Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A 10-Year Cross-Sectional Analysis of Air Force Flight and Operational Medicine Clinic Health Care Services.

OBJECTIVES This study described the patient population and the health care services delivered in the Air Force Flight and Operational Medicine Clinics (FOMCs) over the past 10 years. METHODS A cross-sectional analysis was performed on the retrospective cohort of patients who received care at a FOMC from 2003 to 2012. RESULTS A total of 714,157 individuals, generating 4,829,626 encounters, were included in the cohort. They were predominately male service members under the age of 41. One-fifth of individuals were retirees and family members, with one-third being in the pediatric age range. The cohort accessed health care services for three primary reasons: health examinations (28%), occupational dispositions (18%), and primary care (54%). When primary care was sought, the predominate health conditions were upper respiratory infections, back problems, and nontraumatic joint disorders. When services and procedures were a component of the care, they were predominately associated with health examinations involving ophthalmologic, auditory, and cardiac screening tests. Individuals accessing the FOMCs had relatively low need for access to health care services, requiring a median of two annual encounters. CONCLUSIONS This study provided insight into the health care delivered in FOMCs and establishes a foundation for future planning and management of FOMC health care delivery.
First Trimester Initiation of Prenatal Care in the US-Mexico Border Region

Objectives:To systematically examine prevalence of first trimester prenatal care (FTPNC) in the 44 US counties and 80 Mexican municipios of the binational border region; and to describe disparities between border and nonborder areas within states, border states, and countries. Methods:We combined 2009 records of singleton live births from the 10 US-Mexico border states (N=1,370,206) into a single file. We included FTPNC; county/municipio, state, and country of maternal residence; and demographic variables common to all records. We computed prevalence of FTPNC for border and nonborder residents by state and country. Using multivariable regression, we computed adjusted prevalence ratios (aPR) for FTPNC in border relative to nonborder residents, states relative to one another, and the US relative to Mexico. Results:In 2009, 68.8% of US-Mexico border mothers and 72.9% of nonborder mothers received FTPNC. After adjustment, nonborder residents had higher prevalence of FTPNC than border residents in Sonora, New Mexico, Arizona, Coahuila, and Chihuahua (aPR=1.09–124). In US states, prevalence was 13%–36% higher in New Mexico, Arizona, and California than Texas. In Mexico, when compared with Coahuila, adjusted prevalence was 12%–20% higher in neighboring states. Between countries, FTPNC prevalence in border counties/municipios was higher in Mexico among women with low parity/low education and in the United States among women with high parity/high education. Conclusions:In the US and Mexico, women in border counties/municipios receive less timely prenatal care than their nonborder counterparts, but the magnitude of the disparity varies by state. Lack of a consistent, binational approach to birth data collection requires cautious interpretation of findings.
Structures of Activated Fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase from Escherichia coli

The enteric bacterium Escherichia coli requires fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase (FBPase) for growth on gluconeogenic carbon sources. Constitutive expression of FBPase and fructose-6-phosphate-1-kinase coupled with the absence of futile cycling implies an undetermined mechanism of coordinate regulation involving both enzymes. Tricarboxylic acids and phosphorylated three-carbon carboxylic acids, all intermediates of glycolysis and the tricarboxylic acid cycle, are shown here to activate E. coli FBPase. The two most potent activators, phosphoenolpyruvate and citrate, bind to the sulfate anion site, revealed previously in the first crystal structure of the E. coli enzyme. Tetramers ligated with either phosphoenolpyruvate or citrate, in contrast to the sulfate-bound structure, are in the canonical R-state of porcine FBPase but nevertheless retain sterically blocked AMP pockets. At physiologically relevant concentrations, phosphoenolpyruvate and citrate stabilize an active tetramer over a less active enzyme form of mass comparable with that of a dimer. The above implies the conservation of the R-state through evolution. FBPases of heterotrophic organisms of distantly related phylogenetic groups retain residues of the allosteric activator site and in those instances where data are available exhibit activation by phosphoenolpyruvate. Findings here unify disparate observations regarding bacterial FBPases, implicating a mechanism of feed-forward activation in bacterial central metabolism.
Physical activity and chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome.

