Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Corticosterone differentially modulates expression of corticotropin releasing factor and arginine vasopressin mRNA in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus following either acute or repeated restraint stress

Exposing rats to repeated restraint stress induces well‐characterized adaptations in the expression of either corticotropin‐releasing factor (CRF) or arginine‐vasopressin (AVP) mRNA in the parvocellular neurons of the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVN). The effects of regulating corticosterone levels on this adaptation was studied in male rats. In intact rats, acute restraint stress increased the expression of CRF mRNA whilst AVP mRNA expression was no different to control. Repeated exposure resulted in habituation of CRF expression, whereas AVP mRNA increased above that seen in either non stressed or acutely stressed animals. In adrenalectomised rats with replacement pellets of corticosterone that replicated blood levels approximating to the daily trough (mean levels 37–65 ng/mL), basal CRF expression levels were raised, but the response to acute stress was still observed. However, the habituation seen in normal animals that had been repeatedly stressed was prevented, so that CRF mRNA levels continued to be raised after repeated stress. By contrast, the AVP response to both acute and repeated stress was unaltered in these low‐dose corticosterone‐treated rats compared with controls. Higher dose pellets, which resulted in blood levels around those of the daily maximum (mean 118–141 ng/mL) had the opposite effects. There was no change compared to intact rats in the expression of CRF mRNA following either acute or repeated stress, but the expected increase in AVP following repeated restraint was prevented. These experiments show that corticosterone has important modulating effects on the adaptive pattern of both CRF and AVP mRNA expression in the parvocellular PVN. The ‘set‐point’ of corticosterone differs; for CRF, experiencing higher levels is necessary for subsequent adaptation to repeated restraint to occur, whereas for AVP a return to lower levels is necessary to allow this peptide to respond to repeated stress.
An Experimental Comparison of Multiobjective Algorithms: NSGA-II and OMOPSO

The optimization of multi objective problems is currently an area of important research and development. The importance of type of problems has allowed the development of multiple metaheuristics for their solution. To determine which multi objective metaheuristic has the best performance with respect to a problem, in this article an experimental comparison between two of them: Sorting Genetic Algorithm No dominated-II (NSGA-II) and Multi Objective Particle Swarm Optimization (MOPS) using ZDT test functions is made. The results obtained by both algorithms are compared and analyzed based on different performance metrics that evaluate both the dispersion of the solutions on the Pareto front, and its proximity to it.
Two Distinct Pathways for Trehalose Assimilation in the Yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae

ABSTRACT The yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae can synthesize trehalose and also use this disaccharide as a carbon source for growth. However, the molecular mechanism by which extracellular trehalose can be transported to the vacuole and degraded by the acid trehalase Ath1p is not clear. By using an adaptation of the assay of invertase on whole cells with NaF, we showed that more than 90% of the activity of Ath1p is extracellular, splitting of the disaccharide into glucose. We also found that Agt1p-mediated trehalose transport and the hydrolysis of the disaccharide by the cytosolic neutral trehalase Nth1p are coupled and represent a second, independent pathway, although there are several constraints on this alternative route. First, the AGT1/MAL11 gene is controlled by the MAL system, and Agt1p was active in neither non-maltose-fermenting nor maltose-inducible strains. Second, Agt1p rapidly lost activity during growth on trehalose, by a mechanism similar to the sugar-induced inactivation of the maltose permease. Finally, both pathways are highly pH sensitive and effective growth on trehalose occurred only when the medium was buffered at around pH 5.0. The catabolism of trehalose was purely oxidative, and since levels of Ath1p limit the glucose flux in the cells, batch cultures on trehalose may provide a useful alternative to glucose-limited chemostat cultures for investigation of metabolic responses in yeast.
Reactive types for dataflow-oriented software architectures

