Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Generation of highly suppressive adaptive CD8+CD25+FOXP3+ regulatory T cells by continuous antigen stimulation

Continuous antigen stimulation of CD4+CD25– T cells leads to generation of adaptive CD4+CD25+FOXP3+ regulatory T (TR) cells. Here, we show that highly suppressive adaptive CD8+CD25+FOXP3+ T cells can be generated in the same manner by continuous antigen stimulation in the presence of CD14+ monocytes. During the course of stimulation, acquisition of immunosuppressive properties develops in parallel with up‐regulation and expression of cytotoxic molecules. The CD8+ TR cells inhibit CD4+ and CD8+ T cell proliferation and cytokine production, but do not alter the expression of granzyme A and granzyme B or perforin in CD8+ effector T cells. Although, the CD8+ TR cells express prostaglandin E2, IL‐10 and TGF‐β, the mechanism of suppression was independent of these soluble factors. In contrast to adaptive CD4+ TR cells, the CD8+ TR cells suppress mainly by a contact‐dependent mechanism as evident from transwell experiments. However, neither blocking antibodies to CTLA‐4, CD80 nor CD86 could reverse CD8+ TR‐mediated suppression, indicating that other mechanism(s) must be employed by these cells.
Monocular 3D Human Pose Estimation with a Semi-supervised Graph-Based Method

In this paper, a semi-supervised graph-based method for estimating 3D body pose from a sequence of silhouettes, is presented. The performance of graph-based methods is highly dependent on the quality of the constructed graph. In the case of the human pose estimation problem, the missing depth information from silhouettes intensifies the occurrence of shortcut edges within the graph. To identify and remove these shortcut edges, we measure the similarity of each pair of connected vertices through the use of sliding temporal windows. Furthermore, by exploiting the relationships between labeled and unlabeled data, the proposed method can estimate the 3D body poses, with a small set of labeled data. We evaluated the proposed method on several activities and compared the results with other recent methods. Our method significantly reduced the mean squared error, showing the positive effect of removing shortcut edges.
Identification of Leveled Archeological Mounds (Höyük) in the Alluvial Plain of the Ceyhan River (Southern Turkey) by Satellite Remote-Sensing Analyses

The alluvial plain of the Ceyhan River (SE Turkey) has been populated since the Neolithic. In 1954, Marjory Veronica Seton-Williams described for this area several archeological mounds (hoyuk), which are the remains of ancient settlements. Today, according to the archeological research carried out in the area, some of these mounds result to have been leveled by agricultural activities. In this work, we identified many color anomalies by low-cost remote-sensing analyses of satellite images. We checked the nature of these anomalies in a dedicated survey and we found a good correspondence between color anomalies and archeological remains consistent with leveled hoyuk. We compared the grain size and chemical characteristics of the soil collected inside the color anomalies with the soil collected in other areas of the alluvial plain. We found irrelevant differences in grain-size characteristics, but a higher content of CaCO3 in soils collected inside the anomalies with respect to those collected outside. Therefore, the content of CaCO3 could be considered the feature that makes the color anomalies visible. The reason for this higher content of CaCO3 is related to the anthropogenic material used in the different phases of hoyuk growth. This work suggests a low-cost analysis useful for rapid identification and preservation of archeological information on the history of Mediterranean settlement.
Genomic organization and mutation analysis of p73 in oligodendrogliomas with chromosome 1 p-arm deletions.

p73, a protein having substantial structural and functional similarity to p53, has recently been identified and demonstrated to be a potential tumor suppressor. Its location on human chromosome 1p36.33 implicates p73 as a candidate for neuroblastoma. Like neuroblastoma, oligodendrogliomas also show a high frequency of deletions in chromosome 1p36.3. To determine whether p73 is a potential tumor suppressor gene involved in the development of oligodendrogliomas, we performed mutation analysis of p73 in oligodendrogliomas with chromosome 1 p-arm deletions. We first determined the genomic organization and the intron-exon boundary sequences of the p73 gene by long PCR, vectorette PCR, and Southern hybridization. This gene spans about 65 kb with a large first intron. Primer pairs for the amplification of each of the 13 p73 encoding exons were designed in corresponding introns. The amplicons were then analyzed using the denaturing high-performance liquid chromatography system for mutations in the p73 gene. Twenty oligodendroglioma samples with 1p36.3 deletions were screened, but no mutations were detected except for several polymorphisms. It is thus clear that p73 is not a candidate gene for oligodendroglioma despite its location in the frequently deleted 1p36.3 region.
Estimation of Annual HIV Transmission Rates in the United States, 1978–2000

