Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Regulation of adenosine system at the onset of peritonitis.

BACKGROUND Adenosine, a potent regulator of inflammation, is produced under stressful conditions due to degradation of ATP/ADP by the ectoenzymes CD39 and CD73. Adenosine is rapidly degraded by adenosine deaminase (ADA) or phosphorylated in the cell by adenosine kinase (AK). From four known receptors to adenosine, A(1) (A(1)R) promotes inflammation by a G(i)-coupled receptor. We have previously shown that A(1)R is up-regulated in the first hours following bacterial inoculation. The aim of the current study is to characterize the inflammatory mediators that regulate adenosine-metabolizing enzymes and A(1)R at the onset of peritonitis. METHODS Peritonitis was induced in CD1 mice by intraperitoneal injection of Escherichia coli. TNFalpha and IL-6 levels were determined in peritoneal fluid by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Adenosine-metabolizing enzymes and the A(1)R mRNA or protein levels were analyzed by quantitative PCR or by Western blot analysis, respectively. RESULTS We found that CD39 and CD73 were up-regulated in response to bacterial stimuli (6-fold the basal levels), while AK and ADA mRNA levels were down-regulated. Cytokine production and leukocyte recruitment were enhanced (2.5-fold) by treatment with an A(1)R agonist (2-chloro-N(6)-cyclopentyladenosine, 0.1 mg/kg) and reduced (2.5-3-fold) by the A(1)R antagonist (8-cyclopentyl-1, 3-dipropylxanthine, 1 mg/kg). In contrast to lipopolysaccharide, IL-1, TNF and IFNgamma, only low IL-6 levels (0.01 ng/ml), in the presence of its soluble IL-6R (sIL-6R), were found to promote A(1)R expression on mesothelial cells. In mice, administration of neutralizing antibody to IL-6R or soluble gp130-Fc (sgp130-Fc) blocked peritoneal A(1)R up-regulation following inoculation. CONCLUSION Bacterial products induce the production of adenosine by up-regulation of CD39 and CD73. Low IL-6-sIL-6R up-regulates the A(1)R to promote efficient inflammatory response against invading microorganisms.
Irreversible Electroporation Attenuates Neointimal Formation After Angioplasty

Restenosis following coronary angioplasty represents a major clinical problem. Irreversible electroporation (IRE) is a nonthermal, nonpharmacological cell ablation method. IRE utilizes a sequence of electrical pulses that produce permanent damage to tissue within a few seconds. The left carotid arteries of eight rats underwent in vivo intimal damage using two Fogarty angioplasty catheters. The procedure was immediately followed by IRE ablation in four rats, while the remaining four were used as the control group. The IRE ablation was performed using a sequence of ten dc pulses of 3800 V/cm, 100 mus each, at a frequency of ten pulses per second, applied across the blood vessel between two parallel electrodes. The electrical conductance of the treated tissue was measured during the electroporation to provide real-time feedback of the process. Left carotid arteries were excised and fixated after a 28-day follow-up period. Neointimal formation was evaluated histologically. The use of IRE was successful in three out of four animals in a way that is consistent with the measurements of blood vessel electrical properties. The integrity of the endothelial layer was recovered in the IRE-treated animals, compared with control. Successful IRE reduced neointima to media ratio (0.57 plusmn 0.4 versus 1.88 plusmn 1.0, P = 0.02). Conclusions: We report for the first time the in vivo results of attenuation of neointimal formation using IRE. Our study shows that IRE might be able to attenuate neointimal formation after angioplasty damage in a rodent model of restenosis. This approach may open new venues in the treatment of coronary artery restenosis after balloon angioplasty.
CAN FINANCIAL RATIOS INFLUENCE THE STOCK RETURNS OF FINANCIAL SECTOR COMPANIES IN AUSTRIA ?

