Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Overexpression of GSTA2 protects against cell cycle arrest and apoptosis induced by the DNA inter‐strand crosslinking nitrogen mustard, mechlorethamine

The effectiveness of bifunctional alkylating nitrogen mustard compounds in chemotherapy is related to their ability to form DNA inter‐strand crosslinks. Patients exposed to DNA inter‐strand crosslinking (ICL) agents subsequently experience an elevated incidence of myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) and MDS related acute myeloid leukemia. Fanconi's anemia (FA) patients are deficient in the repair of crosslink DNA damage and they experience a high incidence of MDS. These observations indicate that hematopoietic cells are specific target for the transforming effects of DNA crosslinking damage. Changes in transcript levels were characterized in human hematopoietic cells occurring in response to the nitrogen mustard, mechlorethamine (HN2), but not in response to monofunctional analogs. Only modest changes in a few gene transcripts were detected in HL60 cells exposed to levels of HN2 tittered to maximal dose that caused growth suppression with minimal cell death and allowed eventual resumption of normal cell growth. Under conditions of transient growth suppression, a subset of glutathione‐S‐transferase (GST) isoenzyme genes was consistently upregulated three to fourfold by HN2, but not by monofunctional analogs. Subsequent efforts to confirm the changes detected by microarray analyses revealed an unexpected dependence on treatment conditions. The GST alpha class A2 subfamily member transcripts were upregulated 24 h after a 1 h exposure to HN2 that caused an extensive, but transient block in late S/G2 cell cycle phase, but were minimally altered with continuous exposure. The 1‐h exposure to HN2 caused a transient late S/G2 cell cycle arrest in both the HL‐60 cell line and the Colo 320HSR human colon cancer cell line. Overexpression of GSTA2 by transient transfection protected Colo 320HSR cells against both cycle arrest and apoptosis following exposure to HN2. Overexpression of GSTA2 in Colo 320HSR cells induced after exposure to HN2 did not alter cycle arrest or apoptosis. The results indicate that human GSTA2 facilitates the protection of cells from HN2 damage and not repair. Our results are consistent with the possibility that GSTA2 polymorphisms, variable isoenzyme expression, and variable induced expression may be factors in the pathogenesis of MDS. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Rest in Peace Post-Earnings Announcement Drift

This paper revisits price formation following earnings announcements. In modern financial markets, stock prices fully reflect earnings surprises on the announcement date, leading to the disappearance of post-earnings announcement drifts (PEAD). For large stocks, PEAD have been non-existent since 2006 but has only disappeared recently for microcap stocks. PEAD remain a prevalent area of study in finance and accounting despite having largely disappeared. This paper concludes with a set of recommendations for researchers who conduct such studies to better assess the existence of PEAD and suggests future research avenues to examine price formation following earnings news.
Loss of Calbindin‐D28K from Aging Human Cholinergic Basal Forebrain: Relation to Plaques and Tangles

Reports from our laboratory have indicated a substantial and specific loss of the calcium binding protein calbindin-D28K (CB) from the human basal forebrain cholinergic neurons (BFCN) in the course of normal aging. In the present set of experiments we determined the relationship between the age-related loss of CB and the presence and density of plaques and tangles in the brains of normal elderly. In 23 cases ranging in age from 20 to 93 years of age we observed plaques and tangles in the BFCN region and the cerebral cortex in a subset of cases. Plaques were seen in the basal forebrain in very few cases above 65 years. Plaque density in the basal forebrain and cortex displayed a significant negative correlation with the proportion of the BFCN, which contained CB immunoreactivity. However, the brains of 2 elderly cases that displayed a substantial loss of CB from the BFCN did not contain any plaques. Tangles were observed in the BFCN as early as 26 years of age. Only tangles in the entorhinal cortex showed a significant negative correlation with the loss of CB from the BFCN. It is likely that loss of CB from the BFCN and formation of plaques and tangles are part of general age-related processes that occur in parallel rather than being causally related.
Immediate versus delayed loading of dental implants in the maxillae of minipigs. Part II: histomorphometric analysis.

