Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Heterogeneous distribution of glycoconjugates in human kidney tubules

Parafin sections of normal human kidney were stained with a battery of ten lectin‐horseradish peroxidase conjugates. Staining of proximal tubules revealed a relatively uniform distribution of glycoconjugates having bi‐ and/or triantennary N‐linked sugar chains as well as terminal β‐galactose and α‐fucose in all cells. In contrast, terminal α‐ and β‐galactose and α‐fucose were localized in only some cells of the thin limbs, whereas N‐linked sugar chains and terminal α‐N‐acetylgalactosamine occurred in all cells. In the ascending thick limbs, terminal α‐N‐acetylgalactosamine was found in some cells and N‐linked sugar chains and terminal β‐galactose were present in all cells. The distal convoluted tubules contained N‐linked oligosaccharides and terminal β‐galactose in all cells. Terminal α‐N‐acetylgalactosamine was found in some but not all profiles of distal convoluted tubules in a few kidneys. In the initial (connecting) segment of cortical collecting ducts, cells varied in their content of glycogen and glycoconjugates with terminal α‐and β‐galactose, α‐fucose and α‐N‐acetylgalactosamine, but cells in this segment evidenced uniform localization of N‐linked sugar chains. A similar distribution of sugars occurred in the medullary ray segment of cortical collecting ducts, except for terminal β‐galactose which was present in all cells. In the medullary collecting ducts, there was also considerable cell‐to‐cell variation in the content and distribution of glycogen and glycoconjugates having N‐linked sugar chains, terminal α‐galactose, α‐fucose, α‐N‐acetylgalactosamine, and the disaccharide galactose‐(β 1 → 3)‐N‐acetylgalactosamine. The content and distribution of glycoconjugates in the nephron varied only slightly between kidneys from different individuals, but individual variability was extensive in the collecting ducts. The reasons for these individual differences have not been determined, however. Cellular heterogeneity of glycosubstances within the different regions of the human kidney correlates with similar findings in other mammals and implies diverse functional roles for the various types of complex carbohydrates in the kidney.
A possible attributions of excited-state process for PIP and PIP-c system in methanol solvent

In this work, based on the DFT/TDDFT methods, we theoretically studied isomerides (2-phenylimidazo[4,5-b]pyridine (PIP) and 2-(phenyl)imidazo[4,5-c]pyridine (PIP-c)) about their excited state behavior in methanol solvents. Via comparing potential energy barriers, we deem that the single emission for these two systems should be attributed to the normal fluorescence mentioned in previous experiments if ESIPT could not occur. While if the potential barriers are suitable for ESIPT, the non-radiative path should be great mechanism in the excited state. Intersection and intersystem crossing could successfully explain the single fluorescence phenomenon for PIP and PIP-c system. AMS subject classifications: 65D18, 78M50, 74E40
Vibration and stretching effects on flexibility and explosive strength in young gymnasts.

PURPOSE Effects of simultaneous vibration-stretching on flexibility and explosive strength in competitive female gymnasts were examined. METHODS Twenty-two female athletes (age = 11.3 +/- 2.6 yr; body mass = 35.3 +/- 11.6 kg; competitive levels = 3-9) composed the simultaneous vibration-stretching (VS) group, which performed both tests. Flexibility testing control groups were stretching-only (SF) (N = 7) and vibration-only (VF) (N = 8). Explosive strength-control groups were stretching-only (SES) (N = 8) and vibration-only (VES) (N = 7). Vibration (30 Hz, 2-mm displacement) was applied to four sites, four times for 10 s, with 5 s of rest in between. Right and left forward-split (RFS and LFS) flexibility was measured by the distance between the ground and the anterior suprailiac spine. A force plate (sampling rate, 1000 Hz) recorded countermovement and static jump characteristics. Explosive strength variables included flight time, jump height, peak force, instantaneous forces, and rates of force development. Data were analyzed using Bonferroni adjusted paired t-tests. RESULTS VS had statistically increased flexibility (P) and large effect sizes (d) in both the RFS (P = 1.28 x 10(-7), d = 0.67) and LFS (P = 2.35 x 10(-7), d = 0.72). VS had statistically different results of favored (FL) (P = 4.67 x 10(-8), d= 0.78) and nonfavored (NFL) (P = 7.97 x 10(-10), d = 0.65) legs. VF resulted in statistical increases in flexibility and medium d on RFS (P = 6.98 x 10(-3), d = 0.25) and statistically increased flexibility on VF NFL flexibility (P = 0.002, d = 0.31). SF had no statistical difference between measures and small d. For explosive strength, there were no statistical differences in variables in the VS, SES, and VES for the pre- versus posttreatment tests. CONCLUSIONS Simultaneous vibration and stretching may greatly increase flexibility while not altering explosive strength.
Characterization of Salmonella Gallinarum from an outbreak in Raigarh, Chhattisgarh

