Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Activation of Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress by Hyperglycemia Is Essential for Müller Cell–Derived Inflammatory Cytokine Production in Diabetes

Inflammation plays an important role in diabetes-induced retinal vascular leakage. The purpose of this study is to examine the role of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and the signaling pathway of ER stress–induced activating transcription factor 4 (ATF4) in the regulation of Müller cell–derived inflammatory mediators in diabetic retinopathy. In diabetic animals, elevated ER stress markers, ATF4, and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) expression were partially localized to Müller cells in the retina. In cultured Müller cells, high glucose induced a time-dependent increase of ER stress, ATF4 expression, and inflammatory factor production. Inducing ER stress or overexpressing ATF4 resulted in elevated intracellular adhesion molecule 1 and VEGF proteins in Müller cells. In contrast, alleviation of ER stress or blockade of ATF4 activity attenuated inflammatory gene expression induced by high glucose or hypoxia. Furthermore, we found that ATF4 regulated the c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase pathway resulting in VEGF upregulation. ATF4 was also required for ER stress–induced and hypoxia-inducible factor-1α activation. Finally, we showed that administration of chemical chaperone 4-phenylbutyrate or genetic inhibition of ATF4 successfully attenuated retinal VEGF expression and reduced vascular leakage in mice with STZ-induced diabetes. Taken together, our data indicate that ER stress and ATF4 play a critical role in retinal inflammatory signaling and Müller cell–derived inflammatory cytokine production in diabetes.
Characterization of Effusion-Infiltrating T Cells

Purpose: While naïve T cells circulate between peripheral blood and lymph nodes, memory effector T cells acquire certain surface molecules that enable them to travel to peripheral tissues and exert their effector function. We analyzed whether deficient numbers of effector-type T cells within the malignant effusion might contribute to tumor escape from immunosurveillance. Experimental Design: We analyzed the expression of a broad range of adhesion molecules and chemokine receptors (CD62L, CD56, CCR4, CCR5, CCR7, CXCR3, CLA, and integrin α4β7) on tumor-associated lymphocytes in effusions and peripheral blood lymphocytes of patients with malignant ascites (n = 11) or malignant pleural effusion (n = 16). A tumor-associated lymphocyte:peripheral blood lymphocyte ratio was calculated as an indicator for homing of lymphocytes into the effusions and was compared with patients with nonmalignant ascites (n = 17). Results: Patients with malignancies show an increased enrichment of T cells expressing the phenotype of “naïve” (CD62L+ and CD45RA+CCR7+), “central memory” (CD45RA-CCR7+), and type 2-polarized (CCR4+) T cells within their effusions. In contrast, enrichment of “effector”-type (CD45RA-CCR7− or CD45RA+CCR7−) and presumably type 1-polarized T cells (CCR5+) at the tumor site is deficient. The same is true for natural killer cells and potentially cytotoxic CD56+ T cells. Conclusions: Here we show for the first time that patients with malignant effusions show a deficient enrichment of T cells expressing the phenotype of type-1-polarized effector T cells at the tumor site. This mechanism is likely to contribute to the escape of tumor cells from immunosurveillance.
Women's partnered orgasm consistency is associated with greater duration of penile-vaginal intercourse but not of foreplay.

INTRODUCTION It has been asserted that women's likelihood or consistency of partnered orgasm (her orgasm as a result of sexual activities with a partner) is determined by duration of foreplay, but not by duration of penile-vaginal intercourse. AIMS The objective was to examine the extent to which women's likelihood or consistency of partnered orgasm is associated with duration of foreplay, duration of penile-vaginal intercourse, and age. METHODS In a representative sample of the Czech population, 2,360 women reported their consistency of orgasm with a partner (from "never" to "almost every time"), and estimates of their typical durations of foreplay and of penile-vaginal intercourse. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES The association of consistency of partnered orgasm with typical durations of both foreplay and penile-vaginal intercourse. RESULTS In univariate analyses, consistency of partnered orgasm was more associated with penile-vaginal intercourse duration than with foreplay duration (consistency also correlated negatively with age). In multivariate analysis, foreplay ceased to be a significant correlate of partnered orgasm consistency (the exclusion of respondents reporting a penile-vaginal intercourse duration of 1 minute or less did not alter the results). CONCLUSIONS When both sexual activity categories are examined in tandem on a population level, women's likelihood or consistency of partnered orgasm is associated with penile-vaginal intercourse duration, but not with foreplay duration. In contrast to the assumptions of many sex therapists and educators, more attention should be given to improve the quality and duration of penile-vaginal intercourse rather than foreplay.
Predicting Counter-Productive Workplace Behavior: Item Level Analysis of an Integrity Test

