Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Does Platelet-Rich Fibrin Enhance Bone Quality and Quantity of Alveolar Cleft Reconstruction?

Background Recently, platelet-rich fibrin (PRF) was described as a second-generation platelet concentrate. PRF is known as a rich source of autologous cytokines and growth factors and is universally used for tissue regeneration in clinical medicine. Objective The aim of the current study was to evaluate the effect of PRF on the quality and quantity of bone formation in unilateral maxillary alveolar cleft reconstruction. Patients and Methods Twenty-four patients with unilateral alveolar cleft underwent bone reconstruction. Patients were randomly divided into two groups. Group A consisted of patients grafted with PRF combined with autogenous anterior iliac crest bone graft. Group B patients were grafted using autogenous bone graft alone (control group). Computed tomography was performed 6 months postoperatively to assess the quality and quantity of the newly formed bone. Results The percentage of newly formed bone (quantity) in group A ranged from 79.74% to 88.4%, with a mean percentage of 82.6% ± 3.9%. In group B, the percentage of bone formation ranged from 60.3% to 76.4%, with a mean percentage of 68.38% ± 6.67%. There was a statistically significant increase in the percentage of newly formed bone in group A. The mean bone density (quality) of the newly formed bone was lower in group A than group B, but the difference was not statistically significant (P < .05). Conclusions PRF in combination with autogenous bone was beneficial in improving the volume of newly formed bone in alveolar cleft reconstruction and does not enhance bone density.
D2R DNA transfer into the nucleus accumbens attenuates cocaine self‐administration in rats

Dopamine (DA) D2 receptor (D2R) agonists and antagonists can modulate self‐administration behavior, conditioned place preference, and locomotor responses to cocaine. Low levels of D2R have also been observed in cocaine addicted subjects and in non human primates after chronic cocaine exposures. Prior studies had shown that D2R upregulation in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) in rodents trained to self‐administer alcohol markedly attenuated alcohol preference and intake. Here we assess the effects of D2R upregulation in the NAc on cocaine intake in rats trained to self‐administer cocaine. Following 2 weeks of i.v. cocaine self‐administration (CSA), rats were stereotaxically treated with an adenovirus that carried the D2R gene to upregulate D2R in the NAc. D2R vector treatment resulted in a significant decrease (75%) in cocaine infusions and lever presses (70%) for cocaine. This effect lasted 6 days before cocaine consumption returned to baseline levels, which corresponds roughly to the time it takes D2R to return to baseline levels. These findings show that CSA and D2R in the NAc are negatively correlated and suggest that cocaine intake is modulated in part by D2R levels in NAc. Thus strategies aimed at increasing D2R expression in NAc may be beneficial in treating cocaine abuse and addiction. Synapse 62:481–486, 2008. Published 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Accelerating File System Metadata Access with Byte-Addressable Nonvolatile Memory

File system performance is dominated by small and frequent metadata access. Metadata is stored as blocks on the hard disk drive. Partial metadata update results in whole-block read or write, which significantly amplifies disk I/O. Furthermore, a huge performance gap between the CPU and disk aggravates this problem. In this article, a file system metadata accelerator (referred to as FSMAC) is proposed to optimize metadata access by efficiently exploiting the persistency and byte-addressability of Nonvolatile Memory (NVM). The FSMAC decouples data and metadata access path, putting data on disk and metadata in byte-addressable NVM at runtime. Thus, data is accessed in a block from I/O the bus and metadata is accessed in a byte-addressable manner from the memory bus. Metadata access is significantly accelerated and metadata I/O is eliminated because metadata in NVM is no longer flushed back to the disk periodically. A lightweight consistency mechanism combining fine-grained versioning and transaction is introduced in the FSMAC. The FSMAC is implemented on a real NVDIMM platform and intensively evaluated under different workloads. Evaluation results show that the FSMAC accelerates the file system up to 49.2 times for synchronized I/O and 7.22 times for asynchronized I/O. Moreover, it can achieve significant performance speedup in network storage and database environment, especially for metadata-intensive or write-dominated workloads.
Punishing unfairness: Rewarding or the organization of a reactively aggressive response?

