Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
PDGF enhances orbital fibroblast responses to TSHR stimulating autoantibodies in Graves' ophthalmopathy patients.

PURPOSE Thyroid-stimulating hormone receptor (TSHR) stimulating autoantibodies are associated with Graves' ophthalmopathy (GO), the orbital manifestation of Graves' disease (GD). TSHR autoantibody levels and orbital TSHR expression levels correlate positively with GO disease activity. Platelet-derived growth factors (PDGF) are increased in GO and potently activate orbital fibroblast effector functions. We investigated the possible relationship between PDGF and TSHR expression on orbital fibroblasts and how that influences the immunopathological effects of TSHR autoantibodies on orbital fibroblast activity. METHODS Orbital fibroblasts were stimulated with PDGF-AA, PDGF-AB, and PDGF-BB, and TSHR expression was determined by flow cytometry. Stimulatory effects of bovine TSH and GD immunoglobulins on orbital fibroblasts (with or without PDGF-BB preincubation) were determined by IL-6, IL-8, chemokine (C-C motif) ligand (CCL)-2, CCL5, CCL7, and hyaluronan ELISA. The TSHR blocking antibody K1-70 and the cAMP inhibitor H89 were used to determine involvement of TSHR signaling. RESULTS PDGF-AB and PDGF-BB stimulation increased TSHR expression on orbital fibroblasts, whereas PDGF-AA did not. Furthermore, stimulation with bovine TSH and immunoglobulins from GD patients induced IL-6, IL-8, CCL2, and hyaluronan production by orbital fibroblasts, and PDGF-BB preincubation enhanced this response of orbital fibroblasts. Blocking studies with a TSHR blocking antibody and a cAMP inhibitor inhibited these effects, indicating the involvement of TSHR signaling and thus of TSHR stimulating autoantibodies herein. CONCLUSIONS These findings indicate that PDGF-B containing PDGF isoforms amplify the immunopathological effects of TSHR-stimulating autoantibodies in GO patients by stimulating TSHR expression on orbital fibroblasts.
Advertising in a differentiated duopoly and its policy implications for an open economy

In this paper, we develop a model of advertising in a differentiated duopoly in which firms first decide how much to invest in cooperative or predatory advertising and then engage in product market competition (Cournot or Bertrand). We then use this model, with endogenously determined type of advertising, to explore the policy implications in the context of a Brander-Spencer third-country model of strategic trade. We first analyse optimal policies when governments use both trade and industrial policies and show that these policies are substitutes. We then study optimal policy when governments can use only one policy instrument and show that industrial policy is robust, i.e., governments will always use an advertising subsidy irrespective of the type of advertising and form of market competition. More interestingly we show that for a range of parameter values we also get robust trade policy in which governments always use a trade subsidy irrespective of the type of advertising or form of market competition. Keywords; cooperative advertising, predatory advertising, first best policy combination, robust industrial policy, robust trade policy
A New Aspect of the Molecular Pathogenesis of Paroxysmal Nocturnal Hemoglobinuria

Abstract Paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH) is an acquired clonal hematologic disorder which is manifest by complement-mediated hemolysis, venous thrombosis, and bone marrow failure. Complement-mediated hemolysis in PNH is explained by the deficiency of glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI)-anchored proteins, CD55 and CD59 on erythrocyte surfaces. All the PNH patients had phosphatidylinositol glycan-class A (PIG-A) gene abnormalities in various cell types, indicating that PIG-A gene mutations cause the defects in GPI-anchored proteins that are essential for the pathogenesis of PNH. In addition, a PIG-A gene abnormality results in a PNH clone. Bone marrow failure causes cytopenias associated with a proliferative decrease of its hematopoietic stem cells and appears to be related to a pre-leukemic state. Although it is unclear how a PNH clone expands in bone marrow, it is considered that the most important hypothesis implicates negative selection of a PNH clone, but it does not explain the changes in the clinical features at the terminal stage of PNH. Recently, it has been suggested that an immune mechanism, in an HLA-restricted manner, plays an important role in the occurrence or selection of a PNH clone and GPI may be a target for cytotoxic-T lymphocytes. Also, it has been indicated that the Wilms' tumor gene (WT1) product is related to a PNH clone, but the significance of WT1 expression is not clear because of the functional diversity of the gene. To elucidate this problem, it is important to know the pathophysiology of bone marrow failure in detail and how bone marrow failure affects hematopoietic stem cells and immune mechanisms in bone marrow failure syndromes.
[Current aspects of para-suicidal poisoning].

