Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Hemicrania continua in a patient with concomitant dental disease.

BACKGROUND There are nonodontogenic headache disorders that mimic dental pain. One such headache disorder is hemicrania continua (HC). HC is a primary headache syndrome characterized by a continuous, unilateral headache that is completely responsive to indomethacin. Patients may have signs and symptoms that the dentist should differentiate from odontogenic pain and temporomandibular disorders. These symptoms can make the diagnostic process a challenge for dentists if patients' pain has multiple causes. Dentists, thus, must have thorough knowledge of odontogenic and nonodontogenic causes of pain so they can make accurate diagnoses and prepare treatment plans. CASE DESCRIPTION The authors describe the case of a 41-year-old woman with a six-year history of continuous headaches and a one-year history of temporomandibular dysfunction and odontogenic pain. She sought treatment from a number of dentists and received a diagnosis of right-side facial pain and headache on the basis of the results of clinical and radiologic examinations, which was followed by dental treatment. She did not experience any pain relief. Additional results of our examination led to a diagnosis of HC. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS Dentists must consider headache disorders in patients who have continuous headaches after undergoing dental treatment for odontogenic pain.
High urinary ACE2 concentrations are associated with severity of glucose intolerance and microalbuminuria.

OBJECTIVE Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) plays an important role in glucose metabolism and renal function. However, the relationship between ACE2 and hyperglycemia or microalbuminuria has not been established in humans. We investigated whether urinary ACE2 levels are associated with abnormal glucose homeostasis and urinary albumin excretion. METHODS We developed an ELISA for quantifying ACE2 in urine. The ELISA was used to measure urinary ACE2 levels in 621 subjects with: normal glucose tolerance (NGT; n=77); impaired fasting glucose (IFG) or impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) (n=132); and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM, n=412). Insulin resistance was assessed by homeostasis model assessment for insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) index and urinary albumin excretion by urine albumin-to-creatinine ratio (ACR). Other biochemical and anthropometric parameters were measured. RESULTS Urinary ACE2 levels were significantly higher in insulin-resistant subjects with IFG, IGT, and T2DM than in the NGT group (P<0.001). Urinary ACE2 concentrations appeared to correlate with HOMA-IR, fasting blood glucose, triglyceride, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, serum creatinine, urinary ACR, and systolic blood pressure (all P<0.05). After adjustment for impaired renal function and other metabolic parameters, urinary ACE2 concentration was still associated with a higher risk for T2DM (OR 1.80, 95% CI 1.05-3.08, P=0.02). In addition, urinary ACE2 levels were highly predictive of microalbuminuria after adjusting for clinical risk factors (OR 2.68, 95% CI 1.55-4.64, P<0.001). CONCLUSION Our data suggest that the urinary ACE2 level is closely associated with T2DM and is an independent risk factor for microalbuminuria.
Skeletal Muscle Reinnervation by Reduced Axonal Numbers Results in Whole Muscle Force Deficits

Patients sustaining a peripheral nerve injury will frequently experience residual muscle weakness after muscle reinnervation, even if the nerve repair is performed under optimal circumstances to allow rapid muscle reinnervation. The mechanisms responsible for this contractile dysfunction remain unclear. It is hypothesized that after peripheral nerve injury and repair, a reduced number of axons are available for skeletal muscle reinnervation that results in whole muscle force and specific force deficits. A rat model of peroneal nerve injury and repair was designed so that the number of axons available for reinnervation could be systematically reduced. In adult rats, the peroneal nerve to the extensor digitorum longus muscle was either left intact (sham group, n = 8) or divided and repaired with either 50 percent (R50 group, n = 7) or 100 percent (R100 group, n = 8) of the axons in the proximal stump included in the repair. Four months after surgery, maximal tetanic isometric force was measured and specific force was calculated for each animal. Mean tetanic isometric force for extensor digitorum longus muscles from R50 rats (2765.7 ± 767.6 mN) was significantly lower than sham (4082.8 ± 196.5 mN) and R100 (3729.0 ± 370.2 mN) rats (p < 0.003). Mean specific force calculations revealed significant deficits in both the R100 (242.1 ± 30 kN/m2) and R50 (190.6 ± 51.8 kN/m2) rats compared with the sham animals (295.9 ± 14 kN/m2) (p < 0.0005). These data support our hypothesis that after peripheral nerve injury and repair, reinnervation of skeletal muscle by a reduced number of axons results in a reduction in tetanic isometric force and specific force. The greater relative reduction in specific force compared with absolute force production after partial nerve repair may indicate that a population of residual denervated muscle fibers is responsible for this deficit.
Influence of Training on First-Year Nursing Department Students’ Attitudes on Death and Caring for Dying Patients: A Single-Group Pretest–Posttest Experimental Study

