Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Detection of Mycoplasma pneumoniae in Spiked Clinical Samples by Nucleic Acid Sequence-Based Amplification

ABSTRACT Isothermal nucleic acid sequence-based amplification (NASBA) was applied to the detection of Mycoplasma pneumoniae. M. pneumoniae RNA prepared from a plasmid construct was used to assess the sensitivity of the assay, and an internal control for the detection of inhibitors was constructed. The sensitivity of the NASBA assay was 10 molecules of wild-type M. pneumoniae RNA generated in vitro and 5 color-changing units (CCU) of M. pneumoniae. An appropriate specimen preparation procedure was developed: after protease treatment of the respiratory specimens, guanidine thiocyanate lysis solution (4.7 M guanidine thiocyanate [Sigma-Aldrich NV], 46 mM Tris-HCl [Merck, Darmstadt, Germany], 20 mM EDTA [Sigma-Aldrich NV], 1.2% [wt/vol] Triton X-100 [Sigma-Aldrich NV], pH 6.2.) was added. With spiked throats, nasopharyngeal aspirates, bronchoalveolar lavage specimens, and sputum specimens, the sensitivity of the NASBA assay in the presence of the internal control was 2 × 104 molecules of in vitro-generated RNA or 5 CCU of M. pneumoniae. The sensitivity of the NASBA assay was comparable to that of a PCR targeted to the P1 adhesin gene. Fifteen clinical specimens positive for M. pneumoniae by PCR were also positive by NASBA. These results indicate that the sensitivity of detection of M. pneumoniae in spiked respiratory samples by NASBA is high. Together with the use of the internal control, the assay merits evaluation as a diagnostic tool.
Managing Ammonia Emissions from Dairy Cows by Amending Slurry with Alum or Zeolite or by Diet Modification

Animal agriculture is a significant source of atmospheric ammonia. Ammonia (NH3) volatilization represents a loss of plant available N to the farmer and a potential contributor to eutrophication in low-nitrogen input ecosystems. This research evaluated on-farm slurry treatments of alum or zeolite and compared three diets for lactating dairy cows in their effectiveness to reduce NH3 emissions. NH3 emissions were compared using a group of mobile wind tunnels. The addition of 2.5% alum or 6.25% zeolite to barn-stored dairy slurry reduced NH3 volatilization by 60% and 55%, respectively, compared to untreated slurry. The alum conserved NH3 by acidifying the slurry to below pH 5, while the zeolite conserved ammonia by lowering the solution-phase nitrogen through cation exchange. The use of alum or zeolite also reduced soluble phosphorus in the slurry. NH3 loss from fresh manure collected from lactating dairy cows was not affected by three diets containing the same level of crude protein but differing in forage source (orchardgrass silage vs. alfalfa silage) or neutral detergent fiber (NDF) content (30% vs. 35% NDF). NH3 losses from the freshly excreted manures occurred very rapidly and included the urea component plus some unidentified labile organic nitrogen sources. NH3 conservation strategies for fresh manures will have to be active within the first few hours after excretion in order to be most effective. The use of alum or zeolites as an on-farm amendment to dairy slurry offers the potential for significantly reducing NH3 emissions.
The Effect of Personality, Ability, Organizational Support, Job Satisfaction and Organizational Commitment towards Lecturer Performance of Private University in Gorontalo

This study aims to analyze and describe: direct and indirect influence of the personality, ability and organizational support towards performance through job satisfaction and organizational commitment. This study is an explanatory research. The sample of the study were 210 people. Method of analysis used is Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The result showed that personality had not significant positive effect towards performance, either directly or mediated by job satisfaction and organizational commitment. Ability has significant positive effect on the lecturer performance directly, but not significantly towards lecturer performance mediated by job satisfaction and organizational commitment. Organizational support has a not significantly positive effect towards lecturer performance either directly or mediated by job satisfaction and organizational commitment. Job satisfaction has not significant positive effect on performance either directly or mediated by organizational commitment and has a positive significant effect towards organizational commitment. Organizational commitment has not significant positive effect to lecturer performance. KeywordsPersonality, Ability, Organizational Support, Job Satisfaction, Organizational Commitment and Lecturer Performance.
Acquired genomic aberrations associated with methotrexate resistance vary with background genomic instability

