Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Molecular physiology of plasma cell differentiation

Plasma cells are central to an effective immune response, being the sole producers of the antibodies, yet they can cause severe disease in autoimmunity and multiple myeloma. Therefore their differentiation and survival must be tightly regulated. In this work I investigated some of the mechanisms regulating plasma cell differentiation and life span. The differentiation of a long lived B cell to a short lived plasma cell entails a profound structural and functional metamorphosis finalized to the massive production of immunoglobulins (Ig). Exuberant Ig synthesis causes several types of stress in differentiating plasma cells. My work deals with the characterization of the C/EBP transcription factor CHOP in plasma cell differentiation. Comparing differentiation of B cells harvested from chop-l- mice to wt cells I found a mild phenotype, consisting in an increased accumulation of intracellular IgM aggregates and a decreased secretion of this antibody class, in vitro and in vivo. These findings reveal a novel role for CHOP in ensuring optimal functionality of the secretory pathway in the course of plasma cell differentiation. CHOP is involved in the differentiation of various cell types, where it interacts with other members of the C/EBP family favoring or impeding differentiation and it is an important factor in the ER stress response named unfolded protein response (UPR), in which it plays a pro-apoptotic role in most of the systems tested. I extended my investigation on the functions of CHOP in B cells by examining the resistance to ER stress-induced apoptosis in wt and in chop-l- cells. Surprisingly, I observed that in B cells CHOP expression in the UPR plays an anti-apoptotic function. Altogether my data suggest a cell-type specific role for CHOP in B cells and add information on the multi-faceted role of this transcription factor. Most plasma cells exhibit a short life span. The mechanisms at the basis of plasma cell apoptosis are still obscure. I propose that multiple forms of stress, linked to the massive antibody production, contribute to plasma cell death.
Phonetic Cues to Stress and Accent inSpanish

The significance of pitch, duration and intensity cues to lexical stress in Spanish was first discussed in 1964 (Contreras 1964, Navarro Tomas 1964). While duration and intensity measurements were easy to correlate with tonic syllables, the challenge was to explain the pitch variation displayed by stressed syllables spoken in different intonational contexts. For example, the stressed syllable “le” in “Malena” has a rising pitch accent in “Malena miraba la luna” (Figure 1). However, in “? Malena? ”, “le” displays a falling pitch accent, and in “Mira la luna – dijo Malena”, “le” shows a flat pitch contour. Yet, the syllable “le” is always perceived as the stressed syllable.
University of Massachusetts Amherst

The United States mandated a Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP) food safety standard for seafood in 1997. Panel model results for the period 1990 to 2004 suggest that HACCP introduction had a negative and significant impact on overall seafood imports from the top 33 suppliers. While the effect for developed countries was positive, the negative HACCP effect for developing countries supports the view of “standards-as-barriers” versus ”standards-as-catalysts. ” When the effect is analyzed at an individual country level a different perspective emerges. Regardless of development status, leading seafood exporters generally gained sales volume with the U.S., while most other smaller trading partners faced losses or stagnant sales.
Neural and endocranial anatomy of Triassic phytosaurian reptiles and convergence with fossil and modern crocodylians

