Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Chronic Administration of Infliximab (TNF‐α Inhibitor) Decreases Depression and Anxiety‐like Behaviour in Rat Model of Chronic Mild Stress

Pro‐inflammatory cytokines have been proposed to be associated with the pathogenesis of depression. Consistent with this notion, several clinical observations have suggested the antidepressant efficacy of TNF‐α inhibitors in patients with chronic inflammatory diseases. In this study, we evaluated the antidepressant and anxiolytic effects of chronic TNF‐α inhibitor (infliximab, 5 mg/kg, i.p., weekly) administration in the chronic mild stress (CMS) model of depression. Rats were divided into three groups: saline‐control (no stress), saline‐CMS, and infliximab‐CMS. Rats in the latter two groups were exposed to CMS for 8 weeks. Saline (former two groups) or infliximab was injected weekly during this period. After CMS, total locomotor activity, anxiety‐like behaviour and depression‐like behaviours were evaluated using automated locomotor activity cage, elevated plus maze (EPM), and sucrose preference (SPT) and forced swimming (FS) tests, respectively. As expected, the saline‐CMS group exhibited higher depression‐like behaviours in FS and SPT tests compared with the saline‐control group. There were no differences between these two groups in terms of the anxiety‐like behaviour or total locomotor activity. Infliximab reduced the depression‐like behaviour of CMS rats compared with saline‐CMS group, and anxiety‐like behaviour of CMS rats compared with saline‐CMS and saline‐control groups. Our findings suggest that chronic and systemic TNF‐α inhibition reduced depression and anxiety‐like behaviour in the CMS model of depression in rats.
Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction in the Pediatric Age Group

Nonosseus disruptions of the anterior cruciate ligament in children may be on the rise. Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) disruptions in the pediatric age group were thought previously to have a benign natural history, but recent reports suggest that these injuries may result in significant functional instability and further injury to the knee. These possible consequences have led to a more aggressive approach to the pediatric athlete presenting with an unstable ACL-deficient knee.
Four-dimensional fetal echocardiography with spatiotemporal image correlation (STIC): A systematic study of standard cardiac views assessed by different observers

Objective. To test the agreement between observers and reproducibility of a technique to display standard cardiac views of the left and right ventricular outflow tracts from four-dimensional volume datasets acquired with Spatiotemporal Image Correlation (STIC). Methods. A technique was developed to obtain dynamic multiplanar images of the left ventricular outflow tract (LVOT) and right ventricular outflow tract (RVOT) from volume datasets acquired with STIC. Volume datasets were acquired from fetuses with normal cardiac anatomy. Twenty volume datasets of satisfactory quality were pre-selected by one investigator. The data was randomly assigned for a blinded review by two independent observers with previous experience in fetal echocardiography. Only one volume dataset was used for each fetus. After a training session, the observers obtained standardized cardiac views of the LVOT and RVOT, which were scored on a scale of 1 to 5, based on diagnostic value and image quality (1 = unacceptable, 2 = marginal, 3 = acceptable, 4 = good, and 5 = excellent). Median scores and interquartile range, as well as inter- and intraobserver agreement were calculated for each view. Results. The mean menstrual age at the time of volume acquisition was 25.5 ± 4.5 weeks. Median scores (interquartile range) for LVOT images, obtained by the first and second observers, were 3.5 (2.25–5.00) and 4 (3.00–5.00), respectively. The median scores (interquartile range) for RVOT images obtained by the first and second observers were 3 (3.00–5.00) and 3 (2.00–4.00), respectively. The interobserver intraclass correlation coefficient for the LVOT was 0.693 (95% CI 0.380–0.822), and 0.696 (95% CI 0.382–0.866) for the RVOT. For the intraobserver agreement analysis, observer 1 gave higher scores to the LVOT the second time the volumes were analyzed [LVOT: 3.50 (2.25–5.00) vs. 5.00 (4.00–5.00, p = 0.008)]. Conclusion. STIC can be reproducibly used to evaluate fetal cardiac outflow tracts by independent examiners. Slightly better image quality rating scores during the intraobserver variability trial suggests the presence of a learning curve for the manipulation and analysis of volume data obtained by STIC.
Prevention of joint destruction by tacrolimus in patients with early rheumatoid arthritis: a post hoc analysis of a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study

