Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effect of vasopressin on the input–output properties of rat facial motoneurons

Vasopressin can directly excite facial motoneurons in young rats and mice. It acts by generating a persistent inward current, which is Na+‐dependent, tetrodotoxin‐insensitive and voltage‐gated. This peptide‐evoked current is unaffected by Ca++ or K+ channel blockade and is modulated by extracellular divalent cations. In the present work, we determined how vasopressin alters the input–output properties of facial motoneurons. Whole‐cell recordings were obtained from these neurons in the current clamp mode, in brainstem slices of young rats. Repetitive firing was evoked by injecting depolarizing current pulses. Steady‐state frequency–current (f–I) relationships were constructed and the effect of vasopressin on these relationships was studied. We found that vasopressin caused a parallel shift to the left of the cell steady‐state f–I relationship. This effect persisted in the presence of blockers of K+ or Ca++ channels. The peptide effect was distinct from that brought about by Ca++ channel suppression or by apamin, a blocker of the mAHP. These latter manipulations resulted in an increase in the slope of the steady‐state f–I relationship. We conclude that the vasopressin‐induced modification of the input–output properties of facial motoneurons is probably exclusively caused by the sodium‐dependent, voltage‐modulated inward current elicited by the peptide, rather than being due to indirect effects of the peptide on Ca++ channels, K+ channels or Ca++‐dependent K+ channels. Computer simulation, based on a simple model of facial motoneurons, indicates that the introduction of a conductance having the properties of the vasopressin‐dependent conductance can entirely account for the observed peptide‐induced shift of the f–I relationship.
Congenital Ocular Abnormalities in Free-Ranging White-Tailed Deer

Congenital ocular abnormalities in cervids have been previously reported as individual cases from various regions of the United States and include microphthalmia, anophthalmia, congenital cataracts, dermoids, and colobomata. A common underlying cause for these abnormalities, such as nutritional deficiencies, environmental toxin exposures, or genetic mutations, has not been established. This retrospective study summarized and compared cases of suspected congenital ocular abnormalities in free-ranging white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) submitted to the Southeastern Cooperative Wildlife Disease Study (SCWDS) in Athens, Georgia, to the preexisting literature. Of 3645 accessions of white-tailed deer submitted to SCWDS, 15 qualifying case records were found. An additional 15 cases were reported previously in the literature. Conditions described in SCWDS cases included microphthalmia (8/15), congenital cataracts (3/15), anophthalmia (2/15), colobomata (1/15), anterior segment dysgenesis (1/15), ectopic lacrimal gland tissue (1/15), and congenital blindness with corneal opacity (1/15). Most (11/15; 73%) of the SCWDS cases were male fawns with an average age of 4 months at presentation, consistent with previously described cases. Most animals had bilateral abnormalities with few extraocular congenital abnormalities, also consistent with existing reports. Cases were variably tested for various infectious agents at the time of submission; 2 cases were seropositive for bluetongue virus. Spatiotemporal clustering of cases was not evident. This study provided a concise and systematic summary of known existing cases of congenital ocular defects in fawns but did not identify a cause.
Anti-astrocyte Autoantibodies in Guillain–Barré Syndrome—Possible Involvement in the Pathophysiology of a Psychosyndrome?*

Guillain–Barré syndrome (GBS) is an autoimmune disorder of the peripheral nervous system. However, GBS patients frequently display a psychosyndrome, indicating an accompanying involvement of the central nervous system (CNS), although the cause is not understood. Hepatic encephalopathy is possibly the best characterized example of a psychosyndrome, and astrocyte dysfunction appears to play a major role. We hypothesized that if compromised astrocyte function is of general importance in the pathomechanism of a psychosyndrome, then astrocytes should be involved in the CNS dysfunctions of GBS patients as well. Using immunocytochemistry, we found anti-astrocyte autoantibodies in about 60% of GBS patients and few or none in control groups. This finding was confirmed by Western blots. Our data are consistent with the suspected importance of an impaired astrocyte function in the pathomechanism of a psychosyndrome.
[Study of body mass index and waist circumference in association with blood pressure in adult Guangzhou residents].

