Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
HISTOCHEMISTRY OF DORSAL LACRIMAL GLAND IN CAMEL (Camelus dromedarius

Lacrimal glands of mammals synthesise and secrete an aqueous solution in which different chemical substances are present i.e. protein and mucosubstances. The objective of current study was to determine of mucopolysachharides of camel lacrimal glands. Ten pairs of dorsal lacrimal glands, from ten adult camels were examined for normal histological and histochemical findings at the Mashhad abattoir, northeast of Iran. In camel, dorsal lacrimal gland was elongated with irregular outline and located in dorsolateral part of the eyeball. Histological studies showed that, dorsal lacrimal gland consisted of tubuloalveolar serous units separated by dense sheets of connective tissue into numerous small and large lobules. Alcian blue and Periodic acid shiff staining were used for histochemical studies. Mucosubstance histochemistry revealed secretory units contain acidic and neutral glycoproteins with different staining pattern.
Comparison of closure strategies after balloon aortic valvuloplasty: Suture mediated versus collagen based versus manual

Objectives: To compare complication rates of a collagen‐mediated closure device, suture‐mediated closure technique and manual compression for access site management following balloon aortic valvuloplasty (BAV). Background: Vascular complications, including perforation, limb ischemia, ateriovenous fistulas, and pseudoaneurysm, are a common source of morbidity in patients undergoing BAV with large bore femoral artery access. The available options for closure of the access site include manual compression, suture‐mediated closure devices, and recently reported collagen‐based closure devices. Methods: The study cohort consisted of 333 patients with severe aortic stenosis undergoing BAV. Patients were divided into four groups according to access closure method: (1) Manual compression in 64 (19.2%); (2) Proglide 6 Fr in 162 (48.6%); (3) Angio‐Seal 8 Fr in 89 (26.75%); and (4) Prostar 10 Fr in18 (5.4%). Results: There were no significant differences in baseline characteristics among the groups; although the Prostar group was had more males and the Angio‐Seal group reported a lower incidence of renal failure and peripheral vascular disease. The Angio‐Seal group had shorter procedural duration times compared with the other groups. In the Angio‐Seal group (n = 47, 52.8%), a 10 Fr sheath size was primarily used to access the femoral artery, as compared with the manual compression and Proglide groups, which used a 12 Fr sheath in 29 (45.3%) and 66 patients (40.7%), respectively. A 13 Fr sheath was used in the Prostar group (n = 11, 61.1%), P < 0.001. The device failure rate was significantly higher in the Proglide group (n = 20, 12.3%) as compared with Angio‐Seal (n = 3, 3.3%) and Prostar groups (n = 1, 5.5%), P = 0.03. Serious vascular complications requiring intervention were significantly higher in the manual compression group (n = 11, 17.1%) compared with the Proglide (n = 11, 6.7%), Angio‐Seal (n = 5, 5.6%), and Prostar groups (n = 5, 1%), P < 0.001. The requirement for blood transfusion in the Angio‐Seal group was significantly lower (n = 7, 7.8%) as compared with the manual compression (n = 20, 31.2%), Proglide (n = 35, 21.6%), and Prostar groups (n = 5, 27.7%), P < 0.001. Conclusion: In our case series, collagen‐based closure devices and suture‐mediated closure devices had fewer vascular complications than manual compression for hemostasis following BAV. Patient selection for collagen‐based versus suture‐mediated closure requires further study. © 2011 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Rh2 or its aglycone aPPD in combination with docetaxel for treatment of prostate cancer

Docetaxel is one of the few chemotherapeutic drugs that are considered highly effective when used to treat prostate cancer patients that have relapsed and/or metastatic disease, it is therefore reasonable to expect further improvements in treatment outcomes when it is combined with other therapeutic agents active in prostate cancer. This study assesses the combination of well tolerated and orally bioavailable formulations of ginsenoside Rh2 or its aglycone aPPD with docetaxel.
Cytokine mRNA Expression in Mycobacteriam ulcerans-Infected Human Skin and Correlation with Local Inflammatory Response

