Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Role of Diet in the Aetiology of Dental Erosion

Acids of intrinsic and extrinsic origin are thought to be the main etiologic factors for dental erosion. There is evidence that acidic foodstuffs and beverages play a role in the development of erosion. However, the pH of a dietary substance alone is not predictive of its potential to cause erosion as other factors modify the erosive process. These factors are chemical (pKa values, adhesion and chelating properties, calcium, phosphate and fluoride content), behavioural (eating and drinking habits, life style, excessive consumption of acids) and biological (flow rate, buffering capacity, composition of saliva, pellicle formation, tooth composition, dental and soft tissue anatomy). The interplay between erosion and abrasion (specially oral hygiene practices) may be the main driver leading to the clinical manifestation of this disorder. Recommendations for patients at risk for dental erosion such as reducing acid exposure by reducing the frequency and contact of acids will be discussed.
Diagnosis and treatment of blunt thoracic aortic injuries: changing perspectives.

BACKGROUND The diagnosis and management of blunt thoracic aortic injuries has undergone many significant changes over the last decade. The present study compares clinical practices and results between an earlier prospective multicenter study by the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma completed in 1997 (AAST1) and a new similar study completed in 2007 (AAST2). METHODS The AAST1 study included 274 patients from 50 participating centers over a period of 30 months. The AAST2 study included 193 patients from 18 centers, over a period of 26 months. The comparisons between the two studies included the method of definitive diagnosis of the aortic injury [computed tomography (CT) scan, aortography, transesophageal echocardiogram (TEE) or magnetic resonance imaging], the method of definitive aortic repair (open repair vs. endovascular repair, clamp and sew vs. bypass techniques), the time from injury to procedure (early vs. delayed repair), and outcomes (survival, procedure-related paraplegia, other complications). RESULTS There was a major shift of the method of definitive diagnosis of the aortic injury, from aortography in the AAST1 to CT scan in AAST2, and a nearly complete elimination of aortography and TEE in the AAST2 study. In the AAST2 study the diagnosis was made by CT scan in 93.3%, aortography in 8.3%, and TEE in 1.0% of patients when compared with 34.8%, 87.0%, and 11.9%, respectively, in the AAST1 study (p < 0.001). The mean time from injury to aortic repair increased from 16.5 hours in the AAST1 study to 54.6 hours in the AAST2 study (p < 0.001). In the AAST1 study, all patients were managed with open repair, whereas in the AAST2 study only 35.2% were managed with open repair and the remaining 64.8% were managed with endovascular stent-grafts. In the patients managed with open repair, the use of bypass techniques increased from 64.7% to 83.8%. The overall mortality, excluding patients in extremis, decreased significantly from 22.0% to 13.0% (p = 0.02). Also, the incidence of procedure-related paraplegia in patients with planned operation, decreased from 8.7% to 1.6% (p = 0.001). However, the incidence of early graft-related complications increased from 0.5% in the AAST1 to 18.4% in the AAST2 study. CONCLUSIONS Comparison between the two AAST studies in 1997 and 2007 showed a major shift in the diagnosis of the aortic injury, with the widespread use of CT scan and the almost complete elimination of aortography and TEE. The concept of delayed definitive repair has gained wide acceptance. Endovascular repair has replaced open repair to a great extent. These changes have resulted in a major reduction of mortality and procedure-related paraplegia but also a significant increase of early graft-related complications.
Biological control of Lycoriella ingenua (Diptera: Sciaridae) in commercial mushroom (Agaricus bisporus) cultivation: a comparison between Hypoaspis miles and Steinernema feltiae.

