Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Use of Different Lipids to Express Serum Tocopherol: Lipid Ratios for the Measurement of Vitamin E Status

Plasma tocopherol was measured in 85 alcoholic patients and 40 control subjects from a local factory. Cholesterol, triglycerides and phospholipids were measured individually and summed to give an estimate of total serum lipids. Plasma tocopherol concentrations of the alchoholics were significantly lower than those of the controls and showed wide variation from marked deficiency to the upper limit of the normal range. Using regression analysis, 1·11 μmol tocopherol/mmol total lipids were calculated as the threshold of deficiency equivalent to 0·8 mg tocopherol/g total lipid established by Horwitt et al. 1 The sensitivity and specificity of other tocopherol:lipid ratios for identifying vitamin E deficiency was compared with the tocopherol:total lipid ratio. Thresholds of deficiency for the different tocopherol:lipid ratios were calculated. The tocopherol:cholesterol+triglyceride ratio was found to be almost as powerful in identifying vitamin E deficiency as the tocopherol:total lipid ratio (sensitivity 95%, specificity 99%). Of the tocopherol:individual lipid ratios, the tocopherol:cholesterol ratio gave the best results (sensitivity 86%, specificity 94%).
Lipid Changes in Kenyan HIV-1–infected Infants Initiating Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy by 1 Year of Age

Background: Early highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) is recommended for HIV-1–infected infants. There are limited data on lipid changes during infant HAART. Methods: Nonfasting total (TC), low density lipoprotein (LDL) and high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol and triglycerides (TG) were measured at 0, 6 and 12 months. Correlates of lipid levels and changes post-HAART were assessed using linear regression. Results: Among 115 infants, pre-HAART median age was 3.8 months, CD4% was 19% and weight-for-age Z score was –2.42. Pre-HAART median lipid levels were: TC, 108.7 mg/dL; LDL, 42.5 mg/dL; HDL, 29.4 mg/dL and TG, 186.9 mg/dL. Few infants had abnormally high TC (6.2%) or LDL (5.6%), but many had low HDL (76.5%) or high TG (69.6%). Higher pre-HAART weight-for-age and height-for-age Z scores were each associated with higher pre-HAART TC (P = 0.04 and P = 0.01) and LDL (P = 0.02 and P = 0.008). From 0 to 6 months post-HAART, TC (P < 0.0001), LDL (P < 0.0001) and HDL (P < 0.0001) increased significantly, and 23.1% (P = 0.002), 14.0% (P = 0.2), 31.3% (P < 0.0001) and 50.8% (P = 0.2) of infants had abnormally high TC, high LDL, low HDL and high TG, respectively. Changes in TC and HDL were each associated with higher gain in weight-for-age Z score (P = 0.03 and P = 0.01) and height-for-age Z score (P = 0.01 and P = 0.007). Increased change in LDL was associated with higher gain in height-for-age Z score (P = 0.03). Infants on protease inhibitor–HAART had smaller HDL increase (P = 0.004). Conclusions: Infants had substantive increases in lipids, which correlated with growth. Increases in HDL were attenuated by protease inhibitor–HAART. It is important to determine clinical implications of these changes.
Correlates of Battered Women's Psychological Distress: Severity of Abuse and Duration of the Postabuse Period

Although psychological disturbances among abused women are well documented, it is unclear whether such disturbances are a reaction to the abusive experience. The present study hypothesized that, if the disturbances are a reactive state, the severity of disturbance would be related to the time since the relationship ended as well as the severity of the psychological and physical abuse experienced. Participants were 50 abused women who completed valid MMPI-2s and revised Conflict Tactic Scales. The results indicated that MMPI-2 scores were significantly correlated with both types of abuse but not with duration of time since the abusive relationship was terminated. The MMPI-2 profiles of abused women and suggestions for research are discussed.
Methodology For Web Presence Strategy Formulation: A Case Study