Digital signal processing (DSP) tools, such as Ptolemy, LabView and iConnect, allow application developers to assemble reactive systems by connecting predefined components in generalised dataflow graphs and by hierarchically building new components by encapsulating subgraphs. We follow the literature in calling this approach dataflow-oriented development. Our previous work has shown how a new process calculus, uniting ideas from previous systems within a compositional theory, can be formally shown to capture the properties of such systems. This paper first recasts the graphical dataflow-oriented style of design into an underlying textual architecture design language (ADL) and then shows how the previous modelling approach can be seen as a system of process algebraic behavioural types for such a language, so that type checking is the mechanism used to statically diagnose the reactivity of applications. We show how both the existing notion of behavioural equivalence and a new behavioural preorder are involved in this judgement.
Islet-Infiltrating Lymphocytes from Prediabetic NOD Mice Rapidly Transfer Diabetes to NOD-scid/scid mice

In an effort to study the development of diabetes in NOD mice, our laboratory developed a novel adoptive transfer model using NOD-scid/scid (NOD-scid) mice as recipients of islet-infiltrating lymphocytes from donor prediabetic female NOD mice. We first confirmed previous results that demonstrated that splenocytes of diabetic and prediabetic female NOD mice could transfer diabetes to NOD-scid mice. We demonstrated that the kinetics of disease transfer were dependent on the age of transferred lymphocytes and reiterated the kinetics of diabetes in conventional female NOD mice. We then demonstrated that islet-infiltrating lymphocytes from prediabetic female NOD mice could transfer diabetes. In contrast with the age-dependent transfer of diabetes seen using splenocytes, islet-infiltrating lymphocytes obtained from prediabetic female NOD mice aged ≥40 days rapidly transferred diabetes to NOD-scid recipients. The time required to transfer insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) using islet-infiltrating lymphocytes from young prediabetic mice (25 ± 9 days) was not statistically different from the time required to transfer IDDM using splenocytes from overtly diabetic mice (32 ± 5 days). Cotransfer of splenocyte cells or CD4+, but not CD8+ spleen cells, from 60- to 80-day-old prediabetic female NOD mice together with either splenocytes from diabetic mice or islet-infiltrating lymphocytes from prediabetic NOD mice delayed the rapid transfer of IDDM, suggesting that CD4+ cells mediated immunoregulation. Use of the NOD-scid islet-infiltrating lymphocyte-adoptive transfer model should help elucidate the pathophysiology of the early inflammatory events leading to insulitis and subsequent β-cell destruction. Use of the NOD-scid adoptive model in cotransfer experiments should help identify the immunoregulatory cells that delay development of IDDM in conventional NOD mice.
Upregulation of the Coagulation Factor VII Gene during Glucose Deprivation Is Mediated by Activating Transcription Factor 4

Background Constitutive production of blood coagulation proteins by hepatocytes is necessary for hemostasis. Stressful conditions trigger adaptive cellular responses and delay processing of most proteins, potentially affecting plasma levels of proteins secreted exclusively by hepatocytes. We examined the effect of glucose deprivation on expression of coagulation proteins by the human hepatoma cell line, HepG2. Methodology/Principal Findings Expression of coagulation factor VII, which is required for initiation of blood coagulation, was elevated by glucose deprivation, while expression of other coagulation proteins decreased. Realtime PCR and ELISA demonstrated that the relative percentage expression +/− SD of steady-state F7 mRNA and secreted factor VII antigen were significantly increased (from 100+/−15% to 188+/−27% and 100+/−8.8% to 176.3+/−17.3% respectively, p<0.001) at 24 hr of treatment. The integrated stress response was induced, as indicated by upregulation of transcription factor ATF4 and of additional stress-responsive genes. Small interfering RNAs directed against ATF4 potently reduced basal F7 expression, and prevented F7 upregulation by glucose deprivation. The response of the endogenous F7 gene was replicated in reporter gene assays, which further indicated that ATF4 effects were mediated via interaction with an amino acid response element in the F7 promoter. Conclusions/Significance Our data indicated that glucose deprivation enhanced F7 expression in a mechanism reliant on prior ATF4 upregulation primarily due to increased transcription from the ATF4 gene. Of five coagulation protein genes examined, only F7 was upregulated, suggesting that its functions may be important in a systemic response to glucose deprivation stress.
Robust Compact Model for Bipolar Oxide-Based Resistive Switching Memories

