NCube/papyrus huggingface dataset:
Comparative risk judgments and actual risk-taking in sexual behaviours

HIV infection still represents a major health problem. Risk-taking or the absence of precautionary behaviour is the first determinant for infection. Comparative risk could help explain some part of the risk-taking. However the relation to actual behaviour bears major methodological difficulties which we attempted to address here. Risk status and situation conditionality were considered as independent variables. Comparative risk estimates were considered dependent variables. Two hundred and sixty eight students were included in a correlational design. They filled in self-questionnaires and reported their risk status concerning HIV infection and comparative risk estimates for both conditional and unconditional risk situations. Results confirmed previous research where estimates varied according to risk status and conditionality was related to lower optimistic bias or increase pessimistic bias. When both variables are considered simultanously, risk-takers appraised comparative risk less pessimistically. Different interpretations accounting for this phenomenon are considered.

Keyphrases: Comparative risk, HIV, Optimism, Pessimism, Conditional risk
La fluidité graphique chez les enfants atteints du syndrome de Gilles de la Tourette et de tics persistants

Objective: Tourette syndrome (TS) and pervasive chronic tic disorder are mainly characterized by motor and/or phonic tics that can be accompanied by neuropsychological impairment and executive function deficits. Among executive functions, design fluency involves the ability to draw as many different designs as possible in a given time. Only a few studies have focused on design fluency in TS. The aim of this study was to characterize the design fluency profile of children with TS compared with neurotypical children (i.e. without TS) using the Five- Point-Test, which has been shown to be sensitive to frontal lobe dysfunction and frontostriatal lesions. The severity of tics was also considered, together with ADHD symptoms as the high prevalence of comorbid disorders is a major concern in studies on TS. Method: Seventy-six children aged between 6 and 15 years participated in the study and were divided in two groups (TS group n=43, control group n=33). Our objective was addressed by considering a wide range of performance and process measures. Total number of designs, repetitions, repetition ratio, unique designs, numerical, spatial, and total strategies were examined for the total duration of the test (performance measures) and at five equal time intervals (process measures). Results: The TS group produced significantly fewer total designs and numerical strategies. A trend towards intergroup differences was observed for all other five measures. Groups did not differ in process measures. Conclusion: Designe fluency seems a promising tool for identifying and specifying cognitive deficits that may arise in children with TS.

Keyphrases: Five-Point Test, Tourette syndrome, Executive function, Design fluency, Clinical neuropsychology, Children
Qu’est-ce que l’écriture numérique?

It is obvious that the meaning of text is changing profoundly because of the impact of digital technologies. On the one hand, in digital environments text is everywhere: images, videos, clicks, objects and even actions are actually series of characters. On the other hand, text acquires operational value. As Souchier and Jeanneret show with the notion of "architext", text does things, it produces other texts or actions. The thesis of this paper is that these changes imply another one: the text becomes architectural material, in the proper sense of the word - that is, apart from metaphors, it is the element that materially structures the space in which we live. This thesis is at the basis of the theory of editorialization, a notion that can be defined as "the set of dynamics that produce digital space".

Keyphrases: Posthuman studies, Digital writings, Editorialization, Digital space, Digital text, Prehuman writing
La formation documentaire en temps de pandémie : les webinaires matinaux

The first COVID-19 lockdown influenced the way the Bibliothèque des lettres et sciences humaines (the arts and humanities library) at the Université de Montréal fulfilled its mission of offering information literacy instruction. It pushed us to adapt quickly by evaluating our old ways of doing things. The most striking result was the creation of a daily offering of morning webinars open to all. We seized this opportunity to experiment and test innovations corresponding to our values of excellence, caring and openness. Their success has enabled us to transform our suite of open workshops by emphasizing advanced and more diversified concepts.

Keyphrases: Library instruction, COVID-19 innovation
Le trouble développemental du langage (TDL) : mise à jour interdisciplinaire

Although developmental language disorder (DLD) is common (7.58%; Norbury et al., 2016) and has impacts lasting into adulthood (Feeney, Desha, Khan, Ziviani, & Nicholson, 2016), it is not as renowned than other disorders as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Inconsistent definitions across domains (e.g., medicine, education, psychology, speech-language pathology) may partially explain this situation (Bishop, 2017). Recently, a terminology and an approach leading to the diagnosis of DLD were the subject of a multidisciplinary international consensus, due to the CATALISE project (Bishop, Snowling, Thompson, Greenhalgh & CATALISE-consortium, 2016, 2017). The purpose of this paper is to present an update of current issues and knowledge related to DLD by looking at the criteria and terminology changes initiated by the CATALISE project. For professionals and researchers working in the field, this is an opportunity to reflect on the needs of people living with DLD.

