Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Extended applications of the Amplatzer vascular plug IV in infants

Abstract Objective A variety of devices are available for transcatheter closure of unwanted shunts. We describe our experience with the use of the Amplatzer vascular plug IV in a consecutive series of infants. Methods A total of eight consecutive infants – all born preterm at gestational ages ranging from 24 to 35 weeks – undergoing transcatheter closure of unwanted shunts – persistently patent arterial duct in five patients, an aorta to right atrium fistula in one, multiple aortopulmonary collateral vessels in one, and an azygos vein to left atrium connection in one – are described. Their age, from birth, ranged between 3 and 11 months, and weight between 2.6 and 11.3 kilograms. All devices were delivered using percutaneous arterial or venous vascular access via a large lumen (0.038 inch) 4-French delivery catheter. Results All lesions could be successfully occluded using one or more devices. Device diameters ranged between 4 and 8 millimetres, and exceeded the minimum diameter of the target vessel by 1 to 2 millimetres. Successful occlusion was confirmed either directly at angiography or on follow-up echocardiography. Of the infants who were mechanically ventilated prior to the procedure, three could be successfully weaned following closure of the shunt. There were no procedure-related complications. Conclusions The new vascular plug IV is cheap and efficacious in closing a variety of shunts in young infants, and warrants further extended clinical application.
Nucleosomes are preferentially positioned at exons in somatic and sperm cells

Nucleosome positioning is constrained at eukaryotic transcription start sites and implicated in transcriptional regulation. Moreover, recent observations indicate that chromatin structure, transcription and splicing are functionally intertwined, and that modified nucleosomes with trimethylation of lysine 36 in histone subunit 3 (H3K36me3) are enriched at internal exons and the downstream flanking intronic regions of highly expressed genes. However, the position of nucleosomes in the interior of genes has been thought to be largely random. Here we show, by analysis of data sets from human sperm and T cells and medaka (Japanese killifish, Oryzias latipes) blastulae, that internal exons of genes are characterized by sharply elevated average nucleosome occupancy in comparison to flanking intronic sequences. We also show that the preferential positioning of nucleosomes at internal exons is independent of their modification status, and of the GC content, conservation or the expression level of the exon. These findings show that the location of exons is recorded in the chromatin structure and may be inherited across generations. Such embedded information may underpin transcriptionally coupled exon recognition and splice site selection.
The role of organisational culture, intellectual capital and competitive advantage in supporting the government policies in education

The purpose of this research was to examine and analyse the effect of organisational culture on the intellectual capital and the influence of intellectual capital on competitive advantage in the private universities in Indonesia to support the government policies in education. The research methods applied was the explanatory survey, verification and causal relationship. The samples in this research are 157 private universities, which are obtained using proportional probability sampling technique and power analysis approach. Data collection was carried out by interview, observation, and questionnaire techniques that have been tested for validity and reliability. The analytical test applied structural equation model (SEM)-LISREL 8.3, through the second-order approach. The result of research concluded that organisational culture had significantly influenced intellectual capital, and the intellectual capital had influenced the competitive advantage.
A clinicohistopathologic comparison between HELLP syndrome and severe preeclampsia.

OBJECTIVE To determine whether differences in the clinical entities of HELLP syndrome and severe preeclampsia are associated with different placental lesions. STUDY DESIGN This was a case control study of singleton pregnancies with HELLP syndrome or severe preeclampsia. Archived pathology slides were retrieved and reviewed. Clinical and histopathological features were compared between the two groups. RESULTS There were 31 women with HELLP syndrome and 56 with severe preeclampsia. HELLP syndrome was associated with epigastric pain and higher levels of LDH, bilirubin, liver enzymes and fibrin degradation products. Hemoglobin, hematocrit and platelet counts were lower. Abruption lesions of the placenta were less common with HELLP syndrome (Odds Ratio 0.1 95% Confidence Interval 0.01,0.8). None of the other 22 placental features examined were different between the two conditions. CONCLUSION The significant overlap between HELLP syndrome and severe preeclampsia for both clinical and placental features suggests that the two conditions represent a spectrum of essentially the same pathophysiologic process.
Inventory and Assessment of Foliar Natural Enemies of the Soybean Aphid (Hemiptera: Aphididae) in South Dakota

