Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Synthesis of osteonectin by human retinal pigment epithelial cells is modulated by cell density.

PURPOSE To determine whether human retinal pigment epithelial (HRPE) cells are able to synthesize the antiadhesive protein osteonectin, also known as secreted protein, acidic and rich in cysteine (SPARC). Additionally, because locally produced SPARC may modulate cellular behavior during tissue repair, to ascertain whether HRPE SPARC production and HRPE proliferation, migration, and/or differentiation are associated, in a simple HRPE wound-healing model. METHODS Immunohistochemical and Western blot analyses of SPARC protein expression by low- and high-density cultured HRPE cells were undertaken. Total RNA extracted from cultures was studied by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and Northern blot analysis. Western and Northern blot analyses were evaluated by densitometry. Experiments were repeated with HRPE cells cultured in the presence of 1, 10, or 100 microM of the differentiating agents butyric acid (BA) and retinoic acid (RA). RESULTS HRPE cell cultures exhibited SPARC immunoreactivity. Western blot analysis of cell lysates and conditioned media showed a 43-kDa protein. RT-PCR and Northern blot analysis confirmed the presence of SPARC mRNA (with transcripts at 2.2 and 3.0 kb). Protein and mRNA transcript band densitometry revealed a higher proportion of SPARC protein and mRNA in high-density HRPE cell culture than in low-density culture. Neither BA nor RA (at the concentrations assessed) had a significant effect on SPARC production by HRPE cells in high- or low-density culture. CONCLUSIONS HRPE can synthesize SPARC. Although the findings do not support an invariable association between SPARC production by HRPE and HRPE proliferation, migration, or differentiation, they demonstrate that synthesis of SPARC by HRPE is modulated by cell density.
PHOTOEXCITATION OF ZINC PHTHALOCYANINE IN MOUSE MYELOMA CELLS: THE OBSERVATION OF TRIPLET STATES BUT NOT OF SINGLET OXYGEN

Abstract— Liposomes were used to deliver zinc phthalocyanine (ZnPC) to cultured mouse myeloma cells. ZnPC triplets states were observed when such systems were photoexcited. Singlet oxygen luminescence was not observed in cellular media. Solutions of ZnPC in various organic solvents, sodium dodecyl sulfate micelles and dipalmitoyl phosphatidyl choline liposomes were also prepared, and time‐resolved triplet state parameters and singlet oxygen production were measured for these systems to provide comparisons for the cellular suspensions.
Stimulation of Prostaglandin Biosynthesis by Adenine Nucleotides: Profile of Prostaglandin Release by Perfused Organs

Prostaglandin release from various isolated perfused organs is characteristically dependent on the stimulus; thus, certain stimuli caused prostaglandin release in some organs and not in others. Adenosine triphosphate and adenosine diphosphate were potent stimulators of prostaglandin biosynthesis in the kidney, spleen, spleen fat pad, heart, liver and lung; adenosine monophosphate and adenosine were inactive. Epinephrine caused prostaglandin release from the kidney, spleen, and liver, whereas, angiotensin was agonistic in the kidney, spleen, spleen fat pad, and liver. Indomethacin abolished the release (biosynthesis) of prostaglandins from all organs by each agonist.
Vacancy-modulated conductive oxide resistive RAM (VMCO-RRAM): An area-scalable switching current, self-compliant, highly nonlinear and wide on/off-window resistive switching cell

We report a novel self-compliant and self-rectifying resistive switching memory cell, with area-scalable switching currents, featuring a set current density of ~5nA/nm2 (<;9uA for a 40nm-size cell), high on-state half-bias nonlinearity of 102 and low reset current density of <;0.6nA/nm2 (<;1uA@40nm size). The cell can be operated at below ±4V/10ns, with a large on/off window of >102 and retention extrapolates to 10yr at 101°C. The switching stack is fully based on ALD processes, using common high-k dielectrics and has a thickness of <;10nm, meeting the 3D Vertical RRAM requirements. Moreover, we point out the nonlinearity-low-current operation interdependence and discuss the scaling potential of the areal switching RRAM for reliable sub-μA current operation in the 10nm-cell size realm.
Plutonium Oxidation State Geochemistry in the SRS Subsurface Environment

