Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Reply

We thank Boteon et al. for providing valuable comments to our study on lipid metabolism of human livers during normothermic machine perfusion (NMP). The authors, who have extensive experience with this technology, highlighted that one of the limitations of our study was the use of a software that lacked the ability to discriminate between microsteatosis and macrosteatosis. We agree that this is important information to collect in future studies and that this limitation should have been described in our discussion because it is clinically relevant. Regarding the observation that 30% of our livers were not steatotic, we would like to point out that these livers presented microsteatosis on histological analysis and therefore provided us an opportunity to assess lipid metabolism during NMP, even if this form of steatosis does not impact transplant outcomes. We agree with the authors that far too many transplantable livers are discarded every year around the world on the basis of “gut feeling” rather than objectivity. We believe that ex vivo organ assessment has the potential to fill this 5-decade-long knowledge gap. Lastly, the authors were “surprised that the manuscript did not emphasize” what should have been the key message of this report: the inability of the human eye to predict liver steatosis based on mere visualization. This was not the goal of our study, as this observation has already been investigated in the literature.
Inhibition and Rhythmic Activity of the Circular Muscles of Calliactis Parasitica (Couch)

1. The responses to electrical stimulation of isolated rings of the column and pedal disk of Calliactis are described. Such rings make slow spontaneous contractions which are frequently rhythmical, the interval between contractions normally being 7-20 min. 2. Continuous low-frequency stimulation inhibits spontaneous activity of rings from the pedal disk and also of fresh rings from more adoral regions of the column. Older rings from the mid-column respond to such stimulation by a tetanic contraction. 3. The latency of response to electrical stimulation of pedal rings is of the order of 120 sec. This latency is not affected by stimulation frequency but is prolonged by increase in the number of shocks applied. 4. Stimulation of a pedal ring at the onset of a contraction prevents the further development of this contraction, while stimulation as a contraction reaches its maximum is followed by more rapid relaxation than in unstimulated controls. 5. Mid-column rings when freshly prepared show a latency of the order of 120 sec. As the preparation ages, a double response to stimulation appears; the first response has a latency of about 30-40 sec. and presently becomes the only type of response shown. 6. If two sets of stimuli are applied to a mid-column ring, the magnitude of response to the second set increases as the time between stimulations increases. With long intervals an almost total contraction is obtained in response to a single shock. 7. The effect of intercalated stimuli upon the rhythm of spontaneous activity is studied. The effect is very variable and it is suggested that this is the result of electrical stimulation having both an excitatory and an inhibitory effect. 8. The very long latent periods characteristic of pedal rings and the rhythmic activity of these preparations are interpreted as interactions of excitation and inhibition.
Effects of Female Adult Age and Parasitism Experience on the Parasitic Rate and Offspring of Microplitis tuberculifer Wesmael

The effects of female adult age and parasitism experience on the parasitic rate and offspring of Microplitis tuberculifer Wesmael were studied.The results showed that the parasitic rate increased at the beginning and then fell down,both of the experienced and inexperienced wasps had the highest parasitic rate when they were at 3-day old,which were 52.38% and 54.61%,respectively.The cocoon weight of offspring was the highest when the experienced and inexperienced wasp were at 2-day old,which reached 2.96-2.85 mg.Then it decreased with the increasing of female adult age.The adult weight of female offspring increased at the beginning and then fell down.However,the adult weight of male offspring at 0-2 day old and 7 day old was lower than that at 3-6 day old.The ratio of female to male of offspring produced by 1-3 day old wasp was higher,and it reached the highest when the female adult was at 3-day old.Then,the ratio became falling down.The offspring produced by newly emerged female without copulation was all male.Moreover,the parasitized experience had no significant effects on the parasitic rate,cocoon weight of offspring,the ratio of female to male,and adult weight.
Continuing medical education

