Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Biosynthesis of the red antibiotic, prodigiosin, in Serratia: identification of a novel 2‐methyl‐3‐n‐amyl‐pyrrole (MAP) assembly pathway, definition of the terminal condensing enzyme, and implications for undecylprodigiosin biosynthesis in Streptomyces

The biosynthetic pathway of the red‐pigmented antibiotic, prodigiosin, produced by Serratia sp. is known to involve separate pathways for the production of the monopyrrole, 2‐methyl‐3‐n‐amyl‐pyrrole (MAP) and the bipyrrole, 4‐methoxy‐2,2′‐bipyrrole‐5‐carbaldehyde (MBC) which are then coupled in the final condensation step. We have previously reported the cloning, sequencing and heterologous expression of the pig cluster responsible for prodigiosin biosynthesis in two Serratia sp. In this article we report the creation of in‐frame deletions or insertions in every biosynthetic gene in the cluster from Serratia sp. ATCC 39006. The biosynthetic intermediates accumulating in each mutant have been analysed by LC‐MS, cross‐feeding and genetic complementation studies. Based on these results we assign specific roles in the biosynthesis of MBC to the following Pig proteins: PigI, PigG, PigA, PigJ, PigH, PigM, PigF and PigN. We report a novel pathway for the biosynthesis of MAP, involving PigD, PigE and PigB. We also report a new chemical synthesis of MAP and one of its precursors, 3‐acetyloctanal. Finally, we identify the condensing enzyme as PigC. We reassess the existing literature and discuss the significance of the results for the biosynthesis of undecylprodigiosin by the Red cluster in Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2).
Market Activities and Trust of North Korean Refugees

This study investigates the effects of North Koreans’ informal market activities on their trust. Using survey data on North Korean refugees living in South Korea, we find that North Korean refugees who previously traded goods in markets in North Korea have higher trust in most people. By contrast, the experience of trading in markets did not affect trust in other North Korean refugees, suggesting little evidence of in‐group favoritism. Our main result is robust when we apply the instrument variable approach. This finding suggests the possibility that increased marketization in North Korea leads to a weakened control of the authorities over the North Korean society.
Long-term risk governance: when do societies act before crisis?

Abstract Many environmental problems entail a temporal dilemma. Societies benefit from resource use now that will have cumulative negative impacts on future generations. All too often, societies only act to address these risks after a crisis (such as a fisheries collapse or a river on fire) has occurred. Climate change presents a particularly challenging case since when society decides the harms are too great to withstand, reducing greenhouse gas emissions drastically will take time and society will be left to suffer, adapt or undertake risky geoengineering. In this article, we ask the question: Under what conditions do societies act to address a long-term risk before crisis? We draw from the literature in economics, psychology, sociology and political science to provide a range of potential factors that would contribute to addressing long-term risks. We find that long-term risk governance is under-theorized and that existing relevant understandings are highly fragmented. We also find that empirical studies testing these theories are limited in number and have mixed results. We propose that case studies of long-term risks that have been addressed could be a fruitful avenue forward in developing a more cohesive and empirically rooted theory of when societies address a future risk before a crisis point.
Supracallosal longitudinal fiber bundle: Heterotopic cingulum, dorsal fornix or Probst bundle?

A thick longitudinal fiber bundle found within the dorsal corpus callosum in two unrelated adults (in a micrencephalic female patient and incidentally in another male patient) is considered to be a congenital aberrant cingulum. Agenesis or apparent hypoplasia of the indusium griseum of the limbic‐cingular system as an accompanying finding in the present cases may support this hypothesis. The dorsal fornix and Probst bundle are discussed in terms of differential diagnosis, although there was no further support for this possibility. The hyperplastic dorsocallosal gray substance is excluded.
Neural processing of illusory and real contours revealed by high‐density ERP mapping

&NA; Event‐related potential (ERP) studies have shown that responses to illusory (IC), as compared to no contours (NC), may differ within 200 ms following stimulus presentation. However, whether these responses reflect the modulation of similar, or the activation ofdistinct brain regions has never been assessed. Using ERP map series and source localisation analyses, we compared early responses (0‐200ms) to IC and NC, as well as to real contours (RC). Although IC displayed higher field strength during the NI component, topographical analyses showed a similar sequence of stable field configurations in all conditions. Source localisation applied to the NI map revealed bilateral activation of lateral‐occipital regions. These results suggest that both IC and RC processing modulate a common network associated with filling‐in processes and figure‐ground segregation. Neuro Report 13:965‐968
Ventricular late potentials in systemic sclerosis: relationship with skin involvement.

