Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Maintenance treatment for schizophrenia with quetiapine

With the majority of current information being derived from short‐term clinical trials, the impact of atypical antipsychotics during maintenance treatment of schizophrenia is of considerable interest, although only limited data are available at present. The present report is an analysis of data that are available up to 156 weeks after the start of an open‐label extension (OLE) phase of three, double‐blind randomized trials in quetiapine‐treated patients who responded to an initial 6‐week treatment period. The mean daily quetiapine dose (range 150–750 mg) was 439.5 mg for patients included in the brief psychiatric rating scale (BPRS) and 438.5 mg for patients included in the clinical global impression (CGI) analyses. The initial mean acute phase BPRS total score (40.67; n=258) and CGI severity of illness score (4.81; n=259) were reduced at the start of the OLE to 13.94 and 3.00, respectively. After 156 weeks, endpoint scores were 9.04 for BPRS and 2.43 for CGI severity of illness. Although limited by patient attrition, these OLE data suggest that an initial beneficial response with quetiapine treatment can be maintained over a long‐term period. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Posttraumatic growth among women survivors of childhood sexual abuse: Its relation to cognitive strategies, posttraumatic symptoms, and resilience.

OBJECTIVE Research suggests that, after a traumatic event, survivors can experience positive change (posttraumatic growth), but the relation of these changes to overall psychological adjustment (resilience) and psychological distress (posttraumatic symptoms; PTS), as well as the relation to possible contributors, is still unclear. The study examines posttraumatic growth (PTG) among women survivors of childhood sexual abuse (CSA), looking at the relation of PTG to the women's cognitive strategies (past self-blame, self-forgiveness, perception of control and hope), resilience and PTS. METHODS Self-report questionnaires were completed by 100 women survivors of CSA. RESULTS Findings show that the main contributors to PTG were demographic-familial variables (birth order and number of siblings) and cognitive strategies (self-blame and hope). The relationship between resilience and PTG was curvilinear: The highest levels of PTG occurred when resilience levels were moderate. Variance in PTG was also explained by an interaction between resilience and PTS. CONCLUSIONS Cognitive strategies and familial variables can contribute to PTG. The complex relations between PTG, resilience and PTS might help professionals better understand different trajectories of adjustment among trauma survivors. (PsycINFO Database Record
T-Tau is Associated with Objective Memory Decline Over Two Years in Persons Seeking Help for Subjective Cognitive Decline: A Report from the Gothenburg-Oslo MCI Study.

BACKGROUND There is a need to find very early markers for pre-clinical Alzheimer's disease as interventions early in the disease process are thought to be most effective. OBJECTIVE The present study aimed to address the potential relation between cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers and reduced cognitive function in a relatively young cohort of memory clinic patients with subjective cognitive decline. METHODS 122 patients (mean age 63 years) with subjective cognitive decline were recruited from two university memory clinics and followed for two years. RESULTS The main finding was that the subgroup with objective memory decline during the study period had significantly higher T-tau at baseline than the group with improved memory. Baseline CSF variables showed a trend toward more pathological values in the patients with memory decline compared to those who improved or remained stable. The baseline memory score of those who declined was significantly better than the baseline score of those who improved over two years. The general trend for the whole group was improved memory and executive test scores. There were no differences in cognitive scores based on CSF quartiles at baseline, nor were there differences in cognitive outcome for patients with early amnestic mild cognitive impairment versus average cognitive function at baseline. CONCLUSIONS The main finding that T-tau rather than amyloid-β was associated with memory decline do not support the prevailing opinion about the chain of events assumed to take place in Alzheimer's disease. In addition, memory decline was not associated with poor baseline memory score. Thus, a memory cut-off indicating low baseline memory would not would have identified the declining group.
Immediate function of Brånemark implants in the esthetic zone: a retrospective clinical study with 6 months to 4 years of follow-up.

