Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The influence of clinical and genetic factors on the development of obesity in children with type 1 diabetes

The exact cause of the obesity epidemic remains unknown; however, both environmental and genetic factors are involved. People at risk of developing obesity include children with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM), which in turn increases their cardiovascular disease risk. Here, we discuss the clinical and genetic factors influencing weight in patients with T1DM. In children with T1DM, the presence of obesity depends mainly on sex, metabolic control, and disease duration. However, genetic factors, including the fat mass and obesity‐associated (FTO) gene, are also associated with body weight. Indeed, children with the FTO gene rs9939609 obesity‐risk allele (homozygous = AA or heterozygous = AT) are predisposed to a higher body mass index and have a greater risk of being overweight or obese. However, in this review, we show that FTO gene polymorphisms only have a small effect on body weight in children, much weaker than the effect of clinical factors. The association between FTO gene polymorphisms and body weight is only statistically significant in children without severe obesity. Moreover, other genetic factors had no effect on weight in patients with T1DM, and further research involving larger populations is required to confirm the genetic basis of diabetes and obesity. Therefore, identifying the clinical features of children with T1DM, such as their initial body mass index, sex, metabolic control, and disease duration, will still have the strongest effect on reducing risk factors for cardiovascular diseases. Physicians should pay close attention to modifiable elements of these relationships, for example, metabolic control and energy and insulin intake, when caring for patients with T1DM. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The Use and Critical Success Factors of Learning Analytics: An Organisational Absorptive Capacity Analysis

While some UK Higher Education Institutes are very successful in harnessing the benefits of learning analytics, many others are not actually engaged in making use of it. It appears that there is no academic research on developing an in-depth understanding of critical factors affecting learning analytics use based on rigorous methods underpinned by relevant theories. This research aims to close this knowledge gap. It seeks to improve the adoption and success of learning analytics at the institutional level by understanding the current use and impact of it on student experience management and identifying a set of critical factors affecting their success. Based on the evidence collected from an exploratory case study and thirty interviews, the use and impact of learning analytics are analysed from an organisational absorptive capacity perspective, and the critical success factors are identified and mapped out using technology-organisation-environment framework to unveil their underlining theoretical dimensions.
Endoscopic Endonasal Study of the Maxillary Nerve: A New Orientation

Background Endoscopic endonasal procedures for advanced lesions involving the pterygopalatine fossa (PPF) and its various communications are increasingly performed. The maxillary division of the trigeminal nerve (V2) passes through the foramen rotundum and crosses the upper part of the PPF, with a risk of partial or complete injury during surgery in this complex region. Despite the available knowledge of the sinonasal anatomy, the endoscopic orientation of the V2 remains unclear and requires further analysis from this unique view. Methods Using an extended endoscopic approach, the PPF was dissected in 20 sides of 10 adult cadaver heads. The V2 also was followed anteriorly from the trigeminal ganglion, toward the infraorbital canal. The course and the neurovascular relationships of the V2 were studied. High-quality endoscopic images have been produced by coupling the video camera to a digital video recording system. Results The endoscopic course and relations of the V2 were carefully described. Important landmarks to identify and avoid injury of the nerve were discussed in relation to this unique view. Conclusion This study updates our understanding of the V2 anatomy from an endoscopic perspective. The medial to lateral inclination and drooping of the V2, as well as different relationships of the V2 with the vascular structures are important findings to be taken into consideration while endoscopically addressing related lesions.
The Incidence of Depression among the Population of Central Kazakhstan and Its Relationship with Sociodemographic Characteristics

It has been established that the presence of depression is accompanied by an increased risk of morbidity and mortality in cerebrovascular and cardiovascular diseases and diabetes. The aim of this research was to estimate depressive symptom prevalence among the population in Central Kazakhstan and to define the relationship with social-demographic and behavioral factors. 1820 respondents of the population of Central Kazakhstan, aged 25 to 65, were performed. Participants included 777 urban and 1043 rural residents. Depressive symptoms assessed with the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9). The results showed that some degree of depressive symptoms was detected in 75.7% of the respondents. A minimal degree of depressive symptoms was observed in 28.51%, mild in 27.7%, moderate in 13.7%, and severe and very severe degree of depressive symptoms in 4.6% and 1.2%, respectively; the absence of depression symptoms was reported in 24.3% of the respondents. The study found a relationship between the prevalence of depressive symptoms and factors such as gender, education, income, presence of chronic diseases, and physical activity. We have not found a correlation between the frequencies of depressive symptoms with age, employment, character of labor, and marital status.
Review of the New American Cancer Society Guidelines for Breast Cancer Screening for Women at Average Risk

