Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Assessment of preferential Th1 or Th2 induction by low-molecular-weight compounds using a reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction method: comparison of two mouse strains, C57BL/6 and BALB/c.

The aim of this study was to examine whether the RT-PCR method for various Th1/Th2 cytokines is appropriate for determination of response to allergens using C57BL/6 and Balb/c mice, which are known to preferentially demonstrate Th1 and Th2 responses, respectively. To this end, both strains of mice were sensitized by skin painting with the contact allergen dinitrochlorobenzene (DNCB) or the respiratory allergen trimellitic anhydride (TMA). We used the sensitizing protocol adopted by Kimber and coworkers (Toxicology 103, 63-73, 1995). At various time points after the last application, the levels of mRNA expression for Th1-type cytokines IFN-gamma, IL-18, and IL-12p40, as well as receptor IL-18R, and the Th2-type cytokine IL-4 and the receptor ST2L, in lymph nodes were measured. The results suggest that differential expression of IL-12p40 and IL-4 mRNA after 24 h allows clear discrimination between DNCB and TMA in C57BL/6 mice, more obviously than in Balb/c mice. Furthermore, to examine this method, C57BL/6 mice were exposed to OXA, DNFB, and TNCB (Th1-predominant allergens) or PA, TDI, and MDI (Th2-predominant allergens). Elevation of IL-12p40 expression was significant with the Th1 inducers, while the level of IL-4 was higher with Th2-predominant allergens. The results of the present study demonstrate, for the first time, that differential expression of IL-12p40 and IL-4 in C57BL/6 mice may be useful as a parameter for assessing influence of contact and respiratory allergens.
Food Insecurity Mediates the Effect of a Poverty-Alleviation Program on Psychosocial Health among the Ultra-Poor in Bangladesh.

BACKGROUND Poor psychosocial health is a major global burden. A challenge to improving psychosocial health is that its associations with risk factors are complicated, inadequately understood, and difficult to modify, and/or require action outside the health sector. OBJECTIVE We capitalized on the quasi-experimental assignment of a poverty-alleviation program for the ultra-poor in Bangladesh to investigate how this program affected 2 aspects of psychosocial health; distress, (i.e., the negative cognitive appraisal of stress) and subjective well-being (i.e., satisfaction with domains of life), and the importance of food insecurity as a mediator relative to other stressors and economic status. METHODS The study was conducted in 3 northern districts of Bangladesh where the program operated. The ultra-poor households were selected through a multistage selection process. The economically better-off households were excluded during the process and included as study controls. The program supported women by providing income-earning opportunities, strengthening sociopolitical livelihood, and building self-awareness and self-confidence. Data were collected in 2006 from 209 women on demography, psychosocial health, and stressors (i.e., domestic violence, food insecurity, economic status, perceived economy, and emotional social constraints). Data collected in 2002 from the same individuals were used to control for the baseline differences between groups. By using path analysis we showed the direct and indirect effects of the program on distress and well-being. RESULTS The program positively affected psychosocial health by alleviating stressors. The indirect effect of the program contributed 74% in reducing distress and 30% in improving well-being. Food insecurity was by far the most important mediator, explaining 50% of indirect effect on distress and 66% of the indirect effect on well-being. CONCLUSION Food insecurity is modifiable and an appropriate target for poverty-alleviation and agricultural programs. These findings suggest programmatic and policy attention to the social dimensions of poor psychosocial health, particularly to food insecurity as a central cause.
IONIC TRIGGERS IN THE FERTILIZATION OF SEA URCHIN EGGS

We have considered how a transient rise in calcium can occur and how it can result in the activation of the egg. Our evidence with the “artificial sperm”—the ionophore‐coated glass rod—suggests that even if sperm release calcium locally, this may be insufficient to completely propagate around the egg. Something else is needed and this something else can be mimicked by placing the eggs in higher than normal concentrations of potassium ion. A possibility is that the potassium effect results from inducing a membrane depolarization similar to the one that normally follows sperm‐egg binding. If correct, then the membrane depolarization might not only function in the block to polyspermy10 but could also be involved in “relaxing” or overcoming the normal calcium‐sequestering ability of the cell. A possible mechanism is a voltage‐dependent Ca++ ‐induced Ca++ release.
A comparison of intra‐operative blood loss and acid–base balance between vasopressor and inotrope strategy during living donor liver transplantation: a randomised, controlled study

