Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Partial Complementation of the DNA Repair Defects in Cells from Xeroderma Pigmentosum Groups A, C, D and F but not G by the denV Gene from Bacteriophage T4¶

Abstract Endonuclease V (denV) from bacteriophage T4 was examined for its ability to complement the DNA repair defect in xeroderma pigmentosum (XP) cells from complementation groups A, C, D, F and G. The denV gene was introduced into SV40-transformed normal and XP cells using a retroviral vector. Expression of denV resulted in partial correction of UV sensitivity and increased host cell reactivation (HCR) of a UV-damaged reporter gene for XP cells from groups A, C and D, but not those from group G. Expression of denV in XP-F cells resulted in enhanced HCR of a UV-damaged reporter but did not affect UV sensitivity. The observed partial complementation is thought to reflect denV-mediated repair of cyclobutane-pyrimidine dimers (CPD), and is incomplete as denV does not recognize other UV-induced lesions, and may not even efficiently remove all CPD. As XP-F cells are believed to retain near-normal levels of CPD repair in the bulk of the genome, we believe that the disparity in the ability of denV to complement the repair deficiency in these cells results from an increased rate, but not level, of CPD repair. Furthermore, we suggest that the lack of correction in the XP-G cells examined results from an inability to process denV-incised CPD by the base excision repair pathway, as has been suggested for cells from the related genetic disorder, Cockayne syndrome. Expression of denV in repair proficient normal cells also resulted in increased HCR of the UV-damaged reporter construct, possibly arising from an increased rate of CPD repair in these cells.
The Educational Psychologist in the Early Years: Current practice and future directions

Following suggestions for updated models of service within the early years educational psychologist (EP) role, the study aimed to provide exploratory research evidence of current models of service delivery and EP attitudes. Questionnaires were completed by 32 EPs. Interviews were conducted with three EPs. Quantitative data obtained were analysed using descriptive statistical analysis. Qualitative data were analysed using a constant comparative method. Whilst results suggest an increasing emphasis on early years work within EP services, results suggest dissatisfaction with current working models associated with high levels of individual casework. Implications for early years EP service delivery are discussed.
Evaluation of the Cobas-Bact system for direct and rapid identification and antimicrobial susceptibility testing of gram-negative rods from positive blood culture broths

A direct antimicrobial susceptibility test and a direct identification of positive blood culture broths for gram-negative rods confirmed with Gram stain by using a new instrument, Cobas-Bact, were compared with the conventional Kirby-Bauer agar diffusion disk method and with the in-house set of identification or API 20E, respectively. The bacterial pellet of centrifuged positive blood culture broth was used to inoculate a Cobas-Bact susceptibility and identification rotor. Bacteria from 206 cases of monomicrobial septicemia due to members of the family Enterobacteriaceae were tested. In 198 episodes (96%), direct identification and antimicrobial susceptibility testing results were obtained for the same bacterial pathogen within 5 h of detection. Of 204 direct identifications obtained, 177 (86.6%) were "high-confidence" correct identifications (percentage of likelihood [P] greater than or equal to 80%) and 25 (12.5%) "low-confidence" correct identifications (P less than 80%), whereas only 2 misidentifications occurred (1 Escherichia coli and 1 Proteus mirabilis). Direct susceptibility testing was performed in 199 episodes (96%), providing 1,885 antibiotic-microorganism combinations. Full agreement reached 86.3%, and essential agreement reached 92.8%. Minor discrepancies were found in 120 (6.5%) of the tests, major discrepancies were found in 127 (6.8%) tests, and very major discrepancies were found in only 7 (0.4%) tests. Subsequent MIC determinations in cases of major or very major discrepancies reduced the number of major discrepancies involving cephalosporins from 60 to 16, whereas all those involving aminoglycosides remained. Overall, this direct and rapid Cobas-Bact identification and susceptibility testing procedure offered accurate information with 5 to 6 h after the laboratory detection of bacteremia and septicemia due to members of the Enterobacteriacease.
Effects of ferric citrate supplementation on advanced glycation end products in a rat model of streptozotocin/nicotinamide‐induced diabetes

