Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Comparative effectiveness of mechanically and electrically powered negative pressure wound therapy devices: A multicenter randomized controlled trial

This study was designed to compare the ultraportable mechanically powered Smart Negative Pressure (SNaP) Wound Care System (Spiracur, Sunnyvale, CA) with the electrically powered Vacuum‐Assisted Closure (VAC) Therapy System (Kinetic Concepts, Inc. [KCI], San Antonio, TX) in a multicenter, comparative efficacy, noninferiority‐powered, randomized controlled trial. We enrolled 132 people with noninfected, nonischemic, nonplantar lower extremity diabetic and venous wounds. Each subject was randomly assigned (1:1) to treatment with either system in conjunction with appropriate off‐loading and compression therapy. The trial evaluated treatment for up to 16 weeks or complete wound closure (defined as complete reepithelialization without drainage). Primary end point analysis of wound size reduction found that SNaP‐treated subjects demonstrated noninferiority to the VAC‐treated subjects at 4, 8, 12, and 16 weeks (p = 0.0030, 0.0130, 0.0051, and 0.0044, respectively). Kaplan–Meier analysis showed no significant difference in complete wound closure between SNaP‐ and VAC‐treated subjects at all time points. Device related adverse events and complications such as infection were also similar between treatment groups. These data support similar wound healing outcomes between the SNaP system and the VAC system in the population studied.
Eating Frequency and the Risk of Colon Cancer

Eating frequency has been found in most previous studies to have a positive association or no association with colon cancer. We report data from a large case-control study to determine the effect of eating frequency on colon cancer risk. Data were analyzed from interviews of 1,966 cases of colon cancer and 2,380 controls from selected areas in Northern California, Utah, and Minnesota. Respondents were asked whether they usually ate or drank something besides water at eight different occasions during the day. We controlled for age, family history of colorectal cancer, body mass index, physical activity, intake of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medication, and dietary intake of energy, fiber, and calcium. In fully adjusted models, we found no significant associations between number of daily eating occasions and colon cancer in women. In men, risk of overall colon cancer was lower for one to two times per day (odds ratio = 0.54, 95% confidence interval = 0.36-0.83) than for three times per day, but risk was not increased for more than three times per day. Compared with three times per day, we found no evidence for an association between colon cancer risk and eating frequencies more than three times per day. The increased risk of colon cancer limited to men eating less than three times per day may be due to uncontrolled confounding.
Networked control systems based on Dynamic Matrix Control

According to the principle of forecast feed forward compensation Dynamic Matrix Control (DMC) and regarding its low calculating accuracy, bidirectional decoupling DMC is presented and applied in random long delay multi-input and multi- output (MIMO) Networked Control System (NCS) in this paper. This algorithm, therefore, expands the using field of DMC and resolves control problems in random long delay NCS. The feasibility and validity were finally demonstrated by the results of simulating experiments.
Beyond chemical dependency for managing plant-parasitic nematodes: examples from the banana, pineapple and vegetable industries of tropical and subtropical Australia

Plant-parasitic nematodes are important pests of horticultural crops grown in tropical and subtropical regions of Australia. Burrowing nematode (Radopholus similis) is a major impediment to banana production and root-knot nematodes (predominantly Meloidogyne javanica and M. incognita) cause problems on pineapple and a range of annual vegetables, including tomato, capsicum, zucchini, watermelon, rockmelon, potato and sweet potato. In the early 1990s, nematode control in these industries was largely achieved with chemicals, with methyl bromide widely used on some subtropical vegetable crops, ethylene dibromide applied routinely to pineapples and non-volatile nematicides such as fenamiphos applied up to four times a year in banana plantations. This paper discusses the research and extension work done over the last 15 years to introduce an integrated pest management approach to nematode control in tropical and subtropical horticulture. It then discusses various components of current integrated pest management programs, including crop rotation, nematode monitoring, clean planting material, organic amendments, farming systems to enhance biological suppression of nematodes and judicious use of nematicides. Finally, options for improving current management practices are considered.
Biomechanical Role of the Posterior Elements, Costovertebral Joints, and Rib Cage in the Stability of the Thoracic Spine

