Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Hypericin‐PDT‐induced rapid necrotic death in human squamous cell carcinoma cultures after multiple treatment

PDT (photodynamic therapy) has been used for the treatment of NMCC (non‐melanoma cutaneous cancer) particularly, human SCC (squamous cell carcinoma). However, the nature of the photosensitizer, the activation light source and the mode of cell death induced post‐PDT remains elusive. We tried to optimize PDT using the light‐activated (320–400 nm) St John's Wort‐derived compound, Hyp (hypericin). The work highlights the potential mode of cell death and the increased efficacy of the technique associated with multiple Hyp‐PDT treatment. SCC cells were exposed to different concentrations of Hyp and activated with light at 1 J/cm2 for 1 or 2 days. Thereafter with the optimum dose of Hyp proliferation, ROS (reactive oxygen species), and apoptosis were analysed by XTT [2,3‐bis‐(2‐methoxy‐4‐nitro‐5‐sulfophenyl)‐2H‐tetrazolium‐5‐carboxanilide] assay, FACS analysis and Fluorescent/Phase contrast microscopy was carried out for morphological studies. Hyp‐PDT produces more ROS after 1 day compared with 2 days and the mode of cell death is a necrotic caspase‐independent mechanism. We propose a novel ‘double‐hit/2‐day’ strategy to reduce the viability in SCC using Hyp‐based PDT as an adjunctive treatment modality.
Exploring Strategies for Effective Advocacy: The Lived Experience of Leaders of Pakistani Non-Governmental Organizations

Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs) have increasingly been recognized as influential players in world politics and international development. Despite limited financial resources and having to rely on volunteers who often lack formal training, NGOs’ advocacy work has often been highly effective. Since the beginning of the 1990s, it has resulted in both the formulation of new policies and the cancellation or modification of existing ones. Advocacy work by NGOs is especially important in countries like Pakistan because deep-rooted injustices and discrimination are unlikely to change without pressure from NGOs. This study investigated the strategies used by five NGO leaders for effective advocacy work in the Pakistani context. The study specifically examined (a) how NGO leaders attempted to influence the external environment and the impact of their attempts, (b) leaders’ efforts internally to create effective advocacy organizations, and (c) strategies NGO leaders used to nurture their personal capacity for effective leadership both within their own organizations and in the external advocacy arena. This exploratory qualitative study focused on five Pakistani NGO leaders. A combination of convenience, maximum variation and snowball sampling was employed to identify the five leaders. Using qualitative methodologies, this study relied upon document analysis and two extended interviews with each research participant. The findings of this study are presented in two forms: (a) a narrative for each of the NGO leaders developed from the transcribed data through a process Polkinghorne calls narrative analysis and (b) a cross-case analysis that employed what Polkinghorne characterizes as an analysis of narrative approach. The analysis of narrative was built around five categories derived inductively from the data about the advocacy process in Pakistan and its impact on both the society and individuals. The study documented, among other things, how the leaders determined their effectiveness and the various strategies they employed to manage their own lives so their advocacy work can be effectively sustained in a challenging environment. The results further demonstrated the importance of leaders nurturing NGO staff members and demonstrated how the five leaders approached this task. Finally, implications for practice, policy and future research were discussed.
Comparative analysis of mortality in patients with Alzheimer's disease treated with donepezil or galantamine.

BACKGROUND few studies have analysed the effect of the long-term use of cholinesterase inhibitors (ChEIs) on mortality. OBJECTIVE to compare the long-term effects of galantamine and donepezil treatment on the mortality rate in Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients. DESIGN a retrospective cohort study. SETTING AND SUBJECTS 404 patients referred by primary care centres to a Memory Clinic who were diagnosed with probable AD and who were prescribed treatment with donepezil or galantamine. METHODS standardised review of the patient's medical records. RESULTS 14.5% of the patients showed intolerance to the treatment with ChEIs during the first 15 days. Of those patients who initially tolerated the treatment, 18.5% gave it up after a mean duration of 13.36 months and a mean dose of 7.5 mg/day of donepezil or 14.3 mg/day of galantamine. The mean duration of the treatment in patients who did not abandon the treatment was 25.4 months and the mean dose was 8.1 mg/day of donepezil or 20.0 mg/day of galantamine. There were no differences in the mortality rate between patients treated with donepezil or galantamine (13.7 versus 12.2; P = 0.75). The multivariate analysis through binary logistic regression showed that the variables associated with mortality were male gender, older age, heart failure, treatment with antipsychotic drugs and a high score on the Global Deterioration Scale. CONCLUSIONS the duration and the dose of donepezil or galantamine are not related to an increase in mortality. The related variables were advanced age, the severity of the dementia, being male, heart failure and treatment with antipsychotic drugs.
Domestic Servants and Rural-Youth Urban Migration in Nigeria: Issues for National Intervention

