Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Trans-oral robotic surgery for the management of oropharyngeal carcinomas: a 9-year institutional experience

SUMMARY Trans-oral robotic surgery (TORS) has changed surgical management of patients with oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomas (OPSCC). In this study we present surgical and oncologic outcomes of patients with oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomas, treated using TORS, with and without an adjuvant therapy. Sixty patients with oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomas treated with TORS between January 2008 and December 2017 have been retrospectively evaluated considering clinicopathologic features, disease characteristics, adjuvant treatments and oncological outcomes. TORS was performed for OPSCC to the base of tongue in 41.7%, tonsils in 46.7%, soft palate and posterior pharyngeal wall in 3.3% and 5%, respectively. Neck dissection was performed in 43.3% of patients. Management strategies included surgery alone in 30%, TORS and adjuvant radiotherapy in 33.3%, and TORS plus adjuvant chemotherapy in 36.7%. The 5-year overall survival of the total group was 77.6%, the 5-year disease-free survival rate was 85.2%, and the 5-year local recurrence-free survival rate was 90.6%. Finally, in selected patients TORS appears to yield similar oncologic outcomes and functional outcomes to traditional techniques and non-operative treatment with a possible benefit on long-term quality of life. The future offers exciting opportunities to combine TORS and radiotherapy in unique ways. However, further research is urgently needed to clarify the indications for adjuvant therapy following TORS resections.
Airway Mucosal Host Defense Is Key to Genomic Regulation of Cystic Fibrosis Lung Disease Severity

Rationale: The severity of cystic fibrosis (CF) lung disease varies widely, even for Phe508del homozygotes. Heritability studies show that more than 50% of the variability reflects non‐cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) genetic variation; however, the full extent of the pertinent genetic variation is not known. Objectives: We sought to identify novel CF disease‐modifying mechanisms using an integrated approach based on analyzing “in vivo” CF airway epithelial gene expression complemented with genome‐wide association study (GWAS) data. Methods: Nasal mucosal RNA from 134 patients with CF was used for RNA sequencing. We tested for associations of transcriptomic (gene expression) data with a quantitative phenotype of CF lung disease severity. Pathway analysis of CF GWAS data (n = 5,659 patients) was performed to identify novel pathways and assess the concordance of genomic and transcriptomic data. Association of gene expression with previously identified CF GWAS risk alleles was also tested. Measurements and Main Results: Significant evidence of heritable gene expression was identified. Gene expression pathways relevant to airway mucosal host defense were significantly associated with CF lung disease severity, including viral infection, inflammation/inflammatory signaling, lipid metabolism, apoptosis, ion transport, Phe508del CFTR processing, and innate immune responses, including HLA (human leukocyte antigen) genes. Ion transport and CFTR processing pathways, as well as HLA genes, were identified across differential gene expression and GWAS signals. Conclusions: Transcriptomic analyses of CF airway epithelia, coupled to genomic (GWAS) analyses, highlight the role of heritable host defense variation in determining the pathophysiology of CF lung disease. The identification of these pathways provides opportunities to pursue targeted interventions to improve CF lung health.
Partner support and distress in women with breast cancer: The role of patients’ awareness of support and level of mastery

The aim of the present study was to investigate the associations between partners’ ways of providing support (both active engagement and protective buffering) and distress in women with breast cancer as a function of patients’ awareness of the support received and their sense of mastery. These associations were investigated both cross-sectionally and longitudinally (i.e. changes in distress over time). At 3 months (T1) after diagnosis, women with breast cancer and their partners (n = 82 couples) were assessed regarding partners’ supportive behaviour. Women also indicated their sense of mastery. At both 3 and 9 months (T2) after diagnosis, women reported their level of distress. Cross-sectional as well as longitudinal analyses showed that active engagement was unrelated to distress, regardless of patients’ awareness of the support received and their feelings of mastery. In contrast, perceived protective buffering was found to be associated with more concurrent distress (i.e. cross-sectionally). Moreover, protective buffering that was reported by partners but remained unnoticed by patients was associated with higher levels of concurrent distress, but only for patients who were low in mastery. Over time, protective buffering that remained unnoticed by patients was associated with more distress, regardless of women's sense of mastery.
Care arrangements and caregivers ’ health : should we care about how they care ?

