Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Hemoglobin sickle‐lepore: Report of two siblings and review of the literature

Hemoglobin Lepore is composed of two normal α‐globin chains and two δ‐β fusion globin chains that result from nonhomologous crossing over of genetic material during meiosis. The doubly heterozygous condition of sickle hemoglobin with Lepore hemoglobin (Hb S‐Lepore) is rare, having been described previously in only nine patients. We report two siblings with Hb S‐Lepore who have similar hematologic characteristics but a marked difference in clinical severity. © 1993 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Nutrients determine the spatial architecture of Paracoccus sp. biofilm

Bacterial biofilms adapt and shape their structure in response to varied environmental conditions. A statistical methodology was adopted in this study to empirically investigate the influence of nutrients on biofilm structural parameters deduced from confocal scanning laser microscope images of Paracoccus sp.W1b, a denitrifying bacterium. High concentrations of succinate, Mg++, Ca++, and Mn++ were shown to enhance biofilm formation whereas higher concentration of iron decreased biofilm formation. Biofilm formed at high succinate was uneven with high surface to biovolume ratio. Higher Mg++ or Ca++ concentrations induced cohesion of biofilm cells, but contrasting biofilm architectures were detected. Biofilm with subpopulation of pillar-like protruding cells was distributed on a mosaic form of monolayer cells in medium with 10 mM Mg++. 10 mM Ca++ induced a dense confluent biofilm. Denitrification activity was significantly increased in the Mg++- and Ca++-induced biofilms. Chelator treatment of various biofilm ages indicated that divalent cations are important in the initial stages of biofilm formation.
Synthesis and characterization of grafted cellulose for use in water and metal ions sorption

Graft copolymerization of acrylamide monomer onto cellulose, using ceric ammonium nitrate as initiator, was investigated. Water and metal ions sorption by this grafted cellulose were estimated. The conditions of grafting, e.g. grafting time, dose of initiator, ratio of monomer to cellulose, acid concentration and liquor ratio, were evaluated. The different properties as graft and graft efficiency percentage, as well as polymerization percent, have been determined. Grafted cellulose has been characterized by FTIR and swelling studies. Sorption of different metal ions in the mixture, e.g. Cu, Cr, Ni, and Pb, by grafted cellulose was investigated. The effect of hydrolysis of grafted cellulose by using sodium hydroxide on its swelling properties and metal ions sorption was also investigated. Hydrolysis increases the sorption affinity of grafted cellulose toward water and metal ions.
The Press-Fit Condylar Modular Total Knee System. Four-to-Six-Year Results with a Posterior-Cruciate-Substituting Design*

One hundred and eighteen patients who had had 150 consecutive primary total knee replacements (sixteen bilateral procedures) between February 1988 and February 1990, with insertion of the press-fit condylar modular total knee system with cement, were enrolled in a prospective study. Ninety-six patients (125 knees) were followed for an adequate interval (mean, 4.8 years; range, 3.8 to 6.2 years). Thirteen patients (fifteen knees) died, and nine patients (ten knees) were lost to follow-up. The mean age of the patients at the time of the index arthroplasty was seventy years (range, twenty-nine to eighty-five years). The patients were evaluated clinically and radiographically, according to the scoring system of the Knee Society, and the results on a self-administered questionnaire were used to evaluate pain, function, satisfaction, and patellofemoral symptoms. A Kaplan-Meier survivorship analysis was performed with a revision operation as the end point. The mean functional and clinical scores, according to the system of the Knee Society, were 78 and 93 points, respectively, at the most recent follow-up examination. The result was excellent for 103 knees, good for thirteen, fair for three, and poor for six. Three revision operations were necessary: two because of infection and one because of instability. The over-all rate of patellofemoral symptoms was 8 per cent (ten knees). Three knees had tibiofemoral instability; subsequent modification of the design of the tibial cam decreased the prevalence of this problem. Non-progressive radiolucent lines were present at the cement-bone interface in 39 per cent (thirty-nine) of the ninety-nine knees that had complete radiographic follow-up. No prosthesis had loosened by the time of the most recent follow-up examination. The rate of survival of the implant was 97 per cent at six years, and the standard error of the mean was 1.6 per cent. In the present series, total knee arthroplasties with the press-fit condylar modular knee system resulted in excellent relief of pain, an excellent range of motion, and restoration of function. They were also associated with a low prevalence of patellofemoral problems.
Amyloid precursor protein expression is induced by tumor necrosis factor α in 3T3‐L1 adipocytes