Emerging nonvolatile memories based on resistive switching mechanisms pull intense research and development efforts from both academia and industry. Oxide-based resistive random access memories (OxRAM) gather noteworthy performances, such as fast WRITE/READ speed, low power, high endurance, and large integration density that outperform conventional flash memories. To fully explore new design concepts, such as distributed memory in logic or biomimetic architectures, robust OxRAM compact models must be developed and implemented into electrical simulators to assess performances at a circuit level. In this paper, we propose a physics-based compact model used in electrical simulator for bipolar OxRAM memories. After uncovering the theoretical background and the set of relevant physical parameters, this model is confronted to experimental electrical data. The excellent agreement with these data suggests that this model can be confidently implemented into circuit simulators for design purpose.
Optimal blind biharmonic feedforward phase offset estimation for QAM signals

An algorithm is presented for blind phase offset estimation for signals with quadrature amplitude modulation. The algorithm is based on a circular harmonic expansion of log-likelihood function (LLF). Retaining one or two most significant terms in this series gives a harmonic or biharmonic circular decomposition of the LLF, this approach leads to notable improvement of the estimation quality comparing to known versions of popular “4th power” phase estimation algorithm. In this paper we present improvement for harmonic and biharmonic phase offset estimation algorithms by optimization of weighting functions. Simulation results show that it gives much better performance in comparison with original algorithms based on Fourier series truncation. As a result, harmonic method is similar to optimal nonlinear least-squares algorithm, while biharmonic method approaches Cramer-Rao lower bound.
The Plastic Envelope Method, a Simplified Technique for Culture Diagnosis of Trichomoniasis

Although culture of Trichomonas vaginalis is more sensitive than wet mounts in the diagnosis of trichomoniasis, the lack of convenience of culture prevents it from being widely used. To improve the acceptability of diagnosis by culture, a plastic envelope method (PEM) was devised. PEM permits both immediate examination and culture in one self-contained system. The medium consists of dry ingredients that are reconstituted with water before use. The effectiveness of immediate examinations by PEM was compared with that of wet mounts, and the effectiveness of culture by PEM was compared with that of culture in Trichomonas Medium No. 2 (Oxoid). Of 710 vaginal secretion specimens from symptomatic and asymptomatic women that were tested by the four methods, 62 (9%) were positive for T. vaginalis. The sensitivity was 66% by wet mount, 66% by immediate examination by PEM, 89% by cultures in Oxoid medium, and 97% by culture by PEM. The two culture methods had equivalent sensitivities but were significantly (P less than 0.0001) more sensitive than the two immediate methods. The combined immediate examination by PEM plus culture was more convenient to use than wet mounts plus culture in Oxoid medium. The long shelf-life of PEM's dry medium and its anticipated low cost are additional advantages.
Rational Use of Cognitive Resources: Levels of Analysis Between the Computational and the Algorithmic

Marr's levels of analysis-computational, algorithmic, and implementation-have served cognitive science well over the last 30 years. But the recent increase in the popularity of the computational level raises a new challenge: How do we begin to relate models at different levels of analysis? We propose that it is possible to define levels of analysis that lie between the computational and the algorithmic, providing a way to build a bridge between computational- and algorithmic-level models. The key idea is to push the notion of rationality, often used in defining computational-level models, deeper toward the algorithmic level. We offer a simple recipe for reverse-engineering the mind's cognitive strategies by deriving optimal algorithms for a series of increasingly more realistic abstract computational architectures, which we call "resource-rational analysis. "
The inelastic behavior of engineering materials and structures

