Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Simple Tool to Identify Infants at High Risk of Mild to Severe Childhood Asthma: The Persistent Asthma Predictive Score

Background. Recurrent wheezing in infants is a recognized risk factor for the development of childhood asthma. We sought to develop an easy-to-use persistent asthma predictive score (PAPS) in a population of young recurrent wheezers. Methods. We retrospectively studied clinical and biological data of infants under 2 years of age presenting recurrent wheezing and evaluated current asthma at 6 years of age using the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC) questionnaire. Multivariate analysis was performed to select predictive variables to generate a PAPS. The score was then tested on another cohort for independent validation. Results. Two hundred infants were included in the cohort used to create the PAPS, and 227 in the validation cohort. In the first population, 47% of the children had developed asthma at 6 years of age, including 33% with mild to severe persistent asthma. Three parameters independently predicted persistent asthma: family history of asthma, personal atopic dermatitis, and multiple allergen sensitizations. Based on these variables, the PAPS showed 42% sensitivity, 90% specificity, 67% positive predictive value, and 76% negative predictive value for the prediction of persistent asthma. It was able to discriminate future persistent asthmatic from nonfuture persistent asthmatic children, with an accuracy of 74% in the initial population and 67% in the validation population. Conclusions. The PAPS, based on three easy-to-obtain variables, could help the physician in clinical practice to identify infants at high risk for persistent childhood asthma, and thus better evaluate the need for secondary preventive measures.
Package Inductors for Intel Fully Integrated Voltage Regulators

Intel fourth-generation and fifth-generation Core microprocessors are powered by high-frequency integrated switching voltage regulators. The inductors required to implement these regulators are constructed using the routing layers of conventional organic flip chip packaging. This paper provides an overview of the construction of these inductors including representative results from production packages. Measured inductors reported in this paper span from 1 to 6.7 nH under 2.4 mm2 and achieve Q of up to 24 at 140 MHz (the switching frequency).
Transport of Tryptophan into Brain from the Circulating, Albumin‐Bound Pool in Rats and in Rabbits

Abstract: Tryptophan is the only amino acid in the circulation that is bound by albumin, and previous studies have suggested that the brain tryptophan supply is a function of either the free or the albumin‐bound pool of tryptophan in blood. Since the albumin molecule per se does not cross the brain capillary wall, i.e., the blood‐brain barrier (BBB), the transport of tryptophan from the circulating albumin‐bound pool may involve enhanced dissociation of tryptophan from the albumin binding sites within the cerebral microcirculation. This hypothesis was confirmed in the present studies wherein the dissociation constant (KaD) of albumin binding of tryptophan in the rat or rabbit brain microcirculation was measured in vivo. Brain extraction data for [14C]tryptophan determined with the carotid artery injection technique were fit to the Kety‐Renkin‐Crone equation modified for protein‐bound solute. The KaD of albumin binding in the rat or rabbit brain microcirculation under pentobarbital anesthesia was 1.7 ± 0.1 and 3.9 ± 1.0 mM, respectively, as compared to the KD value measured in vitro with equilibrium dialysis, 0.13 ± 0.03 mM. In contrast, the KaD value of albumin binding of tryptophan in vivo in the rabbit brain microcirculation was reduced by ether anesthesia to value of 2.1 ± 0.4 mM. This reduction in the KaD under ether anesthesia was associated with a 2.5‐fold increase in cerebral blood flow. In addition, dialyzed rabbit serum caused a statistically significant inhibition in [14C]tryptophan influx during ether, but not pentobarbital, anesthesia. The BBB permeability‐surface area product (PS) was estimated along with the KaD parameter, and this PS value in the rabbit brain, 0.13 ml/min/g, was identical to the quantity [(Vmax/Km) +KD] measured from estimates of the constants of saturable (Km, Vmax) and nonsaturable (KD) transport of tryptophan through the BBB. In conclusion, the present studies demonstrate that tryptophan is transported into brain from the circulating albumin‐bound pool via an enhanced dissociation mechanism and that this process varies among species and with changing anesthesia and cerebral hemodynamics.
Influence of age, sex, and dietary restriction on intracellular free calcium responses of CD4+ lymphocytes in rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta)