BACKGROUND Immediate implant function is a psychological benefit for the patient and makes a substantial reduction in treatment cost possible. Currently, immediate function using Brånemark implants has become an accepted alternative for complete-arch fixed restorations in mandibles and for overdenture support for some other screw-shaped implants. Clinical documentation is lacking for other applications. PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to investigate a concept for immediate function of Brånemark implants supporting fixed prosthesis in the esthetic regions of the jaws. MATERIALS AND METHODS This retrospective clinical study included 49 consecutively treated patients with 94 implants supporting 54 fixed prostheses, all in esthetically critical regions: 23 of the prostheses were bridges, 14 in maxillae and 9 in mandibles; 31 of the prostheses were crowns, 22 in maxillae and 9 in mandibles. At surgery, the implant platform was positioned above the surrounding bone level and bicortical anchorage was the goal whenever possible. The minimum insertion torque for accepting the implant for immediate function was 32 Ncm. Provisional implant-supported prostheses without occlusal contacts were delivered at time of surgery, and final prostheses with normal occlusion were delivered 5 months later. RESULTS Eighty-five of the implants (90%) have passed the 1-year and 40 (43%) the 2-year follow-ups, respectively. Two implants failed in one patient before the 6-month follow-up, and another two implants between the 6-month and the 1-year follow-up, in two other patients, giving a cumulative survival rate of 96%. The average bone resorption was 0.8 mm after the first year as evaluated from 35 patients with readable radiographs. The failed implants were replaced after 3 to 4 months with immediate function; these were successful in all cases (not included in this study). The number of complications was small and did not differ in character from those normally encountered at implant treatment using a conventional protocol. CONCLUSIONS The cumulative survival rate of 96% at 1 and 2 years indicates that immediate function of Brånemark implants used in the esthetic zone in both jaws can be a viable concept. All failures occurred in fresh extraction sites, and extra care is recommended to avoid situations with ongoing inflammation in these situations.
Fast and Accurate Analysis of Reflector Antennas With Phased Array Feeds Including Multiple Reflections Between Feed and Reflector

Several electrically large phased array feed (PAF) reflector systems are modeled to examine the mechanism of multiple reflections between parabolic reflectors and low- and high-scattering feeds giving rise to frequency-dependent patterns and impedance ripples. The PAF current is expanded in physics-based macro domain basis functions (CBFs), while the reflector employs the physical optics (POs) equivalent current. The reflector-feed coupling is systematically accounted for through a multiscattering Jacobi approach. An FFT expands the reflector radiated field in only a few plane waves, and the reflector PO current is computed rapidly through a near-field interpolation technique. The FEKO software is used for several cross validations, and the convergence properties of the hybrid method are studied for several representative examples showing excellent numerical performance. The measured and simulated results for a 121-element Vivaldi PAF, which is installed on the Westerbork Synthesis Radio Telescope, are in very good agreement.
Central stimulation of breathing movements in fetal lambs by prostaglandin synthetase inhibitors.

In unanaesthetized fetal lambs at 125‐135 days gestation in utero central acidosis caused by perfusion of the cerebral ventricular system with a solution containing less than 1 mM‐HCO3‐ (cerebrospinal fluid (c.s.f.) pH 6.98) or intravenous infusion of ammonium chloride (c.s.f. pH 7.1) produced an increase in the depth and frequency of episodic breathing but no change in electrocortical activity, heart rate or arterial pressure. Administration of prostaglandin synthetase inhibitors, sodium meclofenamate (0.8‐10 mg/kg I.V. or 0.6‐2.6 mg/kg intracerebrally) or acetylsalicylic acid (6.7 mg/kg I.V.) caused prolonged episodes of fetal breathing during low and high voltage electrocortical activity, with a large increase in breath amplitude. Blood gas values, heart rate, blood pressure, electrocortical activity and eye movements were not altered. In fetuses whose brain stems had been sectioned in the upper pons or the inferior colliculus, sodium meclofenamate induced prolonged deep breathing. Intravenous prostaglandin E2 abolished the continuous breathing induced by meclofenamate, but not breathing movements enhanced by hypercapnia or hypoxia. It is concluded that the central chemoreceptors respond to acidosis in near‐term lamb fetuses qualitatively as in adult animals. Secondly, the results suggest that prostaglandin E2 and the inhibitors of prostaglandin synthesis also act centrally in the lower pons or medulla to modulate fetal breathing.
Chronic Effort Dyspnea Explained by Lung Function Tests and by HRCT and CRX Radiographic Patterns in COPD: A Post-Hoc Analysis in 51 Patients

This paper is a post-hoc analysis of a previous study performed to investigate the relationship between computerized tomography (CT) and lung function in 51 outpatients with mild-to-moderate COPD. We studied whether changes in lung function and radiographic patterns may help to explain dyspnea, the most disturbing symptom in patients with COPD. The Medical Research Council (MRC) dyspnea scale shows, by univariate analysis, a similar strength of association to CT expiratory lung density and to DLCO, a functional index of lung parenchymal loss. The MRC dyspnea scale shows a somewhat less strength of association with a small vertical heart on plain chest films. In multivariate analysis, the model with the strongest association to the MRC dyspnea scale (r = 0.76, p < 0.0001) contains 4 explanatory variables (DLCO, FRC, PaCO2, and radiographic pattern of pulmonary hypertension). We suggest that diffusing capacity reflects the emphysematous component of hyperinflation, associated by definition with destruction of terminal airspace walls, as distinct from the air trapping component, which is ascribed to airway obstruction and associated with FRC. PaCO2 mainly reflects the ventilatory components, i.e., ventilatory drive and ventilatory constraints, of pulmonary gas exchange in COPD, while radiographic pattern of pulmonary hypertension likely reflects hypoxic vascular changes, which depend mainly on ventilation/perfusion mismatch and give rise to pulmonary arterial hypertension that may contribute per se to dyspnea. In conclusion, our analysis points out that chronic effort dyspnea variance may account for up to 58% (r2 = 0.58) by lung function tests and radiographic patterns. Thus, about 42% of the MRC dyspnea variance remains unexplained by this model. On the other hand, dyspnea ascertainment is dependent on subjective behavior and evaluation and in tests is influenced by individual performance and perception. For example in the 6-minute walk test, a similar or higher proportion (60%) of the overall variance is unexplained.
Quantitative DNA fragment analysis for detecting low amounts of hepatitis B virus deletion mutants in highly viremic carriers