Counter-productive workplace behavior (CWB) is defined as any intentional behavior on the part of an organization member viewed by the organization as contrary to its legitimate interests. A growing body of literature reveals that individual variables and pre-employment integrity tests can play a strong role in the prediction of CWB. The empirical literature has failed to clarify which type of individual level antecedents, or types of integrity test items, are more predictive of CWB. The current study evaluated data collected from restaurant employees (N=464) that measured items relating to personality tendencies, attitudes toward acceptance of counter-productive behaviors, work and high school background, and admissions of counter-productive behavior. A confirmatory factor analysis revealed a mediocre fit to a typology of CWB (interpersonal CWB vs. organizational CWB). Correlation analysis revealed that only specific attitudinal items and empirically keyed biodata items were significantly related to CWB. Hierarchical regression analysis found that attitudinal items paralleling admissions of CWB contributed variance beyond that of other personality and work and high school background antecedents.
Household food security is associated with growth of infants and young children in rural Bangladesh

Abstract Objective Despite a strong relationship between household food security and the health and nutritional status of adults and older children, the association of household food security with the growth of infants and young children has not been adequately studied, particularly in developing countries. We examined the association between household food security and subsequent growth of infants and young children in rural Bangladesh. Design We followed 1343 children from birth to 24 months of age who were born in the Maternal and Infant Nutrition Intervention in Matlab (MINIMat) study in rural Bangladesh. A food security scale was created from data collected on household food security from the mothers during pregnancy. Data on weight and length were collected monthly in the first year and quarterly in the second year of life. Anthropometric indices were calculated relative to the 2006 WHO child growth standards. Growth trajectories were modelled using multilevel models for change controlling for possible confounders. Results Household food security was associated (P < 0·05) with greater subsequent weight and length gain in this cohort. Attained weight, length and anthropometric indices from birth to 24 months were higher (P < 0·001) among those who were in food-secure households. Proportions of underweight and stunting were significantly (P < 0·05) lower in food-secure households. Conclusions These results suggest that household food security is a determinant of child growth in rural Bangladesh, and that it may be necessary to ensure food security of these poor rural households to prevent highly prevalent undernutrition in this population and in similar settings elsewhere in the world.
Coarse-Grained Models Reveal Functional Dynamics - I. Elastic Network Models – Theories, Comparisons and Perspectives

In this review, we summarize the progress on coarse-grained elastic network models (CG-ENMs) in the past decade. Theories were formulated to allow study of conformational dynamics in time/space frames of biological interest. Several highlighted models and their underlined hypotheses are introduced in physical depth. Important ENM offshoots, motivated to reproduce experimental data as well as to address the slow-mode-encoded configurational transitions, are also introduced. With the theoretical developments, computational cost is significantly reduced due to simplified potentials and coarse-grained schemes. Accumulating wealth of data suggest that ENMs agree equally well with experiment in describing equilibrium dynamics despite their distinct potentials and levels of coarse-graining. They however do differ in the slowest motional components that are essential to address large conformational changes of functional significance. The difference stems from the dissimilar curvatures of the harmonic energy wells described for each model. We also provide our views on the predictability of ‘open to close’ (open→close) transitions of biomolecules on the basis of conformational selection theory. Lastly, we address the limitations of the ENM formalism which are partially alleviated by the complementary CG-MD approach, to be introduced in the second paper of this two-part series.
The Salmonella Membrane Protein IgaA Modulates the Activity of the RcsC-YojN-RcsB and PhoP-PhoQ Regulons