The objective of this research was to identify how a specific methodology of strategy formulation for the Internet addresses the Business Model concept. We see the Business Model concept as a basis for understanding and exploiting the value creation potential generated by the Internet technological platform (ITP). The main possibilities that the ITP offers organizations are related to the reduction of transaction and coordination costs, which facilitates the forming of strategic networks. In order to take advantage of the ITP , one should seek complementarity between the traditional activities of the organization and those based on the new platform, together with an in-depth revision of processes, searching for steps that may be optimized through the ITP. To understand and exploit the value creation potential, it is convenient to adopt the Business Model concept, analyzed from the point of view of each of the organization’s stakeholders. The Business Model as a unit of analysis integrates the different perspectives on value creation that can be found in the theory. The model suggests that the IPT value creation potential depends on four interdependent dimensions: novelty, lock-in, complementarities and efficiency. The case study of the Web Presence Strategy Formulation methodology, by AgenciaClick, an Internet development company in Brazil, describes how this methodology addresses the strategic concepts and analytical methods identified. The business model approach could cover some of the methodology’s gaps.
Gene conversions mediating antigenic variation in Trypanosoma brucei can occur in variant surface glycoprotein expression sites lacking 70-base-pair repeat sequences

African trypanosomes undergo antigenic variation of their variant surface glycoprotein (VSG) coat to avoid immune system-mediated killing by their mammalian host. An important mechanism for switching the expressed VSG gene is the duplicative transposition of a silent VSG gene into one of the telomeric VSG expression sites of the trypanosome, resulting in the replacement of the previously expressed VSG gene. This process appears to be a gene conversion reaction, and it has been postulated that sequences within the expression site may act to initiate and direct the reaction. All bloodstream form expression sites contain huge arrays (many kilobase pairs) of 70-bp repeat sequences that act as the 5' boundary of gene conversion reactions involving most silent VSG genes. For this reason, the 70-bp repeats seemed a likely candidate to be involved in the initiation of switching. Here, we show that deletion of the 70-bp repeats from the active expression site does not affect duplicative transposition of VSG genes from silent expression sites. We conclude that the 70-bp repeats do not appear to function as indispensable initiation sites for duplicative transposition and are unlikely to be the recognition sequence for a sequence-specific enzyme which initiates recombination-based VSG switching.
Functional Decline Associated With Polypharmacy and Potentially Inappropriate Medications in Community-Dwelling Older Adults With Dementia

This study provides empirical evidence on whether polypharmacy and potentially inappropriate prescription medications (PIRx, as defined by the 2003 Beers criteria) increase the likelihood of functional decline among community-dwelling older adults with dementia. Data were from the National Alzheimer’s Coordinating Center, Uniform Data Set (9/2005-9/2009). Study sample included 1994 community-dwelling participants aged ≥65 with dementia at baseline. Results showed that participants having ≥5 medications were more likely to have functional decline than participants having <5 medications. However, the increased likelihood was only apparent in participants who did not have PIRx. Instead of magnifying the associated risk as hypothesized, PIRx appeared to have a protective effect albeit marginally statistically significant. Therefore, increased medication burden may be associated with functional decline in community-dwelling older adults with dementia who are not prescribed with PIRx. More research is needed to understand which classes of medications have the most deleterious effect on this population.
Sequential and rapid activation of select caspases during apoptosis of normal intestinal epithelial cells

Grossmann, Johannes, Susanne Mohr, Eduardo G. Lapetina, Claudio Fiocchi, and Alan D. Levine. Sequential and rapid activation of select caspases during apoptosis of normal intestinal epithelial cells. Am. J. Physiol. 274 (Gastrointest. Liver Physiol. 37): G1117–G1124, 1998. —Detachmentinduced cell death (DICD) is considered to be one of the means by which intestinal epithelial cells (IEC) die of apoptosis as they reach the lumen and are shed. Caspases, a family of cysteine proteases, play a central role in initiating, amplifying, and executing apoptosis; however, the pattern of caspase activation in response to distinct apoptotic stimuli remains unknown. We investigated the kinetics of caspase activation during DICD in freshly isolated human IEC. DNA fragmentation is observed 90 min after detachment and is preceded by the sequential activation of preformed members of the CPP32 family of caspases. Activation of caspase 6 and cleavage of the endogenous caspase substrate poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (EC 2.4.2.30) are detected within 15 min of detachment, 30–45 min before caspase 3 activation. Caspase 1 and caspase 10 are present as proenzymes, yet they remain inactive in response to this trigger of apoptosis. Human IEC are primed to rapidly undergo detachment-induced apoptosis involving the selective and sequential activation of preformed caspases. This study may enhance our understanding of physiological events occurring as IEC are shed. Their rapid apoptotic response to detachment may facilitate the high turnover of cells and ensure homeostasis in the intestinal epithelium.
RESECTION OF WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION GRADE II GLIOMAS INVOLVING BROCA'S AREA: METHODOLOGICAL AND FUNCTIONAL CONSIDERATIONS

