Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Blockade of Inflammation and Airway Hyperresponsiveness in Immune-sensitized Mice by Dominant-Negative Phosphoinositide 3-Kinase–TAT

Phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) is thought to contribute to the pathogenesis of asthma by effecting the recruitment, activation, and apoptosis of inflammatory cells. We examined the role of class IA PI3K in antigen-induced airway inflammation and hyperresponsiveness by i.p. administration into mice of Δp85 protein, a dominant negative form of the class IA PI3K regulatory subunit, p85α, which was fused to HIV-TAT (TAT-Δp85). Intraperitoneal administration of TAT-Δp85 caused time-dependent transduction into blood leukocytes, and inhibited activated phosphorylation of protein kinase B (PKB), a downstream target of PI3K, in lung tissues in mice receiving intranasal FMLP. Antigen challenge elicited pulmonary infiltration of lymphocytes, eosinophils and neutrophils, increase in mucus-containing epithelial cells, and airway hyperresponsiveness to methacholine. Except for modest airway neutrophilia, these effects all were blocked by treatment with 3–10 mg/kg of TAT-Δp85. There was also significant reduction in IL-5 and IL-4 secretion into the BAL. Intranasal administration of IL-5 caused eosinophil migration into the airway lumen, which was attenuated by systemic pretreatment with TAT-Δp85. We conclude that PI3K has a regulatory role in Th2-cell cytokine secretion, airway inflammation, and airway hyperresponsiveness in mice.
Impact of Human Enterovirus 71 Genotypes in Meningoencephalitis in Iran

Background: Since the importance of poliovirus has diminished, as a result of its elimination in the majority of countries, non-polioviruses are emerging as causative agents of severe central nervous system (CNS) involvement. Outbreaks of enterovirus 71 (EV71)-associated CNS infections have recently been reported in Asia, Australia, and Europe. Objectives: This is the first study on genotyping of EV71 in children with meningoencephalitis to be carried out in Iran, and it was conducted in order to obtain an improved understanding of the disease burden of this virus, particularly with regard to CNS involvement. Patients and Methods: Viral RNA was extracted from 170 cerebrospinal fluid samples obtained from children aged under 8 years with a primary diagnosis of aseptic meningitis. Specific EV71 PCR was conducted to identify the genotype of the detected EV71 viruses. Results: Human enteroviruses (HEVs) were detected in 89 patients (52.3%). EV71 infection was detected in 19 (21.3%) of the 89 EV71-positive patients, and the C genotype was identified in 15 isolates. Conclusions: The C genotype should be considered as the prevalent EV71 circulating genotype in Iran, particularly in cases of aseptic meningitis.
The impact of the 2008 economic crisis on imprisonment in Europe

We explore how the worldwide economic downturn of the early 2000s affected imprisonment rates across Europe. We test three hypotheses: (i) the recession caused an increase in incarceration rates directly, regulating the excess in labour supply; (ii) it did it indirectly, by affecting crime; (iii) its effects varied according to the institutional context – countries’ welfare states and criminal justice traditions. We use cross-national panel data to fit fixed, random and mixed-effects models and to explain variations in incarceration rates within and across countries during 12 years. The results show that the economic crisis had multiple effects on imprisonment and that these were moderated by the institutional context, increasing it in countries with less comprehensive welfare states and more punitive penal traditions and decreasing it in countries with penal-welfarist policies.
Interval and Continuous Exercise Training Produce Similar Increases in Skeletal Muscle and Left Ventricle Microvascular Density in Rats

