Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Examination anxiety in medical students: experiences with the visual analogue scale for anxiety

Medical students' levels of anxiety under different conditions of stress were investigated, as well as the stability of anxiety ratings from one examination to another. After completing an end‐of‐term psychiatry examination, fourth‐year medical students at Monash University were asked to score the Visual Analogue Scale for Anxiety (VASA) for three situational cues; usual day‐to‐day anxiety, highest anxiety associated with major exams the previous year and anxiety experienced in the end‐of‐term examination just completed. Twenty‐eight weeks later students rated their anxiety in a subsequent end‐of‐term psychiatry examination. Most students rated themselves toward the lower end of the VASA for day‐to‐day anxiety and as having significantly, though not markedly higher anxiety in the end‐of‐term psychiatry examinations. The previous year's examinations, marking the end of pre‐clinical training, provoked extremely high anxiety for most students, who achieved academically despite this. Comparison of anxiety ratings for the two end‐of‐term examinations indicated that VASA ratings shifted substantially for half the class. This variation suggests that students' levels of anxiety are not stable and predictable from one examination to another. Examination anxiety should not be seen necessarily as a consistent response to a specific and recurring situation. It is postulated that a range of situational factors and personal pressures, operating at the time, may determine how much anxiety is experienced as a reaction to the examination.
Expression of SPARC/osteonectin/BM4O in the human gut: Predominance in the stroma of the remodeling distal intestine

SPARC is a glycoprotein of the extracellular matrix that exhibits a number of biological functions such as disruption of cell adhesion and modulation of matrix metalloprotease expression. These properties, in concert with the expression of the molecule during development, repair, and neoplastic progression, suggest that SPARC has an important role in remodeling in a variety of tissues. However, the role of SPARC in the intestine is unclear since the development expression and tissular origin of SPARC in this organ appears to be species‐dependent. As a first step to investigate the function of SPARC in the tissues of the intestine, we have analyzed its expression at the protein and mRNA levels in the human fetal and adult small intestinal and colonic mucosa as well as in intestinal cell models. Our results show that SPARC expression is differentially regulated during development and along the length of the human intestine. In the colon, SPARC was predominantly found at the epithelial–mesenchymal interface at the fetal stage, below detection levels in the normal adult, but re‐expressed in the stroma of colonic tumors. In the small intestine, low levels of SPARC expression were observed at an early stage of morphogenesis (between 9 and 11 weeks) but expression was not detected at subsequent developmental stages nor was it induced in the mucosa of Crohn's disease. While SPARC appeared to be produced mainly by mesenchymal and stromal cells in the intact intestine it was not detected in colon cancer cells. Taken together, these results indicate that SPARC is subject to an onco‐fetal pattern of expression in the stroma of the colonic mucosa while its expression is much more restricted in the small intestine, suggesting a differential involvement of this molecule in the extracellular matrix remodeling occurring along the length of the developing and diseased human intestinal mucosa. J. Cell. Biochem. 81:463–476, 2001. © 2001 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Characterisation of the inflammatory reaction in equine idiopathic focal eosinophilic enteritis and diffuse eosinophilic enteritis.

REASONS FOR PERFORMING STUDY Idiopathic focal eosinophilic enteritis (IFEE) and diffuse eosinophilic enteritis (DEE) are primary eosinophilic intestinal conditions without a known cause that are associated with an increasing number of surgical colic cases. Histology may be helpful in defining disease aetiology and pathogenesis. OBJECTIVES To characterise further the inflammatory infiltrate in equine IFEE and to compare the condition with DEE. METHODS Twenty-three IFEE cases and 5 DEE cases were examined by light microscopy including immunohistology to identify infiltrating leucocytes. Inflammatory infiltrates in mucosa and submucosa were characterised in IFEE lesions (Group 1), the intestine distant from the lesions in IFEE (Group 2) and DEE (Group 3). RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS IFEE lesions represented an accumulation of leucocytes in submucosa and muscularis, with dominance of eosinophils and macrophages and smaller numbers of lymphocytes, plasma cells and neutrophils. T cells represented the dominant lymphocytes. The mucosa overlying the lesion and both mucosa and submucosa in IFEE nonlesion sites and in DEE exhibited a similar composition, with different prevalence of various cell types. Macrophages were significantly more prevalent in the mucosal and submucosal infiltrates in IFEE nonlesion sites than in DEE, and lymphocytes significantly more prevalent in the mucosa in DEE than in IFEE nonlesion sites. The findings confirm IFEE as a primary eosinophilic intestinal disorder and indicate that IFEE represents a focally exacerbated inflammatory reaction in horses with DEE, possibly due to functional changes in the macrophage and T cell components, with subsequent excessive recruitment of both eosinophils and macrophages.
Interior surface materials in the home and the development of bronchial obstruction in young children in Oslo, Norway.

