Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Oral health attitudes and behaviours of final-year dental students.

OBJECTIVES The objectives of this study of final-year dental students in 10 classes (1997, 2001-2009) were to examine their self-reported oral health attitudes and behaviours and describe any trends in these attributes. PARTICIPANTS AND METHODS Students were surveyed in final semester via an anonymous questionnaire (34 behaviour questions; eight attitude statements). Distributions, trends over time and attitude-behaviour associations were examined. RESULTS Of 583 students, 459 responded (79%). All tooth-brushed with fluoride toothpaste; 80% brushed ≥2/day. Overall, 85% flossed; over time flossing behaviour increased significantly (P < 0.05), and those flossing 1-2/day increased (P < 0.005). Over time, significant decreases occurred in those taught toothbrushing (P < 0.001) and flossing (P < 0.05), and in use of mouth rinses (P < 0.05) and tooth cleansing sticks/picks (P < 0.001). Almost all (96%) had received a dental examination; 77% attended a dentist 1-3/year. Between-meal snacking was common (84%); 71% chewed gum. Although 18% had ever smoked, 5% currently smoked. Most strongly agreed they expected to keep most of their teeth for all their life (76%); their future needs for fillings would be minimal (61%); smoking could adversely affect their teeth or gums (85%); and regular dental attendance was important for their dental health (51%). Congruent attitudes and behaviours favouring oral health were widely held concerning dental attendance, flossing and smoking. CONCLUSIONS Final-year dental students showed well established, favourable oral hygiene attitudes and behaviours, with evidence to suggest this knowledge was developed whilst in dental school. Despite many ceasing smoking, 5% still smoked. All dental students should receive training in motivational counselling and tobacco cessation to ensure this is included in patient care.
Reproductive Parameters of Female Macaca mulatta tcheliensis in the Temperate Forest of Mount Taihangshan, Jiyuan, China

The remaining population of Macaca mulatta tcheliensis, approximately 3,000 individuals, is currently confined to the southern region of Mount Taihangshan, northern China. Using data collected from February 2003 to November 2012, we examined female reproductive characteristics in a seasonally food supplemented free‐ranging group of M. m. tcheliensis (Wangwu 1, WW‐1), inhabiting the Taishangshan Macaque National Nature Reserve (TMNNR), Jiyuan, China. We tested a series of predictions regarding the degree to which M. m. tcheliensis is best considered as a “strict income breeder,” a “relaxed income breeder” or a “capital breeder. ” This group was comprised 18 adult females who produced 64 infants over the 10‐year study period. In our study group (WW‐1) adult female macaques gave birth to an average of 0.71 ± 0.26 infants per year. Infant mortality was 13.4 ± 19.3%. The age at first birth for mothers was 4.9 ± 0.5 years old. The mean inter‐birth interval (IBI) was 15.4 ± 4.9 months. Based on the fact M. m. tcheliensis is a strictly seasonal breeder (76.6% of births occurred between April and May) with infants born during a time of the year when food availability appears to be high, and that their IBI is intermediate in length compared with other macaque populations, our results suggest that M. m. tcheliensis follows a birth pattern most consistent with a “relaxed income breeder” strategy. Am. J. Primatol. 75:605‐612, 2013. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
The effects of varying protein and energy intakes on the growth and body composition of pigs

The objective of the present experiment was to define the form of the relationship between varying levels of energy intake at constant, high protein intake and the performance of young pigs. By doing so it was expected that we could distinguish between four models that predict the pig's responses to its diet as rates of protein and lipid retention. Forty young pigs were assigned at 12 kg live weight either to an initial slaughter group (n 8) or to one of four allowances of starch intake at a constant intake of a high-protein feed (with 345 g crude protein (nitrogen x 6.25)/kg food). Half the pigs were killed after 4 weeks and half after 8 weeks on the treatments; at each slaughter point on each treatment half the pigs were entire males and half were females. Increasing the intake of starch (energy) resulted in significant increases in the rates of live weight, empty-body, protein and lipid gains of pigs slaughtered at both stages. There was no minimum positive lipid: protein ratio in the gain of the pigs. Male pigs deposited more protein and less lipid than females but this effect of sex on protein and lipid retention was seen only on the two highest allowances of starch intake. The calculated efficiency of protein utilization increased with increasing starch intake up to a maximum of 0.81, when probably the energy: protein in the diet became non-limiting. The results led to the rejection of two of the models that predict the rates of protein and lipid retention as responses to protein and energy intake, but the two remaining models could not be rejected, at least qualitatively.
Control of hemA Expression inRhodobacter sphaeroides 2.4.1: Effect of a Transposon Insertion in the hbdA Gene

