Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Characterization of the Osmoprotectant Transporter OpuC from Pseudomonas syringae and Demonstration that Cystathionine-β-Synthase Domains Are Required for Its Osmoregulatory Function

ABSTRACT The plant pathogen Pseudomonas syringae may cope with osmotic stress on plants, in part, by importing osmoprotective compounds. In this study, we found that P. syringae pv. tomato strain DC3000 was distinct from most bacterial species in deriving greater osmoprotection from exogenous choline than from glycine betaine. This superior osmoprotection was correlated with a higher capacity for uptake of choline than for uptake of glycine betaine. Of four putative osmoregulatory ABC transporters in DC3000, one, designated OpuC, functioned as the primary or sole transporter for glycine betaine and as one of multiple transporters for choline under high osmolarity. Surprisingly, the homolog of the well-characterized ProU transporter from Escherichia coli and Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium did not function in osmoprotection. The P. syringae pv. tomato OpuC transporter was more closely related to the Bacillus subtilis and Listeria monocytogenes OpuC transporters than to known osmoprotectant transporters in gram-negative bacteria based on sequence similarity and genetic arrangement. The P. syringae pv. tomato OpuC transporter had a high affinity for glycine betaine, a low affinity for choline, and a broad substrate specificity that included acetylcholine, carnitine, and proline betaine. Tandem cystathionine-β-synthase (CBS) domains in the ATP-binding component of OpuC were required for transporter function. The presence of these CBS domains was correlated with osmoregulatory function among the putative transporters examined in DC3000 and was found to be predictive of functional osmoregulatory transporters in other pseudomonads. These results provide the first functional evaluation of an osmoprotectant transporter in a Pseudomonas species and demonstrate the usefulness of the CBS domains as predictors of osmoregulatory activity.
Comparison of Internet Attitudes between Industrial Employees and College Students

Most studies of attitudes toward the Internet have been focused on a single entity. There is a gap when it comes to comparative study of Internet attitudes between college students and employees in the workforce. This study explored Internet attitudes between two different samples-employees in the work force and college students on campus. Four Internet attitude subscales-namely, enjoyment, usefulness, anxiety, and self-efficacy-from 296 college students were compared with a sample from 680 industrial employees. Age differences were found in the enjoyment and self-efficacy subscales, where younger people expressed more enjoyment than older people with the exception of female college students. Younger people expressed more self-efficacy than the older people. Factorial ANOVA analyses detected statistically significant differences between two samples among all subscales. In general, industrial employees reported more positive attitudes than college students. The employees reported more enjoyable Internet experience, felt the Internet was more useful, had less anxiety, and had more self-efficacy on the Internet than college students. Female college students showed more positive attitudes than male students, and male employees showed more positive attitudes than female employees. Interaction effects of different sample groups, gender, and age were found to have significant differences in the Internet anxiety and self-efficacy subscales. Recommendations for future research on these types of comparisons were included.
Silicone sponge rejection. Early and late complications in retinal detachment surgery.

Thirty-one cases in a series of 127 cases operated on by the Lincoff technique for retinal detachment surgery required removal of the silicone sponge implants. Sponge rejection or infection can be divided into two distinct categories: Early and late. Nine cases were classified early and required removal of the sponge within the first eight weeks following surgery. These cases were a result of contamination at the time of surgery or in the immediate postoperative period. Twenty-three cases required sponge removal between two months and four years following surgery. We believe that mechanical factors affecting the implant are primarily responsible for sponge rejection in these late cases and that infection and foreign body reaction play only a secondary role.
Personal goals, life meaning, and virtue: Wellsprings of a positive life.