OBJECTIVES This study assessed the role of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plastics and textile materials in the home in the development of bronchial obstruction during the first 2 years of life. METHODS The study was a matched pair case-control study based on a cohort of 3754 newborns in Oslo in 1992 and 1993 who were followed up for 2 years. The case group consisted of 251 children with bronchial obstruction; the control group was matched one-to-one for date of birth. RESULTS In conditional logistic regression analysis, the risk of bronchial obstruction was related to the presence of PVC flooring (adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 1.89; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.14, 3.14) and textile wall materials (adjusted OR = 1.58; 95% CI = 0.98, 2.54). The reference category was wood or parquet flooring and painted walls and ceiling. Further analysis revealed an exposure-response relationship between the assessed amount of PVC and other plasticizer-containing surface materials and the risk of bronchial obstruction. CONCLUSIONS This study provides new evidence of the role of PVC and textile wall materials in the development of bronchial obstruction in young children.
Variance Component Estimates with Dominance Models for Milk Production in Holsteins of Japan Using Method R

Fractions of herd-year-season, sire by herd interaction, additive genetic and dominance genetic variances were estimated for milk production traits in Holsteins of Japan using Method R. Inbreeding depressions for milk production traits were also estimated. Estimated fractions of herd-year-season variances ranged from 0.056 to 0.074 for yield traits and from 0.033 to 0.035 for content traits. Estimated fractions of additive genetic variances to phenotypic variances (heritabilities across a herd in the narrow sense) were 0.306, 0.287, 0.273, 0.255, 0.723, 0.697 and 0.663 for milk, fat, SNF and protein yields, and fat, SNF and protein contents, respectively. Estimated fractions of dominance genetic variances ranged from 0.019 to 0.022 for yield traits and from 0.014 to 0.018 for content traits. Fractions of variances for sire by herd interaction were estimated to range from 0.020 to 0.025 for yield traits and 0.011 to 0.012 for content traits. Estimates of inbreeding depression for milk, fat, SNF and protein yields were -36.16 kg, -1.42 kg, -3.24 kg and -1.15 kg per 1% inbreeding for milk, fat, SNF and protein yields, respectively. Estimates of depression per 1% inbreeding for content traits were positive at 0.39×10 -3 %, 0.31×10 -3 % and 0.82×10 -3 % for fat, SNF and protein contents, respectively. (Asian-Aust. J. Anim. Sci. 2006. Vol 19, No. 6 : 769-774)
Genetic characterization of Rosa damascena species growing in different regions of Syria and its relationship to the quality of the essential oils.

Seven Rosa damascena samples and two check samples were collected and studied for both of the chemical oil and the molecular genetics composition. Results of oil chemical analyses of the different samples showed a great deal of resemblance among essential oils resultant from rose samples collected from the same region. The molecular genetics analyses for the same samples using both RAPD and ISSR techniques showed the same trend in the dendr ogram. When the data were combined and put into one tree, the samples fell into two main clusters: The first combined sample s 1 and 2 (Damascus) as the most closely genetically related followed by 3 and 5, and lastly the two checks were entered 4 ( Rosa centifolia) and then 9 (Crataegus). And the second cluster contained three samples: the two closely related 7 and 8 (Aleppo) followed by the most distant sample of all 6. The study concluded that there were a high d egree of conformity between the two dendrograms based on the chemical composition of essential oil on one hand and on the DNA level on the other hand, stressing the role of environment (mostly annual rainfall) on oil characteristics quality. On the other hand, based on these results, the authors suggest that sample 6 may not belong to Rosa damascena but to another species, and this needs further confirmation using cy toplasmic DNA techniques that target the variability at the species level .
A heterogeneous evaluation model for assessing sustainable energy: A Belgian case study