Gediminas Kiudelis1, laimas Jonaitis1, Kęstutis Adamonis1, Aida Žvirblienė1, algimantas tamelis2, Rima Kregždytė3, Rūta Kučinskienė4, Jurgita Šventoraitytė5, Limas Kupčinskas1 1Department of Gastroenterology, Medical Academy, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, 2Department of Surgery, Medical Academy, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, 3Department of Preventive Medicine, Medical Academy, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, 4Department of Children’s Diseases, Medical Academy, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, 5Laboratory of Clinical and Molecular Gastroenterology, Institute for Digestive Research, Medical Academy, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Lithuania
Influences of Short -term Aerobic Exercise and Supplementation of Carnitine With or Without Choline on Body Weight, Serum Leptin and Carnitine as Well as Lipid Status In Male Rats

Background: Carnitine is essential for fatty acids translocation, muscles function and exercise performance. Choline is a lipotropic agent that prevents deposition of fat in the liver. The studies concerning the effects of carnitine and choline supplementation with exercise on carnitine status and serum leptin are rare. The aim of the present study was to study the effect of carnitine and its combination with choline, with or without exercise on body and total fat pad (TFP) weights, serum carnitine, leptin, β-hydroxy butyric acid (β-HBA), triacylglycerols (TAG) and Free Fatty acids (FFA). Also, total lipids (TL) and TAG content of TFP and urinary carnitine were investigated. Material and Methods: 48 male rats were equally divided to the following groups: control (C), carnitine (5 g/Kg diet) supplemented, carnitine plus choline (5 and 11.5 g /Kg diet respectively) supplemented. Half of each group was subjected to short term aerobic exercise on manual treadmill, in which the speed and duration were gradually increased via the course of the experiment, to be 10 m/min for 20 min/day, 5 days/week in the last 2 weeks. Body weights were recorded weekly. After 6 weeks, The 24 hours urine was collected then the fasted rats were sacrificed and blood and the total fat pad (TFP) were collected for analysis. Results: Carnitine supplementation, tended to decrease body weight, TFP, TAG content and serum FFA, and significantly decreased the TL content, serum leptin, TAG (P<0.0005). Carnitine feeding resulted in a significant elevation of serum carnitine, β-HBA and urinary carnitine (P<0.0005), compared to sedentary control rats. These values became more pronounced on choline addition to the diet except for serum and urinary carnitine that reversed (i.e. decreased) by choline addition. Exercise intervention resulted in a significant decrease in body weight, TFP, TL content and serum leptin, TAG and FFA. These values were more pronounced in both supplements with exercise, specially serum carnitine. However, exercise caused reduction of urinary carnitine in non-supplemented and carnitine supplemented groups and this was reversed by choline and exercise. Conclusion: Our study demonstrated that the beneficial effects of carnitine supplements is promoted by choline with or without mild exercise to reduce body weight, body fat, serum leptin and promote fat loss by increasing lipolysis as indicated by increased serum β-HBA. These results may or may not be applicable to humans, so further research is recommended to determine whether similar effects would result in humans or not.
Clonal relationships among Escherichia coli serogroup O78 isolates from human and animal infections

We investigated the clonal relationships among 63 Escherichia coli strains of antigen serogroup O78 isolated from infections in humans, cattle, sheep, pigs, and chickens. Both septicemic and enterotoxigenic isolates were included in the study. A main group of 55 E. coli strains consisting of 52 septicemic isolates and 3 human enterotoxigenic E. coli isolates were clustered in related clones. The remaining eight strains, four human and four animal isolates, were clonally heterogeneous. The main group of 55 clonally related strains included isolates from human and animal infections. This result indicates that animals are a possible source of serogroup O78 septicemic E. coli infections in humans.
Competition in spoken word recognition: Spotting words in other words

Although word boundaries are rarely clearly marked, listeners can rapidly recognize the individual words of spoken sentences. Some theories explain this in terms of competition between multiply activated lexical hypotheses; others invoke sensitivity to prosodic structure. We describe a connectionist model, SHORTLIST, in which recognition by activation and competition is successful with a realistically sized lexicon. Three experiments are then reported in which listeners detected real words embedded in nonsense strings, some of which were themselves the onsets of longer words. Effects both of competition between words and of prosodic structure were observed, suggesting that activation and competition alone are not sufficient to explain word recognition in continuous speech
Ten years of prospective Clostridium difficile-associated disease surveillance and treatment at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center, 1982-1991.

