Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Carer Experience of Back Pain Is Associated With Adolescent Back Pain Experience Even When Controlling for Other Carer and Family Factors

ObjectivesThe study objectives were (1) to determine if adolescent back pain is related to carer back pain; and (2) to examine whether other carer and family factors accounted for any such relationship. MethodsBack pain experience was collected independently from 1608 fourteen-year-old adolescents and their care givers by questionnaire. Measures of back pain impact on carers were also collected (modified activities, missed work, sought professional help, took medication). Other carer factors examined were age, sex, smoking habits, depression, anxiety, and stress. Familial factors examined included income, stressful events, and family functioning. Odds ratios were calculated to describe familial associations with multivariate modeling used to examine the influence of other carer and family factors. ResultsLifetime prevalence of back pain was 46.5% for adolescents and 72% for their carers. Having a carer with back pain increased the risk of back pain for adolescents, and this was magnified if both carers had back pain (odds ratio 1.61). Adolescent back pain was not associated with primary carer age, sex, depression, anxiety, or stress but was related to family stressful events. However, these other factors did not diminish the association between carer back pain and adolescent back pain. DiscussionCarer experience of back pain is clearly associated with adolescent experience of back pain. Although other carer and family factors are also associated, the carer's back pain experience is not a surrogate measure of these other factors suggesting other genetic and behavioral mechanisms may be important for adolescent back pain development.
Accessibility and usability of playground environments for children under 12: A scoping review

Abstract Background: Playgrounds are important outdoor environments in many communities during childhood. However, playground spaces often do not meet the needs of typically developing children or children with disabilities, resulting in social exclusion for many children. Aims/objectives: This study explored the evidence regarding accessibility and usability of playgrounds for children of all abilities, to identify factors that enable or constrain social inclusion in community playgrounds. Materials and methods: A scoping method was used as little research in this area has been collated and synthesized. Scoping reviews are effective for exploring and synthesizing broad and varied methods of inquiry around a phenomenon of interest. Results: A total of 14 key articles were identified and two major themes emerged: (i) accessible playground environments – features and factors; (ii) from excluding to including – making playground environments usable. Findings indicate that numerous environmental barriers contribute to making playground environments inaccessible and unusable for many children, particularly children with disabilities. However, playground design is identified as a significant factor in enabling inclusion. Conclusion: Occupational therapists are in an ideal position to advocate for children’s occupational right to play, by combining knowledge of environmental barriers with an understanding of disability and specific knowledge of occupation. Through focusing on advocacy and change at policy and community levels, therapists can work to maximize social inclusion in playground settings.
Mapping disability‐adjusted life years: a Bayesian hierarchical model framework for burden of disease and injury assessment

This paper presents a Bayesian disability‐adjusted life year (DALY) methodology for spatial and spatiotemporal analyses of disease and/or injury burden. A Bayesian disease mapping model framework, which blends together spatial modelling, shared‐component modelling (SCM), temporal modelling, ecological modelling, and non‐linear modelling, is developed for small‐area DALY estimation and inference. In particular, we develop a model framework that enables SCM as well as multivariate CAR modelling of non‐fatal and fatal disease or injury rates and facilitates spline smoothing for non‐linear modelling of temporal rate and risk trends. Using British Columbia (Canada) hospital admission–separation data and vital statistics mortality data on non‐fatal and fatal road traffic injuries to male population age 20–39 for year 1991–2000 and for 84 local health areas and 16 health service delivery areas, spatial and spatiotemporal estimation and inference on years of life lost due to premature death, years lived with disability, and DALYs are presented. Fully Bayesian estimation and inference, with Markov chain Monte Carlo implementation, are illustrated. We present a methodological framework within which the DALY and the Bayesian disease mapping methodologies interface and intersect. Its development brings the relative importance of premature mortality and disability into the assessment of community health and health needs in order to provide reliable information and evidence for community‐based public health surveillance and evaluation, disease and injury prevention, and resource provision. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A suppressor of an RNA polymerase II mutation of Saccharomyces cerevisiae encodes a subunit common to RNA polymerases I, II, and III

RNA polymerase II (RNAPII) is a complex multisubunit enzyme responsible for the synthesis of pre-mRNA in eucaryotes. The enzyme is made of two large subunits associated with at least eight smaller polypeptides, some of which are common to all three RNA polymerase species. We have initiated a genetic analysis of RNAPII by introducing mutations in RPO21, the gene encoding the largest subunit of RNAPII in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We have used a yeast genomic library to isolate plasmids that can suppress a temperature-sensitive mutation in RPO21 (rpo21-4), with the goal of identifying gene products that interact with the largest subunit of RNAPII. We found that increased expression of wild-type RPO26, a single-copy, essential gene encoding a 155-amino-acid subunit common to RNAPI, RNAPII, and RNAPIII, suppressed the rpo21-4 temperature-sensitive mutation. Mutations were constructed in vitro that resulted in single amino acid changes in the carboxy-terminal portion of the RPO26 gene product. One temperature-sensitive mutation, as well as some mutations that did not by themselves generate a phenotype, were lethal in combination with rpo21-4. These results support the idea that the RPO26 and RPO21 gene products interact.
Electronic transport in graphene nanoribbons with sublattice-asymmetric doping