In the current context of aging population, it is important to study informal caregivers who are the main providers of support for elderly dependent people. This work aims at estimating from French data the effect of care arrangements on caregivers’ health. We use separate models for coresiding and non-coresiding caregivers and investigate the effect of care intensity, informal support, formal care and the relationship between the caregiver and the elderly. Using the French Disability and Health Survey (2008), we estimate the effect of care arrangements on three variables: self-assessed health, reporting that informal care affects general health, and reporting that informal care has negative mental health consequences. These last two indicators, by focusing on the particular effect of care on health, allow avoiding reverse causality problems. The self-assessed health model is estimated using an ordered logit model, the general and mental health equations are estimated simultaneously using a bivariate probit model. The results show that informal care has a negative effect on health mainly when it is intensive (more than 20 hours per week for coresiding caregivers and daily assistance for noncoresiding caregivers). In addition, while informal support is beneficial for non-coresiding caregivers, formal care has no effect. Finally, for non-coresiding caregivers, it seems that when informal care results from a personal choice (care provided by friends or neighbors, and children-in-law) rather than from social norms (care from children), it reduces the health risk. Similarly, for coresiding caregivers, we find that daughters providing care to their mother – who are more constrained by social norms – face more health consequences than sons.
Bundle sheath chloroplast volume can 1 house sufficient Rubisco to avoid limiting C 4 2 photosynthesis during chilling 3 4

Bundle sheath chloroplast volume can 1 house sufficient Rubisco to avoid limiting C4 2 photosynthesis during chilling 3 4 Charles P. Pignon, Marjorie R. Lundgren, Colin P. Osborne, Stephen P. Long 5 1 University of Illinois, Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology and Departments of Crop 6 Sciences and of Plant Biology, 1206 W Gregory Drive, Urbana, IL 61801, USA. 7 2 Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 8 15 Vassar Street, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA 9 3 Arnold Arboretum, Harvard University, 1300 Centre Street, Boston, MA 02131, USA. 10 4 Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University, Lancaster, LA1 4YQ, UK. 11 5 Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, Alfred Denny Building, University of Sheffield, 12 Sheffield, S10 2TN, UK. 13
PCR-based diagnosis, molecular characterization and detection of atypical strains of avian Chlamydia psittaci in companion and wild birds

Chlamydiosis is one of the most important infectious diseases of birds. In this study, 253 clinical samples were taken from 27 bird species belonging to seven orders. Thirty-two (12.6%) samples were positive for Chlamydia psittaci major outer membrane gene (ompA) DNA by a nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Twelve nested PCR-positive specimens were typed by ompA gene-based PCR-restricted fragment length polymorphism, using CTU/CTL primers and AluI restriction enzyme. Four restriction patterns were identified, including genotype A (two specimens from an African grey parrot [Psittacus erithacus] and a lorikeet [Trichoglossus haematodus]), genotype B (two specimens from a rock dove [Columbia livia] and a canary [Serinus canaria]), a third new restriction pattern (six specimens from African grey parrots), and a fourth new restriction pattern (two specimens from a ring-necked parakeet [Psittacula krameri] and an Alexandrine parakeet [Psittacula eupatria]). The third and the fourth restriction patterns are suggested to be provisional genotypes I and J, respectively. Partial sequencing of the ompA gene of seven specimens completely correlated with the results of PCR-restricted fragment length polymorphism and confirmed the presence of genotypes A and B and the two new provisional genotypes I and J. The two new genotypes have the closest identity with C. psittaci genotype F and Chlamydia abortus, respectively. From an evolutionary perspective, both new genotypes, particularly genotype J, are intermediate between the two species, C. psittaci and C. abortus.
Anuran diversity in urban and rural zones of the Itacoatiara municipality, central Amazonia, Brazil