The environmental mobility of plutonium (Pu) is profoundly influenced by its oxidation state. Pu(IV) is 2 to 3 orders of magnitude slower moving than Pu(V) or Pu(VI). For performance and risk assessment calculations, Pu waste has been assumed to exist in the less mobile reduced form, Pu(IV). Resent work on the chemistry of Pu02 by Haschke and others (2000) has shown that Pu02 surface is oxidized in the presence of water, forming as much as 27 percent Pu(VI). This has significant implications to existing SRS programs (including the Pu Immobilization, LLW disposal and Remediation of the Old Burial Ground) and future SRS programs (including MOX and pit disassembly). The hypothesis of this Strategic Research and Development study was that even if Pu(VI) is produced in the waste form as suggested by Haschke and others (2000), it will be quickly reduced to Pu(IV) in the SRS subsurface environment. The overall objective of the research was to test this hypothesis through laboratory and computational studies conducted by Savannah River Technology Center and Clemson University scientist.
Dermal elastosis in hairless mice after UV‐B and UV‐A applied simultaneously, separately or sequentially

The elastosis‐inducing capacity of UV‐A and UV‐B was studied in the skin of hairless mice. After irradiation with UV‐B and UV‐A applied either simultaneously, separately or sequentially, the degree of elastosis in the dermis was microscopically evaluated. This semi‐quantitative method showed no significant elastosis in the UV‐A irradiated mice, and moderate elastosis in the UV‐B irradiated mice. Heavy elastosis was observed when the mice were exposed sequentially to UV‐B and a large dose of UV‐A, but if a moderate dose of UV‐A was given simultaneously with UV‐B, the degree of elastosis was slightly reduced compared with the elastosis induced by UV‐B alone.
Feasibility evaluation of a stepped procedure to identify community-dwelling frail older people in general practice. A mixed methods study

Abstract Background: Implementation of frailty identification methods in general practice has hardly been established. To achieve successful implementation, general practitioners (GPs) should be provided with an identification method that suits their needs. EASYcare-TOS is a new frailty identification method that uses a stepped approach and is specifically developed for use in general practice. The first step consists of the GP's frailty judgment based on his prior information on the patient. If the judgment is ‘uncertain’ or ‘frail,’ additional data are collected by a primary care nurse (PCN). The frailty decision is based on clinical reasoning by the GP, without applying predefined cut-offs in a numerical score. Objective: To evaluate the acceptability of EASYcare-TOS in daily general practice. Methods A mixed-methods study was conducted. Questionnaires were sent to all professionals (n = 25) who participated in the EASYcare-TOS validation study. Subsequently, semi-structured interviews with primary care professionals (n = 12) and patients (n = 9) were conducted. Results: Time investment was generally perceived as acceptable. Twenty-two professionals (88%) found a two-step model (very) useful in the identification instrument. Seventeen professionals (68%) valued making the final frailty decision by their own clinical reasoning. Patients appreciated the broad assessment and the advice given based on the assessment. According to 24 (96%) professionals, EASYcare-TOS improved the quality of patient care. GPs stated that implementation will ask for reconsidering allocation of tasks in general practices and adequate reimbursement. Conclusion: EASYcare-TOS is a new identification method that fits the needs of primary care professionals to a large extent and is acceptable in daily practice.
Perforated punctal plug in the treatment of partial punctal stenosis.