The HIV/AIDS epidemic in the United States generally has been characterized by AIDS case incidence and AIDS-associated death rates; in a more limited fashion, the epidemic has also been described by AIDS prevalence; population-specific HIV prevalence; and HIV incidence statistics. However, HIV transmission rate information (i.e., the rate of transmission from persons living with HIV to HIV-seronegative persons) has received relatively little attention. The purpose of the present paper is to estimate the annual HIV transmission rate (from HIV-seropositive to HIV-seronegative persons) in the United States for the time period 1978–2000 and to discuss the practical utility of the findings. Using as input annual AIDS-associated deaths and HIV incidence (both variables, especially the latter, contain some element of uncertainty), the model described here finds that HIV transmission rates have dropped dramatically in the United States since the beginning of the epidemic and stayed approximately between 4.00–4.34% during the 1990s. This implies a programmatic success in that for more than roughly 95% of persons living with HIV in any given year, no HIV transmission occurs. Research is urgently needed to fully understand the circumstances that allow the remaining instances of HIV transmission to take place; moreover, serostatus-appropriate HIV-related services are needed to disrupt these remaining instances of transmission.
Fine grained parallelization of the Car-Parrinello ab initio molecular dynamics method on Blue Gene / L

Important scientific problems can be treated via ab initio based molecular modeling approaches, wherein atomic forces are derived from an energy function that explicitly considers the electrons. The Car-Parrinello ab initio molecular dynamics method (CPAIMD) which typically embodies a theoretically exact ab initio technique called Kohn-Sham Density Functional Theory, evaluated using an approximate functional and a finite basis set of plane-waves, is widely used to study small systems containing on the order of 10-10 atoms. However, CPAIMD’s impact has been limited until recent efforts by ourselves and others due to difficulties inherent in scaling the technique beyond processor numbers about equal to the number of electronic states. CPAIMD computations involve a large number of interdependent phases with high interprocessor communication overhead. These phases require the evaluation of multiple concurrent sparse 3D-Fast-Fourier Transforms (3D-FFTs), non-square matrix multiplications and few concurrent dense 3D-FFTs all of which are known to require large interprocessor data movement when efficiently parallelized. Using Charm++, a parallel programming language and runtime system and the processor virtualization techniques it enables, the phases are discretized into a large number of virtual processors, which are, in turn mapped flexibly onto physical processors, thereby allowing interleaving of work. Interleaving is enhanced through both architecturally independent methods and network topology aware mapping techniques. Algorithmic and Blue Gene/L specific optimizations are employed to scale the CPAIMD method to at least 30-times the number of electronic states in small systems consisting of 24 to 768 atoms (32 to 1024 electronic states) in order to demonstrate fine grained parallelism. The largest systems studied scaled well across the whole machine (20480 nodes.)
Level of awareness among veterinary students of GADVASU towards plagiarism: a case study

Purpose Plagiarism is wrecking the academic spheres all around the world. The internet is accused for causing exponential increase in plagiarism. This paper aims to examine the prevalence of plagiarism among veterinary students and assess the impact of the internet on their plagiarism practices, so that the corrective measures can be suggested to ensure the originality of academic and research work. Design/methodology/approach A survey of undergraduate and postgraduate students of veterinary science was conducted at Guru Angad Dev Veterinary & Animal Sciences University (GADVASU), Ludhiana using questionnaire as data collection tool. The responses of total 147 students have been analysed using percentage calculations and mean values. The t-test has been applied using SPSS-16 to find the significance of difference in the plagiarism practiced by students using the internet and print sources of information. Findings Results revealed the prevalence of plagiarism among both groups of students. There was no significant difference in the frequency level of plagiarism among UG and PG students using both the internet and print sources of information, advocating that the internet has not influenced the plagiarism frequency of students. Originality/value This is the first known attempt to examine the plagiarism habits of veterinary students.
Modeling, Analysis, and Control for the Rectifier of Hybrid HVdc Systems for DFIG-Based Wind Farms