Scope: Diabetes is associated with the increased risks of anemia and activation of advanced glycation end products (AGEs) and the receptor for AGEs (RAGE). However, the effects of pharmacological doses of iron supplementation on AGE metabolism are less clear. The aim was to investigate the effect of ferric citrate supplementation on AGE metabolism. Methods and results: Diabetes was induced in overnight starved rats by intraperitoneal injections of 40 mg/kg streptozotocin and 120 mg/kg nicotinamide. Diabetic rats were fed a standard diet or pharmacological doses of ferric citrate (0.5, 1, 2, and 3 g of ferric iron/kg diet) for 10 weeks. Ferric citrate supplementation showed a dose‐related effect on the hepatic steatosis score, malondialdehyde, cathepsin D, and glyoxalase I. A Western blot analysis revealed that >1 g of ferric iron suppressed hepatic AGE receptor 1 and high‐mobility group‐box 1 expressions but increased heme oxygenase‐1 and RAGE expressions. Further analysis showed that high doses of ferric iron triggered sterol regulatory element‐binding protein 1c, p38‐mitogen‐activated protein kinase, and nuclear factor‐κB protein expressions. Conclusion: Overall, the present results suggest a dose‐related effect of ferric citrate supplementation on AGE metabolism, and this effect was more evident at high iron doses (>1 g of ferric iron/kg diet).
Detection of circulating urothelial cancer cells in the blood using the CellSearch System

Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) have been shown to aid in the therapeutic management of patients. But, only a few attempts have been made at the detection of urothelial cancer cells in the blood. The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that CTCs are detected in patients with urothelial cancers using newly developed CellSearch Assay.
A haploid genetic screen identifies the G1/S regulatory machinery as a determinant of Wee1 inhibitor sensitivity

Significance Inhibition of Wee1 is considered an attractive anticancer therapy for TP53 mutant tumors. However, additional factors besides p53 inactivation may determine Wee1 inhibitor sensitivity, which we searched for using unbiased functional genetic screening. We discovered that the mutational status of several S-phase genes, including CDK2, determines the cytotoxicity induced by Wee1 inhibition. Notably, we found that Wee1 inhibition induces two distinct phenotypes: accumulation of DNA damage in S phase and karyokinesis/cytokinesis failure during mitosis. Stable depletion of S-phase genes only reversed the formation of DNA damage, but did not rescue karyokinesis/cytokinesis failure upon Wee1 inhibition. Thus, inactivation of nonessential S-phase genes can overcome Wee1 inhibitor resistance, while allowing the survival of genomically instable cancer cells. The Wee1 cell cycle checkpoint kinase prevents premature mitotic entry by inhibiting cyclin-dependent kinases. Chemical inhibitors of Wee1 are currently being tested clinically as targeted anticancer drugs. Wee1 inhibition is thought to be preferentially cytotoxic in p53-defective cancer cells. However, TP53 mutant cancers do not respond consistently to Wee1 inhibitor treatment, indicating the existence of genetic determinants of Wee1 inhibitor sensitivity other than TP53 status. To optimally facilitate patient selection for Wee1 inhibition and uncover potential resistance mechanisms, identification of these currently unknown genes is necessary. The aim of this study was therefore to identify gene mutations that determine Wee1 inhibitor sensitivity. We performed a genome-wide unbiased functional genetic screen in TP53 mutant near-haploid KBM-7 cells using gene-trap insertional mutagenesis. Insertion site mapping of cells that survived long-term Wee1 inhibition revealed enrichment of G1/S regulatory genes, including SKP2, CUL1, and CDK2. Stable depletion of SKP2, CUL1, or CDK2 or chemical Cdk2 inhibition rescued the γ-H2AX induction and abrogation of G2 phase as induced by Wee1 inhibition in breast and ovarian cancer cell lines. Remarkably, live cell imaging showed that depletion of SKP2, CUL1, or CDK2 did not rescue the Wee1 inhibition-induced karyokinesis and cytokinesis defects. These data indicate that the activity of the DNA replication machinery, beyond TP53 mutation status, determines Wee1 inhibitor sensitivity, and could serve as a selection criterion for Wee1-inhibitor eligible patients. Conversely, loss of the identified S-phase genes could serve as a mechanism of acquired resistance, which goes along with development of severe genomic instability.
Association between insulin sensitivity and post-glucose challenge plasma insulin values in overweight Latino youth.

