Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Heparan Sulfate Proteoglycan: An Arbovirus Attachment Factor Integral to Mosquito Salivary Gland Ducts

Variants of the prototype Alphavirus, Sindbis (SINV), were used in per os infections of adult female mosquitoes to investigate arbovirus interaction with the salivary gland (SG). Infection of Aedine mosquitoes with AR339, a heparan sulfate proteoglycan (HSPG)-dependent variant, resulted in gross pathology in the SG lateral lobes while infection with TR339, a HSPG-independent variant, resulted in minimal SG pathology. HSPG was detected in the internal ducts of the SG lateral lobes by immunolabeling but not in the median lobe, or beyond the triad structure and external ducts. Reports that human lactoferrin interacts with HSPG, suggested an interference with virus attachment to receptors on vertebrate cells. Pre-incubation of Aedes albopictus cultured C7-10 cells with bovine lactoferrin (bLF) followed by adsorption of SINV resulted in earlier and greater intensity of cytopathic response to TR339 compared with AR339. Following pre-treatment of C7-10 cells with bLF, plaques from tissue culture-adapted high-titer SINVTaV-GFP-TC were observed at 48 h post-infection (p.i.), while plaques from low-titer SINVTaV-GFP-TC were not observed until 120 h p.i. Confocal optics detected this reporter virus at 30 days p.i. in the SG proximal lateral lobe, a region of HSPG-immunolocalization. Altogether these data suggest an association between SINV and HSPG in the host mosquito.
Organic nitrogen.

Which forms of nitrogen (N) do plants acquire from soil? This question, central to understanding of plant function, was debated intensely a century ago. It was revitalized more recently with insights in plant–soil interactions and molecular biology, but the difficulties associated with dissecting rhizosphere processes – rapid absorption, uptake, conversion and release of N in the interfaces of soil, microbes and plants – have prevented resolution. In the recent past, inorganic redox reactions were discussed, while today’s focus is transformations of organic N. Despite significant advances and relevance, views are diverging on the importance of organic N as a nutrient source for plants. A recent workshop brought together leading experts, early stage researchers and industry representatives to discuss and evaluate the current knowledge and on-going research to link from molecular function of plants to ecosystem processes.
Accuracy of color Doppler sonography in assessing venous thrombus extension in renal cell carcinoma.

OBJECTIVE Our objective was to evaluate the accuracy of color Doppler sonography for assessing tumor thrombus extension into the renal veins, the inferior vena cava, and the right side of the heart in patients with renal cell carcinoma. MATERIALS AND METHODS Over the past 4.5 years, 44 patients with 46 renal cell carcinomas were examined with color Doppler sonography for the presence and extent of tumor thrombus in the renal veins, the inferior vena cava, and the right side of the heart. Examinations were performed after an equivocal CT scan in 34 patients and as a primary imaging technique in 10. Color Doppler sonographic findings were correlated with surgical-pathologic findings or findings from autopsies performed within 3 months of the Doppler study. Seven patients were excluded: two because of poor technical quality caused by body habitus and five because pathologic correlation was performed more than 3 months after the color Doppler sonographic examination. The remaining 39 renal vein and 37 caval Doppler examinations constituted the study material. Criteria used for the diagnosis of tumor thrombus included distention of the renal vein or the inferior vena cava by echogenic material and partial or complete absence of flow detected with color Doppler sonographic examination. RESULTS Sixteen of 39 renal veins evaluated had pathology-proven tumor thrombus. Color Doppler sonography was 87% accurate with a sensitivity of 75%, a specificity of 96%, a positive predictive value of 92%, and a negative predictive value of 85%. In two false-positive cases, involvement was limited to intrarenal veins, causing no change in the surgical approach. Five of 37 inferior venae cavae evaluated had proven involvement by tumor thrombus. Color Doppler sonography was 100% accurate in assessing the presence and extent of inferior vena caval involvement by tumor thrombus. Extension into the right atrium and ventricle that was shown by this technique was proven by surgery in one case. The overall accuracy for detecting venous involvement for both the renal veins and the inferior vena cava was 93%, the sensitivity was 81%, and the specificity was 98%. CONCLUSION In patients with renal cell carcinoma, color Doppler sonography appears to be fairly accurate in assessing tumor extension into the renal veins, the inferior vena cava, and the right side of the heart. Although CT is the primary imaging technique for staging renal cell carcinoma, color Doppler sonography may be used as a complementary technique for assessing venous extension in patients with an equivocal CT examination.
Fast girls: teenage tribes and the myth of the slut. Book excerpt.