The study examined the use of children and youths as domestic servants in Ekiti and Ondo States of Nigeria. Using a snowballing technique in selecting 80 respondents from the two states, findings of the study shows that the domestic servants were mainly from Benue and Oyo States and Republic of Benin/Togo. They are young and mostly females with low educational background. Reasons for working as domestic servants include inability to pay school fees, low academic performance, and parent’s separation and family problems. There is no definite contract of employment or specifications for jobs done. They work for long hours with no compensation; living conditions are poor and have no definite plan for future. The study recommends that the Federal government should map out policies and programmess to reduce poverty and encourage basic education with special consideration for the girl child in poor rural areas of Nigeria.
Accents étrangers et régionaux en français. Caractérisation et identification [Foreign and regional accents in French. Characterisation and identification]

This research focuses on the identification and characterisation of accents in French. For both foreign and regional accents, we started with perceptual identification experiments, we measured phonetic features which may characterise these accents using automatic phoneme alignment, and we ranked the most discriminating features by using classification techniques. The following features are perceivable and happen to be quite robust for automatic identification: devoicing of voiced stop consonants, shift of /e/ toward [i], /b/~/v/ and /s/~/z/ confusions, “rolled r”, schwa fronting or raising for German, English, Arabic, Spanish, Italian and Portuguese accents in French; /O/ fronting in the North of France, schwa pronunciation and denasalised nasal vowels in the South, for regional French accents. MOTS-CLÉS : accents, identification perceptive et automatique, alignement en phonèmes, classification, analyse de données.
Correlation between serotonin uptake in human blood platelets with the 44-bp polymorphism and the 17-bp variable number of tandem repeat of the serotonin transporter.

Dysfunctions of the central serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) system seem to be associated with psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia or depression. Previous studies suggested that a 44-bp insertion/deletion polymorphism of the 5-HT transporter (5-HTT) promoter region might influence the transcriptional activity of the 5-HTT gene, and the insertion variant resulted in increased 5-HTT expression and 5-HT uptake. Moreover, a 17-bp variable number of tandem repeat (VNTR) polymorphism of the second intron may act as a transcriptional regulator with allele dependent differential enhancer-like properties. Since the 5-HTT of human platelets shares many properties with the transporter of neural tissue, platelets are widely used as a surrogate tissue source, possibly reflecting central 5-HT metabolism. Therefore, we investigated the impact of the 44-bp polymorphism and the 17-bp VNTR for 5-HT uptake in platelets of 50 male subjects. We found no significant effect of the 44-bp polymorphism and of the 17-bp VNTR on maximum rate (Vmax) of 5-HT uptake. However, individuals homozygous for the 5-HTT intron 2 allele with 12 repeats (STin2.12) of the 17-bp VNTR appeared to have lower affinity of 5-HT uptake than individuals heterozygous for the STin2.10/STin2.9 allele. This was also observed for the combined analysis of both polymorphisms. In conclusion, we found no association between the different genotypes of the 44-bp polymorphism and the 17-bp VNTR and maximum rate of 5-HT uptake into platelets.
Urbanization shapes the demographic history of a native rodent (the white-footed mouse, Peromyscus leucopus) in New York City

How urbanization shapes population genomic diversity and evolution of urban wildlife is largely unexplored. We investigated the impact of urbanization on white-footed mice, Peromyscus leucopus, in the New York City metropolitan area using coalescent-based simulations to infer demographic history from the site frequency spectrum. We assigned individuals to evolutionary clusters and then inferred recent divergence times, population size changes, and migration using genome-wide SNPs genotyped in 23 populations sampled along an urban-to-rural gradient. Both prehistoric climatic events and recent urbanization impacted these populations. Our modeling indicates that post-glacial sea level rise led to isolation of mainland and Long Island populations. These models also indicate that several urban parks represent recently-isolated P. leucopus populations, and the estimated divergence times for these populations are consistent with the history of urbanization in New York City.
Clinical and virological outcomes in HIV-infected patients with chronic hepatitis B on long-term nucleos(t)ide analogues

