Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Plasma rich in growth factors promote gingival tissue regeneration by stimulating fibroblast proliferation and migration and by blocking transforming growth factor-β1-induced myodifferentiation.

BACKGROUND Periodontitis involves inflammation and infection of the ligaments and bones that support the teeth. Gingival fibroblasts are the most abundant cells in periodontal tissue, and they play a role in maintaining the structural integrity of the tissue. Plasma rich in growth factors contain a pool of proteins and growth factors that promote wound healing and tissue regeneration. In the present study, we evaluate the potential of different formulations obtained with this approach to stimulate several biologic processes involved in wound healing, including fibroblast proliferation, migration, adhesion, and the autocrine release of some angiogenic factors and extracellular matrix components. Furthermore, the ability of this technology to prevent and inhibit transforming growth factor β1-induced myodifferentiation was also determined. METHODS Cell proliferation was evaluated through a colorimetric assay, cell migration was performed on culture inserts, and cell adhesion was studied through a fluorescence-based method. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was used to determine some of the biomolecules released by gingival fibroblasts. Smooth muscle actin expression was assessed through immunofluorescence microscopy. RESULTS Results showed that plasma rich in growth factors significantly increased gingival fibroblast proliferation, migration, and cell adhesion on type I collagen matrix. In addition, it stimulated the autocrine expression of vascular endothelial growth factor, hepatocyte growth factor, and hyaluronic acid. The myofibroblast phenotype, which is characterized by expressing α-smooth muscle actin, was inhibited and reverted by treating with this technology. CONCLUSION These findings suggest that plasma rich in growth factors is capable of promoting regeneration of gingival connective tissue by stimulating some of the main processes involved in wound regeneration.
A Reevaluation of the Role of the Heterotrimeric G Protein in Coupling Light Responses in Arabidopsis1

Previous studies implicated the involvement of a heterotrimeric G protein in red (R) and far-red (FR) light signal transduction, but these studies utilized pharmacological or gain-of-function approaches and, therefore, are indirect tests. Here, we reexamine the role of the single canonical heterotrimeric G protein in R and FR control of hypocotyl growth using a loss-of-function approach. Single- and double-null mutants for the GPA1, AGB1genes encoding the alpha and beta subunit of the heterotrimeric G protein, respectively, have wild-type sensitivity to R and FR. Ectopic overexpression of wild type and a constitutive active form of the alpha subunit and of the wild-type beta subunit had no effect that can be unequivocally attributed to altered R and FR responsiveness. These results preclude a direct role for the heterotrimeric G complex in R and FR transduction in Arabidopsis leading to growth control in the hypocotyl.
Interactions between medial prefrontal cortex and dorsomedial striatum are necessary for odor span capacity in rats: role of GluN2B-containing NMDA receptors

Working memory is involved in the maintenance and manipulation of information essential for complex cognition. While the neural substrates underlying working memory capacity have been studied in humans, considerably less is known about the circuitry mediating working memory capacity in rodents. Therefore, the present experiments tested the involvement of medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and dorsal striatum (STR) in the odor span task (OST), a task proposed to assay working memory capacity in rodents. Initially, Long Evans rats were trained to dig in scented sand for food following a serial delayed nonmatching-to-sample rule. Temporary inactivation of dorsomedial (dm) STR significantly reduced span in well trained rats. Inactivation of mPFC or contralateral disconnection of the mPFC and dmSTR also reduced span. Infusing the GluN2B-containing NMDA receptor antagonist Ro 25-6981 into mPFC did not affect span; however, span was significantly reduced following bilateral Ro 25-6981 infusions into dmSTR or contralateral disconnection of mPFC (inactivation) and dmSTR (Ro 25-6981). These results suggest that span capacity in rats depends on GluN2B-containing NMDA receptor-dependent interactions between the mPFC and the dmSTR. Therefore, interventions targeting this circuit may improve the working memory capacity impairments in patients with schizophrenia, Alzheimer's disease, and Parkinson's disease.
Analysis of opiates, cocaine and metabolites in urine by high‐performance liquid chromatography with diode array detection (HPLC‐DAD)

