Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Parenting stress and coping styles in mothers and fathers of pre-school children with autism and Down syndrome.

BACKGROUND The study examined the profile of stress in mothers and fathers of preschool children with autism, Down syndrome and typically developing children. A further aim was to assess the association between parenting stress and coping style. METHODS A total of 162 parents were examined using Holroyd's 66-item short form of Questionnaire of Resources and Stress for Families with Chronically Ill or Handicapped Members and the Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations by Endler and Parker. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS The results indicated a higher level of stress in parents of children with autism. Additionally, an interaction effect was revealed between child diagnostic group and parent's gender for two scales of parenting stress: dependency and management and limits of family opportunities. Mothers of children with autism scored higher than fathers in parental stress; no such differences were found in the group of parents of children with Down syndrome and typically developing children. It was also found that parents of children with autism differed from parents of typically developing children in social diversion coping. Emotion-oriented coping was the predictor for parental stress in the samples of parents of children with autism and Down syndrome, and task-oriented coping was the predictor of parental stress in the sample of parents of typically developing children. The results strongly supported earlier findings on parenting stress in parents of children with autism. They also shed interesting light on the relationship between coping styles and parental stress.
Measuring sense of coherence with only three items: a useful tool for population surveys.

OBJECTIVES Sense of Coherence is the core construct of Antonovsky's salutogenetic model. To measure Sense of Coherence, a 29-item-questionnaire (SOC-29), a shortened 13-item version, and a simplified measure of only three items (SOC-3) are available. In our study, the last was tested in terms of the psychometric properties and compared with an alternative short form derived from the SOC-29. METHODS Data with respect to the original SOC-29-scale, the SOC-3, and additional other health measures were collected in a representative general population survey, the German study 'Transitions in Alcohol Consumption and Smoking' (TACOS). Analyses of the factor structures, reliability and validity correlations are reported. RESULTS The reliability and validity results of the SOC-3 were not encouraging. Subsequent item analyses revealed that three items taken out of the SOC-29 outperformed the SOC-3 in measuring Sense of Coherence in a simplified way. This newly developed instrument is presented as the Brief Assessment of Sense of Coherence (BASOC). CONCLUSION The BASOC is a superior short form compared with the SOC-3 and is recommended for large surveys with limited space for questions.
Enhanced constitutive expression of the 27‐kDa heat shock proteins in heat‐resistant variants from chinese hamster cells

Four heat‐resistant variants were isolated after treatment of Chinese hamster lung cells with the mutagen ethyl methane sulfonate, followed by a single‐step selection procedure consisting in a severe hyperthermic treatment of 4 h at 44°C. The isolated clones had a stable resistant phenotype for at least 150 generations during which they showed a 5,000‐fold increased survival to a 4‐h treatment at 44°C when compared to wild‐type cells. Comparative two‐dimensional electrophoretic analyses of proteins revealed that, like induced thermotolerant wild‐type cells (i.e., cells induced to a transient physiological state of thermotolerance by a sublethal heat conditioning treatment administered 18 h before), the heat‐resistant variants had, at normal temperature, an increased content of a heat‐shock protein with Mr of 27,000 (HSP27). In three of the four heat‐resistant variants, the increased content of HSP27 was correlated with a two‐fold increase in the constitutive level of the mRNA encoding HSP27. Chinese hamster HSP27 is composed of three species that differ in their relative isoelectric point, among which the two most acidic forms are phosphoproteins. In both the heat‐resistant variant and wild‐type cells, heat shock induces a rapid enhancement of the phosphorylation of HSP27: maximal phosphorylation occurs within 10 min upon changing the incubation temperature from 35° to 44°C. A concomitant shift in silver‐staining intensity is rapidly detectable between the three isoforms, which seems to indicate that the two phosphorylated species represent post‐translational modifications of the more basic species. It is concluded that most likely the enhanced expression of HSP27 is linked to the resistant phenotype of the variants. The study provides supporting evidence that both the content and phosphorylation status of HSP27 are determining factors in the ability of cells to survive hyperthermic treatments.
Analysis of factors that modify susceptibility and rate of progression in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)

