Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Structure and drug inducibility of the human cytochrome P-450c gene.

A human genomic clone (lambda hP-450mc-1), highly homologous to the rat cytochrome P-450c gene, was isolated and analyzed for the complete nucleotide sequence. The gene structure coincides with that of a recently reported human gene isolated from genomic DNA of a human breast carcinoma cell line, MCF-7 [Jaiswal, A.K. , Gonzalez, F.J. & Nebert, D.W. (1985) Nucleic Acids Res. 13, 4503-4520] with notable exceptions in the first intron: a 320-base-pair fragment is inserted and a 650-base-pair fragment is deleted in the gene examined in the present study. The 320-base-pair insert appears to contain a moderately repetitive sequence (approx. 140 copies) in the human genome. The 650-base-pair fragment, present in intron 1 of the reported sequence, is dislocated in the lambda hP-450mc-1 to about 10(4) base pairs upstream from the putative transcription initiation site. The results of Southern blot analysis using human total DNA were compatible with the gene structure of lambda hP-450mc-1. A fusion gene, which was constructed by ligating the 5' flanking region of the gene to the structural gene for prokaryotic chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (CAT), inducibly expressed the CAT activity in mouse Hepa-1 cells in response to administered methylcholanthrene, indicating that the isolated human gene is indeed of methylcholanthrene inducibility.
The Effects of Mental Practice on Strength Gain and Electromyographic Changes in Elbow Flexor Muscles

The purpose of the present research was to study the effects of mental practice on the strength gain and electromyographic changes in elbow flexor muscles. 16 healthy, non-athlete men with 22.5±1.36 years of age, 175.18±6.62 cm of height, 68.78±7.05 kg of weight, and 20.81±3.71 motor imagery ability without any record of injury in elbow, shoulder, wrist, and elbow tendons and flexor muscles were selected and randomly divided into an experimental group (8 subjects) and a control group (8 subjects). The experimental group imagined maximum voluntary contractions of the elbow flexors for four weeks and five sessions a week. The control group did not participate in any physical or mental practice, but they were included in all the measurements. The exercise program involved the imagery of 50 maximum voluntary contractions in two rounds with 25 repetitions. The maximum voluntary contraction (MVC) and integrated electromyography (IEMG) were measured during maximum voluntary contractions of the elbow flexor muscle group in the pretest and the posttest. Student’s t-test was applied for data analysis at significance level. The results revealed that the strength of elbow flexor muscles increased by 30% in the experimental group and5% in the control group and a significant difference was observed between the experimental group and the control group in the strength gain of elbow flexor muscles. Moreover, integrated electromyography increased significantly in the elbow flexor muscles of the experimental group and decreased significantly in elbow extensor muscles. The overall results of the research suggested that mental practice can increase the strength of elbow flexor muscles and this strength gain is apparently associated with the changes in the programming of the central nervous system which has led to an increase in the level of activation of agonist muscles.
AN EXACT FORM OF THE BREEDER'S EQUATION FOR THE EVOLUTION OF A QUANTITATIVE TRAIT UNDER NATURAL SELECTION

Abstract Starting with the Price equation, I show that the total evolutionary change in mean phenotype that occurs in the presence of fitness variation can be partitioned exactly into five components representing logically distinct processes. One component is the linear response to selection, as represented by the breeder's equation of quantitative genetics, but with heritability defined as the linear regression coefficient of mean offspring phenotype on parent phenotype. The other components are identified as constitutive transmission bias, two types of induced transmission bias, and a spurious response to selection caused by a covariance between parental fitness and offspring phenotype that cannot be predicted from parental phenotypes. The partitioning can be accomplished in two ways, one with heritability measured before (in the absence of) selection, and the other with heritability measured after (in the presence of) selection. Measuring heritability after selection, though unconventional, yields a representation for the linear response to selection that is most consistent with Darwinian evolution by natural selection because the response to selection is determined by the reproductive features of the selected group, not of the parent population as a whole. The analysis of an explicitly Mendelian model shows that the relative contributions of the five terms to the total evolutionary change depends on the level of organization (gene, individual, or mated pair) at which the parent population is divided into phenotypes, with each frame of reference providing unique insight. It is shown that all five components of phenotypic evolution will generally have nonzero values as a result of various combinations of the normal features of Mendelian populations, including biparental sex, allelic dominance, inbreeding, epistasis, linkage disequilibrium, and environmental covariances between traits. Additive genetic variance can be a poor predictor of the adaptive response to selection in these models. The narrow-sense heritability σA2/σP2 should be viewed as an approximation to the offspring-parent linear regression rather than the other way around.
Functional characterization of pheromone receptors in the tobacco budworm Heliothis virescens

