Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Peripheral expression and biological activities of GDNF, a new neurotrophic factor for avian and mammalian peripheral neurons

Glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) is a neurotrophic polypeptide, distantly related to transforming growth factor-beta (TGF- beta), originally isolated by virtue of its ability to induce dopamine uptake and cell survival in cultures of embryonic ventral midbrain dopaminergic neurons, and more recently shown to be a potent neurotrophic factor for motorneurons. The biological activities and distribution of this molecule outside the central nervous system are presently unknown. We report here on the mRNA expression, biological activities and initial receptor binding characterization of GDNF and a shorter spliced variant termed GDNF beta in different organs and peripheral neurons of the developing rat. Both GDNF mRNA forms were found to be most highly expressed in developing skin, whisker pad, kidney, stomach and testis. Lower expression was also detected in developing skeletal muscle, ovary, lung, and adrenal gland. Developing spinal cord, superior cervical ganglion (SCG) and dorsal root ganglion (DRG) also expressed low levels of GDNF mRNA. Two days after nerve transection, GDNF mRNA levels increased dramatically in the sciatic nerve. Overall, GDNF mRNA expression was significantly higher in peripheral organs than in neuronal tissues. Expression of either GDNF mRNA isoform in insect cells resulted in the production of indistinguishable mature GDNF polypeptides. Purified recombinant GDNF promoted neurite outgrowth and survival of embryonic chick sympathetic neurons. GDNF produced robust bundle-like, fasciculated outgrowth from chick sympathetic ganglion explants. Although GDNF displayed only low activity on survival of newborn rat SCG neurons, this protein was found to increase the expression of vasoactive intestinal peptide and preprotachykinin-A mRNAs in cultured SCG neurons. GDNF also promoted survival of about half of the neurons in embryonic chick nodose ganglion and a small subpopulation of embryonic sensory neurons in chick dorsal root and rat trigeminal ganglia. Embryonic chick sympathetic neurons expressed receptors for GDNF with Kd 1-5 x 10(-9) M, as measured by saturation and displacement binding assays. Our findings indicate GDNF is a new neurotrophic factor for developing peripheral neurons and suggest possible non-neuronal roles for GDNF in the developing reproductive system.
Reviewing the Progress of School Discipline Reform

ABSTRACT In the 1990s and early 2000s, schools across the United States employed exclusionary discipline at increasing rates as a response to student infractions. Researchers studying school discipline reported on these increases and highlighted the fact that exclusionary discipline for students was associated with myriad other negative outcomes, including lower academic achievement, grade retention and drop-out, and even involvement with the juvenile justice system. Moreover, a related strand of research emerged, providing evidence that these consequences were not being levied evenly to different types of students. That is, marginalized students were far more likely to be faced with disciplinary consequences at school. For these and other reasons, policymakers and school leaders implemented some high-profile reforms to discipline policies in school districts across the country in an attempt to limit the use of exclusionary discipline. In this article, I introduce several of these reforms and briefly describe the early impacts of these changes to school discipline policy in locations such as Los Angeles, New York City, Chicago, Philadelphia, and the state of Arkansas. I conclude by summarizing what lessons we can derive from these studies and describe the implications for future work in this area.
Multiplication by Rational Constants

Multiplications by simple rational constants often appear in fixed- or floating-point application code, for instance, in the form of division by an integer constant. The hardware implementation of such operations is of practical interest to reconfigurable computing. It is well known that the binary representation of rational constants is eventually periodic. This brief shows how this feature can be exploited to implement multiplication by a rational constant in a number of additions that is logarithmic in the precision. An open-source implementation of these techniques is provided and is shown to be practically relevant for constants with small numerators and denominators, where it provides improvements of 20% to 40% in area with respect to the state of the art. It is also shown that, for such constants, the additional cost for a correctly rounded result is very small and that correct rounding very often comes for free in practice.
Complement C3 variant and the risk of age-related macular degeneration.

