Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Associated Risk Factors of STIs and Multiple Sexual Relationships among Youths in Malawi

Background Having unprotected sex with multiple sexual partners (MSP) is the greatest risk factor for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among youths. Young people with MSPs are less likely to use a condom and the greater the risk for STIs. This study examines the associated risk factors of STIs and multiple sexual partnerships among youths aged 15–24 years. Data and Methods The Malawi Demographic Health Survey 2010 data was used. Out of a sample of 2,987 males and 9,559 females aged 15–24 years, 2,026 males and 6,470 females were considered in the study. Chi square test and logistic regression techniques were performed. Analysis was performed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 22. Findings The results indicate that 1,399 (69.0%) males and 2,290 (35.4%) females reported multiple sexual partnerships (MSP). Within the rural area, females (n = 1779) were more likely to report MSP than males (n = 1082) and within the urban areas, a higher proportion of females (n = 511) still reported MSP, with males (n = 316). About 78% rural females aged 20–24 years, and about 79% rural males aged 15–19 years reported MSP. The likelihood of MSP was higher among females in the poorest households (OR = 1.31), being married (OR = 5.71) and Catholic males (OR = 1.63), who were married (OR = 1.59). Catholic males (OR = 1.82) in the rural areas, who were married (OR = 1.80) and rural females in the northern region (OR = 1.26) were more likely to have MSP. The odds ratios were higher among urban females in the poorest (OR = 3.45) households who were married (OR = 4.22). Conclusions Having more than one sexual partner increases the risk of STIs and sexuality education programs should be introduced that emphasize the danger that surrounds MSP.
Nuclear size is sensitive to NTF2 protein levels in a manner dependent on Ran binding

ABSTRACT Altered nuclear size is associated with many cancers, and determining whether cancer-associated changes in nuclear size contribute to carcinogenesis necessitates an understanding of mechanisms of nuclear size regulation. Although nuclear import rates generally positively correlate with nuclear size, NTF2 levels negatively affect nuclear size, despite the role of NTF2 (also known as NUTF2) in nuclear recycling of the import factor Ran. We show that binding of Ran to NTF2 is required for NTF2 to inhibit nuclear expansion and import of large cargo molecules in Xenopus laevis egg and embryo extracts, consistent with our observation that NTF2 reduces the diameter of the nuclear pore complex (NPC) in a Ran-binding-dependent manner. Furthermore, we demonstrate that ectopic NTF2 expression in Xenopus embryos and mammalian tissue culture cells alters nuclear size. Finally, we show that increases in nuclear size during melanoma progression correlate with reduced NTF2 expression, and increasing NTF2 levels in melanoma cells is sufficient to reduce nuclear size. These results show a conserved capacity for NTF2 to impact on nuclear size, and we propose that NTF2 might be a new cancer biomarker. Summary: NTF2 reduces the diameter of the NPC, nuclear import of large cargos and nuclear size in a Ran-binding-dependent manner, in both Xenopus and mammalian cells.
Effects of action of proparacaine and tetracaine topical ophthalmic formulations on corneal sensitivity in horses.

OBJECTIVE To compare the corneal anesthetic effects and duration of action of 2 ophthalmic anesthetic agents in horses. DESIGN Prospective, randomized masked crossover study. ANIMALS 8 clinically normal adult horses. PROCEDURES Corneal sensitivity was determined by measuring each eye's corneal touch threshold (CTT) with a Cochet-Bonnet esthesiometer. Each eye's baseline CTT was recorded prior to anesthetic instillation at 0 minutes and every 10 minutes thereafter for 60 minutes. Each eye was randomly assigned to receive 2 of 4 treatments: 0.5% aqueous proparacaine ophthalmic solution (aqueous proparacaine; 8 eyes); 0.5% aqueous tetracaine ophthalmic solution (aqueous tetracaine; 8 eyes); 0.5% viscous tetracaine ophthalmic solution (viscous tetracaine; 8 eyes); and saline (0.9% NaCl) eyewash solution (8 eyes) as a negative control. There was a 48-hour washout period. Every horse received all treatments. RESULTS Median baseline CTT of eyes was 4.5 cm (range, 0.5 to 6 cm). Median CTT for saline solution-treated eyes never differed significantly from baseline. The maximum anesthetic effect with the other 3 treatments occurred at 10 minutes. Median CTT of eyes at 10 minutes was 0.5 cm (range, 0 to 2.5 cm) with aqueous proparacaine treatment, 0.25 cm (range, 0 to 2.0 cm) with aqueous tetracaine treatment, and 0 cm (range, 0 to 0.5 cm) with viscous tetracaine treatment. Maximum anesthetic duration was 20 minutes with aqueous proparacaine and aqueous tetracaine treatments and 30 minutes with viscous tetracaine treatments. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE Treatment of eyes with viscous tetracaine resulted in the greatest decrease in CTT and the longest duration of action, compared with treatment with aqueous proparacaine or aqueous tetracaine.
Diabetic retinopathy screening using tele-ophthalmology in a primary care setting

