Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Etiologic Factors in Diaper Dermatitis: The Role of Urine

Abstract: Diaper dermatitis may result after repeated or prolonged contact of skin with urine and feces. A hairless mouse model was used to elucidate the role of urine in this process. The results of this work suggest that an important function of urine in the etiology of diaper dermatitis is to increase the pH of the diaper environment by breaking down urea in the presence of fecal urease. This rise in pH increases the activities of fecal proteases and lipases, which can damage skin. Urine can also increase the permeability of diapered skin to irritants and can directly irritate skin when exposure is prolonged.
Glacial refugia and postglacial expansion of the alpine–prealpine plant species Polygala chamaebuxus

Abstract The shrubby milkwort (Polygala chamaebuxus L.) is widely distributed in the Alps, but occurs also in the lower mountain ranges of Central Europe such as the Franconian Jura or the Bohemian uplands. Populations in these regions may either originate from glacial survival or from postglacial recolonization. In this study, we analyzed 30 populations of P. chamaebuxus from the whole distribution range using AFLP (Amplified Fragment Length Polymorphism) analysis to identify glacial refugia and to illuminate the origin of P. chamaebuxus in the lower mountain ranges of Central Europe. Genetic variation and the number of rare fragments within populations were highest in populations from the central part of the distribution range, especially in the Southern Alps (from the Tessin Alps and the Prealps of Lugano to the Triglav Massiv) and in the middle part of the northern Alps. These regions may have served, in accordance with previous studies, as long‐term refugia for the glacial survival of the species. The geographic pattern of genetic variation, as revealed by analysis of molecular variance, Bayesian cluster analysis and a PopGraph genetic network was, however, only weak. Instead of postglacial recolonization from only few long‐term refugia, which would have resulted in deeper genetic splits within the data set, broad waves of postglacial expansion from several short‐term isolated populations in the center to the actual periphery of the distribution range seem to be the scenario explaining the observed pattern of genetic variation most likely. The populations from the lower mountain ranges in Central Europe were more closely related to the populations from the southwestern and northern than from the nearby eastern Alps. Although glacial survival in the Bohemian uplands cannot fully be excluded, P. chamaebuxus seems to have immigrated postglacially from the southwestern or central‐northern parts of the Alps into these regions during the expansion of the pine forests in the early Holocene.
Rural women and poverty: A study on the role of RDRS for poverty alleviation in Bangladesh

No development objectives can be achieved without making women self reliant. The present study deals with the role of Rangpur Dinajpur Rural Service (RDRS) on poverty alleviation and women empowerment in Kaligonj upazila under Lalminirhat district considering their participation in different programmes of RDRS. The impact of the study was assessed in terms of economic and social gains accrued by the women’s and their families’ activities. The random sampling technique was used for selection of sample size. The test of mean difference, head count ratio, poverty gap, economic status index, social status index and decision-making index were used towards poverty alleviation and for women empowerment. The poverty situations improved as compared with that of the national level. It was clearly evident that participation in RDRS micro credit programmes, has substantially improved the respondent’s economic condition, social condition and living standards. It referred the positive change in women empowerment in the study areas. By and large the women are better at present in respect of social awareness, freedom of attitude, financial freedom and exercising the right in decision making activities compared to their previous situation. It may , therefore, be inferred that the holistic approach followed by the RDRS for socioeconomic development led to increased family income, socioeconomic and decision making status in general and those of the women in particular in the study area.
What is student agency? An ontological exploration in the context of research on student engagement

