Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Biochemical and physical analyses of newly synthesized muscarinic acetylcholine receptors in cultured embryonic chicken cardiac cells

Exposure of cultured embryonic chicken cardiac cells to the muscarinic agonist carbachol results in a 70–80% decrease in the number of muscarinic acetylcholine receptors (mAChR) expressed on the surface of the cells. Removal of the agonist results in a gradual increase in mAChR number because of the accumulation of newly synthesized receptors, reaching the control level in 14 hr. Measurements of increases in K+ permeability elicited by carbachol show that even after the complete recovery of receptor number, the sensitivity to agonist is reduced. The EC50 for carbachol is 13-fold higher in cells that have been exposed to carbachol and allowed to recover for 18 hr than in control cells, but is not significantly different from the EC50 for control cells 24 hr after agonist removal. The sensitivity of the mAChR- mediated inhibition of adenylate cyclase is also decreased at 18 hr, and recovers by 24 hr. These increases in sensitivity of mAChR-mediated responses are not blocked by administration of cycloheximide, and thus do not require de novo protein synthesis. The number of surface mAChR available for ligand binding can be reduced by 85–100% by treatment with the affinity-alkylating antagonist propylbenzilylcholine mustard. Newly synthesized mAChR that appear following affinity alkylation are also poorly coupled to mAChR-mediated increases in K+ permeability, indicating that decreased physiological sensitivity is not due to a nonspecific effect of long-term agonist exposure on general cellular function, but reflects, rather, an intrinsic property of newly synthesized mAChR. The decrease in sensitivity of the mAChR-mediated responses is due neither to a lack of expression of mAChR on the surface nor to reduced agonist affinity of the mAChR. Cells exhibiting decreased responsiveness contain GTP-binding proteins, which function normally in the inhibition of adenylate cyclase and appear to be identical to pertussis toxin substrates from control cells using gel electrophoresis; therefore, the decreased sensitivity does not appear to be the result of an alteration in coupling proteins. These cells also contain mAChR that do not differ from those in control cells either by molecular weight or isoelectric point. Thus, the diminished sensitivity observed in cells containing newly synthesized receptors is either caused by a small change in mAChR not detected by these electrophoretic techniques or by a change in an as-yet-undefined component of mAChR transduction system in the heart.
Energy efficient asymmetrically ported register files

Power consumption in the register file (RF) forms a considerable fraction of the total power consumption in a chip. With increasing instruction window sizes and issue widths, RF power consumption will suffer a significantly large growth. Using the fact that many of the register values are small and require only a small number of bits for representation, we propose a novel asymmetrically ported RF (to reduce RF power consumption), in which some of the ports can only read/write small-sized values. We experiment with both monolithic and partitioned versions of asymmetrically ported RFs. The power savings in the RF with partitioned asymmetrically ported RF reach as high as 60%. These reductions in RF power consumption come with about 40% improvement in RF access-time and a negligible impact on IPC (instructions per cycle).
PTX3, A prototypical long pentraxin, is an early indicator of acute myocardial infarction in humans.

BACKGROUND Inflammation is an important component of ischemic heart disease. PTX3 is a long pentraxin whose expression is induced by cytokines in endothelial cells, mononuclear phagocytes, and myocardium. The possibility that PTX3 is altered in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) has not yet been tested. METHODS AND RESULTS Blood samples were collected from 37 patients admitted to the coronary care unit (CCU) with symptoms of AMI. PTX3 plasma concentrations, as measured by ELISA, higher than the mean+2 SD of age-matched controls (2.01 ng/mL) were found in 27 patients within the first 24 hours of CCU admission. PTX3 peaked at 7.5 hours after CCU admission, and mean peak concentration was 6.94+/-11.26 ng/mL. Plasma concentrations of PTX3 returned to normal in all but 3 patients at hospital discharge and were unrelated to AMI site or extent, Killip class at entry, hours from symptom onset, and thrombolysis. C-reactive protein peaked in plasma at 24 hours after CCU admission, much later than PTX3 (P<0.001). Patients >64 years old and women had significantly higher PTX3 concentrations at 24 hours (P<0.05). PTX3 was detected by immunohistochemistry in normal but not in necrotic myocytes. CONCLUSIONS PTX3 is present in the intact myocardium, increases in the blood of patients with AMI, and disappears from damaged myocytes. We suggest that PTX3 is an early indicator of myocyte irreversible injury in ischemic cardiomyopathy.
A Forward Genetic Screen Identifies Eukaryotic Translation Initiation Factor 3, Subunit H (eIF3h), as an Enhancer of Variegation in the Mouse