BACKGROUND Age-related macular degeneration is the most common cause of blindness in Western populations. Susceptibility is influenced by age and by genetic and environmental factors. Complement activation is implicated in the pathogenesis. METHODS We tested for an association between age-related macular degeneration and 13 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) spanning the complement genes C3 and C5 in case subjects and control subjects from the southeastern region of England. All subjects were examined by an ophthalmologist and had independent grading of fundus photographs to confirm their disease status. To test for replication of the most significant findings, we genotyped a set of Scottish cases and controls. RESULTS The common functional polymorphism rs2230199 (Arg80Gly) in the C3 gene, corresponding to the electrophoretic variants C3S (slow) and C3F (fast), was strongly associated with age-related macular degeneration in both the English group (603 cases and 350 controls, P=5.9x10(-5)) and the Scottish group (244 cases and 351 controls, P=5.0x10(-5)). The odds ratio for age-related macular degeneration in C3 S/F heterozygotes as compared with S/S homozygotes was 1.7 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.3 to 2.1); for F/F homozygotes, the odds ratio was 2.6 (95% CI, 1.6 to 4.1). The estimated population attributable risk for C3F was 22%. CONCLUSIONS Complement C3 is important in the pathogenesis of age-related macular degeneration. This finding further underscores the influence of the complement pathway in the pathogenesis of this disease.
Identifying and Predicting Effective Leader Practices: Examining Principal Experience and Prior Roles

ABSTRACT The importance of leadership in schools is substantiated, and we know that effective leaders call upon certain practices to influence student achievement. What remains less clear is how the professional backgrounds of educators may influence effective leader practice. This study utilizes data from the Schools and Staffing Survey to first identify six latent constructs that broadly represent effective leader practices. Our findings include that years of experience as a teacher is more strongly correlated with effective leader practice than other types of experience. These findings are the first national estimates of this relationship.
Different methods of calculating ankle-brachial index in mid-elderly men and women: the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Adult Health (ELSA-Brasil)

The ankle-brachial index (ABI) is a marker of subclinical atherosclerosis related to health-adverse outcomes. ABI is inexpensive compared to other indexes, such as coronary calcium score and determination of carotid artery intima-media thickness (IMT). Our objective was to identify how the ABI can be applied to primary care. Three different methods of calculating the ABI were compared among 13,921 men and women aged 35 to 74 years who were free of cardiovascular diseases and enrolled in the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Adult Health (ELSA-Brasil). The ABI ratio had the same denominator for the three categories created (the highest value for arm systolic blood pressure), and the numerator was based on the four readings for leg systolic blood pressure: the highest (ABI-HIGH), the mean (ABI-MEAN), and the lowest (ABI-LOW). The cut-off for analysis was ABI<1.0. All determinations of blood pressure were done with an oscillometric device. The prevalence of ABI<1% was 0.5, 0.9, and 2.7 for the categories HIGH, MEAN and LOW, respectively. All methods were associated with a high burden of cardiovascular risk factors. The association with IMT was stronger for ABI-HIGH than for the other categories. The proportion of participants with a 10-year Framingham Risk Score of coronary heart disease >20% without the inclusion of ABI<1.0 was 4.9%. For ABI-HIGH, ABI-MEAN and ABI-LOW, the increase in percentage points was 0.3, 0.7, and 2.3%, respectively, and the relative increment was 6.1, 14.3, and 46.9%. In conclusion, all methods were acceptable, but ABI-LOW was more suitable for prevention purposes.
WrapIt

