Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The IDO–AhR Axis Controls Th17/Treg Immunity in a Pulmonary Model of Fungal Infection

In infectious diseases, the enzyme indoleamine 2,3 dioxygenase-1 (IDO1) that catalyzes the tryptophan (Trp) degradation along the kynurenines (Kyn) pathway has two main functions, the control of pathogen growth by reducing available Trp and immune regulation mediated by the Kyn-mediated expansion of regulatory T (Treg) cells via aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR). In pulmonary paracoccidioidomycosis (PCM) caused by the dimorphic fungus Paracoccidioides brasiliensis, IDO1 was shown to control the disease severity of both resistant and susceptible mice to the infection; however, only in resistant mice, IDO1 is induced by TGF-β signaling that confers a stable tolerogenic phenotype to dendritic cells (DCs). In addition, in pulmonary PCM, the tolerogenic function of plasmacytoid dendritic cells was linked to the IDO1 activity. To further evaluate the function of IDO1 in pulmonary PCM, IDO1-deficient (IDO1−/−) C57BL/6 mice were intratracheally infected with P. brasiliensis yeasts and the infection analyzed at three postinfection periods regarding several parameters of disease severity and immune response. The fungal loads and tissue pathology of IDO1−/− mice were higher than their wild-type controls resulting in increased mortality rates. The evaluation of innate lymphoid cells showed an upregulated differentiation of the innate lymphoid cell 3 phenotype accompanied by a decreased expansion of ILC1 and NK cells in the lungs of infected IDO1−/− mice. DCs from these mice expressed elevated levels of costimulatory molecules and cytokine IL-6 associated with reduced production of IL-12, TNF-α, IL-1β, TGF-β, and IL-10. This response was concomitant with a marked reduction in AhR production. The absence of IDO1 expression caused an increased influx of activated Th17 cells to the lungs with a simultaneous reduction in Th1 and Treg cells. Accordingly, the suppressive cytokines IL-10, TGF-β, IL-27, and IL-35 appeared in reduced levels in the lungs of IDO1−/− mice. In conclusion, the immunological balance mediated by the axis IDO/AhR is fundamental to determine the balance between Th17/Treg cells and control the severity of pulmonary PCM.
Effects of inspired oxygen on echocardiographic assessment of pulmonary vascular resistance and myocardial contractility in bronchopulmonary dysplasia.

We studied the effects of minor changes of inspired oxygen in ten preterm infants (birth weight: 700 to 1,780 gm; postnatal age: 4 to 18 weeks) with severe bronchopulmonary dysplasia. We compared the echocardiogram, capillary blood gases, and calculated venous admixture when the oxygen level was raised or lowered by 10% of the initial value. Mean ambient inspired oxygen was 0.31, capillary Po2 was 62 torr, and calculated venous admixture was 40%. The ratio of right ventricular preejection period to right ventricular ejection time (RPEP/RVET) was 0.32, suggesting mild increase in pulmonary vascular resistance. In all instances, there was echocar-diographic evidence of further increase in pulmonary vascular resistance with a minor decrease in inspired oxygen. Lowering the inspired oxygen to 0.28 resulted in a reduction in Pao2 to 54 torr, an increase in calculated venous admixture to 47%, and an increase in RPEP/RVET to 0.36 (P <.001). Raising the inspired oxygen to 0.34 increased Pao2 to 72 torr but had no effect on RPEP/RVET. Calculated venous admixture decreased to 33% (P <.001). Myocardial contractility did not change with decrease in inspired oxygen but improved slightly with increase in inspired oxygen. These preliminary findings suggest that in infants with bronchopulmonary dysplasia the Pao2 should be kept > 55 torr and the RPEP/RVET < 0.35 to avoid the development of right heart failure.
Acidification of phagosomes is initiated before lysosomal enzyme activity is detected