The neural correlates of human cooperative behavior remain poorly understood. Previous work has suggested that increases in striatal activation while punishing unfair offers represents reward signaling. However, other regions are also implicated when punishing others, for example dorsomedial frontal cortex (dmFC), anterior insula cortex (AIC), and periaqueductal gray (PAG). Moreover, the response of other regions implicated in signaling reward, for example ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) or posterior cingulate cortex (PCC), has not been systematically examined. Experimental Design: Functional magnetic resonance imaging utilizing parametric modulation was conducted on 21 healthy adults participating in a social exchange paradigm. Principal Observations: Participants showed significant positive modulation of activity as a function of delivered punishment in caudate, dmFC, AIC, and PAG; that is, higher punishments by participants of unsatisfactory offers were associated with increasing activity within these regions. However, participants showed significant negative modulation of activity as a function of delivered punishment in vmPFC and PCC; increases in punishment level by participants were associated with decreases in activity within these regions. Conclusions: The current data question whether caudate activity when punishing unfair offers should be considered to indicate the reward value of this punishment. Instead, this activity, in conjunction with activity within dmFC, AIC, and PAG, may represent the organization of an untypical, punishing response that represents a reactive aggressive response to provocation. Notably, an inverse, regulatory relationship between vmPFC and PAG activity has been previously implicated in the context of another stimulus for reactive aggression; looming threat (Mobbs et al. [2007]: Science 317:1079–1083). Hum Brain Mapp 35:2137–2147, 2014. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
A Systematic Literature Review Approach to Estimate the Therapeutic Index of Selected Immunosuppressant Drugs After Renal Transplantation

Background: Drugs that exhibit close margins between therapeutic and toxic blood concentrations are considered to have a narrow therapeutic index (NTI). The Food and Drug Administration has proposed that NTI drugs should have more stringent bioequivalence standards for approval of generic formulations. However, many immunosuppressant drugs do not have a well-defined therapeutic index (TI). Methods: We sought to determine whether safety, efficacy, and pharmacokinetic data obtained from the medical literature through a comprehensive literature search could be used to estimate the TI of cyclosporine, tacrolimus, and sirolimus. In this analysis, we considered TI ⩽2 as a criterion to define a drug as having an NTI. Results: Published literature indicates that cyclosporine has a TI of 2–3, which falls just short of our criteria to be classified as having an NTI. We found sirolimus and tacrolimus to have a therapeutic range of 5–12 ng/mL and of 5–20 ng/mL, respectively, but were unable to calculate the TI. Conclusions: Although the current literature does not provide a clear indication that these drugs have an NTI, the routine use of therapeutic drug monitoring in clinical practice suggests that more stringent testing of their pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties should be performed before the approval of generic formulations.
Advances in Retinal Prosthetic Research: A Systematic Review of Engineering and Clinical Characteristics of Current Prosthetic Initiatives

ABSTRACT Purpose: To date, reviews of retinal prostheses have focused primarily on devices undergoing human trials in the Western Hemisphere and fail to capture significant advances in materials and engineering research in countries such as Japan and Korea, as well as projects in early stages of development. To address these gaps, this systematic review examines worldwide advances in retinal prosthetic research, evaluates engineering characteristics and clinical progress of contemporary device initiatives, and identifies potential directions for future research in the field of retinal prosthetics. Methods: A literature search using PubMed, Google Scholar, and IEEExplore was conducted following the PRISMA Guidelines for Systematic Review. Inclusion criteria were peer-reviewed papers demonstrating progress in human or animal trials and papers discussing the prosthetic engineering design. For each initiative, a description of the device, its engineering considerations, and recent clinical results were provided. Results: Ten prosthetic initiatives met our inclusion criteria and were organized by stimulation location. Of these initiatives, four have recently completed human trials, three are undergoing multi- or single-center human trials, and three are undergoing preclinical animal testing. Only the Argus II (FDA 2013, CE 2011) has obtained FDA approval for use in the United States; the Alpha-IMS (CE 2013) has achieved the highest visual acuity using a Landolt-C test to date and is the only device presently undergoing a multicenter clinical trial. Conclusion: Several distinct approaches to retinal stimulation have been successful in eliciting visual precepts in animals and/or humans. However, many clinical needs are still not met and engineering challenges must be addressed before a retinal prosthesis with the capability to fully and safely restore functional vision can be realized.
Susac's syndrome: clinical course and epidemiology in a Central European population

Abstract Objective: Susac's syndrome is characterized by inflammation and occlusion of pre-capillary arterioles with the clinical triad of branch retinal artery occlusion (BRAO), encephalopathy and hearing loss. No epidemiological data are available for the disease. Methods: All neurology departments in Austria were addressed to report adult patients who were on immunosuppressive treatment for a diagnosis of Susac's syndrome between 1 August 2010 and 1 August 2015. Clinical course, treatment regimens, period and point prevalence rates, and annual incidence of Susac's syndrome in Austria in people over 19 years of age are reported. Results: Ten patients with Susac's syndrome were identified, and eight of them were newly diagnosed within the five-year timeframe. Minimum five-year period prevalence of the disease is 0.148/100,000 (95% confidence interval (CI) 0.071–0.272), annual incidence is 0.024/100,000 (95% CI 0.010–0.047). Minimum point prevalence rates varied from 0.030/100,000 (95% CI 0.004–0.108) to 0.088/100,000 (95% CI 0.032–0.192). Of all 10 patients, 8 showed typical callosal or internal capsule magnetic resonance imaging lesions at first presentation, 7 presented with BRAO and 5 had hearing loss or tinnitus at the beginning of the disease. Four patients developed the complete clinical triad of Susac's syndrome during the observation period. Conclusions: We provide for the first time population-based data about the clinical course, prevalence and incidence of Susac's syndrome.
EMT-like circulating tumor cells in ovarian cancer patients are enriched by platinum-based chemotherapy