Background:Chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is common in HIV-positive individuals and increases liver-related mortality. Nucleos(t)ide analogues with activity against both HBV and HIV are widely used in coinfected patients, but its long-term effect on liver disease is unknown. Methods:Clinical outcomes, HBsAg and/or HBeAg clearance, and changes in liver stiffness were longitudinally evaluated retrospectively in all HIV–HBV-coinfected individuals followed at our institution. Results:A total of 92 patients with HIV–HBV coinfection were identified, 19 of them superinfected with hepatitis delta virus. Their median time of follow-up was 35 months. Overall, 94% received lamivudine/emtricitabine and 82% tenofovir. Serum HBV-DNA was undetectable in 89%. Seven patients cleared serum HBsAg (2.6/100 patient-years), in four of them accompanied with anti-HBs seroconversion. Of note, two of them had hepatitis delta. Another 11 out of 42 HBeAg-positive patients cleared HBeAg (9/100 patient-years) and five of them experienced anti-HBe seroconversion. Liver decompensation and death occurred in eight (2.9/100 patient-years) and six (2.2/100 patient-years), respectively.At baseline, liver fibrosis was defined as null-mild (48%), moderate-advanced (28%) or cirrhosis (24%). At last visit, after a median of 40 months in 71 patients, 75% showed no changes, whereas improvement was recognized in 17% and worsening in 8%. Conclusion:Most HIV–HBV-coinfected patients treated with anti-HBV active nucleos(t)ide analogues experience an amelioration of liver fibrosis progression, with low rates of hepatic decompensation and death. Serum HBeAg or HBsAg seroconversion occurs at yearly rates of 9 and 2.6%, respectively, even in patients with delta hepatitis.
Human papillomaviruses associated with epidermodysplasia verruciformis. II. Molecular cloning and biochemical characterization of human papillomavirus 3a, 8, 10, and 12 genomes

The DNAs of four human papillomaviruses (HPVs) that were found in the benign lesions of three patients suffering from epidermodysplasia verruciformis have been characterized. The flat wart-like lesions and the macular lesions of patient 1 contained two viruses, HPV-3a and HPV-8, respectively, whose genomes had previously been only partially characterized. The flat wart-like lesions of patient 2 and the macular lesions of patient 3 each contained a virus previously considered as belonging to types 3 and 5, respectively. These viruses are shown in the present study to be different from all of the HPV types so far characterized; they have tentatively been named HPV-10 and HPV-12. The HPV-3a, HPV-8, and HPV-12 DNAs and the two SalI fragments of HPV-10 DNA (94.1 and 5.9% of the genome length) were cloned in Escherichia coli after having been inserted in plasmid pBR322. The cloned HPV genomes have similar sizes (about 7,700 base pairs), but their guanine-plus-cytosine contents differ from 41.8% for HPV-12 DNA to 45.5% for HPV-3a DNA. The study of the sensitivity of the four HPV DNAs to 14 restriction endonucleases permitted the construction of cleavage maps. Evidence for conserved restriction sites was found only for the HPV-3a and HPV-10 genomes since 5 of the 21 restriction sites localized in the HPV-3a DNA seem to be present also in the HPV-10 DNA. Hybridization experiments, performed in liquid phase at saturation, showed a 35% sequence homology between HPV-3a and HPV-10 DNAs, 17 to 29% sequence homology among HPV-5, HPV-8, and HPV-12 DNAs, almost no sequence homology between the HPV-3a or HPV-10 DNA and the other HPV DNAs, and a weak homology between HPV-9 DNA and HPV-8 or HPV-12 DNA. Blot hybridization experiments showed no sequence homology between the HPV-3a, HPV-8, and HPV-12 DNAs and the DNAs of the HPVs associated with skin warts (HPV-1a, HPV-2, HPV-4, and HPV-7) or with mucocutaneous and mucous membrane lesions (HPV-6b and HPV-11a, respectively). One exception was a weak sequence homology between the HPV-2 prototype and HPV-3a or HPV-10 DNA. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
The regional impact of European Union association agreements: an event-analysis approach to the case of Central and Eastern Europe

