Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Membrane Properties of Physiologically Classified Rat Dorsal Horn Neurons In Vitro: Correlation with Cutaneous Sensory Afferent Input

Dorsal horn neurons in the young rat spinal cord‐hindlimb preparation were physiologically classified as wide dynamic range (WDR), nociceptive specific (NS) or low threshold (LT) according to their excitatory responses to low and high intensity mechanical stimuli applied to the hindlimb skin. Two additional types were classified: neurons displaying only sub‐threshold excitations (SUB) and neurons displaying inhibitory events (INH), such as inhibitory post‐synaptic potentials or interruption of spontaneous spiking following cutaneous stimulation. Direct intracellular current injection revealed four different patterns of spiking behaviour: group A neurons were characterized by tonic firing in response to depolarizing current pulses; group B neurons were strongly phasic, producing only one spike at the beginning of the pulse; group A‐B neurons generated an early unsustained (< 300 ms) burst of spikes; and group C neurons exhibited anomalous rectification in response to hyperpolarizing current which was followed by a voltage‐dependent rebound excitation. A statistically significant (P≤ 0.01) association existed between a neuron's physiological classification and its electrophysiological profile. The majority of WDR neurons responded with tonic firing and were assigned to group A, while NS neurons were strongly represented in group A‐B. All INH neurons were assigned to group C. LT neurons were distributed between groups A and A‐B, and SUB neurons were distributed between groups A and B. These data indicate, firstly, that dorsal horn neurons possess heterogeneous membrane properties and, secondly, that a relationship exists between a neuron's biophysical profile and its excitatory or inhibitory response to peripheral cutaneous afferent stimulation. The implications for dorsal horn somatosensory processing are discussed.
Prior hospitalization and the risk of heart attack in older adults: a 12-year prospective study of Medicare beneficiaries.

BACKGROUND We investigated whether prior hospitalization was a risk factor for heart attacks among older adults in the survey on Assets and Health Dynamics among the Oldest Old. METHODS Baseline (1993-1994) interview data were linked to 1993-2005 Medicare claims for 5,511 self-respondents aged 70 years and older and not enrolled in managed Medicare. Primary hospital International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM) 410.xx discharge codes identified postbaseline hospitalizations for acute myocardial infarctions (AMIs). Participants were censored at death or postbaseline managed Medicare enrollment. Traditional risk factors and other covariates were included. Recent postbaseline non-AMI hospitalizations (ie, prior hospitalizations) were indicated by a time-dependent marker, and sensitivity analyses identified their peak effect. RESULTS The total number of person-years of surveillance was 44,740 with a mean of 8.1 (median = 9.1) per person. Overall, 483 participants (8.8%) suffered postbaseline heart attacks, with 423 participants (7.7%) having their first-ever AMI. As expected, significant traditional risk factors were sex (men); race (whites); marital status (never being married); education (noncollege); geography (living in the South); and reporting a baseline history of angina, arthritis, diabetes, and heart disease. Risk factors were similar for both any postbaseline and first-ever postbaseline AMI analyses. The time-dependent recent non-AMI hospitalization marker did not alter the effects of the traditional risk factors but increased AMI risk by 366% (adjusted hazards ratio = 4.66, p < .0001). Discussion. Our results suggest that some small percentage (<3%) of heart attacks among older adults might be prevented if effective short-term postdischarge planning and monitoring interventions were developed and implemented.
Tumor-infiltrating CD8+ lymphocytes predict clinical outcome in breast cancer.