Administration of vasopressors or inotropes during liver transplant surgery is almost universal, as this procedure is often accompanied by massive haemorrhage, acid–base imbalance, and cardiovascular instability. However, the actual agents that should be used and the choice between a vasopressor and an inotrope strategy are not clear from existing published evidence. In this prospective, randomised, controlled and single‐blinded study, we compared the effects of a vasopressor strategy on intra‐operative blood loss and acid–base status with those of an inotrope strategy during living donor liver transplantation. Seventy‐six adult liver recipients with decompensated cirrhosis were randomly assigned to receive a continuous infusion of either phenylephrine at a dose of 0.3–0.4 μg. kg−1.min−1 or dopamine and/or dobutamine at 2–8 μg. kg−1.min−1 during surgery. Vascular resistance was higher over time in the phenylephrine group than in the dopamine/dobutamine group. Estimated blood loss was significantly lower in the phenylephrine group than in the dopamine/dobutamine group (mean (SD) 4.5 (1.8) l vs 6.1 (3.4) l, respectively, p = 0.011). Patients in the phenylephrine group had lower lactate levels in the late pre‐anhepatic and the early anhepatic phase and needed less bicarbonate administration than those in the dopamine/dobutamine group (median (IQR [range]) 40 (0–100 [0–160]) mEq vs 70 (40–163 [0–260]) mEq, respectively, p = 0.018). Postoperative clinical outcomes and laboratory‐measured hepatic and renal function did not differ between the groups. Increased vascular resistance and reduction of portal blood flow by intra‐operative phenylephrine infusion is assumed to decrease the amount of intra‐operative bleeding and thereby ameliorate the progression of lactic acidosis during liver transplant surgery.
ST6GALNAC1 plays important roles in enhancing cancer stem phenotypes of colorectal cancer via the Akt pathway

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a mortal disease due to treatment resistance, recurrence and distant metastasis. Emerging evidence has revealed that a small sub-population of cancer cells termed cancer stem cells (CSCs)/ cancer-initiating cells (CICs) is endowed with high levels of tumor-initiating ability, self-renewal ability and differentiation ability and is responsible for treatment resistance, recurrence and distant metastasis. Eradication of CSCs/CICs is essential to improve current treatments. However, the molecular mechanisms by which CSCs/CICs are maintained are still elusive. In this study, we aimed to determine the molecular mechanisms by which colorectal (CR)-CSCs/CICs in are maintained human primary CRC cells. CR-CSCs/CICs were isolated by sphere-culture and the ALDEFLUOR assay, and transcriptome analysis revealed that the gene ST6 N-Acetylgalactosaminide Alpha-2,6-Sialyltransferase 1 (ST6GALNAC1) was expressed at high levels in CR-CSCs/CICs. Overexpression of ST6GALNAC1 enhanced the expression of sialyl-Tn (STn) antigen, which is carried by the CSC marker CD44, and increased the sphere-forming ability and resistance to a chemotherapeutic reagent. The opposite phenomena were observed by gene knockdown using siRNA. Furthermore, the Akt pathway was activated in ST6GANAC1-overexpressed cells, and activation of the pathway was cancelled by gene knockdown of galectin-3. The results indicate that ST6GALNAC1 has a role in the maintenance of CR-CSCs/CICs by activating the Akt pathway in cooperation with galectin-3 and that ST6GalNAC1 (or STn antigen) might be a reasonable molecule for CSC/CIC-targeting therapy.
When I’s Meet

