Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The calcium-independent transient outward potassium current in isolated ferret right ventricular myocytes. II. Closed state reverse use- dependent block by 4-aminopyridine

Block of the calcium-independent transient outward K+ current, I(to), by 4-aminopyridine (4-AP) was studied in ferret right ventricular myocytes using the whole cell patch clamp technique. 4-AP reduces I(to) through a closed state blocking mechanism displaying "reverse use- dependent" behavior that was inferred from: (a) development of tonic block at hyperpolarized potentials; (b) inhibition of development of tonic block at depolarized potentials; (c) appearance of "crossover phenomena" in which the peak current is delayed in the presence of 4-AP at depolarized potentials; (d) relief of block at depolarized potentials which is concentration dependent and parallels steady-state inactivation for low 4-AP concentrations (V1/2 approximately -10 mV in 0.1 mM 4-AP) and steady-state activation at higher concentrations (V1/2 = +7 mV in 1 mM 4-AP, +15 mV in 10 mM 4-AP); and (e) reassociation of 4- AP at hyperpolarized potentials. No evidence for interaction of 4-AP with either the open or inactivated state of the I(to) channel was obtained from measurements of kinetics of recovery and deactivation in the presence of 0.5-1.0 mM 4-AP. At hyperpolarized potentials (-30 to - 90 mV) 10 mM 4-AP associates slowly (time constants ranging from approximately 800 to 1,300 ms) with the closed states of the channel (apparent Kd approximately 0.2 mM). From -90 to -20 mV the affinity of the I(to) channel for 4-AP appears to be voltage insensitive; however, at depolarized potentials (+20 to +100 mV) 4-AP dissociates with time constants ranging from approximately 350 to 150 ms. Consequently, the properties of 4-AP binding to the I(to) channel undergo a transition in the range of potentials over which channel activation and inactivation occurs (-30 to +20 mV). We propose a closed state model of I(to) channel gating and 4-AP binding kinetics, in which 4-AP binds to three closed states. In this model 4-AP has a progressively lower affinity as the channel approaches the open state, but has no intrinsic voltage dependence of binding.
Cumulative Damage Theory of Concrete Under Variable-Amplitude Fatigue Loadings

A nonlinear cumulative damage theory that can model the effects of the magnitude and sequence of variable-amplitude fatigue loadings is proposed. Concrete beam specimens are prepared and tested in 4-point flexural loading conditions. Variable-amplitude fatigue loadings in 2 and 3 stages are considered. The present experimental study indicates that the fatigue failure of concrete is greatly influenced by the magnitude and sequence of applied variable-amplitude fatigue loadings. It is seen that the linear damage theory proposed by Palmgren and Miner is not directly applicable to concrete under such loading cases. The sum of the cumulative damage is found to be greater than 1 when the magnitude of fatigue loading is gradually increased and less than 1 when the magnitude of fatigue loading is gradually decreased. The proposed nonlinear damage theory, which includes the effects of the magnitude and sequence of applied fatigue loadings, allows more realistic fatigue analysis of concrete structures.
Serum Albumin Levels Are Associated With Cardioembolic and Cryptogenic Ischemic Strokes: Northern Manhattan Study

Background and Purpose— Low serum albumin concentrations have been associated with increased stroke risk, but the underlying mechanisms are less well studied. We aimed to investigate the association between serum albumin levels and ischemic stroke etiologies in a large, population-based, multiethnic, prospective, cohort study. Methods— Participants from the Northern Manhattan Study (NOMAS; n=2986; mean age, 69±10 years) free of stroke at baseline were followed for incident stroke (a median follow-up of 12 years). Cox proportional hazard models were used to estimate the hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for baseline serum albumin levels and risk of ischemic stroke and ischemic stroke subtypes after adjusting for vascular risk factors. Results— The mean baseline serum albumin level was 4.42±0.33 g/dL. There were 271 ischemic strokes during follow-up. Participants with serum albumin levels of 2.7 to 4.2 g/dL (the lowest tertile) had increased risk of all stroke (HR, 1.76; 95% CI, 1.32–2.35), ischemic stroke (HR, 1.67; 95% CI, 1.21–2.29), cardioembolic stroke (HR, 1.92; 95% CI, 1.10–3.34), and cryptogenic stroke (HR, 2.59; 95% CI, 1.21–5.53), compared with those with levels of 4.6 to 5.5 g/dL (the top tertile; reference). Low albumin levels (2.7–4.2 g/dL) were not associated with large vessel or lacunar stroke. Conclusions— Our study shows an association between low serum albumin levels and ischemic stroke, particularly cardioembolic and cryptogenic subtypes. These results suggest the potential shared pathophysiological relationship between low serum albumin levels, cardiac embolism, and cryptogenic infarction, which warrants further investigation.
Demand Based Equivalence Scale Estimates for Australia and the UK

