Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
CYP2E1 Level in Rat Liver Injured by the Interaction between Carbon Tetrachloride and Chloroform

CYP2E1 Level in Rat Liver Injured by the Interaction between Carbon Tetrachloride and Chloroform: Hisayoshi Ikatsu, et al. Center for Environmental Science and Technology, Okayama University—The toxic interaction between carbon tetrachloride (CCI4) and chloroform (CHCI3) was investigated in rats chronically pretreated with ethanol, and in rat liver microsomes. A combined exposure to 10 ppm CCI4 and 50 ppm CHCl3 increased plasma alanine aminotransferase (ALT) activity to a level similar to that by a single exposure to 50 ppm CCI4. The single exposure decreased liver reduced glutathione (GSH) and cytochrome P450 (CYP) content, and N‐nitrosodimethylamine N‐demethylase (NDMAD) activity. The effects of combined exposure, however, were little or less than those of the single exposure. Immunoblot analysis with monoclonal antibody to CYP2E1 indicated that CYP2E1 was appreciably decreased after the single exposure but the enzyme remained after the combined exposure. The antibody inhibited CCI4‐induced lipid peroxidation in microsomes from ethanol‐treated rats. Ethanol pretreatment increased the metabolic rate of CCI4 and CCI4‐induced lipid peroxidation, but the coexistence of CHCI3 and other hydrocarbons such as trichloroethylene and 1,1,1‐trichloroethane did not increase the in vitro metabolic rate or the lipid peroxidation. The addition of GSH decreased CCI4‐induced lipid peroxidation, and the effect reached its maximum at 0.3 mM of GSH, so that the hepatotoxic interaction between CCI4 and CHCI3 at low dose exposure is more than additive when judged by the plasma ALT activity, but this is not true of the changes in drug‐metabolizing enzyme activity and GSH depletion.
Estimated Risk of Human Immunodeficiency Virus and Hepatitis C Virus Infection among Potential Organ Donors from 17 Organ Procurement Organizations in the United States

aCenters for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion, Atlanta, GA bMendez National Institute of Transplantation, Los Angeles, CA cUniversity of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA dUniversity of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA Corresponding author: Katherine Ellingson, KEllingson@cdc.gov Alternate corresponding author: Matthew J. Kuehnert, MKuehnert@cdc.gov Disclaimer The findings and conclusions of this report are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The Biogeography of marine invertebrate life histories.

Biologists have long sought to identify and explain patterns in the diverse array of marine life histories. The most famous speculation about such patterns is Gunnar Thorson’s suggestion that species producing planktonic larvae are rarer at higher latitudes (Thorson’s rule). Although some elements of Thorson’s rule have proven incorrect, other elements remain untested. With a wealth of new life-history data, statistical approaches, and remote-sensing technology, new insights into marine reproduction can be generated. We gathered life-history data for more than 1,000 marine invertebrates and examined patterns in the prevalence of different life histories. Systematic patterns in marine life histories exist at a range of scales, some of which support Thorson, whereas others suggest previously unrecognized relationships between the marine environment and the life histories of marine invertebrates. Overall, marine life histories covary strongly with temperature and local ocean productivity, and different regions should be managed accordingly.
Effects of Learning Styles and Instructional Strategies on Students’ Achievement in Nigerian Senior Secondary School Physics

