Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Epidemiologic transition in mortality rate from circulatory diseases in Brazil.

BACKGROUND Circulatory diseases (CD) are the major cause of death in Brazil, being cerebrovascular diseases (CVD) predominant. In developed countries ischemic heart diseases (IHD) predominate. OBJECTIVE The objective of the present study was to investigate the ratio between cerebrovascular diseases/ischemic heart diseases (CVD/IHD) in males and females who were 30 years of age and older. METHODS Population estimates and mortality data for CD, IHD and CVD were provided by the Ministry of Health for the period between 1980 and 2005. The risk of death from IHD and CVD per 100,000 Brazilians and CVD/IHD ratio were analyzed in 10-year age ranges as of 30 years of age. The risk of death was adjusted by direct method by using 1960 world population as the standard population. RESULTS It was observed that the risk of death from IHD and CVD increased exponentially as age advanced. CVD was the major cause of death in Brazil until 1996, when IHD took the lead. In the period between 1980 and 2005 a 33.25% reduction in death risk from CD was observed in the Brazilian population. In that same period, the metropolitan area of the capital city of São Paulo reported a 45.44% reduction. The CVD/IHD ratio was shown to be higher among younger women - from 2.53 in 1980 down to 2.04 in 2005 in the Brazilian population, and from 2.76 in 1980 down to 1.96 in the metropolitan area of the capital city of São Paulo, with decreasing figures for subsequent age ranges. Among males, the CVD/IHD ratio was close to < 1 in all age ranges. CONCLUSION A transition in death risk from CD could be observed in Brazil, with current predominance of IHD.
Tridimensional Personality Questionnaire: Assessment in Patients with Social Phobia and a Control Group

We administered the Tridimensional Personality Questionnaire to 40 control subjects and to 47 social phobia patients who met Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-III-R (SCID) criteria for social phobia and participated in a multicenter treatment study. Multiple comparisons with Bonferroni correction showed a significant increase in total Harm Avoidance scale scores and all four subscale scores for the social phobia group. On a Reward Dependence subscale that measures persistence versus irresoluteness the mean was significantly lower in the social phobia group than the control group. Present findings extend an earlier report of increased Harm Avoidance in major depressive disorder and other clinical diagnostic groups.
Subsequent Primary Malignancies in Patients with Nonmelanoma Skin Cancer in England: A National Record-Linkage Study

Background: Conflicting evidence exists about whether people with a history of nonmelanoma skin cancer (NMSC) are at higher risk of subsequent primary malignant cancers than those without. Methods: An all England record-linked hospital and mortality dataset spanning from 1999 to 2011 was used. We constructed two cohorts: one that comprised people with a history of NMSC (502,490 people), and a control cohort that comprised people without. We “followed up” these two cohorts electronically to determine observed and expected numbers of people with subsequent primary cancers in each, based on person-years at risk, and calculated standardized risk ratios (RR). Results: Comparing the NMSC cohort with the non-NMSC cohort, the RR for all subsequent malignant cancers combined was 1.36 [95% confidence interval (CI), 1.35–1.37]. Significantly increased RRs (P < 0.05) were found for 26 of the 29 cancer types studied, in particular for salivary gland, melanoma, bone, and upper gastrointestinal tract cancers. The RRs were also particularly high when comparing younger people with and without NMSC. Conclusions: NMSC is strongly associated with a broad spectrum of other primary cancers, particularly in younger age groups. The pattern suggests a genetic or early-acquired etiologic association. Impact: These results represent what can be done using very large, linked, routinely collected administrative datasets; but such datasets lack detail. Further work to establish the mechanisms behind these associations is warranted. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 23(3); 490–8. ©2014 AACR.
TESSP‐1: A novel serine protease gene expressed in the spermatogonia and spermatocytes of adult mouse testes

