Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Inhibition of the nucleoside transporter inhibits disease progression in the rat adjuvant‐induced arthritis model

We investigated the in vivo effects of the nucleoside transporter inhibitor nitrobenzylmercaptopurine (NBMPR) on rat adjuvant‐induced arthritis. This agent inhibits uptake of adenosine into cells, presumably leading to increased levels of extracellular adenosine. Arthritis was induced in 7‐week‐old male Lewis rats by injection of incomplete Freund's adjuvant containing heat‐killed Mycobacterium butyricum into the base of the tail on day 0. The rats were then treated from day 0 with daily intraperitoneal injections of NBMPR (50 mg/kg/d in 1 ml of saline) or saline alone (untreated). The onset and progression of arthritis was evaluated daily using the arthritis severity index (0–4) for swelling and redness in four joints (bilateral front‐ and hind‐paws), with a score of 0 representing no rheumatoid changes and a score of 4 representing the most severe changes. Body weights were also measured to monitor the systemic antiarthritic effects of NBMPR as well as its systemic toxicity. On the last day (day 35), the rats were killed, and radiographic and histopathological assessments of their hind‐paws were conducted. The onset of arthritis was detected on the same day in both NBMPR‐treated and untreated arthritic rats, but subsequent disease progression was suppressed significantly in NBMPR‐treated rats. Radiographic (e.g., bone erosion and destruction) and histopathological (e.g., cell infiltration and cartilage erosion) findings confirmed the improved condition of the NBMPR‐treated rats. There was no significant difference in body weight among the rats. Thus, increasing extracellular adenosine with NBMPR appears to suppress the progression of arthritis. Drug Dev. Res. 58:479–485, 2003. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
The Saudi National Mental Health Survey: Methodological and logistical challenges from the pilot study

Several challenges exist in carrying out nation‐wide epidemiological surveys in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) due to the unique characteristics of its population. The objectives of this report are to review these challenges and the lessons learnt about best practices in meeting these challenges from the extensive piloting of the Saudi National Mental Health Survey (SNMHS), which is being carried out as part of the World Mental Health (WMH) Survey Initiative. We focus on challenges involving sample design, instrumentation, and data collection procedures. The SNMHS will ultimately provide crucial data for health policy‐makers and mental health specialists in KSA.
Health care providers' perspectives on low HPV vaccine uptake and adherence in Appalachian Kentucky.

OBJECTIVE Previous intervention research conducted in Appalachian Kentucky resulted in extremely low uptake and adherence to the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine among women ages 18-26, despite provision of free vaccine. Because of these findings, the purpose of this qualitative, follow-up study was to elicit health care providers' perspectives on barriers and facilitators to HPV vaccination and suggested strategies for improving vaccination rates. DESIGN AND SAMPLE Researchers conducted semi-structured qualitative interviews with a purposive sample of eight health care providers (seven nursing professionals, one physician) at the health clinic where the original HPV vaccination intervention took place. Interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed and authors used a constant-comparative method to analyze the data. RESULTS Significant themes emerged from the interviews, centering around two primary issues: vaccine uptake and vaccine adherence. Related to uptake, health care providers identified perceived patient barriers and inadequate HPV vaccine education. They also identified the vaccine schedule and clinic-centered communication deficiencies as adherence-related barriers. CONCLUSION These Appalachian Kentucky health care providers provided important insights into barriers and facilitators to HPV vaccine uptake and adherence that need to be readily addressed in this community. As informed by these providers, several suggestions for improving HPV vaccination, such as more targeted education efforts and patient-centered reminder systems, may be applicable to other nursing professionals working in rural and medically underserved communities.
A new geometric approach to characterize the singularity of wheeled mobile robots