OBJECTIVE To detect the myocardial involvement in patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc) by signal averaged electrocardiography method (SA-ECG) in relationship to the skin changes. METHODS We selected 24 SSc outpatients according to American Rheumatism Association criteria, without clinical and instrumental evidence of cardiac disease, and compared them with 24 control subjects. All patients and controls underwent SA-ECG to detect ventricular late potentials (LP). The extent and severity of skin involvement in SSc patients was detected by modified Rodnan (m-Rodnan) skin score. RESULTS SSc patients had higher prevalence of LP compared to controls (46 versus 8%, p < 0.003). Median skin score value in the overall SSc population was 7 [mean, SD (range): 7.8, 3.2, (4-18)]. Patients with LP had a higher median skin score value compared to SSc patients without LP [median (range): 10 (6-18) versus 6 (4-9); Mann-Whitney U test 22.5, p < 0.005]. A subset analysis was also performed to verify the correlation of antibodies positivity (anti-centromere and Scl 70) pattern and the presence of LP. Our findings showed that higher values of skin score correlated with the presence of LP independent of antibody subsets. CONCLUSIONS Our data suggest that diffuse abnormalities of the cardiac tissue detected by SA-ECG may be present, even in patients without cardiac symptoms. The relationship between LP and skin involvement in patients without clinical evidence of cardiac involvement may help detect of a subset of patients who may develop scleroderma heart disease.
Study of Trypanosoma cruzi epimastigote cell death by NMR-visible mobile lipid analysis

SUMMARY Cell death mechanisms in Trypanosoma cruzi have not been disclosed in detail though different conventional techniques have been used in the classification of parasite-cell death type. Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) has successfully been used as a tool to evaluate the onset of apoptosis in a number of higher eukaryote-cell models analysing the ratio of CH2/CH3 integration from the visible mobile lipids (VML). Surprisingly, this versatile non-invasive spectroscopy technique has never been employed with this purpose in T. cruzi. In the present study it is shown that under different parasite death-conditions the ratio CH2/CH3 varied drastically. Thus, T. cruzi epimastigotes in apoptotic conditions increase significantly this ratio while in necrotic as well as in autophagic situations the parasites maintain the VML, CH2/CH3 ratio, in normal values. Additionally, other VML markers commonly used in these studies, such as the change in the region of methyl-choline moiety, -N+(CH3)3, exhibited different particular patterns according to the type of cell death. Our results suggest that the 1H NMR-VML technique is an adequate tool to discriminate different T. cruzi death pathways.
Substances with estrogenic activity in effluents of sewage treatment plants in southwestern Germany. 2. Biological analysis

