Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Contrasting acclimation abilities of two dominant boreal conifers to elevated CO2 and temperature.

High latitude forests will experience large changes in temperature and CO2 concentrations this century. We evaluated the effects of future climate conditions on 2 dominant boreal tree species, Pinus sylvestris L. and Picea abies (L.) H. Karst, exposing seedlings to 3 seasons of ambient (430 ppm) or elevated CO2 (750 ppm) and ambient temperatures, a + 4 °C warming or a + 8 °C warming. Pinus sylvestris responded positively to warming: seedlings developed a larger canopy, maintained high net CO2 assimilation rates (Anet ), and acclimated dark respiration (Rdark ). In contrast, carbon fluxes in Picea abies were negatively impacted by warming: maximum rates of Anet decreased, electron transport was redirected to alternative electron acceptors, and thermal acclimation of Rdark was weak. Elevated CO2 tended to exacerbate these effects in warm-grown Picea abies, and by the end of the experiment Picea abies from the +8 °C, high CO2 treatment produced fewer buds than they had 3 years earlier. Treatments had little effect on leaf and wood anatomy. Our results highlight that species within the same plant functional type may show opposite responses to warming and imply that Picea abies may be particularly vulnerable to warming due to low plasticity in photosynthetic and respiratory metabolism.
Cerebral blood flow in normal aging adults: cardiovascular determinants, clinical implications, and aerobic fitness

Senescence is a leading cause of mortality, disability, and non‐communicable chronic diseases in older adults. Mounting evidence indicates that the presence of cardiovascular disease and risk factors elevates the incidence of both vascular cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease (AD). Age‐related declines in cardiovascular function may impair cerebral blood flow (CBF) regulation, leading to the disruption of neuronal micro‐environmental homeostasis. The brain is the most metabolically active organ with limited intracellular energy storage and critically depends on CBF to sustain neuronal metabolism. In patients with AD, cerebral hypoperfusion, increased CBF pulsatility, and impaired blood pressure control during orthostatic stress have been reported, indicating exaggerated, age‐related decline in both cerebro‐ and cardiovascular function. Currently, AD lacks effective treatments; therefore, the development of preventive strategy is urgently needed. Regular aerobic exercise improves cardiovascular function, which in turn may lead to a better CBF regulation, thus reducing the dementia risk. In this review, we discuss the effects of aging on cardiovascular regulation of CBF and provide new insights into the vascular mechanisms of cognitive impairment and potential effects of aerobic exercise training on CBF regulation.
Energetic dependence of NPY-induced LH secretion in a teleost fish ( Dicentrarchus labrax).

The purpose of this work was to examine the role of energetic status in neuropeptide Y (NPY)-induced luteinizing hormone (LH) secretion and glucose metabolism in fish. Fasted juvenile sea bass ( Dicentrarchus labrax) were injected intraperitoneally with pig (p) NPY or pNPY + glucose, whereas fed animals were injected with pNPY alone and plasma glucose, insulin, and LH levels were examined. pNPY alone or in combination with glucose was found to induce a dose-dependent increase in LH secretion in fasted animals. Similar LH responses to pNPY were observed in vitro in dispersed pituitary cells isolated from fed and fasted animals incubated in L-15 and restricted media. Injection of pNPY + glucose in fasted animals resulted in depletion of glucose. Insulin plasma levels decreased in fasted animals coinjected with pNPY + glucose but remained stable when NPY was administrated alone to fed and fasted animals. Results suggest that 1) NPY-induced LH secretion in fish is dependent on energetic status and 2) NPY is capable of modifying glucose metabolism.
Lipid responses to plant-sterol-enriched reduced-fat spreads incorporated into a National Cholesterol Education Program Step I diet.

