Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Pentraxin-3 in Thrombolytic Therapy for Acute Ischemic Stroke: No Relation with Curative Effect and Prognosis

Background Pentraxin-3 (PTX3) is considered a high quality inflammatory marker of the severity and prognosis of several diseases, however, the value of PTX3 in thrombolytic therapy for acute ischemic stroke remains unclear and PTX3 is still controversial in evaluating the prognosis of stroke patients. In this study, we investigated the association of PTX3 with thrombolytic therapy in patients with acute ischemic stroke. Material/Methods Forty-seven stroke patients who received thrombolytic therapy within 4.5 hours after symptom onset were enrolled consecutively between July 2016 and June 2017. All the patients underwent multiphase CTA (computerized tomography angiography) or CT perfusion before thrombolysis with no indication for endovascular treatment. Initial and 24 hours of National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) scores and serum PTX3 level, stroke risk factors and predictors, and mRS (modified Rankin scale) at 3 months were collected prospectively. Predictors of thrombolytic therapy effect and long-term prognosis were investigated by univariate and multivariate logistic regression. Results The 24 hour NIHSS score and the treatment time was associated with symptom improvement, while the PTX3 level had no association with neurological improvement and prognosis in stroke patients receiving thrombolytic therapy. Conclusions PTX3 is not suitable to serve as an indicator of thrombolytic efficacy and had no association with long-term prognosis in stroke patients receiving thrombolytic therapy.
Guidelines for early detection of breast cancer in Brazil . III – Challenges for implementation

The objective of the current article is to present the main challenges for the implementation of the new recommendations for early detection of breast cancer in Brazil, and to reflect on the barriers and the strategies to overcome them. The implementation of evidence-based guidelines is a global challenge, and traditional strategies based only on disseminating their recommendations have proven insufficient for changing prevailing clinical practice. A major challenge for adherence to the new guidelines for early detection of breast cancer in Brazil is the current pattern in the use of mammographic screening in the country, which very often includes young women and a short interval between tests. Such practice, harmful to the population’s health, is reinforced by the logic of defensive medicine and the dissemination of erroneous information that overestimates the benefits of screening and underestimates or even omits its harms. In addition, there is a lack of policies and measures focused on early diagnosis of symptomatic cases. To overcome these barriers, changes in the regulation of care, financing, and implementation of shared decisionmaking in primary care are essential. Audit and feedback, academic detailing, and the incorporation of decision aids are some of the strategies that can facilitate implementation of the new recommendations.
Photodetachment of a model molecular system by an elliptically polarized field

The differential cross section for one-photon molecular detachment by an elliptically polarized field is analyzed for a one-electron molecular model comprised of an electron in the field of two (generally nonequivalent) attractive zero-range potentials (ZRPs) separated by the distance . A phenomenological parametrization of the photodetachment cross section for a fixed-in-space molecular system in terms of two scalar dynamical parameters is presented and circular dichroism effects are discussed. Analytic results for the dynamical molecular parameters within the ZRP molecular model are used to analyze interference phenomena (including two-center interference) and dichroic effects in the detached electron angular distributions and their dependence on the interatomic distance and on the orientation of the molecular axis with respect to the polarization plane. Numerical ZRP results for angular distributions are presented for both symmetric and asymmetric molecules in an elliptically polarized field.
Bayesian networks for mass spectrometric metabolite identification via molecular fingerprints