Decision makers are increasingly involved in complex real decisions that require multiple viewpoints. A specific case of this fact is the evaluation of sustainable policies related to environment and energy sectors. In this evaluation process, different scenarios are evaluated according to multiple desired criteria that might have different nature. These evaluation processes aim to obtain an overall assessment for each scenario with a complete description of the different related criteria to compare the alternate scenarios for a ranking among them with the goal of identifying the best one. In such complex decision making problems a key problem is the modelling of experts' assessments for each criterion of the scenarios due to the vagueness, uncertainty and nature of such assessments. In this contribution, we propose an evaluation model applied to energy policy selection based on the decision analysis that can manage different types of information (numerical, interval-valued and linguistic) and eventually models linguistically the experts' information with the aim of facilitating the interpretation and keeping accurate results. We apply this model to a case study for evaluating Belgian long-term sustainable energy scenarios.
Development of ClearPEM-Sonic — A multimodal positron emission mammograph and ultrasound scanner

Breast cancer is one of the most frequent causes of premature death amongst women. To enhance the chances for complete recovery, the tumor shall be detected at an early stage. It is therefore necessary to develop efficient diagnostic means with high spatial resolution. In this focus, we developed a positron emission tomograph coupled to an ultrasound elastography system, dedicated to mammography: the ClearPEM-Sonic.
INCIDENCE OF CHLOROQUINE RETINOPATHY

The incidence of severe reactions to a drug is an important factor in evaluating its toxicity. Although synthetic antimalarial drugs have been used for about 20 years, reports concerning visual disturbances during the treatment have been presented only for the last ten years. This apparent disparity is a result of the small total doses used in the prophylactic treatment of malaria. Since it became evident that the visual disorders occurring during chloroquine therapy of rheumatoid arthritis and lupus erythematosus should be ascribed to the drug more. than a hundred separate cases of retinopathy have been published. Several investigations have attempted to clarify the incidence of retinopathy (Table I). The percentages vary considerably. Table I Serial examinations of patients on chloroquine therapy with positive findings due to retinopathy
Repair of rat calvarial defects using Si‐doped hydroxyapatite scaffolds loaded with a bone morphogenetic protein‐2‐related peptide

Tissue engineering promises therapies ideal for treating conventional large bone injuries and defects. In the present study, we developed a novel Si‐HA scaffold loaded with a synthetic BMP‐2‐related peptide, P28, and tested its ability to repair a critical‐sized calvarial defect. We created a calvarial defect (5 mm in diameter) in the parietal bone of 32 rats and implanted one of the following biomaterials: No implant (control), Si‐HA, P28/Si‐HA, or rhBMP‐2/Si‐HA. As assessed by micro CT imaging and histological evaluations, the P28/Si‐HA scaffold promoted bone recovery to a similar degree as the rhBMP‐2/Si‐HA scaffold. In addition, both P28/Si‐HA and rhBMP‐2/Si‐HA promoted recovery better than Si‐HA alone. The novel P28/Si‐HA scaffold might represent a promising biomaterial for future bone tissue engineering applications. © 2016 Orthopaedic Research Society. Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Orthop Res 34:1874–1882, 2016.
Physico-chemical characterization and biometry of fruits of ‘pequi’ in Western Bahia

In Cerrado, there are numerous native fruit species with potential for use in traditional systems of agricultural production. In this context, the ‘pequi’ stands out in this biome by its great economic value in Central Brazil. Therefore, this work aimed to study the physical and physico-chemical characterization of Pequi fruits in the Western Region of Bahia. Three hundred fruits were sampled from ten matrices which were collected in an area of the municipality of Angical, BA and conducted to the Seed Laboratory of the State University of Bahia - UNEB. For physical evaluations, the fruit weight; longitudinal and transversal diameters of the fruit; total weight of seeds per fruit; pulp weight, peel weight and pulp yield were considered. As for the physico-chemical evaluations, the fruit pulp was subjected to the determinations of pH, the soluble solids (SS), titratable acidity (TA) and the relation between soluble solids and titratable acidity. For the variables, longitudinal and transversal diameters, the pulp weight, peel weight, seed weight, fruit weight and pulp yield, the mean were, respectively, 63.49 and 61.29 mm, 12.51, 101.91, 27.48, 114.41 g and 11.17%. However, with regard to pH, SS, AT and SS/AT, means were 5.32, 11.95 °Brix, 1.76 and 11.53. The results indicated that there are statistically significant differences between all the physical and physico-chemical variables evaluated.
Another Wrinkle in the Debate about Successful Aging: The Undervalued Concept of Resilience and the Lived Experience of Dementia

