Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Present-Day Vegetation Helps Quantifying Past Land Cover in Selected Regions of the Czech Republic

The REVEALS model is a tool for recalculating pollen data into vegetation abundances on a regional scale. We explored the general effect of selected parameters by performing simulations and ascertained the best model setting for the Czech Republic using the shallowest samples from 120 fossil sites and data on actual regional vegetation (60 km radius). Vegetation proportions of 17 taxa were obtained by combining the CORINE Land Cover map with forest inventories, agricultural statistics and habitat mapping data. Our simulation shows that changing the site radius for all taxa substantially affects REVEALS estimates of taxa with heavy or light pollen grains. Decreasing the site radius has a similar effect as increasing the wind speed parameter. However, adjusting the site radius to 1 m for local taxa only (even taxa with light pollen) yields lower, more correct estimates despite their high pollen signal. Increasing the background radius does not affect the estimates significantly. Our comparison of estimates with actual vegetation in seven regions shows that the most accurate relative pollen productivity estimates (PPEs) come from Central Europe and Southern Sweden. The initial simulation and pollen data yielded unrealistic estimates for Abies under the default setting of the wind speed parameter (3 m/s). We therefore propose the setting of 4 m/s, which corresponds to the spring average in most regions of the Czech Republic studied. Ad hoc adjustment of PPEs with this setting improves the match 3–4-fold. We consider these values (apart from four exceptions) to be appropriate, because they are within the ranges of standard errors, so they are related to original PPEs. Setting a 1 m radius for local taxa (Alnus, Salix, Poaceae) significantly improves the match between estimates and actual vegetation. However, further adjustments to PPEs exceed the ranges of original values, so their relevance is uncertain.
CD271+ Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stem Cells May Provide a Niche for Dormant Mycobacterium tuberculosis

CD271+ bone marrow stem cells may provide a protective intracellular niche for dormant Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Does TB Hijack Mesenchymal Stem Cells? The microbe Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) causes the deadly disease tuberculosis (TB) in millions of humans and infects billions of others without causing apparent clinical manifestations (latent TB infection). Mtb achieves this spectacular success despite being vigorously attacked by the host immune system. Das et al. speculated that Mtb may escape the host immune response by hiding inside bone marrow stem cells. The bone marrow provides a niche where hematopoietic, mesenchymal, and endothelial stem cells reside. These cells share a common cell surface marker (CD133). When Das et al. infected human CD133+ bone marrow stem cells in vitro with Mtb, most of the bacteria infected the mesenchymal stem cell population that also expresses the cell surface marker CD271. This result suggested that CD271+ bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BM-MSCs) may provide a protective niche where Mtb can reside and protect itself from the host immune system. Indeed, in a well-characterized mouse model of dormant TB infection, Das et al. were able to recover viable bacteria from inside the CD271+ BM-MSCs 6 months after infection. Next, Das and colleagues recruited individuals who had taken a full drug regimen to treat their TB and who were now apparently free of infection. They recovered viable Mtb from the CD271+ BM-MSCs of some of these individuals even though the treated patients were diagnosed as TB-free. Moreover, because CD271+ BM-MSCs self renew and have molecular drug efflux pumps that prevent internalization of foreign molecules, these results have direct implications for developing new TB drugs and may explain why it is so difficult to treat latent TB. Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) can persist in hostile intracellular microenvironments evading immune cells and drug treatment. However, the protective cellular niches where Mtb persists remain unclear. We report that Mtb may maintain long-term intracellular viability in a human bone marrow (BM)–derived CD271+/CD45− mesenchymal stem cell (BM-MSC) population in vitro. We also report that Mtb resides in an equivalent population of BM-MSCs in a mouse model of dormant tuberculosis infection. Viable Mtb was detected in CD271+/CD45− BM-MSCs isolated from individuals who had successfully completed months of anti-Mtb drug treatment. These results suggest that CD271+ BM-MSCs may provide a long-term protective intracellular niche in the host in which dormant Mtb can reside.
Women in Campaigns: Do they Create a Presence?