The stock prices of companies are influenced by many variables; two basic categories are macroeconomic and microeconomic factors. The objective of this paper is to analyze the existence of a relationship between select microeconomic variables and the stock returns of financial sector companies listed on the Vienna Stock Exchange. The institutions that were chosen are Immofinanz AG, Raiffeisen Bank International AG, Erste Group Bank AG, Uniqa Insurance Group AG and Vienna Insurance Group AG. The focus is on Austria due to the lack of empirical literature on problematics of linkages between stock prices and microeconomic factors. A possibility of the existence of the cointegration relationships can be a useful for share traders and investors who want to make higher profits. A time series with semiannual frequency are used to examine the occurrence of long-term and short-term cointegration links using the Johansen and the Granger tests. Further the analysis of the Generalized method of moments. The empirical estimates are calculated for the 2005 – 2015 period, which includes the global financial crisis. According to the theory it is expected positive relationship between selected microeconomic variables and the stock returns.
The relation of transient hypothyroxinemia in preterm infants to neurologic development at two years of age.

BACKGROUND Transient hypothyroxinemia, a common finding in premature infants, is not thought to have long-term sequelae or to require treatment. We investigated whether hypothyroxinemia in premature infants is a cause of subsequent motor and cognitive abnormalities. METHODS In this historical cohort study, we retrieved blood thyroxine values, obtained on routine screening in the first week of life, from state screening records on children who weighted 2000 g or less at birth, who were born at 33 weeks' gestation or earlier, and who were enrolled in a population-based study of the late sequelae of neonatal brain hemorrhage. We investigated the relation of these values to the odds for disabling cerebral palsy among 463 subjects for whom data were available and to the mental-development score on the Bayley Scales of Infant Development or the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scales for Children at the age of two years in 400 subjects. The effects of severe hypothyroxinemia, defined as a blood thyroxine value more than 2.6 SD below the mean for New Jersey newborns, were assessed before and after adjustment for gestational age and potentially confounding variables. RESULTS In analyses adjusted for gestational age, infants with severe hypothyroxinemia had a risk of disabling cerebral palsy that was nearly 11 times that of infants without hypothyroxinemia (odds ratio, 10.8; 95 percent confidence interval, 3.0 to 39.3) and a mean mental-development score at the age of two that was 15.4 points lower (95 percent confidence interval, 8.1 to 22.6 points) than the mean score of children with normal neonatal blood thyroxine concentrations. After adjustment for gestational age and multiple prenatal, perinatal, and early and last neonatal variables, severe hypothyroxinemia was still associated with an increased risk of disabling cerebral palsy (odds ratio, 4.4; 95 percent confidence interval, 1.0 to 18.6) and a reduction of nearly 7 points (95 percent confidence interval, 0.3 to 13.2 points) in the mental-development score. CONCLUSIONS Severe hypothyroxinemia in preterm infants may be an important cause of problems in neurologic and mental development detected at the age of two years.
Closed Reduction and Percutaneous Screw Fixation for Tibial Plateau Fractures

Purpose. To evaluate treatment outcomes of closed reduction and percutaneous screw fixation for tibial plateau fractures. Methods. 48 men and 8 women aged 19 to 61 (mean, 36) years underwent closed reduction and percutaneous screw fixation for closed tibial plateau fractures with <5 mm depression. According to the Schatzker classification, patients were classified into type I (n=9), type II (n=22), type IV (n=5), and type V (n=20). Closed reduction was achieved using manual ligamentotaxis with traction in extension under image intensifier control. Reduction was fixed percutaneously with cancellous screws (6.5 mm) and washers. Functional outcome (pain, walking capacity, extension lag, range of motion, and stability) was evaluated using the Rasmussen score. A total score of 28 to 36 was considered as excellent, 20 to 27 as good, 10 to 20 as fair, and >10 as poor. Results. Patients were followed up for a mean of 2.8 (range, 1–4) years. The mean length of hospital stay was 5 (range, 2–15) days. All the fracture united radiographically after a mean of 3 (range, 2.5–4.2) months. Respectively in Schatzker types-I, -II, -IV, and -V fractures, outcomes were excellent in 6, 10, 2, and 2 patients, good in 2, 9, 3, and 14 patients, fair in 1, 3, 0, and 2 patients, and poor in 0, 0, 0, and 2 patients. Outcome was satisfactory (good-to-excellent) in 89%, 86%, 100%, and 80% of the respective fracture types of patients. The mean Rasmussen score was 25.7 for all patients; it was 27.7 for type I, 26.3 for type II, 28.6 for type IV, and 23.4 for type V fractures. The mean Rasmussen score was significantly lower in 12 patients with ligament injury than in 44 patients without ligament injury (19.8 vs. 27.3, p<0.001). No patient had any complication (infection, wound dehiscence or hardware problem). Conclusion. Closed reduction and percutaneous screw fixation for tibial plateau fractures is minimally invasive. It reduces the length of hospital stay and costs, enables early mobilisation with minimal instrumentation, and achieves satisfactory outcomes.
Identification of social-emotional problems among young children in foster care.

