Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Hyperandrogenism Decreases GRP78 Protein Level and Glucose Uptake in Human Endometrial Stromal Cells

Background: Women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) exhibit a low fertility by chronic hyperandrogenemia. Different evidence have shown that androgens could regulate the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) homeostasis and glucose metabolism. However, it is unclear whether androgens can exert these effects on human endometrial stromal cells. Our goal was to study the protein content of GRP78 (an ER homeostasis marker) in endometria from women with PCOS and healthy women and to assess the GRP78 protein levels and its relationship with glucose uptake on a human endometrial stromal cell line stimulated with testosterone. Methods: Immunohistochemistry assays for GRP78 were performed on endometrial samples obtained from women with PCOS (n = 8) and control women subjected to hysterectomy (n = 8). Western blot analysis for GRP78 and glucose uptake was assessed in a telomerase-immortalized human endometrial stromal cell line (T-HESC) exposed to testosterone for 24 or 48 hours and challenged to an insulin short-term stimulation. Tukey test was performed for human samples comparison. Student t test or ANOVA–Bonferroni test was carried out according to the in vitro experiment. P < . 05 was considered as significant. Results: GRP78 stromal immunostaining was reduced in PCOS endometria compared to controls (P < .05). The T-HESC shows a testosterone-dependent downregulation of GRP78 protein content (P < .05), concomitant with half-reduction in glucose uptake compared to controls (P < .05). Moreover, enhanced small interfering RNA against GRP78 messenger RNA leads to a decrease in glucose uptake (P < .05). Such effects were reverted by hydroxyflutamide, an inhibitor of androgen receptor. Conclusion: These results suggest that hyperandrogenemic PCOS environment could compromise the endometrial homeostasis confirmed by the decrease in glucose uptake induced by testosterone and exhibited by stromal cells.
Common Dietary Patterns and Risk of Breast Cancer: Analysis From the United Kingdom Women's Cohort Study

The relationship between diet and breast cancer is uncertain. We assessed the relationship of 4 common dietary patterns to the risk of breast cancer using the UK Women's Cohort Study (UKWCS). A total of 35,372 women aged between 35 to 69 yr were recruited from 1995 to 1998. The UKWCS was selected to have a wide range of dietary intakes; 28% were self-reported vegetarian. Diet was assessed at baseline by a 217-item food frequency questionnaire. Four dietary patterns were defined based on a hierarchy of consumption of fish and meat to reflect commonly consumed dietary patterns. Hazards ratios (HRs) were estimated using Cox regression adjusted for known confounders. Subjects were followed up for a mean of 9 yr, and 330 premenopausal and 453 postmenopausal women developed invasive breast cancer. In postmenopausal women, there was a strong inverse association between the fish eating dietary pattern 0.60 (95% CI = 0.38–0.96) but not for a vegetarian pattern 0.85 (95% CI = 0.58–1.25) compared to red meat eaters. There were no statistically significant associations with dietary pattern and risk of premenopausal breast cancer. A fish eating dietary pattern that excludes meat from the diet may confer some benefit with regard to risk of postmenopausal breast cancer.
Interactions among peroxisome proliferator activated receptor-gamma, insulin signaling pathways, and steroidogenic acute regulatory protein in human ovarian cells.

