Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Human papillomavirus type 16 infection and squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck in never-smokers: a matched pair analysis.

PURPOSE Infection with human papillomavirus (HPV) type 16 has been suggested to be a risk factor for squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (SCCHN) and to be more commonly associated with SCCHN occurring in the oropharynx and in never-smokers. We hypothesized that HPV-16 exposure, as evidenced by seropositivity, is a risk factor for SCCHN and may be of particular importance in never-smokers. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN To test this hypothesis, we conducted a hospital-based case-control study of 120 patients with SCCHN (60 never-smokers and 60 matched smokers) and 120 cancer-free matched controls. We compared the presence of HPV-16 antibodies in ever-smoker and never-smoker patients matched on age (+/-5 years), sex, and tumor site. Each patient was also matched with a corresponding ever-smoker or never-smoker cancer-free control on age (+/-5 years) and sex. Serum was collected from study subjects and assayed for IgG reactivity to HPV-16 L1 virus-like particles by using an ELISA. RESULTS Forty-nine of the 120 case subjects (40.8%) but only 11 (9.2%) of the control subjects tested positive for HPV-16 antibodies (adjusted odds ratio, 6.69; 95% confidence interval, 3.01-14.90). Among cases, HPV-16 seropositivity was more common in those with oropharyngeal cancer (41 of 70, 58.6%) and poorly differentiated tumors (25 of 43, 58.1%). HPV-16 seropositivity was associated with a significantly increased risk of oropharyngeal cancer (adjusted odds ratio, 59.53; 95% confidence interval, 5.71-620.20). Whereas HPV-16 seropositivity was more common in never-smokers with SCCHN than in ever-smokers (43.3% versus 38.3%, respectively), this difference was not statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS HPV-16 infection is associated with a significant increased risk for oropharyngeal cancer but not oral cavity cancer. Furthermore, HPV-16 infection does not appear to be more common in never-smokers than ever-smokers with SCCHN.
Comparison of non-vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulants and warfarin on clinical outcomes in atrial fibrillation patients with renal dysfunction.

AIMS We aimed to compare the efficacy and safety between non-vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulants (NOACs) and warfarin in atrial fibrillation (AF) patients according to renal dysfunction. METHODS AND RESULTS We analysed 1319 patients who had been taken oral anticoagulants. They were classified into patients taking NOACs (n = 326) and warfarin (n = 993). Renal dysfunction was defined as the estimated glomerular filtration rate <60 mL/min by using the Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration equation. The composite clinical outcomes were defined as the composite of death, hospitalization, and new-onset strokes. Safety outcomes were composed of major and minor bleeding. Subgroup analyses for clinical and safety outcomes were performed according to renal dysfunction during median 596 (506-612) follow-up days. The prevalence of renal dysfunction was similar between the two groups. The incidences of death, hospitalization, and strokes were not different between the two groups. However, the incidences of major bleeding was significantly higher in patients taking warfarin. In the subgroup analysis with renal dysfunction, the use of NOACs significantly improved the composite clinical outcomes (adjusted hazard ratio, HR, 0.30, 95% confidence interval, CI, 0.11-0.77, interaction P = 0.018) and major bleeding (adjusted HR 0.18, 95% CI 0.07-0.45, interaction P = 0.199) even after the covariate adjustment. However, in patients without renal dysfunction, there were no differences in the incidences of the composite clinical outcomes between the two groups. CONCLUSIONS The benefit of NOACs was more prominent in AF patients with renal dysfunction than without renal dysfunction. These results suggest that NOACs as the first choice oral anticoagulant in AF patients with renal dysfunction.
Oxidative damage and reduction of redox factor-1 expression after transient spinal cord ischemia in rabbits.