BACKGROUND Plant sterol esters reduce cholesterol absorption and lower circulating blood cholesterol concentrations when incorporated into the habitual diet. OBJECTIVE This randomized, double-blind, 3-group parallel, controlled study evaluated the influence of esterified plant sterols on serum lipid concentrations in adults with mild-to-moderate primary hypercholesterolemia. DESIGN Subjects incorporated a conventional 50%-fat spread into a National Cholesterol Education Program Step I diet for a 4-wk lead-in period, followed by a 5-wk intervention period of the diet plus either a control reduced-fat spread (40% fat; n = 92) or a reduced-fat spread enriched with plant sterol esters to achieve intakes of 1.1 g/d (n = 92; low-sterol group) or 2.2 g/d (n = 40; high-sterol group). RESULTS Subjects in the low- and high-sterol groups who consumed > or = 80% of the scheduled servings (per-protocol analyses) had total cholesterol values that were 5.2% and 6.6% lower, LDL-cholesterol values that were 7.6% and 8.1% lower, apolipoprotein B values that were 6.2% and 8.4% lower, and ratios of total to HDL cholesterol that were 5.9% and 8.1% lower, respectively, than values for the control group (P < 0.001 for all). Additionally, triacylglycerol concentrations decreased by 10.4% in the high-sterol group. Serum concentrations of fat-soluble vitamins and carotenoids were generally within reference ranges at baseline and postintervention. Serum plant sterol concentrations increased from baseline (0.48% of total sterol by wt) to 0.64% and 0.71% by wt for the low- and high-sterol groups, respectively (P < 0.05 compared with control). CONCLUSION A reduced-fat spread containing plant sterol esters incorporated into a low-fat diet is a beneficial adjunct in the dietary management of hypercholesterolemia.
Acidosis antagonizes intracellular calcium response to κ-opioid receptor stimulation in the rat heart.

To study the effects of κ-opioid receptor stimulation on intracellular Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i) homeostasis during extracellular acidosis, we determined the effects of κ-opioid receptor stimulation on [Ca2+]iresponses during extracellular acidosis in isolated single rat ventricular myocytes, by a spectrofluorometric method. U-50488H (10-30 μM), a selective κ-opioid receptor agonist, dose dependently decreased the electrically induced [Ca2+]itransient, which results from the influx of Ca2+ and the subsequent mobilization of Ca2+ from the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR). U-50488H (30 μM) also increased the resting [Ca2+]iand inhibited the [Ca2+]itransient induced by caffeine, which mobilizes Ca2+ from the SR, indicating that the effects of the κ-opioid receptor agonist involved mobilization of Ca2+ from its intracellular pool into the cytoplasm. The Ca2+responses to 30 μM U-50488H were abolished by 5 μM nor-binaltorphimine, a selective κ-opioid receptor antagonist, indicating that the event was mediated by the κ-opioid receptor. The effects of the agonist on [Ca2+]iand the electrically induced [Ca2+]itransient were significantly attenuated when the extracellular pH (pHe) was lowered to 6.8, which itself reduced intracellular pH (pHi) and increased [Ca2+]i. The inhibitory effects of U-50488H were restored during extracellular acidosis in the presence of 10 μM ethylisopropyl amiloride, a potent Na+/H+exchange blocker, or 0.2 mM Ni2+, a putative Na+/Ca2+exchange blocker. The observations indicate that acidosis may antagonize the effects of κ-opioid receptor stimulation via Na+/H+and Na+/Ca2+exchanges. When glucose at 50 mM, known to activate the Na+/H+exchange, was added, both the resting [Ca2+]iand pHi increased. Interestingly, the effects of U-50488H on [Ca2+]iand the electrically induced [Ca2+]itransient during superfusion with glucose were significantly attenuated; this mimicked the responses during extracellular acidosis. When a high-Ca2+ (3 mM) solution was superfused, the resting [Ca2+]iincreased; the increase was abolished by 0.2 mM Ni2+, but the pHi remained unchanged. Like the responses to superfusion with high-concentration glucose and extracellular acidosis, the responses of the [Ca2+]iand electrically induced [Ca2+]itransients to 30 μM U-50488H were also significantly attenuated. Results from the present study demonstrated for the first time that extracellular acidosis antagonizes the effects of κ-opioid receptor stimulation on the mobilization of Ca2+ from SR. Activation of both Na+/H+and Na+/Ca2+exchanges, leading to an elevation of [Ca2+]i, may be responsible for the antagonistic action of extracellular acidosis against κ-opioid receptor stimulation.
Ki67- protein: a proliferation index in breast cancer

Article type Review article Various clinicopathological factors are evaluated in different studies on carcinomas to demonstrate their prognostic and predictive significance during the diagnosis and therapeutic procedures of the malignancy. Ki-67 is a biomarker that was proposed as a cell proliferation related nuclear antigen, and it only expresses in growing and proliferating cells. This unique feature of Ki-67 makes it a subject of interest in different investigations. Evaluating the Ki-67 expression has been demonstrated to be beneficial in determining the tumor behavior including tumor size, stage, grading and patient survival. Moreover, it might be helpful in selecting the preferred subsequent treatment strategy. Due to the importance of Ki-67 index, we aim to briefly review its properties and the importance of its expression during various types of malignancies. At last, the prognostic and predictive value of Ki-67 would be overviewed regarding the efficacy of neoadjuvant and adjuvant therapies in breast cancer patients.
Realtime Visual Tracking of Aircrafts

