Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A frequency and textual analysis of non-suicidal self injury in print-based media: a quantitative and qualitative analysis

Clinicians and researchers have reported that perceptions of non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) have changed over time, while speculation has been generated related to the media portrayal of NSSI and the individuals who engage in this behaviour. However, no study to date has directly examined representations of NSSI in print media longitudinally. This dissertation's objective was to investigate the depiction of NSSI within print-based media over a 20-year period (1988 to 2007) by examining articles published in popular English-speaking magazines. The theoretical framework for the thesis draws from social cognitive theory (Bandura, 1986) originating in social psychology, and from cultivation theory originating in cultural and media studies (Gerbner & Gross, 1976). A mixed methods study created two samples; quantitative sample of 117 articles from a keyword search of popular magazine titles and a qualitative sample of 29 articles of NSSI-themed feature articles. The quantitative analysis indicated a significant increase in the number of articles published over time, and an increase in the variety of publications mentioning NSSI. The majority of self-injuring characters depicted were females (91.36%), with male and LGBT characters under-represented. Of the self-injuring characters depicted, 26.31% were celebrities, 22.78% had a history of abuse, 21.25% reported substance abuse, 31.25% reported depression, and 25% experienced suicidal behaviours. The qualitative study showed shifts in social perceptions. A change occurred with a reduced emphasis on NSSI as part of a mental disorder, and an increased emphasis on NSSI caused by social factors. NSSI descriptions changed from unusual and severe to common and moderate methods. A process of normalizing and minimizing NSSI behaviour arose and the metaphor of addiction was used to describe NSSI. An initial trend towards writing to increase awareness about NSSI transitioned to blaming the media for a perceived swell in NSSI rates. Articles provided limited commentary on society's role in NSSI behaviours. The current study suggests articles published about NSSI have increased with time, and that the topic of self-injury is being discussed with a broader audience. Implications of normalization and minimization of NSSI, the addiction metaphor for NSSI, self-identifying as a self-injurer, and social factors of NSSI are discussed. %%%%Les cliniciens et les chercheurs ont rapporte que la perception quant a l'automutilation non suicidaire (NSSI) a change au fil du temps, alors qu'il y a eu de la speculation reliee au portrait dresse par les medias a propos de la NSSI et des individus qui se livrent a ce comportement. Cependant, aucune etude a ce jour n'a directement examine la representation de la NSSI dans la presse ecrite de maniere longitudinale. L'objectif de cette these etait d'enqueter sur la representation de la NSSI dans la presse ecrite au cours d'une periode de 20 ans (1988 a 2007) en examinant les articles publies dans des magazines populaires de langue anglaise. Le cadre…
Oligonucleotide-based strategies to combat polyglutamine diseases

Considerable advances have been recently made in understanding the molecular aspects of pathogenesis and in developing therapeutic approaches for polyglutamine (polyQ) diseases. Studies on pathogenic mechanisms have extended our knowledge of mutant protein toxicity, confirmed the toxicity of mutant transcript and identified other toxic RNA and protein entities. One very promising therapeutic strategy is targeting the causative gene expression with oligonucleotide (ON) based tools. This straightforward approach aimed at halting the early steps in the cascade of pathogenic events has been widely tested for Huntington's disease and spinocerebellar ataxia type 3. In this review, we gather information on the use of antisense oligonucleotides and RNA interference triggers for the experimental treatment of polyQ diseases in cellular and animal models. We present studies testing non-allele-selective and allele-selective gene silencing strategies. The latter include targeting SNP variants associated with mutations or targeting the pathologically expanded CAG repeat directly. We compare gene silencing effectors of various types in a number of aspects, including their design, efficiency in cell culture experiments and pre-clinical testing. We discuss advantages, current limitations and perspectives of various ON-based strategies used to treat polyQ diseases.
The contribution of research to the development of a national cannabis policy in Australia.