Keyphrases: Developmental language disorder, Assessment, Interdisciplinary, Terminology, Children
« C’est encore par elles qu’on arrive le plus vite » : la dynamique des pouvoirs entre le héros et ses adjuvants féminins dans Le Père Goriot de Balzac et Bel-Ami de Maupassant

In Le Père Goriot by Balzac (1835) and Bel-Ami by Maupassant (1885), two realist coming-of-age novels, female characters play the role of adjuvants with respect to the protagonist, assisting in his social ascension. While these male characters exert power on their female adjuvants in order to achieve their objectives, the latter also hold their own in the relationship as well as within their social environment. The hypothesis of this study is that the nature of the relationships between the heroes and the female adjuvants in these works bears a significant influence on the negotiation of power dynamics between the sexes.  By using socio-critical and historical approaches, this study shows that in both novels, female adjuvants possess economic, social, cultural and symbolic capitals that enable them to help the heroes in their quest. Female adjuvants in this context may be placed in two categories : the « woman-mentor » and the « woman-stepping stone » . The relationships between heroes and female adjuvants are characterized here on one hand as being the vehicle of shifting power dynamics in both novels, but also of violence in the case of Bel-Ami. Whereas in Balzac’s novel the dynamics of power between Eugène de Rastignac and his female adjuvants stay the same throughout the whole story, those between Georges Duroy and his own vary in the course of Maupassant’s novel. Although these adjuvants benefit from their vantage with respect to the heroes, their economic capital is limited. Furthermore, in Bel-Ami, while some tend to remain powerful at the end of the novels, others meet a tragic destiny and exhaust themselves, specifically by helping the hero.

Keyphrases: Le Père Goriot, Bel-Ami, Balzac, Maupassant, XIXe siècle, Education novel, Hero, Female adjuvant, Literary critic, 19th century, French literature
Portrait des violences subies par des femmes en contexte conjugal : prévalence, occurrence, cooccurrence des violences et gravité

Intimate partner violence can take different forms (e.g., physical, sexual, verbal, psychological and economic), it may change in frequency and intensity over time. Based on a questionnaire and on life history calendars method, this study examines the victimization journey of 75 women who experienced at least one form of intimate partner violence within a window period of three years. The aim is the understanding of violence and its parameters. The results suggest a significant heterogeneity between the types of violence. The forms of violence unfold and evolve distinctly. Findings highlight the interest of studying the types of violence individually, but also to examine their co-occurrence.

Keyphrases: Victimes, Intimate partner violence, Life history calendar, Women, Victims, Parameters of violence
Identifying the Causal SNP(s) Determining Dalcetrapib Responses

Introduction: Dalcetrapib is a cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP) inhibitor that increases the circulating level of HDL-cholesterol. Genome-wide association studies have revealed an association between polymorphisms found in the adenylate cyclase type 9 (ADCY9) gene and responses to dalcetrapib, including its cardiovascular benefits. The purpose of this study was to identify the causal single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) which could lead to understand the molecular mechanisms altering dalcetrapib effects on cardiovascular outcomes. Methods: Electrophoretic mobility shift assays (EMSA) were performed to analyze the allele-specific effects of the best causal SNP candidates on binding with nuclear proteins obtained from a THP-1 monocytic cell line. Afterwards, a dual luciferase reporter assay was used to assess the effect of selected genetic variants on gene transcription. Protein binding to SNP rs12920508 was investigated by DNA-affinity chromatography followed by mass spectrometry and multiplexed competitor EMSA. Results: Seven out of 12 SNPs demonstrated allele-specific protein binding, which was not influenced by dalcetrapib exposure of the cells. Results from dual luciferase reporter assay showed that plasmid constructs bearing variants rs12920508 and rs1967309 increased transcriptional activity when transfected into THP-1 undifferentiated monocytic cells. Eleven proteins were identified as potential candidates binding to region of SNP rs12920508. Additionally, region containing both SNPs rs1967309 and rs12920508 displayed increased transcriptional activity with significantly higher activity for deleterious haplotype. Conclusion: Polymorphism rs1967309 seems to be causing most functional effects in the THP-1 monocytic cell line. However, an interaction with rs12920508 or presence of the DNA region of this SNP may be necessary for optimal activity of rs1967309. Further work is required to elucidate the link between potentially causal SNPs and cardiovascular responses induced by dalcetrapib.

