Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Oats, Antioxidants and Endothelial Function in Overweight, Dyslipidemic Adults

Objective: To determine effects of oat and antioxidant vitamin (C 500 mg, E 400 IU) ingestion on endothelial function in overweight, dyslipidemic adults. Design: Randomized, blinded, placebo-controlled, crossover trial Intervention(s): Subjects (16 males ≥ age 35; 14 postmenopausal females) were assigned, in random order, to oats (60 g oatmeal), vitamin E (400 IU) plus vitamin C (500 mg), the combination of oats and vitamins, or placebo, and underwent brachial artery reactivity scans (BARS) following a single dose of each treatment, and again following 6 weeks of daily ingestion, with 2-week washout periods. At each test, a provocation high-fat meal (50 g, predominantly saturated) was administered and subjects were scanned pre, and 3 hours post-ingestion. Results: Mean flow-mediated vasodilation (FMD; measured as percent diameter change before and after treatments) at baseline was 6.35 ± 3.37. Oats increased FMD non-significantly (p > 0.05) with both single acute dose (from 6.07 ± 6.25 to 9.22 ± 8.82) and six weeks of sustained treatment (from 6.01 ± 10.07 to 8.69 ± 8.42). The direction of effect was negative for vitamins and the oat/vitamin combination with both acute and sustained treatment. There were no significant differences in FMD change among the treatments in either phase of the study, however when acute and sustained effects were pooled, oat treatment significantly augmented FMD (p < 0.05). Conclusions: This trial suggests but does not confirm a beneficial influence of oat ingestion on endothelial function in overweight, dyslipidemic adults. Further study of this potential association is warranted.
Physical activity patterns in children with and without Down syndrome

Summary PURPOSE: To describe physical activity (PA) patterns in children with Down syndrome (DS) compared to their unaffected siblings. METHODS: Children with DS (n = 28) and their siblings (n = 30), between 3-10-years (mean +/- SD 7.1 +/- 2.1 years) participated in a nutrition and growth study. PA was measured over 7 days using accelerometers. RESULTS: Children with DS were younger (6.6 vs. 7.1 years) and heavier (BMI 18.4 vs. 16.7 kg m(-2)) than their siblings (p < 0.05). Overall, participants accumulated 2.5 hours per day in moderate- (MPA) and 59 min per day in vigorous-intensity activity (VPA), consistent with the current PA recommendations for children. Children with DS accumulated less VPA than their siblings (49.5 vs. 68.6 minutes per day; p = 0.04) and for shorter bouts (2.5 vs. 5.1 minutes per bout; p < 0.01), but spent similar time in MPA and low-intensity PA. Analyses adjusted for age, sex, race, ethnicity, income, maternal education and BMI showed similar results. CONCLUSIONS: Children with DS participated in less total and sustained VPA and had higher BMI levels compared with their siblings. Because children with DS have a tendency toward childhood obesity, increasing participation in VPA may be appropriate for prevention of obesity and promotion of lifelong health.
Capacitation‐like changes occur in mouse spermatozoa cooled to low temperatures

Previously we showed that > 70% of mouse spermatozoa cooled slowly from 37°C to 4°C and warmed have undergone capacitation‐like changes as examined by a chlortetracycline staining assay. These membrane changes are reflected in the ability of cooled spermatozoa to achieve fertilization rates in vitro similar to those of uncooled controls when added to oocytes immediately upon warming. The aim of this study was to determine the nature of these membrane changes. We found they were not dependent upon the rate of cooling to 4°C and similar changes were observed when spermatozoa were cooled to higher temperatures (10° and 20°C), but it took longer for 50% of the spermatozoa to undergo such changes (3, 18, and 27 min for spermatozoa held at 4°, 10°, and 20°C, respectively). Mixing cooled spermatozoa with oocytes immediately upon warming produced fertilization rates similar to fresh spermatozoa capacitated in vitro for 90 min before the oocytes were added. The rate of sperm penetration as determined by the fluorescent DNA stain Hoescht 33258 was also similar. However, the penetration time for cooled spermatozoa was significantly shortened when they were preincubated for 90 min before being added to oocytes. We conclude that membrane changes resembling capacitation (1) occur during cooling to temperatures above freezing, (2) are independent of cooling rate, (3) proceed faster at lower temperatures, and (4) obviate the need for prior capacitation in vitro before mixing with oocytes. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 46:318–324, 1997. © 1997 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
The Articulated Alar Rim Graft: Reengineering the Conventional Alar Rim Graft for Improved Contour and Support

