Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Vascular Injector with Program Selector1

A portable cardiovascular injector previously described (1) proved satisfactory for selective cardioangiography. For peripheral angiography and especially cerebral angiography certain features were lacking, which led to the development of a new device considered suitable for any type of angiographic work. Special emphasis has been placed on simplicity of construction, on operation, and especially on compactness, since floor space is limited in most x-ray rooms. The pertinent features of this injector are: 1. A small power source, namely, a carbon dioxide cartridge. 2. Use of glass syringes as well as a 55-c.c. stainless steel syringe for high pressure injections. 3. Pressure control ranging from minimal thrust up to very high pressure for selective cardioangiography. 4. Automatic heating control in a transparent syringe holder allowing observation of the syringe. 5. One single power cable leading to the x-ray machine. 6. Remote control from the control panel on the x-ray machine. 7. Built-in timer .
The First Miracle Drugs: How the Sulfa Drugs Transformed Medicine (review)

mism in medicine. Focusing on Jesica as a person and not just a patient, King leaves readers with the provocative question, “How much is the extension of a life worth? ” In the Introduction, the editors offer a helpful overview of the main issues discussed in the book.This clearly sets the stage for more detailed analysis and discussion in the essays that follow.Yet the same points are repeated by different authors in many of the essays. A less redundant, more concise volume with tighter thematic integration could have provided just as compelling an account of the Santillan case. Also, some of the essays written by anthropologists address issues that are more tangential than central to the core questions. Overall, though, the authors’ reflections on this case will surely generate constructive debate about the possibilities and limits of American health care in general and transplant medicine in particular.
Imaging nigral pathology and clinical progression in Parkinson's disease

The pattern of dopamine cell loss in Parkinson's disease (PD) is known to be prominent in the ventrolateral and caudal substantia nigra (SN), but less severe in the dorsal and rostral region. Both diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and R2* relaxometry of the SN have been reported as potential markers for PD, but their relative ability to mark disease progression and differences in pathophysiological bases remains unclear. High‐resolution T2‐weighted, R2*, and DTI were obtained from 28 controls and 40 PD subjects [15 early stage [disease duration ≤1 year], 14 mid stage [duration 2–5 years], and 11 late stage [duration >5 years]). Fractional anisotropy and R2* values in both rostral and caudal SN were obtained for all subjects, and clinical measures (e.g., disease duration, levodopa‐equivalent daily dosage, and “off”‐drug UPDRS motor score) were obtained for Parkinson's subjects. There was no correlation between fractional anisotropy and clinical measures, whereas R2* was strongly associated with disease progression. Compared to controls, fractional anisotropy in caudal SN was significantly decreased in PD patients of all stages, whereas in rostral SN, it was decreased significantly only in the late‐stage group. R2* in both SN regions was significantly increased in the mid‐ and late‐stage, but not early‐stage, of PD subjects. These findings suggest that fractional anisotropy changes may mark early pathological changes in caudal SN, whereas the changes in R2* may more closely track PD's clinical progression after symptom onset. © 2012 Movement Disorder Society
Infection with acanthocephalans increases the vulnerability of Gammarus pulex (Crustacea, Amphipoda) to non-host invertebrate predators

SUMMARY Phenotypic alterations induced by parasites in their intermediate hosts often result in enhanced trophic transmission to appropriate final hosts. However, such alterations may also increase the vulnerability of intermediate hosts to predation by non-host species. We studied the influence of both infection with 3 different acanthocephalan parasites (Pomphorhynchus laevis, P. tereticollis, and Polymorphus minutus) and the availability of refuges on the susceptibility of the amphipod Gammarus pulex to predation by 2 non-host predators in microcosms. Only infection with P. laevis increased the vulnerability of amphipods to predation by crayfish, Orconectes limosus. In contrast, in the absence of refuges, the selectivity of water scorpions, Nepa cinerea, for infected prey was significant and did not differ according to parasite species. When a refuge was available for infected prey, however, water scorpion selectivity for infected prey differed between parasite species. Both P. tereticollis- and P. laevis-infected gammarids were more vulnerable than uninfected ones, whereas the reverse was true of P. minutus-infected gammarids. These results suggest that the true consequences of phenotypic changes associated with parasitic infection in terms of increased trophic transmission of parasites deserve further assessment.
An antibody-based ELISA for quantification of Ani s 1, a major allergen from Anisakis simplex

