Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Spatiotemporal Expression of Wnt/β-catenin Signaling during Morphogenesis and Odontogenesis of Deciduous Molar in Miniature Pig

The canonical Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway has been shown to play essential roles in tooth initiation and early tooth development. However, the role of Wnt/β-catenin signaling in cusp patterning and crown calcification in large mammals are largely unknown. In our previous study, miniature pigs were used as the animal model due to the similarity of tooth anatomy and replacement pattern between miniature pig and human. Dynamic gene expression of third deciduous molar (DM3) in miniature pig at early stages was profiled using microarray method and expression of Wnt genes was significantly correlate with odontogenesis. In the present study, dynamic expression patterns of Wnt/β-catenin signaling genes of DM3 at cap, early bell and late bell (secretory) stage were identified. We found that Lef1 and Axin2 were expressed in the enamel knot and underlying mesenchyme regions. Meanwhile, Dkk1 was expressed in the peripheral and lower parts of dental papilla, thus forming the potential Wnt signaling gradient. We also found that β-Catenin, Axin2 and Lef1 were expressed strongly in undifferentiated cells of the inner enamel epithelium (IEE), but weakly in differentiated ameloblasts. Furthermore, we found that both Wnt signaling read-out gene Lef1 and the inhibitor Dkk1 were co-expressed in the pre-odontoblasts. In conclusion, the spatiotemporal distribution and potential gradient of Wnt signaling may contribute to cusp patterning and crown calcification. These data may yield insight into future study of precise control of crown morphogenesis and regeneration in large mammals.
[Experimental pulmonary emphysema in rats. Inflammatory phenomena and progression of lung damage].

BACKGROUND Although the hamster model of elastase induced emphysema is well characterized, the rat model has received less attention. AIM To evaluate the effect of a single intratracheal elastase dose on lung pathological changes of Sprague-Dawley rats. MATERIAL AND METHODS Rats were injected with a single intratracheal elastase dose of 28 U/100 g body weight or saline and studied 7, 15, 30 and 365 days after injection. RESULTS Forty percent of rats died in the first 48 hours after injection, six were sacrificed at 7 days, 6 at 15 days, 7 at 30 days and 12 at 365 days. Progressive centroacinar emphysema was found from day 7 after elastase, with a persistent inflammatory reaction in the vicinity of emphysematous areas. CONCLUSIONS Present findings differ from the panacinar emphysema described in the hamster using a similar elastase dose.
A current overview of consumer neuroscience

The emerging discipline of neuroeconomics employs methods originally used in brain research for investigating economic problems, and furthers the advance of integrating neuroscientific findings into the economic sciences. Neuromarketing or consumer neuroscience is a sub-area of neuroeconomics that addresses marketing relevant problems with methods and insights from brain research. With the help of advanced techniques of neurology, which are applied in the field of consumer neuroscience, a more direct view into the “black box” of the organism should be feasible. Consumer neuroscience, still in its infancy, should not be seen as a challenge to traditional consumer research, but constitutes a complementing advancement for further investigation of specific decision-making behavior. The key contribution of this paper is to suggest a distinct definition of consumer neuroscience as the scientific proceeding, and neuromarketing as the application of these findings within the scope of managerial practice. Furthermore, we aim to develop a foundational understanding of the field, moving away from the derisory assumption that consumer neuroscience is about locating the “buy button” in the brain. Against this background the goal of this paper is to present specific results of selected studies from this emerging discipline, classified according to traditional marketing-mix instruments such as product, price, communication, and distribution policies, as well as brand research. The paper is completed by an overview of the most prominent brain structures relevant for consumer neuroscience, and a discussion of possible implications of these insights for economic theory and practice. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Cognitive dysfunction in lower motor neuron disease: executive and memory deficits in progressive muscular atrophy

