Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Adjuvant probiotics improve the eradication effect of triple therapy for Helicobacter pylori infection.

AIM To investigate whether the addition of probiotics can improve the eradication effect of triple therapy for Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection. METHODS This open randomized trial recruited 234 H. pylori positive gastritis patients from seven local centers. The patients were randomized to one-week standard triple therapy (omeprazole 20 mg bid, clarithromycin 500 mg bid, and amoxicillin 1000 mg bid; OCA group, n = 79); two weeks of pre-treatment with probiotics, containing 3 × 10(7)Lactobacillus acidophilus per day, prior to one week of triple therapy (POCA group, n = 78); or one week of triple therapy followed by two weeks of the same probiotics (OCAP group, n = 77). Successful eradication was defined as a negative C13 or C14 urease breath test four weeks after triple therapy. Patients were asked to report associated symptoms at baseline and during follow-up, and side effects related to therapy were recorded. Data were analyzed by both intention-to-treat (ITT) and per-protocol (PP) methods. RESULTS PP analysis involved 228 patients, 78 in the OCA, 76 in the POCA and 74 in the OCAP group. Successful eradication was observed in 171 patients; by PP analysis, the eradication rates were significantly higher (P = 0.007 each) in the POCA (62/76; 81.6%, 95% CI 72.8%-90.4%) and OCAP (61/74; 82.4%, 95% CI 73.6%-91.2%) groups than in the OCA group (48/78; 61.5%, 95% CI 50.6%-72.4%). ITT analysis also showed that eradication rates were significantly higher in the POCA (62/78; 79.5%, 95% CI 70.4%-88.6%) and OCAP (61/77; 79.2%, 95% CI 70%-88.4%) groups than in the OCA group (48/79; 60.8%, 95% CI 49.9%-71.7%), (P = 0.014 and P = 0.015). The symptom relieving rates in the POCA, OCAP and OCA groups were 85.5%, 89.2% and 87.2%, respectively. Only one of the 228 patients experienced an adverse reaction. CONCLUSION Administration of probiotics before or after standard triple therapy may improve H. pylori eradication rates.
Next-Generation Sequencing Revealed TP53 Mutations to Be Malignant Marker for Intraductal Papillary Mucinous Neoplasms That Could Be Detected Using Pancreatic Juice

Objectives The aims of this study were to identify the genetic mutations associated with malignant intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms (IPMNs) and evaluate the possibility of detecting mutations in pure pancreatic juice by next-generation sequencing. Methods Resected tissues were collected from 50 patients with IPMN, and pure pancreatic juice samples were collected from 19 patients who had a resection. The extracted DNA was amplified by multiplex polymerase chain reaction targeting 52 cancer-related genes, including KRAS, GNAS, RNF43, and TP53; the mutations were then detected by next-generation sequencing and then analyzed for correlations with the clinicopathological characteristics. Results In the resected tissues, the most frequently detected mutations were in KRAS, GNAS, TP53, and RNF43, in 88%, 76%, 36%, and 30% of cases, respectively. Univariate and multivariate analyses revealed that only TP53 mutations were associated with malignant IPMNs (P = 0.023). In the pure pancreatic juice, TP53 mutations were detected in 5 of 10 resected samples with malignant IPMN and in 4 of 5 pancreatic juice samples with mutation in resected samples. Conclusions From 52 cancer-related gene analysis, only TP53 mutation was associated with malignant IPMNs. TP53 mutation could also be detected in pure pancreatic juice, potentially making it a useful tool to diagnose malignant IPMNs preoperatively.
The euro and portfolio choiees-a Nordic perspective

