Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
GAGA Factor and the TFIID Complex Collaborate in Generating an Open Chromatin Structure at the Drosophila melanogaster hsp26 Promoter

ABSTRACT The upstream regulatory region of the Drosophila melanogaster hsp26 gene includes two DNase I-hypersensitive sites (DH sites) that encompass the critical heat shock elements. This chromatin structure is required for heat shock-inducible expression and depends on two (CT) n •(GA) n elements bound by GAGA factor. To determine whether GAGA factor alone is sufficient to drive formation of the DH sites, we have created flies with an hsp26/lacZ transgene wherein the entire DNA segment known to interact with the TFIID complex has been replaced by a random sequence. The replacement results in a loss of heat shock-inducible hsp26 expression and drastically diminishes nuclease accessibility in the chromatin of the regulatory region. Chromatin immunoprecipitation experiments show that the decrease in TFIID binding does not reduce GAGA factor binding. In contrast, the loss of GAGA factor binding resulting from (CT) n mutations decreases TFIID binding. These data suggest that both GAGA factor and TFIID are necessary for formation of the appropriate chromatin structure at the hsp26 promoter and predict a regulatory mechanism in which GAGA factor binding precedes and contributes to the recruitment of TFIID.
The breakdown of parallel letter processing in letter-by-letter dyslexia

Two critical issues were examined regarding letter-by-letter (LBL) dyslexia: (1) What is the nature of the functional impairment responsible for the incapacity of LBL patients to overtly recognise words on the sole basis of parallel letter processing? (2) What is the purpose of sequential letter processing? Four experiments focusing on these issues were conducted in LH, an LBL dyslexic. Expt 1 showed facilitatory effects of increased phonographic neighbourhood size, lexical frequency, and imageability on the word naming performance of LH. These high-order effects reflect a modulation of parallel letter processing in LH and demonstrate that he is able to rapidly access phonological, lexical, and semantic knowledge during reading. Congruently, Expt 2 demonstrated that all three high-order effects are eliminated when words are presented one letter at a time, from left to right. Expt 3 showed that these high-level effects are also abolished if target words are made of letters that are highly confusable (i.e., visually similar) to other letters of the alphabet. These observations suggest that LBL dyslexia may rest on an impairment at the letter encoding level that causes an excessive level of background noise in the activation of higher-order representations (i.e., letter combinations) when letters are processed in parallel. An additional experiment (Expt 4) shows that the letter confusability effect is also eliminated when words are presented one letter at a time, from left to right. This latter finding suggests that compensatory sequential processing invoked by LBL dyslexics serves to avoid the confusion between visually similar letters, which is present with parallel letter processing, and to amplify the signal-to-noise ratio required to achieve overt word identification.
First-year trends in self-reported general health predict survival in patients with head and neck cancer.

OBJECTIVE To demonstrate that first-year trends in a self-reported subjective general health assessment tool can provide prognostic information and help predict long-term survival in patients with head and neck cancer. DESIGN Prospective observational cohort study. SETTING Tertiary care center. PATIENTS Four hundred three patients with head and neck cancer who were enrolled in a longitudinal outcomes project between January 1, 1995, and December 31, 2005. INTERVENTION Self-reported general physical health assessments were collected using the Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey at diagnosis (pretreatment) and at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months after diagnosis. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Actuarial 5-year observed (all deaths) and disease-specific (death with cancer present) survival. RESULTS Mean physical component summary (PCS) scores decreased at 3 months in all patient groups. While patients who died within the second or third year exhibited virtually no recovery, those who died within the fourth or fifth year exhibited some recovery, and those who survived 5 years or longer approached baseline PCS scores by 12 months. Shorter survival correlated with a greater net decrease in PCS score at 12 months. Groups based on pretreatment and 12-month PCS scores had significantly different survival curves. The net change in PCS score at 12 months (DeltaPCS) was a predictor of both observed and disease-specific survival at univariate analysis and an independent predictor of disease-specific survival in multivariate analysis. CONCLUSION First-year trends in the 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey PCS score, a self-reported subjective measure of general physical health, are predictive of long-term survival.
Iron metabolism in mynah birds (Gracula religiosa) resembles human hereditary haemochromatosis

