Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
NOD2 Contributes to Porphyromonas gingivalis–induced Bone Resorption

The NOD-like receptors are cytoplasmic proteins that sense microbial by-products released by invasive bacteria. Although NOD1 and NOD2 are functionally expressed in cells from oral tissues and play a role triggering immune responses, the role of NOD2 receptor in the bone resorption and in the modulation of osteoclastogenesis is still unclear. We show that in an experimental model of periodontitis with Porphyromonas gingivalis W83, NOD2-/- mice showed lower bone resorption when compared to wild type. Quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis revealed that wild-type infected mice showed an elevated RANKL/OPG ratio when compared to NOD2-/- infected mice. Moreover, the expression of 2 osteoclast activity markers—cathepsin K and matrix metalloproteinase 9—was significantly lower in gingival tissue from NOD2-/- infected mice compared to WT infected ones. The in vitro study reported an increase in the expression of the NOD2 receptor 24 hr after stimulation of hematopoietic bone marrow cells with M-CSF and RANKL. We also evaluated the effect of direct activation of NOD2 receptor on osteoclastogenesis, by the activation of this receptor in preosteoclasts culture, with different concentrations of muramyl dipeptide. The results show no difference in the number of TRAP-positive cells. Although it did not alter the osteoclasts differentiation, the activation of NOD2 receptor led to a significant increase of cathepsin K expression. We confirm that this enzyme was active, since the osteoclasts resorption capacity was enhanced by muramyl dipeptide stimulation, evaluated in osteoassay plate. These results show that the lack of NOD2 receptor impairs the bone resorption, suggesting that NOD2 receptor could contribute to the progression of bone resorption in experimental model of periodontitis. The stimulation of NOD2 by its agonist, muramyl dipeptide, did not affect osteoclastogenesis, but it does favor the bone resorption capacity identified by increased osteoclast activity.
Marginalised voices in the inclusive recruitment discourse: a dilemma of inclusion/exclusion in the (Swedish) police

European journal for Research on the Education and Learning of Adults 9 (2018) 1, S. 61-77 Padagogische Teildisziplin: Berufs- und Wirtschaftspadagogik; Erwachsenenbildung / Weiterbildung; als elektronischer Volltext verfugbar
High-performance transition metal–doped Pt3Ni octahedra for oxygen reduction reaction

Molybdenum doping drives high activity Platinum (Pt) is an effective catalyst of the oxygen reduction reaction in fuel cells but is scarce. One approach to extend Pt availability is to alloy it with more abundant metals such as nickel (Ni). Although these catalysts can be highly active, they are often not durable because of Ni loss. Huang et al. show that doping the surface of octahedral Pt3Ni nanocrystals with molybdenum not only leads to high activity (∼80 times that of a commercial catalyst) but enhances their stability. Science, this issue p. 1230 Molybdenum-doped platinum-nickel nanocrystal catalysts exhibit high activity and durability for a key fuel cell reaction. Bimetallic platinum-nickel (Pt-Ni) nanostructures represent an emerging class of electrocatalysts for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in fuel cells, but practical applications have been limited by catalytic activity and durability. We surface-doped Pt3Ni octahedra supported on carbon with transition metals, termed M‐Pt3Ni/C, where M is vanadium, chromium, manganese, iron, cobalt, molybdenum (Mo), tungsten, or rhenium. The Mo‐Pt3Ni/C showed the best ORR performance, with a specific activity of 10.3 mA/cm2 and mass activity of 6.98 A/mgPt, which are 81- and 73‐fold enhancements compared with the commercial Pt/C catalyst (0.127 mA/cm2 and 0.096 A/mgPt). Theoretical calculations suggest that Mo prefers subsurface positions near the particle edges in vacuum and surface vertex/edge sites in oxidizing conditions, where it enhances both the performance and the stability of the Pt3Ni catalyst.
Germline Mutation in BRCA1 or BRCA2 and Ten-Year Survival for Women Diagnosed with Epithelial Ovarian Cancer