Recent experimental findings and theoretical predictions suggest that nitrogen-doped CVD-grown graphene may give rise to electronic band gaps due to impurity distributions which favour segregation on a single sublattice. Here we demonstrate theoretically that such distributions give rise to more complex behaviour in the presence of edges, where geometry determines whether electrons in the sample view the impurities as a gap-opening average potential or as scatterers. Zigzag edges give rise to the latter case, and remove the electronic bandgaps predicted in extended graphene samples. We predict that such behaviour will give rise to leakage near grain boundaries with a similar geometry or in zigzag-edged etched devices. Furthermore, we examine the formation of one-dimensional metallic channels at interfaces between different sublattice domains, which should be observable experimentally and offer intriguing waveguiding possibilities.
Large‐scale image‐based screening and profiling of cellular phenotypes

Cellular phenotypes are observable characteristics of cells resulting from the interactions of intrinsic and extrinsic chemical or biochemical factors. Image‐based phenotypic screens under large numbers of basal or perturbed conditions can be used to study the influences of these factors on cellular phenotypes. Hundreds to thousands of phenotypic descriptors can also be quantified from the images of cells under each of these experimental conditions. Therefore, huge amounts of data can be generated, and the analysis of these data has become a major bottleneck in large‐scale phenotypic screens. Here, we review current experimental and computational methods for large‐scale image‐based phenotypic screens. Our focus is on phenotypic profiling, a computational procedure for constructing quantitative and compact representations of cellular phenotypes based on the images collected in these screens. © 2016 International Society for Advancement of Cytometry
Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder moderates the life stress pathway to alcohol problems in children of alcoholics.

BACKGROUND Parent alcoholism is a well-established risk factor for the development of pathological alcohol involvement in youth, and life stress is considered to be one of the central mechanisms of the parent alcoholism effect; however, little is known about the moderators of the life stress pathway. Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has also been shown to predict pathological alcohol involvement, however, little is known about whether or not ADHD interacts with parent alcoholism to increase offspring risk. The goals of this study were to examine stressful life events as mediators of the relationship between parent alcoholism and adolescent pathological alcohol involvement, and to examine whether or not this mediated pathway was stronger for adolescents with ADHD than for adolescents without ADHD. METHOD Participants were 142 adolescents with a childhood ADHD diagnosis (probands) and 100 demographically matched control adolescents without childhood ADHD. Probands, controls, and at least 1 parent were interviewed about drinking behavior; probands and controls were interviewed about negative life events. RESULTS A moderated mediation paradigm was used to test the hypotheses using ordinary least squares regression. Results showed that the relationships between parent alcoholism and 2 of the stress variables ("family" stress and "peer" stress) were significant for probands only, and that stress in the probands mediated the parent alcoholism effect on offspring alcohol involvement. CONCLUSIONS These results provide preliminary support for the hypothesis that offspring characteristics might moderate the life stress pathway to alcoholism, and indicate that ADHD may serve to facilitate the transmission of pathological alcohol use from parent to child.
Tai chi for health benefits in patients with multiple sclerosis: A systematic review

The aim of this systematic review was to evaluate the existing evidence on the effectiveness and safety of Tai chi, which is critical to provide guidelines for clinicians to improve symptomatic management in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). After performing electronic and manual searches of many sources, ten relevant peer-reviewed studies that met the inclusion criteria were retrieved. The existing evidence supports the effectiveness of Tai chi on improving quality of life (QOL) and functional balance in MS patients. A small number of these studies also reported the positive effect of Tai chi on flexibility, leg strength, gait, and pain. The effect of Tai chi on fatigue is inconsistent across studies. Although the findings demonstrate beneficial effects on improving outcome measures, especially for functional balance and QOL improvements, a conclusive claim should be made carefully for reasons such as methodological flaws, small sample size, lack of specific-disease instruments, unclear description of Tai chi protocol, unreported safety of Tai chi, and insufficient follow-up as documented by the existing literature. Future research should recruit a larger number of participants and utilize the experimental design with a long-term follow-up to ascertain the benefits of Tai chi for MS patients.
Value co-creation and co-destruction in the Airbnb sharing economy