In the last century, women have increasingly entered the electoral arena. In the past, female elected officials were single and obtained positions largely because they inherited leadership roles from their deceased husbands or were members of wealthy political families (Conway, Steuernagel, and Arern 1997). Now, however, more married and professional women choose to run for office out of their own regard. This paper addresses the central question: Do women have a perceptible presence in campaigns? Specifically, I will touch upon the issues around which women center their campaigns, how they advocate those issues, and how the electorate reacts to female campaigners. This study analyzes various campaigns to determine how often and in what way men and women include "female issues" in their platforms, as well as the extent to which the presence of female candidates influences voters’ decisions to turnout at the polls. This paper will consist of a literature review, followed by a statement of my hypotheses and conclusions. I hope to show that women do in fact have a noticeable impact on campaigns that differentiate them from those solely involving men. This article is available in Res Publica Journal of Undergraduate Research: http://digitalcommons.iwu. edu/respublica/vol8/iss1/4 Women in Campaigns: Do they Create a Presence?
Bacterial Carbonic Anhydrases as Drug Targets: Toward Novel Antibiotics?

Carbonic anhydrases (CAs, EC 4.2.1.1) are metalloenzymes which catalyze the hydration of carbon dioxide to bicarbonate and protons. Many pathogenic bacteria encode such enzymes belonging to the α-, β-, and/or γ-CA families. In the last decade, the α-CAs from Neisseria spp. and Helicobacter pylori as well as the β-class enzymes from Escherichia coli, H. pylori, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Brucella spp. , Streptococcus pneumoniae, Salmonella enterica, and Haemophilus influenzae have been cloned and characterized in detail. For some of these enzymes the X-ray crystal structures were determined, and in vitro and in vivo inhibition studies with various classes of inhibitors, such as anions, sulfonamides and sulfamates reported. Although efficient inhibitors have been reported for many such enzymes, only for Neisseria spp. , H. pylori, B. suis, and S. pneumoniae enzymes it has been possible to evidence inhibition of bacterial growth in vivo. Thus, bacterial CAs represent promising targets for obtaining antibacterials devoid of the resistance problems of the clinically used such agents but further studies are needed to validate these and other less investigated enzymes as novel drug targets.
Plan View and Cross-Sectional View EBIC Measurements: Effect of e-Beam Injection Conditions on Extracted Minority Carrier Transport Properties

The application of low-doped epitaxial layers and the increase of complexity of silicon photodiode design require the knowledge of the basic physical parameters, such as minority carrier lifetime or diffusion length, to improve the photodiode performance simulation. In this paper, electron-beam-induced current technique is used to evaluate minority carrier lifetime and diffusion length on a silicon photodiode. Particular focus is to compare plan view and cross-sectional view testing geometry, and also to evaluate artefacts introduced by high injection conditions unavoidable in lifetime measurement.
Effect of Chromatographic Fraction of Portulaca Oleracea on Haematological and Plasma Biochemical Parameters in Male Albino Rats

The effect of oral administration of chromatographic fraction of Portulaca oleracea at doses of 1 mg/kg BW, 2 mg/kg BW and 3 mg/kg BW on haematological and plasma biochemical parameters of albino rats were investigated. The fraction was administered on daily basis for 30 days and blood samples were collected for analyses. Treatment of rats with 1 mg/kg BW and 2 mg/kg BW of fraction caused significant (p<0.05) increases in TWBC and lymphocyte counts respectively relative to their controls, but treatment of rats with 2 mg/kg BW of fraction caused significant (p<0.05) decrease in monocyte count relative to the control. Treatment of rats with all the treatment doses of fraction (1 mg/kg BW, 2 mg/kg BW, 3 mg/kg BW) caused significant (p<0.05) increments in total protein and globulin levels relative to their respective controls, also treatment of rats with all the treatment doses of fraction caused significant (p<0.05) increases in the activities of AST and ALT relative to their respective controls. These findings on haematological and plasma biochemical parameters suggest that the possible changes in blood chemistry of the treated rats were due to the chromatographic fraction of Portulaca oleracea.
Novel Method To Assess Antiretroviral Target Trough Concentrations Using In Vitro Susceptibility Data

