Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Subjective burden and personal gains among older parents of adults with serious mental illness.

OBJECTIVE Whereas many studies have examined the long-term toll of coping with an adult child's serious mental illness, relatively few have examined both the subjective burden and personal gains associated with this parenting role. This study investigated the stressors and resources related to burden and gains among older parents of adults with serious mental illness. METHODS The study was a secondary analysis of data collected in the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study. Regression analysis of telephone and mailed responses of 111 parents of adults with serious mental illness was used to examine the stressors and resources associated with parental burden and gains. RESULTS Stressors that were positively associated with subjective burden included the amount of care provided to a child with serious mental illness; parents and children living in the same household was also positively associated, although it was not statistically significant (p=.07). Parents who received more assistance from an adult child with serious mental illness and those who were support group members reported less subjective burden and more gains. A higher number of confidants were also positively associated with gains. Parents who provided more assistance with activities of daily living to their adult child reported higher levels of gains. CONCLUSIONS Findings suggest that recovery-oriented approaches to supporting families in later stages of life may involve creating opportunities for adults with serious mental illness to play positive roles in the lives of aging parents and in helping older parents recognize ways in which successfully coping with caregiving challenges may lead to personal gains.
Multicenter Comparison of Four Automated Immunoassay Analyzers for Prostate Specific Antigen

Dear Editor, Prostate-specific antigen (PSA) is secreted by the prostate gland, and elevated serum PSA levels are observed in patients with prostate cancer, benign prostatic hyperplasia, and prostatitis [1]. PSA is currently used for diagnosis or case identification, prognosis with other factors, detecting recurrence, and monitoring therapy, but not for screening or early detection, as recommended by the National Academy of Clinical Biochemistry (NACB) [2]. PSA levels have been used for risk stratification. The clinically relevant PSA cut-off level, 4 ng/mL, is most commonly used [1]. After initiation of hormonal therapy, achieving a PSA level of <4 ng/mL is associated with significantly longer remission, and maintaining a PSA level <4 ng/mL after three months of therapy is predictive of survival [3]. Different PSA assays produce different results with the same patient sample [4]. This retrospective multicenter study compared serum PSA levels using four automated chemiluminescent immunoassay analyzers that used different calibration materials: Immulite 2000 XPi (Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics Inc., Tarrytown, NY, USA), UniCel DxI 800 (Beckman Coulter, Brea, CA, USA), ADVIA Centaur XPT (Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics Inc.), and ARCHITECT i2000SR (Abbott Diagnostics, Abbott Park, IL, USA). It was performed in three different affiliated hospitals of The Catholic University of Korea: St. Paul’s Hospital, Seoul; St. Mary’s Hospital, Uijeongbu; and St. Vincent’s Hospital, Suwon. This study was approved by the Institutional Review Board of The Catholic University of Korea. We used 120 serum samples with PSA levels of 0.04–100 ng/ mL, as evaluated by Immulite 2000Xpi. Samples were stored at -70°C and subsequently thawed for analysis with the other analyzers. We summarized results as mean±SD and performed Pearson correlation analysis and Passing-Bablok regression between analyzers. In addition, Bland-Altman analysis was performed. MedCalc 15.0 (MedCalc Software, Ostend, Belgium) was used for all analyses. Immulite 2000 XPi showed the lowest mean PSA levels (6.00± 13.68 ng/mL), while UniCel DxI 800 had the highest (6.81± 15.79 ng/mL). The concordance rates using cut-off levels of 0.2, 2.5, 4.0, 10.0, and 20.0 ng/mL are summarized in Table 1. Concordance rates at 0.2 ng/mL were generally low, but those for 2.5 ng/mL were favorable (96.5–100%). Concordance rates for 4.0 ng/mL were also favorable (92.3–96.1%), but those for 10 ng/mL ranged from 83.3% to 100%. At 20 ng/mL, all four analyzers showed 100% concordance rates. Pearson correlation coefficient ranged from 0.956 to 0.993 (Table 1). Comparative analysis of PSA levels revealed strong correlations between each
Biological Control of Cyclamen Soilborne Diseases by Serratia marcescens Strain B2.

