Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Enhanced Tumor Uptake and Penetration of Virotherapy Using Polymer Stealthing and Focused Ultrasound

Background Oncolytic viruses are among the most powerful and selective cancer therapeutics under development and are showing robust activity in clinical trials, particularly when administered directly into tumor nodules. However, their intravenous administration to treat metastatic disease has been stymied by unfavorable pharmacokinetics and inefficient accumulation in and penetration through tumors. Methods Adenovirus (Ad) was “stealthed” with a new N-(2-hydroxypropyl)methacrylamide polymer, and circulation kinetics were characterized in Balb/C SCID mice (n = 8 per group) bearing human ZR-75-1 xenograft tumors. Then, to noninvasively increase extravasation of the circulating polymer-coated Ad into the tumor, it was coinjected with gas microbubbles and the tumor was exposed to 0.5 MHz focused ultrasound at peak rarefactional pressure of 1.2MPa. These ultrasound exposure conditions were designed to trigger inertial cavitation, an acoustic phenomenon that produces shock waves and can be remotely monitored in real-time. Groups were compared with Student t test or one-way analysis of variance with Tukey correction where groups were greater than two. All statistical tests were two-sided. Results Polymer-coating of Ad reduced hepatic sequestration, infection (>8000-fold; P < .001), and toxicity and improved circulation half-life (>50-fold; P = .001). Combination of polymer-coated Ad, gas bubbles, and focused ultrasound enhanced tumor infection >30-fold; (4×106 photons/sec/cm2; standard deviation = 3×106 with ultrasound vs 1.3×105; standard deviation = 1×105 without ultrasound; P = .03) and penetration, enabling kill of cells more than 100 microns from the nearest blood vessel. This led to substantial and statistically significant retardation of tumor growth and increased survival. Conclusions Combining drug stealthing and ultrasound-induced cavitation may ultimately enhance the efficacy of a range of powerful therapeutics, thereby improving the treatment of metastatic cancer.
The Fine Line: An insight into ‘risky’ practices of male and female competitive bodybuilders

Abstract Phenomenological accounts of competitive bodybuilders have frequently highlighted the pleasures and rewards associated with bodybuilding. This article focuses on the experiences of New Zealand based male and female bodybuilders in relation to risk and health‐compromising practices within the sport. 382 competitive bodybuilders completed a postal questionnaire and interviews were conducted with 30 participants. Findings highlighted that both men and women engaged in sporting risk (Frey, 1991) and that although many of their experiences were similar, there were also distinct differences. Bodybuilding men appeared more competitively aggressive and engaged more readily in steroid‐ use relative to their female counterparts. For women, bodybuilding had the capacity to play into, even amplify, their sensitivities surrounding appearance and body image, their preoccupation with diet and weight control, and a propensity towards eating disorders. Heterogeneity amongst the bodybuilding men and women is also identified and discussed.
White grape pomace as a source of dietary fibre and polyphenols and its effect on physical and nutraceutical characteristics of wheat biscuits.

BACKGROUND Grapes are one of the world's staple fruit crops, with about 80% of the yield being utilised for winemaking. Since grape by-products still contain large amounts of secondary metabolites, uses other than as fertilisers might be appropriate. In this study, white grape pomace (WGP) was incorporated in wheat flour at levels of 10, 20 and 30% (w/w) to investigate its influence on rheological, nutraceutical, physical and sensory properties. RESULTS Farinograph characteristics of dough with different levels of WGP showed a decrease in water absorption from 56.4% (0% WGP) to 45.9% (30% WGP). Addition of WGP reduced hardness and caused a deterioration in brightness and yellowness of all enriched samples. The smallest addition of WGP (10%) caused an approximately 88% increase in total dietary fibre content as compared with the control. The content of phenolic compounds increased from 0.11 mg g⁻¹ with 0% WGP to 1.07 mg g⁻¹ with 30% WGP. The most stable phenols were as follows: γ-resorcylic acid < gallic acid < tyrosol < catechin < isovanilic acid. An assay of radical-scavenging activity showed that WGP addition greatly enhanced the antioxidant properties of biscuits. Acceptable biscuits were obtained when incorporating 10% WGP. CONCLUSION WGP might be utilised for the novel formulation of biscuits as an alternative source of dietary fibre and phenols.
Replication of Mouse Cytomegalovirus in Thymidine Kinase‐Deficient Mouse Cells

