Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Predictors of Stability and Change in Private Safety Nets of Unmarried Mothers

ABSTRACT Although the importance of social supports for single mothers in times of crisis is widely recognized, little is known about the stability of such “private safety nets” over time, as children age and maternal and household characteristics change. This study uses multilevel models and four waves of data from the Fragile Families and Child Well-Being Study to describe trajectories of social support perceptions for 3,065 unmarried mothers. Results suggest that following a birth, most unmarried mothers perceived the availability of support, but these support perceptions disintegrated somewhat in subsequent years. Mothers who appeared to have the greatest need for support—those without stable employment or a stable partner—experienced more rapid deterioration of their perceived safety nets than did more advantaged mothers. Future research should examine network composition and conditions for support provision among the most vulnerable single mothers and should consider how safety-net stability influences maternal and child health and well-being.
Childhood Economic Resources, Academic Performance, and the Choice to Leave School at Age Sixteen *

This paper uses a recent panel data set from New Zealand to examine the link between academic performance and the decision of teenagers to leave school. These choices have significant lifetime economic impacts, since early school leaving in many cases closes pathways to further education. We address the potential endogeneity and error correlation of academic performance and later school-leaving choices. The results show that schooling decisions largely represent personal choice, and that they are influenced by factors that are at work for a long period of time. Personal ability, parental education and income during early and later childhood years influence the demand for education, exerting their influence directly and through academic performance. These results point to the role that academic performance could play in breaking cycles of disadvantage.
Activity patterns and foraging behaviour of Audouin's gulls in the Ebro Delta, NW Mediterranean

SUMMARY: Twenty Audouin’s gulls, Larus audouinii, breeding in the Ebro Delta (NW Mediterranean) were radio-tracked in 1998 to study their foraging behaviour and activity patterns. Some detrimental effects of tagging on the breeding success of the birds were detected, especially when both members of the pair were tagged. The results were actually constrained by the low number of locations due to natural breeding failure and failure in tag emission, as well as the adverse effect of tagging. However, through a combination of aircraft surveys at sea and a fixed station for automatic tracking of the presence of the birds at the colony, novel individual-based information of home ranges and activity patterns was obtained. Trawler fishing activity seemed to influence both the foraging range and habitat use: while trawlers operated, gulls overlapped their fishing grounds with vessels, probably to scavenge on discards. Very few locations were obtained during a trawling moratorium period, although they were all recorded in coastal bays and terrestrial habitats. During the trawling activity period, gulls ranged over a minimum convex polygon area of 2900 km2. Gulls were tracked up to 40 km from the colony, but some individuals were observed beyond 150 km while still breeding. Arrivals and departures from the colony were in accordance with the trawling timetable. However, most birds also showed some nocturnal foraging activity, probably linked to active fishing of clupeoids (following diel migrations) or to the exploitation of purse-seine fishing activity. Foraging trips lasted on average 15 hours: males performed significantly shorter trips than females, which spent more time outside the colony. The proportion of nocturnal time involved in the foraging trips was the same for males and females, but whilst all males initiated their trips both during the day and at night, some females only initiated their trips during the day. Hatching success was found to be related to foraging effort by males. Gulls spent on average ca. 38% of their time budget outside the nesting territory, representing the time devoted mainly to flying, foraging and other activities.
Integration of the BALB/c ecotropic provirus into the colony-stimulating factor-1 growth factor locus in a myc retrovirus-induced murine monocyte tumor

The development of tumors is thought to be a multistage process that requires an unknown number of genetic or epigenetic changes in a single cell. We previously described a murine monocyte tumor which was induced by a helper-free c-myc retrovirus and which also contained a DNA rearrangement at the colony-stimulating factor-1 (CSF-1) locus. The CSF-1 gene rearrangement gave rise to high levels of growth factor production and autocrine growth, implicating this secondary event in tumorigenesis. This CSF-1 gene rearrangement was found to be the result of integration of the BALB/c ecotropic retrovirus. Restriction enzyme mapping and DNA sequence analysis demonstrated that the novel provirus is identical to the BALB/c endogenous ecotropic provirus, indicating that infection was probably not due to the creation of a recombinant virus in vivo. The proviral integration site was mapped 3 kilobases 5' of the CSF-1 promoter and in an opposite transcriptional orientation, indicating that activation of CSF-1 expression was the result of the presence of the retroviral enhancer element.
Meta-analyses of therapies for postmenopausal osteoporosis. VII. Meta-analysis of calcium supplementation for the prevention of postmenopausal osteoporosis.

