Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Spontaneous regression of lumbar disc herniations: A retrospective analysis of 5 patients

The aim of this study is to describe patients who represent spontaneous regression of lumbar disc herniations (LDHs) subsequent to conservative treatments. In this retrospective study, medical records of 862 patients who had presented to our neurosurgery department with LDHs between May 2014 and May 2016 were studied. All of these patients had a history of low back pain and radiculopathy. Lumbar magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans were performed to diagnose them.LDHs were categorized into four subtypes including disc bulging, protrusion, extrusion, and sequestration. Five patients developed spontaneous regression of LDHs according to spinal MRI scans. All patients relieved radiculopathy symptoms in 2 to 4 weeks and low back pain symptoms in 3 to 8 weeks except one patient. In one patient hypoesthesia symptom, in one patient motor deficit, and in one patient low back painremained after the regression. The clinical and diagnostic imaging characteristics and outcomes of these five patients are described and the pertinent literature regarding spontaneous regression of LDHs is reviewed. Sequestrated disc herniations represent the main candidates for spontaneous regression according to our clinical research and the pertinent literature. Dehydration and inflammation-related resorption are the main mechanisms for this event. Conservative treatment modalities should not be underestimated for the treatment of such patients in the absence of definitive surgical indications.
Fenfluramine for Treatment-Resistant Seizures in Patients With Dravet Syndrome Receiving Stiripentol-Inclusive Regimens

Key Points Question Is fenfluramine safe and effective for treating patients with Dravet syndrome who have frequent seizures despite taking a stiripentol-inclusive antiepileptic drug regimen? Findings Oral fenfluramine (0.4 mg/kg/d; maximum 17 mg/d) provided a 54.0% greater reduction in mean monthly convulsive seizure frequency than placebo in patients with Dravet syndrome who were taking stiripentol-containing antiepileptic drug regimens; a significantly greater proportion of patients who were taking fenfluramine (vs placebo) experienced a clinically meaningful (≥50%) or profound (≥75%) reduction in monthly convulsive seizure frequency. The most common adverse events included decreased appetite, pyrexia, fatigue, and diarrhea; no patient developed valvular heart disease or pulmonary hypertension. Meaning Adjunctive fenfluramine may be a safe, effective new treatment option for patients with Dravet syndrome with seizures that are not controlled by a regimen including stiripentol.
Investigating the root plasticity response of Centaurea jacea to soil water availability changes from isotopic analysis.

-Root water uptake is a key ecohydrological process for which a physically-based understanding has been developed in the past decades. However, due to methodological constraints, knowledge gaps remain about the plastic response of whole plant root systems to a rapidly changing environment. -We designed a laboratory system for non-destructive monitoring of stable isotopic composition in plant transpiration of an herbaceous species (Centaurea jacea) and of soil water across depths, taking advantage of newly developed in-situ methods. Daily root water uptake profiles were obtained using a statistical Bayesian multi-source mixing model. -Fast shifts in the isotopic composition of both soil and transpiration water could be observed with the setup and translated into dynamic and pronounced shifts of the root water uptake profile, even in well-watered conditions. -The incorporation of plant physiological and soil physical information into statistical modelling improved the model output. A simple exercise of water balance closure underlined the non-unique relationship between root water uptake profile on the one hand, and water content and root distribution profiles on the other, illustrating the continuous adaption of the plant water uptake as a function of its root hydraulic architecture and soil water availability during the experiment.
Melatonin protects against ischemic stroke by modulating microglia/macrophage polarization toward anti‐inflammatory phenotype through STAT3 pathway

Microglia and infiltrated macrophages play important roles in inflammatory processes after ischemic stroke. Modulating microglia/macrophage polarization from pro‐inflammatory phenotype to anti‐inflammatory state has been suggested as a potential therapeutic approach in the treatment of ischemic stroke. Melatonin has been shown to be neuroprotective in experimental stroke models. However, the effect of melatonin on microglia polarization after stroke and underlying mechanisms remain unknown.
Biophysical and physiological processes causing oxygen loss from coral reefs

The microbialization of coral reefs predicts that microbial oxygen consumption will cause reef deoxygenation. Here we tested this hypothesis by analyzing reef microbial and primary producer oxygen metabolisms. Metagenomic data and in vitro incubations of bacteria with primary producer exudates showed that fleshy algae stimulate incomplete carbon oxidation metabolisms in heterotrophic bacteria. These metabolisms lead to increased cell sizes and abundances, resulting in bacteria consuming 10 times more oxygen than in coral incubations. Experiments probing the dissolved and gaseous oxygen with primary producers and bacteria together indicated the loss of oxygen through ebullition caused by heterogenous nucleation on algae surfaces. A model incorporating experimental production and loss rates predicted that microbes and ebullition can cause the loss of up to 67% of gross benthic oxygen production. This study indicates that microbial respiration and ebullition are increasingly relevant to reef deoxygenation as reefs become dominated by fleshy algae.
Analysis of stochastic fluctuations in responsiveness is a critical step toward personalized anesthesia

