Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Patient race and ethnicity in primary care management of child behavior problems: a report from PROS and ASPN. Pediatric Research in Office Settings. Ambulatory Sentinel Practice Network.

BACKGROUND Minority persons have less access to many specialty treatments and services, possibly because of clinician biases. It is not clear whether any such biases exist in primary care settings, especially for children with psychosocial problems. OBJECTIVES The objective was to compare primary care recognition and treatment of pediatric psychosocial problems among African American, Hispanic American and European American patients. DESIGN A survey was made of parents and respective clinicians in primary care offices in two large practice-based research networks (PROS and ASPN) from 44 states, Canada, and Puerto Rico. Mixed regression analyses were employed to control for patient, clinician, and practice effects. SUBJECTS The subjects were 14,910 children aged 4 to 15 years seen consecutively for non-emergent care by 286 primary care clinicians in office-based practice. MEASURES Measures were parents' report for sociodemographics and behavioral symptoms using the Pediatric Symptom Checklist, and clinicians' report of psychosocial problems, type, management, and severity. RESULTS Of the sample, 8.0% were African American youth, 9.5% were Hispanic American youth, and 82.5% were European American youth. After controlling for other factors, race and ethnicity were not associated with any differences in psychotropic drug prescribing, counseling, referral, or recognition of psychosocial problems. Clinicians reported spending slightly more time with minority patients. CONCLUSION Race and ethnic status were not related to receipt of mental health services for children in primary care offices, suggesting that clinician biases may not be the primary cause of the racial differences in services noted earlier research. Improving services for minority youth may require increasing access to office-based primary care.
University support systems for sustainable entrepreneurship: insights from explorative case studies

In recent years public policy has increasingly recognised the importance of entrepreneurship for sustainable economic growth and solving fundamental challenges such as climate change. It is emphasised that universities should play an important role in supporting sustainable entrepreneurship by sensitising and educating future sustainable entrepreneurs. Up till now there has hardly been any research on university support systems for sustainable entrepreneurship. We address this research gap with a qualitative multi-case study of four universities in the USA and Germany, based on 41 good practice examples. Using an open innovation concept, we developed a conceptual framework that is based on an interactive paradigm and allows comprehensive support systems analysis. We identified top-down, bottom-up and combined implementation strategies as well as integrative and additive approaches. The framework is suitable for empirical investigations and supports future research. Our results demonstrate the importance of the institutional framing of support activities and indicate that, in comparison with other elements of the university support system, research on sustainable entrepreneurship is lagging behind.
Experiments concerning the initiation of the choroid fissure in Gallus domesticus.

121 experiments are reported in Gallus domesticus, in which the left optic primordium from donor embryos ranging from stages 9 to 17 (Hamburger & Hamilton) was grafted upside down into host embryos at approximately stage 11-(12 somite stage), replacing the host right primary optic vesicle, which had previously been removed. In 36 experiments, up to donor stage 12+, the choroid fissure in the graft developed in hostwise ventral orientation, i.e. from the original dorsal quadrant of the graft. In four cases no fissure appeared. In donor stage 17 grafts, the fissure was invariably in graftwise dorsal orientation. In the intermediate donor stages 14 and 15, hostwise fissures occured in 12 out of 23 experiments, and in the donor stages 15 and 16, in 7 out of 28. Six cases were seen in which the fissure was in a position approximately midway between the hostwise and graftwise positions. Multiple fissures were not encountered. The results are compared with those reported in Trition by Sato (1933).
Tumour Kinetics in Multiple Myeloma Before, During, and After Treatment

