Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Association of atherosclerosis with low back pain and the degree of disc degeneration.

STUDY DESIGN This was a cross-sectional observational study in which the abdominal aorta was evaluated for atheromatous lesions visible in computed tomographic scans in patients with and without low back pain. OBJECTIVES To evaluate whether patients with low back pain have more atherosclerosis in the abdominal aorta than patients without low back pain and whether the severity of atherosclerosis in the abdominal aorta correlates with the grade of disc damage. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA There are studies in which results indicate that insufficient blood supply may be a significant causative factor in disc degeneration. There are also studies in which smoking, one of the risk factors for arterial disease, has been correlated with low back pain. Calf pain has also been shown to correlate with low back pain. Results in a long-term follow-up study have further indicated an association between disc diseases and fatal ischemic heart disease. However, there seems to be only one postmortem study in which results show an association between atherosclerosis in the arteries of the lumbar area and disc diseases. METHODS Computed tomographic images of 29 patients with low back pain, who had been evaluated with computed tomographic discography for diagnostic purposes, were evaluated for the quantity of atherosclerotic calcifications visible on computed tomographic scans of the abdominal aorta. A similar evaluation was performed in an age- and sex-matched control group of 52 patients without low back pain selected from among the patients referred for abdominal computed tomography. RESULTS Sixteen (55%) of the 29 patients with low back pain had atherosclerotic calcifications visible on computed tomographic scans, whereas 11 (21%) of the 52 age-matched patients without low back pain were found to have aortic calcifications. Eleven (48%) patients with low back pain who were 50 years of age or less (n = 23) had aortic calcifications, whereas only 3 (8%) of the 36 control patients aged less than 50 years had aortic calcifications. There was no correlation between the amount of calcifications and the degree of disc degeneration assessed by computed tomographic discography. CONCLUSIONS A significant association is indicated between atheromatous lesions in the abdominal aorta and low back pain.
Relationship between Islamism and Al-Shabaab Activities in Garissa County

Terrorism has been a major threat to global peace and security in the recent years. The rate at which terror groups keep changing has brought concerns to various security stakeholders and to local communities affected. The Al-shaabab terror network that operates in the horn of African has been a major concern to various neighbours of Somalia with Kenya being the most affected Garissa County. The Al-shaabab activities which have largely been associated with extreme Islamic teachings have been a concern in the county. The study was underpinned by the Rational Choice Theory. The sample size was 384. The study was conducted in Garissa County. The results showed that there was a relationship between Islamism and Al-shaabab activities Garissa County. The Al-Shabaab militia had on many occasions used extreme teaching to justify their terrors attacks in Garissa county in the name of jihad which had caused serious concerns in the area.
Dissonant futures: occupational trajectories, gender and class in contemporary municipal adult education in Sweden

Abstract The aim of this article is to problematize the ways class and gender are played out in adult students’ narratives about their occupational choice and future. Drawing on Beverly Skeggs, we analyse how students think about future occupations, what motivates them towards these and how they are able to form their future in relation to them. Taking on Sweden as a case, our results show that students’ narratives on their future occupations are classed as well as gendered. In their vision of future occupations, working-class students tend to focus on occupations helping and caring for others, while middle-class students tend to focus on work more as a means of fulfilling themselves as individuals. These differences are also gendered. Female students are more likely than their male counterparts to picture their future occupations in relation to having children and a family. This tells us that in the female students’ narratives, there tends to be a strong focus on caring – for their families as well as in future occupations.
Understanding the Unequal Post-Great Recession Wealth Recovery for American Families

Abstract The wealth of US families had not returned to its prerecession level by 2013, six years after the onset of the Great Recession. This article provides a comprehensive analysis of this slow and uneven episode of wealth recovery, using family-level data from the Survey of Consumer Finances 1989–2013. Both descriptive results and regressions controlling for life cycle wealth accumulation show that families of color and less-educated families are falling behind in wealth recovery because their wealth portfolios are concentrated in housing, which has recovered very slowly. The decomposition results suggest that homeownership plays a significant role in explaining wealth disparity by race, ethnicity, and education at the mean and bottom of the wealth distribution. Understanding the uneven wealth recovery has important implications for redesigning asset-related policies and narrowing wealth gaps.
Low back pain in Flemish adolescents and the role of perceived social support and effect on the perception of back pain

