Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Adolescents with chronic disease--the double whammy.

BACKGROUND Approximately one in 10 adolescents have limitations of activity from chronic disease or disability. Self management of chronic disease is increasingly recommended in adults, but there has been remarkably little discussion of its application in adolescents. Evidence suggests better outcomes for patients who are able to self manage their disease. OBJECTIVE This article outlines some of the challenges associated with working with adolescents with chronic disease. Self management is discussed, focusing on how it can inform clinical strategies with both the adolescent and their parents. DISCUSSION The developmental challenges faced by adolescents with chronic conditions, and their parents, are common across disease categories. Clinicians are required to concurrently support the adolescent's emerging capacity for self management while simultaneously supporting parents to take on a different role in relationship to their child's health care. General practitioners are ideally placed to assist adolescents to engage in developmentally appropriate self management practices.
Multicentre physiological reference values for some urinary component-to-creatinine (creatininium) concentration ratios

Abstract Nine clinical laboratories in different regions of Spain have shared the search for reference individuals and the production of reference values for urinary component-to-creatininium concentration ratios measured in first morning urine samples using RD/Hitachi analysers. These urinary quantities include albumin, calcium(II), chloride, magnesium(II), phosphate, potassium ion, protein, sodium ion, urate and urea. All the logistic work was done in co-operation with the reagents' and analysers' supplier (Roche Diagnostics España, S.L., Sant Cugat del Vallès, Catalonia, Spain). From the blend of reference values obtained by each laboratory, the multicentre reference limits were estimated parametrically after mathematical transformation of original data.
RankwithTA: A robust and accurate peer grading mechanism for MOOCs

Massive Online Open Courses (MOOCs) have the potential to revolutionize higher education with their wide outreach and accessibility. One of key challenges in MOOCs is the student evaluation: The large number of students makes it infeasible for instructors or teaching assistants (TAs) to grade all assignments. Peer grading-having students assess each other-is a promising approach to tackling the problem of evaluation at scale. The user evaluations are then used directly, or aggregated into a consensus value. However, lacking an incentive scheme, users have no motive in making effort in completing the evaluations, providing inaccurate answers instead. To address the above issues, we propose and implement a peer grading scheme, RankwithTA. Specifically, considering that the quality of a student determines both her performance in the assignment and her grading ability, RankwithTA makes the grade each student received depend on both the quality of the solution they submitted, and on the quality of their review and grading work to incentivize students' correct grading, Furthermore, the ground truth is incorporated, which utilizes external calibration by having some students graded by instructors or TAs to provide a basis for accuracy. The simulation results illustrate that RankwithTA performs better than the existing schemes.
A polymorphism of a platelet glycoprotein receptor as an inherited risk factor for coronary thrombosis.

BACKGROUND Platelet glycoprotein IIb/IIIa is a membrane receptor for fibrinogen and von Willebrand factor, and it has an important role in platelet aggregation. It is known to be involved in the pathogenesis of acute coronary syndromes. Previously, we found a high frequency of a particular polymorphism, PlA2, of the gene encoding glycoprotein IIIa in kindreds with a high prevalence of premature myocardial infarction. METHODS To investigate the relation between the PlA2 polymorphism and acute coronary syndromes, we conducted a case-control study of 71 case patients with myocardial infarction or unstable angina and 68 inpatient controls without known heart disease. The groups were matched for age, race, and sex. We used two methods to determine the PlA genotype: reverse dot blot hybridization and allele-specific restriction digestion. RESULTS The prevalence of PlA2 was 2.1 times higher among the case patients than among the controls (39.4 percent vs. 19.1 percent, P=0.01). In a subgroup of patients whose disease began before the age of 60 years, the prevalence of PlA2 was 50 percent, a value that was 3.6 times that among control subjects under 60 years of age (13.9 percent, P=0.002). Among subjects with the PlA2 polymorphism, the odds ratio for having a coronary event was 2.8 (95 percent confidence interval, 1.2 to 6.4). In the patients less than 60 years of age at the onset of disease, the odds ratio was 6.2 (95 percent confidence interval, 1.8 to 22.4). CONCLUSIONS We observed a strong association between the PlA2 polymorphism of the glycoprotein IIIa gene and acute coronary thrombosis, and this association was strongest in patients who had had coronary events before the age of 60 years.
Demographic and Clinical Features of Endometrial Polyps in Patients with Endometriosis

