Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Cost Effectiveness of Azithromycin for Chlamydia trachomatis Infections in Women

Background and Objectives: Azithromycin, an approved single-dose therapy for cervical chlamydia infections, costs four times as much as doxycycline, the standard multidose therapy. Goal of this Study: This study examined whether azithromycin is cost effective for treating cervical chlamydia infections. Study Design: Two diagnostic strategies were compared: 1) laboratory confirmation of chlamydia, and 2) presumptive diagnosis from the perspective of the healthcare system and the publicly funded clinic. Results: From the healthcare perspective, the cost per case of pelvic inflammatory disease prevented with azithromycin ranges from a savings of $3,502 for laboratory confirmation to a cost of $792 for presumptive diagnosis. From the publicly funded clinic perspective, the cost per case of pelvic inflammatory disease prevented ranges from $709 for lab-confirmed diagnosis to $3,969 for presumptive treatment. Conclusion: For the healthcare system, azithromycin is a cost-effective alternative to doxycycline. However, the cost of azithromycin must decrease markedly for it to be less costly to the publicly funded clinic.
"At Taliesin" : newspaper columns by Frank Lloyd Wright and the Taliesin Fellowship, 1934-1937

"At Taliesin," a series of newspaper columns written by Frank Lloyd Wright and his early Taliesin apprentices, craftsmen, and workers, was featured in several southern Wisconsin newspapers from 1934 through 1937.The newspaper column first appeared in February 1934, shortly after the Taliesin Fellowship had been formed by Wright in 1932. Resulting from a simple and practical need to advertise the weekly Taliesin film event to a greater audience, the column grew into a format that presented a kaleidoscopic view of life at Taliesin in the Fellowship s early years.Of the 285 columns written, 112 are included here. Several are from the 31 columns Wright wrote in his own "organic" style. The resulting collection provides an intimate glimpse of Wright and his youthful Fellowship during a crucial period in Wright s own lifea time when he grew from creative inactivity to his final years of creative resurgence. Containing much original material that has been all but forgotten, this volume represents an important contribution to the history and understanding of Wright and the Taliesin Fellowship. Fifty eight contemporary photographs are included to augment the columns. The columns document and confirm facts and correct historical inaccuracies and misinformation. This book will prove invaluable to Wright scholars, biographers, and enthusiasts. "
Drug challenges reveal differences in mediation of stress facilitation of voluntary alcohol drinking and withdrawal-induced anxiety in alcohol-preferring P rats.

BACKGROUND There is controversy over whether exposure to stress precipitates relapse and/or increases alcohol (ethanol) intake. Our laboratory has demonstrated that repeated stress prior to withdrawal from a brief forced exposure to alcohol results in withdrawal-induced anxiety-like behavior. Because anxiety is often regarded as a precipitating factor in relapsing alcoholics, we decided to examine the consequences of stressing alcohol-preferring P rats on both voluntary alcohol drinking and withdrawal-induced anxiety. METHODS P rats were subjected to 3 cycles of 5 days of voluntary alcohol drinking and 2 days of deprivation. Restraint stress (60 min) was applied to some animals during the first and second deprivations/withdrawals (at 4 h). Drugs (flumazenil, buspirone, SB242,084, CP154,526, CRA1000, naloxone, haloperidol, olanzapine, naloxone, and haloperidol) were given to some rats 30 min prior to restraint stress. RESULTS Stressed, deprived P rats exhibited both a longer duration of elevated alcohol drinking and anxiety-like behavior in the social interaction test upon withdrawal after the third cycle of voluntary alcohol drinking. When given prior to each of the restraint stresses, the benzodiazepine receptor antagonist flumazenil (5 mg/kg), the corticotrophin releasing factor receptor antagonists CRA1000 (3 mg/kg) and CP154,526 (10 mg/kg), the serotonin 5-HT(1A) receptor partial agonist buspirone (0.6 mg/kg), and the mixed 5-HT(2C)/D2 receptor antagonist olanzapine were effective in reducing the increased duration of elevated alcohol drinking and the withdrawal-induced anxiety-like behavior. In contrast, while the opiate receptor antagonist naloxone (20 mg/kg), the 5-HT(2C) receptor antagonist SB242084 (3 mg/kg), and the dopamine receptor antagonist haloperidol (0.1 mg/kg) also reduced drinking, they did not significantly alter anxiety like behavior. CONCLUSION These results suggest that stress-induced facilitation of alcohol drinking and withdrawal-induced anxiety-like behavior in P rats may be closely but imperfectly linked.
Association between triglyceride to HDL‐C ratio and insulin resistance in indigenous Argentinean children