As far as we know humans are the only meaning-seeking species on the planet. Meaning-making is an activity that is distinctly human, a function of how the human brain is organized. The many ways in which humans conceptualize, create, and search for meaning has become a recent focus of behavioral science research on quality of life and subjective well-being. This chapter will review the recent literature on meaning-making in the context of personal goals and life purpose. My intention will be to document how meaningful living, expressed as the pursuit of personally significant goals, contributes to positive experience and to a positive life.
Density estimation with quadratic loss: a confidence intervals method

We propose a feature selection method for density estimation with quadratic loss. This method relies on the study of unidimensional approximation models and on the definition of confidence regions for the density thanks to these models. It is quite general and includes cases of interest like detection of relevant wavelets coefficients or selection of support vectors in SVM. In the general case, we prove that every selected feature actually improves the performance of the estimator. In the case where features are defined by wavelets, we prove that this method is adaptative near minimax (up to a log term) in some Besov spaces. We end the paper by simulations indicating that it must be possible to extend the adaptation result to other features.
Differential responsiveness in brain and behavior to sexually dimorphic long calls in male and female zebra finches

In zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata), as in most other songbird species, there are robust sex differences in brain morphology and vocal behavior. First, male zebra finches have larger song system nuclei—involved in sensorimotor learning and production of song—than females. Second, male zebra finches learn their song from a tutor, whereas female zebra finches develop a learned preference for the song of their father but do not sing themselves. Third, female zebra finches produce an unlearned “long call,” while males learn their long call (which is different from that of females) from their song tutor. We investigated behavioral and molecular neuronal responsiveness to this sexually dimorphic communication signal. Behavioral responsiveness was quantified by measuring the number of calls and approaches in response to calls that were broadcast from a speaker. We quantified neuronal activation by measuring the number of neurons expressing Zenk, the protein product of the immediate early gene ZENK, in a number of different forebrain regions in response to male calls, to female calls, or to silence. In both sexes female calls evoked more calls and approaches than male calls. There was significantly greater Zenk expression in response to female calls compared to silence in the caudomedial nidopallium, caudomedial mesopallium, and the hippocampus in females, but not in males. Thus, male and female zebra finches both show a behavioral preference for female calls, but differential neuronal activation in response to sexually dimorphic calls. J. Comp. Neurol. 516:312–320, 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
One-parameter scaling in the lowest Landau band: Precise determination of the critical behavior of the localization length.

Etude des proprietes de localisation en utilisant une nouvelle version de la methode d'echelle de dimension finie, numerique, incluant une procedure statistique quantitative de l'evaluation des donnees. Divergence de la longueur de la localisation au centre de la bande avec un exposant critique ν=2,34±0,04. Region critique situee a la moitie de la largeur de bande. Comparaison avec les donnees experimentales de l'effet Hall quantique
The effect of electrolyte deficiency on the rate of conduction in a single nerve fibre

It has been shown by Hodgkin (1939) that a change of resistance on the outside of a nerve fibre is followed by a change in conduction velocity. This effect was obtained (i) by altering the volume of saline surrounding the fibre, (ii) by placing a metal shunt in parallel with it. In the present paper, similar changes of conduction velocity are described following the replacement of electrolytes by sucrose. METHOD
Functional Deficiency in IL-7 Caused by an N-Ethyl-N-nitrosourea-Induced Point Mutation

N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea (ENU)-induced mutagenesis provides a powerful approach for identifying genes involved in immune regulation and diseases. Here we describe a new mutant strain, HLB368, with hereditary leukopenia. At necropsy, the mutant mice had very small thymuses and spleens. All but the inguinal nodes were absent and there were no Peyer's patches. By flow cytometry, the ratios of T-cell subsets were normal, but B-cell development was blocked at the pre-pro-B-cell stage. The development of B1 and marginal zone B cells was relatively normal. The mutation was mapped to chromosome 3 between D3Mit221 and D3Mit224, a region that contains the Il7 gene. cDNA and genomic DNA sequences of Il7 revealed a T-to-C missense transition resulting in a change of Leu to Pro within the leader peptide that would be predicted to inhibit secretion. In keeping with this concept, we found that in vitro treatment of B-cell progenitors from mutant mice with IL-7 induced them to differentiate into pre-BII cells. Phenotypic comparisons of HLB368 with genetically targeted Il7 null mice showed many similarities along with a few differences, indicating that this ENU-induced mutant carries a novel allele. This new strain thus provides a new model for studying the functions of IL-7 on a pure C57BL/6 background.
Serum adiponectin concentrations are decreased in women with endometriosis.

