Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Microphthalmia-associated Transcription Factor (MITF) Promotes Differentiation of Human Retinal Pigment Epithelium (RPE) by Regulating microRNAs-204/211 Expression*

Background: microRNAs 204/211 regulate retinal pigment epithelial cell phenotype. Results: In RPE, MITF regulates miR-204/211 expression and down-regulation of MITF results in loss of RPE phenotype, which can be prevented by overexpressing miR-204/211. Conclusion: MITF-mediated expression of miR-204/211 directs RPE differentiation. Significance: miR-204/211-based therapeutics may be effective treatments for diseases that involve loss of RPE phenotype. The retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) plays a fundamental role in maintaining visual function and dedifferentiation of RPE contributes to the pathophysiology of several ocular diseases. To identify microRNAs (miRNAs) that may be involved in RPE differentiation, we compared the miRNA expression profiles of differentiated primary human fetal RPE (hfRPE) cells to dedifferentiated hfRPE cells. We found that miR-204/211, the two most highly expressed miRNAs in the RPE, were significantly down-regulated in dedifferentiated hfRPE cells. Importantly, transfection of pre-miR-204/211 into hfRPE cells promoted differentiation whereas adding miR-204/211 inhibitors led to their dedifferentiation. Microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (MITF) is a key regulator of RPE differentiation that was also down-regulated in dedifferentiated hfRPE cells. MITF knockdown decreased miR-204/211 expression and caused hfRPE dedifferentiation. Significantly, co-transfection of MITF siRNA with pre-miR-204/211 rescued RPE phenotype. Collectively, our data show that miR-204/211 promote RPE differentiation, suggesting that miR-204/211-based therapeutics may be effective treatments for diseases that involve RPE dedifferentiation such as proliferative vitreoretinopathy.
Foreign banks in syndicated loan markets q

0378-4266/$ see front matter 2011 Elsevier B.V. A doi:10.1016/j.jbankfin. 2011.02. 023 q We would like to thank Thorsten Beck, Ralph De H Ongena, Beatrice Weder di Mauro, Michael Koetter, a seminar participants at Bar Ilan University and the Eu tion and Development for their helpful comments. E responsibility of the authors. ⇑ Corresponding author. Tel. : +49 228 73 9209; fax E-mail addresses: rainer.haselmann@uni-bonn.de stern.nyu. edu (P. Wachtel). 1 According to the Bank for International Settlements of bank offices are now 38 times larger than 30 years ag BIS locational banking statistics 2009. Foreign banks play a prominent role in syndicated loan markets. In this paper we examine foreign banks’ motives in participating in cross-border deals in 25 European countries. We find that usual explanations of foreign banking activities can only account partly for the high rate of foreign involvement in syndicated loan markets. The usual argument is that foreign banks are at a disadvantage because they lack soft information and thus they tend to lend to more transparent firms compared to their domestic counterparts. We find that this relationship only holds in relatively small financial systems. We illustrate different motivations for the large amount of cross border lending in large developed markets. In these markets foreign banks tend to lend to especially risky borrowers and projects. 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Vertically-aligned graphene flakes on nanoporous templates: morphology, thickness, and defect level control by pre-treatment

Abstract Various morphologies of the vertically-aligned graphene flakes were fabricated on the nanoporous templates treated with metal ions in solutions, as well as coated with a thin gold layer and activated in the low-temperature Ar plasma. The thickness and level of structural defects in the graphene flakes could be effectively controlled by a proper selection of the pre-treatment method. We have also demonstrated that various combinations of the flake thickness and defect levels can be obtained, and the morphology and density of the graphene pattern can be effectively controlled. The result obtained could be of interest for various applications requiring fabrication of large graphene networks with controllable properties.
Enhanced accuracy and reproducibility in reporting of lung scintigrams by a segmental reference chart.

UNLABELLED The diagnostic probability of pulmonary embolic disease is based on the recognition of unmatched segmental perfusion defects. Although interobserver and intraobserver reproducibility have been studied, accuracy has been an elusive goal due to the lack of a gold standard. We investigated the accuracy and reproducibility of reporting in a virtual scintigraphic model of the lungs, with and without the use of a lung segmental reference chart. METHODS A Monte Carlo package was used to model lung scintigraphy from a digital phantom of the human lungs. An ideal lung segmental reference chart was created from the phantom. Five experienced nuclear medicine physicians reported a set of all possible defects involving 100% of a segment, without and with the chart. A further set of defects involving 45%-55% of a segment in the lower lobes was investigated using the chart. RESULTS There was a significant improvement in accuracy (from 48% to 72%) and intraobserver agreement (from 61% to 77%) with the chart. The accuracy of reporting defects in the upper and middle lobes was consistently better than that in the lower lobes. There was no significant difference between the accuracy of reporting large defects and that of reporting moderate defects in the lower lobes. CONCLUSION The lung segmental reference chart significantly improves both the accuracy and reproducibility of reporting lung scintigrams; however, although reporting in the lung bases is improved, absolute accuracy is substantially less than that in the upper and middle lobes. This emphasizes the need for caution because the lung bases are the most common site of embolic disease.
Actigraphically assessed activity in unipolar depression: a comparison of inpatients with and without motor retardation.