Aim: To document the prevalence of low back pain (LBP) in Flemish adolescents and to recognize the association between perceived social support and affect and medical consultation and reduction of activities. Methods: The study comprised 620 adolescents. A questionnaire was used to elicit the characteristics of LBP. Perceived social support and affect were investigated using the Personal Resource Questionnaire (PRQ) and the Positive Affect Negative Affect Scale (PANAS), respectively. Comparisons were made between adolescents with LBP and adolescents without LBP. Within the LBP group, answers from adolescents appealing for medical advice were compared with those who did not seek advice. Another comparison was done between adolescents who reduced their activities and those who did not. Descriptive statistics, the median test for two samples, a ‐χ2 test or Fisher's exact probability test and logistic regression analysis were used for data analysis. Results: Month prevalence of LBP was 24.7%. Thirteen adolescents visited a physician or received treatment, pain severity being the sole factor associated with the decision. Fifteen adolescents reduced their sports activities and 11 reduced or stopped other leisure activities. Pain severity and negative affect were the main associated factors.
Immunofluorescent demonstration of intracellular fibrin in synovial tissue.

The presence of fibrin in and on synovial membranes has been demonstrated in previous studies by an immunofluorescence technique. This took the form of a fibrin film or an accumulation at interstitial sites (Gitlin, Craig, and Janeway, 1957; Fish, Michael, Gewurz, and Good, 1966). Fibrin inclusions have also been found in polymorphonuclear leucocytes from synovial fluids (Riddle, Bluhm, and Barnhardt, 1965). Recently, Ghadially and Roy (1967), using electron microscopy, demonstrated a fibrinlike material located intracellularly in phagocytic lining cells and extracellularly as homogeneous deposits. The aim of the present work was to examine the extent and localization of fibrin deposits by the fluorescent antibody method, and to investigate factors which might influence the fibrin deposits (e.g. fibrin stabilizing factor (FSF) and plasminogen) in the synovial membrane of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and other types of arthritis. Furthermore, a study of the content of immunoglobulin IgG and P-ic globulin (a component of complement) was also included.
Codominant expression of genes coding for different sets of inducible salivary polypeptides associated with parotid hypertrophy in two inbred mouse strains

Experimental mouse parotid hypertrophy has been associated with the expression of a number of isoproterenol‐induced salivary proline‐rich polypeptides (IISPs). Mouse salivary proline‐rich proteins (PRPs) have been mapped both to chromosomes 6 and 8. Recently, mice of two inbred strains (A/Snell and A.Swiss) have been found to differ drastically in the IISPs. In this study, mice of both strains were used for cross‐breeding experiments addressed to define the pattern of inheritance of the IISP phenotype and to establish whether the IISPs are coded on a single or on several chromosomes. The IISP phenotype of individual mice was assessed by sodium dodecyl sulfate–polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS–PAGE) of whole saliva collected after three daily stimulations by isoproterenol. Parental A/Snell and A.Swiss mice were homogeneous for distinctive strain‐associated IISP‐patterns. First filial generation (F1) mice obtained from the cross of A/Snell with A.Swiss mice expressed with no exception both the A/Snell and A.Swiss IISPs (coexpression). In the second filial generation (F2) both parental IISP phenotypes reappeared together with a majority of mice expressing the F1‐hybrid phenotype (1:2:1 ratio). Backcrosses of F1 × A/Snell and F1 × A.Swiss produced offsprings displaying the F1 and the corresponding parental phenotypes with a 1:1 ratio. No recombinants were observed among F2 mice or among mice resulting from backcrosses. Thus, genes coding for the IISPs that are expressed differentially in both mouse strains are located on the same chromosome, probably at the same locus (alleles) or at quite closely linked loci (nonalleles). © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Proteome analysis of Escherichia coli W3110 expressing an heterologous sigma factor

