Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Persistence of intact retinal ganglion cell terminals after axonal transport loss in the DBA/2J mouse model of glaucoma

Axonal transport defects are an early pathology occurring within the retinofugal projection of the DBA/2J mouse model of glaucoma. Retinal ganglion cell (RGC) axons and terminals are detectable after transport is affected, yet little is known about the condition of these structures. We examined the ultrastructure of the glaucomatous superior colliculus (SC) with three‐dimensional serial block‐face scanning electron microscopy to determine the distribution and morphology of retinal terminals in aged mice exhibiting varying levels of axonal transport integrity. After initial axonal transport failure, retinal terminal densities did not vary compared with either transport‐intact or control tissue. Although retinal terminals lacked overt signs of neurodegeneration, transport‐intact areas of glaucomatous SC exhibited larger retinal terminals and associated mitochondria. This likely indicates increased oxidative capacity and may be a compensatory response to the stressors that this projection is experiencing. Areas devoid of transported tracer label showed reduced mitochondrial volumes as well as decreased active zone number and surface area, suggesting that oxidative capacity and synapse strength are reduced as disease progresses but before degeneration of the synapse. Mitochondrial volume was a strong predictor of bouton size independent of pathology. These findings indicate that RGC axons retain connectivity after losing function early in the disease process, creating an important therapeutic opportunity for protection or restoration of vision in glaucoma. J. Comp. Neurol. 524:3503–3517, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
The war against polypharmacy: a new cost-effective geriatric-palliative approach for improving drug therapy in disabled elderly people.

BACKGROUND The extent of medical and financial problems of polypharmacy in the elderly is disturbing, particularly in nursing homes and nursing departments. OBJECTIVES To improve drug therapy and minimize drug intake in nursing departments. METHODS We introduced a geriatric-palliative approach and methodology to combat the problem of polypharmacy. The study group comprised 119 disabled patients in six geriatric nursing departments; the control group included 71 patients of comparable age, gender and co-morbidities in the same wards. After 12 months, we assessed whether any change in medications affected the death rate, referrals to acute care facility, and costs. RESULTS A total of 332 different drugs were discontinued in 119 patients (average of 2.8 drugs per patient) and was not associated with significant adverse effects. The overall rate of drug discontinuation failure was 18% of all patients and 10% of all drugs. The 1 year mortality rate was 45% in the control group but only 21% in the study group (P < 0.001, chi-square test). The patients' annual referral rate to acute care facilities was 30% in the control group but only 11.8% in the study group (P < 0.002). The intervention was associated with a substantial decrease in the cost of drugs. CONCLUSIONS Application of the geriatric-palliative methodology in the disabled elderly enables simultaneous discontinuation of several medications and yields a number of benefits: reduction in mortality rates and referrals to acute care facilities, lower costs, and improved quality of living.
Performance Appraisal—An Analysis of State-Wide Practices

With the present emphasis on accountability for the expenditure of public funds, the public employer has become increasingly interested in the appraisal of employees' job performance. Formalized systems of performance appraisal which involve the continuous process of comparing individuals and/ or their performances with predetermined standards (e.g., a rating scale, specified goals), counseling employees about job-related problems, and planning for improved performance have become common. In fact, performance appraisal systems are accepted as an integral part of the public personnel management process which provide data about past, present, and expected behaviors of employees. In an organizational setting, the choices available to the employer are not whether appraisal of performance will take place; appraisal of performance is inevitable and occurs with or without anv direction from management. The choices, in reality, are whether or not performance appraisal will be formalized and systematic or informal. and casual. If the public employer selects a formal appraisal system, other decisions in a number of areas are essential. Examples of such areas include: the purposes of the
Parental attitudes towards the management of asthma in ethnic minorities

