Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Multi-Center Calibration of the Second Reference Material for Thromboplastin, Rabbit, Plain, Coded CRM 149R

Summary In a collaborative trial of eleven laboratories which was performed mainly within the framework of the European Community Bureau of Reference (BCR), a second reference material for thromboplastin, rabbit, plain, was calibrated against its predecessor RBT/79. This second reference material (coded CRM 149R) has a mean International Sensitivity Index (ISI) of 1.343 with a standard error of the mean of 0.035. The standard error of the ISI was determined by combination of the standard errors of the ISI of RBT/79 and the slope of the calibration line in this trial. The BCR reference material for thromboplastin, human, plain (coded BCT/099) was also included in this trial for assessment of the long-term stability of the relationship with RBT/79. The results indicated that this relationship has not changed over a period of 8 years. The interlaboratory variation of the slope of the relationship between CRM 149R and RBT/79 was significantly lower than the variation of the slope of the relationship between BCT/099 and RBT/79. In addition to the manual technique, a semi-automatic coagulometer according to Schnitger & Gross was used to determine prothrombin times with CRM 149R. The mean ISI of CRM 149R was not affected by replacement of the manual technique by this particular coagulometer. Two lyophilized plasmas were included in this trial. The mean slope of relationship between RBT/79 and CRM 149R based on the two lyophilized plasmas was the same as the corresponding slope based on fresh plasmas. Tlowever, the mean slope of relationship between RBT/79 and BCT/099 based on the two lyophilized plasmas was 4.9% higher than the mean slope based on fresh plasmas. Thus, the use of these lyophilized plasmas induced a small but significant bias in the slope of relationship between these thromboplastins of different species.
Cancer Drugs Approved on the Basis of a Surrogate End Point and Subsequent Overall Survival: An Analysis of 5 Years of US Food and Drug Administration Approvals.

ings could be due to a chance or unmeasured confounding and need confirmation in other studies, they do represent the first analytical data of this potential association. If true, the observed association could either be attributed to the unmasking of a latent demyelinating disease6 or to the emergence of a de novo demyelinating disease.1 The rarity of demyelinating diseases limited the statistical power and capacity to adjust for or match on potential confounder variables. Thus, the estimates should be interpreted with caution because confounding cannot be excluded.
A Noisy Videos Background Subtraction Algorithm Based on Dictionary Learning

Most background subtraction methods focus on dynamic and complex scenes without considering robustness against noise. This paper proposes a background subtraction algorithm based on dictionary learning and sparse coding for handling low light conditions. The proposed method formulates background modeling as the linear and sparse combination of atoms in the dictionary. The background subtraction is considered as the difference between sparse representations of the current frame and the background model. Assuming that the projection of the noise over the dictionary is irregular and random guarantees the adaptability of the approach in large noisy scenes. Experimental results divided in simulated large noise and realistic low light conditions show the promising robustness of the proposed approach compared with other competing methods.
Evaluation of the HOMME dynamical core in the aqua-planet configuration of NCAR CAM4: Rainfall

AbstractThe NCAR Community Climate System Model, version 4 (CCSM4), includes a new dynamical core option based on NCAR’s High-Order Method Modeling Environment (HOMME). HOMME is a petascale-capable high-order element-based conservative dynamical core developed on the cubed-sphere grid. Initial simulations have been completed in an aquaplanet configuration of the Community Atmosphere Model, version 4 (CAM4), the atmospheric component of CCSM4. The authors examined the results of this simulation and assessed its fidelity in simulating rainfall, which is one of the most important components of the earth’s climate system. For this they compared the results from two other dynamical cores of CAM4: the finite volume (FV) and Eulerian (EUL). Instantaneous features of rainfall in HOMME are similar to FV and EUL. Similar to EUL and FV, HOMME simulates a single-peak intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ) over the equator. The strength of the ITCZ is found to be almost the same in HOMME and EUL but more in FV. It is ob.
Reproduction of functional smooth muscle tissue and partial bladder replacement.

OBJECTIVE To find a means of bladder augmentation that would avoid the complications encountered with the use of bowel segments, using a newly developed acellular biomaterial, the bladder acellular matrix graft (BAMG), as a homologous graft. MATERIALS AND METHODS Thirty-four rats underwent a partial cystectomy (40-50%) and grafting with a BAMG of equal size. Eleven rats died within the first 72 h. probably from urinary leakage caused by obstruction of the bladder neck with stones or coagula; the surviving 23 were killed at varying intervals after cystectomy and examined. RESULTS After providing initial bladder enlargement, the graft was progressively infiltrated by the vessels and smooth muscle cells of the host: furthermore, the mucosal lining was complete within 10 days. After 4 weeks, all bladder wall components were evident histologically in the graft. The ingrowth was complete after 8 weeks, except for neural regeneration, which was only partial. At 12 weeks, the bladder wall muscle structure in the graft was so well developed that it was difficult to delineate the junction between host bladder and BAMG. Neural regeneration continued to improve. Normal bladder capacities were maintained throughout the study. CONCLUSION The BAMG appears to serve, without rejection, as a framework of collagen and elastin for the ingrowth of all bladder wall components. The reason for the better acceptance of the BAMG than of other bladder augmentation grafts requires further investigation.
Directed and Motivated Attention during Processing of Natural Scenes

