Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Major Uropathogenic Escherichia coli Strain Isolated in the Northwest of England Identified by Multilocus Sequence Typing

ABSTRACT A total of 88 uropathogenic Escherichia coli isolates, including 68 isolates from urine and 20 isolates from blood, were characterized by multilocus sequence typing (MLST). MLST has identified an important genetic lineage of E. coli, designated sequence type 131 (ST-131), represented by 52 of these isolates, 51 of which were resistant to extended-spectrum cephalosporins. ST-131 appears to be a drug-resistant uropathogenic strain of E. coli responsible for causing urinary tract infections and bacteremia and is widely disseminated among both community and hospital patients from different geographical areas in the northwest of England. Application of MLST has helped to define the population biology which may underpin the epidemiology of pathogenic E. coli strains. The portability of MLST allows the accurate monitoring of this antibiotic-resistant uropathogenic strain of E. coli and will enhance surveillance for this important group of organisms.
Incidence of schizophrenia in Nottingham

Background Several studies have reported a decline of up to 50% in the incidence of schizophrenia over recent decades. We aimed to measure changes in the incidence and diagnostic patterns of first-episode psychosis by comparing two Nottingham cohorts, identified in two equal periods separated by 14 years. Method Two prospectively ascertained cohorts of first-episode psychotic disorder were identified over the time periods 1978–80 and 1992–94. The earlier cohort was of the World Health Organization Determinants of Outcome of Severe Mental Disorder (DOSMD) ten-country study. The later cohort was obtained using similar methodology. Both groups were diagnosed using ICD-10 diagnostic criteria and age-standardised incidence rates were compared. Results The standardised incidence rate for all psychotic disorders rose slightly from 2.49 to 2.87 per 10 000 population per year, but the F20 classification fell significantly by over a third (1.41 to 0.87 per 10 000 per year). The second study group (1992–1994) included a greater diversity of psychotic diagnoses compared with the first, in particular an increased proportion of acute and drug-related psychoses. Conclusions Methodological considerations call for caution in interpreting such data, but we conclude that the significant fall in the narrowly defined diagnostic category of schizophrenia reflects a real change in the syndromal presentation of psychotic disorders.
Employee Compensation in Entrepreneurial Companies

Despite the central role played by human capital in entrepreneurship, little is known about how employees in entrepreneurial firms are compensated and incentivized. We address this gap in the literature by studying 18,935 non-CEO compensation contracts across 1,809 privately-held venture-backed companies. Our key finding is that employee compensation varies with the degree to which VCs versus founders control the business. We show that relative to founder-controlled firms, VC-controlled firms pay their hired-on (i.e., non-founder) employees higher cash salaries, provide stronger cash and equity incentives, and have more formal pay policies in place. We also observe that founder employees earn less cash pay and face weaker cash incentives than do hired-on employees, but have stronger equity incentives. We propose that the compensation differences we identify arise because the preferences and capabilities of controlling shareholders significantly influence the quality of the human capital attracted and retained by the firm.
Black Political and Socioeconomic Status Attainment and the Direction of Lethal Violence: Comparing the Suicide of Young Black and White Males in U.S. Counties