Objectives: Children from Indian and Pakistani (South Asian) and black minority groups have relatively high rates of attendance at accident and emergency (A&E) departments and admissions to hospital in the UK. We examine parents’ beliefs and management of childhood asthma that possibly contribute to their greater use of hospital services. Design: Questionnaire survey. Setting: Three London hospitals serving multicultural communities with a high proportion of South Asian subjects. Participants: Parent(s) accompanying 150 children aged 3–9 years with asthma attending asthma clinics and A&E departments. Main outcome measures: White, South Asian and “other” ethnic group parents were compared regarding their children’s symptoms and asthma in relation to why their children had developed asthma, use of asthma treatments, views about the prognosis of their children’s asthma, and their feelings associated with stigma. Results: South Asian more often than white parents stated that they did not give preventers to their children (odds ratio (OR) 0.30; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.12 to 0.75), that most drugs were “addictive” (OR 3.89; 95% CI 1.47 to 10.27), and that medicines could do more harm than good (OR 3.19; 95% CI 1.22 to 8.34). South Asian and “other” ethnic groups were more reluctant to tell others about their children’s asthma (OR 0.11; 95% CI 0.01 to 1.06 and OR 0.06; 95% CI 0.01 to 0.65, respectively). Conclusion: Cultural perspectives related to ethnicity are key factors in the understanding of asthma management. Health staff should give high priority to eliciting parents’ beliefs regarding management of their children’s asthma.
Metabolic cost and speech quality while using an active workstation.

BACKGROUND The effect of active workstation implementation on speech quality in a typical work setting remains unclear. PURPOSE To assess differences between sitting, standing, and walking on energy expenditure and speech quality. METHODS Twenty-two females and 9 males read silently, read aloud, and spoke spontaneously during 3 postural conditions: sitting, standing, and walking at 1.61 km/h. Oxygen consumption (VO2), blood pressure, and rating of perceived exertion (RPE) were obtained during each condition. Expert listeners, blinded to the purpose of the study and the protocol, assessed randomized samples of the participants' speech during reading and spontaneous speech tasks in 3 postural conditions. RESULTS Standing elevated metabolic rate significantly over sitting (3.3 ± 0.7 vs. 3.6 ± 0.9 ml·kg-1·min-1). Walking at 1.6 km/h while performing the respective tasks resulted in VO2 values of 7.0 to 8.1 ml·kg-1·min-1. There was no significant difference in the average number of syllables included in each speech sample across the conditions. The occurrence of ungrammatical pauses was minimal and did not differ across the conditions. CONCLUSION The significant elevation of metabolic rate in the absence of any deterioration in speech quality or RPE support the utility of using active work stations to increase physical activity (PA) in the work environment.
Cerebral Venous Infarction: The Pathophysiological Concept

Cerebral venous occlusion represents an often underdiagnosed cause for acute or slowly progressive neurological deterioration. The underlying pathophysiological basis is not well understood, but is different from those of arterial occlusion reflecting therefore different anatomical and physiological features of the cerebral venous system. Extensive collateral circulation within the cerebral venous system allows for a significant degree of compensation in the early stages of venous occlusion. Elevated cerebral venous pressure due to cerebral venous occlusion can result in a spectrum of phenomena including a dilated venous and capillary bed, development of interstitial edema, increased cerebrospinal fluid production, decreased cerebrospinal fluid absorption and rupture of venous structures (hematoma). All of these pathophysiological changes may explain the clinical observation that cerebral venous occlusion, if promptly diagnosed and adequately managed, contains reversible alterations and need not always lead to venous infarction. The present review outlines this different pathophysiological behavior of venous compared to arterial occlusion in the cerebral vasculature; special reference is given to the effect of these changes on the therapeutic impact.
Cytokine production in varicella-zoster virus-stimulated lymphocyte cultures

Among varicella-zoster virus (VZV)-immune adults aged 20 to 35 years, T lymphocytes producing interferon- gamma (IFN- gamma) in response to a VZV antigen stimulus are eight times more numerous than those making interleukin-4 (IL-4). In persons over 55 years old, the frequency of IFN- gamma -making cells falls while the number of IL-4-making cells remains roughly constant. The persistence of IL-4-making cells may contribute to the maintenance of IgG antibodies to VZV with aging. NEUROLOGY 1995;45(Suppl 8): S38-S40
Whole‐cell and single channel monovalent cation currents through the novel rabbit epithelial Ca2+ channel ECaC

