Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A 5-year Surveillance Study on Antimicrobial Resistance of Acinetobacter baumannii Clinical Isolates from a Tertiary Greek Hospital

Background Acinetobacter baumannii has emerged as a major cause of nosocomial outbreaks. It is particularly associated with nosocomial pneumonia and bloodstream infections in immunocompromised and debilitated patients with serious underlying pathologies. Over the last two decades, a remarkable rise in the rates of multidrug resistance to most antimicrobial agents that are active against A. baumannii has been noted worldwide. We evaluated the rates of antimicrobial resistance and changes in resistance over a 5-year period (2010–2014) in A. baumannii strains isolated from hospitalized patients in a tertiary Greek hospital. Materials and Methods Identification of A. baumannii was performed by standard biochemical methods and the Vitek 2 automated system, which was also used for susceptibility testing against 18 antibiotics: ampicillin/sulbactam, ticarcillin, ticarcillin/clavulanic acid, piperacillin, piperacillin/tazobactam, cefotaxime, ceftazidime, cefepime, imipenem, meropenem, gentamicin, amikacin, tobramycin, ciprofloxacin, tetracycline, tigecycline, trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole, and colistin. Interpretation of susceptibility results was based on the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute criteria, except for tigecycline, for which the Food and Drug Administration breakpoints were applied. Multidrug resistance was defined as resistance to ≥3 classes of antimicrobial agents. Results Overall 914 clinical isolates of A. baumannii were recovered from the intensive care unit (ICU) (n = 493), and medical (n = 252) and surgical (n = 169) wards. Only 4.9% of these isolates were fully susceptible to the antimicrobials tested, while 92.89% of them were multidrug resistant (MDR), i.e., resistant to ≥3 classes of antibiotics. ICU isolates were the most resistant followed by isolates from surgical and medical wards. The most effective antimicrobial agents were, in descending order: colistin, amikacin, trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole, tigecycline, and tobramycin. Nevertheless, with the exception of colistin, no antibiotic was associated with a susceptibility rate >40% for the entire study period. The most common phenotype showed resistance against ampicillin/sulbactam, cephalosporins, carbapenems, aminoglycosides, ciprofloxacin, and tigecycline. An extremely concerning increase in colistin-resistant isolates (7.9%) was noted in 2014, the most recent study year. Conclusion The vast majority of A. baumannii clinical isolates in our hospital are MDR. The remaining therapeutic options for critically ill patients who suffer from MDR A. baumannii infections are severely limited, with A. baumannii beginning to develop resistance even against colistin. Scrupulous application of infection control practices should be implemented in every hospital unit. Lastly, given the lack of available therapeutic options for MDR A. baumannii infections, well-controlled clinical trials of combinations of existing antibiotics are clearly needed.
Methotrexate inhibits rheumatoid synovitis by inducing apoptosis.

OBJECTIVE To clarify the pharmacological action of methotrexate (MTX) on the synovium of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) using severe combined immunodeficient (SCID) mice in which human RA synovial tissue had been grafted (SCID-HuRAg). METHODS One month after engraftment of human RA tissue into SCID mice, MTX (0.3 mg/kg) was administered orally, then the appearance of apoptosis in the grafted tissue was examined by TdT mediated dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) staining and electron microscopy at various time points after MTX administration. In cultured synovial cells, synovial apoptotic changes after MTX treatment were studied by agarose gel electrophoresis and flow cytometric analysis. To compare the histological changes induced by MTX with those induced by other disease modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARD) and a nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug, histological examination of the grafted synovial tissues from SCID-HuRAg mice was conducted after 4 weeks of oral administration of MTX (0.3 mg/kg/week), salazosulfapyridine (30 mg/kg/day), auranofin (0.2 mg/kg/day), bucillamine (10 mg/kg/day), or indomethacin (2 mg/kg/day). RESULTS A significant decrease in the number of inflammatory cells was observed in the grafted synovial tissue of MTX treated SCID-HuRAg. A similar antiinflammatory effect was not observed with the other DMARD. Induction of apoptosis was noted with MTX treatment but not with the others. The pro-apoptotic effect of MTX was also observed in synovial cell cultures. CONCLUSION MTX induces apoptosis in RA synovium that, in turn, may contribute to its antiinflammatory effect on RA synovitis.
Cross‐cultural development of an abridged job insecurity measure