ABSTRACT Durable suppression of HIV-1 replication requires the establishment of antiretroviral drug concentrations that exceed the susceptibility of the virus strain(s) infecting the patient. Minimum plasma drug concentrations (Ctrough) are correlated with response, but determination of target Ctrough values is hindered by a paucity of in vivo concentration-response data. In the absence of these data, in vitro susceptibility measurements, adjusted for serum protein binding, can provide estimations of suppressive in vivo drug concentrations. We derived serum protein binding correction factors (PBCF) for protease inhibitors, nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors, and an integrase inhibitor by measuring the effect of a range of human serum concentrations on in vitro drug susceptibility measured with the PhenoSense HIV assay. PBCFs corresponding to 100% HS were extrapolated using linear regression and ranged from 1.4 for nevirapine to 77 for nelfinavir. Using the mean 95% inhibitory concentration (IC95) for ≥1,200 drug-susceptible viruses, we calculated protein-bound IC95 (PBIC95) values. PBIC95 values were concordant with the minimum effective Ctrough values that were established in well-designed pharmacodynamic studies (e.g., indinavir, saquinavir, and amprenavir). In other cases, the PBIC95 values were notably lower (e.g., darunavir, efavirenz, and nevirapine) or higher (nelfinavir and etravirine) than existing target recommendations. The establishment of PBIC95 values as described here provides a convenient and standardized approach for estimation of the minimum drug exposure that is required to maintain viral suppression and prevent the emergence of drug-resistant variants, particularly when in vivo concentration-response relationships are lacking.
Detailed Expression Pattern of Aldolase C (Aldoc) in the Cerebellum, Retina and Other Areas of the CNS Studied in Aldoc-Venus Knock-In Mice

Aldolase C (Aldoc, also known as “zebrin II”), a brain type isozyme of a glycolysis enzyme, is expressed heterogeneously in subpopulations of cerebellar Purkinje cells (PCs) that are arranged longitudinally in a complex striped pattern in the cerebellar cortex, a pattern which is closely related to the topography of input and output axonal projections. Here, we generated knock-in Aldoc-Venus mice in which Aldoc expression is visualized by expression of a fluorescent protein, Venus. Since there was no obvious phenotypes in general brain morphology and in the striped pattern of the cerebellum in mutants, we made detailed observation of Aldoc expression pattern in the nervous system by using Venus expression in Aldoc-Venus heterozygotes. High levels of Venus expression were observed in cerebellar PCs, cartwheel cells in the dorsal cochlear nucleus, sensory epithelium of the inner ear and in all major types of retinal cells, while moderate levels of Venus expression were observed in astrocytes and satellite cells in the dorsal root ganglion. The striped arrangement of PCs that express Venus to different degrees was carefully traced with serial section alignment analysis and mapped on the unfolded scheme of the entire cerebellar cortex to re-identify all individual Aldoc stripes. A longitudinally striped boundary of Aldoc expression was first identified in the mouse flocculus, and was correlated with the climbing fiber projection pattern and expression of another compartmental marker molecule, heat shock protein 25 (HSP25). As in the rat, the cerebellar nuclei were divided into the rostrodorsal negative and the caudoventral positive portions by distinct projections of Aldoc-positive and negative PC axons in the mouse. Identification of the cerebellar Aldoc stripes in this study, as indicated in sample coronal and horizontal sections as well as in sample surface photos of whole-mount preparations, can be referred to in future experiments.
Crystals : growth, morphology, and perfection

