Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Black Maculae between the Toes: A Rare Form of Laugier–Hunziker Syndrome?

Sir, A 65-year-old man presented with irregular black maculae between all 10 toes with no progress for 30 months [Figure 1]. He had white maceration between some toes due to hyperhidrosis of feet over the past decades. He had been given intermittent itraconazole in a local hospital at a dosage of 400 mg daily for 1 week every month for 3 months to treat toenail onychomycosis, which was subsequently cured; however, the black maculae between the toes had no change. We gave this patient mycological microscopy and culture of samples taken from black maculae between the toes several times but the results were negative. Dermoscopy on the dark spot between the third and fourth toes of the left foot exhibited unsymmetrical pigmentation without blue-white veil, which did not show a typical character of melanoma [Figure 2a]. After a detailed examination of the skin, we found black spots on the lip and oral mucosa [Figure 2b] with unknowing disease course, but no abnormity on fingernail, toenails, or genitalia was seen. Biopsy was conducted on the dark spot between the third and fourth toes of the left foot and histopathology showed epidermal acanthosis and trochanterellus extension [Figure 2c], and periodic acidSchiff (PAS) staining was negative. Immunohistochemistry staining of Sox10 [Figure 2d] and HMB45 [Figure 2e] antibodies both presented some positive melanocytes in trochanterellus. The patient underwent enteroscopy examination which exhibited that colorectum mucosa had no obvious abnormity [Figure 2f]. Based on the clinical manifestation and the results of the accessory examinations, we diagnosed this case as Laugier– Hunziker syndrome (LHS), which to our knowledge was the first case report of LHS presenting melanotic macules between all the toes. There was no family history of similar complaints. This elderly patient did not care deeply about these “unbeautiful” melanotic macules and refused to accept our treatment suggestions including any topical and systemic management.
Categorical Perception Effects Induced by Category Learning

We report a series of studies designed to determine whether effects similar to those observed in the innate categorical perception (CP) of color and phonemes are induced during category learning. In Experiment 1 no evidence is found for such effects when stimuli vary unidimensionally. Experiments 2 and 3 demonstrate a within-category compression effect but no between-category separation effect for stimuli varying in two dimensions. Compression only is also shown in Experiment 4, which uses pictures of actual objects. MDS analyses of these data illustrate how within-category compression effects without separation effects are sufficient for categorization, and also show that learning changes the dimensional structure of similarity space. Results are compared with those from other studies exploring similar phenomena, and with neural network simulations, and the paper closes with suggestsions for the direction of future research on these phenomena.
Accumulating evidence in ecology: Once is not enough

Abstract Many published studies in ecological science are viewed as stand‐alone investigations that purport to provide new insights into how ecological systems behave based on single analyses. But it is rare for results of single studies to provide definitive results, as evidenced in current discussions of the “reproducibility crisis” in science. The key step in science is the comparison of hypothesis‐based predictions with observations, where the predictions are typically generated by hypothesis‐specific models. Repeating this step allows us to gain confidence in the predictive ability of a model, and its corresponding hypothesis, and thus to accumulate evidence and eventually knowledge. This accumulation may occur via an ad hoc approach, via meta‐analyses, or via a more systematic approach based on the anticipated evolution of an information state. We argue the merits of this latter approach, provide an example, and discuss implications for designing sequences of studies focused on a particular question. We conclude by discussing current data collection programs that are preadapted to use this approach and argue that expanded use would increase the rate of learning in ecology, as well as our confidence in what is learned.
The influence of Pilates participants’ empirical values on their emotional responses and behavioral intentions

This study aimed to investigate the relationship between the empirical value of Pilates participants and their emotional response and behavioral intention. For this study, 286 participants who participated in Pilates classes in Seoul and Gyeonggi-do in 2019 were selected using the convenience sampling method. For data processing, frequency, exploratory factor, reliability, correlation, and multiple regression analyses were performed using PASW ver. 23.0. The empirical values of the Pilates participants had a significant effect on their emotional response and behavioral intention. The emotional responses of the Pilates participants also had a significant effect on their behavioral intention. In summary, Pilates instructors, therefore, try to help the participants form positive experiences and emotional responses to induce participants’ continuous participation.
Performance Quality Evaluation of Faculty Members at Al- Qassim University from their and their Students’ Perspectives and Proposing a Model for its Development in the Light of Total Quality Standards

