Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
In-vitro interaction of L-dopa with bacterial adhesins of Helicobacter pylori: an explanation for clinicial differences in bioavailability?

OBJECTIVES Recent investigations on the pharmacokinetics of levodopa (L-dopa) indicated that the presence of Helicobacter pylori in patients with Parkinson's disease, orally treated with L-dopa, influences the absorption of this compound, which consequently leads to decreased plasma levels. Therefore this work aims to study a potential in-vitro interaction of L-dopa with H. pylori and its surface adhesins. METHODS Solutions containing L-dopa of different concentrations were incubated with H. pylori at different bacterial densities and time intervals. Free L-dopa was quantified from the incubation supernatants by HPLC. A flow cytometric assay with fluorescence labelled H. pylori was used to investigate the influence of L-dopa on the bacterial adhesion of H. pylori: FITC-labelled bacteria were pre-incubated with L-dopa, followed by incubation with gastric epithelial cells (AGS cells) and FACS quantification of adhering bacteria. KEY FINDINGS Evaluation of time- and concentration-dependent incubation experiments indicated a significant decrease in L-dopa concentrations when coming into contact with H. pylori. The reduction in L-dopa concentrations was determined as 47 to 12%, referred to the initial starting concentration, with time-dependency and dependency of the H. pylori density. FITC-labelled H. pylori, pre-incubated with differing L-dopa concentrations, were shown to have a significantly reduced bacterial adhesion to AGS cells, with a maximum reduction of 22 +/- 9%. These results demonstrate a direct interaction of L-dopa with the outer membrane proteins of H. pylori responsible for the adhesion to gastric epithelial cells. By this interaction the unbound L-dopa concentration in bacterial suspension was strongly reduced. CONCLUSIONS This study suggests a potential in-vitro interaction of L-dopa with H. pylori adhesins, confirming the clinical changes found in pharmacokinetics of L-dopa therapy by H. pylori-positive patients with Parkinson's disease.
Parallel Optical Flow Using Local Voting

We describe a parallel algorithm for computing optical flow from short-range motion. Regularizing optical flow computation leads to a forruulation which minimizes matching error and, at the same time, maximises smoothness of the optical flow. We develop an approximation to the full regularization computation in which corresponding points are found by comparing local patches of the images. Selection aniong competing matches is performed using a winner-take-all scheme. The algorithm accommodates many different image transformations uniformly, with siniilar results, from brightness to edges. The optical flow computed froni different image transformations, such as edge detection and direct brightness computation, can be simply combined. The algorithm is easily implemented using local operations on a finegrained computer, and has been implemented on a Connection Machine. Experiments with natural images show that the scheme is effective and robust against noise. The algorithm leads to dense optical flow fields; in addition, inforniation from matching facilitates segmentation.
Estudio y evaluación de contenidos didácticos en el desarrollo de las habilidades espaciales en el ámbito de la ingeniería

La capacidad espacial junto a otras capacidades como la verbal, numerica, razonamiento, memoria. , es una componente de la inteligencia. Esta componente (la espacial) es de gran importancia en el campo de la ingenieria, pues es considerada fundamental para realizar las actividades propias del ingeniero: disenar, proyectar y ejecutar todo tipo de productos ingenieriles (Adanez y Velasco, 2002). El desarrollo de la habilidad espacial, por su caracteristica de ser educable supone una mejora en la capacidad espacial del ser humano. Durante la ultima decada, en el ambito de la ingenieria, la habilidad espacial se ha convertido en una de las principales lineas de trabajo para obtener nuevas metodologias y herramientas, que proporcionan una mejora de la capacidad espacial en los estudiantes. En esta tesis se han desarrollado materiales didacticos totalmente practicos basados en contenidos de ingenieria grafica. Tambien se han realizado herramientas para conseguir mediante cortos entrenamientos, no solo desarrollar la habilidad espacial en los estudiantes de ingenierias sino tambien favorecer el aprendizaje de los sistemas de representacion grafica. Se analizan las tareas mentales que son objeto de medicion en los test espaciales, y una vez definidas se realiza una recopilacion, clasificacion y seleccion de ejercicios en los siguientes terminos: Ejercicios que con mas frecuencia son utilizados en la docencia de Expresion Grafica. Ejercicios utilizados en cursos de entrenamiento de habilidad espacial. Ejercicios y explicaciones teoricas sobre contenidos de sistema diedrico tradicional. Por otra parte se analizara el efecto de jugar con un videojuego comercial, seleccionado por contener componentes geometricas, de forma que el jugador debe realizar tareas espaciales mentales y puede desarrollar la habilidad espacial.
Quality-of-life impairment in depressive and anxiety disorders.

