Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Neuronal Nitric Oxide Synthase Plays a Key Role in CNS Demyelination

Nitric oxide (NO) is a small, short-lived molecule released from a variety of cells that is implicated in a multitude of biological processes. In pathological conditions, overproduction of NO may lead to the generation of highly reactive species, such as peroxynitrite and stable nitrosothiols, that may cause irreversible cell damage. Accordingly, several studies have suggested that NO may be involved in the pathogenesis of various neuroinflammatory/degenerative diseases. Increased concentrations of NO in the CNS in such cases are usually attributed to an increase in the inducible isoform of NO synthase (iNOS) usually produced by inflammatory cells. However, recent reports have suggested that the constitutive isoforms of NOS, neuronal (nNOS) and endothelial (eNOS), can also play a role. Here we examined the role that the constitutive isoforms of NOS might play in the cuprizone-induced model of demyelination/remyelination. Our results demonstrate that demyelination was greatly prevented in mice lacking nNOS. Protection was associated with a dramatic increase in mature oligodendrocyte survival and a decrease in apoptosis. Moreover, nNOS−/− mice did not respond to cuprizone with the extensive recruitment of microglia/macrophages and astrocytes, which is a typical feature in wild-type mice. Although demyelinating less, nNOS−/− mice exhibited a delay in remyelination. In eNOS−/− mice, demyelination progressed to the same extent as in wild type, but they showed a slight delay in spontaneous remyelination. In conclusion, this study highlights the importance of considering the source of NO when assessing its role in neuroinflammation/degeneration and emphasizes the differing pathological effects driven by the different NOS isoforms.
Psychological consultation in older adult inpatient settings: A qualitative investigation of the impact on staff's daily practice and the mechanisms of change

Objectives: Psychological consultation is becoming increasingly common within older adult mental health and dementia services. However, there is very little research that examines the impact or effectiveness of this method of working. This study explored how psychological consultation impacted on the daily practice of staff working on mental health and dementia inpatient units. It also examined the mechanisms that enabled this process. Method: Given the lack of current literature in this area, an exploratory qualitative design was employed. Ten staff who had received psychological consultation were individually interviewed. Staff comprised qualified and unqualified staff from a range of professions, and worked on older adult mental health or dementia units. Interviews were subject to thematic analysis. Results: Five themes were identified from the analysis: (1) ‘It makes you understand the reasons why people are like they are’; (2) ‘It depends on the patient or service user’; (3) the importance of visibility and accessibility; (4) impact of psychology consultation on the effectiveness of the team; and (5) impact of psychology consultation on feelings invoked in the workplace. Conclusions: The findings suggest that psychological consultation impacted on staffs’ daily practice in a variety of ways. Psychological consultation also appeared to increase team efficiency. Less positive findings were identified within the dementia setting. Specific recommendations are drawn from the conclusions to further guide clinical psychologists working within teams. Direction for future research in the area of psychological consultation is also suggested.
Morphological study of the mammalian stress response: characterization of changes in cytoplasmic organelles, cytoskeleton, and nucleoli, and appearance of intranuclear actin filaments in rat fibroblasts after heat-shock treatment

Using both electron microscopy and immunological methods, we have characterized a number of changes occurring in rat fibroblasts after heat-shock treatment. Incubation of the cells for 3 h at 42 degrees-43 degrees C resulted in a number of changes within the cytoplasm including: a disruption and fragmentation of the Golgi complex; a modest swelling of the mitochondria and subtle alterations in the packing of the cristae; and alterations in cytoskeletal elements, specifically a collapse and aggregation of the vimentin-containing intermediate filaments around the nucleus. A number of striking changes were also found within the nuclei of the heat-treated cells: (a) We observed the appearance of rod-shaped bodies consisting of densely packed filaments. Using biochemical and immunological methods, these nuclear inclusion bodies were shown to be comprised of actin filaments. (b) Considerable alterations in the integrity of the nucleoli were observed after the heat-shock treatment. Specifically, there appeared to be a general relaxation in the condensation state of the nucleoli, changes in both the number and size of the granular ribonucleoprotein components, and finally a reorganization of the nucleolar fibrillar reticulum. These morphological changes in the integrity of the nucleoli are of significant interest since previous work as well as studies presented here show that two of the mammalian stress proteins, the major stress-induced 72-kD protein and the 110-kD protein, localize within the nucleoli of the cells after heat-shock treatment. We discuss these morphological changes with regards to the known biological and biochemical events that occur in cells after induction of the stress response.
Advances in Charcot–Marie–Tooth Disease Research: Cellular Function of CMT-Related Proteins, Transgenic Animal Models, and Pathomechanisms

