Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Downregulation of microRNA-125a is involved in intervertebral disc degeneration by targeting pro-apoptotic Bcl-2 antagonist killer 1

Objective(s): To investigate the role of the microRNA-125a (miR-125a) and BAK1 in intervertebral disc degeneration (IDD). Materials and Methods: Degenerative lumbar nucleus pulposus (NP) tissues were obtained from 193 patients who underwent resection, and normal controls consisted of normal NP tissues from 32 patients with traumatic lumbar fracture in our hospital. All patients were graded according to the Pfirrmann criteria. QRT-PCR was used to detect the expression of miR-125a and BAK1, and apoptosis of NP tissues detected by TUNEL staining. After isolation of non- degenerative and degenerative nucleus pulposus cells (NPCs), the targeting relationship between miR-125a and BAK1 was verified by dual luciferase reporter gene assay. Flow cytometry was determined the NPCs apoptosis, and Western blot to measure the expressions of BAK1, Caspase-3, Bax and Bcl-2. Results: MiR-125a was reduced while BAK1 was elevated in IDD patients with the increase of Pfirrmann grade. Besides, miRNA-125a was negatively correlated to the NPCs apoptosis, while BAK1 mRNA was positively correlated to cell apoptosis. Additionally, BAK1 is the target gene of miRNA-125a. When transfection of miR-125a mimics in vitro, the apoptosis of NPCs were inhibited, with the down-regulation of BAK1, Caspase-3, and Bax, and the upregulation of Bcl-2. In addition, siBAK1 can reverse the pro-apoptosis function of miR-125a inhibitors in NPCs. Conclusion: miRNA-125a may regulate the apoptosis status of the NPCs by inhibiting the expression of its target gene BAK1, which provided a potential strategy for further development of IDD therapies.
Virtual analysis of stresses in human teeth restored with esthetic posts

The use of intra-radicular posts for rebuilding of damaged teeth is a normal practice in contemporary dentistry. However, dental roots restored with posts are subjected to the risk of failure under occlusal loads, particularly in cases of small dentin thickness. This study adopted the finite element analysis to compare the elastic stress distribution in simulated endodontically treated maxillary central incisor restored with two different esthetic posts, a ceramic post and a prefabricated fiber glass post. Under masticatory load, the shear stress and von Mises equivalent stress were determined for the different regions of the two models. The results demonstrated that stress concentrations occurred mainly in the cervical dentin in the prefabricated fiber glass post model. The ceramic post model presented stress concentration in a region limited to the proper post adjacent to its apical end, thus preserving the root dentin.
Effect of Delmopinol on the Cohesion of Glucan-containing Plaque Formed by Streptococcus mutans in a Flow Cell System

Glucan-containing plaque was formed by Streptococcus mutans adhering to saliva-coated glass slides in flow cells thermostated at 37°C. The substrate was Brain Heart Infusion broth containing 1% sucrose and 10% sterile saliva. During the build-up of the plaque, which lasted for 29 h, the plaque was subjected to three two-minute exposures to either 0.1 mol/L sodium acetate buffer, pH 6.0, or the same buffer containing 6.4 mmol/L (0.2%) of the surface-active anti-plaque substance delmopinol hydrochloride. The glass slides carrying the plaque were weighed, and plaques subjected to delmopinol treatment weighed only seven percent of the control plaques. The glass slides were then mounted in a beaker containing buffer, subjected to ultrasonication, and re-weighed. The delmopinol-treated plaques lost 59% of their wet weight upon sonication, while the controls lost only 19%. Control plaques having the same weight as delmopinol-treated plaques were not different from the control plaques grown for 29 h with regard to reduction of plaque weight after sonication. Transmission electron micrographs (TEM) showed a plaque dominated by globular or fibrillar matrix components in controls, while the delmopinol-treated plaque showed empty or unordered matrix areas between more densely packed cells. The TEM results were confirmed by scanning electron micrographs, which showed amorphous material associated with the bacterial cells in the control but not in the delmopinol-treated plaque. In conclusion, delmopinol reduced surface-associated glucan synthesis and lowered the cohesion of the plaque, indicating that glucan-containing plaque formed during repeated rinsings with delmopinol may be easier to remove by mechanical means than a non-treated plaque of this type.
Hospital-physician arrangements and hospital financial performance.

