Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Microleakage evaluation of novel nano-hydroxyapatite-silica glass ionomer cement

Aims and Objectives: To analyze the microleakage of nano-hydroxyapatite-silica glass ionomer cement (nano-HA-SiO2-GIC) and compare it with conventional glass ionomer cement (cGIC). Materials and Methods: Twenty caries-free human premolar teeth were used. A standardized box-shaped class V cavity was prepared on the buccal surfaces at the cemento-enamel junction, with the occlusal margin (OM) set on enamel and gingival margin (GM) was placed on the cementum. Teeth were randomly assigned to two experimental groups of 10 teeth each and restored as follows: group 1, cGIC (Fuji IX) and group 2, nano-HA-SiO2 GIC. After 24h of immersion in distilled water, the teeth were thermocycled (500 cycles and 5°C–55°C). Following that, the teeth were placed in 2% methylene blue solution and stored at room temperature for 24h. The microleakage along the tooth-restoration interface was recorded. Independent sample t-test (two-tailed) was used to analyze the data. Results with P < 0.5 were considered statistically significant. Results: Microleakage in general was greater at GMs as compared to OMs for both the materials. Nano-HA-SiO2-GIC exhibited lower microleakage at occlusal level (0.2 ± 0.42) as compared to cGIC (0.5 ± 0.71), whereas, at GM nano-HA-SiO2-GIC displayed significantly less microleakage (2.7 ± 0.67) compared to cGIC (3 ± 0.00). Conclusion: Nano-HA-SiO2 glass ionomers showed less microleakage both at OMs and GMs compared to that at cGIC (Fuji IX).
Spectrum of Endocrine Disorders as Seen in a Tertiary Health Facility in Sagamu, Southwest Nigeria

Background: There is dearth of records on prevalence and spectrum of adult endocrine disorders in Nigeria. Objective: To document the spectrum of endocrine disorders as seen in endocrinology, diabetes, and metabolism (EDM) outpatient clinic, Department of Medicine of Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital, Sagamu, Ogun State over a 3-year period. Methods: This was a retrospective study of the medical records of all new consultations seen in the EDM outpatient clinic between January 2016 and December 2018. All endocrinology diagnoses were classified according to the 10th revision of the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health problems (ICD-10). Information on demographic, source of referral, baseline clinical, and biochemical indices were gleaned and subjected to descriptive statistics using SPSS version 21, and results were presented as proportions (frequencies and percentages) and mean (±standard deviation). Results: Two thousand seven hundred and sixty-five patients were seen and managed at EDM outpatient clinic over the specified time frame. Eight hundred and sixty-three were new cases, age range 16–88, mean of 54.10 (±13.9) years with female preponderance 520 (60.3%) and female-to-male ratio of 1.5:1. The internal referral system constituted the main means of referral to the EDM clinic. The most common endocrine referrals were diabetes mellitus (DM) (697, 80.8%) and thyroid disorders (119, 13.8%) followed by metabolic syndrome (29, 3.36%) and hypothalamic–pituitary disorders (HPOs, 9, 1.04%). Conclusion: The common endocrine cases seen in Sagamu are DM, thyroid diseases, metabolic syndrome, and HPO similar to worldwide trend.
Effect of Bitter Compounds on the Expression of Bitter Taste Receptor T2R7 Downstream Signaling Effectors in cT2R7/pDisplay-Gα16/gust44/pcDNA3.1 (+) Cells

Bitterness is an important taste sensation for chickens, which provides useful sensory information for acquisition and selection of diet, and warns them against ingestion of potentially harmful and noxious substances in nature. Bitter taste receptors (T2Rs) mediate the recognition of bitter compounds belonging to a family of proteins known as G-protein coupled receptors. The aim of this study was to identify and evaluate the expression of T2R7 in chicken tongue tissue and construct cT2R7-1 and cT2R7-2-expressing HEK-293T cells to access the expression of PLCβ2 and ITPR3 after exposure with different concentrations of the bitter compounds. Using real-time PCR, we show that the relative expression level of T2R7 mRNA in 5, 1, 0.1, and 10−3 mM of camphor and erythromycin solutions and 5 mM of chlorpheniramine maleate solutions was significantly higher than that in 50 mM KCL solutions. We confirmed that the bitter taste receptor T2R7 and downstream signaling effectors are sensitive to different concentrations of bitter compounds. Moreover, T2R7-1 (corresponding to the unique haplotype of the Tibetan chicken) had higher sensitivity to bitter compounds compared with that of T2R7-2 (corresponding to the unique haplotype of the Jiuyuan black-chicken). These results provide great significance of taste response on dietary intake to improve chicken feeding efficiency in poultry production and have certain reference value for future taste research in other bird species.
In-Depth Characterization of Mass Spectrometry-Based Proteomic Profiles Revealed Novel Signature Proteins Associated with Liver Metastatic Colorectal Cancers