The study aims to evaluate performance quality evaluation of faculty members at Al-Qassim University from their and their students’ perspectives and proposing a model for its development in the light of total quality standards. The researcher used analytical-descriptive method because it fits the study purposes. The sample consisted of (102) male and female faculty members who hold PhD degrees and (730) male and female students in scientific and literary majors of both samples who had been purposively selected. The results revealed to that performance quality of faculty members at Al-Qassim University was (high) from their point of view. The study revealed to in the construction of a model to develop the performance, quality of faculty members in the light of the total quality standards. The researcher recommended conducting various studies in the field of developing faculty members’ performance in accordance with total quality standards at Al-Qassim University.
Retrospective Analysis of 68 Cases of Dengue Fever

Background: Dengue is a mosquito-borne febrile disease caused by any of the four serotypes of the dengue virus transmitted by the Aedes aegypti mosquito. Objectives: To study the clinical manifestations and treatment practices of Dengue cases in Pakistan. Materials and Methods: Retrospective record based analysis of dengue cases was performed in 3 general hospitals of Punjab during the 2010 outbreak. Only confirmed dengue IgM (ELISA) cases were further analyzed. WHO guidelines were used to evaluate the method of diagnosis and treatment. Results: A total of 125 suspected dengue cases were admitted in these hospitals out of which dengue IgM was positive in 68 cases. Out of 68 cases, 60(88.2%) were of dengue fever and 8(11.8%) were dengue hemorrhage fever. Tourniquet test was not performed in any case. Sixty (88.8%) cases were males. The ages of the patients ranged from 4-60 years. Sixty five patients (96%) had fever followed by myalgia in 48(70%), headache in 33(48.8%), vomiting in 30(44.8%), weakness in 48(38.4%) and abdominal pain in 25(20%) cases. Thrombocytopenia was present in 60 cases (88.8%). In 54(43.2%) cases platelet count was below 50,000. Leucopenia was present in 45 cases (66.4%). Analgesics were prescribed in 52 cases. Fluid replacement therapy was used in 59(87.2%) which consisted of either dextrose water or ringer’s lactate or normal saline. Antibiotics were prescribed in 47 cases. WHO guidelines were not followed in the diagnosis and management of these cases. Conclusions: WHO guidelines for the diagnosis and management of dengue fever were not followed thus leading to unnecessary treatment and waste of resources. Policy message: Training of health care providers should be done on WHO guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of dengue fever.
Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injuries; Associated Intercondylar Notch Stenosis

It is said that there is an association between anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries and Intercondylar notch width. This report investigated this association using magnetic resonance (MR) imaging. The ACL group comprised 51 patients who had been operated on for ACL injuries between 1988 and 1992.This group included 26 men, and 25 women, ranging in age from 14 to 40 years (mean; 22 years). The control group comprised of 50 men and 50 women who had no ACL injuries. We devised a method to measure and compare the intercondylar notch width on MR imaging. MR images were taken in the coronal and sagittal plane at the level of the Intercondylar notch and a statistically significant difference was found between the ACL group and the normal group. We concluded that there was an association between intercondlylar notch stenosis and ACL injuries.
The effects of task-based learning in students’ oral performance in a group of efl sena students

