Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Regulation of Insulin Secretion From Novel Engineered Insulinoma Cell Lines

In the accompanying article, we describe the creation of novel cell lines derived from RIN 1046-38 rat insulinoma cells by stable transfection with combinations of genes encoding human insulin, GLUT2, and glucokinase. Herein we describe the regulation of insulin secretion and glucose metabolism in these new cell lines. A cell line (βG I/17) expressing only the human proinsulin transgene exhibits a clear increase in basal insulin production (measured in the absence of secretagogues) relative to parental RIN 1046-38 cells. βG I/17 cells engineered for high levels of GLUT2 expression and a twofold increase in glucokinase activity ([βG 49/206) or engineered for a 10-fold increase in glucokinase activity alone (βG 40/110) exhibit a 66% and 80% suppression in basal insulin secretion relative to βG I/17 cells, respectively. As a result, βG 49/206 and βG 40/110 cells exhibit potent insulin-secretory responses to glucose alone (6.1- and 7.6-fold, respectively) or to glucose plus isobutylmethylxanthine (10.8- and 15.1-fold, respectively) that are clearly larger than the corresponding responses of βG I/17 or parental RIN 1046-38 cells. βG 49/206 and βG 40/110 cells also exhibit a rapid and sustained response to glucose plus isobutylmethylxanthine in perifusion studies that is clearly larger in magnitude than that of the two control lines. Glucose dose-response studies show that both engineered and non-engineered lines respond maximally to submillimolar concentrations of glucose and that βG 49/206 cells are the most sensitive to low concentrations of the hexose, consistent with their clearly elevated rate of ]5-3H]glucose usage. Finally, 5-thioglucose, a potent inhibitor of low-Km hexokinases, most effectively normalizes glucose concentration dependence for insulin secretion in the cell line with highest glucokinase expression (βG 40/110). We conclude that GLUT2 and/or glucokinase expression imposes tight regulation of basal insulin secretion in cell lines that overexpress human proinsulin, allowing a marked improvement in the range of secretagogue responsiveness in such cells.
Conflicts of Interest, Reputation, and the Interwar Debt Crisis: Banksters or Bad Luck?

This paper builds a new dataset with detailed information on the universe of foreign government bonds issued in New York in the 1920s and uses these data to describe the behavior of the financial intermediaries which operated in the New York market during the period leading to the interwar debt crisis. The paper starts by showing that concerns over reputation played an important role in intermediaries’ underwriting choices. Next, the paper checks whether banks managed to charge abnormal underwriting fees on bonds that would eventually default and finds no evidence of such practice ("banksterism"). The paper concludes by discussing some parallels between the experience of the 1920s and the current debate on the "originate and distribute" model.
Uterine peristalsis before embryo transfer affects the chance of clinical pregnancy in fresh and frozen-thawed embryo transfer cycles.