BACKGROUND Mushroom cultivation may be adversely affected by insect pests, including sciarids (Lycoriella spp.), which were previously controlled by application of chemical pesticides. However, owing to food safety and environmental concerns, availability of pesticides for use during mushroom cultivation has diminished. Consequently, it is imperative to investigate alternative control strategies, not reliant on chemical pesticides, which may be used in an integrated pest management system. RESULTS Application of the predatory mite Hypoaspis miles Berlese to commercial mushroom-growing beds at the beginning of spawn run or just prior to casing (830 mites m(-2)) significantly reduced immature sciarids, Lycoriella ingenua (Dufour), in the growing substrate and also adult activity towards the conclusion of cropping. A trend towards lower sciarid emergence from substrates and reduced adult sciarid activity was observed following the application of Steinernema feltiae (Filipjev) (1.5 x 10(6) nematodes m(-2)) at casing. No significant treatment effects on mushroom yield were observed. However, contamination of the mushroom crop by adult sciarids increased in untreated controls. Application of H. miles required a 12-fold increase in labour when compared with application of S. feltiae. CONCLUSION Contingent upon the development of an effective application system, H. miles has potential for the biological control of sciarids in commercial mushroom production.
Characterization of peripheral blood progenitor cells (PBPC) mobilized by filgrastim (rHuG‐CSF) in normal volunteers: dose–effect relationship for filgrastim with the character of mobilized PBPC

Filgrastim (rHuG‐CSF)‐mobilized peripheral blood progenitor cells (PBPC) in healthy Japanese volunteers were characterized in detail using two clonal cell culture systems and double‐colour flow cytometry to detect multilineage colony‐forming cells and subsets of CD34+ cells. The kinetics of PBPC during the administration of filgrastim was studied, and possible differences in the character of progenitor cells relative to given doses of filgrastim were investigated. Filgrastim was administered subcutaneously to normal volunteers for 7 d at doses of 100, 200 or 400 μg/m2 (10 per cohort). Treatment with 100 or 200 μg/m2 filgrastim was well tolerated; however, the 400 μg/m2 dose level was not completed because of bone pain and myalgia. The treatment strikingly mobilized various types of progenitor cells, including highly proliferative megakaryocytic colony‐forming cells. The number of progenitor cells peaked on days 5 and 6. The fold increase of circulating progenitor cells from the baseline value in the volunteers treated with 200 μg/m2 filgrastim was more pronounced than in those treated with 100 μg/m2. Treatment with 200 μg/m2 also released the less mature progenitor cells (i.e. mixed colony‐forming cells, CD34+/33− cells, and CD34+/HLA‐DR− cells) into circulation better than the 100 μg/m2 dose. These results suggest that daily subcutaneous injection with 200 μg/m2 filgrastim for 5 d will effectively mobilize, both qualitatively and quantitatively, PBPC in healthy donors.
R-( 1 ) and S-( 2 ) Isomers of Cotinine Augment Cholinergic Responses In Vitro and In Vivo

The nicotine metabolite cotinine (1-methyl-5-[3-pyridynl]-2pyrrolidinone), like its precursor, has been found to exhibit procognitive and neuroprotective effects in somemodel systems; however, the mechanism of these effects is unknown. In this study, both the R-(1) and S-(2) isomers of cotinine were initially evaluated in an extensive profiling screen and found to be relatively inactive across a wide range of potential pharmacologic targets. Electrophysiological studies on human a4b2 and a7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) expressed in Xenopus oocytes confirmed the absence of agonistic activity of cotinine at a4b2 ora7 nAChRs. However, a significant increase in the current evoked by a low concentration of acetylcholine was observed at a7 nAChRs exposed to 1.0mMR-(1)orS-(2)-cotinine. Based on these results, we used a spontaneous novel object recognition (NOR) procedure for rodents to test the hypothesis that R-(1)or S-(2)-cotinine might improve recognition memory when administered alone or in combination with the Alzheimer’s disease (AD) therapeutic agent donepezil. Although both isomers enhanced NOR performance when they were coadministered with donepezil, neither isomer was active alone. Moreover, the procognitive effects of the drug combinations were blocked by methyllycaconitine and dihydro-b-erythroidine, indicating that both a7 and a4b2 nAChRs contribute to the response. These results indicate that cotinine may sensitize a7 nAChRs to low levels of acetylcholine (a previously uncharacterized mechanism), and that cotinine could be used as an adjunctive agent to improve the effective dose range of cholinergic compounds (e.g., donepezil) in the treatment of AD and other memory disorders.
Lodging Demand for Urban Hotels in Major Metropolitan Markets