ABSTRACT The Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium membrane protein IgaA and the PhoP-PhoQ two-component system are used by this pathogen to attenuate the intracellular growth rate within fibroblasts. IgaA has also recently been shown to contribute to virulence by exerting tight repression of the RcsC-YojN-RcsB phosphorelay in host tissues. Here we show that loss of repression of the RcsC-YojN-RcsB system, linked to an R188H mutation in the IgaA protein (igaA1 allele), is accompanied by altered expression of PhoP-PhoQ-activated (pag) genes. The changes in gene expression were different depending on the specific pag gene analyzed. Thus, transcription of ugd, which is required for lipopolysaccharide modification and colanic acid capsule synthesis, was enhanced in the igaA1 mutant. RcsB and its coregulator RcsA promoted this alteration in a PhoP-PmrA-independent manner. Unlike ugd, activation of the RcsC-YojN-RcsB phosphorelay negatively affected the expression of all other pag genes tested. In this case, RcsB alone was responsible for this effect. We also found that PhoP, but not PmrA, negatively modulates the expression of gmm, a gene required for colanic acid synthesis that is regulated positively by RcsC-YojN-RcsB. Finally, it was observed that the fine regulation of pag genes exerted by RcsB requires the RpoS protein and that an active RcsB, but not RcsA, diminishes expression of the phoP gene. These data support the hypothesis that in Salmonella there is an intimate regulatory circuit between the PhoP-PhoQ and RcsC-YojN-RcsB phosphorelays, which is revealed only when the RcsC-YojN-RcsB signaling route is derepressed. Consistent with the phenotypes observed in fibroblast cells, IgaA is predicted to favor expression of the entire PhoP-PhoQ regulon based on its repression of the RcsC-YojN-RcsB phosphorelay.
Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization Overconfidence and Asymmetric Information: the Case of Insurance

This paper contributes to the recent behavioral economics literature by showing that whether or not overconfidence changes qualitative predictions in asymmetric information markets may depend on the market structure itself. We first show that overconfidence may overturn fundamental relations between observable variables in perfect-competition asymmetric information insurance markets. In monopolistic insurance markets, in con-strast, we find that overconfidence may be observationally equivalent to variations in the risk composition of the economy. Our analysis provides a number of novel testable implications on (i) price heterogeneity within and across risk classes, (ii) the relationship between ex-post risk and insurance coverage, (iii) the fact that a significant fraction of agents chooses to be uninsured, and (iv) the relationship between underinsurance and age.
Talking It Out With Others vs. Deliberation Within and the Law of Group Polarization: Some Implications of the Argumentative Theory of Reasoning for Deliberative Democracy

Talking it out with others vs. deliberation within and the law of group polarization: Some implications of the argumentative theory of reasoning for deliberative democracy. This paper argues that a new psychological theory—the argumentative theory of reasoning—provides theoretical support for the discursive, dialogical ideal of democratic deliberation. It converges, in particular, with deliberative democrats’ predictions about the positive epistemic properties of talking things out with others. The paper further considers two influential objections to democratic deliberation: first, that “deliberation within” rather than deliberation with others carries most of the burden in terms of changing people’s minds; and second, that the so-called “law of group polarization” casts serious doubts on the value of democratic deliberation and, more generally, the ideal of deliberative democracy.
Pharmacologic prophylaxis against venous thromboembolism in hospitalized patients with cirrhosis and associated coagulopathies.

