Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Direct Impact of T Cells on Neurons Revealed by Two-Photon Microscopy in Living Brain Tissue

Encephalitogenic T cells invade the brain during neuroinflammation such as multiple sclerosis (MS), inducing damage to myelin sheaths and oligodendrocytes. Only recently, neuronal structures were reported to be a crucial target in the disease. Here, two-photon microscopy using ion-sensitive dyes revealed that within the complex cellular network of living brain tissue, proteolipid protein (PLP)-specific T cells and T cells recognizing the nonmurine antigen ovalbumin (OVA) directly and independently of the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) contact neurons in which they induce calcium oscillations. T cell contact finally resulted in a lethal increase in neuronal calcium levels. This could be prevented by blocking both perforin and glutamate receptors. For the first time, our data provide direct insight into the activity of T cells in the living brain and their detrimental impact on neurons.
Pattern of semen analysis of male partners of infertile couples at the University College Hospital, Ibadan.

OBJECTIVES To evaluate the seminal patterns of the male partners of the infertile couples, towards identifying the possible contribution of the male factors to overall infertility problem in our environment. METHODOLOGY The study is a descriptive analysis of the seminal patterns of the partners of the infertile couples, who presented at the Fertility Research Unit (a WHO collaborating centre) of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University College Hospital, Ibadan, Nigeria, between 1st January 1990 and 31st December, 1999. RESULTS Result of the seminal analysis of 824 male partners of infertile couples were retrieved for the study, of which 598 (73%) were referred for secondary infertility. Overall, 225 (27.3%) of these subjects had abnormal semen analyses, with Asthenozoospermia being the most common (27.8%) of the disorders observed. Fifty-four (6.7%) subjects of the study population had Azoospermia. The most common multiple factors abnormality in the study population was Astheno/Oligozoospermia (25.5%), while three factors defect--Oligo/Astheno/Teratozoospermia was noticed in 106 (13.1%) of the subjects. CONCLUSION Abnormal semen quality remains a significant contribution to overall infertility in our environment and Asthenozoospermia is the most common seminal quality abnormality.
On the modeling of poly-phase electric machines through Vector-Space Decomposition: Numeric application cases

In the field of poly-phase electric machines, a variety of stator winding alternatives is possible in terms of phase physical arrangements. The specific winding scheme, in addition to the number of phases, needs to be taken into account as far as the machine dynamic modeling is concerned. In particular, the Vector-Space Decomposition (VSD) method, which is widely used for n-phase machine analysis, requires different transformation matrices to be used depending on the displacement angle between successive phases, as discussed in a companion work. The explicit forms of such matrices are illustrated in this paper, taking the VSD of a five-phase motor, for different possible phase arrangements, as a numeric case study and validation example.
Enhancement of Endoplasmic Reticulum (ER) Degradation of Misfolded Null Hong Kong α1-Antitrypsin by Human ER Mannosidase I*

Misfolded glycoproteins synthesized in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) are degraded by cytoplasmic proteasomes, a mechanism known as ERAD (ER-associated degradation). In the present study, we demonstrate that ERAD of the misfolded genetic variant-null Hong Kong α1-antitrypsin is enhanced by overexpression of the ER processing α1,2-mannosidase (ER ManI) in HEK 293 cells, indicating the importance of ER ManI in glycoprotein quality control. We showed previously that EDEM, an enzymatically inactive mannosidase homolog, interacts with misfolded α1-antitrypsin and accelerates its degradation (Hosokawa, N., Wada, I., Hasegawa, K., Yorihuzi, T., Tremblay, L. O., Herscovics, A., and Nagata, K. (2001) EMBO Rep. 2, 415–422). Herein we demonstrate a combined effect of ER ManI and EDEM on ERAD of misfolded α1-antitrypsin. We also show that misfolded α1-antitrypsin NHK contains labeled Glc1Man9GlcNAc and Man5–9GlcNAc released by endo-β-N-acetylglucosaminidase H in pulse-chase experiments with [2-3H]mannose. Overexpression of ER ManI greatly increases the formation of Man8GlcNAc, induces the formation of Glc1Man8GlcNAc and increases trimming to Man5–7GlcNAc. We propose a model whereby the misfolded glycoprotein interacts with ER ManI and with EDEM, before being recognized by downstream ERAD components. This detailed characterization of oligosaccharides associated with a misfolded glycoprotein raises the possibility that the carbohydrate recognition determinant triggering ERAD may not be restricted to Man8GlcNAc2 isomer B as previous studies have suggested.
Shrinkage-Reducing Admixture: Effects on Durability of High-Strength Concrete

