Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Polymorphisms in the GRIA1 gene region in psychotic bipolar disorder

We reported previously a significant linkage signal between psychotic bipolar disorder (BP) and microsatellite markers on chromosome 5q31–34 in the National Institute of Mental Health Bipolar Genetics Initiative (NIMH‐BPGI) data set, Wave 1. In an attempt to fine‐map this linkage signal we genotyped 1,134 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) under the linkage peak in 23 informative families (131 individuals) with evidence of linkage. We tested family based association in the presence of linkage with the computer software package FBAT. The most significant association in these families was with a SNP in the second intron of GRIA1 (α‐amino‐3‐hydroxy‐5‐methyl‐4‐isoxazole proprionic acid (AMPA) subunit 1 receptor gene) (rs490922, Z‐score = 3.3, P = 0.001). The analysis of 37 additional families with psychotic BP from NIMH‐BPGI data sets, Waves 2, 3, and 4 revealed a signal at a SNP in intron 5 of the GRIA1 gene (rs4385264, Z‐score = 3.2, P‐value = 0.002). A combined analysis of all 60 families continued to support evidence for association of GRIA1 with psychotic BP; however, individual SNPs could not be replicated across datasets. The AMPA1 receptor has been shown to influence cognitive function, such as working memory and reward learning. Our findings suggest that variations in this receptor may contribute to the pathophysiology of BP with psychotic features in some families. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
MicroRNAs in Human Cerebrospinal Fluid as Biomarkers for Alzheimer's Disease.

BACKGROUND Currently available biomarkers of Alzheimer's disease (AD) include cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) protein analysis and amyloid PET imaging, each of which has limitations. The discovery of extracellular microRNAs (miRNAs) in CSF raises the possibility that miRNA may serve as novel biomarkers of AD. OBJECTIVE Investigate miRNAs in CSF obtained from living donors as biomarkers for AD. METHODS We profiled miRNAs in CSF from 50 AD patients and 49 controls using TaqMan® arrays. Replicate studies performed on a subset of 32 of the original CSF samples verified 20 high confidence miRNAs. Stringent data analysis using a four-step statistical selection process including log-rank and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) tests, followed by random forest tests, identified 16 additional miRNAs that discriminate AD from controls. Multimarker modeling evaluated linear combinations of these miRNAs via best-subsets logistic regression, and computed area under the ROC (AUC) curve ascertained classification performance. The influence of ApoE genotype on miRNA biomarker performance was also evaluated. RESULTS We discovered 36 miRNAs that discriminate AD from control CSF. 20 of these retested in replicate studies verified differential expression between AD and controls. Stringent statistical analysis also identified these 20 miRNAs, and 16 additional miRNA candidates. Top-performing linear combinations of 3 and 4 miRNAs have AUC of 0.80-0.82. Addition of ApoE genotype to the model improved performance, i.e., AUC of 3 miRNA plus ApoE4 improves to 0.84. CONCLUSIONS CSF miRNAs can discriminate AD from controls. Combining miRNAs improves sensitivity and specificity of biomarker performance, and adding ApoE genotype improves classification.
Source ( synthetic ) Target ( real ) feature dimension 1 feature dim ension

Estimating the viewpoint of objects in images is an important task for scene understanding. The viewpoint estimation accuracy, however, depends highly on the amount of training data and the quality of the annotation. While humans excel at labelling images with coarse viewpoint annotations like front, back, left or right, the process becomes tedious and the quality of the annotations decreases when finer viewpoint discretisations are required. To solve this problem, we propose a refinement of coarse viewpoint annotations, which are provided by humans, with synthetic data automatically generated from 3D models. To compensate between the difference between synthetic and real images, we introduce a domain adaptation approach that aligns the domain of the synthesized images with the domain of the real images. Experiments show that the proposed approach significantly improves viewpoint estimation on several state-of-the-art datasets.
Molecular Mechanisms of Action of M5 Muscarinic Acetylcholine Receptor Allosteric Modulators

