Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Haematological Abnormalities in Early Abstinent Alcoholics Are Closely Associated with Alterations in Thrombopoietin and Erythropoietin Serum Profiles

Summary Numerous reports exist on haematological pathology in alcoholism. However, no data are available regarding a potential involvement of haematopoietic growth factors in the recovery from alcohol-induced haematological abnormalities upon abstinence. Therefore, thrombopoietin (TPO) and erythropoietin (EPO) serum levels along with haematological and other routine laboratory parameters were closely followed in 14 thoroughly characterized male alcoholic patients over one to five months of controlled abstention from alcohol. Haematological changes in these early abstinent alcoholics consisted predominantly of (a) the well known rebound surge of platelets, (b) an early reticulocyte peak, and (c) persistently low haematocrit levels over months without signs of recovery. Observations on EPO and TPO during early abstinence can be summarized as follows: (1) Increased TPO levels precede the rebound thrombocytosis by several days, (2) both EPO and TPO concentrations are higher in anaemic than in nonanaemic alcoholics, with (3) nonanaemic subjects exhibiting levels of TPO in the range of healthy controls but levels of EPO below controls and (4) TPO concentrations show a stronger correlation with initial haematocrit values than with thrombocyte counts. To conclude, haematological recovery in early alcohol abstinence appears to be, at least in part, growth factor-driven, involving both TPO and EPO, and may reflect an intense interaction of erythro- and thrombopoiesis.
New light on old shoulders: palaeopathological patterns of arthropathy and enthesopathy in the shoulder complex

Rotator cuff disease represents the most common cause of modern shoulder pain and disability. Much of the clinical literature on rotator cuff disease focuses on subacromial impingement and supraspinatus tendinopathy, although other patterns of lesions are also recognised. Rotator cuff disease has received relatively little attention in palaeopathological literature, but signs relating to subacromial impingement have been reported. Given the variety and patterns of lesions that are recognized clinically as rotator cuff disease, this study aimed to investigate whether a similarly wide range of lesions could be identified in human skeletal remains. Degenerative changes in surfaces around the shoulder were recorded in a sample of 86 skeletons. The resultant data were assessed using both simple descriptive statistics and exploratory factor analysis. Degenerative changes characteristic of modern subacromial impingement formed a minor underlying pattern in the data. The predominant underlying variable in the data represented an association between lesser tuberosity, bicipital sulcus and glenohumeral degenerative changes. This pattern reflects recent reports in the clinical literature highlighting the prevalence of subscapularis tendinopathy, and also supports a pathoaetiological model of progression from subscapularis to long head of biceps to glenohumeral involvement. The degenerative changes seen at the non‐articular, fibrocartilaginous entheses on the humeral tuberosities were similar to those seen in subchondral bone in osteoarthritis.
An Efficient MoM Formulation for the Evaluation of the Shielding Effectiveness of Rectangular Enclosures With Thin and Thick Apertures

A detailed analysis of the effects of finite-thickness apertures on the shielding properties of a rectangular metallic box is carried out through an efficient full-wave code based on the method of moments in the spatial domain. An incident plane wave having arbitrary polarization and incidence angle is assumed as a field source. The evaluation of the cavity Green function is accelerated by an application of the Ewald sum technique with a novel Ewald splitting parameter valid for high frequencies, and a recently proposed integral-equation-based approximate model of the aperture thickness is also applied. Numerical results are validated by comparisons with those obtained by means of commercial codes based on different numerical approaches and show rigorously that the effects of a finite thickness can usually be neglected (at least, at sufficiently low frequencies), with the noticeable exception of long slots. The effects of common limiting assumptions adopted in the study of enclosures with zero-thickness apertures are also investigated.
Plasma membrane delivery, endocytosis and turnover of transcobalamin receptor in polarized human intestinal epithelial cells

