Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Envisioning the Sicilian-Maltese archipelago: a Braudelian inspired triple-level analysis of a European cross-border region

This article seeks to advance the current debate on the ‘archipelagic turn’ described by island studies. It does so by answering the call for further analysis of island-to-island relations (Stratford et al., 2011) through applying existing historical methodology with the identification of island movements (Pugh, 2013) between archipelagic islands. Firstly, it proposes the application of an adapted method by combining Fernand Braudel’s historical durations (Longue Durée) (1972) with an original attempt of island movements’ classification; this is done to conceive a triple-level historical analysis (Long, Medium and Short Term) of islands belonging to archipelagos. Secondly, this article hints at the possibility for island territories inside the European Union to translate archipelagic visions into viable policies by means of European Territorial Cooperation strategies as provided by the European institutional framework. Such arguments are then supported by comparative analysis proving the existence of an archipelago between the islands of Sicily and Malta. In our case study, we both apply the triple-level methodology and suggest that the exploitation of European CrossBorder Cooperation instruments and strategies (such as the Euroregion) could be highly useful for the recovery of a Sicilian-Maltese Archipelago vision.
Campylobacter jejuni Dps Protein Binds DNA in the Presence of Iron or Hydrogen Peroxide

ABSTRACT Iron is an essential cofactor for many enzymes; however, this metal can lead to the formation of reactive oxygen species. Ferritin proteins bind and oxidize Fe2+ to Fe3+, storing this metal in a nonreactive form. In some organisms, a particular subfamily of ferritins, namely, Dps proteins, have the ability to bind DNA. Here we show that the Campylobacter jejuni Dps has DNA binding activity that is uniquely activated by Fe2+ or H2O2 at below neutral pH. The Dps-DNA binding activity correlated with the ability of Dps to self-aggregate. The Dps-DNA interaction was inhibited by NaCl and Mg2+, suggesting the formation of ionic interactions between Dps and DNA. Alkylation of cysteines affected DNA binding in the presence of H2O2 but not in the presence of Fe2+. Replacement of all cysteines in C. jejuni Dps with serines did not affect DNA binding, excluding the participation of cysteine in H2O2 sensing. Dps was able to protect DNA in vitro from enzymatic cleavage and damage by hydroxyl radicals. A C. jejuni dps mutant was less resistant to H2O2 in vivo. The concerted activation of Dps-DNA binding in response to low pH, H2O2, and Fe2+ may protect C. jejuni DNA during host colonization.
Optimal Location of Railway Stations: The Lisbon-Porto High-Speed Rail Line

Rail transportation has experienced a rebirth in the last few decades, and a very large investment will certainly be made in new railway lines in the years to come---especially in high-speed rail lines. The success of such investment is heavily dependent on rail ridership, which in turn is dependent on the location of railway stations. In this paper, we present a mixed-integer optimization model that determines the optimal location and number of stations along a railway line that will be introduced over an existing transportation network. The stations are chosen within a set of possible locations defined a priori according to the objective of maximizing travel cost savings. The model takes into account the sensitivity of rail ridership to time losses because of stops at intermediate stations, as well as static competition from other modes. The practical usefulness of the model is illustrated with a case study involving a high-speed rail line expected to be built in Portugal in the future: the Lisbon-Porto line.
Neuronal Correlates of Visual Working Memory in the Corvid Endbrain

The concept of working memory is key to cognitive functioning. Working memory encompasses the capacity to retain immediately past information, to process this information, and to use it to guide goal-directed behavior. Corvid songbirds are renowned for their high-level cognitive capabilities, but where and how visual information is temporarily retained by neurons in the avian brain in a behaviorally relevant way remains poorly understood. We trained four carrion crows (Corvus corone) on versions of a delayed match-to-sample task that required the crows to remember a visual stimulus for later comparison. While the crows performed the task, we recorded the activity of single neurons in the nidopallium caudolaterale (NCL), a pallial association area of the avian endbrain. We show that many NCL neurons encode information about visual stimuli and temporarily maintain this information after the stimulus disappeared by sustained delay activity. Selective delay activity allows the birds to hold relevant information in memory and correlates with discrimination behavior. This suggests that sustained activity of NCL neurons is a neuronal correlate of visual working memory in the corvid brain and serves to bridge temporal gaps, thereby offering a workspace for processing immediately past visual information.
From learning to forgetting: Behavioral, circuitry, and molecular properties define the different functional states of the recognition memory trace