Liver metastasis is the most common form of metastatic colorectal cancers during the course of the disease. The global change in protein abundance in liver metastatic colorectal cancers and its role in metastasis establishment have not been comprehensively analyzed. In the present study, fresh-frozen tissue samples including normal colon/localized/liver metastatic CRCs from each recruited patient were analyzed by quantitative proteomics using a multiplexed TMT labeling strategy. Around 5000 protein groups were quantified from all samples. The proteomic profile of localized/metastatic CRCs varied greatly from that of normal colon tissues; differential proteins were mainly from extracellular regions and participate in immune activities, which is crucial for the chronic inflammation signaling pathways in the tumor microenvironment. Further statistical analysis revealed 47 proteins exhibiting statistical significance between localized and metastatic CRCs, of which FILI1P1 and PLG were identified for the first time in proteomic data, which were highly associated with liver metastasis in CRCs.
Immunohistochemical Study Using Monoclonal VE1 Antibody Can Substitute the Molecular Tests for Apprehension of BRAF V600E Mutation in Patients with Non-small-Cell Lung Carcinoma

In patients with non-small-cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC), the analysis of BRAF V600E mutation has become more and more applied since the introduction of many mutation-targeted medications. In this regard, the advantage of immunohistochemistry (IHC) as a reliable diagnostic test substitute to other molecular studies has not been approved yet. Objective. To examine the dependability of using immunohistochemical method utilizing monoclonal VE1 antibody in the detection of BRAF V600 E mutation in patients with non-small-cell lung carcinoma and compare the results there with that of polymerase chain reaction (SSCP-PCR). Materials and Methods. We retrospectively identified 53 patients of whom their histopathological diagnosis was non-small-cell carcinoma of different types. Evaluation of BRAF V600E mutation was assessed using polymerase chain reaction (SSCP-PCR) and IHC using VE1 antibody. This approach was applied to all cases under the study. Results. Among the 53 NSCLC samples, only 5 (9.3%) cases harbored BRAF V600E mutation, 80% were of adenocarcinoma type, and the rest (20%) was of squamous cell carcinoma. IHC analysis for VE1 was positive in 4 out of 5 (80%) BRAF-mutated tumors and negative in all nonmutated BRAF V600 E NSCLC. Conclusion. Our results revealed that VE1 antibody IHC analysis is a promising technique that can be used to detect BRAF V600-mutated NSCLC with relatively high specificity and sensitivity and might become a potential alternative to the current molecular biological methods that are in use for this purpose.
Rapid and Sensitive Determination of Methylxanthines in Commercial Brands of Tea Using Ultra-High-Performance Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry

Recently, chromatographic techniques have the potential to be greener in order to reduce the environmental impact. In this work, a new simple, sensitive, efficient, and green analytical method based on UHPLC-MS has been developed for a quick determination of methylxanthines including caffeine, theobromine, and theophylline in tea. Under the optimum conditions, a baseline separation has been achieved within 30 seconds, using isocratic elution consisting of 90% water and only 10% acetonitrile at 0.5 mL/min flow rate (3 mL acetonitrile per hour). The mass spectrometer was operated with the SIR mode in ESI+. The developed method was found to be linear in the range of 0.03–5 μg/mL, with correlation coefficients greater than 0.9995 for the three compounds. The respective values of LOD were found to be 0.025, 0.015, and 0.01 μg/mL for caffeine, theobromine, and theophylline, respectively. The proposed assay was applied to 30 commercial tea samples of different brands. Both caffeine and theobromine were found in all tea samples with maximum concentration in sample no. 15, corresponding to 32.6 and 2.72 mg/g of caffeine and theobromine, respectively. On the contrary, theophylline was not detected at all in most samples. When compared with all previous studies that dealt with the same compounds in different matrices, the developed method was found to be the fastest, allowing high-throughput analyses with more than 100 samples/h. The results prove that the method is suitable for routine analysis of methylxanthines and to distinguish the quality of tea samples of various brands.
Apolipoprotein E Deficiency Causes Endothelial Dysfunction in the Mouse Retina

