Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
L'influence normative du processus de Bologne sur les universités africaines francophones

Le processus de Bologne a connu un engouement fulgurant et inattendu. Les auteurs reviennent sur les moments cles de la strategie de promotion du modele de Bologne et s’interrogent sur les avantages que trouvent les pays d’autres continents a s’aligner sur des ersatz de Bologne. Si au cours de ses premieres annees, le processus a ete ouvert a la plus grande variete des pratiques et des methodes, il a pris l’apparence d’un ensemble ferme de recettes incontestables quand il a ete transpose hors d’Europe. L’Europe a garde ses doutes, exportant ses certitudes en les integrant a ses outils d’implantation du LMD (Licence-Master-Doctorat), presentes comme universellement pertinents alors qu’ils ne portent que des facons singulieres de concevoir, traiter et resoudre les problemes du superieur. L’exemple de l’exportation du processus en Afrique fait craindre qu’il constitue une sinistre “bulle de souverainete” (Butler 2004) dans un univers politique qui a besoin de susciter l’inventivite, le sens critique, les mobilisations collectives.
THE PROGENITOR OF SUPERNOVA 2011dh/PTF11eon IN MESSIER 51

We have identified a luminous star at the position of supernova (SN) 2011dh/PTF11eon, in pre-SN archival, multi-band images of the nearby, nearly face-on galaxy Messier 51 (M51) obtained by the Hubble Space Telescope with the Advanced Camera for Surveys. This identification has been confirmed, to the highest available astrometric precision, using a Keck-II adaptive-optics image. The available early-time spectra and photometry indicate that the SN is a stripped-envelope, core-collapse Type IIb, with a more compact progenitor (radius ∼ 1011 cm) than was the case for the well-studied SN IIb 1993J. We infer that the extinction to SN 2011dh and its progenitor arises from a low Galactic foreground contribution, and that the SN environment is of roughly solar metallicity. The detected object has absolute magnitude M0V ≈ −7.7 and effective temperature ∼6000 K. The star's radius, ∼1013 cm, is more extended than what has been inferred for the SN progenitor. We speculate that the detected star is either an unrelated star very near the position of the actual progenitor, or, more likely, the progenitor's companion in a mass-transfer binary system. The position of the detected star in a Hertzsprung–Russell diagram is consistent with an initial mass of 17–19 M☉. The light of this star could easily conceal, even in the ultraviolet, the presence of a stripped, compact, very hot (∼105 K), nitrogen-rich Wolf–Rayet star progenitor.
Strain-dependent diversity in the Pseudomonas aeruginosa quorum-sensing regulon

Quorum sensing allows bacteria to sense and respond to changes in population density. Acyl-homoserine lactones serve as quorum-sensing signals for many Proteobacteria, and acyl-homoserine lactone signaling is known to control cooperative activities. Quorum-controlled activities vary from one species to another. Quorum-sensing controls a constellation of genes in the opportunistic pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which thrives in a number of habitats ranging from soil and water to animal hosts. We hypothesized that there would be significant variation in quorum-sensing regulons among strains of P. aeruginosa isolated from different habitats and that differences in the quorum-sensing regulons might reveal insights about the ecology of P. aeruginosa. As a test of our hypothesis we used RNA-seq to identify quorum-controlled genes in seven P. aeruginosa isolates of diverse origins. Although our approach certainly overlooks some quorum-sensing–regulated genes we found a shared set of genes, i.e., a core quorum-controlled gene set, and we identified distinct, strain-variable sets of quorum-controlled genes, i.e., accessory genes. Some quorum-controlled genes in some strains were not present in the genomes of other strains. We detected a correlation between traits encoded by some genes in the strain-variable subsets of the quorum regulons and the ecology of the isolates. These findings indicate a role for quorum sensing in extension of the range of habitats in which a species can thrive. This study also provides a framework for understanding the molecular mechanisms by which quorum-sensing systems operate, the evolutionary pressures by which they are maintained, and their importance in disparate ecological contexts.
Effects of co-medicated drugs on cyclophosphamide bioactivation in human liver microsomes

