Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Factors related to the early and late success of direct current cardioversion of chronic nonrheumatic atrial fibrillation: An echocardiographic study.

OBJECTIVES To assess factors related to the success of restoration and one-year maintenance of sinus rhythm in chronic (more than 48 h) nonrheumatic atrial fibrillation (AF). METHODS AND RESULTS One hundred and fifty consecutive patients aged 62+/-9 years with AF lasting 123+/-254 days were evaluated clinically with transthoracic and transesophageal echocardiography before elective direct current cardioversion. Heart chamber dimensions and left ventricular ejection fraction were measured. The presence of left atrial thrombi and spontaneous echocardiographic contrast as well as flow velocities in the left atrial appendage were assessed. The first cardioversion was followed by standardized two-step antiarrhythmic treatment including a second cardioversion, if necessary. Twenty patients (13%) spontaneously reverted to sinus rhythm (S) during anticoagulation preceding cardioversion, 81 (54%) were successfully cardioverted (Y), and in 49 (33%) cardioversion failed initially (N). No differences were noted between the two latter groups. However, S patients had smaller left atria measured in the short and long axes (42+/-4 mm, P=0.05, and 53+/-7 mm, P=0.005, respectively) than both the Y (45+/-4 and 61+/-8 mm) and the N patients (46+/-4 and 61+/-8 mm). One-year follow-up was obtained in 95 patients: 64 (67%) were in sinus rhythm while 31 (33%) had AF. Again, no initial differences predicting the maintenance of sinus rhythm were found. CONCLUSIONS Spontaneous reversion of AF seems more likely with smaller left atria. Echocardiography, including trans-esophageal echocardiography, is unlikely to identify patients in whom attempts to restore and maintain sinus rhythm will fail or succeed.
OsORC3 is required for lateral root development in rice.

The origin recognition complex (ORC) is a pivotal element in DNA replication, heterochromatin assembly, checkpoint regulation and chromosome assembly. Although the functions of the ORC have been determined in yeast and model animals, they remain largely unknown in the plant kingdom. In this study, Oryza sativa Origin Recognition Complex subunit 3 (OsORC3) was cloned using map-based cloning procedures, and functionally characterized using a rice (Oryza sativa) orc3 mutant. The mutant showed a temperature-dependent defect in lateral root (LR) development. Map-based cloning showed that a G→A mutation in the 9th exon of OsORC3 was responsible for the mutant phenotype. OsORC3 was strongly expressed in regions of active cell proliferation, including the primary root tip, stem base, lateral root primordium, emerged lateral root primordium, lateral root tip, young shoot, anther and ovary. OsORC3 knockdown plants lacked lateral roots and had a dwarf phenotype. The root meristematic zone of ORC3 knockdown plants exhibited increased cell death and reduced vital activity compared to the wild-type. CYCB1;1::GUS activity and methylene blue staining showed that lateral root primordia initiated normally in the orc3 mutant, but stopped growing before formation of the stele and ground tissue. Our results indicate that OsORC3 plays a crucial role in the emergence of lateral root primordia.
Congenital portosystemic shunt diagnosed by combined real‐time and Doppler sonography.

The large intrahepatic branches of the portal ami hepatic veins are routinely visualized hy sono~­ raphy. Previous reports have demonstrated the el:. ficacy of ultrasound in detecting ahnonnalities in the extrahepatic portal venous system, 1 while sonographic reports of pathologic changes of the intmhepatic vessels are scarce. z \Ve present a case of an aneurysmal shunt between a ri~ht portal vein branch and the middle hepatic vein detected hy combined real-time und Doppler sonography (duplex scanning}.
Outcome of non-variceal acute upper gastrointestinal bleeding in relation to the time of endoscopy and the experience of the endoscopist: a two-year survey.