We have measured changes of pH in a protein's microenvironment consequent on its binding to the cell surface and incorporation into pinosomes. Changes of pH were measured from single, living cells and selected regions of cells by the fluorescence ratio technique using a photon-counting microspectrofluorimeter. The chemotactic agent and pinocytosis inducer, ribonuclease, labeled with fluorescein (FTC- RNase), adsorbed to the surface of Amoeba proteus, and was pinocytosed by cells in culture media at pH 7.0. The FTC-RNase entered an apparently acidic microenvironment, pH approximately 6.1, upon binding to the surface of amoebae. Once enclosed within pinosomes, this protein's microenvironment became steadily more acidic, reaching a minimum of pH approximately 5.6 in less than 10 min. FTC-RNase pinocytosed by the giant amoeba, Chaos carolinensis, entered pinosomes whose pH was correlated with their cytoplasmic location during the initial 30-40 min after pinocytosis. The majority of pinosomes containing FTC-RNase clustered in the tail ectoplasm of C. carolinensis during this interval and had a pH of approximately 6.5; those released into endoplasm and carried into the tip of cells had a pH below 5.0. As pinosomes became distributed at random in C. carolinensis (1-2 h after initial pinocytosis), differences in pH between tip and tail pinosomes vanished. We have also measured the pH within single phagosomes of A. proteus. Phagosomal pH dropped steadily to approximately 5.4 within 5 min after particle ingestion in 70% of the cells measured, and reached this level of acidity within 10 min in 90% of the cells measured. By contrast, stain for the lysosomal enzyme, acid phosphatase, was evident within only 20% of 5-min-old phagosomes visualized by light microscopy, and within only 40% of 10-min-old phagosomes. A microfluorimetric assay was used to simultaneously record changes in pH, and the initial deposition of lysosomal esterases, within phagosomes of single, living Amoeba proteus. Near complete acidification of the phagosome was recorded from some cells before phagosomal fusion was evident by this microfluorimetric assay. From other cells, however, continued acidification of phagosomes was recorded after lysosomal fusion was initiated. We conclude that acidification of phagosomes by A. proteus is initiated but not necessarily completed prior to phagosome-lysosome formation, and that the two events are closely linked in time. Initial acidification of endosomes is a property intrinsic to the plasma membrane which envelops particles at the cell surface, rather than the result of lysosomal fusion with phagosomes.
Grading the practice of teaching: an unholy union of incompatibles

This paper reviews policy in the assessment of school experience and examines the practice of grading currently in place in Scotland and supported by the General Teaching Council for Scotland. It discusses the problems inherent in attempts to grade practice, notably the difficulty of controlling for contextual variation between different placements. It explores research in this area in order to see whether there is any evidence that such practices can be reliable or valid. It concludes that grading is unsustainable in the light of both the research evidence and the conceptual problems that underpin the assessment of school experience.
MicroRNA 142-3p Mediates Post-Transcriptional Regulation of D1 Dopamine Receptor Expression

The D1 dopamine receptor subtype is expressed in the brain, kidney and lymphocytes. D1 receptor function has been extensively studied and the receptor has been shown to modulate a wide range of physiological functions and behaviors. The expression of D1 receptor is known to change during development, disease states and chronic treatment; however, the molecular mechanisms that mediate the changes in D1 receptor expression under these circumstances are not well understood. While previous studies have identified extracellular factors and signaling mechanisms regulating the transcription of D1 receptor gene, very little is known about other regulatory mechanisms that modulate the expression of the D1 receptor gene. Here we report that the D1 receptor is post-transcriptionally regulated during postnatal mouse brain development and in the mouse CAD catecholaminergic neuronal cell line. We demonstrate that this post-transcriptional regulation is mediated by a molecular mechanism involving noncoding RNA. We show that the 1277 bp 3′untranslated region of D1 receptor mRNA is necessary and sufficient for mediating the post-transcriptional regulation. Using deletion and site-directed mutagenesis approaches, we show that the D1 receptor post-transcriptional regulation is specifically mediated by microRNA miR-142-3p interacting with a single consensus binding site in the 1277 bp 3′untranslated region of D1 receptor mRNA. Inhibiting endogenous miR-142-3p in CAD cells increased endogenous D1 receptor protein expression levels. The increase in D1 receptor protein levels was biologically significant as it resulted in enhanced D1 receptor-mediated signaling, determined by measuring the activation of both, adenylate cyclase and, the dopamine- and cAMP-regulated phosphoprotein, DARPP-32. We also show that there is an inverse correlation between miR-142-3p levels and D1 receptor protein expression in the mouse brain during postnatal development. This is the first study to demonstrate that the post-transcriptional regulation of D1 receptor expression is mediated by microRNA-induced translational suppression.
Assessment for Learning: The differing perceptions of tutors and students

