Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Effect of the Menstrual Cycle on Glucose Control in Women With Type 1 Diabetes Evaluated Using a Continuous Glucose Monitoring System

Information on the factors that affect glycemia is pivotal in the treatment of diabetes, including insulin sensitivity in different physiological processes (1–4). The current study evaluated the effect of the menstrual cycle on glucose control in six patients with type 1 diabetes, with a median age 23 years and regular menstrual cycles, not in use of hormonal contraception, not pregnant or breastfeeding, with normal thyroid function, and recent glycated hemoglobin 180 mg/dL, hypoglycemia 180 mg/dL (≤2 h after a meal), and nocturnal …
SEARCHING FOR CIRCUMPLANETARY DISKS AROUND LkCa 15

We present Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA) observations of the 7 mm continuum emission from the disk surrounding the young star LkCa 15. The observations achieve an angular resolution of 70 mas and spatially resolve the circumstellar emission on a spatial scale of 9 AU. The continuum emission traces a dusty annulus of 45 AU in radius that is consistent with the dust morphology observed at shorter wavelengths. The VLA observations also reveal a compact source at the center of the disk, possibly due to thermal emission from hot dust or ionized gas located within a few AU from the central star. No emission is observed between the star and the dusty ring and, in particular, at the position of the candidate protoplanet LkCa 15 b. By comparing the observations with theoretical models for circumplanetary disk emission, we find that if LkCa 15 b is a massive planet (>5 MJ) accreting at a rate greater than 10−6 MJ yr−1, then its circumplanetary disk is less massive than 0.1 MJ, or smaller than 0.4 Hill radii. Similar constraints are derived for any possible circumplanetary disk orbiting within 45 AU from the central star. The mass estimates are uncertain by at least one order of magnitude due to the uncertainties on the mass opacity. Future ALMA observations of this system might be able to detect circumplanetary disks down to a mass of 5 × 10−4 MJ and as small as 0.2 AU, providing crucial constraints on the presence of giant planets in the act of forming around this young star.
Classroom Peer Effects and Student Achievement

We analyze the impact of classroom peers’ ability (measured by their individual fixed effects) on student achievement for all Florida public school students in grades 3–10 over a 6-year period. We control for both student and teacher fixed effects, thereby alleviating biases due to endogenous assignment of both peers and teachers. Under linear-in-means specifications, estimated peer effects are small to nonexistent, but we find some sizable and significant peer effects within nonlinear models. We also find that classroom peers, as compared with the broader group of grade-level peers at the same school, exert a greater influence on individual achievement gains.
COLLABORATIVE ELECTRONIC MEDIA USAGEFOR INFORMATION SHARING: TECHNOLOGYCOMPETENCE AND SOCIAL TIES

The advance in collaborative communication media has allowed people to communicate and exchange information. The success of collaborative communication technologies depends upon how people use them. This paper develops a theoretical extension on individuals beliefs and intentions in the usage of collaborative electronic media. The paper addresses crucial factors that are related to predicting collaborative electronic media usage for information sharing: technology competence and social ties. Introduction The advance in collaborative communication media (i.e., electronic mail, electronic bulletin board, list servers, etc.) has allowed people to access, communicate, and share information across time and place in the absence of acquaintance, physical proximity, or history of prior relationship (Constant et al. 1996; Kettinger and Grover 1997). Researchers recognize information sharing as a key element in todays organizations (Constant et al. 1994; Davenport and Prusak 1998; Jarvenpaa and Staples 2000). The success of communication technologies for information sharing depends upon how people use them (Constant et al. 1994). Previous studies have empirically investigated the usage of collaborative communication media and its determinants (Kettinger and Grover 1997; Rafaeli and LaRose 1993; Sproull and Kiesler 1986; Steinfield 1985, 1986). Most studies have examined different factors that have influenced purposes of media usage such as task-related and social-related use. However, few studies on collaborative communication media have examined which factors in media usage are related to individuals beliefs and intentions. The paper develops a theoretical extension on individuals beliefs and intentions in the usage of collaborative electronic media. By making the research model more specific, we synthesize the TAM, technology competence, and social ties (Agarwal and Karahanna 2000; Davis 1989; Haythornthwaite and Wellman 1998; Marcolin et al. 2000; Pickering and King, 1995; Taylor and Todd 1995; Venkatesh and Davis 2000). The contributions of this study are threefold. First, this study provides a theoretical rationale for explaining an individuals usage of collaborative media. Second, we identify personal and social factors on individuals belief processes. Third, from a practical point of view, our model helps managers develop more effective communication systems. The following section presents the theoretical background of this study. Subsequently, the paper proposes a conceptual framework and provides propositions. Theoretical Background Technology Competence: Computer Self-Efficacy and Knowledge Marcolin et al. (2000) argued that few studies have incorporated technology competence as a key factor in information technology usage regardless of its importance in effective use of information technology. User competence is defined as the users potential Human-Computer Interaction Studies in MIS 114
Maximization of Learning Speed in the Motor Cortex Due to Neuronal Redundancy