PURPOSE To assess histomorphometric parameters of dental implants placed in partially edentulous maxillae of minipigs. MATERIALS AND METHODS In 9 minipigs, 6 XiVE implants were placed on each side of the maxilla, either after implant site preparation by an osteotome technique or by spiral drills. The implants were restored with fixed provisional restorations and loaded either immediately or after healing periods of up to 5 months. After a loading period of 6 months, the animals were sacrificed and the implants were retrieved together with the adjacent bone. Histologic specimens were prepared and bone-to-implant contact (BIC) ratio, interthread bone area, and peri-implant bone area were determined. RESULTS An analysis of variance revealed that the BIC ratio on the palatal side was significantly influenced by the preparation technique of the implant site (P = .001) and by the healing period (P = .02). After implant site preparation by an osteotome technique, higher BIC values were achieved for implants that were loaded either immediately or after healing periods of 1 to 3 months. After healing periods of 4 to 5 months, implant site preparation with spiral drills showed slightly better results in regard to BIC. Interthread bone area and peri-implant bone area did not differ significantly statistically for the 2 implant placement techniques and the 3 healing periods. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION After 6 months of functional loading in the maxilla, successful immediately loaded implants performed the same as implants subjected to an unloaded healing period prior to loading as far as histomorphometric data were concerned. Prospective randomized clinical studies should be carried out in humans to compare immediate loading to loading after an unloaded healing phase.
Exposure Risks and Tetanus Immunization Status in Farmers Ages 50 and Over

Background: Despite an effective tetanus vaccine, tetanus continues to claim lives worldwide. The very young and the elderly are at highest risk for the disease. Farmers are at high risk for injury, the leading factor associated with tetanus. Methods: As part of a larger study of older members of farm households in the southern United States, 595 participants provided data on health, injuries, work, socioeconomic status, and healthcare. Results: 69% reported receiving a tetanus booster in the past ten years, 24% had not, and 7% did not know. Females were less likely to be currently immunized. There was no association between immunization status and age, income, or race. There were associations between farm tasks, farm work-related injury, and immunization. Conclusions: Older farmers are at risk for tetanus by virtue of their age and work environment. Health care providers should explore strategies to improve immunization status among this work group.
Is franchising an additional financing source for franchisors? A Blinder–Oaxaca decomposition analysis

Numerous studies have used agency theory (Jensen and Meckling, 1976) and capital scarcity theory (Oxenfeldt and Kelly, 1969) to explain franchising motivations. Although both theories may in part account for why firms choose to franchise, past studies have not seriously considered the potential relationship between franchising and capital structures. Using Blinder–Oaxaca decomposition analysis, this study examined the impact of franchising on short- and long-term debt leverage. The final sample included 191 restaurant firms from 1980 to 2015. Sixty-five firms were non-franchise firms, while 126 firms engaged in the franchising business. The results of the Blinder–Oaxaca decomposition analysis showed that franchising has a significant effect on decreasing long-term debts and confirmed that franchising plays an important role as an additional source of long-term capital. Consequently, the capital scarcity theory is supported as one aspect of long-term debt leverage. However, franchise restaurant firms have larger short-term debt than non-franchise firms, although it is merely marginally significant. This contradicts capital scarcity theory but is in accordance with some past studies (e.g. Norton, 1988; 1995). This implies that franchisors constantly need short-term capital to support franchisees.
Evaluation of Taenia solium and Taenia crassiceps cysticercal antigens for the serodiagnosis of neurocysticercosis

