Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Streptococcus faecium ATCC 9790 penicillin-binding proteins and penicillin sensitivity are heavily influenced by growth conditions: proposal for an indirect mechanism of growth inhibition by beta-lactams

The effects of variations in growth conditions on the penicillin response of Streptococcus faecium ATCC 9790 were studied. Changes in the growth temperature and medium composition were found to cause striking changes in the bacterial generation time, cellular penicillin sensitivity (minimum inhibitory concentration), sensitivity of peptidoglycan synthesis to inhibition by penicillin, rate of autolysis, and labeling pattern of penicillin-binding proteins. However, no constant relationship between these parameters and the minimum inhibitory concentration could be observed. Similar electrophoretic patterns for penicillin-binding proteins were observed in cells grown in different media at the optimal growth temperature. Inhibition of cell division by penicillin in cells grown at this temperature (but not at higher or lower temperatures) caused filamentation of the bacteria. In cells grown in a chemically defined medium at the optimal temperature (but not at temperatures above or below), complete inhibition of cell division was associated with only partial inhibition (34% after 150 min) of peptidoglycan synthesis. It is suggested that the status and physiological importance of individual penicillin-binding proteins in S. faecium are heavily influenced by growth conditions. Depending on the growth conditions, different penicillin-binding proteins may perform the cellular function, indispensible for bacterial growth.
Evolution Management of Production Facilities by Semi-Automated Requirement Verification

Abstract The concept described in this contribution utilizes available process data in production systems to enable to verify the fulfillment of (non-functional) requirements during operation. Therefore, the contribution presents a systematic approach to automatically derive property values out of signal traces by using adaptable runtime models. Those can be checked for the violation of limit values in order to verify the fulfillment or violation of requirements on these properties during an evolution. In an example application to a Pick and Place unit, the concept is used together with an anomaly detection method to support the operator during the evolution process by constantly providing information regarding requirement fulfillment.
Nonmotor fluctuations in Parkinson’s disease: Frequent and disabling

Objective:To assess the frequency and disability caused by nonmotor fluctuations (NMF) in PD. Methods:A structured questionnaire was administered to 50 patients with PD with motor fluctuations (MF), focused on 54 nonmotor symptoms classified in three subgroups: 26 dysautonomic, 21 cognitive and psychiatric, and seven pain/sensory NMF. The link between each NMF and the motor state was determined. Patients were asked to grade their disability from 0 (no disability) to 4 (maximum discomfort) and to specify which kind of fluctuation subgroup (motor or nonmotor) was the most incapacitating. A statistical analysis was performed to determine the frequency of each NMF and to determine whether the level of disability resulting from NMF could be correlated to the main characteristics of the population. Results:All patients had had at least one type of NMF, most of which were associated with the “off” state. Anxiety (66%), drenching sweats (64%), slowness of thinking (58%), fatigue (56%), and akathisia (54%) were the most frequent NMF. Some symptoms such as anxiety or dyspnea correlated with a greater level of disability. The total number of NMF was found to be correlated with the motor disability. Incapacity resulting from the dysautonomic fluctuations was also significantly correlated with levodopa treatment. Surprisingly, 28% of the patients stated that NMF involved a greater degree of disability than MF. Conclusion:Nonmotor fluctuations are frequent and debilitating in PD.
IMPACT OF SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE ON SECONDARY SCHOOL AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION TEACHERS AND PROGRAMS IN THE NORTH CENTRAL REGION

Concerns about the negative impact conventional agriculture is having on the environment have propelled the call for farming practices that are not only economically sound but also environmentally protective and socially acceptable. A cadre of agricultural researchers, educators, and farmers believe that the agricultural systems advocated by sustainable agriculture have great potential for addressing these concerns. The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of sustainable agriculture on secondary school agricultural education teachers and programs in the North Central Region. Likert-type scales were used to measure teacher perceptions of sustainable agriculture and the extent to which sustainable agriculture was taught in the curriculum. The findings revealed that sustainable agriculture has had a limited impact on secondary school agricultural education teachers and programs. Responding teachers were neutral in their perceptions of sustainable agriculture. Sustainable agriculture was taught to a moderate degree in programs of the respondents. There was a lack of evidence that sustainable agriculture was being taught from a systems perspective. However, agronomic topics basic to the understanding of sustainable agriculture were included in the curriculum, providing a foundation for curriculum innovation related to sustainable agriculture.
Alcohol consumption in a healthy population. Relationship to gamma-glutamyl transferase activity and mean corpuscular volume.

