Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Mechanism of Synergy between Epigallocatechin Gallate and β-Lactams against Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus

ABSTRACT Compared to MICs (more than 800 μg/ml) of (−)-epigallocatechin gallate (EGCg) against Escherchia coli, MICs of EGCg against methicillin-susceptible and methicillin-resistantStaphylococcus aureus (MSSA and MRSA) were 100 μg/ml or less. Furthermore, less than 25 μg EGCg per ml obviously reversed the high level resistance of MRSA to all types of tested β-lactams, including benzylpenicillin, oxacillin, methicillin, ampicillin, and cephalexin. EGCg also induced a supersusceptibility to β-lactams in MSSA which does not express mecA, encoding penicillin-binding protein 2′ (PBP2′). The fractional inhibitory concentration (FIC) indices of the tested β-lactams against 25 isolates of MRSA were from 0.126 to 0.625 in combination with 6.25, 12.5 or 25 μg of EGCg per ml. However, no synergism was observed between EGCg and ampicillin against E. coli. EGCg largely reduced the tolerance of MRSA and MSSA to high ionic strength and low osmotic pressure in their external atmosphere, indicating damage of the cell wall. Unlike dextran and lipopolysaccharide, peptidoglycan fromS. aureus blocked both the antibacterial activity of EGCg and the synergism between EGCg and oxacillin, suggesting a direct binding of EGCg with peptidoglycan on the cell wall. EGCg showed a synergistic effect with dl-cycloserine (an inhibitor of cell wall synthesis unrelated to PBP2′) but additive or indifferent effect with inhibitors of protein and nuclear acid synthesis. EGCg did not suppress either PBP2′ mRNA expression or PBP2′ production, as confirmed by reverse transcription-PCR and a semiquantitative PBP2′ latex agglutination assay, indicating an irrelevance between the synergy and PBP2′ production. In summary, both EGCg and β-lactams directly or indirectly attack the same site, peptidoglycan on the cell wall. EGCg synergizes the activity of β-lactams against MRSA owing to interference with the integrity of the cell wall through direct binding to peptidoglycan.
Significant non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is found in non-diabetic, pre-obese Chinese in Singapore.

INTRODUCTION To characterise the anthropometrical and metabolic parameters of a group of non-diabetic and non-obese patients who had histologically-proven nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). METHODS During September 1997 to November 1999, consent for liver biopsies were sought from a consecutive series of patients, whose body mass index (BMI) were equal to or less than 30 kg per square metres, and who had persistently elevated serum alanine transaminase (more than 2.5 times upper limit of normal for more than six months), with no associated viral hepatitis, alcohol or drug-induced liver disease, hereditary liver disease and diabetes mellitus. Patients who were found to have steatohepatitis histologically were further studied. Their body weight, height, waist and hip circumferences were taken, and fasting serum lipid and glucose measured. Serum insulin was measured in six patients and insulin resistance (IR) was calculated by homeostasis model assessment. Oral glucose tolerance tests were done if fasting glucose levels were greater than 6 mmol/L. All liver biopsies were reviewed by a single histopathologist. Three age- and sex-matched controls were randomly selected for each patient. RESULTS 11 of 12 patients who underwent liver biopsies were found to have NASH. All 11 were Chinese: eight males and three females. 73 percent of them had hepatic fibrosis. Overall, compared to controls, they had significantly higher body weight, BMI, IR and triglyceridaemia. The female patients also had a higher waist-hip ratio than controls. None had diabetes mellitus, and one had impaired glucose tolerance/fasting glycaemia. Nine out of 11 had BMI between 25 and 30 kg per square metres. CONCLUSION Significant histological changes of NASH with hepatic fibrosis were found in Singaporean Chinese non-diabetic patients with BMI of less than 30 kg per square metres.
A non‐erythropoietic peptide derivative of erythropoietin decreases susceptibility to diet‐induced insulin resistance in mice

The haematopoietic activity of erythropoietin (EPO) is mediated by the classic EPO receptor (EpoR) homodimer, whereas tissue‐protective effects are mediated by a heterocomplex between EpoR and the β‐common receptor (βcR). Here, we investigated the effects of a novel, selective ligand of this heterocomplex – pyroglutamate helix B surface peptide (pHBSP) – in mice fed a diet enriched in sugars and saturated fats.
Investigating Palaeoatmospheric Composition-Climate Interactions

