Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The effect of acute rhinosinusitis on pulmonary function in adults.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the influence of acute rhinosinusitis on lung function as measured by spirometry. METHOD An observational study in Danish general practice on 25 adult patients with a clinical diagnosis of acute rhinosinusitis and without any signs of chronic lung disease or allergy. Patients performed spirometry at the initial acute visit and then eight weeks later when the rhinosinusitis had resolved. RESULTS Eight weeks after the initial visit there was a significant increase in the maximum mid-expiratory flow (F25-75), and in peak flow. CONCLUSION Acute rhinosinusitis in adults without any sign of chronic lung disease or allergy is accompanied by a temporary reduction in maximum mid-expiratory flow and peak flow. This may be caused by subclinical inflammation in the airways during acute rhinosinusitis. Further studies with extended lung function measurements are needed to evaluate and confirm this finding.
Patient participation in clinical decision-making in nursing: A comparative study of nurses' and patients' perceptions.

AIM AND OBJECTIVES The aim of this study was to compare the degree of concordance between patients and Registered Nurses' perceptions of the patients' preferences for participation in clinical decision-making in nursing care. A further aim was to compare patients' experienced participation with their preferred participatory role. BACKGROUND Patient participation in clinical decision-making is valuable and has an effect on quality of care. However, there is limited knowledge about patient preferences for participation and how nurses perceive their patients' preferences. METHODS A comparative design was adopted with a convenient sample of 80 nurse-patient dyads. A modified version of the Control Preference Scale was used in conjunction with a questionnaire developed to elicit the experienced participation of the patient. RESULTS A majority of the Registered Nurses perceived that their patients preferred a higher degree of participation in decision-making than did the patients. Differences in patient preferences were found in relation to age and social status but not to gender. Patients often experienced having a different role than what was initially preferred, e.g. a more passive role concerning needs related to communication, breathing and pain and a more active role related to activity and emotions/roles. CONCLUSIONS Registered Nurses are not always aware of their patients' perspective and tend to overestimate patients' willingness to assume an active role. Registered Nurses do not successfully involve patients in clinical decision-making in nursing care according to their own perceptions and not even to the patients' more moderate preferences of participation. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE A thorough assessment of the individual's preferences for participation in decision-making seems to be the most appropriate approach to ascertain patient's involvement to the preferred level of participation. The categorization of patients as preferring a passive role, collaborative role or active role is seen as valuable information for Registered Nurses to tailor nursing care.
Neurotrophic factors expressed in both cortex and spinal cord induce axonal plasticity after spinal cord injury

We reported recently that overexpression of neurotrophin‐3 (NT‐3) by motoneurons in the spinal cord of rats will induce sprouting of corticospinal tract (CST) axons (Zhou et al. [2003] J. Neurosci. 23:1424–1431). We now report that overexpression of brain‐derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) or glial cell‐derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) in the rat sensorimotor cortex near the CST neuronal cell bodies together with overexpression of NT‐3 in the lumbar spinal cord significantly increases axonal sprouting compared to that induced by NT‐3 alone. Two weeks after unilaterally lesioning the CST at the level of the pyramids, we injected rats with saline or adenoviral vectors (Adv) carrying genes coding for BDNF (Adv.BDNF), GDNF (Adv.GDNF) or enhanced green fluorescent protein (Adv.EGFP) at six sites in the sensorimotor cortex, while delivering Adv.NT3 to motoneurons in each of these four groups on the lesioned side of the spinal cord by retrograde transport from the sciatic nerve. Four days later, biotinylated dextran amine (BDA) was injected into the sensorimotor cortex on the unlesioned side to mark CST axons in the spinal cord. Morphometric analysis of axonal sprouting 3 weeks after BDA injection showed that the number of CST axons crossing the midline in rats treated with Adv.BDNF or Adv.GDNF were 46% and 52% greater, respectively, than in rats treated with Adv.EGFP or PBS (P < 0.05). These data demonstrate that sustained local expression of neurotrophic factors in the sensorimotor cortex and spinal cord will promote increased axonal sprouting after spinal cord injury, providing a basis for continued development of neurotrophic factor therapy for central nervous system damage. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Characterization of a Potent Refractory State and Persistence of Herpes Simplex Virus 1 in Cell Culture