BACKGROUND Adiponectin is a pleiotropic cytokine originally discovered as an adipocyte-specific gene product. Serum adiponectin concentrations have been reported to be low in women with endometrial cancer, breast cancer and uterine leiomyoma, suggesting possible involvement of adiponectin in these estrogen-related diseases. We thus addressed the relevance of adiponectin to endometriosis, an estrogen-dependent disease, in the present study. METHODS Women with (n = 48) and without (n = 30) endometriosis undergoing laparoscopy were recruited in this study. Blood samples were collected, and serum adiponectin concentrations were measured using a specific enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The relationship between laparoscopic findings and serum adiponectin concentrations was analysed. RESULTS The adiponectin concentrations in the serum of the women with endometriosis (median, 13.1 microg/ml; interquartile range, 10.2 - 16.7) were significantly lower than those of the women without endometriosis (15.9 microg/ml, 13.5 - 19.5; P = 0.008). A significant negative correlation was found between serum adiponectin concentrations and both endometriosis scores (R = - 0.307, P = 0.006) and adhesion scores (R = - 0.254, P = 0.026) of the revised American Society for Reproductive Medicine classification of endometriosis. CONCLUSIONS The present findings suggest that adiponectin is implicated in the pathophysiology of endometriosis.
Adiponectin, a Fat Cell Product, Influences the Earliest Lymphocyte Precursors in Bone Marrow Cultures by Activation of the Cyclooxygenase-Prostaglandin Pathway in Stromal Cells 1

Adiponectin, an adipocyte-derived hormone, is attracting considerable interest as a potential drug for diabetes and obesity. Originally cloned from human s.c. fat, the protein is also found in bone marrow fat cells and has an inhibitory effect on adipocyte differentiation. The aim of the present study is to explore possible influences on lymphohematopoiesis. Recombinant adiponectin strongly inhibited B lymphopoiesis in long-term bone marrow cultures, but only when stromal cells were present and only when cultures were initiated with the earliest category of lymphocyte precursors. Cyclooxygenase inhibitors abrogated the response of early lymphoid progenitors to adiponectin in stromal cell-containing cultures. Furthermore, PGE2, a major product of cyclooxygenase-2 activity, had a direct inhibitory influence on purified hematopoietic cells, suggesting a possible mechanism of adiponectin action in culture. In contrast to lymphopoiesis, myelopoiesis was slightly enhanced in adiponectin-treated bone marrow cultures, and even when cultures were initiated with single lymphomyeloid progenitors. Finally, human B lymphopoiesis was also sensitive to adiponectin in stromal cell cocultures. These results suggest that adiponectin can negatively and selectively influence lymphopoiesis through induction of PG synthesis. They also indicate ways that adipocytes in bone marrow can contribute to regulation of blood cell formation.
Natural Killer Cells Can Inhibit the Transmission of Human Cytomegalovirus in Cell Culture by Using Mechanisms from Innate and Adaptive Immune Responses

