Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
One-arm safety intervention study on community case management of chest indrawing pneumonia in children in Nigeria – a study protocol

ABSTRACT Current recommendations within integrated community case management (iCCM) programmes advise community health workers (CHWs) to refer cases of chest indrawing pneumonia to health facilities for treatment, but many children die due to delays or non-compliance with referral advice. Recent revision of World Health Organization (WHO) pneumonia guidelines and integrated management of childhood illness chart booklet recommend oral amoxicillin for treatment of lower chest indrawing (LCI) pneumonia on an outpatient basis. However, these guidelines did not recommend its use by CHWs as part of iCCM, due to insufficient evidence regarding safety. We present a protocol for a one-arm safety intervention study aimed at increasing access to treatment of pneumonia by training CHWs, locally referred to as Community Oriented Resource Persons (CORPs) in Nigeria. The primary objective was to assess if CORPs could safely and appropriately manage LCI pneumonia in 2–59 month old children, and refer children with danger signs. The primary outcomes were the proportion of children 2–59 months with LCI pneumonia who were managed appropriately by CORPs and the clinical treatment failure within 6 days of LCI pneumonia. Secondary outcomes included proportion of children with LCI followed up by CORPs on day 3; caregiver adherence to treatment for chest indrawing, acceptability and satisfaction of both CORP and caregivers on the mode of treatment, including caregiver adherence to treatment; and clinical relapse of pneumonia between day 7 to 14 among children whose signs of pneumonia disappeared by day 6. Approximately 308 children 2–59 months of age with LCI pneumonia would be needed for this safety intervention study.
Impact of Race/Ethnicity, Veteran Status, and Place of Birth on Attitudes Towards Welfare Recipients: An Experimental Approach

The current study explored the differences in the public’s attitudes and emotions towards welfare recipients based on their race/ethnicity, birthplace, and veteran status. Participants read a mock news story created for the current study about a woman labeled as a “welfare queen” who was receiving assistance, but persuaded the reader to be sympathetic to her case. The mock news story varied based on the race/ethnicity, veteran status, and birthplace of the welfare recipient. Participants assessed the welfare recipient on various evaluative measures. A 4 (race/ethnicity: White/Black/Hispanic/Asian) × 2 (veteran status: veteran/not veteran) × 2 (country of origin: born in the US/not born in the US) between-subjects ANOVA was performed on the attitude and personality evaluations of the welfare recipient. The general pattern of results showed that welfare recipients were evaluated more positively when they were veterans, born in the United States, or were White or Asian. Conversely, the public evaluated the welfare recipient more negatively or held more aversive emotions towards them when they were Hispanic, Black, not born in the United States, or not a veteran. This research adds to the psychological literature and nonprofit sector by testing the persistence of stereotypes on the perception of individual welfare recipients.
In Silico Approach in Designing a Novel Multi-Epitope Vaccine Candidate against Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer with Overexpressed G Protein-Coupled Receptor 56

Background: Majority of cancer-related deaths worldwide is attributed to non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). G protein-coupled receptor 56 (GPR56) is overexpressed and associated in the progression of NSCLC. The aim of this study is to use immunoinformatics approach in designing a multi-epitope vaccine to target overexpressed GPR56 which can potentially activate antibody-mediated cell death mechanisms and inhibit pathways involved in the proliferation, migration and survival of NSCLC. Methods: Herein, the reported overexpression of GPR56 was further investigated by conducting a differential gene expression analysis of NSCLC samples from GEO DataSets (GSE29249). Results confirmed significant overexpression of GPR56 in NSCLC compared to adjacent normal samples. A multi-epitope vaccine (Fvax) was constructed in silico by adjoining B lymphocytes (BL) and helper T lymphocytes (HTL) epitopes from the extracellular sequence of GPR56. Population coverage (PC) of HTL epitopes was also estimated. To enhance its immunogenicity, sequences of flagellin domains were fused as adjuvant. Fvax was evaluated in silico for antigenicity, allergenicity, peptide toxicity, physicochemical properties and cross-reactivity. Its tertiary structure was predicted, refined, and validated followed by structural epitope prediction. Lastly, Fvax DNA was optimized and cloned in silico. Results: This is the first work to design a potential vaccine against GPR56-overexpressing NSCLC. Fvax has 3 BL and 7 HTL immunogenic epitopes on GPR56. In silico evaluations suggest that Fvax is antigenic, non-toxic, non-allergenic, stable, and has accessible BL epitopes with high PC worldwide for HTL epitopes. Conclusion: Overall, results showed that Fvax is a potential vaccine against NSCLC. The approach of this study efficiently minimized the number of tests, cost and time required to select the best epitopes and to design a vaccine for the treatment of NSCLC.
Comparison of Two Reef Sites on the North Coast of Jamaica over a 15-Year Period

