Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Spitzer c2d Survey of Nearby Dense Cores. I. First Direct Detection of the Embedded Source in IRAM 04191+1522

We report the first detections of the Class 0 protostellar source IRAM 04191+1522 at wavelengths shortward of 60 μm with the Spitzer Space Telescope. We see extended emission in the Spitzer images that suggests the presence of an outflow cavity in the circumstellar envelope. We combine the Spitzer observations with existing data to form a complete data set ranging from 3.6 to 1300 μm and use these data to construct radiative transfer models of the source. We conclude that the internal luminosity of IRAM 04191+1522, defined to be the sum of the luminosity from the internal sources (a star and a disk), is Lint = 0.08 ± 0.04 L☉, placing it among the lowest luminosity protostars known. Although it was discovered before the launch of the Spitzer Space Telescope, IRAM 04191+1522 falls within a new class of very low luminosity objects being discovered by Spitzer. Unlike the two other well-studied objects in this class, which are associated either with weak, compact outflows or no outflows at all, IRAM 04191+1522 has a well-defined molecular outflow with properties consistent with those expected based on relations derived from higher luminosity (Lint ≥ 1 L☉) protostars. We discuss the difficulties in understanding IRAM 04191+1522 in the context of the standard model of star formation and suggest a possible explanation for the very low luminosity of this source.
Fas‐ and tumor necrosis factor receptor 1–dependent but not perforin‐dependent pathways cause injury in livers infected with an adenovirus construct in mice

Intravenous injection of type 5 adenovirus, deleted in the E1 and E3 regions, is shown to result in expression of viral antigens in the liver, initiating lymphocyte infiltration and liver injury. Following this infection, induction of Fas ligand (FasL), tumor necrosis factor α (TNF‐α), and perforin mRNA are all demonstrable in the liver, pointing to a role of respective pathways in liver injury. Making use of mice in which the genes coding for Fas, FasL, TNF receptors (TNFRs), and perforin are inactivated, as well as recombinant proteins that inhibit Fas‐ and TNF‐α–mediated apoptosis, it is shown that a functional perforin‐mediated mechanism is not obligatory for cellular infiltration and progression of liver injury. In contrast functional Fas‐ and TNF‐α–mediated mechanisms were found to be essential for liver injury to occur. Results are presented demonstrating that signaling through TNFR1, but not TNFR2, is involved in TNF‐α–mediated liver damage. The conclusion is drawn that although perforin mRNA is induced in the virus‐infected liver, Fas‐ and TNF‐α–mediated mechanisms constitute the principal pathways by which the cell‐mediated immune system causes acute liver injury.
The role of apoptosis in radiation oncology

Purpose: Apoptosis, as a mode of cell death in irradiated cell populations, has been the subject of literarily hundreds if not thousands of published reports over the past few years. However, in spite of the large body of knowledge related to this subject, the role of apoptosis in determining tumor response to radiotherapy has been and remains poorly understood and controversial. Indeed, some previous reviews have suggested that apoptosis may not be important in this context. The purpose of the present review is to provide some examples of recently reported laboratory investigations that indicate that there is a reasonable expectation that the radiation-induced apoptosis observed has contributed to the tumor response. Conclusions: We review reports in four areas of research: Molecularly targeted agents, in vivo imaging, Bcl-2 and cancer stem cells. Examples are provided in each of these areas that we believe justify a reassessment of the role that apoptosis plays in radiation oncology.
Horizontal transmission of parthenogenesis–inducing microbes in Trichogramma wasps

Complete parthenogenesis (thelytoky) in species of the parasitic wasp Trichogramma is usually caused by the cytoplasmically inherited bacterium Wolbachia. This symbiont induces gamete duplication, which, in these haplodiploid organisms, results in all–female broods. Antibiotic treatment ‘cures’ this condition, restoring normal sexual reproduction. Phylogenetic analysis of Wolbachia has shown that, in contrast with the strains in other host organisms (where the symbiont also induces different reproductive alterations), those in Trichogramma form a monophyletic group. This might be an indication of symbiont–host cocladogenesis. To test this, we performed comparative molecular phylogenetics on 20 parthenogenetic Trichogramma cultures and their Wolbachiae. We conclude that there is, in fact, little evidence for cocladogenesis. Instead, the phylogenetic distribution of the symbionts appears to result from occasional horizontal transmission, which probably takes place inside the hosts of Trichogramma parasitoids (usually lepidopteran eggs). This study therefore suggests that parthenogenesis is not only curable, it can sometimes be contagious also.
Nutrition and Food Safety as Strategic Assets

