Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The spectrum of the non‐rapid eye movement sleep electroencephalogram following total sleep deprivation is trait‐like

The sleep electroencephalogram (EEG) spectrum is unique to an individual and stable across multiple baseline recordings. The aim of this study was to examine whether the sleep EEG spectrum exhibits the same stable characteristics after acute total sleep deprivation. Polysomnography (PSG) was recorded in 20 healthy adults across consecutive sleep periods. Three nights of baseline sleep [12 h time in bed (TIB)] following 12 h of wakefulness were interleaved with three nights of recovery sleep (12 h TIB) following 36 h of sustained wakefulness. Spectral analysis of the non‐rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep EEG (C3LM derivation) was used to calculate power in 0.25 Hz frequency bins between 0.75 and 16.0 Hz. Intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) were calculated to assess stable individual differences for baseline and recovery night spectra separately and combined. ICCs were high across all frequencies for baseline and recovery and for baseline and recovery combined. These results show that the spectrum of the NREM sleep EEG is substantially different among individuals, highly stable within individuals and robust to an experimental challenge (i.e. sleep deprivation) known to have considerable impact on the NREM sleep EEG. These findings indicate that the NREM sleep EEG represents a trait.
EMG activity of the iliopsoas muscle and leg kinetics during the soccer place kick

The purpose of the study was to develop a method to record intramuscular electromyogram (EMG) from the iliopsoas muscle and to relate this activity to the kinetics during the soccer place kick. Seven skilled soccer players performed 3 maximal velocity place kicks. The kicks were filmed with a high‐speed camera (400 Hz) and EMG recordings were obtained from 5 muscles of the kicking leg, including wire electrodes inserted into the m. iliopsoas. The EMG signals were compared to the kinetics of the kicking leg, which were calculated from the digitised film. The results showed hardly any torque reversal about the hip joint before impact. Angular deceleration of the thigh segment did not increase the angular velocity of the shank (work ‐3.57 to 0.0%). M. iliopsoas was active during the entire kicking motion (average EMG 65.1–100.9%), even in the period when the thigh was decelerating. Wire electrodes can succesfully be applied to EMG recordings of fast unloaded movements.
Targeted activation of CREB in reactive astrocytes is neuroprotective in focal acute cortical injury

The clinical challenge in acute injury as in traumatic brain injury (TBI) is to halt the delayed neuronal loss that occurs hours and days after the insult. Here we report that the activation of CREB‐dependent transcription in reactive astrocytes prevents secondary injury in cerebral cortex after experimental TBI. The study was performed in a novel bitransgenic mouse in which a constitutively active CREB, VP16‐CREB, was targeted to astrocytes with the Tet‐Off system. Using histochemistry, qPCR, and gene profiling we found less neuronal death and damage, reduced macrophage infiltration, preserved mitochondria, and rescued expression of genes related to mitochondrial metabolism in bitransgenic mice as compared to wild type littermates. Finally, with meta‐analyses using publicly available databases we identified a core set of VP16‐CREB candidate target genes that may account for the neuroprotective effect. Enhancing CREB activity in astrocytes thus emerges as a novel avenue in acute brain post‐injury therapeutics. GLIA 2016;64:853–874
Lead in Bones and Drinking Water in Towns with Hard and Soft Water

In two comparable series of medicolegal necropsies the lead content of ribs was found to be much higher in three soft water than in three hard water towns in England and Wales. Fourteen out of 96 “overnight” tap water samples from five soft water and five hard water towns in England and Wales and from Glasgow (soft water) had lead concentrations of over 0·1 p.p.m. ; values over 0·3 p.p.m. were found only in Glasgow. The possible relevance of the findings to the association of cardiovascular disease and soft drinking water is discussed.
Platelet-Derived Growth Factor BB Induces Nuclear Export and Proteasomal Degradation of CREB via Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinase/Akt Signaling in Pulmonary Artery Smooth Muscle Cells

