Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Polymorphonuclear neutrophils and cancer: Intense and sustained neutrophilia as a treatment against solid tumors

Polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN) are the most abundant circulating immune cells and represent the first line of immune defense against infection. This review of the biomedical literature of the last 40 years shows that they also have a powerful antitumoral effect under certain circumstances. Typically, the microenvironment surrounding a solid tumor possesses many of the characteristics of chronic inflammation, a condition considered very favorable for tumor growth and spread. However, there are many circumstances that shift the chronic inflammatory state toward an acute inflammatory response around a tumor. This shift seems to convert PMN into very efficient anticancer effector cells. Clinical reports of unexpected antitumoral effects linked to the prolonged use of granulocyte colony‐stimulating factor, which stimulates an intense and sustained neutrophilia, suggest that an easy way to fight solid tumors would be to encourage the development of intense peritumoral PMN infiltrates. Specifically designed clinical trials are urgently needed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of such drug‐induced neutrophilia in patients with solid tumors. This antitumoral role of neutrophils may provide new avenues for the clinical treatment of cancer. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Med Res Rev, 31, No. 3, 311–363, 2011
Cardiac norepinephrine, beta-adrenoceptors, and Gi alpha-proteins in prehypertensive and hypertensive spontaneously hypertensive rats.

In spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR), cardiac adenylate cyclase is desensitized owing to down-regulation of myocardial beta-adrenoceptors and an increase in Gi alpha. We wished to determine whether these biochemical alterations in the beta-adrenoceptor-adenylate cyclase system precede development of hypertensive cardiac hypertrophy or whether this increase occurs only in later stages of the syndrome and represents a secondary phenomenon. Myocardial samples from 5- and 13-week-old SHR and age-matched Wistar Kyoto rats (WKY) as controls were studied. Cardiac beta-adrenoceptors were studied with [125I]cyanopindolol ([125I]ICYP] as radiolabeled ligand. beta-Adrenoceptor subtypes were determined with the beta 1- and beta 2-selective antagonists CGP 207.12A and ICI 118.551, respectively. Gi alpha proteins were measured with the pertussis toxin-catalysed [32P]ADP ribosylation. Myocardial norepinephrine (NE) content was investigated with high pressure liquid chromatography. In myocardial membranes of 13-week-old SHR, the number of total beta-adrenoceptors as well as beta 1- and beta 2-adrenoceptors was reduced. No difference was observed between SHR and WKY, at age 5 weeks. The nonionic detergent Lubrol PX at 0.5% (vol/vol) increased the amount of detectable Gi alpha by a factor of 14. Under these optimal conditions, Gi alpha was increased by 30% in 13-week-old SHR, but not 5-week-old SHR as compared with WKY. Myocardial NE content was increased by 25-35% in both 5- and 13-week-old SHR as compared with WKY. The results showed that nonspecific beta-adrenoceptor downregulation and an increase in Gi alpha occurs in hypertensive cardiac hypertrophy of SHR. In the prehypertensive stage, these changes were not observed. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Experiences of adult children with previously incarcerated parents: a qualitative study

There are at least 1.5 million adult children of incarcerated parents in the United States based on research conducted in 2000. While research has been conducted on this population while they were under the age of 18, little research has focused on their reflection of their childhood experiences nor on their transition into adulthood. Existing literature provides insight on their experiences as it pertained to peer and caregiver feedback, child and development into adulthood, parent-child relationships, and intervention recommendations. An exploratory qualitative study is conducted with adult children of incarcerated parents (n=5) in order to gain insight into their experiences and their interpretation of them from an older perspective. The findings focused on the themes of relationships, environment, and development as supported by Ecological Systems Theory. Discussed are the limitations, implications for practice, and suggestions for further studies. 2 ADULT CHILDREN WITH PREVIOUSLY INCARCERATED PARENTS
Fiscal decentralization and tax incentives in the developing world