ABSTRACT Cytokine mRNA expression in biopsies of Mycobacterium ulcerans-infected human tissue was investigated using real-time PCR, and the findings were correlated with the clinical stages of disease and histopathologies. A broad range of cytokine mRNAs were detected in 16 early nodules and 28 late-stage ulcers, including those for the Th1 cytokines tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) and gamma interferon (IFN-γ) and the Th2 cytokine interleukin 10 (IL-10). IFN-γ was strongly expressed in both nodules and ulcers, suggesting that a Th1 response begins early in the disease. There was a significantly higher expression of IL-8 and other proinflammatory cytokines in results from 32 biopsies with neutrophilia than in those from 12 biopsies without acute inflammation. Ten tissue samples containing granulomas showed high mRNA expression for IFN-γ, IL-1β, IL-12p35, IL-12p40, IL-15, and TNF-α relative to 34 tissue samples without granulomas. These results suggest that the human immune response to M. ulcerans is similar to that seen with some other mycobacteria despite the presence of the toxin mycolactone in the tissues.
Entrepreneurship and gender equality in academia : a complex combination in practice

This article takes as its starting point two current trends in academia - the promotion of academic entrepreneurship and innovation and the promotion of gender equality - and discusses how differ- ent gender equality perspectives are interwoven, or not, into academia's transformation processes towards entrepreneurial universities. On the basis of an analysis of 26 interviews conducted with personnel at two Swedish universities, the article investigates how concepts of academic entrepre- neurship and innovation on the one hand and gender equality on the other hand are constructed and filled with meaning as well as how they are entangled and what effects are produced by this way of thinking and acting. Our analysis reveals tensions between the two policy goals, together with tensions within each goal. An overall conclusion is that articulations and ways of speaking about the policy goal of academic entrepreneurship and innovation were to some extent inter- woven with the policy goal of gender equality, especially in the broader perspectives on academic entrepreneurship. However, the articulations of strategies and practice of the two policy goals essentially ran parallel, and were not entangled with one another. This is because strategies or substantial initiatives for merging gender equality into the agenda of academic entrepreneurship and innovation were lacking.
Reflux elimination without any ablation or disconnection of the saphenous vein. A haemodynamic model for venous surgery.

OBJECTIVES to investigate the possibility of the haemodynamic suppression of reflux in the greater saphenous vein (GSV) without any high ligation and/or stripping procedure. DESIGN prospective study; single group of patients. MATERIALS forty patients affected by primary chronic venous insufficiency of all clinical classes, with demonstrated duplex incompetence both of the sapheno-femoral junction (SFJ) and the GSV trunk, with the re-entry perforator located on a GSV tributary. The re-entry point was defined as the perforator, whose finger compression of the superficial vein above its opening eliminates reflux in the GSV. METHODS air-plethysmographic parameters as well as duplex scanning were performed both preoperatively, and 1 and 6 months later, respectively. Operation consisted in flush ligation and division from the GSV of the tributary containing the re-entry perforating vein. RESULTS duplex investigation demonstrated both a forward flow and reflux disappearance in the GSV in 100% and 85% of the cases after 1 and 6 months, respectively. All air-plethysmographic parameters, with the exception of Ejection Fraction, improved significantly: Venous Volume changed from 150+/-9 ml to 114+/-7 ml (p <0.0001), Venous Filling Index from 4.9+/-0.5 ml/s to 2.3+/-0.2 ml/s ( p <0.0001), and Residual Volume Fraction from 42+/-3 ml to 30+/-2 ml ( p <0.0001). CONCLUSIONS this study demonstrates that reflux in the GSV system is supported by a gradient of pressure between the anatomical point of reflux and the point of re-entry in the deep veins. Disconnection of the flow to the re-entry perforator without high ligation of the sapheno-femoral junction suppresses GSV reflux.
Hospital-acquired pressure ulcers and risk of hospital mortality in intensive care patients on mechanical ventilation.

RATIONALE, AIMS AND OBJECTIVES Pressure ulcers (PUs) are a common and serious complication in critically ill patients. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between the development of a PU and hospital mortality in patients requiring mechanical ventilation (MV) in an intensive care unit (ICU). METHODS A prospective cohort study was performed over two years in patients requiring MV for ≥ 24 hours in a medical-surgical ICU. Primary outcome measure was hospital mortality and main independent variable was the development of a PU grade ≥ II. Hazard ratios (HRs) were calculated using a Cox model with time-dependent covariates. RESULTS Out of 563 patients in the study, 110 (19.5%) developed a PU. Overall hospital mortality was 48.7%. In the adjusted multivariate model, PU onset was a significant independent predictor of mortality (adjusted HR, 1.28; 95% confidence interval, 1.003-1.65; P = 0.047). The model also included the Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II score, total Sequential Organ Failure Assessment on day 3, hepatic cirrhosis and medical admission. CONCLUSION Within the limitations of a single-centre approach, PU development appears to be associated with an increase in mortality among patients requiring MV for 24 hours or longer.
Correlation of in vitro autofluorescence endoscopy images with histopathologic findings in stomach cancer.

