Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Cord blood lipid profile and associated factors: baseline data of a birth cohort study.

The cord blood lipid profile may be associated with lifelong changes in the metabolic functions of the individual. The aim of the present study was for the first time in Iran to assess the cord blood lipid profile of neonates, as well as some of its environmental influencing factors. The subjects were 442 (218 boys and 224 girls) normal vaginal delivery newborns. Overall, 14.4% of neonates were preterm and the rest were full-term. In total, 9.2% (n = 35) of the full-term newborns were small-for-gestational-age (SGA), of which 16 had a ponderal index (PI) below the 10th percentile (SGA I) and 19 had a PI above the 10th percentile (SGA II), 5.5% (n = 21) were large-for-gestational-age (LGA), and the remainder were appropriate-for-gestational-age (AGA). Before becoming pregnant, 6.9% of mothers were underweight, 49.3% had normal body mass index (BMI), 39.4% were overweight and 4.4% were obese. Total and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) in girls were significantly higher than in boys (80.3 +/- 33.3 and 31.1 +/- 9.9 vs. 73.3 +/- 23.1 and 28.8 +/- 8.7 mg/dL, respectively, P < 0.05). The mean apolipoprotein A (apoA) of neonates with underweight mothers was significantly lower, and the mean apoB level of those with overweight mothers was significantly higher than other neonates. The mean low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), HDL-C and apoA of the LGA newborns were significantly lower, and their apoB was significantly higher compared with AGA and SGA neonates. The SGA I neonates had significantly lower total cholesterol, LDL-C, HDL-C and apoA, as well as higher triglycerides, lipoprotein a and apoB than the SGA II group. The mean cord blood triglycerides of full-term neonates was significantly higher than preterm neonates (69.4 +/- 11.9 vs. 61.4 +/- 12.7 mg/dL, respectively, P = 0.04). A preconception maternal BMI of > or =25 kg/m(2) correlated significantly with the cord triglycerides (OR = 1.3, [95% CI 1.07, 1.5]) and with apoB (OR = 1.4, [95% CI 1.1, 1.5]). The BMI <18 of mothers before pregnancy correlated with low HDL-C (OR = 1.3, [95% CI 1.04, 1.7]). Birthweight correlated with high cord triglyceride level (SGA: OR = 1.4, [95% CI 1.1, 1.7]; LGA: OR = 1.6, [95% CI 1.3, 1.7] compared with AGA). These associations remained significant even after adjusting for the preconception BMI of mothers. Our findings reflect the possible interaction of environmental factors and fetal growth and the in utero lipid metabolism. Long-term longitudinal studies in different ethnicities would help to elucidate the relationship.
Analysis of Factors Affecting Share Prices: The Case of Bahrain Stock Exchange

The 2007 global financial crisis caused unprecedented upheavals in the global stock markets and has shaken investor’s confidence due to the turbulent fluctuations and volatilities in stock prices. The present study is instrumental in identifying the main determinants affecting share prices in the Bahrain financial market. The study analyzes a panel data set of 41 companies listed in the Bahrain stock exchange for the period 2006-2010. The year 2006 is used as the first year of data collection as most of the companies were incorporated in 2005. Since the Bahrain bourse witnessed a turbulent period during the first half of 2010 due to political unrests causing 25.5% slump in the aggregate value of traded shares in the first half of 2010 and 7.59% drop in the Global Bahraini Index in the following year, the post-2010 period was deliberately ignored in this study. The estimation method is based on pooled OLS regression with robust standard errors, fixed effects and random effects models. Eight firm specific variables namely return on equity, book value per share, earnings per share, dividend per share, dividend yield, price earnings, debt to assets and controlled by firm size, have been studied to infer their impact on market price of shares in the respective market. The results indicate that the variables return on equity, book value per share, dividend per share, dividend yield, price earnings, and firm size are significant determinants of share prices in the Bahrain market. A high R2 (0.80) revealed under both the applied models further documents the significant impact of these variables on the market price of shares. This suggests that investors can make optimum investment decisions and be assured fair returns if they consider these determinants which have evolved to be the significant contributors to the market price of shares in Bahrain.
Placenta previa, maternal smoking and recurrence risk