Breast carcinomas are often infiltrated by inflammatory cells, particularly macrophages and T lymphocytes, but the significance of these cells remains unclear. One possible role of these inflammatory cells is that they represent a cell-mediated immune response against the carcinoma. CD8(+) lymphocytes are a known crucial component of cell-mediated immunity. The purpose of this study was to explore the prognostic value of tumor-infiltrating CD8(+) cytotoxic lymphocytes in breast cancer. Tumor-infiltrating CD8(+) lymphocytes were assessed by immunohistochemical staining of tissue microarray cores from 1,334 unselected breast tumors from patients with long-term follow-up. The number of CD8(+) T cells was counted in tumor nests (intratumoral), in stroma adjacent to tumor cells, and in stroma distant to tumor cells, and their relationship with clinical outcome was determined. The total number of CD8(+) cells was positively correlated with tumor grade (r(s) = 0.20; P < . 001) and inversely correlated with patient's age at diagnosis, estrogen receptor-alpha (ER-α), and progesterone receptor (PgR) expression (Mann-Whitney U test, P < .001). The total patient cohort was randomly divided into two separate training and validation sets before performing univariate survival analysis. Total number and distant stromal CD8(+) lymphocytes were associated with better patient survival (P = .041 and P < .001, respectively) in the training set. In multivariate analysis, total CD8(+) T-cell count was an independent prognostic factor in both training and validation sets. These results suggest that tumor-infiltrating CD8(+) T lymphocytes have antitumor activity as judged by their favorable effect on patients' survival and could potentially be exploited in the treatment of breast cancer.
Taking the Tube: From Normal Fallopian Tube Epithelium to Ovarian High-grade Serous Carcinoma

Detailed pathologic studies over the past decade suggest a distal fallopian tube origin for the majority of “ovarian” high-grade serous carcinomas (HGSC). This review will summarize molecular alterations observed in tubal precursors for HGSC, namely p53 signatures and serous tubal intraepithelial carcinomas, and in nonmalignant fallopian tube epithelial cells obtained from women at increased genetic risk for HGSC. Recent experiments investigating the impact of follicular fluid exposure and retrograde menstruation on tumor development in the fallopian tube will also be discussed. These data will be reconciled with traditional ovarian cancer risk factors related to reproductive history.
Endogenous two-photon fluorescence imaging elucidates metabolic changes related to enhanced glycolysis and glutamine consumption in precancerous epithelial tissues.

Alterations in the balance between different metabolic pathways used to meet cellular bioenergetic and biosynthetic demands are considered hallmarks of cancer. Optical imaging relying on endogenous fluorescence has been used as a noninvasive approach to assess tissue metabolic changes during cancer development. However, quantitative correlations of optical assessments with variations in the concentration of relevant metabolites or in the specific metabolic pathways that are involved have been lacking. In this study, we use high-resolution, depth-resolved imaging, relying entirely on endogenous two-photon excited fluorescence in combination with invasive biochemical assays and mass spectrometry to demonstrate the sensitivity and quantitative nature of optical redox ratio tissue assessments. We identify significant differences in the optical redox ratio of live, engineered normal and precancerous squamous epithelial tissues. We establish that while decreases in the optical redox ratio are associated with enhanced levels of glycolysis relative to oxidative phosphorylation, increases in glutamine consumption to support energy production are associated with increased optical redox ratio values. Such mechanistic insights in the origins of optical metabolic assessments are critical for exploiting fully the potential of such noninvasive approaches to monitor and understand important metabolic changes that occur in live tissues at the onset of cancer or in response to treatment.
An OpenMP Compiler for Efficient Use of Distributed Scratchpad Memory in MPSoCs

Most of today's state-of-the-art processors for mobile and embedded systems feature on-chip scratchpad memories. To efficiently exploit the advantages of low-latency high-bandwidth memory modules in the hierarchy, there is the need for programming models and/or language features that expose such architectural details. On the other hand, effectively exploiting the limited on-chip memory space requires the programmer to devise an efficient partitioning and distributed placement of shared data at the application level. In this paper, we propose a programming framework that combines the ease of use of OpenMP with simple, yet powerful, language extensions to trigger array data partitioning. Our compiler exploits profiled information on array access count to automatically generate data allocation schemes optimized for locality of references.
Smoke inhalation injury during enclosed-space fires: an update*

In view of the tragic fire at a nightclub in the city of Santa Maria, Brazil, which culminated in the sudden death of 232 young people, we decided to review the literature regarding smoke inhalation injury caused by enclosed-space fires, which can be divided into direct thermal damage, carbon monoxide poisoning, and cyanide poisoning. Such injuries often call for immediate orotracheal intubation, either due to acute airway obstruction or due to a reduced level of consciousness. The diagnosis and the severity of the thermal injury can be determined by fiberoptic bronchoscopy. The levels of gases and gas by-products in the bloodstream should be assessed as rapidly as possible, even while still at the scene of the incident. First responders can also treat carbon monoxide poisoning, with immediate administration of oxygen at 100%, as well as cyanide poisoning, with oxygen therapy and hydroxocobalamin injection
Have Referees Rejected Some of the Most-Cited Articles of All Times?