OBJECTIVE To assess the significance of body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC) measurement in hypertension prediction and diagnosis and formulate the recommended values for these two indexes, aiming to provide scientific basis for determining the indicators and their cut-off points for obesity diagnosis in Chinese subjects. METHODS A total of 1 265 residents over 20 years old were randomly selected from Yuexiu District of Guangzhou City in our multiphase study. Questionnaire-based survey was conducted in conjunction of the measurement of the height, body weight, WC and blood pressure, the results subjected to multivariate linear regression and logistic regression. RESULTS The distribution of BMI varied significantly with gender and age with the subjects. The mean systolic and diastolic blood pressures both gradually increased with BMI, showing obvious linear relationship between BMI and blood pressure. After such factors as age, gender and education background etc were controlled, logistic regression analysis revealed that the risk for hypertension increased with BMI elevation. WC was related to the blood pressure in similar manner as BMI. CONCLUSIONS We suggest that BMI be used as the indexes for overweight and obesity, the diagnoses of which are established in cases with BMI >or=23 and BMI >or=29 respectively. As the diagnostic index for abdominal obesity, the cut-off point of WC >or=80 cm should be instituted.
A prospective evaluation of an angiotensin-converting-enzyme gene polymorphism and the risk of ischemic heart disease.

BACKGROUND In a previous study, men with a history of myocardial infarction were found to have an increased prevalence of homozygosity for the deletional allele (D) of the angiotensin-converting-enzyme (ACE) gene. The D allele is associated with higher levels of ACE, which may predispose a person to ischemic heart disease. We investigated the association between the ACE genotype and the incidence of myocardial infarction, as well as other manifestations of ischemic heart disease, in a large, prospective cohort of U.S. male physicians. METHODS In the Physicians' Health Study, ischemic heart disease as defined by angina, coronary revascularization, or myocardial infarction developed in 1250 men by 1992. They were matched with 2340 controls according to age and smoking history. Zygosity for the deletion-insertion (D-I) polymorphism of the ACE gene was determined by an assay based on the polymerase chain reaction. Data were analyzed for both matched pairs and unmatched samples, with adjustment for the effects of known or suspected risk factors by conditional and nonconditional logistic regression, respectively. RESULTS The ACE genotype was not associated with the occurrence of either ischemic heart disease or myocardial infarction. The adjusted relative risk associated with the D allele was 1.07 (95 percent confidence interval, 0.96 to 1.19; P = 0.24) for ischemic heart disease and 1.05 (95 percent confidence interval, 0.89 to 1.25; P = 0.56) for myocardial infarction, if an additive mode of inheritance is assumed. Additional analyses assuming dominant and recessive effects of the D allele also failed to show any association, as did the examination of low-risk subgroups. CONCLUSIONS In a large, prospectively followed population of U.S. male physicians, the presence of the D allele of the ACE gene conferred no appreciable increase in the risk of ischemic heart disease or myocardial infarction.
Microfabricated V-groove power inductors using multilayer Co-Zr-O thin films for very-high-frequency DC-DC converters

Microfabricated V-groove inductors targeted to operate above 10 MHz are fabricated and tested. Multilayer nano-granular Co-Zr-O/ZrO2 magnetic thin films are used as the core material of the inductors to improve the magnetic performance of the films deposited on the sidewalls of V-grooves and to control eddy-current loss in the core. Prototype V-groove inductors are fabricated based on optimization results for 7-V to 3.3-V, 1-A dc-dc buck converters. The inductors exhibit inductance of 3.4 nH from 10 MHz to 100 MHz, dc resistance of 3.83 mΩ, and quality factor up to 66. The prototype inductors are a promising candidate for high-power-density high-efficiency dc-dc converters. The measured inductor performance indicates that they could be used to make a 7-V to 3.3-V, 1-A converter that would exhibit power density of 2.5 W/mm2 and efficiency of 86% at 100 MHz; or power density of 0.36 W/mm2 and efficiency of 91% at 11 MHz.
Growth kinetics of CD133‐positive prostate cancer cells