OBJECTIVE To determine associations between directly measured insulin sensitivity (SI) and oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT)-derived plasma insulin values, or calculated SI indices, in overweight peripubertal Latino children at risk for type 2 diabetes. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS Thirty overweight Latino children with a family history of type 2 diabetes, aged 8-13 years, Tanner stages 1-2, underwent an OGTT. Fasting and 2-h plasma insulin values and OGTT-derived SI indices were compared with SI derived from a frequently sampled intravenous glucose tolerance test (FSIGTT) with minimal model analysis, before and after adjustment for total body fat and lean tissue mass, or BMI. RESULTS FSIGTT-derived SI for all subjects was 1.62 +/- 0.78 x 10(-4) min (-1) x (microU/ml), with no sex differences. SI correlated (all P values < 0.001) with fasting (r = -0.57) and 2-h (r = -0.58) plasma insulin and all SI indices (r = -0.57 to 0.67). After adjusting for total body fat and lean tissue mass, or BMI, the associations between SI and either fasting insulin or fasting SI indices were no longer significant. However, the 2-h insulin and post-glucose challenge SI indices maintained significant independent associations with SI, even after adjustment for body composition. CONCLUSIONS In overweight, peripubertal Latino children at risk for type 2 diabetes, the 2-h plasma insulin value and postchallenge SI indices are better independent correlates of SI than fasting values, after accounting for body composition. The 2-h insulin may therefore be superior to fasting insulin as a single blood sample value for clinical or epidemiological estimates of SI, especially when combined with assessment of body composition.
Hepatitis C Virus Reveals a Novel Early Control in Acute Immune Response

Recognition of viral RNA structures by the intracytosolic RNA helicase RIG-I triggers induction of innate immunity. Efficient induction requires RIG-I ubiquitination by the E3 ligase TRIM25, its interaction with the mitochondria-bound MAVS protein, recruitment of TRAF3, IRF3- and NF-κB-kinases and transcription of Interferon (IFN). In addition, IRF3 alone induces some of the Interferon-Stimulated Genes (ISGs), referred to as early ISGs. Infection of hepatocytes with Hepatitis C virus (HCV) results in poor production of IFN despite recognition of the viral RNA by RIG-I but can lead to induction of early ISGs. HCV was shown to inhibit IFN production by cleaving MAVS through its NS3/4A protease and by controlling cellular translation through activation of PKR, an eIF2α-kinase containing dsRNA-binding domains (DRBD). Here, we have identified a third mode of control of IFN induction by HCV. Using HCVcc and the Huh7.25. CD81 cells, we found that HCV controls RIG-I ubiquitination through the di-ubiquitine-like protein ISG15, one of the early ISGs. A transcriptome analysis performed on Huh7.25. CD81 cells silenced or not for PKR and infected with JFH1 revealed that HCV infection leads to induction of 49 PKR-dependent genes, including ISG15 and several early ISGs. Silencing experiments revealed that this novel PKR-dependent pathway involves MAVS, TRAF3 and IRF3 but not RIG-I, and that it does not induce IFN. Use of PKR inhibitors showed that this pathway requires the DRBD but not the kinase activity of PKR. We then demonstrated that PKR interacts with HCV RNA and MAVS prior to RIG-I. In conclusion, HCV recruits PKR early in infection as a sensor to trigger induction of several IRF3-dependent genes. Among those, ISG15 acts to negatively control the RIG-I/MAVS pathway, at the level of RIG-I ubiquitination.These data give novel insights in the machinery involved in the early events of innate immune response.
Identity, Unity, and Individuality: Towards a Formal Toolkit for Ontological Analysis

