Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Knowledge and use of folic acid among college women: a pilot health promotion program led by pharmacy students and faculty

As pharmacists and pharmacy students are increasingly called upon to assume roles in public health activities, it is important to recognize unique opportunities to educate community members on health, wellness, and disease prevention. Objective To evaluate the impact of a pilot health promotion program on college women’s knowledge regarding folic acid and prevention of neural tube defects (NTD) and frequency of multivitamin use. Methods A health promotion program was developed by a pharmacy student and two pharmacy faculty members that included an oral presentation and reminder messages. A multiple-choice test assessing knowledge of folic acid and NTD and frequency of multivitamin use was given to participants before and immediately after the presentation. Participants then received a reminder message regarding folic acid once a week for three weeks. Knowledge and multivitamin use were reassessed four weeks post-intervention. Results Thirty-two college women voluntarily attended the oral presentation. Twenty-five women (78.2%) completed the four-week post-test. Compared to the pre-test, there were statistically significant increases in average test score (p<0.0001) and correct responses to questions regarding folic acid and NTD (p<0.05 for each question). Participants reported a statistically significant increase in regular (≥4 times/week) multivitamin use (p=0.023). Conclusion Participants in the pilot health promotion program demonstrated a statistically significant increase in knowledge about folic acid and frequency of multivitamin use. A similarly-modeled health promotion program may be an effective way of increasing folic acid and NTD knowledge and changing behaviors of multivitamin use in college women.
Operation of SiGe HBTs Down to 70 mK

We present the first measurement results of a highly scaled, 90-nm silicon-germanium heterojunction bipolar transistor (SiGe HBT) operating at cryogenic temperatures as low as 70 mK. The SiGe HBT exhibits a transistor-like behavior down to 70 mK, but below 40 K, the transconductance suggests the presence of nonequilibrium transport mechanisms. Despite the non-ideal base current at cryogenic temperatures, a dc current gain (β) > 1 is achieved for IC > 1 nA, suggesting that ultralow-power low-noise amplifiers should be viable. Exposure of the SiGe HBT to strong magnetic fields (±14 T) is also presented to help understand the nature of the non-ideal
Hypertension and obstructive sleep apnoea

Several epidemiological and experimental studies have demonstrated a close relationship between sleep-disordered breathing and cardiovascular disease. Obstructive sleep apnoea has been linked to hypertension in a dose-dependant and time-related manner. Postulated underlying mechanisms involve autonomic nervous system alterations, chemoreceptor and baroreceptor responsiveness impairment, higher levels of vasoactive hormones and impaired endothelial function. Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy for obstructive sleep apnoea may significantly improve blood pressure control and influence target organ damage, previously ascribed to hypertension alone.
The Acquisition of Complex Predicates in Japanese Specifically Language-Impaired and Normally Developing Children

Japanese exhibits two different types of morphological processes. Some morphologically complex predicates are generated within the domain of the lexicon, whereas others are generated outside the domain of the lexicon. An elicited production task involving both types of complex predicates was administered to six Japanese children with specific language impairment (JSLI) and six children with normal language development (JNLD). The JSLI children experienced significant difficulty forming the lexicon-external complex predicates but much less difficulty with the lexicon-internal complex predicates while the performance of the JNLD children exhibited no such asymmetry. These preliminary results suggest that the deficit of SLI affects the ability to construct implicit procedural rules for morphology that are generated outside the lexicon while their lexical operations for morphology that are generated within the domain of the lexicon remain relatively unimpaired.
An extreme clockwise switch bias mutation in fliG of Salmonella typhimurium and its suppression by slow-motile mutations in motA and motB

Pseudorevertants (second-site suppressor mutants) were isolated from a set of parental mutants of Salmonella with defects in the flagellar switch genes fliG and fliM. Most of the suppressing mutations lay in flagellar region IIIb of the chromosome. One fliG mutant, SJW2811, gave rise to a large number of suppressor mutations in the motility genes motA and motB, which are in flagellar region II. SJW2811, which has a three-amino-acid deletion (delta Pro-Ala-Ala) at positions 169 to 171 of FliG, had an extreme clockwise motor bias that produced inverse smooth swimming (i.e., swimming by means of clockwise rotation of a hydrodynamically induced right-handed helical bundle), and formed Mot(-)-like colonies on semisolid medium. Unlike previously reported inverse-swimming mutants, it did not show a chemotactic response to serine, and it remained inverse even in a delta che background; thus, its switch is locked in the clockwise state. The location of the mutation further underscores the conclusion from a previous study of spontaneous missense mutants (V. M. Irikura, M. Kihara, S. Yamaguchi, H. Sockett, and R. M. Macnab, J. Bacteriol. 175:802-810, 1993) that a relatively localized region in the central part of the FliG sequence is critically important for switching. All of the second-site mutations in motA and motB caused some impairment of motility, both in the pseudorevertants and in a wild-type fliG background. The mechanism of suppression of the fliG mutation by the mot mutations is complex, involving destabilization of the right-handed flagellar bundle as a result of reduced motor speed. The mutations in the MotA and MotB sequences were clustered to a considerable degree as follows: in transmembrane helices 3 and 4 of MotA and the sole transmembrane helix of MotB, at helix-membrane interfaces, in the cytoplasmic domains of MotA, and in the vicinity of the peptidoglycan binding region of the periplasmic domain of MotB. The potential importance of Lys28 and Asp33 of the MotB sequence for proton delivery to the site of torque generation is discussed.
Is smoking tobacco an independent risk factor for HIV infection and progression to AIDS? A systemic review