Objectives To understand the epidemiology, risks, and management of Clostridium difficile-associated disease (CDAD) and to establish and evaluate reliable methods of surveillance. Design Case finding was done by daily ward and laboratory rounds. The criteria for CDAD diagnosis were: at least four unformed stools per day for 2 days and a positive culture or cytotoxin for C difficile, or positive endoscopy or autopsy for pseudomembranes. Setting The surveillance covered all patients from 1982 through 1991 in the 820-bed Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Medical Center. Participants The criteria were met by 908 patients. Medical service patients numbered 488; surgical patients, 420. Frequencies ranged from a high of 149 cases in 1982 to a low of 50 cases in 1989. Results Stool specimens were obtained on 898 (99%) of the 908 CDAD patients. Stools were culture-positive in 864 (96%) of 898, cytotoxin-positive in 569 (63%) of 898. Endoscopy was performed on 196 (22%) of the 908 patients, and 80 (41%) of 196 patients had pseudomembranes. Ten (1%) of the 908 patients were diagnosed by endoscopy without a stool specimen, or at autopsy. No treatment was needed for 135 (15%) of the 908 CDAD patients, and 19 (2%) of the 908 died before treatment was started. Oral metronidazole was the treatment for 632 (70%) of 908 patients (1% intolerance, 2% failure, 7% relapse) and oral vancomycin was given to 122 (13%) of 908 patients (1% intolerance, 1% failure, 10% relapse). Twelve patients had pseudomembranous colitis at autopsy, and it was the primary cause of death in 5 (0.6%) of 908. Conclusions CDAD usually responds to oral metronidazole or vancomycin but is nonetheless responsible for a high morbidity and occasional mortality in patients even when the diagnosis and treatment are pursued aggressively.
International Trade and Environmental Quality: How Important Are the Linkages?

This paper develops a numerical general equilibrium model of the world economy with local and global environmental externalities. The model is then used to investigate the relationship between trade and the environment. The authors' results suggest that international trade has little impact on environmental quality. Furthermore, the magnitude of the welfare effects of environmental policies is not significantly affected by changes in trade policies. At the same time, the size and distribution of the gains from trade liberalization appear to be little affected by changes in environmental policies.
Changes of protective enzymes activities responding to Sclerotinia sclerotiorum inoculation in non-heading Chinese cabbages

Non-heading Chinese cabbage(Brassica campestris ssp.chinensis Makino) varieties,003-R-6,Y3-R-4,109-S-9 and 003-S-7,with different resistances to Sclerotinia sclerotiorum were selected as materials to study the activity changes of superoxide dismutase(SOD),catalase(CAT),phenylalanine ammonia-lyase(PAL),and polyphenol oxidase(PPO) after inoculation at seedling stage,and a simple linear regression analysis was made associated with the disease index.The resistant varieties showed higher CAT,PAL and PPO activities and lower SOD activity than the susceptible varieties in uninfected plants.Compared with the control,the protective enzymes activities increased significantly after inoculation with Sclerotinia sclerotiorum,and the resistant varieties were more sensitive than the susceptible varieties.Correlation analysis revealed that the variation ranges of SOD,CAT,PAL and PPO activities were positively correlated with the resistances to Sclerotinia sclerotiorum of non-heading Chinese cabbage,and the correlation coefficients were 0.814 3*,0.964 1*,0.999 4* * and 0.999 0* *,respectively.
Combining Priming and Plant Growth Regulators Improves Musk melon Germination and Emergence at Low Temperatures