In order to improve the dynamic performance of the hybrid HVdc system for doubly fed induction generator wind farms, this paper presents the modeling, analysis, and control methods for its line-commutated rectifier. First, the state variable model of the rectifier subsystem on the reference frame is derived considering different control modes of the current source inverter subsystem. Then, the ac current dynamic of the rectifier subsystem is quantitatively analyzed based on the eigenvalue analysis method. According to the analysis results, a double loop control scheme is designed: the inner loop utilizes the inverse system control technique plus a switchable phase-lead compensator, and the outer loop implements an ordinary propotional-integral controller. Finally, the validity of the quantitative analysis method and the superiority of the proposed control scheme are verified by Simulink/SimPowerSystems simulations.
Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Gene Polymorphism Is Associated with Anemia in Non–Small-Cell Lung Cancer

The angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) plays an important role not only in the regulation of vascular homeostasis but also in stimulation of hematopoiesis. We aimed to evaluate the association between insertion/deletion (I/D) polymorphism of the ACE gene and anemia at the time of the diagnosis. We enrolled 75 patients with non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and 85 age- and sex-matched healthy control participants. The I/D polymorphism of ACE was identified by using polymerase chain reaction from peripheral blood samples. Statistical analyses were performed with SPSS for Windows. The distributions of the ACE genotypes and alleles are similar in patients and in healthy participants (P = 0.29 and P = 0.08, respectively). In patients with NSCLC, 34 (45.3%) had anemia; of whom 3 (8.8%) had genotype II, 24 (70.6%) had genotype ID, and 7 (20.6%) had genotype DD (P = 0.001). The patients with the II and ID genotypes had more frequent anemia at the time of the diagnosis (odds ratio = 6.02; P = 0.001). Our findings suggest that I/D polymorphism of the ACE gene may influence the development of anemia in patients with NSCLC.
Automatic and Effortful Processing of Self‐Statements in Depression

Clark and Beck (1999) and Williams et al. (1997) have come up with quite different conclusions regarding which cognitive processes are most affected by negative self‐schemata and negative knowledge structures. In order to increase the understanding of differences in effortful and automatic processing in depression, we compared never depressed (ND), previously depressed (PD) and clinically depressed (CD) individuals on free recall, recognition and fabrication of positive and negative self‐statements. The results showed that: (i) overall NDs and PDs recalled more positive self‐statements than CDs, whereas CDs correctly recognized more negative self‐statements than NDs and PDs; and (ii) CDs and PDs fabricated more negative than positive self‐statements, whereas no difference was obtained for NDs. The results seem to be in line with Clark and Beck's suggestions. However, there are several aspects of the present findings that make the picture more complicated.
Molecular organization of the non-bilayer phospholipid arrangements that induce an autoimmune disease resembling human lupus in mice

Abstract Non-bilayer phospholipid arrangements are three-dimensional structures that can form when anionic phospholipids with an intermediate form of the tubular hexagonal phase II (HII), such as phosphatidic acid, phosphatidylserine or cardiolipin, are present in a bilayer of lipids. The drugs chlorpromazine and procainamide, which trigger a lupus-like disease in humans, can induce the formation of non-bilayer phospholipid arrangements, and we have previously shown that liposomes with non-bilayer arrangements induced by these drugs cause an autoimmune disease resembling human lupus in mice. Here we show that liposomes with non-bilayer phospholipid arrangements induced by Mn2+ cause a similar disease in mice. We extensively characterize the physical properties and immunological reactivity of liposomes made of the zwitterionic lipid phosphatidylcholine and a HII-preferring lipid, in the absence or presence of Mn2+, chlorpromazine or procainamide. We use an hapten inhibition assay to define the epitope recognized by sera of mice with the disease, and by a monoclonal antibody that binds specifically to non-bilayer phospholipid arrangements, and we report that phosphorylcholine and glycerolphosphorylcholine, which form part of the polar region of phosphatidylcholine, are the only haptens that block the binding of the tested antibodies to non-bilayer arrangements. We propose a model in which the negatively charged HII-preferring lipids form an inverted micelle by electrostatic interactions with the positive charge of Mn2+, chlorpromazine or procainamide; the inverted micelle is inserted into the bilayer of phosphatidylcholine, whose polar regions are exposed and become targets for antibody production. This model may be relevant in the pathogenesis of human lupus.
Exercise Training Produces Nonuniform Increases in Arteriolar Density of Rat Soleus and Gastrocnemius Muscle