Aim: The present investigation was conducted to isolate and characterize Salmonella Gallinarum from an outbreak of fowl typhoid in layer birds. Materials and Methods: Clinically ill and dead layer birds from an outbreak were investigated. History, clinical signs, and postmortem lesions were suggestive of fowl typhoid. Postmortem samples including heart blood, intestinal contents, pieces of ovary, and liver were collected and processed immediately for bacterial culture, serotyping and antibiotic sensitivity tests. Isolates were further screened for the presence of extended spectrum beta lactamase (ESBL) (blaTEM) gene by polymerase chain reaction. Results: On the basis of cultural, staining and biochemical characteristics; three bacterial isolates were confirmed as S. Gallinarum. On serotyping, somatic antigen O: 9 and 12 with nonflagellated antigen were detected in all three isolates. Isolates were intermediate sensitive to amoxycillin, amoxyclav, gentamicin and ciprofloxacin and resistant to most of the antibiotics including chloramphenicol, ampicillin, ceftazidime, cefexime, cefepime, azithromycin, nalidixin, tetracycline, oxytetracycline, and streptomycin. Two isolates were found to harbor ESBL (blaTEM) gene. Conclusion: Beta lactamase producer S. Gallinarum was confirmed as cause of increased mortality in layer birds during present investigation. Existence of multi drug resistant Salmonella poses serious threat to poultry industry in Chhattisgarh.
Enhanced detectability of community structure in multilayer networks through layer aggregation

Many systems are naturally represented by a multilayer network in which edges exist in multiple layers that encode different, but potentially related, types of interactions, and it is important to understand limitations on the detectability of community structure in these networks. Using random matrix theory, we analyze detectability limitations for multilayer (specifically, multiplex) stochastic block models (SBMs) in which L layers are derived from a common SBM. We study the effect of layer aggregation on detectability for several aggregation methods, including summation of the layers' adjacency matrices for which we show the detectability limit vanishes as O(L^{-1/2}) with increasing number of layers, L. Importantly, we find a similar scaling behavior when the summation is thresholded at an optimal value, providing insight into the common-but not well understood-practice of thresholding pairwise-interaction data to obtain sparse network representations.
Brain maturation in adolescence: Concurrent changes in neuroanatomy and neurophysiology

Adolescence to early adulthood is a period of dramatic transformation in the healthy human brain. However, the relationship between the concurrent structural and functional changes remains unclear. We investigated the impact of age on both neuroanatomy and neurophysiology in the same healthy subjects (n = 138) aged 10 to 30 years using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and resting electroencephalography (EEG) recordings. MRI data were segmented into gray and white matter images and parcellated into large‐scale regions of interest. Absolute EEG power was quantified for each lobe for the slow‐wave, alpha and beta frequency bands. Gray matter volume was found to decrease across the age bracket in the frontal and parietal cortices, with the greatest change occurring in adolescence. EEG activity, particularly in the slow‐wave band, showed a similar curvilinear decline to gray matter volume in corresponding cortical regions. An inverse pattern of curvilinearly increasing white matter volume was observed in the parietal lobe. We suggest that the reduction in gray matter primarily reflects a reduction of neuropil, and that the corresponding elimination of active synapses is responsible for the observed reduction in EEG power. Hum Brain Mapp, 2007. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Quantitative Investigation of the Impact of P-Glycoprotein Inhibition on Drug Transport across Blood-Brain Barrier in Rats

