Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The "heart disease and stroke statistics--2013 update" and the need for a national cardiovascular surveillance system.

The “Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics—2013 Update,” published by the American Heart Association (AHA) in this issue of Circulation ,1 and the Institute of Medicine (IOM) report, “A National Framework for Surveillance of Cardiovascular and Chronic Lung Diseases,” published last year,2 attest to the importance and value of timely, high-quality, population-based data on the incidence of heart disease and stroke and their risk factors. The annual Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics Update is the authoritative source of annual estimates of incidence, prevalence, and risk factor distribution in the country. It is carefully crafted from a wide variety of separate federally and privately funded studies of various designs, reach, and sample size. In its breath, quality, and style it represents a national treasure of the best available information on the burden of heart disease and stroke events and risk factors that is a highly valued resource in the medical and public health communities. Indeed, the Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics Update is cited nearly 2000 times each year in the scientific literature. However, even this compilation of the best data available does not have national representative or timely data on heart disease and stroke incidence at its disposal. It is our best guess at questions for which we should not be guessing. More comprehensive monitoring of the occurrence of cardiovascular diseases (CVD), which cause more death and disability than any other medical conditions, is important to the physical and economic health of the country. The IOM report is clear in its overall message and resolute in its vision; we need to strengthen our ability to monitor the cardiovascular health of the country and create a national system to capture information on heart disease and stroke. The Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics Update appearing in this issue is our best …
SRD‐1 in AWA neurons is the receptor for female volatile sex pheromones in C. elegans males

Pheromones are critical cues for attracting mating partners for successful reproduction. Sexually mature Caenorhabditis remanei virgin females and self‐sperm‐depleted Caenorhabditis elegans hermaphrodites produce volatile sex pheromones to attract adult males of both species from afar. The chemoresponsive receptor in males has remained unknown. Here, we show that the male chemotactic behavior requires amphid sensory neurons (AWA neurons) and the G‐protein‐coupled receptor SRD‐1. SRD‐1 expression in AWA neurons is sexually dimorphic, with the levels being high in males but undetectable in hermaphrodites. Notably, srd‐1 mutant males lack the chemotactic response and pheromone‐induced excitation of AWA neurons, both of which can be restored in males and hermaphrodites by AWA‐specific srd‐1 expression, and ectopic expression of srd‐1 in AWB neurons in srd‐1 mutants results in a repulsive behavioral response in both sexes. Furthermore, we show that the C‐terminal region of SRD‐1 confers species‐specific differences in the ability to perceive sex pheromones between C. elegans and C. remanei. These findings offer an excellent model for dissecting how a single G‐protein‐coupled receptor expressed in a dimorphic neural system contributes to sex‐specific behaviors in animals.
Morphological and molecular diversity of rissoellids (Mollusca, Gastropoda, Heterobranchia) from the Northwest Pacific island of Hokkaido, Japan.

This study deals with four species of marine microgastropods of the family Rissoellidae. Rissoella elatior (Golikov, Gulbin Sirenko, 1987), R. golikovi (Gulbin, 1979), R. japonica n. sp. , and Rissoella sp. 1 were collected in different locations around the island of Hokkaido, Japan. Light and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were used to study the general morphology of the shell and radula, and a region of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) gene was amplified for 26 specimens. Rissoella elatior is morphologically characterized by a highly asymmetrical radula with a deep notch encircled by 10-13 minute secondary cusps on the left dorsal margin of the central tooth. Rissoella golikovi is characterized by a skeneiform shell and possession of three teeth per row on the radula. Rissoella japonica n. sp. shows five teeth per row on the radula; central tooth higher than wide; lateral and marginal teeth narrow with an outer lateral projection at the base; all teeth presenting numerous small cusps on the cutting edge. Rissoella sp. 1 is distinguished from R. japonica n. sp. in having i) very short oral lobes, ii) a mantle with a large, black patch and whitish blotches inside, and iii) different color patterns associated with the visceral mass. Although Rissoella sp. 1 probably represents an undescribed species, additional specimens are needed to complete its description. This study represents a first molecular approach to the family Rissoellidae. Studies of traditional morphological characters indicated four species, the addition of COI data raised the count to eight potential species, suggesting the occurrence of cryptic species among rissoellids.
Construction and analysis of a spinal cord injury competitive endogenous RNA network based on the expression data of long noncoding, micro- and messenger RNAs