The influence of aging and dietary restriction on increase in intracellular free calcium ([Ca2+]i) of CD4+ lymphocytes from Macaca mulatta was examined after stimulation with anti‐CD3 mAb. We used a flow cytometric assay with the dye indo‐1 and either direct or reciprocal immunofluorescent staining to dientify CD4+ cells. After stimulation with anti‐CD3 mAb, intracellular free calcium responses were reduced in CD4+ lymphocytes from old male and female ad libitum fed monkeys compared to young and adult male or female monkeys. Old female monkeys had significantly lower [Ca2+]i than did old male monkeys. The reduced responses were in part related to a decreased percentage of responding cells. Dietary restrition of males over a four‐year period did not alter [Ca2+]i response compared to ad libitum fed male monkeys. Female monkeys of all ages (which were restricted only for four months) also had similar [Ca2+]i responses to ad libitum fed controls. Our data suggest that age‐related changes in [Ca2+]i responses are similar between humans and M. mulatta, and that over these intervals, no effects of caloric restrictions can be detected. © 1995 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
A case of neoplastic granulosa cells in the fallopian tube, but no evidence of granulosa cell tumor

The discovery of displaced granulosa cells in the fallopian tube is concerning for a granulosa cell neoplasm and can lead to further surgical intervention. Discerning the risk of neoplasm can be challenging, even with immunohistochemical staining of CD56, a highly sensitive marker of granulosa cell neoplasm. A 48-year-old underwent an uncomplicated hysterectomy and bilateral salpingectomy for symptomatic fibroids and was found to have a small focus of granulosa cells staining positive for CD56 in her left fallopian tube. Post-operative imaging demonstrated a left adnexal mass. The patient underwent a left oophorectomy. Final pathology demonstrated a benign mucinous cystadenofibroma without evidence of granulosa cell neoplasm. Displaced granulosa cells require further pathologic and surgical evaluation, but do not always equate to neoplasm and should be managed accordingly.
Changes in poverty and income inequality in Pakistan during the 1970s.

This paper examines the development of poverty and income inequality in Pakistan during the 1970s, and decomposes this inequality into various components in order to identify the location of increasing inequality. The figures show that poverty decreased by about 50%. Not only has the percentage of households below the poverty line decreased by about 34%, but the average income of the remaining poor also went up. At the same time, income inequality between households increased during the period concerned. The decomposition technique applied in this paper discovered 4 elements of inequality increase. 1) Increase in the inequality of earnings in rural areas explains 33% of total inequality increase. 2) Increasing participation rates of both urban and rural households explain 32% of total inequality increase. 3) 25% of total inequality increase can be attributed to a sectoral shift from rural to urban areas. The urban income share increased from 33% in 1969-1970 to 50% in 1979. Since the Theil coefficient of urban labor income is far higher than the Theil coefficient of rural labor income in both 1969-1970 and 1979, inequality increased due to this sectoral shift. 4) Inequality between urban and rural areas increased, explaining 11% of total inequality increase.
Long-term triple tetracycline ("Deteclo") treatment of non-specific urethritis.

Non-specific urethritis (NSU) continues to be the venereologist's most perplexing problem, both diagnostically and therapeutically. The evidence available strongly suggests that the condition is due to an infection, not least because a high percentage of sufferers show prompt symptomatic response to broad-spectrum antibiotics, particularly the tetracyclines. Morton and Read (1957), and more recently Fowler (1970), have pointed out that the more favourable the response to short courses of treatment the more frequent is recurrence. Again, this observasion applies particularly to the tetracyclines, although they remain the most favoured form of therapy. To offset the limitations of short courses, John (1971) used a prolonged course of oxytetracycline; he gave 500 mg. four times daily for 21 days and clearly demonstrated the advantages of this schedule over others. Recurrences requiring re-treatment after observation for 1, 2, and 3 months after treatment occurred in 5, 10, and 13 per cent. , an improvement on any therapy hitherto employed. Such prolonged regimes, especially if tablets have to be taken 6-hrly, are generally considered to be beyond what some patients can cope with. To simplify the dosage, a triple tetracycline that produces adequate blood levels with a 12-hrly dose has been used by some workers. This preparation consists of tetracycline hydrochloride, chlortetracycline hydrochloride, and demethylchlortetracycline hydrochloride in the ratio of 1:1:0-6. Each film-coated tablet contains 300 mg. of the compound. Fowler and Bernstein (1969) gave 300 mg. twice daily for 4 days, and their re-treatment rate was 34 per cent. Wilcox (1972) used two dose schedules, one of 300 mg. and the other of 600 mg. , twice daily for 6 days; re-treatment was required in 28-6 and 19-5 per cent. respectively during 3 months followup. Cohen (1973) used 300 mg. twice daily for 10 days; re-treatment was required in 13 1 per cent. after 3 months.
Derivation of neurotropic simian immunodeficiency virus from exclusively lymphocytetropic parental virus: pathogenesis of infection in macaques

