Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Dialysis dose and frequency.

BACKGROUND From the beginning of the dialysis era, the issue of optimal dialysis dose and frequency has been a central topic in the delivery of dialysis treatment. METHODS We undertook a discussion to achieve a consensus on key points relating to dialysis dose and frequency, focusing on the relationships with clinical and patient outcomes. RESULTS Traditionally, dialysis adequacy has been quantified referring to the kinetics of urea, taken as a paradigm of all uraemic toxins, and applying the principles of pharmacokinetics using either single- or double-pool variable volume models. An index of dialysis dose is the fractional clearance of urea, which is commonly expressed as Kt/V. It can be calculated from blood urea concentration and haemodialysis (HD) parameters, according to the respective urea kinetic model or by means of simplified formulas. Similar principles are applicable to peritoneal dialysis (PD), where weekly Kt/V and creatinine clearance are used. Recommended minimal targets for dialysis adequacy have been defined by both American and European guidelines (DOQI and European Best Practice Guidelines, respectively). The question of how to improve the severe outcome of dialysis patients has recently come back to the fore, since the results of two recent randomized controlled trials led to the conclusion that, in thrice weekly HD and in PD, increasing the dialysis dose well above the minimum requirements of current American guidelines did not improve patient outcome. Daily HD (defined as a minimum of six HD sessions per week), in the form of either short daytime HD or long slow nocturnal HD, is regarded as a possibility to improve dialysis patient outcome. The results of the studies published so far indicate excellent results with respect to all outcomes analysed: optimal blood pressure control, regression of left ventricular hypertrophy and amelioration of left ventricular performance, improvement of renal anaemia, optimal hyperphosphataemia control, improvement of nutritional status, reduction in oxidative stress indices and improvement in quality of life. The basis for these beneficial effects is thought to be a more physiological clearance of solutes and water, with reduced pre- and post-HD solute concentrations and interdialytic oscillation, compared with traditional HD. Apart from concerns regarding reimbursement and organizational issues, no serious adverse effects have been described with daily HD. However, the evidence accumulated is limited mainly to retrospective cohorts, with small patient numbers and no adequate controls in most instances. Therefore, large prospective studies with adequate controls are required to make daily HD accepted by reimbursing authorities and patients. CONCLUSIONS Given the available observational and interventional body of evidence, there is no reason to reduce arbitrarily dialysis dose, particularly dialysis treatment time in HD patients treated three times weekly. Daily HD represents a very promising tool for improving dialysis outcomes and quality of life, although its impact on patient survival has not yet been proven definitively.
Comparison of free and glycosidically linked volatile components from polyembryonic and monoembryonic mango (Mangifera indica l.) cultivars

Free and glycosidically linked volatile components of four mango cultivars of polyembryonic (M'Bingue and Tete de Chat) and monoembryonic (Amelie and Palmer) seed origins were examined. Eighty-five free volatile components were identified in the four cultivars, of which 33 are newly described as mango volatile compounds. Terpene hydrocarbons (104, 139, 26, and 35 mg/kg of fresh pulp, respectively) were the major volatiles of all four cultivars (>90% of the total volatiles), the dominant terpenes being (Z,E)-ocimenes (70%) in Amelie and car-3-ene (80%) in the other cultivars. Free oxygenated volatiles, mainly represented by monoterpenoids, and C13 norisoprenoids were present in all cultivars, the African Tete de Chat cultivar being by far the richest (12.3 mg/kg). Of the 29 aglycons characterized, 12 were identified for the first time as mango bound volatiles. Again, the Tete de Chat cultivar was the richest (2.1 mg/kg) with monoterpenoids and C13 norisoprenoids as the main glycosidically linked volatile c.
Physical Activity of Malaysian Primary School Children

This study describes the physical activity of primary school children according to sociodemographic characteristics and activity domains. Using the Malaysian South East Asian Nutrition Surveys data, 1702 children aged 7 to 12 years were included in the analysis. Physical activity was reported as a total score and categorized into low, medium, and high levels based on Physical Activity Questionnaire for Older Children. Higher overall activity scores were found in boys, younger age, non-Chinese ethnicity, and normal body mass index category. Sex, age, and ethnicity differences were found in structured or organized, physical education, and outside-of-school domain scores. Transport-related scores differed by age group, ethnicity, household income, and residential areas but not among the three physical activity levels. Participation of girls, Chinese, and older children were low in overall and almost all activity domains. Sociodemographic characteristics are important factors to consider in increasing the different domains of physical activity among Malaysian children.
Resveratrol Is Active against Leishmania amazonensis: In Vitro Effect of Its Association with Amphotericin B