In this article a quantitative study is reported on the resistance that scientists may encounter when they do innovative work or when they attempt to publish articles that later become highly cited. A set of 205 commentaries by authors of some of the most‐cited papers of all times have been examined in order to identify those articles whose authors encountered difficulty in getting his or her work published. There are 22 commentaries (10.7%) in which authors mention some difficulty or resistance in doing or publishing the research reported in the article. Three of the articles which had problems in being published are the most cited from their respective journals. According the authors' commentaries, although sometimes referees' negative evaluations can help improve the articles, in other instances referees and editors wrongly rejected the highly cited articles. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Detection of Differentially Expressed Basal Cell Proteins by Mass Spectrometry*

The ability of cells to modulate interactions with each other and the substrate is essential for epithelial tissue remodeling during processes such as wound healing and tumor progression. However, despite strides made in the field of proteomics, proteins involved in adhesion have been difficult to study. Here, we report a method for the enrichment and analysis of proteins associated with the basal surface of the cell and its underlying matrix. The enrichment involves deroofing the cells with 20 mm ammonium hydroxide and the removal of cytosolic and organellar proteins by stringent water wash. Proteomic profiling was achieved by LC-FTMS, which allowed comparison of differentially expressed or shared proteins under different cell states. First, we analyzed and compared the basal cell components of mouse keratinocytes lacking the cell-cell junction molecule plakoglobin with their control counterparts. Changes in the molecules involved in motility and invasion were detected in plakoglobin-deficient cells, including decreased detection of fibronectin, integrin β4, and FAT tumor suppressor. Second, we assessed the differences in basal cell components between two human oral squamous cell carcinoma lines originating from different sites in the oral cavity (CAL33 and UM-SCC-1). The data show differences between the two lines in the type and abundance of proteins specific to cell adhesion, migration, and angiogenesis. Therefore, the method described here has the potential to serve as a platform to assess proteomic changes in basal cell components including extracellular and adhesion-specific proteins involved in wound healing, cancer, and chronic and acquired adhesion-related disorders.
The collective lifestyles framework : a contextual analysis of social practices, social structure and disease

50 THE PROBLEM 51 MOVING BEYOND THE ENUMERATION OF VARIABLES: AN EPISTEMOLOGICAL AND METHODOLOGICAL QUESTIONING OF SOCIAL EPIDEMIOLOGY 53 CRITIQUE OF THE EPIDEMIOLOGICAL USE OF CONTEXT 57 LIFESTYLE AND CONTEXT 58 LIFESTYLE AS A SET OF SOCIAL PRACTICES 60 SOME THEORETICAL CONSIDERATIONS 62 Capability theory and health inequalities 62 Structuration theory and Giddens 65 Habitus and Bourdieu 67 HABITUS, STRUCTURATION THEORY AND COLLECTIVE LIFESTYLES 68 CONTEXT, COLLECTIVE LIFESTYLES, AND HEALTH INEQUALITIES 69 AN EXAMPLE IN LIEU OF A CONCLUSION 71 NOTES 73 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 73 REFERENCES 74 THE EMPIRICAL PROBLEM: SMOKING INITIATION AMONG PREADOLESCENTS 78 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK 84 Components of the Framework 84 FIGURE 1 89 Hypotheses 90 METHODS 91 CONTEXT OF THE STUDY 92 RESEARCH DESIGN 92 POPULATION 93 DATA COLLECTION 95 Children's Data Base 95 Neighbourhood Data Base 96
Cooling rates of neutron stars and the young neutron star in the Cassiopeia A supernova remnant