Interval training (IT), consisting of alternated periods of high and low intensity exercise, has been proposed as a strategy to induce more marked biological adaptations than continuous exercise training (CT). The purpose of this study was to assess the effects of IT and CT with equivalent total energy expenditure on capillary skeletal and cardiac muscles in rats. Wistar rats ran on a treadmill for 30 min per day with no slope (0%), 4 times/week for 13 weeks. CT has constant load of 70% max; IT has cycles of 90% max for 1 min followed by 1 min at 50% max. CT and IT increased endurance and muscle oxidative capacity and attenuated body weight gain to a similar extent (P > 0.05). In addition, CT and IT similarly increased functional capillary density of skeletal muscle (CT: 30.6 ± 11.7%; IT: 28.7 ± 11.9%) and the capillary-to-fiber ratio in skeletal muscle (CT: 28.7 ± 14.4%; IT: 40.1 ± 17.2%) and in the left ventricle (CT: 57.3 ± 53.1%; IT: 54.3 ± 40.5%). In conclusion, at equivalent total work volumes, interval exercise training induced similar functional and structural alterations in the microcirculation of skeletal muscle and myocardium in healthy rats compared to continuous exercise training.
Proinsulin-Transferrin Fusion Protein as a Novel Long-Acting Insulin Analog for the Inhibition of Hepatic Glucose Production

Proinsulin-transferrin (ProINS-Tf) fusion protein was evaluated for its in vivo pharmacokinetics, efficacy, and mechanism. Our previous studies have shown that ProINS-Tf was converted to active insulin-transferrin (INS-Tf) via the transferrin (Tf)-receptor–mediated pathway in hepatoma cells. We hypothesized that this fusion protein can be administered as a prodrug and be converted to a biologically active protein with specificity for the liver versus other insulin (INS)-sensitive tissues (muscle and adipose). Administration as an inactive prodrug with liver-specific action compared with other INS-sensitive tissues conceivably reduces negative side effects seen with other INS analogs. In this report, the data show that ProINS-Tf exhibited a slow, but sustained, in vivo hypoglycemic efficacy and long plasma half-life. The fusion protein showed activity in the liver, as evidenced by decreased expression of two key hepatic glucose production (HGP) enzymes, PEPCK and glucose-6-phosphatase, and increased glycogen levels under feeding conditions. Furthermore, the INS receptor (IR) phosphorylation (activation) in liver and muscle tissues was compared with postinjection of INS or ProINS-Tf. While INS activated IR in both the liver and muscle, ProINS-Tf only showed activation in the liver. Thus, ProINS-Tf fusion protein can potentially be administered as a prodrug with sustained Tf-mediated activation and selectivity in inhibiting HGP.
A Conservative Adaptive Projection Method for the Variable Density Incompressible Navier-Stokes Equations

In this paper we present a method for solving the equations governing time-dependent, variable density incompressible flow in two or three dimensions on an adaptive hierarchy of grids. The method is based on a projection formulation in which we first solve advection? diffusion equations to predict intermediate velocities, and then project these velocities onto a space of approximately divergence-free vector fields. Our treatment of the first step uses a specialized second-order upwind method for differencing the nonlinear convection terms that provides a robust treatment of these terms suitable for inviscid and high Reynolds number flow. Density and other scalars are advected in such a way as to maintain conservation, if appropriate, and free-stream preservation. Our approach to adaptive refinement uses a nested hierarchy of logically-rectangular girds with simultaneous refinement of the girds in both space and time. The integration algorithm on the grid hierarchy is a recursive procedure in which coarse grids are advanced in time, fine grids are advanced multiple steps to reach the same time as the coarse grids and the data at different levels are then synchronized. The single grid algorithm is described briefly, but the emphasis here is on the time-stepping procedure for the adaptive hierarchy. Numerical examples are presented to demonstrate the algorithms's accuracy and convergence properties, and illustrate the behavior of the method. An additional example demonstrates the performance of the method on a more realistic problem, namely, a three-dimensional variable density shear layer.
Coping Strategies, Causal Attribution and Self-Esteem in Relation to Mental Health: A Cross Cultural Study of Indian and Iranian Students

