Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Association Between Hypercoagulability and Severe Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Importance Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is related to the increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Although the pathogenesis of this association remains unclear, an alteration in coagulability is suspected as a link. Objective To investigate the association between the severity of OSA and blood coagulability. Design, Setting, and Participants A retrospective cohort study conducted at a tertiary care university hospital evaluated 146 patients with OSA from January 1, 2009, to July 31, 2015. The participants were divided into 4 groups according to the severity of OSA: control, mild, moderate, and severe. Main Outcomes and Measures Association between the severity of OSA and coagulation test results, including platelet count, bleeding time, prothrombin time (PT) in seconds and as international normalized ratio (INR), and activated partial thromboplastin time. Results Of the 146 patients, 135 (92.5%) were men; mean (SD) age was 34.8 (11.1) years. The control group included 41 (28.1%) patients; mild OSA, 32 (21.9%); moderate OSA, 30 (20.5%); and severe OSA, 43 (29.5%). Significant correlations were found between the apnea-hypopnea index and the PT seconds (Spearman r coefficient, −0.30; 95% CI, −0.44 to −0.14) and PT INR (Spearman r coefficient, −0.30; 95% CI, −0.44 to −0.14). There were significant differences between the OSA severity groups for PT seconds for the control group (mean, 11.26 [0.78] seconds) vs the moderate OSA group (10.74 [0.62] seconds; mean difference [MD], 0.52; 95% CI, 0.27 to 1.01) and the severe OSA group (10.67 [0.77] seconds; MD, 0.59; 95% CI, 0.14 to 1.03). Significant differences were also noted in PT INR between the control group (1.00 [0.07]) vs the moderate OSA group (0.95 [0.05]; MD, 0.04; 95% CI, 0.01 to 0.07) and the severe OSA group (0.94 [0.07]; MD, 0.05; 95% CI, 0.02 to 0.08). However, there was no significant difference between the control and mild OSA groups in PT seconds. Conclusions and Relevance These results suggest that patients with moderate to severe OSA have elevated blood coagulability markers compared with healthy individuals, which may contribute to the occurrence of cardiovascular complications.
Observational Spatial Memory in North Island Robins (Petroica Longpies)

Observational spatial memory is employed by members of food-hoarding species to pilfer caches created by other individuals more effectively. North Island robins (Petroica australis) experience high levels of reciprocal cache pilferage within mate pairs. These circumstances were hypothesised to produce conditions under which advanced pilferage strategies such as observational spatial memory may evolve. Here I tested the ability of North Island robins to use observational spatial memory to discriminate between varying prey rewards. Three experiments were conducted which differed in the maximum number of prey items offered as a reward. Additional variables of retention interval, number of cache sites and a variable reward were included to assess how the birds’ memory was affected by small-scale factors. Results showed that North Island robins performed above chance expectations in most treatment combinations, indicating that they were able to utilize observational spatial memory. They were equally able to discriminate between different combinations of prey numbers that were hidden in 2, 3 and 4 caches sites from between 0, 10 and 60 seconds. Overall results indicate that North Island robins can solve complex numerical problems involving more than two parameters and up to one minute long retention intervals without training.
The physique and body composition of students studying physical education: a preliminary report.

INTRODUCTION Young people who study physical education are a priori regarded as having proper body structure and body composition. This assumption cannot be confirmed in the subject literature. AIM OF THE STUDY To determine the basic auxological parameters in youth who study physical education. MATERIAL AND METHODS 235 first-year students studying physical education were examined: 32% women (n=74) and 68% men (n=161). The students' body height, weight, waist, and hip circumference were measured. Body composition (bioimpedance method), specifying the body fat percentage (FM%) and fat free mass (FFM%) was also assessed. RESULTS The mean normalized height of the female body was 0.48±1.07 SDS, and for the male body 0.51±1.04 SDS. The mean normalized weight for women was 0.4±0.94 SDS, and for men it was 0.83±0.9 SDS. The mean fat percentage in the body composition of women and men was, respectively, 21.5±5.06, ranging from 10.16% to 35.06%, and 12.5±3.97, ranging from 4.36% to 22.28%. In one-third of the women, the percentage of fat in the body composition was higher than 25%. CONCLUSIONS 1. Young people who choose to study physical education and physical culture are characterized by greater height and greater body weight than the general population, regardless of gender. 2. Short persons study physical education less often than tall individuals. 3. The greater body weight observed in the majority of students studying physical education, in comparison to that of the general population, was caused by a dominant percentage of lean body mass in body composition; unexpectedly, however, some women were observed to have relatively high fat content. 4. Use of the body mass index and waist-hip ratio was not a sufficiently sensitive screening examination to detect fatness in physically active young adults; therefore, it should not substitute for the determination of fat content in body composition.
Probiotics and Their Efficacy in Improving Oral Health: A Review.