Wire wrapping is a traditional form of handmade jewelry that involves bending metal wire to create intricate shapes. The technique appeals to novices and casual crafters because of its low cost, accessibility and unique aesthetic. We present a computational design tool that addresses the two main challenges of creating 2D wire-wrapped jewelry: decomposing an input drawing into a set of wires, and bending the wires to give them shape. Our main contribution is an automatic wire decomposition algorithm that segments a drawing into a small number of wires based on aesthetic and fabrication principles. We formulate the task as a constrained graph labeling problem and present a stochastic optimization approach that produces good results for a variety of inputs. Given a decomposition, our system generates a 3D-printed custom support structure, or jig, that helps users bend the wire into the appropriate shape. We validated our wire decomposition algorithm against existing wire-wrapped designs, and used our end-to-end system to create new jewelry from clipart drawings. We also evaluated our approach with novice users, who were able to create various pieces of jewelry in less than half an hour.
Multi-level Gated Recurrent Neural Network for dialog act classification

In this paper we focus on the problem of dialog act (DA) labelling. This problem has recently attracted a lot of attention as it is an important sub-part of an automatic question answering system, which is currently in great demand. Traditional methods tend to see this problem as a sequence labelling task and deals with it by applying classifiers with rich features. Most of the current neural network models still omit the sequential information in the conversation. Henceforth, we apply a novel multi-level gated recurrent neural network (GRNN) with non-textual information to predict the DA tag. Our model not only utilizes textual information, but also makes use of non-textual and contextual information. In comparison, our model has shown significant improvement over previous works on Switchboard Dialog Act (SWDA) task by over 6%.
Based Planning and Rehearsal of Surgical Interventions

For the planning and rehearsal of surgical interventions the realistic specification and visualization of free form cuts is needed to allow the “look and feel“ close to a real dissection. Equally important, the interactive repositioning of dissected fragments has to be simulated. We have developed an extended ray-casting algorithm for visualization of object motion in the volume model. The method developed for the representation, modeling and high quality rendering (subvoxel resolution) of arbitrarily shaped cut regions is based on a dynamic data structure. This way, all operations can easily be reversed. The modeling of cut surfaces is done in an independent data volume where the partial-volume-effect is calculated as it would be generated by an imaging system. This way, the localization of cut surface at subvoxel resolution and an accurate estimation of the surface normals is achieved. We demonstrate the method with two different applications and show that the described techniques provide the basis for simulation of surgical interventions in the voxel-model which cannot be achieved with any surface-based method.
Optical/near-infrared observations of the black hole candidate XTE J1720-318: from high-soft to low-hard state

Aims: To gain a better understanding of high-energy Galactic sources, we observed the Galactic X-ray binary and black hole candidate XTE J1720-318 in the optical and near-infrared, just after the onset of its X-ray outburst in January, 2003. These observations were obtained with the ESO/NTT as the Target of Opportunity, in February and April 2003. Methods: We performed an accurate astrometry and analysed photometrical and spectroscopic observations. We then produced a colour-magnitude diagram, looked at the overall evolution of the multi-wavelength light curve, and analysed the spectral energy distribution. Results: We discovered the optical counterpart in the R-band (R ~ 21.5) and confirmed the near-infrared counterpart. We show that, for an absorption between 6 and 8 magnitudes, XTE J1720-318 is likely to be an intermediate mass X-ray binary located at a distance between 3 and 10 kpc, hosting a main sequence star of spectral type between late B and early G. Our second set of observations took place simultaneously with the third secondary outburst present in X-ray and near-infrared light curves. The evolution of its spectral energy distribution shows that XTE J1720-318 entered a transition from a high-soft to a low-hard state in-between the two observations.
Working Papers in Economics and Statistics Stronger Sex but Earlier Death: a Multi-level Socioeconomic Analysis of Gender Differences in Mortality in Austria Stronger Sex but Earlier Death: a Multi-level Socioeconomic Analysis of Gender Differences in Mortality in Austria