BACKGROUND Epiphora is a common finding among elderly patients. Common etiologies of epiphora include lid-globe appositional abnormalities, ocular surface disorders, and lacrimal excretory obstruction. CASE REPORT A patient reported with symptoms of unilateral, nonpainful epiphora. The cause was determined to be punctal stenosis and the patient was managed with a perforated punctal plug. CONCLUSION Punctal stenosis is one of several disorders that may cause a lacrimal excretory obstruction. Common methods of treatment include repeated dilation and irrigation, as well as various surgical procedures described in the literature. Eye care practitioners should be aware of the availability of perforated punctal plugs and their usefulness in treatment of the partially stenosed punctum.
Endogenous IL-33 has no effect on the progression of fibrosis during experimental steatohepatitis

Interleukin (IL)-33 has been recently reported to be strongly pro-fibrogenic in various models of liver disease. Our aim was to study the role of endogenous IL-33 in a diet-induced model of steatohepatitis. IL-33 deficient mice and wild type (WT) littermates received a high-fat diet (HFD), or a standard diet for 12 weeks. The HFD-induced steatohepatitis was associated with an upregulation of IL-33 transcripts and protein. An insulin tolerance test revealed lower systemic insulin sensitivity in IL-33-/—HFD mice than in WT-HFD mice. Nevertheless, IL-33 deficiency did not affect the severity of liver inflammation by histological and transcriptomic analyses, nor the quantity of liver fibrosis. Livers from HFD mice had more myeloid populations, markedly fewer NKT cells and higher proportion of ST2+ Treg cells and ST2+ type 2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2), all unaffected by IL-33 deficiency. In conclusion, deficiency of endogenous IL-33 does not affect the evolution of experimental diet-induced steatohepatitis towards liver fibrosis.
On the convergence of the multichannel maximum likelihood point spectrum estimator

In 1948, Geronimus discovered that the inverse of the sum of the (modulus squared) orthogonal polynomials corresponding to a Toeplitz matrix converges to the point spectrum as the matrix order goes to infinity. In 1969, Capon independently generalized part of Geronimus' result to the random field setting as a fixed-order point spectrum estimator. Within signal processing, this Geronimus-Capon result is known as the maximum likelihood spectral estimator or alternatively, the minimum variance estimator. A simple proof that the Geronimus-Capon spectra estimator converges to the point spectrum in the multichannel setting is presented. >
Stiffness mapping of lower leg muscles during passive dorsiflexion

It is challenging to differentiate the mechanical properties of synergist muscles in vivo. Shear wave elastography can be used to quantify the shear modulus (i.e. an index of stiffness) of a specific muscle. This study assessed the passive behavior of lower leg muscles during passive dorsiflexion performed with the knee fully extended (experiment 1, n = 22) or with the knee flexed at 90° (experiment 2, n = 20). The shear modulus measurements were repeated twice during experiment 1 to assess the inter‐day reliability. During both experiments, the shear modulus of the following plantar flexors was randomly measured: gastrocnemii medialis (GM) and lateralis (GL), soleus (SOL), peroneus longus (PL), and the deep muscles flexor digitorum longus (FDL), flexor hallucis longus (FHL), tibialis posterior (TP). Two antagonist muscles tibialis anterior (TA), and extensor digitorum longus (EDL) were also recorded. Measurements were performed in different proximo‐distal regions for GM, GL and SOL. Inter‐day reliability was adequate for all muscles (coefficient of variation < 15%), except for TP. In experiment 1, GM exhibited the highest shear modulus at 80% of the maximal range of motion (128.5 ± 27.3 kPa) and was followed by GL (67.1 ± 24.1 kPa). In experiment 2, SOL exhibited the highest shear modulus (55.1 ± 18.0 kPa). The highest values of shear modulus were found for the distal locations of both the GM (80% of participants in experiment 1) and the SOL (100% of participants in experiment 2). For both experiments, deep muscles and PL exhibited low levels of stiffness during the stretch in young asymptomatic adults, which was unknown until now. These results provide a deeper understanding of passive mechanical properties and the distribution of stiffness between and within the plantar flexor muscles during stretching between them and thus could be relevant to study the effects of aging, disease progression, and rehabilitation on stiffness.
Behavior of upper cervical inspiratory propriospinal neurons during fictive vomiting.

