Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Postprocedural hyperglycemia in ST elevation myocardial infarction submitted to percutaneous coronary intervention: a prognostic indicator and a marker of metabolic derangement

Background Hyperglycemia in acute coronary syndrome is associated with an increased risk of death in patients without previously known diabetes but the prognostic role of postrevascularization hyperglycemia in these patients is so far incompletely elucidated. Materials and methods In 175 consecutive patients without previously known diabetes and with ST elevation myocardial infarction treated with primary angioplasty, we evaluated the relation between acute and chronic glucose dysmetabolism and early and late mortality and the relation between hyperglycemia and extension of myocardial damage [creatine phosphokinase-MB (CPK-MB), troponin I levels, ejection fraction], inflammation (leukocyte count, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, C-reactive protein) and prognostic biohumoral markers [N-terminal brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) and lactic acid]. Results Highest glucose levels were associated with higher Killip class, lower ejection fraction and increased values of CPK, CPK-MB, troponin I, proBNP, lactic acid, leukocytes and insulin. At multivariate logistic regression analysis, the following variables were independent predictors of intraintensive cardiac care unit mortality: postprocedural glycemia [odds ratio (OR) 8.79; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.41–54.94; P = 0.020] and troponin I (OR 1.003; 95% CI 1.0004–1.006; P = 0.023) when adjusted for insulinemia [OR 0.98; 95% CI 0.92–1.06; P = not significant (NS)], HbA1c (OR 0.51; 95% CI 0.11–2.37; P = NS), ST elevation myocardial infarction location (OR 1.27; 95% CI 0.44–3.66; P = NS) and creatininemia (OR 1.48; 95% CI 0.90–2.45; P = NS). Conclusion In ST elevation myocardial infarction patients without previously known diabetes submitted to percutaneous coronary intervention, glucose serum levels measured after mechanical revascularization were independent predictors of in-hospital mortality.
Fast water currents reduce production performance of post-smolt Atlantic salmon Salmo salar

In the future, an increasing number of salmon farms may be located in areas with fast water current velocity due to limited availability of more sheltered locations. However, there is lit- tle information as to how fast currents affect fish health and welfare. We used raceways to expose Atlantic salmon post-smolts (98.6 g, 22.3 cm) to homogeneous water velocities corresponding to 0.2, 0.8 and 1.5 body lengths s �1 (slow, moderate and fast, respectively) over 6 wk. Fish at fast velocity had a 5% lower weight gain compared to fish at moderate and slow velocities, with a cor- responding reduction in length. Fish at moderate and fast velocities had lower lipid content in the muscle compared to fish at slow velocity. Hence, fish at slow and moderate velocities had the same weight gain, but fish at slow velocity gained more fat and fish at moderate velocity more muscle protein. Fish at fast velocity had a higher relative ventricular mass, indicating an increased cardiac workload. At slow velocity, individual fish displayed elevated plasma levels of lactate, osmolality and potassium. Our results suggest that post-smolts had the best growth and welfare at moderate velocity and that a current velocity of 1.5 body lengths s �1 could compromise production performance.
Validating the wheelchair outcome measure for residents in long-term care

Abstract Purpose: To determine the retest reliability and construct validity of the self-report and proxy versions of the wheelchair outcome measure (WhOM) among residents in long-term care. Method: The WhOM was administered to 55 wheelchair users living in residential care (38 self-respondents and 17 proxy respondents). Retest data were collected to estimate reliability using intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) for each of the tool scores (Importance, Satisfaction and Importance × Satisfaction). For construct validity testing, Spearman’s correlation coefficients were used to assess whether WhOM scores were correlated with scores from the Late Life Function and Disability Instrument (LLDI) and Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS). Results: The ICCs for the WhOM scores were between 0.68 and 0.84. Moderate correlations were found between the self-respondents and proxy respondents groups with Importance × Satisfaction and LLDI (r = 0.46–0.50). No other significant correlations were found. Conclusions: This study provides evidence for the reliability and validity of the WhOM for adults in residential care, but further testing is warranted to ensure it can facilitate prescription of the right device at the right time for residents in these settings. Implications for Rehabilitation Clients who reside in long-term care (LTC) institutions represent a population who have unique needs because of the varied types of activities in which they participate. This study provides support for use of the WhOM on an individual basis among self-responding residents. The study provides some support and use of the WhOM with groups of residents who require proxy respondents. Additional studies with a larger sample size are needed to further explore the psychometrics of the measure.
Modelling the health impact and cost-effectiveness of lymphatic filariasis eradication under varying levels of mass drug administration scale-up and geographic coverage