Iron overload is a very frequent finding in several animal species and a genetic predisposition is suggested. In one of the most commonly reported species with susceptibility for iron overload (mynah bird), it was recently shown that the cause of this pathophysiology is high uptake and retention of dietary iron. Here we compare susceptible (mynahs) with non-susceptible avian species (chickens) by evaluating iron uptake at the intestinal absorptive cell level. Enterocytes from mynahs and chickens were isolated and uptake of Fe(II) and Fe(III) was studied in vitro. It was found that Fe(III) uptake is much lower than Fe(II) uptake for both species. Although liver iron, present only in hepatocytes, was at least 10-fold higher in mynahs than chickens, enterocyte Fe(II) uptake was considerably higher in mynahs. Fe(II) uptake showed saturation at the studied concentrations in both species. Kinetic studies revealed a three-fold increase in V max for mynahs. Calculated values for the uptake kinetics of the probable membrane transporter suggest that mynah bird enterocytes have a significantly higher limiting uptake rate, due to the possible increase in the number of transporters when compared with chicken enterocytes. The susceptibility of this species is due to intestinal iron uptake despite hepatic iron accumulation, implicating a ‘mis-sensing’ of body iron similarly to human hereditary haemochromatosis.
KINETICS AND MORPHOLOGY OF HAEMOPOIESIS IN PERNICIOUS ANAEMIA

The anaemia in vitamin-B,, deficiency results fiom a failure of the megaloblastic bone marrow to compensate for a moderate reduction in red-cell life span. Despite an approximately three-fold increase in total erythropoietic activity, the delivery of viable red cells to the circulation is not increased above normal. A significant proportion of erythropoietic activity is ineffective and it has been assumed that many erythroblasts die within the bone marrow (London & West, 1950; Finch et al, 1956). Over the last decade, a variety of techniques has been used to investigate haemopoietic cell proliferation in pernicious anaemia. The most useful techniques have been those applicable at the single cell level, such as autoradiography and quantitative cytochemistry. In this paper, the new work on the kinetics of haemopoiesis in pernicious anaemia is reviewed and an attempt is made to correlate cell studies with the known biochemical functions of cobamide coenzymes in man.
Prevalence of human papilloma virus and human herpes virus types 1–7 in human nasal polyposis

This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of human papilloma virus (HPV), herpes simplex virus‐1/‐2 (HSV‐1/‐2), varicella‐zoster virus (VZV), Epstein–Barr virus (EBV), cytomegalovirus (CMV), and human herpes virus‐6/‐7 (HHV‐6/‐7) in 23 human nasal polyps by applying PCR. Two types of control tissues were used: adjacent inferior/middle turbinates from the patients and inferior/middle turbinates from 13 patients undergoing nasal corrective surgery. EBV was the virus most frequently detected (35%), followed by HPV (13%), HSV‐1 (9%), and CMV (4%). The CMV‐positive polyp was simultaneously positive for HSV‐1. HPV was also detected in the adjacent turbinates (4%) and the adjacent middle turbinate (4%) of one of the HPV‐positive patients. EBV, HSV, and CMV were not detected in the adjacent turbinates of the EBV‐, HSV‐ or CMV‐positive patients. All mucosae were negative for the VZV, HHV‐6, and HHV‐7. This is the first study to deal with the involvement of a comparable group of viruses in human nasal polyposis. The findings support the theory that the presence of viral EBV markedly influences the pathogenesis of these benign nasal tumors. The low incidence of HPV detected confirms the hypothesis that HPV is correlated with infectious mucosal lesions to a lesser extent than it is with proliferative lesions, such as inverted papilloma. The low incidence of HSV‐1 and CMV confirms that these two herpes viruses may play a minor role in the development of nasal polyposis. Double infection with HSV‐1 and CMV may also play a minor, though causative, role in nasal polyp development. VZV and HHV‐6/‐7 do not appear to be involved in the pathogenesis of these mucosal lesions. J. Med. Virol. 81:1613–1619, 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
THE INFLUENCE OF HEAT SHOCK PROTEIN 70 INDUCTION ON HEMODYNAMIC VARIABLES IN A PORCINE MODEL OF RECURRENT ENDOTOXEMIA