We evaluated tele-ophthalmology for diabetic retinopathy screening in a primary care setting. Four general practitioners (GPs) were taught to assess non-mydriatic retinography images of patients with diabetes. After training, a total of 1223 patients were screened using this method: 926 (76%) did not have diabetic retinopathy and 297 (24%) were referred for an ophthalmologic assessment. Of the 297 patients, 186 (15%) did not have diabetic retinopathy and were considered to be false positives, 85 (7%) had diabetic retinopathy and in 26 cases (2%) the retinography images were unreadable. The specificity of GPs for detecting diabetic retinopathy by non-mydriatic retinography was 83%. Ophthalmologists also assessed 120 patients who had been diagnosed as normal to detect false negatives. Ten patients (8.3%) had mild non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy with small isolated retinal hemorrhages. Only one patient (0.8%) had treatable diabetic retinopathy with hard exudates and microaneurysms. The sensitivity of GPs for detecting diabetic retinopathy was 90.9%; the sensitivity for detecting treatable lesions was 99.2%. We concluded that adequately trained GPs can screen for treatable lesions of diabetic retinopathy with a very high level of reliability using non-mydriatic retinography.
Pathogenesis of Streptococcus zooepidemicus infection after intratracheal inoculation in llamas.

OBJECTIVES To test whether generalized Streptococcus zooepidemicus infection could be induced by intratracheal inoculation in llamas and to characterize this infection. ANIMALS 6 test and 3 control llamas. PROCEDURE Test llamas received 1 of 3 dosages of S. zooepidemicus by intratracheal injection, whereas control llamas received sterile culture medium. Physical examination variables and results of clinicopathologic analyses of blood, peritoneal fluid, and tracheal wash fluid were compared in test llamas between, before, and during the development of bacteremia and with control llamas. Bacteriologic culture was performed on all collected body fluids and tissue specimens that were collected at necropsy. Tissue specimens that were collected at necropsy were examined histologically. RESULTS Infection induced fever, anorexia, and signs of depression. Five of 6 infected llamas developed specific signs of inflammation in the thorax or abdomen, bacteremia, neutrophilic leukocytosis with toxic changes and high band neutrophil cell counts, hyperfibrinogenemia, and high peritoneal fluid WBC counts and protein concentrations. On development of bacteremia, llamas had significant decreases in serum iron (from 118+/-25 to 6+/-4 microg/ml) and increases in serum glucose (from 131+/-5 to 253+/-48 mg/dl) concentrations. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE Streptococcus zooepidemicus spreads rapidly to other body compartments after intratracheal inoculation in llamas. Fever, anorexia, and signs of depression are the most consistent clinical signs, although other signs are possible. Clinicopathologic analysis of body fluids yields evidence of inflammation. Infection by S. zooepidemicus can be proven by bacteriologic culture of body fluids before death or of tissue specimens after death.
ACAKS: An Ad-Collection-Aware Keyword Selection Approach for Contextual Advertising

