Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Severe antenatal depressive symptoms before and after the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake in Chengdu, China.

OBJECTIVE To investigate the prevalence and correlates of severe antenatal depressive symptoms among pregnant women in Chengdu before and after the Wenchuan earthquake. DESIGN An exploratory and comparative cross-sectional study. SETTINGS Four regional public hospitals in Chengdu located 90 km from the epicenter of the Wenchuan earthquake. PARTICIPANTS The convenience sample was composed of 1,156 pregnant women at 12 to 24 weeks' gestation. METHODS The women were identified as having depressive symptoms using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS). Marital conflict and parent-in-law conflict were assessed using the Dyadic Adjustment Scale (DAS) and the Stryker Adjustment Checklist (SAC), respectively. The Interpersonal Support Evaluation List (ISEL) was used to measure the functional aspects of the perceived availability of social support. RESULTS Using the EPDS with a cutoff score of 14/15 for severe symptoms of depression, 9.2% and 7.1% of the women screened positive before and after the earthquake. Women who had been married for a shorter time were more likely to have depressive symptoms before the earthquake; those who had lived in Chengdu for a shorter period and who had more infants were more likely to suffer after it. Marital conflict and lack of social support were consistent risk factors before and after the earthquake. CONCLUSION Additional research is needed to investigate the long-term, earthquake-related psychopathology. Nurses should receive more education about disaster-related psychological health skills to provide more effective prenatal screening and intervene successfully to assist women to optimize their psychological health status after a disaster.
The convergent and discriminant validity of burnout measures in sport: A multi-trait/multi-method analysis

Abstract Athlete burnout research has been hampered by the lack of an adequate measurement tool. The Athlete Burnout Questionnaire (ABQ) and the Maslach Burnout Inventory General Survey (MBI-GS) are two recently developed self-report instruments designed to assess burnout. The convergent and discriminant validity of the ABQ and MBI-GS were assessed through multi-trait/multi-method analysis with a sporting population. Overall, the ABQ and the MBI-GS displayed acceptable convergent validity with matching subscales highly correlated, and satisfactory internal discriminant validity with lower correlations between non-matching subscales. Both scales also indicated an adequate discrimination between the concepts of burnout and depression. These findings add support to previous findings in non-sporting populations that depression and burnout are separate constructs. Based on the psychometric results, construct validity analysis and practical considerations, the results support the use of the ABQ to assess athlete burnout.
Androgen receptor expression of proliferating basal and luminal cells in adult murine ventral prostate.

Maintenance of the size and differentiated function of the adult prostate is dependent on testicular androgens. In this study, simultaneous androgen receptor (AR) immunohistochemistry and [(3)H]thymidine labelling was used to characterise the proliferating epithelial cells of the murine ventral prostate. Proliferation in the adult prostate was more prevalent in the basal cell population with 1.8&percent; AR-negative cells labelled with [(3)H]thymidine as compared with 0.7% AR-expressing luminal cells. Three weeks following castration of mice, the atrophied prostate contained rudimentary glands composed of both luminal and basal cells with the proportion of AR-expressing basal cells reduced from 50 to 25%. Administration of testosterone enanthate to castrated mice induced a recapitulation of the prostate gland that was preceded by up-regulation of AR expression in basal cells to normal adult levels (50% AR-positive cells) by 12 h following testosterone injection. Proliferation of AR-positive luminal cells peaked at 48 h (22.8%) while proliferation of AR-negative basal cells peaked at 96 h (6.1%) following testosterone administration. These results suggest that distinct populations of luminal and basal cells are resistant to castration-induced involution of the prostate but remain responsive to direct or indirect testosterone effects and recapitulate the gland following administration of testosterone.
Reorganization of cortical blood flow and transcranial magnetic stimulation maps in human subjects after upper limb amputation.

