Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The effects of an essential oil and an amine fluoride/stannous fluoride mouthrinse on supragingival plaque regrowth.

BACKGROUND The side effects of chlorhexidine (CHX) have stimulated the search for alternative antiplaque agents such as amine fluoride/stannous fluoride (ASF) and essential oils (EO). The aim of the study was to investigate the plaque-inhibiting effects of two commercially available mouthrinses containing ASF and EO, respectively. METHODS The study was an observer-masked, randomized, 5 x 5 Latin square cross-over design, balanced for carryover effects, involving 15 volunteers in a 4-day plaque regrowth model. A 0.12% CHX rinse and a saline solution served as positive and negative controls, respectively. On day 1, subjects received professional prophylaxis, suspended oral hygiene measures, and commenced rinsing with their allocated rinses. On day 5, subjects were scored for disclosed plaque. The ASF rinse was tested at two dosages: 10 and 20 ml (ASF-10 and ASF-20, respectively). RESULTS The ASF and EO rinses showed a significant inhibition of plaque regrowth compared to saline (P <0.0001), but the lowest plaque indices were obtained with the CHX product (P <0.01). There were no significant differences among products containing ASF-10, ASF-20, and EO (P >0.05). There was no correlation between the occurrence of side effects and the use of a particular rinse product (P >0.2). CONCLUSIONS ASF and EO mouthrinses exerted effective and similar plaque inhibition. The two dosages tested for ASF did not differ in plaque reduction. These findings, together with those from long-term trials, suggest that ASF and EO rinses may represent effective alternatives to CHX rinse as adjuncts to oral hygiene.
Evaluation of Intelligent System to the Control of Diabetes

Diabetes, as the 4th death cause, has become a vital issue in the 21th century. However, blood sugar levels of most diabetic patients are not well controlled. For a patient with chronic disease, treatment efficiency could be influenced by the disease, remedy, and mental condition, in addition to his/her physiological status. Therefore, there is a great deal of difficulty in establishing a guideline to decide the reasonable dosage for a particular patient. To address this difficulty, this study, via team cooperation with the Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Taichung Hospital, has designed an artificial intelligence (AI) system. This AI system may provide a real-time monitoring of patient's physical condition and adjust the insulin dosage from AI system to facilitate the monitoring, caring, and management of patients. Furthermore, abnormal condition may be detected earlier and then emergency treatment may be provided in time to prevent the occurrence of any unfortunate events caused by negligence. With this system, data of 4 patients was partitioned into training data set (3/2) and test data set (1/3). Training data set was entered into ANM system for an analysis of learning stage to build a prediction model for insulin dosage. Upon the completion, the test data set was tested with this prediction model for the accuracy of dosage control by bioartificial pancreas. Results showed that ANM system may effectively predict the occurrence of problems related to insulin dosage of bioartificial pancreas, with a satisfactory accuracy.
An analysis of the UNOS liver transplant registry: High serum alpha‐fetoprotein does not justify an increase in MELD points for suspected hepatocellular carcinoma

The current United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) criteria for liver transplantation gives priority to patients with elevated serum alpha‐fetoprotein (AFP; ≥ 500 ng/mL) in the absence of radiologic evidence of a hepatic mass. Reports have shown that an elevated serum AFP is a poor diagnostic indicator for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in patients with cirrhosis. Our aim was to determine if an AFP level above 500 ng/mL, in the absence of a liver mass by imaging study, correlates with the presence of HCC. Using the UNOS database we identified all patients transplanted for HCC in the United States between February 2002 and October 2005 based on these criteria. The data collected included: patient demographics, clinical information, and pathological outcomes. The data was analyzed using a chi‐squared t–test and confirmed by logistic regression modeling. A total of 22 patients received a cadaveric liver transplant, while 1 received a living donor transplant during the study period. HCC was confirmed posttransplantation in only 6 patients (26%). There was no difference in race, gender, etiology of liver disease, or AFP level between patients with and without HCC but a significant difference in age (59.8 yr for HCC patients vs. 51.3 yr for the non‐HCC group; P = 0.01). In conclusion, the majority of the patients who received extra Model for End‐Stage Liver Disease (MELD) points based on an elevated AFP did not have HCC. Older age was a significant predictor for the presence of HCC in patients with a serum AFP greater than 500 ng/mL. These results demonstrate the poor correlation of serum AFP with the presence of HCC in patients awaiting liver transplantation. Liver Transpl 12:1519–1522, 2006. © 2006 AASLD.
Deviation of the Blastocyst Axis from the First Cleavage Plane Does Not Affect the Quality of Mouse Postimplantation Development1