Amyloid precursor protein (APP) has been characterized as an adipocyte‐secreted protein that might contribute to obesity‐related insulin resistance, inflammation, and dementia. In the current study, regulation of APP by the proinflammatory and insulin resistance‐inducing cytokine tumor necrosis factor (TNF) α was determined in 3T3‐L1 adipocytes. Interestingly, APP protein synthesis and mRNA expression were significantly increased by TNFα in a time‐dependent manner with maximal induction observed after 24 h of treatment. Furthermore, TNFα induced APP mRNA expression dose‐dependently with maximal 6.4‐fold upregulation seen at 100 ng/ml effector. Moreover, inhibitor experiments suggested that TNFα‐induced APP expression was mediated by nuclear factor κ B. Taken together, we show for the first time a potent upregulation of APP by TNFα suggesting a potential role of this adipocyte‐secreted protein in TNFα‐induced insulin resistance and inflammatory disease. J. Cell. Biochem. 108: 1418–1422, 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
A reference model for learning analytics

Recently, there is an increasing interest in learning analytics in Technology-Enhanced Learning TEL. Generally, learning analytics deals with the development of methods that harness educational datasets to support the learning process. Learning analytics LA is a multi-disciplinary field involving machine learning, artificial intelligence, information retrieval, statistics and visualisation. LA is also a field in which several related areas of research in TEL converge. These include academic analytics, action analytics and educational data mining. In this paper, we investigate the connections between LA and these related fields. We describe a reference model for LA based on four dimensions, namely data and environments what? , stakeholders who? , objectives why? and methods how? We then review recent publications on LA and its related fields and map them to the four dimensions of the reference model. Furthermore, we identify various challenges and research opportunities in the area of LA in relation to each dimension.
In vivo protection of photoreceptors from light damage by pigment epithelium-derived factor.

PURPOSE To determine whether pigment epithelium-derived factor (PEDF) exhibits neurotrophic and neuroprotective activities in vivo for photoreceptor cells. METHODS Sprague-Dawley albino rats were injected intravitreally with 2 microg PEDF or a mixture of 1 microg basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF)/1 microg PEDF in a volume of 1 microl phosphate-buffered saline (PBS). Animals were exposed to constant light for different periods at an illuminance level of 1200 to 1500 lux. The electroretinogram (ERG) waveforms of both eyes in the same animal were simultaneously recorded to evaluate functional protection. The morphologic protection was evaluated by quantitative histology. RESULTS Intravitreal injection of PEDF before exposure to constant light resulted in significant morphologic and functional protection of photoreceptor cells in the retina of light-damaged rats. This protection depended on the duration and severity of light damage. The protection was eliminated by extending the light exposure to 10 days. Injection of PEDF at 0, 1, and 2 days after constant light exposure did not provide significant protection above that seen in PBS-injected eyes. Combination of PEDF with bFGF improved functional protection of photoreceptor cells. CONCLUSIONS The data demonstrate that PEDF protected photoreceptor cells against light damage. This is significant, because it may open new avenues for the study of molecular mechanisms underlying degenerative processes. This, in turn, may lead to the development of therapeutic strategies for the prevention and treatment of degenerative diseases of the retina.
Reanalyze Fundamental Frequency Peak Delay in Mandarin

In Mandarin, Fundamental Frequency (F0) peak delay has been reported to occur frequently in the rising (R) tone or high (H) tone succeeding by a low (L) tone. Its occurrence was ascribed to articulatory constraints within a conflicting tonal context: a high offset target followed by a low onset target. To further examine the underlying mechanism of the phenomenon, the current study tests the possibility that valley delay, as opposed to peak delay, may occur in an L+H tonal context; and peak or valley delay may also occur within a compatible tonal context where adjacent tonal values are identical or similar. An experiment was done on Annotated Speech Corpus of Chinese Discourse to investigate the frequency of occurrence and amount of peak and valley delay. The results indicated that: F0 peak and valley delay frequently occurred in both conflicting and compatible tonal contexts; the phenomenon was found extensively in R tone and F (falling) tone, but barely in H tone and L tone. The findings suggest that while peak or valley delay is partially due to articulatory constraints in certain tonal contexts, the speakers’ active effort-distribution strategy based on economical principle is also behind the phenomenon.
Navigating natural variation in herbivory-induced secondary metabolism in coyote tobacco populations using MS/MS structural analysis