OBJECTIVE Previous reports demonstrating quality-of-life impairment in anxiety and affective disorders have relied upon epidemiological samples or relatively small clinical studies. Administration of the same quality-of-life scale, the Quality of Life Enjoyment and Satisfaction Questionnaire, to subjects entering multiple large-scale trials for depression and anxiety disorders allowed us to compare the impact of these disorders on quality of life. METHOD Baseline Quality of Life Enjoyment and Satisfaction Questionnaire, demographic, and clinical data from 11 treatment trials, including studies of major depressive disorder, chronic/double depression, dysthymic disorder, panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), social phobia, premenstrual dysphoric disorder, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) were analyzed. RESULTS The proportion of patients with clinically severe impairment (two or more standard deviations below the community norm) in quality of life varied with different diagnoses: major depressive disorder (63%), chronic/double depression (85%), dysthymic disorder (56%), panic disorder (20%), OCD (26%), social phobia (21%), premenstrual dysphoric disorder (31%), and PTSD (59%). Regression analyses conducted for each disorder suggested that illness-specific symptom scales were significantly associated with baseline quality of life but explained only a small to modest proportion of the variance in Quality of Life Enjoyment and Satisfaction Questionnaire scores. CONCLUSIONS Subjects with affective or anxiety disorders who enter clinical trials have significant quality-of-life impairment, although the degree of dysfunction varies. Diagnostic-specific symptom measures explained only a small proportion of the variance in quality of life, suggesting that an individual's perception of quality of life is an additional factor that should be part of a complete assessment.
Radiometric Correction of Simultaneously Acquired Landsat-7/Landsat-8 and Sentinel-2A Imagery Using Pseudoinvariant Areas (PIA): Contributing to the Landsat Time Series Legacy

The use of Pseudoinvariant Areas (PIA) makes it possible to carry out a reasonably robust and automatic radiometric correction for long time series of remote sensing imagery, as shown in previous studies for large data sets of Landsat MSS, TM, and ETM+ imagery. In addition, they can be employed to obtain more coherence among remote sensing data from different sensors. The present work validates the use of PIA for the radiometric correction of pairs of images acquired almost simultaneously (Landsat-7 (ETM+) or Landsat-8 (OLI) and Sentinel-2A (MSI)). Four pairs of images from a region in SW Spain, corresponding to four different dates, together with field spectroradiometry measurements collected at the time of satellite overpass were used to evaluate a PIA-based radiometric correction. The results show a high coherence between sensors (r2 = 0.964) and excellent correlations to in-situ data for the MiraMon implementation (r2 > 0.9). Other methodological alternatives, ATCOR3 (ETM+, OLI, MSI), SAC-QGIS (ETM+, OLI, MSI), 6S-LEDAPS (ETM+), 6S-LaSRC (OLI), and Sen2Cor-SNAP (MSI), were also evaluated. Almost all of them, except for SAC-QGIS, provided similar results to the proposed PIA-based approach. Moreover, as the PIA-based approach can be applied to almost any image (even to images lacking of extra atmospheric information), it can also be used to solve the robust integration of data from new platforms, such as Landsat-8 or Sentinel-2, to enrich global data acquired since 1972 in the Landsat program. It thus contributes to the program’s continuity, a goal of great interest for the environmental, scientific, and technical community.
Wood hemicellulose/chitosan-based semi-interpenetrating network hydrogels: Mechanical, swelling and controlled drug release properties

The cell wall of most plant biomass from forest and agricultural resources consists of three major polymers, cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin. Of these, hemicelluloses have gained increasing attention as sustainable raw materials. In this study, novel pH-sensitive semi-IPN hydrogels based on hemicelluloses and chitosan were prepared using glutaraldehyde as the crosslinking agent. The hemicellulose isolated from aspen was analyzed for sugar content by HPLC, and its molecular weight distribution was determined by high performance size exclusion chromatography. Results revealed that hemicellulose had a broad molecular weight distribution with a fair amount of polymeric units, together with xylose, arabinose, and glucose. The effects of hemicellulose content on mechanical properties and swelling behavior of hydrogels were investigated. The semi-IPNs hydrogel structure was confirmed by FT-IR, X-ray study, and the ninhydrin assay method. X-ray analysis showed that higher hemicellulose contents yielded higher crystallinity. Mechanical properties were mainly dependent on the crosslink density and average molecular weight between crosslinks. Swelling ratios increased with increasing hemicellulose content and were high at low pH values due to repulsion between similarly charged groups. In vitro release study of a model drug showed that these semi-IPN hydrogels could be used for controlled drug delivery into gastric fluid.
Testing MOS precipitation downscaling for ENSEMBLES regional climate models over Spain