PURPOSE Chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CP/CPPS) is a prevalent urologic disorder among men, but its etiology is still poorly understood. Our objective was to examine the relation between physical activity and incidence of CP/CPPS in a large cohort of male health professionals. METHODS We conducted a prospective cohort study among men in the Health Professionals Follow-up Study followed from 1986 to 2008. The study population included 20,918 men who completed all CP/CPPS questions on the 2008 questionnaire. Leisure-time physical activity, including type and intensity of activity, was measured by questionnaire in 1986. A National Institute of Health Chronic Prostatitis Symptom Index pain score was calculated on the basis of the responses on the 2008 questionnaire. Participants with pain scores ≥8 were considered CP/CPPS cases (n = 689). RESULTS Higher leisure-time physical activity was associated with lower risk of CP/CPPS. The multivariable-adjusted odds ratio comparing >35.0 to ≤3.5 MET·h·wk of physical activity was 0.72 (95% confidence interval, 0.56-0.92; P for trend <0.001). Observed inverse associations between physical activity and CP/CPPS were similar for both moderate- and vigorous-intensity activities. Sedentary behavior, measured as time spent watching television, was not associated with risk of CP/CPPS (P for trend = 0.64). CONCLUSIONS Findings from this study, the first large scale and most comprehensive study to date on this association, suggest that higher levels of leisure-time physical activity may lower risk of CP/CPPS in middle-age and older men.
Proposed Methods for Evaluating Customer Well-Being and Store Satisfaction Using Online Product Reviews

We propose a new method of evaluating customer well-being–the sense that one’s quality of life is improved through a purchase–by extending a hyponymy analysis to product reviews. We also propose a method of using product reviews to extract customer satisfaction with an online store. These methods can improve the match between shops’ strength and customers’ essential needs related to their well-being.
Molecular Cloning and Characterization of Profilin-3: A Novel Cytoskeleton-Associated Gene Expressed in Rat Kidney and Testes

Profilin is a small actin-binding protein that is involved in diverse functions such as maintaining cell structure integrity, cell mobility, tumor cell metastasis, as well as growth factor signal transduction. In this paper, we describe the molecular cloning and characterization of a novel form of profilin, termed profilin-3, from rat kidney using a PCR-based procedure for isolating tissue-specific genes. The profilin-3 cDNA encoded 137 amino acids, and it shared extensive homology to profilin-1 and profilin-2 from mice and humans. More strikingly, the expression of profilin-3 was highly selective, and its mRNA was only found in the kidney and to a much lesser extent in the testis. The size of the mRNA for profilin-3 in the testis was 1.2 kb, while in kidney it was approximately 4.4–5 kb, suggesting the presence of tissue-specific transcription from different promoters. In addition, we also found that the expression of profilin-3 mRNA was significantly elevated in two types of renal diseases: diabetic nephropathy (db/db mice) and polycystic kidney diseases (cpk mice). Similar to profilin-1 and profilin-2, profilin-3 was localized in the cytoplasmic domain. Furthermore, it was capable of interacting with actin and poly-L-proline in an in vitro assay as well as in transfected cells. These results strongly suggest that, contrary to the ubiquitous presence of profilin-1 and profilin-2, there is a tissue-specific form of these cytoskeleton-regulatory proteins and that the kidney/testes-specific profilin-3 may play a unique role in renal and/or reproductive functions.
Agonistic Antibody to TLR4/MD-2 Protects Mice from Acute Lethal Hepatitis Induced by TNF-α1

LPS is recognized by a heterodimer consisting of TLR4 and its coreceptor MD-2. LPS signal causes excessive inflammation and tissue damage. In this study, we show that a mAb to TLR4/MD-2 protected mice from acute lethal hepatitis caused by LPS/d-galactosamine. The protective effect of the mAb was not due to inhibition of LPS response, because serum TNF-α, which was induced by LPS and caused lethal hepatitis, was 10 times up-regulated by the mAb pretreatment. Moreover, this mAb induced antiapoptotic genes in liver in a TLR4/MD-2-dependent manner. These results demonstrated that an agonistic mAb to TLR4/MD-2 protected mice from LPS/d-galactosamine-induced acute lethal hepatitis by delivering a protective signal activating NF-κB through TLR4/MD-2.
Childhood tuberculosis (Part-I). Epidemiology, pathogenesis, clinical profile.

