Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Major depressive disorder and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis activity: results from a large cohort study.

CONTEXT There is a central belief that depression is associated with hyperactivity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, resulting in higher cortisol levels. However, results are inconsistent. OBJECTIVE To examine whether there is an association between depression and various cortisol indicators in a large cohort study. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS Data are from 1588 participants of the Netherlands Study of Depression and Anxiety who were recruited from the community, general practice care, and specialized mental health care. Three groups were compared: 308 control subjects without psychiatric disorders, 579 persons with remitted (no current) major depressive disorder (MDD), and 701 persons with a current MDD diagnosis, as assessed using the DSM-IV Composite International Diagnostic Interview. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Cortisol levels were measured in 7 saliva samples to determine the 1-hour cortisol awakening response, evening cortisol levels, and cortisol suppression after a 0.5-mg dexamethasone suppression test. RESULTS Both the remitted and current MDD groups showed a significantly higher cortisol awakening response compared with control subjects (effect size [Cohen d] range, 0.15-0.25). Evening cortisol levels were higher among the current MDD group at 10 pm but not at 11 pm. The postdexamethasone cortisol level did not differ between the MDD groups. Most depression characteristics (severity, chronicity, symptom profile, prior childhood trauma) were not associated with hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis activity except for comorbid anxiety, which tended to be associated with a higher cortisol awakening response. The use of psychoactive medication was generally associated with lower cortisol levels and less cortisol suppression after dexamethasone ingestion. CONCLUSIONS This large cohort study shows significant, although modest, associations between MDD and specific hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis indicators. Because a higher cortisol awakening response was observed among both subjects with current MDD and subjects with remitted MDD, this may be indicative of an increased biological vulnerability for depression.
Oral Mucositis in Pediatric Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia Patients: Evaluation of Microbiological and Hematological Factors

Objective: to investigate the associations of oral microbiota, leucocytes count, neutrophil count, platelet counts and hemoglobin level, and the severity of oral mucositis in pediatric patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) receiving chemotherapy. Materials and Methods: 71 prospective patients were included. Analyses of oral microbiota and blood sample were conducted on days 14 (D14) and 56 (D56) of the Brazilian GBTLI-99 treatment protocol. Herpes simplex virus (HSV) identification was performed by PCR followed by DNA sequencing analysis. Bacteria and fungi identification was obtained by standard microbiological culture tests. Results: 103 episodes of mucositis occurred, being 65 at D14 and 38 at D56. Most cases positive for herpes viral DNA sequences were identified as HSV-1. At D14, we found a significant association between the severity of mucositis and presence of HSV-1 (p = 0.0347), Candida spp. (p = 0.0078), and low platelet count (p = 0.0064). At D56, we found a significant association between the severity of mucositis and the presence of HSV-1 (p = 0.0317), previous HSV-1 presence on D14 (p < 0.0001) and neutrophil count (p = 0.0211). Clinical relevance: the identification of risk factors for mucositis in children and adolescents may contribute to the development of new strategies for prevention and/or treatment, reducing the complications associated with this condition. Conclusions: the presence of HSV, platelet count, and Candida spp. presence at D14 of ALL induction treatment is associated with increased severity of mucositis in children and adolescents. At D56 of ALL treatment, mucositis severity was associated with neutrophil count, HSV presence, and previous presence of HSV (at D14).
Lightcuts : An Implementation In The Physically Based Rendering Code Base

Lightcuts are a scalable framework for computing realistic illumination. At their basic function, lightcuts help to handle arbitrary geometry, non-diffuse materials, and illumination from a variety of sources. Lightcut is an algorithm developed for accurately approximating illumination from many point lights. It is our goal to implement the lightcuts algorithm into the code base of PBRT [Pharr and Humphreys 2010] following the work describing the lightcut algorithm [Walter 2005].
Inhibitory and Bactericidal Effects of Hydrogen Peroxide Production by Streptococcus pneumoniae on Other Inhabitants of the Upper Respiratory Tract

