Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An integrated kinetic analysis of intermediates and transition states in protein folding reactions.

Relaxation rates for folding and unfolding of two proteins have been measured over a range of denaturant concentrations to examine the reaction pathways leading to the late transition state. The proteins were chosen for their marked differences in both kinetic and structural properties. Results for the N-terminal domain of phosophoglycerate kinase (N-PGK), from Bacillus stearothermophilus, reveal the existence of a single intermediate (pathway = U-I-F), and obey the general relationship: kobs = k(U-I) + k(I-U)/[1 + 1/KU/I]. Hen egg white lysozyme folds through two intermediates (pathway = U-I-I.-F) and the relaxation kinetics for formation and decay of the fully folded state are described by: kobs = k(F-I.)+KI. -F)/[1+ 1/KI. /I+ 1/(KI/U.KI./I)]. Rate constants apply to the first step in unfolding and the last step in folding, respectively, these being rate-limiting in the stated directions. Equilibrium constants describe the stability of transient intermediates, as indicated by the subscripts. Rate constants alter with denaturant according to the generalized equation k = kw.exp((mg-mt). D), where kw is the rate constant in water, mg and mt are parameters describing the relative solvent exposures of the ground and transition state conformations respectively, and D is the calculated denaturant activity. The same principle applies to equilibrium constants for rapid steps, i.e. for a process A = B; KA/B = KA/B(w). exp((mB-mA). D). The combined application of these relationships allows measurement of the relative free energy and degree of solvation or compactness of intermediates and transition states in folding pathways from a single set of kinetic data. In the case of lysozyme, the fast but measurable rates of interconversion of intermediate states (I and I.) have been examined by use of a sequential mixing technique, so providing additional information on a transition state which is not rate-limiting in the overall pathway. The analysis of rate profiles for folding and unfolding of these proteins yields parameters which are in precise agreement with those derived from equilibrium data.
High-Speed Indoor Navigation System based on Visible Light and Mobile Phone

Visible light positioning (VLP) is widely believed to be a cost-effective answer to the growing demand for real-time indoor positioning. However, due to the high computational cost of image processing, most existing VLC-based systems fail to deliver satisfactory performance in terms of positioning speed and accuracy, both of which are crucial for the performance of indoor navigation. This paper proposes a novel VLP solution that provides accurate and high-speed indoor navigation via the designs of an elaborate flicker-free line coding scheme and a lightweight image processing algorithm. In addition, this solution has the advantage of supporting flicker mitigation and dimming, which are important for illumination. An Android-based system prototype has been developed for field tests on an off-the-shelf smartphone. Experimental results show that it supports indoor positioning for users moving at a speed of up to 18 km/h. In addition, it can achieve a high accuracy of 7.5 cm, and the computational time is reduced to 22.7 ms for single-luminaire and to 35.7 ms for dual-luminaries, respectively.
Use of sugammadex in lung cancer patients undergoing video-assisted thoracoscopic lobectomy

Background This study aimed to retrospectively evaluate the use of sugammadex in patients undergoing video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) lobectomy. Methods Data were obtained from medical record review of patients who underwent VATS lobectomy from January 2013 to November 2014. Fifty patients were divided into two groups: the sugammadex group (group S, n = 19) was administered sugammadex 2 mg/kg, while the pyridostigmine group (group P, n = 31) received pyridostigmine 20 mg with glycopyrrolate 0.2 mg or atropine 0.5 mg. The primary endpoint measure was the overall incidence of postoperative pulmonary complications including prolonged air leak, pneumonia, and atelectasis. The secondary endpoint measures were the length of postoperative hospital stay and duration of chest tube insertion. Results The overall incidence of postoperative pulmonary complications in patients in group S was significantly lower compared with that of group P (5 [26.3%] vs. 17 [54.8%]; P = 0.049). Also, the durations of chest tube insertion (5.0 [4.0–7.0] vs. 7.0 [6.0–8.0] days; P = 0.014) and postoperative hospital stay (8.0 [8.0–10.0] vs. 10.0 [9.0–11.0] days; P = 0.019) were shorter in group S compared with group P. Administration of sugammadex was associated reduced with postoperative pulmonary complications (OR: 0.22; 95% CI: 0.05–0.87; P = 0.031). Conclusions The use of sugammadex, compared with pyridostigmine, showed a significantly reduced overall incidence of postoperative pulmonary complications and decreased duration of chest tube use and postoperative hospital stay in patients undergoing VATS lobectomy, suggesting that sugammadex might be helpful in improving clinical outcomes in such patients.
Plasma Prolactin Levels in Maturing Intact and Cryptorchid Male Rats: Development of Stress Response 1

