Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Root canal treatment in general practice in Sudan.

AIM The aim of this study was to evaluate the practice and depth of knowledge of root canal treatment by dental practitioners in Khartoum, the capital city of Sudan, in order to improve the current status of endodontic therapy. METHODOLOGY A questionnaire was posted to 55 registered dental practitioners. Completed questionnaires were analysed in term of simple summary statistics. RESULTS A total of fifty-two (95%) practitioners responded. Eighty-five per cent of the respondents indicated that they performed root canal treatment for their patients. Of these, 84% included molars in their activity. Amongst those who carried out root canal treatment, only one practitioner used rubber dam for isolation, whilst the remainder used cotton wool rolls. The majority of respondents (80%) used hydrogen peroxide to irrigate canals during treatment. Three-quarters of practitioners used formocresol as an inter-appointment medicament. The stepback preparation technique was the method of choice for 98% of respondents. All practitioners used hand instruments to prepare root canals and all used gutta-percha for obturation; three-quarters of them used cold lateral condensation for all or some cases. The average number of radiographs routinely taken for root canal treatment was three. Only 73% used radiographs for measuring the working length. Ninety-five per cent of respondents indicated that they usually completed a root filling in three or more visits. Three-quarters of practitioners restored the teeth permanently immediately after the obturation and one-quarter preferred waiting for 1 or 2 weeks. CONCLUSIONS In Sudan, there are no dental practices limited to endodontics and no postgraduate training programmes. This survey shows the importance of establishing higher specialist training or continuing dental education for practitioners to update their knowledge.
A new computational model for protein folding based on atomic solvation

A new model for calculating the solvation energy of proteins is developed and tested for its ability to identify the native conformation as the global energy minimum among a group of thousands of computationally generated compact non‐native conformations for a series of globular proteins. In the model (called the WZS model), solvation preferences for a set of 17 chemically derived molecular fragments of the 20 amino acids are learned by a training algorithm based on maximizing the solvation energy difference between native and non‐native conformations for a training set of proteins. The performance of the WZS model confirms the success of this learning approach; the WZS model misrecognizes (as more stable than native) only 7 of 8,200 non‐native structures. Possible applications of this model to the prediction of protein structure from sequence are discussed.
A comparison of upper and lower body energetics during high-intensity exercise.

AIM The aim of the present study was to measure and compare the aerobic, anaerobic alactic and anaerobic lactic energy system contribution during the 30-sec Wingate anaerobic test (WAnT) for the upper and lower body within the same individuals. METHODS Physically active men (N.=14) completed two WAnTs on an electronic arm ergometer and a cycle ergometer separated by three days. A fly wheel braking force corresponding to 5% and 7.5% of the participants body weight was used for the upper and lower body WAnTs respectively. Oxygen uptake and blood lactate were measured before, during and after both WAnTs, and body composition was measured using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA). RESULTS The anaerobic lactic energy system contribution was significantly (P<0.01) higher during the upper body (60.3±5.6%) compared to the lower body (46.9±6.9%) WAnT. The contribution of the anaerobic alactic system was significantly higher (P<0.01) during the lower body (36.5±6.3%) compared to the upper body (28.3±4.9%) WAnT, with the aerobic system contribution significantly (P<0.05) higher for the lower body (16.8±2.5%) compared to the upper body (11.4±1.4%) WAnT. CONCLUSION The anaerobic lactic energy system provides over 60% of the energy requirements during an upper body WAnT but provides less the 50% during the lower body WAnT. In contrast, the aerobic and anaerobic alactic energy system contribution was significantly less for the upper body WAnT compared to the lower body WAnT.
Chemotherapy-induced toxicity is highly heritable in Drosophila melanogaster