Aim In contrast with findings in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), cognitive impairments have as yet not been shown in the lower motor neuron variant of motor neuron disease, progressive spinal muscular atrophy (PMA). The objective of this study was to investigate cognitive function in PMA and to compare the cognitive profile with that of ALS. In addition, visuospatial functions were assessed comprehensively; these tests are underrepresented in earlier neuropsychological investigations in ALS. Methods 23 PMA and 30 ALS patients (vital capacity >70% of predicted value) underwent a neuropsychological assessment adapted to motor impairments: global cognitive and executive functioning, psychomotor speed, memory, language, attention and visuospatial skills. The results were compared with age, education and sex matched controls and with normative data. Results Compared with controls, PMA patients performed worse on attention/working memory (digit span backward), category fluency and the Mini-Mental State Examination. Compared with normative data, PMA patients most frequently showed impairment on three measures: letter–number sequencing, and immediate and delayed story recall. 17% of PMA patients showed cognitive impairment, defined as performance below 2 SDs from the mean of normative data on at least three neuropsychological tests. In ALS, similar but more extensive cognitive deficits were found. Visuospatial dysfunction was not found in PMA and ALS. Conclusions 17% of PMA patients have executive and memory impairments. PMA with cognitive impairment adds a formerly unknown phenotype to the existing classification of motor neuron diseases.
Hormonal and growth factor responses to heavy resistance exercise protocols.

To examine endogenous anabolic hormone and growth factor responses to various heavy resistance exercise protocols (HREPs), nine male subjects performed each of six randomly assigned HREPs, which consisted of identically ordered exercises carefully designed to control for load [5 vs. 10 repetitions maximum (RM)], rest period length (1 vs. 3 min), and total work effects. Serum human growth hormone (hGH), testosterone (T), somatomedin-C (SM-C), glucose, and whole blood lactate (HLa) concentrations were determined preexercise, midexercise (i.e., after 4 of 8 exercises), and at 0, 5, 15, 30, 60, 90, and 120 min postexercise. All HREPs produced significant (P less than 0.05) temporal increases in serum T concentrations, although the magnitude and time point of occurrence above resting values varied across HREPs. No differences were observed for T when integrated areas under the curve (AUCs) were compared. Although not all HREPs produced increases in serum hGH, the highest responses were observed consequent to the H10/1 exercise protocol (high total work, 1 min rest, 10-RM load) for both temporal and time integrated (AUC) responses. The pattern of SM-C increases varied among HREPs and did not consistently follow hGH changes. Whereas temporal changes were observed, no integrated time (AUC) differences between exercise protocols occurred. These data indicate that the release patterns (temporal or time integrated) observed are complex functions of the type of HREPs utilized and the physiological mechanisms involved with determining peripheral circulatory concentrations (e.g., clearance rates, transport, receptor binding). All HREPs may not affect muscle and connective tissue growth in the same manner because of possible differences in hormonal and growth factor release.
Black-White Marriages: Social Change and Intergenerational Mobility

The majority of marriage partners in the United States are of the same race, although a growing minority are choosing to intermarry (Lieberson & Waters, 1988). In this article, we examine why black and white individuals living in the greater Los Angeles metropolitan area chose to marry each other. Explored are characteristics such as social class background and family upbringing which might influence a decision to go against the societal norm of racial endogamy.
Reverse Line Blot Assay for Direct Identification of Seven Streptococcus agalactiae Major Surface Protein Antigen Genes

ABSTRACT We developed a multiplex PCR-based reverse line blot hybridization assay (mPCR/RLB) to detect the genes encoding members of the family of variable surface-localized proteins of Streptococcus agalactiae (group B streptococcus [GBS]), namely, Bca (Cα), Rib, Epsilon (Epsilon/Alp1/Alp5), Alp2, Alp3, and Alp4, and the immunoglobulin A binding protein, Bac (Cβ). We used the assay to identify these genes in a collection of well-characterized GBS isolates and reference strains. The results showed that mPCR/RLB avoids the common problems of cross-reaction and nontypability associated with protein typing using antisera. It is as sensitive as, but more practical than, separate gene-specific PCRs and would be suitable for large molecular epidemiological studies of GBS.
Mouse centric and pericentric satellite repeats form distinct functional heterochromatin