ABSTRACT The common precursor to all tetrapyrroles is 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA), and in Rhodobacter sphaeroides its formation occurs via the Shemin pathway. ALA synthase activity is encoded by two differentially regulated genes in R. sphaeroides 2.4. 1:hemA and hemT. In our investigations ofhemA regulation, we applied transposon mutagenesis under aerobic conditions, followed by a selection that identified transposon insertion mutants in which hemA expression is elevated. One of these mutants has been characterized previously (J. Zeilstra-Ryalls and S. Kaplan, J. Bacteriol. 178:985–993, 1996), and here we describe our analysis of a second mutant strain. The transposon inserted into the coding sequences of hbdA, coding forS-(+)-β-hydroxybutyryl–coenzyme A dehydrogenase and catalyzing an NAD-dependent reaction. We provide evidence that thehbdA gene product participates in polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) metabolism and, based on our findings, we discuss possibilities as to how defective PHB metabolism might alter the level of hemAexpression.
Abolition of Biofilm Formation in Urinary Tract Escherichia coli and Klebsiella Isolates by Metal Interference through Competition for Fur

ABSTRACT Bacterial biofilms are associated with a large number of persistent and chronic infections. Biofilm-dwelling bacteria are particularly resistant to antibiotics and immune defenses, which makes it hard if not impossible to eradicate biofilm-associated infections. In the urinary tract, free iron is strictly limited but is critical for bacterial growth. Biofilm-associated Escherichia coli cells are particularly desperate for iron. An attractive way of inhibiting biofilm formation is to fool the bacterial regulatory system for iron uptake. Here, we demonstrate that biofilm formation can be impaired by the addition of divalent metal ions, such as Zn(II) and Co(II), which inhibit iron uptake by virtue of their higher-than-iron affinity for the master controller protein of iron uptake, Fur. Reduced biofilm formation of urinary tract-infectious E. coli strains in the presence of Zn(II) was observed in microtiter plates and flow chambers as well as on urinary catheters. These results further support that iron uptake is indeed crucial for biofilm formation, and thereby, targeting these uptake systems might be an effective way to eradicate biofilms caused by infectious strains.
Efficacy of S-1 for Patients with Peritoneal Metastasis of Gastric Cancer

Background: This study was designed to examine the efficacy and compliance of S-1 for the patients with peritoneal metastasis of gastric cancer. Methods: Sixteen consecutive patients with peritoneal metastasis of gastric cancer were treated with S-1. Their survival was compared with that of the historical control group (25 patients). Thymidylate synthase, dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase, thymidine phosphorylase and orotate phosphoribosyl transferase mRNA expression in the tumor were evaluated. Results: The median survival time of S-1-treated patients was 550 days, which was significantly longer than that of the historical control group (215 days). We elucidated some factors to prolong the survival of the patients treated with S-1 for peritoneal metastasis: peritoneal metastasis without other distant metastases, the combination of S-1 treatment and gastrectomy, and low expression of thymidine phosphorylase mRNA in primary tumors. Conclusions: S-1 showed a surprisingly long-term survival with minimum toxicity in patients with peritoneal metastasis of gastric cancer.
Comparison of cardiac troponin I and lactate dehydrogenase isoenzymes for the late diagnosis of myocardial injury.