Objectives Identification of the genes responsible for chemotherapy toxicity in Drosophila melanogaster may allow for the identification of human orthologs that similarly mediate toxicity in humans. To develop D. melanogaster as a model of dissecting chemotoxicity, we first need to develop standardized high-throughput toxicity assays and prove that the interindividual variation in toxicity as measured by such assays is highly heritable. Methods We developed a method for the oral delivery of commonly used chemotherapy drugs to Drosophila. Post-treatment female fecundity displayed a dose-dependent response to varying levels of the chemotherapy drug delivered. We fixed the dose for each drug at a level that resulted in a 50% reduction in fecundity and used a paternal half-sibling heritability design to calculate the heritability attributable to chemotherapy toxicity assayed by a decrease in female fecundity. The chemotherapy agents tested were carboplatin, floxuridine, gemcitabine hydrochloride, methotrexate, mitomycin C, and topotecan hydrochloride. Results We found that six currently widely prescribed chemotherapeutic agents lowered fecundity in D. melanogaster in both a dose-dependent and a highly heritable manner. The following heritability estimates were found: carboplatin, 0.72; floxuridine, 0.52; gemcitabine hydrochloride, 0.72; methotrexate, 0.99; mitomycin C, 0.64; and topotecan hydrochloride, 0.63. Conclusion The high heritability estimates observed in this study, irrespective of the particular class of drug examined, suggest that human toxicity may also have a sizable genetic component.
Cross-reactivity of nonspecific treponemal antibody in serologic tests for Lyme disease

Serum samples obtained from 59 persons who had acute necrotizing ulcerative gingivitis, periodontitis, syphilis, or Lyme disease were tested against Treponema phagedenis biotype Reiter, Treponema denticola, Treponema vincentii, and Treponema scoliodontum by indirect fluorescent-antibody staining methods. Although there were positive reactions for sera representing each of these study groups and for 20 (13%) of 156 samples collected from the general population (premarital screening for syphilis), titration endpoints were relatively low (less than or equal to 1:256). Serum samples from 18 persons who had gingivitis or periodontitis but no history of Lyme borreliosis were tested by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for antibodies to Borrelia burgdorferi. Of these, five (28%) had immunoglobulin M antibody and four (22%) contained immunoglobulin G antibodies to this spirochete. Adsorption with either sorbent commercially prepared from T. phagedenis biotype Reiter or with washed, whole cells of T. phagedenis biotype Reiter reduced cross-reactivity in the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for Lyme borreliosis.
Efficacy and Safety of Anti–Interleukin 6 Receptor Monoclonal Antibody (Tocilizumab) in Colombian Patients With Takayasu Arteritis

Purpose The aim of this study was to describe the efficacy and safety of anti–interleukin 6 receptor antibody (tocilizumab [TCZ]) in patients with severe or refractory Takayasu arteritis (TA). Methods We describe 8 Colombian patients with severe and/or refractory TA treated with TCZ during a period of at least 9 months. Clinical, radiological, biological, and associated treatments were evaluated before, during, and after TCZ infusions. Results The median age at evaluation was 31 years (12–43 years). All patients were female and experienced clinical and biological improvement, in addition to a corticosteroid-sparing effect from a median dose of 50 mg/d at baseline (30–60 mg/d) to 6.25 mg/d (2.5–10 mg/d) at 9 months. In 4 cases, in which imaging studies were available, an improvement was observed. The median duration of TCZ infusions was 18 months (9–36 months). Major adverse effects related to TCZ were not evidenced during a period of at least 9 months of treatment. One relapse was observed. Tocilizumab was continued in all cases until the last follow-up. Conclusions This study shows a clinical, biological, and radiological response in patients with refractory TA treated with TCZ.
Localization of Ds-transposon containing T-DNA inserts in the diploid transgenic potato: linkage to the R1 resistance gene against Phytophthora infestans (Mont.) de Bary.