ABSTRACT Few studies in the Amazon region have evaluated anuran diversity in urban forest fragments or in areas with differing degrees of anthropogenic impact. We determined the composition and abundance of the anurofauna in urban and rural sites within the municipality of Itacoatiara in central Amazonia, Brazil. Specimens were sampled from January 2012 to May 2013 in 10 urban sites and five rural sites. A total of 1,538 anurans (930 in rural sites and 608 in urban sites) were recorded, belonging to 29 species in five families. Species richness was higher in rural sites, with 10 exclusive species. All species found in urban sites were also found in rural sites, however, species abundance varied considerably between the habitats. Sampling- and individual-based rarefaction curves showed a tendency toward stabilization of species richness only in the urban sites. We concluded that the anuran assemblages in the urban sites are depauperate due to the absence of many species associated to pristine terra firme or várzea and igapó forests. Habitat loss and quality degradation in urban landscapes are the main factors threatening amphibian diversity. The anuran assemblages in our study areas were similar to those recorded in other Amazonian habitats. Conservation measures involving anurans in this region should consider the preservation of habitat mosaics, including both pristine terra firme, várzea and igapó forests.
Intraplant Variations of Sesquiterpene Lactone Content in Lettuce Genetic Resources Grown in Two Cultivation Seasons

Inflorescence, stem, and leaf samples of lettuce grown in a greenhouse in spring and autumn seasons were assayed for sesquiterpene lactones (SLs) content by high performance liquid chromatography. The concentrations of SLs were significantly higher in the inflorescences followed by upper leaf and stem compared to the other plant parts in most of the samples. SLs content (sum of lactucin and lactucopicrin) in various tissues of lettuce cultivated in spring season varied from 5.7 to 22.5 fold ranging from 27.4 μg/g dry weight (DW) in the upper stem (cultivar “PI 176588”) as the lowest to as high as 2,292.0 μg/g DW in the inflorescence (cultivar “709849-1”). During autumn cultivation, the concentration of SLs varied from 2.0 to 14.4 fold ranging from as low of 32.4 μg/g DW in the lower stem (cultivar “PI176588”) to as high of 838.0 μg/g DW in the upper leaf (cultivar “Dambaesangchu”). Higher lactucin (1.2 to 5.6 fold) and lactucopicrin (1.1 to 3.9 fold) concentration was observed during spring compared to autumn cultivation in most of the samples. SLs content in various organs of lettuce increases from the basal plant part going upwards. As lactucin and lactucopicrin are the major SLs which affects the sensory property of lettuce, their quantitative variation in the lettuce cultivars is useful for breeding new varieties with better consumer acceptance.
Determination of isotopic composition of rainwater to generate local meteoric water line in Thohoyandou, Limpopo Province, South Africa

Hydrogen (D) and oxygen (18O) isotopic compositions of precipitation are useful tools to delineate the nature of precipitation, groundwater recharge and climatological investigations. This study investigated the isotopic composition of 12 rainfall occurrences at Thohoyandou, with the objective of generating the local meteoric water line (LMWL) and determining the factors controlling the isotopic composition of the rain. The delta (δ) values for D and 18O of the samples were determined using a Thermo Delta V mass spectrometer connected to a Gasbench. Thohoyandou rainwater showed a wide range of stable isotope values; δD values of the rainwater varied from −76.3‰ to +22.7‰ (SMOW) with a weighted mean of −9.8‰ and δ18O values ranged from −10.78‰ to +3.07‰ (SMOW) with a weighted mean of −2.7‰. δ-values of rainwater were more enriched during winter and more depleted during summer, due to the amount of rainfall and seasonal effect. The LMWL in Thohoyandou is defined by δD = 7. 56δ18O + 10.64, which shows a similar slope to the global meteoric water line (GMWL) but with a slightly higher intercept, of 10.64‰ instead of 10‰. This implies that the process of rain formation in Thohoyandou occurred under equilibrium conditions which are not significantly affected by evaporation. The slightly higher d-intercept value above the GMWL reflects an additional supply of recycled moisture across the regions. This implies that there is no continental effect but inland moisture from various water bodies and vegetation.
Co-creation of OER by teachers and teacher educators in Colombia

