Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Advances in allergen-specific immunotherapy

Atopic disease affects ~ 30% of the population in western society. Allergen-specific immunotherapy (SIT) is the only treatment with a long-term effect available at the present time, and has been used successfully in the treatment of a number of allergies for almost 100 years. Despite this success, there is great demand for safer, faster and more effective approaches. At present, many studies are being conducted aiming to comply with this demand. The approaches used include conventional immunotherapy, using allergen extracts, as well as novel methods such as peptide immunotherapy, allergen DNA vaccines and non-injection routes of SIT. The clinical success of various treatments, new technical developments and a better understanding of the immunological mechanisms behind immunotherapy hold great potential for the broad application of allergen-SIT in the foreseeable future.
Bank Executives’ Outside Directorships and Career Outcomes

We employ a unique sample of 5000 outside directorships held by German executive bank directors over 1993-2015 to examine whether these directorships proxy reputational capital and/or bankers’ private information. We exploit various circumstances of executive directors’ appointments and bank performance with bank-fixed-effect and difference-in-differences estimations to show that outside directorships enhance value for the bank and improve executives’ career outcomes, mostly because these posts signal good managerial ability and access to valuable private information about clients. Overall, our results suggest that bankers’ outside directorships have a dual role in the German corporate governance system.
Thermal Preference and Tolerance of Alvinellids

The highest oceanic temperatures are found at hydrothermal vents, where the polychaete Paralvinella sulfincola lives on vent sulfides within steep and dynamic thermal gradients. To determine P. sulfincola thermotolerance and preference, we developed a high-pressure aquarium that mimics in situ thermal gradients and permits P. sulfincola to move within the gradient. These polychaetes were thermotaxic, preferring temperatures of 40° to 50°C. Some individuals remained at 50°C for 7 hours (the duration of the experiment), whereas others endured exposure to 55°C for over 15 minutes, demonstrating that alvinellids prefer high temperatures and are among the most thermotolerant of marine organisms.
Localization of Hyaluronic Acid in the Seminal Vesicles of the Miniature Pig

We studied the detailed localization of hyaluronic acid in the seminal vesicles of the miniature pig, using hyaluronic acid‐binding protein as a specific histochemical probe at the ultrastructural level. According to the results, the basolateral surface of the plasma membrane of the glandular epithelial cells, was found to contain hyaluronan. However, abundantly present was hyaluronan in the subepithelial connective tissue, in particular, in the extracellular matrix surrounding the fibroblasts, smooth muscle cells, small blood vessels and capillaries. The substance was also observed in the surface coat of the plasma membrane of the fibroblasts, but not in that of the smooth muscle cells. The findings suggest that hyaluronan in the seminal vesicles of the miniature pig is synthesized onto the surface coat of the plasma membrane of the fibroblasts, is contributed to the extracellular matrix, and consequently concentrates in the subepithelial connective tissue. The substance may particularly be involved in a variety of cellular functions to maintain morphological organization as well as to regulate physiological homeostasis in the reproductive organ of this species, rather than participate in sperm functions.
Relationship between the structures and the antitumor activities of tannins.

Sixty-three tannins and related polyphenols were intraperitoneally injected into mice at 4 d before intraperitoneal sarcoma-180 cell inoculation, and their antitumor activities were evaluated. The condensed tannins and related compounds all showed negligible activity. As regards the hydrolyzable tannins, active compounds were found among ellagitannins. In particular, dimeric ellagitannins such as oenothein B, rugosin E, rugosin D, gemin A and coriariin A showed significantly higher antitumor activity than agrimoniin, which we previously reported as an antitumor tannin. Coriariin A, which has four galloyl groups instead of two hexahydroxydiphenoyl groups of agrimoniin, showed the strongest activity. It seems to be essential for marked antitumor activity that ellagitannins should possess a dimeric structure with several galloyl groups on the glucose core.
Saccharomyces cerevisiae QNS1 codes for NAD+ synthetase that is functionally conserved in mammals