BACKGROUND Little is known about how best to implement behavioral screening recommendations in practice, especially for children in foster care, who are at risk for having social-emotional problems. Two validated screening tools are recommended for use with young children: the Ages and Stages Questionnaire: Social Emotional (ASQ-SE) identifies emotional problems, and the Ages and Stages Questionnaire (ASQ) identifies general developmental delays in five domains, including personal-social problems. The current study examined: (1) whether systematic use of a social-emotional screening tool improves the detection rate of social-emotional problems, compared to reliance on clinical judgment; (2) the relative effectiveness of two validated instruments to screen for social-emotional problems; and (3) the patterns of social-emotional problems among children in foster care. METHODS We used retrospective chart review of children in foster care ages 6 months to 5.5 years: 192 children before and 159 after screening implementation, to measure detection rates for social-emotional problems among children. The ASQ-SE and the ASQ were used in multivariable logistic regression analyses to examine associations between children with social-emotional problems. RESULTS Use of the screening tool identified 24% of the children as having a social-emotional problem, while provider surveillance detected 4%. We identified significantly more children with social-emotional problems using the ASQ-SE than using the ASQ, and agreement between the instruments ranged from 56% to 75%, when data were stratified by age group. Multivariable modeling showed that preschool children were more likely to have a social-emotional problem than toddlers and infants (aOR = 3.4, 95% CI = 1.1-10.8). CONCLUSIONS Systematic screening using the ASQ-SE increased the detection rate for social-emotional problems among young children in foster care, compared to provider surveillance and the ASQ. A specific social-emotional screening tool appears to detect children with psychosocial concerns who would not be detected with a broader developmental screening tool.
Discrimination of DSM-IV and latent class attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder subtypes by educational and cognitive performance in a population-based sample of child and adolescent twins.

OBJECTIVE Despite the general use of DSM-IV attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) subtypes, there is controversy over the optimal phenotyping strategy for this disorder.This report contrasts two ADHD subtyping approaches on the prediction of cognitive function and educational achievement. METHOD ADHD subtypes were determined using DSM-IV and latent class approaches for a population sample of 1,154 child and adolescent twins using parent report data. Twins completed cognitive and achievement testing and parents reported on school grades, special education placement, and history of being held back in school. RESULTS The DSM-IV primarily inattentive and combined subtype ADHD groups showed significant deficits in cognitive and achievement testing, worse grades, and increased use of special education resources compared with the primarily hyperactive/impulsive subtype and no-ADHD groups. Clinically relevant and less severe latent class ADHD subtypes were also associated with deficits in cognitive and achievement testing, grades, and special education use. CONCLUSIONS DSM-IV primarily inattentive and combined subtypes of ADHD have similar significant patterns of cognitive and academic dysfunction in the general population. Latent class-defined ADHD subtypes also have patterns of serious cognitive and achievement deficits.
Prevalence of dental fluorosis in children from non-water-fluoridated Halmstad, Sweden: fluoride toothpaste use in infancy