CONTEXT AND OBJECTIVE Peroxisome proliferator activated receptor-gamma (PPAR-gamma) agonists thiazolidinediones (TZDs) are thought to ameliorate hyperandrogenism in polycystic ovary syndrome by reducing hyperinsulinemia. However, TZDs also exhibit direct effects in the human ovary. We examined interactions among PPAR-gamma, insulin signaling pathways, and steroidogenic acute regulatory (StAR) protein in human ovarian cells. MATERIALS AND METHODS Mixed human ovarian tissue culture that contained granulosa, theca, and stromal cells, and a culture of purified granulosa cells obtained during in vitro fertilization, were established as previously described. Cells were cultured in the presence or absence of insulin, with or without 25 or 50 microm rosiglitazone or pioglitazone. Expression of PPAR-gamma, insulin receptor, or insulin receptor substrate (IRS)-1 in both cell systems and of the StAR protein in granulosa cells was measured using immunoprecipitation and immunoblotting. RESULTS Rosiglitazone stimulated expression of PPAR-gamma, insulin receptor alpha- and beta-subunits, and IRS-1 up to 168% (P < 0.05), 679% (P < 0.006), 290% (P < 0.037), and 323% (P < 0.01) of baseline, respectively. Pioglitazone stimulated expression of PPAR-gamma, insulin receptor alpha- and beta-subunits, and IRS-1 up to 222% (P < 0.01), 362% (P < 0.001), 402% (P < 0.029), and 492% (P < 0.03), respectively. Insulin alone stimulated expression of PPAR-gamma, alpha-subunit and beta-subunit of insulin receptor, and IRS-1 up to 174% (P < 0.001), 692% (P < 0.014), 275% (P < 0.024), and 431% (P < 0.01), respectively. In purified granulosa cell culture, rosiglitazone stimulated expression of StAR protein up to 540% (P < 0.007), and pioglitazone stimulated expression of StAR protein up to 670% (P < 0.007). Insulin alone stimulated expression of StAR protein up to 600% (P < 0.012). CONCLUSIONS Insulin and TZDs independently stimulate expression of PPAR-gamma, insulin receptor, IRS-1, and StAR protein in human ovarian cells. Thus, PPAR-gamma, insulin receptor with its signaling pathways, and StAR protein constitute a novel human ovarian regulatory system with complex interactions among its components.
Family firms, institutional development and earnings quality: does family status complement or substitute for weak institutions?

This study combines insights from the socioemotional wealth perspective and institutional and resource-based theories to examine the earning quality of family and nonfamily firms operating in countries characterized by different levels of institutional development. Results based on a cross-sectional sample of firms from 12 European countries show that family status and a country’s level of institutional development are positively related to earnings quality. They also show that institutional development moderates the relationship between family status and earnings quality. Comparing insider-oriented countries that are characterized by lower regulatory and financial development with outsider-oriented countries that are characterized by higher regulatory and financial development, we found that family firms have a higher earnings quality in insider-oriented countries than in outsider-oriented ones. Thus, our study finds support for a substitution effect, whereby family status compensates for the limited capacity of less developed regulations and markets to induce virtuous financial reporting behaviors.
Human Gastric Juice Contains Chitinase That Can Degrade Chitin

Chitin digestion by humans has generally been questioned or denied. Only recently chitinases have been found in several human tissues and their role has been associated with defense against parasite infections and to some allergic conditions. In this pilot study we tested the gastric juices of 25 Italian subjects on the artificial substrates 4-methylumbelliferyl-β-D-N,N’,diacetylchitobiose or/and fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) chitin to demonstrate the presence of a chitinase activity. Since this chitinase activity was demonstrated at acidic pH, it is currently referred to acidic mammalian chitinase (AMCase). AMCase activity was present in gastric juices of twenty of 25 Italian patients in a range of activity from 0.21 to 36.27 nmol/ml/h and from 8,881 to 1,254,782 fluorescence emission (CPS), according to the used methods. In the remaining five of 25 gastric juices, AMCase activity was almost absent in both assay methods. An allosamidine inhibition test and the measurement at different pH values confirmed that this activity was characteristic of AMCase. The absence of activity in 20% of the gastric juices may be a consequence of virtual absence of chitinous food in the Western diet.
Smoking-cessation media campaigns and their effectiveness among socioeconomically advantaged and disadvantaged populations.

OBJECTIVES We examined whether the impact of televised smoking cessation ads differed by a population's education and income. METHODS We used longitudinal data from the Wisconsin Behavioral Health Survey, a statewide sample of 452 adult smokers who were interviewed in 2003 to 2004 and followed up 1 year later. Logistic regression was used to assess whether baseline recall of secondhand smoke ads and "keep trying to quit" ads was associated with quit attempts and smoking abstinence at 1 year. Interaction terms were used to assess whether these associations differed by the smokers' education and income levels. RESULTS Overall, neither keep-trying-to-quit nor secondhand smoke ad recall was associated with quit attempts or smoking abstinence. Keep-trying-to-quit ads were significantly more effective in promoting quit attempts among higher-versus lower-educated populations. No differences were observed for secondhand smoke ads by the smokers' education or income levels. CONCLUSIONS Some media campaign messages appear less effective in promoting quit attempts among less-educated populations compared with those who have more education. There is a need to develop media campaigns that are more effective with less-educated smokers.
Differential myelinogenic capacity of specific developmental stages of the oligodendrocyte lineage upon transplantation into hypomyelinating hosts

