Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Glial responses during evoked behaviors in the leech

Glial cells can respond with membrane potential changes during electrically stimulated neuronal activity (Kuffler, Proc R Soc Lond B 168:1–21, 1967; Orkand, Oxford University Press, 1995). Their role in contributing to, or controlling, neural circuits underlying behaviors, however, is completely unknown. We have used semi‐intact preparations of the leech Hirudo medicinalis, where behaviors can be elicited and monitored (Kristan et al., J Neurobiol 27:380–389, 1995), to record membrane responses of identified glial cells during whole‐body shortening and during fictive swimming. Giant glial cells are located in the neuropil of segmental ganglia, where neuronal axons and dendrites establish numerous synaptic contacts (Coggeshall and Fawcett, J Neurophysiol 27:229–289, 1964). We report here that these glial cells hyperpolarize when the whole‐body‐shortening response is evoked but not during fictive swimming. To our knowledge, this is the first report that associates a specific behavior with glial cell responses. GLIA 26:186–189, 1999. © 1999 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Comparative Study of Three Stretching Techniques

This study involved comparison of three techniques for increasing range of motion. Fast stretch (ballistic), slow stretch, and IA-CA, a modified version of proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) were compared using 24 normal male Ss. Controlling for serial order effects, 6 groups of 4 Ss each were administered the treatments, and the differences between pre- and post-exercise measures were observed. Multiple regression analysis indicated the superiority of the IA-CA approach.
A Clinical Study of the Skin Changes in Pregnancy in Kashmir Valley of North India: A Hospital Based Study

Background: Pregnancy is associated with multiple skin changes, most of which are physiological in nature, being the direct result of expected modifications of the hormonal, vascular, metabolic or immunologic status in pregnant females. Pregnancy however is also associated with certain pruritic eruptions, which not only cause distress to the pregnant female, but may influence the fetal outcome as well. Objective: The objective of this study was to determine the pattern of skin changes associated with pregnancy and to identify the various clinical types of pregnancy specific dermatoses (PSDs). Materials and Methods: The study was a cross sectional study carried out at the out-patient Department of Gynecology and obstetrics of our hospital. A total of 650 pregnant females, irrespective of their parity and gestational age were screened for the presence of any dermatological complaint. Results: The age of the study population ranged from 17 to 39 years (mean age: 24 years). The study population included 272 (42%) primigravidae and 378 (58%) multigravidae. Physiological skin changes of pregnancy were seen in all patients, out of which linea nigra was the most common change, seen in 520 (80%) cases. Specific dermatoses of pregnancy were seen in 32 (4.9%) cases, which included (in the decreasing order of frequency) prurigo of pregnancy (50% cases), intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy (25% cases), polymorphic eruption of pregnancy (22% cases) and pemphigus gestationis (3% cases). Conclusion: Skin changes were seen in 100% of pregnant females in this study, the major proportion being formed by physiological skin changes of pregnancy though PSDs were also seen in a significant number.
Complete mitochondrial genome of the Antarctic icefish, Chaenocephalus aceratus (Perciforms, Channichthyidae)

Abstract The complete sequence of the mitochondrial genome of the Antarctic icefish Chaenocephalus aceratus was determined to be 17311 bp in length, and to contain 13 protein coding genes (PCGs), 22 tRNA genes and 2 rRNA genes. The total A + T content is 52.8%. The notothenioid-exclusive ND6/tRNAGlu translocation was observed in the mitogenome of C. aceratus. Generally, the order and contents of the other genes are identical with those of other fishes. Antarctic icefishes, the only vertebrates which do not have hemoglobins, have evolved to survive sub-freezing temperature. Therefore, the whole mitogenome sequences of C. aceratus will provide the insights into resolving the evolutionary history of icefish.
Production of cells without deoxyribonucleic acid during thymidine starvation of lexA- cultures of Escherichia coli K-12