We explore the thermal state of the neutron star in the Cassio peia A supernova remnant using the recent result of Ho & Heinke (2009) that the thermal radiation of this star is well-described by a carbon atmosphere model and the emission comes from the entire stellar surface. Starting from neutron star cooling theory, we formulate a robust method to extract neutrino cooling rates of thermally relaxed stars at the neutrino cooling sta ge from observations of thermal surface radiation. We show how to compare these rates with the rates of standard candles ‐ stars with non-superfluid nucleon cores cooling slowly via t he modified Urca process. We find that the internal temperature of standard candles is a we ll-defined function of the stellar compactness parameter x = rg/R, irrespective of the equation of state of neutron star matte r (R and rg are circumferential and gravitational radii, respectivel y). We demonstrate that the data on the Cassiopeia A neutron star can be explained in terms of three parameters: fl, the neutrino cooling effi ciency with respect to the standard candle; the compactness x; and the amount of light elements in the heat blanketing envelope. For an ordin ary (iron) heat blanketing envelope or a low-mass (. 10 −13 M⊙) carbon envelope, we find the e ffi ciency fl∼ 1 (standard cooling) for x . 0.5 and fl ∼ 0.02 (slower cooling) for a maximum compactness x ≈ 0.7. A heat blanket containing the maximum mass (∼ 10 −8 M⊙) of light elements increases fl by a factor of 50. We also examine the (unlikely) possibility that the st ar is still thermally non-relaxed.
Occurrence of Ammonia-Oxidizing Archaea in Wastewater Treatment Plant Bioreactors

ABSTRACT We report molecular evidence that ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) occur in activated sludge bioreactors used to remove ammonia from wastewater. Using PCR primers targeting archaeal ammonia monooxygenase subunit A (amoA) genes, we retrieved and compared 75 sequences from five wastewater treatment plants operating with low dissolved oxygen levels and long retention times. All of these sequences showed similarity to sequences previously found in soil and sediments, and they were distributed primarily in four major phylogenetic clusters. One of these clusters contained virtually identical amoA sequences obtained from all five activated sludge samples (from Oregon, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey) and accounted for 67% of all the sequences, suggesting that this AOA phylotype may be widespread in nitrifying bioreactors.
Emergence of Rotavirus G4P8 Strain among Children Suffering from Watery Diarrhea in Calcutta, India

Rotavirus RNAs from the fecal samples were hybridized with cDNAs specific for G1 and G2 genotypes. 59 out of 138 samples (42.7%) did not hybridize with either probe. The cDNAs coding for VP7 and VP4 from one such sample, SC134, were synthesized by combined reverse transcriptase/polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using specific oligonucleotide primers and were used as probes to screen those local isolates which did not hybridize with either G1 or G2. 26/59 (44%) of fecal RNA hybridized with these cDNAs indicating a possible emergence of this strain in this part of India. The VP7 and VP4 genotype specificity of SC134 was found to be G4P8 by multiplex PCR. The VP7 gene of SC134 was cloned and characterized in detail by restriction enzyme digestion and DNA sequence analysis. Comparison of nucleotide and predicted amino acid sequence of the VP7 gene of SC134 with other serotypes revealed that the VP7 gene of SC134 was closely related to G4. However, amio acids within the VP7 sequence differed in seven positions with that of both the subtype ‘A’ and ‘B’ of the G4 serotype. To establish the relation of this emerging strain with the other reported G4 strains, a phylogenetic tree was constructed and SC134 was found to be more closely related to the ST3 strain isolated in England and included in the tetravalent vaccine formulation along with two Japanese strains, although all four were distinct and did not form any cluster as was evident by the horizontal distance separating them. The VP7 gene sequence of SC134 was submitted to EMBL and was assigned the accession number AJ278217.
Infinite Markov-Switching Maximum Entropy Discrimination Machines

In this paper, we present a method that combines the merits of Bayesian nonparametrics, specifically stick-breaking priors, and large-margin kernel machines in the context of sequential data classification. The proposed model employs a set of (theoretically) infinite interdependent large-margin classifiers as model components, that robustly capture local nonlinearity of complex data. The employed large-margin classifiers are connected in the context of a Markov-switching construction that allows for capturing complex temporal dynamics in the modeled datasets. Appropriate stick-breaking priors are imposed over the component switching mechanism of our model to allow for data-driven determination of the optimal number of component large-margin classifiers, under a standard nonparametric Bayesian inference scheme. Efficient model training is performed under the maximum entropy discrimination (MED) framework, which integrates the large-margin principle with Bayesian posterior inference. We evaluate our method using several real-world datasets, and compare it to state-of-the-art alternatives.
Smoking is ok as long as I eat healthily: Compensatory Health Beliefs and their role for intentions and smoking within the Health Action Process Approach