Background A global programme to eliminate lymphatic filariasis (GPELF) is underway, yet two key programmatic features are currently still lacking: (1) the extension of efforts to all lymphatic filariasis (LF) endemic countries, and (2) the expansion of geographic coverage of mass drug administration (MDA) within countries. For varying levels of scale-up of MDA, we assessed the health benefits and the incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs) associated with LF eradication, projected the potential savings due to decreased morbidity management needs, and estimated potential household productivity gains as a result of reduced LF-related morbidity. Methods We extended an LF transmission model to track hydrocele and lymphoedema incidence in order to obtain estimates of the disability adjusted life years (DALYs) averted due to scaling up MDA over a period of 50 years. We then estimated the ICERs and the cost-effectiveness acceptability curves associated with different rates of MDA scale-up. Health systems savings were estimated by considering the averted morbidity, treatment-seeking behaviour and morbidity management costs. Gains in worker productivity were estimated by multiplying estimated working days lost as a result of morbidity with country-specific per-worker agricultural wages. Results Our projections indicate that a massive scaling-up of MDA could lead to 4.38 million incremental DALYs averted over a 50-year time horizon compared to a scenario which mirrors current efforts against LF. In comparison to maintaining the current rate of progress against LF, massive scaling-up of MDA—pursuing LF eradication as soon as possible—was most likely to be cost-effective above a willingness to pay threshold of US$71.5/DALY averted. Intensified MDA scale-up was also associated with lower ICERs. Furthermore, this could result in health systems savings up to US$483 million. Extending coverage to all endemic areas could generate additional economic benefits through gains in worker productivity between US$3.4 and US$14.4 billion. Conclusions In addition to ethical and political motivations for scaling-up MDA rapidly, this analysis provides economic support for increasing the intensity of MDA programmes.
The Role of External Knowledge Sources and Organizational Design in the Process of Opportunity Exploitation

Research highlights the role of external knowledge sources in the recognition of strategic opportunities, but is less forthcoming with respect to the role of such sources during the process of exploiting or realizing opportunities. We build on the knowledge-based view to propose that realizing opportunities often involves significant interactions with external knowledge sources. Organizational design can facilitate a firm’s interactions with these sources, while achieving coordination among organizational members engaged in opportunity exploitation. Our analysis of a double-respondent survey involving 536 Danish firms shows that the use of external knowledge sources is positively associated with opportunity exploitation, but the strength of this association is significantly influenced by organizational designs that enable the firm to access external knowledge during the process of exploiting opportunities.
Effects of an expanded medical curriculum on the number of graduates practicing in a rural state

In 1973 the University of North Dakota School of Medicine (UNDSM), following the national trend toward four-year medical programs, expanded its previous two-year medical school curriculum to include all four years of medical education. It was hoped that this change, along with a renewed emphasis on primary care-oriented residency training within the state, would encourage medical students to establish practices within the state. In 1985 the UNDSM's Center for Rural Health mailed questionnaires to the 2,230 living graduates of the UNDSM to document a variety of their personal and practice characteristics. Based on the responses to the 924 completed questionnaires, the authors found that (1) the students from rural North Dakota were more likely than were urban students to practice in rural areas of the state, as were the students with primary care specialty training; and (2) the alumni completing residencies in North Dakota following the curriculum expansion (1976–1985) were more than twice as likely to establish practices in North Dakota. It was concluded that recruiting medical students (preferably in-state “natives”) from rural areas, training them in primary care specialty areas, and enabling them to remain in North Dakota for the duration of their medical training (including residency training) combined to exert a considerable “retaining” effect on the UNDSM alumni.
The relation of fasting and resting metabolic rates to heat tolerance in the domestic fowl.