Abstract Surgical refinement of the wide nasal tip is challenging. Achieving an attractive, slender, and functional tip complex without destabilizing the lower nasal sidewall or deforming the contracture-prone alar rim is a formidable task. Excisional refinement techniques that rely upon incremental weakening of wide lower lateral cartilages (LLC) often destabilize the tip complex and distort tip contour. Initial destabilization of the LLC is usually further exacerbated by “shrink-wrap” contracture, which often leads to progressive cephalic retraction of the alar margin. The result is a misshapen tip complex accentuated by a conspicuous and highly objectionable nostril deformity that is often very difficult to treat. The “articulated” alar rim graft (AARG) is a modification of the conventional rim graft that improves treatment of secondary alar rim deformities, including postsurgical alar retraction (PSAR). Unlike the conventional alar rim graft, the AARG is sutured to the underlying tip complex to provide direct stationary support to the alar margin, thereby enhancing graft efficacy. When used in conjunction with a well-designed septal extension graft (SEG) to stabilize the central tip complex, lateral crural tensioning (LCT) to tighten the lower nasal sidewalls and minimize soft-tissue laxity, and lysis of scar adhesions to unfurl the retracted and scarred nasal lining, the AARG can eliminate PSAR in a majority of patients. The AARG is also highly effective for prophylaxis against alar retraction and in the treatment of most other contour abnormalities involving the alar margin. Moreover, the AARG requires comparatively little graft material, and complications are rare. We present a retrospective series of 47 consecutive patients treated with the triad of AARG, SEG, and LCT for prophylaxis and/or treatment of alar rim deformities. Outcomes were favorable in nearly all patients, and no complications were observed. We conclude the AARG is a simple and effective method for avoiding and correcting most alar rim deformities.
Activation of brain macrophages/microglia cells in hepatitis C infection

Objectives Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is commonly associated with cognitive dysfunction. Viral sequences and proteins were previously found in brain macrophage/microglia cells. The aim of the current study was to determine whether HCV infection affects the expression of key cytokines and chemokines in these cells. Methods Autopsy brain tissue from 15 patients was studied; 7 patients were HCV positive and 8 were HCV negative. Cryostat sections of frontal cortex and subcortical white matter were stained with monoclonal antibodies specific for microglia/macrophages (anti-CD68) and separated by laser capture microscopy. Transcripts representing 25 various cytokines and chemokines were measured by real-time quantitative PCR. Results Compared with HCV-negative controls, HCV-positive patients demonstrated significantly higher levels of proinflammatory cytokines interleukin 1α (IL-1α), IL-1β, tumour necrosis factor α (TNFα), IL-12 and IL-18. HCV infection was also associated with increased transcription of chemokines IL-8, IL-16 and interferon-inducible protein 10 (IP-10). Type 1 interferon (IFN) activation was suggested by increased concentrations of IFNβ and myxovirus resistance protein A (MxA) transcripts. Similar results were obtained when CD68-positive/HCV-positive cells were compared with CD68-positive/HCV-negative cells in each of the 7 HCV-infected patients. Conclusion Evidence was found for activation of brain macrophages/microglia cells in autopsy brain tissue from HCV-positive patients. These findings could relate to the common presence of neurocognitive dysfunction among patients with chronic hepatitis C.
Molecular Authentication of the Traditional Medicinal Plant “Lakshman Booti” (Smithia conferta Sm.) and Its Adulterants through DNA Barcoding

