Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Dynamic [18F]fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography and hypometabolic zones in seizures: Reduced capillary influx

We performed dynamic [18F]fluorodeoxyglucose ([18F]FDG) positron emission tomographic (PET) analyses in 8 patients. Rate constants of influx (K1*), efflux (k2*), phosphorylation (k3*), and dephosphorylation (k4*) were derived for the regions of interest (ROIs), which included (1) the hypometabolic epilptogenic regions and (2) the homologous regions in the contralateral hemispheres. In addition, the four constants were determined from at least one clearly defined (control) ROI from the same plane and its homologous contralateral ROI. (K1*) in the eplieptogenic region was reduced in comparison with the contralateral ROI. Reductions in influx (K1*), which averaged 18 ± 13% (mean ± SD), [18F]FDG phosphorylation (k3*) (25 ± 20%), and brain glucose utization rates (26 ± 10%) were observed in the epileptogenic region. Reductions in efflux were not statistically significant (k2* = 13 ± 28%) but were comparable in magnitude to the average reduction in K1*. No ipsilateral versus contralateral differnces were seen for any rate constants measured outside the epileptogenic region. Influx correlated highly with phosphorylation in the epileptogenic region. Our data suggest that the hypometabolic epileptogenic focus seen in [18F]FDG‐PET studies is also a region of reduced blood‐brain barrier glucose transporter activity and that reductions in phosphorylation are proportional to reductions in [18]FDG influx.
Precoding methods for multi-input multi-ouput interference channels with channel covariance Feedback

Usually, instantaneous channel information is required by the transmitter for the precoding in multi-input multi-output interference channels. In the case of fast fading channels, the resultant additional overhead of the system will be high. Against this, this study considers the scenario where the channel is spatially correlated and the transmitter only has the covariance information of the channel so that the system overhead can be reduced. On the basis of maximum signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR) criterion, the author proposes two precoding methods, including the iterative precoding and bisection search precoding methods. The first method solves the optimal precoder of a given user provided that others' precoders are known, so that the SINR can be increased gradually. Whereas the second method introduces an auxiliary variable, transforms the original non-convex problem into a convex one, and solves it by convex optimisation softwares. Both the proposed methods are proved to be convergent and their computation complexity and overheads are also analysed. Under various system settings, the proposed two methods are compared with a few existing precoding or joint transceiver methods by numerical method and computer simulation, and the superiority of the proposed methods is also shown in most cases.
Effect of Cilostazol in Patients with Intermittent Claudication: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study

A multicenter, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, parallel study was conducted to compare the efficacy and safety of cilostazol 100 mg and 50 mg, both administered twice daily, with that of placebo in patients with moderately severe intermittent claudication (IC) secondary to peripheral arterial disease. A total of 394 subjects 40 years of age or older with chronic, stable, symptomatic IC received cilostazol 100 mg twice daily, 50 mg twice daily, or placebo for 24 weeks. Subjects receiving cilostazol 100 mg twice daily experienced a 21% net improvement in maximal walking distance (MWD) compared with placebo subjects (p = 0.0003) and a 22% net improvement in distance walked to the onset of symptoms (PFWD) (p = 0.0015). Subjects who received cilostazol 50 mg twice daily also benefited from therapy, but not to a statistically significant degree (7% and 11% improvement in MWD and PFWD, respectively). Quality-of-life and functional status assessments corroborated these objective results. Cilostazol, in particular 100 mg twice daily, significantly improves symptoms in patients with IC.
Un-gating and allosteric modulation of a pentameric ligand-gated ion channel captured by molecular dynamics

Pentameric ligand-gated ion channels (pLGICs) mediate intercellular communication at synapses through the opening of an ion pore in response to the binding of a neurotransmitter. Despite the increasing availability of high-resolution structures of pLGICs, a detailed understanding of the functional isomerization from closed to open (gating) and back is currently missing. Here, we provide the first atomistic description of the transition from open to closed (un-gating) in the glutamate-gated chloride channel (GluCl) from Caenorhabditis Elegans. Starting with the active-state structure solved in complex with the neurotransmitter L-glutamate and the positive allosteric modulator (PAM) ivermectin, we analyze the spontaneous relaxation of the channel upon removal of ivermectin by explicit solvent/membrane Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulations. The μs-long trajectories support the conclusion that ion-channel deactivation is mediated by two distinct quaternary transitions, i.e. a global receptor twisting followed by the radial expansion (or blooming) of the extracellular domain. At variance with previous models, we show that pore closing is exclusively regulated by the global twisting, which controls the position of the β1-β2 loop relative to the M2-M3 loop at the EC/TM domain interface. Additional simulations with L-glutamate restrained to the crystallographic binding mode and ivermectin removed indicate that the same twisting isomerization is regulated by agonist binding at the orthosteric site. These results provide a structural model for gating in pLGICs and suggest a plausible mechanism for the pharmacological action of PAMs in this neurotransmitter receptor family. The simulated un-gating converges to the X-ray structure of GluCl resting state both globally and locally, demonstrating the predictive character of state-of-art MD simulations.
Effect of CO2 Concentration on Carbonic Anhydrase and Ribulose-1,5-Bisphosphate Carboxylase/Oxygenase Expression in Pea