We analyzed the multivariate relationship between alcohol consumption and gamma-glutamyl-transferase (GGT), mean corpuscular volume (MCV), and tobacco consumption. A group of 995 healthy outpatients (604 men and 391 women, 18 to 76 years old) were systematically examined. Daily alcohol consumption was established after an interview regarding complete dietary habits. Significant correlations have been found between daily alcohol intake and corresponding GGT and MCV values, . 35 and . 34, respectively, in men and . 24 and . 21 in women. Multiple regression analyses confirm the superiority of GGt over MCV as a laboratory marker of alcohol intake and show the advantage of using them together. A rough estimation of alcohol consumption is proposed as a first step in mass screening of heavy drinkers.
Chronic kidney disease and end stage renal disease Acronyms

ARIC Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities CKD Chronic Kidney Disease ESRD End Stage Renal Disease EU European Union GFR Glomerular Filtration Rate HD Haemodialysis KDIGO Kidney Disease Improving Global Outcomes MDRD Modification of Diet in Renal Disease NHANES III National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey III PD Peritoneal Dialysis PMARP Per Million of the Age-Related Population PMP Per Million of the Population QOF Quality and Outcomes Framework RRT Renal Replacement Therapy
Molecular dynamics simulations and density functional theory studies of NALMA and NAGMA dipeptides

Classical molecular dynamics (MD) simulations using fixed charged force field (AMBER ff03) and density functional theory method using the M05-2X/6-31G∗∗ level of theory have been used to investigate the plasticity of the hydrogen bond formed between dipeptides of N-Acetyl-Leucine-MethylAmide (NALMA), N-Acetyl-Glycine-MethylAmide (NAGMA), and vicinity of water molecules at temperature of 300 K. We have noticed that 2–3 water molecules contribute to change in the conformations of dipeptides NAGMA and NALMA. The self-assembly of 11 water molecules leads to the formation of water bridge at vicinity of the dipeptides and it constrain the conformations of dipeptides. We have found that the energy balance between breaking of the C = O…H–N H bonds and the formation of the C = O…H–O (wat) H bonds may be one of the determining factors to control the dynamics of the folding process of protein molecules.
Role of cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator in patients with chronic sinopulmonary disease.

BACKGROUND Previous studies report a high frequency of mutations in the cystic fibrosis (CF) transmembrane conductance regulator gene (CFTR) in patients with idiopathic bronchiectasis. However, most studies have based their findings on preselected patient groups or have performed limited testing for CF transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) dysfunction. The objective of our study was to evaluate the prevalence of CFTR gene mutations and/or CFTR-related ion channel abnormalities among subjects with idiopathic chronic sinopulmonary disease and the prevalence of CF or a CFTR-related disorder in this population. METHODS We evaluated 72 prospectively enrolled patients from 1995 to 2005 at the Hospital for Sick Children and St. Michael’s Hospital with idiopathic chronic sinopulmonary disease for evidence of CFTR-mediated abnormalities. We performed CFTR genotyping and assessed CFTR function using sweat testing and nasal potential difference testing. The results were compared with data from healthy control subjects, CF heterozygotes, and patients with CF. RESULTS The CFTR functional tests in idiopathic sinopulmonary patients showed a continuous spectrum, ranging from normal to values typically seen in individuals with CF. Forty-eight patients (66%) demonstrated CFTR mutations and/or abnormalities of CFTR function. Twenty-two (31%) fulfilled criteria for a diagnosis of CF and 26 (36%) for a CFTR-related disorder with a strong female preponderance. Functional tests, more than genotyping, were instrumental in establishing a CF diagnosis. Clinical features failed to distinguish subjects with CF from those with CFTR-related or idiopathic disease. CONCLUSIONS The high prevalence of CF and CFTR dysfunction among patients with idiopathic chronic sinopulmonary disease underscores the need for extensive diagnostic evaluation for CF.
Decision-making in geriatric oncology: systemic treatment considerations for older adults with colon cancer

ABSTRACT Introduction: Colon cancer is common and can be considered a disease of older adults with more than half of cases diagnosed in patients aged over 70 years. Decision-making about treatment with chemotherapy for older adults may be complicated by age-related physiological changes, impaired functional status, limited social supports, concerns regarding the occurrence of and ability to tolerate treatment toxicity, and the presence of comorbidities. This is compounded by a lack of high quality evidence guiding cancer treatment decisions for older adults. Areas covered: This narrative review evaluates the evidence for adjuvant and palliative systemic therapy in older adults with colon cancer. The value of an adequate assessment prior to making a treatment decision is addressed, with emphasis on the geriatric assessment. Guidance in making a treatment decision is provided. Expert commentary: Treatment decisions should consider goals of care, a patient’s treatment preferences, and weigh up relative benefits and harms.
Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Can Be Used to Test Connections to Primary Motor Areas from Frontal and Medial Cortex in Humans