Background: Smithia conferta Sm. is an annual herb widely used in Indian traditional medical practice and commonly known as “Lakshman booti” in Sanskrit. Morphological resemblance among the species of genus Smithia Aiton. leads to inaccurate identification and adulteration. This causes inconsistent therapeutic effects and also affects the quality of herbal medicine. Aim: This study aimed to generate potential barcode for authentication of S. conferta and its adulterants through DNA barcoding technique. Materials and Methods: Genomic DNA extracted from S. conferta and its adulterants was used as templates for polymerase chain reaction amplification of the barcoding regions. The amplicons were directed for sequencing, and species identification was conducted using BLASTn and unweighted pair-group method with arithmetic mean trees. In addition, the secondary structures of internal transcribed spacer (ITS) 2 region were predicted. Results: The nucleotide sequence of ITS provides species-specific single nucleotide polymorphisms and sequence divergence (22%) than psbA-trnH (10.9%) and rbcL (3.1%) sequences. The ITS barcode indicates that S. conferta and Smithia sensitiva are closely related compared to other species. Conclusion: ITS is the most applicable barcode for molecular authentication of S. conferta, and further chloroplast barcodes should be tested for phylogenetic analysis of genus Smithia. Abbreviations used: BLASTn: Basic Local Alignment Search Tool for Nucleotide; MEGA: Molecular Evolutionary Genetic Analysis; EMBL: European Molecular Biology Laboratory; psbA-trnH: Photosystem II protein D1- stuctural RNA: His tRNA gene; rbcL: Ribulose 1,5 bi-phosphate carboxylase/ oxygenase large subunit gene.
Effects of Monetary Policy Shocks on Farm Prices and Exchange Rates in Korea

ABSTRACT The effects of monetary policy shocks on farm prices and exchange rates in Korea are empirically investigated by using vector auto-regression models with sign restrictions on impulse responses. The main empirical results are as follows. First, (contractionary) monetary policy shocks have significantly negative effects on real farm prices. Second, the SR effect on farm prices is significant but short-lived. The dynamic response of farm prices is consistent with the predictions of the “overshooting” model. Third, the effects of monetary policy shocks on farm prices are more significant than the effects of monetary policy shocks on exchange rates.
Incidence of respiratory viruses in peruvian children with acute respiratory infections

Acute respiratory infections are responsible for high morbi–mortality in Peruvian children. However, the etiological agents are poorly identified. This study, conducted during the pandemic outbreak of H1N1 influenza in 2009, aims to determine the main etiological agents responsible for acute respiratory infections in children from Lima, Peru. Nasopharyngeal swabs collected from 717 children with acute respiratory infections between January 2009 and December 2010 were analyzed by multiplex RT‐PCR for 13 respiratory viruses: influenza A, B, and C virus; parainfluenza virus (PIV) 1, 2, 3, and 4; and human respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) A and B, among others. Samples were also tested with direct fluorescent‐antibodies (DFA) for six respiratory viruses. RT‐PCR and DFA detected respiratory viruses in 240 (33.5%) and 85 (11.9%) cases, respectively. The most common etiological agents were RSV‐A (15.3%), followed by influenza A (4.6%), PIV‐1 (3.6%), and PIV‐2 (1.8%). The viruses identified by DFA corresponded to RSV (5.9%) and influenza A (1.8%). Therefore, respiratory syncytial viruses (RSV) were found to be the most common etiology of acute respiratory infections. The authors suggest that active surveillance be conducted to identify the causative agents and improve clinical management, especially in the context of possible circulation of pandemic viruses. J. Med. Virol. 87:917–924, 2015. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Clinical significance of flow-mediated dilation, brachial intima-media thickness and pulse wave velocity in patients with and without coronary artery disease.

