Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Clinical outcome of patients with follicular lymphoma receiving chemoimmunotherapy in the PRIMA study is not affected by FCGR3A and FCGR2A polymorphisms.

In patients with follicular lymphoma treated with single-agent rituximab, single nucleotide polymorphisms in the FCGR3A gene are known to influence response and progression-free survival. The prognostic role of FCGR3A and FCGR2A polymorphisms in patients with follicular lymphoma treated with rituximab and chemotherapy combination remains controversial and has not been evaluated in the context of rituximab maintenance. FCGR3A and FCGR2A single nucleotide polymorphisms were evaluated in, respectively, 460 and 455 patients treated in the PRIMA study to investigate whether these were associated with response rate and patient outcome after rituximab chemotherapy induction and 2-year rituximab maintenance. In this representative patient cohort, complete and unconfirmed complete responses after rituximab chemotherapy were observed in 65%, 67%, 66% (P = .86) and 60%, 72%, 66% (P = .21) of FCGR3A VV, VF, FF and FCGR2A HH, HR, RR carriers, respectively. After 2 years of rituximab maintenance (or observation), response rates did not differ among the different genotypes. Progression-free survival measured from either treatment initiation or randomization to observation or maintenance was not influenced by these polymorphisms. These data indicate that FCGR3A and FCGR2A polymorphisms do not influence response rate and outcome when rituximab is combined with chemotherapy or used as maintenance treatment. The PRIMA study is registered at www.clinicaltrials. gov as NCT00140582.
The Effects of Kainic Acid Injections on Guanylate Cyclase Activity in the Rat Caudatoputamen, Nucleus Accumbens and Septum

The activity of soluble and particulate guanylate cyclase (EC 4.6.1.2) has been compared with the distribution of neurotransmitter candidates in three rat forebrain nuclei, and the effects of local kainic acid injections into these nuclei have been tested. Soluble guanylate cyclase was highly concentrated in both the caudatoputamen and the nucleus accumbens, with lower activity found in the septum. This distribution coincided with markers for acetylcholine and monoamines, but not with markers for γ‐aminobutyrate (GABA) or glutamate neurons. In contrast, particulate guanylate cyclase was equally active in all regions. Local injections of kainic acid, which destroyed cholinergic and GABA neurons in the caudatoputamen and in the nucleus accumbens, caused a rapid (70–90%) decrease in the soluble guanylate cyclase and a slower 50‐60% fall in the particulate guanylate cyclase in these nuclei. In the septum, where kainate destroyed GABA cells but not cholinergic neurons, the guanylate cyclase activity was unchanged after the lesion. Thus, both the soluble and particulate guanylate cyclases appear to be concentrated in local neurons in the caudatoputamen and nucleus accumbens. In the septum, however, most of the guanylate cyclase activity is located outside kainate‐sensitive neurons.
Posttransplant Metabolic Syndrome in the Withdrawal of Immunosuppression in Pediatric Liver Transplant Recipients (WISP‐R) Pilot Trial

Posttransplant metabolic syndrome (PTMS)—obesity, hypertension, elevated triglycerides, low HDL and glucose intolerance—is a major contributor to morbidity after adult liver transplant. This analysis of the Withdrawal of Immunosuppression in Pediatric Liver Transplant Recipients (WISP‐R) pilot trial is the first prospective study of PTMS after pediatric liver transplant. Twenty children were enrolled in WISP‐R, at median age 8.5 years (IQR 6.4–10.8), and weaned from calcineurin‐inhibitor monotherapy. The 12 children who tolerated complete immunosuppression withdrawal were compared to matched historical controls. At baseline, 45% of WISP‐R subjects and 58% of controls had at least one component of PTMS. Calcineurin‐inhibitor withdrawal in the WISP‐R subjects did not impact the prevalence of PTMS components compared to controls. At 5 years, despite weaning off of immunosuppression, 92% of the 12 tolerant WISP‐R subjects had at least one PTMS component and 58% had at least two; 33% were overweight or obese, 50% had dyslipidemia, 33% glucose intolerance and 42% systolic hypertension. Overweight/obesity increased the risk of hypertension in all children. Compared to controls, WISP‐R tolerant subjects had similar GFR at baseline but did have higher GFR at 2, 3 and 4 years. Further study of PTMS and immunosuppression withdrawal after pediatric liver transplant is warranted.
Peanuts and Their Nutritional Aspects—A Review