In an attempt to determine whether mouse cytomegalovirus (MCMV) requires thymidine kinase (TK) for replication and whether it induces TK, TK‐deficient mouse cells were isolated and used as host cells for MCMV. Mutant cells resistant to 200 μg/ml of 5‐Bromodeoxyuridine (BUdR) were selected from SV40‐transformed mouse cells, mks‐A TU‐7, by propagating the cells in the presence of varying concentrations of BUdR graded by serial 2‐fold increments. The mutant cells, designated as TU‐7 BU, showed a very low TK activity (less than 1/20 that of mks‐A TU‐7). Herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV‐1) replicated in starved as well as in unstarved TU‐7 BU, whereas MCMV could replicate only in growing TU‐7 BU and could not form plaques in monolayers of mks‐A TU‐7 or TU‐7 BU. HSV‐1 infection enhanced TK activity equally in both mks‐A TU‐7 and TU‐7 BU. In contrast, TK activity of MCMV‐infected mks‐A TU‐7 was lower than that of uninfected cells or cells inoculated with UV‐inactivated virus. In addition, TK activity of the MCMV‐infected TU‐7 BU remained minimal without showing any increase. The replication of HSV‐1 was completely inhibited in the presence of BUdR (10 μg/ml), whereas MCMV could replicate even in the presence of 50 μg/ml of BUdR. The results indicate that MCMV neither requires TK nor induces TK activity in the infected cells.
Prognostic significance of serum immunoglobulins in B- chronic lymphocytic leukemia

BACKGROUND: Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is a chronic lymphoproliferative disorder of mature appearing B lymphocytes which are at the intermediate stage of dif-ferentiation. The disease is frequently accompanied by low levels of gamma globulins and different classes of immunoglobulins. In this study we analyzed the levels of immunoglobulins in different stages of B-CLL and its prognostic implication on survival. METHODS: the In this group of patients, 36 were and 30 with median age of 61.2 year (range 37-75 years). Serum gammaglobulin level was quantitated by electrophoresis cellulose acetate photodensitometry. immunoglobulins were quantitated radial immunodiffusion using Immunoplates could signifantly contribute to the reduction of infection frequency and improvement in the quality of life.
The Volitional Benefits of Planning

A ssume that you have decided to accomplish a personal wish or desire that has been on your mind for quite some time. Should you go ahead and plan the execution ofbehaviors that will eventually lead to your desire? Or would planning only be a waste of time, as you already feel highly committed to act and ready to go? Would passively waiting for a good opportunity to get started not be sufficient? As planning might not add anything to the commitment implied by your decision, the time and effort devoted to planning might be unnecessary. The present chapter focuses on this issue: Does planning promote the willful implementation of a person's goals and thus provide volitional benefits? My colleagues and I believe that planning helps to alleviate crucial volitional problems of goal achievement, such as being too easily distracted from a goal pursuit or giving up in the face of difficulties when increased effort and persistence are needed instead. The conceptual analysis of this question relies on ideas that have evolved around the model of action phases (Heckhausen & Gollwitzer, 1987). In particular, we use two different but related concepts to understand the processes by which planning unfolds its beneficial effects on goal achievement: "implemental mind-sets" (Gollwitzer, 1990) and "implementation intentions" (Gollwitzer, 1993).
"Why Downt You Riyt Back to Me?": Family Letter Writing in Kindergarten.