OBJECTIVE The mechanism of spinal cord injury has been thought to be related to the vulnerability of spinal motor neuron cells against ischemia. However, the mechanisms of such vulnerability are not fully understood. We previously reported that spinal motor neurons may be lost by programmed cell death and thus now investigate a possible mechanism of neuronal death with immunohistochemical analysis for 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) and redox factor-1 (Ref-1). METHODS We used a rabbit spinal cord ischemia model with a balloon catheter. The spinal cord was removed at 8 hours, 1, 2, or 7 days after 15 minutes of transient ischemia, and histologic changes were studied with hematoxylin-eosin staining. Western blot analysis for Ref-1, temporal profiles of 8-OHdG and Ref-1 immunoreactivity, and double-label fluorescence immunocytochemical studies were performed. RESULTS Most motor neurons were preserved until 2 days but were selectively lost at 7 days of reperfusion. Western blot analysis of a sample from sham control spinal cord showed a characteristic 37-kDa band that was reduced after ischemia. Immunohistochemistry showed the nuclear expression of Ref-1 in motor neurons of control spinal cords, and immunoreactivity was decreased 1 day after ischemia. On the other hand, no nuclear expression was seen of 8-OHdG in motor neurons of control spinal cords, and immunoreactivity was increased 1 day after ischemia. Double-label fluorescence immunocytochemical study revealed that both 8-OHdG and Ref-1 were positive at 8 hours of reperfusion in the same motor neurons, which eventually die. CONCLUSION These results suggest that Ref-1 decreased in motor neurons after transient spinal cord ischemia and that this reduction preceded oxidative DNA damage. The reduction of Ref-1 protein at the moderately late stage of reperfusion may be one of the factors responsible for the delay in neuronal death after spinal cord ischemia.
Signal Transduction Protein PII Phosphatase PphA Is Required for Light-Dependent Control of Nitrate Utilization in Synechocystis sp. Strain PCC 6803

ABSTRACT Signal transduction protein PII is dephosphorylated in Synechocystis sp. strain PCC 6803 by protein phosphatase PphA. To determine the impact of PphA-mediated PII dephosphorylation on physiology, the phenotype of a PphA-deficient mutant was analyzed. Mutants lacking either PphA or PII were impaired in efficient utilization of nitrate as the nitrogen source. Under conditions of limiting photosystem I (PSI)-reduced ferredoxin, excess reduction of nitrate along with impaired reduction of nitrite occurred in PII signaling mutants, resulting in excretion of nitrite to the medium. This effect could be reversed by increasing the level of PSI-reduced ferredoxin. We present evidence that nonphosphorylated PII controls the utilization of nitrate in response to low light intensity by tuning down nitrate uptake to meet the actual reduction capacity. This control mechanism can be bypassed by exposing cells to excess levels of nitrate. Uncontrolled nitrate uptake leads to light-dependent nitrite excretion even in wild-type cells, confirming that nitrate uptake controls nitrate utilization in response to limiting photon flux densities.
Impact of prehypertension on left ventricular mass and QT dispersion in adult black Nigerians

Summary Background Prehypertension has been associated with target-organ damage. This study sought to determine the impact of prehypertension (PHT) on QT dispersion and left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) in adult black Nigerians. Methods One hundred and one subjects with office blood pressure (BP) < 140/90 mmHg were categorised according to their office BP into normotensive (BP < 120/80 mmHg, n = 57) and prehypertensive (BP 120–139/80–89 mmHg, n = 44) groups. Echocardiography and electrocardiography (ECG) were performed on the subjects. Results Thirty-four males aged 53.65 ± 16.33 years and 67 females aged 52.42 ± 12.00 years were studied. The mean QT interval dispersion (QTd) of the normotensive (38.96 ± 11.06 ms) and prehypertensive (38.41 ± 11.81 ms) groups were similar (p = 0.81). Prehypertensive subjects had higher left ventricular mass (LVM) (165.75 ± 33.21 vs 144.54 ± 35.55 g, p = 0.024), left ventricular mass index 1 (LVMI-1) (91.65 ± 16.84 vs 80.45 ± 18.65 g/m2, p = 0.021) and left ventricular mass index 2 (LVMI-2) (54.96 ± 10.84 vs 47.51 ± 12.00 g/m2.7, p = 0.017). QTd was independent of echocardiographic and electrocardiographic LVH (p > 0.05). Conclusion Compared with normotension, prehypertension is associated with higher LVM but similar QTd. This suggests that structural remodelling precedes electrical remodelling in prehypertension.
A new species of Chiasmocleis (Microhylidae, Gastrophryninae) from the Atlantic Forest of Espírito Santo State, Brazil