© 2016 Harborside Press® Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women worldwide (Torre et al., 2015). In the United States, an estimated 231,840 women were diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015 (Siegel, Miller, & Jemal, 2015). After lung cancer, breast cancer continues to rank second as a cause of cancer death in women in the United States as well as remains the leading cause of premature mortality for women. Even though death from breast cancer has declined steadily since 1990, largely due to improvements in early detection and treatment (Berry et al., 2005), an estimated 40,290 women in the United States died of breast cancer in 2015 (Siegel et al., 2015). In 2003, the American Cancer Society (ACS) issued its prior recommendations for breast cancer screening. The recommendations included annual mammography screening for all women starting at age 40 years and continuing as long as a woman remains in good health. Clinical breast examinations (CBEs) should be periodically performed for women in their 20s and 30s and annually for women 40 years and older (Smith et al., 2003). Since the 2003 ACS recommendations, new evidence has accumulated from long-term follow-up of randomized controlled trials and observational studies of organized, population-based screening programs. There is also greater emphasis on estimating the harms associated with screening; assessing the balance of benefits and harms; and supporting the interplay among values, preferences, informed decision-making, and recommendations (Oeffinger et al., 2015). The ACS has incorporated standards recommended by the Institute of Medicine into its guidelines development protocol to ensure a more trustworthy, transparent, and consistent process for developing and communicating guidelines (Brawley et al., 2011).
The effects of imagery and sensory detection distractors on different measures of pain: how does distraction work?

OBJECTIVES Two experiments compared the effects of different distraction tasks on pain. Based on multiple-resource theory, Expt 1 predicted that the more a distractor shares processing resources with pain perception the greater the interference between the two. Experiment 2 tested whether the emotional content of the distractor would differentially effect measures that are supposedly reflective of the affective component of pain. DESIGN Both experiments used repeated measures designs, with counterbalanced distraction conditions. METHODS In Expt 1 20 participants indicated their pain threshold. No instructions, or one of three distraction conditions were presented across four blocks of potassium iontophoresis. The distractors were: thermal and light detection, and neutral imagining. In Expt 2 30 participants had three blocks of pain threshold, pain tolerance, and pain rating trials. For threshold, tolerance, and rating trials, one block was without distraction, a second block was completed during light detection, and a third block while imagining an enjoyable holiday. RESULTS In Expt 1 all the distractors increased pain threshold. The two detection tasks were similarly effective, and more so than the imagination task. Performance on the two detection tasks was impaired by painful stimulation similarly for both tasks. In Expt 2 the visual detection distractor increased pain threshold and tolerance and reduced pain ratings while pleasant imagery only increased pain threshold. CONCLUSIONS These results indicate that a task that requires attention to external cues has more impact on pain than either a positive or neutral imagination task. However, it is not clear that the specific resources used by the distraction tasks moderated pain differentially as predicted by multiple-resource theory.
the physical anthropological intermediacy problem of na-dené / greater northwest coast indians

For more than thirty years, it has been recognized that the dentition of the Indians of the Alaskan Interior and Pacific Northwest has crown and root trait frequencies that are often intermediate between those of Eskimo-Aleuts and all North and South American Indians. When many dental morphological variables are assessed simultaneously, tooth-based distance values show that Na-Dené/Greater Northwest Coast (ND-GNWC) samples fall between Eskimo-Aleuts and American Indians. The largest analysis of nuclear genetic markers to date reveals a similar pattern (Cavalli-Sforza et al. 1994). The divergence of Eskimo-Aleuts, American Indians, and ND-GNWC populations from a common ancestor in Northeast Asia was initially driven by chance forces (founder effect/genetic drift), but ND-GNWC intermediacy found in recent populations is likely due to gene flow in the New World between American Indian (cf. Algonkian) and ND-GNWC groups. keywords: colonization of New World, dental morphology, genetics
Meditation can produce beneficial effects to prevent cardiovascular disease

Abstract Coronary heart disease is the major cause of global cardiovascular mortality and morbidity. Lifestyle behaviour contributes as a risk factor: unhealthy diet, sedentary lifestyle, tobacco, alcohol, hypertension, diabetes, dyslipidemia and psychosocial stress. Atherosclerosis pathologic mechanisms involving oxidative stress, dyslipidemia, inflammation and senescence are associated with arterial wall damage and plaque formation. Stress reduction was observed in several types of meditation. After meditation, hormonal orchestration modulates effects in the central nervous system and in the body. All types of meditation are associated with blood pressure control, enhancement in insulin resistance, reduction of lipid peroxidation and cellular senescence, independent of type of meditation. This review presents scientific evidence to explain how meditation can produce beneficial effects on the cardiovascular system, and particularly regarding vascular aspects.
Whether Audit Committee Financial Expertise Is the Only Relevant Expertise: A Review of Audit Committee Expertise and Timeliness of Financial Reporting