ObjectivesA multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of the oral calcineurin inhibitor tacrolimus was performed in patients with early rheumatoid arthritis who had responded poorly to disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs), and factors related to suppression of joint destruction were investigated.MethodsThe change in the total Sharp score (∆TSS) was assessed by univariate analysis in patients with X-ray films to identify the main determinant of a ∆TSS of <0.5 in week 52. Patients with this factor were then investigated further.ResultsUnivariate analysis showed that a baseline C-reactive protein (CRP) level of <1.5 mg/dL was the major determinant of ∆TSS <0.5 at week 52 in the tacrolimus group. Detailed analysis of patients with a baseline CRP of <1.5 mg/dL revealed no significant differences in background factors between the two groups. In week 52, ∆TSS was significantly smaller in the tacrolimus group than in the placebo group (2.67 ± 5.40 vs. 8.05 ± 10.32, respectively, p = 0.017). Both groups had a similar incidence of adverse reactions.ConclusionsAdding tacrolimus to DMARDs significantly suppressed disease activity and joint destruction in patients with early rheumatoid arthritis, a disease duration ≤3 years, a CRP <1.5 mg/dL, and a poor response to oral DMARDs.
8‐O‐Acetyl Shanzhiside Methylester Attenuates Cerebral Ischaemia/Reperfusion Injury through an Anti‐Inflammatory Mechanism in Diabetic Rats

Inflammatory activation plays a vital role in the pathophysiological mechanisms of stroke and diabetes mellitus (DM), exerts the deleterious effects on the progression of the brain and leads to vascular damage in diabetic stroke. The objectives of this study were to investigate the effects of 8‐O‐acetyl shanzhiside methylester (ND01) on tumour necrosis factor‐α (TNF‐α)‐stimulated SH‐SY5Y cell line in vitro and the experimental ischaemic diabetic stroke model in vivo. TNF‐α‐stimulated SH‐SY5Y cells were pre‐incubated with ND01, then analysed protein expression. For in vivo experiment, the diabetic rats were subjected to middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) for 30 min. followed by reperfusion for 23 hr. Treatment of SH‐SY5Y cells with ND01 blocked TNF‐α‐induced nuclear transcription factor κB (NF‐κB) activation and decreased high‐mobility group box‐1 (HMGB‐1) expression. ND01 40 mg/kg demonstrated significant neuroprotective effect even after delayed administration at 4 hr after I/R. ND01 40 mg/kg attenuated the histopathological damage, decreased brain swelling, inhibited NF‐κB activation and reduced HMGB‐1 expression in ischaemic brain tissue. These data show that ND01 protects diabetic brain against I/R injury with a favourable therapeutic time‐window by alleviating diabetic cerebral I/R injury and attenuating blood–brain barrier (BBB) breakdown, and its protective effects may involve HMGB‐1 and NF‐κB signalling pathway.
Can a brief health promotion intervention delivered by mental health key workers improve clients' physical health: A randomized controlled trial

Background: People with serious mental illness tend to have unhealthy lifestyles, poor physical health and high rates of premature death. These factors are potentially amenable to health promotion interventions. Such interventions are being developed but do not easily reach the most disabled clients. Aims: To measure whether a brief health promotion intervention delivered by mental health key workers can produce useful health gains in a population with serious mental illness. Method: A randomized controlled trial (RCT) of a particular health promotion package, using physiological and validated instruments to measure outcome. Results: The study population had a relatively unhealthy lifestyle at outset. The intervention produced some statistically significant reductions in cardiovascular risk factors but overall health gains were small. The drop out rate was high. Conclusions: People with serious mental illness are an appropriate target group for health promotion interventions. This intervention did not produce enough health gains to justify incorporation into standard care planning. A more intensive approach might achieve better outcomes.
Intrathecal immune response in patients with the post-polio syndrome

