Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Changes in spatial memory and BDNF expression to concurrent dietary restriction and voluntary exercise

Substantial data suggest that cognitive function can be influenced by many lifestyle activities associated with changes in energy metabolism such as exercise and diet. In the current study, we investigated the combined effects of voluntary exercise (access to running wheels) and dietary restriction (every other day fasting, EODF) on spatial memory formation and on the levels of brain‐derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in the hippocampus of Wistar male rats. Spatial learning and memory formation was assessed using the radial arm water maze (RAWM) paradigm, while BDNF protein was measured using ELISA test. Voluntary exercise and/or EODF were instituted for 6 weeks. Voluntary exercise alone significantly enhanced short‐term, intermediate‐term, and long‐term memory formation, and increased BDNF protein levels in the hippocampus. EODF enhanced mean running wheel activity by approximately twofold. However, EODF did not modulate the effects of exercise on memory formation and expression of BDNF. In addition, EODF alone had no effect on memory and BDNF protein in the hippocampus. In conclusion, results of this study indicate that exercise enhanced while EODF had neutral effect on both spatial memory formation and hippocampus BDNF levels. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Subunit-Specific Analysis of the Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 Reverse Transcriptase In Vivo

ABSTRACT The human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) reverse transcriptase (RT) is a heterodimer comprised of two structurally distinct subunits (p51 and p66). Since p51 and p66 are derived from the same coding region, subunit-specific structure-function studies of RT have been conducted exclusively by in vitro biochemical approaches. To study RT subunit function in the context of infectious virus, we constructed an LTR-vpr-p51-IRES-p66 expression cassette in which the HIV-1 vpr gene was fused in frame with p51, followed by an internal ribosome entry site (IRES) sequence and the p66 coding region. By coexpression with RT-deficient proviral DNA, we demonstrated that the p66 subunit is specifically and selectively packaged into virions as a Vpr-p51/p66 complex. Our analysis showed that cleavage by the viral protease liberates Vpr and generates functional heterodimeric RT (p51/p66) that supports HIV-1 reverse transcription and virus infection. By exploiting this novel trans-complementation approach, we demonstrated, for the first time with infectious virions, that the YMDD aspartates of p66 are both required and sufficient for RT polymerase function. Mutational analyses of the p51 YMDD aspartates indicated that they play an important structural role in p51 folding and subunit interactions that are required for the formation of an active RT heterodimer within infected cells. Understanding the role of the individual RT subunits in RNA- and DNA-dependent DNA synthesis is integral to our understanding of RT function. Our findings will lead to important new insights into the role of the p51 and p66 subunits in HIV-1 reverse transcription.
Gender Differences in Stroke Risk Among the Elderly After Coronary Artery Surgery

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have shown that women are at higher risk than men for stroke after coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery, but gender differences in systemic atherosclerosis have not been studied adequately. We investigated gender differences in the incidence of craniocervical and ascending aortic atherosclerosis and other risk factors for stroke in elderly patients (age ≥60 yr) undergoing CABG surgery. METHODS: Data were prospectively collected on 720 patients (31.8% women) undergoing CABG surgery. All patients underwent preoperative brain magnetic resonance imaging and angiography to assess for prior cerebral infarctions, carotid artery stenosis, and intracranial arterial stenosis. Epiaortic ultrasound was performed at the time of surgery to assess for atherosclerosis of the ascending aorta. Cognitive status was measured using the Hasegawa-dementia score in all patients before surgery and on the seventh postoperative day. RESULTS: Women were older and had more hypertension and intracranial arterial stenosis than did men. Men had significantly higher rates of hyperlipidemia, peripheral vascular disease, abdominal aortic aneurysm, smoking history, severe carotid artery stenosis, and severe aortic atherosclerosis than did women. Although there were no differences in prior cerebral infarction or preoperative cognitive impairment, the rate of perioperative stroke was marginally higher in men than in women (3.9% vs 1.3%, P = 0.066). Univariate predictors of perioperative stroke were prior cerebral infarctions, ascending aortic atherosclerosis, preexisting cognitive impairment, and peripheral vascular disease. Stepwise logistic regression analysis demonstrated that significant independent predictors of perioperative stroke were prior cerebral infarctions and aortic atherosclerosis. CONCLUSIONS: These data suggest that men are more likely than women to have risk factors for stroke, including severe carotid artery stenosis, severe aortic atherosclerosis, and peripheral vascular disease. The rates of prior cerebral infarction and preoperative cognitive impairment were similar between genders.
Chemical Composition, Antioxidant Properties and Anti-cholinesterase Activity of Cordia gilletii (Boraginaceae) Leaves Essential Oil

