Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Stability of Neural Firing in the Trigeminal Nuclei under Mechanical Whisker Stimulation

Sensory information handling is an essentially nonstationary process even under a periodic stimulation. We show how the time evolution of ridges in the wavelet spectrum of spike trains can be used for quantification of the dynamical stability of the neuronal responses to a stimulus. We employ this method to study neuronal responses in trigeminal nuclei of the rat provoked by tactile whisker stimulation. Neurons from principalis (Pr5) and interpolaris (Sp5i) show the maximal stability at the intermediate (50 ms) stimulus duration, whereas Sp5o cells “prefer” shorter (10 ms) stimulation. We also show that neurons in all three nuclei can perform as stimulus frequency filters. The response stability of about 33% of cells exhibits low-pass frequency dynamics. About 57% of cells have band-pass dynamics with the optimal frequency at 5 Hz for Pr5 and Sp5i, and 4 Hz for Sp5o, and the remaining 10% show no prominent dependence on the stimulus frequency. This suggests that the neural coding scheme in trigeminal nuclei is not fixed, but instead it adapts to the stimulus characteristics.
Spontaneous opening of the acetylcholine receptor channel in developing muscle cells from normal and dystrophic mice

Single‐channel activity was recorded from cell‐attached patches on skeletal muscle cells isolated from wild‐type mice and from mice carrying the dy or mdx mutations. Spontaneous openings of the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor channel (nAChR) were detected in virtually all recordings from either dy/dy or dy/ + myotubes, but only infrequently from wild‐type or mdx myotubes. Spontaneous openings were also present in most recordings from undifferentiated myoblasts from all of the mouse strains studied. The biophysical properties of the spontaneous activity were similar to those of the embryonic form of the nAChR in the presence of acetylcholine (ACh). Examination of the single‐channel currents evoked by low concentrations of ACh showed a reduced sensitivity to the agonist in the dystrophic dy and mdx myotubes, but not in wild type myotubes. The results suggest that alterations in nAChR function are associated with the pathogenesis of muscular dystir ophy in the dy mouse. © 1995 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Genetic Analysis of the Diversity and Origin of Hantaviruses in Peromyscus leucopus Mice in North America

ABSTRACT Nucleotide sequences were determined for the complete M genome segments of two distinct hantavirus genetic lineages which were detected in hantavirus antibody- and PCR-positive white-footed mice (Peromyscus leucopus) from Indiana and Oklahoma. Phylogenetic analyses indicated that although divergent from each other, the virus lineages in Indiana and Oklahoma were monophyletic and formed a newly identified unique ancestral branch within the clade of Sin Nombre-like viruses found in Peromyscus mice. Interestingly, P. leucopus-borne New York virus was found to be most closely related to the P. maniculatus-borne viruses, Sin Nombre and Monongahela, and monophyletic with Monongahela virus. In parallel, intraspecific phylogenetic relationships ofP. leucopus were also determined, based on the amplification, sequencing, and analysis of the DNA fragment representing the replication control region of the rodent mitochondrial genome. P. leucopus mitochondrial DNA haplotypes were found to form four separate genetic clades, referred to here as Eastern, Central, Northwestern, and Southwestern groups. The distinct Indiana and Oklahoma virus lineages were detected in P. leucopus of the Eastern and Southwestern mitochondrial DNA haplotypes, respectively. Taken together, our current data suggests that both cospeciation of Peromyscus-borne hantaviruses with their specific rodent hosts and biogeographic factors (such as allopatric migrations, geographic separation, and isolation) have played important roles in establishment of the current genetic diversity and geographic distribution of Sin Nombre-like hantaviruses. In particular, the unusual position of New York virus on the virus phylogenetic tree is most consistent with an historically recent host-switching event.
TRiTAM: A Model for Integrating Trust and Risk Perceptions in Business-to-Consumer Electronic Commerce