Peanut is a legume crop that belongs to the family of Fabaceae, genus Arachis, and botanically named as Arachis hypogaea. Peanuts are consumed in many forms such as boiled peanuts, peanut oil, peanut butter, roasted peanuts, and added peanut meal in snack food, energy bars and candies. Peanuts are considered as a vital source of nutrients. Nutrition plays an important role in growth and energy gain of living organisms. Peanuts are rich in calories and contain many nutrients, minerals, antioxidants, and vitamins that are essential for optimum health. All these biomolecules are essential for pumping vital nutrients into the human body for sustaining normal health. This paper presents an overview of the peanut composition in terms of the constituent biomolecules, and their biological functions. This paper also discusses about the relationship between consumption of peanuts and their effect on human metabolism and physiology. It highlights the usefulness of considering peanuts as an essential component in human diet considering its nutritional values.
Finger Tapping: Effects of Trials and Sessions

18 normal, self-reported dextral subjects (9 men, 9 women) were assessed with a Halstead Manual Finger Tapping device, with 10 trials per hand for 10 consecutive wk. The test-retest reliability of the 10-trial average between the 10 sessions averaged . 94 for men and . 86 for women, for both preferred and nonpreferred hands. There were DO statistically significant effects of increases in performance over sessions or effects of fatigue over trials for either sex or hand. There were, however, significant increases over trials for men for both preferred and nonpreferred hands.
Serum advanced glycation end products (AGEs) are associated with insulin resistance

In addition to the important role of advanced glycation end products (AGEs) in the pathogenesis of diabetic vascular complications, recent data suggest that advanced glycation end products can also impair insulin action in vitro. We have investigated whether circulating advanced glycation end products are associated with insulin resistance in human subjects independent of metabolic parameters.
Prehistory at Cambridge and Beyond

List of illustrations Preface 1. Introductory 2. Anthropology at Cambridge 1904-20 3. Prehistoric archaeology at Cambridge 1920-39 4. Prehistoric archaeology at Cambridge 1946-74: expansion of the syllabus and provision for excavation 5. Prehistoric archaeology at Cambridge 1946-74: Quaternary Research and economic prehistory 6. Prehistorians beyond Cambridge: Africa, Australasia, America and Asia 7. Prehistorians beyond Cambridge: continental Europe and Britain Epilogue Notes Index.
Practical Bayesian Optimization for Model Fitting with Bayesian Adaptive Direct Search

Computational models in fields such as computational neuroscience are often evaluated via stochastic simulation or numerical approximation. Fitting these models implies a difficult optimization problem over complex, possibly noisy parameter landscapes. Bayesian optimization (BO) has been successfully applied to solving expensive black-box problems in engineering and machine learning. Here we explore whether BO can be applied as a general tool for model fitting. First, we present a novel hybrid BO algorithm, Bayesian adaptive direct search (BADS), that achieves competitive performance with an affordable computational overhead for the running time of typical models. We then perform an extensive benchmark of BADS vs. many common and state-of-the-art nonconvex, derivative-free optimizers, on a set of model-fitting problems with real data and models from six studies in behavioral, cognitive, and computational neuroscience. With default settings, BADS consistently finds comparable or better solutions than other methods, including `vanilla' BO, showing great promise for advanced BO techniques, and BADS in particular, as a general model-fitting tool.
Successful interventional treatment of arteriovenous fistula after kidney biopsy in pediatric patients--a report of three cases.

BACKGROUND With an incidence of up to 16%, arteriovenous fistula (AVF) is a frequent complication after renal biopsy. METHODS We report on three cases, where renal biopsy in pediatric and adolescent patients led to various but clinically significant complications. In each patient two cores of renal parenchyma from the upper pole of the renal transplant or the lower pole of the right native kidney, respectively, were obtained with two attempts. RESULTS Immediate post-bioptic ultrasound did not show any abnormalities. Setting of an AVF was suspected when complications occurred and ultrasound and Doppler studies showed AVF. The diagnosis was confirmed by angiography and occlusion of the fistulae was performed in the same session. CONCLUSION We conclude that persistent AVF is an uncommon but serious complication after renal biopsy. Well-timed angiography when AVF is suspected can prevent loss of function, especially in transplant recipients.
Does Empathy Improve Marketing Performance ? The Role of Cognitive versus Emotional Empathy in High Autonomy Sales Environments