A cDNA encoding a novel type of serine protease, designated testis‐specific serine protease 1 (TESSP‐1), was cloned using mRNA isolated from the adult mouse testis. The open reading frame of this cDNA codes for a protein of 322 amino acids, which includes a hydrophobic signal peptide of 18 amino acids and an N‐terminal activation peptide of 34 amino acids. The protein has an additional hydrophobic amino acid sequence at the C‐terminus. Expression of the TESSP‐1 gene was restricted to the testis. TESSP‐1 mRNA expression initiated in the mouse testis at 2 weeks after birth, and its level increased steadily with sexual maturation of the animal. In situ hybridization analysis revealed that TESSP‐1 mRNA was expressed in type B spermatogonia and spermatocytes at stages between preleptotene and pachytene. The testis contained at least five distinct forms of TESSP‐1 transcript, which presumably resulted from alternative splicing of the mRNA, but only one of these transcripts encodes a complete, functional enzyme. Expression experiments using COS‐7 cells showed that TESSP‐1 was synthesized as a glycoprotein with N‐glycosylated carbohydrates. Tests also showed that the C‐terminal hydrophobic region of TESSP‐1 was important upon its binding to the membrane by anchoring through glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI). Mol. Reprod. Dev. 70: 1–10, 2004. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Visual or computer-based measurements: important for interpretation of athletes’ ECG

Background ECG is recommended for preparticipation health examination in athletes. Owing to a lack of consensus on how to read and interpret athletes’ ECGs, different criteria for abnormality are used. Aims To compare the prevalence of abnormal ECGs and test the correlation between visual and computer-based measurements. Methods In a preparticipation cardiac screening examination of 595 male professional soccer players aged 18–38 years, ECGs were categorised according to the European Society of Cardiology's (ESC) recommendations and the Seattle criteria, respectively. Visual measurements were conducted with callipers on-screen on the averaged PQRST complex in each lead, calculated by the trimmed mean. Computer-based measurements were derived from the medium beat. Heart rhythm and conduction were scored visually by a cardiologist. Categorical variables were compared by κ statistics (K) and continuous variables by intraclass correlation. Results ECGs of good quality were available from 579 players. According to the ESC's recommendations and Seattle criteria, respectively, ECGs were categorised as abnormal in 171 (29.5%) vs 64 (11.1%) players after visual assessment, and in 293 (50.6%; K=0.395) vs 127 (21.9%; K=0.564) after computer-based measurements. Intraclass correlation was very good for measurements of R and S wave amplitudes and moderate to very good for intervals. K was very good for pathological Q wave amplitudes and moderate for T wave inversions. Conclusions Abnormal ECGs were more than twice as common after computer-based than after visual measurements. Such a difference will markedly influence the number of athletes who need further examinations. Reference values may need adjustments dependent on measurement methods.
Możliwa historia literatury.

Ryszard NYCZ Jagiellonian University (Krakow) The Institute of Literary Research of the Polish Academy of Sciences (Warszawa) A Possible History of Literature The author argues for the need for a critical afterthought on the history of literature in general and the history of Polish literature in particular. Discussed are its traditional models and certain new conceptualisations, along with a handful of postulates concerning a possible (worthy, albeit not easily deliverable) history of Polish literature.
Detecting acute human immunodeficiency virus infection using 3 different screening immunoassays and nucleic acid amplification testing for human immunodeficiency virus RNA, 2006-2008.