Tumour progression was monitored in seven multiple myeloma (MM) patients undergoing a novel oral chemotherapy regimen (cyclophosphamide, idarubicin and dexamethasone; CID) followed by early autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT). Allele-specific oligonucleotide PCR (ASO-PCR) was used to semi-quantitate the number of tumour cells within the peripheral blood (PB) and PB progenitor cell (PBPC) harvests and compared with paraprotein levels and morphological bone marrow (BM) assessments. Tumour cells were detected in the PB of all patients at diagnosis, but decreased in response to CID therapy. All but two of the 22 PBPC collections contained MM cells, the levels of which were statistically correlated with overall clinical response to therapy, but not with individual BM or PB tumour loads prior to mobilisation. We also found no correlation between the day of leucapheresis collection and the number of contaminating MM cells, CD34+ cells or MM cells per CD34+ cell. Regardless of tumour contamination levels in the PBPC collections, the majority of patients demonstrated post-ASCT clearing of circulating MM cells. This study suggests that levels of circulating MM cells may be the best indication of patient response to treatment and argues against the theory of differential mobilisation of tumour cells and CD34+cells in response to cytokine treatment.
Modification of Alternative Splicing of Bcl-x Pre-mRNA in Prostate and Breast Cancer Cells

There is ample evidence that deregulation of apoptosis results in the development, progression, and/or maintenance of cancer. Since many apoptotic regulatory genes (e.g. bcl-x) code for alternatively spliced protein variants with opposing functions, the manipulation of alternative splicing presents a unique way of regulating the apoptotic response. Here we have targeted oligonucleotides antisense to the 5′-splice site ofbcl-x L , an anti-apoptotic gene that is overexpressed in various cancers, and shifted the splicing pattern of Bcl-x pre-mRNA from Bcl-xL to Bcl-xS, a pro-apoptotic splice variant. This approach induced significant apoptosis in PC-3 prostate cancer cells. In contrast, the same oligonucleotide treatment elicited a much weaker apoptotic response in MCF-7 breast cancer cells. Moreover, although the shift in Bcl-x pre-mRNA splicing inhibited colony formation in both cell lines, this effect was much less pronounced in MCF-7 cells. These differences in responses to oligonucleotide treatment were analyzed in the context of expression of Bcl-xL, Bcl-xS, and Bcl-2 proteins. The results indicate that despite the presence of Bcl-x pre-mRNA in a number of cell types, the effects of modification of its splicing by antisense oligonucleotides vary depending on the expression profile of the treated cells.
[The smoking habits of pregnant women and their husbands, and the effect on their infants].

A survey of the smoking habits of 3,025 couples, whose infants were receiving medical examinations, was conducted before and after pregnancy to determine the effect of smoking patterns of the parents on the newborn infant. Of the husbands 55.2% were smoking before pregnancy; 53.4% during pregnancy; and 51.8% after delivery. During pregnancy proportion of smokers decreased by only 1.8%. The percentages for wives, on the other hand, were 13.9%, 4.4%, and 5.3% respectively showing a reduction of 9.5% during pregnancy. Young couples, under 24 years of age, those with low educational backgrounds, and self-employed husbands showed the highest proportion of smokers. Examination of the relation between parents' smoking habits and their effect on the newborn infants, showed no difference in weeks of gestation nor in height. However, the infants of smoking parents were on the average 99.6 grams lighter at birth (p less than 0.02) and the rate of SFD was higher (p less than 0.05). The relative risk for SFD appearance was 1.21 with a smoking father, and 1.39 with both parents smoking. Husbands who decreased or stopped smoking during the pregnancy were largely in the 30 to 34 year old category, university graduates, and those whose wife was having their first baby. A remarkable decrease was observed in the average weight at birth of infants with a mother smoking 6 cigarettes a day or with father smoking 20 cigarettes a day compared to non-smoking parents, especially in the case of female infants. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Schistosome transmission, water-resource development and altitude in northern Ethiopia

Abstract Schistosomiasis continues to be a major public-health problem, not least in association with water-resource developments. The impact of microdam construction in the northern Ethiopian highlands, in relation to possible increased risks of Schistosoma mansoni infection, has now been assessed. The results of incidence studies, carried out on 473 individuals sampled across eight microdam sites at altitudes of 1800-2225m above sea level, indicated an overall annual incidence of 0.20 infections/person at risk. A multivariate Poisson regression model showed altitude and sex to be significant risk factors for infection, whereas proximity to a microdam was not significant, except possibly at very high altitudes. It was concluded that altitude was the major factor in this environment and that therefore, at least in terms of public-health planning, microdams should be sited as high as local geography permits.
Effective Human Herpesvirus 8 Infection of Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial Cells by Cell-Mediated Transmission