ABSTRACT The regional impact of European Union association agreements: an event-analysis approach to the case of Central and Eastern Europe. Regional Studies. Although European Union association agreements are generally seen as welfare improving, relatively little is known about their spatial–distributional consequences. Drawing on the pre-accession experience of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), this paper estimates the regional growth effects of such agreements using an event-analysis approach. It finds a positive growth effect which is, however, not constant across association phases or types of regions (e.g., specialized regions gained most in the early association period and service-oriented economies gained most near accession); and it discusses the implications of this in relation to debates on regional growth in the CEE and for future waves of association.
Development and pilot test of a virtual reality system for electric powered wheelchair simulation

Upper limb disorders may impair the use of control interfaces for Electric Powered Wheelchairs (EPW), such as joysticks, for many individuals with disabilities. The aims of this study were to develop and test a virtual wheelchair driving environment that can provide quantifiable measures of driving ability, offer driver training, and measure the performance of alternative controls. This work introduces UFES's SimCadRoM, a virtual reality (VR) system for EPW driving training purposes and testing of control interfaces. It uses a real EPW and a VR headset, making the system very immersive. Some tests were conducted to compare the VR experience and driving performance, with a real EPW driving experience and performance, and the results showed that there is no significant difference between the mean elapsed times along real paths and the virtual ones in the performed pilot test. The Igroup presence questionnaire (IPQ) revealed high values of G1 and SP factors, which are a clear manifestation of presence as the "sense of being there". The INV and REAL factors also presented good indicators of the presence experience's attention component and reality comparison between driving the virtual EPW and the real one.
Donor leukocyte infusions in 140 patients with relapsed malignancy after allogeneic bone marrow transplantation.

PURPOSE Recipients of allogeneic bone marrow transplants (BMTs) who have relapsed may attain complete remissions when treated with transfusions of leukocytes obtained from the original bone marrow donor. We performed a retrospective study to characterize better this new treatment modality. PATIENTS AND METHODS We surveyed 25 North American BMT programs regarding their use of donor leukocyte infusions (DLI). Detailed forms were used to gather data regarding the original BMT, relapse, DLI, response to DLI, complications of DLI, and long-term follow-up evaluation. Reports of 140 patients were thus available for analysis. RESULTS Complete responses were observed in 60% (95% confidence interval [CI], 51.9% to 68.1%) of chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) patients who received DLI and did not receive pre-DLI chemotherapy; response rates were higher in patients with cytogenetic and chronic-phase relapse (75.7%; 95% CI, 68.2% to 83.2%) than in patients with accelerated-phase (33.3%; 95% CI, 19.7% to 46.9%) or blastic-phase (16.7%; 95% CI, 1.9% to 31.9%) relapse. The actuarial probability of remaining in complete remission at 2 years was 89.6%. Complete remission rates in acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) (n = 39) and acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) (n = 11) patients who had not received pre-DLI chemotherapy were 15.4% (95% CI, 9.6% to 21.2%) and 18.2% (95% CI, 6.6% to 29.8%), respectively. Complete remissions were also observed in two of four assessable myeloma patients and two of five assessable myelodysplasia patients. Complications of DLI included acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) (60%; 95% CI, 51.4% to 68.6%), chronic GVHD (60.7%; 95% CI, 50.3% to 71.1%), and pancytopenia (18.6%; 95% CI, 12.2% to 25.0%). Pre-DLI characteristics predictive of complete response in CML patients were post-BMT chronic GVHD, pre-DLI disease status of chronic phase, and time interval between BMT to DLI less than 2 years. Acute and chronic GVHD post-DLI were highly correlated with disease response (P < .00001). CONCLUSION DLI results in complete remissions in a high percentage of patients with relapsed chronic-phase CML. Complete remissions are observed less frequently in patients with advanced CML and acute leukemia. GVHD and pancytopenia occur commonly; GVHD is highly correlated with response.
Selenoprotein P is not elevated in gestational diabetes mellitus