Surface EMG responses (MEPs) were recorded from the relaxed first dorsal interosseous (FDI) of 16 normal subjects following transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) over the hand area of the primary motor cortex. These test responses were conditioned by a subthreshold stimulus applied 2-15 ms beforehand over a range of anterior or medial sites. Stimuli applied 3-5 cm anterior to the hand motor area (site A) or 6 cm anterior to the vertex on the nasion-inion line (site B) inhibited the test responses at short latency. The largest effect was seen when the interstimulus interval was 6 ms and the intensity of the conditioning stimulus was equal to 0.9x active motor threshold (AMT) at the hand area. Increasing the intensity to 1.2x AMT produced facilitation. Suppression of surface EMG responses was mirrored in the behavior of single motor units. Conditioning stimuli had no effect on responses evoked in the active FDI muscle by transcranial electric stimulation of motor cortex nor on forearm flexor H reflexes even though MEPs in the same muscle were suppressed at appropriate interstimulus intervals. We conclude that low-intensity TMS over presumed premotor areas of frontal cortex can engage corticocortical connections to the primary motor hand area.
Expression of bcl‐2 protein and APO‐1 (Fas antigen) in the lung tissue from patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis

The fibrotic process of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is considered to be the consequence of an exaggerated response to an inflammatory lung injury. In a previous report, except for the response to PG‐E2, we found no difference in the proliferative profiles of lung fibroblasts between IPF patients and healthy subjects [Mio et al. (1992) Chest, 102:832–837]. In the present study, we hypothesized that lung fibroblasts from IPF patients would not undergo apoptosis as observed in the normal repair process. Additionally, we focused on the protooncogene bcl‐2 which prevents apoptosis and the APO‐1 (Fas antigen) which induces apoptosis. In order to explore this question, we used immunohistochemical staining to investigate whether apoptotic markers are expressed on lung parenchymal cells of IPF patients obtained by open lung biopsy. Bcl‐2 protein was expressed on mononuclear cells in the mantle zone of lymphoid follicules and smooth muscle cells, but it was not expressed on other parenchymal cells. Apo‐1 was expressed on epithelial cells, some germinal center cells, and many parenchymal cells including smooth muscle cells, fibrocytes, and myofibroblasts in patients with IPF, findings of which are fundamentally the same as those in normal subjects. Although we could not find any abnormality of lung fibroblasts in IPF patients, the positive staining with anti‐Bcl‐2 monoclonal antibody and anti‐Fas (anti‐APO‐1) monoclonal antibody in lung lymphoid follicules suggests the continuous activation of B lymphocytes localized in the lung parenchyma in patients with IPF. The role of apoptosis in fibrosis should be further examined. Microsc. Res. Tech. 38:480–487, 1997. © 1997 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Involvement of Angiopoietin-Tie System in Bovine Follicular Development and Atresia: Messenger RNA Expression in Theca Interna and Effect on Steroid Secretion1

Abstract Angiogenesis is involved in the local mechanisms that regulate follicular development and ovulation. Recently, the angiopoietin (ANPT)-Tie system has been shown to be required to regulate angiogenesis and blood vessel regression. Expression of the ANPT-Tie system in the cyclic ovary suggests that the relative changes in the expression of ANPT-1 and ANPT-2 influence the stability of ovarian blood vessels. In this study, we investigated 1) the mRNA expression for ANPT-1, ANPT-2, and endothelial cell-specific receptors Tie1 and Tie2 in the theca interna (TI) of the bovine developing, mature, and atretic follicles by using a semiquantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction assay and 2) the effect of ANPT on the secretion of steroid hormones from bovine preovulatory follicles in vitro using a microdialysis system (MDS) implanted in the thecal layer. Bovine follicles were classified as developing, mature, and atretic according to size, follicular fluid content of estradiol (E2) and progesterone (P4), and characteristics of granulosa cells (GCs). Both ANPT and Tie mRNA were expressed in the TI, whereas GCs expressed ANPT mRNA only. The expression of ANPT-2 mRNA was decreased in the mature follicles. This decrease resulted in a decrease in the ANPT-2:ANPT-1 ratio (an index of instability of blood vessels), indicating that the blood vessels became more stable or mature. The early atretic follicles showed a higher ANPT-2:ANPT-1 ratio and higher Tie2 mRNA expression than did other follicles at healthy or later atretic stages. This finding may imply that blood vessels become unstable at the initial stage of follicular atresia. In both mid and late atretic follicles, Tie2 mRNA expression dramatically decreased, indicating a disruption of the ANPT-Tie system. In the MDS experiment, an infusion of ANPT-1 or ANPT-2 increased P4 release, whereas both ANPTs inhibited the release of androstenedione. ANPT-1 also increased E2 release. These results showed that the mRNA expression for ANPT-1, ANPT-2, Tie1, and Tie2 changes during follicular development, maturation, and atresia in bovine follicles and that ANPTs affect steroidogenesis in the preovulatory follicle. The results suggest that the ANPT-Tie system is involved the structural (angiogenesis) and secretory changes that occur during follicular development and atresia.
Homeownership and Labour-Market Behaviour: Interpreting the Evidence