Many variants of hepatitis B virus (HBV) with deletions in the viral genome have been identified. Some of these variants are indicator or even effector of a more severe course of hepatitis. These deletion mutants contribute a variable and sometimes very low proportion to the viral population. For early detection of small amounts of deletion mutants among a large number of wild‐type genomes, we applied a new screening method designated quantitative fragment analysis (QFA). By QFA the whole viral genome can be scanned for the presence of deletions or insertions of ≥3 nucleotides representing more than 2% of the viral population. Using QFA we showed that an often described deletion of 8 nucleotides is packaged in viral capsids and not a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) artifact. QFA was applied to study the emergence of deletion mutants in a group of 18 pediatric patients who had been infected from a common source while being under multidrug cancer chemotherapy. All patients had developed a highly viremic asymptomatic HBV carrier state. In 3 of these patients 3 different kinds of HBV deletion mutants were found by QFA: 8 bp deletions within the core promoter, core gene deletions from 8 to 86 bp, and large deletions of up to 1,989 bp spanning the precore/core and the preS/S reading frames. PCR primers that specifically amplify deletion variants enabled the detection of additional patients harboring the investigated variant.
The Implications for Regional Investment of Diversification Strategies in Commercial Real Estate Portfolios

A number of studies have examined the benefits of regional diversification strategies within commercial real estate portfolios with two approaches adopted; the first is based on primary contiguous geographical regions while the second employs areas based on economic function. In general, the conclusion is that diversifications strategies based on simple geographical areas adds little, if anything, while economic based regions have shown much greater potential. The economic regions approach to portfolio analysis appears to be a much more valuable tool in evaluating regional real estate investment opportunities and risks. The reason is that this method allows consistent risk measurement between aerial units and enables the portfolio manager to develop a geographically diversified portfolio through the use of economically cohesive regions. The aim of this paper is therefore to identify how the application of these portfolio investment techniques determines the flows of funds coming into regions, and the consequent impacts on regional investment in the regional built environment. Most previous research on this issue is based in the US with studies in other countries largely hampered by lack of real estate data and/or acceptable definitions of economic regions. This study therefore attempts to rectify this position in the UK using a large data set of real estate and socio-economic data.
The Cell-Selective Neurotoxicity of the Alzheimer's Aβ Peptide Is Determined by Surface Phosphatidylserine and Cytosolic ATP Levels. Membrane Binding Is Required for Aβ Toxicity

Measurement of Aβ toxicity of cells in culture exposes a subpopulation of cells with resistance to Aβ, even at high concentrations and after long periods of treatment. The cell-selective toxicity of Aβ resembles the selective damage observed in cells of specific regions of the Alzheimer's disease (AD) brain and suggests that there must be particular characteristics or stages of these cells that make them exceptionally sensitive or resistant to the effect of Aβ. Using flow cytometry and cell sorting, we efficiently separated and analyzed the Aβ-sensitive and the Aβ-resistant subpopulations within a variety of neuronal cell lines (PC12, GT1–7) and primary cultured neurons (hippocampal, cortex). We found that this distinctive sensitivity to Aβ was essentially associated with cell membrane Aβ binding. This selective Aβ binding was correlated to distinctive cell characteristics, such as cell membrane exposure of the apoptotic signal molecule phosphatidyl serine, larger cell size, the G1 cell cycle stage, and a lower than normal cytosolic ATP level. The response to Aβ by the cells with high Aβ binding affinity was characterized by a larger calcium response and increased mortality, lactate dehydrogenase release, caspase activation, and DNA fragmentation. The distinctive sensitivity or resistance to Aβ of the different subpopulations was maintained even after multiple cell divisions. We believe that these distinctive cell characteristics are the determining factors for the selective attack of Aβ on cells in culture and in the AD brain.
Physicochemical and Dough-handling Characteristics of Indian Wheat and Triticale Cultivars

