Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Performance on a Functional Motor Task Is Enhanced by Sleep in Middle-Aged and Older Adults

Background and Purpose: Although sleep has been shown to enhance motor skill learning, it remains unclear whether sleep enhances learning of a functional motor task in middle-aged and older individuals. The purpose of this study was to examine whether sleep enhances motor learning of a functional motor task in middle-aged and older adults. Methods: Twenty middle-aged and 20 older individuals were randomly assigned to either the sleep condition or the no-sleep condition. Participants in the sleep condition practiced a novel walking task in the evening, and returned the following morning for retesting. Participants in the no-sleep condition practiced the walking task in the morning and returned the same day in the evening for a retest. Outcome measures included time around the walking path and spatiotemporal gait parameters. Results: Only the middle-aged and older adults in the sleep condition demonstrated significant off-line improvement in performance, measured as a decline in time to walk around the novel path and improvement in spatiotemporal gait parameters. The middle-aged and older adults in the no-sleep condition failed to demonstrate off-line improvements in performance of this functional task. Conclusions: This is the first study to provide evidence that sleep facilitates learning a clinically relevant functional motor task in middle-aged and older adults. Because many neurologic conditions occur in the middle-aged and older adults and sleep issues are very prevalent in many neurologic conditions, it is imperative that physical therapists consider sleep as a factor that may impact motor learning and recovery in these individuals. Video Abstract available. (See Video, Supplemental Digital Content 1, http://links.lww.com/JNPT/A73) for more insights from the authors.
Attenuation of Helicteres isora L. bark extracts on streptozotocin-induced alterations in glycogen and carbohydrate metabolism in albino rats

The present study was undertaken to assess the effect of Helicteres isora L. on four important enzymes of carbohydrate metabolism (glucokinase [GK], hexokinase [HK] phosphofructokinase [PFK] and fructose-1, 6-bisphosphatase [FBP]) along with glycogen content of insulin-dependent (skeletal muscle and liver) and insulin-independent tissues (kidneys and brain) in streptozotocin (STZ; 60 mg/kg)-induced model of diabetes for 30 days. Administration of bark extracts (100, 200 mg/kg) for 30 days led to decrease in plasma glucose levels by approximately 9.60% and 22.04% and 19.18% and 33.93% on 15th and 30th day, respectively, of the experiment. Liver and two-kidney weight expressed as percentage of body weight significantly increased in diabetics (P < 0.05) versus normal controls. Renal glycogen content increased by 10 folds while hepatic and skeletal muscle glycogen content decreased by 75% and 68% in diabetic controls versus controls. H. isora did not affect glycogen content in any tissue. The decreased activities of PFK, GK, FBP and HK in diabetic controls were 40%, 50%, 50% and 60% and bark extract of H. isora partially corrected this alteration. The efficacy of the bark extract was comparable with Tolbutamide, a well-known hypoglycemic drug.
Monocular Depth-based Background Estimation

In this paper, we address the problem of reconstructing the background of a scene from a video sequence with occluding objects. The images are taken by hand-held cameras. Our method composes the background by selecting the appropriate pixels from previously aligned input images. To do that, we minimize a cost function that penalizes the deviations from the following assumptions: background represents objects whose distance to the camera is maximal, and background objects are stationary. Distance information is roughly obtained by a supervised learning approach that allows us to distinguish between close and distant image regions. Moving foreground objects are filtered out by using stationariness and motion boundary constancy measurements. The cost function is minimized by a graph cuts method. We demonstrate the applicability of our approach to recover an occlusion-free background in a set of sequences.
Measurement of thermo-mechanical properties of NbTi windings for accelerator magnets

In the framework of the development of superconducting accelerator magnets, one has to determine the apparent elastic modulus and thermal contraction of NbTi windings. This knowledge is required to calculate the prestress needed to compensate thermal shrinkage differentials during cool-down and stress redistribution due to Lorentz forces during excitation. A compression mold was developed to measure the apparent elastic modulus of ten alternately stacked insulated superconducting cables, both at room temperature and in a cryostat at liquid helium temperature. The thermal contraction is measured in another stainless steel mold, designed to simulate the prestress application. A force sensor based on a strain gage measurement technique is inserted between the conductor stack and the cover of the mold to monitor the applied prestress during cool-down. The force sensor is calibrated at room and liquid helium temperature. Reference samples made with known materials such as stainless steel, copper, aluminum and titanium have been also measured to calibrate the test apparatus.
High-dose glycine impairs the prepulse inhibition measure of sensorimotor gating in humans