We evaluated the usefulness of seven cysticercal antigen extracts, four from Taenia solium cysticerci (whole parasite‐TsoW, membrane‐TsoMe, vesicular fluid‐TsoVF and scolex‐TsoSc) and three from T. crassiceps cysticerci (whole parasite‐TcraW, membrane‐TcraMe and vesicular fluid‐TcraVF), for serodiagnosis of neurocysticercosis with an enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Cysticercus‐specific IgG were screened in serum samples from 23 patients with neurocysticercosis, 32 patients with other infections and 48 healthy persons. The best results were obtained with the TsoVF‐ELISA (91.3% sensitivity; 96.2% specificity) and TcraVF‐ELISA (91.3% sensitivity; 95% specificity). The ELISA done with whole parasite and membrane extracts from cysts of T. solium and T. crassiceps and the scolex extract from T. solium cysts showed a low performance in terms of sensitivity, ranging from 47.8% to 73.9%. None of the antigen preparations from T. solium and T. crassiceps cysticerci used in this study showed outstanding performance for the serodiagnosis of neurocysticercosis. However, considering the results obtained with the seven antigen preparations, vesicular fluid from T. solium and T. crassiceps cysticerci may be useful for detecting specific antibodies in sera from patients with neurocysticercosis.
Curtailment in single‐arm two‐stage phase II oncology trials

Two‐stage designs that allow for early stopping if the treatment is ineffective are commonly used in phase II oncology trials. A limitation of current designs is that early stopping is only allowed at the end of the first stage, even if it becomes evident during the trial that a significant result is unlikely. One way to overcome this limitation is to implement stochastic curtailment procedures that enable stopping the trial whenever the conditional power is below a pre‐specified threshold θ. In this paper, we present the results for implementing curtailment rules in either only the second stage or both stages of the designs. In total, 102 scenarios with different parameter settings were investigated using conditional power thresholds θ between 0 and 1 in steps of 0.01. An increase in θ results not only in a decrease of the actual Type I error rate and power but also of the expected sample size. Therefore, a reasonable balance has to be found when selecting a specific threshold value in the planning phase of a curtailed two‐stage design. Given that the effect of curtailment highly depends on the underlying design parameters, no general recommendation for θ can be made. However, up to θ=0.2 , the loss in power was less than 5% for all investigated scenarios while savings of up to 50% in expected sample size occurred. In general, curtailment is most appropriate when the outcome can be observed fast or when accrual is slow so that adequate information for making early and frequent decisions is available.
Illiquidity Shocks and Asymmetric Stock Market Reactions Around the World: Is Underreaction or Illiquidity Spiral the Culprit?

Illiquidity shocks are negatively associated with future returns. There are two potential explanations: underreaction and illiquidity spiral. We find that negative illiquidity shocks generate upward price continuation, but positive illiquidity shocks lead to initial downward price continuation quickly followed by price reversal. Further analysis shows that the underreaction channel works well only in stocks with negative illiquidity shocks, whereas the illiquidity spiral channel is strongly supported in stocks with positive illiquidity shocks. Moreover, our results are not subsumed by the numerator component (i.e., volatility shocks) or denominator component (i.e., volatility shocks) of the illiquidity shocks.
Anti-Peroxynitrite Treatment Ameliorates Vasorelaxation of Resistance Arteries in Aging Rats: Involvement with Protection of Circulating Endothelial Progenitor Cells.

Numerous studies have found that the age-associated structural and functional alterations in arteries were characterized by increased endothelial dysfunction. In this study, young (3 months), adult (9 months) and aging (20 months) male SD rats were randomly divided into six groups, including control groups and FeTMPyP (peroxynitrite scavenger) groups receiving saline and FeTMPyP respectively for 5 administrations once every 3 days via intraperitoneal injection. The aged-related proteins beta-galactosidase (β-gal), p53 and p16 as well as the nitrotyrosine and endothelium markers endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) and von Willebrand Factor (vWF) in vascular tissues were measured by immunohistochemistry. Endothelium-dependent vasorelaxation and endothelium-independent vasorelaxation of rat thoracic aortas and mesenteric arteries were measured by acetylcholine (ACh) and sodium nitroprusside (SNP), respectively. The amount of circulating endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) was determined by flow cytometry. The endothelium-dependent/independent relaxation in mesenteric arteries and the amount of circulating EPCs (CD31/CD34) in peripheral blood of aging rats were reduced significantly compared with young and adult rats. Immunohistochemistry results showed that the nitrotyrosine levels and morphological damage in mesenteric arteries were increased significantly in aging rats. Adoption of peroxynitrite scavenger FeTMPyP intervention may not only improve the endothelium-dependent relaxation and the amount of circulating EPCs in aging rats, but also reverse endothelial injury. In conclusion, the present study demonstrates that enhanced nitrative stress may aggravate the endothelial injury and vascular dysfunction of resistance arteries in aging rats. Anti-peroxynitrite treatment can ameliorate the vasorelaxation, and may be involved with the protection of circulating EPCs.
Product differentiation in the German soft drink market: which attributes matter?