Background. The syndrome of progressive muscular atrophy decades after acute paralytic poliomyelitis (post-polio syndrome) is not well understood. The theory that physiologic changes and aging cause the new weakness does not explain the immunologic abnormalities reported in some patients. An alternative explanation is persistent or recurrent poliovirus infection. Methods. We assessed the intrathecal antibody response to poliovirus and intrathecal production of interleukin-2 and soluble interleukin-2 receptors in 36 patients with the post-polio syndrome and 67 controls (including 13 who had had poliomyelitis but had no new symptoms and 18 with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis). Intrathecal antibody responses to measles, mumps, herpes simplex, and varicella-zoster viruses were also determined. Results. Oligoclonal IgM bands specific to poliovirus were detected in the cerebrospinal fluid of 21 of the 36 patients with the post-polio syndrome (58 percent) but in none of the control group (P < 0.0001). In quantitative studies there was evidence of increased intrathecal synthesis of IgM antibodies to poliovirus only among the patients with the post-polio syndrome; there was no increased synthesis of IgM to measles, mumps, herpes simplex, or varicella-zoster viruses. The patients with post-polio syndrome had significantly higher mean (+/- SD) cerebrospinal fluid levels of interleukin-2 and soluble interleukin-2 receptors than the controls (8.1 +/- 5.3 vs. 1.4 +/- 0.8 U per milliliter and 159.6 +/- 102.9 vs. 10.7 +/- 6.2 U per milliliter, respectively). The intrathecal synthesis of IgM antibodies to poliovirus correlated with the cerebrospinal fluid concentrations of interleukin-2 (P < 0.0005) and soluble interleukin-2 receptors (P < 0.001). Conclusions. An intrathecal immune response against poliovirus is present in many patients with the post-polio syndrome. In some of these patients the recrudescence of muscle weakness may be caused by persistent or recurrent infection of neural cells with the poliovirus.
El corazón, el sueño y la respiración

El sindrome de apneas-hipopneas durante el sueno(SAHS) consiste en la aparicion de episodios recurren-tes de limitacion al paso del aire durante el sueno,como consecuencia de una alteracion anatomico-fun-cional de la via aerea superior (VAS) que conduce a sucolapso, y causa descensos de la saturacion de oxihe-moglobina (SaO
Relationship Between Uptake of Antenatal Care Services and Low Birth Weight in the Gushegu District of Northern Ghana

Objective : Little is known about the relative contribution of prenatal care utilization on pregnancy outcome in developing country setting where other equally important predictors of low birth weight (LBW) including malarial infection and poor diet predominate. This study investigated whether the utilization of antenatal care (ANC) services is an independent predictor of LBW in Northern Ghana. Methods : In this community based cross sectional study, we compared pregnancy outcome (birth weight) across groups of 407 women who received different amounts of ANC. Results : The incidence of low birth weight (LBW) of newborn babies was 18.2 % (74/407). The main finding was that women who made at least four ANC visits had 63.0 % protection against delivering a LBW (AOR = 0.37, 95 % CI: 0.19, 0.69). Conclusion : The results of this study suggest that adequate antenatal care is effective in preventing LBW in a rural setting but its effect was more discernible among women who were not in gainful employment (suggestive of low socio-economic status). Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE
Uni-mode and Partial Uniqueness Conditions for CANDECOMP/PARAFAC of Three-Way Arrays with Linearly Dependent Loadings

In this paper, three sufficient conditions are derived for the three-way CANDECOMP/PARAFAC (CP) model, which ensure uniqueness in one of the three modes (“uni-mode-uniqueness”). Based on these conditions, a partial uniqueness condition is proposed which allows collinear loadings in only one mode. We prove that if there is uniqueness in one mode, then the initial CP model can be uniquely decomposed in a sum of lower-rank tensors for which identifiability can be independently assessed. This condition is simpler and easier to check than other similar conditions existing in the specialized literature. These theoretical results are illustrated by numerical examples.
Factors associated with metabolic syndrome among HIV-positive patients at a health facility in Botswana.