Recently, the first subtype-selective allosteric modulators of the M5 muscarinic acetylcholine receptor (mAChR) have been described, but their molecular mechanisms of action remain unknown. Using radioligand-binding and functional assays of inositol phosphate (IP) accumulation and Ca2+ mobilization in a recombinant cell line stably expressing the human M5 mAChR, we investigated the effects of the positive allosteric modulator (PAM), ML380, and negative allosteric modulator, ML375. In functional assays, ML380 caused robust enhancements in the potency of the full agonists, acetylcholine (ACh), carbachol, and oxotremorine-M, while significantly increasing the maximal response to the partial agonist, pilocarpine. ML380 also demonstrated direct allosteric agonist activity. In contrast, ML375 displayed negative cooperativity with each of the agonists in a manner that varied with the pathway investigated and progressively reduced the maximal pilocarpine response. Radioligand-binding affinity cooperativity estimates were consistent with values derived from functional assays in some instances but not others, suggesting additional allosteric effects on orthosteric ligand efficacy. For ML375 this was confirmed in IP assays performed after reduction of receptor reserve by the alkylating agent, phenoxybenzamine, as it reduced the maximal ACh response. In contrast, ML380 enhanced only ACh potency after receptor alkylation, with no effect on maximal response, consistent with studies of the M1 mAChR with the prototypical PAM, BQZ12. Interaction studies between ML380 and ML375 also indicated that they most likely used an overlapping allosteric site. Our findings indicate that novel small-molecule modulators of the M5 mAChR display mixed mechanisms of action compared with previously characterized modulators of other mAChRs.
The impact of stillbirth on bereaved parents: A qualitative study

Purpose To explore the lived experiences and personal impact of stillbirth on bereaved parents. Methods Semi-structured in-depth interviews analysed by Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) on a purposive sample of parents of twelve babies born following fetal death at a tertiary university maternity hospital in Ireland with a birth rate of c8,500 per annum and a stillbirth rate of 4.6/1000. Results Stillbirth had a profound and enduring impact on bereaved parents. Four superordinate themes relating to the human impact of stillbirth emerged from the data: maintaining hope, importance of the personhood of the baby, protective care and relationships (personal and professional). Bereaved parents recalled in vivid detail their experiences of care following diagnosis of stillbirth and their subsequent care. The time between diagnosis of a life-limiting anomaly or stillbirth and delivery is highlighted as important for parents as they find meaning in their loss. Conclusions The impact of stillbirth on bereaved parents is immense and how parents are cared for is recalled in precise detail as they revisit their experience. Building on existing literature, these data bring to light the depth of personal experience and impact of stillbirth for parents and provides medical professionals with valuable insights to inform their care of bereaved parents and the importance of clear and sensitive communication.
Potential bromatological the Piatã grass cultived in organic system.

The aim this work was to verify the potential bromatological the Piatã grass cultived in organic system. The experiment was carried out at green house using a complete randomized experimental in factorial scheme with sub-divided plot in time. Plots were compound of six treatments: two types of compost organic in three doses, and sup-plots by five different periods of cuts. Composts organics were applied in one dose, after uniforming cut, in doses of 0, 100, 200 and 300 kg ha -1 of N. Were observed the effect of cut periods, since plants that were cut in summer showed nutritive value superior than those plants that were cut in winter.
Adaptive Droop Control of VSC-MTDC System for Frequency Support and Power Sharing

This paper proposes an adaptive droop control (ADC) strategy for the voltage source converter (VSC) based multiterminal high voltage direct current (VSC-MTDC) system, which enables the VSC-station to provide frequency regulation for onshore ac grids. A V-I-f characteristic is derived to establish the relationship between the frequency deviation and dc voltage. A VSC-station working with the V-I-f characteristic is able to adjust its dc voltage reference autonomously according to the grid frequency deviation. Thus, the power flow of the VSC-MTDC system will be redistributed and more power is going to be injected into the adjacent grid of which the frequency deviation exceeds the threshold value. The ADC strategy inherits the advantage of the traditional droop control (TDC) that there is no need for communication system. An ac/dc hybrid system that includes VSC-MTDC system, onshore grids, and offshore wind farms is built in DIgSILENT/Powerfactory. Modal analysis and nonlinear simulations are performed to obtain the optimal control parameters and demonstrate the performance of the ADC strategy.
Resistance Pattern and Detection of Metallo-beta-lactamase Genes in Clinical Isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in a Central Nigeria Tertiary Hospital

