Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Geochemical data reported by Paquay et al. do not refute Younger Dryas impact event

In the 12,900-year-old Younger Dryas boundary layer (YDB), Firestone et al. (1) reported inferred extraterrestrial (ET) iridium peaks in sediments and magnetic separates that coincide with elevated abundances in potential impact markers, including microspherules and nanodiamonds (2). Paquay et al. (3) tested YDB sediments but could not reproduce previous iridium concentrations. However, their results seem problematic because standardization uncertainties ranged up to ±140%, and reproducibility varied up to ≈400% (tables S2 and S1, respectively, in ref. 3). Despite these uncertainties, they documented iridium peaks at Murray Springs, AZ (profile B1) and Lake Hind, AB, Canada (batches 1 + 2) at the same stratigraphic levels as spikes in nanodiamonds, magnetic grains, and microspherules (Fig. 1). Although their iridium values are ≈7% of our median values, theirs rise to ≈33% of lower limits and to >300% above background. Additionally, although they reported sedimentary osmium ratios (187Os/188Os) that seem terrestrial, they failed to analyze YDB magnetic separates, in which previous iridium concentrations were much higher and in which osmium ratios might possibly reveal an ET component, as Sharma et al. (4) reported from YDB-aged Pacific and Atlantic ferromanganese crusts. Paquay et al. (3) also speculated that wildfires created the YDB nanodiamonds, contradicting ≈100 years of research demonstrating that hexagonal and cubic diamonds form only under extreme temperature and/or pressure regimes (5), as occurred during the K/T impact and as proposed for the YDB. Overall, the results of Paquay et al. (3) are useful contributions to the YDB discussion, reinforcing the importance of additional research into the cooccurrence of iridium and osmium anomalies with inferred impact proxies.
Sadomasochism and the Social Sciences

Abstract Recent literature about sadomasochism in Sociology and Social Psychology is reviewed. Studies include survey research and questionnaire studies, content analyses, ethnographic research, and critical essays. The current state of our knowledge of sadomasochism, including its defining characteristics, sadomasochistic identities, and sadomasochistic subcultures is briefly summarized.
Adverse Effects of Drugs and Toxins on the Liver

More than 1000 drugs and toxins are suspected to induce liver damage, but only for a few are causality proven. Preclinical studies of drugs cannot predict hepatotoxicity due to the low incidence of such events, and postmarketing data are difficult to interpret. This is due to the fact that the clinical presentation of drug-induced liver injury is highly variable from asymptomatic, reversible elevation of liver enzymes to a fulminated hepatic failure. Furthermore, in most cases the clinical, biochemical and pathological pictures are indistinguishable from that seen with other causes of liver disease. Thus, suspected druginduced hepatic injury is often a diagnosis made by exclusion of other causes. These include among others infectious, inflammatory and neoplastic diseases in the liver as well as complications in the organ due to systemic diseases. A common diagnostic challenge is a situation where patients who develop acute liver disease use several drugs, together with alcohol, recreational and illegal compounds. Moreover, even excipients present in drug formulations cannot always be ruled out as causative agents. Furthermore, due to the increasing popularity of complementary and alternative medicine, several new substances have been suspected of liver injury. These toxins are associated with ingredients of herbal medicine and nutritional-based therapies. The common belief that these substances and therapies are only beneficial to humans is challenged by an increasing number of reports of adverse effects including hepatic injury. As a general rule, drugand toxin-induced liver injury is usually benign with full recovery after withdrawal of the offending agent. However, this implies that a drug or a toxin must be recognized as a possible causative agent. Furthermore, drugand toxin-induced liver injury is a frequent cause of liver failure, and represents a health problem in our society. The present chapter summarizes the main principles of adverse effects of drugs and toxins on the liver, in particular examples of adverse effects of herbal medicine and nutritional-based therapies in the literature as well as cases submitted to drug information centres and pharmacovigilance units in Norway.
Relations of genetic and environmental factors in the etiology of epilepsy

