Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Phagocytosis of Leishmania mexicana amastigotes by macrophages leads to a sustained suppression of IL‐12 production

Healing of leishmaniases is dependent on activation of parasitized macrophages (Mϕ) by IFN‐γ, which is secreted by Leishmania‐specific Th1 cells. IL‐12 enhances IFN‐γ production by Th1 cells and is crucial for cure. The host cells of Leishmania sp. , Mϕ, are a main source of IL‐12 in vivo. We report that infection of quiescent murine Mϕ with L. mexicana or L. major amastigotes does not induce IL‐12 production. Moreover, infection suppresses IL‐12 secretion by Mϕ activated by LPS, by CD40 cross‐linking or cognate interaction with Th1 cells. IL‐12 secretion is also suppressed in Mϕ activated after phagocytosis of latex beads. Suppression is independent of engagement of CR3 or FcγR during phagocytosis, is not mediated by IL‐10 and does not alter steady state IL‐12p40 mRNA levels. In addition, suppression of IL‐12 secretion does not depend on Mϕ activation concurrent to infection. In contrast, NO production was not inhibited. Thus, Mϕ effector functions are differentially affected and this may be a general effect of phagocytosis of non‐activating particles. The possible implications of this effect on the infection are discussed.
MECHANISMS BEHIND THE RESISTANCE OF SPHEROIDS TO PHOTODYNAMIC TREATMENT: A FLOW CYTOMETRY STUDY

Abstract— The influence of cell heterogeneity on response to photodynamic treatment (PDT) has been investigated using the human colon adenocarcinoma line WiDr, grown as spheroids and exposed to hematoporphyrin derivative. The spheroids show a marked spheroid size‐dependent resistance to PDT. Using a flow cytometer, cell sub‐populations have been separated, on the basis of drug fluorescence, from single cell suspensions prepared from 500 μm diameter spheroids. Cells low in fluorescence have been shown to be resistant to PDT, have a smaller median cell volume, and be enhanced in G1‐type cells. These cells also show reduced low density lipoprotein uptake. The results suggest that spheroid size‐dependent resistance to PDT is related to a decreasing growth fraction with increasing spheroid size. Heterogeneity of drug uptake could be a potential limitation to clinical PDT.
Diagnostic Approach to Viral Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) in Paediatric Age Group: A Study from New Delhi.

Introduction Acute Encephalitis Syndrome has heralded the emergence of multiple virulent pathogens, which may result in severe morbidity and mortality. In India, encephalitis is not notified and there has been a dearth of analysis for trends in encephalitis death rates and causation. A downward trend has been observed in encephalitis deaths, due to 'known' causes, which can be largely explained by improvement in diagnostic, treatment, and prevention methods. There is still a very high proportion of encephalitis deaths in developing countries, where the aetiological diagnosis of the pathogen is not established and thus, lies the importance of monitoring encephalitis morbidity and mortality with a view to improve pathogen diagnosis and identify emerging infectious diseases. Aim To formulate a diagnostic approach to viral acute encephalitis syndrome in paediatric age group. Materials and Methods A cross-sectional study including 50 paediatric patients, clinically diagnosed with acute encephalitis syndrome using WHO criteria was conducted. The CSF of all the patients was evaluated to diagnose the aetiology for viral pathogens. ELISA was used for diagnosing Japanese encephalitis and dengue encephalitis; and multiplex real time PCR was used for detecting HSV-1, HSV-2, Varicella zoster virus, Mumps virus, Enterovirus and Parechovirus. Results Confirmed diagnosis was established in 11 (22%) of 50 cases. A confirmed or probable viral agent of encephalitis was found in 7 (14%), bacterial agent was found in 2 (4%), non-infectious aetiology was found in 2 (4%). Fatal outcome was independently associated with patient age. Conclusion Despite extensive testing, the aetiologies of more than three fourth of the cases remains elusive. Nevertheless the result from the present study may be useful for future design of early diagnosis and treatment of the disease. New strategies for pathogen identification and continued analysis of clinical features and case histories should help us improve our ability to diagnose, treat and prevent encephalitis.
Creating Social Stories as Wearable Hyper-Immersive Virtual Reality Experiences for Children with Neurodevelopmental Disorders