The alkylating agent cyclophosphamide (CP) is a prodrug requiring cytochrome P-450-mediated bioactivation to form the active 4-hydroxycyclophosphamide (4OHCP). Modifications in the rate of CP bioactivation may have implications for the effectiveness of CP therapy, especially in high-dose regimens. In this study, agents frequently co-administered with CP in high-dose chemotherapy regimens were tested for their possible inhibition of the bioactivation of CP in human liver microsomes. The Km and Vmax values for the conversion of CP to 4OHCP were 93 μM and 4.3 nmol/h·mg, respectively. No inhibition was observed for aciclovir, carboplatin, ciprofloxacine, granisetron, mesna, metoclopramide, ranitidine, roxitromycin and temazepam. Inhibition was observed for amphotericin B, dexamethasone, fluconazole, itraconazole, lorazepam, ondansetron and thiotepa, with IC50 values of 50, >100, >50, 5, 15, >100 and 1.25 μM, respectively. For all but thiotepa, these IC50 values were higher than the therapeutic drug levels and thus considered of no clinical relevance. We conclude that of the tested co-medicated agents, only thiotepa inhibited metabolism of CP to 4OHCP at clinically relevant concentrations, and may thereby influence therapeutic and toxic responses of CP therapy.
Predictors of survival after radiofrequency thermal ablation of colorectal cancer metastases to the liver: a prospective study.

PURPOSE The aim of this study was to determine the predictors of survival at the time of radiofrequency thermal ablation (RFA) in patients with colorectal liver metastasis. PATIENTS AND METHODS One hundred thirty-five patients with colorectal liver metastases who were not candidates for resection underwent laparoscopic RFA. RESULTS The median Kaplan-Meier survival for all patients was 28.9 months after RFA treatment. Patients with a carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) less than 200 ng/mL had improved survival compared with those with a CEA more than 200 (34 v 16 months; P = .01). Patients with the dominant lesion less than 3 cm in diameter had a median survival of 38 v 34 months for lesions 3 to 5 cm, and 21 months for lesions greater than 5 cm (P = .03). Survival approached significance for patients with one to three tumors versus more than three tumors (29 v 22 months; P = .09). The presence of extrahepatic disease did not affect survival. Only the largest liver tumor size more than 5 cm was found to be a significant predictor of mortality by Cox proportional hazards model, with a 2.5-fold increased risk of death versus the largest liver tumor size less than 3 cm (P = .05). CONCLUSION This study determines which patients do best after RFA. Historical survival with chemotherapy alone is 11 to 14 months, suggesting RFA has a positive impact on overall survival. Limited amounts of extrahepatic disease do not appear to affect survival adversely. RFA is a useful adjunct to chemotherapy in those patients with liver-predominant disease.
Cdk5 Regulation of the GRAB-Mediated Rab8-Rab11 Cascade in Axon Outgrowth

Neurons communicate with each other through their axons and dendrites. However, a full characterization of the molecular mechanisms involved in axon and dendrite formation is still incomplete. Neurite outgrowth requires the supply of membrane components for surface expansion. Two membrane sources for axon outgrowth are suggested: Golgi secretary vesicles and endocytic recycling endosomes. In non-neuronal cells, trafficking of secretary vesicles from Golgi is regulated by Rab8, a member of Rab small GTPases, and that of recycling endosomes is by Rab11, another member of Rabs. However, whether these vesicles are coordinately or independently transported in growing axons is unknown. Herein, we find that GRAB, a guanine nucleotide exchange factor for Rab8, is a novel regulator of axon outgrowth. Knockdown of GRAB suppressed axon outgrowth of cultured mouse brain cortical neurons. GRAB mediates the interaction between Rab11A and Rab8A, and this activity is regulated by phosphorylation at Ser169 and Ser180 by Cdk5-p35. The nonphosphorylatable GRAB mutant S169/180A promoted axonal outgrowth to a greater extent than did the phosphomimetic GRAB mutant S169/180D. Phosphorylation of GRAB suppressed its guanine nucleotide exchange factor activity and its ability to recruit Rab8A- to Rab11A-positive endosomes. In vivo function of GRAB and its Cdk5-phophorylation were shown in migration and process formation of developing neurons in embryonic mouse brains. These results indicate that GRAB regulates axonal outgrowth via activation and recruitment of Rab8A- to Rab11A-positive endosomes in a Cdk5-dependent manner. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT While axon outgrowth requires membrane supply for surface expansion, the molecular mechanisms regulating the membrane transport in growing axons remain unclear. Here, we demonstrate that GRAB, a guanine nucleotide exchange factor for Rab8, is a novel regulator of axon outgrowth. GRAB promotes the axonal membrane transport by mediating the interaction between Rab11 and Rab8 in neurons. The activity of GRAB is regulated by phosphorylation with Cdk5. We describe an in vivo role for GRAB and its Cdk5 phosphorylation during neuronal migration and process formation in embryonic brains. Thus, the membrane supply for axonal outgrowth is regulated by Cdk5 through the Rab11-GRAB-Rab8 cascade.
Circulating ghrelin levels are suppressed by meals and octreotide therapy in children with Prader-Willi syndrome.

Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) is characterized by severe obesity, hyperphagia, hypogonadism, and GH deficiency. Unlike individuals with common obesity, who have low fasting-plasma ghrelin concentrations, those with PWS have high fasting-ghrelin concentrations that might contribute to their hyperphagia. Treatment with octreotide, a somatostatin agonist, decreases ghrelin concentrations in healthy and acromegalic adults and induces weight loss in children with hypothalamic obesity. This pilot study was performed to determine whether octreotide administration (5 microg/kg.d) for 5-7 d lowers ghrelin concentrations and affects body composition, resting energy expenditure, and GH markers in children with PWS. Octreotide treatment decreased mean fasting plasma ghrelin concentration by 67% (P < 0.05). Meal-related ghrelin suppression (-35%; P < 0.001) was still present after intervention but was blunted (-11%; P = 0.19). Body weight, body composition, leptin, insulin, resting energy expenditure, and GH parameters did not change. However, one subject's parent noted fewer tantrums over denial of food during octreotide intervention. In conclusion, short-term octreotide treatment markedly decreased fasting ghrelin concentrations in children with PWS but did not fully ablate the normal meal-related suppression of ghrelin. Further investigation is warranted to determine whether long-term octreotide treatment causes sustained ghrelin suppression, changes eating behavior, and induces weight loss in this population.
Autism Spectrum Disorders and Mastocytosis

Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) are diagnosed in early childhood and include Autism, Asperger's disorder and Pervasive neurodevelopmental disorder - not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS, or atypical autism). ASD are associated with varying degrees of dysfunctional communication and social skills, repetitive and stereotypic behaviors, as well as attention and learning disabilities. Most ASD patients also have food intolerance and other allergic symptomatology indicative of mast cell activation. The number of ASD cases have increased over the last decade to 1/100, but there is no definite pathogenesis or curative therapy. We report that the apparent prevalence of ASD in patients with mastocytosis, a rare disease occuring in 1/4,000 children and characterized by an increased number of hypersensitive mast cells in many organs, is about 1/10 or 10 times higher than the general population. A child with skin mastocytosis [urticaria pigmentosa, (UP)] and regressive autism is presented to illustrate the point. Allergic, infectious, neuroimmune and environmental triggers may activate mast cells to release vasoactive, inflammatory and neurotoxic molecules. These could disrupt the gut-blood-brain-barriers (BBB), and/or activate susceptibility genes, thus contributing to brain inflammation and ASD.
Detection of karyotypic aberrations in acute myeloblastic leukaemia: a prospective comparison between PCR/FISH and standard cytogenetics in 140 patients with de novo AML