The aim of the present study was to investigate the relationship of coping strategies, causal attributions, and self-esteem with mental health in Indian and Iranian students. Another major aim of the study was to investigate the differences in terms of coping strategies, causal attributions, self-esteem and mental health between Indian and Iranian students both (boys and girls). The sample of this study is comprised of 800 university students, 400 students from Iran (Sistan and Baluchistan University), and 400 students from India (Aligarh Muslim University). Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations (CISS) by Endler and Parker (1990), Attributional Style Questionnaire (ASQ) by Peterson et al (1982) Self-Esteem Inventory (SEI) by Coopersmith (1978) and General Health Questionairre-28 (GHQ) by Goldberg and Hillier (1979) were administered on the subjects. Descriptive statistics, correlation, step-wise multiple regression and enter multiple linear regressions are used to evaluate the research hypotheses. Independent sample t-test, two way ANOVA test and post-hoc are used to evaluate the research questions. Significantly negative correlation was found between problem focused coping strategies and mental health (GHQ-total), significantly positive correlation was found between emotion focused coping strategies and mental health with 99% confidence but avoidance-focused coping strategies was not significantly correlated with mental health among students. Step-wise multiple regression analyses revealed that emotion-focused coping strategies was first, and problem-focused coping strategies was second important predictor of mental health, but avoidance-focused coping strategies was not a predictor of mental health. Significantly negative correlation was found between internal-external, stable-unstable and global-specific attributional style for positive events with mental health (GHQ-total) with 99% confidence among students. Step-wise multiple regression analyses revealed that stable-unstable and internal-external attributional style were the stronger predictors of 1
Mobile Minecraft: Negotiated space and perceptions of play in Australian families

This article argues that Minecraft played on mobile devices in Australian homes impacts the spaces and perceptions of play within those familial settings. Based on findings from the Games of Mobile Australian Research Council Project, we present examples of how mobile devices bring about particular scenarios of Minecraft play within the household and family dynamics. These scenarios include renegotiating household spaces through acts of mobile Minecraft play, the development of physical gesture rituals through mobile touchscreen interactions, and the complex negotiations involved in shared device usage between different family members. We make the case that through these familial scenarios, the space of Minecraft can become an extension of the family home. These findings offer new insights into mobile-device-based engagement with Minecraft and provide a solid base of information for academic researchers and social policymakers seeking to understand the Minecraft and mobile phenomena. As mobile technology grows in ubiquity, mobile Minecraft becomes increasingly embedded in acts of play. We propose that Minecraft on mobile devices reshapes Australian perceptions of play, creativity, and family dynamics.
A Comparison and Generalization of Blocking and Windowing Algorithms for Duplicate Detection

Duplicate detection is the problem of identifying pairs of records that represent the same real world object, and could thus be merged into a single record. To avoid a prohibitively expensive comparison of all pairs of records, a common technique is to carefully partition the records into smaller subsets. If duplicate records appear in the same partition, only all pairs within each partition must be compared. Two competing approaches are often cited: Blocking methods strictly partition records into disjoint subsets, for instance using zip-codes as partitioning key. Windowing methods, in particular the Sorted-Neighborhood method, sort the data according to some key, such as zip-code, and then slide a window of xed size across the sorted data and compare pairs only within the window. Herein we compare both approaches qualitatively and experimentally. Further, we present a new generalized algorithm, the Sorted Blocks method, with the competing methods as extreme cases. Experiments show that the windowing algorithm is better than blocking and that the generalized algorithm slightly improves upon it in terms of eciency (detected duplicates vs. overall number of comparisons).
A FEROS spectroscopic study of the extreme O supergiant He 3–759

We present a study of the extreme O-type supergiant He 3–759 using new high-resolution FEROS data, revealing that it is a near spectroscopic twin of HD 151804 (O8 Iaf). We investigate the extinction towards He 3–759 using a variety of methods, revealing AV ∼ 4.7 m . If we assume He 3–759 has an identical absolute K-band magnitude to HD 151804 we find that it lies in the SagittariusCarina spiral arm at a distance of ∼6.5 kpc. We derive the physical and wind properties for He 3–759, revealing T∗ = 30. 5k K, logL/L� = 5. 9a ndu
Mast Cells Modulate Acute Toxoplasmosis in Murine Models