ABSTRACT Soybean aphid (Aphis glycines Matsumura) (Hemiptera: Aphididae) is a major pest of soybean in northern production regions of North America, and insecticides have been the primary management approach while alternative methods are developed. Knowledge of arthropod natural enemies and their impact on soybean aphid is critical for developing biological control as a management tool. Soybean is a major field crop in South Dakota, but information about its natural enemies and their impact on soybean aphid is lacking. Thus, this study was conducted in field plots in eastern South Dakota during July and August of 2004 and 2005 to characterize foliar-dwelling, arthropod natural enemies of soybean aphid, and it used exclusion techniques to determine impact of natural enemies and ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) on soybean aphid densities. In open field plots, weekly soybean aphid densities reached a plateau of several hundred aphids per plant in 2004, and peaked at roughly 400 aphids per plant in 2005. Despite these densities, a relatively high frequency of aphid-infested plants lacked arthropod natural enemies. Lady beetles (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) were most abundant, peaking at 90 and 52% of all natural enemies sampled in respective years, and Harmonia axyridis Pallas was the most abundant lady beetle. Green lacewings (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae) were abundant in 2005, due mainly to large numbers of their eggs. Abundances of arachnids and coccinellid larvae correlated with soybean aphid densities each year, and chrysopid egg abundance was correlated with aphid density in 2005. Three-week cage treatments of artificially infested soybean plants in 2004 showed that noncaged plants had fewer soybean aphids than caged plants, but abundance of soybean aphid did not differ among open cages and ones that provided partial or total exclusion of natural enemies. In 2005, plants within open cages had fewer soybean aphids than those within cages that excluded natural enemies, and aphid density on open-cage plants did not differ from that on noncaged plants and those accessible by small predators. In a separate 3-yr experiment, exclusion of ants from soybean plants did not lead to differences in soybean aphid density compared with ant-accessible plants. Overall, these results suggest that the soybean aphid natural enemy guild is unsaturated and could be enhanced to improve biological control of soybean aphid in South Dakota.
Gender difference in clinicopathologic features and survival of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma.

AIM To determine the influence of gender on the clinicopathologic characteristics and survival of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). METHODS A retrospective analysis of medical records was performed in 299 patients with HCC and their clinicopathologic features and survival were compared in relation to gender. RESULTS There were 260 male (87%) and 39 female patients (13%), with a male-to-female ratio of 6.7:1. Female patients had lower mean serum bilirubin levels (P=0.03), lower proportion of alcohol abuse (P=0.002), smaller mean tumor size (P=0.02), more frequent nodular type but less frequent massive and diffuse types of HCC (P=0.01), were less advanced in Okuda's staging (P=0.04), and less frequently associated with venous invasion (P=0.03). The median survivals in females (14 mo) were significantly longer than that of male patients (4 mo) (P=0.004, log-rank test). Multivariate analysis demonstrated that high serum alpha-fetoprotein levels, venous invasion, extrahepatic metastasis and lack of therapy were independent factors related to unfavorable prognosis. However, gender did not constitute a predictive variable associated with patient survival. CONCLUSION Female patients tend to have higher survival rates than males. These differences were probably due to more favorable pathologic features of HCC at initial diagnosis and greater likelihood to undergo curative therapy in female patients.
The use of interdisciplinary seminars for the development of caring dispositions in nursing and social work students.