When thymidine-requiring lexA- strains were starved for thymidine, the kinetics of survival were similar to those of a nearly isogenic lexA+ strain. The size distribution of cells in the lexA- and lexA+ cultures were, however, quite different. Whereas most of the cells in the starved lexA+ cultures grew into long filamentous forms (longer than 4.0 mum), many of the lexA- cells were found to have a normal rod shape (4.0 mum or shorter). It was shown that lexA- cells undergo more divisions during thymidine starvation than lexA+ cells. Furthermore, using an autoradiographic method to analyze deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) distribution in the starved cells, we demonstrated that cells without DNA are produced in both normal and starved lexA- cultures at a much higher frequency than in lexA+ cultures. Some of these cells may be produced by breakdown of DNA, but we favor the hypothesis that they result from an abnormal cell division process. Since lexA mutations are dominant, we conclude that a diffusible product decreases the synthesis or activity of an inhibitor of cell division in lexA- strains when DNA synthesis is blocked by thymidine starvation.
Subjective alertness and sleep quality in connection with permanent 12-hour day and night shifts.

OBJECTIVES The aim of this study was to compare permanent 12-hour day and night shifts (shift change over times at 0500 and 1700) in a shift system with 3 work periods followed by 4 free days. METHODS Sleep diaries were collected after main periods of sleep, and sleepiness ratings [Karolinska sleepiness scale (KSS)] were obtained 4 times during the last free day and also during the following 3 workshifts. Eighteen to twenty night workers and 8-10 day workers (depending on the instrument) participated. RESULTS The day workers were significantly sleepier during their workdays. Times for going to bed and for rising differed between the groups. The amount of sleep per week did not differ between groups, but the pattern across days did in that the day workers had a short sleep (5 hours) before the first day and 6 hours of sleep after the other two. Night workers slept long (9 hours) before the first shift and had 6.5-hour sleep periods after the other shifts. During free time the day workers slept around 9 hours and the night workers around 8 hours. Sleep quality and ease of awakening showed no group differences in overall levels, but the day workers had difficulties awakening before their shifts. The night workers had little variation in sleep quality or difficulties awakening. CONCLUSIONS The suggested explanation for the greater sleepiness and difficulties awakening among the day workers was the early start of the shift and the difficulties the workers had with phase advancing their sleep-wake rhythm.
Insulin secretion and clearance during low-dose graded glucose infusion.

The present study was undertaken in normal volunteers to define the alterations in beta-cell responsiveness to glucose associated with different physiological states, including fasting and refeeding, and after prolonged intravenous glucose infusion. A low-dose graded glucose infusion protocol was used to explore the dose-response relationship between glucose and insulin secretion. Studies were performed in 10 normal volunteers, and insulin secretion rates (ISR) were calculated by deconvolution of peripheral C-peptide levels using a two-compartment model utilizing individual kinetic parameters. From 5 to 9 mmol/l glucose, the relationship between glucose and ISR was linear. After a 42-h glucose infusion at a rate of 4 mg.kg-1.min-1, the ISR increased by 53% over the same glucose concentration range (P < 0.002), resulting in a shift of the dose-response curve to the left. Insulin clearance rates decreased 27% after the 42-h glucose infusion (P < 0.001). After a 72-h fast, ISR decreased by 32% from baseline over the 5-8 mmol/l glucose range (P = 0.056), resulting in a shift of the dose-response curve to the right. This shift was reversed by a 42-h period of refeeding, after which ISR was increased by 77% compared with the fasting study (P < 0.02). Refeeding enhanced the beta-cell responsiveness, and ISR increased by 31% after refeeding compared with the baseline study (P < 0.05). (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Reliability, validity and responsiveness to change of the Saint George's Respiratory Questionnaire in early diffuse cutaneous systemic sclerosis.

