Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome: A New Paradigm for an Old Disease?

Hypoplastic left heart syndrome occurs in up to 3% of all infants born with congenital heart disease and is a leading cause of death in this population. Although there is strong evidence for a genetic component, a specific genetic cause is only known in a small subset of patients, consistent with a multifactorial etiology for the syndrome. There is controversy surrounding the mechanisms underlying the syndrome, which is likely due, in part, to the phenotypic variability of the disease. The most commonly held view is that the “decreased” growth of the left ventricle is due to a decreased flow during a critical period of ventricular development. Research has also been hindered by what has been, up until now, a lack of genetically engineered animal models that faithfully reproduce the human disease. There is a growing body of evidence, nonetheless, indicating that the hypoplasia of the left ventricle is due to a primary defect in ventricular development. In this review, we discuss the evidence demonstrating that, at least for a subset of cases, the chamber hypoplasia is the consequence of hyperplasia of the contained cardiomyocytes. In this regard, hypoplastic left heart syndrome could be viewed as a neonatal form of cardiomyopathy. We also discuss the role of the endocardium in the development of the ventricular hypoplasia, which may provide a mechanistic basis for how impaired flow to the developing ventricle leads to the anatomical changes seen in the syndrome.
Potential Role for a Panel of Immunohistochemical Markers in the Management of Endometrial Carcinoma

Background In order to improve the efficacy of endometrial carcinoma (EC) treatment, identifying prognostic factors for high risk patients is a high research priority. This study aimed to assess the relationships among the expression of estrogen receptors (ER), progesterone receptors (PR), human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2), Ki-67, and the different histopathological prognostic parameters in EC and to assess the value of these in the management of EC. Methods We examined 109 cases of EC. Immunohistochemistry for ER, PR, HER2, and Ki-67 were evaluated in relation to age, tumor size, International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stage and grade, depth of infiltration, cervical and ovarian involvement, lymphovascular space invasion (LVSI), and lymph node (LN) metastasis. Results The mean age of patients in this study was 59.8 ± 8.2 years. Low ER and PR expression scores and high Ki-67 expression showed highly significant associations with non-endometrioid histology (p = .007, p < .001, and p < .001, respectively) and poor differentiation (p = .007, p < .001, and p <. 001, respectively). Low PR score showed a significant association with advanced stage (p = .009). Low ER score was highly associated with LVSI (p = .006), and low PR scores were associated significantly with LN metastasis (p = .026). HER2 expression was significantly related to advanced stages (p = .04), increased depth of infiltration (p = .02), LVSI (p = .017), ovarian involvement (p = .038), and LN metastasis (p = .038). There was a close relationship between HER2 expression and uterine cervical involvement (p = .009). Higher Ki-67 values were associated with LN involvement (p = .012). Conclusions The over-expression of HER2 and Ki-67 and low expression of ER and PR indicate a more malignant EC behavior. An immunohistochemical panel for the identification of high risk tumors can contribute significantly to prognostic assessments.
Lactobacillus plantarum ITM21B fermentation product and chickpea flour enhance the nutritional profile of salt reduced bakery products

Abstract The study aimed at improving the nutritional profile of yeast leavened salt reduced sliced bread and puccia type bread fortified with a wheat-based Lactobacillus plantarum ITM21B fermentation product (Bio21B). The protein content of bread made under laboratory conditions was increased by using: (i) chickpea flour (CF) (15% wt/wt flour) and Bio21B or (ii) the Bio21B containing a fungal protease to favour the gluten hydrolysis. Products showed increased protein and total amino acid content and improved protein digestibility. Moreover, the formula significantly affected the protein pattern of breads which, according to the results of the microfluidic two-dimensional electrophoresis (μ2DE) protein pattern, were discriminated as observed by the PCA plot. The use of CF was validated at industrial pilot plant producing salt reduced sliced bread and puccia type bread. The resulting products showed improved nutritional profile and a sensory quality comparable to the company’s products containing salt.
Comparison between intra-articular Botulinum toxin type A, corticosteroid, and saline in knee osteoarthritis: a randomized controlled trial

