Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Managing poor responders in IVF

Managing poor responders in IVF is a significant challenge for fertility specialists. Several ovarian reserve tests have been developed to predict poor response. These include serum basal follicle-stimulating hormone and estradiol levels, as well as, more recently, anti-Mullerian hormone. Sonographic assessment of ovarian reserve has also been employed including ovarian volume and antral follicle count. However, the most accurate predictor of a poor response cycle is a history of poor response to gonadotropins. This review defines and details the various regimens applied to poor responders over the past several decades of assisted reproduction. In the ‘Expert commentary’, the authors review the published literature on each protocol and offer our opinion. In the ‘Five-year view’, the authors suggest the direction that the management of poor responders is heading for autologous, as well as oocyte donation. The authors hope this will be a valuable resource to our colleagues for managing infertile patients wi.
Clopidogrel Attenuates Coated-platelet Production in Patients Undergoing Elective Coronary Catheterization

Introduction: Coated-platelets are a subclass of highly thrombotic activated platelets with an enhanced ability to generate thrombin. Excessive numbers of coated-platelets are believed to increase thrombotic risk. A previous report demonstrated that P2Y12 inhibition in vitro attenuates coated-platelet formation. The aim of this study was to determine the effect clopidogrel has on coated-platelet formation. Methods and Results: We enrolled 27 patients undergoing elective coronary angiography. A total of 3 blood samples were taken from eligible patients: baseline, 24-hour postclopidogrel (preangiography), and 6-hour postangiography. Coated-platelet levels, expressed as percentage of total platelets, were determined with convulxin and thrombin with or without 1.5 or 6 μM adenosine diphosphate (ADP). Baseline levels of coated-platelets were 40.0% ± 14.3% (mean ± 1SD). After clopidogrel exposure, the coated-platelet level was 32.8% ± 13.6%, representing a significant 7.2% absolute reduction (AR) (17.8% relative reduction (RR); P < 0.0001). Clopidogrel significantly lowered the convulxin, thrombin plus ADP coated-platelet production (11.0% AR; 20.1% RR for 1.5 μM and 11.2% AR; 19.1% RR for 6 μM). Conclusions: This is the first report on the impact of in vivo administration of a P2Y12 antagonist on coated-platelet formation. The significance of a partial attenuation in coated-platelet potential has yet to be determined, but this could represent a new antithrombotic mechanism of clopidogrel beyond inhibition of ADP-induced aggregation.
Effect of 3-Thienylalanine-Ornithine-Proline, New Sulfur-containing Angiotensin-converting Enzyme Inhibitor on Blood Pressure and Oxidative Stress in Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats

Sulfur-containing angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors have an edge over other inhibitors in improving endothelial dysfunction and reducing oxidative stress. In this study, effect of new sulfur-containing ACE inhibitor, 3-thienylalanine-ornithine-proline (TOP), was studied on blood pressure (BP) and oxidative stress in Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats (SHRs). Acute oral administration of 5 mg/kg of TOP significantly lowered systolic blood pressure for longer periods (18 ± 0.5 hours, P < 0.05 vs. 16 ± 0.5 hours) than captopril (20 mg/kg). Thiophene ring of TOP is devoid of free sulfur and may avoid early oxidation resulting in longer duration of action. Chronic oral administration of TOP (5 mg/kg twice a day) for 7 days lowered BP from 189.1 ± 2.5 to 161.7 ± 2.6 mm Hg (P < 0.05), decreased the ACE activity, and increased the nitrite levels in various tissues (P < 0.05) and serum (P ≤ 0.001). Furthermore, TOP significantly increased antioxidants like superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione reductase, glutathione peroxidase, and glutathione and decreased lipid peroxidation product malondialdehyde significantly. Furthermore, TOP scavenges more free radicals than captopril in pyrogallol auto-oxidation and deoxyribose method. Unlike free sulfur of captopril, thiophene ring may act as a free radical scavenger besides chelating the Zn present in the active site of ACE.
Nurse Staffing in California Hospitals 1998-2000: Findings from the California Nursing Outcome Coalition Database Project

