Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Biofilm production by uropathogens causing catheter associated urinary tract infection

Background: The microbial populations within urinary catheter frequently develop as biofilms, directly attaching to the surface of catheters. Bacteria in biofilm are protected from antimicrobial chemotherapy as well as host defence mechanisms, establishing chronic persistent infections, septicemia and death if not treated. Material and Method: The present study, includes 200 patients, catheterized for >48 hours at CIMS, Bilaspur. Urine samples were collected and inoculated in nutrient agar, blood agar and MacConkey agar plates and identification done as per standard procedure. This study was conducted to detect biofilm formation ability of uropathogens by two different methods (Tube and Congo red agar method) and compare their antibiotic sensitivity by using Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion method. Results: Out of 200 urine samples significant bacteriuria were detected in 148 (74%) of samples and no growth found in 52 (26%) samples and 14 samples showed growth of 2 microorganisms. A total no. of 162 microorganisms were isolated from 200 urine samples. Among these 162 isolates E. Coli was 29.62%, Pseudomonas aeruginosa 11.72%, Klebsiella sp 18.51%, Citrobactor sp 7.40%, Staphylococcus aureus 3.08%, and Coagulase negative Staphylococci 11%. Among these 162 isolates, a total of 91(56.17%) isolates showed biofilm production. Percentage of biofilm formation was highest in P. aeruginosa (63.15%). Conclusion: Tube test method was found to be more reliable method. The in vitro antibiotic susceptibility pattern of biofilm producing organisms showed less sensitivity as compared to non-biofilm producing organisms.
Abundance Trumps Quality: Bi-Trophic Performance and Parasitism Risk Fail to Explain Host Use in the Fall Webworm (Hyphantria cunea, Arctiidae)

Factors including host abundance, quality, and the degree to which hosts provide enemy-free space (EFS) may drive host plant choice by phytophagous insects. Herbivores may also experience fitness tradeoffs among hosts, promoting polyphagy. The fall webworm Hyphantria cunea is a dietary generalist that feeds on a broad array of trees across its geographic range. Here, we investigate the drivers of host tree use by the fall webworm in Connecticut (CT) and Maryland (MD). Neither caterpillar performance nor EFS was associated with the frequency with which host trees were used, and no tradeoff between host quality and EFS was identified. Vegetation surveys adjacent to host trees showed that at both localities, host use was non-random with respect to tree species, and that the main predictor of use among suitable host trees was host tree abundance. This suggests that webworms are under selection to reduce search time for oviposition sites. Although we did not detect a tradeoff between host plant quality and availability in MD, we did identify that tradeoff in CT. This disparity amid otherwise similar patterns of host use between CT and MD may be explained by the relative rarity of high quality hosts in CT compared to MD. Our results illustrate that geographic mosaics in patterns of host use may arise in the absence of local adaptation if host use is based upon availability rather than host plant attributes.
CARACTERÍSTICAS CLÍNICAS E EPIDEMIOLÓGICOS DAS ENFERMIDADES PODAIS EM VACAS LACTANTES DO MUNICÍPIO DE ORIZONA - GO

As afeccoes podais dos bovinos apresentam grande variacao clinica e resultam em perdas economicas significativas para os criatorios. Este estudo teve como finalidade classificar e estabelecer a prevalencia de doencas de casco em vacas lactantes na bacia leiteira do municipio de Orizona, GO. Foram observadas 755 vacas de racas leiteiras para a deteccao de claudicacao. Os animais com claudicacao foram contidos em bretes para realizacao do exame clinico dos cascos, diagnostico e classificacao das enfermidades encontradas, seguindo os criterios adotados por Greenough et al. (1983), Silva (1997) e Ramos (1999). Do total de vacas examinadas, 224 (29,67%) apresentaram pelo menos um tipo de lesao nos cascos e 10 mostraram dois tipos diferentes de lesoes. Dentre as 234 lesoes observadas, 87,66% foram encontradas nos membros pelvicos e 12,34% nos toracicos. As enfermidades de maior ocorrencia foram dermatite digital (24,36%), dermatite verrucosa (14,53%) e pododermatite septica (13,68%). A inspecao das propriedades mostrou que seis (85,71%) possuiam solos duros, tres (42,85%) solos pedregosos e quatro (57,14%) pisos irregulares nos estabulos. Todas as propriedades apresentavam higienizacao deficiente das instalacoes e dos piquetes. A realizacao do exame clinico especifico foi decisiva para a classificacao das lesoes e o estabelecimento do diagnostico. PALAVRAS-CHAVE: Bovino, casco, prevalencia.
A PROTEOMIC ANALYSIS OF NEOPLASTIC PROGRESSION IN BREAST CANCER