In 140 patients with de novo acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) standard cytogenetics were compared with RT‐PCR for the detection of t(8;21), t(15;17) and inv(16) and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) for numerical aberrations of chromosomes 7, 8, X and Y. RT‐PCR detected 18 cases with t(8;21), 12 with t(15;17) and seven with inv(16). In two cases with t(8;21), two with t(15;17) and four with inv(16) these aberrations had not been detected by standard cytogenetics. There were no false negative PCR results. In 12 patients with these chromosomal changes, standard cytogenetics revealed additional chromosomal aberrations. In 16 patients sole numerical aberrations of the chromosomes 7, 8, X or Y were found by FISH. In these patients the sensitivity of FISH and standard cytogenetics was comparable. In 87 patients no aberrations could be found by PCR and FISH whereas in 24 of these patients standard cytogenetics revealed an abnormal karyotype. These data recommend the combination of standard cytogenetics and molecular techniques to improve the sensitivity for the detection of genetic lesions in AML. Once chromosomal markers have been identified by combined analysis these markers could be used to monitor residual disease during/after chemotherapy, by RT‐PCR and/or FISH.
In vitro isolation and characterization of a Neospora sp. from aborted bovine foetuses

SUMMARY A Neospora sp. was isolated from the brains of two aborted bovine foetuses and grown continuously in vitro in bovine cell cultures. A comparison of the antigenic reactivity of in vitro cultivated tachyzoites with polyclonal antisera to Neospora caninum, Hammondia hammondi or Toxoplasma gondii revealed that the bovine protozoal isolates were similar to N. caninum and antigenically distinct from T. gondii. Tachyzoites of both bovine isolates had similar ultrastructural features, including an apical polar ring, conoid, electron-dense rhoptries and micronemes. The orientation of the micronemes, presence of micropores and a large number of electron-dense granules in the posterior portion of the bovine isolate tachyzoites differed from previous descriptions of N. caninum in vivo. Tachyzoites of the bovine isolates were ultrastructurally more similar to in vitro cultivated N. caninum tachyzoites than to tachyzoites of T. gondii or H. hammondi. The antigenic and ultrastructural similarities between N. caninum and the protozoal parasites isolated from aborted bovine foetuses in this study support the proposition that these parasites belong to the genus Neospora.
Submission Letters across English Language Teaching and Mathematics: The Case of Iranian Professionals.

Submitting an article to an English journal for publication requires enclosing an accompanying cover letter. Yet, the phraseology and rhetorical conventions of such letters are not comprehensively documented in literature. This article investigates two English corpora of genuine electronic submission letters to journal editors by Iranian English Language Teaching and Mathematics professionals. After gathering 200 e-mail correspondences of academics with journal editors worldwide, 60 messages (30 from each) sent with the purposes of providing or requesting information were selected and analyzed for specific rhetorical patterns following Santos’ (2002) model. Eventually, the results were juxtaposed to a highly characteristic covering letter – provided in Okamura and Shaw (2000). With few exceptions in Math corpus, both corpora illustrate proper choices regarding phraseology. Concerning rhetoric, ELT submission emails are more compatible with those of English native academics, whereas Math messages carry the rhetorical patterns in Non-native academics’ messages. With the diversity that may exist in the generic structure and function of submission letters, further research investigating communicative purposes of e-mail genre is needed.
Bat Incidents with U.S. Civil Aircraft

Wildlife collisions with aircraft (hereafter incidents) threaten human safety and cause substantial economic loss. Although more than 97% of wildlife incidents with U.S. civil aircraft involve birds, damage is more than 4.5 times more likely to occur during a mammal incident (e.g., deer, canids). Bats are the only mammals with the potential to be struck by aircraft outside the airport environment (at least 152.4 m above ground). We examined the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) National Wildlife Strike Database from 1990 to 2010 to estimate the frequency of bat incidents with aircraft within the U.S. and the risk relative to other wildlife incidents. We summarized 417 bat incidents with U.S. civil aircraft. There were 10 bat species or species groups involved in these incidents; however, 68.9% were not identified to species. Most (85.7%) bat incidents occurred at Part 139 certificated airports that receive regularly-scheduled passenger flights with more than nine seats or unscheduled flights with more than 30 seats. More incidents occurred during August (28.3%) than any other month. Most bat incidents occurred at night (81.7%), but the greatest incident rate occurred at dusk (57.3%). More incidents occurred during aircraft landing (85.0%) than take-off (11.2%) or other phases of flight (3.7%). ‘Minor’ damage to aircraft occurred on only two occasions but no damage costs were reported. Incidents coincided with bat behavior, including diel activity, migration, hibernation, and juvenile recruitment. We conclude bat incidents are low risk to U.S. civil aircraft and have minimal economic effect on the U.S. civil aviation industry.
A Real-Time Emotionality Assessment (RTEA) System Based on Psycho-Physiological Evaluation

