Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Connexin45 modulates the proliferation of transit-amplifying precursor cells in the mouse subventricular zone

Connexins have been implicated in the regulation of precursor cell migration and proliferation during embryonic development of the mammalian brain. However, their function in postnatal neurogenesis is unclear. Here we demonstrate that connexin (Cx) 45 is expressed in transit-amplifying cells and neuroblasts in the postnatal subventricular zone (SVZ) and modulated the proliferation of SVZ-derived precursor cells in vivo. Thus, overexpression of Cx45 by retroviral injections increased the proliferation of Mash-1–positive transit-amplifying precursor cells in the SVZ. Conversely, conditional deletion of Cx45 in precursor cells decreased proliferation. Finally, we established that Cx45 positively influences cell cycle reentry via ATP signaling that involves intracellular calcium stores and ERK1/2 signaling.
The Politicization of Climate Change and Polarization in the American Public's Views of Global Warming, 2001–2010

We examine political polarization over climate change within the American public by analyzing data from 10 nationally representative Gallup Polls between 2001 and 2010. We find that liberals and Democrats are more likely to report beliefs consistent with the scientific consensus and express personal concern about global warming than are conservatives and Republicans. Further, the effects of educational attainment and self-reported understanding on global warming beliefs and concern are positive for liberals and Democrats, but are weaker or negative for conservatives and Republicans. Last, significant ideological and partisan polarization has occurred on the issue of climate change over the past decade.
You Spin Me Right Round: Cross-Relationship Variability in Interpersonal Emotion Regulation

Individuals use a range of interpersonal emotion regulation strategies to influence the feelings of others, e.g., friends, family members, romantic partners, work colleagues. But little is known about whether people vary their strategy use across these different relational contexts. We characterize and measure this variability as “spin,” i.e., the extent of dispersion in a person’s interpersonal emotion regulation strategy use across different relationships, and focus on two key questions. First, is spin adaptive or maladaptive with regard to personal well-being and relationship quality? Second, do personality traits that are considered important for interpersonal functioning (i.e., empathy, attachment style) predict spin? The data used in this study is drawn from a large online survey. A key contribution of this study is to reveal that people who varied the type of strategies they used across relationships (i.e., those with high spin) had lower positive mood, higher emotional exhaustion, and less close relationships. A further key contribution is to show that spin was associated with low empathic concern and perspective taking and high anxious attachment style. High variability in interpersonal emotion regulation strategies across relationships therefore appears to be maladaptive both personally and socially.
Adapted group-based dialectical behaviour therapy for binge eating in a practicing clinic: clinical outcomes and attrition.

Research evidence has been accumulating for the efficacy of dialectical behaviour therapy (DBT) for binge eating. However, support for its effectiveness and transportability beyond efficacy trials is lacking. The current study evaluated the feasibility of group-based DBT for binge eating within the context of an operating community clinic. Women ages 24-49 (M = 39.60, SD = 9.53) with either subthreshold and full-threshold binge eating disorder or bulimia nervosa formed the group and comprised the sample (n = 5 treatment completers). Positive outcomes included significant improvement in both binge eating and secondary outcomes with the Eating Disorder Inventory subscales of Bulimia, Ineffectiveness, Perfectionism and Interpersonal Distrust. Attrition was elevated compared with previous efficacy trials, suggesting the need for increased attention to how to improve retention within routine practice settings. Given our limited sample size, these findings are viewed as promising but preliminary.
Identification of TonB homologs in the family Enterobacteriaceae and evidence for conservation of TonB-dependent energy transduction complexes