ABSTRACT In this study, we apply a hedonic pricing model to a unique data set of the German carbonated soft drink market. We distinguish between traditional brands and private label brands and include a variety of product attributes such as flavour, sugar content and bottle size in our analysis. Our results show that most traditional brands yield highest price premiums. However, organic niche products seem to be even more profitable. Also, unconventional flavours, small bottle sizes and retailing in supermarkets lead to higher price premiums. Private label brands are associated with highest negative price premiums.
Cerebrospinal fluid Tau/α‐synuclein ratio in Parkinson's disease and degenerative dementias

Although alpha‐synuclein is the main constituent of Lewy bodies, cerebrospinal fluid determination on its own does not seem fundamental for the diagnosis of synucleinopathies. We evaluated whether the combination of classical biomarkers, Aβ1–42, total tau, phosphorylated tau, and α‐synuclein can improve discrimination of Parkinson's disease, dementia with Lewy bodies, Alzheimer's disease, and frontotemporal dementia. Aβ1–42, total tau, phosphorylated tau, and α‐synuclein were measured in a series of patients with Parkinson's disease (n = 38), dementia with Lewy bodies (n = 32), Alzheimer's disease (n = 48), frontotemporal dementia (n = 31), and age‐matched control patients with other neurological diseases (n = 32). Mean α‐synuclein levels in cerebrospinal fluid were significantly lower in the pathological groups than in cognitively healthy subjects. An inverse correlation of α‐synuclein with total tau (r = −0.196, P < .01) was observed. In the group of patients with Parkinson's disease, Aβ1–42, total tau, and phosphorylated tau values were similar to controls, whereas total tau/α‐synuclein and phosphorylated tau/α‐synuclein ratios showed the lowest values. Cerebrospinal fluid α‐synuclein alone did not provide relevant information for Parkinson's disease diagnosis, showing low specificity (area under the curve, 0.662; sensitivity, 94%; specificity, 25%). Instead, a better performance was obtained with the total tau/α‐syn ratio (area under the curve, 0.765; sensitivity, 89%; specificity, 61%). Combined determination of α‐synuclein and classical biomarkers in cerebrospinal fluid shows differential patterns in neurodegenerative disorders. In particular, total tau/α‐synuclein and phosphorylated tau/α‐synuclein ratios can contribute to the discrimination of Parkinson's disease. © 2011 Movement Disorder Society
Changes in hypercoagulability by asparaginase: a randomized study between two asparaginases

Alterations in hemostasis have frequently been observed in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Thrombotic events are well documented in patients receiving L-asparaginase as a single agent or in combination with other chemotherapeutic drugs. The present prospective, randomized study evaluated the effect of two different L-asparaginase preparations, native Escherichia coli L-asparaginase (Crasnitin; Bayer AG, Leverkusen, Germany; n = 10) and L-asparaginase derived from Erwinia chrysanthemi (Erwinase; Porton Pruducts, London, UK; n = 10) on the changes in parameters concerning hypercoagulability. Patients were randomized to receive a total of eight doses of 10 000 IU/m2 L-asparaginase intravenously with intervals of 3 days during induction therapy. Before starting L-asparaginase treatment all patients had already demonstrated an increased thrombin generation shown by the elevated levels of prothrombin fragment 1+2 and thrombin antithrombin III, presumably due to therapy with prednisone, daunorubicin and vincristine. A significant decrease in α2-antiplasmin and plasminogen levels was measured in the E. coli L-asparaginase but not in Erwinase-treated patients. Increased thrombin generation combined with a decrease in α2-antiplasmin and plasminogen levels may lead to a state of increased risk for thrombosis due to a delay in fibrin elimination in E. coli L-asparaginase-treated patients only.
Logistical and financial obstacles for endovascular therapy of acute stroke implementation