Abstract Several researchers have suggested recently that the embryonic-abembryonic (Em-Ab) axis of the mouse blastocyst is orthogonal to the first cleavage plane of the two-cell embryo. To determine the universality of this relationship, we used embryos of two different genotypes, F1 (C57BL/6 × DBA/2) and CD-1. The position of the first cleavage plane in the early blastocyst was determined by labeling a blastomere with the fluorescent lineage tracer DiI (1,1′-dioctadecyl-3,3,3′,3′-tetramethylindocarbocyanine perchlorate) at the two-cell stage. Approximately one quarter of the blastocysts from both genotypes possessed an Em-Ab axis that respected the orthogonal relationship with the first cleavage plane. However, the remainder of the blastocysts deviated from the orthogonal relationship. This result indicates that the orthogonal orientation of the Em-Ab axis to the first cleavage plane is not a universal phenomenon. We also tested whether the angular relationship between the Em-Ab axis and first cleavage plane influences postimplantation embryo development. We sorted the blastocysts that had the Em-Ab axis orthogonal to the first cleavage plane from the ones that did not. These two types of blastocysts were transferred separately into surrogates, and fetal development was examined in late gestation. The results revealed that both types of blastocysts produced normal fetuses at a similar frequency. Thus, the relationship of the blastocyst axis to the first cleavage plane does not significantly influence later development.
TERT promoter mutations: a novel independent prognostic factor in primary glioblastomas.

BACKGROUND Activating somatic mutations in the promoter region of the telomerase reverse transcriptase gene (TERT) have been detected in several cancers. In this study we investigated the TERT promoter mutations and their impact on patient survival in World Health Organization grade IV glioblastoma multiforme (GBM). METHODS The TERT core promoter region containing the previously described mutations and a common functional polymorphism (rs2853669) was sequenced in tumors and blood samples from 192 GBM patients. O(6)-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT) promoter methylation status was assessed by pyrosequencing in 177 (92.2%) cases. Relevant clinical data were obtained from a prospectively maintained electronic database. RESULTS We detected specific (-124 C>T and -146 C>T) TERT promoter mutations in 143/178 (80.3%) primary GBM and 4/14 (28.6%) secondary GBM (P < .001). The presence of TERT mutations was associated with poor overall survival, and the effect was confined to the patients who did not carry the variant G-allele for the rs2853669 polymorphism. An exploratory analysis suggested that TERT mutations might be prognostic only in patients who had incomplete resections and no temozolomide chemotherapy. CONCLUSIONS In this study, specific TERT promoter mutations were markers of primary GBM and predicted patient survival in conjunction with a common functional polymorphism. The prognostic impact of TERT mutations was absent in patients with complete resections and temozolomide chemotherapy. If confirmed in additional studies, these findings may have clinical implications, that is, TERT mutations appear to characterize tumors that require aggressive treatment.
Anorexia nervosa outcome: six-year controlled longitudinal study of 51 cases including a population cohort.