The proliferation test with human estrogen receptor‐positive MCF‐7 breast cancer cells (E‐Screen assay) was applied for quantitative determination of total estrogenic activity in 24‐h composite effluent samples from 16 municipal and two industrial sewage treatment plants (STPs) in the state of Baden‐Württemberg, southwestern Germany. The estrogenic efficacy relative to the positive control, 17β‐estradiol, was between 26 and 74% (median, 48%) for the 16 municipal STPs. Estradiol equivalent concentrations (EEQs) were between 0.2 and 7.8 ng/L (median, 1.6 ng/L) and, thereby, were lower than those found in a pilot study, which revealed EEQs of greater than 10 ng/L in the effluents of two other STPs. The EEQs in 14 of the 16 effluent samples were very similar (0.9–3.3 ng/L), indicating a rather constant input of estrogenic substances via STPs into rivers. Additional activated charcoal filtration turned out to be very efficient in further eliminating estrogenic activity from effluents. The EEQs of the E‐Screen assay and those calculated from the results of extensive chemical analysis using the estradiol equivalency factors determined for 13 natural and synthetic estrogenic substances were comparable for most of the effluent samples. 17β‐Estradiol, 17α‐ethinylestradiol, and, to a lesser extent, estrone contributed to 90% or more of the EEQ value.
Dietary fat, fat subtypes, and breast cancer in postmenopausal women: a prospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND The intake of total dietary fat and of certain fat subtypes has been shown to be strongly associated with breast cancer in international comparisons and in animal experiments. However, observational epidemiologic studies have generally reported either weak positive or no associations. To extend the prospective epidemiologic evidence on this question, we examined the association between adult dietary intake of fat, fat subtypes, and breast cancer in a large, prospective cohort of postmenopausal women. METHODS Participants were selected from a national breast cancer mammography screening program conducted from 1973 through 1981 at 29 centers throughout the United States. From 1987 through 1989, 40022 postmenopausal women satisfactorily completed a mailed, self-administered questionnaire that included a 60-item National Cancer Institute/Block food-frequency questionnaire. Women were then followed for an average of 5.3 years; 996 women developed breast cancer. Risk was assessed by use of Cox proportional hazard regression, with age as the underlying time metric. All statistical tests were two-sided. RESULTS Compared with women in the lowest quintile (Q1) of percentage of energy from total fat, the adjusted risk ratio (RR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for women in the highest quintile (Q5) was 1.07 (95% CI = 0.86-1.32). In analyses stratified by history of benign breast disease (BBD), a positive association was observed among only women with no history of BBD (RR (Q5 versus Q1) = 2.20; 95% CI = 1.41-3.42; test for trend, P =. 0003). The increased risk in these women appeared to be attributable to unsaturated fat intake and oleic acid in particular. CONCLUSIONS In this study, there was no overall association between fat intake during adulthood and breast cancer risk; however, among women with no history of BBD, there appeared to be a positive association between total and unsaturated fat intake and breast cancer risk.
Dead reckoning of a fixed-wing UAV with inertial navigation aided by optical flow

This paper provides experimental results for dead reckoning of a fixed-wing UAV using a non-linear observer (NLO) and a more recent tool called eXogenous Kalman Filter (XKF), which uses the NLO itself as a first-stage filter. The sensors used are an IMU (accelerometers, inclinometers, and rate gyros), a camera, and an altimeter; the observed states are position, velocity, and attitude. A machine vision system provides the body-fixed velocity of the UAV. Although the calculated velocity results affected by a bias, it is necessary both for estimating the attitude and for bounding the rate of divergence of the position during dead reckoning. Gyro, accelerometer, and optical flow (OF) velocity biases are estimated, but only as long as GNSS is available. When dead reckoning begins, they are frozen at their last calculated value. The experimental results show that the position error grows at a bounded rate with the proposed estimators.
Prevalence and Characteristics of Continuous Electrical Activity in Patients with Paroxysmal and Persistent Atrial Fibrillation

Background: Complex fractionated atrial electrograms (CFAEs) may play a role in the genesis of atrial fibrillation (AF). One type of CFAE is continuous electrical activity (CEA). The prevalence and characteristics of CEA in patients with paroxysmal and persistent AF are unclear.
A Novel Dual-Wideband Monopole-Like Microstrip Antenna With Controllable Frequency Response

A new modified microstrip monopole antenna with dual-band operation is presented for mobile communication applications. For this purpose, radiation patch and ground plane of the antenna are considerably modified. By using these modifications, including of a pair of modified U-shaped slots in the ground plane and a complex form of the slot, etched on the patch, two frequency wide bands of 1.38-3.98 GHz (97%) and 5.15-6.2 GHz (18%) are achieved. In the second design of the antenna, a very small slot as a switch is employed in the special positions on the ground plane to change and control the frequency response. Different cases such as multiple and single bands as well as narrow and wide bands between 1.5 and 6 GHz can be covered. The total size of the antennas is only 20 × 34 mm2. Full parametric simulation of the proposed modifications and measurement results of two manufactured prototypes are presented and discussed.
Evaluation of KRAS Gene Mutations in Metastatic Colorectal Cancer Patients in Kermanshah Province.