Cells that are metabolically active and in a high degree of differentiation and proliferation require cobalamin (Cbl: vitamin B12) and they obtain it from the circulation bound to transcobalamin (TC) via the transcobalamin receptor (TC‐R). This study has investigated the plasma membrane dynamics of TC‐R expression in polarized human intestinal epithelial Caco‐2 cells using techniques of pulse‐chase labelling, domain‐specific biotinylation and cell fractionation. Endogenously synthesized TC‐R turned over with a half‐life (T1/2) of 8 h following its delivery to the basolateral plasma membrane (BLM). The T1/2 of BLM delivery was 15 min and TC‐R delivered to the BLM was endocytosed and subsequently degraded by leupeptin‐sensitive proteases. However, about 15% of TC‐R endocytosed from the BLM was transcytosed (T1/2, 45 min) to the apical membranes (BBM) where it underwent endocytosis and was degraded. TC‐R delivery to both BLM and BBM was inhibited by Brefeldin A and tunicamycin, but not by wortmannin or leupeptin. Colchicine inhibited TC‐R delivery to BBM, but not BLM. At steady state, apical TC‐R was associated with megalin and both these proteins were enriched in an intracellular compartment which also contained Rab5 and transferrin receptor. These results indicate that following rapid delivery to both plasma membrane domains of Caco‐2 cells, TC‐R undergoes constitutive endocytosis and degradation by leupeptin‐sensitive proteases. TC‐R expressed in apical BBM complexes with megalin during its transcytosis from the BLM.
Clinical review: Effect of vitamin D3 supplementation on improving glucose homeostasis and preventing diabetes: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

CONTEXT Observational studies report consistent associations between low vitamin D concentration and increased glycemia and risk of type 2 diabetes, but results of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) are mixed. OBJECTIVE The objective of the study was to systematically review RCTs that report on the effects of vitamin D supplementation on glucose homeostasis or diabetes prevention. DATA SOURCES Sources of data for the study were MEDLINE, EMBASE, SCOPUS, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects, Health Technology Assessment, and Science Citation Index from inception to June 2013. STUDY SELECTION Study selection was trials that compared vitamin D3 supplementation with placebo or a non-vitamin D supplement in adults with normal glucose tolerance, prediabetes, or type 2 diabetes. DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS Two reviewers collected data and assessed trial quality using the Cochrane Risk of Bias tool. Random-effects models were used to estimate mean differences (MDs) and odds ratios. The main outcomes of interest were homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance, homeostasis model assessment of β-cell function, hemoglobin A1c levels, fasting blood glucose, incident diabetes, and adverse events. DATA SYNTHESIS Thirty-five trials (43 407 patients) with variable risk of bias were included. Vitamin D had no significant effects on insulin resistance [homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance: MD -0.04; 95% confidence interval (CI) -0.30 to 0.22, I-squared statistic (I(2)) = 45%], insulin secretion (homeostasis model of β-cell function: MD 1.64; 95% CI -25.94 to 29.22, I(2) = 40%), or hemoglobin A1c (MD -0.05%; 95% CI -0.12 to 0.03, I(2) = 55%) compared with controls. Four RCTs reported on the progression to new diabetes and found no effect of vitamin D (odds ratio 1.02; 95% CI 0.94 to 1.10, I(2) = 0%). Adverse events were rare, and there was no evidence of publication bias. CONCLUSIONS Evidence from available trials shows no effect of vitamin D3 supplementation on glucose homeostasis or diabetes prevention. Definitive conclusions may be limited in the context of the moderate degree of heterogeneity, variable risk of bias, and short-term follow-up duration of the available evidence to date.
Stock returns and interest rates in China: the prequential approach

ABSTRACT This article aims to study whether interest rates help to forecast stock returns in China using the prequential approach. A bivariate VAR model and a univariate autoregressive model are examined. Out-of-sample probability forecasts, generated based on both a bootstrap-like simulation method and a nonparametric kernel-based simulation method, are evaluated from both calibration (reliability) and sorting (resolution) perspectives. The results from calibration test indicate that including interest rates in the model improves the model’s ability to issue realistic probability forecasts of stock returns (be well-calibrated). Considering stock returns also enhances the prediction of interest rates with respect to calibration. Assessment through Brier score and Yates partition suggests that the model performs better in distinguishing stock returns that actually occur and stock returns that do not occur after incorporating the influence of interest rates. Overall, interest rates help in forecasting stock returns in China in terms of both calibration and sorting.
Morphological, Biochemical, and Flow Cytometric Assays of Apoptosis