Synopsis 1. Resting metabolic rate (RMR) and fasting metabolic rate (FMR) were periodically determined, using an open air circuit master system, from January to September in 10 White Leghorn, 10 Plymouth Rock and 20 New Hampshire × White Leghorn mature laying birds fed ad libitum. 2. The relationship of metabolic rate (l.O2/hr.) to body weight (kg.) in the pooled data followed the 0.795 W0.61 equation for the fasting level, and 0.916 W0.59 for the resting level. The expression of metabolic rates as litres oxygen per kg. body weight can lead to serious errors if birds of differing body weights are compared. 3. Heat increments of feeding (estimated by RMR‐FMR) gradually increased with rising environmental temperature, with only slight initial change in the FMR, followed by marked reductions in both the FMR and the RMR at the higher temperatures. It is suggested that a decrease in the FMR may allow for a reduction in the RMR in the hotter season, without this necessarily being linked with a depression in the.
Comparison of canine retraction by in vivo method using four brands of elastomeric power chain

Objective: To investigate the amount of space closure by movement of canines into the extraction spaces using four brands of elastomeric power chains (EPCs) by intraoral application with pre-adjusted appliance for 6 weeks. Materials and Methods: The sample size calculation was based on the studies of Boester and Johnston and also with repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) continuous data for force degradation, standard deviation of 24.9 g, and also from a pilot study, which totaled to around 17 patients with a mean age of 20 ± 2 years and receiving fixed orthodontic treatment that required retraction of canines into the premolar extraction spaces in all four dental arch quadrants. Four brands of EPCs, namely the Ormco, 3M Unitek, Rocky Mountain, and Highland, which were closed-link with five loops delivering less than or equal to 250 g were used. The rates of canine retraction were measured between the attachment points on the canine bracket hook and first molar hook using a Mitutoyo Digital Vernier Caliper at the time of first application, after 3 weeks of use, and at the end of 6 weeks of use, and were subjected to statistical calculations. Results: The distances recorded from canine retraction were similar with slight differences noticed in the four brands of EPCs. However, no statistically significant difference was observed in relation to the EPCs. Conclusion: Although all brands of the EPCs produced space closure of canines, it was observed that not much of a significant difference existed among the products tested.
WIP: Effectiveness of Worked Examples and Fading in Introductory Electrical Circuit Analysis for Learners of Different Ability Levels

This paper reports on work in progress to examine and improve the effectiveness of instructional sequences containing worked examples and fading solution steps in the domain of introductory electrical circuit analysis. We pay close attention to the ability levels of the learners, which have not been considered in detail in previous studies on fading. Our preliminary results indicate that different static paces of fading or adaptive fading can make instructional sequences with fading more effective for learners with a range of ability levels
Platform Skin Return and Retrodirective Cross-Eye Jamming

The effect of platform skin return on retrodirective cross-eye jamming is analysed, allowing the parameters of a cross-eye jammer in the presence of skin return to be determined. The inherently unknown phase of the platform skin return is accounted for, and the effect of variations in jammer-to-signal ratio (JSR) is investigated. The widely-held, though unsubstantiated, view that a JSR of 20 dB is required for effective cross-eye jamming is found to be reasonable, though conservative.
Caffeic acid produces antidepressive‐ and/or anxiolytic‐like effects through indirect modulation of the &agr;1A‐adrenoceptor system in mice