We conducted case‐control and prospective longitudinal studies to examine risk factors and predictors of disease progression for ALS. Ninety‐five subjects with ALS and 106 healthy control subjects were enrolled. All subjects completed a risk factor questionnaire at enrollment. The ALS subjects were prospectively followed for one year to define factors that influence the rate of disease progression, measured by rate of change in percent predicted forced vital capacity (%FVC) and the ALS functional rating scale (ALSFRS) score. The association of each potential risk factor with ALS was determined using univariate logistic regression. A random slope model was used to determine the association of each risk factor with disease progression. The demographic characteristics of ALS subjects and controls at enrollment did not differ. Significant risk factors for ALS included reported exposure to lead (p = 0.02) and pesticides (p = 0.03). Disease progression was faster in the ALS subjects having bulbar onset and a shorter time period between onset of symptoms and diagnosis. Pertinent variables not associated with either causation or progression of ALS included physical activity, cigarette smoking and a history of physical trauma or other clinical disorders.
POSTTRAUMATIC STRESS SYMPTOMS AND AVERSION TO AMBIGUOUS LOSSES IN COMBAT VETERANS

Psychiatric symptoms typically cut across traditional diagnostic categories. In order to devise individually tailored treatments, there is a need to identify the basic mechanisms that underlie these symptoms. Behavioral economics provides a framework for studying these mechanisms at the behavioral level. Here, we utilized this framework to examine a widely ignored aspect of trauma‐related symptomatology—individual uncertainty attitudes—in combat veterans with and without posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
A Comparison of Young Women's Psychosocial Status Based on Age of Their First Childbirth

This 12-year longitudinal study examined the psychological status; social relationships; and home, work, and parenting stress and satisfaction in their young adulthood for a sample of rural women who were teen mothers compared to their cohort who had their first child in their twenties. Differences in depression, loneliness, and self-esteem were explained by prior psychological status as teens. Home stress/satisfaction factors and parenting satisfaction and efficacy were also similar after controlling for number of children. Service providers need to understand psychosocial outcomes of first childbirth in order to more effectively meet the physical and mental health needs of all young mothers.
Stimulating visual exploration of the neglected space in the early stage of stroke by hemifield eye-patching: a randomized controlled trial in patients with right brain damage.

BACKGROUND It has been well established that the presence of neglect is a predictor of poor functional outcome after stroke. Most rehabilitation studies on neglect have been performed with at least two months post-stroke. However, a recent series of stroke management indications highlight the importance of early rehabilitation treatment and evidence regarding neglect rehabilitation in the early phase after stroke is needed. AIM To evaluate the effectiveness of right half-field patches in treating neglect in patients during the early phase of stroke. DESIGN Randomized controlled trial. SETTING Acute care setting in an urban general hospital. POPULATION Eighteen patients with left unilateral neglect recruited among 56 patients consecutively admitted with right hemispheric stroke. METHODS The patients were evaluated at pre-treatment, post-treatment, and at a 7-day follow-up. The experimental group received right half-field patch treatment (n=10) for approximately 8 hours a day for 15 consecutive days. The control group received visual scanning training (n=8) for 40 minutes every weekday in a 15 day period. RESULTS Both groups significantly improved their performance in all outcome measures. No difference in the amount of improvement between the two groups was found. CONCLUSION Right half-field eye patching could be a promising technique for treating visual spatial neglect during the early stages of stroke. CLINICAL REHABILITATION IMPACT The eye-patching technique may represent an easily applicable and inexpensive method for neglect rehabilitation in the early stage after stroke.
Analysis of the dietary factors contributing to the future osteoporosis risk in young Polish women.