This paper compares alternative approaches for estimating equivalence scales from household expenditure data. Discussion focuses upon the limitations of cross-sectional household survey data, and the implications for model estimation. Taking into consideration the biases that are associated with alternative models, a demand system with Exed price e_ects is identiEed as the preferred equivalence scale estimation methodology using pooled cross-sectional survey data. The relativities of household expenditure estimated for Australia and the UK are similar, and suggest that there are likely to exist larger economies of scale in the UK.
Rituximab Prevents an Anamnestic Response in Patients With Cryptic Sensitization to HLA

Background Some patients sensitized to HLA antigens do not have antibody present in serum specimens that are available before transplantation. However, such patients are at risk for an anamnestic response resulting from a proinflammatory response to the trauma of transplant surgery. Quantifying HLA-specific B cells provides a way to identify these patients and provide treatment to prevent an anamnestic response. Methods B cells were isolated before transplantation from 59 patients, 20 of whom were treated with rituximab at the time of transplantation. Ninety-nine tests were performed to quantify HLA-specific B cells by staining with HLA tetramers. Patients were considered sensitized or nonsensitized based on the frequencies of HLA-specific B cells. Pretransplantation and posttransplantation sera were tested for the detection of antibody specific for the tetramer antigen. Results Of the 24 cases where patients were considered sensitized to HLA antigens but did not have antibody before transplantation, no posttransplantation antibody to the tetramer antigen was detected in 10 cases when patients were treated with rituximab, but antibody was detected in 13 of 16 cases when there was no rituximab treatment (P=0.00006). The mean frequencies of B cells specific for HLA-B7 were the same in rituximab-treated patients who did not make antibody and in nontreated patients who did make antibody (6.0% vs. 5.7%; P=0.8). Conclusions Elimination of peripheral HLA-specific B cells in patients who are sensitized to HLA antigens but lacking detectable antibody abrogates an anamnestic response.
A 4×4 pipelined intra frame decoder for H.264

Now a number of architectures of intra frame decoder for H. 264 have been put forword, but most of them use an original decoding order. That is current block's prediction shouldn't be executed until previous block's reconstruction is finished. Obviously, this introduces much redundant time. In this paper, we proposed a 4x4 pipelined architecture in which current block's prediction can be paralleled with its previous block's reconstruction. For intra 4×4, we first reorder the original decoding order and then prejudge the pred mode, then the neighboring block's prediction can be pipelined. For intra 16×16 and chroma, we divide them into 4×4 blocks, meanwhile, the intra 16×16 uses the same decoding order as intra 4×4. Furthermore, to enhance the decoding speed, it processes four pixels in parallel in some modules such as inverse quantization, intra prediction and reconstruction. The architecture is implemented in Verilog HDL as a part of H.264 main profile decoder and emulated in FPGA prototyped. Experimental results showed that about 223 to 253 cycles are needed and compared with traditional architecture used by paper [5][6], about 18 to 23 block's reconstruction time can be reduced at the expense of only 7 4bit-comparators to prejudge the pred mode. When running at 62MHz on Altera Stratix II FPGA, it supports real time decoding with 1080HD video sequence in 30fps.
Role of Glyceraldehyde 3-Phosphate Dehydrogenase in the Development and Progression of Diabetic Retinopathy