Shrinkage-reducing admixture (SRA) is a mitigation strategy against autogenous shrinkage in high-strength concrete (HSC). It acts by reducing the surface tension of the fluid in the pore system of the cement paste. An experimental program was carried out to investigate the influence of SRA on concrete durability, as few studies about this subject have been developed. Its effectiveness in reducing autogenous shrinkage and its influence on compressive strength were also evaluated. The results showed a substantial reduction of autogenous shrinkage due to the presence of the SRA, with a slight reduction on compressive strength (up to 5%). Overall, concrete durability under the action of aggressive agents (such as water, CO2, and chloride ingress) was not influenced by SRA, as verified in the results of chloride penetration, natural carbonation, water permeability, capillary absorption of water, and absorption of water tests.
Duplex scanning-guided thrombin injection for the treatment of iatrogenic pseudoaneurysms.

PURPOSE This study presents our current results with duplex scanning-guided thrombin injection (DGTI) for the treatment of lower-extremity iatrogenic pseudoaneurysms (PAs). These results were compared with the results from our patient population that was treated with duplex scanning-guided compression (DGC). METHODS This was a prospective evaluation of an institutional review board-approved protocol for ultrasound scanning-guided thrombin injection for the treatment of iatrogenic lower-extremity PAs. The maneuver was performed with continuous real-time color ultrasound scanning imaging to guide a needle into a PA sac. Then 0.5 to 1.0 mL of a thrombin solution (1000 U/mL) was injected, and thrombosis of the sac was monitored. All patients underwent an arterial evaluation of the involved extremity before and after thrombin injection. In addition, the size of the PA and its parent artery were documented by means of pre-injection imaging. After thrombosis of the PA, the patient was kept on bed rest for 4 hours, and activity was limited that day (bathroom privileges for inpatients). Follow-up imaging was performed after 24 hours, and attempts were made to obtain imaging 1 week and 1 month after injection. RESULTS In the 31 months of the study, 131 iatrogenic PAs of the lower extremity were initially treated with DGTI, and thrombosis was achieved in 126 of these cases (96%). Thrombosis of the PA sac was accomplished within seconds of thrombin injection. Five cases failed, three of which resulted from complications of the procedures, with two intra-arterial thrombin injections and one PA rupture after thrombosis. CONCLUSION Our experience indicates that DGTI is more effective than DGC (96% vs 75%) in the treatment of iatrogenic lower-extremity PAs. The DGTI procedure is completed in minutes, compared with a mean compression time of 44 minutes with DGC, which leads to increased patient and operator acceptance. Intra-arterial thrombin injection was seen in 4% of PAs that were 2.6 cm or smaller and resulted in limb-threatening ischemia requiring surgical intervention. Finally, the use of a biopsy guide attached to the ultrasound scanning transducer head simplifies the visualization of the needle, reducing the number of needle punctures and needle manipulation.
Structural basis for alginate secretion across the bacterial outer membrane

