Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The prevention of dementia with antihypertensive treatment: new evidence from the Systolic Hypertension in Europe (Syst-Eur) study.

BACKGROUND After the double-blind, placebo-controlled Systolic Hypertension in Europe (Syst-Eur) trial ended in February 1997, randomized patients were offered active study medication for a further period of observation. OBJECTIVE To refine the estimates of the long-term effects of antihypertensive therapy on the incidence of dementia. METHODS Eligible patients had no dementia and were at least 60 years old. Their systolic blood pressure at entry was 160 to 219 mm Hg, with diastolic blood pressure below 95 mm Hg. Antihypertensive therapy was started immediately after randomization in the active treatment group, but only after termination of the double-blind trial in the control patients. Treatment consisted of nitrendipine (10-40 mg/d), with the possible addition of enalapril maleate (5-20 mg/d), hydrochlorothiazide (12.5-25 mg/d), or both add-on drugs. RESULTS Median follow-up increased from 2.0 years in the double-blind trial to 3.9 years overall. The incidence of dementia doubled from 32 to 64 cases, 41 of whom had Alzheimer disease. Throughout follow-up, systolic/diastolic blood pressure was 7.0/3.2 mm Hg higher in the 1417 control patients than in the 1485 subjects randomized to active treatment. At the last examination, the blood pressure difference was still 4.2/2.9 mm Hg; 48.1%, 26.4%, and 11.4% of the control patients were taking nitrendipine, enalapril, and/or hydrochlorothiazide, whereas in the active treatment group these proportions were 70.2%, 35.4%, and 18.4%, respectively. Compared with the controls, long-term antihypertensive therapy reduced the risk of dementia by 55%, from 7.4 to 3.3 cases per 1000 patient-years (43 vs 21 cases, P<.001). After adjustment for sex, age, education, and entry blood pressure, the relative hazard rate associated with the use of nitrendipine was 0.38 (95% confidence interval, 0.23-0.64; P<.001). Treatment of 1000 patients for 5 years can prevent 20 cases of dementia (95% confidence interval, 7-33). CONCLUSION The extended follow-up of Syst-Eur patients reinforces the evidence that blood pressure-lowering therapy initiated with a long-acting dihydropyridine protects against dementia in older patients with systolic hypertension.
Conducting a battery of bioassays for gold nanoparticles to derive guideline value for the protection of aquatic ecosystems

Abstract Gold nanoparticles (Au-NPs) are used in many applications, including the manufacture of products like cosmetics, paints, and electrochemical immunosensors, and in the detection, diagnosis, and treatment of tumors. However, there are no legal or recommended guidelines for protecting aquatic ecosystems from Au-NPs. In this study, we conducted a battery of bioassays and present toxicity values for two bacteria, one alga, one euglena, three cladoceran, and two fish species that were exposed to Au-NPs. Guideline values for protecting aquatic ecosystems from Au-NPs were derived using methods that are generally used to derive water-quality guidelines and are used in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the European Community (EC), and the USA. Au-NPs had adverse effects on all test species, including growth inhibition of both bacteria, the alga, and the euglena; mortality and immobilization in the three cladocerans; and developmental malformations in the embryos and larvae of the two fish. Guideline values of 0.15 and 0.04 × 1010 particles/mL were derived for Au-NPs using a species sensitivity distribution (SSD) and assessment factor. The guideline value derived for Au-NPs using an assessment factor was more stringent than that derived using SSD. This is the first study to derive guideline values for nanoparticles in water environments.
Evaluative Versus Facilitative Mediation: A Discussion

DEAN ALFINI: We are celebrating the tenth anniversary of the Florida Dispute Resolution Center. The Center was founded in 1986, and soon thereafter, in 1987, the statute was passed that gave to every judge in the state the power to send any case to mediation or arbitration.1 In 1988, a set of rules were promulgated by the supreme court that essentially operationalized the statute.2 Since that time, literally tens of thousands of cases have been mediated here in the State of Florida in the court-sponsored programs at the circuit level, the family level and in the county courts. Tens of thousands of cases! They represent a significant body of experience. That body of experience is now causing a bit of trauma. People are making judgments about what works and what doesn’t work, and sometimes these judgments about what works and what doesn’t work collide with traditional notions of what’s “good mediation,” how mediators should behave, and how mediators should perform. This collision between the pragmatic and the ideal, or traditional, to some extent is being crystallized in the debate over facilitative versus evaluative mediation. May a mediator offer an evaluation of the case to the parties? Those who argue in favor of facilitative mediation say, “Absolutely no. Never. ” Never should a mediator evaluate a case. Those who argue in favor of a more pragmatic approach to mediation say, “Well, it isn’t the way I would start out, but if the parties want it, certainly I’ll offer an evaluation, or even sometimes I’ll offer it on my own if I think it’s warranted. I generally wait for awhile, though. ” This debate is raging in the law reviews and the literature on dispute resolution.3 We have with us today a very able panel to address
Androgen Deprivation Therapy Is Associated With Prolongation of QTc Interval in Men With Prostate Cancer

