Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Daughter Cells and Erythroid Cells Budding from PGCCs and Their Clinicopathological Significances in Colorectal Cancer

Purpose: We previously reported that polyploid giant cancer cells (PGCCs) induced by cobalt chloride (CoCl2) exhibit cancer stem cell properties. Daughter cells generated by PGCCs possess epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT) phenotype changes and EMT plays an important role in cancer development and progression. This study investigated the characteristics of PGCCs from LoVo and HCT116 induced by CoCl2 and the clinicopathological significances of PGCCs in colorectal cancer (CRC). Materials and Methods: Western blotting and immunocytochemical staining were used to compare the expression levels of EMT-related proteins between PGCCs with budding daughter cells and the control cells. In addition, tissue samples were collected from 159 patients with CRC for analysis of PGCCs, vasculogenic mimicry (VM), and single stromal PGCCs with budding, as well as immunohistochemical staining for cathepsin B, vimentin, and hemoglobin A. Results: Single PGCCs induced by CoCl2 formed spheroids in vitro. Poorly differentiated CRCs showed the highest numbers of PGCCs and VM, and expression of cathepsin B. There was greater expression of EMT-related proteins in PGCCs with budding daughter cells than in control cells. The expression of vimentin located in PGCC nuclei. Single stomal PGCCs with budding were detected in 27.45% of well differentiated, 50% of moderately differentiated, and 90.20% of poorly differentiated CRC samples. PGCCs can generate erythroid cells that express delta-hemoglobin to form VM. Erythroid cells generated by PGCCs were positive for hemoglobin A immunocytochemical staining. Conclusion: PGCCs from LoVo and HCT116 treated by CoCl2 exhibited cancer stem cell properties. The number of PGCCs and VM were associated with CRC differentiation and daughter cells budded from PGCCs may promote the lymph node metastasis via expression of EMT-related proteins. PGCCs and their newly generated erythroid cells form VM structures.
Social visualization and negotiation: effects of feedback configuration and status

We describe a social visualization system that monitors the vocal arousal levels of the participants in a simulated two-party employment negotiation. In a 3x2 factorial experiment (N = 84), we manipulate two variables of interest for social visualization systems: the feedback configuration of the system's display (participants receive self feedback vs. partner feedback vs. no feedback) and the status of the interactants (high vs. low). Receiving feedback about one's own arousal level has negative consequences for performance in and feelings about the negotiation. Receiving feedback about one's partner's arousal level interacts with status: high-status individuals benefit from the visualization, while low-status individuals do not.
Machine Learning , Information Retrieval , and Record Linkage

Classification into groups using terms available in the data underlies machine learning, information retrieval, and record linkage. Classifiers such as Bayesian networks in machine learning and term weighting in information retrieval depend primarily on training data sets for which truth is known. These classifiers may be relatively slow to adapt to new situations in which new data have characteristics significantly different from the training data. Record linkage has been characterized by data in which training data can differ significantly from new data being classified. By using structuring ideas introduced by Fellegi and Sunter in their classic 1969 JASA paper, record linkage researchers have been able to apply the EM algorithm and Markov Chain Monte Carlo ideas to make classifiers automatically adapt to new data. We show how these ideas can be used to improve the learnability of Bayesian networks. We also use some of the ideas from machine learning that are superficially related to boosting to show how non-naïve Bayesian classifiers can make better use of training data.
From Insult to Estrangement and Injury: The Violence of Racist Police Jokes

This article examines racially derogatory police jokes, what we call “racist blue humor,” as discourse that negatively targets and ridicules racial and ethnic minorities as inferior, dangerous, or as objects of symbolic and cultural violence. We argue that racist blue humor fosters the social acceptability of prejudice and discrimination among officers, normalizing a culture of dehumanization that legitimizes structural and direct violence. We analyze illustrative cases of racist blue humor in the light of critical race theory, humor studies, and other work in behavioral science to elaborate this violence and its potential for harm across multiple contexts. Racist blue humor engenders legal estrangement, diminishes protection and representation in law, and heightens exposure to police and other state violence. We conclude with considerations for research and policy, including order-maintenance policing of racist blue humor.
Effects of Stock Market Fluctuations on the Adequacy of Retirement Wealth Accumulation

