Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
PAS‐G supports platelet reconstitution after cryopreservation in the absence of plasma

Platelet (PLT) concentrates frozen in dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) can be stored for extended periods at −80°C. PLTs are frozen in a hyperconcentrated state to avoid postthaw washing and minimize residual DMSO. Consequently, PLTs require reconstitution upon thawing. Although plasma, saline, and PLT additive solutions (PASs) have been used to reconstitute frozen PLTs, a comparison to define an optimal solution for PLT recovery has not been performed.
Evidence of Endothelial Progenitor Cells in the Human Brain and Spinal Cord Arteriovenous Malformations

BACKGROUND:Brain and spinal cord arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) are characterized by aberrant angiogenesis and vascular remodeling. Endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) can be recruited by stromal cell-derived factor-1 (SDF-1), and participate in vascular remodeling in both physiological and pathological settings. OBJECTIVE:To investigate whether there are increased EPC levels in the brain and spinal cord AVM nidus. METHODS:Microsurgical specimens without endovascular embolization and radiosurgery from the brain (n = 12) and spinal cord (n = 5) AVMs were examined. Hemangioblastoma, meningioma, cerebral cortex obtained from epilepsy surgery, and the basilar artery from the autopsy were chosen for control comparisons. EPCs were identified as cells that were double-positive for the stem cell marker CD133 and the endothelial cell marker VEGFR-2 (vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-2 or KDR). In addition, SDF-1 was characterized by immunohistochemistry. RESULTS:Both brain and spinal AVM tissues displayed more CD133-, SDF-1-, and CD68-positive signals than epilepsy and basilar artery control tissues. The level of EPCs was increased in the brain and spinal cord AVM nidus, mainly at the edge of the vessel wall. The expression of SDF-1 was colocalized with CD31-positive and α-smooth muscle cells, and was predominantly found within the vessel wall. CONCLUSION:Our data demonstrate that EPCs are present in the nidus of the brain and spinal cord AVMs, which may mediate pathological vascular remodeling and impact the clinical course of AVMs.
Dysferlinopathy: mitochondrial abnormalities in human skeletal muscle

Purpose: Mitochondrial defects have been associated with a series of muscular diseases. Dysferlinopathy, however, has been rarely reported with mitochondrial dysfunction. Here we report a cohort of dysferlinopathy patients with mitochondrial abnormalities found in muscle. Methods: Clinical data and muscle pathologies of nine cases with dysferlinopathy were retrospectively studied. mtDNA copy number, protein levels and activities of mitochondrial enzyme complexes were assayed. Results: Nine patients were diagnosed as having dysferlinopathy by DYSF sequencing and quantification of dysferlin levels in muscle homogenates. Muscle biopsies exhibited dystrophic changes (n = 9), ragged-red fibers (n = 9) and cytochrome c oxidase-deficient fibers (n = 9). mtDNA copy number increased significantly in 56% (15/27) of fibers with mitochondrial histology. Protein levels of complex IV subunits II (n = 5), complex III subunit core 2 (n = 2) and complex I NDUFB1 (n = 1) decreased. Impaired activities of complexes I, III and IV were observed in 56%, 33% and 78% of subjects and the activities were reduced by 21%, 18% and 40%, respectively. Besides, loss activities of complexes I/IV and decreased ATP level were also found in fibroblasts from dysferlinopathy. Conclusion: Prominent mitochondrial abnormalities are common pathological findings in muscle from dysferlinopathy. Our data indicated that mitochondria may play a significant role in the progression of dysferlinopathy and also highlighted the potential of mitochondrial protective drugs in rescuing the symptoms of dysferlinopathy.
A Comprehensive Approach to Group Recommendations in the Travel and Tourism Domain

The research on group recommender systems is often oversimplifying the problem of generating group recommendations, as it is usually only considering the explicit preferences of the group members and, in some cases, enriching these preferences with additional information about the individual members. In this way, an essential aspect is frequently completely neglected: the characterization of the group as an entity with a specific composition and with group-related dynamics. The goal of this paper is multifaceted, firstly, to address the limitations of state-of-the-art approaches, secondly, to describe the problem of group recommendations in a more comprehensive fashion, thirdly, to summarize the results of our previously conducted analyses as a supporting evidence of a need for richer group models, and finally, to discuss an alternative and rather novel approach to group recommendations in the tourism domain. To this end, the results of the group decision-making study with 200 participants in 55 groups are summarized and related to the seven travel factors of the picture-based recommendation system.
COMPARISON OF AGAR GEL IMMUNODIFFUSION TEST, IMMUNOHISTOCHEMSITRY AND REVERSE TRANSCRIPTION - POLYMERASE CHAIN REACTION FOR DETECTION OF INFECTIOUS BURSAL DISEASE VIRUS

