Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Zinc carnosine works with bovine colostrum in truncating heavy exercise-induced increase in gut permeability in healthy volunteers.

BACKGROUND Heavy exercise causes gut symptoms and, in extreme cases, heat stroke that is due to the increased intestinal permeability of luminal toxins. OBJECTIVE We examined whether zinc carnosine (ZnC), a health-food product taken alone or in combination with bovine colostrum (a natural source of growth factors), would moderate such effects. DESIGN Eight volunteers completed a 4-arm, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover protocol (14 d of placebo, ZnC, colostrum, or ZnC plus colostrum) before undertaking standardized exercise 2 and 14 d after the start of treatment. Changes in epithelial resistance, apoptosis signaling molecules, and tight junction (TJ) protein phosphorylation in response to a 2°C rise in body temperature were determined with the use of Caco-2 and HT29 intestinal cells. RESULTS Body temperature increased 2°C, and gut permeability (5-h urinary lactulose:rhamnose ratios) increased 3-fold after exercise (from 0.32 ± 0.016 baseline to 1.0 ± 0.017 at 14 d; P < 0.01). ZnC or colostrum truncated the rise by 70% after 14 d of treatment. The combination treatment gave an additional benefit, and truncated exercise induced increase at 2 d (30% reduction; P < 0.01). A 2°C temperature rise in in vitro studies caused the doubling of apoptosis and reduced epithelial resistance 3-4-fold. ZnC or colostrum truncated these effects (35-50%) with the greatest response seen with the combination treatment (all P < 0.01). Mechanisms of action included increasing heat shock protein 70 and truncating temperature-induced changes in B cell leukemia/lymphoma-2 associated X protein α and B cell lymphoma 2. ZnC also increased total occludin and reduced phosphorylated tyrosine claudin, phosphorylated tyrosine occludin, and phosphorylated serine occludin, thereby enhancing the TJ formation and stabilization. CONCLUSION ZnC, taken alone or with colostrum, increased epithelial resistance and the TJ structure and may have value for athletes and in the prevention of heat stroke in military personnel. This trial was registered at www.isrctn. com as ISRCTN51159138.
Cerebrospinal Fluid Alzheimer's Disease Biomarkers in Cerebral Amyloid Angiopathy-Related Inflammation.

BACKGROUND Decreased cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) amyloid-β 1-40 (Aβ40) and amyloid-β 1-42 (Aβ42) and increased total and phosphorylated tau (t-tau, p-tau) concentrations have been described in cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA). OBJECTIVE Our aim was to analyze these biomarkers in patients with CAA-related inflammation (CAA-I). METHODS We prospectively recruited nine patients with acute phase CAA-I fulfilling Chung criteria. CSF was analyzed for t-tau, p-tau, Aβ42, and Aβ40. Data were compared to controls (n = 14), patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD, n = 42), CAA (n = 10), and primary angiitis of the central nervous system (PACNS, n = 3). RESULTS For the CAA-I group, statistically significant differences were: lower Aβ42 (p = 0.00053) compared to the control group; lower t-tau (p = 0.018), p-tau (p < 0.001), and Aβ40 (p < 0.001) compared to AD; lower Aβ42 (p = 0.027) compared to CAA; lower Aβ42 (p = 0.012) compared to PACNS. Nearly significantly lower Aβ40 (p = 0.051) and higher t-tau (p = 0.051) were seen in CAA-I compared to controls. CONCLUSION CSF biomarkers profile similar to that of CAA was observed in CAA-I (with even lower levels of Aβ42 compared to CAA). Based on our findings, high p-tau seems more specific for AD, whereas low Aβ42 differentiates CAA-I from CAA, PACNS, and controls, and low Aβ40 differentiates CAA-I from AD.
Cardiovascular Risk Prediction Functions Underestimate Risk in HIV Infection