Spinal cord injury (SCI) results from trauma and predominantly affects the young male population. SCI imposes major and permanent life changes, and is associated with high future mortality and disability rates. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have recently been demonstrated to serve critical roles in a broad range of biological processes and to be expressed in various diseases, including in SCI. However, the precise mechanisms underlying the roles of lncRNAs in SCI pathogenesis remain unexplored. In the present study, the aim was to identify critical differentially expressed lncRNAs in SCI based on the competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) hypothesis by mining data from the Gene Expression Omnibus database of the National Center for Biotechnology Information and to unveil the functions of these lncRNAs. Different approaches and tools were employed to establish a network consisting of 13 lncRNA, 93 messenger RNA and 9 microRNA nodes, with a total of 202 edges. Three node lncRNAs were identified based on the degree distribution of the nodes, and their corresponding subnetworks were subsequently constructed. Based on these subnetworks, the biological pathways and interactions of these 3 lncRNAs were detailed using FunRich software (version 3.0). The primary results of the 3 lncRNA enrichment analyses were that they were associated with autophagy, extracellular communication and transcription factor networks, respectively. The phosphoinositide 3-kinase/protein kinase B/mammalian target of rapamycin signaling pathway of XR_350851 was the classic autophagy pathway, indicating that XR_350851 may regulate autophagy in SCI. The possible role of XR_350851 in SCI revealed in the current study based on the regulatory mechanism of ceRNAs has uncovered a new repertoire of molecular factors with potential as novel biomarkers and therapeutic targets in SCI.
Complexity of glandular architecture should be reconsidered in the classification and management of endometrial hyperplasia

The 2014 World Health Organization (WHO) classification of endometrial hyperplasia (EH) defines premalignant EH based on only cytologic atypia, disregarding architecture complexity. We aimed to assess the impact of architecture complexity on the risk of cancer in non‐atypical EH. A systematic review and meta‐analysis was performed by searching electronic databases form their inception to October 2018. All studies assessing the rates of progression to cancer in non‐atypical EH (simple vs complex) were included. Pooled relative risk (RR) for cancer progression was calculated; a p‐value < 0.05 was considered significant. Eight studies with 1066 women were included. The risk for progression of non‐atypical EH to cancer was significantly higher in complex EH than in simple EH (p < 0.0001), with an RR of 4.90. In conclusion, the complexity of glandular architecture significantly increases the risk of cancer in non‐atypical EH. Complex non‐atypical EH may be regarded as a low‐risk premalignant lesion rather than a benign condition.
QuantIF: An ImageJ Macro to Automatically Determine the Percentage of Infected Cells after Immunofluorescence

Counting labeled cells, after immunofluorescence or expression of a genetically fluorescent reporter protein, is frequently used to quantify viral infection. However, this can be very tedious without a high content screening apparatus. For this reason, we have developed QuantIF, an ImageJ macro that automatically determines the total number of cells and the number of labeled cells from two images of the same field, using DAPI- and specific-stainings, respectively. QuantIF can automatically analyze hundreds of images, taking approximately one second for each field. It is freely available as supplementary data online at MDPI.com and has been developed using ImageJ, a free image processing program that can run on any computer with a Java virtual machine, which is distributed for Windows, Mac, and Linux. It is routinely used in our labs to quantify viral infections in vitro, but can easily be used for other applications that require quantification of labeled cells.
Beyond Irritable Bowel Syndrome: The Efficacy of the Low Fodmap Diet for Improving Symptoms in Inflammatory Bowel Diseases and Celiac Disease