"Social stories" are short narratives that describe everyday life situations using paper or video and are widely used in interventions for children with Neurodevelopmental Disorders (NDD), particularly in the Autistic Spectrum. Our research explores how to transform "traditional" social stories into wearable interactive immersive digital experiences. The paper describes a tool designed with therapists that enables everyone to autonomously develop and customize these "high tech" social stories, and, during a session of use, to control user's interaction and to automatically gather relevant behavioural information.
Mapping EBNA-1 Domains Involved in Binding to Metaphase Chromosomes

ABSTRACT The Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) genome can persist in dividing human B cells as multicopy circular episomes. Viral episomes replicate in synchrony with host cell DNA and are maintained at a relatively constant copy number for a long time. Only two viral elements, the replication origin OriP and the EBNA-1 protein, are required for the persistence of viral genomes during latency. EBNA-1 activates OriP during the S phase and may also contribute to the partition and/or retention of viral genomes during mitosis. Indeed, EBNA-1 has been shown to interact with mitotic chromatin. Moreover, viral genomes are noncovalently associated with metaphase chromosomes. This suggests that EBNA-1 may facilitate the anchorage of viral genomes on cellular chromosomes, thus ensuring proper partition and retention. In the present paper, we have investigated the chromosome-binding activity of EBV EBNA-1, herpesvirus papio (HVP) EBNA-1, and various derivatives of EBV EBNA-1, fused to a variant of the green fluorescent protein. The results show that binding to metaphase chromosomes is a common property of EBV and HVP EBNA-1. Further studies indicated that at least three independent domains (CBS-1, -2, and -3) mediate EBNA-1 binding to metaphase chromosomes. In agreement with the anchorage model, two of these domains mapped to a region that has been previously demonstrated to be required for the long-term persistence of OriP-containing plasmids.
Contourlet based distance measurement to improve fingerprint identification accuracy

In this paper, Kullback-Leibler Distance (KLD) is employed to measure the dissimilarity between marginal statistical features of contourlet transform to fingerprint identification. Conourlet transform is a non separable two dimensional transform which can well capture the geometry of edges in the images which convey important information for the human visual system (HVS). Here, marginal statistics of each transform subband are modeled by a Generalized Gaussian Density (GGD) model and the GGD parameters-α and β- are granted as the extracted features from the corresponding subbands and the fingerprint recognition is done based on k-NN classifier employing Kullback-Leibler Distance (KLD) measure. The fingerprint recognition results confirm the high efficiency of the proposed system comparing with the state of the art methods.
Meningeal and vestibulocochlear nerve enhancement in neuromyelitis optica