Abstract Among Neotropical microhylids, the genus Chiasmocleis is exceptionally diverse. Most species of Chiasmocleis were described in recent years based on external morphology, but recent studies using molecular data did not support the monophyly of the species groups clustered based on feet webbing. Furthermore, a phylogeographic study of C. lacrimae estimated high genetic divergence and low gene flow among populations across small geographic ranges. Increasing the molecular and geographic sampling, and incorporating morphological data, we identified new cryptic species. Herein, we used novel genetic and morphological data to describe a new species of Chiasmocleis.
Histopathologic Evidence of Capecitabine Corneal Toxicity in Dogs

In an experimental model of transplant rejection, renal transplants were performed on 6 mixed-breed dogs. Capecitabine (CPC) was administered as an oral immunosuppressive agent. All recipients received systemic CPC, cyclosporine (CSA), prednisolone, and famotidine throughout the study. Two dogs developed superficial keratitis, which was characterized by multifocal geographic erosions, superficial corneal epithelial pigmentation, and corneal neovascularization. These clinical signs correlated with the dose of CPC given, whereas other drug doses remained unchanged. After euthanasia, routine histologic sections were stained with hematoxylin and eosin and with alcian blue periodic acid— Schiff for light microscopic evaluation. Ocular histopathologic abnormalities were limited to neovascularization and inflammatory infiltrate of the anterior corneal stroma and abnormal basal cell morphology, disorganization, thinning, and pigmentation of the corneal epithelium. The purpose of this communication is to describe the clinical and histopathologic evidence of CPC corneal toxicity in dogs.
Strategies for maintaining patient privacy in i2b2

BACKGROUND The re-use of patient data from electronic healthcare record systems can provide tremendous benefits for clinical research, but measures to protect patient privacy while utilizing these records have many challenges. Some of these challenges arise from a misperception that the problem should be solved technically when actually the problem needs a holistic solution. OBJECTIVE The authors' experience with informatics for integrating biology and the bedside (i2b2) use cases indicates that the privacy of the patient should be considered on three fronts: technical de-identification of the data, trust in the researcher and the research, and the security of the underlying technical platforms. METHODS The security structure of i2b2 is implemented based on consideration of all three fronts. It has been supported with several use cases across the USA, resulting in five privacy categories of users that serve to protect the data while supporting the use cases. RESULTS The i2b2 architecture is designed to provide consistency and faithfully implement these user privacy categories. These privacy categories help reflect the policy of both the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act and the provisions of the National Research Act of 1974, as embodied by current institutional review boards. CONCLUSION By implementing a holistic approach to patient privacy solutions, i2b2 is able to help close the gap between principle and practice.
TSH levels and risk of miscarriage in women on long-term levothyroxine: a community-based study.

CONTEXT Thyroid dysfunction is associated with adverse obstetric outcomes, but there is limited information on pregnancy outcomes in women established on levothyroxine. OBJECTIVE The objective of the study was to determine the relationship between TSH levels and pregnancy outcomes in levothyroxine-treated women in a large community-based database. DESIGN This was a historical cohort analysis. PATIENTS Individuals with a first prescription of levothyroxine from 2001 through 2009 (n = 55 501) were identified from the UK General Practice Research Database (population 5 million). Of these, we identified 7978 women of child-bearing age (18-45 y) and 1013 pregnancies in which levothyroxine had been initiated at least 6 months before conception. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES TSH, miscarriage/delivery status, and obstetric outcomes were measured. RESULTS Forty-six percent of levothyroxine-treated women aged 18-45 years had a TSH level greater than 2.5 mU/L (recommended upper level in the first trimester). Among pregnant women who had their TSH measured in the first trimester, 62.8% had a TSH level greater than 2.5 mU/L, with 7.4% greater than 10 mU/L. Women with TSH greater than 2.5 mU/L in the first trimester had an increased risk of miscarriage compared with women with TSH 0.2-2.5 mU/L after adjusting for age, year of pregnancy, diabetes, and social class (P = .008). The risk of miscarriage was increased in women with TSH 4.51-10 mU/L [odds ratio (OR) 1.80, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.03, 3.14)] and TSH greater than 10 mU/L (OR 3.95, 95% CI 1.87, 8.37) but not with TSH 2.51-4.5 mU/L (OR 1.09, 95% CI 0.61, 1.93). CONCLUSIONS The majority of levothyroxine-treated women have early gestational TSH levels above the recommended targets (>2.5 mU/L) with a strong risk of miscarriage at levels exceeding 4.5 mU/L. There is an urgent need to improve the adequacy of thyroid hormone replacement in early pregnancy.
The Increasing Volatility of the Stock Market?