This paper examines the relation between fluctuations in the aggregate value of equities and the adequacy of households’ saving for retirement. Using more recent data than most studies on this topic, we find that many and perhaps most households appear to be saving adequate amounts for retirement, and that there is almost no link between aggregate equity values and the adequacy of retirement saving. A simulated 40 percent decline in stocks has little effect on the adequacy of saving. The substantial growth in equity values and ownership in the 1980s and 1990s did not lead to a surge in the adequacy of retirement saving provisions. The results occur because equity holdings are concentrated among households with significant amounts of other wealth.
Confusing Action and Imagination: Action Source Monitoring in Individuals With Schizotypal Traits

To explore whether schizotypal traits may undermine source monitoring for actions, 67 undergraduate participants (21 men) completed the Schizotypal Personality Scale and were then given a source-monitoring task in which some specific acts had to be performed, whereas others only had to be imagined. Next, participants had to complete an old-new recognition task and ascribe the source, i.e., whether they had performed or only imagined the items (i.e., source monitoring). Participants also completed a working memory capacity task (i.e., Operation Span task). We found that the higher the Schizotypal Personality Scale scores, the poorer recognition and source attribution scores. Relative to participants with low levels of schizotypal traits (i.e., controls), those with higher levels of schizotypal traits more often falsely claimed to have performed actions when in fact they had only imagined them. Although participants high and low in schizotypical traits did not differ in their working memory capacity, poor working memory capacity was related to source misattribution (i.e., increase false alarms). The present findings indicate that schizotypal traits undermine source monitoring for action in a healthy population.
Prevention and Treatment of Experimental Estrogen Receptor – Negative Mammary Carcinogenesis by the Synthetic Triterpenoid CDDO-Methyl Ester and the Rexinoid LG100268

Purpose: To test whether the triterpenoid 2-cyano-3,12-dioxooleana-1,9(11)-dien-28-oic acid methyl ester (CDDO-Me) and the rexinoid LG100268 (268) prevent the formation of estrogen receptor (ER)–negative mammary tumors or either arrest the growth or cause regression of established tumors in MMTV-neu mice. Experimental Design: For prevention, mice were fed control diet, CDDO-Me (60 mg/kg diet), 268 (20 mg/kg diet), or the combination for 45 weeks. For treatment, mice with established tumors at least 4 mm in diameter were fed control diet, CDDO-Me (100 mg/kg diet), 268 (60 mg/kg diet), or the combination for 4 weeks. Results: CDDO-Me and 268 significantly delayed the development of ER-negative tumors, with a 14- and 24-week delay, respectively, compared with the control group for the time required to reach 50% tumor incidence. The combination of CDDO-Me and 268 was significantly more potent than the individual drugs, as only one tumor was found in the combination group, after 45 weeks on diet, at which time all control animals had tumors. Treating established tumors with CDDO-Me arrested the growth of 86% of the tumors, and 268 induced tumor regression in 85% of tumors. CDDO-Me and 268 target different signaling pathways and cell types. CDDO-Me inhibited constitutive STAT3 phosphorylation and the degradation of IKBα in ER-negative breast cancer cells, whereas 268 blocked IKBα degradation and the release of interleukin-6 in RAW264.7 macrophage-like cells, inhibited the ability of endothelial cells to organize into networks, and blocked angiogenesis in vivo. Conclusions: CDDO-Me and 268 are useful as individual drugs to prevent ER-negative mammary tumorigenesis and to treat established tumors. They synergize when used in combination for prevention.
Doctoral Interns’ Perceptions of Preparedness to Work with Victims and Survivors of Sexual Assault at University Counseling Centers