The recombinant plasmid pASK18 carries a Streptomyces DNA fragment which includes an open reading frame, designated psfS (putative sigma factor, Streptomyces), as its putative product showed a high degree of similarity with RNA polymerase sigma factors. Previous results showed that PsfS causes transcription initiation within the bgl operon promoter‐silencer region in Escherichia coli K12. In this study a proteomic approach has been applied in order to perform a comparative analysis of E. coli K12 W3110 wild‐type, W3110 (pASK18) and a W3110 Bgl+ spontaneous mutant. Either by qualitative or quantitative analysis, no significant difference was observed between the proteomes of W3110 and its Bgl+ derivative, while W3110 (pASK18) showed an altered profile by both analyses. Fourteen out of the 37 protein spots showing a different expression level in E. coli W3110 harboring pASK18 were identified by peptide mass fingerprinting. Among the proteins identified, thiol peroxidase (Tpx) was the only one up‐regulated. The possible involvement of bgl and tpx in the survival of the pathogen E. coli during infection is discussed.
Pharmacologic Treatment Reduces Pressure Times Time Dose and Relative Duration of Intracranial Hypertension

Introduction: Past work has shown the importance of the “pressure times time dose” (PTD) of intracranial hypertension (intracranial pressure [ICP] > 19 mm Hg) in predicting outcome after severe traumatic brain injury. We used automated data collection to measure the effect of common medications on the duration and dose of intracranial hypertension. Methods: Patients >17 years old, admitted and requiring ICP monitoring between 2008 and 2010 at a single, large urban tertiary care facility, were retrospectively enrolled. Timing and dose of ICP-directed therapy were recorded from paper and electronic medical records. The ICP data were collected automatically at 6-second intervals and averaged over 5 minutes. The percentage of time of intracranial hypertension (PTI) and PTD (mm Hg h) were calculated. Results: A total of 98 patients with 664 treatment instances were identified. Baseline PTD ranged from 27 (before administration of propofol and fentanyl) to 150 mm Hg h (before mannitol). A “small” dose of hypertonic saline (HTS; ≤250 mL 3%) reduced PTD by 38% in the first hour and 37% in the second hour and reduced the time with ICP >19 by 38% and 39% after 1 and 2 hours, respectively. A “large” dose of HTS reduced PTD by 40% in the first hour and 63% in the second (PTI reduction of 36% and 50%, respectively). An increased dose of propofol or fentanyl infusion failed to decrease PTD but reduced PTI between 14% (propofol alone) and 30% (combined increase in propofol and fentanyl, after 2 hours). Barbiturates failed to decrease PTD but decreased PTI by 30% up to 2 hours after administration. All reductions reported are significantly changed from baseline, P < . 05. Conclusion: Baseline PTD values before drug administration reflects varied patient criticality, with much higher values seen before the use of mannitol or barbiturates. Treatment with HTS reduced PTD and PTI burden significantly more than escalation of sedation or pain management, and this effect remained significant at 2 hours after administration.
Internet Addiction in High School Students in Turkey and Multivariate Analyses of the Underlying Factors

AbstractThe aim of this study is to examine the Internet addiction among adolescents in relation to their sociodemographic characteristics, communication skills, and perceived familial social support. This cross-sectional research is conducted in the high schools in some city centers, in Turkey, in 2013. In this study, cluster sampling was used. In each school, a class for each grade level was randomly selected, and all the students in the selected classes were included in the sample. One thousand seven hundred forty-two students aged between 14 and 20 years were included in the sample.The mean Internet Addiction Scale (IAS) score of the students was found to be 27.9 ± 21.2. According to the scores obtained from IAS, 81.8% of the students were found to display no symptoms (<50 points), 16.9% were found to display borderline symptoms (50–79 points), and 1.3% were found to be Internet addicts (≥80 points). According to the results of the binary logistic regression, male students and the students in single sex vocational schools were found to report higher levels of borderline Internet addiction. It was also observed that the IAS score increases when the father’s educational level increases and when the students’ school performance is worse. On the other hand, the IAS score decreases when the student grade level, perceived family social support, and communication skills scores increase.The risk factors for Internet addiction are being a male, low academic achievement, inadequate social support and communication skills, and father’s high educational level.
What Drives Q and Investment Fluctuations?