Motivation Metabolites, small molecules that are involved in cellular reactions, provide a direct functional signature of cellular state. Untargeted metabolomics experiments usually rely on tandem mass spectrometry to identify the thousands of compounds in a biological sample. Recently, we presented CSI:FingerID for searching in molecular structure databases using tandem mass spectrometry data. CSI:FingerID predicts a molecular fingerprint that encodes the structure of the query compound, then uses this to search a molecular structure database such as PubChem. Scoring of the predicted query fingerprint and deterministic target fingerprints is carried out assuming independence between the molecular properties constituting the fingerprint. Results We present a scoring that takes into account dependencies between molecular properties. As before, we predict posterior probabilities of molecular properties using machine learning. Dependencies between molecular properties are modeled as a Bayesian tree network; the tree structure is estimated on the fly from the instance data. For each edge, we also estimate the expected covariance between the two random variables. For fixed marginal probabilities, we then estimate conditional probabilities using the known covariance. Now, the corrected posterior probability of each candidate can be computed, and candidates are ranked by this score. Modeling dependencies improves identification rates of CSI:FingerID by 2.85 percentage points. Availability and implementation The new scoring Bayesian (fixed tree) is integrated into SIRIUS 4.0 (https://bio.informatik.uni‐jena.de/software/sirius/).
Antimicrobial-induced cognitive side effects

Introduction: Antimicrobial-induced cognitive side effects are often overlooked or underreported. Literature often reports symptoms of antimicrobial-induced cognitive impairment under more general blanket terms, such as neuropsychiatric side effects, neurotoxicity, or drug-induced delirium or encephalopathy. Methods: A PubMed search using terms including antibiotics, antifungals, antivirals, antimalarials, side effects, cognitive, neurotoxicity, encephalopathy, and delirium was conducted. Respectively, symptoms of cognitive impairment were teased out of the multiple neurologic complications presented for each case and reported based on antimicrobial class. Articles were excluded if they focused solely on neuropsychiatric side effects such as seizures, psychosis, hallucinations, or mood disturbances, were conducted in animals, or involved antiretroviral medication therapies. Results: Of over 50 case reviews, case reports, retrospective chart reviews, and prospective cohort studies analyzed, 25 were deemed appropriate for purposes of this review. Common antimicrobial-induced cognitive side effects for all antimicrobial classes included confusion, delirium, encephalopathy, and impaired concentration or attention. Recurring risk factors included, but were not limited to, older age and renal impairment. Mechanisms of cognitive impairment were relatively specific to each antimicrobial class. Discussion: Awareness of the potential for antimicrobial-induced cognitive side effects, including the general time frame of symptom onset and symptom presentation, is critical in challenging patient cases. This review article aims to summarize the risk factors, clinical symptoms, mechanisms, and management of antimicrobial-induced cognitive side effects. Pharmacists can play a key role in prevention through adjustment of medications for renal or hepatic dysfunction, avoidance of polypharmacy, and knowledge of critical drug interactions that may precipitate cognitive decline.
Ethanol Reinforcement Elicits Novel Response Inhibition Behavior in a Rat Model of Ethanol Dependence

Lower impulse control is a known risk factor for drug abuse vulnerability. Chronic experience with illicit drugs is suggested to enhance impulsivity and thereby perpetuate addiction. However, the nature of this relationship (directionality, causality) with regard to alcohol use disorder is unclear. The present study tested the hypothesis that higher impulsivity is observed during chronic intermittent ethanol vapor inhalation (CIE; a model of ethanol dependence) and subsequent abstinence from CIE in adult Wistar rats. Impulsivity was tested using a differential reinforcement of low rates 15 s (DRL15) schedule using either nondrug reward (palatable modified sucrose pellets) or sweetened ethanol. A decrease in the efficiency of earning reinforcers (expressed as % reinforcers/responses) is indicative of a decrease in response inhibition or an increase in impulsivity. The efficiency of reinforcement and amount of reinforcers earned were unaltered in CIE and control animals when the reinforcer was sucrose. When the reinforcer was sweetened ethanol, the efficiency of reinforcement increased in CIE rats compared with controls only during protracted abstinence. Responding for sweetened ethanol under a progressive-ratio schedule was more rapid in CIE rats during protracted abstinence. Contrary to the initial hypothesis, impulsivity did not increase in rats with a history of CIE; instead, it decreased when ethanol was used as the reinforcer. Furthermore, although the efficiency of ethanol reinforcement did not differ between CIE and control animals during CIE, CIE rats escalated the amount of sweetened ethanol consumed, suggesting that behavioral adaptations that are induced by CIE in rats that are tested under a DRL15 schedule appear to be targeted toward the maximization of ethanol intake and thus may contribute to escalation and relapse.
Data mining investigation of the association between a limb ballistocardiogram and blood pressure