Hotel demand in large urban markets does respond to changes in income, but that demand is relatively inelastic, according to an analysis of 22 top metropolitan areas in the United States. The analysis, made possible through Smith Travel Research, examined room-night demand for 480 individual hotels from 1989 through 2000 and compared that demand to a set of economic measures, including gross domestic product (GDP) and the consumerconfidence index (CCI). Rather than examine aggregate demand against GDP, for instance, the study took the unusual approach of examining the effects of income on each hotel’s demand and then aggregated the individual results. The analysis found that every 1-percent increase in GDP was associated with a . 44-percent increase in demand at the urban hotels in the 22 large markets showing that hotel rooms demand is relatively income inelastic. The study further examined income effects using a novel approach-by separating GDP into personal income and business income. This additional analysis confirmed the income inelasticity of hotel demand but also found that personal income changes have twice as great an effect on hotel demand than do changes in business income. Furthermore, the combined elasticity coefficients for personal income and business income approximate the coefficient for GDP. The analysis of the effect of consumer confidence provided the first known connection between consumers future expectations for income. While the effect is relatively small, it is significant with a . 03-percent change in hotel demand for every 1-point change in the CCI. The study also examined price-related elasticity, examining changes in demand both when a hotel changes its own price (ADR) and the substitution effect that occurs competitors prices change (market ADR, or MADR). Separating the study sample according to STR’s market segments also yielded further insights about the income elasticity of demand for different hotel price points.
Momotarō (The Peach Boy) and the Spirit of Japan: Concerning the Function of a Fairy Tale in Japanese Nationalism of the Early Shōwa Age

This article is concerned with a famous Japanese fairy tale, Momotaro, which was used during the war years in school readers as a primary part of nationalistic propaganda. The tale and its central motif are analyzed and traced back through history to its earliest forms. Heroes from legend and history offered perfect identification patterns and images for the propagation of state ideals that were spread through education, the military, and war propaganda. Momotar6 subtly transmitted to young school pupils that which official Japan looked upon as the goal of its ideological education: through a fairy tale the gate to the "Japanese spirit " was opened.
Detection of IgA class antibody to hepatitis E virus in serum samples from patients with hepatitis E virus infection

A newly developed assay for IgA class antibody to hepatitis E virus (IgA anti‐HEV) was used to study 145 serum samples collected during an outbreak of an enterically transmitted hepatitis that occurred in 3 villages in the lower Shebeli region of Southern Somalia between January, 1988 and November, 1989. A total of 52.4% of the afflicted patients were found positive for IgA anti‐HEV, and 73.1% of these were also positive for IgM. Both antibodies disappeared during the convalescence period. Similar results were also seen in serum obtained from sporadic cases of acute waterborne hepatitis in Pakistan. © 1993 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Using the palaeontological record of Microtus to test species distribution models and reveal responses to climate change

We used newly identified fossil specimens to reconstruct the Quaternary distributions of five Microtus species (Rodentia: Arvicolinae) from the Pacific coast of the United States. We used these distributions to test the hypothesis that when projected onto past, alternative climate surfaces, species distribution models (SDMs) created using only climate variables are concordant with the empirical data of fossil Microtus species occurrences.
Research Statement Jia (

My research focuses on convex/non-convex optimization, machine learning, applied probability, stochastic control, and their applications in many real-world complex systems and networks, such as Internet-of-Things (IoT), Cloud Computing, Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS), Data Analytics, Wireless Communication Networks, Network Economy, etc. These systems can all be modeled as stochastic networks of many interacting agents sharing and competing limited resources at different time-scales and stochastic dynamics. My goal is to understand fundamental performance limits of such systems, and develop efficient, adaptive, low-complexity, and scalable algorithms for diverse applications in these systems. To that end, I am taking an interdisciplinary effort spanning cutting-edge topics in electrical engineering, computer science, and operations research. In particular, my research utilizes and contributes to network science, stochastic control theory, queueing theory, optimization theory, and low-complexity algorithm design. In what follows, I will first give an overview of my research contributions in recent years, and then discuss several future research directions that I am passionate about.
SPECIATION IN THE EUROPEAN RABBIT (ORYCTOLAGUS CUNICULUS): ISLANDS OF DIFFERENTIATION ON THE X CHROMOSOME AND AUTOSOMES