1. Two complimentary techniques were used to study cortical function in six human upper limb amputees: positron emission tomographic (PET) measurements of regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) were made in subjects during limb movements to study activation of the primary motor (M1), primary somatosensory (S1), and association cortices; and electromyographic responses to transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) were measured in proximal upper limb muscles to assess the excitability of corticospinal neurons in subjects at rest. 2. To explore possible cortical mechanisms governing the phantom limb phenomenon, PET and TMS findings were compared between subjects with acquired, traumatic upper limb amputations (n = 3), in whom phantom limb symptoms were prominent, and congenital upper limb amputees (n = 3) without phantom limbs. 3. Paced shoulder movements were associated with significant blood flow increases in the contralateral M1/S1 cortex of both groups of amputees. In traumatic amputees, these increases were present over a wider area and were of significantly greater magnitude in the partially deafferented cortex contralateral to the amputation. In congenital amputees blood flow increases were also present over a wider area in the partially deafferented M1/S1 cortex, but their magnitude was not significantly different from that in the normally afferented M1/S1 cortex. 4. Abnormal blood flow increases also were present in the partially deafferented M1/S1 cortex of traumatic amputees during movement of the ipsilateral, intact arm. Abnormal ipsilateral M1/S1 responses were not present during movement of the intact arm in the congenital group. 5. TMS studies showed that the abnormal blood flow increases in the partially deafferented M1 cortex of traumatic amputees were associated with increased corticospinal excitability. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs and the risk of Alzheimer's disease.

BACKGROUND Previous studies have suggested that the use of nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) may help to prevent Alzheimer's disease. The results, however, are inconsistent. METHODS We studied the association between the use of NSAIDs and Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia in a prospective, population-based cohort study of 6989 subjects 55 years of age or older who were free of dementia at base line, in 1991. To detect new cases of dementia, follow-up screening was performed in 1993 and 1994 and again in 1997 through 1999. The risk of Alzheimer's disease was estimated in relation to the use of NSAIDs as documented in pharmacy records. We defined four mutually exclusive categories of use: nonuse, short-term use (1 month or less of cumulative use), intermediate-term use (more than 1 but less than 24 months of cumulative use), and long-term use (24 months or more of cumulative use). Adjustments were made by Cox regression analysis for age, sex, education, smoking status, and the use or nonuse of salicylates, histamine Hz-receptor antagonists, antihypertensive agents, and hypoglycemic agents. RESULTS During an average follow-up period of 6.8 years, dementia developed in 394 subjects, of whom 293 had Alzheimer's disease, 56 vascular dementia, and 45 other types of dementia. The relative risk of Alzheimer's disease was 0.95 (95 percent confidence interval, 0.70 to 1.29) in subjects with short-term use of NSAIDs, 0.83 (95 percent confidence interval, 0.62 to 1.11) in those with intermediate-term use, and 0.20 (95 percent confidence interval, 0.05 to 0.83) in those with long-term use. The risk did not vary according to age. The use of NSAIDs was not associated with a reduction in the risk of vascular dementia. CONCLUSIONS The long-term use of NSAIDs may protect against Alzheimer's disease but not against vascular dementia.
Anterior chamber fluorescein kinetics compared with vitreous kinetics in normal subjects.

PURPOSE Describe and compare barrier properties in various parts of the eye. METHODS Fluorophotometric measurements of the anterior chamber, vitreous and plasma fluorescein concentrations were performed and subjected to a kinetic two-compartment analysis. RESULTS The overall barrier properties as revealed by a permeability-index was found to be 12.2% (anterior chamber) and 3.5% (vitreous). The apparent rate constant of permeation into the anterior chamber (Kin=1,59 h(-1)) was found to be significantly higher than into the vitreous (Kin=0,66 h(-1)) and into the apparent peripheral body compartment (Kin=0,23 h(-1)). The terminal rate constant of fluorescein disposition from the anterior chamber (Kout=0,21 h(-1)) was in agreement with the terminal disposition rate constant for plasma fluorescein (P=0,23 h(-1)), whereas elimination from the vitreous (Kout=0,072 h(-1)) was significantly slower. CONCLUSION Compartment analysis of ocular fluorescein kinetics is suitable for the study of anterior and posterior barrier properties in the eye. In this study fluorescein elimination from the anterior chamber was restricted by terminal plasma fluorescein decay rather than by ocular tissue.
Beyond ‘Clinical’?: Four-Dimensional Medical Education