This study aimed to investigate for the first time the chemical composition, the antioxidant properties and the acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) inhibitory activity of the essential oil from the leaves of Cordia gilletii De Wild (Boraginaceae). The essential oil, characterized by 23 constituents (90.1% of the total oil), was constituted by terpene derivatives (25.6%) and non-terpene derivatives (64.5%), among which aldehydes, fatty acids and alkanes were present with the percentage of 16.5%, 18.8% and 23.1%, respectively. The antioxidant activity of C. gilletii essential oil was screened by two in vitro tests: DPPH and β-carotene bleaching test. The essential oil revealed antioxidant activity with an IC50 value of 75.0 and 129.9 μg/mL on DPPH radical and β-carotene decoloration tests, respectively. Moreover, C. gilletii inhibited AChE enzyme with an IC50 value of 105.6 μg/mL.
Encapsulation of black carrot juice using spray and freeze drying

Black carrot juice extracted using pectinase enzyme was encapsulated in three different carrier materials (maltodextrin 20DE, gum arabic and tapioca starch) using spray drying at four inlet temperatures (150, 175, 200 and 225 ℃) and freeze drying at a constant temperature of − 53 ℃ and vacuum of 0.22–0.11 mbar with the constant feed mixture. The products were analyzed for total anthocyanin content, antioxidant activity, water solubility index, encapsulation efficiency and total colour change. For both the drying methods followed in this study, maltodextrin 20DE as the carrier material has proven to be better in retaining maximum anthocyanin and antioxidant activity compared to gum arabic and tapioca starch. The best spray dried product, was obtained at 150 ℃. The most acceptable was the freeze dried product with maximum anthocyanin content, antioxidant activity, water solubility index, encapsulation efficiency and colour change.
High Genetic Risk for IDDM in the Pacific Northwest: First Report From the Washington State Diabetes Prediction Study

A Combination Of Immune, genetic, and metabolic markers potentially implicated in the development of insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) was studied in the general population. We screened 3,992 healthy schoolchildren, 12–18 years of age with no family history of IDDM, for islet cell antibodies (ICAs). Of the children, 69 (1.7%) were found to be ICA positive (ICA+), of whom 7 (0.17%) also were positive for insulin autoantibodies (lAAs). ICA+ children (group 1) were human leukocyte antigen (HLA) typed at the DQ locus along with 123 matched (group 2) and 235 random (group 3) control subjects (from the original cohort of 3,992). Of the ICA+ children, 28 underwent β-cell function (β-CF) studies. High-risk DQ types were surprisingly prevalent in all groups with 35.8% of random control subjects carrying DQB1*0302 and 8.9% carrying the highest risk HLA type for IDDM, DQB1*0302/*0201. Those individuals with higher ICA titer (>19 Juvenile Diabetes Foundation units [JDF U]) had a significantly higher prevalence of DQB1*0302 than those with lower titer ICA or normal control subjects. Six of 7 individuals positive for both ICA and IAA and typed at the DQ locus were DQB1 *0302/*0201 heterozygotes or DQB1*0302 or DQB1*0201 homozygotes, representing three of the highest risk genotypes for IDDM. No correlation was observed between ICA titer or DQ type and β-CF except that all those with β-CF below the 5th percentile carried either DQB1*0302 or DQB1*0201. Prospective follow-up is underway to determine if any combination of DQ type and immune markers predicts decline in β-CF and the development of IDDM .
The Prison Fix: Race, Work, and Economic Development in Elmira, New York