 Abstract — The world is facing a growing food crisis. The concerns of food nutritional value, food safety and food security are becoming increasingly real. There is also a direct relationship to the risk of diseases, particularly chronic diseases, to the food we consume. So, there are increasing concerns about the modern day food ecosystem creating foods that can provide the nutritional components for organ function sustenance, as well as, taking a serious view on diet-related diseases. This paper addresses some of the above concerns and gives an overview of the current global situation relating to food nutrition and safety. The paper reviews nutritional aspects of food today compared to those of the last century, compares whole foods found in supermarkets versus those organically grown, as well as population behaviour towards food choices. It provides scientific insights into the effects of some of the global trends such as climate change and other changes environmental changes, and presents what individuals and corporations are doing to use the latest nutritional technologies as strategic assets. Finally, it briefly highlights some of the innovative solutions that are being applied to address several of the above concerns.
Consumer value creation in mobile banking services

The paper presents findings of the study that explored consumer value creation in various mobile banking services. New electronic channels are replacing the more traditional ones. Mobile devices represent the recent development in electronic service distribution. An exploratory study was conducted on experienced electronic banking customers by using a qualitative in-depth interviewing method. The findings increase the understanding of customer-perceived value and value creation on the basis of attributes of mobile services and customer-perceived disadvantages of mobile phones in electronic banking context. The findings allow practitioners to improve their services and marketing strategies and pass on information to the academics about interesting future research areas.
Lin28a uses distinct mechanisms of binding to RNA and affects miRNA levels positively and negatively

Lin28a inhibits the biogenesis of let-7 miRNAs by triggering the polyuridylation and degradation of their precursors by terminal uridylyltransferases TUT4/7 and 3′-5′ exoribonuclease Dis3l2, respectively. Previously, we showed that Lin28a also controls the production of neuro-specific miRNA-9 via a polyuridylation-independent mechanism. Here we reveal that the sequences and structural characteristics of pre-let-7 and pre-miRNA-9 are eliciting two distinct modes of binding to Lin28a. We present evidence that Dis3l2 controls miRNA-9 production. Finally, we show that the constitutive expression of untagged Lin28a during neuronal differentiation in vitro positively and negatively affects numerous other miRNAs. Our findings shed light on the role of Lin28a in differentiating cells and on the ways in which one RNA-binding protein can perform multiple roles in the regulation of RNA processing.
Glutathione peroxidase levels throughout normal pregnancy and in pre-eclampsia

Objective: Evidence suggests that hemoglobin, in addition to its function as a carrier of oxygen, also serves to transport nitric oxide, as S-nitroso cysteine, from the lungs to the peripheral circulation, where it can be released. Glutathione peroxidase, besides being an important antioxidant, is known to catalyze the release of nitric oxide from smaller carrier molecules, and may play a role in the distribution of nitric oxide throughout the body. In light of these findings, we sought to determine whether glutathione peroxidase levels differed throughout gestation, and specifically between pre-eclamptic and normal women. Methods: A nested case-control study of women receiving routine prenatal care was conducted. Pre-eclampsia was defined by a blood pressure of at least 140 mmHg systolic and/or 90 mmHg diastolic as well as proteinuria > 300 mg/24 h or > 2+ by dipstick, both occurring on two occasions at least 6 h apart. Blood was collected in heparinized tubes and was then centrifuged in a clinical centrifuge for 10 min. Plasma was frozen promptly at -80°C for later enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), with which plasma glutathione peroxidase was determined. Results: The maternal demographics of the pre-eclamptic and non-pre-eclamptic study groups did not significantly vary with respect to mean maternal age, gravidity, parity and gestational age at the time of delivery. The median maternal ages were 33 and 34 years, and the median gestational ages at the time of birth were 37.5 and 38.1 weeks, respectively. In evaluating the glutathione peroxidase levels of all patients across the three trimesters, we found that there was essentially no difference in mean levels (83.7, 81.0 and 89.5 ng/ml, respectively). There was no difference between the pre-eclamptic and non-pre-eclamptic patients, again stratified by trimester. A linear regression analysis indicated that the plasma glutathione peroxidase concentration did not correlate with gestational age or the presence of pre-eclampsia. Conclusions: Plasma glutathione peroxidase expression is similar across all trimesters. There is no change in the glutathione peroxidase levels in pre-eclamptic patients.
Protein- and diabetes-induced glomerular hyperfiltration: role of glucagon, vasopressin, and urea.

