Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effect of PEAR1 Genetic Variants on 1-Year Outcomes in Chinese Patients with Acute Myocardial Infarction After Percutaneous Coronary Intervention

Aims: Platelet endothelial aggregation receptor-1 (PEAR1) is a platelet transmembrane protein that plays an important role on platelet aggregation. The aim of this study was to investigate whether PEAR1 genetic variations are associated with 1-year outcomes in Chinese patients with acute myocardial infarction after percutaneous coronary intervention. Methods: A total of 647 consecutive Chinese patients with acute myocardial infarction that underwent percutaneous coronary intervention and that were exposed to standard dual antiplatelet therapy with aspirin and clopidogrel were enrolled in this study. Six single nucleotide polymorphisms of PEAR1 were detected using the ligase detection reaction method. The follow-up period was 12 months. Results: Overall, 66 (10.2%) adverse ischemic events occurred. Multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that carriage of the PEAR1 rs56260937 minor allele was an independent predictor of revascularization events (OR = 2.15, 95% CI 1.12–4.15, p = 0.022) after adjusting for confounding factors. Conclusions: Genetic testing for PEAR1 variants can be helpful in predicting adverse ischemic events in Chinese patients with acute myocardial infarction after percutaneous coronary intervention.
Barcode fingerprinting: Unique identification of commercial products with their JAN/EAN/UCC barcode

This paper proposes a method to uniquely identify commercial products with an item level barcode, specifically JAN/EAN/UCC, with which we usually cannot distinguish individual products. This research is motivated by the industrial and consumer needs for first-in-first-out operations of their inventories in the environment, where serial level barcodes, such as GS1-128 and SGTIN, or RFID are still not available. The proposal, referred to as Barcode Fingerprinting, utilizes the microscopic features of printed barcode stripes to discriminate each other. We zoom in a particular portion of a barcode image and apply SURF Algorithms and RANSAC Algorithms, to extract the microscopic features. The features are stored with the barcode ID and the time stamp for the future comparisons. We examined the feasibility of the proposal method by processing 100 barcodes of single brand PET bottles. The experiment reveals that we can uniquely identify each of the 100 barcodes by using Barcode Fingerprinting with a proper preprocessing of images.
Code-Mixing in Hongkong Cantonese-English Bilinguals: Constraints and Processes.

This study focuses on the morphosyntactic aspects of Cantonese-English code-mixing as commonly spoken by bilinguals, most of whom are Cantonese. A corpus of Cantonese-English code-switching collected from informal conversations is analyzed in terms of structural properties, followed by a critique of the major constraints or principles that have been proposed in the literature. It is suggested that none of these constraints or principles are descriptively adequate in view of the data collected, and three alternative constraints--the category equivalence constraint, the bound morpheme constraint, and the specifier constraint are proposed. The possible implications of the constraints on bilingual processing are also discussed. (Author/JL) ,***;:****************************** * Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best thRt can be made * * from the original document. * ***************************************************************** CUHK PAPERS IN LINGUISTICS NO.4 1993 : 1 24. Code-mixing in Hongkong Cantonese-English Bilinguals: Constraints and Processes' Brian Chan Hok-shing City Polytechnic of Hong Kong
LPHN3 and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: interaction with maternal stress during pregnancy.

BACKGROUND Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a heterogeneous behavioral disorder, complex both in etiology and clinical expression. Both genetic and environmental factors have been implicated, and it has been suggested that gene-environment interactions may play a pivotal role in the disorder. Recently, a significant association was reported between ADHD and LPHN3 (which codes for latrophilin 3), and replicated in independent samples. METHODS We have examined the association between tag single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in LPHN3 within the region previously implicated in ADHD. Family based association tests (FBAT) were conducted (n = 380 families) with the categorical diagnosis of ADHD, behavioral and cognitive phenotypes related to ADHD, and response to treatment (given a fixed dose of methylphenidate, 0.5 mg/day). Stratified FBAT analyses, based on maternal smoking and stress during pregnancy, was conducted. RESULTS Whereas limited association was observed in the total sample, highly significant interaction between four LPHN3 tag SNPs (rs6551665, rs1947274, rs6858066, rs2345039) and maternal stress during pregnancy was noted. Analysis conducted in the sub-group of mothers exposed to minimal stress during pregnancy showed significant associations with ADHD, behavioral and cognitive dimensions related to ADHD, as well as treatment response. Although extensive association was observed with the candidate SNPs, the findings are partially inconsistent with previously published results with the opposite alleles over-transmitted in these studies. CONCLUSIONS These results provide evidence for the interaction between a genetic and environmental factor independently shown to be associated with ADHD. If confirmed in independent large studies, they may present a step forward in unraveling the complex etiology of ADHD.
Developmental Programming: Impact of Gestational Steroid and Metabolic Milieus on Mediators of Insulin Sensitivity in Prenatal Testosterone‐Treated Female Sheep

