Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Maternal diabetes and neonatal outcome.

The new definitions and classification of diabetes is discussed. An electronic literature search was done especially for randomized trials in management of maternal diabetes. However, because of the paucity of such trials the modern management we propose is still based on evaluative and retrospective evidence. Problems of type 2 diabetes specifically in the developing world are highlighted. Although the goals of the St Vincent declaration are attainable; in a practical setting (even in excellent centres) we fall far short of achieving perinatal mortality and fetal anomaly rates equivalent to the non-diabetic pregnant population. This is mainly due to lack of excellent pre-conceptional care for the future diabetic mother.
TDP‐43 mutations causing amyotrophic lateral sclerosis are associated with altered expression of RNA‐binding protein hnRNP K and affect the Nrf2 antioxidant pathway

&NA; TAR DNA binding protein 43 (TDP‐43) is a major disease‐associated protein involved in the pathogenesis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal lobar degeneration with ubiquitin‐positive inclusions (FTLD‐U). Our previous studies found a direct association between TDP‐43 and heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein K (hnRNP K). In this study, utilizing ALS patient fibroblasts harboring a TDP‐43M337V mutation and NSC‐34 motor neuronal cell line expressing TDP‐43Q331K mutation, we show that hnRNP K expression is impaired in urea soluble extracts from mutant TDP‐43 cell models. This was confirmed in vivo using TDP‐43Q331K and inducible TDP‐43A315T murine ALS models. We further investigated the potential pathological effects of mutant TDP‐43‐mediated changes to hnRNP K metabolism by RNA binding immunoprecipitation analysis. hnRNP K protein was bound to antioxidant NFE2L2 transcripts encoding Nrf2 antioxidant transcription factor, with greater enrichment in TDP‐43M337V patient fibroblasts compared to healthy controls. Subsequent gene expression profiling revealed an increase in downstream antioxidant transcript expression of Nrf2 signaling in the spinal cord of TDP‐43Q331K mice compared to control counterparts, yet the corresponding protein expression was not up‐regulated in transgenic mice. Despite the elevated expression of antioxidant transcripts, we observed impaired levels of glutathione (downstream Nrf2 antioxidant) in TDP‐43M337V patient fibroblasts and astrocyte cultures from TDP‐43Q331K mice, indicative of elevated oxidative stress and failure of some upregulated antioxidant genes to be translated into protein. Our findings indicate that further exploration of the interplay between hnRNP K (or other hnRNPs) and Nrf2‐mediated antioxidant signaling is warranted and may be an important driver for motor neuron degeneration in ALS.
Obesity is associated with reduced self-rated general health status: evidence from a representative sample of white, black, and Hispanic Americans.

BACKGROUND Although the evidence linking obesity with many chronic diseases is well established, the relationship with self-rated health is not clear. Self-rating of health is a broad summary measure of different domains of health that include psychosocial domain. The aims of this study were to examine the relationship between obesity and self-rated health and the degree of agreement between patients' self-rated health status and physicians' impression of patients' health in a representative sample of healthy noninstitutionalized American adults. METHODS Data (n = 10, 298) used for this analysis were obtained from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Normal weight was defined as BMI 18.5-24.9 kg/m(2) and preobesity was defined as BMI 25-29.9 kg/m(2). Moderate (class I) obesity was defined as BMI 30-34.9 kg/m(2) and severe (class II) obesity as BMI > or =35 kg/m(2). Self-rated health conditions were categorized as excellent, very good, good, fair, or poor. Agreement between physicians' impression and self-rated health and a linear relationship between obesity and individual perceived health were quantified using kappa and gamma statistics, respectively. Using the logistic regression analysis, odds of reporting reduced health in preobese, class I obese, and class II obese individuals were compared with those for normal-weight individuals, adjusting for age, current smoking, and alcohol intake. The contribution of obesity to ethnic differences in reduced self-rated health was determined by comparing blacks with whites and Hispanics with whites fitted in multiple logistic regression models. RESULTS Among both men and women, there was a statistically significant linear association between obesity and self-rated health (P < 0.05). The proportion of subjects reporting excellent health tended to decrease with increasing level of obesity in the three ethnic groups. In the three ethnic groups, the degrees of concordance between self-rated health and physicians' impressions were poor and decreased with increasing obesity level. In each ethnic group, class II obesity was associated with approximately twofold increased odds of reporting reduced health compared with normal-weight individuals. Compared to whites, black and Hispanic races/ethnicities were respectively associated with 23 and 175% increased odds of reduced self-rated health among men. The corresponding values for women were 45 and 177%, respectively. CONCLUSION The results of this study provide evidence that obesity has a negative impact on self-rated health among adults, even in the absence of chronic disease conditions. The results of this investigation also underscore the need to craft national preventive strategies to curb obesity in these at-risk population groups.
Organic and hybrid organic/inorganic transistors for chemical and bio sensing

