Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Differential Activation of Adenylyl Cyclases by Spatial and Procedural Learning

Adenylyl cyclases (ACs) are involved in a variety of advanced CNS functions, including some types of learning and memory. At least nine AC isoforms are expressed in the brain, which are divisible into three broad classes based on the ability of Ca2+ to modulate their activity. This study examined the hypothesis that different learning tasks would differentially activate ACs in selected brain regions. The ability of forskolin or Ca2+ to enhance AC activity in the hippocampus, parietal cortex, striatum, and cerebellum was examined after mice had been trained in either a spatial or procedural learning task using a Morris water maze. Sensitivity of ACs to forskolin was enhanced to a greater degree in most brain regions after procedural learning, but Ca2+-sensitive ACs in the hippocampus were more sensitive to spatial learning. Because nonspecific behavioral elements, such as stress or motor activity, were similar in both experimental tasks, these results provide the first evidence that acquisition of different kinds of learning is associated with selective changes in particular AC species in a mammalian brain and support the idea that different biochemical processing, involving particular isoforms of ACs, subserves different memory systems.
Cortical network dysfunction caused by a subtle defect of myelination

Subtle white matter abnormalities have emerged as a hallmark of brain alterations in magnetic resonance imaging or upon autopsy of mentally ill subjects. However, it is unknown whether such reduction of white matter and myelin contributes to any disease‐relevant phenotype or simply constitutes an epiphenomenon, possibly even treatment‐related. Here, we have re‐analyzed Mbp heterozygous mice, the unaffected parental strain of shiverer, a classical neurological mutant. Between 2 and 20 months of age, Mbp+/‐ versus Mbp+/+ littermates were deeply phenotyped by combining extensive behavioral/cognitive testing with MRI, 1H‐MR spectroscopy, electron microscopy, and molecular techniques. Surprisingly, Mbp‐dependent myelination was significantly reduced in the prefrontal cortex. We also noticed a mild but progressive hypomyelination of the prefrontal corpus callosum and low‐grade inflammation. While most behavioral functions were preserved, Mbp+/‐ mice exhibited defects of sensorimotor gating, as evidenced by reduced prepulse‐inhibition, and a late‐onset catatonia phenotype. Thus, subtle but primary abnormalities of CNS myelin can be the cause of a persistent cortical network dysfunction including catatonia, features typical of neuropsychiatric conditions. GLIA 2016;64:2025–2040
Isolation and characterization of mucin-like glycoprotein in human milk fat globule membrane.

Milk fat globule membrane (MFGM) enclosing fat droplets in human milk was found to contain a high molecular weight glycoprotein which did not migrate in 10% acrylamide gel on sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). This glycoprotein (termed PAS-0) was isolated by Sepharose CL-4B chromatography. Isolated PAS-0 gave one band on SDS-PAGE using 5% acrylamide gel (acrylamide : bisacrylamide = 4 : 1, w/w) and gave one peak on analytical ultracentrifugation, indicating its homogeneity. PAS-0 was rich in serine, threonine, proline, glycine, and alanine. In contrast, contents of sulfur-containing amino acids were very low. Fucose, galactose, N-acetylglucosamine, N-acetylgalactosamine, and sialic acid were detected as constituent sugars of PAS-0 and the total carbohydrate content was about 50%. Alkali-borohydride treatment suggested that the carbohydrate moiety was linked to the polypeptide core with O-glycosidic bond(s). There results suggested that PAS-0 was a mucin-like glycoprotein. PAS-0 was shown to be resistant to pepsin, trypsin and chymotrypsin digestion, but susceptible to Pronase and Subtilisin BPN'. Extraction of intact milk fat globules (cream) with MgCl2 and guanidine hydrochloride solutions suggested that PAS-0 was an intrinsic component of MFGM. Digestion of cream with Subtilisin BPN' demonstrated that PAS-0 was located on the external surface of fat globules and was accessible to molecules outside the globules. By agglutination-inhibition tests using eight lectins, PAS-0 was suggested to act as surface receptors for Ricinus communis agglutinin, wheat germ agglutinin and peanut agglutinin.
Some Dermatological Complications of Open Wounds