ABSTRACT Cell-free transmission of human herpesvirus 8 (HHV-8) to human cells in vitro has been reported to be difficult, if not impossible. The present experiments were conducted with the idea that cell-cell contact may produce much more effective transmission, so-called cell-mediated transmission. Primary human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were cocultured with an HHV-8-infected lymphoma cell line, BCBL-1 cells. When a ratio of 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA)-treated BCBL-1 cells to HUVECs of 10:1 was used, more than 20% of HUVECs were found to express the HHV-8 latency-associated nuclear antigen (LANA) 48 h after the start of coculturing; this value increased to more than 30% after 72 h. HHV-8-encoded ORF26, K8, K8.1, K10, K11, ORF59, and ORF65 proteins were not detected in these HHV-8-infected HUVECs until 72 h. The HHV-8 antigens were not observed in HUVECs cocultured with TPA-treated BCBL-1 cells separated by a membrane. Thirty days after removal of the BCBL-1 cells from the cell-mediated transmission experiment, the HUVECs still expressed LANA and the HHV-8 genome was detected by PCR in these cells. Moreover, the ORF59 protein, a DNA replication-associated protein of HHV-8, was expressed in such HUVECs in the presence of TPA stimulation. These results indicated a far more effective transmission mechanism, cell-cell contact, suggesting the possibility that such a mechanism works in vivo.
Exact Complex Source Point Beam Expansions for Electromagnetic Fields

Complex source point (CSP) beams (or CSPBs) are known to be exact solutions of Maxwell's equations. Hence they can be used as basis functions to represent the electromagnetic fields generated by arbitrary sources. In this work, it is shown that any fully vector electromagnetic field can be represented exactly as an expansion of CSPBs originating from a relatively arbitrary surface enclosing the sources. Three different variants of the CSPB representation are first considered for a spherical expansion surface and their properties are discussed. It is shown that the CSPB expansion set can be conveniently truncated by selecting only the significantly contributing beams for efficient field calculations. The CSPB representations are next extended to the case of relatively arbitrary expansion surfaces. Numerical results are presented to demonstrate and compare the convergence and efficiency of the three approaches.
Spatial Distribution of Economic Growth and Inequality: Kazakhstan’s Experience

This study aims is to explore of the theoretical concepts of regional imbalances and spatial inequality, analysis of spatial distribution of economic growth and identifying of “growth poles” for sustainable development in the regions of Kazakhstan. Based on the theoretical views, we conclude that the key direction of regional policy is the search and development of “growth poles”, which will distribute their potential equally to backward regions. The authors propose the methodological tools for presenting a standard form of evaluation of spatial distribution and inequality of the regions of Kazakhstan. This study confirms the importance of using of proposed methods and its application for objectively and realistically defines “growth poles” for sustainable development. Further, the obtained results showed the distribution of Kazakhstan's regions by economic growth and specialization with using modified index of KDI. According to the results of this theoretical and empirical study proved that distribution of the regions of Kazakhstan and results of KDI indexes shows that the spatial differentiation of economic development, but its level and dynamics are different in different respects. In addition, according to the conducted survey, we conclude that one of the most important tasks is sustainable growth based on “growth poles” for sustainable development. Distinguished Research Awards at ICBE2018 conference. This paper is a substantially revised and expanded version of the paper presented at ICBE2018 conference. The authors have taken into account all the comments of Editors, Session Chairs and Reviewers in the revised manuscript. The authors greatly appreciate Editors, Session Chairs and Reviewers for their valuable comments, interest in and support of this research.
[Clinical values of extended lymph node dissection for gastric cancer:a meta-analysis for D1 versus D2 gastrectomy].