Background: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk is elevated in HIV-infected individuals, with contributions from both traditional and nontraditional risk factors. The accuracy of established CVD risk prediction functions in HIV is uncertain. We sought to assess the performance of 3 established CVD risk prediction functions in a longitudinal cohort of HIV-infected men. Methods: The FHS (Framingham Heart Study) functions for hard coronary heart disease (FHS CHD) and atherosclerotic CVD (FHS ASCVD) and the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association ASCVD function were applied to the Partners HIV cohort. Risk scores were calculated between January 1, 2006, and December 31, 2008. Outcomes included CHD (myocardial infarction or coronary death) for the FHS CHD function and ASCVD (myocardial infarction, stroke, or coronary death) for the FHS ASCVD and American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association ASCVD functions. We investigated the accuracy of CVD risk prediction for each function when applied to the HIV cohort using comparison of Cox regression coefficients, discrimination, and calibration. Results: The HIV cohort was comprised of 1272 men followed for a median of 4.4 years. There were 78 (6.1%) ASCVD events; the 5-year incidence rate was 16.4 per 1000 person-years. Discrimination was moderate to poor as indicated by the low c statistic (0.68 for FHS CHD, 0.65 for American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association ASCVD, and 0.67 for FHS ASCVD). Observed CVD risk exceeded the predicted risk for each of the functions in most deciles of predicted risk. Calibration, or goodness of fit of the models, was consistently poor, with significant &khgr;2 P values for all functions. Recalibration did not significantly improve model fit. Conclusions: Cardiovascular risk prediction functions developed for use in the general population are inaccurate in HIV infection and systematically underestimate risk in a cohort of HIV-infected men. Development of tailored CVD risk prediction functions incorporating traditional CVD risk factors and HIV-specific factors is likely to result in more accurate risk estimation to guide preventative CVD care.
A Comparison of Ratings of Perceived Exertion During Deep Water Running and Treadmill Running: Considerations in the Prescription of Exercise Intensity

Deep water running (DWR) is a form a aquatic exercise that simulates the action of land based running (LBR), but appears to cause less musculo-skeletal stress. Consequently, it has become a popular training modality for athletes recovering from injury. The psychophysical effects of DWR and LBR respectively were investigated at three exercise intensities. Maximum heart rate (HR max ) was established using a Cooper 1.5 mile run test and the Karvonen Heart Rate Reserve (HRR) method was used to calculate exercise intensity at 60%, 70%, and 80% HRR, respectively. Six males and four females with a mean age (‐SD) of 28.1 ‐ 4.9 years and unfamiliar with DWR undertook a 30-minute test in both DWR and LBR conditions. Each test consisted of 3 x 10 minute periods at 60%, 70%, and 80% HRR respectively. Rating of Perceived Exertion (RPE) was recorded during the last minute of each period. A difference in RPE was found between LBR and DWR at 60% (11.4 Vs 12.8, p < 0.001), 70% (12.9 Vs 15.2, p < 0.001), and 80% HRR (14.5 Vs 17.7, p < 0.001). A significant difference in RPE was attributed to localized fatigue associated with the unfamiliarity of the task, reflected by increased cardiovascular stress at any given heart rate. Athletes and trainers should exhibit caution when prescribing a specific DWR exercise intensity based on HR max date obtained from a land based test. A downward adjustment of 12n17 beats per minute is considered prudent to ensure that exercise intensity is appropriate to the goal of the training program and to the traineeis current ability.
Platelet Extracellular Regulated Protein Kinase 5 Is a Redox Switch and Triggers Maladaptive Platelet Responses and Myocardial Infarct Expansion

Background— Platelets have a pathophysiologic role in the ischemic microvascular environment of acute coronary syndromes. In comparison with platelet activation in normal healthy conditions, less attention is given to mechanisms of platelet activation in diseased states. Platelet function and mechanisms of activation in ischemic and reactive oxygen species–rich environments may not be the same as in normal healthy conditions. Extracellular regulated protein kinase 5 (ERK5) is a mitogen-activated protein kinase family member activated in hypoxic, reactive oxygen species–rich environments and in response to receptor-signaling mechanisms. Prior studies suggest a protective effect of ERK5 in endothelial and myocardial cells after ischemia. We present evidence that platelets express ERK5 and that platelet ERK5 has an adverse effect on platelet activation via selective receptor-dependent and receptor-independent reactive oxygen species–mediated mechanisms in ischemic myocardium. Methods and Results— Using isolated human platelets and a mouse model of myocardial infarction (MI), we found that platelet ERK5 is activated post-MI and that platelet-specific ERK5–/– mice have less platelet activation, reduced MI size, and improved post-MI heart function. Furthermore, the expression of downstream ERK5-regulated proteins is reduced in ERK5–/– platelets post-MI. Conclusions— ERK5 functions as a platelet activator in ischemic conditions, and platelet ERK5 maintains the expression of some platelet proteins after MI, leading to infarct expansion. This demonstrates that platelet function in normal healthy conditions is different from platelet function in chronic ischemic and inflammatory conditions. Platelet ERK5 may be a target for acute therapeutic intervention in the thrombotic and inflammatory post-MI environment.
Collegiate Athletes’ Perceptions of Adhesive Ankle Taping: A Qualitative Analysis