In the adult human prostate CD133 expression is thought to mark rare prostate epithelial stem cells and malignant tumor stem/initiating cells. Such putative stem cell populations are thought to proliferate slowly, but possess unlimited proliferative potential. Based on this, we hypothesized that CD133pos prostate cancer cells proliferate slower than CD133neg cells.
The ‘pair of sugar tongs’ site on the non‐catalytic domain C of barley α‐amylase participates in substrate binding and activity

Some starch‐degrading enzymes accommodate carbohydrates at sites situated at a certain distance from the active site. In the crystal structure of barley α‐amylase 1, oligosaccharide is thus bound to the ‘sugar tongs’ site. This site on the non‐catalytic domain C in the C‐terminal part of the molecule contains a key residue, Tyr380, which has numerous contacts with the oligosaccharide. The mutant enzymes Y380A and Y380M failed to bind to β‐cyclodextrin‐Sepharose, a starch‐mimic resin used for α‐amylase affinity purification. The Kd for β‐cyclodextrin binding to Y380A and Y380M was 1.4 mm compared to 0.20–0.25 mm for the wild‐type, S378P and S378T enzymes. The substitution in the S378P enzyme mimics Pro376 in the barley α‐amylase 2 isozyme, which in spite of its conserved Tyr378 did not bind oligosaccharide at the ‘sugar tongs’ in the structure. Crystal structures of both wild‐type and S378P enzymes, but not the Y380A enzyme, showed binding of the pseudotetrasaccharide acarbose at the ‘sugar tongs’ site. The ‘sugar tongs’ site also contributed importantly to the adsorption to starch granules, as Kd = 0.47 mg·mL−1 for the wild‐type enzyme increased to 5.9 mg·mL−1 for Y380A, which moreover catalyzed the release of soluble oligosaccharides from starch granules with only 10% of the wild‐type activity. β‐cyclodextrin both inhibited binding to and suppressed activity on starch granules for wild‐type and S378P enzymes, but did not affect these properties of Y380A, reflecting the functional role of Tyr380. In addition, the Y380A enzyme hydrolyzed amylose with reduced multiple attack, emphasizing that the ‘sugar tongs’ participates in multivalent binding of polysaccharide substrates.
Can’t Read my Broker Face: Learning About Trustworthiness With Age

Objectives We assessed how age impacted learning who to trust, and the extent to which this type of learning relied on explicit memory. In contrast to prior studies, target faces were neutral without prior reputational information. Method Younger (YA) and older adults (OA) made investment decisions for 36 brokers, who yielded a good, neutral, or bad outcome. Brokers were encountered three times to measure adaptive learning. After the investment task, participants completed a surprise explicit source memory test for brokers. Results Although YA and OA learned to distinguish good and bad brokers from neutral ones, OA did not learn the brokers' behavior as well as younger adults. In addition, explicit source memory was highly correlated with investment decisions, although less so for good brokers for older than younger adults. Discussion Findings extend prior work by establishing that OA impairments in learning who to trust extend to neutral faces, and highlighting the role of explicit memory in investment performance. Future work should vary the task demands to explore the contribution of explicit and implicit processes.
Reduced Sensitivity of Older Adults to Affective Mismatches

The present study investigated age-related differences in emotional processing by using a paradigm of affective priming. Eighteen, right-handed, younger (mean age 22) and 15 older (mean age 68) subjects pressed buttons to indicate pleasantness of target words. The valence of each prime-target pair was congruent (e.g., win-love), incongruent (e.g., love-loss), or neutral (time-flower). Two sets of 720 prime-target pairs used either affective words or pictures as primes, and affect words as targets. We included well-matched positive and negative valence pairs in all congruent, neutral, and incongruent conditions, and controlled for possible contamination by semantic meaning, word frequency, and repetition effects. The response time (RT) results revealed that young participants responded faster to the targets in affectively congruent conditions than in incongruent conditions. In older participants, the responses to target words were indifferent to all valence congruency conditions. The age effect in affective priming largely reflects reduced sensitivity to affective mismatches among older adults. Intriguingly, emotional Stroop effect and some perceptual priming have been linked to increased interferences and mismatches in older adults. The age-related changes in affective, perceptual, and semantic processes are discussed.
Flow-induced clustering and alignment of vesicles and red blood cells in microcapillaries

