Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Ascl1 (Mash1) Knockout Perturbs Differentiation of Nonneuronal Cells in Olfactory Epithelium

The embryonic olfactory epithelium (OE) generates only a very few olfactory sensory neurons when the basic helix-loop-helix transcription factor, ASCL1 (previously known as MASH1) is eliminated by gene mutation. We have closely examined the structure and composition of the OE of knockout mice and found that the absence of neurons dramatically affects the differentiation of multiple other epithelial cell types as well. The most prominent effect is observed within the two known populations of stem and progenitor cells of the epithelium. The emergence of horizontal basal cells, a multipotent progenitor population in the adult epithelium, is anomalous in the Ascl1 knockout mice. The differentiation of globose basal cells, another multipotent progenitor population in the adult OE, is also aberrant. All of the persisting globose basal cells are marked by SOX2 expression, suggesting a prominent role for SOX2 in progenitors upstream of Ascl1. However, NOTCH1-expressing basal cells are absent from the knockout; since NOTCH1 signaling normally acts to suppress Ascl1 via HES1 and drives sustentacular (Sus) cell differentiation during adult epithelial regeneration, its absence suggests reciprocity between neurogenesis and the differentiation of Sus cells. Indeed, the Sus cells of the mutant mice express a markedly lower level of HES1, strengthening that notion of reciprocity. Duct/gland development appears normal. Finally, the expression of cKIT by basal cells is also undetectable, except in those small patches where neurogenesis escapes the effects of Ascl1 knockout and neurons are born. Thus, persistent neurogenic failure distorts the differentiation of multiple other cell types in the olfactory epithelium.
Mucosal immunity and upper respiratory tract infections during a 24-week competitive season in young ice hockey players

ABSTRACT The aim of this study was to examine upper respiratory tract infections (URTI) and their associations with resting saliva and blood immune and endocrine parameters in ice hockey players. Twenty-seven participants (age 16.5 ± 0.5 years) completed the 24-week study period. The counts/concentrations of immune and endocrine markers were compared between healthy-prone athletes (≤2 episodes of URTI during the study period) and illness-prone athletes (≥3 episodes of URTI) and between the URTI state (when athletes had infections) and the healthy state (the time without URTI). There were no differences in concentration/counts of saliva and blood immune and endocrine parameters between the illness-prone and illness-free athletes. Athletes had significantly lower sIgA, sIgA1 and sIgA2 concentrations (sIgA: 119.88 ± 66.88, 144.10 ± 75.0 µg/ml; sIgA1: 90.2 ± 40.64, 108.44 ± 29.8 U; sIgA2: 67.58 ± 30.1, 80.3 ± 25.61 U, respectively) and significantly higher WBC, neutrophil, monocyte and eosinophil count values and IL-1ra concentration at the time when they had symptoms of URTI than in the period without symptoms of infections. There were no differences in salivary cortisol concentration between the period of URTI symptoms and the period without URTI symptoms. In conclusion, we observed lower concentrations of salivary immunoglobulins and higher levels of blood immune parameters during URTI in athletes, which may confirm the suppression of mucosal immunity and initiation responses to pathogenic infections by innate immunity.
Efficacy of Extrinsic Stain Removal by Novel Dentifrice Containing Papain and Bromelain Extracts

To evaluate the stain removal efficacy of a novel dentifrice containing papain and bromelain extracts (Glodent) in comparison with a control dentifrice (Colgate regular). This was a randomized, positive-controlled, double-blinded, clinical study. Subjects were randomly divided into one of the two study groups. Pre-treatment and post treatment photographs of the 4 anterior teeth were recorded under standardized conditions and analyzed for lightness or luminosity values using Adobe Photoshop. The difference between the mean pre-treatment luminosity of test and control groups was not statistically significant. In both test and control groups, the post-treatment luminosity was significantly higher than pre- treatment luminosity (P < 0.001 and P = 0.003 respectively). The mean post-treatment luminosity for test group was found to be significantly higher than control group. The mean percentage removal of stains for test group was significantly higher than control group. The test dentifrice showed significant stain removal when compared to control which could be attributed to the role of proteolytic enzymes in the test dentifrice.
A Rose by Any Other Name: Plant Identification Knowledge & Socio-Demographics