Background and Aim: To evaluate the usefulness of a low FODMAP (Fermentable Oligosaccharides, Disaccharides, Monosaccharides, and Polyols) diet on patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), non-active inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), and celiac disease (CD) on a gluten-free diet (GFD). Methods: Dietetic interventional prospective study. IBS, IBD, and CD subjects were evaluated to check if they fulfilled the Rome III criteria. Each subject was educated to follow a low FODMAP diet after being evaluated by filling out questionnaires that assessed the quality of life (QoL) and symptoms experienced (IBS-SSS and SF-36), and was reevaluated after 1 and 3 months. Results: One hundred twenty-seven subjects were enrolled: 56 with IBS, 30 with IBD, and 41 with CD. IBS-SSS showed that abdominal symptoms improved after 1 and 3 months of diet in all subjects, with significant difference among the 3 groups at T0 (average scores IBS: 293 ± 137, IBD: 206 ± 86, CD: 222 ± 65, p < 0.001), but no difference at T3 (IBS: 88 ± 54, IBD: 73 ± 45, CD: 77 ± 49, p = ns). By analyzing the SF-36 questionnaire, we did not observe any difference between the 3 groups, in terms of response to diet (p = ns), we observed a clinical improvement from T0 to T3 for most of the questionnaire’s domains. Conclusions: A low FODMAP diet could be a valid option to counter abdominal symptoms in patients with IBS, non-active IBD, or CD on a GFD, and thus, improve their QoL and social relations.
Dog ownership and cardiovascular risk factors: a nationwide prospective register-based cohort study

Objective To study the association between dog ownership and cardiovascular risk factors. Design A nationwide register–based cohort study and a cross-sectional study in a subset. Setting A cohort of 2 026 865 participants was identified from the Register of the Total Population and linked to national registers for information on dog ownership, prescribed medication, hospital admissions, education level, income and country of birth. Participants were followed from 1 October, 2006, to the end of the study on 31 December, 2012, assessing medication for a cardiovascular risk factor, emigration and death. Cross-sectional associations were further assessed in 10 110 individuals from the TwinGene study with additional adjustment for professional level, employment status, Charlson comorbidity index, disability and tobacco use. Participants All Swedish residents aged 45–80 years on 1 October, 2006. Main outcome measures Initiation of medication for hypertension, dyslipidaemia and diabetes mellitus. Results After adjustment for confounders, the results indicated slightly higher likelihood of initiating antihypertensive (HR, 1.02; 95% CI, 1.01 to 1.03) and lipid-lowering treatment (HR, 1.02; 95% CI, 1.01 to 1.04) in dog owners than in non-owners, particularly among those aged 45–60 years and in those owning mixed breed or companion/toy breed dogs. No association of dog ownership with initiation of treatment for diabetes was found in the overall analysis (HR, 0.98; 95% CI, 0.95 to 1.01). Sensitivity analyses in the TwinGene cohort indicated confounding of the association between dog ownership and prevalent treatment for hypertension, dyslipidaemia and diabetes mellitus, respectively, from factors not available in the national cohort, such as employment status and non cardiovascularchronic disease status. Conclusions In this large cohort study, dog ownership was associated with a minimally higher risk of initiation of treatment for hypertension and dyslipidaemia implying that the previously reported lower risk of cardiovascular mortality among dog owners in this cohort is not explained by reduced hypertension and dyslipidaemia. These observations may suffer from residual confounding despite access to multiple important covariates, and future studies may add valuable information.
Genetic screening revealed usher syndrome in a paediatric Chinese patient