ABSTRACT An inverse correlation between colonization of the human nasopharynx by Streptococcus pneumoniae andHaemophilus influenzae, both common upper respiratory pathogens, has been reported. Studies were undertaken to determine if either of these organisms produces substances which inhibit growth of the other. Culture supernatants from S. pneumoniaeinhibited growth of H. influenzae, whereas culture supernatants from H. influenzae had no effect on the growth of S. pneumoniae. Moreover, coculture of S. pneumoniae and H. influenzae led to a rapid decrease in viable counts of H. influenzae. The addition of purified catalase prevented killing of H. influenzae in coculture experiments, suggesting that hydrogen peroxide may be responsible for this bactericidal activity. H. influenzae was killed by concentrations of hydrogen peroxide similar to that produced byS. pneumoniae. Hydrogen peroxide is produced by the pneumococcus through the action of pyruvate oxidase (SpxB) under conditions of aerobic growth. Both an spxB mutant and a naturally occurring variant of S. pneumoniae, which is downregulated in SpxB expression, were unable to kill H. influenzae. A catalase-reversible inhibitory effect of S. pneumoniae on the growth of the respiratory tract pathogens Moraxella catarrhalis andNeisseria meningitidis was also observed. Elevated hydrogen peroxide production, therefore, may be a means by which S. pneumoniae is able to inhibit a variety of competing organisms in the aerobic environment of the upper respiratory tract.
Phenotypic and genotypic variability in monozygotic triplets with Turner syndrome

Turner syndrome (TS) is a common disorder (1/2500 and 1/5000 female births) which is diagnosed at birth in approximately 20% of patients and during childhood (usually due to growth retardation) or later, (due to lack of pubertal development) for the remaining patients. Here we present a cytogenetic and molecular analysis of three monozygotic sisters. The diagnosis of TS was done for one of them (patient 1) who presented with a typical Turner phenotype. A first karyotype was established as normal and a second karyotype (carried out on 200 cells) revealed a 45,X/46,XX mosaicism with 6% of cells with a 45,X karyotype. Lymphocyte karyotype analysis showed the same mosaicism pattern for the two other sisters, one of them exhibiting only a mild (patient 2) and the other no clinical features of Turner syndrome (patient 3). Karyotype analysis was this time conducted on fibroblasts and showed that the 45,X/46,XX mosaicism pattern correlated with the clinical phenotype with 99, 43 and 3% of 45,X cells in patients 1, 2, and 3, respectively.
Transcriptional Activity of the Telomeric Retrotransposon HeT-A in Drosophila melanogaster Is Stimulated as a Consequence of Subterminal Deficiencies at Homologous and Nonhomologous Telomeres

ABSTRACT Drosophila melanogaster telomeres have two DNA domains: a terminal array of retrotransposons and a subterminal repetitive telomere-associated sequence (TAS), a source of telomere position effect (TPE). We reported previously that deletion of the 2L TAS array leads to dominant suppression of TPE by stimulating in trans expression of a telomeric transgene. Here, we compared the transcript activities of a w transgene inserted between the retrotransposon and TAS arrays at the 2L telomere in genotypes with different lengths of the 2L TAS. In contrast to individuals bearing a wild-type 2L homologue, flies with a TAS deficiency showed a significant increase in the level of telomeric w transcript during development, especially in pupae. Moreover, we identified a read-through w transcript initiated from a retrotransposon promoter in the terminal array. Read-through transcript levels also significantly increased with the presence of a 2L TAS deficiency in trans, indicating a stimulating force of the TAS deficiency on retrotransposon promoter activity. The read-through transcript contributes to total w transcript, although most w transcript originates at the w promoter. While silencing of transgenes in nonhomologous telomeres is suppressed by 2L TAS deficiencies, suggesting a global effect, the overall level of HeT-A transcripts is not increased under similar conditions.
System outage probability due to first- and second-order PMD

A theoretical approach is proposed that allows one to quantify the impact of fiber polarization mode dispersion (PMD) on optical binary transmission taking into account not only first-order polarization mode dispersion, but also signal distortion induced by second-order PMD. Using this approach the impact of the spectral signal width on PMD-induced system outage probability could be studied for the first time. An analysis of 10-Gb/s transmission exhibits that, as long as the mean PMD remains below the commonly accepted limit (about 10 ps) for negligible outage, a linear chirp of up to 30 GHz does not lead to an additional increase of the system outage. This result confirms that low bandwidth modulation schemes (external modulator, low chirp laser) do not suffer from additional outage degradation due to second-order PMD.
BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations across race and ethnicity: distribution and clinical implications