This paper attempts to explain the repeated empirical finding that homeowners have shorter unemployment durations than tenants, even though Oswald's hypothesis predicts longer unemployment durations for homeowners. The search models that have been proposed to motivate Oswald's thesis have difficulties in providing an explanation for the reverse of the Oswald effect. The model proposed in this paper is close to the ones proposed earlier, in that it also studies search behaviour, but contains a richer set of effects of homeownership on search behaviour. In our model, homeowners may have a higher intensity of job search (and hence shorter unemployment durations) when their housing expenses are—all other things being equal—higher than those of tenants. Some studies have indeed found that the shorter unemployment durations occur especially among highly leveraged homeowners. We show that, in the Netherlands, many homeowners have higher housing costs than otherwise comparable tenants. The model developed in this paper is therefore able to explain the existing evidence of shorter unemployment durations for Dutch homeowners.
When in Doubt Follow the Crowd: How Idea Quality Moderates the Effect of an Anchor on Idea Evaluation

Companies increasingly engage the crowd in the evaluation of a large pool of ideas to sift out the better ones among them. The crowd, however, seems to be better at eliminating the worst ideas than identifying the better ones. Using the anchoring effect as a treatment, and the decreasing effect on the variance of ratings, we develop an approach that enables the use of crowd evaluation for the identification of high-quality ideas. To investigate whether our approach is effective, we conduct several experiments on a crowdworking-platform. Our empirical results indicate that evaluating ideas of high quality represents a more challenging task for the crowd than evaluating those of low quality. Accordingly, idea quality moderates the effect of an anchor for idea evaluation. Following a mixed methods approach, results of an additional qualitative study support our empirical results, indicating that participants are less certain about their evaluation when evaluating ideas of high quality. Our findings both extend the existing literature on crowd evaluation and offer practical solutions for how a crowd can be used to identify the most promising ideas. \\
Electrochemical synthesis of one-dimensional mesoporous Pt nanorods using the assembly of surfactant micelles in confined space.

of metals affords electrocatalystsshowing a superior performance because of their highporosity, large area per unit volume, and excellent activity–structure relationship. Therefore, the successful synthesis of1D mesoporous Pt motifs can be expected to be a newdirection in the fabrication of superior electrocatalysts. Thetraditional hard-templating method, which is widely used tosynthesize mesoporous carbon materials,
Modification in the Proposed Diagnostic Criteria for Internet Addiction

The Internet is a new technology that has impacted the world and provided many benefits to its users. At the same time the Internet has had negative ramifications. Some people are becoming preoccupied with the Internet, are unable to control their use, and are jeopardizing employment and relationships. The concept of "Internet addiction" has been proposed as an explanation for uncontrollable, damaging use of this technology. Symptoms of excessive Internet use are compared to the criteria used to diagnose other addictions. In particular, pathological gambling is compared to problematic Internet use because of overlapping criteria. This article suggests some modifications to the diagnostic criteria that has been commonly proposed for Internet addiction.
Quantitative morphological analysis of the pituitary gland in protein‐calorie malnourished rats

A quantitative analysis of the pituitary gland was conducted to ascertain the effects of protein‐calorie malnutrition on the morphology of the somatotrophs, gonadotrophs, thyrotrophs, and corticotrophs. Male rats were fed a low, 8% protein diet from 20 to 50 days of age, while their age‐matched controls were given a diet containing 27% protein. The hypophyses were then processed for light microscopic immunocytochemical staining using antibodies to growth hormone, the β subunits of luteinizing hormone and thyroid stimulating hormone, and adrenal corticotrophic hormone. The number of each cell type along with an evaluation of the cell, cytoplasmic, and nuclear areas was conducted using a computerized image analyzer. All of these parameters were reduced significantly in the somatotrophs as a result of the low protein diet, while in the gonadotrophs, the cell, cytoplasmic, and nuclear areas were similarly affected. Smaller cell number, cell area, and nuclear area were noted in the corticotrophs of the malnourished animals, while in the thyrotrophs, only the cell and nuclear areas were reduced. The data demonstrate that each pituitary cell type responds in a unique manner to undernutrition. © 1993 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
harmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics f oral oxycodone in healthy human ubjects : Role of circulating active etabolites

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CAUSAL AMBIGUITY, MANAGEMENT PERCEPTION, AND FIRM PERFORMANCE

We integrate and extend research on causal ambiguity, indicating the principal causal paths from ambiguity to performance and discussing the connections between empirical findings and resource-based expectations. We then develop the linkage between causal ambiguity and management perception. Drawing on experimental and field research, we give testable propositions linking ambiguity, perception, and firm performance; integrate this research with studies of causal ambiguity; and suggest directions for future causal ambiguity research.