We introduce here the notions of identity and unity as they have been discussed in Philosophy, and then provide additional clarifications needed to use these notions as fundamental tools in a methodology for ontology-driven conceptual analysis. We show how identity and unity complement each other under a general notion of individuality, and conclude with an example of how these tools can be used in analysis to help check the ontological consistency of taxonomies.
Art Therapy with Adult Female Incest Survivors

Abstract“Very little systematic research has compared different types of treatment for adult victims of sexual assault” (Resick & Schnicke, 1990, p. 488). Art therapy research in the treatment of sexual abuse has mainly been concerned with the content of art expressions produced by clients (Spring, 1984; Ticen, 1990). Therefore, comparative studies of art therapy and group verbal therapy have the potential of aiding therapists in treating this population.Fifteen adult female incest survivors participated in this study which employed a control group and two experimental groups. Participants rated the significance of the curative factors of catharsis, cohesion, and insight in their treatment. The results of this study indicate that group art therapy, using a series of structured tasks, increased the value assigned to each of these curative factors.
VULNERABILITY AND DANGEROUSNESS

In this article, the author argues that beliefs about vulnerability and dangerousness are central to conceptions of gender and are constructed and transmitted through conversation. Using data from 13 focus groups, the author demonstrates that ideas about gender and its relationship to vulnerability and danger are pervasive in talk about violence, and that this talk is further marked by ideas about age, race, social class, and sexual identity. These ideas are based, in part, on shared beliefs about human bodies, which reinforce the perceived naturalness (and therefore the invisibility) of these ideas. The article concludes with a discussion of the consequences of these ideas for the daily lives of women and men.
Sterol transmethylation during aerobic adaptation of yeast.

An analysis of the total sterol content has been made of a yeast strain during aerobic adaptation. Transmethylation occurs principally at the 4-demethylsterol level, but conditions were obtained wherein a small fraction of the transmethylations were with 4α-methyl precursors. Δ7-Zymostenol has been tentatively identified as a product previously unreported in yeast. Esterification was observed in all sterol intermediates and products. Cell-free cyclization of 2,3-epoxy-22-methylene squalene to 24-methylene lanosterol occurs with yeast.
Youth purpose and the perception of social supports among African-American girls

Purpose in adolescence is linked to positive developmental outcomes, and yet little is known about how youth purpose is supported by people and institutions that occupy the ecologies in which young people are embedded. Little is known too about how African-American youths envision themselves in the future, and understanding the nature of their purposes may uncover critical information about these adolescents’ aspirations. Associations between purpose and social supports were examined in a sample of 46 adolescent girls in the southeastern United States (Mean age = 12.83 years; SD = 1.14 years) (African-American/Black = 78.3%; Multiracial = 15.2%; White/Caucasian = 6.5%). Qualitative content analysis of interviews identified five forms of purpose experienced by these young people. Surveys measured perceived presence and importance of social supports of parents, teachers, close friends, classmates, and school environment, as well as emotional, informational, appraisal, and instrumental support across these sources. Adolescents with more diffuse purpose forms reported greater social support from school, and in some cases, from teachers, than did adolescents with more complete purpose forms. The diffuse purpose form groups reported that school support was more important to them than did the other groups. Implications of the findings are discussed.
Student Perceptions of Social Presence and Attitudes toward Social Media: Results of a Cross-Sectional Study

Establishing and maintaining social presence in an online environment that depends on a learning management system (LMS) can be challenging. While students believe social presence to be important, LMS platforms have yet to discover a way to deliver this expectation. The growth of social media tools presents opportunities outside an LMS to foster social presence in online learning communities. The purpose of this study was to assess perceived levels of social presence in an LMS and willingness to use social media tools outside an LMS among online doctoral students. Student perceptions of social presence and willingness to use a social media tool were examined via a descriptive, cross-sectional survey design. The sample size was 138, representing a 52% response rate. Students reported high levels of social presence in the LMS, but noted important areas in which the LMS was deficient. While all students used at least one social media tool, the modes of communication with other students and instructors were primarily tradition (e-mail, LMS, phone). Despite their busy schedules, 57% of respondents reported having greater than 30 minutes available daily for social connections with other students and instructors, and 43% indicated that they were willing to use a social media tool if one was offered outside of the LMS. Given the importance that students place on social presence, the limitations of the LMS and the willingness of students to experiment with a social media tool in their learning environment, the exploration of adding such a tool is warranted.
In pursuit of harmony: The social and organisational factors in a professional vocal ensemble