Significance The study of natural variation has profoundly advanced our understanding of plants’ phenotypic trait evolution. The analysis of intraspecific variations in metabolism, however, has lagged behind and frequently been biased toward central metabolism. To redress this bias, we present a metabolomics case study of leaf secondary metabolites of wild tobacco ecotypes subjected to simulated insect herbivory in which mass spectral maps are constructed. Navigating these maps revealed metabolic branch-specific variations and allowed the annotation of unknown metabolites of likely ecological importance. Although the profiling of entire plant metabolomes remains technically challenging due to their structural complexity, we predict that the workflow described here provides a significant advance in our ability to rapidly explore small molecules that mediate functionally important phenotypes. Natural variation can be extremely useful in unraveling the determinants of phenotypic trait evolution but has rarely been analyzed with unbiased metabolic profiling to understand how its effects are organized at the level of biochemical pathways. Native populations of Nicotiana attenuata, a wild tobacco species, have been shown to be highly genetically diverse for traits important for their interactions with insects. To resolve the chemodiversity existing in these populations, we developed a metabolomics and computational pipeline to annotate leaf metabolic responses to Manduca sexta herbivory. We selected seeds from 43 accessions of different populations from the southwestern United States—including the well-characterized Utah 30th generation inbred accession—and grew 183 plants in the glasshouse for standardized herbivory elicitation. Metabolic profiles were generated from elicited leaves of each plant using a high-throughput ultra HPLC (UHPLC)-quadrupole TOFMS (qTOFMS) method, processed to systematically infer covariation patterns among biochemically related metabolites, as well as unknown ones, and finally assembled to map natural variation. Navigating this map revealed metabolic branch-specific variations that surprisingly only partly overlapped with jasmonate accumulation polymorphisms and deviated from canonical jasmonate signaling. Fragmentation analysis via indiscriminant tandem mass spectrometry (idMS/MS) was conducted with 10 accessions that spanned a large proportion of the variance found in the complete accession dataset, and compound spectra were computationally assembled into spectral similarity networks. The biological information captured by this networking approach facilitates the mining of the mass spectral data of unknowns with high natural variation, as demonstrated by the annotation of a strongly herbivory-inducible phenolic derivative, and can guide pathway analysis.
PASTEURELLA SPP. IN SYMPATRIC BIGHORN AND DOMESTIC SHEEP

Domestic sheep were sighted at different times from 1991 to 1993 on four Nevada (USA) ranges occupied by bighorn sheep. Nasal and pharyngeal swab samples were collected from both sheep species and cultured to determine if any strains of Pasteurella spp. were shared on range conditions after contact of the two species. Pasteurella spp. were isolated from all 38 bighorn sheep and 16 of 17 domestic sheep included in this study. The isolates were characterized on the bases of species, biotype, serotype, biogroup, and restriction enzyme analyses (REA) as well as ribotyping of bacterial DNA. A P. haemolytica biotype 3, biogroup 11 isolate from a domestic sheep had biochemical, REA, and ribotype profiles which were identical to those of isolates from three bighorn sheep on the same range. None of the other isolates were found to be common to the two sheep species. Disease was not detected in any of the bighorn populations. However, bighorn sheep populations were extirpated on two ranges while increasing on the other two, including the range on which P. haemolytica biotype 3, biogroup 11 strain was isolated. Declining sheep numbers were not correlated with the presence of any one strain of Pasteurella spp from the sheep.
AGM1+ spleen cells contain gamma interferon (IFN-gamma) gene transcripts in the early, sex-dependent production of IFN-gamma after picornavirus infection