Objective: To investigate the association between a limb ballistocardiogram (BCG) and blood pressure (BP) based on data mining. Approach: During four BP-perturbing interventions, the BCG and reference BP were measured from 23 young, healthy volunteers using a custom-manufactured wristband equipped with a MEMS accelerometer and a commercial continuous BP measurement device. Both timing and amplitude features in the wrist BCG waveform were extracted, and significant features predictive of diastolic (DP) and systolic (SP) BP were selected using stepwise linear regression analysis. The selected features were further compressed using principal component analysis to yield a small set of DP and SP predictors. The association between the predictors thus obtained and BP was investigated by multivariate linear regression analysis. Main results: The predictors exhibited a meaningful association with BP. When three most significant predictors were used for DP and SP, a correlation coefficient of r = 0.75 ± 0.03 (DP) and r = 0.75 ± 0.03 (SP), a root-mean-squared error (RMSE) of 7.4 ± 0.6 mmHg (DP) and 10.3 ± 0.8 mmHg (SP), and a mean absolute error (MAE) of 6.0 ± 0.5 mmHg (DP) and 8.3 ± 0.7 mmHg (SP) were obtained across all interventions (mean ± SE). The association was consistent in all the individual interventions (r ⩾ 0.68, RMSE ⩽ 5.7 mmHg, and MAE ⩽ 4.5 mmHg for DP as well as r ⩾ 0.61, RMSE ⩽ 7.9 mmHg, and MAE ⩽ 6.4 mmHg for SP on the average). The minimum number of requisite predictors for robust yet practically realistic BP monitoring appeared to be three. The association between predictors and BP was maintained even under regularized calibration (r = 0.63 ± 0.05, RMSE = 9.3 ± 0.8 mmHg, and MAE = 7.6 ± 0.7 mmHg for DP as well as r = 0.60 ± 0.05, RMSE = 14.7 ± 1.4 mmHg, and MAE = 11.9 ± 1.1 mmHg for SP (mean ± SE)). The requisite predictors for DP and SP were distinct from each other. Significance: The results of this study may provide a viable basis for ultra-convenient BP monitoring based on a limb BCG alone.
Multialternative Decision by Sampling: A Model of Decision Making Constrained by Process Data

Sequential sampling of evidence, or evidence accumulation, has been implemented in a variety of models to explain a range of multialternative choice phenomena. But the existing models do not agree on what, exactly, the evidence is that is accumulated. They also do not agree on how this evidence is accumulated. In this article, we use findings from process-tracing studies to constrain the evidence accumulation process. With these constraints, we extend the decision by sampling model and propose the multialternative decision by sampling (MDbS) model. In MDbS, the evidence accumulated is outcomes of pairwise ordinal comparisons between attribute values. MDbS provides a quantitative account of the attraction, compromise, and similarity effects equal to that of other models, and captures a wider range of empirical phenomena than other models.
Adaptive error feedback regulation problem for 1D wave equation

By using the adaptive control approach, we solve the error feedback regulator problem for the one‐dimensional wave equation with a general harmonic disturbance anticollocated with control and with two types of disturbed measurements, ie, one collocated with control and the other anti‐collocated with control. Different from the classical error feedback regulator design, which is based on the internal mode principle, we give the adaptive servomechanism design for the system by making use of the measured tracking error (and its time derivative) and the estimation mechanism for the parameters of the disturbance and of the unknown reference. Constructing auxiliary systems and observer and applying the backstepping method for infinite‐dimensional system play important roles in the design. The control objective, which is to regulate the tracking error to zero and to keep the states bounded, is achieved.
The Use of Confocal Microscopy for the Examination of E12 Sheet Plastinated Human Tissue

