Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Components of after‐hyperpolarization in magnocellular neurones of the rat supraoptic nucleus in vitro

1 The pharmacological sensitivity of hyperpolarizing components of spike train after‐potentials was examined in sixty‐one magnocellular neurones of the rat supraoptic nucleus using intracellular recording techniques in a brain slice preparation. 2 In 26 % of all neurones a slow after‐hyperpolarization (AHP) was observed in addition to a fast AHP. In 31 % of all neurones a depolarizing after‐potential (DAP) was observed. 3 The fast AHP was blocked by apamin whereas the slow AHP was blocked by charybdotoxin (ChTX). The DAP was enhanced by ChTX or a DAP was unmasked if not present during the control period. 4 Low concentrations of TEA (0.15–1.5 mm) induced effects on the slow AHP and the DAP essentially resembling those of ChTX. The same was true for the effects of CoCl2 (1 mm). 5 Spike train after‐potentials were not affected by either iberiotoxin (IbTX), a selective high‐conductance potassium (BK) channel antagonist, or margatoxin (MgTX), a Kv1.3 α‐subunit antagonist. 6 Kv1.3 α‐subunit immunohistochemistry revealed that these units are not expressed in the somato‐dendritic region of supraoptic neurones. 7 The effects of ChTX, IbTX, MgTX, TEA, CoCl2 and CdCl2 on spike train after‐potentials are interpreted in terms of an induction of the slow AHP by the activation of calcium‐dependent potassium channels of intermediate single channel conductance (IK channels). 8 The results suggest that at least the majority of supraoptic magnocellular neurones share the capability of generating both a slow AHP and a DAP. The slow AHP may act to control the expression of the DAP, thus regulating the excitability of magnocellular neurones. The interaction of the slow AHP and the DAP may be important for the control of phasic discharge.
Proviral rearrangements and overexpression of a new cellular gene (nov) in myeloblastosis-associated virus type 1-induced nephroblastomas

Histological and anatomopathological studies performed on 152 independent myeloblastosis-associated virus type 1 (MAV1)-induced nephroblastomas allowed us to precisely define the chronology of tumor development in chickens. Three tumors representing increasing developmental stages were used to construct genomic libraries and to study both the state of proviral genomes and the sites of MAV1 integration in genomic DNA. We established that increasing levels of proviral rearrangement, eventually leading to the elimination of infectious MAV genomes, were associated with tumor progression and that 22 individual tumors, representative of different developmental stages, did not contain any common MAV1 integration site. Cloning of cellular fragments flanking the MAV1-related proviruses in tumor DNA showed that each one of eight nephroblastomas tested expressed a high level of an as yet unidentified cellular gene (nov) whose transcription is normally arrested in adult kidney cells. Cloning of the normal nov gene established that in one tumor, fused long terminal repeat-truncated nov mRNA species were expressed, indicating that at least in that case, the high level of nov expression was under the control of the MAV long terminal repeat promoter. The normal nov gene encodes a putative 32-kDa secreted polypeptide, which is a member of a new family of proteins likely to be involved in cell growth regulation. We also showed that the expression of an amino-terminal-truncated nov product in chicken embryo fibroblasts was sufficient to induce their transformation.
Frontotemporal Dementia Mimicking Dementia With Lewy Bodies

BackgroundSome patients with frontotemporal dementia (FTD) have concomitant extrapyramidal symptoms and psychosis and may simultaneously meet consensus criteria for FTD and for dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB). Clinicopathologic studies are helpful in understanding the underlying neurodegenerative process in such cases. ObjectiveTo describe clinical and pathologic features of 6 patients with signs and symptoms suggestive of both a diagnosis of FTD and DLB at first clinical presentation, of which 2 patients have now undergone autopsy, and to compare them with autopsy-confirmed FTD and Lewy body disease patients. ResultsAll 6 patients met published consensus criteria for a diagnosis of both FTD and DLB (5 probable and 1 possible). Clinical symptoms of FTD included personality and behavioral changes, whereas those suggestive of DLB included Parkinsonism, fluctuating cognition, parasomnia, and hallucinations. Five patients underwent single photon emission computed tomography (99mTc) imaging, which showed varying degrees of frontal lobe hypoperfusion. Magnetic resonance imaging, electroencephalogram, and electromyogram were not helpful in differentiating FTD from DLB. Histologic examination of the 2 autopsy cases was consistent with a pathologic diagnosis of TDP-43 proteinopathy; specifically frontotemporal lobar degeneration with ubiquitin-only immunoreactive changes, type 1. There were significant differences between these 6 patients and the 2 groups of autopsy confirmed FTD and Lewy body disease patients. ConclusionsWe have identified a novel group of FTD patients with clinical features that overlap with DLB, yet seem to be different from both typical FTD and typical Lewy body disease.
The impact of Amazonian deforestation on Amazon basin rainfall