In order to assess the risk of placenta previa among women who smoked during pregnancy and to study the recurrence risk of placenta previa, we analyzed data from the Swedish Medical Birth Registry. Among 1,825,998 infants of women delivered in 1973‐1990, 5,683 had placenta previa registered. The overall incidence of placenta previa was 0.3%, the incidence in twin deliveries was also 0.3%. The recurrence rate of placenta previa was 2.4%, which is an eightfold increase compared with the rate of a placenta previa among all births. Maternal smoking was studied for births in 1983‐1990 and appeared as an independent risk factor for placenta previa. A dose‐response between the number of cigarettes smoked during pregnancy and the risk of having a placenta previa was indicated.
Mechanisms and therapeutic potential of inhibiting drug efflux transporters

Introduction: The ATP-binding cassette transporters are among the largest transmembrane protein families in humans and are expressed in a wide variety of tissues. By promoting outward transport, they protect cells from the accumulation of undesirable substrates. This protection might lead to suboptimal concentration of chemotherapeutics in the tumor cells, resulting in therapy resistance and poor disease prognosis. In the past decades, a considerable effort was made to reverse multidrug resistance (MDR). Areas covered: We briefly summarize the present knowledge on the clinical efficacy of MDR reversing agents in various types of cancer and discuss their availability in a non-cancerous disease (rheumatoid arthritis). The classical and novel pharmacological approaches directly inhibiting the transporters’ function and their extensive investigations in human clinical studies are also mentioned. Furthermore, the article highlights the methodological concerns raised by these investigations. Expert opinion: The development of chemotherapeutics lacking transporter-inducing effects, gene therapy approaches, nanomedicinal formulations and the identification of natural compounds to modulate transporter function are intriguing but face serious delivery challenges. Understanding and mapping molecular mechanisms of drug resistance will make it easier to design clinical treatment regimes that avoid escalation of MDR, by utilizing collateral sensitivity.
Extragonadal seminoma involving urinary bladder and arising in the prostate

The authors report the first instance of a patient with seminoma probably arising from the prostate but also involving the bladder. A 58‐year‐old man presented with symptoms and signs of prostatic enlargement. Cystoscopy revealed a fungating neoplasm, probably arising from the prostate and surrounding the bladder neck. The biopsy was consistent with the diagnosis of seminoma. The patient experienced complete remission after chemotherapy with bleomycin, cisplatin, and etoposide.
Hepatitis C Seroprevalence and Risk Factors in Adult Population of Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari Province of Iran in 2013.

INTRODUCTION Hepatitis C is the second leading viral infectious disease worldwide. In Iran, hepatitis C is the most important and prevalent reason for chronic hepatitis and liver cirrhosis in the multi transfused population. AIM This study was conducted to determine seroprevalence and burden of hepatitis C in Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province and to plan for controlling it. MATERIALS AND METHODS For this analytical, population-based study, 3000 samples were older than 15 years old and were enrolled from urban and rural areas of Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province, southwest Iran per cluster sampling. Written informed consent was obtained from the participants and the demographic data, transmission route and risk factors were collected after blood sample taking. Hepatitis C virus antibody (HCV Ab) and western blotting were consecutively run. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS Data analysis was done by SPSS 19 using descriptive statistics, and chi-square test, Fisher's exact test, and logistic regression Ap value of 0.05 was considered as the level of significance. RESULTS The prevalence of HCV Ab was obtained 1.4% (95% CI, 0.95-1.7) and that of positive hepatitis C by western blotting 0.9% (95% CI, 0.65-1.3). The prevalence in men (1.2%) was obtained two times higher than women. The highest prevalence was obtained in 35 to 44-year-old population (2%). The prevalence was higher in married individuals and less in higher educated. History of hospital stay, first degree relatives infected with HCV, jaundice, history of blood transfusion, tattoo, outpatient surgery, imprisonment, contact with the infected, intravenous (IV) drug abuse, and smoking had significant association with disease prevalence (p<0.05). The highest odds ratio was obtained for history of IV drug abuse (OR=38.2, 95% CI, 14.06-103.9) followed by imprisonment (OR=8.9, 95% CI, 2.97-26.6). However, by logistic regression only history of IV drug abuse was obtained as significant (p<0.05). CONCLUSION Hepatitis C is growing and emerging as the most prevalent chronic, viral hepatic disease, so further consideration of risk factors and routes of transmission is crucial for appropriate planning for, and preventing, treating, and controlling hepatitis C. IV drug abusers as the most important group need special consideration and surveillance in order to cut infection chain and decrease the disease incidence.
The Neurophysiological Meaning of Auditory P300 in Subtypes of Schizophrenia