Aims: To investigate the prevalence and factors associated with development of metabolic syndrome among people with HIV on antiretroviral treatment (ART) in Botswana. Study Design: Cross-sectional study design Place and Duration of Study: Princess Marina Hospital in Botswana (Africa). Only patients that had been on treatment from 1 January to 31 December 2010 were included. Methodology: A structured questionnaire and a data collection form were used to collect data on demographic, socioeconomic, lifestyle, clinical and laboratory data. Bivariate analysis was used to assess characteristics associated with the presence of metabolic syndrome by calculating odds ratios. Results: A total of 190 subjects participated in the study, 141 (74.2%) females and 49 (25.8%) males. The mean age of participants was 42 (±9.04) years, ranging from 24 to 71 with a median age of 40.5 years (IQR: 35 – 49). The overall prevalence of metabolic syndrome in this study was 11%. In the bivariate analysis, the odds for developing MS were higher among participants who were male, obese, 41 years old and older, and those who used ART regimens containing PIs. Conclusion: Overall, the prevalence of metabolic syndrome was 11.1% among the study participants. The factors associated with it were increasing age above 41 years Original Research Article British Journal of Medicine & Medical Research, 4(12): 2352-2361, 2014 2353 old, male gender, obesity, longer duration of treatment and the use of PIs drugs. It is recommended that patients with such characteristics should be targeted for regular monitoring of parameters defining metabolic syndrome and that a culturally appropriate lifestyle intervention program needs to be designed and implemented for Botswana patients.
Scalable Reduction of Elastic Continuum for Boundary Energy Control

This paper derives a scalable reduction of an elastic continuum for boundary energy control methods in terms of the statistical identification of coarse-grained molecular dynamics. Such an identified molecular dynamics, called renormalized molecular dynamics, is used for fast numerical calculations as well as for modeling large targets, even though the numerical molecular dynamics calculations are very time-consuming. The coarse graining can be described as a parameter scaling in the Hamiltonian system of renormalized molecular dynamics, and thus a renormalized Hamiltonian system can be defined by the scalable Hamiltonian. At the inverse limit of the coarse graining, the renormalized Hamiltonian system can be transformed into a distributed port-Hamiltonian system that is a formal representation of partial differential equations for boundary controls based on energy flows. By introducing the concept of the controls to each coarse graining level, the renormalized Hamiltonian systems can be used as a scalabl.
New immune role for platelets in malaria infection

Despite 60 years of antimalarial treatment, prophylaxis and eradication campaigns, malaria still remains the third most lethal infectious disease on earth, and in sub-Saharan Africa, it is the most deadly of all diseases [1]. The most vulnerable are children aged under 5 years of age and women during pregnancy. As such it impacts significantly on the health, social and economic development of affected countries. Increased travel of people to endemic regions is also bringing more people into contact with the disease. The disease is caused by the protozoan parasite, Plasmodium, which infects red blood cells. Five species of Plasmodium infect humans, with P. falciparum causing the most morbidity and mortality. Current antimalarial treatments target the parasite as it grows within the red cell. Of major concern, the efficacy of these drugs is diminishing at alarming rates due to the widespread occurrence of drug-resistant parasites. The development of efficacious vaccines also remains a challenge [2]. Novel approaches to treatment and a greater understanding of disease pathogenesis and the host response to infection are desperately needed.
Consensus of Discrete-Time Second-Order Multiagent Systems Based on Infinite Products of General Stochastic Matrices

Traditionally, the consensus of a discrete-time multiagent system (MAS) with a switching topology is transformed into the convergence problem of the infinite products of stochastic matrices, which can be resolved by using the Wolfowitz theorem. However, such a transformation is very difficult or even impossible for certain MASs, such as discrete-time second-order MASs (DTSO MASs), whose consensus can only be transformed into the convergence problem of the infinite products of general stochastic matrices (IPGSM). These general stochastic matrices are matrices with row sum 1 but their elements are not necessarily nonnegative. Since there does not exist a general theory or an effective technique for dealing with the convergence of IPGSM, establishing the consensus criteria for a DTSO MAS with a switching topology is rather difficult. This paper concentrates on the consensus problem of a class of DTSO MASs and develops a method to cope with the corresponding IPGSM. Moreover, it is pointed out that the method .
Mosquito-Stage-Structured Malaria Models and Their Global Dynamics