Abstract Context Androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) for prostate cancer (PCa) is associated with increased cardiovascular mortality and sudden cardiac death, with some events occurring early after initiation of ADT. Testosterone levels are inversely associated with corrected QT (QTc) interval duration; therefore, prolongation of QTc duration could be responsible for some of these events during ADT. Objective To evaluate changes in QTc duration during ADT. Design and Interventions A 6-month prospective cohort study that enrolled men with PCa about to undergo ADT (ADT group) and a control group of men who previously underwent prostatectomy for PCa and never received ADT (non-ADT group). Patients At study entry, all participants were eugonadal and had no history of cardiac arrhythmias or complete bundle branch block. Outcomes Difference in change in QTc duration from baseline on a 12-lead electrocardiogram at 6, 12, and 24 weeks after initiation of ADT compared with electrocardiograms performed at the same intervals in the non-ADT group. PR, QRS, and QT interval durations were also evaluated. Results Seventy-one participants formed the analytical sample (33 ADT and 38 non-ADT). ADT was associated with prolongation of the QTc by 7.4 ms compared with the non-ADT group [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.08 to 14.7 ms; P = 0.048]. ADT was also associated with shortening of the QRS interval by 2.4 ms (95% CI −4.64 to −0.23; P = 0.031). Electrolytes did not change. Conclusions Men undergoing ADT for PCa experienced prolongation of the QTc. These findings might explain the increased risk of sudden cardiac death seen in these patients.
Flame Retardant Efficiency of Melamine Pyrophosphate with Added Mg-Al-Layered Double Hydroxide in Medium Density Fiberboards

The main objective of this study was to investigate the flame retardant (FR) efficiency of melamine pyrophosphate (MP) with added layered double hydroxide (LDH) in medium density fiberboards (MDFs) to be used as building decorative materials. The thermal degradation, FR efficiency, and combustion properties of MDF were analyzed by Fourier transform infrared spectra (FTIR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), limiting oxygen index (LOI) test, and cone calorimetric test. The TGA results showed that the combination of MP and LDH led to a lower decomposition temperature than the pure MP and pure LDH. The LOI results showed that the LOI values increased with the addition of the FRs. The cone calorimetric results showed that the addition of four proportions (1:1, 2:1, 1:2, and 1:3) of the compounds into MDF can clearly decrease the peak heat release rate (PHRR) and mean heat release rate (MHRR). The results indicated that the MP and LDH compounds have a synergistic effect to improve the flame retardancy and smoke suppression in the MDFs. The combination of MP and LDH in a 1:1 ratio under 10 wt% FR addition has the best flame retardant efficiency in the MDFs.
Predicting land use/cover change in Long Island Sound Watersheds and its effect on invasive species: a case study for glossy buckthorn

ABSTRACT Land use/cover change (LUCC) is a major threat to ecosystems. It may affect the abundance and distribution of species. Despite the importance of LUCC to ecological patterns and processes, few quantitative projections are available for use in ecological modelling. To fill in this literature gap, we constructed a LUCC model for Long Island Sound Watersheds (LISW) and explored the potential effect of the future LUCC on the range size of an invasive species (glossy buckthorn, Frangula alnus). We first applied the multi-layer perceptron–Markov chain model to predict the future LUCC in the LISW area within New England, USA, and then used the predicted land use/cover data as input into a species distribution model to simulate the future range size of glossy buckthorn. Our results indicate that under the current LUCC trend, there is a continued loss of forest and an increase of developed land in the near future, and this LUCC affects the relative suitability for glossy buckthorn.
Economic Aspects and Applied Policies of Poverty Reductionin Malaysia