ABSTRACT Cyclic AMP response element binding protein (CREB) content is diminished in smooth muscle cells (SMCs) in remodeled pulmonary arteries from animals with pulmonary hypertension and in the SMC layers of atherogenic systemic arteries and cardiomyocytes from hypertensive individuals. Loss of CREB can be induced in cultured SMCs by chronic exposure to hypoxia or platelet-derived growth factor BB (PDGF-BB). Here we investigated the signaling pathways and mechanisms by which PDGF elicits depletion of SMC CREB. Chronic PDGF treatment increased CREB ubiquitination in SMCs, while treatment of SMCs with the proteasome inhibitor lactacystin prevented decreases in CREB content. The nuclear export inhibitor leptomycin B also prevented depletion of SMC CREB alone or in combination with lactacystin. Subsequent studies showed that PDGF activated extracellular signal-regulated kinase, Jun N-terminal protein kinase, and phosphatidylinositol 3 (PI3)-kinase pathways in SMCs. Inhibition of these pathways blocked SMC proliferation in response to PDGF, but only inhibition of PI3-kinase or its effector, Akt, blocked PDGF-induced CREB loss. Finally, chimeric proteins containing enhanced cyan fluorescent protein linked to wild-type CREB or CREB molecules with mutations in several recognized phosphorylation sites were introduced into SMCs. PDGF treatment reduced the levels of each of these chimeric proteins except for one containing mutations in adjacent serine residues (serines 103 and 107), suggesting that CREB loss was dependent on CREB phosphorylation at these sites. We conclude that PDGF stimulates nuclear export and proteasomal degradation of CREB in SMCs via PI3-kinase/Akt signaling. These results indicate that in addition to direct phosphorylation, proteolysis and intracellular localization are key mechanisms regulating CREB content and activity in SMCs.
[C ii] 158 μm LUMINOSITIES AND STAR FORMATION RATE IN DUSTY STARBURSTS AND ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEI

Results are presented for [C ii] 158 μm line fluxes observed with the Herschel PACS instrument in 112 sources with both starburst and active galactic nucleus (AGN) classifications, of which 102 sources have confident detections. Results are compared with mid-infrared spectra from the Spitzer Infrared Spectrometer and with Lir from IRAS fluxes; AGN/starburst classifications are determined from equivalent width of the 6.2 μm polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) feature. It is found that the [C ii] line flux correlates closely with the flux of the 11.3 μm PAH feature independent of AGN/starburst classification, log [f([C ii] 158 μm)/f(11.3 μm PAH)] = −0.22 ± 0.25. It is concluded that the [C ii] line flux measures the photodissociation region associated with starbursts in the same fashion as the PAH feature. A calibration of star formation rate (SFR) for the starburst component in any source having [C ii] is derived comparing [C ii] luminosity L([C ii]) to Lir with the result that log SFR = log L([C ii)]) − 7.08 ± 0.3, for SFR in M☉ yr−1 and L([C ii]) in L☉. The decreasing ratio of L([C ii]) to Lir in more luminous sources (the “[C ii] deficit”) is shown to be a consequence of the dominant contribution to Lir arising from a luminous AGN component because the sources with the largest Lir and smallest L([C ii])/Lir are AGNs.
Surface stress of aluminum and jellium.

First-principles calculations of the surface stress tensor of the aluminum (111) surface are presented that indicate the presence of a tensile stress. We compare our results for aluminum with those for jellium and investigate the origins of the surface stress. At high electron densities, such as that of aluminum, the kinetic-energy term gives the dominant contribution to the surface stress.
Spectral phase interferometry for direct electric-field reconstruction of ultrashort optical pulses

We experimentally demonstrate a self-referencing interferometric technique for complete characterization of ultrashort optical pulses that takes advantage of the direct phase-retrieval routine and simple implementation offered by interferometry and yet does not require a known reference pulse. We refer to this method, which is a version of spectral shearing, as spectral phase interferometry for direct electric-field reconstruction (SPIDER). We present the principle and implementation of SPIDER for use with femtosecond pulses and apply it to measure the amplitude and phase of pulses from a mode-locked Ti:sapphire oscillator.
Regulation of T cell‐dependent and ‐independent IL‐12 production by the three Th2‐type cytokines IL‐10, IL‐6, and IL‐4