Summary This paper investigates questions concerning benefits from international, equity-market di~-ersification for the Nordic countries: 1. How beneficial is international diversification-now and after the EMU? 2. Are the benefits lower during periods of high market volatility? 3. How important is currency risk for the Nordic countries with their distinctly different currency regimes? 4. Should Nordic investors follow different optimal portfolio strategies because of their home country's special status regarding the EU and EMU? We investigate time-varying stock-market volatility and comovement between Nordic markets and European and international benchmarks and find a significantly positive Iong-run time trend, but no distinct time trend in the 1990s. But we find a significant relationship between volatility and stock return co-movement. Contrary to some researchers, domestic volatility does not seem to determine international co-movement, whereas international volatili~ is highly significant, indicating lower diversification benefits during high, international volatility periods. The Nordic countries do not seem to differ from each other on the importance of currency risk for international investments. Currency risk starts to play a more important role regarding investments outside Europe. Results for ex ante strateges support international diversification by demonstrating the robust superiority of the global minimum variance (MW) strategy in its unhedged and hedged form for each Nordic country. Relative weights of different investment regions in RIITIT are similar for all Nordic countries suggesting that EU- and EMU-related currency effects play a secondary role in effective international diversification. Rl
Creative Industries: Contracts between Art and Commerce

new social structure of accumulation is possible, if it can quiet the emerging global crises. O'Hara concludes with a period of conflict in the first two decades of the twenty-first century that may turn in either direction. One must admire these chapters. They offer an analysis that can't be ignored, based on a deeper appreciation of the factors at work than anyone else has ventured. Capitalism can survive along with the conflict that it also generates. It is the best of the analyses of the radical institutionalists. Nevertheless, it does not mean that the system is threatened. Marx was right, Veblen was right, Schumpeter was right. Long waves of expansion are followed by eras of downturn, in which the prosperity of good times is followed by bad times. There is always something lacking so that a stable system of a capital accumulation does not survive. O'Hara thinks that the present conflict may lead to the revival of discredited socialism or defeated fascism, or some variation of them. But that does not mean that capitalism and conflict will not continue indefinitely.
Demand for Wine and Alcoholic Beverages in the European Union: A Monolithic Market?*

Abstract The European Union (EU) is a major producer, importer, and consumer of wine, as well as other alcoholic beverages. Although it is possible to characterize demand for the EU as a whole, there is variation across the 27 countries that make up the EU. This research uses a simple standard model of demand and some descriptive statistics to characterize demand for alcoholic beverages and to identify four separate subgroups within the EU with different characteristics of wine and beer demand. Changing tastes over time turn out to be important in determining demand. (JEL Classifications: D12, F1, F15)
Gendered Technology Adoption and Household Food Security in Semi-Arid Eastern Kenya

Hunger and malnutrition are scientific and moral problems that lie at the root of most other global development challenges, since malnutrition effectively blocks development and achievement across generations (Kavishe 1995). In Kenya, agriculture is the cornerstone of the economy. It employs millions, feeds more, and has a multiplier effect in that farming supplies raw materials to, and supports, many other industries. Small-scale farming (on plots averaging 0.2–0.3 hectares) dominates food production in Kenya, pointing to the importance of directing research and development efforts towards smallholder and subsistence farming systems (Hickey et al. 2012). Because most agricultural production takes place at the household level, gender relations are central to understanding both how the farming system works and the extent to which initiatives to build resilience in the farming system (e.g., in relation to project research activities) support equity and improve food and nutrition security. Men and women in various types of households may make separate and autonomous decisions, as well as joint decisions, on important matters such as adoption of new agricultural technologies and practices. These decisions have implications for who provides the labour and who reaps what rewards of that adoption. For example, it has been shown that when women control income, they generally allocate a higher percentage to food, health, clothing, and education for their children than men do (FAO n.d.). As a result, a better understanding of the gendered division of household labour is an essential component of enabling household food provisioning and the marketing of agricultural products through agricultural innovation systems capable of supporting resilience.
Staggered molecular packing in crystals of a collagen-like peptide with a single charged pair.