AIM To prospectively assess the impact of time of endoscopy and endoscopist's experience on the outcome of non-variceal acute upper gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding patients in a large teaching hospital. METHODS All patients admitted for non-variceal acute upper GI bleeding for over a 2-year period were potentially eligible for this study. They were managed by a team of seven endoscopists on 24-h call whose experience was categorized into two levels (high and low) according to the number of endoscopic hemostatic procedures undertaken before the study. Endoscopic treatment was standardized according to Forrest classification of lesions as well as the subsequent medical therapy. Time of endoscopy was subdivided into two time periods: routine (8 a.m.-5 p.m.) and on-call (5 p.m.-8 a.m.). For each category of experience and time periods rebleeding rate, transfusion requirement, need for surgery, length of hospital stay and mortality we compared. Multivariate analysis was used to discriminate the impact of different variables on the outcomes that were considered. RESULTS Study population consisted of 272 patients (mean age 67.3 years) with endoscopic stigmata of hemorrhage. The patients were equally distributed among the endoscopists, whereas only 19% of procedures were done out of working hours. Rockall score and Forrest classification at admission did not differ between time periods and degree of experience. Univariate analysis showed that higher endoscopist's experience was associated with significant reduction in rebleeding rate (14% vs 37%), transfusion requirements (1.8+/-0.6 vs 3.0+/-1.7 units) as well as surgery (4% vs 10%), but not associated with the length of hospital stay nor mortality. By contrast, outcomes did not significantly differ between the two time periods of endoscopy. On multivariate analysis, endoscopist's experience was independently associated with rebleeding rate and transfusion requirements. Odds ratios for low experienced endoscopist were 4.47 for rebleeding and 6.90 for need of transfusion after the endoscopy. CONCLUSION Endoscopist's experience is an important independent prognostic factor for non-variceal acute upper GI bleeding. Urgent endoscopy should be undertaken preferentially by a skilled endoscopist as less expert staff tends to underestimate some risk lesions with a negative influence on hemostasis.
Word Recognition by Children Listening to Speech Processed into a Small Number of Channels: Data from Normal-Hearing Children and Children with Cochlear Implants

Objective The aims of this study were 1) to determine the number of channels of stimulation needed by normal-hearing adults and children to achieve a high level of word recognition and 2) to compare the performance of normal-hearing children and adults listening to speech processed into 6 to 20 channels of stimulation with the performance of children who use the Nucleus 22 cochlear implant. Design In E-periment 1, the words from the Multisyllabic Le-ical Neighborhood Test (MLNT) were processed into 6 to 20 channels and output as the sum of sine waves at the center frequency of the analysis bands. The signals were presented to normal-hearing adults and children for identification. In E-periment 2, the wideband recordings of the MLNT words were presented to early-implanted and late-implanted children who used the Nucleus 22 cochlear implant. Results E-periment 1: Normal-hearing children needed more channels of stimulation than adults to recognize words. Ten channels allowed 99% correct word recognition for adults; 12 channels allowed 92% correct word recognition for children. E-periment 2: The average level of intelligibility for both early- and late-implanted children was equivalent to that found for normal-hearing adults listening to four to si- channels of stimulation. The best intelligibility for implanted children was equivalent to that found for normal-hearing adults listening to si- channels of stimulation. The distribution of scores for early- and late-implanted children differed. Nineteen percent of the late-implanted children achieved scores below that allowed by a 6-channel processor. None of the early-implanted children fell into this category. Conclusions The average implanted child must deal with a signal that is significantly degraded. This is likely to prolong the period of language acquisition. The period could be significantly shortened if implants were able to deliver at least eight functional channels of stimulation. Twelve functional channels of stimulation would provide signals near the intelligibility of wideband signals in quiet.
Estimation and Inference for the Mediation Proportion

Abstract In epidemiology, public health and social science, mediation analysis is often undertaken to investigate the extent to which the effect of a risk factor on an outcome of interest is mediated by other covariates. A pivotal quantity of interest in such an analysis is the mediation proportion. A common method for estimating it, termed the “difference method”, compares estimates from models with and without the hypothesized mediator. However, rigorous methodology for estimation and statistical inference for this quantity has not previously been available. We formulated the problem for the Cox model and generalized linear models, and utilize a data duplication algorithm together with a generalized estimation equations approach for estimating the mediation proportion and its variance. We further considered the assumption that the same link function hold for the marginal and conditional models, a property which we term “g-linkability”. We show that our approach is valid whenever g-linkability holds, exactly or approximately, and present results from an extensive simulation study to explore finite sample properties. The methodology is illustrated by an analysis of pre-menopausal breast cancer incidence in the Nurses’ Health Study. User-friendly publicly available software implementing those methods can be downloaded from the last author’s website (SAS) or from CRAN (R).
Effect of oral and intravenous insulin and glutamic acid decarboxylase in NOD mice.

