Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Mammary gland homeostasis employs serotonergic regulation of epithelial tight junctions

Homeostatic control of volume within the alveolar spaces of the mammary gland has been proposed to involve a feedback system mediated by serotonin signaling. In this article, we describe some of the mechanisms underlying this feedback based on studies of a human normal mammary epithelial cell line (MCF10A) and mouse mammary epithelium. Mammary serotonin was elevated during lactation and after injection of 5-hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP). The genes encoding the serotonin reuptake transporter (SERT) and the type 7 serotonin receptor (5-HT7) were expressed in human and mouse mammary epithelial cells, and serotonin caused a concentration-dependent increase of cAMP in MCF10A cells. Mouse and human mammary epithelial cells formed polarized membranes, in which tight junction activity was monitored. Treatment of mammary epithelial membranes with serotonin receptor antagonists increased their transepithelial electrical resistance (TEER). Antagonist and agonist effects on TEER were mediated by receptors on the basolateral face of the membranes. Our results suggest a process in which serotonin accumulates in the interstitial fluid surrounding the mammary secretory epithelium and is detected by 5-HT7 receptors, whereupon milk secretion is inhibited. One mechanism responsible for this process is serotonin-mediated opening of tight junctions, which dissipates the transepithelial gradients necessary for milk secretion.
Neuritic growth from a new subline of PC12 pheochromocytoma cells: Cyclic AMP mimics the action of nerve growth factor

We have identified a new subline of PC12 pheochromocytoma cells (PC12D cells) in which neurites are extended within 24 hr in response to cAMP‐enhancing reagents as well as in response to nerve growth factor (NGF), but not in response to epidermal growth factor or phorbol diester. Anti‐NGF antiserum did not affect forskolin (FRK)‐induced neuritic recruitment. FRK‐induced neurites exhibited growth cones and contained secretion granules and many parallel arrays of microtubules as was the case with NGF‐induced neurites. FRK, but not NGF, increased the levels of intracellular cAMP and activated adenylate cyclase in the membrane fraction. Both NGF and FRK enhanced the activities of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), acetylcholinesterase (AchE), and ornithine decarboxylase (ODC), but not the levels of neuron‐specific enolase. Enhanced levels of intracellular cAMP mimicked the effects of NGF on neuritic growth, TH, AchE, and ODC activities in PC12D cells, even though NGF does not act through elevation of levels of cAMP.
Introduction of the Liverpool Care Pathway for end of life care to emergency medicine

Aim: To improve the care of patients presenting to the emergency department who are acutely dying or those in whom further disease-modifying treatment is not appropriate. Design: A quality improvement report on the implementation of a modified Liverpool Care Pathway for the Dying Patient (LCP) in an emergency medicine department. Setting: The emergency medicine department of Ninewells Hospital, Dundee. Ninewells Hospital is the tertiary referral and teaching hospital for the east coast of Scotland and North East Fife. Key measures for improvement: The pathway was introduced after a 2001 study and a 2003 audit showed that the department had an increasing role in the care of the acutely dying, but some inconsistency in approach. Key measures for improvement were to improve communication between staff, improve the consistency of care and improve the perceived quality of care given. Senior decision making remains a crucial element of the pathway. Strategies for change: A modified LCP was developed and launched in November 2005. Change was managed via a series of meetings and a pilot process. Serial review and audit allowed ongoing quality review of the pathway and improvements. Results: The care of the dying patient has become a more consistent and positive endeavour. Nursing staff are very satisfied with its use, and it is hoped that the LCP pathway can be developed further within the organisation. Conclusions: It has been a rewarding undertaking to improve the care of dying patients, but one which has taken time and has required consistent management of change to promote the positive outcomes.
Latent force models for describing transcriptional regulation processes in the embryo development problem for the Drosophila melanogaster