OBJECTIVE Controlled study of intermediate term outcome of representative cases with adolescent-onset anorexia nervosa. METHOD A group of 51 cases with anorexia nervosa with a mean age of reported onset of 14.3 years (including a total population of cases from one birth cohort) were compared with a sex-, age-, and school-matched group of 51 comparison subjects on various measures of outcome at a mean age of 21.0 years (6.7 years after reported onset and 4.9 years after the original diagnostic study). There was no attrition. This paper reports on results obtained using the Morgan-Russell scales. RESULTS Forty-seven percent of the anorexia nervosa cases reported that they were recovered. In the unrecovered group all aspects of outcome were worse in the anorexia nervosa than in the comparison group. Differences between the two groups were particularly pronounced with regard to aspects of social relationships. CONCLUSIONS Outcome was fairly similar to that reported in recent clinic-based samples. Poor outcome was associated with the presence of empathy deficits (problems understanding about other people's perspectives and difficulties interacting reciprocally). There is a need to find ways of subgrouping anorexia nervosa cases at onset. The subgroup with empathy deficits warrants more intensive study in future research and clinical practice.
Long Hours and Fatigue: A Survey of Tractor-Trailer Drivers

Fatigue and long driving hours have been implicated as risk factors in truck crashes. Under federal regulations, commercial drivers are permitted to drive no more than iO hours before having an 8-hour break and cannot work more than 70 hours over an 8-day period. Several studies have suggested that violations of these rules are common. A survey of long haul tractor-trailer drivers was conducted to estimate what proportion of drivers report that they regularly violate the hours-of-service rules and to identify the drivers most likely to commit hours-of-service violations. During December 1990 through April 1991, a total of 1,249 drivers were interviewed at truck safety inspection stations, truck stops, and agricultural inspection stations in Connecticut, Florida, Oklahoma, and Oregon. In each state, interviews were conducted during varying periods of the day over the course of seven days at inspection stations. Overall, 89 percent of eligible drivers asked for interviews participated in the survey. According to self-reports, almost three-fourths of the respondents violate hours-of-service rules. About two-thirds of the drivers reported that they routinely drive or work more than the weekly maximum. A primary impetus for violating rules appears to be economic factors, including tight delivery schedules and low payment rates. Many other driver, job, and vehicle characteristics were significantly associated with being an hours-of-service violator. The high prevalence of hours-of-service violations among tractor-trailer drivers is a problem in need of urgent attention. Potential measures to reduce the prevalence of rules violations include more enforcement directed toward carriers, wider use of electronic recorders, and increasing the number of rest areas.
Ridge estimation of the VAR(1) model and its time series chain graph from multivariate time‐course omics data

Omics experiments endowed with a time‐course design may enable us to uncover the dynamic interplay among genes of cellular processes. Multivariate techniques (like VAR(1) models describing the temporal and contemporaneous relations among variates) that may facilitate this goal are hampered by the high‐dimensionality of the resulting data. This is resolved by the presented ridge regularized maximum likelihood estimation procedure for the VAR(1) model. Information on the absence of temporal and contemporaneous relations may be incorporated in this procedure. Its computational efficient implemention is discussed. The estimation procedure is accompanied with an LOOCV scheme to determine the associated penalty parameters. Downstream exploitation of the estimated VAR(1) model is outlined: an empirical Bayes procedure to identify the interesting temporal and contemporaneous relationships, impulse response analysis, mutual information analysis, and covariance decomposition into the (graphical) relations among variates. In a simulation study the presented ridge estimation procedure outperformed a sparse competitor in terms of Frobenius loss of the estimates, while their selection properties are on par. The proposed machinery is illustrated in the reconstruction of the p53 signaling pathway during HPV‐induced cellular transformation. The methodology is implemented in the ragt2ridges R‐package available from CRAN.
Inhibitory effect of upregulated DR-nm23 expression on invasion and metastasis in colorectal cancer