OBJECTIVE To compare the activity patterns of inpatients with unipolar depression, who had been divided into groups with and without motor retardation prior to actigraphy monitoring. METHOD Twenty-four-hour actigraphy recordings from 52 consecutively, acutely admitted inpatients with unipolar depression (ICD-10) were compared to recordings from 28 healthy controls. The patients, admitted between September 2011 and April 2012, were separated into 2 groups: 25 with motor retardation and 27 without motor retardation. Twenty-eight healthy controls were also included. Twenty-four-hour recordings, 9-hour daytime sequences, and 64-minute periods of continuous motor activity in the morning and evening were analyzed for mean activity, variability, and complexity. RESULTS Patients with motor retardation had a reduced mean activity level (P = .04) and higher intraindividual variability, as shown by increased standard deviation (SD) (P = .003) and root mean square successive difference (RMSSD) (P = .025), during 24 hours compared to the patients without motor retardation. Both patient groups demonstrated significantly lower mean activity compared to healthy controls (P < .001) as well as higher SD (P < .02) and RMSSD (P < .001) and a higher RMSSD/SD ratio (P = .04). In the active morning period, the patients without motor retardation displayed significantly increased complexity compared to motor-retarded patients (P = .006). CONCLUSIONS The patients with and without motor retardation differ in activity patterns. Findings in depressed inpatients without motor retardation closely resemble those of inpatients with mania.
Class-specific cell death shapes the distribution and pattern of central projection of cat retinal ganglion cells

The development of the nasotemporal division in cat retina was studied. We find that in the normally pigmented neonatal cat significant numbers of ganglion cells of all types in temporal retina project to the contralateral dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus (LGNd); far fewer cells in temporal retina project contralaterally to the LGNd in the normal adult. Thus, most of these cells must be eliminated during development. Experimental interruption of one optic tract in the neonate results in the retrograde degeneration of the ipsilaterally projecting ganglion cells in the temporal retina ipsilateral to the lesion. Consequent to the loss of the ipsilaterally projecting cells in this hemiretina, many of the ganglion cells projecting to the intact contralateral LGNd, which are normally eliminated, survive. Also, unlike in the normal cat, in which very few of the small ganglion cells in temporal retina project contralaterally to the thalamus, in optic tract sectioned (OTX) cats, significant numbers of the smallest ganglion cells in the temporal retina ipsilateral to the lesion project contralaterally to the intact thalamus. In order to make a quantitative comparison of the distributions of ipsilaterally and contralaterally projecting cells in the temporal retinae of normal cats, OTX cats, and neonatal kittens, it was necessary to determine the position of the vertical meridian in all animals. We defined the vertical meridian as the median edge (Stone, 1966). The median edge was determined from the distribution of the most nasally located, ipsilaterally projecting cells in temporal retina. The results indicate that the angle of the vertical meridian (median edge) with respect to the area centralis and optic disc is specified before birth and does not differ in normal cats, OTX cats, or neonatal kittens. Since the location of the vertical meridian does not change with age in postnatal life and is not affected by optic tract section, corresponding regions of retina in the different groups could be compared. A quantitative analysis of ganglion cell density in the temporal retina contralateral to the section, ipsilateral to the intact hemisphere, indicated that there was a reduction in the population of ipsilaterally projecting ganglion cells that was complementary to the abnormally large number of contralaterally projecting cells surviving in the temporal retina ipsilateral to the lesion. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Serologic Proteome Analysis of Borrelia burgdorferi Membrane-Associated Proteins

ABSTRACT Lyme disease, a global health concern, is caused by infection with Borrelia burgdorferi, B. afzelii, or B. garinii. The spirochete responsible for the disease in the United States is B. burgdorferi and is spread by the bite of an infected Ixodes tick. We utilized multiple two-dimensional gel techniques combined with proteomics to reveal the full humoral immune response of mice and Lyme patients to membrane-associated proteins isolated from Borrelia burgdorferi. Our studies indicated that a subset of immunogenic membrane-associated proteins (some new and some previously identified) was recognized by mice experimentally infected with Borrelia burgdorferi either by low-dose needle inoculation or by tick infestation. Moreover, the majority of these immunogenic membrane-associated proteins were recognized by sera from patients diagnosed with early-disseminated Lyme disease. These included RevA, ErpA, ErpP, DbpA, BmpA, FtsZ, ErpB, LA7, OppA I, OppA II, OppA IV, FlhF, BBA64, BBA66, and BB0323. Some immunogens (i.e., BBI36/38) were more reactive with sera from mice than Lyme patients, while additional membrane proteins (i.e., FlaB, P66, LA7, and Hsp90) were recognized more strongly with sera from patients diagnosed with early-localized, early-disseminated, or late (chronic)-stage Lyme disease. We were able to examine the humoral response in Lyme patients in a temporal fashion and to identify the majority of immunoreactive proteins as the disease progresses from early to late stages. This serologic proteome analysis enabled the identification of novel membrane-associated proteins that may serve as new diagnostic markers and, more importantly, as second-generation vaccine candidates for protection against Lyme disease.
Fungal biodiversity--as found in nasal mucus.