The capacity of oligodendrocytes (OLs) and their progenitors to migrate, proliferate, and differentiate in vivo was evaluated by transplanting highly enriched populations of sequential stage of the OL lineage (A2B5+ O4−, O4+ GalC−, and GalC+) into the telencephalon of the hypomyelinating mouse, shiverer. The shiverer mouse neither expresses the major myelin basic protein (MBP) nor makes normal myelin due to a large deletion in the gene for MBP. Thirty days after transplantation, serial 225 μm sections of the host brain were immunostained with antiserum to MBP and analyzed by confocal microscopy. The presence of MBP+ patches of myelin in the otherwise MBP− host brain allowed a retrospective analysis of the myelinogenic activity of the transplanted progenitors cells. Both the extent of MBP+ myelin and the location of MBP+ structures relative to the initial site of cell deposition were highly dependent on the developmental stage of the transplanted cells. Specifically, A2B5+ O4− OL progenitors migrated distances of ≥ 600 μm and produced MBP+ patches in nearly every slice of the host brain. An average of over 250 separate patches were found per host brain, some of which had cross‐sectional areas of > 250,000 μm2 containing as many as 60 MBP+ OL cell bodies, and with densities of myelination rivaling that of normal brain. In marked contrast, transplantation of O4+ GalC− cells produced only small (1,000–25,000 μm2), scattered (25–40 per brain) patches of MBP+ myelin containing one to five cell bodies, all of which were within 50 μm of the needle track or the nearest ventricular surface. GalC+ cells produced MBP+ myelin at a level similar to that of O4+ CalC− cells. These data suggest that the developmental transition of OL progenitors from the O4− to the O4+ pheno‐type is accompanied by a dramatic reduction in the innate capacity of the cells to migrate and survive in vivo. The use of developmentally identified, enriched populations of OL progenitor cells offers the opportunity for more precise analyses of transplantation and remyelination behavior, and relates to clinically relevant studies indicating that contaminant cell types can seriously interfere with the stable integration of donor tissue into the host. © 1993 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Benefits of Adaptive Signal Processing in a Commercially Available Cochlear Implant Sound Processor

Objective Cochlear implant recipients often experience difficulty understanding speech in noise. The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the potential improvement in speech recognition in noise provided by an adaptive, commercially available sound processor that performs acoustic scene classification and automatically adjusts input signal processing to maximize performance in noise. Research Design Within-subjects, repeated-measures design. Setting This multicenter study was conducted across five sites in the U.S.A. and Australia. Patients Ninety-three adults and children with Nucleus Freedom, CI422, and CI512 cochlear implants. Intervention Subjects (previous users of the Nucleus 5 sound processor) were fitted with the Nucleus 6 sound processor. Performance was assessed while these subjects used each sound processor in the manufacturer’s recommended default program (standard directionality, ASC + ADRO for the Nucleus 5 processor and ASC + ADRO and SNR-NR with SCAN for the Nucleus 6 sound processor). The subjects were also evaluated with the Nucleus 6 with standard directionality, ASC + ADRO and SNR-NR enabled but SCAN disabled. Main Outcome Measures Speech recognition in noise was assessed with AzBio sentences. Results Sentence recognition in noise was significantly better with the Nucleus 6 sound processor when used with the default input processing (ASC + ADRO, SNR-NR, and SCAN) compared to performance with the Nucleus 5 sound processor and default input processing (standard directionality, ASC + ADRO). Specifically, use of the Nucleus 6 at default settings resulted in a mean improvement in sentence recognition in noise of 27 percentage points relative to performance with the Nucleus 5 sound processor. Use of the Nucleus 6 sound processor using standard directionality, ASC + ADRO and SNR-NR (SCAN disabled) resulted in a mean improvement of 9 percentage points in sentence recognition in noise compared to performance with the Nucleus 5. Conclusion The results of this study suggest that the Nucleus 6 sound processor with acoustic scene classification, automatic, adaptive directionality, and speech enhancement in noise processing provides significantly better speech recognition in noise when compared to performance with the Nucleus 5 processor.
Abscisic Acid Regulates Axillary Bud Outgrowth Responses to the Ratio of Red to Far-Red Light1[C][W][OPEN]