Insulin resistance is considered one of the major risk factors for the development of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Thus, early identification, preferably by using simple and inexpensive diagnostic tools, is essential for preventing T2DM. Triglyceride (TG) to high‐density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL‐C) ratio (TG/HDL‐C) has been proposed as an inexpensive tool to identify individuals at high risk of T2DM. The objective of this study was to determine the relationship between insulin resistance and TG/HDL‐C in indigenous Argentinean children.
Common pattern of gray-matter abnormalities in drug-naive and medicated first-episode schizophrenia: a multimodal meta-analysis

Studies of schizophrenia at drug-naive state and on antipsychotic medication have reported a number of regions of gray-matter (GM) abnormalities but the reports have been inconsistent. The aim of this study was to conduct multimodal meta-analysis to compare the cross-sectional voxel-based morphometry studies of brain GM in antipsychotic-naive first-episode schizophrenia (AN-FES) and those with antipsychotic treatment within 1 year (AT-FES) to determine the similarities and differences in these groups. We conducted two separate meta-analyses containing 24 studies with a sample size of 801 patients and 957 healthy controls. A multimodal meta-analysis method was used to compare the findings between AN-FES and AT-FES. Meta-regression analyses were done to determine the influence of different variables including age, duration of illness, and positive and negative symptom scores. Finally, jack-knife analyses were done to test the robustness of the results. AN-FES and AT-FES showed common patterns of GM abnormalities in frontal (gyrus rectus), superior temporal, left hippocampal and insular cortex. GM in the left supramarginal gyrus and left middle temporal gyrus were found to be increased in AN-FES but decreased in AT-FES, whereas left median cingulate/paracingulate gyri and right hippocampus GM was decreased in AN-FES but increased in AT-FES. Findings suggest that both AN-FES and AT-FES share frontal, temporal and insular regions as common anatomical regions to be affected indicating these to be the primary regions of GM abnormalities in both groups.
[Evaluation of GLUCOCARD X-METER glucose monitoring system].

BACKGROUND Point-of-care testing (POCT) glucometers are increasingly being used for making important therapeutic decisions and managing diabetes. We examined the analytical performance of GLUCOCARD X-METER (ARKRAY Global Business Inc., Japan) against three other glucometers and a reference laboratory method. METHODS We evaluated the analytical performance of GLUCOCARD X-METER in comparison with three other glucometers. Studies on precision, linearity, the analysis time, and effects of hematocrit and temperature were carried out and the results were compared with those of the laboratory reference method (hexokinase method by Hitachi 760, Hitachi Co., Japan). RESULTS GLUCOCARD X-METER showed a good linearity and within-run and total-run precision. Comparison between each glucometer and the Hitachi 7600 showed a good correlation. Although differences with the reference method were within an allowable range, all glucometers showed variable bias. Application of an insufficient amount of blood could produce some changes in test results. Changes in hematocrit were found to cause overestimation or underestimation of glucose values. For some test strips, the results were affected by prolonged exposure to room temperature or 4 degrees C refrigerator. CONCLUSIONS GLUCOCARD X-METER showed a good analytical performance in linearity, precision, and comparison. The effect of hematocrit, sample volume, and storage condition for test strips were noted and glucometers had variable deviations to both directions from laboratory reference values (<20%). The GLUCOCARD X-METER provided rapid and reliable measurements of blood glucose. It could be appropriate for monitoring blood glucose values in diabetic patients.
Effectiveness of school-initiated physical activity program on secondary school students' physical activity participation.