OBJECTIVE—Mitochondrial superoxide levels are elevated in the retina in diabetes, and manganese superoxide dismutase overexpression prevents the development of retinopathy. Superoxide inhibits glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH), which activates major pathways implicated in diabetic complications, including advanced glycation end products (AGEs), protein kinase C, and hexosamine pathway. Our aim is to investigate the role of GAPDH in the development and progression of diabetic retinopathy and to elucidate the mechanism. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS—Rats with streptozotocin-induced diabetes were in a state of poor control (GHb >11%) for 12 months, good control (GHb <7) soon after induction of diabetes, or poor control for 6 months with 6 months’ good control. Retinal GAPDH, its ribosylation and nitration, AGEs, and PKC activation were determined and correlated with microvascular histopathology. RESULTS—In rats with poor control, retinal GAPDH activity and expressions were subnormal with increased ribosylation and nitration (25–30%). GAPDH activity was subnormal in both cytosol and nuclear fractions, but its protein expression and nitration were significantly elevated in nuclear fraction. Reinstitution of good control failed to protect inactivation of GAPDH, its covalent modification, and translocation to the nucleus. PKC, AGEs, and hexosamine pathways remained activated, and microvascular histopathology was unchanged. However, GAPDH and its translocation in good control rats were similar to those in normal rats. CONCLUSIONS—GAPDH plays a significant role in the development of diabetic retinopathy and its progression after cessation of hyperglycemia. Thus, therapies targeted toward preventing its inhibition may inhibit development of diabetic retinopathy and arrest its progression.
Forest Service-- National AgroforestryCenter 1-1-2011 A simulation of probabilistic wildfire risk components for the continental United States

This simulation research was conducted in order to develop a large-fire risk assessment system for the contiguous land area of the United States. The modeling system was applied to each of 134 Fire Planning Units (FPUs) to estimate burn probabilities and fire size distributions. To obtain stable estimates of these quantities, fire ignition and growth was simulated for 10,000 to 50,000 ‘‘years’’ of artificial weather. The fire growth simulations, when run repeatedly with different weather and ignition locations, produce burn probabilities and fire behavior distributions at each landscape location (e.g., number of times a ‘‘cell’’ burns at a given intensity divided by the total years). The artificial weather was generated for each land unit using (1) a fire danger rating index known as the Energy Release Component (ERC) which is a proxy for fuel moisture contents, (2) a time-series analysis of ERC to represent daily and seasonal variability, and (3) distributions of wind speed and direction from weather records. Large fire occurrence was stochastically modeled based on historical relationships to ERC. The simulations also required spatial data on fuel structure and topography which were acquired from the LANDFIRE project (http://www.landfire.gov). Fire suppression effects were represented by a statistical model that yields a probability of fire containment based on independent predictors of fire growth rates and fuel type. The simulated burn probabilities were comparable to observed patterns across the U.S. over the range of four orders of magnitude, generally falling within a factor of 3 or 4 of historical estimates. Close agreement between simulated and historical fire size distributions suggest that fire sizes are determined by the joint distributions of spatial opportunities for fire growth (dependent on fuels and ignition location) and the temporal opportunities produced by conducive weather sequences. The research demonstrates a practical approach to using fire simulations at very broad scales for purposes of operational planning and perhaps ecological research.
Multiple carbapenem hydrolyzing genes in clinical isolates of Acinetobacter baumannii.