Neuropsychological analyses of amnesic patients, as well as lesion experiments, indicate that the temporal lobe is essential for the encoding, storage, and expression of object recognition memory (ORM). However, temporal lobe structures directly involved in the consolidation and reconsolidation of these memories are not yet well‐defined. We report here that systemic administration of a protein synthesis inhibitor before or up to 4 h after training or reactivation sessions impairs consolidation and reconsolidation of ORM, without affecting short‐term memory. We have also observed that ORM reconsolidation is sensitive to protein synthesis inhibition, independently of the ORM trace age. Using bdnf and egr‐1 gene expression analysis, we defined temporal lobe areas related to consolidation and reconsolidation of ORM. Training and reactivation 21 days after ORM acquisition sessions provoked changes in bdnf mRNA in somatosensory, perirhinal, and hippocampal cortices. Reactivation 2 days after the training session elicited changes in bdnf and egr‐1 mRNA in entorhinal and prefrontal cortices, while reactivation 9 days post‐training provoked an increase in egr‐1 transcription in somatosensory and entorhinal cortices. The differences in activated circuits and in the capacity to recall the memory trace after 9 or 21 days post‐training suggest that memory trace suffers functional changes in this period of time. All these results indicate that the functional state of the recognition memory trace, from acquisition to forgetting, can be specifically defined by behavioral, circuitry, and molecular properties. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Platelet taurine content in Friedreich's disease

Abstract We have studied the concentrations of taurine and of 6 other amino acids in platelets from 12 patients with Friedreich's disease and 12 age sex-matched normal control subjects. No significant differences could be demonstrated between the two groups. The glycine/serine ratio was lower in all the patients but this change did not reach statistical significance. From these and other data, we conclude that the taurine retention deficit observed previously in Friedreich's disease cannot be the primary causal defect.
Processed meat and the risk of selected digestive tract and laryngeal neoplasms in Switzerland.

BACKGROUND Processed meat has been related to the risk of digestive tract neoplasms but the evidence remains inconclusive. We examined data from a network of case-control studies conducted between 1992 and 2002 in the Swiss Canton of Vaud. PATIENTS AND METHODS We studied 316 patients with incident, histologically confirmed oral and pharyngeal cancer, 138 patients with oesophageal cancer, 91 patients with laryngeal cancer and 323 patients with colorectal cancer. Controls were 1271 subjects admitted to the same hospital for a wide spectrum of acute non-neoplastic conditions, unrelated to long-term modification of diet. RESULTS There were strong direct trends in risk between consumption of processed meat and the various neoplasms considered: the multivariate odds ratios for the highest quartile of intake compared to the lowest were 4.7 for oral and pharyngeal cancer, 4.5 for oesophageal cancer, 3.4 for laryngeal cancer and 2.5 for colorectal cancer. The association was stronger in younger subjects, in moderate drinkers and in non-smokers. CONCLUSION Processed meat represents a strong indicator of unfavourable diet for digestive tract and laryngeal cancer risk in this population.
Monetary Policy Spillovers Through Invoicing Currencies

This paper explores the role of trade invoicing currencies in the international spillover of monetary policy. Using high-frequency measures of Federal Reserve monetary policy shocks, I show the exchange rates, interest rates and equity returns in countries with larger shares of dollar-invoiced imports systematically respond more to US monetary policy. I document similar transmission effects from ECB monetary policy shocks to countries with euro-invoiced imports. I rationalize these findings within a New Keynesian framework. As a result of these spillover effects, countries where traded goods are should be less effective at implementing domestic monetary policy.
Control of retroviral RNA splicing through maintenance of suboptimal processing signals