Abstract Introduction: Usher syndrome (USH) is the most common cause of hereditary deaf-blindness. Three clinical subtypes have been classified. USH type I is the most severe subtype characterized by congenital severe-to-profound hearing loss, retinitis pigmentosa and vestibular dysfunction. Methods: One family was analyzed and the analysis included the combination of a custom capture/next-generation sequencing panel of 180 known deafness gene, Sanger sequencing and bioinformatics approaches. Results: Compound heterozygous mutations in the MYO7A gene: a known missense mutation c.494C > T (p.Thr165Met) and a novel missense mutation c.6113G > A (p.Gly2038Glu) were identified in a proband. This Chinese hearing-impaired child was misdiagnosed as non-syndromic hearing loss which was later changed to the diagnosis of USH type I after comprehensive audiometric, vestibular and ophthalmological examinations at 9 years old. Conclusions: Due to the features of genetic heterogeneity and variation in clinical manifestation, molecular diagnosis and ophthalmological examinations by skilled ophthalmologists with knowledge of USH should be suggested as a routine assessment which may improve the accuracy and reliability of etiological diagnosis for hearing loss.
Chest computed tomography scores are predictive of survival in patients with cystic fibrosis awaiting lung transplantation.

RATIONALE Up to one-third of patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) awaiting lung transplantation (LTX) die while waiting. Inclusion of computed tomography (CT) scores may improve survival prediction models such as the lung allocation score (LAS). OBJECTIVES This study investigated the association between CT and survival in patients with CF screened for LTX. METHODS Clinical data and chest CTs of 411 patients with CF screened for LTX between 1990 and 2005 were collected from 17 centers. CTs were scored with the Severe Advanced Lung Disease (SALD) four-category scoring system, including the components infection/inflammation (INF), air trapping/hypoperfusion (AT), normal/hyperperfusion (NOR), and bulla/cysts (BUL). The volume of each component was computed using semiautomated software. Survival analysis included Kaplan-Meier curves and Cox regression models. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS Three hundred and sixty-six (186 males) of 411 patients entered the waiting list (median age, 23 yr; range, 5-58 yr). Subsequently, 67 of 366 (18%) died while waiting, 263 of 366 (72%) underwent LTX, and 36 of 366 (10%) were awaiting LTX at the census date. INF and LAS were significantly associated with waiting list mortality in univariate analyses. The multivariate Cox model including INF and LAS grouped in tertiles, and comparing tertiles 2 and 3 with tertile 1, showed waiting list mortality hazard ratios of 1.62 (95% confidence interval [95% CI], 0.78-3.36; P = 0.19) and 2.65 (95% CI, 1.35-5.20; P = 0.005) for INF, and 1.42 (95% CI, 0.63-3.24; P = 0.40), and 2.32 (95% CI, 1.17-4.60; P = 0.016) for LAS, respectively. These results indicated that INF and LAS had significant, independent predictive value for survival. CONCLUSIONS CT score INF correlates with survival, and adds to the predictive value of LAS.
Extracted chitosan disrupts quorum sensing mediated virulence factors in Urinary tract infection causing pathogens

&NA; Quorum sensing (QS) plays an important role during the aetiology of urinary tract infection (UTI), as several virulence factors are under the regulation of QS. Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Serratia marcescens, the primary causative agents of UTI, employ acyl homoserine lactone (AHL) as signal molecules to coordinate various virulence factors. In this present study, chitosan extracted from the marine crab Portunus sanguinolentus was screened for its ability to inhibit the QS‐signaling molecules of P. aeruginosa (PA01) and few clinical isolates of P. aeruginosa and S. marcescens. The extracted chitosan on comparison with a commercial chitosan showed significant inhibition of several QS‐dependent virulence factors in P. aeruginosa and S. marscenes. Furthermore, qPCR analysis was carried out to confirm the down‐regulation of fimA, fimC and flhD genes involved in adhesion and pathogenesis of S. marcescens and lasI and rhlI genes that governs the P. aeruginosa quorum sensing system. Moreover, the chitosan when coated on a catheter was also able to disrupt the mature biofilms which was revealed by scanning electron microscopy. Collectively, the present study showcases the QS inhibitory property of extracted chitosan from crab shells which is being discarded as a recalcitrant biowaste.
Guidelines of the International Headache Society for controlled trials of acute treatment of migraine attacks in adults: Fourth edition