The magnitude of P-glycoprotein [(P-gp)/multidrug resistance protein 1 (MDR1)]-mediated drug-drug interaction (DDI) at the blood-brain barrier (BBB) in rats was estimated by in vitro-in vivo correlation (IVIVC). In in vitro studies, rat Mdr1a-expressing LLC-PK1 cells were examined for the evaluation of P-gp inhibitory activity using digoxin as a P-gp probe substrate. The in vitro Ki value was calculated using a modified corrected flux ratio that reflects the P-gp function. In in vivo studies, digoxin with or without P-gp inhibitors was administered to rats by constant intravenous infusion to evaluate the effect of P-gp inhibition on digoxin transport to the brain under steady-state conditions. In the presence of elacridar, the brain-to-plasma concentration ratio (Kp,brain) of digoxin was approximately 14 times the control value. However, no significant change in the Kp,brain was observed in the presence of clinically used P-gp inhibitors, with the exception of cyclosporine A. A positive correlation was found between the in vivo Kp,brain of digoxin and [I,unbound/Ki] (where I,unbound is the unbound plasma concentration of P-gp inhibitors). Compounds with [I,unbound/Ki] values of >1 increased Kp,brain of digoxin in rats. In summary, we used a quantitative approach to evaluate the impact of P-gp-mediated DDI at the rat BBB. We successfully established the IVIVC, which indicated the potential DDI in the presence of potent P-gp inhibitors. On the basis of the IVIVC in rats and Ki values in human MDR1, we speculated that clinically used P-gp inhibitors do not cause DDI at the human BBB, because none of the compounds studied showed [I,unbound/Ki] values of >1 at therapeutic doses.
Fluorescence diffuse optical tomography using the split Bregman method.

PURPOSE Standard image reconstruction methods for fluorescence Diffuse Optical Tomography (fDOT) generally make use of L2-regularization. A better choice is to replace the L2 by a total variation functional that effectively removes noise while preserving edges. Among the wide range of approaches available, the recently appeared Split Bregman method has been shown to be optimal and efficient. Furthermore, additional constraints can be easily included. We propose the use of the Split Bregman method to solve the image reconstruction problem for fDOT with a nonnegativity constraint that imposes the reconstructed concentration of fluorophore to be positive. METHODS The proposed method is tested with simulated and experimental data, and results are compared with those yielded by an equivalent unconstrained optimization approach based on Gauss-Newton (GN) method, in which the negative part of the solution is projected to zero after each iteration. In addition, the method dependence on the parameters that weigh data fidelity and nonnegativity constraints is analyzed. RESULTS Split Bregman yielded a reduction of the solution error norm and a better full width at tenth maximum for simulated data, and higher signal-to-noise ratio for experimental data. It is also shown that it led to an optimum solution independently of the data fidelity parameter, as long as the number of iterations is properly selected, and that there is a linear relation between the number of iterations and the inverse of the data fidelity parameter. CONCLUSIONS Split Bregman allows the addition of a nonnegativity constraint leading to improve image quality.
Geomechanical simulation of the stress tensor rotation caused by injection of cold water in a deep geothermal reservoir