Concern has been expressed over societal losses of plant species identification skills. These losses have potential implications for engagement with conservation issues, gaining human wellbeing benefits from biodiversity (such as those resulting from nature-based recreational activities), and early warning of the spread of problematic species. However, understanding of the prevailing level of species identification skills, and of its key drivers, remains poor. Here, we explore socio-demographic factors influencing plant identification knowledge and ability to classify plants as native or non-native, employing a novel method of using real physical plants, rather than photographs or illustrations. We conducted face-to-face surveys at three different sites chosen to capture respondents with a range of socio-demographic circumstances, in Cornwall, UK. We found that survey participants correctly identified c.60% of common plant species, were significantly worse at naming non-native than native plants, and that less than 20% of people recognised Japanese knotweed Fallopia japonica, which is a widespread high profile invasive non-native in the study region. Success at naming plants was higher if participants were female, a member of at least one environmental, conservation or gardening organisation, in an older age group (than the base category of 18–29 years), or a resident (rather than visitor) of the study area. Understanding patterns of variation in plant identification knowledge can inform the development of education and engagement strategies, for example, by targeting sectors of society where knowledge is lowest. Furthermore, greater understanding of general levels of identification of problematic invasive non-native plants can guide awareness and education campaigns to mitigate their impacts.
Stress, Work Overload, Burnout, and Satisfaction among Paramedics in Israel

Abstract Introduction: The number of paramedics in Israel is increasing. Despite this growth and important role, the emergency medical organizations lack information about the characteristics of their work. Objective: The objective of this study was to examine the characteristics of the paramedics' work, the quality of their working lives, the factors that keep them in the profession, or conversely, draw them away from it. Methods: Cross-sectional study conducted through telephone interviews of a random sample of 50% of the graduates of paramedic courses in Israel (excluding conscripted soldiers). Results: The factors that attract paramedics to the profession have much to do with the essence of the job—rescuing and saving—and a love of what it involves, as well as interest and variety. Pressures at work result from having to cope with a lack of administrative support, paperwork, long hours, imbalance between work and family life, and salary. They do not come from having to cope with responsibility, the pressure of working under uncertain conditions, and the sudden transition from calm situations to emergencies. Dissatisfaction at work is caused by burnout, work overload, and poor health. Physical and mental health that impedes their ability to work is related to a sense of burnout and the intention to change professions. Conclusions: The findings about the relationships between health, job satisfaction, and burnout, coupled with the fact that within a decade, half of the currently employed paramedics will reach an age at which it is hard for them to perform their job, lead to the conclusion that there is a need to reconsider the optimum length of service in the profession. There also is a need to form organizational arrangements to change the work procedures of aging paramedics.
The effect of chemical form on the clearance of 239-plutonium from the respiratory system of the rat.

Abstract This study has investigated the effect of chemical form on the tissue distribution and excretion of plutonium following its deposition in the respiratory system of the rat. Solutions of various chemical forms of plutonium (nitrate, citrate, oxalate, dioxide, DTPA complex) have been administered to rats by intubation into the nasopharyngeal, tracheobronchial or pulmonary regions of the respiratory tract. The injection volume was less than 3 μl and the activity administered (2–3 nCi kg−1) was comparable to a few maximum permissible body burdens of plutonium in man. The absorption of both plutonium nitrate and citrate from the pulmonary region was approximately four times greater than the absorption from either the tracheobronchial or nasopharyngeal regions. However, of the plutonium deposited in any of the three regions, the relative proportion that is translocated to other tissues is greater following administration as citrate than nitrate (approximately in the ratio of 1.6:1). The absorption of various chemical forms of plutonium from the pulmonary region was in general agreement with the conclusions of the ICRP Task Group on Lung Dynamics. About 13% of activity entering the blood during the first week after administration of plutonium nitrate or citrate was retained in the liver at 7 days implying that plutonium was circulating in the blood in a “monomeric” form. The cumulative excretion of plutonium in the urine in the same period was equivalent to about 4 of the total activity deposited in tissues from the blood. The experimental results suggest that this value could be used for calculating the total tissue deposit from urinary excretion measurements.
The Environment and Disease: Association or Causation?