Poverty is multidimensional, involving not only income deprivation, but also ill-health, illiteracy, lack of access to basic social services, and little opportunity to participate in the processes that influence people's lives. Malaysia, a multiracial country, managed to drastically reduce the incidence of poverty and lessen income inequality while achieving rapid economic growth and maintaining racial harmony. What transpired in Malaysia during the 1970.2000 period was complex and challenging, requiring masterful management by the government of the varied demands of a heterogeneous population [1]. The incidence of poverty and hardcore poor in Malaysia has dramatically declined from 1970 to 2002. Poverty incidence in the rural areas has also been on the down trend from 60 per cent in 1970 to 11.4 per cent in 2002.Urban poverty is relatively lower, falling from 22.3 per cent in 1970 to 2 per cent in 2002.The study assesses the policies, strtegies, programes and the tools that used to reduce incidence of poverty in Malaysia. The research also looks to represents some lessons from the Malaysian development experience specially in poverty reduction. The Poverty Line Index (PLI) for Malaysia was introduced in June 1977 using the 1973 Household Expenditure Survey (HES). It was based on the minimum requirements of a household for food, clothing and footwear, and other non-food items such as rent, fuel and power. Beside PLI the research used secondarry data from it’s relevant sources to achieve the aims of study.The paper concluded that the Malaysian growth regarded as challenges, policy development and progress were in many dimension unique. Nevertheless, there are successful lessons that can provided and adopted from the Malaysian model.
Preliminary results on epidemiology of Coconut Lethal Yellowing in Ghana

Epidemiological studies are of major importance in understanding the determinants of plant diseases in order to control the risks of their spreading. A research programme on the epidemiology of coconut lethal yellowing, or Cape Saint Paul Wilt Disease (CSPWD), in Ghana was launched in March 2007. The objective was to characterize the distribution and spread of the disease in space and time at various scales, and their relation with the environment. This article presents the general strategy used to evaluate the incidence of CSPWD along with the environmental, ecological and agronomical variables at regional level. A survey was undertaken on 1,166 plots of Coconut Sector Development Project (CSDP) planted with Malayan Yellow Dwarf (MYD) × Vanuatu Tall (VTT) hybrids in Western Region and Central Region. Preliminary results on the distribution of CSPWD and outside variables at regional scale, along with their relations, are given.
Socioeconomic status and survival in glioblastoma

Background: Glioblastoma (WHO Grade IV glioma) patients have a dismal prognosis, with a median life expectancy of under two years. The influence of patient socioeconomic status on survival has not been clearly established. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed glioblastoma patients seen and treated at our institution from 2001-2012, correlating survival with socioeconomic status, as estimated by the census tract poverty levels, defined by the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results Program of the NCI. Results: A total of 131 patients were evaluable. Median overall survival (OS) was 12 months (95% confidence interval (CI): 10.51-14.89 months). No association between OS and socioeconomic status was identified. Conclusions: Socioeconomic status does not seem to have an effect on overall survival in glioblastoma. This suggests that the dismal prognosis of this disease reflects the intrinsic biology of this tumor type, as patients had access to all currently available treatments including surgery, radiation therapy, and since 2005, standard chemotherapy with temozolomide.
Fast Flow-based Random Walk with Restart in a Multi-query Setting

As graph datasets grow, faster data mining methods become indispensable. RandomWalk with Restart (RWR), belief propagation, semi-supervised learning, and more graph methods can be expressed as a set of linear equations. In this work, we focus on solving such equations fast and accurately when large number of queries need to be handled. We use RWR as a case study, since it is widely used not only to evaluate the importance of a node, but also as a basis for more complex tasks, e.g., representation learning and community detection. We introduce a new, intuitive two-step divide-and-conquer formulation and a corresponding parallelizable method, FlowR, for solving RWR with two goals: (i) fast and accurate computation under multiple queries; (ii) one-time message exchange between subproblems. We further speed up our proposed method by extending our formulation to carefully designed overlapping subproblems (FlowR-OV) and by leveraging the strengths of iterative methods (FlowR-Hyb). Extensive experiments on synthetic and real networks with up to ⇠ 8 million edges show that our methods are accurate and outperform in runtime various state-of-the-art approaches, running up to 34⇥ faster in preprocessing and up to 32⇥ faster in query time.
Exenatide exerts a potent antiinflammatory effect.

