Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Optimal lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus sequences restricted by H-2Db major histocompatibility complex class I molecules and presented to cytotoxic T lymphocytes

Infection with lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus induces the generation of CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL). In the H-2b mouse, this cellular immune response is directed against three viral structural epitopes (GP1, GP2, and NP) presented by the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I H-2Db molecules. This study was undertaken to delineate which sequence of each of these three epitopes is optimal for MHC binding and CTL recognition. The first step was to synthesize the relevant peptides truncated at the N or C terminus and flanking the crucial H-2Db-anchoring Asn residue in position 5. These peptides were then tested (i) for their binding properties in two H-2Db-specific assays with viable cells (upregulation of H-2Db expression on the surface of RMA-S cells and competition against the Db-restricted peptide 125I-gp276-286 on T2-Db cells) and (ii) for their abilities to sensitize H-2b target cells for CTL lysis in vitro. For optimal antigenic presentation, all three epitopes required the MHC-anchoring Asn residue at position 5 of their sequences. The results clearly and unambiguously delineated optimal lengths for two of the epitopes and two options for the third. NP appeared as a conventional 9-amino-acid (aa)-long peptide, np396-404 (FQPQNGQFI). GP2 was defined as a longer peptide (11 aa), gp276-286 (SGVENPGGYCL). Characterization of the GP1 epitope was more complex: the 9-aa-long peptide gp33-41 (KAVYNFATC) and the carboxyl-extended 11-aa-long peptide gp33-43 (KAVYN FATCGI) were both established as possible optimal sequences depending on the cell line used to test binding and lysis.
Discharge planning of stroke patients: the relatives' perceptions of participation.

AIMS To describe relatives' perceived participation in discharge planning for patients with stroke and identify correlates to perceived participation. BACKGROUND Stroke affects both patients and their relatives and previous research shows that relatives were often dissatisfied with their perceived involvement in discharge planning and the information they get. DESIGN Prospective cross-sectional study. METHODS The study comprised 152 consecutively enrolled relatives (mean age = 60.8 years) of acute stroke patients admitted to a stroke unit in southern Sweden during 2003-2005. Data were collected through interviews 2-3 weeks after discharge using 'Relative's Questionnaire about Participation in Discharge planning'. This instrument measures perceived participation in three subscales: R-Information-Illness, R-Information-Care/support, and R-Goals and Needs. The Overall Rating of Relative's Perceived Participation in Discharge Planning was measured by a visual analogue scale (VAS) (1-10 score). RESULTS Among the relatives, 56-68% reported positively according to R-Information-Illness, but 46-53% perceived that they did not receive any information about care/medication/rehabilitation/support. About 80% perceived no participation at all in goals and needs. The mean value of the VAS was 3.89 (SD 3.40) score. Regression analyses revealed that longer stay at hospital, patients with higher education, and relatives of female patients and female relatives were associated with relatives' perceptions of higher participation in discharge planning. CONCLUSIONS Relatives perceived that they needed more information and knowledge about stroke and care/medication/rehabilitation/support. They also needed to be more involved in goal-setting and in identifying patient needs. Professionals should take into consideration these associated variables to improve relatives' perceived participation. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE Clinicians should give more attention to the altered situation of stroke patients' relatives when planning for continuing care and when setting postdischarge goals for the patients. The professionals need to develop strategies to involve relatives in sharing information, goal-setting and needs assessment in discharge planning.
Hepatitis C virus core protein compromises iron‐induced activation of antioxidants in mice and HepG2 cells

One of the characteristics of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is the unusual augmentation of oxidative stress, which is exacerbated by iron accumulation in the liver, as observed frequently in hepatitis C patients. Using a transgenic mouse model, the core protein of HCV was shown previously to induce the overproduction of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the liver. In the present study, the impact of iron overloading on the oxidant/antioxidant system was examined using this mouse model and cultured cells. Iron overloading caused the induction of ROS as well as antioxidants. However, the augmentation of some antioxidants, including heme oxygenase‐1 and NADH dehydrogenase, quinone 1, was compromised by the presence of the core protein. The attenuation of iron‐induced augmentation of heme oxygenase‐1 was also confirmed in HepG2 cells expressing the core protein. This attenuation was not dependent on the Nrf2 transcription factor. Thus, HCV infection not only induces oxidative stress but also hampers the iron‐induced antioxidant activation in the liver, thereby exacerbating oxidative stress that would facilitate hepatocarcinogenesis. J. Med. Virol. 82: 776–782, 2010. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Monopsony in Labor Markets: A Meta-Analysis