An analytical method is proposed for the simultaneous determination of morphine, codeine, 6acetyl‐morphine (MAM), cocaine, benzoylecgonine (BEG), cocaethylene, methadone and 2‐ethylen‐1,5‐dimethyl‐3,3‐diphenylpyrrolidine (EDDP) in urine using high performance liquid chromatography coupled to a diode array detector (HPLC‐DAD). The selection of working wavelengths is based on the highest chromatographic response for each component: 233 nm for cocaine, BEG and cocaethylene; 285 nm for morphine, codeine and MAM; and 292 nm for methadone and EDDP. The mobile phase, which is a mixture of acetonitrile and 0.02 M phosphate buffer at pH 6.53, was eluted in gradient mode through an XTerra® RP‐8 column (250 mm × 4.6 mm i.d., 5 µm particle size). After applying a solid‐phase extraction procedure with Bond Elut Certify cartridges, the recoveries obtained were between 60% (EDDP) and 97% (cocaethylene). A good linearity of the method in the 0.1–10 µg mL−1 range of urinary concentrations was obtained because the coefficient of correlation exceeded 0.99 for each drug. The precision and accuracy were quite good, with values of <7% and within the range ± 6%, respectively. Finally, the proposed method was applied to 23 urine samples from fatal intoxications related to methadone, heroin and[sol ]or cocaine. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
What Drives Green Restaurant Patronage Intention

The trends of corporate social responsibility and sustainability drive many firms to adopt green marketing practices through the development of products and services targeted to meet the demand of environmentally conscious consumers. Green movement enables firms to gain competitive advantages, improve ecological performance, reduce operational costs, and enhance corporate image. However, the pressure to adopt environmental management practices in the food service sector is insignificant compared to the manufacturing sector in Malaysia. This disparity is evident despite of the fast growing number of restaurants and widespread habit of eating out, which bring with it an increasingly detrimental environmental impact. Currently, there is limited existing research on the demand for green practices within the food service sector from the consumers’ perspectives in Malaysia. This paper reviews the conceptual and empirical literatures and proposes a conceptual framework to examine how attitudes and pro-environmental behaviours influence consumers’ intention towards patronising green restaurants. In addition, the theoretical and practical implications are also put forward.
Clinical Features and Complications of the HLA-B27-associated Acute Anterior Uveitis: A Metanalysis

ABSTRACT In this article, we report a literature-based metanalysis we have conducted to outline the clinical features of the HLA-B27 Acute Anterior Uveitis (AAU). The examined material was based on observational studies in which participants were affected by Acute Anterior Uveitis and divided into HLA B27+ and HLA B27–. We performed a search on articles with the words “HLA B27 uveitis” dated before May 2014. Among these, 29 articles were selected for a second review. After a further evaluation, 22 articles were analyzed. The clinical characteristics studied in the metanalysis were: (1) systemic disease; (2) sex distribution; (3) laterality; (4) visual acuity; (5) hypopion; (6) anterior chamber’s fibrin; (7) elevated intraocular pressure (IOP) during inflammation; (8) glaucoma; (9) posterior synechiae; (10) cataract; (11) cystoid macular edema; (12) papillitis. We have calculated a relative risk (RR) for each outcome measured. The results obtained remark some of the peculiar features linked to the HLA B27 Acute Anterior Uveitis, such as strong association with ankylosing spondylitis (RR = 6.80) and systemic diseases (RR = 9.9), male prevalence (RR = 1.2), unilateral (RR = 1.1) or alternating bilateral (RR = 2.2) involvement, hypopion (RR = 5.5), fibrinous reaction and even papillitis (R = 7.7). Simultaneous bilateral (RR = 0.3) AAU is more frequent in HLA-B27 negative form. We report higher risk of elevated IOP and glaucoma (RR = 0.6) in B27– Acute Anterior Uveitis. No significant difference between HLA B 27 positive and negative AAU was observed according to final visual acuity and complications such as posterior synechiae, cataract, and maculare edema. We trust that this will inform on the clinical evaluation and therapeutic decision in addressing a still ill-defined ophthalmologic condition.
Malar augmentation: a 5-year retrospective review of the silastic midfacial malar implant.