Medical education is in crisis. Undergraduates experience an excessive burden of information, develop attitudes to learning that are based on passive acquisition of knowledge than on curiosity and exploration, and suffer from progressive disenchantment with medicine. There is also a serious problem of providing adequate clinical experience for medical students at existing teaching sites, largely because of reduction in bed numbers, increased patient throughput and clinical specialization. This problem was identified over a decade ago in London but has not been solved by the merger of medical schools. A recent survey in one London teaching hospital showed underemployment of students and limited patient contact. A review of clinical clerkships in an Australian medical school revealed that one-third of teachers were perceived as unconcerned, discouraging, derogatory or hostile, and only one-half were rated as effective educators. One consequence has been the development of a wide-ranging debate on changing medical education. Traditionalists have diminishing room for manoeuvre in defence of existing educational practices, as cautious bodies like the General Medical Council (GMC) opt for fundamental reform.
Differential Effects of Arginine Vasotocin and Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone on Sexual Behaviors in an Anuran Amphibian

Both arginine vasotocin (AVT) and gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) are known to influence sexual behavior in many vertebrate taxa. We investigated the effects of both of these peptides on two different sexual behaviors, calling and amplexus, in the Great Plains toad (Bufo cognatus). AVT, at a dosage of 100 microg/100 g toad, significantly increased both the amount of calling behavior per individual and the probability that an individual would call. GnRH, however, had no effect on calling behavior. There was a reciprocal effect of these peptides on amplexus: AVT did not induce amplexus, while GnRH significantly induced this behavior. Furthermore, AVT-induced calling could be inhibited by Manning compound (an arginine vasopressin receptor antagonist). This is the first report of GnRH influencing sexual behavior in an anuran amphibian. These results suggest that specific sexual behaviors in B. cognatus may be under the regulation of independent peptide control.
Influence of exposure to tobacco cigarette smoke on the eosinophil count in the nasal mucosa of young patients with perennial allergic rhinitis.

BACKGROUND To assess the influence of exposure to tobacco cigarette smoke on the eosinophil count and the frequency of apoptosis of eosinophils in the nasal mucosa of teenagers with perennial allergic rhinitis. METHODS Fifty patients were evaluated (aged 10 to 19 years old): 25 patients with and 25 patients with no recent exposure to tobacco cigarette smoke, by means of The Global Youth Tobacco Survey and cotinine/creatinine ratio. After a clinical evaluation, all the patients replied to a validated questionnaire of the severity of nasal symptoms; then, a nasal sample was processed to identify the eosinophil count and the frequency of apoptosis of eosinophils. RESULTS Patients with active exposure to tobacco cigarette smoke had higher eosinophil counts than patients with no exposure to the smoke. In the two groups, apoptosis of eosinophils in the nasal mucosa was scarce and no significant correlation was observed between the frequency/severity of the nasal symptoms and the eosinophil count. CONCLUSION Teenagers with perennial allergic rhinitis and active exposure to tobacco cigarette smoke may show increased eosinophil counts in the nasal mucosa, which might not be related to apoptosis of eosinophils or to the frequency/severity of nasal symptoms.
Dementia and disability: impact on mortality. The Italian Longitudinal Study on Aging.