Background: Acquired metallo-β-lactamases (MBLs) pose serious problem both in terms of treatment and infection control in the hospitals and report across the world showed an increase in their prevalence. However, there is a paucity of data from Africa, and their report is rare in Nigeria. Aim: This study aimed to determine the prevalence of acquired MBL-resistant genes in carbapenem-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa in Abuja, North Central Nigeria. Materials and Methods: Two hundred nonduplicate, consecutive isolates of P. aeruginosa from clinical samples submitted to the Medical Microbiology Laboratory of National Hospital, Abuja were screened for carbapenem resistance using imipenem and meropenem. Phenotypic detection of MBL-producing strains was determined using Total MBL confirm kits and E-test strips on isolates that were resistant to both Imipenem and meropenem. The MBL genes were detected using multiplex polymerase chain reaction, while the gene variant was determined by sequencing. Results: Twenty-two MBL-producing strains were detected phenotypically, but only 5 harbored the blaVIM-1 gene, giving a prevalence of 2.5%. These 5 strains were resistant to all the antipseudomonal antibiotics tested except Aztreonam and Colistin. Other common MBL-genes were not detected. Conclusion: The prevalence of MBL-producing strains of P. aeruginosa which poses serious challenge for therapeutics and infection control is currently low in Abuja, North Central, Nigeria. Therefore, rational use of the carbapenems and other antipseudomonal antibiotics, regular surveillance and adequate infection control measures should be instituted to limit further spread.
The Intracellular Localization of the Vanillin Biosynthetic Machinery in Pods of Vanilla planifolia

Abstract Vanillin is the most important flavor compound in the vanilla pod. Vanilla planifolia vanillin synthase (VpVAN) catalyzes the conversion of ferulic acid and ferulic acid glucoside into vanillin and vanillin glucoside, respectively. Desorption electrospray ionization mass spectrometry imaging (DESI-MSI) of vanilla pod sections demonstrates that vanillin glucoside is preferentially localized within the mesocarp and placental laminae whereas vanillin is preferentially localized within the mesocarp. VpVAN is present as the mature form (25 kDa) but, depending on the tissue and isolation procedure, small amounts of the immature unprocessed form (40 kDa) and putative oligomers (50, 75 and 100 kDa) may be observed by immunoblotting using an antibody specific to the C-terminal sequence of VpVAN. The VpVAN protein is localized within chloroplasts and re-differentiated chloroplasts termed phenyloplasts, as monitored during the process of pod development. Isolated chloroplasts were shown to convert [14C]phenylalanine and [14C]cinnamic acid into [14C]vanillin glucoside, indicating that the entire vanillin de novo biosynthetic machinery converting phenylalanine to vanillin glucoside is present in the chloroplast.
Geographic variation and trade-offs in parasitoid virulence.

Host-parasitoid systems are characterized by a continuous development of new defence strategies in hosts and counter-defence mechanisms in parasitoids. This co-evolutionary arms race makes host-parasitoid systems excellent for understanding trade-offs in host use caused by evolutionary changes in host immune responses and parasitoid virulence. However, knowledge obtained from natural host-parasitoid systems on such trade-offs is still limited. In this study, the aim was to examine trade-offs in parasitoid virulence in Asecodes parviclava (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) when attacking three closely related beetles: Galerucella pusilla, Galerucella calmariensis and Galerucella tenella (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae). A second aim was to examine whether geographic variation in parasitoid infectivity or host immune response could explain differences in parasitism rate between northern and southern sites. More specifically, we wanted to examine whether the capacity to infect host larvae differed depending on the previous host species of the parasitoids and if such differences were connected to differences in the induction of host immune systems. This was achieved by combining controlled parasitism experiments with cytological studies of infected larvae. Our results reveal that parasitism success in A. parviclava differs both depending on previous and current host species, with a higher virulence when attacking larvae of the same species as the previous host. Virulence was in general high for parasitoids from G. pusilla and low for parasitoids from G. calmariensis. At the same time, G. pusilla larvae had the strongest immune response and G. calmariensis the weakest. These observations were linked to changes in the larval hemocyte composition, showing changes in cell types important for the encapsulation process in individuals infected by more or less virulent parasitoids. These findings suggest ongoing evolution in parasitoid virulence and host immune response, making the system a strong candidate for further studies on host race formation and speciation.
The effect of dimerization on the interaction of ibuprofen drug with calf thymus DNA: Molecularmodeling and spectroscopic investigation