We have used a forward genetic screen to identify genes required for transgene silencing in the mouse. Previously these genes were found using candidate-based sequencing, a slow and labor-intensive process. Recently, whole-exome deep sequencing has accelerated our ability to find the causative point mutations, resulting in the discovery of novel and sometimes unexpected genes. Here we report the identification of translation initiation factor 3, subunit H (eIF3h) in two modifier of murine metastable epialleles (Mommes) lines. Mice carrying mutations in this gene have not been reported previously, and a possible involvement of eIF3h in transcription or epigenetic regulation has not been considered.
Factors Associated with Depression among Workers by Socio-economic Factors, Health Behaviors, and Characteristics of Work Environment

<Abstract> Objectives: The purpose of this study is to analyze factors associated with depression among workers in South Korea by socio-economic factors, health behaviors, and working conditions. Methods: Study subjects include 4,251 adults (19 and older) who are currently working using the data from 2009 National Health and Nutrition Survey. Data were analyzed using frequency test, X test, and multiple logistic regression. Results: Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that gender (OR=1.91, p<.001), age (OR=1.53, p=.030), marital status (31-39: OR=1.88, p=.029) were significantly related to depressing among socio-economic factors. Next, among health behaviors factors, perceived health status (Poor: OR=1.76, p=.049; Very poor: OR=3.46, p=.002) was statistically significant. Among characteristics of work environment, trust and respect (OR=1.34, p=.049) and working with hidden emotion (OR=1.88, p<.001) were significantly related to depression. Conclusions: In order to manage and reduce depression among workers, it is important to develop appropriate mental health promotion programs both in work places and in regulations.
The Dynamics of Occupational Prestige: 1975–2000*

Les donnees sur l'espace urbain recueillies a Kitchener-Waterloo, en Ontario, jumelees avec celles d'une premiere etude realisee en 1975, sont utilisees comme point d'observation pour analyser a nouveau la stabilite historique du prestige professionnel. L'article suggere que la structure de la courbe de distribution du prestige a ete negligee en faveur de statistiques decrivant la stabilite du classement par ordre de grandeur et que le changement historique depuis environ 1975 est, du point de vue qualitatif, different de celui des periodes anterieures. Notre hypothese est que la courbe de distribution du prestige professionnel est devenue plus constante et que le classement par ordre de grandeur s'est nettement deplace. Urban-area data collected in Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario, twinned with an earlier study from 1975, are used as a vantage point for re-examining the historical stability of occupational prestige. The paper proposes that the shape of the prestige distribution has been neglected in favour of statistics describing stability in rank order and that historical change since around 1975 is qualitatively different than for earlier periods. Our hypothesis is that the distribution of occupational prestige has become more equal and that the rank order has shifted noticeably.
Propagation of Convective Complexes Observed by TRMM in the Eastern Tropical Atlantic

