Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Recent advances in diagnosis and management of irritable bowel syndrome.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW This review summarizes recent progress in the diagnosis and management of irritable bowel syndrome, with a focus on dietary and microbiota aspects. RECENT FINDINGS From a pathophysiological point of view, IBS is a multifactorial condition with both peripheral (transit) as central (visceral hypersensitivity, anxiety, depression) contribution in a cumulative fashion to the symptom pattern and severity. More recently, the focus has shifted to diet and microbiota. The number of dietary options that can be used for IBS and the understanding of determinants of their efficacy is rapidly increasing. Several studies have confirmed the efficacy of the low fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides and polyols (FODMAP) diet. Sucrose-isomaltase deficiency has emerged as pathogenetic mechanisms in a subset of patients, who do not respond to low FODMAP diet but may respond to starch and sucrose elimination. Herbal remedies, probiotics and secretagogues have been the topic of additional treatment trials. The efficacy of fecal microbiota transplantation in IBS is variable across studies, but donor selection is emerging as a critical factor. SUMMARY Irritable bowel syndrome has evolved into a disorder of interaction between dietary factors and gut microbiota, with impact on bowel symptoms as well as extra-intestinal, central, symptoms. Dietary adjustments and treatments targeting the gut microbiota are areas of active research and clinical progress.
Reference Values of the QOLIBRI from General Population Samples in the United Kingdom and The Netherlands

The Quality of Life after Traumatic Brain Injury (QOLIBRI) instrument is an internationally validated patient-reported outcome measure for assessing disease-specific health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in individuals after traumatic brain injury (TBI). However, no reference values for general populations are available yet for use in clinical practice and research in the field of TBI. The aim of the present study was, therefore, to establish these reference values for the United Kingdom (UK) and the Netherlands (NL). For this purpose, an online survey with a reworded version of the QOLIBRI for general populations was used to collect data on 4403 individuals in the UK and 3399 in the NL. This QOLIBRI version was validated by inspecting descriptive statistics, psychometric criteria, and comparability of the translations to the original version. In particular, measurement invariance (MI) was tested to examine whether the items of the instrument were understood in the same way by different individuals in the general population samples and in the TBI sample across the two countries, which is necessary in order to establish reference values. In the general population samples, the reworded QOLIBRI displayed good psychometric properties, including MI across countries and in the non-TBI and TBI samples. Therefore, differences in the QOLIBRI scores can be attributed to real differences in HRQoL. Individuals with and without a chronic health condition did differ significantly, with the latter reporting lower HRQoL. In conclusion, we provided reference values for healthy individuals and individuals with at least one chronic condition from general population samples in the UK and the NL. These can be used in the interpretation of disease-specific HRQoL assessments after TBI applying the QOLIBRI on the individual level in clinical as well as research contexts.
Patient safety challenges in primary health care: a scoping review.

OBJECTIVES to identify the patient safety challenges described by health professionals in Primary Health Care. METHODS a scoping review was conducted on the LILACS, MEDLINE, IBECS, BDENF, and CINAHL databases, and on the Cochrane, SciELO, Pubmed, and Web of Science libraries in January 2019. Original articles on patient safety in the context of Primary Health Care by health professionals were included. RESULTS the review included 26 studies published between 2002 and 2019. Four categories resulted from the analysis: challenges of health professionals, administration challenges of health services, challenges with the patient and family, and the potential enhancing resources for patient safety. CONCLUSIONS patient safety challenges for Primary Care professionals are multiple and complex. This study provides insight into resources to improve patient safety for health care professionals, patients, administrators, policy makers, educators, and researchers.
Root distribution in space and time in Trifolium subterraneum