BACKGROUND The study was designed to evaluate critically the background, findings and outcome in patients who have carried out suicidal and parasuicidal acts. PATIENTS AND METHODS All parasuicidal patients who were admitted to the Department of Medicine of the University of Mainz over a period of 1 year were investigated. The basic data of all patients was documented (time of the parasuicidal act, stay in hospital, clinical parameters, psychiatric appraisals and therapy instituted). The semistructured interview "European Parasuicide Study Interview Schedule (EPSIS)" of the WHO/EURO was used to record the psychosocial background. RESULTS The 153 patients were mostly suffering from intoxications with sedatives and psychoactive agents: they comprised 53 male (35%) and 100 female (65%) patients. The average age was 36 years. Eighty-two suicide patients were treated in the emergency admission section and 65 in intensive-care units. The duration of treatment in the emergency admission section averaged 9 hours, as compared to about 6 days on the intensive-care unit. Extracentral effects were most prominent amongst the "sequelae" of intoxications. Discharged directly to their homes were 58%, 31% to psychiatric hospitals and 9% to general wards; 2% died. The primary elimination of poison was achieved by induced vomiting in 40% of the cases, and by pumping out the stomach in 23%. There were no serious clinical alterations of clinical test parameters. Artificial ventilation was required in 8%. 107 suicide cases (61%) investigated psychiatrically showed moderate (41%) and severe (20%) psychological abnormalities. Depressive syndrome (35%, of these 1 third with major depression), which frequently occurred in the context of an acute stress reaction, predominated amongst the diagnoses. Forty-two patients could be interviewed 6 days after suicide or parasuicide. Of those 90% interviewed had visited their family doctor in the course of the year before the current admission. Thirty-one patients had already received outpatient therapy and 15 had undergone an inpatient form of psychiatric therapy.
Family Function and Self-esteem among Chinese University Students with and without Grandparenting Experience: Moderating Effect of Social Support

This study examines the association between family function and self-esteem of Chinese university students with grandparenting experience, and explores the moderating effects of social support in this link. Two thousand five hundred thirty university students (1372 males and 1158 females) from a Chinese university completed the Perceived Social Support Scale, the Rosenberg’s Self-esteem Scale, and the Family Assessment Device (FAD). Six hundred and forty-five (25.69%) students reported grandparenting experience and they reported lower scores on self-esteem and social support than the students raised only by their parents. The grandparenting group scored higher on such dimensions of family functioning as Communication, Role, Affective Involvement, Affective Responsiveness, and General Family Function (GF) than their counterpart group. For both groups, self-esteem scores were positively correlated with social support scores, while negatively correlated with FAD all sub-scale scores. Hierarchical regression analysis showed that for the students with grandparenting experience the social support moderated the relationship between GF and self-esteem. When students reported a high level of social support, those with low GF score reported higher scores in self-esteem than those with low self-esteem. However, in case of low social support, there were no differences in self-esteem between groups with high and low GF scores. These findings suggest that social support plays a positive role to relieve the adverse impact of poor family function on self-esteem of the adolescents with grandparenting experience. In addition, the significance and limitations of the results will be discussed.
Impact of a Rigid, Puncture Resistant Container System Upon Needlestick Injuries