OBJECTIVE To summarize controlled trials examining the effect of calcium on bone density and fractures in postmenopausal women. DATA SOURCE We searched MEDLINE and EMBASE up to 1998 and the Cochrane Controlled Register up to 2000, and we examined citations of relevant articles and proceedings of international meetings. We contacted osteoporosis investigators to identify additional studies, and primary authors for unpublished data. STUDY SELECTION We included 15 trials (1806 patients) that randomized postmenopausal women to calcium supplementation or usual calcium intake in the diet and reported bone mineral density of the total body, vertebral spine, hip, or forearm, or recorded the number of fractures, and followed patients for at least 1 yr. DATA EXTRACTION For each trial, three independent reviewers assessed the methodological quality and extracted data. DATA SYNTHESIS We found calcium to be more effective than placebo in reducing rates of bone loss after two or more years of treatment. The pooled difference in percentage change from baseline was 2.05% [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.24-3.86] for total body bone density, 1.66% (95% CI 0.92-2.39) for the lumbar spine, 1.64% (95% CI 0.70-2.57) for the hip, and 1.91% (95% CI 0.33-3.50) for the distal radius. The relative risk (RR) of fractures of the vertebrae was 0.77, with a wide CI (95% CI 0.54-1.09); the RR for nonvertebral fractures was 0.86 (95% CI 0.43-1.72). CONCLUSIONS Calcium supplementation alone has a small positive effect on bone density. The data show a trend toward reduction in vertebral fractures, but do not meaningfully address the possible effect of calcium on reducing the incidence of nonvertebral fractures.
Dynamics and Innovations within Oomycete Genomes: Insights into Biology, Pathology, and Evolution

ABSTRACT The eukaryotic microbes known as oomycetes are common inhabitants of terrestrial and aquatic environments and include saprophytes and pathogens. Lifestyles of the pathogens extend from biotrophy to necrotrophy, obligate to facultative pathogenesis, and narrow to broad host ranges on plants or animals. Sequencing of several pathogens has revealed striking variation in genome size and content, a plastic set of genes related to pathogenesis, and adaptations associated with obligate biotrophy. Features of genome evolution include repeat-driven expansions, deletions, gene fusions, and horizontal gene transfer in a landscape organized into gene-dense and gene-sparse sectors and influenced by transposable elements. Gene expression profiles are also highly dynamic throughout oomycete life cycles, with transcriptional polymorphisms as well as differences in protein sequence contributing to variation. The genome projects have set the foundation for functional studies and should spur the sequencing of additional species, including more diverse pathogens and nonpathogens.
Temporal trends in the burden of chronic kidney disease in the United States

Purpose of reviewThe public health importance of chronic kidney disease (CKD) has only recently come to be appreciated and careful examination of temporal trends is warranted. The purpose of the present review was to examine existing research on temporal trends for CKD and treated end-stage renal disease (ESRD) in the United States. Recent findingsWhen the broadly representative National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) datasets were compared in 1988–1994 and 1999–2002, a pronounced increase in the prevalence of abnormally low glomerular filtration rate was observed when serum creatinine was used to estimate glomerular filtration rate. In contrast, glomerular filtration rate findings were almost identical when cystatin C levels were examined. Thus, although the community-wide burden of CKD is already high, uncertainty exists as to the growth rate of this problem. For treated ESRD a dramatic increase in incidence rate occurred in the 1980s and 1990s. Changing burdens of standard risk factors for CKD do not readily explain increased rates of treated ESRD, suggesting that selection criteria for dialysis and transplant programs may underlie these secular trends. If the hypothesis that nonbiological factors are major determinants of rates of treated ESRD is valid, the latter may be a poor surrogate for true ESRD and for understanding its causes and rates of progression. SummaryGiven its prevalence and prognostic implications, it makes intuitive sense to monitor the burden of CKD over time; the validity of the tools used to generate an answer, however, is at least as important as the direction of the answer.
Functional heterogeneity of left inferior frontal cortex as revealed by fMRI