The utilization of high-throughput -omics strategies, such as proteomics, in the analysis of breastcancer will function to define central molecular characteristics across a disease that is associatedwith a high degree of molecular heterogeneity. Data reported herein details the investigation ofkey subjects in breast cancer biology focused on the characterization of endogenous andexperimentally-induced disease biology characteristics utilizing the application of LC-MS basedproteomic analyses of both in vitro models of breast cancer as well as primary clinical samples.Results include a combined global and functional proteomic strategy to identify governingfunctional roles for mutually, differentially abundant proteins observed across three divergentcell line models of breast cancer. Further, evidence is presented which provides insights into theregulatory activity of the breast cancer-associated microRNA (miR-145) in several cell linemodels of breast cancer in which expression of this microRNA has been restored. Lastly, robustanalyses are detailed focused on the identification of differential protein characteristics indicativeof disease stage as well as of recurrent disease in breast cancer derived from proteomic analysisof formalin-fixed, paraffin embedded (FFPE) clinical samples. These studies contribute to thefield of proteomics in the form of 1) providing robust experimental workflows directed towardsinvestigation of functional themes and associated functional targets in large protein data sets 2)detailing strategies for navigating the application of proteomic analysis to microRNA targetdiscovery and 3) further development and utilization of methodologies towards the proteomicanalysis of clinical, FFPE tissue samples. Furthermore, these studies benefit the breast cancercommunity on several fronts including 1) the elucidation of provocative protein candidateswhich warrant further investigation for their role in regulating disease mechanisms underlyingvbreast cancer biology and 2) through the discovery of diagnostic markers indicative of discretesubtypes and stages of disease progression in breast cancer. The results reported herein detaildisease-specific protein abundance characteristics associated with neoplastic progression inbreast cancer that will benefit further expansion of the basic biological understanding of thisdisease and describes novel proteins for further evaluation as biomarker candidates for thediagnosis of breast cancer.
IFN-ε Mediates TNF-α-Induced STAT1 Phosphorylation and Induction of Retinoic Acid-Inducible Gene-I in Human Cervical Cancer Cells1

Retinoic acid inducible gene-I (RIG-I) plays important roles during innate immune responses to viral infections and as a transducer of cytokine signaling. The mechanisms of RIG-I up-regulation after cytokine stimulation are incompletely characterized. It was previously reported that IFN–γ induces the expression of RIG-I in endothelial cells. In this study, we characterized the mechanism of type I IFN-mediated up-regulation of RIG-I in HeLa cells and found that, in addition to type I IFN, TNF-α, a cytokine that regulates innate immune responses, induced expression of RIG-I. To investigate whether TNF-α- and type I IFN-mediated up-regulations of RIG-I were causally related, we studied the kinetics of these responses. Our results were consistent with a model in which TNF-α functioned upstream of type I IFNs. The ability of TNF-α to up-regulate RIG-I required protein synthesis, expression of functional type I IFNRs, and STAT1 signaling. We also found that IFN-ε was the only IFN isoform expressed constitutively in HeLa cells and that its expression was up-regulated in response to stimulation with TNF-α. The mechanism of up-regulation involved stabilization of IFN-ε mRNA in the absence of transcriptional activation. Silencing the expression of IFN-ε attenuated STAT1 expression and phosphorylation and inhibited RIG-I expression, providing additional support for the participation of IFN-ε upstream of STAT1. Our findings support a sequential mechanism whereby TNF-α leads to stabilization of IFN-ε mRNA, increased IFN-ε synthesis, engagement of type I IFNRs, increased STAT1 expression and phosphorylation, and up-regulation of RIG-I expression. These findings have implications for our understanding of the immune responses that follow cytokine stimulation.
Gβγ acts at an inter-subunit cleft to activate GIRK1 channels