Organic transistors can be employed as chemical sensors and recent work has shown that they can attain useful sensitivities. Scaling down the transistor to channel dimensions in the 10-150 nm range produced markedly different responses compared to micron scale devices. A new hybrid silicon/organic sensor device has been described with improved properties compared to CHEMFETs
Evidence for the Corelease of Dynorphin and Glutamate from Rat Hippocampal Mossy Fiber Terminals

Abstract: Hippocampal mossy fiber (MF) nerve endings may be isolated in a subcellular fraction (P3) that releases both prodynorphin‐derived peptides and glutamate (Glu) in a calcium‐dependent manner when depolarized. However, this isolation procedure does not yield a pure preparation of MF synaptosomes. The present study evaluates the proportion of dynorphin (Dyn) and Glu that is released from synaptosomes in the P3 fraction that are of MF origin. We have addressed this issue by determining the degree to which a selective lesion of the dentate granule cell/MF system in vivo concomitantly reduces the exocytosis of Dyn and Glu from the P3 subcellular fraction. Unilateral injections of colchicine into the dentate gyrus resulted in a substantial and selective degeneration of the granule cell/ MF pathway in the rat hippocampal formation. The overall integrated density of the Timm‐stained band, which corresponds to the position of the MF terminal field, was estimated to be reduced by 75%. After this extensive loss of MF boutons, the K+‐evoked release of Dyn and Glu from the P3 fraction was reduced by 95 and 51 %, respectively. The loss of Timm staining and evoked Dyn release indicate that colchicine effectively eliminated MF synaptosomes from the P3 fraction. Those subcellular entities that were not destroyed by colchicine comprised ∼50% of the protein and evoked Glu release measured by using the P3fraction. In addition, the present results demonstrate that the inhibitory potency of the K opioid agonist U‐50.488H was not altered by the elimination of MF boutons from this synaptosomal preparation. This finding indicates that U‐50,488H is capable of suppressing Glu exocytosis from both MF and non‐MF synaptosomes. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that Dyn peptides and Glu are coreleased from hippocampal MF terminals.
The adult antisocial syndrome with and without antecedent conduct disorder: comparisons from an adoption study.

DSM antisocial personality disorder (ASPD) requires a retrospective diagnosis of conduct disorder-historical behavior not present in everyone with adult ASPD criteria. Using adoption study data, we examined the impact of this requirement on biological and environmental risk associations. We also compared clinical correlates of adult antisocial behavior with and without prior conduct disorder. We defined three subgroups: DSM-III ASPD (n = 30), adult antisocials without conduct disorder (n = 25), and controls (n = 142). By design, the sample had a high incidence of biological parent ASPD, which was partially confounded with fetal alcohol exposure. We compared the associations of both of these putative risk factors with subgroup membership after controlling for gender and adverse adoptive environment. We also examined differences in two sociopathy scales and the incidence of co-occurring affective, alcohol, and other substance use disorders. Finally, we explored differences in individual antisocial symptoms. Having an antisocial biological parent was a specific risk factor for ASPD. In contrast, fetal alcohol exposure, male gender, and adverse environment were associated with the adult antisocial syndrome, regardless of conduct disorder history. The two antisocial groups were similar with respect to sociopathy scales, co-occurring diagnoses, and the incidence of most individual symptoms. However, several adult and conduct disorder symptoms had significant specific associations with biological or environmental background or their interaction. Phenotypic expression of the biological-possibly genetic-risk for ASPD appears to be manifest before adulthood. The influence of other risk factors may not depend on antecedent conduct disorder. Despite this, we could not detect clinically important differences between the two sociopathic groups. The conduct disorder requirement therefore may be more relevant to etiological than clinical understanding of adult antisocial behavior.
Relationship Between Nursing Students’ Emotional Intelligence and Their Clinical Performance During Obstetrics and Gynaecologic Nursing Practical Training