BACKGROUND The yield of nucleic acid amplification testing (NAAT) after routine screening for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) antibody to detect acute HIV infection (AHI) may vary with different HIV-antibody assays. METHODS From April 24, 2006, through March 28, 2008, patients underwent routine HIV-antibody screening using a first-generation assay at 14 county sexually transmitted disease (STD) clinics and 1 community clinic serving homosexual patients in Los Angeles; using a second-generation rapid test at 3 municipal STD clinics in New York; and using a third-generation assay at 80 public health clinics in Florida. To identify AHI, seronegative specimens were pooled for NAAT, followed by individual NAAT of specimens with positive findings. All AHI samples screened by first- and second-generation assays also underwent third-generation testing. RESULTS We screened 37 012 persons using NAAT after first-generation testing; 35 AHIs were identified, increasing HIV case detection by 8.2%. After a second-generation rapid test, 6547 persons underwent NAAT; 7 AHIs were identified, increasing HIV case detection by 24.1%. After third-generation testing, 54 948 persons underwent NAAT; 12 AHI cases were identified, increasing HIV case detection by 1.4%. Overall, pooled NAAT after negative third-generation test results detected 26 AHI cases, increasing HIV case detection by 2.2%. Most of the AHI cases from Los Angeles (26 of 35 [74%]) were identified at the community clinic where NAAT after third-generation testing increased HIV case detection by 11.9%. CONCLUSIONS Pooled NAAT after third-generation testing increases HIV case detection, especially in venues of high HIV seropositivity. Therefore, targeted AHI screening using pooled NAAT after third-generation testing may be most effective, warranting a cost-benefit analysis.
[The expression of MMP-2 and MMP-9 in adenoid cystic carcinoma of lacrimal gland].

OBJECTIVE To investigate the expression of matrix metal proteinase (MMP)-2 and MMP-9 in adenoid cystic carcinoma of lacrimal gland as well as their relation with biological behaviour of adenoid cystic carcinoma. METHODS Experimental study. The research objects were 60 cases of adenoid cystic carcinoma of lacrimal gland which were collected from No.2 Hospital of Tianjin Medical University from January 1991 to Jule 2011. There were 25 males and 35 females aged from 29 to 42 years. Based on histological revision, there were 36 cases of cribriform-tubular subtype and 24 cases of solid subtype. Forty-five cases were primary lesions and 15 cases were recurrent lesions. Ten samples of normal lacrimal gland around polymorphic adenoma were selected as the control group. The expression of CD105, MMP-2 and MMP-9 were evaluated by immunohistochemistry. The microvessel density (MVD) was defined by expression of CD105. One way ANOVA, χ(2)-test and spearman correlation test were used to analyzed the data. RESULTS The number of MVD [(17.71 ± 5.63)/100 folds field of vision] and the positive rates of MMP-2 (45.0%, 27/60) and MMP-9 (55.0%, 33/60) in the samples of adenoid cystic carcinoma of lacrimal gland were higher than those in the normal lacrimal gland [the number of MVD was (0.70 ± 0.95)/100 folds field of vision, the expressions of MMP-2 and MMP-9 were negative] (t' = 2.039, P < 0.05; χ(2) = 5.550, P < 0.05; χ(2) = 8.315, P < 0.01), the solid subtypes had more MVD [(26.12 ± 5.32)/100 folds field of vision] and higher positive rates of MMP-2 (62.5%, 15/24) and MMP-9 (79.2%, 19/24) than the cribriform-tubular subtypes (t' = 2.060, P < 0.05; χ(2) = 4.950, P < 0.05; χ(2) = 9.439, P < 0.05); the recurrent lesions had more MVD and higher positive rate of MMP-2 and MMP-9 than the primary lesions (t' = 2.129, P < 0.05; χ(2) = 9.899, P < 0.05; χ(2) = 8.103, P < 0.05). The number of MVD in ACC of lacrimal gland patients was correlated with the positive rate of MMP-2 and MMP-9 respectively (rs = 0.636, P < 0.05; rs = 0.524, P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS The number of MVD and the expression of MMP-2 and MMP-9 are higher level in adenoid cystic carcinoma of lacrimal gland and are significantly correlated with pathological type and recurrence. Detecting the number of MVD and the expression of MMP-2 and MMP-9 may become biological indexes for malignancy, recurrence and metastasis of adenoid cystic carcinoma of lacrimal gland.
Reliable Multicast H.264 Video Streaming for Surveillance Applications