Purpose This paper aims to develop a theoretical framework of value co-creation and value co-destruction of guest-host social practices facilitated through Airbnb in the sharing economy. Design/methodology/approach This paper makes use of a qualitative online content analysis to extract Airbnb data and to analyse guest reviews and host responses posted in the context of Malta. Findings A theoretical framework is proposed revealing six distinct themes of guest–host social practices and their sub-categories, resulting in a spectrum of dimensions of value formation. Research limitations/implications This paper collects data from Airbnb properties in Malta, with more narratives posted by guests, implying a dominance of guest views on value co-creation and co-destruction. Findings might have a limited transferability beyond similar sharing economy platforms and tourist destinations. Practical/implications The paper uncovers guest–host hospitality value creation practices, providing concrete examples as to what practices lead to distinct value formation or destruction. In addressing the lack of knowledge about value creation practices in the sharing economy, strategic implications are offered to the hospitality sector to understand the distinct value propositions Airbnb offers compared to traditional accommodation types. Originality/value The paper’s contribution is its theoretical framework of value practices of guests staying at Airbnb-listed accommodations, contributing to a better understanding of the distinct value propositions underlying collaborative consumption offers in the sharing economy.
Microfabricated Gas Chromatography Columns With Monolayer-Protected Gold Stationary Phases

This paper reports the first microelectromechanical-systems (MEMS)-based stationary phase coating technique called monolayer-protected gold for ultranarrow single-capillary (SCC) and multicapillary (MCC) microfabricated gas chromatography (¿GC) columns, yielding the highest separation performance reported to date. The conventional coating methods are mainly based on the solvent evaporation of a polymeric solution. These methods, which are developed for fused silica capillary tubing, cannot afford conformal coating in the rectangular-shaped ¿GC columns with high-aspect-ratio structures. The proposed wafer-level coating technique overcomes this traditional challenge by merging MEMS and nanotechnology. This new ¿ GC stationary phase is achieved by electrodepositing a uniform functionalized gold layer with an adjustable thickness (250 nm-2 ¿m) in 25-¿m-wide SCCs as well as in four-capillary MCCs. The electrodeposition process is optimized to achieve uniform and conformal coverage in high-aspect-ratio ¿GC columns. In order to predict the optimized electroplating conditions for different column dimensions, the theoretical model based on the experimental results is developed and introduced in this paper. The separation performance, stability, reproducibility, and bleeding of the stationary phase are evaluated over time by separating n-alkanes as nonpolar and alcohols as polar gas mixtures.
Healthy Aims: Developing New Medical Implants and Diagnostic Equipment

Healthy Aims is a 23- million, four-year project, funded under the EU's information society technology sixth framework program to develop intelligent medical implants and diagnostic systems (www.healthyaims.org). The project has 25 partners from 10 countries, including commercial, clinical, and research groups. This consortium represents a combination of disciplines to design and fabricate new medical devices and components as well as to test them in laboratories and subsequent clinical trials. The project focuses on medical implants for nerve stimulation and diagnostic equipment based on strain-gauge technology.
Performance improvement of hysteresis parameter determination

Recently it has been shown that a physical hysteresis model has a unique mathematical solution for a given magnetic material. This solution gives maximum agreement between measured and simulated virgin curve and major loop. As the analytical solution is complicated and difficult to find it was necessary to find the optimum by an approximation. Standard optimization methods found only local optima, because the system is non-linear and non-convex. This paper shows how a stochastic method can be applied to fast approach the global solution
Rookie: A unique approach for exploring news archives

News archives are an invaluable primary source for placing current events in historical context. But current search engine tools do a poor job at uncovering broad themes and narratives across documents. We present Rookie: a practical software system which uses natural language processing (NLP) to help readers, reporters and editors uncover broad stories in news archives. Unlike prior work, Rookie's design emerged from 18 months of iterative development in consultation with editors and computational journalists. This process lead to a dramatically different approach from previous academic systems with similar goals. Our efforts offer a generalizable case study for others building real-world journalism software using NLP.
Exploring the Diversity of Listeria monocytogenes Biofilm Architecture by High-Throughput Confocal Laser Scanning Microscopy and the Predominance of the Honeycomb-Like Morphotype