BACKGROUND The promotion of physical activity and health has become a universal challenge. The Sotkamo Physical Activity as Civil Skill Program was implemented to increase students' physical activity by promoting supportive psychological and physical school environment. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the school-initiated physical activity program on secondary school students' self-reported physical activity. METHODS The sample included 847 students (experimental condition school = 208, control school = 639) at the age of 12 to 14 years from northeast and central Finland. The program was conducted across 1 academic year and 2 measurement phases were carried out using self-report questionnaires in April 2011 and 2012. RESULTS The findings highlighted that the program appeared to be effective as an approach to change the sharp decline in the pattern of Grade 7 students' self-reported physical activity across 1 school year. Specifically, change in the experimental condition students' self-reported physical activity was 13.4% higher compared the students in the control condition. CONCLUSION On the basis of current findings, increased opportunities for school day physical activities have the potential to affect large number of students and are an efficient strategy for promoting regular physical activity.
Butyrate Inhibits Leukocyte Adhesion to Endothelial Cells via Modulation of VCAM-1

BackgroundLeukocyte recruitment to areas of inflammation depends on Integrin-VCAM/ICAM interaction. Blocking the vascular cell adhesion molecule (VCAM-1) and the intracellular adhesion molecule (ICAM-1) may have therapeutic benefit for the inflammatory component of bowel disease. Notably, the induction of ICAM and VCAM is mediated by a nuclear factor kappaB (NF-&kgr;B)-dependent mechanism. We investigated whether the anti-inflammatory properties of butyrate are mediated via the modulation of VCAM and ICAM on human endothelial cells. MethodsVCAM-1 and ICAM-1 expression on human endothelial cells upon tumor necrosis factor-&agr; (TNF-&agr;) stimulation was assessd by FACS analysis. A monocyte adhesion assay was performed to evaluate the relevance of a modulated CAM-expression. Electrophoretic mobility shift assays were applied to investigate NF-&kgr;B activation. ResultsThe observed butyrate-associated inhibition of monocyte adhesion to endothelial cells is associated with an inhibition of NF-&kgr;B activation in human endothelial cells. In this context, the observed suppression of the TNF-&agr; induced VCAM-1 expression is likely to play an essential role. ConclusionsButyrate inhibits VCAM-1 mediated leukocyte adhesion to human endothelial cells. This inhibition may contribute to the anti-inflammatory effects of butyrate in patients with distal ulcerative colitis.
Comparison of quetiapine and risperidone in the treatment of schizophrenia: A randomized, double-blind, flexible-dose, 8-week study.

OBJECTIVE To compare the efficacy and tolerability of quetiapine and risperidone in the treatment of schizophrenia. METHOD In this 8-week, double-blind, multicenter, flexible-dose study, patients with schizophrenia (DSM-IV diagnosis) were randomly assigned to quetiapine (200-800 mg/day) or risperidone (2-8 mg/day). The primary hypothesis was that quetiapine was not inferior to risperidone. The primary efficacy measure was change from baseline in Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) total scores; secondary outcomes included response rate (> or = 40% reduction in PANSS scores), Clinical Global Impression-Change (CGI-C), and cognitive and social functioning. Tolerability assessments included treatment-emergent adverse events and changes in weight, glucose, and prolactin. Patients were recruited from June 2001 to September 2002. RESULTS Patients (N = 673) were randomly assigned to quetiapine (N = 338, mean dose = 525 mg/day) or risperidone (N = 335, mean dose = 5.2 mg/day). The primary analysis demonstrated noninferiority between treatments (p < .05). Improvements with both treatments were comparable on PANSS total, negative, and general psychopathology subscales. Risperidone-treated patients had a significantly (p = .03) greater improvement in PANSS positive subscale score among all patients, but not among completers. Improvements in PANSS response rates, CGI-C, and cognitive function were similar between treatment groups. Changes in serum glucose and weight were minimal and comparable. The rate of extrapyramidal symptom (EPS)-related adverse events was significantly higher with risperidone (22%) than quetiapine (13%; p < .01). Somnolence was more common with quetiapine (26%) than risperidone (20%; p = .04). Prolactin levels increased with risperidone (+35.5 ng/mL), but decreased with quetiapine (-11.5 ng/mL; p < .001). CONCLUSIONS Quetiapine and risperidone had broadly comparable clinical efficacy. Both agents improved cognitive and social functioning, and neither had a clinically significant effect on weight or glucose. Somnolence was more common with quetiapine; EPS and elevated prolactin rates were significantly higher with risperidone.
Long‐Term Improvement of Quality of Life as a Result of Tonsillotomy (With Radiofrequency Technique) and Tonsillectomy in Youths