Abstract Selenoprotein P concentrations have been found to be associated with insulin resistance and elevated in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM). The aim of the present study was to investigate circulating selenoprotein P level and its possible relationship with metabolic parameters in gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). Plasma selenoprotein P concentrations were measured in 30 pregnant women with GDM, 35 pregnant women without GDM and 22 healthy nonpregnant women. No difference in selenoprotein P levels was observed among the groups [6.2 (4.5–8.2), 7.9 (4.5–10.7) and 6.7 (5.3–9.1) ng/ml, respectively, p = 0.69]. In pregnant women with and without GDM, selenoprotein P did not correlate with age, gestational age, prepregnancy body mass index (BMI), HbA1c, glucose concentrations at oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), area under curve (AUC) glucose, total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol and triglycerides levels (p > 0.05). But, there were statistically significant correlations between selenoprotein P and current BMI (r = −0.28, p = 0.04) and HDL cholesterol levels (r = 0.43, p = 0.01). We found that selenoprotein P concentrations are not elevated in women with GDM but associated with BMI and HDL cholesterol. Chinese abstract 既往研究发现硒蛋白P浓度与2型糖尿病（DM）患者胰岛素抵抗及升高有关。 本实验旨在评估循环中硒蛋白P水平，以及它与妊娠期糖尿病（GDM）患者代谢指标之间的关系。 在30例妊娠期糖尿病妊娠女性、35例非妊娠期糖尿病妊娠女性、22例非妊娠女性中，我们测定了血清硒蛋白P水平。 结果并没有发现硒蛋白P水平含量间存在差异[分别为6.2 (4.5–8.2), 7.9 (4.5–10.7)及6.7 (5.3–9.1) ng/ml,, p=0.69]。 合并/不合并妊娠期糖尿病的妊娠女性，硒蛋白P水平与年龄、妊娠时年龄、孕前体重指数（BMI），HbA1c，口服葡萄糖耐量试验（OGTT）时的葡萄糖浓度，血糖曲线下面积（AUC），总胆固醇，LDL胆固醇和甘油三酯水平没有相关性（p>0.05）。 然而，硒蛋白P水平和目前BMI之间存在明显相关性（r =—0.28, p =0.04），与HDL胆固醇水平也明显相关（r =0.43, p =0.01）。 我们发现硒蛋白P浓度在GDM女性中没有升高，但是与BMI和HDL胆固醇却有相关性。
Myofascial Trigger Points, Neck Mobility, and Forward Head Posture in Episodic Tension‐Type Headache

Objective. —To assess the differences in the presence of trigger points (TrPs) in head and neck muscles, forward head posture (FHP) and neck mobility between episodic tension‐type headache (ETTH) subjects and healthy controls. In addition, we assess the relationship between these muscle TrPs, FHP, neck mobility, and several clinical variables concerning the intensity and the temporal profile of headache.
Quality of life and psychological symptoms in Greek postmenopausal women: Association with hormone therapy

Quality of life (QoL) in menopause is influenced by many parameters, including vasomotor symptoms, psychological status and culture. The aim of the present study was to examine the association of hormone therapy (HT) with QoL and psychological symptoms in Greek postmenopausal women. The study assessed 216 postmenopausal women (mean age 54.5 years) attending a university menopause clinic in Greece. Fifty-three were users of HT and 163 were not. QoL was evaluated by the Utian Quality of Life Scale (UQOL) and psychological symptoms were assessed by the Symptom Checklist-90-R (SCL-90-R). Women on HT were younger and more educated than women not using HT. Adjusting the analysis for the women's characteristics, HT users had better total UQOL scores than non-users (p < 0.05). Marital status and education had independent effects on QoL, with married and more educated women scoring higher (p < 0.05). Assessment of psychological symptomatology, after adjustment for sociodemographic variables across the different dimensions, revealed that HT users had better SCL-90-R scores than non-users for obsessionality, interpersonal sensitivity and for the general index (p < 0.05). Concluding, even though the impact of sociodemographic and lifestyle variables must be factored into the assessment of QoL, HT use is independently related to an improvement in the total score and in most domains of QoL, and has a significant positive effect on many aspects of psychological well-being in Greek postmenopausal women.