This article describes nurse staffing in 330 critical care, medical surgical, and step-down units in 52 acute care California hospitals that was reported over nine quarters between April 1998 and June 2000. These data, representing more than 3 million patient days of care, comprise the largest prospective descriptive sample of nurse staffing, using standardized indicators, reported to date. These data are especially timely as the profession, policy makers, and regulators in California and the nation respond to the legislative mandate to establish nurse-to-patient staffing ratios that ensure patient safety and develop methods to monitor the impact of ratios on the quality and outcomes of patient care. Findings reveal relative stability over the nine calendar quarters, no significant differences between groups of hospitals stratified by using average daily census to cluster by hospital size and wide variation in staffing across hospitals within the same unit type categories.
A Flexible Model for Association Analysis in Sibships with Missing Genotype Data

A common design in family‐based association studies consists of siblings without parents. Several methods have been proposed for analysis of sibship data, but they mostly do not allow for missing data, such as haplotype phase or untyped markers. On the other hand, general methods for nuclear families with missing data are computationally intensive when applied to sibships, since every family has missing parents that could have many possible genotypes. We propose a computationally efficient model for sibships by conditioning on the sets of alleles transmitted into the sibship by each parent. This means that the likelihood can be written only in terms of transmitted alleles and we do not have to sum over all possible untransmitted alleles when they cannot be deduced from the siblings. The model naturally accommodates missing data and admits standard theory of estimation, testing, and inclusion of covariates. Our model is quite robust to population stratification and can test for association in the presence of linkage. We show that our model has similar power to FBAT for single marker analysis and improved power for haplotype analysis. Compared to summing over all possible untransmitted alleles, we achieve similar power with considerable reductions in computation time.
Successful Aging Shows Linkage to Chromosomes 6, 7, and 14 in the Amish

Successful aging (SA) is a multidimensional phenotype involving preservation of cognitive ability, physical function, and social engagement throughout life. Multiple components of SA are heritable, supporting a genetic component. The Amish are genetically and socially isolated with homogeneous lifestyles, making them a suitable population for studying the genetics of SA. DNA and measures of SA were collected on 214 cognitively intact Amish individuals over age 80. Individuals were grouped into a 13‐generation pedigree using the Anabaptist Genealogy Database. A linkage screen of 5944 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) was performed using 12 informative subpedigrees with an affected‐only 2‐point and multipoint linkage analysis. Eleven SNPs produced 2‐point LOD scores >2, suggestive of linkage. Multipoint linkage analyses, allowing for heterogeneity, detected significant LOD scores on chromosomes 6 (HLOD = 4.50), 7 (LOD*= 3.11), and 14 (HLOD = 4.17), suggesting multiple new loci underlying SA.
A Replication Study of the IRS1, CAPN10, TCF7L2, and PPARG Gene Polymorphisms Associated with Type 2 Diabetes in Two Different Populations of Mexico

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is a chronic degenerative disease that involves the participation of several genetic and environmental factors. The objective of the study was to determine the association of the IRS1 (rs1801278), CAPN10 (rs3792267), TCF7L2 (rs7903146 and rs12255372), and PPARG (rs1801282) gene polymorphisms with T2D, in two different Mexican populations. We conducted a case‐control replication study in the state of Guerrero and in Mexico City, with 400 subjects from Guerrero and 1065 from Mexico City. Data were analyzed by logistic regression, adjusting by ancestry, age, gender, and BMI, to determine the association with T2D. Heterozygosity for the Gly972Arg variant of the IRS1 gene showed the strongest association for T2D in both analyzed samples (OR = 2.43, 95% CI 1.12–5.26 and 2.64, 95% CI 1.37–5.10, respectively). In addition, an association of two SNPs of the TCF7L2 gene with T2D was observed in both cities: rs7903146, (for Guerrero OR = 1.98 CI95% 1.02–3.89 and for Mexico OR = 1.94 CI95% 1.31–2.88) and rs12255372 (OR = 1.79 CI95% 1.08–2.97, OR = 1.78 CI95% 1.17–2.71 respectively). We suggest that our results provide strong evidence that variation in the IRS1 and TCF7L2 genes confers susceptibility to T2D in our studied populations.
Adenosine-A1 Receptors Activation Restores the Suppressed Cardioprotective Effects of Ischemic Preconditioning in Hyperhomocysteinemic Rat Hearts

