Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Longitudinal Associations Between Marijuana-Related Cognitions and Marijuana Use in African-American and European-American Girls From Early to Late Adolescence

This study examined marijuana-related cognitions and marijuana use in African-American (AA) and European-American (EA) girls, with the aim of characterizing their interrelationships from early to late adolescence. Identifying differences by race in these relationships would have implications for tailoring interventions to specific subgroups. Data were drawn from the Pittsburgh Girls Study, an urban community sample (56.8% AA, 43.2% EA; n = 2,172) recruited at ages 5–8 years and assessed each year. Cross-lagged panel models were conducted separately by race to identify patterns of association between marijuana use and related cognitions (i.e., intentions to use, positive attitude toward use, positive and negative expectancies) assessed at ages 12–17 years. Results indicated that AA girls consistently reported higher negative expectancies than EA girls and greater intention to use marijuana, but they did not differ from EA girls on positive expectancies. In cross-lagged models, bidirectional effects between negative expectancies and marijuana use were observed in AA and EA girls across all ages, and at most ages for intentions to use, but were largely absent in both groups for positive attitude. Bidirectional effects of marijuana use with positive expectancies were observed only in AA girls at certain ages. Overall, results demonstrate more similarities than differences between AA and EA girls in the longitudinal associations between marijuana-related cognitions and marijuana use. Results highlight the role of negative expectancies as shaping and being shaped by marijuana use. Interventions that target negative expectancies to reduce marijuana use may be useful for AA and EA adolescent girls.
Feasibility, Safety, and Tolerance of Mesenchymal Stem Cell Therapy for Obstructive Chronic Lung Allograft Dysfunction

Feasibility, tolerance, and safety of intravenous infusions of allogeneic mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) therapy in lung transplant recipients with bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome (BOS) are not well established. MSCs were manufactured, cryopreserved, transported to our facility, thawed, and infused into nine recipients with moderate BOS (average drop in forced expiratory volume in 1 second was 56.8% ± 3.2% from post‐transplant peak) who were refractory to standard therapy and not candidates for retransplant. Cells were viable and sterile prior to infusion. Patients received a single infusion of either 1 (n = 3), 2 (n = 3), or 4 (n = 3) million MSCs per kg. Patients were medically evaluated before; during; and at 24 hours, 1 week, and 1 month after infusion for evidence of infusion‐related adverse events and tolerance of therapy. Vital signs, pulmonary function test results, Borg Dyspnea Index, and routine laboratory data were recorded. Vital signs and O2 saturation did not significantly change during or up to 2 hours after MSC infusion. There were no significant changes in gas exchange variables, pulmonary function test results, or laboratory values at 1, 7, and 30 days postinfusion compared with preinfusion values. Infusion of MSCs in patients with BOS was feasible, safe, and well tolerated and did not produce any significant adverse changes in clinical, functional, or laboratory variables during or up to 30 days after infusion. Manufacturing, transport, and administration of intravenous, allogeneic bone marrow‐derived MSCs in doses from 1 to 4 million MSCs per kg is safe in lung transplant recipients with BOS. Stem Cells Translational Medicine 2018;7:161–167
Road to exascale: Improving scheduling performances and reducing energy consumption with the help of end-users. (En route vers l'exascale: améliorer les performances de l'ordonnancement et réduire la consommation énergétique avec l'aide des utilisateurs finaux)