Increasingly companies empower salespeople with a high degree of autonomy in how they price and sell services. This practice is particularly prevalent in emerging economies, especially where companies such as Unilever attempt to reach remote rural markets through autonomous salespeople drawn from those communities. The performance of salespeople, however, varies greatly across individuals in these environments. Why do some salespeople in high autonomy environments perform better than others? The authors propose that a salesperson’s ability to see the world from a customer’s perspective (cognitive empathy) versus their ability to feel what a customer feels (emotional empathy) differentially influences pricing, volume, and service quality outcomes. The authors test their thesis on data from a high-autonomy salesforce in Bangladesh. To deal with the possibility of a potential omitted variable that simultaneously drives both cognitive empathy and sales performance, the authors use the ratio of the number of daughters relative to the number of children that salespeople have as an instrument for cognitive empathy. The results suggest that cognitive empathy increases salesperson prices, sales volume, and service quality outcomes, while emotional empathy increases sales volume but decreases prices and service quality outcomes.
Suppression of Carbon Tetrachloride-Induced Liver Fibrosis by Transplantation of a Clonal Mesenchymal Stem Cell Line Derived from Rat Bone Marrow

Transplantation of hepatocytes or bone marrow-derived cells has been shown to ameliorate liver fibrosis in animal models, but no direct comparison of relative efficiency has been made. The aim of this study was to compare the efficiency of a bone marrow-derived clonal mesenchymal stem cell line established by us (rBM25/S3) with that of its adipogenic or hepatogenic differentiation derivative for suppression of rat liver fibrosis. After induction of differentiation of rBM25/S3 cells into adipogenic or hepatogenic cells in culture, we intrasplenically transplanted the three types of cells into rats (3 × 107 cells/rat) before and 4 weeks after initiation of carbon tetrachloride treatment (1 ml/kg body weight twice a week for 8 weeks) to induce liver fibrosis. Undifferentiated rBM25/S3 cells were the most effective for suppression of liver fibrosis, followed by the adipogenic cells and hepatogenic cells. Expression levels of MMP-2 and MMP-9 were also highest in undifferentiated rBM25/S3 cells. These results indicate that bone marrow-derived clonal mesenchymal stem cell lines are useful for further mechanistic studies on cell-mediated suppression of liver fibrosis and that such cell lines will provide information on an appropriate cell source for transplantation therapy for cirrhosis.
Interleukin‐1β induced changes in the protein expression of rat islets: A computerized database

Insulin‐dependent diabetes mellitus is caused by an autoimmune destruction of the β‐cells in the islets of Langerhans. The cytokine interleukin 1 inhibits insulin release and is selectively cytotoxic to β‐cells in isolated pancreatic rat islets. The antigen(s) triggering the immune response as well as the intracellular mechanisms of action of interleukin 1‐mediated β‐cell cytotoxicity are unknown. However, previous studies have found an association of β‐cell destruction with alterations in protein synthesis. Thus, two‐dimensional (2‐D) gel electrophoresis of pancreatic islet proteins may be an important tool facilitating studies of the molecular pathogenesis of insulin‐dependent diabetes mellitus. 2‐D gel electrophoresis of islet proteins may lead to (i) the determination of qualitative and quantitative changes in specific islet proteins induced by cytokines, (ii) the determination of the effects of agents modulating cytokine action, and (iii) the identification of primary islet protein antigen(s) initiating the immune destruction of the β‐cells. Therefore, the aim of this study was to create databases (DB) of all reproducibly detectable protein spots on 10% and 15% acrylamide 2‐D gels of neonatal rat islets (10% and 15% DB), labeled under standardized culture conditions. 1235 and 557 spots were present in 5 of 5 gels in the 15% isoelectric focusing (IEF) and nonequilibrium pH gradient electrophoresis (NEPHGE) DB, respectively, whereas 995 and 378 spots were present in 5 of 5 gels in the 10% IEF and NEPHGE DB, respectively, yielding a reproducibility of spot detection between 75.2% and 91.7%. In both DBs, the average coefficient of variation of the percentage of integrated optical density (CV% of %IOD) for spots present in all gels was between 42.4% and 45.7%. When the same sample was analyzed in consecutive sets of gels on different days (interassay analysis), the average CV% of %IOD was 35.5%–36.1%. When the same sample was analyzed repeatedly in one set of gels (intra‐assay analysis), the average CV% of %IOD was 30.2% in the IEF gels, while the average CV% of %IOD was 45.7% in the NEPHGE gels. Addition of interlenkin‐1β (IL‐1β) to the cultures resulted in statistically significant modulation or de novo synthesis of 105 proteins in the 10% gels. In conclusion, we present the first 10% and 15% acrylamide 2‐D gel protein databases of neonatal rat islets of Langerhans and demonstrate its usage to identify proteins altered in expression by IL‐1β Part of this work was carried out at the Institute of Medical Microbiology, Århus University, Århus, Denmark .
The loss of mass‐independent fractionation in sulfur due to a Palaeoproterozoic collapse of atmospheric methane