PURPOSE Published evidence on the incidence and predictors of venous thromboembolism (VTE) in patients with cirrhosis of the liver is reviewed. SUMMARY The frequently observed phenomenon of elevated International Normalized Ratio (INR) values in patients with cirrhosis has led to a theory of "autoanticoagulation" and the assertion that such patients may not benefit from the VTE risk-reduction therapies routinely used in other groups of hospitalized patients. A literature search identified six reports specifically addressing the issue of VTE risk in patients with cirrhosis. Reported rates of VTE development in such patients vary widely (0.5-8.2%) as a result of investigators' use of varying study methods and endpoints. The results of three studies (including two studies of longitudinal data on about 100,000 and nearly 450,000 patients) found no significant correlation of INR values and VTE risk. With regard to potential clinical markers of VTE risk in the context of cirrhosis, data from two studies suggested that serum albumin might serve as a reliable marker of coagulation status and, therefore, VTE risk. The results of other studies indicated that independent predictors of VTE in patients with cirrhosis include malnutrition and significant comorbidities such as chronic kidney disease and congestive heart failure. In aggregate, the available evidence does not support the autoanticoagulation theory. CONCLUSION In hospitalized patients with cirrhosis who have elevated INR values, pharmacologic VTE prophylaxis should be strongly considered if there is no active or recent bleeding and if more than one risk factor for VTE is present.
Multiuser detection in massive MIMO with quantized phase-only measurements

In this paper, we research the multiuser detection (MUD) in a new massive MIMO with quantized phase-only (PO) measurements. Because the phase quantization can be implemented by one-bit ADCs, PO-MIMO overcomes the ADC bottleneck that appears when the signal bandwidth reaches multi-giga Hertz. However, the new problem is how to complete the uplink multiuser detection (MUD) based on the quantized PO measurements. In this paper, it is firstly solved by the sum-product-algorithm (SPA). Based on central limit theorem (CLT) and Taylor expansions, the SPA detector (SPAD) is simplified as a new PO generalized approximate message passing detector (POG-AMPD). POG-AMPD can exploit the quantized phase measurements and signal prior probability distribution in a Bayesian manner. It involves matrix-vector multiplications, and some parallelized non-linear operations, so it is suitable for hardware implementation. Numerical results indicate that POG-AMPD approaches to the maximum likelihood (ML) detection performance. By adopting moderately more BS antennas, massive PO-MIMO can even performs similarly as the conventional massive MIMO with full measurements.
Low-Power ${G}_{{m}}{-}C$ Filter Employing Current-Reuse Differential Difference Amplifiers

This paper deals with the design of low-power high-performance continuous-time filters. The proposed operational transconductance amplifier architecture employs current-reuse differential difference amplifiers in order to produce more power-efficient <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">${G}_{{m}}{-}{C}$</tex-math></inline-formula> filter solutions. To demonstrate this, a sixth-order low-pass Butterworth filter was designed in a 0.18-<inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\mu\text{m}$</tex-math></inline-formula> CMOS, achieving a 65-MHz −3-dB frequency, an in-band input-referred third-order intercept point of 12 dBm, and an input-referred noise density of 40 nV/Hz<sup>1/2</sup>, while only consuming 8.07 mW from a 1.8-V supply and occupying a total chip area of 0.21 mm<sup>2</sup> with a power consumption of only 1.19 mW per pole.
Effect of contact stress on friction and wear of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene in total hip replacement

Abstract This paper studies the effect of contact stress on friction and wear of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) acetabular cups by means of friction and wear joint simulator testing under serum lubrication. For a given applied load, increasing the contact stress by increasing the ball/socket radial clearance decreased both the coefficient of friction and the wear rate. Friction and wear were highly correlated. The dependence of friction on contact stress for the UHMWPE socket under serum lubrication was similar to that of semi-crystalline polymers under dry sliding. This finding indicates the occurrence of partial dry contact at asperity levels for the metal-polyethylene ball-in-socket joint under serum lubrication.
Minimax Optimal Alternating Minimization for Kernel Nonparametric Tensor Learning

We investigate the statistical performance and computational efficiency of the alternating minimization procedure for nonparametric tensor learning. Tensor modeling has been widely used for capturing the higher order relations between multimodal data sources. In addition to a linear model, a nonlinear tensor model has been received much attention recently because of its high flexibility. We consider an alternating minimization procedure for a general nonlinear model where the true function consists of components in a reproducing kernel Hilbert space (RKHS). In this paper, we show that the alternating minimization method achieves linear convergence as an optimization algorithm and that the generalization error of the resultant estimator yields the minimax optimality. We apply our algorithm to some multitask learning problems and show that the method actually shows favorable performances.
Structure-activity relationships of cadinane-type sesquiterpene derivatives against wood-decay fungi

