Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Insulin resistance, central obesity, and risk of colorectal adenomas

Increasing evidence supports insulin resistance (IR) as the underpinning of the obesity‐colorectal neoplasia link. The homeostasis model assessment‐IR (HOMA‐IR) is a widely accepted index of evolving hyperinsulinemia and early IR. Studies of the relation between HOMA‐IR and colorectal adenomas are limited. Therefore, the authors sought to determine the associations of HOMA‐IR and central obesity (waist to hip ratio [WHR]) with risk of colorectal adenomas in a screening colonoscopy‐based study.
Intacs in Advanced Keratoconus

Purpose: To evaluate the surgical outcomes of microthin intracorneal ring segment (INTACS) implantation in advanced keratoconus. Methods: INTACS implantation was performed in eyes with advanced keratoconus. The main outcome measures were uncorrected visual acuity, best spectacle-corrected visual acuity, change in mean refractive spherical equivalent (MRSE), and keratometry. Results: Intacs were implanted in 14 eyes with advanced keratoconus. At 6 months, uncorrected visual acuity improved from 0.05 ± 0.08 to 0.16 ± 0.11 (P < 0.05), and best spectacle-corrected visual acuity improved from 0.50 ± 0.23 to 0.67 ± 0.00 (P = 0.01). The spherical refractive error improved from −6.68 D ± 6.44 to −3.11 D ± 3.08 (P = 0.03), whereas the cylindrical refractive error improved from −4.89 D ± 1.91 to −3.64 D ± 1.27 (P = 0.04). The MRSE reduced from −9.13 D ± 5.62 to −4.93 D ± 3.19 (P = 0.01), and the average keratometry decreased from 53.01 D ± 3.70 to 49.42 D ± 3.79 (P < 0.05). The results were stable from 6 months to 1 year. The procedure showed 100% safety, and more than 60% tolerated contact lenses. Younger age, male sex, and minimum central pachymetry of more than 400 μm seemed to be associated with better outcomes. Conclusions: In this series, Intacs provided good results with respect to visual acuity, corneal topography, and MRSE in eyes with advanced keratoconus without major complications or the need for segment explanation. INTACS is potentially a safe and efficacious treatment option in the management of advanced keratoconus.
A Transnational Perspective on Psychosurgery: Beyond Portugal and the United States

The history of psychosurgery is most often recounted as a narrative wherein Portuguese and American physicians play the leading role. It is a traditional narrative in which the United States and, at times, Portugal are central in the development and spread of psychosurgery. Here we largely abandon the archetypal narrative and provide one of the first transnational accounts of psychosurgery to demonstrate the existence of a global psychosurgical community in which more than 40 countries participated, bolstered, critiqued, modified and heralded the treatment. From its inception in 1935 until its decline in the mid-1960s, psychosurgery was performed on almost all continents. Rather than being a phenomenon isolated to the United States and Portugal, it became a truly transnational movement.
Current status of Aster yellows disease in infected vineyards in the Vredendal grape producing area of South Africa

Aster yellows (AY) phytoplasma disease was recently detected in South African vineyards. In order to monitor the incidence and spread of the disease, thirteen vineyards in the Vredendal region were surveyed during the 2010 and 2011 seasons for AY disease. Vineyards were visually inspected for AY symptoms and phytoplasma presence was confirmed by PCR assays. Preliminary results showed differences in AY disease incidences, ranging from 0.1% to 32.7% (2010 season) and from 0.2% to 62.2% (2011 season) within selected vineyards.
Keratoconus in the Medicare Population

Purpose: To investigate the population-based prevalence of keratoconus in US individuals aged 65 years and older. Design: Multiyear retrospective cross-sectional claims analysis. Methods: Fee-for-service claims from a 5% national sample of Medicare beneficiaries aged 65 years and older were reviewed. Claims records were queried on an annual basis for the years 1999 through 2003 for ICD-9 codes specific to keratoconus. The number of beneficiaries with keratoconus-related claims was counted for each calendar year. Results: The number of beneficiaries receiving care for keratoconus rose steadily from 15.7/100,000 beneficiaries in 1999 to 18.5/100,000 in 2003, averaging 17.5/100,000 across the 5 years of the study. Keratoconus rates declined with increasing age but did not differ by gender. Keratoconus care was more prevalent in whites than in other races. Conclusions: Keratoconus is an uncommon disease in the Medicare population. Longitudinal analysis of Medicare claims data may provide a useful tool for monitoring uncommon diseases, such as keratoconus, in the elderly.
Tumor Necrosis Factor-α Downregulates the Voltage Gated Outward K+ Current in Cultured Neonatal Rat Cardiomyocytes