Dementia is known to be associated with excess mortality. Physical disability, as a marker of dementia severity, is often considered the last step on the way from disease to death. The objective of this study was to investigate the direct effect of dementia on mortality in a population-based study, carried out in Italy, with a sample of 5,632 individuals aged 65-84 years. At 4-year follow-up, 998 participants had died. The independent predictors of death were: age (75-84 years; HR 2.63, CI = 2.11-3.27), male sex (HR 1.45, CI = 1.22-1.74), coronary heart disease (HR 1.61, CI = 1.34-1.94), moderate and severe instrumental activities of daily living disability (HR 1.98, CI = 1.30-3.03 and HR 3.26, CI = 2.09-5.09, respectively), diabetes in subjects with a survival time greater than 23 months (HR 0.68, CI = 0.43-1.08) and dementia (HR 2.07, CI = 1.62-2.66). These data provide evidence that dementia per se, independently from physical disability, is a strong predictor of death in the elderly.
Enzymes, nucleic acids, and lipids in human breast cancer and normal breast tissue.

Summary Some of the biochemical characteristics of human breast cancer were defined by examining the activities of several specific enzymes associated with carbohydrate, lipid, and amino acid metabolism in forty-nine samples of infiltrating ductal carcinoma of the breast. In addition, the levels of RNA, DNA, cholesterol, free fatty acids, and triglycerides were determined. Samples of normal breast tissue and fibrocystic disease of the breast were also analyzed for the same parameters. Compared with normal breast tissue, the activities of pyruvate kinase, glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, isocitrate dehydrogenase, phosphoglucomutase, glutamate dehydrogenase, and hexokinase in the carcinomas were elevated 10- to 30-fold, when enzyme activity was expressed per 100 mg of tissue weight, or from 2- to 8-fold, when enzyme activity was expressed per mg DNA. RNA and DNA levels were increased in neoplastic tissues, as were those of cholesterol and free fatty acids, whereas α-glycerophosphate dehydrogenase activity and triglyceride levels were significantly reduced in the tumors. In fibrocystic disease, only the activity of phosphoglucomutase, expressed per mg DNA, was higher than in normal breast tissue. Significant correlations between pairs of biochemical parameters were found; some were common to all tissues investigated, whereas others were present only in carcinomas. No differences in the biochemical profile of neoplastic tissues were attributable to either the menopausal status of the patient or to the presence of metastases. Thus, certain unique biochemical changes were associated with frank carcinoma and, in this limited study, we were able to identify a tissue sample as cancer or noncancer on the basis of the observed biochemical profile.
Involvement of transient receptor potential‐like channels in responses to mGluR‐I activation in midbrain dopamine neurons

We investigated the involvement of store‐operated channels (SOCs) and transient receptor potential (TRP) channels in the response to activation of the group I metabotropic glutamate receptor subtype 1 (mGluR1) with the agonist (S)‐3,5‐dihydroxyphenylglycine (DHPG, puff application) in dopamine neurons in rat brain slices. The mGluR1‐induced conductance reversed polarity close to 0 mV and at more positive potentials when extracellular potassium concentrations were increased, indicating the involvement of a cationic channel. DHPG currents but not intracellular calcium responses were reduced by low extracellular sodium concentrations but were not affected by sodium channel blockers, tetrodotoxin and saxitoxin or by inhibition of the h‐current with cesium. Abolition of calcium responses with intracellular BAPTA (1,2‐bis(2‐aminophenoxy)ethane‐N,N,N′,N′‐tetraacetic acid; 10 mm) did not affect current responses, indicating they were not calcium activated. Extracellular application of non‐selective SOCs and TRP channel blockers 2‐aminoethoxydiphenylborane (2‐APB), SKF96365, ruthenium red and flufenamic acid (but not gadolinium) reduced DHPG current and calcium responses. Intracellular application of ruthenium red and 2‐APB did not affect DHPG currents, indicating that IP3 and ryanodine receptors did not mediate their actions. Single‐cell PCR revealed the presence of TRPC1 and 5 mRNA in most dopamine neurons and subtypes 3, 4 and 6 in some. Store depletion evoked calcium entry indicative of SOCs, providing the first functional observation of such channels in native central neurons. Store depletion with either cyclopiazonic acid or ryanodine abolished calcium but not current responses to DHPG. The electrophysiological and pharmacological properties of the mGluR1‐induced inward current are consistent with the involvement of TRP channels whereas calcium responses are dependent on the function of SOCs in voltage clamp recordings.
Effects of moderate and intensive training on the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal axis in rats.