Gender inequalities in mortality/life expectancy have been a major area of research in the social sciences since the 1970s. However, the questions posed and the research strategies used are still in a state of flux. In the present paper we shed some light on two related questions: (i) Which socioeconomic variables determine the gender gap in mortality? (ii) Are male and female mortality rates determined by different socioeconomic factors and in different shapes? We use aggregated data from Austria both at the community and district level covering the time period 1969-2004. Our two-level empirical design combined with a panel structure at the districts level reveals additional evidence on these questions compared to previous studies at the regional level. By using weighted regression analysis (panel fixed effects, pooled and cross section) we find that the gender gap is negatively associated with higher average net income, a higher educational level, a higher share of immigrants and better familial integration. In general, males are more sensitive with respect to social and economic conditions compared to females, leading to a narrowing gap in mortality when living conditions improve. These results are also confirmed by our Blinder-Oaxaca Decomposition.
A common conformationally coupled ATPase mechanism for yeast and human cytoplasmic HSP90s

The conformationally coupled mechanism by which ATP is utilized by yeast Hsp90 is now well characterized. In contrast, ATP utilization by human Hsp90s is less well studied, and appears to operate differently. To resolve these conflicting models, we have conducted a side‐by‐side biochemical analysis in a series of mutant yeast and human Hsp90s that have been both mechanistically and structurally characterized with regard to the crystal structure of the yeast Hsp90 protein. We show that each monomer of the human Hsp90 dimer is mutually dependent on the other for ATPase activity. Fluorescence studies confirmed that the N‐terminal domains of Hsp90β come into close association with each other. Mutations that directly affect the conformational dynamics of the ATP‐lid segment had marked effects, with T31I (yeast T22I) and A116N (yeast A107N) stimulating, and T110I (yeast T101I) inhibiting, human and yeast ATPase activity to similar extents, showing that ATP‐dependent lid closure is a key rate‐determining step in both systems. Mutation of residues implicated in N‐terminal dimerization of yeast Hsp90 (L15R and L18R in yeast, L24R and L27R in humans) significantly reduced the ATPase activity of yeast and human Hsp90s, showing that ATP‐dependent association of the N‐terminal domains in the Hsp90 dimer is also essential in both systems. Furthermore, cross‐linking studies of the hyper‐active yeast A107N and human A116N ATP‐lid mutants showed enhanced dimerization, suggesting that N‐terminal association is a direct consequence of ATP binding and lid closure in both systems.
Cardiac and hepatic role of r-AtHSP70: basal effects and protection against ischemic and sepsis conditions

Heat shock proteins (HSPs), highly conserved in all organisms, act as molecular chaperones activated by several stresses. The HSP70 class of stress‐induced proteins is the most studied subtype in cardiovascular and inflammatory disease. Because of the high similarity between plant and mammalian HSP70, the aim of this work was to evaluate whether recombinant HSP70 of plant origin (r‐AtHSP70) was able to protect rat cardiac and hepatic function under ischemic and sepsis conditions. We demonstrated for the first time that, in ex vivo isolated and perfused rat heart, exogenous r‐AtHSP70 exerted direct negative inotropic and lusitropic effects via Akt/endothelial nitric oxide synthase pathway, induced post‐conditioning cardioprotection via Reperfusion Injury Salvage Kinase and Survivor Activating Factor Enhancement pathways, and did not cause hepatic damage. In vivo administration of r‐AtHSP70 protected both heart and liver against lipopolysaccharide‐dependent sepsis, as revealed by the reduced plasma levels of interleukin‐1β, tumour necrosis factor alpha, aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase. These results suggest exogenous r‐AtHSP70 as a molecular modulator able to protect myocardial function and to prevent cardiac and liver dysfunctions during inflammatory conditions.
Factors Predicting Postoperative Sentence Scores in Postlinguistically Deaf Adult Cochlear Implant Patients