In the embryo development problem for the Drosophila melanogaster, a set of molecules known as mor-phogens are responsible for the embryo segmentation. These morphogens are encoded by different genes, including the GAP genes, maternal coordination genes and pair-rule genes. One of the maternal coordination genes encodes the Bicoid morphogen, which is the responsible for the development of the Drosophila embryo at the anterior part and for the control and regulation of the GAP genes in segmentation of the early development of the Drosophila melanogaster. The work presented in this document, reports a methodology that tends to integrate mechanistic and data driven based models, aiming at making inference over the mRNA Bicoid from gene expression data at the protein level for the Bicoid morphogen. The fundamental contribution of this work is the description of the concentration gradient of the Bicoid morphogen in the continuous spatio-temporal domain as well as the output regression (gene expression at protein level) using a Gaussian process described by a mechanistically inspired covariance function. Regression results and metrics computed for the Bicoid protein expression both in the temporal and spatial domains, showed outstanding performance with respect to reported experiments from previous studies. In this paper, a correlation coefficient of r = 0.9758 against a correlation coefficient of r = 0.9086 is being reported, as well as a SMSE of 0.0303±0.1512 against a SMSE of 0.1106±0.5090 and finally reporting a MSLL of -1.7036 ± 1.3472 against -1.0151±1.7669.
Exenatide-Induced Reduction in Energy Intake Is Associated With Increase in Hypothalamic Connectivity

OBJECTIVE Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists such as exenatide are known to influence neural activity in the hypothalamus of animals and to reduce energy intake. In humans, however, significant weight loss has been observed in only a subgroup of patients. Why only some individuals respond with weight loss and others do not remains unclear. In this functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study, we investigated differences in hypothalamic connectivity between “responders” (reduction in energy intake after exenatide infusion) and “nonresponders. ” RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS We performed a randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled, cross-over fMRI study with intravenous administration of exenatide in obese male volunteers. During brain scanning with continuous exenatide or placebo administration, participants rated food and nonfood images. After each scanning session, energy intake was measured using an ad libitum buffet. Functional hypothalamic connectivity was assessed by eigenvector centrality mapping, a measure of connectedness throughout the brain. RESULTS Responders showed significantly higher connectedness of the hypothalamus, which was specific for the food pictures condition, in the exenatide condition compared with placebo. Nonresponders did not show any significant exenatide-induced changes in hypothalamic connectedness. CONCLUSIONS Our results demonstrate a central hypothalamic effect of peripherally administered exenatide that occurred only in the group that showed an exenatide-dependent anorexigenic effect. These findings indicate that the hypothalamic response seems to be the crucial factor for the effect of exenatide on energy intake.
Kinetic profile of the rat CYP4A isoforms: arachidonic acid metabolism and isoform-specific inhibitors.

20-Hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid (HETE), the cytochrome P-450 (CYP) 4A ω-hydroxylation product of arachidonic acid, has potent biological effects on renal tubular and vascular functions and on the control of arterial pressure. We have expressed high levels of the rat CYP4A1, -4A2, -4A3, and -4A8 cDNAs, using baculovirus and Sf 9 insect cells. Arachidonic acid ω- and ω-1-hydroxylations were catalyzed by three of the CYP4A isoforms; the highest catalytic efficiency of 947 nM-1 ⋅ min-1for CYP4A1 was followed by 72 and 22 nM-1 ⋅ min-1for CYP4A2 and CYP4A3, respectively. CYP4A2 and CYP4A3 exhibited an additional arachidonate 11,12-epoxidation activity, whereas CYP4A1 operated solely as an ω-hydroxylase. CYP4A8 did not catalyze arachidonic or linoleic acid but did have a detectable lauric acid ω-hydroxylation activity. The inhibitory activity of various acetylenic and olefinic fatty acid analogs revealed differences and indicated isoform-specific inhibition. These studies suggest that CYP4A1, despite its low expression in extrahepatic tissues, may constitute the major source of 20-HETE synthesis. Moreover, the ability of CYP4A2 and -4A3 to catalyze the formation of two opposing biologically active metabolites, 20-HETE and 11,12-epoxyeicosatrienoic acid, may be of great significance to the regulation of vascular tone.
Joint 2D-3D-Semantic Data for Indoor Scene Understanding

