Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Feasibility and effectiveness of a parenting programme for Mexican parents of children with acquired brain injury-Case report

ABSTRACT Background: Acquired brain injury (ABI) during childhood typically causes behaviour problems in the child and high levels of stress in the family. Objectives: (1) To investigate the feasibility and effectiveness of a parenting programme to: improve behaviour and self-regulation (SR) in Mexican children with ABI, enhance parenting skills, and decrease parental stress in parents of children with ABI; (2) to explore the impact of parent SR on child. Methods: Case study design with four participants post-ABI, aged 7–12 years, recruited in Mexico City. A parenting programme (Signposts for Building Better Behaviour) was delivered and provided parents with strategies to manage child behaviour. Child behaviour, child self-regulation, parental stress and parenting practices were measured before, immediately post-intervention, and three months post-intervention. Results: At immediate and three months post-intervention improvements in parenting skills, reduction in parental stress, and improvement in child behaviour were identified. Conclusions: The programme is feasible in a Mexican population and was effective in improving parenting skills and reducing stress in parents of children with ABI, as well as improving child behaviour and behavioural SR. These domains continue improving three months after the intervention. The improvements in challenging behaviour at home did not transfer to the school environment.
Effect of particle variation on wear rates of posterior composites.

PURPOSE To evaluate the relationship between filler size, shape, mechanical properties and wear resistance of posterior resin composite was evaluated. MATERIALS AND METHODS Six UDMA/TEGDMA-based experimental resin composites consisting of different types of filler particles were investigated. These included four sized spherical fillers, (9.88 microns, 2.01 microns, 0.62 micron, 0.20 micron) and two irregular, (9.46 microns, 1.97 microns). Property measurements consisted of hardness and compressive strength. Wear resistance was evaluated by a three-bodied in vitro wear test. RESULTS The composites containing the smallest sized spherical particle exhibited maximum mechanical strength and maximum wear resistance. The composites containing the largest spherical particle exhibited minimum wear resistance. There were no significant differences amongst those containing similar sized fillers regardless of particle shape. However, differences between the 0.20 microns spherical filled composite and other composites were statistically significant. SEM analysis showed that only the larger sized filler exhibited some exfoliation after wear testing. The smaller size spherical filler exhibited better mechanical strength and substantially higher wear resistance.
Ab initio protein structure prediction using physicochemical potentials and a simplified off‐lattice model

This study describes a computational method for ab inito protein structure prediction. Protein conformation has been modeled by using six optimized backbone torsion angles and fixed side chains approximating rotationally averaged real side chains. The approximations aim to keep complexity of the structure description to a minimum without seriously compromising the accuracy of the structural representation. An evolutionary Monte Carlo algorithm has been developed to search through this restricted conformational space to locate low‐energy protein structures. A simple physicochemical force field has been developed to assess the energies of different conformations within this structural description. The corresponding residue interaction energies are based on hydrophobic, hydrophilic, steric, and hydrogen‐bonding potentials. The search procedure has been used to locate native energy minima from primary sequence alone. The 3‐D structures of polypeptides up to 38 residues with both β and α secondary structural elements have been accurately predicted. The search procedure has been found to be highly efficient and follows an energetically and structurally plausible pathway to locate native populations. The simple force field described in the study has been compared with a more complex all‐atom model and been found to be similarly effective in predicting the structures of proposed independent folding units. Proteins 2001;43:186–202. © 2001 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Providing Relief from Cancer Pain by Assisting in the Search for Meaning

Pain is a common, distressing symptom experienced by cancer patients and their family caregivers. An important aspect of coping with cancer pain is the ability to make meaning of the experience. This paper provides an overview of the literature related to meaning-making processes utilized by people experiencing cancer. It also presents an integrated approach to assisting patients and their family caregivers with the meaning-making process associated with cancer pain. Approaches to intervening are integrated within a model developed through previous research.
The response of rabbit lymphocytes to mitogens and alloantigens: evidence for T cell heterogeneity.

Soluble concanavalin A (Con A), phytohemagglutinin-P (PHA), and pokeweed mitogen (PWM) stimulate DNA synthesis in cells from a variety of normal rabbit lymphoid organs. In lethally irradiated rabbits injected with thymocytes, these responses are virtually normal or, in some instances, increased. In thymus-deprived animals (thymectomy, lethal irradiation, bone marrow shielding) they are virtually abolished. We conclude that the substances tested are specific T cell mitogens in the rabbit, as in other species. The response to Con A is both of higher magnitude and wider distribution among various lymphoid organs than the response to either of the other two mitogens. Responses to PHA relative to Con A vary in different organs, being lowest in thymus and highest in popliteal lymph nodes and manually separated cells of the thymus-dependent area (TDA) of the appendix. PHA-responsive cells were found to have the same organ distribution as cells responding in the one-way mixed lymphocyte reaction (MLR). It is proposed that responsiveness to PHA develops only in differentiated, peripheral T cells and that the PHA/Con A response ratio provides a convenient index in the rabbit for estimating function in these cell populations. The appendix TDA was enriched in cells responsive to T cell mitogens and in the MLR relative to whole appendix as well as to the dome and follicle components of this organ. This finding confirms other evidence that this morphologic element of the gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT) is thymus-dependent. A small proportion of rabbit B lymphocytes, limited largely to peripheral lymph nodes, were shown to respond to endotoxic lipopolysaccharide. As is the case in other animals, PWM appears to be mitogenic for both T and B cells in the rabbit.
Gene transfer in vivo: sustained expression and regulation of genes introduced into the liver by receptor-targeted uptake.