Purpose: To analyze the effect of germline mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2 on mortality in patients with ovarian cancer up to 10 years after diagnosis. Experimental Design: We used unpublished survival time data for 2,242 patients from two case–control studies and extended survival time data for 4,314 patients from previously reported studies. All participants had been screened for deleterious germline mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2. Survival time was analyzed for the combined data using Cox proportional hazard models with BRCA1 and BRCA2 as time-varying covariates. Competing risks were analyzed using Fine and Gray model. Results: The combined 10-year overall survival rate was 30% [95% confidence interval (CI), 28%–31%] for non-carriers, 25% (95% CI, 22%–28%) for BRCA1 carriers, and 35% (95% CI, 30%–41%) for BRCA2 carriers. The HR for BRCA1 was 0.53 at time zero and increased over time becoming greater than one at 4.8 years. For BRCA2, the HR was 0.42 at time zero and increased over time (predicted to become greater than 1 at 10.5 years). The results were similar when restricted to 3,202 patients with high-grade serous tumors and to ovarian cancer–specific mortality. Conclusions: BRCA1/2 mutations are associated with better short-term survival, but this advantage decreases over time and in BRCA1 carriers is eventually reversed. This may have important implications for therapy of both primary and relapsed disease and for analysis of long-term survival in clinical trials of new agents, particularly those that are effective in BRCA1/2 mutation carriers. Clin Cancer Res; 21(3); 652–7. ©2014 AACR.
Empirical Study of Scapegoat Theory Paradigm in the Exchange Rate Variable in the ASEAN 5

ABSTRACT This paper attempts to explain empirically the effect of order flow as an unobserved variable on the exchange rate movements based on the theory of scapegoat. The theory of scapegoat appears as the answer to the imbalance in the relationship between macroeconomic fundamentals and the exchange rate. To analyze the validity of this theory in Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand (ASEAN 5), we apply the two-stage least squares method. The empirical testing generates a fact that the paradigm of scapegoat theory works for four countries, namely Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand. Another finding is that the theory of scapegoat does not work for the Philippines. The implication of policy based on the results is the emphasis of policy that enables intervention in the foreign exchange market, the enhancement of monetary policy transparency in each country, as well as the management of capital flows more efficiently.
Management of Complicated Urinary Tract Infection in Older Patients

Urinary tract infection (UTI) in older persons is a common medical problem that is seen in both the ambulatory and institutional settings. It affects older women and men with a gender prevalence ratio of 2:1, respectively. UTI in older persons can be a complex problem in terms of the approach to diagnosis, treatment, and prevention. In this report the discussion will begin with the unique aspects of UTI in older persons, particularly as they relate to UTI in the younger, general population. The remaining discussion will then focus on three complicated clinical circumstances and conditions of UTI in the geriatric population: non‐catheter recurrent UTI, asymptomatic bacteriuria, and catheter‐related bacteriuria and UTI.
Different sizes, similar challenges: out of home care for youth in Germany and the Netherlands

While there is a large difference in the number of young inhabitants in the Netherlands and Germany, their child protection frameworks are quite similar. In both countries, child protection services are mainly focused on youth aged 0 to 18 and regulations are aimed at clients' responsibility and their active involvement during care. Youth care services consist of community-based services, day treatment and out- of-home care services, which include foster care and residential care. The history of out-of-home care services in both countries is characterized by similar developments. Over the last four decades, similar trends in residential care, towards more small-scale forms of residential care, smaller residential group sizes, and increasing professionalization of staff have emerged. Over the last two decades, a comparable trend towards increasing professionalization can be seen in the context of foster care in both countries. In addition, the number of youths in out-of-home care increased in both countries over the last decade, specifically in foster care. Over the last decade, more studies have been conducted in residential care than in foster care in both countries. Despite similar trends and developments in out-of-home care practice, research mainly shows differences in applied topics and methods between Germany and the Netherlands. © 2013 Colegio Oficial de Psicologos de Madrid. Production by Elsevier Espana, S.L. All rights reserved. Tamano diferente, retos similares: Medidas de proteccion a la infancia con separacion familiar en Alemania y Holanda RESUMEN
Serum Cortisol as a Useful Predictor of Cardiac Events in Patients With Chronic Heart Failure: The Impact of Oxidative Stress