SUMMARY This research presents a new and generic geometric approach that characterizes the kinematic singularity of wheeled mobile robots. First, the kinematic models of all the common wheels are obtained: fixed, centered orientable, castor, and Swedish. Then, a procedure for generating robot kinematic models is presented based on the set of wheel equations and the null space concept. Next, two examples are developed to illustrate the nongeneric singularity characterization. In order to improve that approach, a generic and practical geometric approach is established to characterize the singularity of any kinematic model of a wheeled mobile robot (WMR). Finally, the singular configurations for many types of mobile robots are depicted employing the proposed approach.
Does one size fit all? The challenges of establishing a coordinating center for research of post‐disaster needs assessment

Needs assessment in the wake of disasters is most significant yet highly complex and challenging. Kessler et al. propose a comprehensive disaster mental health research model. This model has several significant advantages: (1) Pre‐prepared plans and resources allow rapid deployment of skilled professionals; (2) Continuity will ensure that lessons learned from one disaster will be retained and used in subsequent disasters; (3) Standardization will provide a solid basis for evaluation and comparison across events; (4) Continuous monitoring of needs over time will enable the capture of a full range of responses including delayed effects; and (5) Will provide a valuable resource for researchers in the field. At the same time, there are a number of challenges that must be considered before the establishment and implementation of the proposed center and use of standardized measures. These challenges are associated with the observation that different disasters give rise to different problems and needs; there is considerable cultural variability; and differential power and agenda of stakeholders may result in a limiting ‘tunnel vision’ approach that may undermine new developments, creativity, and progress. Ways to overcome these challenges and difficulties that are involved in the implementation of such a model are suggested. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A case-control study of risk factors for male infertility in Southern Nigeria

Aim : The purpose of this study was to evaluate the association between selected potential socio-demographic and behavioural risk factors and infertility in Nigeria males. Methods : The study consisted of cases and controls. The cases were 150 males with proven male infertility, while the controls were 150 fertile males with normal semen parameters. Both cases and controls were matched for age places of residence, and were similar in key socio-demographic variables. They were compared for sexual history, past medical and surgical history, past exposures and treatment of symptoms of sexuality transmitted diseases, past and current use of drugs and history of smoking and alcohol intakes. Results : The results showed infertile men to be significantly more likely than fertile men to report having experienced penile discharge, painful micturition and genital ulcers. Infertile men were less likely to seek treatment for these symptoms, and to seek treatment with informal sector providers rather than formal sector providers in private, district and referral hospitals. Multivariate analysis showed that male infertility was also significantly associated with bacteria in semen cultures, self-reporting of previous use of traditional medications and moderate to heavy alcohol intake. By contrast, infertility was not significantly associated with smoking and occupational types. Conclusion : We conclude that infertility is associated with various proxies of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and poor healthcare-seeking behaviour concerning for STIs in Nigeria men. Efforts to address these problems will likely contribute to reducing the prevalence of male infertility in Nigeria. Tropical Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Vol. 22(2) 2005: 136-143
Glaucoma therapy: state of the art

Edited by Matthias C Grieshaber, Selim Orgul, Josef Flammer. Published by ACEO, Basel, 2009, , €33. ISBN-13 978-3-9523474-0-9 Current glaucoma therapy is primarily focused on the reduction in intraocular pressure by medical therapy, laser or surgical means. Hardly any other clinical centre devoted to glaucoma research has contributed so much to our knowledge of the cellular pathomechanisms that lead to glaucomatous damage like the role of ocular blood flow, vascular dysregulations and the impact of free radicals as the University Eye Hospital in Basel, …
Primary Meningococcal Pericarditis: Case Report and Review of the Literature