ABA regulates bud outgrowth responses to the ratio of red to far-red light, extending the known hormonal pathways associated with the regulation of branching and shade avoidance. Low red light/far-red light ratio (R:FR) serves as an indicator of impending competition and has been demonstrated to suppress branch development. The regulation of Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) rosette bud outgrowth by the R:FR and the associated mechanisms were investigated at several levels. Growth under low R:FR suppressed outgrowth of the third from topmost bud (bud n-2) but not that of the topmost bud. Subsequently increasing the R:FR near the time of anthesis promoted bud n-2 outgrowth and reduced topmost bud growth. Buds from specific rosette positions, exhibiting divergent fates to increased R:FR, were harvested 3 h after modifying the R:FR and were used to conduct ATH1 microarray-based transcriptome profiling. Differentially expressed genes showed enrichment of light signaling and hormone-related Gene Ontology terms and promoter motifs, most notably those associated with abscisic acid (ABA). Genes associated with ABA biosynthesis, including the key biosynthetic gene NINE-CIS-EPOXYCAROTENOID DIOXYGENASE3 (NCED3), and with ABA signaling were expressed at higher levels in the responsive bud n-2, and increasing the R:FR decreased their expression only in bud n-2. ABA abundance in responsive buds decreased within 12 h of increasing the R:FR, while indole-3-acetic acid levels did not change. A role for ABA in repressing bud outgrowth from lower positions under low R:FR was demonstrated using the nced3-2 and aba2-1 ABA biosynthesis mutants, which showed enhanced branching and a defective bud n-2 outgrowth response to low R:FR. The results provide evidence that ABA regulates bud outgrowth responses to the R:FR and thus extend the known hormonal pathways associated with the regulation of branching and shade avoidance.
« You say you want a revolution… »Contribution à la réflexion pour une politique des langues adap

Les effets de la reforme LMD sur les formations a l’universite et, plus particulierement, sur celles issues du secteur LANSAD sont, malgre leur ampleur, relativement peu mesures. Par ailleurs, l’autonomie grandissante des universites a conduit au developpement relativement anarchique des formations en langues, posant indeniablement un probleme de lisibilite et, par la-meme, de legitimite de ce secteur a forts enjeux. A partir d’une enquete principalement fondee sur un questionnaire renseigne par vingt-trois universites francaises, nous dressons un premier bilan institutionnel en demi-teinte du secteur LANSAD. Les resultats montrent tout d’abord que la reforme LMD a conduit a certains effets benefiques, en particulier, le fort developpement des cours d’anglais de specialite des le niveau de la licence. Au-dela de cette tendance tres generale cependant, les participants font part d’un sentiment de frustration face au probleme de l’inadequation entre les besoins en matiere d’enseignement-apprentissage des langues et les moyens institutionnels mis en œuvre pour y repondre.
Ovarian Cancer Cells Polarize Macrophages Toward A Tumor-Associated Phenotype1

Tumor-associated macrophages (TAM) may have tumor-promoting activity, but it is not clear how their phenotype is achieved. In this study, we demonstrate that ovarian cancer cells switch cocultured macrophages to a phenotype similar to that found in ovarian tumors. Tumor cells caused dynamic changes in macrophage cytokine, chemokine, and matrix metalloprotease mRNA, and protein-inducing mediators that are found in human cancer. Macrophage mannose, mannose receptor, and scavenger receptors (SR-As) were also up-regulated by coculture, but not by conditioned medium. To further validate the model, we studied SR-A regulation on TAM in vitro and in vivo. Coculture of murine macrophages from mice deficient in TNF-α or its receptors revealed that TNF-α was key to SR-A induction via its p75 receptor. SR-A expression was also reduced in TAM from ovarian cancers treated with anti-TNF-α Abs or grown in TNF-α−/− mice. Chemical communication between tumor cells and macrophages may be important in regulating the cancer cytokine microenvironment.
Micronucleus Frequencies in Lymphocytes and Reticulocytes in a Pesticide-Exposed Population in Portugal