Cyclamen plants were treated with a highly chitinolytic bacterium, Serratia marcescens strain B2, and then challenge inoculated with Rhizoctonia solani sclerotia or Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cyclaminis conidia. The bacterium suppressed these fungal diseases of cyclamen plants, especially the damping off caused by R. solani, in a greenhouse. Strain B2 survived at approximately 106 to 107 CFU/g in soil for 4 months after the initial application under greenhouse conditions. Chitinolytic enzymes and antifungal low-molecular-weight compounds were present in filtrates of S. marcescens B2, which suppressed germination of R. solani sclerotia in vitro.
Modulating Dopamine Signaling and Behavior with Chemogenetics: Concepts, Progress, and Challenges

For more than 60 years, dopamine (DA) has been known as a critical modulatory neurotransmitter regulating locomotion, reward-based motivation, and endocrine functions. Disturbances in DA signaling have been linked to an array of different neurologic and psychiatric disorders, including Parkinson’s disease, schizophrenia, and addiction, but the underlying pathologic mechanisms have never been fully elucidated. One major obstacle limiting interpretation of standard pharmacological and transgenic interventions is the complexity of the DA system, which only appears to widen as research progresses. Nonetheless, development of new genetic tools, such as chemogenetics, has led to an entirely new era for functional studies of neuronal signaling. By exploiting receptors that are engineered to respond selectively to an otherwise inert ligand, so-called Designer Receptors Exclusively Activated by Designer Drugs (DREADDs), chemogenetics enables pharmacological remote control of neuronal activity. Here we review the recent, extensive application of this technique to the DA field and how its use has advanced the study of the DA system and contributed to our general understanding of DA signaling and related behaviors. Moreover, we discuss the challenges and pitfalls associated with the chemogenetic technology, such as the metabolism of the DREADD ligand clozapine N-oxide (CNO) to the D2 receptor antagonist clozapine. We conclude that despite the recent concerns regarding CNO, the chemogenetic toolbox provides an exceptional approach to study neuronal function. The huge potential should promote continued investigations and additional refinements to further expound key mechanisms of DA signaling and circuitries in normal as well as maladaptive behaviors.
Microbial Population Changes and Their Relationship with Human Health and Disease

Specific microbial profiles and changes in intestinal microbiota have been widely demonstrated to be associated with the pathogenesis of a number of extra-intestinal (obesity and metabolic syndrome) and intestinal (inflammatory bowel disease) diseases as well as other metabolic disorders, such as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and type 2 diabetes. Thus, maintaining a healthy gut ecosystem could aid in avoiding the early onset and development of these diseases. Furthermore, it is mandatory to evaluate the alterations in the microbiota associated with pathophysiological conditions and how to counteract them to restore intestinal homeostasis. This review highlights and critically discusses recent literature focused on identifying changes in and developing gut microbiota-targeted interventions (probiotics, prebiotics, diet, and fecal microbiota transplantation, among others) for the above-mentioned pathologies. We also discuss future directions and promising approaches to counteract unhealthy alterations in the gut microbiota. Altogether, we conclude that research in this field is currently in its infancy, which may be due to the large number of factors that can elicit such alterations, the variety of related pathologies, and the heterogeneity of the population involved. Further research on the effects of probiotics, prebiotics, or fecal transplantations on the composition of the human gut microbiome is necessary.
The impact of postreperfusion syndrome during liver transplantation using livers with significant macrosteatosis