In this work we address the problem of selecting keywords from a web page in order to submit them to an ad selection system. Several previous research found in literature have proposed machine learning strategies to determine these keywords in different contexts, such as emails and web pages. Such machine learning approaches usually have the goal of selecting keywords considered as good by humans. We here propose a new machine learning strategy where the selection is driven by the expected impact of the keyword in the final quality of the ad placement system, which we name here as ad-collection-aware keyword selection. This new approach relies on the judgment of the users about the ads each keyword can retrieve. Although this strategy requires a higher effort to build the training set than previous approaches, we believe the gain obtained in recall is worth enough to make the ad collection aware approach a better choice. In experiments we performed with an ad collection and considering features proposed in a previous work, we found that the new ad-collection-aware approach led to a gain of 62% in the recall over the baseline without dropping the precision values. Besides the new alternative to select keywords, we also study the use of features extracted from the ad collection in the task of selecting keywords.
Developmental pattern of tibiofemoral angle in healthy north-east Indian children

Purpose Physiological range of tibiofemoral angle (TFA) is poorly defined and may lead to unnecessary therapeutic interventions. Studies on TFA developmental pattern suggest that racial and ethnic differences are present; children in north-east India who have not yet been studied need to be evaluated. Patients and methods Cross-sectional study of clinical TFA, intermalleolar distance and intercondylar distance in 1020 healthy north-east Indian children aged from 2 to 18 years was done. Height, weight and body mass index were also recorded. Results At two years of age the mean TFA was valgus. The values reached a peak of 8.55° (standard deviation (SD) 1.01) valgus at seven years of age. The TFA then gradually stabilised to 3.18° (SD 1.18) valgus by 18 years of age. There was no significant difference in TFA between male and female patients. Discussion The present study is the largest and only the third such study on Indian children and the first on healthy northeast Indian children. By the end of two years most children had valgus angulation. This, along with the peak angulation observed, was similar to most of the other studies. The age at peak angulation and subsequent stabilisation of valgus angulation varied greatly among children of different origins, especially non-Indian children. Conclusions Data can be used to identify children who require further follow-up/evaluation and can serve as guidelines during deformity correction and future studies. The development of TFA in this cohort is not different from other children of India but differs from children of other ethnic origins.
DEVELOPMENT OF ADVANCED PRACTICE IN THE DISTRICT NURSE ROLE Sarah Scott ’ s literature review illustrates the relationship between power and traditional hierarchies in the NHS

The aim of this literature review was to examine advanced practice in relation to the role of the district nurse. A significant finding was a paucity of evidence relating to advanced district nursing roles, which may influence future development of the service. A hypothesis drawn from the data is that district nurses are pro-actively advancing their practice but in doing so are changing their role rather than remaining in district nursing. The searched literature supports advanced nursing roles in terms of safe clinical practice, but questions remain over their cost effectiveness. In-depth analysis of the literature also revealed a correlation between the power of the medical profession and advanced nursing practice in primary care.
Matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) and its tissue inhibitor (TIMP-2) are prognostic factors in cervical cancer, related to invasive disease but not to high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) or virus persistence after treatment of CIN.

OBJECTIVE Matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) and its tissue inhibitor (TIMP-2) are important regulators of cancer invasion and metastasis. Their associations to high-risk (HR) human papillomavirus (HPV) in cervical intra-epithelial neoplasia (CIN) and cervical cancer (CC) are unexplored and their prognostic significance in CC remains controversial. MATERIALS AND METHODS As part of our HPV-PathogenISS study, a series of 150 CCs and 152 CIN lesions were examined using immunohistochemical (IHC) staining for MMP-2 and TIMP-2 and tested for HPV using PCR with 3 primer sets (MY09/11, GP5+/GP6+, SPF). Follow-up data were available from all squamous cell carcinoma patients and 67 CIN lesions had been monitored with serial PCR for HPV after cone treatment. RESULTS MMP-2 increased with the grade of CIN, with major up-regulation upon transition to invasive cancer (OR 20.78) (95%CI 7.16-60.23) (p=0.0001). TIMP-2 retained its normal expression until CIN3, with dramatic down-regulation in invasive disease (p=0.0001 for trend). Thus, the MMP2:TIMP-2 ratio increased with progressive CIN, exceeding the value 1.0 only in invasive disease. Both MMP-2 and TIMP-2 are highly specific (TIMP-2; 100%) discriminators of CIN with 100% positive predictive value (TIMP-2), but suffer from low sensitivity and negative predictive value. Neither MMP-2 nor TIMP-2 showed any significant association with HR HPV or virus persistence/clearance. TIMP-2 (but not MMP-2) was a significant predictor of survival in univariate (Kaplan-Meier) analysis (p=0.007), but lost its significance in multivariate (Cox) analysis. CONCLUSION The activities of MMP-2 and TIMP-2 in cervical carcinogenesis seem to be unrelated to HR-HPV The inverse MMP-2:TIMP-2 ratio is a sign of poor prognosis. A combination of a TIMP-2 assay with another test showing high SE and high NPV (e.g., HCII for HPV) should provide a potential screening tool capable of accurate detection of CIN.
Quantification of curcumin, demethoxycurcumin, and bisdemethoxycurcumin in rodent brain by UHPLC/ESI-Q-TOF-MS/MS after intra-nasal administration of curcuminoids loaded PNIPAM nanoparticles.