A dynamic present-value relation implies that fluctuations in the marginal profit of capital to the marginal Q ratio (mq) are driven by shocks to expected growth of the marginal profit of capital (cash-ow channel), investment return shocks (discount-rate channel), or both. We find that, in contrast to the dividend-to-price ratio, mq strongly predicts expected marginal profitability growth at both short and long forecasting horizons, but not investment returns. This result is driven by both investment's response to expected marginal profit shocks and by mean reversion of profitability growth. Firms' technology parameters play a role in the variance decomposition of mq.
A Linear Programming Approach to the Design of Integrated Renewable Energy Systems for Developing Countries

Integrated renewable energy systems (IRES) which utilize different manifestations of solar energy to satisfy various energy needs are well suited for the remote rural areas of developing countries. By employing a linear programming approach, this paper develops a methodology for the design of IRES. The method is quite general and it minimizes an objective function of total annual cost, subject to a set of energy and power constraints. A numerical example is included to illustrate the design procedure.
Psychiatric Symptomsc, Functional Impairment, and Receptivity toward Mental Health Treatment among Obstetrical Patients

Objective: To examine psychiatric symptomatology and associated functional impairment among pregnant women; and to examine the obstetrical patient's receptivity to discussion of and intervention regarding emotional distress. Methods: Fifty-seven patients 16 weeks or less pregnant presenting for routine obstetrical appointments at a faculty practice at a major medical center participated in this study. Each completed a self-administered assessment packet regarding psychopathology, functional impairment and service utilization attitudes. Statistical analyses were performed using chi-square and Mann-Whitney tests. Results: Seventeen subjects (29.8 percent) screened positive for at least one anxiety disorder. Fourteen of those subjects also screened positive for depression. Those with positive screens for either anxiety and/or depression had significantly higher levels of functional impairment. Only five (29.4 percent) of the 17 subjects with positive screens reported having discussed an emotional issue with their Ob/Gyn, although 14 (82.4 percent) said that they would be willing to do so. All subjects (100 percent) reported that they would see a mental health professional if their Ob/Gyn referred them. Conclusion: Routine screens for mental disorders in early pregnancy appear to be a useful adjunct in an obstetrical setting. Although most had never discussed their emotional concerns with their Ob/Gyn, a substantial proportion of our study sample reported psychiatric symptomatology and significant levels of functional impairment that had not been recognized by their Ob/Gyn. All of the patients in our study sample reported a willingness to see a mental health professional if their Ob/Gyn referred them. Further studies investigating the benefits of antenatal diagnosis and treatment of psychiatric disorders are warranted.
The GLC7 type 1 protein phosphatase is required for glucose repression in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

We cloned the GLC7/DIS2S1 gene by complementation of the cid1-226 mutation, which relieves glucose repression in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. GLC7 encodes the catalytic subunit of type 1 protein phosphatase (PP1). Genetic analysis and sequencing showed that cid1-226 is an allele of GLC7, now designated glc7-T152K, which alters threonine 152 to lysine. We also show that the glc7-1 and glc7-T152K alleles cause distinct phenotypes: glc7-1 causes a severe defect in glycogen accumulation but does not relieve glucose repression, whereas glc7-T152K does not prevent glycogen accumulation. These findings are discussed in light of evidence that interaction with different regulatory or targeting subunits directs the participation of PP1 in diverse cellular regulatory mechanisms. Finally, genetic studies suggest that PP1 functions antagonistically to the SNF1 protein kinase in the regulatory response to glucose.
Antidiscrimination or Reverse Discrimination: The Impact of Changing Demographics, Title VII, and Affirmative Action on Productivity