Objective Atherogenic lipoproteins may impair vascular reactivity consecutively causing tissue damage in multiple organs via abnormal perfusion and excessive reactive oxygen species generation. We tested the hypothesis that chronic hypercholesterolemia causes endothelial dysfunction and cell loss in the retina. Methods Twelve-month-old apolipoprotein E-deficient (ApoE-/-) mice and age-matched wild-type controls were used in this study (n = 8 per genotype for each experiment). Intraocular pressure, blood pressure, and ocular perfusion pressure were determined. Retinal arteriole responses were studied in vitro, and reactive oxygen and nitrogen species were quantified in the retinal and optic nerve cryosections. The expression of the lectin-like oxidized low-density lipoprotein receptor-1 (LOX-1) and the NADPH oxidase isoforms, NOX1, NOX2, and NOX4, were determined in retinal cryosections by immunofluorescence microscopy. Pro- and antioxidant redox genes were quantified in retinal explants by PCR. Moreover, cell number in the retinal ganglion cell layer and axon number in the optic nerve was calculated. Results Responses to the endothelium-dependent vasodilator, acetylcholine, were markedly impaired in retinal arterioles of ApoE-/- mice (P < 0.01). LOX-1 (P = 0.0007) and NOX2 (P = 0.0027) expressions as well as levels of reactive oxygen species (P = 0.0022) were increased in blood vessels but not in other retinal structures. In contrast, reactive nitrogen species were barely detectable in both mouse genotypes. Messenger RNA for HIF-1α, VEGF-A, NOX1, and NOX2, but also for various antioxidant redox genes was elevated in the retina of ApoE-/- mice. Total cell number in the retinal ganglion cell layer did not differ between ApoE-/- and wild-type mice (P = 0.2171). Also, axon number in the optic nerve did not differ between ApoE-/- and wild-type mice (P = 0.6435). Conclusion Apolipoprotein E deficiency induces oxidative stress and endothelial dysfunction in retinal arterioles, which may trigger hypoxia in the retinal tissue. Oxidative stress in nonvascular retinal tissue appears to be prevented by the upregulation of antioxidant redox enzymes, resulting in neuron preservation.
The Underpinnings of Ageism: Multiple Mediational Model of Epistemological Style, Social Dominance Orientation, Right-Wing Authoritarianism, and Ageist Attitudes

This study seeks to understand the psychological factors that may contribute to the development and endorsement of ageist belief systems. Dual process theory is used to examine how one's worldview, beliefs in social hierarchy, authoritarian aggression, authoritarian submission, and conventionalism predict ageist attitudes. Participants living in the United States (n = 407) in 49 states and territories were recruited through this online national study and completed surveys of their ageist beliefs, epistemological style, social dominance orientation (SDO), and right-wing authoritarianism (RWA). RWA, SDO, and naïve realism were all positively associated with ageist beliefs. A hypothesized path model and two alternative models suggested the retention of a model whereby naïve realism led to RWA, which led to SDO, and finally to ageism. All possible direct and indirect effects were significant within the retained model, suggesting the presence of a multiple mediation. The fit of this model was superior to that of models testing alternative theoretical causal chains. Naïve realism may lead to authoritarian aggression, authoritarian submission, and conventionalism, which may then increase the value that people place on social hierarchies, and this may influence the development and retention of ageist beliefs. Helping people to understand what their basic beliefs about the world are and how they may play a role in the development of ageism may assist in reducing ageist attitudes.
Transient Musical Hallucinations in a Young Adult Male Associated with Alcohol Withdrawal