Distribution of length and weight of roots of subterranean clover cultivars Northarn and Nungarin were measured in the field throughout a growing season. Plants were grown at seven populations from 2 to 1510 plants per mZ in coarse sand which had a bulk density of 1 . 4 g ~m-~. Root growth was described by its vertical and horizontal distribution as functions of population and time after emergence. Differences in growth between cultivars were small. Root depth, which reached a maximum (plateau) at about 90 days, did not vary with plant population. Root density (length per volume of soil) increased faster at high population due to a higher density of' roots beneath the mainstream and an attenuation with distance away from the mainstem which did not appear to be affected by population. Root densities were 10 cm ~rn-~ in the uppermost core (0-10 cm depth) and 1.6 -3.5 cm cm-3 throughout the rooting zone (0-50 cm) at 119 days after emergence. Root death, estimated from dichlorotrianzinyl staining, was negligible. Leaf area per plant declined with population above 16 plants per m2; leaf area per unit root length (in cores beneath the mainstream) declined 90-fold with increase in population. Top weight and burr yield per plant at final harvest also declined with increasing population; burr yield per m2 also fell significantly at the highest population. It is concluded that the amount of root per unit area increases with population and that plants appear to adjust conservatively in some respects (to much lower leaf area per root length) while being unable to sustain dry matter partitioning (reducing burr/top yields) at the highest population studied.
Aflatoxin in mould infested sesame seeds

Experiments were carried out with two species of seeds of sesame (Benniseed) (Sesamum indicum Link, and Sesamum radiatum Schumach) inoculated with a storage fungus (Aspergillus flavus) previously isolated from seeds of sesame The inoculated seeds were incubated for 10, 15 and 20 day intervals at 30°C. Results showed that S. indicum inoculated with the test fungus A. flavus and incubated for a period of 20 days showed the presence of aflatoxin B1 estimated to be 25 ppb. While seeds of S. rediatum inoculated with the same test fungus and inculcated for the same length of time did not show any presence of aflatoxin. All the seeds of the two species of sesamum inoculated with the test fungus and incubated for 10 and 15 day intervals showed no presence of aflatoxin. The results portray the danger of consuming infested seeds of sesame which usually appear uninfested to a casual observer when A. flavus grows on them and the inherent danger of using such seeds for livestock feed.
Description of a family with X‐linked oculo‐auriculo‐vertebral spectrum associated with polyalanine tract expansion in ZIC3

Oculo‐auriculo‐vertebral spectrum (OAVS) [MIM:164210], or Goldenhar syndrome, is a developmental disorder associating defects of structures derived from the first and second branchial arches. The genetic origin of OAVS is supported by the description of rare deleterious variants in a few causative genes, and several chromosomal copy number variations. We describe here a large family with eight male members affected by a mild form of the spectrum, mostly auricular defects, harboring a hemizygous ZIC3 variant detected by familial exome sequencing: c. 159_161dup p.(Ala55dup), resulting in an expansion of the normal 10 consecutive alanine residues to 11 alanines. Segregation analysis shows its presence in all the affected individuals, with a recessive X‐linked transmission. Whole‐genome sequencing performed in another affected male allowed to exclude linkage disequilibrium between this ZIC3 variant and another potential pathogenic variant in this family. Furthermore, by screening of a cohort of 274 OAVS patients, we found 1 male patient carrying an expansion of 10 to 12 alanines, a variant previously reported in patient presenting with VACTERL. Loss‐of‐function variants of ZIC3 are causing heterotaxy or cardiac malformations. These alanine expansion variants could have a different impact on the protein and thereby resulting in a different phenotype within the OAVS/VACTERL.
Dissolved carbon and nitrogen leaching following variable logging-debris retention and competing-vegetation control in Douglas-fir plantations of western Oregon and Washington