ABSTRACT Many developing countries use tax incentives to attract foreign direct investment, sacrificing immediate revenue from foreign capital, even though the effects of tax incentives on investment, growth, and revenue are empirically dubious. This leads to the puzzle of why states adopt tax incentives. Extant studies of tax incentive adoption overlook the fact that many countries have decentralized fiscal authority, allowing subnational governments to offer tax incentives. Public finance scholars argue that fiscal federalism intensifies tax competition among regions. Hence, drawing on the public finance scholarship, one may ask: Does fiscal decentralization lead to a race to the top among subnational governments and an oversupply of tax incentives in a country? This article argues that fiscal decentralization affects tax incentives in complex ways. When subnational governments are authorized to set tax policies, their politicians have economic and political incentives to engage in tax competition for mobile capital, providing more tax incentives in a country. However, the politicians are less likely to do so if they are held accountable and have to fund most expenditures through own-source tax revenues. An empirical analysis of over 50 developing countries in early 2000s produces robust supporting evidence. This research challenges both the view that fiscal decentralization is always beneficial and the view that horizontal competition invariably produces inefficiently low tax rates. The impact of fiscal decentralization on tax incentives and by implication, revenue mobilization depends on the design of the central–local government relations.
A Model of Polarisation Rotations in Blazars from Kink Instabilities in Relativistic Jets

This paper presents a simple model of polarisation rotation in optically thin relativistic jets of blazars. The model is based on the development of helical (kink) mode of current-driven instability. A possible explanation is suggested for the observational connection between polarisation rotations and optical/gamma-ray flares in blazars, if the current-driven modes are triggered by secular increases of the total jet power. The importance of intrinsic depolarisation in limiting the amplitude of coherent polarisation rotations is demonstrated. The polarisation rotation amplitude is thus very sensitive to the viewing angle, which appears to be inconsistent with the observational estimates of viewing angles in blazars showing polarisation rotations. Overall, there are serious obstacles to explaining large-amplitude polarisation rotations in blazars in terms of current-driven kink modes.
Evaluation of hypoglycemic and antihyperglycemic effects of Luffa cylindrica fruit extract in rats

The present study aimed to assess the hypoglycemic and antihyperglycemic activity of fruit methanolic extract of Luffa cylindrica fruits. The effect of methanolic fruit extract on oral glucose tolerance and its effect on normoglycemic rats were studied. The same was tested for antihyperglycemic activity in alloxan induced hyperglycemic rats at the two dose levels 200 and 400 mg/kg body weight p.o. The serum biochemical parameters were also assessed in the alloxin induced experimental animals. The methanolic extract of Luffa cylindrica exhibited remarkable antihyperglycemic activity. The treatment of diabetic rats with methanolic extract of the test plant improved the serum biochemical parameters and the activities were found to be dose dependent. The present study concludes that Luffa cylindrica fruit extract demonstrated promising antidiabetic activity in alloxan-induced diabetic Wistar rats.
Comparison of cytomegalovirus pp‐65 antigenemia assay and plasma DNA correlation with the clinical outcome in transplant recipients

The relationship between quantitative antigenemia and plasma DNAemia was studied for monitoring cytomegalovirus (CMV) viremia in CMV infection (CMVI) or disease (CMVD), in 20 transplant recipients (13 CMD, seven CMVI). A total of 142 samples of blood were assayed for CMV‐DNA and pp‐65 antigenemia (CMV‐Ag). A quantitative correlation between both markers was found (P < 0.0001). First CMV antigenemia as well as first plasma DNA viral load was similar in CMVI and CMVD (29 vs. 24 CMV‐Ag+ cells/105 PMN; and 7445 vs. 12407 CMV‐DNA copies/ml). The maximum antigenemia was higher in CMVD than in CMVI (146 ± 87 vs. 61 ± 54 +cells/105 PMN, P < 0.05), but the highest CMV plasma viral load was similar in both groups (62592 ± 33000 vs. 42055 ± 38600 copies/ml). In nine patients, maximum antigenemia coincided with highest plasma DNA viral load, but in 10 highest DNAemia occurred 6 days later. On the contrary, antigenemia declined faster than CMV‐DNAnemia, after treatment.
Contribution of Middle Temporal Area to Coarse Depth Discrimination: Comparison of Neuronal and Psychophysical Sensitivity