Sir, The spectrum of neuromyelitis optica (NMO) broadly covers uncommon lesions located outside the core opticospinal lesions. Apart from the optic nerve, relapses involving the cranial nerves and cortical meningeal enhancement have rarely been described in NMO [1,2]. We report the first case of a typical patient with NMO suffering from a clinical relapse involving the eighth cranial nerve and associated with local meningeal enhancement. A 53-year-old Caribbean female was referred to our center in December 2013 with a 9-month history of relapsing neurological complaints. She became blind temporarily in the right eye without perception of light in June 2013 and then recovered in a few days without treatment. Six months later, she suddenly developed intractable vomiting without hiccup and mild cervical sensory myelitis that resolved in few days. She simultaneously developed unilateral right sensorineural hearing loss accompanied by tinnitus and vertigo. The vestibular syndrome regressed in 2 weeks but the cochlear symptoms persisted. She was referred in March 2014 for a subacute third relapse, associated with difficulty in swallowing liquids, tracheal aspiration and nasal regurgitation. As in the two previous episodes, the symptoms resolved in a few days. Clinical examination disclosed right visual acuity of 20/30 with papillitis and Marcus Gunn’s sign, a pyramidal syndrome and suspended D2-12 extralemniscal anesthesia. Puretone audiometry confirmed a right threshold hearing loss of 30 dB in the higher frequencies. Rinne and Weber tests confirmed the sensorineural hearing loss. Spinal magnetic resonance imaging was normal. Brain magnetic resonance imaging disclosed an edematous right optic nerve with gadolinium uptake. The brainstem was normal but the right eighth cranial nerve and the adjacent meninges were prominently enlarged and gadolinium enhanced along the cisternal and intracanalicular nerve segment, giving a tumor-like appearance (Fig. 1a). Lumbar puncture disclosed no cells and 0.87 g/L proteins without intrathecal IgG synthesis. Complete laboratory investigations, including blood tests with inflammatory parameters including antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody, angiotensin-converting enzyme, serologies, whole-body computed tomography scan and salivary accessory gland biopsy, were all normal. Anti-aquaporin-4 antibodies were positive with a cell-based assay (Inserm U1028, Lyon, France). She received high-dose steroids followed by six infusions of mitoxantrone over 1 year. At last follow-up, 1 year later, auditory function was almost normal and no relapse had occurred. Control magnetic resonance imaging demonstrated a normal right eighth nerve (Fig. 1b). Cranial nerve attacks occurring in NMO spectrum disorder are mostly oculomotor palsies associated with brainstem lesions [3]. Vestibulocochlear signs, mainly hearing loss and vestibular ataxia, occur in 2.5% and 1.7% of NMO relapses, respectively [4], but these clinical signs are related to central lesions.
Seismic Measurements at the Stateline Wind Project And A Prediction of the Seismic Signal that the Proposed Maiden Wind Project Would Produce at LIGO

Measurements of ground vibration were made at 10 sites around the Stateline Wind Project. The 3-bladed turbines produce seismic peaks mainly at multiples of 3 times their rotation frequency. The strongest peak (4.3 Hz) was detected at a site about18 km from Stateline where it reached 0.7 nm/sqrt(Hz) of ground motion. Signal amplitudes were ﬁt best with a 1/ r attenuation model, suggesting that the propagation path is partly through the air. The signal level that the Maiden project (both phases) would produce at the LIGO site (about 20 km distant) was estimated, with a high degree of uncertainty, to be about equal to the present background level at LIGO. The accuracy of the predictions could be improved by measurements at a site that uses the turbines planned for the Maiden project. For example, it is possible that the rotation rate of the Maiden turbines would vary to a degree that the peaks from the individual turbines did not “pile up” as much at a particular frequency. Measurements at a site that employs the proposed Maiden turbines are recommended.
WEIGHTLESSNESS: ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR THE HUMAN FETUS

1~ 687 Sir Isaac Newton published the discovery of the laws of gravitation in his Philosophiae Principia Mathematica. Gravity is still defined as that force by which every mass or particle of matter attracts and is attracted by every other mass or particle of matter in the universe, while weightlessness is the experience registered by an object as it is suspended in a field of equilibrium of existing forces. Knowledge concerning the effect of weightlessness on man has increased rapidly, largely because of space exploration. The physiological importance of weightlessness in moulding man’s development prior to his extrauterine existence has largely been ignored (Reynolds, 1961). The possibility of weightlessness influencing fetal development will be discussed. How weightless is the human fetus in its intrauterine environment ? During pregnancy amniotic fluid surrounds the fetus but this does not result in complete weightlessness. The human fetus has a specific gravity of 1.055 to 1.058, which is greater than that of the amniotic fluid, 1.008 to 1.009, so that it tends to sink to the bottom of the amniotic sac. This would at least partly determine the descent of the presenting part of the fetus. This effect would be more marked at the end of pregnancy as the specific gravity of amniotic fluid decreases as gestation progresses (Makepeace et al., 1931). However, this effect is limited by the relative lack of amniotic fluid towards the end of pregnancy. At 40 weeks the volume of amniotic fluid is roughly equivalent to the volume of the fetus (Marsden and Huntingford, 1965; Gadd, 1966) and contact between fetal skin, especially that surrounding the dependent part and back, and amniotic membrane would be usual. As the amniotic fluid volume varies widely in different patients at 40 weeks, the degree of contact between the surface of the fetus and I must also vary. ie uterus
Mastery and performance goals predict epistemic and relational conflict regulation