ABSTRACT The interaction between the dimer structure of ibuprofen drug (D-IB) and calf thymus DNA under simulative physiological conditions was investigated with the use of Hoechst 33258 and methylene blue dye as spectral probes by the methods of UV-visible absorption, fluorescence spectroscopy, circular dichroism spectroscopy and molecular modeling study.Using the Job's plot, a single class of binding sites for theD-IB on DNA was put in evidence. The Stern–Volmer analysis of fluorescence quenching data shows the presence of both the static and dynamic quenching mechanisms. The binding constants, Kb were calculated at different temperatures, and the thermodynamic parameters ∆G∘, ∆H∘ and ∆S∘ were given. The experimental results showed that D-IB molecules could bind with DNA via groove binding mode as evidenced by: I. DNA binding constant from spectrophotometric studies of the interaction of D-IB with DNA is comparable to groove binding drugs. II. Competitive fluorimetric studies with Hoechst 33258 have shown that D-IB exhibits the ability of this complex to displace with DNA-bounded Hoechst, indicating that it binds to DNA in strong competition with Hoechst for the groove binding. III. There is no significantly change in the absorption of the MB-DNA system upon adding the D-IB, indicates that MB molecules are not released from the DNA helix after addition of the D-IB and are indicative of a non-intercalative mode of binding. IV. Small changes in DNA viscosity in the presence of D-IB, indicating weak link to DNA, which is consistent with DNA groove binding. As well as, induced CD spectral changes, and the docking results revealed that groove mechanism is followed by D-IB to bind with DNA.
Evaluation of Two Simplified Methods for Determining Cushion Curves of Closed Cell Foams

Because of the negative environmental impact of using traditional polymeric materials for cushioning in protective packaging, the interest in optimization of cushion design resulting in replacement or reduction of the amount of cushioning materials has increased in recent years. It has been generally accepted that the shock absorbing characteristics for cushioning materials are presented as the so‐called cushion curves, i.e. graphs of peak acceleration of shocks versus the corresponding static stress, presented over a range of static stress conditions for a specific material thickness and at a specific drop height. The cushion curves are mainly used to design and optimize cushion packaging. This information is specific to each packaging manufacturer, particular chemical formulation and manufacturing process. The traditional method to obtain cushion curves of a specific material is described in ASTM D1596, but this method requires enormous amounts of test data, is time consuming and expensive. For this reason, cushion curves provided by manufacturers are rarely updated and often are obsolete.
A lentiviral vector pseudotype suitable for vaccine development

Lentiviral vectors (LV) are promising vaccines because they transduce dendritic cells (DC) in vivo. To translate LV vaccines into clinical trials, bulk production will be necessary. The present study aimed to find a suitable envelope for LV vaccine production from stable packaging cells because the commonly used vesicular stomatitis virus envelope (VSV‐G) is cytotoxic.
The 0 to R1 cylinder radial coordinate transformation can not be used to induce cylinder layer EM invisible cloak and acoustic no scattering cloak