An impaired capacity to filter or ‘gate’ sensory information is a core deficit in cognitive function associated with schizophrenia. These deficits have been linked in part to N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptor dysfunction. An association between high levels of glycine, a positive allosteric modulator of the NMDA receptor, and sensorimotor gating impairments (i.e. prepulse inhibition (PPI) deficit) have been reported in animal models of schizophrenia as well as patients with schizophrenia. This study examined the acute effects of modulating the glycine site of the NMDA receptor (with high-dose glycine) on sensory gating as measured by PPI. Sixteen healthy male subjects (final sample size of 12) participated in a double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover design in which each subject was tested under two acute treatment conditions separated by at least a 5-day washout period; placebo and 0.8 g/kg glycine. PPI was recorded 45 min post treatment using electromyography of the eye-blink response. Relative to placebo, high-dose glycine significantly impaired sensorimotor gating as demonstrated by a decrease in PPI (t(11) = −2.983, p < 0.05). Administration of a high dose of glycine is associated with impairments in PPI supporting earlier observations in animals and patients with schizophrenia. This result, when taken together with findings in patients, suggests that high synaptic levels of glycine may have some clinically relevant detrimental effects and suggests a potential dissociation of clinical symptomatology and sensory information processing as a function of NMDA receptor modulation in schizophrenia.
Ciliopathy spectrum expanded? Jeune syndrome associated with foregut dysmotility and malrotation

We report the association and surgical management of gastrointestinal dysmotility and malrotation with Jeune asphyxiating thoracic dystrophy (JATD), an autosomal recessive condition that often results in respiratory failure due to a small rib cage. A 4‐month‐old male with JATD presented with vomiting and aspiration pneumonitis compounding already severe respiratory morbidity. A contrast study revealed esophageal and gastric dysmotility with associated malrotation. This was treated surgically with good results. Some cases of JATD are caused by missense mutations in the gene IFT80, which encodes a protein implicated in the process of intraflagellar transport of primary cilia. We speculate that these abdominal complications might also be part of the extending spectrum of ciliopathy. Pediatr Pulmonol. 2009; 44:198–201. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Pharmacokinetic enhancement of inhibitors of the human immunodeficiency virus protease by coadministration with ritonavir

Coadministration with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) protease inhibitor ritonavir was investigated as a method for enhancing the levels of other peptidomimetic HIV protease inhibitors in plasma. In rat and human liver microsomes, ritonavir potently inhibited the cytochrome P450 (CYP)-mediated metabolism of saquinavir, indinavir, nelfinavir, and VX-478. The structural features of ritonavir responsible for CYP binding and inhibition were examined. Coadministration of other protease inhibitors with ritonavir in rats and dogs produced elevated and sustained plasma drug levels 8 to 12 h after a single dose. Drug exposure in rats was elevated by 8- to 46-fold. A > 50-fold enhancement of the concentrations of saquinavir in plasma was observed in humans following a single codose of ritonavir (600 mg) and saquinavir (200 mg). These results indicate that ritonavir can favorably alter the pharmacokinetic profiles of other protease inhibitors. Combination regimens of ritonavir and other protease inhibitors may thus play a role in the treatment of HIV infection. Because of potentially substantial drug level increases, however, such combinations require further investigation to establish safe regimens for clinical use.
Intermittent versus continuous renal replacement therapy for acute renal failure in adults.

