Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Intravenous self‐administration of benzydamine, a non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory drug with a central cannabinoidergic mechanism of action

Benzydamine (BZY) is a non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory drug used for the topical treatment of inflammations of the oral and vaginal mucosae. Virtually nothing is known about the central pharmacological actions of BZY. Yet there are reports of voluntary systemic overdosage of BZY in drug addicts, resulting in a euphoric, hallucinatory state. In the present study, we investigated the reinforcing properties of BZY in a rat self‐administration paradigm. We found that BZY has a powerful reinforcing effect and that this effect is greatly facilitated in animals that already had substance experience, having previously self‐administered heroin and cocaine, indicating cross sensitization between BZY and other common drugs of abuse. We then assessed the effect of BZY on prelimbic cortex‐to‐nucleus accumbens glutamatergic transmission, using field recordings in rat parasagittal brain slices. BZY dose‐dependently reduced both field excitatory post synaptic potential amplitude and paired pulse ratio, suggesting a presynaptic mechanism of action. Similarly to the in vivo paradigm, also the electrophysiological effects of BZY were potentiated in slices from animals that had undergone cocaine and heroin self‐administration. Furthermore, BZY‐induced Long Term Depression (LTD)‐like responses in the prelimbic cortex‐to‐nucleus accumbens circuitry were significantly reduced in the presence of the CB1 receptor antagonist AM251. These findings provide firm evidence of the abuse liability of BZY and suggest a possible cannabinoidergic mechanism of action. Further research is needed in order to give insights into the molecular mechanism underlying BZY psychoactive and reinforcing effects, to better understand its abuse potential.
A 50GHz 130µW inductorless prescaler in 45nm SOI CMOS using ETSPC logic

We present a compact dual-modulus prescaler working at 50GHz without using inductors. A novel divider-by-2/3 in a reduced logic with minimum number of transistors is presented. For the first time, a single-phase clock digital-logic-based prescaler operating at frequencies in the mm-wave band is demonstrated. A power consumption of 130. 2µW at 50GHz, gives the best power-efficiency reported. The prescaler is designed in a 45nm SOI CMOS technology with 1V supply.
EPOC y estado nutricional

Las alteraciones nutricionales, entendidas como perdida de peso o desnutricion, son una complicacion muy frecuente en los pacientes con enfermedad pulmonar obstructiva cronica (EPOC) y afectan principalmente a su capacidad funcional y calidad de vida, ademas de constituir un indicador pronostico de morbilidad y mortalidad independientes. Los factores que contribuyen a la desnutricion son multiples; entre ellos cabe mencionar el aumento del gasto energetico en reposo, el descenso de la ingesta, el efecto de determinados farmacos y, quiza el mas importante, una elevada respuesta inflamatoria sistemica. En este articulo se pretende revisar los aspectos mas importantes sobre la prevalencia, etiopatogenia y efectos de la desnutricion en la EPOC, ademas de discutir los parametros de valoracion nutricional mas adecuados en la practica clinica diaria y la estrategia para que estos pacientes mantengan un correcto estado nutricional.
Global alcohol exposure estimates by country, territory and region for 2005--a contribution to the Comparative Risk Assessment for the 2010 Global Burden of Disease Study.