Believing one shares a subjective experience with another (i.e., I-sharing) fosters connections among strangers and alters perceptions of the ingroup and outgroup. In this article, the authors ask whether I-sharing also fosters liking for members of a salient outgroup. Study 1 establishes that I-sharing promotes liking for the other sex, even among people with salient social identities. Study 2 shows that I-sharing promotes liking for a member of the sexual orientation outgroup, whether it occurs before or after group memberships get revealed. Study 3 focuses on salient race categories and looks at the effects of I-sharing versus value-sharing as a function of shared group membership. For those high in existential isolation, I-sharing trumps value-sharing, regardless of the I-sharer’s social identity. I-sharing may offer a way of improving attitudes toward outgroup members that still enables people to embrace their differing social identities.
The Design Of Performance Measurement Systems For Public Health Services: The Case Of Tuscany Region In Italy

In recent years in Italy as well as in the other European countries, non-hospital services has been giving an increasing emphasis. While hospital services are usually monitored, and often financed, by DRGs, other services still lack of similar measurement systems. The peculiarities of public health make the measurement of these services almost difficult. For this reason it appears particularly interesting the case of the Tuscan Health System that decided to design and implement a system that classifies public health activities linking them to health needs, standardized procedures and homogeneous resources. This system, named “final products”, sounds like a sort of DRG for Public Health, even if it has not financing purposes. The paper describes its design and implementation through the lenses of an interventionost research approach. The results of the system application support health authorities and regional government to efficiency evaluation and to rethink about procedures and health needs. However, in the comparison between the costs afforded in designing the system and the benefits from its use severe doubts arise on its cost effectiveness.
Correlation of QTc Interval Prolongation and Serum Level of Citalopram after Intoxication – A Case Report

Abstract Citalopram (CIT) is a widely used antidepressant which acts by a selective serotonin reuptake inhibition. It is considered to be safer than tricyclic antidepressants at therapeutic levels, but also with respect to intoxications. We report the case of a 46-year-old woman, who ingested in suicidal intention 1400 mg CIT. During the following inpatient treatment repeatedly ECGs and determinations of the serum level of CIT were performed. Initially the patient’s serum level of CIT was 1231 ng/mL and QTc interval was 541.60 ms. It took 12 days until the serum level of CIT fell below the upper threshold of the recommended therapeutic range (130 ng/mL). The QTc interval on the sixth day after the intoxication for the first time was below 500 ms. The QTc interval correlated significantly with the serum level of CIT after intoxication (r=0.943; p<0.005). Although CIT is estimated as a safe antidepressant regarding serious adverse effects, toxic doses can lead to potentially hazardous ECG changes which according to our findings correlate strongly with the serum level of the drug.
A comparative survey of missed initial and follow-up appointments to psychiatric specialties in the United kingdom.

OBJECTIVE Missed appointments are common in psychiatry. Nonattendance at the initial appointment may have different prognostic significance than nonattendance at subsequent appointments. This study examined the frequency of missed appointments among 9,511 initial outpatient appointments and 7,700 follow-up appointments across ten psychiatric subspecialties in a publicly funded mental health service in the United Kingdom. RESULTS The pooled missed appointment rate was 15.9%, higher than in previous studies on primary and secondary care attendance in the United Kingdom. Nonattendance was lowest on Fridays, in winter months, and in geriatric psychiatry and highest for substance abuse services and in community psychiatry. In most services, attendance improved after the initial appointment, but in psychosomatic medicine and geriatric psychiatry this pattern was reversed. CONCLUSIONS There was a low rate of missed appointments in geriatric psychiatry, rehabilitation psychiatry, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and psychosocial medicine. A high nonattendance rate was found among persons with drug and alcohol difficulties and to a lesser extent in general adult psychiatry. Future studies should consider initial and follow-up appointments as distinct.
Postoperative analgesic effects of intravenous lornoxicam and morphine with pre-emtive ropivacaine skin infiltration and preperitoneal instillation after transabdominal hysterectomy.