Functional analyses of candidate Heliothis virescens pheromone odorant receptors (HvORs) were conducted using heterologous expression in Xenopus oocytes. HvOR6 was found to be highly tuned to Z9‐14:Ald, while HvOR13, HvOR14 and HvOR16 showed specificity for Z11‐16:Ald, Z11‐16:OAc and Z11‐16:OH, respectively. HvOR15, which had been considered a candidate receptor for Z9‐14:Ald did not respond to any of the pheromone compounds tested, nor to 50 other general odorants. Thus, while HvOR15 is specifically expressed in H. virescens male antennae, its role in pheromone reception remains unknown. Based on our results and previous research we can now assign pheromone receptors in H. virescens males to each of the critical H. virescens agonistic pheromone compounds and two antagonistic compounds produced by heterospecific females.
Band gaps of lamb waves in one- dimensional piezoelectric composite plates: effect of substrate and boundary conditions

We theoretically study the band structures of Lamb waves in one-dimensional phononic crystal plates consisting of piezoelectric ceramics placed periodically in epoxy with epoxy or piezoelectric ceramic substrate by the virtual plane wave expansion method. The dependences of the widths and starting frequencies of first band gaps (FBG) on the substrate's thickness, the filling fraction, and the lattice spacing are calculated for different materials of substrate under different electric boundary conditions, i.e., short circuit (SC) and open circuit (OC). The FBG width decreases gradually as the substrate's thickness increases and the FBG starting frequency increases progressively as the thickness increases on the whole. The FBG widths and starting frequencies with SC are always larger than with OC. Our research shows that it is possible to control the width and starting frequency of the FBG in the engineering according to need by choosing suitable values of the substrate's thickness, the filling fraction, and the lattice spacing.
Functional-Network-Based Gene Set Analysis Using Gene-Ontology

To account for the functional non-equivalence among a set of genes within a biological pathway when performing gene set analysis, we introduce GOGANPA, a network-based gene set analysis method, which up-weights genes with functions relevant to the gene set of interest. The genes are weighted according to its degree within a genome-scale functional network constructed using the functional annotations available from the gene ontology database. By benchmarking GOGANPA using a well-studied P53 data set and three breast cancer data sets, we will demonstrate the power and reproducibility of our proposed method over traditional unweighted approaches and a competing network-based approach that involves a complex integrated network. GOGANPA’s sole reliance on gene ontology further allows GOGANPA to be widely applicable to the analysis of any gene-ontology-annotated genome.
Biologic Therapies on the Horizon for Rheumatoid Arthritis

Recent research on rheumatoid arthritis (RA) has broadened our understanding of this disease, and mediators of the disease process have been identified as potential therapeutic targets. A series of novel agents have been developed specifically targeting these mediators and are collectively referred to as biologic response modifiers or biologic agents. A number of these agents have been introduced into clinical practice or are currently in clinical trials. Agents that have been approved include 2 monoclonal antibodies and a receptor fusion protein, all of which target tumor necrosis factor (TNF), as well as an inhibitor of interleukin-1 (IL-1). Other areas that are currently being investigated are new methods of blocking TNF and other cytokines, including IL-1 and IL-6. Emerging data also suggest that both T and B cells have critical roles in the pathogenesis of RA and could provide rational targets for therapy. Additionally, the role of adhesion molecules in RA continues to expand, and several agents have been proposed as potential therapies. These rapid advances in our understanding of RA and their implications for rationally targeted therapies are reviewed.
Assessment of clinical efficacy of CYT003‐QbG10 in patients with allergic rhinoconjunctivitis: a phase IIb study