Background Inflammatory cytokines have been reported to contribute to the progression of cardiac remodeling in various heart diseases and a remarkable prolongation of the monophasic action potential duration and reductions in the expression of Kv4.2 and K+ channel-interacting protein-2 (KChIP-2) in a rat autoimmune myocarditis model have been documented. In this study, the effect of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) on cultured cardiomyocytes was evaluated, focusing on the change in the voltage-gated outward K+ current and expression of related molecules. Methods and Results Cardiomyocytes isolated from 1-day-old Lewis rats were cultured for 72 h and treated with TNF-α (50 ng/ml) for an additional 48 h. The myocytes treated with TNF-α showed a 22% reduction in the peak K+ current, which consisted of a transient outward K+ current (Ito) and 1.4-fold enhancement of the cell-capacitance in comparison with the control. Among the cardiac ion channel related molecules evaluated in this study, Kv4.2 and KChIP-2 mRNA exhibited remarkable reductions (p<0.05). Conclusions Treatment with TNF-α induced reductions in Ito as well as cellular hypertrophy in neonatal cultured myocytes, which indicates that TNF-α might play a role in promoting electrical remodeling of cardiomyocytes under inflammatory conditions. (Circ J 2006; 70: 605 - 609)
Classic Studies on the Potential of Stem Cell Neuroregeneration

The 1990s and 2000s were the beginning of an exciting time period for developmental neuroscience and neural stem cell research. By better understanding brain plasticity and the birth of new neurons in the adult brain, contrary to established dogma, hope for therapy from devastating neurological diseases was generated. The potential for stem cells to provide functional recovery in humans remains to be further tested and to further move into the clinical trial realm. The future certainly has great promise on stem cells to assist in alleviation of difficult-to-treat neurologic disorders. This article reviews classic studies of the 1990s and 2000s that paved the way for the advances of today, which can in turn lead to tomorrow’s therapies.
A protocol for recording linear enamel hypoplasia on archaeological pig teeth

A method is proposed for recording linear enamel hypoplasia (LEH) present on archaeological pig teeth. The methods described have been developed and tested on material from five archaeological sites of a wide range of periods; Durrington Walls (UK), Wellin, Ename, Sugny and Londerzeel (Belgium). Recommendations are made on what teeth, surface, cusp, and side to record, as well as on details of the visibility, the identification and the measurement of LEH lines. Problems encountered with the application of the recording protocol to the five case studies are detailed, and possible interpretative drawbacks are discussed. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Dissociating word stem completion and cued recall as a function of divided attention at retrieval

The aim of this study was to investigate the widely held, but largely untested, view that implicit memory (repetition priming) reflects an automatic form of retrieval. Specifically, in Experiment 1 we explored whether a secondary task (syllable monitoring), performed during retrieval, would disrupt performance on explicit (cued recall) and implicit (stem completion) memory tasks equally. Surprisingly, despite substantial memory and secondary costs to cued recall when performed with a syllable-monitoring task, the same manipulation had no effect on stem completion priming or on secondary task performance. In Experiment 2 we demonstrated that even when using a particularly demanding version of the stem completion task that incurred secondary task costs, the corresponding disruption to implicit memory performance was minimal. Collectively, the results are consistent with the view that implicit memory retrieval requires little or no processing capacity and is not seemingly susceptible to the effects of dividing attention at retrieval.
Costs and trends in pancreatic cancer treatment

Pancreatic cancer poses a substantial morbidity and mortality burden in the United States, and predominantly affects older adults. The objective of this study was to estimate the direct medical costs of pancreatic cancer treatment in a population‐based cohort of Medicare beneficiaries, and the contribution of different treatment modalities and health care services to the total cost of care and trends in costs over time.
THE FAILURE OF THYMUS‐DERIVED CELLS TO PRODUCE ANTIBODY

The capacities of cells of thymus and bone marrow origin taken from radiation chimaeras to produce antibody during a secondary immune response have been tested in an in vivo transfer system. Although it could be shown that thymus-derived cells respond vigorously by mitosis to antigenic stimulation they were not capable of antibody production. By contrast bone marrow-derived cells did not in the first 3 days respond mitotically to antigenic stimulation but they were capable of limited antibody production. Most antibody was found when both cell populations were allowed to react to antigenic stimulation.
Absence of Pathogenic Mutations in VSX1 and SOD1 Genes in Patients With Keratoconus

Purpose: Keratoconus (KC) is a bilateral, noninflammatory, and progressive corneal ectasia that occurs mostly as a sporadic disorder, but it has long been recognized that a significant minority of patients also exhibit a family history. In recent years, several candidate genes, including VSX1 and SOD1, have been proposed and some disease-causing mutations have been identified. Methods: To investigate the role of the 2 genes in 113 Slovenian patients with sporadic and familial KC, the complete coding region with corresponding intronic sequences was analyzed. The same regions of both genes were also checked in 100 healthy blood donors. We also checked the relation of 627+23G>A polymorphism in the VSX1 gene with the hereditary form of the disease. Results: No disease-causing mutations were identified in either gene. We did discover a significant association of 627+23G>A polymorphism distribution (VSX1) with unrelated patients diagnosed with the hereditary form of KC. Conclusion: The absence of pathogenic mutations in our large number of unrelated patients with KC indicates that other genetic factors are involved in the development of this disorder.
An fMRI study of long-term everyday memory using SenseCam