The purpose of this chapter is to introduce a theory of student agency to the study of student engagement. Student agency refers to the quality of students’ self-reflective and intentional action and interaction with their environment. It encompasses variable notions of agentic possibility (“power”) and agentic orientation (“will”). The notions of agentic possibility and orientation are temporally embedded, implying that they are shaped through considerations of past habits of mind and action, present judgments of alternatives for action and projections of the future. They are also intrinsically relational and social, and situated in structural, cultural and socio-economic-political contexts of action. The main argument presented is twofold. First, studentship is highly conducive to engagement due to its liminal and developmental characteristics. In other words, students are likely to be “agentic”, that is they seek to exert some influence on their educational trajectories, their future lives and their immediate and larger social surroundings. Second, a theory of student agency develops the micro foundations of student behaviour. As such it has the potential to unravel the mechanisms under which students exert their agency in the context of higher education and beyond. An agentic approach could, thus, connect and advance the multifaceted scholarship on student engagement.
Caught in the Middle: Experiences of Tobacco‐Dependent Nurse Practitioners

Purpose To explore how tobacco‐dependent nurse practitioners (NPs) describe their experiences with health promotion and disease prevention practices with patients who smoke. Data Sources Twelve NPs who completed a graduate level NP program of study participated in face‐to‐face interviews and/or online chat room interviews. Conclusions Participants’ responses revealed three themes relevant to their experience as tobacco‐dependent clinicians with health promotion responsibilities. These themes centered around (a) living as an insider in the world of tobacco addiction, (b) having the outside‐in view of living with a tobacco addiction, and (c) being caught in the middle of a tobacco addiction. Implications for Practice All of the tobacco‐dependent participants described limited smoking‐cessation interventions with their patients. A barrier to implementation of more aggressive interventions, perhaps, is the provider's own tobacco addiction. With increasing evidence that tobacco‐dependent health care professionals are not adequately intervening with tobacco‐dependent patients, effective strategies are needed to assist and/or support not only tobaccodependent patients but providers as well.
Gender and Schizophrenia: Association of Age at Onset with Antecedent, Clinical and Outcome Features

Objective: There is evidence that gender and age at onset may have a bearing on schizophrenia. The extent to which this differential age at onset influences the clinical features of schizophrenia and its outcome in males and females is not clear. Method: One hundred and twenty outpatients with DSM-III-R schizophrenia were studied to determine the association of antecedent, historical, clinical and 13–year outcome features with age at onset in females (n = 64) and in males (n = 56). Results: Males were significantly younger at illness onset but were not otherwise different from females in antecedent features of illness. For males, age at onset bore little relationship to outcome after 13 years. Females with early onset of illness were more likely to have experienced obstetric complications, to evidence poorer premor-bid functioning, and to have a worse clinical, social and functional outcome than females with late onset. Conclusions: Even though females may have a more benign illness than males, among females, those with early age at onset may be characterised by neurodevel-opmental deviance and worse illness outcome.
The Role of Multislice Computed Angiography of the Bronchial Arteries before Arterial Embolization in Patients with Hemoptysis

Purpose: To evaluate the role of multislice computed angiography of the bronchial arteries and nonbronchial systemic arteries in patients with hemoptysis when performed before arterial embolization procedure. Materials and Methods: Twenty-eight patients with hemoptysis underwent multislice CT angiography of the bronchial arteries with dual-source 64 × 2 detector row scanner before embolization. The transverse CT images as well as the multiplanar reconstructions, the maximum intensity projections and the three-dimensional CT images were used for the depiction of bronchial arteries (the total number of the bronchial arteries, the abnormal bronchial arteries, their origin at the aorta and the diameter of the ostium). The presence of nonbronchial systemic arteries regarded as causing hemoptysis was also evaluated. Digital angiography and selective arteriograms of abnormal bronchial and nonbronchial systemic arteries were performed based on the findings of multislice computed tomography (MDCT). Results: Seventy-eight (40 right and 38 left) bronchial arteries were detected at computed angiography (CTA). Forty of the seventy-eight bronchial arteries that were detected at CTA, were considered abnormal. On selective angiography 38 of these bronchial arteries were regarded as causing hemoptysis. Two of these arteries could not be selectively catheterized and therefore could not be evaluated. All 38 bronchial arteries regarded as causing hemoptysis at selective angiography were detected prospectively at CTA as abnormal. Four bronchial arteries that were found to be responsible for hemoptysis had diameter <2 mm. Twelve nonbronchial systemic arteries were considered to be abnormal on CTA scans. Ten of these twelve nonbronchial systemic arteries were regarded on selective angiography as causing hemoptysis. Two of these arteries were found normal on angiography. All 10 nonbronchial arteries regarded as causing hemoptysis were detected at CTA scans. All bronchial and nonbronchial arteries causing hemoptysis were successfully embolized. Conclusion: MDCT angiography allows detailed identification of abnormal bronchial and nonbronchial systemic arteries using a variety of reformatted images, providing a precise road map for the interventional radiologist.
Breast cancer risk , night work and circadian clock gene polymorphisms 1 2