We present a dataset of large-scale indoor spaces that provides a variety of mutually registered modalities from 2D, 2.5D and 3D domains, with instance-level semantic and geometric annotations. The dataset covers over 6,000m2 and contains over 70,000 RGB images, along with the corresponding depths, surface normals, semantic annotations, global XYZ images (all in forms of both regular and 360{\deg} equirectangular images) as well as camera information. It also includes registered raw and semantically annotated 3D meshes and point clouds. The dataset enables development of joint and cross-modal learning models and potentially unsupervised approaches utilizing the regularities present in large-scale indoor spaces. The dataset is available here: this http URL
Propofol Pretreatment Attenuates Aquaporin-4 Over-Expression and Alleviates Cerebral Edema After Transient Focal Brain Ischemia Reperfusion in Rats

BACKGROUND:Cerebral edema is a major threat for stroke victims. Most studies have focused on the neuroprotective activities of propofol, addressing infarct volume rather than cerebral edema. Aquaporin-4 (AQP4) plays an important role in maintaining brain water homeostasis under various neurological insults. We explored the effect of propofol pretreatment on cerebral edema in a rat model of brain ischemia reperfusion and assessed the involvement of AQP4. METHODS:To induce brain ischemia reperfusion, we introduced a silicone-coated monofilament nylon suture into the origin of the middle cerebral artery, withdrawing it after 90 min. Treatment groups (n = 32), received propofol (0.1 mL · kg−1 · min−1) infusion for 30 min before occlusion; the vehicle group (n = 32) and the sham-operated group (n = 28), which received the intralipid vehicle at the same time and rate. To assess cerebral infarct volume, we used 2, 3, 5-triphenyl-tetrazolium chloride staining; wet–dry weight ratio was the basis for cerebral edema estimation, and we used immunohistochemistry and Western blot to detect AQP4 expression. RESULTS:The wet–dry weight ratio decreased from 86.89% ± 0.71% in the vehicle group (n = 6) to 72.42% ± 0.74% in the propofol group (n = 6), corresponding to an average decrease of 16%. In parallel and based on immunohistochemical semi-quantification, the propofol group exhibited remarkable attenuation of AQP4 over-expression in the ischemic border zone compared with the vehicle group: 1.28 ± 0.03 vs 1.40 ± 0.05, n = 7, respectively; P < 0.05. Values derived from Western blot quantification were similarly decreased in the propofol group compared to the vehicle group: 20.85% ± 4.18% vs 31.67% ± 3.23%, n = 4, respectively; P < 0.05. However, infarct volume and neurologic deficit in postischemic rats in the propofol group were not statistically different from values in the vehicle group. CONCLUSIONS:We conclude that prestroke treatment with propofol reduces postischemic cerebral edema in rats, possibly through inhibiting AQP4 over-expression in the boundary zone of ischemia.
CMP $ im : A Pin-Based OnThe-Fly Multi-Core Cache Simulator

Chip multiprocessors are the next attractive point in the design space of future high performance processors. There is a growing need for simulation methodologies to determine the memory system requirements of emerging workloads in a reasonable amount of time. To explore the design space of a CMP memory hierarchy, this paper presents the use of binary instrumentation as an alternative to execution-driven and trace-driven simulation methodologies. Using the binary instrumentation tool, Pin, we present CMP$im to characterize cache performance of single-threaded, multi-threaded, and multi-programmed workloads at the speeds of 4-10 MIPS. For memory intensive single-threaded workloads, the cache performance reported by CMP$im is three orders of magnitude faster and within 4% of an cycle-accurate x86 performance model.
Effects of protein deficiency on testosterone levels, semen quality and testicular histology in the developing male rat

