Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The feelings and experiences of patients with tuberculosis in the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan district: implications for TB control efforts.

OBJECTIVES: To explore the feelings and experiences of TB patients, and to highlight how TB stigma may affect case finding and compliance with treatment. DESIGN: Qualitative research approach using focus groups and individual interviews. SETTING: Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan district, Ghana. PARTICIPANTS: Purposeful selection of TB patients receiving TB at four government hospitals in the district. INTERVENTION: None. RESULTS: Because of TB stigma, majority of the patients failed to recognise their symptoms as due to TB, and attributed it to malaria and ordinary cough. They reported to the hospital only after prolonged period of self-medication in the community, with some indicating multiple visits before a diagnosis was made. When diagnosed, some were worried and cried, questioned how they got the disease, contemplated committing suicide, and others doubted it was TB. Most of them hid the diagnosis from others, and were isolated within the family and community. CONCLUSIONS: Most TB patients failed to recognize their symptoms as due to TB, because of the stigma attached to the disease in society. The way people treat those with TB, especially close contacts is also a source of worry to the patients. This may lead to delay in reporting to the hospital and consequently increase mortality from the disease. It may also make it difficult for the patients to comply with the long duration of TB treatment.
Using ‘observations of care’ in nursing research: a discussion of methodological issues

Observations of care were developed as part of a professional development programme by the Royal College of Nursing in 1997 and have since been used in both professional development and research settings, but their use as part of the research process is potentially problematic. This is due to a lack of clarity and discussion regarding their philosophical positioning and the associated methodological issues likely to be encountered by qualitative researchers. Observations of care can be seen as part of a wider ethnographic tradition of participant observation, but because of the lack of clarity regarding their provenance and utility, novice researchers may experience difficulty in locating them within the ethnographic paradigm. The aim of this paper is to consider the issues associated with their transfer from part of a professional development strategy to their use within a qualitative research setting, illustrating key methodological issues with examples from the author’s own research. It is hoped that this paper will be the start of a critical discourse on their use within research.
Attitudes toward Advance Directives of Older Adults using Senior Centers

Purpose: The aims of this study were to identify attitudes toward advance directives (ADs) of community dwelling older adults and factors related to ADs. Methods: Participants were 180 older Korean adults (mean age=74.2 years, 70.6% women) from two senior centers in a metropolitan city in South Korea. Data were collected through face to face interviews during September, 2011. The Advanced Directives Attitude Survey (ADAS) and questionnaires including socio-demographic and health related characteristics were used. Data were analyzed using
Autocrine IL-10 activation of the STAT3 pathway is required for pathological macrophage differentiation in polycystic kidney disease

ABSTRACT Polycystic kidney disease (PKD) is characterized by slow expansion of fluid-filled cysts derived from tubules within the kidney. Cystic expansion results in injury to surrounding parenchyma and leads to inflammation, scarring and ultimately loss of renal function. Macrophages are a key element in this process, promoting cyst epithelial cell proliferation, cyst expansion and disease progression. Previously, we have shown that the microenvironment established by cystic epithelial cells can ‘program’ macrophages, inducing M2-like macrophage polarization that is characterized by expression of markers that include Arg1 and Il10. Here, we functionally characterize these macrophages, demonstrating that their differentiation enhances their ability to promote cyst cell proliferation. This observation indicates a model of reciprocal pathological interactions between cysts and the innate immune system: cyst epithelial cells promote macrophage polarization to a phenotype that, in turn, is especially efficient in promoting cyst cell proliferation and cyst growth. To better understand the genesis of this macrophage phenotype, we examined the role of IL-10, a regulatory cytokine shown to be important for macrophage-stimulated tissue repair in other settings. Herein, we show that the acquisition of the pathological macrophage phenotype requires IL-10 secretion by the macrophages. Further, we demonstrate a requirement for IL-10-dependent autocrine activation of the STAT3 pathway. These data suggest that the IL-10 pathway in macrophages plays an essential role in the pathological relationship between cysts and the innate immune system in PKD, and thus could be a potential therapeutic target. Summary: Macrophages in polycystic kidney disease are induced by cyst epithelial cell factors to perform pathological pro-proliferative functions through stimulation of an autocrine IL-10–STAT3 pathway.
Rendering for an Interactive 360 ◦ Light Field Display