Aircraft tracking has applications in guided landing, automatic scoring in aerobatics and target tracking for military. Radar based tracking is expensive, gives away the position of the radar and is prone to jamming. However, vision sensors are low cost, passive and robust to jamming hence motivating their use for aircraft tracking. This paper proposes a modified KLT tracking algorithm and tests its performance by tracking aircrafts. Vision based aircraft tracking is challenging because of the higher speed, agility and distance of the aircraft from the camera. The proposed tracker uses a feature clustering criterion to track an object based on its multiple local features. The local features are continuously updated to make the tracker robust to changing appearance of the object. The proposed tracker is generic and can be used to track multiple objects of any kind by defining multiple feature clusters. Experiments were performed on real data collected during the Air Race 2006 which will be made publicly available. The algorithm achieved accurate tracking in the presence of clouds and background clutter as long as the object size was comparable to the feature window. However, tracking failed at very small scales of the aircraft and in the presence of background clutter while the aircraft was flying low, a scenario where radars also fail.
Five macrocyclic glycosides from Schoenoplectus tabernaemontani

Abstract Macrocyclic glycosides with unique 22-membered dimeric lactone skeleton, are rare occurring natural products. There are only ten compounds reported so far. Herein we reported the isolation and characterisation of five macrocyclic glycosides from Schoenoplectus tabernaemontani, including three new compounds (Schoenopolide A-C, 1–3) and two known ones, Berchemolide (4) and Clemoarmanoside B (5). Their structures were established on the basis of extensive analysis of spectroscopic data. In addition, the anti-oxidative activity of Berchemolide (4) against H2O2-induced of renal tubular epithelial (HK-2) cells was also evaluated.
18F-FDG PET/CT Can Predict Development of Thyroiditis Due to Immunotherapy for Lung Cancer

Our primary purpose was to determine whether increased 18F-FDG uptake in the thyroid gland predicts development of thyroiditis with subsequent hypothyroidism in patients undergoing immunotherapy with nivolumab for lung cancer. Secondarily, we determined whether 18F-FDG uptake in the thyroid gland correlates with number of administered cycles of nivolumab. Methods: Retrospective chart review over 2 y found 18 lung cancer patients treated with nivolumab who underwent 18F-FDG PET/CT before and during therapy. SUVmean, SUVmax, and total lesion glycolysis of the thyroid gland were measured. SUVs were also measured for the pituitary gland, liver, and spleen. Patients underwent monthly thyroid testing. PET/CT parameters were analyzed by unpaired t testing for differences between 2 groups (patients who developed hypothyroidism and those who did not). Correlation between development of thyroiditis and number of cycles of nivolumab was also tested. Results: Six of 18 patients developed hypothyroidism. The t test comparing the 2 groups demonstrated significant differences in SUVmean (P = 0.04), SUVmax (P = 0.04), and total lesion glycolysis (P = 0.02) of the thyroid gland. Two of 4 patients who developed thyroiditis and had increased 18F-FDG uptake in the thyroid gland had a normal TSH level at the time of follow-up 18F-FDG PET/CT. Patients who developed thyroiditis with subsequent hypothyroidism stayed longer on therapy (10.6 cycles) than patients without thyroiditis (7.6 cycles), but the trend was not statistically significant. No significant difference in PET/CT parameters was observed for pituitary gland, liver, or spleen. Conclusion: 18F-FDG PET/CT can predict the development of thyroiditis with subsequent hypothyroidism before laboratory testing. Further study is required to confirm the positive trend between thyroiditis and duration of therapy.
Varicella immunity in Iran: an age-stratified systematic review and meta-analysis