Recent work suggests that the middle temporal (MT) area contributes to depth perception in addition to its well established roles in motion perception. To determine whether single MT neurons carry disparity signals with sufficient fidelity to account for depth perception, we have compared neuronal and psychophysical sensitivity to disparity while monkeys discriminated between two coarse disparities (near vs far) in the presence of noise. The strength of the visual stimulus was titrated around psychophysical threshold by varying the percentage of binocularly correlated dots in a random dot stereogram. We find that the average MT neuron has sensitivity equal to that of the monkey, as was reported previously for direction discrimination in MT. We further address some important factors that could bias the neuronal/psychophysical sensitivity comparison, including the possibility that monkeys reach a decision before the end of the stimulus presentation. Unlike the predictions of a simple model that uses Poisson spiking statistics, the sensitivity of many MT neurons has little dependence on the time interval over which spikes are counted to compute a neuronal threshold. Thus the response properties of many MT neurons appear to be adapted for rapid discrimination of depth, and we describe how temporal variations in both signal and noise contribute to this effect. We therefore predicted that psychophysical thresholds should exhibit little dependence on viewing duration in our task, and this was confirmed by additional behavioral experiments. Overall, our findings show that MT is well suited to provide sensory signals that form the basis for perceptual judgments of depth.
Personal Perspectives on Enablers and Barriers to Accessing Care for Hip and Knee Osteoarthritis

Background Despite increasing demand for joint replacement surgery and other health services for hip and knee osteoarthritis (OA), barriers and enablers to individual access to care are not well understood. A comprehensive understanding of drivers at all levels is needed to inform efforts for improving access. Objective The aim of this study was to explore perceived barriers and enablers to receiving conservative (nonsurgical) and surgical treatment for hip and knee OA. Design This was a qualitative study using directed content analysis. Methods Semistructured telephone interviews were conducted, with 33 participants randomly sampled from an Australian population-based survey of hip and knee OA. Each interview covered factors contributing to receiving treatment for OA and perceived barriers to accessing care. Interview transcripts were coded and organized into themes. Results Key barriers to accessing care for OA included medical opinions about saving surgery for later and the appropriate age for joint replacement. Other common barriers included difficulty obtaining referrals or appointments, long waiting times, work-related issues, and limited availability of primary and specialist care in some areas. Several participants perceived a lack of effective treatment for OA. Private health insurance was the most frequently cited enabler and was perceived to support the costs of surgical and conservative treatments, including physical therapy, while facilitating faster access to surgery. Close proximity to services and assistance from medical professionals in arranging care also were considered enablers. Conclusions People with hip or knee OA experience substantial challenges in accessing treatment, and these challenges relate predominantly to health professionals, health systems, and financial factors. Private health insurance was the strongest perceived enabler to accessing care for OA.
Investigating the quality of video consultations performed using fourth generation (4G) mobile telecommunications

The use of fourth-generation (4G) mobile telecommunications to provide real-time video consultations were investigated in this study with the aims of determining if 4G is a suitable telecommunications technology; and secondly, to identify if variation in perceived audio and video quality were due to underlying network performance. Three patient end-points that used 4G Internet connections were evaluated. Consulting clinicians recorded their perception of audio and video quality using the International Telecommunications Union scales during clinics with these patient end-points. These scores were used to calculate a mean opinion score (MOS). The network performance metrics were obtained for each session and the relationships between these metrics and the session's quality scores were tested. Clinicians scored the quality of 50 hours of video consultations, involving 36 clinic sessions. The MOS for audio was 4.1 ± 0.62 and the MOS for video was 4.4 ± 0.22. Image impairment and effort to listen were also rated favourably. There was no correlation between audio or video quality and the network metrics of packet loss or jitter. These findings suggest that 4G networks are an appropriate telecommunication technology to deliver real-time video consultations. Variations in quality scores observed during this study were not explained by the packet loss and jitter in the underlying network. Before establishing a telemedicine service, the performance of the 4G network should be assessed at the location of the proposed service. This is due to known variability in performance of 4G networks.
Accuracy of Intraocular Lens Power Calculation Formulae