OBJECTIVE Our objective was to determine whether exenatide exerts an antiinflammatory effect. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS Twenty-four patients were prospectively randomized to be injected sc with either exenatide 10 μg twice daily [n = 12; mean age = 56 ± 3 yr; mean body mass index = 39.8 ± 2 kg/m(2); mean glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) = 8.6 ± 0.4%] or placebo twice daily (n = 12; mean age = 54 ± 4 yr; mean body mass index = 39.1 ± 1.6 kg/m(2); mean HbA1c = 8.5 ± 0.3%) for 12 wk. Fasting blood samples were obtained at 0, 3, 6, and 12 wk. Blood samples were also collected for up to 6 h after a single dose of exenatide (5 μg) or placebo. RESULTS Fasting blood glucose fell from 139 ± 17 to 110 ± 9 mg/dl, HbA1c from 8.6 ± 0.4 to 7.4 ± 0.5% (P < 0.05), and free fatty acids by 21 ± 5% from baseline (P < 0.05) with exenatide. There was no weight loss. There was a significant reduction in reactive oxygen species generation and nuclear factor-κB binding by 22 ± 9 and 26 ± 7%, respectively, and the mRNA expression of TNFα, IL-1β, JNK-1, TLR-2, TLR-4, and SOCS-3 in mononuclear cells by 31 ± 12, 22 ± 10, 20 ± 11, 22 ± 9, 16 ± 7, and 31 ± 10%, respectively (P < 0.05 for all) after 12 wk of exenatide. After a single injection of exenatide, there was a reduction by 20 ± 7% in free fatty acids, 19 ± 7% in reactive oxygen species generation, 39 ± 11% in nuclear factor-κB binding, 18 ± 9% in TNFα expression, 26 ± 7% in IL-1β expression, 18 ± 7% in JNK-1 expression, 24 ± 12% in TLR-4 expression, and 23 ± 11% in SOCS-3 expression (P < 0.05 for all). The plasma concentrations of monocyte chemoattractant protein-1, matrix metalloproteinase-9, serum amyloid A, and IL-6 were suppressed after 12 wk exenatide treatment by 15 ± 7, 20 ± 11, 16 ± 7, and 22 ± 12%, respectively (P < 0.05 for all). CONCLUSIONS Exenatide exerts a rapid antiinflammatory effect at the cellular and molecular level. This may contribute to a potentially beneficial antiatherogenic effect. This effect was independent of weight loss.
Scripting Relational Database Engine Using Transducer

We allow database user to script a parallel relational database engine with a procedural language. Procedural language code is executed as a user defined relational query operator called transducer. Transducer is tightly integrated with relation engine, including query optimizer, query executor and can be executed in parallel like other query operators. With transducer, we can efficiently execute queries that are very difficult to express in SQL. As example, we show how to run time series and graph queries, etc, within a parallel relational database.
Overexpressing TPTE2 (TPIP), a homolog of the human tumor suppressor gene PTEN, rescues the abnormal phenotype of the PTEN−/− mutant

One possible approach to normalize mutant cells that are metastatic and tumorigenic, is to upregulate a functionally similar homolog of the mutated gene. Here we have explored this hypothesis by generating an overexpressor of TPTE2 (TPIP), a homolog of PTEN, in PTEN−/− mutants, the latter generated by targeted mutagenesis of a human epithelial cell line. Overexpression of TPTE2 normalized phenotypic changes associated with the PTEN mutation. The PTEN−/−-associated changes rescued by overexpressing TPTE2 included 1) accelerated wound healing in the presence or absence of added growth factors (GFs), 2) increased division rates on a 2D substrate in the presence of GFs, 3) adhesion and viability on a 2D substrate in the absence of GFs, 4) viability in a 3D Matrigel model in the absence of GFs and substrate adhesion 5) loss of apoptosis-associated annexin V cell surface binding sites. The results justify further exploration into the possibility that upregulating TPTE2 by a drug may reverse metastatic and tumorigenic phenotypes mediated in part by a mutation in PTEN. This strategy may also be applicable to other tumorigenic mutations in which a homolog to the mutated gene is present and can substitute functionally.
Conservatively treated isolated capitatum fracture: Case report