ABSTRACT Counselors at university counseling centers (UCCs) should be prepared to provide services to sexual assault victims and survivors, as an estimated 23% of females and 5% of males are assaulted during college, with rates being higher for sexual and gender minority students. We surveyed doctoral interns (N = 49) at UCCs regarding interns’ training and educational experiences during their graduate programs, practicum, and internship placements, as well as the services that the interns and UCCs provide to recent victims. Among our findings, 96% of the sample had expected to work with a recent victim, 82% had already done so, and only 22% perceived themselves as fully prepared to provide such services. In addition, the majority of UCC interns had focused on sexual assault cases during case conferences, didactic trainings, and supervision. These results have implications for graduate programs and internship sites.
Identification of a Functional, CRM-1-Dependent Nuclear Export Signal in Hepatitis C Virus Core Protein

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a major cause of chronic liver disease worldwide. HCV core protein is involved in nucleocapsid formation, but it also interacts with multiple cytoplasmic and nuclear molecules and plays a crucial role in the development of liver disease and hepatocarcinogenesis. The core protein is found mostly in the cytoplasm during HCV infection, but also in the nucleus in patients with hepatocarcinoma and in core-transgenic mice. HCV core contains nuclear localization signals (NLS), but no nuclear export signal (NES) has yet been identified. We show here that the aa(109–133) region directs the translocation of core from the nucleus to the cytoplasm by the CRM-1-mediated nuclear export pathway. Mutagenesis of the three hydrophobic residues (L119, I123 and L126) in the identified NES or in the sequence encoding the mature core aa(1–173) significantly enhanced the nuclear localisation of the corresponding proteins in transfected Huh7 cells. Both the NES and the adjacent hydrophobic sequence in domain II of core were required to maintain the core protein or its fragments in the cytoplasmic compartment. Electron microscopy studies of the JFH1 replication model demonstrated that core was translocated into the nucleus a few minutes after the virus entered the cell. The blockade of nucleocytoplasmic export by leptomycin B treatment early in infection led to the detection of core protein in the nucleus by confocal microscopy and coincided with a decrease in virus replication. Our data suggest that the functional NLS and NES direct HCV core protein shuttling between the cytoplasmic and nuclear compartments, with at least some core protein transported to the nucleus. These new properties of HCV core may be essential for virus multiplication and interaction with nuclear molecules, influence cell signaling and the pathogenesis of HCV infection.
The effects of androgen deprivation therapy on lipid metabolism and body composition in Japanese patients with prostate cancer.

OBJECTIVE In Japan, androgen deprivation therapy is employed as the primary therapy for prostate cancer in more than 50% of patients, which is a percentage larger than that in the USA. The adverse effects of androgen deprivation therapy on body composition and lipid profile associated with metabolic syndrome have been reported mainly in Caucasian populations, and few studies have been performed in East Asian populations, including Japanese. METHODS This study enrolled 39 Japanese patients who were starting to receive androgen deprivation therapy for prostate cancer. Subjects were evaluated at baseline and at 3, 6, 9 and 12 months. Body composition and lipid profiles were measured by bioelectrical impedance analysis and using blood samples, respectively. RESULTS The volume of fat and visceral fat was significantly increased 6 months after the treatment and continued to increase until 12 months. On the other hand, skeletal muscle was significantly decreased during the same period. The serum concentration of total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol increased significantly over the same period. CONCLUSIONS Androgen deprivation therapy changed the body composition and lipid profile of men with prostate cancer. It was demonstrated that even Japanese patients with prostate cancer who are treated with androgen deprivation therapy have the risk of developing metabolic syndrome.
Wireless link scheduling for data center networks

Data Center Networks (DCNs) suffer from the congestions caused by unbalanced traffic distributions. Nevertheless, it is difficult to address such a challenge with the existent Ethernet-based DCN architecture. Wireless networking has been considered as a viable approach with a high potential to tackle the problem due to its flexibility. This paper presents Wireless Link Scheduling for Data Center Networks (WLS-DCN) to provide a feasible wireless DCN. More specifically, we propose a wireless DCN architecture as well as a scheduling mechanism. In our wireless scheduling, two different optimization objectives are considered, with one targeting the unbalanced traffic distribution and one maximizing the total network utility, under the constraints of limited wireless resources and co-channel interference. We propose two heuristics for the two problems and carry out extensive simulation study to validate the performance of our design. Our results demonstrate that WLSDCN can significantly improve the performance of DCN.
15-epi-lipoxin A4–mediated Induction of Nitric Oxide Explains How Aspirin Inhibits Acute Inflammation