The transport of Fe(III)-siderophore complexes and vitamin B12 across the outer membrane of Escherichia coli requires the TonB-dependent energy transduction system. A set of murine monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) was generated against an E. coli TrpC-TonB fusion protein to facilitate structure and function studies. In the present study, the epitopes recognized by these MAbs were mapped, and their distribution in gram-negative organisms was examined. Cross-species reactivity patterns obtained against TonB homologs of known sequence were used to refine epitope mapping, with some epitopes ultimately confirmed by inhibition experiments using synthetic polypeptides. Epitopes recognized by this set of MAbs were conserved in TonB homologs for 9 of 12 species in the family Enterobacteriaceae (including E. coli), including previously unidentified TonB homologs in Shigella, Citrobacter, Proteus, and Kluyvera species. These homologs were also detected by a polyclonal alpha-TrpC-TonB serum that additionally recognized the known Yersinia enterocolitica TonB homolog and a putative TonB homolog in Edwardsiella tarda. These antibody preparations failed to detect the known TonB homologs of either Pseudomonas putida or Haemophilus influenzae but did identify potential TonB homologs in several other nonenteric gram-negative species. In vivo chemical cross-linking experiments demonstrated that in addition to TonB, auxiliary components of the TonB-dependent energy transduction system are broadly conserved in members of the family Enterobacteriaceae, suggesting that the TonB system represents a common system for high-affinity active transport across the gram-negative outer membrane.
Policy Gradients with Variance Related Risk Criteria

Managing risk in dynamic decision problems is of cardinal importance in many fields such as finance and process control. The most common approach to defining risk is through various variance related criteria such as the Sharpe Ratio or the standard deviation adjusted reward. It is known that optimizing many of the variance related risk criteria is NP-hard. In this paper we devise a framework for local policy gradient style algorithms for reinforcement learning for variance related criteria. Our starting point is a new formula for the variance of the cost-to-go in episodic tasks. Using this formula we develop policy gradient algorithms for criteria that involve both the expected cost and the variance of the cost. We prove the convergence of these algorithms to local minima and demonstrate their applicability in a portfolio planning problem.
Photon tagged correlations in heavy ion collisions

A detailed study of various two-particle correlation functions involving photons and neutral pions is presented in proton-proton and lead-lead collisions at the LHC energy. The aim is to use these correlation functions to quantify the effect of the medium (in lead-lead collisions) on the jet decay properties. The calculations are carried out at the leading order in QCD but the next-to-leading order corrections are also discussed. The competition between different production mechanisms makes the connection between the jet energy loss spectrum and the γ−π0 correlations somewhat indirect while the γ−γ correlations have a clearer relation to the jet fragmentation properties.
Evolution of the Bipolar Mating System of the Mushroom Coprinellus disseminatus From Its Tetrapolar Ancestors Involves Loss of Mating-Type-Specific Pheromone Receptor Function

Mating incompatibility in mushroom fungi is controlled by the mating-type loci. In tetrapolar species, two unlinked mating-type loci exist (A and B), whereas in bipolar species there is only one locus. The A and B mating-type loci encode homeodomain transcription factors and pheromones and pheromone receptors, respectively. Most mushroom species have a tetrapolar mating system, but numerous transitions to bipolar mating systems have occurred. Here we determined the genes controlling mating type in the bipolar mushroom Coprinellus disseminatus. Through positional cloning and degenerate PCR, we sequenced both the transcription factor and pheromone receptor mating-type gene homologs from C. disseminatus. Only the transcription factor genes segregate with mating type, discounting the hypothesis of genetic linkage between the A and B mating-type loci as the causal origin of bipolar mating behavior. The mating-type locus of C. disseminatus is similar to the A mating-type locus of the model species Coprinopsis cinerea and encodes two tightly linked pairs of homeodomain transcription factor genes. When transformed into C. cinerea, the C. disseminatus A and B homologs elicited sexual reactions like native mating-type genes. Although mating type in C. disseminatus is controlled by only the transcription factor genes, cellular functions appear to be conserved for both groups of genes.
Inactivation of Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts and Clostridium perfringens spores by a mixed-oxidant disinfectant and by free chlorine

Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts and Clostridium perfringens spores are very resistant to chlorine and other drinking-water disinfectants. Clostridium perfringens spores have been suggested as a surrogate indicator of disinfectant activity against Cryptosporidium parvum and other hardy pathogens in water. In this study, an alternative disinfectant system consisting of an electrochemically produced mixed-oxidant solution (MIOX; LATA Inc.) was evaluated for inactivation of both Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts and Clostridium perfringens spores. The disinfection efficacy of the mixed-oxidant solution was compared to that of free chlorine on the basis of equal weight per volume concentrations of total oxidants. Batch inactivation experiments were done on purified oocysts and spores in buffered, oxidant demand-free water at pH 7 an 25 degrees C by using a disinfectant dose of 5 mg/liter and contact times of up to 24 h. The mixed-oxidant solution was considerably more effective than free chlorine in activating both microorganisms. A 5-mg/liter dose of mixed oxidants produced a > 3-log10-unit (> 99.9%) inactivation of Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts and Clostridium perfringens spores in 4 h. Free chlorine produce no measurable inactivation of Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts by 4 or 24 h, although Clostridium perfringens spores were inactivated by 1.4 log10 units after 4 h. The on-site generation of mixed oxidants may be a practical and cost-effective system of drinking water disinfection protecting against even the most resistant pathogens, including Cryptosporidium oocysts.
Dietary habits of the hypertensive population of Spain: accordance with the DASH diet and the Mediterranean diet

Objectives: Dietary treatment is appropriate for all patients with hypertension. However, only a few population-based studies have evaluated the diet of hypertensive individuals, and none of them has been conducted in Europe. This study examined accordance with the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet and the Mediterranean diet in the hypertensive population of Spain. Methods: A cross-sectional study conducted in 2008–2010 among 12 948 individuals representative of the Spanish population aged at least 18 years. Blood pressure was measured with validated devices under standardized conditions. Habitual food consumption was assessed with a computerized diet history. DASH accordance was defined as at least 4.5 points on a score using nine nutrient targets, and Mediterranean diet accordance as at least 9 points on the Mediterranean Diet Adherence Screener score. Results: Among the diagnosed hypertensive individuals, 17.3% [95% confidence interval (CI) 15.4–19.2%] had a DASH-accordant diet, and 17.2% (95% CI 15.4–19.1%) had a Mediterranean-accordant diet. The frequency of DASH accordance increased with age, was higher among women and hypercholesterolaemic individuals, and lower in current smokers. Similar results were found for Mediterranean diet accordance. Only 60% of the diagnosed hypertensive individuals reported receiving and following a diet prescribed to control hypertension; this group showed a better accordance with the DASH diet [age and sex-adjusted odds ratio (aOR) 1.43; 95% CI 1.08–1.88]. As compared with the 1518 hypertensive individuals unaware of their condition, those who were diagnosed showed a similar frequency of accordance with the DASH diet (aOR 1.08; 95% CI 0.87–1.34) and the Mediterranean diet (aOR 0.98; 95% CI 0.79–1.20). Conclusion: The diet of hypertensive individuals in Spain has a low accordance with the DASH and Mediterranean dietary patterns. The similarity in healthy-diets accordance between the diagnosed and undiagnosed hypertensive individuals suggests that nutritional interventions in hypertensive patients are poor, a problem that should be compellingly addressed.
No-Trade in the Laboratory

We construct laboratory financial markets in which subjects can trade an asset whose value is unknown. Subjects receive private clues about the asset value and then set bid and ask prices at which they are willing to buy or to sell from the other participants. In some of our markets (experimental treatments), there are gains from trade, while in others there are no gains: trade is zero sum. Celebrated no-trade theorems state that differences in private information alone cannot explain trade in the zero sum case. We study whether purely informational trade is eliminated in our experimental markets with no gains. The comparison of our results for gains and no-gains treatments shows that subjects fail to reach the no-trade outcome by pure introspection, but they approach it over time through market feedback and learning. Furthermore, the less noisy the clue-asset relationship is, the closer trade comes to being eliminated entirely.
Scaling limits for minimal and random spanning trees in two dimensions