When jobs offered by different employers are not perfect substitutes, employers gain wage-setting power; the extent of this power can be captured by the elasticity of labor supply to the firm. The authors collect 1,320 estimates of this parameter from 53 studies. Findings show a prominent discrepancy between estimates of direct elasticity of labor supply to changes in wage (smaller) and the estimates converted from inverse elasticities (larger), suggesting that labor market institutions may rein in a substantial amount of firm wage-setting power. This gap remains after they control for 22 additional variables and use Bayesian Model Averaging and LASSO to address model uncertainty; however, it is less pronounced for studies employing an identification strategy. Furthermore, the authors find strong evidence that implies the literature on direct estimates is prone to selective reporting: Negative estimates of the elasticity of labor supply to the firm tend to be discarded, leading to upward bias in the mean reported estimate. Additionally, they point out several socioeconomic factors that seem to affect the degree of monopsony power.
INFLUENCE OF POLLINATION SPECIALIZATION AND BREEDING SYSTEM ON FLORAL INTEGRATION AND PHENOTYPIC VARIATION IN IPOMOEA

Natural selection should reduce phenotypic variation and increase integration of floral traits involved in placement of pollen grains on stigmas. In this study, we examine the role of pollinators and breeding system on the evolution of floral traits by comparing the patterns of floral phenotypic variances and covariances in 20 Ipomoea species that differ in their level of pollination specialization and pollinator dependence incorporating phylogenetic relatedness. Plants with specialized pollination (i.e., those pollinated by one functional group or by few morphospecies) displayed less phenotypic variation and greater floral integration than generalist plants. Self‐compatible species also displayed greater floral integration than self‐incompatible species. Floral traits involved in pollen placement and pick up showed less variation and greater integration than floral traits involved in pollinator attraction. Analytical models indicate that both breeding system and the number of morphospecies had significant effects on floral integration patterns although only differences in the former were significant after accounting for phylogeny. These results suggest that specialist/self‐compatible plants experience more consistent selection on floral traits than generalist/self‐incompatible plants. Furthermore, pollinators and breeding system promote integration of floral traits involved in pollen placement and pick up rather than integration of the whole flower.
Associations of Long-Term Tea Consumption with Depressive and Anxiety Symptoms in Community-Living Elderly: Findings from the Diet and Healthy Aging Study

ObjectiveTo examine the association between long-term tea consumption and depressive and anxiety symptoms in community-living elderly.DesignCommunity based cross-sectional study.SettingThe Diet and Healthy Aging Study (DaHA), a prospective cohort study in Singapore.Participants614 elderly aged 60 years and above, who were free of dementia and cognitive impairment.MeasurementsInformation on tea consumption was obtained through interviewer-administered questionnaire. Long-term tea drinking was defined as regular consumption for at least 15 years. Depressive and anxiety symptoms were measured using the 15-item Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15) and the 20-item Geriatric Anxiety Inventory (GAI), respectively. A generalized structural equation model (gSEM) was applied to ascertain the association between long-term tea consumption and depressive and anxiety symptoms.ResultsAbout 59% of the subjects had consumed tea for over 15 years. Long term tea consumption was significantly associated with a reduced odds of having depressive and anxiety symptoms, after adjusting for demographics (i.e., age, gender, education and ethnicity), comorbid conditions (i.e., heart disease, diabetes, stroke, hypertension and hyperlipidaemia) and long-term coffee consumption.ConclusionThere was evidence suggesting that longterm tea consumption was associated with reduced depressive and anxiety symptoms among community-living elderly. This suggests that it is worthwhile to further investigate the role of tea’s bioactive compounds in promoting mental health in aging.
Conditional Volatility Persistence and Realized Volatility Asymmetry: Evidence from the Chinese Stock Markets

ABSTRACT This study proposes that the overall state of the market, as captured by daily return and volatility, is an important determinant of volatility persistence. By utilizing the realized variance (RV) measure, this paper shows that daily time-varying volatility persistence increases with return but decreases with volatility. Negative returns increase volatility persistence more than positive returns. The dependence of volatility persistence on state variables is termed “conditional volatility persistence”. This study finds that conditional volatility persistence is the dominant channel linking changing market states to future volatility and the model which calibrates future-RV conditionally on market states performs better statistically and economically.
Incorporating a Short-Term Study Abroad Service Trip for Educating International Entrepreneurship in the BOP Market

ABSTRACT The bottom of the pyramid (BOP) market has gained importance in international entrepreneurship due to its large market potential. Drawing on the literature of international business education, as well as social entrepreneurship and international entrepreneurship education, we propose a course to educate students how to develop business intimacy with the BOP community. We employ the experiential-learning pedagogical framework and design elements including a short-term study abroad service trip, an entrepreneurship project, and structured reflections. Using both qualitative and quantitative data, we demonstrate that the course facilitates students’ learning in the key areas of international and social entrepreneurship, including the economic and social value of community embeddedness for BOP ventures, the emotional intelligence in interacting with BOP communities, and the attitude toward social entrepreneurship.
In Vitro Resistance to Thrombin-Induced Platelet Microbicidal Protein Is Associated with Enhanced Progression and Hematogenous Dissemination in Experimental Staphylococcus aureusInfective Endocarditis