This paper presents a theoretical extension of the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). The extended model aims to predict and explain consumers’ intentions to transact with an Internet-based business-to-consumer electronic commerce (B2C EC) system by integrating trust and risk perceptions with TAM. The proposed model (TRiTAM) was validated using data collected from 133 participants. The results provided substantial support for most of the proposed hypotheses and showed the significance of the extended constructs. Besides testing the model, the relative importance of the trust dimensions is also examined. Firstly, a summary of the quantitative results is presented. This is followed by a detailed discussion of the qualitative results. Several new insights on trust in B2C EC were found. The theoretical implications are discussed.
Differential Expression Patterns in Chemosensory and Non-Chemosensory Tissues of Putative Chemosensory Genes Identified by Transcriptome Analysis of Insect Pest the Purple Stem Borer Sesamia inferens (Walker)

Background A large number of insect chemosensory genes from different gene subfamilies have been identified and annotated, but their functional diversity and complexity are largely unknown. A systemic examination of expression patterns in chemosensory organs could provide important information. Methodology/Principal Findings We identified 92 putative chemosensory genes by analysing the transcriptome of the antennae and female sex pheromone gland of the purple stem borer Sesamia inferens, among them 87 are novel in this species, including 24 transcripts encoding for odorant binding proteins (OBPs), 24 for chemosensory proteins (CSPs), 2 for sensory neuron membrane proteins (SNMPs), 39 for odorant receptors (ORs) and 3 for ionotropic receptors (IRs). The transcriptome analyses were validated and quantified with a detailed global expression profiling by Reverse Transcription-PCR for all 92 transcripts and by Quantitative Real Time RT-PCR for selected 16 ones. Among the chemosensory gene subfamilies, CSP transcripts are most widely and evenly expressed in different tissues and stages, OBP transcripts showed a clear antenna bias and most of OR transcripts are only detected in adult antennae. Our results also revealed that some OR transcripts, such as the transcripts of SNMP2 and 2 IRs were expressed in non-chemosensory tissues, and some CSP transcripts were antenna-biased expression. Furthermore, no chemosensory transcript is specific to female sex pheromone gland and very few are found in the heads. Conclusion Our study revealed that there are a large number of chemosensory genes expressed in S. inferens, and some of them displayed unusual expression profile in non-chemosensory tissues. The identification of a large set of putative chemosensory genes of each subfamily from a single insect species, together with their different expression profiles provide further information in understanding the functions of these chemosensory genes in S. inferens as well as other insects.
Understanding and improving endometrial receptivity

Purpose of the review For a successful pregnancy, the synchronic coordination between the embryonic development and the endometrial status is crucial. The endometrium is a hormonally regulated organ that is nonadhesive to embryos throughout most of the menstrual cycle in humans. Endometrial receptivity refers to a hormone-limited period in which the endometrial tissue acquires a functional and transient ovarian steroid-dependent status allowing blastocyst implantation and therefore pregnancy initiation. Recent findings Our group has developed the endometrial receptivity array (ERA), a customized array based on the expression of 238 genes coupled to a computational predictor capable of diagnosing a functionally receptive endometrium regardless of its histological appearance. Clinical results obtained in our laboratory demonstrate the diagnostic and therapeutic efficiency of the ERA test in patients with implantation failure, allowing the personalization of the optimal day for embryo transfer. Summary To keep improving the global knowledge of endometrial receptivity stage, new high-throughput techniques like RNA-seq or genome-wide association studies will be crucial in the near future. Also the identification of new biomarkers of endometrial receptivity that could be assessed by noninvasive methods has become a challenging goal to help diagnose the endometrial status to increase implantation rates and pregnancy outcomes in patients undergoing assisted reproductive treatments.
Measuring the equation of state of the intergalactic medium