A general formulation is presented for continuum scaling limits of stochastic spanning trees. A spanning tree is expressed in this limit through a consistent collection of subtrees, which includes a tree for every finite set of endpoints in ℝd. Tightness of the distribution, as δ0, is established for the following two-dimensional examples: the uniformly random spanning tree on δℤ2, the minimal spanning tree on δℤ2 (with random edge lengths), and the Euclidean minimal spanning tree on a Poisson process of points in ℝ2 with density δ−2. In each case, sample trees are proven to have the following properties, with probability 1 with respect to any of the limiting measures: (i) there is a single route to infinity (as was known for δ>0); (ii) the tree branches are given by curves which are regular in the sense of Holder continuity; (iii) the branches are also rough, in the sense that their Hausdorff dimension exceeds 1; (iv) there is a random dense subset of ℝ2, of dimension strictly between 1 and 2, on the complement of which (and only there) the spanning subtrees are unique with continuous dependence on the endpoints; (v) branching occurs at countably many points in ℝ2; and (vi) the branching numbers are uniformly bounded. The results include tightness for the loop-erased random walk in two dimensions. The proofs proceed through the derivation of scale-invariant power bounds on the probabilities of repeated crossings of annuli. ©1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Random Struct. Alg. , 15, 319–367, 1999
MicroRNA-Mediated Suppression of Oncolytic Adenovirus Replication in Human Liver

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are important and ubiquitous regulators of gene expression that can suppress their target genes by translational inhibition as well as mRNA destruction. Cell type-specific miRNA expression patterns have been successfully exploited for targeting the expression of experimental and therapeutic gene constructs, for example to reduce pathogenic effects of cancer virotherapy in normal tissues. In order to avoid liver damage associated with systemic or intrahepatic delivery of oncolytic adenoviruses we have introduced the concept of suppressing adenovirus replication in hepatic cells by inserting target elements for the liver-specific miR122 into the viral genome. Here we show using ex vivo cultured tissue specimens that six perfectly complementary miR122 target sites in the 3′ untranslated region of the viral E1A gene are sufficient in the absence of any other genetic modifications to prevent productive replication of serotype 5 adenovirus (Ad5) in normal human liver. This modification did not compromise the replicative capacity of the modified virus in cancer tissue derived from a colon carcinoma liver metastasis or its oncolytic potency in a human lung cancer xenograft mouse model. Unlike wild-type Ad5, the modified virus did not result in increased serum levels of liver enzymes in infected mice. These results provide a strong preclinical proof of concept for the use of miR122 target sites for reducing the risk of liver damage caused by oncolytic adenoviruses, and suggest that ectopic miR122 target elements should be considered as an additional safety measure included in any therapeutic virus or viral vector posing potential hazard to the liver.
Changes in the frequency and return level of high ozone pollution events over the eastern United States following emission controls

In order to quantify the impact of recent efforts to abate surface ozone (O3) pollution, we analyze changes in the frequency and return level of summertime (JJA) high surface O3 events over the eastern United States (US) from 1988–1998 to 1999–2009. We apply methods from extreme value theory (EVT) to maximum daily 8-hour average ozone (MDA8 O3) observed by the Clean Air Status and Trends Network (CASTNet) and define O3 extremes as days on which MDA8 O3 exceeds a threshold of 75 ppb (MDA8 O3>75). Over the eastern US, we find that the number of summer days with MDA8 O3>75 declined on average by about a factor of two from 1988–1998 to 1999–2009. The applied generalized Pareto distribution (GPD) fits the high tail of MDA8 O3 much better than a Gaussian distribution and enables the derivation of probabilistic return levels (describing the probability of exceeding a value x within a time window T) for high O3 pollution events. This new approach confirms the significant decline in both frequency and magnitude of high O3 pollution events over the eastern US during recent years reported in prior studies. Our analysis of 1-yr and 5-yr return levels at each station demonstrates the strong impact of changes in air quality regulations and subsequent control measures (e.g., the ‘NOx SIP Call’), as the 5-yr return levels of the period 1999–2009 correspond roughly to the 1-yr return levels of the earlier time period (1988–1998). Regionally, the return levels dropped between 1988–1998 and 1999–2009 by about 8 ppb in the Mid-Atlantic (MA) and Great Lakes (GL) regions, while the strongest decline, about 13 ppb, is observed in the Northeast (NE) region. Nearly all stations (21 out of 23) have 1-yr return levels well below 100 ppb and 5-yr return levels well below 110 ppb in 1999–2009. Decreases in eastern US O3 pollution are largest after full implementation of the nitrogen oxide (NOx) reductions under the ‘NOx SIP Call’. We conclude that the application of EVT methods provides a useful approach for quantifying return levels of high O3 pollution in probabilistic terms, which may help to guide long-term air quality planning.
Evaluation of lipid peroxidation and antioxidants' status in metabolic syndrome.