Phytosaurs are a clade of large, carnivorous pseudosuchian archosaurs from the Late Triassic with a near cosmopolitan distribution. Their superficial resemblance to longirostrine (long-snouted) crocodylians, such as gharials, has often been used in the past to infer ecological and behavioural convergence between the two groups. Although more than thirty species of phytosaur are currently recognised, little is known about the endocranial anatomy of this clade. Here, we describe the endocranial anatomy (including the brain, inner ear, neurovascular structures and sinus systems) of the two non-mystriosuchine phytosaurs Parasuchus angustifrons (=“Paleorhinus angustifrons”) and Ebrachosuchus neukami from the Late Triassic of Germany based on digital reconstructions. Results show that the endocasts of both taxa are very similar to each other in their rostrocaudally elongate morphology, with long olfactory tracts, weakly demarcated cerebral regions and dorsoventrally short endosseous labyrinths. In addition, several sinuses, including large antorbital sinuses and prominent dural venous sinuses, were reconstructed. Comparisons with the endocranial anatomy of derived phytosaurs indicate that Phytosauria is united by the presence of elongate olfactory tracts and longitudinally arranged brain architecture—characters which are also shared with Crocodyliformes. However, a substantial morphological variability is observed in the cephalic and pontine flexure and the presence of a pineal organ across the different phytosaur species. These results suggest that the endocranial anatomy in Phytosauria generally follows a plesiomorphic pattern, with moderate variation within the clade likely resulting from divergent sensory and behavioural adaptations.
Teaching about thermal expansion: investigating the effectiveness of a cognitive bridging approach

ABSTRACT Background: It is widely known that for many students it is very difficult to correctly predict how thermal expansion affects the appearance of a metal plate with a circular hole. Interviews with school teachers show that the source of this difficulty could stem from the fact that students’ internal visualizations of an arbitrary object’s thermal expansion often boil down to visualizing changes along one dimension only. Purpose: In this study, we investigated how students’ mental models about one-dimensional expansion can be extended for purposes of running mental simulations about expansion along two dimensions. Sample: To that end a pretest-posttest quasi-experiment has been conducted, with 100 students in the control group and 95 students in the experimental group. Design and methods: Whereas control group students received traditional instruction with a focus on formal representations, in the experimental group the students were led to draw an analogy between heating of a straight rod and a circular rod of same length, whereby the internal structure of the rods was represented by springs. Results: Eventually, it has been found that students from the experimental group were significantly more successful at predicting the effects of thermal expansion, especially within contexts of objects with holes. Conclusion: Analogies and extreme case reasoning can be effectively used for helping the students to correctly transfer their mental models about one-dimensional expansion to situations that require reasoning about expansion along two dimensions.
The complex X-ray spectrum of NGC 4507

XMM-Newton and Chandra/HETG spectra of the Compton-thin (NH ∼ 4 × 10 23 cm −2 ) Seyfert 2 galaxy, NGC 4507, are analyzed and discussed. The main results are: a) the soft X-ray emission is rich in emission lines; an (at least) two-zone photoionization region is required to explain the large range of ionization states; b) the 6.4 keV iron line is likely emitted from Compton-thick matter, implying the presence of two circumnuclear cold regions, one Compton-thick (the emitter), one Compton-thin (the cold absorber); c) evidence of an Fe  absorption line is found in the Chandra/HETG spectrum. The column density of the ionized absorber is estimated to be a few ×10 22 cm −2 .
Withanolides-Induced Breast Cancer Cell Death Is Correlated with Their Ability to Inhibit Heat Protein 90

Withanolides are a large group of steroidal lactones found in Solanaceae plants that exhibit potential anticancer activities. We have previously demonstrated that a withanolide, tubocapsenolide A, induced cycle arrest and apoptosis in human breast cancer cells, which was associated with the inhibition of heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90). To investigate whether other withanolides are also capable of inhibiting Hsp90 and to analyze the structure-activity relationships, nine withanolides with different structural properties were tested in human breast cancer cells MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7 in the present study. Our data show that the 2,3-unsaturated double bond-containing withanolides inhibited Hsp90 function, as evidenced by selective depletion of Hsp90 client proteins and induction of Hsp70. The inhibitory effect of the withanolides on Hsp90 chaperone activity was further confirmed using in vivo heat shock luciferase activity recovery assays. Importantly, Hsp90 inhibition by the withanolides was correlated with their ability to induce cancer cell death. In addition, the withanolides reduced constitutive NF-κB activation by depleting IκB kinase complex (IKK) through inhibition of Hsp90. In estrogen receptor (ER)-positive MCF-7 cells, the withanolides also reduced the expression of ER, and this may be partly due to Hsp90 inhibition. Taken together, our results suggest that Hsp90 inhibition is a general feature of cytotoxic withanolides and plays an important role in their anticancer activity.
Prevalence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease among adult male cigarettes smokers: a community-based study in Jordan