This study reviews the literature on audit committee expertise and financial reporting timeliness. Financial reporting timeliness and audit committee expertise are two areas of research gaining the attention of a large number of stakeholders because they contribute to the reliability and the relevancy of financial reporting. Indeed, the focus of this review is primarily on the recent developments in the pertinent literature in order to show the limitations of such research and encourage future research to overcome these limitations. By also looking at the development of the audit committee expertise literature, this study concludes that (1) like most audit committee literature, financial reporting timeliness literature continues to assume the absence of the contribution of expertise other than financial expertise, and ignore the role of audit committee chair; (2) most of this literature fails to find a significant effect because it ignores the interaction among corporate governance mechanisms. Accordingly, this study posits that ignoring the issues raised in such research by future research would lead to major mistakes in reforms relating to how the quality of financial reporting can be enhanced.
Improving Learning with Constructivist Technology Tools.

This article traces the development of the constructivist theory of teaching and learning, overviews the research that links technology to constructivism and highlights some of the teaching and learning tools, systems and models that are successfully using technology to develop learners' thinking and understanding. Constructivist viewpoints represent a range of thinking on different dynamics, such as: · Teacher-directed instruction vs. student-empowered learning · Standardization vs. customization · Solitary vs. community-based learning · Simulation vs authentic experience There are now a variety of tools and systems available to assist with learning across these spectra. Recent research has shown that electronic performance support systems (EPSS) offer a great deal of potential for users to adapt or design the framework of their activities and their own materials to empower the learner; various multimedia combinations have shown a great deal of promise in supporting learners to create their own visual schema; simulations and virtual environments come closer to attaining the same results as real-world experiences and models that exist which will help us to organize these resources to attain optimal impact. The article closes with a review of available tools and implications for research.
Novel genes in LDL metabolism – a comprehensive overview

Purpose of review To summarize recent findings from genome-wide association studies (GWAS), whole-exome sequencing of patients with familial hypercholesterolemia and ‘exome chip’ studies pointing to novel genes in LDL metabolism. Recent findings The genetic loci for ATP-binding cassette transporters G5 and G8, Niemann-Pick C1-Like protein 1, sortilin-1, ABO blood-group glycosyltransferases, myosin regulatory light chain-interacting protein and cholesterol 7&agr;-hydroxylase have all consistently been associated with LDL cholesterol levels and/or coronary artery disease in GWAS. Whole-exome sequencing and ‘exome chip’ studies have additionally suggested several novel genes in LDL metabolism including insulin-induced gene 2, signal transducing adaptor family member 1, lysosomal acid lipase A, patatin-like phospholipase domain-containing protein 5 and transmembrane 6 superfamily member 2. Most of these findings still require independent replications and/or functional studies to confirm the exact role in LDL metabolism and the clinical implications for human health. Summary GWAS, exome sequencing studies, and recently ‘exome chip’ studies have suggested several novel genes with effects on LDL cholesterol. Novel genes in LDL metabolism will improve our understanding of mechanisms in LDL metabolism, and may lead to the identification of new drug targets to reduce LDL cholesterol levels.
Diffusion and Adoption of Innovations for Sustainability

Over the centuries, energy consumption has increased from 10 quadrillion BTU (10.055 x 1018 joules) in year 1800 to 500 quadrillion BTU (5000 x 1018 joules) in year 2000 (UN Environment Programme, 2007). Population, carbon dioxide emissions, water use, amounted of domesticated land, loss of tropical rain forest and woodland, and nitrogen flux to coastal zones have also increased over time. Population increased from 600 million in year 1750 to 6 billion in year 2000. Carbon dioxide emissions increased from 250 ppmv in year 1800 to 360 ppmv in year 2000. Water use increased from 200 km3/year in 1900 to 5000 km3/yr in 2000 and nitrogen fluxes increased from 0.25x1012 moles/year in year 1850 to 9x1012 moles/year in 2000 (Crutzen, 2005). Unsustainable Helen E. Muga University of Mount Union, USA
The Research of the Airborne Microorganism Concentrations at the Specific Outdoor Sites of One Senior High School During Summer Period

Bioaerosols include allergens such as fungi, bacteria, actinomycetes, arthropods, and protozoa. When the particle size is small enough to pass through the respiratory tract entering the human body, the health of the local population is also threatened. Therefore, the purpose of this study attempted to understand the concentration of the airborne microorganism at special outdoor sites of one senior high school during summer period. The results indicated that total average bacterial concentration by using TSA medium incubated for 48 hr were 1.7×103 cfu/m3, 1.7×103 cfu/m3 and 5.5×102 cfu/m3 for sampling sites of A and C during summer period. In addition, total average fungi concentration by using MEA medium incubated for 96 hr were 3.3×103 cfu/m3, 2.5 ×103 cfu/m3 and 1.4×103 cfu/m3 for sampling sites of A and C during summer period. Moreover, the high concentrations of bacteria and fungi were founded at sampling site A.
Traffic monitoring in motorways by real-time number plate recognition