The study examined the influence of training on first-year nursing department students’ attitudes on death and caring for dying patients. Utilizing the experimental model, the study sample consisted of 81 first-year students attending the nursing department of a university. Death Attitude Profile-Revised and Frommelt Attitude toward Care of the Dying Scale were used for data collection. Data analysis included means, standard deviation, and t test for related samples. Student attitudes toward death were measured as 146.43 (16.741) and 152.75 (15.132) for pre- and posttraining, respectively. Student attitudes toward caring for dying patients were established to be 103.02 (7.655) during pretraining period and 111.02 (10.359) at posttraining period. The difference between pre- and posttests for mean attitudes toward death and caring for the dying patient was statistically significant. Study results determined that training was effective in forming positive student attitudes toward death and caring for dying patients.
A Genome‐Wide Association Study Identifies a Candidate Gene Associated With Atazanavir Exposure Measured in Hair

Hair provides a direct measure of long‐term exposure of atazanavir (ATV). We report the results of the first genome‐wide association study (GWAS) of ATV exposure measured in hair in an observational cohort representative of US women living with HIV; the Women's Interagency HIV Study. Approximately 14.1 million single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were analyzed in linear regression‐based GWAS, with replication, adjusted for nongenetic predictors collected under conditions of actual use of ATV in 398 participants. Lastly, the PharmGKB database was used to identify pharmacogene associations with ATV exposure. The rs73208473, within intron 1 of SORCS2, resulted in a 0.46‐fold decrease in ATV exposure, with the strongest association (P = 1.71×10−8) in GWAS. A priori pharmacogene screening did not identify additional variants statistically significantly associated with ATV exposure, including those previously published in ATV plasma candidate pharmacogene studies. The findings demonstrate the potential value of pharmacogenomic GWAS in ethnically diverse populations under conditions of actual use.
irm responses to targeted consumer incentives : Evidence from eference pricing for surgical services

This paper examines how health care providers respond to a reference pricing insurance program that increases consumer cost sharing when consumers choose high-priced surgical providers. We use geographic variation in the population covered by the program to estimate supply-side responses. We find limited evidence of market segmentation and price reductions for providers with baseline prices above the reference price. Finally, approximately 75% of the reduction in provider prices is in the form of a positive externality that benefits a population not subject to the program. © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Toward Organizational Ambidexterity in the Hotel Industry

A few years ago and coinciding with the dilemma posed by March about the contradictions involved in exploration and exploitation learning, we saw the emergence of the “Organizational Ambidexterity” (OA) concept as a metaphor to define organizations that are able to develop exploitation and exploration learning at the same time. Despite the efforts made to discern the OA antecedents and moderating factors, a number of aspects still remain to be studied on the map of research into this topic. One of them is the role that human resources can play in ambidextrous learning. Special attention has also been paid in the field of human resource management to the link between high performance work systems (HPWS) and performance. Recent studies highlight the need to make further progress in this direction but using some organizational capacity as a mediating variable between HPWSs and performance. This article uses OA as the mediator variable in this relationship. The main objectives of this research are (a) to determine whether the utilization of an HPWS exerts a positive influence on OA, (b) to know the extent to which HPWSs and OA contribute to organizational performance, and (c) to verify the potential mediating role played by OA on the HPWS performance relationship. The theoretical model and the hypotheses proposed were tested using a sample of 100 Spanish hotels.
The impact of emotional intelligence on public leadership performance in South Africa

The practice of public service leadership, crucial for public governance and institutional performance, is viewed as the “weakest link” in the public service system (Kramer, 2008). In pursuit of understanding the competency needs of public service leaders, this study tested scholarly claims that emotional and social intelligence (EI) competencies are fundamental to effective leadership performance. The study was situated in a South African provincial government and focused on a group of executive managers from four departments. The study had its primary theoretical grounding in the competency theory of action and performance (Boyatzis, 1982, 2008), with competencies defined as a behavioural manifestation of EI that predicts job performance (Goleman, Boyatzis & McKee, 2002). A mixed-method design, which included qualitative and quantitative methods, was used to address the research questions and test the hypotheses. The quantitative statistical results showed significant and positive correlations between EI competencies (using the Goleman and Boyatzis Emotional and Social Competence Inventory) and leadership performance effectiveness (using a nominations survey) for all four EI clusters and eleven competencies (except for Emotional Selfcontrol). Of these, four competencies (Adaptability, Emotional Self-awareness, Inspirational Leadership, and Positive Outlook) displayed the strongest significant correlations, which distinguished high performers. The qualitative results, based on Behavioural Events Interviews (McClelland, 1998) with the topperforming and high EI leaders, were generally consistent with the quantitative findings. Three case studies based on these interviews are presented. In addition, the contextual qualitative thematic inductive analysis resulted in four dominant themes, namely social exclusion, leadership behaviours and styles, public service orientation and public governance systems. In general, the results were consistent with antecedents in the scholarship, though certain results were unique to the study context. The study has theoretical and practical implications for public service leadership and governance and EI competency development. Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za
Stepwise Differentiation of Mesenchymal Stem Cells Augments Tendon‐Like Tissue Formation and Defect Repair In Vivo