ion called city and the abstraction called country,” and called for writing the two in a “unified narrative” (Cronon 1992: 19, xiv). Following Cronon and building on anthropological theories that seek to complexify the study of institutions, places, and people, I write Elmira within the web of urban social relationships that are produced, reproduced and, sometimes, disguised across the geographic space of New York State through the prison system. Thus, throughout this dissertation the prison town serves as an analytic tool to understand the geographically grounded processes of criminalization and the raced and classed locations of the actors across and within this space. Considering that prison expansion was put forth by the state quite explicitly as a jobs creation program, it is necessary to look at economic development in Elmira, the city, in the context of New York State. I demonstrate how the political economy of a global city is deeply tied to the political economy of a prison town in upstate New York. Furthermore, although there are increasingly intricate fences and barriers aimed at maintaining the separation between the incarcerated men and “free” Elmira, I find it useful to build on Ted 18 Conover’s analysis of the prison as an “extension of a neighborhood” of the incarcerated men (Rose 2000). Through an analysis of the prison town, we see how the prison is not only an extension of the neighborhoods of the men incarcerated there, but at the same time, an extension of the city of Elmira and Correctional officers and their families. While much anthropological writing focuses on larger metropolitan cities in order to understand the expansion of the carceral state, I posit that an essential part of the story of twenty-first century urbanization lies in the narratives of marginal places like Elmira and their relationship to enclaves of concentrated
Spanish version of the Burn-Specific Health Scale.

OBJECTIVE To study the viability, reliability, and validity of the Spanish version of the Burn-Specific Health Scale. METHODS The questionnaire was cross-culturally adapted and translated and its psychometric properties were tested regarding their viability, reliability, and validity. A total of 115 patients discharged from the Burn Care Unit of the Alicante General Hospital were included in the study. RESULTS One hundred fifteen patients were interviewed and completed a total of 156 questionnaires. Of these, 112 were self-administered (71.79%) by the patient, with an average completion time of 12 to 13 minutes (SD = 3.44 minutes). The test-retest reliability, internal consistency, criterion validity, and construct validity all proved satisfactory. CONCLUSION The Spanish version of the Burn-Specific Health Scale is a reliable and valid instrument for use in the Spanish population, and its results are perfectly comparable with those obtained in the original English version.
Anemia in critical care patients: incidence, etiology, impact, management, and use of treatment guidelines and protocols.

PURPOSE The incidence, etiology, impact, and management of anemia in critical care patients and the development of treatment guidelines and protocols for the management of anemia in this patient population are discussed. SUMMARY Most patients in intensive care units develop anemia as a result of blood losses, nutritional deficiencies, hemolysis, myelosuppression, renal insufficiency, inflammation, infection, or another disease process. Anemia can have an adverse impact on critically ill patients with severe ischemic heart disease or cerebrovascular disease and patients undergoing surgery. The use of blood conservation measures and restrictive blood transfusion strategies can circumvent problems associated with transfusion. Epoetin alfa increases hemoglobin concentrations and reduces the need for transfusion in critical care patients, including surgical patients with large anticipated blood losses. Epoetin alfa also appears to be effective for managing anemia in patients with multiple organ dysfunction syndrome. Iron supplementation is needed by most patients receiving erythropoietic therapy. Iron supplementation without erythropoietic therapy is inadequate to correct anemia unrelated to iron deficiency. Concerns have been raised about a possible increased risk for infection when parenteral iron therapy is used in critical care patients. Developing treatment guidelines or protocols for managing anemia in critical care patients can minimize the need for transfusions and improve prescribing of erythropoietic therapy. CONCLUSION Epoetin alfa can play an important role in managing anemia in critical care patients, thereby minimizing patient exposure to transfusion-related risks and optimizing the use of the limited blood supply. There is currently no data available for use of darbepoetin in this manner.
Prognosis in periradicular surgery: a clinical prospective study.