An ultra high performance liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization-synapt mass spectrometric method (UHPLC/ESI-QTOF-MS/MS) for the analysis of curcumin (Cur), demethoxycurcumin (DMC), bisdemethoxycurcumin (BDMC) in Wistar rat brain homogenate was developed and validated. The chromatographic separation was achieved on a Waters ACQUITY UPLC™ BEH C18 (2.1mm × 100 mm; 1.7μm) column using isocratic mobile phase, consisting of acetonitrile: 10mM ammonium formate: formic acid (90:10:0.05v/v/v), at a flow rate of 0.2 ml min(-1) . The transitions occurred at m/z 367.0694/217.0598, 337.0717/173.0910, 307.0760/187.0844 for Cur, DMC, BDMC and m/z 307.0344/229.0677 for the IS (Nimesulide) respectively. The recovery of the analytes from Wistar rat brain homogenate was optimized using liquid-liquid extraction technique (LLE) in (ethyl acetate: chloform) mixture. The total run time was 3.0 min and the elution of Cur, DMC, BDMC occurred at 1.6, 1.75, 1.70 min, and for the IS 1.87 min, respectively. The linear dynamic range was established over the concentration range of 1.00 ng mL(-1) to 1000.0 ng mL(-1) (r(2) ; 0.9909 ± 0.0011, 0.9911 ± 0.003, and 0.9919 ± 0.0013) for Cur, DMC, and BDMC, respectively. The intra and inter-assay accuracy in terms of % CV for Cur, DMC, and BDMC was in the range 0.47-2.20, 0.47-1.65, and0.44-2.70, respectively. The lower limit of detection (LOD) and quantitation (LOQ) for Cur, DMC, and BDMC were 0.46, 0.05, 0.16 ng mL(-1) and 0.153, 0.015, 0.052 ng mL(-1) , respectively. Analytes were stable and the method proved to be accurate (recovery, >85%), specific and was applied to evaluate the Cur, DMC, BDMC loaded PNIPAM NPs as vehicles for nose to brain drug delivery.
Bone Conduction Implants: Xomed Audiant Bone Conductor™ vs. BAHA™

Results Implantation and Clinical Follow-Up No complications occurred during the implantation propatients had regular clinic al follow-up and were questioned about their experiences with the new system, as compared to the previously used hearing aid . Audiological testing under standard conditions included preand postoperative pure-tone and speech reception thresholds, speech discrimination scores and narrow-band . octave noise thresholds in the free sound field. During testing, hearing aids were used at the most comfortable level. All patients fulfilled the manufacturer's audiological recommendations for each implant type. Therefore, preoperative hearing levels were significantly different in the two groups . Mean bone-conduction thresholds in the main speech frequencies were 10 dB (5-27 dB) for the Audiant patients and 30 dB (7-53 dB) for the BAHA patients. Mean air conduction was 62 dB (48-78 dB) in the Audiant group, compared to 74 dB (37107 dB) in the BAHA group . In both patient groups, the air-bone gap showed no significant difference at any frequency. This allowed a statistical comparison of the two systems when looking at the residual air-bone gap after rehabilitation with the new hearing aids (Student' s t test, two-tailed). Introduction Today, two types of partially implantable bone-conduction hearing aids are commercially available: The Xomed Audiant" bone conductor" (Xomed Treace Inc, USA) and the BAHATM system (Nobelbiocare, Sweden). The technical differences between the two devices were studied by Hakansson et aJi and are depicted in Figure 1. Indications for implantation are the same for both systems and include middle ear or external ear pathology not amenable to otologic microsurgery and conditions for which rehabilitation with an air-conduction hearing aid is not possible (e.g., chronically draining ears). Following the manufacturers' recommendations, the audiological prerequi sites are more restrictive for the Audiant than for the BAHA (Table 1). There are several report s in the literature concerning each implant,"! ' but only Wade et al" compared the two implant types. The present study is a clinical and audiological comparison of the results obtained with the Audiant and the BAHA system at our institution.
Autoimmune epilepsy in children: Case series and proposed guidelines for identification

