Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effects of preslaughter muscle exercise on muscle metabolism and meat quality studied in anesthetized pigs of different halothane genotypes.

The influence of preslaughter muscle activity was studied on porcine muscle metabolism and meat quality, whereas other stress factors were minimized. Muscle exercise was stimulated by electrical pulses in anesthetized pigs of different halothane genotypes (NN, Nn, nn). A part of the LM and SM was stimulated during the last 15 min of a 45-min period of anesthesia. The contralateral part of each muscle was taken as a non-stimulated control. Antemortem blood and muscle biopsy samples were taken to study the muscle energy metabolism by measuring different metabolites. The same metabolites and certain meat quality characteristics were determined after slaughter. Stimulated muscle exercise led to lower (P < .01) antemortem glycogen and creatine phosphate concentrations and increased (P < .01) lactate and creatine values in pigs of all halothane genotypes. No difference was seen between the three halothane genotypes in the measured glycogen breakdown just before slaughter. Postmortem glycolysis differed between pigs of different halothane genotypes. This resulted in lower (P < .05) glycogen and creatine phosphate values and higher (P < .05) lactate and creatine concentrations for nn pigs than for NN pigs, with intermediate metabolite concentrations for Nn pigs. Water-holding capacity was lower (P < .05) in exercised muscles of NN and Nn pigs than in the muscles of controls. Meat color was only lighter (P < .05) after muscle stimulation in NN pigs. The exercise did not deteriorate the already light color and lower water-holding capacity in nn pigs. Muscle pH can already be low at slaughter and is not only the result of an increased postmortem glycolysis. Preslaughter muscle exercise is relatively more important in determining meat quality from NN and Nn pigs.
Effect Mechanism of Error Management Climate on Innovation Behavior: An Investigation From Chinese Entrepreneurs

Errors are inevitable in an increasingly risky and dynamic entrepreneurial environment. The error management and the error climate perceived by the members are crucial to the subsequent innovation behaviors. Maintaining and improving the psychological capital of entrepreneurs under errors is not only the psychological activities of entrepreneurs themselves but also a critical management process in which an organization can influence the psychological factors and behaviors of entrepreneurs through error management climate. In the context of Chinese culture, this study explores the influence of error management climate on entrepreneurial self-efficacy and innovation behavior under the boundary condition of Zhongyong thinking. Two hundred ninety samples of Chinese entrepreneurs are empirically analyzed in this study, and results show that: (1) error management climate and entrepreneurial self-efficacy have significant positive effects on entrepreneurs’ innovation behavior; (2) entrepreneurial self-efficacy mediates the relationship between error management climate and innovation behavior; and (3) Zhongyong thinking plays moderating roles in the process of error management climate influencing innovation behavior. This study complements the entrepreneurship literature with its focus on error management climate as an essential antecedent of entrepreneurial self-efficacy, and promotes an understanding of how Chinese practitioners promote innovative behavior from a cultural perspective.
Morphological and Biochemical Identification of Apoptosis in Small, Medium, and Large Bovine Follicles and the Effects of Follicle-Stimulating Hormone and Insulin-Like Growth Factor-I on Spontaneous Apoptosis in Cultured Bovine Granulosa Cells1