Receptor-mediated gene transfer has been used to introduce genes into tissues of animals in vivo. The genes introduced by this approach have been transiently expressed at low levels in animal tissues. High levels of expression, for longer periods, have been attained by the induction of cell division (i.e., partial hepatectomy) or disruption of lysosomal degradation of the DNA. We have studied the correlation of specific structural features on the DNA/ligand complexes with their ability to efficiently introduce DNA into the livers of intact animals. A chimeric gene containing the phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase gene promoter (nucleotides -460 to +73) linked to the structural gene for human factor IX (PEPCK-hFIX gene) was condensed with galactosylated poly(L-lysine) by titration with NaCl, resulting in complexes of defined size (10-12 nm in diameter) and shape. The PEPCK-hFIX gene complex was injected into the caudal vena cava of adult rats and the conjugated DNA was specifically targeted to the livers of the animals; no detectable DNA was noted in other tissues. The plasmid containing the PEPCK-hFIX gene was found as an episome in the livers of the rats 32 days after injection of the DNA complex. Human factor IX DNA, mRNA, and functional protein were detected up to 140 days after administration of the DNA complex (the duration of the experiment). Transcription from the PEPCK promoter could be induced over the entire course of the experiment by feeding the rats a high-protein, carbohydrate-free diet. We conclude that the structure of the DNA/ligand complexes is of key importance for the successful introduction of genes into the tissues of animals by receptor-mediated endocytosis.
Sinusoidal Obstruction Syndrome of the Liver after Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation: Decision Making for Orthotopic Liver Transplantation

Sinusoidal obstruction syndrome (SOS) is a specific complication of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) that can lead to substantial morbidity and treatment-related mortality. Heparin is frequently used as prophylaxis of and defibrotide as therapy for mild to moderate SOS. In severe cases of SOS these therapies are often ineffective, and orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) may be the only option. Reports in the literature about the outcome of liver transplantation for SOS are contradictory. We describe our second case of OLT after HSCT. The patient died of intracranial hemorrhage 2 weeks after liver transplantation with good initial organ function. In the first case at our center, however, the patient survived more then 8 years. The reported short-to medium-range survival rate for OLT following HSCT is approximately 50%. On the basis of the experience at our center and the findings in a review of the literature, we developed a rational approach to the selection for liver transplantation of patients with life-threatening liver dysfunction after marrow transplantation.
DECEIVING THE ELDERLY: EFFECTS OF ACCESSIBILITY BIAS IN CUED-RECALL PERFORMANCE

Two experiments examined age-related differences in a misinformation paradigm. Young and elderly participants studied a list of related word pairs (e.g. bed sheet) and were then given a cued-recall test (“bed s_ee_” presented as cues for recall of “sheet”). A ‘prime’ stimulus was presented briefly before each test trial. On congruent trials the prime was the target word from study (sheet) whereas on incongruent trials the prime was a related word that was a plausible response but not the target (sleep). On baseline trials, the prime was a string of ampersands. When forced to respond (Expt. 1), both young and elderly participants demonstrated a bias to respond with the prime word, although the elderly showed a larger false memory effect as measured by higher false recalls on incongruent relative to baseline trials. When given the option to pass (Expt. 2), elderly participants continued to exhibit a large bias toward the prime word whereas young participants tended to pass when they were unable to recall th.
Circumspective The Therapeutic Potential of Psychedelic Drugs : Past , Present , and Future

Plant-based psychedelics, such as psilocybin, have an ancient history of medicinal use. After the first English language report on LSD in 1950, psychedelics enjoyed a short-lived relationship with psychology and psychiatry. Used most notably as aids to psychotherapy for the treatment of mood disorders and alcohol dependence, drugs such as LSD showed initial therapeutic promise before prohibitive legislature in the mid-1960s effectively ended all major psychedelic research programs. Since the early 1990s, there has been a steady revival of human psychedelic research: last year saw reports on the first modern brain imaging study with LSD and three separate clinical trials of psilocybin for depressive symptoms. In this circumspective piece, RLC-H and GMG share their opinions on the promises and pitfalls of renewed psychedelic research, with a focus on the development of psilocybin as a treatment for depression. Neuropsychopharmacology advance online publication, 17 May 2017; doi:10.1038/npp.2017. 84
Effects of Different Types of Physical Exercise on the Perceived Quality of Life in Active Elderly.