Background: We have previously shown that the cardioprotective effect of ischemic preconditioning (IPC) is suppressed in hyperhomocysteinemic rat hearts. The present study investigated the effect of 2-chloro-N6-cyclopentyladenosine (CCPA), a selective adenosine-A1 receptor agonist, in hyperhomocysteinemia-induced attenuation of the cardioprotective effect of IPC. Methods: Rats were administered L-methionine (1.7 g/kg/day po) for 8 weeks to produce hyperhomocysteinemia. Isolated Langendorff perfused normal and hyperhomocysteinemic rat hearts were subjected to 30-minute global ischemia, followed by a 120-minute reperfusion. Myocardial infarct size was assessed macroscopically using triphenyltetrazolium chloride staining. Coronary effluent was analyzed for lactate dehydrogenase and CK-MB release to assess the extent of cardiac injury. The oxidative stress in the heart was assessed by measuring thiobarbituric acid reactive substance and reduced form of glutathione. Results: Ischemia and reperfusion (I/R) produced myocardial injury by increasing myocardial infarct size, elevating lactate dehydrogenase and CK-MB release in coronary effluent, decreasing coronary flow rate, and inducing oxidative stress in normal and hyperhomocysteinemic rat hearts. The hyperhomocysteinemic rat hearts showed enhanced I/R-induced myocardial injury with high oxidative stress. The IPC afforded cardioprotection against I/R-induced myocardial injury in normal rat hearts. However, IPC-mediated myocardial protection against I/R injury was abolished in hyperhomocysteinemic rat hearts. Administration of CCPA did not alter the cardioprotective effect of IPC in normal rat hearts, but its administration markedly restored the cardioprotective effect of IPC in hyperhomocysteinemic rat hearts. Conclusion: It may be concluded that the activation of adenosine-A1 receptors using CCPA markedly restored the suppressed cardioprotective and infarct size-limiting effects of IPC in hyperhomocysteinemic rat hearts. Thus, the reduced availability of extracellular adenosine and impaired activation of adenosine-A1 receptors may be responsible for abolishing the cardioprotective potential of IPC against I/R-induced myocardial injury in hyperhomocysteinemic rat hearts.
Comparison of Elimination and Cardiovascular Effects of Adenine Nucleosides Administered Intrapericardially or Intravenously in Anesthetized Dog

Intrapericardial (IP) administration of certain cardioactive agents allows investigation of local pharmacological actions on the heart and may carry potential benefit to influence myocardial function. The cardioprotective adenosine (ADO) and inosine (INO) may be the most representative candidates. Elimination and cardiovascular effects of IP and intravenously (IV) applied ADO and INO were compared on anesthetized dogs. Their pericardial and systemic concentrations were measured after consecutive administration of increasing ADO and INO doses. In the case of IP administration at the end of the incubation period, pericardial concentrations of adenine nucleosides significantly exceeded the control values. However, the IV applied ADO and INO were rapidly metabolized in the systemic plasma. As characteristic hemodynamic effects, small but sustained decrease in heart rate (IP ADO) and increase in myocardial contractility (IP INO) were observed. During IV administration, ADO and INO exerted remarkable effects on all hemodynamic variables, which then gradually disappeared in 15 minutes. In summary, the elimination of ADO and INO was significantly slower in the pericardial fluid than in the plasma. Considering the balanced cardiac actions and lack of strong systemic hemodynamic effects, IP administration of adenine nucleosides may suggest a promising approach in the local treatment of the diseased heart.
Application of the limited strength model of self-regulation to understanding exercise effort, planning and adherence