Purpose of review To summarize evidence on the prevalence and spectrum of BRCA1 and BRCA2 BRCA1/2 mutations across racial and ethnic groups and discuss implications for clinical practice. Recent findings The prevalence of BRCA1/2 mutations is comparable among breast cancer patients of African, Asian, white, and Hispanic descent: approximately 1–4% per gene. Among ovarian cancer patients in North America, BRCA1/2 mutations are present in 13–15%. Between racial/ethnic groups, there are important differences in the spectrum of BRCA1 compared with BRCA2 mutations, in BRCA1/2 variants of uncertain significance, and in the accuracy of clinical models that predict BRCA1/2 mutation carriage. Summary Given the significant prevalence of BRCA1/2 mutations across race/ethnicity, there is a need to expand and customize genetic counseling, genetic testing, and follow-up care for members of all racial/ethnic groups.
Dissociating Attention and Eye Movements in a Quantitative Analysis of Attention Allocation

In a recent paper, we introduced a method and equation for inferring the allocation of attention on a continuous scale. The size of the stimuli, the estimated size of the fovea, and the pattern of results implied that the subjects' responses reflected shifts in covert attention rather than shifts in eye movements. This report describes an experiment that tests this implication. We measured eye movements. The monitor briefly displayed (e.g., 130 ms) two small stimuli (≈1.0° × 1.2°), situated one atop another. When the stimuli were close together, as in the previous study, fixations that supported correct responses at one stimulus also supported correct responses at the other stimulus, as measured over the entire session. Yet, on any particular trial, correct responses were limited to just one stimulus. This pattern suggests that the constraints on responding within a trial were due to limits on cognitive processing, whereas the ability to respond correctly to either stimulus on different trials must have entailed shifts in attention (that were not accompanied by eye movements). In contrast, when the stimuli were far apart, fixations that had a high probability of supporting correct responses at one stimulus had a low probability of supporting correct responses at the other stimulus. Thus, conditions could be arranged so that correct responses depended on eye movements, whereas in the “standard” procedure, correct responses were independent of eye movements. The results dissociate covert and overt attention and support the claim that our procedure measures covert attention.
[Clinical outcomes of single level Bryan cervical disc arthroplasty: a prospective controlled study].

OBJECTIVE To compare the clinical outcomes of single level Bryan cervical disc replacement with traditional anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF). METHODS From Dec 2003 to May 2005, 59 patients with primary, single-level cervical radiculopathy and/or myelopathy were prospectively randomized into 2 groups: Bryan group with artificial disc replacement and ACDF group with traditional anterior cervical discectomy and fusion. Operation time, blood loss and hospitalization duration were compared between the 2 groups. Follow-up was taken at six weeks, 3, 6, 12 and 24 months after operation, and each case in both groups was evaluated with serial radiographic studies, neck disability indices (NDI), visual analog scale scores (VAS) for arm and neck pain. RESULTS No difference was found in the operation time, intraoperative blood loss and hospital stay between the 2 groups. But at the follow-up of 6 weeks and 3 months after operation, significant difference in NDI and VAS of neck pain existed. All replaced segments remained normal range of motion in sagittal rotation, while no motion occurred in any of the fusion segments. In ACDF group movement of the whole cervical spine decreased but gradually recovered to preoperative level in 6 months after operation. In Bryan group, pre- and postoperative motion of the whole cervical spine remained unchanged at any of the follow-up time. CONCLUSIONS Bryan disc replacement can achieve similar clinical improvement compared with traditional ACDF. Arthroplasty has the advantages of motion maintenance for the cervical spine and short recovery time after operation.
Effects of strontium-doped bioactive glass on the differentiation of cultured osteogenic cells.