We used a novel automatic camera, SenseCam, to investigate recognition memory for real-life events at a 5-month retention interval. Using fMRI we assessed recollection and familiarity memory using the remember/know procedure. Recollection evoked no medial temporal lobe (MTL) activation compared to familiarity and new responses. Instead, recollection activated diverse regions in neocortex including medial prefrontal cortex. We observed decreased activation in anterior hippocampus/ anterior parahippocampal gyrus (aPHG) at 5 months compared to a 36-hour retention interval. Familiarity was associated with greater activation in aPHG and posterior parahippocampal gyrus (pPHG) than recollection and new responses. Familiarity activation decreased over time in anterior hippocampus/aPHG and posterior hippocampus/pPHG. The engagement of neocortical regions such as medial prefrontal cortex at a 5-month delay, together with the reduced MTL activation at 5 months relative to at 36 hours is in line with the assumptions of Consolidation theory. SenseCam provides a valuable technique for assessing the processes that underlie remote everyday recognition memory.
Expression of Small Leucine-Rich Proteoglycans During Experimental Fungal Keratitis

Purpose: To investigate the expression of members of the small leucine-rich proteoglycan family and related leucine-rich repeat proteins during the inception and progression of experimental keratomycosis. Methods: Scarified corneas of BALB/c mice were topically inoculated with Candida albicans and monitored daily over 1 week for corneal opacification. A murine gene microarray compared infected corneas to controls 1 day postinoculation (PI). Real-time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction determined small leucine-rich proteoglycan gene levels in infected and mock-infected corneas at 1, 3, and 7 days PI and in normal corneas. Immunostaining localized keratocan protein in murine corneas. Results: Eyes with C. albicans keratitis rapidly developed corneal inflammation with opacification. Microarray showed that genes for biglycan, asporin, lumican, fibromodulin, osteomodulin, keratocan, osteoglycin, and chondroadherin were significantly (P < 0.01) downregulated more than 2-fold at the onset of fungal keratitis. By real-time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction, the gene encoding keratocan was initially downregulated 137-fold and remained downregulated 2.5-fold at 1 week. Genes coding for lumican, osteomodulin, and fibromodulin were downregulated 4- to 9-fold 1 day after fungal inoculation and returned to normal levels by 3 days PI. Immunofluorescence demonstrated that keratocan was present throughout the corneal stroma of normal mice and mock-infected controls but was markedly less during early fungal keratitis. Conclusions: Transcriptional levels of keratocan and other proteoglycans decrease during the initial stages of C. albicans keratitis. Alterations in the stromal extracellular matrix may contribute to the acute inflammatory response of corneal infection.
The relation of the conceptual self to recent and distant autobiographical memories

Based on the self-memory system model (SMS; Conway, Singer, & Tagini, 2004) of autobiographical memory, this study uses a large sample of young and middle-aged adults to investigate the relation between individuals’ current self-characteristics and the content of both their earliest childhood memory and a recent memory. In the first session, participants’ current self-characteristics were assessed. In the second session, individuals provided a written narrative of their earliest childhood memory and a more recent memory (within-participants design) and rated the self themes present in each memory. In keeping with the SMS model, findings show that current self-characteristics were reflected in individuals’ memories. As predicted, however, recent memories were more frequently linked to current self-characteristics than were earliest memories. All six current self-characteristics predicted the inclusion of these themes in recent memories, but only four self-characteristics were associated with memory themes in earliest memories. The relation between current self-characteristics and memory themes did not differ across young and middle-aged adults, suggesting developmental stability in these relations. Findings provide general support for the SMS model but also suggest possibilities for its extension and refinement.
Household demand for preventive HIV/AIDS vaccines in Thailand: do husbands' and wives' preferences differ?