Objective: To study athletes perceptions of adhesive ankle taping. Design: A qualitative study where athletes were interviewed regarding adhesive ankle taping. Setting: The University of North Dakota in Grand Forks, ND, USA. Participants: Eleven collegiate athletes, all currently taping their ankles, representative of three groups: recent injury, past injury, and no prior injury. Results: Taping resulted in feelings of increased confidence, increased strength, and decreased anxiety for injury or reinjury. Differences were found in responses given by the participants in the three groups. Conclusions: Taping has a psychological impact on athletes. Athletic trainers should make sure they educate athletes about the uses and functions of adhesive tape.
Intermittent Hypoxia and Hypercapnia Accelerate Atherosclerosis, Partially via Trimethylamine‐Oxide

Abstract Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common disorder characterized by intermittent hypoxia and hypercapnia (IHC) during sleep. OSA has been shown to be a risk factor for atherosclerosis, but the relation of IHC to the induction or progression of atherosclerosis is not well understood. To dissect the mechanisms involved, we compared atherosclerotic lesion formation in two mouse models, i.e., apolipoprotein E (ApoE) and low density lipoprotein receptor (Ldlr)‐deficient mice, with or without IHC exposure. Ten‐week‐old ApoE−/− or Ldlr−/− mice were fed a high‐fat diet for 4 or 8 weeks while being exposed to IHC for 10 hours/day or room air (RA) for 24 hours/day. En face lesions of the aorta, aortic arch, and pulmonary artery (PA) were examined. Moreover, 3,3‐dimethyl‐1‐butanol (DMB), an inhibitor of microbial trimethylamine (TMA) production, was used to determine the contribution of TMA‐oxide (TMAO) to IHC‐induced atherosclerosis. Eight weeks of IHC exposure expedited the formation of atherosclerosis in both the PA and aortic arch of ApoE−/− mice, but only in the PA of Ldlr−/− mice (ApoE−/− PA 8 wk, IHC 35.4 ± 1.9% versus RA 8.0 ± 2.8%, P < 0.01). The atherosclerotic lesions evolved faster and to a more severe extent in ApoE−/− mice as compared with Ldlr−/− mice (PA IHC 8 wk, ApoE−/− 35.4 ± 1.9% versus Ldlr−/− 8.2 ± 1.5%, P < 0.01). DMB significantly attenuated but did not totally eliminate IHC‐induced PA atherosclerosis. Our findings suggest that IHC, a hallmark of OSA, accelerates the progression of atherosclerosis in the aorta and especially in the PA. This process is partly inhibited by DMB, demonstrating that microbial metabolites may serve as therapeutic targets for OSA‐induced atherosclerosis.
A Community Treatment Model for Adolescents Who Sexually Harm: Diverting Youth from Criminal Justice to Therapeutic Responses.

The costs of treating youth who sexually harm others can exceed $200,000 Australian (US$220,000) per annum when they are placed in a residential type facility in either Australia or North America. Following the financial meltdown of the past two years, North American based residential-style programs have found themselves under increasing financial pressure, with some well-known facilities in the U.S. having closed their doors. Other facilities have experienced drops in their referral numbers of up to 50%, resulting in substantial staff lay-offs, and shorter lengths of stay for clients. Community-based programs can offer a low-cost alternative model of treatment that may match or exceed the success and recidivism rates achieved through facility-based residential treatment, dependent on sound assessment and consideration of the viability of the young person to: a) continue to reside in the community, and b) to continue to reside in their family home while undertaking treatment. This article describes the state-wide community-based Sexually Abusive Behavior Treatment Services (SABTS) operating in Victoria, Australia, driven by the legislatively innovative Therapeutic Treatment Order (TTO) model in effect since 2007. This program, delivered to children and adolescents aged 10-14, is currently being extended to the 15-17 year age group due to its success in accomplishing its goals. The effectiveness of the program demonstrates the capacity to design and implement treatment programs that are able to safely keep and treat young persons with sexually harmful behavior in the community, and at a far reduced cost when compared to residential treatment costs, and with similar to lower sexual recidivism rates. Language: en
Naive Bayes vs decision trees in intrusion detection systems