Using four samples from the United States and China, we developed two theoretically based abridged job insecurity (JI) scales to address researcher concerns with the length of the original 57-item scale. These two scales contained all the components of the scale originally developed and validated by Ashford et al., 1989. Our abridged scale has 37 items (18 items for job features, 16 items for total job, and 3 items for powerlessness). We further developed a bare-bones scale with only 25 items (10 items for job features, 12 items for total job, and 3 items for powerlessness). Results show that the content and construct validities of both the abridged and the bare-bones scales are highly similar to the original JI scale. Our results provide support for the use of either the abridged or the bare-bones JI scales. Copyright (c) 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Structure and function of eukaryotic fatty acid synthases

Abstract In all organisms, fatty acid synthesis is achieved in variations of a common cyclic reaction pathway by stepwise, iterative elongation of precursors with two-carbon extender units. In bacteria, all individual reaction steps are carried out by monofunctional dissociated enzymes, whereas in eukaryotes the fatty acid synthases (FASs) have evolved into large multifunctional enzymes that integrate the whole process of fatty acid synthesis. During the last few years, important advances in understanding the structural and functional organization of eukaryotic FASs have been made through a combination of biochemical, electron microscopic and X-ray crystallographic approaches. They have revealed the strikingly different architectures of the two distinct types of eukaryotic FASs, the fungal and the animal enzyme system. Fungal FAS is a 2·6 MDa α6β6 heterododecamer with a barrel shape enclosing two large chambers, each containing three sets of active sites separated by a central wheel-like structure. It represents a highly specialized micro-compartment strictly optimized for the production of saturated fatty acids. In contrast, the animal FAS is a 540 kDa X-shaped homodimer with two lateral reaction clefts characterized by a modular domain architecture and large extent of conformational flexibility that appears to contribute to catalytic efficiency.
A gene therapy approach for long-term normalization of blood pressure in hypertensive mice by ANP-secreting human skin grafts

The use of bioengineered human skin as a bioreactor to deliver therapeutic factors has a number of advantages including accessibility that allows manipulation and monitoring of genetically modified cells. We demonstrate a skin gene therapy approach that can regulate blood pressure and treat systemic hypertension by expressing atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP), a hormone able to decrease blood pressure, in bioengineered human skin equivalents (HSE). Additionally, the expression of a selectable marker gene, multidrug resistance (MDR) type 1, is linked to ANP expression on a bicistronic vector and was coexpressed in the human keratinocytes and fibroblasts of the HSE that were grafted onto immunocompromised mice. Topical treatments of grafted HSE with the antimitotic agent colchicine select for keratinocyte progenitors that express both MDR and ANP. Significant plasma levels of human ANP were detected in mice grafted with HSE expressing ANP from either keratinocytes or fibroblasts, and topical selection of grafted HSE resulted in persistent high levels of ANP expression in vivo. Mice with elevated plasma levels of human ANP showed lower renin levels and, correspondingly, had lower systemic blood pressure than controls. Furthermore, mice with HSE grafts expressing human ANP did not develop elevated blood pressure when fed a high-salt diet. These findings illustrate the potential of this human skin gene therapy approach to deliver therapeutic molecules systemically for long-term treatment of diverse diseases.
Improving DOA Estimation Algorithms Using High-Resolution Quadratic Time-Frequency Distributions