A single protein-rich meal (or an infusion of amino acids) is known to increase the glomerular filtration rate (GFR) for a few hours, a phenomenon known as "hyperfiltration. " It is important to understand the factors that initiate this upregulation because it becomes maladaptive in the long term. Several mediators and paracrine factors have been shown to participate in this upregulation, but they are not directly triggered by protein intake. Here, we explain how a rise in glucagon and in vasopressin secretion, directly induced by protein ingestion, might be the initial factors triggering the hepatic and renal events leading to an increase in the GFR. Their effects include metabolic actions in the liver and stimulation of sodium chloride reabsorption in the thick ascending limb. Glucagon is not only a glucoregulatory hormone. It is also important for the excretion of nitrogen end products by stimulating both urea synthesis in the liver (along with gluconeogenesis from amino acids) and urea excretion by the kidney. Vasopressin allows the concentration of nitrogenous end products (urea, ammonia, etc.) and other protein-associated wastes in a hyperosmotic urine, thus allowing a very significant water economy characteristic of all terrestrial mammals. No hyperfiltration occurs in the absence of one or the other hormone. Experimental results suggest that the combined actions of these two hormones, along with the complex intrarenal handling of urea, lead to alter the composition of the tubular fluid at the macula densa and to reduce the intensity of the signal activating the tubuloglomerular feedback control of GFR, thus allowing GFR to raise. Altogether, glucagon, vasopressin, and urea contribute to set up the best compromise between efficient urea excretion and water economy.
7 Evaluation of Radiofrequency Ablation as a Method for Treatment of Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma is the fifth most common neoplasm in the World and the third most common cause of cancer related death (1). It accounts for 7.4% of all cancers in males and 3.2% of all cancers in females (2). An early diagnosis of HCC is required for the institution of treatments considered to be curative. On this basis, screening of each patient with liver cirrhosis should be performed by ultrasound and by measurements of serum alphafetoprotein (AFP) at 6-months interval (3). There are different methods for active management of HCC, many factors related to the tumour itself and to the patient may make a tumour unresectable (4). Radio frequency ablation (RFA) is the most common therapy used in patients not suitable for resection. In RFA, an electric current that is passed into the tumour tissue via an electrode tip results in heat generation and coagulative necrosis (5). The advantage of radio frequency is the small number of sessions needed to obtain tumour necrosis (6). The aim of the present study was to evaluate the radiofrequency thermal ablation as a method for treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma.
Urinary Neopterin in Patients with Advanced Colorectal Carcinoma

