Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
White blood cell count is positively correlated with albumin excretion rate in subjects with type 2 diabetes.

White blood cell (WBC) count is one of the main inflammatory markers that predict cardiovascular events (1) and is a component (in nondiabetic subjects) of the insulin resistance syndrome (2), a clustering of cardiovascular risk factors showing insulin resistance as a common denominator (3). It is not known whether WBC count correlates with albumin excretion rate (AER), a component of the insulin resistance syndrome conferring a particularly strong risk of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality (3). To evaluate whether WBC count correlates with AER in type 2 diabetes, we evaluated 659 Italian type 2 diabetic patients (354 men and 305 women) followed-up at the University Diabetes Unit of the San Luigi Gonzaga Hospital in Orbassano, Turin, Italy, who were not affected by neoplastic, inflammatory, infective, or liver diseases. AER was determined by nephelometric …
Compounds in milk accompanying feeding of ethoxyquin.

Abstract A feeding trial was conducted to determine if ethoxyquin, or its residues, is transferred from feed to milk when added to feed at 0.015% of the dry matter intake. A very low concentration (less than 7 µg/ liter) of ethoxyquin was detected in milk by a fluorimetric procedure and by thin layer chromatography. Feeding ethoxyquin did not increase milk tocopherol, but was accompanied by appearance in milk of a compound (not yet identifled) that interfered in the determination of ethoxyquin by a fluorimetric method, and in the determination of tocopherol by a method used before in our laboratory.
Current antibiograms for selected bacterial pathogens isolated from animals and poultry in British Columbia.

Veterinary diagnostic bacteriology laboratories routinely perform numerous antibiotic sensitivity tests on diverse freshly isolated bacterial pathogens. Most laboratories use a convenient in vitro procedure in which standardized impregnated paper disks are placed on bacterial lawns and used to estimate the antibacterial activity of selected therapeutic agents. This method may give some results which do not mimic drug activity in vivo, but studies (2, 3) have proved the general usefulness of the information obtained. The procedure described by McKay et al (3) was used in the study presented. A marked development of drug resistant bacteria has been noted (1) and there is a real need for the testing of each pathogenic bacterial isolate prior to treatment. Owing to delays necessary for bacterial isolation, purification, and sensitivity testing, many practicing veterinarians feel obliged to commence therapy prior to receipt of sensitivity results. Some veterinarians submit few or no specimens to laboratories, and they must rely upon their experience to recognize the presence of a specific pathogen and to recommend a suitable therapeutic agent. The object of this brief note is to provide the veterinarian with the results of numerous antibiograms in order to offer him some practical current guide to agents of choice (Table I).
Antagonist Enamel Wears More Than Ceramic Inlays

Wear phenomena of ceramic inlays are not fully understood. The aim of the present study was to evaluate ceramic wear, antagonist enamel wear, and luting cement wear over 8 years. The two-fold null hypothesis was that there would be (1) no difference in wear behavior between ceramic and enamel, and (2) no influence of filler content of luting composites on composite wear. From 96 restorations, 36 Class II inlays from 16 participants were selected. For inlays with opposing enamel cusps (n = 17), replicas of inlays and enamel were scanned with a 3-D laser scanner. Luting gaps of inlays (n = 36) were analyzed with a profilometer, including 3-D data analysis. Ceramic and enamel wear increased between 4 and 8 years, with significantly higher values for enamel after 6 years (p < 0.05). Luting gap wear increased continuously up to 8 years (p < 0.05), with no influence of luting composites (p > 0.05) and location of teeth (p > 0.05).
Proteinases secreted by Fasciola hepatica: time course of the inhibitory effect of serum from experimentally infected rabbits demonstrated by gelatin-substrate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis

Abstract Fasciola hepatica secretes proteolytic enzymes to aid it to penetrate and migrate through the host tissues. Two of these proteinases have been purified and shown to be cathepsin L-like, and are termed, CL1 (27.5 kD) and CL2 (29 kD). The immunogenicity of these proteinases was investigated over the course of an experimental infection and following drug treatment. Four groups of rabbits were studied: group 1: orally infected with 50 metacercariae; group 2: infected and treated 8 weeks after infection; group 3: infected, treated at week 8 and reinfected at week 13 and group 4: non-infected control group. Sera were collected weekly from each group until week 20 postinfection. CL1 and CL2 were incubated with the different sera and then analysed by gelatin substrate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (GS-PAGE). Analysis of groups 1, 2 and 3 showed that CL1 and CL2 neutralizing antibodies appear at week 5 post-infection. In group 1, these remained throughout the 20 weeks of infection. In group 2, neutralizing antibodies disappeared at week 13, that is, 5 weeks after anti-Fasciola treatment. In group 3, CL1 and CL2 neutralizing antibodies disappeared at week 13 but reappeared by week 15, that is 2 weeks after reinfection. Pooled sera from group 4, showed no inhibitory capacity. ELISA results using CL1 and CL2 as antigen, correlate very well with the inhibitiory time course observed by GS-PAGE. These results suggest that purified cathepsin Ls are antigenic molecules recognized early in the infective process and capable of inducing a specific humoral response, strong enough to neutralize, at least partially, their enzymatic activity.
Gender Differences in Sexual Attraction and Moral Judgment: Research With Artificial Face Models

Sexual attraction in humans is influenced by cultural or moral factors, and some gender differences can emerge in this complex interaction. A previous study found that men dissociate sexual attraction from moral judgment more than women do. Two experiments consisting of giving attractiveness ratings to photos of real opposite-sex individuals showed that men, compared to women, were significantly less influenced by the moral valence of a description about the person shown in each photo. There is evidence of some processing differences between real and artificial computer-generated faces. The present study tests the robustness of González-Álvarez’s findings and extends the research to an experimental design using artificial face models as stimuli. A sample of 88 young adults (61 females and 27 males, average age 19.32, SD = 2.38) rated the attractiveness of 80 3D artificial face models generated with the FaceGen Modeller 3.5 software. Each face model was paired with a “good” and a “bad” (from a moral point of view) sentence depicting a quality or activity of the person represented in the model (e.g., she/he is an altruistic nurse in Africa vs. she/he is a prominent drug dealer). Results were in line with the previous findings and showed that, with artificial faces as well, sexual attraction is less influenced by morality in men than in women. This gender difference is consistent with an evolutionary perspective on human sexuality.
Prevalence of carotid artery stenosis in Chinese patients with angina pectoris.

BACKGROUND The prevalence of carotid artery stenosis (CAS) in Chinese patients with angina pectoris is unknown. METHODS The study population consisted of 989 consecutive patients who were scheduled to undergo nonemergent coronary angiography for suspicion of coronary artery disease (CAD) because of angina pectoris between January 2013 and December 2014. All patients underwent carotid ultrasonography to screen for CAS within one month before or after coronary angiography. We defined cases with 0-50%, 50%-70%, and >70% stenosis as mild, moderate, and severe stenosis, respectively. RESULTS CAD was presented in 853 patients (86.2%) of whom 191 patients (19.3%) had 1-vessel disease, 246 patients (24.9%) had 2-vessel disease and 416 patients (42.1%) had 3-vessel disease; left main trunk stenosis present in 137 patients (13.9%). In carotid ultrasonography, the prevalence of mild, moderate, and severe stenosis as well as that of total occlusion of the carotid artery was 54.5%, 13%, 4.7% and 0.8%, respectively. Significant CAS (>50% stenosis and total occlusion) was present in 10.3%, 13.9%, 19.9% and 22.8% of patients with 0-vessel, 1-vessel, 2-vessel and 3-vessel CAD. The severity of CAS was directly correlated (r=0.194, P<0.001) with the extent of CAD. The independent predictors of severe CAS and total carotid artery occlusion were increased age, male sex, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, hyperhomocysteinemia, a previous history of stroke and 3-vessel CAD. CONCLUSIONS The prevalence of CAS was not rare in China when compared with that in western countries, and the presence of CAS was weakly correlated with the extent of CAD. Screening for CAS should be recommended in Chinese patients with CAD, especially in those with one or more CAS-associated risk factors.
High-Gain Low-Profile Circularly Polarized Slotted SIW Cavity Antenna for MMW Applications