We assessed the relations of genetic and environmental factors in the etiology of epilepsy. The study population comprised 9,705 first‐degree relatives of 1,951 adults with epilepsy ascertained from voluntary organizations. We calculated standardized morbidity ratios for specific etiologies of epilepsy in the relatives of probands with the same etiologies, using population incidence rates from Rochester, MN, as the reference. Relatives of probands with idiopathic/cryptogenic epilepsy had increased risk for idiopathic/cryptogenic epilepsy and for epilepsy associated with neurological deficit presumed present at birth (cerebral palsy or mental retardation) but not for symptomatic epilepsy associated with postnatal central nervous system insults. Relatives of probands with neurodeficits had increased risks for idiopathic/ cryptogenic epilepsy. Risk for epilepsy was not increased among relatives of probands with postnatal symptomatic epilepsy. The degree of increased risk of idiopathic/cryptogenic epilepsy in relatives of probands with idiopathiclcryptogenic epilepsy diminished with increasing age of the relatives; risk was not increased at age 35 or older. These findings support the possibility of a shared genetic susceptibility to epilepsy and cerebral palsy, and suggest that the genetic contributions to postnatal symptomatic epilepsy are minimal.
Histone H2AX Phosphorylation in Normal Human Cells Irradiated with Focused Ultrasoft X Rays: Evidence for Chromatin Movement during Repair

Abstract Hamada, N. , Schettino, G. , Kashino, G. , Vaid, M. , Suzuki, K. , Kodama, S. , Vojnovic, B. , Folkard, M. , Watanabe, M. , Michael, B. D. and Prise, K. M. Histone H2AX Phosphorylation in Normal Human Cells Irradiated with Focused Ultrasoft X Rays: Evidence for Chromatin Movement during Repair. Radiat. Res. 166, 31–38 (2006). DNA repair within the cell nucleus is a dynamic process involving a close interaction between repair proteins and chromatin structure. Recent studies have indicated a quantitative relationship between DNA double-strand break induction and histone H2AX phosphorylation. The dynamics of this process within individual cell nuclei is unknown. To address this, we have used a novel focused ultrasoft X-ray microprobe that is capable of inducing localized DNA damage within a subnuclear area of intact cells with a 2.5-μm-diameter beam spot. The present investigation was undertaken to explore the influence of focused irradiation of individual nuclei with 1.49 keV characteristic aluminum K-shell (AlK) X rays on H2AX phosphorylation in normal human cells. Immunofluorescence analyses revealed that significant diffusion of the initial spots of clustered foci of phosphorylated H2AX occurred in a time-dependent fashion after exposure to AlK X rays. Irradiation under cooled conditions resulted in a reduction in the size of spots of clustered foci of phosphorylated H2AX as well as of individual phosphorylated H2AX foci. These findings strongly suggest that diffusion of the chromatin microenvironment occurs during the repair of DNA damage. We also found that AlK ultrasoft X rays (71 foci per gray) were 2.2-fold more effective at the initial formation of phosphorylated H2AX foci than with conventional X rays (32 foci per gray), and that the time required to eliminate 50% of the initial number of foci was 3.4-fold longer in AlK-irradiated cells than that in cells exposed to conventional X rays. For conventional X rays, we also report significant accumulation of larger-sized foci at longer times after irradiation.
Is Routine Appendectomy at the Time of Primary Surgery for Mucinous Ovarian Neoplasms Beneficial?

Objectives To evaluate the value of an appendectomy at the time of surgery for ovarian mucinous borderline tumors or carcinoma. Methods A retrospective single institute–based study was conducted. We identified patients who were operated on by a gynecologic oncologist for an abnormal pelvic mass, which was diagnosed as mucinous adenocarcinoma or mucinous borderline tumor between January 2000 and December 2010. Cases were included in the study if an appendectomy was performed at the time of initial surgery. Results Seventy-seven cases meeting the inclusion criteria were identified. The ovarian mass of 11 patients (14%) was diagnosed as metastatic appendiceal carcinoma involving the ovary. Evidence of metastatic disease, abnormal-looking appendix, or pseudomyxoma peritonei, were identified at the time of surgery for all of these cases. The condition of 30 patients (39%) and 36 patients (47%) were diagnosed as mucinous borderline ovarian tumor and invasive or microinvasive mucinous ovarian carcinoma, respectively. Evidence of metastasis from the ovary to the appendix was not identified in any of the cases. Conclusions Our data suggest that in cases of apparent early-stage mucinous ovarian borderline tumors and cancer, adding an appendectomy at the time of surgery is not warranted in the absence of a grossly abnormal appendix or evidence of metastatic disease.
Structural and Functional Properties of the TRK Family of Neurotrophin Receptors