Abstract The first objective of this study was to determine whether the death of bovine granulosa cells (GC) isolated from small (≤ 4 mm), medium (5–8 mm), and large (> 8 mm) follicles during follicular atresia occurs by apoptosis. The second objective was to establish an in vitro model system to elucidate the developmental (GC from follicles of different sizes) and hormonal (FSH and insulin-like growth factor-I [IGF-I]) regulation of bovine GC apoptosis during follicular atresia. Bovine ovaries were obtained from a nearby slaughterhouse. Follicles were classified by morphometric criteria as healthy or atretic. Apoptosis in GC from follicles of different sizes was analyzed by both morphological and biochemical methods. Bovine GC were cultured for 48 h at a density of 5 × 106 cells/ml in serum-free media at 39°C to determine the effects of FSH and IGF-I on apoptosis. The results showed that apoptosis occurred in GC from all sizes of follicles. Apoptosis in GC was also detected in some healthy follicles. Degenerate GC displayed the morphological characteristics of apoptosis, including nuclei with marginated chromatin, a single condensed nucleus, multiple nuclear fragments, and/or membrane-bound structures containing variable amounts of chromatin and/or cytoplasm (apoptotic bodies). All GC classified as apoptotic on the basis of their morphology contained fragmented DNA measured by the terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end-labeling (TUNEL) technique. Cells that had undergone apoptosis were observed mainly in GC and in scattered theca cells. Throughout the GC layer, apoptotic cell death was more prevalent among antral GC than among mural GC. Interestingly, morphological results showed that no apoptosis occurred in cumulus cells. A time-dependent, spontaneous onset of apoptosis occurred in GC from small, medium, and large follicles during in vitro serum-free culture. The rate of DNA fragmentation in the culture of GC from small follicles was higher than that from medium and large follicles. FSH attenuated apoptotic cell death in GC from medium follicles more effectively than in those from small follicles. IGF-I also suppressed apoptosis in cultured GC from small follicles. In conclusion, this study showed that 1) GC death during bovine follicular development and atresia occurs by apoptosis; 2) apoptosis occurs in GC and theca cells; however, apoptosis does not occur in cumulus cells even in atretic antral follicles; 3) GC from all small, medium, and large follicles undergo spontaneous onset of apoptosis when cultured under serum-free conditions; and 4) FSH and IGF-I can attenuate apoptosis in cultured bovine GC.
On comparing the accuracy of default predictions in the rating industry

We consider 1927 borrowers from 54 countries who had a credit rating by both Moody’s and S&P at the end of 1998, and their subsequent default history up to the end of 2002. Viewing bond ratings as predicted probabilities of default, we consider partial orderings among competing probability forecasters and show that Moody’s and S&P cannot be ordered according to any of these. Therefore, the relative performance of the agencies depends crucially on the way in which probability predictions are compared.
Hormone Replacement Therapy and Chronic Graft‐versus‐Host Disease Activity in Women Treated with Bone Marrow Transplantation for Hematologic Malignancies

Abstract: Several lines of experimental evidence suggest that sex hormones may influence the development and activity of chronic graft‐versus‐host disease (cGVHD), which frequently occurs in patients undergoing allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (ABMT). Following ABMT, young women are commonly treated with hormone replacement therapy (HRT) because of irreversible gonadal failure. It seemed therefore worthwhile to investigate the effects of this therapy on the activity of cGVHD. Premenopausal women treated with ABMT for hematological malignancies between January 1997 and December 2000 were evaluated for cGVHD activity. They were divided into two groups, depending on whether or not they were treated with HRT. Seventy‐one women qualified for the present study: 39 received HRT (treated group), while 32 did not (controls). In both groups of patients, cGVHD activity score was comparable before the start of HRT. No differences were observed in cGVHD activity score between the HRT group and controls after 3, 6, 12, and 24 months from the start of HRT. Furthermore, HRT did not induce any increase in the cGVHD activity score in the treated group of patients at any time from the start of HRT. According to present data, HRT did not appear to influence the activity of cGVHD in young women who underwent ABMT for hematological malignancies. Therefore, we can safely propose this therapy for women with gonadal failure after ABMT.
Clinically used breast cancer markers such as estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 are unstable throughout tumor progression.

PURPOSE To investigate whether hormonal receptors and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) change throughout tumor progression, because this may alter patient management. PATIENTS AND METHODS The study cohort included female patients with breast cancer in the Stockholm health care region who relapsed from January 1, 1997, to December 31, 2007. Either biochemical or immunohistochemical (IHC)/immunocytochemical (ICC) methods were used to determine estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR), and HER2 status, which was then confirmed by fluorescent in situ hybridization for IHC/ICC 2+ and 3+ status. Results ER (459 patients), PR (430 patients), and HER2 (104 patients) from both primary tumor and relapse were assessed, revealing a change in 32.4% (McNemar's test P < .001), 40.7% (P < .001), and 14.5% (P = .44) of patients, respectively. Assessment of ER (119 patients), PR (116 patients), and HER2 (32 patients) with multiple (from two to six) consecutive relapses showed an alteration in 33.6%, 32.0%, and 15.7% of patients, respectively. A statistically significant differential overall survival related to intraindividual ER and PR status in primary tumor and relapse (log-rank P < .001) was noted. In addition, women with ER-positive primary tumors that changed to ER-negative tumors had a significant 48% increased risk of death (hazard ratio, 1.48; 95% CI, 1.08 to 2.05) compared with women with stable ER-positive tumors. CONCLUSION Patients with breast cancer experience altered hormone receptor and HER2 status throughout tumor progression, possibly influenced by adjuvant therapies, which significantly influences survival. Hence, marker investigations at relapse may potentially improve patient management and survival.
Disadvantaged students and art school: the outcasts on the inside between acquiescence and contestation