Objective: To compare the effectiveness of intra-articular injection (IAI) with Botulinum toxin type A (BTA), triamcinolone hexacetonide (TH), and saline in primary knee osteoarthritis. Design: A randomized controlled trial, with blinded patients and assessor. Setting: Outpatient rheumatology service. Subjects: Patients with knee osteoarthritis grades II and III. Interventions: Patients received IAI with 100 IU BTA, 40 mg TH, or isotonic saline solution (SS) 0.9%. Main measures: Patients were assessed at baseline and at 4, 8, and 12 weeks with the following instruments: visual analog scale for pain during movement (VASm; primary outcome) and visual analog scale for pain at rest (VASr), Western Ontario & McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) questionnaire, 6-minute walk test, Timed Up and Go test, Short Form (SF)-36 questionnaire, range of motion of knee, and ultrasound (US) measurement of synovial hypertrophy. Results: In total, 105 patients were randomized, with 35 in each group; 96 were female (91.4%) and 9 were male (8.6%), with a mean age of 64.2 years (±6.9). At 12 weeks, the TH group showed better results only for VASm. At four weeks, the TH group showed better results than the BTA and SS groups for VASm (–68.9% (37.8) vs. –35.3% (40.3) vs. –35.9% (51.4)), WOMAC pain (–56.0% (30.7) vs. –30.8% (34.3) vs. –30.0% (39.9)), WOMAC stiffness (–53.4% (38.4) vs. –17.2% (59.3) vs. –17.3% (78.1)), WOMAC function (–48.2% (34.6) vs. 30.8% (33.6) vs. –13.6% (64.9)), WOMAC total score (–51.2% (31.0) vs. –30.9% (30.0) vs. –18.8% (54.8)), and US measurement of synovial hypertrophy (–11.6% (44.9) vs. –1.5% (47.9) vs. +28.6% (81.3)). Conclusion: IAI with TH had a higher effectiveness than that with TBA or SS in the short-term assessment (four weeks) for pain in movement, WOMAC, and US measurement of synovial hypertrophy.
Thinner Regions of Intracranial Aneurysm Wall Correlate with Regions of Higher Wall Shear Stress: A 7T MRI Study

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Both hemodynamics and aneurysm wall thickness are important parameters in aneurysm pathophysiology. Our aim was to develop a method for semi-quantitative wall thickness assessment on in vivo 7T MR images of intracranial aneurysms for studying the relation between apparent aneurysm wall thickness and wall shear stress. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Wall thickness was analyzed in 11 unruptured aneurysms in 9 patients who underwent 7T MR imaging with a TSE-based vessel wall sequence (0.8-mm isotropic resolution). A custom analysis program determined the in vivo aneurysm wall intensities, which were normalized to the signal of nearby brain tissue and were used as measures of apparent wall thickness. Spatial wall thickness variation was determined as the interquartile range in apparent wall thickness (the middle 50% of the apparent wall thickness range). Wall shear stress was determined by using phase-contrast MR imaging (0.5-mm isotropic resolution). We performed visual and statistical comparisons (Pearson correlation) to study the relation between wall thickness and wall shear stress. RESULTS: 3D colored apparent wall thickness maps of the aneurysms showed spatial apparent wall thickness variation, which ranged from 0.07 to 0.53, with a mean variation of 0.22 (a variation of 1.0 roughly means a wall thickness variation of 1 voxel [0.8 mm]). In all aneurysms, apparent wall thickness was inversely related to wall shear stress (mean correlation coefficient, −0.35; P < .05). CONCLUSIONS: A method was developed to measure the wall thickness semi-quantitatively, by using 7T MR imaging. An inverse correlation between wall shear stress and apparent wall thickness was determined. In future studies, this noninvasive method can be used to assess spatial wall thickness variation in relation to pathophysiologic processes such as aneurysm growth and rupture.
Prognostic significance of deregulated microRNAs in uveal melanomas