USING functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we mapped brain activity in six normal volunteers during two silent verbal fluency tasks, one with a phonemic (letter) cue and one with a semantic (category) cue. In comparison with resting state, both tasks activated the anterior triangular portion of the left inferior frontal gyrus (IFG or F3, for third frontal gyrus) and the left thalamus. There were also areas activated in one task but not in the other: the posterior opercular portion of the left IFG for phonemic fluency, and the left retrosplenial region for semantic fluency. Our findings concur with normal psychophysical data and neuropsychological observations to suggest the recruitment of two overlapping but dissociable systems for the two tasks, and demonstrate functional heterogeneity within the left IFG (Broca's area), where the opercular portion is responsible for obtaining access to words through a phonemic/articulatory route.
REMARKS ON NAIVE SET THEORY BASED ON LP

Abstract Dialetheism is the metaphysical claim that there are true contradictions. And based on this view, Graham Priest and his collaborators have been suggesting solutions to a number of paradoxes. Those paradoxes include Russell’s paradox in naive set theory. For the purpose of dealing with this paradox, Priest is known to have argued against the presence of classical negation in the underlying logic of naive set theory. The aim of the present paper is to challenge this view by showing that there is a way to handle classical negation.
Factors related to the outcome of depression treated with E.C.T.

A group of 49 male patients suffering from severe depressions, have been investigated to determine the factors related to outcome after treatment by E.C. T. By means of a rating scale for assessing the clinical condition, the relationships can be expressed in the form of correlation coefficients. The highest correlations are Length of Illness . 46, Paranoid Symptoms . 32, Weight −. 31, Body-Index . 29, Initial Score on the rating scale . 28. These are all statistically significant, although it has been shown that the correlations under-estimate the relationship. Other correlations of interest (but not significant) are the “Drop” in blood pressure in the Mecholyl test . 26, and the Hobson score . 18. A number of other variables were found to have non significant relationships. They include a family history of mental illness, neurotic traits in childhood, or adult life, psychological or physical precipitation of illness, sudden or gradual onset, fluctuating course, previous attacks, depersonalization, diurnal variation, age and blood pressure. Five variables give a multiple correlation of . 62. The significance of these results and the problems of their interpretation are discussed.
Mismatch negativity: no difference between controls and abstinent alcoholics.

BACKGROUND A number of studies have examined the amplitude of the mismatch negativity (MMN) evoked potential as a measure of a brain inhibitory deficit in alcoholics or those at risk for alcoholism. The current study examined MMN in alcoholics abstinent an average of 6.7 years (with a minimum of six months abstinence) compared to controls. This study examined the association of MMN with alcoholism family history density, with indices of the presence and severity of externalizing disorders (a risk-factor for alcoholism), and with alcohol use variables. METHODS Electroencephalograms were gathered on 76 subjects (38 controls, 38 abstinent alcoholics) during a nonattending mismatch negativity experiment. Measures of alcoholism family history density, disinhibited personality traits, and antisocial symptoms served as measures of risk-factors known to be associated with a genetic liability to alcoholism. Alcohol use variables were used as measures of alcoholism severity. RESULTS There were no differences in MMN amplitude or latency between controls and abstinent alcoholics. There also were no significant associations between MMN measures and the measures of risk for alcoholism or with the severity of alcohol use or duration of abstinence. CONCLUSIONS The results suggest that MMN is neither affected in chronic alcoholics nor associated with alcoholism vulnerability, and thus does not reflect a trait marker of alcoholism or alcoholism risk. The current results do not address effects on MMN of acute alcohol ingestion or withdrawal from alcohol.
Retrograde tracing of enteric neuronal pathways

