Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Particulate air pollution and mortality in 38 of China’s largest cities: time series analysis

Objectives To estimate the short term effect of particulate air pollution (particle diameter <10 μm, or PM10) on mortality and explore the heterogeneity of particulate air pollution effects in major cities in China. Design Generalised linear models with different lag structures using time series data. Setting 38 of the largest cities in 27 provinces of China (combined population >200 million). Participants 350 638 deaths (200 912 in males, 149 726 in females) recorded in 38 city districts by the Disease Surveillance Point System of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention from 1 January 2010 to 29 June 2013. Main outcome measure Daily numbers of deaths from all causes, cardiorespiratory diseases, and non-cardiorespiratory diseases and among different demographic groups were used to estimate the associations between particulate air pollution and mortality. Results A 10 µg/m3 change in concurrent day PM10 concentrations was associated with a 0.44% (95% confidence interval 0.30% to 0.58%) increase in daily number of deaths. Previous day and two day lagged PM10 levels decreased in magnitude by one third and two thirds but remained statistically significantly associated with increased mortality. The estimate for the effect of PM10 on deaths from cardiorespiratory diseases was 0.62% (0.43% to 0.81%) per 10 µg/m3 compared with 0.26% (0.09% to 0.42%) for other cause mortality. Exposure to PM10 had a greater impact on females than on males. Adults aged 60 and over were more vulnerable to particulate air pollution at high levels than those aged less than 60. The PM10 effect varied across different cities and marginally decreased in cities with higher PM10 concentrations. Conclusion Particulate air pollution has a greater impact on deaths from cardiorespiratory diseases than it does on other cause mortality. People aged 60 or more have a higher risk of death from particulate air pollution than people aged less than 60. The estimates of the effect varied across cities and covered a wide range of domain.
IL-10 and the Dangers of Immune Polarization: Excessive Type 1 and Type 2 Cytokine Responses Induce Distinct Forms of Lethal Immunopathology in Murine Schistosomiasis

To dissect the controversial roles of type 1 and type 2 cytokines to the pathogenesis of schistosomiasis, we generated IL-10/IL-4- and IL-10/IL-12-deficient mice that develop highly polarized type 1 and type 2 cytokine responses, respectively. Interestingly, the Th1-polarized IL-10/IL-4-deficient mice rapidly lost weight at the onset of egg-laying and displayed 100% mortality by wk 9 postinfection. This acute mortality was linked to overexpression of the proinflammatory mediators IFN-γ, TNF-α, and inducible NO and the formation of nonfibrotic granulomas. Elevated serum aspartate transaminase levels confirmed that mortality was in part attributable to acute hepatotoxicity. In contrast, the Th2-polarized IL-10/IL-12-deficient mice developed a progressive wasting disease that correlated with increased hepatic fibrosis, formation of large eosinophil-rich granulomas, a 10-fold increase in IL-4 and IL-13, and significant mortality during the chronic stages of infection. Surprisingly, IL-10-deficient mice displayed pathological features that were characteristic of both extremes, while wild-type mice developed relatively successful long term chronic infections. These data demonstrate that IL-10 significantly suppresses type 1 and type 2 cytokine development in IL-4- and IL-12-deficient mice, respectively, thereby impeding the development of severe egg-induced pathology in the single cytokine-deficient animals. Together, these findings reveal the central regulatory role of IL-10 in the pathogenesis of schistosomiasis and illustrate that excessive type 1 and type 2 cytokine responses trigger distinct, but equally detrimental, forms of pathology following infection.
DNA methylation profiling of cervical squamous intraepithelial lesions using liquid‐based cytology specimens

Cervical carcinoma is a common malignancy among women worldwide, and its pathogenesis is related causally to human papillomavirus infection. The progression from precursor squamous intraepithelial lesions to cervical carcinoma requires additional genetic and epigenetic alterations that have not been characterized fully. The authors examined aberrant promoter methylation of multiple tumor suppressor genes in precursor squamous intraepithelial lesions.
OFDM system with cyclic prefix reconstruction and MMSE turbo equalization