UNLABELLED To investigate the effectiveness of intravenous lornoxicam and morphine with the preemptive effects of ropivacaine local skin infiltration and peritoneal instillation in reducing postoperative pain after transabdominal hysterectomy, a randomized, double blinded, placebo-controlled study was done in 88 patients undergoing transabdominal hysterectomy under general anesthesia. The patients were allocated into 4 groups to receive: (group A) only intravenous morphine 10 mg; (group B) intravenous morphine 10 mg and lornoxicam 16 mg; (group C) intravenous morphine 10 mg, lornoxicam 16 mg with 0.5 per cent ropivacaine local skin infiltration before skin incision and 1 per cent ropivacaine instillation before peritoneal incision; (group D) intravenous morphine 10 mg, lornoxicam 16 mg with 1 per cent ropivacaine instillation after peritoneal closure and 0.5 per cent ropivacaine local skin infiltration before skin closure. Pain was assessed by patients using visual analog scales (VAS) at 2, 6, 12, 18, 24, 48 hours after surgery. Time to first analgesic requirement and morphine requirement during the first 6 h were significantly lower in the groups using lornoxicam (group B, C, D) as compared with the group using only morphine (group A). However there was no significant difference between group B and group C or group D which means that the additional analgesic effects of using local anesthetic infiltration and instillation either before (pre-emptive) or after the incision could not be seen in this study. IMPLICATION Intravenous 16 mg of lornoxicam with 10 mg of morphine significantly reduced postoperative pain during the first 6 h after abdominal hysterectomy. Additional effects of using local anesthetic wound infiltration to the use of lornoxicam could not be demonstrated.
A 1.8 GHz Fully Integrated Low Voltage LC VCO in Silicon on Sapphire CMOS

This paper presents the design, fabrication and measurement of a low voltage VCO operating at 1.8 GHz and fabricated in 0.5¿m Silicon On Sapphire CMOS (SOS-CMOS) process. The VCO operates with supply voltage as low as 1V. The tuning range was measured to be 14% and the measured phase noise was -117.5 dBc/ Hz at an offset frequency of 1 MHz from the 1.77 GHz carrier. The VCO and the buffers consume 14.7 mW power from a 1.5V supply.
Effect of diquat on the antioxidant system and cell growth in human neuroblastoma cells.

Oxidative stress elicits an adaptive antioxidant response, which varies with tissue type. Diquat, a potent redox cycler that generates reactive oxygen species, has been used to study oxidative stress; however, its effect on the antioxidant system has not been characterized in neuronal cells. Accordingly, we measured antioxidant parameters and cell growth in human neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cells cultured for 48 h in medium containing 5, 10, or 25 microM diquat dibromide or phosphate-buffered saline. Viable cells were assayed for glutathione (GSH) and activities of catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione reductase (GR), glutathione peroxidase (GPX), and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (GPDH). Mitochondrial function was evaluated by glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) activity and MTT reduction. Diquat caused a marked concentration-related decrease in viable cell count ( by 26, 51, and 87% at 5, 10, and 25 microM diquat). Cell viability was only affected at 10 and 25 microM diquat and did not fully account for the decreased viable cell count. Concentration-related increases also occurred with GSH levels and a majority of antioxidant enzymes activities; however, the mode and magnitude varied with parameter. Increases in GSH, CAT, SOD, and GR were maximal at 25 microM diquat (to 3-, 6-, 2-, and 1.5-fold control values, respectively). GPDH activity was maximal at 10 microM diquat and then decreased to 86% of control activity at 25 microM diquat. GPX activity showed a concentration-related decrease (to 35% of control). Activity of the mitochondrial enzyme GDH increased 3-fold at 25 microM diquat, along with a lesser increase in MTT reduction. We conclude that diquat reduces cell growth in neuroblastoma cells and induces an adaptive antioxidant response, which are concentration dependent and occur at sublethal concentrations. At higher concentrations, diquat alters mitochondrial function and becomes increasingly toxic.
Programmed cell death 1 (PD‐1) and its ligand PD‐L1 are required for allograft tolerance