The Dissociation transposable element (Ds) of maize containing NPTII was introduced into the diploid potato (Solanum tuberosum) clone J91-6400-A16 through Agrobacterium tumefaciens mediated transformation. Genomic DNA sequences flanking the T-DNAs from 312 transformants were obtained with inverse polymerase chain reaction or plasmid rescue techniques and used as probes for RFLP linkage analysis. The RFLP map location of 60 T-DNAs carrying Ds-NPTII was determined. The T-DNA distribution per chromosome and the relative distance between them appeared to be random. All 12 chromosomes have been covered with Ds-containing T-DNAs, potentially enabling tagging of any gene in the potato genome. The T-DNA insertions of two transformants, BET92-Ds-A16-259 and BET92-Ds-A16-416, were linked in repulsion to the position of the resistance gene R1 against Phytophthora infestans. After crossing BET92-Ds-A16-416 with a susceptible parent, 4 desired recombinants (Ds carrying T-DNA linked in coupling phase with the R1 gene) were discovered. These will be used for tagging the R1 gene. The efficiency of the pathway from the introduction to localization of T-DNAs is discussed. Key words : Solanum tuberosum, Phytophthora infestans, Ds element, transposon tagging, R genes, euchromatin.
Prostate‐specific antigen velocity in untreated, localized prostate cancer

To report the results of a prospective study of active surveillance of untreated prostate cancer, with a focus on baseline predictors of prostate‐specific antigen (PSA) velocity, as PSA velocity before treatment is an important predictor of prostate cancer mortality, and patients on active surveillance are monitored for several years to estimate the PSA velocity and thus select patients for radical treatment.
Manager-Employee Interaction in Ambulance Services: An Exploratory Study of Employee Perspectives on Management Communication

Managers of ambulance stations face many communicative challenges in their interaction with employees working in prehospital first-line services. The article presents an exploratory study of how paramedics experience these challenges in communication with station leaders. On the basis of a dialogue perspective in qualitative method, 24 paramedics were interviewed in one-to-one and focus group settings. Naturalistic and phenomenological approaches were used to analyze the interviews. All the paramedics said that they wished to be more involved in decision processes and that station managers should provide better explanations of information “from above. ” The paramedics understood that it was difficult for the managers to find time for extensive dialogue, but many thought that the managers should give more priority to communication. The paramedics’ views correspond to theoretical assumptions in human resource management. According to this model, employees should be involved in decision processes on management levels, as long as it is realistically possible to do so. Furthermore, expressing emotional support and positive attitudes does not take much time, and the study suggests that many ambulance managers should focus more on interpersonal relations to employees. It has been extensively documented that management communication affects organizational performance. The study indicates that managers of ambulance stations should be more aware of how their leadership style affects professional commitment and motivation in the first-line services.
Clinical Definition of Hereditary Non-polyposis Colorectal Cancer: A Search for the Impossible?

Hereditary non-polyposis colorectal cancer is an autosomal dominant inherited disorder that predisposes its carriers to an almost 100% lifetime risk of cancer, in particular colorectal and endometrial cancer. Germline mutations, resulting in a deficient DNA mismatch repair system, are responsible for the disease. Because of the lack of specific phenotypical features, clinical diagnosis in an individual patient is impossible and relies heavily on family history. Genetic diagnosis by mismatch detection is now possible in a substantial proportion of families. Thus there is a great need for reliable but simple criteria that will help clinicians to recognize patients and families who can be referred for genetic diagnostics. In this article the different criteria that have been formulated and published in recent years are reviewed and the results, in terms of the proportions of subjects satisfying the criteria who were found to have a germline mutation, are discussed. In most studies the criteria were evaluated in only a small number of subjects. A population-based study is currently being carried out in the north of The Netherlands that aims to include 400 patients fulfilling one of a few simple criteria. Mutation analysis will be performed in all patients. The results of this study will help in the formulation of accurate and simple criteria for use in clinical practice.
Active absorption of ginsenoside Rg1 in vitro and in vivo: the role of sodium‐dependent glucose co‐transporter 1

Objectives Our previous study suggested that adrenaline (epinephrine) could be an effective absorption enhancer for ginsenoside Rg1 (Rg1). This study focused on the transport mechanism of Rg1 and the role of sodium‐dependent glucose co‐transporter 1 in the regulation of Rg1 uptake after exposure to adrenaline.
Checking is Believing: Event-Aware Program Anomaly Detection in Cyber-Physical Systems