BACKGROUND Little is known about the interrelationships among brachial flow-mediated vasodilatation (bFMD), brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV) and brachial intima-media thickness (bIMT) in patients with and without coronary artery disease (CAD). METHODS AND RESULTS Two-hundred consecutive patients with stable angina pectoris (SAP) were enrolled as the CAD group and 50 age-, sex- and body mass index-matched patients without CAD were selected as the non-CAD group. bFMD, diastolic blood pressure (DBP) and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) in the CAD group were significantly lower. The CAD group showed significantly higher levels of hemoglobin A(1c)(HbA(1c)) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), but not baPWV. CAD was independently associated with bFMD, DBP, HbA(1c) and HDL-C. bFMD and HDL-C significantly decreased and LDL-C increased as the number of diseased vessels with significant stenosis increased. The number of diseased vessels was independently associated with bFMD and HDL-C. In addition, bFMD, bIMT, the time constant of the shear rate and the time constant of the flow rate as assessed by a new program, Trend Plus(®), were associated with the presence of CAD. Among these parameters, the presence of CAD was independently associated with bIMT as well as bFMD. CONCLUSIONS bFMD was a better predictor of the severity of CAD than either baPWV or coronary risk factors in patients with SAP. In addition, bIMT may be a critical predictor of CAD.
EFFECTS OF COMMON ORIGIN AND COMMON ENVIRONMENT ON NESTLING PLUMAGE COLORATION IN THE GREAT TIT (PARUS MAJOR)

Abstract Carotenoids cannot be synthesized by birds and thus have to be ingested with food, suggesting that carotenoid-based plumage coloration is environmentally determined. However signaling functions ascribed to plumage imply that plumage coloration is the outcome of an evolutionary process based on genetic variation. By means of a cross-fostering design we show significant effects of both a common rearing environment and the brood from which a nestling originally came from (common origin) on the plumage coloration of nestling great tits (Parus major). This demonstration of origin-related variation in carotenoid-based plumage coloration suggests that the observed variation of the trait has a partial genetic basis. Consistent with environmental determination of this trait, we also found a significant positive correlation between the color saturation of nestlings and their foster-father's plumage. There was no significant correlation between nestling plumage coloration and the food quantity provided to the nestlings by the male, the female, or both parents. This suggests that the nestling-foster father correlation arises by the carotenoid quantity ingested rather than the food quantity per se. No significant nestling-true father correlation was found, which suggests that nestling plumage coloration did not indirectly evolve due to sexual selection. Consistent with this result there was no significant correlation between the nestling's plumage color and its coloration as a breeding adult the following year, suggesting that nestling plumage color is a different trait than the first year plumage.
Isolation of polioviruses and other enteroviruses in south Greece between 1994 and 1998

During the five‐year period between 1994 and 1998, a total of 217 clinical samples were assessed for the isolation of enteroviruses at the Enterovirus Reference Centre for South Greece. Fourteen enterovirus strains belonging to different serotypes were isolated. These field strains were detected by cell culture in appropriate cell lines. They were subsequently identified by neutralizing antibodies with the LBM (Lim‐Benyesh Melnick) mixed antisera pools up to 1995 and RIVM (National Institute of Public Health and the Environment, Bilthoven, The Netherlands) pools from 1996 onwards. The isolated viruses included two strains of poliovirus type 2 Sabin‐like, three strains of poliovirus type 1 non‐Sabin‐like, one Coxsackie B2 (CBV2) strain, one Coxsackie B5 (CBV5) strain, one Echo 5 (ECV5) strain, one Echo 7 (ECV7) strain, three Coxsackie A16 (CAV16) strains, and two currently enteroviral strains unidentified by RIVM pools. Reverse transcription‐polymerase chain reaction (RT‐PCR) using poliovirus‐specific primers or poliovirus type‐specific primers and enterovirus specific primers from the highly conserved 5′‐UTR, the latter followed by RFLP, was also applied in 6 clinical isolates (3 strains of poliovirus type 1 non‐Sabin‐like, 1 polio type 2 Sabin‐like, and 2 non‐identified by RIVM pools enteroviruses). The advantages and the drawbacks of these assays against the conventional ones are discussed here. The isolations and the subsequent identification of the strains were carried out from fecal samples of clinical cases that included hand‐foot‐and‐mouth disease, meningitis, and acute flaccid paralysis. The reappearance of non‐Sabin‐like poliovirus strains in Greece in 1996 after 14 years is considered to have an important medical and clinical value. J. Clin. Lab. Anal. 14:157–163, 2000. © 2000 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Hard and soft switching losses of a SiC MOSFET module under realistic topology and loading conditions