The biodiversity of fungi isolated from the nasal mucus of patients suffering from chronic rhinosinusitis and from healthy persons was monitored over 28 months. Mucus samples were obtained by flushing the noses of patients with saline or by endoscopic sinus surgery. Fungi from mucus were cultivated on agar plates. Identification was performed microscopically and by polymerase chain reaction with subsequent sequencing of the ribosomal internal transcribed spacer region. Altogether, 619 strains of fungi were cultivated from 233 subjects. Eighty-one species were identified, with a maximum of nine different species per person. The most prevalent isolates belonged to the genera Penicillium, Aspergillus, Cladosporium, Alternaria and Aureobasidium. Whereas Aspergillus and Penicillium spp. occurred in more or less the same numbers throughout the year, Cladosporium spp. , Alternaria spp. and Aureobasidium pullulans showed a significantly higher occurrence during late summer and early autumn.
Annals of Clinical Microbiology and Antimicrobials Open Access Ertapenem Susceptibility of Extended Spectrum Beta-lactamase-producing Organisms

Background: Infections caused by multiply drug resistant organisms such as extended spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae are increasing. Carbapenems (imipenem and meropenem) are the antibiotics commonly used to treat these agents. There is limited clinical data regarding the efficacy of the newest carbapenem, ertapenem, against these organisms. Ertapenem susceptibility of ESBL-producing E. coli and K. pneumoniae clinical isolates were evaluated and compared to imipenem to determine if imipenem susceptibility could be used as a surrogate for ertapenem susceptibility.
Economic Inequalities in Latin America at the Base of Adverse Health Indicators

There is increasing evidence supporting the existence of a link between income inequalities and health outcomes. The main purpose of this article is to test whether economic inequalities are associated with poor population health in Latin American countries. Multi-country data from 1970 to 2012 were used to assess this question. The results show that the Gini coefficient has a strong correlation with health outcomes. Moreover, multiple linear regression analysis using fixed effects shows that after controlling for gross national income per capita, literacy rate, and health expenditure, the Gini coefficient is independently negatively associated with health outcomes. In Latin American countries, for every percentage point increase in the Gini coefficient, the infant mortality rate grows by 0.467 deaths per 1,000 live births, holding all other variables constant. Additionally, an ordinary least squares estimation model suggests that countries that do not use International Monetary Fund loans perform better on health outcomes. These findings should alert policymakers, elected officials, and the public of the need to fight income inequalities and rethink the role of international financial institutions that dictate state policies.
Race as stigma: positioning the stigmatized as agents, not objects

Using material from three qualitative studies into the social and psychological consequences of racism, this paper explores the insights gained from conceptualizing race as stigma. Not only does this shed light on the construction and contestation of racism in the lives of the research participants, the material presented raises important issues for a social psychology of stigma more generally. These include an assessment of the embodiment of stigma, the ideological construction of stigma within particular histories, the impact of stigma on identity and the ways in which we collectively contest and resist stigma. While acknowledging how stigma, particularly the stigma of race, acts to deny humanity, agency and liberty, I illustrate how stigma is collectively constructed, institutionalized and resisted in social and political relations. I conclude that a crucial part of the psychology of stigma must be a focus on the possibilities for communities to contest and transform representations and practices that stigmatize; that is, we need to explore the possibilities and conditions for stigmatized communities as agents and not (only) as objects or victims of stigma.
Situation-Specific Assertiveness in the Epidemiology of Sexual Victimization Among University Women

Protective and risk factors for sexual victimization were examined in a sample of 274 undergraduate women. Assertiveness specific to situations with the opposite gender was protective at all three assessment times. Prior victimization, alcohol use, poor adjustment (as indicated by depression and anxiety), multiple sexual partners, and insecurity about relationships with the opposite gender were significant risk factors. Prevention efforts might be more effective if (a) behavioral practice of assertiveness was added to informational and attitudinal interventions; (b) assertiveness training focused specifically on relationships with the opposite gender; (c) medical and counseling services routinely assessed for prior victimization and other risk factors, and made appropriate referrals for women with victimization histories; and (d) alcohol education-programs were integrated with acquaintance-rape programs.
Edible films and coatings: tomorrow's packagings: a review.