Study Design This is a biomechanical study of the thoracic spine. Various ligaments and joints were resected sequentially and nondestructive cyclic loading tests were performed. Effects of each resection were analyzed biomechanically. Objectives To investigate the role of the posterior elements, costovertebral joints, and rib cage in the stability of the thoracic spine. Summary of Background Data There have been no experimental studies concerning the mechanical interaction between the thoracic spine and rib cage. Methods Eight canine rib cage-thoracic spine complexes, consisting of the sixth to eighth ribs, sternum, and T5-T9 vertebrae, were used. Six pure moments along three axes were applied to the specimens, and angular deformation of T6-T7 was recorded. After testing the intact specimen, resection of the stabilizers was conducted incrementally in the following manner: 1) removal of the posterior elements at T6-T7, 2) resection of the bilateral seventh costovertebral joints, and finally, 3) destruction of the rib cage. The same loading tests were repeated at each stage. The ranges of motion and neutral zones were calculated by digitization. Results A large increase in the range of motion in flexion-extension was observed after resection of the posterior elements and in lateral bending and axial rotation after resection of the costovertebral joints. A significant increase in the neutral zone in lateral bending and axial rotation was observed after bilateral resection of the costovertebral joints and destruction of the rib cage. Conclusions The costovertebral joints and rib cage play an important role in providing stability to the thoracic spine. The state of the costovertebral joints and rib cage should be assessed to evaluate the stability of the thoracic spine.
Neural correlates of trauma-unrelated emotional processing in war veterans with PTSD

Background Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is thought to be characterized by general heightened amygdala activation. However, this hypothesis is mainly based on specific studies presenting fear or trauma-related stimuli, hence, a thorough investigation of trauma-unrelated emotional processing in PTSD is needed. Methods In this study, 31 male medication-naive veterans with PTSD, 28 male control veterans (combat controls; CC) and 25 non-military men (healthy controls; HC) were included. Participants underwent functional MRI while trauma-unrelated neutral, negative and positive emotional pictures were presented. In addition to the group analyses, PTSD patients with and without major depressive disorder (MDD) were compared. Results All groups showed an increased amygdala response to negative and positive contrasts, but amygdala activation did not differ between groups. However, a heightened dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC) response for negative contrasts was observed in PTSD patients compared to HC. The medial superior frontal gyrus was deactivated in the negative contrast in HC, but not in veterans. PTSD+MDD patients showed decreased subgenual ACC (sgACC) activation to all pictures compared to PTSD–MDD. Conclusion Our findings do not support the hypothesis that increased amygdala activation in PTSD generalizes to trauma-unrelated emotional processing. Instead, the increased dACC response found in PTSD patients implicates an attentional bias that extends to trauma-unrelated negative stimuli. Only HC showed decreased medial superior frontal gyrus activation. Finally, decreased sgACC activation was related to MDD status within the PTSD group.
Seasonal changes in weight and reproductive activity of Suncus murinus in West Bengal, India.

A study of seasonal reproductive activity in the house shrew, Suncus murinus , was carried out from December 1962 through September 1963 in Calcutta, West Rengal, India. Data from this study are compared to data reported from Malaya and Guam. Average weight for male Suncus in Calcutta was 105.6 g and that for females was 67.7 g. These weights are higher than the mode of 55 g for males and 45 g for females reported from Malaya, and still higher than the mean of 30 g for males and 21 g for females reported from Guam. The Calcutta sample had an almost equal sex ratio, while a significantly higher proportion of males was reported from both Malaya and Guam. A high level of reproductive activity was found in both sexes throughout the study period in Calcutta with a slight peak in the pregnancy rate during the spring. Comparisons with data from Malaya and Guam indicate that a peak in pregnancy rate occurs in all three areas following a period of relatively low rainfall. This is in the spring in Calcutta and Guam, and in the fall in Malaya. Average litter size in the Calcutta sample was 3.8, which is somewhat larger than the 2.7 and 2.1 reported from Malaya and Guam, respectively.
Polyethylene Glycol-Modified GM-CSF Expands CD11bhighCD11chigh But Not CD11blowCD11chigh Murine Dendritic Cells In Vivo: A Comparative Analysis with Flt3 Ligand

Dendritic cells (DC) are potent APCs that can be characterized in the murine spleen as CD11bhighCD11chigh or CD11blowCD11chigh. Daily injection of mice of Flt3 ligand (FL) into mice transiently expands both subsets of DC in vivo, but the effect of administration of GM-CSF on the expansion of DC in vivo is not well defined. To gain further insight into the role of GM-CSF in DC development and function in vivo, we treated mice with polyethylene glycol-modified GM-CSF (pGM-CSF) which has an increased half-life in vivo. Administration of pGM-CSF to mice for 5 days led to a 5- to 10-fold expansion of CD11bhighCD11chigh but not CD11blowCD11chigh DC. DC from pGM-CSF-treated mice captured and processed Ag more efficiently than DC from FL-treated mice. Although both FL- and pGM-CSF-generated CD11bhighCD11chigh DC were CD8α−, a greater proportion of these DC from pGM-CSF-treated mice were 33D1+ than from FL-treated mice. CD11blowCD11chigh DC from FL-treated mice expressed high levels of intracellular MHC class II. DC from both pGM-CSF- and FL-treated mice expressed high levels of surface class II, low levels of the costimulatory molecules CD40, CD80, and CD86 and were equally efficient at stimulating allogeneic and Ag-specific T cell proliferation in vitro. The data demonstrate that treatment with pGM-CSF in vivo preferentially expands CD11bhighCD11chigh DC that share phenotypic and functional characteristics with FL-generated CD11bhighCD11chigh DC but can be distinguished from FL-generated DC on the basis of Ag capture and surface expression of 33D1.
Cross-sectional evaluation of the presence of gingival recession in individuals with cleft lip and palate.