1. The role of upper cervical inspiratory (UCI)-modulated neurons in respiratory muscle control during vomiting was examined by recording the impulse activity of these neurons during fictive vomiting in decerebrate, paralyzed cats. Fictive vomiting was identified by a characteristic series of bursts of coactivation of phrenic and abdominal muscle nerves, elicited either by electrical stimulation of supradiaphragmatic vagal nerve afferents or by emetic drugs, which would be expected to produce expulsion of gastric contents in nonparalyzed animals. 2. Data were recorded from 43 propriospinal UCI neurons, located in the C1-C3 spinal segments near the border of the intermediate gray matter and lateral funiculus, which were antidromically activated with floating pin electrodes placed in the ipsilateral lateral funiculus, usually at T1-T3. Some cells (9/21 tested) were also activated from the upper lumbar cord (L1). During respiration, most neurons (n = 40) had an augmenting discharge pattern during inspiration. In addition, more than one-half (55%) fired tonically during the remainder of the respiratory cycle. About 40% of UCI neurons showed variations in their firing pattern during the noninspiratory portion of respiration. These latter two properties of UCI neurons were not observed in dorsal and ventral respiratory group (DRG and VRG-, respectively) bulbospinal inspiratory (I) neurons previously recorded under similar conditions. 3. During fictive vomiting, the firing pattern of most UCI neurons fell into one of three main categories. More than one-half (53%) were active in phase with bursts of phrenic discharge and were thus classified as Active-type cells. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Bipolar and Monopolar Radiofrequency Treatment of Osteoarthritic Knee Articular Cartilage – Acute and Temporal Effects on Cartilage Compressive Stiffness, Permeability, Cell Synthesis, and Extracellular Matrix Composition

The cellular, biochemical, biomechanical, and histologic effects of radiofrequency-generated heat on osteoarthritic cartilage were assessed. Articular cartilage explants (n=240) from 26 patients undergoing total knee arthroplasty were divided based on Outerbridge grade (I or II/III) and randomly assigned to receive no treatment (controls) or monopolar or bipolar radiofrequency at 15 or 30 W. Both potentially beneficial and harmful effects of radiofrequency treatment of articular cartilage were noted. It will be vital to correlate data from in vitro and in vivo study of radiofrequency thermal chondroplasty to determine the clinical usefulness of this technique.
Inhibitory effect of different solvent extracts of Vitex negundo L. and Allium sativum L. on phytopathogenic bacteria.

There is a world wide interest in searching for the safe and effective novel antibacterial compounds of plant origin for the control of plant pathogenic bacteria which is responsible for the great impact on the growth and productivity of agriculture crops. In this study an attempt was made to determine the in vitro antibacterial activity of sequentially extracted different solvent (dichloromethane, ethyl acetate, ethanol, methanol and water) extracts of leaf, flower and fruit of Vitex negundo L. and bulb of Allium sativum L. (Garlic) against phytopathogens namely Pseudomonas solanacearum and Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. citri. The preliminary antibacterial activity was performed by agar well diffusion method and the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values were determined by agar dilution method. The test samples were also subjected to qualitative phytochemical analysis. One way analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by least significant difference (LSD) test were done for the statistical analysis of the data. All the test samples showed inhibitory effect on both of the test pathogens and the diameter of inhibition zone ranged from 9.9 ± 0.5 mm to 48.5 ± 1.3 mm and the inhibitory effect differed significantly (P<0.05) among the samples. Ethyl acetate extract of flower of Vitex negundo L. showed significantly (P<0.05) higher inhibition on Pseudomonas solanacearum and Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. citri. The MIC values of ethyl acetate extracts of fruit and flower of Vitex negundo L. and Allium sativum and ethanol extract of flower of Vitex negundo L. ranged from 2.5 mg / ml to 40 mg / ml. Phytochemical analysis of above extracts revealed the presence of alkaloids, flavonoids, tannins, cardiac glycosides and terpenoids. Further studies are being carried out to elucidate the active principles responsible for the inhibitory effect of these pathogens and to determine their activity in vivo. This is the first report that reveals the inhibitory effect of Vitex negundo L. on Pseudomonas solanacearum and Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. citri.
A GNSS receiver using band-pass continuous-time delta-sigma modulator