Precipitation maxima during the West African summer monsoon propagate generally westward in tandem with African easterly waves. A heretofore unreported, repeating pattern of northward drift of precipitation maxima is detected on Tropical Rainfall Measurement Mission (TRMM satellite) time-latitude distributions of daily accumulations over the eastern tropical Atlantic. Corresponding 3-hourly TRMM accumulations show that the northward drifting envelopes of precipitation during August 2006 are often comprised of individual swaths propagating towards the southwest, presumably as mesoscale squall lines. The implied northward drift on the time-latitude distribution is a component of a resultant northwestward movement. The study examines the entire available record of TRMM precipitation observations, 1998-2010, to summarize TRMM maxima propagation over the eastern tropical Atlantic. Meridional displacements of precipitation maxima are most prevalent in June-September 2006, occurring less frequently during other summers. An investigation of geopotential and circulation fields, limited to two case studies, suggests mechanisms to explain some of the observed propagation of TRMM maxima. In one event, northward drift of the precipitation envelope is consistent with the corresponding displacement of the intertropical convergence zone trough, although the southwest propagation of individual mesoscale convection maxima does not correspond to any synoptic feature on reanalysis circulation or reanalysis downscaled by a regional model. One speculation is that southwestward propagation of precipitation maxima could be caused by regeneration of convection at outflow boundaries of mature thunderstorms.
Affinity enhancement of an in vivo matured therapeutic antibody using structure‐based computational design

Improving the affinity of a high‐affinity protein–protein interaction is a challenging problem that has practical applications in the development of therapeutic biomolecules. We used a combination of structure‐based computational methods to optimize the binding affinity of an antibody fragment to the I‐domain of the integrin VLA1. Despite the already high affinity of the antibody (Kd ∼7 nM) and the moderate resolution (2.8 Å) of the starting crystal structure, the affinity was increased by an order of magnitude primarily through a decrease in the dissociation rate. We determined the crystal structure of a high‐affinity quadruple mutant complex at 2.2 Å. The structure shows that the design makes the predicted contacts. Structural evidence and mutagenesis experiments that probe a hydrogen bond network illustrate the importance of satisfying hydrogen bonding requirements while seeking higher‐affinity mutations. The large and diverse set of interface mutations allowed refinement of the mutant binding affinity prediction protocol and improvement of the single‐mutant success rate. Our results indicate that structure‐based computational design can be successfully applied to further improve the binding of high‐affinity antibodies.
Shopping Value, Satisfaction, and Behavioral Intentions: A Sociodemographic and Interproduct Category Study on Private Label Brands

ABSTRACT Shopping value and consumer satisfaction research streams have witnessed significant developments in the last decade. The present study has empirically examined the relationships among utilitarian and hedonic value, satisfaction, and the resultant behavioural intentions in the context of private label brands. It is also endeavored to find the moderating effect of certain sociodemographic factors and product category on the above relationships. Indian consumers (n = 500) completed self-administered surveys. The empirical findings have supported the conceptual model. The findings of the present study have contributed towards the development of an organizing framework for these relationships in an applied discipline such as retailing. The uniqueness of the study lies in the fact that the relationships and moderating effects were examined in the context of private label branded products.
A van der Waals Force-Based Adhesion Model for Micromanipulation

The robotic manipulation of microscopic objects is disturbed directly by the adhesion between the end-effector and the objects. In the microscale, no reliable model of adhesion is available and currently the behaviour of the micro-objects cannot be predicted before experiments. This paper proposes a new model of adhesion based on the analytical resolution of the coupling between the mechanical deformation of the micro-objects and van der Waals forces. In the nanoscale, the impact of the deformation can be neglected and the proposed model is thus similar to the classical expression for van der Waals forces. In the microscale, the deformation induces van der Waals forces to increase significantly and a new analytical expression is proposed. The limit of validity of this 'deformable van der Waals forces' is also discussed. This result can be used as an alternative to classical adhesion–deformation models in literature (Johnson–Kendall–Roberts (JKR) or Derjaguin–Muller–Toporov (DMT)), which have been validated at the macroscale but are not sufficient to describ the interaction forces in the microscale (typically from 100 nm to 500 μm).
Categorization, Information Selection and Stimulus Uncertainty

Although a common assumption in models of perceptual discrimination, most models of categorization do not explicitly account for uncertainty in stimulus measurement. Such uncertainty may arise from inherent perceptual noise or external measurement noise (e.g., a medical test that gives variable results). In this paper we explore how people decide to gather information from various stimulus properties when each sample or measurement is noisy. The participant’s goal is to correctly classify the given item. Across two experiments we find support for the idea that people take category structure into account when selecting information for a classification decision. In addition, we find some evidence that people are also sensitive to their own perceptual uncertainty when selecting information.
The Modern Integration of Research Activities with Teaching and Learning.