This paper addresses the problem of direction of arrival (DOA) estimation and blind source separation (BSS) for nonstationary signals in the underdetermined case. These two problems are strongly related to the mixing matrix estimation problem. To deal with the nonstationary characteristics of signals, this study uses high-resolution quadratic time-frequency distributions (TFDs) to reduce cross-terms while keeping a good resolution for the construction of spatial TFDs. The main contributions of this paper are two-fold. First, the formulation of a statistical test for the noise thresholding step improves robustness and avoids the use of empirical parameters; this test performs multisource selection of the time-frequency points where the signal of interest is present. Second, an algorithm based on image processing methods performs an auto-source selection for mixing matrix estimation. The results on simulated signals demonstrate an improvement of 10 dB in terms of normalized mean square error for BSS and 7% in terms of relative error for DOA estimation over standard methods.
An automated decision‐tree approach to predicting protein interaction hot spots

Protein–protein interactions can be altered by mutating one or more “hot spots,” the subset of residues that account for most of the interface's binding free energy. The identification of hot spots requires a significant experimental effort, highlighting the practical value of hot spot predictions. We present two knowledge‐based models that improve the ability to predict hot spots: K‐FADE uses shape specificity features calculated by the Fast Atomic Density Evaluation (FADE) program, and K‐CON uses biochemical contact features. The combined K‐FADE/CON (KFC) model displays better overall predictive accuracy than computational alanine scanning (Robetta–Ala). In addition, because these methods predict different subsets of known hot spots, a large and significant increase in accuracy is achieved by combining KFC and Robetta–Ala. The KFC analysis is applied to the calmodulin (CaM)/smooth muscle myosin light chain kinase (smMLCK) interface, and to the bone morphogenetic protein‐2 (BMP‐2)/BMP receptor‐type I (BMPR‐IA) interface. The results indicate a strong correlation between KFC hot spot predictions and mutations that significantly reduce the binding affinity of the interface. Proteins 2007. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Asymptomatic females: detection of antibody activity to gonococcal pili antigen by radioimmunoassay

A gonococcal pili antigen preparation was used to detect antibody activity sera obtained from 322 culture-positive asymptomatic females and 150 negative controls. Pili were obtained from a culture of type 2 Neisseria gonorrhoeae (strain 2686) and labeled with 125I for use in a double-antibody radioimmunoassay test system. Of the 322 sera obtained from culture-positive, asymptomatic females, 276 (85.7%) showed antibody activity greater than or equal to 1.8 mug/ml. Negative controls were obtained from three different groups of individuals, and 130 (86.7%) had undetectable antibody activity. Sera from asymptomatic, culture-positive females were absorbed with three different strains of N. gonorrhoeae, one of these strains being the organism used for pili antigen preparations. The absorbed sera were tested for antibody activity, and in each case the activity in the absorbed sera dropped to an undetectable level. When the same sera were absorbed with N. meningitidis, N. catarrhalis, N. perflava, Escherichia coli, Herellea vaginicola, Mima polymorpha, Staphylococcus aureus, and Candida albicans, little, if any, decline in the level of anti-pili antibody activity was observed.
Physical Activity and Psychiatric Symptoms in Adults With Schizophrenia Spectrum Disorders

Abstract People diagnosed with schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SSDs) experience significant health disparity due to cardiovascular disease. One key to cardiovascular health is physical activity (PA). In addition, sedentary behavior is recognized as a health threat, independent of PA levels. The current study sought to identify the relationship of psychiatric symptoms of SSD to measured PA and sedentary behavior. Findings indicated that less than half of the sample obtained the recommended minutes of moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA) per week. Subjects who were younger and had greater cognitive disorganization engaged in more minutes of MVPA. In contrast, sedentary behavior was only associated with aspects of metacognitive functioning, such that subjects who had greater ability for forming integrated representations of themselves and the related capacity to use knowledge of themselves spent less time in sedentary behaviors. This study expands upon the limited literature available on individuals with SSD and PA levels.
Stationary Wave or Segmental Vasoconstriction