Objective: Exercise training has been shown to increase regional blood flow capacity to muscle tissue containing fibers that experience increased activity during exercise. The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that the increased blood flow capacity is partially the result of increases in arteriolar density (number of arterioles/mm2 of tissue), specifically in skeletal muscle tissue, with the largest relative increase in muscle fiber activity during training bouts.
Control of particulate matter emissions from poultry and pig houses

Los alojamientos ganaderos, especialmente avicolas y porcinos, son una fuente importante de material particulado ("particulate matter", PM). Las concentraciones elevadas de PM en el ambiente pueden afectar a la salud de las personas y animales, asi como al medio ambiente. La mejor manera de reducir las emisiones de PM de los alojamientos ganaderos es evitar que este se genere y asi, controlando el PM en origen, no solo se pueden reducir las emisiones, sino tambien mejorar la calidad del aire en el interior de los alojamientos ganaderos. Por otra parte, para evaluar la posible exposicion al PM por un lado, y para desarrollar medidas para reducirlo, por otro, es necesario conocer la morfologia y composicion de las particulas. En consecuencia, el objetivo de esta tesis fue identificar y caracterizar el origen del PM en diferentes sistemas de alojamientos ganaderos y evaluar tecnicas de reduccion de dicho PM en relacion con otros contaminantes. La tesis esta compuesta por cuatro trabajos de investigacion y una revision previa, sobre el estado de la cuestion del PM en los sistemas de produccion ganaderos, que establece el marco del trabajo experimental. En primer lugar, se muestrearon fuentes conocidas de PM en alojamientos ganaderos que fueron aerosolizadas experimentalmente en un generador de polvo de laboratorio para recoger muestras de PM fino y grueso. Estas muestras fueron analizadas posteriormente mediante: i) microscopia electronica de barrido con un espectrometro de rayos X para obtener una caracterizacion morfologica y quimica detallada de las fuentes; ii) mediante un contador optico de particulas para obtener la distribucion por tamanos de cada fuente. En segundo lugar, se investigaron las caracteristicas mas adecuadas de las particulas para distinguir entre las distintas fuentes en base a la caracterizacion de las mismas anteriormente obtenida y a las caracteristicas morfologicas obtenidas con analisis digital de imagen. En su conjunto, se puede concluir de manera generica que los resultados presentados en esta tesis contribuyen a proporcionar unas herramientas basicas que permitiran disenar unas medidas de reduccion de PM en origen mejores y mas eficientes y, paralelamente, a predecir su funcionamiento.
Regulation of Thromboxane Receptor Trafficking Through the Prostacyclin Receptor in Vascular Smooth Muscle Cells: Role of Receptor Heterodimerization

Background—Prostacyclin (PGI2) and thromboxane (TxA2) effect disparate outcomes for atherogenesis and the response to vascular injury; PGI2, a vasodilator and inhibitor of platelet aggregation, limits the deleterious actions of TxA2, a vasoconstrictor and platelet activator. Dimerization of their G protein–coupled receptors, IP and TP, evokes a modified cellular response through which IP/TP counter-balance may be effected. We examined the consequence of IP/TP interaction for the regulatory pathways of both receptors. Methods and Results—TP&agr; overexpressed in HEK293 cells or expressed endogenously in aortic smooth muscle cells (ASMCs) was internalized after selective activation of either TP or IP. Homologous trafficking of TP was unaltered by coexpression of IP. Heterologous sequestration of TP&agr; required the physical presence of activated IP, in transfected and native cells, but was independent of IP signaling to adenylyl cyclase. Reciprocal heterologous regulation of IP, via activated TP, was evident in both HEK293 cells and ASMCs. Homologous TP internalization led to receptor retention and degradation. In contrast, when internalization was IP-induced, TP&agr; was recycled to the cell surface in coexpressing HEK293 cells, but not in ASMCs, in accord with the postendocytotic pathway of IP. Conclusions—IP/TP&agr; interaction permits reciprocal regulation of receptor endocytosis via the trafficking pathway determined by the activated dimeric partner.
Surgical outcomes in patients with primary mediastinal non-seminomatous germ cell tumours and elevated post-chemotherapy serum tumour markers.