The field of High Performance Computing (HPC) is characterized by the continuous evolution of computing architectures, the proliferation of computing resources and the increasing complexity of applications users wish to solve. One of the most important software of the HPC stack is the Resource and Job Management System (RJMS) which stands between the user workloads and the platform, the applications and the resources. This specialized software provides functions for building,submitting, scheduling and monitoring jobs in a dynamic and complex computing environment. In order to reach exaflops HPC systems, new constraints and objectives have been introduced. This thesis develops and tests the idea that the users of such systems can help reaching the exaflopic scale. Specifically, we show and introduce new techniques that employ users behaviors to improve energy consumption and overall cluster performances. To test the proposed techniques, we need to develop new tools and methodologies that scale up to large HPC clusters. Thus, we designed adequate tools that assess new RJMS scheduling algorithms of such large systems. These tools are able to run on small clusters by emulating or simulating bigger platforms. After evaluating different techniques to measure the energy consumption of HPC clusters, we propose a new heuristic, based on the popular Easy Backfilling algorithm, in order to control the power consumption of such huge systems. We also demonstrate, using the same idea, how to control the energy consumption during a time period. The proposed mechanism is able to limit the energy consumption while keeping satisfying performances. If energy is a limited resource, it has to be shared fairly. We also present a mechanism which shares energy consumption among users. We argue that sharing fairly the energy among users should motivate them to reduce the energy consumption of their applications. Finally, we analyze past and present behaviors of users using learning algorithms in order to improve the performances of the parallel platforms. This approach does not only outperform state of the art methods, it also shows promising insight on how such method can improve other aspects of RJMS.
Recurrent glioblastoma multiforme: potential benefits using fractionated stereotactic radiotherapy and concurrent taxol.

UNLABELLED A pilot protocol to treat recurrent glioblastoma was developed using fractionated stereotactic radiosurgery with concurrent intravenous Taxol as a radiation sensitizer. METHODS The treatment outcome was analyzed in two groups of patients with recurrent glioblastoma. Group 1 was analyzed retrospectively, and consisted of 9 patients with a median tumor volume of 9.2 cm3 treated with single-fraction stereotactic radiosurgery alone (mean radiation dose of 19.2 Gy). In group 2, prospectively analyzed, were 14 patients treated with fractionated stereotactic radiotherapy and concurrent Taxol. RESULTS The median survival in group 2 was 14.2 months versus 6.3 months in group 1 (p < 0.04). One-year survival for patients who received fractionated radiotherapy with Taxol was 50% compared to 11% for those treated with single-fraction radiotherapy only (p = 0.05). CONCLUSIONS Survival for group 2 patients was significantly better compared to those treated with single-fraction radiotherapy alone. These data should stimulate the investigation of both fractionated stereotactic radiotherapy and the development of radiation sensitizers to further enhance treatment.
Pain worsening with physical activity during migraine attacks in women with overweight/obesity: A prospective evaluation of frequency, consistency, and correlates

Background Migraine is a neurological disease involving recurrent attacks of moderate-to-severe and disabling head pain. Worsening of pain with routine physical activity during attacks is a principal migraine symptom; however, the frequency, individual consistency, and correlates of this symptom are unknown. Given the potential of this symptom to undermine participation in daily physical activity, an effective migraine prevention strategy, further research is warranted. This study is the first to prospectively evaluate (a) frequency and individual consistency of physical activity-related pain worsening during migraine attacks, and (b) potential correlates, including other migraine symptoms, anthropometric characteristics, psychological symptoms, and daily physical activity. Methods Participants were women (n = 132) aged 18–50 years with neurologist-confirmed migraine and overweight/obesity seeking weight loss treatment in the Women’s Health and Migraine trial. At baseline, participants used a smartphone diary to record migraine attack occurrence, severity, and symptoms for 28 days. Participants also completed questionnaires and 7 days of objective physical activity monitoring before and after diary completion, respectively. Patterning of the effect of physical activity on pain was summarized within-subject by calculating the proportion (%) of attacks in which physical activity worsened, improved, or had no effect on pain. Results Participants reported 5.5 ± 2.8 (mean ± standard deviation) migraine attacks over 28 days. The intraclass correlation (coefficient = 0.71) indicated high consistency in participants’ reports of activity-related pain worsening or not. On average, activity worsened pain in 34.8 ± 35.6% of attacks, had no effect on pain in 61.8 ± 34.6% of attacks and improved pain in 3.4 ± 12.7% of attacks. Few participants (9.8%) reported activity-related pain worsening in all attacks. A higher percentage of attacks where physical activity worsened pain demonstrated small-sized correlations with more severe nausea, photophobia, phonophobia, and allodynia (r = 0.18 – 0.22, p < 0.05). Pain worsening due to physical activity was not related to psychological symptoms or total daily physical activity. Conclusions There is large variability in the effect of physical activity on pain during migraine attacks that can be accounted for by individual differences. For a minority of participants, physical activity consistently contributed to pain worsening. More frequent physical activity-related pain worsening was related to greater severity of other migraine symptoms and pain sensitivity, which supports the validity of this diagnostic feature. Study protocol ClinicalTrials.govIdentifier: NCT01197196
Body Size and Risk of Extinction in Australian Mammals