Maybe this story begins in Portland Oregon in the fall of 1980 when Anna Thomas enters Washington High as a freshman. Shes one unit in a shipment of 250 freshman girls. Shes one name on a list. Washington is a public school with a population of about two thousand students mostly upper-middle-class white kids except for those few bused in from minority neighborhoods or the random few who through some accident of zoning have ended up among kids of a different economic tribe. Annas presence at Washington is part of this accident of zoning. Though she lives with her mom in an apartment in the same zip code as the rich kids she is by no means a rich kid. She cant afford the clothes most girls at Washington wear. She wears knockoff versions of designer jeans and she eats government-assisted lunches. In the midst of a predominantly white student body shes half Filipina. Shes exotic: her skin vibrates with the color of another world. Add to this the fact that her breasts have developed much quicker than most girls that her mom is a waitress that she doesnt have many girlfriends and Annas presence is a recipe for scandal. (excerpt)
Reliability and Validity of Conjoint Analysis and Self-Explicated Weights: A Comparison

Though the use of conjoint analysis has increased substantially in recent years, relatively little empirical evidence has been published on how its reliability and validity compares with that of alternative methodological approaches. The authors report the results of a study designed to compare the test-retest reliability and predictive validity of several alternative conjoint analysis techniques with that of self-explicated weights under the condition of all attributes being dichotomous. The findings fail to demonstrate greater reliability and validity for the conjoint analysis techniques considered.
Pharmacological and Immunocytochemical Characterization of Subtypes of Alpha-1 Adrenoceptors in Dog Aorta 1

In this study, the effects of nine alpha-1 adrenoceptor antago-(SKF)] were studied on contractile responses to phen-ylephrine (PE) of the endothelium-denuded dog aorta in vitro. All antagonists, except CEC, 5-MU and RS, produced concentration dependent competitive inhibition of contractile responses of the aorta to PE. The rightward shift of the concentration response curves of PE yielded constant pK B values with increasing antagonist concentrations in most cases allowing a single pooled value to be determined: for prazosin, a pK B of 8. which suggests the presence of more than one receptor subtype. CEC (10 and 100 ␮M) almost completely inhibited responses to PE; lower concentrations had no significant effect. 5-MU (10 –300 nM) and RS (3–300 nM) were ineffective antagonists in this tissue. Because WB, a highly selective alpha-1D and alpha-1A adreno-ceptor subtypes inhibitor, blocked PE responses (with less affinity than for alpha-1A adrenoceptors), and 5-MU and RS, which are selective blockers for alpha-1A adrenoceptor, were ineffective, we conclude that alpha-1A adrenoceptors are absent in the dog aorta. The effects of the less selective MDL72 were inconsistent with actions at alpha-1B or alpha-1D adre-noceptors. Although WB shifted the PE concentration-response curve to the right, the abilities of BMY, MDL73 and SKF to inhibit competitively PE contraction were of lower affinity compared with expectations for interaction with alpha-1D ad-renoceptors; they are not the predominant subtype. The complete inhibition of PE responses by CEC suggests that the dog aorta contains the alpha-1B adrenoceptor subtype. In immu-nocytochemical studies of the expression of alpha-1B adreno-ceptor, all cells apparently expressed this protein. Moreover, Western blot studies of the microsomal fractions confirmed the presence of alpha-1B adrenoceptors. In the dog aorta, the alpha-1 adrenoceptors predominantly resemble alpha-1B rather than alpha-1D adrenoceptors as reported in the rat aorta. Pharmacological, radioligand binding and molecular studies have subclassified the alpha-1 adrenoceptors into three subtypes, namely, alpha-1A, alpha-1B and alpha-1D for native receptors, and alpha-1a (historically, alpha-1c), alpha-1b and alpha-1d (historically, alpha-1a, alpha-1d or alpha-1a/d) for cloned receptors (Hieble et al., 1995a). These subtypes can be identified with selective and nonselective antagonists. For example, WB 4101 has high affinity for alpha-1A as well as for alpha-1D 1995a, b) have high affinity for alpha-1D and CEC selectively inactivates alpha-1B and, to a lesser extent, alpha-1D (see Hieble et al., 1995a) adrenoceptors. Subtypes of alpha-1 ad-renoceptors also have been classified by binding and pharmacological studies according to high (pK D Ͼ 9) …
Retina: helping students and instructors based on observed programming activities