We describe a set of rendering techniques for an autostereoscopic light ﬁeld display able to present interactive 3D graphics to multiple simultaneous viewers 360 degrees around the display. The display consists of a high-speed video projector, a spinning mirror covered by a holographic diffuser, and FPGA circuitry to decode specially rendered DVI video signals. The display uses a standard programmable graphics card to render over 5,000 images per second of interactive 3D graphics, projecting 360-degree views with 1.25 degree separation up to 20 updates per second. We describe the system’s projection geometry and its calibration process, and we present a multiple-center-of-projection rendering technique for creating perspective-correct images from arbitrary viewpoints around the display. Our projection technique allows correct vertical perspective and parallax to be rendered for any height and distance when these parameters are known, and we demonstrate this effect with interactive raster graphics using a tracking system to measure the viewer’s height and distance. We further apply our projection technique to the display of photographed light ﬁelds with accurate horizontal and vertical parallax. We conclude with a discussion of the display’s visual accommodation performance and discuss techniques for displaying color imagery.
Validity and reproducibility of an iodine‐specific food frequency questionnaire to estimate dietary iodine intake in older Australians

Aim: Iodine deficiency, which has adverse effects on health has re-emerged in Australia. The present study aimed to develop and validate a novel iodine-specific food frequency questionnaire for use in older Australians. Methods: A 49-item food frequency questionnaire that included iodine-rich foods was constructed and administered in 84 men and women aged 60–95 years with normal cognitive function. Dietary iodine intake assessed by the food frequency questionnaire was validated against three repeated 24-hour dietary recalls. Urinary spot iodine concentrations were selected as iodine intake biomarker. Agreement between the two dietary methods was determined using a Bland–Altman plot and intra-class coefficients. Correlations between dietary and urinary iodine were assessed. Forty-three participants repeated the questionnaire after 9 months for reproducibility. Results: Mean iodine intake measured by the food frequency questionnaire and 24-hour dietary recalls did not differ significantly (P= 0.870). The two methods were moderately correlated (r = 0.377; P < 0.05) and the Bland–Altman plots demonstrated an acceptable level of agreement (P= 0.870). Despite an association (r = 0.230; P < 0.05) between urinary iodine concentrations and 24-hour dietary recalls, the food frequency questionnaire was not associated with urinary iodine concentration (r = 0.094; P= 0.40). The method of triads showed coefficients of 0.238 (urinary iodine), 0.953(food frequency questionnaire), 0.396 (24-hour dietary recall) with the unknown true value. Conclusion: A short food frequency questionnaire to assess habitual dietary iodine intake in older Australians has been shown to be valid at the group level with regard to categorising individuals according to their habitual iodine intake. Reproducibility of the food frequency questionnaire remains to be demonstrated.
Incorporating term dependency in the dfr framework

Term dependency, or co-occurrence, has been studied in language modelling, for instance by Metzler & Croft who showed that retrieval performance could be significantlyenhanced using term dependency information. In this work, weshow how term dependency can be modelled within the Divergence From Randomness (DFR) framework. We evaluate our term dependency model on the two adhoc retrieval tasks using the TREC . GOV2 Terabyte collection. Furthermore, we examine the effect of varying the term dependency window size on the retrieval performance of the proposed model. Our experiments show that term dependency can indeed besuccessfully incorporated within the DFR framework.
The 6LoWPAN architecture

6LoWPAN is a protocol definition to enable IPv6 packets to be carried on top of low power wireless networks, specifically IEEE 802.15. 4. The concept was born from the idea that the Internet Protocol could and should be applied to even the smallest of devices. The initial goal was to define an adaptation layer -- "IP over Foo" to deal with the requirements imposed by IPv6, such as the increased address sizes and the 1280 byte MTU. The final design takes the concepts used in IPv6 to create a set of headers that allow for the efficient encoding of large IPv6 addresses/headers into a smaller compressed header - sometimes as small as just 4 bytes, while at the same time allowing for the use of various mesh networks and supporting fragmentation and reassembly where needed. This paper describes some of the underlying assumptions and decision points made during the development of 6LoWPAN and how the "stacked header" concept is applied so that in using the protocol you only have to "pay for" what you use. It concludes with open problems and challenges for further development and research.
Exceptional mechanical and structural stability of HSV-1 unveiled with fluid atomic force microscopy

Evidence is emerging that changes in the structural and mechanical properties of viral particles are closely linked and that such changes are essential to infectivity. Here, applying the nanostructural and nanomechanical approach of atomic force microscopy, we visualised capsids of the ubiquitous human pathogen herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) at nano-scale resolution in physiologically relevant conditions. Simultaneously performed nano-indentation measurements on genome-containing and genome-free capsids revealed that genome-containing HSV-1 capsids withstand an exceptionally large mechanical force of ∼6 nN, which is three times larger than the highest values previously reported for other viruses. Greater mechanical forces, however, led to a release of the viral genome. The resulting genome-free capsids, which largely retained their overall structure, were found to be utterly elastic. HSV-1 capsids thus exhibit an exceptional structural and mechanical stability, which is largely provided by the densely packaged genome. This stability might be the key determinant for capsid survival over long distances in the axonal cytoplasm where it is exposed to mechanical forces by molecular motors before it reaches the nuclear pore for crucial genome uncoating.
Identification of a developmentally regulated pathway of membrane retrieval in neuronal growth cones