This article presents research that investigated how a school year-long letter-writing project between kindergarten students and extended family members could facilitate literacy development in students, as well as provide a way to build inter-generational bonds through correspondence focused on family history and stories. Analysis centered on the body of correspondence between the students and their family members, and used a comparative analysis technique. Themes that emerged include how the project helped improve literacy skills, how letter-writing encouraged students to write more, with longer thoughts and multiple ideas, and how the project helped develop stronger family bonds.
Brief history of metal accumulation in the intracluster medium

We use models of the rates of Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) and core-collapsed supernovae, built in such a way that both are consistent with recent observational constraints at z≲ 1.6 and can reproduce the measured cosmic star formation rate, to recover the history of metal accumulation in the intracluster medium. We show that these SN rates, in unit of SN number per comoving volume and rest-frame year, provide on average a total amount of iron that is marginally consistent with the value measured in galaxy clusters in the redshift range 0–1, and a relative evolution with redshift that is in agreement with the observational constraints up to z≈ 1.2. Moreover, we verify that the predicted metals-to-iron ratios reproduce the measurements obtained in nearby clusters through X-ray analysis, implying that (1) about half of the iron mass and ≳75 per cent of the nickel mass observed locally are produced by SN Ia ejecta, (2) the SN Ia contribution to the metal budget decreases steeply with redshift and by z≈ 1 is already less than half of the local amount, and (3) a transition in the abundance ratios relative to iron is present between redshifts ∼0.5 and 1.4, with core-collapsed SN products becoming dominant at higher redshifts.
CpG methylation at promoter site −140 inactivates TGFβ2 receptor gene in prostate cancer

The action of transforming growth factor β (TGF‐β) is mediated through type 1 (TβRI) and type 2 (TβRII) receptors. Prostate cancer cells are often resistant to TGF‐β signaling due to loss of TβRII expression. The authors of the current study hypothesized that CpG methylation of the TβRII promoter at the Sp1 binding site −140 mediates this loss of TβRII expression in prostate cancer.
Generation and preclinical characterization of an antibody specific for SEMA4D

Semaphorin 4D (SEMA4D or CD100) is a member of the semaphorin family of proteins and an important mediator of the movement and differentiation of multiple cell types, including those of the immune, vascular, and nervous systems. Blocking the binding of SEMA4D to its receptors can result in physiologic changes that may have implications in cancer, autoimmune, and neurological disease. To study the effects of blocking SEMA4D, we generated, in SEMA4D-deficient mice, a panel of SEMA4D-specific hybridomas that react with murine, primate, and human SEMA4D. Utilizing the complementarity-determining regions from one of these hybridomas (mAb 67-2), we generated VX15/2503, a humanized IgG4 monoclonal antibody that is currently in clinical development for the potential treatment of various malignancies and neurodegenerative disorders, including multiple sclerosis and Huntington's disease. This work describes the generation and characterization of VX15/2503, including in vitro functional testing, epitope mapping, and an in vivo demonstration of efficacy in an animal model of rheumatoid arthritis.
Genome-Wide Identification, Evolutionary, and Expression Analyses of Histone H3 Variants in Plants

Histone variants alter the nucleosome structure and play important roles in chromosome segregation, transcription, DNA repair, and sperm compaction. Histone H3 is encoded by many genes in most eukaryotic species and is the histone that contains the largest variety of posttranslational modifications. Compared with the metazoan H3 variants, little is known about the complex evolutionary history of H3 variants proteins in plants. Here, we study the identification, evolutionary, and expression analyses of histone H3 variants from genomes in major branches in the plant tree of life. Firstly we identified all the histone three related (HTR) genes from the examined genomes, then we classified the four groups variants: centromeric H3, H3.1, H3.3 and H3-like, by phylogenetic analysis, intron information, and alignment. We further demonstrated that the H3 variants have evolved under strong purifying selection, indicating the conservation of HTR proteins. Expression analysis revealed that the HTR has a wide expression profile in maize and rice development and plays important roles in development.
Prevalence and genotypes of human parechovirus in stool samples from hospitalized children in Shanghai, China, 2008 and 2009