Bayes networks are powerful tools for decision and reasoning under uncertainty. A very simple form of Bayes networks is called naive Bayes, which are particularly efficient for inference tasks. However, naive Bayes are based on a very strong independence assumption. This paper offers an experimental study of the use of naive Bayes in intrusion detection. We show that even if having a simple structure, naive Bayes provide very competitive results. The experimental study is done on KDD'99 intrusion data sets. We consider three levels of attack granularities depending on whether dealing with whole attacks, or grouping them in four main categories or just focusing on normal and abnormal behaviours. In the whole experimentations, we compare the performance of naive Bayes networks with one of well known machine learning techniques which is decision tree. Moreover, we compare the good performance of Bayes nets with respect to existing best results performed on KDD'99.
Investigation of a measles outbreak in a rural Nigerian community - the Aladura experience.

The global burden of measles has remained a public health challenge. Worldwide, measles is the fifth leading cause of death among under-five children with an estimate of 197,000 deaths in 2007. In Nigeria, measles is an important cause of childhood morbidity and mortality. Measles outbreaks have been increasingly common in the country with 30, 194 and 256 outbreaks reported in 2006, 2007 and 2008 respectively. This paper describes the investigation, findings and mitigation efforts of a measles outbreak in Ogunmakin, a rural community in South-western Nigeria from 7th January to 15th February 2009. The study design was descriptive and cross-sectional in nature. The investigation was multi-disciplinary in nature performed based on the national guidelines for investigating a measles outbreak. This involved data and blood sample collection from the initial cases, notification of the local government health authority, active search and line listing of cases from other health facilities. A household survey was conducted to find additional cases as well as to define the extent of the outbreak. Qualitative techniques were also employed to explore the issues associated with the uptake of immunization in the community. A total of 29 measles cases were identified, all were less than five years old. There were two deaths giving a case fatality rate of 6.9%. Majority of the cases (96.5%) were not immunized against measles. The epidemic spanned 5 weeks with majority of the cases occurring in the 2nd week. There was a clustering of cases in one of the five quarters/settlement – Otesile. The measles immunization coverage for the community was estimated as 22.9%. The stated reasons for the poor uptake of immunization were lack of time, not regarding it as important. A total of 432 children aged 9 months to 15 years received measles antigen during the response vaccination campaign. The measles outbreak in Ogunmakin village was due to low routine immunization coverage resulting in an accumulation of susceptible children. Socio-cultural factors and weak health infrastructure contribute significantly to the low uptake of immunization. There is the need mobilized the entire community on the importance of immunization as well as strengthen the provision of routine immunization. Key words: Measles, public health, immunization, childhood morbidity, childhood mortality, vaccination.
Perception of temporal fine-structure cues in speech with minimal envelope cues for listeners with mild-to-moderate hearing loss

Abstract The contribution of temporal fine-structure (TFS) cues to consonant identification was compared for seven young adults with normal hearing and five young adults with mild-to-moderate hearing loss and flat, high- or low-frequency gently sloping audiograms. Nonsense syllables were degraded using two schemes (PM: phase modulation; FM: frequency modulation) designed to remove temporal envelope (E) cues while preserving TFS cues in 16 0.35-octave-wide frequency bands spanning the range of 80 to 8020 Hz. For both schemes, hearing-impaired listeners performed significantly above chance level (PM: 36%; FM: 31%; chance level: 6.25%), but more poorly than normal-hearing listeners (PM: 80%; FM: 65%). Three hearing-impaired listeners showed normal or near-normal reception of nasality information. These results indicate that for mild to moderate levels of hearing loss, cochlear damage reduces but does not abolish the ability to use the TFS cues of speech. The deficits observed for both schemes in hearing-impaired listeners suggest involvement of factors other than only poor reconstruction of temporal envelope from temporal fine structure. Sumario Se comparó la contribución de claves temporales de estructura fina (TFS) para la identificación de consonantes en seis adultos jóvenes con audición normal y cinco adultos jóvenes con hipoacusia superficial a moderada con audiogramas planos, o con caídas suaves en graves o en agudos. Se degradaron sílabas sin sentido utilizando dos esquemas (PM: modulación de fase; FM: modulación de frecuencia) diseñados para remover las claves de envoltura temporal (E) mientras que se preservaron las caves TFS en 16 bandas con anchos de frecuencia de 0.35 de octava, espaciando el rango de 80 a 8020Hz. Para ambos esquemas, los oyentes con hipoacusia se desempeñaron significativamente por encima del nivel de azar (PM: 36%; FM: 31%; Nivel de azar : 6.5%) pero mucho menos que los normoyentes (PM: 80%; FM: 65%). Tres sujetos con hipoacusia mostraron una recepción normal o casi normal de la información de nasalidad. Estos resultados indican que para la hipoacusia superficial a moderada el daño coclear reduce pero no cancela la habilidad para usar las claves TFS del lenguaje. Los déficits observados para ambos esquemas en sujetos hipoacúsicos sugiere una participación de factores diferentes a la pobre reconstrucción de la envoltura temporal de la estructura fina.
Decentralized HIV/AIDS pharmacovigilance in South Africa: Mpumalanga Success & Moving Forward