Heterochromatin is thought to play a critical role for centromeric function. However, the respective contributions of the distinct repetitive sequences found in these regions, such as minor and major satellites in the mouse, have remained largely unsolved. We show that these centric and pericentric repeats on the chromosomes have distinct heterochromatic characteristics in the nucleus. Major satellites from different chromosomes form clusters associated with heterochromatin protein 1α, whereas minor satellites are individual entities associated with centromeric proteins. Both regions contain methylated histone H3 (Me-K9 H3) but show different micrococcal nuclease sensitivities. A dinucleosome repeating unit is found specifically associated with major satellites. These domains replicate asynchronously, and chromatid cohesion is sustained for a longer time in major satellites compared with minor satellites. Such prolonged cohesion in major satellites is lost in the absence of Suv39h histone methyltransferases. Thus, we define functionally independent centromeric subdomains, which spatio-temporal isolation is proposed to be important for centromeric cohesion and dissociation during chromosome segregation.
Coalescent versus concatenation methods and the placement of Amborella as sister to water lilies.

The molecular era has fundamentally reshaped our knowledge of the evolution and diversification of angiosperms. One outstanding question is the phylogenetic placement of Amborella trichopoda Baill. , commonly thought to represent the first lineage of extant angiosperms. Here, we leverage publicly available data and provide a broad coalescent-based species tree estimation of 45 seed plants. By incorporating 310 nuclear genes, our coalescent analyses strongly support a clade containing Amborella plus water lilies (i.e., Nymphaeales) that is sister to all other angiosperms across different nucleotide rate partitions. Our results also show that commonly applied concatenation methods produce strongly supported, but incongruent placements of Amborella: slow-evolving nucleotide sites corroborate results from coalescent analyses, whereas fast-evolving sites place Amborella alone as the first lineage of extant angiosperms. We further explored the performance of coalescent versus concatenation methods using nucleotide sequences simulated on (i) the two alternate placements of Amborella with branch lengths and substitution model parameters estimated from each of the 310 nuclear genes and (ii) three hypothetical species trees that are topologically identical except with respect to the degree of deep coalescence and branch lengths. Our results collectively suggest that the Amborella alone placement inferred using concatenation methods is likely misled by fast-evolving sites. This appears to be exacerbated by the combination of long branches in stem group angiosperms, Amborella, and Nymphaeales with the short internal branch separating Amborella and Nymphaeales. In contrast, coalescent methods appear to be more robust to elevated substitution rates.
Improving BPH symptoms and sexual dysfunctions with a saw palmetto preparation? Results from a pilot trial

In elderly men, benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is a major risk factor for sexual dysfunctions (SDys). Additionally, the standard treatments for BPH symptoms, alpha blockers and 5‐alpha‐reductase inhibitors, cause SDys themselves. Preparations from saw palmetto berries are an efficacious and well‐tolerated symptomatic treatment for mild to moderate BPH and have traditionally been used to treat SDys. We conducted an open multicentric clinical pilot trial to investigate whether the saw palmetto berry preparation Prostasan® influenced BPH symptoms and SDys. Eighty‐two patients participated in the 8‐week trial, taking one capsule of 320 mg saw palmetto extract daily. At the end of the treatment, the International Prostate Symptom Score was reduced from 14.4 ± 4.7 to 6.9 ± 5.2 (p < 0.0001); SDys measured with the brief Sexual Function Inventory improved from 22.4 ± 7.2 to 31.4 ± 9.2 (p < 0.0001), and the Urolife BPH QoL‐9 sex total improved from 137.3 ± 47.9 to 195.0 ± 56.3 (p < 0.0001). Investigators' and patients' assessments confirmed the good efficacy, and treatment was very well tolerated and accepted by the patients. Correlation analyses confirmed the relationship between improved BPH symptoms and reduced SDys. This was the first trial with saw palmetto to show improvement in BPH symptoms and SDys as well. [Corrections made here after initial online publication. ] Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Characterization of star-forming dwarf galaxies at 0.1 ≲z ≲ 0.9 in VUDS: probing the low-mass end of the mass-metallicity relation