This paper compares two reef sites near Discovery Bay, Jamaica, Dairy Bull and Dancing Lady, from 2000 to 2015. At Dairy Bull reef, with low macroalgal cover (8% in 2002 falling to 1% in 2015) and significant number of Diadema antillarum urchins (c. 5 m-2), live coral cover increased from 13% ± 5% in 2006 after the bleaching event in 2005, to 31% ± 7% in 2008, while live Acropora cervicornis increased from 2% ± 2% in 2006 to 28% ± 5% in 2015. Coral cover levels were at least maintained until 2015, owing mostly to a slight increase in A. cervicornis. Dancing Lady reef however was dominated by macroalgae throughout this period (cover of c. 76% ± 7%), with no D. antillarum and showed little decrease in the already low (6% ± 1%) coral cover in 2005. Growth rates for Siderastrea siderea were similar for both sites (7 mm·yr-1), while growth rates of A. cervicornis and A. palmata were 120.0 ± 30 mm·yr-1 and 71.0 ± 29 mm·yr-1 respectively at Dairy Bull in 2015. At Dancing Lady reef, A. cervicornis colonies which were present from 2003 to 2005 had disappeared in 2006, possibly as a result of the mass bleaching event. It appears that A. cervicornis was the most impacted species during the 2005 bleaching event, but was also the species that recovered fastest after its decline at Dairy Bull.
How to Intervene in the Caries Process: Dentin Caries in Primary Teeth

For an ORCA/EFCD consensus, this review systematically assessed available evidence regarding interventions performed and materials used to manage dentin carious lesions in primary teeth. A search for systematic reviews (SRs) and randomized clinical trials (RCTs) with a follow-up of at least 12 months after intervention was performed in PubMed, LILACS, BBO, and the Cochrane Library. The risk of bias tool from the Cochrane Collaboration and the PRISMA Statement were used for assessment of the included studies. From 101 screened articles, 2 SRs and 5 RCTs, which assessed the effectiveness of interventions in terms of pulp vitality and success of restoration, and 10 SRs and 1 RCT assessing the success of restorative materials were included. For treatments involving no carious tissue removal, the Hall technique showed lower treatment failure for approximal carious lesions compared to complete caries removal (CCR) and filling. For the treatment of deep carious lesions, techniques involving selective caries removal (SCR) showed a reduction in the incidence of pulp exposure. However, the benefit of SCR over CCR in terms of pulp symptoms or restoration success/failure was not confirmed. Regarding restorative materials, preformed metal crowns (PMCs) used to restore multisurface lesions showed the highest success rates compared to other restorative materials (amalgam, composite resin, glass ionomer cement, and compomer), and in the long term (12–48 months) these were also less likely to fail. There is limited evidence supporting the use of PMCs to restore carious lesions with single cavities. Among nonrestorative options, silver diammine fluoride was significantly more effective in arresting caries than other treatments for treating active carious lesions of different depths. Considerable heterogeneity and bias risk were observed in the included studies. Although heterogeneity observed among the studies was substantial, the trends were similar. In conclusion, less invasive caries approaches involving selective or no caries removal seem advantageous in comparison to CCR for patients presenting with vital, symptomless, carious dentin lesions in primary teeth. There is evidence in favor of PMCs for restoring multisurface carious lesions in primary molars.
Pharmacognostic standardization of Homoeopathic drug: Juniperus virginiana L.