ABSTRACT Herpes simplex virus (HSV) normally undergoes productive cytocidal infection in culture and is thought of as relatively resistant to innate immune responses such as interferon. We previously described an unusual pattern of infection in culture in MDBK cells, which after initial productive infection, surprisingly resulted in progressive suppression of replication and cell recovery. The dominance of the refractory state was due to the inability to suppress interferon production and subsequent paracrine signaling. Here, using a wild-type HSV-1 strain expressing green fluorescent protein (GFP)-VP16, we analyze aspects of long-term HSV persistence resulting from this oscillating refractory state. We show that the gradual suppression of GFP-VP16 expression correlated with a biphasic pattern of accumulation of viral DNA and extracellular virus titers. We quantify virus maintenance in a minor subpopulation of cells during subculture, show the reemergence of virus by infectious center assay, and demonstrate that this required intracellular events over a 24- to 48-h time course. We also demonstrate that conditioned medium (cMed) from infected cells induced a profound shutoff of HSV gene expression at the transcriptional level. Finally, we demonstrate that this suppression was extremely rapid, requiring only 1 h of treatment to essentially abolish HSV immediate-early expression, and surprisingly persisted for almost 2 days after removal of the cMed. These combined effects underpin the oscillating effect both in plaque progression, where infection spreads but is overwhelmed by the accumulation of inhibitory components, enabling cell recovery, and virus maintenance in a subpopulation of cells. These results may be relevant to consider in studies of HSV latency in different animal models.
Cytotoxic T-Lymphocyte–Associated Antigen-4

Cancer immunotherapy relies on the ability of the immune system to target tumor-specific antigens to generate an immune response. This initial response requires both binding of the MHC/antigen peptide to T-cell receptor complex, along with a second costimulatory signal created by the binding of CD28 on the T cell, with B7 located on the antigen-presenting cell. Regulatory checkpoints, such as cytotoxic T-lymphocyte–associated antigen-4 (CTLA-4), serve to attenuate this signal, thereby preventing autoimmunity. Its key role in regulating the immune system has made CTLA-4 an attractive therapeutic target for cancer, with the development of fully human monoclonal antibodies that have successfully targeted CTLA-4 in clinical trials. Augmentation of the immune response via blockade of CTLA-4 represents a significant advance in the field of oncology and has shown an improvement in survival for patients with metastatic melanoma. An increased understanding of the components of this pathway and the identification of other methods to modulate the immune system hold great promise for future therapy. Clin Cancer Res; 17(14); 4622–8. ©2011 AACR.
The Socio-Cultural Causes of Male Victimisation in Domestic Contexts in Lagos, Nigeria: A Qualitative Analysis

This paper examines the factors that predispose men to female-perpetrated violence in Lagos, Nigeria. Using snowball sampling, it purposively selected one case study, one key informant and two in-depth interview participants from each of the three Senatorial Districts of Lagos. Data were content analysed. Findings indicated that male victims of domestic violence abound in Lagos; stigmatisation causes male victims’ nondisclosure; and female aggressors sometimes used traditional mechanisms to control their male victims. The study concludes that lack of support worsens the conditions of male victims of domestic violence in Lagos. To prevent domestic violence, it suggests that the government should make institutional provisions for male victims. ________________________________________________________________________
A single night of sleep deprivation increases ghrelin levels and feelings of hunger in normal‐weight healthy men