In previous studies, mostly in patients with early stage colorectal carcinoma, neopterin, an indicator of systemic immune activation, has been associated with poor prognosis. The aim of the present study was to evaluate urinary neopterin in patients with advanced or metastatic colorectal carcinoma treated with chemotherapy. A retrospective analysis was performed of urinary neopterin, determined by high-performance liquid chromatography, in 88 patients with advanced or metastatic colorectal carcinoma. Peripheral blood cell count and serum carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) were determined in 72 patients before the start of chemotherapy. Urinary neopterin in colorectal carcinoma patients was significantly increased compared to controls, but lower than in patients with inflammatory bowel disease. Neopterin correlated significantly with serum CEA, age, peripheral blood leukocyte and platelet counts. The median survival of colorectal carcinoma patients with urinary neopterin below 214 μmol/mol creatinine was significantly longer compared to that of patients with higher neopterin concentrations (median 18 vs 5 months, log-rank test p=0.003). CEA and hemoglobin were also associated with survival in univariate analysis, but in multivariate analysis only urinary neopterin and serum CEA were independent predictors of survival. High urinary neopterin during follow-up was also predictive of poor prognosis.
Activation of Nuclear Factor κB and Induction of Apoptosis by Tumor Necrosis Factor-α in the Mouse Uterine Epithelial WEG-1 Cell Line1

Abstract In order to better understand how tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α may contribute to the local regulation of uterine cell death, cultures of mouse uterine epithelial WEG-1 cells were exposed to TNF-α and observed at different time intervals. Earliest decrease in cell viability was observed after 31 h of exposure to 50 ng/ml mouse TNF-α and was associated with the expression of several markers of apoptosis. Treatment with human TNF-α or addition of a neutralizing antibody against TNF-α receptor protein 80 to mouse TNF-α resulted in attenuated induction of apoptosis, suggesting that coengagement of the two TNF-α receptor types is required for maximal impact. Ceramide analogs failed to replicate the effect of TNF-α and the stress-activated protein kinase signaling pathway was not activated by the cytokine. Treatment with mouse TNF-α resulted in an increase in nuclear factor (NF)κB activity that receded after 24 h. The impact of human TNF-α on NFκB activation was more moderate. Addition of either one of three different inhibitors of NFκB (SN50, PDTC, and A771726) to mouse TNF-α sensitized WEG-1 cells to the toxicity of the cytokine. Our data suggest that WEG-1 cells initiate their response to TNF-α with an increase in NFκB activation that may have transiently biased these cells toward cell death resistance.
Music Influences Ratings of the Affect of Visual Stimuli

This review provides an overview of recent studies that have examined how music influences the judgment of emotional stimuli, including affective pictures and film clips. The relevant findings are incorporated within a broader theory of music and emotion, and suggestions for future research are offered. Music is important in our daily lives, and one of its primary uses by listeners is the active regulation of one's mood. Despite this widespread use as a regulator of mood and its general pervasiveness in our society, the number of studies investigating the issue of whether, and how, music affects mood and emotional behaviour is limited however. Experiments investigating the effects of music have generally focused on how the emotional valence of background music impacts how affective pictures and/or film clips are evaluated. These studies have demonstrated strong effects of music on the emotional judgment of such stimuli. Most studies have reported concurrent background music to enhance the emotional valence when music and pictures are emotionally congruent. On the other hand, when music and pictures are emotionally incongruent, the ratings of the affect of the pictures will in- or decrease depending on the emotional valence of the background music. These results appear to be consistent in studies investigating the effects of (background) music.
MESSENGER observations of Mercury's magnetosphere during northward IMF

MESSENGER's January 14, 2008, flyby of Mercury has provided new observations of the planet's magnetosphere for northward interplanetary magnetic field (IMF). The dusk magnetopause was located inward from the mean magnetopause surface, possibly due to reduced tail magnetic flux content for IMF Bz > 0 and/or the pressure of planetary pickup ions as they respond to the dawnward – v × B electric field in the magnetosheath. Within the plasma sheet rotations of the magnetic field are observed consistent with, Kelvin–Helmholtz vortices ∼1 RM in diameter (RM is Mercury's radius). MESSENGER exited through a 1,000 km‐wide boundary layer bordered by inner and outer current sheets that resemble rotational and tangential discontinuities, respectively. The total magnetic field change across this layer is consistent with the predicted solar wind ram pressure at Mercury during the MESSENGER flyby.
The Amulets from Ketef Hinnom: A New Edition and Evaluation