Keyphrases: ADCY9, SNP, EMSA, HDL-C, Dalcetrapib, Cardiovascular disease
Développement de nucléosides visant l’inhibition de méthyltransférases et synthèse d’une nouvelle famille à visée thérapeutique

The work presented in this manuscript describes the diastereoselective synthesis of nucleoside analogues and their therapeutic uses. The interest in this important class of molecules as anticancer and/or antiviral agents stems from the administration of modified nucleosides that interfere with cell division and viral replication through incorporation into DNA and RNA and/or inhibition of essential enzymes. These analogues thus compete with their natural counterparts to inhibit the synthesis of nucleotides which is the limiting process in cell proliferation. The first objective of this thesis is the development of a chemical probe with inhibitory properties against protein methyltransferases (PMTs). This enzyme family is responsible for protein methylation, a post-translational modification recently linked to cancer and other diseases. Based on the structure of the natural cofactor, S-adenosyl-L-methionine (SAM), novel fluorinated nucleoside analogues were synthesized in an effort to further improve biological activity. In collaboration with the SGC in Toronto, two of these compounds showed interesting activity toward the lysine methyltransferase SETDB1. The second part of this thesis describes the synthesis of a new family of nucleoside analogues bearing a C2' fluorine and a novel all-carbon quaternary center at C3'. Generation of these molecules required optimization of the glycosylation reaction to incorporate various nucleobases as well as modifications to the substituents on the sugar backbone. This resulted in the synthesis of more than twenty analogues including pronucleotides. The biological activity of these molecules was determined in collaboration with Pre Mona Nemer’s laboratory at the University of Ottawa. Such nucleoside analogues have shown interesting activity against pancreatic cancer cell lines.

Keyphrases: SETDB1, Cancer, Glycosylation, Nucleoside analogues, S-adenosyl-L-methionine, Methyltransferases, Quaternary center, Pronucleotides, Pancreas, Glycosylation, Diastereoselectivity
Evolution of diaphragmatic function in children under mechanical ventilation

Introduction : Diaphragmatic dysfunction is highly prevalent in adult critical care and is associated with worse outcomes. There is at present no recognized method to assess diaphragmatic function in children under mechanical ventilation (MV) and no study describing its evolution over time in this population. Methods : In this work, we have assessed the contractile function of the diaphragm in children under invasive MV in the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) and in the operating room (OR). This was done by simultaneously recording airway pressure at the endotracheal tube (Paw) and electrical activity of the diaphragm (EAdi) over consecutive spontaneous breaths during brief airway occlusion maneuvers. In order to account for central respiratory drive, a neuro-mechanical efficiency ratio (NME, Paw/EAdi) was first computed and then validated using variability analysis. Diaphragmatic function was then compared between the two populations and its evolution over time in the PICU group described. Results : Median NME was the most reliable measure of diaphragmatic function with a coefficient of variation of 23.7% and 21.1% in the PICU and OR groups, respectively. NME in the PICU group after 21 hours of MV (1.80 cmH2O/μV, IQR 1.25–2.39) was significantly lower than in the OR group (3.65 cmH2O/μV, IQR 3.45–4.24, p = 0.015). In the PICU group, NME did not decrease significantly over time under MV (correlation coefficient -0.011, p = 0.133). Conclusion : Diaphragmatic function can be measured at the bedside of children under MV using brief airway occlusions. Diaphragm efficiency was significantly higher in healthy controls than in a cohort of critically ill children, but it was stable over time under MV in this group with preserved respiratory drive. In the future, the relative contributions of critical illness and mechanical ventilation on diaphragmatic function should be better characterized before evaluating potential interventions aimed at protecting the diaphragm.

Keyphrases: mechanical ventilation, diaphragm, diaphragmatic dysfunction, electrical activity of the diaphragm, pediatrics, children, intensive care
Insights from adolescent athletes concerning the acquisition and dissemination of concussion information

Experts have noted that the safety of athletes would be improved if they were better informed about concussions. The purpose of this study was to address this issue by acquiring adolescent athletes’ insights about concussions. The research questions guiding this study were: How do adolescent athletes acquire information about concussions? Who or what influences adolescent athletes’ knowledge of concussions? How would adolescent athletes prefer to be educated about concussions? The participants were nine male and nine female adolescent athletes (N = 18) aged 15 to 18 years who competed on a varsity sport team from the same urban Canadian high school. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with each participant and the qualitative data were analyzed using hierarchical content analysis. Results revealed the majority of adolescent athletes acquired information about concussions through interactions with peers and family members, sports media reports, and school projects. The participants also indicated a preference towards interactive forms of concussion education that involve audiovisual components, discussions, and case studies of concussed athletes. Findings from this study may be of interest to health and educational professionals who are responsible for young athletes’ safety and well being, as well as for researchers working in this domain.