Background Allergic symptoms are generally caused by exposure to substances to which people have become sensitized. Associated with this is an ‘unbalanced’ Th1/Th2 immune response with T cell responses skewed towards the production of Th2 cytokines, IL‐4, 5, and 13 and high levels of IgE antibodies. Current immune modulating therapies require the use of allergens, carrying the risk to induce potentially severe allergic reactions.
Variation in Metabolic Rate among Individuals Is Related to Tissue-Specific Differences in Mitochondrial Leak Respiration

Standard metabolic rate (SMR) and maximum metabolic rate (MMR) typically vary two- or threefold among conspecifics, with both traits assumed to significantly impact fitness. However, the underlying mechanisms that determine such intraspecific variation are not well understood. We examined the influence of mitochondrial properties on intraspecific variation in SMR and MMR and hypothesized that if SMR supports the cost of maintaining the metabolic machinery required for MMR, then the mitochondrial properties underlying these traits should be shared. Mitochondrial respiratory capacity (leak and phosphorylating respiration) and mitochondrial content (cytochrome c oxidase activity) were determined in the liver and white muscle of brown trout Salmo trutta of similar age and maintenance conditions. SMR and MMR were uncorrelated across individuals and were not associated with the same mitochondrial properties, suggesting that they are under the control of separate physiological processes. Moreover, tissue-specific relationships between mitochondrial properties and whole-organism metabolic traits were observed. Specifically, SMR was positively associated with leak respiration in liver mitochondria, while MMR was positively associated with muscle mitochondrial leak respiration and mitochondrial content. These results suggest that a high SMR or MMR, rather than signaling a higher ability for respiration-driven ATP synthesis, may actually reflect greater dissipation of energy, driven by proton leak across the mitochondrial inner membrane. Knowledge of these links should aid interpretation of the potential fitness consequences of such variation in metabolism, given the importance of mitochondria in the utilization of resources and their allocation to performance.
Peripapillary sclera thickness in human eyes with glaucoma

scrapings for bacteria, fungi, herpes virus and Acanthamoeba were performed. We suspected infectious keratitis and prescribed vancomycin 5%, tobramycin 2% and fluconazole 0.2% fortified eye-drops every hour and ciprofloxacin ointment in the evenings. During the following days, the patient’s condition improved. We noticed a progressive reduction in the infiltrates, which finally disappeared on day 21, and progressive appearance of superficial and deep neovessels. A central epithelial defect with a diameter of 5 mm was still present at day 21. Microbiological analyses on corneal smears and cultures were all negative. At the following visits, the epithelial defect steadily decreased in size, while the neovessels increased. Two months after the procedure, the epithelial defect had completely healed. Three months after CXL, although the cornea was still partially opaque, we observed significant reduction in both superficial and deep neovessels, without any evidence of infiltrates or epithelial defects (Fig. 1C, D). Visual acuity was 20 ⁄ 400, which improved to 20 ⁄ 80 through the pinhole. In recent months, several cases regarding sterile and microbial keratitis and corneal melting after CXL have been reported. The most frequent CXL complications are temporary or persistent corneal haze with the possibility of visual reduction (Raiskup et al. 2009), while infections are sporadic and isolated cases. Fortunately, these episodes are rare and often isolated and are more likely to occur in low compliant patients or after inappropriate CXL procedure (RaiskupWolf et al. 2008; Caporossi et al. 2010). If incorrectly applied, CXL may induce direct complications because of several factors such as wrongly tested UVA energy on power meter, incorrect calibration or focusing, incorrect riboflavin administration and lack of sterility procedures. Respect of the inclusion criteria, opportune preoperative care and patient’s preparation, correct surgery application and followup may help the operator reducing the risk of complications. CXL is only apparently easy to perform. Accurate patient’s selection and preoperative diagnosis are mandatory before its application, treating eventual associated pathologies. A clinical control of treated eye in the day after surgery is strongly recommended.
Nonenzymatic methylation of DNA by the intracellular methyl group donor S‐adenosyl‐L‐methionine is a potentially mutagenic reaction.