Summary In order to determine the possible role of the seminiferous tubules in the regulation of prolactin secretion during sexual development, male rats were rendered cryptorchid at 22 days of age, and thereafter different groups of animals were decapitated at 8-10 day intervals between Day 32 and Day 70. Cryptorchid rats showed destruction of the germinal epithelium accompanied by increased plasma FSH and, to a much lesser extent, increased plasma LH titers. Nevertheless, plasma prolactin levels were similar to those of intact controls throughout the entire period studied. Plasma prolactin titers in intact controls remained uniformly low from Day 20 to Day 70, contrasting with previous reports in which increasing prolactin levels have been observed during sexual development. To determine the reason for this apparent discrepancy, a longitudinal experiment was conducted in which intact and cryptorchid male rats were bled every 10 days from Day 30 to Day 70, following a 3-min period of exposure to ether fumes. The prolactin response to this stress increased markedly with age. A similar pattern of prolactin was observed in a cross-sectional study in which different groups of intact animals were bled following a 3-min period of ether exposure, at ages ranging from 20 to 70 days. The results indicate that unlike FSH secretion, prolactin secretion is not controlled by the seminiferous tubules. In addition, they suggest that the pattern of increasing plasma prolactin previously described in the developing male rat is at least in part caused by an age-dependent increase in responsiveness of prolactin to stress. The authors wish to thank Miss Cheri Reimann for secretarial assistance.
RNA Profiling and Chromatin Immunoprecipitation-Sequencing Reveal that PTF1a Stabilizes Pancreas Progenitor Identity via the Control of MNX1/HLXB9 and a Network of Other Transcription Factors

ABSTRACT Pancreas development is initiated by the specification and expansion of a small group of endodermal cells. Several transcription factors are crucial for progenitor maintenance and expansion, but their interactions and the downstream targets mediating their activity are poorly understood. Among those factors, PTF1a, a basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) transcription factor which controls pancreas exocrine cell differentiation, maintenance, and functionality, is also needed for the early specification of pancreas progenitors. We used RNA profiling and chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) sequencing to identify a set of targets in pancreas progenitors. We demonstrate that Mnx1, a gene that is absolutely required in pancreas progenitors, is a major direct target of PTF1a and is regulated by a distant enhancer element. Pdx1, Nkx6.1, and Onecut1 are also direct PTF1a targets whose expression is promoted by PTF1a. These proteins, most of which were previously shown to be necessary for pancreas bud maintenance or formation, form a transcription factor network that allows the maintenance of pancreas progenitors. In addition, we identify Bmp7, Nr5a2, RhoV, and P2rx1 as new targets of PTF1a in pancreas progenitors.
Polymorphisms in the umuDC region of Escherichia species

The umuDC operon of Escherichia coli encodes mutagenic DNA repair. The umuDC regions of multiple isolates of E. coli, E. alkalescens, and E. dispar and a single stock of E. aurescens were mapped by nucleotide hybridization. umuDC is located at one end of a conserved tract of restriction endonuclease sites either 12.5 or 14 kilobase pairs long. Rearrangements, including possible deletions, were seen in the polymorphic DNA flanking the conserved tract. Restriction site polymorphisms were not found around the DNA repair gene recA or polA. The junctions of the conserved region contain direct repeats of nucleotide sequences resembling the termini of the Tn3 group of transposons. Possible mechanisms for the generation of these variants are discussed.
Prediction Model of Dividend Payment of Czech Joint Stock Companies

Abstract The dividend payment is the very important part of investment decision for many stockholders. Results of this text identify finance factors that influence the management in dividend policy within the examined branch “Production and distribution of electric energy, gas and water”. Seven regressive models were created and they identify and define the effect of individual factors on the dividend payment among individual owner’s types. The retained earnings, the rate of return of invested assets in total and the size of company have the positive effect on the dividend payment. For the purpose of better interpretation the individual factors were quantified in form of the chance that the company will pay the dividend when compared to the fact that the company is not going to pay any dividend. The resulting regressive model was subsequently validated using the classification table and the receiver operating characteristic curve.
Cloning and expression of MXR7 gene in human HCC tissue.