The effect of external CO2 concentration on the expression of carbonic anhydrase (CA) and ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco) was examined in pea (Pisum sativum cv Little Marvel) leaves. Enzyme activities and their transcript levels were reduced in plants grown at 1000 [mu]L/L CO2 compared with plants grown in ambient air. Growth at 160 [mu]L/L CO2 also appeared to reduce steady-state transcript levels for rbcS, the gene encoding the small subunit of Rubisco, and for ca, the gene encoding CA; however, rbcS transcripts were reduced to a greater extent at this concentration. Rubisco activity was slightly lower in plants grown at 160 [mu]L/L CO2, and CA activity was significantly higher than that observed in air-grown plants. Transfer of plants from 1000 [mu]L/L to air levels of CO2 resulted in a rapid increase in both ca and rbcS transcript abundance in fully expanded leaves, followed by an increase in enzyme activity. Plants transferred from air to high-CO2 concentrations appeared to modulate transcript abundance and enzyme activity less quickly. Foliar carbohydrate levels were also examined in plants grown continuously at high and ambient CO2, and following changes in growth conditions that rapidly altered ca and rbcS transcript abundance and enzyme activities.
Prospective thermal dosimetry: The key to hyperthermia's future

Purpose: This review summarizes recent results from two randomized trials testing the complete response rate and local control benefits for the addition of hyperthermia to external beam radiation. Methods: In both series, there was a statistically significant benefit to adjuvant hyperthermia. Results: The establishment of a standardized nomenclature for clinical hyperthermia prescription will help to facilitate the broader usage of hyperthermia. Conclusions: Carefully conducted phase III trials with rigorous quality assurance must employ prospective thermal dosimetry to validate the role of hyperthermia in multi-modality therapy.
Tissue reaction to ceramic implant material.

The biocompatibility of alumina ceramic was tested by means of macrophage cultures, intraperitoneal (i.p.) and intramuscular (i.m.) application of powdered particles in rats, and by implantation of solid samples in the paravertebral muscles and the condylus femur. No acute cytotoxicity was found in macrophage cultures. The i.p. and i.m. application of powdered particles in the beginning showed a granulocytic reaction, later followed by a histiocytic reaction. Also, the morphological changes in the organs of reticulo histiocytic system (RHS) are shown. In the solid samples implantation, the fibrogenetic stimulus is measured by morphological analysis of the connective tissue membrane around the sample. The importance of the individual cell observation by transmission-electron microscope (TEM) examination is evidenced. The experimental results are compared to the environmental reaction of smaller animal-adapted prostheses and prostheses having been implanted in human patients. Good biocompatibility is confirmed by these investigations; also regarding central position of the macrophages, the environmental reaction due to implant material is shown.
Effects of Field Location, Time in Competition, and Phase of Play on Injury Severity in High School Football

This study evaluated the effects of competitive intensity, represented by the variables time in competition, phase of play, and field location, on injury severity in U.S. high school football. The injury rate was higher in competition than practice (RR = 4.75, 95% CI: 4.34–5.20). Mild and moderate injuries were frequently lower leg/foot/ankle sprains/strains and concussions. Severe injuries were frequently knee Sprains/strains and arm fractures. Severe injuries composed a greater proportion of injuries sustained during the beginning and middle of competition compared with injuries sustained during the end/overtime (IPR = 1.83, 95% CI: 1.25–2.69). Compared with injuries sustained during general play, a greater proportion of kickoff/punt injuries were severe (IPR = 1.69, 95% CI: 1.07–2.68) or were concussions (IPR = 1.86, 95% CI: 1.05–3.30). Identifying factors contributing to severe injury is a crucial first step toward developing targeted evidence-based interventions aimed at reducing the incidence of severe injuries among the millions of high school football players.
Identification by cDNA cloning of abundant sRNAs in a human-avirulent Yersinia pestis strain grown under five different growth conditions.

