Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Metabolic changes in quinolinic acid‐lesioned rat striatum detected non‐invasively by in vivo 1H NMR spectroscopy

Intrastriatal injection of quinolinic acid (QA) provides an animal model of Huntington disease. In vivo 1H NMR spectroscopy was used to measure the neurochemical profile non‐invasively in seven animals 5 days after unilateral injection of 150 nmol of QA. Concentration changes of 16 metabolites were measured from 22 μl volume at 9.4 T. The increase of glutamine ((+25 ± 14)%, mean ± SD, n = 7) and decrease of glutamate (−12 ± 5)%, N‐acetylaspartate (−17 ± 6)%, taurine (−14 ± 6)% and total creatine (−9 ± 3%) were discernible in each individual animal (P < 0.005, paired t‐test). Metabolite concentrations in control striata were in excellent agreement with biochemical literature. The change in glutamate plus glutamine was not significant, implying a shift in the glutamate‐glutamine interconversion, consistent with a metabolic defect at the level of neuronal‐glial metabolic trafficking. The most significant indicator of the lesion, however, were the changes in glutathione ((−19 ± 9)%, P < 0.002)), consistent with oxidative stress. From a comparison with biochemical literature we conclude that high‐resolution in vivo 1H NMR spectroscopy accurately reflects the neurochemical changes induced by a relatively modest dose of QA, which permits one to longitudinally follow mitochondrial function, oxidative stress and glial‐neuronal metabolic trafficking as well as the effects of treatment in this model of Huntington disease. © 2001 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Synchrotron-radiation photoemission study of CdS/CuInSe2 heterojunction formation.

Synchrotron-radiation soft-x-ray photoemission spectroscopy was used to investigate the development of the electronic structure at the CdS/CuInSe{sub 2} heterojunction interface. CdS overlayers were deposited in steps on single-crystal {ital p}- and {ital n}-type CuInSe{sub 2} at 250 {degree}C. Results indicate that the CdS grows in registry with the substrate, initially in a two-dimensional growth mode followed by three-dimensional island growth as is corroborated by reflection high-energy electron-diffraction analysis. Photoemission measurements were acquired after each growth in order to observe changes in the valence-band electronic structure as well as changes in the In 4{ital d}, Se 3{ital d}, Cd 4{ital d}, and S 2{ital p} core lines. The results were used to correlate the interface chemistry with the electronic structure at these interfaces and to directly determine the CdS/CuInSe{sub 2} heterojunction valence-band discontinuity and the consequent heterojunction band diagram. These results show that the Katnani-Margaritondo method is unreliable in determining offsets for heterojunctions where significant Fermi-level pinning may occur and where the local structure and chemistry of the interface depends strongly on the specific heterojunction.
Single-cell–initiated monosynaptic tracing reveals layer-specific cortical network modules

Tracing cells that project to one neuron Feature extraction is a prominent characteristic of cortical neurons involved in the early stages of sensory processing. Wertz et al. retrogradely marked an injected neuron and its direct inputs to reveal the network mechanisms that mediate their response. Neurons within each presynaptic network layer of single direction-selective cells showed similar motion direction preferences. In some networks, layer-specific functional modules were identical to the orientation preference of the postsynaptic neuron. Presynaptic neurons, however, displayed a general bias toward the stimulus feature that elicited a response in the postsynaptic neuron. Science, this issue p. 70 Orientation-sensitive visual neurons receive input from presynaptic neurons with similar stimulus preferences. Individual cortical neurons can selectively respond to specific environmental features, such as visual motion or faces. How this relates to the selectivity of the presynaptic network across cortical layers remains unclear. We used single-cell–initiated, monosynaptically restricted retrograde transsynaptic tracing with rabies viruses expressing GCaMP6s to image, in vivo, the visual motion–evoked activity of individual layer 2/3 pyramidal neurons and their presynaptic networks across layers in mouse primary visual cortex. Neurons within each layer exhibited similar motion direction preferences, forming layer-specific functional modules. In one-third of the networks, the layer modules were locked to the direction preference of the postsynaptic neuron, whereas for other networks the direction preference varied by layer. Thus, there exist feature-locked and feature-variant cortical networks.
Big Data Validation and Quality Assurance -- Issuses, Challenges, and Needs