OBJECTIVES To determine the effectiveness and safety of the Silastic midfacial malar implant and to review indications, patient selection, technique, and complications of malar augmentation. DESIGN Five-year retrospective review of clinical cases with at least 2-year follow-up. PATIENTS A cohort of 60 consecutive private patients with complaints of malar hypoplasia or facial asymmetry. SETTING A plastic surgery clinic. INTERVENTION Silastic midfacial malar implants were fitted in each patient. Most underwent implantation via the canine fossa approach and in conjunction with another facial plastic procedure. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Subjective patient satisfaction, photographic grading using a visual analog scale, and complications. RESULTS Of the 60 patients, 51 (85.0%) reported an excellent result after at least a 2-year follow-up. Ten patients (16.7%) had some form of undesirable sequelae; however, only 4 (3.4%) of 118 implants had to be revised. Photographically, all 60 patients graded postoperative improvement. CONCLUSIONS Findings support the contention that the Silastic midfacial malar implant is a safe and effective alloplastic alternative to treat malar hypoplasia and facial asymmetry. The complication and revision rates are acceptable. Relative technical ease of insertion makes malar augmentation an excellent adjunct for rhytidectomy and rhinoplasty.
The Chiropteran Brain Database: Volumetric Survey of the Hypophysis in 165 Species

For nearly two decades, a database of brain structures from a large sample (272 species) of chiropterans has been widely accessible and used for socioecological analyses of mammals. However, this database remains incomplete since the hypophysis has not been measured. Since this glandular/neural structure has reproductive significance to chiropterans as for other mammals, this investigation was carried out using serial coronal sections of bat brains comprising the Heinz Stephan collection, Düsseldorf, Germany. Complete serially sectioned brains were examined in 313 individuals (165 species, 15 families). Using a well‐documented method, hypophyseal volumes were determined from every fourth or sixth section in each individual. The strongest correlation was between body weight and the hypophysis (R2 = 0.887) and its various components as well as between body weight and adenohypophysis (R2 = 0.830) and neurohypophysis (R2 = 0.925). Correlations were also strong for brain weight‐adenohypophysis (R2 = 0.817) and brain weight‐ neurohypophysis (R2 = 0.911). Results indicated that: (1) in regression analyses, hipposiderids stand apart as having relatively large adenohypophysis; (2) analysis of residuals generated using least‐squares regression of hypophyseal components suggests a trend among microchiropterans where females have a relatively larger adenohypophysis than males. However, this difference is only statistically significant in the largest samples: Phyllostomidae and Vespertilionidae. Pteropodids do not appear to follow this trend. Our findings suggest both phylogenetic and sexual differences in the adenohypophysis in particular, and indicate the need for investigation of larger samples by species, especially those best understood in reproductive and social biology. Anat Rec, 299:492–510, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Cloning of the nupC gene of Escherichia coli encoding a nucleoside transport system, and identification of an adjacent Insertion element, IS 186

Escherichia coli is known to contain more than one active transport system for nucleoside uptake. In the present study we report the sequence of a gene encoding a second nucleoside transport system, nupC (in addition to nupG.) An open reading frame (ORF) of 1200bp was identified that codes for a hydrophobic polypeptide of 43 560 Da and an NupC fusion protein was shown to be membrane associated. The native NupC protein is also identified, following over‐expression. NupC exhibits short regions of homology to several membrane‐associated proteins, including LacY and Cyd. Analysis of the nupC promoter region revealed the presence of at least two putative CRP‐binding sites, centred at–40bp and–89bp, which probably flank a CytR‐binding site. In addition, an adjacent IS186 element was identified and found to reside within a putative terminator structure, downstream from the nupC ORF. This arrangement is shown to reflect the previously established gene order on the E. coli chromosome.
Large-scale phosphoproteomeanalysis of human liver tissuebyenrichmentand fractionationofphosphopeptides with strong anion exchange chromatography