AIMS To describe the formulation of a National Cannabis Strategy in Australia in 2006 and discuss the contribution that research evidence has made to its development. METHODS A description of trends in cannabis use in Australia and policy responses to it from the early 1970s to the present, with an analysis of the evidence and arguments that have been used to support competing policies towards cannabis use. RESULTS In 1977 an Australian Senate Committee recommended that a national cannabis policy should be developed that removed criminal penalties for personal possession and use. The arguments for the recommendation echoed those used to support similar earlier recommendations made in Canada, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the United States in the late 1960s and early 1970s. They were reiterated by a National Cannabis Task Force in 1994, but a national cannabis strategy was not developed until 2006. By default, the strategy supported continued prohibition on the production and sale of cannabis, and left penalties for cannabis use to state governments. It advocated public education campaigns to discourage young people, especially those at high risk, from initiating cannabis use, and to reduce the progression to regular use among young people who had used cannabis. It also supported efforts to reduce the availability of cannabis and to improve treatment for problem cannabis users. The research evidence which was cited as motivating the development of a national cannabis policy was epidemiological data on rising rates of use among young people, and emerging evidence from longitudinal studies in Australian and New Zealand that some adolescent cannabis users experienced harm as a result of their use. CONCLUSIONS The impact that research evidence has had on Australian cannabis policy over the past three decades has, as in many comparable countries, been constrained by the limited policy options under consideration, and by the fact that interpretation of the evidence has been contested by advocates of the limited policy options under debate.
A population model of vasopressin secretion

Computer modelling is a powerful tool for clarifying and tes ting theory. In neuroscience, this often means replicating firing patterns. Mode ls n ed evaluation functions to quantify the significance of features in the firing pattern s, but usually the effect of firing is insufficiently understood. The magnocellular vasopressin neurons of the hypothalamus do have an output that is both well understood and quantifiable: they secrete a horm one into the bloodstream in proportion to blood osmolarity and volume, regulating th ese properties within a narrow physiologically acceptable range. This response of vasopressin secretion to osmotic pressure must be maintained to defend blood pressur e. The neurons display a distinctive phasic firing pattern, which a model was develo p d to mimic. A further, unique step was then taken of extending this model by develop ing a model for the effect of firing, a stimulus-secretion model. The firing patt ern model and stimulus secretion model were then linked and then noisily duplicate d to produce a population. This population had a measurable performance secretion a llowing evaluation of the model in a novel fashion. The population could replicate the secretory response to os motic pressure observed in vivo. It is possible to test the effect of features by incorporati ng hem into the model and observing the response. A demonstration of this was cond ucte by changing the mix of excitatory and inhibitory PSPs, showing that inhibit ion was necessary for an efficient response. Effective techniques may well be reused elsewhere in the brain, so exploring their significance in a simple system may allow u nderstanding of more complex ones. This project has constructed a model from firing to effect, of fering novel possibilities for quantification and therefore evaluation. The main o utc mes from this work are construction of a simple model system in which features can b e benchmarked; that a integrate and fire model modified to include bistability can e xplain the firing of vasopressin neurons; that secretion could well also be controll ed by a pool structure, similar to other secretory systems and that a population of these cel ls can produce a linear output. It has also confirmed that balanced excitatory and inhib tory input is necessary for the most efficient response. It shows that population per formance is a trade-off between maximising efficiency, maintaining the secretory res ponse over a wide dynamic range and maximising the maximum achievable secretion rate .
Resistive training increases insulin action in postmenopausal women.

