veto power over further childbearing. Disagreements were equally likely to be resolved in favor of the woman as of the man, and effects of partners’ plans on the birth hazard did not depend on the couple’s gender arrangements, family ideologies, or marital status. We discuss these results in the context of Sweden’s public support for gender equality and for childrearing, its pervasive contraceptive regime, and its high rates of cohabitation. We also argue for the collection of data from partners in future family and fertility surveys.
Sociology and behaviour of West African blood donors: the impact of religion on human immunodeficiency virus infection

Background and Objectives Ghana is one of the countries of sub‐Saharan Africa where the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) prevalence in blood donors ranges between 1 and 4%. Considering the social importance of religion and the very high level of religious practice observed in Ghana, the hypothesis that these factors may play a role in containing HIV was tested.
Spontaneous alterations of regional brain activity in patients with adult generalized anxiety disorder

Objective We aimed to examine how spontaneous brain activity might be related to the pathophysiology of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). Patients and methods Using resting-state functional MRI, we examined spontaneous regional brain activity in 31 GAD patients (mean age, 36.87±9.16 years) and 36 healthy control participants (mean age, 39.53±8.83 years) matched for age, education, and sex from December 2014 to October 2015. We performed a two-sample t-test on the voxel-based analysis of the regional homogeneity (ReHo) maps. We used Pearson correlation analysis to compare scores from the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale, Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, State–Trait Anxiety Scale-Trait Scale, and mean ReHo values. Results We found abnormal spontaneous activity in multiple regions of brain in GAD patients, especially in the sensorimotor cortex and emotional regions. GAD patients showed decreased ReHo values in the right orbital middle frontal gyrus, left anterior cingulate cortex, right middle frontal gyrus, and bilateral supplementary motor areas, with increased ReHo values in the left middle temporal gyrus, left superior temporal gyrus, and right superior occipital gyrus. The ReHo value of the left middle temporal gyrus correlated positively with the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale scores. Conclusion These results suggest that altered local synchronization of spontaneous brain activity may be related to the pathophysiology of GAD.