The changing food habits and lifestyle has resulted in deterioration of oral health in the people of all ages. The increasing global problems with the traditional disease management strategies have prompted the investigators to hunt for the new and better alternatives to deal with health issues. The global demand for chemical free, less harmful and easier solutions to health problems has increased in past few years. Probiotics or the foods with ‘live cultures’ have come up as one of the most promising alternate to traditional disease management. Probiotics are those viable microorganisms which are constituents of natural microflora of human body. Probiotic therapy decreases the risk of colonization by oral pathogens without depleting the friendly microflora. Probiotics resembles the human body microbiota and are readily incorporated in the natural microflora of human body. They are harmless and easy to consume in many edible forms (such as cheese, yoghurt, etc.). The inability of the antibiotics to discriminate good bacteria from the disease causing bacteria, the development of antimicrobial resistant mutants and the increasing rate of antibiotic associated side effects and complications suggests an urgent need to switch our therapeutic approach from traditional antibiotics to the probiotic therapy for oral care. The use of probiotics in routine life is likely to improve the oral health. This review demonstrates the action of Probiotics on oral health and disease.
How Trustworthy Is the Scientific Literature in Industrial and Organizational Psychology?

The trustworthiness of research findings has been questioned in many domains of science. This article calls for a review of the trustworthiness of the scientific literature in industrial–organizational (I–O) psychology and a reconsideration of common practices that may harm the credibility of our literature. We note that most hypotheses in I–O psychology journals are confirmed. Thus, we are either approaching omniscience or our journals are publishing an unrepresentative sample of completed research. We view the latter explanation as more likely. We review structural problems in the publication process and in the conduct of research that is likely to promote a distortion of scientific knowledge. We then offer recommendations to make the I–O literature more accurate and trustworthy.
Diffusion coefficients of atp and creatine phosphate in isolated muscle: pulsed gradient 31p nmr of small biological samples

Measurements of the intracellular diffusion coefficients (Di) of ATP and creatine phosphate (PCr) in stable, isolated preparations of skeletal muscle were made by means of pulsed field gradient (PFG) 31P NMR. Experiments used a PFG NMR probe specifically designed for small, superfused biological samples. This provided a magnetic field gradient in the z axis of up to 195 G/cm with minimal eddy currents. DiATP and DiPCr in white (fast, glycolytic) skeletal muscle from goldfish (Carassius auratus) were determined to be 2.48±0.33 and 3.49±0.33 × 10−6 cm2/s, respectively, at 25°C and a diffusion time of approximately 19ms. For comparison with Di values, diffusion coefficients of ATP and PCr also were measured in solutions of ionic composition similar to that of fish muscle cytosol. The in vitro diffusion coefficients of ATP and PCr were 3.54±0.11 and 5.28±0.08 × 10−6cm2/s, respectively, at 25°C.
Adverse reactions to influenza vaccine in elderly people: randomised double blind placebo controlled trial.

OBJECTIVE--To assess the frequency and type of side effects after influenza vaccination in elderly people. DESIGN--Randomised double blind placebo controlled study. SETTING--15 general practices in the southern Netherlands. SUBJECTS--1806 patients aged 60 or older, of whom 904 received influenza vaccine and 902 placebo. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES--Adverse reactions reported on postal questionnaire completed four weeks after vaccination. RESULTS--210 (23%) patients given vaccine reported one or more adverse reactions compared with 127 (14%) given placebo. The frequency of local adverse reactions were 17.5% in the vaccine group and 7.3% in the placebo group (p < 0.001). There was no difference in systemic adverse reactions (11% v 9.4%; p = 0.34). In general, men reported fewer side effects than women. CONCLUSION--Only local side effects were more common in vaccinated patients and all side effects were mild.
Qualitative Research in Sport Psychology Journals: The Next Decade 2000-2009 and Beyond