The First Workshop of the European Consortium on Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT) disease brought together neuroscientists, molecular and cell biologists, neuropathologists, neurologists, and geneticists with a common interest in the understanding of the fundamental mechanisms that underlie the pathogenesis of CMT. The interdisciplinary group of 25 expert scientists discussed recent advances in (i) molecular genetics and histopathology of CMT, (ii) development of suitable animal models, (iii) understanding of the cellular function of CMT-related proteins, and (iv) studies using nerve biopsies from CMT patients. In this minireview, we summarize the key findings presented and discuss their impact on CMT research.
Modulation of B-Cell Proliferative Response by a Soluble Extract of Nippostrongylus brasiliensis

ABSTRACT We and others have previously shown that nematodes or nematode products can stimulate or inhibit the generation of lymphocyte responses, suggesting that nematodes exert diverse effects on the developing immune responses of their host. In this study we examined the immunomodulatory effect of a soluble extract ofNippostrongylus brasiliensis (adult worm homogenate [AWH]) on B-cell responsiveness. We found that the extract inhibited the proliferation of B cells to lipopolysaccharide (LPS) stimulation in a dose-dependent manner. This effect was specific to B cells, since the extract did not inhibit T-cell proliferation to concanavalin A or anti-CD3 stimulation. The data presented here confirm that the extract is not toxic to B cells. We present evidence that the active factor is proteinaceous in nature and that the inhibitory activity is restricted to the adult stage of Nb. The extract does not appear to interfere with early activation events since it can be added up to 48 h after LPS stimulation, and it inhibited responses to phorbol myristate acetate and ionomycin. Furthermore, the proliferation of B cells to other activators was also inhibited by AWH. This observation shows that the inhibitory activity of AWH is not restricted to LPS-mediated B-cell proliferation. We present evidence that, in the absence of accessory cells, the inhibitory effect of the extract was ablated. This observation shows that the activity of AWH is not mediated directly on B cells but is mediated via the production of negative signals from accessory cells (macrophages), which affect a downstream pathway required by all B-cell activators tested. These effects on B-cell and accessory cell function are likely to have a significant effect on the outcome of infections experienced concurrently.
Indecent exposure: The impact upon the victim's fear of sexual crime

In an attempt to assess the overall frequency and impact of indecent exposure on women's lives and also to elicit women's fear of sexual crime in general, 72 women were questioned. Of the subjects, 35 (48.6%) had been the victim of indecent exposure, 13 (37.1%) of these on two or more occasions. The women agree that indecent exposers are dangerous and cause great distress. Furthermore, women perceive the offence to be trivialized by the police, and by men in general. Indecent exposure greatly impinges on women's spatial and social freedom and serves to reinforce their fears of sexual crime.
Opposite Effects of the S4–S5 Linker and PIP2 on Voltage-Gated Channel Function: KCNQ1/KCNE1 and Other Channels

Voltage-gated potassium (Kv) channels are tetramers, each subunit presenting six transmembrane segments (S1–S6), with each S1–S4 segments forming a voltage-sensing domain (VSD) and the four S5–S6 forming both the conduction pathway and its gate. S4 segments control the opening of the intracellular activation gate in response to changes in membrane potential. Crystal structures of several voltage-gated ion channels in combination with biophysical and mutagenesis studies highlighted the critical role of the S4–S5 linker (S4S5L) and of the S6 C-terminal part (S6T) in the coupling between the VSD and the activation gate. Several mechanisms have been proposed to describe the coupling at a molecular scale. This review summarizes the mechanisms suggested for various voltage-gated ion channels, including a mechanism that we described for KCNQ1, in which S4S5L is acting like a ligand binding to S6T to stabilize the channel in a closed state. As discussed in this review, this mechanism may explain the reverse response to depolarization in HCN-like channels. As opposed to S4S5L, the phosphoinositide, phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PIP2), stabilizes KCNQ1 channel in an open state. Many other ion channels (not only voltage-gated) require PIP2 to function properly, confirming its crucial importance as an ion channel cofactor. This is highlighted in cases in which an altered regulation of ion channels by PIP2 leads to channelopathies, as observed for KCNQ1. This review summarizes the state of the art on the two regulatory mechanisms that are critical for KCNQ1 and other voltage-gated channels function (PIP2 and S4S5L), and assesses their potential physiological and pathophysiological roles.
A linkage disequilibrium map of the 1‐Mb 15q12 GABAA receptor subunit cluster and association to autism