Aims. To compare the clinical features of endometrial polyps (EPs) between patients with endometriosis (EM) (EM group) and without EM (non-EM group). Methods and Results. Seventy-six cases in the EM group and 133 cases in the non-EM group underwent laparotomy or hysteroscopy and laparoscopy; later, it was confirmed that the results by pathology from July 2002 to April 2008 in the Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics at the First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University. The recurrence of EPs was followed up after the surgery until 2013. The following parameters were assessed: age, gravidity, parity, infertility, and menstrual cycle changes, as well as polyps diameters, locations, number, association with the revised American Fertility Society (r-AFS) classification, and their recurrence. On review, 76 EPs cases of EM group histologically resembled EPs but the majority of EPs with EM occurred in primary infertility cases and in fewer pregnancy rate women who had stable and smaller EPs without association with the AFS stage. The recurrence rate of EPs in EM group was higher than that in non-EM group. Conclusion. It is important to identify whether infertile patients with EM are also having EPs. Removing any coexisting EPs via hysteroscopy would be clinically helpful in treating endometriosis-related infertility in these patients.
Brain Network Analysis From High-Resolution EEG Recordings by the Application of Theoretical Graph Indexes

The extraction of the salient characteristics from brain connectivity patterns is an open challenging topic since often the estimated cerebral networks have a relative large size and complex structure. Since a graph is a mathematical representation of a network, which is essentially reduced to nodes and connections between them, the use of a theoretical graph approach would extract significant information from the functional brain networks estimated through different neuroimaging techniques. The present work intends to support the development of the ldquobrain network analysis:rdquo a mathematical tool consisting in a body of indexes based on the graph theory able to improve the comprehension of the complex interactions within the brain. In the present work, we applied for demonstrative purpose some graph indexes to the time-varying networks estimated from a set of high-resolution EEG data in a group of healthy subjects during the performance of a motor task. The comparison with a random benchmark allowed extracting the significant properties of the estimated networks in the representative Alpha (7-12 Hz) band. Altogether, our findings aim at proving how the brain network analysis could reveal important information about the time-frequency dynamics of the functional cortical networks.
The Impacts of Genistein and Daidzein on Estrogen Conjugations in Human Breast Cancer Cells: A Targeted Metabolomics Approach

The beneficial effect of dietary soy food intake, especially for women diagnosed with breast cancer, is controversial, as in vitro data has shown that the soy isoflavones genistein and daidzein may even stimulate the proliferation of estrogen-receptor alpha positive (ERα+) breast cancer cells at low concentrations. As genistein and daidzein are known to inhibit key enzymes in the steroid metabolism pathway, and thus may influence levels of active estrogens, we investigated the impacts of genistein and daidzein on the formation of estrogen metabolites, namely 17β-estradiol (E2), 17β-estradiol-3-(β-D-glucuronide) (E2-G), 17β-estradiol-3-sulfate (E2-S) and estrone-3-sulfate (E1-S) in estrogen-dependent ERα+ MCF-7 cells. We found that both isoflavones were potent inhibitors of E1 and E2 sulfation (85–95% inhibition at 10 μM), but impeded E2 glucuronidation to a lesser extent (55–60% inhibition at 10 μM). The stronger inhibition of E1 and E2 sulfation compared with E2 glucuronidation was more evident for genistein, as indicated by significantly lower inhibition constants for genistein [Kis: E2-S (0.32 μM) < E1-S (0.76 μM) < E2-G (6.01 μM)] when compared with those for daidzein [Kis: E2-S (0.48 μM) < E1-S (1.64 μM) < E2-G (7.31 μM)]. Concomitant with the suppression of E1 and E2 conjugation, we observed a minor but statistically significant increase in E2 concentration of approximately 20%. As the content of genistein and daidzein in soy food is relatively low, an increased risk of breast cancer development and progression in women may only be observed following consumption of high-dose isoflavone supplements. Further long-term human studies monitoring free estrogens and their conjugates are therefore highly warranted to evaluate the potential side effects of high-dose genistein and daidzein, especially in patients diagnosed with ERα+ breast cancer.
Preparation of Leptin Antagonists by Site‐Directed Mutagenesis of Human, Ovine, Rat, and Mouse Leptin's Site III