Many redundancies play functional roles in motor control and motor learning. For example, kinematic and muscle redundancies contribute to stabilizing posture and impedance control, respectively. Another redundancy is the number of neurons themselves; there are overwhelmingly more neurons than muscles, and many combinations of neural activation can generate identical muscle activity. The functional roles of this neuronal redundancy remains unknown. Analysis of a redundant neural network model makes it possible to investigate these functional roles while varying the number of model neurons and holding constant the number of output units. Our analysis reveals that learning speed reaches its maximum value if and only if the model includes sufficient neuronal redundancy. This analytical result does not depend on whether the distribution of the preferred direction is uniform or a skewed bimodal, both of which have been reported in neurophysiological studies. Neuronal redundancy maximizes learning speed, even if the neural network model includes recurrent connections, a nonlinear activation function, or nonlinear muscle units. Furthermore, our results do not rely on the shape of the generalization function. The results of this study suggest that one of the functional roles of neuronal redundancy is to maximize learning speed.
Histopathological changes in the gills of naturally- infected Capoeta aculeata (Cuvier and Valenciennes, 1844) with parasites

Histopathological changes in gills of a native fish Capoeta aculeata, naturally-infected with parasites were studied. The specimens (15.5 to 22.8 cm) were collected from Choghakhor lagoon in West Iran. 35 (11%) of the total 318 studied fishes were infected with gill parasites. Overall, six protozoan and metazoan parasite species were collected from fishes including Ichthyophthirius multifiliis, Trichodina sp. , Myxobolus musayevi, Dactylogyrus extensus, Gyrodactylus sp. and Copepod stage of Lerneae cyprinacea . The gills of infected fish were fixed and processed for routine histological investigations. Histopathological changes and tissue reactions included hyperplasia, congestion and mucous cell proliferation of the gill epithelium and damaged primary and secondary lamellae. Histopathological changes induced by the parasites adversely affected the proper functioning of the gills of the host fish. Key words: Gill parasites, histopathology, Capoeta aculeata, Choghakhor lagoon.
On the question of whether lubricants fluidize in stick–slip friction

Significance The costs to developed economies of friction and wear in technology are some 4–6% of their gross national product, so improved understanding of frictional dissipation can lead to substantial benefits. A widespread mode of friction is the intermittent motion (stick–slip) between sliding solid surfaces (such as the squeak of hinges, or a bow running over a cello string), which can persist even on adding lubricants, but its origins are not well understood. We now show directly, by capturing the fleeting, individual slip events at millisecond and subnanometer resolution, that, in contrast to accepted and long-standing belief, shear melting (fluidization) of thin lubricant layers does not occur in stick–slip sliding. This new insight may open the way to improved lubricant design. Intermittent sliding (stick–slip motion) between solids is commonplace (e.g., squeaking hinges), even in the presence of lubricants, and is believed to occur by shear-induced fluidization of the lubricant film (slip), followed by its resolidification (stick). Using a surface force balance, we measure how the thickness of molecularly thin, model lubricant films (octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane) varies in stick–slip sliding between atomically smooth surfaces during the fleeting (ca. 20 ms) individual slip events. Shear fluidization of a film of five to six molecular layers during an individual slip event should result in film dilation of 0.4–0.5 nm, but our results show that, within our resolution of ca. 0.1 nm, slip of the surfaces is not correlated with any dilation of the intersurface gap. This reveals that, unlike what is commonly supposed, slip does not occur by such shear melting, and indicates that other mechanisms, such as intralayer slip within the lubricant film, or at its interface with the confining surfaces, may be the dominant dissipation modes.
Amygdalo‐Entorhinal Inputs to the Hippocampal Formation in Relation to Schizophrenia