Uveal melanoma (UM) represents the most frequent primary tumor of the eye. Despite the development of new drugs and screening programs, the prognosis of patients with UM remains poor and no effective prognostic biomarkers are yet able to identify high-risk patients. Therefore, in the present study, microRNA (miRNA or miR) expression data, contained in the TCGA UM (UVM) database, were analyzed in order to identify a set of miRNAs with prognostic significance to be used as biomarkers in clinical practice. Patients were stratified into 2 groups, including tumor stage (high-grade vs. low-grade) and status (deceased vs. alive); differential analyses of miRNA expression among these groups were performed. A total of 20 deregulated miRNAs for each group were identified. In total 7 miRNAs were common between the groups. The majority of common miRNAs belonged to the miR-506-514 cluster, known to be involved in UM development. The prognostic value of the 20 selected miRNAs related to tumor stage was assessed. The deregulation of 12 miRNAs (6 upregulated and 6 downregulated) was associated with a worse prognosis of patients with UM. Subsequently, miRCancerdb and microRNA Data Integration Portal bioinformatics tools were used to identify a set of genes associated with the 20 miRNAs and to establish their interaction levels. By this approach, 53 different negatively and positively associated genes were identified. Finally, DIANA-mirPath prediction pathway and Gene Ontology enrichment analyses were performed on the lists of genes previously generated to establish their functional involvement in biological processes and molecular pathways. All the miRNAs and genes were involved in molecular pathways usually altered in cancer, including the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway. Overall, the findings of the presents study demonstrated that the miRNAs of the miR-506-514 cluster, hsa-miR-592 and hsa-miR-199a-5p were the most deregulated miRNAs in patients with high-grade disease compared to those with low-grade disease and were strictly related to the overall survival (OS) of the patients. However, further in vitro and translational approaches are required to validate these preliminary findings.
Clinical experience with the inactivated hepatitis A vaccine, Avaxim 80U Pediatric

ABSTRACT Introduction: Hepatitis A, caused by hepatitis A virus (HAV), is primarily transmitted via the fecal/oral route either through ingestion of contaminated food and water or through direct contact with an infectious person. Prevalence of hepatitis A is strongly correlated with socioeconomic factors, decreasing with increased socio-economic development, access to clean water and sanitation. Vaccination against HAV should be part of a comprehensive plan for the prevention and control of viral hepatitis, either as part of regular childhood immunization programs or with other recommended vaccines for travelers. Areas covered: We present here evidence for the immunogenicity and safety of an inactivated HAV pediatric vaccine (Avaxim® 80U Pediatric, Sanofi Pasteur), indicated for use in children aged 12 months to 15 years. Data evaluated are from trials undertaken during the clinical development of this vaccine, a systematic literature review and post-market pharmacovigilance. Expert opinion: The pediatric HAV vaccine is highly immunogenic and generates long-lasting protection against hepatitis A disease in children. The safety and immunogenicity data presented in this review suggest that the pediatric HAV vaccine is a valuable option in the prevention of HAV infection in children in many areas of the world where the disease remains a healthcare issue.
The Exosomal Long Noncoding RNA aHIF is Upregulated in Serum From Patients With Endometriosis and Promotes Angiogenesis in Endometriosis

Objective: The transfer of long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) via exosomes to modulate recipient cells represents an important mechanism for disease progression. Antisense hypoxia-inducible factor (aHIF) is a well-known angiogenesis-related lncRNA. Here, we aimed to investigate the clinical implications of aHIF and exosomal aHIF in endometriosis and the involvement of exosome-shuttled aHIF in endometriosis angiogenesis. Study Design: The distribution and expression of aHIF in ectopic, eutopic, and normal endometria was evaluated. Serum exosomal aHIF levels in patients with endometriosis were tested. The correlation between serum exosomal aHIF and aHIF expression in ectopic endometria was analyzed. Endometriotic cyst stromal cells (ECSCs)-derived exosomes were characterized. The internalization of exosomes by human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) was observed. A series of in vitro assays were conducted to investigate the roles and mechanisms of exosomal aHIF in endometriosis angiogenesis. Results: Clinically, aHIF was highly expressed in ectopic endometria and serum exosomes in patients with endometriosis. Serum exosomal aHIF was significantly correlated to aHIF expression in matched ectopic endometria. In vitro, PKH67-labeled exosomes derived from aHIF high expression ECSCs were effectively internalized by recipient HUVECs. Notably, exosome-shuttled aHIF was transferred from ECSCs to HUVECs, which in turn elicited proangiogenic behavior in HUVECs by activating vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-A, VEGF-D, and basic fibroblast growth factor, thereby facilitating endometriosis angiogenesis. Conclusion: Our study illustrates a potential cell–cell communication between ECSCs and HUVECs in an ectopic environment, provides a novel mechanistic model explaining how ECSCs induce angiogenesis from the perspective of the “exosomal transfer of aHIF,” and highlights the clinical value of circulating exosomal aHIF in endometriosis.
Quasi-Ballistic Thermal Transport Across MoS2 Thin Films.