The role of mast cells (MCs) in Toxoplasma gondii infection is poorly known. Kunming outbred mice were infected intraperitoneally with RH strain T. gondii, either treated with compound 48/80 (C48/80, MC activator) or disodium cromoglycate (DSCG, MC inhibitor). Compared with infected controls, infected mice treated with C48/80 exhibited significantly increased inflammation in the liver (P < 0.01), spleen (P < 0.05), and mesentery (P < 0.05) tissues, higher parasite burden in the peritoneal lavage fluids (P < 0.01), and increased levels of mRNA transcripts of T. gondii tachyzoite surface antigen 1 (SAG1) gene in the spleen and liver tissues (P < 0.01), accompanied with significantly increased Th1 cytokine (IFN-γ, IL-12p40, and TNF-α) (P < 0.01) and decreased IL-10 (P < 0.01) mRNA expressions in the liver, and increased IFN-γ (P < 0.01) and IL-12p40 (P < 0.01) but decreased TNF-α (P < 0.01) and IL-4 (P < 0.01) in the spleens of infected mice treated with C48/80 at day 9-10 p.i. Whereas mice treated with DSCG had significantly decreased tissue lesions (P < 0.01), lower parasite burden in the peritoneal lavage fluids (P < 0.01) and decreased SAG1 expressions in the spleen and liver tissues (P < 0.01), accompanied with significantly increased IFN-γ (P < 0.01) and IL-12p40 (P < 0.05) in the liver, and decreased IFN-γ (P < 0.05) and TNF-α (P < 0.01) in the spleens; IL-4 and IL-10 expressions in both the spleen and liver were significantly increased (P < 0.01) in the infected mice treated with DSCG. These findings suggest that mediators associated with the MC activation may play an important role in modulating acute inflammatory pathogenesis and parasite clearance during T. gondii infection in this strain of mice. Thus, MC activation/inhibition mechanisms are potential novel targets for the prevention and control of T. gondii infection.
Sex Differences in a Cross Sectional Study of Age-related Hearing Loss in Korean

Objectives The purpose of this study was to obtain sex- and age-specific reference level for hearing threshold of normal aging in Korean and to determine if the rate of change in pure-tone hearing thresholds differed by sex. Methods Subjects were clients who visited the Health Promotion Center, Daegu Fatima Hospital, Daegu, Korea, from January 2004 to September 2005. Pure-tone audiometric measures were obtained from 3,470 subjects who also completed a hearing questionnaire. The slope of a linear regression was used to estimate the rate of change in pure-tone thresholds at 0.25 to 8 kHz for each ear in 214 men and 902 women without past history of otorrhea, usage of ototoxic drugs, head injury, job in noisy environment, and military service. Results Hearing thresholds were elevated with age in all test frequencies. Significant sex differences were found in pure-tone thresholds at 4 and 8 kHz after adjusting for age using analysis of covariance. In those high frequencies, hearing was worse in men than in women. The average rate of change in threshold was 0.28 and 0.24 dB per year at 0.25 kHz, increasing gradually to 1.27 and 1.05 dB per year at 8 kHz for men and women, respectively. Men had significantly faster rates of threshold increase at 4 and 8 kHz than women. Conclusion These cross-sectional measures of hearing levels and rate of threshold increases at 4 and 8 kHz showed significant sex differences in Korean men and women with little evidence of noise-induced hearing loss.
Ancestral State Reconstruction Reveals Rampant Homoplasy of Diagnostic Morphological Characters in Urticaceae, Conflicting with Current Classification Schemes