Neuroanatomical tracing techniques, and retrograde labelling in particular, are widely used tools for the analysis of neuronal pathways in the central and peripheral nervous system. Over the last 10 years, these techniques have been used extensively to identify enteric neuronal pathways. In combination with multiple‐labelling immunohistochemistry, quantitative data about the projections and neurochemical profile of many functional classes of cells have been acquired. These data have revealed a high degree of organization of the neuronal plexuses, even though the different classes of nerve cell bodies appear to be randomly assorted in ganglia. Each class of neurone has a predictable target, length and polarity of axonal projection, a particular combination of neurochemicals in its cell body and distinctive morphological characteristics. The combination of retrograde labelling with targeted intracellular recording has made it possible to target small populations of cells that would rarely be sampled during random impalements. These neuroanatomical techniques have also been applied successfully to human tissue and are gradually unravelling the complexity of the human enteric nervous system.
The Escherichia coli SeqA protein binds specifically and co‐operatively to two sites in hemimethylated and fully methylated oriC

The Escherichia coli SeqA protein has been found to affect initiation of replication negatively, both in vivo and in vitro. The mechanism of inhibition is, however, not known. SeqA has been suggested to affect the formation and activity of the initiation complex at oriC, either by binding to DNA or by interacting with the DnaA protein. We have investigated the binding of SeqA to oriC by electron microscopy and found that SeqA binds specifically to two sites in oriC, one on each side of the DnaA binding site R1. Specific binding was found for fully and hemimethylated but not unmethylated oriC in good agreement with earlier mobility shift studies. The affinity of SeqA for hemimethylated oriC was higher than for fully methylated oriC. The binding was in both cases strongly co‐operative. We suggest that SeqA binds to two nucleation sites in oriC, and by the aid of protein–protein interaction spreads to adjacent regions in the same oriC as well as recruiting additional oriC molecules and/or complexes into larger aggregates.
Select spinal lesions reveal multiple ascending pathways in the rat conveying input from the male genitalia

The specific white matter location of all the spinal pathways conveying penile input to the rostral medulla is not known. Our previous studies using rats demonstrated the loss of low but not high threshold penile inputs to medullary reticular formation (MRF) neurons after acute and chronic dorsal column (DC) lesions of the T8 spinal cord and loss of all penile inputs after lesioning the dorsal three‐fifths of the cord. In the present study, select T8 lesions were made and terminal electrophysiological recordings were performed 45–60 days later in a limited portion of the nucleus reticularis gigantocellularis (Gi) and Gi pars alpha. Lesions included subtotal dorsal hemisections that spared only the lateral half of the dorsal portion of the lateral funiculus on one side, dorsal and over‐dorsal hemisections, and subtotal transections that spared predominantly just the ventromedial white matter. Electrophysiological data for 448 single unit recordings obtained from 32 urethane‐anaesthetized rats, when analysed in groups based upon histological lesion reconstructions, revealed (1) ascending bilateral projections in the dorsal, dorsolateral and ventrolateral white matter of the spinal cord conveying information from the male external genitalia to MRF, and (2) ascending bilateral projections in the ventrolateral white matter conveying information from the pelvic visceral organs (bladder, descending colon, urethra) to MRF. Multiple spinal pathways from the penis to the MRF may correspond to different functions, including those processing affective/pleasure/motivational, nociception, and mating‐specific (such as for erection and ejaculation) inputs.
Improved Regrowth Interface of AlGaInAs/InP-Buried-Heterostructure Lasers by In-Situ Thermal Cleaning

The influence of in-situ thermal cleaning on the regrowth interface quality of 1.3-μm wavelength AlGaInAs/InP-buried-heterostructure (BH) lasers grown by organo-metallic vapor-phase epitaxy was investigated. The surface recombination velocity estimated from below threshold electroluminescence measurements was used to quantitatively study regrowth interface quality. The relationship between surface recombination velocity and lasing properties was supported by theory. In this way, we could validate the use of surface recombination velocity as a measure of interface quality. In-situ thermal cleaning at 650°C for 45 min under PH3 atmosphere resulted in operational BH lasers (1.6 μm stripe width) with a differential quantum efficiency of 66% and an internal quantum efficiency of approximately 76%.
Urinary biomarkers of renal disease in dogs with X-linked hereditary nephropathy.