The recent development of microfluidic devices allows the investigation and manipulation of individual liquid microdroplets, capsules, and cells. The collective behavior of several red blood cells (RBCs) or microcapsules in narrow capillaries determines their flow-induced morphology, arrangement, and effective viscosity. Of fundamental interest here is the relation between the flow behavior and the elasticity and deformability of these objects, their long-range hydrodynamic interactions in microchannels, and thermal membrane undulations. We study these mechanisms in an in silico model, which combines a particle-based mesoscale simulation technique for the fluid hydrodynamics with a triangulated-membrane model. The 2 essential control parameters are the volume fraction of RBCs (the tube hematocrit, HT), and the flow velocity. Our simulations show that already at very low HT, the deformability of RBCs implies a flow-induced cluster formation above a threshold flow velocity. At higher HT values, we predict 3 distinct phases: one consisting of disordered biconcave-disk-shaped RBCs, another with parachute-shaped RBCs aligned in a single file, and a third with slipper-shaped RBCs arranged as 2 parallel interdigitated rows. The deformation-mediated clustering and the arrangements of RBCs and microcapsules are relevant for many potential applications in physics, biology, and medicine, such as blood diagnosis and cell sorting in microfluidic devices.
Audiological and Radiological Characteristics in Incomplete Partition Malformations.

OBJECTIVE To compare the audiological and radiological findings of patients with incomplete partition malformations (IPs) and analyze the relationship between the audiological and radiological findings. MATERIALS AND METHODS The study included 84 patients (168 ears) with IPs as follows: 26 patients with Type I;IP-I (41 ears), 54 patients with Type II;IP-II (108 ears), and 4 patients with Type III;IP-III (8 ears). Remaining 11 ears were diagnosed with other inner ear malformations. Air and bone conduction thresholds were determined with pure tone audiometry, and the air bone gap was recorded in all patients with IPs. Magnetic resonance imaging studies and computerized tomography scans of the temporal bones were analyzed using the PACS system of our university. RESULTS It was found that all the ears with IP-I were diagnosed with severe to profound hearing loss. The degree of the hearing loss varied from mild to severe/profound in patients with IP-II. Severe to profound mixed hearing loss (MHL) was determined in all ears with IP-III. The air bone gap was larger in the lower frequencies in the IP-II cases diagnosed with MHL. There was not a significant difference between the air bone gap and the size of the vestibular aqueduct in ears with IP-II (p>0.05). CONCLUSION Each type of IP has different audiological findings. Depending on the type and degree of the hearing loss, it is possible to choose the appropriate audiological intervention. Patients with IP should be evaluated according to the type of malformation.
Time course of repeated intratympanic gentamicin for ménière's disease

With low‐dose and titration protocols, subsequent intratympanic (IT) gentamicin injections are frequently necessary for vertigo control in Ménière's disease. To date, studies have not provided detailed descriptions of the time course of recurrent vertigo and repeated injections. Our objective is to provide such a description with a Kaplan‐Meier survival analysis, which may enable accurate predictions of the probability of recurrent vertigo after a given time or number of injections.
Application of a novel bioreactor for in vivo engineering of pancreas tissue

Type 1 diabetes is characterized by autoimmune destruction of pancreatic cells. Organ transplantation is an acceptable treatment for native organ failure. However, it is associated with several problems due to a number of reasons, such as the lack of appropriate donors and immunosuppression. In our present study, a novel model is presented for in vivo recellularization of acellular pancreas by implanting between the host pancreas and the adjacent omental flap. In this study, the pancreases were harvested and cannulated via the common bile duct and then, the scaffolds were acellularized by a detergent‐based protocol. After that, the abdomens of 35 rats were opened and the spleen was extracted with the adjacent omentum, and placed outside the abdomen. The acellularized scaffold was stretched over the host pancreas and the omentum was wrapped around it to make a sandwich‐like structure, which was then fixed with Chromic Sutures 6–0 and marked with Prolene 4–0 on four sides. All samples were biopsied at 14, 30, 60, 90, and 120 days post‐transplantation. The result showed marked recellularization of acellularized pancreas with visible neovascularization and neoβ‐cells with minimal inflammatory response. This study provides a new approach to produces a normal‐like pancreas by allograft transplantation for pancreas tissue engineering. We observed that in vivo transplantation of acellularized pancreas can promote recellularization, proliferation, and differentiation by blood circulation. These findings support that in vivo studies can contribute to finding faster solutions for the treatment of diabetes.
Approaches to improve engineered vaccines for human immunodeficiency virus and other viruses that cause chronic infections