SUMMARY Anisakis simplex is a nematode parasite that can infect humans who have eaten raw or undercooked seafood. Larvae invading the gastrointestinal mucosa excrete/secrete proteins that are implicated in the pathogenesis of anisakiasis and can induce IgE-mediated symptoms. Since Ani s 1 is a potent secreted allergen with important clinical relevance, its measurement could assess the quality of allergenic products used in diagnosis/immunotherapy of Anisakis allergy and track the presence of A. simplex parasites in fish foodstuffs. An antibody-based ELISA for quantification of Ani s 1 has been developed based on monoclonal antibody 4F2 as capture antibody and biotin-labelled polyclonal antibodies against Ani s 1 as detection reagent. The dose-response standard curves, obtained with natural and recombinant antigens, ranged from 4 to 2000 ng/ml and were identical and parallel to that of the A. simplex extract. The linear portion of the dose-response curve with nAni s 1 was between 15 and 250 ng/ml with inter-assay and intra-assays coefficients of variation less than 20% and 10%, respectively. The assay was specific since there was no cross-reaction with other extracts (except Ascaris extracts) and was highly sensitive (detection limit of 1·8 ng/ml), being able to detect Ani s 1 in fish extracts from codfish and monkfish.
Sequence-dependent spin-selective tunneling along double-stranded DNA

We report spin-selective tunneling of electrons along double-stranded DNA sandwiched between nonmagnetic leads. On the basis of a model Hamiltonian which contains spin-orbit interaction and dephasing, the conductance and the spin polarization are calculated for natural and artificial DNA molecules by using the Landauer-B\"uttiker formula. Our results reveal that the spin filtration efficiency strongly depends on the DNA sequence and is dominated by its end segment. Both genomic and artificial DNA molecules could be efficient spin filters. The spin-filtering effects are sensitive to point mutation which occurs in the end segment. These results are in good agreement with recent experiments and are robust against various types of disorder, and could help for designing DNA-based spintronic devices.
Frequency of Toxoplasma gondii infection in sheep from a tropical zone of Mexico and temporal analysis of the humoral response changes

SUMMARY An indirect ELISA and an immunoblot were standardized to detect anti-Toxoplasma gondii antibodies in sheep, and were compared with a commercial ELISA as reference. Sensitivity was 92·0 and 96·0%, and specificity 88·0 and 75·0%, respectively. Then the serum samples of 103 sheep on a ranch located in the Eastern region of Mexico were analysed. A frequency ranging from 77 to 84% was observed, with a heterogeneous pattern among the animals by immunoblotting. Ten months later 56 sheep were sampled and tested again. Six animals became negative while 1 case was negative the first time and strongly positive 10 months later. Considering this to be a new case we calculated an incidence rate of 2·1% (CI95% 0·6–4·8%). IgG avidity ELISA was performed on 36 positive samples, 33 being of high-avidity at both times; slight increases in 2 samples and conservation of low-avidity in 1 sheep were also observed. Higher prevalence rates of toxoplasmosis in a moist warm compared to a cold atmosphere was attributed to the long viability of T. gondii oocysts. This may explain the high frequency of T. gondii in this region, which apparently has favourable climatic conditions for the transmission of this protozoan, besides the presence of both domestic and wild cats.
A role for antimicrobial peptides in intestinal microsporidiosis

SUMMARY Clinical isolates from 3 microsporidia species, Encephalitozoon intestinalis and Encephalitozoon hellem, and the insect parasite Anncaliia (Brachiola, Nosema) algerae, were used in spore germination and enterocyte-like (C2Bbe1) cell infection assays to determine the effect of a panel of antimicrobial peptides. Spores were incubated with lactoferrin (Lf), lysozyme (Lz), and human beta defensin 2 (HBD2), human alpha defensin 5 (HD5), and human alpha defensin 1 (HNP1), alone and in combination with Lz, prior to germination. Of the Encephalitozoon species only E. hellem spore germination was inhibited by HNP1, while A. algerae spore germination was inhibited by Lf, HBD2, HD5 and HNP1, although HBD2 and HD5 inhibition required the presence of Lz. The effects of HBD2 and HD5 on microsporidia enterocyte infection paralleled their effects on spore germination. Lysozyme alone only inhibited infection with A. algerae, while Lf inhibited infection by E. intestinalis and A. algerae. HNP1 significantly reduced enterocyte infection by all 3 parasite species and a combination of Lf, Lz and HNP1 caused a further reduced infection with A. algerae. These data suggest that intestinal antimicrobial peptides contribute to the defence of the intestine against infection by luminal microsporidia spores and may partially determine which parasite species infects the intestine.
Is the nestedness of metazoan parasite assemblages of marine fishes from the southeastern Pacific coast a pattern associated with the geographical distributional range of the host?