ABSTRACT We examined the influence of thrombin-induced platelet microbicidal protein 1 (tPMP-1) on the progression and hematogenous dissemination of experimental endocarditis caused by isogenic Staphylococcus aureus strains differing in tPMP susceptibility (tPMPs) or resistance (tPMPr) in vitro. Following simultaneous challenge of animals with both strains, significantly higher tPMPr bacterial densities were present in vegetations (P < 0.0001), kidneys (P < 0.0001), and spleens (P < 0.0001) compared with those for the tPMPs strain. These data indicate that tPMP-1 limits the intravegetation proliferation and hematogenous dissemination of a tPMPs strain in experimental endocarditis, while the tPMPr phenotype confers a selective advantage associated with the enhanced progression of this infection.
“I Would Say It’s Almost Like a Crime Against, You Know, the Soul”: Building a Culture of Health in Low-Income Housing Communities Through Addressing Childhood Trauma

ABSTRACT The purpose of this article is to examine parental perceptions of child maltreatment to inform services that target families living in low-income housing communities in Fresno, California, through focus group interviews. We identified three main themes across all focus group interviews that describe the child maltreatment among our participants: (a) acknowledging child maltreatment as a problem, and its negative consequences; (b) normalizing or justifying child maltreatment as part of growing up; and (c) seeing child maltreatment as intergenerational. Additionally, parents discussed types of help to address child maltreatment. We then propose a prevention model using a public health framework along with other policy recommendations that highlight the importance of culturally and linguistically appropriate services for diverse families living in low-income housing communities.
A novel algorithm for activity state recognition using smartwatch data

This work presents a novel algorithm for recognizing activity states which are of interest for assessing the general well-being of cancer, frail and elderly patients. Using the novel idea of two-level classification, misclassification due to unwanted hand motion noise, which is a common source of error in wrist-worn sensing systems, is mitigated. The algorithm is verified using data from 20 subjects performing a sequence of related activities. It is shown that the proposed algorithm improves the accuracy value for the “activity state” which includes “sit”, “stand” and “move” by up to 8%.
The influence of physical activity during youth on structural and functional properties of the Achilles tendon

Achilles tendinopathy is a highly prevalent sports injury. Animal studies show a growth response in tendons in response to loading in the immature phase but not after puberty maturation. The aim of this investigation was to examine the structural and material properties in long distance runners who were either physically active (HAY) or inactive (LAY) in young age. Twelve men in HAY group and eight men in LAY group participated. Structural, functional, and biochemical properties of Achilles tendon were estimated from magnetic resonance imaging, ultrasound video recordings, mechanical tests, and tendon biopsies, respectively. There was no difference between the groups with respect to tendon cross‐sectional area or tendon free length. There was no difference between the groups with respect to maximal force or mechanical properties. The collagen content, enzymatic and nonenzymatic cross‐link density did not differ between the groups, nor did collagen fibril density, diameter, and area. There was a correlation between age and pentosidine/collagen within the groups [(HAY: P < 0.05 and r2 = 0.47) and (LAY: P < 0.05 and r2 = 0.52)]. The data suggest that high or low activity during youth did not appreciably influence the mechanical, structural, or biochemical properties of the Achilles tendon in adult long distance runners.
Governance, Sentiment Analysis, and Initial Public Offering Underpricing

Research Question/Issue. What is the relationship between governance, tone in language, and underpricing of initial public offerings (IPOs) in Latin America? Research Findings/Insights. We find a positive (negative) and statistically significant relationship between board size (board independence) and IPO underpricing at the time firms go public. But more importantly, when interacting with corporate governance variables at the firm level, uncertainty in tone still shows statistical significance, which suggests that tone in communications matters for underpricing independently of governance provisions at the firm level. Theoretical/Academic Implications. Bigger boards seem to lead to greater underpricing, whereas more independent boards mitigate it. This finding stresses the relevance of functional convergence in regions with weak institutions such as Latin America. Our results also suggest that tone matters for underpricing even in firms with good governance practices. We argue that tone in corporate communications is a strong signaling mechanism for market participants. Practitioner/Policy Implications. Our results suggest that tone in firms' communications is relevant for market valuation. In the context of family firms in an underresearched context such as Latin America, we show that reputation effect is priced by the market valuation of the IPO.
On the Mechanism of Quinol Oxidation at the QP Site in the Cytochrome bc1 Complex