OBJECTIVES The introduction of the Medicare Prospective Payment System and the more recent rise of managed care plans have greatly increased the importance of effective hospital financial management. Because physicians play a central role in directing hospital resource use, policies to influence physician behavior and to align physician and hospital interests more effectively are being advocated increasingly. This article evaluates the effect of nine strategies to facilitate physician involvement and integration into the hospital on hospital financial performance. METHODS Data came primarily from the Prospective Payment Assessment Commission's hospital-physician relations survey of 1,485 hospitals and the Medicare Cost Reports. Both ordinary least squares and first differencing models were used to evaluate the effect of physician integration on hospital financial performance. RESULTS Hospitals with lower margins and higher costs were more likely to have implemented strategies to integrate physicians and to modify physician behavior than their counterparts. Analysis using first differencing models indicated that making department heads responsible for the profits and losses had a significant positive effect on margins, whereas including medical staff on the hospital's board and offering physicians management services had a significant negative impact on average Medicare costs. In addition the number of strategies implemented was associated positively with financial performance. The paper also emphasizes the importance of model specification in evaluations of hospital-physician arrangements. CONCLUSIONS Changes in hospital-physician relations may have been one reason why hospitals have been relatively successful at containing costs and retaining profitability in recent years. More research needs to be done on which specific arrangements affect hospital financial performance, as well as their effect on the quality of patient care.
Augmented Renal Prostacyclin by Intrarenal Bicistronic Cyclo-oxygenase-1/Prostacyclin Synthase Gene Transfer Attenuates Renal Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury

Background We elucidated the protective mechanism of increased prostacyclin (PGI2) derived from adenoviral cyclo-oxygenase (COX)-1/prostacyclin synthase (PGIS) (Adv-COPI) gene transfer in rat kidneys with ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury. Methods We tended to augment PGI2 production by intrarenal arterial Adv-COPI administration with renal venous clamping in female Wistar rats. After Adv-COPI transfection, we evaluated the renal COX-1 and PGIS protein expression and PGI2 and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) levels in the kidney and renal venous plasma. We evaluated the protective effect of PGI2 on hypoxia/reoxygenation-induced tubular cells injury or I/R kidneys by measuring oxidative stress, necrosis, apoptosis, and autophagy in tubules and kidneys and determining renal function, microcirculation, and accumulation of tubular 4-hydroxynonenal in the kidney in vivo. Results Adv-COPI treatment selectively augmented COX-1 and PGIS protein expression in the renal proximal and distal tubules and significantly increased PGI2, not PGE2, production in the renal venous plasma and kidney at the baseline level. I/R markedly depressed renal blood flow and increased the production in O2-. , PGE2, the expression in P47 and Rac-1 expression of two nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate oxidase subunits, cytosolic cytochrome C release, proapoptotic marker lamin expression, the pathologic appearance of necrosis, apoptosis, and autophagy, and blood urea nitrogen and creatinine levels in the damaged kidneys. Adv-COPI protected distal and proximal tubules against hypoxia/reoxygenation-enhanced oxidative stress and autophagic, apoptotic, and necrotic cell death. Adv-COPI significantly improved renal function by restoring renal blood flow, reducing nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate oxidase–derived and mitochondria-derived oxidative stress, and necrosis, apoptosis, and autophagy. Conclusions Increased PGI2 by Adv-COPI protects the kidney against I/R-induced oxidative stress, necrosis, apoptosis and autophagy.
Terahertz Photonic Crystal Waveguides Based on Sapphire Shaped Crystals