Tendon injuries are common and present a clinical challenge, as they often respond poorly to treatment and result in long‐term functional impairment. Inferior tendon healing responses are mainly attributed to insufficient or failed tenogenesis. The main objective of this study was to establish an efficient approach to induce tenogenesis of bone marrow‐derived mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs), which are the most common seed cells in tendon tissue engineering. First, representative reported tenogenic growth factors were used as media supplementation to induce BMSC differentiation, and the expression of teno‐lineage transcription factors and matrix proteins was compared. We found that transforming growth factor (TGF)‐β1 significantly induced teno‐lineage‐specific gene scleraxis expression and collagen production. TGF‐β1 combined with connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) elevated tenomodulin and Egr1 expression at day 7. Hence, a stepwise tenogenic differentiation approach was established by first using TGF‐β1 stimulation, followed by combination with CTGF for another 7 days. Gene expression analysis showed that this stepwise protocol initiated and maintained highly efficient tenogenesis of BMSCs. Finally, regarding in situ rat patellar tendon repair, tendons treated with induced tenogenic BMSCs had better structural and mechanical properties than those of the control group, as evidenced by histological scoring, collagen I and tenomodulin immunohistochemical staining, and tendon mechanical testing. Collectively, these findings demonstrate a reliable and practical strategy of inducing tenogenesis of BMSCs for tendon regeneration and may enhance the effectiveness of cell therapy in treating tendon disorders.
Common pronunciation problems of vietnamese learners of english

Since English is one of the core subjects at school, more and more schools are teaching English to their pupils and English centres can be found popular in any cities in Vietnam, especially big cities. However, many foreigners have commented “many Vietnamese speakers can speak English, but only a few have intelligible English pronunciation so that they can be understood easily in direct communication with foreigners. ” Since the late 1980s, the course of teaching and learning English in Vietnam has gone through many changes, especially when the communicative approach became a buzzword among people in the fields of language education. As a result, the English curriculum has been geared more toward communication. Most people hoped that with communicative teaching oriented syllabus students would be much improved in oral communication. But it turns out that this is not true, since we have noticed learners with serious pronunciation errors which results in their communication breakdown. Hinofitis and Baily (1980, pp.124-125) reported that up to a certain proficiency standard, the fault which most severely impairs the communication process in EFL/ESL learners is pronunciation, rather than vocabulary or grammar. Their arguments make pronunciation more important in improving the communicative competence of learners.
Qoom: An Interactive Omnidirectional Ball Display

We present a sphere-shaped interactive display system, named Qoom, as a new input and output device. Unlike existing sphere-shaped displays, Qoom is a perfectly spherical ball that can be rotated, thrown, or even kicked. First, we discuss how spherical displays can be used in daily life and describe how users interact with spheres. Then, we show how we developed the Qoom prototype that uses touch and rotation detection, real-time object tracking, and spherical projection mapping. We implemented actions including touching, rotating, bouncing and throwing as controls. We also developed applications for Qoom that utilize the unique advantages of ball displays.
Phonological, lexical, and semantic errors produced by impairment at the output buffer in a Spanish aphasic patient

We present a single case of a right-handed female patient, RH, who was categorized as suffering from conduction aphasia. She presented no articulatory problems during spontaneous speech but made a significant number of phonological paraphasias in naming and repetition tasks. The number of errors increased for long words and pseudowords. This pattern of results points to damage in the “Phonological Output Buffer” (POB) as the basis of this disorder. However, this patient did not make mistakes when reading words and pseudowords aloud, even when we introduced a delay between the presentation of the word and its production to test the working memory resources of the phonological buffer. Furthermore, the patient’s ability to name objects, repeat words, and write to dictation improved with her degree of familiarity with the items. The damage could be situated at the point where phonemes are selected and ordered to produce words. We posit that the deficits observed in this patient, and the differences encountered between her performance and that of others described in the literature, in particular in reading tasks, can be explained by considering POB damage to be gradual in nature. According to this explanation, the performance of patients with damage to the POB will depend on the amount of information provided by the stimulus (word/nonword), the language particularities (regular/irregular), and the nature of the task demands (repetition, writing, naming, or reading).
Microaggregate-associated protein involved in invasion of epithelial cells by Mycobacterium avium subsp. hominissuis