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is the predominant pathogen associated with chronic lung infection among cystic fibrosis patients. During colonization of the lung, P. aeruginosa converts to a mucoid phenotype characterized by the overproduction of the exopolysaccharide alginate. Secretion of newly synthesized alginate across the outer membrane is believed to occur through the outer membrane protein AlgE. Here we report the 2.3 Å crystal structure of AlgE, which reveals a monomeric 18-stranded β-barrel characterized by a highly electropositive pore constriction formed by an arginine-rich conduit that likely acts as a selectivity filter for the negatively charged alginate polymer. Interestingly, the pore constriction is occluded on either side by extracellular loop L2 and an unusually long periplasmic loop, T8. In halide efflux assays, deletion of loop T8 (ΔT8-AlgE) resulted in a threefold increase in anion flux compared to the wild-type or ΔL2-AlgE supporting the idea that AlgE forms a transport pathway through the membrane and suggesting that transport is regulated by T8. This model is further supported by in vivo experiments showing that complementation of an algE deletion mutant with ΔT8-AlgE impairs alginate production. Taken together, these studies support a mechanism for exopolysaccharide export across the outer membrane that is distinct from the Wza-mediated translocation observed in canonical capsular polysaccharide export systems.
Increase in Cell Number as a Factor in the Growth of the Organs and Tissues of the Young Male Rat

While the organs and tissues of the young rat are known to increase in size with age (Donaldson, 1924), little is known of the role played by the component cells in this increase. There is evidence that cells enlarge (Levi, 1906; Plenk, 1911) and new cells are added (Strasburger, 1893), but we do not know to what extent the enlargement and proliferation of the cells cause the growth of organs and tissues. The present work is an attempt to clarify this problem. In the past, the growth of organs and tissues has often been measured by weight gain (Donaldson, 1924). However, this approach might be misleading, since the body-weight may increase in the absence of growth, for instance as a result of fat-storage in old rats, of pregnancy in females, and even of changes in room temperature.
Manufacture of rigid PVC/wood‐flour composite foams using moisture contained in wood as foaming agent

Relatioships between the density of foamed rigid PVC/wood‐flour composites and the moisture content of the wood flour, the chemical foaming agent (CFA) content, the content of all‐acrylic foam modifier, and the extruder die temperature were determined by using a response surface model based on a four‐factor central composite design. The experimental results indicated that there is no synergistic effect between teh CFA content and the moisture content of the wood flour. Wood flour moisture could be used effectively as foaming agent in the production of rigid PVC/wood‐flour composite foams. Foam density as low as 0.4 g/cm3 was produced without the use of chemical foaming agents. However, successful foaming of rigid PVC/wood‐flour composite with moisture contained in wood flour strongly depends upon the presence of all‐acrylic foam modifier in the formulation and the extrusion die temperature. The lowest densities were achieved when the all‐acrylic foam modifier concentration was between 7 phr and 10 phr and extruder die temperature was as low as 170°C.
Polarity and reorganization of the endoplasmic reticulum during fertilization and ooplasmic segregation in the ascidian egg

During the first cell cycle of the ascidian egg, two phases of ooplasmic segregation create distinct cytoplasmic domains that are crucial for later development. We recently defined a domain enriched in ER in the vegetal region of Phallusia mammillata eggs. To explore the possible physiological and developmental function of this ER domain, we here investigate its organization and fate by labeling the ER network in vivo with DiIC16(3), and observing its distribution before and after fertilization in the living egg. In unfertilized eggs, the ER-rich vegetal cortex is overlaid by the ER-poor but mitochondria-rich subcortical myoplasm. Fertilization results in striking rearrangements of the ER network. First, ER accumulates at the vegetal-contraction pole as a thick layer between the plasma membrane and the myoplasm. This accompanies the relocation of the myoplasm toward that region during the first phase of ooplasmic segregation. In other parts of the cytoplasm, ER becomes progressively redistributed into ER-rich and ER- poor microdomains. As the sperm aster grows, ER accumulates in its centrosomal area and along its astral rays. During the second phase of ooplasmic segregation, which takes place once meiosis is completed, the concentrated ER domain at the vegetal-contraction pole moves with the sperm aster and the bulk of the myoplasm toward the future posterior side of the embryo. These results show that after fertilization, ER first accumulates in the vegetal area from which repetitive calcium waves are known to originate (Speksnijder, J. E. 1992. Dev. Biol. 153:259-271). This ER domain subsequently colocalizes with the myoplasm to the presumptive primary muscle cell region.
An Improved Battery Characterization Method Using a Two-Pulse Load Test