In this paper, an ability for highly efficient terahertz (THz) waveguiding in multichannel sapphire shaped crystals is demonstrated. The edge-defined film-fed growth (EFG) technique (or Stepanov technique) of shaped crystal growth has been implemented to manufacture the THz photonic crystalline (PC) waveguide. The PC waveguide has been characterized using both numerical simulations and experimental study. It allows guiding the THz waves in multimode regime with the minimal dispersion in frequency range of 1.0-1.55 THz and the minimal power extinction coefficient of 0.02 dB/cm at 1.45 THz. The mode interference phenomenon has been observed in this waveguide highlighting the prospectives of its use for intrawaveguide interferometry. These results demonstrate the capabilities of combining the EFG/Stepanov technique advantages with unique properties of sapphire, such as relatively low THz-wave absorption, high mechanical, thermal, chemical, and radiation strength, for manufacturing the THz waveguides characterized with low loss and dispersion and suitable for use in wide range of THz technology applications in biomedical and material sciences, including sensing in aggressive environment.
School-level substance use: effects on early adolescents' alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana use.

OBJECTIVE School-level use of tobacco and alcohol are related to individual students' use in high school, but few studies have examined the effects of school-level substance use in early adolescence. In addition, little is known about factors modifying individuals' vulnerability to school-level influences. This study examined school-wide levels of alcohol, cigarette, and marijuana use in relation to early adolescents' substance use and the role of peer deviance and parenting practices as modifiers of school-level effects. METHOD This cross-sectional study included 542 students attending 49 public middle schools in a single metropolitan area. Students reported on their use of alcohol, cigarettes, and marijuana, and friends' deviant behavior in the last 12 months. Parents provided information about parental nurturance and harsh and inconsistent discipline. School-wide levels of substance use were obtained from the Pride Surveys completed by all students in Grades 6-8 at each school. Multilevel logistic regressions modeled individual use as a function of school-level use for each substance. Interactions of friends' deviance and poor parenting with school-level substance use evaluated differential susceptibility. RESULTS Among the three substances, only school-level rates of cigarette smoking were associated with individual smoking. The relationships of school-level smoking and alcohol use with individual use were stronger for students whose parents reported poorer parenting practices. CONCLUSIONS Antismoking programs may need to preferentially target middle schools with high rates of cigarette smoking. Students who receive suboptimal parenting may benefit from increased support to deter them from early initiation of smoking and alcohol use, especially in high-risk schools.
Sleep-disordered breathing in obese children: the southern Italy experience.

BACKGROUND The association of obesity with sleep-associated respiratory disturbances, which has traditionally been described as a problem in adults, actually originates in childhood. We sought an association between sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) and overweight and/or obesity in a large cohort of school- and preschool-aged children in Southern Italy. METHODS One thousand two hundred seven children (612 girls and 595 boys; mean age 7.3 years) were screened by self-administered questionnaires. According to answers, subjects were divided into three groups: nonsnorers (NS), occasional snorers (OS), and habitual snorers (HS). All HS, who also failed an oximetry study at home, underwent polysomnographic monitoring for the definition of SDB. BMI was calculated according to Italian growth charts. RESULTS A total of 809 subjects (67.0%) were eligible for the study. Of them, 44 subjects (5.4%) were classified as HS, 138 (17.0%) as OS, and 627 (77.5%) as NS. Fourteen subjects (1.7%) were given a diagnosis of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS). Sixty-four subjects (7.9%) were defined as obese, 121 (14.9%) as overweight, and 624 (77.2%) as normal weight. The frequency of HS was significantly higher in obese subjects than in overweight and normal-weight subjects (12.5% vs 5.8% vs 4.6%, respectively; P = .02), whereas the frequency of OSAS was 1.6% in normal-weight, 1.6% in overweight, and 3.1% in obese subjects (P = not significant). CONCLUSIONS Our findings in a large sample of Italian children suggest that obesity is associated with snoring.
On algebraic and graph structural properties of assembly Petri net

Assembly planning is a significant problem for automatic assembling using robotic manipulators. An assembly planning method using a Petri net is presented. The assembly network is modeled by using the Petri net with reference to the conventional and/or net. The state shift equation of the Petri net, which is a mathematical model of the net, is analyzed. From this analysis, it is clarified that the set of a basis solution of a state shift matrix is an actual assembly sequence. When considering an optimization problem which minimizes a summation of a weight value of all tasks included in the assembly sequence, a linear programming (LP) technique can be used. Some numerical examples to certify the validity of the proposed analysis are shown. <<ETX>>
Effects of strength training on cardiovascular responses during a submaximal walk and a weight-loaded walking test in older females.

PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a total body strength training program on oxygen uptake (VO2), heart rate (HR), systolic blood pressure (SBP), and rate pressure product (RPP) during a submaximal walk and a weight-loaded walking test in healthy women 60-77 years old. METHODS The submaximal walk (2 mph and 3.5% grade) took place during stage 3 of a graded exercise test. The weight-loaded walking task consisted of treadmill walking at 2 mph while carrying a box weighing 40% of maximum isometric elbow flexion strength. The women strength trained three times per week for approximately 1 hour per session for 16 weeks. RESULTS Paired t tests determined that strength increased by 57% on six isotonic strength tests (one repetition maximum) and by 29% on two isometric strength tests. A repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to determine the pre- to post-differences between and within the two tests (alpha = 0.05). There was no change in VO2 but HR, SBP, and RPP decreased significantly during the submaximal walk and the weight-loaded walking test. However, average HR (135 to 120 bpm) and RPP (23.3 x 10(3) to 19.3 x 10(3)) decreased more during the weight-loaded walking test than during the submaximal walk (HR: 108 to 104 bpm; RPP 18.3 x 10(3) to 17.0 x 10(3)). CONCLUSIONS In conclusion, the reduced HR, SBP, and RPP indicates that strength training may reduce cardiovascular stress during daily tasks in healthy older women.
Melatonin acts as a growth‐stimulating compound in some monocot species

Abstract: In a recent study melatonin (N‐acetyl‐5‐methoxytryptamine), a well‐investigated animal molecule but minimally studied in plants, was seen to have a physiological role as growth‐promoting molecule in lupin hypocotyls. In the present study, the role of melatonin as a growth promoter is extended to coleoptiles of canary grass, wheat, barley and oat, in which it shows a relative auxinic activity [with respect to indole‐3‐acetic acid (IAA), the main auxin in plants] of between 10 and 55%. In addition, melatonin is seen to have an important inhibitory growth effect on roots similar to that played by auxin. The quantitation by liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection and identification by tandem mass spectrometry of melatonin and IAA in etiolated coleoptiles of the monocots assayed showed that both compounds are present in similar levels in these tissues. These results point to the co‐existence of auxin and melatonin in tissues and raises the possibility of their co‐participation in some physiological actions as auxinic hormones in plants.
The Group Domain of Interpretation

This document presents an ISAMKP Domain of Interpretation (DOI) for group key management to support secure group communications. The GDOI manages group security associations, which are used by IPSEC and potentially other data security protocols running at the IP or application layers. These security associations protect one or more key-encrypting keys, traffic-encrypting keys, or data shared by group members.
Compact Two-Layer Rotman Lens-Fed Microstrip Antenna Array at 24 GHz

This paper presents a new design to realize a compact Rotman lens-fed antenna array. The lens-fed antenna has the form of two layers, which is a new approach to reducing the size of the Rotman lens. The approach is demonstrated at 24 GHz aiming for an automotive sensing radar. The lens consists of a top metal layer, a dielectric, a common ground, a dielectric, and a bottom metal layer, in sequential order. The layout of the lens body is placed on the bottom layer and the antennas are placed on the top layer. Both of them are electrically connected through slot transitions. This two-layer structure reduces not only the total size of the lens, but also the loss of the delay lines because the lines can be designed to be as short and straight as possible. The two-layer Rotman lens-fed antenna array is measured in terms of scattering parameters and beam patterns. From the scattering parameters, the power efficiencies of the beam port 1, 2, and 3 at 24 GHz are obtained as 32.3%, 48.5%, and 50.8%, respectively. The measured beam patterns show that the beam directions are -28.1°, -14.9°, 0°, 15.5°, and 28.6° and the beamwidths are 13.4°, 13.2°, 12.8°, 13.5°, and 13.0°. The measurements confirm that the compact two-layer Rotman lens has been successfully demonstrated.
Evaluation of Baking Properties and Sensory Quality of Wheat-Cowpea Flour