Tumors vary widely in chromosomal level genome instability. To gain a better understanding of the underlying defects which foster specific types of aberrations, we investigated the response of cells of related genetic backgrounds to challenge with methotrexate. We studied mismatch repair deficient HCT116 cells, two derivatives also deficient in XRCC5 (HCT116 Ku86+/−) or BLM (HCT116 BLM−/−), and mismatch repair competent HCT116+chr3 cells. We show that colony formation occurred at a significantly higher frequency in HCT116 cells and HCT116 Ku86+/− cells compared to HCT116 BLM−/− and HCT116+chr3 cells. Visible colonies arose most rapidly in HCT116 Ku86+/− cells, whereas they formed most slowly in HCT116+chr3 cells. Copy number changes acquired by the methotrexate resistant HCT116 and HCT116 BLM−/− cells most often included whole chromosome gains or losses or no acquired copy number changes, whereas resistance in HCT116+chr3 and HCT116 Ku86+/− cells was associated with amplification of DHFR and copy number transitions leading to increased copy number of DHFR, respectively. The additional copies of DHFR were present on unstable chromosomes and organized as inverted repeats in HCT116+chr3 cells, while they were most often present as direct repeats in HCT116 Ku86+/− cells. These observations suggest that different mutational mechanisms promote drug resistance in these genetic backgrounds; mismatch repair deficiency in HCT116, high rates of chromosomal instability in HCT116 Ku86+/−, and low rates of chromosomal instability in HCT116+chr3. On the other hand, it appears that loss of BLM function suppresses the mismatch repair mutator mechanism in mismatch repair and BLM deficient HCT116 BLM−/− cells. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
An Analytical Expression for Threshold Voltage of Polycrystalline-Silicon Thin-Film Transistors

A physical-based analytical expression for the threshold voltage (Vth) of polycrystalline-silicon (poly-Si) thin-film transistors (TFTs) is proposed, which is based on our previously developed analytical on-state drain-current model. The proposed Vth formula includes not only the channel inversion but also the grain-boundary (GB) potential barrier modulation effect. Furthermore, the GB barrier modulation is the dominant factor for device Vth rather than the channel inversion. The calculated Vth values agree well with the experimentally extracted ones using a constant-current or second-derivative method. The applicability of the formula is demonstrated in both n- and p-type poly-Si TFTs processed in either high or low temperature.
Learning together to work together: interprofessional education for students in a primary care setting in chile.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Interprofessional teamwork and collaboration are considered key elements for improving patient outcomes; however, few reports of interprofessional education experiences in primary care directed to students are found in the literature. We describe an educational program in primary care for medical, nursing, and psychology students and report the findings of their perceptions of learning. METHODS To develop team-working skills and learn family-oriented collaborative care in primary care, the authors designed an interprofessional educational course in Santiago, Chile. Medical, nursing, and psychology students, in their last year of training, formed four groups and conducted weekly home visits or behavioral health counseling sessions. A family physician, nurse practitioner, social worker, and psychologist supervised each clinical activity in their area of expertise. After the clinical encounters, students and preceptors discussed comprehensive health plans and reflected on the interprofessional experience of care. At the end of the course the students evaluated the course and the methodology using quantitative and qualitative methods. RESULTS A total of 72 students participated in the course (58 medical, eight nursing, six psychology students) from October 2009 to December 2010. The students ranked high global satisfaction, high achievement of course objectives, and high approval of the methodology used with quantitative and qualitative measurements. CONCLUSIONS This interprofessional course for medical, nursing, and psychology students generated positive experiences for the participants. More research is needed to support interprofessional education programs in primary care.
A Global-to-Local Approach to Binarization of Degraded Document Images

This article deals with binarization of degraded document images. In the proposed approach, Canny edge image of the input degraded document image is obtained after blurring it with a Gaussian filter. Next, the gray values of the two pixels of the input image at the left and right of each edge pixel are noted to form a histogram of these gray values which possesses two distinct peaks and the lowest valley between them provides the global threshold value. Each pixel with gray value greater than the above threshold is turned as background pixel. A small square window is considered around each non-background pixel and certain simple statistics are computed on the gray values of the pixels of this small window based on which the said pixel is turned either background or foreground. Such a local thresholding method at the latter stage can efficiently handle various degradations in the document. The binarized image so obtained is finally subjected to certain common post-processing operations. The proposed method has been compared with a few existing binarization techniques.
Women's stories of their experiences as overweight patients.

AIM This paper is a report of a study to illuminate the meaning of women's experiences as overweight patients in their encounters with healthcare services and healthcare providers. BACKGROUND Overweight and obesity are increasingly important issues for women's health internationally. Overweight or obese women may delay or avoid health care if care providers have previously reacted negatively to them based on weight. However, studies focusing on the meaning of women's experiences as overweight patients and as recipients of healthcare services are lacking. METHOD A hermeneutic phenomenological approach was used. Face-to-face interviews were conducted in the United States of America in 2007 with eight women volunteers who self-identified as being overweight patients. The framework of van Manen's lifeworld existentials of lived space, lived body, lived time and lived relation-guided reflection for data analysis. FINDINGS The essence of women's experiences was a battle to fit into the world of healthcare services. Four major themes were identified. 'Struggling to fit in' consisted of trying to fit into limited physical space (examination rooms, equipment), limited time, and limited satisfaction and support in relationships with healthcare providers. 'Being dismissed' consisted of demeaning and embarrassing interactions with providers. 'Feeling not quite human' involved the stigma of being different because of body size. 'Refusing to give up' consisted of persistence in seeking support and advice from professionals despite negative past experiences. CONCLUSION Awareness of these findings could reform understanding of women's experiences as overweight patients and raise the consciousness of nurses worldwide to develop sensitive communication strategies and healthcare environments that support holistic care.
Inactivation of a Cdk2 inhibitor during interleukin 2-induced proliferation of human T lymphocytes