BACKGROUND In dentistry, investigations in the field of periodontics in individuals with cleft lip and palate are scarce, with few studies on the prevalence, incidence, extension, and severity of periodontal alterations and their treatment in adults. METHODS This study analyzed the prevalence, extension, and severity of recessions and the relationship with some etiologic factors in 200 individuals with cleft lip and palate aged 13 to 56 years. Examination comprised measurements of gingival recession, amount of keratinized mucosa, frenum insertions, and tooth positioning in the dental arch. RESULTS Analysis of the results revealed that the prevalence of recession was high, because 75% of individuals in the sample had at least one tooth with gingival recession; 100% of individuals aged >43 years presented at least one recession, and most recessions were Miller Class I. The multiple linear regression demonstrated that recession is directly proportional to age (i.e., it increases with age); concerning the amount of keratinized mucosa, the proportion is inverse (i.e., the larger the recession, the smaller the amount of mucosa); and gingival inflammation also presented a positive correlation. CONCLUSIONS Gingival recessions are caused by many etiologic factors, which usually act in combination. Thus, all factors causing recession should be analyzed so that planning and treatment of this clinical condition may be established, for achievement of optimal outcomes.
Apical extrusion of debris and irrigants using ProTaper hand, M-two rotary and WaveOne single file reciprocating system: An ex vivo study

Aims: The purpose of this ex vivo study was to evaluate and compare the weight of debris and volume of irrigant extruded apically from teeth using different preparation techniques. Subjects and Methods: Thirty extracted human mandibular premolars with single canals and similar lengths were instrumented using hand ProTaper F2 (25, 0.08; Dentsply Maillefer, Ballaigues, Switzerland), M-two (25, 0.06; VDW, Munich, Germany) and WaveOne Primary (25, 0.08; Dentsply Maillefer, Ballaigues, Switzerland). Debris and irrigant extruded during instrumentation were collected into preweighed Eppendorf tubes. The volume of the irrigant was measured, and then the tubes were stored in an incubator at 70°C for 2 days. The Eppendorf tubes were weighed to obtain the final weight when the extruded debris was included. Three consecutive weights were obtained for each tube. Statistical Analysis Used: Data were statistically analyzed by one-way analysis of variance and Student's t-test. Results: There were no statistically significant differences among the groups. The WaveOne reciprocating system showed the maximum amount of apical extrusion of debris and irrigant among all the groups. The least amount of debris and irrigant was observed in ProTaper hand instrument (P > 0.05). Conclusion: All instrumentation techniques were associated with debris and irrigant extrusion.
Changes in Soluble Sugar Content and Respiration Rate in Methyl Jasmonate-Treated Rice Leaves

The changes in respiration rate and soluble sugar content of detached rice (Oryza sativa) leaves were followed during methyl jasmonate (MJ)-promoted senescence. Increase in the respiration of detached rice leaves was observed as a consequence of methyl jasmonate (MJ) treatment for 48 h. However, MJ had no effect on photosynthetic rate in rice leaves. Sucrose and glucose contents, but not fructose content, were lower in MJ-treated rice leaves than in control leaves. KCN, an inhibitor of cytochrome c oxidase, was effective in inhibiting MJ-increased respiration rate, in reducing MJ-decreased sucrose and glucose contents, and in retarding MJ-promoted senescence of rice leaves. Exogenous addition of sucrose to MJ-treated rice leaves increased endogenous sucrose and glucose contents, but did not prevent MJ-promoted senescence of rice leaves. The role of respiration and sucrose in regulating MJ-promoted senescence of rice leaves is discussed.
Endogenous signals initiating inflammation in the injured nervous system