Islet cell antigens have been administered orally and intravenously (I.V.) to NOD mice to assess their abilities to protect from or delay the onset of diabetes, and thereby provide insights that may have therapeutic implications in human trials. Whereas we and others have observed a delay in the onset of diabetes in NOD mice that have been fed with insulin from early life, we report here for the first time that feedings with porcine GAD65 alone (p = 0.226) or in combination with insulin (p = 0.011), have anti-diabetic effects in a prolonged study period (>400 days). While antigen-specific inhibitions of in vitro lymphocytic proliferation responses were seen (p < 0.05), antibody levels were unaffected by oral antigen treatments. IFN-gamma mRNA levels were downregulated in the islet infiltrates following oral antigen treatments while IL-2 and TNF-beta were expressed in all instances. We also observed that I.V. human recombinant GAD65, and porcine GAD given at weaning, delayed diabetes onset (p = 0.004) while similar treatments with a variety of inactive insulin preparations were generally ineffective. These findings thus indicate varying effects of oral and I.V. autoantigen administrations on the development of diabetes in NOD mice, and describe the immunological processes induced by oral autoantigen treatments.
Mechanism and site of action of a dopamine D1 antagonist in the rabbit retina

Abstract Dopamine D1 antagonists have been shown to alter drastically the spontaneous and light-evoked activity of ganglion cells in the rabbit retina (Jensen & Daw, 1984, 1986). A major target of dopaminergic neurons in mammalian retinas appears to be rod All amacrine cells (Pourcho, 1982; Voigt & Wässle, 1987). In the present study, the following questions were addressed: (1) Do dopamine D1 antagonists alter the activity of ganglion cells through actions primarily on rod All amacrine cells? (2) Are the effects of dopamine D1 antagonists on ganglion cells due to an inhibition of dopamine-stimulated adenylate cyclase activity? Using an isolated, superfused retinal preparation, the ability of several pharmacological agents to counteract the physiological effects of the dopamine D1 antagonist (+)-SCH 23390 on rabbit ganglion cells was examined. The glycine antagonist strychnine abolished the effects of (+)-SCH 23390 on the spontaneous and light-evoked activity of OFF-center ganglion cells, whereas the excitatory amino-acid antagonist kynurenic acid abolished the effects of (+)-SCH 23390 on the spontaneous and light-evoked activity of ON-center ganglion cells. The findings obtained with these antagonists can be explained in terms of the known synaptic connections of All amacrine cells. Both 8-(4-chlorophenylthio) cyclic AMP, a membrane-permeable cAMP analog, and forskolin, an activator of adenylate cyclase, reversed the effects of (+)-SCH 23390 on the spontaneous and light-evoked activity of OFF-center ganglion cells but not ON-center ganglion cells. These findings suggest that the effects of dopamine D1 antagonists on OFF-center ganglion cells are due to an inhibition of dopamine-stimulated adenylate cyclase, with the ensuing lowering of cellular cAMP levels. The effects of dopamine D1 antagonists on ON-center ganglion cells appear, however, to be independent of intracellular cAMP levels.
Reducing Reparameterization Gradient Variance

Optimization with noisy gradients has become ubiquitous in statistics and machine learning. Reparameterization gradients, or gradient estimates computed via the ``reparameterization trick,'' represent a class of noisy gradients often used in Monte Carlo variational inference (MCVI). However, when these gradient estimators are too noisy, the optimization procedure can be slow or fail to converge. One way to reduce noise is to generate more samples for the gradient estimate, but this can be computationally expensive. Instead, we view the noisy gradient as a random variable, and form an inexpensive approximation of the generating procedure for the gradient sample. This approximation has high correlation with the noisy gradient by construction, making it a useful control variate for variance reduction. We demonstrate our approach on a non-conjugate hierarchical model and a Bayesian neural net where our method attained orders of magnitude (20-2{,}000$\times$) reduction in gradient variance resulting in faster and more stable optimization.
A new concept of variable bandwidth