Neurological disease resulting from lentivirus (including human immunodeficiency virus) infections is usually caused by a strain of virus that replicates productively in microglia in vivo and in macrophage cultures in vitro. We undertook this study using the model of simian immunodeficiency virus in macaques (SIVmac) to test the hypothesis that macrophage tropism is a prerequisite for neurotropism of the virus. Using molecularly cloned SIVmac239, a virus which is lymphocyte- but not macrophagetropic, we showed that this virus failed to infect brain after intracerebral (i.c.) inoculation into two macaques. Rather, these inoculations resulted in disseminated infection in lymphoid organs and the bone marrow. Two sequential passages of infected bone marrow cells inoculated i.c. into new macaques resulted in severe neurological disease and classical neuropathological lesions. Virus obtained from affected brain answered the hypothetical question: it was neurotropic and macrophagetropic. New findings in the study were that both lymphocyte- and macrophage-tropic viruses were present in the animals, but the viruses localized in different tissues: the lymphotropic virus in the spleen, lymph nodes, and plasma and the macrophagetropic virus in the brain and lungs. To determine whether the brain virus was preferentially neurotropic and whether it had neuroinvasive properties, infectious brain homogenate was inoculated into one animal i.c. and into two others peripherally. The i.c. inoculated animal developed fatal encephalitis 5 months later, and examination of tissues showed cell-free virus only in brain homogenates. Only microglia were infected despite persistent viremia and infection in bone marrow cells. The two macaques inoculated peripherally remained healthy and were euthanized at 6 months. Virus replication was detected only in the bone marrow cells and peripheral blood mononuclear cells. No infection in any macrophage population in visceral organs was detected, and the virus did not invade the brain. The strictly microglial specificity of this virus suggested that different macrophage populations in the body may select specific phenotypes of lentivirus from the quasispecies of virus in the bone marrow. This could provide the basis for specific disease affecting different organ systems.
Quantitation of viral load using real-time amplification techniques.

Real-time PCR amplification techniques are currently used to determine the viral load in clinical samples for an increasing number of targets. Real-time PCR reduces the time necessary to generate results after amplification. In-house developed PCR and nucleic acid sequence-based amplification (NASBA)-based systems combined with several detection strategies are being employed in a clinical diagnostic setting. The importance of these assays in disease management is still in an exploration phase. Although these technologies have the implicit capability of accurately measuring DNA and RNA in clinical samples, issues related to standardization and quality control must be resolved to enable routine implementation of these technologies in molecular diagnostics.
Childhood non-specific abdominal pain may predict adulthood organic and functional abdominal disease in a small number of patients

Commentary on: Thornton GC, Goldacre MJ, Goldacre R, et al. Diagnostic outcomes following childhood non-specific abdominal pain: a record-linkage study. Arch Dis Child 2015;:1–5[OpenUrl][1]. Abdominal symptoms and pain are encountered in 5–10% of primary healthcare visits both in children and adults. The most common diagnoses in the emergency wards are non-specific abdominal pain (NSAP) and acute appendicitis accounting for 34–50% and 20–30% of all cases, respectively.1–3 NSAP implies short-lived, self-limited, acute abdominal pain for which no serious or definite organic cause is ever established. NSAP is common exclusion diagnosis for abdominal discomfort in childhood. An NSAP cohort of 268 623 children aged 0–16 years was reviewed from English Hospital Episode Statistics from 1999 to 2011.The … [1]: {openurl}? query=rft.jtitle%253DArch%2BDis%2BChild%26rft.volume%253D0%26rft.spage%253D1%26rft.atitle%253DMANAGEMENT%2BOF%2BULCERATIVE%2BCOLITIS%26rft.genre%253Darticle%26rft_val_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Ajournal%26ctx_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ctx_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Actx
Substitutional effects on the electronic transport of the Kondo semiconductor Ce3Bi4Pt3.