Studies of gene flow between closely related taxa can provide insight into the genetic basis of speciation. To evaluate the importance of the X chromosome in reproductive isolation between subspecies of the European rabbit and to study the genomic scale over which islands of differentiation extend, we resequenced a total of 34 loci distributed along the X chromosome and chromosome 14. Previous studies based on few markers suggested that loci in centromeric regions were highly differentiated between rabbit subspecies, whereas loci in telomeric regions were less differentiated. Here, we confirmed this finding but also discovered remarkable variation in levels of differentiation among loci, with FST values from nearly 0 to 1. Analyses using isolation‐with‐migration models suggest that this range appears to be largely explained by differential levels of gene flow among loci. The X chromosome was significantly more differentiated than the autosomes. On chromosome 14, differentiation decayed very rapidly at increasing distances from the centromere, but on the X chromosome distinct islands of differentiation encompassing several megabases were observed both at the centromeric region and along the chromosome arms. These findings support the idea that the X chromosome plays an important role in reproductive isolation between rabbit subspecies. These results also demonstrate the mosaic nature of the genome at species boundaries.
Endocrine cells in colorectal adenocarcinomas: Incidence, hormone profile and prognostic relevance

The occurrence of endocrine cells in 350 cases of colorectal adenocarcinoma was studied by immunohistochemistry for chromogranin A (CGA). The hormone profile of endocrine tumor cells, the correlation between endocrine differentiation and presence of other colorectal epithelial‐cell lineages and the prognostic relevance of endocrine differentiation in colorectal cancer were investigated. CGA‐positive tumor cells were found in 30% of cases, 21% showing moderate positivity and 9.0% extensive positivity. Of CGA‐positive tumors, 70% additionally produced neurohormones, mainly indigenous to normal colorectal epithelium: 55% showed immunoreactivity for glucagon‐like substances, 20% for serotonin and 10% for somatostatin, PYY and HCG. No immunoreactivity was found for various neurohormones not normally produced by colorectal endocrine cells. CGA‐positive tumors tended to be more aggressive than CGA‐negative tumors. Especially, tumors with extensive CGA positivity showed shorter survival, which was most apparent within Dukes' stage C. In multivariate analysis, extensive CGA positivity was an independent indicator of poor prognosis. CGA immunoreactivity significantly correlated with mucin production, but not with expression of secretory component (SC), a columnar‐cell marker. Mucin production significantly correlated with SC expression. Tumors positive for CGA but not for mucin and/or SC showed the worst prognosis. SC expression was a relatively favorable feature, and mucin‐producing tumors showed intermediate behavior.
The impact of 10-valent and 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccines on serotype 19A invasive pneumococcal disease

The circulation in the community of pneumococcal serotype 19A, a highly invasive and frequently extremely resistant pneumococcal strain, has increased the focus on methods to control its presence and effect. Two vaccines have been developed: the 10-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV10) and the 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13). Available data indicate that PCV13 is highly effective in reducing the risk of serotype 19A invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) in both vaccinated children and unvaccinated adults. Positive data have also been published for PCV10 that suggest that the conjugated serotype 19F included in the vaccine could evoke a cross-reactive antibody response with serotype 19A. However, a great number of invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) cases are associated with serotypes not included in either of the vaccines, and preparation of a vaccine containing all the serotypes is unrealistic. Protein vaccines are the real future to definitively reduce the pneumococcal disease burden.
Role of the CDKN2A locus in patients with multiple primary melanomas.