OBJECTIVE Dyspnoea is a common, multifactorial source of functional impairment among patients with dcSSc. Our objective was to assess the reliability, construct validity and responsiveness to change of the Saint George's Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ) in patients with early dcSSc participating in a multicentre prospective study. METHODS At enrolment and 1 year, patients completed the SGRQ (a multi-item instrument with four scales: symptoms, activity, impact and total), a visual analogue scale (VAS) for breathing and the HAQ Disability Index (HAQ-DI) and underwent 6 min walk distance and pulmonary function tests, physician and patient global health assessments and high-resolution CT (HRCT). We assessed internal consistency reliability using Cronbach's α. For validity we examined the ability of the SGRQ to differentiate the presence vs absence of interstitial lung disease (ILD) on HRCT or restrictive lung disease and evaluated the 1 year responsiveness to change using pulmonary function tests and patient- and physician-reported anchors. Correlation coefficients of 0.24-0.36 were considered moderate and >0.37 was considered large. RESULTS A total of 177 patients were evaluated. Reliability was satisfactory for all SGRQ scales (0.70-0.93). All scales showed large correlations with the VAS for breathing and diffusing capacity of the lung for carbon monoxide in the overall cohort and in the subgroup with ILD. Three of the four scales in the overall cohort and the total scale in the ILD subgroup showed moderate to large correlation with the HAQ-DI and the predicted forced vital capacity (r = 0.33-0.44). Each scale discriminated between the presence and absence of ILD and restrictive lung disease (P ≤ 0.0001-0.03). At follow-up, all scales were responsive to change using different anchors. CONCLUSION The SGRQ has acceptable reliability, construct validity and responsiveness to change for use in a dcSSc population and differentiates between patients with and without ILD.
Identification of hispidin as a bioluminescent active compound and its recycling biosynthesis in the luminous fungal fruiting body

We previously showed that luminous fungi share a common mechanism in bioluminescence, and identified hispidin as a luciferin precursor in Neonothopanus nambi mycelium. Here we showed the presence of hispidin as a bioluminescent active compound at 25–1000 pmol g^−1 in the fruiting bodies of Mycena chlorophos , Omphalotus japonicus , and Neonothopanus gardneri . These results suggest that luminous mushrooms contain hispidin as a luciferin precursor. We also found that non-luminous “young” fruiting bodies exhibited luminescence by hispidin treatment. Furthermore, we observed a gradual luminescence enhancement of the cell-free fruiting body extract by the addition of hispidin biosynthetic components, namely caffeic acid, ATP and malonyl-CoA. These findings suggest that continuous weak glow of luminous mushrooms is regulated by slow recycling biosynthesis of hispidin.
Compensatory growth of pigs: quantitative and qualitative parameters of pork carcass of fatteners administered a mixture with linseed oil in the re-alimentation period.

An experiment conducted on 56 fatteners was aimed at determining the effect of compensatory growth and addition of linseed oil in the II period of fattening on their slaughter value and meat quality. On termination of the I fattening period (23-60 kg b.w.) carcasses of animals fed in that period with a restrictive diet (-25% of diet), as compared to those of animals fed semi ad libitum, were characterised by greater meatiness (p≤0.05), lower fat content of longissimus thoracis, smaller free drip as well as higher values of chewiness and hardness. After the re-alimentation period, in which the animals were fed semi ad libitum with mixtures containing 0 or 4% of linseed oil, the greatest meatiness was observed in the pigs fed with a restrictive diet in the I fattening period and with a mixture containing 0% of linseed oil in the II fattening period. The restrictive-compensatory feeding strategy was found to exert a positive effect on contents of dry matter and total protein in longissimus thoracis and to have a negative impact on texture parameters of longissimus lumborum. The addition of linseed oil to feed mixtures caused a decrease in carcass meatiness (p≤0.05) and an increase in meat springiness (p≤0.05).
Evolution and characteristics of Schistosoma mansoni eggs laid in vitro.