BACKGROUND Renal replacement therapy (RRT) for acute renal failure (ARF) can be applied intermittently (IRRT) or continuously (CRRT). It has been suggested that CRRT has several advantages over IRRT including better haemodynamic stability, lower mortality and higher renal recovery rates. OBJECTIVES To compare CRRT with IRRT to establish if any of these techniques is superior to each other in patients with ARF. SEARCH STRATEGY We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL). Authors of included studies were contacted, reference lists of identified studies and relevant narrative reviews were screened. Search date: October 2006. SELECTION CRITERIA RCTs comparing CRRT with IRRT in adult patients with ARF and reporting prespecified outcomes of interest were included. Studies assessing CAPD were excluded. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS Two authors assessed trial quality and extracted data. Statistical analyses were performed using the random effects model and the results expressed as relative risk (RR) for dichotomous outcomes or mean difference (WMD) for continuous data with 95% confidence intervals (CI). MAIN RESULTS We identified 15 studies (1550 patients). CRRT did not differ from IRRT with respect to in-hospital mortality (RR 1.01, 95% CI 0.92 to 1.12), ICU mortality (RR 1.06, 95% CI 0.90 to 1.26), number of surviving patients not requiring RRT (RR 0.99, 95% CI 0.92 to 1.07), haemodynamic instability (RR 0.48, 95% CI 0.10 to 2.28) or hypotension (RR 0.92, 95% CI 0.72 to 1.16) and need for escalation of pressor therapy (RR 0.53, 95% CI 0.26 to 1.08). Patients on CRRT were likely to have significantly higher mean arterial pressure (MAP) (WMD 5.35, 95% CI 1.41 to 9.29) and higher risk of clotting dialysis filters (RR, 95% CI 8.50 CI 1.14 to 63.33). AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS In patients who are haemodynamically stable, the RRT modality does not appear to influence important patient outcomes, and therefore the preference for CRRT over IRRT in such patients does not appear justified in the light of available evidence. CRRT was shown to achieve better haemodynamic parameters such as MAP. Future research should focus on factors such as the dose of dialysis and evaluation of newer promising hybrid technologies such as SLED. Triallists should follow the recommendations regarding clinical endpoints assessment in RCTs in ARF made by the Working Group of the Acute Dialysis Quality Initiative Working Group.
Increased CD4+ T cell infiltrates in rheumatoid arthritis-associated interstitial pneumonitis compared with idiopathic interstitial pneumonitis.

OBJECTIVE To study lymphocyte markers in rheumatoid arthritis (RA)-associated interstitial pneumonitis (IP) compared with idiopathic IP. METHODS Paraffin-embedded lung biopsy specimens from patients with RA (n = 15) and from those without RA (n = 16), all of whom had a diagnosis of either nonspecific IP or usual IP, were studied. Tissue sections from each patient were reviewed by a pathologist, who was blinded to the clinical data. Age and pulmonary function test results were similar in RA and non-RA patients. After high-temperature antigen unmasking, sections were incubated with mouse monoclonal antibodies directed against CD3, CD4, CD8, CD16, and CD20. All slides were coded, and digital images (100x magnification) of the entire tissue area were obtained. Staining was quantified using computer-assisted image analysis. RESULTS Staining for CD4 was more prominent in patients with RA than in the non-RA comparison group (median 9.3 cells/mm(2), interquartile range [IQR] 5.5-27.3 versus 0.6 cells/mm(2), IQR 0.2-1.9; P = 0.002). CD4+ cell counts were increased in RA patients with nonspecific IP as well as in RA patients with usual IP, with no major difference between these groups. Results were similar for quantification of CD3 (P = 0.012). There was a less striking trend toward more CD8+ cells in RA patients (P = 0.27 versus those with non-RA lung disease). CONCLUSION IP lesions in patients with RA are characterized by an increased number of CD4+ cells, as compared with that in patients with idiopathic IP. This finding suggests that CD4+ T cells are critical for the development of pulmonary manifestations in RA, and may have implications for the treatment of RA-associated lung disease.
Regulation of Ca 2 handling by phosphorylation status in mouse fast- and slow-twitch skeletal muscle ﬁbers