We completed a meta‐analysis of regional and global climate model simulations (n = 96) of the impact of Amazonian deforestation on Amazon basin rainfall. Across all simulations, mean (±1σ) change in annual mean Amazon basin rainfall was −12 ± 11%. Variability in simulated rainfall was not explained by differences in model resolution or surface parameters. Across all simulations we find a negative linear relationship between rainfall and deforestation extent, although individual studies often simulate a nonlinear response. Using the linear relationship, we estimate that deforestation in 2010 has reduced annual mean rainfall across the Amazon basin by 1.8 ± 0.3%, less than the interannual variability in observed rainfall. This may explain why a reduction in Amazon rainfall has not consistently been observed. We estimate that business‐as‐usual deforestation (based on deforestation rates prior to 2004) would lead to an 8.1 ± 1.4% reduction in annual mean Amazon basin rainfall by 2050, greater than natural variability.
Genetic and environmental influences on cortical surface area and cortical thickness in bipolar disorder

Background The risk of developing bipolar disorder (BD) has been linked to structural brain abnormalities. The degree to which genes and environment influence the association of BD with cortical surface area remains to be elucidated. In this twin study, genetic and environmental contributions to the association between liability to develop BD and surface area, thickness and volume of the cortex were examined. Method The study cohort included 44 affected monozygotic (nine concordant, 12 discordant) and dizygotic (four concordant, 19 discordant) twin pairs, and seven twins from incomplete discordant monozygotic and dizygotic discordant twin pairs. In addition, 37 monozygotic and 24 dizygotic healthy control twin pairs, and six twins from incomplete monozygotic and dizygotic control pairs were included. Results Genetic liability to develop BD was associated with a larger cortical surface in limbic and parietal regions, and a thicker cortex in central and parietal regions. Environmental factors related to BD were associated with larger medial frontal, parietal and limbic, and smaller orbitofrontal surfaces. Furthermore, thinner frontal, limbic and occipital cortex, and larger frontal and parietal, and smaller orbitofrontal volumes were also associated with environmental factors related to BD. Conclusions Our results suggest that unique environmental factors play a prominent role in driving the associations between liability to develop BD and cortical measures, particularly those involving cortical thickness. Further evaluation of their influence on the surface and thickness of the cortical mantle is recommended. In addition, cortical volume appeared to be primarily dependent on surface and not thickness.
Spanning the complexity chasm: A research approach to move from simple to complex engineering systems

Abstract A multistudy approach is presented that allows design thinking of complex systems to be studied by triangulating causal controlled lab findings with coded data from more complex products. A case study illustration of this approach is provided. During the conceptual design of engineering systems, designers face many cognitive challenges, including design fixation, errors in their mental models, and the sunk cost effect. These factors need to be mitigated for the generation of effective ideas. Understanding the effects of these challenges in a realistic and complex engineering system is especially difficult due to a variety of factors influencing the results. Studying the design of such systems in a controlled environment is extremely challenging because of the scale and complexity of such systems and the time needed to design the systems. Considering these challenges, a mixed-method approach is presented for studying the design thinking of complex engineering systems. This approach includes a controlled experiment with a simple system and a qualitative cognitive-artifacts study on more complex engineering systems followed by the triangulation of results. The triangulated results provide more generalizable information for complex system design thinking. This method combines the advantages of quantitative and qualitative study methods, making them more powerful while studying complex engineering systems. The proposed method is illustrated further using an illustrative study on the cognitive effects of physical models during the design of engineering systems.
Purification and characterization of adult diarrhea rotavirus: identification of viral structural proteins