It is very important to have the ability to determine the available capacity, the state of charge (SoC), and the state of health (SoH) of a battery; this ensures that the battery has the available power for the system requirements. A battery is aged by charging and discharging cycles; this process degrades the chemical composition of the battery. An undercharged battery has sulphation and stratification effects that shorten the lifetime of the battery. Overcharging causes gassing and water loss. This paper describes a novel two-pulse test to determine the AHC, SoC, and SoH of a valve regulated lead acid (VRLA) and a lithium ion battery. These parameters are related to the voltage drop after each pulse of current discharge. The first pulse stabilizes the battery relative to its previous history, and the second pulse establishes the parameters. The new approach is fully validated by experiment.
Multiscale Reduced Order Modeling of Complex Multi-Bay Structures

Abstract : This investigation focused on achieving quantum improvements in the reduced order modeling of structures undergoing large deformations especially those of future hypersonic vehicles. The present effort aimed at spanning a much broader ranges of scales than prior investigations had achieved, i.e. being able to capture the effects of localized geometrical defects (stress hot spots at the microscale level) but also to consider macroscale structures which are assemblies of panels themselves considered here as the microscale. These objectives were successfully accomplished through four separate investigations: (1) The micro-meso upscaling process, i.e. how to account for microscale features in nonlinear reduced order models of mesoscale models; (2) The reduced order modeling of mesoscale structures with difficult features such as curved structures with snap-through motions and cantilevered ones; (3) The extension of the mesoscale strategies for the construction of monolithic (single scale) reduced order models of macroscale structures, and (4) The meso-macro upscaling process.
Inversions of Semistandard Young Tableaux

A tableau inversion is a pair of entries from the same column of a row-standard tableau that lack the relative ordering necessary to make the tableau column-standard. An $i$-inverted Young tableau is a row-standard tableau with precisely $i$ inversion pairs, and may be interpreted as a generalization of (column-standard) Young tableau. Inverted Young tableau that lack repeated entries were introduced by Fresse to calculate the Betti numbers of Springer fibers in Type A, and were later developed as combinatorial objects in their own right by Beagley and Drube. This paper generalizes earlier notions of tableau inversions to row-standard tableaux with repeated entries, yielding an interesting new generalization of semistandard (as opposed to merely standard) Young tableaux. We develop a closed formula for the maximum numbers of inversion pairs for a row-standard tableau with a specific shape and content, and show that the number of $i$-inverted tableaux of a given shape is invariant under permutation of content. We then enumerate $i$-inverted Young tableaux for a variety of shapes and contents, and generalize an earlier result that places $1$-inverted Young tableaux of a general shape in bijection with $0$-inverted Young tableaux of a variety of related shapes.
Compression mechanical properties of wood at temperatures simulating fire conditions

Compression mechanical properties of wood at temperatures simulating fire conditions have been obtained for use in structural response models to aid the design of light‐timber framed walls as fire barriers in accordance with recent performance‐based fire codes. The properties that have been measured are elastic modulus and strength. The properties were obtained from samples that had a number of similarities to studs in walls. The effects of knots, however, have been excluded from this study. The elastic modulus greatly reduces as temperatures approach the vaporization point of moisture. The properties were significantly lower compared with properties given in the literature. Input of the measured properties into a structural fire model for walls led to good comparisons with results of experiments on walls with low load ratios (that is, the ratio of the applied load to the collapse load capacity at ambient conditions). Such walls are typically used in building construction. However, the elastic moduli presented in this paper and in other literature do not lead to good model predictions for slender walls with high load ratios. Further research into creep is required. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Neurotransmitters of the sympathetic nerve terminal are powerful chemoattractants for monocytes