Abstract Needlestick injuries in a 720-bed tertiary care hospital were analyzed before and after the introduction of a rigid, puncture resistant, needle disposal system. Following implementation of the system, disposal-related injuries decreased from 0.9 per 100 full-time equivalent employees/year to 0.3 per 100 full-time equivalent employees/year (p <.005). However, needlesticks associated with procedures (2.2 vs. 4.4 per 100 full-time equivalent employees/year, p <.0005), and those resulting from loose needles (0.5 vs. 1.9 per 100 full-time equivalent employees/year, p <.0005), increased. Injuries occurring during needle recapping or the carrying of needles were not significantly altered. Total needlestick injuries increased from 6.0 to 8.7 per 100 full-time equivalent employees/year (p <.0005). We concluded that a rigid, puncture resistant, needle disposal system can reduce disposal-related needlestick injuries, but must also be perceived as convenient to impact substantially upon needlesticks associated with other activities.
Specific Sequences in the N and C Termini of Apolipoprotein A-IV Modulate Its Conformation and Lipid Association*

Apolipoprotein (apoA-IV) is a 376-residue exchangeable apolipoprotein that may play a number of important roles in lipid metabolism, including chylomicron assembly, reverse cholesterol transport, and appetite regulation. In vivo, apoA-IV exists in both lipid-poor and lipid-associated forms, and the balance between these states may determine its function. We examined the structural elements that modulate apoA-IV lipid binding by producing a series of deletion mutants and determining their ability to interact with phospholipid liposomes. We found that the deletion of residues 333–343 strongly increased the lipid association rate versus native apoA-IV. Additional mutagenesis revealed that two phenylalanine residues at positions 334 and 335 mediated this lipid binding inhibitory effect. We also observed that residues 11–20 in the N terminus were required for the enhanced lipid affinity induced by deletion of the C-terminal sequence. We propose a structural model in which these sequences can modulate the conformation and lipid affinity of apoA-IV.
Some comparative aspects of milk from four species of bears.

Milk specimens obtained from 26 individual bears representing Ursus americanas, U. maritimus , three subspecies of U. arctos , and Helarctos malayanus were analyzed for gross composition and were characterized for carbohydrates, fats, and proteins. Bear milks contain high concentrations of fat, proteins, and minerals, but are low in carbohydrates. The lactose content of milk from bears maintained in zoos was much higher than that from wild bears. Myo -inositol was identified as a prominent constituent. The principal fatty acids are palmitic (C16:0) and oleic (C18:1). Polar bear milk fat, however, has significant concentrations of palmitoleic (C16:1) and long chain fatty acids, probably derived from food fat. The caseins of bear milk consist of two principal groups of proteins readily separable by gel electrophoresis. The whey proteins contain five groups of proteins not found in blood. These exhibit evidence of great species specificity and, in some cases, of genetic polymorphism within species.
中国晚期原发性肺癌诊治专家共识（2016年版）

China Experts Consensus on the Diagnosis and Treatment of Advanced Stage Primary Lung Cancer (2016 Version) Yuankai SHI, Yan SUN, Jinming YU, Cuimin DING, Ziping WANG, Changli WANG, Dong WANG, Cunde WANG, Zheng WANG, Mengzhao WANG, Xiuyi ZHI, You LU, Jifeng FENG, Yunpeng LIU, Xiaoqing LIU, Wei LIU, Gang WU, Xiaomei LI, Kai LI, Enxiao LI, Wei LI, Gongyan CHEN, Zhengtang CHEN, Ping YU, Ning WU, Milu WU, Wenhua XIAO, Li ZHANG, Yiping ZHANG, Shucai ZHANG, Shujun YANG, Xia SONG, Dongmei LIN, Rongcheng LUO, Li SHAN, Caicun ZHOU, Zongmei ZHOU, Qiong ZHAO, Chengping HU, Yi HU, Qisen GUO, Jianhua CHANG, Cheng HUANG, Xuan ZENG, Baohui HAN, Xiaohong HAN, Bo JIA, Ying HAN, Yu HUANG Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Beijing Key Laboratory of Clinical Study on Anticancer Molecular Targeted Drugs, Beijing 100021, China; Shandong Province Cancer Hospital, Ji’nan 250117, China; The Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang 050000, China; Beijing Cancer Hospital, Beijing 100142, China; Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute & Hospital, Tianjin 300070, China; Daping Hospital, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing 400042, China; Yunnan Province Cancer Hospital, Kunming 650118, China; Beijing Hospital, Beijing 100730, China; Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Beijing 100730, China; Beijing Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100053, China; West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China; Jiangsu Cancer Hospital, Nanjing 210009, China; The First Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang 110001, China; The 307 Hospital of Chinese People’s Liberation Army, Beijing 100071, China; Huazhong University of Science and Technology Union Hospital, Wuhan 430022, China; Chinese People’s Liberation Army General Hospital, Beijing 100853, China; The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710061, China; The First Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun 130021, China; Harbin Medical University Cancer Hospital, Harbin 150081, DOI: 10.3779/j.issn. 1009-3419.2016. 01.01
A Study with a Follow-up of the Effects of Music Education on Holistic Development of Empathy