Foreword to the English translation Preface Part I. Fundamental Concepts: 1. Introduction 2. Crystal forms 3. Crystal growth 4. Factors determining the morphology of polyhedral crystals 5. Surface microtopography of crystal faces 6. Perfection and homogeneity of single crystals 7. Regular intergrowth of crystals 8. Forms and textures of polycrystalline aggregates Part II. Application to Complicated and Complex Systems (Case Studies): 9. Diamond 10. Rock-crystal (quartz) 11. Pyrite and calcite 12. Minerals formed by vapour growth 13. Crystals formed by metasomatism and metamorphism 14. Crystals formed through biological activity Appendixes Materials index Subject index.
Developments in the treatment of candidiasis: more choices and new challenges

The incidence of oesophageal candidiasis, candidaemia and disseminated candidiasis has increased dramatically. In addition to the amphotericin B formulations and fluconazole, the echinocandins anidulafungin, caspofungin and micafungin and the newer triazoles posaconazole and voriconazole are in the last stages of development and are becoming available for the management of candidiasis. This review presents these new agents and addresses their role in the treatment of candidiasis. All new antifungal agents exhibit potent activity against Candida spp. and echinocandins are fungicidal against most Candida spp. but appear to be less potent against certain species, such as Candida parapsilosis and C. guilliermondii. Systemic antifungal therapy can now be individualised based on the severity of the infection, comorbid conditions and the Candida spp. causing the infection. Studies are needed to investigate the possible development of resistance and the efficacy of these antifungal agents against the more resistant Candida spp.
Relationship between annual influenza vaccination and winter mortality in diabetic people over 65 years

Background Influenza is an important cause of morbidity and mortality in older people, especially in those with some high-risk conditions such as diabetes mellitus. This study assessed the relationship between influenza vaccination status and winter mortality among diabetics 65 y and over during four consecutive influenza seasons. Methods Population-based cohort study including 2,650 community-dwelling individuals 65 y or older with diabetes mellitus followed between January 2002 and April 2005 in Tarragona, Spain. Influenza vaccination status was evaluated every year of the study and the primary endpoint was considered all-cause death during the study period. Deaths were classified as occurring within influenza periods (January–April) or non-influenza periods. The relationship between vaccination and winter mortality was evaluated by multivariable discrete-time hazard models. Results Influenza immunization was associated with a reduction of 33% (95% confidence interval: 4–53) in the adjusted risk of all-cause mortality throughout the overall influenza periods 2002–2005. The attributable risk to vaccination in reducing mortality was 13.5 per 100,000 person-weeks within influenza periods, estimating that one death was prevented for every 435 annual vaccinations. Conclusion Our data confirm the benefit of influenza vaccination in reducing mortality and supports the strategy of annual vaccination in diabetics aged at least 65 y.
Automatic characterization of masses in mammograms

The classification of benign and malignant masses in digital mammogram is an important yet challenging step for the early detection of breast cancer. This paper presents statistical measures of the orientation of texture to classify malignant and benign masses. Since the presence of mass in mammogram may change the orientation of normal breast tissues, two types of co-occurrence matrices are derived to estimate the joint occurrence of the angles of oriented structures for characterizing them. Haralick's 14 features are then extracted from each of the matrices derived from different regions related to mass. A total of 444 mass regions from 434 scanned-film images of the DDSM database are selected to evaluate the performance of the proposed features to differentiate the masses. The features are also compared with Haralick's features, obtained from well-known gray-level co-occurrence matrix. The best Az value of 0.77 is achieved with the stepwise logistic regression method for feature selection, an Fisher linear discriminant analysis for classification, and the leave-one-ROI-out approach for cross validation.
Reciprocal Relations between Work-Related Authenticity and Intrinsic Motivation, Work Ability and Depressivity: A Two-Wave Study