A high-gain low-profile circularly polarized substrate integrated waveguide cavity antenna is proposed using TE 440 high-order mode. This antenna is simply excited by a coaxial probe. A linear-to-circular convertor is used in order to achieve circular polarization (CP). The low-profile, lightweight antenna offers both left- and right-hand CP. The implemented antenna exhibits a measured gain of almost 16 dBi and simulated radiation efficiency of about 96% with good measured return loss. Measured axial ratio is almost less than 1.6 dB. Furthermore, the antenna shows a good performance radiation pattern. Measured and simulated results show a good agreement. This antenna is considered as an appropriate candidate for use in future fifth-generation wireless systems.
Temperature Dependence of Thermal Conductivity and Boundary Resistance in THz Quantum Cascade Lasers

We measured the lattice temperature distribution, the cross-plane thermal conductivity , and the thermal boundary resistance (TBR) of the As quantum cascade lasers (QCLs) operating at 2.83 THz in the heat sink temperature range 45-300 K. This information was extracted from the analysis of microprobe band-to-band photoluminescence in QCLs operating in continuous wave. Both and TBR decrease monotonically at increasing temperature, the main influence on arising from the high density of interfaces.
Use of antiemetic agents in acute gastroenteritis: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE To perform a systematic review and meta-analysis to determine whether taking antiemetic drugs reduces vomiting and decreases the need for further intervention in children with gastroenteritis without causing significant adverse effects. DATA SOURCES Computerized databases, reference lists, and expert recommendations. STUDY SELECTION Prospective controlled trials evaluating medication use in children with vomiting from gastroenteritis. INTERVENTION Antiemetic drug therapy. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Emesis cessation, use of intravenous fluid for rehydration, hospital admission, return to care, and medication adverse effects. RESULTS The 11 articles that met the inclusion criteria evaluated various antiemetic agents: ondansetron (n = 6), domperidone (n = 2), trimethobenzamide (n = 2), pyrilamine-pentobarbital (n = 2), metoclopramide (n = 2), dexamethasone (n = 1), and promethazine (n = 1). Meta-analysis of 6 randomized, double-masked, placebo-controlled trials of ondansetron demonstrated decreased risk of further vomiting (5 studies; relative risk [RR], 0.45; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.33-0.62; number needed to treat [NNT] = 5), reduced need for intravenous fluid (4 studies; RR, 0.41; 95% CI, 0.28-0.62; NNT = 5), and decreased risk of immediate hospital admission (5 studies; RR, 0.52; 95% CI, 0.27-0.95; NNT = 14). Diarrheal episodes increased in ondansetron-treated patients in 3 studies. Ondansetron use did not significantly affect return to care (5 studies; RR, 1.34; 95% CI, 0.77-2.35). CONCLUSIONS Ondansetron therapy decreases the risk of persistent vomiting, the use of intravenous fluid, and hospital admissions in children with vomiting due to gastroenteritis. Future treatment guidelines should incorporate ondansetron therapy for select children with gastroenteritis.
Patient characteristics and stratification in medical treatment studies for metastatic colorectal cancer: a proposal for standardization of patient characteristic reporting and stratification.

BACKGROUND Prognostic factors have the potential to determine the survival of patients to a greater extent than current antineoplastic agents. Despite this knowledge, there is no consensus on, first, what patient characteristics to report and, second, what stratification factors to use in metastatic colorectal cancer trials. PATIENTS AND METHODS Seven leading oncology and medical journals were reviewed for phase II and III publications reporting on medical treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer patients during 2001-2005. One hundred and forty-three studies with 21 214 patients were identified. The reporting of patient characteristics and use of stratification was noted. RESULTS Age, gender, performance status, metastases location, sites and adjuvant chemotherapy were often reported (99-63%). Laboratory values as alkaline phosphatase, lactate dehydrogenase and white blood cell count, repeatedly found to be of prognostic relevance, were rarely reported (5-9%). Stratification was used in all phase III trials; however, only study centre was used with any consistency. CONCLUSION There is considerable inconsistency in the reporting of patient characteristics and use of stratification factors in metastatic colorectal cancer trials. We propose a standardization of patient characteristics reporting and stratification factors. A common set of characteristics and strata will aid in trial reporting, interpretation and future meta-analyses.
Regulation of REDD1 by insulin‐like growth factor‐I in skeletal muscle and myotubes