ABSTRACT Listeria monocytogenes is involved in food-borne illness with a high mortality rate. The persistence of the pathogen along the food chain can be associated with its ability to form biofilms on inert surfaces. While most of the phenotypes associated with biofilms are related to their spatial organization, most published data comparing biofilm formation by L. monocytogenes isolates are based on the quantitative crystal violet assay, which does not give access to structural information. Using a high-throughput confocal-imaging approach, the aim of this work was to decipher the structural diversity of biofilms formed by 96 L. monocytogenes strains isolated from various environments. Prior to large-scale analysis, an experimental design was created to improve L. monocytogenes biofilm formation in microscopic-grade microplates, with special emphasis on the growth medium composition. Microscopic analysis of biofilms formed under the selected conditions by the 96 isolates revealed only weak correlation between the genetic lineages of the isolates and the structural properties of the biofilms. However, a gradient in their geometric descriptors (biovolume, mean thickness, and roughness), ranging from flat multilayers to complex honeycomb-like structures, was shown. The dominant honeycomb-like morphotype was characterized by hollow voids hosting free-swimming cells and localized pockets containing mixtures of dead cells and extracellular DNA (eDNA).
Measuring Physical Function in Patients with Complex Medical and Postsurgical Conditions: A Computer Adaptive Approach

Siebens H, Andres PL, Pensheng N, Coster WJ, Haley SM: Measuring physical function in patients with complex medical and postsurgical conditions: a computer adaptive approach. Am J Phys Med Rehabil 2005;84:741–748. Objective:To examine whether the range of disability in the medically complex and postsurgical populations receiving rehabilitation is adequately sampled by the new Activity Measure–Post-Acute Care (AM-PAC), and to assess whether computer adaptive testing (CAT) can derive valid patient scores using fewer questions. Design:Observational study of 158 subjects (mean age 67.2 yrs) receiving skilled rehabilitation services in inpatient (acute rehabilitation hospitals, skilled nursing facility units) and community (home health services, outpatient departments) settings for recent-onset or worsening disability from medical (excluding neurological) and surgical (excluding orthopedic) conditions. Measures were interviewer-administered activity questions (all patients) and physical functioning portion of the SF-36 (outpatients) and standardized chart items (11 Functional Independence Measure (FIM™), 19 Standardized Outcome and Assessment Information Set (OASIS) items, and 22 Minimum Data Set (MDS) items). Rasch modeling analyzed all data and the relationship between person ability estimates and average item difficulty. CAT assessed the ability to derive accurate patient scores using a sample of questions. Results:The 163-item activity item pool covered the range of physical movement and personal and instrumental activities. CAT analysis showed comparable scores between estimates using 10 items or the total item pool. Conclusion:The AM-PAC can assess a broad range of function in patients with complex medical illness. CAT achieves valid patient scores using fewer questions.
Classification, diagnosis, and approach to treatment for angioedema: consensus report from the Hereditary Angioedema International Working Group

Angioedema is defined as localized and self‐limiting edema of the subcutaneous and submucosal tissue, due to a temporary increase in vascular permeability caused by the release of vasoactive mediator(s). When angioedema recurs without significant wheals, the patient should be diagnosed to have angioedema as a distinct disease. In the absence of accepted classification, different types of angioedema are not uniquely identified. For this reason, the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology gave its patronage to a consensus conference aimed at classifying angioedema. Four types of acquired and three types of hereditary angioedema were identified as separate forms from the analysis of the literature and were presented in detail at the meeting. Here, we summarize the analysis of the data and the resulting classification of angioedema.
Blockade of CXCR3 Receptor:Ligand Interactions Reduces Leukocyte Recruitment to the Lung and the Severity of Experimental Idiopathic Pneumonia Syndrome1

Idiopathic pneumonia syndrome (IPS) is a frequently fatal complication after allogeneic stem cell transplantation (allo-SCT) that responds poorly to standard immunosuppressive therapy. The pathophysiology of IPS involves the secretion of inflammatory cytokines including IFN-γ and TNF-α along with the recruitment of donor T cells to the lung. CXCR3 is a chemokine receptor that is expressed on activated Th1/Tc1 T cell subsets and the expression of its ligands CXCL9 (monokine induced by IFN-γ (Mig)) and CXCL10 (IFN-γ-inducible protein 10 (IP-10)) can be induced in a variety of cell types by IFN-γ alone or in combination with TNF-α. We used a lethally irradiated murine SCT model (B6 → bm1) to evaluate the role of CXCR3 receptor:ligand interactions in the development of IPS. We found that Mig and IP-10 protein levels were significantly elevated in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid of allo-SCT recipients compared with syngeneic controls and correlated with the infiltration of IFN-γ-secreting CXCR3+ donor T cells into the lung. The in vivo neutralization of either Mig or IP-10 significantly reduced the severity of IPS compared with control-treated animals, and an additive effect was observed when both ligands were blocked simultaneously. Complementary experiments using CXCR3−/− mice as SCT donors also resulted in a significant decrease in IPS. These data demonstrate that interactions involving CXCR3 and its primary ligands Mig and IP-10 significantly contribute to donor T cell recruitment to the lung after allo-SCT. Therefore, approaches focusing on the abrogation of these interactions may prove successful in preventing or treating lung injury that occurs in this setting.