AIM The purpose of this prospective study was to evaluate the prognosis of periradicular surgery using well-defined case selection and a rigorous surgical protocol. METHODOLOGY Teeth to be treated surgically demonstrated a periradicular lesion of strictly endodontic origin with or without clinical signs and symptoms of inflammation. A total of 114 teeth were treated. Following the reflection of a full mucoperiosteal tissue flap, residual soft tissues were curetted, root ends were resected with a fine high-speed diamond bur, root-end cavities were prepared ultrasonically with diamond tips, and IRM root-end fillings were placed. Cases were followed clinically and radiographically for a period ranging from 1 to 4 years. RESULTS The results of this study showed 91.2% success out of a total of 102 teeth available for follow-up, based on accepted parameters of evaluation. Cases were considered successful if there were no clinical signs or symptoms present and there was radiographic evidence of complete or incomplete healing (scar tissue). Factors related to case selection, parameters of healing and surgical technique are discussed in relation to the success rate identified in this prospective study. CONCLUSIONS Adherence to a strict endodontic surgical protocol and the use of contemporary techniques and materials will result in a predictably successful outcome in a wide range of teeth.
Profiles of Volatile Flavor Compounds in Milk Fermented with Different Proportional Combinations of Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophilus

Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophilus are key factors in the fermentation process and the final quality of dairy products worldwide. This study was performed to investigate the effects of the proportions of Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophilus isolated from traditionally fermented dairy products in China and Mongolia on the profile of volatile compounds produced in samples. Six proportional combinations (1:1, 1:10, 1:50, 1:100, 1:1000, and 1:10,000) of L. delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus IMAU20401 to S. thermophilus ND03 were considered, and the volatiles were identified and quantified by solid-phase microextraction and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (SPME-GC-MS) against an internal standard. In total, 89 volatile flavor compounds, consisting of aldehydes, ketones, acids, alcohols, esters, and aromatic hydrocarbons, were identified. Among these, some key flavor volatile compounds were identified, including acetaldehyde, 3-methylbutanal, acetoin, 2-heptanone, acetic acid, butanoic acid, and 3-methyl-1-butanol. The of L. delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus IMAU20401 to S. thermophilus ND03 influenced the type and concentration of volatiles produced. In particular, aldehydes and ketones were present at higher concentrations in the 1:1000 treatment combination than in the other combinations. Our findings emphasize the importance of selecting the appropriate proportions of L. delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus and S. thermophilus for the starter culture in determining the final profile of volatiles and the overall flavor of dairy products.
Zonal Responsiveness of the Human Intervertebral Disc to Bone Morphogenetic Protein-2

Study Design. In vitro experiment using bone morphogenetic protein-2 (BMP-2) and cells from the nucleus pulposus (NP), transitional zone (TZ), and anulus fibrosus (AF) of the human intervertebral disc (IVD). Objective. To demonstrate the differential effect of BMP-2 on DNA synthesis, proteoglycan synthesis, and osteocalcin mRNA expression in human IVD cells from the NP, TZ, and AF, respectively. Summary of Background Data. BMP-2 has been proven to be effective in stimulating proteoglycan synthesis in articular chondrocytes and IVD cells from the NP. Nevertheless, the effect of BMP-2 on cells from different regions of the IVD has not yet been thoroughly elucidated. Methods. Human IVDs were harvested from surgical disc procedures and tissue from the NP, TZ, and AF was obtained. Disc tissue was enzymatically digested, and IVD cells were cultured three-dimensionally in alginate beads. Then IVD cell cultures from the NP, TZ, and AF were exposed to BMP-2. DNA synthesis and newly synthesized proteoglycan were measured. Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction for mRNA expression of bone sialoprotein, DLX5, osteocalcin, and collagen type I, was performed. Results. Cells from the AF responded to BMP-2 with mitogenesis. There was no significant increase in DNA synthesis in cultures from the NP and TZ treated with BMP-2. Only cells from the NP showed a significant increase in newly synthesized proteoglycan in response to BMP-2. IVD cells from all zones demonstrated no significant expression of bone sialoprotein, DLX5, osteocalcin mRNA after treatment with BMP-2. Conclusion. BMP-2 clearly exerted a mitogenic effect on AF cells, and stimulated proteoglycan synthesis in NP cells. However, BMP-2 did not have an osteogenic effect in any IVD region. Taken together, these results confirm that BMP-2 can be used as an anabolic agent for mitogenesis in AF cells and NP cell matrix regeneration without the possibility of osteogenesis.
Diffusion tensor imaging and magnetic resonance spectroscopy of the brain in a patient with sturge-weber syndrome