The composition of the atmosphere has changed substantially over Earth’s history, with important implications for past climate. A number of case studies will be presented which employ coupled climate model simulations to assess the strength of these chemical feedbacks on the climate. The eruption of Mount Samalas in 1257 led to the largest stratospheric volcanic injection of aerosol precursor gases in the Common Era, however climate model simulations of the last millennium typically overestimate the resulting climatic cooling when compared with tree-ring proxy records. A novel configuration of the Met Office UM-UKCA climate model is presented which couples an atmosphere-ocean general circulation model to a rigorous treatment of the relevant atmospheric chemistry and microphysical aerosol processes. This permits the climate response to a particular stratospheric injection of reactive volatile gases to be quantified and for the first time to date applied to a historical volcanic eruption. This model configuration compares favourably to observational data for simulations of the 1991 Mount Pinatubo eruption. Results from an ensemble of model simulations are presented, with different assumptions about the sulfur dioxide and halogen loadings based on a recent geochemical reconstruction. These show a muted climate response, in reasonable agreement with tree ring records. Emissions of halogenated compounds lead to an increase in the sulfur dioxide lifetime, widespread ozone depletion and a prolonged climatic cooling. Strong increases in incident ultraviolet radiation at Earth’s surface also occur. Oxygen levels may have varied from as little as 10% to as high as 35% in the Phanerozoic (541 Ma – Present). An increase in atmospheric oxygen increases atmospheric mass which leads to a reduction in incident shortwave radiation at Earth’s surface due to Rayleigh scattering. However, this is offset by an increase in the pressure broadening of greenhouse gas absorption lines. Dynamical feedbacks also lead to increased meridional heat transport, warming polar regions and cooling tropical regions. An increase in oxygen content using the HadCM3-BL and HadGEM3-AO climate models leads to a global mean
Effects of prepartum supplementary fat and muscle hypertrophy genotype on cold tolerance in newborn calves.

Effects of feeding pregnant dams supplemental dietary fat during the last 55 d of gestation on cold tolerance of newborn crossbred calves with (Piedmontese cross, P, n = 15) or without (Hereford cross, H, n = 16) the muscle hypertrophy allele was determined. Primiparous F1 dams gestating F2 calves of the respective breeds were assigned randomly within breed to receive gestation diets containing either 2.2 (Low Fat; LF) or 5.1% fat (High Fat; HF). Safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) seeds containing 37% oil with 79% linoleic acid were the supplemental fat source in diets formulated to be isocaloric-isonitrogenous. At parturition, calves were separated from their dams, fed 38 degrees C pooled dairy cow colostrum (30 mL/kg BW), muzzled to prevent suckling, and returned to their dams in a heated (22 degrees C) room for 3.5 h. At 4 h of age (birth = 0 h), a catheter was inserted into the jugular vein. At 5 h of age, calves were placed in a 0 degrees C room for 140 min, and rectal temperatures and blood samples were obtained at 10- and 20-min intervals. Blood was assayed for cortisol and glucose. Rectal temperature was affected by diet (P<.05), time, diet x time, and breed x time (P<.01 for time and the interactions). Cortisol and glucose concentrations were not affected by diet, breed, or the diet x breed interaction, but they were affected by time, breed x time (both P<.01), and diet x time (P = .06). Calves from HF dams had higher rectal temperatures than calves from LF dams, and the HF calves maintained higher rectal temperatures throughout cold exposure. Cortisol concentrations were lower (P = .06) in calves from HF dams, and these calves had more (P = .06) glucose available for metabolic heat production than calves from LF dams. Piedmontese-cross calves maintained higher (P<.01) rectal temperatures and had higher cortisol and glucose (both P<.01) concentrations than did H-cross calves. We conclude that feeding dams supplemental fat during late gestation increased heat production in newborn calves and potentially could increase calf survival; calves with muscle hypertrophy may have a different ratio of shivering vs nonshivering thermogenesis due to differences in body composition or relationships among uncoupling proteins.
The cohomology ring of the real locus of the moduli space of stable curves of genus 0 with marked points

We compute the Poincare polynomial and the cohomology algebra with rational coefficients of the manifold M_n of real points of the moduli space of algebraic curves of genus 0 with n labeled points. This cohomology is a quadratic algebra, and we conjecture that it is Koszul. We also compute the 2-local torsion in the cohomology of M_n. As was shown by the fourth author, the cohomology of M_n does not have odd torsion, so that the above determines the additive structure of the integral homology and cohomology. Further, we prove that the rational homology operad of M_n is the operad of 2-Gerstenhaber algebras, which is closely related to the Hanlon-Wachs operad of 2-Lie algebras (generated by a ternary bracket). Finally, using Drinfeld’s theory of quantization of coboundary Lie quasibialgebras, we show that a large series of representations of the quadratic dual Lie algebra L_n of H^*(M_n,Q) (associated to such quasibialgebras) factors through the the natural projection of L_n to the associated graded Lie algebra of the prounipotent completion of the fundamental group of M_n. This leads us to conjecture that the said projection is an isomorphism, which would imply a formula for lower central series ranks of the fundamental group. On the other hand, we show that the spaces M_n are not formal starting from n = 6.
Arid5a controls IL-6 mRNA stability, which contributes to elevation of IL-6 level in vivo