&NA; Prenatal testosterone (T) excess in sheep leads to peripheral insulin resistance (IR), reduced adipocyte size, and tissue‐specific changes, with liver and muscle but not adipose tissue being insulin resistant. To determine the basis for the tissue‐specific differences in insulin sensitivity, we assessed changes in negative (inflammation, oxidative stress, and lipotoxicity) and positive mediators (adiponectin and antioxidants) of insulin sensitivity in the liver, muscle, and adipose tissues of control and prenatal T‐treated sheep. Because T excess leads to maternal hyperinsulinemia, fetal hyperandrogenism, and functional hyperandrogenism and IR in their female offspring, prenatal and postnatal interventions with antiandrogen, flutamide, and the insulin sensitizer rosiglitazone were used to parse out the contribution of androgenic and metabolic pathways in programming and maintaining these defects. Results showed that (1) peripheral IR in prenatal T‐treated female sheep is related to increases in triglycerides and 3‐nitrotyrosine, which appear to override the increase in high‐molecular‐weight adiponectin; (2) liver IR is a function of the increase in oxidative stress (3‐nitrotyrosine) and lipotoxicity; (3) muscle IR is related to lipotoxicity; and (4) the insulin‐sensitive status of visceral adipose tissue appears to be a function of the increase in antioxidants that likely overrides the increase in proinflammatory cytokines, macrophages, and oxidative stress. Prenatal and postnatal intervention with either antiandrogen or insulin sensitizer had partial effects in preventing or ameliorating the prenatal T‐induced changes in mediators of insulin sensitivity, suggesting that both pathways are critical for the programming and maintenance of the prenatal T‐induced changes and point to potential involvement of estrogenic pathways.
The acceptance of social network: The role of status seeking on TAM

online social networks are progressively being adopted among young people in developing countries. The public is questioning why so many people adopt this technology in many aspects of their lives? The purpose of this study is to understand the acceptance of social networks by Thai students. We used traditional TAM's behavioral constructs: subjective norms (SN), perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use (PEOU), and behavioral intention (BI) together with status seeking (SS) to answer the question. We surveyed 350 Thai university students and use structural equation modelling (SEM) for the analysis. The findings depict a significant theoretical model and suggest the future research.
A Meta-Analytic Investigation of the Relation Between Interpersonal Attraction and Enacted Behavior

We present a meta-analysis that investigated the relation between self-reported interpersonal attraction and enacted behavior. Our synthesis focused on (a) identifying the behaviors related to attraction; (b) evaluating the efficacy of models of the relation between attraction and behavior; (c) testing the impact of several moderators, including evaluative threat salience, cognitive appraisal salience, and the sex composition of the social interaction; and (d) investigating the degree of agreement between the meta-analytic findings and an ethnographic analysis. Using a multilevel modeling approach, an analysis of 309 effect sizes (N = 5,422) revealed a significant association (z = .20) between self-reported attraction and enacted behavior. Key findings include: (a) that the specific behaviors associated with attraction (e.g., eye contact, smiling, laughter, mimicry) are those behaviors research has linked to the development of trust/rapport; (b) direct behaviors (e.g., physical proximity, talking to), compared with indirect behaviors (e.g., eye contact, smiling, mimicry), were more strongly related to self-reported attraction; and (c) evaluative threat salience (e.g., fear of rejection) reduced the magnitude of the relation between direct behavior and affective attraction. Moreover, an ethnographic analysis revealed consistency between the behaviors identified by the meta-analysis and those behaviors identified by ethnographers as predictive of attraction. We discuss the implications of our findings for models of the relation between attraction and behavior, for the behavioral expressions of emotions, and for how attraction is measured and conceptualized.
Fractional excretion of electrolytes in volume‐responsive and intrinsic acute kidney injury in dogs: Diagnostic and prognostic implications