DENNIS, KIMYA NURU. Black Political and Socioeconomic Status Attainment and the Direction of Lethal Violence: Comparing the Suicide of Young Black and White Males in U.S. Counties. (Under the direction of Charles R. Tittle and Patty L. McCall). The stream of violence theory suggests that there are forces that generate impulses toward violence that can be expressed inwardly in the form of suicide or outwardly in the form of homicide. Whether violent impulses are expressed inwardly or outwardly is a factor of whether individuals can identify an external source at which to attribute their circumstances. Contemporary stream of violence research has examined variations in suicide and/or homicide among Blacks and whites. The present study presents a test of the suicide component of the stream of violence theory and focuses on variations in suicide among Blacks and whites in U.S. counties. This study contributes measures of Black political and Black socioeconomic status attainment to the direction of lethal violence process. Findings yield partial support for the stream of violence theory and the conditioning effects of the measures of Black political and socioeconomic status attainment on the relationship between deprivation and suicide. Findings reveal a positive conditioning effect of Black elected officials for young Black males and the total Black population in larger counties; a negative conditioning effect of Blacks in professional and managerial occupations for young white males and the total white population in larger counties; and a negative conditioning effect of Black elected officials for the total white population in smaller counties. There is evidence to suggest that the sense of frustration and violent impulses generated by economic deprivation are directed inward in the form of suicide for Blacks in counties with higher Black political and socioeconomic status attainment and as a factor of the reduced availability of external sources at which to attribute the socioeconomic conditions of Blacks. In contrast, violent impulses are directed outward for whites in counties with higher Black political and socioeconomic status attainment as a factor of the ability of whites to locate external sources at which to attribute the socioeconomic conditions of whites. Black Political and Socioeconomic Status Attainment and the Direction of Lethal Violence: Comparing the Suicide of Young Black and White Males in U.S. Counties by Kimya Nuru Dennis A dissertation submitted to the Graduate Faculty of North Carolina State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy
Translational opportunities for broad‐spectrum natural phytochemicals and targeted agent combinations in breast cancer

Breast cancer (BC) prevention and therapy in the context of life‐style risk factors and biological drivers is a major focus of developmental therapeutics in oncology. Obesity, alcohol, chronic estrogen signaling and smoking have distinct BC precipitating and facilitating effects that may act alone or in combination. A spectrum of signaling events including enhanced oxidative stress and changes in estrogen‐receptor (ER)‐dependent and ‐independent signaling drive the progression of BC. Breast tumors modulate ERα/ERβ ratio, upregulate proliferative pathways driven by ERα and HER2 with a parallel loss and/or downregulation of tumor suppressors such as TP53 and PTEN which together impact the efficacy of therapeutic strategies and frequently lead to emergence of drug resistance. Natural phytochemicals modulate oxidative stress, leptin, integrin, HER2, MAPK, ERK, Wnt/β‐catenin and NFκB signaling along with regulating ERα and ERβ, thereby presenting unique opportunities for both primary and combinatorial interventions in BC. In this regard, this article focuses on critical analyses of the evidence from multiple studies on the efficacy of natural phytochemicals in BC. In addition, areas in which the combinations of such effective natural phytochemicals with approved and/or developing anticancer agents can be translationally beneficial are discussed to derive evidence‐based inference for addressing challenges in BC control and therapy.
Eosinophilia – associated basal plasmacytosis: an early and sensitive histologic feature of inflammatory bowel disease

Basal plasmacytosis is an early‐onset and highly predictive feature of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), but may have several restrictions in routine histology. Considering evidences about cooperation between eosinophils and plasma cells in IBD pathogenesis, we investigated immunostain of these two cells as a marker of disease. 343 samplings from 83 patients (52 IBD, 31 non‐IBD colitis) were evaluated. The sections were stained with monoclonal antibodies against plasma cells (CD138 and MUM1), and eosinophils (CD193). Eosinophilia‐associated basal plasmacytosis (EBP) was related with the histologic diagnosis of IBD (90.3% IBD and 35.4% non‐IBD colitides, p < 0.005, sensitivity 90.4%). A strong relation was detected between the occurrence of EBP and (i) the achieving of a complete endoscopic mapping; (ii) the presence of other characteristic lesions of IBD in single segmental sampling, although EBP was evident in more than 40% of samples without other IBD‐related lesions. EBP is a sensitive histologic feature of IBD, especially at the first endoscopic sampling, even in the absence of the other characteristic histologic lesions, and may help in formulating a more precise diagnosis in this setting.
Effects of resistive training and chromium picolinate on body composition and skeletal muscle size in older women.