ABSTRACT This research explores the educational experiences from a qualitative perspective with in-depth interviews and focus groups with disadvantaged young pupils. The research takes place in two secondary art schools in Milan. I define art in the space of educational choices, in a Bourdieusian perspective. This type of school is an ambivalent practical lyceum. I study the meanings of this choice, the educational representations and attitudes of the students as well as the ambitions for the future. I investigate the school choice, the learner identity and the creative aspiration as classed concepts by means of cultural capital and habitus tools. The social class determines the way in which students orient themselves towards creative educational routes and professional future careers. A research of mediocrity and modesty characterises their dispositions towards school and art. The educational artistic experience is considered as a merely autotelic practice without value and relevance to their life. The disadvantaged young students are incomplete neo-liberal subjectivities and their life projects are undefined in terms of tools, aims and trajectories. In sum, I examine the role of secondary art school to reproduce the social disadvantages in terms of educational and professional aspirations.
Transgenic expression of Cre recombinase in mitral/tufted cells of the olfactory bulb

Olfactory information is conveyed from the periphery to the olfactory cortices through mitral and tufted (M/T) cells in the olfactory bulb. A mouse with a specific expression of Cre recombinase in M/T cells is essential for genetic marking of M/T cells and manipulating their properties. Protocadherin 21 (Pcdh21) expression is highly restricted to M/T cells. Here we report a transgenic mouse line, Pcdh21‐Cre, in which ˜10‐kb mouse Pcdh21 promoter drives the expression of Cre recombinase. In Pcdh21‐Cre mice, Cre recombinase activity is predominantly detected in M/T cells, visualized with the anti‐CFP immunostaining in offspring of a cross between Pcdh21‐Cre and the reporter Rosa26‐loxP‐stop‐loxP‐CFP strain. These results demonstrate that the ˜10‐kb Pcdh21 promoter can drive transcription in M/T cells and Pcdh21‐Cre mice can be used to excise floxed DNA fragments in M/T cells, which provides a valuable tool to reveal the structure and function of the central olfactory circuits. genesis 43:12–16, 2005. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Patterns of metal accumulation in leaves of the tidal marsh plants Spartina alterniflora Loisel and Phragmites australis Cav. Trin ex Steud. Over the growing season

In earlier greenhouse and field studies, we found that upper leaves of Phragmites australis (common reed) and Spartina alterniflora (cord grass) tended to have lower levels of metals than lower leaves. Since lower leaves are produced earlier in the season and are older than upper leaves, there are two possibilities: (1) leaves produced earlier in the season have more metals than those produced later and/or (2) individual leaves continue to accumulate metals during their lifespan. We tested these two hypotheses by numbering all leaves as they emerged from both species of plants growing in Cu-, Pb-, or Zn-contaminated vermiculite in a greenhouse. We removed tissue from the new odd-numbered leaves for metal analysis, and then analyzed the remaining half-leaves later in the season when they had senesced. We could thus compare initial and final metal levels in individual leaves and compare the final metal levels in leaves that emerged early (low numbered leaves) with those that emerged later. We found that hypothesis 2 was supported, since initial levels in individual leaves tended to be lower than the final levels. Hypothesis 1 was not generally supported for either species. We also found very great variation in both initial and final metal levels in leaves on the same plant and in different plants of the same species exposed to the same metal concentration. This suggests that scientists who are sampling leaves of these species in the field should collect many leaves and pool them to get accurate data, since individual leaves are not representative of the plant as a whole.
Genetics of development time in a butterfly: predictions from optimality and a test by subspecies crossing