The objective of this study was to compare agar gel immunodiffusion test (AGID) and immunohistochemistry (IHC) with reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) in terms of sensitivity and specificity for the detection of infectious bursal disease virus (IBDV). Thirty-five bursal samples collected from filed outbreak of IBD were evaluated by all 3 diagnostic tests. Sensitivity and specificity of both AGIDT and IHC with RT-PCR was 94.12% and 100%, respectively. Both AGIDT and IHC showed a 94.29% association with RT-PCR with a k value of 0.482, indicating a moderate degree of agreement. The Cochran’s Q value was 4.00, which is lower than the critical value, indicating that the methods did not differ significantly (p>0.05) from each other in detection of samples as positive or negative. However, RT-PCR had distinct edge over these two tests employed in the study. DOI: http://dx.doi. org/10.3329/bjvm.v9i2. 13452
Water Chloride Provides Partial Protection during Chronic Exposure to Waterborne Silver in Rainbow Trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) Embryos and Larvae

Rainbow trout embryos and larvae were continuously exposed (at 12.5°C) to waterborne silver in a flow‐through setup, from fertilization to swim‐up, at nominal silver concentrations of 0, 0.1, or 1.0 μg/L total silver (as AgNO3) at three different water Cl− levels (30, 300, and 3,000 μM, added as KCl). Exposures were conducted in synthetic soft water (hardness 20 mg CaCO3/L generated from reconstituted reverse osmosis freshwater). Continuous exposure to 1.0 μg/L total silver for 58 d at 30 μM water Cl− resulted in a pronounced ionoregulatory disturbance (as indicated by a reduction in whole body Na+,K+‐ATPase activity, unidirectional Na+ uptake [ \documentclass{aastex} \usepackage{amsbsy} \usepackage{amsfonts} \usepackage{amssymb} \usepackage{bm} \usepackage{mathrsfs} \usepackage{pifont} \usepackage{stmaryrd} \usepackage{textcomp} \usepackage{portland,xspace} \usepackage{amsmath,amsxtra} \usepackage[OT2,OT1]{fontenc} \newcommand\cyr{ \renewcommand\rmdefault{wncyr} \renewcommand\sfdefault{wncyss} \renewcommand\encodingdefault{OT2} \normalfont \selectfont} \DeclareTextFontCommand{\textcyr}{\cyr} \pagestyle{empty} \DeclareMathSizes{10}{9}{7}{6} \begin{document} \landscape $$J_{\mathrm{in}\,}$$ \end{document} Na+], and whole body Na+ and Cl− levels) and a reduction in extractable protein and wet weight. Thus, the mechanism of chronic silver toxicity appears to be similar to that observed during acute silver exposure in juvenile and adult fish, specifically an ionoregulatory disturbance. Higher water Cl− levels (300 and 3,000 μM Cl−) offered some degree of protection from the ionoregulatory disturbance, with only minor protective effects in terms of mortality. The protective effects of water Cl− on the toxicity of silver (as AgNO3) appear to be far less during chronic than during acute exposure. Mortality and larval Na+ concentration, \documentclass{aastex} \usepackage{amsbsy} \usepackage{amsfonts} \usepackage{amssymb} \usepackage{bm} \usepackage{mathrsfs} \usepackage{pifont} \usepackage{stmaryrd} \usepackage{textcomp} \usepackage{portland,xspace} \usepackage{amsmath,amsxtra} \usepackage[OT2,OT1]{fontenc} \newcommand\cyr{ \renewcommand\rmdefault{wncyr} \renewcommand\sfdefault{wncyss} \renewcommand\encodingdefault{OT2} \normalfont \selectfont} \DeclareTextFontCommand{\textcyr}{\cyr} \pagestyle{empty} \DeclareMathSizes{10}{9}{7}{6} \begin{document} \landscape $$J_{\mathrm{in}\,}$$ \end{document} Na+, and Na+,K+‐ATPase activity all appear to be correlated with silver body burden and calculated water Ag+ during chronic silver exposure. Thus, there appears to be potential to model chronic toxicity but not simply by recalibration of an acute model. A chronic model must be based on real chronic data because the protective effects of various ligands appear to be quantitatively very different from those in the acute situation.
Posterior predictive model checks for disease mapping models.