ABSTRACT Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) transmission within the host is important for the pathogenesis of HCMV diseases. Natural killer (NK) cells are well known to provide a first line of host defense against virus infections. However, the role of NK cells in the control of HCMV transmission is still unknown. Here, we provide the first experimental evidence that NK cells can efficiently control HCMV transmission in different cell types. NK cells engage different mechanisms to control the HCMV transmission both via soluble factors and by cell contact. NK cell-produced interferon gamma (IFN-γ) suppresses HCMV production and induces resistance of bystander cells to HCMV infection. The UL16 viral gene contributes to an immune evasion from the NK cell-mediated control of HCMV transmission. Furthermore, the efficacy of the antibody-dependent NK cell-mediated control of HCMV transmission is dependent on a CD16-158V/F polymorphism. Our findings indicate that NK cells may have a clinical relevance in HCMV infection and highlight the need to consider potential therapeutic strategies based on the manipulation of NK cells. IMPORTANCE Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infects 40% to 100% of the human population worldwide. After primary infection, mainly in childhood, the virus establishes a lifelong persistence with possible reactivations. Most infections remain asymptomatic; however, HCMV represents a major health problem since it is the most frequent cause of infection-induced birth defects and is responsible for high morbidity and mortality in immunocompromised patients. The immune system normally controls the infection by antibodies and immune effector cells. One type of effector cells are the natural killer (NK) cells, which provide a rapid response to virus-infected cells. NK cells participate in viral clearance by inducing the death of infected cells. NK cells also secrete antiviral cytokines as a consequence of the interaction with an infected cell. In this study, we investigated the mechanisms by which NK cells control HCMV transmission, from the perspectives of immune surveillance and immune evasion.
Paroxysmal nocturnal haemoglobinuria phenotype cells and leucocyte subset telomere length in childhood acquired aplastic anaemia

The significance of paroxysmal nocturnal haemoglobinuria (PNHpos) cells and leucocyte subset telomere lengths in paediatric aplastic anaemia (AA) is unknown. Among 22 children receiving immunosuppressive therapy (IST) for AA, 73% (16/22) were PNHpos, of whom 94% achieved at least a partial response (PR) to IST; 11/16 (69%) achieved complete response (CR). Only 2/6 (33%) PNHneg patients achieved PR. PNHpos patients were less likely to fail IST compared to PNHneg patients (odds ratio 0·033; 95% confidence interval 0·002–0·468; P = 0·012). Children with AA had short granulocyte (P = 7·8 × 10−9), natural killer cell (P = 6·0 × 10−4), naïve T lymphocyte (P = 0·002) and B lymphocyte (P = 0·005) telomeres compared to age‐matched normative data.
An experimental comparison of handover methods.

INTRODUCTION With the increase in shift pattern work for junior doctors in the NHS, accurate handover of patient clinical information is of great importance. There is no published method that forms the gold standard of handover and there are large variations in practice. This study aims to compare the reliability of three different handover methods. PATIENTS AND METHODS We observed the handover of 12 simulated patients over five consecutive handover cycles between SHOs on a one-to-one basis. Three handover styles were used and a numerical scoring system assessed clinical information lost per handover cycle. RESULTS After five handover cycles, only 2.5% of patient information was retained using the verbal-only handover method, 85.5% was retained when using the using the verbal with note taking method and 99% was retained when a printed handout containing all patient information was used. CONCLUSIONS When patient information is handed over by the verbal only method, very few facts are retained; therefore, this method should be avoided whenever possible. Verbal handover with note taking is shown to be an effective method of handover in our study, although we accept that this is an artificial scenario and may not reflect the reality of a busy hospital. Nearly all information is retained by the printed handout method but this relies on the handout being regularly updated.
Perturbation of fetal liver hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell development by trisomy 21

The 40-fold increase in childhood megakaryocyte-erythroid and B-cell leukemia in Down syndrome implicates trisomy 21 (T21) in perturbing fetal hematopoiesis. Here, we show that compared with primary disomic controls, primary T21 fetal liver (FL) hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) and megakaryocyte-erythroid progenitors are markedly increased, whereas granulocyte-macrophage progenitors are reduced. Commensurately, HSC and megakaryocyte-erythroid progenitors show higher clonogenicity, with increased megakaryocyte, megakaryocyte-erythroid, and replatable blast colonies. Biased megakaryocyte-erythroid–primed gene expression was detected as early as the HSC compartment. In lymphopoiesis, T21 FL lymphoid-primed multipotential progenitors and early lymphoid progenitor numbers are maintained, but there was a 10-fold reduction in committed PreproB-lymphoid progenitors and the functional B-cell potential of HSC and early lymphoid progenitor is severely impaired, in tandem with reduced early lymphoid gene expression. The same pattern was seen in all T21 FL samples and no samples had GATA1 mutations. Therefore, T21 itself causes multiple distinct defects in FL myelo- and lymphopoiesis.
Effects of strength training on total and regional body composition in older men.