Schneider. Regulation of Ca 2 (cid:49) handling by phosphorylation status in mouse fast- and slow-twitch skeletal muscle ﬁbers. Am. J. Physiol. 273 ( Cell Physiol. 42): C1915–C1924, 1997. — The effects of phosphorylation status on Ca 2 (cid:49) release and Ca 2 (cid:49) removal were studied in fast-twitch ﬂexor digitorum brevis and slow-twitch soleus skeletal muscle ﬁbers enzymati- cally isolated from wild-type and phospholamban knockout (PLBko) mice. In all ﬁbers the adenosine 3 8 ,5 8 -cyclic monophos-phate-dependent protein kinase (PKA) inhibitor H-89 de- creased the peak amplitude of the intracellular Ca 2 (cid:49) concentration ([Ca 2 (cid:49) ]) transient for a single action potential, and the PKA activator dibutyryl adenosine 3 8 ,5 8 -cyclic monophosphate (DBcAMP) reversed this effect, indicating modulation of Ca 2 (cid:49) release by phosphorylation status in all ﬁbers. H-89 decreased the decay rate constant of the [Ca 2 (cid:49) ] transient and DBcAMP reversed this effect only in phospholamban-express- ing ﬁbers (wild-type soleus), indicating modulation of Ca 2 (cid:49) removal only in the presence of phospholamban. A high basal level of PKA phosphorylation in soleus ﬁbers maintained under our control conditions was indicated by the lack of effect of direct application of DBcAMP on Ca 2 (cid:49) release or Ca 2 (cid:49) removal in wild-type or PLBko soleus ﬁbers and was conﬁrmed by analysis of phospholamban from wild-type soleus ﬁbers. ﬁber 20°C. ﬁber suspension centrifuged 14,000 supernatant assayed for protein concentration Bradford and 50 µg of protein loaded per gel lane. Electrophoresis conducted on 12% polyacrylamide gels (precast gels NOVEX), and isolated protein was transferred polyvinylidene diﬂuoride (PVDF) membrane. PVDF phospholam- monoclonal antibody 2D12, from Affinity Biore-agent) at a 1:1,200 dilution followed by goat anti-mouse antibody conjugated horseradish peroxidase to determine the signiﬁ- cance of difference. A value of P (cid:44) 0.05 considered signiﬁcant.
No divergence in Cassiope tetragona: persistence of growth response along a latitudinal temperature gradient and under multi-year experimental warming.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS The dwarf shrub Cassiope tetragona (Arctic bell-heather) is increasingly used for arctic climate reconstructions, the reliability of which depends on the existence of a linear climate-growth relationship. This relationship was examined over a high-arctic to sub-arctic temperature gradient and under multi-year artificial warming at a high-arctic site. METHODS Growth chronologies of annual shoot length, as well as total leaf length, number of leaves and average leaf length per year, were constructed for three sites. Cassiope tetragona was sampled near its cold tolerance limit at Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard, at its assumed climatic optimum in Endalen, Svalbard, and near its European southern limit at Abisko, Sweden. Together these sites represent the entire temperature gradient of this species. Leaf life span was also determined. Each growing season from 2004 to 2010, 17 open top chambers (OTCs) were placed near Ny-Ålesund, thus increasing the daily mean temperatures by 1·23°C. At the end of the 2010 growing season, shoots were harvested from OTCs and control plots, and growth parameters were measured. KEY RESULTS All growth parameters, except average leaf length, exhibited a linear positive response (R(2) between 0·63 and 0·91) to mean July temperature over the temperature gradient. Average leaf life span was 1·4 years shorter in sub-arctic Sweden compared with arctic Svalbard. All growth parameters increased in response to the experimental warming; the leaf life span was, however, not significantly affected by OTC warming. CONCLUSIONS The linear July temperature-growth relationships, as well as the 7 year effect of experimental warming, confirm that the growth parameters annual shoot length, total leaf length and number of leaves per year can reliably be used for monitoring and reconstructing temperature changes. Furthermore, reconstructing July temperature from these parameters is not hampered by divergence.
MANAGING INFLUENZA: AMANTADINE, RIMANTADINE AND BEYOND

Amantadine and rimantadine are effective in the treatment and prophylaxis of influenza A. Neither drug, however, has achieved widespread acceptance because of the rapid development of viral resistance, their lack of activity against influenza B and, in the case of amantadine, adverse events. Complete cross‐resistance occurs with these compounds and is associated with a single nucleotide change in the M2 protein. Resistant variants are transmissible and fully pathogenic. Zanamivir is the first widely approved neuraminidase inhibitor for the treatment of influenza. It is delivered directly to the primary site of viral replication, the respiratory tract, and is well tolerated and effective in the treatment of both influenza A and B. Data in prophylaxis are also encouraging. During the extensive clinical programme no evidence for the emergence of drug‐resistant strains with acute therapy was found. Zanamivir represents a significant advance over older agents in the management of influenza A and B.
AMPKα1 deficiency amplifies proinflammatory myeloid APC activity and CD40 signaling