To explore the role of DR-nm23 in the regulation of colorectal cancer invasion and metastasis. Immunohistochemistry assay and in-situ nucleic acid hybridization were carried out to analyze the protein and mRNA expression of DR-nm23 in patient samples. The molecular cloning technique was applied to construct the recombinant lentiviral expression vector pGC-FU-DR-nm23-GFP. Lentiviral infection was used to introduce overexpression of exogenous DR-nm23 in SW620 colorectal cancer cells. Both in-vitro cell experiments and an in-vivo xenograft tumor model assay were carried out to determine the role of DR-nm23 in the regulation of colorectal cancer proliferation, invasion, and metastasis. Our data here showed that the expression level of DR-nm23 in colorectal cancer tissue was significantly lower than that in adenoma and normal tissue. The expression level of DR-nm23 was also found to be negatively correlated with lymph node metastasis and positively correlated with the degree of tumor differentiation. Besides, introduced overexpression of DR-nm23 in SW620 cells through lentiviral infection resulted in significant inhibition of its proliferation rate in vitro and growth rate in vivo. The cell migration ability in vitro and metastatic potential in vivo were also impaired at the same time. Our current study suggested that DR-nm23 may participate in the regulation of differentiation of colorectal cancer cells. Its downregulated expression is closely related to the invasion and metastasis of colorectal cancer. Thus, expression status of DR-nm23 may act as a potential prognostic factor in patients with colorectal cancer.
Pathogenesis of retinoic acid-induced ear malformations in primate model.

13-cis retinoic acid (RA) is a causative agent for human/monkey retinoic acid embryopathy (RAE), in which the most common type of malformation is microtia or anotia. In the present study, malformed ears of monkey fetuses exposed to RA during early embryogenesis were analyzed and revealed a subtype of defects. , i.e., apparent duplication of the external/middle ear. A part of the posterior auricle appeared to be ectopically formed in the anterior auricular region or in the region posterior to the auricle. Additionally, there was duplication of the zygomatic arch, malleus, and incus. In order to characterize possible pathogenetic events underlying these malformations, embryos at selected stages were collected after dosing dams with RA at 5 mg/kg/day during gestational days 12-27. Cellular retinoic acid binding protein I whole-mount immunostaining showed that RA induced specific alterations in the migration of cranial neural crest cells (NCC). NCC en route to the second pharyngeal arch were bifurcated, and some of these NCC migrated abnormally into the first and/or third arches, which may underlie external ear duplication. Scanning electron microscopy and neurofilament immunostaining provided evidence that there was partial duplication of trigeminal nerve/ganglion following RA insult. The duplication of NCC neuronal derivatives in the first pharyngeal arch is consistent with duplication of NCC mesenchymal components (zygomatic arch, malleus, and incus). Therefore, RA-induced alterations in cranial NCC migration patterns are likely to be a pathogenetic event underlying ear malformations (including duplication) of RAE in monkeys.
Flash pulmonary edema: association with hypertension and reoccurrence despite coronary revascularization.

BACKGROUND The sudden development of acute (flash) pulmonary edema may be an indication for coronary angiography and revascularization. However, the prevalence of coronary artery disease in these patients and the outcome after revascularization are not known. METHODS AND RESULTS We evaluated 46 patients with an initial presentation of flash pulmonary edema requiring hospitalization and obtained up to 3 years of follow-up in 45 patients. There were 22 men and 24 women, 44 to 84 years of age (67 +/- 10 years, mean +/- SD). Systolic blood pressure on admission was 194 +/- 38 mm Hg. Twenty-four patients required intubation and mechanical ventilation. Left ventricular ejection fraction was >40% in 27 of 46 patients. Thirty-eight patients underwent coronary angiography; 33 had obstructive coronary artery disease. One other patient had regional wall motion abnormalities. Nineteen patients underwent coronary revascularization surgically and 8 percutaneously. Overall, flash pulmonary edema reoccurred in one half of the patients. Of the 19 patients who underwent coronary revascularization, by 6 months there was 1 death and 9 patients had been hospitalized with recurrent pulmonary edema. CONCLUSIONS Many patients with flash pulmonary edema have preserved systolic left ventricular function and coronary artery disease. Flash pulmonary edema frequently reoccurs in association with marked systolic hypertension, even after coronary revascularization. This suggests that control of hypertension is important and that coronary revascularization may not be adequate to prevent reoccurrence of flash pulmonary edema.
Proteomics approach to understand reduced clearance of mycobacteria and high viral titers during HIV–mycobacteria co‐infection