AIMS sRNA regulation is supposedly involved in the stress response of a pathogen during infection. Yersinia pestis, the etiologic agent of plague, must encounter temperature and microenvironment changes, given its lifestyle. Here, we used the cDNA cloning approach to discover full-length sRNA candidates that are highly expressed in Y. pestis under five different growth conditions. MATERIALS & METHODS The cDNA cloning approach was improved by combining the traditional cDNA library construction with the prevalent rapid amplification of cDNA ends and RNA size selection techniques. RESULTS In total, 43 RNA species, including six previously annotated sRNAs, were identified. Of these, 25 sRNAs were encoded on the antisense strand of the annotated genes. Interestingly, two of these sRNAs were found on the complementary strand of noncoding RNAs. In addition, eight novel sRNAs encoded in the intergenic regions were also revealed. Ten sRNA candidates chosen for the northern blot analysis were successfully detected. Analysis of the expression patterns of 29 candidate sRNAs showed that 24 sRNAs are highly abundant in Y. pestis upon entry into the stationary growth phase. CONCLUSION Our preliminary attempt at screening the novel sRNA candidates will lay the foundation for understanding the roles of sRNAs in Y. pestis physiology and pathogenesis.
A hierarchical quorum‐sensing cascade in Pseudomonas aeruginosa links the transcriptional activators LasR and RhIR (VsmR) to expression of the stationary‐phase sigma factor RpoS

In Pseudomonas aeruginosa, the production of many virulence factors and secondary metabolites is regulated in concert with cell density through quorum sensing. Two quorum‐sensing regulons have been identified in which the LuxR homologues LasR and RhIR are activated by N‐(3‐oxododecanoyl)‐l‐homo‐serine lactone (OdDHL) and N‐butanoyl‐l‐homoserine lactone (BHL) respectively. The lasR and rhIR genes are linked to the luxl homologues last and rhll, which are responsible for synthesis of OdDHL and BHL, respectively. As lasRI and rhlRI are both involved in regulating synthesis of exoenzymes such as elastase, we sought to determine the nature of their interrelationship. By using lacZ transcriptional fusions in both homologous (P. aeruginosa) and heterologous (Escherichia coli) genetic backgrounds we provide evidence that (i) lasR is expressed constitutively throughout the growth cycle, (ii) rhIR expression is regulated by LasR/OdDHL, and (iii) that RhIR/BHL regulates rhll. We also show that expression of the stationary‐phase sigma factor gene rpoS is abolished in a P. aeruginosa lasR mutant and in the pleiotropic BHL‐negative mutant PAN067. Furthermore, our data reveal that in E. coli, an rpoS‐lacZ fusion is regulated directly by RhIR/BHL. Taken together, these results indicate that P. aeruginosa employs a multilayered hierarchical quorum‐sensing cascade involving RhIR/BHL and LasR/OdDHL, interlinked via RpoS, to integrate the regulation of virulence determinants and secondary metabolites with adaptation and survival in the stationary phase.
The role of the Internet in cancer patients' engagement with complementary and alternative treatments

This article draws on a study of 80 National Health Service cancer patients and their experiences of using the Internet within disease and treatment processes. It focuses on the role the Internet plays in the context of potential or actual engagement with complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). The results depart from previous conceptualizations of the Internet as a major source of CAM knowledge, and second, as a major pathway to patient CAM usage. Moreover, the results highlight significant anxiety as patients attempt to process vast amounts of complex biomedical diagnostic and prognostic information online. For patients attempting to embrace alternative therapeutic models of cancer care, exposure to prognostic data may pose considerable risks to individual well-being and engagement with healing practices. On the basis of these results we problematize social theorizations of the Internet as contributing to such things as: the democratization of knowledge; the deprofessionalization of medicine; and patient empowerment. We emphasize, instead, the potential role of the Internet in reinforcing biomedicine's paradigmatic dominance in cancer care.
Participant Selection and Exclusion in a New Zealand Youth Development Programme

Decisions about participant selection are inherent to a programme based approach to positive youth development. As well as having a way of selecting potential participants, programmes often utilise some sort of exclusion criteria. This can be a sensitive issue: the wish to support young people in need by being as inclusive as possible must be balanced with an awareness of the limits of a programme’s capability to safely contain disruptive or dangerous behaviours. This thesis deals with how the New Zealand positive youth development programme 'Project K' has managed the issue of exclusion. A collaborative approach informed by community psychology and action research methodologies was utilised. Understanding Project K's current practice around exclusion was the focus of the initial phase. This included a quantitative analysis of the rates of exclusion and demographics of excluded students and a qualitative component exploring stakeholder perspectives on exclusion and how decisions about exclusion are actually made. Findings emphasised the importance of having a robust process around exclusion in order to maintain safe practice and prevent unnecessary exclusion. However, unavoidable challenges were also highlighted including constraints related to limited information and time; and more complex issues related to the need for discretion and good judgment in making decisions even when there are clear criteria. The second phase of the research considered possible responses to the issue of exclusion including action aimed at improving decision making around exclusion and options for supporting currently excluded young people. As the needs of excluded young people could not be directly assessed, this phase was guided by expert interviews. Expert perspectives on the needs of excluded youth emphasized the importance of individualized, responsive, and multisystemic interventions. Overall, this research illustrates both the importance and complexity of exclusion, an issue not often the focus of research. In considering the rationale behind the practice, wider implications related to the potential challenges posed by integrating 'at-risk' young people into the positive youth development approach are highlighted. Participant Exclusion iv Participant Exclusion v
Stem cells in myocardial infarction: from bench to bedside