OBJECTIVEAdvances in functional mapping have enabled us to extend the indications of surgery for low-grade gliomas (LGGs) within eloquent regions. However, to our knowledge, no study has been specifically dedicated to the resection of LGGs within Broca's area. We report the first surgical series of LGGs involving this area by focusing on methodological and functional considerations. METHODSSeven patients harboring an LGG in Broca's area (revealed by partial seizures) had a language functional magnetic resonance imaging scan and then underwent operation while awake using intrasurgical electrical mapping. RESULTSThe neurological examination was normal in all patients despite mild language disturbances shown using the Boston Diagnosis Aphasia Examination. Both pre- and intraoperative cortical mapping found language reorganization with recruitment of the ventral and dorsal premotor cortices, orbitofrontal cortex, and insula, whereas no or few language sites were detected within Broca's area. Subcortically, electrostimulation allowed the identification and preservation of four structures still functional, including the arcuate fasciculus, fronto-occipital fasciculus, fibers from the ventral premotor cortex, and head of the caudate. Postoperatively, after transient language worsening, all patients recovered and returned to a normal socioprofessional life. The resection was total in three cases, subtotal in three, and partial in one patient (operated twice). CONCLUSIONOur results indicate that, in patients with no aphasia despite LGGs within Broca's area, thanks to brain plasticity, the tumor can be removed while involving this “unresectable” structure without inducing sequelae and even improving the quality of life when intractable epilepsy is relieved on the condition that subcortical language connectivity is preserved.
Three essays in collective decision making

This thesis is a collection of three essays on voting as a means of collective decisionmaking. The first chapter builds a model of how voters should optimally behave in a legislative election with three parties under plurality rule. I show that, in contrast to single district elections, properties such as polarisation and misaligned voting can be mitigated in legislative elections. The second chapter studies a model of committee decision making where members have career concerns and a principal can choose the level of transparency (how much of the committees decision he can observe). We show that increased transparency leads to a breakdown in information aggregation, but that this may actually increase the principal’s payoff. The theoretical model is then tested in a laboratory experiment. The final chapter introduces a model of legislative bargaining where three parties in the legislature bargain over the formation of government by choosing a policy and a distribution of government perks. I show that when individual politicians are responsible for the policies they implement that is, those outside of government are not held accountable by voters for the implemented governments policies, while each individual politician in the ruling coalition is then a given seat distribution can result in almost any two party coalition.
Suicide in Young Singaporeans Aged 10–24 Years Between 2000 to 2004

The objective of this study was to understand the features of young suicide in order to contribute to suicide prevention efforts. In this article, the demographic, clinical, and suicide-related features of all cases of young suicide (aged 10–24 years) in Singapore for the years 2000–2004 are described. We also compared those who sought mental health services to those who did not. Overall, the suicide rate was 5.7 per 100, 000, with gender ratio of 1:1 and higher rates among ethnic Indians. Psychosocial stressors and suicide by jumping from height were common. Mental health service use was associated with unemployment, previous suicide attempts, family history of suicide, more use of lethal methods, lack of identifiable stressor, and less suicide notes. Suicide prevention efforts should promote awareness of suicide risks and access to mental health services.
Proteolysis of Clostridium perfringens type A enterotoxin during purification