Abstract: Primary meningococcal pericarditis (PMP) is a purulent pericarditis that can rapidly progress to complications, including cardiac tamponade, pericardial constriction, and need for surgical intervention. Risk factors associated with such complications are not well characterized. We describe a case of PMP and analyze all reported cases of PMP to determine whether certain risk factors lead to the development of cardiac tamponade, pericardial constriction, and need for surgical intervention. Twenty-six cases of PMP were identified, of which 23 (88%) developed tamponade, 7 (27%) constriction, and 7 (27%) need for surgical intervention. A positive pericardial fluid culture was associated with the development of tamponade, whereas a delay in antibiotic initiation, more than 24 hours after chest pain onset, was associated with development of constriction and the need for surgical intervention. All cases of constriction required surgical intervention. Early antibiotic administration appears to protect against the development of constriction and subsequent need for surgery.
Validation of diagnoses of distress disorders in the US National Comorbidity Survey Replication Adolescent Supplement (NCS‐A)

Research diagnostic interviews need to discriminate between closely related disorders in order to allow comorbidity among mental disorders to be studied reliably. Yet conventional studies of diagnostic validity generally focus on single disorders and do not examine discriminant validity. The current study examines the validity of fully‐structured diagnoses of closely‐related distress disorders (generalized anxiety disorder, post‐traumatic stress disorder, major depressive episode, and dysthymic disorder) in the lay‐administered Composite International Diagnostic Interview Version 3.0 (CIDI) with independent clinical diagnoses based on the Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School‐Age Children (K‐SADS) in the US National Comorbidity Survey Replication Adolescent Supplement (NCS‐A). The NCS‐A is a national survey of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM‐IV) among 10,148 adolescents. A probability sub‐sample of 347 of these adolescents and their parents were administered blinded follow‐up K‐SADS interviews. Good concordance [area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC)] was found between diagnoses based on the CIDI and the K‐SADS for generalized anxiety disorder (AUC = 0.78), post‐traumatic stress disorder (AUC = 0.79), and major depressive episode/dysthymic disorder (AUC = 0.86). Further, the CIDI was able to effectively discriminate among different types of distress disorders in the sub‐sample of respondents with any distress disorder. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Development of a Social Activities Scale for Community-Dwelling Older Women Requiring Support in Japan: A Preliminary Study.

OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study was to develop a scale for measuring the social activities of community-dwelling older women requiring support in Japan. DESIGN AND SAMPLE A methodological study was performed of 118 older women (>65 years old) requiring support and residing in region A of Japan. MEASURES An anonymous questionnaire was administered through individual interviews, and valid responses were obtained from 110 people. The construct validity of the resulting scale was assessed by exploratory factor analysis. Criterion-related validity was tested by calculating Spearman's rank correlation coefficient between the resulting scale and the existing Social Activity Index for Elderly People (SAI-E). Reliability was tested by Cronbach's alpha coefficient. RESULTS The Social Activity Scale for Community-Dwelling Older Women Requiring Support (SASOWS) was created. This scale comprised the following three subscales: "interactions with familiar people," "consulting with care service providers," and "performing proactive creative activities at home". Correlation of SASOWS with the existing SAI-E resulted in a correlation coefficient of . 521 (p < .01). Cronbach's alpha for the entire scale was . 772, and internal consistency was observed. CONCLUSIONS SASOWS appears to be a reliable, valid, and useful scale to measure social activities specific for older women requiring support. Future studies should continue to examine the items and usefulness of this scale.
Improving Physical Activity in Hispanics with Diabetes and their Families.

OBJECTIVE This study examined changes in physical activity among Hispanics with diabetes and their families who received an 8-week diabetes self-management intervention. DESIGN A quasi-experimental design was used to conduct a secondary analysis of physical activity data from two intervention studies that used the same protocols and measures. SAMPLE A total of 65 patients and 66 family members participated in the studies. MEASURES Physical activity was measured with the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) and pedometers. Self-report of physical activity was collected pre- and postintervention, and pedometer data for the 8 weeks of the intervention period. INTERVENTION The interventions consisted of 8 weeks of educational sessions. RESULTS IPAQ walking Metabolic Equivalent of Task (MET)-minutes per week significantly increased for patients (p < .001) and family members (p < .001) from pre- to postintervention as did moderate activity MET-minutes/week for family members (p = .004). Based on pedometer steps, the percentage of sedentary patients declined from 38% to 17% over the intervention record; differences in pedometer steps over time were not significant for patients (p = .803) or family members (p = .144). CONCLUSIONS Pedometers are a cost effective and user-friendly method of measuring physical activity. Pedometers can also serve as a motivator to help increase physical activity among Hispanics with diabetes and their family members.
BIOLOGICAL EXPRESSIONS OF LYMPHOCYTE ACTIVATION