We propose a new notion of variable bandwidth and develop the basic theory. Starting with a strictly positive function p on ℝ (a bandwidth parametrization), a function is of variable bandwidth Ω, if it is contained in the spectral subspace of the elliptic operator A<inf>p</inf>ƒ = − d/dx (p(x) d/dx) ƒ with spectrum [0, Ω]. We derive (i) (nonuniform) sampling theorems and corresponding algorithms, and (ii) necessary density conditions in the style of Landau. The main results say that, in a neighborhood of x ∈ ℝ, a function of variable bandwidth behaves like a bandlimited function with bandwidth (Ω/p(x))<sup>1/2</sup>.
Serum Inhibins A and B fall differentially as FSH rises in perimenopausal women

Serum FSH levels rise with increasing age in normal women, particularly as they enter the menopausal transition and progress to the postmenopausal state. The contributions of decreasing levels of inhibin‐A (INH‐A) and inhibin‐B (INH‐B) to this rise are presently unclear, as there are no reports of dimeric INH levels in relation to menopausal status. The present study was undertaken in order to provide preliminary data on relationships amongst the dimeric inhibins, oestradiol (E2) and FSH in normal subjects of defined menopausal status.
Southern Hemisphere Jet Variability in the IPSL GCM at Varying Resolutions

AbstractFluctuations of the Southern Hemisphere eddy-driven jet are studied in a suite of experiments with the Laboratoire de Meteorologie Dynamique, version 4 (LMDZ4) atmospheric GCM with varying horizontal resolution, in coupled mode and with imposed SSTs. The focus is on the relationship between changes in the mean state brought by increasing resolution, and the intraseasonal variability and response to increasing CO2 concentration.In summer, the mean jet latitude moves poleward when the resolution increases in latitude, converging toward the observed one. Most measures of the jet dynamics, such as skewness of the distribution or persistence time scale of jet movements, exhibit a simple dependence on the mean jet latitude and also converge to the observed values. In winter, the improvement of the mean-state biases with resolution is more limited.In both seasons, the relationship between the dominant mode of variability—the southern annular mode (SAM)—and the mean state remains the same as in observatio.
Cohabitation among older adults: a national portrait.

OBJECTIVE Older adults are increasingly likely to experience cohabitation, or living together unmarried in an intimate, heterosexual union. In order to begin building a conceptual framework, we provide a descriptive portrait of older adult cohabitors, emphasizing how they compare to older remarrieds and unpartnereds. METHODS We used data from both Census 2000 and the 1998 Health and Retirement Study ( HRS; Health and Retirement Study, 1998) to estimate the size and composition of the cohabiting population aged 51 and older. Also, using HRS data, we estimated multinomial logistic regression models to identify the correlates associated with cohabitation and remarriage (vs being unpartnered) among women and men who were previously married. RESULT More than 1 million older adults, composing 4% of the unmarried population, currently cohabit. About 90% of these individuals were previously married. We identify significant differences among cohabitors, remarrieds, and unpartnereds across several dimensions, including sociodemographic characteristics, economic resources, physical health, and social relationships. Cohabitors appear to be more disadvantaged than remarrieds, and this is especially evident for women. DISCUSSION Older cohabitors differ from individuals of other marital statuses, and therefore future work on marital status should explicitly incorporate cohabitation.
A RANDOMISED CLINICAL TRIAL COMPARING THE EFF ICACY OF OXYTOCIN INJECTION AND ORAL MISOPROSTOL TABLET IN THE PREVENTION OF POSTPARTUM HAEMORRHAGE IN MAIDUGURI NIGERIA

To compare the effectiveness of intravenous oxytocin 10 IU and oral misoprostol table t 600ug in the prevention of PPH. A randomised approach was used to recruit 1800 consenting pregnant women whom were randomly allocated at term to two medication groups of 10 IU oxytocin intravenously at delivery of the anterior shoulder a nd oral misoprost ol group; 600 μg (3 x 200μg) tablets within three minutes of the delivery of baby. Blood loss by each patient was collected using precalibrated kidney dishes. Haemoglobin level was measured at term and 24 h after delivery. The study indicated higher occurr ences of PPH (17.9 VS 8.9 %) and higher MBL (388.04 ± 5.910 ml VS 327.68 ± 3.953 ml) in the oxytocin medication group. Drop in the mean haemoglobin levels in the oxytocin group (0.708 ± 0.0340) was signific antly (p < 0.001) higher than in the misoprostol g roup (0.549 ± 0.0276). The proportion of enrolees that needed additional oxytocic agents was significantly (ρ < 0.05) higher in the oxytocin group (16.4 %) than in the misoprostol group (3.6 %). None of the enrolees in either of the two medication groups h ad indication for blood transfusion. In Maiduguri metropolis , oral misoprostol tablet 600 μ g has demonstrated better prevention of PPH than intravenous oxytocin 10 IU. The two medication approaches are safe and could be inter changed if need arises. Key W ords: Treatment efficacy, Postpartum haemorrhage, Misoprostol, Haemoglobin, Oxytocin.
Responses of Staphylococcus aureus exposed to HCl and organic acid stress.