A shift from the traditional to a progressive mode of education in the past years had led to an increase interest in learners’ individual differences. The new paradigm is student-centered, based on inclusiveness, collaborative learning, critical thinking, creativity, innovation and encourages diversity of reception and processing of information. Hence, this study investigated the effects of learning styles and instructional strategies on students’ achievement in the concept of electricity in Nigerian senior secondary school physics. 250 senior secondary two (SSII) physics students were used for the study. A purposive sampling technique was used to select six schools from the population. A quasi-experimental design was adopted for the study. Physics Achievement Test (PAT) with reliability coefficient of 0.82 using Kuder Richardson-21 and Index of Learning Style Questionnaire (ILSQ) with reliability coefficient of 0.88 using test-retest approach were the two instruments used for gathering the data. Analysis of covariance was used to analyze the data. The results showed that guided discovery is the most effective instructional strategy for physics students with Sensing/Intuitive learning style, demonstration is the most effective instructional strategy for physics students with Sequential/Global learning style while conventional strategy is the most effective for physics students with Visual/Verbal learning style. The results also indicated that Active/Reflective learning style was placed second in the order of facilitating students’ achievement in physics when taught with guided discovery, demonstration and conventional learning strategies respectively. This implies that the three instructional strategies can be used for the enhancement of the achievement of students with Active/Reflective learning styles in the concept of electricity in physics. It is recommended among others that teachers should find out the learning styles of their students and use appropriate instructional strategies that will concise with the learning styles for effective teaching and learning to take place in physics classrooms. Keywords: Learning Styles, Sensory/Intuitive, Sequential/Global, Visual/Verbal, Active/Reflective, Instructional Strategies, Students’ Achievement, Physics, Guided Discovery, Demonstration, Conventional.
[Heterotopic osteogenesis of autogenous marrow stromal cells with recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein 2 gene transfection and porous calcium phosphate ceramic as a scaffold].

OBJECTIVE To observe the heterotopic osteogenesis of autogenous marrow stromal cells loading on porous calcium phosphate ceramic scaffolds with rhBMP2 gene transfection in a Sprague-Dawley rat model. METHODS Autogenous marrow stromal cells were obtained from left femurs and tibias of 20 male adult SD rats under general anesthesia and sterile condition and cultured in alpha-Minimal Essential Medium supplemented with 15% fetal bovine serum. RhBMP2 gene was transfected into stromal cells by means of LipofectAMINE 2000 reagent five days after primary culture. The stably gene expressive cells were selected with G-418 for 14 days and mixed with stromal cells without transfection. The mixture cells were seeded and subcultured for another 10 days in porous calcium phosphate bioceramic that had been subjected to surface-modification via soaking in human plasma fibronectin. The cell-ceramic compound was implanted subcutaneously and intramuscularly in the corresponding rat. Lab animals were sacrificed at two-week intervals till twenty weeks postoperatively and the involved samples were removed. RESULTS Morphologic and histological study demonstrated that cell-ceramic compound had an ability of heterotopic osteogenesis, which was similar to that of autogenous osteoblasts in previous study. CONCLUSION It seems that autogenous stromal cells with rhBMP2 transfection acts as a bioreactor promoting proliferation and differentiation of stem cells when they are replanted into the corresponding animals.
Class II-Restricted T Cells On the Self-Referential Nature of Naive MHC

The use of mutant mice expressing a normal MHC class II molecule surface level but a severely restricted self-peptide diversity (H-2M a 2 / 2 ) previously revealed that T cells carrying the E a 52–68 –I-A b complex-speciﬁc 1H3.1 TCR rely on self-peptide(s) recognition for both their peripheral persistence in irradiated hosts and their intrathymic positive selection. Here, we identify E a 52–68 structurally related self-peptide(s) as a major contributor to in vivo positive selection of 1H3.1 TCR-transgenic thymocytes in I-A b 1 /I-E a 2 mice. This is demonstrated by the drastic and speciﬁc reduction of the TCR high thymocyte population in 1H3.1 TCR-transgenic (Tg) mice treated with the E a 52–68 –I-A b complex-speciﬁc Y-A e mAb. Self-peptide(s) recognition is also driving the maturation of T cells carrying a distinct MHC class II-restricted speciﬁcity (the E a 6 ab TCR), since positive selection was also deﬁcient in E a 6 TCR Tg H-2M a 2 / 2 thymi. Such a requirement for recognition of self-determinants was mirrored in the periphery; E a 6 TCR Tg naive T cells showed an impaired persistence in both H-2M a 2 / 2 and I-A b b 2 / 2 irradiated hosts, whereas they persisted and slowly cycled in wild-type recipients. This moderate self-peptide(s)-dependent proliferation was associated with a surface phenotype intermediate between those of naive and activated/memory T cells; CD44 expression was up-regulated, but surface expression of other markers such as CD62L remained unaltered. Collectively, these observations indicate that maturation and maintenance of naive MHC class II-restricted T cells are self-oriented processes. The Journal of Immunology, 2000, 165: 6183–6192. T cells is impaired in irradiated H-2M a 2 / 2 recipients compared with irradiated normal hosts. We also observed that naive CD4 1 T cell persistence in irradiated wild-type recipients is associated with a peptide-speciﬁc low level of expansion that can be visualized using the cytoplasmic ﬂuorescent dye CFSE (39). We concluded that the peripheral maintenance of mature naive CD4 1 T cells in irradiated recipients involves a low level of cell division induced by recognition of self-peptide–self-MHC complexes (25). This idea was further documented for CD4 1 T cells (40, 41) and extended to mature CD8 1 T cells (42). In this study, we show that the self-peptide(s) involved in positive selection of the E a 52–68 :I-A b -speciﬁc 1H3.1 TCR Tg thymocytes forms peptide–I-A b complex(es) structurally related to the E a 52–68 –I-A b complex. We then used a distinct MHC class II-restricted T cell speciﬁcity (the E a 6 ab TCR) to assess the gen-erality of the observations previously made with 1H3.1 TCR Tg mice; that is, the continuous requirement for self-peptide–self-MHC complex recognition for intrathymic positive selection and peripheral persistence in lymphopenic hosts.
Antithyroid drug-related hepatotoxicity in hyperthyroidism patients: a population-based cohort study.