The present research examines whether mastery and performance goals predict different ways of reacting to a sociocognitive conflict with another person over materials to be learned, an issue not yet addressed by the achievement goal literature. Results from 2 studies showed that mastery goals predicted epistemic conflict regulation (a conflict regulation strategy focused on the attempt to integrate both points of view), whereas performance goals predicted relational conflict regulation (a conflict regulation strategy focused on the evaluation and affirmation of self-competence). Study 1 shows these links via direct self-report measures of conflict regulation. Study 2 shows the same links using the amount of competence reported for the self and for the other as subtle measures of conflict regulation.
Hemophagocytic Syndrome Associated with Scrub Typhus: A Case Reportfrom North East India

Scrub typhus infection is an important aetiology of acute undifferentiated fever in south-east Asia and India. Haemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) (haemophagocytic syndrome) is a potentially fatal hyper inflammatory syndrome that is characterized by histiocyte proliferation and haemophagocytosis. We describe a case of Haemphagocytic syndrome secondary to scrub typhus which presented with fever, rash, pancytopenia, epistaxis and haematuria who responded dramatically with respect to haematological parameters and clinically following prompt antimicrobial therapy. Scrub typhus with hemophagocytic syndrome can be complicated by multiorgan failure. Patients with scrub typhus usually have an excellent response to treatment; therefore, early diagnosis and prompt administration of antimicrobial therapy may prevent the development of serious complications.
Liver Failure Associated to Hepatitis A in the Presence of Infection by Cytomegalovirus : Two Case Reports

Liver failure may occur due to extensive liver damage. Several etiologies may be associated to liver failure, in most cases, inducing strong or persistent inflammatory response, whose outcome is the extensive parenchymal loss. Some hepatotropic or nonhepatotropic viruses may induce severe liver damage, between them hepatitis A virus (HAV), hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis E (HEV) and members of the Herpesviridae family. Here, we describe two cases of liver failure due to previous active infection by human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) followed by hepatitis A that occurred in immunocompetent individuals.
Lithium exposure enhances survival of NT2N cells (hNT neurons) in the hemiparkinsonian rat

Lithium (Li +) treatment of NTera2/D1 (or hNT Neurons) in culture increases tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) expression in this cell‐line [Zigova et al., (1999) Exp. Neurol. , 157, 251–258]. It is not known if these Li + treated cells maintain TH expression once transplanted into the striatum of the hemiparkinsonian rats. hNT neurons were either treated with 1 mm LiCl or left untreated and then transplanted into the striatum of Sprague‐Dawley rats. Some cells were exposed to the lithium for 24 h in culture while others were exposed only briefly (2–3 h) just prior to transplantation. We also examined whether Li + treatment of the animal after transplantation (0.24% w/w lithium carbonate in chow) was effective in increasing neuronal survival. One week after transplantation, the animals were perfused with 4% paraformaldehyde and immunocytochemistry was performed on 30 µm sections through the transplant. Human nuclear matrix antigen immunostaining demonstrated that there was significantly better survival of cells in the group treated briefly with lithium compared to all other groups. Brief exposure to lithium resulted in a greater expression of TH in situ as well. Neuron specific enolase immunohistochemistry showed that there was extensive fibre outgrowth in all groups. These results suggest that brief Li + exposure may enhance survival to over 60% and increase TH expression of hNT Neurons transplanted in the hemiparkinsonian rat nearly three‐fold.
Spatiotemporal distribution of cortical processing of first and second languages in bilinguals. II. Effects of phonologic and semantic priming