This study assessed the effect of resistive training (RT), with or without highdose chromium picolinate (Cr-pic) supplementation, on body composition and skeletal muscle size of older women. Seventeen sedentary women, age range 54-71 years, BMI 28.8 +/- 2.4 kg/m2, were randomly assigned (double-blind) to groups (Cr-pic, n = 9; Placebo, n = 8) that consumed either 924 micrograms Cr/d as Cr-pic or a low-Cr placebo (< 0.2 microgram Cr/d) during a 12-week RT program (2 day/week, 3 sets.exercise-1.d-1, 80% of 1 repetition maximum). Urinary chromium excretion was 60-fold higher in the Cr-pic group, compared to the Placebo group (p < .001), during the intervention. Resistive training increased maximal strength of the muscle groups trained by 8 to 34% (p < .001), and these responses were not influenced by Cr-pic supplementation. Percent body fat and fat-free mass were unchanged with RT in these weight-stable women, independent of Cr-pic supplementation. Type I and type II muscle fiber areas of the m. vastus lateralis were not changed over time and were not influenced by Cr-pic supplementation. These data demonstrate that high-dose Cr-pic supplementation did not increase maximal strength above that of resistive training alone in older women. Further, these data show that, under these experimental conditions, whole body composition and skeletal muscle size were not significantly changed due to resistive training and were not influenced by supplemental chromium picolinate.
Development of a radioligand binding assay for 5‐HT4 receptors in guinea‐pig and rat brain

1 The 5‐HT4 receptor antagonist, GR113808, has been radiolabelled to a high specific activity with tritium. 2 Characterization of specific [3H]‐GR113808 binding in homogenates of guinea‐pig striatum and hippocampus revealed a single site of high affinity (Kd values 0.20 and 0.13 nm respectively). 3 [3H]‐GR113808 binding was reversible and displayed rapid kinetics such that association and dissociation were complete within 3 min. 4 Specific [3H]‐GR113808 binding was potently and stereoselectively inhibited by agonists and antagonists acting at the 5‐HT4 receptor but not by compounds selective for other 5‐HT receptors or other neurotransmitter receptors. 5 Autoradiographic analysis revealed a discrete localization in both guinea‐pig and rat brain with high concentrations of binding in brain areas such as the striatum, substantia nigra and olfactory tubercle. 6 [3H]‐GR113808 binding to homogenates of guinea‐pig striatum meets the criteria for labelling of the 5‐HT4 receptor and, as such, represents the first characterization of this receptor in a radioligand binding assay.
Absent Bactericidal Activity of Mouse Serum against Invasive African Nontyphoidal Salmonella Results from Impaired Complement Function but Not a Lack of Antibody

Nontyphoidal strains of Salmonella are a major cause of fatal bacteremia in Africa. Developing a vaccine requires an improved understanding of the relevant mechanisms of protective immunity, and the mouse model of Salmonella infection is useful for studying immunity to Salmonella in vivo. It is important to appreciate the similarities and differences between immunity to Salmonella in mice and men. Ab is important for protection against nontyphoidal Salmonella in both species, and we have previously found an important role for Ab in cell-free complement-mediated bactericidal activity against Salmonella in Africans. It is unclear whether this modality of immunity is relevant in the mouse model. C57BL/6, BALB/c, and C3H mice immunized with heat-killed Salmonella Typhimurium strains D23580 (African invasive strain) and SL1344 and live-attenuated strain SL3261 produced a Salmonella-specific Ab response. Sera from these mice deposited reduced levels of C3 on Salmonella compared with human sera and were unable to kill both wild-type and galE− rough mutant of D23580, indicating absent cell-free killing via classical and alternative complement pathways. Supplementing immune mouse sera with human complement enabled killing of Salmonella, whereas addition of human anti-Salmonella Ab to immune mouse sera had no effect. These findings indicate that mouse serum cannot effect cell-free complement-dependent killing of Salmonella, because of the reduced mouse complement ability to kill these bacteria compared with human complement. This difference in Ab-dependent immunity to Salmonella in mice and men must be considered when applying findings from the mouse model of Salmonella disease and vaccination response to man.
The effect of functional electrical stimulation on the physiological cost of gait in people with multiple sclerosis