The small satellite bands of enterotoxin frequently seen in polyacrylamide gels following purification of Clostridium perfringens enterotoxin were found to be due to endogenous protease activity and were not present if phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride (PMSF; 1 mM) and EDTA (10 mM) were used in the purification protocol. The use of PMSF was avoided by passing gel filtration-purified enterotoxin material through DEAE-Sephacel. This modified protocol resulted in an 11.4-fold purification of enterotoxin and a 26.8% yield. Contrary to previous reports (B. R. Dasgupta and M. W. Pariza, Infect. Immun. 38: 592-597, 1982), if PMSF and EDTA were included during purification, we were unable to detect the novel enterotoxin ET-1 produced by strain NCTC 10240. C. perfringens proteases cleaved homogeneous enterotoxin into two additional fragments, suggesting that ET-1 was a product of endogenous protease action during purification.
Intraoperative use of a transarticular circular fixator construct to facilitate reduction and stabilisation of a proximal tibial physeal fracture in a dog.

CASE REPORT A 4-month-old female intact American Pit Bull Terrier was presented for right pelvic limb lameness 1 day after the dog had been hit by an all-terrain vehicle. Orthogonal radiographs of the right stifle revealed a Salter-Harris type IV fracture through the proximal tibial physis extending caudodistally through the proximal tibial metaphysis. The distal tibia was markedly displaced cranially, laterally and proximally, resulting in complete overriding of the fracture segments. An open approach was made in order to facilitate direct reduction, but the fracture could not be sufficiently distracted and the epiphyseal segment remained fixed caudal to the remainder of the tibia. Concerns regarding possible iatrogenic trauma to the epiphysis prompted the use of a transarticular circular fixator construct to distract the fracture segments to facilitate reduction. Distraction that facilitated reduction was performed using three TrueLok Rapid Quick Adjust Struts that were positioned between the two ring components. The struts also allowed for multiplanar adjustment of alignment, which allowed the fracture to be maintained in anatomic reduction as divergent interfragmentary Kirschner wires were placed. Radiographic union was confirmed 19 days after surgery. CONCLUSION/CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE Transient intraoperative application of a circular construct incorporating the TrueLok components facilitated accurate fracture reduction without inflicting further iatrogenic trauma to the epiphysis, after traditional direct reduction techniques proved ineffective, and afforded a successful clinical outcome in the dog reported here.
Can Overreporting in Surveys be Reduced? Evidence from Israel's Municipal Elections

Studies over the last 50 years have consistently shown that survey respondents overreport their participation in American national elections (Abelson, Loftus & Greenwald, 1992; Clausen, 1968; Parry & Crossley, 1950; Presser, Traugott & Traugott, 1990; Silver, Anderson & Abramson, 1986; Traugott & Katosh, 1979). Similar results were reported in Britain (Swaddle & Heath, 1989), Sweden (Granberg & Holmberg, 1991), New Zealand (Karp & Banducci, 1999), and Norway (Waldahl & Aardal, 2000). Overreporting is a widespread democratic phenomenon. For example, ANES data reveal that between 13% and 41% of nonvoters report that they have voted in national elections when in fact they have not (Belli, Traugott, & Beckmann, 2001). Karp and Brockington find that overreporting among nonvoters ranges from 18.7% in Swedish regional elections to 26.2% in national elections. In Britain, the national numbers are similar, somewhat lower than in Norway (35%), U.S. presidential elections (40.1%), and in New Zealand (42.4%) (Karp & Brockington, 2005). Why do people overreport their participation in elections? Two plausible explanations have been offered. The first one considers overreporting to be the result of forgetfulness. It is possible that respondents inaccurately report voting when they did not because they may remember their past in more socially desirable ways (Abelson, Loftus, & Greenwald, 1992). In other words, respondents fail to report their latest voting activity accurately because they confuse it with a former voting activity or with their original intention to vote. They project the older episode onto the more recent one, leading to confusion or failure of memory (Belli, Traugott, Young, & McGonagle, 1999). In line with this explanation, studies have shown that as the elapsed time from Election Day increases, so does the number of overreporters (Belli et al., 1999; Stocké, 2007).
Developmental Defects in Trisomy 21 and Mouse Models