To elucidate the mechanism of bifurcated oxidation of quinol in the cytochrome bc1 complex, Rhodobacter sphaeroides mutants, H198N and H111N, lacking heme bL and heme bH, respectively, were constructed and characterized. Purified mutant complexes have the same subunit composition as that of the wild-type complex, but have only 9-11% of the electron transfer activity, which is sensitive to stigmatellin or myxothiazol. The Em values for hemes bL and bH in the H111N and H198N complexes are -95 and -35 mV, respectively. The pseudo first-order reduction rate constants for hemes bL and bH in H111N and H198N, by ubiquiniol, are 16.3 and 12.4 s-1, respectively. These indicate that the Qp site in the H111N mutant complex is similar to that in the wild-type complex. Pre-steady state reduction rates of heme c1 by these two mutant complexes decrease to a similar extent of their activity, suggesting that the decrease in electron transfer activity is due to impairment of movement of the head domain of reduced iron-sulfur protein, caused by disruption of electron transfer from heme bL to heme bH. Both mutant complexes produce as much superoxide as does antimycin A-treated wild-type complex. Ascorbate eliminates all superoxide generating activity in the intact or antimycin inhibited wild-type or mutant complexes.
Prevalence of Failure of Passive Transfer of Immunity in Dairy Calves in the Czech Republic

Prevalence of failure of passive transfer (FPT) of immunity remains relatively high worldwide. The aim of this study was to estimate the FPT prevalence in Czech dairy calves and to evaluate the selected factors – breed, herd size, sex of calves, single versus twin births and the influence of the season of birth. A total of 1,175 serum samples were taken from calves of Czech Fleckvieh and Holstein breed from 33 herds between October 2015 and October 2017. Serum IgG concentration was determined by reference method for IgG determination – radial immunodiffusion. Statistical evaluation was performed by Kruskal‐Wallis test. The concentration of IgG ranged from 1.5 to 46.6 g / L with average value 13.7 g / L and was significantly influenced by breed, size of the herd and season. Using the criterion IgG < 10 g / L, it was found that 34.6 % of calves had FPT. The prevalence of FPT by breed was 42.9 % vs. 24.2 % (Czech Fleckvieh vs. Holstein), by size of the herd 45.0, 44.4, 25.5 and 22.0 % (< 200, 200 – 399, 400 – 599 and ≥ 600 cows per herd, respectively) and by season 25.3, 34.6, 29.9 and 52.5 % (spring, summer, autumn and winter, respectively). The sex of calves was not found to be a statistically significant factor. The study in newborn calves showed that FPT is still an important problem in Czech dairy herds, especially in the Czech Fleckvieh breed. In smaller herds and especially in the winter, the prevalence of FPT was very high.
Brain-derived Neurotrophic Factor and Epilepsy—A Missing Link?

It has been known for some time that brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is critical to normal development of the CNS, and more recently, studies also have documented the ability of BDNF to modify adult CNS structure and function. Therefore, it is no surprise that BDNF has been linked to diseases, such as epilepsy, which may involve abnormal cortical development or altered brain structure and function after maturity. This review evaluates the evidence, particularly from recent studies, that BDNF contributes to the development of temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE).
Kazachstania yasuniensis sp. nov., an ascomycetous yeast species found in mainland Ecuador and on the Galápagos.

Seven strains representing a novel yeast species belonging to the genus Kazachstania were found at several collection sites on both mainland Ecuador (Yasuní National Park) and the Galápagos (Santa Cruz Island). Two strains (CLQCA 20-132(T) and CLQCA 24SC-045) were isolated from rotten wood samples, two further strains (CLQCA 20-280 and CLQCA 20-348) were isolated from soil samples, and three strains (CLQCA 20-198, CLQCA 20-374 and CLQCA 20-431) were isolated from decaying fruits. Sequence analyses of the D1/D2 domains of the LSU rRNA gene and ribosomal internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region indicated that the novel species is most closely related to Kazachstania servazzii and Kazachstania unispora. Although the strains could not be distinguished from one another based upon their differing geographical origins, they could be differentiated according to their isolation source (fruit, soil or wood) by ITS sequencing. The species name Kazachstania yasuniensis sp. nov. is proposed to accommodate these strains, with CLQCA 20-132(T) ( = CBS 13946(T) = NCYC 4008(T)) designated the type strain.
Effect of hydroxyurea treatment on renal function parameters: Results from the multi‐center placebo‐controlled BABY HUG clinical trial for infants with sickle cell anemia

Children with sickle cell anemia (SCA) often develop hyposthenuria and renal hyperfiltration at an early age, possibly contributing to the glomerular injury and renal insufficiency commonly seen later in life. The Phase III randomized double‐blinded Clinical Trial of Hydroxyurea in Infants with SCA (BABY HUG) tested the hypothesis that hydroxyurea can prevent kidney dysfunction by reducing hyperfiltration.