The growth-cone plasma membrane constantly reconfigures during axon navigation and upon target recognition. The identity and regulation of the membrane pathway(s) participating in remodeling of the growth-cone surface remain elusive. Here, we identify a constitutive, high-capacity plasma-membrane-recycling activity in the axonal growth cones, which is mediated by a novel bulk endocytic pathway that is mechanistically related to macropinocytosis. This pathway generates large compartments at sites of intense actin-based membrane ruffling through the actions of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase, the small GTPase Rac1 and the pinocytic chaperone Pincher. At early developmental stages, bulk endocytosis is the primary endocytic pathway for rapid retrieval of the growth-cone plasma membrane. At later stages, during the onset of synaptogenesis, an intrinsic program of maturation leads to downregulation of basal bulk endocytosis and the emergence of depolarization-induced synaptic-vesicle exo-endocytosis. We propose that the control of bulk membrane retrieval contributes to the homeostatic regulation of the axonal plasma membrane and to growth-cone remodeling during axonal outgrowth. In addition, we suggest that the downregulation of bulk endocytosis during synaptogenesis might contribute to the preservation of synaptic-vesicle specificity.
Filaggrin in the frontline: role in skin barrier function and disease

Recently, loss-of-function mutations in FLG, the human gene encoding profilaggrin and filaggrin, have been identified as the cause of the common skin condition ichthyosis vulgaris (which is characterised by dry, scaly skin). These mutations, which are carried by up to 10% of people, also represent a strong genetic predisposing factor for atopic eczema, asthma and allergies. Profilaggrin is the major component of the keratohyalin granules within epidermal granular cells. During epidermal terminal differentiation, the ∼400 kDa profilaggrin polyprotein is dephosphorylated and rapidly cleaved by serine proteases to form monomeric filaggrin (37 kDa), which binds to and condenses the keratin cytoskeleton and thereby contributes to the cell compaction process that is required for squame biogenesis. Within the squames, filaggrin is citrullinated, which promotes its unfolding and further degradation into hygroscopic amino acids, which constitute one element of natural moisturising factor. Loss of profilaggrin or filaggrin leads to a poorly formed stratum corneum (ichthyosis), which is also prone to water loss (xerosis). Recent human genetic studies strongly suggest that perturbation of skin barrier function as a result of reduction or complete loss of filaggrin expression leads to enhanced percutaneous transfer of allergens. Filaggrin is therefore in the frontline of defence, and protects the body from the entry of foreign environmental substances that can otherwise trigger aberrant immune responses.
Connexin mutation that causes dominant congenital cataracts inhibits gap junctions, but not hemichannels, in a dominant negative manner

The connexin (Cx) 50, E48K, mutation is associated with a human dominant congenital cataract; however, the underlying molecular mechanism has not been characterized. The glutamate (E) residue at position 48 is highly conserved across animal species and types of connexins. When expressed in paired Xenopus oocytes, human (h) and chicken (ch) Cx50 E48K mutants showed no electrical coupling. In addition, this mutation acts in a dominant negative manner when paired hetero-typically or hetero-merically with wild-type Cx50, but has no such effect on Cx46, the other lens fiber connexin. A similar loss-of-function and dominant negative effect was observed using dye transfer assays in the same system. By using two different dye transfer methods, with two different tracer dyes, we found chCx50 E48K expressed in chicken lens embryonic fibroblast cells by retroviral infection similarly failed to induce dye coupling, and prevented wild-type chCx50 from forming functional gap junctions. In contrast to its effect on gap junctions, the E48K mutation has no effect on hemichannel activity when assayed using electrical conductance in oocytes, and mechanically induced dye uptake in cells. Cx50 is functionally involved in cell differentiation and lens development, and the E48K mutant promotes primary lens cell differentiation indistinguishable from wild-type chCx50, despite its lack of junctional channel function. Together the data show that mutations affecting gap junctions but not hemichannel function of Cx50 can lead to dominant congenital cataracts in humans. This clearly supports the model of intercellular coupling of fiber cells creating a microcirculation of nutrients and metabolites required for lens transparency.
Social-Emotional Screening for Infants and Toddlers in Primary Care