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. The prevalence of COPD among cigarette smokers in the Middle East is not well studied. A prospective descriptive study was performed in the north of Jordan. Male cigarette smokers (≥10 pack-year) aged 35 years and older were recruited from the community. They completed a questionnaire and a postbronchodilator spirometry. Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) criteria (postbronchodilator forced expiratory volume in 1 second <70%) was used to define COPD. A total of 512 subjects completed the study protocol. According to the GOLD criteria, 42 subjects (8.2%) had COPD. Of those, 27 subjects (64.3%) had symptomatic COPD. Using the GOLD criteria, eight subjects (19%) with COPD had mild disease, 24 (57.1%) had moderate disease, eight (19%) had severe disease, and two (4.8%) had very severe disease. Only 10.6% were aware of COPD as a smoking-related respiratory illness, and 6.4% had received counseling about risk for COPD by a physician. Chronic bronchitis (cough for 3 months in 2 consecutive years) was reported by 15% of the subjects, wheezes by 44.1%, and dyspnea by 65.2%. Subjects with COPD reported having more chronic bronchitis 18/42 (42.9%) and wheezing 28/42 (66.7%) than subjects without COPD. The prevalence of COPD increased with increased number of pack-years smoked. In conclusion, COPD prevalence among cigarette-smoking men in Jordan is lower than in the developed world. COPD was largely underdiagnosed, despite the majority of participants being symptomatic and having moderate to severe disease.
Scheduling a triple round robin tournament for the finnish national ice hockey league for players under 20

Generating a schedule for a sports league is an extremely demanding task. This paper presents a method to schedule the Finnish national ice hockey league for players aged under 20. The league plays a rare triple round robin tournament. To obtain a schedule, we sequentially solve four distinct combinatorial problems. The generated schedule is superior to the manual schedule used for the 2009–2010 season. We were able to find a feasible solution with only minor violations in one soft constraint.
Inhibitory and excitatory interhemispheric transfers between motor cortical areas in normal humans and patients with abnormalities of the corpus callosum.

Transcranial magnetic stimulation of the motor cortex was performed in 10 normal subjects and 10 patients with radiographical abnormalities of the corpus callosum. Seven patients had a complete or partial agenesis or hypoplasia of the corpus callosum, two had a thin corpus callosum due to hydrocephalus or white matter degeneration and one had a circumscript contusion lesion of the corpus callosum. The patients served as a clinical model to investigate transcallosal influences on excitatory and inhibitory effects of motor cortex stimulation and to assess the potential diagnostic use of interhemispheric conduction studies and the contribution of interhemispheric interaction on transcranially elicited contralateral excitatory and inhibitory motor responses. Stimulation over one motor cortex suppressed tonic voluntary electromyographic activity in ipsilateral hand muscles in all subjects with preserved anterior half of the trunk of the corpus callosum. Since this suppression was lacking or had a delayed onset latency in patients with absence or abnormalities of the anterior half of the trunk of the corpus callosum it can be concluded that it is due to a transcallosal inhibition (Ti) of the opposite motor cortex mediated by fibres passing through this part of the corpus callosum. In normal subjects Ti had an mean onset latency of 36.1 +/- 3.5 ms (SD) and a duration of 24.5 +/- 3.9 ms. The calculated mean transcallosal conduction time was 13 ms. The threshold of Ti recorded in muscles ipsilateral to stimulation tended to be higher than the one for eliciting excitatory contralateral motor responses (56 +/- 6% versus 46 +/- 10% maximum stimulator output). Cortical thresholds (at rest) for contralateral excitatory hand motor responses were higher in patients with developmental abnormalities of the corpus callosum than in normals (66 +/- 17% versus 46 +/- 10% maximum stimulator output), which probably reflects also a facilitatory transcallosal interaction of both motor cortices in normals. In contrast, facilitation of cortically elicited motor responses in one hand by strong contraction of the other hand was the same in the patients with agenesis of the corpus callosum and normals, which suggests that this facilitatory spread takes place on a spinal rather than on a cortical level. Central motor latencies and amplitudes of contralateral hand motor responses were the same in patients with developmental abnormalities of the corpus callosum and normals (6.1 +/- 0.7 ms versus 6.3 +/- 0.7 ms and 6.7 +/- 2.4 mV versus 6.6 +/- 2.9 mV) so that callosal transfers do not seem to influence corticospinal conduction properties. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Code-switching in the narratives of dual-language Latino preschoolers

ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to explore the use of code-switching in the narratives of dual-language Latino preschoolers, specifically by examining its incidence, types, functions, and grammaticality. Previous work has investigated code-switching in younger children and in older children and adults, but relatively little work has investigated code-switching during the preschool years, an important time for dual-language development. This study tracked the code-switching of 39 Latino DLL preschoolers over three time points: the end of each of their two preschool years, and the beginning of their kindergarten year. At each time point, children shared a wordless picture book narrative. Code-switching in their narratives was coded for incidence, type, function, and grammaticality. Results showed that the number of children who code-switched was relatively small and stable over time, and that most code-switches occurred from Spanish to English. One-word switches, mostly nouns, were the predominant type of code-switching across years. Children used code-switching to serve a variety of functions, and almost all switches adhered to grammatical rules. Results suggest that the preschool age is an important developmental period for code-switching, in which children’s code-switches are simultaneously reflective of those of younger children and associated with more complexity in function and grammaticality.
The role of cytokines in cancer cachexia

A large number of observations point towards cytokines, polypeptides released mainly by immune cells, as the molecules responsible for the metabolic derangements associated with cancer‐bearing states. Indeed, these alterations lead to a pathological state known as cancer cachexia which is, unfortunately, one of the worst effects of malignancy, accounting for nearly a third of cancer deaths. It is characterized by weight loss together with anorexia, weakness, anemia, and asthenia. The complications associated with the appearance of the cachectic syndrome affect both the physiological and biochemical balance of the patient and have effects on the efficiency of the anticancer treatment, resulting in a considerably decreased survival time. At the metabolic level, cachexia is associated with loss of skeletal muscle protein together with a depletion of body lipid stores. The cachectic patient, in addition to having practically no adipose tissue, is basically subject to an important muscle wastage manifested as an excessive nitrogen loss. The metabolic changes are partially mediated by alterations in circulating hormone concentrations (insulin, glucagon, and glucocorticoids in particular) or in their effectiveness. The present study reviews the involvement of different cytokines in the metabolic and physiological alterations associated with tumor burden and cachexia. Among these cytokines, some can be considered as procachectic (such as tumor necrosis factor‐α), while others having opposite effects can be named as anticachectic cytokines. It is the balance between these two cytokine types that finally seems to have a key role in cancer cachexia. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Med Res Rev, 19, No. 3, 223–248, 1999.
Organ-Specific Quantitative Genetics and Candidate Genes of Phenylpropanoid Metabolism in Brassica oleracea

Phenolic compounds are proving to be increasingly important for human health and in crop development, defense and adaptation. In spite of the economical importance of Brassica crops in agriculture, the mechanisms involved in the biosynthesis of phenolic compounds presents in these species remain unknown. The genetic and metabolic basis of phenolics accumulation was dissected through analysis of total phenolics concentration and its individual components in leaves, flower buds, and seeds of a double haploid (DH) mapping population of Brassica oleracea. The quantitative trait loci (QTL) that had an effect on phenolics concentration in each organ were integrated, resulting in 33 consensus QTLs controlling phenolics traits. Most of the studied compounds had organ-specific genomic regulation. Moreover, this information allowed us to propose candidate genes and to predict the function of genes underlying the QTL. A number of previously unknown potential regulatory regions involved in phenylpropanoid metabolism were identified and this study illustrates how plant ontogeny can affect a biochemical pathway.
Target Hafalan sebagai Motivasi Belajar dalam Membentuk Karakter di Lingkungan Pesantren