Objectives: To systematically review the evidence of the relation between smoking tobacco and HIV seroconversion and progression to AIDS. Methods: A systematic review was undertaken of studies to look at tobacco smoking as a risk factor for either HIV seroconversion or progression to AIDS. Results: Six studies were identified with HIV seroconversion as an outcome measure. Five of these indicated that smoking tobacco was an independent risk factor after adjusting for important confounders with adjusted odds ratios ranging from 1.6 to 3.5. 10 studies were identified using progression to AIDS as an end point of which nine found no relation with tobacco smoking. Conclusions: Tobacco smoking may be an independent risk factor for HIV infection although residual confounding is another possible explanation. Smoking did not appear to be related to progression to AIDS although this finding may not be true in developing countries or with the longer life expectancies seen with highly active antiretroviral therapy.
Postgraduate Symposium The MTHFR C677T polymorphism, B-vitamins and blood pressure

High blood pressure (BP) and elevated homocysteine are reported as independent risk factors for CVD and stroke in particular. The main genetic determinant of homocysteine concentrations is homozygosity (TT genotype) for the C677T polymorphism in the methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) gene, typically found in approximately 10% of Western populations. The B-vitamins folate, vitamin B12 and vitamin B6 are the main nutritional determinants of homocysteine, with riboflavin more recently identified as a potent modulator specifically in individuals with the TT genotype. Although observational studies have reported associations between homocysteine and BP, B-vitamin intervention studies have shown little or no BP response despite decreases in homocysteine. Such studies, however, have not considered the MTHFR C677T polymorphism, which has been shown to be associated with BP. It has been shown for the first time that riboflavin is an important determinant of BP specifically in individuals with the TT genotype. Research generally suggests that 24 h ambulatory BP monitoring provides a more accurate measure of BP than casual measurements and its use in future studies may also provide important insights into the relationship between the MTHFR polymorphism and BP. Further research is also required to investigate the association between specific B-vitamins and BP in individuals with different MTHFR genotypes in order to confirm whether any genetic predisposition to hypertension is correctable by B-vitamin intervention. The present review will investigate the evidence linking the MTHFR C677T polymorphism to BP and the potential modulating role of B-vitamins.
Association of stigma, self-esteem, and symptoms with concurrent and prospective assessment of social anxiety in schizophrenia.

RATIONALE Often overlooked clinically, social anxiety is common in schizophrenia and may represent a barrier to quality of life and social function. Little is known, however, about the possible roots of social anxiety in schizophrenia or their relationship to social anxiety over time. METHODS To explore this issue, we examined the relationship between self-esteem, self-stigma, positive and negative symptoms, emotional discomfort and affect recognition with concurrent and prospective assessments of social anxiety using the Multidimensional Anxiety Questionnaire in a sample of seventy-eight persons meeting criteria for schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder. RESULTS Univariate correlations revealed that self-esteem, self-stigma, negative symptoms and emotional discomfort were significantly related to social anxiety assessed concurrently and five months later. Multiple regressions revealed negative symptoms and discrimination experiences in particular were found to predict social anxiety prospectively even when initial levels of social anxiety were controlled for statistically. CONCLUSIONS Negative symptoms and self-stigma may be consistently related to social anxiety across time.
The Role of Group Salience in Cross-group Friendships : An Experimental Response to Questions Raised by Qualitative Researchers

The contact hypothesis, long regarded as one of psychology’s most effective methods for reducing prejudice, posits that when conditions of contact between members of different groups are optimal, the positive feelings engendered by the contact scenario will generalise to the rest of the other group. Cross-group friendship is a form of contact that is especially effective at achieving this provided that, once friendships are formed, group salience is high (Pettigrew, 1998). High group salience reinforces the link between the friend and his/her group, and reduces intergroup anxiety by removing threats to the groups’ distinctiveness (Pettigrew & Tropp, 2008). Qualitative literature on the topic has however contradicted these findings and pointed to cross-group friendships as being fraught with tension with effort expended to invisibilise race, often leaving unaltered prejudiced views. To shed further light on this, we randomly assigned Black and White university students to control and experimental groups and manipulated their respective group salience in the experimental condition. We determined that cross-race friendship predicted lowered prejudice across both population groups, and that this relationship was mediated by intergroup anxiety. We further found that group salience moderated the relationship between cross-race friendship and intergroup anxiety. We discuss how the two population groups experienced intergroup anxiety and group salience differently, and examine these findings in the context of South Africa’s divisive past.
A Smart Negotiable Agent Based Cloud System for Multilateral e-market