The impact of postreperfusion syndrome (PRS) during liver transplantation (LT) using donor livers with significant macrosteatosis is largely unknown. Clinical outcomes of all patients undergoing LT with donor livers with moderate macrosteatosis (30%‐60%) (N = 96) between 2000 and 2017 were compared to propensity score matched cohorts of patients undergoing LT with donor livers with mild macrosteatosis (10%‐29%) (N = 96) and no steatosis (N = 96). Cardiac arrest at the time of reperfusion was seen in eight (8.3%) of the patients in the moderate macrosteatosis group compared to one (1.0%) of the patients in the mild macrosteatosis group (P = .02) and zero (0%) of the patients in the no steatosis group (P = .004). Patients in the moderate macrosteatosis group had a higher rate of PRS (37.5% vs 18.8%; P = .004), early allograft dysfunction (EAD) (76.4% vs 25.8%; P < .001), renal dysfunction requiring continuous renal replacement therapy following transplant (18.8% vs 8.3%; P = .03) and return to the OR within 30 days (24.0% vs 7.3%; P = .002), than the no steatosis group. Both long‐term patient (P = .30 and P = .08) and graft survival (P = .15 and P = .12) were not statistically when comparing the moderate macrosteatosis group to the mild macrosteatosis and no steatosis groups. Recipients of LT using livers with moderate macrosteatosis are at a significant increased risk of PRS. If patients are able to overcome the initial increased perioperative risk of using these donor livers, long‐term graft survival does not appear to be different than matched recipients receiving grafts with no steatosis.
Contribution of Clinically Derived Mutations in the Gene Encoding the Zinc Cluster Transcription Factor Mrr2 to Fluconazole Antifungal Resistance and CDR1 Expression in Candida albicans

Mutations in genes encoding zinc cluster transcription factors (ZCFs) such as TAC1, MRR1, and UPC2 play a key role in Candida albicans azole antifungal resistance. Artificial activation of the ZCF Mrr2 has shown increased expression of the gene encoding the Cdr1 efflux pump and resistance to fluconazole. ABSTRACT Mutations in genes encoding zinc cluster transcription factors (ZCFs) such as TAC1, MRR1, and UPC2 play a key role in Candida albicans azole antifungal resistance. Artificial activation of the ZCF Mrr2 has shown increased expression of the gene encoding the Cdr1 efflux pump and resistance to fluconazole. Amino acid substitutions in Mrr2 have recently been reported to contribute to fluconazole resistance in clinical isolates. In the present study, 57 C. albicans clinical isolates with elevated fluconazole MICs were examined for mutations in MRR2 and expression of CDR1. Mutations in MRR2 resulting in 15 amino acid substitutions were uniquely identified among resistant isolates, including 4 substitutions (S466L, A468G, S469T, T470N) previously reported to reduce fluconazole susceptibility. Three additional, novel amino acid substitutions (R45Q, A459T, V486M) were also discovered in fluconazole-resistant isolates. When introduced into a fluconazole-susceptible background, no change in fluconazole MIC or CDR1 expression was observed for any of the mutations found in this collection. However, introduction of an allele leading to artificial activation of Mrr2 increased resistance to fluconazole as well as CDR1 expression. Moreover, Mrr2 amino acid changes reported previously to have the strongest effect on fluconazole susceptibility and CDR1 expression also exhibited no differences in fluconazole susceptibility or CDR1 expression relative to the parent strain. While all known fluconazole resistance mechanisms are represented within this collection of clinical isolates and contribute to fluconazole resistance to different extents, mutations in MRR2 do not appear to alter CDR1 expression or contribute to resistance in any of these isolates.
Distributed Fusion of Sensor Data in a Constrained Wireless Network

Smart buildings with connected lighting and sensors are likely to become one of the first large-scale applications of the Internet of Things (IoT). However, as the number of interconnected IoT devices is expected to rise exponentially, the amount of collected data will be enormous but highly redundant. Devices will be required to pre-process data locally or at least in their vicinity. Thus, local data fusion, subject to constraint communications will become necessary. In that sense, distributed architectures will become increasingly unavoidable. Anticipating this trend, this paper addresses the problem of presence detection in a building as a distributed sensing of a hidden Markov model (DS-HMM) with limitations on the communication. The key idea in our work is the use of a posteriori probabilities or likelihood ratios (LR) as an appropriate “interface” between heterogeneous sensors with different error profiles. We propose an efficient transmission policy, jointly with a fusion algorithm, to merge data from various HMMs running separately on all sensor nodes but with all the models observing the same Markovian process. To test the feasibility of our DS-HMM concept, a simple proof-of-concept prototype was used in a typical office environment. The experimental results show full functionality and validate the benefits. Our proposed scheme achieved high accuracy while reducing the communication requirements. The concept of DS-HMM and a posteriori probabilities as an interface is suitable for many other applications for distributed information fusion in wireless sensor networks.
Clinicopathological Characteristics of Well-differentiated Papillary Mesothelioma of The Peritoneum: A Single-institutional Experience of 12 Cases