The full-length retroviral transcript serves as genomic RNA for progeny virions, as an mRNA for structural proteins and enzymes, and as a pre-mRNA substrate for splicing that yields subgenomic mRNAs that encode other essential proteins. Thus, RNA splicing to form subgenomic mRNAs must be incomplete or regulated in order to preserve some of the full-length transcripts. We have used the avian sarcoma virus system to delineate the viral functions that are required in the regulation of the splicing event that forms the envelope glycoprotein (env) subgenomic mRNA. We observed previously that a specific insertion mutation just 5' of the env splice acceptor site resulted in nearly complete splicing to form env mRNA and a concomitant replication defect which is presumably due to a deficit of the full-length transcript. Replication-competent pseudorevertants contained second-site mutations that restored splicing control, and these mapped either just upstream or downstream of the env splice acceptor site. In this report, we show that splicing control at this site does not require expression of any known viral replication protein(s), nor does it appear to require the viral splice donor site. From these results and analysis of additional splicing mutations obtained by in vivo selection, we conclude that splicing is controlled through the maintenance of suboptimal cis-acting signals in the viral RNA that alter the efficiency of recognition by the cellular splicing machinery.
Inhibitors of Fibrinolytic Components Play Different Roles in the Formation and Removal of Arterial Thrombus in Mice

Plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) and &agr;2-anti-plasmin (&agr;2-AP) may contribute to arterial thrombolysis resistance. The role of these components on thrombus evolution in vivo was investigated in mice deficient for PAI-1 (PAI-1 −/− ) or &agr;2-AP (&agr;2-AP −/− ) or their wild-type counterparts (PAI-1 +/+, &agr;2-AP +/+ ). Moreover, the influence of either PAI-1 or &agr;2-AP deficiency on the results of pharmacologic inhibition of glycoprotein IIb/IIIa of platelets or thrombin was also investigated. A thrombus was induced in the murine carotid artery by endothelial injury. The &agr;2-AP −/− mice were indistinguishable from wild-type, whereas the time to occlusion in PAI-1 −/− was significantly prolonged to 24.9 ± 3.7 min. Vascular patency was markedly increased in both PAI-1- and &agr;2-AP-deficient mice. In separate animals, either a glycoprotein IIb/IIIa antagonist or a thrombin inhibitor was applied. The time required to occlusion was prolonged in a dose-dependent manner in all types of mice. When each compound was administered to PAI-1 −/− mice, significant changes were observed. In conclusion, lack of PAI-1 prolongs the time to occlusion and accelerates clot lysis, whereas &agr;2-AP only has an effect on spontaneous reperfusion. Consequently, the inhibition of PAI-1, but not of &agr;2-AP, could enhance the effects of anti-thrombotic therapy.
Analysis of chemical composition and its analgesic and anti- inflammatory activity of essential oil of sintoc bark (Cinnamomum sintoc bl.) using in vivo methods

Article history: Sintoc bark (Cinnamomum sintoc Bl) belongs to Lauraceae (the laurel family). It has been used empirically for a treatment for swelling caused by insects' bites. In this study, the research examined the analgesic activity and anti-inflammation of essential oil of sintocbark using in vivo methods. The mechanism of anti-inflammation was predicted using molecular docking against COX-2. Essential oil of sintoc bark was collected by distilling through steam distillation, and then analyzed by GC-MS. Analgesic and anti-inflammatory activity was examined by in vivo, which were conducted by writhing and carrageenan-induced methods, respectively. The findings showed that the tested sintoc bark oils contained 36 components of essential oil with eugenol (38.38 %) as a major compound. In the in vivo experiments, sintoc bark oils with doses 0.005 mL, 0.010 mL, and 0.020 mL/20g body weight significantly (p<0.05) reduced the number of writhing of mice when compared to negative control group. All of doses of sintoc bark oils gave significantly affect (confidence level 99 %) compare to negative control. Sintoc oil with dose 0.2 ml/200g had the strongest inhibition compare to positive control (indometasin 10 mg/kg body weight). The molecular docking results indicated that the compounds of aryl propanoid were generally potential to inhibit COX-2.
Hypothermia Is Correlated With Seizure Absence in Perinatal Stroke