BACKGROUND This study examined the effects of 4 months of resistive training in postmenopausal women on glucose metabolism and peripheral tissue sensitivity to endogenously released insulin. METHODS Thirteen moderately obese (30-49% body fat) postmenopausal women (50-65 years) participated in the study. The six more obese women were enrolled in the resistive training with weight loss (RT & WL) program, while the remainder participated in resistive training alone (RT). beta-cell sensitivity to glucose and peripheral tissue sensitivity to endogenously released insulin were examined during hyperglycemic clamps (7.9 mmol/L above basal) before and after the intervention(s). RESULTS The RT program resulted in a significant improvement in upper and lower body strength (p < .01) in all subjects. Body weight, fat mass, and percent body fat decreased with RT & WL (p < .001), but did not change with RT alone. There was no change in fat-free mass or maximal oxygen consumption after the intervention(s). Insulin response during the last 20 min of the 2 hr hyperglycemic clamps (7.9 mmol/L above basal plasma glucose levels) decreased after the intervention(s) in the entire group by 29% (p < .01), but decreased more in the group that lost weight (43%, p < .05) than in women who remained weight stable (16%, p = .05). Glucose utilization did not change. CONCLUSION RT alone, or in combination with WL, increases insulin action and reduces hyperinsulinemia in postmenopausal women. This suggests that RT has the potential to ameliorate and perhaps prevent the development of insulin resistance and may reduce the risk for glucose intolerance and non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) in postmenopausal women.
Casein zymography: a method to study mu-calpain, m-calpain, and their inhibitory agents.

A zymographic assay for calpains in nondenaturing casein-containing polyacrylamide gels was developed. Calpain samples were run into the polyacrylamide gels by electrophoresis using a Tris-glycine buffer containing 1 mM EGTA to stabilize calpains. Upon completion of the electrophoresis, the gels were washed and incubated in a calpain activation buffer containing 1-4 mM calcium and 10 mM dithiothreitol for 20-24 h. After staining of the casein gels with Coomassie blue G250, both mu-calpain and m-calpain showed up as clearing bands. The amount of calpain loaded was proportional to the brightness of the clearing band. m-calpain can be easily distinguished from mu-calpain due to its higher mobility in the gel. Irreversible inhibitor (e.g., E64c) or tight-binding calmidazolium-treated mu-calpain remained inactive in the casein zymogram, whereas reversible inhibitor (e.g., calpain inhibitor I) was released from the protease by migration and dilution, lifting its inhibition. Crude homogenate of cultured cells (erythrocytes, Molt-4 and cerebrocortical neurons) or tissue (rat brain) can be directly analyzed for the presence of calpain isoforms despite the presence of endogenous calpastatin. Using this technique, mu-calpain activity in Molt-4 cells was found to decrease progressively with A23187 treatment, as a reflection of autolytic inactivation.
Persistence of a Salmonella enterica serotype typhimurium clone in Danish pig production units and farmhouse environment studied by pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE)

The clonal relationship among Salmonella enterica serotype Typhimurium isolates from selected pig production units in Denmark was investigated by the pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) typing method to determine environmental survival and spread of Salmonella in different herds. Thirty-four Typhimurium isolated during 1996-1998 from porcine faeces and environmental samples from three pig farms designated 1, 3 and 5 were characterised by PFGE using two restriction enzymes. Farm 5 supplied piglets to farm 1 and the herds were located close to each other. Results of PFGE analysis showed both intra- and inter-relationships, i.e. identical PFGE patterns among the faecal and environmental isolates from farm 1 and farm 5. All the isolates from farm 3 irrespective of the source showed identical PFGE patterns, but were different from samples from farms 1 and 5. This study indicates spread between farms and survival of a farm-specific clone. Furthermore, identical PFGE patterns of isolates from piglet supplier and finisher herds indicate that the farrow-to-grower herd of farm 5 was sub-clinically infected prior to delivery to farm 1 and thereby caused the transmission of Salmonella.
Deoxyuridine triphosphatase (dUTPase) expression and sensitivity to the thymidylate synthase (TS) inhibitorD9331