The quality of food product depends on organoleptic, nutritional, and hygienic characteristics, but these evolve during storage and commercialization. Such changes are mainly due to exchanges between foods and surrounding media, or migrations between the different components in a composite food. Many physical and chemical processes, such as sterilization, high pressure, radiations or actives agents, were developed to steady foods and thus to preserve food quality. However, the use of a performing package is necessary in the ultimate step of the preservation process. Therefore, packaging is preponderent for the durability of food quality. The performance of synthetic packaging materials is appraised by their efficiency to reduce mass transfers between food and storage medium, that is, by the determination of their permeabilities. The constant progress in synthetic packagings, such as resins, cellulosic and plastic films, permitted the use of composite (copolymer) and/or multilayered film packagings, which are able to significantly reduce gas and solute transfers selectively. However, the suitability of plastic films is not universal. The combination of synthetic and edible packagings was proposed to increase the efficiency of food quality preservation by the packaging. 1 In other respects, edible packagings are nonpollutant products because they consist of natural and biodegradable substances from agriculture. Thus, they contribute to the protection of the environment. Over 90 patents and scientific papers concerning the manufacture of edible packaging have been published since 1990. Most of this work deals with water vapor transfers, but some other potential applications exist. Indeed, edible packagings can be used to encapsulate aroma compounds, 2,3,4 antioxydants, antimicrobial agents, 5 pigments, ions that stop browning reactions 6 or nutritional substances such as vitamins. 7
An empirical investigation of the contribution of computer self-efficacy, computer anxiety, and instructors' experience with the use of technology to their intention to use emerging educational technology in traditional classrooms

Over the past decade there has been a shift in the emphasis of emerging educational technology from use in online settings to supporting face-to-face and mixed delivery classes. Although emerging educational technology integration in the classroom has increased in recent years, technology acceptance and usage continue to be problematic for educational institutions. In this predictive study the researcher aimed to predict university instructors' intention to use emerging educational technology in traditional classrooms based on the contribution of computer self-efficacy (CSE), computer anxiety (CA), and experience with the use of technology (EUT), as measured by their contribution to the prediction of behavioral intention (BI). Fifty-six instructors from a small, private university were surveyed to determine their level of CSE, CA, and EUT, and their intention to use emerging educational technology in traditional classrooms. A theoretical model was proposed, and two statistical methods were used to formulate models and test predictive power: Multiple Linear Regression (MLR) and Ordinal Logistic Regression (OLR). It was predicted that CSE, CA, and EUT would have a significant impact on instructors' intention to use emerging educational technology in the classroom. Results showed overall significant models of the three aforementioned factors in predicting instructors' use of emerging educational technology in traditional classrooms. Additionally, results demonstrated that CSE was a significant predictor of the use of emerging educational technology in the classroom, while CA and EUT were not found to be significant predictors. Two important contributions of this study include (1) an investigation of factors that contribute to instructors' acceptance of an emerging educational technology that has been developed specifically to respond to current demands of higher education, and (2) an investigation of key constructs contributing to instructors' intention to use emerging educational technology in the classroom.
Measuring Therapeutic Alliance With Children in Residential Treatment and Therapeutic Day Care

Purpose: This study examined the construct validity and reliability of a therapeutic alliance measure (Children’s Alliance Questionnaire [CAQ]) for children with psychosocial and/or behavioral problems, receiving therapeutic residential care or day care in the Netherlands. Methods: Confirmatory factor analysis of a one-factor model “therapeutic alliance” was conducted on two samples of 115 and 116 children, aged 4–14 years. Reliability analysis and concurrent validity were examined. Results: Results showed a good fit to the data, indicating construct validity of the measures. Cronbach’s α reliability coefficients were good for both alliance measures. Concurrent validity was supported by significant relations between the alliance scale and positive group climate (Group Climate Instrument for Children [GCIC]) and treatment motivation (Adolescent Treatment Motivation Questionnaire). No correlations with negative group climate (GCIC) were found. Discussion: The CAQ can be used as an assessment tool for therapeutic alliance within both residential treatment and therapeutic day care settings for children.
On the Insertion Time of Cuckoo Hashing

Cuckoo hashing is an efficient technique for creating large hash tables with high space utilization and guaranteed constant access times. There, each item can be placed in a location given by any one out of $k$ different hash functions. In this paper we investigate the random-walk heuristic for inserting in an online fashion new items into the hash table. Provided that $k \ge 3$ and that the number of items in the table is below (but arbitrarily close to) the theoretically achievable load threshold, we show a polylogarithmic bound for the maximum insertion time that holds with probability $1-o(1)$ as the size of the table grows large.