A sample of 64 postlinguistically profoundly to totally deaf adult cochlear implant patients were tested without lipreading by means of the Central Institute for the Deaf (CID) sentence test 3 months postoperatively. Preoperative promontory stimulation results (thresholds, gap detection, and frequency discrimination), age, duration of profound deafness, cause of deafness, lipreading ability, postoperative intracochlear thresholds and dynamic ranges for electrical stimulation, depth of insertion of the electrode array into the scala tympani, and number of electrodes in use were considered as possible factors that might be related to the postoperative sentence scores. A multiple regression analysis with stepwise inclusion of independent variables indicated that good gap detection and frequency discrimination during preoperative promontory testing, larger numbers of electrodes in use, and greater dynamic ranges for intracochlear electrical stimulation were associated with better CID scores. The CID scores tended to decrease with longer periods of profound deafness.
Early Exposure to Alcohol Leads to Permanent Impairment of Dendritic Excitability in Neocortical Pyramidal Neurons

Exposure to alcohol in utero is a well known cause of mental retardation in humans. Using experimental models of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, it has been demonstrated that cortical pyramidal neurons and their projections are profoundly and permanently impaired. Yet, how the functional features of these cells are modified and how such modifications impact cognitive processes is still unknown. To address this, we studied the intrinsic electrophysiological properties of pyramidal neurons in young adult rats (P30–P60) exposed to ethanol inhalation during the first week of postnatal life (P2–P6). Dual whole-cell recordings from the soma and distal apical dendrites were performed and, following the injection of depolarizing current into the dendrites, layer 5 neurons from ethanol-treated (Et) animals displayed a lower number and a shorter duration of dendritic spikes, attributable to a downregulation of calcium electrogenesis. As a consequence, the mean number of action potentials recorded at the soma after dendritic current injection was also lower in Et animals. No significant differences between Et and controls were observed in the firing pattern elicited in layer 5 neurons by steps of depolarizing somatic current, even though the firing rate was significantly lower in Et animals. The firing pattern and the firing rate of layer 2/3 neurons were not affected by alcohol exposure.
Towards Parallel and Distributed Computing in Large-Scale Data Mining : A Survey

The implementation of data mining ideas in high-performance parallel and distributed computing environments is becoming crucial for ensuring system scalability and interactivity as data continues to grow inexorably in size and complexity. This paper is a survey on the parallelization of well-known data mining techniques covering classification, link analysis, clustering and sequential learning, which are the most important topics in data mining research and development. Basic terminology related to data mining and parallel computing is introduced. With each algorithm, we provide a description of the algorithm, review and discuss current research on parallel implementations of the algorithm.
E-cigarette use in Canada: prevalence and patterns of use in a regulated market

Objective Canada is among the few countries in which e-cigarettes containing nicotine are prohibited. To date, there is little evidence on the prevalence and patterns of use of e-cigarettes in markets with product bans. The current study examines e-cigarette use among a sample of non-smokers and smokers in Canada. Design Online cross-sectional survey. Setting Conducted in October 2013 using a commercial panel of Canadians from Global Market Insite, Inc (GMI). Participants In total, 1095 Canadians were included in the analysis: 311 non-smokers aged 16–24 years (younger non-smokers), 323 smokers aged 16–24 years (younger smokers) and 461 smokers 25 years and older (older smokers). Primary and secondary outcome measures E-cigarette ever and current use, types of products used, and reasons for use. Results Approximately 79% of younger non-smokers, 82% of younger smokers and 81% of older smokers were aware of e-cigarettes. Ever trial of e-cigarettes was reported by 10% of younger non-smokers, 42% of younger smokers and 27% of older smokers. Moreover, current use of an e-cigarette, which was defined as use in the last 30 days, was reported by 0.3% of younger non-smokers, 18% of younger smokers and 10% of older smokers. Among those who had ever tried an e-cigarette, approximately 10% of younger non-smokers, 46% of younger smokers and 43% of older smokers reported trying an e-cigarette that contained nicotine. The most popular e-cigarette flavours were fruit followed by menthol, and the most common reason for using e-cigarettes was to help them quit smoking. Conclusions In the context of previous research, it appears that the prevalence of e-cigarette trial has increased in Canada. Although a considerable proportion of non-smokers have tried e-cigarettes, current use is almost entirely concentrated among smokers. Further research should be conducted to monitor e-cigarette use by Canadians.