Numerical simulations indicate that the smooth, photoionized intergalactic medium (IGM) responsible for the low column density Lyα forest follows a well-defined temperature–density relation, which is well described by a power law . We demonstrate that such an equation of state results in a power-law cut-off in the distribution of linewidths (b-parameters) as a function of column density (N) for the low column density (N≲1014.5 cm−2) absorption lines. This explains the existence of the lower envelope that is clearly seen in scatter plots of the b(N) distribution in observed QSO spectra. Even a strict power-law equation of state will not result in an absolute cut-off because of line blending and contamination by unidentified metal lines. We develop an algorithm to determine the cut-off, which is insensitive to these narrow lines. We show that the parameters of the cut-off in the b(N) distribution are strongly correlated with the parameters of the underlying equation of state. We use simulations to determine these relations, which can then be applied to the observed cut-off in the b(N) distribution to measure the equation of state of the IGM. We show that systematics that change the b(N) distribution, such as cosmology (for a fixed equation of state), peculiar velocities, the intensity of the ionizing background radiation and variations in the signal-to-noise ratio, do not affect the measured cut-off. We argue that physical processes that have not been incorporated in the simulations, e.g. feedback from star formation, are unlikely to affect the results. Using Monte Carlo simulations of Keck spectra at z=3, we show that determining the slope of the equation of state will be difficult, but that the amplitude can be determined to within 10 per cent, even from a single QSO spectrum. Measuring the evolution of the equation of state with redshift will allow us to put tight constraints on the reionization history of the Universe.
Computer-assisted learning compared with weekly seminars for teaching fundamental electrocardiography to junior medical students.

This study was designed to assess whether a self-study interactive computer program is more effective than weekly seminars for teaching fundamental skills of electrocardiographic interpretation to junior medical students. Forty-two students were assigned to the computer and 41 to the seminar group. A test was given to each participant at the beginning and end of each rotation. The computer group used a computer-assisted learning program, and the seminar group met weekly with a cardiologist to review electrocardiograms. Attendance at a minimum of 80% of the seminars or completion of 80% of the computer-assisted learning program was required for inclusion in the statistical analysis. The mean difference in test scores before and after study was 5.69 for the computer group and 4.36 for the seminar group (P less than .02 by one-tailed t-test). These results indicate that the computer group performed significantly better than the seminar group. We believe this difference to be educationally important.
Transductive Multi-class and Multi-label Zero-shot Learning

Recently, zero-shot learning (ZSL) has received increasing interest. The key idea underpinning existing ZSL approaches is to exploit knowledge transfer via an intermediate-level semantic representation which is assumed to be shared between the auxiliary and target datasets, and is used to bridge between these domains for knowledge transfer. The semantic representation used in existing approaches varies from visual attributes to semantic word vectors and semantic relatedness. However, the overall pipeline is similar: a projection mapping low-level features to the semantic representation is learned from the auxiliary dataset by either classification or regression models and applied directly to map each instance into the same semantic representation space where a zero-shot classifier is used to recognise the unseen target class instances with a single known 'prototype' of each target class. In this paper we discuss two related lines of work improving the conventional approach: exploiting transductive learning ZSL, and generalising ZSL to the multi-label case.
[Expression of EP-CAM, beta-catenin in the carcinogenesis of squamous cell carcinoma of uterine cervix].

OBJECTIVE To study the expression of EP-CAM, beta-catenin in the carcinogenesis of squamous cell carcinoma of uterine cervix. METHODS The expressions of EP-CAM and beta-catenin were detected with immunohistochemical stain in 14 cases of normal cervical squamous epithelium, 32 cases of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) and 38 cases of cervical invasive squamous cell carcinoma. RESULTS The over-expression rates of EP-CAM were 0, 7.1%, 20.0%, 62.5% and 55.3% for normal cervical epithelium, CINI, CINII, CINIII and carcinoma groups. The EP-CAM over-expression rates in CINIII and cervical carcinoma groups were significantly higher than those in normal epithelium and CINI groups (P < 0.001). No aberrant expression of beta-catenin was shown in normal cervical epithelium, while the aberrant expression rates of beta-catenin in CINI, CINII, CINIII and cervical carcinoma group were 28.6%, 40.0%, 62.5% and 84.2%. The aberrant expression rate of beta-catenin increased with the increase in degree of CIN and development of cervical carcinoma. The over-expression rate of EP-CAM was reversely related to the differentiation of cervical squamous cell carcinoma (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION EP-CAM and beta-catenin may be involved in the carcinogenesis of squamous cell carcinoma of uterine cervix. The over-expression of EP-CAM and aberrant expression of beta-catenin may serve as markers of squamous carcinogenesis of uterine cervix.
D-serine dehydratase from Escherichia coli. II. Analytical studies and subunit structure.