AIMS The evidence of hepatotoxicity of antithyroid drugs (ATDs) is limited to case reports or spontaneous reporting. This study aimed to quantify the incidence and comparative risks of hepatotoxicity for methimazole (MMI)/carbimazole (CBM) vs. propylthiouracil (PTU) in a population-based manner. METHODS We conducted a cohort study of hyperthyroidism patients initially receiving MMI/CBM or PTU between 1 January 2004 and 31 December 2008 using the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database. The examined hepatotoxicity consisted of cholestasis, non-infectious hepatitis, acute liver failure and liver transplant, with the incidences and relative risks being quantified by Poisson exact methods and Cox proportional hazard models, respectively. RESULTS The study cohort comprised 71 379 ATD initiators, with a median follow-up of 196 days. MMI/CBM vs. PTU users had a higher hepatitis incidence rate (3.17/1000 vs. 1.19/1000 person-years) but a lower incidence of acute liver failure (0.32/1000 vs. 0.68/1000 person-years). The relative risk analysis indicated that any use of MMI/CBM was associated with a 2.89-fold (95% CI 1.81, 4.60) increased hepatitis risk compared with PTU, with the risk increasing to 5.08-fold for high dose MMI/CBM (95% CI 3.15, 8.18). However, any MMI/CBM use vs. PTU was not related to an increased risk of cholestasis (adjusted hazard ratio [HR] 1.14, 95% CI 0.40, 3.72) or acute liver failure (adjusted HR 0.54, 95% CI 0.24, 1.22). CONCLUSIONS MMI/CBM and PTU exert dissimilar incidence rates of hepatotoxicity. Compared to PTU, MMI/CBM are associated in a dose-dependent manner with an increased risk for hepatitis while the risks are similar for acute liver failure and cholestasis.
STUDY OF THE INFLUENCE OF BILE SALTS AND LECITHIN ON DISTRIBUTION OF KETOCONAZOLE BETWEEN PLASMA AND METHYLENE CHLORIDE