SUMMARY Nested structure is a pattern originally described in island biogeography to characterize how a set of species is distributed among a set of islands. In parasite communities, nestedness has been intensively studied among individual fish from a locality. However, nested patterns among parasite assemblages from different host populations (localities) have scarcely been investigated. We recorded the occurrence of parasites in 9 fish species widely distributed along the southeastern Pacific coast to determine whether the ecto- and endoparasite assemblages of marine fishes show a nested structure associated with host distributional range. Nestedness was tested using Brualdi-Sanderson index of discrepancy (BR); and 5 null models incorporated in a ‘Nestedness’ programme (Ulrich, 2006). The ecto- and endoparasite richness do not show similar patterns of latitudinal gradients among fish hosts, with 33–66% of analysed ectoparasite assemblages, and 25–75% of endoparasite assemblages showing nested structures through the host distributional range. For ectoparasites, species richness gradients and nested structure (when present) might be associated with decreased host densities or could reflect negative environmental conditions in the distributional border of the host species, whereas for endoparasites might be caused by geographical breaks of prey or changes in prey availability (intermediate hosts). The sampled extension of the distributional range of the host species, as well as the lack of specificity of some parasites, could influence the detection of nestedness.
Search for Gravitational Waves in the CMB After WMAP3: Foreground Confusion and The Optimal Frequency Coverage for Foreground Minimization

B-modes of cosmic microwave background (CMB) polarization can be created by a primordial gravitational wave background. If this background was created by inflation, then the amplitude of the polarization signal is proportional to the energy density of the universe during inflation. The primordial signal will be contaminated by polarized foregrounds including dust and synchrotron emission within the galaxy. In light of the WMAP polarization maps, we consider the ability of several hypothetical CMB polarization experiments to separate primordial CMB B-mode signal from galactic foregrounds. We also study the optimization of a CMB experiment with a fixed number of detectors in the focal plane to determine how the detectors should be distributed in different frequency bands to minimize foreground confusion. We show that the optimal configuration requires observations in at least 5 channels spread over the frequency range between 30 and 500 GHz with substantial coverage around 150 GHz. If a low-resolution space experiment using 1000 detectors to reach a noise level of about 1000 nK{sup 2} concentrates on roughly 66% of the sky with the least foreground contamination, the minimum detectable level of the tensor-to-scalar ratio would be about 0.002 at the 99% confidence level for an optical depth ofmore » 0.1. « less
Identification of perioperative pulmonary aspiration in children using quality assurance and hospital administrative billing data

Perioperative aspiration is a rare but potentially devastating complication, occurring in 1‐10 per 10 000 anesthetics based on studies of quality assurance databases. Quality assurance reporting is known to underestimate the incidence of adverse outcomes, but few large studies use supplementary data sources. This study aims to identify the incidence of and risk factors for perioperative aspiration in children using quality assurance data supplemented by administrative billing records, and to examine the utility of billing data as a supplementary data source.
Optimizing a Novel Method for Synthesizing Gold Nanoparticles: Biophysical Studies

Background: The properties of Gold Nanoparticles (GNPs) make them useful for cancer therapy, diagnostics and imaging. For the application of GNPs in therapy and drug delivery there is a great necessity to synthesize known particle size of GNPs with simple methods. This study aimed to optimize a novel simple method for synthesizing GNPs. Methods: GNPs were synthesized by using different citrate concentrations (40, 100 and 150 mM) through reduction of hydrogen tetrachloroaurate (HAuCl4) of varying concentrations. The synthesized GNPs were characterized with transmission electron microscope, UV-Vis spectrophotometer, and size distributions with dynamic light scattering. Results: At 40 mM citrate concentration, different particle sizes (18-28 nm), non-round and not homogenous GNPs were formed; at 100 mM citrate concentration, more round GNPs were formed and the particle size reduced to nearly 12 nm with very narrow particle size distribution; at 150 mM citrate concentration, the GNPs size increased up to 18 nm and the homogeneity of the particle size distribution reduced as indicted from both Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) image and distribution profile. When HAuCl4 concentration increased from 1 to 4 mM, the particle size of GNPs increased from 12 nm to nearly 20 nm, respectively. Conclusions: At 40 mM citrate concentration, the coverage of citrate is incomplete and the aggregation process leads to the formation of inhomogenous GNPs; at 100 mM citrate concentrations, the citrate behaves as a pH mediator explains the reduction of the particle size. The increase of HAuCl4 concentration causes retardation of the nucleation step forming lower number of nuclei in the solution and thus increases the final particle size and polydispersity.
American Gastroenterological Association Institute Technical Review on the Role of Elastography in Chronic Liver Diseases.