Abstract An improved procedure which permits large scale preparation of crystalline d-serine dehydratase (EC 4.2.1.14) from Escherichia coli is described. The homogeneous holoenzyme has an extinction coefficient (E280 nm1%) of 10.5 in potassium phosphate, pH 6.5 to 7.8, a specific activity of 300, and contains a single peptide chain with a molecular weight near 45,500 as indicated by sedimentation equilibrium measurements of either native or reduced and carboxymethylated enzyme, acrylamide gel electrophoresis in sodium dodecyl sulfate, quantitative determination of the NH2-terminal amino acid (methionine), and the results of tryptic peptide mapping. One combining site for pyridoxal-P is present per molecule as determined by direct analysis of the holoenzyme for pyridoxal-P, by spectrophotometric titration of the apoenzyme with pyridoxal-P, and by isolation of e-N-pyridoxyllysine from hydrolysates of the sodium borohydride-reduced holoenzyme. The enzyme contains 5 half-cystine residues and no disulfide linkages. Only one of the five sulfhydryl groups is titrated by 5,5'-dithio-bis(2-nitrobenzoic acid) (DTNB) in the holoenzyme; in the apoenzyme three —SH groups are titrated by either p-chloromercuribenzoate or DTNB. These three groups react with DTNB at markedly different rates (0.54, 0.081, and 0.0033 min-1) under the conditions tested. Individually, none of the three —SH groups appears necessary for activity; however, reaction of two or more with DTNB inactivates the apoenzyme completely by preventing its reassociation with pyridoxal-P.
Epidemiology of child injuries in Uganda: challenges for health policy

Globally, 90% of road crash deaths occur in the developing world. Children in Africa bear the major part of this burden, with the highest unintentional injury rates in the world. Our study aims to better understand injury patterns among children living in Kampala, Uganda and provide evidence that injuries are significant in child health. Trauma registry records of injured children seen at Mulago Hospital in Kampala were analysed. Data were collected when patients were seen initially and included patient condition, demographics, clinical variables, cause, severity, as measured by the Kampala trauma score, and location of injury. Outcomes were captured on discharge from the casualty department and at two weeks for admitted patients. From August 2004 to August 2005, 872 injury visits for children <18 years old were recorded. The mean age was 11 years (95% CI 10.9–11.6); 68% (95% CI 65–72%) were males; 64% were treated in casualty and discharged; 35% were admitted. The most common causes were traffic crashes (34%), falls (18%) and violence (15%). Most children (87%) were mildly injured; 1% severely injured. By two weeks, 6% of the patients admitted for injuries had died and, of these morbidities, 16% had severe injuries, 63% had moderate injuries and 21% had mild injuries. We concluded that, in Kampala, children bear a large burden of injury from preventable causes. Deaths in low severity patients highlight the need for improvements in facility based care. Further studies are necessary to capture overall child injury mortality and to measure chronic morbidity owing to sequelae of injuries.
Changes in and Associations Among Functional Status and Perceived Quality of Life of Patients With Metastatic/Locally Advanced Cancer Receiving Rehabilitation for General Disability