After publication of the recent positive randomized clinical endovascular trials, several questions and obstacles for wide spread implementation remain. We address specific issues namely efficacy, safety, logistics, timing, sedation, numbers, imaging, manpower, centers, geographics, and economical aspects of endovascular therapy. As we move forward, a high degree of collaboration will be crucial to implement a therapy with established overwhelming treatment efficacy for severe acute stroke patients.
Creatine Supplementation and Cognitive Performance in Elderly Individuals

ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of creatine supplementation on the cognitive performance of elderly people. Participants were divided into two groups, which were tested on random number generation, forward and backward number and spatial recall, and long-term memory tasks to establish a baseline level. Group 1 (n = 15) were given 5 g four times a day of placebo for 1 week, followed by the same dosage of creatine for the second week. Group 2 (n = 17) were given placebo both weeks. Participants were retested at the end of each week. Results showed a significant effect of creatine supplementation on all tasks except backward number recall. It was concluded that creatine supplementation aids cognition in the elderly.
The Global Rise of Asset Prices and the Decline of the Labor Share

The labor income share has been decreasing across countries since the early 1980s, sparking a growing literature about the causes of this trend (Karabarbounis and Neiman, 2014; Piketty and Zucman, 2014; among many others). At the same time, there has been a steady increase in asset prices. We build a simple model to argue that the increase in the value of financial assets crowds out capital formation. The negative impact of asset prices on the capital-output ratio declines the labor share if capital and labor are aggregate complements. Based on a common factor model, we find that the global increase of Tobin's Q can account for up to 57% of the labor share decline. We highlight three potential factors that operate through the same theoretical channel: capital income taxes, capitalized market power rents and corporate governance frictions.
Transformative Experiences of Female Adult Educators in Greek Academia: Gender Free or Not?

Gender stereotypes and other gender related issues are present in Adult Education. The current study wishes to explore experiences of female professors- adult educators in relation to their professional role in modern Greece. This qualitative study was carried out in December 2013 and women, experienced adult educators, were asked to critically reflect on their experience in the field. Content analysis was used for analyzing the responses. The participants, women adult educators, seemed to be aware of gender discrimination issues. At the same time, they were highly interested about the development of the role of women adult educators in Greece through critical reflections and also, the quality of their work and their own creative development and job satisfaction. Current research suggests that at the current climate of socio-economic and political crisis, greater emphasis is placed on the quality of educating rather than on gender issues.
Knowledge and beliefs about genetics and smoking among visitors and staff at a health care facility.

OBJECTIVES The primary purpose of this study was to describe individuals' knowledge and beliefs about genetics and smoking. Secondary purposes were to describe (a) differences in knowledge and beliefs based on smoking status, gender, and education and (b) relationships among perceived genetic predisposition for smoking, background characteristics, and knowledge and beliefs about genetics and smoking. Because genetics influences smoking, genetic information will likely be used to individualize future cessation treatment. DESIGN Questionnaire data were collected about knowledge and beliefs about genetics and smoking, smoking history, and demographics from visitors and staff at a nursing care facility. Data were analyzed with bivariate statistics and logistic regression. SAMPLE Participants (N=92), ages 19-82, were classified by smoking status. RESULTS Participants had little knowledge about genetics and smoking or mechanisms of heredity. Most did not believe that genetics caused smoking or influenced cessation. Predictors of perceived genetic predisposition for smoking were smoking status (current/former smoker), education (<baccalaureate degree), and a belief that genetically predisposed smokers are more likely to relapse. CONCLUSIONS Smokers will likely need education to understand genetically informed cessation treatment. Research is needed to determine how knowledge and beliefs about genetics and smoking influence perceived genetic predisposition for smoking and smoking behaviors.