We present a three‐dimensional thermohydromechanical numerical study of the evolution and distribution of the stress tensor within the northwest part of The Geysers geothermal reservoir (in California), including a detailed study of the region around one injection well from 2003 to 2012. Initially, after imposing a normal faulting stress regime, we calculated local changes in the stress regime around injection wells. Our results were compared with previously published studies in which the stress state was inferred from inverting the focal plane mechanism of seismic events. Our main finding is that changes in stress tensor orientation are caused by injection‐induced progressive cooling of the reservoir, as well as by the seasonal variations in injection rate. Because of the gravity flow and cooling around a liquid zone formed by the injection, the vertical stress reduction is larger and propagates far below the injection well. At the same time, the horizontal stress increases, mostly because of stress redistribution below and above the cooling area. These two phenomena cause the rotation of the stress tensor and the appearance of a strike‐slip regime above, inside, and below the cooling area. The cooling and the associated rotation of the stress regime can play a significant role in the observed long‐term deepening of the microseismicity below active injection wells.
Positive impact of Australian ‘blindness’ tobacco warning labels: findings from the ITC four country survey

Smokers with greater knowledge of the health effects of smoking are more likely to quit and remain abstinent. Australia has communicated the causal association of smoking and blindness since the late 1990s. In March 2007, Australia became the first country to include a pictorial warning label on cigarette packages with the message that smoking causes blindness. The current study tested the hypothesis that the introduction of this warning label increased smokers' knowledge of this important health effect.
Variations in home learning and home social environments and children's school readiness among married, cohabiting, and single families

The current study used the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development (NICHD-SECCYD) to examine the associations among marital status, home learning and home social environments, and preschool children’s pre-academic and social skills at 36 and 54 months. Additionally, the current study investigated whether the existence of family monetary (income) and psychological (maternal depressive symptoms, social support, and parenting stress) resources could explain variability in home learning and social environments. Regression analyses showed that children of single families had lower preacademic skills at 36 and 54 months. Both home learning and home social environments significantly predicted children’s pre-academic and social skills at 36 months, but only the home learning environment predicted school readiness at 54 months. Sobel tests revealed that the home learning environment, which was significantly lower among single families, worked as a mediator to explain the relationship between single status and pre-academic skills at 36 and 54 months. Finally, parenting stress, which was significantly higher among single families, worked as a mediator to explain the relationship between single status and the home learning environment. The importance
Determinants of Use of Social Media Tools in Retailing Sector

The adoption of Social Media as part of organizational processes has been explosive during the last years. While decisions related to the adoptions of such technologies seem to be taken under competitive pressure there is little known as to the management attitudes and perceptions in the use of these technologies. The purpose of this article is to study factors affecting the acceptance of Social Media as a business strategy by Spanish retailers. A model that explains the adoption of Social Media tools has been created, on the basis of a technology acceptance model by adding the perceived strategic value, generating an extended model useful for academics and practitioners. The results confirm the central role played by the perceived ease of use of Web 2.0 in the process of its adoption as a business tool.
E-government implementation in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: an exploratory study on current practices, obstacles and challenges

The concept of electronic government (e-government) is to utilize Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to deliver government services. Governments around the world are adopting and improving e-government to reduce costs, improve services, save time and increase effectiveness and efficiency in a public sector. Therefore, the Saudi government is considering e-government as a top priority. The Government of Saudi Arabia attaches high significance to the e-government concept and the transformation process that leads to its realization. This study will explore the adoption and implementation of e-government thoroughly to address the current practices, and to identify challenges and obstacles that affect the improvements in the e-services provided from a society perspective. An intensive literature study on the subject matter will help revealing the state of egovernment services towards the future. At the end, numbers of recommendations to the successful adoption of egovernment services in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia are mentioned after addressing the problems.
Spatiotemporal Development of the Orexinergic (Hypocretinergic) System in the Central Nervous System of Xenopus laevis