7 Introduction . 8 1. Justification . 10 2. Research problem . 11 2.1 Problem statement . 11 2.2 Research question . 13 2.3 Objectives . 13 2.3.1 General objective . 13  Specific objective . 13 3. Conceptual framework . 14 3.1 Speaking . 14 3.1. 1 Fluency and accuracy . 15 3.2 Task . 16 3.2.1 Task-based learning . 17 4. Literature review . 19 5. Methodological framework . 23 5.1 Context . 23 5.2 Participants . 24 5.3. Type of research . 25 5.3.1 Stage 1: Planning . 26 Identification of the problem . 26 The solution of the problem . 26 5.3.2 Stage 2: Acting . 27 Pre-post test . 27 Selection of the participants . 28 5.3. 3 Stage 3: Observing . 31 5.3. 4 Stage 4: Reflecting . 32 6. Findings . 33 6.1 Findings: The effects on students’ performance . 34 6.1. 1 Pre-test and post-test . 34 6.1. 3 Task-Based units . 38 6.2 Findings: Students’ perspectives on the effects . 42 6.3 findings: advantages and limitations . 49 6.3.1 Advantages . 49 6.3.2 Limitations . 50 7. Analysis and discussion . 53 8. Conclusions . 58 9. Recommendations . 62 10. References . 63 11. Appendix . 67 Appendix A: Pre-Post test . 67 Appendix B: Rubric . 69 Appendix C: Task-Based Unit . 70 Appendix D: Teacher’s log format . 73 Appendix E: Survey . 74
Investigation of frequency and antimicrobial pattern of gram-negative bacteria isolated from urine specimens of children with urinary tract infection in Tehran, Iran

IJMM 1394; 9(4): 99-104 Background and Aim: One of the most important childhood infections is urinary tract infection (UTI). In order to prevent serious complications of UTI in children such as hypertension and renal failure, definitively diagnose and prompt treatment are essential. Since bacteria of the family Enterobacteriaceae are known to be the most common causes of UTI, the present study aimed to determine the frequency and antimicrobial resistance patterns of them in children with UTI. Materials and Methods: The present study was conducted on urine samples of children with UTI referred to Children`s Medical Center of Tehran during one year. The urine samples were cultured on selective media and the bacteria were identified by biochemical tests. Antibiotic resistance pattern of isolates were investigated by disk diffusion method.
Sexual Violence and Substance Use among Female Students of Mizan-Tepi University, Southwest Ethiopia: A Mixed Method Study

Sexual Violence and Substance Use among Female Students of Mizan-Tepi University, Southwest Ethiopia: A Mixed Method Study Introduction: Sexual violence is a common and serious public health problem. The most common place and cause for sexual violence is school and substance use respectively. Thus, the main objective of the study was to assess the prevalence of sexual violence and its association with substance use among female students in Mizan-Tepi University.
A Clinicopathologic Study of Four Cases and Review of the Literature

We studied 4 new cases of juxtaglomerular cell tumor and compared their morphologic and immunohistochemical features with 2 renal hemangiopericytomas and 5 cutaneous glomus tumors. The juxtaglomerular tumors were resected from 2 males and 2 females (mean age at diagnosis, 23 years). Three patients manifested with severe hypertension. Tumors ranged from 2.2 to 8.0 cm and were well circumscribed. The tumors consisted of solid sheets and nodules of variably sized tumor cells with round, oval, and spindled nuclei alternating with edematous microcystic foci. Nuclear atypia, present in all tumors, was a
Characterization of Patients with Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension: Data from the Polish Registry of Pulmonary Hypertension (BNP-PL)

Current knowledge of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) epidemiology is based mainly on data from Western populations, and therefore we aimed to characterize a large group of Caucasian PAH adults of Central-Eastern European origin. We analyzed data of incident and prevalent PAH adults enrolled in a prospective national registry involving all Polish PAH centers. The estimated prevalence and annual incidence of PAH were 30.8/mln adults and 5.2/mln adults, respectively and they were the highest in females ≥65 years old. The most frequent type of PAH was idiopathic (n = 444; 46%) followed by PAH associated with congenital heart diseases (CHD-PAH, n = 356; 36.7%), and PAH associated with connective tissue disease (CTD-PAH, n = 132; 13.6%). At enrollment, most incident cases (71.9%) were at intermediate mortality risk and the prevalent cases had most of their risk factors in the intermediate or high risk range. The use of triple combination therapy was rare (4.7%). A high prevalence of PAH among older population confirms the changing demographics of PAH found in the Western countries. In contrast, we found: a female predominance across all age groups, a high proportion of patients with CHD-PAH as compared to patients with CTD-PAH and a low use of triple combination therapy.
Pelvic Floor Muscle Training in Female Athletes: A Randomized Controlled Pilot Study