AIM This paper is a report of a study to evaluate the influence of interdisciplinary seminars for undergraduate nursing and social work students on development of their understanding of the meaning of caring. BACKGROUND There is growing international interest in interprofessional education, which is believed to have the potential to improve patient care. If interprofessional education and subsequent collaboration are truly to be patient-centred, it is important to identify a value base which creates a healthcare professional identity that facilitates collaboration. Caring, as a humanistic value, is found in both nursing and social work professionals. METHOD A mixed method approach, primarily qualitative but with a quantitative component, was chosen for evaluation of the interprofessional seminars. The data were collected between 2007-2008 by videotape recordings of the sessions, follow-up telephone interviews and a questionnaire. FINDINGS There was cultivation in the nursing students of a deeper understanding of caring based on openness and a non-judgmental approach, learned from their social work counterparts. Reciprocally, social work students learned about the nursing students' daily activities as they observed the natural process of trust and communication in the context of caring. CONCLUSION Enhanced understanding of caring in practice is not possible via learning through a uni-professional approach. Students' reflections and dialogue enable their development of relation-centred caring, particularly in the realm of biomedical and technical environments.
Identification of an Emerging Pathogen, Mycobacterium massiliense, by rpoB Sequencing of Clinical Isolates Collected in the United States

ABSTRACT Mycobacterium massiliense is a rapidly growing mycobacterium that is indistinguishable from Mycobacterium chelonae/M. abscessus by partial 16S rRNA gene sequencing. We sequenced rpoB, sodA, and hsp65 genes from isolates previously identified as being M. chelonae/M. abscessus and identified M. massiliense from isolates from two patients with invasive disease representing the first reported cases in the United States.
Detection and characterization of multiple forms of simian virus 40 large T antigen

Subclasses of simian virus 40 large T antigen in simian virus 40-transformed and -infected cells separated by zone velocity sedimentation in sucrose density gradients have been characterized. Three forms of large T antigen were distinguished: a 5 to 6S form, a 14 to 16S form, and a 23 to 25S form. These forms appeared to differ biochemically and biologically. Differential labeling experiments suggested that the 5 to 6S form was less highly phosphorylated than the faster-sedimenting forms. The 23 to 25S form which was complexed with one or more host phosphoproteins, as reported recently (D. P. Lane and L. V. Crawford Nature [London] 268:261-263, 1979; F. McCormick and E. Harlow, J. Virol. 34: 213-224, 1980), was prominent in extracts of transformed cells, but was also detected in productively infected cells. Pulse-chase experiments suggested that the 5 to 6S large T antigen is a precursor of the more stable, faster-sedimenting forms of T antigen. Monkey cells infected with a tsA mutant of simian virus 40 at 41 degrees C contained only 5 to 6S large T antigen, implying that this form is not active in the initiation of simian virus 40 DNA replication. In pulse-chase, shift-down experiments, DNA replication resumed, and the 5 to 6S large T antigen which had accumulated at 41 degrees C was partially converted at 33 degrees C to a fast-sedimenting form. However, shift-up experiments demonstrated that the fast-sedimenting large T antigen, once formed, remained stable at 41 degrees C, although it was unable to function in initiation. These experiments suggest that different biological functions of large T antigen may be carried out by different subclasses of this protein.
Comparison of lifestyle and health among Danish nurses and the Danish female population: is it possible to generalize findings from nurses to the general female population?

AIMS To generalize findings from a nursing population to the general female population, the aim of this study was to compare lifestyle and health among Danish female nurses with that among Danish women. Furthermore, the aim was to compare lifestyle and health among Danish female nurses with women belonging to the same socio-economic group as nurses. METHODS Danish females above the age of 44 in 1999 (n = 22,715) were compared with a group of women from the Danish Health and Morbidity Survey conducted in 2000 (n = 4,445). Age standardized risk ratios (SRR) with 95% confidence intervals were calculated to compare the two groups. RESULTS Nurses smoke less (SRR 0.74, CI: 0.70-0.78) and are more physically active (SRR 2.53, CI: 2.31-2.77) when compared with the general female population. A higher percentage of nurses consume five drinks or more on a weekday compared with the general female population (SRR 2.68, CI: 2.25-3.19). When comparing nurses with women belonging to the same socio-economic group, these differences are also found to be statistically significant, but no differences are found according to overweight/obesity, self-reported health and limitations in daily activities when nurses are compared with women belonging to the same socio-economic group. CONCLUSIONS In general, Danish nurses have a healthier lifestyle than other Danish women. In future studies, differences and similarities in lifestyle and health between nurses and other women should be considered when generalizing findings from Danish nurses to the Danish female population.
Psychiatric disorders and treatment in low-income pregnant women.