Background/Aim: Well-differentiated papillary mesothelioma (WDPM) is histologically characterized by papillary architecture with fibrovascular cores, lined by bland mesothelial cells. We recently experienced a case of WDPM associated with multiple peritoneal inclusion cysts, which prompted us to initiate a comprehensive review of previously diagnosed WDPM cases. Materials and Methods: The clinicopathological characteristics and immunophenotype of 12 cases of peritoneal WDPM were investigated using a review of electronic medical records, pathological examination, and immunostaining. Results: The patients' ages ranged from 23 to 75 years. No patient had endometriosis or a previous history of asbestos exposure. Ten tumors were detected incidentally during surgery for other causes. Most tumors appeared as a small, single nodule on the peritoneal surface, but in three cases, WDPM presented as multiple lesions. All but one patient had no symptoms. All the patients examined are still well without postoperative recurrence. Histologically, all cases demonstrated typical papillary architecture with fibrovascular cores. The mesothelial cells lining the papillae consisted mostly of single row of cells, although areas of proliferation to multiple layers were observed in a few cases. Their nuclei appeared bland, but two cases exhibited mild nuclear atypia and prominent nucleoli. Immunostaining revealed that the mesothelial cells were positive for D2-40, cytokeratin 5/6, cytokeratin 7, and Wilms' tumor 1. Conclusion: We herein demonstrated the clinicopathological characteristics of peritoneal WDPMs. WDPM has distinct pathological features. Although all cases we examined were uneventful after surgery, further surveillance is recommended since the biological behavior of WDPM is still uncertain.
Identification of reliable reference genes for quantitative real-time PCR in ovary and uterus of laying hens under heat stress

Abstract The main stage in real-time quantitative PCR is a quantification of gene transcriptomes, in which suitable use of reliable reference genes is critical to normalize accurately. To determine the most stable reference genes in laying hens under heat stress, from a panel of nine typical candidate reference genes, the mRNA transcript of ACTB, HMBS, HPRT1, RPL13, RPL32, 18SrRNA, TBP, TFRC, and YWHAZ was evaluated in the ovary and uterus of both control and heat-stress groups of laying hens. Forty 23-week-old White Leghorn laying hens were housed in two rooms. The control (n = 20) and heat-stress (n = 20) groups were maintained at 21–23 °C and 36–38 °C for 8 weeks respectively. Analysis of this set of genes was done with BestKeeper, geNorm, and NormFinder software programs to find the most stable ones. Candidate reference genes ranked in the uterus of heat-stress and control groups of hens included YWHAZ, HPRT1, HMBS, RPL13, TFRC, ACTB, TBP, RPL32, and 18SrRNA; those in the ovary were YWHAZ, HPRT1, TFRC, HMBS, RPL13, TBP, RPL32, ACTB, and 18SrRNA. The overall results indicated that the most stable genes are YWHAZ, HPRT1, HMBS, RPL13, TFRC, TBP, ACTB, RPL32, and 18SrRNA respectively. In addition, the combination of YWHAZ, HPRT1, and HMBS is suggested as the most stable reference group of genes for more accurate quantitative data normalization in the ovarian and uterine tissues of laying hens under control and heat stress conditions. Lay summary Heat stress influences the expression of many genes in the reproductive tissues of birds. Accurate evaluation of these changes via real-time quantitative PCR depends on the determination of reliable reference genes. In this study, nine candidate housekeeping genes were evaluated, and the most stable were YWHAZ, HPRT1, HMBS, RPL13, TFRC, TBP, ACTB, RPL32, and 18SrRNA.
In Vitro Pharmacological Profile of Ipragliflozin, a Sodium Glucose Co-transporter 2 Inhibitor.

