Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Biomarkers of Environmental and Workplace Boron Exposure

The purpose of this work was to identify an accurate, noninvasive biomarker of boron exposure that could be used in worker populations. Occupational exposure to boron is of concern due to high numbers of workers exposed, animal toxicity data suggesting reproductive effects, and lack of human studies. Total daily boron exposure was determined from duplicate samples of 24-hr food and fluid intake, plus workplace personal air monitoring in boron workers and comparison groups in northern China during 2003 and 2004. Boron was also measured in blood, semen, creatinine-corrected postshift urine, and 24-hr urine. Total daily boron exposure (mg/day) averaged 41.2 for men working in the boron industry and 2.3 for the comparison group. Boron concentration in postshift urine was correlated with 24-hr urine boron concentration (Pearson correlation coefficient = 0.85, p < 0.0001). Boron concentration in postshift urine was correlated with total daily boron exposure measured through food, fluid, and personal air monitoring (Pearson correlation coefficient = 0.83, p < 0.0001). Boron concentration in postshift urine was also correlated with internal dose measures of boron in blood and semen (Pearson correlation coefficient = 0.85, 0.80 respectively, p < 0.0001). This work suggests that creatinine-corrected, postshift urine boron concentration can be used as a biomarker of human boron exposure in worker populations.
Resource Allocation for Downlink Cellular OFDMA Systems—Part II: Practical Algorithms and Optimal Reuse Factor

In a companion paper (see ? Resource Allocation for Downlink Cellular OFDMA Systems-Part I: Optimal Allocation,? IEEE Trans. Signal Process., vol. 58, no. 2, pp. 720-734, Feb. 2010), we characterized the optimal resource allocation in terms of power control and subcarrier assignment, for a downlink sectorized OFDMA system impaired by multicell interference. In our model, the network is assumed to be one dimensional (linear) for the sake of analysis. We also assume that a certain part of the available bandwidth is likely to be reused by different base stations while that the other part of the bandwidth is shared in an orthogonal way between these base stations. The optimal resource allocation characterized in Part I is obtained by minimizing the total power spent by the network under the constraint that all users' rate requirements are satisfied. It is worth noting that when optimal resource allocation is used, any user receives data either in the reused bandwidth or in the protected bandwidth, but not in both (except for at most one pivot-user in each cell). We also proposed an algorithm that determines the optimal values of users' resource allocation parameters. As a matter of fact, the optimal allocation algorithm proposed in Part I requires a large number of operations. In the present paper, we propose a distributed practical resource allocation algorithm with low complexity. We study the asymptotic behavior of both this simplified resource allocation algorithm and the optimal resource allocation algorithm of Part I as the number of users in each cell tends to infinity. Our analysis allows to prove that the proposed simplified algorithm is asymptotically optimal, i.e., it achieves the same asymptotic transmit power as the optimal algorithm as the number of users in each cell tends to infinity. As a byproduct of our analysis, we characterize the optimal value of the frequency reuse factor. Simulations sustain our claims and show that substantial performance improvements are obtained when the optimal value of the frequency reuse factor is used.
Responses of absolute and specific enzyme activity to consecutive application of composted sewage sludge in a Fluventic Ustochrept

Composted sewage sludge (CS) is considered a rich source of soil nutrients and significantly affects the physical, chemical, and biological characteristics of soil, but its effect on specific enzyme activity in soil is disregarded. The present experiment examined the absolute and specific enzyme activity of the enzymes involved in carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus cycles, the diversity of soil microbial functions, and soil community composition in a Fluventic Ustochrept under a maize—wheat rotation system in North China during 2012–2015. Application of CS led to increase in MBC and in its ratio to both total organic carbon (TOC) and microbial biomass nitrogen (MBN). Absolute enzyme activity, except that of phosphatase, increased in CS-treated soils, whereas specific activity of all the enzymes declined, especially at the highest dose of CS (45 t ha−1). The diversity of soil microbial community also increased in CS-treated soils, whereas its functional diversity declined at higher doses of CS owing to the lowered specific enzyme activity. These changes indicate that CS application induced the domination of microorganisms that are not metabolically active and those that use resources more efficiently, namely fungi. Redundancy analysis showed that fundamental alterations in soil enzyme activity depend on soil pH. Soil specific enzyme activity is affected more than absolute enzyme activity by changes in soil properties, especially soil microbial activity and composition of soil microflora (as judged by the following ratios: MBC/TOC, MBC/MBN, and TOC/LOC, that is labile organic carbon) through the Pearson Correlation Coefficient. Specific enzyme activity is thus a more accurate parameter than absolute enzyme activity for monitoring the effect of adding CS on the activities and structure of soil microbial community.
A Ploidy Difference Represents an Impassable Barrier for Hybridisation in Animals. Is There an Exception among Botiid Loaches (Teleostei: Botiidae)?