Half of the 32 children, aged 6 yr. old, took part in the 12-hr. holistic empathy education program with music exercises over three months. Others were controls. Children were tested at a pretest, 3 months later at the posttest after the training, and follow-up test, 9 months after posttest. The Feshbach and Roe Empathy Slide Test, the Weir and Duveen Prosociability Rating Scale, and the Kalliopuska Prosociability Rating Scale for Teachers were used. Empathy and prosociability increased significantly from pretest to posttest after empathy education. As hypothesized, comparison of pretest and follow-up test results showed a significant increase in empathy for the test group and a nonsignificant increase among controls.
Do Independent Audit Committees Prevent Auditor Opinion Shopping?

This study analyses the impact of audit committee independence on auditor dismissal decisions and the successor auditor choice. We pay special attention to those changes that take place after firms receive a qualified audit report. These changes may be considered the observable consequence of the unobservable threat of dismissal from a client who decides to improve the audit report, a threat that could impair auditor independence. We also analyze subsequent auditor choice looking at auditors’ economic dependence on the client as a proxy for the level of independence of the new auditor. Motivation for this study comes from an interest in audit committees’ effectiveness in reducing the scope of auditor opinion shopping. Results from a sample of 110 listed Spanish companies between 1998-2005 show that more independent audit committees reduce the likelihood of auditor change after the company has received a qualified audit report. In those firms that change the auditor subsequent to the reception of a qualified report, more independent audit committees prevent the appointment of a new auditor of lower independence. We also find a positive and significant relation between audit committee independence and auditor dismissals following clean opinions. In these cases, more independent audit committees promote the selection of an auditor with a lower level of economic dependence, in comparison with the predecessor. These findings may have political implications because existing regulations do not limit the presence of inside directors on audit committees. This study is also a valuable contribution to the existing literature on the topic.
The Antidepressant-like Effects of Estrogen-mediated Ghrelin

Ghrelin, one of the brain-gut peptides, stimulates food-intake. Recently, ghrelin has also shown to play an important role in depression treatment. However, the mechanism of ghrelin’s antidepressant-like actions is unknown. On the other hand, sex differences in depression, and the fluctuation of estrogens secretion have been proved to play a key role in depression. It has been reported that women have higher level of ghrelin expression, and ghrelin can stimulate estrogen secretion while estrogen acts as a positive feedback mechanism to up-regulate ghrelin level. Ghrelin may be a potential regulator of reproductive function, and estrogen may have additional effect in ghrelin’s antidepressantlike actions. In this review, we summarize antidepressant-like effects of ghrelin and estrogen in basic and clinical studies, and provide new insight on ghrelin’s effect in depression.
Vertical knowledge transfer from multinational enterprises (MNEs) to Chinese supplier firms: An explorative study

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Measuring Public AnnouncementsÃ­ Disclosure Quality on Tallinn, Riga and Vilnius Stock Exchanges