Background—The pathophysiological role of cortisol, which binds to the mineralocorticoid receptor with an affinity equal to that of aldosterone (ALD), may be influenced by oxidative stress in patients with chronic heart failure. We evaluated cardiac event prediction using cortisol levels in chronic heart failure, in comparison with ALD, adrenocorticotropic hormone, and brain natriuretic peptide (BNP), and the impact of oxidative stress. Methods and Results—We measured the plasma levels of biomarkers such as BNP, ALD, adrenocorticotropic hormone, serum cortisol, and oxidized low-density lipoprotein (oxLDL), a biomarker of oxidative stress, in 319 consecutive symptomatic patients with chronic heart failure, and we followed these patients for a mean period of 33 months. During the follow-up period, 29 patients had cardiac events (death or hospitalization). Plasma levels of BNP, ALD, adrenocorticotropic hormone, oxLDL, and serum cortisol (16.8±1.8 &mgr;g/dL versus 12.4±0.3 &mgr;g/dL, P=0.01) were significantly higher in patients with cardiac events than in those without cardiac events. On stepwise multivariate analyses, high levels of BNP (P=0.0003), renin (P=0.002), cortisol (P=0.02), and oxLDL (P=0.002) were independent predictors of cardiac events, but ALD and adrenocorticotropic hormone levels were not. In patients with serum cortisol ≥12.5 &mgr;g/dL, the hazard ratio of cardiac events in patients with oxLDL ≥12 U/mL was 3.5 compared with that in patients with oxLDL <12 U/mL (P=0.008). Conclusions—These findings indicate that serum cortisol levels were a complementary and incremental cardiac event risk predictor in combination with BNP in patients with chronic heart failure and that cardiac event prediction based on cortisol levels was influenced by oxidative stress.
LET dependence of yield ratios of radiation-induced intra- and interchromosomal aberrations in human lymphocytes.

PURPOSE To investigate the LET dependence of various yield ratios of intra- and interchromosomal aberrations in order to quantify proximity effects for illegitimate rejoining of chromosome breaks. MATERIALS AND METHODS Calculations are based on 13 human lymphocyte data sets obtained from in vitro irradiation experiments with various radiation qualities covering an LET range of 0.5 to 150keV/microm. A total of 93000 first-division metaphases was analysed for all categories of chromosome-type aberrations. RESULTS No dose dependence was found for the various yield ratios of chromosomal aberrations. No LET dependence became apparent for the yield ratio of inter- to intrachromosomal exchange-type aberrations (dicentrics/centric rings = F value). However, a clear LET dependence was found for the yield ratio of intra-arm intrachanges to inter-arm intrachanges (interstitial deletions/centric rings = G ratio) and for the yield ratio of intra-arm intrachanges to interchromosomal exchanges (interstitial deletions/dicentrics = H ratio). CONCLUSION Measurements of intrachanges are informative for interpretation and quantification of proximity effects in the formation of radiation-induced chromosome aberrations. In particular, yield ratios for intra-arm intrachanges are likely to have a high potential as an indicator of high-LET radiations.
Genome size reduction through illegitimate recombination counteracts genome expansion in Arabidopsis.