In this paper, we discover and prove that the 0 to R<inf>1</inf> cylinder radial ρ transformation can not be used to induce cylinder layer EM invisible cloak and acoustic no scattering cloak. Because in the 0 to R<inf>1</inf> cylinder radial coordinate transformation, ρ<inf>q</inf> = R<inf>1</inf> + Q(ρ), Q(0) = 0, Q(R<inf>2</inf>) = R<inf>2</inf> − R<inf>1</inf>, cylinder, ρ ≤ R<inf>2</inf>, |z| < ∞, is compressed onto cylindrical layer, R<inf>1</inf> ≤ ρ ≤ R<inf>2</inf>, |z| < ∞, the value range of the electric wave field E<inf>z</inf>(ρ,φ, z) and magnetic wave field H<inf>z</inf>(ρ,φ, z) and acoustic wave field u(ρ,φ, z) are invariant. When necessary condition of no scattering, i.e., wave and derivative continuous boundary condition are satisfied on r = R<inf>2</inf>, then E<inf>z</inf>(ρ<inf>q</inf>,φ, z) = E<inf>z</inf>(ρ,φ, z), on the physical inner cylinder boundary, E<inf>z</inf>(ρ<inf>q</inf> = R<inf>1</inf>, ϕ, z) = E<inf>z</inf>(ρ = 0, ϕ, z) = 0, H<inf>z</inf>(ρ<inf>q</inf> = R<inf>1</inf>, ϕ, z) = H<inf>z</inf>(ρ = 0, ϕ, z) ≠ 0, and u(ρ<inf>q</inf> = R<inf>1</inf>, ϕ, z) = u(ρ = 0, ϕ, z) = 0 are not zero. The cylinder EM wave and cylinder acoustic field will propagation penetrate into the inner cylinder ρ < R<inf>1</inf>, and to become unbounded wave field without physics. The bounded solution requirement induces only zero wave in the inner cylinder ρ < R<inf>1</inf>, and make E<inf>z</inf>(ρ<inf>q</inf> = R<inf>1</inf><sup>+</sup>, φ, z) = 0, that is contradiction with above E<inf>z</inf>(ρ<inf>q</inf> = R<inf>1</inf>, ϕ, z) = E<inf>z</inf>(ρ = 0, ϕ, z) = 0. The basic contradiction proved that the 0 to R<inf>1</inf> cylinder radial ρ transformation can not be used to induce cylinder layer EM invisible cloak and acoustic no scattering cloak. Inversely if the in the inner cylinder ρ < R<inf>1</inf>, is cloaked E<inf>z</inf>(ρ<inf>q</inf> = R<inf>1</inf><sup>+</sup>,φ, z)= 0. we can prove that there exist scattering EM wave or scattering acoustic wave in outside of whole cylinder, ρ > R<inf>2</inf> to disturb incident wave in free space or in background space, the whole cylinder become no invisible and is detected or exposed. Moreover, the outside scattering is not satisfy radiation condition. The cloaked the inner cylinder ρ < R<inf>1</inf>, will cause the contradiction with No scattering condition on the outer boundary r = R<inf>2</inf>. In many published papers on EM and acoustic cylinder cloak, the 0 to R<inf>1</inf> cylinder radial transformation was wrong to use for their EM and acoustic cylinder layer cloak, for example [4], that should be reconsideration. We proved that the 0 to R<inf>1</inf> cylinder radial ρ transformation can not be used to induce cylinder layer EM invisible cloak and acoustic no scattering cloak that does cause the whole cylinder to be detected and exposed.
A Topology Preserving Method of Evolving Contours Based on Sparsity Constraint for Object Segmentation

Active contour models based on the level set method (LSM) are widely used in image segmentation. The major advantages of these models based on an LSM are topological flexibility and evolution robustness. However, topological flexibility is not always needed, and it could bring some negative effects for object extraction, such as extracting noise and non-objects. In this paper, a topological preservation method is proposed to constrain the evolution of contour. First, the modes of topological changes in geometric active contour models are analyzed. Second, on the basis of the modes of topological changes, the corresponding constraints are designed to keep the topology. To be specific, extracting objects with a known topology (such as k-connected objects) is viewed as a sparse representation problem under a set of basis functions. According to sparse representation, the increase or decrease of evolving contours’ topology corresponds to those of the basis functions. Thus, a corresponding energy functional for topology preservation is defined based on basis functions. Finally, the proposed constraint is integrated into geometric active contour models, which is useful in extracting special objects. Experiments demonstrate that the proposed method improves the robustness of the performance of active contour models and can increase the accuracy in target object extraction.
Development and Psychometric Testing of the Iceland–Family Illness Beliefs Questionnaire

Illness beliefs affect how individuals and families deal with illness. A valid and reliable instrument has not yet been developed to measure “illness beliefs” in family nursing research and clinical practice. This article describes the purpose, reliability, validity, and the potential clinical and research applications of a new instrument, the Iceland–Family Illness Beliefs Questionnaire (ICE-FIBQ). The ICE-FIBQ is a short, self-report measure of an individual’s beliefs about illness. Drawing from an advanced nursing practice model called the Illness Beliefs Model, the instrument was developed to measure illness beliefs about (a) cause of illness, that is, etiology; (b) control of illness on family and control of family on illness; (c) effect of illness on the individual and family; (d) illness suffering; and (e) support received from health care professionals during illness. The instrument was tested on 139 family caregivers of adolescents/youth with an illness or a disorder. Exploratory factor analysis reduced the original questionnaire from eight to seven items with a one-factor solution (Cronbach’s α = .780). Confirmatory factor analysis supported the one-factor solution (Cronbach’s α = .789). Further research is needed to determine concurrent validity with other illness belief/illness perception scales and if the instrument is sensitive to capture change in illness beliefs following family nursing intervention.