A follow-up of the 1990s review of qualitative research articles published in three North American sport psychology journals (Culver, Gilbert, & Trudel, 2003) was conducted for the years 2000–2009. Of the 1,324 articles published, 631 were data-based and 183 of these used qualitative data collection techniques; an increase from 17.3% for the 1990s to 29.0% for this last decade. Of these, 31.1% employed mixed methods compared with 38.1% in the 1990s. Interviews were used in 143 of the 183 qualitative studies and reliability test reporting increased from 45.2% to 82.2%. Authors using exclusively quotations to present their results doubled from 17.9% to 39.9%. Only 13.7% of the authors took an epistemological stance, while 26.2% stated their methodological approach. We conclude that positivist/postpositivist approaches appear to maintain a predominant position in sport psychology research. Awareness of the importance of being clear about epistemology and methodology should be a goal for all researchers.
Statins Suppress Oxidized Low Density Lipoprotein-induced Macrophage Proliferation by Inactivation of the Small G Protein-p38 MAPK Pathway*

Inhibitors of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase (statins) ameliorate atherosclerotic diseases. Macrophages play an important role in the development and subsequent stability of atherosclerotic plaques. We reported previously that oxidized low density lipoprotein (Ox-LDL) induced macrophage proliferation through the secretion of granulocyte/macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) and the consequent activation of p38 MAPK. The present study was designed to elucidate the mechanism of the inhibitory effect of statins on macrophage proliferation. Mouse peritoneal macrophages were used in our study. Cerivastatin and simvastatin each inhibited Ox-LDL-induced [3H]thymidine incorporation into macrophages. Statins did not inhibit Ox-LDL-induced GM-CSF production, but inhibited GM-CSF-induced p38 MAPK activation. Farnesyl transferase inhibitor and geranylgeranyl transferase inhibitor inhibited GM-CSF-induced macrophage proliferation, and farnesyl pyrophosphate and geranylgeranyl pyrophosphate prevented the effect of statins. GM-CSF-induced p38 MAPK phosphorylation was also inhibited by farnesyl transferase inhibitor or geranylgeranyl transferase inhibitor, and farnesyl pyrophosphate and geranylgeranyl pyrophosphate prevented the suppression of GM-CSF-induced p38 MAPK phosphorylation by statins. Furthermore, we found that statin significantly inhibited the membrane translocation of the small G protein family members Ras and Rho. GM-CSF-induced p38 MAPK activation and macrophage proliferation was partially inhibited by overexpression of dominant negative Ras and completely by that of RhoA. In conclusion, statins inhibited GM-CSF-induced Ras- or RhoA-p38 MAPK signal cascades, thereby suppressing Ox-LDL-induced macrophage proliferation. The significant inhibition of macrophage proliferation by statins may also explain, at least in part, their anti-atherogenic action.
Response to “Impact of CYP3A4 Genotype on Voriconazole Exposure: New Insights Into the Contribution of CYP3A4*22 to Metabolism of Voriconazole”

We thank Dr. Duflot and colleagues for their correspondence. Polymorphisms of cytochrome P450 (CYP)2C19 occupy a key role in the pharmacogenetics of voriconazole. By comparison, CYP3A4 polymorphisms have heretofore not been considered to be significant factors in the metabolism of voriconazole. However, recent reports suggest that CYP3A4 polymorphisms may affect the metabolic processing of voriconazole. For example, He et al. studied the relation between 16 polymorphisms of CYP3A4 and CYP3A5 on the serum concentrations of voriconazole in a cohort of Chinese patients who had received the triazole. Among these polymorphisms, only the rs4646437 T allele of CYP3A4 was found to have attained a statistically significant effect on the distribution of voriconazole (P 5 0.033). However, the 95% confidence intervals around this difference were large (1.086–7.384) reducing the predictive capacity possibly because of the relatively low allelic frequency ( 20%) of this allele compared with the distributions of other alleles that were often >70%. Further contributing to the expanding knowledge base of the potential role of CYP3A4 polymorphisms to alter the plasma exposure of voriconazole in patients, Thomas et al. herein use a candidate gene approach to study the effect of CYP3A4*22. This recently characterized polymorphism (CYP3A4*22; rs35599367 C>T in intron 6), which has been associated with decreased CYP3A4 expression, reduced CYP3A4 activity, and increased circulating levels of cyclosporine and tacrolimus, may be particularly relevant to the clinical pharmacogenetics of voriconazole. In the study by Thomas et al., there are significant plasma exposures in patients with one or more alleles CYP3A4*22. The percent of the R2 value of the linear regression equations for the relative contributions of CYP3A4*22 was 41.2% in comparison with the covariates of CYP2C19*17 and age. As the original study, from which these data are derived, noted that 7 of the 11 patients with CYP2C19*1/*1 were receiving proton pump inhibitors, the question arises as to the contribution of proton pump inhibitors to the elevated voriconazole levels in the CYP3A4*22 cohort reported in the figure in the companion correspondence. As only a limited number of patients was studied (n 5 9 in Figure 1), a prospective study of a large cohort of well-defined patients using similar methodology would greatly strengthen our understanding of CYP3A4 polymorphisms and define the clinical pharmacogenetics of CYP3A4*22 in managing patients receiving voriconazole.
Isolation of Actinobacillus seminis from rams in the United Kingdom