It is difficult for instructors of CS1 and CS2 courses to get accurate answers to such critical questions as "how long are students spending on programming assignments? ", or "what sorts of errors are they making? " At the same time, students often have no idea of where they stand with respect to the rest of the class in terms of time spent on an assignment or the number or types of errors that they encounter. In this paper, we present a tool called Retina, which collects information about students' programming activities, and then provides useful and informative reports to both students and instructors based on the aggregation of that data. Retina can also make real-time recommendations to students, in order to help them quickly address some of the errors they make. In addition to describing Retina and its features, we also present some of our initial findings during two trials of the tool in a real classroom setting.
Toll-Like Receptor 4 Deficiency Impairs Motor Coordination

The cerebellum plays an essential role in balance and motor coordination. Purkinje cells (PCs) are the sole output neurons of the cerebellar cortex and are critical for the execution of its functions, including motor coordination. Toll-like receptor (TLR) 4 is involved in the innate immune response and is abundantly expressed in the central nervous system; however, little is known about its role in cerebellum-related motor functions. To address this question, we evaluated motor behavior in TLR4 deficient mice. We found that TLR4−∕− mice showed impaired motor coordination. Morphological analyses revealed that TLR4 deficiency was associated with a reduction in the thickness of the molecular layer of the cerebellum. TLR4 was highly expressed in PCs but not in Bergmann glia or cerebellar granule cells; however, loss of TLR4 decreased the number of PCs. These findings suggest a novel role for TLR4 in cerebellum-related motor coordination through maintenance of the PC population.
Physicians' liability in obstetric and gynecology practice.

PURPOSE Litigation in obstetric and gynecologic practice has arisen as an important issue. This article aims to highlight issues related to malpractice in obstetrics and gynecology in order to point out several important aspects of medical practice, which may offer adequate professional protection. METHODS AND MATERIAL Search of the current relevant literature. RESULTS The four most common clinical causes of medical litigation in obstetrics and gynecology are cases involving fetal distress, uterine rupture after a vaginal birth in a woman with a previous Cesarean section, shoulder dystocia, and misdiagnosis of breast cancer. Litigation raised in most of the cases is driven by bad outcomes and not by malpractice. Additionally, both juries and the public often expect perfection as the natural result of pregnancy and any deviation from this expectation has to be the result of someone's negligence. For this reason it has become mandatory for doctors in hospitals and private practices to acquire a sufficient knowledge relating to modem management, to document carefully in writing their procedural and management plans and to become familiar with the legal aspects of medical practice. Adequate communication and a written patient's consent form are of paramount importance. CONCLUSION Maintenance of high standards in daily practice with continuous training, clear communication and a signed Patient's Informed Consent Form along with the appropriate documentation of any procedure carried out may provide professional safety to practicing obstetricians and gynecologists in case of medical litigation.
Cognitive and motor functioning in Parkinson disease: subjects with and without questionable dementia.