NAD+, an essential molecule involved in a variety of cellular processes, is synthesized through de novo and salvage pathways. NAD+ synthetase catalyses the final step in both pathways. Here we show that this enzyme is encoded by the QNS1 gene in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Expression of Escherichia coli or Bacillus subtilis NAD+ synthetases was able to suppress the lethality of a qns1 deletion, while a B. subtilis NAD+ synthetase mutant with lowered catalytic activity was not. Overexpression of QNS1 tagged with HA led to elevated levels of NAD+ synthetase activity in yeast extracts, and this activity can be recovered by immunoprecipitation using anti‐HA antibody. An allele of QNS1 was constructed that carries a point mutation predicted to reduce the catalytic activity. Overexpression of this allele, qns1G521E, failed to elevate NAD+ synthetase levels and qns1G521E could not rescue the lethality caused by the depletion of Qns1p. These results demonstrate that NAD+ synthetase activity is essential for cell viability. A GFP‐tagged version of Qns1p displayed a diffuse localization in both the nucleus and the cytosol. Finally, the rat homologue of QNS1 was cloned and shown to functionally replace yeast QNS1, indicating that NAD+ synthetase is functionally conserved from bacteria to yeast and mammals. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Crossover-Based Tree Distance in Genetic Programming

In evolutionary algorithms, distance metrics between solutions are often useful for many aspects of guiding and understanding the search process. A good distance measure should reflect the capability of the search: if two solutions are found to be close in distance, or similarity, they should also be close in the search algorithm sense, i.e., the variation operator used to traverse the search space should easily transform one of them into the other. This paper explores such a distance for genetic programming syntax trees. Distance measures are discussed, defined and empirically investigated. The value of such measures is then validated in the context of analysis (fitness-distance correlation is analyzed during population evolution) as well as guiding search (results are improved using our measure in a fitness sharing algorithm) and diversity (new insights are obtained as compared with standard measures).
Slice‐selective FID acquisition, localized by outer volume suppression (FIDLOVS) for 1H‐MRSI of the human brain at 7 T with minimal signal loss

In comparison to 1.5 and 3 T, MR spectroscopic imaging at 7 T benefits from signal‐to‐noise ratio (SNR) gain and increased spectral resolution and should enable mapping of a large number of metabolites at high spatial resolutions. However, to take full advantage of the ultra‐high field strength, severe technical challenges, e.g. related to very short T2 relaxation times and strict limitations on the maximum achievable B1 field strength, have to be resolved. The latter results in a considerable decrease in bandwidth for conventional amplitude modulated radio frequency pulses (RF‐pulses) and thus to an undesirably large chemical‐shift displacement artefact. Frequency‐modulated RF‐pulses can overcome this problem; but to achieve a sufficient bandwidth, long pulse durations are required that lead to undesirably long echo‐times in the presence of short T2 relaxation times. In this work, a new magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging (MRSI) localization scheme (free induction decay acquisition localized by outer volume suppression, FIDLOVS) is introduced that enables MRSI data acquisition with minimal SNR loss due to T2 relaxation and thus for the first time mapping of an extended neurochemical profile in the human brain at 7 T. To overcome the contradictory problems of short T2 relaxation times and long pulse durations, the free induction decay (FID) is directly acquired after slice‐selective excitation. Localization in the second and third dimension and skull lipid suppression are based on a T1‐ and B1‐insensitive outer volume suppression (OVS) sequence. Broadband frequency‐modulated excitation and saturation pulses enable a minimization of the chemical‐shift displacement artefact in the presence of strict limits on the maximum B1 field strength. The variable power RF pulses with optimized relaxation delays (VAPOR) water suppression scheme, which is interleaved with OVS pulses, eliminates modulation side bands and strong baseline distortions. Third order shimming is based on the accelerated projection‐based automatic shimming routine (FASTERMAP) algorithm. The striking SNR and spectral resolution enable unambiguous quantification and mapping of 12 metabolites including glutamate (Glu), glutamine (Gln), N‐acetyl‐aspartatyl‐glutamate (NAAG), γ‐aminobutyric acid (GABA) and glutathione (GSH). The high SNR is also the basis for highly spatially resolved metabolite mapping. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Transmit and receive transmission line arrays for 7 Tesla parallel imaging