Antibodies against neuronal surface proteins are increasingly recognized in autoimmune central nervous system (CNS) disorders in which seizures are the main or an important feature. The disorders include antibody‐associated limbic encephalitis and N‐methyl‐D‐aspartate receptor (NMDAR)encephalitis; however, seizures of autoimmune etiology may exist beyond the spectrum of these recognized syndromes. Because these seizures are potentially treatable with immune therapy, guidelines are needed to help in their early recognition.
Adverse responses and physical activity: secondary analysis of the PREPARE trial.

UNLABELLED Physical activity has been hypothesized to cause adverse metabolic responses in a minority of participants. We use secondary analysis of a randomized controlled trial to investigate rates of adverse metabolic responses in a population at high risk of type 2 diabetes. METHODS We investigated data from the PREPARE trial; individuals with impaired glucose tolerance were randomized to the following: control (advice leaflet); intervention 1, a 3-h group-based structured education program aimed at promoting physical activity; or intervention 2, a 3-h structured education program with personalized pedometer use. Intervention 2, but not intervention 1, resulted in increased physical activity at 3, 6, and 12 months. An adverse response was defined as a change of ≥0.8 mmol·L for fasting glucose, ≥1.3 mmol·L for 2-h glucose, ≥0.42 mmol·L for triglycerides, and -0.12 mmol·L or less for HDL-cholesterol. Each group included 29 participants. Data were collected between 2006 and 2008 and analyzed in 2013. RESULTS In total, 12 (41%) participants in intervention 2 had an adverse response; rates in intervention 1 and the control group were 23 (79%) and 22 (76%), respectively. The odds of an adverse response were reduced in intervention 2 compared with control (OR, 0.22; 95% CI, 0.07-0.69). For the combined cohort, those who had increased physical activity at each time point had reduced odds of an adverse response compared with those who did not (OR, 0.30; 95% CI, 0.10-0.93). CONCLUSION Although some individuals experienced an adverse metabolic response after a successful physical activity intervention, rates were higher under control conditions. This study does not support the hypothesis that increased physical activity per se increases the risk of an adverse metabolic response.
Reentrant phase transition in charged colloidal suspensions.

We report the observation of a novel phase transition in dilute aqueous suspensions of polystyrene particles as a function of ionic impurity concentration C. The suspension phase separates into dense and rare phases only for a restricted range of C which depends on particle concentration. The dense phase has liquidlike or crystalline order depending on n and C. Free energies of the homogeneous and the phase-separated states are calculated with an effective interparticle potential. The calculated phase diagram is in qualitative agreement with the present experimental results.
'Different from Any Other': the Experience of a Lebanese Migrant in Wellington in the Mid-Twentieth Century

Aiming to cast insight on the Lebanese community in Wellington in the mid-twentieth century, a series of in-depth narrative history interviews explore aspects of the reflections of Lebanese migrant, Elias Arraj, who arrived in Wellington in 1953. A secondary data source comprising archived oral histories undertaken with members of the Dunedin Lebanese community in 1988 provides a background context, and additional insights on ‘being Lebanese’ in New Zealand. The research design comprises a constructionist epistemology, a critical theoretical orientation and a narrative inquiry methodology. The interpretation of both primary and secondary data sources employs a thematic analysis. The roles of the researcher and the participants in the construction of the data and the impact of underlying social and cultural factors on the narrators’ experiences are also explored. Considering the cultural inheritance and religious affiliations which were important to Elias the thesis focuses on: his experience of immigration and re-settlement; the way he interpreted and responded to the difficulties he faced as a new migrant; and available avenues of support. The narratives reveal how Elias drew on his distinct and enduring sense of cultural heritage to overcome the challenge of being an immigrant in New Zealand.