Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of C677T Polymorphism of the Methylenetetrahydrofolate Reductase (MTHFR) Gene in various Neurological Disorders

Abstract Background: Genetic risk factors play an important role in neurological disorders. In this case-control study, we examined the C677T polymorphism (rs1801133) in the Methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) gene and its association with three neurodegenerative disorders: The late onset pathology, Alzheimer disease and two early onset ones, Autism and Down syndrome. New evidence suggests that autism may be associated with varied behavioural responses to folate therapy and metabolic anomalies, including those in folate metabolism, that contribute to hypomethylation of DNA. We hypothesis that, MTHFR C677T mutation may be the underlying common risk factor in various neurological disorders leading to impaired one carbon metabolism resulting in similar and severe neuropsychological symptoms. Hence our objective was to evaluate MTHFR C677T polymorphism in different Neurological disorders and compare it with age-matched healthy controls. Method: This case-control study was carried out on 200 samples which included 100 patients with different neurological disorders and 100 healthy individuals without any neurological problems taken as the control group. MTHFR polymorphism was assessed by PCR-RFLP. Results: Results indicated that the C677T MTHFR polymorphism was not significantly different between controls of younger and older age groups. Among the three neurological disorders studied the T allele was associated with autism (TT+CT vs. CC; OR=4.472, 95% CI: 1.605-12.799, p<0.002), but not with the other two conditions. Conclusion: In conclusion, despite the smaller sample size, the C677T polymorphism of MTHFR plays a role in some complex neurodevelopmental disorders and not in others.
On the scaling of sediment transport in the nearshore

Scale relations are necessary to choose proper sediment for physical models. The use of lightweight artificial sediment makes it possible to preserve the Reynolds number, Shields number and relative settling velocity altogether. There is also the possibility to preserve the Shields number in combination with the Dean number which would be more suitable in the case of significant wave breaking. Both cases have significant scale effects. A physical model test showed that the scale relations are useful under restricted conditions.
Optimal sequences and sum capacity of symbol asynchronous CDMA systems

The optimal signature sequences that maximize the sum capacity of a direct sequence code-division multiple-access (CDMA) system are characterized in the general case of symbol delay profile and user power constraints. It is shown that the optimal sum capacity of the symbol asynchronous system equals that of the symbol synchronous system with the same user power constraints. With the optimal signature sequence set, the maximum sum capacity is achieved with white Gaussian input signals. The existence of the optimal signature sequence set is proved by the proposal of an explicit construction method for arbitrary user delay profiles and power constraints.
Japonicone A Suppresses Growth of Burkitt Lymphoma Cells through Its Effect on NF-κB

Purpose: NF-κB, a transcriptional regulator of diverse genes involved in cell survival, proliferation, adhesion, and apoptosis, has been implicated in various malignancies. We discovered a potent natural NF-κB inhibitor, Japonicone A, from the traditional herb Inula japonica Thunb, evaluated its preclinical pharmacology and therapeutic activity, and investigated the underlying mechanisms of action for its antitumor activity. Experimental Design: Various types of cancer and normal cells were exposed to Japonicone A for cytotoxicity screening, followed by determination of cell apoptosis and cell-cycle arrest. Western blotting, immunostaining, and gene reporter assay were used to analyze NF-κB activity. Two xenograft models were used for therapeutic efficacy evaluation. Results: Japonicone A killed cancer cells but had low cytotoxicity to normal cells. Burkitt lymphoma cells were particularly sensitive. Japonicone A inhibited the growth and proliferation of Raji, BJAB, and NAMALWA lymphoma cells and resulted in G2–M phase arrest and apoptosis. Furthermore, exposure of cells to Japonicone A caused inactivation of the TNF-α–TAK1–IKK-NF-κB axis and inhibition of TNF-α–stimulated NF-κB activity and nuclear translocation, followed by downregulation of NF-κB target genes involved in cell apoptosis (Bcl-2, Bcl-xL, XIAP, TRAF2) and in the cell cycle and growth (cyclin D, c-Myc). Moreover, Japonicone A inhibited local growth and dissemination of cancer cells to multiple organs in vivo. Conclusion: Japonicone A exerts significant anticancer effects on Burkitt lymphoma cells in vitro and in vivo through targeting of the NF-κB signaling cascade. These results highlight the potential of Japonicone A as a chemotherapeutic agent and warrant its development as a therapy for lymphomas. Clin Cancer Res; 19(11); 2917–28. ©2013 AACR.
A Simultaneous Equations Analysis of Analysts' Forecast Bias and Institutional Ownership