Context. The study of statistically significant samples of star-forming dwarf galaxies (SFDGs) at different cosmic epochs is essential for the detailed understanding of galaxy assembly and chemical evolution. However, the main properties of this large population of galaxies at intermediate redshift are still poorly known.Aims. We present the discovery and spectrophotometric characterization of a large sample of 164 faint (i AB ~ 23–25 mag) SFDGs at redshift 0.13 ≤ z ≤ 0.88 selected by the presence of bright optical emission lines in the VIMOS Ultra Deep Survey (VUDS). We investigate their integrated physical properties and ionization conditions, which are used to discuss the low-mass end of the mass-metallicity relation (MZR) and other key scaling relations.Methods. We use optical VUDS spectra in the COSMOS, VVDS-02h, and ECDF-S fields, as well as deep multi-wavelength photometry that includes HST-ACS F814W imaging, to derive stellar masses, extinction-corrected star-formation rates (SFR), and gas-phase metallicities of SFDGs. For the latter, we use the direct method and a T e -consistent approach based on the comparison of a set of observed emission lines ratios with the predictions of detailed photoionization models.Results. The VUDS SFDGs are compact (median r e ~ 1.2 kpc), low-mass (M ∗ ~ 107 –109 M ⊙ ) galaxies with a wide range of star-formation rates (SFR (Hα ) ~ 10-3 –101 M ⊙ /yr) and morphologies. Overall, they show a broad range of subsolar metallicities (12 +log (O/H) =7.26–8.7; 0.04 ≲Z /Z ⊙ ≲ 1). Nearly half of the sample are extreme emission-line galaxies (EELGs) characterized by high equivalent widths and emission line ratios indicative of higher excitation and ionization conditions. The MZR of SFDGs shows a flatter slope compared to previous studies of galaxies in the same mass range and redshift. We find the scatter of the MZR is partly explained in the low mass range by varying specific SFRs and gas fractions amongst the galaxies in our sample. In agreement with recent studies, we find the subclass of EELGs to be systematically offset to lower metallicity compared to SFDGs at a given stellar mass and SFR, suggesting a younger starburst phase. Compared with simple chemical evolution models we find that most SFDGs do not follow the predictions of a “closed-box” model, but those from a gas-regulating model in which gas flows are considered. While strong stellar feedback may produce large-scale outflows favoring the cessation of vigorous star formation and promoting the removal of metals, younger and more metal-poor dwarfs may have recently accreted large amounts of fresh, very metal-poor gas, that is used to fuel current star formation.
Processing power limits social group size: computational evidence for the cognitive costs of sociality

Sociality is primarily a coordination problem. However, the social (or communication) complexity hypothesis suggests that the kinds of information that can be acquired and processed may limit the size and/or complexity of social groups that a species can maintain. We use an agent-based model to test the hypothesis that the complexity of information processed influences the computational demands involved. We show that successive increases in the kinds of information processed allow organisms to break through the glass ceilings that otherwise limit the size of social groups: larger groups can only be achieved at the cost of more sophisticated kinds of information processing that are disadvantageous when optimal group size is small. These results simultaneously support both the social brain and the social complexity hypotheses.
Actions of bevacizumab and ranibizumab on microvascular retinal endothelial cells: similarities and differences

Background Retinal endothelial cells are crucially involved in the genesis of diabetic retinopathy which is treated with vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) inhibitors. Of these, ranibizumab can completely restore VEGF-induced effects on immortalised bovine retinal endothelial cells (iBREC). In most experiments supporting diabetic retinopathy therapy with bevacizumab, only non-retinal EC or retinal pigment epithelial cells have been used. Also, bevacizumab but not ranibizumab can accumulate in retinal pigment epithelial cells. Objective To investigate the effects of bevacizumab on VEGF-induced changes of iBREC properties and potential uptake and accumulation of both inhibitors. Methods Uptake of VEGF inhibitors by iBREC with or without pretreatment with VEGF165 was visualised by immunofluorescence staining and western blot analyses. Measured transendothelial resistance (TER) of iBREC (±VEGF165) showed effects on permeability, indicated also by the western blot-determined tight junction protein claudin-1. The influence of bevacizumab on proliferation and migration of iBREC was studied in the presence and absence of VEGF165. Results Bevacizumab strongly inhibited VEGF-stimulated and basal migration, but was less efficient than ranibizumab in inhibiting VEGF-induced proliferation or restoring the VEGF-induced decrease of TER and claudin-1. This ability was completely lost after storage of bevacizumab for 4 weeks at 4°C. Ranibizumab and bevacizumab were detectable in whole cell extracts after treatment for at least 1 h; bevacizumab accumulated during prolonged treatment. Ranibizumab was found in the membrane/organelle fraction, whereas bevacizumab was associated with the cytoskeleton. Conclusion Both inhibitors had similar effects on retinal endothelial cells; however, some differences were recognised. Although barrier properties were not affected by internalised bevacizumab in vitro, potential adverse effects due to accumulation after repetitive intravitreal injections remain to be investigated.
Quantitative electroencephalography and applications in the assessments of conscious states and in Brain Computer Interfaces