Background The value of fractional excretion (FE) of electrolytes to characterize and prognosticate acute kidney injury (AKI) is poorly documented in dogs. Objectives To evaluate the diagnostic and prognostic roles of FE of electrolytes in dogs with AKI. Animals Dogs (n = 135) with AKI treated with standard care (February 2014‐December 2016). Methods Prospective study. Clinical and laboratory variables including FE of electrolytes, were measured upon admission. Dogs were graded according to the AKI‐IRIS guidelines and grouped according to AKI features (volume‐responsive, VR‐AKI; intrinsic, I‐AKI) and outcome (survivors/non‐survivors). Group comparison and regression analyses with hazard ratios (HR) evaluation for I‐AKI and mortality were performed. P < . 05 was considered significant. Results Fifty‐two of 135 (39%) dogs had VR‐AKI, 69/135 (51%) I‐AKI and 14/135 (10%) were unclassified. I‐AKI dogs had significantly higher FE of electrolytes, for example, FE of sodium (FENa, %) 2.39 (range 0.04‐75.81) than VR‐AKI ones 0.24 (range 0.01‐2.21; P < .001). Overall, case fatality was 41% (55/135). Increased FE of electrolytes were detected in nonsurvivors, for example, FENa 1.60 (range 0.03‐75.81) compared with survivors 0.60 (range 0.01‐50.45; P = .004). Several risk factors for death were identified, including AKI‐IRIS grade (HR = 1.39, P = .002), FE of electrolytes, for example, FENa (HR = 1.03, P < .001), and urinary output (HR = 5.06, P < .001). Conclusions and Clinical Importance Fractional excretion of electrolytes performed well in the early differentiation between VR‐AKI and I‐AKI, were related to outcome, and could be useful tools to manage AKI dogs in clinical practice.
Dehalogenases: From Improved Performance to Potential Microbial Dehalogenation Applications

The variety of halogenated substances and their derivatives widely used as pesticides, herbicides and other industrial products is of great concern due to the hazardous nature of these compounds owing to their toxicity, and persistent environmental pollution. Therefore, from the viewpoint of environmental technology, the need for environmentally relevant enzymes involved in biodegradation of these pollutants has received a great boost. One result of this great deal of attention has been the identification of environmentally relevant bacteria that produce hydrolytic dehalogenases—key enzymes which are considered cost-effective and eco-friendly in the removal and detoxification of these pollutants. These group of enzymes catalyzing the cleavage of the carbon-halogen bond of organohalogen compounds have potential applications in the chemical industry and bioremediation. The dehalogenases make use of fundamentally different strategies with a common mechanism to cleave carbon-halogen bonds whereby, an active-site carboxylate group attacks the substrate C atom bound to the halogen atom to form an ester intermediate and a halide ion with subsequent hydrolysis of the intermediate. Structurally, these dehalogenases have been characterized and shown to use substitution mechanisms that proceed via a covalent aspartyl intermediate. More so, the widest dehalogenation spectrum of electron acceptors tested with bacterial strains which could dehalogenate recalcitrant organohalides has further proven the versatility of bacterial dehalogenators to be considered when determining the fate of halogenated organics at contaminated sites. In this review, the general features of most widely studied bacterial dehalogenases, their structural properties, basis of the degradation of organohalides and their derivatives and how they have been improved for various applications is discussed.
Fathers’ and mothers’ language acculturation and parenting practices: Links to Mexican American children’s academic readiness

This study used a family-centered ecological lens to examine predictive relations among fathers’ and mothers’ language acculturation, parenting practices, and academic readiness in a large sample of Mexican American children in preschool (N = 880). In line with prior early childhood research, parent language acculturation was operationalized as fathers’ and mothers’ English proficiency and primary language used in the home. Parenting was operationalized as fathers’ and mothers’ participation in home learning stimulation (e.g. shared book reading). Analyses showed that, after controlling for demographics, fathers’ and mothers’ primary language in the home predicted children’s reading achievement and fathers’ and mothers’ English proficiency predicted children’s math achievement. Furthermore, maternal home learning stimulation made a unique contribution to children’s reading achievement after the influence of parent language acculturation was accounted for, underscoring the importance of home learning stimulation for strengthening Mexican American children’s reading skills prior to school entry.
Transport stress induces heart damage in newly hatched chicks via blocking the cytoprotective heat shock response and augmenting nitric oxide production1