Uracil DNA misincorporation and misrepair of DNA have been recognized as important events accompanying thymidylate synthase (TS) inhibition. dUTPase catalyses the hydrolysis of dUTP to dUMP, thereby maintaining low intracellular dUTP. We have addressed the relationship between dUTPase expression and cellular sensitivity to TS inhibition in four human lung tumour cell lines. Sensitivity (5-day MTT assay) to the growth inhibitory effects of the non-polyglutamatable, specific quinazoline TS inhibitor ZD9331, varied up to 20-fold (IC503–70 nM). TS protein expression correlated with TS activity (r2= 0.88, P= 0.05). Intracellular concentrations of drug following exposure to ZD9331 (1 μM, 24 h) varied by ~2-fold and dTTP pools decreased by > 80% in all cell lines. No clear associations across the cell lines between intracellular drug concentrations, TS activity/expression, or TTP depletion could be made. dUTPase activity varied 17-fold and correlated with dUTPase protein expression (r2= 0.94, P= 0.03). There was a striking variation in the amount of dUTP formed following exposure to ZD9331 (between 1.3 and 57 pmole 10–6cells) and was in general inversely associated with dUTPase activity. A large expansion in the dUTP pool was associated with increased sensitivity to a 24-h exposure to ZD9331 in A549 cells that have low dUTPase activity/expression. dUTPase expression and activity were elevated (approximately 3-fold) in two variants of a human lymphoblastoid cell line with acquired resistance to TS inhibitors, further suggesting an important role for this enzyme in TS inhibited cells. © 2000 Cancer Research Campaign
Emotional Intelligence at Mid Life: A Cross Sectional Investigation of Structural Variance, Social Correlates, and Relationship to Established Personality and Ability Taxonomies

Emotional Intelligence (EI) has been relatively unstudied after young adulthood. Yet there are a variety of reasons to expect that EI may be different at mid life than in young adulthood. Normative life experiences may lead to increases in EI, and as the array of different environments and experiences increases with age, one might expect greater individual differences in EI. Similarly, if EI is located somewhere at the intersection of personality and intelligence, as some have speculated, it may follow a course of structural differentiation similar to cognitive abilities. EI may be more closely linked to social variables such as loneliness and friendships at mid life, and its relation to established personality and ability factors such as the Big Five (Neuroticism, Extraversion, Openness, Agreeableness, and Conscientiousness) and fluid and crystallized abilities may also vary with age. These hypotheses were investigated in samples of 292 young adults and 246 mid life adults, using the Schutte Self Report Emotional Intelligence Inventory, the NEO-Five Factor Personality Inventory, markers of crystallized and fluid ability from Horn's Crystallized/Fluid Sampler, and a variety of other measures. Mid life adults scored higher on overall EI scores, but evidenced no greater range of individual differences than did young adults. A series of exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses revealed no greater differentiation in the mid life sample either among dimensions of EI or between EI and personality and intelligence variables. Finally, EI appeared equally predictive of social variables in each sample. Results are discussed from the perspective of lifespan and aging literature on emotion, personality, and social functioning. Qualifications for the inference of age-related change in cross sectional designs are considered, along with advantages and disadvantages of factor-analytic and covariance structure modeling methodology. Implications, particularly for psychotherapy with each age group, are discussed.
Cigarette Smoking Among Spouses: Another Risk Factor for Stroke in Women

Background and Purpose— It is well known that passive exposure to cigarette smoking increases the risk of coronary events, but the effect on the risk of stroke is not well defined. We performed this study to determine the effect of cigarette smoking among spouses on the risk of developing stroke and ischemic stroke among a nationally representative sample of women. Methods— We examined the association between history of smoking among spouses with the incidence of stroke in a national cohort of 5379 women who participated in the First National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey Epidemiologic Follow-Up Study. Results— During a mean follow-up of 8.5 years, the risk was significantly increased for all strokes (relative risk, 5.7; 95% CI, 1.4 to 24) and ischemic stroke (relative risk, 4.8; 95% CI, 1.2 to 20) among cigarette-smoking women with a cigarette-smoking spouse compared with those with a nonsmoking spouse after adjusting for other cardiovascular risk factors. Conclusion— The study provides new evidence linking spousal smoking to stroke.
Semiconductors Between Spin-Polarized Sources and Drains