Heterotrimeric guanine nucleotide-binding proteins (G-proteins) consist of an alpha subunit (Gα) and the dimeric beta-gamma subunit (Gβγ). The first example of direct cell signaling by Gβγ was the discovery of its role in activating G-protein regulated inwardly rectifying K + (GIRK) channels which underlie the acetylcholine-induced K + current responsible for vagal inhibition of heart rate. Published crystal structures have provided important insights into the structures of the G-protein subunits and GIRK channels separately, but co-crystals of the channel and Gβγ together remain elusive and no specific reciprocal residue interactions between the two proteins are currently known. Given the absence of direct structural evidence, we attempted to identify these functionally important channel-Gβγ interactions using a computational approach. We developed a multistage computational docking algorithm that combines several known methods in protein-protein docking. Application of the docking protocol to previously published structures of Gβγ and GIRK1 homomeric channels produced a clear signal of a favored binding mode. Analysis of this binding mode suggested a mechanism by which Gβγ promotes the open state of the channel. The channel-Gβγ interactions predicted by the model in silico could be disrupted in vitro by mutation of one protein and rescued by additional mutation of reciprocal residues in the other protein. These interactions were found to extend to agonist induced activation of the channels as well as to activation of the native heteromeric channels. Currently, the structural mechanism by which Gβγ regulates the functional conformations of GIRK channels or of any of its membrane-associated effector proteins is not known. This work shows the first evidence for specific reciprocal interactions between Gβγ and a GIRK channel and places these interactions in the context of a general model of intracellular regulation of GIRK gating.
Gender differences in student scores in objective structured practical examination (OSPE) on measurement of blood pressure in clinical physiology

This complete enumeration, cross-sectional comparative study was conducted in the Physiology Department of a medical college in Maharashtra to determine the gender differences in scores obtained by students in objective structured practical examination on measurement of blood pressure. First-year MBBS students (n=61; 52.46% females and 47.54% males), who had prior exposure to traditional practical examination on the same topic, rotated through a procedure station and question station. The results of the study revealed that the gender differences in average scores were not significant (P=0.065) at the procedure station that assessed the psychomotor domain. However, female students obtained significantly (P=0.041) higher average scores at the question station that chiefly evaluated the cognitive domain. This implied deficit of knowledge (cognitive domain) among male students, as compared to their female counterparts.
Terrestrial movement patterns of western pond turtles (Actinemys marmorata) in central California

—We used radio telemetry to track the terrestrial movements and seasonal habitat use patterns of Western Pond Turtles (Actinemys marmorata) near two ponds in the Carrizo Plain Ecological Reserve, California, USA. We captured 93 turtles in September 2005 and, of these, we tagged three males and six females (weighing > 300 g) with external transmitters. Tagged turtles traveled from 255–1,096 m over the 448-day study, and we found none further than 343 m from ponds. All turtles moved away from the ponds as water levels receded in the fall, resulting in periods of terrestrial overwintering ranging from 10–30 weeks (74–202 d). We found no evidence for group migrations as turtles departed ponds over 2–8 week periods, moved in different directions from their ponds, and used different habitats. Turtles overwintered mainly in oak and chaparral vegetation communities, which constituted most of the local vegetation. We found overwintering turtles in a variety of microhabitats, but all turtles were on the surface with their carapace just visible amongst the duff layer. Turtles returned to ponds over several weeks, sometimes months after they refilled with winter rains. In the winter of 2006–2007, no turtles returned to terrestrial overwintering sites used the previous year. Most of the turtles we tracked spent over half of each year on land, demonstrating the importance of terrestrial habitats around these seasonal ponds. This pattern is similar to pond turtles living in streams (overwinter on land), as compared to permanent ponds (turtles often remain in water).
Dendritic cells in HLA-B27 transgenic rat model of spondyloarthropathy