ABSTRACT Resveratrol is a polyphenol found in black grapes and red wine and has many biological activities. In this study, we evaluated the effect of resveratrol alone and in association with amphotericin B (AMB) against Leishmania amazonensis. Our results demonstrate that resveratrol possesses both antipromastigote and antiamastigote effects, with 50% inhibitory concentrations (IC50s) of 27 and 42 μM, respectively. The association of resveratrol with AMB showed synergy for L. amazonensis amastigotes, as demonstrated by the mean sums of fractional inhibitory index concentration (mean ΣFIC) of 0.483, although for promastigotes, this association was indifferent. Treatment with resveratrol increased the percentage of promastigotes in the sub-G0/G1 phase of the cell cycle, reduced the mitochondrial potential, and showed an elevated choline peak and CH2-to-CH3 ratio in the nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy analysis; all these features indicate parasite death. Resveratrol also decreased the activity of the enzyme arginase in uninfected and infected macrophages with and without stimulation with interleukin-4 (IL-4), also implicating arginase inhibition in parasite death. The anti-Leishmania effect of resveratrol and its potential synergistic association with AMB indicate that these compounds should be subjected to further studies of drug association therapy in vivo.
Species diversity can drive speciation: comment.

The mechanisms that govern spatial patterns in species richness, community composition, and specia tion are fundamental issues in community and evolu tionary ecology. It has been argued recently (Emerson and Kolm 2005a) that, in the Hawaiian and Canary archipelagos, species diversity itself has been driving the speciation rates of endemic plants and arthropods, in accord with island biogeography theory. Here we show that the observed trends in the distribution of endemics within these two archipelagos are in fact consistent with null predictions. Moreover, we show that similar trends are followed by non-endemic singletons (i.e., species not endemic to the archipelago that occur on a single island), despite the different mode by which they first arose in the archipelago. Together, these findings undermine the validity of the "diversity-driven diversi fication" hypothesis, at least in the systems considered here. Is biodiversity "simply" the outcome of ecological and evolutionary processes, or could it also be a causative agent in driving speciation? The idea that species can modify their environment, thereby making it available for additional species, is not new (Jones et al. 1997, Erwin 2005). Emerson and Kolm (2005<2, b) have gone further to suggest that species richness can promote diversification, a prediction they ascribe to the theory of island biogeography (MacArthur and Wilson 1967). Assuming that extinction and speciation rates follow a similar curvilinear dependence on richness, Emerson and Kolm predict that, under equilibrium conditions, the proportional representation of endemic singletons
HT‐SuperSAGE of the gut tissue of a Vip3Aa‐resistant Heliothis virescens (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) strain provides insights into the basis of resistance

Multitoxin Bt‐crops expressing insecticidal toxins with different modes of action, for example, Cry and Vip, are expected to improve resistance management in target pests. While Cry1A resistance has been relatively well characterized in some insect species, this is not the case for Vip3A, for which no mechanism of resistance has yet been identified. Here we applied HT‐SuperSAGE to analyze the transcriptome of the gut tissue of tobacco budworm Heliothis virescens (F.) laboratory‐selected for Vip3Aa resistance. From a total of 1 324 252 sequence reads, 5 895 126‐bp tags were obtained representing 17 751 nonsingleton unique transcripts (UniTags) from genetically similar Vip3Aa‐resistant (Vip–Sel) and susceptible control (Vip–Unsel) strains. Differential expression was significant (≥2.5 fold or ≤0.4; P < 0.05) for 1989 sequences (11.2% of total UniTags), where 420 represented overexpressed (OE) and 1569 underexpressed (UE) genes in Vip–Sel. BLASTN searches mapped 419 UniTags to H. virescens sequence contigs, of which, 416 (106 OE and 310 UE) were unambiguously annotated to proteins in NCBI nonredundant protein databases. Gene Ontology distributed 345 of annotated UniTags in 14 functional categories with metabolism (including serine‐type hydrolases) and translation/ribosome biogenesis being the most prevalent. A UniTag homologous to a particular member of the REsponse to PAThogen (REPAT) family was found among most overexpressed, while UniTags related to the putative Vip3Aa‐binding ribosomal protein S2 (RpS2) were underexpressed. qRT‐PCR of a subset of UniTags validated the HT‐SuperSAGE data. This study is the first providing lepidopteran gut transcriptome associated with Vip3Aa resistance and a foundation for future attempts to elucidate the resistance mechanism.
Pricing policies and procedures