Securing cyber-physical systems (CPS) against malicious attacks is of paramount importance because these attacks may cause irreparable damages to physical systems. Recent studies have revealed that control programs running on CPS devices suffer from both control-oriented attacks (e.g., code-injection or code-reuse attacks) and data-oriented attacks (e.g., non-control data attacks). Unfortunately, existing detection mechanisms are insufficient to detect runtime data-oriented exploits, due to the lack of runtime execution semantics checking. In this work, we propose <italic>Orpheus</italic>, a new security methodology for defending against data-oriented attacks by enforcing cyber-physical execution semantics. We first present a general method for reasoning cyber-physical execution semantics of a control program (i.e., causal dependencies between the physical context/event and program control flows), including the event identification and dependence analysis. As an instantiation of <italic>Orpheus</italic>, we then present a new program behavior model, i.e., the event-aware finite-state automaton (<italic>e</italic>FSA). <italic>e</italic>FSA takes advantage of the event-driven nature of CPS control programs and incorporates event checking in anomaly detection. It detects data-oriented exploits if a specific physical event is missing along with the corresponding event dependent state transition. We evaluate our prototype’s performance by conducting case studies under data-oriented attacks. Results show that <italic>e</italic>FSA can successfully detect different runtime attacks. Our prototype on Raspberry Pi incurs a low overhead, taking 0.0001s for each state transition integrity checking, and 0.063s<inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\sim$</tex-math><alternatives> <mml:math> <mml:mo>∼</mml:mo> </mml:math> <inline-graphic xlink:href="cheng-ieq1-2906161.gif"/></alternatives></inline-formula>0.211s for the cyber-physical contextual consistency checking.
Synthetic-Ripple-Based Digital Hysteretic Modulator for Point-of-Load Converters

In the modern point-of-load (POL) applications, a number of low- and medium-power converters are used very close to the actual load. These applications require superior dynamic response and better power processing density to save space on the motherboard. Hysteretic modulators are one of the obvious choices for these applications because of their superior dynamic response with minimal number of filter capacitors. This paper presents a new carrier (synthetic ripple based)-generation-based digital hysteretic modulator for POL converters. The proposed structure creates a piecewise linear synthetic ripple using sensed converter voltages, without the need of direct inductor current sensing. The artificial synthetic ripple is then added to the output voltage and fed as a carrier to the hysteretic comparator, which helps in natural load current feedforward. This proposed digital modulator helps in the reduction of the output capacitors and exhibits superior large-signal dynamics for a POL converter. It is a simple solution and gives immediate fault detection (within one switching cycle) in case of the main switch (top MOSFET) failure of the converter, thus providing adequate protection to the microprocessor load. Analysis, simulation, and experimental results on a 2-V/10-A 20-W single-phase prototype are presented to verify the properties of the proposed modulator.
Interferon‐λ1 (interleukin‐29) preferentially down‐regulates interleukin‐13 over other T helper type 2 cytokine responses in vitro

Interferon (IFN)‐λ1 [interleukin (IL)‐29] is a member of the interferon lambda family (also known as type III interferons), whose members are distantly related to both the type I interferons and members of the IL‐10 family. While IFN‐λ1 has significant antiviral activity, it is also becoming apparent that it has important immunoregulatory properties, especially with regard to the T helper type 2 (Th2) response. Previously, we have shown that IFN‐λ1 is capable of down‐regulating IL‐13 production in an IFN‐γ‐independent manner and that this is mediated in part via monocyte‐derived dendritic cells. Here, we have extended our knowledge of IFN‐λ1 regulation of the human in vitro Th2 response by examining the regulation of three major Th2 cytokines, IL‐4, IL‐5 and IL‐13, by IFN‐λ1. Our results reveal that IFN‐λ1 preferentially inhibits IL‐13 production, compared with IL‐4 or IL‐5. Levels of IL‐13 mRNA, the amount of secreted IL‐13 protein and numbers of IL‐13‐positive CD3+ CD4+ cells were all significantly diminished by IFN‐λ1. IFN‐λ1 significantly decreased some aspects of IL‐4 and IL‐5 production, but its effects were not as consistent as those seen on IL‐13. IFN‐λ1 was also effective at decreasing IL‐13 secretion under conditions designed to support the generation of Th2 cells. Irrespective of whether Concanavalin‐A or T‐cell‐stimulatory microbeads were used, IFN‐λ1 markedly diminished IL‐13 secretion in cultures where IL‐4 had been added. Thus, IFN‐λ1 appears to be an inhibitor of human Th2 responses whose action is primarily directed towards IL‐13 but which may also affect Th2 responses generally and does not invoke a complementary elevation of IFN‐γ secretion.
Home-based neurologic music therapy for arm hemiparesis following stroke: results from a pilot, feasibility randomized controlled trial