Acute myocardial infarction (AMI) often leads to congestive heart failure, a condition associated with high subsequent mortality. Pharmacological treatment and, more importantly, primary angioplasty have notably decreased early mortality and thereby improved the long term prognosis of patients with AMI. However, in the largest study so far, involving more than 14 000 patients with AMI and impaired left ventricular function, 1 year mortality was still 13% despite guideline conforming pharmacological treatment and use of implantable automatic defibrillators.1 Therefore, preventing the progression of disease with further complications such as left ventricular aneurysm or severe depression of left ventricular function is still a major challenge. Recent studies demonstrating the ability of stem cells to (trans-)differentiate into cardiac myocytes have challenged the old belief that the heart is a terminally differentiated organ. These findings initiated intense basic and clinical research with the aim of using this stem cell ability in order to repair ischaemically damaged myocardium. This article provides an overview of the current basic scientific knowledge on the role of stem cells in myocardial infarction, and the results of the first studies implementing stem cell therapy in the clinical setting. ### Embryonic stem cells The most primitive of all stem cells are embryonic stem (ES) cells. ES cells have the broadest developmental potential since they can give rise to cells of three embryonic germ layers. Several different ES cell lines have been manipulated to produce cardiomyocytes. In a mouse model, these cells expressed cardiac specific proteins and formed grafts when injected into ischaemically damaged myocardium. Furthermore, the ES cell derived cardiomyocytes contracted in synchrony with adjacent cells, and the grafts remained stable over several weeks after implantation.2 It has also been demonstrated that human ES cells can give rise to cardiomyocytes by using an embryoid body model.3 These studies show that functionally intact cardiomyocytes …
Exercise preconditioning exhibits neuroprotective effects on hippocampal CA1 neuronal damage after cerebral ischemia

Recent evidence has suggested the neuroprotective effects of physical exercise on cerebral ischemic injury. However, the role of physical exercise in cerebral ischemia-induced hippocampal damage remains controversial. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of pre-ischemia treadmill training on hippocampal CA1 neuronal damage after cerebral ischemia. Male adult rats were randomly divided into control, ischemia and exercise + ischemia groups. In the exercise + ischemia group, rats were subjected to running on a treadmill in a designated time schedule (5 days per week for 4 weeks). Then rats underwent cerebral ischemia induction through occlusion of common carotids followed by reperfusion. At 4 days after cerebral ischemia, rat learning and memory abilities were evaluated using passive avoidance memory test and rat hippocampal neuronal damage was detected using Nissl and TUNEL staining. Pre-ischemic exercise significantly reduced the number of TUNEL-positive cells and necrotic cell death in the hippocampal CA1 region as compared to the ischemia group. Moreover, pre-ischemic exercise significantly prevented ischemia-induced memory dysfunction. Pre-ischemic exercise mighct prevent memory deficits after cerebral ischemia through rescuing hippocampal CA1 neurons from ischemia-induced degeneration.
Opportunities and pitfalls of molecular testing for detecting sexually transmitted pathogens

Summary In the last 20 years, nucleic acid amplification tests (NAATs) have gradually replaced traditional methods for the detection of sexually transmitted infections. NAAT technology comes with some considerable benefits for diagnosis, including increased sensitivity, rapid result turnaround and suitability for high throughput screening of asymptomatic individuals using more-readily available specimens. However, the transition to NAAT has not come without its problems. False-negative and false-positive results have been reported owing to various technical issues. Furthermore, increased reliance on NAATs for diagnosis have created the need to develop NAAT-based methods to inform treatment, being an area that presents its own set of challenges. In this review article, we explore NAAT-based detection of Chlamydia trachomatis, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, Mycoplasma genitalium and Trichomonas vaginalis. In doing so, we consider the benefits and limitations of NAAT-based technology and highlight areas where further research and development is in need.
Suboptimal reporting of notifiable diseases in Canadian emergency departments: a survey of emergency physician knowledge, practices, and perceived barriers.

Reporting of infectious diseases is integral to the detection of common-source outbreaks (such as food or waterborne outbreaks), provision of appropriate medical therapy, and the planning and evaluation of prevention and control programs. The re-emergence of “old” infectious diseases, such as tuberculosis, the appearance of new pathogens, for instance, the one giving rise to SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome), and the deliberate introduction of infectious diseases through bioterrorism highlight the need for effective disease surveillance. Ashford et al. argue that the most critical component for bioterrorism outbreak detection and reporting is the front-line health care profession and local health departments.