We use a 1‐D numerical model to study the atmospheric photochemistry of oxygen, methane, and sulfur after the advent of oxygenic photosynthesis. We assume that mass‐independent fractionation (MIF) of sulfur isotopes – characteristic of the Archean – was best preserved in sediments when insoluble elemental sulfur (S8) was an important product of atmospheric photochemistry. Efficient S8 production requires three things: (i) very low levels of tropospheric O2; (ii) a source of sulfur gases to the atmosphere at least as large as the volcanic SO2 source today; and (iii) a sufficiently high abundance of methane or other reduced gas. All three requirements must be met. We suggest that the disappearance of a strong MIF sulfur signature at the beginning of the Proterozoic is better explained by the collapse of atmospheric methane, rather than by a failure of volcanism or the rise of oxygen. The photochemical models are consistent in demanding that methane decline before O2 can rise (although they are silent as to how quickly), and the collapse of a methane greenhouse effect is consistent with the onset of major ice ages immediately following the disappearance of MIF sulfur. We attribute the decline of methane to the growth of the oceanic sulfate pool as indicated by the widening envelope of mass‐dependent sulfur fractionation through the Archean. We find that a given level of biological forcing can support either oxic or anoxic atmospheres, and that the transition between the anoxic state and the oxic state is inhibited by high levels of atmospheric methane. Transition from an oxygen‐poor to an oxygen‐rich atmosphere occurs most easily when methane levels are low, which suggests that the collapse of methane not only caused the end of MIF S and major ice ages, but it may also have enabled the rise of O2. In this story the early Proterozoic ice ages were ended by the establishment of a stable oxic atmosphere, which protected a renewed methane greenhouse with an ozone shield.
Dual-function electroabsorption waveguide modulator/detector for optoelectronic transceiver applications

A Franz-Keldysh effect InGaAsP electroabsorption waveguide device is utilized as a high-frequency, high-linear dynamic range modulator and photodetector. The dual-function modulator/photodetector can be useful in compact transmit/receive front end antenna architectures. Adjusting the electrical bias to the reverse-biased p-i-n diode, either efficient optical modulation or detection is demonstrated. As an electroabsorption modulator, a fiber optic link with a -17.4-dB RF loss and a 124-dB-Hz/sup 4/5/ suboctave spurious-free dynamic range is obtained with electrical biases in the 2 to 3 V range. As a waveguide photodetector, a 0.45-A/W fiber coupled responsivity, photocurrents up to 20 mA, and an output second-order intercept of +34.5 dBm are achieved at 7-V electrical bias.
Adrenergic Stimulation of Renin Secretion in the Isolated Perfused Rat Kidney

To avoid complicating systemic effects, the influence of adrenergic hormones on renin secretion was examined in the isolated rat kidney perfused with Krebs-dextran solution at a constant mean pressure and flow rate. Isoproterenol and glucagon produced a consistent increase in renin secretion without a change in perfusion pressure and flow. Similarly the increase in renin secretion with norepinephrine, which was associated with intense vasoconstriction and raised perfusion pressure, was still observed after the vasoconstrictive effect was abolished with phenoxybenzamine. Isoproterenol- stimulated renin secretion, unaffected by phenoxybenzamine, was markedly suppressed by dl-propranolol but not by d-propranolol. The failure of dl-propranolol to suppress the renin response to glucagon confirms observations in other tissues and suggests involvement of other receptors or alternative mechanisms. These findings support a direct intrarenal effect of adrenergic hormones on renin secretion, and this effect may be mediated specifically by beta receptors in the case of catecholamines.
The Roman life course: a view from the inscriptions