Urticaceae is a family with more than 2000 species, which contains remarkable morphological diversity. It has undergone many taxonomic reorganizations, and is currently the subject of further systematic studies. To gain more resolution in systematic studies and to better understand the general patterns of character evolution in Urticaceae, based on our previous phylogeny including 169 accessions comprising 122 species across 47 Urticaceae genera, we examined 19 diagnostic characters, and analysed these employing both maximum-parsimony and maximum-likelihood approaches. Our results revealed that 16 characters exhibited multiple state changes within the family, with ten exhibiting >eight changes and three exhibiting between 28 and 40. Morphological synapomorphies were identified for many clades, but the diagnostic value of these was often limited due to reversals within the clade and/or homoplasies elsewhere. Recognition of the four clades comprising the family at subfamily level can be supported by a small number carefully chosen defining traits for each. Several non-monophyletic genera appear to be defined only by characters that are plesiomorphic within their clades, and more detailed work would be valuable to find defining traits for monophyletic clades within these. Some character evolution may be attributed to adaptive evolution in Urticaceae due to shifts in habitat or vegetation type. This study demonstrated the value of using phylogeny to trace character evolution, and determine the relative importance of morphological traits for classification.
Functional Organization in the Motor Cortex

Acknowledgments First of all I would like to thank my advisors, Eilon-for introducing me to the world of research in neuroscience, and Udi-thanks for taking a chance, both on this project and on me personally. Thanks for the guidance and for the encouragement when I was having doubts. Tanya – thanks for your patients and for sharing your tremendous knowledge. Thanks for losing sleep over every question I had as if it were your own. Ayelet and Tal – thanks for the much needed graphic consultation. Itai – thank you for letting me use your data, and for investing time to help me whenever I needed. I especially would like to thank Lior for the wonderful collaboration. I learned a lot from you. It was a pleasure working with you, and I hope we get to work together again. Thank to everybody in the lab for listening, giving advice, helping me run experiments and volunteering as subjects. and Zvi – thanks for making this time memorable. To my husband Ohad – thanks for coming with me to the scanner on weekends at a moment's notice. Thanks for being there for me and sharing moments of despair as well as moments of joy. Thank you so much. Last, to my parents who have been dying to see me finish, almost as much as I have – thanks for everything. Abstract The representation of reaching movements in the macaque brain has been studied extensively for several decades using electrophysiological methods. Primary motor cortex (M1) neurons have been shown to encode many parameters of arm movements, including movement direction. Lately, the representation of reaching movements has been studied in the human brain as well using different non-invasive methods, including electroencephalography (EEG), magnetoencephalography (MEG) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). I continue this trend here by studying directionality of reaching movements in humans using fMRI, and attempt to bridge over the gap between electrophysiological data from monkeys and imaging data from humans. Hubel and Wiesel have showed in the 1960's that neurons in the primary visual cortex are organized according to their orientation preference; i.e., neurons that respond most strongly to a certain orientation are most likely to be clustered with neighboring neurons that have a similar preferred orientation. Since then, it has been shown that neurons in the medial temporal cortex (MT) are organized according to their preference for observed motion direction, and …
An extended 'learning by design' framework based on learner perceptions

Abstract This study focuses on Grade 6 learners' perceptions of 'learning as design' during the creation of a collaborative hypermedia product. Data were generated via a Likert Scale questionnaire, semi-structured interviews, learner journals, observational notes, Task Elicitation List, Task Ranking List and open-ended learner evaluation reports. The findings of the study are considered within Lehrer's framework for hyper-composition-based design, i.e. planning, translating and transforming, evaluation and revising. Inferences are made which suggest that a more explicit and comprehensive overview of the process can be presented as an ‘extended learning by design’ model. This framework or model is visually presented to prospective implementers.
Schooling and Identity: A Qualitative Analysis of Self-Portrait Drawings of Young Indigenous People from Chiapas, Mexico

One of the features associated with schooling and formal education is their decontextualized nature, a characteristic that has been related to the advancement of logical abstract thinking. The aim of this study was to compare and contrast self-portraits through the graphical representations and verbal explanations made by young indigenous people from the Altos de Chiapas with different educational levels ranging from primary school to university. Participants were of the same age. The results show the abstract nature (as opposed to the concrete character) of some of the self-portraits made by the group of university students and the prevalence of individual aspects (rather than social contextual factors) especially within this same group.