BACKGROUND The nature of cognitive performance in subjects with Parkinson disease (PD) without dementia is controversial, perhaps because of failure to exclude subjects with unrecognized very mild dementia. OBJECTIVE To compare cognitive and motor functioning in well-characterized subjects with PD without overt dementia with healthy elderly control subjects. DESIGN Subjects' conditions were evaluated clinically and psychometrically at entry into a longitudinal study of cognitive and motor performance in elderly subjects. Measures included a global dementia staging scale, the Washington University Clinical Dementia Rating; psychometric tests, including Logical Memory, Digit Span, Associate Learning, Information, Block Design, Digit Symbol, Trail-making A, Crossing-off, Boston Naming Test, and Word Fluency; and motor measures, including finger tapping, gait velocity, reaction time, and movement time. SETTING A university-based research facility. SUBJECTS There were 3 groups of subjects: healthy elderly control subjects (n=43), subjects with PD without dementia (n=58), and subjects with PD with questionable dementia (n=22), each evaluated at time of entry. RESULTS As expected, both PD groups were impaired on motor measures (gait velocity, finger tapping, and movement time) compared with the healthy elderly control group. Neither PD group showed slowing in reaction time. The subjects with PD with questionable dementia were more impaired on Logical Memory, Block Design, Digit Symbol, and Trailmaking A compared with the subjects with PD without dementia. Although free of clinically evident cognitive dysfunction (Clinical Dementia Rating score, 0), the PD group without dementia was impaired with respect to the healthy elderly control group on all measures from the psychometric assessment except Digit Span, Associate Learning, and Word Fluency. CONCLUSIONS The PD group without dementia showed global cognitive impairments in comparison with the healthy elderly control group, possibly because the healthy elderly control subjects represented idealized aging. Although the deficits were of small magnitude, this finding suggests that PD may predispose to subclinical cognitive impairment. Longitudinal follow-up is required to determine whether subjects with PD destined to develop overt dementia can be distinguished from those who do not.
Nonstandard conditionally specified models for nonignorable missing data

Significance We consider data-analysis settings where data are missing not at random. In these cases, the two basic modeling approaches are 1) pattern-mixture models, with separate distributions for missing data and observed data, and 2) selection models, with a distribution for the data preobservation and a missing-data mechanism that selects which data are observed. These two modeling approaches lead to distinct factorizations of the joint distribution of the observed-data and missing-data indicators. In this paper, we explore a third approach, apparently originally proposed by J. W. Tukey as a remark in a discussion between Rubin and Hartigan, and reported by Holland in a two-page note, which has been so far neglected. Data analyses typically rely upon assumptions about the missingness mechanisms that lead to observed versus missing data, assumptions that are typically unassessable. We explore an approach where the joint distribution of observed data and missing data are specified in a nonstandard way. In this formulation, which traces back to a representation of the joint distribution of the data and missingness mechanism, apparently first proposed by J. W. Tukey, the modeling assumptions about the distributions are either assessable or are designed to allow relatively easy incorporation of substantive knowledge about the problem at hand, thereby offering a possibly realistic portrayal of the data, both observed and missing. We develop Tukey’s representation for exponential-family models, propose a computationally tractable approach to inference in this class of models, and offer some general theoretical comments. We then illustrate the utility of this approach with an example in systems biology.
Circadian changes in serum corticosterone levels affect hearing in mice exposed to noise

We assessed the relationship between changes in corticosterone concentrations and hearing in mice exposed to noise during the light (inactive) and dark (active) phases. Serum corticosterone concentrations and hearing levels were measured before, and 1, 3, 5, 7, and 10 days after, noise exposure between 8:00–11:00 h and 15:00–18:00 h. Serum corticosterone concentrations were significantly lower at 8:00–11:00 h than at 15:00–18:00 h and were significantly lower before than after noise exposure. In addition, serum corticosterone concentrations were significantly lower at 11:00 h after noise exposure than at 18:00 h before noise exposure. Mice exposed to noise at 8:00–11:00 h showed significantly elevated threshold shifts after noise exposure than did mice exposed to noise at 15:00–18:00 h. Endogenous serum corticosterone concentration has a significant effect on hearing after noise exposure. Noise exposure during the inactive phase of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis may be more harmful to the auditory system than noise exposure during the active phase of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis.
Racial Identity, Religious/Spiritual Support, Self-Efficacy, and Academic Support in Predicting Black College Students' Academic Performance