This study provides a rigorous examination of historical stock price volatility. We measure changes in the variability of equity returns on a daily and monthly basis and test whether volatility has changed over the period 1926 through 2014. Our results are of importance to practitioners, individual investors, policy makers, and the press and address the widely held perception among market participants and the general public that stock market volatility has increased over time. Our results suggest this belief is accurate, but only when volatility is measured on a daily basis. When measured using monthly increments, there has been no discernable change in return volatility. This is likely good news for both traders and investors. Traders are active on a daily basis and can profit from larger movements in the market, thus the slight increase in daily volatility is likely both important to them and viewed positively. Long-term investors can take comfort that many of the large daily price declines are at least partially offset by similar price increases and that, when measured over longer periods, volatility has not increased.
A cooperative game for older powered chair users and their friends and family

For older adults, adopting a powered mobility aid signals a life transition that affects several well-being factors: their self-image, motivation, and self-perception of ability, but also how other people - friends, family, coworkers, strangers - relate to and perceive these individuals. We present initial findings from a user study in which we (a) recorded a baseline of well-being using established psychological instruments, and (b) evaluated a web-based prototype of a cooperative mixed reality game for improving the well-being of older powered chair users and their friends and family. Our results show that most participants considered themselves to be happy and were driven by hedonic and eudaimonic motives during gameplay, but were mixed with respect to their attitudes towards disability.
Effect of home-based Kegel exercises on quality of life in women with stress and mixed urinary incontinence

Abstract The aim of this study was to assess the effects of home-based Kegel exercises in women with stress and mixed urinary incontinence. A total of 90 women with urodynamically proven urinary stress (SUI) and mixed (MUI) incontinence awaiting anti-incontinence surgery were recruited in the urogynaecology clinic of Ankara Zekai Tahir Burak Women's Health Research and Education Hospital. Of these, 18 women were excluded due to low compliance and the remaining 72 were divided into two groups according to urodynamic diagnosis (SUI group, n = 38; MUI group, n = 34). Age, BMI, menopausal status and medical history of the women were recorded. The women took Kegel exercise, consisting of 10 sets of contractions/day; each set included 10 repetitions, for at least 8 weeks. To evaluate the pelvic floor muscle strength, the modified Oxford grading system was used before and after Kegel exercising. The Incontinence Impact Questionnaire (IIQ-7); Urogenital Distress Inventory (UDI-6) and the Patient Global Impression of Improvement (PGI-I) questions were compared before and after 8 weeks of Kegel exercising. The age, BMI, gravidity, menopausal status, macrosomic fetus history, hypertension and asthma were similar between the groups. There were statistically significant lower scores in both IIQ-7 and UDI-6 before and after Kegel exercises within each group (p < 0.001). The mean change of the IIQ-7 and UDI-6 score was statistically significantly higher in the SUI group than in the MUI group (p = 0.023 and p = 0.003, respectively). Results of the Oxford scale were also statistically significantly higher after Kegel exercises within each group (p = < 0.001). In total, 68.4% of the women in the SUI group and 41.2% of the women in the MUI group reported improvements which were statistically significant (p = 0.02). We conclude that home-based Kegel exercises, with no supervision, have been found effective in women with SUI and MUI. The improvement was more prominent in women with SUI.
Vascular binding of a pathogen under shear force through mechanistically distinct sequential interactions with host macromolecules