BACKGROUND AND STUDY AIMS There is increasing interest in the use of autofluorescence endoscopic imaging systems for the detection of malignancies in the gastrointestinal tract. The purpose of this study was to investigate the autofluorescent color of cancer lesions, and the detection rate of cancer areas using an autofluorescence endoscopic imaging system. Concurrent histopathologic examination was used for comparison. PATIENTS AND METHODS This study involved a total of 50 stomach cancer patients (with a total of 61 lesions) undergoing surgery. Immediately after the resection, each lesion was observed using an autofluorescence endoscopic imaging system (LIFE-GI system, Light-Induced Fluorescence Endoscopy in the Gastrointestinal Tract). A total of 429 evaluation points in the specimens were selected according to tumor size. The images obtained in this way were assessed by comparison with histopathologic findings in terms of depth of invasion, thickness of the mucosa that had been invaded by cancer cells, and the histologic type of each cancer. RESULTS Detection with the LIFE-GI system was possible in 58 of the 61 stomach cancer lesions (95.1%). When examined in detail with reference to sampling points, the detection rates of cancer areas according to depth of cancer cell invasion were 57.5 % for invasion to the mucosa, 74.3 % for invasion to the submucosa, and 88.1% for invasion to the muscularis propria or deeper. The detection rates increased as the depth of invasion increased, and they increased significantly as the mucosa invaded became thicker. Detection rates according to histologic type were 82% for differentiated cancer, and 61% for undifferentiated cancer. Most of the cancer areas appeared dark red. Light blue, brilliant red, and white areas were also observed. CONCLUSIONS Mucosal thickening as a result of cancer cell invasion had a large impact on the detection rate of the LIFE-GI system. As a result, this method may not be useful for the detection of undifferentiated cancer, which may invade in a more dispersed manner, without altering the mucosal thickness.
The capsule polysaccharide synthesis locus of streptococcus pneumoniae serotype 14: Identification of the glycosyl transferase gene cps14E

To identify a chromosomal region of Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype 14 involved in capsule polysaccharide synthesis, two strategies were used: (i) Tn916 mutagenesis, followed by the characterization of four unencapsulated mutants, and (ii) cross-hybridization with a capsule polysaccharide synthesis gene (cps) probe from S. agalactiae, which has a structurally similar capsule. The two approaches detected the same chromosomal region consisting of two adjacent EcoRI fragments. One of these EcoRI fragments was cloned and hybridized with a cosmid library. This resulted in clone cMKO2. A similar cosmid clone was obtained from an unencapsulated Tn916 mutant, Spnl4.H. Sequence analysis of the two cosmid clones revealed that in the Tn916 mutant, a gene, cps14E, which is homologous to other bacterial genes encoding glycosyl transferases, had been inactivated. An open reading frame immediately downstream of cps14E, designated cps14F, shows no significant homology with any known genes or proteins. A functional assay showed that cps14E encodes a glycosyl transferase and that a gene-specific knockout mutant lacks this enzyme activity, whereas inactivation of cps14F does not have this effect.
Actions of Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor/Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase and Protein Kinase C Signaling in Granulosa Cells from Gallus gallus Are Dependent upon Stage of Differentiation1

Abstract Studies in both mammalian and nonmammalian ovarian model systems have demonstrated that activation of the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and protein kinase C (PKC) signaling pathways modulates steroid biosynthesis during follicle development, yet the collective evidence for facilitory versus inhibitory roles of these pathways is inconsistent. The present studies in the hen ovary describe the changing role of MAPK and PKC signaling in the regulation of steroidogenic acute regulatory protein (STAR) expression and progesterone production in undifferentiated granulosa cells collected from prehierarchal follicles prior to follicle selection versus differentiated granulosa from preovulatory follicles subsequent to selection. Treatment of undifferentiated granulosa cells with a selective epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and ERBB4 receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor (AG1478) both augments FSH receptor (Fshr) mRNA expression and initiates progesterone production. Conversely, selective inhibitors of both EGFR/ERBB4 and MAPK activity attenuate steroidogenesis in differentiated granulosa cells subsequent to follicle selection. In addition, inhibition of PKC signaling with GF109203X augments FSH-induced Fshr mRNA plus STAR protein expression and initiates progesterone synthesis in undifferentiated granulosa cells, but inhibits both gonadotropin-induced STAR expression and progesterone production in differentiated granulosa. Granulosa cells from the most recently selected (9- to 12-mm) follicle represent a stage of transition as inhibition of MAPK signaling promotes, while inhibition of PKC signaling blocks gonadotropin-induced progesterone production. Collectively, these data describe stage-of-development-related changes in cell signaling whereby the differentiation-inhibiting actions of MAPK and PKC signaling in prehierarchal follicle granulosa cells undergo a transition at the time of follicle selection to become obligatory for gonadotropin-stimulated progesterone production in differentiated granulosa from preovulatory follicles.
Global antimicrobial resistance alerts and implications.