The Nature of the Pricing Process - Market Interpretations of Price - Pricing from the Standpoint of Economic Theory - The Role of Costs in Pricing - Cost-Oriented Pricing - Demand and Competition Oriented Pricing - Pricing Decisions by Manufacturers - Product Line Pricing - Pricing Over the Product Life Cycle - Geographic Pricing Practices - Retail Pricing - Pricing and the Legal Issues - The Pricing of Services - Pricing During Inflationary and Shortage Conditions - Pricing in International Markets
Serum α-Mannosidase Activity and the Clinicopathologic Alterations of Locoweed (Astragalus Mollissimus) Intoxication in Range Cattle

Subclinical intoxication of livestock with Astragalus and Oxytropis species (locoweeds) results in decreased animal feed conversion, reduced weight gains, and reproductive failure. Sensitive diagnostic methods to definitively diagnose and monitor intoxication are needed to minimize these losses and better manage locoweed-infested pastures and rangelands. Sera from cattle grazing locoweed were evaluated for α-mannosidase activity, serum biochemical values, electrolytes, and thyroid hormone concentrations. As the cows began to ingest locoweed, the mean serum α-mannosidase activities dropped significantly (400.0 μM to 72.5 μM). Changes in other serum chemistry values were less specific; however, individual animals (generally those ingesting more locoweed) had elevated levels of alkaline phosphatase (ALP), aspartate aminotransferase, and lactate dehydrogenase, with decreased serum total protein (5.8 ± 0.8 g/dl) and albumin (2.3 ± 0.3 g/dl). Mean serum thyroid concentrations (both T4 and T3) were lower in animals that were ingesting locoweed. The calculated swainsonine dose correlated statistically with serum α-mannosidase activity, ALP, albumin, C, CO2, and thyroid hormone T3. This correlation suggests that serum α-mannosidase activity along with potential changes in ALP, albumin, and thyroid hormone concentrations is a sensitive indicator of locoweed exposure and intoxication. These parameters may also be useful for monitoring intoxication and allowing subclinically affected cattle to be removed from infested areas before irreversible damage occurs.
Why do customers utilize the internet as a retailing platform

Purpose – This study aims to investigate the impact of perceived value on customer intention to use the internet as a retailing platform and, more specifically, the impact that perceived value (comprising functional, social, emotional and epistemic values) has on Taiwanese customer intention to conduct the two distribution channel functions, i.e. information collection and order placement, through the internet.Design/methodology/approach – A total of 295 usable survey responses were collected in the main commuter district of Taipei, Taiwan.Findings – The findings indicate that both functional and epistemic values have a significant impact on information collection and order placement. Nevertheless, social value has an impact only on information collection, whereas emotional value has a significant impact only on order placement.Originality/value – The aforementioned issue has rarely been researched but is essential to the development of a channel of distribution theory and is of immediate relevance to mar.
Is Online Health Activity Alive and Well or Flatlining? Findings From 10 Years of the Health Information National Trends Survey

The Internet increasingly enables diverse health communication activities, from information seeking to social media interaction. Up-to-date reporting is needed to document the national prevalence, trends, and user profiles of online health activities so that these technologies can be best used in health communication efforts. This study identifies prevalence, trend, and factors associated with seeking health information, e-mailing health care providers, and using social media for health purposes. Four iterations of HINTS survey data, collected in 2003, 2005, 2008, and 2012, were analyzed to assess population-level trends over the last decade, and current prevalence of Internet-based health communication activities. Sociodemographic and health correlates were explored through weighted logistic regression modeling. Findings demonstrated that Internet use has steadily increased, with 78% of U.S. adults online in 2012; however several digital divide factors—among them education, age, and race/ethnicity—still predict access. Once online, 70% of adults use the Internet as their first source for health information, and while 19% have e-mailed health care providers, engagement in health communication on social media is still relatively low. Distinct user profiles characterize each type of communication, with age, population density, and gender emerging as important predictors across online health activities. These findings have important implications for health communication research and practice.
Why Was There Mandatory Retirement? Or the Impossibility of Efficient Bonding Contracts