STUDY QUESTION Does uterine peristalsis influence the chance of clinical pregnancy in an embryo transfer cycle? SUMMARY ANSWER The uterine peristaltic wave frequency before embryo transfer is inversely related to the clinical pregnancy rates in fresh and frozen-thawed embryo transfer cycles. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY Uterine peristalsis participates in regulating fluid migration after mock embryo transfer, but whether it could potentially influence pregnancy outcomes had remained unclear. STUDY DESIGN, SIZE, DURATION This prospective cohort study included a total of 292 infertile women and was conducted between March 2013 and August 2013. PARTICIPANTS/MATERIALS, SETTING, METHODS Patients underwent fresh embryo transfer in a fresh stimulation cycle with a long down-regulation protocol, a natural frozen-thawed embryo transfer cycle or an artificial frozen-thawed embryo transfer cycle. Uterine peristaltic activity was assessed before embryo transfer by transvaginal ultrasonography. MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCE The uterine peristaltic wave frequencies of most patients were between 1.1 and 3.0 waves/min before embryo transfer (ET). The clinical pregnancy rate was the highest when <2.0 waves/min was observed and it decreased with an increasing wave frequency thereafter, with an especially dramatic decrease with >3.0 waves/min. Uterine peristaltic wave frequencies of the non-pregnant patient group were higher than that of the clinically-pregnant patient group in all types of transfer, fresh embryo transfer, natural FET or artificial FET cycle. Binary logistic regression analysis demonstrated that the association between uterine peristaltic wave frequency before embryo transfer and clinical pregnancy was independently significant (odds ratio: 0.49; 95% confidence interval: 0.34-0.70, P < 0.001). LIMITATIONS, REASONS FOR CAUTION Uterine peristalsis after embryo transfer was not observed in case any possible negative effect of the observation disturbed embryo implantation or caused psychological stress. Uterine peristalsis after embryo transfer may differ from that before embryo transfer. Another limitation of the present study was the lack of uterine peristaltic wave type analysis which is also an important parameter to assess uterine activity. WIDER IMPLICATIONS OF THE FINDINGS Patients with uterine peristalsis of <3.0 waves/min before embryo transfer had a higher chance of pregnancy compared with those with higher frequencies. This could be a promising quantitative marker of uterine receptivity and pregnancy outcome in an embryo transfer cycle. The predictive validity of the cut-off value needs to be tested in further study. STUDY FUNDING/COMPETING INTEREST(S) The study is supported by Hunan Provincial Innovation Foundation for Postgraduates. The authors declare that they have no competing interests in this study.
Multimedia information changes the whole privacy ballgame

Global multimedia communications is advancing the freedom of information and knowledge. However, as the amount and variety of multimedia data generated through these applications increases, so do risks associated with widespread accessibility and utilization of such data. Specifically, data may be used in a manner which users regard as an invasion of their privacy. The relationship between multimedia data and privacy invasion has not yet been clearly described. The main problem is that current approaches to privacy define characteristics of the data and thus information, rather than how it is perceived by the users (Davies, 1997). Three years of research within this field have, however, identified that previous approaches to privacy protection are not addressing the real problems in this field. Most multimedia invasions of privacy are not intentional or malicious; rather, the designers failed to anticipate how the data could be used, by whom, and how this might affect users (Adams, 1999a & b; Adams & Sasse, 1999a & b). Seeking to address this problem a model of the user perspective on privacy in multimedia environments has been identified. The model helps to determine which information users regard as private, from whom, and in which context. Trade-offs users make, thus rendering some privacy risks acceptable are also identified. The model can assist designers and organizations utilizing multimedia communications to assess privacy implications, and thus develop mechanisms for acceptable use of the technology.
Genetic differentiation and local temporal stability of population structure in the euphausiid Meganyctiphanes norvegica

Meganyctiphanes norvegica (M. Sars 1856), the northern krill, is the largest and most abundant euphausiid species in the northern hemisphere, where it represents a key component of many pelagic communities. Although planktonic, krill could be considered a nektonic organism, as it is capable of active movements. This behaviour may be adaptive, because it allows these organisms to maintain their geographic position, leading to stable population structure, despite being continu- ously exposed to the heterogeneous oceanic conditions. By means of single-strand conformation polymorphism and DNA sequencing, we analyzed allelic variation of the Subunit 1 of NADH dehy- drogenase mtDNA locus in 23 populations of the northern krill Meganyctiphanes norvegica, from 15 locations spanning the distribution range of the species. Analysis of the data indicated that the genetic structure, as revealed by analysis of population samples collected at the same site in consec- utive years, was stable during that sampling period. Our results revealed the existence of 4 geneti- cally and geographically distinct gene pools of M. norvegica, 2 occurring in the NE Atlantic ('north- ern' NE Atlantic and 'southern' NE Atlantic), 1 in the NW Atlantic, and 1 in the Mediterranean (Ligurian) Sea.
Nonsyndromic Cleft Lip with or without Cleft Palate in China: Assessment of Candidate Regions