Abstract: Six muteins of human, ovine, rat, and mouse leptins mutated to Ala in amino acids 39–41 or 39–42 were prepared by site‐directed mutagenesis of the putative site III, which does not affect binding but is necessary for receptor activation, then expressed, solubilized in 4.5 M urea, at pH 11.3 in presence of cysteine, refolded and purified to homogeneity by anion‐exchange chromatography on Q‐Sepharose or combination of anion‐exchange chromatography followed by gel filtration. The overall yields were 400–800 mg from 5 L of fermentation. All proteins were >98% pure as evidenced by SDS‐PAGE and contained at least 95% monomers as documented by gel‐filtration chromatography under nondenaturing conditions. Circular dichroism analysis revealed that all six muteins have identical secondary structure characteristic of nonmutated leptins, namely 52–63% of alpha helix content. All muteins formed a 1:1 complex with chicken leptin binding domain, (chLBD) and bound chLBD or membrane‐embedded leptin receptor with affinity identical to WT leptins. Muteins were devoid of any biological activity in several bioassays but were potent competitive antagonists. Some muteins were pegylated using 40 kDa PEG. Although pegylation decreased the in vitro activity, increasing circulation half‐life can recompensate this deficit, so pegylated antagonists are expected to be more potent in vivo.
Procedures in the 13C octanoic acid breath test for measurement of gastric emptying: analysis using Bland–Altman methods

Abstract Objective. The 13C octanoic acid breath test (OBT) was first developed as an alternative method of measuring gastric emptying (GE) to scintigraphy. There has been much debate about the test duration and how often measurements need to be taken. This study aims to address these issues. Material and methods. For 78 GE tests using the 13C OBT, GE lag phase (Tlag) was calculated while sampling more frequently than the recommended every 15 min. Comparisons between Tlag were completed using Bland–Altman plots. Similarly, 4 or 6 h test durations were assessed to establish if they yield the same GE half time (Thalf). From one volunteer, samples were taken every 1 min for the first 30 min and then every 15 min until 6 h. GE times were then calculated using different combinations of sampling times. Evidence of a visible Tlag was also explored from this data. Results. Findings indicated that taking samples every 5 min for the first 30 min instead of every 15 min did not change the GE Tlag based on Bland–Altman plots. The correlation between these two methods was also high (r2 = 0.9957). The findings showed that the difference between the two sampling durations 4 and 6 h was large and the correlation between the methods was low (r2 = 0.8335). Samples taken at a rate of one breath per min indicated lack of a visible Tlag. Conclusions. Sampling for the 13C OBT should be completed every 15 min for 6 h.
A compact reconfigurable microstrip dual-band filter using varactor-tuned stub-loaded stepped-impedance resonators

A new varactor-tuned microstrip dual-band band-pass filter (BPF) based on the tri-mode stub-loaded stepped-impedance resonators (SL-SIRs) is investigated. By employing the dual coupling paths, the two passbands can then be fully controlled and designed independently. Meanwhile, a third-order bandpass response can be realized by properly incorporating the first three resonator modes of a tri-mode SL-SIR at adjacent frequencies into the passband. Thus, the third-order dual-band BPF can be designed with only two resonators, resulting in an extremely small size. In addition, for the electronic tuning, three varactors are loaded onto the open-ends of each resonator and, thus, the passband frequency can be changed by properly tuning the first three resonant modes of the SL-SIR. For the demonstration, a compact reconfigurable dual-band BPF with a size of 0.19 λ0 by 0.04 λ0 has been designed and fabricated. Good agreement is also achieved between simulation and measurement.
AlGaN/GaN High Electron Mobility Transistor Structures: Self-Heating Effect and Performance Degradation