Lazear has argued that hours constraints, in general, and mandatory retirement, in particular, form part of an efficient labor market contract designed to increase output by inhibiting worker shirking. Since the contract is efficient, legislative interference is welfare reducing. However, in any case where bonding is costly, the hours constraints will not be chosen optimally. Although it is theoretically possible that bonding is costless, in this case the earnings profile is indeterminate and we should never observe monitoring aimed at reducing shirking. It therefore appears that bonding should be modelled as costly. If so, the role of policy depends on the source of bonding costs, the set of feasible contracts and the policy options which are available to government.
The Accountability of Islamic Microfinance Institution: Evidence from Indonesia

The article aims to provide current condition’s information on the accountability of Baitul Maal wat Tamwil (BMT) in Indonesia. Lack of supervisory board and low demand for audited financial statements provide little incentive for BMT managers to make their financial statement audited by independent auditor. Statistical estimation technique about one sample proportion, give an estimation with 95% confidence level that only 7-20% of BMT is audited by independent auditor. Most of the reason for BMT not being audited are because they feel they do not need an audit and the price for audit is relatively expensive.
Brincidofovir (CMX001) Inhibits BK Polyomavirus Replication in Primary Human Urothelial Cells

ABSTRACT BK polyomavirus (BKPyV)-associated hemorrhagic cystitis (PyVHC) complicates 5 to 15% of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantations. Targeted antivirals are still unavailable. Brincidofovir (BCV; previously CMX001) has shown inhibitory activity against diverse viruses, including BKPyV in a primary human renal tubule cell culture model of polyomavirus-associated nephropathy. We investigated the effects of BCV in BKPyV-infected and uninfected primary human urothelial cells (HUCs), the target cells of BKPyV in PyVHC. The BCV concentrations causing 50 and 90% reductions (EC50 and EC90) in the number of intracellular BKPyV genome equivalents per cell (icBKPyV) were 0.27 μM and 0.59 μM, respectively. At 0.63 μM, BCV reduced viral late gene expression by 90% and halted progeny release. Preinfection treatment for only 24 h reduced icBKPyV similarly to treatment from 2 to 72 h postinfection, while combined pre- and postinfection treatment suppressed icBKPyV completely. After investigating BCV's effects on HUC viability, mean selectivity indices at 50 and 90% inhibition (SI50 and SI90) calculated for cellular DNA replication were 2.7 and 2.9, respectively, those for mitochondrial activity were 8.9 and 10.4, those for total ATP were 8.6 and 8.2, and those for membrane integrity were 25.9 and 16.7. The antiviral and cytostatic effects, but less so the cytotoxic effects, were inversely related to cell density. The cytotoxic effects at concentrations of ≥10 μM were rapid and likely related to BCV's lipid moiety. After carefully defining the antiviral, cytostatic, and cytotoxic properties of BCV in HUCs, we conclude that a preemptive or prophylactic approach in PyVHC is likely to give the best results.
Behavior and physiology of mice lacking the GABAA-receptor delta subunit.