Sleep loss is currently proposed to disturb endocrine regulation of energy homeostasis leading to weight gain and obesity. Supporting this view, a reduction of sleep duration to 4 h for two consecutive nights has recently been shown to decrease circulating leptin levels and to increase ghrelin levels, as well as self‐reported hunger. We hypothesized that similar endocrine alterations occur even after a single night of sleep restriction. In a balanced order, nine healthy normal‐weight men spent three nights in our sleep laboratory separated by at least 2 weeks: one night with a total sleep time of 7 h, one night with a total sleep time of 4.5 h and one night with total sleep deprivation (SD). On a standard symptom‐rating scale, subjects rated markedly stronger feelings of hunger after total SD than after 7 h sleep (3.9 ± 0.7 versus 1.7 ± 0.3; P = 0.020) or 4.5 h sleep (2.2 ± 0.5; P = 0.041). Plasma ghrelin levels were 22 ± 10% higher after total SD than after 7 h sleep (0.85 ± 0.06 versus 0.72 ± 0.04 ng mL−1; P = 0.048) with intermediate levels of the hormone after 4.5 h sleep (0.77 ± 0.04 ng mL−1). Serum leptin levels did not differ between conditions. Feelings of hunger as well as plasma ghrelin levels are already elevated after one night of SD, whereas morning serum leptin concentrations remain unaffected. Thus, our results provide further evidence for a disturbing influence of sleep loss on endocrine regulation of energy homeostasis, which on the long run may result in weight gain and obesity.
b-Adrenoceptor reserve in human lung : a comparison between airway smooth muscle and mast cells

The effects of several b-adrenoceptor agonists on the relaxation of precontracted human bronchial rings and the inhibition of Ž . IgE-mediated histamine release from human lung mast cells HLMC were studied. For the relaxation of bronchial rings, isoprenaline, Ž . fenoterol and terbutaline were full agonists whereas salbutamol was a full agonist in some two out of six experiments and a partial agonist in the remainder. For the inhibition of histamine release, relative to isoprenaline, neither fenoterol, terbutaline nor salbutamol was a full agonist. Studies with the irreversible b-adrenoceptor antagonist, bromoacetylalprenolol menthane, indicated that there was a larger b-adrenoceptor reserve for the relaxation of precontracted bronchial rings than for the inhibition of histamine release from HLMC. Further studies indicated that the isoprenaline inhibition of histamine release was considerably more susceptible to desensitizing treatments than the isoprenaline relaxation of bronchial rings. Collectively, these data suggest that a larger b-adrenoceptor reserve exists for the relaxation of smooth muscle than the inhibition of histamine release from HLMC and that differences in receptor reserve may contribute to the relative susceptibilities of the two systems to desensitization. q 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
Calcified carotid artery atheroma and stroke: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND Calcified carotid artery atheroma (CCAA) and its identification on panoramic radiographs have been advocated as a predictor of a cerebrovascular accident (CVA). TYPES OF STUDIES REVIEWED The authors conducted an electronic search using 11 databases to evaluate the evidence from the literature that links CCAA detection on panoramic radiographs and the precipitation of CVAs among those people. They used the Reporting Recommendations for Tumor Marker Prognostic Studies (REMARK) checklist to perform this systematic review. RESULTS One study of the 54 studies the authors identified satisfied the REMARK criteria in which CCAA was associated with a negligible increased risk of stroke (95 percent confidence interval, 0 to 0.04 percent) in the population studied. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS This systematic review suggests the data supporting the hypothesis that radiographically detectable CCAA is associated with an increased risk of stroke are incomplete and inconclusive. Further research is needed, as clinical guidelines for risk prediction using panoramic radiographs cannot be established on the basis of the current evidence.
A versatile approach for stochastic correlation using hyperbolic functions

It is well known that the correlation between financial products or financial institutions, e.g. plays an essential role in pricing and evaluation of financial derivatives. Using simply a constant or deterministic correlation may lead to correlation risk, since market observations give evidence that correlation is not a deterministic quantity. In this work, we propose a new approach to model the correlation as a hyperbolic function of a stochastic process. Our general approach provides a stochastic correlation which is much more realistic to model real- world phenomena and could be used in many financial application fields. Furthermore, it is very flexible: any mean-reverting process (with positive and negative values) can be regarded and no additional parameter restrictions appear which simplifies the calibration procedure. As an example, we compute the price of a Quanto applying our new approach. Using our numerical results we discuss concisely the effect of considering stochastic correlation on pricing the Quanto.
Activation of an H2O2-generating NADH Oxidase in Human Lung Fibroblasts by Transforming Growth Factor β1 (*)