Cardiac troponin I (cTnI) is a highly specific marker that is elevated in the blood for several days following myocardial infarction. The lactate dehydrogenase (LD) isoenzyme 1 to isoenzyme 2 ratio (LD1/LD2) is the established marker for the late diagnosis of myocardial infarction. In this study, the sensitivity of cardiac troponin I (cTnI) and LD1/LD2 were compared as late markers of myocardial injury over a 5-day period in 36 patients admitted with a diagnosis of myocardial infarction to the coronary care unit. Over this period, the sensitivity of cTnI was significantly greater than that of LD1/LD2 (P < .05). The concurrent elevation of both cardiac markers of the five day period range from 53.1% to 79.4%. However, this low concordance was largely due to an LD1/LD2 < 1 in the presence of an increased cTnI. The average discordance over the 5-day period was 29.5%. Because cardiac troponin I (cTnI) has greater sensitivity than lactate dehydrogenase isoenzymes for delayed diagnosis of myocardial injury and is a more cost-effective test, the authors recommend it as a test of choice in this setting.
The behavior of amidolytic factor VII in smoking and non‐smoking pregnant women in relation to their gestational age

Objective. Aim of the study was to assess the behavior of factor VII by commercial amidolytic assay in smoking and non‐smoking pregnant women, and to compare this with the earlier reported factor VII: C levels during pregnancy and to discuss the role of F VII: Am with regard to thromboembolic complication in smoking pregnant women.
Etiological spectrum of sporadic malabsorption syndrome in northern Indian adults at a tertiary hospital.

BACKGROUND The etiology of malabsorption syndrome (MAS) may differ in different geographical regions. Limited data are available on the etiological spectrum of MAS among Indian adults. METHODS Ninety-nine consecutive adult patients with MAS (urine d-xylose <1 g/5 g/5 h with or without increased fecal fat (> or =7 g/24 h) were evaluated for cause of MAS using standard criteria. Past medical records were examined to know the nature of treatment received. RESULTS The etiology of MAS was: tropical sprue 39, celiac disease 9, Crohn's disease 9, giardiasis 8, small intestinal bacterial overgrowth in absence of another cause of MAS 8, panhypogammaglobulinemia 2 (one with strongyloidiasis), intestinal lymphangiectasia 1, intestinal tuberculosis 4, idiopathic 15, acquired immunodeficiency syndrome 2, and amyloidosis 2. Twenty-eight patients had received anti-tubercular treatment earlier. CONCLUSIONS Tropical sprue, celiac disease and Crohn's disease are common causes of MAS in Indian adults. Inappropriate anti-tubercular treatment is common in them and needs to be discouraged.
Familial associations of rheumatoid arthritis with autoimmune diseases and related conditions.

OBJECTIVE In the era of genome-wide association studies, familial risks are used to estimate disease heritability and the likelihood of candidate-gene identification. This study was undertaken to estimate associations of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) with any of 33 autoimmune diseases and related conditions among parents and offspring, singleton siblings, twins, and spouses. METHODS The Multigeneration Register in Sweden was used as a reliable source of information on Swedish families throughout the last century. Data on autoimmune diseases in individual family members were obtained through linkage to the Hospital Discharge Register. The standardized incidence ratio (SIR) was calculated as a measure of the relative risk of RA in family members of patients with RA or any of 33 other autoimmune diseases or related conditions, as compared with the relative risk of RA in those lacking an affected family member. RESULTS Among a total of 447,704 patients, 47,361 were diagnosed as having RA. The SIRs for RA were 3.02 in offspring of affected parents, 4.64 in siblings, 9.31 in multiplex families, 6.48 in twins, and 1.17 in spouses. Significant associations with the familial risk of RA in offspring according to parental proband were observed for ankylosing spondylitis (SIR 2.96), localized scleroderma (SIR 2.40), Sjögren's syndrome (SIR 2.25), systemic lupus erythematosus (SIR 2.13), systemic sclerosis (SIR 1.65), Hashimoto thyroiditis/hypothyroidism (SIR 1.54), pernicious anemia (SIR 1.53), sarcoidosis (SIR 1.40), psoriasis (SIR 1.36), Wegener's granulomatosis (SIR 1.34), and asthma or polymyalgia rheumatica (SIR 1.32). CONCLUSION This is the first study to compare the familial risks of RA in relation to a large number of autoimmune diseases and related conditions using data from a single population. The high discordant familial risks in this population suggest that there is extensive genetic sharing between RA and the associated diseases.
Disruption of KEAP1/CUL3/RBX1 E3‐ubiquitin ligase complex components by multiple genetic mechanisms: Association with poor prognosis in head and neck cancer