Incubation of DNA with S‐adenosyl‐L‐methionine (SAM) in neutral aqueous solution leads to base modification, with formation of small amounts of 7‐methylguanine and 3‐methyladenine. The products have been identified by high performance liquid chromatography of DNA hydrolysates and by the selective release of free 3‐methyladenine from SAM‐treated DNA by a specific DNA glycosylase. We conclude that SAM acts as a weak DNA‐alkylating agent. Several control experiments including extensive purification of [3H‐methyl]SAM preparations and elimination of the alkylating activity by pretreatment of SAM with a phage T3‐induced SAM cleaving enzyme, have been performed to determine that the activity observed was due to SAM itself and not to a contaminating substance. We estimate that SAM, at an intracellular concentration of 4 X 10(‐5) M, causes DNA alkylation at a level similar to that expected from continuous exposure of cells to 2 X 10(‐8) M methyl methane‐sulphonate. This ability of SAM to act as a methyl donor in a nonenzymatic reaction could result in a background of mutagenesis and carcinogenesis. The data provide an explanation for the apparently universal occurrence of multiple DNA repair enzymes specific for methylation damage.
Phase-Sensitive Mode Conversion and Equalization in a Few Mode Fiber Through Parametric Interactions

The parametric interaction in few mode fibers is theoretically and numerically studied in the particular case in which the signal and the idler waves are frequency degenerate but mode nondegenerate. Under simplifying hypotheses, we derive analytical formulas for the phase-insensitive and phase-sensitive amplification gain and conversion efficiency. The analytical formulas are in very good agreement with the numerical solutions of a full vectorial model that takes into account losses, mode coupling, and all possible four-wave mixing interactions. In the phase-sensitive regime, we predict that for small input pump powers, a large and tunable phase-sensitive extinction ratio can be achieved on one mode, whereas the other mode power remains essentially unaffected. Finally, in the high-gain regime, the self-equalization of the output power on different modes can be also achieved.
A Phase II Study of Concurrent Carboplatin and Paclitaxel and Thoracic Radiotherapy for Completely Resected Stage II and IIIA Non-small Cell Lung Cancer

Background: To determine the feasibility of combining concurrent carboplatin/paclitaxel and thoracic radiotherapy (TRT) for completely resected stage II and IIIA non-small cell lung cancer. Methods: Eligibility stipulated gross total resections with involved lymph nodes (N1 or N2), pathologic stage II or IIIA non-small cell lung cancer. TRT consisted of 50.4 Gy in 28 fractions with a boost of 10.8 Gy for extranodal extension (ENE) or 16.2 Gy for involved surgical margins. Chemotherapy was administered every 3 weeks: carboplatin (area under the curve of 5) and paclitaxel (175 mg/m2) during TRT for two cycles, with doses increased to an area under the curve of 7.5 and 225 mg/m2, respectively, for two cycles after TRT. Cox multivariate regression analysis was used to confirm independent predictors of outcome among clinical and treatment-related factors: age, T stage, N stage, presence of ENE, presence of involved surgical margins, histopathology. Results: Between April 1997 and March 2001, 42 patients were enrolled. Two patients were deemed ineligible due to having T4 disease, leaving 40 patients for analysis. Ninety-two percent (37/40) of patients had T1 or T2 disease; 60% (24/40) had N2 disease. Nine patients (22.5%) had ENE and 15% (six patients) had involved surgical margins. At a median follow up of 37 months (range, 3–103; median, 68 months for living patients), the 2- and 5-year Kaplan–Meier estimates of local regional control, freedom from distant metastasis, freedom from brain metastasis, and overall survival were 92% and 88%, 77% and 59%, 87% and 71% and 72% and 44%, respectively. Fourteen patients developed distant metastasis as the initial site of failure, eight of whom had brain metastasis. Brain metastasis was the only site of failure in four of the eight patients. Multivariate regression analysis demonstrated that the only independent predictor of overall survival was histology (p = 0.02). Patients with adenocarcinoma had a 5-year overall survival of 28% versus 68% for all other cell types. There were no independent predictors of distant metastases or brain metastases on multivariate regression analysis. Treatment was tolerated reasonably well: 92% of patients (37/40) received the planned doses of TRT; 67% of patients (27/40) received all four cycles of chemotherapy. Five patients developed grade 3 esophagitis, and three patients experienced grade 3 pneumonitis. Two patients experienced grade 5 toxicity. One was treatment related due to a patient who developed grade 3 esophagitis who developed an aspiration pneumonia that progressed to acute respiratory distress syndrome. Conclusions: Our results support the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group 97-05 findings and suggest that with new and better tolerated chemotherapy regimens the strategy of concurrent TRT and chemotherapy after completely resected stage II and IIIA non-small cell lung cancer should be further explored.
Proteolytic patterns and plasmin activity in ewes' milk as affected by somatic cell count and stage of lactation

