Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Predictions of Binding for Dopamine D2 Receptor Antagonists by the SIE Method

The control of tetralindiol derivative antagonists released through the inhibition of dopamine D2 receptors has been identified as a potential target for the treatment of schizophrenia. We employed molecular dynamics simulation techniques to identify the predicted D2 receptor structure. Homology models of the protein were developed on the basis of crystal structures of four receptor crystals. Compound docking revealed the possible binding mode. In addition, the docking analyses results indicate that five residues (Asp72, Val73, Cys76, Leu183, and Phe187) were responsible for the selectivity of the tetralindiol derivatives. Our molecular dynamics simulations were applied in combination with the solvated interaction energies (SIE) technique to predict the compounds' docking modes in the binding pocket of the D2 receptor. The simulations revealed satisfactory correlations between the calculated and experimental binding affinities of all seven tetralindiol derivative antagonists, as indicated by the obtained R2 value of 0.815.
Usefulness of desmopressin testing to predict relapse during long-term follow-up in patients in remission from Cushing’s disease

Recurrence of Cushing’s disease after successful transsphenoidal surgery occurs in some 30% of the patients and the response to desmopressin shortly after surgery has been proposed as a marker for disease recurrence. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the response to desmopressin over time after surgery. We tested 56 patients with Cushing’s disease in remission after transsphenoidal surgery with desmopressin for up to 20 years after surgery. The ACTH and cortisol response to desmopressin over time was evaluated in patients on long-term remission or undergoing relapse; an increase by at least 27 pg/mL in ACTH levels identified responders. The vast majority of patients who underwent successful adenomectomy failed to respond to desmopressin after surgery and this response pattern was maintained over time in patients on long-term remission. Conversely, a response to desmopressin reappeared in patients who subsequently developed a recurrence of Cushing’s disease, even years prior to frank hypercortisolism. It appears therefore that a change in the response pattern to desmopressin proves predictive of recurrence of Cushing’s disease and may indicate which patients require close monitoring.
HIGH NA CONTENT OF EARLY EMBRYONIC CHICK HEART.

Ultrafiltration and fractional centrifugation methods using Na24- and K42-labeled myocardia were employed to demonstrate the fractions of bound and free Na and K in isolated embryonic chick ventricles between 2 and 19 days of development. The data revealed a high percentage of bound Na in the cell-solids fraction of 2- and 3-day hearts. After 5 days Na binding remained constant at 25–30% in the whole homogenate. Bound K remained constant at 25–30% throughout development agreeing with the 70% exchangeability calculated from earlier unidirectional flux experiments. The data confirmed a high degree of Na binding in the early embryonic myocardium and indicated that the large fraction of nonexchangeable ventricular Na at 7 days, measured by flux studies, might depend at least in part on the structural integrity of the myocardial cell rather than on specific binding. Polysaccharide analyses were performed on early embryonic hearts which contained relatively large amounts of cardiac jelly substance. The 2-day heart contains 2–3% acid and 6% neutral polysaccharide. The mucoprotein cardiac jelly is discussed in terms of its Na binding and occluding capacity from the viewpoint of the physicochemical properties of macromolecular systems.
Tyrosine dephosphorylation of nuclear proteins mimics transforming growth factor beta 1 stimulation of alpha 2(I) collagen gene expression

Transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGF-beta 1) exerts a positive effect on the transcription of genes coding for several extracellular matrix-related products, including collagen I. We have previously identified a strong TGF-beta 1-responsive element (TbRE) in the upstream promoter sequence of the alpha 2(I) collagen (COL1A2) gene. Our experiments have shown that TGF-beta 1 stimulates COL1A2 transcription by increasing binding of an Sp1-containing complex (TbRC) to the TbRE. They have also suggested that the change occurs via posttranslational modification of a protein(s) directly or indirectly interacting with Sp1. Here, we provide evidence showing that tyrosine dephosphorylation of nuclear proteins mimics the stimulation of COL1A2 transcription by the TGF-beta 1-activated signaling pathway. Preincubation of nuclear extracts with protein tyrosine phosphatase (PTPase) but not with protein phosphatase type 2A (PP2A), a serine/threonine phosphatase, enhanced binding of the TbRC to the same degree as culturing cells in TGF-beta 1. Consistent with these in vitro findings, genistein, a tyrosine kinase inhibitor, led to markedly increased COL1A2 gene expression, whereas sodium orthovanadate, a tyrosine phosphatase inhibitor, decreased it substantially. These results were supported by transfection experiments showing that genistein and sodium orthovanadate have opposite effects on TbRE-mediated transcription. Moreover, nuclear proteins isolated from genistein-treated cells were found to interact with the TbRE significantly more than those from untreated cells. Furthermore, pretreatment of cells with sodium orthovanadate virtually abrogated nuclear protein binding to the TbRE, but not to a neighboring cis-acting element unresponsive to TGF-beta 1. The results of this study, therefore, provide the first correlation between tyrosine dephosphorylation, increased binding of a transcriptional complex, and TGF-beta 1 stimulation of gene expression.
Electrical Properties of Surface-Tailored ZnO Nanowire Field-Effect Transistors

A review on the tunable electrical properties of ZnO nanowire field-effect transistors (FETs) is presented. The FETs made from surface-tailored ZnO nanowire exhibit two different types of operation modes, which are distinguished as depletion and enhancement modes in terms of the polarity of the threshold voltage. We demonstrate that the transport properties of ZnO nanowire FETs are associated with the influence of nanowire size and surface roughness associated with the presence of surface trap states at the interfaces as well as the surface chemistry in environments.
Viral infection + tropism for improving small population performance under noisy environment

In this paper we report on the effect of viral infection with tropism on the formation of building blocks in genetic operations. In previous research, we applied genetic algorithms to the analysis of time-series signals with noise. We demonstrated the possibility of reducing the number of required entities and improving the rate of convergence when searching for a solution by having some of the host chromosomes harbor viruses with a tropism function. Here, we simulate problems having both multimodality and deceptiveness features and problems that include noise as test functions, and show that viral infection with tropism can increase the proportion of building blocks in the population when it cannot be assumed that a necessary and sufficient number of entities are available to find a solution. We show that this capability is especially noticeable in problems that include noise.
THE COST OF POST-BURN SCARRING LE COÛT DES CICATRICES SUITE AUX

Deep burns lead to scarring and contractures for which there is little or no published data on treatment costs. The purpose of this study was to fill this gap by analysing treatment costs for burn sequelae. To do this, German-DRG for in-patient treatment was collected from the Burn Centre Lower Saxony. DRG-related T95. -coding served as a tool for burn-associated sequelae. Data on scar occurrence, plastic-reconstructive surgery and sick leave were collected by a questionnaire. The findings showed that 44.6% patients reported post-burn scarring and 31% needed surgical intervention. The expected risk for readmission was significantly higher (p=0.0002) with scars compared to without. Significantly higher costs for pressure garments were noted for scarred patients (p=0.04). No differences were found for ointments, silicone dressings or pain medication. Treatment costs for patients with scars were 5.6 times higher compared with no scar assessed by G-DRG. No differences were stated subsuming multiple readmissions for post-burn treatment per individual. Significantly higher costs (p=0.03) were noted for patients with burn sequelae other than scars with regard to individual readmissions. It has been revealed that treatment of scars causes higher costs than for other burn sequelae because of multiple surgical interventions. To reduce post-burn scarring and costs, specialized burn centres provide optimal and state-of-the-art treatment. As well as this, more emphasis should be laid on promoting research for the development of novel anti-scarring therapies.
Case‐control and within‐family tests for an association between conduct disorder and 5HTTLPR