It is a common understanding that the surveillance video market is moving to standard, wireline and wireless IP based solutions because of the many advantages over the proprietary RF-based solutions that were deployed previously. State of the art solutions are using the very popular H.264 standard for the video compression. Surveillance video applications differentiate from other video streaming applications in the fact that the delivery of the video has to be very reliable, thus, especially for wireless environments, the usage of UDP as transmission mechanism is not the ideal solution. On the other hand, surveillance video potentially needs to be distributed to many viewers, something that would significantly increase the bandwidth usage if a non UDP-multicasting transmission is used. In this work a solution is proposed to the problem of transmission of surveillance video in a reliable manner, by combining the best of both worlds: An intermediate multicast video server is used for receiving video streams through TCP from the IP camera and transmitting through multicast UDP to the viewers. An implementation of our proposal is described and experimental results are presented and verify the proposed methodology.
Antibody response to pneumococcal vaccine in middle-aged and elderly patients recently treated for pneumonia.

BACKGROUND A substantial proportion of patients admitted to the hospital for pneumonia have been treated in a hospital during the preceding 4 to 5 years, and patients previously treated in a hospital for pneumonia seem to be at an especially high risk for another episode of pneumonia. Many cases of pneumococcal infection might therefore be prevented by immunizing admitted patients with pneumococcal vaccine at discharge or at follow-up. The aim of this study was to investigate the type-specific antibody response to pneumococcal vaccine in middle-aged and elderly patients at follow-up 8 weeks after hospital treatment for pneumonia. METHODS A total of 92 individuals, 50 to 85 years old, participated in the study. One group consisted of 65 individuals treated in the hospital for pneumonia 8 weeks before vaccination (mean age, 67 years), and another group consisted of 27 individuals who had not recently been treated for pneumonia (mean age, 67 years). All 92 individuals received a single dose of a 23-valent pneumococcal vaccine. The type-specific antibody responses to six pneumococcal capsular polysaccharide antigens included in the vaccine as well as antibodies against the 23-valent pneumococcal vaccine were measured before and 3 to 4 weeks after vaccination by use of an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. RESULTS The antibody concentrations before and after vaccination were comparable in the two groups, as were antibody fold increases from prevaccination to postvaccination serum. No serious adverse events were recorded. CONCLUSIONS Pneumococcal vaccination at follow-up 8 weeks after treatment in the hospital for pneumonia seems to elicit an adequate antibody response without notable adverse reactions.
Determining the action dimension of an Artin group by using its complex of abelian subgroups

Suppose that (W,S) is a Coxeter system with associated Artin group A and with a simplicial complex L as its nerve. We define the notion of a ‘standard abelian subgroup’ in A . The poset of such subgroups in A is parameterized by the poset of simplices in a certain subdivision L⊘ of L . This complex of standard abelian subgroups is used to generalize an earlier result from the case of right‐angled Artin groups to case of general Artin groups, by calculating, in many instances, the smallest dimension of a manifold model for BA . (This is the ‘action dimension’ of A denoted actdimA .) If Hd(L;Z/2)≠0 , where d=dimL , then actdimA⩾2d+2 . Moreover, when the K(π,1) ‐Conjecture holds for A , the inequality is an equality.
Electroconvulsive Therapy and Memory Loss: A Personal Journey

The cause for the significant gap between research and anecdotal evidence regarding the extent of some memory loss after electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) has never been adequately explained. A patient's development of awareness and self-education about her severe side effects from ECT raises questions regarding many current assumptions about memory loss. ECT-specific studies, which conclude that side effects are short term and narrow in scope, have serious limitations, including the fact that they do not take into account broader scientific knowledge about memory function. Because of the potential for devastating and permanent memory loss with ECT, informed consent needs significant enhancement until advancing research on both improved techniques and on better predictive knowledge regarding memory loss progresses to making a greater impact on clinical applications. Follow-up care and education in coping skills need to be a regular part of ECT practice when patients do experience severe effects.
Bilingualism Modulates Infants’ Selective Attention to the Mouth of a Talking Face