Transceive array coils, capable of RF transmission and independent signal reception, were developed for parallel, 1H imaging applications in the human head at 7 T (300 MHz). The coils combine the advantages of high‐frequency properties of transmission lines with classic MR coil design. Because of the short wavelength at the 1H frequency at 300 MHz, these coils were straightforward to build and decouple. The sensitivity profiles of individual coils were highly asymmetric, as expected at this high frequency; however, the summed images from all coils were relatively uniform over the whole brain. Data were obtained with four‐ and eight‐channel transceive arrays built using a loop configuration and compared to arrays built from straight stripline transmission lines. With both the four‐ and the eight‐channel arrays, parallel imaging with sensitivity encoding with high reduction numbers was feasible at 7 T in the human head. A one‐dimensional reduction factor of 4 was robustly achieved with an average g value of 1.25 with the eight‐channel transmit/receive coils. Magn Reson Med 53:434–445, 2005. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
The response of de‐efferented muscle spindle receptors to stretching at different velocities

It has long been known that when a muscle is stretched from one length to another its muscle spindle endings discharge more rapidly during the dynamic phase of stretching than they do subsequently at the new length (Matthews, 1933; Granit & Homma, 1959). More recently it has been shown under a variety of conditions that the primary endings, supplied by Group I afferents, are appreciably more sensitive to such dynamic stimuli than are the secondary endings, supplied by Group II afferents (Appelberg, 1962; Bessou & Laporte, 1962; Cooper, 1959, 1961; Harvey & Matthews, 1961; Jansen & Matthews, 1962a; Lundberg & Winsbury, 1960). Together these experiments provide a fairly comprehensive picture of the differences between primary and secondary endings, but in any one set of these experiments the effects of only a comparatively limited range of velocities of stretching were investigated, and the experiments also differed in the muscle used and as to whether or not the fusimotor nerve fibres were active. The present experiments were performed to compare the responses of the primary and secondary endings of de-efferented muscle spindles of a single muscle to a wide range of velocities of stretching.
Lupus Vulgaris Treated with Calciferol

If we are correct in suggesting that pityriasis rubra pilaris is alwavs an inherited conditien, the case of Dr. Barber and Dr. Tatz showing pitytiasis rubra pilaris and syringomyelia is of great importance, as syringomyelia is often considered as a congenital disease. Therefore in Dr. Barber's patient two different systems of ectodermal origin appear to be affected, a combination which does not seem to have been described before.
Characterization of the two anion-recognition sites of glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase from Bacillus stearothermophilus by site-directed mutagenesis and chemical modification.

The active site of the glycolytic glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) contains two anion recognition sites which have been attributed to the phosphate binding of the substrates, namely, glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate (Ps site) and inorganic phosphate (Pi site) [Moras et al. (1975) J. Biol. Chem. 250, 9137-9162]. In order to probe the role of both sites during the catalytic event, Arg 195 from the Pi site and Arg 231 from the Ps site of the Bacillus stearothermophilus enzyme have been changed to Leu and Gly, respectively, by site-directed mutagenesis. A comparative study of the chemical reactivity of the mutants and wild type toward 2,3-butanedione revealed a similarly high reactivity only for the R195L mutant and wild type, suggesting that only Arg 231 is chemically reactive toward 2,3-butanedione and that its reactivity is not influenced by the presence of the residue Arg 195, which is only 4 A distant. The kinetic consequences of the mutations were also analyzed for the consecutive steps in the forward catalytic reaction. The replacement of Arg 195 by Leu leads to a marked decrease of the rate of the first steps of the reaction which lead to the acylenzyme formation, in particular, the rate of enzyme-substrate association, while these steps occur at a similar or higher rate when Arg 231 is replaced by Gly. Furthermore, the mutations R195L and R231G also result in a 550-fold and 16,400-fold decrease in the second-order rate constant of phosphorolysis. This step becomes rate-determining for the R195L mutant. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
A randomized, prospective comparison of the Nissen fundoplication versus the Toupet fundoplication for gastroesophageal reflux disease.