Aim: To investigate the accuracy of seven currently-used intraocular lens (IOL) power calculation formulae. Patients and methods: A total of 429 eyes of 429 patients were retrospectively analyzed. A low-optical coherence reflectometry device (Lenstar, Haag-Streit) was used for the calculations. SRK/T, Hoffer Q, Haigis, Holladay-2, Olsen, Hill-RBF and Barrett Universal II formulae were studied. The study included patients who underwent phacoemulsification surgery with a 2.8 mm corneal cut by a single surgeon. Refraction measurement was done at the first postoperative visit, and then spherical equivalent values were recorded for each patient. Mean absolute error (MAE) was calculated as the absolute value of postoperative spherical equivalent value minus predicted error for each formula. Results: The mean age of the patients was 67.51 ± 5.75 years. Mean axial length was 23.42 ± 2.02 mm (min: 20.03, max: 32.68, median: 23.09). Mean IOL power was 21.1 ± 5 diopters (min: -1.5, max: 3.5). Postoperative spherical values were between -1.50 and +1.00 diopters. Mean absolute errors were 0.317 for SRK/T, 0.280 for Holladay-2, 0.273 for Hoffer Q, 0.264 for Haigis, 0.347 for Barrett Universal II, 0.339 for Hill-RBF, and 0.351 for Olsen. Conclusion: Hoffer Q, Holladay-2, and Haigis formulae had significantly lower MAE values than SRK/T, Barrett Universal II, Hill-RBF, and Olsen formulae. Although the Haigis formula gave the lowest MAE value, there was no significant difference with the Hoffer Q and Holladay-2 formulae.
Prevention of recurrent miscarriage for women with antiphospholipid antibody or lupus anticoagulant.

BACKGROUND A range of treatments have been proposed to improve pregnancy outcome in recurrent pregnancy loss associated with antiphospholipid antibody (APL). Small studies have not resolved uncertainty about benefits and risks. OBJECTIVES To examine outcomes of all treatments given to maintain pregnancy in women with prior miscarriage and APL. SEARCH STRATEGY We searched the Pregnancy and Childbirth Group's Trials Register (30 May 2004), the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (The Cochrane Library, Issue 2, 2003), MEDLINE (1966 to June 2003), EMBASE (1988 to June 2003), Lupus (volume one to eight, 1991 to 1999) and conference proceedings from the International Symposium on APL up to 1999. SELECTION CRITERIA Randomised or quasi-randomised, controlled trials of interventions in pregnant women with a history of pregnancy loss and APL. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS Two review authors independently assessed quality and extracted data for studies up to December 1999. One review author performed this for studies after 1999. MAIN RESULTS Thirteen studies were found (849 participants). The quality was not high; 50% had clear evidence of allocation concealment. Participant characteristics varied between trials. Unfractionated heparin combined with aspirin (two trials; n = 140) significantly reduced pregnancy loss compared to aspirin alone (relative risk (RR) 0.46, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.29 to 0.71). Low molecular weight heparin (LMWH) combined with aspirin compared to aspirin (one trial; n = 98) did not significantly reduce pregnancy loss (RR 0.78, 95% CI 0.39 to 1.57). There was no advantage in high-dose, over low-dose, unfractionated heparin (one trial; n = 50). Three trials of aspirin alone (n = 135) showed no significant reduction in pregnancy loss (RR 1.05, 95% CI 0.66 to 1.68). Prednisone and aspirin (three trials; n = 286) resulted in a significant increase in prematurity when compared to placebo, aspirin, and heparin combined with aspirin, and an increase in gestational diabetes, but no significant benefit. Intravenous immunoglobulin +/- unfractionated heparin and aspirin (two trials; n = 58) was associated with an increased risk of pregnancy loss or premature birth when compared to unfractionated heparin or LMWH combined with aspirin (RR 2.51, 95% CI 1.27 to 4.95). When compared to prednisone and aspirin, intravenous immunoglobulin (one trial; n = 82) was not significantly different in outcomes. AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS Combined unfractionated heparin and aspirin may reduce pregnancy loss by 54%. Large, randomised controlled trials with adequate allocation concealment are needed to explore potential differences between unfractionated heparin and LMWH.
Stabilization of farm income in the new risk management policy of the EU: a preliminary assessment for Italy through FADN data