Encephalomyocarditis D variant (EMCV-D)-infected spleen cell cultures prepared from diabetes-resistant ICR Swiss female mice produce more gamma interferon (IFN-gamma) activity over a 24-h period than do spleen cell cultures from diabetes-susceptible male mice of this strain. Pretreatment of mice with anti-asialo GM1 eliminates early in vitro IFN-gamma production from 4 to 16 h postinfection (p.i.) and reduces IFN-gamma production from 16 to 24 h p.i. In this study, depletion of spleen cells with anti-Thy-1 by panning greatly reduced IFN-gamma activity in EMCV-D-infected spleen cell cultures throughout a 24-h period. Populations of asialo GM1 (AGM1), L3T4, and Lyt-2-positive cells were isolated from cells harvested at 9 h p.i. from EMCV-D-infected spleen cell cultures by a modified panning technique on polystyrene microscope slides. By in situ hybridization with a [35S]dATP-labeled IFN-gamma cDNA probe, only the AGM1-bearing cells were found to contain detectable IFN-gamma gene transcripts. An AGM1+, Thy-1+ natural killer-like cell is the probable producer of the early, sex-dependent IFN-gamma activity in this system.
Detection of Herpes simplex Virus Genomic DNA in Various Subsets of Erythema multiforme by Polymerase Chain Reaction

Background: The wide variation in the detection of herpes simplex virus (HSV) DNA (36–75%) by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in erythema multiforme (EM) may be partly attributed to differences in case selection in terms of subsets of EM studied. Objective: To determine the frequencies of detection of HSV DNA in specific subsets of EM. Methods: Nested PCR was used to detect HSV DNA in skin biopsies with histologically proven EM. Results: PCR was performed on skin biopsies from 63 patients with EM. HSV DNA was detected in 3/11 (27.2%) of single-episode HSV-associated EM (HAEM), 6/10 (60%) of recurrent HAEM, 1/4 (25%) of single-episode idiopathic EM and 6/12 (50%) of recurrent idiopathic EM. HSV DNA was not detected in atypical EM (0/11), suspected drug-induced EM (0/9) or Stevens-Johnson syndrome (0/6). Conclusion: The overall PCR positive rates of HAEM (42.9%) and idiopathic EM (43.8%) were comparable suggesting that idiopathic EM is likely to be related to a subclinical HSV infection.
Implantation of a Closed-Loop Stimulation in the Management of Medically Refractory Focal Epilepsy

Open-loop stimulation studies have shown varying control of seizures with stimulation of different anatomical targets. A recent multi-institutional clinical study utilizing an external closed-loop stimulation system had promising results. A novel implantable closed-loop Responsive Neurostimulation System (RNS) (Neuropace, Inc., Mountainview, Calif., USA) consisting of a cranially implanted pulse generator, one or two quadripolar subdural strip or depth leads and a programmer is under testing in a prospective clinical trial. The RNS pulse generator continuously analyzes the patient’s electrocortigrams (ECoGs) and automatically triggers electrical stimulation when specific ECoG characteristics programmed by the clinician, as indicative of electrographic seizures or precursor of epileptiform activities, are detected. The pulse generator then stores diagnostic information detailing detections and stimulations, including multichannel stored ECoGs. The RNS programmer communicates transcutaneously with the implanted pulse generator when initiated by a clinician. The RNS programmer can download diagnostics and store ECoGs for review. The RNS programmer can then be used to program detection and stimulation parameters. In our current communication, we describe the selection criteria for implanting this system, the preparation of the surgical candidates as well as the surgical technique. We also present our preliminary results with 8 patients who had an RNS implanted. Seven patients (87.5%) had more than 45% decrease in their seizure frequency. The mean follow-up time in our series was 9.2 months. The implantation of a closed-loop stimulation system, in our experience, represents a safe and relatively simple surgical procedure. However, the efficacy of this new treatment modality remains to be determined in further multi-institutional, prospective clinical studies.
Focal Adhesion Kinases and Calcium/Calmodulin-Dependent Protein Kinases Regulate Protein Tyrosine Phosphorylation in Stallion Sperm1