In this paper, a new OFDM system without a cyclic prefix (CP) is presented. A turbo equalization technique for single carrier systems is extended to OFDM systems. Turbo equalization and cyclic prefix reconstruction are combined together to eliminate the normally required cyclic prefix for such a system. The new method jointly combines turbo equalization and CP reconstruction within the same iterative loop. The performance of the proposed scheme is studied through simulations. In this paper, a new algorithm that combines MMSE turbo equalization and CP reconstruction in each iterative loop is presented to form a new OFDM transmission scheme without CP. Hence, the normally required CP is no longer necessary at the transmitter which increases bandwidth efficiency. The extension of RISIC is of interest in this paper and its performance is compared with the new algorithm. Simulation results verify the effectiveness of the proposed scheme.
Effect of dietary bacteriophage supplementation on internal organs, fecal excretion, and ileal immune response in laying hens challenged by Salmonella Enteritidis

ABSTRACT With the current researches on replacing antibiotics with different dietary interventions, bacteriophages (BP) are potential antimicrobial intervention because of their ability to affect specific bacteria. A study was conducted to evaluate the role of BP against Salmonella enterica serovar Enteritidis (SE) on SE internal organs colonization and ileum immune response in laying hens. Hens were challenged both orally and intracloacally with 108 cfu/mL cells of nalidixic acid resistant Salmonella Enteritidis (SENAR). Thirty‐two Single Comb White Leghorns were randomly allocated to 4 dietary treatments: 1) unchallenged control (negative control; T1), 2) SENAR challenged control (positive control; T2), 3) SENAR challenged + 0.1% BP (T3), and 4) SENAR challenged + 0.2% BP (T4). The number of SENAR in the ceca was significantly reduced by 0.2% BP supplementation (P < 0.05) at 7 d post infection (dpi). The respective number of SENAR was reduced from 2.9 log cfu/gm in T2 and T3 to 2.0 log cfu/gm in T4. There was no significant effect of T3 on reduction of numbers of cecal SENAR. A significant reduction of SENAR was observed in the liver with gall bladder (LGB) from 0.75 in T2 to 0.18 log cfu/gm in T4. In the spleen, T4 significantly reduced (P < 0.05) SENAR to 0.56 log cfu/gm compared to T2 and T3 (0.94 log cfu/gm). There was no significant effect of T3 in reduction of prevalence of spleen SENAR. By supplementing 0.2% BP (T4), the SENAR in the ovary was reduced to 0 log cfu/gm. There was a significant reduction (P < 0.05) in fecal SENAR at 6 dpi by T4 (0.71 log cfu/gm) compared to the positive control (1.57 log cfu/gm). The expression of interferon (IFN)‐Γ, interleukin (IL)‐6, and IL‐10 was significantly increased in the ileum by SENAR challenge compared to the negative control. This study suggests that apart from commonly used prebiotics or probiotics, BP are pathogen‐specific and can be used as one of the dietary strategies to reduce SE colonization and induce immune modulation in laying hens.
Psychosocial dysfunction in the first year after Guillain–Barré syndrome

In this investigation we study the impact of Guillain–Barré syndrome (GBS) on psychological distress, depressive symptoms, and health status of patients during the first year after GBS. At 3, 6, and 12 months, patients were given the General Health Questionnaire, the Sickness Impact Profile, and the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale. Eighty‐five patients participated. Psychological distress and depressive symptoms were present but improved between 3 and 6 months. At 12 months the psychosocial health status was still impaired. Patients who perceived their physical residua to be moderately to seriously disruptive and patients with muscle ache and cramps had worse scores on all scales. It can be concluded that most of the improvement occurred in the first 6 months. Psychosocial health status, however, was still impaired at 1 year, but depressive symptoms played no role. Treatment of muscle ache and cramps, and the disruptive effect of physical residua should be seriously considered. Muscle Nerve, 2010
Neuroanatomic specificity and time course of alterations in rat brain serotonergic pathways induced by MDMA (3,4‐methylenedioxymethamphetamine): Assessment using quantitative autoradiography