Autism is a complex genetic neuropsychiatric condition characterized by deficits in social interaction and language and patterns of repetitive or stereotyped behaviors and restricted interests. Chromosome 15q11.2‐q13 is a candidate region for autism susceptibility based on observations of chromosomal duplications in a small percentage of affected individuals and findings of linkage and association. We performed linkage disequilibrium (LD) mapping across a 1‐Mb interval containing a cluster of GABAA receptor subunit genes (GABRB3, GABRA5, and GABRG3) which are good positional and functional candidates. Intermarker LD was measured for 59 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers spanning this region, corresponding to an average marker spacing of 17.7 kb−1. We identified haplotype blocks, and characterized these blocks for common (>5%) haplotypes present in the study population. At this marker resolution, haplotype blocks comprise <50% of the DNA in this region, consistent with a high local recombination rate. Identification of haplotype tag SNPs reduces the overall number of markers necessary to detect all common alleles by only 12%. Individual SNPs and multi‐SNP haplotypes were examined for evidence of allelic association to autism, using a dataset of 123 multiplex autism families. Six markers individually, across GABRB3 and GABRA5, and several haplotypes inclusive of those markers, demonstrated nominally significant association. These results are positively correlated with the position of observed linkage. These studies support the existence of one or more autism risk alleles in the GABAA receptor subunit cluster on 15q12 and have implications for analysis of LD and association in regions with high local recombination. This article contains supplementary material, which may be viewed at the American Journal of Medical Genetics website athttp://www.interscience. wiley.com/jpages/0148‐7299:1/suppmat/index.html. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Categorization of Sentence Types in Medical Abstracts

This study evaluated the use of machine learning techniques in the classification of sentence type. 7253 structured abstracts and 204 unstructured abstracts of Randomized Controlled Trials from MedLINE were parsed into sentences and each sentence was labeled as one of four types (Introduction, Method, Result, or Conclusion). Support Vector Machine (SVM) and Linear Classifier models were generated and evaluated on cross-validated data. Treating sentences as a simple "bag of words", the SVM model had an average ROC area of 0.92. Adding a feature of relative sentence location improved performance markedly for some models and overall increasing the average ROC to 0.95. Linear classifier performance was significantly worse than the SVM in all datasets. Using the SVM model trained on structured abstracts to predict unstructured abstracts yielded performance similar to that of models trained with unstructured abstracts in 3 of the 4 types. We conclude that classification of sentence type seems feasible within the domain of RCT's. Identification of sentence types may be helpful for providing context to end users or other text summarization techniques.
Factors Influencing the Choice of Geography as an Optional Subject: A Case of a Senior Secondary School in Botswana

Abstract This paper examines the factors which influence the choice of geography by final year students as an optional subject in a Botswana senior secondary school. It is often the case that a year to their final year in school, it is mandatory for students to offer some compulsory (core) subjects such as English and Mathematics, and Setswana but also have to choose some courses from a given list of optional subjects. In recent years, it has been observed that more students opt for geography from the list of available optional subjects. What factors influence those students opting for geography at the expense of other optional subjects in the same category? What are the implications for teacher education at this level of education? These and other related questions form the basis of this investigation. Data were collected from a sample of 218 final year students from a senior secondary school in Gaborone with the use of an instrument titled ‘’Students’ Choice of Geography. ” A major finding was the preference of Geography by students because of its relationship with their intended careers. The implications of this study, among others, include the organization of frequent workshops to students and the need to tailor teacher education curriculum to include career choice and the effective use of counseling facilities in schools.
Trauma Stories: Violence, Emotion and Politics in Somali Ethiopia

This article draws on ethnographic material from Ethiopia to address two ways of making sense of violence and death: individual psychological trauma, in one society’s domain of psychological medicine, and personal and collective injury, in another society’s domain of politics. Both approaches entail theories of emotion and human nature. Both are embedded in social relations and have implications at individual, social and political levels. Among Somalis in Ethiopia, war-related distress is not interpreted in a medical framework aimed at healing. Rather, such violence is predominantly assimilated into the framework of Somali politics, in which individual injuries are considered injuries to a lineage or other defined group. The dominant emotion in this context is not sadness or fear, but anger, which has emotional, political and material importance in validating individuals as members of a group sharing mutual rights and obligations. Before advocating trauma-based models of war-related distress, researchers and practitioners should consider whether a medical framework would do better at helping individuals and communities to deal with distress and reconstruct meaningful lives and relationships in circumstances of longstanding collective violence.
HIV prevalence, incidence and risk behaviours among men who have sex with men in Yangzhou and Guangzhou, China: a cohort study