1 This study describes properties of monovalent cation currents through ECaC, a recently cloned epithelial Ca2+‐permeable channel from rabbit. 2 The kinetics of currents through ECaC was strongly modulated by divalent cations. Currents were inhibited in the presence of extracellular Ca2+. They showed an initial voltage‐dependent decay in the presence of 1 mm Mg2+ at hyperpolarizing steps in Ca2+‐free solutions, which represents a voltage‐dependent Mg2+ block through binding of Mg2+ to a site localized in the electrical field of the membrane (δ= 0.31) and a voltage‐dependent binding constant (at 0 mV 3.1 mm Ca2+, obtained from a Woodhull type analysis). 3 Currents were only stable in the absence of divalent cations and showed under these conditions a small time‐ and voltage‐dependent component of activation. 4 Single channel currents in cell‐attached and inside‐out patches had a conductance of 77.5 ± 4.9 pS (n= 11) and reversed at +14.8 ± 1.6 mV (n= 9) in the absence of divalent cations. 5 The permeation sequence for monovalent cations through ECaC was Na+ > Li+ > K+ > Cs+ > NMDG+ which is identical to the Eisenmann sequence X for a strong field‐strength binding site. 6 It is concluded that the permeation profile of ECaC for monovalent cations suggests a strong field‐strength binding site that may be involved in Ca2+ permeation and Mg2+ block.
Body Image: Gender, Ethnic, and Age Differences

Abstract Using figure drawings (E. Fallon & P. Rozin, 1985), 120 male and female U.S. college students–African American, Hispanic, and Caucasian–indicated their current and ideal figures, the figures that they considered most attractive to the opposite sex, and the opposite-sex figures most attractive to themselves. Dissatisfaction with body shape was greater among the women regardless of ethnicity. Both the men and the women misjudged which shapes the opposite sex would rate as most attractive: The women guessed that the men preferred shapes thinner than those that they actually reported. The African American women had the most accurate perceptions of what the men found attractive, whereas the Caucasian women had the most distorted views. The men guessed that the women preferred shapes bulkier than those that they actually indicated. These findings may be relevant to the lower incidence of eating disorders among African American women and the higher incidence of such disorders among Caucasian women.
Individualized prevention against hypertension based on Traditional Chinese Medicine Constitution Theory

Abstract Traditional Chinese Medicine Constitution (TCMC) theory states that individuals with a biased TCMC are more likely to suffer from specific diseases. However, little is known regarding the influence of TCMC on susceptibility to hypertension. The aim of this study is to examine the possible relationship between TCMC and hypertension. Retrospective evaluation and observation were performed using the STROBE guidelines checklist. A large community-based cross-sectional study was conducted between 2009 and 2013 in Changsha, China. TCMC was assessed using a questionnaire that included 68 items. TCMC distributions and the associations of different TCMCs with hypertension risk were analyzed. In total, 144,439 subjects underwent evaluations of TCMC and blood pressure (BP). There were significant differences in the hypertension prevalence among the various TCMC groups (P < .01). An adjusted logistic regression model indicated that those with phlegm wetness, yin deficiency, blood stasis, or qi deficiency were more likely to have hypertension. Analysis of the clinical characteristics related to TCMC indicated that different TCMCs corresponded to different hypertension classifications using Western medicine criteria; for example, phlegm wetness with hypertension was similar to obesity-related hypertension. Our results suggest that phlegm wetness, yin deficiency, blood stasis, and qi deficiency have different effects on the prevalence of hypertension. More attention should be paid to TCMCs associated with susceptibility to hypertension, and corresponding preventive and therapeutic treatments should be developed according to different TCMCs.
Cytogenetic analysis of spontaneous and 2‐cyanoethylene oxide‐induced tk —/— mutants in TK6 human lymphoblastoid cultures