Segmental, regularly arranged zones, poorly filled, may sometimes be evident within an artery at angiography. This phenomenon has been observed in the femoral artery (WICKBOM & BARTLEY 1957, THEANDER 1960, SUTTON 1962, STEINBERG 1966), the iliac arteries (SUTTON et coll, 1963, SUTTON 1964), the carotid artery (SUTTON et coll, 1963, SCHECHTER 1963) the renal arteries (WYLIE et coll, 1962, SUTTON et coll. 1963) and the superior mesenteric artery (WYLIE et coll. 1962, MAYALL 1964, SUTTON 1964). These transverse striations have been likened to a pearl necklace (THEANDER 1960) or a bamboo rod (WICKBOM & BARTLEY 1957). The latter considered that they were caused by vasospasm, and stated that they disappeared on administration of a vasodilative agent (Priscol). SUTTON (1962) also believed the changes to be due to spasm. THEANDER (1960) observed such changes proximal to a vascular lesion at femoral angiography. He regarded them as physical phenomena and termed them 'stationary arterial waves'. These 'standing waves' were of low amplitude and short wavelength in narrow arteries; in larger arteries the amplitude seemed to be broader and the wavelength longer.
Cognitive styles within an exploratory search system for digital libraries

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effects of cognitive style on navigating a large digital library of cultural heritage information; specifically, the paper focus on the wholist/analytic dimension as experienced in the field of educational informatics. The hypothesis is that wholist and analytic users have characteristically different approaches when they explore, search and interact with digital libraries, which may have implications for system design. Design/methodology/approach – A detailed interactive IR evaluation of a large cultural heritage digital library was undertaken, along with the Riding CSA test. Participants carried out a range of information tasks, and the authors analysed their task performance, interactions and attitudes. Findings – The hypothesis on the differences in performance and behaviour between wholist and analytic users is supported. However, the authors also find that user attitudes towards the system are opposite to expectations and that users give posi.
Discrimination of the effects on zebrafish reproduction from pollutants in drinking water via female, via male and/or via fecundation water

Summary The lack of preventive policy legislation and the low removal rate of organic pollutants in conventional potabilization treatments lead to some of them being present in drinking water. The problem arises because some of these substances have detrimental effects on human reproduction health, via females, via males or even both. In this work, we established the zebrafish as a bioindicator of these types of substances with the goal of discriminating the effects through three different pathways: male, female or water where the fertilization took place. For this purpose, four parameters were analysed: fertility rate, hatching rate and survival and abnormalities rates. So, for each parameter two groups were formed, according to whether adult males or females were reared in bottled spring water (Z) or tap water (B) and if the in vitro fertilization took place in water Z or B. Results revealed a decline in the fertility and hatching rate in water B, due to a water effect. The most plausible explanation could be the presence of substances which affect the micropyle and chorion. Moreover, a decrease in the fertility rate due to an effect over the female was also observed, but in this case by an alteration of the oocyte quality.
Do relational risks and protective factors moderate the linkages between childhood aggression and early psychological and school adjustment?

This investigation addressed the question of how relational stressors and supports interface with a known behavioral risk (aggression) to influence early emerging adjustment trajectories. Children's risk for aggression, as well as multiple relational risk and protective factors (i.e., stressful and supportive features of peer and teacher relationships), were assessed in a sample of 396 children and used to predict changes in psychological functioning and school adjustment from the fall of their kindergarten year to the spring of their first-grade year. Results were largely consistent with additive risk-maladjustment models; with few exceptions, relational experiences predicted adjustment beyond children's aggressive risk status. For some adjustment criteria, however, there was evidence to suggest that relational stressors or supports exacerbated or compensated for dysfunctions that were linked with aggressive behavior. Moreover, compared with early onset, the chronicity of children's aggressive risk status and relational stressors and supports bore a stronger association with changes in maladjustment. Analyses conducted by ethnic groups suggested that African American children, who were typically a minority among their European American classmates, were more likely to experience particular stressors (e.g., chronic peer rejection), and were less likely to be afforded some form of support (e.g., stable teacher-child closeness). However, the nature of the predictive linkages found between the relational risk and protective factors and later maladjustment did not differ substantially by SES or ethnicity. The importance of investigating behavioral risks in conjunction with the relational features of children's interpersonal environments is discussed.
Beyond Barrows. Current research on the structuration and perception of the Prehistoric Landscape through Monuments