OBJECTIVE Platinum-based chemotherapy followed by surgical resection of residual masses has become the standard treatment of patients with primary mediastinal non-seminomatous germ cell tumours (NSGCTs). Persistent serum tumour marker (STM) elevation after chemotherapy usually indicates a poor prognosis. We retrospectively assessed surgical outcomes in patients with high STM levels after chemotherapy for primary mediastinal NSGCT. METHODS Between 1983 and 2010, residual tumour excision was performed in 21 patients, 20 men and one woman with a median age of 30 years (range: 19-49 years), with primary mediastinal NSGCTs and high STM levels after platinum-based chemotherapy, followed by second-line chemotherapy in 11 patients. RESULTS Alpha-fetoprotein was elevated in all 21 patients and β-human chorionic gonadotropin in three patients. Permanent histology demonstrated viable germ cell tumour (n=13), teratoma (n=3) or necrosis (n=5). After surgery, the STM levels returned to normal in 11 patients. Eight patients are alive with a median follow-up of 98 months. The 5-year survival rate was 36% and was not significantly affected by the use of preoperative second-line chemotherapy. At univariate analysis, only postoperative STM elevation and residual viable tumour, indicating incomplete resection, were significantly associated with lower survival (P=0.018 and P=0.04, respectively). CONCLUSION In patients with primary mediastinal NSGCTs and elevated post-chemotherapy STMs, surgery is warranted when complete resection is deemed feasible. In specialized oncology centres, this aggressive approach can provide a cure in some patients.
Generalised anxiety disorder.

INTRODUCTION Up to one in five people may have generalised anxiety disorder (GAD) at some point, and most have other health problems. Less than half of people have full remission after 5 years. GAD may have a genetic component, and has also been linked to previous psychological or other trauma. METHODS AND OBJECTIVES We conducted a systematic review and aimed to answer the following clinical question: What are the effects of treatments for GAD? We searched: Medline, Embase, The Cochrane Library and other important databases up to February 2006 (Clinical Evidence reviews are updated periodically, please check our website for the most up-to-date version of this review). We included harms alerts from relevant organisations such as the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). RESULTS We found 52 systematic reviews, RCTs, or observational studies that met our inclusion criteria. CONCLUSIONS In this systematic review we present information relating to the effectiveness and safety of the following interventions: abecarnil, antidepressants (imipramine, opipramol, paroxetine, sertraline, escitalopram and venlafaxine), antipsychotic drugs (trifluoperazine), applied relaxation, benzodiazepines, buspirone, cognitive behavioural therapy, hydroxyzine, kava, and pregabalin.
WEST AFRICAN PINEAPPLE QUALITY

La qualite de l'ananas resulte de l'interaction de multiples facteurs au long de la filiere de production-commercialisation. Les itineraires techniques sont adaptables a la majorite des conditions de production, mais les recommandations ne sont pas toujours respectees, d'ou une qualite de fruits souvent inferieure a ce qu'elle pourrait etre. Les raisons en sont nombreuses : cours en Europe tres bas incitant a reduire les intrants, achats de fruits par des exportateurs a des petits producteurs de faible technicite et insuffisamment encadres, infrastructures et organisation deficientes dans le domaine de la post-recolte. Une des raisons principales reste la meconnaissance des acquis techniques de la recherche. La mise en place de formations efficaces avec leurs outils specifiques, realisee au sein de la filiere par un encadrement competent, devrait permettre une diffusion durable de ces connaissances techniques, condition necessaire pour relever le niveau de la qualite de l'ananas. Par ailleurs, la recherche doit continuer a produire de nouveaux acquis, notamment en physiologie et technologie post-recolte pour ameliorer la conservabilite de l'ananas mur, en raison de la duree des phases de transport et de commercialisation. Enfin des solutions doivent etre proposees pour ameliorer le systeme de controle de la qualite. (Resume d'auteur)