In this paper we use a simultaneous equations model to examine the relationship between analysts' forecasting decisions and institutions' investment decisions. Neglecting their interaction results in model misspecification. We find that analysts' optimism concerning a firm's earnings responds positively to changes in the number of institutions holding the firm's stock. At the same time, institutional demand responds positively to increases in analysts' optimism. We also investigate several firm characteristics as determinants of analysts' and institutions' decisions. We conclude that agency-driven behavioral considerations are significant.
Gathering Agents on a Lattice by Coupling Reaction-Diffusion and Chemotaxis

We address the question as to which are the minimal ingredients to obtain a decentralised gathering of agents that move on a lattice. The agents and their environment are described with a stochastic model inspired from biology: the aggregation of the {\em Dictyostelium discoideum} cellular slime mold. The environment is an active lattice, which cells transmit information according to a reaction-diffusion mechanism. The agents trigger excitations randomly; they move by following excitation fronts. We show that despite its simplicity this model exhibits interesting properties of self-organisation and allows to achieve decentralised gathering. Moreover, observations show that the system has interesting robustness properties, as being able to resist to the presence of obstacles on the lattice and to resist to the addition of noise on the moves on the agents.
Response to Comment on "The Involvement of the Orbitofrontal Cortex in the Experience of Regret"

Facing the consequence of a decision we made can trigger emotions like satisfaction, relief, or regret, which reflect our assessment of what was gained as compared to what would have been gained by making a different decision. These emotions are mediated by a cognitive process known as counterfactual thinking. By manipulating a simple gambling task, we characterized a subject's choices in terms of their anticipated and actual emotional impact. Normal subjects reported emotional responses consistent with counterfactual thinking; they chose to minimize future regret and learned from their emotional experience. Patients with orbitofrontal cortical lesions, however, did not report regret or anticipate negative consequences of their choices. The orbitofrontal cortex has a fundamental role in mediating the experience of regret.
A Cross Sectional Study of Prevalence of Temporomandibular Disorders in University Students

Aim – To investigate the prevalence of temporomandibular joint disorder (TMD) among university students. Material and methods – In this cross sectional prospective study, the sample consisted of 310 students (105 male and 205 female) with an age range from 18-25 years. The prevalence and severity of TMD was determined using a self reported anamnestic questionnaires. The symptoms were transposed into a severity classification according to the number and frequency of positive responses. Data was evaluated by the chi-square test between TMD severity and gender. Results – The result showed that 45.16% of students reported some level of TMD: 34.83% mild TMD; 8.38% moderate TMD; 1.96% severe TMD. No significant relationship was found between gender and TMD severity. Conclusion – A high prevalence of TMD was found in this student population, however most of cases were mild. The relationship between gender and TMD severity was not statistically significant. Despite suffering from TMD students were not aware of their disorders.
Instructions for use Title 3 D neuromelanin-sensitive magnetic resonance imaging with semi-automated volume measurement of the substantia nigra pars compacta for diagnosis of Parkinson ' s disease