This paper reports on the results of the experimental and numerical investigation into the self-heating effect in AlGaN/GaN heterostructures grown on sapphire and SiC substrates. It shows that temperature increase has an opposite dependence on the buffer thickness for sapphire and SiC substrates. Noise spectroscopy is also used to monitor the self-heating effect. Moreover, it is shown that the room-temperature spectra can be used to determine the activation energy of the traps. An irreversible improvement in mobility and quantum scattering time is registered after the irradiation of AlGaN/GaN heterostructures at a total dose of 1 times106 rad of 60Co gamma rays.
Cognitive Testing to Identify Children With ADHD Who Do and Do Not Respond to Methylphenidate

Objective: To explore the utility of cognitive measures for predicting response of children and adolescents to methylphenidate (MPH). Method: Participants from the International Study to Predict Optimized Treatment–in ADHD (iSPOT-A) completed a cognitive test battery prior to receiving 6 weeks of MPH. The responder criterion was a 25% reduction in ADHD-Rating Scale-IV scores. Receiver Operator Characteristics (ROC) classified non-responders from responders with maximal sensitivity and specificity. Results: Overall, 62% of participants responded to MPH. Response rates for ROC-identified groups ranged from 18% to 85%. Non-responders showed compromised cognition related to switching of attention, sustained attention, planning, and impulsivity. One group of responders were 10 years of age or older and had impaired switching of attention and impulsivity; a second group had enhanced switching of attention, normal or higher Continuous Performance Task (CPT) scores, and above average scores on digit span. Conclusion: Cognitive tests may provide a simple, low-cost tool for treatment planning for children and adolescents with ADHD.
Eye and vision in the subterranean rodent cururo (Spalacopus cyanus, octodontidae)

Subterranean mammals are generally considered to have reduced eyes and apparent blindness as a convergent adaptation to their lightless microhabitat. However, there are substantial interspecific differences. We have studied the prospect of vision in the Chilean subterranean rodent cururo (Spalacopus cyanus, Octodontidae) by analyzing the optical properties of the eye, the presence and distribution of rod and cone photoreceptors, and their spectral sensitivities. Cururo eye size is normal for rodents of similar body size, the cornea and lens are transparent from red to near‐UV light, and the retina is well‐structured. Electroretinography reveals three spectral mechanisms: a rod with peak sensitivity (λmax) at about 500 nm, a cone with λmax at about 505 nm (green‐sensitive L‐cone), and a cone with λmax near 365 nm (UV‐sensitive S‐cone). This suggests dichromatic color vision. Immunocytochemistry with opsin‐specific antibodies confirms the presence of rods, L‐cones, and S‐cones. Cururo rod density is much lower than that of nocturnal surface‐dwelling rodents, and the cones form an unexpectedly high 10% proportion of the photoreceptors. Of these, S‐cones constitute a regionally varying proportion from 2% in dorsal to 20% in ventral retina. The high cone proportion suggests adaptation to visual demands during the sporadic short phases of diurnal surface activity, rather than to the lightless subterranean environment. Our measurements on fresh cururo urine reveal a high UV reflectance, suggesting that scent marks may be visible to the UV‐sensitive cones. The present results challenge the general view of convergent adaptive eye reduction and blindness in subterranean mammals. J. Comp. Neurol. 486:197–208, 2005. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
c‐Rel is crucial for the induction of Foxp3+ regulatory CD4+ T cells but not TH17 cells

The NF‐κB/Rel family member c‐Rel was described to be required for the development of TH1 responses. However, the role of c‐Rel in the differentiation of TH17 and regulatory CD4+Foxp3+ T cells (Treg) remains obscure. Here, we show that in the absence of c‐Rel, in vitro differentiation of pro‐inflammatory TH17 cells is normal. In contrast, generation of inducible Treg (iTreg) within c‐Rel‐deficient CD4+ T cells was severely hampered and correlated to reduced numbers of Foxp3+ T cells in vivo. Mechanistically, in vitro conversion of naive CD4+ T cells into iTreg was crucially dependent on c‐Rel‐mediated synthesis of endogenous IL‐2. The addition of exogenous IL‐2 was sufficient to rescue the development of c‐Rel‐deficient iTreg. Thus, c‐Rel is essential for the development of Foxp3+ Treg but not for TH17 cells via regulating the production of IL‐2.
A CMOS single-chip direct conversion satellite receiver for digital broadcasting system