No issue is more basic in modem higher education than the relationship between research and teaching. And no issue occasions more superficial thought and retrogressive criticism both outside and inside the academy. In the United States, but not there alone, an incompatibility thesis has increasingly been voiced during the 1980s and early 1990s. We repeatedly hear assertions that when university professors do research they avoid teaching, that the time they spend on one is time taken from the other, that deep interest in research entails low interest in teaching, and, notably, that when academics do research they abandon students. Though popularized mainly by outside critics, we find this oppositional view even reflected in standard survey questions posed by academics in studies of academics. Professors are asked: are you interested in research or in teaching? Do you spend your time in research or in teaching? Which does your institution emphasize? Universities seemingly accept the thrust of the incompatibility thesis when they defensively answer criticisms with lame rebuttals that professors really do not run off to do research as much as is claimed, that critics can find professors in "the classroom" if they only look hard enough and sympathetically comprehend all the many things that academics have to do. A contrary perspective, here developed from cross-national research, offers a better purchase on the role of research in education [8, 9]. A
Experience‐induced plasticity of thalamocortical axons in both juveniles and adults

We examined the effect of sensory deprivation on thalamocortical (TC) projections to the rat primary somatosensory cortex at different postnatal ages ranging from P0 to P96. Rats had their whiskers clipped off with one or two vibrissae spared. TC axons innervating barrel cortex were specifically labeled by injecting virus expressing fluorescent proteins into the corresponding primary (VPM) and/or secondary (POm) thalamic nuclei. The density of VPM axons in deprived columns was ≈34% lower relative to spared columns with a concomitant decrease in bouton density, suggesting a deprivation‐induced retraction of VPM axons. Axonal changes were reversible upon regrowth of the clipped whiskers and independent of age at deprivation, indicating the absence of a critical period for anatomical plasticity. The POm projection was not obviously altered by sensory deprivation. We suggest that retraction and regrowth of TC axons substantially contribute to long‐term deprivation‐dependent functional plasticity. J. Comp. Neurol. 518:4629–4648, 2010. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Enhancing the Predictive Performance of BayesianGraphical

Both knowledge-based systems and statistical models are typically concerned with making predictions about future observables. Here we focus on assessment of predictive performance and provide two techniques for improving the predictive performance of Bayesian graphical models. First, we present Bayesian model averaging, a technique for accounting for model uncertainty. Second, we describe a simple technique for eliciting a prior distribution for competing models from domain experts. We explore the predictive performance of both techniques in the context of a urological diagnostic problem.
Language, culture and science education

An area for future research in science education is that of the interaction of language, culture and science education. This paper outlines the background to current debates and development work in language, culture and science education in New Zealand, with respect to the indigenous Maori people. Concern about the participation and achievement of Maori students in science education has led to considerations of their culture (beliefs, traditions, knowledge, heritage, experiences and values) and the Maori language in science lessons. A bicultural‐only approach to science education has been discarded by Maori in favour of educating for bilingual students. Further research to inform future policy making by Maori is discussed.
Methane observations from the Greenhouse Gases Observing SATellite: Comparison to ground‐based TCCON data and model calculations