Objective Functional electrical stimulation (FES) is used clinically in the management of drop foot in people suffering from neurological conditions. The aim of the study was to investigate the effects of FES, in terms of speed and physiological cost of gait, in people with multiple sclerosis (pwMS). Methods Twelve pwMS and 12 healthy matched controls walked at their own preferred walking speed (PWS) for 5 min around a 10 m elliptical course. Subjects with MS completed the protocol with and without using their FES. In addition, control subjects completed the protocol twice more walking at the same PWS of the pwMS to which they were matched. Results Wearing FES lead to a significant improvement in walking speed (0.49 ms−1 and 0.43 ms−1 with and without their FES respectively; P < 0.001) and a significant reduction in the physiological cost of gait (0.41 mL min−1 kg−1 m−1 and 0.46 mL min−1 kg−1 m−1 with and without FES respectively; P = 0.017) in pwMS. The speed of walking, oxygen uptake, and physiological cost were significantly different between pwMS and controls both at preferred and matched speeds. Although pwMS exhibit a higher physiological cost of walking, FES offers an orthotic benefit to pwMS and should be considered as a possible treatment option.
Immunofluorescent and histologic findings in the hemolytic uremic syndrome.

Pathologic and immunopathologic studies were done in four patients with the hemolytic uremic syndrome. The principal lesions involved the endothelial and subendothelial regions of the renal arterioles and of the glomerular capillaries. The endothelial cells were swollen and, in the case of the glomerular capillary loops, separated from the basement membrane by an accumulation of material in the subendothelial space. In contrast to the glomerular capillaries, the endothelial changes in the renal arterioles were associated with a striking deposition of fibrinogen or its derivatives. No evidence for the operation of immune mechanisms of the type known to be associated with the development of vascular pathology was found to account for the microangiopathy.
Effect of bile components on the surface properties of bifidobacteria

The action of bile on bifidobacteria was studied by measuring changes in zeta potential, hydrophobicity and adherence to enterocyte-like cells in vitro. Highly hydrophobic strains shocked with bile displayed more negative zeta potential values and a decrease in adherence. When a non-hydrophobic non-adherent strain (CIDCA 5324) was shocked with bile, an increase in hydrophobicity was observed. However, no changes of zeta potential or adherence properties were apparent. The action of the bile components was different from the action of whole bile. Cholate and deoxycholate produced a decrease in the negativity of zeta potential values of all strains studied whereas taurocholate displayed a shift in zeta potential of hydrophobic strains to more negative values, thus explaining the decrease in the autoaggregation by charge repulsion. However, the decrease in zeta potential caused by cholate and deoxycholate did not increase autoaggregation in a hydrophobic non-adherent strain (CIDCA 531). This suggests that other forces are contributing to autoaggregation.
Migration from can coatings: Part 3. Synthesis, identification and quantification of migrating epoxy-based substances below 1000 Da

Bisphenol A-derived glycidyl ethers as well as its reaction products with other lacquer components can migrate into the packed food from epoxy-based can coatings. A sensitive and selective method is presented using high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with ultraviolet light, fluorescence and electrospray ionization-mass selective detection for the identification and quantification of all migrants with a bisphenol A backbone and a molecular weight below 1000 Da, an estimated boundary for the absorption in the gastrointestinal tract. The identification of migrants was confirmed by microreactions of technical bisphenol A diglycidyl ether with solvents and phenols, which provided the fragmentation pattern of the mass selective detection and relative retentions of 42 different bisphenol A-related substances. It was shown by calibration of different isolated and synthesized bisphenol A derivatives that the fluorescence response relies on the amount of bisphenol A moiety in the respective molecule. Therefore, all migrating bisphenol A-related substances below 1000 Da were determined as bisphenol A diglycidyl ether equivalents using a calibration (fluorescence detection) of the commercially available bisphenol A diglycidyl ether monomer. The limit of quantification was set at 5 μg bisphenol A diglycidyl ether equivalents kg−1 (or 0.8 μg dm−2). This method was validated for epoxy coatings (0.1 μg dm−2 limit of detection and 24 μg bisphenol A-related substances below 1000 Da dm−2 standard deviation, corresponding to 4.4% relative standard deviation). The quantification could be extended by combining the fluorescence response and structural information gained from the mass spectra, which provides more accurate results for each migrant. The calculation is based on the calibration of the bisphenol A chromophore content of the molecule. According to this method, the amount of migrating bisphenol A-related substances below 1000 Da in the acetonitrile extract (assuming a worst case) varied from about 0.4 to 0.7 mg dm−2 in the examined coatings. The determined amounts comply with about 50% of the total migrate below 1000 Da.
Structure of a Eukaryotic CLC Transporter Defines an Intermediate State in the Transport Cycle