AIMS This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of life-time abstainers, former drinkers and current drinkers, adult per-capita consumption of alcohol and pattern of drinking scores, by country and Global Burden of Disease region for 2005, and to forecast these indicators for 2010. DESIGN Statistical modelling based on survey data and routine statistics. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS A total of 241 countries and territories. MEASUREMENTS Per-capita consumption data were obtained with the help of the World Health Organization's Global Information System on Alcohol and Health. Drinking status data were obtained from Gender, Alcohol and Culture: An International Study, the STEPwise approach to Surveillance study, the World Health Survey/Multi-Country Study and other surveys. Consumption and drinking status data were triangulated to estimate alcohol consumption across multiple categories. FINDINGS In 2005 adult per-capita annual consumption of alcohol was 6.1 litres, with 1.7 litres stemming from unrecorded consumption; 17.1 litres of alcohol were consumed per drinker, 45.8% of all adults were life-time abstainers, 13.6% were former drinkers and 40.6% were current drinkers. Life-time abstention was most prevalent in North Africa/Middle East and South Asia. Eastern Europe and Southern sub-Saharan Africa had the most detrimental pattern of drinking scores, while drinkers in Europe (Eastern and Central) and sub-Saharan Africa (Southern and West) consumed the most alcohol. CONCLUSIONS Just over 40% of the world's adult population consumes alcohol and the average consumption per drinker is 17.1 litres per year. However, the prevalence of abstention, level of alcohol consumption and patterns of drinking vary widely across regions of the world.
Commentary on Stuart et al. (2013): Domestic violence and interventions to reduce alcohol use.

[Extract] This study, reported by Gregory Stuart and colleagues, offers empirical evidence to support the hypothesis that perpetrators of domestic violence who receive a brief intervention to address alcohol use in addition to a40-hour group batterer programme will not only consume fewer drinks (and on fewer days) than those who only receive the batterer programme, but will also be less likely to be aggressive and violent [1]. Although these effects fade over time, these findings are significant in the context of an area in which the efficacy of many behaviour change programmes has yet to be demonstrated adequately [2], and in which there is a pressing need to develop more effective interventions [3]. Given that the alcohol intervention utilized in this study was only 90minutes long, there is considerable potential for brief interventions of this type to be integrated into other batterer programmes in ways that place minimal additional demands on both service providers and clients. Brief alcohol interventions have been shown to be consistently effective in other populations [4], and this study provides further evidence that focused intervention around alcohol use is likely to pay dividends in terms of preventing further violence.
Recent advances in the epidemiology, outcome, and prevention of myocardial infarction and stroke in sub-Saharan Africa

The early part of the new millennium witnessed reports of a growing burden of cardiovascular disease in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). However the contribution of ischemic heart disease and stroke to this increasing burden relative to that caused by hypertensive heart disease, cardiomyopathy and rheumatic heart disease was not clear. Over the last decade, data from the continent has begun to clarify this issue and suggests three main points. The burden of ischemic heart disease relative to other causes of heart disease remains low particularly in the black Africans majority. Stroke caused predominantly by hypertension is now a major cause of disability and premature death. Third, the burden of risk factors for atherosclerosis is increasing rapidly in most urban and some rural regions. A concerted effort to understand the primary drivers of this increase in cardiac risk factors is required to prevent a future epidemic of atherosclerosis and its sequelae.
Error control coding and signal processing for flash memories

With the rapid advances in the area of memory product, it has become more and more important to maintain its reliability while increasing the density and speed performance. Particularly, flash memory products have inherent difficulties in lengthening the limited lifetime due to the degradation of memory cell reliability caused by repeated read and/or write operations. To increase the benefits of high density flash memory, more advanced techniques such as multi-leveling the cell and signal processing has been adopted to the flash memory products. In this paper, arising challenges that leading engineers in semiconductor memory industries have confronted will be shared to further develop cutting-edge flash memory products.
Time-resolved spectroscopy and imaging