The Spondyloarthritides (SpAs) are a group of related inflammatory disorders that share common clinical features and a genetic predisposing factor, the MHC class I gene HLA-B27. Rats transgenic for the human HLA-B27 and beta 2 microglobulin genes (B27-TG rats) develop a multisystem inflammatory disease, offering a model for studying SpA. Several lines of evidence from both humans and rats suggest that intestinal inflammation and the commensal microbiota in the gut are important in disease development. The intestine is the site of entry for vast amounts of antigens, and the intestinal immune system has evolved to be tolerant towards harmless non-self antigens, but still retain the ability to mount protective immune responses against invading pathogens. Dendritic cells (DCs) are professional antigen presenting cells residing in the intestinal tissue at sites of antigen entry, and continuously migrate from the intestine into the mesenteric lymph nodes, via lymph, where they interact with naive T cells. Hence, DCs have important role in maintaining the balance between tolerance and immunity in the intestine. The aim of this thesis was to investigate the roles of migrating intestinal lymph DCs (L-DCs) in disease development in the B27-TG rat. These DCs were collected by thoracic duct cannulation and their phenotype and functions were investigated. In addition, mesenteric lymph node (MLN) and bone marrow derived DCs (BMDCs) were compared between B27-TG and non-TG animals. B27-TG animals lack one of the three subsets of L-DCs, the MHCIIhi CD103+ CD172alo cells, in the pseudo-afferent lymph, and the remaining L-DCs appear more activated. The proportion of this subset was also reduced in the MLNs of B27-TG animals. The CD172alo DC subset has been implicated in the induction and maintenance of intestinal tolerance, and thus lack of this subset could lead to breakdown in tolerance and to systemic disease. In addition, BMDCs cultured with mouse Flt3L survived less well than non-TG BMDCs, and this defect could be reversed by addition of the apoptosis inhibitor Q-VD into the cultures. This indicated there could be a defect in the development of B27-TG DCs from their bone marrow precursors. Furthermore, B27-TG BMDCs stimulated significantly less proliferation from naive CD4+ T cells than their non-TG counterparts in a mixed leukocyte reaction. In spite of this, more IL- 17F and less IFN-gamma were detected in the B27-TG BMDC - T cell co-cultures compared to non-TG DCs, indicating skewing of the immune response from Th1 to Th17. Together, these results reveal previously unrecognised defects in HLA-B27+ DCs both in vivo and in vitro, which could have a role on SpA disease pathogenesis. This opens up new exciting avenues of research for the future.
Bifidobacteria: the model human gut commensal.

This chapter discusses biology of bifidobacteria for probiotic and replacement therapy. Bifidobacteria were originally isolated from a breast-fed infant. Since then several species have been identified in the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) of mammals and insects. The availability of whole-genome sequences from bifidobacteria is extremely informative for the understanding of the processes underlying speciation and evolution in this genus as well as the adaptation to its specific habitat (e.g., the human intestine). Since bifidobacteria encounter a vast array of substrates in the GIT, information regarding their metabolic properties is crucial to formulate an optimal growth medium. Prebiotics are food substances which resist digestion in the proximal GIT and reach intact the distal region of the gut, where, besides their direct physiological effect, they also affect the GIT ecosystem by specifically stimulating the growth and activity of the probiotic components of the GIT microbiota (e.g., bifidobacteria), thereby eliciting a beneficial effect on the host’s health. Prebiotics are typically oligosaccharides that consist of a mixture of hexose oligomers with a variable extent of polymerization. The transmission of novel genes through horizontal gene transfer (HGT) is generally supported by vectors such as bacteriophages or plasmids which may become integrated into the bacterial chromosome. Generally, plasmids are rarely found in bifidobacteria. So far the majority of bifidobacterial plasmids have been identified within different B. longum biotype longum strains. The chapter ends with a discussion on taxonomy of bifidobacteria.
PENGARUH INVESTASI TERHADAP PENYERAPAN TENAGA KERJA DI JAWA TENGAH TAHUN 2009-2013