The crystal structure of the triple-helical peptide, (Pro-Hyp-Gly)(4)-Glu-Lys-Gly-(Pro-Hyp-Gly)(5) has been determined to 1.75 A resolution. This peptide was designed to examine the effect of a pair of adjacent, oppositely charged residues on collagen triple-helical conformation and intermolecular interactions. The molecular conformation (a 7(5) triple helix) and hydrogen bonding schemes are similar to those previously reported for collagen triple helices and provides a second instance of water mediated N--H . O==C interchain hydrogen bonds for the amide group of the residue following Gly. Although stereochemically capable of forming intramolecular or intermolecular ion pairs, the lysine and glutamic acid side-chains instead display direct interactions with carbonyl groups and hydroxyproline hydroxyl groups or interactions mediated by water molecules. Solution studies on the EKG peptide indicate stabilization at neutral pH values, where both Glu and Lys are ionized, but suggest that this occurs because of the effects of ionization on the individual residues, rather than ion pair formation. The EKG structure suggests a molecular mechanism for such stabilization through indirect hydrogen bonding. The molecular packing in the crystal includes an axial stagger between molecules, reminiscent of that observed in D-periodic collagen fibrils. The presence of a Glu-Lys-Gly triplet in the middle of the sequence appears to mediate this staggered molecular packing through its indirect water-mediated interactions with backbone C==O groups and side chains.
Yttrium-90 ibritumomab tiuxetan doses calculated to deliver up to 15 Gy to critical organs may be safely combined with high-dose BEAM and autologous transplantation in relapsed or refractory B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

PURPOSE To determine the maximum-tolerated radiation-absorbed dose (RAD) to critical organs delivered by yttrium-90 ((90)Y) ibritumomab tiuxetan in combination with high-dose carmustine, etoposide, cytarabine, and melphalan (BEAM) chemotherapy with autologous transplantation. PATIENTS AND METHODS Eligible patients had relapsed or refractory CD20+ non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). Individualized (90)Y activities were based on dosimetry and were calculated to deliver cohort-defined RAD (1 to 17 Gy) to critical organs with three to six patients per cohort. The therapeutic dose of (90)Y ibritumomab tiuxetan was followed by high-dose BEAM and autologous transplantation. RESULTS Forty-four patients were treated. Thirty percent of patients had achieved less than a partial remission to their most recent therapy and would not have been eligible for autologous transplantation at most centers. The toxicity profile was similar to that associated with high-dose BEAM chemotherapy. Two dose-limiting toxicities occurred at the 17 Gy dose level, which made 15 Gy the recommended maximum-tolerated RAD. Although eight patients received at least twice the conventional dose of 0.4 mCi/kg, a weight-based strategy at 0.8 mCi/kg would have resulted in a wide range of RAD; nearly 25% of patient cases would have received 17 Gy or more, and many would have received less than 10 Gy. With a median follow-up of 33 months for all patients, the estimated 3-year progression-free and overall survivals were 43% and 60%, respectively. CONCLUSION Dose-escalated (90)Y ibritumomab tiuxetan may be safely combined with high-dose BEAM with autologous transplantation and has the potential to be more effective than standard-dose radioimmunotherapy. Careful dosimetry is required to avoid toxicity and undertreatment.
All the bang without the bucks: Defining essential point-of-care testing for traumatic coagulopathy

BACKGROUND Rapid assessment and treatment of coagulopathy reduces postinjury morbidity and mortality. Although thrombelastography (TEG) may be more accurate and efficient than conventional coagulation tests, it requires significant financial and personnel investments. We hypothesized that point-of-care international normalized ratio (POC INR) may provide a rapid and accurate alternative to TEG. METHODS A retrospective review of sequential trauma patients who underwent both POC INR and rapid TEG (r-TEG) testing upon presentation to a Level I trauma center from July 2012 to December 2013 was performed. POC INR was compared with r-TEG values (R value, K time, &agr; angle, maximum amplitude, percent clot lysis in 30 minutes) and transfusion requirements. Vital signs, admission laboratory values, and injury severity were analyzed. POC INR and venous blood gas testing was performed in the emergency department. All results and Pearson correlations noted were significant if p < 0.05. RESULTS We identified 628 trauma patients with concomitant r-TEG and POC INR testing. Median Injury Severity Score (ISS) was 13, 20% arrived in shock (base value < −5), 21% were transfused, and 11% died. POC INR correlated with all r-TEG values, with stronger correlations for patients in shock. POC INR and r-TEG had similar correlations with blood products transfused at 4 hours and 24 hours, but only POC INR predicted substantial bleeding and massive transfusion. POC INR also correlated strongly with standard INR testing. POC INR test duration was less than 1 minute, compared with at least 30 minutes for r-TEG. Total cohort charges for POC INR were estimated at $21,980 versus $396,896 for r-TEG. CONCLUSION POC INR testing is faster and cheaper than r-TEG. In addition, POC INR correlates not only with r-TEG values but also with acute blood product transfusions. POC INR provides a practical alternative for rapid coagulopathy assessment in the trauma patient at institutions that lack TEG capability. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE Diagnostic study, level III. Therapeutic/care management study, level IV.
Thyrotoxicosis presenting as hypokalaemic paralysis and hyperlactataemia in an oriental man