BACKGROUND The osteoporosis is becoming serious problem for the preventive healthcare, that is stated for Poland and western countries. The loss of bone mass in women may be even five times higher than in men, so in the osteoporosis preventive strategies, young women are indicated as best potential target group. OBJECTIVE The aim of the study was to analyze the osteoporosis risk, on the basis of diet assessment in young Polish women, while satisfying nutritional needs for bone health-related nutrients was taken into account. MATERIAL AND METHODS The study was conducted in the group of 75 women, aged 20-30, who prepared three-day dietary record (14% of underweight, 15% of excessive body mass individuals). The intakes of nutrients being associated directly with risk of osteoporosis (protein, potassium, calcium, magnesium, vitamin D, vitamin B6, folates, vitamin B12, vitamin C) were analysed. RESULTS The vast majority (89%) of individuals was characterized by lower declared energy intake than calculated requirement. The majority was characterized by inadequate intake of potassium, calcium, magnesium, vitamin D and folates. Only 25% was characterized by an adequate intake of calcium and, while supplementation was taken into account, 10% was characterized by an adequate intake of vitamin D. CONCLUSIONS Following diets declared by the analysed young women may be the factor increasing seriously the risk of osteoporosis, as well as the risk of other diet-related diseases. The low intake of majority of analysed nutrients in the analysed group may result mainly from low energy value of declared diets. Taking into account the proper BMI of the majority of analysed group of young women and low energy value of their declared diets, the common underreporting may be sup- posed, and it may contribute to osteoporosis risk overestimation. KEY WORDS osteoporosis, young women, calcium, vitamin D, nutrients, underreporting.
Does Good Corporate Governance Constrain Cash Flow Manipulation? Evidence from India

Accounting frauds like Enron in the United States and Satyam in India are likely to have occurred due to the failure of firm-level corporate governance mechanisms in constraining unethical financial reporting practices. In this paper, we examine whether such corporate governance measures and regulatory reforms constrain the manipulation of operating cash flows, an important firm performance indicator. We focus on an emerging market, India where corporate governance and regulations are weak, and business groups and founding owners dominate the corporate landscape. We find that cash flow manipulation is likely to increase with an increase in the promoters’ shareholding. Further, board diligence and better audit fail to curb such manipulation. Our findings suggest that managers seem to move from earnings management towards cash flow manipulation. However, we do find that such manipulation has gone down in the recent years, and diligent boards constrain it, possibly due to the recent steps taken by the Indian Government for improving the corporate governance environment in India.
On Systematic Computation of Optimal Nonlinear Solutions for the Reverse Stackelberg Game

In control of large-scale intelligent infrastructures, multilevel optimization can serve as a useful framework to deal with overall complex problems, especially in networks that already exhibit a natural hierarchy of decision makers with different objectives. In particular, solution methods from the hierarchical game theory can be adopted. Here, we focus on solving problems that belong to the specific class of reverse Stackelberg games. In this game, a follower player acts subsequent to the leader's revelation of her so-called leader function, which maps the leader decision space to the follower decision space. In general, the problem of finding a leader function such that the leader's objective function is optimized while taking into account a follower decision that is optimal for the follower, is difficult to solve. We provide a structured solution approach for the class of nonlinear leader functions and make a comparison with the evolutionary approaches proposed in the literature. In particular, a continuous multilevel optimization approach and a gridding approach are proposed to compute an optimal leader function based on basis functions. Also, leader functions derived by interpolation are discussed. All approaches are illustrated and compared in a worked example, in which the required computation times and deviation from the desired solution are considered.
A 200–225 GHz SiGe Power Amplifier with peak Psat of 9.6 dBm using wideband power combination

A 200-225 GHz SiGe combiner Power Amplifier (PA) based on a wideband 4-way power combiner architecture is presented in this paper. The circuit is implemented in a 130 nm SiGe BiCMOS technology with fT/fmax of 250/370 GHz. A parallel power combining architecture based on the low-loss transmission line based zero-degree combiner is used to combine the power from 4 PA cores. At 215 GHz, the Psat is 9.6 dBm and from 200-225 GHz the average Psat is 9 dBm. From 200-225 GHz, the combiner enhances the Psat from the unit PA cores by 3.5-4 dB. For this circuit, the peak small signal gain is 25 dB at 213 GHz. To the best of the authors knowledge, this is the highest reported output power for silicon PAs above 200 GHz.
Kernel-Based Linear Spectral Mixture Analysis