There is accumulating evidence that strontium-containing biomaterials have positive effects on bone tissue repair. We investigated the in vitro effect of a new Sr-doped bioactive glass manufactured by the sol-gel method on osteoblast viability and differentiation. Osteoblasts isolated from foetal mouse calvaria were cultured in the presence of bioactive glass particles; particles were undoped (B75) or Sr-doped with 1 wt. % (B75-Sr1) and 5 wt. % (B75-Sr5). Morphological analysis was carried out by contrast-phase microscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Cell viability was evaluated by the MTS assay at 24 h, 48 h and 72 h. At 24 h, day 6 and day 12, osteoblast differentiation was evaluated by assaying alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity, osteocalcin (OC) secretion and gene expression of various bone markers, using Real-Time-PCR. Alizarin Red staining and ALP histoenzymatic localisation were performed on day 12. Microscopic observations and MTS showed an absence of cytotoxicity in the three investigated bioactive glasses. B75-Sr5 particles in cell cultures, in comparison with those of B75 and B75-Sr1, resulted in a significant up-regulation of Runx2, Osterix, Dlx5, collagen I, ALP, bone sialoprotein (BSP) and OC mRNA levels on day 12, which was associated with an increase of ALP activity on day 6 and OC secretion on day 12. In conclusion, osteoblast differentiation of foetal mouse calvarial cells was enhanced in the presence of bioactive glass particles containing 5 wt. % strontium. Thus, B75-Sr5 may represent a promising bone-grafting material for bone regeneration procedures.
Nutritional manipulation of primate retinas, I: effects of lutein or zeaxanthin supplements on serum and macular pigment in xanthophyll-free rhesus monkeys.

PURPOSE The xanthophylls lutein (L) and zeaxanthin (Z) are the primary components of macular pigment (MP) and may protect the macula from age-related degeneration (AMD). In this study, L or Z was fed to rhesus monkeys reared on xanthophyll-free diets to follow the accumulation of serum carotenoids and MP over time. METHODS Eighteen rhesus monkeys were fed xanthophyll-free semipurified diets from birth until 7 to 16 years. The diets of six were then supplemented with pure L and six with pure Z at 3.9 micromol/kg per day (2.2 mg/kg per day) for 24 to 56 weeks. At baseline and 4- to 12-week intervals during supplementation, serum carotenoids were measured by HPLC, and MP density was estimated by two-wavelength reflectometry. Serum carotenoids and MP were also measured in monkeys fed a stock diet. RESULTS Monkeys fed xanthophyll-free diets had no L or Z in serum and no detectable MP. During supplementation, serum L or Z increased rapidly over the first 4 weeks and from 16 weeks onward maintained similar levels, both several times higher than in stock-diet-fed monkeys. The central peak of MP optical density increased to a relatively steady level by 24 to 32 weeks in both L- and Z-fed groups. Rhesus monkeys fed a stock diet had lower blood concentrations of L than those found in humans and other nonhuman primates. CONCLUSIONS Rhesus monkeys respond to either dietary L or Z supplementation with increases in serum xanthophylls and MP, even after life-long xanthophyll deficiency. These animals provide a potential model to study mechanisms of protection from AMD.
Depression of heart sarcolemmal Ca2+-pump activity by oxygen free radicals.

Although oxygen free radicals have been implicated as mediators of cellular injury in myocardial ischemia-reperfusion, the exact nature of defects produced by these radicals is not clear. Because sarcolemmal Ca2+-pump is involved in the efflux of Ca2+ from the cell, this study was undertaken to examine the effects of oxygen free radicals on sarcolemmal ATP-dependent Ca2+ accumulation and Ca2+-stimulated Mg2+-dependent adenosinetriphosphatase (ATPase) activities as well as lipid peroxidation of membrane phospholipids. Isolated rat heart sarcolemmal membranes were incubated with xanthine + xanthine oxidase [a superoxide anion radical (O2-)-generating system], H2O2, or H2O2 + Fe2+ [a hydroxyl radical (HO.)-generating system] and assayed for Ca2+-pump activities. O2- inhibited the Ca2+-pump activities in a time-dependent manner; a significant inhibition of Ca2+-stimulated ATPase activity was seen after 1 min of incubation. Superoxide dismutase showed a protective effect on depression in Ca2+-pump activities caused by O2-. H2O2 inhibited Ca2+-pump activities in a dose-dependent manner; this inhibition was protected by the addition of catalase. HO. depressed the Ca2+-pump activities to a greater extent in comparison with H2O2. Mannitol showed a protective effect on HO. -induced inhibition of Ca2+-pump activities. The promotion of lipid peroxidation by free radicals was evident from increased formation of malondialdehyde. These results indicate that the sarcolemmal membrane is altered on exposure to oxygen free radicals, and this may result in depressing the Ca2+-pump mechanism for Ca2+ efflux from the myocardial cell.
Studies on the Development of Colon Targeted Oral Drug Delivery Systems for Ornidazole in the Treatment of Amoebiasis