A wide range of chemical products known to be acutely toxic is currently used in the agricultural sector, including numerous pesticides with different compositions. Nevertheless, the effects in human health as result of chronic exposure to low levels are not yet completely understood. The methodology for determination of micronuclei (MN) in lymphocytes (CBMN) is well established, and accumulating data demonstrated a correlation to enhanced risk of cancer development. However, analysis of MN in reticulocytes (MN-RET) in humans is a recent tool on human biomonitoring. The aim of this study was to examine the influence of pesticide exposure on MN-RET and CBMN frequencies. In total, 177 individuals were studied (93 controls and 84 exposed). All individuals included in the exposed group were exposed regularly to various chemicals. Both MN-RET and CBMN were significantly higher in the exposed subjects compared to controls. The CBMN frequencies were quantitatively higher in females than males, especially within the exposed group. Smoking habits exerted no marked influence on the frequency of the biomarkers studied. A significant and positive correlation was found between both indicators. Within the exposed group, data showed that there was a significant correlation between MN-RET and recent exposure (exposure in the previous 10 d) that is not found when considering CBMN. It is conceivable that due to the short life span of reticulocytes, MN-RET were found to be more reliable to characterize recent genetic damage as opposed to CBMN.
Floor Pen Study to Evaluate the Serological Response of Broiler Breeders After Vaccination with ts-11 Strain Mycoplasma gallisepticum Vaccine

Abstract To determine the Mycoplasma gallisepticum (MG) rapid serum plate agglutination (RSPA) test response of broiler breeders after ts-11 strain vaccination, 55 Cobb pullets derived from a nonvaccinated, MG-negative, commercial, broiler breeder grandparent flock were monitored from 8 to 20 wk of age (over a 12-wk trial period). To evaluate the effect of lateral spread of the ts-11 vaccine strain on RSPA test results from commingled and adjacently penned birds, treatment groups included (A) birds vaccinated with ts-11strain MG at 8 wk of age, (B) commingled nonvaccinates in the same pen as the vaccinated birds, (C) nonvaccinates in a second pen separated from the first pen by a distance of 2 m, and (D) birds vaccinated with ts-11 strain MG at 8 wk of age and kept in a separate room. Rapid serum plate agglutination tests were performed once a week for 6 wk and then every 2 wk for 6 more wk, postvaccination. A polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay specific for ts-11 strain MG was used to confirm vaccination, and a second PCR specific for non-ts-11 strain MG was used to confirm the absence of field infection. Seroconversion was first detected by the RSPA test 2 wk postvaccination and attained maximum positive rates of 58% at 12 wk postvaccination in treatment A and 60% at 8 wk postvaccination in treatment D. Seroconversion rates in nonvaccinated, commingled pullets was 10% at 5 wk and 30% at 12 wk after the vaccination of pen mates. The ts-11-specific PCR detected the vaccine strain in 80%–100% of the vaccinated birds 2 wk after vaccination. One of 15 nonvaccinated birds penned 2 m from vaccinated birds yielded ts-11 by PCR assay 12 wk after vaccination, which indicates that the spread of ts-11 over short distances may be possible in situations in which there is a common caretaker. PCR on tracheal swabs taken 12 wk postvaccination detected ts-11 in 50% and 60% of the vaccinated birds in treatments A and D, respectively; in 30% of the commingled nonvaccinates; and in 6.6% of the separately penned nonvaccinates. In contrast, choanal swabs collected from vaccinated birds at 12 wk were 21% and 40% PCR positive for ts-11 strain MG, while those from nonvaccinates were negative. All samples were PCR negative for field strain MG. The pattern of seroconversion as measured by RSPA test in small groups of broiler breeders was different from that previously reported for leghorns. Lateral spread of the ts-11 strain to commingled pen mates occurred rapidly, causing RSPA seroconversion patterns that mimicked those of the vaccinated pen mates.