Traditionally, drug dosing is based on a concentration-response relationship estimated in a population. Yet, in specific individuals, decisions based on the population-level effects frequently result in over or under-dosing. Here, we interrogate the relationship between population-based and individual-based responses to anesthetics in mice and zebrafish. The anesthetic state was assessed by quantifying responses to simple stimuli. Individual responses dynamically fluctuated at a fixed drug concentration. These fluctuations exhibited resistance to state transitions. Drug sensitivity varied dramatically across individuals in both species. The amount of noise driving transitions between states, in contrast, was highly conserved in vertebrates separated by 400 million years of evolution. Individual differences in anesthetic sensitivity and stochastic fluctuations in responsiveness complicate the ability to appropriately dose anesthetics to each individual. Identifying the biological substrate of noise, however, may spur novel therapies, assure consistent drug responses, and encourage the shift from population-based to personalized medicine.
Improved Area of Origin Estimation for Bloodstain Pattern Analysis Using 3D Scanning

An important component of crime scene reconstruction is bloodstain pattern analysis (BPA). Where BPA concerns impact patterns, estimating the area of origin is critical information for scene reconstruction. Traditionally, this is achieved by measuring individual bloodstains and performing trigonometric calculations; however, 3D scanning has been proposed as a viable alternative for overcoming logistical and practical concerns with the manual method. Therefore, this project aimed to establish whether the FARO Focus 3D scanner and FARO Zone 3D software can improve the accuracy of area of origin estimates relative to the manual method. We created a series of eight bloodstain impact patterns and performed paired analysis using the two methods to estimate areas of origin for each pattern. Our data suggested that FARO‐derived estimates were generally more accurate than using the manual method. FARO‐estimated heights of origin areas were generally closer to the true distance. Both methods underestimated the distance from the wall for most patterns originating 150mm or greater from the wall, but overestimated distances for patterns originating closer to the wall. The degree to which distances were underestimated increased significantly the further the blood source was from the wall and was greater for FARO‐derived estimates. The results of this research contribute to the validation of these instruments for operational implementation for BPA and should be considered alongside the practical benefits of 3D scanning relative to manual methods. Further, 3D scanning can provide reliable BPA reconstruction documentation for technical review and court presentation.
The efficiency analysis and spatial implications of health information technology: A regional exploratory study in China

The new adoption of healthcare information technology is costly, and effects on healthcare performance can be questionable. This nationwide study in China investigated the efficient performance of healthcare information technology and examined its spatial correlation. Panel data were extracted from the Annual Investigation Report on Hospital Information in China and the China Health Statistics Yearbook for 2007 through 2015 (279 observations). Stochastic frontier analysis was employed to estimate the technical efficiency of healthcare information technology performance and related factors at the regional level. Healthcare information technology performance was positively associated with electronic medical records, total input, and cost of inpatient stay, while picture archiving and communication systems and net assets were negatively related. Local Indicators of Spatial Association showed that there existed significant spatial autocorrelation. Governmental policies would best make distinctions among different forms of healthcare information technology, especially between electronic medical records and picture archiving and communication systems. Policies should be formulated to improve healthcare information technology adoption and reduce regional differences.
Endogenous Roles of Mammalian Flavin-Containing Monooxygenases

Flavin-containing monooxygenases (FMOs) catalyze the oxygenation of numerous foreign chemicals. This review considers the roles of FMOs in the metabolism of endogenous substrates and in physiological processes, and focuses on FMOs of human and mouse. Tyramine, phenethylamine, trimethylamine, cysteamine, methionine, lipoic acid and lipoamide have been identified as endogenous or dietary-derived substrates of FMOs in vitro. However, with the exception of trimethylamine, the role of FMOs in the metabolism of these compounds in vivo is unclear. The use, as experimental models, of knockout-mouse lines deficient in various Fmo genes has revealed previously unsuspected roles for FMOs in endogenous metabolic processes. FMO1 has been identified as a novel regulator of energy balance that acts to promote metabolic efficiency, and also as being involved in the biosynthesis of taurine, by catalyzing the S-oxygenation of hypotaurine. FMO5 has been identified as a regulator of metabolic ageing and glucose homeostasis that apparently acts by sensing or responding to gut bacteria. Thus, FMOs do not function only as xenobiotic-metabolizing enzymes and there is a risk that exposure to drugs and environmental chemicals that are substrates or inducers of FMOs would perturb the endogenous functions of these enzymes.
Sequential extraction for heavy metal distribution of bottom ash from fluidized bed co-combusted phosphorus-rich sludge under the agglomeration/defluidization process