Objective Although Asians have the highest birth prevalence of oral-facial clefts, the majority of gene mapping studies of cleft lip with or without cleft palate (CL/P) have been in European or American Caucasians. Therefore, the objective of this study of Chinese families was to evaluate linkage and association between CL/P and 10 genetic markers in five chromosomal regions that have shown positive results in Caucasians. Setting Families were ascertained through nonsyndromic CL/P surgical pro-bands from hospitals throughout Shanghai, China. Participants Study participants included 671 individuals from 60 families with two or more members affected with oral-facial clefts. Of the 671 total individuals, 145 were affected. Results Ten markers from chromosomes 2, 4, 6, 17, and 19 were assessed (TGFA, MSX1, D4S194, D4S175, F13A1, GATA185H, D17S250, D17S579, D19S49, APOC2). LOD scores were calculated between each of the 10 markers and CL/P as well as model-free statistics of linkage (SimIBD) and association (TDT). None of the markers showed significantly positive LOD scores with CL/P. A significantly positive result (p = .01) was seen using SimIBD for APOC2 on chromosome 19, and a positive TDT result (p = .004) was obtained for D19S49, near APOC2. Conclusions This is the first gene mapping study of CL/P in China. These results indicate that most of the genetic regions with positive results in Caucasian families may not be involved in CL/P found in China, although there is some positive evidence for the candidate region on chromosome 19.
Effect of Cortisone on Mast Cell Tumors (Mastocytoma) of the Dog

Summary The effect of cortisone was studied in a dog with malignant multiple mast cell tumors (mastocytoma). A total of 900 mg was given intramuscularly at the rate of 100 mg daily. The tumors rapidly regressed in size so that by the 9th day of treatment they had completely disappeared macroscopically. Microscopically the neoplastic mast cells showed cytoplasmic vacuolization, conglomeration and altered staining reaction of the metachromatic basophilic granules, disappearance of many fine granules, fraying and disruption of the cellular membrane, granule scattering, and, finally, cellular destruction and disappearance. The encouraging results obtained in the treated animal warrant further investigation of cortisone in the treatment of dogs with malignant mast cell tumors.
Experimenting with real time applications in an IEEE 802.11b ad hoc network

In this study we set up an ad-hoc testbed of heterogeneous devices and investigate the behavior of video and audio streaming over the TCP protocol. The metrics for measuring the quality of service (QoS) of the TCP flows, are TCP round trip time (RTT) and signal to noise ratio (SNR). Our findings indicate an inverse correlation between RTT and SNR, with the first value increasing exponentially after a lower SNR threshold. Device movement and large distances are two factors affecting RTT negatively. Finally we show that the impact of background traffic on these streaming applications is prominent, as it increases RTT significantly
PREVALENCE OF IRRITABLE BOWEL SYNDROME & ITS ASSOCIATED PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDERS IN QAZVIN MEDICAL STUDENT

Background: Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) is a common digestive problem, characterized by abdominal pain and change in bowel habits which is not associated with any organic cause . The prevalence of IBS is more than 10% to 15% in Western countries. Psychological problems in these patients are much more common than in others. Objectives: This study is aimed to evaluate the prevalence of IBS and its accompanying psychological disorders (such as psychosomatic disorders, anxiety & etc.) in Qazvin medical students. Material & Methods: This epidemiologic qualitative study was performed by census method on clinical medical students of Qazvin University of Medical Sciences in 2013. IBS was evaluated by ROME III Criteria questionnaire which was standardized by alpha Cronbach and the Goldberg General Health Questionnaire was used to evaluate the emotional stress. Data was analyzed by using Chi-square test and logistic regression analysis. Results: Both questionnaires were completed by 94 clinical medical students (64 stagers, 30 interns), of whom 68(72.3%) were females and 26(27.7%) were males with mean age of 24.3± 3.2 years. Based on ROM III criteria and Goldberg General Health Questionnaire, 23 (24.5%) of persons suffering from IBS and 24(25.5%) of persons had criteria of emotional stress respectively. Based on results of test, odds of IBS in persons suffering from emotional stress was 3.2 times higher than of that in persons free of stress (P<0.05) but no significant relation was observed in persons with depression. Conclusions: In this study, the prevalence of IBS and psychosomatic symptoms were high in Qazvin medical students, but parsons with emotional stress were more exposed to risk of IBS.
ER-MAC: A Hybrid MAC Protocol for Emergency Response Wireless Sensor Networks