E12 sheet plastination has been used as a teaching aid for several years. More recently, El2 sheet plastinated tissues have been used as a research tool in a variety of areas. This paper describes a new procedure of viewing E12 sheet plastinated material. Skin and subcutaneous tissue from four formalin-fixed cadavers was used in this investigation. The blood vessels of the tissues were perfusion stained with diluted Gill's hematoxylin #1. The tissues were then processed for E12 sheet plastination. Light microscopy and confocal laser scanning microscopy were used to view the E12 plastinated specimens. It was found that autofluorescence was dominant within this tissue at 488nm excitation. Due to the emission spectrum and the spatial distribution of the autofluorescence, this autofluorescence is likely to be due to the connective tissue - in particular, the collagen. The results of this study indicate that, using serial optical sections, the confocal laser scanning microscope provides a much higher resolution image, and reveals structures that are virtually invisible by light microscopy.
Sodium Butyrate Attenuates Diarrhea in Weaned Piglets and Promotes Tight Junction Protein Expression in Colon in a GPR109A-Dependent Manner

Background/Aims: Butyric acid plays an important role in maintaining intestinal health. Butyric acid has received special attention as a short-chain fatty acid, but its role in protecting the intestinal barrier is poorly characterized. Butyric acid not only provides energy for epithelial cells but also acts as a histone deacetylase inhibitor; it is also a natural ligand for G protein-coupled receptor 109A (GPR109A). A GPR109A analog was expressed in Sus scrofa and mediated the anti-inflammatory effects of beta-hydroxybutyric acid. This study investigated the effects of butyrate on growth performance, diarrhea symptoms, and tight junction protein levels in 21-day-old weaned piglets. We also studied the mechanism by which butyric acid regulates intestinal permeability. Methods: Twenty-four piglets that had been weaned at an age of 21 days were divided randomly into 2 equal groups: basal diet group and sodium butyrate + basal diet group. Diarrhea rate, growth performance during 3 weeks of feeding on these diets were observed, the lactulose-mannitol ratio in urine were detected by High Performance Liquid Chromatography, the expression levels of tight junction proteins in the intestinal tract and related signaling molecules, such as GPR109A and Akt, in the colon were examined by quantitative real-time PCR or western blot analyses on day 21. Caco-2 cells were used as a colon cell model and cultured with or without sodium butyrate to assess the expression of tight junction proteins and the activation of related signaling molecules. GPR109A-short hairpin RNA (shRNA) and specific antagonists of Akt and ERK1/2 were used as signaling pathway inhibitors to elucidate the mechanism by which butyric acid regulates the expression of tight junction proteins and the colonic epithelial barrier. Results: The sodium butyrate diet alleviated diarrhea symptoms and decreased intestinal permeability without affecting the growth of early weaned piglets. The expression levels of the tight junction proteins Claudin-3, Occludin, and zonula occludens 1 were up-regulated by sodium butyrate in the colon and Caco-2 cells. GPR109A knockdown using shRNA or blockade of the Akt signaling pathway in Caco-2 cells suppressed sodium butyrate-induced Claudin-3 expression. Conclusions: Sodium butyrate acts on the Akt signaling pathway to facilitate Claudin-3 expression in the colon in a GPR109A-dependent manner.
Longitudinal multiple case study on effectiveness of network-based dementia care towards more integration, quality of care, and collaboration in primary care