The resistivity [rho] and thermoelectric power [ital S] of the doped Kondo semiconductor (Ce[sub 1[minus][ital x]]La[sub [ital x]])[sub 3]Bi[sub 4]Pt[sub 3] are examined to determine the effects of doping on the narrow gap exhibited by this compound. The transport data provide evidence that the energy gap progressively disappears with increasing concentration of La. The [ital T]=0 transport-energy gap, as determined from either [rho] or [ital S], scales with the single-impurity Kondo energy scale [ital T][sub [ital K]], as estimated from magnetic-susceptibility measurements, independently of [ital x] for [ital x][le]0.25. This result suggests that the gap arises from band hybridization that is driven by Kondo-like correlations rather than from single-electronic interactions.
The Tessier Number 5 Facial Cleft: Surgical Strategies and Outcomes in Six Patients

The Tessier no. 5 facial cleft is an extremely rare congenital malformation. Only 26 cases have been described in the English-language literature. The cleft begins in the upper lip just medial to the oral commissure, extending across the cheek as a groove ending at the junction of the middle and lateral thirds of the lower eyelid. The bone involvement usually includes an alveolar cleft in the premolar region, extends across the maxilla lateral to the infraorbital nerve, up to the infraorbital rim and orbital floor. The goals of the surgical procedure include reconstructing the lower eyelid, repositioning the lateral canthus, closure of the labiomaxillary cleft, and restoration of the skeletal continuity (including the orbital floor defect) with bone grafts. We present six patients with the Tessier no. 5 facial cleft who have been treated in our combined centers and discuss the surgical options and difficulties faced in the reconstruction of this rare and challenging craniofacial malformation. To date, we have treated six patients (two with bilateral and four with unilateral clefts). Three of the patients with unilateral clefting had an associated no. 4 cleft and one patient with a bilateral cleft had an associated no. 3 cleft. This paper represents the largest series to date documenting surgery for patients with the Tessier no. 5 facial cleft.
Beam-Squinting Reduction of Leaky-Wave Antennas Using Huygens Metasurfaces

A novel approach is presented to reduce the beam squinting of radiating structures with emphasis on leaky-wave antennas (LWAs). This is achieved by taking advantage of the interesting frequency-dependent variation of the generalized law of refraction in metasurfaces, in combination with the beam-squinting characteristics of LWAs dictated by their dispersion diagram. An X-band coplanar waveguide leaky-wave antenna (CPW-LWA) and a Huygens metasurface are fabricated and experimental results verify that the proposed concept can reduce the beam squinting of the LWA by 50% over a 10% bandwidth at angles around broadside. The proposed method is shown to be an excellent approach to build simple, low-profile, and lowcost communication systems composed of LWAs with low beam-squinting characteristics over a reasonably wide frequency range.
Osteochondral Autologous Transplantation Is Superior to Repeat Arthroscopy for the Treatment of Osteochondral Lesions of the Talus After Failed Primary Arthroscopic Treatment