The established model for the mechanism of action of aspirin is the inhibition of prostaglandin synthesis. However, this has never fully explained aspirin's repertoire of antiinflammatory properties. We found in acute pleuritis that aspirin, but not salicylate, indomethacin, or piroxicam, increased plasma nitric oxide (NO), which correlated with a reduction in inflammation. Inhibiting aspirin-elicited NO pharmacologically in this model nullified the antiinflammatory effects of aspirin. Moreover, aspirin was not antiinflammatory in either constitutive (eNOS) or inducible NO synthase (iNOS) knockout mice with IL-1β–induced peritonitis. It transpires that aspirin generates NO through its unique ability to trigger the synthesis of 15-epi-lipoxin A4. Aspirin and 15-epi-lipoxin A4 were shown to inhibit leukocyte trafficking in an NO-dependent manner using intravital microscopy on IL-1β–stimulated mouse mesentery. Not only did aspirin inhibit leukocyte–endothelial interaction in a manner similar to NO in wild-type mice but both aspirin and 15-epi-lipoxin A4 had markedly reduced effects on leukocyte–endothelial cell adherence in eNOS- and iNOS-deficient mice compared with wild type. Collectively, these data suggest that aspirin triggers the synthesis of 15-epi-lipoxin A4, which increases NO synthesis through eNOS and iNOS. This aspirin-elicited NO exerts antiinflammatory effects in the microcirculation by inhibiting leukocyte–endothelium interactions.
A city scale physically disaggregated bottom-up energy model : technical options for decarbonising Belgrade residential stock

The residential stock is one of the key consumers of energy and hence is important in the drive to reduce both national and global CO2 emissions. A comprehensive domestic stock energy and carbon model is seen as a useful tool to provide policymakers with estimates for the effectiveness of policies and can help to identify the most beneficial technological measures. This thesis describes the development of the first domestic energy and carbon model in Serbia which has been used to investigate the technological feasibility of achieving space heating energy consumption and associated CO2 emission reductions within Belgrade’s housing stock by 2030. BElgrade’s Domestic and Energy and carbon Model combines external and on-site generated data, the whole building dynamic energy simulation software ‘TRNSYS’, and a generic optimisation program called ‘GenOpt’. Whilst this model is primarily demand side orientated, it also considers changes in energy efficiency on the supply side. The BEDEM model has been used to develop five probabilistic explorative scenarios, namely: a ‘Base Model’, a ‘Demand 1’, a ‘Demand 2’, a ‘Supply’, and a ‘Demand 2 and Supply’ scenario. The overall results suggest that the largest domestic space heating energy reductions could be achieved by combining the energy-efficiency performance upgrade of dwelling fabrics and district heating system seasonal efficiency improvement. Yet, in the shorter-term, the improvement of the district heating system’s seasonal efficiency is the most beneficial measure. While the model is of considerable value as a policy tool, the results of uncertainty analyses revealed that a lack of knowledge of just a few key input parameters generate rather large uncertainty in the model predictions. Therefore, for any recommendations based on model predictions to be of use in policy formation, the models need to be validated against existing data and uncertainties within the model investigated thoroughly and, where possible, quantified.
WOX13-like genes are required for reprogramming of leaf and protoplast cells into stem cells in the moss Physcomitrella patens

Many differentiated plant cells can dedifferentiate into stem cells, reflecting the remarkable developmental plasticity of plants. In the moss Physcomitrella patens, cells at the wound margin of detached leaves become reprogrammed into stem cells. Here, we report that two paralogous P. patens WUSCHEL-related homeobox 13-like (PpWOX13L) genes, homologs of stem cell regulators in flowering plants, are transiently upregulated and required for the initiation of cell growth during stem cell formation. Concordantly, Δppwox13l deletion mutants fail to upregulate genes encoding homologs of cell wall loosening factors during this process. During the moss life cycle, most of the Δppwox13l mutant zygotes fail to expand and initiate an apical stem cell to form the embryo. Our data show that PpWOX13L genes are required for the initiation of cell growth specifically during stem cell formation, in analogy to WOX stem cell functions in seed plants, but using a different cellular mechanism.
Derivation of conservation laws from nonlocal symmetries of differential equations