Four bread wheat (PBW-138, PBW-299, PBW-343 and PBW-373), two durum wheat (PDW-215 and PDW-233) and two triticale cultivars (TL-419 and TL-1210) were investigated for physicochemical, milling and dough-handling properties for predicting end-use quality. Physical properties of durum wheat (PDW-215) and bread wheat (PBW-138, PBW-299 and PBW-343) cultivars were better than other wheat, durum and triticale cultivars. The compositional analysis revealed nonsignificant differences between the different cultivars; however, starch observed significant variation for different varieties. Particle size distribution indicated that triticale flours showed lower particle size than wheat and durum wheat. Dough-handling studies revealed triticale flours to be the weakest, while bread wheat flours were observed to be intermediate between durum and triticale. Among all the varieties, the bread wheat (PBW-138) variety was observed to be best, followed by PDW-215 durum wheat variety. Strong correlations were observed between physicochemical and dough-handling parameters, which can be used as quality parameter for suitable end-use.
Toll-like Receptor Gene Polymorphisms and Preeclampsia Risk: A Case-Control Study and Data Synthesis

Background. Preeclampsia is a syndrome of exaggerated innate inflammatory response. It is plausible that this innate inflammation may be mediated by Toll-like receptors (TLRs). A portion of the familial susceptibility to the development of preeclampsia may be mediated by single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the TLR gene sequences. Published reports vary in their finding an association between TLR SNPs and preeclampsia risk. Methods. Common SNPs of the TLR2 (Arg753Gln) and co-segregating TLR4 (Asp299Gly and Thr399Ile) genes were screened in 94 women with pre-eclampsia and 176 healthy pregnancy controls. We performed a data synthesis of our findings with those in published reports to ascertain whether or not we could explain the apparent disparity in the literature. Results. The presence of TLR2 (RR 2.57 [95% CI 1.31, 5.05]) and TLR4 (RR 2.06 [1.16, 3.67]) SNPs aggregated with early-onset (<34 + 0 weeks), but not late-onset (≥34 + 0 weeks), preeclampsia. Through synthesis of these and the published data, TLR polymorphisms appear to lower thresholds for early-onset and severe preeclampsia, but not late-onset or mild disease. Conclusions. TLR2 and TLR4 SNPs appear to alter susceptibility to developing the maternal syndrome of preeclampsia. Data synthesis of these data and other studies strengthens the association for early-onset and severe disease, in particular. A definitive and fully powered cohort study is required.
A study on effect of economic openness and inflation on profitability in the banks listed in Tehran stock exchange

Globalization of economy refers to a process that increases the mutual bond between business and markets by removal of the barriers and limitations in exchange of knowledge and products throughout the borders and regions. Globalization of economy refers to an emerging issue in today’s world supported by the developed countries. The main purpose of this research is to examine economic openness and inflation on profitability in the banks listed in Tehran stock exchange. The present research is an applied research in sake of aim, because the results from it can be used in the managers’ and investors’ decisions. The statistical population consists of all the banks listed in Tehran stock exchange during 2006-2014. Due to limited statistical population, the sample group is not selected and the entire population is examined. The results from the present research indicate that economic openness has an inverse effect on profitability of the banks listed in Tehran stock exchange. On the other hand, increase of inflation rate results in improvement and increase of profitability in the banks listed in Tehran stock exchange.
Effect of CD8+ Lymphocyte Depletion on Virus Containment after Simian Immunodeficiency Virus SIVmac251 Challenge of Live Attenuated SIVmac239Δ3-Vaccinated Rhesus Macaques

ABSTRACT Although live attenuated vaccines can provide potent protection against simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) and simian-human immunodeficiency virus challenges, the specific immune responses that confer this protection have not been determined. To test whether cellular immune responses mediated by CD8+ lymphocytes contribute to this vaccine-induced protection, we depleted rhesus macaques vaccinated with the live attenuated virus SIVmac239Δ3 of CD8+ lymphocytes and then challenged them with SIVmac251 by the intravenous route. While vaccination did not prevent infection with the pathogenic challenge virus, the postchallenge levels of virus in the plasmas of vaccinated control animals were significantly lower than those for unvaccinated animals. The depletion of CD8+ lymphocytes at the time of challenge resulted in virus levels in the plasma that were intermediate between those of the vaccinated and unvaccinated controls, suggesting that CD8+ cell-mediated immune responses contributed to protection. Interestingly, at the time of challenge, animals expressing the Mamu-A*01 major histocompatibility complex class I allele showed significantly higher frequencies of SIV-specific CD8+ T-cell responses and lower neutralizing antibody titers than those in Mamu-A*01− animals. Consistent with these findings, the depletion of CD8+ lymphocytes abrogated vaccine-induced protection, as judged by the peak postchallenge viremia, to a greater extent in Mamu-A*01+ than in Mamu-A*01− animals. The partial control of postchallenge viremia after CD8+ lymphocyte depletion suggests that both humoral and cellular immune responses induced by live attenuated SIV vaccines can contribute to protection against a pathogenic challenge and that the relative contribution of each of these responses to protection may be genetically determined.