ABSTRACT Protein tyrosine phosphorylation (PY) is a hallmark of sperm capacitation. In stallion sperm, calcium inhibits PY at pH <7.8, mediated by calmodulin. To explore the mechanism of that inhibition, we incubated stallion sperm in media without added calcium, with calcium, or with calcium plus the calmodulin inhibitor W-7 (Ca/W-7 treatment). Treatment with inhibitors of calcium/calmodulin-dependent kinases, protein kinase A (PRKA), or Src family kinases suppressed the PY induced by the absence of added calcium, but not that induced by the Ca/W-7 treatment, indicating that PY in the absence of added calcium occurred via the canonical PRKA pathway, but that PY in the Ca/W-7 treatment did not. This suggested that when calmodulin was inhibited, calcium stimulated PY via a noncanonical pathway. Incubation with PF-431396, an inhibitor of focal adhesion kinases (FAKs), a family of calcium-induced protein tyrosine kinases, inhibited the PY induced both by the absence of added calcium and by the Ca/W-7 treatment. Western blotting demonstrated that both FAK family members, protein tyrosine kinases 2 and 2B, were phosphorylated in the absence of added calcium and in the Ca/W-7 treatment, but not in the presence of calcium without calmodulin inhibitors. Inhibition of FAK proteins inhibited PY in stallion sperm incubated under capacitating conditions (in the presence of calcium, bovine serum albumin, and bicarbonate at pH >7.8). These results show for the first time a role for calcium/calmodulin-dependent kinases in PRKA-dependent sperm PY; a non-PRKA-dependent pathway regulating sperm PY; and the apparent involvement of the FAK family of protein tyrosine kinases downstream in both pathways.
Anti-asialo GM1 antibody suppression of cyclophosphamide-induced diabetes in NOD mice.

To elucidate the role of natural killer (NK) cells in the pathogenesis of diabetes in the non-obese diabetic (NOD) mouse, we examined whether or not cyclophosphamide-induced diabetes occurs in NOD mice intraperitoneally (i.p.) injected with anti-asialo GM1 antibody. Two weeks after a single intraperitoneal injection of cyclophosphamide, none of the 24 NOD mice which had previously been treated with antiasialo GM1 antibody, 2-3 times per week for either 2 or 3 weeks, had developed indications of diabetes such as glycosuria or a high plasma glucose level. On the other hand, signs of diabetes were found in 10 of 24 control NOD mice injected with normal rabbit Ig instead of anti-asialo GM1 antibody (p less than 0.01). The NK cell activities of spleen cells from anti-asialo GM1 antibody-treated mice were significantly lower than those of control mice (p less than 0.01). Flowcytometry analysis demonstrated that anti-asialo GM1 antibody-positive cells had disappeared from the spleens of anti-asialo GM1 antibody-injected mice but no suppression of CD8+ and CD4+ cells could be demonstrated. These observations suggest that NK cells are involved in the development of diabetes in NOD mice.
Coalescing binary systems of compact objects to (post)5/2-Newtonian order. II. Higher-order wave forms and radiation recoil.

Using formulas developed by Blanchet, Damour, and Iyer, we obtain a symmetric trace-free multipolar expansion of the gravitational radiation from a coalescing binary system which is sufficiently accurate to allow a post-Newtonian calculation of the linear momentum carried off by the gravitational radiation prior to a binary coalescence. We briefly examine the structure of the post-quadrupole corrections to the wave form for an orbiting binary system near coalescence
Temporal relationship between left ventricular and arterial system elastances

The authors investigated the temporal relationship of arterial compliance to ventricular elastance of the left ventricle (E/sub lv/(t)) in five open-chest anesthetized dogs, where simultaneous aortic pressure and flow and left-ventricular pressure were measured. E/sub lv/(t) was derived using an elastance-resistance model of the left ventricle. The nonlinear pressure-dependent compliance (C(P)) of the arterial system was incorporated in a three-element Windkessel model and determined by accurate prediction of aortic pressure from aortic flow. The resulting arterial elastance E/sub as/(t) was computed as E/sub as/(t)=1/C(P). Results show that E/sub as/(t) reaches a minimum value at or near the start of ventricular ejection and attains its peak value at or near the time that maximum left ventricular elastance is reached, at end-systole. Numerical simulation of the model demonstrates its ability to adequately reproduce measured pressure and flow. Thus, the arterial system, in terms of elastance, is dynamically and temporally coupled to the left-ventricle during ejection. <<ETX>>