Epitaphs inscribed on stone record biographical information about the deceased, and in certain cases, the age at death. However, it has been demonstrated that these ages on Roman epitaphs are not an accurate reflection of the demographics of death, but are subject to cultural bias. Using the idea of the ‘life course’, this article explores these cultural biases and their relationship to age and gender structures. Material from Italy suggests that these are tied into ideologies of gender, with adulthood defined by the transition to magistrate for men and wife for women. Material from other areas demonstrates different patterns, and in the case of Etruria, these are shown to be a negotiation between pre-Roman and Romanized customs. The phenomenon of ‘age-rounding’ is also argued to be part of these ideas of correct age.
Development of Sampling Plans For Cotton Bolls Injured by Stink Bugs (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae)

ABSTRACT Cotton, Gossypium hirsutum L. , bolls were sampled in commercial fields for stink bug (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) injury during 2007 and 2008 in South Carolina and Georgia. Across both years of this study, boll-injury percentages averaged 14.8 ± 0.3 (SEM). At average boll injury treatment levels of 10, 20, 30, and 50%, the percentage of samples with at least one injured boll was 82, 97, 100, and 100%, respectively. Percentage of field-sampling date combinations with average injury <10, 20, 30, and 50% was 35, 80, 95, and 99%, respectively. At the average of 14.8% boll injury or 2.9 injured bolls per 20-boll sample, 112 samples Dx = 0.1 (within 10% of the mean) were required for population estimation, compared with only 15 samples at Dx = 0.3. Using a sample size of 20 bolls, our study indicated that, at the 10% threshold and &agr; = &bgr; = 0.2 (with 80% confidence), control was not needed when <1.03 bolls were injured. The sampling plan required continued sampling for a range of 1.03–3.8 injured bolls per 20-boll sample. Only when injury was >3.8 injured bolls per 20-boll sample was a control measure needed. Sequential sampling plans were also determined for thresholds of 20, 30, and 50% injured bolls. Sample sizes for sequential sampling plans were significantly reduced when compared with a fixed sampling plan (n = 10) for all thresholds and error rates.
Molecular Remodeling of Kv4.3 Potassium Channels in Human Atrial Fibrillation

Repolarizing Potassium Currents in Atrial Fibrillation, introduction: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is associated with important alterations in cardiac ion channels that cause shortening and impaired rate adaptation of atrial repolarization. The mechanisms underlying potassium current remodeling in human AF are not clear. We investigated the effects of AF on the gene expression of the Kv4.3, Kv1.4, and Kv1.5 potassium channel subunits and correlated the findings with the transient outward (I10) and the sustained outward (Isus or Ikur) potassium current.
The Proper Lady and the Woman Writer: Ideology as Style in the Works of Mary Wollstonecraft, Mary Shelley, and Jane Austen

"A brilliant, original, and powerful book. This is the most skillful integration of feminism and Marxist literary criticism that I know of. " So writes critic Stephen Greenblatt about "The Proper Lady and the Woman Writer," Mary Poovey's study of the struggle of three prominent writers to accommodate the artist's genius to the late eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century ideal of the modest, self-effacing "proper lady. " Interpreting novels, letters, journals, and political tracts in the context of cultural strictures, Poovey makes an important contribution to English social and literary history and to feminist theory. "The proper lady was a handy concept for a developing bourgeois patriarchy, since it deprived women of worldly power, relegating them to a sanctified domestic sphere that, in complex ways, nourished and sustained the harsh 'real' world of men. With care and subtle intelligence, Poovey examines this 'guardian and nemesis of the female self' through the ways it is implicated in the style and strategies of three very different writers. "-Rachel M. Brownstein, "The Nation" ""The Proper Lady and the Woman Writer" is a model of . creative discovery, providing a well-researched, illuminating history of women writers at the turn of the nineteenth century. [Poovey] creates sociologically and psychologically persuasive accounts of the writers: Wollstonecraft, who could never fully transcend the ideology of propriety she attacked; Shelley, who gradually assumed a mask of feminine propriety in her social and literary styles; and Austen, who was neither as critical of propriety as Wollstonecraft nor as accepting as Shelley ultimately became. "-Deborah Kaplan, "Novel "