This paper investigates the switching performance of a 1.2 kV half-bridge SiC MOSFET module from Sanrex. Unlike in a standard SiC MOSFET module, where the MOSFET and the anti-parallel diode chips are fabricated separately, in the chosen MOSFET module (FCA150XB120), both the MOSFET and the diode are fabricated on a single chip. The device is characterized under both hard and soft switching conditions. For the hard switching characterization, an inductive clamped buck converter is employed, whereas for the soft switching characterization, a resonant half-bridge converter with LC load is used. A comparison of the hard switching loss is performed with the soft switching loss at the same current. This comparison provides insight into the significance of employing an appropriate circuit topology, load and control scheme to reflect the waveforms as in a real application, in order to get a more accurate assessment of the switching losses that will occur. This insight is the main contribution of this paper.
Accuracy of telomerase in cervical lesions: a systematic review

The detection of telomerase activity in cervix may provide information on cervical carcinogenesis and may be a marker to monitor cervical intraepithelial neoplasia transition. A quantitative systematic review was performed to estimate the accuracy of telomerase assay in cervical lesions. Studies that evaluated the telomerase test (telomerase repeated amplification protocol) for the diagnosis of cervix lesions and compared it to paraffin-embedded sections as the diagnostic standard were included. Ten studies were analyzed, which included 1069 women. The diagnostic odds ratio (DOR) for a positive telomerase test for low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (Lo-SIL) vs normal or benign lesions was 3.2 (95% CI, 1.9–5.6). The DOR for a positive telomerase test for high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (Hi-SIL) vs Lo-SIL, normal or benign lesions was 5.8 (95% CI, 3.1–10). For cervix cancer vs Hi-SIL, the DOR for a positive telomerase test was 8.1 (95% CI, 3.2–20.3) and for cervix cancer vs Lo-SIL, normal or benign lesions, it was 40.9 (95% CI, 18.2–91). Our data support the current hypothesis that telomerase may activate an early event in cervical carcinogenesis that could be associated with the initiation and progression of cervical lesions
Estimating institutional quality with instruments : three essays and applications in education and healthcare

This thesis develops and applies instrumental variable (IV) techniques to estimate average causal effects in settings with multiple unordered treatments. When an instrument shifts individuals across several distinct margins, classical estimators may not recover causally-interpretable parameters, particularly when effects are heterogeneous and there are fewer instruments than treatment choices. The first chapter of this thesis establishes minimal effect heterogeneity restrictions that permit IV identification of multiple local average treatment effects (LATEs) in such scenarios, using interactions of the instrument and stratifying controls. Under weaker conditional homogeneity assumptions, a novel non-parametric weighting scheme identifies these LATEs. I use this framework to estimate the economic returns to GED certification in a sample that includes individuals who would otherwise obtain a traditional high school diploma, as well as those who would otherwise drop out. The theoretical results may also offer a solution to endogenous attrition bias in randomized trials; I illustrate this in a re-analysis of the 2008 Oregon Health Insurance Experiment. Identification via stratifying interactions may be less feasible with a large number of treatments, though in such settings a researcher may be willing to forego unbiased estimation in favor of a low mean squared error (MSE) across the set of causal estimates. Indeed, policymakers, particularly in the spheres of education and healthcare, often make such trade-offs in forming observational measures of the average effectiveness, or "quality," of the public institutions they regulate. Conventional school value-added models (VAMs), for example, use empirical Bayes methods to shrink school-average test scores towards their grand mean after regression-adjusting for student demographics and past achievement. Under a standard selection-on-observables assumption, these VAMs produce minimum-MSE predictions of true school quality predictions that increasingly drive school accountability and restructuring policies. The second chapter of this thesis (joint with Joshua Angrist, Parag Pathak, and Christopher Walters), shows how school admission lottery instruments can be used to test VAM validity, quantify the effects of selection bias, and improve conventional school quality predictions. In doing so, we provide a general framework for optimally combining observational and quasi-experimental estimators of multiple treatment effects. An application to Boston middle school quality suggests a failure of selection-on-observables and systematic bias in typical VAM estimates. Nevertheless, we find that the relative magnitude of this selection bias is modest, and policy decisions based on these VAMs are still likely to generate substantial achievement gains. Hybrid quality estimates that incorporate lottery information lead to further reductions in MSE and generate larger gains to students.