reverse of any published recommendations I have been able to find. If placed superficially as has been advocated, the scarred epithelium blisters and the dye is lost. Finally two patients were tattooed with a light shade of pink in an attempt to hide the pigmentation left by burns. These were failures as the pigment was so superficially placed that it was impossible to cover it. The dye always went too deep. Mr. D. C. Bodenham: What is the best particle size to select in powders used for tattooing; and as Mr. Matthews any further information on the tattooing of dark areas with light colours? Mr. D. N. Matthews (in reply): The smaller the particle size the better. I am at present trying to replace the pigmented areas with white, using zinc oxide and then colouring the white base as required. It is too early to say whether this is going to prove satisfactory. Technically it is difficult.
Voyeurism and Exhibitionism as gratifications from Prosuming Social Networking sites

In social networking sites (SNSs), the user has a dual role as one produces content for both oneself and for the other users, and consumes the content produced by other users. Thus, we argue the SNS users can be characterized as prosumers. Drawing on the Uses & Gratifications approach, we further argue that voyeurism and exhibitionism are important gratifications from prosuming SNSs. We thus examine voyeurism as an outcome of content consumption and exhibitionism as an outcome of content production in SNS setting. To this end, we use Partial Least Squares (PLS) to analyse a sample of 289 Facebook users. The results show that content consumption significantly predicts voyeurism and content production exhibitionism. The study contributes to the literature on SNS use by disaggregating SNS use into content consumption and content production, and placing voyeurism and exhibitionism as the outcomes of the two. As its second main contribution, the study applies and further develops the concept of prosumption towards SNS use.
Quench Characteristics of HTS Conductors at Low Temperatures

Not withstanding their high stability at liquid nitrogen temperatures, quench propagation due local disturbances remains a crucial issue for high temperature superconductors (HTS) operating at low temperatures as high field insert coils and cryogen-free magnets. In contrast to low temperature superconductors (LTS), normal zone in HTS at low temperatures must develop over a much extended temperature range for current sharing with a highly non-linear dependence on temperature. The present work addresses this issue directly using both computer simulation and experimental studies. Several quench characteristics unique to HTS have identified using a comparative study of the underlying quasilinear parabolic equation represented in an appropriate dimensionless form for proper isolation of the known effects of temperature dependence of thermal properties. Most notable and counter-intuitive finding is that the minimum propagation zone (MPZ) was found to increase with transport current. The correlations of minimum quench energy (MQE) and the quench temperature of MPZ with operating temperature and current have been obtained for comparison with experimental results.
Cognitive Enhancing Effects of Alpha Asarone in Amnesic Mice by Influencing Cholinergic and Antioxidant Defense Mechanisms

The effect of α-asarone on impairment of cognitive performance caused by amnesic drug scopolamine was investigated. Treatment with α-asarone attenuated scopolamine-induced cognitive deficits as evaluated by passive avoidance and Y-maze test. Administration of α-asarone for 15 d improved memory and cognitive function as indicated by an increase in transfer latency time and spontaneous alternation in passive avoidance and the Y-maze test respectively. To understand the action of α-asarone, the levels of acetylcholinesterase (AChE), malondialdehyde (MDA), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) in the hippocampus (Hippo) and cerebral cortex (CC) of scopolamine-induced amnesic mice were evaluated. The mice treated with Scopolamine showed increased activity of AChE, MDA and SOD levels in both the Hippo and the CC area. Treatment with α-asarone attenuated the increased activity of AChE and normalized the MDA and SOD levels in the Hippo and the CC area in the scopolamine treated amnesic mice. These results suggest that α-asarone has a beneficial effect in cognitive impairment induced by dysfunction of cholinergic system in brain through inhibition of AChE activity and by influencing the antioxidant defense mechanism.
On modular termination proofs of general logic programs