Abstract Transport stress affects the animal's metabolism and psychological state. As a pro‐survival pathway, the heat shock response (HSR) protects healthy cells from stressors. However, it is unclear whether the HSR plays a role in transport stress‐induced heart damage. To evaluate the effects of transport stress on heart damage and HSR protection, newly hatched chicks were treated with transport stress for 2 h, 4 h and 8 h. Transport stress caused decreases in body weight and increases in serum creatine kinase (CK) activity, nitric oxide (NO) content in heart tissue, cardiac nitric oxide syntheses (NOS) activity and NOS isoforms transcription. The mRNA expression of heat shock factors (HSFs, including HSF1‐3) and heat shock proteins (HSPs, including HSP25, HSP40, HSP47, HSP60, HSP70, HSP90 and HSP110) in the heart of 2 h transport‐treated chicks was upregulated. After 8 h of transport stress in chicks, the transcription levels of the same HSPs and HSF2 were reduced in the heart. It was also found that the changes in the HSP60, HSP70 and HSP90 protein levels had similar tendencies. These results suggested that transport stress augmented NO generation through enhancing the activity of NOS and the transcription of NOS isoforms. Therefore, this study provides new evidence that transport stress induces heart damage in the newly hatched chicks by blocking the cytoprotective HSR and augmenting NO production.
Study of the antimicrobial effect of the silver nanoparticles against biofilm producing Staphylococcus aureus strains

Staphylococcus aureus is a leading cause of nosocomial infections and the etiologic agent of a wide range of diseases associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Some of the diseases mediated by this species include endocarditis, osteomyelitis, toxic shock syndrome, food poisoning, and skin infections. Biofilms are well organized and complex aggregate of microorganisms, surrounded by a protective matrix of exo-polysaccharides and can adhere to each other on various surfaces. Because of increase the drug resistance and the side effect of over use of antibiotic, it is necessary to find a suitable agent to reduce the growth of microorganism. Biofilm are known as a significant problem because biofilm formation protects pathogenic bacteria against antibiotics and is one of the main causes of development of chronic infections. Thus biofilm is the main cause of drug resistance in microbial strains. These strains cause pathogenicity to a maximum extent and thus cause resistance against the conventional antibiotics/drugs. Silver is known as an antimicrobial agent and is utilized in several antimicrobials and medications. Staphylococcus aureus strains were isolated and screened for biofilm production. In the present investigation, the nano-particles were prepared of Ag + . The biosynthesized silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) were characterized by UV–Vis spectroscopy and Transmission electron microscopy (TEM). UV–Vis spectra of silver nano-particles showed absorption spectra at 450 nm corresponding to the surface plasmon resonance of silver nanoparticles. The size and morphology of the fused nanoparticles were determined by TEM, which shows the formation of spherical nanoparticles in the size range of 5–20 nm. The antibacterial activity of biosynthesized AgNPs, were evaluated by measuring the diameter of zone of inhibition against pathogenic microbial strains and drug resistant Staphylococcus aureus. It were also observed that, these nanoparticles were having prominent antimicrobial activity against biofilm forming Staphylococcus aureus.
Mood episodes and mood disorders: patterns of incidence and conversion in the first three decades of life.

OBJECTIVES Significant questions remain regarding both the incidence patterns of mood episodes in adolescents and young adults from the community and the conversion rate from unipolar to bipolar disorders. We addressed these issues by examining data from a prospective longitudinal community study to (i) determine the cumulative incidence of mood episodes and disorders in the first three decades of life; (ii) determine the risk for first onset of depression among individuals with a previous history of hypomanic/manic episodes and vice versa; and (iii) determine the clinical and treatment characteristics of these subjects. METHODS Using the Munich-Composite International Diagnostic Interview, clinically trained interviewers assessed mood episodes and mental disorders in 3,021 community subjects (aged 14-24 at baseline and 21-34 at third follow-up). RESULTS The estimated cumulative incidence at age 33 was 2.9% for manic, 4.0% for hypomanic, 29.4% for major depressive, and 19.0% for minor depressive episodes; overall, 26.0% had unipolar major depression, 4.0% bipolar depression, 1.5% unipolar mania, and 3.6% unipolar hypomania (no major depression). Overall, 0.6% and 1.8% had unipolar mania or hypomania, respectively, without indication for even minor depression. A total of 3.6% of the initial unipolar major depression cases subsequently developed (hypo)mania, with particularly high rates in adolescent onset depression (< 17 years: 9%). A total of 49.6% of the initial unipolar mania cases subsequently developed major depression and 75.6% major or minor depression. While bipolar cases had more adverse clinical and course depression characteristics and higher treatment rates than unipolar depressed cases, bipolar cases did not significantly differ in mania characteristics from unipolar mania cases. CONCLUSIONS Unipolar and bipolar mood disorders are more frequent than previously thought in adolescence and young adulthood, a time period when both the recognition and the intervention rates by the healthcare system are rather low. 'Conversion' to bipolar disorder is limited in initial unipolar depression, but common in initial unipolar mania. The remaining unipolar mania cases appear to be significant in terms of clinical and course characteristics and thus require more research attention to replicate these findings.