Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Endoscopic versus the Traditional Approach in Pituitary Surgery

The transsphenoidal route is the most widely used technique for pituitary adenoma surgery due to its rapidity, good tolerance, effectiveness and low complication rate. These are the parameters we utilized in comparing endoscopic with microscopic transsphenoidal surgery. We reviewed the medical records of 418 patients affected by pituitary adenomas who underwent endoscopic transsphenoidal surgery between May 1998 and December 2004, and in this paper, we present the results of 381 patients who fulfilled the follow-up criteria after a minimum period of 15 months. Our experience confirms the previous data on the rapidity and satisfactory tolerance of the endoscopic procedure. We also confirm the low complication rate, specifying that complications characteristic of the approaching phase were certainly reduced; instead, complications characteristic of tumor removal still remained similar to those reported in the microsurgical literature. The results were comparable with those of the best microsurgical series regarding endosellar lesions, but tumor removal was notably superior when dealing with tumors having an extrasellar extension. The improvement may be explained by the excellent vision of the deep surgical fields due to the endoscope and by the extreme flexibility of the surgical trajectory, mainly due to the absence of the divaricator, giving access to the ramifications of the tumor, otherwise difficult to reach.
β-Lactamase Gene Expression in a Penicillin-Resistant Bacillus anthracis Strain

ABSTRACT Expression of the bla1 and bla2 genes in an archetypal Bacillus anthracis strain is insufficient for penicillin resistance. In a penicillin-resistant clinical isolate, both genes are highly transcribed, but bla1 is the major contributor to high-level resistance to ampicillin. Differential expression of the bla genes is dependent upon strain background.
Breast Cancer-Related Lymphedema: A Randomized Controlled Pilot and Feasibility Study

ObjectiveChronic lymphedema occurs frequently in breast cancer patients and is associated with significant morbidity and reduced quality-of-life. In this pilot study, the authors (1) addressed whether conducting a larger randomized controlled trial of aqua lymphatic therapy (ALT) would be feasible and (2) estimated the extent to which ALT combined with home-based exercise compared with home-based exercise alone would reduce arm disability in patients with breast cancer–related lymphedema. DesignTwenty-five women with breast cancer–related lymphedema were randomized to either ALT in addition to a home land-based exercise program (ALT group; n = 13) or to a home land-based exercise program alone (control group; n = 12). The participants were evaluated before and after a 12-wk intervention period composed of weekly pool exercise sessions. Main outcome measures were arm volume, arm disability, pain, and quality-of-life. ResultsAt follow-up, there was no statistical difference between the control and ALT groups in any of the outcomes, except for present pain intensity. At the end of the study period, there was no change in the lymphedematous limb volume in either group. Grip strength was improved in both groups. Only the ALT group showed a statistically significant difference with a reduction in pain intensity score and arm disability. Furthermore, quality-of-life significantly improved only in the ALT group. ConclusionsConducting a larger randomized controlled trial would be feasible. In comparison with the beginning of the intervention, the participants in the ALT group showed significant beneficial changes after 12 wks of treatment, whereas the control group did not improve. ALT did not make the lymphedema volume worse and therefore may serve as a safe alternative to land-based treatments of breast cancer–related lymphedema.
Prevalence of high‐risk human papilloma virus types and its association with P53 codon 72 polymorphism in tobacco addicted oral squamous cell carcinoma (oscc) patients of Eastern India