Human parechoviruses (HPeVs) are widespread pathogens belonging to the Picornavirus family. The aim of the present study was to assess the prevalence and genetic diversity of HPeV in Shanghai, China, during a HPeV screening program in 2008 and 2009. Of 300 stool samples from children under the age of 5 years with acute diarrhea seen at Children's Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China, 165 (55%) were HPeV‐positive. The median age of infected children was 3 months. The prevalence of HPeV was high (57%) in infants up to 2 years old but dropped to 30.4% in children between 2 and 5 years old. The prevalence did not differ by sex. Infections were present throughout the year but peaked in July and August. The most predominant genotype was HPeV1. Of the 139 strains, 4 were found in 9 samples: HPeV4 (n = 4), HPeV5 (n = 1), HPeV6 (n = 1), and HPeV8 (n = 3). This study provided useful data on the epidemiology of HPeV infection by documenting the distribution of genotypes, age of infection, and seasonal patterns in Shanghai, China. J. Med. Virol. 83:1428–1434, 2011. © 2011 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Red Wine Polyphenols Inhibit Vascular Smooth Muscle Cell Migration Through Two Distinct Signaling Pathways

Background—Red wine polyphenols (RWPs) have been shown to have an antiatherogenic activity mainly through antioxidative effects on LDL oxidation. Although vascular smooth muscle cell (SMC) migration is critical to atherosclerosis formation, the effect of RWPs on SMC migration has not been elucidated. In this study, we investigated whether RWPs could affect the migration of cultured SMCs stimulated by growth factors. Methods and Results—RWP concentration dependently inhibited platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF)-BB–induced and serum-induced SMC migration in wounding assay and Boyden chamber assay. However, these inhibitory effects of RWPs were not seen in serum-stimulated vascular endothelial cell migration in either assay. Moreover, specific inhibitors of phosphatidylinositol-3′ kinase (PI3K) and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38MAPK), but not of extracellular signal-regulated protein kinases 1 and 2 (ERK1/2), reduced PDGF-BB–induced SMC migration. To elucidate the signaling mechanism underlying the RWP effects, we investigated the effects of RWPs on the activity of PI3K and the phosphorylation of MAPK pathways in PDGF-BB–stimulated SMCs. RWPs inhibited the PI3K activity and p38MAPK phosphorylation, but not ERK1/2 phosphorylation, in a concentration-dependent manner. Moreover, the phosphorylation of MKK3/6, an upstream kinase of p38MAPK, was also inhibited by RWP treatment in a concentration-dependent manner, suggesting that the inhibitory effect of RWPs on the p38MAPK pathway works upstream of MKK3/6. The concentration-effect relationship of RWPs necessary for the inhibition of PI3K and p38MAPK pathways was similar to that of cell migration assays. Conclusions—RWPs inhibit the SMC migration through the inhibition of 2 distinct signaling pathways and thus exert antiatherogenic actions.
Density, Expectation, and Extended Task Performance

The effects of density and expectation on academic performance and ratings of spatial and social satisfaction were investigated. Ss were all volunteers who resided in on-campus residence halls in one of two arrangements: high density,' three students sharing a dormitory room, and low density, the conventional two students per dormitory room. Subjects' responses to a questionnaire determined their placement in either the confirmed or disconfirmed expectation category. Grade point averages and satisfaction measures compiled during the academic quarter were significantly negatively affected by exposure to density. A second study replicated the results, demonstrating that density led to both greater dissatisfaction and more frequent avoidance responses.
Test-based model generation for legacy systems

We study the extension of applicability of system-level testing techniques to the construction of a consistent model of (legacy) systems under test, which are seen as black boxes. We gather observations via an automated test environment and systematically extend available test suites according to learning procedures. Testing plays two roles here: (i) as an application domain and (ii) as the enabling technology for the adopted learning technique. The benefits include enhanced error detection and diagnosis, both during the testing phase and the online test of deployed systems at customer sites.
SEAMS: A Signaling Layer for End-Host-Assisted Middlebox Services