Genome size varies greatly across angiosperms. It is well documented that, in addition to polyploidization, retrotransposon amplification has been a major cause of genome expansion. The lack of evidence for counterbalancing mechanisms that curtail unlimited genome growth has made many of us wonder whether angiosperms have a "one-way ticket to genomic obesity. " We have therefore investigated an angiosperm with a well-characterized and notably small genome, Arabidopsis thaliana, for evidence of genomic DNA loss. Our results indicate that illegitimate recombination is the driving force behind genome size decrease in Arabidopsis, removing at least fivefold more DNA than unequal homologous recombination. The presence of highly degraded retroelements also suggests that retrotransposon amplification has not been confined to the last 4 million years, as is indicated by the dating of intact retroelements.
In vivo electrophysiology of dopamine‐denervated striatum: Focus on the nitric oxide/cGMP signaling pathway

Within the striatum, the gaseous neurotransmitter nitric oxide (NO) is produced by a subclass of interneurons containing the neuronal NO synthase (nNOS). NO promotes the second messenger cGMP through the activation of the soluble guanyl cyclase (sGC) and plays a crucial role in the integration of glutamate (GLU) and DA transmission. The aim of this study was to characterize the impact of 6‐hydroxyDA (6‐OHDA) lesion of the rat nigrostriatal pathway on NO/cGMP system. In vivo extracellular single units recordings were performed under urethane anesthesia to avoid any potentially misleading contributions of cortically‐driven changes on endogenous NO. Hence, no electrical extrastriatal stimulation was performed and great attention was paid to the effects of 3‐morpholinosydnonimine (SIN‐1, a NO donor), N(G)‐nitro‐L‐arginine methyl ester (L‐NAME, a nonselective NOS inhibitor) and Zaprinast (a PDE inhibitor) delivered by iontophoresis upon the main striatal phenotypes. The latter were operationally distinguished in silent medium spiny‐like neurons (MSN), with negligible spontaneous activity but displaying glutamate‐induced firing discharge at rest and spontaneously active neurons (SAN), representing to a large extent nonprojecting interneurons. SANs were excited by SIN‐1 and Zaprinast while MSNs showed a clear inhibition during local iontophoretic application of SIN‐1 and Zaprinast. In 6‐OHDA animals, SIN‐1‐induced excitation in SANs was significantly increased (on the contrary, the inhibitory effect of L‐NAME was less effective). Interestingly, in DA‐denervated animals, a subclass of MSNs (40%) displayed a peculiar excitatory response to SIN‐1. These findings support the notion of an inhibitory modulatory role exerted by endogenous NO on control striatal projection cells. In addition, these findings suggest a functional cross‐talk between NO, spontaneously active interneurons, and projection neurons that becomes critical in the parkinsonian state. Synapse 62:409–420, 2008. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Minor extended-spectrum β-lactamases

Over the last few decades, various extended-spectrum β-lactamases (ESBLs), which are remotely related to the classical TEM and SHV families, have emerged. Among these, CTX-M, VEB and PER variants are of particular interest due to their widespread dissemination. This article will focus on these emerging ESBLs. CTX-M was first identified from an Escherichia coli strain in Germany and since then, a rapidly growing family of ESBLs has formed worldwide. There are now more than 90 CTX-M variants. VEB-1 ESBL is widespread in Southeast Asia. It was first identified in an E. coli strain isolated from a Vietnamese boy in 1996. After the initial discovery, it spread to other species. PER-1, now reported from various continents, was restricted to Turkish hospitals for years after the first identification in a strain of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in 1993. The worldwide dissemination of ESBLs is a healthcare crisis that deserves special attention.
The Performance of Gender Diverse Teams: What is the Relation between Diversity Attitudes and Degree of Diversity?

While gender diversity is slowly becoming an expected characteristic of teams, both academics and practitioners still need to better understand the relation between contextual characteristics and team composition for the performance of gender diverse teams. In this article, we investigate the relationship between diversity attitudes and the performance of gender diverse teams, and further, we show how numerical team gender composition is a key link in this relationship. Based on survey responses from 1,085 academic team leaders, we show that openness to diversity is strongly associated with team performance. We also find a moderating effect of the degree of gender diversity, so that the effect of openness to diversity, as positive team level diversity attitudes, is stronger when team gender composition converges towards numerical balance. These findings bridge critical mass theory and diversity and performance scholarship by establishing the joint effect of compositional and contextual characteristics on the performance of gender diverse teams.
Resource productivity analysis of maize production in Arghakhanchi District, Nepal