This article represents a substantial revision and rereading of the two silver plaques found at Ketef Hinnom in 1979. Our new analysis of detailed, high-resolution images made by West Semitic Research reveals traces of letters that were not previously identified as well as clarification of letters that were previously much harder to read and identify. Based on our new analysis and reading of these texts, we can reaffirm with confidence that the late preexilic period is the proper chronological context for the artifacts. We can further reassert the conclusion reached by most scholars: that the inscriptions found on these plaques preserve the earliest known citations of texts also found in the Hebrew Bible and that they provide us with the earliest examples of confessional statements concerning Yahweh. The new readings of the text further confirm the assumption that these artifacts are best classified as amulets that were utilized in an apotropaic manner.
Effects of dietary level of Leucaena leucocephala on performance of Angora and Spanish doelings

Thirty Angora (16 2 kg initial body weight) and 20 Spanish doelings (19 2 kg initial body weight), approximately 8 months of age, were used in an 10 week experiment to evaluate effects of dietary level of Leucaena leucocephala on body weight (BW) gain and ®ber growth. The control diet (CS) included 9% dry matter (DM) of formaldehyde-treated casein; other diets consisted of 15, 30, 45 or 60% DM of leucaena leaf meal (0.75% mimosine; 15, 30, 45 and 60 l, respectively). Diets were formulated to be 2.13 Mcal metabolizable energy/kg DM, and ranged in crude protein from 10 to 14% of DM. DM intake was greater (P<0.05) for 45 l than for CS and 15 l (710, 648, 815, 899 and 811 g per day for CS, 15, 30, 45 and 60 l, respectively) and similar (P>0.05) between Angora and Spanish doelings. BW gain was similar (P>0.05) among diets (48, 28, 38, 34 and 26 g per day for CS, 15, 30, 45 and 60 l, respectively) and between breeds. Mohair growth rate was lower (P<0.05) for 60 and 30 l than for CS (1.34, 1.18, 0.94, 1.16 and 0.88 mg cmÿ2 per day, and mohair diameter was greatest (P<0.05) for CS and lowest (P<0.05) for 60 l (27.7, 25.9, 25.1, 25.0 and 23.8 mm for CS, 15, 30, 45 and 60 l, respectively). Cashmere growth rate and ®ber diameter for Spanish goats were similar among diets, and primary and secondary follicle activities for both Angora and Spanish goats were not affected by dietary treatments (P>0.05). Diet affected (P<0.05) plasma concentrations of urea, threonine, arginine, valine, phenylalanine, isoleucine, leucine and lysine, with concentrations increasing as dietary level of leucaena increased. In conclusion, diets of moderate to high levels (e.g., 45%) of leucaena with 0.75% mimosine can be fed to goats without adverse effects on BW gain or ®ber growth. However, further study of the composition of leucaena-based diets appears necessary to achieve most ef®cient utilization. # 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
Who Plays the Strings in Newborn Analgesia at Birth, Vasopressin or Oxytocin?

For many years, oxytocin has been viewed as the primary hormone edging endocrinology, behavior, and pain in mothers and infants around parturition. Very recent work puts the vasopressin receptor 1A in the focus of peripheral analgesia and pain relief in respect to circulating vasopressin and oxytocin. Here, we present a concise overview on these new findings, will discuss them in context of parturition, and will outline new avenues.
Impulsivity and control of inhibition in Benign Focal Childhood Epilepsy (BFCE).

Childhood epilepsy represents abnormal brain functioning and may affect cognitive functions that depend on the late development of the frontal lobes. This study addresses the possible consequences of benign epilepsy on frontal functions, specifically action regulation and inhibition in the absence of explicit frontal neurological signs. Thirteen children (8 males; 6-12 years old) with benign epilepsy were matched to 13 controls. They performed tasks designed to measure impulsivity and control of inhibition: CPT, Stop Signal Paradigm, Stroop test, and Matching Familiar Figures Test (MFFT). Children with epilepsy made more errors on the MFFT (p < .02), made more errors in the interference condition on the Stroop test (p < .01), and had a longer response time to the Stop Signal (p < .05) than controls, with no differences on nonexecutive functions measures. Thus, children with benign epilepsy have a deficit on some measures of impulsivity and inhibition, which may reflect poor frontal lobe functioning.