Breast cancer risk, night work and circadian clock gene polymorphisms 1 2 Thérèse Truong 1,2, Benoît Liquet 3,4, Florence Menegaux 1,2, Sabine Plancoulaine 2,5, Pierre 3 Laurent-Puig 6, Claire Mulot 6, Emilie Cordina-Duverger 1,2, Marie Sanchez 1,2, Patrick Arveux 7, 4 Pierre Kerbrat 8, Sylvia Richardson 3, Pascal Guénel 1,2 5 6 Affiliations 7 1 Inserm, CESP Center for Research in Epidemiology and Population Health, U1018, 8 Environmental Epidemiology of Cancer, Villejuif, France. 9 2 Univ Paris-Sud, UMRS 1018, Villejuif, France. 10 3 Biostatistical Unit, MRC, Cambridge, UK. 11 4 School of Mathematics and Physics, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, Australia 12 5 Inserm, CESP Center for Research in Epidemiology and Population Health, U1018, 13 Epidemiology of diabetes, obesity and chronic kidney disease over lifecourse, Villejuif, France. 14
Effects and feasibility of an exercise intervention for individuals living with dementia in nursing homes: study protocol

ABSTRACT Background: Worldwide, there are an estimated 35.6 million individuals living with dementia. It is important that non-pharmacological therapies are utilized to help manage the symptoms of dementia, such as agitation, as they are the recommended first approach in best practice guidelines. Methods: This protocol outlines a randomized controlled trial with a qualitative component which evaluated the effects and feasibility of a physical therapist-led physical exercise intervention on agitation of individuals living with dementia in nursing homes. Physical performance levels were considered as a secondary outcome. This evidence-based protocol consisted of a range of adaptable physical exercises that targeted strength, balance, endurance, and flexibility. To help determine the optimum parameters for this population group, the study used two intervention groups: (a) physical exercise intervention for 45 minutes once a week; (b) physical exercise intervention for 15 minutes three times a week (total time also 45 minutes per week). Both intervention groups were compared to a control group, which continued to participate in usual care only (no specific physical exercise intervention), such as basic seated exercise class, carpet bowls, and “armchair” activities. Conclusions: The physical therapist-led physical exercise intervention detailed in this protocol could be integrated into dementia care in nursing homes or other similar settings to help reduce agitation and improve physical performance.
A homolog of the O 157 urease-encoding O island 48 is present in porcine O 149 : H 10 enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli

The relationship of the urease operon in the highly virulent O149 porcine enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) strain Ro8 to a genomic island (GI) homologous to O island (OI) 48 of O157 enterohemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC) strain EDL933 was investigated. Eighty-four of 84 O149:H10 strains were urease positive whereas 44 of 44 O149:H43 porcine ETEC strains were urease-negative. Seventeen of 17 O149:H10 strains that were tested possessed the OI-48 homolog whereas 24 of 24 O149:H43 strains lacked this OI. Transposon insertions in lipB or guaA genes in strain Ro8 eliminated urease activity while insertions in the caiF gene increased urease activity. When the O149 ure operon was cloned on a high copy number plasmid, urease expression was increased approximately 11-fold in Ro8 and 83-fold in O157 strain EDL933 compared with that in the wild type Ro8. The O149 urease activity was expressed despite the presence of the same premature stop codon in ureD that is present in ure+ O157:H7 strains that are urease-negative. The ure operon in Ro8 consists of 4 893 nucleotides with 99% identity with the ure operons in EHEC O157:H7 strains EDL933 and Sakai, and is part of a GI similar to GI-48 of strain EDL933. This OI, designated OI-48149, is inserted in the serX tRNA gene in strain Ro8 and contains genes for urease, tellurite resistance, iha and an AIDA-I-like adhesin. The presence of a homolog of the O157:H7 OI-48 in highly virulent O149 porcine ETEC suggests that this OI may contribute to establishment of the bacteria in the intestine. urease / O149 / porcine enterotoxigenic E. coli / OI-48 / genomic island
Improved Bifrequency Magnetically Insulated Transmission Line Oscillator