We present the case of a 25-year-old male who presented to A&E with isolated musical hallucinations, in the absence of audiological or neurological disease. The patient had a history of recreational drug use and a family history of psychosis. Hallucinations, which were preceded by discontinuation of alcohol and reinitiation of citalopram for depression, resolved spontaneously after three days. Aetiological factors are discussed alongside the existing literature. Whilst the underlying mechanisms underpinning musical hallucinations remain elusive, the case illustrates the potential role of alcohol withdrawal, serotonin toxicity, recreational drug use, and genetic vulnerability.
Beyond T Cells: Understanding the Role of PD-1/PD-L1 in Tumor-Associated Macrophages

Programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) and its ligand PD-L1 have attracted wide attention from researchers in the field of immunotherapy. PD-1/PD-L1 have been shown to exist in many types of cells in addition to T lymphocytes, and studies have accordingly extended from their suppressive effect on T cell activation and function to examining their role in other cells. In this review, we summarize recent research on PD-1/PD-L1 in macrophages, with the aim of furthering our understanding of PD-1/PD-L1 and their detailed roles in macrophages. This information may provide additional insights for researchers, enrich the basic theory of anti-PD-1/PD-L1 immunotherapy, and thus ultimately benefit more patients.
Incipient Diabetes Treated with Long-Term Classical Prescription

Background Diabetes mellitus (DM) belongs to the progressive and irreversible disease. With the development of the disease, the function of beta cells declines significantly. Current treatments cannot reverse the course of the disease. The role of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) in the DM treatment has been recognized widely, while there are few long-term observation reports. In this study, we introduced a case of DM treated by classical prescription alone for 10 years, which would provide the reference for clinical practice. Case Presentation A 64-year-old male complained of a 2-month history of dry mouth, frequent urination, and blurred vision and found increased blood glucose for 3 days. The patient's glycated hemoglobin was 14.2%, fasting plasma glucose fluctuated at 12-15 mmol/L, and urinary albumin excretion rate (UAER) was 32.9 μg/min. The male was treated with 10 years of continuous classical prescription alone. After 3 months of TCM treatment, the patient's blood glucose level decreased significantly and blurred vision symptoms improved. With continued TCM treatment, his UAER normalized. Subsequently, he continued outpatient consultation, and his TCM prescription was adjusted according to clinical symptoms. After 10 years of continuous TCM treatment, his blood glucose remained stable, urinary microalbumin quantitation showed no abnormalities, and blurred vision disappeared. Conclusions This case provides specific treatment plans and effective references for long-term control of blood glucose, prevention and treatment of diabetes complications, delay of disease progression, and protection of impaired islet function in the treatment of diabetes with TCM. TCM may become a meaningful alternative DM treatment in the future.
Evidence Supporting the Hypothesis That Inflammation-Induced Vasospasm Is Involved in the Pathogenesis of Acquired Sensorineural Hearing Loss

Sensorineural hearing loss is mainly acquired and affects an estimated 1.3 billion humans worldwide. It is related to aging, noise, infection, ototoxic drugs, and genetic defects. It is essential to identify reversible and preventable causes to be able to reduce the burden of this disease. Inflammation is involved in most causes and leads to tissue injury through vasospasm-associated ischemia. Vasospasm is reversible. This review summarized evidence linking inflammation-induced vasospasm to several forms of acquired sensorineural hearing loss. The link between vasospasm and sensorineural hearing loss is directly evident in subarachnoid haemorrhage, which involves the release of vasoconstriction-inducing cytokines like interleukin-1, endothelin-1, and tumour necrosis factor. These proinflammatory cytokines can also be released in response to infection, autoimmune disease, and acute or chronically increased inflammation in the ageing organism as in presbyacusis or in noise-induced cochlear injury. Evidence of vasospasm and hearing loss has also been discovered in bacterial meningitis and brain injury. Resolution of inflammation-induced vasospasm has been associated with improvement of hearing in autoimmune diseases involving overproduction of interleukin-1 from inflammasomes. There is mainly indirect evidence for vasospasm-associated sensorineural hearing loss in most forms of systemic or injury- or infection-induced local vascular inflammation. This opens up avenues in prevention and treatment of vascular and systemic inflammation as well as vasospasm itself as a way to prevent and treat most forms of acquired sensorineural hearing loss. Future research needs to investigate interventions antagonising vasospasm and vasospasm-inducing proinflammatory cytokines and their production in randomised controlled trials of prevention and treatment of acquired sensorineural hearing loss. Prime candidates for interventions are hereby inflammasome inhibitors and vasospasm-reducing drugs like nitric oxide donors, rho-kinase inhibitors, and magnesium which have the potential to reduce sensorineural hearing loss in meningitis, exposure to noise, brain injury, arteriosclerosis, and advanced age-related and autoimmune disease-related inflammation.
A PILOT STUDY TO INVESTIGATE THE EFFECTS OF TEST POSITION AND STIMULUS TYPE ON VESTIBULAR EVOKED MYOGENIC POTENTIALS