The concept of “successful aging” is a contested discourse in gerontology. Two conflicting paradigms dominate the discussion: a health promotion activity model, and a model critical of the concept of successful aging. However, this study takes a different perspective and proposes that perhaps we have been striving for the wrong goal. The true quest as we age should not be for successful aging, but our goal should be for resilience, an undervalued and not fully examined concept in aging. Developing resilience is possible for many older adults regardless of social and cultural backgrounds or physical and cognitive impairments, unlike successful aging. This article discusses the concept of resilience from a theoretical resilience framework, applies the framework to a dementia population by providing two in-depth case studies of resilience among people with Alzheimer's disease, and concludes by advocating to move the resilience paradigm more front and center into the gerontological debate on successful aging.
Effect of saliva contamination and decontamination on bovine enamel bond strength of four self-etching adhesives.

OBJECTIVE This study evaluated the effect of saliva contamination on the bovine enamel microtensile bond strengths (microTBS) of four self-etching adhesives. MATERIALS AND METHODS The labial enamel surfaces of extracted non-carious bovine incisors were serially wet ground. The enamel surfaces were not contaminated (Group A), contaminated with saliva before/after priming (Groups B/C) or they were water-sprayed after salivary contamination occurred before/after priming (Groups D/E). Four self-etching adhesives and the corresponding resin composites from the same manufacturer (Clearfil SE Bond + Clearfil AP-X, Kuraray Co; Xeno III + Ceram X, Densply; Frog + Ice, SDI; FL Bond H + Beautifil II, Shofu Inc) were applied onto the enamel surfaces. The microTBS tests were performed with a micro tester (BISCO, Inc). The enamel surface was analyzed with AFM (Atomic Force Microscopy) before/after salivary contamination occurred or after the saliva-contaminated enamel was water-sprayed. The data were analyzed using one-way ANOVA, factorial design ANOVA and post hoc Tukey's HSD multiple comparisons. RESULTS Salivary contamination significantly reduced the microTBS of all the adhesives in the current study (p < 0.001). Thorough water-spraying could significantly restore the microTBS of saliva-contaminated enamel to some degree (p < 0.05) or fully restore it for Clearfil SE Bond, but it could not remove some proteins adsorbed on the enamel surface. CONCLUSION Hydrophilic self-etching adhesives are negatively influenced by salivary contamination. Thorough water-spraying could significantly improve the microTBS of the saliva-contaminated enamel. Proper isolation should be performed before and during application of the adhesives and during placement of the resin composite.
ÇEVRESEL KUZNETS EĞRİSİ HİPOTEZİNİN TÜRKİYE İÇİN İNCELENMESİ: STIRPAT MODELİNDEN BULGULAR

Bu calismanin amaci, ekonomik buyume ile cevresel bozulma arasinda ters U-seklinde bir iliskinin gecerli oldugu gorusune dayali olan Cevresel Kuznets Egrisi (EKC) hipotezinin Turkiye icin incelenmesi amaclanmaktadir. Ayrica, EKC hipotezinin gecerliligini inceleyen calismalardan farkli bicimde cevresel bozulma gostergesi olarak ekolojik ayak izi degiskeni kullanilmasi ve ampirik model olarak STIRPAT cevre modelinin temel alinmasi amaclanmistir. Bu amaclar dogrultusunda, reel GSYH, kentlesme duzeyi, enerji yogunlugu ve ekolojik ayak izi arasindaki iliski, 1990-2014 gozlem araligi icin ARDL sinir testi VECM Granger nedensellik yontemi araciligiyla incelenmistir. Calisma sonucunda, hem kisa hem de uzun donem icin EKC hipotezinin gecerli oldugu gorulmustur. Ayrica, kentlesme duzeyindeki ve enerji yogunlugundaki artisin Turkiye’de cevresel bozulmayi hizlandirdigi sonucuna ulasilmistir. Nedensellik testi sonuclarina gore ise uzun donemde ekonomik buyumeden, kentlesme duzeyinden ve enerji yogunlugundan cevresel bozulmaya dogru nedensellik iliskilerinin gecerli oldugu gorulmustur.
Superantigens Subvert the Neutrophil Response To Promote Abscess Formation and Enhance Staphylococcus aureus Survival In Vivo