We report new short‐wave infrared (SWIR) column retrievals of atmospheric methane (XCH4) from the Japanese Greenhouse Gases Observing SATellite (GOSAT) and compare observed spatial and temporal variations with correlative ground‐based measurements from the Total Carbon Column Observing Network (TCCON) and with the global 3‐D GEOS‐Chem chemistry transport model. GOSAT XCH4 retrievals are compared with daily TCCON observations at six sites between April 2009 and July 2010 (Bialystok, Park Falls, Lamont, Orleans, Darwin and Wollongong). GOSAT reproduces the site‐dependent seasonal cycles as observed by TCCON with correlations typically between 0.5 and 0.7 with an estimated single‐sounding precision between 0.4–0.8%. We find a latitudinal‐dependent difference between the XCH4 retrievals from GOSAT and TCCON which ranges from 17.9 ppb at the most northerly site (Bialystok) to −14.6 ppb at the site with the lowest latitude (Darwin). We estimate that the mean smoothing error difference included in the GOSAT to TCCON comparisons can account for 15.7 to 17.4 ppb for the northerly sites and for 1.1 ppb at the lowest latitude site. The GOSAT XCH4 retrievals agree well with the GEOS‐Chem model on annual (August 2009 – July 2010) and monthly timescales, capturing over 80% of the zonal variability. Differences between model and observed XCH4 are found over key source regions such as Southeast Asia and central Africa which will be further investigated using a formal inverse model analysis.
Keyphrase-Based Hierarchical Clustering for Arabic Documents

The vast amount of available Arabic web pages and text files on the internet makes it necessary to organize data in an easy way for user browsing. Document clustering is a good solution for this problem, which groups similar data into clusters with meaningful labels. In this paper, we propose a domain independent approach, which builds a hierarchical meaningful clustering tree. The proposed approach overcomes the problem of high dimensionality of feature vector by representing each document with its keyphrases. In addition, we introduced a new similarity measure by taking the common lemma form keyphrases among feature vectors of documents. This improves the accuracy of the clustering process with reduced complexity. Many experiments are carried out to evaluate the accuracy of clustering using String-based, Corpus-based, and Knowledge-based similarity measures. A dataset consists of 345 Arabic documents and covering 12 domains is used in these experiments. The results show that applying lexical similarity using keyphrase based gives more accurate clusters labels than using semantic similarity. The best purity result achieved is 0.955, which is obtained using the common lemma form keyphrases similarity method.
Negative perception in those at highest risk--potential challenges in colorectal cancer screening in an urban asian population.

INTRODUCTION Colorectal carcinoma (CRC) is the second commonest malignancy in Malaysia, with the highest incidence seen in the Chinese. The aim of this study is to examine the knowledge of CRC and to identify potential barriers for screening, which has yet to be carried out on a nationwide scale. METHODS Subjects were recruited consecutively from friends and relatives accompanying patients to the general medical clinic in a tertiary hospital in Kuala Lumpur. Interviews were carried out using a standardized questionnaire for the Asia Pacific CRC working group based on the Health Belief Model (HBM). RESULTS 991 subjects were interviewed. From our study, 414 (41.8%), 500 (50.5%) and 646 (65.2%) could not identify any of the symptoms, risk factors and screening methods for CRC respectively. Only 384 (38.7%) were agreeable to undergo screening. Independent factors associated with willingness to undergo screening were as follows; Malay and Indian race compared to the Chinese [aOR 2.73 (1.87, 3.98) and 3.04 (2.02, 4.59) respectively], perceived susceptibility, perceived barriers to screening, doctor's recommendation and personal contact with CRC. CONCLUSIONS Knowledge of CRC and CRC screening is low among the Malaysian population. The majority are not willing to undergo screening, the Chinese paradoxically being the least willing despite being at greatest risk.
Visual Processing in Infants with Tuberous Sclerosis Complex

Investigators from Harvard University and UCLA have reported that despite evidence of structural abnormalities in the visual pathway of animal models and children with tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC), visual evoked potentials (VEPs) in 12-month old children with TSC compared to an age-matched control group are not significantly altered.