On-path network elements, such as NATs and firewalls, are an accepted commonality in today's networks. They are essential when extending network functionality and providing additional security. However, these so called middleboxes are not explicitly considered in the original TCP/IP-based network architecture. As a result, the protocols of the TCP/IP suite provide middleboxes with the same information about data flows as packet-forwarding routers. Yet, middleboxes typically perform complex functions within the network that require additional knowledge. Inferring this knowledge from observing the sparse information available in network packets requires these devices to base their decisions on ambiguous or forgeable data. In this paper, we first discuss problems arising from insufficient information and identify the resulting informational requirements of middleboxes. We then propose SEAMS, a signaling layer that provides middleboxes with descriptive and verifiable data flow contexts in addition to the IP address and port information that many middleboxes use today. Specifically, SEAMS enables middleboxes to request and use detailed information about the host, application, and user that is accessible at the communicating end hosts. This information can then be used to provide more secure and richer middlebox functions in home and enterprise network scenarios. Our evaluation shows that SEAMS is a feasible addition to TCP/IP-based networks and that it scales well in the presence of multiple on-path middleboxes.
Introduction to the special section on recommender systems

Information overload is not a new phenomenon. Rich’s comment might well resonate almost 400 years later with the modern Internet surfer or email user. In specific areas of inquiry, the problem is even worse than that facing casual information users. For example, MEDLINE, the online archive of published articles in medicine, grows at a rate of almost 500,000 entries per year. In the face of such an onslaught, how can we find our way through the thicket of information and opportunities? In the early 1990’s, one approach that emerged was to think of navigation through a space of information or opportunities as a collective activity rather than an individual one. In the everyday world, researchers reasoned, the activities of others give us cues that we can interpret as to the ways in which we want to organize our activities. A path through the woods shows the routes that others have traveled before (and which might be useful to us); dog-eared books in the library may be more popular and more useful than pristine ones; and the relative levels of activity in public space help guide is towards interesting places. These ideas helped spark an interest in the ways in which computing systems might use information about peoples interests and activities to form recommendations that help other people navigate through complex information spaces or decisions. These are recommender systems. Recommender systems have now been an active topic of research for over 12 years. In the early 21st century, hundreds of researchers are working on some aspect of recommender systems, hundreds of papers have already been written, and hundreds of enterprises have deployed recommender systems on the Internet and beyond. Online stores, libraries, information archives and more have developed and deployed recommender systems in order to help connect an individual users’ activity to the broader patterns of social action that might help to make it more meaningful. While other forms of collaborative technology emerging from the research community are often used only sparingly, recommender systems have seen broad uptake and have been remarkably successful. From the earliest days, much of this research and many of the deployments have focused on the algorithms that underlie the recommender systems. Algorithmic research has been rich and successful, exploring dozens of linear algebra, statistical, and machine learning approaches to producing ever more accurate recommendations. The field continues to be rich, with dozens of new
Episodic-like memory in purebred and crossbred Yucatan minipigs (Sus scrofa)

Episodic memory is a human ability that involves mental re-creation of a personally experienced past event. Its existence is controversial in animals because it requires demonstration of self-consciousness and mental time travel. Episodic-like memory (simultaneous recall of what, where, when aspects of a past event) has been demonstrated in non-humans and appears to depend on the hippocampus. We explored the potential for episodic-like memory in pigs, a previously un-studied species reported to have high mental capacity. As was done for rats, we adopted a definition of episodic-like memory that equates recall of time ("when") with recall of context ("which"). We tested pigs' ability to remember what (object), where (location) and which (context). Through novel object recognition, pigs identified the less familiar of two object/location/context configurations. Since configuration familiarity differed only if all aspects were remembered simultaneously, we concluded that pigs were able to recall what/where/which, providing evidence of episodic-like memory.
Benzyl (E)-3-(2-methylbenzylidene)dithiocarbazate

The title compound, C16H16N2S2, was obtained from the condensation reaction of benzyl dithiocarbazate and 2-methylbenzaldehyde. The asymmetric unit contains two independent molecules. In both molecules, the methylphenyl ring and the dithiocarbazate fragment are located on opposite sides of the C=N bond, showing an E conformation. In each molecule, the dithiocarbazate fragment is approximately planar, the r.m. s deviations being 0.018 and 0.025 Å. The mean plane of dithiocarbazate group is oriented at dihedral angles of 7.9 (3) and 68.24 (12)°, respectively, to the methylphenyl and phenyl rings in one molecule, while the corresponding angles in the other molecule are 10.9 (3) and 69.76 (16)°. Intermolecular N—H⋯S hydrogen bonding occurs in the crystal structure to generate inversion dimers for both molecules.