Peripheral blood T lymphocytes require two sequential mitogenic signals to reenter the cell cycle from their natural, quiescent state. One signal is provided by stimulation of the T-cell antigen receptor, and this induces the synthesis of both cyclins and cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs) that are necessary for progression through G1. Antigen receptor stimulation alone, however, is insufficient to promote activation of G1 cyclin-Cdk2 complexes. This is because quiescent lymphocytes contain an inhibitor of Cdk2 that binds directly to this kinase and prevents its activation by cyclins. The second mitogenic signal, which can be provided by the cytokine interleukin 2, leads to inactivation of this inhibitor, thereby allowing Cdk2 activation and progression into S phase. Enrichment of the Cdk2 inhibitor from G1 lymphocytes by cyclin-CDK affinity chromatography indicates that it may be p27Kip1. These observations show how sequentially acting mitogenic signals can combine to promote activation of cell cycle proteins and thereby cause cell proliferation to start. CDK inhibitors have been shown previously to be induced by signals that negatively regulate cell proliferation. Our new observations show that similar proteins are down-regulated by positively acting signals, such as interleukin 2. This finding suggests that both positive and negative growth signals converge on common targets which are regulators of G1 cyclin-CDK complexes. Inactivation of G1 cyclin-CDK inhibitors by mitogenic growth factors may be one biochemical pathway underlying cell cycle commitment at the restriction point in G1.
On Diffusion Tensor Estimation

In this paper we propose a formal formulation for the estimation of Diffusion Tensors in the space of symmetric positive semidefinite (PSD) tensors. Traditionally, diffusion tensor model estimation has been carried out imposing tensor symmetry without constraints for negative eigenvalues. When diffusion weighted data does not follow the diffusion model,due to noise or signal drop, negative eigenvalues may arise. An estimation method that accounts for the positive definiteness is desirable to respect the underlying principle of diffusion. This paper proposes such an estimation method and provides a theoretical interpretation of the result. A closed-form solution is derived that is the optimal data-fit in the matrix 2-norm sense,removing the need for optimization-based tensor estimation.
Cell death and ultrastructural morphology of femtosecond laser-assisted anterior capsulotomy.

PURPOSE To evaluate cell death and ultrastructural effects on capsulotomy specimens derived from femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery. METHODS In 26 eyes, an anterior capsulotomy was performed using a femtosecond laser. In 10 eyes (group 1), the laser-pulse energy was set to 15 μJ using a rigid curved interface and in another 10 eyes (group 2) to 5 μJ using a curved interface combined with a soft contact lens. The control group (6 eyes, group 3) underwent manual anterior capsulorhexis using forceps. All extracted capsule specimens underwent cell death analysis using the TUNEL kit, ultrastructural analyses using atomic force microscopy (AFM), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Counterstaining was performed with 4',6-diamidino-2-phenylindol (DAPI) and hematoxylin-eosin (HE). RESULTS Cell death was found in all capsule specimens along the cutting edge but was significantly more pronounced in group 1. DAPI and HE staining showed regular epithelial cell distribution with a demarcation line along the cutting edge of both laser groups, which was more pronounced in group 1. In AFM analysis, laser spot size in the femtosecond laser groups were in accordance with the preoperative planned size (P < 0.01). Cutting edges in SEM observations were smoother and more roundly shaped using 5 μJ (group 2). CONCLUSIONS Cutting edges of femtosecond laser-performed capsulotomies are precise and laser spot lesions are within planned size. Cell death reaction depends on the laser pulse energy settings and can be reduced to the level observed in a manual capsulorhexis.
Integrated care for asthma: a clinical, social, and economic evaluation