Introduction This study aimed to provide insight into the merits of DementiaNet, a network-based primary care innovation for community-dwelling dementia patients. Methods Longitudinal mixed methods multiple case study including 13 networks of primary care professionals as cases. Data collection comprised continuously-kept logs; yearly network maturity score (range 0–24), yearly quality of care assessment (quality indicators, 0–100), and in-depth interviews. Results Networks consisted of median nine professionals (range 5–22) covering medical, care and welfare disciplines. Their follow-up was 1–2 years. Average yearly increase was 2.03 (95%-CI:1.20–2.96) on network maturity and 8.45 (95%-CI:2.80–14.69) on quality indicator score. High primary care practice involvement and strong leadership proved essential in the transition towards more mature networks with better quality of care. Discussion Progress towards more mature networks favored quality of care improvements. DementiaNet appeared to be effective to realize transition towards network-based care, enhance multidisciplinary collaboration, and improve quality of dementia care.
Study of the relationship between EGFR mutation status and bone metastasis in advanced lung adenocarcinoma

To investigate the relationship between EGFR gene status and bone metastasis in lung adenocarcinoma, we collected the data of 331 patients with advanced lung cancer, and the status of EGFR mutation was detected by RT-PCR. Follow-ups of these patients were performed. In these patients, the EGFR mutation rate was 52.2%. The incidence of bone metastases (54.9%) and brain metastases (29.4%) with EGFR mutant patients was higher than that of the wild-type EGFR patients. Compared with the number of metastases, EGFR mutant bone metastases were more than 2 and more, and the proportion of wild type single-site metastasis was more. The median survival of bone metastases in advanced lung adenocarcinoma was 14.7 months. Mutant EGFR group, bone metastasis group median survival in 18.2 months, no bone metastasis group median survival in 21.8 months. In the wild-type group, the median survival of the bone metastases group was 11.5 months, and the median survival in the non-bone metastases group was 15.5 months. EGFR mutations are more likely to develop bone metastasis and brain metastasis in patients with advanced lung adenocarcinoma.
#Hookahlife: The Rise of Waterpipe Promotion on Instagram

Introduction. Hookah smoking is becoming increasingly popular worldwide, especially among young adults. The growth of social media has also enabled sharing of opinions, experiences, and marketing related to hookah via user-generated content. Aim. To evaluate the portrayal and promotion of hookah on Instagram and to highlight public health challenges created by this content. Method. A qualitative content analysis was performed on a sample of 301 Instagram posts made with the hashtags #hookah or #shisha in October 2016. Results. Of the 301 coded posts, 279 were relevant to hookah. These posts were most commonly made by hookah lounges/bars (29.2%) and individual users (27.6%). Posters were most commonly from Russia (38.5%), the United States (18.6%), and Germany (10.7%). A total of 63.8% of the posts were promotional in nature; 19.7% of posts contained hashtags that expressed hookah identity or community (e.g., #hookahlife); 35.5% of posts associated nightlife activities with hookah smoking and 33.0% portrayed hookah smoking as a social activity. Only one post (0.4%) mentioned that hookah might have negative health effects. Likes were more common on posts depicting novel rather than traditional hookah designs (p = .027). Conclusions. Images from Instagram may help in understanding health behaviors such as hookah smoking. Our results suggest that domestic and international hookah promotion is common on Instagram. Instagram posts cast hookah in an overwhelmingly positive light and may normalize hookah use through associations with nightlife, community, and hookah identity. Policy makers and researchers should explore approaches for reducing the volume of promotional posts and tailoring counter-marketing to the specific themes presented on social media.
SELEÇÃO DE CARTEIRAS COM RETORNOS SERIALMENTE CORRELACIONADOS: UMA APLICAÇÃO DE MODELOS AUTOREGRESSIVOS

The aim of this paper is to analyze the potential gains from an investment portfolio where the weights of stocks are defined according to the prediction of their future returns conditional on past performance of returns. The methodology for this estimation was based on a model of the Vector Autoregressive (VAR) for describing the serial dependence of stock returns. Given the large number of parameters of the traditional VAR, we also applied a Bayesian approach (BVAR), bypassing the problems of dimensionality and providing more stable estimates. We applied the Mean-Variance strategy for selection of optimal portfolios with a covariance matrix of returns defined by the estimators of autoregressive models. Results showed that compared with known literature portfolios, the portfolios assembled based on autoregressive models had a performance lower than the portfolios of traditional strategies.