The aim of the paper was to estimate the effect of increased amounts of bile salts and lecithin following postprandial changes in human plasma composition on the liquid/liquid extraction of a hydrophobic moiety. The effect could be integrated in what is called “matrix food effect”. Experiments concerned separation from plasma samples in methylene chloride by liquid/liquid extraction of the lipophilic drug ketoconazole (K) in presence of various amounts of sodium taurocholate bile salt (BS), lecithin (L) or their mixture. Determinations were performed at three concentration levels within the therapeutic range of ketoconazole. The use of L increased the extraction yield of K from plasma. The effect of L on K extraction was not linear but rather parabolic: a significant increase occurred in the L concentration range 1-10 mg/mL and a return towards initial values in the 10-50 mg/mL domain. The effect of BS on K extraction appeared to be rather fluctuant. At high analyte concentrations, the dependence BS concentration-K extraction yield was found to also be parabolic, but the effect was smoother than in the case of L. The enrichment of plasma with both BS and L led to a similar behaviour to L, a parabolic evolution of K extraction as a function of BS+L mixture concentration being obtained. The addition of BS+L mixture led to an enhanced response over both the effect of L and the sum of separate effects of BS and L. The maximum effect corresponded to lowrange concentrations of BS and L. Rezumat Scopul lucrării a fost de a estima efectul prezenței unor cantități crescute de săruri biliare și lecitină, datorate modificărilor postprandiale ale compoziției plasmei umane, asupra extracției lichid/lichid a unui compus medicamentos hidrofob. Efectul ar putea fi integrat în ceea ce se numește "efect de matrice alimentară". Experimentele au presupus separarea din plasmă a unui compus lipofil, ketoconazolul (K), prin extracție lichid/lichid cu clorură de metilen în prezența taurocolatului de sodiu (BS), lecitinei (L) sau a amestecului lor. Determinările au fost efectuate la trei niveluri de concentrație din domeniul terapeutic al ketoconazolului. Rezultatele au confirmat faptul că L a crescut randamentul de extracție al K din plasmă. Efectul nu a fost liniar, ci mai degrabă parabolic: o creștere marcată s-a înregistrat la concentrații de L în intervalul 1-10μg/mL și o revenire către valorile inițiale în intervalul 10-50 μg/mL. Efectul BS asupra extracţiei K a fost destul de fluctuant: la concentrații mari ale K s-a înregistrat de asemenea o dependență parabolică, însă efectul a fost mult mai atenuat faţă de cel al L. FARMACIA, 2012, Vol. 60, 6 810 Amestecul de BS și L a prezentat un efect similar cu cel al L, cu o tendinţă parabolică mai accentuată. Adaosul de BS a condus la un efect mai mare decât cel datorat doar prezenţei L. Efectul maxim a corespuns concentrațiilor scăzute de BS și L (1030μg/mL).
Electrode subset selection methods for an EEG-based P300 brain-computer interface

Abstract Purpose: An electroencephalography (EEG)-based P300 speller is a type of brain-computer interface (BCI) that uses EEG to allow a user to select characters without physical movement. In general, using fewer electrodes for such a system makes it easier to set up and less expensive. This study addresses the question of electrode selection for EEG-based P300 systems. Methods: Data from 13 subjects collected with a 16-electrode cap was analyzed. The optimal subsets of electrodes of sizes 1–15 were calculated for each subject and for the group as a whole. The methods of exhaustive search, forward selection, and backward elimination were then compared to each other and to these optimal subsets. Results: The results show that, while none of the methods consistently picked the best-performing electrode subsets, all methods were able to find small electrode subsets that provided acceptable accuracy both for individuals and for the whole group. The computationally intensive exhaustive search method provided no statistically significant increase in performance over the much quicker forward and backward selection methods. Conclusions: The forward and backward selection methods are preferred for electrode selection. Implications for Rehabilitation A P300 speller is a type of brain-computer interface that allows a user to select characters without physical movement. Using fewer electrodes reduces setup time and cost for an EEG-based P300 speller. We show that acceptable P300 speller performance can be achieved with as few as four electrodes. We compare methods of selecting electrode sets and identify fast and efficient methods for customizing electrode sets for individuals.
Opposite effects of two nonstructural proteins of Theiler's murine encephalomyelitis virus regulates apoptotic cell death in BHK‐21 cells

Theiler's murine encephalomyelitis virus is divided into two subgroups, TO and GDVII, inducing subgroup‐specific diseases. In order to investigate the role(s) of nonstructural proteins of TMEV, L and L*, leaders of two subgroups, were separately expressed with or without L* in BHK‐21 cells. Expression of L increased the number of apoptotic cells. L*/BHK‐21 cells constitutively expressing L* showed the decrease in cell death induced by L. These results suggest that L and L* regulate apoptosis during viral infection and contribute to TMEV subgroup‐specific biological activities.
ADENOVIRUS AND CRYPTOSPORIDIUM CO-INFECTION IN A CORN SNAKE (ELAPHAE GUTTATA GUTTATA)