Adult diarrhea rotavirus (ADRV) is a newly identified strain of noncultivable human group B rotavirus that has been epidemic in the People's Republic of China since 1982. We have used sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and Western (immuno-) blot analysis to examine the viral proteins present in the outer and inner capsids of ADRV and compared these with the proteins of a group A rotavirus, SA11. EDTA treatment of double-shelled virions removed the outer capsid and resulted in the loss of three polypeptides of 64, 61, and 41, kilodaltons (kDa). Endo-beta-N-acetylglucosaminidase H digestion of double-shelled virions identified the 41-kDa polypeptide as a glycoprotein. CaCl2 treatment of single-shelled particles removed the inner capsid and resulted in the loss of one polypeptide with a molecular mass of 47 kDa. The remaining core particle had two major structural proteins of 136 and 113 kDa. All of the proteins visualized on sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis were antigenic by Western blot analysis when probed with convalescent-phase human and animal antisera. A 47-kDa polypeptide was most abundant and was strongly immunoreactive with human sera, animal sera raised against ADRV and against other group B animal rotaviruses (infectious diarrhea of infant rat virus, bovine and porcine group B rotavirus, and bovine enteric syncytial virus) and a monoclonal antibody prepared against infectious diarrhea of infant rat virus. This 47-kDa inner capsid polypeptide contains a common group B antigen and is similar to the VP6 of the group A rotaviruses. Human convalescent-phase sera also responded to a 41-kDa polypeptide of the outer capsid that seems similar to the VP7 of group A rotavirus. Other polypeptides have been given tentative designations on the basis of similarities to the control preparation of SA11, including a 136-kDa polypeptide designated VP1, a 113-kDa polypeptide designated VP2, 64- and 61-kDa polypeptides designated VP5 and VP5a, and several proteins in the 110- to 72-kDa range that may be VP3, VP4, or related proteins. The lack of cross-reactivity on Western blots between antisera to group A versus group B rotaviruses confirmed that these viruses are antigenically quite distinct.
Stuttering: considerations in the evaluation of treatment.

Stutterers come for help because their disorder of speech is a nuisance that impedes their ability to communicate and generates unpleasant affects when they contemplate doing what normal speakers accomplish easily. Successful treatment should enable them to speak normally and be able to use this speech to interact with their environment in the same way that normal speakers do, and be as confident or as anxious as normal speakers find themselves as the speaking situation varies. In any treatment programme therefore there are three problems. Firstly, to establish criteria that distinguish between stuttering and normal speech, secondly, to be able to measure the severity of the disorder and the subsequent progress towards normality and thirdly, to be able to evaluate empirically the relation of the final result to normal speech. This paper is addressed to these problems.
Impact of concordant and discordant bone marrow involvement on outcome in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma treated with R-CHOP.

PURPOSE In diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), prior studies suggest that concordant bone marrow involvement with DLBCL portends a poorer prognosis, whereas discordant bone marrow involvement with small B-cell lymphoma does not. We examined the significance of bone marrow involvement in patients treated in the current era of therapy including rituximab. PATIENTS AND METHODS We performed a retrospective analysis of the prognostic impact of bone marrow involvement in an unselected population of patients with newly diagnosed DLBCL treated with rituximab plus cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisone in British Columbia and Auckland, New Zealand, with complete clinical information and evaluable staging bone marrow biopsies. RESULTS In total, 795 patients were identified. Six hundred seventy (84.3%) of 795 had a negative bone marrow, 67 patients (8.4%) had concordant and 58 (7.3%) had discordant involvement. Median follow-up was 41 months (range, 1 to 115). Progression-free survival (PFS) was inferior in those with concordant (P < .001) and discordant (P = .019) involvement while overall survival (OS) was inferior in those with concordant involvement (P < .001) only. In a multivariate analysis controlling for the International Prognostic Index (IPI) score, concordant involvement remained an independent predictor of PFS (P < .001) and OS (P = .007). Discordant involvement was associated with older age, elevated lactate dehydrogenase, advanced stage, and increased number of extranodal sites and was not a negative prognostic factor independent of the IPI score. CONCLUSION The negative prognostic impact of discordant involvement is adequately represented by the IPI score, while the risk with concordant involvement is greater than that encompassed by this predictor. The results emphasize the need for accurate staging assessment of bone marrow involvement in DLBCL.
Evaluation of transplanted kidneys using blood oxygenation level-dependent MRI at 3 T: a preliminary study.

OBJECTIVE The objective of our study was to investigate the feasibility and reproducibility of blood oxygenation level-dependent (BOLD) MRI using different gradient echoes at 3 T in patients with renal allografts and healthy volunteers and to evaluate whether BOLD MRI can be used to distinguish between cases of acute allograft rejection and normally functioning allografts. SUBJECTS AND METHODS BOLD MRI at 3 T was performed of eight patients with normal allografts, four patients with acute allograft rejection, and 10 healthy volunteers. Multiple fast-field echo sequences were performed at gradient echoes of 8, 16, and 20 to obtain T2(*)-weighted images. The reproducibility of BOLD MRI was evaluated in patients with normal allografts. RESULTS Cortical and medullary R2(*) values were not significantly different between healthy volunteers and patients with normal allografts, but medullary R2(*) values were significantly greater than cortical R2(*) values in both groups for all three protocols (p < 0.01). Medullary R2(*) values were significantly lower in cases of acute allograft rejection than in normal allografts for all three protocols (p < 0.001). The mean difference in cortical or medullary R2(*) values was 3.8% or less in all protocols. CONCLUSION BOLD MRI performed using different gradient echoes at 3 T is feasible and reproducible in patients with renal allografts and can show significant changes in medullary oxygenation in patients with acute rejection.
Fixed Belief in Cognitive Dysfunction Despite Normal Neuropsychological Scores: Neurocognitive Hypochondriasis?