The manipulation of stress gene expression by heavy metals provides protection against the lethal effects of endotoxemia in murine models of septic shock. These findings suggest that the increased resistance to endotoxin in vivo after stress protein induction could be explained by an attenuation of hemodynamic alterations and an altered pattern of inflammatory mediator release. Therefore, we measured main hemodynamic variables such as systemic and pulmonary artery pressure, cardiac output, heart rate, central venous pressure, and pulmonary artery wedge pressure, as well as the time-course of thromboxane-B2, 6-keto-PGF1α, and interleukin 6 formation with and without induction of the stress response in an established porcine model of recurrent endotoxemia (Circ Shock 35:237–244, 1991). Induction of the stress response was carried out by a pretreatment with Zn2+ (25 mg/kg zinc-bis-(DL-hydrogenaspartate) = 5 mg/kg Zn2+). Pretreatment with Zn2+ prior to lipopolysaccharide (LPS) infusion induced an increased heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) expression in the lungs, liver, and kidneys and significantly increased plasma levels of interleukin 6, 6-keto-PGF1α, and thromboxane-B2, compared with untreated controls. After LPS infusion, however, pretreated animals showed significantly decreased peak plasma levels of all mediators compared with the untreated group. Hemodynamic data presented significantly decreased peak pulmonary artery pressure and pulmonary vascular resistance index values, significantly increased systemic artery pressure and systemic vascular resistance index values, and significantly altered hypodynamic/hyperdynamic cardiac output levels in the pretreated group. In conclusion, the data show that the induction of HSP70 by Zn2+ attenuates the liberation of inflammatory mediators, as well as the course of hemodynamic variables due to LPS.
Decreased permeation of cephalosporins through the outer membrane of Escherichia coli grown in salicylates

Escherichia coli K-12 cells grown in 1 to 5 mM sodium salicylate (SAL) or acetylsalicylate show increased phenotypic resistance to various antibiotics (J. L. Rosner, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 82:8771-8774, 1985), including cephalosporins (this study). To determine whether these effects are caused by a decreased uptake of the antibiotics, the permeation of several cephalosporins through the outer membrane was measured. For E. coli K-12 grown in LB broth containing 5 mM SAL or acetylsalicylate, permeation of the outer membrane by the five cephalosporins tested decreased three- to fivefold compared with that in cells not grown in salicylates. Permeation of the outer membrane by cephaloridine decreased within 15 min of the addition of SAL to cells grown in broth and reached a minimum in 1 to 2 h. When cells were transferred from broth with SAL to broth without SAL, their permeability to cephaloridine increased slowly for the first 45 min and more rapidly over the next 1.5 h; the permeability then attained normal levels by 3 h. The permeability changes that occurred after media shifts, either to or from SAL, were prevented by concentrations of chloramphenicol that inhibited protein synthesis. These effects of SAL on outer membrane permeability are fully consistent with their effects on antibiotic resistance and with the report (T. Sawai, S. Hirano, and A. Yamaguchi, FEMS Microbiol. Lett. 40:233-237, 1987) that the outer membranes of SAL-treated cells are deficient in certain porins. Permeation of cephaloridine through the outer membrane also decreased when a virulent strain of E. coli K1 was grown in the presence of as little as 1 to 2 mM SAL. This raises the concern that high levels of salicylates in patients night interfere with cephalosporin or other antibiotic therapies.
Complement-requiring neutralizing antibodies in hyperimmune sera to human cytomegaloviruses.

High-titered antisera to two strains of human (C87 and AD169) and two strains of monkey (GR2598 and GR2757) cytomegaloviruses (CMV) were prepared in primates hand-reared in captivity and free of pre-existing antibodies. Unlike monkey CMV, which elicited the production of complement-independent neutralizing (CIN) antibodies, hyperimmune sera to the two human strains were found to contain chiefly complement-requiring neutralizing (CRN) antibodies. The CRN antibodies elicited by human CMV were specific for the immunizing virus and were not directed to host-cell components. Treatment of whole serum with 2-mercaptoethanol indicated that 7S antibodies comprised the major population of CRN antibody activity in both early and late anti-human CMV sera. Preparations of highly purified early and late IgG (6.4S) and IgM (18.6S) anti-human CMV immunoglobulins all required complement for neutralization. The complement dependency of late IgG appears to be a phenomenon unique for antisera against human CMV. Cross-neutralization tests indicated a two-way cross between the two human viruses and a two-way cross between the two monkey viruses with negligible interspecies reactivity.
Efecto de la lectura compartida y las habilidades prelectoras en el aprendizaje lector