AMPK is a serine/threonine kinase that regulates energy homeostasis and metabolic stress in eukaryotes. Previous work from our laboratory, as well as by others, has provided evidence that AMPKα1 acts as a negative regulator of TLR‐induced inflammatory function. Herein, we demonstrate that AMPKα1‐deficient macrophages and DCs exhibit heightened inflammatory function and an enhanced capacity for antigen presentation favoring the promotion of Th1 and Th17 responses. Macrophages and DCs generated from AMPKα1‐deficient mice produced higher levels of proinflammatory cytokines and decreased production of the anti‐inflammatory cytokine IL‐10 in response to TLR and CD40 stimulation as compared with WT cells. In assays of antigen presentation, AMPKα1 deficiency in the myeloid APC and T cell populations contributed to enhanced IL‐17 and IFN‐γ production. Focusing on the CD154–CD40 interaction, we found that CD40 stimulation resulted in increased phosphorylation of ERK1/2, p38, and NF‐κB p65 and decreased activation of the anti‐inflammatory Akt ‐GSK3β‐CREB pathway in DCs deficient for AMPKα1. Our data demonstrate that AMPKα1 serves to attenuate LPS and CD40‐mediated proinflammatory activity of myeloid APCs and that AMPKα1 activity in both APC and T cells contributes to T cell functional polarization during antigen presentation.
The Relation Between Ethical Leadership and Workplace Conflicts: The Mediating Role of Employee Resolution Efficacy

Drawing on social learning theory, this research examined the role of ethical leadership in conflict situations. Specifically, ethical leadership was predicted to build employees’ resolution efficacy and subsequently increase employees’ ability to deal with conflict situations in the workplace (i.e., relationship, task, and process conflict). A multisource study in Europe and a two-wave design study in Africa showed support for our mediation model. These findings expand and unite existing theory on conflict and ethical leadership.
Active Passive Remote Sensing of Soil Moisture

1.0 INTRODUCTION Numerous studies have shown the influence of soil moisture on the feedbacks between landsurface and climate, which in turn affect the dynamics of the atmosphere boundary layer and have a direct relationship to weather and global climate (Shukla and Mintz, 1982). Chang, et al., 1991 have shown the influence of spatial variations of soil moisture and vegetation on the development and intensity of severe storms, whereas Engman, 1997, has demonstrated the ability of soil moisture to influence surface moisture gradients, and to partition incoming radiative energy into sensible and latent heat. Better understanding of the processes involved in the forcing of, and responses to, Earth’s changing environment is needed in order to accurately assess, predict and evaluate the global hydrologic cycle and weather and climate change. In order for this to be accomplished, it is necessary to intimately understand the relationship of soil moisture to these phenomena on small and large-scales. Unfortunately, complicating these overall goals is our inability to completely observe largescale hydrologic land-surface interactions. Remote sensing enables us to estimate largescale soil moisture for the purpose of modeling the two-way interaction between land and atmosphere, making it possible to understand the nature of global climate. This paper examines a multiple techniques used to retrieve land surface parameters using microwave remote sensing. In general, past studies (Li and Islam, 1999, Mattikalli et al., 1998; Laymon et al. 1999; Jackson et al. 1995 and Schmugge et al. 1988) have focused on either regression between observed remotely sensed observations and surface soil moisture or limited comparisons between aircraft/ satellite retrievals and in-situ observations. However, in general, field experiments gather limited data, and exhaustive comparisons are generally not possible. Therefore, in this paper we attempt to combine; a) observations from PALS, b) statistical regressions c) physically based forward modeling of the sensor and d) retrievals using combinations of b and c. The above has been accomplished in three vegetation regimes; low(<0.25 kg m ), med(0.25-3.0 kg m), high( >3.0 kg m). The dataset used in this study is derived from the Southern Great Plains (SGP) 1999 experiment. This wide spectrum of land surface conditions helps to recognize the advantages and disadvantages of carrying out passive and active remote sensing under varying vegetation, soil moisture and roughness conditions.