Purpose: Neuromelanin-sensitive MRI has been reported to be used in the diagnosis of Parkinson's disease (PD), which results from loss of dopamine-producing cells in the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNc). In this study, we aimed to apply a 3D turbo field echo (TFE) sequence for neuromelanin-sensitive MRI and to evaluate the diagnostic performance of semi-automated method for measurement of SNc volume in patients with PD. Methods: We examined 18 PD patients and 27 healthy volunteers (control subjects). A 3D TFE technique with off-resonance magnetization transfer pulse was used for neuromelanin-sensitive MRI on a 3T scanner. The SNc volume was semi-automatically measured using a region-growing technique at various thresholds (ranging from 1.66 to 2.48), with the signals measured relative to that for the superior cerebellar peduncle. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was performed at all thresholds. Intra-rater reproducibility was evaluated by intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). Results: The average SNc volume in the PD group was significantly smaller than that in the control group at all the thresholds (P < 0.01, student t test). At higher thresholds (>2.0), the area under the curve of ROC (Az) increased (0.88). In addition, we observed balanced sensitivity and specificity (0.83 and 0.85, respectively). At lower thresholds, sensitivity tended to increase but specificity reduced in comparison with that at higher thresholds. ICC was larger than 0.9 when the threshold was over 1.86. Conclusions: Our method can distinguish the PD group from the control group with high sensitivity and specificity, especially for early stage of PD.
Plant Tissue Culture

A 12-deoxywithastramonolide-rich somaclonal variant in Withania somnifera (L.) Dunal—molecular cytogenetic analysis and significance as a chemotypic resource Abstract Withania somnifera, commonly known as ashwa-gandha or Indian ginseng, is a valuable medicinal plant, synthesizing a wide array of pharmacologically active secondary metabolites known as withanolides. In this study, we investigated variation among 54 regenerated plants attained through indirect organogenesis from leaf explants. Organo-genic calli were induced on Murashige and Skoog medium containing 2 mgl −1 kinetin and 1 mgl −1 indole-3-butyric acid. High-performance liquid chromatography was used for quantitative determination of the major withanolides in the soma-clones. One somaclone (WS-R-1) showed significantly higher accumulation of 12-deoxywithastramonolide (WS-12D; 0.516%) compared to the explant donor mother plant (0.002%). The incidence of somaclonal variation at the cyto-logical level was investigated by studying mitosis and meiosis in relation to chromosome number and structural organization. There were no alterations in chromosome phenotypes, somat-ic chromosome count, or meiotic behavior. Fidelity at ge-nomic level was evaluated by random amplification of polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analyses, which revealed multiple genetic polymorphisms between the WS-12D over-producing somaclone and the explant donor mother plant. This study demonstrates the capability of inducing chemotypic variability for the development of high-yielding clones due to molecular instability in W. somnifera using an in vitro approach.
Predicting positive blood cultures in patients presenting with pneumonia at an Emergency Department in Singapore.

INTRODUCTION Routine blood cultures have been recommended for all patients in treatment guidelines for community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). This practice has become a major area of resource utilisation, despite the lack of evidence in its clinical utility. Calls for abandoning the practice is balanced by the occasions of uncovering an unexpected pathogen or an unusual antimicrobial resistance pattern. The aim of this study is to identify factors that predict positive blood cultures among patients hospitalised for pneumonia upon presentation at the Emergency Department (ED). MATERIALS AND METHODS A case control study was carried out on patients treated for pneumonia in the ED who had routine blood cultures performed as part of their management. The pneumonia severity index (PSI) was used to categorize patients into low- and high-risk for 30-day mortality. Logistic regression was carried out to determine factors significantly associated with positive blood cultures, from which a predictive probability equation was used to identify patients whose blood cultures were negative at a pre-determined cut-off, with minimum number of culture positive misclassification. A scoring system was devised, with scores predicting which patients would be likely to have a positive or negative blood culture. RESULTS A total of 1407 patients with pneumonia were treated at ED from May to December 2006, from whom 1800 blood cultures were performed. Of these, 140 cultures (7.8%) grew organisms, comprising 96 (5.3%) true positive cultures and 44 (2.4%) contaminated cultures. Logistic regression analysis identified ill patients with higher PSI classes, smokers and Malay patients to be more likely to have positive blood cultures. Patients who had prior treatment with antibiotics, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and cough were less likely to have positive blood cultures. An index to predict a negative blood culture resulted in the accurate classification of all but 4 positive patients while still correctly classifying 27.8% of blood culture negative patients. The area under the ROC curve was 0.71 (95% CI, 0.65-0.76). A simplified scoring system was devised based on the predictive model had a sensitivity of 82% and specificity of 38.2% for a positive blood culture. CONCLUSION Routine blood cultures yielded negative results in 94% of patients presenting with pneumonia. The development of the clinical scoring system is a first step towards selecting patients for whom blood cultures is performed and improve cost-effectiveness.
Election Poster Persuasion: Attitude Formation in the Void