Layered two-dimensional (2D) materials have highly anisotropic thermal properties between the in-plane and cross-plane directions. Conventionally, it is thought that cross-plane thermal conductivities (κ z) are low, and therefore c-axis phonon mean free paths (MFPs) are small. Here, we measure κ z across MoS2 films of varying thickness (20-240 nm) and uncover evidence of very long c-axis phonon MFPs at room temperature in these layered semiconductors. Experimental data obtained using time-domain thermoreflectance (TDTR) are in good agreement with first-principles density functional theory (DFT). These calculations suggest that ∼50% of the heat is carried by phonons with MFP > 200 nm, exceeding kinetic theory estimates by nearly 2 orders of magnitude. Because of quasi-ballistic effects, the κ z of nanometer-thin films of MoS2 scales with their thickness and the volumetric thermal resistance asymptotes to a nonzero value, ∼10 m2 K GW-1. This contributes as much as 30% to the total thermal resistance of a 20 nm thick film, the rest being limited by thermal interface resistance with the SiO2 substrate and top-side aluminum transducer. These findings are essential for understanding heat flow across nanometer-thin films of MoS2 for optoelectronic and thermoelectric applications.
Characterization of Seiridium spp. Associated with Cypress Canker Based on ß-Tubulin and Histone Sequences.

Cypress canker is a serious disease that has devastated Cupressus spp. in many parts of the world. In Mediterranean Europe it has caused the deaths of millions of trees. Three species of Seiridium, S. cardinale, S. cupressi, and S. unicorne, are associated with cypress canker. Considerable debate surrounds the taxonomic status of these fungi. They have been viewed as a single morphologically variable species, three distinct taxa; or two species based on the presence or absence of conidial appendages. Studies based on ribosomal DNA (ITS1, ITS2, and 5.8S gene) sequence failed to separate the cypress canker fungi. In an attempt to distinguish between the species associated with cypress canker we used histone and partial ß-tubulin sequences of fourteen isolates of Seiridium spp. from cypress. Analysis of sequence data showed Seiridium isolates from Cupressus spp. , residing in two major clades. One clade accommodated S. unicorne isolates from Portugal and South Africa. The other major clade consisted of two subclades containing non-appendaged S. cardinale isolates. We believe the larger second clade, represents the cypress canker pathogens while the other clade contains the less pathogenic S. unicorne, which has a host range beyond Cupressus. This study thus provides strong evidence to support previous morphological data suggesting three distinct species are associated with cypress canker.
Evaluation of the Accuracy of Virtual Planning in Orthognathic Surgery: A Morphometric Study.

BACKGROUND The purpose of this study was to prospectively test the accuracy of computer-aided orthognathic surgery comparing the virtual surgical planning with the three-dimensional (3D) outcome. METHODS Patients that underwent computer-assisted orthognathic surgery were retrospectively evaluated. The postoperative results were compared with the surgical plan, superimposing the postoperative computed tomography (CT) scan onto the virtual plan. Surface-based superimpositioning of the postoperative CT scan onto the 3D preoperative plan was carried out to visualize the discrepancy between preoperative virtual plan and postoperative 3D CT result. RESULTS A total of 17 consecutive patients that underwent two-jaw computer-assisted orthognathic surgery were enrolled in the study.The average linear differences for selected points were <1 mm in 12 patients out of 17. In 5 patients out of 17, the average differences for selected points were <2 mm. CONCLUSIONS An overall high degree of accuracy between the virtual plan and the postoperative result was found.
Conceptual linking: ontology-based open hypermedia