Earlier studies on adaptive plasticity in development time and diapause regulation in the speckled wood butterfly, Pararge aegeria L. , have been based on optimality models and have not considered genetics. Nevertheless, they have been successful in predicting patterns observed. From the results of these studies we predicted the genetics of larval and pupal development time, as well as of diapause control, to be polygenic and sex linked. We show that this is the case by crossing a population of the northern subspecies P. a. tircis from southern Sweden, which shows a diapause in some daylengths and is protandrous, with a population of the southern subspecies P. a. aegeria from Madeira. The latter inhabits a much less seasonal environment, develops directly at all daylengths, and is not protandrous. Offspring showed variable and intermediate larval and pupal development times when reared at daylengths inducing diapause in Swedish pure stock. Female offspring were more similar to their mothers in the reciprocal crosses, whereas development time in male offspring was not sensitive to the direction of the cross. This suggests the presence of a sex-linked modifying factor. The results show that the outcome of tests of optimality models can be used to predict genetic systems.
Assessment of Mitochondrial Membrane Potential in HEI-OC1 and LLC-PK1 Cells Treated with Gentamicin and Mitoquinone

Objective To determine the effects of concurrent treatment with gentamicin and the mitochondria-targeted antioxidant mitoquinone (MitoQ; which may prevent gentamicin ototoxicity) on change in the mitochondrial membrane potential (Δψm), a precursor of apoptosis. Study Design Prospective and controlled. Setting Academic research laboratory. Subjects and Methods LLC-PK1 (Lilly Laboratories Culture–Pig Kidney Type 1) and HEI-OC1 (House Ear Institute Organ of Corti 1) cells—renal and auditory cell lines, respectively—were used in this study. Δψm was assessed by flow cytometry through the MitoProbe JC-1 Kit for Flow Cytometry in untreated LLC-PK1 and HEI-OC1 cells and cells exposed to low- (100µM) or high- (2000µM) dose gentamicin for 24 hours, with and without 0. 5µM each of MitoQ or idebenone (IDB; an untargeted ubiquinone). Results Δψm was not different in untreated LLC-PK1 cells and cells coincubated with low-dose gentamicin and MitoQ or IDB (P > .05). In HEI-OC1 cells, coincubation with low-dose gentamicin and MitoQ decreased Δψm (P = .002). Coincubation of LLC-PK1 cells with high-dose gentamicin and DMSO, MitoQ, or IDB depolarized Δψm (P < .0001), with MitoQ depolarizing the Δψm to a greater extent than that of IDB (P = .03). In contrast, HEI-OC1 cells demonstrated a hyperpolarized Δψm when coincubated with high-dose gentamicin and DMSO, MitoQ, or IDB (P < .001). Conclusion The combination of gentamicin and MitoQ holds the potential to disrupt Δψm. This suggests a heightened need to monitor for toxicity in patients receiving both agents.
Phase II trial of topotecan and cisplatin in persistent or recurrent squamous and nonsquamous carcinomas of the cervix.

OBJECTIVE Cisplatin is a standard treatment in advanced, recurrent cervical cancer. Because topotecan is an established treatment in gynecologic malignancies such as ovarian cancer and exhibits nonoverlapping toxicity with cisplatin, a phase II trial was conducted to evaluate the tolerability and antitumor activity of a cisplatin/topotecan doublet in persistent or recurrent cervical cancer patients. METHODS Patients with bidimensionally measurable persistent or recurrent squamous cell and non squamous cell cervical cancer and adequate bone marrow were enrolled. Patients received 50 mg/m(2) of cisplatin intravenously over 1 h on Day 1 and 0.75 mg/m(2) of topotecan intravenously over 30 min on Days 1, 2, and 3 of 21-day cycles for six cycles or until disease progression. Tumor response and regimen toxicity were assessed using established Gynecologic Oncology Group criteria. RESULTS Thirty-two of 35 enrolled patients were evaluable for toxicity and tumor response. All but 2 evaluable patients had received previous radiotherapy. No patient received prior chemotherapy. The cisplatin/topotecan doublet was well tolerated, with 77 and 78% of courses given without interruption or delay and at full doses, respectively. As anticipated, the most common toxicity was hematologic, with grade 3/4 neutropenia and thrombocytopenia reported in 30 and 10% of cycles, respectively. The overall response rate was 28% (9/32), with 3 complete and 6 partial responses. The antitumor response in nonirradiated fields (30%) was similar to the response observed in previously irradiated fields (33%), suggesting good drug penetration. Median duration of response was 5 months (range, 2 to 15+ months). An additional 9 (28%) patients achieved stable disease. Median survival was 10 months, with 3 patients in lasting remission. CONCLUSIONS These results demonstrate that the cisplatin/topotecan combination is safe, well tolerated, and active in persistent or recurrent cervical cancer patients. A phase III, multicenter trial is under way (cisplatin/topotecan versus cisplatin) based on these favorable results to confirm the safety and efficacy profile in this patient population.
Predictors of Proctocolectomy in Children With Ulcerative Colitis