Posttranscriptional regulation of IL-6 has been largely uncharacterized, with the exception of the ribonuclease Regnase-1, which prevents autoimmunity by destabilizing IL-6 mRNA. Here, we identified AT-rich interactive domain-containing protein 5A (Arid5a) as a unique RNA binding protein, which stabilizes IL-6 but not TNF-α mRNA through binding to the 3′ untranslated region of IL-6 mRNA. Arid5a was enhanced in macrophages in response to LPS, IL-1β, and IL-6. Arid5a deficiency inhibited elevation of IL-6 serum level in LPS-treated mice and suppressed IL-6 levels and the development of TH17 cells in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis. Importantly, Arid5a inhibited the destabilizing effect of Regnase-1 on IL-6 mRNA. These results indicate that Arid5a plays an important role in promotion of inflammatory processes and autoimmune diseases.
Metabolic power and cardiovascular response of a low cadence-high height bench stepping exercise in healthy young people.

AIM The aim of this paper was to study the feasibility of bench stepping at a low cadence as a safe exercise that can provide enough cardiovascular fitness that be performed by any person. METHODS Thirty-three men and twenty-one young women (age =23±3 yrs; weight =70±13 kg; height 170±9 cm) participated in this study. Each one held a continuous 20 minute (4 stages /5 min each) bench stepping workout session with two different step heights (31 and 41 cm) and two different intensities (60 and 90 steps∙min-1). Body weight (bw), total & trochanteric height, heart rate (HR, beats∙min-1), rated perceived exertion (RPE) and O2 consumption (VO2) were recorded. RESULTS From the 1st through the 4th stage, the vertical distance (VD, m), RPE, HR and VO2 values were 4.6-9.23 m, 2.5-6.7, 118-168 beats∙min-1 and 20.8-34.0 ml∙kg-1∙min-1, respectively. The best regression model to calculate the O2 consumption (VO2) was: VO2 (L∙min-1) =-1.264+0.026∙bw (kg)+0.195∙VD (m). VD, bw, and gender determined, independently, the changes of caloric expenditure (R2=0.92). CONCLUSION The energy expenditure of a low cadence stepping exercise (15-22 cycles∙min-1) at 31-41 cm bench height, is enough to improve aerobic fitness which in turn may benefit cardiovascular health.
Graphical Tactile Displays for Visually-Impaired People

This paper presents an up-to-date survey of graphical tactile displays. These devices provide information through the sense of touch. At best, they should display both text and graphics (text may be considered a type of graphic). Graphs made with shapeable sheets result in bulky items awkward to store and transport; their production is expensive and time-consuming and they deteriorate quickly. Research is ongoing for a refreshable tactile display that acts as an output device for a computer or other information source and can present the information in text and graphics. The work in this field has branched into diverse areas, from physiological studies to technological aspects and challenges. Moreover, interest in these devices is now being shown by other fields such as virtual reality, minimally invasive surgery and teleoperation. It is attracting more and more people, research and money. Many proposals have been put forward, several of them succeeding in the task of presenting tactile information. However, most are research prototypes and very expensive to produce commercially. Thus the goal of an efficient low-cost tactile display for visually-impaired people has not yet been reached
Development of image servo tracking robot for the surgical space positioning system

This work presents the development of image servo-tracking robot, which is used for the surgical space position systems. The proposed surgical navigation robot plays an important role to the computer-aided surgery (CAS), since it provides the patient's space coordinate during surgical navigation stage in real-time. Especially, the proposed active image servo-tracking based surgical navigation robot can track the surgical marker to extend the navigation space automatically. The proposed surgical navigation robot system consists of the in-lab design dual-axis eye-in-hand robot (EIHR), digital signal processor (DSP) based EIHR motion controller, image servo-tracking controller and space positioning software module. Especially, the image recognition module, fuzzy membership functions and fuzzy rules are constructed as the EIHR intelligent motion controller to dynamically track the surgical marker. Finally, the EIHR prototype had been finished, and the experiment results showed that proposed EIHR achieved 1.7 mm position error within 500 mm operation range.
CREATING COLLABORATIVE TEXT: KNOWLEDGE CREATION, TRANSFER, AND LEARNING IN CROSS-FUNCTIONAL PROJECT TEAMS