This paper focuses on the pathogenesis and clinical profile of tuberculosis (TB), a bacterial infection caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis characterized by granuloma formation in infected tissues and by cell-mediated hypersensitivity. TB remains a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide and is the most common cause of death from a single infectious disease, particularly in children. Nearly 40 million children are likely to be exposed to the risk of TB and nearly 3-4 million children below age 5 years are estimated to be infected and may progress to disease. TB accounts for 10-15% of all pediatric deaths in a number of Indian hospitals. Factors such as low socioeconomic status, infections, drugs such as steroids, and age predisposes a person to TB. Childhood TB is classified as follows: 1) asymptomatic mantoux positive, 2) symptomatic mantoux positive, 3) primary pulmonary complex, 4) progressive pulmonary disease, 5) disseminated TB, 6) cervical and abdominal TB, 7) tubercular meningitis, 8) progressive bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) disease, and 9) congenital tuberculosis. Among the various symptom complexes of childhood TB are failure to gain weight or weight loss, sudden onset of fever with erythema nodosum and phlyctenular conjunctivitis, failure to gain weight with respiratory wheezing. The direct and indirect impact of HIV infection on the development of TB in children is also discussed.
Safety and Imaging Quality of MRI in Pediatric and Adult Congenital Heart Disease Patients with Pacemakers

Background: Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a standard of care in evaluating many disease processes. Given concerns about device damage or movement, programming changes, lead heating, inappropriate pacing, and image artifact, MRI is contraindicated in pacemaker patients. Despite this, studies have demonstrated safety and efficacy of MRI in adults with acquired heart disease and endocardial pacing leads. We sought to evaluate MRI use in congenital heart disease (CHD) patients with predominantly epicardial pacing leads.
CYP86A33-Targeted Gene Silencing in Potato Tuber Alters Suberin Composition, Distorts Suberin Lamellae, and Impairs the Periderm's Water Barrier Function1[C][W][OA]

Suberin is a cell wall lipid polyester found in the cork cells of the periderm offering protection against dehydration and pathogens. Its biosynthesis and assembly, as well as its contribution to the sealing properties of the periderm, are still poorly understood. Here, we report on the isolation of the coding sequence CYP86A33 and the molecular and physiological function of this gene in potato (Solanum tuberosum) tuber periderm. CYP86A33 was down-regulated in potato plants by RNA interference-mediated silencing. Periderm from CYP86A33-silenced plants revealed a 60% decrease in its aliphatic suberin load and greatly reduced levels of C18:1 ω-hydroxyacid (approximately 70%) and α,ω-diacid (approximately 90%) monomers in comparison with wild type. Moreover, the glycerol esterified to suberin was reduced by 60% in the silenced plants. The typical regular ultrastructure of suberin, consisting of dark and light lamellae, disappeared and the thickness of the suberin layer was clearly reduced. In addition, the water permeability of the periderm isolated from CYP86A33-silenced lines was 3.5 times higher than that of the wild type. Thus, our data provide convincing evidence for the involvement of ω-functional fatty acids in establishing suberin structure and function.
Microstructural and Topographical Characterization of Different Surface Treatments of a Surgical Titanium Alloy for Dental Implants