A total of 120 milk samples were collected from Comisana ewes throughout lactation. The ewes were ranked into two somatic cell count (SCC) categories: normal milk (N Milk) with SCC lower than 5·00×105/ml and high somatic cell milk (HSC Milk) with SCC higher than 1·00×106/ml. Milk samples were analysed in triplicate for pH, fat and protein contents, renneting parameters, and plasmin and plasminogen activities. The peptide profile due to total proteolytic activity (endogenous and exogenous enzymes) on α- and β-CNs were determined using urea-PAGE on sodium caseinate (pH 8·0 and pH 5·0) incubated at 37 °C for 4 d after sampling. The peptide profile due to non-plasmin enzyme activities at pH 5·0 was also determined using urea-PAGE. Plasmin activity was higher in the HSC milk than in the N milk throughout the study period. A decrease in plasmin activity was observed in the N milk during mid-lactation, which was probably related to decrease in pH, and in the HSC milk during late lactation, which may be ascribed to an enhanced influx of plasmin inhibitors from the blood stream. Proteolytic patterns in Comisana ewe milk were mainly affected by plasmin activity that increased with the SCC in milk. Also non-plasmin proteolytic activity was strongly enhanced by elevated SCC and resulted in a higher degradation of α-casein than of β-casein. In general, plasmin activity did not increase with the advancement of lactation and exhibited a different trend in HSC and N milk, suggesting that physiological factors did not play a key role in regulating the plasminogen-plasmin system in ewes' milk. Plasmin activity, detected with the colorimetric assay was consistent with proteolytic activity on sodium caseinate shown in urea-PAGE electrophoregram.
International Journal of Physical Sciences Anti-islanding Protection Based on Voltage and Frequency Analysis in Wind Turbines Units

This paper introduces a new islanding detection algorithm method based on voltage and frequency analysis for wind turbines as distributed resource units at the distribution voltage level. The proposed method is based on processing of the rate of change of q-axis component of voltage and accelerates of change of frequency. This method detects the islanding conditions with the analysis of these signals. The studies reported in this paper are based on time-domain simulations using MATLAB, and the feasibility of the proposed method is evaluated with an experimental system. The experimental system parameters are the same as those of the simulated system. The results show that the proposed islanding detection method succeeds in detecting islanding both in the experimental and simulated systems.
Impacts of sulphur levels on yield, storability and economic return of onion

The experiments were carried out at the Regional Agricultural Research Station, Rahmatpur, Barisal during the rabi seasons of 2001-2002 and 2002-2003 to study the impact of different sulphur levels on bulb yield, storability and economic return of onion. Sulphur application had significant effect on yield components and bulb yield of onion. The highest bulb yields (19.75 and 19.88 t/ha) were obtained from sulphur levels between 60 and 75 kg/ha in two consecutive years. Both the cumulative weight and rotten loss were significantly influenced by sulphur fertilization. The maximum weight loss (40.78%) was recorded after 180 days of storage in S 60 kg/ha and the minimum (31.40%) was found in S45 kg/ha. The bulbs stored in bamboo platform were found in acceptable condition after 6 months of storage showing 31.40% of weight loss. The maximum rotten bulbs (63.75%) were observed in control treatment (without S) and the minimum rotten bulbs (37.04%) were observed in S45 kg/ha after 180 days of storage because application of sulphur enhanced the storability of onion bulbs. The highest (9146 %) marginal rate of return (MRR) with gross margin of Tk. 181844/ha was obtained from the sulphur level S 60 kg/ha. Key Words: Sulphur, yield, storability, economic return, onion. doi: 10.3329/bjar.v33i4. 2286 Bangladesh J. Agril. Res. 33(4) : 539-548, December 2008