Summary The effects of incorporating plant growth regulators into the priming solution on low temperature germination and emergence performance of muskmelon [Cucumis melo L. (Reticulatus Group) cv. ‘Athena’] seeds were investigated. Seeds were primed for 6 days at 25 °C in darkness in 3.5 % (0.35 M) KNO3 solution containing one of the following: 1, 3, 5 or 10 µM methyl jasmonate (MeJA), or 1, 3, 5 or 10 mM spermine. Following priming, seeds were subjected to germination and emergence tests at 15±0.5 °C. Priming muskmelon seeds in the presence or absence of plant growth regulators significantly improved germination percentage, rate and synchrony at 15 °C compared to untreated seeds. Inclusion of both MeJA and spermine at all concentrations except 10 µM MeJA resulted in higher germination percentages compared to seeds primed in KNO3 only. The highest germination percentages were obtained from seeds that were primed in KNO3 solution supplemented with 1 µM MeJA (96 %) and 1 mM (94 %) spermine. Moreover, the presence of both growth regulators in the priming solution improved low temperature emergence of muskmelon seeds compared to untreated seeds and seeds primed in KNO3 solution alone. Inclusion of 1 µM MeJA and 3 mM spermine into the priming solution led to the highest emergence percentages with 90 % and 85 %, respectively, while priming in KNO3 solution in the absence of plant growth regulators resulted in significantly lower emergence percentage (31 %). Therefore, priming in 1 µM of MeJA or 3 mM spermine incorporated into the KNO3 solution can be used as an effective method to improve low temperature performance of muskmelon seeds.
Race, Gender, and Development in Brazil

Latin Americanists have devoted considerable attention over the past two decades to the relationship between economic growth and social inequality. A bibliography of the articles and books on the consequences of development for income, class, and gender would surely run to many pages. Yet within that impressive literature, much less attention has been given to the ways that structural changes have altered racial inequalities. Scarcer still are empirical analyses that document the manner in which changes over time have affected women and men within different racial groups.
Water Stress of Tallgrass Prairie Plants in Central Oklahoma

The predawn xylem water potentials of Andropogon gerardi, Schizachyrium scoparti, Panicum oligosanthes, Sporobolus asper, Ambrosia psilostachya, Psoralea tenuiflora and Sohwuun eleagnifolium were determined by the pressure equilibration chamber method during the 1980 growing season in a Central Oklahoma tallgrass prairie. Water potentials declined rapidly after June indicating high levels of water stress in all species. The decline in plant water potential for Schizachyrium scoparium, and to a lesser extent, Panicum oligosanthes, was much greater than that for ,the other 5 species. Andropogon gerardi apparently avoids dehydration by having a deep root system, whereas Schizachyrium scoparium survives in spite of a high degree of dehydration. Aboveground live biomasses declined sharply at about the same time plant water potential values decreased sharply. Results indicate plant water potential data are useful for interpreting range plant growth responses and predicting adaptability of species to harsh growing conditions.
Two new species of the deep-sea squat lobster genus Munida Leach, 1820 (Crustacea: Decapoda: Munididae) from Taiwan: morphological and molecular evidence

The genus Munida Leach, 1820 is the most diverse group within the squat lobsters, with approximately 250 described species. The extreme morphological similarity among certain species makes very difficult to identify diagnostic characters, and the real diversity of the group is probably underestimated. Here, two new species of the genus Munida from Taiwan previously identified as M. distiza Macpherson, 1994 and M. militaris Henderson, 1885, respectively, are described and illustrated. The two species are identified by subtle and constant morphological differences, which match clear molecular divergences in the 16S and COI genes. These results confirm the taxonomic value of slight morphological differences, and emphasize the need for more detailed analysis to clarify the phylogenetic relationships within the genus.
Swine wastewater treatment in constructed wetlands