Disease incidence or disease mortality rates for small areas are often displayed on maps. Maps of raw rates, disease counts divided by the total population at risk, have been criticized as unreliable due to non-constant variance associated with heterogeneity in base population size. This has led to the use of model-based Bayes or empirical Bayes point estimates for map creation. Because the maps have important epidemiological and political consequences, for example, they are often used to identify small areas with unusually high or low unexplained risk, it is important that the assumptions of the underlying models be scrutinized. We review the use of posterior predictive model checks, which compare features of the observed data to the same features of replicate data generated under the model, for assessing model fitness. One crucial issue is whether extrema are potentially important epidemiological findings or merely evidence of poor model fit. We propose the use of the cross-validation posterior predictive distribution, obtained by reanalyzing the data without a suspect small area, as a method for assessing whether the observed count in the area is consistent with the model. Because it may not be feasible to actually reanalyze the data for each suspect small area in large data sets, two methods for approximating the cross-validation posterior predictive distribution are described.
Patterns of gonadotrophin secretion associated with ovulation.

A detailed analysis was made of circulating luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), and prolactin throughout the estrous cycle in rats. Vaginal cytology was recorded daily for 18 or 23 days in 2 groups of adult female rats, 300 and 400 per group. The presence of distended uteri or tubal ova was noted at the time of exsanguination under ether anesthesia. Serum concentrations of LH, FSH, and prolactin were determined by radioimmunoassay. In 404 rats with regular 5-day cycles, all 3 hormones reached maximum concentrations on the afternoon of functional proestrus. During the next 3 days FSH decreased progressively, and LH levels indicated a diurnal fluctuation with minimum concentrations during darkness. Serum prolactin may have b een elevated due to anesthesia and exsanguination and showed a rapid increase which occurred simultaneously with elevated LH and FSH on the afternoon of proestrus. Radioimmunoassay of all 3 hormones indicated that the increases in serum LH and prolactin did not necessarily occur simultaneously. Hypophysectomy and sequential heart puncture of proestrus rats during maximum hormone release showed disappearance rates (half-lives) for LH, FSH, and prolactin of 20, 110, and 13 minutes, respectively.
In vivo imaging of the spatiotemporal activity of the eIF2α-ATF4 signaling pathway: Insights into stress and related disorders

A transgenic mouse model enables analysis of the involvement of a stress signaling pathway in liver fibrosis. Seeing stress signaling in living mice In response to cellular stress, activation of the eIF2α-ATF4 pathway reduces global protein production while enhancing targeted adaptive gene expression to enable cells to adapt and survive. Activation of this pathway is associated with various disease pathologies, such as tissue fibrosis after injury, oxidative stress, or chemically induced damage. Chaveroux et al. developed a transgenic mouse model in which the activation of this pathway could be monitored at the level of the whole animal by bioluminescence imaging and at the tissue and cellular levels by quantification and visualization of the enzyme activity. Analysis of these mice revealed that activation of this pathway is tissue-specific, depending on the initiating stress, and also showed that chemically induced liver fibrosis correlates with activation of the eIF2α-ATF4 pathway by a specific kinase. The eIF2α-ATF4 pathway is involved in cellular adaptation to stress and is dysregulated in numerous diseases. Activation of this pathway leads to phosphorylation of the α subunit of eukaryotic initiation factor 2 (eIF2α) and the recruitment of the transcription factor ATF4 (activating transcription factor 4) to specific CCAAT/enhancer binding protein (C/EBP)–ATF response elements (CAREs) located in the promoters of target genes. To monitor the spatiotemporal modulation of this pathway in living animals, we generated a novel CARE-driven luciferase mouse model (CARE-LUC). These transgenic mice enable the investigation of the eIF2α-ATF4 pathway activity in the whole organism and at the tissue and cellular levels by combining imaging, luciferase assays, and immunochemistry. Using this mouse line, we showed the tissue-specific activation pattern of this pathway in response to amino acid deficiency or endoplasmic reticulum stress and the hepatic induction of this pathway in a stress-related pathology model of liver fibrosis. The CARE-LUC mouse model represents an innovative tool to investigate the eIF2α-ATF4 axis and to develop drugs targeting this important pathway in the remediation of related pathologies.
Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinase C2α Contains a Nuclear Localization Sequence and Associates with Nuclear Speckles*