PURPOSE Mice with a targeted disruption of the gamma-aminobutyric acid (A) receptor (GABA(A)R) delta subunit exhibited spontaneous seizures and a strikingly selective attenuation of responses to neuroactive steroids, but not to other neuromodulators. This study further characterized the behavior and physiology of the delta mutants. METHODS Seizure susceptibility to pentylenetetrazol (PTZ) injection, intracellular recordings, and whole-cell patch recordings in dentate granule neurons was determined. RESULTS Susceptibility to PTZ-induced convulsive seizures was significantly higher in -/- versus +/+ mice. In intracellular recordings, the evoked inhibitory postsynaptic potentials (IPSPs) had much faster decay tau in -/- mutants (25 +/- 3.5 ms) compared with +/+ controls (51 +/- 5.2 ms). In whole-cell patch recordings, the decay tau of pharmacologically isolated miniature spontaneous GABA(A)R-mediated synaptic currents (mIPSCs) from -/- mice was only slightly, but significantly faster (5.7 +/- 0.13 ms; n = 18) than that of +/+ controls (6.8 +/- 0.32 ms; n = 20). Furthermore, mIPSC prolongation by bath application of alphaxalone (10 microM), was much smaller in -/- mice (52 +/- 12%; n = 3) compared with +/+ littermates (192 +/- 14%; n = 3). CONCLUSIONS Faster decay of evoked IPSPs and mIPSCs is consistent with altered GABA(A)R subunit composition in the delta mutants, but suggests predominant extrasynaptic delta subunit location in the dentate gyrus of normal mice. Faster-decaying IPSPs likely contribute to the proepileptic phenotype of the delta mutants. Reduced neurosteroid sensitivity might also contribute to seizure susceptibility. It remains to be determined whether delta subunit-containing GABA(A)Rs represent the actual target of neurosteroids or whether the behavioral and physiologic sensitivity to neurosteroids is indirectly altered in the delta-/- mice.
Minor histocompatibility antigen HA-1 and HA-2 polymorphisms in Taiwan: frequency and application in hematopoietic stem cell transplantation

Abstract Background: Minor histocompatibility antigens influence the occurrence of graft-vs.-host disease and graft-vs.-leukemia effects after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). We determined the population frequencies of HA-1 and HA-2 alleles in Taiwan and exploited their potential applications in allogeneic HSCT. Methods: HA-1 and HA-2 were genotyped using polymerase chain reaction and restriction fragment length polymorphism in healthy controls (221 for HA-1 and 306 for HA-2) and HLA-matched donor-recipient sibling pairs with HSCT (92 for HA-1 and 38 for HA-2). The association of genetic polymorphisms with HSCT outcome was evaluated by univariate and multivariate analyses. Results: The allele frequencies in controls were 35.3% and 64.7% for HA-1H and HA-1R, and 89.0% and 11.0% for HA-2V and HA-2M, respectively. HA-1 disparity was denoted in 16.3% of HLA-matched donor-recipient sibling pairs, while it was not associated with HSCT outcome. HA-2 disparity was not observed in the donor-recipient pairs studied. The possibilities of using HA-1 and HA-2 variabilities as molecular markers for hematopoietic chimerism after HSCT were 39.2% and 18.4%, respectively. Conclusions: Our data provide the information on allele and genotype frequencies of HA-1 and HA-2 in a Taiwanese population, and suggest that prospective genomic typing for HA-1 and HA-2 alleles of the donor and recipient could be a useful approach for molecular identification of hematopoietic chimerism after HSCT, rather than prognosis of clinical outcome. Clin Chem Lab Med 2010;48:1287–93.
The evaluation of learner outcomes in interprofessional continuing education: A literature review and an analysis of survey instruments

Background: Interprofessional education (IPE) is thought to be important in fostering interprofessional practice (IPP) and in optimizing patient care, but formal evaluation is lacking. Aim: To identify, through review of IPE evaluation instruments in the context of Barr/Kirkpatrick's hierarchy of IPE learner outcomes, the comprehensiveness of current evaluation strategies and gaps needing to be addressed. Methods: MEDLINE and CINAHL were searched for work relating to IPE/IPP evaluation published between 1999 and September 2010 that contained evaluation tools. Tool items were stratified by learner outcome. Trends and gaps in tool use and scope were evaluated. Results: One hundred and sixty three articles were reviewed and 33 relevant tools collected. Twenty-six (78.8%) were used in only one paper each. Five hundred and thirty eight relevant items were identified, with 68.0% assessing changes in perceptions of IPE/IPP. Fewer items were found to assess learner reactions (20.6%), changes in behaviour (9.7%), changes in knowledge (1.3%) and organizational practice (0.004%). No items addressed benefits to patients; most were subjective and could not be used to assess such higher level outcomes. Conclusions: No gold-standard tool has been agreed upon in the literature, and none fully addresses all IPE learner outcomes. Objective measures of higher level outcomes are necessary to ensure comprehensive evaluation of IPE/IPP.