AIM:To clone and identify the whole cDNA of MXR7 gene and to find out its expression in human HCC, and normal tissues.METHODS:The DNA primers were designed and synthesized according to the whole cDNA sequence of MXR7 gene. The cDNA of human HCC was taken as the template while the cDNA of MXR7 gene was synthesized by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Recombinant DNA conforming to reading frame was constructed by connecting purified PCR product of the cDNA of MXR7 gene with expression vector pGEX-5X-1 of fusion protein. The plasmid MXR7/pGEX-5X-1 was identified by sequencing. Using (32)P labeled MXR7 cDNA as probe, MXR7 mRNA expression was detected by Northern blot analysis in 12 different human normal tissues, 7 preoperatively untreated non-liver tumor tissues, 30 preoperatively untreated HCC, the paracancerous liver tissues and 12 normal liver tissues samples.RESULTS:Restriction enzyme and sequence analysis confirmed that the insertion sequence in vector pGEX-5X-1 was the same as the cDNA sequence of MXR7 gene. Northern blot analysis showed no expression of MXR7 mRNA in 12 kinds of normal human tissues including liver, 7 tumor tissues in other sites and 12 normal liver tissues, the frequencies of MXR7 mRNA expression in HCC and paracancerous liver tissues were 76.6% and 13.3%, respectively. The frequency of MXR7 mRNA expression in HCC without elevation of serum AFP and in HCC <5cm was 90% (9/10) and 83.3% (5/6), respectively.CONCLUSION:MXR7 mRNA is highly expressed in human HCC, which is specific and occurs at an early stage of HCC, suggesting MXR7 mRNA can be a tumor biomarker for HCC. The detection of MXR7 mRNA expression in the biopsied liver tissue is helpful in discovering early subclinical liver cancer in those with negative serum AFP.
Impact of Maxillary Advancement on Speech and Velopharyngeal Function in Patients with Cleft Lip and Palate

Objective Patients with cleft lip and palate (CLP) and maxillary retrognathia are usually treated with maxillary advancement (Le Fort I osteotomy). The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of maxillary advancement on the velopharyngeal function (VPF) and symptoms of velopharyngeal incompetence in patients with CLP. Design Retrospective group study before and after treatment. Participants All patients who had undergone Le Fort I osteotomy due to maxillary retrognathia from 2007 to 2010 at Karolinska University Hospital, Sweden (n = 13). Pre- and postoperatively standardized examinations were used. Blinded audio recordings were independently assessed by three experienced speech pathologists. Acoustical data (nasometry) and information on VPF (videoradiography and nasoendoscopy) were collected from the medical records. Two patients with additional malformations were considered outliers, and group data were based on a sample size of n = 11. Main Outcome Measures Perceptual and acoustic symptoms of velopharyngeal incompetence and overall assessment of VPF. Results No assessment method showed a significant deterioration of the VPF postoperatively. Individual data revealed that 6 of the 13 patients had no or only one symptom pre- and/or postoperatively. The two patients with additional malformations had most symptoms pre- and postoperatively and did not change. Three patients had an increased number of symptoms postoperatively by at least two symptoms. No associations between the outcome and possible prognostic factors were found. Conclusions Maxillary advancement did not have a significant impact on the VPF at the group level, but three individuals had a somewhat deteriorated VPF postoperatively.
Macro-Financial Effects of Portfolio Flows: Malaysia's Experience