Linear spectral mixture analysis (LSMA) has been widely used in remote sensing community for spectral unmixing. This letter develops a promising technique, called kernel-based LSMA (KLSMA), which uses nonlinear kernels to resolve the issue of nonlinear separability arising in unmixing and further extends several commonly used LSMA techniques to their kernel-based counterparts. Interestingly, according to experiments conducted for real hyperspectral and multispectral images, KLSMA is more effective than LSMA when data samples are heavily mixed.
The lactate paradox revisited in lowlanders during acclimatization to 4100 m and in high‐altitude natives

Chronic hypoxia has been proposed to induce a closer coupling in human skeletal muscle between ATP utilization and production in both lowlanders (LN) acclimatizing to high altitude and high‐altitude natives (HAN), linked with an improved match between pyruvate availability and its use in mitochondrial respiration. This should result in less lactate being formed during exercise in spite of the hypoxaemia. To test this hypothesis six LN (22–31 years old) were studied during 15 min warm up followed by an incremental bicycle exercise to exhaustion at sea level, during acute hypoxia and after 2 and 8 weeks at 4100 m above sea level (El Alto, Bolivia). In addition, eight HAN (26–37 years old) were studied with a similar exercise protocol at altitude. The leg net lactate release, and the arterial and muscle lactate concentrations were elevated during the exercise in LN in acute hypoxia and remained at this higher level during the acclimatization period. HAN had similar high values; however, at the moment of exhaustion their muscle lactate, ADP and IMP content and Cr/PCr ratio were higher than in LN. In conclusion, sea‐level residents in the course of acclimatization to high altitude did not exhibit a reduced capacity for the active muscle to produce lactate. Thus, the lactate paradox concept could not be demonstrated. High‐altitude natives from the Andes actually exhibit a higher anaerobic energy production than lowlanders after 8 weeks of acclimatization reflected by an increased muscle lactate accumulation and enhanced adenine nucleotide breakdown.
Emphysema and airway disease affect within‐breath changes in respiratory resistance in COPD patients

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is characterized by a mixture of emphysema and airway disease. The forced oscillation technique (FOT) has been applied to COPD patients to clarify changes in respiratory mechanics; dynamic changes in respiratory resistance (Rrs) during breathing (within‐breath changes in Rrs, ΔRrs) are characteristic of COPD. However, the pathophysiological significance of these changes is unknown. The aim of this study was to assess how emphysema and airway disease influence ΔRrs in COPD patients.
Isolation, chemical composition, and molecular size of extracellular type II and type Ia polysaccharides of group B streptococci

Polysaccharides carrying the type II- and type Ia-specific determinants of Lancefield group B streptococci were isolated and purified by anion-exchange chromatography and gel filtration from the supernatant culture medium after growth of strain 18RS21/67/1 (type II) and strain DS/1204/78 (type Ia), respectively. The average molecular weights of these polysaccharides were 97,000 (type II) and 94,000 (type Ia), as determined by reducing end group analyses. These molecular weights were in reasonably good agreement with molecular weights determined by gel filtration at high ionic strength on calibrated columns. The polysaccharides did not cross-react with antisera specific for the other type-specific determinants or with group B-specific antisera. Their content of galactose, glucose, glucosamine, and neuraminic acid (the last two calculated as N-acetyl derivatives) accounted for over 96% of their dry weight. The two polysaccharides differed from each other (and from type III polysaccharide) in their relative content of these monosaccharides. The molar ratios of galactose, glucose, and neuraminic acid to glucosamine were 3.3:2.3:1.35:1.0 for the type II polysaccharide and 2.0:0.8:1.4:1.0 for the type Ia polysaccharides. The results obtained indicate that these extracellular type II and Ia polysaccharides contain larger amounts of neuraminic acid than can be accounted for by previously proposed structures of their repeating units.
Chebyshev moments as a new set of moments for image reconstruction