In response to the conference organizer's request, I am presenting a summary of the current status of medical optical imaging and spectroscopy. This is a topic which is advancing rapidly and on which there have been a number of conferences recently, and yet there has not been presented an overview of the field and some idea of what the advantages and disadvantages of the photon diffusion technology may be. Thus, this paper emphasizes diffusion waves for spectroscopy and imaging deep within the tissue and, at the same time, for providing specificity information of both absorption and scattering. In achieving this goal, I will not be able to cite all of the advantages of technologies that view the superficial layers of skin, retina, etc., on the one hand, nor those that measure the photons that have been scattered minimally on the transit between input and output. One of the main reasons for this is that specificity of the optical methods requires all of the information available: absorption and scattering of intrinsic signals naturally in the tissue, and of extrinsic signal due to contrast agents that have been artificially lodged in strategic tissue volumes. Since this paper is essentially the transcript of a lecture, it is not proposed as a topic review and does not contain full-scale bibliographic references, some of which may be found in a recent review elsewhere. This paper highlights what we all might accomplish in order to bring to bear with maximal effectiveness the optical method for altering the outcome of medical problems. I have not emphasized the mathematics of photon diffusion so well represented by the papers of this symposium volume. The achievable goals of the optical methods are to speed detection, improve diagnosis, guide therapy, and what appears in the minds of most, contribute to the improvement of medical economics. In order to fulfill these objectives, we will in the end have to demonstrate by lengthy and expensive clinical studies that the medical devices we develop are really what we think they are as determined by accepted procedures for clinical studies. This is a difficult and expensive route and one track along which many technologies will 'fall by the wayside'. However, our technology is maturing: we are obtaining numbers for important medical problems. It is indeed difficult to make these kinds of contributions; medical devices are not new. The choice of methods is manifold and the niches or windows of opportunity are circumscribed.
Temporal variability of indoor air concentrations under natural conditions in a house overlying a dilute chlorinated solvent groundwater plume.

Current vapor intrusion (VI) pathway assessment heavily weights concentrations from infrequent (monthly-seasonal) 24 h indoor air samples. This study collected a long-term and high-frequency data set that can be used to assess indoor air sampling strategies for answering key pathway assessment questions like: "Is VI occurring? ", and "Will VI impacts exceed thresholds of concern? ". Indoor air sampling was conducted for 2.5 years at 2-4 h intervals in a house overlying a dilute chlorinated solvent plume (10-50 μg/L TCE). Indoor air concentrations varied by 3 orders of magnitude (<0.01-10 ppbv TCE) with two recurring behaviors. The VI-active behavior, which was prevalent in fall, winter, and spring involved time-varying impacts intermixed with sporadic periods of inactivity; the VI-dormant behavior, which was prevalent in the summer, involved long periods of inactivity with sporadic VI impacts. These data were used to study outcomes of three simple sparse data sampling plans; the probabilities of false-negative and false-positive decisions were dependent on the ratio of the (action level/true mean of the data), the number of exceedances needed, and the sampling strategy. The analysis also suggested a significant potential for poor characterization of long-term mean concentrations with sparse sampling plans. The results point to a need for additional dense data sets and further investigation into the robustness of possible VI assessment paradigms. As this is the first data set of its kind, it is unknown if the results are representative of other VI-sites.
'High' risk? A systematic review of the acute outcomes of mixing alcohol with energy drinks.

AIMS Alcohol mixed with energy drinks (AmED) is a relatively new consumption trend generating increasing concern regarding potential adverse effects. Despite the political and health imperative, there has been no systematic and independent synthesis of the literature to determine whether or not AmED offers additional harms relative to alcohol. The aim of this study was to review the evidence about whether co-consumption of energy drinks and alcohol, relative to alcohol alone, alters: (i) physiological, psychological, cognitive and psychomotor outcomes; (ii) hazardous drinking practices; and (iii) risk-taking behaviour. METHODS Pubmed, PsycInfo and Embase databases were searched until May 2013 for papers outlining descriptive, observational analytical and human experimental studies which compared target outcomes for AmED versus alcohol consumers (between-subjects), or AmED versus alcohol consumption (within-subjects). Odds ratios were calculated for target outcomes following screening, data extraction and quality assessment. RESULTS Data were extracted from 19 papers. Analyses typically revealed increased odds of self-reported stimulation-based outcomes and decreased odds of sedation-based physiological and psychological outcomes relative to when alcohol was consumed alone, as indicated by rigorous cross-sectional descriptive research. These findings typically have not been reflected in experimental research, due possibly to the low doses administered relative to typical self-reported 'real-life' intake. AmED consumers generally report more hazardous alcohol consumption patterns and greater engagement in risk-taking behaviour than alcohol consumers. While most studies had equivocal findings, two studies showed lower odds of risk-taking behaviour for AmED relative to alcohol drinking sessions but limitations with respect to the outcome measures used restrict conclusions with regard to the behavioural outcomes of AmED use. CONCLUSIONS Mixing alcohol with energy drinks may exert a dual effect, increasing stimulation-based effects and reducing sedation-based outcomes; the clinical severity and dose threshold has not been established. At this stage it is unclear whether these changes in the nature of intoxication translate into greater alcohol intake and risk-taking behaviour.
Neurofunctional changes in adolescent cannabis users with and without bipolar disorder.