Two phenotypic classes of selectable tk —/— mutants have been isolated from the TK6 human lymphoblast cell line; one has a normal growth rate (tkn) relative to the parental cell line; the other has a slow growth rate (tks). Complete karyotypes of metaphase chromosomes were prepared and analyzed from 16 tks mutants (eight spontaneous and eight 2‐cyanoethylene oxide [CNEtO]‐induced), two spontaneous tkn mutants, and the parental TK6 cell line. Southern blot analysis of these tk —/— mutants indicated that all had lost a 14.8 kb polymorphic band corresponding to the active tk allele. No chromosome abnormalities with respect to the parental cell line TK6 were observed in eight spontaneous tks mutants. Chromosome abnormalities that may have been related to CNEtO treatment were observed in four of eight CNEtO mutants. However, chromosome 17, containing the tk locus in man, was cytologically normal with respect to the parental TK6 cell line in 15 of 16 tks mutants. A visible abnormality of chromosome 17 was present in one CNEtO‐induced tks mutant. The abnormality was a duplication of the long arm of the chromosome 17, with break points at q11 and q21. The latter break point is close to the site of the tk locus, suggesting that the aberration observed may be associated with tk —/— phenotype. These observations contrast with the relatively high incidence (>59%) of chromosome 11 abnormalities reported in tks (small colony) mouse lymphoma L5178Y/TK + / — mutants.
Program coordinators' perceptions of effective national citizen science programs and their impacts: An exploratory study

Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) with support from participating universities. SOARS is funded by the National Science Foundation, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Climate Program Office, the NOAA Oceans and Human Health Initiative, the Center for Multi-Scale Modeling of Atmospheric Processes at Colorado State University, and the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences. Program Coordinators’ Perceptions of Effective National Citizen Science Programs and their Impacts: An Exploratory Study
Public Access: For Socially Relevant Knowledge Production and a Democratic Cybersphere

In the “Information Age”, power is largely a function of accessibility to, and control over, information and communication (Castells 2000, 2009). The development of the Internet and associated technologies is the primary driver of this shift, forever changing how information is produced, consumed, and dispersed. At the same time, we commonly hear that “knowledge is power”, and that the Internet has the potential to democratize the knowledge production process, opening up the intellectual sphere to non-academic publics (Agger 2004; Agger 2006). Given the centrality of science in producing knowledge, we set out to analyze the economic, social, and political conditions which create and inhibit open dissemination and production of this information. In many ways, academics in the Information Age have greater opportunities to share their findings with those outside of the university than at any other time in history. Open Access (OA) is one way to share research with less well funded institutions and engage civil society and policy makers. Therefore a deeper explication of this new, more decentralized and democratic knowledge dissemination project is needed (Shiltz et al. 2005). The Berlin Declaration on Open Access to Knowledge in the Sciences and Humanities conceived of OA as:
Are Forfeitures of Olympic Medals Predictable? â€“ A Test of the Efficiency of the International Anti-Doping System

Modeling national Olympic medal counts has received much attention in recent research. National Olympic medal counts, however, may change after the event as a result of the fight against doping. We show for the Olympic Games that took place in Beijing 2008 that ex-post forfeitures of Olympic medals are predictable, at the aggregate level, using standard variables commonly used in earlier research to model national Olympic medal counts. The predictability of forfeitures of Olympic medal casts doubts that the international anti-doping system works efficiently
The Radical Potential of Public Hearings: A Rhetorical Assessment of Resistance and Indecorous Voice in Public Participation Processes

: Little scholarship in environmental communication has considered the intersections between public participation and social movement. We fill this gap by discussing how public participation process can become sites of radical politics when publics employ disruptive or improper tactics, known as indecorous voice. Indecorum can be used to sustain protest matters beyond official forums, engage multiple audiences, and forge new identities among publics. We demonstrate the utility of indecorum through two case studies: Love Canal, NY where residents combat exposure to toxic chemicals, and Salt Lake City, UT, where publics challenge industrial expansion in a fight for clean air. But you come to a hearing in order to be heard. And most of the people that came here were not heard.
Incidence of refeeding syndrome in internal medicine patients.