We examined the effect of logging-debris retention and competing-vegetation control (CVC, initial or annual applications) on dissolved organic carbon (DOC), dissolved organic nitrogen, and nitrate-N leaching to determine the rela- tive potential of these practices to contribute to soil C and N loss at two contrasting sites. Annual CVC resulted in higher soil water nitrate-N concentration and flux, with the magnitude and duration of the effect greatest at the high-N site. Most of the increase in nitrate-N at the low-N site occurred in treatments where logging debris was retained. Dissolved organic nitrogen increased at the high-N site in March of each year following annual CVC, but the contribution of this increase to total N concentration was small (2%-4% of total N flux). There was no effect of logging-debris retention or CVC treat- ment on soil water DOC concentrations, indicating that DOC inputs from logging debris and competing vegetation were either retained or consumed in the mineral soil. The estimated increase in leaching flux of dissolved C and N associated with the treatments was low relative to total soil pools, making it unlikely that loss of these elements via leaching will negatively affect future soil productivity at these sites.
The methylome of the human frontal cortex across development

DNA methylation (DNAm) plays an important role in epigenetic regulation of gene expression, orchestrating tissue differentiation and development during all stages of mammalian life. This epigenetic control is especially important in the human brain, with extremely dynamic gene expression during fetal and infant life, and becomes progressively more stable at later periods of development. We characterized the epigenetic state of the developing and aging human frontal cortex in post-mortem tissue from 351 individuals across the lifespan using the Illumina 450k DNA methylation microarray. The largest changes in the methylome occur at birth at varying spatial resolutions – we identify 359,087 differentially methylated loci, which form 23,732 significant differentially methylated regions (DMRs). There were also 298 regions of long-range changes in DNAm, termed “blocks”, associated with birth that strongly overlap previously published colon cancer “blocks”. We then identify 55,439 DMRs associated with development and aging, of which 61.9% significantly associate with nearby gene expression levels. Lastly, we find enrichment of genomic loci of risk for schizophrenia and several other common diseases among these developmental DMRs. These data, integrated with existing genetic and transcriptomic data, create a rich genomic resource across brain development.
Proximal renal tubular function in HIV-infected children on tenofovir disoproxil fumarate for treatment of HIV infection at two tertiary hospitals in Harare, Zimbabwe

Background Renal abnormalities in HIV infected children may be due to the HIV infection or treatment among other factors. Tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) is associated with proximal renal tubular dysfunction, proteinuria and decrease in glomerular function. Studies in developed countries have shown variable prevalence of proximal renal tubular dysfunction in children on TDF. There are no known studies in developing countries, including Zimbabwe, documenting the proximal tubular function in HIV infected children on TDF. The aim of this study was to assess renal and proximal renal tubular function in HIV infected children receiving TDF and determine factors associated with proximal tubular dysfunction. Methods A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in HIV infected patients below 18 years of age attending outpatient clinics at two tertiary hospitals in Harare, who received a TDF-containing antiretroviral regimen for at least six months. Dipstick protein and glucose, serum and urine phosphate and creatinine levels were measured. Fractional excretion of phosphate was calculated. Estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) was calculated using the Schwartz formula. Tubular dysfunction was defined by at least two of the following characteristics: normoglycaemic glycosuria, hypophosphatemia and fractional excretion of phosphate > 18%. Findings One hundred and ninety-eight children below 18 years of age were recruited over a period of six months. The prevalence of tubular dysfunction was 0.5%. Normoglycaemic glycosuria occurred in 1 (0.5%), fractional excretion of phosphate >18% in 4 (2%), and hypophosphatemia in 22 [11.1%] patients. Severe stunting was associated with increased risk of hypophosphatemia (OR 9.31 CI (1.18, 80.68) p = 0.03). Reduction in estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) < 90ml/min/1.73m2 and proteinuria was evident in 35.9% and 32.8% of children, respectively. Concurrent TDF and HIV-1 protease inhibitor-based regimen was the only independent factor associated with reduction in GFR (OR 4.43 CI (1.32; 4.89) p = 0.016). Conclusion Tubular dysfunction was uncommon in Zimbabwean children on a TDF-based ART regimen. Hypophosphatemia, proteinuria and reduction in eGFR were common. Reassessing renal function using more sensitive biomarkers is needed to examine the long-term tolerance of TDF.
Planktonic microcrustaceans (Crustacea: Cladocera, Copepoda) from several protected peat wetlands, differing in trophic state