AIMS This study estimated the prevalence of twenty-two 12-month and lifetime psychiatric disorders in a sample of 744 low-income pregnant women and the frequency that women with psychiatric disorders received treatment. METHOD To identify psychiatric disorders, the Diagnostic Interview Schedule (DIS) was administered to Medicaid or Medicaid-eligible pregnant women enrolled in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC). The sample was stratified by the rural or urban location of the WIC sites in southeastern Missouri and the city of St. Louis. Eligible women were enrolled at each site until their numbers were proportional to the racial distribution of African American and Caucasian pregnant women served there. RESULTS The 12-month prevalence of one or more psychiatric disorders was 30.9%. Most common were affective disorders (13.6%), particularly major depressive disorder (8.2%) and bipolar I disorder (5.2%). Only 24.3% of those with a psychiatric disorder reported that they received treatment in the past year. Lifetime prevalence of at least one disorder was 45.6%, with affective disorders being the most frequent (23.5%). Caucasian women were more likely than African Americans to have at least one 12-month disorder, with the difference largely accounted for by nicotine dependence. Higher prevalence of lifetime disorders was also found in Caucasian women, particularly affective disorders and substance use disorders. There were no differences in the prevalence of 12-month or lifetime psychiatric disorders by the urban or rural residence of subjects. CONCLUSIONS With nearly one third of pregnant women meeting criteria for a 12-month psychiatric disorder and only one fourth receiving any type of mental health treatment, comprehensive psychiatric screening during pregnancy is needed along with appropriate treatment.
Flight stabilization control of a hovering model insect

SUMMARY The longitudinal stabilization control of a hovering model insect was studied using the method of computational fluid dynamics to compute the stability and control derivatives, and the techniques of eigenvalue and eigenvector analysis and modal decomposition, for solving the equations of motion (morphological and certain kinematical data of hoverflies were used for the model insect). The model insect has the same three natural modes of motion as those reported recently for a hovering bumblebee: one unstable oscillatory mode, one stable fast subsidence mode and one stable slow subsidence mode. Controllability analysis shows that although unstable, the flight is controllable. For stable hovering, the unstable oscillatory mode needs to be stabilized and the slow subsidence mode needs stability augmentation. The former can be accomplished by feeding back pitch attitude, pitch rate and horizontal velocity to produce \batchmode \documentclass[fleqn,10pt,legalpaper]{article} \usepackage{amssymb} \usepackage{amsfonts} \usepackage{amsmath} \pagestyle{empty} \begin{document} \({\delta}{\bar{{\phi}}}\) \end{document} orδα 2; the latter by feeding back vertical velocity to produce δΦ or δα1 (δΦ, \batchmode \documentclass[fleqn,10pt,legalpaper]{article} \usepackage{amssymb} \usepackage{amsfonts} \usepackage{amsmath} \pagestyle{empty} \begin{document} \({\delta}{\bar{{\phi}}}\) \end{document}, δα1 and δα2 denote control inputs: δΦ and \batchmode \documentclass[fleqn,10pt,legalpaper]{article} \usepackage{amssymb} \usepackage{amsfonts} \usepackage{amsmath} \pagestyle{empty} \begin{document} \({\delta}{\bar{{\phi}}}\) \end{document} represent changes in stroke amplitude and mean stroke angle, respectively; δα1 represents an equal change whilst δα2 a differential change in the geometrical angles of attack of the downstroke and upstroke).
Stool patterns of Malaysian adults with functional constipation: association with diet and physical activity.