Objective:To perform a topographical characterization of a titanium alloy subjected to different surface treatments using roughness evaluation, scanning electron microscopy, and atomic force microscopy. Materials and Methods:For each group, 6 discs of a titanium alloy had their surfaces modified by 4 treatments. All surfaces were blasted with Al2O3, cleaned, and the specimens were divided into 4 groups: G1, immersion in a standardized acid solution (SAS) (control group); G2, immersion in acetone, followed by immersion in SAS; G3, immersion in acetone, followed by immersion in SAS, followed by immersion in nitric acid; G4, immersion in acetone, followed by immersion in SAS, followed by immersion in sulfuric acid. Roughness parameters were determined with a roughness tester, and data were statistically analyzed using analysis of variance and Tukey tests (&agr; = 5%). Results:Regarding the roughness parameters, no significant differences were found. Scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy showed irregular surfaces with the presence of particles uniformly deposited on the surfaces. Conclusion:A similar roughness pattern was created for all the groups. The images and topographic profiles indicated that all the groups showed high levels of roughness.
Statistical Resource Allocation Based on Cognitive Interference Estimation in Ultra-Dense HetNets

In this paper, we develop a statistical resource allocation scheme to mitigate the aggregated co-tier, cross-tier, and cross-link interference in ultra-dense heterogenous networks (HetNets). By statistically and cognitively characterizing the aggregated interference instead of instantaneous interference information exchange, our scheme allocates resources of power and channels to each femtocell distributively taking the impact on the macrocells into consideration. Simulation results show that the femtocell throughput is improved while reducing the macrocell throughput reduction simultaneously.
Supervised Learning of Analysis-Sparsity Priors With Automatic Differentiation

Sparsity priors are commonly used in denoising and image reconstruction. For analysis-type priors, a dictionary defines a representation of signals that is likely to be sparse. In most situations, this dictionary is unknown, and is to be recovered from pairs of ground-truth signals and measurements, by minimizing the reconstruction error. This defines a hierarchical optimization problem, which can be cast as a bi-level optimization. Yet, this problem is unsolvable, as reconstructions and their derivative w.r. t. the dictionary have no closed-form expression. However, reconstructions can be iteratively computed using the Forward-Backward splitting (FB) algorithm. In this letter, we approximate reconstructions by the output of the FB algorithm, up to a linear transformation. Then, we leverage automatic differentiation to evaluate the gradient of this output w.r. t. the dictionary, which we learn with projected gradient descent. Experiments show that our algorithm successfully learns the 1D Total Variation (TV) dictionary from piecewise constant signals. For the same case study, we propose to constrain our search to dictionaries of 0-centered columns, which removes undesired local minima and improves numerical stability.
Lung microRNA profile in chronic cyanotic piglets with decreased pulmonary blood flow

Background Cyanotic congenital heart defects with decreased pulmonary blood flow due to lung ischemia, hypoxia, and others lead to infant morbidity and mortality more than acyanotic heart disease does. Despite the great effort of medical research, their genetic link and underlying microRNAs molecular mechanisms remain obscure. In this study, we aimed to investigate microRNAs regulation during cyanotic defects in lung of immature piglets. Methods Cyanotic piglet model was induced by main pulmonary artery‐left atrium shunt with distal pulmonary artery banding. Four weeks later, hemodynamic parameters confirmed the development of cyanotic defects and pulmonary lobe RNA was extracted from all animals. We studied the repertoire of porcine lung microRNAs by Solexa deep sequencing technology and quantified highly expressed microRNAs by microarray hybridization. Furthermore, we quantitated selected microRNAs from cyanotic and control piglets by quantitative RT‐PCR. Results After surgical procedure 4 weeks later, the cyanotic model produced lower arterial oxygen tension, arterial oxygen saturation, and higher arterial carbon dioxide tension, hematocrit and hemoglobin concentration than controls (all P<0.05). In 1273 miRNAs expressed in the immature piglets lungs, 2 most abundant microRNAs (miR‐370 and miR‐320) demonstrated significant difference between cyanotic and control group (all P<0.05). Conclusion Our results extended lung microRNA profile in immature piglets and suggested that miR‐370 and miR‐320 are significantly up‐regulated in cyanotic lung tissues.
Telemedicine to support coping resources in home-living patients diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: Patients’ experiences