The problem of traffic monitoring in motorways by the number plate recognition of all moving vehicles is addressed. The proposed system is composed of local processing units positioned near the motorway accesses, connected by radio link to a central control station. In the local units we process each frame of the video sequence in order to extract character information and to merge them in a temporal post-processing step. This ensures that most of recognition errors may be recovered during the permanence of the vehicle inside the camera field of view. Moreover, there is no need for an external device to trigger image acquisition, because the whole video sequence is processed. If the recognized number plate is contained into a predefined list, an alarm signal is generated. All number plates are locally stored for further search operations by the authorities. The central control station gathers alarms from the connected processing units and is responsible for the updating and the broadcasting of the list of number plates to be searched.
Microbeam radiation therapy

The central nervous system of vertebrates, even when immature, displays extraordinary resistance to damage by microscopically narrow, multiple, parallel, planar beams of x rays. Imminently lethal gliosarcomas in the brains of mature rats can be inhibited and ablated by such microbeams with little or no harm to mature brain tissues and neurological function. Potentially palliative, conventional wide-beam radiotherapy of malignant brain tumors in human infants under three years of age is so fraught with the danger of disrupting the functional maturation of immature brain tissues around the targeted tumor that it is implemented infrequently. Other kinds of therapy for such tumors are often inadequate. We suggest that microbeam radiation therapy (MRT) might help to alleviate the situation. Wiggler-generated synchrotron x-rays were first used for experimental microplanar beam (microbeam) radiation therapy (MRT) at Brookhaven National Laboratory's National Synchrotron Light Source in the early 1990s. We now describe the progress achieved in MRT research to date using immature and adult rats irradiated at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility in Grenoble, France, and investigated thereafter at the Institute of Pathology of the University of Bern.
Sensitivity to ketamine, alone or in combination with ethanol, is altered in mice selectively bred for sensitivity to ethanol's locomotor effects.

BACKGROUND Sensitivity to erthanol's locomotor activating and reinforcing effects may be influenced by some common neural mechanisms. Mice selectively bred in replicate for increased (FAST-1 and FAST-2) and decreased (SLOW-1 and SLOW-2) sensitivity to ethanol's locomotor stimulant effects are useful for investigating the neural substrates of ethanol's effects. Previous studies have suggested that differences in N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptors may underlie differences in ethanol-induced locomotion in these mice. This study examined the responses of FAST and SLOW mice to ketamine, a fast-acting NMDA antagonist. In addition, reverse-selected lines (r-FAST-1, r-FAST-2, r-SLOW-1, and r-SLOW-2) were tested as a means of verifying correlations detected in the forward-selected lines. Two initial studies characterized ketamine-induced locomotion in DBA/2J (D2) mice, an inbred strain chosen for its high sensitivity to ethanol-induced locomotion. METHODS After a 2- to 3-day period of habituation to test procedures, mice were given intraperitoneal injections of ketamine alone (0, 5, 10, 20, 30, and 60 mg/kg) or in combination with 1 or 2 g/kg ethanol. Locomotor activity was measured for 20 to 30 min in automated activity monitors. RESULTS When administered alone, ketamine dose-dependently stimulated the locomotor activity of D2 mice and also reduced the amount of ethanol-induced stimulation. Ketamine stimulated locomotion more in FAST mice than in SLOW mice. Reverse selection abolished these differences, because r-FAST and r-SLOW mice did not differ in their responses to ketamine. Ketamine potentiated ethanol's locomotor effects within FAST mice and potentiated ethanol's locomotor depressant effect within one replicate of SLOW mice. CONCLUSIONS We propose that sensitivities to ethanol- and ketamine-induced locomotion are genetically correlated and that the combined effects of ethanol and ketamine in FAST mice reflect a leftward shift in ethanol's biphasic dose-response curve.
Evidence for different sources of stress‐generated potentials in wet and dry bone

Physiologically moist bone and dry bone behave differently when tested for electrical response to cantilever bending. To characterize this difference more precisely, voltages were generated in the same specimen in each of the two states via the same testing procedure—changing the electrode‐to‐force distance by moving the electrodes and holding the force position constant. In the dry state, a nonsystematic pattern of voltages versus electrode position was generated. In the wet state, a linear relationship was found. Furtive on wetting the specimen. The implication is that different electromechanical transduction mechanisms are involved in the wet dry cases. The dominant mechanism in the wet case is taken to be the streaming potential rather than piezoelectricity.