One of the most efficient mechanisms to keep animal lineages separate is a difference in ploidy level (number of whole genome copies), since hybrid offspring from parents with different ploidy level are functionally sterile. In the freshwater fish family Botiidae, ploidy difference has been held responsible for the separation of its two subfamilies, the evolutionary tetraploid Botiinae and the diploid Leptobotiinae. Diploid and tetraploid species coexist in the upper Yangtze, the Pearl River and the Red River basins in China. Interestingly, the species ‘Botia’ zebra from the Pearl River basin combines a number of morphological characters that otherwise are found in the diploid genus Leptobotia with morphological characters of the tetraploid genus Sinibotia, therefore the aim of the present study is to test weather ‘B. ’ zebra is the result of a hybridisation event between species from different subfamilies with different ploidy level. A closer morphological examination indeed demonstrates a high similarity of ‘B. ’ zebra to two co-occurring species, the diploid Leptobotia guilinensis and the tetraploid Sinibotia pulchra. These two species thus could have been the potential parental species in case of a hybrid origin of ‘B. ’ zebra. The morphologic analysis further reveals that ‘B. ’ zebra bears even the diagnostic characters of the genera Leptobotia (Leptobotiinae) and Sinibotia (Botiinae). In contrast, a comparison of six allozyme loci between ‘B. ’ zebra, L. guilinensis and S. pulchra showed only similarities between ‘B. ’ zebra and S. pulchra, not between ‘B. ’ zebra and L. guilinensis. Six specimens of ‘B. ’ zebra that were cytogenetically analysed were tetraploid with 4n = 100. The composition of the karyotype (18% metacentric, 18% submetacentric, 36% subtelocentric and 28% acrocentric chromosomes) differs from those of L. guilinensis (12%, 24%, 20% and 44%) and S. pulchra (20%, 26%, 28% and 26%), and cannot be obtained by any combination of genomes from L. guilinensis and S. pulchra. Phylogenetic reconstructions based on sequence data of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene and the nuclear RAG-1 gene invariably places ‘Botia’ zebra as sister species to S. pulchra, while L. guilinensis is only distantly related. The presented combination of genetic data demonstrates that ‘B. ’ zebra is not the result of a hybridisation, but a species of tetraploid genus Sinibotia with a striking morphological evolution towards an enormous similarity with a co-occurring, but not directly related species. The complete lack of knowledge of the ecology of these species, their main predators or their ecological interactions hampers any conclusion regarding the evolutionary advantage of such adaptation.
Similarity and diversity in mechanisms of muscle fate induction between ascidian species

Developmental processes can change during evolution at many levels of the ontogeny of an individual. Embryos of solitary ascidians have a largely invariant mode of development, with fixed cleavage patterns and fate maps. Thus the cell lineages and final body plan of the two quite distantly related species considered in this review, Ciona intestinalis and Halocynthia roretzi, are highly similar. However, close comparison of the developmental mechanisms used by these two species provide examples of evolutionary changes and help pinpoint which aspects of development are evolutionarily flexible. Examples of both similarity and diversity are observed in the mechanisms used to generate the full complement of larval muscle. We will describe the changes in muscle‐cell lineage, as well as some striking differences in the intercellular signalling pathways used to induce muscle fate. The somewhat surprising conclusion is that in ascidians, as in nematode vulval development, different signalling mechanisms have been adopted to mediate similar interactions between equivalently positioned cells.
Thin locks: featherweight synchronization for Java