Introduction The way in which telemedicine contributes to promote coping and independence might be undervalued in the development of telemedicine solutions and the implementation of telemedicine interventions. This study explored how home-living patients diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) experienced follow-up using telemedicine, and the extent to which the implemented technology was able to support and improve the patients’ coping resources and independence. Methods A qualitative approach with individual semi-structured interviews was used. Ten patients diagnosed with COPD participated. The data were transcribed verbatim and a qualitative content analysis method was used, including analyses of the manifest and latent content of the texts. Results The participants’ positive attitude to handling and understanding the technology and the positive and negative feelings related to use the technology derived the theme: “The telemedicine solution is experienced as comprehensible and manageable and provides meaning in daily life”. The importance of telemedicine services that provided trust and confidence, the intervention’s impact on independence and self-management and the intervention’s ability to support integrity and meaning in life, derived the theme: “The telemedicine intervention contributes to stress reduction caused by illness burden and facilitates living as normally as possible”. Discussion The impact of a telemedicine intervention might be influenced by the experience of a technological solution that requires little effort to deal with, while it must also provide meaning in life. Furthermore, the telenurses’ expertise and the intervention’s flexibility, i.e. possibilities for individual adaption, might promote coping to facilitate living as normally as possible despite illness.
Differential expression of CCL19 by DC‐Lamp+ mature dendritic cells in human lymph node versus chronically inflamed skin

De novo formation of lymphoid tissue is one of the characteristic features of chronic inflammation. The formation of T cell–mature dendritic cell (DC) clusters has been previously demonstrated in chronically inflamed skin infected with Candida albicans. A functional similarity was also found between chronic inflammation and the T‐cell zone of lymph nodes (LNs), since a substantial fraction of phenotypically mature DCs in both tissues expressed CCL22 (macrophage‐derived chemokine; MDC) and were closely surrounded by memory‐type T cells expressing its receptor, CCR4. To analyse the nature of T cell–mature DC interactions further in chronically inflamed skin and LNs, the present study focuses on another chemokine system, namely CCL19 (EBI1 ligand chemokine; ELC), CCL21 (secondary lymphoid tissue chemokine; SLC) and their shared receptor, CCR7. RT‐PCR analysis revealed expression of CCL19, CCL21, and CCR7 at high levels in LNs and at low levels in inflamed skin. Using immunohistochemistry, the majority of DC‐Lamp+ mature DCs in the T‐cell area of LNs expressed CCL19 and were surrounded by CCR7+ naïve‐type lymphocytes, while CCL21 was expressed in reticular stromal cells and vascular endothelial cells. Very few mature DCs in LNs were found to express CCR7. In contrast, the majority of DC‐Lamp+ mature DCs in inflamed skin were totally negative for CCL19 and were surrounded by CCR7− memory‐type T cells. Furthermore, CCL21 expression in the inflamed skin was detected in dermal lymphatic endothelial cells and rare CCR7+ mature DCs were mostly seen within the lymphatic vessels. In normal skin, on the other hand, no cells immunoreactive for CCL19, CCL21, or CCR7 were found. The present study thus reveals a striking difference in the function of mature DCs between LNs and chronically inflamed skin. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Mortality and cause of death among 1705 illicit drug users: a 37 year follow up.

INTRODUCTION AND AIMS To examine the overall mortality and causes of deaths of a large cohort of users of illicit drugs in Stockholm over 37 years. DESIGN AND METHODS People with substance abuse were identified through records collected by different institutions in Stockholm in 1967. Subjects were followed in registers recording mortality and cause of death and in-patient care stays until 2003. RESULTS More than half (n = 860) of the 1705 identified substance abusers died at an average age of 47 years, 25-30 years younger than the general population. The standardised rate ratio (SRR) for mortality was 3.3 among men and 3.5 among women. Incidence of mortality per 1000 person-years was also increased, but somewhat lower for women. The difference between these two measures is mainly explained by a lower mortality among women in general. In-patient care stays with both alcohol and drug-related diagnoses were associated with higher risk of dying among women than men: SRR = 14.5 and SRR = 4.0, respectively. Accidents and suicide were the most common cause of death among the youngest subjects (15-24 years) and cardiovascular diseases and tumours among the oldest (> or =55 years). DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS Accidents and suicide, especially at a young age, are two common causes of death that might be prevented by increased awareness in medical personnel, along with better treatment and supportive measures.