Human papillomavirus (HPV) infects the squamous epithelial cells of oral cavity and cervix leading to formation of warts that develops into the cancer. Human papillomavirus (HPV)‐16 and 18 encode E6 oncoprotein, which binds to and induces degradation of the tumour suppressor protein p53. A common polymorphism of p53, encoding either proline (Pro) or arginine (Arg) at position 72, affects the susceptibility of p53 to E6 mediated degradation in vivo. Oral cancer is a pressing problem in India due to the widespread habit of chewing betel quid, which plays an important role in etiology of this disease. In the present study an attempt has been made to analyze the genetic predisposition of the Indian population to HPV infection and oral carcinogenesis. In our study a total of 110 cases of Oral Cancer highly addicted to betel quid and tobacco chewing are analyzed for HPV 16/18 infection and its association with polymorphism at p53 codon 72. Of these a total number of 37 patients (33.6%) have shown the presence of HPV, among which the presence of HPV‐16, 18 and 16/18 coinfection is 22.7%, 14.5% and 10%, respectively. Our results also indicate that the p53 codon 72 genotype frequencies in Indian Oral Cancer patients are 0.55 (Arg) and 0.45 (Pro) as per Hardy‐Weinberg equilibrium. In our study, striking reduction in Pro/Pro allele frequency has been found in HPV positive cases, indicating Arg/Arg genotype to be more susceptible to HPV infection and oral carcinogenesis. © 2001 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Personal beliefs about learning and teaching: comparison of student teachers in the sciences and humanities at different stages of their studies

The present project deals with teachers' beliefs as implicit, steady assumptions about learning and teaching and especially with 'participation', as the least investigated. This exploratory study analyzes (1) the representation of beliefs regarding 'participation' in student teachers' views, the impact (2) of the stage of their studies, and (3) of their discipline studied on the beliefs. Student teachers were interviewed regarding their views on learning and teaching (N = 30). The content analysis shows different multifaceted beliefs. The results reveal an alteration in the beliefs during the studies: At the beginning there is a 'transmissive-emotional' focusing which changes progressively to a more cognitive focus including 'construction' and 'participation', and still 'transmission'. Furthermore, the internal structure of 'participation' in the views of the interviewees does not correspond with the theoretical concept. On the basis of these results the possibility of developing a questionnaire for closer investigation of 'participation' is being discussed.
Impairment of neutrophil antifungal activity against hyphae of Aspergillus fumigatus in children infected with human immunodeficiency virus.

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected patients may acquire invasive aspergillosis without previously recognized risk factors, such as neutropenia or corticosteroid therapy. Because neutrophils (PMNL) are an important component of host defense in aspergillosis, the antifungal activity of PMNL against hyphae of Aspergillus fumigatus in 31 HIV-infected children was assessed. Hyphal damage was unaffected in 15 HIV-infected children with age-adjusted CD4 cell counts > or = 25% of the normal median value; it was decreased in 16 with CD4 cell counts < 25% (both vs. 20 healthy controls, P = .001. Incubation with sera from 12 of 14 HIV-infected children but not with the recombinant HIV proteins gp120, gp41, and p24 suppressed antifungal activity of normal PMNL compared with normal serum (P = .002). Pretreatment of defective PMNL from 5 patients with granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) partially corrected the defect (P = .002). These findings suggest that impaired serum-mediated antifungal activity against Aspergillus hyphae exists in PMNL of HIV-infected patients with low CD4 cell counts; G-CSF may improve this activity.
Feeding Releases Endogenous Opioids in Humans

The endogenous opioid system supports a multitude of functions related to appetitive behavior in humans and animals, and it has been proposed to govern hedonic aspects of feeding thus contributing to the development of obesity. Here we used positron emission tomography to investigate whether feeding results in hedonia-dependent endogenous opioid release in humans. Ten healthy males were recruited for the study. They were scanned with the μ-opioid-specific ligand [11C]carfentanil three times, as follows: after a palatable meal, a nonpalatable meal, and after an overnight fast. Subjective mood, satiety, and circulating hormone levels were measured. Feeding induced significant endogenous opioid release throughout the brain. This response was more pronounced following a nonpalatable meal versus a palatable meal, and independent of the subjective hedonic responses to feeding. We conclude that feeding consistently triggers cerebral opioid release even in the absence of subjective pleasure associated with feeding, suggesting that metabolic and homeostatic rather than exclusively hedonic responses play a role in the feeding-triggered cerebral opioid release. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT The endogenous opioid system supports both hedonic and homeostatic functions. It has been proposed that overeating and concomitant opioid release could downregulate opioid receptors and promote the development of obesity. However, it remains unresolved whether feeding leads to endogenous opioid release in humans. We used in vivo positron emission tomography to test whether feeding triggers cerebral opioid release and whether this response is associated with pleasurable sensations. We scanned volunteers using the μ-opioid receptor-specific radioligand [11C]carfentanil three times, as follows: after an overnight fast, after consuming a palatable meal, and after consuming a nonpalatable meal. Feeding led to significant endogenous opioid release, and this occurred also in the absence of feeding-triggered hedonia. Feeding-triggered opioid release thus also reflects metabolic and homeostatic responses rather than hedonic responses exclusively.
Identification of Ras, MAP kinases, and a GAP protein in Schistosoma mansoni by immunoblotting and their putative involvement in male–female interaction