Staphylococcus aureus is an important food poisoning bacterium. In food preservation, acidification is a well-known method. Permeant weak organic acids, like lactic and acetic acids, are known to be more effective against bacteria than inorganic strong acids (e.g., HCl). Growth experiments and metabolic and transcriptional analyses were used to determine the responses of a food pathogenic S. aureus strain exposed to lactic acid, acetic acid, and HCl at pH 4.5. Lactic and acetic acid stress induced a slower transcriptional response and large variations in growth patterns compared with the responses induced by HCl. In cultures acidified with lactic acid, the pH of the medium gradually increased to 7.5 during growth, while no such increase was observed for bacteria exposed to acetic acid or HCl. Staphylococcus aureus increased the pH in the medium mainly through accumulation of ammonium and the removal of acid groups, resulting in increased production of diacetyl (2,3-butanedione) and pyrazines. The results showed flexible and versatile responses of S. aureus to different types of acid stress. As measured by growth inhibition, permeant organic acid stress introduced severe stress compared with the stress caused by HCl. Cells exposed to lactic acid showed specific mechanisms of action in addition to sharing many of the mechanisms induced by HCl stress.
The Nursing Home Behavior Problem Scale.

Nursing home patients frequently have serious disturbances of behavior that can lead to use of chemical or physical restraints. To support research into better management of these problems, we developed the Nursing Home Behavior Problem Scale (NHBPS), a 29-item inventory of serious behavior problems designed to be completed by nurses and nursing assistants. NHBPS scores were obtained for two samples of nursing home residents: 431 in Tennessee and 122 in Texas. The interrater correlation was . 754 in the Tennessee sample and . 827 in the Texas sample. The NHBPS had a correlation of -. 747 with the NOSIE scale and . 911 with the CMAI. There was a pronounced association of increased NHBPS scores with mental impairment and use of sedative drugs or restraints. These data suggest the NHBPS is a useful research instrument for measuring serious behavior problems in nursing home residents.
Citrobacter rodentium lifA/efa1 Is Essential for Colonic Colonization and Crypt Cell Hyperplasia In Vivo

ABSTRACT Previously, we have identified a large gene (lifA, for lymphocyte inhibitory factor A) in enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) encoding a protein termed lymphostatin that suppresses cytokine expression in vitro. This protein also functions as an adhesion factor for enterohemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC) and Shiga toxin-producing E. coli and is alternatively known as efa1 (EHEC factor for adherence 1). The lifA/efa1 gene is also present in Citrobacter rodentium, an enteric pathogen that causes a disease termed transmissible murine colonic hyperplasia (TMCH), which induces colitis and massive crypt cell proliferation, in mice. To determine if lifA/efa1 is required for C. rodentium-induced colonic pathology in vivo, three in-frame mutations were generated, disrupting the glycosyltransferase (GlM12) and protease (PrMC31) motifs and a domain in between that does not encode any known activity (EID3). In contrast to infection with wild-type C. rodentium, that with any of the lifA/efa1 mutant strains did not induce weight loss or TMCH. Enteric infection with motif mutants GlM12 and PrM31 resulted in significantly reduced colonization counts during the entire 20-day course of infection. In contrast, EID3 was indistinguishable from the wild type during the initial colonic colonization, but cleared rapidly after day 8 of the infection. The colonic epithelium of all infected mice displayed increased epithelial regeneration. However, significantly increased regeneration was observed by day 20 only in mice infected with the wild-type in comparison to those infected with lifA/efa1 mutant EID3. In summary, lifA/efa1 is a critical gene outside the locus for enterocyte effacement that regulates bacterial colonization, crypt cell proliferation, and epithelial cell regeneration.