The production of IL‐12 by macrophages/dendritic cells (Mɸ/DC) is mediated either by a T cell‐dependent pathway that is induced primarily by the interaction of CD40 ligand (CD40L) on activated T cells with CD40 on IL‐12‐producing cells or by a T cell‐independent pathway that is induced by bacteria or bacterial products and enhanced by interferon‐γ (IFN‐γ). In this study we investigated the ability of the Th2‐type cytokines interleukin (IL) ‐10, IL‐6, and IL‐4 to modulate IL‐12 production in Mɸ/DC induced through the two pathways. IL‐12 production was induced in Mɸ/DC from normal mice by stimulation with the combination of IFN‐γ plus lipopolysaccharide (LPS) or Staphylococcus aureus Cowan I (a model for the T cell‐independent pathway) or by co‐culture with Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells transfected with the CD40L (a model for the T cell‐dependent pathway). The effects of three Th2‐type cytokines on IL‐12 production by Mɸ/DC through the two pathways were examined. IL‐10 inhibited IL‐12 production induced through both pathways, although the inhibitory effect was more potent on the (IFN‐γ + LPS)‐induced pathway. IL‐6 inhibited only (LPS + IFN‐γ)‐induced IL‐12 production. The effect of IL‐4 was particularly noteworthy: this cytokme inhibited (LPS + IFN‐γ)‐induced IL‐12 production, whereas it potentiated the production of IL‐12 induced by CD40L. Regulation of IL‐12 protein production by IL‐10 and IL‐4 was found to correspond to the levels of mRNA accumulation for the p40 and p35 IL‐12 genes, whereas the presence of IL‐6 during stimulation decreased IL‐12 protein production without affecting steady‐state mRNA levels. These results indicate that IL‐12 production in Mɸ/DC induced through a T cell‐dependent or ‐independent pathway is positively or negatively regulated by particular cytokines at various control levels. J. Leukoc. Biol. 61: 80–87; 1997.
Telomerase activity in germ cell cancers and mature teratomas.

BACKGROUND An inverse relationship has been reported between the presence of telomerase enzymatic activity and the induction of differentiation in human tumor cell lines. Male germ cell tumors represent an attractive clinical model to assess this relationship further because high telomerase activity is present in normal germ cell progenitors and in embryonal carcinomas that can differentiate into mature teratomas. To investigate how telomerase activity and the differentiation state of germ cell tumors are related, telomerase activities and telomere lengths were measured in benign testicular tissues, germ cell cancers, and mature or immature teratomas. METHODS By use of a modified telomeric repeat amplification protocol (TRAP) assay, telomerase activity was measured in four specimens of benign testicular tissue, in 27 germ cell cancers, in seven mature teratomas, and in one immature teratoma. Telomere lengths were measured in all specimens by restriction digestion of genomic DNA and Southern blot hybridization analysis. Associations between telomerase activity and tissue histopathology were assessed with two-sided Fisher's exact tests. RESULTS Telomerase activity was detected in all examined germ cell cancers and in the benign testicular tissue specimens. In marked contrast, telomerase activity was not detected in any mature teratoma (P<.0001). Very long telomeres were detected in some mature teratomas, consistent with telomerase repression as a late event in teratoma formation. The immature teratoma, with malignant transformation, had high telomerase activity. CONCLUSION Telomerase is active in germ cell cancers and repressed in mature teratomas. The absence of telomerase activity may contribute to the limited proliferative capacity of mature teratomas. These findings support the existence of an inverse relationship between telomerase activity and the differentiation state of clinical germ cell tumors.
Phase I study of vinorelbine and ifosfamide in advanced non-small-cell lung cancer.