Adult pairs of Schistosoma mansoni were maintained in vitro in media consisting either of 90 parts of Medium 199 and 10 parts of calf serum, or 80% Eagle's Minimal Essential Medium and 20% calf serum. In both media, some pairs oviposited on the day of in vitro isolation, and 70% were laying eggs after 48 hr cultivation. When worms were cultured continuously in Medium No. 199, the average number of eggs laid per female per day during the first 5 days of in vitro maintenance, was 24.3 ? 4.0 (standard error of the mean) which was only 8% of the rate of the same strain in mice. Oviposition occurred only during the first 10 days of in vitro life and 85% of the eggs were laid over the first 5 days. Changing Medium 199 daily did not significantly alter these parameters, nor did maintenance in Eagle's medium, when this medium was changed daily. However, if Eagle's medium was not changed, the egg-laying rate was reduced to 5.7 eggs per female per day on days 1 through 5 of in vitro life. Very few eggs matured in Eagle's medium under either of the conditions used. The eggs which did mature required 7 days to reach the miracidial stage. A much higher per cent of eggs matured in Medium 199 and the maturation period was 5 days, one day shorter than the in vivo rate. From differences in rates of oviposition and per cents of egg maturation under the three conditions used, it was concluded that the nutritional requirements of oviposition are different from those required for embryonic development. Eggs which matured in vitro sometimes hatched abnormally. The range in the per cents of eggs maturing in vitro in Medium 199: 16.5 to 36.6%, was about the same as reported in vivo. Some immature eggs which died in vitro did not immediately exhibit signs of death which are commonly found in vivo. It was therefore concluded that these differences in appearance of dead eggs are due to the environment of the host. Spine to spine clumping of eggs was noted in these cultures. Examination of the spine by electron microscopy showed no recognizable structure for holding at the tip of the spine. Schistosoma mansoni has been cultured in vitro in different media (Clegg, 1965; Lee and Chu, 1935; Newsome, 1962; Robinson, 1960; Ross and Bueding, 1950; Senft and Senft, 1962), and sometimes eggs have been laid (Newsome, 1962; Robinson, 1960; Senft and Senft, 1962) in the in vitro environment. Although eggs have matured in vitro to the miracidial stage (Newsome, 1962), their rate of maturation has not been reported nor have the types of eggs laid been described. These experiments were designed to study in vitro the rates of oviposition and embryonic development, the types of eggs found, and the effect of different media on these parameters. MATERIALS AND METHODS
Microsatellite instability of gastric cancer and precancerous lesions.

OBJECTIVE To investigate whether microsatellite instability (MSI) of gastric cancer and precancerous lesions were existed and its effect. METHODS Laser microdissection was used. Gastric, intestinal metaplasia, dysplasia and normal mucosa were collected respectively. Five microsatellite loci were selected and MSI was detected by denaturing high-performance liquid chromatography. RESULTS In the five microsatellite loci REF-positive phenotype, intestinal metaplasia MSI was 20.7%. Dysplasia MSI was 22.4%. Gastric MSI was 47.9%, and there was no MSI in normal gastric mucosa. CONCLUSION MSI gradually increased from precancerous lesions to gastric cancer. The early detection of MSI may be a potential early warning indicator for early diagnosis of gastric cancer.
Activity of non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors against HIV-2 and SIV.

BACKGROUND After the initial discovery of 1-(2-hydroxyethoxymethyl)-6-(phenylthio)thymine (HEPT) and tetrahydroimidazo[4,5,1-jk][1,4]benzodiazepin-2(1H)-one and thione (TIBO) derivatives, several other non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase (RT) inhibitors (NNRTI), including nevirapine (BI-RG-587), pyridinone derivatives (L-696,229 and L-697,661), delavirdine (U-90152), alpha-anilinophenylacetamides (alpha-APA) and various other classes of NNRTI have been described. The hallmark of NNRTI has been based on their ability to interact with a specific site ('pocket') of HIV-1 RT. OBJECTIVE To investigate whether, in addition to HIV-1, different strains of HIV-2 (ROD and EHO) and SIV (mac251, agm3 and mndGB1) are sensitive to a selection of NNRTI i.e. delavirdine, the HEPT derivative I-EBU (MKC-442), 8-chloro-TIBO (tivirapine), alpha-APA (loviride), nevirapine and the pyridinone derivative L-697,661. METHODS AND RESULTS The NNRTI tested inhibited the replication of the different strains of HIV-2 and SIV at micromolar concentrations. The inhibitory effects of the NNRTI on HIV-2-induced cytopathicity correlated well with their inhibitory effects on HIV-2 RT activity. Drug-resistant HIV-2 (EHO) variants containing the Ser102Leu and/or Glu219Asp mutations in their RT were selected after passaging the virus in MT-4 cells in the presence of increasing concentrations of delavirdine. The EHO virus mutants were at least 20-fold less susceptible to the antiviral effects of delavirdine. Some cross-resistance, depending on the mutant strain, was observed with the other NNRTI tested (i.e. MKC-442, tivirapine, loviride and pyridinone L-697,661). CONCLUSIONS Our data demonstrate that NNRTI are not exclusively specific for HIV-1 but are also inhibitory to different HIV-2 and SIV strains. These observations will have important implications for the development of new NNRTI with higher activity against both HIV-1 and HIV-2. Furthermore, in view of their anti-SIV activity, NNRTI could be evaluated further for their in vivo anti-retrovirus efficacy in non-human primate models.
Ultrastructural observations of hoof horn from dairy cows: the structure of the white line