ABSTRACT Staphylococcus aureus is a versatile bacterial pathogen that produces T cell-activating toxins known as superantigens (SAgs). Although excessive immune activation by SAgs can induce a dysregulated cytokine storm as a component of what is known as toxic shock syndrome (TSS), the contribution of SAgs to the staphylococcal infection process is not well defined. Here, we evaluated the role of the bacterial superantigen staphylococcal enterotoxin A (SEA) in a bacteremia model using humanized transgenic mice expressing SAg-responsive HLA-DR4 molecules. Infection with S. aureus Newman induced SEA-dependent Vβ skewing of T cells and enhanced bacterial survival in the liver compared with infection by sea knockout strain. SEA-induced gamma interferon, interleukin-12, and chemokine responses resulted in increased infiltration of CD11b+ Ly6G+ neutrophils into the liver, promoting the formation of abscesses that contained large numbers of viable staphylococci. Hepatic abscesses occurred significantly more frequently in S. aureus Newman-infected livers than in livers infected with the Newman sea knockout strain, promoting the survival of S. aureus in vivo. This represents a novel mechanism during infection whereby S. aureus utilizes SAgs to form a specialized niche and manipulate the immune system.
Carotid Endarterectomy in Octogenarians with Symptomatic High-Grade Internal Carotid Artery Stenosis: Long-Term Clinical and Duplex Follow-up

The objective of this study was to evaluate the clinical and duplex outcome after carotid endarterectomy (CEA) in recently symptomatic patients aged 80 years or older. Information was assembled from a prospective data collection of all CEAs performed from January 1986 to December 1999. Included were all patients with recently symptomatic carotid artery stenosis who were aged 80 years or older at time of operation. Thirty-two patients, with a mean age of 82 years, were included. Outcome events were stroke, death, and restenosis (more than 50% diameter reduction) during routine duplex scan follow-up. Conventional surgical technique was used regarding anesthesia and selective shunting or patching. None of the operated-on patients suffered a stroke at any time during follow-up. One patient (3.1%) died in the early postoperative phase (< 30 days). An additional 8 patients died during follow-up. None of these deaths were of cerebrovascular origin. Survival at 3 years was 73% (life table analysis). Routine duplex scan follow-up showed 2 patients with a diameter reduction of more than 50%, both 3 months after CEA. Restenosis rate on duplex scan was 7.4% after 1 year. The authors conclude that there seems to be no reason to deny the very elderly the benefits of CEA. Stroke-free survival and survival rates show that carotid surgery is a safe procedure in patients aged 80 and over who are in apparently good health. These findings are supported by a low incidence of restenosis on duplex scan follow-up, indicating a durable repair.
Input and Age‐Dependent Variation in Second Language Learning: A Connectionist Account

Abstract Language learning requires linguistic input, but several studies have found that knowledge of second language (L2) rules does not seem to improve with more language exposure (e.g., Johnson & Newport, 1989). One reason for this is that previous studies did not factor out variation due to the different rules tested. To examine this issue, we reanalyzed grammaticality judgment scores in Flege, Yeni‐Komshian, and Liu's (1999) study of L2 learners using rule‐related predictors and found that, in addition to the overall drop in performance due to a sensitive period, L2 knowledge increased with years of input. Knowledge of different grammar rules was negatively associated with input frequency of those rules. To better understand these effects, we modeled the results using a connectionist model that was trained using Korean as a first language (L1) and then English as an L2. To explain the sensitive period in L2 learning, the model's learning rate was reduced in an age‐related manner. By assigning different learning rates for syntax and lexical learning, we were able to model the difference between early and late L2 learners in input sensitivity. The model's learning mechanism allowed transfer between the L1 and L2, and this helped to explain the differences between different rules in the grammaticality judgment task. This work demonstrates that an L1 model of learning and processing can be adapted to provide an explicit account of how the input and the sensitive period interact in L2 learning.