The cellular source(s) and mechanisms of generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in nonphagocytic cells stimulated by cytokines are unclear. In this study, we demonstrate that transforming growth factor β1 (TGF-β1, 1 ng/ml) induces the release of H2O2 from human lung fibroblasts within 8 h following exposure to this cytokine. Elevation in H2O2 release peaked at 16 h (∼22 pmol/min/106 cells) and gradually declined to undetectable levels at 48 h after TGF-β1 treatment. NADH consumption by these cells was stimulated by TGF-β1 while that of NADPH remained unchanged. NADH oxidase activity as measured by diphenyliodonium (DPI)-inhibitable NADH consumption in TGF-β1-treated cells followed a time course similar to that of H2O2 release. DPI, an inhibitor of the NADPH oxidase complex of neutrophils and other flavoproteins, also inhibited the TGF-β1-induced H2O2 production. Inhibitors of other enzymatic systems involving flavoproteins that may be responsible for the production of H2O2 in these cells, including xanthine oxidase, nitric oxide synthase, and both mitochondrial and microsomal electron transport systems, failed to inhibit TGF-β1-induced NADH oxidation and H2O2 production. The delay (>4 h) following TGF-β1 exposure along with the inhibition of this process by cycloheximide and actinomycin D suggest the requirement of new protein synthesis for induction of NADH oxidase activity in TGF-β1-stimulated fibroblasts.
Two rings in them all: the labdane-related diterpenoids.

In his original exposition of the biogenetic isoprenoid rule, L. Ruzicka noted the structural identity between the fused A/B rings of triterpenoids/sterols and certain multicyclic diterpenoids as part of the impetus leading to that profound insight. His prescient hypothesis that this chemical structure relationship reflects similarities in the initial cyclization of these diterpenoids with that occurring in triterpenoid biosynthesis has since been verified. However, this chemical structure relationship does not continue to hold true for the additional rings found in many of these di- and tri- terpenoid natural products. This is now appreciated to arise from differences in their subsequent biogenesis, specifically further cyclization and/or rearrangement of these diterpenoids after formation of an initial bicyclic intermediate in a separately catalyzed reaction. The trivial name for the hydrocarbon skeleton of the most commonly found version of the corresponding unique intermediate forms the basis for a unifying “labdane-related” designation. This defines a large super-family of diterpenoids that contains nearly 7,000 already known natural products. Many of these are found in plants, where the requisite biosynthetic machinery for gibberellin phytohormones, particularly the relevant diterpene cyclases, provides a biosynthetic reservoir that appears to have been repeatedly drawn upon to evolve new labdane-related diterpenoids. The potent biological activity of the “ancestral” gibberellins, which has led to the independent evolution of distinct gibberellin biosynthetic pathways in plants, fungi, and bacteria, is further discussed as an archetypical example of the selective pressure driving the observed diversification of the large super-family of labdane-related diterpenoid natural products.
Parent relationship quality and infant–mother attachment

This project examined interrelations between father–mother conflict, father support of mother, maternal behavior, and infant–mother attachment within a sample of 79 African American families living in a highly stressed urban community. Father support of mother was not related to maternal parenting behavior or infant attachment. Conflicted mother–father relationships were associated with problematic maternal behavior, low maternal sensitivity, infant attachment insecurity, and infant attachment disorganization. The associations between parental conflict and both infant attachment disorganization and insecurity were buffered in families in which fathers co-resided with the mother. Consistent with theory and prior research, links were also observed between maternal sensitive-responsiveness and infant attachment security and between problematic maternal parenting and infant attachment disorganization. However, maternal parenting behavior did not mediate the relation between parental conflict and infant attachment. Results are discussed with respect to whether and under what circumstances child exposure to parent conflict can have a direct effect on infant–mother attachment that is not mediated through dyadic infant–mother interaction.
Biopolymer organization upon confinement