Event-related potentials are a powerful tool to investigate the real-time course of brain electrical mass activation during cognitive processing. In several psychiatric disorders, differences compared to healthy subjects have been reliably described. The specificity and the pathophysiological meaning of the findings were unclear in most studies, however. This review summarizes methodological aspects and findings, in healthy subjects and psychiatric patients, of investigations based on the auditory oddball paradigm, which evokes the P300 component of event-related potentials. Recent convergent results from P300 and brain imaging studies allowed the interpretation of P300 findings in psychotic disorders in terms of different specific and meaningful neurophysiological disturbances. Namely, core schizophrenia is characterized by a left-temporal dysfunction associated with deficits in verbal processing. Acute remitting schizophrenia-like psychoses (cycloid psychosis, ICD-10 F23), on the other hand, show normal hemispheric balance but consistent signs of cerebral hyper-arousal. Recent studies further indicate that the drive for action of manic patients does not rely on over-excitation but rather on frontal disinhibition. The findings may help to further advance the understanding and sub-grouping of functional psychoses based on pathophysiological mechanisms.
Phylogenetic Origins of Early Alterations in Brain Region Proportions

Adult galliform birds (e.g. chickens) exhibit a relatively small telencephalon and a proportionately large optic tectum compared with parrots and songbirds. We previously examined the embryonic origins of these adult species differences and found that the optic tectum is larger in quail than in parakeets and songbirds at early stages of development, prior to tectal neurogenesis onset. The aim of this study was to determine whether a proportionately large presumptive tectum is a primitive condition within birds or a derived feature of quail and other galliform birds. To this end, we examined embryonic brains of several avian species (emus, parrots, songbirds, waterfowl, galliform birds), reptiles (3 lizard species, alligators, turtles) and a monotreme (platypuses). Brain region volumes were estimated from serial Nissl-stained sections. We found that the embryos of galliform birds and lizards exhibit a proportionally larger presumptive tectum than all the other examined species. The presumptive tectum of the platypus is unusually small. The most parsimonious interpretation of these data is that the expanded embryonic tectum of lizards and galliform birds is a derived feature in both of these taxonomic groups.
The Effects of Insulin and Follicle-Simulating Hormone (FSH) During In Vitro Development of Ovarian Goat Preantral Follicles and the Relative mRNA Expression for Insulin and FSH Receptors and Cytochrome P450 Aromatase in Cultured Follicles1

ABSTRACT The actions of different concentrations of insulin alone or in combination with follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) were evaluated by in vitro follicular development and mRNA expression of cytochrome P450 aromatase (CYP19A1) and as receptors for insulin (INSR) and FSH (FSHR) from isolated, cultured goat preantral follicles. Goat preantral follicles were microdissected and cultured for 18 days in the absence or presence of insulin (5 and 10 ng/ml or 10 μg/ml) alone or in combination with FSH. After 18 days, the addition of the maximum concentration of insulin to the culture medium reduced follicular survival and antrum formation rates significantly compared to the other treatments. However, when FSH was added to the culture medium, no differences between these two parameters were observed. Preantral and antral follicles from the fresh control as well as from all cultured follicles still presented a normal ultrastructural pattern. In medium supplemented with FSH, only insulin at 10 ng/ml presented oocytes with higher rates of meiosis resumption compared to control, as well as oocytes in metaphase II. Treatment with insulin (10 ng/ml) plus FSH resulted in significantly increased levels of INSR and CYP19A1 mRNA compared to that with other treatments. In conclusion, 10 ng/ml insulin associated with FSH was more efficient in promoting resumption of oocyte meiosis, maintaining survival, stimulating follicular development, and increasing expression of the INSR and CYP19A1 genes in goat preantral follicles. Low concentration of insulin with follicle-stimulating hormone is essential for promoting oocyte meiosis resumption in goat preantral follicles.
KSHV/HHV8-associated Lymphoma Simulating Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma

We report a unique, previously undescribed case of KSHV/HHV8-associated lymphoma in a 49-year-old HIV-seropositive patient. The cervical lymph node-based lymphoma displayed distinctive characteristic features of preferential sinusoidal infiltrate and anaplastic cellular morphology, closely resembling classic anaplastic large cell lymphoma of the WHO classification both histologically and immunophenotypically. Paraffin immunohistochemical study showed that the lymphoma cells were strongly positive for KSHV/HHV8 latency-associated nuclear antigen, and PCR analysis confirmed the presence of KSHV/HHV8 infection. Epstein-Barr virus in situ hybridization was negative. Molecular study clearly demonstrated B-cell lineage with immunoglobulin heavy and kappa light chain gene rearrangements. This case may add to the spectrum of the heterogeneous category of KSHV/HHV8-associated B-cell lymphomas.
Performance Improvement of Activated Sludge Wastewater Treatment by Nonlinear Natural Oscillations

The paper describes a novel operation strategy for improvement in the performance of biochemical reactors. The dynamic behavior of two coupled continuous stirred-tank reactors with recycle is studied when one of the reactors is being operated under limit cycle regimes producing self-sustained natural oscillations. The periodic output from one reactor is then used as forced input into the other reactor. The novel operation strategy is applied to wastewater treatment by the activated sludge process. It was observed and demonstrated through computation that the overall performance of the system can be enhanced in terms of time-averaged conversion by employing the above-mentioned operation strategy for a particular combination of reactor volume, recycle ratio and other operating parameters. The most significant criterion of this operation strategy lies in the fact that the performance enhancement of the overall system is achieved through natural oscillation rather than forced oscillation. In experimental studies and in eventual application to industrial processes this new concept of coupling free and forced oscillation is advantageous, as it does not require any additional external energy.
Serum 25-OH vitamin D2 and D3 are stable under exaggerated conditions.

Vitamin D analysis is increasingly performed with HPLC–tandem mass spectrometry instead of RIA, and hence samples are frequently sent to more specialized centers for analysis. We therefore investigated the stability of both 25-OH vitamin D3 (25-OH D3) and 25-OH vitamin D2 (25-OH D2) in serum stored under extreme conditions that would likely exceed those normally encountered in sample transit and storage. After our study received ethics committee approval, we collected 200 mL of blood from a single donor who had given written informed consent and had been previously been determined to have adequate concentrations of 25-OH D3. After centrifugation of the blood sample the serum was removed and supplemented with 50 nmol/L of authentic 25-OH D2 to boost endogenous concentrations. We then transferred 1.0-mL portions into 5-mL clear polystyrene tubes. The sample-containing tubes were capped, stored at −20 °C, and subsequently subjected to various treatments in replicates of 5. These treatments included multiple freeze-thaw cycles (1 to 5 cycles), 8 days at ambient temperature under various conditions, and brief exposure to artificial ultraviolet light. The ambient-temperature storage conditions were as follows: 1 set of 5 samples was left on the laboratory bench uncovered and exposed to fluorescent light and diffuse …
Body loss study of beamforming mode in LTE MIMO mobile terminals