Quantitative brain MR spectroscopy (MRS) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) were used to characterize one patient with Sturge-Weber syndrome. Choline increases and N-acetylaspartate decreases were observed in pathologic frontal gray matter tissue compared to contralateral unaffected brain tissue without any change in the diffusion tensor imaging parameters (fractional anisotropy, apparent diffusion coefficient). The N-acetylaspartate decreases and/or choline increases observed here and in eight previously described Sturge-Weber patients probably reflect neuronal loss or dysfunction and demyelination as a result of recurrent seizures.
CD40 Expression by Microglial Cells Is Required for Their Completion of a Two-Step Activation Process during Central Nervous System Autoimmune Inflammation1

Microglial cells are monocytic lineage cells that reside in the CNS and have the capacity to become activated during various pathological conditions. Although it was demonstrated that activation of microglial cells could be achieved in vitro by the engagement of CD40-CD40L interactions in combination with proinflammatory cytokines, the exact factors that mediate activation of microglial cells in vivo during CNS autoimmunity are ill-defined. To investigate the role of CD40 in microglial cell activation during experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), we used bone marrow chimera mice that allowed us to distinguish microglial cells from peripheral macrophages and render microglial cells deficient in CD40. We found that the first step of microglial cell activation was CD40-independent and occurred during EAE onset. The first step of activation consisted of microglial cell proliferation and up-regulation of the activation markers MHC class II, CD40, and CD86. At the peak of disease, microglial cells underwent a second step of activation, which was characterized by a further enhancement in activation marker expression along with a reduction in proliferation. The second step of microglial cell activation was CD40-dependent and the failure of CD40-deficient microglial cells to achieve a full level of activation during EAE was correlated with reduced expansion of encephalitogenic T cells and leukocyte infiltration in the CNS, and amelioration of clinical symptoms. Thus, our findings demonstrate that CD40 expression on microglial cells is necessary to complete their activation process during EAE, which is important for disease progression.
Hypercapnic cerebral blood flow in spontaneously hypertensive rats

Objective Hypercapnic cerebral vasodilation appears to be endothelium-dependent, as it involves nitric oxide and prostaglandins. Since chronic hypertension has been associated with impaired endothelial function, we designed a study to find out whether hypercapnic cerebral blood flow and its nitric oxide- and prostaglandin-sensitive component is reduced in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) compared with normotensive controls. Methods Cerebral blood flow was measured in enflurane-anesthetized SHR (n = 53), Wistar-Kyoto (WKY, n = 20) and Sprague—Dawley (n = 50) rats using the hydrogen clearance method. Cerebral blood flow was measured during eucapnia and hypercapnia; it was also assessed after administering either nonisoform-selective or isoform-selective neuronal nitric oxide synthase inhibitors and during inhibition of prostaglandin production. Results Hypercapnic cerebral blood flow did not differ among the strains. Nitric oxide synthase inhibition with intracortical NG-monomethyl-L-arginine reduced hypercapnic cerebral blood flow in SHR by 23 ± 4% and in Sprague—Dawley rats by 23 ± 7% without affecting eucapnic flow. Intraperitoneal administration of the inhibitor of neuronal nitric oxide synthase, 7-nitroindazole, reduced eucapnic flow by 18 ± 5% in SHR and 27 ± 5% in WKY rats, and hypercapnic flow by 48 ± 3 and by 51 ± 6%, respectively. Indomethacin produced a similar decrease in hypercapnic flow in Sprague—Dawley rats and SHR (49 ± 5 and 62 ± 4%, respectively). Conclusion Hypercapnic cerebral blood flow was not impaired in SHR. The contribution of nitric oxide- and prostaglandin-dependent vasodilation appeared to be intact. Our results are consistent with the hypothesis that neuronal rather than endothelial production of nitric oxide may be responsible for maintaining hypercapnic cerebral vasodilation in SHR.