Glial cells are known to respond to a variety of neural injuries and play an important role in tissue damage and repair in the injured nervous system. This glial response, which is initially characterized by the expression of proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines and the attraction of microglial cells toward sites of injury, literally occurs within seconds to minutes of the injury. This suggests that signals that are endogenous to the nervous system are responsible for initiating neuroinflammation. In this review, we summarize the most recent advances made in the identification of these endogenous signals and describe the receptors and signaling pathways by which these ligands stimulate the production of cytokines and chemokines. Among these endogenous damage signals are ligands for toll‐like receptors, including several heat shock proteins and extracellular matrix components, as well as self‐derived RNA and DNA and associated proteins. Growing evidence also suggests that nucleotides released upon injury and acting through P2 receptors, such as ATP and UTP or their analogues, could serve as endogenous signals for the rapid response of glial cells. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
The Composite Impact of Institutional Quality and Inequality on Economic Growth

The relationship between institutions and economic growth has attracted significant attention in recent years with the dominant view being that institutional quality positively influences economic performance of a country. However, the impact of similar kind of institutions on economic growth varies across regions and countries. Various reasons including, Income inequality and ethnic fragmentation have been put forth as proximate cause of the weaker relationship between institutions and economic growth [Easterly, et. al (2006); Ann-Sofie (2007)]. However not enough literature is available on why the impact of similar set of institutions on growth varies across countries and regions. Given that inequality may weaken the impact of institutional quality on growth, this study seeks to examine the composite impact of institutional quality and inequality on growth in selected Asian economies. Highly unequal societies may adversely influence the quality of institutions. Literature suggests variety of mechanisms through which this may happen. These include concentration of political power and social and ethnic fragmentation etc. Studies argue that if the political power is concentrated in society, then the few elites will shape institutions and policies to their own advantage—in such societies the government will make the kind of investment and offer the kind of services which favour the elite. It is also argued that the skewdness of the distribution of wealth contributes to political inequality which produces institutions that favour a small segment of the society [Olson (1993), Sonin (2003), Acemoglu (2003, 2005), Gradstein (2008)]. Engerman and Sokoloff relate institutional quality to inequality observed in factor endowments while Acemoglu relate this to colonialism. They argue that inclusive institutions were established in places where the European colonisers could settle themselves while extractive institutions were developed in countries/regions where the colonisers were to rule through minimal presence of their own. The primary objective of the study is to examine how institutional quality influences economic growth, given inequality. While seeking an answer to this question the independent impact of institutional quality and inequality on growth will be also be gauged.
Screening for Depression in Nursing Home Palliative Care Patients

The purpose of the this study was to evaluate the existing tools for assessing depression in nursing home patients referred to palliative care services. The patients referred to palliative care were assessed for depression by a geriatric fellow and a psychiatrist (gold standard). The questions asked by the fellow were derived from the existing validated screening scales and diagnostic tools. The psychiatrist’s assessment had a strong agreement with the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition (DSM-IV;. = 0.400) and Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS;. = 0.462) and least agreement with the Cornell Scale for Depression in Dementia (CDS). However, depression in the most severe dementia patients (Mini-Mental State Examination = 0) was able to be assessed only by the CDS. Thus, although items from the DSM-IV and GDS may be used to ascertain depression in geriatric patients, to date there is no scale valid and reliable enough to effectively ascertain depression in the most severely demented patients.
Effect of partial dehulling of two- and six-row barley varieties on precaecal digestibility of amino acids in pigs

Abstract Five barrows (German Landrace; initial BW 58 kg, final BW 80 kg) fitted with an ileo-rectal anastomosis were used to determine the effect of partial dehulling and addition of barley hulls of two- and six-row barley varieties on the precaecal digestibility (pD) of CP and amino acids. The following diets were provided according to a standardized diet formulation and tested in seven consecutive periods (repeated group-period design): two-row barley (TRB) + casein (C), dehulled TRB + C, TRB + C + 10% hulls, six-row barley (SRB) + C, dehulled SRB + C, SRB + C + 1% hulls, and wheat starch + C. The diets were supplied at daily rates of 79 – 86 g DMI · kg BW−0.75 in barley containing diets and at 49 g DMI · kg BW−0.75 in the casein diet. The digestibility of amino acids in barley varieties was determined by the difference method (casein as basal diet) using quantitative digesta collection. In both varieties of barley the pD of CP and amino acids did not differ. The pD of CP was unchanged in regard to the treatments in both barley varieties. Due to dehulling in TRB the pD was improved significantly for most indispensable amino acids and in SRB for Met and Cys. Addition of 10% hulls to TRB led to equivalent pD of Arg, His, Leu, Tyr, and Trp compared to TRB, but the pD of Lys, Phe, Thr and Val was significantly decreased below the levels of TRB. Addition of even 1% hulls to SRB impaired the pD of Lys below the level in SRB. In conclusion, addition of barley hulls to pig diets impairs amino acids absorption in the small intestine. The pD values, measured under standardized experimental conditions (without a correction using basal endogenous amino acids), are similar to the values of true digestibility published by NRC (1998).