This paper mainly focuses on the investigation of the body loss of beamforming mode in LTE MIMO mobile terminals with CTIA user effects. The research of the body loss and radiation efficiency is carried out over different phase differences between two ports of each MIMO antenna. During studies, four kinds of typical LTE MIMO antennas are used, namely, collocated ground free (GF), parallel GF, parallel on ground (OG) and orthogonal OG MIMO antennas, under four mobile terminal lengths at low and high frequencies. Two kinds of CTIA user effects are included in the research. From the studies, the parallel GF MIMO antenna type exhibits the best beamforming performance in the four MIMO antenna types. In order to verify the simulations, envelope correlation coefficients of two MIMO antenna prototypes are measured. All the measured results agree well with the simulated.
Inversion-based feedforward-feedback control: theory and implementation to high-speed atomic force microscope imaging

In this dissertation, a suite of inversion-based feedforward-feedback control techniques are developed and applied to achieve high speed AFM imaging. In the last decade, great efforts have been made in developing the inversion-based feedforward control as an effective approach for precision output tracking. Such efforts are facilitated by the fruitful results obtained in the stable-inversion theory, including, mainly, the bounded inverse of nonminimum-phase systems, the preview-based inversion method that quantified the effect of the future desired trajectory on the inverse input, the consideration of the model uncertainties in the system inverse, and the integration of inversion with feedback and iterative control. However, challenges still exist in those inversion-based approaches. For example, although it has been shown that the inversion-based iterative control (IIC) technique can effectively compensate for the vibrational dynamics during the output tracking in the repetitive applications, however, compensatingfor both the hysteresis effect and the dynamics effect simultaneously using the IIC approach has not been established yet. Moreover, the current design of the inversion-based feedforwardfeedback two-degree-of-freedom (2DOF) controller is ad-hoc, and the minimization of the model uncertainty effects on the feedforward control has not been addressed. Furthermore, although it is possible to combine system inversion with both iterative learning and feedback control in the so-called current cycle feedback iterative learning control (CCF-ILC) approach, the current controller design is limited to be casual and the use of such CCF-ILC approach for rejecting slowly varying periodic disturbance has not been explored. These challenges, as magnified in applications such as high-speed AFM imaging, motivate the research of this dissertation. Particularly, it is shown that the IIC approach can effectively compensate for both the hysteresis and vibrational dynamics effects of smart actuators. The convergence of
Retinal Detachment after Cataract Surgery: Retrospective Study of 57 Cases

The Authors studied the characteristics and the surgical results of 57 pseudophakic patients operated on between January 1989 and June 1991 for primary retinal detachment at the Department of Ophthalmology of the “Hotel Dieu de Paris Hospital”, with a postoperative follow-up of at least six months. The series included 23 eyes with posterior chamber IOL, 33 eyes with anterior chamber IOL. The ECCE with PC IOL group and the ICCE with AC IOL group had the same anatomical and visual prognosis.
Effects on bone mass after eight years of hormonal replacement therapy

Objective The purpose of this randomised double‐blind placebo‐controlled study over two years followed by a six year open controlled extension phase was to investigate the effects of hormonal replacement therapy (HRT) both continuous combined HRT and sequential HRT) versus no treatment on lumbar spine bone mineral density (L‐BMD) and distal forearm bone mineral content (F‐BMC). Further, bone mineral density of the proximal femur, lateral spine, and distal forearm was studied after eight years.
The Impact of Service Quality Dimensions on Customer Satisfaction: A Field Study of Arab Bank in Irbid City, Jordan

Service-offering channels in the banking system has emerged on the scene with a wide variety of forms such as internet banking, automated teller machine (ATM), telephone banking and banks . Mature competition and global financial systems have been forced to investigate the significance of customer satisfaction.Therefore, the research should shed light on the changing status of the banking system and financial market dynamics. This study has used the model of service quality (Parasuraman et al., 1988) with five dimensions to evaluate its effect on the customer satisfaction among Arab bank customers in the city of Irbid. The results indicate that the higher the service quality, the more the costumer’s satisfaction. The Dimensions of service quality plays an important role in this equation. These dimensions are tangibility, responsiveness reliability, empathy, and security. Finally, the findings indicate that these five factors have positively affected the customer satisfaction. This research also shows that the service quality is an appropriate tool to measure the quality of service in the banking sector in the Arab bank. Therefore, the banking sector practitioners regard this instrument a very important tool to evaluate, support, and improve the quality of their services.