Background Assuming that tumor cell dissemination requires a shift to a mesenchymal phenotype, we analyzed the incidence of epithelial-to-mesenchymal-transition (EMT)-like circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in ovarian cancer patients and inquired, how their molecular phenotypes respond to platinum-based chemotherapy and influence outcome. Results Before surgery, overall detection rate for epithelial CTCs was 18%. EMT-like CTCs were more frequently observed (30%) and were mutually exclusive to epithelial CTCs in the majority of patients (82%). After chemotherapy, EMT-like CTCs increased up to 52%, accompanied by the “de novo” emergence of PI3Kα+/Twist+ EMT-like CTCs. Before surgery, PI3K+ EMT-like CTCs in combination with epithelial CTCs indicated decreased OS (p = 0.02) and FIGO I-III patients with residual tumor burden after surgery were more likely to be positive for EMT-like CTCs after chemotherapy (p = 0.02). In the latter group, epithelial CTCs alone significantly correlated with decreased PFS and OS (p = 0.02, p = 0.002), supported by an additional inclusion of PI3K+ CTCs (OS, p = 0.001). Materials and Methods Blood samples of 91 ovarian cancer patients before surgery and 31 matched samples after adjuvant chemotherapy were evaluated for CTCs with the AdnaTest ovarian cancer and EMT-1, analyzing the epithelial-associated transcripts EpCAM, Muc-1 and CA125 and the EMT-associated transcripts PI3Kα, Akt-2 and Twist. Conclusions Platinum-based chemotherapy seems to select for EMT-like CTCs in ovarian cancer patients and provokes a shift towards PI3Kα and Twist expressing CTCs, which may reflect clonal tumor evolution towards therapy resistance. It has to be determined, whether this CTC subgroup may serve as a biomarker to identify patients at high risk.
Validity and reliability of the Spanish version of the Somatoform Dissociation Questionnaire (SDQ‐20)

Background: The Somatoform Dissociation Questionnaire (SDQ‐20) is a self‐reported questionnaire measuring somatoform dissociation. The aim of this study is to analyze the psychometric properties of the Spanish version of the SDQ‐20 and its short version (SDQ‐5). Methods: Validity and reliability were examined in a sample of 360 psychiatric outpatients: 38 dissociative (conversion) disorders, 30 dissociative (psychoform) disorders, and 292 patients suffering from other disorders. Dissociative disorders were diagnosed using the SCID‐D and a specific interview for conversion disorders. Results: Subjects meeting criteria for any dissociative or conversion disorder scored significantly higher in the SDQ‐20 (criterion validity). Somatoform dissociation, psychoform dissociation and early trauma were significantly correlated (construct validity). An alpha coefficient of . 866 (reliability) and a test‐retest correlation of 0.91 were obtained. The cut‐off score maximizing sensitivity and specificity was 27.5 for psychoform dissociative disorders (sensitivity of 81.6% and specificity of 71.0%) and 29.5 for conversion disorders (81.6% and 71.0%). For the SDQ‐5, the coefficient alpha was 0.561 and the selected cut‐off score was 5.5 (sensitivity of 73.33% and specificity of 70.41%). Conclusions: The Spanish version of the SDQ‐20 presents good psychometric properties while the SDQ‐5 shows worse characteristics and its use with Spanish samples is not recommended. &NA; Validez y fiabilidad de la versión española del Somatoform Dissociation Questionnaire (SDQ‐20). Antecedentes: SDQ‐20 (Somatoform Dissociation Questionnaire) es un autoinforme que mide la presencia de disociación somatomorfa. Se analizan las propiedades psicométricas de la versión española de la SDQ‐20 y su versión abreviada (SDQ‐5). Método: su validez y fiabilidad han sido examinadas en una muestra de 360 pacientes: 38 trastorno disociativo (de conversión), 30 trastorno disociativo (psicomorfo) y 292 diagnosticados de otros trastornos. El diagnóstico de trastorno disociativo se realizó mediante la SCID‐D‐TR y una entrevista específica para los trastornos conversivos. Resultados: los sujetos que cumplieron criterios de trastorno disociativo o conversivo puntuaron significativamente más alto en la SDQ‐20 (criterio de validez). La disociación psicomorfa y somatomorfa y el trauma temprano se correlacionaron significativamente (validez del constructo). Se obtuvieron un coeficiente alpha de 0.866 (fiabilidad) y una correlación test‐retest de 0,91. El punto de corte para los trastornos disociativos fue 27,5 (sensibilidad 81,6% y especificidad 71%) y 29,5 para los trastornos conversivos (81,6% y 71%). En la SDQ‐5 se obtuvo un coeficiente alpha de 0,561 y un punto de corte de 5,5 (sensibilidad 73,33% y especificidad 70,41%). Conclusiones: la versión española de la SDQ‐20 presenta buenas propiedades psicométricas. La SDQ‐5 muestra peores características y su uso en muestras españolas no se recomienda.
An in-depth study of the potentially confounding effect of class size in fault prediction