INTRODUCTION Diet and lifestyle modification is commonly used in constipation management. As there is a dearth of studies on this topic in Malaysia, we aim to elucidate the relations between stool patterns, dietary intake and physical activity levels among adults with functional constipation. METHODS From a database collected via surveys at public events, a convenience sample of 100 adults diagnosed with Rome II-defined functional constipation was enrolled in this cross-sectional study. After severity assessment using the Chinese Constipation Questionnaire, subjects completed 2-week bowel movement diaries to determine stool frequency, consistency and output. Dietary intake and physical activity levels were assessed twice using three-day 24-hour diet recalls and International Physical Activity Questionnaire, respectively. Ninety subjects who completed the study were included in the analysis. RESULTS Mean weekly stool frequency was 3.9 +/- 1.9 times, consistency score was 2.6 +/- 0.6 (range 1.0-4.0), output was 11.0 +/- 6.3 balls (40 mm diameter) and severity score was 10.3 +/- 3.3 (range 5.0-22.0). Mean daily dietary intakes were: energy 1,719 +/- 427kcal, dietary fibre 15.0 +/- 4.9g and fluid 2.5 +/- 0.8L. The majority of subjects were physically inactive. Stool frequency and output were positively associated with dietary fibre (r(s) = 0.278, P < 0.01; r(s) = 0.226, P < 0.05) and fluid intake (r(s) = 0.257, P < 0.05; OR = 3.571, 95% CI [1.202-10.609]). Constipation severity was associated with higher physical activity levels (OR = 2.467, 95% CI [1.054-5.777]). CONCLUSION Insufficient intake of dietary fibre and fluid are associated with aggravated constipation symptoms. Further studies are necessary to confirm usefulness of dietary intervention in treatment of constipation as dietary factors alone may not influence overall severity and stool consistency, an integral element of constipation.
Enhancing Extension Programs by Discussing Water Conservation Technology Adoption with Growers

Nursery growers are one of the largest agricultural users of water. Researchers have been developing new water treatment techniques and technologies for nursery growers to assist in preserving this precious resource, yet adoption within the industry has been limited. Extension professionals need to work closely with nursery growers to encourage adoption but the enablers and barriers are largely unidentified in the literature. Twenty-four interviews were conducted with nursery growers nationwide to identify the barriers and enablers to adoption in an effort to provide recommendations for improved extension programming with this audience. The findings revealed nursery growers have a positive attitude towards water conservation but the financial cost of replacing equipment keeps them from adopting. In addition, nursery growers perceive new technologies to be complex and difficult to understand and implement. Extension professionals can leverage this positive attitude and use social norms to assist in overcoming some of the barriers. Using case studies as examples of success stories, partnering with researchers to develop easy to use instructions and integration tools that could be offered online, and assisting growers in connecting with agricultural economists to conduct cost/benefit analysis associated with adoption are a few of the recommendations offered.
The value of geriatric assessments in predicting treatment tolerance and all-cause mortality in older patients with cancer.

BACKGROUND Awareness of the use of geriatric assessments for older patients with cancer is increasing. The aim of this review is to summarize all available evidence on the association between geriatric assessments and relevant oncologic outcomes. METHOD A systematic search was conducted in Medline and Embase of studies on geriatric assessment in oncology, focusing on the association between baseline assessment and outcome. RESULTS The literature search identified 2008 reports; 51 publications from 37 studies were selected for inclusion in the review. The quality of studies was heterogeneous and generally poor. A median of five geriatric conditions were assessed per study (interquartile range: 4-8). Little consistency was found in the results of the studies. Furthermore, different tools appear to be predictive depending on the outcome measure: frailty, nutritional status, and comorbidity assessed by the Cumulative Illness Rating Scale for Geriatrics were predictive for all-cause mortality; frailty was predictive for toxicity of chemotherapy; cognitive impairment and activities of daily living impairment were predictive for chemotherapy completion; and instrumental activities of daily living impairment was predictive for perioperative complications. CONCLUSION Although various geriatric conditions appear to be of some value in predicting outcome in elderly patients with cancer, the results are too inconsistent to guide treatment decisions. Further research is needed to elucidate the role of geriatric assessments in the oncologic decision-making process for these patients.