This chapter, based on research conducted by members of the Collaborative CoCreation of Open Educational Resources by Teachers and Teacher Educators in Colombia (coKREA) project, assesses whether and how a contextually based, bottomup approach to the promotion and advocacy of Open Educational Resources (OER) – in which teachers are encouraged to collaboratively co-create resources – supports the adoption of OER in Colombian schools. The study, conducted with public school teachers in southwestern Colombia, used a Participatory Action Research approach, in which the object of study is not external to the researchers, as the social practices under study are performed by the same subjects who are conducting the investigation. This allows teachers to identify possibilities of OER in their own educational practices, as well as the conditions required for their adoption, based on collective thinking processes immersed in their own sociocultural contexts. A call for research participation was issued to teachers who were experienced in using information and communication technologies (ICT) in their teaching. The data collection process was undertaken through administration of a series of online questionnaires (completed by 19 teachers), a survey (completed by 248 teachers), webinars (in which 28 teachers connected and 14 participated actively), unstructured telephone interviews (with 30 teachers) and a series of focus group discussions (with a cohort of 49 teacher educators, teachers and students). A face-to-face workshop was also conducted with teachers to provide an introduction to OER, after which they identified challenges to incorporating OER into their pedagogical practices and discussed their own OER-related activities. Data analysis followed a rigorous Grounded Theory process and involved an “approach stage” to identify key teacher practices; a “deepening stage” to uncover relationships and affinities; and a “condensation phase” to surface a theory of change. The main finding in this study is that teachers create and use OER more effectively when they receive flexible and continuous pedagogical support that: (1) fosters pedagogical practices drawing upon constructivist models, so that teachers and students have an active role in the creation and recreation of knowledge; (2) promotes open licensing that respects authors’ rights, but allows for legal reuse and adaptation; and (3) facilitates the use of ICT available in schools and at home to access, create and share OER. Similarly, it was found that this pedagogical support generated better outcomes when teacher teams work around a project in their schools instead of attending general training sessions on OER. The key recommendation is that pedagogical support be provided to encourage team-based teacher OER development projects within schools.
Three dimensional characterisation of intervessel pit membranes in 1 angiosperm xylem based on a shrinkage model and gold perfusion 2

27 Pit membranes between xylem vessels play a major role in angiosperm water 28 transport. Yet, their pore characteristics within a three-dimensional (3D) network of 29 cellulose microfibril aggregates remain largely unknown because of technical 30 difficulties in measuring the dimensions at nanoscale and potential artefacts by 31 sample preparation. Here, we applied a modelling approach based on thickness 32 measurements of fresh (i.e., never dried prior to transmission electron microscopy) 33 and fully shrunken pit membranes. Moreover, pit membrane pore sizes were 34 investigated experimentally by perfusion with colloidal gold particles. Based on our 35 shrinkage model, fresh pit membranes showed a ca. 20 nm distance between layers of 36 microfibril aggregates, a very high mean porosity (0.81), low geodesic tortuosity 37 (1.14), and relatively high constrictivity (0.76). Perfusion experiments showed similar 38 pore sizes in fresh samples, with pores well below 50 nm for seven species. Drying, 39 however, caused a largely irreversible, 50% shrinkage of pit membranes, resulting in 40 much smaller pore sizes, and significant changes of pit membrane porosity, geodesic 41 tortuosity, and constrictivity. These findings provide novel insights in the structure 42
The Effect of Promotional Bundles on Purchase Intent for High, Medium,and Low Vested Sports Tourists Segments within the Context of theNBAÃ¢ÂÂs Charlotte Hornets