The aim of the study was to evaluate the effects of protein deficiency on plasma testosterone levels, epididymal sperm characteristics and testicular histology in the developing male rat. Twenty four Wistar albino rats were used in the study and were fed with a diet variously containing 3 %, 10 % and 20 % protein. Plasma testosterone levels were significantly lower in rats fed 3 % protein when compared to rats fed 10 % and 20 % protein (P<0.05). Testicular weight in protein deficient rats (rats fed 3 % and 10 % protein) was significantly lower than that of a control group (20 % protein) (P<0.05). No sperm was present in the epididymal duct lumen, but germ cells were observed in some duct lumens in rats fed 3 % protein. Epididymal weight decreased significantly in rats fed 3 % protein compared to rats fed 10 % and 20 % protein (P<0.05). The results of this study clearly show that protein deficiency in developing male rats adversely affects gonadal endocrine function, testicular histology and spermatogenesis.
The influence of anti‐endothelial/antiphospholipid antibodies on fibrin formation and lysis on endothelial cells

The prothrombotic mechanisms associated with antiphospholipid antibodies remain incompletely defined. Antibody binding to endothelial cells in vitro is a feature of antiphospholipid antibody‐positive sera. We hypothesised that impairment of endothelium‐dependent fibrinolysis by antiphospholipid/anti‐endothelial antibodies is a contributory factor in the pathogenesis of thrombosis. We also aimed to confirm the displacement of annexin‐V from endothelial cells and enhanced fibrin formation. Binding of immunoglobulin (Ig) from antiphospholipid antibody‐positive sera to endothelial cells was examined using a cell‐based enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay. Effects on fibrin formation and lysis were examined on cultured endothelial cell monolayers. Plasminogen activator inhibitor‐1 (PAI‐1) was assayed in supernatants. We confirmed antibody binding to endothelial cells. With four of 14 antiphospholipid antibody‐positive sera there was some prolongation of fibrin clot lysis time, consistent with impairment of endothelial fibrinolytic activity. Secretion of PAI‐1 was significantly correlated with clot lysis time on endothelial cell monolayers incubated with antiphospholipid/anti‐endothelial antibody‐positive sera, but not with control sera. IgG from antiphospholipid antibody‐positive sera had little effect on endothelial cell surface annexin‐V expression. We conclude that impaired endothelial fibrinolysis is a potential prothrombotic mechanism in subjects with antiphospholipid antibodies. We were unable to confirm enhanced displacement of annexin‐V from endothelium by antiphospholipid antibodies.
Matching the choice of injury/illness definition to study setting, purpose and design: one size does not fit all!

What constitutes a ‘recordable event’ is arguably the most critical methodological factor affecting the results of sports injury and illness surveillance studies. Although numerous consensus statements have attempted to standardise surveillance methodology,1–6 there remains considerable variation in current definitions of injury. Underlying the choice of definition are a number of practical and theoretical issues, including the duration and setting of surveillance, the available resources, the type of injuries and illnesses of interest, how data are to be collected and what they are to be used for. It is also highly desirable that results are comparable between studies; both within and between sports. Above all, however, surveillance data must be valid. As no single definition is likely to suit all needs, the purpose of this article is to review the strengths and limitations of the three most commonly used definitions in sports epidemiology and to examine their appropriateness depending on the context and objectives of surveillance. We focus particularly on methods of data collection, as this may have important consequences on the reliability of data. Consensus recommendations have been made for several sports, including cricket,1 football (soccer),2 rugby union,3 tennis,4 thoroughbred horse racing5 and most recently, for athletics.6 Earlier statements have focused solely on injuries, which may be defined as physical complaints resulting from the transfer of energy at a rate or in an amount that exceeds that tissue's threshold for damage.6 ,7 Recently they have also been expanded to include illnesses, defined as physical or psychological complaints that are unrelated to injury.6 However, common to all statements (with the notable exception of cricket) is the recommendation that a recordable incident should be defined as any physical or psychological complaint resulting from relevant sports participation regardless of its consequences, but that …
Evaluation of commercially available acridinium ester-labeled chemiluminescent DNA probes for culture identification of Blastomyces dermatitidis, Coccidioides immitis, Cryptococcus neoformans, and Histoplasma capsulatum