The influence of the two distinct training programmes, moderate (M) and intensive (I), on hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis was investigated, in rats. Changes in plasma concentrations of adrenocorticotropin hormone (ACTH) and corticosterone were followed in response to (i) a 60-min acute running session performed on 2nd, 4th and 6th of the seven training weeks (ii) an acute restraint stress of 40 min applied after the final training programme. After 2nd, 4th and 6th week of the two training programmes, a 60-min running resulted in an enhanced secretion of ACTH and corticosterone, compared with both the baseline values (i.e. before running) and to the sedentary (S) group. However, on 4th and 6th weeks compared with 2nd week, ACTH and corticosterone remained elevated in intensive group when they are significantly reduced in moderate group. We could suggest that a moderate training resulted in an adapted hormonal response whereas a deadapted process occurred for the intensive programme. The day after the last training session, basal ACTH, corticosterone and corticosteroid-binding globulin (CBG) capacity were not affected by training. Hypothalamic corticotropin-releasing factor tissue-content (CRF) was increased significantly in the two trained groups. When compared with the sedentary group, the body weight of the rats in the two trained groups was significantly decreased with a total adrenal mass increasing but only in intensive group. The surimposed restraint stress resulted in significant increases in plasma ACTH and corticosterone both in trained and in sedentary animals. This result suggests that the adapted HPA axis response induced by both a moderate and intensive training do not prevent against the effects of a novel stress such as restraint stress.
Is severely left ventricular dysfunction a predictor of early outcomes in patients with coronary artery bypass graft?

Background Traditionally, the Coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) surgery outcomes of patients with low ejection fraction (EF) have been worse compared to patients with moderate to good left ventricular function. During the past decade, despite improvements in surgical techniques, the trend in the outcomes of these patients remained unclear. Aim We sought to determine the effect of left ventricular dysfunction on early mortality and morbidity and to specify predictors of early mortality of isolated CABG in a large group of patients EF≤35%. Method We retrospectively analyzed data of 14 819 consecutive patients undergoing isolated CABG from February 2002 to March 2008 at Tehran Heart Center. Patients were divided into two groups based on their LVEF (EF≤35% and EF>35%). Differences in case-mix between patients with EF≤35% and those without were controlled by constructing a propensity score. Results Mean age of our patients was 58.7±9.5 years. EF≤35% was present in 1342 (9.1%) of patients. In-hospital mortality was significantly increased univariate in EF≤35%, while this association diminished after confounders were adjusted for by using the propensity score (p=0.242). Following adjustment it was demonstrated that renal failure, cardiac arrest, heart block, infectious complication, total ventilation time, and total ICU hours were more frequent in patients with EF≤35%. Conclusion We demonstrated EF≤35% was not predictor of in-hospital mortality in patients underwent CABG. Careful preoperative patient selection remains essential in patients with EF≤35% undergoing CABG.
Mapping of direction and muscle representation in the human primary motor cortex controlling thumb movements

Larger body parts are somatotopically represented in the primary motor cortex (M1), while smaller body parts, such as the fingers, have partially overlapping representations. The principles that govern the overlapping organization of M1 remain unclear. We used transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to examine the cortical encoding of thumb movements in M1 of healthy humans. We performed M1 mapping of the probability of inducing a thumb movement in a particular direction and used low intensity TMS to disturb a voluntary thumb movement in the same direction during a reaction time task. With both techniques we found spatially segregated representations of the direction of TMS‐induced thumb movements, thumb flexion and extension being best separated. Furthermore, the cortical regions corresponding to activation of a thumb muscle differ, depending on whether the muscle functions as agonist or as antagonist for flexion or extension. In addition, we found in the reaction time experiment that the direction of a movement is processed in M1 before the muscles participating in it are activated. It thus appears that one of the organizing principles for the human corticospinal motor system is based on a spatially segregated representation of movement directions and that the representation of individual somatic structures, such as the hand muscles, overlap.