Black students in the United States continue to struggle academically as they matriculate into postsecondary education, placing them at risk for missing opportunities for work and social success. Research has identified the dimensions of Black racial identity, as well as other social factors, that may contribute to academic success. What is missing, however, is research grounded in a theory of Black identity that examines how identity and other factors combine to influence academic success. This quantitative online survey research tested 5 hypotheses to ascertain their relative strength in predicting academic success among Black college students: (a) demographics (age, gender, socioeconomic status, parents’ level of education, and number of semesters in school), (b) Black racial identity, (c) academic support, (d) self-efficacy, and (e) religious/spiritual support. A sample of 87 Black American students (at least 18 years of age, currently enrolled as a matriculating student in postsecondary undergraduate education) completed the Cross Racial Identity Scale, the Daily Spiritual Experience Scale, the Self-Efficacy Scale, the Academic Support Scale, and a demographics form that included self-reported overall GPA, as of most recently completed term. Four regression analyses were conducted, but only self-efficacy significantly predicted academic performance. The lack of significant results on key predictors was ascribed to the relative homogeneity on these measures and to an academically high-performing sample. Nevertheless, these results expand the literature on the importance of self-efficacy as a correlate of academic performance. The results also suggest that high school and college counselors and educators can gain insights into Black students by understanding racial identity, parents’ education, and academic support. Racial Identity, Religious/Spiritual Support, Self-Efficacy, and Academic Support in Predicting Black College Students' Academic Performance by Jonathan M. Hudson, Sr. MSW, California State University, Stanislaus, 2007 BA, California State University, Stanislaus, 2005 Dissertation Submitted in Partial of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy
Improving the extraction of bilingual terminology from Wikipedia

Research on the automatic construction of bilingual dictionaries has achieved impressive results. Bilingual dictionaries are usually constructed from parallel corpora, but since these corpora are available only for selected text domains and language pairs, the potential of other resources is being explored as well. In this article, we want to further pursue the idea of using Wikipedia as a corpus for bilingual terminology extraction. We propose a method that extracts term-translation pairs from different types of Wikipedia link information. After that, an SVM classifier trained on the features of manually labeled training data determines the correctness of unseen term-translation pairs.
Whittaker-Hill equation and semifinite-gap Schroedinger operators

A periodic one-dimensional Schroedinger operator is called semifinite-gap if every second gap in its spectrum is eventually closed. We construct explicit examples of semifinite-gap Schroedinger operators in trigonometric functions by applying Darboux transformations to the Whittaker-Hill equation. We give a criterion of the regularity of the corresponding potentials and investigate the spectral properties of the new operators.
Classifications of Religious Orientation

C LASSIFICATIONS of religious institutions and religious leaders have been developed by sociologists of religion,' but few attempts have been made to classify people in their orientation to religion. Typologies within the psychology of religion have usually been developed with reference to some feature of Christian behaviour. Thus William James accepted Starbuck's typology based on whether people are susceptible to gradual or sudden conversion,2 sayingthat "the difference between the two types is after all not radical. "3 When discussing conversion, Clark assumes differences between individuals in comparing the proportions of conversions from 'sacramental Churches' with those from Churches of a 'sterner theology. '4 He attributes these differences to theological features of the denominations, asserting that in Catholicism there is 'less anxiety because of confession, the sacraments and such like,' and so the individual's acceptance of salvation needs less emphasis. Such differences might be expected to show in personality functioning, but there is little empirical sup-