AIMS To compare regional brain activation among adolescents with bipolar disorder and co-occurring cannabis use disorder. DESIGN Cross-sectional study. SETTING Cincinnati, OH, USA. PARTICIPANTS Adolescents with bipolar disorder (BP, n = 14), adolescents with cannabis use disorder (MJ, n = 13), adolescents with co-occurring cannabis use and bipolar disorders (BPMJ, n = 25) and healthy adolescents (HC, n = 15). MEASUREMENTS Cannabis craving, substance use, Blood Oxygenation Level Dependent (BOLD) signal assessed by the Marijuana Craving Questionnaire (MCQ), Teen-Addiction Severity Index (T-ASI) and a cannabis cue-reactivity task during a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) session, respectively. FINDINGS The BP group exhibited significantly greater brain activation than the BPMJ group in the right amygdala (F = 4.14, P = 0.046), left nucleus accumbens (F = 3.8, P = 0.02), left thalamus (F = 3.8, P < 0.05) and the right thalamus (F = 6.2, P = 0.02). The BP group exhibited significantly greater activation than the HC group in the left nucleus accumbens (F = 11.5, P = 0.0001), right thalamus (F = 4.9, P = 0.03) and the left striatum (F = 3.6, P = 0.04). Left amygdala activation of the BPMJ group trended towards being significantly negatively correlated with the number of joints smoked (R = -0.4, P = 0.06). CONCLUSIONS Bipolar adolescents with comorbid cannabis use do not exhibit the same over-activation of the regions involved in emotional processing as seen in adolescents with bipolar disorder alone. The absence of these findings in patients with comorbid bipolar and cannabis use disorders suggests that these individuals may have a unique endophenotype of bipolar disorder or that cannabis use may alter brain activation uniquely in bipolar disorder patients who use cannabis.
A variable bandwidth amplifier for a dual-mode low-power ΔΣ modulator in cardiac pacemaker system

This paper presents the design and implementation of a variable bandwidth amplifier intended for ultra-low-power biomedical implants in 65nm CMOS, providing tunable gain-bandwidth in three modes: 0.9 MHz, 1.7 MHz, and 2.3 MHz with consistent 56 dB DC gain. The amplifier consumes 180nW static power in the lowest bandwidth mode, and consumes 315 nW static power in the full bandwidth mode with an 8 pF load from a 0.9-V supply voltage. To illustrate the concept, the presented programmable bandwidth amplifier is applied in a dual-mode ΔΣ modulator aiming for sensing/measuring stage of a cardiac pacemaker.
Chronic disease prevention: A life‐cycle approach which takesaccount of the environmental impact and opportunities of food, nutritionand public health policies — the rationale for an eco‐nutritionaldisease nomenclature