The limited strength model posits that self-regulatory strength is a finite, renewable resource that is drained when people attempt to regulate their emotions, thoughts or behaviours. The purpose of this study was to determine whether self-regulatory depletion can explain lapses in exercise effort, planning and adherence. In a lab-based experiment, participants exposed to a self-regulatory depletion manipulation generated lower levels of work during a 10 min bicycling task, and planned to exert less effort during an upcoming exercise bout, compared with control participants. The magnitude of reduction in planned exercise effort predicted exercise adherence over a subsequent 8-week period. Together, these results suggest that self-regulatory depletion can influence exercise effort, planning and decision-making and that the depletion of self-regulatory resources can explain episodes of exercise non-adherence both in the lab and in everyday life.
Attitude of Basic Science Medical Students towards Post Graduation in Medicine and Surgery: A Questionnaire based Cross-sectional Study from Western Region of Nepal

Background Career choice of medical students plays a vital role for health care system of a country. It also plays a crucial role to bring medical specialties into mainstream focus. Materials and Method A cross-sectional, questionnaire-based study has been performed at Manipal College of Medical Sciences, during the period of 1 st May to 31 st August–2011. A self reported questionnaire was given to the undergraduate medical students of Basic sciences. Questionnaire included career choices, nature of career, reason for choice, and education level and occupation in their parents. Results Data was collected from 269 medical students, among them 145 males and 124 female students participated in the study. The mean age of Indian (85, 31.6%), Nepalese (110, 40.9%) and Sri Lankan (74, 27.5%) students were 18.3 ± SD 0.7, 18.6 ± SD 0.8 and 18.0 ± SD 1.5 years respectively. Education and Occupation of parents seems to influence the determination of career choice in case of Medical students (p<0.01). Females have 2.19 times preference of choosing Medicine and 0.22 times Surgery compared to males (p<0.01). In case of Nepali male students, Surgery (60.3%) was the most preferred Postgraduate subject followed by medicine (20.6%) and in female students, medicine (44.7%) and OBG (31.9%). But in case of Indian male students 58.0% & 31.4% female students want to choose surgery as their career. 53.1% of the Sri-Lankan male students want to choose medicine as their post graduation and apart from these 50% of the female students also, which is followed by surgery 46.9% (male) and 21.4% (female) respectively. Conclusion Our study supports that Post-graduation in clinical specialties is always preferred over Basic sciences due to more interaction with patients and the practical aspects of medical profession. The relatively less popularity of some streams may show long-term impact on the health of health system of Nepal. Medical Universities have to modify their academic intervention activities to improve the basic science teaching learning programme in Nepal to turn around the deficiency of post graduates in this stream. http://dx.doi. org/10.3126/nje.v1i4. 5754 Nepal Journal of Epidemiology 2011;1(4):126-134
‘Them’ and ‘us’: The experiences of women with metastatic disease in mixed-stage versus stage-specific breast cancer support groups

The objective of this study was to explore the experiences of women with metastatic breast cancer (MBC) in mixed-stage and stage-specific groups. Interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) was used to examine 15 interviews from eight women with MBC. The interviewees felt that their experiences were very much different from those of women with primary breast cancer (BC), because of their different prognoses. In mixed-stage groups, the interviewees described feeling silenced, marginalised and helpless. They did not receive support in these groups because survivors of primary BC are often afraid to face the idea of metastasis. In stage-specific MBC groups, on the other hand, women were able to talk openly and were understood by others with whom they identified. They became more informed about issues related to their illness. Seeing others living well despite MBC made them feel more hopeful. Although there are some disadvantages of participating in stage-specific groups, the findings suggest that, overall, stage-specific groups are more helpful to women with MBC than mixed-stage groups. These findings have implications for the provision of group support for this population.
When ‘fit’ leads to fit, and when ‘fit’ leads to fat: How message framing and intrinsic vs. extrinsic exercise outcomes interact in promoting physical activity