The present immunohistochemical study represents a detailed spatiotemporal analysis of the localization of orexin-immunoreactive (OX-ir) cells and fibers throughout development in the brain of the anuran amphibian Xenopus laevis, a model frequently used in developmental studies. Anurans undergo remarkable physiological changes during the early life stages, and very little is known about the ontogeny and the localization of the centers that control functions such as appetite and feed ingestion in the developing brain. We examined the onset of the orexinergic system, demonstrated to be involved in appetite regulation, using antibodies against mammalian orexin-A and orexin-B peptides. Simultaneous detection of orexins with other territorial markers was used to assess the precise location of the orexinergic cells in the hypothalamus, analyzed within a segmental paradigm. Double staining of orexins and tyrosine hydroxylase served to evaluate possible interactions with the catecholaminergic systems. At early embryonic stages, the first OX-ir cells were detected in the hypothalamus and, soon after, long descending projections were observed through the brainstem to the spinal cord. As brain development proceeded, the double-staining techniques demonstrated that this OX-ir cell group was located in the suprachiasmatic nucleus within the alar hypothalamus. Throughout larval development, the number of OX-ir cells increased notably and a widespread fiber network that innervated the main areas of the forebrain and brainstem was progressively formed, including innervation in the posterior tubercle and mesencephalon, the locus coeruleus, and the nucleus of the solitary tract where catecholaminergic cells are present. In addition, orexinergic cells were detected in the preoptic area and the tuberal hypothalamus only at late prometamorphic stages. The final distribution pattern, largely similar to that of the adult, was achieved through metamorphic climax. The early expression of orexins in Xenopus suggests important roles in brain development in the embryonic period before feeding, and the progression of the temporal and spatial complexity of the orexinergic system might be correlated to the maturation of appetite control regulation, among other functions.
Convolution, filtering, and multiplexing in fractional Fourier domains and their relation to chirp and wavelet transforms

A concise introduction to the concept of fractional Fourier transforms is followed by a discussion of their relation to chirp and wavelet transforms. The notion of fractional Fourier domains is developed in conjunction with the Wigner distribution of a signal. Convolution, filtering, and multiplexing of signals in fractional domains are discussed, revealing that under certain conditions one can improve on the special cases of these operations in the conventional space and frequency domains. Because of the ease of performing the fractional Fourier transform optically, these operations are relevant for optical information processing.
Can multipath mitigate power law delays? - Effects of parallelism on tail performance

Parallelism has often been used to improve the reliability and efficiency of a variety of different engineering systems. In this paper, we quantify the efficiency of parallelism in systems that are prone to failures and exhibit power law processing durations. We focus on the context of transmitting a data unit in communication networks, where parallelism can be achieved by multipath transmission (e.g., multipath routing). We investigate two types of transmission schemes: redundant and split transmission techniques. We find that the power-law transmission delay phenomenon still persists with multipath transmission. In particular, we show that when the transmission delays of each path are characterized by the same power law, redundant multipath transmission can only result in a constant factor performance gain, while order gains are possible when the delays are light tailed. We further compare the performance of redundant transmission and split transmission, and show that there is no clear winner. Depending on the packet size distribution properties and the manner in which splitting is performed, one scheme results in greater performance over the other. Specifically, split transmission is effective in mitigating power law delays if the absolute value of the logarithm of the packet size probability tail is regularly varying with positive index, and becomes ineffective if the above quantity is slowly varying. Based on our analysis, we develop an optimal split transmission strategy, and show that this strategy always outperforms redundant transmission.
A fingerprint pointing device utilizing the deformation of the fingertip during the incipient slip

In this paper, a novel pointing device is proposed that utilizes the deformation of the fingertip. When a fingertip is pressed and slightly slid on a rigid plate, a partial slip, called an "incipient slip", occurs on the contact surface. While the deformation around the center of the contact area is small during the incipient slip, the boundary region moves to the sliding direction of the fingertip. The deformation changes depending on the sliding distance of the fingertip and the exerted force on the contact surface. The velocity of the pointer can be determined by the estimated distance and force based on the measurement of the deformation. In this study, the correlation between the sliding distance of the fingertip and the deformation and between the exerted force and the deformation are investigated. The degree of the deformation due to the sliding motion can be estimated based on the detected fingerprint center. The group delay spectrum tracking method is proposed for the detection of the fingerprint center. A prototype pointing device is developed to evaluate the operationality of the proposed device. Comparative experiments with conventional pointing devices are conducted. The validity of the proposed device is confirmed by the experiments.