A subset of patients who present for neuropsychological testing report dysfunction in daily life activities secondary to cognitive deficits, but are found on formal testing to have no objective abnormalities, raising the possibility of “neurocognitive hypochondriasis. ” Such a case is presented, and the factors that appear to give rise to this presentation are explored. Cases of hypochondriacal overconcern regarding cognitive function are likely not rare, particularly given research showing there is little correlation between objective report of cognitive dysfunction and actual test scores in such conditions as mild traumatic brain injury, chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, toxic mold exposure, and post-polio syndrome.
Laryngectomy rehabilitation: a perspective from the United States of America

Purpose of reviewIt is important on a periodic basis to evaluate and re-evaluate the standard of care in your area and to compare it to the care provided in other parts of the world. This can result in modifications and improvement in the patient's outcome. Recent findingsOver the last year, additional weight has been added to the medical literature regarding the value of moisture exchangers, chronic low-risk medications, the relationship between vocal rehabilitation and esophageal reflux disease, as well as the chronic concern regarding tracheo-esophageal puncture site enlargement. Multidisciplinary input remains critical for optimum success as measured not only by the vocal outcomes, but also by the quality-of-life metrics. SummaryOptimum outcomes for vocal rehabilitation following laryngectomy suggest the need for careful multidisciplinary perioperative planning and therapy. There have been improvements in tracheo-esophageal prosthesis design, moisturization, and ease of speech generation. Additional research is needed to explore the relationship between speech and chest wall kinematics, puncture site and location, prosthesis leakage, and the potential relationships to gastro-esophageal reflux disease. Future effort should be directed toward measurable improvements in the quality of life.
Using Cone Index Data to Explain Yield Variation Within a Field

Three cone index (CI) penetration probes recorded to a depth of 76.2 cm (30 in.) and a soil sample was collected and analyzed for moisture content at 81 locations along a transect measuring approximately 323 m (1060 ft) in length. An average maize plant yield was assigned to each location based on hand harvested ears. The three probes at each location were averaged to obtain a single profile of CI versus depth. The first and second derivatives of CI with respect to depth were determined to indicate rapid changes in soil density and peaks in the CI data, which are indicative of hardpans. Average yield was compared to mean CI, maximum CI, depth of maximum CI, maximum CI rate of change, depth of maximum CI rate of change, CI peaks, depth to CI peaks, and established CI limits of 0.7, 1.4, and 2.0 MPa (100, 200, and 300 psi). The mean CI throughout the 76.2 cm (30 in.) profile best explained yield variation (r=-0.83). The maximum CI also correlated with yield, but to a lesser extent (r=-0.71). Maximum CI readings at or above 1.4 MPa (200 psi) resulted in below average yields for 89-percent of the readings exceeding this limit. No correlation was established between yield and soil density changes and depth of density changes or between yield and CI peaks and their depth of occurrence.
Low Family Support and Risk of Obesity among Black Youth: Role of Gender and Ethnicity

Most studies on the role of family environment in developing risk of obesity among youth have focused on parenting behaviors that are directly involved in energy balance in regional, non-representative White samples. Using a national sample of ethnically diverse Black youth, the current study tested the association between low family support and risk of obesity. We also tested the heterogeneity of this association based on gender, ethnicity, and their intersection. We used data from the National Survey of American Life-Adolescent Supplement (NSAL-A), a national survey of Black adolescents in the United States. The study enrolled 1170 African American and Caribbean Black 13–17 year old youth. Obesity was defined based on the cutoff points of body mass index (BMI) appropriate for age and gender of youth. Family support was measured using a five-item measure that captured emotional and tangible social support. Age, gender, and ethnicity were also measured. Logistic regressions were utilized in the pooled sample, and also based on gender, ethnicity, and their intersection, to test the link between low family support and risk for obesity. Results: In the pooled sample, low family support was not associated with an increased risk of obesity (OR = 1.35, 95% Confidence Interval (CI) = 0.96–1.89). The association between low family support and risk of obesity was, however, significant among African American females (OR = 1.60, 95% CI = 1.01–2.55). There was no association for African American males (OR = 1.26, 95% CI = 0.82–1.92), Caribbean Black males (OR = 0.68, 95% CI = 0.01–54.85), and Caribbean Black females (OR = 0.78, 95% CI = 0.42–1.44). In conclusion, policies and programs that enable African American families to provide additional family support may prevent obesity among African American female youth. Future research should test the efficacy of promoting family support as a tool for preventing obesity among African American female youth.