This study estimates the changes over time in the relative productivities of minorities and females. I find no significant evidence that the productivity of minorities or females decreased relative to that of white males as relative minority and female employment increased during the 1960s and 1970s. This study also compares the impact of Title VII and affirmative action and presents evidence that Title VII litigation has played a significant role in increasing black employment. This suggests that the employment of minorities and females has not entailed large efficiency costs and that Title VII litigation has had some success in fighting racial discrimination. The EEOC has sometimes been credited with opening up new pools of labor that corporations somehow contrived to ignore, and occasionally with hastening the breakdown of traditional barriers to labor mobility. But in the context of the market's endless search for efficiency, these anomalies would have been eliminated anyway, leaving only the question of whether they were worth the expenditures compelled by law. Affirmative action is a net cost to the economy.And the true dynamic effects-the opportunity cost of all this expense and effort, the diminution of competition, inefficiencies due to the employment and promotion of marginal labor and the consequent demoralization of good workers-can only be a matter of conjecture, although they are clearly the most important of all. Senator Orrin Hatch, 1980
Rotavirus infections in calves.

Rotaviruses are now established as a major cause of neonatal enteritis and diarrhoea in calves. Laboratory diagnosis is usually based on detection of the virus or virus antigens in faeces by direct electron microscopy or tests such as ELISA and IEOP. Rotaviruses are resistant to inactivation and are normally present in large numbers in faeces, so that environmental contamination is both heavy and persistent. Infection is transmitted primarily by faecal-oral contact. Calves are usually protected from infection for the first few days of life by colostral antibody. When this disappears from the gut the calf is totally susceptible to infection and maximum virus excretion normally occurs around the end of the first week of life. The disease has a high morbidity, but clinically is of mild to moderate severity. Many infections are subclinical. The virus infects and destroys mature villous enterocytes in the small intestine, resulting in villous atrophy and replacement of mature epithelial cells by undifferentiated immature cells. Diarrhoea probably results from malabsorption and net water secretion. Control is based on management systems designed to decrease the amount of infection to which the calf is exposed and on increasing the specific resistance of the calf to infection e.g. by feeding immune colostrum or by vaccination. Vaccination of the dam with adjuvanted, inactivated vaccines has given promising results, but this work is still at an early stage.
Evaluation of superficial bladder transitional-cell carcinoma by optical coherence tomography.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a new modality that allows noninvasive examination of the internal structure of biological tissue in vivo with a spatial resolution of 10 to 15 microm. This study evaluated the clinical application of OCT to determine epithelial and subepithelial anatomic structure and invasiveness of bladder epithelial lesions. MATERIALS AND METHODS The OCT examination was performed with a 980-nm 10 mW superluminescent diode using a 2.7-mm-diameter optical fiber positioned cystoscopically. A total of 261 scans of 1.5 seconds' duration, which generated 200 x 200-pixel images, were performed on 87 areas in 24 patients at high risk of having transitional-cell carcinoma (TCC). Lesions, visually suspect, and normal areas were photographed, scanned, and biopsied. The scans were evaluated independently before comparison with histopathology findings. RESULTS Of the 87 areas, 29 of 36 visually suspect areas and 35 of 35 normal areas, were correctly diagnosed with OCT. Of the 16 areas with papillary TCC, all 16 were diagnosed correctly as tumor, and 9 of 10 were diagnosed correctly as invasive, including 6 with lamina propria invasion only. Papillary and flat tumors, carcinoma in situ, inflammation, chronic cystitis, and von Brunn's nests were scanned. Overall, OCT had a sensitivity of 100%, overall specificity of 89%, positive predictive value of 75%, and negative predictive value of 100%. The accuracy was 92%. The positive predictive value for invasion was 90%. CONCLUSION Optical coherence tomography is a simple, portable, promising modality for evaluation of bladder lesions and depth of tumor penetration. Further refinement of this technology may lead to the development of an optical surrogate for biopsy.