In 1965, Sir Austin Bradford Hill offered his thoughts on: “What aspects of [an] association should we especially consider before deciding that the most likely interpretation of it is causation? ” He proposed nine means for reasoning about the association, which he named as: strength, consistency, specificity, temporality, biological gradient, plausibility, coherence, experiment, and analogy. In this paper, we look at what motivated Bradford Hill to propose we focus on these nine features. We contrast Bradford Hill’s approach with a currently fashionable framework for reasoning about statistical associations – the Common Task Framework. And then suggest why following Bradford Hill, 50+ years on, is still extraordinarily reasonable.
Differential expression of allograft inflammatory factor 1 and of glutathione peroxidase during auto-and allograft response in marine sponges

Immunity is an integral part of the homeostatic system of all Metazoa. The immune system protects animals from attacking organisms and also hinders malformation during morphogenetic growth and ageing; in addition it prevents parasitism and fusion with genetically unrelated organisms that would result in chimaerism and loss of individuality (reviewed by Vetvicka and Sima, 1998). Due to lack of knowledge it was assumed that individuals of lower metazoan phyla use only very simple immune strategies to survive (reviewed by Marchalonis and Schluter, 1994). However, results obtained by molecular biological techniques have changed this view. It was discovered recently that species belonging to the lowest metazoan phylum the Porifera (sponges) have sets of molecules known (from work on deuterostomes) to be involved in self/selfand self/non-self recognition (reviewed by Müller et al., 1999). Firstly, immunoglobulin (Ig)-like molecules present in the extracellular part of the receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) (Schäcke et al., 1994a,b; Pancer et al., 1996). Secondly, proteins featuring scavenger receptor cysteine-rich (SRCR) domains (Pancer et al., 1997; Pahler et al., 1998; Blumbach et al., 1998) which are related to those found on macrophages as scavenger receptors (reviewed by Resnick et al., 1994). Or, thirdly, molecules that comprise complement control protein modules, termed short consensus repeats (SCR) (Pahler et al., 1998), which are building blocks for immune molecules present on lymphocytes and macrophages (Zipfel and Skerka, 1994). The molecules have been identified from marine sponges, primarily from Geodia cydonium or Suberites domuncula, making it possible to address whether these polypeptides are similar or homologous in function to the structurally related ones involved in the immune system of higher deuterostomes. It is well established that sponges use cellular immunity as a defense mechanism, with phagocytosis as a major system to distinguish self from non-self (Wilson, 1907). Allogeneic reactions have been studied in detail by Hildemann et al. (1997); also traces of an adaptive immunity have been demonstrated (Evans et al., 1980). Two cell types are apparently involved in rejection, the archaeocytes (Buscema and Van de Vyver, 1984) and the spherulocytes (Bretting and Königsmann, 1979). Studies on allorecognition at the cellular level have shown that this process is rapid and does not require preceding sensitization (Humphreys, 1994). Cytotoxic reactions in allografts have been reported from the sponge Axinella polypoides (Buscema and Van de Vyver, 1984) and from G. cydonium (Pfeifer et al., 1992). Since the first publication on the systematization of vertebrate versus invertebrate allorecognition (Burnet, 1971) it 4305 Journal of Cell Science 112, 4305-4313 (1999) Printed in Great Britain © The Company of Biologists Limited 1999 JCS0804
Therapeutic Angiogenesis: A Biologic Bypass