Background: Juniperus virginiana L. , commonly known as ′red cedar′ in English is a well-known evergreen tree belonging to the family Cupressaceae. The leaves and young aerial shoots are used for preparation of medicine in Homoeopathy. Objective: Standardization is the quintessential aspect which ensures purity and quality of drugs. Hence, the pharmacognostic and physico-chemical studies are carried out to facilitate the use of authentic and correct species of raw drug plant material with established parametric standards for manufacturing the drug. Materials and Methods: Pharmacognostic studies on leaves and young aerial parts of authentic samples of J. virginiana L. have been carried out; physico-chemical parameters of raw drug viz., extractive values, ash values, formulation, besides weight per mL, total solids, alcohol content along with High Performance Thin Layer Chromatography (HPTLC) and ultraviolet visible studies have been worked out for mother tincture. Results: The leaves are needles, narrow and sharp at tips; stems are round with greyish white to brown bark possessing small lenticels and covered by imbricate leaves. Epidermal cells in the surface have polygonal linear sides with pitted walls containing crystals and starch. Stomata exclusively occur on the adaxial surface in linear rows. Hypodermis of leaf in T.S. is marked with 1-2 layered lignified sclerenchyma. 2-4 secretory canals are present with one conspicuously beneath midvein bundle. The young terminal axis is sheathed by two closely surrounding leaves while the mature stem possess four leaf bases attached. Vascular tissue of stem possesses predominant xylem surrounded by phloem containing sphaeraphides, prismatic crystals and starch grains. Uniseriate rays occur in the xylem. Mature stem possess shrivelled cork, followed by the cortex. Physicochemical properties and HPTLC values of the drug are standardized and presented. Conclusion: The powder microscopic features and organoleptic characters along with anatomical and physicochemical studies are diagnostic to establish the standards for the drug.
Subjective Aging and Incident Cardiovascular Disease.

OBJECTIVES Subjective aging, including subjective age and self-perceptions of aging (SPA), predicts health-related outcomes in older adults. Despite its association with cardiovascular risk factors, little is known about the association between subjective aging and the incidence of cardiovascular disease. Therefore, the present study examined whether subjective age and SPA are related to the incidence of heart conditions and stroke. METHODS The sample comprises 10,695 participants aged 50-100 years from the Health and Retirement Study. Subjective age, SPA, demographic factors, and health-related behaviors, body mass index (BMI), hypertension, diabetes, and depressive symptoms were assessed at baseline. Self-reported physician diagnosis of heart conditions and stroke were assessed biennially over up to 9 years of follow-up. RESULTS Controlling for demographic factors, an older subjective age and more negative SPA were related to a higher risk of incident heart conditions and stroke. Feeling older and holding negative SPA were associated with around 40% higher risk of experiencing heart conditions over time. An older subjective age and negative SPA were related to almost twofold and 30% higher risk of incident stroke, respectively. Health risk behaviors, BMI, hypertension, diabetes, and depressive symptoms accounted for part of the associations between subjective aging and heart diseases and stroke. CONCLUSIONS Consistent with the literature on subjective aging and cardiovascular risk factors, this large prospective study indicates that an older subjective age and negative SPA increase the risk of incident stroke and other cardiovascular diseases.
Oncogenic TRIM37 Links Chemoresistance and Metastatic Fate in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer

TRIM37 drives aggressive TNBC biology by promoting resistance to chemotherapy and inducing a prometastatic transcriptional program; inhibition of TRIM37 increases chemotherapy efficacy and reduces metastasis risk in patients with TNBC. The majority of clinical deaths in patients with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) are due to chemoresistance and aggressive metastases, with high prevalence in younger women of African ethnicity. Although tumorigenic drivers are numerous and varied, the drivers of metastatic transition remain largely unknown. Here, we uncovered a molecular dependence of TNBC tumors on the TRIM37 network, which enables tumor cells to resist chemotherapeutic as well as metastatic stress. TRIM37-directed histone H2A monoubiquitination enforces changes in DNA repair that rendered TP53-mutant TNBC cells resistant to chemotherapy. Chemotherapeutic drugs triggered a positive feedback loop via ATM/E2F1/STAT signaling, amplifying the TRIM37 network in chemoresistant cancer cells. High expression of TRIM37 induced transcriptomic changes characteristic of a metastatic phenotype, and inhibition of TRIM37 substantially reduced the in vivo propensity of TNBC cells. Selective delivery of TRIM37-specific antisense oligonucleotides using antifolate receptor 1–conjugated nanoparticles in combination with chemotherapy suppressed lung metastasis in spontaneous metastatic murine models. Collectively, these findings establish TRIM37 as a clinically relevant target with opportunities for therapeutic intervention. Significance: TRIM37 drives aggressive TNBC biology by promoting resistance to chemotherapy and inducing a prometastatic transcriptional program; inhibition of TRIM37 increases chemotherapy efficacy and reduces metastasis risk in patients with TNBC.
Consensus PCR protocols for the detection of amphibian herpesviruses (Batrachovirus)

Amphibians have been disappearing at an unprecedented rate worldwide. Among the proposed contributing factors are infectious diseases. Investigations have focused mainly on ranavirus and chytrids; however, additional agents may be relevant stressors. Two novel batrachoviruses have been discovered (ranid herpesvirus 3 [RaHV-3] and bufonid herpesvirus 1 [BfHV-1]). Their clinical role is still to be clarified; however, both have been associated with obvious skin lesions in their respective hosts. Herein we present 2 consensus PCR protocols that can be used to detect all of the known and, possibly, yet to be discovered batrachoviruses. We targeted a 200 nt long, highly conserved region of the DNA terminase gene. We established a sensitive protocol, which can detect both European batrachoviruses (European batrachovirus PCR protocol; RaHV-3 and BfHV-1) and a panbatrachovirus PCR protocol detecting all known batrachoviruses, including ranid herpesvirus 1 and 2 (RaHV-1, -2). The limit of detection (LOD) for the European batrachovirus protocol was 101 copies of RaHV-3 and 102 copies of BfHV-1 per reaction. The panbatrachovirus protocol could detect all known batrachoviruses with LODs of 103 (RaHV-3, BfHV-1, RaHV-1) to 104 copies (RaHV-2) per reaction. These novel detection tools can be used as a first line of detection when herpesviral infection in amphibians is suspected, followed by additional PCRs with herpesvirus-specific primers in the case of known viral species, or sequencing as in the case of novel batrachoviruses.
Clean and Contain: Initial Development of a Measure of Infection Prevention Behaviors During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract Background The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) offer behavioral guidance to prevent the spread of infectious diseases like COVID-19. Cleaning (e.g., cleaning surfaces, washing and sanitizing hands) and containing (e.g., covering coughs, keeping distance from others, especially sick people) behaviors are recommended. Purpose To develop the Clean and Contain Measure, a brief measure of compliance with CDC recommendations for prevention of infectious disease, and validate the measure in individuals experiencing the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods Participants were recruited from Amazon Mechanical Turk and social media. Results In Study 1 (N = 97), exploratory factor analysis revealed two scales: (a) five items assessing cleaning behaviors and (b) four items assessing containing behaviors. Simple structure was obtained and alpha coefficients for both scales were >. 83. In Studies 2 (N = 204) and 3 (N = 527), confirmatory factor analysis verified the identical factor structure found in Study 1. All loadings were statistically significant at p < . 001. Alpha coefficients for both scales were >. 84 for Studies 2 and 3. Conclusions Our measure is a reliable and valid indicator of compliance with cleaning and containing health behaviors that help to prevent the spread of diseases like COVID-19. Future research should replicate construct validity in more diverse samples and continue to refine items, examine construct validity, including predictive and discriminant validity, and improve the measure for future use. With continued use and refinement, this measure could allow health officials and researchers to accurately assess compliance with important infection prevention behavior guidelines.
Liver damage in schistosomiasis is reduced by adipose tissue-derived stem cell therapy after praziquantel treatment