Increasing efforts are being made to address, in public health policy (PHP), both the persistence of nutritional deprivation in economically disadvantaged communities, and the increase in so-called ‘chronic disease’ (abdominal obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, certain cancers, osteoporosis, arthritides, and inflammatory disease) in communities at all stages of economic development. The problems in the ‘chronic disease’ descriptor are that its origins may be as early as conception, rather than during the postnatal lifespan, or even in previous generations; it may appear abruptly or slowly; and it may be amenable to environmental and behavioural intervention well into its course and in older age groups. It is also not necessarily ‘non-communicable’, a qualifier often used for ‘chronic disease’ (chronic non-communicable disease or CNCD) and often has inflammatory features, for example the inflammatory marker C-reactive protein is a predictor of macrovascular disease and ischaemic events and can, in part, be prevented in the affected by influenzal vaccination. The nexus between immuno-deficiency, inflammatory processes and nutritional status which is characteristic of ‘infective’ and food-borne illness, is also more and more evident in ‘chronic disease’. It may be more helpful to consider chronic disease as ‘eco-disease’ with its environmental and behavioural contributors, and to regard that which is clearly nutritionally dependent as ‘eco-nutritional disease’.
Maxillofacial Deformity and Change in the Histochemical Characteristics of the Masseter Muscle after Unilateral Sectioning of the Facial Nerve in Growing Rabbits

Maxillofacial growth and histochemical effects of long-term unilateral chewing caused by unilateral facial paralysis on the masseter muscle were studied in growing rabbits. The sample for this study consisted of a total of 20 young male Polish rabbits. The experimental group was comprised of 15 rabbits, which were subjected to dissection of the right facial nerve on the 21st day after birth, while the remaining 5 animals served as a control. The duration of the experimental period was 6 months. In the experimental group, the rabbits with facial abnormality on the paralyzed right side performed unilateral chewing only on the surgically unmanipulated side. Morphometric analysis showed facial asymmetry, with the maxillofacial region severely atrophied on the side that had undergone surgery. Both 4 weeks and 6 months after the operation, type 1 fibers of the masseter muscle on the denervated side, i.e., the non-chewing side, were significantly fewer in number and smaller than those on the unmanipulated side. However, type 2 fibers did not differ in size between sides. NADH-tetrazolium-reductase (NADH-TR) of the masseter was less reactive on the denervated side, reflecting a lower oxidative capacity. These results indicate that the alteration of the functional activities contributed to selective disuse atrophy of the type 1 fibers and a conversion from type 1 to type 2A fibers on the non-chewing side. In other words, the larger diameter and greater proportion of type 1 fibers of the masseter was indicative of work hypertrophy on the unmanipulated, chewing side. This study reveals that facial nerve dissection changes the maxillofacial growth and the histochemical features of the portion of the masseter muscle innervated by the trigeminal nerve, but not by the facial nerve.
Exposición ocupacional a plomo inorgánico en una imprenta de la Ciudad de México

Objective. To describe occupational lead exposure and its biological indicators in workers in a printing company. Material and methods. An epidemiological and industrial hygiene research was undertaken. Lead was measured in the air of work environment and on the hands of the participants; additionally, subjects underwent a venous blood samples for the determination of whole blood lead by atomic absorption spectrophotometry; and a bone lead measurement using a spot-source 109 Cd K-X-ray fluorescence instrument. Also, a standardized questionnaire was applied. We obtained information on demographic and life styles factors, work history, type of work, position and activity within the company. Results. Of the 209 workers, 117 agreed to participate and 90 (83.3% males and 16.7% females) completed all phases of the study. The average lead concentrations were: in air samples, of 0.94 μg/m 3 ; in hands before washing, of 6 802 μg/m2 ; in hands after washing, of 194 μg/m2 ; in whole blood, of 12.3 μg/dl; and in tibia and fibula, of 25.9 and 43.3 μg Pb/g of bone mineral, respectively. Important variations in these measurements were observed according to the workers post. Conclusions. Worldwide, lead exposure levels have been used to evaluate acute exposures being in the workplace. The higher lead levels find in the bone of the workers in this study are similar to other occupational studies in the United States of America
A Prediction of Delayed Stress Response Syndromes in Vietnam Veterans

It is posited that over the next years civilian mental health professionals will encounter stress response syndromes in Vietnam veterans, will misread etiological factors, and will be unable to treat such persons effectively. This paper attempts to describe the types of problems which may be expected and suggests special approaches which will be required and may assist the treatment process.