Negotiation places a significant role in accomplishing an agreement in multiple interrelated e-markets. Multilateral negotiation is employed between consumer agents and broker agent. Smart negotiation, is employed between broker agent and provider agent. The negotiation outcomes in resource market between provider agent and broker agent influence the outcomes in service market between broker agent and consumer agent. In the existing approach it achieves higher utilities and success rates by contract strategy. Nonetheless there prevails a quality in achieving the coordination between the participants. Thus we tend to propose a parallel negotiation mechanism to deal with this quality and to enhance the negotiation outcomes.
Strong genetic differentiation but not local adaptation toward the range limit of a coastal dune plant

All species have limited geographic distributions; but the ecological and evolutionary mechanisms causing range limits are largely unknown. That many species’ geographic range limits are coincident with niche limits suggests limited evolutionary potential of marginal populations to adapt to conditions experienced beyond the range. We provide a test of range limit theory by combining population genetic analysis of microsatellite polymorphisms with a transplant experiment within, at the edge of, and 60 km beyond the northern range of a coastal dune plant. Contrary to expectations, lifetime fitness increased toward the range limit with highest fitness achieved by most populations at and beyond the range edge. Genetic differentiation among populations was strong, with very low, nondirectional gene flow suggesting range limitation via constraints to dispersal. In contrast, however, local adaptation was negligible, and a distance‐dependent decline in fitness only occurred for those populations furthest from home when planted beyond the range limit. These results challenge a commonly held assumption that stable range limits match niche limits, but also raise questions about the unique value of peripheral populations in expanding species’ geographical ranges.
Adverse events during pediatric dental anesthesia and sedation: a review of closed malpractice insurance claims.

PURPOSE The purpose of this study of closed malpractice insurance claims was to provide descriptive data of adverse events related to child sedation and anesthesia in the dental office. METHODS The malpractice claims databases of two professional liability carriers were searched using pre-determined keywords for all closed claims involving anesthesia in pediatric dental patients from 1993-2007. RESULTS The database searches resulted in 17 claims dealing with adverse anesthesia events of which 13 involved sedation, 3 involved local anesthesia alone, and 1 involved general anesthesia. Fifty-three percent of the claims involved patient death or permanent brain damage; in these claims, the average patient age was 3.6 years, 6 involved general dentists as the anesthesia provider, and 2 involved local anesthesia alone. Local anesthetic overdoses were observed in 41% of the claims. The location of adverse event occurrence was in the dental office where care was being provided in 71% of the claims. Of the 13 claims involving sedation, only 1 claim involved the use of physiologic monitoring. CONCLUSIONS Very young patients (≤ 3-years-old) are at greatest risk during administration of sedative and/or local anesthetic agents. Some practitioners are inadequately monitoring patients during sedation procedures. Adverse events have a high chance of occurring at the dental office where care is being provided.
A damaging source of air pollution.

Scientce serves its readers as a forum for the presentation and discussion of important issues related to the advancement of science, including the presentation of minority or conflicting points of view, rather than by publishing only material on which a consensus has been reached. Accordingly, all articles published in Science-including editorials, news and comment, and book reviews-are signed and reflect the individuLal views of the authors and not official points of view adopted by the AAAS or the instittutions with which the auithors are affiliated.
The flow of organic and inorganic materials through the alimentary tract of the sheep

The flow of digesta to the duodenum and through the terminal ileum was measured over 24 h periods in sheep fitted with re-entrant intestinal cannulas. A diet of hay supplemented by protein or starch was given. Paper impregnated with chromium sesquioxide was given twice daily by rumen fistula. The chromium was fully recovered in the faeces, though its excretion was rather irregular on a daily basis. Recovery of the chromium in the digesta flow indicated that the duodenal flow was depressed to 85% of the normal value during the 24 h of the flow measurement. Ileal flow was less affected. The mean flows to the duodenum and through the ileum were 8.0 and 3.7 kg/24 h respectively. These values became 9.5 and 3.6 kg/24 h if an adjustment were made to give 100% recovery of the chromium. About 68% of the organic matter digested disappeared in the stomach, 20% in the small intestine and the remainder in the large intestine. About 90% of the cellulose digested disappeared in the stomach and the remainder in the large intestine. The quantities of water, sodium, chloride and phosphorus flowing to the duodenum were much greater than the sheep consumed; potassium showed a smaller increase. The small intestine absorbed most of the water, chloride, phosphorus and potassium. The large intestine absorbed most of the sodium and continued the absorption of water and chloride.
The KQ Element, a Complex Genetic Region Conferring Transferable Resistance to Carbapenems, Aminoglycosides, and Fluoroquinolones in Klebsiella pneumoniae