With the fast advance of big data technology and analytics solutions, big data computing and service is becoming a very hot research and application subject in academic research, industry community, and government services. Nevertheless, there are increasing data quality problems resulting in erroneous data costs in enterprises and businesses. Current research seldom discusses how to effectively validate big data to ensure data quality. This paper provides informative discussions for big data validation and quality assurance, including the essential concepts, focuses, and validation process. Moreover, the paper presents a comparison among big data validation tools and several major players in industry are discussed. Furthermore, the primary issues, challenges, and needs are discussed.
Can a single isotropic 3D fast spin echo sequence replace three-plane standard proton density fat-saturated knee MRI at 1.5 T?

OBJECTIVE To assess whether a single isotropic three-dimensional (3D) fast spin echo (FSE) proton density fat-saturated (PD FS) sequence reconstructed in three planes could replace the three PD (FS) sequences in our standard protocol at 1.5 T (Siemens Avanto, Erlangen, Germany). METHODS A 3D FSE PD water excitation sequence was included in the protocol for 95 consecutive patients referred for routine knee MRI. This was used to produce offline reconstructions in axial, sagittal and coronal planes. Two radiologists independently assessed each case twice, once using the standard MRI protocol and once replacing the standard PD (FS) sequences with reconstructions from the 3D data set. Following scoring, the observer reviewed the 3D data set and performed multiplanar reformats to see if this altered confidence. The menisci, ligaments and cartilage were assessed, and statistical analysis was performed using the standard sequence as the reference standard. RESULTS The reporting accuracy was as follows: medial meniscus (MM) = 90.9%, lateral meniscus (LM) = 93.7%, anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) = 98.9% and cartilage surfaces = 85.8%. Agreement among the readers was for the standard protocol: MM kappa = 0.91, LM = 0.89, ACL = 0.98 and cartilage = 0.84; and for the 3D protocol: MM = 0.86, LM = 0.77, ACL = 0.94 and cartilage = 0.64. CONCLUSION A 3D PD FSE sequence reconstructed in three planes gives reduced accuracy and decreased concordance among readers compared with conventional sequences when evaluating the menisci and cartilage with a 1.5-T MRI scanner. ADVANCES IN KNOWLEDGE Using the existing 1.5-T MR systems, a 3D FSE sequence should not replace two-dimensional sequences.
Protective effect of statin therapy on connective tissue growth factor induction by diabetes in vivo and high glucose in vitro

Abstract Transcriptional activity of connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) promoter in transfected HEK293 cells was determined by luciferase assays. Secreted CTGF in cultured human mesangial cells was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). CTGF in urine and plasma was also measured in 405 subjects with/without type 2 diabetes. Our results showed that high glucose significantly increased transcription of the promoter in the transfected cells by more than 2.5-folds (p < 0.0005). CTGF secretion was induced by high glucose in the cells (p < 0.0005). These increases were inhibited by simvastatin. Urine CTGF was positively associated with plasma CTGF in both type 2 diabetes (p = 0.0005) and controls (p = 0.01). Urine CTGF levels in patients with macroalbuminuria were significantly higher than patients without macroalbuminuria (p < 0.05). In conclusion, our in vitro study suggests that statin may have a renal-protective effect through the inhibition of CTGF expression. Urine CTGF may be a good marker for the prediction of diabetic nephropathy.
Brevibacterium casei Sepsis in an 18-Year-Old Female with AIDS

ABSTRACT Brevibacterium sp. was isolated from the blood of an acutely ill 18-year-old female with AIDS. The isolate was identified asBrevibacterium casei by use of carbohydrate assimilation tests. Treatment was successful with intravenously administered ciprofloxacin. To our knowledge, this is the first report of sepsis caused by B. casei in a human immunodeficiency virus-infected patient.
Deposition of Cryptosporidium Oocysts in Streambeds