A 35-year-old Malaysian man presented with rapid onset of flaccid quadriparesis associated with nausea and vomiting. General blood tests revealed severe hypokalaemia (serum potassium 1.5 mmol/L) and hypophosphataemia (serum phosphate 0.29 mmol/L) as a potential cause of the flaccid paralysis. Arterial blood gases showed mixed acid base disturbance of respiratory alkalosis and metabolic acidosis with hyperlactataemia. Thyrotoxic periodic paralysis (TPP) was suspected as the underlying cause of this presentation and thyroid function tests showed severe hyperthyroid results (free T4 > 77.2 pmol/L, free T3 19.3 pmol/L, thyroid-stimulating hormone [TSH] < 0.05 mIU/L). Treatment with intravenous potassium and phosphate infusion and oral propranolol resulted in rapid resolution of his symptoms. A discussion of the clinical and pathophysiological features and treatment of TPP (a very rare encounter in UK clinical practice) is presented, and to our knowledge associated hyperlactataemia has not been previously described.
Maternal mortality and derivations from the WHO near-miss tool: An institutional experience over a decade in Southern India.

OBJECTIVE Preceding the use of World Health Organization (WHO) near-miss approach in our institute for the surveillance of Severe Maternal Outcome (SMO), we pilot-tested the tool on maternal death cases that took place over the last 10 years in order to establish its feasibility and usefulness at the institutional level. MATERIAL AND METHODS This was a retrospective review of maternal deaths in Christian Medical College Vellore, India, over a decade. Cases were recorded and analyzed using the WHO near-miss tool. The International Classification of Diseases, 10(th) Revision was used to define and classify maternal mortality. RESULTS There were 98,139 total births and 212 recorded maternal deaths. Direct causes of mortality constituted 46.96% of total maternal deaths, indirect causes constituted 51.40%, and unknown cases constituted 1.9%. Nonobstetrical cause (48.11%) is the single largest group. Infections (19.8%) other than puerperal sepsis remain an important group, with pulmonary tuberculosis, scrub typhus, and malaria being the leading ones. According to the WHO near-miss criteria, cardiovascular and respiratory dysfunctions are the most frequent organ dysfunctions. Incidence of coagulation dysfunction is seen highest in obstetrical hemorrhage (64%). All women who died had at least one organ dysfunction; 90.54% mothers had two- and 38.52% had four- or more organ involvement. CONCLUSION The screening questions of the WHO near-miss tool are particularly instrumental in obtaining a comprehensive assessment of the problem beyond the International Classification of Diseases-Maternal Mortality and establish the need for laboratory-based identification of organ dysfunctions and prompt availability of critical care facilities. The process indicators, on the other hand, inquire about the basic interventions that are more or less widely practiced and therefore give no added information at the institutional level.
Phase I dose escalation trial of docetaxel plus curcumin in patients with advanced and metastatic breast cancer

Background. Since the improvement of chemotherapy with safe molecules is needed for better efficacy without supplementary toxicity, we investigated the feasibility and tolerability of the combination of docetaxel and curcumin, a polyphenolic derivative extracted from Curcuma longa Patients and methods. Patients with advanced or metastatic breast cancer were eligible. Docetaxel (100 mg/m2) was administered as a 1-hour i.v. infusion every 3 weeks on d1 for 6 cycles. Curcumin was orally given from 500 mg/d for 7 consecutive days by cycle (from d-4 to d+2) and escalated until a dose-limiting toxicity should occur. The primary endpoint of this study was to determine the maximal tolerated dose of the combination of dose-escalating curcumin and standard dose of docetaxel chemotherapy in advanced and metastatic breast cancer patients. Secondary objectives included toxicity, safety, vascular endothelial growth factor and tumor markers measurements, and assessment of objective and clinical responses to the combination therapy. Results. Fourteen patients were accrued in this open-label phase I trial. At the last dose level of curcumin, 3 dose-limiting toxicities were observed and 2 out of 3 patients at this dose level refused to continue treatment, leading us to define the maximal tolerated dose of curcumin at 8000 mg/d. Eight patients out of 14 had measurable lesions according to RECIST criteria, with 5 PR and 3 SD. Some improvements as biological and clinical responses were observed in most patients. Conclusion. The recommended dose of curcumin is 6000 mg/d for 7 consecutive days every 3 weeks in combination with a standard dose of docetaxel. From the encouraging efficacy results, a comparative phase II trial of this regimen plus docetaxel versus docetaxel alone is ongoing in advanced and metastatic breast cancer patients.
Dose-effect relation of smoking and the interleukin-1 gene polymorphism in periodontal disease.