Nursing and midwifery are stressful professions due to the requirements of patients’ care. They require a high degree of self-regulation and emotional intelligence (EI). The aim of this study was to identify the relationship between nursing students' EI and their clinical performance during obstetrics and gynecologic nursing practical training. A descriptive correlational research design was utilized. The study was conducted at the faculty of nursing, Benha University. A convenience sample of all third year female students (N=98) who were registered at reproductive health nursing course at the time of study was included. Two tools were used for data collection; first tool is a structured interview schedule to collect data about the subjects' demographic characteristics and the Schutte Self Report Emotional Intelligence Test. Second tool for clinical performance evaluation it composed of performance checklist for different obstetrics and gynecologic nursing procedures and evaluation of supportive clinical performance skills. There was a positive correlation (p 0.05) between students EI and their demographic characteristics. It can be concluded that there was a significant positive correlation between students' EI and their clinical performance skills. The topic of EI should be included as a basic component of nursing curriculum in order to develop students’ EI abilities. Furthermore, Training courses and seminars about EI should be conducted for the nursing educators in order to develop and improve their own and students’ EI skills.
Complete nucleotide sequence and genome organization of bovine parvovirus

We determined the complete nucleotide sequence of bovine parvovirus (BPV), an autonomous parvovirus. The sequence is 5,491 nucleotides long. The terminal regions contain nonidentical imperfect palindromic sequences of 150 and 121 nucleotides. In the plus strand, there are three large open reading frames (left ORF, mid ORF, and right ORF) with coding capacities of 729, 255, and 685 amino acids, respectively. As with all parvoviruses studied to date, the left ORF of BPV codes for the nonstructural protein NS-1 and the right ORF codes for the major parts of the three capsid proteins. The mid ORF probably encodes the major part of the nonstructural protein NP-1. There are promoterlike sequences at map units 4.5, 12.8, and 38.7 and polyadenylation signals at map units 61.6, 64.6, and 98.5. BPV has little DNA homology with the defective parvovirus AAV, with the human autonomous parvovirus B19, or with the other autonomous parvoviruses sequenced (canine parvovirus, feline panleukopenia virus, H-1, and minute virus of mice). Even though the overall DNA homology of BPV with other parvoviruses is low, several small regions of high homology are observed when the amino acid sequences encoded by the left and right ORFs are compared. From these comparisons, it can be shown that the evolutionary relationship among the parvoviruses is B19 in equilibrium with AAV in equilibrium with BPV in equilibrium with MVM. The highly conserved amino acid sequences observed among all parvoviruses may be useful in the identification and detection of parvoviruses and in the design of a general parvovirus vaccine.
Cloning and Characterization of MgtE , a Putative New Class of Mg 2 1 Transporter from Bacillus firmus OF 4