Controlling Chloride Channels The CLC proteins are a large family of channels and transporters that transfer chloride ions across cell membranes. While structures of two prokaryotic CLCs have been determined, these do not include the cytoplasmic regulatory domains found in eukaryotic transporters, and the structures do not reveal the mechanism of Cl−/H+–coupled transport. L. Feng et al. (p. 635, published online 30 September; see the Perspective by Mindell) describe the structure of a eukaryotic CLC protein and found that the regulatory domains interacted closely with the transmembrane domain so that conformational changes are transmitted to the ion pathway. A gating glutamate in the eukaryote transporter is in a different conformation to prokaryotic structures, explaining the 2:1 stoichiometry of Cl−/H+ exchange in eukaryotes. The structure of a chloride transporter and its regulatory domain provides insight into the ion-exchange mechanism. CLC proteins transport chloride (Cl–) ions across cell membranes to control the electrical potential of muscle cells, transfer electrolytes across epithelia, and control the pH and electrolyte composition of intracellular organelles. Some members of this protein family are Cl– ion channels, whereas others are secondary active transporters that exchange Cl– ions and protons (H+) with a 2:1 stoichiometry. We have determined the structure of a eukaryotic CLC transporter at 3.5 angstrom resolution. Cytoplasmic cystathionine beta-synthase (CBS) domains are strategically positioned to regulate the ion-transport pathway, and many disease-causing mutations in human CLCs reside on the CBS-transmembrane interface. Comparison with prokaryotic CLC shows that a gating glutamate residue changes conformation and suggests a basis for 2:1 Cl–/H+ exchange and a simple mechanistic connection between CLC channels and transporters.
Characterization of a human immunodeficiency virus neutralizing monoclonal antibody and mapping of the neutralizing epitope

A monoclonal antibody was produced to the exterior envelope glycoprotein (gp120) of the human T-cell lymphotropic virus (HTLV)-IIIB isolate of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). This antibody binds to gp120 of HTLV-IIIB and lymphadenopathy-associated virus type 1 (LAV-1) and to the surface of HTLV-IIIB- and LAV-1-infected cells, neutralizes infection by cell-free virus, and prevents fusion of virus-infected cells. In contrast, it does not bind, or weakly binds, the envelope of four heterologous HIV isolates and does not neutralize heterologous isolates HTLV-IIIRF and HTLV-IIIMN. The antibody-binding site was mapped to a 24-amino-acid segment, using recombinant and synthetic segments of HTLV-IIIB gp120. This site is within a segment of amino acid variability known to contain the major neutralizing epitopes (S. D. Putney, T. J. Matthews, W. G. Robey, D. L. Lynn, M. Robert-Guroff, W. T. Mueller, A. J. Langlois, J. Ghrayeb, S. R. Petteway, K. J. Weinhold, P. J. Fischinger, F. Wong-Staal, R. C. Gallo, and D. P. Bolognesi, Science 234:1392-1395, 1986). These results localize an epitope of HIV type-specific neutralization and suggest that neutralizing antibodies may be effective in controlling cell-associated, as well as cell-free, virus infection.
Creating a Culture that Fosters Disciplinary Literacy in Agricultural Sciences

In the discipline of agricultural science education, which is taught in 7,500 secondary schools across the country, teachers have a responsibility for contributing to students’ overall academic achievement. These interviews, conducted with five secondary agricultural science teachers, concerned teachers’ perceptions of their role in developing students’ literacy. These teachers believed that (a) reading is necessary for success in life but supplemental in agricultural sciences; (b) literacy instruction was embedded into agricultural science teaching; (c) teachers asked students to read to apply; and (d) they used authentic texts, which they often referred to as outside readings. These conclusions provide insights into avenues for which disciplinary literacy instruction in agricultural science may contribute to students’ overall academic achievement, engagement with texts, and learning from reading and literacy, as well as further the notion of disciplinary literacy.