Language-supported synchronization is a source of serious performance problems in many Java programs. Even single-threaded applications may spend up to half their time performing useless synchronization due to the thread-safe nature of the Java libraries. We solve this performance problem with a new algorithm that allows lock and unlock operations to be performed with only a few machine instructions in the most common cases. Our locks only require a partial word per object, and were implemented without increasing object size. We present measurements from our implementation in the JDK 1.1. 2 for AIX, demonstrating speedups of up to a factor of 5 in micro-benchmarks and up to a factor of 1.7 in real programs.
Primary Porcine Brain Endothelial Cells as In Vitro Model to Study Effects of Ultrasound and Microbubbles on Blood–Brain Barrier Function

Focused ultrasound (FUS) in the presence of microbubbles transiently and reversibly opens the blood-brain barrier (BBB) in rodents and humans, thereby providing a time window for increased drug delivery into brain tissue. To get insight into the underlying mechanisms that govern ultrasound (US)-mediated opening of the BBB, in vitro models are a useful alternative. In this paper, we have utilized an in vitro BBB model that consists of primary porcine brain endothelial cells (PBECs). PBEC monolayers are grown on permeable membranes, which allow assessment of key features of BBB function as well as US treatment. This experimental model is characterized by low permeability for both small molecules and proteins, has a high transendothelial electrical resistance, and expresses tight junctions and efflux pumps. Here, we compare the effects of inertial and stable cavitation in the presence of SonoVue microbubbles on PBEC monolayers' electrical resistance and permeability properties. Our results point out the fragility of PBEC monolayers, which enhances results variability. In particular, we show that handling of the inserts, such as medium change and transfer to the US setup, modifies the cellular response, and immunostaining of the monolayers introduces damage and cell detachment within the US-exposed monolayers. Our results indicate that stable cavitation might have a more pronounced impact on cell permeability as compared with inertial cavitation in vitro. This paper might contribute to further development of experimental setups that are suitable to characterize the impact of FUS and microbubbles on BBB properties in vitro.
Breaking Up Is Hard to Do, Unless Everyone Else Is Doing It Too: Social Network Effects on Divorce in a Longitudinal Sample

Divorce represents the dissolution of a social tie, but it is also possible that attitudes about divorce flow across social ties. To explore how social networks influence divorce and vice versa, we exploit a longitudinal data set from the long-running Framingham Heart Study. The results suggest that divorce can spread between friends. Clusters of divorces extend to two degrees of separation in the network. Popular people are less likely to get divorced; divorcées have denser social networks, and they are much more likely to remarry other divorcées. Interestingly, the presence of children does not influence the likelihood of divorce, but each child reduces the susceptibility to being influenced by peers who get divorced. Overall, the results suggest that attending to the health of one’s friends’ marriages may serve to support and enhance the durability of one’s own relationship, and that, from a policy perspective, divorce should be understood as a collective phenomenon that extends beyond those directly affected.
Microtubule Reorganization during Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1 Infection Facilitates the Nuclear Localization of VP22, a Major Virion Tegument Protein

ABSTRACT Full-length VP22 is necessary for efficient spread of herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) from cell to cell during the course of productive infection. VP22 is a virion phosphoprotein, and its nuclear localization initiates between 5 and 7 h postinfection (hpi) during the course of synchronized infection. The goal of this study was to determine which features of HSV-1 infection function to regulate the translocation of VP22 into the nucleus. We report the following. (i) HSV-1(F)-induced microtubule rearrangement occurred in infected Vero cells by 13 hpi and was characterized by the loss of obvious microtubule organizing centers (MtOCs). Reformed MtOCs were detected at 25 hpi. (ii) VP22 was observed in the cytoplasm of cells prior to microtubule rearrangement and localized in the nucleus following the process. (iii) Stabilization of microtubules by the addition of taxol increased the accumulation of VP22 in the cytoplasm either during infection or in cells expressing VP22 in the absence of other viral proteins. (iv) While VP22 localized to the nuclei of cells treated with the microtubule depolymerizing agent nocodazole, either taxol or nocodazole treatment prevented optimal HSV-1(F) replication in Vero cells. (v) VP22 migration to the nucleus occurred in the presence of phosphonoacetic acid, indicating that viral DNA and true late protein synthesis were not required for its translocation. Based on these results, we conclude that (iv) microtubule reorganization during HSV-1 infection facilitates the nuclear localization of VP22.
Transmission of Simian Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (Saids) with Type D Retrovirus Isolated from Saliva or Urine