Objective: To assess the feasibility of a randomized controlled trial to evaluate music therapy as a home-based intervention for arm hemiparesis in stroke. Design: A pilot feasibility randomized controlled trial, with cross-over design. Randomization by statistician using computer-generated, random numbers concealed in opaque envelopes. Setting: Participants’ homes across Cambridgeshire, UK. Subjects: Eleven people with stroke and arm hemiparesis, 3–60 months post stroke, following discharge from community rehabilitation. Interventions: Each participant engaged in therapeutic instrumental music performance in 12 individual clinical contacts, twice weekly for six weeks. Main measures: Feasibility was estimated by recruitment from three community stroke teams over a 12-month period, attrition rates, completion of treatment and successful data collection. Structured interviews were conducted pre and post intervention to establish participant tolerance and preference. Action Research Arm Test and Nine-hole Peg Test data were collected at weeks 1, 6, 9, 15 and 18, pre and post intervention by a blinded assessor. Results: A total of 11 of 14 invited participants were recruited (intervention n = 6, waitlist n = 5). In total, 10 completed treatment and data collection. Conclusion: It cannot be concluded whether a larger trial would be feasible due to unavailable data regarding a number of eligible patients screened. Adherence to treatment, retention and interview responses might suggest that the intervention was motivating for participants. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier NCT 02310438.
Prevention of Erosion and Abrasion by a High Fluoride Concentration Gel Applied at High Frequencies

The aim of this study was to determine maximum attainable protection of enamel from erosion and erosion abrasion using a highly fluoridated gel with and without additional fluoride from toothpaste. Thirty-six bovine enamel specimens were subjected to six erosive attacks per day (1% citric acid with pH 2.3 for 30 s), while the rest of the day the specimens were in artificial saliva. There were four treatment groups (9 specimens in each group): fluoride-free toothpaste/saliva slurry twice daily (group T0), fluoride-containing toothpaste/saliva slurry twice daily using 1,250 ppm F toothpaste (group TF), fluoride-containing toothpaste/saliva slurry twice per day plus application of a highly fluoridated gel (12,500 ppm F) twice a day for 120 s (group 2F) and a group with gel application 8 times a day (group 8F). Additionally, half of each specimen in all groups was subjected to brushing abrasion during application of the toothpaste/saliva slurry. Brushing abrasion alone led to no observable enamel loss measured with profilometry. After 14 days of cycling of erosion without toothbrushing abrasion, high-fluoride gel application 2 or 8 times daily showed significantly less enamel loss (median 24/19 µm) than with toothpaste with or without fluoride (41/45 µm). After 14 days of cycling of erosion and toothbrushing abrasion, gel application 2 or 8 times daily (33/29 µm) showed significantly less enamel loss than toothpaste with or without fluoride (57/62 µm). We conclude that a highly fluoridated acidic gel is able to protect enamel from erosion and toothbrushing abrasion while fluoridated tooth paste provides little protection.
Prognostic factors in cystic fibrosis in a single center in Brazil: A survival analysis

The purpose of the present study was to identify prognostic factors related to death in patients with cystic fibrosis (CF). Records of 127 patients with CF submitted to a systematic protocol were retrospectively reviewed. Prognostic factors associated with demographic, nutritional, clinical, and laboratory findings on admission were studied. The median follow‐up was 44 months. The analysis was conducted in two steps. First, in a univariate analysis, variables associated with death outcome were identified by the log‐rank test. Then the variables that were significantly associated with adverse outcome were included in a multivariate analysis. This analysis, using the Cox proportional hazards model, was performed to identify variables that were independently associated with a worse prognosis. Only variables that remained independently associated with adverse outcome were included in the final model.