BACKGROUND Worldwide, colorectal cancer (CRC) is reported to be the fourth most common cancer in men and the third most common in women. KRAS is a protooncogene located on the short arm of chromosome 12. The aim of this study was to evaluate the KRAS oncogene and its relationship it with clinicopathologic features in 33 Kurdish patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS Metastatic CRC between 2012 and 2016 that came to Imam Reza hospital, Kermanshah province, Iran, were analysed for KRAS mutations using allele specific PCR primers and pyrosequencing. Correlations between variables was analyzed in PASW SPSS and overall survival curves were plotted in Graph Pad prism 5. RESULTS The mean age for them at diagnosis was 51.5±12.6 years (range, 2276 years). Among the 33 patients that were sequenced, 12 samples in the KRAS gene had a nucleotide change, 11 in codon 12 and 1 in codon 13.There was no significant relationship between the mutation and clinical and pathological aspects of the disease. CONCLUSIONS Knowledge of the KRAS status can help in decisionmaking to treat metastatic colorectal cancer patients more efficiently and increase survival. However, many Kurdish people due to economic problems are not able to do this valuable genetic test. In addition, we need more careful research of KRAS oncogene at the molecular level in young populations with more patients.
Role of the AT2 receptor in modulating the angiotensin II contractile response of the uterine artery at mid-gestation

Introduction: During human pregnancy, circulating concentrations of components of the renin—angiotensin system increase, but pressor refractoriness to angiotensin II (Ang-II) is observed. Given the importance of the Ang-II pressor response in deciding susceptibility to preeclampsia and of the Ang-II system for controlling uterine vasoreactivity, we sought to address the effects of pregnancy on the reactivity of the isolated uterine artery (UA) in mice. Materials and methods : Blood pressure was measured throughout pregnancy in awake C57BL/6J mice. UA segments were isolated from three groups of animals (non-pregnant, mid [day 12—13] and late [day 18—19] gestation) and studied by wire myography. Results: UA diameters, KCl-mediated responses, and acetylcholine-dependent vasorelaxation were greater at mid and late gestation than in non-pregnant animals. Ang-II responses were also greater during pregnancy, with an increased contraction in response to AT2 receptor blockade at mid-gestation. AT1 receptor blockade abolished the Ang-II response in all groups. Conclusions: Study findings are consistent with the possibility that AT2 receptor-mediated vasodilatation plays a role in modulating Ang-II contractile responses in pregnancy.
I Analysis of F0 and Cepstral Features for Robust Automatic Gender Recognition Analysis of F0 and Cepstral Features for Robust Automatic Gender Recognition

In this paper, we analyze applicability of F0 and cepstral features , namely LPCCs, MFCCs, PLPs for robust Automatic Gender Recognition (AGR). Through gender recognition studies on BANCA corpus comprising datasets of varying complexity , we show that use of voiced speech frames and modelling of higher spectral detail (i.e. using higher order cepstral coefficients) along with the use of dynamic features improve the robustness of the system towards mismatched training and test conditions. Moreover, our study shows that for matched clean training and test conditions and for multi-condition training, the AGR system is less sensitive to the order of cepstral coefficients and the use of dynamic features gives little-to-no gain. F0 and cepstral features perform equally well under clean conditions, however under noisy conditions cepstral features yield robust system compared to F0-based system.
Serum sIL-2R, TNF-alpha and IFN-gamma in alveolar echinococcosis.