This paper introduces ER-MAC, a hybrid MAC protocol for emergency response wireless sensor networks. ERMAC is designed as a hybrid of the TDMA and CSMA approaches, giving it the flexibility to adapt to traffic and topology changes. It adopts a TDMA approach to schedule collision-free slots. Nodes wake up for their scheduled slots, but otherwise switch into power-saving sleep mode. When an emergency occurs, nodes that participate in the emergency monitoring change their MAC behaviour by allowing contention in TDMA slots to achieve high delivery ratio and low latency. ER-MAC offers a synchronised and loose slot structure to allow nodes to join or leave the network. Simulations in ns-2 show that ERMAC outperforms Z-MAC with higher delivery ratio, lower latency, and lower energy consumption.
30GHz-band 5.8W high-power AlGaN/GaN heterojunction-FET

This paper describes over 5-watt 30GHz-band operation of an AlGaN/GaN heterojunction FET fabricated on a SiC substrate. The device dimensions were optimized and the FET layout configuration was improved to make the best use of high breakdown voltage, high current and high gain characteristics of the short-channel GaN-based FET for advanced power performance. State-of-the-art performance of a saturated power of 5.8W with a linear gain of 9.2dB and a power-added efficiency (PAE) of 43.2% has been achieved employing a single chip having a gate width of 1.0mm and a gate length of 0.25/spl mu/m. These results indicate that the short-channel AlGaN/GaN heterojunction FET has a promising prospect for a variety of high-power applications at Ka-band and above.
The Effect of Stressor Controllability on Stress‐Induced Neuropeptide mRNA Expression within the Paraventricular Nucleus of the Hypothalamus

Many stressors elicit changes in corticotrophin (CRH), enkephalin (ENK), and neurotensin (NT) mRNA levels within the medial parvocellular region of the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus (mpPVN), and the pattern of changes in mRNA levels appears to depend on the physical characteristics of the stressor. We questioned whether psychologically distinct stressors would cause different patterns of neuropeptide mRNA expression within the PVN. Psychologically distinct stressors were created by employing a paradigm of escapable (controllable) vs non‐escapable (yoked) tail shock. An adult male rats could terminate the stress stimulus by performing wheel‐turning behaviour; his behaviour also terminated the stress for his yoked partner, who had no control over the termination of the shock. Four h post‐stress, brains were collected and processed for in‐situ hybridization histochemistry. Tail‐shock stress stimulated a significant increase in CRH, ENK, and NT mRNA levels within the mpPVN. The number of CRH identified neurones coexpressing AVP mRNA was also significantly elevated in both stress groups. Moreover, the pattern and magnitude of the stress‐induced increases in mRNA was similar in both stress groups. Additionally, no stress‐induced changes in CRH mRNA levels were observed in the central nucleus of the amygdala. In sum, two psychologically distinct stressors, escapable vs yoked tail shock stress, stimulated similar increases in CRH, NT, ENK, and AVP mRNA levels within the mpPVN. These results suggest that physical attributes of a stress, rather than psychological, may be the more important factors in determining the PVN mRNA response.
Centella asiatica in Dermatology: An Overview

Centella asiatica is a medicinal plant that was already used as a ‘panacea’ 3000 years ago. The active compounds include pentacyclic triterpenes, mainly asiaticoside, madecasosside, asiatic acid and madecassic acid. We have conducted an overview to summarize current knowledge on the results of scientific in vitro and in vivo experiments focused on the improvement of the healing process of small wounds, hypertrophic scars and burns by C. asiatica. In this paper, we discuss the data on constituents, recommended preparations and the potential side effects of C. asiatica. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Effect of dietary supplementation of marigold pigment on immunity, skin and meat color, and growth performance of broiler chickens