As programmed cell death (PCD), or apoptosis, has emerged as an important regulator of development and homeostasis in multicellular organisms, methods to quantify apoptosis and to distinguish it from necrosis have been developed. Necrosis refers to the morphology usually associated with accidental cell death, while apoptosis is seen when cell death is programmed or physiologically regulated. This unit presents a set of assays for these purposes, many of which are technically very simple. Featured in this unit is the TUNEL method of detecting cells that exhibit DNA fragmentation, which can also be performed on tissue sections to locate apoptotic cells in situ.
Safety of lopinavir/ritonavir for the treatment of HIV-infection

Kaletra®, a fixed-dose co-formulation of lopinavir/ritonavir, was the first boosted protease inhibitor developed for the treatment of HIV-infection. In September 2000, the US FDA granted Kaletra® fast-track approval as data showed a higher efficacy in the treatment of HIV-infection than standard protease inhibitors of that time. Although potency was of major concern in the early years of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), presently, with the perspective of HIV-infection becoming a chronic but well controllable disease, other issues begin to draw increased attention in the long-term management of HIV-infected patients. Among general health issues such as cardiovascular disease, metabolic disorders or hepatitis co-infection, the long-term toxicity and safety of HAART is an important concern when choosing antiretroviral drugs for each individual patient. In this review, the authors report on the safety of lopinavir/ritonavir in the treatment of HIV-infected patients, and focus on special patient groups and relevant safety issues.
Analyses of RANK and RANKL in the Post‐GWAS Context: Functional Evidence of Vitamin D Stimulation Through a RANKL Distal Region

Over the past decade, many genome‐wide association studies (GWAs) and meta‐analyses have identified genes and regions involved in osteoporotic phenotypes. Nevertheless, the large majority of these results were not tested at any functional level. GWA‐associated single‐nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) near candidate genes such as RANK and RANKL suggest that these SNPs and/or other variants nearby may be involved in bone phenotype determination. This study focuses on SNPs along these two genes, which encode proteins with a well‐established role in the bone remodeling equilibrium. Thirty‐three SNPs, chosen for their location in evolutionary conserved regions or replicated from previous studies, were genotyped in the BARCOS cohort of 1061 postmenopausal women and tested for association with osteoporotic phenotypes. SNP rs9594738, which lies 184 kb upstream of the RANKL gene, was the only SNP found to be associated with a bone phenotype (dominant model: beta coefficient = –0.034, p = 1.5 × 10−4, for lumbar spine bone mineral density). Functional experiments exploring a distal region (DR) of 831 bp that harbors this SNP in a centered position (nt 470) demonstrated its capacity to inhibit the RANKL promoter in reporter gene assays. Remarkably, this DR inhibition was significantly reduced in the presence of vitamin D. In conclusion, the GWA‐associated SNP rs9594738 lies in a region involved in transcription regulation through which vitamin D could be regulating RANKL expression and bone mineral density. © 2013 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.
The exercise renogram and its interpretation.

UNLABELLED The exercise renogram is a rarely used diagnostic procedure, but it may visualize an exercise-induced change in renal function related to the pathophysiology of essential hypertension, which could greatly increase interest in this examination. The aim of this study was to demonstrate the interpretative approach and the terminology which is used to describe results of exercise renography, using a population of hypertensives with renovascular disease. METHODS We reviewed the examinations of 70 hypertensives who had supine renography as well as exercise renography with a 60-80 W work load. Forty-eight patients were examined with 99mTc-MAG3 and 22 with 131I hippurate. The renographic and angiography results were recorded as well as the antihypertensive drugs used and the site of vascular lesions. RESULTS Thirty-three hypertensives developed a bilateral-abnormal exercise renogram, which appears to be associated with primary hypertension. Eight individuals responded to exercise with a unilateral-abnormal exercise renogram, in a kidney behind a stenosis. Only 19 patients had a normal exercise renogram, and 10 had only one functioning kidney. Pathology recognized but unrelated to the intervention included nonfunctioning and small kidneys and pelvic retention. CONCLUSION Exercise renography's only indication is for recognition of pathology unique to hypertension, since other function disturbances were recognized in resting renograms.
Cerebrovascular Risk Factors in Migraine with Prolonged Aura and Without Aura