Objectives. To determine the prevalence and severity of dental fluorosis in children aged 7–9 years from non-water-fluoridated Halmstad, Sweden, and to relate the results to their reported fluoride exposure history during infancy. Material and Methods. In Spring 2002, a questionnaire distributed to a cluster random sample of 1039 parents enquired into their child's early oral health behaviors and included a “photographic toothpaste menu”. The permanent upper anterior teeth (13–23) were examined clinically (+10% repeats) using a modified Thylstrup-Fejerskov Index. Results. Complete data were available for 53% (n=548) of the sampled children. The prevalence of fluorosis at any level was 49% (95% CI: 45–54%), and of fluorosis with esthetic concern (TF score ≥3) 4% (95% CI: 3–6%). Based on repeat observations, reliability was good (kappa=0.82). There was no statistically significant increased risk of dental fluorosis prevalence associated with any of the fluoride exposure risk factors examined, including reported usage of (1000 ppm) fluoride toothpaste from time of first deciduous tooth eruption. Conclusions. While there were low levels of dental fluorosis of esthetic concern, half the children had some degree of dental fluorosis. The prevalence of dental fluorosis was not explained by the risk factors, including fluoride toothpaste usage as explored in this study.
International Agricultural and Extension Education: Meeting the Unknown Challenges of Tomorrow

The purpose of this paper is to provide philosophical observations and reflections over 25 years of the Journal of International Agricultural and Extension Education (JIAEE) as a reader, author, and editor. The paper provides a brief history of JIAEE including changes that occurred over the years. This paper honors those that contributed to JIAEE and stood as its caretakers over the past 25 years. This main body of the paper is divided into three sections: early years, middle years, and contemporary years. The paper explores the development and use of JIAEE keywords and provides visual depictions using wordclouds. The purpose of keywords is discussed and suggestions for future use are provided. Final recommendations and well wishes for the future are provided. Recommendations include: Considering the hiring of a permanent editor or publishing firm such as Taylor & Francis; creating a purposeful research agenda in conjunction with AIAEE; and redressing the developing and use of keywords
Phenotypic Flexibility in Cutaneous Water Loss and Lipids of the Stratum Corneum in House Sparrows (Passer domesticus) following Acclimation to High and Low Humidity

Resistance to water‐vapor diffusion through the skin is thought to be conferred by lipids in the stratum corneum (SC), the outer layer of the epidermis. We tested the effect of ambient humidity on cutaneous water loss (CWL) and lipid composition of the SC by acclimating house sparrows (Passer domesticus) to either a dry (6.5 g/m3 absolute humidity) or a humid (31 g/m3) environment for 3 wk at a thermoneutral temperature (30°C). Sparrows in the dry‐acclimated group reduced CWL by 36% compared with those in the humid environment. Relative to initial values, both groups of sparrows decreased CWL, 45% in the dry‐acclimated group and 23% in the humid group, suggesting that temperature is also an important stimulus for CWL apart from humidity. Both groups of acclimated sparrows decreased quantities of cholesterol, free fatty acids, and cerebrosides and increased the proportion of ceramides in their SC. Lipid amounts or proportions in the SC did not differ between dry‐ and humid‐acclimated sparrows, but the free fatty acid:ceramide ratio was significantly lower in dry‐acclimated birds. Also, lipid composition was only correlated with CWL in dry‐acclimated sparrows, suggesting that structural changes to SC lipids are more tightly linked to CWL regulation in response to low humidity. Our results demonstrate phenotypic flexibility in CWL and lipid composition of the SC and provide support for a functional relationship between these traits.
The neuropharmacological substrates of nicotine reward: reinforcing versus reinforcement-enhancing effects of nicotine

Compulsive nicotine use is thought to be maintained by the acute reinforcing effects of nicotine and the reinforcement-enhancing effects of nicotine, in addition to the negative consequences of nicotine abstinence. Nicotine self-administration and nicotine-induced enhancement of non-nicotine reinforcers such as intracranial self-stimulation provide measures of these dual rewarding properties of nicotine. First, pharmacological manipulations that modulate the reinforcing and reinforcement-enhancing effects of nicotine are identified and discussed. Second, the interpretation and implications of data that identified shared and specific pharmacological substrates underlying the dual rewarding effects of nicotine are discussed, including implications for the preclinical testing of putative antismoking medications. In conclusion, reinforcement-related behaviors that are mediated by central reinforcement processes are likely to, and generally do, exhibit a number of common pharmacological substrates. Interestingly, however, a few pharmacological classes of compounds seem to exert selective effects on components of the dual nicotine reward mechanisms, indicating differences in the pharmacological substrates of the reinforcing and reinforcement-enhancing effects of nicotine. Further characterization of such compounds may ultimately lead to the identification of novel medications for nicotine dependence in humans.
Native blood speckle vs ultrasound contrast agent for particle image velocimetry with ultrafast ultrasound - in vitro experiments