Several lines of research have suggested that serotonin dysfunction is associated with aggression, impulsivity, and antisocial behavior. A functional polymorphism in the promoter region (s, short and l, long allele variant) of the serotonin transporter gene (SLC6A4) that results in decreased transcription of the serotonin transporter gene has been linked with such serotonin dysfunction. To test for an association between 5HTTLPR genotype and conduct disorder diagnosis/aggression. Analysis for association between 5HTTLPR and conduct disorder/aggression using a case‐control design and the transmission disequilibrium test. Conduct‐disordered adolescents, who were drawn from admissions to a program that treats adolescents with serious substance and behavior problems, and conduct‐disordered siblings of these patients (n, 297) were compared with non‐conduct‐disordered control adolescents and non‐conduct‐disordered siblings of these controls (n, 93). Second, using patient families where parental DNA was available, transmission disequilibrium tests were conducted for two phenotypes: (1) conduct disorder (74 trios), and (2) conduct disorder with at least one aggressive symptom (57 trios). Case‐control analyses suggested a strong association between the ss genotype and conduct disorder (χ 22 = 14.3; P < 0.01). Within‐family analyses for conduct disorder with at least one aggressive symptom significantly favored greater transmission of the s‐allele to affected offspring (χ tdt2 = 4.13; P = 0.04); for conduct disorder, without aggressive symptoms, however, results were non‐significant (χ tdt2 = 1.61; P = 0.20). These data suggest that the s‐allele may confer some risk for aggressive behavior or may be in linkage disequilibrium with such an allele. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Electric spring for power quality improvement

In this paper, we discuss the principles of operating the electric spring (ES) as a reactive power compensator and as a power factor corrector. The theory on electric springs with capacitors for voltage stabilization is reviewed to present a general idea on the behavior of ES. Further discussion focuses on the principle of ES with batteries to cover its eight possible operating modes and their usefulness in providing line current regulation. An input current control scheme is designed for ES with batteries to validate its capability in power factor correction. A low-voltage single-phase power system with different types of loads has been built for verifying the feasibility of proposed theory of ES with batteries. Experimental results show that the ES is capable of performing the eight operating modes when changing the power consumption of the non-critical load, and that with the proposed input current control, the ES can achieve power factor correction for both RL and RC loads.
The Effect of Humorous Movies on Inpatients With Chronic Schizophrenia

We assessed the impact of humorous movies on psychopathology, anxiety, depression, anger, social functioning, insight, and therapeutic alliance in schizophrenia inpatients. Twenty-nine psychiatric inpatients in open wards participated in the study. The study group viewed humorous and the control group viewed neutral movies daily for 3 months. Participants were assessed before and after viewing movies with the Positive and Negative Symptom Scale, Calgary Depression Scale, the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, the State-Trait Anger Expression Inventory-2, the Multinomah Community Ability Scale, the Insight and Treatment Attitude Questionnaire, and the Working Alliance Inventory. Reduced levels of psychopathology, anger, anxiety, and depression symptoms and an improvement in social competence were revealed in the study group. No changes were observed in treatment insight or working alliance. Video films are a practical and cost-efficient means of entertainment that seem to have a positive effect on patient morale, mood, and mental status.
Ribosome Reinitiation Directs Gene-specific Translation and Regulates the Integrated Stress Response*

Background: eIF2α-P induced GADD34 and constitutively expressed CReP target PP1c to dephosphorylate eIF2α-P to dictate translation control of the ISR. Results: Differential expression of GADD34 and CReP is regulated by upstream ORF (uORF)-mediated ribosome reinitiation. Conclusion: uORFs regulate differential expression of GADD34 and CReP and are important for cell adaptation to stress. Significance: Regulation of eIF2α-P is central for protein homeostasis and cell viability. In the integrated stress response, phosphorylation of eIF2α (eIF2α-P) reduces protein synthesis to conserve resources and facilitate preferential translation of transcripts that promote stress adaptation. Preferentially translated GADD34 (PPP1R15A) and constitutively expressed CReP (PPP1R15B) function to dephosphorylate eIF2α-P and restore protein synthesis. The 5′-leaders of GADD34 and CReP contain two upstream ORFs (uORFs). Using biochemical and genetic approaches we show that features of these uORFs are central for their differential expression. In the absence of stress, translation of an inhibitory uORF in GADD34 acts as a barrier that prevents reinitiation at the GADD34 coding region. Enhanced eIF2α-P during stress directs ribosome bypass of the uORF, facilitating translation of the GADD34 coding region. CReP expression occurs independent of eIF2α-P via an uORF that allows for translation reinitiation at the CReP coding region independent of stress. Importantly, alterations in the GADD34 uORF affect the status of eIF2α-P, translational control, and cell adaptation to stress. These results show that properties of uORFs that permit ribosome reinitiation are critical for directing gene-specific translational control in the integrated stress response.
Molecular cloning of the hemolysin determinant from Vibrio cholerae El Tor