AIM to approach the relationship between alveolar echinococcosis (AE) pathology and level of sIL-2R,TNF-alpha and IFN-gamma in sera and the significance of cytokines in development of AE. METHODS After 23 patients with AE were confirmed by ELISA and ultrasound, their sera were collected and the concentrations of sIL-2R,TNF-alpha and IFN-gamma were detected by double antibody sandwich. Twelve healthy adults served as controls. According to the status of livers of AE patients by ultrasound scanning, they were divided into 4 groups: P(2), P(3), P(4) groups and C group (control). Average of concentrations of sIL-2R,TNF-alpha and IFN-gamma in homologous group was statistically analyzed by both ANOV and Newman-Keuls, respectively. RESULTS The mean of sIL-2R in P(2) group was 97+/-29, P(3): 226+/-80, P(4): 194+/-23 and control group (111+/-30)X10(3) u/L (P<0.01). The mean of TNF-alpha in P(2) group was 1.12+/-0.20, P(3): 3.67+/-1.96, P(4): 1.30+/-0.25 and control group 0.40+/-0.19 mug/L (P<0.01). The mean of IFN-gamma in P(2) group was 360+/-20, P(3): 486+/-15, P(4): 259+/-19 and control group: 16+/-2 ng/L (P<0.01). Judged by ANOV and Newman-Keuls, the mean concentrations of sIL-2R, TNF-alpha and IFN-gamma had a significant difference among groups. Except for P(2) group, the mean sIL-2R between other groups of AE patients had a significant difference (P<0.05). The mean of TNF-alpha concentration in P(3) group was the highest (P<0.01). The mean of IFN-gamma concentration in all patients was higher than that in control group (P<0.01), but there was no difference between AE groups (P>0.05). CONCLUSION Low sIL-2R level indicates an early stage of AE or stable status, per contra, a progression stage. Higher level of TNF-alpha might be related to the lesion of liver. The role of single IFN-gamma is limited in immunological defense against AE and it can not fully block pathological progression.
Data Decisions and Theoretical Implications when Adversarially Learning Fair Representations

How can we learn a classifier that is "fair" for a protected or sensitive group, when we do not know if the input to the classifier belongs to the protected group? How can we train such a classifier when data on the protected group is difficult to attain? In many settings, finding out the sensitive input attribute can be prohibitively expensive even during model training, and sometimes impossible during model serving. For example, in recommender systems, if we want to predict if a user will click on a given recommendation, we often do not know many attributes of the user, e.g., race or age, and many attributes of the content are hard to determine, e.g., the language or topic. Thus, it is not feasible to use a different classifier calibrated based on knowledge of the sensitive attribute. Here, we use an adversarial training procedure to remove information about the sensitive attribute from the latent representation learned by a neural network. In particular, we study how the choice of data for the adversarial training effects the resulting fairness properties. We find two interesting results: a small amount of data is needed to train these adversarial models, and the data distribution empirically drives the adversary's notion of fairness.
Does Gum Chewing Increase the Prevalence of Temporomandibular Disorders in Individuals With Gum Chewing Habits?

Purpose The effect of habitual gum chewing on temporomandibular joint function is controversial. This study evaluated the prevalence of temporomandibular disorder (TMD) in adolescents with and without gum chewing habits and the affiliation of TMD signs with gum chewing. Subjects and Methods This is a cross-sectional study. Subjects were studied in 2 groups. Subjects in the study group chewed gum for 30, 60, or 120 minutes in a 24-hour day. Subjects in the control group did not have a gum chewing habit. TMD signs of clicking, crepitus, and pain were documented for every subject. Age, gender, duration of gum chewing, and occlusal relationships were variable factors, and TMD signs (clicking, crepitus, and pain) were outcomes of the study. The chi-square test was used to compare TMD signs and gender in the 2 groups, and to evaluate the relationship between TMD signs and duration of gum chewing in the study group. An independent t test was applied to compare the ages of the 2 groups. Results Two hundred subjects participated in the study and were divided into 2 groups (100 subjects per group). An evaluation of the data showed no significant differences between the 2 groups in sex, age, and occlusion. The incidence of clicking and pain was statistically higher in the study group than in the control group (P < 0.05). Analysis of the data demonstrated considerable differences in clicking and pain among subjects with various gum chewing times in the study group (P < 0.05). The incidence of pain was higher in subjects with a class II skeletal pattern than others in the study group (P < 0.001). Nevertheless, no significant difference was noticed for clicking among subjects with various occlusions (P > 0.05). Conclusion Considering that intensive gum chewing may affect TMD signs in individuals with a gum chewing habit. It seems a longer duration of gum chewing may increase the prevalence of TMD. Individuals with a class II skeletal pattern may be affected more than others.