female (60.19%) and in 204 (11.6%) reports, gender was not reported. 908 were satisfactorily completed, 445 (49%) reported one ADR, 366 (40.3%) two ADRs, and 97 (10.7%) reported three or more. The most commonly reported ADR was peripheral neuropathy and the most prescribed regimen was d4T/3TC/EFV. d4T-containing regimens were the highest suspect drug combinations. Correlations were observed between d4T and the occurrence of peripheral neuropathy and lipodystrophy, nevirapine (NVP) and efavirenz (EFV) with rash while zidovudine (AZT) was observed to be associated with anaemia. Tuberculosis was found to be the most clinically significant concomitant medical condition with the highest frequency (32.3%). The review observed a significant increase in ADR reports as well as ADRs associated with the use of ART. Periodic review of data on the national pharmacovigilance database will reveal interesting trends in future.
No Increase in Breast Cancer Recurrence with Concurrent Use of Tamoxifen and Some CYP2D6-Inhibiting Medications

Tamoxifen reduces recurrence risk among women treated for estrogen receptor–positive breast cancer. Its effectiveness partly depends on metabolic activation via cytochrome P450 2D6 (CYP2D6). Some medications compromise CYP2D6 activity and may lower plasma concentrations of active tamoxifen metabolites. We studied the association between concurrent use of tamoxifen and CYP2D6-inhibiting medications and breast cancer recurrence among Danish women diagnosed with early-stage, estrogen receptor–positive breast cancer. Using the Danish Breast Cancer Cooperative Group Registry, we identified 366 cases with local or distant breast cancer recurrence and 366 matched breast cancer controls. We ascertained concurrent prescription of CYP2D6-inhibiting medications during tamoxifen treatment by linking to the national prescription database covering all Danish pharmacies. We computed the breast cancer recurrence odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval for each medication. The pooled recurrence OR was null (OR, 1.0; 95% confidence interval, 0.8-1.3); recurrence ORs for individual drugs ranged from 0.3 to 3.4. The individual ORs followed the pattern expected under a null-centered Gaussian distribution. Null associations were apparent for all drugs after empirical Bayes adjustment for multiple comparisons. Together, these results provide evidence for a null association between drug-compromised CYP2D6 activity and breast cancer recurrence among tamoxifen-treated women. (Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2009;18(9):2562–4)
Detecting P2P Botnet in Software Defined Networks

Software Defined Network separates the control plane from network equipment and has great advantage in network management as compared with traditional approaches. With this paradigm, the security issues persist to exist and could become even worse because of the flexibility on handling the packets. In this paper we propose an effective framework by integrating SDN and machine learning to detect and categorize P2P network traffics. This work provides experimental evidence showing that our approach can automatically analyze network traffic and flexibly change flow entries in OpenFlow switches through the SDN controller. This can effectively help the network administrators manage related security problems.
Digital observer-based control of synchronous reluctance motors

A fully-digital control scheme for synchronous reluctance motors is presented, based on a particular type of flux observer. This includes a quite accurate magnetic model of the motor, taking into account cross saturation. This model is firstly described. Then, the practically obtained control performance are shown, giving evidence to the impact of such a model.