A study was undertaken to investigate the capacity of constructed wetlands that contained either natural wetland plants or water tolerant agronomic plants to treat swine wastewater. Six wetland cells (4 × 30 m) were constructed in Duplin County, North Carolina, in 1992. One set of two cells (two cells end-on-end) contained rush (Juncus effusus) and bulrushes (Scirpus americanus, S. cyperinus and S. validus), and another set of two cells contained bur-reed (Sparganium americanum) and cattails (Typha angustifolia and T. latifolia). The third set of two cells contained flooded rice and soyabeans grown in saturated-soil culture. A nitrogen loading rate of 3 kg/ha per day was used during the initial 4 months. Plant growth in the natural wetland vegetation cells was excellent. The aboveground DM yields for rushes, bulrushes, bur-reeds and cattails were 23.4, 17.9, 10.2 and 8.4 t/ha, respectively. The redox conditions of the wetland soils during this start-up period were highly reducing. These reducing conditions may inhibit N loss by nitrification and denitrification as well as decrease the long-term phosphorus removal efficiency. However, during this initial period, treated effluent concentrations of nitrogen and phosphorus were low and could have met discharge requirements in some areas. Rice yield was 2.8 t/ha, and soyabeans of cultivar groups V (Essex, Holladay and Hutcheson) and VI (Brim, Centennial and Young) yielded on average 1.9 and 3.3 t/ha, respectively. It is suggested that long-term data over annual cycles for varying crop and hydraulic conditions are needed to assess the treatment sustainability.
POINTS OF NON-DIFFERENTIABILITY OF TYPICAL LIPSCHITZ FUNCTIONS

While the Lebesgue Theorem, according to which real-valued Lipschitz functions defined on the real line are differentiable almost everywhere, gives a complete answer to the question of size of sets of points of non-differentiability of such functions, its higher dimensional extension, the Rademacher Theorem, does not describe the full story. More precisely, for every E ⊂ R of Lebesgue measure zero one can find a Lipschitz function f : R 7→ R which is non-differentiable at every point of E (see [1] or, for a complete characterization of such sets, [6]), but there is E ⊂ R of Lebesgue measure zero such that every Lipschitz function f : R 7→ R has a point of differentiability inside E (see [5]). The higher dimensional situation is full of puzzling open problems out of which our favourite is the question what happens if we consider pairs of Lipschitz functions instead of one function. In other words, is it true that for every set E ⊂ R of Lebesgue measure zero one can find a Lipschitz mapping f : R 7→ R which is non-differentiable at every point of E? Using the “argument” that typical functions have the worst differentiability behaviour, one may hope that this problem may be solved using the Baire Category Theorem in a suitable space of Lipschitz functions on some interval. Two such spaces seem to be reasonable candidates: The space of all Lipschitz functions with the norm given by the Lipschitz constant and the space of Lipschitz functions with uniformly bounded Lipschitz constant (say, by one) in the topology of uniform convergence. However, for our purposes, the former space appears to have too many open sets; for example, it is non-
The Effect of Intraspecific Competition on the Phenotypic Plasticity of Morphological and Agronomic Characters of Four Maize Hybrids

The plasticities of 16 characters were studied in four maize ( Zea mays , L.) hybrids grown at seven equidistant spacings and at four growth stages in 1 year. Plasticity was a measure of the extent to which the expression of a character was modified by changes in plant density. The hybrids differed in their plasticities for all characters studied. Furthermore, the characters of a hybrid showed different plasticities. The most plastic characters were grain yield per plant and yield per unit area, and the least plastic were ear row number and ear height. The hierarchy of plasticities was essentially identical in all hybrids. The doublecross hybrids showed non-significantly higher mean plasticities than the less heterogeneous genotypes
Effects of an allelopathic fraction from Phragmitis communis Trin on the growth characteristics of Scenedesmus obliquus

The effects of an allelopathic fraction extracted from Phragmitis communis Trin on the growth of Scenedesmus obliquus were investigated. Different amounts of the allelopathic fraction were added into the culture solutions, in which the same amount of algae was inoculated. During the cultivation period, the cell density was determined by hemocytometer under a microscope and the ultrastructure of the algae was also observed under a transmission electron microscope. The results indicated that, during the first four days, the allelopathic fraction showed significant inhibitory effects on the growth of S. obliquus, and the value of EC50, 4d was 0.45 mg? L-1. After four days, the inhibitory effects decreased. And after six days, the growth of S. obliquus was stimulated, and the stimu- lating effects increased with the increasing of the initial concentrations of the allelopathic fraction. The algal cells with the treatment of allelopathic fraction enlarged obviously. The average width of algal cells in culture solutions with 0.5mg? L-1 allelopathic fraction was as twice as that in the control group. The ultrastructure of S. obliquus was also greatly disrupted. Moreover, the addition of EMA increased the settling and adsorption abilities of S. obliquus.