Abstract Cadinane-type sesquiterpenes have a wide spectrum of biological activity, but their use as wood preservatives and the structure-activity relationships of their derivatives have not yet been reported. A total of 13 compounds were synthesized from T-cadinol, T-muurolol, and α-cadinol and their chemical structures were confirmed by IR, MS, and 1H and 13C NMR. The antifungal properties of 16 compounds against three wood-decay fungi were evaluated in vitro. α-Cadinol showed strong antifungal activity against Lenzites betulina, Trametes versicolor, and Laetiporus sulphureus (total mean IC50 0.10 mM). Among the derivatives synthesized, 3β-ethoxy-T-muurolol (0.24 mM), 4ξH-cadinan-10β-ol (0.25 mM), 4ξH-muurolan-10β-ol (0.29 mM), and 4ξH-cadinan-10α-ol (0.25 mM) showed good antifungal activity against all fungi tested. Correlation was observed between the antifungal activity of the compounds tested and log P. Furthermore, the presence of an unsaturated double bond and oxygen-containing functional groups in the compounds plays a key role in their antifungal activity. The stereo configuration of cadinane-type sesquiterpenes also influences their antifungal activity. Understanding how the structure of natural compounds relates to their antifungal function is important and may facilitate their application as novel wood preservatives.
FIRST SPECTROSCOPIC IMAGING OBSERVATIONS OF THE SUN AT LOW RADIO FREQUENCIES WITH THE MURCHISON WIDEFIELD ARRAY PROTOTYPE

We present the first spectroscopic images of solar radio transients from the prototype for the Murchison Widefield Array, observed on 2010 March 27. Our observations span the instantaneous frequency band 170.9– 201.6 MHz. Though our observing period is characterized as a period of “low” to “medium” activity, one broadband emission feature and numerous short-lived, narrowband, non-thermal emission features are evident. Our data represent a significant advance in low radio frequency solar imaging, enabling us to follow the spatial, spectral, and temporal evolution of events simultaneously and in unprecedented detail. The rich variety of features seen here reaffirms the coronal diagnostic capability of low radio frequency emission and provides an early glimpse of the nature of radio observations that will become available as the next generation of low-frequency radio interferometers come online over the next few years.
Family violence and sexual assault in Indigenous communities: 'walking the talk'

Family violence and sexual assault are reported to be at crisis levels in many Indigenous communities. In response to calls from Indigenous people for change, a number of state and territory governments have established Task Forces, drafted policy documents, and held inquiries into the nature and extent of the violence. This Briefing Paper provides an overview of the key issues and findings from recent reports and research into family violence and sexual assault in Indigenous communities. Four sexual assault workers across the country also spoke to ACSSA about what is happening in their service areas to address sexual assault in Indigenous communities. An overview of the state and federal governments’ policies and reports into family violence are provided in an annotated bibliography.
VAST: An ASKAP Survey for Variables and Slow Transients

Abstract The Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP) will give us an unprecedented opportunity to investigate the transient sky at radio wavelengths. In this paper we present VAST, an ASKAP survey for Variables and Slow Transients. VAST will exploit the wide-field survey capabilities of ASKAP to enable the discovery and investigation of variable and transient phenomena from the local to the cosmological, including flare stars, intermittent pulsars, X-ray binaries, magnetars, extreme scattering events, interstellar scintillation, radio supernovae, and orphan afterglows of gamma-ray bursts. In addition, it will allow us to probe unexplored regions of parameter space where new classes of transient sources may be detected. In this paper we review the known radio transient and variable populations and the current results from blind radio surveys. We outline a comprehensive program based on a multi-tiered survey strategy to characterise the radio transient sky through detection and monitoring of transient and variable sources on the ASKAP imaging timescales of 5 s and greater. We also present an analysis of the expected source populations that we will be able to detect with VAST.