The use of angiogenic factors to effect therapeutic angiogenesis may be an attractive treatment modality for a substantial number of patients who have diffuse coronary artery disease and who are not candidates for traditional revascularization procedures. Delivery of angiogenic factors as a protein or gene encoding for the respective protein product has been shown to induce angiogenesis in numerous animal models, and expression of a functioning product has been demonstrated. Various early clinical trials of therapeutic angiogenesis have shown reduction in anginal symptoms and increases in exercise time, as well as objective evidence of improved perfusion, left ventricular function and angiographic appearance following such angiogenic treatments.
Concentrations of the Carcinogen 4-(Methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-Pyridyl)-1-Butanone in Sidestream Cigarette Smoke Increase after Release into Indoor Air: Results from Unpublished Tobacco Industry Research

Research has shown that the toxicity of sidestream cigarette smoke, the primary constituent of secondhand smoke, increases over time. To find potential mechanisms that would explain the increase in sidestream smoke toxicity over time, we analyzed unpublished research reports from Philip Morris Co. using the internal tobacco industry documents now available at the University of California San Francisco Legacy Tobacco Documents Library and other Web sites. Unpublished research from Philip Morris Tobacco Company shows that 4-(methylnitrosamino)-I-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanone (NNK), a highly carcinogenic tobacco-specific nitrosamine, can form in sidestream cigarette smoke after it has been released into ambient air. In experiments done between 1983 and 1997, Philip Morris scientists measured the concentration of NNK in sidestream smoke in a sealed stainless steel test chamber at initial particle concentrations of 24 mg/m3 over the course of 6 to 18 h. They repeatedly showed that airborne NNK concentrations in sidestream cigarette smoke can increase by 50% to 200% per hour during the first 6 h after cigarettes are extinguished. Two experiments done in a real office showed that NNK concentrations increase for the first 2 h after cigarettes are extinguished. If NNK formation also occurs in the lower smoke concentrations observed in real smoking environments, these results suggest that nitrosation of nicotine and/or nicotine breakdown products in aging secondhand smoke is a significant contributor to nitrosamine exposure in humans. (Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2007;16(8):1547–53)
Potential Effect of CD271 on Human Mesenchymal Stromal Cell Proliferation and Differentiation

The Low-Affinity Nerve Growth Factor Receptor (LNGFR), also known as CD271, is a member of the tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily. The CD271 cell surface marker defines a subset of multipotential mesenchymal stromal cells and may be used to isolate and enrich cells derived from bone marrow aspirate. In this study, we compare the proliferative and differentiation potentials of CD271+ and CD271− mesenchymal stromal cells. Mesenchymal stromal cells were isolated from bone marrow aspirate and adipose tissue by plastic adherence and positive selection. The proliferation and differentiation potentials of CD271+ and CD271− mesenchymal stromal cells were assessed by inducing osteogenic, adipogenic and chondrogenic in vitro differentiation. Compared to CD271+, CD271− mesenchymal stromal cells showed a lower proliferation rate and a decreased ability to give rise to osteocytes, adipocytes and chondrocytes. Furthermore, we observed that CD271+ mesenchymal stromal cells isolated from adipose tissue displayed a higher efficiency of proliferation and trilineage differentiation compared to CD271+ mesenchymal stromal cells isolated from bone marrow samples, although the CD271 expression levels were comparable. In conclusion, these data show that both the presence of CD271 antigen and the source of mesenchymal stromal cells represent important factors in determining the ability of the cells to proliferate and differentiate.
A Comparison of Morphine, Fentanyl, and Sufentanil Anesthesia for Cardiac Surgery: Induction, Emergence, and Extubation