Phosphoinositide 3-kinase C2α (PI3K-C2α) belongs to the class II phosphatidylinositol 3-kinases, which are defined by their in vitro usage of phosphatidylinositol and phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate as substrates. All type II phosphatidylinositol 3-kinases contain at their C terminus a C2-like domain. Here we demonstrate that Homo sapiensphosphoinositide 3-kinase C2α (HsPI3K-C2α) has dual cellular localization present in the cytoplasm and in the nucleus. A distinct nuclear localization signal sequence was identified by expressing HsPI3K-C2α-green fluorescent protein fusion proteins in HeLa cells. The nuclear localization signal was mapped to a stretch of 11 amino acids (KRKTKISRKTR) located within C2-like domain of the kinase. In the cytoplasm and the nucleus HsPI3K-C2α associates with macromolecular complexes that are resistant to detergent extraction. Indirect immunofluorescence reveals that in the nucleus HsPI3K-C2α is enriched at distinct subnuclear domains known as nuclear speckles, which contain pre-mRNA processing factors and are functionally connected to RNA metabolism. Phosphorylation of HsPI3K-C2α is induced by inhibition of RNA polymerase II-dependent transcription and coincides with enlargement and rounding up of the nuclear speckles. The results suggest that phosphorylation of HsPI3K-C2α is inversely linked to mRNA transcription and supports the importance of phosphoinositides for nuclear activity.
Rapid identification of calotropagenin glycosides using high-performance liquid chromatography electrospray ionisation tandem mass spectrometry.

INTRODUCTION Cardiac glycosides in Calotropis procera have therapeutic use as inhibitors of Na⁺/K⁺-ATPase to regulate heart contractions. A large amount of research attention has been received by these compounds towards their identification and structural characterisation. In order to achieve rapid identification of cardiac glycosides in phytochemical extracts a liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method has been developed involving metal cationisation by post-column addition of alkali salts for the unambiguous determination of their molecular weights. OBJECTIVE Identification of cardiac glycosides in Calotropis procera leaf extract. RESULTS Calotropagenin and its 10 glycosides were unambiguously identified. The daughter ions at m/z 387, 369, 359, 351, 341 and 323 in their MS/MS spectra were attributed to the calotropagenin aglycone unit. CONCLUSION High performance liquid chromatography in combination with electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry involving metal cationisation by post column addition of alkali salts was successfully utilised for the rapid identification of calotropagenin glycosides/derivatives in Calotropis procera extract.
Limaprost Alfadex Improves Myelopathy Symptoms in Patients With Cervical Spinal Canal Stenosis

Study Design. Myelopathy symptoms were prospectively studied in patients with cervical spinal canal stenosis (CSCS), using objective grading systems and stabilometry, to examine the effect of administration of prostaglandin E1 derivative limaprost alfadex (limaprost). Objective. Myelopathy scores/grades and stabilometry parameters were evaluated before, and 1 and 3 months after starting the limaprost treatment. Summary and Background Data. Limaprost is a potent vasodilator and antiplatelet agent and has been used to treat the symptoms of lumbar spinal canal stenosis. The action presumably involves increased blood flow in the compressed cauda equina. Limaprost can also increase blood flow in the compressed spinal cord, but effects on myelopathy symptoms in patients with CSCS have not been established. Methods. This study examined 21 patients with mild spondylotic CSCS based on neurologic findings and compression of the cervical spinal cord on magnetic resonance imaging. Japanese Orthopedic Association score, grip and release test, and finger escape sign were measured, and stabilometry was performed by independent examiners, before, and 1 and 3 months after starting the oral limaprost treatment. Results. Most patients experienced amelioration of the symptoms at 1 month after starting the treatment. Mean Japanese Orthopedic Association score and grip and release count were significantly improved and finger escape sign grade was higher in some patients. Stabilometry area with eyes closed and Romberg rate were also significantly improved. These improvements were maintained at 3 months. Conclusion. The efficacy of oral limaprost administration for patients with CSCS was confirmed by objective scoring and quantitative data.
Epidermal and Dermal Dendritic Cells Display Differential Activation and Migratory Behavior While Sharing the Ability to Stimulate CD4+ T Cell Proliferation In Vivo12