Abstract Objective : To evaluate integrated care for asthma in clinical, social, and economic terms. Design : Pragmatic randomised trial. Setting : Hospital outpatient clinics and general practices throughout the north east of Scotland. Patients : 712 adults attending hospital outpatient clinics with a diagnosis of asthma confirmed by a chest physician and pulmonary function reversibility of at least 20%. Main outcome measures : Use of bronchodilators and inhaled and oral steroids; number of general practice consultations and hospital admissions for asthma; sleep disturbance and other restrictions on normal activity; pyschological aspects of health including perceived asthma control; patient satisfaction; and financial costs. Results : After one year there were no significant overall differences between those patients receiving integrated asthma care and those receiving conventional outpatient care for any clinical or psycho-social outcome. For pulmonary function, forced expiratory volume was 76% of predicted for integrated care patients and 75% for conventional outpatients (95% confidence interval for difference -3.6% to 5.0%). Patients who had experienced integrated care were more likely to select it as their preferred course of future management (75% (251/ 333) v 62% (207/333) (6% to 20%); they saved pounds sterling 39.52 a year. This was largely because patients in conventional outpatient care consulted their general practioner as many times as those in integrated care, who were not also visiting hospital. Conclusion : Integrated care for moderately severe asthma patients is clinically as effective as conventional outpatient care, cost effective, and an attractive management option for patients, general practioners, and hospital consultants.
Bovine mononuclear leukocyte subpopulations in peripheral blood and mammary gland secretions during lactation.

Florescence flow cytometry and monoclonal antibodies were used to analyze the composition of leukocytes from peripheral blood and mammary gland secretions. Samples were obtained from Holstein dairy cows, free of IMI, at six time points during the lactation cycle. The percentage of monocytes in peripheral blood mononuclear cells varied from 15 to 31%; the lowest percentage occurred at the early nonlactation period. The percentage of T lymphocytes from mammary gland secretions varied from 16% during the periparturient period to 62% at late lactation. The B lymphocytes varied from 7% at late lactation to 25% during the periparturient period. Macrophages varied from 21 to 69%; the highest percentage occurred during the periparturient period. The mean ratio of CD4+:CD8+ T lymphocytes in the peripheral blood and mammary gland secretions was 1.53 and . 85, respectively. A subpopulation of activated CD8+ T lymphocytes present in mammary gland secretions throughout the lactation cycle coexpressed a new activation molecule, ACT2. Increases in the proportion of CD8+ T lymphocytes were associated with an increase in the percentage of CD8+, ACT2+ T lymphocytes. Activated CD8+ T lymphocytes may play an important role in the regulation and expression of the local immune response to pathogens.
Visuospatial learning and executive function are independently impaired in first-episode psychosis

Background. Demonstrating specific cognitive impairments in psychotic disorders is difficult. However, specific deficits in memory and executive functions have often been claimed. The Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB) tasks of IDED attention-shifting (an executive task) and visuospatial paired associates learning (PAL, a memory task) require intact frontal and temporo-hippocampal functioning, respectively; both have been suggested as markers of disease progress in psychosis. Method. Seventy-one subjects with a first-episode psychosis or at-risk mental state were assessed on these two tasks during referral to a specialist service, the Cambridge-based CAMEO early intervention team. Results. Performance on the two tasks was dissociated. Poor performance on the PAL test was associated with increased symptom levels and poorer global function, while failure on the IDED executive test was not found to have significant clinical associations. Duration of illness was not associated with performance on either task. Conclusions. Visuospatial PAL failure may be a marker of clinical severity at the onset of psychosis while IDED performance may reflect a more stable, trait-like impairment. Dissociated performance on the executive and associative learning tasks may reflect independent, neurally dissociated impairments that do not arise in a fixed order. This may explain some of the heterogeneity of cognitive function seen in early psychosis.
Obstruction of Dengue Virus Maturation by Fab Fragments of the 2H2 Antibody

ABSTRACT The 2H2 monoclonal antibody recognizes the precursor peptide on immature dengue virus and might therefore be a useful tool for investigating the conformational change that occurs when the immature virus enters an acidic environment. During dengue virus maturation, spiky, immature, noninfectious virions change their structure to form smooth-surfaced particles in the slightly acidic environment of the trans-Golgi network, thereby allowing cellular furin to cleave the precursor-membrane proteins. The dengue virions become fully infectious when they release the cleaved precursor peptide upon reaching the neutral-pH environment of the extracellular space. Here we report on the cryo-electron microscopy structures of the immature virus complexed with the 2H2 antigen binding fragments (Fab) at different concentrations and under various pH conditions. At neutral pH and a high concentration of Fab molecules, three Fab molecules bind to three precursor-membrane proteins on each spike of the immature virus. However, at a low concentration of Fab molecules and pH 7.0, only two Fab molecules bind to each spike. Changing to a slightly acidic pH caused no detectable change of structure for the sample with a high Fab concentration but caused severe structural damage to the low-concentration sample. Therefore, the 2H2 Fab inhibits the maturation process of immature dengue virus when Fab molecules are present at a high concentration, because the three Fab molecules on each spike hold the precursor-membrane molecules together, thereby inhibiting the normal conformational change that occurs during maturation.