The effects of nonspecific phytomitogens on primary plaque-forming cell (PFC) responses of mouse spleen cells to heterologous erythrocytes in vitro were studied. Spleen cell cultures treated with concanavalin A or phytohemagglutinin in vitro or established with spleen cells derived from mice injected with concanavalin A 24 h previously were similarly affected. In both cases, submitogenic doses resulted in substantial enhancement of PFC responses, whereas 10-fold larger doses were profoundly inhibitory. In contrast to the suppressive effects of mitogenic doses of phytomitogens added at culture initiation, addition of these same doses to cultures 48 h later resulted in increased PFC responses. This enhancement could be observed within 1 h after treatment and consequently could not be ascribed only to mitotic expansion of the antibody-synthesizing clone. Activation of spleen cells with specific antigen before mitogen treatment was not required for expression of the enhancing or suppressing effects on PFC responses. IgM and IgG PFC responses were similarly affected. Studies of cell interactions revealed that as few as 105 spleen cells obtained from mice treated with concanavalin A in vivo synergistically enhanced the PFC responses of 107 normal spleen cells. This enhancement was mediated by mitogen-activated T lymphocytes which were resistant to 2000 R irradiation 24 h after activation. The relevance of these observations to emerging concepts of helper and suppressor T cell activity is discussed.
The role of ultrasound in thyroid nodules with a cytology reading of "suspicious for papillary thyroid carcinoma".

BACKGROUND Irrespective of ultrasound (US) features, surgery is usually recommended for patients who have a fine-needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB) read as suspicious for papillary carcinoma (PTC). The aim of the present study was to evaluate the role of US in the management of thyroid nodules with a FNAB reading suspicious for PTC. METHODS Between August 2002 and May 2006, 303 patients who had thyroid nodules with a FNAB reading suspicious for PTC underwent surgery. The sonographic findings in the patients were classified as suspicious for malignancy or probably benign based on the US reading. The US readings and final pathological diagnoses of thyroid nodules were analyzed in these patients. RESULTS The malignancy rate was 84.2% in patients with a FNAB specimen suspicious for PTC. Sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of the US were 96.4%, 74.5%, 92.7%, 94.9%, and 80.9%, respectively, in nodules read as suspicious for PTC on FNAB. Whereas 243 (96.4%) lesions were found to be malignant at surgery, in the 252 lesions that had ultrasound findings suspicious for malignancy, only 13 (25.5%) lesions were malignant out of the 51 that had US readings of probably benign (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS The probability of malignancy is much lower in thyroid nodules with benign US findings even if the FNAB is read as suspicious for PTC. Therefore, US may be useful in planning the extent of surgery in patients with a FNAB reading of suspicious for PTC. As thyroid malignancy occurs in approximately 26% of patients with cytology readings suspicious for PTC and benign-appearing US, the US reading alone is not sufficient to determine the need for surgery. The US and FNAB are complementary to each other and should be useful when providing informed consent before thyroid surgery.
Prenylated isoflavones from Flemingia philippinensis

Two new prenylated isoflavones, named flemiphilippinins E and F, were isolated from the roots of Flemingia philippinensis, together with six known ones. The structures of the above compounds were established by spectroscopic methods. Flemiphilippinins E and F were identified as 5,4′‐dihydroxy‐8‐(3,3‐dimethylallyl)‐6″,6″‐dimethyl‐5″‐(1,1‐dimethylallyl) pyrano(2″,3″:7,6)isoflavone and 5,4′‐dihydroxy‐4″,4″,5″‐trimethyl‐4″,5″‐dihydrofurano(2″,3″:7,8) isoflavone, respectively, by a combination of HR‐EI‐MS, 1H NMR, 13C NMR, HMQC, HMBC, and NOESY spectra. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Potent inhibition of thyroid cancer cells by the MEK inhibitor PD0325901 and its potentiation by suppression of the PI3K and NF-kappaB pathways.