Macrophages in lymphoid organs are in close contact to nerve terminals of the sympathetic nervous system. Hence, these cells could be targets of neuronal modulation. We studied sympathetic neurotransmitters as chemoattractants enabling the aggregation of macrophages and nerve terminals. Norepinephrine (NE), neuropeptide Y (NPY), isoproterenol (β‐adrenergic), p‐aminoclonidine (α2‐adrenergic), methoxamine (α1‐adrenergic), and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) were used to study human monocyte and macrophage migration in 48‐well Boyden chambers. NE stimulated chemotaxis of monocytes and macrophages at an optimal concentration of 10−10 M (P < 0.025). Isoproterenol, but not p‐aminoclonidine or methoxamine, induced chemotaxis of monocytes (10−10 M, P < 0.05). In these studies, elevation of cAMP is a critical step in NE‐induced chemotaxis of monocytes. NPY (10−11 M, P < 0.05) stimulated monocyte chemotaxis as well. ATP at 10−4 and 10−5 M stimulated undirected cell mobility (P < 0.05). All tested neurotransmitters of the sympathetic nerve terminal were potent chemoattractants. These findings may explain the close association of nerves and macrophages in tissue and lymphoid organs and may thus be of functional relevance in neuroimmunomodulation. J. Leukoc. Biol. 67: 553–558; 2000.
Antibacterial Activity of the Alkaloid-Enriched Extract from Prosopis juliflora Pods and Its Influence on in Vitro Ruminal Digestion

The purpose of this study was to assess the in vitro antimicrobial activity of alkaloid-enriched extracts from Prosopis juliflora (Fabaceae) pods in order to evaluate them as feed additives for ruminants. As only the basic chloroformic extract (BCE), whose main constituents were juliprosopine (juliflorine), prosoflorine and juliprosine, showed Gram-positive antibacterial activity against Micrococcus luteus (MIC = 25 μg/mL), Staphylococcus aureus (MIC = 50 μg/mL) and Streptococcus mutans (MIC = 50 μg/mL), its influence on ruminal digestion was evaluated using a semi-automated in vitro gas production technique, with monensin as the positive control. Results showed that BCE has decreased gas production as efficiently as monensin after 36 h of fermentation, revealing its positive influence on gas production during ruminal digestion. Since P. juliflora is a very affordable plant, this study points out this alkaloid enriched extract from the pods of Prosopis juliflora as a potential feed additive to decrease gas production during ruminal digestion.
Synaptic connectivity of the cholinergic axons in the olfactory bulb of the cynomolgus monkey

The olfactory bulb (OB) of mammals receives cholinergic afferents from the horizontal limb of the diagonal band of Broca (HDB). At present, the synaptic connectivity of the cholinergic axons on the circuits of the OB has only been investigated in the rat. In this report, we analyze the synaptic connectivity of the cholinergic axons in the OB of the cynomolgus monkey (Macaca fascicularis). Our aim is to investigate whether the cholinergic innervation of the bulbar circuits is phylogenetically conserved between macrosmatic and microsmatic mammals. Our results demonstrate that the cholinergic axons form synaptic contacts on interneurons. In the glomerular layer, their main targets are the periglomerular cells, which receive axo-somatic and axo-dendritic synapses. In the inframitral region, their main targets are the granule cells, which receive synaptic contacts on their dendritic shafts and spines. Although the cholinergic boutons were frequently found in close vicinity of the dendrites of principal cells, we have not found synaptic contacts on them. From a comparative perspective, our data indicate that the synaptic connectivity of the cholinergic circuits is highly preserved in the OB of macrosmatic and microsmatic mammals.