&NA; We previously reported that caffeic acid produce antidepressiveand/or anxiolytic‐like effects in two different types of stress models. It has recently been reported that caffeic acid affects the &agr;1A‐adrenoceptor system. The present study examined whether the &agr;1A‐adrenoceptor system is involved in the antidepressive‐ and/or anxiolytic‐like effects of caffeic acid. Caffeic acid reduced the duration of immobility and freezing of mice produced by forced swimming and conditioned fear stress, respectively. These effects of caffeic acid were suppressed by the &agr;1‐ and &agr;1A‐adrenoceptor antagonists. However, caffeic acid did not alter the binding of [3H]prazosin to &agr;1A‐adrenoceptor in mouse cortical membranes. These results suggest that indirect modulation of the &agr;1A‐adrenoceptor system may be involved in the antidepressive‐ and/or anxiolytic‐like effects of caffeic acid.
Physical computation and embodied artificial intelligence

Physical computation and embodied artificial intelligence In this thesis, we show that the Turing machine is insufficient to model the richness of physical behaviour. Instead, we propose a model of physical computation that allows us to understand how embodied intelligent agents can simultaneously be considered to be objects operating under the laws of nature (or physics) and information-processing devices. This analysis allows us to make concrete those issues relating to the relative merits of using analogue values or symbolic representations such as numbers. Indeed, our approach allows this longstanding point of contention in artificial intelligence to be transformed from a question of philosophy to one of physics. For well-defined tasks, the results of this analysis are equivalent to Shannon’s information theory. This is as expected. However, in certain circumstances, both the computational power and energy efficiency of an analogue system may be greater than would be possible using a classical Turing machine. This supports results from both neuromorophic engineering and theoretical computer science. Finally, for large, multi-functional systems with ill-defined roles, the new model provides a novel way of thinking about the complementarity of hardware and software. Physical computation and embodied artificial intelligence v I dedicate this thesis to two men who inspired me to make a contribution to science and technology: my father, Hardial Singh Bains, who died as I began my Ph.D.; and my mentor, Professor Stephen A. Benton, who died as I was finishing it. Thanks for challenging me to do and be more. Physical computation and embodied artificial intelligence vii
The effect of thyrotoxicosis on adrenocortical reserve.

OBJECTIVE Variations in thyroid function are known to be associated with changes in adrenocortical activity. Previous studies in animals have suggested that long-standing hyperthyroidism may be associated with diminished adrenal functional reserve despite a continuing hyperactivity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. In humans, there has been no direct assessment of adrenal secretory reserve in clinical thyrotoxicosis. This study aimed to assess adrenocortical reserve in response to low-dose ACTH, following dexamethasone suppression, in patients with severe thyrotoxicosis. DESIGN AND METHODS Ten patients (four men and six women, 30-45 years) with severe long-standing thyrotoxicosis due to Graves' disease (n=6) or toxic nodular goitre (n=4) were studied at diagnosis and again when in a stable euthyroid state following drug therapy for 8-12 months. All patients underwent ACTH stimulation tests at 0800h with ACTH(1-24) (Cortrosyn; 0.1microg/kg body weight, i.v.) following overnight suppression of the HPA axis with dexamethasone (1mg per os at 2300h). Serum cortisol was assayed at -15, 0, 15, 30, 60 and 90min after the administration of ACTH. RESULTS The mean (+/-s.d.) peak and delta cortisol responses to ACTH (634.5+/-164nmol/l and 618+/- 196nmol/l respectively), as well as the net area under the response curve (36769+/-12188nmol/lx min) in the hyperthyroid patients were significantly lower compared with the values when the same patients were euthyroid (911+/-157nmol/l, 905+/-160nmol/l and 57652+/-10128nmol/lxmin respectively; P<0.005). Subnormal peak cortisol responses (<500nmol/l) were observed in two severely toxic patients. The findings were independent of the cause of thyrotoxicosis. CONCLUSION In patients with severe thyrotoxicosis, cortisol secretion in response to low-dose ACTH stimulation, following dexamethasone suppression, is lower in the hyperthyroid than in the euthyroid state. It appears that thyrotoxicosis is associated with subtle impairment of adrenocortical reserve.
The Collagen-Binding Protein Cnm Is Required for Streptococcus mutans Adherence to and Intracellular Invasion of Human Coronary Artery Endothelial Cells