Four commercially available acridinium ester-labeled DNA probes directed against rRNA were evaluated for their ability to identify Blastomyces dermatitidis, Coccidioides immitis, Histoplasma capsulatum, and Cryptococcus neoformans in culture. rRNA was extracted by sonication of 1- to 2-mm2 portions of cultures of fungi in two chaotropic reagents with glass beads. Following a heat inactivation step, the extracts were hybridized in solution with probes specific for each pathogen. The acridinium ester reporter moiety of nonhybridized probe was selectively hydrolyzed, and chemiluminescence of specific DNA:RNA hybrids was quantitated in relative light units with a luminometer. A positive identification required a relative light unit value of > or = 50,000. Sensitivity and specificity of the probes were determined by probing cultures of the respective pathogenic fungi (target) and nontarget fungi. Both mycelial and yeast forms of the dimorphic fungi (B. dermatitidis and H. capsulatum) were tested. For B. dermatitidis, sensitivity and specificity were 87.8 and 100%, respectively (74 target and 219 nontarget fungi tested). For C. immitis, sensitivity and specificity were 99.2 and 100%, respectively (122 target and 164 nontarget fungi tested). For H. capsulatum, sensitivity and specificity were 100 and 100%, respectively (86 target and 154 nontarget fungi tested). For C. neoformans, sensitivity and specificity were 97 and 100%, respectively (100 target and 230 nontarget fungi tested). For B. dermatitidis, C. immitis, and C. neoformans, repeat testing increased the respective sensitivities to 97.3, 100, and 100%. The high sensitivities and specificities of the probes, the relatively short time (less than 1 h) required to perform the assay, and the availability of standardized reagent kits make the acridinium ester-labeled DNA probes well suited to laboratories in need of a rapid method to identify these fungal pathogens. Further, use of the probes to identify pathogenic fungi as soon as colonies appear on primary recovery media significantly shortens the time to reporting.
Minimal Detectable Change and Clinically Important Difference of the Wolf Motor Function Test in Stroke Patients

Objectives. This study aimed to establish the minimal detectable change (MDC) and clinically important differences (CID) of the Wolf Motor Function Test (WMFT) in patients with stroke, and to assess the proportions of patients' change scores exceeding the MDC and CID after stroke rehabilitation. Methods. A total of 57 patients received 1 of the 3 treatments for 3 weeks and underwent clinical assessments before and after treatment. The MDC, at 90% confidence (MDC 90), was calculated from the standard error of measurement to indicate a real change for individual patients. Anchor-based and distribution-based approaches were used to triangulate the values of minimal CID. The percentages of patients exceeding the MDC and minimal CID were also examined. Results. The MDC90 of the WMFT was 4.36 for the performance time (WMFT time) and 0.37 for the functional ability scale (WMFT FAS). The minimal CID ranged from 1.5 to 2 seconds on the WMFT time and from 0.2 to 0.4 points on the WMFT FAS. The MDC and CID proportions ranged from 14% to 30% on the WMFT time and from 39% to 65% on the WMFT FAS, respectively. Conclusions. The change score of an individual patient has to reach 4.36 and 0.37 on the WMFT time and WMFT FAS to indicate a real change. The mean change scores of a stroke group on the WMFT time and WMFT FAS should achieve 1.5 to 2 seconds and 0.2 to 0.4 points to be regarded as clinically important changes. Furthermore, the WMFT FAS may be more responsive than the WMFT time based on the results of proportions exceeding the threshold criteria.
Turning Document Image Analysis Methods into Web Services - An Example Using OCRopus

Research in Document Image Analysis is producing a vast amount of good methods for the different research tasks. Though, it still remains difficult to reproduce experiments, integrate existing methods into other research projects, or build software solutions combining different methods together. This paper focuses on two points: (i) we reason why providing access to methods as Web Services can solve many of these problems, and (ii) we show how an existing open-source method can be transformed into a Web Service and used using the well-known open-source package OCRopus as an example. The processes explained can be performed by anyone who would like to provide their methods as Web Services.