The NRF2 pathway has multiple pro‐tumorigenic functions, and Nrf2 levels are increased in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). The KEAP1/CUL3/RBX1 E3‐ubiquitin ligase complex is a negative regulator of NRF2. In this study, we investigated mechanisms of disruption of individual complex components.
An Optimization Technique Based on Profit of Investment and Market Clearing in Wind Power Systems

Recently, renewable energies are widely used instead of the fuel energies due to their individual potentials such as its availability, low price and environmentally friendly. One of the most important renewable energies is wind power. As a result, investment in wind power is one of the most interesting research to maximize the profit of the investment and market clearing. In this paper, bi-level optimization technique is proposed to maximize the investment problem and market clearing for the wind power at the same time and in one single problem. Then, karush–kuhn–tucker (KKT) conditions and mathematical programming with equilibrium constraints (MPEC) are applied and tried to find one level optimization problem. Due to the nonlinearity of the optimization equation, the Fortuny-Amat & McCarl (FM) linearization technique is used to linearize the model. Finally, the proposed technique is applied to the IEEE 24 buses. The result proves that the optimization analysis is very easy, fast and accurate due to the linear characteristic of the system. All the simulation results are carried out in MATLAB and GAMS softwares.
Supply chain fragmentation, input–output tables and spillovers from foreign direct investment

ABSTRACT The literature on the impact of multinationals on domestic firms' productivity points to supply chain linkages with multinational firms as the main channel for positive spillover effects. Local and multinational firms' relative positions in the supply chain are typically determined through the use of input–output tables. For a panel of Romanian firms, we show that the level of industry aggregation in these tables and the applied spillover definitions bear an important impact on estimated spillover effects. We find that the total impact of foreign presence – irrespective of the channel – is considerably larger when detailed IO-tables are used. When more aggregated tables are used, one is likely to misclassify a considerable number of supplier–client activity as within-industry competitive activity. Including within-industry supply and use in the measures of supplier–client activity results in a further increase of the spillover effect on local suppliers, whereas the within-industry spillover effect disappears.
Mental Health Issues and Work: Institutional Practices of Silence in a Mental Healthcare Organization

Over the past decade, mental illness in the workplace has become a key issue in the health and business communities, fueled in part by recognition of the high prevalence rates and significant costs for individuals and organizations. Although research in the field is starting to emerge, there are significant gaps in what is known, particularly with respect to the workplace context and its impact on workers. The overall objective of this study was to characterize, from a sociological perspective, the experiences of healthcare workers with mental health issues, and to account for how their experiences were shaped by the social relations of work. A qualitative approach, based on principles of institutional ethnography, guided exploration of the interactional, structural and discursive dimensions of work within a large mental health and addictions treatment facility. Data collection included in-depth interviews with twenty employees regarding their personal experiences with mental health issues, interviews with twelve workplace stakeholders regarding their interactions with workers, and a review of organizational texts related to health, illness and productivity. Analysis of the transcripts and texts was based on an institutional ethnography approach to mapping social processes; examining connections between local sites of experience and the social organization of work. The study findings revealed a critical disjuncture between the public mandate of advocacy, open dialogue, and support regarding mental health issues, and the private experience of workers which was characterized by silence, secrecy and inaction. Practices of silence were
Model-Robust Factorial Designs

In industrial experimentation, experimental designs are frequently constructed to estimate all main effects and a few prespecified interactions. The robust-product-design literature is replete with such examples. A major limitation of this approach is the requirement that the experimenter know which interactions are likely to be active in advance. In this article, we develop a class of balanced designs that can be used for estimation of main effects and any combination of up to CJin teractions, where g is specified by the user. We view this as an issue of model-robust design: We construct designs that are highly efficient for all models involving main effects and g (or fewer) interactions. We compare the performances of these designs with the standard alternatives from the class of maximum-resolution fractional factorial designs for several criteria. The comparison reveals that the new designs are surprisingly robust to model misspecification, something that is generally not true for maximum-resolution fractional factorial designs. This robustness comes at a price: The new designs are frequently not orthogonal. We demonstrate, however, that the loss of orthogonality is, in general, quite small.
Energetics of assembling an artificial heterodimer with an alpha/beta motif: cleaved versus uncleaved Escherichia coli thioredoxin.