Actinobacillus seminis was isolated from the semen of five rams on four farms. Four of the rams had abnormal semen and three were also infertile. The isolates of A seminis showed similar phenotypic profiles and electrophoretic protein patterns to the type strain of A seminis but were distinct from Histophilus ovis previously isolated from rams with epididymitis in Scotland. The infection appeared to be subclinical but two of the five rams had palpable abnormalities of their testes. Three rams were treated with antibiotics but the infection persisted. No gross lesions were found in the genitalia of two of three rams examined post mortem but one had necrotic abscesses in the testes and epididymis. A seminis was isolated from the seminal vesicles and epididymis of one ram without gross lesions but not from the genitalia of the other two. On one farm the infection in a recently purchased ram led to the detection of another case as a result of the bacteriological screening of 11 stock rams not in contact with the initial case. These five subclinical cases, which included a supposedly healthy stock ram, suggest that A seminis infection may be widespread and should be considered in cases of infertility.
Evaluation Of Insulin Sensitivity FromA Minimal Model Adapted To Oral Glucose Tests

Recently, we proposed a new methodology for clinical evaluation of insulin sensitivity, SI, and the rate constant of glucose absorption, kabs, from oral glucose tests. This methodology relies on a minimal model of glucose kinetics coupled with a structural description of gastric emptying of glucose and its conversion into the rate of systemic absorption from the gut. The aim of the present study was to test the reproducibility of SI and kabs provided by our model using two data sets from a 300 min frequently sampled oral glucose tolerance test: a full 22-sample data set (OGTT300/22) and a reduced 11-sample data subset (OGTT300/11). Nine subjects, not affected by the metabolic syndrome, participated in the study. Mean (95% confidence interval) values of 22 I S and 22 abs k obtained from the OGTT300/22 were 12.3 (8.8-15.8) ×10 -4 min/(μU/ml) and 1.80 (1.31-2.29) ×10 min, respectively. Mean values of 11 I S and 11 abs k obtained from the OGTT300/11 were 11.3 (7.6-15.0) ×10 min/(μU/ml) and 1.75 (1.192.31) ×10 min, respectively. The concordance of the full and reduced paired samples in providing SI and kabs estimates is supported by intraclass correlation coefficients of 0.93 and 0.97, respectively. Parameter estimates and model based simulations of the rate of glucose appearance into plasma, Ra(t), were comparable with data in the literature. In conclusion, our model appears a potentially useful tool to estimate insulin sensitivity and the rate constant of systemic glucose absorption from reduced oral glucose tests.
Norepinephrine‐induced Intracellular Ca2+ Release from Vascular Smooth Muscle

In rabbit aorta and superior mesenteric artery, application of NE causes release of Ca2+ from an intracellular Ca2+ store, probably SR. The amount of released Ca2+ is sufficient to activate the myofilaments submaximally. It is suggested that NE mediates Ca2+ release by a rapid increase in the free Ca2+ concentration near the SR (Ca2+ -induced Ca2+ release). The uptake of Ca2+ into the store and the Ca2+ -induced Ca2+ release is modulated by c-AMP.
Using saccadic eye movements as objective measures of tolerance in methadone dependent individuals during the hydromorphone challenge test