Education is a place to create a cadre of people who excel cognitive, affective, psychomotor and spiritual. To achieve this goal, it is necessary to have motivation to be able to carry out all educational goals. Building learning motivation within the pesantren environment, including one of which is targeted. Memory memorization that is carried out consistently can be a learning motivation for students. With the growing learning motivation of students, their goals can be easily achieved, including the goals of Islamic education. And one of the goals of Islamic education is to form noble character or character formation. the purpose of this paper is to explain and analyze memorized targets to build students' motivation to form characters in the pesantren environment. This study uses the study of library research, which collects books, journals and research results that are relevant to the theme. memorized targets are adjusted to the age conditions of santri with habituation, exemplary, reward and punishment strategies. the character is formed by refracting to carry out memorization and motivation to carry out with awareness.
A Step toward the Calibration of the Red Giant Branch Tip as a Standard Candle

The absolute I magnitude of the tip of the red giant branch (M) is one of the most promising standard candles actually used in astrophysics as a fundamental pillar for the cosmological distance scale. With the aim of improving the observational basis of its calibration, we have obtained an accurate estimate of the M for the globular cluster ω Centauri, based (1) on the largest photometric database ever assembled for a globular cluster, by Pancino and colleagues, and (2) on a direct distance estimate for ω Cen, recently obtained by Thompson and colleagues from a detached eclipsing binary. The derived value M = -4.04 ± 0.12 provides, at present, the most accurate empirical zero point for the calibration of the M- relation at ~ -1.7. We also derive a new empirical M-[Fe/H] relation based on the large IR data set of red giants in Galactic globular clusters recently presented by Ferraro and colleagues. This database (extending up to [Fe/H] = -0.2) covers a more appropriate metallicity range for extragalactic applications than previous empirical calibrations (which were limited to [Fe/H] ≤ -0.7). The proposed relation is in excellent agreement with the newly determined zero point.
N-(4-hydroxyphenyl)retinamide in the chemoprevention of squamous metaplasia and dysplasia of the bronchial epithelium.

Lung cancer remains the number one cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States. To reduce the mortality associated with this disease, individuals at risk must be identified prior to the development of lung cancer, and effective prevention strategies must be developed. One such strategy is to use retinoids like N-(4-hydroxyphenyl)retinamide (4-HPR), which has been found to possess chemopreventive activities in preclinical studies. In this study, 139 smokers were registered and 82 were randomized onto a double-blinded, placebo-controlled chemoprevention trial of 4-HPR administered p.o. (200 mg once daily). Of these, 70 participants were eligible for response evaluation. Biopsies were obtained at six predetermined sites in the bronchial tree from participants before and at the completion of 6 months of treatment. 4-HPR treatment had no measurable effect on histopathology (squamous metaplasia and dysplasia) in the bronchial epithelium of current smokers. 4-HPR was detected (104.5+/-64.0 ng/ml, mean +/- SD) in the serum of participants, supporting its potential bioavailability. Serum retinol levels decreased markedly (44% of placebo-treated patients) as a consequence of 4-HPR treatment. Notably, the mRNA level of retinoic acid receptor beta, which is typically increased by retinoid treatment, did not change in the bronchial epithelium of 4-HPR-treated participants. Clonal populations of bronchial epithelial cells were detected by analysis of loss of heterozygosity at putative tumor suppressor loci on chromosomes 3p, 9p, and 17p, and these changes were not altered by 4-HPR treatment. In conclusion, at this dose and schedule, 4-HPR was not effective in reversing squamous metaplasia, dysplasia, or genetic and phenotypic abnormalities in the bronchial epithelium of smokers.