PURPOSE Carbapenem resistance in Acinetobacter baumannii has become highly rampant, which has been ascribed to the presence of multiple carbapenemases. The objective of the present study was to prospectively investigate the presence of multiple carbapenemase encoding genes in clinical isolates of A. baumannii. MATERIALS AND METHODS A total of 30 imipenem resistant, consecutive non-repeat clinical isolates A. baumannii from a Tertiary Care Centre of Delhi were subjected to antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST), screening for carbapenemase production by modified Hodge test (MHT) and determination of minimum inhibitory concentration for imipenem by E-Test® . These were subjected to Real time PCR for blaIMP-1 and 2 , blaVIM-1 and 2, blaOXA23, 24, 51 and 58 using SYBR green-I. These were grouped together on the basis of their genotype as each isolate harboured multiple carbapenemases and correlated with their AST profile. Detection of the novel carbapenemase blaNDM-1 was performed by real time PCR using TaqMan probes on 14 isolates. RESULTS Colistin appeared to be the most effective drug in vitro, followed by tetracycline and beta lactam/beta lactamase inhibitor combinations. All, but one isolate were positive for the MHT. All 30 isolates were positive for blaOXA-51 like gene as well as blaIMP-1 and blaVIM-1 genes. blaOXA 24 and 58 were not detected in any of the isolates. blaIMP-2 , blaVIM-2 , blaOXA-23 were present in 15, 6 and 14 isolates respectively. Grouping based on the genotypic profile did not correlate with susceptibility pattern. Nine among the 14 isolates also harboured the novel blaNDM-1 gene. CONCLUSIONS This is the first study from North India, which comprehensively detected the presence of multiple carbapenemases as well the blaNDM-1 gene. The presence of the novel gene blaNDM-1 indicated ability of A. baumannii to acquire new carbapenemase genes despite the existence of multiple carbapenemase genes. The present study confirmed the presence of multiple genetic mechanisms for carbapenemases production among the clinical isolates of A. baumannii in north India.
Epithelial polarity and spindle orientation: intersecting pathways

During asymmetric stem cell divisions, the mitotic spindle must be correctly oriented and positioned with respect to the axis of cell polarity to ensure that cell fate determinants are appropriately segregated into only one daughter cell. By contrast, epithelial cells divide symmetrically and orient their mitotic spindles perpendicular to the main apical–basal polarity axis, so that both daughter cells remain within the epithelium. Work in the past 20 years has defined a core ternary complex consisting of Pins, Mud and Gαi that participates in spindle orientation in both asymmetric and symmetric divisions. As additional factors that interact with this complex continue to be identified, a theme has emerged: there is substantial overlap between the mechanisms that orient the spindle and those that establish and maintain apical–basal polarity in epithelial cells. In this review, we examine several factors implicated in both processes, namely Canoe, Bazooka, aPKC and Discs large, and consider the implications of this work on how the spindle is oriented during epithelial cell divisions.
Antipsychotic treatment and functional connectivity of the striatum in first-episode schizophrenia.

IMPORTANCE Previous evidence has implicated corticostriatal abnormalities in the pathophysiology of psychosis. Although the striatum is the primary target of all efficacious antipsychotics, the relationship between its functional connectivity and symptomatic reduction remains unknown. OBJECTIVE To explore the longitudinal effect of treatment with second-generation antipsychotics on functional connectivity of the striatum during the resting state in patients experiencing a first episode of psychosis. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS This prospective controlled study took place at a clinical research center and included 24 patients with first-episode psychosis and 24 healthy participants matched for age, sex, education, and handedness. Medications were administered in a double-blind randomized manner. INTERVENTIONS Patients were scanned at baseline and after 12 weeks of treatment with either risperidone or aripiprazole. Their symptoms were evaluated with the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale at baseline and follow-up. Healthy participants were scanned twice within a 12-week interval. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES Functional connectivity of striatal regions was examined via functional magnetic resonance imaging using a seed-based approach. Changes in functional connectivity of these seeds were compared with reductions in ratings of psychotic symptoms. RESULTS Patients had a median exposure of 1 day to antipsychotic medication prior to being scanned (mean [SD] = 4.5 [6.1]). Eleven patients were treated with aripiprazole and 13 patients were treated with risperidone. As psychosis improved, we observed an increase in functional connectivity between striatal seed regions and the anterior cingulate, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, and limbic regions such as the hippocampus and anterior insula (P < .05, corrected for multiple comparisons). Conversely, a negative relationship was observed between reduction in psychosis and functional connectivity of striatal regions with structures within the parietal lobe (P < .05, corrected for multiple comparisons). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE Our results indicated that corticostriatal functional dysconnectivity in psychosis is a state-dependent phenomenon. Increased functional connectivity of the striatum with prefrontal and limbic regions may be a biomarker for improvement in symptoms associated with antipsychotic treatment.
Adhesion of Streptococcus mutans on Different Types of Orthodontic Brackets