The MM281 strain of Salmonella typhimurium which possesses mutations in each its three known Mg transport systems and requires 100 mM Mg for growth was used to screen a genomic library from the gram-positive alkaliphilic bacterium Bacillus firmus OF4 for clones that could restore the ability to grow without Mg supplementation. Of the clones obtained, five also conferred sensitivity to Co, similar to the phenotype of mutants with mutations in the S. typhimurium corA Mg transport locus. All five contained identical inserts by restriction analysis. Using Ni as a surrogate for the unavailable Mg, the plasmid insert was shown to restore cation uptake with properties similar but not identical to those of the S. typhimurium CorA Mg transporter. Sequence analysis of one clone identified a single open reading frame with multiple possible initiation sites. Deletion and mutation analysis identified a minimum open reading frame of 939 bp encoding a polypeptide with a predicted molecular mass of 34 kDa. Disruption of the open reading frame eliminated cation influx activity and restored resistance to Co. This putative transporter, designated MgtE, has no sequence similarity to any known protein including CorA and appears to represent a new class of Mg transport system.
What Do We Know about the Situation of Women Living with HIV in Europe?

At present, women represent approximately one-third of new diagnoses of HIV in Europe – most are infected by heterosexual transmission. Some specific populations of women, such as migrants, sex workers and those who are intravenous drug users, may be at increased risk of HIV infection. Women living with HIV face a range of intersecting situations and challenges distinct from those faced by men. The most familiar of these is pregnancy and motherhood; however, family and social situations will also be different for women compared with men, and can affect how individuals access care and manage their disease. The stigma of HIV can be a particular problem for women in many communities. Improved surveillance of HIV and increased study of the situations facing women living with HIV will help to identify improved strategies to support the care of this patient population.
Geographic Variation in Body Size and Sexual Size Dimorphism of a Seed‐Feeding Beetle

Body size of many animals varies with latitude: body size is either larger at higher latitudes (Bergmann’s rule) or smaller at higher latitudes (converse Bergmann’s rule). However, the causes underlying these patterns are poorly understood. Also, studies rarely explore how sexual size dimorphism varies with latitude. Here we investigate geographic variation in body size and sexual size dimorphism of the seed‐feeding beetle Stator limbatus, collected from 95 locations along a 38° range in latitude. We examine 14 variables to test whether clines in environmental factors are adequate to explain geographic patterns of body size. We found that body size and sexual size dimorphism of S. limbatus varied considerably with latitude; beetles were smaller but more dimorphic at lower latitudes. Body size was not correlated with a gradient in mean temperature, contrary to the commonly accepted hypothesis that clines are produced by latitudinal gradients in temperature. Instead, we found that three factors were adequate to explain the cline in body size: clinal variation in host plant seed size, moisture (humidity), and seasonality (variance in humidity, precipitation, and temperature). We also found that the cline in sexual size dimorphism was partially explainable by a gradient in moisture, though moisture alone was not sufficient to explain the cline. Other ecological or environmental variables must necessarily contribute to differences in selection on male versus female body size. The main implications of our study are that the sexes differ in the magnitude of clinal variation in body size, creating latitudinal variation in sexual size dimorphism, and that clines in body size of seed beetles are likely influenced by variation in host seed size, water availability, and seasonality.
Detecting Malingered Neurocognitive Dysfunction Using the Reliable Digit Span in Traumatic Brain Injury

This study assessed the effectiveness of Greiffenstein’s Reliable Digit Span (RDS) score for the detection of malingered neurocognitive dysfunction. Participants were 54 traumatic brain injury patients referred for neuropsychological evaluation. Twenty-four met the Slick, Sherman, and Iverson criteria for at least probable malingered neurocognitive dysfunction. The control group was composed of 30 patients without external incentive and who thus did not meet the Slick criteria. All patients completed the digit span test as part of either the WAIS-R or WAIS-III. The RDS scores were calculated, and sensitivity, specificity, and predictive power were examined for several cutoffs. Classification accuracy for the RDS was excellent. Issues related to the clinical application of this technique are discussed.
Knowledge Management: Case Studies in SMEs and Evaluation of an Integrated Approach