The work carried out in the last years on the learning of reading has allowed to identify the variables that are most involved in the acquisition of this linguistic ability. It is widely known that phonological knowledge, speed of denomination and reading practices that favor alphabetic knowledge are among the most relevant variables for the achievement of this learning. Nevertheless, there are not many investigations that have been done with the purpose of knowing the existing entails between these skills and the initial learning of the reading. The purpose of this study was to analyze whether learning programs that integrate the development of phonological processing skills, naming speed along with dynamics that favor alphabetic knowledge through shared reading practices, favor the efficiency of the decoder process and acquire a better understanding of reading. A quasi-experimental design was used to compare groups with pretest and posttest measurements. The study involved 402 students aged between 4 and 6 years old. The results weigh the potential value of the program and provide guidance that facilitates the learning process of reading in the early ages.
Prognostic and Predictive Markers in Early Detection of Different Types of Cancers for Selected Organ Sites

Background: Tumor markers are substances that are produced by cancer or by other cells of the body in response to cancer or certain benign (noncancerous) conditions. Tumor markers are used to help detect, diagnose, and manage some types of cancer. Although an elevated level of a tumor marker may suggest the presence of cancer. Aim: The aim of this review is to compare and analyze the present and newer oncogenic markers which help in diagnosis of different types of cancers. Material & Methods: An extensive literature survey was done aiming to compare and compile cancer tests makers required in diagnosis of diseases. Results: Cytoplasmic Proteins, Cell Surface Antigens, Oncofetal Antigens, Receptors, Oncogenes and their metabolic products, Acute-Phase Proteins, Enzymes, Hormones or Tumor associated antigens such as Carcino-Embryonic Antigen (CEA) and Alpha Feto Protein (AFP) are makers for routine analysis whereas several studies have confirmed and consolidated the usefulness of markers such as AFP: Alfa fetoprotein; β-hCG: Beta human chorionic;gonadotropin; CA: Carbohydrate antigen; CEA: Carcinoembryonic antigen; ER: Estrogen receptor; HIAA: Hydroxy indole acetic acid; LDH: Lactate dehydrogenase; PLAP: Placental alkaline phosphatase; PR: Progesterone receptor; PSA: Prostate-specific antigen. Conclusion: There is no ―universal‖ tumor marker that can detect any type of cancer. Further investigation is necessary to define these biomarkers in terms of usefulness in assessing diagnosing various types of cancers. Keywords: Monitoring; Recurrence; Screening; Prognosis; Diagnosis; Response to therapy. Tumor markers are substances that can often be detected in higher than normal amounts in the blood, urine, or body tissues of some patients with certain types of cancer. These substances can be proteins, enzymes, biochemicals, or antigens. Tumor markers may be produced directly by a tumor or by other tissues in response to a tumor, they can be metabolic products, acute-phase proteins, enzymes, hormones or tumor associated antigens such as Carcino-Embryonic Antigen (CEA) and Alpha Feto Protein (AFP). In general, tumor marker levels are lower in early stage disease (but still higher than normal) and higher with advanced disease. Furthermore, their levels decrease in response to treatment and increase when the cancer progresses. Tumor markers are very useful in monitoring the course of a diagnosed malignant tumor, for example pre-treatment and subsequent serial values are essential for the evaluation of the response to the treatment modality with time. When used in combination with x-rays and other tests the detection of tumour markers in the blood can be extremely useful in the detection and diagnosis of cancer. Tumor markers are often used to:  Monitor response to treatment—some tests show whether the cancer is responding to treatment  Monitor for progression—in general, an increase in some tumor markers indicates disease progression  Detect recurrence—regular monitoring of some tumor markers during a remission may help detect recurrence
Scanning electron microscopic study of arterial cushions in rats: A novel application of the corrosion‐replication technique