Abstract: A 1-yr-old albino male corn snake (Elaphae guttata guttata), which was part of a large breeding stock, was presented to the University of Florida, College of Veterinary Medicine, Zoo and Exotic Animal Clinic with a history of anorexia for 2 wk and progressively declining body condition. The animal was euthanized due to a poor prognosis. Histopathology, electron microscopy, and polymerase chain reaction analysis on tissues revealed concurrent infection with adenovirus and Cryptosporidium. Primary infection with adenovirus could have caused immunodeficiency in the snake, thus predisposing it to secondary infection with Cryptosporidium. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first report of co-infection of adenovirus and Cryptosporidium in a Colubrid species of snake.
VEGF gene and phenotype relation with Alzheimer's disease and mild cognitive impairment.

BACKGROUND The expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) represents one potential mechanism whereby vascular and Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathologies are related. The authors investigated whether AD cases, especially those having a rapid cognitive decline, more commonly carried a functional promoter gene variant for VEGF (-2578C/A) and showed elevated plasma levels of Vegf. In addition, the authors investigated whether patterns of association also were found for mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and conversion from MCI to AD. METHODS Group 1 included 317 AD cases and 320 unaffected control subjects. Group 2 included 113 MCI patients and 130 control subjects. Plasma levels of Vegf were measured by chemiluminescence for a subset of group 1. Genotype determinations were made for all subjects. FINDINGS The VEGF AA genotype was associated with an increased risk of developing AD (OR = 1.616, p = 0.046). This genotype also was associated with an accelerated cognitive decline in APOE small epsilon4 positive patients with AD (AA vs. CC OR = 6.5, p = 0.04). The VEGF AA genotype was a risk factor for MCI (OR = 2.5, p = 0.037) and MCI conversion to AD in APOE small epsilon4+ (OR = 6.5, CI = 2.014-20.980; p = 0.002). Vegf plasma levels were higher in patients with AD than controls (230 pg/mL vs. 42 pg/mL), and were even higher in those patients with a fast cognitive decline and the APOE epsilon4 allele. INTERPRETATION Modulation of VEGF expression is a potential mechanism associated with the risk of developing AD and its clinical deterioration.
Optical imaging of rat prefrontal neuronal activity evoked by stimulation of the ventral tegmental area

Using a voltage-sensitive dye, the spatiotemporal dynamics of prefrontal neuronal activity evoked by electrical stimulation of the ventral tegmental area were visualized through optical imaging in anaesthetized rats. Even single-pulse stimulation of the ventral tegmental area elicited a widespread wave of depolarization followed by hyperpolarization in the dorsomedial shoulder region of the prefrontal cortex. We also examined the contribution of dopaminergic transmission to the optical signals by comparing normal and 6-hydroxydopamine-lesioned rats. The 6-hydroxydopamine lesions of ventral tegmental area resulted in a complete absence of depolarization in the prefrontal cortex, although hyperpolarization was preserved. These results indicate that dopaminergic neurons are needed to generate excitatory responses in the prefrontal cortex.
Carrying angle in children: a normative study

Information about the carrying angle and its variations are important in the management of paediatric elbow injuries. We measured the carrying angle using bony landmarks for 300 rural South Indian children aged 5–18 years. The study confirms that the clinical carrying angle correlates best with age up to 15 years, following which there was a slight decrease in the angles. The rate of increase of the carrying angle for boys and girls is 0.42 and 0.60° per year respectively. Sex differences seem to gradually increase with a maximum being around puberty. The carrying angle is greater in girls than in boys by a mean of 1.31°. The carrying angle did not correlate well with height, weight, humeral length or ulnar length. The reproducibility of measuring the carrying angle by the simple technique used in our study leads us to propose that this may be used in actual clinical practice.