Objectives To generate synthesized information on the epidemiology of VZV infection, as well as an estimation of prevalence of age-specific antibody in Iranian less than 40. Material and Methods After exclusion of irrelevant and overlapping reports, 15 papers were included (from nine major cities). Studies were pooled according to the heterogeneity test results. Random effect model methods were used for meta-analysis where significant heterogeneity was observed (age 1-16years). For other age groups, fixed model were used. Results Significant heterogeneity was observed in prevalence rates of all childhood age-groups. The seropositivity prevalence increased steeply from the age of 1-5 to 6-10 [from 21.9% (95% CI; 10.8-33.1) to 42.1 %(95% CI; 33.6-50.6)]. At the age of 11 15, 59.4% (95% CI; 46.1-72.8) of children showed to be infected. The rate of seropositivity was more than 87% in individuals of 40 and older. Conclusion The varicella seroeprevalence in Iran is in accordance with average tropical and temperate areas. Comparison of conducted studies during 2003 to 2011 didn’t show any alteration in VZV seroprovalence in Iran.
Neural Correlates of the Lombard Effect in Primate Auditory Cortex

Speaking is a sensory-motor process that involves constant self-monitoring to ensure accurate vocal production. Self-monitoring of vocal feedback allows rapid adjustment to correct perceived differences between intended and produced vocalizations. One important behavior in vocal feedback control is a compensatory increase in vocal intensity in response to noise masking during vocal production, commonly referred to as the Lombard effect. This behavior requires mechanisms for continuously monitoring auditory feedback during speaking. However, the underlying neural mechanisms are poorly understood. Here we show that when marmoset monkeys vocalize in the presence of masking noise that disrupts vocal feedback, the compensatory increase in vocal intensity is accompanied by a shift in auditory cortex activity toward neural response patterns seen during vocalizations under normal feedback condition. Furthermore, we show that neural activity in auditory cortex during a vocalization phrase predicts vocal intensity compensation in subsequent phrases. These observations demonstrate that the auditory cortex participates in self-monitoring during the Lombard effect, and may play a role in the compensation of noise masking during feedback-mediated vocal control.
Genetic disruption of atrial natriuretic peptide causes pulmonary hypertension in normoxic and hypoxic mice.

To determine whether atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) plays a physiological role in modulating pulmonary hypertensive responses, we studied mice with gene-targeted disruption of the ANP gene under normoxic and chronically hypoxic conditions. Right ventricular peak pressure (RVPP), right ventricle weight- and left ventricle plus septum weight-to-body weight ratios [RV/BW and (LV+S)/BW, respectively], and muscularization of pulmonary vessels were measured in wild-type mice (+/+) and in mice heterozygous (+/-) and homozygous (-/-) for a disrupted proANP gene after 3 wk of normoxia or hypobaric hypoxia (0.5 atm). Under normoxic conditions, homozygous mutants had higher RVPP (22 ± 2 vs. 15 ± 1 mmHg; P < 0.05) than wild-type mice and greater RV/BW (1.22 ± 0.08 vs. 0.94 ± 0.07 and 0.76 ± 0.04 mg/g; P < 0.05) and (LV+S)/BW (4.74 ± 0.42 vs. 3.53 ± 0.14 and 3.18 ± 0.18 mg/g; P < 0.05) than heterozygous or wild-type mice, respectively. Three weeks of hypoxia increased RVPP in heterozygous and wild-type mice and increased RV/BW and RV/(LV+S) in all genotypes compared with their normoxic control animals but had no effect on (LV+S)/BW. After 3 wk of hypoxia, homozygous mutants had higher RVPP (29 ± 3 vs. 23 ± 1 and 22 ± 2 mmHg; P < 0.05), RV/BW (2.03 ± 0.14 vs. 1.46 ± 0.04 and 1.33 ± 0.08 mg/g; P < 0.05), and (LV+S)/BW (4.76 ± 0.23 vs. 3.82 ± 0.09 and 3.44 ± 0.14 mg/g; P < 0.05) than heterozygous or wild-type mice, respectively. The percent muscularization of peripheral pulmonary vessels was greater in homozygous mutants than that in heterozygous or wild-type mice under both normoxic and hypoxic conditions. We conclude that endogenous ANP plays a physiological role in modulating pulmonary arterial pressure, cardiac hypertrophy, and pulmonary vascular remodeling under normoxic and hypoxic conditions.
Trifunctional Epoxy Resin Composites Modified by Soluble Electrospun Veils: Effect on the Viscoelastic and Morphological Properties

Electrospun veils from copolyethersulfones (coPES) were prepared as soluble interlaminar veils for carbon fiber/epoxy composites. Neat, resin samples were impregnated into coPES veils with unmodified resin, while dry carbon fabrics were covered with electrospun veils and then infused with the unmodified epoxy resin to prepare reinforced laminates. The thermoplastic content varied from 10 wt% to 20 wt%. TGAP epoxy monomer showed improved and fast dissolution for all the temperatures tested. The unreinforced samples were cured first at 180 °C for 2 h and then were post-cured at 220 °C for 3 h. These sample showed a high dependence on the curing cycle. Carbon reinforced samples showed significant differences compared to the neat resin samples in terms of both viscoelastic and morphological properties.
Akt kinases and 2-deoxyglucose uptake in rat skeletal muscles in vivo: study with insulin and exercise.