Ipragliflozin, a selective sodium glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitor, is used for the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus. To date, the only known in vitro pharmacological characteristic of ipragliflozin is its selectivity for SGLT2 over SGLT1, which was previously reported by our group. Therefore, in this study, we investigated other in vitro pharmacological characteristics of ipragliflozin and compared them with those of phlorizin, a naturally occurring SGLT inhibitor. Selectivity of ipragliflozin and phlorizin for human (h) SGLT2 over hSGLT3, hSGLT4, hSGLT5, hSGLT6 and hSodium/myo-inositol (MI) cotransporter 1 (hSMIT1) was examined in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells overexpressing each transporter using specific radio-ligands. Ipragliflozin had higher selectivity for hSGLT2 than other hSGLTs. Phlorizin showed lower selectivity for hSGLT2 compared to ipragliflozin. Studies using CHO cells overexpressing hSGLT2 demonstrated that both ipragliflozin and phlorizin competitively inhibited SGLT2-mediated methyl-α-D-glucopyranoside (AMG) uptake with an inhibitory constant (Ki) of 2.28 and 20.2 nM, respectively. Ipragliflozin, but not phlorizin, inhibited hSGLT2 in a wash-resistant manner, suggesting that binding of ipragliflozin to hSGLT2 was persistent. These data demonstrate that ipragliflozin is a competitive inhibitor of SGLT2, has high selectivity for SGLT2 over not only SGLT1 but also other SGLT family members, and binds persistently to hSGLT2.
Phylogeography of the Hypnea musciformis species complex (Gigartinales, Rhodophyta) with the recognition of cryptic species in the western Atlantic Ocean

Populations of the marine benthic red macroalgae Hypnea musciformis and Hypnea pseudomusciformis along the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans were tested for phylogeographic structure using the DNA barcode COI‐5P combined with rbcL for the construction of the phylogenetic tree. Strong patterns of genetic structure were detected across 210 COI‐5P DNA sequences, and 37 COI‐5P haplotypes were found, using multiple statistical approaches. Hypnea musciformis was found in the Northeast and Northwest Atlantic, the Mediterrean Sea, Namibia, and along the Pacific coast of Mexico. Two new putative species were detected, Hypnea sp. 1 in the Caribbean Sea and Hypnea sp. 2 in the Dominican Republic. Three distinct marine phylogeographic provinces were recognized in the Southern Hemisphere for H. pseudomusciformis: Uruguay, South‐Southeast Brazil, and Northeast Brazil. The degree of genetic isolation and distinctness among these provinces varied considerably. The Uruguay province was the most genetically distinct, as characterized by four unique haplotypes not shared with any of the Brazilian populations. Statistically significant results support both, isolation by distance and isolation by environment hypotheses, explaining the formation and mantainance of phylogeographic structuring along the Uruguay‐Brazil coast. Geographic, taxonomic and molecular marker concordances were found between our H. pseudomusciformis results and published studies. Furthermore, our data indicate that the Hawaiian introduced populations of H. musciformis contain Hypnea sp. 1 haplotypes, the current known distribution of which is restricted to the Caribbean.
Experiences of Young People with Harmful Sexual Behaviors in Services: A Qualitative Study

ABSTRACT Young people are responsible for a significant number of the sexual offenses that are committed every year. These young people are generally referred to specialist services for treatment. This article explores the health characteristics and service experiences of 117 young people with sexual behavior problems, and the issues that services face when working with them. The study is based on analysis of 117 case files, identified from nine specialist services in the UK. The case files were thematically analyzed. Case files provided information on the following topics: the reasons why the young people were referred to harmful sexual behavior services; the young people’s personal characteristics; their medical and mental health problems; the young people’s interests and aspirations; their attitudes toward services and interventions; continued problematic sexual incidents in services; progress in services; and post-service experiences. Overall, the findings of the study indicate that these young people have a number of strengths, but often have problems across a range of personal and health domains. A number of them continue to remain sexually and generally violent in services, particularly in residential settings, which has risk management implications for staff.