A unique aspect of exercise is that people may choose to engage in it to achieve a variety of outcomes, ranging from extrinsic (appearance, health) to intrinsic (satisfaction, enjoyment). We examined how the impact of gain- vs. loss-framed messages depends on the type of outcome emphasised. Drawing from regulatory focus theory (Higgins, E.T. (1997). Beyond pleasure and pain. American Psychologist, 52, 1280–1300; Higgins, E.T. (2000). Making a good decision: Value from fit. American Psychologist, 55, 1217–1230), we predicted that gain-framed messages would ‘fit’ with intrinsic outcomes and loss-framed messages would ‘fit’ with extrinsic outcomes, but the effect of such fit on physical activity would depend on the participants’ need for cognition (NC). We tested these hypotheses with a sample of 176 sedentary young adults who read an exercise message with randomly assigned frame (gain/loss) and outcome (intrinsic/extrinsic). Participants provided daily reports of exercise over the following week. The predicted interaction between frame, outcome and NC was found (p = 0.001) such that a ‘fit’ message promoted somewhat, but not significantly, greater exercise for those with high NC, but a ‘non-fit’ message promoted significantly greater exercise for those with low NC. Furthermore, differences in physical activity were partially mediated by attitudes towards exercise. Findings shed light on how the outcomes and motivations associated with physical activity shape people's behavioural responses to framed health communications.
Changing exercise through targeting affective or cognitive attitudes

Two studies investigated the impact of affective and cognitive messages compared to a no-message control on self-reported exercise. Students (Study 1, N = 383 and Study 2, N = 197) were randomly allocated to one of the three conditions (control – no message, affective message or cognitive message). Participants completed questionnaire measures tapping components of the theory of planned behaviour in relation to exercise and reported their level of exercise (3 weeks later). In Study 2, measures of need for affect (NFA) and need for cognition (NFC) were also completed. Results showed that affective messages consistently produced greater increases in self-reported level of exercise than the other conditions. In both studies, this effect was partly mediated by affective attitude change. Study 2 indicated these effects to be significantly stronger among those high in NFA or low in NFC. These findings indicate the value of affective messages that target affective attitudes in changing exercise behaviour.
Activation of Cannabinoid CB2 Receptor Ameliorates Atherosclerosis Associated With Suppression of Adhesion Molecules

Objective: Adhesion molecules have been implicated in the development and progression of atherosclerosis. Cannabinoids have been reported to modulate the migration and adhesion molecules expression of various cell types. Here we examined the effects of WIN55212-2, a cannabinoid receptor 1 (CB1-R)/cannabinoid receptor 2 (CB2-R) agonist on the development of atherosclerotic lesions in apolipoprotein E-deficient (ApoE-/-) mice, which are vulnerable because of their high plasma cholesterol and triacylglycerol levels, focusing on the expression of endothelial adhesion molecules. Methods and Results: In the aorta of ApoE-/- mice, WIN55212-2 significantly reduced aortic root plaque area. The mechanism for this seemed to be reduced infiltration of macrophages into the atherosclerotic plaque which was also associated with reduced expression of vascular cellular adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1), intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1), and P-selectin in the aorta. In vitro studies revealed reduced cell adhesion of a monocytic cell line (U937) to human umbilical vein endothelial cells after incubation with WIN55212-2. The reduction in macrophage adhesion also correlated with significant reductions in the expression of VCAM-1, ICAM-1, and P-selectin, indicating that reduced infiltration of macrophages in atherosclerotic plaques may occur as a result of the direct effect of WIN55212-2 on adhesion molecules in macrophages and endothelial cells. Conclusion: In conclusion, WIN55212-2 seems to have direct anti-atherosclerotic effects in an animal model of atherosclerosis. These effects were at least partly due to effects on the expression of VCAM-1, ICAM-1, and P-selectin, which led to reduced macrophage adhesion and infiltration. Furthermore, the protective effects completely blocked by the highly selective CB2 receptor antagonist AM630 suggest that these beneficial effects of WIN55212-2 may be mediated through the CB2 receptor.
Sexual selection and animal personality

Consistent individual behavioural tendencies, termed “personalities”, have been identified in a wide range of animals. Functional explanations for personality have been proposed, but as yet, very little consideration has been given to a possible role for sexual selection in maintaining differences in personality and its stability within individuals. We provide an overview of the available literature on the role of personality traits in intrasexual competition and mate choice in both human and non‐human animals and integrate this into a framework for considering how sexual selection can generate and maintain personality. For this, we consider the evolution and maintenance of both main aspects of animal personality: inter‐individual variation and intra‐individual consistency.