We have studied the folding/binding process between the N- and C-fragments (1-73, 74-108) of oxidized Escherichia coli thioredoxin (Trx) to compare the energetics between the cleaved and uncleaved Trx. Sedimentation equilibrium analysis in 0.1 M potassium phosphate, pH 5.7, shows (i) the strong and weak self-association of the N- and C-fragments, respectively, (ii) a heterodimer with a small dissociation constant (K(d)) ca. 100 nM, and (iii) monomeric Trx. To avoid self-association, measurements were carried out in 10 mM potassium phosphate, pH 5.7. Far-UV CD spectra of the fragments at variable temperature show an isodichroic point at 208 nm and a non-cooperative cold induced disordering transition without concentration dependence. Deconvolution of these spectra indicates the presence of residual structure. Titration of the N-fragment with an excess of C-fragment indicates a 1:1 stoichiometric complex with an apparent K(d) ca. 49 nM. Analysis of this complex by CD and hydrogen exchange/2D-NMR (Tasayco and Chao (1995) Proteins: Struct. , Funct. , Genet. 22, 41-44) spectroscopy indicates the reassembly of the alpha/beta motif of Trx. GnHCl induced unfolding measurements give DeltaG(0) values of 9.5 +/- 0.2 and 10.0 +/- 0.4 kcal/mol at 20 degrees C for the uncleaved and cleaved Trx, respectively. The far-UV CD melting curve of uncleaved Trx indicates an intriguing non-cooperative upward baseline trend. CCA analysis of these spectra indicates the presence of a native-like folded intermediate. A three-state thermodynamic analysis of the thermal transition curves gives a total DeltaH(0) of unfolding of 121 +/- 4 kcal/mol at the T(m) (88 degrees C), while the two-state analysis for cleaved Trx gives 122 +/- 6 kcal/mol at 88 degrees C. Analysis of the chemical and thermal unfolding of both proteins indicates a value of ca. 1 M for the apparent effective concentration (C(eff)) of cleaved Trx.
The impact of financial histories on individuals and societies: A replication and extension of Berg et. al.

Abstract We replicate and extend the social history treatment of the Berg, Dickhaut, and McCabe (1995) investment game, to further document how the reporting of financial history influences how laboratory societies organize themselves over time. We replicate Berg et al. (1995) by conducting a No History and a Financial History session to determine whether a report summarizing the financial transactions of a previous experimental session will significantly reduce entropy in the amounts sent by Investors and returned by Stewards in the investment game, as Berg et al. (1995) found. We extend Berg et al. (1995) in two ways. First, we conduct a total of five sessions (one No History and four Financial History sessions). Second, we introduce Shannon’s (1948) measure of entropy from information theory to assess whether the introduction of financial transaction history reduces the amount of dispersion in the amounts invested and returned across generations of players. Results across sessions indicate that entropy declined in both the amounts sent by Investors and the percentage returned by Stewards, but these patterns are weaker and mixed compared to those in the Berg et al. (1995) study. Additional research is needed to test how initial conditions, path dependencies, actors’ strategic reasoning about others’ behavior, multiple sessions, and communication may mediate the impact of financial history. The study’s multiple successive Financial History sessions and entropy measure are new to the investment game literature.
Segmenting and Counting of Wall-Pasted Cells Based on Gabor Filter

Correctly counting the live cells plays a great role in the ectogenetic anti-virus experiment. According to the irregular shape and arbitrary size of the wall pasted Hela cells overlapping each other, we propose a scheme to segment and count the cells using Gabor filter with different parameters and morphological operation. Experiments reveal that filters with different parameters will lead to different results and a better segmentation will be achieved based on the characteristics of cells and optimal parameters. Large amount of experiment results show that this algorithm can successfully segment the cells and the accuracy arrives at 99.3%. This scheme based on image analysis and pattern recognition can overcome some disadvantages of traditional approaches, shortening anti-virus experimental period and reducing experimental cost