We propose a modular method for proving termination of general logic programs (i.e. logic programs with negation). It is based on the notion of acceptable programs, but it allows us to prove termination in a truly modular way. We consider programs consisting of a hierarchy of modules and supply a general result for proving termination by dealing with each module separately. For programs which are in a certain sense well-behaved, namely well-moded or well-typed programs, we derive both a simple verification technique and an iterative proof method. Some examples show how our system allows for greatly simplified proofs.
Ongoing Spontaneous Activity Controls Access to Consciousness: A Neuronal Model for Inattentional Blindness

Even in the absence of sensory inputs, cortical and thalamic neurons can show structured patterns of ongoing spontaneous activity, whose origins and functional significance are not well understood. We use computer simulations to explore the conditions under which spontaneous activity emerges from a simplified model of multiple interconnected thalamocortical columns linked by long-range, top-down excitatory axons, and to examine its interactions with stimulus-induced activation. Simulations help characterize two main states of activity. First, spontaneous gamma-band oscillations emerge at a precise threshold controlled by ascending neuromodulator systems. Second, within a spontaneously active network, we observe the sudden “ignition” of one out of many possible coherent states of high-level activity amidst cortical neurons with long-distance projections. During such an ignited state, spontaneous activity can block external sensory processing. We relate those properties to experimental observations on the neural bases of endogenous states of consciousness, and particularly the blocking of access to consciousness that occurs in the psychophysical phenomenon of “inattentional blindness,” in which normal subjects intensely engaged in mental activity fail to notice salient but irrelevant sensory stimuli. Although highly simplified, the generic properties of a minimal network may help clarify some of the basic cerebral phenomena underlying the autonomy of consciousness.
CENP-E Function at Kinetochores Is Essential for Chromosome Alignment

CENP-E is a kinesin-like protein that binds to kinetochores and may provide functions that are critical for normal chromosome motility during mitosis. To directly test the in vivo function of CENP-E, we microinjected affinity-purified antibodies to block the assembly of CENP-E onto kinetochores and then examined the behavior of these chromosomes. Chromosomes lacking CENP-E at their kinetochores consistently exhibited two types of defects that blocked their alignment at the spindle equator. Chromosomes positioned near a pole remained mono-oriented as they were unable to establish bipolar microtubule connections with the opposite pole. Chromosomes within the spindle established bipolar connections that supported oscillations and normal velocities of kinetochore movement between the poles, but these bipolar connections were defective because they failed to align the chromosomes into a metaphase plate. Overexpression of a mutant that lacked the amino-terminal 803 amino acids of CENP-E was found to saturate limiting binding sites on kinetochores and competitively blocked endogenous CENP-E from assembling onto kinetochores. Chromosomes saturated with the truncated CENP-E mutant were never found to be aligned but accumulated at the poles or were strewn within the spindle as was the case when cells were microinjected with CENP-E antibodies. As the motor domain was contained within the portion of CENP-E that was deleted, the chromosomal defect is likely attributed to the loss of motor function. The combined data show that CENP-E provides kinetochore functions that are essential for monopolar chromosomes to establish bipolar connections and for chromosomes with connections to both spindle poles to align at the spindle equator. Both of these events rely on activities that are provided by CENP-E's motor domain.
Processing Changes of Cement Based Composites Reinforced with Silane and Isocyanate Eucalyptus Modified Fibres

Fibre-cement products had been widely used in the world due to their versatility as corrugated and flat roofing materials, cladding panels and water containers presented in large number of building and agriculture applications. The main reason for incorporating fibres into the cement matrix is to improve the toughness, tensile strength, and the cracking deformation characteristics of the resultant composite. One of the drawbacks associated with cellulose fibres in cement application is their dimensional instability in the presence of changing relative humidity. The objective of the present work is to evaluate the effect of surface treatment of eucalyptus cellulose pulp fibres on the processing and dimensional changes of fibre-cement composites. Surface modification of the cellulose pulps was performed with methacryloxypropyltri-methoxysilane (MPTS), aminopropyltri-ethoxysilane (APTS) and n-octadecyl isocyanate, an aliphatic isocyanate (AI), in an attempt to improve their dimensional instability into fibre-cement composites. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) showed the chemical changes occurred at the surface, and contact angle measurements showed the changes in the surface energy. MPTS-and AI-treated fibres presented lower hydrophilic character than untreated fibres, which led to lower water retention values (WRV). APTS increased the water retention value of the pulp and improved the capacity of hydrogen bonding of the fibres. MPTS-and AI-treated fibres led to low final water/cement ratios and reduced volume changes after pressing. MPTS-treated fibres decreased the water and dimensional instability of the fibre-cement composites, while the contrary occurred with APTS-modified and AI-modified fibres.These results are promising and contribute for new strategy to improve processing and stability of natural fibres-reinforced cement products.
The O-glycomap of Lubricin, a Novel Mucin Responsible for Joint Lubrication, Identified by Site-specific Glycopeptide Analysis