Background: Several studies have reported on the outcome of arthroscopic treatment or osteochondral autologous transplantation (OAT) for osteochondral lesions of the talus (OLT), with mixed results. None of these studies has compared the results of repeat arthroscopy and OAT after failed primary arthroscopic treatment. Purpose: To compare the outcomes of OAT and repeat arthroscopy for the treatment of OLT after primary arthroscopy Study Design: Cohort study; Level of evidence, 3. Methods: This study included 22 patients who underwent OAT (group A) and 22 patients who underwent repeat arthroscopy (group B) after failed treatment of OLT among 399 patients who received primary arthroscopic marrow stimulation at single institution between 2001 and 2009. All patients were evaluated clinically using the visual analog scale (VAS) for pain and American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) Ankle Hindfoot Scale. The cumulative success rates were compared by use of Kaplan-Meier life table analysis. Results: The patients’ demographic and clinical characteristics and indications for surgery were comparable between the groups. Both groups showed significantly improved (P < .001) VAS and AOFAS scores 6 months after surgery. However, group B showed significant deterioration over a mean follow-up period of 50 months. Overall, 18 of 22 (81.8%) patients in group A and 7 of 22 (31.8%) patients in group B achieved an excellent or good (≥80) AOFAS score (P < .001). No patient in group A and 14 of 22 (63.6%) in group B required further revisions. Conclusion: Osteochondral autologous transplantation was significantly superior to repeat arthroscopic treatment of OLT after a mean follow-up period of 48 months. Therefore, repeat arthroscopy should be used judiciously for the treatment of OLT after failed arthroscopic treatment.
Prediction of outcome in schizophrenia

ABSTRACT– Prediction of 5–8 year outcome from presenting symptoms and background data was attempted in a sample of 110 firstadmitted schizophrenics. Correlations between outcome criteria and single predictors as well as factor analytically derived clusters of predictors were studied. A rather consistent pattern of symptom variables as well as personality and social variables was found to be predictive of outcome. ‘Atypical’ symptoms were associated with good prognosis while longitudinal variables indicative of ‘high‐risk personality', or duration and severity of illness, were related to bad prognosis. Overt psychotic symptoms usually gave no correlations with outcome. A discriminant analytical approach was also used to predict outcome from combinations of predictor variables. When all variables were used to predict a combined outcome score, a high accuracy was achieved.
Selection of a Patient Subgroup with Advanced Esophageal Squamous Carcinoma Who Could Benefit from Second-Line Chemotherapy

Despite first-line therapy, most patients with advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) experience disease progression and may become eligible for second-line chemotherapy. Although commonly used, the role of salvage chemotherapy in patients with recurrent or metastatic ESCC has not yet been established. We analyzed 53 patients who had received second-line chemotherapy after the failure of cisplatin-based combination chemotherapy with or without radiotherapy as first-line therapy in ESCC between March 2000 and June 2008. Median progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) for second-line chemotherapy were 2.4 and 5.2 months, respectively, with an overall response rate of 18.9%. In multivariate analysis, Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group Performance Status (ECOG PS) of 2 or more and PFS under first-line therapy <4 months were independent prognostic factors for decreased OS. OS was estimated based on the number of adverse prognostic factors: 0 = good; 1 = intermediate, and 2 = poor. The median OS for the good, intermediate, and poor prognostic groups were 11.2, 4.5 and 4.3 months, respectively (p < 0.001). The good prognostic group showed better OS than the intermediate or poor groups (p < 0.001). Second-line chemotherapy may be beneficial for OS in ESCC patients with ECOG PS 0–1 and PFS under first-line therapy ≧4 months.
Enhanced bursts of IPSCs in dentate granule cells in mice with regionally inhibited long–term potentiation

Until recently, most studies on the synaptic–cellular basis of learning and memory concentrated on the activity–dependent changes occurring in principal cells such as hippocampal pyramidal cells and dentate granule cells. However, the ability of the inhibitory interneurons to regulate synaptic plasticity remains less understood. This study tested the hypothesis that the gamma–aminobutyric–acid (GABA)–mediated inhibitory neurotransmission is enhanced in mice that show no detectable long–term potentiation in the dentate gyrus in the absence of the GABAA antagonist bicuculline. Patch clamp recordings were made from dentate granule cells in brain slices from wild–type and Thy–1 knockout (KO) mice. The frequency, amplitude and kinetics of miniature inhibitory postsynaptic currents (mIPSCs, generated by the action potential–independent release of GABA) was not different between animals. However, bursts of spontaneous IPSCs (sIPSCs, generated by both action potential–independent and –dependent GABA release) in KO mice were associated with larger synaptic charge transfers and increased durations. When pairs of IPSCs were evoked at varying intervals, the amplitude of the second response with respect to the first was significantly larger in KO animals. These results further support the concept that enhancement of interneuronal functions in cortical structures can have profound effects on the activity–dependent synaptic plasticity observed in principal cells.