OBJECTIVE A prospective, randomized trial was performed to determine which of two antireflux procedures, a complete wrap (Nissen) or a 200N wrap (Toupet), was more effective with fewer sequelae. SUMMARY BACKGROUND DATA Laparoscopic procedures for gastroesophageal reflux disease appear to be as effective as those done by open laparotomy. The Nissen fundoplication is used most frequently, but postoperative bloating, inability to belch, and dysphagia occur. The partial wrap has been said to be as effective with less unfavorable postoperative symptoms. METHODS Patients with reflux esophagitis were approached laparoscopically using a six-port technique. After division of the short gastric vessels and dissection of the terminal esophagus and fundus of the stomach to allow performance of either procedure, patients randomly were assigned one of the procedures by a card drawn in the operating room. RESULTS Forty patients underwent operation, but 1 was excluded when an open procedure became necessary. Twenty-three patients received a complete wrap and 16 received a partial wrap. The average operating time was 155 minutes for the Nissen procedures and 162 minutes for the Toupet procedures. The postoperative stay averaged 2.7 days for the Nissen procedures and 2.5 days for the Toupet procedures. There were no deaths. Including the patient converted to an open procedure, three patients had operative complications. At follow-up, Visick scores after the complete wraps were I-13, II-8, III-2 and after the partial wrap were I-12 and II-3. Two patients indicated they would not have the operation again. CONCLUSIONS A partial or a complete wrap after division of the short gastric vessel offers effective therapy for reflux esophagitis with > 90% patient satisfaction. The authors' study shows no clear advantage of one wrap (partial or complete) over the other.
Bank Specific And Macroeconomic Determinants Of Bank Profitability: The Indian Evidence

This paper examines the impact of bank specific as well as macroeconomic variables on the performance of the Indian banking industry. Our results show that among macroeconomic variables GDP of a country is having positive relation and is of paramount importance in affecting profitability of bank operating in that country. On the other hand, the asset quality, as measured by the NPA/TA ratio and expense management measured by OEXP/TA affects the performance of bank adversely. In addition, bank size has not proved to be an important determinant of bank profitability. Finally, with regard to macroeconomic variables, the foreign banks operating in India were less affected as compared to the domestic banks.
Realization Theory for LPV State-Space Representations With Affine Dependence

We present a Kalman-style realization theory for linear parameter-varying state-space representations whose matrices depend on the scheduling variables in an affine way (abbreviated as LPV-SSA). We show that minimality of LPV-SSAs is equivalent to observability and span-reachability rank conditions, and that minimal LPV-SSAs of the same input-output map are isomorphic. We present necessary and sufficient conditions for existence of an LPV-SSA in terms of the rank of a Hankel-matrix and a Ho-Kalman-like realization algorithm.
Phytochrome-Mediated Light Regulation of PHYA- and PHYB-GUS Transgenes in Arabidopsis thaliana Seedlings

Phytochrome wild-type gene-[beta]-glucuronidase (PHY-GUS) gene fusions were used in transgenic Arabidopsis to compare the activity levels and light regulation of the PHYA and PHYB promoters and to identify the photoreceptors mediating this regulation. In dark-grown seedlings, both promoters are 4-fold more active in shoots than in roots,but the PHYA promoter is nearly 20-fold more active than that of PHYB in both organs. In shoots, white light represses the activities of the PHYA and PHYB promoters 10- and 2-fold, respectively, whereas in roots light has no effect on the PHYA promoter but increases PHYB promoter activity 2-fold. Consequently, PHYA promoter activity remains higher than that of PHYB in light in both shoots (5-fold) and roots (11-fold). Experiments with narrow-waveband light and photomorphogenic mutants suggest that no single photoreceptor is necessary for full white-light-directed PHYA repression in shoots, but that multiple, independent photoreceptor pathways are sufficient alone or in combination. In contrast, phytochrome B appears both necessary and sufficient for a light-mediated decrease in PHYB activity in shoots, and phytochrome A mediates a far-red-light-stimulated increase in PHYB promoter activity. Together, the data indicate that the PHYA and PHYB genes are regulated in divergent fashion at the transcriptional level, both developmentally and by the spectral distribution of the prevailing light, and that this regulation may be important to the photosensory function of the two photoreceptors.
Correspondence Analysis of Rice Farmer Characteristics and The Adoption Level of Warehouse Receipt Sytem Innovation"Reviwer"