We formulate mosquito-stage-structured, continuous-time, compartmental, malaria models which include four distinct metamorphic stages of mosquitoes. We derive a formula for the reproductive number of infection and investigate the existence of endemic equilibria. We determine conditions under which the models undergo either forward or backward bifurcation. We carry out rigorous mathematical analysis on the model dynamics by proving the global stability of the infection-free equilibrium while a forward bifurcation occurs, and the global stability of the endemic equilibrium as the reproductive number is greater than one in certain cases. Our study can be also applied to other diseases such as Chikungunya fever.
Stable Antiphase Oscillations in a Network of Electrically Coupled Model Neurons

We consider a model of two identical neurons with electrical coupling and give a rigorous analysis for when the network exhibits stable antiphase behavior. Each neuron is modeled as a relaxation oscillator, and the main technique used in the analysis is geometric singular perturbation theory. Using fast/slow analysis, we derive a one-dimensional map; the antiphase solution corresponds to a fixed point of this map. Detailed analysis of the map, along with its derivative, leads to precise conditions on the duty cycle of an individual cell for when there exists an antiphase solution and when it is stable, for sufficiently weak electrical coupling. The results presented here extend our previous analysis [D. Terman et al., SIAM J. Appl. Dyn. Syst. , 10 (2011), pp. 1127--1153] to more biophysical neuronal models.
Suggestive evidence for association between L-type voltage-gated calcium channel (CACNA1C) gene haplotypes and bipolar disorder in Latinos: a family-based association study.

OBJECTIVES Through recent genome-wide association studies (GWASs), several groups have reported significant association between variants in the calcium channel, voltage-dependent, L-type, alpha 1C subunit (CACNA1C) and bipolar disorder (BP) in European and European-American cohorts. We performed a family-based association study to determine whether CACNA1C is associated with BP in the Latino population. METHODS This study included 913 individuals from 215 Latino pedigrees recruited from the USA, Mexico, Guatemala, and Costa Rica. The Illumina GoldenGate Genotyping Assay was used to genotype 58 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that spanned a 602.9-kb region encompassing the CACNA1C gene including two SNPs (rs7297582 and rs1006737) previously shown to associate with BP. Individual SNP and haplotype association analyses were performed using Family-Based Association Test (version 2.0.3) and Haploview (version 4.2) software. RESULTS An eight-locus haplotype block that included these two markers showed significant association with BP (global marker permuted p = 0.0018) in the Latino population. For individual SNPs, this sample had insufficient power (10%) to detect associations with SNPs with minor effect (odds ratio = 1.15). CONCLUSIONS Although we were not able to replicate findings of association between individual CACNA1C SNPs rs7297582 and rs1006737 and BP, we were able to replicate the GWAS signal reported for CACNA1C through a haplotype analysis that encompassed these previously reported significant SNPs. These results provide additional evidence that CACNA1C is associated with BP and provides the first evidence that variations in this gene might play a role in the pathogenesis of this disorder in the Latino population.
A Fast Finite Difference Method for Two-Dimensional Space-Fractional Diffusion Equations

Fractional diffusion equations model phenomena exhibiting anomalous diffusion that cannot be modeled accurately by second-order diffusion equations. Because of the nonlocal property of fractional differential operators, numerical methods for space-fractional diffusion equations generate complicated dense or full coefficient matrices. Consequently, these numerical methods were traditionally solved by Gaussian elimination, which requires computational work of $O(N^3)$ per time step and $O(N^2)$ of memory, where $N$ is the number of spatial grid points in the discretization. The significant computational work and memory requirement of the numerical methods impose a serious challenge for the numerical simulation of two- and especially three-dimensional space-fractional diffusion equations. We develop a fast and yet accurate solution method for the implicit finite difference discretization of space-fractional diffusion equations in two space dimensions by carefully analyzing the structure of the coefficient ma.