Systemic dissemination of microbial pathogens permits microbes to spread from the initial site of infection to secondary target tissues and is responsible for most mortality due to bacterial infections. Dissemination is a critical stage of disease progression by the Lyme spirochaete, Borrelia burgdorferi. However, many mechanistic features of the process are not yet understood. A key step is adhesion of circulating microbes to vascular surfaces in the face of the shear forces present in flowing blood. Using real‐time microscopic imaging of the Lyme spirochaete in living mice we previously identified the first bacterial protein (B. burgdorferi BBK32) shown to mediate vascular adhesion in vivo. Vascular adhesion is also dependent on host fibronectin (Fn) and glycosaminoglycans (GAGs). In the present study, we investigated the mechanisms of BBK32‐dependent vascular adhesion in vivo. We determined that BBK32–Fn interactions (tethering) function as a molecular braking mechanism that permits the formation of more stable BBK32–GAG interactions (dragging) between circulating bacteria and vascular surfaces. Since BBK32‐like proteins are expressed in a variety of pathogens we believe that the vascular adhesion mechanisms we have deciphered here may be critical for understanding the dissemination mechanisms of other bacterial pathogens.
Assessing Allegations of Domestic Violence in Child Custody Evaluations

There has been an increased focus on child custody evaluations involving domestic violence allegations with much criticism of evaluators’training, practices, and procedures. A national survey of 115child custody evaluators (doctoral and master’s level) was conducted to explore these criticisms. Findings revealed adequate training, multiple sources of data collection, and practices/procedures that closely adhere to child custody guidelines. However, robust, specialized domestic violence instruments, tests, and questionnaires were underutilized. Respondents indicated that findings supporting domestic violence allegations had a substantial impact on their subsequent recommendations. Results are discussed in terms of the importance of assessing domestic violence when conducting custody evaluations and the need for developing practice standards in this domain. Generally, results did not support common criticisms of custody evaluation practice.
The Importance of Type of Usual Source of Care for Children's Physician Access and Expenditures

Despite the overall improvement in access to medical care for low-income people, differences in access to care by income levels remain for children. One reason may be the types of places low-income children often go for care. This paper examines the importance of type of usual source of care—physician's office versus hospital outpatient/emergency room sites and the potential mitigating influence of a specific physician as caregiver at these sites—on physician access and expenditures. Likelihood of a visit, number of visits, distribution of visits for preventive and illness-related care, and likelihood of a preventive visit are examined for all children and for those under 6 years. Implications of different types of usual source of care for costs of physician care are discussed as well.
The virtual disappearance of rheumatic fever in the United States: lessons in the rise and fall of disease. T. Duckett Jones memorial lecture.

I AM DEEPLY HONORED to have been invited to give the 1984 T. Duckett Jones Memorial Lecture. This year marks 40 years since Dr. Jones first published his paper entitled "The Diagnosis of Rheumatic Fever. "' Jones had the foresight to recognize the importance of standardized diagnostic criteria from three points of view. He wrote: "(1) Otherwise, [without standardized criteria] the incidence of rheumatic fever may be interpreted as varying greatly whether the data are collected by surveys, the development of a rheumatic fever register, making the disease reportable, or the study of hospital records. (2) The interpretation of study programs of prevention and care is obviously dependent on such diagnostic criteria. " Jones' third point dealt with the importance of standardized diagnostic criteria if valid information regarding ultimate prognosis were to be obtained and provided to patients and their families. It is noteworthy that the primary benefits he described were not so much the improved clinical management of individual patients with rheumatic fever, but rather facilitation of the collection of meaningful incidence data and evaluation of the effectiveness of prevention programs. In this article I would like to discuss the dramatically changing incidence of rheumatic fever and its relation to our preventive efforts. The studies I will present were possible only because of the broad acceptance and utilization of the diagnostic criteria promulgated by Dr. Jones 40 years ago. Throughout history people have been intrigued by the apparent appearance and disappearance of human disease, believed by many to be actions of the gods in direct response to humain behavior. Over the years there have been attempts to develop a scientific ration-