PURPOSE We designed a phase I dose-escalation study of vinorelbine on a novel (daily-times-three) schedule with ifosfamide with granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) support to define the dose-limiting toxicity (DLT) and maximum-tolerated dose (MTD) of vinorelbine in this combination. PATIENTS AND METHODS Cohorts of patients with stage IIIB or IV non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and no prior chemotherapy received vinorelbine starting at 15 mg/m2 on days 1, 2, and 3, and ifosfamide starting at 2.0 g/m2 on days 1, 2, and 3 with G-CSF support for all patients. Cycles were repeated every 21 days. Plasma vinorelbine concentrations were also analyzed. RESULTS Forty-two patients were treated. The median age was 58 years (range, 34 to 75) and 41 had a performance status of 0 or 1. The DLT was neutropenia and sepsis at a maximum-administered vinorelbine dose of 35 mg/m2 for 3 days. The recommended phase II dose was vinorelbine 30 mg/m2 with ifosfamide 1.6 g/m2 both given on 3 consecutive days. The overall response rate was 40% (17 of 42; all partial responders). The median survival duration was 50 weeks, with a 1-year survival rate of 48%. Pharmacokinetic analysis showed that vinorelbine in this combination and on this schedule is cleared 1.5 to two times faster than in single-agent once-weekly studies. CONCLUSION Myelosuppression is the DLT of this regimen with no major subjective toxicities. With tolerable toxicity and an encouraging 1-year survival rate of 48%, further investigation of this new vinorelbine schedule is warranted in this and other combination regimens.
Labeling Stem Cells with a New Hybrid Bismuth/Carbon Nanotube Contrast Agent for X-Ray Imaging

The poor retention and survival of cells after transplantation to solid tissue represent a major obstacle for the effectiveness of stem cell-based therapies. The ability to track stem cells in vivo can lead to a better understanding of the biodistribution of transplanted cells, in addition to improving the analysis of stem cell therapies' outcomes. Here, we described the use of a carbon nanotube-based contrast agent (CA) for X-ray computed tomography (CT) imaging as an intracellular CA to label bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). Porcine MSCs were labeled without observed cytotoxicity. The CA consists of a hybrid material containing ultra-short single-walled carbon nanotubes (20–80 nm in length, US-tubes) and Bi(III) oxo-salicylate clusters which contain four Bi3+ ions per cluster (Bi4C). The CA is thus abbreviated as Bi4C@US-tubes.
Glucose uptake and transport in contracting, perfused rat muscle with different pre‐contraction glycogen concentrations.

1. Glucose uptake and transport, muscle glycogen, free glucose and glucose‐6‐phosphate concentrations were studied in perfused resting and contracting rat skeletal muscle with different pre‐contraction glycogen concentrations. Rats were pre‐conditioned by a combination of swimming exercise and diet, resulting in either low (glycogen‐depleted rats), normal (control rats) or high (supercompensated rats) muscle glycogen concentrations at the time their hindlimbs were perfused. 2. Compared with control rats, pre‐contraction muscle glycogen concentration was approximately 40% lower in glycogen‐depleted rats, whereas it was 40% higher in supercompensated rats. Muscle glycogen break‐down correlated positively (r = 0.76; P less than 0.001) with pre‐contraction muscle glycogen concentration. 3. Glucose uptake during contractions was approximately 50% higher in glycogen‐depleted hindquarters than in control hindquarters; in supercompensated hindquarters it was 30% lower. When rats with similar muscle glycogen concentrations were compared, glucose uptake in hindquarters from rats that had exercised on the preceding day was approximately 20% higher than in hindquarters from rats that had not exercised on the preceding day. 4. Muscle membrane glucose transport, as measured by the rate of accumulation of 14C‐3‐O‐methylglucose in the contracting muscles, was 25% lower in supercompensated than in glycogen‐depleted muscles at the onset as well as at the end of the 15 min contraction period. 5. Intracellular concentrations of free glucose and glucose‐6‐phosphate were higher at rest and during the entire 15‐min stimulation period in supercompensated muscles than in glycogen‐depleted muscles, and glucose uptake during contractions correlated negatively with free glucose (r = ‐0.52; P less than 0.01) as well as with glucose‐6‐phosphate (r = ‐0.49; P less than 0.01) concentrations. 6. It is concluded that: (a) The rate of glucose uptake in contracting skeletal muscle is dependent on the pre‐contraction muscle glycogen concentration. Regulating mechanisms include limitations of membrane glucose transport as well as of glucose metabolism. (b) Contractions on the preceding day have a stimulating effect on glucose uptake during contractions of the same muscles on the next day.
Long‐term impact of reproductive factors on cancer risk