and the members of Columbia University's Organization and Management seminar for their generous comments and contribution to this paper. Abstract This paper considers the manageability of the acquisition of organizational knowledge between firms. We propose that while the acquisition of explicit knowledge is a manageable process, the acquisition of tacit knowledge at the organizational level is emergent and unpredictable. This challenges existing models of knowledge creation and acquisition that are based on the conversion of tacit and explicit knowledge. We present data gathered from a longitudinal case study of integration activities that occurred as a result of the buy-out of a U.S. telecommunications joint venture by one of its parents. This qualitative data is examined for evidence of tacit-explicit knowledge conversion and the manageability of the knowledge acquisition process. We found that tacit organizational knowledge is embedded in artifacts such as a firm's way of organizing, its operational practices, and its processes. As such, it is acquired when changes to these artifacts are implemented in a new organizational context rather than through the actions of individuals and groups making their tacit knowledge explicit. As a result, we conclude that, contrary to the belief of many strategic management theorists, the acquisition of organizational tacit knowledge is not a manageable process.
Heart Rate Turbulence: A Review

Heart rate turbulence (HRT) is a recently coined phrase that describes the short term fluctuation in sinus cycle length that follows a ventricular premature complex (VPC). Its proven clinical significance lies in its ability to predict mortality and sudden cardiac death following myocardial infarction, although small studies suggest that it is also applicable to many other cardiac diseases. This review will attempt to summarize the literature to date, and to speculate on possible mechanisms. Because HRT is a new field, there are only a handful of full length papers on it. In order to present the full breadth of the research being carried out, the information provided here is based on conference abstracts as well as peer reviewed articles, and readers should keep this in mind. Most of the literature cited here, and downloadable HRT calculation programs (in C++) are available on the website www.h-r-t.org.
Laparoscopic inguinal hernia repair: a prospective evaluation at Eastern Nepal

Introduction Inguinal hernias have been treated traditionally with open methods of herniorrhaphy or hernioplasty. But the trends have changed in the last decade with the introduction of minimal access surgery. Methods This study was a prospective descriptive study in patients presenting to Surgery Department of B. P. Koirala Institute of Health Sciences, Dharan, Nepal with reducible inguinal hernias from January 2011 to June 2012. All patients >18 years of age presenting with inguinal hernias were given the choice of laparoscopic repair or open repair. Those who opted for laparoscopic repair were included in the study. Results There were 50 patients, age ranged from 18 to 71 years with 34 being median age at presentation. In 41 patients, totally extraperitoneal repair was attempted. Of these, 2 (4%) repairs were converted to transabdominal repair and 2 to open mesh repair (4%). In 9 patients, transabdominal repair was done. The median total hospital stay was 4 days (range 3-32 days), the mean postoperative stay was 3.38±3.14 days (range 2-23 days), average time taken for full ambulation postoperatively was 2.05±1.39 days (range 1-10 days), and median time taken to return for normal activity was 5 days (range 2-50 days). One patient developed recurrence (2%). None of the patients who had laparoscopic repair completed complained of neuralgias in the follow-up. Conclusion Laparoscopic repair of inguinal hernias could be contemplated safely both via totally extra peritoneal as well as transperitoneal route even in our setup of a developing country with modifications.
Evaluation of spatio‐temporal rainfall variability and performance of a stochastic rainfall model in Bangladesh

Rainfall in Bangladesh exhibits persistent wet and dry anomalies associated with occurrence of floods and droughts. Assessing inter‐annual variability of rainfall is vital to account these hydrological extremes in the design and operations of water systems. However, the inter‐annual variability obtained from short record rainfall data might be misleading as it does not contain whole climate variability which signifies the utmost importance of stochastic rainfall models. Since the inter‐annual variability and stochastic models have not been explored adequately for rainfall in Bangladesh, this study evaluated (a) the spatio‐temporal variability of rainfall focusing on inter‐annual variability, and (b) applicability of a stochastic daily rainfall model, referred as the Decadal and Hierarchical Markov Chain (DHMC) model. Daily rainfall data of 1973–2012 for 18 stations across Bangladesh were used to investigate the probability distributions and autocorrelations of rainfall, and the model performances. Results show a higher magnitude of inter‐annual variabilities of rainfall depth (standard deviation 80–250 mm) and wet spells (standard deviation 4–6 days) in wetter months (June to September) across rainfall stations in the east region of the country. In contrast, higher rates of inter‐annual variabilities (i.e., coefficients of variations) were observed in drier months across the west region. Spatially, the dry spells were observed consistent across the country. Monthly rainfall showed decreasing trend over the region from west to the middle part of the country, whereas monthly number of wet days showed increasing trend over the eastern part. The DHMC was found to preserve the observed variabilities of rainfall at daily to multiyear resolutions at all stations, except a tendency to underestimate the autocorrelation of monthly rainfall depth. Despite this limitation, DHMC can be considered as a suitable stochastic rainfall simulator for a tropical monsoon climate like Bangladesh.