Programmed cell death‐1 (PD‐1, CD279) and its widely expressed, inducible ligand, PD‐L1 (CD274), together dampen T cell activation, but whether they are essential for allograft tolerance is unknown. We show, using gene‐deficient mice and blocking mAbs in wild‐type mice, that costimulation blockade is ineffectual in PD‐1–/– or PD‐L1–/– allograft recipients, or in wild‐type allograft recipients treated with anti‐PD‐1 or anti‐PD‐L1 mAb. Alloreactive PD‐1–/– CD4 and CD8 T cells had enhanced proliferation and cytokine production compared to wild‐type controls, and anergy could not be induced in PD‐1‐deficient CD4 T cells. We conclude that without inhibitory signals from PD‐1 ligation, alloantigen‐induced T cell proliferation and expansion cannot be regulated by costimulation blockade, and peripheral tolerance induction cannot occur.
2509 Living Donor Nephrectomies, Morbidity and Mortality, Including the UK Introduction of Laparoscopic Donor Surgery

The worldwide expansion of laparoscopic, at the expense of open, donor nephrectomy (DN) has been driven on the basis of faster convalescence for the donor. However, concerns have been expressed over the safety of the laparoscopic procedure. The UK Transplant National Registry collecting mandatory information on all living kidney donations in the country was analyzed for donations between November 2000 (start of living donor follow‐up data reporting) to June 2006 to assess the safety of living DN, after the recent introduction of the laparoscopic procedure in the United Kingdom. Twenty‐four transplant units reported data on 2509 donors (601 laparoscopic, 1800 open and 108 [4.3%] unspecified); 46.5% male; mean donor age: 46 years. There was one death 3 months postdischarge and a further five deaths beyond 1 year postdischarge. The mean length of stay was 1.5 days less for the laparoscopic procedure (p < 0.001). The risk of major morbidity for all donors was 4.9% (laparoscopic = 4.5%, open = 5.1%, p = 0.549). The overall rate of any morbidity was 14.3% (laparoscopic = 10.3%, open = 15.7%, p = 0.001). Living donation has remained a safe procedure in the UK during the learning curve of introduction of the laparoscopic procedure. The latter offers measurable advantages to the donor in terms of reduced length of stay and morbidity.
A new material model for permanent deformations in pavements

Today's demand in pavement design for a calculation method to evaluate rutting (permanent deformations) is wide and global. The new procurement methods together with functional requirements are underlining this rutting evaluation demand in different pavement materials and layers. Permanent deformation research has become more general during the last decade. VTT (the Technical Research Centre of Finland) has researched many different aspects of permanent deformations with accelerated pavement tests. Accelerated pavement tests have been conducted with the Heavy Vehicle Simulator (HVS-Nordic). The HVS tests have been completed with a wide triaxial test programme in laboratory. The HVS tests have shown that it is difficult to predict in advance where in the pavement rutting happens: in the subgrade or in the structural layers. A new material model based on the laboratory and HVS tests has been developed in VTT. The objective was to develop a material model for unbound materials, which is an analytical, nonlinear elasto-plastic model. The stress distribution studies of traffic load have shown that it was very important to calculate stresses in pavements with an elasto-plastic material model to avoid tensile stresses in unbound materials, especially when the asphalt layers were thin. The new material deformation model can take into account the number of the passes, the capacityof the material and its stress state. The deformations in each layer are calculated and then summed together to obtain the total rutting on the surface of the structure.
Strongest Association Rules Mining for Efficient Applications

Rule explosion has become an important problem of association rules mining, as conventional mining algorithms often produce too many rules for decision makers to digest. In this paper, the notion of strongest association rules (SAR) is proposed for representing all association information with fewer rules, and a matrix-based algorithm is developed for mining SAR set. Our experiments show that the number of SAR is about 26% of the number of all rules in average, and the number does not monotonously increase with a smaller minimal confidence.
Small UAV autonomous localization based on multiple sensors fusion

Autonomous localization is a challenge for small UAVs in the environment where GPS signal is unavailable. In this paper, we propose a novel autonomous localization algorithm for small UAVs without map construction. In the proposed method, the information of onboard camera, pressure sensor and orientation sensor are integrated together based on Kalman filter model under the visual odometry framework. The algorithm is realized in Robot Operating System(ROS) and is tested based on Gazebo. Experimental results show the localization accuracy of the proposed algorithm under different flight conditions and flight status. It is verified that the method extends the environmental adaptability of existing visual odometry methods.