[1] Model Output Statistics (MOS) has been recently proposed as an alternative to the standard perfect prognosis statistical downscaling approach for Regional Climate Model (RCM) outputs. In this case, the model output for the variable of interest (e.g. precipitation) is directly downscaled using observations. In this paper we test the performance of a MOS implementation of the popular analog methodology (referred to as MOS analog) applied to downscale daily precipitation outputs over Spain. To this aim, we consider the state‐of‐the‐art ERA40‐driven RCMs provided by the EU‐funded ENSEMBLES project and the Spain02 gridded observations data set, using the common period 1961–2000. The MOS analog method improves the representation of the mean regimes, the annual cycle, the frequency and the extremes of precipitation for all RCMs, regardless of the region and the model reliability (including relatively low‐performing models), while preserving the daily accuracy. The good performance of the method in this complex climatic region suggests its potential transferability to other regions. Furthermore, in order to test the robustness of the method in changing climate conditions, a cross‐validation in driest or wettest years was performed. The method improves the RCM results in both cases, especially in the former.
The influence of different framing strategies in the social construction of a niche: ambidexterity in developing a bio resource market

Which framing strategy helps developing a regional bio resource market? Building on literature interested in the social construction of niches in the renewable energy technology, we examine how the enactment of different framing strategies (diagnostic, prognostic, and motivational) influence how a niche is shielded against competing bio-resource niches, how mobilization and learning unfolds, and pre-determine the strategies underlying the empowerment of a niche. In a comparative study, we evaluate two regional bio-resource projects aimed to develop a sustainable bio resource market for small scale combustion in the Netherlands in the period 2009 until 2014. In analyzing the first project, we found that a diagnostic framing strategy that emphasizes the sustainable character of a project is important for shielding a bio-resource project as well as developing exposure and legitimacy. However, it constrains mobilization and learning processes and requires a radical transformation of existing logics and practices. In the second project, we found that prognostic and motivational framing strategies are useful to spur nurturing in terms of mobilization and learning because such strategies provide a rational for action especially when such strategies account for the individual economic and image benefits of participating parties. Overall, our study suggest that a diagnostic frame is important to justify a bio-resource project but should not overshadow the processes that support the nurturing and empowerment of a bio resource niche. This papers aims to contribute to scholarship interested in the social construction of renewable energy niches by showing how framing strategies influence the development of niches. Furthermore, we offer interested renewable energy practitioners a taxonomy of framing strategies that can be used for shielding, nurturing, and empowering their ideas.
Wound debridement potential of glycosidases of the wound‐healing maggot, Lucilia sericata

The wound‐healing maggot, Lucilia sericata Meigen (Diptera: Calliphoridae), degrades extracellular matrix components by releasing enzymes. The purpose of this study was to investigate the glycosylation profiles of wound slough/eschar from chronic venous leg ulcers and the complementary presence of glycosidase activities in first‐instar excretions/secretions (ES1) and to define their specificities. The predominant carbohydrate moieties present in wound slough/eschar were determined by probing one‐dimensional Western blots with conjugated lectins of known specificities. The presence of specific glycosidase activities in ES1 was determined using chromogenic and fluorogenic substrates. The removal of carbohydrate moieties from slough/eschar proteins by glycosidases in ES1 was determined by two‐dimensional electrophoresis and Emerald 300 glycoprotein staining. α‐d‐glucosyl, α‐d‐mannosyl and N‐acetlyglucosamine residues were detected on slough/eschar‐derived proteins. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that the treatment of slough/eschar with ES1 significantly reduced uptake of the carbohydrate‐specific stain. Subsequently, α‐d‐glucosidase, α‐d‐mannosidase and N‐acetylglucosaminidase activities were identified in ES1. Specific chromogenic and fluorogenic substrates and gel filtration chromatography showed that these activities result from distinct enzymes. These activities were mirrored in the removal of α‐d‐glucosyl, α‐d‐mannosyl and N‐acetylglucosamine residues from proteins of slough/eschar from maggot‐treated wounds. These data suggest that maggot glycosidases remove sugars from slough/eschar proteins. This may contribute to debridement, which is ultimately accomplished by a suite of biochemically distinct enzymes present in ES1.
Adolescents' Exposure to Sexually Explicit Internet Material, Sexual Uncertainty, and Attitudes Toward Uncommitted Sexual Exploration

The link between adolescents' exposure to sexual media content and their sexual socialization has hardly been approached from an identity development framework. Moreover, existing research has largely ignored the role of adolescents' exposure to sexually explicit Internet material in that association. This study introduces two characteristics of adolescents' sexual self—sexual uncertainty and attitudes toward sexual exploration—and investigates these characteristics as potential correlates of adolescents' exposure to sexually explicit Internet material. Drawing from a sample of 2,343 Dutch adolescents aged 13 to 20, the authors find that more frequent exposure to sexually explicit Internet material is associated with greater sexual uncertainty and more positive attitudes toward uncommitted sexual exploration (i.e., sexual relations with casual partners/friends or with sexual partners in one-night stands). The findings call for more attention to adolescents' exposure to sexually explicit material on the Internet and identity-related issues.
Automated docking of flexible ligands: Applications of autodock