ABSTRACT The blaKPC-3 and qnrB19 determinants of transferable Klebsiella pneumoniae plasmid pLRM24 reside within a complex region consisting of a Tn1331 backbone into which a Tn4401-like element and qnrB19 mobilized by an adjacent ISEcp1 insertion sequence have been inserted. This novel element represents a coalescence of genes conferring multidrug resistance in K. pneumoniae.
The Prevalence of Sexually Transmitted Disease Agents in Pregnant Women in Suva

Summary: Routine testing of 440 women (257 Fijians, 183 Indians) at the first antenatal attendance identified Chlamydia trachomatis in 50% of Fijians and 38% of Indians; the seropositivity rates for syphilis were 14.2% and 1.7% respectively, and the isolation rates for N. gonnorrhoeae were 3.1% in Fijians and 1.1% in Indians.
Heparin Treatment in Antiphospholipid Syndrome With Recurrent Pregnancy Loss: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

OBJECTIVE: To estimate the effect of combined heparin and aspirin compared with aspirin monotherapy in pregnant women with antiphospholipid syndrome and recurrent pregnancy loss. DATA SOURCES: We searched the PubMed database up to December 2009 for English-language studies using the key words “aspirin AND (heparin OR low molecular weight heparin), (antiphospholipid OR anticardiolipin OR aPL) AND pregnancy. ” METHODS OF STUDY SELECTION: Two hundred ninety- two studies were initially screened. Randomized controlled trials comparing the effect of heparin (unfractionated heparin or low molecular weight heparin) plus aspirin compared with aspirin alone on the live-birth rate in women with a history of at least two miscarriages and antiphospholipid antibodies were eligible. TABULATION, INTEGRATION, AND RESULTS: The pooled effect of unfractionated heparin and low molecular weight heparin was evaluable in three and two randomized controlled studies, respectively, with regard to live births, which was the major outcome. Overall, treatment effects were in favor of heparin against first-trimester losses (odd ratio [OR] 0.39, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.24–0.65, number needed to treat 6). More specifically, unfractionated heparin displayed a significant effect (OR 0.26, 95% CI 0.14–0.48, number needed to treat 4), while the pooled effect of low molecular weight heparin was insignificant (OR 0.70, 95% CI 0.34–1.45). Combination therapy of either unfractionated heparin or low molecular weight heparin with aspirin failed to display any significant effect in the prevention of late-pregnancy losses. No significant differences were observed between treatment and control groups for any other outcomes. CONCLUSION: The combination of unfractionated heparin and aspirin confers a significant benefit in live births. However, the efficacy of low molecular weight heparin plus aspirin remains unproven, highlighting the urgent need for large controlled trials.
Epidermolysis Bullosa Pruriginosa: Further Clarification of the Phenotype

Abstract: A defect in type VII collagen causes dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (DEB). The pruriginosa variant (DEB‐Pr) is unique because its initial presentation may be delayed until adolescence or adulthood, and its predominant feature is scarring and pruritus without the characteristic skin fragility of DEB. We describe three families with multiple affected members in which DEB‐Pr shows an autosomal‐dominant inheritance pattern. All affected individuals were examined, and three previously unreported COL7A1 mutations were identified.
Twelve-month prevalence and disability of DSM-IV bipolar disorder in an Australian general population survey

Background. There have been few large-scale epidemiological studies which have examined the prevalence of bipolar disorder. The authors report 12-month prevalence data for DSM-IV bipolar disorder from the Australian National Survey of Mental Health and Well-Being. Method. The broad methodology of the Australian National Survey has been described previously. Ten thousand, six hundred and forty-one people participated. The 12-month prevalence of euphoric bipolar disorder (I and II) – similar to the euphoric-grandiose syndrome of Kessler and co-workers – was determined. Those so identified were compared with subjects with major depressive disorder and the rest of the sample, on rates of co-morbidity with anxiety and substance use disorders as well as demographic features and measures of disability and service utilization. Polychotomous logistic regression was used to study the relationship between the three samples and these dependent variables. Results. There was a 12-month prevalence of 0·5% for bipolar disorder. Compared with subjects with major depressive disorder, those with bipolar disorder were distinguished by a more equal gender ratio; a greater likelihood of being widowed, separated or divorced; higher rates of drug abuse or dependence; greater disability as measured by days out of role; increased rates of treatment with medicines; and higher lifetime rates of suicide attempts. Conclusions. This large national survey highlights the marked functional impairment caused by bipolar disorder, even when compared with major depressive disorder.