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the adhesion of Streptococcus mutans (S. mutans) on different types of orthodontic brackets commonly used in Thailand. Materials and Methods: The adhesion of S. mutans on 7 types of orthodontic brackets (Clarity, Spirit MB, Inspire Ice, 3M, Tomy, Ormco and W&H) was investigated in vitro. The saliva-coated brackets were immersed in a flat-bottomed 96-well plate containing S. mutans suspension (108 CFU/ml) and incubated at 37 ̇C in 10% CO2 and 100 rpm for 2 hours. The adhered bacterial cells were fixed by 99% methanol and stained with 0.5% crystal violet. The quantity of adhesion was determined by measuring optical density (OD) at 590 nm. The data were analyzed with Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, Levene test, one way ANOVA and Games-Howell post hoc test. Results: Significantly higher bacteria adhesion was found on Clarity, Spirit MB, Tomy, Ormco and W&H compared to Inspire Ice and 3M Gemini. However, there were no significant differences among the different types of bracket materials (ceramic, plastics and metal). Conclusion: The amount of bacteria adhesion was independent of the type of bracket materials. The size and shape of brackets also played an important role in the amount of adhesion of microorganism.
Extreme Extraction – Machine Reading in a Week

We report on empirical results in extreme extraction. It is extreme in that (1) from receipt of the ontology specifying the target concepts and relations, development is limited to one week and that (2) relatively little training data is assumed. We are able to surpass human recall and achieve an F1 of 0.51 on a question-answering task with less than 50 hours of effort using a hybrid approach that mixes active learning, bootstrapping, and limited (5 hours) manual rule writing. We compare the performance of three systems: extraction with handwritten rules, bootstrapped extraction, and a combination. We show that while the recall of the handwritten rules surpasses that of the learned system, the learned system is able to improve the overall recall and F1.
GlobalANCOVA: exploration and assessment of gene group effects

MOTIVATION Several authors have studied expression in gene sets with specific goals: overrepresentation of interesting genes in functional groups, predictive power for class membership and searches for groups where the constituent genes show coordinated changes in expression under the experimental conditions. The purpose of this article is to follow the third direction. One important aspect is that the gene sets under analysis are known a priori and are not determined from the experimental data at hand. Our goal is to provide a methodology that helps to identify the relevant structural constituents (phenotypical, experimental design, biological component) that determine gene expression in a group. RESULTS Gene-wise linear models are used to formalize the structural aspects of a study. The full model is contrasted with a reduced model that lacks the relevant design component. A comparison with respect to goodness of fit is made and quantified. An asymptotic test and a permutation test are derived to test the null hypothesis that the reduced model sufficiently explains the observed expression within the gene group of interest. Graphical tools are available to illustrate and interpret the results of the analysis. Examples demonstrate the wide range of application. AVAILABILITY The R-package GlobalAncova (http://www.bioconductor.org) offers data and functions as well as a vignette to guide the user through specific analysis steps.
Participation Constraints in the Stock Market: Evidence from Unexpected Inheritance Due to Sudden Death

We use a natural experiment to investigate the impact of participation constraints on individuals' decisions to invest in the stock market. Unexpected inheritance due to sudden deaths results in exogenous variation in financial wealth, and allows us to examine whether fixed entry and ongoing participation costs cause non-participation. We have three key findings. First, windfall wealth has a positive effect on participation. Second, the majority of households do not react to sizeable windfalls by entering the stock market, but hold on to substantial safe assets--even over longer horizons. Third, the majority of households inheriting stock holdings actively sell the entire portfolio. Overall, these findings suggest that participation by many individuals is unlikely to be constrained by financial participation costs. The Author 2011. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Society for Financial Studies. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com. , Oxford University Press.