Visual attention can be voluntarily oriented to detect target stimuli in order to facilitate goal-directed behaviors. Other visual stimuli capture attention because of motivational significance. The aim of the present study was to investigate the relationship between directed and motivated attention using event-related potentials. Affectively engaging pictures were presented either as target stimuli or as nontargets in a categorization task. Results indicated that both task relevance and emotional significance modulated the late positive potential (LPP) over centro-parietal sensors. Effects of directed and motivated attention on the LPP were additive, with the largest centro-parietal positivity found for emotional pictures that were targets of directed attention, and the least for neutral pictures that were nontargets. Taken together, the data provide new information regarding the relationship between motivated and directed attention, and suggest that the LPP reflects the operation of attentional neural circuits that are utilized by both top-down and bottom-up processes.
In Vivo and in Vitro Intracellular Recordings from Rat Midbrain Dopamine Neurons a

The study of dopamine (DA) neuron activity using electrophysiological recording techniques has engendered significant contributions in advancing our understanding of the physiology of the nigrostriatal and mesolimbic dopaminergic systems. This has been particularly evident in studies related to the neuronal effects of therapeutic drug actions. Most of these studies have used extracellular recording techniques to ascertain the involvement of DA neurons in a variety of central drug effects, such as the amphetamine-induced inhibition of DA neuron firing via activation of striatonigral feedback loops,' the differential effects of acute and chronic neuroleptic administration on DA cell activity,* and the involvement of autoreceptors in the complementary behavioral effects produced by low versus high doses of the DA agonist apomorphine. ' However, although extracellular recording proved useful in assessing how neuronal firing rates are affected by drugs and stimuli, this technique is nevertheless comparatively limited in its ability to address the actual mechanisms underlying these phenomena. In contrast, the application of intracellular recording techniques to the in vivo preparation enabled the investigation of DA system activity at this more basic level of analysis. Thus, the DA cell responses previously characterized during extracellular recording could be reexamined at the level of membrane voltage and conductance changes. In vivo intracellular recordings also allowed a direct correlation to be made between specific neuronal electrophysiological characteristics and neurochemically identified DA cells. This electrophysiological identification thus enabled DA cell identification in subsequent experiments to be based on this defined set of unique electrophysiological criteria. Moreover, initial studies on DA neuron action potential generation using intracellular recording techniques provided basic information on DA cell regulation that would have been difficult if not impossible to infer based solely on the information provided by extracellular recordings. This included the driving of spontaneous spike generation by an endogenous pacemakerlike slow depolarizing current, and the calciummediated transition of firing patterns from single spiking to burst firing.4. s Despite the higher information content of data afforded by intracellular recordings in the intact preparation, the in vivo preparation nonetheless is constrained by the inability to conclusively determine the ionic mechanisms underlying these observa-
Age and Interstimulus Interval in Forward and Backward Long-Trace Taste-Aversion Conditioning

Rats, 70–79 days old and 477–557 days old, experienced either a forward or backward taste-aversion conditioning trial with a 15-min. or 45-min. interstimulus interval. Forward conditioning was evident in both age groups at both interstimulus intervals. Backward conditioning was evident in both age groups only at the 15-min. interstimulus interval. The failure to obtain backward conditioning at the 45-min. interval was attributed to the effect of stress, produced by injection of the US, on long-trace conditioning. As reported with forward conditioning, stress may alter metabolic rate such that the intervals at which associations can be formed are shortened.
Genome analysis of Clostridium botulinum type A by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis

Genomic DNA from type A Clostridium botulinum was digested with restriction endonucleases that cut at rare sites, and the large fragments were separated by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis. Of 15 restriction enzymes tested, MluI, RsrII, SmaI, NruI, KspI, NaeI, and XhoI generated satisfactory digestion patterns of genomic DNA of various C. botulinum strains, enabling the use of the method for genomic fingerprinting. The genomes of four group I (type A) C. botulinum strains examined had similar restriction patterns. However, each strain had unique digestion patterns, reflecting genotypic differences. The genome size of C. botulinum strain 62A was estimated to be 4,039 +/- 40 kbp from the summation of restriction fragments from MluI, RsrII, and SmaI digestions. Genes encoding proteins involved in the toxinogenicity of C. botulinum, including neurotoxin, hemagglutinin A, and genes for a temperate phage, as well as various transposon Tn916 insertion sites in C. botulinum 62A, were mapped by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis. The genes encoding neurotoxin and hemagglutinin A-1, were located on the same fragment in several cases, indicating their probable physical linkage. The macrorestriction analysis established here should be useful for genetic and epidemiological studies of C. botulinum.
Resistance to Antiretroviral Treatment in Gabon: Need for Implementation of Guidelines on Antiretroviral Therapy Use and HIV‐1 Drug Resistance Monitoring in Developing Countries

&NA; The protease and reverse transcriptase (RT) genes were studied in antiretroviral (ARV)‐experienced and drug‐naive HIV‐1‐infected individuals in Libreville, Gabon. We have shown, although on a limited number of samples that in 58% (11/19) of the patients, with a mean of 17.7 months of ARV drug experience, major mutations inevitably inducing resistances to ARV drugs were present. Resistance was mainly observed to the NRTIs (nucleoside analogue RT inhibitors). This high prevalence may reflect inappropriate ARV drug use. In order to avoid the rapid emergence of resistant viruses on a large scale in the developing world, it is important that the infrastructures necessary to monitor ARV treatment are also rapidly implemented in these countries and that clinicans are trained in the appropriate use of ARV drugs. A continuous surveillance of the circulation of ARV drug‐resistant viruses must be organized to guide ARV treatment strategies and policies.
Permanence and Extinction of Delayed Stage-Structured Predator-Prey System on Time Scales

This paper is concerned with a delayed LeslieGower predator-prey system with stage-structure on time scales. By using the theory of calculus on time scales and some mathematical methods as well as some dynamic inequalities on time scales, sufficient conditions which guarantee the predator and the prey to be permanent are obtained. Moreover, under some suitable conditions, we show that the prey species will be driven to extinction. Finally, an example and its corresponding numerical simulations are presented to explain our theoretical results.
SOIL RESOURCES, MICROBIAL ACTIVITY, AND PRIMARY PRODUCTION ACROSS AN AGRICULTURAL ECOSYSTEM

The degree to which soil resource availability is linked to patterns of microbial activity and plant productivity within ecosystems has important consequences for our understanding of how ecosystems are structured and for the management of systems for agricultural production. We studied this linkage in a 48-ha site in southwest Michigan, USA, that had been cultivated and planted to row crops for decades. Prior to seeding the site to genetically identical soybean plants (Glycine max) in early spring, we removed soil samples from ≈600 locations; plant biomass was harvested from these same locations later in the season. Soil samples were analyzed for physical properties (texture, bulk density), chemical properties (moisture, pH, total C, total N, inorganic N), and biological attributes (microbial biomass, microbial population size, respiration potential, and nitrification and N-mineralization potentials). Plant analyses included biomass and C and N contents. Soil resource variability across this long-cultiva.
Host and geographic structure of endophytic and endolichenic fungi at a continental scale.

PREMISE OF THE STUDY Endophytic and endolichenic fungi occur in healthy tissues of plants and lichens, respectively, playing potentially important roles in the ecology and evolution of their hosts. However, previous sampling has not comprehensively evaluated the biotic, biogeographic, and abiotic factors that structure their communities. METHODS Using molecular data we examined the diversity, composition, and distributions of 4154 endophytic and endolichenic Ascomycota cultured from replicate surveys of ca. 20 plant and lichen species in each of five North American sites (Madrean coniferous forest, Arizona; montane semideciduous forest, North Carolina; scrub forest, Florida; Beringian tundra and forest, western Alaska; subalpine tundra, eastern central Alaska). KEY RESULTS Endolichenic fungi were more abundant and diverse per host species than endophytes, but communities of endophytes were more diverse overall, reflecting high diversity in mosses and lycophytes. Endophytes of vascular plants were largely distinct from fungal communities that inhabit mosses and lichens. Fungi from closely related hosts from different regions were similar in higher taxonomy, but differed at shallow taxonomic levels. These differences reflected climate factors more strongly than geographic distance alone. CONCLUSIONS Our study provides a first evaluation of endophytic and endolichenic fungal associations with their hosts at a continental scale. Both plants and lichens harbor abundant and diverse fungal communities whose incidence, diversity, and composition reflect the interplay of climatic patterns, geographic separation, host type, and host lineage. Although culture-free methods will inform future work, our study sets the stage for empirical assessments of ecological specificity, metabolic capability, and comparative genomics.
Quantification of genistein and daidzein in two endemic Genista species and their antioxidant activity