Abstract: The link between body size and risk of extinction has been the focus of much recent attention. For Australian terrestrial mammals this link is of particular interest because it is widely believed that species in the intermediate size range of 35–5500 g (the “critical weight range”) have been the most prone to recent extinction. But the relationship between body size and extinction risk in Australian mammals has never been subject to a robust statistical analysis. Using a combination of randomization tests and phylogenetic comparative analyses, we found that Australian mammal extinctions and declines have been nonrandom with respect to body size, but we reject the hypothesis of a critical weight range at intermediate sizes. Small species appear to be the least prone to extinction, but extinctions have not been significantly clustered around intermediate sizes. Our results suggest that hypotheses linking intermediate body size with high risk of extinction in Australian mammals are misguided and that the focus of future research should shift to explaining why the smallest species are the most resistant to extinction.
Effects of Handling and Storage of Blood on the Stability of Hepatitis C Virus RNA: Implications for NAT Testing in Transfusion Practice

Background and Objectives: To determine the stability of hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA during transport and storage of blood samples from donors, prior to screening for HCV by nucleic acid amplification technology. Materials and Methods: Various blood and plasma sample types were stored for up to 120 h at different temperatures and the HCV RNA level was measured using an in house quantitative reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction. Results: No decline in HCV RNA level was observed after 72 h of storage of whole bood at 4°C in EDTA tubes (Greiner) and Plasma Preparation Tubes (PPT; Becton Dickinson), while insignificant declines of 0.2 log10 and 0.25 log10 occurred at 25°C after 72 h in the EDTA tubes and PPT tubes, respectively. When whole blood was stored with mixed anticoagulants CPDA–1 and EDTA for up to 120 h, no decline in HCV RNA level was observed at 4°C and 25°C, while a significant decline of 0.37 log10 occurred at 37°C after 120 h. The temperature during transportation was investigated with a 12–hour period at 25°C and 37°C before storage at 4°C for 108 h. Neither temperature resulted in any loss of HCV RNA in comparison with 120 h of storage at 4°C. Conclusion: Whole blood anticoagulated with EDTA or CPDA–1/EDTA may be stored at up to 25°C (room temperature) for up to 5 days without any significant loss in plasma HCV RNA level.
The impact of pneumatic tube transport on whole blood coagulation and platelet function assays

Abstract Pneumatic tube is an attractive way to transport blood samples from the emergency department to the central laboratory facility. We aimed to investigate the impact of pneumatic tube transportation on blood samples for analysis of whole blood coagulation and platelet function. We included 21 healthy adult individuals and measured global coagulation assays by rotational thromboelastometry (ROTEM) and platelet aggregation induced by arachidonic acid (AA) and adenosine diphosphate (ADP) using impedance aggregometry (ROTEM Platelet), on samples transported manually or by pneumatic tube transport. Statistical testing was performed with paired tests with post-hoc Bonferroni correction for multiple testing. Our data revealed no difference in the far majority of ROTEM parameters (P > 0.003), while significantly decreased values were observed for INTEM clotting time (CT) (P = 0.002) and maximum clot firmness (MCF) including the amplitude after 10 min (A10) (P < 0.0001). No statistically significant difference was observed on impedance aggregometry results when manual transport was compared to pneumatic tube transport (P > 0.003). This study indicates that only minor and unsystematic differences between manual transport and pneumatic tube transport may be observed in ROTEM analyses, and that there is no influence from pneumatic tube transport on impedance aggregometry analyses using AA and ADP.
Dialectic Antidotes to Critics of the Technology Acceptance Model: Conceptual, Methodological, and Replication Treatments for Behavioural Modelling in Technology-Mediated Environments