Infants growing up in bilingual environments succeed at learning two languages. What adaptive processes enable them to master the more complex nature of bilingual input? One possibility is that bilingual infants take greater advantage of the redundancy of the audiovisual speech that they usually experience during social interactions. Thus, we investigated whether bilingual infants’ need to keep languages apart increases their attention to the mouth as a source of redundant and reliable speech cues. We measured selective attention to talking faces in 4-, 8-, and 12-month-old Catalan and Spanish monolingual and bilingual infants. Monolinguals looked more at the eyes than the mouth at 4 months and more at the mouth than the eyes at 8 months in response to both native and nonnative speech, but they looked more at the mouth than the eyes at 12 months only in response to nonnative speech. In contrast, bilinguals looked equally at the eyes and mouth at 4 months, more at the mouth than the eyes at 8 months, and more at the mouth than the eyes at 12 months, and these patterns of responses were found for both native and nonnative speech at all ages. Thus, to support their dual-language acquisition processes, bilingual infants exploit the greater perceptual salience of redundant audiovisual speech cues at an earlier age and for a longer time than monolingual infants.
Transgenic Glucocorticoid Receptor Expression Driven by the SP-C Promoter Reduces Neonatal Lung Cellularity and Midkine Expression in GRhypo Mice

Background: Congenital truncation of the glucocorticoid receptor (GR) is known to lead to lethal lung immaturity in newborn mice associated with increased lung cellularity (ratio of tissue to airspace) and, as we previously showed, prolonged expression of the retinoid-responsive growth factor midkine. Objectives: We sought to determine if these changes would be reversed by transgenic expression of GR exclusively in the distal airway epithelium. Methods: Mice were generated with expression of transgenic rat (r) GR driven by the human (h) SP-C promoter, on a background of congenital GR truncation. Results: Transgenic epithelial GR expression reduced lung cellularity and midkine expression to levels comparable to wild-type littermates. Nevertheless, the newborn transgenic mice still displayed respiratory failure. Moreover, epithelial expression of the GR transgene did not alter expression of a number of important markers of lung maturation. Conclusions: Our data demonstrating normalization of the lung tissue to airspace ratio in neonatal mice expressing transgenic GR in the distal airway epithelium is consistent with the concept that normal mesenchymal cell loss is due to GR-responsive stimulation from epithelial cells. However, we could find no evidence of altered apoptotic activity between the groups of mice. We speculate that correction of the severe neonatal lung phenotype of GR-deficient mice will require expression of normal GR in non-epithelial as well as epithelial tissues.
Accuracy diagrams: a novel way to illustrate uncertainty of estimated GFR

Abstract Most studies that validate GFR equations present accuracy results stratified by measured GFR (mGFR; diagnostic correctness) or by estimated GFR (eGFR; diagnostic predictiveness) only, without a clear distinction in interpretation. The accuracy of a GFR equation is normally reported in percent (e.g. P30), but is often misinterpreted when stratified by eGFR. The aim of the study was to develop new accuracy measures and diagrams that allow straightforward interpretations and illustrations of the uncertainty in eGFR in clinical practice. We applied quantile regression to the distribution of estimation errors for two creatinine-based GFR equations, LM-REV and CKD-EPI, in a clinical cohort (n = 3495) referred for GFR measurement (plasma clearance of iohexol). Measures of bias and precision and accuracy intervals (AIs) were expressed in mL/min/1.73 m2. Diagrams with AIs were chosen as a novel way to present the error margin in eGFR at a pre-specified certainty level. It was shown that creatinine-based equations are still quite inaccurate in that large estimation errors could not be ruled out with satisfactory certainty. As an example, the 75% AI for the most accurate equation, LM-REV, was approximately ±10 mL/min/1.73 m2 at eGFR = 45 mL/min/1.73 m2, whereas it ranged between −13 and +20 mL/min/1.73 m2 at eGFR = 90 mL/min/1.73 m2. Accuracy intervals presented in diagrams can be used to illustrate the uncertainty of eGFR. Future validation studies should assess the variability in the predictiveness of eGFR across populations and clinical settings using tools and performance measures that are easy to interpret.