The present paper represents an inventory of microcrustacean species from seven peat wetlands, representing oligotrophic, mesotrophic and eutrophic states: Tăul lui Dumitru, Tinoavele plutitoare de la Hoteni, Tinovul Mare Poiana Stampei, Mlastina de la Iaz, Molhasul Mare de la Izbuc, Tinovul Mluha and Tăul fără fund de la Băgău. Most of these wetlands are protected areas, except for Tinovul Mluha, whose characteristics of a typical peat bog offer strong arguments for future protection. A total number of 31 crustacean species were identified: 21 cladocerans and 10 copepods. Two distinctive clusters of the sampling locations were distinguished, based on microcrustacean presence/absence data: one "true oligotrophic" group and an "oligo-meso-eutrophic" group. The major abiotic factors influencing the qualitative structure of microcrustacean communities were pH and altitude. The microcrustacean communities from the "true oligotrophic" group recorded higher equitability values, showing a more balanced diversity. The abundance variation of different functional groups of non-predatory cladocerans, carnivorous cladocerans and copepods suggested competition between the groups with similar food resources.
Worker Competence Management And Organizational Flexibility Of Deposit Money Banks In Rivers State, Nigeria

Business organizations these days face more difficulties when compared to organizations in the past due to globalization that has brought increase in competition, complexity and uncertainties, thus the need for organizations to better manage their resources to achieve flexibility. One of such resources is the competences of their workers. The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between worker competence management (competence planning, competence development and competence monitoring as dimensions) and flexibility a measure of organizational agility) of Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) in Rivers State, Nigeria. The research design adopted was cross-sectional survey research design at the macro (organizational) level of DMBs. The population consisted 76 managers of four strategic units/departments of the 19 DMBs operating in Rivers State. For the purpose of data collection, questionnaire was used as the research instrument which was distributed to the 76 respondents and 73 filled copies of the questionnaires collected were useful for data analysis. The collected data was analyzed using Spearman Rank Order Correlation Coefficient with the aid of Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) with a significance level of 0.05. The findings showed that competence planning; competence development and competence monitoring have strong and significant relationships with flexibility of DMBs in Rivers State. We recommended among others, that competence development such as training, coaching and mentoring should be intermittently carried out in the DMBs in order to develop competences that will bring about organizational flexibility.
Paratuberculosis: A Potential Zoonosis and a Neglected Disease in Africa

The Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis (MAP) is the causative agent of paratuberculosis, which is an economically important disease of ruminants. The zoonotic role of MAP in Crohn’s disease and, to a lesser extent, in ulcerative colitis, the two major forms of idiopathic inflammatory bowel disease (IIBD), has been debated for decades and evidence continues to mount in support of that hypothesis. The aim of this paper is to present a review of the current information on paratuberculosis in animals and the two major forms of IIBD in Africa. The occurrence, epidemiology, economic significance and “control of MAP and its involvement IIBD in Africa” are discussed. Although the occurrence of MAP is worldwide and has been documented in several African countries, the epidemiology and socioeconomic impacts remain undetermined and limited research information is available from the continent. At present, there are still significant knowledge gaps in all these areas as far as Africa is concerned. Due to the limited research on paratuberculosis in Africa, in spite of growing global concerns, it may rightfully be considered a neglected tropical disease with a potentially zoonotic role.
Distinct clinical characteristics and risk factors for mortality in female COVID-19 inpatients: a sex-stratified large-scale cohort study in Wuhan, China