Biopolymers in vivo are typically subject to spatial restraints, either as a result of molecular crowding in the cellular medium or of direct spatial confinement. DNA in living organisms provides a prototypical example of a confined biopolymer. Confinement prompts a number of biophysics questions. For instance, how can the high level of packing be compatible with the necessity to access and process the genomic material? What mechanisms can be adopted in vivo to avoid the excessive geometrical and topological entanglement of dense phases of biopolymers? These and other fundamental questions have been addressed in recent years by both experimental and theoretical means. A review of the results, particularly of those obtained by numerical studies, is presented here. The review is mostly devoted to DNA packaging inside bacteriophages, which is the best studied example both experimentally and theoretically. Recent selected biophysical studies of the bacterial genome organization and of chromosome segregation in eukaryotes are also covered.
Detection of mutagens and BaPMO inducers in river water using the Blue Cotton adsorption technique

Induction of Mixed Function Oxidase (MFO) activity and bioactivation potential were measured in experimental carp and in native fish species from two rivers with different pollution level (Sava and Mrežnica). The experimental carp were intraperitoneally exposed to various water volume equivalents of Blue Cotton extracts from both rivers. The induction of MFO measured as a Benzo(a)pyrene monooxygenase (BaPMO) activity was increased up to 9.3‐fold in experimental carp and up to 11.3‐fold in native fish from Sava River, whereas the values from Mrežnica River showed only a slight increase when compared with the control (highest increase of 1.8‐fold in nose carp). Accordingly, bioactivation potential using modified Ames test was higher in both experiments with Sava River. Both measured parameters in experimental carp increased in a dose‐dependent manner in accordance to river volume equivalents. Different induction potential of native fish species comparable between two rivers confirmed the known possibility of their usage in biomonitoring studies. These results give qualitatively a new support to the idea of using Blue Cotton extraction technique combined with induction of MFO activity and Ames test in fish as a good biomarker for assessing risk of exposure to mutagens/carcinogens such as Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs), especially due to the simplicity and cost‐effectiveness of these methods. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Environ Toxicol, 2012.
Hatchery-borne Salmonella enterica serovar Tennessee infections in broilers.

A substantial increase in the prevalence of 5. enterica serovar Tennessee was observed in broiler flocks in Denmark at the turn of the year 1994 and in the following months. Epidemiological data indicated that a single hatchery was involved in spreading of the infection. Molecular characterization of S.enterica serovar Tennessee isolates from Danish broilers (1992 to 1995), the suspected hatchery and strains from various other sources included for comparison was initiated in order to trace the source of infection of the broilers. In general, strains of S.enterica ser. Tennessee showed only minor genotypic variation. Three different ribotypes were demonstrated when EcoRI was used for digestion of DNA. Two types were obtained by the use of HindIII. Nine different plasmids and seven different plasmid profiles were demonstrated. A 180 kb plasmid was, however, only demonstrated in isolates from broilers and the hatchery. Sixty-nine per cent of the broiler isolates obtained during the period 1992 to 1995 harboured this plasmid and 88% of the hatchery isolates contained a plasmid of the same size. An increased number of the broiler isolates (79%) contained this plasmid at the turn of 1994. Restriction enzyme analysis of the plasmid ensured that the plasmids from broilers and the hatchery were identical. By analysis of cleaning and disinfection procedures and by sampling of different control points in the hatchery it was shown that S.enterica ser. Tennessee had colonized areas of the hatchers which were protected from routine cleaning and disinfection. Subsequent inclusion of these areas into the sanitation programme resulted in the elimination of S. enterica ser. Tennessee from the hatchers, and a decreasing prevalence of S.enterica ser. Tennessee was observed in broiler flocks during the following months.