ABSTRACT The transfer of Cryptosporidium oocysts from the surface water to the sediment beds of streams and rivers influences their migration in surface waters. We used controlled laboratory flume experiments to investigate the deposition of suspended Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts in streambeds. The experimental results demonstrate that hydrodynamic interactions between an overlying flow and a sediment bed cause oocysts to accumulate in the sediments and reduce their concentrations in the surface water. The association of C. parvum with other suspended sediments increased both the oocysts' effective settling velocity and the rate at which oocysts were transferred to the sediment bed. A model for the stream-subsurface exchange of colloidal particles, including physical transport and physicochemical interactions with sediment grains, accurately represented the deposition of both free C. parvum oocysts and oocysts that were attached to suspended sediments. We believe that these pathogen-sediment interactions play an important role in regulating the concentrations of Cryptosporidium in streams and rivers and should be taken into consideration when predicting the fate of pathogens in the environment.
THE STRUCTURAL AND FUNCTIONAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE

iii ÖZET . iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS . v TABLE OF CONTENTS . vi LIST OF FIGURES . viii CHAPTER 1 : INTRODUCTION . 1 CHAPTER 2 : THE STRUCTURAL AND FUNCTIONAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE OTTOMAN CITY . 7 2.1 The City as the “Center of Administration” . 9 2.2 The City as the “Center of its Geographical Environment” . 17 2.3 The City as the “Center of Economic Activity” . 21 CHAPTER 3 : INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL RELATIONS OF THE OTTOMAN CITY. 28 3.1 Internal Relations of the City . 29 3.1. 1 Administrative Relations . 31 3.1. 2 Economic Relations . 34 3.1. 3 Social Relations . 38 3.2 External Relations of the City . 50
Increased cancer-related mortality for patients with type 2 diabetes who use sulfonylureas or insulin: Response to Farooki and Schneider.

We thank Farooki and Schneider (1) for their comments on our recently published article (2) on diabetes treatments and cancer-related mortality. As we had indicated (2), we agree with Drs. Farooki and Schneider that additional clinical data would aid our understanding of pathophysiologic mechanisms. Clinical intervention studies may be optimal in obtaining such pathophysiologic data. However, such studies may be impractical given the large numbers of patients required …
Accumulation of heavy metals in food web components across a gradient of lakes

Recent studies have emphasized the need for understanding the accumulation and fate of metal contaminants at different trophic levels and across a broad spectrum of lake types. To address both issues, metal concentrations (Hg, Zn, Cd, As, and Pb) were measured in the water, two size fractions of zooplankton, and fish from 20 lakes in contaminated to pristine watersheds in the northeastern United States. Our goals were to examine links between watershed characteristics and aqueous metal levels in lakes and relationships between aqueous concentrations, metal burdens in different plankton groups and in fish. Two pairs of metals, (1) Hg and Zn and (2) As and Pb, exhibited strong similarities both in the factors that predict their concentrations in water and in the patterns of accumulation in particular trophic levels. Aqueous concentrations of Hg and Zn were highest in cool water lakes, whereas As and Pb were highest in more eutrophic lakes in agricultural areas. Aqueous Cd concentrations were closely correlated with the land‐use variables, percentage of agricultural land, and road densities. Similarly, Hg and Zn both biomagnified from small plankton (45–202 µm) to macrozooplankton (>202 mm) and from macrozooplankton to fish. In contrast, bioaccumulation of both As and Pb diminished with increasing trophic level. Although aqueous metal and zooplankton metal levels were not significant predictors of As and Pb levels in fish, metal levels in zooplankton were predictive of Hg and Zn in fish, suggesting that sources of bioaccumulation differ for different metals. Our findings demonstrate the importance of investigating upper and lower trophic levels separately, to fully understand metal transfer pathways in aquatic food webs.
CPU2006 working set size

SPEC CPU2000 had a target memory footprint of 200 MB for the benchmarks [1], to enable the suite to run on machines with 256 MB of memory. Six years have elapsed since the release of that suite, and in that time memory sizes have increased significantly, so the memory requirements for the recently released CPU2006 reflect this. CPU2006 has been targeted to have a benchmark memory footprint of about 900MB, allowing the suite to run on machines with 1GB of memory.
A Fast Algorithm for high-dimensional Similarity Joins