The lubricative, heavily glycosylated mucin-like synovial glycoprotein lubricin has previously been observed to contain glycosylation changes related to rheumatoid and osteoarthritis. Thus, a site-specific investigation of the glycosylation of lubricin was undertaken, in order to further understand the pathological mechanisms involved in these diseases. Lubricin contains an serine/threonine/proline (STP)-rich domain composed of imperfect tandem repeats (EPAPTTPK), the target for O-glycosylation. In this study, using a liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry approach, employing both collision-induced and electron-transfer dissociation fragmentation methods, we identified 185 O-glycopeptides within the STP-rich domain of human synovial lubricin. This showed that adjacent threonine residues within the central STP-rich region could be simultaneously and/or individually glycosylated. In addition to core 1 structures responsible for biolubrication, core 2 O-glycopeptides were also identified, indicating that lubricin glycosylation may have other roles. Investigation of the expression of polypeptide N-acetylgalactosaminyltransferase genes was carried out using cultured primary fibroblast-like synoviocytes, a cell type that expresses lubricin in vivo. This analysis showed high mRNA expression levels of the less understood polypeptide N-acetylgalactosaminyltransferase 15 and 5 in addition to the ubiquitously expressed polypeptide N-acetylgalactosaminyltransferase 1 and 2 genes. This suggests that there is a unique combination of transferase genes important for the O-glycosylation of lubricin. The site-specific glycopeptide analysis covered 82% of the protein sequence and showed that lubricin glycosylation displays both micro- and macroheterogeneity. The density of glycosylation was shown to be high: 168 sites of O-glycosylation, predominately sialylated, were identified. These glycosylation sites were focused in the central STP-rich region, giving the domain a negative charge. The more positively charged lysine and arginine residues in the N and C termini suggest that synovial lubricin exists as an amphoteric molecule. The identification of these unique properties of lubricin may provide insight into the important low-friction lubricating functions of lubricin during natural joint movement.
ABO‐incompatible kidney transplantation using regenerative selective immunoglobulin adsorption

Background: ABO‐incompatible (ABOi) kidney transplantation is an established procedure relying on the removal of donor‐specific isoagglutinine antibodies as part of the recipient preconditioning. At present, current protocols using immunoadsorption apply a single‐use selective carbohydrate isoagglutinine adsorber. A regenerative and selective immunoglobulin immunoadsorption could be an alternative but has not been reported for ABOi transplantation. Methods: Eight patients were treated with the commonly used isoagglutinine carbohydrate epitope adsorber and seven with a regenerative polyclonal sheep anti‐immunoglobulin adsorber as part of the preconditioning for ABOi kidney transplantation. An IgG‐isoagglutinine titer of less or equal 1:4 qualified for transplantation. Treatment safety, efficiency, length of desensitization, number of postoperative immunoadsorptions, and allograft outcome were retrospectively compared. Results: With the use of the immunoglobulin adsorber the median initial isoagglutinine IgG titers of 1:64 (range 1:32–1:256) were lowered to the target of 1:4 preoperatively with a mean of 6.2 immunoadsorptions (range 5–11). Mean IgG/IgM titer step reduction per IA was 1.98/1.21 for (range 0–4/0–4) and mean titer step rebound 1.31/0.82 (range 0–4/0–3), respectively. The number of immunoadsorptions and length of desensitization was not different from the use of the specific isoagglutinine adsorbers. After transplantation, no rejection occurred and only one postoperative immunoadsorption was necessary. No adverse events in relation to immunoadsorption were observed. Graft function was comparable to the isoagglutinine adsorber group. Conclusion: These data suggest that ABOi kidney transplantation can be performed safely and effectively with a selective regenerative immunoglobulin immunoadsorber. J. Clin. Apheresis, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Assessment of early retinal changes in diabetes using a new multifocal ERG protocol