In China, the prevalence and incidence of HIV among men who have sex with men (MSM) in large‐sized cities have drawn much attention. In contrast, there has been a paucity of research focussing on the sexual health of MSM of medium‐sized cities. This study fills this important gap in the knowledge by investigating the sexual health of MSM in a medium‐sized city (Yangzhou) and a large‐sized city (Guangzhou).
Serological Responses of Chickens to Low Challenge Doses of Mycoplasma Synoviae

Abstract Groups of eight chickens were challenged with 10-fold dilutions of one of two strains of Mycoplasma synoviae (MS); each challenge group contained two noninfected sentinels. Both strains were highly efficient in colonizing the respiratory tract with challenge doses as low as 76 and 24 color-changing units/bird. Infection spread rapidly (within 7 days) to sentinels, while uninfected control chickens separated from infected chickens by two empty pens remained uninfected for the 56-day experimental period. Although sentinels and birds challenged with the lowest doses had weaker or slightly slower antibody responses in some cases as measured by serum plate agglutination, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and hemagglutination inhibition (HI), they generally exhibited a typical antibody response. Agglutination reactions tended to be weak, but a high percentage of tests (generally >30% from day 14 postchallenge) were positive. ELISA results were variable, and in some cases reactor rates were low (generally <20%), even though the chickens were colonized in the upper respiratory tract. The HI test was reliable in detecting infected groups; usually >50% were positive from 14 days postchallenge. Mean HI titers were higher when using hemagglutination antigens prepared from the homologous MS strain as compared with antigen prepared from the heterologous strain or with standard antigen prepared from WVU 1853.
Weighted Voronoi stippling

The traditional artistic technique of stippling places small dots of ink onto paper such that their density give the impression of tone. The artist tightly controls the relative placement of the stipples on the paper to produce even tones and avoid artifacts, leading to long creation times for the drawings.We present two non-interactive techniques for generating stipple drawings from grayscale images using weighted centroidal Voronoi diagrams. An iterative technique acts on input images directly to produce high-quality stipple drawings and a real-time approach uses precomputed dot distributions to stipple images quickly.
EXAMINATION OF EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE LEVEL, TEACHER'S SELF-EFFICACY BELIEFS AND GENERAL SELF-EFFICACY BELIEFS OF

The aim of this study is to examine emotional intelligence level, general selfefficacy beliefs and teacher's self-efficacy beliefs of teachers. The study hypothesises a model which consists of emotional intelligence, general selfefficacy and teacher's self-efficacy. 278 teachers from different fields participated in the study. Collected data was analysed with Pearson Product Correlation, oneway ANOVA, and Independent t-test. The hypothesised model was analysed in AMOS (Analysis of Moment Structure). Consequently, while significant relations were found between emotional intelligence, general self-efficacy beliefs and teachers’ self-efficacy beliefs of teachers, hypothesised model was accepted.
Social power as a means of increasing personal and organizational effectiveness: The mediating role of organizational citizenship behavior

Abstract This study focuses on to explore the impact of social power on organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) and the role of OCB as a mediator of the relationship between social power and personal and organizational effectiveness. Data were collected by administering self rated questionnaires to male middle-level executives (N = 250) in face to face conditions from motor cycle manufacturing organisations based in northern India. The mediator analysis (by using AMOS) showed that all the fit indexes were in the acceptable range which indicates that OCBs have mediated significantly between social power and effectiveness. Other results as analyzed through multiple regression analysis showed the significant impact of social power on the dimensions of OCB and effectiveness as it was hypothesized. The study suggests the potential benefits of using positive forms of social power by supervisors as part of their managerial style in order to enhance OCBs and in turn increase personal and organizational effectiveness. This study advances the research on the concept of OCB and social power in an Indian work context.
Non‐dietary risk factors for nasopharyngeal carcinoma in Shanghai, China

A population‐based case‐control study was conducted in Shanghai, China, to investigate the associations between exposures to various non‐dietary variables and risk of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). A total of 935 NPC patients and 1,032 community controls were included. Active cigarette smoking was a moderate risk factor for NPC [odds ratio (OR) = 1.28, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.02–1.61]. Results were highly consistent between men and women. It is estimated that 12% of NPC cases in Shanghai, China, can be attributable to cigarette smoking. Among lifelong non‐smokers, there was a strong and statistically significant positive association between NPC risk and exposure to substantial secondhand smoke as a child or as an adult in women. However, the associations among lifelong non‐smoking men were weaker and not statistically significant. The gender differences in risk associated with passive smoking were either statistically significant or almost so. There were excess numbers of NPC patients compared with control subjects who had a history of chronic ear and nose disease (OR = 1.96, 95% CI 1.56–2.46) and a family history of NPC (OR = 7.47, 95% CI 2.14–12.88). Int. J. Cancer 85:364–369, 2000. ©2000 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.