BACKGROUND Refeeding syndrome is a potentially fatal shift of fluids and electrolytes that may occur after reintroducing nutrition in a malnourished patient. Its incidence in internal medicine patients is not known. We aimed at determining the incidence in a heterogeneous group of patients acutely admitted to a department of internal medicine. METHODS All patients acutely admitted to the department of internal medicine of a teaching community hospital in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, between 22 February 2011 and 29 April 2011, were included. We applied the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) criteria for determining people at risk of refeeding syndrome and took hypophosphataemia as the main indicator for the presence of this syndrome. RESULTS Of 178 patients included in the study, 97 (54%) were considered to be at risk of developing refeeding syndrome and 14 patients actually developed the syndrome (14% of patients at risk and 8% of study population). Patients with a malignancy or previous malignancy were at increased risk of developing refeeding syndrome (p < 0.05). Measurement of muscle strength over time was not associated with the occurrence of refeeding syndrome. The Short Nutritional Assessment Questionnaire score had a positive and negative predictive value of 13% and 95% respectively. CONCLUSION The incidence of refeeding syndrome was relatively high in patients acutely admitted to the department of internal medicine. Oncology patients are at increased risk of developing refeeding syndrome. When taking the occurrence of hypophosphataemia as a hallmark, no other single clinical or composite parameter could be identified that accurately predicts the development of refeeding syndrome.
Decreased nerve growth factor upregulation is a mechanism for reduced mechanical hyperalgesia after the second bout of exercise in rats

Delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) is reduced when the same exercise is repeated after a certain interval. However, the mechanism for this adaptation, called a repeated bout effect, is still not well understood. Recently, we showed that upregulated nerve growth factor (NGF) triggered by B2 bradykinin receptor (B2R) activation in exercised muscle was responsible for DOMS. In this study, we investigated whether NGF upregulation was reduced after repeated bouts of exercise in rats, and if so, whether this change occurred upstream of B2R. A bout of 500 lengthening contractions (LC) was applied on day 0 and again 5 days later. DOMS was evaluated by the mechanical withdrawal threshold of the exercised extensor digitorum longus (EDL) muscle. Mechanical hyperalgesia and NGF mRNA upregulation in EDL were observed after the first LC, but not after the second LC. We then injected HOE140, a B2R antagonist with effects lasting only several hours, once before the first LC. This blocked the development of mechanical hyperalgesia and NGF mRNA upregulation not only after the first LC but also after the second LC. This suggests that adaptation occurred upstream of B2R, as the influence of the first LC was limited to that area by HOE140.
Specific CD4 down‐modulating compounds with potent anti‐HIV activity

Despite the availability of the current clinically approved anti‐HIV drugs, new classes of effective antiviral agents are still urgently needed to combat AIDS. A promising approach for drug development and vaccine design involves targeting research on HIV‐1 entry, a multistep process that comprises viral attachment, coreceptor interactions, and fusion. Determination of the viral entry process in detail has enabled the design of specific agents that can inhibit each step in the HIV entry process. Therapeutic agents that interfere with the binding of the HIV envelope glycoprotein gp120 to the CD4 receptor (e.g., PRO 542, PRO 2000, and CV‐N) or the coreceptors CCR5 and CXCR4 (e.g., SCH‐C and AMD3100) are briefly outlined in this review. The anti‐HIV activity of cyclotriazadisulfonamides, a novel class of compounds with a unique mode of action by down‐modulating the CD4 receptor in lymphocytic and monocytic cells, is especially highlighted. On the basis of the successful results of T‐20, the first approved entry inhibitor, the development of effective antiretrovirals that block HIV entry will certainly be further encouraged.