Bifrequency magnetically insulated transmission line oscillator (BFMILO) is a high-power microwave device that can generate microwave with two output frequencies simultaneously in a single tube. Through both theoretical analysis and numerical simulation, a better understanding of the high-frequency characteristics of an original BFMILO is obtained. It is the intrinsic field distribution that has been found to be the reason of low efficiency of the original BFMILO. Introducing some modification into the slow-wave structure region, an improved BFMILO is designed. High-frequency analysis reveals that it has a better field distribution than the original one. Employing an electron beam of 445 kV and 39.7 kA, the improved BFMILO yields a microwave power of 2.0 GW in PIC simulation while the output is 1.7 GW for the original one, and the two frequencies are 1.21 and 1.46 GHz, the same as the original.
Extended remediation of sleep deprived-induced working memory deficits using fMRI-guided transcranial magnetic stimulation.

STUDY OBJECTIVES We attempted to prevent the development of working memory (WM) impairments caused by sleep deprivation using fMRI-guided repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS). Novel aspects of our fMRI-guided rTMS paradigm included the use of sophisticated covariance methods to identify functional networks in imaging data, and the use of fMRI-targeted rTMS concurrent with task performance to modulate plasticity effects over a longer term. DESIGN Between-groups mixed model. SETTING TMS, MRI, and sleep laboratory study. PARTICIPANTS 27 subjects (13 receiving Active rTMS, and 14 Sham) completed the sleep deprivation protocol, with another 21 (10 Active, 11 Sham) non-sleep deprived subjects run in a second experiment. INTERVENTIONS Our previous covariance analysis had identified a network, including occipital cortex, which demonstrated individual differences in resilience to the deleterious effects of sleep deprivation on WM performance. Five Hz rTMS was applied to left lateral occipital cortex while subjects performed a WM task during 4 sessions over the course of 2 days of total sleep deprivation. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS At the end of the sleep deprivation period, Sham sleep deprived subjects exhibited degraded performance in the WM task. In contrast, those receiving Active rTMS did not show the slowing and lapsing typical in sleep deprivation, and instead performed similarly to non- sleep deprived subjects. Importantly, the Active sleep deprivation group showed rTMS-induced facilitation of WM performance a full 18 hours after the last rTMS session. CONCLUSIONS Over the course of sleep deprivation, these results indicate that rTMS applied concurrently with WM task performance affected neural circuitry involved in WM to prevent its full impact.
Role of biomarkers in cardiac structure phenotyping in heart failure with preserved ejection fraction: critical appraisal and practical use