ABSTRACT Streptococcus mutans is considered the primary etiologic agent of dental caries, a global health problem that affects 60 to 90% of the population, and a leading causative agent of infective endocarditis. It can be divided into four different serotypes (c, e, f, and k), with serotype c strains being the most common in the oral cavity. In this study, we demonstrate that in addition to OMZ175 and B14, three other strains (NCTC11060, LM7, and OM50E) of the less prevalent serotypes e and f are able to invade primary human coronary artery endothelial cells (HCAEC). Invasive strains were also significantly more virulent than noninvasive strains in the Galleria mellonella (greater wax worm) model of systemic disease. Interestingly, the invasive strains carried an additional gene, cnm, which was previously shown to bind to collagen and laminin in vitro. Inactivation of cnm rendered the organisms unable to invade HCAEC and attenuated their virulence in G. mellonella. Notably, the cnm knockout strains did not adhere to HCAEC as efficiently as the parental strains did, indicating that the loss of the invasion phenotype observed for the mutants was linked to an adhesion defect. Comparisons of the invasive strains and their respective cnm mutants did not support a correlation between biofilm formation and invasion. Thus, Cnm is required for S. mutans invasion of endothelial cells and possibly represents an important virulence factor of S. mutans that may contribute to cardiovascular infections and pathologies.
Expression of bcl-2 from a defective herpes simplex virus-1 vector limits neuronal death in focal cerebral ischemia.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE A process resembling programmed cell death appears to contribute to postischemic neuronal loss in several models of stroke. Because the expression of the bcl-2 gene has been shown to rescue neurons from programmed cell death due to other causes, we determined whether it would be similarly neuroprotective in stroke. METHODS Replication of defective herpes viral vectors that transduce bcl-2 (HSVbcl2) or Escherichia coli lacZ (HSVlac) were injected into two sites in the rat cerebral cortex 24 hours before induction of neocortical focal ischemia by tandem permanent occlusion of the right middle cerebral artery and ipsilateral common carotid artery. Local ischemic damage was determined 24 hours after occlusion by staining with 2% 2,3,5-triphenyltetrazolium chloride. RESULTS Expression of bcl-2 in cerebral cortex was confirmed by immunohistochemistry in animals injected with the HSVbcl2 expression vector. Viable tissue was significantly increased at the injection sites in HSVbcl2- but not HSVlac-injected animals. The protection observed in the HSVbcl2 animals was localized to the injection sites. CONCLUSIONS These data indicate that bcl-2 expression protects neurons in vivo from ischemic injury and suggest the feasibility of gene therapy for stroke and perhaps other neurological diseases in which programmed cell death is involved.
An Empirical Analysis of National Differences in the Retail Bank Interest Rates of the Euro Area

The availability of new harmonized data on bank interest rates allows a rigorous assessment to be made of cross-country price homogeneity/heterogeneity in euro area retail credit markets. Econometric analysis shows that the banking market is still highly segmented and that the degree of integration in a single country (Italy, taken as a benchmark for integration) is greater than in the euro area. However, national differences can be partially explained by variables reflecting the characteristics of domestic depositors and borrowers (i? ½demand sidei? ½ regressors, such as risk exposure, disposable income, alternative financing sources, average firm size) and the characteristics of the banking systems (i? ½supply sidei? ½ regressors, such as banking market concentration, asset and liability structure). The euro area prices appear different because national banking products appear different or because they are differentiated by national factors. Once these factors have been controlled for, many differences disappear.