Keyphrases: High school sport, Qualitative research, Traumatic brain injury, Knowledge translation
Estimateur bootstrap de la variance d'un estimateur de quantile en contexte de population finie

This thesis introduces smoothed pseudo-population bootstrap methods for the purposes of variance estimation and the construction of confidence intervals for finite population quantiles. In an i.i.d. context, Hall et al. (1989) have shown that resampling from a smoothed estimate of the distribution function instead of the usual empirical distribution function can improve the convergence rate of the bootstrap variance estimator of a sample quantile. We extend the smoothed bootstrap to the survey sampling framework by implementing it in pseudo-population bootstrap methods. Given a kernel function and a bandwidth, it consists of smoothing the pseudo-population from which bootstrap samples are drawn using the original sampling design. Two designs are discussed, namely simple random sampling and Poisson sampling. The implementation of the proposed algorithms requires the specification of the bandwidth. To do so, we develop a plug-in selection method along with grid search selection methods based on bootstrap estimates of two performance metrics. We present the results of a simulation study which provide empirical evidence that the smoothed approach is more efficient than the standard approach for estimating the variance of a quantile estimator together with mixed results regarding confidence intervals.

Keyphrases: Quantile estimation, Variance estimation, Confidence intervals, Survey sampling, Pseudo-population bootstrap methods, Smoothed bootstrap, Smoothing parameter
Développement d’un outil électronique d’aide à la prise en charge des patients non adhérents aux médicaments à usage chronique adapté aux besoins des pharmaciens communautaires

Community pharmacists have direct access at all times to prescription refills information and have regular interactions with their patients. Therefore, they are in a unique position to promote optimal medication use. It would therefore be relevant to develop an electronic tool adapted to pharmacists’ needs (e-AdPharm) to provide medication adherence support to patients treated for chronic diseases. This project was conducted according to a mixed study design. First, an invitation to complete a web-based survey was published online through different platforms to describe how community pharmacists in Quebec identify non-adherent patients, monitor medication use, and promote optimal medication adherence. The survey results show that the most common method to identify non-adherent patients was to check gaps between prescription refills whereas the most common barriers to identifying non-adherent patients were lack of time and lack of prescriptions and refills information. The most common intervention to promote adherence was patients’ counselling whereas the most common barriers to intervene were anticipation of a negative reaction from patients and lack of time. Second, four focus groups were organized to design a prototype of an electronic tool adapted to community pharmacists’ needs to provide medication adherence support to patients. Pharmacists wanted a table displaying medication adherence measures for chronic conditions with a color code representing adherence level. They also stressed the importance to have a structured section enabling them to continuously document the interventions made, needs for patients’ follow-ups and non-adherence causes.

Keyphrases: Intervention, Medication adherence, Community pharmacy, Medication therapy management, Electronic tool
Pharmacocinétique de population du candesartan chez des patients atteints d’insuffisance cardiaque chronique

Context: Heart failure (HF) is a clinical condition that causes pathological changes all over the body affecting hence the pharmacokinetic of drugs.  Population pharmacokinetic modeling (Pop-PK) consists in applying non-linear mixed-effects models to characterize treatment exposure and quantify PK parameters variability.     Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the pharmacokinetic (PK) of candesartan in HF patients while examining statistically and clinically significant covariates on estimated clearance using population pharmacokinetics (Pop-PK) modeling approach.  Methods: Data from a prospective, multicenter, open label, pharmacogenomic study were available for this analysis. Modeling and simulations were conducted using Nonlinear Mixed-Effect Modeling software NONMEM. Preliminary selection of covariates was accomplished with statistical tests (linear regression and ANOVA). Final model development was performed using forward/backward selection approach on the preliminarily selected covariates.  Results: A total of 281 Caucasian patients were included to develop the Pop-PK model. Candesartan data were characterized by a 1 compartment model with first order absorption and lag time. Weight, age, N-terminal pro b-type natriuretic peptide (NT_proBNP), estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), diabetes, use of furosemide and sex were the preliminarily selected covariates for apparent clearance (CL/F). The final model developed for apparent clearance is represented by the following equation:  CL/F (L/h) = 8.63*(Weight/82.45)0.963 * (eGFR/74)0.56 * (0.682) Diabetes * EXP0.138  Simulations revealed that an important decrease in oral clearance (decrease of more than 25%) is obtained with the combination of the significant factors retained in the final model (patients having low weight with moderately to severely impaired renal function and diabetic with mildly to moderately impaired renal function). Patients having these combinations in our database were found to achieve comparable concentrations to the rest of patients despite tolerating only lower doses.   Conclusion: Population pharmacokinetic modeling provided an effective approach to characterize the PK of candesartan in HF and to identify a subpopulation at potential risk of high exposure. Weight, eGFR and diabetes are independent predictors of candesartan clearance in patients with HF. Considering these factors, a more individualized approach of candesartan dosing is needed in HF patients.

Keyphrases: Candesartan, Pop-PK, Heart failure, Population pharmacokinetic modeling, Pharmacokinetic