Within a single-center prospective cohort study of neonatal encephalopathy involving 315 subjects, 15 neonates were found to have a focal stroke on magnetic resonance imaging. These 15 patients were matched on the basis of gender and degree of encephalopathy to 30 neonates without stroke from the same cohort. On Bayley Scales of Infant Development, the stroke group had Mental Development Index scores that were 1.7 standard deviations lower compared with controls (P = .007). This association was no longer seen after adjustment for the presence of neonatal seizures (P = .11). Of the 15 patients with stroke, 5 had been treated with hypothermia. None of these 5 had seizures in the neonatal period, compared with 7 of the untreated 10. This is the first human study to demonstrate a potential treatment effect of therapeutic hypothermia on perinatal stroke. It was also shown that seizures are associated with worse cognitive outcomes for stroke that presents with encephalopathy.
The Effect of Smoking on Glucose Homeostasis and Fetal Growth in Pregnant Women

Abstract Objective: To examine the relationship between maternal blood glucose levels, cigarette smoking in pregnancy and fetal growth. Design A prospective study of healthy parous women from early pregnancy and their infants. Setting: Three Scandinavian university hospitals covering all deliveries from well defined geographical areas. Subjects: Study groups of non-smoking (150), light smoking (131) and heavily smoking mothers (218), para 1 and 2 and with > 37 weeks of gestational length. Main outcome measures: Oral glucose tolerance test performed in pregnancy week 37, glycated hemoglobin measured the 3rd day post partum and neonatal anthropometric parameters including skinfold measurements. Results: Among heavily smoking mothers 12.4% displayed a 2-hour glucose value in the range of gestational diabetes (> 8.5 mmol/l) compared to 9.2% among light smokers and 6.0% among nonsmokers (p < 0.05). Heavily smoking mothers also had significantly (p < 0.05) higher glycated hemoglobin compared to nonsmokers, 5.01 v.s. 4.86. These changes in glucose parameters in smokers were not associated with higher birthweights. Conclusions: Smoking in pregnancy affects parameters of glucose homeostasis in the direction of gestational diabetes. The retarding effect of smoking on fetal growth abolished any expected growth stimulation from the higher blood glucose levels seen in the smokers.
Two new hyaline-ascospored species of Trichoderma and their phylogenetic positions

Collections of hypocrealean fungi found on decaying wood in subtropical regions of China were examined. Two new species, Trichoderma confluens and T. hubeiense, were discovered and are described. Trichoderma confluens is characterized by its widely effuse to rarely pulvinate, yellow stromata with densely disposed yellowish brown ostioles, simple acremonium- to verticillium-like conidiophores, hyaline conidia and multiform chlamydospores. Trichoderma hubeiense has pulvinate, grayish yellow stromata with brownish ostioles, trichoderma- to verticillium-like conidiophores and hyaline conidia. The phylogenetic positions of the two fungi were investigated based on sequence analyses of RNA polymerase II subunit b and translation elongation factor 1-α genes. The results indicate that T. confluens belongs to the Hypocreanum clade and is associated with but clearly separated from T. applanatum and T. decipiens. Trichoderma hubeiense belongs to the Polysporum clade and related to T. bavaricum but obviously differs from other members of the clade in sequence data. Morphological distinctions between the new species and their close relatives are noted and discussed.
Activation for Health Management in Colorectal Cancer Survivors and Their Family Caregivers