The maturation of female Schistosoma mansoni depends on pairing with a male which induces mitotic activities in the reproductive organs of the female worm. Since in other organisms cell proliferation is regulated by well-conserved signal transducing molecules, we looked for such molecules on immunoblots of schistosomes, using antibodies against conserved epitopes of Ras, GAP and MAP kinases. We identified all 3 molecules in schistosomes and found that they are developmentally regulated. Furthermore, there is evidence for their involvement in the male-directed maturation of the female.
A profile of dengue cases admitted to a tertiary care hospital in Karnataka, southern India

During the past two decades, epidemics of dengue fever have been causing concern in several South-East Asian countries, including India. A study was conducted in a tertiary care hospital situated in Southern India to determine the trends and outcome of dengue cases. There was a steady rise in number of cases from 2002 to 2007, with the largest number of cases seen in 2007. Most cases were observed in the post-monsoon season in the month of September. Out of a total of 344 cases, 285 (82.8%) patients had dengue fever, 34 (9.8%) had dengue haemorrhagic fever and 25 (7.3%) had dengue shock syndrome. Deaths were reported in nine cases, with the majority of deaths occuring in 2003. The disease control programme should emphasise on vector surveillance, integrated vector control, emergency response, early clinical diagnosis and appropriate management of the cases.
Moss Rooms and Hell Holes: the landscape of the Leyland Dispute Maps, 1571–1599

ABSTRACT Large-scale local maps are rare before the eighteenth century, so for one small district in the north-west of England to have seven such maps dating from the end of the sixteenth century is remarkable. These maps were produced in connection with land disputes heard before the Court of the Duchy of Lancaster and depict a mossland landscape where the absence of natural boundary markers, and a history as an intercommon rather than in single ownership, readily led to disputes between notably litigious neighbouring resident landlords; while the hearing of the cases in Westminster, rather than before local juries, generated the need for the maps themselves, to help the court understand this unfamiliar landscape. By definition single-purpose ephemeral objects, the maps nevertheless often contained more information than was strictly necessary for the case in hand and so were sometimes brought forward by the courts or copied by the litigants for reuse in later suits. The maps today can be regarded as texts which throw considerable light on, and help us to reconstruct, a lost landscape of living sphagnum moss, peat diggings and seasonal grazings, which at the time was regarded as typifying Lancashire but which has since entirely disappeared from the county, and indeed from England as a whole.The maps restore to us a district name, Wymott, lost since the seventeenth century; and they capture a landscape in transition, as the thinner peats were becoming exhausted and as much of the district was becoming enclosed, drained and converted to farmland.
A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group study of methylphenidate transdermal system in pediatric patients with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the efficacy and safety of methylphenidate transdermal system compared with placebo, using osmotic-release oral system (OROS) methylphenidate as a reference therapy. METHOD We conducted a 7-week, randomized, double-blind, double-dummy, placebo-controlled trial in children diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder by DSM-IV-TR criteria, within a community setting. The study was conducted from August 2004 to February 2005. Participants were randomly assigned to 1 of 3 treatments: methylphenidate transdermal system patch plus placebo capsule (N = 100), OROS methylphenidate capsule plus placebo patch (N = 94), or placebo capsule plus placebo patch (N = 88). Over 5 weeks, once-daily doses were optimized using 10-, 15-, 20-, and 30-mg methylphenidate transdermal system patches (9-hour wear time) or 18-, 27-, 36-, and 54-mg OROS methylphenidate capsules. Thereafter, optimal treatment doses were maintained for 2 weeks with blinded ratings of attention, behavior, and academic performance occurring at the end of each week. The primary efficacy measure was the clinician-rated ADHD Rating Scale-Version IV (ADHD-RS-IV). Additional measures included teacher, parent, and other clinician rating scales. Safety and tolerability were assessed throughout the study. RESULTS The mean change from baseline in ADHD-RS-IV scores was greater for participants receiving methylphenidate transdermal system and OROS methylphenidate treatments compared with placebo (p < .0001). Similar results were observed for parent and teacher rating scales. More participants receiving active treatments compared with placebo were rated as improved by clinicians and parents (p < .0001). Adverse events were generally mild or moderate in intensity, and the most common included decreased appetite, nausea, vomiting, and insomnia. CONCLUSIONS The results of this study suggest that the methylphenidate transdermal system is an efficacious treatment option for children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. TRIAL REGISTRATION clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00444574.
Relationship Between Endurance Field Tests and Match Performance in Young Soccer Players