BACKGROUND Metabolic syndrome is a constellation of physical conditions and metabolic abnormalities, commonly occurring together, that increases an individual's risk for development of type 2 diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular diseases. Oxidative stress is associated with diabetes, hypertension and other cardiovascular diseases while the role of oxidative stress in pathogenesis of MS is not clearly defined. OBJECTIVES The study aims to find out the prevalence of metabolic syndrome in faculty and staff members at BP Koirala Institute of Health Sciences, Dharan, Nepal and to evaluate oxidative stress levels in subjects with metabolic syndrome. METHODS 118 healthy participants working at B. P. Koirala Institute of Health Sciences, Dharan, Nepal were selected at random for this cross-sectional study and blood samples were collected for the estimation of the following biochemical analytes; fasting glucose; triglycerides; total cholesterol; high density lipoprotein cholesterol; Albumin; uric acid; Bilirubin; Malondialdehyde; Catalase; Glutathione peroxidase; Superoxide Dismutase; Glutathione; vitamin C; and lastly vitamin E. Results In this cross-sectional study, 39% subjects were diagnosed with metabolic syndrome , particularly in sedentary subjects. There was no difference in oxidative stress except significant rises in serum uric acid levels and catalase activity in subjects diagnosed with metabolic syndrome . CONCLUSION The prevalence of metabolic syndrome is higher without oxidative stress in this study, which suggests that oxidative stress does not contribute to the pathogenesis of MS in otherwise healthy subjects.
Efficacy of a herbal extract gel in the treatment of gingivitis: A clinical study

Background: Chronic gingivitis is the most prevalent in all dentate animals. Regular methods for controlling it have been found to be ineffective, which have paved the way for the use of herbal products as an adjunctive to mechanical therapy as they are free to untoward effects and hence can be used for a long period of time. Objective: The antigingivitis effect of a gel containing pomegranate extract was evaluated using a 21-day trial in patients with chronic gingivitis. Materials and Methods: Forty patients participated in this randomized clinical study, carried out in four phases of 7 days each over 21 days. The patients were randomly assigned to four groups: First group was treated with mechanical debridement and an experimental gel and the second group with mechanical debridement and a control gel; the third group wasn’t subjected to mechanical debridement and only experimental gel was used. The fourth group was treated with control gel only. All the groups were subjected to various clinical and microbiological parameters to evaluate the antiplaque and antigingivitis effect of the pomegranate extract. Results: The group which used the pomegranate gel along with mechanical debridement showed significant improvement in all the clinical and microbiological parameters included in the study when compared with the other three groups. Conclusion: Hence it can be concluded that the pomegranate gel when used as an adjunct with mechanical debridement was efficient in treating gingivitis.
Antigen-like effects of monoclonal antibodies directed at receptors on human T cell clones

Recent studies suggested that the clonally unique Ti epitopes defined by non-cross-reactive monoclonal antibodies might represent the variable regions of the antigen receptor. Here we determine whether such anti-Ti antibodies could trigger clonal T cell activation. Anticlonotypic monoclonal antibodies to the 49/43-kdalton heterodimer of a given clone or antibodies to the 20/25-kdalton membrane associated monomorphic T3 molecule selectively induce proliferation and IL-2 secretion when linked to a solid support. In contrast, anti-T4 and anti- T8 antibodies under the same conditions have no effect. In conclusion, these results imply that anticlonotypic antibody functions in a fashion analogous to antigen and further support the notion that the T3-Ti molecular complex represents the antigen receptor on human T lymphocytes.