Probing consciousness is a major challenge in the evaluation of patients with disorders of consciousness (DOC). Improvement of behavioral scales have led to more accurate bedside assessments but are still bound to variability due to different factors such as the subjectivity and experience of the assessor and fluctuations of the patient state. Brain imaging techniques such as positron emission tomography (PET), functional MRI (fMRI), diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) or electroencephalography (EEG) may provide different and complementary information on metabolism, haemodynamic function, tissue organization and electrical activity of the brain. Measurements obtained from these methods could lead to objective assessments and quantification of correlates of consciousness. In this thesis we explored electrophysiological markers of brain activity to 1) better comprehend mechanisms of loss of consciousness, 2) differentiate patients with vegetative state / unresponsive wakefulness syndrome (VS/UWS) from patients in minimally conscious state, and 3) provide means of communications for patients with DOC. The first part of this thesis presents a state of the art on the use of EEG in the context of DOC, in particular we review the existing literature on standard clinical EEG, quantitative EEG (qEEG), brain computer interfaces, and event related potentials. Then signal processing techniques for EEG are described, namely time frequency decompositions at the scalp level, functional and effective connectivity and source reconstruction methods. In the second part, the results of three analyses are exposed. First a descriptive approach of loss of consciousness under ketamine is provided and reveals a concomitant increase in theta and gamma frequencies at the scalp and source level in frontal and parietal cortices. Furthermore, assessment of effective connectivity with dynamical causal modelling (DCM) shows an increase in intracortical connectivity during ketamine induced unresponsiveness. Second, scalp level differences in power spectra and connectivity measurements are used to discriminate VS/UWS patients from MCS patients. We found that VS/UWS patients display slow delta oscillations while MCS patients have more power and higher connectivity in the theta range. Finally, the use of source reconstruction based classification of upcoming finger movements did not improve classification rates obtained with common spatial patterns (CSP) in the studied dataset.
Dependent Randomized Rounding for Matroid Polytopes and Applications

Motivated by several applications, we consider the problem of randomly rounding a fractional solution in a matroid (base) polytope to an integral one. We consider the pipage rounding technique and also present a new technique, randomized swap rounding. Our main technical results are concentration bounds for functions of random variables arising from these rounding techniques. We prove Chernoff-type concentration bounds for linear functions of random variables arising from both techniques, and also a lower-tail exponential bound for monotone submodular functions of variables arising from randomized swap rounding. The following are examples of our applications: (1) We give a (1-1/e-epsilon)-approximation algorithm for the problem of maximizing a monotone submodular function subject to 1 matroid and k linear constraints, for any constant k and epsilon>0. (2) We present a result on minimax packing problems that involve a matroid base constraint. We give an O(log m / log log m)-approximation for the general problem Min {lambda: x \in {0,1}^N, x \in B(M), Ax <= lambda b}, where m is the number of packing constraints. (3) We generalize the continuous greedy algorithm to problems involving multiple submodular functions, and use it to find a (1-1/e-epsilon)-approximate pareto set for the problem of maximizing a constant number of monotone submodular functions subject to a matroid constraint. An example is the Submodular Welfare Problem where we are looking for an approximate pareto set with respect to individual players' utilities.