UNLABELLED There is a lack of knowledge about the influence of individual physical activities on the quality of life (QoL) of older adults, especially in strength training and swimming, two popular activities. OBJECTIVES To assess and compare the perceived QoL levels among sedentary, swimming and strength training groups in elderly individuals. METHODS Twenty one subjects were evaluated: 9 sedentary, 10 swimming and 12 strength training. Physical activity levels were assessed by the International Physical Activity Questionnaire short version, and the physical, psychological, social and environmental domains, as well the general QoL of each group, were assessed through the World Health Organization questionnaire short version. In addition, the contribution of each domain in general QoL was also verified. RESULTS The sedentary group presented a statistically lower score in each variable examined (p<0.05). The physical domain was higher only in the strength training group and the psychological and social domains were higher only in the swimming group. In relation to the influence on general QoL, the physical domain (i.e., sedentary); the physical and psychological domains (i.e., swimming) and the social and environmental domains (i.e., strength training) were statistically significant. CONCLUSION The results suggest that the QoL levels were always lower in the sedentary group. However, the determination of the domain depended on the physical activity level of each subject. Further, the domains with better scores were not necessarily the ones that showed a higher association with the general QoL in each group.
In Situ Biotreatment of TBA with Recirculation/Oxygenation

The potential for in situ biodegradation of tert‐butyl alcohol (TBA) by creation of aerobic conditions in the subsurface with recirculating well pairs was investigated in two field studies conducted at Vandenberg Air Force Base. In the first experiment, a single recirculating well pair with bromide tracer and oxygen amendment successfully delivered oxygen to the subsurface for 42 d. TBA concentrations were reduced from approximately 500 μg/L to below the detection limit within the treatment zone and the treated water was detected in a monitoring transect several meters downgradient. In the second experiment, a site‐calibrated model was used to design a double recirculating well pair with oxygen amendment, which successfully delivered oxygen to the subsurface for 291 d and also decreased TBA concentrations to below the detection limit. Methylibium petroleiphilum strain PM1, a known TBA‐degrading bacterium, was detectable at the study site but addition of oxygen had little impact on the already low baseline population densities, suggesting that there was not enough carbon within the groundwater plume to support significant new growth in the PM1 population. Given favorable hydrogeologic and geochemical conditions, the use of recirculating well pairs to introduce dissolved oxygen into the subsurface is a viable method to stimulate in situ biodegradation of TBA or other aerobically degradable aquifer contaminants.
Association Between p 53 Gene Mutations and Tobacco and Alcohol Exposure in Laryngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Results: p53 gene mutations were detected in 24 (28.6%) cases (95% confidence interval, 19.3%-39.5%), and the GC to TA transversion (33%) was the most common type of mutation (95% confidence interval, 15.6%-55.3%). Most mutations mapped to the p53 DNA-binding domain, which is necessary for the physiological activity of p53 as a tumor suppressor. A statistically significant association was found between p53 mutations and exposure to tobacco smoke (P=.001), which was the only variable significantly associated with p53 mutations in a multivariate model. The association with alcohol consumption was only at a borderline level of significance (P=.065).
A C-Terminal Proline-Rich Sequence Simultaneously Broadens the Optimal Temperature and pH Ranges and Improves the Catalytic Efficiency of Glycosyl Hydrolase Family 10 Ruminal Xylanases

ABSTRACT Efficient degradation of plant polysaccharides in rumen requires xylanolytic enzymes with a high catalytic capacity. In this study, a full-length xylanase gene (xynA) was retrieved from the sheep rumen. The deduced XynA sequence contains a putative signal peptide, a catalytic motif of glycoside hydrolase family 10 (GH10), and an extra C-terminal proline-rich sequence without a homolog. To determine its function, both mature XynA and its C terminus-truncated mutant, XynA-Tr, were expressed in Escherichia coli. The C-terminal oligopeptide had significant effects on the function and structure of XynA. Compared with XynA-Tr, XynA exhibited improved specific activity (12-fold) and catalytic efficiency (14-fold), a higher temperature optimum (50°C versus 45°C), and broader ranges of temperature and pH optima (pH 5.0 to 7.5 and 40 to 60°C versus pH 5.5 to 6.5 and 40 to 50°C). Moreover, XynA released more xylose than XynA-Tr when using beech wood xylan and wheat arabinoxylan as the substrate. The underlying mechanisms responsible for these changes were analyzed by substrate binding assay, circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy, isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC), and xylooligosaccharide hydrolysis. XynA had no ability to bind to any of the tested soluble and insoluble polysaccharides. However, it contained more α helices and had a greater affinity and catalytic efficiency toward xylooligosaccharides, which benefited complete substrate degradation. Similar results were obtained when the C-terminal sequence was fused to another GH10 xylanase from sheep rumen. This study reveals an engineering strategy to improve the catalytic performance of enzymes.
Creation of "Amyloid" Fibrils from Bence Jones Proteins in vitro