Abstract Saliva and urine specimens from rhesus monkeys with SAIDS were found to contain a type D retrovirus related to Mason-Pfizer monkey virus (MPMV) which has been linked etiologically to SAIDS. Virus i so1ates from sal i va and uri ne were shown to have the characteristics of the SAIDS agent by their reverse transcriptase divalent cation preference for synthetic template-primers, production of characteristic cytopathology in Raji cells and antigenic relat.edness to MPMV as determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and competition radioimmunoassay (RIA). Electron micrographs of parot id tissue from an anima1 with SAIDS also showed budding particles with type D retrovirus morphology. A tissue culture grown virus isolate from urine of an animal with SAIDS, produced SAIDS when inoculated into two normal juvenile rhesus monkeys. Since saliva and urine of monkeys with SAIDS contain infectious SAIDS virus, they are 1ikely sources of virus by which the disease is naturally transmitted. Thus, care should be taken to avoid contact of normal and infected animals.
Ritonavir Increases CD36, ABCA1 and CYP27 Expression in THP-1 Macrophages

Ritonavir, a protease inhibitor used in combination antiretroviral therapy for HIV-1 infection, is associated with an increased risk of premature atherosclerosis. The aim of the present study was to assess the effects of ritonavir, in the absence of added lipoproteins, on the expression of genes that control cholesterol trafficking in human monocytes/macrophages. Design: THP-1 cells were used to study the effects of ritonavir on the expression of CD36, ATP binding cassette transporters A1 (ABCA1) and G1 (ABCG1), scavenger receptor B class I (SR-BI), caveolin-1 and sterol 27-hydroxylase (CYP27). Exposure to ritonavir (2.5 μg/ml) increased CD36 protein (28%, P < 0.05) and mRNA (38%, P < 0.05) in differentiated THP-1 macrophages, but not in undifferentiated monocytes. This effect was not related to the increase in PPARγ expression (51%, P < 0.05) caused by ritonavir. Ritonavir also reduced SR-BI protein levels (46%, P < 0.05) and increased CYP27 (43%, P < 0.05) and ABCA1 (49%, P < 0.05) mRNA expression. Liver X receptor α (LXRα) mRNA, protein and binding activity were also increased by ritonavir treatment. Conclusions: We propose that ritonavir induces ABCA1 expression in THP-1 macrophages through LXRα. The increase in ABCA1 and other cholesterol efflux mediators, such as CYP27, may compensate CD36 induction. Therefore, we suggest that the net effect of ritonavir on macrophages in the absence of lipoproteins is not clearly proatherogenic.
Income Enhancing and Risk Management Properties of Marketing Practices

A rational expectations storage model is used to simulate monthly corn prices, which are used to evaluate marketing strategies to manage price risk. The data are generated and analyzed in two formats: for long-run outcomes over 10,000 "years" of monthly prices and for 10,000 cases of 40-year "lifetimes. " Three categories of strategies are analyzed: frequency of post-harvest cash sales, unconditional hedges, and conditional hedges. The comparisons are based on the simulated probability distributions of net returns. One conclusion is that diversifying cash sales, without hedging, is not an efficient means of risk management. Unhedged storage does not reduce risk and, on average, reduces returns. The analysis of the 40-year lifetimes demonstrates, however, that rational decision-makers can face "lucky" and "unlucky" time periods. Thus, although the long-run analysis suggests that routine hedging reduces the variance (and the mean) of returns compared to the base case of selling in the spot market at harvest, the variance of returns (and their means) from both strategies will vary from lifetime to lifetime. Efficient strategies for producers with increasing utility functions vary from lifetime to lifetime, suggesting that efficient strategies likely vary from year-to-year. Nonetheless, strategies that take advantage of locking in returns to storage when relative prices are favorable are efficient in the second-degree sense and appear robust across different lifetimes. We also illustrate that conclusions are influenced by the measure of risk used. Perhaps the major conclusion is, however, that risk-management analysis is complex and potentially filled with pitfalls.
Inhibition of Glycogen Phosphorylation Induces Changes in Cellular Proteome and Signaling Pathways in MIA Pancreatic Cancer Cells