BACKGROUND Periodontitis is a bacterial inflammatory disease leading to attachment loss with the consequence of tooth loss. There exists a multifactorial risk pattern including bacterial challenge, smoking, age, gender, diabetes, and socioeconomic and genetic factors. Smoking has the highest impact on the course of the disease modulated by all the other factors. Here, we report the relationship between smoking and the genetic polymorphism of interleukin-1 (IL-1). METHODS In a randomly selected population-based study, we genotyped 1,085 test persons for the IL-1 genotype, examined their periodontal status, and assessed their smoking behavior including present and past quality and quantity of smoking. RESULTS There was a significant dose-effect relationship between the exposure to tobacco smoke and the extent of periodontal disease assessed as attachment loss and tooth loss. Moreover, there was a gene-environmental interaction. Subjects bearing at least one copy of the variant allele 2 at positions IL-1A -889 and IL-1B +3954 (genotype positive) had an enhanced smoking-associated periodontitis risk as compared to their IL-1 genotype-negative counterparts. With genotype-negative non-smokers as a reference, logistic regression resulted in odds ratios of 0.98 (95% confidence interval: 0.83 to 1.14), 2.37 (1.96 to 2.87), and 4.50 (2.30 to 8.82) for genotype-positive non-smokers, genotype-negative smokers, and genotype-positive smokers, respectively. CONCLUSIONS There is a gene-environmental interaction between smoking and the IL-1 genetic polymorphism. Smokers bearing the genotype-positive IL-1 allele combination have an increased risk of periodontitis. The IL-1 genotype has no influence in non-smokers.
Bacillus amyloliquefaciens Confers Tolerance to Various Abiotic Stresses and Modulates Plant Response to Phytohormones through Osmoprotection and Gene Expression Regulation in Rice

Being sessile in nature, plants have to withstand various adverse environmental stress conditions including both biotic and abiotic stresses. Comparatively, abiotic stresses such as drought, salinity, high temperature, and cold pose major threat to agriculture by negatively impacting plant growth and yield worldwide. Rice is one of the most widely consumed staple cereals across the globe, the production and productivity of which is also severely affected by different abiotic stresses. Therefore, several crop improvement programs are directed toward developing stress tolerant rice cultivars either through marker assisted breeding or transgenic technology. Alternatively, some known rhizospheric competent bacteria are also known to improve plant growth during abiotic stresses. A plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR), Bacillus amyloliquefaciens NBRI-SN13 (SN13) was previously reported by our lab to confer salt stress tolerance to rice seedlings. However, the present study investigates the role of SN13 in ameliorating various abiotic stresses such as salt, drought, desiccation, heat, cold, and freezing on a popular rice cv. Saryu-52 under hydroponic growth conditions. Apart from this, seedlings were also exogenously supplied with abscisic acid (ABA), salicylic acid (SA), jasmonic acid (JA) and ethephon (ET) to study the role of SN13 in phytohormone-induced stress tolerance as well as its role in abiotic and biotic stress cross-talk. All abiotic stresses and phytohormone treatments significantly affected various physiological and biochemical parameters like membrane integrity and osmolyte accumulation. SN13 also positively modulated stress-responsive gene expressions under various abiotic stresses and phytohormone treatments suggesting its multifaceted role in cross-talk among stresses and phytohormones in response to PGPR. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on detailed analysis of plant growth promotion and stress alleviation by a PGPR in rice seedlings subjected to various abiotic stresses and phytohormone treatments for 0, 1, 3, 10, and 24 h.