The purpose of this study was to describe assessment practices as these were experienced by tutors and students in one higher education establishment. Eighty members of faculty staff (80% return) and 130 3rd-year undergraduates (100% return) completed a 40-item questionnaire on their experiences of assessment. The questionnaire included items on the purpose of assessment, the nature and demand level of the tasks which were assessed, the timing of assessment and the procedures for marking and reporting. Statistical analyses of the data showed that there was a significant difference of perception between the two groups. These results are discussed in terms of alternative theoretical models of assessment and suggest that while staff declared a commitment to the formative purposes of assessment and maintained that the full range of learning was frequently assessed, they engaged in practices which militated against formative assessment and authentic assessment being fully realised.
Police effectiveness and democracy: shape and direction of the relationship

Purpose – The purpose of the paper is to show that four plausible hypotheses can be formulated (positive linear, negative linear, convex curvilinear, and concave curvilinear) to explain the impact of democratization on the ability of police to produce security.Design/methodology/approach – Multiple regression analyzing measures of police effectiveness from the Executive Opinion Survey (World Economic Forum) and indicators of democratization (Freedom House) for 59 countries was performed to evaluate the four hypotheses.Findings – Results strongly supported the convex curvilinear hypothesis that democracy and police effectiveness maintained a U‐shape association. Undemocratic countries and the advanced democracies experienced the highest levels of police effectiveness, whereas middle‐range countries showed lower ratings of police performance.Research limitations/implications – Despite initial discontents with the police, emerging democracies could expect improved police effectiveness should they persist in .
Cutting the cord: student‐led discussion groups in higher education

As the world of higher education has become increasingly sensitive to employers’ needs so attention has focused on the development of skills and competences which will equip graduates to function effectively in the labour market. High on the list of graduates’ desired qualities are first, the ability to work in a team and second, the capacity for independent thought and action. At the same time, there has been a growing recognition that traditional methods of teaching (primarily tutorials and lectures) may be serving to perpetuate the opposite, namely dependency and passivity. With these issues in mind, the article outlines the experience of using leaderless group discussions and associated peer assessment as an integral part of an undergraduate degree programme. The practicalities of running the groups, the lessons which have been learnt over time, and the benefits for student learning are also discussed.
Fast and stable wavelength-selective switch using double-series coupled dielectric microring resonator

We demonstrated a hitless wavelength-channel-selective switch (hitless tunable add-drop filter) using thermooptic effect of double series coupled dielectric microring resonator. Using a dielectric material as the core, the response time was reduced to 105 (rise time) and 15 mus (fall time), which are 15-fold and 100-fold faster than that of polymer material, and the reproducibility by the heat cycle test was also improved to less than 0.01 nm. The tuning range of wavelength-selective switch was expanded to 13.3 nm using the Vernier effect, and a large extinction ratio of more than 20 dB was realized
Sodium-hydrogen exchanger inhibition, pharmacologic ischemic preconditioning, or both for extended cardiac allograft preservation1