After a short introduction, this book falls into three main parts, dealing respectively with " the Structural Aspects of Mechanical Behaviour," " the Mechanics of Inelastic Deformation" and "Application of the Mechanics of Inelastic Behaviour. " The object of this division is to present a complete picture of the mechanical behaviour of materials strained beyond the elastic range, combining the physical and engineering approaches. Of necessity, therefore, it must attempt to present current views in the fields of physics, physical metallurgy, chemistry (to a limited extent) and engineering. This is a wide field for a single author to cover in an authoritative manner, but the quality of the book must be assessed on the relative success with which it is done. Considering the physical point of view first, it must be confessed that the first two chapters are much the same as has been written in a number of earlier books on metal physics. This is not unexpected and is only to be construed as criticism in that the emphasis might have been placed rather differently. For example it might be questioned whether the space given to Bohr's model of the atom and similar basically physical subjects in Chapter I might not have been spent on a lengthier development of the sections dealing with the effects of departure from a perfect crystal lattice, and of metallographic structures on the inelastic properties. The second and longest part of the book shows more clearly the approach of the engineer but this section contains a number of interesting descriptive interludes. The section on creep and relaxation seems a particularly clear description of the phenomena involved, while those on work hardening and fracture contain some thought-provoking suggestions, not all of which are orthodox. Finally, the earlier ideas are developed and applied to some particular cases and the book concludes with a chapter on the significance of mechanical testing which is most interesting and useful. The book contains much stimulating and interesting material but it is not uniformly successful in achieving its objects. In part this is because the aim is high and in part because the method of presentation with alternations of analytical and descriptive matter is not always conducive to easy reading. Nevertheless, the author succeeds in impressing his own point of view on the material he has accumulated and the result is a volume which is well worth reading, although the reader may find himself differing from the author on many points. The engineer using the book as a guide to information outside his usual field should regard it as a starting point and be inclined to consult some of the many references which are given throughout the book.
THE EFFECT OF VARIOUS FILLERS ON THE MECHANICAL BEHAVIOR OF ASPHALT AND ASPHALT CONCRETE

The paper reviews a research project developed to study the effect of mineral filler on the properties of asphaltic mixtures. The objectives were: to determine the gradation and physical properties of typical mineral fillers; to determine the effect of the type and quantity of mineral filler on the mechanical properties of filler-asphalt mixtures; and to determine the effect of the type and quantity of mineral filler on the mechanical properties of asphaltic concrete paving mixtures. The effect of eight mineral fillers on the mechanical properties of asphalt obtained from two different sources were considered. The filler mixtures were prepared with two filler-asphalt ratios, and these mixtures were tested in a modified cone and plate viscometer at four temperatures. The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation subsequently used these fillers in ID-2 mixtures which were tested in a diametral modulus device at three temperatures.
Gastroesophageal reflux disease

Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is a chronic disorder that affects millions of people worldwide and has the potential to lead to serious consequences, including cancer of the esophagus. It for this reason that there is such intense interest in the topic, this emphasized by the identification of some 341 articles published in the English language in the year 2000 alone. The present report highlights the results of a number of studies that either increase our understanding of the condition or raise important issues about its diagnosis and treatment. Included in the areas covered are (1) the role of genetics in GERD; (2) the mechanism for transient lower esophageal sphincter relaxations and their association with hiatal hernias; (3) the role of Helicobacter pylori in GERD and Barrett esophagus; (4) efficacy and safety of proton pump inhibitors in GERD; and (5) the mechanism for chronic cough in patients with GERD, among others.
Evaluation of Soil Amendments and Cover Crops for Certified Organic Pepper Production

Introduction With the implementation of consistent federal standards for products marketed as “organic” in October 2002 (USDA/AMS, 2002), organic production and consumption is expected to increase beyond current organic sales of $10 billion in 2001 (OTA, 2002). In 1999, Iowa farmers reported 150,000 acres of organic production to the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship survey (IDALS, 2000a), although statistics for organic horticultural crops remain underreported.
A facile route to form self-carried redox-responsive vorinostat nanodrug for effective solid tumor therapy