Objective: This is a 1 year follow‐up to compare the effects of partial tonsil resection using the radiofrequency technique (RF) tonsillotomy (TT) with total tonsillectomy (TE) (blunt dissection). Obstructive symptoms, tendency for infections, and health‐related quality of life (HRQL) were studied and compared with the HRQL data from a normal population.
Centrocytoid Plasma Cells of the Germinal Center

Germinal centers within the lymph node follicles are T-cell-dependent, antigen-driven B-cell proliferations that develop from the rapid clonal expansion of a few founder cells. The end results of this B-cell expansion are memory B cells or plasma cells. Two morphologic forms of plasma cell can be recognized in the germinal center: classic plasma cells, characterized morphologically by peripherally clumped arrangement of nuclear chromatin, and cells with a nuclear morphology more resembling that of the centrocytes, which the authors have termed “centrocytoid plasma cells. ” In this study the authors examined the distribution and immunohistochemical characteristics of these two populations of germinal center plasma cells. The centrocytoid plasma cells were arranged in a band stretching from the junction of the dark and light zone to the periphery of the germinal centers, while the classic plasma cells were mainly present at the germinal center periphery. Both marked with CD38, CD138, and VS38c, recognized markers for plasma cells; however, EMA and CD31 were present only in the classic form of plasma cell. The proliferation marker Ki67 was present in less than 1% of the cells labeling with CD138. Others have demonstrated Ki67 in 50% of the cells labeled with Blimp-1, which is consistent with Blimp-1 appearing earlier than CD138 in ontogeny. CD10 is co-expressed with CD138 in about 10% of cells and CD45 with CD138 in about 5% of cells. Their topographic features, together with the progressive acquisition of plasma cell markers, suggest that the centrocytoid plasma cells may be the precursors of the classic plasma cells. Of note, both the forms of plasma cell were absent in follicles of follicular lymphoma, which supports the concept that in this disease, lymphocytes fail to differentiate and mature beyond the centrocyte stage.
Disparities in race/ethnicity and gender in in-hospital mortality rates for coronary artery bypass surgery patients.

BACKGROUND While dramatic progress has been made lowering in-hospital mortality for coronary artery bypass graft surgery (CABG), few comprehensive studies have been done that include Caucasian, African-American, Hispanic and Asian-American/Pacific-Islander CABG inpatients and simultaneously evaluate the influence of gender. This study, analyzing five years of national data for 1.2 million CABG admissions, examines trends in in-hospital CABG mortality rates for gender and four racial/ethnic categories for CABG patients. METHODS Using data from the Health Care Utilization Project (HCUP) for 1998-2002, 1.2 million CABG admissions were analyzed using descriptive and logistic regression analyses to evaluate the extent of the disparities in in-hospital CABG mortality rates. HCUP is a sample of nearly 1,000 hospitals from 35 states designed by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) to approximate a 20% stratified sample of the nation's community hospitals: approximately 94% of all hospital discharges in the United States. RESULTS Although significant progress has been made in recent years in lowering in-hospital CABG mortality, after controlling for relevant patient and socioeconomic factors, female CABG patients, regardless of their racial/ethnic group, still experience significantly higher in-hospital mortality rates than their male counterparts. Additionally, among these racial and ethnic groups, black CABG patients, whether male or female, continue to experience significantly worse in-hospital mortality rates than other races/ethnicities. CONCLUSIONS The declines in CABG in-hospital mortality rates have not been equal across race/ethnicity and gender.
Cerebroside synthesis as a measure of the rate of remyelination following cuprizone‐induced demyelination in brain