The relationship between reproductive variables (parity, age at first birth, number of induced and spontaneous abortions) and cancer risk has been analysed using data from an integrated series of case‐control studies conducted in northern Italy between 1983 and 1992. The overall data‐set included women below age 75 with histologically confirmed cancers of the following sites: oesophagus, 58; stomach, 280; colon, 405; rectum, 210; liver, 82; gall‐bladder, 29; pancreas, 129; breast, 3,415; cervix, 742; endometrium, 725; ovary, 953; bladder, 68; kidney, 56; thyroid, 180; lymphomas, 80; myelomas, 57; and a total of 5,619 controls admitted to hospital for acute non‐neoplastic, non‐gynaecological, non‐hormone‐related conditions. Multivariate odds ratios, as estimators of relative risks (RR), were obtained after allowance for age, education, use of oral contraceptives and oestrogen replacement treatments, plus various reproductive factors. Direct significant trends with parity were observed for cancer of the liver (RR for women with ≥4 births vs. nulliparae = 3.3) and cervix uteri (RR = 4.1). The risk of gall‐bladder cancer was also elevated for multiparae (RR = 1.9). No significant inverse trend in risk emerged. However, the RRs in multiparae were significantly below unity for breast (RR = 0.8), endometrium (RR = 0.7), and ovary (RR = 0.8). With reference to age at first birth, a significant trend in risk was observed for breast cancer (RR = 1.4 for 25 to 29 and 1.5 for ≥30 vs. ≤ 25 years). In contrast, the risk of cervical cancer was inversely related to age at first birth. For spontaneous abortions, the only significant inverse trend was for ovarian cancer (RR = 0.7 for ≥2 vs. 0 abortions), but also the point estimate for endometrial cancer in women with ≥2 abortions was below unity. For induced abortions, there was a strong inverse trend in risk for endometrial cancer (RR = 0.5), and the RRs were below unity also for colon and breast cancer. In contrast, cervical cancer was directly associated with the number of spontaneous abortions. Although the underlying aetiological interpretations are different for various cancer sites, this study provides, in a large and uniform data‐set, quantitative information on the long‐term impact of reproductive factors on cancer risk.
Multiarticular Isokinetic High-Load Eccentric Training Induces Large Increases in Eccentric and Concentric Strength and Jumping Performance

Abstract Papadopoulos, C, Theodosiou, K, Bogdanis, GC, Gkantiraga, E, Gissis, I, Sambanis, M, Souglis, A, and Sotiropoulos, A. Multiarticular isokinetic high-load eccentric training induces large increases in eccentric and concentric strength and jumping performance. J Strength Cond Res 28(9): 2680–2688, 2014—This study investigated the effects of short-term eccentric exercise training using a custom-made isokinetic leg press device, on concentric and eccentric strength and explosiveness as well as jumping performance. Nineteen healthy males were divided into an eccentric (ECC, n = 10) and a control group (CG, n = 9). The ECC group trained twice per week for 8 weeks using an isokinetic hydraulic leg press machine against progressively increasing resistance ranging from 70 to 90% of maximal eccentric force. Jumping performance and maximal force generating capacity were measured before and after eccentric training. In the ECC group, drop jump (DJ) height and maximal power were increased by 13.6 ± 3.2% (p < 0.01) and 25.8 ± 1.2% (p < 0.01), whereas ground contact time was decreased by 17.6 ± 2.6% (p < 0.01). Changes in ankle, knee, and hip joint angles were also reduced by 33.9 ± 1.1%, 31.1 ± 1.0%, and 32.4 ± 1.6% (all p < 0.01), respectively, indicating an increase in muscle stiffness during the DJ. Maximal eccentric and concentric leg press force was increased by 64.9 ± 5.5% (p < 0.01) and 32.2 ± 8.8% (p < 0.01), respectively, and explosiveness, measured as force attained in the first 300 milliseconds, was increased by 49.1 ± 4.8% (p < 0.01) and 77.1 ± 7.7% (p < 0.01), respectively. The CG did not show any statistically significant changes in all parameters measured. The main findings of this study were that maximal concentric and eccentric force, explosiveness, and DJ performance were markedly increased after only 16 training sessions, possibly because of the high eccentric load attained during the bilateral eccentric leg press exercise performed on this custom-made device.