The primary aims were to clarify the changes in the functional status and quality of life of patients with metastatic/locally advanced cancer who received rehabilitation therapy. This is a cohort study, and all consecutive patients who received rehabilitation therapy were evaluated before and 2 weeks after. Outcome measures were the Functional Independence Measure (FIM), perceived independence, and overall quality of life (European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer C30). A total of 128 patients were included. Although the FIM score significantly decreased, the overall quality of life significantly increased. Even in the patients with deteriorated FIM scores, the overall quality of life was maintained despite a significantly decreased perceived independence. Terminally ill patients with cancer who received a rehabilitation program maintained their overall quality of life despite an objective decline in the physical functional status.
Stuck in Transit: Secondary Migration of Asylum Seekers in Europe, National Differences, and the Dublin Regulation

The European Union’s ambition to create a harmonized reception system for asylum seekers differs from the realities on the ground. We address how differences in national reception conditions stimulate the secondary migration that challenges the creation of an effective common migration regulation in Europe. We base our analysis on the Dublin Regulation (DR) and the secondary movement of Eritrean asylum seekers from Italy to Norway. The empirical material consists of qualitative interviews with civil servants, NGO representatives, and Eritrean migrants in Milan and Rome, and Norwegian civil servants. Recently developed models of migration destination selection were used to analyse the interaction between individual aspirations and structural constraints. We found that the Eritrean informants remained highly motivated to apply in a second country but were to some extent held back by the DR. Supranational regulations were challenged by the migrants’ actions and by national differences in reception and welfare standards. Both the migrants’ aspirations to move on and the challenges to a harmonized regional regulation of migration increased during times of economic crisis.
Preserved &agr;-Adrenergic Tone in the Leg Vascular Bed of Spinal Cord–Injured Individuals

Background—Supraspinal sympathetic control of leg vascular tone is lost in spinal cord–injured individuals, but this does not result in a reduced leg vascular tone: Leg vascular resistance is even increased. The aim of this study was to assess the &agr;-adrenergic contribution to the increased vascular tone in the lower extremity in patients without central sympathetic control of leg circulation. Methods and Results—Upper-leg vascular resistance responses to local infusion of incremental doses of phentolamine (a competitive antagonist of the &agr;-adrenoceptor) into the femoral artery were determined in 10 spinal cord–injured individuals (SCI) and 8 healthy age-matched control subjects during local &bgr;-adrenergic receptor blockade with propranolol. Basal leg vascular resistance was higher in SCI than in control subjects (41±6 arbitrary units [AU] versus 24±4 AU; P =0.034). The same accounts for minimal leg vascular resistance, assessed during reactive hyperemia, which was higher in SCI compared with control subjects (6.9±1.0 AU versus 2.5±0.2 AU; P <0.01). The maximal phentolamine-induced reduction in leg vascular resistance normalized to each individual’s minimal resistance did not differ between the groups (68±17% and 51±4% for SCI and control subjects, respectively; P >0.1). A decline in mean arterial pressure was observed in both groups with increasing dosage of phentolamine. In response, baroreceptor-mediated vasoconstriction was observed in the noninfused leg of the control subjects, whereas in SCI individuals this reaction was absent. Conclusions—These results indicate that the &agr;-adrenoceptor–mediated vascular tone in the leg is preserved in spinal cord–injured individuals without sympathetic supraspinal control.
J O U R N a L O F Veterinary Science Short Communication Prevalence of Bartonella Henselae and Bartonella Clarridgeiae in Cats and Dogs in Korea

Blood, saliva, and nail samples were collected from 54 dogs and 151 cats and analyzed for the presence of Bartonella henselae with a novel nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method. Bartonella (B.) henselae was detected in feral cat blood (41.8%), saliva (44.1%), and nail (42.7%) samples. B. henselae was also detected in pet cat blood (33.3%), saliva (43.5%), and nail (29.5%) samples and in pet dog blood (16.6%), saliva (18.5%), and nail (29.6%) samples. Nine samples were infected with B. clarridgeiae and 2 were co-infected with B. henselae and B. clarridgeiae of blood samples of dogs. This report is the first to investigate the prevalence of B. henselae and B. clarridgeiae in dogs and cats in Korea, and suggests that dogs and cats may serve as potential Bartonella reservoirs.