We examined the effect of presenting unknown policy statements on German parties’ election posters. Study 1 showed that participants inferred the quality of a presented policy from knowledge about the respective political party. Study 2 showed that participants’ own political preferences influenced valence estimates: policy statements presented on campaign posters of liked political parties were rated significantly more positive than those presented on posters of disliked political parties. Study 3 replicated the findings of Study 2 with an additional measure of participants’ need for cognition. Need for cognition scores were unrelated to the valence transfer from political parties to policy evaluation. Study 4 replicated the findings of Studies 2 and 3 with an additional measure of participants’ voting intentions. Voting intentions were a significant predictor for valence transfer. Participants credited both their individually liked and disliked political parties for supporting the two unknown policies. However, the credit attributed to the liked party was significantly higher than to the disliked one. Study 5 replicated the findings of Studies 2, 3, and 4. Additionally, participants evaluated political clubs that were associated with the same policies previously presented on election posters. Here, a second-degree transfer emerged: from party valence to policy evaluation and from policy evaluation to club evaluation. Implications of the presented studies for policy communications and election campaigning are discussed.
Radiation leukemia in C57BL/6 mice. II. Lack of ecotropic virus expression in the majority of lymphomas

The expression of endogenous ecotropic viruses in radiation-induced thymomas of C57BL/6 mice was examined. Competition radioimmunoassays for AKR MuLV gp71, p30, and p12 were used for viral antigen expression. 3 of 40 lymphomas had readily detectable ecotropic gp71 at levels of 95- 689 ng/mg protein; the remainder of the tumors had no detectable gp71 (less than 1.0 ng/mg protein). 30 thymomas were characterized by the presence of MuLV p30 at levels of 1-10 ng/mg protein, levels that were comparable to those found in thymus extracts from age-matched, nonirradiated control. 10 tumors were characterized by having p30 levels of 10-30 ng/mg protein. In one tumor significant levels of AKR MuLV p12 were detectable. Since B-tropic and N-tropic viruses from C57BL/6 mice have glycoproteins (gp71) indistinguishable from AKR MuLV gp71 and the N-tropic virus had a p12 serologically identical to AKR MuLV p12, these results demonstrate that overt endogenous B-tropic virus was detectable in 2 of 40 thymomas and endogenous N-tropic virus was detectable in 1 of 40 thymomas. The lack of overt expression of gp71 or p12 was also confirmed by cytotoxicity assays using monospecific antisera to these viral proteins. Radiation-induced lymphomas were also examined for the presence of reverse transcriptase after chromatography of tissue extracts on poly G-Sepharose. One tumor, which was characterized by the lack of gp71, also had no detectable reverse transcriptase; whereas one tumor with gp71 was characterized by readily detectable levels of reverse transcriptase in cellular extracts. The presence of viral RNA was examined using AKR cDNA. Low levels of RNA capable of hybridizing with AKR cDNA were found in age- matched, nonirradiated mice; these hybrids had Tm's of 72 degrees C, while hybrids with AKR MuLV 70S RNA had Tm's of 80 degrees C. In 1 of 12 thymomas the concentration of hybridizable RNA and the Tm of the hybrids were identical to control values. In 9 of 12 thymomas the concentration of hybridizable sequences increased approximately three- to fivefold and the Tm of these hybrids varied from 73 to 75 degrees C. In 1 of 12 thymomas the concentration of hybridizable sequences increased over 100-fold, hybridized completely with AKR MuLV cDNA, and the hybrids had Tm's of 79 degrees C. This thymoma was also characterized by the presence of the AKR MuLV type of gp71 and p12. One tumor was characterized by a 10-to 100-fold increase in hybridizable sequences, which only partially hybridized with AKR MuLV cDNA, and hybrids had a Tm of 73 degrees C. This tumor was characterized by the presence of AKR MuLV gp71 but not AKR MuLV p12. The results taken together demonstrate that overt endogenous ecotropic virus expression is only rarely detectable in radiation-induced thymomas of C57BL/6 mice.
Mastery Goal Orientation and Performance Affect the Development of Leader Efficacy During Leader Development