Mere availability of resources does not decide profitability of any enterprise but using them in judicious manner does. Increasing use of those resources that have significant effect on production and lowering the other with less contribution is the secret of success in production business. If profit is not attainable in any combination of resource management in particular socio-economic and bio-physical condition, it is always wise to move for next possible profitable enterprise. There is always a need of a study to reveal whether the factors of production are used in an economic way and to investigate whether the enterprise is profitable. This study was carried out to identify the profitability and productivity of maize production in Arghakhanchi district of Nepal. A total of 120 farmers, 60 each from two villages namely Wangla and Bhagwati, were randomly selected and interviewed using pre-tested, semi-structured interview schedule. Collected data was analyzed using descriptive statistics and Cobb-Douglas production function. The production function revealed that manual labor cost had significant effect on gross returns with magnitude of regression coefficient 0.823 whereas seed cost, nutrient cost and animal labor were found to be statistically non-significant. Sum of regression coefficient also revealed that production function exhibited decreasing returns to scale by 0.89. So, providing market information, training and extension services would increase resource productivity of maize production. Farmers can be motivated to shift from grain production to seed production for increasing profitability
Comparative Morphology of the Mechanosensory Lateral Line System in a Clade of New Zealand Triplefin Fishes

The mechanoreceptive lateral line system in fishes detects hydrodynamic stimuli and plays a critical role in many fundamental behaviours, including orientation to water currents and the detection of stationary objects, prey and predators. Interspecific variation in lateral line structure may result from a process of functional adaptation, with the background level of hydrodynamic activity proposed as an important selective pressure. Here we use the eight species of the ecologically diverse New Zealand marine triplefin fish of the genus Forsterygion and one species from the sister genus Notoclinops to investigate interspecific differences in lateral line morphology and to assess the relationship between lateral line characteristics and exposure to wave energy (fetch/depth ratio). Overall, the results show that lateral line traits are divergent between species, and these differences could in part be related to the wave exposure of the habitats that the species occupy. Specifically, numbers of canal neuromasts differed significantly between species, and most canal groupings increased in neuromast number with fetch/depth ratio, while the number and area of some superficial neuromast groupings decreased significantly with exposure. Distribution of superficial neuromasts along the trunk in the semi-pelagic and paedomorphic species F. maryannae differed from the other, demersal species, which may be associated with the unique lifestyle of this species and/or developmental processes. Canal architecture also differed considerably between species, but displayed no relationship with fetch/depth ratio. The results from this study indicate that some interspecific differences in lateral line organs may be a by-product of selection for habitat divergence. Future work should explore additional causal factors that might have influenced the evolution of lateral morphology in these species, including phylogenetic and allometric effects.
Oxidative damage and metabolic dysfunction in Huntington's disease: Selective vulnerability of the basal ganglia

The etiology of the selective neuronal death that occurs in Huntington's disease (HD) is unknown. Several lines of evidence implicate the involvement of energetic defects and oxidative damage in the disease process, including a recent study that demonstrated an interaction between huntingtin protein and the glycolytic enzyme glyceraldehyde‐3‐phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH). Using spectrophotometric assays in postmortem brain tissue, we found evidence of impaired oxidative phosphorylation enzyme activities restricted to the basal ganglia in HD brain, while enzyme activities were unaltered in three regions relatively spared by HD pathology (frontal cortex, parietal cortex, and cerebellum). Citrate synthase‐corrected complex II‐III activity was markedly reduced in both HD caudate (−29%) and putamen (−67%), and complex IV activity was reduced in HD putamen (−62%). Complex I and GAPDH activities were unaltered in all regions examined. We also measured levels of the oxidative damage product 8‐hydroxydeoxyguanosine (OH8dG) in nuclear DNA, and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity. OH8dG levels were significantly increased in HD caudate. Cytosolic SOD activity was slightly reduced in HD parietal cortex and cerebellum, whereas particulate SOD activity was unaltered in these regions. These results further support a role for metabolic dysfunction and oxidative damage in the pathogenesis of HD.