Activities of Akt1, Akt2, and Akt3 kinases and glucose uptake in hindlimb muscles of the rat in vivo were investigated. The rats were studied either after intravenous injection of 0.1 U of insulin or during exercise induced by stimulating calf muscles electrically at 1 contraction/s. Akt kinases were immunoprecipitated from supernatants of muscle homogenates. Glucose uptake by muscles in vivo was assessed by cellular accumulation of 2-deoxy-d-[1,2-3H(N)]glucose. Administration of insulin resulted in rapid activation of Akt1 kinase, with peak activity observed 5 min after insulin injection. Soleus muscle, a slow-twitch muscle, and plantaris muscle, a fast-twitch muscle, differed in their content of Akt1 kinase and in their response to insulin. Soleus muscle exhibited a 105% higher abundance of Akt1 kinase, a 101% higher insulin-stimulated activity of Akt1 kinase, and 83% higher insulin-stimulated 2-deoxyglucose uptake compared with plantaris muscle. Additionally, insulin administration increased the activities of Akt1, Akt2, and Akt3 kinases in calf muscles and caused a sevenfold augmentation in 2-deoxyglucose uptake by these muscles. In contrast, the exercised calf muscles exhibited an increase in Akt1 kinase activity at 5, 15, and 25 min of exercise but no change in activities of Akt2 and Akt3 isoforms, and the 2-deoxyglucose uptake by calf muscles exercised for 25 min was 11-fold higher compared with muscles of resting rats. The data demonstrate that 1) there is a close, direct correlation between the magnitude of insulin-stimulated activity of Akt1 kinase and the level of glucose uptake in muscles with different fiber populations, 2) insulin activates three isoforms of Akt kinase in skeletal muscle, and 3) exercise in vivo is associated with activation of Akt1 but not Akt2 and Akt3 kinases in contracting muscles.
Role of neuropeptide-sensitive L-type Ca2+ channels in histamine release in gastric enterochromaffin-like cells.

Peptides release histamine from enterochromaffin-like (ECL) cells because of elevation of intracellular Ca2+concentration ([Ca2+]i) by either receptor-operated or voltage-dependent Ca2+ channels (VDCC). To determine whether VDCCs contribute to histamine release stimulated by gastrin or pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide (PACAP), the presence of VDCCs and their possible modulation by peptides was investigated in a 48-h cultured rat gastric cell population containing 85% ECL cells. Video imaging of fura 2-loaded cells was used to measure [Ca2+]i, and histamine was assayed by RIA. Cells were depolarized by increasing extracellular K+ concentrations or by 20 mM tetraethylammonium (TEA+). Cell depolarization increased transient and steady-state [Ca2+]iand resulted in histamine release, dependent on extracellular Ca2+. These K+- or TEA+-dependent effects on histamine release from ECL cells were coupled to activation of parietal cells in intact rabbit gastric glands, and L-type channel blockade by 2 μM nifedipine inhibited 50% of [Ca2+]i elevation and histamine release. N-type channel blockade by 1 μM ω-conotoxin GVIA inhibited 25% of [Ca2+]i elevation and 14% of histamine release. Inhibition was additive. The effects of 20 mM TEA+ were fully inhibited by 2 μM nifedipine. Both classes of Ca2+ channels were found in ECL cells, but not in parietal cells, by RT-PCR. Nifedipine reduced PACAP-induced (but not gastrin-stimulated) Ca2+ entry and histamine release by 40%. Somatostatin, peptide YY (PYY), and galanin dose dependently inhibited L-type Ca2+ channels via a pertussis toxin-sensitive pathway. L-type VDCCs play a role in PACAP but not gastrin stimulation of histamine release from ECL cells, and the channel opening is inhibited by somatostatin, PYY, and galanin by interaction with a Gi or Go protein.