Castagna, C, Manzi, V, Impellizzeri, F, Weston, M, and Barbero Alvarez, JC. Relationship between endurance field tests and match performance in young soccer players. J Strength Cond Res 24(12): 3227-3233, 2010-The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between popular endurance field tests and physical match performance in elite male youth soccer players. Eighteen young male soccer players (age 14.4 ± 0.1 years, height 1.67 ± 4.8 cm, body mass 53.6 ± 1.8 kg) were randomly chosen among a population of elite-level soccer players. Players were observed during international championship games of the corresponding age categories and randomly submitted to the level 1 of the Yo-Yo intermittent recovery test (Yo-Yo IR1), the Multistage Fitness Test (MSFT), and the Hoff test on separate occasions. Physical and physiological match demands were assessed using Global Positioning System technology and short-range telemetry (GPS Elite, Canberra, Australia), respectively. Players covered 6,087 ± 582 m (5,098-7,019 m) of which 15% (930 ± 362 m; 442-1,513) were performed as a high-intensity activity. During the first and second halves, players attained 86.8 ± 6.5 and 85.8 ± 5.8% of maximum heart rate (HRmax; p = 0.17) with peak HRs of 100 ± 2 and 99.4 ± 3.2% of HRmax, respectively. Players' Yo-Yo IR1 and MSFT performance were significantly related (r = 0.62-0.76) to a number of match physical activities. However, the Hoff test was only significantly related with sprint distance (r = 0.70, p = 0.04). The Yo-Yo IR1 showed a very large association with MSFT performance (r = 0.89, p < 0.0001). The results of this study showed that the Yo-Yo IR1 and MSFT may be regarded as valuable tests to assess match fitness and subsequently guide training prescription in youth soccer players. The very strong relationship between Yo-Yo IR1 and MSFT suggests their use according to the period of the season and the aerobic fitness level of the players. Because of the association of the Yo-Yo IR1 and MSFT with match physical performances, these tests should be considered in talent selection and development of players.
Brief smoking cessation interventions by family physicians in northwestern Ontario rural hospitals.