Migrated Langerhans cells (m-LCs) have recently been shown to comprise only a minority of skin-derived dendritic cells (DCs) expressing Langerin in cutaneous lymph nodes. We have used BM chimeric mice that differ in CD45 and MHC class II alleles to unequivocally distinguish between radioresistant m-LCs and radiosensitive migrated dermal DCs (m-dDCs), to determine their phenotype, response to contact sensitization, and ability to activate naive CD4+ T cells in vivo. We have also characterized three subsets of dDCs and their migratory counterparts, as distinguished by expression of CD11b and Langerin. Each of the four subsets of skin DCs showed differential migration to draining LN in response to contact sensitizing agents. Migration of Langerin−CD11b+ and Langerin+CD11blow dDCs peaked after 1 day, followed by Langerin−CD11blow dDCs at 2 days and Langerin+ LCs at 4 days. Moreover, while m-LCs and m-dDCs had similar surface phenotypes in the steady state, they displayed unexpectedly different activation responses to contact sensitization: m-dDCs markedly up-regulated CD80 and CD86 at day 1, whereas only m-LCs up-regulated CD40, with delayed kinetics. Thus, m-dDCs are likely to be responsible for the initial response to skin immunization. However, when expression of cognate MHC class II was restricted to LCs and m-LCs, they were also capable of processing and presenting protein Ag to drive naive CD4 T cell proliferation in vivo. Thus, m-dDCs and m-LCs display distinct behavior in cutaneous lymph nodes while sharing the ability to interact specifically with T cells to control the immune response.
Impaired granulopoiesis, myelodysplasia, and early lethality in CCAAT y enhancer binding protein « -deficient mice

Polymorphonuclear leukocytes are essential forhostdefensetoinfectiousdiseases.CCAAT y enhancerbinding protein « (C y EBP « ) is preferentially expressed in granulocytes and lymphoid cells. Mice with a null mutation in C y EBP « develop normally and are fertile but fail to generate functional neutrophils and eosinophils. Opportunistic infections and tissue destruction lead to death by 3–5 months of age. Furthermore, end-stage mice develop myelodysplasia, characterized by proliferation of atypical granulocytes that efface the bone marrow and result in severe tissue destruction. Thus, C y EBP « is essential for terminal differentiation and functional maturation of committed granulocyte progenitor cells.
ScholarWorks @ UTRGV ScholarWorks @ UTRGV

—Towards understanding the public’s perception of humanlike robots, we examined commentary on 24 YouTube videos depicting social robots ranging in human similarity – from Honda’s Asimo to Hiroshi Ishiguro’s Geminoids . In particular, we investigated how people have responded to the emergence of highly humanlike robots (e.g., Bina48) in contrast to those with more prototypically-“robotic” appearances (e.g., Asimo), coding the frequency at which the uncanny valley versus fears of replacement and/or a “technology takeover” arise in online discourse based on the robot’s appearance. Here we found that, consistent with Masahiro Mori’s theory of the uncanny valley, people’s commentary reﬂected an aversion to highly humanlike robots. Correspondingly, the frequency of uncanny valley-related commentary was signiﬁ-cantly higher in response to highly humanlike robots relative to those of more prototypical appearances. Independent of the robots’ human similarity, we further observed a moderate correlation to exist between people’s explicit fears of a “technology takeover” and their emotional responding towards robots. Finally, through the course of our investigation, we encountered a third and rather disturbing trend – namely, the unabashed sexualization of female-gendered robots. In exploring the frequency at which this sexualization manifests in the online commentary, we found it to exceed that of both the uncanny valley and fears of robot sentience/replacement combined. In sum, these ﬁndings help to shed light on the relevance of the uncanny valley “in the wild” and further, they help situate it with respect to other design challenges for HRI.