The mixture of phosphopeptides enriched from proteome samples are very complex. To reduce the complexity it is necessary to fractionate the phosphopeptides. However, conventional enrichment methods typically only enrich phosphopeptides but not fractionate phosphopeptides. In this study, the application of strong anion exchange (SAX) chromatography for enrichment and fractionation of phosphopeptides was presented. It was found that phosphopeptides were highly enriched by SAX and majority of unmodified peptides did not bind onto SAX. Compared with Fe immobilized metal affinity chromatography (Fe-IMAC), almost double phosphopeptides were identified from the same sample when only one fraction was generated by SAX. SAX and Fe-IMAC showed the complementarity in enrichment and identification of phosphopeptides. It was also demonstrated that SAX have the ability to fractionate phosphopeptides under gradient elution based on their different interaction with SAX adsorbent. SAX was further applied to enrich and fractionate phosphopeptides in tryptic digest of proteins extracted from human liver tissue adjacent to tumorous region for phosphoproteome profiling. This resulted in the highly confident identification of 274 phosphorylation sites from 305 unique phosphopeptides corresponding to 168 proteins at false discovery rate (FDR) of 0.96%. Received: September 16, 2007 Revised: November 23, 2007 Accepted: December 6, 2007
Point of care testing for group A streptococci in patients presenting with pharyngitis will improve appropriate antibiotic prescription

History, clinical examination and throat culture may be inadequate to rule in or out the presence of group A streptococci (GAS) infection in patients with sore throat in a remote location. We correlated the diagnostic accuracy for guiding antibiotic prescription of clinical decision and physiological scoring systems to a rapid diagnostic point of care (POC) test result in paediatric patients presenting with sore throat.
Peroxisomal Monodehydroascorbate Reductase. Genomic Clone Characterization and Functional Analysis under Environmental Stress Conditions1

In plant cells, ascorbate is a major antioxidant that is involved in the ascorbate-glutathione cycle. Monodehydroascorbate reductase (MDAR) is the enzymatic component of this cycle involved in the regeneration of reduced ascorbate. The identification of the intron-exon organization and the promoter region of the pea (Pisum sativum) MDAR 1 gene was achieved in pea leaves using the method of walking polymerase chain reaction on genomic DNA. The nuclear gene of MDAR 1 comprises nine exons and eight introns, giving a total length of 3,770 bp. The sequence of 544 bp upstream of the initiation codon, which contains the promoter and 5′ untranslated region, and 190 bp downstream of the stop codon were also determined. The presence of different regulatory motifs in the promoter region of the gene might indicate distinct responses to various conditions. The expression analysis in different plant organs by northern blots showed that fruits had the highest level of MDAR. Confocal laser scanning microscopy analysis of pea leaves transformed with Agrobacterium tumefaciens having the binary vectors pGD, which contain the autofluorescent proteins enhanced green fluorescent protein and enhanced yellow fluorescent protein with the full-length cDNA for MDAR 1 and catalase, indicated that the MDAR 1 encoded the peroxisomal isoform. The functional analysis of MDAR by activity and protein expression was studied in pea plants grown under eight stress conditions, including continuous light, high light intensity, continuous dark, mechanical wounding, low and high temperature, cadmium, and the herbicide 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid. This functional analysis is representative of all the MDAR isoforms present in the different cell compartments. Results obtained showed a significant induction by high light intensity and cadmium. On the other hand, expression studies, performed by semiquantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction demonstrated differential expression patterns of peroxisomal MDAR 1 transcripts in pea plants grown under the mentioned stress conditions. These findings show that the peroxisomal MDAR 1 has a differential regulation that could be indicative of its specific function in peroxisomes. All these biochemical and molecular data represent a significant step to understand the specific physiological role of each MDAR isoenzyme and its participation in the antioxidant mechanisms of plant cells.
Nonlinear diffusion of scalar images using well-posed differential operators

In recent years several nonlinear diffusion schemes have been introduced. We discuss the numerical implementation of a number of current nonlinear evolution schemes, using the notion of well-posed differentiation by Gaussian kernels. The infinitesimal change of an image when increasing scale depends on the local differential invariants evaluated at the scale of the image considered, i.e. on terms of the local jet (the set of all spatial partial derivatives at that point). All these differential terms can be obtained in a well-posed fashion by a convolution of the original image with the family of the Gaussian and its derivatives. The nonlinear partial differential evaluation can thus be numerically approximated by an iterative calculation of the appropriate terms in the local jet. Examples are given for medical images. <<ETX>>
Signaling between the pituitary gland and the testes: inverse relationship between serum FSH and inhibin B concentrations in boys in early puberty.