In the current research, the total and free genistein and daidzein con- tents were determined in two endemic Genista species (G. sandrasica and G. vuralii) by an HPLC method. The highest amount of total genistein and total daidzein was found in G. sandrasica, 0.582 and 0.113 %, respectively, whereas only the free daidzein content of G. sandrasica was higher than that of G. vuralii. The antioxidant activity of the crude methanol and hydrolyzed extracts of these species was evaluated by three in vitro methods; namely DPPH free radical scavenging, ferrous ion-chelating and ferric-reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) tests at 0.25, 0.50, and 1.0 mg ml -1 . The hydrolyzed extracts of both species displayed greater antioxidant activity than the crude methanol extracts in all tests. Total phenol and flavonoid contents in the extracts were determined via the Folin-Ciocalteau and AlCl3 reagents, respectively. G. vuralii was richer in terms of total phenol and flavonoid contents compared to G. sandrasica.
Differences in ethanol sensitivity of brain NMDA receptors of long-sleep and short-sleep mice.

Long-Sleep (LS) and Short-Sleep (SS) mice, selectively bred mice that differ in the duration of anesthesia produced by an acute dose of ethanol, were used to determine the possible association of differing ethanol sensitivity of brain NMDA receptors with differing sensitivity to the anesthetic effects of ethanol in vivo. NMDA receptor-mediated responses were determined by measurement of L-glutamate-stimulated increases in free intracellular calcium concentration (Cai) using the fluorescent indicator for Cai, Indo 1, in microsacs (a cell-free brain membrane vesicle preparation) isolated from hippocampi or cerebral cortices of the two mouse lines. In the absence of added drugs, NMDA responses did not differ between the two lines in hippocampal or cerebrocortical microsacs. However, a high concentration of ethanol (200 mM) inhibited NMDA responses in hippocampal microsacs from LS mice. In contrast, a moderate concentration of ethanol (50 mM) stimulated NMDA responses in hippocampal microsacs isolated from SS mice. In cerebrocortical microsacs, ethanol inhibited NMDA responses in the two lines to an equivalent degree. MK-801, a noncompetitive blocker of NMDA receptors, blocked NMDA responses at lower concentrations in hippocampal microsacs from LS mice than in SS mice, but produced a similar degree of inhibition of NMDA responses in cerebrocortical microsacs from the two lines. A high concentration of ethanol (200 mM) increased resting Cai in hippocampal microsacs from LS mice but not in hippocampal microsacs from SS mice, and increased resting Cai in cerebrocortical microsacs isolated from both lines of mice equally. The small change in resting Cai produced by MK-801 in cerebrocortical microsacs did not differ between the two lines. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
The light regimen and gestation length in the mouse.

The effect of altering the light regimen after copulation upon the duration of pregnancy in mice was investigated. It was found that mice bore young at a constant interval after copulation irrespective of the prevailing light conditions. No evidence was obtained that a light-dependent circadian mechanism determined the delivery time, although the possibility that such a mechanism might be established in the period immediately before mating was not ruled out by the present study. A significant negative correlation of litter size on gestation length was noted.
Enterovirus infection and activation of human umbilical vein endothelial cells

Gastrointestinal tract associated lymphoid tissue is considered to be the main replication site for enteroviruses. In order to invade tissues to reach pancreatic islets, cardiac muscles, and other secondary replication sites, the virus has to survive circulation in the blood and find a way to get through endothelial cells. In the present study, the susceptibility of human endothelial cells to infections caused by human parechovirus 1 and several prototype strains of enteroviruses, representing different species (human poliovirus, human enterovirus B and C), and acting through different receptor families was examined. Primary endothelial cells isolated from human umbilical vein by collagenase perfusion and also an established human endothelial cell line, HUVEC, were used. Primary endothelial cells were highly susceptible to several serotypes of enteroviruses (coxsackievirus A13, echoviruses 6, 7, 11, 30, and poliovirus 1). However, coxsackievirus A 9 and echovirus 1 infected only a few individual cells while human parechovirus 1 and coxsackie B viruses did not show evidence of replication in primary endothelial cells. In general, primary endothelial cells were more sensitive to infection‐induced cytolytic effect than HUVEC. Activation of endothelial cells by interleukin‐1β did not change the pattern of enterovirus infection. Immunofluorescence stainings of infected primary endothelial cells showed that expression of activation markers, E‐selectin, and intercellular adhesion molecule‐1, was clearly increased by several virus infections and the former molecule also by exposing cells to UV‐light inactivated coxsackieviruses. In contrast, human leukocyte antigen‐DR expression was not increased by virus infection. J. Med. Virol. 70:430–439, 2003. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.