This study aims to determine the effect of investment on employment in Central Java in 2009-2013. As it is known that investment plays an important role in the absorption of labor or can reduce unemployment. Thus with the increased investment hence the absorption of labor will also increase. The research method used in this research is quantitative research method. This research was conducted in Central Java. The test used is the instrument using the validity test. Methods of data analysis using multiple linear regression analysis, classical assumption test. The results of this study indicate that the increase can be explained by the regression equation is Y = 16595732.325 + 0.32 X. Where the constant is positive value of 16595732.325 indicates that if the investment variable is considered constant (0), then the value of labor absorption of 16595732,325 . Then the regression coefficient of the investment variable is 0.32, this means that if the investment is increased one unit, it will increase the labor absorption of 0.32.
Furrow Formation in the Vegetal Hemisphere of Xenopus Eggs

The mechanism of furrow formation in the vegetal hemisphere of amphibian eggs was studied using Xenopus eggs. Injection of colchicine into the eggs after the furrow tip had entered the vegetal hemisphere arrested the subsequent cleavage. The effect of impairing the continuity between the animal and vegetal hemispheres was examined by squeezing the equator of uncleaved eggs from both sides with the edges of coverslips. On gentle squeezing a shallow vegetal furrow was formed at the first cleavage, whereas on strong squeezing furrowing was arrested at the equator. The mechanism of furrow formation in the vegetal hemisphere of amphibian eggs is discussed on the basis of these findings.
Food Sources of Weight, Calories, and Three Macro-nutrients-NAHSIT 1993-1996

The purpose of this study was to understand how various food groups contributed to food weights, calories, and three macro-nutrients in Taiwanese diet, using data from the Nutrition and Health Survey in Taiwan (NAHSIT) gathered during July, 1993 to June, 1996. Among 9,962 samples, 3,915 24-hour recalls were obtained from sampled adults aged 19 to 64. Foods consumed daily weighed on average 1,821g and 1,373g for males and females, respectively. In terms of food weights, the major food groups consumed by males were refreshment and snacks; vegetables; and cereals, grains, tubers, and roots; while the major food groups consumed by females were vegetables; fruits; and cereals, grains, tubers, and roots. Cereals, grains, tubers, and roots and meats were the two major calorie sources for both males and females. Food groups such as refreshments and snacks; protein foods other than meat, and fish; and fats and oils provided less but substantial amount of calories. In the analyses of food sources of macro-nutrients, we found that the Taiwanese diet provided for men 13.2 exchanges of cereals, grains, tubers, or roots (approximating 3.3 bowls of rice); 1 tablespoon of cooking fats or oils; 6.4 exchanges of meats, fish, legumes, or eggs; 0.3 exchange of dairy products; 3 exchanges of vegetables; and 1 exchange of fruits. It provided for women 9 exchanges of cereals, grains, tubers, or roots (approximating 2.3 bowls of rice); 1 tablespoon of cooking fats or oils; 4.5 exchanges of meats, fish, legumes, or eggs; 0.4 exchange of dairy products; 3 exchanges of vegetables; and 1.2 exchanges of fruits. Comparing to Taiwan dietary guidelines, these dietary patterns were adequate in vegetable consumption, high in the meats, fish, legumes, and eggs group but low in the cereals, grains, tubers, and roots; fruits; and dairy groups. Although the data showed a mean of 1 tablespoon of cooking oils and fats consumed by each individual, dietary fat in Taiwanese diet was above the upper ceiling of the recommended 30% of total calories. This was probably due to relatively low carbohydrate intake and increased consumption of invisible fats and processed / purchased foods in which fats and oils could not be easily quantified. The pork and pork products group was the major contributor of not only dietary protein but also fat. Carbohydrate intake primarily came from food categories of cereals, grains, tubers, and roots; refreshment and snack foods; and fruits in that order. Therefore, modification should be considered to reduce the amount and the fat content of the pork products consumed, to replace empty calories of refreshment and snack by cereals and grains, and to increase dairy products, and fruits to achieve a more balanced diet for Taiwanese. In addition, pragmatic consideration should be given to the daily dietary guidelines concerning the fats and oils and related food groups.