We studied markers of myelin content and of the rate of myelination in brains of mice between 8 and 20 weeks of age. During the 12‐week time‐course, control animals showed slight increases in the content of oligodendroglial‐specific cerebroside, as well as cholesterol (enriched in, but not specific to, myelin). In contrast, synthesis of these lipids, as assayed by in vivo incorporation of 3H2O, was substantial, indicating turnover of 0.4% and 0.7% of total brain cerebroside and cholesterol, respectively, each day. We also studied mice exposed to a diet containing 0.2% of the copper chelator, cuprizone. After 6 weeks 20%, and by 12 weeks, over 30% of brain cerebroside was gone. Demyelination was accompanied by down‐regulation of mRNA expression for enzymes controlling myelin lipid synthesis (ceramide galactosyl transferase for cerebroside; hydroxymethylglutaryl‐CoA reductase for cholesterol), and for myelin basic protein. Synthesis of myelin lipids was also greatly depressed. The 20% cerebroside deficit consequent to 6 weeks of cuprizone exposure was restored 6 weeks after return to a control diet. During remyelination, expression of myelin‐related mRNA species, as well as cerebroside and cholesterol synthesis were restored to normal. However, in contrast to the steady state metabolic turnover in the control situation, all the cerebroside and cholesterol made were accumulated. To the extent that accumulating cerebroside is targeted for eventual inclusion in myelin (discussed) the rate of its synthesis is proportional to remyelination. With our assay, in vivo rates of cerebroside synthesis can be determined for a time window of the order of hours. This offers greater temporal resolution and accuracy relative to classical methods assaying accumulation of myelin components at time intervals of several days. We propose this experimental design, and the reproducible cuprizone model, as appropriate for studies of how to promote remyelination.
Distributed Control of Linear Systems Allowing Choices

Distributed choice-based control systems are systems for which the applied control of each agent is individually selected according to the agent's choice. They form an interesting class of decentralized systems in which control strategies are entangled with the information structure. This paper focuses on an important subset of these systems that are governed by linear dynamics. We show how choice-based targets can be realized without explicit communication and how control actions can serve as signaling tools. In comparison with strategies using explicit communication methods, the value of information in facilitating cost reduction is revealed. Our solution approach makes use of a composite cost function that incorporates both control costs and target errors for benchmarking.
VEGI, a novel cytokine of the tumor necrosis factor family, is an angiogenesis inhibitor that suppresses the growth of colon carcinomas in vivo

A novel member of the tumor necrosis factor (TNF) family has been identified from the human umbilical vein endothelial cell cDNA library, named vascular endothelial growth inhibitor (VEGI). The VEGI gene was mapped to human chromosome 9q32. The cDNA for VEGI encodes a protein of 174 amino acid residues with the characteristics of a type II transmembrane protein. Its amino acid sequence is 20–30% identical to other members of the TNF family. Unlike other members of the TNF family, VEGI is expressed predominantly in endothelial cells. Local production of a secreted form of VEGI via gene transfer caused complete suppression of the growth of MC‐38 murine colon cancers in syngeneic C57BL/6 mice. Histological examination showed marked reduction of vascularization in MC‐38 tumors that expressed soluble but not membrane‐bound VEGI or were transfected with control vector. The conditioned media from soluble VEGI‐expressing cells showed marked inhibitory effect on in vitro proliferation of adult bovine aortic endothelial cells. Our data suggest that VEGI is a novel angiogenesis inhibitor of the TNF family and functions in part by directly inhibiting endothelial cell proliferation. The results further suggest that VEGI maybe highly valuable toward angiogenesis‐based cancer therapy. —Zhai, Y. , Ni, J., Jiang, G. ‐W. , Lu, J., Xing, L. , Lincoln, C. , Carter, K. C. , Janat, F. , Kozak, D. , Xu, S. , Rojas, L. , Aggarwal, B. B. , Ruben, S. , Li, L. ‐Y. , Gentz, R. , Yu, G. ‐L. VEGI, a novel cytokine of the tumor necrosis factor family, is an angiogenesis inhibitor that suppresses the growth of colon carcinomas in vivo. FASEB J. 13, 181‐189 (1999)