The Widely abused “designer” durg MDMA (3,4‐methylenedioxymethamphetamine) has been shown to caused marked and long‐lasting changes in brain serotonergic systems. The present study uses quantitative in vitro autoradiography of 3H‐paroxetine labeled 5‐HT uptake sites to assess the time‐dependent effects of MDMA on 5‐HT neurons in specific neuroanatomic loci. Following treatment with MDMA (20 mg/kg, b.i.d. for 4 days), marked decreases in 5‐HT uptake sites were observed in a number of brain regions known to receive projections of ‐5HT neurons. These regions included cerebral cortex, caudate nucleus, hippocampus, nucleus accumbens, olfactory tubercle, superior and inferior colliculi, geniculate nuclei, and most thalamic nuclei. In contrast, other areas such as the septal nuclei and some thalamic nuclei which also receive 5‐HT projections were not substantially affected by this drug. In most regions, decreases in 5‐HT uptake sites occurred within 24 hours of the last dose of MDMA and persisted at the 2 week time point. Some regions such as dorsal striatum exhibited a time‐dependent reduction with greater reductions occurring at 2 weeks rather than immediately following the MDMA treatment regimen. The density of 5‐HT uptake sites in other regions such as endopiriform nucleus and substantia nigra at the 2 week versus 18 hour time point indicated some degree of region‐specific recovery. Regions which demonstrated no significant reduction in 5‐HT uptake sites included the dorsal and median raphe nuclei, ventral tegmental area, central grey, interpeduncluar nucleus, locus coerulus, pontine reticular formation and cerebellum. Likewise, region containing 5‐HT axons of passage (e.g., indusium griseum and lateral hypothalamus) appeared to be insensitive to the neurotoxic effects of MDMA on 5‐HT neurons. Furthermore, the neurotoxic effects of MDMA showed specificity in that the catecholamine neurons labeled by 3H‐mazindol were unaffected by the treatment regimen. These data indicate that the preferential degeneration of serotonergic neurons by MDMA is mediated primarily at 5‐HT terminal regions, whereas regions containg 5‐HT perikarya and axons of passage remain relatively unaffected. In addition, the observed time‐dependent reductions and recovery of 5‐HT uptake sites which were detected within 2 weeks of the treatment regimen in certain brain regions suggest region‐specific differences in recovery of 5‐HT systems from MDMA‐induced lesion.
D‐Cycloserine, a partial NMDA recepto r‐associated glycine‐B site agonist, enhances reversal learning, but a cholinesterase inhibitor and nicotine has no effect

THE present study examined the efficacy of single and combined treatments with an anticholinesterase, tetrahydroaminoacridine, nicotine and a glycine-B site partial agonist, D-cycloserine, in alleviating the water maze reversal learning defect induced by a medial septal lesion. D-cycloserine (3 and 10 mg/kg) improved reversal learning. Tetrahydroaminoacridine (1 and 3mg/kg) and nicotine (0.1 and 0.3 mg/kg) had no effect on reversal learning. A combination of tetrahydroaminoacridine 3 mg/kg or nicotine 0.3 mg/kg and D-cycloserine 10 mg/kg was not more effective than D-cycloserine 10 mg/kg alone in improving reversal learning. This suggests that stimulation of NMDA mechanisms may more effectively improve in medial septal-lesioned rats reversal learning processes than stimulation of cholinergic activity.
Anatomy and function of the anal longitudinal muscle

The longitudinal muscle in the intersphincteric space has received little attention despite an explosion of interest in anorectal physiology in the past decade. Its anatomy is contested and its function unknown. Speculation, however, gives it a role as a skeleton supporting and binding the rest of the internal and external sphincter complex together, as an aid during defaecation by everting the anus, as a support to the haemorrhoidal cushions, and as a determining factor in the ramification of sepsis.
Changes in the chemical composition of sow-reared piglets during the 1st month of life