Beyond Barrows - an introduction By David Fontijn *Inventions of Memory and Meaning - Examples of Late Iron Age Reuse of Bronze Age Monuments in South-Western Sweden- By Tore Artelius Part I (Beyond monumentality) Memorious Monuments. Place persistency, mortuary practice and memory in the Lower Rhine Area wetlands (5500-2500 cal BC) By Luc W.S. W. Amkreutz The centrality of urnfields. Second thoughts on structure and stability of Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age cultural landscapes in the Low Countries. By Roy van Beek and Arjan Louwen Part II Orderings of funerary landscapes Doserygg and Skegrie. Megalithic centres in south-west Scania, southern Sweden By Magnus Andersson and Bjorn Wallebom Post alignments in the barrow cemeteries of Oss-Vorstengraf and Oss-Zevenbergen By Harry Fokkens Part III Zooming out: barrows in a landscape Bronze Age barrow research in Sandy Flanders (NW Belgium): an overview By Jeroen De Reu and Jean Bourgeois history of open space. Barrow landscapes and the significance of heaths - the case of the Echoput barrows By Marieke Doorenbosch Ways of Wandering - In the Late Bronze Age Barrow Landscape of the Himmerland-area, Denmark By Mette Lovschal Part IV monument-building - an evolutionary approach The Bet-Hedging Model as an Explanatory Framework for the Evolution of Mound Building in the Southeastern United States By Evan Peacock and Janet Rafferty
Effect of Increasing Low‐Intensity Pulsed Ultrasound and a Functional Appliance on the Mandibular Condyle in Growing Rats

Functional appliances are used for treatment of lower‐jaw deficiencies in growing individuals; however, their effectiveness is debatable. Low‐intensity pulsed ultrasound (US) is a noninvasive method, which has been shown to stimulate cartilage and bone formation with 20 minutes of application. This study was designed to test the hypothesis that increasing low‐intensity pulsed US application from 20 to 40 min/d will enhance mandibular condylar growth in growing rats, especially when combined with a functional appliance.
T-antigen expression in proliferating and non-proliferating simian virus 40-transformed mouse cells

Previous studies with simian virus 40-transformed mouse 3T3 cells which are temperature sensitive for the expression of the transformed phenotype (ts SV3T3 cells) have shown that T-antigen expression and viral DNA transcription are under cell cycle control. Using these ts SV3T3 cells, we studied the expression of the viral genome under proliferating and non-proliferating conditions, in the presence and absence of inhibitors of macromolecular synthesis and of the tumor promoter phorbol myristate acetate. ts SV3TE cells which are growth arrested at 39 degrees C by low serum concentration or saturation density accumulated in G1 and did not express T-antigen. When these cells were induced to proliferate, at either 32 or 39 degrees C, T-antigen synthesis preceded the entry of the cells into the S-phase and was not coupled to DNA replication. G1-arrested ts SV3T3 cells were induced to synthesize T-antigen by phorbol myristate acetate treatment, but T-antigen alone was not sufficient to induce cellular DNA synthesis. Isoleucine deprivation arrested growth of ts SV3T3 cells, but these cells, as well as normal 3T3, did not accumulate in G1 and continued to express T-antigen. The temperature-sensitive expression of the transformed phenotype in the ts SV3T3 cells does not appear to be due to a lack of transcription of specific regions of the integrated simian virus 40 genome at 39 degrees C.