This study investigates the role of context-specific authenticity at work for work-related outcomes (intrinsic motivation, work ability) and depressivity. Furthermore reciprocal relations between work-related authenticity and healthy psychological functioning are investigated. Longitudinal data from 1,243 employees from 63 subsidiaries of a non-profit organization in the social sector were analyzed using multilevel structural equation modeling. Work-related authenticity at T1 predicted work ability and depressivity, but not intrinsic motivation at T2, about 6 months later. Work-related authenticity at T2 was predicted by intrinsic motivation and depressivity, but not by work ability at T1. We conclude that work-related authenticity and healthy psychological functioning are positively reinforcing each other. Thus, enabling employees to be authentic supposedly increases their well-being and is a pivotal opportunity for organizations to foster health and performance-related indicators like work ability and prevent negative health indicators like depressivity. At the same time, authenticity of employees can be fostered through workplace health promotion.
Dissecting Epigenetic Silencing Complexity in the Mouse Lung Cancer Suppressor Gene Cadm1

Disease-oriented functional analysis of epigenetic factors and their regulatory mechanisms in aberrant silencing is a prerequisite for better diagnostics and therapy. Yet, the precise mechanisms are still unclear and complex, involving the interplay of several effectors including nucleosome positioning, DNA methylation, histone variants and histone modifications. We investigated the epigenetic silencing complexity in the tumor suppressor gene Cadm1 in mouse lung cancer progenitor cell lines, exhibiting promoter hypermethylation associated with transcriptional repression, but mostly unresponsive to demethylating drug treatments. After predicting nucleosome positions and transcription factor binding sites along the Cadm1 promoter, we carried out single-molecule mapping with DNA methyltransferase M.SssI, which revealed in silent promoters high nucleosome occupancy and occlusion of transcription factor binding sites. Furthermore, M.SssI maps of promoters varied within and among the different lung cancer cell lines. Chromatin analysis with micrococcal nuclease also indicated variations in nucleosome positioning to have implications in the binding of transcription factors near nucleosome borders. Chromatin immunoprecipitation showed that histone variants (H2A.Z and H3.3), and opposing histone modification marks (H3K4me3 and H3K27me3) all colocalized in the same nucleosome positions that is reminiscent of epigenetic plasticity in embryonic stem cells. Altogether, epigenetic silencing complexity in the promoter region of Cadm1 is not only defined by DNA hypermethylation, but high nucleosome occupancy, altered nucleosome positioning, and ‘bivalent’ histone modifications, also likely contributed in the transcriptional repression of this gene in the lung cancer cells. Our results will help define therapeutic intervention strategies using epigenetic drugs in lung cancer.
Classification of Face Images Based on Gender using Dimensionality Reduction Techniques and SVM

This report presents gender classification based on facial images using dimensionality reduction techniques such as Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Independent Component Analysis (ICA) along with Support Vector Machine (SVM). The input dataset is divided into training and testing dataset and experiments are performed by varying dataset size. The effect of performing image intensity normalization, histogram equalization, and input scaling are observed. The outcomes of the experiments are analogous to published works that apply similar techniques.
STOX1 Overexpression in Choriocarcinoma Cells Mimics Transcriptional Alterations Observed in Preeclamptic Placentas

Background Mutations in STOX1 were proposed to be causal for predisposing to preeclampsia, a hypertensive disorder originating from placental defects, affecting up to 10% of human pregnancies. However, after the first study published in 2005 three other groups have dismissed the polymorphism described in the first paper as a causal mutation. Methodology and Principal Findings In the present study, we have produced a choriocarcinoma cell line overexpressing STOX1. This overexpression results in transcriptional modification of 12.5% of the genes, some of them being direct targets as shown by chromatin immunoprecipitation. STOX1 overexpression correlates strongly and specifically with transcriptomic alterations in preeclamptic placentas (r = 0.30, p = 9.10−7). Numerous known key modulators of preeclampsia (such as Endoglin, Syncytin, human chorionic gonadotrophin -hCG-, and Glial Cell Missing Homolog -GCM1-) were modified in these transformed choriocarcinoma cells. Conclusions Our results contribute to reconcile contradictory data concerning the involvement of STOX1 in preeclampsia. In addition, they strongly suggest that anomalies in STOX1 expression are associated with the onset of preeclampsia, thus indicating that this gene should be the target of future studies. Our cellular model could constitute an invaluable resource for studying specific aspects of this human disease.