Insulin‐like growth factor‐I (IGF‐I) is a major anabolic hormone for skeletal muscle and a potent stimulus for protein synthesis and translation initiation. Recent studies suggest that translation can be inhibited by over expression of the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) repressor REDD1. The purpose of the present study was to determine whether IGF‐I alters the expression of REDD1 and whether this is associated with a concomitant change in protein synthesis in vitro. Subcutaneous injection of IGF‐I or intravenous delivery of insulin for 3–4 h increased REDD1 mRNA in skeletal muscle 7–10‐fold. A threefold increase in REDD1 was observed when C2C12 myotubes were treated with IGF‐I. REDD1 protein continued to be expressed for up to 24 h after addition of IGF‐I to cells. Withdrawal of IGF‐I from myotubes lead to a rapid loss of REDD1 protein content. IGF‐I‐induced REDD1 mRNA and protein expression were prevented by inhibitors of transcription and translation. IGF‐I had an additive effect with dexamethasone (Dex) on REDD1 protein content in myotubes. The PI3K inhibitor LY294002 blocked IGF‐I but not Dex induced REDD1. IGF‐I also stimulated REDD1 promoter activity. Although REDD1 protein was elevated 5–6 h after addition of IGF‐I to myotubes, protein synthesis measured during this 1 h window was paradoxically greater in myotubes expressing more REDD1. In contrast to the IGF‐I induced increase in REDD1 mRNA, REDD2 mRNA was decreased by IGF‐I. We conclude that IGF‐I stimulates REDD1 expression in skeletal muscle and myotubes but under these conditions the REDD1 response is not sufficient to repress protein synthesis. J. Cell. Biochem. 108: 1192–1202, 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Defining the Region of Bacillus subtilis SpoIIIJ That Is Essential for Its Sporulation-Specific Function

ABSTRACT Proteins of the YidC/OxaI/Alb3 family play a crucial role in the insertion, folding, and/or assembly of membrane proteins in prokaryotes and eukaryotes. Bacillus subtilis has two YidC-like proteins, denoted SpoIIIJ and YqjG. SpoIIIJ and YqjG are largely exchangeable in function, but SpoIIIJ has a unique role in sporulation, while YqjG stimulates competence development. To obtain more insight into the regions important for the sporulation specificity of SpoIIIJ, a series of SpoIIIJ/YqjG chimeras was constructed. These chimeras were tested for functionality during vegetative growth and for their ability to complement the sporulation defect of a spoIIIJ deletion strain. The data suggest an important role for the domain comprising transmembrane segment 2 (TMS2) and its flanking loops in sporulation specificity, with lesser contributions to specificity by TMS1 and TMS3.
Rotavirus Induces a‐Interferon Release in Children with Gastroenteritis

&NA; &agr;‐Interferon (IFN) blood levels were studied in 38 children hospitalized for rotavirus gastroenteritis. During rotavirus infection, a peak of systemic &agr;‐IFN was observed within 2 days of onset of symptoms. There was a significant positive correlation between &agr;‐IFN levels and the number of vomiting episodes (p = 0.0003) but not with duration of vomiting, maximal temperature, and duration of fever. &agr;‐IFN levels were higher in children with peripheral cyanosis compared with children without peripheral cyanosis (p = 0.005) and tended to be higher in children with diarrhea of <3 days’ duration compared with those with diarrhea lasting >4 days (p = 0.06). &agr;‐IFN could be partly responsible for the severity of such initial symptoms as vomiting and peripheral cyanosis in rotavirus gastroenteritis and could play a role in recovery from diarrhea.
Development, validation and characterization of an analytical method for the quantification of hydrolysable urinary metabolites and plasma protein adducts of 2,4- and 2,6-toluene diisocyanate, 1,5-naphthalene diisocyanate and 4,4'-methylenediphenyl diisocyanate

Occupational exposure to diisocyanates within the plastic industry causes irritation and disorders in the airway. The aim of this study was to develop, validate and characterize a method for the determination of 2,4-toluenediamine (2,4-TDA), 2,6-toluenediamine (2,6-TDA), 1,5-diaminonaphthalene (1,5-NDA) and 4,4′-methylenedianiline (4,4′-MDA) in hydrolysed urine and plasma, and to study the correlation between the plasma and urinary levels of these potential biomarkers of 2,4-toluene diisocyanate (2,4-TDI), 2,6-toluene diisocyanate (2,6-TDI), 1,5-naphthalene diisocyanate (1,5-NDI) and 4,4′-methylenediphenyl diisocyanate (4,4′-MDI), respectively. Samples were hydrolysed with 0.3 M NaOH at 100°C for 24 h. The diamines were extracted, derivatized with pentafluoropropionic acid anhydride, and quantified by selected ion monitoring on gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. The repeatability and reproducibility of the method were 7-18% and 7-19%, respectively. Dialysis experiments showed that the metabolites of 2,4-TDI, 2,6-TDI, 1,5-NDI and 4,4′-MDI in plasma were exclusively protein adducts. No free diamines were found in urine, indicating that all diisocyanate-related metabolites were in a conjugated form. For each diisocyanate-related biomarker, there were strongly significant correlations (p<0.001) between individual levels of metabolites in plasma and urine, with Spearman's rank correlation coefficient (rs) values of 0.74-0.90. The methods presented here will be valuable for the development of biological monitoring methods for diisocyanates.
Association of Alterations in ParC and GyrA Proteins with Resistance of Clinical Isolates of Enterococcus faecium to Nine Different Fluoroquinolones