Lawes & Gilbert (1858) recognized over a century ago that proper nutrition of the growing animal requires an understanding of the chemical composition of live-weight gain. They presented very detailed results of chemical analyses of ten farm animalsthree cattle, five sheep and two pigs. Unfortunately, the cattle were not all of one breed, and the sheep were not a strictly comparable series. The two pigs slaughtered, however, were litter-mates, killed at different stages during fattening, and Lawes & Gilbert pointed out that using the values for these two animals was ‘likely to lead to a pretty trustworthy estimate of the composition of the increase of this particular fattening pig’. Since they also recorded and analysed the food intake of the second pig they were able to calculate the net efficiency of conversion of food nutrients into body tissue, and, for example, were able to show that the fat laid down in the body of the second pig was greatly in excess of that in the food consumed, confirming that fat must have been synthesized from other food components. This classic experiment pointed the way for further work on similar lines. However, in the century that has passed remarkably little work of this type on pigs has been published. There have been considerable advances in analytical techniques, such as the acid hydrolysis method of Venn, McCance & Widdowson (1947) suitable for trace-element studies, and the method of Williams, Curtin, Abraham, Loosli & Maynard (1954) f x amino acid studies, so it is possible that more use will be made of chemical analysis of carcasses in the future. Indirect estimation of changes in carcass composition by balance experiments has received much attention and has given a large amount of valuable information. The fact remains that the proof of the indirect method lies in the direct approach, and in recent instances when such proof has been sought there have been disturbing inconsistencies. Nehring, Laube, Schwerdtfeger, Schiemann, Haesler & Hoffmann (1957), studying nitrogen retention, were only able to find, in the live-weight increase of pigs, 84% of the nitrogen which the balance experiment on the same animals had indicated to be laid down as body protein. Larger discrepancies were observed in similar experiments with rats. Errors in balance experiments are unlikely to be discovered unless they are checked by direct means, and it is alarming to consider the lack of such checks in the work of the past century. There have been only a few investigations of changes in chemical composition of piglets during the first few weeks of life. Newlander & Jones (1935) gave figures for the dry-matter, ash, protein and fat content of sixteen 2-day-old piglets and eighty
Duodenogastric Bile Reflux Is Common in Cystic Fibrosis

Background Patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) have a high incidence of gastroesophageal reflux disease, but few cases of mucosal injury are reported. Duodenogastric reflux has not been studied in CF but has been suggested to have a pathogenic role in producing alkaline injury to the esophageal mucosa. The aim of this study was to analyze the presence of duodenogastric reflux in patients with CF. Patients and Methods Ten patients with CF and 7 healthy volunteers participated in the study. Gastroduodenal manometry and intragastric perfusion were performed in all subjects. Gastric perfusate was analyzed for bilirubin and bile acids. Only patients and controls exhibiting normal migrating motor complexes were evaluated. Results Eight patients with CF had normal motility recordings and had significantly higher gastric bilirubin levels compared with healthy subjects (P = 0.003). The bilirubin concentration was associated with bile acid regurgitation in five patients with CF. All bile acids were conjugated with a high glycine/taurine ratio and low levels of secondary bile acids. Small amounts of keto bile acids were found in two patients. Conclusion The patients with CF had an increased incidence of duodenogastric reflux compared with healthy subjects. The bile acid composition was typical for CF with low levels of secondary bile acids. Although high bile acid concentration was found in the duodenogastric reflux in most patients with CF, the less toxic profile of the bile acids might possibly contribute to the low frequency of Barrett's esophagus in CF.
Analysis of Spt7 Function in the Saccharomyces cerevisiae SAGA Coactivator Complex

ABSTRACT The Saccharomyces cerevisiae SAGA complex is required for the normal transcription of a large number of genes. Complex integrity depends on three core subunits, Spt7, Spt20, and Ada1. We have investigated the role of Spt7 in the assembly and function of SAGA. Our results show that Spt7 is important in controlling the levels of the other core subunits and therefore of SAGA. In addition, partial SAGA complexes containing Spt7 can be assembled in the absence of both Spt20 and Ada1. Through biochemical and genetic analyses of a series of spt7 deletion mutants, we have identified a region of Spt7 required for interaction with the SAGA component Spt8. An adjacent Spt7 domain was found to be required for a processed form of Spt7 that is present in a previously identified altered form of SAGA called SLIK, SAGAalt, or SALSA. Analysis of an spt7 mutant with greatly reduced levels of SLIK/SAGAalt/SALSA suggests a subtle role for this complex in transcription that may be redundant with a subset of SAGA functions.
Differential Partitioning of Lipids Metabolized by Separate Yeast Glycerol-3-phosphate Acyltransferases Reveals That Phospholipase D Generation of Phosphatidic Acid Mediates Sensitivity to Choline-containing Lysolipids and Drugs*