The role of cerebrovascular risk factors such as mitral valve prolapse, platelet aggregation, platelet activation and cardiac arrythmias in migraine was investigated in a total of 44 migraineurs (32 migraineurs without aura and 12 with prolonged aura) and 32 controls. Comparing the total of migraineurs and the two subgroups with controls, mitral valve prolapse, a raised thromboxane B2 level, at least one platelet aggregation dysfunction or an abnormality in 24-h ECG was statistically seen no more often than in the control group. Neither did combinations of the variables occur more frequently. Altogether, this study showed no increased coincidence of migraine with prolonged aura and migraine without aura with the above parameters. The absence of cardiac and haematological abnormalities in migraine with prolonged aura focuses attention on the control of the cortical microcirculation.
Effects of recombinant human growth hormone therapy in adults with Prader–Willi syndrome: a meta‐analysis

Objective Prader–Willi syndrome (PWS) is associated with GH deficiency, deleterious changes in body composition and function. As the effects of recombinant human GH (rhGH) in PWS adults have not been well established, we sought to conduct a meta‐analysis of pertinent studies.
A double dissociation of subcortical hippocampal efferents for encoding and consolidation/retrieval of spatial information

CA3 lesions impair encoding, whereas CA1 lesions impair retrieval during learning of a Hebb‐Williams maze. CA3 efferents in the fimbria were transected, taking care to spare cholinergic and GABAergic afferents. CA1 efferents in the dorsal fornix were similarly transected. Fimbria transections, but not dorsal fornix transections, resulted in deficits for the encoding of spatial information during learning of a Hebb‐Williams maze. Dorsal fornix, but not fimbria, transections resulted in deficits for retrieval of spatial memory during learning of a Hebb‐Williams maze. These results reveal a double dissociation for the roles of CA3 and CA1 subcortical efferents in encoding and retrieval processes that mirror the double dissociation seen after excitotoxic lesions of CA1 and CA3. These data provide support for the theory that the cholinergic projections from the septal nuclei modulate the dynamics for encoding and consolidation/retrieval in the hippocampus. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Interactions of adenosine, prostaglandins and nitric oxide in hypoxia‐induced vasodilatation: in vivo and in vitro studies

Adenosine, prostaglandins (PG) and nitric oxide (NO) have all been implicated in hypoxia‐evoked vasodilatation. We investigated whether their actions are interdependent. In anaesthetised rats, the PG synthesis inhibitors diclofenac or indomethacin reduced muscle vasodilatation evoked by systemic hypoxia or adenosine, but not that evoked by iloprost, a stable analogue of prostacyclin (PGI2), or by an NO donor. After diclofenac, the A1 receptor agonist CCPA evoked no vasodilatation: we previously showed that A1, but not A2A, receptors mediate the hypoxia‐induced muscle vasodilatation. Further, in freshly excised rat aorta, adenosine evoked a release of NO, detected with an NO‐sensitive electrode, that was abolished by NO synthesis inhibition, or endothelium removal, and reduced by ≈50 % by the A1 antagonist DPCPX, the remainder being attenuated by the A2A antagonist ZM241385. Diclofenac reduced adenosine‐evoked NO release by ≈50 % under control conditions, abolished that evoked in the presence of ZM241385, but did not affect that evoked in the presence of DPCPX. Adenosine‐evoked NO release was also abolished by the adenyl cyclase inhibitor 2′,5′‐dideoxyadenosine, while dose‐dependent NO release was evoked by iloprost. Finally, stimulation of A1, but not A2A, receptors caused a release of PGI2 from rat aorta, assessed by radioimmunoassay of its stable metabolite, 6‐keto PGF1α, that was abolished by diclofenac. These results suggest that during systemic hypoxia, adenosine acts on endothelial A1 receptors to increase PG synthesis, thereby generating cAMP, which increases the synthesis and release of NO and causes muscle vasodilatation. This pathway may be important in other situations involving these autocoids.
Monographic studies in cassia (Leguminosae: Caesalpinioideae). IV. supplementary notes on section apoucouita Bentham