Sports tourism is defined as “a specific travel outside of the usual environment for either passive or active involvement in competitive sport where sport is the prime motivational reason for travel and the touristic or leisure element may act to reinforce the overall experience”. Sports tourists are those that “are in attendance at or participate in a particular sports activity”. Using segmentation theory, this paper seeks to understand what type of sports tourism promotional bundles different segments of sports tourists (diehard, focused and social) are more likely to purchase. Sports tourists attending a Charlotte Hornets (NBA) home game that took place in Greenville, S.C. were surveyed. The event took place approximately two hours from the team’s normal home court arena. An analysis using MANOVA was employed. The results suggest that diehard and focused sports tourists are most attracted to ticket packages that include tour and attraction elements while social sports tourists show low levels of intent to purchase any of bundles. Implications for academics and practitioners are discussed.
Tooth size changes with age in a Spanish population: percentile tables.

OBJECTIVES The aims of this work were: firstly, to draw up tables of percentile tooth sizes similar to those of Sanin and Savara for three age groups of a Spanish population; secondly, to describe changes in tooth size between those groups over time, as well as observing any sexual dimorphism and, finally, to compare both the Spanish and Sanin and Savara 's American population samples. MATERIAL AND METHODS The sample included 359 patients and was divided into three age groups: adolescents, young adults and adults, of both genders. After dental cast digitalization, mesiodistal tooth-size was measured on each dental cast using a digital method. Dental size tables organized by percentiles for each group of age and gender were drawn up. Percentiles under 30 were considered as small, between 30 and 70 as average, and above 70 as large. As symmetry was found between contralateral teeth, the mean between the teeth of the two semi-arches was considered. RESULTS The mesiodistal tooth sizes of adolescents did not present statistically significant differences between genders, in contrast to the two other age groups. CONCLUSIONS Mesiodistal tooth diameters tended to diminish with age, especially in women, in the Spanish population. The values obtained for our dental tables, organized by percentiles, were slightly higher than those found by Sanin and Savara in an American population, especially for women.
Diagnosing Phosphorus Limitation in Subtropical Forests in China under Climate Warming

Phosphorus (P) is a fundamental component of plant organisms. Most of the Earth System Models (ESMs) project increases in future Net Primary Productivity (NPP) due to climate warming. However, large uncertainty exists in projected NPP due to future P limitation. Subtropical China is a region with high vegetation NPP, but its forests are mostly P limited. In this study, we used the simulations of Atmospheric-Vegetation Interaction Model 2 (AVIM2) to diagnose the P limitation in forests in this region, and found that climate warming in the period of 1951–2010 had enhanced P limitation. The P demand during 1981–2010 for Evergreen Broad-leaved Forest (EBF) and Evergreen Needle-leaved Forest (ENF) are 1.67 and 1.8 times than that during 1951–1980, respectively. The observed current Available Soil P (ASP) density in 4 representative forest sites in subtropical China varied between 940 mg · m − 2 and 2365 mg · m − 2 , and the P demands account for 0.86% to 25.5% of the ASP for the period of 1951–2010. Future P demands are estimated to account for 3.2% to 68.3% of the current ASP at the end of this century for RCP8.5. Therefore, forests, especially plantations, in subtropical China are facing high risks of P limitation.
Examining the Link between Migration and Productivity * [ Working Paper ]

During recent years we have seen increased interest in the effects of immigration in the UK economy. We contribute to the ongoing discussion by analysing the link between immigration and productivity. We use outcome data and labour figures to estimate the relative productivity of immigrants and natives in the UK. This informs us about the effect of changes on labour relative supply in labour productivity. We differentiate from previous literature in that our estimates do not rely on competitive pricing on the labour market. Overall, we find evidence for immigrant labour being at least as productive as native and gross substitution between them. When we allow for different occupations we find a positive and significant productivity differential, and this is robust to changes on specification, controls for underlying characteristics and different samples. Furthermore, we use our estimates to produce a counter-factual for the accession of eastern European countries in 2004 with which we evaluate its impact on labour productivity. We find a small non-significant effect from accession.