Summary: We used several approaches to develop enhanced vaccines for chronic viral infections such as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV), I) Selected epitopes were used to avoid potentially harmful immune responses. 2) Linkage between helper and cytotoxic T‐lymphocyte (CTL) epitopes was found to be important, 3) We developed an “epitope enhancement” approach modifying the sequences of epitopes to make more potent vaccines, including examples for HIV and HCV epitopes presented by murine class II and human class I major histocompatibility complex (MHC) molecules, 4) CTL avidity was found to be important for clearing viral infections in vivo, and the mechanism was examined. High‐avidity CTLs, however, were found to undergo apoptosis when confronted with high‐density antigen, through a mechanism involving tumor necrosis factor (TNF), TNF‐RII, and a permissive state induced through the T‐cell receptor. 5) We employed cytokines in the adjuvant to steer immune responses toward desired phenotypes, and showed synergy between cytokines, 6) Intrarectal immunization with pep‐tide vaccine induced mucosal and systemic CTL, Local mucosal CTL were found to be critical for resistance to mucosal viral transmission and this resistance was enhanced with mucosally delivered interleukin‐12, 7) We used an asymmetry in induction of mucosal and systemic immune responses to circumvent pre‐existing vaccinia immunity for use of recombinant vaccinia vaccines.
Transmural distribution of 2‐deoxyglucose uptake in normal and post‐ischemic canine myocardium

This investigation was performed to determine (i) whether 31P spatially localized 31P NMR spectroscopy could be utilized to determine the transmural distribution of 2‐deoxyglucose (2DG) uptake in the in vivo canine heart and (ii) whether transmural 2DG uptake would be affected by a preceding ischemic insult. 2DG was infused and the accumulation of 2‐deoxyglucose‐6‐phosphate (2DGP) was monitored (by means of spatially localized 31P NMR) in control hearts, in pharmacologically hyperperfused hearts, and in hearts subjected to four (5 min) occlusions of the left anterior descending coronary artery. Myocardial blood flow was measured with radioactive microspheres. In control hearts, subendocardial (ENDO) 2DGP contents were significantly higher than those in the subepicardium (EPI) being 3.8±0.3 and 2.2±0.2 m̈mol/g, respectively; the ENDO/EPI ratio of 2DGP was 1.70±0.21. During hyperperfusion blood flow increased approximately four‐fold but 2DGP accumulation was not altered. ATP levels in post‐ischemic myocardium were significantly decreased (ENDO more than EPI) and 2DGP accumulation in each layer was increased (p<0.01 vs control); however, the ENDO/EPI ratio of 2DGP was not altered. 2DG infusion induced a marked elevation of blood insulin and norepinephrine levels. These data demonstrate that in the presence of high blood levels of 2DG and insulin: (i) 2DGP accumulation can be measured in the in vivo canine heart; (ii) in normal hearts 2DG uptake is more pronounced in the inner layers of the left ventricular wall (this transmural 2DG uptake gradient is not due to subendocardial hypoperfusion); and (iii) 2DG uptake is greater in the post‐ischemic heart but the ENDO/EPI gradient of 2DG uptake is not altered indicating that the more severe ischemic insult in the subendocardium does not result in a disproportionate increase in 2DG uptake in that region of the myocardium. Although 2DG uptake patterns in this model most probably reflect those of glucose (at comparable glucose and insulin levels), quantitative extrapolations with regard to the rate of glucose uptake are not possible from the present data.
Dependence of blood T2 on oxygenation at 7 T: In vitro calibration and in vivo application

The calibratable relationship between blood oxygenation (Y) and T2 allows quantification of cerebral venous oxygenation. We aim to establish a calibration plot between blood T2, Y, and hematocrit at 7 T, and using T2‐relaxation‐under‐spin‐tagging MRI, determine human venous blood oxygenation in vivo.