AutoDock is a suite of C programs used to predict the bound conformations of a small, flexible ligand to a macromolecular target of known structure. The technique combines simulated annealing for conformation searching with a rapid grid‐based method of energy evaluation. This paper reviews recent applications of the technique and describes the enhancements included in the current release.
Licking and Liking: The Assessment of Hedonic Responses in Rodents

Affective processes are a key determinant of behaviour: At its simplest, liked stimuli are approached while disliked stimuli are avoided. Although assessing hedonic responses in nonverbal animals can be difficult, one relatively tractable approach relies on detailed analyses of rodents' consummatory behaviour. Rodents typically produce rhythmic sets of licks that can be grouped into clusters on the basis of the intervals between licks. The mean number of licks in a cluster (cluster size) is directly related to the concentration of palatable and unpalatable solutions. These relationships suggest that lick cluster size might be a useful index of an animal's hedonic reaction to the solution being consumed. I begin by reviewing studies of conditioned flavour preference and aversion that support the idea that lick cluster size can provide useful information about rats' hedonic reactions. I then describe how this methodology has been used to address previously intractable issues in the investigation of contrast effects as well as revealing an analogue of effort justification effects that, in humans, are commonly explained in terms of cognitive dissonance reduction. Finally, I consider how lick analysis might provide information about hedonic responses in animal models of human psychiatric disorders. In all these cases, how an animal did something was particularly informative about why it was doing it.
Modeling Tuberculosis Contact Tracing and the Role of Social Cluster

We propose a discrete model to investigate the role of contact tracing program reducing the newcases and prevalence of tuberculosis. We observe that the tuberculosis contact tracing program has no effect on the basic reproduction number R0 but the size of social cluster has. On the other hand a contact tracing program can speed up the process of TB elimination. We compute the partial rank correlation coefficient (PRCC), based on Latin hypercube sampling (LHS), to evaluate the effect of input parameters on the magnitude of the newcases and prevalence. The most influential parameters are identified and ranked. keywords: tuberculosis, discrete model, TB contact tracing, control strategy
The Growth Rate of Individual Bacterial Cells

It has been assumed by many bacteriologists that during the period of rapid growth, in a satisfactory culture medium, some bacteria will die in spite of good food and favorable environment. No doubt this aumption was derived from an analogy with populations of higher forms of life, of which a number of individuals are known to die before they reach the reproductive age even with good care. Wilson (1922) approached this question experimnentally, and found that there was a regular discrepancy between plate counts and direct microscopic counts which he explained by supposing that some bacteria would not grow on agar but could still be seen. Reichenbach (1911), in order to explain the logarithmic order of death, assumed that a certain proportion of the multiplying bacteria of each new generation ceased multiplying and became dormant, and that the resistance of these dormant forms increased with age; thus a logarithmic gradation of resistance might be established. These assumptions have been tested by us in the following manner: Bacteria, and in later experiments yeasts, from young liquid cultures were s.Pread on the surface of an agar plate; from this seeded plate, a square was cut out and used as a hanging block in a moist chamber, for direct observation of multiplication under the microscope. The technique observed was essentially that of Orskow (1922), but the same field was kept under the microscope during the entire observation, which usually covered four generations. The moist chamber was held in a stage incu-
Integration of palliative care into the neuro-oncology practice: patterns in the United States.

BACKGROUND Between 80%-85 percent of all adult brain tumors are high-grade gliomas (HGGs). Despite aggressive treatment with surgical resection, radiotherapy and chemotherapy, the survival of patients with HGG is limited. Brain tumor patients develop unique symptoms and needs throughout their disease trajectory, and the majority lose the ability to communicate during the end-of-life phase. Palliative care (PC) is a proactive and systematic approach to manage issues that are important to patients and families affected by serious illness. The goal is to improve quality of life and symptom control and thereby reduce suffering. Most PC interventions take place during the end-of-life phase; however, newer data suggest that early PC interventions might improve symptom control and quality of life. METHODS A literature review focusing on PC, hospice care, and end-of-life care was performed with the aim to describe the integration of PC into neuro-oncology practice. RESULTS Recently there has been increased interest in the effects of PC and brain tumor patients. The origins, methodology, and conceptual models of delivering PC and how it might be applied to the field of neuro-oncology were reviewed. Patterns of referral and utilization in neuro-oncology are described based on the findings of a recent survey. CONCLUSIONS Despite a very high symptom burden, many HGG patients do not receive the same level of PC and have fewer interactions with PC services than other cancer populations. Early PC interventions and structured advance-care planning might improve symptom control and quality of life for brain tumor patients.