This paper studies the causes and effects of portfolio flows in Malaysia. We use Structural Vector Autoregression (SVAR) and Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) models to analyse the interactions among portfolio flows, global and domestic macro and financial variables within a common empirical framework. Three findings emerge: First, the SVAR estimations show that global and domestic factors play transitory roles in driving Malaysia’s net portfolio flows. A subsample analysis from the ARDL model highlights that domestic factors play an increasingly important role in attracting portfolio inflows as Malaysia liberalised its exchange rate regime and capital flow restrictions. Second, higher net portfolio flows lead to exchange rate appreciation, higher equity prices and credit expansion. The effects are visible in the exchange rate, followed by equity prices and credit. Third, in the transmission of higher portfolio flows to growth, the positive effects from higher equity prices and credit are partially offset by the dampening effect from the appreciating exchange rate on output. While the contribution of portfolio flow’s effects on output variance is low, the impulse responses of output does change to portfolio flow shocks, suggesting that portfolio flows are tail risks to growth and that the risks magnify when the flows are large and volatile.
Subclinical Dysfunction of Cochlea and Cochlear Efferents in Migraine: An Otoacoustic Emission Study

Otoacoustic emission (OAE) testing enables us to identify the cochlear component of a hearing disorder and to monitor objectively minute changes in cochlear status undetectable by other audiological methods. Contralateral sound-induced suppression is mediated by medial superior olivary complex efferents which induce hyperpolarization counteracting the amplifying effects of outer hair cell (OHC) activity. The aim of this study was to assess functions of cochlea and its efferents in migraine using OAE testing and contralateral suppression of transiently evoked OAEs (TEOAE). Fifty-three migraineurs (106 ears) and 41 healthy subjects (82 ears) were included and pure tone audiometry (PTA), speech discrimination scores (SDS), distortion product OAE (DPOAE), TEOAE and contralateral suppression of TEOAEs were tested. PTA and SDS of migraineurs and controls were not different (P > 0.05). DPOAEs were tested between 1 and 6 kHz and a significant difference was detected only at 5 kHz frequency, where DPOAE amplitudes in migraine with aura (MA) were lower than in controls (P < 0.03). The mean amplitudes of TEOAEs were statistically insignificant between controls and migraine groups. Contralateral sound stimulus induced significant decrease in amplitudes of TEOAE (P = 0.005) in controls. In patients with migraine without aura and MA, mean amplitudes of TEOAEs were not suppressed by contralateral sound stimulus (P > 0.05). As PTA, SDS and DPOAE tests demonstrate normal functioning of inner ear between 1 and 4 kHz, absence of suppression of the TEOAEs by contralateral sound stimulation indicates the presence of dysfunction either in the medial olivocochlear complex in the brainstem or at the synaptic transmission between olivocochlear efferents and OHCs in the cochlea. Disruption in the contralateral suppression may be one of the mechanisms predisposing to the phonophobia symptom associated with migraine headache.
Differential Sensitization of Afferent Neuronal Pathways During Postoperative Ileus in the Mouse Jejunum

Background:Postoperative ileus induces reflex inhibition of gastrointestinal motility and an intestinal inflammatory response. We aimed to determine whether afferent sensitivity is increased during postoperative ileus and whether alterations are cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2)-dependent. Methods:C57BL/6 mice underwent laparotomy followed by standardized small bowel manipulation to induce ileus or sham treatment. After 24 hours, extracellular multiunit mesenteric afferent nerve discharge was recorded in vitro from 2-cm segments of jejunum. Fos immunoreactivity was determined for neuronal activation in the vagal nucleus of the solitary tract (nTS) of the brain stem and leukocyte infiltration in the intestinal muscularis by myeloperoxidase stains. Results:Serosal bradykinin (1 μM) was followed by an increase in afferent discharge to 65 ± 5 imp·s−1 in ileus segments compared with 37 ± 6 imp·s−1 in sham controls (P < 0.05). The response was attenuated to 31 ± 7 imp·s−1 after the selective COX-2 inhibitor 5,5-dimethyl-3-(flurorophenyl)-4-(4-methylsulfonyl) phenyl-2(5H)-furanone (DFU) in ileus segments. Afferent firing during ileus was augmented at luminal distension at 20 mm Hg but not at pressures up to 60 mm Hg. The number of Fos-positive neurons in the nTS was 110 ± 45 during ileus compared with 7 ± 4 in sham controls (−7.32 mm from bregma, P < 0.05) and did not differ after DFU. The intestinal muscularis contained more leukocytes during ileus compared with ileus segments after DFU and controls (both P < 0.05). Conclusion:This study provides direct evidence from afferent nerve recordings that sensitivity to bradykinin, which stimulates predominantly spinal afferents, is augmented during postoperative ileus involving a COX-2 pathway. Vagal afferents were also sensitized because low-threshold mechanosensitivity and neuronal activation in the nTS were increased.
Triadic Explanation of Public and Nonprofit Marketing Concept