Abstract: This chapter reviews recent postmortem studies of schizophrenic brain and discusses the potential role of the amygdala in the induction of hippocampal abnormalities in this disorder. Based on available evidence, sectors CA4, CA3, and CA2, but not CA1, show preferential changes in schizophrenic subjects, although the most pronounced changes have been found in CA3 and CA2. It seems likely that the amygdala would contribute in some way to the induction of abnormalities along the trisynaptic pathway via its direct input to sectors CA3 and CA2, as well as an indirect one that involves the entorhinal cortex and its perforant path projection to the area dentata. The postmortem findings reported to date have been integrated into a working model in which decreases of inhibitory GABAergic modulation are invoked to explain the observation from a recent PET scan study (Heckers et al., 1999) that baseline metabolic activity in the hippocampus of schizophrenics is increased. In addition, however, the apparent inability of schizophrenics to increase metabolic activity in the hippocampus when challenged with a memory retrieval task may reflect a disturbance of disinhibitory modulation postulated herein to occur in sector CA3, a key relay point along the trisynaptic pathway. Overall, it seems plausible that an increase of excitatory activity entering the hippocampus from the basolateral complex via both direct and indirect pathways may make a significant contribution to the pathophysiology of schizophrenia.
Detection of adenoviral genome in the myocardium of adult patients with idiopathic left ventricular dysfunction.

BACKGROUND The use of molecular biological techniques has demonstrated the importance of enteroviral infection of the myocardium in the pathogenesis of myocarditis and dilated cardiomyopathy in adults and adenovirus and enterovirus infection in children. The aim of this study was to determine the frequency of adenoviral infection of the myocardium of adults with impaired left ventricular function of unknown origin. METHODS AND RESULTS Nested polymerase chain reaction (nPCR) was used to determine the frequency of detection of adenoviral DNA and enteroviral RNA in myocardial tissue samples from 94 adult patients with idiopathic left ventricular dysfunction and 14 control patients. Histological and immunohistological analyses were performed to detect myocardial inflammation. Adenoviral genomic DNA was detected by nPCR in 12 of the 94 patients with left ventricular dysfunction (in each case, adenovirus type 2), whereas enteroviral RNA was detected in another 12 patients. All control samples were negative for both viruses. In all patients, active myocarditis was excluded according to the Dallas criteria. However, there was significantly decreased CD2, CD3, and CD45RO T lymphocyte counts in the adenovirus-positive group compared with the adenovirus-negative group (P<0.05), whereas no differences were associated with enterovirus infection. CONCLUSIONS Although enteroviruses are an important causative agent in the pathogenesis of myocarditis and dilated cardiomyopathy, this study shows that adenovirus infection is also important in the pathogenesis of left ventricular failure in adults. However, the pathogenetic basis of disease associated with adenovirus infection may be different than that after infection with other agents, particularly with respect to activation of the host immune response.
Using a Novel MicroRNA Delivery System to Inhibit Osteoclastogenesis