Marigold flower extract, a natural pigment, was used to determine its effect on carcass and skin pigmentation, immunity and growth performance of broiler chickens. Two hundred and forty 1-day-old Arbor Acres broiler chicks were randomly distributed into four treatment groups with six replicates in a randomized block design. Birds were fed basal diet for 42 d with or without supplementation of marigold flower extract at various concentrations, i.e., 0 (MG0, control), 100 (MG100), 150 (MG150) and 200 (MG200) mg/kg of feed, respectively. Feed intake and live body weight were weekly recorded. Carcass and shank color, and antibody titers against Newcastle and Influenza viruses were measured. Results showed that marigold flower extract significantly (p<0.05) improved live body weight and relative thymus weight. However, feed intake, feed conversion ratio (FCR), and spleen and bursa weights were not significantly affected. Yellowness (b*) of breast and thigh muscles increased by the dietary supplementation of marigold flower extract compared with the control diet. However, lightness (L*), redness (a*) and redness to yellowness ratio (a/b) were not influenced by the treatments. Moreover, Roche color fan scores of the shank skin were increased at market age (d 42). The results revealed that marigold extract enhanced antibody titers against Newcastle and influenza viruses. It was possible to conclude that the dietary supplementation with marigold flower extract at the rate of 200 mg/kg of feed enhanced carcass and shank color, antibody titers against ND and AI, and growth performance of broiler chickens.
Classifying and segmenting microscopy images with deep multiple instance learning

Motivation: High-content screening (HCS) technologies have enabled large scale imaging experiments for studying cell biology and for drug screening. These systems produce hundreds of thousands of microscopy images per day and their utility depends on automated image analysis. Recently, deep learning approaches that learn feature representations directly from pixel intensity values have dominated object recognition challenges. These tasks typically have a single centered object per image and existing models are not directly applicable to microscopy datasets. Here we develop an approach that combines deep convolutional neural networks (CNNs) with multiple instance learning (MIL) in order to classify and segment microscopy images using only whole image level annotations. Results: We introduce a new neural network architecture that uses MIL to simultaneously classify and segment microscopy images with populations of cells. We base our approach on the similarity between the aggregation function used in MIL and pooling layers used in CNNs. To facilitate aggregating across large numbers of instances in CNN feature maps we present the Noisy-AND pooling function, a new MIL operator that is robust to outliers. Combining CNNs with MIL enables training CNNs using whole microscopy images with image level labels. We show that training end-to-end MIL CNNs outperforms several previous methods on both mammalian and yeast datasets without requiring any segmentation steps. Availability and implementation: Torch7 implementation available upon request. Contact: oren.kraus@mail.utoronto. ca
Glucuronidation of drugs in humanized UDP-glucuronosyltransferase 1 mice: Similarity with glucuronidation in human liver microsomes

Uridine 5′‐diphosphate‐glucuronosyltransferases (UGTs) are phase II drug‐metabolizing enzymes that catalyze glucuronidation of various endogenous and exogenous substrates. Among 19 functional human UGTs, UGT1A family enzymes largely contribute to the metabolism of clinically used drugs. While the UGT1A locus is conserved in mammals such as humans, mice, and rats, species differences in drug glucuronidation have been reported. Recently, humanized UGT1 mice in which the original Ugt1 locus was disrupted and replaced with the human UGT1 locus (hUGT1 mice) have been developed. To evaluate the usefulness of hUGT1 mice to predict human glucuronidation of drugs, UGT activities, and inhibitory effects on UGTs were examined in liver microsomes of hUGT1 mice as well as in those of wild‐type mice and humans. Furosemide acyl‐glucuronidation was sigmoidal and best fitted to the Hill equation in hUGT1 mice and human liver microsomes, while it was fitted to the substrate inhibition equation in mouse liver microsomes. Kinetic parameters of furosemide glucuronidation were very similar between hUGT1 mice and human liver microsomes. The kinetics of S‐naproxen acyl‐glucuronidation and inhibitory effects of compounds on furosemide glucuronidation in hUGT1 liver microsomes were also slightly, but similar to those in human liver microsomes, rather than in wild‐type mice. While wild‐type mice lack imipramine and trifluoperazine N‐glucuronidation potential, hUGT1 mice showed comparable N‐glucuronidation activity to that of humans. Our data indicate that hUGT1 mice are promising tools to predict not only in vivo human drug glucuronidation but also potential drug‐drug interactions.