The technology acceptance model (TAM) is a prominent and parsimonious conceptual lens that is often applied for behavioural modelling in technology-mediated environments. However, TAM has received a great deal of criticism in recent years. This article aims to address some of the most pertinent issues confronting TAM through a rejoinder that offers dialectic antidotes—in the form of conceptual, methodological, and replication treatments—to support the continued use of TAM to understand the peculiarities of user interactions with technology in technology-mediated environments. In doing so, this article offers a useful response to a common but often inadequately answered question about how TAM can continue to be relevant for behavioural modelling in contemporary technology-mediated environments.
Hypnosis in the Treatment of Major Depression: An Analysis of Heart Rate Variability

Abstract Hypnosis is an adjuvant treatment of major depression (MD). Heart rate variability (HRV) can assess the autonomic nervous system, which is associated with MD, and HRV is decreased in MD patients. There is a lack of research on HRV changes before, during, and after the use of hypnosis in MD patients. A total of 21 MD patients participated in this study, and 5-minute electrocardiograms were recorded before, during, and after hypnosis. Compared with the prehypnotic condition, HRV parameters significantly (p < .01) increased in the hypnotic and posthypnotic conditions. The results suggest that hypnosis treatment should bring some functional improvement to the autonomic nervous system. HRV is potentially a useful tool that quantifies the physiological impact of hypnosis treatment in MD patients.
Gene-Toxin Interaction as a Putative Risk Factor for Parkinson’s Disease with Dementia

We had previously examined environmental, sociodemographic and clinical variables as predictors for Parkinson’s disease with dementia (PD + D) and found that lower educational attainment, greater motor impairment and advanced age at disease onset were more common in PD + D than in subjects with Parkinson’s disease without dementia (PD – D). We now explore the hypothesis that genetic traits coupled with nongenetic factors may raise the risk of development of PD + D. The study cohort of 43 PD + D and 51 PD – D subjects was analyzed examining environmental, sociodemographic and clinical variables along with 3 candidate gene markers: poor debrisoquine metabolizer allele (CYP 2D6 29B+), monoamine oxidase B allele 1, and apolipoprotein E ε4 allele. Variables were initially entered into a multivariate model singly. Again lower education, age at onset and motor impairment appeared as predictors of PD + D while other variables (including allele status) failed to emerge as significant individual risk factors for dementia. We then examined environmental and genetic variables analyzed in tandem to look for potential variable interactions. Subjects who had pesticide exposure and at least 1 copy of the CYP 2D6 29B+ allele had 83% predicted probability of PD + D (stepwise logistic regression model: p = 0.0491). This case-control study provides preliminary evidence that a gene-toxin interaction may play an etiological role in PD + D. Further assessment of the role of these putative risk factors in incident dementia in PD is indicated.
The pebbles/boulders size distributions on Sais: Rosetta’s final landing site on comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko

By using the imagery acquired by the Optical, Spectroscopic, and Infrared Remote Imaging System Wide-Angle Camera (OSIRIS WAC), we prepare a high-resolution morphological map of the Rosetta Sais final landing site, characterized by an outcropping consolidated terrain unit, a coarse boulder deposit and a fine particle deposit. Thanks to the 0.014 m resolution images, we derive the pebbles/boulders size-frequency distribution (SFD) of the area in the size range of 0.07–0.70 m. Sais’ SFD is best fitted with a two-segment differential power law: the first segment is in the range 0.07–0.26 m, with an index of −1.7 ± 0.1, while the second is in the range 0.26–0.50 m, with an index of −4.2 +0.4/−0.8. The ‘knee’ of the SFD, located at 0.26 m, is evident both in the coarse and fine deposits. When compared to the Agilkia Rosetta Lander Imaging System images, Sais surface is almost entirely free of the ubiquitous, cm-sized debris blanket observed by Philae. None the less, a similar SFD behaviour of Agilkia, with a steeper distribution above ∼0.3 m, and a flatter trend below that, is observed. The activity evolution of 67P along its orbit provides a coherent scenario of how these deposits were formed. Indeed, different lift pressure values occurring on the two locations and at different heliocentric distances explain the presence of the cm-sized debris blanket on Agilkia observed at 3.0 au inbound. Contrarily, Sais activity after 2.1 au outbound has almost completely eroded the fine deposits fallen during perihelion, resulting in an almost dust-free surface observed at 3.8 au.
Completion of the tuberculosis care cascade in a community‐based HIV linkage‐to‐care study in South Africa and Uganda