To date, very few publications have been found that describe how small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are adopting knowledge management (KM). The same is true concerning attempts to develop a framework to help them implement it. To redress this, this paper presents the results of four case studies conducted in UK SMEs to examine their KM implementation effort. In addition, a new integrated framework developed by the authors was evaluated to determine its applicability in this business sector. The methodology employed to conduct the studies is described and each of the cases is then presented. The results are analysed and key lessons or findings gathered from the companies are highlighted. Comments received from the companies with respect to the integrated framework were positive and favourable. It is hoped that the information accrued from the case studies, together with the integrated framework, will help to pave the way for SMEs to accomplish KM.
The Twilight of Determinism: At Least in Biophysical Novelties

In the 1990s, Richard Lewontin referred to what appeared to be the twilight of determinism in biology. He pointed out that DNA determines only a little part of life phenomena, which are very complex. In fact, organisms determine the environment and vice versa in a nonlinear way. Very recently, biophysicists, Shimon Marom and Erez Braun, have demonstrated that controlled biophysical systems have shown a relative autonomy and flexibility in response which could not be predicted. Within the boundaries of some restraints, most of them genetic, this freedom from determinism is well maintained. Marom and Braun have challenged not only biophysical determinism but also reverse-engineering, naive reductionism, mechanism, and systems biology.
Ventilator‐associated pneumonia and mortality: A systematic review of observational studies *

Objective: To determine the attributable mortality of ventilator‐associated pneumonia in a systematic review and meta‐analysis of observational studies. Ventilator‐associated pneumonia is generally believed to increase the mortality of patients. This notion is predominantly based on the results of observational studies. Data Source: We performed a systematic search strategy using PubMed, Web of Science, and Embase from their inception through February 2007. In addition, a reference and related article search was performed. Study Selection: Studies were included if they reported mortality rates of patients with and without ventilator‐associated pneumonia. Data Extraction and Synthesis: Fifty‐two studies with a total of 17,347 patients met the inclusion criteria. Pooling of all studies resulted in relative risk of 1.27 (95% Confidence Interval = 1.15–1.39), but heterogeneity was considerable (I2 statistic = 69%). The origin of heterogeneity could not be explained by differences in study design, study quality, and diagnostic approach. However, heterogeneity was limited for studies investigating only trauma patients (I2 = 1.3%) or patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome (I2 = 0%), with estimated relative risk of 1.09 (95% Confidence Interval = 0.87–1.37) among trauma patients and 0.86 (95% Confidence Interval = 0.72–1.04) among patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome. Conclusions: There is no evidence of attributable mortality due to ventilator‐associated pneumonia in patients with trauma or acute respiratory distress syndrome. However, in other nonspecified patient groups, there is evidence for attributable mortality due to ventilator‐associated pneumonia, but this could not be quantified due to heterogeneity in study results. More detailed studies, allowing subgroup analyses, are needed to determine the attributable mortality of ventilator‐associated pneumonia in these patient populations.
Assessment of inhalation technique and determinants of incorrect performance among children with asthma

The objective of our study was to evaluate the pressurized metered dose inhaler (pMDI) with holding chamber technique of asthmatic children attending out patient pediatric chest clinic and determine factors associated with incorrect technique. All patients had previously received instructions regarding inhalation technique. The inhalation technique was assessed on a five‐point checklist, four of which were considered essential. Two hundred and thirteen children (mean ± SD age, 7.3 ± 3.8 years; 151 boys) completed the study. Children were using their inhaler for a median duration of 6 months (range 1–96 months). One hundred and eighty‐eight patients (88.3%) performed all essential steps correctly. The commonest mistake among the essential steps was not shaking the inhaler (n = 21, 9.9%) followed by inability to make a tight seal around the mouthpiece of the holding chamber (n = 12, 5.6%). Correct technique was not affected by gender, asthma severity and socio‐economic indices: education level of parents, percapita monthly income, rural or urban background. Our study indicates that a large majority of children from a developing country setting, irrespective of lower education and income levels can be successfully educated to appropriately use inhalation device. Inhalation performance is not affected by socio‐economic background of the patients. Comprehensive inhalation instructions and monitoring at each visit are however critical to ensure reliable and consistent performance of correct technique among asthmatic children. Pediatr Pulmonol. 2006, 41:1082–1087. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.