Injecting spins into a semiconductor channel and transforming the spin information into a significant electrical output signal is a long-standing problem in spintronics. This is the prerequisite of several concepts of spin transistor. In this paper, we discuss the general problem of spin transport in a nonmagnetic channel between source and drain. Two problems must be mastered: 1) In diffusive regime, the injection/extraction of a spin-polarized current into/from a semiconductor beyond the ballistic zone at the interface with a magnetic metal requires the insertion of a spin-dependent and large enough interface resistance. 2) In both the diffusive and ballistic regimes and whatever the metallic or semiconducting character of the source/drain, a small enough interface resistance is the condition to keep the dwell time shorter than the spin lifetime and, thus, to conserve the spin-accumulation-induced output signal at an optimum level (DeltaR/Rap1 or larger). Practically, the main difficulties come from the second condition. In our presentation of experimental results, we show why the transformation of spin information into a large electrical signal has been more easily achieved with carbon nanotubes than with semiconductors, and we discuss how the situation could be improved in the later case
Reconstitution of Experimental Neurogenic Bladder Dysfunction Using Skeletal Muscle-Derived Multipotent Stem Cells

Background. Postoperative neurogenic bladder dysfunction is a major complication of radical hysterectomy for cervical cancer and is mainly caused by unavoidable damage to the bladder branch of the pelvic plexus (BBPP) associated with colateral blood vessels. Thus, we attempted to reconstitute disrupted BBPP and blood vessels using skeletal muscle-derived multipotent stem cells that show synchronized reconstitution capacity of vascular, muscular, and peripheral nervous systems. Methods. Under pentobarbital anesthesia, intravesical pressure by electrical stimulation of BBPP was measured as bladder function. The distal portion of BBPP with blood vessels was then cut unilaterally (experimental neurogenic bladder model). Measurements were performed before, immediately after, and at 4 weeks after transplantation as functional recovery. Stem cells were obtained from the right soleus and gastrocnemius muscles after enzymatic digestion and cell sorting as CD34+/45− (Sk-34) and CD34−/45− (Sk-DN). Suspended cells were autografted around the damaged region, whereas medium alone and CD45+ cells were transplanted as control groups. To determine the morphological contribution of the transplanted cells, stem cells obtained from green fluorescent protein transgenic mouse muscles were transplanted into a nude rat model and were examined by immunohistochemistry and immunoelectron microscopy. Results. At 4 weeks after surgery, the transplantation group showed significantly higher functional recovery (∼80%) than the two controls (∼28% and 24%). The transplanted cells showed an incorporation into the damaged peripheral nerves and blood vessels after differentiation into Schwann cells, perineurial cells, vascular smooth muscle cells, pericytes, and fibroblasts around the bladder. Conclusion. Transplantation of multipotent Sk-34 and Sk-DN cells is potentially useful for the reconstitution of damaged BBPP.
The Influence of Reference Groups on Alcohol Consumption: A Tri-Country, Social Marketing Study of Young Women

The purpose of our tri-country, social marketing study was to compare and contrast the influence of reference groups on alcohol consumption among young women attending university. With risky alcohol consumption highly prevalent among young women, our study examined reference group influence on those that consume alcohol responsibly as well as those who do not. Our self-administered quantitative survey was administered in three countries – Australia (n=305); Germany (n=325) and Wales (n=354). Multinominal and binomial logistic regression found that both subjective and group norm influenced the consumption of alcohol by young women in Wales. In Germany, group norm was not a significant predictor of alcohol consumption in contrast to Australia, where group norm influenced low-risk, risky and high-risk alcohol consumption.
A PRECISE ESTIMATE OF THE RADIUS OF THE EXOPLANET HD 149026b FROM SPITZER PHOTOMETRY

We present Spitzer 8 μm transit observations of the extrasolar planet HD 149026b. At this wavelength, transit light curves are weakly affected by stellar limb darkening, allowing for a simpler and more accurate determination of planetary parameters. We measure a planet–star radius ratio of Rp/R⋆ = 0.05158 ± 0.00077, and in combination with ground-based data and independent constraints on the stellar mass and radius, we derive an orbital inclination of and a planet radius of Rp = 0.755 ± 0.040 RJ. These measurements further support models in which the planet is greatly enriched in heavy elements.