Objectives: Few clinical predictors are associated with definitive proctocolectomy in children with ulcerative colitis (UC). The purpose of the present study was to identify clinical predictors associated with surgery in children with UC using a disease-specific database. Methods: Children diagnosed with UC at age <18 years were identified using the Pediatric Inflammatory Bowel Disease Consortium (PediIBDC) database. Demographic and clinical variables from January 1999 to November 2003 were extracted alongside incidence and surgical staging. Results: Review of the PediIBDC database identified 406 children with UC. Approximately half were girls (51%) with an average age at diagnosis of 10.6 ± 4.4 years in both boys and girls. Average follow-up was 6.8 (±4.0) years. Of the 57 (14%) who underwent surgery, median time to surgery was 3.8 (interquartile range 4.9) years after initial diagnosis. Children presenting with weight loss (hazard ratio [HR] 2.55, 99% confidence interval [CI] 1.21–5.35) or serum albumin <3.5 g/dL (HR 6.05, 99% CI 2.15–17.04) at time of diagnosis and children with a first-degree relative with UC (HR 1.81, 99% CI 1.25–2.61) required earlier surgical intervention. Furthermore, children treated with cyclosporine (HR 6.11, 99% CI 3.90–9.57) or tacrolimus (HR 3.66, 99% CI 1.60–8.39) also required earlier surgical management. Other symptoms, laboratory tests, and medical therapies were not predictive for need of surgery. Conclusion: Children with UC presenting with hypoalbuminemia, weight loss, a family history of UC, and those treated with calcineurin inhibitors frequently require restorative proctocolectomy for definitive treatment. Early identification and recognition of these factors should be used to shape treatment goals and initiate multidisciplinary care at the time of diagnosis.
Threshold effect of urinary glycosaminoglycans and the walk test as indicators of disease progression in a survey of subjects with Mucopolysaccharidosis VI (Maroteaux–Lamy syndrome)

A cross‐sectional survey in individuals affected with the lysosomal storage disease Mucopolysaccharidosis VI (MPS VI) was conducted to establish demographics, urinary glycosaminoglycan (GAG) levels, and clinical progression of the disease. The survey evaluated 121 bona fide MPS VI‐affected individuals over the age of 4 years from 15 countries across the Americas, Europe, and Australasia representing greater than 10% of the estimated world prevalence of the disease. A medical history, complete physical exam, urinary GAG determination, and assessment of several clinical measures related to physical endurance, pulmonary function, joint range of motion, strength, and quality of life were completed for each participant. Although a wide variation in clinical presentation was observed, several general findings were obtained reflecting progression of the disease. Impaired physical endurance, as measured by the distance achieved in a 6‐min walk, could be demonstrated across all age groups of MPS VI‐affected individuals. High urinary GAG values (>200 μg/mg creatinine) were associated with an accelerated clinical course comprised of age‐adjusted short stature and low body weight, impaired endurance, compromised pulmonary function, and reduced joint range of motion. An unexpected result was the predominance of urinary GAG values <100 μg/mg creatinine for those participants over the age of 20 years. Pending the collection of longitudinal data, these results suggest that urinary GAG levels predict clinical morbidity, and longer‐term survival is associated with urinary GAG levels below a threshold of 100 μg/mg creatinine. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.