Supplementing the last revision (Irwin & Rogers, 1967) and reflecting ten years productive exploration in Brazil, these notes present a redefinition of the section, keys to all taxa, some of them newly modified in circumscription or rank, full synonymy, statements of range, and descriptions ofC. aspleniifolia (Espírito Santo),C. eitenorum (MaranhÃo to Bahia, 2 vars.),C. compitalis (s. Bahia) andC. boyanii (Territorio do Roraima), these raising the census of the section from 13 to 15 species.
Associations Between Reported Dietary Sodium Intake and Osteoporosis in Korean Postmenopausal Women: The 2008-2011 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

Osteoporosis is prevalent among postmenopausal women, and increasing evidence has linked salt intake with this disease. In this article, we explored the association between dietary sodium intake and osteoporosis in Korean postmenopausal women. We analyzed data for 3635 postmenopausal women extracted from the 2008-2011 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. We found that 1542 participants (42.4%) have osteoporosis. The adjusted prevalence rates of osteoporosis at the lumbar spine were significantly higher in participants who consumed ≥4001 mg of salt than those who consumed ≤2000 mg. At the femoral neck, rates were significantly higher for those who consumed ≥5001 mg compared with those who consumed ≤4000 mg. Participants with a higher sodium intake showed a significantly higher odds ratio of developing lumbar and femoral neck osteoporosis, compared with those with a lower intake. Our results suggest that excessive daily sodium intake is associated with a higher osteoporosis prevalence in Korean postmenopausal women.
>70% Power-Added-Efficiency Dual-Gate, Cascode GaN HEMTs Without Harmonic Tuning

We report the state-of-the-art performance of deep-submicrometer gate length dual-gate GaN HEMTs and cascode GaN HEMTs with 10× reduced gate-to-drain feedback capacitance compared with single-gate GaN HEMTs. With 150-nm gate length field-plated gate structures, these GaN HEMTs demonstrated improvement of small-signal gain by 10 dB, compared with single-gate GaN HEMTs. Large-signal load-pull measurements showed peak power-added-efficiency (PAE) of 71%-74% without harmonic tuning at 10 GHz, up to a measured continuous-wave output power level of 2.3-2.5 W. The 74% PAE is very close to a theoretical maximum PAE of 78.5% without harmonic tuning. Compared with single-gate GaN HEMTs, both the dual-gate and cascode GaN HEMTs offer~10% improvement in peak PAE at the output power of 2.3-2.5 W.
The Relationships of Brain Stem Systems to Their Targets in the Spinal Cord of the Eel, Anguilla anguilla

We have investigated the detail with which supraspinal neurons innervate different regions in the spinal cord. Horseradish peroxidase was applied at different levels of the cord: (1) to the cut surface; (2) injected iontophoretically into one side; or (3) into one of the motoneuron pools innervating different muscle compartments. In all cases, labeled neurons were found throughout the brain distributed over nuclear groups identified in previous fish studies. Some cells from all but one of the nuclei have axons that extend over the whole length of the cord and about 50% of all neurons project to post-anal levels. No topographical distribution relating somal position and target location was found. Sixty seven percent of the neurons send axons to the ipsilateral side of the cord, although most nuclear groups provide a bilateral projection. Nucleus ruber projects entirely contralaterally. The descending and magnocellular octavolateral nuclei, and the descending nucleus of the trigeminal nerve project entirely ipsilaterally. Neurons that project to the spinal motoneuron pools innervating the myotomal red- or white-muscle are distributed throughout the same brain stem nuclei, but the cell bodies of those neurons innervating white-muscle motoneurons are larger. Nineteen pairs of cells were found to be consistently identifiable and all project to all levels of the cord; they were only labeled from injections made into the white-muscle motoneuron pool.