Previously, we developed a novel microRNA (miRNA) delivery system based on bacteriophage MS2 virus-like particles (MS2 VLPs). In this current study, we used this system to transport miR-146a into human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs), and demonstrated the inhibition of osteoclastogenesis in precursors. Two cytokines, receptor activator of NF-κB ligand (RANKL), and macrophage-colony stimulating factor (M-CSF) were used to induce osteoclastogenesis. MS2 VLPs were transfected into PBMCs. qRT-PCR was applied to measure expression levels of miR-146a and osteoclast (OC)-specific genes. Western blot (WB) was conducted to evaluate miR-146a downstream target proteins: epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and tumor necrosis factor (TNF) receptor-associated factor 6 (TRAF6). The formation and activity of OCs were assessed by cytochemical staining and bone resorption assay, respectively. In PBMCs treated with MS2-miR146a VLPs, qRT-PCR assays showed increased expression of miR-146a (p < 0.01) and decreased expression of all four OC-specific genes (p < 0.05). WB results indicated decreased expression of EGFR (p < 0.01) and TRAF6 (p < 0.05). The number of OCs decreased markedly and bone resorption assay demonstrated inhibited activity. This miR-146a delivery system could be applied to induce overexpression of miR-146a and to inhibit the differentiation and function of OCs.
Counter-Gradient Variation in Respiratory Performance of Coral Reef Fishes at Elevated Temperatures

The response of species to global warming depends on how different populations are affected by increasing temperature throughout the species' geographic range. Local adaptation to thermal gradients could cause populations in different parts of the range to respond differently. In aquatic systems, keeping pace with increased oxygen demand is the key parameter affecting species' response to higher temperatures. Therefore, respiratory performance is expected to vary between populations at different latitudes because they experience different thermal environments. We tested for geographical variation in respiratory performance of tropical marine fishes by comparing thermal effects on resting and maximum rates of oxygen uptake for six species of coral reef fish at two locations on the Great Barrier Reef (GBR), Australia. The two locations, Heron Island and Lizard Island, are separated by approximately 1200 km along a latitudinal gradient. We found strong counter-gradient variation in aerobic scope between locations in four species from two families (Pomacentridae and Apogonidae). High-latitude populations (Heron Island, southern GBR) performed significantly better than low-latitude populations (Lizard Island, northern GBR) at temperatures up to 5°C above average summer surface-water temperature. The other two species showed no difference in aerobic scope between locations. Latitudinal variation in aerobic scope was primarily driven by up to 80% higher maximum rates of oxygen uptake in the higher latitude populations. Our findings suggest that compensatory mechanisms in high-latitude populations enhance their performance at extreme temperatures, and consequently, that high-latitude populations of reef fishes will be less impacted by ocean warming than will low-latitude populations.
An Analysis and Evaluation of Audio Features for Multitrack Music Mixtures

Mixing multitrack music is an expert task where characteristics of the individual elements and their sum are manipulated in terms of balance, timbre and positioning, to resolve technical issues and to meet the creative vision of the artist or engineer. In this paper we conduct a mixing experiment where eight songs are each mixed by eight different engineers. We consider a range of features describing the dynamic, spatial and spectral characteristics of each track, and perform a multidimensional analysis of variance to assess whether the instrument, song and/or engineer is the determining factor that explains the resulting variance, trend, or consistency in mixing methodology. A number of assumed mixing rules from literature are discussed in the light of this data, and implications regarding the automation of various mixing processes are explored. Part of the data used in this work is published in a new online multitrack dataset through which public domain recordings, mixes, and mix settings (DAW projects) can be shared.
Higher‐order oligomerization promotes localization of SPOP to liquid nuclear speckles