Vestibular evoked myogenic potentials (VEMPs) are a non-invasive test of otolith function and a portion of the descending vestibulo-spinal system. Three subjects with normal function of the vestibular system underwent VEMP testing with 500 Hz tone bursts and click stimuli. Response characteristics were observed in both the sitting and supine test positions. The success rate of each stimulus in VEMP studies, the mean P1 and N1 latencies for both stimuli, the P1-N1 amplitude, the amplitude symmetry, and the relationship between muscle activation and P1-N1 amplitude were explored in each individual. The 500 Hz tone burst stimuli were more successful at evoking the desired response. Subjects generated more muscle activity as measured by EMG in the supine position than in the sitting position. Due to the small sample size, a clear relationship between muscle activation and amplitude did not emerge.
Machine Learning-Based Forecast of Hemorrhagic Stroke Healthcare Service Demand considering Air Pollution

This study aimed to forecast the pattern of the demand for hemorrhagic stroke healthcare services based on air quality and machine learning. Hemorrhagic stroke, air quality, and meteorological data for 2016-2017 were obtained from the Longquanyi District of China, and the study included 1932 cases. Six machine learning methods were used to forecast the demand for hemorrhagic stroke healthcare services considering seasonality and a lag effect, and the average area under the curve was as high as 0.7971. Our results indicate that (1) the performance of forecasting during the warm season is significantly better than that in the cold season, (2) considering air pollution would improve the performance of forecasting the demand for hemorrhagic stroke healthcare services using machine learning, (3) the association between the demand for hemorrhagic stroke healthcare services and air pollutants is linear to some extent, and (4) it is feasible to use short-term concentrations of air pollutants to forecast the demand for hemorrhagic stroke healthcare services. This practical forecast model could provide an advance warning regarding the potentially high numbers of hemorrhagic stroke admissions to medical institutions, thus allowing time to implement an appropriate response to the increase in patient volumes.
Pituitary Involvement in Granulomatosis with Polyangiitis: A Retrospective Analysis in a Single Chinese Hospital and a Literature Review

Purpose Granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA) is an anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA) associated vasculitis that can involve virtually many organs, including the pituitary. Pituitary involvement in GPA is rare, with only case reports or small case series published previously. Methods We used the electronic medical record system in our hospital to identify four patients of pituitary involvement in GPA. We summarized the clinical characteristics, radiographic findings, treatments, and clinical outcomes of the four patients. We further performed a systematic literature review of 66 GPA cases with pituitary involvement that were published on the PubMed database. Results The four women in our report were between 57 and 73 years of age. All patients had pituitary abnormalities on radiology; three developed diabetes insipidus (DI). All patients had multisystem involvement. After treatment with glucocorticoids and cyclophosphamide (CYC), all patients showed clinical improvement but pituitary function did not resume. Literature review identified 66 additional patients with pituitary involvement in GPA; diabetes insipidus (57/66, 86.4%) and hypogonadism (34/66, 51.5%) were the most frequent pituitary disorders, and the most frequent imaging lesion was an enlarged pituitary (25/64, 39.1%). After treatment with corticosteroids and/or immunosuppressive agents, most patients (45/66, 68.2%) developed remission from systemic disease, 13 patients (13/57, 22.8%) showed remission of DI, and 8 patients (8/46, 17.4%) showed remission of hormone deficiencies. Conclusions GPA should be carefully considered as a potential cause of pituitary dysfunction (PD), especially when multisystem dysfunction exists. Conventional treatment with corticosteroids and/or immunosuppressive agents improves systemic symptoms, but pituitary disorders persisted in most patients.