Abstract The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of pelvic floor muscles training in elite female volleyball athletes and whether it is an effective therapy for stress urinary incontinence. Fourteen athletes, both continent and incontinent, between 18 and 30 years of age, were randomly assigned to an experimental group or a control group. The experimental group received a protocol for pelvic floor muscle training for 4 months. This consisted of three phases: awareness/stabilization, strength training and power. The control group was not subject to any intervention during the same period. Measures were collected at the initial and final phase for both groups. Maximum voluntary contractions were evaluated with a perineometer, involuntary urine loss with a Pad test and quality of life with the King’s Health Questionnaire. Baseline sociodemographic and anthropometric characteristics were not significantly different. Comparing the two groups, the experimental group improved maximum voluntary pelvic contractions (p<0.001) and reduced urine loss (p=0.025), indicating the existence of significant differences between groups in the variation from the initial and final phases. The percentage of urine loss decreased in the experimental group, from 71.4–42.9%, suggesting that the protocol intervention for 16 weeks may help athletes with stress urinary incontinence.
Psychosocial Twin Cohort Studies in Japan: The Keio Twin Research Center (KoTReC)

Abstract The Keio Twin Research Center (KoTReC) was established in 2009 at Keio University to combine two longitudinal cohort projects — the Keio Twin Study (KTS) for adolescence and adulthood and the Tokyo Twin Cohort Project (ToTCoP) for infancy and childhood. KoTReC also conducted a two-time panel study of self-control and psychopathology in twin adolescence in 2012 and 2013 and three independent anonymous cross-sectional twin surveys (ToTcross) before 2012 — the ToTCross, the Junior and Senior High School Survey and the High School Survey. This article introduces the recent research designs of KoTReC and its publications.
Objective measures of workload in healthcare: a narrative review.

PURPOSE Workload is a critical concept in the evaluation of performance and quality in healthcare systems, but its definition relies on the perspective (e.g. individual clinician-level vs unit-level workload) and type of available metrics (e.g. objective vs subjective measures). The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of objective measures of workload associated with direct care delivery in tertiary healthcare settings, with a focus on measures that can be obtained from electronic records to inform operationalization of workload measurement. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH Relevant papers published between January 2008 and July 2018 were identified through a search in Pubmed and Compendex databases using the Sample, Phenomenon of Interest, Design, Evaluation, Research Type framework. Identified measures were classified into four levels of workload: task, patient, clinician and unit. FINDINGS Of 30 papers reviewed, 9 used task-level metrics, 14 used patient-level metrics, 7 used clinician-level metrics and 20 used unit-level metrics. Key objective measures of workload include: patient turnover (n=9), volume of patients (n=6), acuity (n=6), nurse-to-patient ratios (n=5) and direct care time (n=5). Several methods for operationalization of these metrics into measurement tools were identified. ORIGINALITY/VALUE This review highlights the key objective workload measures available in electronic records that can be utilized to develop an operational approach for quantifying workload. Insights gained from this review can inform the design of processes to track workload and mitigate the effects of increased workload on patient outcomes and clinician performance.
Round Robin into Best Practices for the Determination of Indentation Size Effects

The paper presents a statistical study of nanoindentation results obtained in seven European laboratories that have joined a round robin exercise to assess methods for the evaluation of indentation size effects. The study focuses on the characterization of ferritic/martensitic steels T91 and Eurofer97, envisaged as structural materials for nuclear fission and fusion applications, respectively. Depth-controlled single cycle measurements at various final indentation depths, force-controlled single cycle and force-controlled progressive multi-cycle measurements using Berkovich indenters at room temperature have been combined to calculate the indentation hardness and the elastic modulus as a function of depth applying the Oliver and Pharr method. Intra- and inter-laboratory variabilities have been evaluated. Elastic modulus corrections have been applied to the hardness data to compensate for materials related systematic errors, like pile-up behaviour, which is not accounted for by the Oliver and Pharr theory, and other sources of instrumental or methodological bias. The correction modifies the statistical hardness profiles and allows determining more reliable indentation size effects.
Clinical and Radiographic Evaluation of Nanohydroxyapatite Powder in Combination with Polylactic Acid/Polyglycolic Acid Copolymer as Bone Replacement Graft in the Surgical Treatment of Intrabony Periodontal Defects: A Retrospective Case Series Study