Small molecule-based nanodrugs with nanoparticles (NPs) that are mainly composed of small molecules, have been considered as a promising candidate for a next-generation nanodrug, owing to their unique properties. Vorinostat (SAHA) is a canonical US Food and Drug Administration-approved histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor for the treatment of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma. However, the lack of efficacy against solid tumors hinders its progress in clinical use. Herein, a novel nanodrug of SAHA was developed based on disulfide-linked prodrug SAHA-S-S-VE. SAHA-S-S-VE could self-assemble into 148 nm NPs by disulfide-induced mechanisms, which were validated by molecular dynamics simulations. Under reduced conditions, the redox-responsive behavior of SAHA-S-S-VE was investigated, and the HDAC inhibition results verified the efficient release of free SAHA. With a biocompatible d-a-tocopheryl polyethylene glycol succinate (TPGS) functionalization, the SAHA-S-S-VE/TPGS NPs exhibited low critical aggregation concentration of 4.5 μM and outstanding stability in vitro with drug-loading capacity of 24%. In vitro biological assessment indicated that SAHA-S-S-VE/TPGS NPs had significant anticancer activity against HepG2. Further in vivo evaluation demonstrated that the resulting NPs could be accumulated in the tumor region and inhibit the tumor growth effectively. This approach, which turned SAHA into a self-assembled redox-responsive nanodrug, provided a new channel for the use of HDAC inhibitor in solid tumor therapy.
Dietary Supplementation with Olive Oil or Fish Oil and Vascular Effects of Concentrated Ambient Particulate Matter Exposure in Human Volunteers

Background Exposure to ambient particulate matter (PM) induces endothelial dysfunction, a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Olive oil (OO) and fish oil (FO) supplements have beneficial effects on endothelial function. Objective In this study we evaluated the potential efficacy of OO and FO in mitigating endothelial dysfunction and disruption of hemostasis caused by exposure to particulate matter (PM). Methods and Results Forty-two participants (58 ± 1 years of age) received either 3 g/day of OO or FO, or no supplements (naive) for 4 weeks prior to undergoing 2-hr exposures to filtered air and concentrated ambient particulate matter (CAP; mean, 253 ± 16 μg/m3). Endothelial function was assessed by flow-mediated dilation (FMD) of the brachial artery preexposure, immediately postexposure, and 20 hr postexposure. Levels of endothelin-1 and markers of fibrinolysis and inflammation were also measured. The FMD was significantly lower after CAP exposure in the naive (–19.4%; 95% CI: –36.4, –2.3 per 100 μg/m3 CAP relative to baseline; p = 0.03) and FO groups (–13.7%; 95% CI: –24.5, –2.9; p = 0.01), but not in the OO group (–7.6%; 95% CI: –21.5, 6.3; p = 0.27). Tissue plasminogen activator levels were significantly increased immediately after (11.6%; 95% CI: 0.8, 22.2; p = 0.04) and 20 hr after CAP exposure in the OO group. Endothelin-1 levels were significantly increased 20 hr after CAP exposure in the naive group only (17.1%; 95% CI: 2.2, 32.0; p = 0.03). Conclusions Short-term exposure to CAP induced vascular endothelial dysfunction. OO supplementation attenuated CAP-induced reduction of FMD and changes in blood markers associated with vasoconstriction and fibrinolysis, suggesting that OO supplementation may be an efficacious intervention to protect against vascular effects of exposure to PM. Citation Tong H, Rappold AG, Caughey M, Hinderliter AL, Bassett M, Montilla T, Case MW, Berntsen J, Bromberg PA, Cascio WE, Diaz-Sanchez D, Devlin RB, Samet JM. 2015. Dietary supplementation with olive oil or fish oil and vascular effects of concentrated ambient particulate matter exposure in human volunteers. Environ Health Perspect 123:1173–1179; http://dx.doi. org/10.1289/ehp.1408988