This paper describes the attempts of the COHSE project to define and deploy a Conceptual Open Hypermedia Service. Consisting of • an ontological reasoning service which is used to represent a sophisticated conceptual model of document terms and their relationships; • a Web-based open hypermedia link service that can offer a range of different link-providing facilities in a scalable and non-intrusive fashion; and integrated to form a conceptual hypermedia system to enable documents to be linked via metadata describing their contents and hence to improve the consistency and breadth of linking of WWW documents at retrieval time (as readers browse the documents) and authoring time (as authors create the documents).
ACVIM consensus statement on the treatment of immune‐mediated hemolytic anemia in dogs

Immune‐mediated hemolytic anemia (IMHA) causes severe anemia in dogs and is associated with considerable morbidity and mortality. Treatment with various immunosuppressive and antithrombotic drugs has been described anecdotally and in previous studies, but little consensus exists among veterinarians as to the optimal regimen to employ and maintain after diagnosis of the disease. To address this inconsistency and provide evidence‐based guidelines for treatment of IMHA in dogs, we identified and extracted data from studies published in the veterinary literature. We developed a novel tool for evaluation of evidence quality, using it to assess study design, diagnostic criteria, explanation of treatment regimens, and validity of statistical methods. In combination with our clinical experience and comparable guidelines for humans afflicted with autoimmune hemolytic anemia, we used the conclusions of this process to make a set of clinical recommendations regarding treatment of IMHA in dogs, which we refined subsequently by conducting several iterations of Delphi review. Additionally, we considered emerging treatments for IMHA in dogs and highlighted areas deserving of future research. Comments were solicited from several professional bodies to maximize clinical applicability before the recommendations were submitted for publication. The resulting document is intended to provide clinical guidelines for management of IMHA in dogs. These guidelines should be implemented pragmatically, with consideration of animal, owner, and veterinary factors that may vary among cases.
Design and Usability Assessment of a Multi-Device SOA-Based Telecare Framework for the Elderly

Telemonitoring is a branch of telehealth that aims at remotely monitoring vital signs, which is important for chronically ill patients and the elderly living alone. The available standalone devices and applications for the self-monitoring of health parameters largely suffer from interoperability problems; meanwhile, telemonitoring medical devices are expensive, self-contained, and are not integrated into user-friendly technological platforms for the end user. This paper presents the technical aspects and usability assessment of the telemonitoring features of the HEREiAM platform, which supports heterogeneous information technology systems. By exploiting a service-oriented architecture, the measured parameters collected by off-the-shelf Bluetooth medical devices are sent as XML documents to a private cloud that implements an interoperable health service infrastructure, which is compliant with the most recent healthcare standards and security protocols. This Android-based system is designed to be accessible both via TV and portable devices, and includes other utilities designed to support the elderly living alone. Four usability assessment sessions with quality-validated questionnaires were performed to accurately understand the ease of use, usefulness, acceptance, and quality of the proposed system. The results reveal that our system achieved very high usability scores even at its first use, and the scores did not significantly change over time during a field trial that lasted for four months, reinforcing the idea of an intuitive design. At the end of such a trial, the user-experience questionnaire achieved excellent scores in all aspects with respect to the benchmark. Good results were also reported by general practitioners who assessed the quality of their remote interfaces for telemonitoring.
The FIFA 11 programme reduces the costs associated with ankle and hamstring injuries in amateur Spanish football players: A retrospective cohort study

Abstract This study aimed to assess the cost-effectiveness of the “Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) 11” injury prevention programme for ankle and hamstring injuries. This retrospective cohort study included eighty-four male amateur football players aged 18–40 years. The exposed group performed the FIFA 11 protocol twice a week throughout the 2010–2011 and 2011–2012 seasons; the unexposed group performed the usual training during the 2008–2009 and 2009–2010 seasons. Lateral ankle ligament and hamstring injuries were recorded over the whole study period. We compared the mean costs associated with lateral ankle ligament and hamstring injuries in the two groups. The mean cost per player and lateral ankle injury was EUR 928 in the unexposed group versus EUR 647 in the exposed group (p = 0.19). The mean cost of hamstring injury per player was EUR 1271 in the unexposed group versus EUR 742 in the exposed group (p = 0.028). The mean total cost per player was EUR 2199 in the unexposed group versus EUR 1273 in the exposed group (p = 0.008). We concluded that the use of the FIFA 11 injury prevention programme reduced both the direct and indirect costs associated with lateral ankle ligament and hamstring injuries.