Chebyshev (sometimes referred to as Tchebichef) moments, introduced by Mukundan et al., belong to a class of discrete orthogonal moments. In this paper, Chebyshev moments are used to analytically reconstruct grey level images. Their capability to reconstruct images with and without noise is compared to that of Zernike and Legendre moments, which are well known classes of continuous moments.
Time-domain scanning optical mammography: I. Recording and assessment of mammograms of 154 patients

Using a triple wavelength (670 nm, 785 nm, 843/884 nm) scanning laser-pulse mammograph we recorded craniocaudal and mediolateral projection optical mammograms of 154 patients, suspected of having breast cancer. From distributions of times of flight of photons recorded at typically 1000–2000 scan positions, optical mammograms were derived displaying (inverse) photon counts in selected time windows, absorption and reduced scattering coefficients or total haemoglobin concentration and blood oxygen saturation. Optical mammograms were analysed by comparing them with x-ray and MR mammograms, including results of histopathology, attributing a subjective visibility score to each tumour assessed. Out of 102 histologically confirmed tumours, 72 tumours were detected retrospectively in both optical projection mammograms, in addition 20 cases in one projection only, whereas 10 tumours were not detectable in any projection. Tumour contrast and contrast-to-noise ratios of mammograms of the same breast, but derived from measured DTOFs by various methods were quantitatively compared. On average, inverse photon counts in selected time windows, including total photon counts, provide highest tumour contrast and contrast-to-noise ratios. Based on the results of the present study we developed a multi-wavelength, multi-projection scanning time-domain optical mammograph with improved spectral and spatial (angular) sampling, that allows us to record entire mammograms simultaneously at various offsets between the transmitting fibre and receiving fibre bundle and provides first results for illustration.
Murine respiratory mycoplasmosis: a model to study effects of oxidants.

Previous studies have shown that exposure to nitrogen dioxide at concentrations of 5 and 10 parts per million (ppm) decreases intrapulmonary killing of Mycoplasma pulmonis, and that this decrease is related to increased lung lesions and mortality. The specific objectives of the present study were to titrate the effects of nitrogen dioxide on pulmonary clearance of M. pulmonis, determine the mechanisms by which this organism is killed within the lungs, and determine the target that the nitrogen dioxide affects. Pathogen-free C57BL/6N mice were exposed to 0, 0.5, 1, 2, or 5 ppm of nitrogen dioxide (contamination with other oxides of nitrogen compounds was 5% or less) for four hours and then immediately were exposed to aerosols of viable, radiolabeled M. pulmonis strain UAB CT. One-half of the animals in each group were killed immediately after exposure to the infectious aerosols, and the rest were killed 24 hours later. The amount of radioactivity and the number of viable M. pulmonis were determined for each group. Exposure to less than 5 ppm of nitrogen dioxide had no effect on intrapulmonary killing of M. pulmonis, although exposure to 1 ppm of nitrogen dioxide did increase mechanical removal. We were unable to develop a completely in vitro mycoplasma killing method. However, we were able to demonstrate the in vitro killing of M. pulmonis that had been allowed to associate with alveolar macrophages in vivo. Thus, mouse lungs contain unidentified factors that allow cells to kill M. pulmonis. Furthermore, we obtained evidence that suggests that prior exposure to nitrogen dioxide abrogates killing in these experiments. We also have shown that exposure to nitrogen dioxide does not increase the protein content of bronchoalveolar lavage fluid. Using immunofluorescence, more than 95% of the cells recovered by lavage were macrophages; with double-label immunofluorescence, more than 98% of the cell-associated mycoplasmas were on or in alveolar macrophages. In assessing the cytological parameters of lung lavage cells from mice exposed to nitrogen dioxide, M. pulmonis, or both, we found that both insults affected the viability of recovered macrophages. Viability immediately after exposure as measured by trypan blue exclusion or by fluorescein diacetate uptake, was 89% +/- 4% and 88% +/- 4% in the control group, respectively; 56% +/- 19% and 64% +/- 11% in the group receiving M. pulmonis alone; 23% +/- 7% and 48% +/- 9% in the group receiving nitrogen dioxide alone; and 16% +/- 6% and 25% +/- 6% in the group receiving both M. pulmonis and 10 ppm nitrogen dioxide exposures. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)