This paper presents a fully integrated single-chip direct conversion receiver for DBS system. The receiver tunes 950-2150 MHz wide band using integrated low phase noise VCOs and a fractional-N phase locked loop. Fully programmable 2-58 MHz cut-off frequency channel select filter effectively eliminates out-of-channel jammers to increase the linearity and optimize its performance for the 1-45 Msps variable data rates. A delta-sigma modulated fractional-N synthesizer with low noise quadrature VCOs exhibits phase noise of -76 dBc/Hz at 10 kHz offset. It has a -65 dBm sensitivity with an 80 dB system gain dynamic range. The receiver draws only 100 mA from 1.8 V supply. This low power highly integrated DBS receiver uses a 0.18 /spl mu/m CMOS process.
Daisy quorum drives for the genetic restoration of wild populations

An ideal gene drive system to alter wild populations would 1) exclusively affect organisms within the political boundaries of consenting communities, and 2) be capable of restoring any engineered population to its original genetic state. Here we describe ‘daisy quorum’ drive systems that meet these criteria by combining daisy drive with underdominance. A daisy quorum drive system is predicted to spread through a population until all of its daisy elements have been lost, at which point its fitness becomes frequency-dependent: mostly altered populations become fixed for the desired change, while engineered genes at low frequency are swiftly eliminated by natural selection. The result is an engineered population surrounded by wild-type organisms with limited mixing at the boundary. Releasing large numbers of wild-type organisms or a few bearing a population suppression element can reduce the engineered population below the quorum, triggering elimination of all engineered sequences. In principle, the technology can restore any drive-amenable population carrying engineered genes to wild-type genetics. Daisy quorum systems may enable efficient, community-supported, and genetically reversible ecological engineering. Summary Local communities should be able to control their own environments without forcing those choices on others. Ideally, each community could reversibly alter local wild organisms in ways that cannot spread beyond their own boundaries, and any engineered population could be restored to its original genetic state. We've invented a 'daisy quorum' drive system that appears to meet these criteria. “Daisy” refers to a daisy drive, which typically uses a daisy-chain of linked genes to spread a change through a local population while losing links every generation until it stops spreading. “Quorum” reflects the system's ability to “vote” on whether a local population should be altered or not: once all daisy elements are lost, it favors replication by the altered version or the original depending on which is more abundant in the local area. Put together, they result in a change that first spreads through a local population, then either becomes locally prevalent is eliminating, inhibiting mixing at the boundary. All organisms in the target population are altered, but changes are unable to spread much beyond that area due to being greatly outnumbered by wild-type organisms and consequently less able to replicate. We haven't yet performed any experiments involving daisy quorum systems. Rather, we’re describing what we intend to do, including the safeguards we will use and our assessment of risks, in the hope that others will evaluate our plans and tell us if there's anything wrong that we missed. We hope that all researchers working on gene drive systems - and other technologies that could impact the shared environment - will similarly pre-register their plans. Sharing plans can reduce needless duplication, accelerate progress, and make the proposed work safer for everyone.
A Large Northern Hemisphere Terrestrial CO2 Sink Indicated by the 13C/12C Ratio of Atmospheric CO2

Measurements of the concentrations and carbon-13/carbon-12 isotope ratios of atmospheric carbon dioxide can be used to quantify the net removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere by the oceans and terrestrial plants. A study of weekly samples from a global network of 43 sites defined the latitudinal and temporal patterns of the two carbon sinks. A strong terrestrial biospheric sink was found in the temperate latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere in 1992 and 1993, the magnitude of which is roughly half that of the global fossil fuel burning emissions for those years. The challenge now is to identify those processes that would cause the terrestrial biosphere to absorb carbon dioxide in such large quantities.
Trends in the intergenerational transmission of divorce

I use data from the 1973-1996 NORC General Social Survey to examine trends in the intergenerational transmission of divorce. the propensity for the children of divorce to end their own marriages. The rate of divorce transmission declined by almost 50% in the study period. This result was essentially unchanged by statistical controls for various personal and family background differences between respondents.