Many emerging data mining applications require a similarity join between points in a highdimensional domain. We present a new algorithm that utilizes a new index structure, called the -kdB tree, for fast spatial similarity joins on high-dimensional points. This index structure reduces the number of neighboring leaf nodes that are considered for the join test, as well as the traversal cost of nding appropriate branches in the internal nodes. The storage cost for internal nodes is independent of the number of dimensions. Hence the proposed index structure scales to high-dimensional data. We analyze the cost of the join for the -kdB tree and the R-tree family, and show that the -kdB tree will perform better for high-dimensional joins. Empirical evaluation, using synthetic and real-life datasets, shows that similarity join using the -kdB tree is typically 3 to 20 times faster than the R tree, with the performance gap increasing with the number of dimensions. We also discuss how some of the ideas of the -kdB tree can be applied to the R-tree family. These biased R-trees perform better than the corresponding traditional R-trees for highdimensional similarity joins, but do not match the performance of the -kdB tree.
Information Systems in Transition Economies: Does Ownership Matter?

ABSTRACT This research investigates the moderating roles of firm ownership in managerial perceptions of information systems (IS) in transition economies. Analysis of representative survey data from 304 companies in Hungary showed that perceptions of IS are driven by organizational variables in foreign firms, and by environmental variables in domestic firms. The findings embrace a more fine-grained notion of variables affecting IS usefulness in the transition economy context by showing that those are contingent on firm ownership.
Effect of glycerol-induced hyperhydration on thermoregulatory and cardiovascular functions and endurance performance during prolonged cycling in a 25 °C environment

We compared the effect of glycerol-induced hyperhydration (GIH) to that of water-induced hyperhydration (WIH) on cardiovascular and thermoregulatory functions and endurance performance (EP) during prolonged cycling in a temperate climate in subjects consuming fluid during exercise. At weekly intervals, 6 trained male subjects ingested, in a randomized, double-blind, counterbalanced fashion, either a glycerol (1.2 g glycerol/kg bodyweight (BW) with 26 mL/kg BW of water - aspartame-flavored fluid) or placebo solution (water - aspartame-flavored fluid only) over a 2 h period. Subjects then performed 2 h of cycling at 66% of the maximal oxygen consumption (VO2 max) and 25 °C while drinking 500 mL/h of sports drink, which was followed by a step-incremented cycling test to exhaustion. Levels of hyperhydration did not differ significantly between treatments before exercise. During exercise, GIH significantly reduced urine production by 246 mL. GIH did not increase sweat rate nor did it decrease heart rate, rectal temperature, or perceived exertion during exercise as compared with WIH. EP was not significantly different between treatments. Neither treatment induced undesirable side effects. It is concluded that, compared with WIH, GIH decreases urine production, but does not improve cardiovascular or thermoregulatory functions, nor does it improve EP during 2 h of cycling in a 25 °C environment in trained athletes consuming 500 mL/h of fluid during exercise.Key words: prolonged exercise, fluid balance, heart rate, rectal temperature, exercise capacity.
Genome-wide Analysis Reveals Inositol, Not Choline, as the Major Effector of Ino2p-Ino4p and Unfolded Protein Response Target Gene Expression in Yeast*

In the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the transcription of many genes encoding enzymes of phospholipid biosynthesis are repressed in cells grown in the presence of the phospholipid precursors inositol and choline. A genome-wide approach using cDNA microarray technology was used to profile the changes in the expression of all genes in yeast that respond to the exogenous presence of inositol and choline. We report that the global response to inositol is completely distinct from the effect of choline. Whereas the effect of inositol on gene expression was primarily repressing, the effect of choline on gene expression was activating. Moreover, the combination of inositol and choline increased the number of repressed genes compared with inositol alone and enhanced the repression levels of a subset of genes that responded to inositol. In all, 110 genes were repressed in the presence of inositol and choline. Two distinct sets of genes exhibited differential expression in response to inositol or the combination of inositol and choline in wild-type cells. One set of genes contained the UASINO sequence and were bound by Ino2p and Ino4p. Many of these genes were also negatively regulated by OPI1, suggesting a common regulatory mechanism for Ino2p, Ino4p, and Opi1p. Another nonoverlapping set of genes was coregulated by the unfolded protein response pathway, an ER-localized stress response pathway, but was not dependent on OPI1 and did not show further repression when choline was present together with inositol. These results suggest that inositol is the major effector of target gene expression, whereas choline plays a minor role.
Clinical Usefulness of 18F-FDG PET/CT for the Detection of Infections of Unknown Origin in Patients Undergoing Maintenance Hemodialysis