Heart failure (HF) with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) is a heterogeneous clinical syndrome characterized by cardiovascular, metabolic, and pro‐inflammatory diseases associated with advanced age and extracardiac comorbidities. All of these conditions finally lead to impairment of myocardial structure and function. The large phenotypic heterogeneity of HFpEF from pathophysiological underpinnings presents a major hurdle to HFpEF therapy. The new therapeutic approach in HFpEF should be targeted to each HF phenotype, instead of the ‘one‐size‐fits‐all’ approach, which has not been successful in clinical trials. Unless the structural and biological determinants of the failing heart are deeply understood, it will be impossible to appropriately differentiate HFpEF patients, identify subtle myocardial abnormalities, and finally reverse abnormal cardiac function. Based on evidence from endomyocardial biopsies, some of the specific cardiac structural phenotypes to be targeted in HFpEF may be represented by myocyte hypertrophy, interstitial fibrosis, myocardial inflammation associated with oxidative stress, and coronary disease. Once the diagnosis of HFpEF has been established, a potential approach could be to use a panel of biomarkers to identify the main cardiac structural HFpEF phenotypes, guiding towards more appropriate therapeutic strategies. Accordingly, the purpose of this review is to investigate the potential role of biomarkers in identifying different cardiac structural HFpEF phenotypes and to discuss the merits of a biomarker‐guided strategy in HFpEF.
(Almost) everything you learned about pharmacokinetics was (somewhat) wrong!

D on’t despair. The title of this editorial is not intended to suggest that all our training in pharmacokinetics was in error. However, many principles taught at medical school are flawed when applied to the practice of anesthesia. Remember that most drugs are given orally and chronically and have a slow onset of effect. As a result, the vast majority of pharmacokinetic studies focus on events after days or weeks of oral drug administration when plasma drug concentrations are changing relatively slowly and concentrations throughout the body are changing at similar rates. This contrasts to many drugs used in anesthesia in which administration is limited to a period of several hours, route of administration is typically intravenous (or inhaled), and effect changes rapidly during periods of rapidly changing plasma concentration. Consider, for example, the typical assumption that, after bolus drug administration, arterial plasma concentration can be described by the sum of two or more exponential terms (Fig. 1). If the first plasma sample is not obtained until 2 or more minutes after drug administration (as in many pharmacokinetic studies), then drug concentration will decrease monotonically over time, consistent with the proposed model. However, plasma samples obtained frequently during the first minute would reveal an initial increase, followed by oscillations, eventually followed by the expected monotonic decrease (1,2). The polyexponential model misspecifies the early time course of drug concentration because it assumes the body to be homogeneous rather than a complicated system of organs in series and parallel. Although the polyexponential model is well accepted, and probably sufficient for most nonanesthetic drugs, we now recognize its limitation when applied to bolus administration of anesthetic drugs, particularly those that attain maximum effect in <2 min. Another area in which traditional pharmacology has misled is its focus on the term half-life. Often
Interlaminar endoscopic lateral recess decompression-surgical technique and early clinical results.

BACKGROUND Lateral recess stenosis is a common pathology causing de-novo or residual radicular pain following lumbar spine surgery. Diagnostic criteria and treatment strategies for symptomatic lateral recess stenosis are not well established. METHODS We identified ten patients in our prospective patient database (n=146) who underwent endoscopic interlaminar decompression for unilateral symptomatic lateral recess stenosis. Lateral recess height and angle were measured on axial T2-weighted MRI. Values from the symptomatic side were compared to the contralateral side which served as asymptomatic control. Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) and Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) for back and leg pain were collected preoperatively, postoperatively and at last follow-up. RESULTS Preoperative MRI revealed that both lateral recess angle and height were significantly smaller on the symptomatic compared to the asymptomatic side (angle: 19.3° vs. 35.7°; height: 2.9 vs. 5.7 mm; P<0.01). All patients tolerated endoscopic interlaminar decompression well and half of the patients were discharged on the day of surgery. At last follow-up (12.6±1.7 months), 8 out of 10 patients experienced a minimally clinically important improvement of their VAS for ipsilateral leg pain, which improved from 7.2±0.5 preoperatively to 2.5±0.8 postoperatively (P=0.001). The back pain VAS also improved (preoperatively 5.1±1.1 vs. postoperatively 1.7±0.9, P<0.05). The ODI improved from 50±5.8 preoperatively to 22.2±5.1 at last follow-up (P=0.001). One patient experienced persistent leg pain. CONCLUSIONS Lateral recess height and angle correlate with symptomatic lateral recess stenosis which is effectively treated utilizing interlaminar endoscopic lateral recess decompression.