Kapitatum kiriklari karpal kemik kiriklarinin %1’ini olusturmaktadir. Izole kapitatum kirigi nadir olarak gorulur ve literaturde olgu sunumlari olarak yer almaktadir. Kapitatum kiriklarinin tanisindaki gecikmeler kaynamama, avaskuler nekroz ve sekonder artroza neden olabilir. Bu yazimizda tanisinda gecikme olan ve konservatif tedavi ettigimiz bir izole kapitatum kiriginin erken donem sonuclarini bildirerek nadir gorulen bu kirigin tani ve tedavisinin onemini vurgulamak istedik
An Entity Disambiguation Approach Based on Wikipedia for Entity Linking in Microblogs

The opportunity to read articles and microblogs on the Web to get information is more and more increasing. However, hyperlinks to entities do not often exist in such articles, and it is a troublesome task for the reader to look it up online. In this paper, in order to make it easy to look up entity information in microblog articles, we propose a method to extract entities in Japanese microblog, and to perform entity linking which links to entity information automatically. The method consists of three phases. First, we extract named entities, such as personal names, place names, organization names, etc. from a microblog article. Next, we disambiguate the extracted entities in order to make links to correct entity information. We use Wikipedia as the source of entity information to verify the usefulness of the proposed method. In our method, we extract some Wikipedia articles related to ambiguous entities from microblog articles. Then, we extract some related entities with the ambiguous entity using word2vec. We compare Wikipedia articles of related entities and the Wikipedia articles of ambiguous entities. Finally, we get the correct Wikipedia article for each entity in the microblog article.
Immunopathological effects of some Biomphalaria pfeifferi proteins against Schistosoma mansoni infection in BALB/c mice

Intestinal schistosomiasis remains a major cause of morbidity and mortality in most parts of the world, despite decades of widespread chemotherapy use. The present study determined the intermediate host proteins expressing the immunogenic properties against the parasite by determining the efficacy. Digestive gland and foot parts were isolated by dissection from the Biomphalaria pfeifferi, processed and the concentration was determined. The proteins were used to immunize the experimental groups of BALB/c mice which were then challenged with the parasite to determine the efficacy. The results show the proteins were efficacious with foot and digestive gland soluble proteins having 59.1 and 40.9% worm reduction, respectively. They also stimulated the production of effective cytokines, immunoglobulins and reduced hepatic pathology. Key words: Schistosomiasis, immunogenic, Biomphalaria pfeifferi, BALB/c mice.
The Human Cytomegalovirus UL26 Protein Antagonizes NF-κB Activation

ABSTRACT Viral infection frequently triggers activation of host innate immune pathways that attempt to limit viral spread. The NF-κB pathway is a critical component that governs this response. We have found that the human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) UL26 protein antagonizes NF-κB activation. Upon infection, an HCMV strain lacking the UL26 gene (ΔUL26) induced the nuclear translocation of the NF-κB RelB subunit and activated expression and secretion of interleukin-6 (IL-6), an NF-κB target gene. The ΔUL26 mutant was also more sensitive to challenge with tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), a canonical NF-κB inducer. Further, expression of UL26 in the absence of other viral proteins blocked NF-κB activation induced by either TNF-α treatment or infection with Sendai virus (SeV). Our results indicate that UL26 expression is sufficient to block TNF-α-induced NF-κB nuclear translocation and IκB degradation. Last, UL26 blocks TNF-α-induced IκB-kinase (IKK) phosphorylation, a key step in NF-κB activation. Combined, our results indicate that UL26 is part of a viral program to antagonize innate immunity through modulation of NF-κB signaling. IMPORTANCE The NF-κB signaling pathway regulates innate immunity, an integral host process that limits viral pathogenesis. Viruses have evolved mechanisms to modulate NF-κB signaling to ensure their replication. HCMV is a major cause of birth defects and disease in immunosuppressed populations. HCMV is known to actively target the NF-κB pathway, which is important for HCMV infection. Our results indicate that the HCMV UL26 gene is a key modulator of NF-κB pathway activity. We find the UL26 gene is both necessary and sufficient to block NF-κB activation upon challenge with antiviral cytokines. Further, UL26 attenuates the phosphorylation and activation of a key NF-κB activating kinase complex, IKK. Our study provides new insight into how HCMV targets the NF-κB pathway. Given its importance to viral infection, the mechanisms through which viruses target the NF-κB pathway highlight areas of vulnerability that could be therapeutically targeted to attenuate viral replication.