Characteristics of rice farmer had a correlation with the warehouse receipt system innovation-decision process. The objective of this research was to analyze the association between rice farmer characteristics and the adoption level of warehouse receipt system. The data of this research was collected from 90 rice farmers who adopted warehouse receipt system managed by PT Pertani Agribusiness Warehouse Unit Haurgeulis in Indramayu Regency during 2011 - 2014. The correspondence analysis was used to find the answer of research objective. The result of this research was needed to determine the rice farmer target in diffusion of innovation process in order to increase the adoption level of warehouse receipt system optimally. The result of this research showed that age, farm scale, and farm experience were the rice farmer's characteristics that had significant assosiation with the adoption level of warehouse receipt system in Indramayu Regency. This research suggested that to improve the adoption level of WRS, the diffusion of WRS process should engange the rice farmers who had the cultivated land 4 - 10 ha,, farm experience above 25 years, and age was above 50 years. an innovation. Masud and Kari (11) research results regarding behavior related to the conservation of the environment show that the demographic factors (age, sex) and socio-economic (education, employment, income) have a significant effect on conservation behavior. Information on the relationship between the characteristics of the rice farmers and the level of innovation adoption of WRS in Indramayu is needed to improve the effectiveness of the diffusion of WRS innovation in the future. The effectiveness of WRS innovation diffusion will conceptually happen if the process of diffusion of innovation committed against public WRS (rice farmers) is appropriate. In this regard, the purpose of this study was to analyze the relationship between the characteristics of the rice farmers and the level of WRS innovation adoption in Indramayu.
Improvement of visual performance with intravitreal administration of 9-cis-retinal in Rpe65-mutant dogs.

OBJECTIVE To determine the efficacy of intravitreal administration of 9-cis-retinal in restoring visual function in Rpe65-mutant dogs. METHODS Intravitreal injection of 9-cis-retinal was administered in 1 eye of 7 Rpe65-/- dogs at a range of ages. Electroretinogram analysis and testing of visual performance was used to evaluate outcomes after a single injection and in 2 dogs after a second injection in the same eye. RESULTS In 5 of 7 injected dogs, 9-cis-retinal injection resulted in increased rod electroretinogram responses and improved functional vision. Three injected dogs exhibited increased 33-Hz flicker amplitudes characteristic of cone-mediated responses. Electroretinogram improvement was no longer evident by week 10 postinjection in 1 dog monitored over time. A second injection of 9-cis-retinal was performed in the same eye of 2 of the 7 dogs and also resulted in rescue of visual function. CONCLUSION Our findings establish that 9-cis-retinoid therapy can restore visual function in a canine model of human disease resulting from RPE65 mutations. CLINICAL RELEVANCE These positive proof-of-principle results provide support for the development of intravitreal devices for sustained delivery of 9-cis-retinal as a therapy for conditions resulting from failure of the visual cycle.
ClpB in a Cyanobacterium: Predicted Structure, Phylogenetic Relationships, and Regulation by Light and Temperature

ABSTRACT The sequence of a genomic clone encoding a 100-kDa stress protein of Plectonema boryanum (p-ClpB) was determined. The predicted polypeptide contains two putative ATPase regions located within two highly conserved domains (N1 and N2), a spacer region that likely forms a coiled-coil domain, and a highly conserved consensus CK2 phosphorylation domain. The coiled-coil region and the putative site of phosphorylation are not unique to p-ClpB; they are present in all ClpB sequences examined and are absent from the ClpB paralogs ClpA, ClpC, ClpX, and ClpY. Small quantities of a 4.5-kbp-clpB transcript and 110-kDa cytosolic p-ClpB protein were detected in cells grown under optimal conditions; however, increases in the quantities of the transcript and protein were observed in cells grown under excess light and low temperature conditions. Finally, we analyzed ClpA, ClpB, and ClpC sequences from 27 organisms in order to predict phylogenetic relationships among the homologs. We have used this information, along with an identity alignment, to redefine the Clp subfamilies.