The morphology and organ distribution of arterial cushions were studied in adult rats (body weight ranging from 200 to 500 gm) by scanning electron microscopic (SEM) observation of corrosion casts. Scanning electron microscopic observations of renal vascular casts were correlated with SEM views of the luminal surfaces of similarly fixed vessels; there was a striking similarity in shape, organ distribution, and dimensions between fixed arterial cushions and indentations at the surfaces of casts. Application of this technique to 11 different organs, some of which had never been studied by SEM before, revealed the occurrence of indentations at branching sites similar to those found in kidneys (and hence they were termed “cushions”). Our findings are in generally good agreement with previous light and transmission electron microscopic studies on rats. Our results support the view that arterial cushions are present throughout the vasculatures of the rat. A quantitative morphologic study of replicated branching sites related to “cushions” showed a great variability of the parent‐to‐daughter luminal diameter ratio (range 0.87–16.38) and of branching angles. A fruitful application of this technique to other laboratory animals may be anticipated.
Morula-Like Cells in Photo-Symbiotic Clams Harboring Zooxanthellae

Abstract Symbiosis is observed between zooxanthellae, symbiotic dinoflagellates, and giant clams and related clams which belong to the families Tridacnidae and Cardiidae. We have previously shown that a photo-symbiotic clam Tridacna crocea has three types of hemocytes, the eosinophilic granular hemocyte with phagocytic activity, the agranular cell with electron lucent granules, and the morula-like cell with large (ca. 2 μm in diameter) colorless granules. The function of the morula-like cell is not clear, but it has not been reported in any other bivalves except photo-symbiotic clams T. crocea and Tridacna maxima. In order to clarify whether it is specific to photo-symbiotic clams or not, we studied hemocytes in the photo-symbiotic clams Tridacna derasa (Tridacnidae), Hippopus hippopus (Tridacnidae) and Corculum cardissa (Cardiidae), and a closely related non-symbiotic clam Fulvia mutica (Cardiidae). The eosinophilic granular hemocytes and the agranular cells were found in all of the clams examined. However, the morula-like cells which were packed with many large electron dense granules (ca. 2 μm in diameter), were observed only in the photo-symbiotic clams. In F. mutica, a closely related non-symbiotic clam, this type of hemocyte was not found. Instead a hemocyte with vacuoles and a few large granules containing peroxidase activity was observed. The large granules of F. mutica varied in size from ca. 1–9 μm in diameter. Present data suggests that the presence of morula-like cells is restricted to photo-symbiotic clams and that the hemocytes associated with the morula-like cells may have some functional relationship to symbiosis with zooxanthellae.
Increased Activity and Number of Epidermal Melanocytes in Lesional Psoriatic Skin

Background: Psoriatic lesions may resolve with hypo- or hyperpigmentation. The involvement of melanocytes in this dichotomous clinical outcome is not fully investigated. Objectives: Qualitative and quantitative assessment of melanocytes in untreated lesional and non-lesional psoriatic skin (n = 15) and healthy controls (n = 10). Methods: Skin biopsies were labelled immunohistochemically (APAAP technique) with the antimelanocyte monoclonal antibodies (MoAbs) HMB45, Melan A, tyrosinase and microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (MITF). The labelled melanocytes were evaluated by an independent investigator with a digital image analyser. Results: Lesional melanocytes, in contrast to those in non-lesional and healthy skin, exhibited features of activation in the form of dilatation, prominent and long dendrites and intense labelling. The number of melanocytes was significantly increased in psoriatic lesions in comparison with non-lesional psoriatic and healthy skin as shown by counts of cells labelled with the MoAbs HMB45 (3-fold; p < 0.001), Melan A (1.6-fold; p < 0.01) and tyrosinase (1.5-fold; p < 0.01). In contrast, labelling with MITF revealed no significant difference (1.2-fold increase; p > 0.05). Likewise, no significant difference between non-lesional psoriatic and healthy skin control was found (p > 0.05). Furthermore, no positively labelled dermal cells were detected, apart from few only detected with Melan A. Conclusions: Epidermal melanocyte activity and numbers are increased in the epidermal compartment of psoriatic lesions providing an explanation for postinflammatory hyperpigmentation.