Leader efficacy is a key outcome of leader development, but little is known about if and when developmental leader experiences, such as engaging in training, relate to gains in leader efficacy. We present a theoretical model of the effects of mastery goal orientation and performance during development as determinants of leader efficacy. We argue that a mastery goal orientation, whether dispositional (Studies 1, 2) or situationally induced (Study 2), can increase performance and mitigate the deleterious effects of poor performance, resulting in higher leader efficacy. Two field studies of individuals taking leader development courses largely supported these predictions. Study 1 showed that individuals with a high dispositional mastery goal orientation (dMGO) added effort over time, performed better, and had higher leader efficacy than low dMGO individuals. The benefits of dMGO increased over the 4-week leader development course. Study 2 showed that a mastery goal intervention reduced the effects of low dMGO on leader efficacy.
Multidimensional Group Identity and Redistributive Allocation: An Experimental Study

Social identity is embedded in social structures, generated by various social processes, and has multiple dimensions. We report ? ndings from a laboratory experiment eliciting two-dimensional social identities: a horizontal identity determined either randomly or by preferences and a vertical identity de? ned by income status and determined either by luck or performance. We also vary income gaps between vertical identity groups. Participants make redistributive allocation decisions between two others di¤ering in identity attributes. We ? nd robust evidence of in-group favoritism and that both the identity distance between the allocator and the in-group recipient and income gaps in? uence the degree of in-group favoritism.
Cancer esearch cular and Cellular Pathobiology ajor Role of p 95 / 611-CTF , a Carboxy-Terminal Fragment ER 2 , in the Down-modulation of the Estrogen R eptor in HER 2-Positive Breast Cancers

acrjourna rent classification of breast cancers depends in great part on the expression of human epidermal factor receptor 2 (HER2), a cell surface tyrosine kinase receptor, and estrogen receptor (ER), the r receptor for estrogen. In addition to reliable biomarkers, these receptors are targets of effective idely used antitumor drugs. During malignant progression, HER2 and ER can establish an intricate talk. In some cases, HER2 overexpression leads to the downregulation of ER and undermining of R therapies. A subgroup of HER2-positive breast cancer patients with poor prognosis expresses a geneous collection of HER2 carboxy-terminal fragments (CTF) collectively known as p95HER2. f these fragments, 611-CTF, is oncogenic in a variety of preclinical models. However, because of ck of an appropriate tool to specifically analyze its levels in the clinical setting, the value of 611s a biomarker has not been established yet. Here, we show that 611-CTF induces resistance to antien therapy and a more pronounced down-modulation of ER than that induced by full-length HER2. idate this effect in breast cancer samples, we developed specific anti–611-CTF antibodies. With these dies, we showed that, whereas the frequency of ER positivity in HER2-positive/611-CTF–negative tu(72.6%) is similar to that reported for HER2-negative tumors (70–80%), the number of ER-positive s in the 611-CTF–positive subgroup is very low (31.2%). These results reveal a mechanism of ER tumor regulation mediated by HER2, which suggests a new strategy to improve responses to endocrine therapy in breast cancer. Cancer Res; 70(21); 8537–46. ©2010 AACR.