Background In view of the potential immunosuppressive and regenerative properties of mesenchymal stem cells (MSC), we investigated whether transplantation of adipose tissue-derived stem cells (ASC) could be used to control the granulomatous reaction in the liver of mice infected with Schistosoma mansoni after Praziquantel (PZQ) treatment. Methodology/Prinicpal findings C57BL/6 mice infected with S. mansoni were treated with PZQ and transplanted intravenously with ASC from uninfected mice. Liver morpho-physiological and immunological analyses were performed. The combined PZQ/ASC therapy significantly reduced the volume of hepatic granulomas, as well as liver damage as measured by ALT levels. We also observed that ASC accelerated the progression of the granulomatous inflammation to the advanced/curative phase. The faster healing interfered with the expression of CD28 and CTLA-4 molecules in CD4+ T lymphocytes, and the levels of IL-10 and IL-17 cytokines, mainly in the livers of PZQ/ASC-treated mice. Conclusions Our results show that ASC therapy after PZQ treatment results in smaller granulomas with little tissue damage, suggesting the potential of ASC for the development of novel therapeutic approaches to minimize hepatic lesions as well as a granulomatous reaction following S. mansoni infection. Further studies using the chronic model of schistosomiasis are required to corroborate the therapeutic use of ASC for schistosomiasis.
Macromolecular Orientation in Biological Tissues Using a Four-Polarization Method in FT-IR Imaging

Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy has emerged as a powerful tool for tissue specimen investigation. Its nondestructive and label-free character enables direct determination of biochemical composition of samples. Furthermore, the introduction of polarization enriches this technique by the possibility of molecular orientation study apart from purely quantitative analysis. Most of the molecular orientation studies focused on polymer samples with a well-defined molecular axis. Here, a four-polarization approach for Herman’s in-plane orientation function and azimuthal angle determination was applied to a human tissue sample investigation for the first time. Attention was focused on fibrous tissues rich in collagen because of their cylindrical shape and established amide bond vibrations. Despite the fact that the tissue specimen contains a variety of molecules, the presented results of molecular ordering and orientation agree with the theoretical prediction based on sample composition and vibration directions.
Diagnostic Performance of PET and Perfusion-Weighted Imaging in Differentiating Tumor Recurrence or Progression from Radiation Necrosis in Posttreatment Gliomas: A Review of Literature

SUMMARY: Tumor resection followed by chemoradiation remains the current criterion standard treatment for high-grade gliomas. Regardless of aggressive treatment, tumor recurrence and radiation necrosis are 2 different outcomes. Differentiation of tumor recurrence from radiation necrosis remains a critical problem in these patients because of considerable overlap in clinical and imaging presentations. Contrast-enhanced MR imaging is the universal imaging technique for diagnosis, treatment evaluation, and detection of recurrence of high-grade gliomas. PWI and PET with novel radiotracers have an evolving role for monitoring treatment response in high-grade gliomas. In the literature, there is no clear consensus on the superiority of either technique or their complementary information. This review aims to elucidate the diagnostic performance of individual and combined use of functional (PWI) and metabolic (PET) imaging modalities to distinguish recurrence from posttreatment changes in gliomas.
Fetal hemoglobin rescues ineffective erythropoiesis in sickle cell disease

While ineffective erythropoiesis has long been recognized as a key contributor to anemia in thalassemia, its role in anemia of sickle cell disease (SCD) has not been critically explored. Using in vitro and in vivo derived human erythroblasts we assessed the extent of ineffective erythropoiesis in SCD. Modeling the bone marrow hypoxic environment, we found that hypoxia induces death of sickle erythroblasts starting at the polychromatic stage, positively selecting cells with high levels of fetal hemoglobin (HbF). Cell death was associated with cytoplasmic sequestration of heat shock protein 70 and was rescued by induction of HbF synthesis. Importantly, we document that in the bone marrow of SCD patients similar cell loss occurs during the final stages of terminal differentiation. Our study provides evidence for ineffective erythropoiesis in SCD and highlights an anti-apoptotic role for HbF during the terminal stages of erythroid differentiation. These findings imply that the beneficial effect on anemia of increased HbF levels is not only due to the increased life span of red cells but also a consequence of decreased ineffective erythropoiesis.