Background. The aim of this study was to determine the efficacy of cariporide (a sodium-hydrogen exchanger inhibitor), BMS180448 (a pharmacologic ischemic preconditioning agent), and the combination thereof, as adjuvant therapies for extended cardiac allograft preservation. Methods. A porcine model of donor brain death and orthotopic heart transplantation was used. All hearts were arrested and stored for 14 hr in an extracellular preservation solution. Control hearts (CON; n=3) did not receive any additional treatment. Treated hearts received BMS180448 alone (BMS; n=3), cariporide alone (CAR; n=6), or both BMS180448 and cariporide (B+C; n=6). Donors of BMS180448-treated hearts received 2 mg/kg, 15 min before explantation. Donors and recipients of cariporide-treated hearts received 2 mg/kg, 15 min before explantation and reperfusion, respectively. Results. The CON and BMS arms of the study were terminated after three transplantations because initial results in these groups were poor. Significantly, none of the control hearts could be weaned successfully from bypass, whereas all of the treated hearts were weaned successfully (CAR vs. CON and B+C vs. CON:P =0.012). The rate of troponin I release during the first 3 hr after reperfusion was significantly lower in CAR (P =0.0180) and B+C (P =0.0154) recipients than in CON recipients. Mean plasma troponin I levels (&mgr;g/mL) 3 hr after reperfusion were as follows: CON 633±177, BMS 576±110, CAR 346±93, and B+C 296±97. Conclusion. In this porcine model of extended cardiac allograft preservation, cariporide was more effective than BMS180448 as an adjuvant to our usual preservation solution. There was no additional benefit from the combination of the two therapies.
Enhancing Self-Efficacy and Learning Performance

Abstract The effect of a communication designed to enhance the self-efficacy beliefs of introductory psychology students was examined. The author assigned students (N = 123) into above average, average, and below average performance categories. All students were invited to send the author an e-mail to receive a bonus point. Of the students who responded (n = 76), half were sent an e-mail message designed to enhance their efficacy beliefs, while the other half received a neutral note. As predicted, self-efficacy beliefs were significantly related to exam scores and significantly affected by the efficacy-enhancing communication.
IPAL Knowledge-based Medical Image Retrieval in ImageCLEFmed 2006

This paper presents the contribution of IPAL group on the CLEF 2006 medical retrieval task (i.e. ImageCLEFmed). The main idea of our group is to incorporate medical knowledge in the retrieval system within a multimodal fusion framework. For text, this knowledge is in the Uni ed Medical Language System (UMLS) sources. For images, this knowledge is in semantic features that are learned from examples within structured learning framework. We propose to represent both image and text using UMLS concepts. The use of UMLS concepts allows the system to work at a higher semantic level and to standardize the semantic index of medical data, facilitating the communication between visual end textual indexing and retrieval. The results obtained with UMLS-based approaches show the potential of this conceptual indexing, especially when using a semantic dimension ltering, and the bene t of working within a fusion framework, leading to the best results of ImageCLEFmed 2006. We also test a visual retrieval system based on manual query design and visual task fusion. Even if it provides the best visual results, this purely visual retrieval provides poor results in comparison to the best textual approaches.
Sense of attachment to place and fulfilled preferences, the mediating role of housing satisfaction

Purpose – This study aims to examine the possibility that housing satisfaction mediates the relationship between fulfilled preference and a sense of attachment to place.Design/methodology/approach – A 15‐item questionnaire was administrated to 751 students residing in residence halls at a public university in Malaysia. The respondents were asked to choose their answer from a four‐point Likert scale that was constructed as follows: not at all; very little; mostly; and very much.Findings – The results of the survey revealed that housing satisfaction partially mediated the relationship between fulfilled preferences and sense of attachment to place. These results highlight the importance of students' fulfilled preferences. It reveals that the more students' preferences regarding residence hall were fulfilled, the more they were satisfied with their residence hall and felt attached to it.Originality/value – The findings of this study emphasise the importance of understanding students' residence hall needs and .
Electoral Participation and Political Context: The Turnout–Marginality Paradox at the 2001 British General Election

Constituency-level analyses of electoral turnout commonly uncover a correlation between the marginality of a seat and the level of electoral participation in the seat: the closer the local contest, the greater the rate of participation in the election. However, repeated efforts to assess the impact of constituency marginality on the propensity of individual electors to participate have met with failure. The 2001 British General Election was no exception to either result. This presence of an ecological aggregate-level relationship which is not replicated at the level of individual voters is paradoxical. However, the paradox can be resolved when two analytical steps are combined. First, nonvoters are classified into two groups according to their reasons for abstention: those who abstain on purpose (‘voluntary abstainers’), and those who fail to vote for reasons largely beyond their control (‘involuntary abstainers’). Second, attention is paid not only to actual marginality but also to perceived marginality. Individuals who think their constituency is competitive are less likely to abstain deliberately than individuals who think their constituency is safe.
Guerrillas in the Bureaucracy: The Community Planning Experiment in the United States.