Human emotion is assessed by measuring and analyzing various physiological signals in an objective way, or by analyzing adjectives chosen by the subjects in a subjective way. The purpose of this study is to develop an integrated human emotion assessment system, which measures changes in a person's objective and subjective emotionality in real-time and analyzes them in an integrative way. The present system is composed of a real-time subjective emotionality assessment (RTSEA) system and a real-time objective emotionality assessment (RTOEA) system based on physiological signal measurement and analysis. It can be utilized individually, or can be combined as a synthetic emotionality assessment system for comprehensive emotionality assessment.
Predictive factors of resectability and postoperative outcome for pancreatic cancer

Pancreatic cancer still remains a challenge for surgeons. The goal of surgery is to ensure oncological R0 resection as positive resection margin is associated with poor prognosis. The purpose of this study is to determine the utility of age, ASA score, bilirubin and albumin value, CA 19-9 and imaging modalities for predicting the resectability in pancreatic cancer. This retrospective study consisted of 130 patients, who had been treated surgically for potentially resectablee pancreatic cancer from January 2003 to January 2008 at the Department of Surgery, Ege University Hospital, Izmir, Turkiye. According to the baseline characteristics, age, sex and ASA scores were not found to be predictive on respectability. The difference between unresectable and operable group in terms of albumin levels, serum bilirubin levels and serum CA 19-9 levels were not statistically significant. There wasn't any statistically significant difference in the postoperative mortality for age, ASA score, imaging modalities, serum albumin levels, serum bilirubin levels and serum CA 19-9 levels between the unresectable and operable groups. Pancreatic cancer is an aggressive tumor with early dissemination to the regional lymph nodes and distant metastases such as liver and visceral peritoneum. The overall five-year survival rate ranges from 0.4-4%. Nearly 40% patients have a metastatic disease, 40% patients have a locally advanced disease and only 20% patients have noninvasive tumors at the time of presentation. Curative surgical resection has been recognised as the most important prognostic factor in pancreatic cancers. Pathologically, T and nodal stages, tumor grade, resection margins and lymphatic and perineural invasion were also known as the other parameters, which influence the survival. In this study, we investigated the predictive factors for resectability and postoperative mortality risk in pancreatic cancer. We didn't find a correlation between these parameters and resectability.
Pulsations, Boundary Layers, and Period Bounce in the Cataclysmic Variable RE J1255+266

We report time‐series photometry of the quiescent optical counterpart of the EUV transient RE J1255+266. The star appears as a DA white dwarf with bright emission lines and a complex spectrum of periodic signals in its light curve. A signal at 0.0829 days is likely to be the orbital period of the underlying cataclysmic binary (probably a dwarf nova). Characteristic periods of 1344, 1236, and 668 s are seen, as well as a host of weaker signals. We interpret these noncommensurate signals as (nonradial) pulsation periods of the white dwarf. The donor star is unseen at all wavelengths, and the accretion rate is very low. We estimate a distance of 180 ± 50 pc and MV = 14.6 ± 1.3 for the accretion light. The binary probably represents a very late stage of evolution, with the donor star whittled down to M2<0.05 M⊙. Such binaries stubbornly resist discovery due to their faintness and reluctance to erupt, but are probably a very common type of cataclysmic variable. If the signal at 0.0829 days is indeed the orbital period, then the binary is an excellent candidate as a “period bouncer. ” Plausible colleagues in this club include four dwarf novae and the (so far) noneruptive stars GD 552 and 1RXS J105010.3−140431. The 1994 EUV eruption implies a soft X‐ray/EUV luminosity of 1034–1035 ergs s−1, greater than that of any other dwarf nova. We attribute that to a favorable blend of properties: a high‐mass white dwarf, a very transparent line of sight (the “local chimney”), and a low binary inclination. The first maximizes the expected temperature and luminosity of boundary‐layer emission; the other two increase the likelihood that soft X‐rays can survive their perilous passage through an accretion‐disk wind and the interstellar medium.