Aneuploidies have diverse phenotypic consequences, ranging from mental retardation and developmental abnormalities to susceptibility to common phenotypes and various neoplasms. This review focuses on the developmental defects of murine models of a prototype human aneuploidy: trisomy 21 (Down syndrome, DS, T21). Murine models are clearly the best tool for dissecting the phenotypic consequences of imbalances that affect single genes or chromosome segments. Embryos can be studied freely in mice, making murine models particularly useful for the characterization of developmental abnormalities. This review describes the main phenotypic alterations occurring during the development of patients with T21 and the developmental abnormalities observed in mouse models, and investigates phenotypes common to both species.
TRPA1 and TRPV1 contribute to iodine antiseptics‐associated pain and allergy

Iodine antiseptics exhibit superior antimicrobial efficacy and do not cause acquired microbial resistance. However, they are underused in comparison with antibiotics in infection treatments, partly because of their adverse effects such as pain and allergy. The cause of these noxious effects is not fully understood, and no specific molecular targets or mechanisms have been discovered. In this study, we show that iodine antiseptics cause pain and promote allergic contact dermatitis in mouse models, and iodine stimulates a subset of sensory neurons that express TRPA1 and TRPV1 channels. In vivo pharmacological inhibition or genetic ablation of these channels indicates that TRPA1 plays a major role in iodine antiseptics‐induced pain and the adjuvant effect of iodine antiseptics on allergic contact dermatitis and that TRPV1 is also involved. We further demonstrate that iodine activates TRPA1 through a redox mechanism but has no direct effects on TRPV1. Our study improves the understanding of the adverse effects of iodine antiseptics and suggests a means to minimize their side effects through local inhibition of TRPA1 and TRPV1 channels.
Design for soft error mitigation

In nanometric technologies, circuits are increasingly sensitive to various kinds of perturbations. Soft errors, a concern for space applications in the past, became a reliability issue at ground level. Alpha particles and atmospheric neutrons induce single-event upsets (SEU), affecting memory cells, latches, and flip-flops, and single-event transients (SET), initiated in the combinational logic and captured by the latches and flip-flops associated to the outputs of this logic. To face this challenge, a designer must dispose a variety of soft error mitigation schemes adapted to various circuit structures, design architectures, and design constraints. In this paper, we describe various SEU and SET mitigation schemes that could help the designer meet her or his goals.
Capital Market Effects of U.S.-Canada GAAP Differences

Canadian firms that list securities on U.S. stock exchanges are generally required to provide a reconciliation of reported income measured using Canadian generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) to reported earnings measured using U.S. GAAP. This paper examines both the magnitudes and the information content of the reported reconciliations between CanadianGAAP income and U.S.GAAP income. Two recent studies of cross-country GAAP differences do not address U.S.-Canada differences because of perceived similarities between GAAP in the two countries (Amir, Harris, and Venuti [1993] and McQueen [1993]). If U.S.-Canada GAAP differences are in fact unimportant, then no further examination is warranted. Professional bodies, however, are
Hybrid optimization algorithm to the problem of Distributed Generation power losses

In this paper it presents a methodology that aims to deliver a near optimal Distributed Generation (DG) in the process of allocation DG units by using a hybrid genetic algorithm, Hence, the main aim is to minimize power losses in DG. The proposed algorithm in this paper involves two main parts of algorithms an artificial neural network (ANN) that found to evaluate the fitness function in the generation of the best DG distribution and a local search procedure that allows the algorithm to search a massive range of neighbours units.
Body-biased operation for improved MEM relay energy efficiency

The energy efficiency of complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) logic circuits is fundamentally limited by the off-state leakage (Ioff) of the transistors. Mechanical switches can achieve zero Ioff and hence can overcome this limit, in principle; therefore, scaled relay technologies recently have been investigated for ultra-low-power digital integrated-circuit (IC) applications. In general, IC design involves a trade-off between operating energy, signal propagation delay, and die area (cost); design optimization aims to minimize one of these metrics given constraints on the other two. The methodology for co-optimizing the operating voltage and threshold voltage to minimize energy for a given delay in a fixed CMOS process (e.g. minimally sized transistors) has been well established. In this work, a similar methodology is described for scaled logic relay technology.