Although the concept of public and nonprofit marketing concept was initially criticized in the marketing literature as confusing, it eventually became widely embraced by marketing scholars. Marketing scholars agreed that by the end of the 1970s there was no longer any serious controversy among marketing scholars about public service marketing concept. However, despite this apparent agreement among marketing academics, public administrators and academics in public administration areas have not unanimously embraced the utility of the concept. Two objectives formed the framework for this study: What are the assumptions, conceptualizations and disciplinary perspectives underlying the public services marketing concept? Can a superior conceptualization(s) be developed which is likely to be acceptable to a larger proportion of public services providers? Paper suggests three alternative conceptualizations of public services marketing.
Effects of Government’s Borrowing on Nigerian Infrastructural Development

This study evaluates the effects of government’s borrowings on infrastructural development in Nigeria. Infrastructural development has been proxied with capital spending of the federal government of Nigeria. The study embraced only secondary data as the sole source of data collection; quantitative data for the three variables of the study were sourced from Central Bank of Nigeria statistic bulletin. Data were analyzed using the Ordinary Least Square (OLS) Regression analysis to determine the relationship of the variables. Findings from the analyses show a short term relationship among the variables. The study further reveals that a positive relationship exists between federal government capital expenditure and domestic debt;while no significant relationship between capital expenditure and foreign debt was found. The implication of the findings is that increases in Domestic debt of the federal government leads to an increase in capital expenditure (Infrastructural development) (at the short run) while federal government foreign debt hitherto has not resulted to any improvement in capital spending (infrastructural development). The study thus concludes that the external/foreign debt has not contributed significantly in the development of Nigerian’s infrastructure and that the huge external debt profile of Nigeria even before the debt forgiveness of 2005 to date is not justifiable and is uncalled for. It suggested that external loans should be restricted to specified identifiable infrastructural or productive projects.
Foxg1 promotes olfactory neurogenesis by antagonizing Gdf11

Foxg1, a winged-helix transcription factor, promotes the development of anterior neural structures; in mice lacking Foxg1, development of the cerebral hemispheres and olfactory epithelium (OE) is severely reduced. It has been suggested that Foxg1 acts by positively regulating the expression of growth factors, such as Fgf8, which support neurogenesis. However, Foxg1 also binds Smad transcriptional complexes, allowing it to negatively regulate the effects of TGFβ family ligands. Here, we provide evidence that this latter effect explains much of the ability of Foxg1 to drive neurogenesis in the OE. We show that Foxg1 is expressed in developing OE at the same time as the gene encoding growth differentiation factor 11 (Gdf11), a TGFβ family member that mediates negative-feedback control of OE neurogenesis. Mutations in Gdf11 rescue, to a considerable degree, the major defects in Foxg1-/- OE, including the early, severe loss of neural precursors and olfactory receptor neurons, and the subsequent collapse of both neurogenesis and nasal cavity formation. Rescue is gene-dosage dependent, with loss of even one allele of Gdf11 restoring substantial neurogenesis. Notably, we find no evidence for a disruption of Fgf8 expression in Foxg1-/- OE. However, we do observe both a failure of expression of follistatin (Fst), which encodes a secreted Gdf11 antagonist normally expressed in and around OE, and an increase in the expression of Gdf11 itself within the remaining OE in these mutants. Fst expression is rescued in Foxg1-/-;Gdf11-/- and Foxg1-/-;Gdf11+/- mice. These data suggest that the influence of Foxg1 on Gdf11-mediated negative feedback of neurogenesis may be both direct and indirect. In addition, defects in development of the cerebral hemispheres in Foxg1-/- mice are not rescued by mutations in Gdf11, nor is Gdf11 expressed at high levels within these structures. Thus, the pro-neurogenic effects of Foxg1 are likely to be mediated through different signaling pathways in different parts of the nervous system.