In this study we demonstrate that theGAT1 and GAT2 genes encode the major glycerol-3-phosphate acyltransferase activities in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Genetic inactivation of either GAT1 orGAT2 did not alter cell growth but inactivation of both resulted in growth cessation. Metabolic analyses of gat1and gat2 yeast detected that the major differences were: (i) a 50% increase in the rate of triacylglycerol synthesis ingat1 yeast and a corresponding 50% decrease ingat2 yeast, and (ii) a 5-fold increase in glycerophosphocholine production through deacylation of phosphatidylcholine synthesized through the CDP-choline pathway ingat1 yeast, whereas gat2 yeast displayed a 10-fold decrease. To address why we observed alterations in phospholipid turnover specific to phosphatidylcholine produced through the CDP-choline pathway in gat1 and gat2 yeast we tested their sensitivity to various cytotoxic lysolipids and observed that gat2 cells were more sensitive to lysophosphatidylcholine, but not other lysolipids. To pursue the mechanism we analyzed their sensitivity to choline-containing lysolipids or drugs that could not be deacylated and/or reacylated. Our data showed that gat1 and gat2 yeast were resistant and sensitive to lysoplatelet activating factor, platelet activating factor, and the anti-tumor lipid edelfosine, respectively, indicating that their sensitivity to these compounds was not because of differences in rates of phosphatidylcholine deacylation. As growth of gat2 cells was impaired in the presence of ethanol, a phospholipase D (Spo14p) inhibitor, we inferred that phospholipase D may play important biologic and metabolic roles in phenotypes observed in gat yeast. Genetic inactivation of the SPO14 gene resulted in increased susceptibility, whereas expression of Escherichia coli diacylglycerol kinase relieved growth inhibition, to choline-containing lysolipids and drugs. Our results are consistent with a model whereby phosphatidic acid generated from phosphatidylcholine hydrolysis by Spo14p regulates susceptibility to choline-containing lysolipid analogs and drugs.
Morphologic Correlates of Technetium‐99m Stannous Pyrophosphate Imaging of Acute Myocardial Infarcts in Dogs

To obtain insight into the mechanism(s) responsible for the direct visualization of acute myocardial infarcts by myocardial scintigraphy with technetium-99m stannous pyrophosphate (99mTc-PYP), scintigraphic and morphologic studies were performed in 22 dogs subjected to occlusion of the proximal left anterior descending coronary artery (LAD). Grossly visible myocardial infarcts occurred in ten of 11 dogs with LAD occlusion for one day, five with LAD occlusion for two days, two with LAD occlusion for seven days and two with LAD occlusion for 13 days. Rare, microscopic foci of necrosis were observed in one dog with LAD occlusion for one day, and no lesions were present in two dogs subjected to temporary LAD occlusion for eight minutes and reflow for 24 hours. In the latter three dogs, 99mTc-PYP myocardial scintigrams were negative. In the 19 dogs with gross infarcts, 99mTc-PYP myocardial scintigrams were strongly positive at one and two days after LAD occlusion, much less positive at seven days and faintly positive at 13 days after occlusion. Positive myocardial scintigrams in most dogs showed "doughnut" patterns, with marked peripheral concentration of radioactivity around central zones of much lower activity. On histologic examination, the one and two-day-old infarcts exhibited subendocardially located central zones and surrounding peripheral zones, both of which showed distinctive histopathological and histochemical features, including the selective occurrence in the peripheral zones of calcified muscle cells with ultrastructurally demonstrable apatite-like crystals in mitochondria. Selective occurrence of high tissue levels of 99mTc-PYP radioactivity also was demonstrated in the peripheral zones of four infarcts. Hearts with older infarcts (seven and 13 days) showed progressive replacement of necrotic myocardium by granulation tissue and progressive reduction in calcium deposits in the areas of damage. The data obtained in this study establish a temporal and topographical relationship between calcium accumulation in acute myocardial infarcts and 99mTc-PYP uptake responsible for scintigraphic detection of the lesions with this radionuclide in dogs subjected to proximal LAD occlusion.
Self-Regulation and the Management of Stuttering

Self-regulation refers to a process by which individuals learn to direct and control their own behavior, thoughts, and feelings to manage or eliminate their stuttering. As a concept, it has been a vital and enduring component of most approaches to managing persistent and chronic stuttering. The theoretical basis for self-regulation is briefly reviewed and the main principles of self-regulation--goal setting, cue management, self-monitoring, and self-evaluation--are described and illustrated with clinical examples. Factors related to self-regulatory failure are also discussed.