The environmental opportunistic pathogen Mycobacterium avium subsp hominissuis (MAH), a member of the nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) cluster, causes respiratory as well as disseminated disease in patients such as those with chronic respiratory illnesses or AIDS. Currently, there is no effective method to prevent NTM respiratory infections. The formation of mycobacterial microaggregates comprises of phenotypic changes that lead to efficient adherence and invasion of the respiratory mucosa in vitro and in vivo. Microaggregate adhesion to the respiratory epithelium is mediated in part through the mycobacterial protein, MAV_3013 (MBP-1). Through DNA microarray analysis, the small hypothetical gene MAV_0831 (Microaggregate Invasion Protein-1, MIP-1) was identified as being upregulated during microaggregate formation. When MIP-1 was overexpressed in poorly-invasive Mycobacterium smegmatis, it provided the bacterium the ability to bind and enter epithelial cells. In addition, incubating microaggregates with recombinant MIP-1 protein enhanced the ability of microaggregates to invade HEp-2 cells, and exposure to anti-MIP-1 immune serum reduced the invasion of the host epithelium. Through protein-protein interaction assays, MIP-1 was found to bind to the host protein filamin A, a cytoskeletal actin-binding protein integral to the modulation of host cell shape and migration. As visualized by immunofluorescence, filamin A was able to co-localize with microaggregates and to a lesser extent planktonic bacteria. Invasion of HEp-2 cells by microaggregates and planktonic bacteria was also inhibited by the addition of anti-filamin A antibody suggesting that filamin A plays an important role during infection. In addition, at earlier time points binding and invasion assay results suggest that MBP-1 participates significantly during the first interactions with the host cell while MIP-1 becomes important once the bacteria adhere to the host epithelium. In summary, we have unveiled one more step associated with MAH crossing the respiratory mucosa.
Use of gastroprotective agents and discontinuations due to dyspepsia with the selective cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitor etoricoxib compared with non-selective NSAIDs*

SUMMARY Background: Most nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are non-selective cyclooxygenase-1 (COX-1) and COX-2 inhibitors and are associated with upper gastrointestinal (GI) dyspeptic symptoms often resulting in GI co-medication usage or treatment discontinuation. Objective: To compare the rates of new use of gastroprotective agents and discontinuations due to dyspepsia with the COX-2 selective inhibitor etoricoxib compared with non-selective NSAIDs. Research design and methods: This pre-specified combined analysis used data from nine randomized, double-blind, controlled, clinical trials with etoricoxib in patients with osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, chronic low back pain, or ankylosing spondylitis. The cumulative incidences of (1) new use (new prescription or increased dose) of gastroprotective agents (GPA) and (2) discontinuation due to dyspeptic symptoms were compared among patients treated with etoricoxib (60 mg, 90 mg, or 120 mg daily) vs. non-selective NSAIDs (diclofenac 50 mg. t.i.d. or naproxen 500 mg. b.i.d.). Results: The overall rates/100 patient-years for new use of GPAs were 9.1 and 13.0 for etoricoxib and NSAIDs, respectively (RR = 0.75; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.64, 0.89; p < 0.001). A benefit with etoricoxib was seen in the first 6 months when most new GPA usage occurred; after 6 months new use of GPAs was similar between etoricoxib and NSAIDs. The rates/100 patient-years of treatment discontinuation due to dyspeptic symptoms with etoricoxib and NSAIDs were 1.5 and 2.7, respectively (RR = 0.60; 95% CI 0.41, 0.87; p = 0.007). Analyses of placebo-controlled treatment periods showed significantly more new GPA use and more discontinuations due to dyspeptic symptoms with NSAIDs vs. placebo, but not with etoricoxib vs. placebo. Conclusion: In this combined analysis of clinical trials of patients with OA, RA, chronic low back pain, or AS, new use of gastroprotective agents was significantly lower with etoricoxib than with the comparator non-selective NSAIDs during the initial 6 months of treatment and similar thereafter. There were significantly fewer discontinuations for dyspeptic symptoms with etoricoxib than with NSAIDs over the entire follow-up period.
Amino-Terminal Flanking Residues Determine the Conformation of a Peptide–Class II MHC Complex1

The peptide spanning residues 48–62 of hen egg white lysozyme presented by I-Ak molecules gives rise to two T cell populations, types A and B, that recognize distinct conformers of the complex generated in late and recycling endosomes. The class II–like accessory molecule H2-DM functions as a conformational editor, eliminating the type B conformer in late endosomes. Here, we show that the conformation of the complex, and its susceptibility to editing by H2-DM, are determined by peptide amino-terminal flanking residues. Elimination of these residues abolished editing, permitting formation of the type B conformer in late endosomes. Substitutions at P(−2) affected the stability of the type B conformer, preventing its formation and/or editing, without hindering peptide binding or formation of the type A conformer of the complex. We conclude that interactions involving amino-terminal flanking residues stabilize peptide-MHC conformers and confer resistance to editing by H2-DM, influencing the nature of the T cell repertoire.