Ultrafast contrast enhanced ultrasound, combined with echo particle image velocimetry (ePIV), can provide accurate, multidimensional hemodynamic flow field measurement. However, the use of ultrasound contrast agent (UCA) still prevents this method from becoming a truly versatile and non-invasive diagnostic tool. In this study, we investigate the use of native blood instead of UCA backscatter for ePIV measurements and compare their accuracy in vitro. Additionally, the effect of measurement depth is experimentally assessed. Blood mimicking fluid (BMF) was pumped through a 10 mm diameter tube producing parabolic flow profiles, adding UCA in the case of contrast imaging. Plane wave imaging at 5000 frames-per-second was performed with a Verasonics Vantage system and a linear array. The tube was imaged at three different depths: 25, 50 and 100 mm. Singular value decomposition (SVD) was assessed for clutter suppression against mean background subtraction. PIVlab was used as a PIV implementation. With SVD, BMF provided almost equal ePIV accuracy as UCA, except at 100 mm depth where UCA provided better accuracy. Use of clutter suppression greatly improved ePIV results, but minimal differences in ePIV accuracy were noted between mean and SVD filtered groups (BMF or UCA). Accuracy decreased with increasing depth, likely due to reduced elevation resolution, resulting in out-of-plane smoothing of velocity gradients.
Diagnosis of liver disease induced by hepatitis virus using Artificial Neural Networks

This paper presents an artificial neural network based approach for the diagnosis of hepatitis virus. The dataset used for this purpose is taken from the UCI machine learning database. Both supervised and unsupervised neural network models have been analyzed with different architectures, learning and activation functions. It is concluded that the supervised model performed better than the unsupervised one. The paper also compares the results of the previous studies on the diagnosis of hepatitis which use the same dataset.
Advances in Hyperspectral Image and Signal Processing: A Comprehensive Overview of the State of the Art

Recent advances in airborne and spaceborne hyperspectral imaging technology have provided end users with rich spectral, spatial, and temporal information. They have made a plethora of applications feasible for the analysis of large areas of the Earth? s surface. However, a significant number of factors-such as the high dimensions and size of the hyperspectral data, the lack of training samples, mixed pixels, light-scattering mechanisms in the acquisition process, and different atmospheric and geometric distortions-make such data inherently nonlinear and complex, which poses major challenges for existing methodologies to effectively process and analyze the data sets. Hence, rigorous and innovative methodologies are required for hyperspectral image (HSI) and signal processing and have become a center of attention for researchers worldwide.
The Multidimensional Nature of Resilience to Spousal Loss

Spousal loss can be one of the most devastating events to occur across one’s life, resulting in difficulties across different spheres of adjustment; yet, past research on resilience to bereavement has primarily focused on single adjustment indicators. We applied growth mixture modeling to data from 421 participants from the Household Income and Labour Dynamics of Australia Study who experienced spousal loss during the course of the study to examine (a) the extent to which individuals appear to be resilient across 3 indicators of subjective well-being—life satisfaction, negative affect, and positive affect, and 2 indicators of health—perceptions of general health and physical functioning—and (b) factors that might promote resilience. Approximately 66%, 19% and 26% individuals showed resilient trajectories, respectively, for life satisfaction, negative affect, and positive affect, whereas 37% and 28% showed resilience, respectively, for perceptions of general health and physical functioning. When we considered all 5 indicators simultaneously, only 8% showed “multidimensional” resilience, whereas 20% showed a non-resilient trajectory across all 5 indicators. The strongest predictors of resilient trajectories were continued engagement in everyday life activities and in social relationships, followed by anticipation that people would comfort them in times of distress. Overall, our findings demonstrate that resilience in the face of spousal bereavement is less common than previously thought. More importantly, they underscore the critical importance of multidimensional approaches while operationalizing doing well in the context of serious life adversities.