We compared anesthetic doses of three popular opiates, morphine (n = 10), fentanyl (n = 9), and sufentanil (n = 9) in patients undergoing cardiac surgery. Opiate administration after induction was based upon EEG and cardiovascular signs of the depth of anesthesia. Total doses were morphine, 4.4 ± 0.71 mg/kg, fentanyl, 95.4 ± 9.9 μg/kg, and sufentanil, 18.9 ± 2.2 μg/kg. Comparisons among opiates included times for induction of anesthesia, return of consciousness, return of spontaneous ventilation, return of adequate cardiovascular status, and extubation. The following times (mean and SEM) were significantly (P < 0.05) shorter for sufentanil than for fentanyl or morphine: induction (15 ± 2.3 min, 5.9 ± 0.7 min, and 3.0 ± 0.2 min for morphine, fentanyl, and sufentanil, respectively); return of consciousness (morphine 109.7 ± 34.4 min, fentanyl 62.3 ± 17.9 min, sufentanil 77 ± 8.7 min); return of acceptable and stable cardiovascular status (morphine 587.3 ± 239.3 min, fentanyl 537.9 ± 144.8 min, sufentanil 173.7 ± 56.8 min); and extubation (morphine 1122.3 ± 61.8 min, fentanyl 1005.7 ± 77.7 min, sufentanil 533.3 ± 67.8 min). We conclude that sufentanil administered in the dosage range of 19 μg/kg allows more rapid induction, earlier emergence from anesthesia, and faster extubation of patients than either morphine or fentanyl.
Correction of tear trough deformity with a cohesive polydensified matrix hyaluronic acid : a case series

(unported, v3.0) License. The full terms of the License are available at http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/. Non-commercial uses of the work are permitted without any further permission from Dove Medical Press Limited, provided the work is properly attributed. Permissions beyond the scope of the License are administered by Dove Medical Press Limited. Information on how to request permission may be found at: http://www.dovepress. com/permissions.php Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology 2015:8 307–312 Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology Dovepress
Simulating branching programs with edit distance and friends: or: a polylog shaved is a lower bound made

A recent, active line of work achieves tight lower bounds for fundamental problems under the Strong Exponential Time Hypothesis (SETH). A celebrated result of Backurs and Indyk (STOC’15) proves that computing the Edit Distance of two sequences of length n in truly subquadratic O(n2−ε) time, for some ε>0, is impossible under SETH. The result was extended by follow-up works to simpler looking problems like finding the Longest Common Subsequence (LCS). SETH is a very strong assumption, asserting that even linear size CNF formulas cannot be analyzed for satisfiability with an exponential speedup over exhaustive search. We consider much safer assumptions, e.g. that such a speedup is impossible for SAT on more expressive representations, like subexponential-size NC circuits. Intuitively, this assumption is much more plausible: NC circuits can implement linear algebra and complex cryptographic primitives, while CNFs cannot even approximately compute an XOR of bits. Our main result is a surprising reduction from SAT on Branching Programs to fundamental problems in P like Edit Distance, LCS, and many others. Truly subquadratic algorithms for these problems therefore have far more remarkable consequences than merely faster CNF-SAT algorithms. For example, SAT on arbitrary o(n)-depth bounded fan-in circuits (and therefore also NC-Circuit-SAT) can be solved in (2−ε)n time. An interesting feature of our work is that we get major consequences even from mildly subquadratic algorithms for Edit Distance or LCS. For example, we show that if an arbitrarily large polylog factor is shaved from n2 for Edit Distance then NEXP does not have non-uniform NC1 circuits.
Interinstitutional Variation of Caesarean Delivery Rates According to Indications in Selected Obstetric Populations: A Prospective Multicenter Study

The aim of the study was to identify which groups of women contribute to interinstitutional variation of caesarean delivery (CD) rates and which are the reasons for this variation. In this regard, 15,726 deliveries from 11 regional centers were evaluated using the 10-group classification system. Standardized indications for CD in each group were used. Spearman's correlation coefficient was used to calculate (1) relationship between institutional CD rates and relative sizes/CD rates in each of the ten groups/centers; (2) correlation between institutional CD rates and indications for CD in each of the ten groups/centers. Overall CD rates correlated with both CD rates in spontaneous and induced labouring nulliparous women with a single cephalic pregnancy at term (P = 0.005). Variation of CD rates was also dependent on relative size and CD rates in multiparous women with previous CD, single cephalic pregnancy at term (P < 0.001). As for the indications, “cardiotocographic anomalies” and “failure to progress” in the group of nulliparous women in spontaneous labour and “one previous CD” in multiparous women previous CD correlated significantly with institutional CD rates (P = 0.021, P = 0.005, and P < 0.001, resp.). These results supported the conclusion that only selected indications in specific obstetric groups accounted for interinstitutional variation of CD rates.