Environmental mycobacteria, highly prevalent in natural and artificial (including chlorinated municipal water) niches, are emerging as new threat to human health, especially to HIV‐infected population. These seemingly harmless non‐pathogenic mycobacteria, which are otherwise cleared, establish as opportunistic infections adding to HIV‐associated complications. Although immune‐evading strategies of pathogenic mycobacteria are known, the mechanisms underlying the early events by which opportunistic mycobacteria establish infection in macrophages and influencing HIV infection are unclear. Proteomics of phagosome‐enriched fractions from Mycobacterium bovis Bacillus Calmette–Guérin (BCG) mono‐infected and HIV–M. bovis BCG co‐infected THP‐1 cells by LC‐MALDI‐MS/MS revealed differential distribution of 260 proteins. Validation of the proteomics data showed that HIV co‐infection helped the survival of non‐pathogenic mycobacteria by obstructing phagosome maturation, promoting lipid biogenesis and increasing intracellular ATP equivalents. In turn, mycobacterial co‐infection up‐regulated purinergic receptors in macrophages that are known to support HIV entry, explaining increased viral titers during co‐infection. The mutualism was reconfirmed using clinically relevant opportunistic mycobacteria, Mycobacterium avium, Mycobacterium kansasii and Mycobacterium phlei that exhibited increased survival during co‐infection, together with increase in HIV titers. Additionally, the catalogued proteins in the study provide new leads that will significantly add to the understanding of the biology of opportunistic mycobacteria and HIV coalition.
Correlation between Epstein Barr virus antibodies, serum IgE and atopic disease

It is currently accepted that vinil infections may influence the development of atopy. In the present study we evaluated serum IgE levels as well as the prevalence of symptom‐, indicative of utopic disease and EBV antibodies in 353 children aged from I month to 19 years. Antibodies against EBV were detected by immunofluorescence. IgE levels in serum were measured by en/. yme imimmoassay. Dividing ihe study population according to EBV seropositivity and age, we noted that the prevalence of high IgE levels (> 2 s. d.) was, in total, more frequent in the EBV negative (32. 9%) than in the positive subjects (27. 6%). Interestingly, this higher prevalence was found only in the groups aged under six, especially in the 7 to 29 month group, where it was statistically significant (p=0.037), whereas in the 6‐19 year group the situation was reversed. Furthermore, selecting only the atopic children younger than 3 years of age with high IgE levels and clinical symptoms of atopy (wheezing and/or dermatitis) it was possible to demonstrate lower EBV seropositivity compared with the normal IgE controls for each group, even though these differences were not statistically significant. In conclusion, the results of our study suggest that, in our selected population, EBV infection in the first years of life is associated with a lower prevalence of high IgE levels.
An extensive analysis of Y-chromosomal microsatellite haplotypes in globally dispersed human populations.

The genetic variance at seven Y-chromosomal microsatellite loci (or short tandem repeats [STRs]) was studied among 986 male individuals from 20 globally dispersed human populations. A total of 598 different haplotypes were observed, of which 437 (73.1%) were each found in a single male only. Population-specific haplotype-diversity values were.86-. 99. Analyses of haplotype diversity and population-specific haplotypes revealed marked population-structure differences between more-isolated indigenous populations (e.g., Central African Pygmies or Greenland Inuit) and more-admixed populations (e.g., Europeans or Surinamese). Furthermore, male individuals from isolated indigenous populations shared haplotypes mainly with male individuals from their own population. By analysis of molecular variance, we found that 76.8% of the total genetic variance present among these male individuals could be attributed to genetic differences between male individuals who were members of the same population. Haplotype sharing between populations, phi(ST) statistics, and phylogenetic analysis identified close genetic affinities among European populations and among New Guinean populations. Our data illustrate that Y-chromosomal STR haplotypes are an ideal tool for the study of the genetic affinities between groups of male subjects and for detection of population structure.