BACKGROUND Sensitive and specific biomarkers for early tubulointerstitial injury are lacking. HYPOTHESIS The excretion of certain urinary proteins will correlate with the state of renal injury in dogs with chronic kidney disease. ANIMALS Twenty-five male colony dogs affected with X-linked hereditary nephropathy (XLHN) and 19 unaffected male littermates were evaluated. METHODS Retrospective analysis of urine samples collected every 2-4 weeks was performed. Urine proteins evaluated were retinol binding protein (uRBP/c), β2-microglobulin (uB2M), N-acetyl-β-D-glucosaminidase (uNAG/c), neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (uNGAL/c), and immunoglobulin G (uIgG/c). Results were correlated with serum creatinine concentration (sCr), glomerular filtration rate (GFR), urine protein : creatinine ratio, and histopathologic analysis of serial renal biopsies. Analytical validation was performed for all assays; uNAG stability was evaluated. RESULTS All urinary biomarkers distinguished affected dogs from unaffected dogs early in their disease process, increasing during early and midstages of disease. uRBP/c correlated most strongly with conventional measures of disease severity, including increasing sCr (r = 0.89), decreasing GFR (r = -0.77), and interstitial fibrosis (r = 0.80), P < . 001. However, multivariate analysis revealed age, sCr, uIgG/c, and uB2M, but not uRBP/c, as significant independent predictors of GFR (P < .05). CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE All urinary biomarkers were elevated before sCr increased, but typically after proteinuria developed in dogs with progressive glomerular disease because of XLHN. uRBP/c measurement might be promising as a noninvasive tool for diagnosis and monitoring of tubular injury and dysfunction in dogs.
Bevacizumab Plus Irinotecan Versus Temozolomide in Newly Diagnosed O6-Methylguanine-DNA Methyltransferase Nonmethylated Glioblastoma: The Randomized GLARIUS Trial.

PURPOSE In patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma that harbors a nonmethylated O(6)-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase promotor, standard temozolomide (TMZ) has, at best, limited efficacy. The GLARIUS trial thus explored bevacizumab plus irinotecan (BEV+IRI) as an alternative to TMZ. PATIENTS AND METHODS In this phase II, unblinded trial 182 patients in 22 centers were randomly assigned 2:1 to BEV (10 mg/kg every 2 weeks) during radiotherapy (RT) followed by maintenance BEV (10 mg/kg every 2 weeks) plus IRI(125 mg/m(2) every 2 weeks) or to daily TMZ (75 mg/m(2)) during RT followed by six courses of TMZ (150-200 mg/m(2)/d for 5 days every 4 weeks). The primary end point was the progression-free survival rate after 6 months (PFS-6). RESULTS In the modified intention-to-treat (ITT) population, PFS-6 was increased from 42.6% with TMZ (95% CI, 29.4% to 55.8%) to 79.3% with BEV+IRI (95% CI, 71.9% to 86.7%; P <.001). PFS was prolonged from a median of 5.99 months (95% CI, 2.7 to 7.3 months) to 9.7 months (95% CI, 8.7 to 10.8 months; P < .001). At progression, crossover BEV therapy was given to 81.8% of all patients who received any sort of second-line therapy in the TMZ arm. Overall survival (OS) was not different in the two arms: the median OS was 16.6 months (95% CI, 15.4 to 18.4 months) with BEV+IRI and was 17.5 months (95% CI, 15.1 to 20.5 months) with TMZ. The time course of quality of life (QOL) in six selected domains of the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality-of-Life Questionnaire (QLQ) -C30 and QLQ-BN20 (which included cognitive functioning), of the Karnofsky performance score, and of the Mini Mental State Examination score was not different between the treatment arms. CONCLUSION BEV+IRI resulted in a superior PFS-6 rate and median PFS compared with TMZ. However, BEV+IRI did not improve OS, potentially because of the high crossover rate. BEV+IRI did not alter QOL compared with TMZ.