Chronic liver diseases (CLDs), due to chronic hepatitis C; hepatitis B; nonalcoholic fatty liver diseases (NAFLD); and alcoholic liver disease, are a leading cause of morbidity and mortality globally. Early identification of patients with cirrhosis at high risk of progression to liver-related complications may facilitate timely care and improve outcomes. With risks and misclassification associated with invasive tests, such as liver biopsy, noninvasive imaging modalities for liver fibrosis assessment have gained popularity. Therefore, the American Gastroenterological Association prioritized clinical guidelines on the role of elastography in CLDs, focusing on vibration-controlled transient elastography (VCTE) and magnetic resonance elastography (MRE). To inform these clinical guidelines, the current technical review was developed in accordance with the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) framework for diagnostic accuracy studies. This technical review addresses focused questions related to: (1) comparative diagnostic performance of VCTE and MRE relative to nonproprietary, serum-based fibrosis markers for detection of cirrhosis in patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV), hepatitis B virus (HBV), NAFLD, and alcoholic liver diseases; (2) performance of specific VCTE-defined liver stiffness cutoffs as a test replacement strategy (to replace liver biopsy) in making key decisions in the management of patients with CLDs; and (3) performance of specific VCTE-defined liver stiffness cutoffs as a triage test to identify patients with low likelihood of harboring high-risk esophageal varices (EVs) or having clinically significant portal hypertension (for presurgical risk stratification). This technical review does not address performance of other noninvasive modalities for assessing fibrosis (eg, acoustic radiation force pulse imaging or shear wave elastography) or steatosis (controlled attenuation parameter or magnetic resonance imaging-estimated proton density fat fraction).
Normatização de técnicas e equipamentos para realização de exames em ergometria e ergoespirometria

Preâmbulo Após meses de contatos via internet, horas de busca por informações referentes ao tópico que nos coube e muito aprendizado, o grupo elaborador da presente normatização, em nome da Sociedade Brasileira de Cardiologia, tem a satisfação de disponibilizar aos cardiologistas brasileiros um documento sui generis. Muito embora não tenhamos a pretensão de ser dogmáticos, esperamos que os colegas utilizem as recomendações contidas no texto, como fonte para uma otimização em sua rotina ergométrica e/ou ergoespirométrica.
Estimating phylogenetic relationships despite discordant gene trees across loci: the species tree of a diverse species group of feather mites (Acari: Proctophyllodidae)

SUMMARY With the increased availability of multilocus sequence data, the lack of concordance of gene trees estimated for independent loci has focused attention on both the biological processes producing the discord and the methodologies used to estimate phylogenetic relationships. What has emerged is a suite of new analytical tools for phylogenetic inference – species tree approaches. In contrast to traditional phylogenetic methods that are stymied by the idiosyncrasies of gene trees, approaches for estimating species trees explicitly take into account the cause of discord among loci and, in the process, provides a direct estimate of phylogenetic history (i.e. the history of species divergence, not divergence of specific loci). We illustrate the utility of species tree estimates with an analysis of a diverse group of feather mites, the pinnatus species group (genus Proctophyllodes). Discord among four sequenced nuclear loci is consistent with theoretical expectations, given the short time separating speciation events (as evident by short internodes relative to terminal branch lengths in the trees). Nevertheless, many of the relationships are well resolved in a Bayesian estimate of the species tree; the analysis also highlights ambiguous aspects of the phylogeny that require additional loci. The broad utility of species tree approaches is discussed, and specifically, their application to groups with high speciation rates – a history of diversification with particular prevalence in host/parasite systems where species interactions can drive rapid diversification.
Hypothyroidism in patients with rheumatoid arthritis and its relation to disease activity

Background and objective The relationship between thyroid disease and rheumatic disorders has been the subject of considerable debate. Thyroid abnormal function and/or autoimmune thyroid disease were observed in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), which could be attributed to the natural feature of autoimmune diseases and their tendency to overlap. Consideration of the fact that autoimmunity plays a role in the pathogenesis of both RA and hypothyroidism has raised the need to study the frequency of hypothyroidism and thyroid antibodies in RA patients and their relation to disease activity. Patients and methods One hundred and fifty RA patients and 50 control participants were included in this study. RA patients were subjected to a full assessment of medical and rheumatological history, and examination as well as routine lab tests. Patients and controls underwent thyroid function testing including thyroid antibodies. Patients' disease activity was determined using the Modified Disease Activity Score and their functional status was assessed using the Modified Health Assessment Questionnaire. Results The most common thyroid dysfunction was hypothyroidism, which was found in 36 (24%) RA patients, followed by subclinical hypothyroidism in six (4%) patients, whereas subclinical hyperthyroidism was present in two (1.3%) patients. Autoimmune thyroid disease was present in 10 (6.6%) patients and absent in the controls. There was a significant positive correlation between thyroid stimulating hormone levels and RA disease activity parameters. Conclusion Hypothyroidism was the most common thyroid disorder associated with RA, present in 24%, with a significant association with RA disease activity parameters.