The fortified of soft wheat flour with cowpea flour in bread making was investigated. The Soft wheat flour (SWF) was substituted by cowpea flour at levels of 5, 15 and 20%. The protein content of composite breads ranged from 6.1 - 9.9%. Significant difference was observed in moisture, protein and crude fibre contents of control (wheat bread) and composite bread at 5% addition of cowpea. Water absorption capacities of composite flours increased with increasing levels of cowpea flour in the blend. The specific loaf volume decreased significantly with increased cowpea content of blends. The overall acceptability of the 5% cowpea flour content of composite bread was not significantly different from the control (Soft Wheat-bread) but there is significantly different with increasing the levels of cowpea flour in the blend more than 5%. Keywords—Cowpea flour, wheat flour, baking properties, sensory quality.
Adenocarcinoma of the esophagogastric junction: relationship between clinicopathological data and p53, cyclin D1 and Bcl-2 immunoexpressions.

CONTEXT Esophagogastric junction adenocarcinoma has an aggressive behavior, and TNM (UICC) staging is not always accurate enough to categorize patient's outcome. OBJECTIVES To evaluated p53, cyclin D1 and Bcl-2 immunoexpressions in esophagogastric junction adenocarcinoma patients, without Barrett's esophagus, and to compared to clinicopathological characteristics and survival rate. METHODS Tissue sections from 75 esophagogastric junction adenocarcinomas resected from 1991 to 2003 were analyzed by immunohistochemistry for p53, cyclin D1 and Bcl-2 using streptavidin-biotin-peroxidase method. The mean follow-up time was 60 months SD = 61.5 (varying from 4 to 273 months). RESULTS Fifty (66.7%) of the tumors were intestinal type and 25 (33.3%) were diffuse. Vascular, lymph node and perineural infiltration were verified in 16%, 80% and 68% of the patients, respectively. The patients were distributed according to the TNM staging in IA in 4 (5.3%), IB in 10 (13.3%), II in 15 (20%), IIA in 15 (20%), IIIB in 15 (20%) and IV in 16 (21.3%). Immunohistochemical analysis was positive for p53, cyclin D1 and bcl-2 in 68%, 18.7% and 100%, respectively. There was no association between immunoexpression and vascular and/or perineural invasions, clinicopathological characteristics and patients' survival rate. CONCLUSION In this selected population, there was no association between the immunomarkers, p53, cyclin D1 and bcl-2 and clinicopathological data and/or overall survival.
Parental Choices and Children's Skills: An Agent-Based Model of Parental Investment Behavior and Skill Inequality Within and Across Generations

An agent-based simulation model (ABM) is developed and implemented using Python to explore the emergence of intragenerational and intergenerational skill inequality at the societal level that results from differences in parental investment behavior at the household level during early stages of the life course. Parental behavior is modeled as optimal, heuristic-based, or norm-oriented. Skills grow according to the technology of skill formation developed in the field of economics, calibrated with empirically estimated parameters from existing research. Agents go through a simplified life course. During childhood and adolescence, skills are produced through parental investments. In adulthood, individuals find a partner, give birth to the next generation, and invest in offspring. Number and spacing of children and available resources are treated as exogenous factors and are varied experimentally. Simulation experiments suggest that parental decisions at the household level play a role in the emergence of inequality at the societal level. Being egalitarian or not is the most important distinction in parental investment behavior, while optimizing parents generate similar results as egalitarian parents. Furthermore, there is a tradeoff between equality at home and inequality at the macro-level. Changes in the environment reduce or exacerbate inequality depending on parental investment behavior. One prediction of the model on intragenerational inequality in cognitive skills was validated with the use of empirical data. The simulation can best be described as a middle-range model, informed by research on skill formation and the intrahousehold allocation of resources. It is a first step toward more complex ABMs on inequality from a life course perspective. Possible model extensions are suggested. The Overview, Design Concepts, and Details (ODD) protocol and Design of Experiments (DOE) were used to document the model and set up the experimental design respectively.