OBJECTIVES To study the relationship between serum inhibin B and sex steroid concentrations and pituitary FSH responsiveness to GnRH in boys in early puberty, and to examine serum inhibin B levels in prepubertal boys with different timing of the onset of gonadotropin deficiency (GD). DESIGN Twenty-five boys with constitutional delay of puberty (CDP; 20 in Tanner stage G2 and 5 in G3; age range, 13. 5-16.8 years) and eight prepubertal boys (G1P1) with GD (age range, 10.0-13.2 years) were clinically examined, and serum inhibin B, testosterone and estradiol concentrations were measured from sera obtained immediately before the administration of GnRH (Relefact; 3.5 microgram/kg, maximum 100 microgram i.v.). Thereafter, FSH levels were measured at 30min intervals up to 90min. RESULTS In the boys with CDP, basal inhibin B and FSH levels did not correlate. However, inhibin B and GnRH-stimulated FSH concentrations (r(S)= -0.43 to -0.45, n=25, P<0.05) and the difference between basal and peak serum FSH levels were inversely related (r(S)= -0.63, n=25, P<0.005). This relationship remained significant in boys at stage G2 (r(S)= -0.66, n=20, P<0.005). Basal testosterone concentrations and GnRH-induced FSH levels did not correlate. Estradiol levels were too low (64% of the boys had estradiol levels below the assay sensitivity) to allow correlation analysis. The boys with GD had low inhibin B concentrations (range, <15.6-53pg/ml); the lowest levels were observed in boys with presumably congenital onset of the disease. Serum inhibin B levels and testis volumes correlated positively (r(S)=0.70, n=8, P=0.07). CONCLUSIONS These results suggest that, in boys, the reciprocal regulation between inhibin B and FSH is in operation before mid-puberty. Moreover, autonomous inhibin B secretion by the prepubertal human testis is likely to reflect the number of Sertoli cells.
Automated Classification for Biomedical Data: Machine Learning Approaches for Subject-Independent Settings

From a data mining perspective, this thesis advocates two main factors to improve subjectindependent automated classification techniques: (1) utilizing better feature extraction, and (2) a more efficient model of detection. We hypothesize that supervised techniques can help find features that are more discriminative and better correlated with the output, and then used to produce improved models by utilising domain knowledge. Three popular saliency criteria were used in a voting-based selection: mutual information, Euclidean distance or variance ratio based discrimination. More efficient features are found through a systematic process, and the framework of this approach holds for a wide range of machine learning applications. The first application studied is human movement assessment. An anomaly score detector (ASD) is introduced with adaptive threshold to identify gait freezing events. Results achieved were significantly higher than those previously reported. In the second respiratory artefact application, the top ten feature subsets with their quartile thresholds are used to reject anomalous breath cycles. Unlike previous works, the thresholds are determined by both saliency and performance metrics rather than qualitative assumptions, and accuracy was found to be higher than existing methods. The final case involves electrophysiological spike clustering into an unknown number of classes. Correlation-based sorting strategies are proposed thanks to utilizing prior knowledge in the physiological domain to extract features (e.g., motor unit activation and recruitment). This approach achieves comparable results to the standard manual and outperforms other automated methods with traditional features. Through these three real-life applications, due to systematic feature engineering, it is concluded that standard manual sorting can be replaced by unsupervised and subject-independent automated classifiers to provide solutions with low computational cost and competitive accuracy.
Behavior of Psychrotrophic Lactic Acid Bacteria Isolated from Spoiling Cooked Meat Products

ABSTRACT Three kinds of lactic acid bacteria were isolated from spoiling cooked meat products stored below 10°C. They were identified as Leuconostoc mesenteroides subsp. mesenteroides, Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis, and Leuconostoc citreum. All three strains grew well in MRS broth at 10°C. In particular, L. mesenteroides subsp. mesenteroides and L. citreum grew even at 4°C, and their doubling times were 23.6 and 51.5 h, respectively. On the other hand, although the bacteria were initially below the detection limit (<10 CFU/g) in model cooked meat products, the bacterial counts increased to 108 CFU/g at 10°C after 7 to 12 days.