How do chamber music ensembles consistently succeed in achieving a level of harmony that many other work groups can only dream of? Through an in-depth case study of a professional vocal ensemble, this study explores some of the factors that underlie the excellence of chamber music ensembles as work groups. Qualitative interview data revealed information about member characteristics, leadership models, task distribution, decision making, relationships, conflicts, the artistic production process, characteristics of good ensemble singing, group aspirations, issues of identity, and challenges as musicians. In particular, the ensemble members’ collective commitment to excellence was striking. Results further revealed that members possess a set of highly relevant personal and interpersonal skills that are manifested both on and off stage: self awareness, restraint, interpersonal awareness, and mutual sensitivity. It is suggested that this set of skills is crucial in enabling musicians to collaborate in pursuit of their collective artistic endeavours.
Expectations and Values of University Students in Transition: Evidence from an Australian Classroom

Reforms in the functioning and purpose of higher education during the past 2 decades have created profound changes in the expectations and values of university students worldwide. Indeed, the values of entrepreneurship, vocational relevance, and commercial success have considerably displaced the traditional expectations of knowledge acquisition and dissemination. These sea changes in the role and functioning of universities have brought about significant stress at the classroom level, where the expectation gap between instructors and students has been widening. This article explores the expectations and value gaps of students in an Australian university during a period of 2 years in two different cycles by gathering evidence in an auto-reflective postcourse narrative survey. The key findings of the study indicate an overwhelming indication toward utilitarian and pragmatic outcomes. The article suggests some pedagogical reconceptualizations in response to the inevitable conflict between what is delivered and what is valued and expected.
Moral education and post‐war societies: the Peruvian case

This article analyses the unique challenges and needs of moral and citizenship education in post‐war Peruvian society. It assumes the explanation of the roots, the facts and the enduring negative consequences of violence as described in the final report of the Comisión de la Verdad y Reconciliación (CVR) [Truth and Reconciliation Commission] presented to the country in 2003. Drawing on the argument made by the CVR, the paper begins by discussing the fundamental role that education played in the expansion of violence. Secondly, and within the framework of the CVR, the article undertakes an evaluation of the current state of Peruvian education, emphasising the role and main characteristics of moral and citizenship education within it. Through this examination, the many problems and challenges of moral education in contemporary Peruvian society are highlighted. Finally, the paper presents some general conclusions about the state of moral and citizenship education in Perú and the essential and delicate role it should have in a post‐war society.
Effects of Organizational Characteristics and Human Capital Endowments on Pay of Female and Male Middle School Principals

Background: Studies addressing pay discrimination for females in education have relied on main effect regression models, mostly examining amount (intercept values) rather than rate of pay (slope coefficients). Purpose: The purpose is to determine if organizational characteristics and human capital endowments purported to influence pay are facially neutral (amount of pay) or have a disproportional impact (rate of pay) for female middle school principals. Setting: The population is all California public middle school principals, who are stratified by sex and randomly selected through a sampling process that includes only a single principal from any school district. Research Design: A hierarchical regression design is used to assess main effects for organizational characteristics and human capital variables (amount) and interaction effects (rate) of these variables and a residual effect for sex. Data Collection: Organizational characteristics for school districts and school buildings were obtained from a state database, and human capital endowments and information for pay were assessed via survey self-reports of principals. Findings: Organizational and human capital variables are facially neutral and account for substantial variance in pay amount ( R 2 = .44, p ≤ .01). None of the interaction terms (ΔR 2 = .02, p ≥ .05) reflect a disproportional impact (rate of pay) for females, and the residual sex coefficient is nonsignificant (ΔR 2 = .00, p ≥ .05). Conclusions: These findings differ from existing research suggesting pay discrimination on the basis of sex at the school building level but may do so because of methodological advancements and/or a temporal effect.