PURPOSE We have studied a consecutive case series of patients with multiple primary melanoma (MPM) for the involvement of the melanoma susceptibility loci CDKN2A and CDK4. PATIENTS AND METHODS One hundred four MPM patients (81 patients with two primary melanomas, 14 with three, five with four, one with five, two with six, and one with seven) were included. RESULTS Seven different CDKN2A germline mutations were identified in 17 patients (16.3%). In total, we identified 15 CDKN2A exon 2, one exon 1alpha missense mutation, and one exon 1beta frameshift mutation. The age of onset was significantly lower and the number of primary melanomas higher in patients with mutations. CDKN2A mutations were more frequent in patients with familial history of melanoma (35.5%) compared with patients without (8.2%), with a relative risk (RR) of 4.32 (95% CI, 1.76 to 10.64; P = .001), and in patients with more than two melanomas (39.1%) compared with patients with only two melanomas (10%) with an RR of 3.29 (95% CI, 1.7 to 6.3; P = .002). The A148T polymorphism was more frequent in patients with MPMs than in the control population (P = .05). A variant of uncertain significance, A127S, was also detected in one patient. No CDK4 mutations were identified, suggesting that it has a low impact in susceptibility to MPM. CONCLUSION MPM patients are good candidates for CDKN2A mutational screening. These patients and some of their siblings should be included in a program of specific follow-up with total body photography and digital dermoscopy, which will result in the early detection of melanoma in this subset of high-risk patients and improve phenotypic characterization.
Biological characterization of a simian immunodeficiency virus-like retrovirus (HTLV-IV): evidence for CD4-associated molecules required for infection

We have analyzed a number of biological features of HTLV-IV, a retrovirus indistinguishable from a macaque isolate of simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV), and compared this virus with several strains of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1). Although HTLV-IV was found to be similar to HIV-1 in its tropism for CD4+ lymphocytes, its effects on CD4 expression and the ability of its externalized envelope molecule to form a complex directly with the CD4 molecule, a number of striking differences were noted. Unlike with HIV-1, the range of cells susceptible to HTLV-IV infection and syncytia formation was restricted to a subset of CD4+ cell lines, particularly those that coexpressed CD4 with human leukocyte antigen (HLA) class II antigens. An analysis of the patterns of HTLV-IV infection with B x T somatic cell hybrids indicated that for this virus, molecules in addition to CD4 were probably required to facilitate infection and cell fusion. Additional studies of HTLV-IV infection of Sup-T1 cells, which are exquisitely sensitive to cytopathic effects induced by HIV-1, demonstrated that HTLV-IV infection could occur in the absence of cytopathic effects and, remarkably, with minimal or no downmodulation of the CD4 molecule from the cell surface. The failure of HTLV-IV infection to reduce the expression of several CD4 epitopes suggested that the HTLV-IV envelope produced by Sup-T1 cells was altered in its ability to interact with or bind to CD4. Additional differences were also noted in the size of the transmembrane envelope molecule of HTLV-IV produced by Sup-T1 cells, indicating that cell-specific alterations in processing of the HTLV-IV envelope occurred during the production of virus in this cell line. Understanding the basis for these biological differences between HTLV-IV and the HIV-1 viruses may help to elucidate more general mechanisms for pathogenesis of other members of the SIV and HIV families of retroviruses.
Neonatal echocardiograms of macrosomic neonates

Abstract Objective: To compare echocardiograms of macrosomic and healthy full term neonates whose weight was appropriate for gestational age (AGA). Methods: Echocardiography was performed on 9 healthy full term AGA neonates and 15 macrosomic neonates. A data base was generated from valid echocardiographic measurements on each infant. Results: Macrosomic infants were heavier than control infants and had a greater body surface area, but their mean cardiac dimensions were similar. The mean LVES volume was smaller than that of the control group when expressed as a fraction of individual LVED values (0.61 ± 0.04 vs 0.64 ± 0.02; p = 0.02). When comparing IVS/PW, it was observed that the ratio was up to and including 1.33 in the control group, while the upper limit of the ratio of the nondiabetic macrosomic infants was 1.6. The shortening fraction (SF%) was increased in comparison to infants of normal weight (40.67% ± 3.34 vs 36.00% ± 1.89; p = 0.0009). The thickened IVS did not elevate SF% by decreasing LVES; the macrosomic infants had a smaller LVES mean volume. Conclusion: IVS/PW ratio of macrosomic infants fell outside of the normal range. Macrosomic neonates were found to have an increased SF% secondary to a proportionally smaller LVES volume, regardless of IVS thickness.