For which audiences would the book be useful? First, it is aimed at the "recruit . for action sociology. " Second, it is for hybrids-i.e., professors who are also off-campus sociologists. Third, it is a challenge to educated people who regard sociology as "professional scientism (theoretical and methodological sophistry) . " Included in this third audience are those who exert "pressure on graduate students and young academics to stay closer to home . "-i.e., to confine academic sociology to the cam-
Post-transplant hypophosphatemia.

Laboratory data on at least three occasions revealed hypo-phosphatemia associated with a marked decrease in the renaltubular reabsorption of phosphate and a decrease in the renaltubular transport maximum of phosphate (TmPi/GFR; Table 1). His renal function has remained stable with a creatinine clear-ance (GFR) of 102 mL/min. The decrease in TmPi/GFR occurredin the presence of parathyroid hormone (PTH); PTH-relatedpeptide; 25(OH) vitamin D
Counselling psychologists' perceptions of the impact of mandatory personal therapy on professional development--an exploratory study

A qualitative study was carried out with recently qualified and trainee counselling psychologists to investigate their opinions as to the impact of mandatory personal therapy on their professional development. The methodology employed was grounded theory using data obtained from indvidual and group interviews. The results indicate that mandatory personal therapy can lead to perceived positive outcomes in terms of professional development including: a sense of the self as a professional through developing reflexivity as a result of being in the role of client; socialization into a professional role through validational and normative experiences such as the therapist modelling good and poor practice; support during times of personal difficulty; and, personal development that leads to a perceived improved ability for the participant to distinguish between personal issues and those of the client. An important effect for participants who did not have a previous substantial experience of personal therapy appeared to be the validation of therapy as an effective psychological intervention.
Regulation of opioid peptide synthesis and processing in adrenal chromaffin cells by catecholamines and cyclic adenosine 3':5'- monophosphate

Primary cultures of bovine adrenal medullary chromaffin cells were used to study the regulation of opioid peptide (OP) synthesis. Chromaffin cells continuously exposed to tetrabenazine, a drug that depletes cellular catecholamine stores, increase their OP contents between 32 hr and 6 days of treatment. At no time following tetrabenazine addition were increases in opiate receptor-inactive enkephalin-containing peptides (IECPs) observed. Because IECPs may serve as precursors to OPs, these results suggest increased processing of OP precursors following treatment with catecholamine-depleting drugs in addition to an increased rate of OP precursor synthesis. The increases in cellular OP levels induced by tetrabenazine were approximately proportional to the depletion in cellular catecholamines produced by this drug. Also, the effects of tetrabenazine on chromaffin cell OP and IECP contents were mimicked by inhibitors of catecholamine biosynthesis and other agents that decreased catecholamine stores, but not by supplementing the culture medium with catecholamines or catecholamine receptor agonists. Addition of 8-bromo-cAMP or forskolin, an activator of adenylate cyclase, to chromaffin cell cultures increased both OP and IECP stores. Inhibitors of cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterase also increase chromaffin cell OP and IECP contents, although it is unclear whether these increases result from increased cyclic nucleotide levels. Hence, both alterations in some intracellular catecholamine pool and elevations of cAMP levels may trigger increases in the synthesis and processing of OPs and IECPs in the adrenal medullary chromaffin cell.
Toward a social relational model of Deaf childhood

This paper advances a social relational model of Deaf childhood as a guiding framework for working with Deaf children in a present-day universal neonatal hearing screening and early intervention context. The authors discuss how Deaf children are contextualized in a medical model discourse, in a social model of Deaf childhood, and in a Deaf culture discourse. A social relational model is then discussed in with reference to a capability approach and to findings from the first author’s study of parents and young children participating in an American Sign Language shared reading program in Ontario, Canada.