Reprints or correspondence: Dr. Stuart B. Levy, Depts. of Medicine and Molecular Biology and Microbiology, Tufts University School of Medicine, 136 Harrison Ave., Boston, MA 02111 (stuart.levy@tufts.edu). Clinical Infectious Diseases 2005; 41:S219–2
Vitamin E supplementation reduces plasma vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 and von Willebrand factor levels and increases nitric oxide concentrations in hypercholesterolemic patients.

Up-regulation of vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) and reduced nitric oxide (NO) availability represent early characteristics of atherosclerosis. To evaluate whether the antioxidant vitamin E affected the circulating levels of soluble VCAM-1 (sVCAM-1) and the plasma metabolite of NO (nitrite+nitrate) in hypercholesterolemic patients, either vitamin E (either 400 IU or 800 IU/d for 8 wk) or placebo were randomly, double-blindly given to 36 hypercholesterolemic patients and 22 age- and sex-matched controls. At baseline hypercholesterolemic patients showed higher plasma sVCAM-1 (microg.liter(-1)) (591.2 +/- 132.5 vs. 505.0 +/- 65.6, P < 0.007) and lower NO metabolite (microM) levels (15.9 +/- 3.4 vs. 29.2 +/- 5.1, P < 0.0001) than controls. In hypercholesterolemic patients, 8 wk vitamin E (but not placebo) treatment significantly decreased circulating sVCAM-1 levels (400 IU: -148.9 +/- 84.6, P < 0.009; 800 IU: -204.0 +/- 75.7, P < 0.0001; placebo: -4.7 +/- 22.6, NS), whereas it increased NO metabolite concentrations (400 IU: +4.0 +/- 1.7, P < 0.02; 800 IU: +5.5 +/- 0.8, P < 0.0001; placebo: +0.1 +/- 1.1, NS) without affecting circulating low- density lipoprotein levels. Changes in both plasma sVCAM-1 and NO metabolite levels showed a trend to significantly correlate (r = -0.515, P = 0.010; and r = 0.435, P = 0.034, respectively) with changes in vitamin E concentrations induced by vitamin E supplementation. In conclusion, isolated hypercholesterolemia both increased circulating sVCAM-1 and reduced NO metabolite concentrations. Vitamin E supplementation counteracts these alterations, thus representing a potential tool for endothelial protection in hypercholesterolemic patients.
The Effects of Perioperatively Administered Colloids and Crystalloids on Primary Platelet-Mediated Hemostasis and Clot Formation

To explore whether routinely administered colloids and crystalloids influence the hemostatic system, we studied 60 patients undergoing knee replacement surgery during randomized intravascular fluid administration using 6% hydroxyethyl starch 200/0.5 (HES) or 4% modified gelatin (GEL) in addition to a basal infusion of lactated Ringer’s solution (RL), or exclusively RL. In addition to routine coagulation tests, measurements of coagulation factors were performed. Also, functional measurements of the in vitro bleeding time by use of the platelet function analyzer (PFA-100®) and ROTEG® analysis (ROTEG®; extrinsically and intrinsically [Ex; In] activated measurements of clotting time, CT [s]; clot formation time, CFT [s]; clot strength, A20 [mm]; fibrinogen component of the clot, FibA20 [mm]; and maximal clot elasticity) were used. Time dependency of variables was analyzed with a repeated-measures analysis of variance (all groups pooled); differences between groups were detected by comparing the calculated area under the curve (AUCA–D). For all variables, except ExCT, ExCFT, and InCFT, a significant time dependency was demonstrated, indicating that impaired platelet-mediated hemostasis and clot formation occurred with IV administration of fluids. Total clot strength, fibrinogen part, and clot elasticity decreased significantly more in the colloid groups than in the RL group (InA20: HES, −13.0 mm; GEL, −11.5 mm; RL, −1.3 mm;P = 0.042; FibA20: HES, −10.5 mm; GEL, −6.0 mm; RL, −1.3 mm:P < 0.0001; MCE: HES, −48; GEL, −35; RL, −15.8;P < 0.0001). The decrease in fibronectin concentrations was significantly smaller with GEL as compared with HES, whereas a weak trend toward a larger decrease in fibrinogen concentrations was observed with both colloids. Results show that colloid administration reduces final clot strength more than does RL alone, which also exhibited effects, albeit minor, on the coagulation system. The reduction in total clot strength was due to impaired fibrinogen polymerization, resulting in a decreased fibrinogen part of the clot and reduced clot elasticity.
Matrix Metalloproteinases Are Not Essential for Aggrecan Turnover during Normal Skeletal Growth and Development