An identity is derived which yields a correspondence between symmetries and conservation laws for self‐adjoint differential equations. This identity does not rely on use of a Lagrangian as needed to obtain conservation laws by Noether’s theorem. Moreover, unlike Noether’s theorem, which can only generate conservation laws from local symmetries, the derived identity generates conservation laws from nonlocal as well as local symmetries. It is explicitly shown how Noether’s theorem is extended by the identity. Conservation laws arising from nonlocal symmetries are obtained for a class of scalar wave equations with variable wave speeds. The constants of motion resulting from these nonlocal conservation laws are shown to be linearly independent of all constants of motion resulting from local conservation laws.
The CTLA-4 and PD-1/PD-L1 Inhibitory Pathways Independently Regulate Host Resistance to Plasmodium-induced Acute Immune Pathology

The balance between pro-inflammatory and regulatory immune responses in determining optimal T cell activation is vital for the successful resolution of microbial infections. This balance is maintained in part by the negative regulators of T cell activation, CTLA-4 and PD-1/PD-L, which dampen effector responses during chronic infections. However, their role in acute infections, such as malaria, remains less clear. In this study, we determined the contribution of CTLA-4 and PD-1/PD-L to the regulation of T cell responses during Plasmodium berghei ANKA (PbA)-induced experimental cerebral malaria (ECM) in susceptible (C57BL/6) and resistant (BALB/c) mice. We found that the expression of CTLA-4 and PD-1 on T cells correlates with the extent of pro-inflammatory responses induced during PbA infection, being higher in C57BL/6 than in BALB/c mice. Thus, ECM develops despite high levels of expression of these inhibitory receptors. However, antibody-mediated blockade of either the CTLA-4 or PD-1/PD-L1, but not the PD-1/PD-L2, pathways during PbA-infection in ECM-resistant BALB/c mice resulted in higher levels of T cell activation, enhanced IFN-γ production, increased intravascular arrest of both parasitised erythrocytes and CD8+ T cells to the brain, and augmented incidence of ECM. Thus, in ECM-resistant BALB/c mice, CTLA-4 and PD-1/PD-L1 represent essential, independent and non-redundant pathways for maintaining T cell homeostasis during a virulent malaria infection. Moreover, neutralisation of IFN-γ or depletion of CD8+ T cells during PbA infection was shown to reverse the pathologic effects of regulatory pathway blockade, highlighting that the aetiology of ECM in the BALB/c mice is similar to that in C57BL/6 mice. In summary, our results underscore the differential and complex regulation that governs immune responses to malaria parasites.
Urgency as an Endpoint in Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Background The choice of endpoints is crucial for proper evaluation of agents in clinical trials of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). In a recently published draft guidance for IBS from the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA), urgency was not considered an appropriate primary endpoint. The FDA’s position is that it is not clear how patients with diarrhea-predominant IBS (D-IBS) “define or describe urgency”. The aims of this study were to evaluate the association of urgency with stool frequency and consistency in patients with D-IBS and to describe results from patient interviews on their understanding of the term urgency. Methods A retrospective analysis of clinical trial data in patients with D-IBS was conducted. Analyses focused on the relationship of urgency to stool frequency and consistency. Interviews were conducted with patients with D-IBS to test their understanding of the term urgency. Results On the days that patients reported urgency, as compared to the days that patients did not report urgency, they had more frequent bowel movements (3.9 versus 1.8) and looser stools (Bristol Stool Score: 5.4 versus 4.2). The differences for both parameters, evaluated on the days with or without urgency, were statistically significant. In patient interviews, patients with D-IBS had a clear understanding of the concept and terminology of urgency and considered it one of their two most bothersome symptoms. Conclusions Urgency should be considered a suitable co-primary endpoint in D-IBS studies.