Vibrio cholerae El Tor RV79 is phenotypically nonhemolytic; however, strongly hemolytic convertants are occasionally observed on blood agar plates. We have cloned DNA sequences corresponding to the hemolysin determinant from RV79 (Hly+) in the lambda L47.1 and pBR322 vectors. A 2.3-kilobase fragment of V. cholerae DNA was found to be necessary for hemolytic activity. This cloned DNA sequence was used as a probe in Southern blot hybridization analysis of chromosomal restriction digests of a variety of El Tor and classical biotype V. cholerae strains. In all cases, DNA fragments with the same electrophoretic mobilities hybridized to the Hly probe. The results presented demonstrate that the cloned hemolysin determinant is the hly locus. By using mutator vibriophage VcA-3 insertion to promote high-frequency transfer, the hly locus was mapped between arg and ilv on the V. cholerae RV79 chromosome.
[Risk factors for low birthweight in a Cuban hospital, 1997-2000].

OBJECTIVE To determine what maternal risk factors that are present during pregnancy are associated with low birthweight (less than 2 500 g). METHODS A case-control study was conducted with 764 products of single births weighing less than 2 500 g at birth, and 1 437 controls from Hospital Gineco-Obstétrico Provincial in Sancti Spiritus, Cuba, during the 1997-2000 quadrennium. The data were obtained from clinical records, reports of labor, and personal interviews with mothers. A bivariate analysis was performed, and possible confounders were controlled for through dichotomous logistic regression using SPSS. A final multivariate statistical model used was to identify maternal risk factors for low birthweight. RESULTS The results of multivariate analysis showed a significant association between low birthweight, the presence of anemia when the pregnancy was detected, urinary tract infection during pregnancy, bronchial asthma, total maternal weight gain under 8 kg during pregnancy, smoking while pregnant, a history of previous children with low birthweight, arterial hypertension since before pregnancy, and inadequate timing of visit for follow-up of initial prenatal care. CONCLUSIONS On the basis of these results it was concluded that, regardless of the impact measurement method used, it is important to try to reduce the risk factors identified in the study in order to lower the incidence of low birthweight in the province of Sancti Spiritus.
Attitudes of medical genetics practitioners and psychiatrists toward communicating with patients about genetic risk for psychiatric disorders

Objectives The aim of this study was to examine the self-rated competencies and perceived roles of medical geneticists, genetic counselors, and psychiatrists in the communication of genetic risk for psychiatric disorders to patients and families at an increased risk for schizophrenia, bipolar disorder or major depressive disorder, and their perspectives on training needs in this field. Materials and methods Clinically active members of the Human Genetics Society of Australasia (HGSA) and the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists (RANZCP) were invited to complete the online survey. A total of 157 responses were included in data analysis: 17 medical geneticists, 36 genetics counselors, and 104 psychiatrists. Results In all, 34.4% of the respondents disagreed that their professional training had prepared them to discuss genetic information about psychiatric illnesses with patients. Medical geneticists perceived significantly higher levels of self-rated competency to discuss with patients and families genetic information on psychiatric disorders compared with genetic counselors and psychiatrists (t=−0.61, P=0.001; &bgr;=0.33, 95% confidence interval 0.16–0.49, P<0.001). Conclusion Findings suggest deficiencies in education and training programs on how to best communicate psychiatric genetic risk information to patients, suggesting that specialist programs are needed to better support health professionals. As self-rated competencies differed among the professional groups, training programs need to be tailored to participants’ professional backgrounds.
Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans Leukotoxin Utilizes a Cholesterol Recognition/Amino Acid Consensus Site for Membrane Association*