ABSTRACT The growth plate is a transitional region of cartilage and highly diversified chondrocytes that controls long bone formation. The composition of growth plate cartilage changes markedly from the epiphysis to the metaphysis, notably with the loss of type II collagen, concomitant with an increase in MMP-13; type X collagen; and the C-propeptide of type II collagen. In contrast, the fate of aggrecan in the growth plate is not clear: there is biosynthesis and loss of aggrecan from hypertrophic cartilage, but the mechanism of loss is unknown. All matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) cleave aggrecan between amino acids N341 and F342 in the proteinase-sensitive interglobular domain (IGD), and MMPs in the growth plate are thought to have a role in aggrecanolysis. We have generated mice with aggrecan resistant to proteolysis by MMPs in the IGD and found that the mice develop normally with no skeletal deformities. The mutant mice do not accumulate aggrecan, and there is no significant compensatory proteolysis occurring at alternate sites in the IGD. Our studies reveal that MMP cleavage in this key region is not a predominant mechanism for removing aggrecan from growth plate cartilage.
Prevalence and possible factors associated with anaemia, and vitamin B12 and folate deficiencies in women of reproductive age in Pakistan: analysis of national-level secondary survey data

Objective To determine the prevalence and possible factors associated with anaemia, and vitamin B12 and folate deficiencies in women of reproductive age (WRA) in Pakistan. Methods A secondary analysis was conducted on data collected through the large-scale National Nutrition Survey in Pakistan in 2011. Anaemia was defined as haemoglobin levels <12 g/dL, vitamin B12 deficiency as serum vitamin B12 levels of <203 pg/mL (150 pmol/L) and folate deficiency as serum folate levels <4 ng/mL (10 nmol/L). Results A total of 11 751 blood samples were collected and analysed. The prevalence of anaemia, vitamin B12 deficiency and folate deficiency was 50.4%, 52.4% and 50.8%, respectively. After adjustment, the following factors were positively associated with anaemia: living in Sindh province (RR 1.07; 95% CI 1.04 to 1.09) P<0.00, food insecure with moderate hunger (RR 1.03; 95% CI 1.00 to 1.06) P=0.02, four or more pregnancies (RR 1.03; 95% CI 1.01 to 1.05) P<0.00, being underweight (RR 1.03; 95% CI 1.00 to 1.05) P=0.02, being overweight or obese (RR 0.95; 95% CI 0.93 to 0.97) P<0.00 and weekly intake of leafy green vegetables (RR 0.98; 95% CI 0.95 to 1.00) P=0.04. For vitamin B12 deficiency, a positive association was observed with rural population (RR 0.81; 95% CI 0.66 to 1.00) P=0.04, living in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province (RR 1.25; 95% CI 1.11 to 1.43) P<0.00 and living in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (RR 1.50; 95% CI 1.08 to 2.08) P=0.01. Folate deficiency was negatively associated with daily and weekly intake of eggs (RR 0.89; 95% CI 0.81 to 0.98) P=0.02 and (RR 0.88; 95% CI 0.78 to 0.99) P=0.03. Conclusions In Pakistan, anaemia, and vitamin B12 and folate deficiencies are a severe public health concern among WRA. Our findings suggest that further research is needed on culturally appropriate short-term and long-term interventions within communities and health facilities to decrease anaemia, and vitamin B12 and folate deficiencies among Pakistani women.