Patients with end-stage renal disease undergoing maintenance hemodialysis (MHD) are highly prone to infections. The potential clinical usefulness of 18F-FDG PET/CT for the detection of infections of unknown origin in this patient population remains unclear. This study was designed to investigate this issue. Methods: Between October 2011 and July 2014, a total of 104 adult MHD patients with sepsis underwent 18F-FDG PET/CT for the detection of unknown infection foci. Follow-up was continued until October 2014. Positive 18F-FDG PET/CT findings and mortality served as the main outcome measures. Results: Of the 104 study patients, 73 (70.2%) had positive 18F-FDG PET/CT findings, and a total of 95 major infection foci were identified. Eighteen patients (24.6%) had at least 2 infection foci on 18F-FDG PET/CT scans. Seven (53.8%) of the 13 patients with primary vascular access–related infections had concurrent metastatic foci. Twenty-eight patients (26.9%) had their treatments modified by 18F-FDG PET/CT results. Multivariate logistic regression analysis demonstrated that low hemoglobin and high C-reactive protein levels at diagnosis were the independent predictors of positive 18F-FDG PET/CT results. Twenty-seven patients (26.0%) died during their hospital stay, and 24 of them had positive 18F-FDG PET/CT findings (P = 0.014). Positive 18F-FDG PET/CT results were an independent predictor of mortality (hazard ratio, 3.896; 95% confidence interval, 1.039–14.613; P = 0.044). Conclusion: Our results suggest that 18F-FDG PET/CT may be clinically useful for detecting occult infection foci in end-stage renal disease patients undergoing MHD. In this population, positive 18F-FDG PET/CT findings may lead to a significant change in clinical management and independently predict mortality.
Flagship Species Conservation and Introduced Species Invasion : Toxic Aspects Along Loire River (France)

Xenobiotic substances in the water are a wide range of contaminants, both organic and metallic and radioactive (nuclear power plants), which focus, by bioaccumulation in the tissues, organs and fat of living beings, and by biomagnification through all trophic levels. This is why some animal species, including predators, can play the role of "biosensors" of contaminants, particularly interesting to study and monitor the health of ecosystems and provide a tool for identification of these elements, then restore water quality and preserve the diversity of environments.
Genetic Interactions between an Essential 3′ cis-Acting RNA Pseudoknot, Replicase Gene Products, and the Extreme 3′ End of the Mouse Coronavirus Genome

ABSTRACT The upstream end of the 3′ untranslated region (UTR) of the mouse hepatitis virus genome contains two essential and overlapping RNA secondary structures, a bulged stem-loop and a pseudoknot, which have been proposed to be elements of a molecular switch that is critical for viral RNA synthesis. It has previously been shown that a particular six-base insertion in loop 1 of the pseudoknot is extremely deleterious to the virus. We have now isolated multiple independent second-site revertants of the loop 1 insertion mutant, and we used reverse-genetics methods to confirm the identities of suppressor mutations that could compensate for the original insertion. The suppressors were localized to two separate regions of the genome. Members of one class of suppressor were mapped to the portions of gene 1 that encode nsp8 and nsp9, thereby providing the first evidence for specific interactions between coronavirus replicase gene products and a cis-acting genomic RNA element. The second class of suppressor was mapped to the extreme 3′ end of the genome, a result which pointed to the existence of a direct base-pairing interaction between loop 1 of the pseudoknot and the genomic terminus. The latter finding was strongly supported by phylogenetic evidence and by the construction of a deletion mutant that reduced the 3′ UTR to its minimal essential elements. Taken together, the interactions revealed by the two classes of suppressors suggest a model for the initiation of coronavirus negative-strand RNA synthesis.
Cross‐over trials in Statistics in Medicine: the first ‘25’ years

Papers on cross‐over trials that have appeared in the first 25 years of Statistics in Medicine are reviewed. Papers on bioequivalence are also considered. After a brief statistical summary, individual papers are discussed under seven headings: 1. The two‐stage analysis of AB/BA trials, 2. Baselines, 3. Binary and categorical data, 4. Survival data, 5. Modelling carry‐over, 6. Bioequivalence and 7. Components of variation. Finally, a brief assessment of the importance in this field of Statistics in Medicine is given. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.