Tuberculosis (TB) is the leading cause of HIV‐associated mortality in Africa. As HIV testing, linkage to care and antiretroviral treatment initiation intensify to meet UNAIDS targets, it is not known what effect these efforts will have on TB detection and prevention. We aimed to characterize the TB care cascade of screening, diagnostic testing, treatment and provision of isoniazid preventive therapy (IPT) in a study of community‐based HIV screening and linkage to care and determine whether symptom screening results affected progress along the cascade.
HPV vaccine acceptability in high-risk Greek men

ABSTRACT HPV is associated with malignancy in men, yet there is a lack of data on HPV knowledge, vaccine acceptability, and factors affecting vaccine acceptability in Greek men. This study aims to identify determinants of knowledge and willingness to vaccinate against HPV among high-risk Greek men. Men (n = 298) between the ages of 18 and 55 were enrolled from the STI and HIV clinics at “Andreas Syggros” Hospital in Athens, Greece from July-October 2015. Participants completed a survey on demographics, economic factors, sexual history, HPV knowledge, and vaccine acceptability. The majority of participants were younger than 40 (76.6%) and unmarried (84.6%). Our sample was 31.2% MSM (men who have sex with men), and 20.1% were HIV-positive. Most participants (>90%) were aware that HPV is highly prevalent in both men and women; however, fewer identified that HPV causes cancers in both sexes (68%) and that vaccination protects men and women (67%). Amongst participants, 76.7% were willing to vaccinate themselves against HPV, 71.4% an adolescent son, and 69.3% an adolescent daughter. HIV-positive men were more likely to be willing to vaccinate themselves (OR 2.83, p = .015), a son (OR 3.3, p = .015) or a daughter (3.01, p = .020). Higher income levels were associated with increased willingness to vaccinate oneself (OR 1.32, p = .027), a son (1.33, p = .032) or daughter (1.34, p = .027). Although there is a HPV knowledge gap, HPV vaccine acceptability is high despite lack of vaccine promotion to Greek men. Future studies should include lower-risk men to adequately inform public health efforts.
Oral Health Determinants and Demographic Factors of Permanent Tooth Extraction in Iranian Adults

Preservation of teeth until old ages indicates oral health status. Improving life expectancy in developing countries makes teeth care an important topic. This study assessed reasons of tooth extraction (TE), oral health determinants and demographic factors of permanent TE in Iranian adults. Adult people who referred to dental clinic of Mashhad Medical University in 2012 for dental extraction and lived in Mashhad city, participated in this study by convenient sampling method after obtaining informed consent. Demographic characteristics, oral health status, health habit and reasons of TE of participants were assessed. Data were analyzed by SPSS11.5 by Chi-Square, T-Test, ANOVA, Mann-Whitney and Kruskall-Wallis tests. Totally 254 people participated (383 extracted teeth) that 55% were female. Mean age of participants was 39.3 years; females were 6.1 years younger than males. The main reason of TE was dental caries (55.1%), following by impaction. There was significant difference between average times of tooth brushing in both sexes, but difference was not shown in sugar intake. Except in people with college degrees that dental caries is the main cause of TE. With increase in life expectancy to more than 70 years old in Iranian, the age of TE especially in women is younger than expected. The most common cause of TE is dental caries that seem in spite of improving health indexes in Iran, poor oral hygiene remains as a problem. There is no significant difference between frequency of sugar intake and level of education that indicates unhealthy dietary habits related to tooth decay.