Activation, the state of possessing the skills, knowledge, and confidence to manage one’s own health, is associated with positive self-management behaviors in individuals with chronic illness. Little is known about its role in cancer survivorship. The aims of this study were to describe activation in patients with colorectal cancer and their family caregivers, examine the relationship between patient and caregiver activation, and determine whether activation is related to symptom distress, depression, anxiety, fatigue, physical activity, and work productivity. Using a longitudinal, correlational design, a convenience sample of 62 patients and 42 family caregivers completed surveys during postoperative hospitalization, and at 6 weeks and 4 months postop. Activation scores for both patients and caregivers were stable over time, were not correlated, and were at the third level of activation. Linear mixed effects models revealed that negative emotions were associated with less patient activation and lower caregiver self-efficacy for caring for oneself.
A genetic linkage map of the apicomplexan protozoan parasite Eimeria tenella.

Apicomplexan protozoan parasites have complex life cycles that involve phases of asexual and sexual reproduction. Some genera have intermediate insect hosts, for example, Plasmodium spp. (the cause of malaria), but related genera such as Eimeria spp. (causative agents of coccidiosis in poultry) have a direct life cycle occurring in only a single host. Mechanisms that regulate the life cycles of apicomplexan parasites are unknown, but the intracellular growth of avian Eimeria spp. is easily shortened by serial selection for the first parasites to complete the transition from asexual to sexual reproduction (to yield so-called precocious lines). To investigate the genetic basis of such an abbreviated life cycle, we have used the species E. tenella and analyzed the inheritance of 443 polymorphic DNA markers in 22 recombinant cloned progeny derived from a cross between parents that had selectable phenotypes of precocious development or resistance to an anticoccidial drug. The markers were placed in 16 linkage groups (which defined 12 chromosomes) and a further 57 unlinked groups. Two linkage groups showed an association (P =.0105) with the traits of precocious development or drug-resistance and were mapped to chromosome 2 (ca 1.2 Mbp) and chromosome 1 (ca 1.0 Mbp), respectively. The map provides a framework for further studies on the identification of genetic loci implicated in the regulation of the life cycle of an important protozoan parasite and a representative of a major taxonomic group. [A table with the segregation data is available as an online supplement at http://www.genome. org. ]
Predictors of Change during Long-Term Analytic Group Psychotherapy

Background: All studies on patient variables as predictors of outcome are on short-term groups. Therefore, we wanted to study predictors of outcome in an observational study of 69 out-patients treated in long-term, analytic group therapy (mean = 32.5 months). Methods: Based on results from research on short-term groups, we selected 6 predictor variables representing central domains (demographics, diagnosis, initial severity of disturbance, chronicity, expectancy, and treatment duration) and explored their relationship with 5 outcome variables (Global Assessment of Functioning, Global Severity Index, Inventory of Interpersonal Problems-Circumplex, global improvement, and chief complaints) by multiple regression analyses. Results: Treatment duration up to 2.5 years was a strong positive predictor. Contrary to findings from many short-term studies, the presence of personality disorder, chronicity, and high initial severity of symptoms were not associated with less favourable outcome. Furthermore, marital status was not a positive predictor, and expectancy of a better outcome was only positively related to 1 of the outcome variables. Highly tentative results from exploratory stepwise regression analyses indicated that interpersonal problems on the subscale of ‘coldness’ might also be a negative predictor in long-term therapy. Conclusions: The study indicates that predictors of outcome in long-term group therapy may be different from those found in short-term therapy.
Effect of Increasing Fertilization Levels on Alternate Bearing of Olive Cv. "Picual"

The present study was carried out for three successive seasons 2008/2009, 2009/2010 and 2010/2011 on fifteen years old of olive trees cv. Picual to reduce the degree of alternate bearing through fertilization by NPK over than the rates recommended by the Ministry of Agriculture and Lands Reclamation. The obtained results showed that, fertilizing olive trees with 50% over NPK recommended doses in heavy crop year "on year" had a positive effect on improving the vegetative growth and increase yield in application year and the next year and reduce the degree of alternate bearing and improves fruit characteristics and oil content. alternate bearing fruit characteristics.