The Trk family of tyrosine-protein kinases, TrkA, TrkB, and TrkC, are the signaling receptors that mediate the biological properties of the NGF family of neurotrophins. This family of growth factors includes in addition to NGF, BDNF, NT-3, and NT-4. TrkA is the NGF receptor. TrkB serves as a receptor for both BDNF and NT-4, and TrkC is the primary receptor for NT-3. NT-3 is a somewhat promiscuous ligand that can also activate TrkA and TrkB receptors at high concentrations. The trkB and trkC genes also encode noncatalytic receptor isoforms of an, as yet, unknown function. In addition to the Trk receptors, the NGF family of neurotrophins also binds with low affinity to an unrelated molecule, designated p75, a member of the TNF-receptor superfamily. Recently, we have generated strains of mice lacking each of these tyrosine-kinase receptors by gene targeting in embryonic stem cells. Characterization of these mutant mice is providing relevant information regarding the critical role that these receptors play in the ontogeny of the mammalian nervous system.
C-Reactive Protein Enhances LOX-1 Expression in Human Aortic Endothelial Cells: Relevance of LOX-1 to C-Reactive Protein–Induced Endothelial Dysfunction

C-reactive protein (CRP), a characteristic inflammatory marker, is a powerful predictor of cardiovascular events. Recent data suggest that CRP may also promote atherogenesis through inducing endothelial dysfunction. Lectin-like oxidized low-density lipoprotein (oxLDL) receptor-1 (LOX-1) is a newly identified endothelial receptor for oxLDL that plays a pivotal role in oxLDL-induced endothelial dysfunction. Whether CRP may regulate endothelial LOX-1 and induce endothelial dysfunction through this receptor is unknown. In the present study, we studied the in vitro effect of CRP on LOX-1 expression in human aortic endothelial cells (HAECs) and the role of LOX-1 in CRP-induced human monocyte adhesion to endothelium and oxLDL uptake by endothelial cells. Incubation of HAECs with CRP enhanced, in a dose- and time-dependent manner, LOX-1 mRNA and protein levels. Induction of LOX-1 protein was already present at 5 &mgr;g/mL CRP and reached a maximum at 25 &mgr;g/mL. This effect was reduced by antibodies against CD32/CD64, endothelin-1 (ET-1) and interleukin-6 (IL-6). The extent of stimulation of LOX-1 achieved by CRP was comparable to that elicited by high glucose and IL-6 and remained unchanged in presence of these factors. Finally, CRP increased, through LOX-1, both human monocyte adhesion to endothelial cells and oxLDL uptake by these cells. We conclude that CRP enhances endothelial LOX-1 expression and propose a new mechanism by which CRP may promote endothelial dysfunction, that of inducing LOX-1.
Knockout of NMDA Receptors in Parvalbumin Interneurons Recreates Autism‐Like Phenotypes

Autism is a disabling neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by social deficits, language impairment, and repetitive behaviors with few effective treatments. New evidence suggests that autism has reliable electrophysiological endophenotypes and that these measures may be caused by n‐methyl‐d‐aspartic acid receptor (NMDAR) disruption on parvalbumin (PV)‐containing interneurons. These findings could be used to create new translational biomarkers. Recent developments have allowed for cell‐type selective knockout of NMDARs in order to examine the perturbations caused by disrupting specific circuits. This study examines several electrophysiological and behavioral measures disrupted in autism using a PV‐selective reduction in NMDA R1 subunit. Mouse electroencephalograph (EEG) was recorded in response to auditory stimuli. Event‐related potential (ERP) component amplitude and latency analysis, social testing, and premating ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs) recordings were performed. Correlations were examined between the ERP latency and behavioral measures. The N1 ERP latency was delayed, sociability was reduced, and mating USVs were impaired in PV‐selective NMDA Receptor 1 Knockout (NR1 KO) as compared with wild‐type mice. There was a significant correlation between N1 latency and sociability but not between N1 latency and premating USV power or T‐maze performance. The increases in N1 latency, impaired sociability, and reduced vocalizations in PV‐selective NR1 KO mice mimic similar changes found in autism. Electrophysiological changes correlate to reduced sociability, indicating that the local circuit mechanisms controlling N1 latency may be utilized in social function. Therefore, we propose that behavioral and electrophysiological alterations in PV‐selective NR1 KO mice may serve as a useful model for therapeutic development in autism. Autism Res 2013, 6: 69–77. © 2013 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Learner Acceptance of a Multimedia-Based Learning System