Background: A repeats-in-toxin (RTX) leukotoxin and its integrin receptor aggregate in cholesterol-rich lipid rafts. Results: The affinity of the toxin to cholesterol is driven by a cholesterol recognition/amino acid consensus (CRAC) motif. Conclusion: Leukotoxin cytotoxicity is regulated by the CRAC motif. Significance: Other RTX toxins contain this CRAC motif, suggesting a role for cholesterol recognition in RTX cytolysis. Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans produces a repeats-in-toxin (RTX) leukotoxin (LtxA) that selectively kills human immune cells. Binding of LtxA to its β2 integrin receptor (lymphocyte function-associated antigen-1 (LFA-1)) results in the clustering of the toxin·receptor complex in lipid rafts. Clustering occurs only in the presence of LFA-1 and cholesterol, and LtxA is unable to kill cells lacking either LFA-1 or cholesterol. Here, the interaction of LtxA with cholesterol was measured using surface plasmon resonance and differential scanning calorimetry. The binding of LtxA to phospholipid bilayers increased by 4 orders of magnitude in the presence of 40% cholesterol relative to the absence of cholesterol. The affinity was specific to cholesterol and required an intact secondary structure. LtxA contains two cholesterol recognition/amino acid consensus (CRAC) sites; CRAC336 (333LEEYSKR339) is highly conserved among RTX toxins, whereas CRAC503 (501VDYLK505) is unique to LtxA. A peptide corresponding to CRAC336 inhibited the ability of LtxA to kill Jurkat (Jn.9) cells. Although peptides corresponding to both CRAC336 and CRAC503 bind cholesterol, only CRAC336 competitively inhibited LtxA binding to this sterol. A panel of full-length LtxA CRAC mutants demonstrated that an intact CRAC336 site was essential for LtxA cytotoxicity. The conservation of CRAC336 among RTX toxins suggests that this mechanism may be conserved among RTX toxins.
Clinicopathological pattern and management of retinoblastoma in Kano, Nigeria.

BACKGROUND The aim of the study is to evaluate the pattern of presentation and the mode of management of retinoblastoma seen in Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital, Kano from 2001 to 2005. MATERIALS AND METHODS The clinic register was used to obtain the case folders of all children treated for retinoblastoma and this was used to obtain information on patient's age, sex, and clinical sign(s) at presentation such as orbital mass, leucocoria, proptosis, hyphaema without history of trauma, unexplained hypopyon, or uveitis. Also documented were X ray/B mode ultrasound scan findings, type of surgery performed, histological diagnosis, and adjuvant chemotherapy where applicable. RESULTS Forty-two patients were reviewed, 15 males and 27 females (M: F = 1.0: 1.8). The age ranged between 2 and 6 years and the peak age of presentation was 3 years in 22 patients (52%). The tumor was unilateral in 40 patients (95%) and bilateral in 2 patients (5%). Most of the patients (46%) presented late with fungating orbital mass. Other signs include leucocoria 22%, proptosis 19%, hyphema 7%, Hypopyon 2%, squint 2%, and buphthalmos 2%. Thirty-one patients (74%) had exenteration and enucleation was performed in 11 patients (26%). The tumor was histologically confirmed in 41 patients (98%) and was poorly differentiated in 23 patients (55%), 1 patient (2%) had toxocara granuloma. Thirty-nine patients required adjuvant chemotherapy and only 2 received 6 (full) courses. CONCLUSION Retinoblastoma, a treatable tumor is characterized by late presentation as illustrated in our study. There is need to create public awareness and educate mothers on this tumor so that there is early diagnosis, appropriate referral, and prompt treatment. The goal is to increase number of children successfully cured of this disease in our environment.