Objectives Novel quantitative proteomic approaches were used to study the effects of inhibition of glycogen phosphorylase on proteome and signaling pathways in MIA PaCa-2 pancreatic cancer cells. Methods We performed quantitative proteomic analysis in MIA PaCa-2 cancer cells treated with a stratified dose of CP-320626 (5-chloro-1H-indole-2-carboxylic acid [1-(4-fuorobenzyl)-2-(4-hydroxypiperidin-1-yl)-2 oxoethyl] amide) (25, 50, and 100 &mgr;M). The effect of metabolic inhibition on cellular protein turnover dynamics was also studied using the modified SILAC (stable isotope labeling with amino acids in cell culture) method. Results A total of 22 protein spots and 4 phosphoprotein spots were quantitatively analyzed. We found that dynamic expression of total proteins and phosphoproteins was significantly changed in MIA PaCa-2 cells treated with an incremental dose of CP-320626. Functional analyses suggested that most of the proteins differentially expressed were in the pathways of mitogen-activated protein kinase/extracellular signal–regulated kinase and tumor necrosis factor &agr;/nuclear factor &kgr;B. Conclusions Signaling pathways and metabolic pathways share many common cofactors and substrates forming an extended metabolic network. The restriction of substrate through 1 pathway such as inhibition of glycogen phosphorylation induces pervasive metabolomic and proteomic changes manifested in protein synthesis, breakdown, and posttranslational modification of signaling molecules. Our results suggest that quantitative proteomic is an important approach to understand the interaction between metabolism and signaling pathways. Abbreviations MALDI - matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization, TOF/TOF MS - time-of-flight/time-of-flight mass spectrometry, 2-DE - 2-dimensional electrophoresis, PMF - peptide mass fingerprinting, CP-320626 - 5-chloro-1H-indole-2-carboxylic acid [1-(4-fuorobenzyl)-2-(4-hydroxypiperidin-1-yl)-2 oxoethyl]amide
Endovascular thrombectomy for M2 occlusions: comparison between forced arterial suction thrombectomy and stent retriever thrombectomy

Background To date there has been no direct comparison of two frequently used endovascular thrombectomy (EVT) methods (forced arterial suction thrombectomy (FAST) and stent retriever thrombectomy) in M2 occlusions. We review our experiences with EVT performed using FAST and stent retriever thrombectomy in such cases. Methods The subjects comprised 41 patients with an M2 occlusion who underwent EVT (25 with FAST, 16 with stent retriever thrombectomy). The patients' data were retrospectively analyzed to evaluate the technical characteristics and angiographic outcome of the two EVT techniques. Results Thrombolysis In Cerebral Infarction (TICI) grades 2b–3 using the first chosen technique did not differ significantly between the two techniques (FAST 64.0% vs stent retriever thrombectomy 81.2%, p=0.305). Time from groin puncture to reperfusion was significantly shorter for stent retriever thrombectomy (53.0 vs 38.5 min; p=0.045). Distal embolization occurred in three cases (12.0%) in the FAST group and in four (26.7%) in the stent retriever group (p=0.362). However, the two techniques did not differ significantly in the final TICI 2b–3 rate (72.0% vs 87.5%; p=0.441). A frequent angiographic finding regarding the failure of FAST was that the M2 occlusion was located immediately after severe acute angulation between M1 and M2. Conclusions Stent retriever thrombectomy may provide faster reperfusion than FAST, while the FAST technique might be associated with lower distal embolization and a higher reperfusion rate for the first thrombectomy attempt, but without any significant difference in clinical outcome. When choosing the EVT method for M2 occlusions, consideration of the location of the occlusion and tortuosity between M1 and M2 might be helpful to achieve a better angiographic outcome.