The aim of this retrospective case series was to evaluate the clinical efficacy of nanohydroxyapatite powder (NHA) in combination with polylactic acid/polyglycolic acid copolymer (PLGA) as a bone replacement graft in the surgical treatment of intrabony periodontal defects. Medical charts were screened following inclusion and exclusion criteria. Periodontal parameters and periapical radiographs taken before surgery and at 12-month follow-up were collected. Intra-group comparisons were performed using a two-tailed Wilcoxon signed-rank test. Twenty-five patients (13 males, 12 females, mean age 55.1 ± 10.5 years) were included in the final analysis. Mean probing depth (PD) and clinical attachment level (CAL) at baseline were 8.32 ± 1.41 mm and 9.96 ± 1.69 mm, respectively. Twelve months after surgery, mean PD was 4.04 ± 0.84 mm and CAL was 6.24 ± 1.71 mm. Both PD and CAL variations gave statistically significant results (p < 0.00001). The mean radiographic defect depth was 5.54 ± 1.55 mm and 1.48 ± 1.38 mm at baseline and at 12-month follow-up, respectively (p < 0.0001). This case series, with the limitations inherent in the study design, showed that the combination of NHA and PLGA, used as bone replacement graft in intrabony periodontal defects, may give significant improvements of periodontal parameters at 12-month follow-up.
Gold Nanoparticles Crossing Blood-Brain Barrier Prevent HSV-1 Infection and Reduce Herpes Associated Amyloid-βsecretion

Infections caused by HSV-1 and their typical outbreaks invading the nervous system have been related to neurodegenerative diseases. HSV-1 infection may deregulate the balance between the amyloidogenic and non-amyloidogenic pathways, raising the accumulation of amyloid-β peptides, one of the hallmarks in the neurodegenerative diseases. An effective treatment against both, HSV-1 infections and neurodegeneration, is a major therapeutic target. Therefore, gold nanoparticles (NPAus) have been previously studied in immunotherapy, cancer and cellular disruptions with very promising results. Our study demonstrates that a new NPAus family inhibits the HSV-1 infection in a neural-derived SK-N-MC cell line model and that this new NPAus reduces the HSV-1-induced β-secretase activity, as well as amyloid-β accumulation in SK-APP-D1 modifies cell line. We demonstrated that NPAuG3-S8 crosses the blood-brain barrier (BBB) and does not generate cerebral damage to in vivo CD1 mice model. The NPAuG3-S8 could be a promising treatment against neuronal HSV-1 infections and neuronal disorders related to the Aβ peptides.
Airway epithelial specific deletion of Jun-N-terminal kinase 1 attenuates pulmonary fibrosis in two independent mouse models

The stress-induced kinase, c-Jun-N-terminal kinase 1 (JNK1) has previously been implicated in the pathogenesis of lung fibrosis. However, the exact cell type(s) wherein JNK1 exerts its pro-fibrotic role(s) remained enigmatic. Herein we demonstrate prominent activation of JNK in bronchial epithelia using the mouse models of bleomycin- or AdTGFβ1-induced fibrosis. Furthermore, in lung tissues of patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), active JNK was observed in various regions including type I and type II pneumocytes and fibroblasts. No JNK activity was observed in adjacent normal tissue or in normal control tissue. To address the role of epithelial JNK1, we ablated Jnk1 form bronchiolar and alveolar type II epithelial cells using CCSP-directed Cre recombinase-mediated ablation of LoxP-flanked Jnk1 alleles. Our results demonstrate that ablation of Jnk1 from airway epithelia resulted in a strong protection from bleomycin- or adenovirus expressing active transforming growth factor beta-1 (AdTGFβ1)-induced fibrosis. Ablation of the Jnk1 allele at a time when collagen increases were already present showed a reversal of existing increases in collagen content. Epithelial Jnk1 ablation resulted in attenuation of mesenchymal genes and proteins in lung tissue and preserved expression of epithelial genes. Collectively, these data suggest that epithelial JNK1 contributes to the pathogenesis of pulmonary fibrosis. Given the presence of active JNK in lungs from patients with IPF, targeting JNK1 in airway epithelia may represent a potential treatment strategy to combat this devastating disease.