Membrane‐less organelles in cells are large, dynamic protein/protein or protein/RNA assemblies that have been reported in some cases to have liquid droplet properties. However, the molecular interactions underlying the recruitment of components are not well understood. Herein, we study how the ability to form higher‐order assemblies influences the recruitment of the speckle‐type POZ protein (SPOP) to nuclear speckles. SPOP, a cullin‐3‐RING ubiquitin ligase (CRL3) substrate adaptor, self‐associates into higher‐order oligomers; that is, the number of monomers in an oligomer is broadly distributed and can be large. While wild‐type SPOP localizes to liquid nuclear speckles, self‐association‐deficient SPOP mutants have a diffuse distribution in the nucleus. SPOP oligomerizes through its BTB and BACK domains. We show that BTB‐mediated SPOP dimers form linear oligomers via BACK domain dimerization, and we determine the concentration‐dependent populations of the resulting oligomeric species. Higher‐order oligomerization of SPOP stimulates CRL3SPOP ubiquitination efficiency for its physiological substrate Gli3, suggesting that nuclear speckles are hotspots of ubiquitination. Dynamic, higher‐order protein self‐association may be a general mechanism to concentrate functional components in membrane‐less cellular bodies.
Heavy-metal-contaminated industrial soil: Uptake assessment in native plant species from Brazilian Cerrado

ABSTRACT Plants of the Cerrado have shown some potential for restoration and/or phytoremediation projects due to their ability to grow in and tolerate acidic soils rich in metals. The aim of this study is to evaluate the tolerance and accumulation of metals (Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn) in five native tree species of the Brazilian Cerrado (Copaifera langsdorffii, Eugenia dysenterica, Inga laurina, Cedrela fissilis, Handroanthus impetiginosus) subjected to three experiments with contaminated soils obtained from a zinc processing industry (S1, S2, S3) and control soil (S0). The experimental design was completely randomized (factorial 5 × 4 × 3) and conducted in a greenhouse environment during a 90-day experimentation time. The plant species behavior was assessed by visual symptoms of toxicity, tolerance index (TI), translocation factor (TF), and bioaccumulation factor (BF). C. fissilis has performed as a Zn accumulator by the higher BFs obtained in the experiments, equal to 3.72, 0.88, and 0.41 for S1, S2, and S3 respectively. This species had some ability of uptake control as a defense mechanism in high stress conditions with the best behavior for phytoremediation and high tolerance to contamination. With economical and technical benefits, this study may support a preliminary analysis necessary for using native tree species in environmental projects.
Nasal closure for severe hereditary haemorrhagic telangiectasia in 100 patients. The Lund modification of the Young's procedure: a 22-year experience.

INTRODUCTION Hereditary haemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT) is an autosomal dominant vascular disease characterized by recurrent epistaxis, mucocutaneous telangiectasia and visceral arteriovenous malformations. The nosebleeds can be life-threatening and in these circumstances, radical treatment is required. METHODS Since 1994, closure of the nose has been undertaken to prevent severe nasal bleeding in patients meeting specific selection criteria. Outcome data collected on this cohort pre- and post-operatively is available for analysis. RESULTS From a cohort of 515 HHT patients, 100 have undergone nasal closure, bilateral ab initio in 81%. Fifty patients completed pre- and post-operative epistaxis severity questionnaires and provided information on post-operative problems and 28 completed a Glasgow Benefit Inventory (GBI). Overall most patients derived significant benefit from the procedure with complete cessation of nasal bleeding in 94%, a highly significant improvement in the epistaxis score and a mean GBI score of 53.4. Loss of smell and taste was the most frequent post-operative complaint. CONCLUSION HHT can be associated with life-threatening epistaxis significantly affecting patients quality of life. Permanent prevention of airflow is associated with complete or near-total cessation of epistaxis in the majority of patients.
Multispecies coexistence of trees in tropical forests: spatial signals of topographic niche differentiation increase with environmental heterogeneity

Neutral and niche theories give contrasting explanations for the maintenance of tropical tree species diversity. Both have some empirical support, but methods to disentangle their effects have not yet been developed. We applied a statistical measure of spatial structure to data from 14 large tropical forest plots to test a prediction of niche theory that is incompatible with neutral theory: that species in heterogeneous environments should separate out in space according to their niche preferences. We chose plots across a range of topographic heterogeneity, and tested whether pairwise spatial associations among species were more variable in more heterogeneous sites. We found strong support for this prediction, based on a strong positive relationship between variance in the spatial structure of species pairs and topographic heterogeneity across sites. We interpret this pattern as evidence of pervasive niche differentiation, which increases in importance with increasing environmental heterogeneity.