"Amyloid" fibrils have been created from some human Bence Jones proteins by proteolytic digestion under physiologic conditions. These fibrils with an antiparallel, β-pleated sheet conformation consist of only a portion of the variable region of the immunoglobulin light polypeptide chain and share the physical properties of amyloid fibrils. The relation between amyloidosis and immunoglobulins is thus more firmly established and a pathogenetic mechanism for amyloid fibril formation is suggested.
Evaluation of tubal patency by hysterocontrast sonography (HyCoSy, Echovist®) and its correlation with laparoscopic findings

In 20 patients with suspected infertility, fallopian tube patency was assessed using Doppler‐supplemented hysterocontrast sonography (HyCoSy). All patients underwent transvaginal HyCoSy with the contrast agent SHU 454/Echovist® prior to laparoscopy with chromopertubation (chromolaparoscopy). Following application of the Echovist® contrast medium, the fallopian tubes were visualized with B‐mode scanning and tubal flow was evaluated by means of Doppler sonography. None of the patients received anesthesia. We found corresponding results with regard to the tube patency between HyCoSy and conventional chromolaparoscopy in 82.5% of cases. These results make transvaginal HyCoSy a suitable first‐line diagnostic procedure in patients with infertility disorders. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
The translocation (6;9), associated with a specific subtype of acute myeloid leukemia, results in the fusion of two genes, dek and can, and the expression of a chimeric, leukemia-specific dek-can mRNA

The translocation (6;9) is associated with a specific subtype of acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Previously, it was found that breakpoints on chromosome 9 are clustered in one of the introns of a large gene named Cain (can). cDNA probes derived from the 3' part of can detect an aberrant, leukemia-specific 5.5-kb transcript in bone marrow cells from t(6;9) AML patients. cDNA cloning of this mRNA revealed that it is a fusion of sequences encoded on chromosome 6 and 3' can. A novel gene on chromosome 6 which was named dek was isolated. In dek the t(6;9) breakpoints also occur in one intron. As a result the dek-can fusion gene, present in t(6;9) AML, encodes an invariable dek-can transcript. Sequence analysis of the dek-can cDNA showed that dek and can are merged without disruption of the original open reading frames and therefore the fusion mRNA encodes a chimeric DEK-CAN protein of 165 kDa. The predicted DEK and CAN proteins have molecular masses of 43 and 220 kDa, respectively. Sequence comparison with the EMBL data base failed to show consistent homology with any known protein sequences.
Multiple regression model for surface roughness using full factorial design

This paper describes the modeling of surface roughness in turning of AISI 1042 Steel at four cutting parameters: cutting speed, feed rate, depth of cut and tool nose radius. Full factorial design is implemented to investigate the effects of interactions of these parameters on surface roughness. By using the multiple regression method, we developed a model with high correlation coefficient of 99.55 % and error of 0.07. Moreover, a good agreement was observed between estimated and experimental surface roughness in this model. The effects of cutting parameters and their interactions on surface roughness were investigated by using the analysis of variance.
Studies on the uptake and release of fluoroquinolones by disposable contact lenses.

PURPOSE To evaluate the ability of three types of disposable contact lenses to take up and release three kinds of fluoroquinolones in vitro. METHODS We evaluated three FDA-approved disposable soft contact lenses (1-Day Acuvue, Medalist, and 14UV) for their ability to absorb and release three kinds of fluoroquinolones. Contact lenses were presoaked in fluoroquinolones for 1, 4, and 24 hours, and the uptake was determined by measuring the concentration of fluoroquinolones in the three types of disposable soft contact lenses by high pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC). After uptake, the lenses were placed in fresh saline baths, and release rates from the lenses were determined by measuring the concentration of fluoroquinolones in the saline baths by HPLC. RESULTS The disposable soft contact lens with the highest uptake of fluoroquinolones was the 1-Day Acuvue. After presoaking, drug concentrations in the 1-Day Acuvue and Medalist were higher than their theoretical saturation concentrations (i.e., the concentration of the fluoroquinolone eye drops [0.3%]). The release rates from the 1-Day Acuvue and Medalist lenses were slower than for the 14 UV lens. CONCLUSIONS These results indicate that among the lenses tested, the most practical drug delivery system is the 1-Day Acuvue disposable soft contact lens.