The present study applied the technology acceptance model to examine the determinants leading to learners’ behavioral intention to use a multimedia-based learning system. Four exogenous constructs—multimedia self-efficacy, perceived richness of multimedia presentation, perceived learner control, and perceived system responsiveness—were externally added to the framework to improve its predictive power for the specific behavioral context. In addition, the second-order construct of cognitive engagement was created based upon the dimensions of curiosity, attention focus, and interest and was subsequently incorporated into the framework. The hypothesized conceptual framework was validated using sample data collected from 286 respondents who completed an online survey instrument. Results from structural equation analysis revealed that (a) behavioral intention was jointly determined by attitude and perceived usefulness; (b) attitude was jointly determined by perceived usefulness and cognitive engagement; (c) multimedia self-efficacy, perceived richness of multimedia presentation, and cognitive engagement were immediate antecedents to perceived usefulness; and (d) cognitive engagement was a key intervening variable linking the four exogenous constructs with perceived usefulness.
Bistatic SAR imaging processing and experiment results using BeiDou-2/Compass-2 as illuminator of opportunity and a fixed receiver

Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) provides opportunities for passive radar applications. This paper reports progress in space-surface bistatic synthetic aperture radar (SS-BiSAR) using Beidou-2 as transmitters of opportunity and a fixed ground-based receiver. Experiment is described and the obtained SAR image is presented and interpreted in detail. Results show that BiSAR using beidou-2 as illuminator is able to reflect different types of targets and SS-BiSAR using GNSS as illuminator of opportunity is potential to realize local area monitoring.
Method for determination of the displacement field in patterned nanostructures by TEM/CBED analysis of split high‐order Laue zone line profiles

A method to extract accurate information on the displacement field distribution from split high‐order Laue zones lines in a convergent‐beam electron diffraction pattern of nanostructures has been developed. Starting from two‐dimensional many beam dynamical simulation of HOLZ patterns, we assembled a recursive procedure to reconstruct the displacement field in the investigated regions of the sample, based on the best fit of a parametrized model. This recursive procedure minimizes the differences between simulated and experimental patterns, taken in strained regions, by comparing the corresponding rocking curves of a number of high‐order Laue zone reflections. Due to its sensitivity to small displacement variations along the electron beam direction, this method is able to discriminate between different models, and can be also used to map a strain field component in the specimen. We tested this method in a series of experimental convergent‐beam electron diffraction patterns, taken in a shallow trench isolation structure. The method presented here is of general validity and, in principle, it can be applied to any sample where not negligible strain gradients along the beam direction are present.
Whose loss is it? Human electrophysiological correlates of non-self reward processing

Abstract To recognize whether another person's action results in a good or bad outcome is imperative for social learning, as well as for understanding the behavior of others in a broad context. Recent studies have reported that a scalp-surface event-related potential (ERP) called medial-frontal negativity (MFN), considered to be an index of negative reward processing, is generated when perceiving not only one's own losses, but also those of others. This suggests that the same neural mechanisms operate in monitoring one's own actions and in perceiving the consequences of the actions of others. To further elucidate the properties of this “observational” MFN, this study examined whether its amplitude differs with different observational targets. In a gambling task, participants observed the performances of non-self agents: a human friend and PC programs. The outcomes of the decisions of these agents were not associated with the participants’ own benefits. ERP results showed that the MFN-like pattern was significantly elicited only when observing the outcomes of decisions made by human agents. Furthermore, self-reported measures of empathy were positively associated with the magnitude of the observational MFN. These findings suggest that the neural activity in non-self reward processing reflects a socioemotional state generated by the target of observation, as well as an empathetic trait of the individual.
Effects Of Glucose And Bilirubin On The Kinetic Jaffe's And The Enzymatic Methods For Serum Creatinine Assay