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Recommendations in pediatrics call for general developmental screening of young children; however, research suggests social-emotional development, in particular, is important as an initial indicator of general well-being versus risk. We aim to describe a program designed to identify the social-emotional status of young children in the pediatric setting by using the Ages and Stages Questionnaires: Social-Emotional (ASQ:SE) as a universal screening tool, and to assess the effect of interventions by a colocated psychologist on changes in ASQ:SE scores over time. METHODS: In a prospective cohort design we analyzed scores on ASQ:SE surveys completed on children 6 to 36 months of age, to determine if children were at risk for problems in social-emotional development. The probability of remaining at risk over time was then compared between subjects receiving intervention by the psychologist, and those who declined intervention. Logit specifications were used in multivariate comparisons to control for a set of covariates. RESULTS: Three thousand one hundred and sixty-nine children were screened; 711 (22.4%) scored at or above the risk cutoff. Among the 711 at-risk children, 170 were rescreened. At the time of rescreening, those children who received intervention from the psychologist showed significant improvement on ASQ:SE scores compared with those who declined intervention (P = .01). CONCLUSIONS: Universal social-emotional screening in a busy pediatric practice is challenging. Significant percentages of children can be identified as being at risk for social-emotional problems, and colocation of a psychologist promotes the ability to effectively address young children’s social-emotional development within their medical home.
Density-based clustering for real-time stream data

Existing data-stream clustering algorithms such as CluStream arebased on k-means. These clustering algorithms are incompetent tofind clusters of arbitrary shapes and cannot handle outliers. Further, they require the knowledge of k and user-specified time window. To address these issues, this paper proposes D-Stream, a framework for clustering stream data using adensity-based approach. The algorithm uses an online component which maps each input data record into a grid and an offline component which computes the grid density and clusters the grids based on the density. The algorithm adopts a density decaying technique to capture the dynamic changes of a data stream. Exploiting the intricate relationships between the decay factor, data density and cluster structure, our algorithm can efficiently and effectively generate and adjust the clusters in real time. Further, a theoretically sound technique is developed to detect and remove sporadic grids mapped to by outliers in order to dramatically improve the space and time efficiency of the system. The technique makes high-speed data stream clustering feasible without degrading the clustering quality. The experimental results show that our algorithm has superior quality and efficiency, can find clusters of arbitrary shapes, and can accurately recognize the evolving behaviors of real-time data streams.
Nouveaux traitements ciblés du cancer de la prostate hormonorésistant

Although the number of men presenting with metastatic prostate cancer has decreased significantly over the last several years, the death rate for those men is essentially unchanged. Effective treatments have not existed for prostate cancer progressing after androgen deprivation therapy until recently. Docetaxel based chemotherapy has demonstrated to extend patient survival in two large randomized studies. These studies have provided the impetus to combine docetaxel with novel biologic drugs to further consolidate the gains in long-term outcome. With the arrival of new therapies such as epothilone analogues, small molecule receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors, monoclonal antibodies, bone-targeted drugs, antisense oligonucleotides, antiangiogenics drugs and endothelin receptor antagonists, the future of prostate cancer therapy appears promising.
User Fee Abolition in South Africa in 1994 and 1996: Differences-in-Differences

South Africa waived user fees for primary health care, first in 1994, and again, in 1996. Since the 1994 plan focused on young children and older adults, as well as pregnant and nursing mothers, the 1996 change, which waived fees for the remainder of the population, subject to means tests, can be examined via differences-in-differences (DD). DD is applied to a subsample of children, underpinned by a multinomial logit regression of health-seeking behavior amongst ill and injured children. Although the policy provided free primary care to all at public clinics, the results of the analysis do not support the hypothesis that free primary care significantly increased public clinic visits amongst ill and injured children. However, there is strong evidence that ill and injured children were more likely (by 6%) to seek at least some sort of treatment following the change in policy, implying that the policy was indirectly successful.
Cajal-body formation correlates with differential coilin phosphorylation in primary and transformed cell lines

Cajal bodies (CBs) are nuclear structures that are thought to have diverse functions, including small nuclear ribonucleoprotein (snRNP) biogenesis. The phosphorylation status of coilin, the CB marker protein, might impact CB formation. We hypothesize that primary cells, which lack CBs, contain different phosphoisoforms of coilin compared with that found in transformed cells, which have CBs. Localization, self-association and fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP) studies on coilin phosphomutants all suggest this modification impacts the function of coilin and may thus contribute towards CB formation. Two-dimensional gel electrophoresis demonstrates that coilin is hyperphosphorylated in primary cells compared with transformed cells. mRNA levels of the nuclear phosphatase PPM1G are significantly reduced in primary cells and expression of PPM1G in primary cells induces CBs. Additionally, PPM1G can dephosphorylate coilin in vitro. Surprisingly, however, expression of green fluorescent protein alone is sufficient to form CBs in primary cells. Taken together, our data support a model whereby coilin is the target of an uncharacterized signal transduction cascade that responds to the increased transcription and snRNP demands found in transformed cells.