INTRODUCTION We report on physicians' beliefs, confidence and clinical practice relative to the provision of smoking cessation interventions in northwestern (NW) Ontario, where tobacco use and tobacco-related disease prevalence are high and smoking cessation services are scarce. METHODS Physicians working at the 12 rural hospitals in NW Ontario were eligible for inclusion in the study. Survey items included clinical practices based on the "5 A's" protocol for tobacco intervention, and beliefs about, confidence in, and barriers and facilitators to intervention. RESULTS Physicians from 8 of the 12 hospitals responded. Almost all (> 91%) reported positive beliefs about providing smoking cessation interventions and were confident intervening. Relative to the 5 A's protocol for tobacco intervention, 100% of respondents ask, advise, assess and assist patients to quit smoking, and 89% arrange follow-up. The most frequent methods of assistance included pharmacotherapy, suggestions of specific actions to make it easier to quit and recommendations for alternatives to tobacco use. The most frequent barrier to intervenion was lack of time. DISCUSSION Based on respondents' positive beliefs, confidence and current clinical practice relative to tobacco interventions, physicians in NW Ontario seem well positioned to play a key role in helping to reduce the high rates of tobacco use and tobacco-related diseases by providing smoking cessation interventions to patients who have been admitted to hospital.
Late Onset Involuntary Movements in Chronic Schizophrenia: Relationship of ‘Tardive’ Dyskinesia to Intellectual Impairment and Negative Symptoms

Intellectual impairment, negative symptoms, and medication history were assessed in chronic schizophrenic patients with and without abnormal involuntary movements (tardive dyskinesia). Patients with involuntary movements had received neither longer nor more intensive treatment with neuroleptics or anticholinergics. However, the presence or absence of involuntary movements was prominently associated with the presence or absence of intellectual impairment/negative symptoms; these features are characteristic of the defect state/type II syndrome of schizophrenia, in which structural abnormalities of the brain may be over-represented. The role of subtle organic changes in conferring vulnerability to the emergence of such involuntary movements should be re-evaluated.
Molecular and physiological manifestations and measurement of aging in humans

Biological aging is associated with a reduction in the reparative and regenerative potential in tissues and organs. This reduction manifests as a decreased physiological reserve in response to stress (termed homeostenosis) and a time‐dependent failure of complex molecular mechanisms that cumulatively create disorder. Aging inevitably occurs with time in all organisms and emerges on a molecular, cellular, organ, and organismal level with genetic, epigenetic, and environmental modulators. Individuals with the same chronological age exhibit differential trajectories of age‐related decline, and it follows that we should assess biological age distinctly from chronological age. In this review, we outline mechanisms of aging with attention to well‐described molecular and cellular hallmarks and discuss physiological changes of aging at the organ‐system level. We suggest methods to measure aging with attention to both molecular biology (e.g., telomere length and epigenetic marks) and physiological function (e.g., lung function and echocardiographic measurements). Finally, we propose a framework to integrate these molecular and physiological data into a composite score that measures biological aging in humans. Understanding the molecular and physiological phenomena that drive the complex and multifactorial processes underlying the variable pace of biological aging in humans will inform how researchers assess and investigate health and disease over the life course. This composite biological age score could be of use to researchers seeking to characterize normal, accelerated, and exceptionally successful aging as well as to assess the effect of interventions aimed at modulating human aging.
Simplified method for recovery and PCR detection of Cryptosporidium DNA from bovine feces

An assay to identify Cryptosporidium DNA in bovine feces has been developed emphasizing standardization of sample preparation and simplification of the DNA recovery process for PCR amplification and DNA hybridization detection. The Cryptosporidium DNA recovery-PCR detection procedure (CR-PCR) can recover DNA suitable for PCR amplification without using or generating hazardous chemicals or wastes. In comparisons with a commercial enzyme-linked immunoassay (Color Vue-Cryptosporidium; Seradyn, Indianapolis, Ind.), the CR-PCR could detect 10(3) to 10(4) times fewer purified oocysts diluted in solution (water or buffered saline) and 10(2) times fewer oocysts from diarrheic feces and showed earlier detectability from solid, nondiarrheic feces in an experimental infection. This assay may prove useful for detecting Cryptosporidium oocysts in feces and in clarifying the role of livestock in waterborne outbreaks of cryptosporidiosis.