This study determined the effects of phonology and semantics on the distribution of cortical activity to the second of a pair of words in first and second language (mixed pairs). The effects of relative proficiency in the two languages and linguistic setting (monolinguistic or mixed) are reported in a companion paper. Ten early bilinguals and 14 late bilinguals listened to mixed pairs of words in Arabic (L1) and Hebrew (L2) and indicated whether both words in the pair had the same or different meanings. The spatio‐temporal distribution of current densities of event‐related potentials were estimated for each language and according to semantic and phonologic relationship (same or different) compared with the first word in the pair. During early processing (<300 ms), brain activity in temporal and temporoparietal auditory areas was enhanced by phonologic incongruence between words in the pair and in Wernicke's area by both phonologic and semantic priming. In contrast, brain activities during late processing (>300 ms) were enhanced by semantic incongruence between the two words, particularly in temporal areas and in left hemisphere Broca's and Wernicke's areas. The latter differences were greater when words were in L2. Surprisingly, no significant effects of relative proficiency on processing the second word in the pair were found. These results indicate that the distribution of brain activity to the second of two words presented bilingually is affected differently during early and late processing by both semantic and phonologic priming by‐ and incongruence with the immediately preceding word. Hum Brain Mapp 34:2882–2898, 2013. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Perfluorocarbons are taken up by isolated type II pneumocytes and influence its lipid synthesis and secretion

ObjectiveBecause alveoli fill with perfluorocarbons during liquid ventilation, an uptake of perfluorocarbons by type II pneumocytes can be postulated that might affect synthesis and secretion of pulmonary surfactant. The study was performed to answer the following questions: Do isolated type II pneumocytes take up perfluorocarbons? Do perfluorocarbons affect lipid synthesis of type II cells? Do perfluorocarbons change surfactant secretion of type II pneumocytes? DesignControlled experiments that used isolated type II pneumocytes. SettingExperimental laboratory of a university hospital. SubjectsMale Wistar rats. InterventionsTo study perfluorocarbon uptake, isolated type II cells were incubated with fluorescence-labeled perfluorocarbons and examined with a laser scanning microscope. The effect of perfluorocarbons on biosynthesis of phospholipids and triglycerides was measured by incubating cells that were pulse-labeled with [H]-palmitic acid for 30 secs, with two different perfluorocarbons (PF 5080 or RM 101) for 10 mins. The effect of perfluorocarbon incubation on lipid secretion was studied by transmission electron microscopy. To quantify secretion, adherent type II pneumocytes (containing radioactively labeled phospholipids) were incubated with perfluorocarbons, and extra- and intracellular radioactivity was measured. Measurements and Main ResultsWe found a significant uptake of labeled perfluorocarbons into lamellar bodies within 10 mins. Both perfluorocarbon species significantly (p < .05) reduced the biosynthesis of phospholipids when compared with control. Perfluorocarbon incubation did not affect mitochondrial activity, tested by MitoTracker staining. Transmission electron microscopy revealed changes that suggest an increased secretion of surfactant by type II cells. Studies with radioactively labeled surfactant revealed a significantly (p < .01) higher amount of extracellular lipids after RM 101 and PF 5080 treatment (RM 101, 17 ± 7.9%; PF 5080, 9 ± 1.9%) compared with control (5.3 ± 1.9%). ConclusionsOur results suggest that perfluorocarbons are taken up by type II pneumocytes and cause an increased secretion of surfactant, despite a relative reduction in the synthesis of phospholipids.
Specific binding of PapI to Lrp-pap DNA complexes

Expression of pyelonephritis-associated pili (Pap) varies between transcriptionally active (ON) and inactive (OFF) phase states. Pap phase variation is controlled by the binding of leucine-responsive regulatory protein (Lrp) to two pap regulatory DNA regions, each containing a deoxyadenosine methylase site and designated GATC-I and GATC-II. Methylation of these GATC sites modulates binding of Lrp and plays an essential role in phase variation. PapI, an 8.8-kDa pap-encoded regulatory protein, plays a key role in the switch between OFF and ON transcription states. In the absence of PapI, Lrp binds to sites overlapping the papBA promoter and inhibits transcription. Addition of PapI results in a translocation of Lrp binding to sites over 100 bp upstream, resulting in the ON transcription state. Gel shift analysis using radiolabeled PapI shows that PapI binds with high specificity to Lrp-pap DNA complexes but binds only weakly to free Lrp. Protein cross-linking studies indicate that Lrp and PapI directly interact with each other. On the basis of these data, we present a hypothesis in which PapI facilitates the transition between OFF and ON transcription states by binding to Lrp and altering Lrp's affinity for the pap GATC-I and GATC-II regions.