Previous literature has been occupied with measuring disclosure quality in financial reports and no indication has been provided on how the quality of public announcements could be measured. The purpose of this paper is to introduce a methodological approach to its measurement and to illustrate its implementation possibilities in the context of Tallinn, Riga and Vilnius Stock Exchanges. The disclosure quality measure proposed was based on six quality attributes (informativeness, relevance, precision, rarity, frequency, and unexpectedness) defined in the context of information theory and operationalised through finance/accounting and cognitive psychology theories. Implementation in the context of three capital markets confirmed that there has been an increase in disclosure quality over time. Company size and stock exchange where the company was listed affected its disclosure quality level. Main areas for disclosure quality improvement were identified and the results also indicated that small firms and companies with low quality disclosures tended to be less prone to disclosure quality improvement.
ARR1, a Transcription Factor for Genes Immediately Responsive to Cytokinins

Cytokinins are a class of phytohormones involved in various physiological events of plants. The Arabidopsis sensor histidine kinase CRE1 was recently reported to be a cytokinin receptor. We used a steroid-inducible system to show that the transcription factor–type response regulator ARR1 directs transcriptional activation of the ARR6 gene, which responds to cytokinins without de novo protein synthesis. This fact, together with characteristics ofARR1-overexpressing plants and arr1 mutant plants, indicates that the phosphorelay to ARR1, probably from CRE1, constitutes an intracellular signal transduction occurring immediately after cytokinin perception.
The Epstein-Barr virus LMP1 cytoplasmic carboxy terminus is essential for B-lymphocyte transformation; fibroblast cocultivation complements a critical function within the terminal 155 residues

Recombinant Epstein-Barr viruses (EBVs) were made with mutated latent membrane protein 1 (LMP1) genes that express only the LMP1 amino-terminal cytoplasmic and six transmembrane domains (MS187) or these domains and the first 44 amino acids of the 200-residue LMP1 carboxy-terminal domain (MS231). After infection of primary B lymphocytes with virus stocks having small numbers of recombinant virus and large numbers of P3HR-1 EBV which is transformation defective but wild type (WT) for LMP1, all lymphoblastoid cell lines (LCLs) that had MS187 or MS231 LMP1 also had WT LMP1 provided by the coinfecting P3HR-1 EBV. Lytic virus infection was induced in these coinfected LCLs, and primary B lymphocytes were infected. In over 200 second-generation LCLs, MS187 LMP1 was never present without WT LMP1. Screening of over 600 LCLs infected with virus from MS231 recombinant virus-infected LCLs identified two LCLs which were infected with an MS231 recombinant without WT LMP1. The MS231 recombinant virus could growth transform primary B lymphocytes when cells were grown on fibroblast feeders. Even after 6 months on fibroblast feeder layers, cells transformed by the MS231 recombinant virus died when transferred to medium without fibroblast feeder cells. These data indicate that the LMP1 carboxy terminus is essential for WT growth-transforming activity. The first 44 amino acids of the carboxy-terminal cytoplasmic domain probably include an essential effector of cell growth transformation, while a deletion of the rest of LMP1 can be complemented by growth on fibroblast feeder layers. LMP1 residues 232 to 386 therefore provide a growth factor-like effect for the transformation of B lymphocytes. This effect may be indicative of the broader role of LMP1 in cell growth transformation.
The Role of the DAP12 Signal in Mouse Myeloid Differentiation1

DAP12 is a recently cloned, immunoreceptor tyrosine-based activation motif-bearing transmembrane adapter molecule that is associated with the NK-activating receptors. Previous reports showed that the DAP12 message could be detected not only in NK cells but also in granulocytes, monocytes, dendritic cells, and macrophages. In this study we found a significant level of DAP12 protein expression in macrophage-related cell lines and organs. Additionally, we observed increased expression of DAP12 after LPS-induced differentiation of M1 cells into macrophages. To examine the role of DAP12 in the myeloid cell lineage, we established M1 FLAG-DAP12 transfectants (FDAP-M1) and demonstrated the marked morphological changes in FDAP-M1 cells caused by signaling through DAP12. Cell surface phenotypic analysis showed up-regulation of macrophage markers CD11b, 2.4G2, and adhesion molecule B7-2. Additionally, after stimulation through DAP12, phosphorylated FLAG -DAP12 could be immunoprecipitated using anti-phosphotyrosine mAbs. Collectively, these findings indicate that direct DAP12 signaling has an important role in macrophage differentiation.