The white line (zona alba) is the specialised region of the bovine claw capsule at the junction of the wall and the sole. It consists of two distinct components, both generated from epidermis overlying the laminar corium, and these were examined in the transmission electron microscope. One constituent of the white line is the laminar horn leaflet which was composed of fusiform squames. Within these squames the bundles of keratin fibres were orientated parallel to the laminar horn leaflets. The second components, the interdigitating horn, was composed of squames which were polyhedral in outline and contained tightly packed bundles of keratin fibres, orientated in various directions. These different ultrastructural appearances are thought to be associated with different mechanical properties for the two parts of the white line. No horn tubules were present in the interdigitating horn of the white line.
Cross-examining dissociative identity disorder: Neuroimaging and etiology on trial

Dissociative identity disorder (DID) is probably the most disputed of psychiatric diagnoses and of psychological forensic evaluations in the legal arena. The iatrogenic proponents assert that DID phenomena originate from psychotherapeutic treatment while traumagenic proponents state that DID develops after severe and chronic childhood trauma. In addition, DID that is simulated with malingering intentions, but not stimulated by psychotherapeutic treatment, may be called pseudogenic. With DID gaining more interest among the general public it can be expected that the number of pseudogenic cases will grow and the need to distinguish between traumagenic, iatrogenic or pseudogenic DID will increase accordingly. This paper discusses whether brain imaging studies can inform the judiciary and/or distinguish the etiology of DID.
System perspectives for the application of structured LDPC codes to data storage devices

We have three main goals in this paper. First, we will show the equivalences and relationships among some of the well-known classes of structured low density parity check (LDPC) codes. Second, we consider application of these codes to magnetic recording channel. We will make performance comparisons not only with bit-error-rate (BER) metric but also with sector failure rate (SFR) as the comparison dimension. Such a comparison is more meaningful from a system analysis perspective. Finally, we consider the case of these structured LDPC codes concatenated with conventional Reed-Solomon (RS) codes. We believe LDPC codes will not completely replace RS codes in the future storage devices. From this perspective, for LDPC codes to be contenders for future architectures, they will need to work in harmony with the outer RS codes. This implies that we have to take into account the redundancy introduced by the overall coding scheme, that is, RS code in concatenation with LDPC code, to reach meaningful comparisons from a system design perspective.
SAFETY OF LOW‐DOSE INTRATHECAL FLUORESCEIN IN ENDOSCOPIC CRANIAL BASE SURGERY

OBJECTIVE Intraoperative identification of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leakage is critical in successful closure after endoscopic cranial base surgery. Intrathecal injection of fluorescein is quite useful in identifying CSF leaks. However, complications have been reported with various doses and the technique has fallen out of favor. We explored the safety of low-dose intrathecal fluorescein administered to patients undergoing endoscopic cranial base surgery. METHODS A retrospective chart review and postoperative patient survey were performed. The nature and incidence of complications and subjective complaints were recorded in 54 patients who underwent endoscopic, endonasal approaches to the anterior cranial base and received intrathecal fluorescein after premedication with dexamethasone and diphenhydramine. RESULTS Intraoperative CSF leak was identified with fluorescein in 46.3% of the patients and helped determine the reconstruction technique. Postoperative CSF leak occurred in 9.3% of the patients and resolved with lumbar drainage. There were no seizures. Most side effects were nonspecific, transient, and likely not caused by fluorescein including malaise (57.4%), headache (51.9%), dizziness (31.5%), or nausea/vomiting (24.1%). Three patients (5.6%) experienced persistent subjective lower extremity weakness (n = 2) and numbness (n = 2) postoperatively; however, two of them had undergone lumbar drainage. CONCLUSION Low-dose injection of intrathecal fluorescein after premedication with steroid and antihistamine agents is generally safe. Most symptoms are nonspecific and transient, likely caused by the surgery or lumbar drainage. However, fluorescein should be administered with some caution because it may be responsible for occasional lower extremity weakness and numbness.