Substitute methadone prescribing is one of the main modes of treatment for opiate dependence. This study examined the relationship between methadone dose (measured by daily dose and methadone's active (R)‐enantiomer blood levels) and opiate receptor function. Nine subjects on substitute methadone (30‐90 mg daily) received three subcutaneous injections 1.5 hours apart (saline, 5 mg and 10 mg hydromorphone, a short‐acting opiate agonist) followed by measures of functional response in particular saccadic eye movements (SEMs), as well as self‐report measures. Ten mg of hydromorphone significantly slowed SEM parameters (peak velocity by 15%, p <0.005; peak acceleration by 20%, p <0.025; peak deceleration by 26%, p <0.025) and the SEM velocity changes correlated significantly with (R)‐methadone levels (r =0.844, p <0.005) and with the oral dose of methadone being taken (r =0.829, p <0.005). Although a similar trend was observed for 5 mg, this was not significant. These finding suggest that, at higher methadone doses (resulting in higher plasma concentrations), there is significant tolerance to the action of agonists. Such studies may help in refining our understanding of the actions of methadone and the SEM measure could help in defining the degree of tolerance in individuals using street heroin.
Isotopic analysis of leucine and urea metabolism in exercising humans.

We have used the primed constant infusion of di-[15N]urea and [1-13C]leucine to determine the effects of mild exercise (approx 30% Vo2max for 105 min) on urea production and leucine metabolism in human subjects. The oxidation of plasma leucine was distinguished from the oxidation of leucine that never entered the plasma pool ("intracellular" leucine) by means of determining the enrichment of alpha-ketoisocaproic acid (alpha-KICA). Total leucine oxidation increased from 0.38 +/0 0.05 to 1.41 +/- 0.14 micromol . kg-1 . min-1 during exercise due to increases in the oxidation of plasma leucine (150%) and intracellular leucine (600%). Plasma leucine flux decreased slightly, but not significantly (0.1 greater than P greater than 0.05), and the percent of alpha-KICA derived from plasma leucine dropped significantly (P less than 0.05) from 79.5 +/- 4.3 at rest to 62.0 +/- 5.3% over the last 30 min of exercise. Despite the increase in leucine oxidation during exercise, urea concentration and production did not change. Thus in exercise urea production does not accurately reflect all aspects of amino acid metabolism.
Effects of abaloparatide, a human parathyroid hormone-related peptide analog, on bone mineral density in postmenopausal women with osteoporosis.

CONTEXT Abaloparatide is a novel synthetic peptide analog of parathyroid hormone-related protein (PTHrP) that is currently being developed as a potential anabolic agent in the treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis. OBJECTIVE This study sought to assess the effects of abaloparatide on bone mineral density (BMD) at the lumbar spine, total hip, and femoral neck in postmenopausal women with osteoporosis. DESIGN Multi-center, multi-national, double-blind placebo controlled trial in which postmenopausal women were randomly assigned to receive 24 weeks of treatment with daily sc injections of placebo, abaloparatide, 20, 40, or 80 μg, or teriparatide, 20 μg. A 24-week extension was also performed in a subset of subjects. PARTICIPANTS Postmenopausal women with osteoporosis (n = 222). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES BMD by dual-x-ray absorptiometry and biochemical markers of bone turnover. RESULTS At 24 weeks, lumbar spine BMD increased by 2.9, 5.2, and 6.7% in the abaloparatide, 20-, 40-, and 80-μg groups, respectively, and 5.5% in the teriparatide group. The increases in the 40- and 80-μg abaloparatide groups and the teriparatide group were significantly greater than placebo (1.6%). Femoral neck BMD increased by 2.7, 2.2, and 3.1% in abaloparatide, 20-, 40-, and 80-μg groups, respectively, and 1.1% in the teriparatide group. The increase in femoral neck BMD with abaloparatide, 80 μg was significantly greater than placebo (0.8%). Total hip BMD increased by 1.4, 2.0, and 2.6% in the abaloparatide, 20-, 40-, and 80-μg groups, respectively. The total hip increases in the 40- and 80-μg abaloparatide groups were greater than both placebo (0.4%) and teriparatide (0.5%). CONCLUSIONS Compared with placebo, 24 weeks of daily sc abaloparatide increases BMD of the lumbar spine, femoral neck, and total hip in a dose-dependent fashion. Moreover, the abaloparatide-induced BMD increases at the total hip are greater than with the marketed dose of teriparatide. These results support the further investigation of abaloparatide as an anabolic therapy in postmenopausal osteoporosis.