Agglomeration that occurs during municipal sewage sludge (MSS) fluidized bed co-combustion might affect heavy metal distribution and the transformation of bottom ash. A study on the mobility and speciation of heavy metals that accompanies agglomeration behavior and phosphorus addition should be examined during MSS co-combustion. Meanwhile, the aim of this study was to evaluate the total content and speciation of heavy metals during the MSS fluidized bed co-combustion by the chemical sequential extraction procedure (SEP). The risk assessment code (RAC) and individual contamination factor (ICF) are calculated to evaluate the mobility of heavy metals and their environmental risks in agglomerates. Moreover, identification of agglomerates is established by both characterization (scanning electron microscopy/energy-dispersive spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy) and thermodynamic simulation (HSC chemistry software). The experimental results indicated that P and Na would form the lower melting-point compounds such as NaPO3 and Na2O in the bottom ash, which promoted agglomeration during MSS fluidized bed co-combustion. According to the simulation, Na and P have a stronger affinity than Si and Cr, and this reaction is not only influenced by particle agglomeration, but also by heavy metal distribution during modified MSS co-combustion. Nevertheless, the results of ICFs and RACs obtained from the SEP indicated that for heavy metals trapped in agglomerates, a weaker binding such as physical covering by eutectics might be considered as the dominant reaction compared with chemical binding to form a metal complex.
Stories of substance:Story-making in art therapy with substance-abusing mothers and their children

This research proposes a short-term art therapy treatment program that aims to address poor attachment between substance-abusing mothers and their children. Although there are a number of studies linking impoverished attachment patterns to intergenerational psychosocial problems, including continued substance abuse, there are relatively few treatment programs designed to address this issue. There are fewer still within the creative arts therapies that attend to the bond between substance-abusing mothers and their children. This paper proposes a model for a program that combines narrative therapy and art therapy within the framework of attachment theory. For this research project, a short-term art therapy program was developed with a focus on story-making as a means of relationship-building between substance-abusing mothers and their children, ages 3-6. An exploratory trial program was implemented at a residential rehabilitation centre for chemically-dependent mothers and their children. Feedback from the mothers and children, in the form of questionnaires and field observations, served as the impetus for the development of the program as presented here.
Exploring male adolescents' perceptions of gender relations in South India: A project ethnography of the Parivartan program.

In Northern Karnataka, South India, boys' behaviours and attitudes towards girls are regarded as one of the many important proximate structural barriers impeding girls' access to education and academic performance in rural communities. In response to these barriers, public health practitioners developed an intervention, known as the Parivartan program, to confront the wider social and structural influences that shape adolescent boys' perspectives on gender relationships and practices that subjugate adolescent girls. Drawing upon a project ethnography approach, this study presents the findings from two phases of research conducted between 2014 and 2016 among adolescent boys who participated in the Parivartan program. First, 20 baseline qualitative interviews were conducted among male participants (between the ages 14 and 18) enrolled in the program. Next, follow-up ethnographic research, which included participant observation and ethnographic field note composition, took place one year after commencement of the intervention to illuminate the effects of the program on participants' perspectives. Transcripts and field notes were coded for key themes and emergent categories focused on representing adolescent boys' views and experiences through their narrative accounts. Within the context of an intervention, our findings portray masculinity among participants as simultaneously socially contingent, shifting and still undergoing negotiation, thereby providing an entry point through which program implementers can further encourage boys to transcend patriarchal expectations. Our findings hold important lessons for the design of future HIV and gender-based interventions with adolescent boys in India.
Triage‐HF Plus: a novel device‐based remote monitoring pathway to identify worsening heart failure

Remote monitoring of patients with physiological data derived from cardiac implanted electronic devices (CIEDs) offers potential to reconfigure clinical services. The ‘Heart Failure Risk Score' (HFRS) uses input from integrated device physiological monitoring to risk‐stratify patients as low‐risk, medium‐risk, or high‐risk of a heart failure event in the next 30 days. This study aimed to evaluate a novel clinical pathway utilizing a combination of CIED risk‐stratification and telephone triage to identify patients with worsening heart failure (WHF).
Measuring the subgingival microbiota in periodontitis patients: Comparison of the surface layer and the underlying layers