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the survival, complication and postoperative mortality after D(1) or D(2) lymph node dissection for gastric cancer. METHODS All the randomized clinical trials about nodal dissection for gastric cancer published within the last 20 years were collected. Quality assessment was done on each trial and relevant data were extracted from qualified trials. Meta-analysis was performed with the use of RevMan 4.2 (Cochrane) for statistic analysis. RESULTS Three hundred and ninety-four trials were yielded at the initial search. Four trials, recruited 1316 cases of gastric cancer in total, were included after quality assessment. Results of Meta-analysis showed that standard D(2) dissection could effectively improve patients' long-term survival [RR 1.35, 95%CI(1.12-1.62), NNT=9] as compared with D(1) dissection. If splenectomy (or pancreatico-splenectomy) was involved, D(2) dissection only improved the clinical outcome of T(3)-staged cases [RR 1.80,95%CI(1.03-3.15), NNT=13]. D(2) dissection produced higher rates of postoperative complication [RR 1.72,95%CI(1.46-2.03), NNT=6] and mortality [RR 2.12,95%CI(1.39-3.25), NNT=21] than D(1) dissection. CONCLUSIONS Standard D(2) dissection can increase the overall survival rate when compared with D(1) dissection. If splenectomy (or pancreatico-splenectomy) cases are involved,D(2) dissection can only improve the survival rate of T(3)-staged patients. D(2) dissection yields higher postoperative morbidity and mortality than D(1) dissection.
Immune-Mediated Protection from Measles Virus-Induced Central Nervous System Disease Is Noncytolytic and Gamma Interferon Dependent

ABSTRACT Neurons of the mammalian central nervous system (CNS) are an essential and largely nonrenewable cell population. Thus, virus infections that result in neuronal depletion, either by virus-mediated cell death or by induction of the cytolytic immune response, could cause permanent neurological impairment of the host. In a transgenic mouse model of measles virus (MV) infection of neurons, we have previously shown that the host T-cell response was required for resolution of infection in susceptible adult mice. In this report, we show that this protective response did not result in neuronal death, even during the peak of T-cell infiltration into the brain parenchyma. When susceptible mice were intercrossed with specific immune knockout mice, a critical role for gamma interferon (IFN-γ) was identified in protection against MV infection and CNS disease. Moreover, the addition of previously activated splenocytes or recombinant murine IFN-γ to MV-infected primary neurons resulted in the inhibition of viral replication in the absence of neuronal death. Together, these data support the hypothesis that the host immune response can promote viral clearance without concomitant neuronal loss, a process that appears to be mediated by cytokines.
Cross‐Sector Partnerships: An Examination of Success Factors

In this paper, we examine the drivers involved in an alternative business model: cross-sector social partnerships (CSSPs) between for-profit, predominantly multinational corporations (MNCs) and nonprofit organizations (NPOs). We explore these cross-sector social partnerships (CSSPs) from the perspective of these primary stakeholders, examining the questions of power differentials and the definitions and determinants of success. In order more deeply to understand these drivers, we review the evolution of the concept of “value” and the perception of the value that each stakeholder brings to the partnership. We then describe and offer the results of an empirical, qualitative study of 18 CSSPs, where we analyze each partner's representations of success, outcomes sought and distinctions in determinants of value within the partnerships.
Impact of Dendrimers on Solubility of Hydrophobic Drug Molecules

Adequate aqueous solubility has been one of the desired properties while selecting drug molecules and other bio-actives for product development. Often solubility of a drug determines its pharmaceutical and therapeutic performance. Majority of newly synthesized drug molecules fail or are rejected during the early phases of drug discovery and development due to their limited solubility. Sufficient permeability, aqueous solubility and physicochemical stability of the drug are important for achieving adequate bioavailability and therapeutic outcome. A number of different approaches including co-solvency, micellar solubilization, micronization, pH adjustment, chemical modification, and solid dispersion have been explored toward improving the solubility of various poorly aqueous-soluble drugs. Dendrimers, a new class of polymers, possess great potential for drug solubility improvement, by virtue of their unique properties. These hyper-branched, mono-dispersed molecules have the distinct ability to bind the drug molecules on periphery as well as to encapsulate these molecules within the dendritic structure. There are numerous reported studies which have successfully used dendrimers to enhance the solubilization of poorly soluble drugs. These promising outcomes have encouraged the researchers to design, synthesize, and evaluate various dendritic polymers for their use in drug delivery and product development. This review will discuss the aspects and role of dendrimers in the solubility enhancement of poorly soluble drugs. The review will also highlight the important and relevant properties of dendrimers which contribute toward drug solubilization. Finally, hydrophobic drugs which have been explored for dendrimer assisted solubilization, and the current marketing status of dendrimers will be discussed.
X Irradiation Induces the Proapoptotic State Independent of the Loss of Clonogenic Ability in Chinese Hamster V79 Cells