This paper addresses some of the considerations related to the design and implementation of multiband Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) receivers. In this work, the impact of the application of band-pass continuous-time delta-sigma modulation on GNSS signals was also examined. In order to facilitate the implementation of the multiband delta-sigma based GNSS receiver, a modulator architecture that is based on an all-digital feedback loop using zero-insertion upsampling was adopted and frequency downscaling technique was used. The latter consists on reducing the operating frequency of the system, which makes the implementation on a field programmable gate array (FPGA) possible.
Safe integration of nelarabine into intensive chemotherapy in newly diagnosed T‐cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia: Children's Oncology Group Study AALL0434

Nelarabine has shown impressive single agent clinical activity in T‐cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T‐ALL), but has been associated with significant neurotoxicities in heavily pre‐treated patients. We showed previously that it was safe to add nelarabine to a BFM‐86 chemotherapy backbone (AALL00P2). Children's Oncology Group (COG) AALL0434 is a Phase III study designed to test the safety and efficacy of nelarabine when incorporated into a COG augmented BFM–based regimen, which increases exposure to agents with potential neurotoxicity compared to the historical AALL00P2 regimen.
Impact of Hot Carriers on nMOSFET Variability in 45- and 65-nm CMOS Technologies

This paper examines the impact of hot carriers (HCs) on n-channel metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) field-effect transistor mismatch across the 45- and 65-nm complementary MOS technology generations. The reported statistical analysis is based on a large overall sample population of about 1000 transistors. HC stress introduces a source of variability in device electrical parameters due to the randomly generated charge traps in the gate dielectric or at the substrate/dielectric interface. The evolution of the threshold-voltage mismatch during an HC stress is well modeled by assuming a Poisson distribution of the induced charge traps with a nonuniform generation along the channel. Once the evolution of the HC-induced VT shift is known, a single parameter is able to accurately describe the evolution of the HC-induced VT variability. This parameter is independent of the stress time and stress bias voltage. The HC stress causes a significantly larger degradation in the subthreshold slope variability, compared to threshold voltage variability for both investigated technology nodes.
[Study on single nucleotide polymorphism of TLR4 in Chinese population].

OBJECTIVE To identify the single nucleotide polymorphisms(SNPs) in the regulatory and coding regions of human Toll-like receptor 4(TLR4) gene and to search for its new genetic makers. METHODS The 5' flank region, exons, parts of the introns, as well as 3' flank region of TLR4 gene were sequenced to identify and characterize the SNPs in Chinese population. SNP genotyping was performed by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism for 2 highly distributed SNPs. RESULTS Five novel SNPs were identified through a 4.98 kb sequencing of TLR4 gene. Among them, three were in 5'flank region, two in 3'UTR. In the sample of Han population from Chongqing, the minor allele frequencies of two highly distributed SNPs were 0.266 and 0.404 respectively. CONCLUSION Sampling analysis in Han population of Chongqing showed that the two highly distributed SNPs of TLR4 were common in Chinese population and could be used for genetic marker of TLR4 gene.
CONTINUING MEDICAL EDUCATION REVIEW Occupational skin disease in hairdressers

Hairdressers belong to an occupational group that is commonly affected by occupational skin disease, specifically contact dermatitis, which may be allergic or irritant and, less commonly, contact urticaria. Occupational contact dermatitis predominantly affects apprentices, and atopy is a recognized risk factor associated with a poor prognosis. Repetitive wet work leading to irritant contact dermatitis, followed by exposure to allergens and the development of allergic contact dermatitis, are the main factors contributing to occupational contact dermatitis. Once developed, it is often difficult to manage and is a cause of significant morbidity. Early education, training and prevention is the best approach to the management of this disorder that is endemic among hairdressers.