BACKGROUND We recently demonstrated inhibition of thyroid cancer cells by the MEK inhibitor CI-1040. The objective of this study was to use a potent new-generation MEK inhibitor PD0325901 to further investigate the therapeutic potential of specifically targeting MEK in the MAP kinase pathway for thyroid cancer. METHODS We examined the effects of PD0325901 on a variety of cellular and molecular activities of thyroid cancer cell lines with distinct genotypes. RESULTS PD0325901 remarkably inhibited MAP kinase pathway signaling in the thyroid cancer cells tested. It potently inhibited cell proliferation (IC(50) = 0.059-0.783 microM) and arrested cell cycle at the G0/G1 phase of cells harboring BRAF or RAS mutations but not cells harboring wild-type alleles or the RET/PTC1 rearrangement. Synergistic inhibitory effects were observed when PD0325901 was combined with phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) or NF-kappaB pathway inhibitors in most cells, including the RET/PTC1-harboring cells. PD0325901 could inhibit invasion and anchorage-independent growth of thyroid cancer cells independently of the type of genetic alterations. This compound did not seem to have significant proapoptotic effects, however. CONCLUSIONS The MEK inhibitor PD0325901 has a wide range of potent inhibitory effects on thyroid cancer cells, some of which seemed to be genotype-selective, consistent with the results previously observed with an early-generation MEK inhibitor, CI-1040. The data provide further evidence that targeted inhibition of MEK may be therapeutically effective for thyroid cancer, particularly if the PI3K and NF-kappaB pathways are concurrently inhibited.
PNEUMONIA AT CAMP FUNSTON: REPORT TO THE SURGEON-GENERAL

This investigation of pneumonia made at the base hospital at Fort Riley includes all cases of pneumonia that have occurred between July 23 and Aug. 31, 1918, at Camp Funston, including Detention Camp No. 1 for white troops and Detention Camp No. 2 for colored troops, in the 311th Cavalry stationed at Fort Riley, at the base hospital, and at the Medical Officers' Training Camp. During the period of the investigation there has been no large outbreak of pneumonia at Camp Funston. The average number of cases has been two a day, the total number studied being 62. The number of troops in the camp has been approximately 42,000, so that for the month of August the pneumonia rate has not exceeded 1.5 per thousand. Pneumonia has been of mild type; there have been only three deaths, and empyema has occurred in one instance. The clinical diagnosis has been lobar
Living with an Ostomy: Women's Long Term Experiences

Great developments have been made in recent years regarding sophistication of stoma care appliance and products, but patients with a stoma will still occasionally experience problems. These problems can cause the patients severe embarrassment and distress. The aim of this study was to gain increased knowledge and understanding of what living with an ostomy means as a woman and how it affects the life situation Seventeen women were interviewed about their life situation and how the stoma affected their lives. These interviews were verbatim transcribed and analysed using an interpretive phenomenological approach. The findings are illustrated by three themes: ‘Bodily restraints’, describing how the women experience the stoma and their body, causing limitations in different activities. ‘I as a woman’, present how the women experience themselves as females and different roles combined with that. Adaptation to daily life', shows how the women have different strategies for managing daily life. The essence was identified and interpreted as reconciliation to a changed life. Psychosocial experiences and effects of living with an ostomy, as well as strategies to handle this impact were identified. This knowledge need to be transformed into practice; when supporting ostomates in their reconciliation to a changed life.