ABSTRACT The parC and gyrA genes of 73 ciprofloxacin-resistant and 6 ciprofloxacin-susceptibleEnterococcus faecium clinical isolates were partly sequenced. Alterations in ParC and GyrA, possibly in combination with other resistance mechanisms, severely restricted the in vitro activities of the nine quinolones tested. For all isolates, clinafloxacin and sitafloxacin showed the best activities.
Facial variations in sensory responses

Subjective effects such as stinging, itching and burning commonly occur in the absence of any visible irritation and give rise to discomfort, which may be enough to deter an individual from using even the most effective of skin care products. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the sensitivity of different anatomical regions of the face to determine which region displayed the most intense stinging response to the application of lactic acid. The effect of occlusion on the level of response was also investigated. 45 volunteers were treated with 10% lactic acid on the nasolabial fold, forehead, chin and cheek, occluded and unoccluded for 8 min. Sensory reactions were recorded at 2.5, 5 and 8 min. The response levels on the occluded sites were always significantly lower than on the unoccluded sites, despite the dose per unit area being comparable. Females showed a trend towards being more sensitive to the subjective effects elicited by lactic acid than males, but these results were not conclusive. Interestingly, there was not a complete correlation between individuals who reacted on the nasolabial fold and the other sites, particularly the forehead. A positive stinging response on the nasolabial fold may not necessarily predict subjective responses to a product when used on other areas of the face.
Physical Interaction and Functional Antagonism between the RNA Polymerase II Elongation Factor ELL and p53*

ELL was originally identified as a gene that undergoes translocation with the trithorax-likeMLL gene in acute myeloid leukemia. Recent studies have shown that the gene product, ELL, functions as an RNA polymerase II elongation factor that increases the rate of transcription by RNA polymerase II by suppressing transient pausing. Using yeast two-hybrid screening with ELL as bait, we isolated the p53 tumor suppressor protein as a specific interactor of ELL. The interaction involves respectively the transcription elongation activation domain of ELL and the C-terminal tail of p53. Through this interaction, ELL inhibits both sequence-specific transactivation and sequence-independent transrepression by p53. Thus, ELL acts as a negative regulator of p53 in transcription. Conversely, p53 inhibits the transcription elongation activity of ELL, suggesting that p53 is capable of regulating general transcription by RNA polymerase II through controlling the ELL activity. Elevated levels of ELL in cells resulted in the inhibition of p53-dependent induction of endogenous p21 and substantially protected cells from p53-mediated apoptosis that is induced by genotoxic stress. Our observations indicate the existence of a mutually inhibitory interaction between p53 and a general transcription elongation factor ELL and raise the possibility that an aberrant interaction between p53 and ELL may play a role in the genesis of leukemias carrying MLL-ELL gene translocations.
Mori: A Modular Origami Robot

This paper proposes a new robotic platform based on origami robots and reconfigurable modular robots. The concept combines the advantages of both robot types into a mobile, quasi-two-dimensional, lattice-type reconfigurable modular origami robot, Mori. A detailed description and analysis of the concept is validated by the presentation of a first prototype that incorporates the key functionalities of the proposed system. The modular robot prototype is mobile, can be connected to other modules of its kind, and fold up to create task-specific three-dimensional reconfigurable structures. Three implementations using the prototype in different configurations are presented in the form of individual modules, modular reconfigurable surfaces, and is applied to closed-loop object manipulation. The experiments highlight the capabilities and advantages of the system with respect to modularity, origami-folding, mobility, and versatility.