The quality of clinical trials is an essential part of the evidence base for the treatment of headache disorders. In 1991, the International Headache Society Clinical Trials Standing Committee developed and published the first edition of the Guidelines for controlled trials of drugs in migraine. Scientific and clinical developments in headache medicine led to second and third editions in 2000 and 2012, respectively. The current, fourth edition of the Guidelines retains the structure and much content from previous editions. However, it also incorporates evidence from clinical trials published after the third edition as well as feedback from meetings with regulators, pharmaceutical and device manufacturers, and patient associations. Its final form reflects the collective expertise and judgement of the Committee. These updated recommendations and commentary are intended to meet the Society's continuing objective of providing a contemporary, standardized, and evidence-based approach to the conduct and reporting of randomised controlled trials for the acute treatment of migraine attacks.
The influence of contextual faces on bilingual language control

How do faces with social-cultural identity affect bilingual language control? We approach this question by looking at the switch cost patterns and reversed language dominance effect, which are suggested to reflect bilingual language control mechanisms, in the absence (i.e., baseline context) or presence of faces with socio-cultural identity (Asian or Caucasian). In separate blocks, the face matched (i.e., congruent context) or mismatched (i.e., incongruent context) the language to be spoken. In addition, cue preparation time was manipulated to be long (Experiment 1) or short (Experiment 2). In both experiments, a unique asymmetric switch cost with larger costs for L2 was observed in the congruent context as compared with the baseline and incongruent contexts. Furthermore, the reversed language dominance effect was not modulated across contexts. These results suggest a critical role of contextual faces in modulating local but not global language control. Thus, bilingual language control changes flexibly within an environment that includes faces with socio-cultural identity.
Mechanism of Suspended Kaolinite Particle Clogging in Porous Media During Managed Aquifer Recharge

Managed aquifer recharge is an effective strategy for urban stormwater management. Chemical ions are normally retained in stormwater and groundwater and may accelerate clogging during the recharge process. However, the effect of water chemistry on physical clogging has not previously been investigated. In this study, we investigated the hydrogeochemical mechanism of saturated porous media clogging in a series of column experiments. The column was packed with river sand and added suspensions of kaolinite particles. Calcium chloride and sodium chloride are used as representative ions to study chemical effects. We found that an increase in ionic strength resulted in retention of kaolinite solids in the column, with a breakthrough peak of C/C0 value of 1 to 0.2. The corresponding hydraulic conductivity decreased with increased solids clogging. Divalent cations were also found to have a greater influence on kaolinite particle clogging than monovalent cations. The enhanced hydrochemical‐related clogging was caused by kaolinite solids flocculating and increasing the deposition rate coefficient by 1 to 2 times in high ionic strength conditions. Three clogging mechanisms of kaolinite solids are proposed: surface filtration, inner blocking, and attachment. This study further deepens the understanding of the mechanisms of solids clogging during aquifer recharge and demonstrates the significance of ionic strength on recharge clogging risk assessments.
Identification of the Degree of Degradation of Fibre-Cement Boards Exposed to Fire by Means of the Acoustic Emission Method and Artificial Neural Networks

This paper presents the results of research aimed at identifying the degree of degradation of fibre-cement boards exposed to fire. The fibre-cement board samples were initially exposed to fire at various durations in the range of 1–15 min. The samples were then subjected to three-point bending and were investigated using the acoustic emission method. Artificial neural networks (ANNs) were employed to analyse the results yielded by the acoustic emission method. Fire was found to have a degrading effect on the fibres contained in the boards. As the length of exposure to fire increased, the fibres underwent gradual degradation, which was reflected in a decrease in the number of acoustic emission (AE) events recognised by the artificial neural networks as accompanying the breaking of the fibres during the three-point bending of the sample. It was shown that it is not sufficient to determine the degree of degradation of fibre-cement boards solely on the basis of bending strength (MOR).