Compensatory Health Beliefs (CHBs) are defined as beliefs that the negative consequences of unhealthy behaviours can be compensated for by engaging in healthy behaviours. CHBs have not yet been investigated within a framework of a behaviour change model, nor have they been investigated in detail regarding smoking. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate on a theoretical basis whether smoking-specific CHBs, as a cognitive construct, add especially to the prediction of intention formation but also to changes in smoking behaviour over and above predictors specified by the Health Action Process Approach (HAPA). The sample comprised 385 adolescent smokers (mean age: 17.80). All HAPA-specific variables and a smoking-specific CHB scale were assessed twice, 4 months apart. Data were analysed using structural equation modelling. Smoking-specific CHBs were significantly negatively related to the intention to stop smoking over and above HAPA-specific predictors. Overall, 39% of variance in the intention to quit smoking was explained. For the prediction of smoking, CHBs were not able to explain variance over and above planning and self-efficacy. Thus, smoking-specific CHBs seem mainly important in predicting intentions but not behaviour. Overall, the findings contribute to the understanding of the role of smoking-specific CHBs within a health-behaviour change model.
Immunoglobulin M for Acute Infection: True or False?

ABSTRACT Immunoglobulin M (IgM) tests have clear clinical utility but also suffer disproportionately from false-positive results, which in turn can lead to misdiagnoses, inappropriate therapy, and premature closure of a diagnostic workup. Despite numerous reports in the literature, many clinicians and laboratorians remain unaware of this issue. In this brief review, a series of virology case examples is presented. However, a false-positive IgM can occur with any pathogen. Thus, when an accurate diagnosis is essential for therapy, prognosis, infection control, or public health, when the patient is sick enough to be hospitalized, or when the clinical or epidemiologic findings do not fit, IgM detection should not be accepted as a stand-alone test. Rather, whenever possible, the diagnosis should be confirmed by other means, including testing of serial samples and the application of additional test methods.
Adrenal Steroid Concentrations in Children Seven to Seventeen Years of Age

During puberty, serum steroid concentrations change dramatically. The objective of this study was to determine the adrenal steroid concentrations in children from 7 to 17 years of age. Tanner stage was determined in each child by physical examination. 11-Deoxycortisol, pregnenolone, 17-hydroxypregnenolone, 17-hydroxyprogesterone and testosterone were quantified by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Androstenedione and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate were measured by immunoassay. The median and central 95% of the steroid concentrations were determined for age, gender, and Tanner stage. Except for 11-deoxycortisol, all of the steroids exhibited an increase in concentration after age 7-9 years in both boys and girls. 11-Deoxycortisol, which is made exclusively in the adrenal cortex, declined with age and Tanner stage. This suggests that a rise in gonadal function and decreased efficiency of 11beta-hydroxylase with age may contribute to an increase in the remaining steroids. Testosterone concentrations increased more dramatically in boys, but increases were seen with each Tanner stage in girls.
Analys is and Redes ign of a Knowledge Database for a Drug-Drug Interactions Alert S ystem

Physicians tend to ignore drug-drug interactions alerts, this is due to the great amount of irrelevant interactions displayed and the interface in which these alerts are shown. The high rate of clinically inadequate alerts produce “alerts fatigue”. This high number of incorrect alerts predisposes physicians to underestimate the electronic prescription systems as useful tools in their practice. We decided to analyze and redesign our drug-drug interactions alerting system knowledge database. In order to do so, we proceeded to clean our knowledge database accordingly to the clinical significance of drug-drug interactions. A new drug interactions taxonomy was created based on the recommendations given in each single monograph of interaction. Finally we proceeded to recategorize the alerts as Active or Passive whether if they needed to be intrusive in the prescribing process or not.