The effects of a 16-wk strength-training program on total and regional body composition were assessed by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and hydrodensitometry in 13 untrained healthy men [60 +/- 4 (SD) yr]. Nine additional men (62 +/- 6 yr) served as inactive controls. The strength-training program resulted in substantial increases in both upper (39 +/- 8%; P < 0.001) and lower (42 +/- 14%; P < 0.001) body strength. Total fat-free mass (FFM) increased by 2 kg (62.0 +/- 7.1 to 64.0 +/- 7.2 kg; P < 0.001), and total fat mass decreased by the same amount (23.8 +/- 6.7 to 21.8 +/- 6.0 kg; P < 0.001) when measured by DEXA. When measured by hydrodensitometry, similar increases in FFM (61.3 +/- 7.8 to 63.0 +/- 7.6 kg; P < 0.01) and decreases in fat mass (23.8 +/- 7.9 to 22.1 +/- 7.7 kg; P < 0.001) were observed. When measured by DEXA, FFM was increased in the arms (6.045 +/- 0.860 to 6.418 +/- 0.803 kg; P < 0.01), legs (19.416 +/- 2.228 to 20.131 +/- 2.303 kg; P < 0.001), and trunk (29.229 +/- 4.108 to 30.134 +/- 4.184 kg; P < 0.01), whereas fat mass was reduced in the arms (2.383 +/- 0.830 to 2.128 +/- 0.714 kg; P < 0.01), legs (7.583 +/- 1.675 to 6.945 +/- 1.551 kg; P < 0.001), and trunk (12.216 +/- 4.143 to 11.281 +/- 3.653 kg; P < 0.01) as a result of training. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Seasonal changes in secretory granules and crystalloid inclusions of bat thyroid parafollicular cells.

Parafollicular cells of active Autumn bats sometimes contain many large dense secretory granules (diameter 1-2µm) enclosed within ribosome-studded membranes. At the same time, parafollicular cells containing small granules were often characterized by the presence of slender crystalloid rods, up to several microns in length. Parafollicular cells with large granules become depleted of them following exposure of nonhibernating bats to cold (4°C) for 12-48h. This treatment causes no change in the cells containing small granules, although partial degranulation in such cells was seen in early hibernating (November) bats. On the basis of these and previous studies it is suggested that the two types of granules in bat parafollicular cells have different fates during the animal9s annual cycle of physiological activity.
Fermented guava leaf extract inhibits LPS‐induced COX‐2 and iNOS expression in Mouse macrophage cells by inhibition of transcription factor NF‐κB

The goal of this study was to elucidate the antiinflammatory activities of Psidium guajava L. (guava) leaf. To improve the functionality of guava leaf, it was fermented with Phellinus linteus mycelia, Lactobacillus plantarum and Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The ethanol extract from fermented guava leaf inhibited lipopolysaccharide (LPS)‐induced nitric oxide (NO) and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) production. Western blot analysis showed that fermented guava leaf extract decreased LPS‐induced inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and the cyclooxygenase‐2 (COX‐2) protein level in RAW 264.7 cells. To investigate the mechanism involved, the study examined the effect of fermented guava leaf extract on LPS‐induced nuclear factor‐κB (NF‐κB) activation. Fermented guava leaf extract significantly inhibited LPS‐induced NF‐κB transcriptional activity. Immunochemical analysis revealed that fermented guava leaf extract suppressed LPS‐induced degradation of I‐κBα. Taken together, the data indicate that fermented guava leaf extract is involved in the inhibition of iNOS and COX‐2 via the down‐regulation of NF‐κB pathway, revealing a partial molecular basis for the antiinflammatory properties of fermented guava leaf extract. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.