Summary The enzymatic method for the determination of serum creatinine is accepted as one of the most accurate methods in a clinical laboratory. This method was used on a biochemistry auto analyzer (Cobas Integra 400) to determine serum creatinine at the laboratory of University Hospital – Pleven. The characteristics and reliability of this enzymatic method for creatinine were compared with the Jaffe kinetic method. Effects of some interfering substances like bilirubin and glucose on the Jaffe kinetic method and the enzymatic method were compared. Glucose and bilirubin inhibit the reaction between creatinine and alkaline picrate. Glucose slowly reduces picric acid to picrate, while the bilirubin present in a sample is oxidized to biliverdin under alkaline conditions. This leads to a decrease in absorbance at 520 nm. We measured creatinine in serum samples with the enzymatic method and the Jaffe kinetic method in samples divided into four groups: group I –samples without bilirubin and glucose ; group II –samples with high level of glucose; group III - samples with high level of bilirubin, group IV – all samples. For Group I, the correlation coefficient obtained by comparing the enzymatic creatinine method and Jaffe's kinetic method was R = 0.983. There was a very good agreement between the two methods in terms of correlation coefficient even in the samples with high levels of glucose or bilirubin.
Novel type I restriction specificities through domain shuffling of HsdS subunits in Lactococcus lactis

This study identifies a natural system in Lactococcus lactis, in which a restriction modification specificity subunit resident on a 6159 bp plasmid (pAH33) alters the specificity of a functional R/M mechanism encoded by a 20.3 kb plasmid, pAH82. The new specificity was identified after phenotypic and molecular analysis of a 26.5 kb co‐integrate plasmid (pAH90), which was detected after bacteriophage challenge of the parent strain. Analysis of the regions involved in the co‐integration revealed that two novel hybrid hsdS genes had been formed during the co‐integration event. The HsdS chimeras had interchanged the C‐ and N‐terminal variable domains of the parent subunits, generating two new restriction specificities. Comparison of the parent hsdS genes with other type I specificity determinants revealed that the region of the hsdS genes responsible for the co‐integration event is highly conserved among lactococcal type I hsdS determinants. Thus, as hsdS determinants are widespread in the genus Lactococcus, new restriction specificities may evolve rapidly after homologous recombination between these genes. This study demonstrates that, similar to previous observations in Gram‐negative bacteria, a Gram‐positive bacterium can acquire novel restriction specificities naturally through domain shuffling of resident HsdS subunits.
Global Transcriptional and Physiological Responses of Saccharomyces cerevisiae to Ammonium, l-Alanine, or l-Glutamine Limitation

ABSTRACT The yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae encounters a range of nitrogen sources at various concentrations in its environment. The impact of these two parameters on transcription and metabolism was studied by growing S. cerevisiae in chemostat cultures with l-glutamine, l-alanine, or l-ammonium in limitation and by growing cells in an excess of ammonium. Cells grown in l-alanine-limited cultures had higher biomass yield per nitrogen mole (19%) than those from ammonium-limited cultures. Whole-genome transcript profiles were analyzed with a genome-scale metabolic model that suggested increased anabolic activity in l-alanine-limited cells. The changes in these cells were found to be focused around pyruvate, acetyl coenzyme A, glyoxylate, and α-ketoglutarate via increased levels of ALT1, DAL7, PYC1, GDH2, and ADH5 and decreased levels of GDH3, CIT2, and ACS1 transcripts. The transcript profiles were then clustered. Approximately 1,400 transcripts showed altered levels when amino acid-grown cells were compared to those from ammonium. Another 400 genes had low transcript levels when ammonium was in excess. Overrepresentation of the GATAAG element in their promoters suggests that nitrogen catabolite repression (NCR) may be responsible for this regulation. Ninety-one genes had transcript levels on both l-glutamine and ammonium that were decreased compared to those on l-alanine, independent of the concentration. The GATAAG element in these genes suggests two groups of NCR-responsive genes, those that respond to high levels of nitrogen and those that respond to levels below 30 μM. In conclusion, our results reveal that the nitrogen source has substantial influence on the transcriptome of yeasts and that transcriptional changes may be correlated to physiology via a metabolic model.