Periodontitis is a major cause of tooth loss in adults that initially results from dental plaque. Subgingival plaque pathogenesis is affected by both community composition and plaque structures, although limited data are available concerning the latter. To bridge this knowledge gap, subgingival plaques were obtained using filter paper (the fourth layer) and curette (the first‐third layers) sequentially and the phylogenetic differences between the first–third layers and the fourth layer were characterized by sequencing the V3–V4 regions of 16S rRNA. A total of 11 phyla, 148 genera, and 308 species were obtained by bioinformatic analysis, and no significant differences between the operational taxonomic unit numbers were observed for these groups. In both groups, the most abundant species were Porphyromonas gingivalis and Fusobacterium nucleatum. Actinomyces naeslundii, Streptococcus intermedius, and Prevotella intermedia possessed relatively high proportions in the first–third layers; while in the fourth layer, both traditional pathogens (Treponema denticola and Campylobacter rectus) and novel pathobionts (Eubacterium saphenum, Filifactor alocis, Treponema sp. HOT238) were prominent. Network analysis showed that either of them exhibited a scale‐free property and was constructed by two negatively correlated components (the pathogen component and the nonpathogen component), while the synergy in the nonpathogen component was lower in the first–third layers than that in the fourth layer. After merging these two parts into a whole plaque group, the negative/positive correlation ratio increased. With potential connections, the first–third layers and the fourth layer showed characteristic key nodes in bacterial networks.
Impact of permagarden intervention on improving fruit and vegetable intake among vulnerable groups in an urban setting of Ethiopia: A quasi-experimental study

Background Increasing nutrient intake through home gardening is a sustainable way to address multiple micronutrient deficiencies in developing countries. This study investigated the impact of permagarden intervention in increasing the frequency and diversity of vegetable and fruit consumption among vulnerable families in seven cities of Ethiopia. Method A quasi-experimental study was conducted from August 10 to September 30, 2015. A total of 884 care givers (427 from intervention and 457 from control) participated in the study. Data were collected through face to face interviews with caregivers of highly vulnerable children. Propensity score matching (PSM) was used as implemented in STATA software. Program impact on the frequency and diversity of households’ fruit and vegetable consumption between intervention and control groups was assessed using chi square test. Results Intervention participants had a 13% higher increase in frequency of vegetable and fruit consumption compared with control participants (p<0.01). Diversity (consumption of 2 or more groups of vegetable and fruit) is higher among intervention groups than control groups (percentage difference = 9, p-value<0.05). A significant higher percentage of participants in intervention group reported getting the one-week vegetable and fruit mainly from their own garden (percentage difference 58.3%, p<0.05). A significantly larger proportion of participants in the intervention group compared to control group reported “high likelihood” on intention to grow vegetables in the future (percentage difference = 30%, and P<0.01). Perceived importance to include vegetable in everyday meal was higher among intervention group participants than control group participants (percentage difference = 11.5%, P<0.01). Conclusions The observed higher FV intake among permagarden intervention group compared to control group suggest that nutrition and health programs need to promote permagarden as a means to improve FV intake among vulnerable societies in resource limited countries.
GENETIC BEHAVIOUR AND ANALYSIS OF SOME YIELD TRAITS IN WHEAT (TRITICUM AESTIVUM L.) GENOTYPES

A study was carried out in field area of the Department of Plant Breeding and Genetics, PMAS Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi, Pakistan during 200709 to investigate the inheritance of gene action in wheat genotypes viz. Chakwal-97 (CH-97), Inqalab-91, GA-2002, 6C001 and 6C002 in a 5 x 5 diallel cross. Data were recorded for yield traits like spike length, number of spikelets per spike, number of grains per spike, 1000-grain weight and grain yield per plant. The crosses were sown in randomized complete block design in three replications. The results revealed highly significant specific combining ability effects for 1000-grain weight (210.01) and grain yield per plant (93.70), significant for spike length (10.67) and number of spikelets per spike (10.31). It reflected non-additive type of gene action for these characters suggesting that selection would be effective in later generations. Higher general combining ability estimates for number of grains per spike (403.29) indicated that this trait is being controlled by additive type of gene action and one can practice selection in early generations for number of grains per spike. The results conclude that CH-97 might be used in breeding programmes to develop high yielding wheat cultivars. Cross combinations like CH-97 x 6C002 and CH-97 x Inqalab-91 may be used as advanced lines for comprehensive testing at different locations and may ultimately be released as varieties after thorough