AIMS To assess early functional retinal changes in diabetics without retinopathy, a new multifocal stimulus paradigm was used that emphasises fast adaptive response contributions. METHODS 25 normal control subjects (25 eyes) and 11 diabetics without retinopathy (22 eyes) served as subjects. Stimulation and analysis were performed with Veris Science 4.0. A stimulation protocol was used that combines regular multifocal flicker stimulation with a periodic “global” flash inserted between the multifocal stimuli. The multifocal stimuli were presented four video frames apart. The global flash covered the entire screen in the third frame of the four frame interval. The remaining two frames were dark. The periodic global flashes could only contribute to the focal responses if they were affected by the multifocal stimulation. A non-linear component induced by the interaction of the focal and global flashes was observed. The differences between control subjects and diabetics were assessed in both the multifocal responses and their induced effect on the following global flashes. RESULTS The responses to focal flashes were reduced significantly in diabetics matched in age to the control subjects. The induced components showed large intersubject variability in controls and patients, and did not differ significantly between the two groups. CONCLUSION The periodic global flashes produce a greater multifocal response reduction in diabetics than in normals, indicating impairment in the rate or magnitude of recovery from the bright preceding stimulus. The new stimulation protocol reveals early changes in retinal function of diabetics.
Long-term Outcomes of Laparoscopic Versus Open Surgery for Clinical Stage I Gastric Cancer: The LOC-1 Study

Background: Clinical trials comparing laparoscopic gastrectomy (LG) versus traditional open gastrectomy (OG) have been planned, their surgical outcomes reported but their oncologic outcomes are still pending. Consequently, we have conducted this large-scale historical cohort study to provide relevant information rapidly to guide our current practice. Methods: Through a consensus meeting involving surgeons, biostatisticians, and epidemiologists, 30 variables of preoperative information possibly influencing surgeons’ choice between LG versus OG and potentially associating with outcomes were identified to enable rigorous estimation of propensity scores. A total of 4235 consecutive patients who underwent gastrectomy for gastric adenocarcinoma were identified and their relevant data were gathered from the participating hospitals. After propensity score matching, 1848 patients (924 each for LG and OG) were selected for comparison of long-term outcomes. Results: In the propensity-matched population, the 5-year overall survival was 96.3% [95% confidence interval (CI) 95.0–97.6] in the OG as compared with 97.1% (95% CI, 95.9–98.3) in LG. The number of all-cause death was 33/924 in the OG and 24/924 in the LG through the entire period, and the hazard ratio (LG/OG) for overall death was 0.75 (95% CI, 0.44–1.27; P = 0.290). The 3-year recurrence-free survival was 97.4% (95% CI, 96.4–98.5) in the OG and 97.7% (95% CI, 96.5–98.8) in the LG. The number of recurrence was 22/924 in the OG and 21/924 in the LG through the entire period, and the hazard ratio was 1.01 (95% CI, 0.55–1.84; P = 0.981). Conclusions: This observational study adjusted for all-known confounding factors seems to provide strong enough evidence to suggest that LG is oncologically comparable to OG for gastric cancer.
The crack tip region in hydraulic fracturing

We present analytical tip region solutions for fracture width and pressure when a power law fluid drives a plane strain fracture in an impermeable linear elastic solid. Our main result is an intermediate asymptotic solution in which the tip region stress is dominated by a singularity which is particular to the hydraulic fracturing problem. Moreover this singularity is weaker than the inverse square root singularity of linear elastic fracture mechanics. We also show how the solution for a semi-infinite crack may be exploited to obtain a useful approximation for the finite case.