OBJECTIVES The aims of this study were to estimate household demand in the general population of Thailand for a (hypothetical) preventive HIV vaccine; to determine whether spouses in the same household would purchase the same number of vaccines for household members and have the same demand function; to determine whether spouses would allocate vaccines to the same household members; and to estimate household and per capita average willingness to pay (WTP) for an HIV vaccine price. METHODS The data come from a national contingent valuation survey of 2524 residents (aged 18-20 years) of 1235 households in Thailand during the period 2000 to 2001. In a subsample of 561 households, both head of household and spouse completed independent (separate) interviews. Respondents were asked whether they would purchase an HIV vaccine for themselves and for other household members if one were available at a specified price. RESULTS For the full sample, average household WTP for the vaccine was substantial (US$610 at 50% vaccine effectiveness, US$671 at 95% effectiveness); the average per capita WTP for household members was US$220 at 50% effectiveness and US$242 at 95% effectiveness. Although spouses reported that they would purchase the same total number of vaccines, and had essentially the same demand functions, at lower vaccine prices wives were significantly more likely than husbands to allocate vaccines to their daughters than to sons. CONCLUSIONS Because wives are more likely to allocate vaccines to daughters, vaccination programs aimed at women and girls might have different outcomes than programs directed at males or at all potential adults without regard to sex.
Reasoning about the self in positive and negative ways: Relationship to psychological functioning in young adulthood

The current study investigated whether young adults' tendency to engage in autobiographical reasoning that described the self in positive and negative ways moderated: (1) the relationship between the amount and complexity of autobiographical reasoning in narratives of high and low points and psychological functioning, (2) the relationship between beliefs about the centrality of negative life events (low points) and psychological functioning. Narratives of life story high and low points, collected from 98 young adults, were coded for two types of autobiographical reasoning: self–event connections and sophistication of meaning. Participants also completed a measure of psychopathology and a measure of psychological well-being, and rated the centrality of each narrated event. Results showed that making more self–event connections and gaining more complex insights into the self was associated with higher levels of psychopathology for young adults who tended to reason about the self in negative ways. Further, endorsing low points as central to identity was associated with psychopathology and poor psychological well-being, but not for young adults who were more likely to reason about the self in positive ways in narratives of these difficult experiences. Results are discussed in terms of the implications for the relationship between psychological functioning and life story development.
Does attribute framing in discrete choice experiments influence willingness to pay? Results from a discrete choice experiment in screening for colorectal cancer.

OBJECTIVE Recent reviews of discrete choice methodology identified methodological issues warranting further exploration, including the issue of "framing. " The objective of this study was to conduct a methodological exploration of the effect of attribute framing on marginal rates of substitution (MRS), including willingness to pay (WTP) from a discrete choice experiment (DCE), within the context of colorectal cancer screening preferences. METHODS The survey, a fractional factorial design of a two-alternative, unlabeled experiment, was mailed to a sample of 1920 subjects in NSW, Australia. Participants were randomized to one of four alternative "frames" of information. Attributes included: accuracy of the test for finding cancers, accuracy of the test for finding large polyps, how good the test is at saying you don't have cancer, cost, dietary and medication restrictions and sample collection. A mixed logit model was used to estimate preferences; MRS between attributes, including WTP, was calculated. RESULTS A total of 1157 surveys from 1920 (60.2%) were returned. Accuracy of the test for finding cancer was most likely to influence choice of test, followed by accuracy of the test for finding large polyps. Under some circumstances, framing of the attributes (e.g., cancers found vs. cancers missed) influenced the relative importance of attributes. Attribute framing significantly influenced estimates of WTP, and benefit: harm trade-offs that were calculated from MRS. CONCLUSIONS Attribute framing can influence willingness to pay and benefit: harm trade-offs from DCEs. Appropriate design and analysis methods should be explored to further characterize the influence and extent of framing in discrete choice studies.
Age-related differences in episodic feeling-of-knowing arise from differences in memory performance

Previous studies about the effects of ageing on the episodic feeling-of-knowing (FOK) accuracy and its underlying processes have yielded conflicting results. Recent work suggests that using alternative measures to gamma correlations might allow more accurate and informative interpretations of metamemory performance in ageing. We therefore investigated this issue with a large sample of 59 young and 61 older participants using alternative signal-detection theory (SDT) measures. These measures (receiver operating characteristic curves and Brier score) are recommended in the literature and able to reveal the characteristic profile of impairment in ageing. Our results suggest that the FOK accuracy deficit observed in the literature arises from differences in memory performance. This observation provides a convenient explanation to the previous discrepancies and furthermore supports the interest of the use of SDT-derived measures in the frame of metamemory.
Instructor and student knowledge of study strategies

Students' self-reported study skills and beliefs are often inconsistent with empirically supported (ES) study strategies. However, little is known regarding instructors' beliefs about study skills and if such beliefs differ from those of students. In the current study, we surveyed college students' and instructors' knowledge of study strategies and had both groups evaluate the efficacy of learning strategies described in six learning scenarios. Results from the survey indicated that students frequently reported engaging in methods of studying that were not optimal for learning. Instructors' responses to the survey indicated that they endorsed a number of effective study skills but also held several beliefs inconsistent with research in learning and memory (e.g., learning styles). Further, results from the learning scenarios measure indicated that instructors were moderately more likely than students to endorse ES learning strategies. Collectively, these data suggest that instructors exhibited better knowledge of effective study skills than students, although the difference was small. We discuss several notable findings and argue for the improvement of both students' and instructors' study skill knowledge.