Abstract Iizuka, D. , Inanami, O. , Matsuda, A. , Kashiwakura, I. , Asanuma, T. and Kuwabara, M. X Irradiation Induces the Proapoptotic State Independent of the Loss of Clonogenic Ability in Chinese Hamster V79 Cells. Radiat. Res. 164, 36–44 (2005). The clonogenic ability (reproductive cell death) of Chinese hamster V79 cells was measured after treatment with X radiation and a newly developed anti-cancer drug, 1-(3-C-ethynyl-β-d-ribo-pentofuranosyl)cytosine (ECyd, TAS106). Amplification in the loss of clonogenicity was observed compared to that obtained for cells exposed to X rays alone. Addition of benzyloxycarbonyl-val-ala-asp-fluoromethylketone (Z-VAD-FMK), a broad-spectrum caspase inhibitor, attenuated the increased lethality, but the dose–response curve obtained was found to merely revert to that obtained for cells exposed to X rays alone. Flow cytometric analysis showed that the number of cells arrested at the G2/M phase by X irradiation was decreased by co-treatment with TAS106, and instead the number of cells in the sub-G1 phase increased. Western blot analysis proved that TAS106 treatment down-regulated the expression of the G2/M arrest-related proteins cyclin B1, phospho-CDC2 and WEE1. From these results, it was concluded that (1) no apoptosis was included in the dose–response curve obtained from cells exposed to X rays alone, (2) X radiation induced a potentially apoptotic (proapoptotic) state in cells independent of the loss of their clonogenic ability, and (3) TAS106 enhanced the loss of their clonogenic ability by converting the proapoptotic cells to apoptotic cells through the abrogation of arrest at the G2/M phase.
Suppression of retinal neovascularization by erythropoietin siRNA in a mouse model of proliferative retinopathy.

PURPOSE Erythropoietin (EPO), an oxygen-regulated hormone stimulating erythrocyte production, was recently found to be critical for retinal angiogenesis. EPO mRNA expression levels in retina are highly elevated during the hypoxia-induced proliferation phase of retinopathy. The authors investigated the inhibition of retinal EPO mRNA expression with RNA interference as a potential strategy to suppress retinal neovascularization and to prevent proliferative retinopathy. METHODS The authors used a mouse model of oxygen-induced retinopathy. Retinal EPO and Epo receptor (EpoR) expression during retinopathy development were quantified with real-time RT-PCR in whole retina and on laser-captured retinal vessels and neuronal layers. Retinal hypoxia was assessed with an oxygen-sensitive hypoxyprobe. A small interference RNA (siRNA) targeting EPO or control negative siRNA was injected intravitreally at postnatal (P) day 12, P14, and P15 during the hypoxic phase, and the effect on neovascularization was evaluated in retinal flatmounts at P17. RESULTS Retinal EPO mRNA expression in total retina was suppressed during the initial phase of vessel loss in retinopathy and was significantly elevated during the hypoxia-induced proliferative phase in all three neuronal layers in the retina, corresponding to an increased level of retinal hypoxia. EpoR mRNA expression levels also increased during the second neovascular phase, specifically in hypoxia-induced neovascular vessels. Intravitreous injection of EPO siRNA effectively inhibited approximately 60% of retinal EPO mRNA expression and significantly suppressed retinal neovascularization by approximately 40%. CONCLUSIONS Inhibiting EPO mRNA expression with siRNA is effective in suppressing retinal neovascularization, suggesting EPO siRNA is a potentially useful pharmaceutical intervention for treating proliferative retinopathy.