Abstract Background As the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak accelerates worldwide, it is highly significant to evaluate sex-specific clinical characteristics and outcomes, that may affect public health policies. Methods COVID-19 patients admitted to Tongji Hospital between January 18and March 27, 2020 were evaluated. Clinical features, laboratory data, complications and outcomes were compared between females and males. Risk factors for mortality in the whole population, females and males were determined respectively. Results There were 1667 (50.38%) females among the3309 patients included in this study. The mortality rate was only 5.9% in females but 12.7% in males. Compared with males, more females had no initial symptoms (11.1% vs 8.3%, p=0.008). Complications including acute respiratory distress syndrome, acute kidney injury, septic shock, cardiac injury and coagulation disorder were less common in females; critical illness was also significant less common in females (31.1% vs 39.4%, p<0.0001). Significantly fewer female patients received antibiotics treatment (p=0.001), antiviral therapy (p=0.025) glucocorticoids treatment (p<0.0001), mechanical ventilation (p<0.0001) and had Intensive Care Unit admission (p<0.0001). A lower risk of death was found in females (odds ratio 0.44, 95% confidence interval 0.34-0.58) after adjusting for age and coexisting diseases. Among females, age, malignancy, chronic kidney disease and days from onset to admission were significant associated with mortality, while chronic kidney disease was not risk factor in males. Conclusions Significantly more mild illness and fewer deaths were found in female COVID-19 inpatients and risk factors associated with mortality varied among male and female population.
Protective Effects of SPA0355, a Thiourea Analogue, Against Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Acute Kidney Injury in Mice

Inflammation and oxidative stress plays an essential role in the pathophysiology of sepsis-associated acute kidney injury (AKI). SPA0355, a thiourea analogue, has been shown to display beneficial effects against a variety of inflammatory diseases arising from its anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant properties. However, the potential protective effects of SPA0355 against lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced AKI have not been explored. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of SPA0355 on LPS-induced AKI and investigate its underlying mechanisms. We found that renal dysfunction and histological abnormalities after LPS injection were significantly ameliorated by SPA0355. The compound also reduced renal expression of tubular injury markers. Mechanistically, SPA0355 significantly suppressed plasma and tissue levels of inflammatory cytokines and immune cell infiltration with inhibition of nuclear factor kappa-B p65 signaling. In addition, elevated levels of 4-hydroxynonenal and malondialdehyde after LPS injection were significantly decreased by SPA0355. The compound also regulated expression of pro-oxidant and antioxidant enzymes after LPS injection. Moreover, SPA0355 attenuated LPS-induced tubular cell apoptosis via inhibition of p53 signaling pathway. Altogether, these results suggest that SPA0355 protects against LPS-induced AKI through suppressing inflammation, oxidative stress, and tubular cell apoptosis and might be a potential preventive option for the disease.
Better Executive Function Is Associated With Faster On-Transition Aerobic Metabolism Among Older Adults

The present study aimed to examine relationships between executive function (EF) and variables of aerobic fitness. Participants were 32 healthy older adults (M age = 65.1, SD = 6.6 years). We measured the first ventilatory threshold (VeT1) and the kinetics of oxygen uptake ( V ˙ O2), heart rate (HR), and muscle deoxygenation [HHb] during treadmill walking of either constant, moderate intensity, or increasing intensity. We assessed EF with a computerized Stroop test and Stroop measures of correct answers, reaction time, and percent interference. We found the Stroop interference score to be negatively associated with the VeT1 (r = –0.387, p = 0.031) and positively associated with the on-transition aerobic metabolism time constant (τ) of HR (r = 0.519, p = 0.003), V ˙ O2 (r = 0.454; p = 0.010), and [HHb] (r = 0.644, p = 0.001). Correct responses were negatively related with τHR (r = –0.372, p = 0.039) and τ V ˙ O2 (r = –0.500, p = 0.004). The Stroop average reaction time, congruent reaction time and incongruent reaction time were positively related to τ[HHb] (r = 0.507, p = 0.010; r = 0.437, p = 0.029; r = 0.558, p = 0.004, respectively). Better EF was associated with faster on-transition aerobic metabolism and higher aerobic fitness among older adults.