Background. The extent of the potentially confounding effect of class size in the fault prediction context is not clear, nor is the method to remove the potentially confounding effect, or the influence of this removal on the performance of fault-proneness prediction models. Objective. We aim to provide an in-depth understanding of the effect of class size on the true associations between object-oriented metrics and fault-proneness. Method. We first employ statistical methods to examine the extent of the potentially confounding effect of class size in the fault prediction context. After that, we propose a linear regression-based method to remove the potentially confounding effect. Finally, we empirically investigate whether this removal could improve the prediction performance of fault-proneness prediction models. Results. Based on open-source software systems, we found: (a) the confounding effect of class size on the associations between object-oriented metrics and fault-proneness in general exists; (b) the proposed linear regression-based method can effectively remove the confounding effect; and (c) after removing the confounding effect, the prediction performance of fault prediction models with respect to both ranking and classification can in general be significantly improved. Conclusion. We should remove the confounding effect of class size when building fault prediction models.
Looking for new approaches for the use of serology in the context of control programmes against pig salmonellosis

Most swine Salmonella national control programmes in Europe have been based on the categorization of herds according to risk levels based on serological results. However, none of the non‐Scandinavian countries have reported of any significant success on Salmonella infection reduction in fattening pigs or the number of human cases attributable to pigs or pork. The limited accuracy of the tests used, the small number of animals sampled and the likely lack of herd representativeness of the samples used could be major factors affecting the suitability of these programmes. Focusing on minimizing Salmonella shedding at slaughter appears more important to prevent human infections than focusing on detection of seropositive pigs/herds at this stage. This study assessed whether performing on‐farm serology may help to predict shedding at slaughter. Between 2010 and 2016, pigs from six cohorts from a Salmonella‐positive herd were bled at 30, 60 and 90 days on fattening and before slaughter, and faecal samples collected at slaughter. Serology on days 60, 90 and before slaughter predicted somewhat shedding at slaughter with no significant differences among them. Pigs with higher OD% values at these point times would have higher risk of shedding when arriving to slaughter. The probability of shedding for a pig sampled on day 90 and showing an OD% value of 10 was 43%, and the risk increased up to 65% if the OD% was 40. Concluding, on‐farm serology may help to determine to some extent the risk of Salmonella shedding at slaughter from seropositive fattening units, which would allow for prompt on‐farm and slaughter interventions to reduce the likelihood of slaughter contamination with Salmonella.
Neural effects of social environmental stress – an activation likelihood estimation meta-analysis

Background Social environmental stress, including childhood abuse and deprivation, is associated with increased rates of psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia and depression. However, the neural mechanisms mediating risk are not completely understood. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies have reported effects of social environmental stress on a variety of brain regions, but interpretation of results is complicated by the variety of environmental risk factors examined and different methods employed. Method We examined brain regions consistently showing differences in blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) response in individuals exposed to higher levels of environmental stress by performing a coordinate-based meta-analysis on 54 functional MRI studies using activation likelihood estimation (ALE), including an overall sample of 3044 participants. We performed separate ALE analyses on studies examining adults (mean age ⩾18 years) and children/adolescents (mean age <18 years) and a contrast analysis comparing the two types of study. Results Across both adult and children/adolescent studies, ALE meta-analysis revealed several clusters in which differences in BOLD response were associated with social environmental stress across multiple studies. These clusters incorporated several brain regions, among which the right amygdala was most frequently implicated. Conclusions These findings suggest that a variety of social environmental stressors is associated with differences in the BOLD response of specific brain regions such as the right amygdala in both children/adolescents and adults. What remains unknown is whether these environmental stressors have differential effects on treatment response in these brain regions.