The aim of the present study is to develop colon-targeted drug delivery sytems for ornidazole using guar gum as a carrier. The core formulation containing ornidazole was directly compressed. Compression-coated tablets of ornidazole containing various proportions of guar gum in the coat were prepared. All the formulations were evaluated for hardness and drug content uniformity and were subjected to in vitro drug release studies. The amount of ornidazole released from tablets at different time intervals was estimated by the HPLC method. The compression-coated formulations released less than 8% of ornidazole in the physiological environment of stomach and small intestine. The compression-coated tablets with 85%, 75%, and 65% of guar gum coat released about 21%, 38%, and 73% of ornidazole, respectively, in simulated colonic fluids indicating the susceptibility of the guar gum formulations to the rat caecal contents. The results of the study show that compression-coated ornidazole tablets with either 65% (OLV-65) or 75% (OLV-75) of guar gum coat are most likely to provide targeting of ornidazole for local action in the colon owing to its minimal release of the drug in the first 5 hr. The ornidazole compression-coated tablets showed no change in physical appearance, drug content, or in dissolution pattern after storage at 40°C/75% relative humidity for 6 months.
Catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia in children. A 7-year follow-up of 21 patients.

BACKGROUND Primary ventricular tachyarrhythmias are rarely seen in children. Among them, catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia has a poor spontaneous outcome. Its diagnosis is often delayed after the first symptoms, which is unacceptable because treatment with the appropriate beta-blocker prevents sudden death. METHODS AND RESULTS We observed 21 children (mean +/- SD age, 9.9 +/- 4 years) at the time of the diagnosis who had no structural heart disease and a normal QT interval on routine ECG. They were referred for stress- or emotion-induced syncope related to ventricular polymorphic tachyarrhythmias. The arrhythmia, consisting of isolated polymorphic ventricular extrasystoles followed by salvoes of bidirectional and polymorphic tachycardia susceptible to degeneration into ventricular fibrillation, was reproducibly induced by any form of increasing adrenergic stimulation. There was a familial history of syncope or sudden death in 30% of our patients. On receiving therapy with the appropriate beta-blocker, the patients' symptoms and polymorphic tachyarrhythmias disappeared. During a mean follow-up period of 7 years, three syncopal events and two sudden deaths occurred, probably due to treatment interruption. CONCLUSIONS The entity of adrenergic-dependent, potentially lethal tachyarrhythmia with no structural heart disease deserves to be individualized. It may form a variant of the congenital long QT syndrome in which the ECG marker is lacking; this primary ventricular arrhythmia must be looked for in a pediatric patient with stress- or emotion-induced syncope because only beta-blocking therapy can prevent sudden death and therefore must be given for the patient's lifetime.
Evaluation of Protective Efficacy of the Synthetic Peptide Vaccine Containing the T-Helper 1 Epitope with Cpg Oligodeoxynucleotide against Feline Infectious Peritonitis Virus Infection in Cats

Background Feline infectious peritonitis (FIP) is a feline coronavirus-induced fatal disease in domestic and wild cats. Cellular immunity is considered to play an important role in the prevention of FIP. Thus, induction of the cellular immune response is essential in vaccines against FIP virus (FIPV) infection. Methods We immunized cats with peptides containing T-helper (Th)1 epitopes derived from the nucleocapsid (N) protein of the type I FIPV KU-2 strain (NP7 and NP8) with feline CpG-oligodeoxynucleotides (fCpG-ODNs) as a vaccine adjuvant. Results Prevention against type II FIPV 79-1146 strain-induced FIP was slightly better in specific pathogen-free cats treated with NP7 and NP8 with fCpG-ODNs. However, immune tolerance was suggested to be induced by the high dose and frequency of NP7 and NP8 with fCpG-ODNs. Conclusions Further investigations on the combination and concentrations of the peptides and fCpG-ODNs, dose, frequency and route of administration are needed.