Risk management and income stabilization have been gaining increasing attention in the EU’s agricultural policy debate, also in connection to the recent proposal of a specific package of measures hypothesized in the ongoing CAP reform. The paper summarizes the current policy picture at EU and Italian levels, deepening country specific issues of construction of an income stabilization tool and providing a quantitative appreciation of the financial importance of a generalized measure of income stabilization for Italian farms. Estimates of farms’ losses and compensations are differentiated by type of farming and dimension of farms. The results are discussed looking at the perspectives of the new policies under scrutiny
Empirical Verification of the Principle of Effective Market Classification

Monetary andfiscal policy should be paired with the economic objectives on which they have the most influence. The authors have applied Mundell 's principle of effective market classi- fication (EMC) to the conditions of the Czech economy-a small open economy with a managedfloating exchange rate system and a high influx offoreign direct investment. Empirical verification con- firmed the requirement of the modification of the EMC principle in the Czech Republic. An application of the modified model in the Czech Republic resulted in the following recommendation for the Czech economic policy mix: monetary policy should control the in- ternal balance andfiscal policy the external balance.
Adapted physical activity and stroke: a systematic review.

INTRODUCTION Stroke is one of the most significant social and health issues at the global level. The integration of adapted physical activity and exercise into the rehabilitation process and in the postrehabilitation stage could represent a successful action aimed at the functional and cognitive recovery of brain-injured individuals following a stroke. The objective of this systematic review was to analyze the role of physical activity in the post-stroke period referring not only to the rehabilitation stage but also to the postrehabilitation one. EVIDENCE ACQUISITION The systematic review was conducted following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses methodology. We systematically reviewed studies published since 2005. The databases used were PubMed and Scopus. EVIDENCE SYNTHESIS Fourteen articles were included in our review. The evidence supporting the use of physical activity and exercise in stroke survivors in order to maintain adequate levels of their motor autonomy and to improve their physical and psychological health increased over time. CONCLUSIONS Physical activity and exercise contribute to the improvement of health and quality of life in stroke survivors. Moreover, it contributes to maintain functional autonomy, reduces the risk of new cerebrovascular events and encourages socialization if practiced in a group.
Comparison of nalbuphine and fentanyl anesthesia for coronary artery bypass surgery. Hemodynamics, hormonal response, and postoperative respiratory depression.

To determine whether nalbuphine might replace fentanyl as the principal opioid for anesthesia during coronary artery bypass surgery, 20 patients undergoing myocardial revascularization were anesthetized with flunitrazepam and with a continuous infusion of either nalbuphine (an opioid agonist-antagonist) or fentanyl (a pure opioid agonist) in equipotent dosage ratio of 333:1. During endotracheal intubation, all patients given nalbuphine, but only one given fentanyl (P less than 0.05), required nitroglycerin to control arterial blood pressure. Two minutes after tracheal intubation, plasma values of epinephrine, norepinephrine, vasopressin, and cortisol did not change in the fentanyl group compared with the awake (baseline) levels, whereas catecholamines and vasopressin significantly increased with nalbuphine compared with the baseline and with the values in the fentanyl group. A steady state of anesthesia (30 min after intubation), when compared with the baseline, was characterized by unchanged systemic and pulmonary blood pressures and increased systemic vascular resistance with nalbuphine, by decreased systemic and pulmonary pressures and resistances with fentanyl, and by comparably decreased cardiac index with both opioids. Hormone values returned to baseline levels but norepinephrine remained significantly higher in the nalbuphine than in the fentanyl group. A bolus injection of either nalbuphine (2.5 mg/kg) or fentanyl (7.5 micrograms/kg) given during the steady-state period of anesthesia provoked only minimal hemodynamic changes. Before skin incision, 7 of 10 patients receiving nalbuphine required nitroglycerin to control arterial blood pressure. After sternotomy, both groups required nitroglycerin, but additional antihypertensive drugs were necessary mainly in the nalbuphine group. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)