Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Isolation of a novel rat neural progenitor clone that expresses dlx family transcription factors and gives rise to functional gabaergic neurons in culture

Gamma‐aminobutyric acid (GABA) ergic interneurons are lost in conditions including epilepsy and central nervous system injury, but there are few culture models available to study their function. Toward the goal of obtaining renewable sources of GABAergic neurons, we used the molecular profile of a functionally incomplete GABAergic precursor clone to screen 17 new clones isolated from GFP+ rat E14.5 cortex and ganglionic eminence (GE) that were generated by viral introduction of v‐myc. The clones grow as neurospheres in medium with FGF2, and after withdrawal of FGF2, they exhibit varying patterns of differentiation. Transcriptional profiling and quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT‐PCR) indicated that one clone (GE6) expresses high levels of mRNAs encoding Dlx1, 2, 5, and 6, glutamate decarboxylases, and presynaptic proteins including neuropeptide Y and somatostatin. Protein expression confirmed that GE6 is a progenitor with restricted differentiation giving rise mostly to neurons with GABAergic markers. In cocultures with hippocampal neurons, GE6 neurons became electrically excitable and received both inhibitory and excitatory synapses. After withdrawal of FGF2 in cultures of GE6 alone, neurons matured to express βIII‐tubulin, and staining for synaptophysin and vesicular GABA transporter were robust after 1–2 weeks of differentiation. GE6 neurons also became electrically excitable and displayed synaptic activity, but synaptic currents were carried by chloride and were blocked by bicuculline. The results suggest that the GE6 clone, which is ventrally derived from the GE, resembles GABAergic interneuron progenitors that migrate into the developing forebrain. This is the first report of a relatively stable fetal clone that can be differentiated into GABAergic interneurons with functional synapses. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Develop Neurobiol 72: 805–820, 2012
Gold nanorods as probes in two‐photon fluorescence correlation spectroscopy: Emerging applications and potential artifacts

Owing to the highly efficient two‐photon fluorescence of gold nanorods and very short fluorescence lifetime compared with the rotational correlation time, the rotation and diffusion of a single gold nanorod can be easily observed by two‐photon fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (TP‐FCS). This property, along with the previous successful use as a contrast agent in two‐photon fluorescence imaging, suggests a potential application in TP‐FCS as well. Although the FCS measurement becomes highly efficient with gold nanorods as probes, the amplitude and temporal decay of the measured correlation functions depend critically on excitation power. Here, we investigate various photophysical processes of gold nanorods to determine the cause of such a sensitive power dependency. This understanding provides a basis for choosing appropriate FCS models to recover reasonable physical parameters. Although the correlation function amplitude G(0) is 32 times lower when the excitation power increases from 20 µW to 1.12 mW, the application of a saturation‐modified FCS model yields very good fit to each data set and the fitted concentration of 0.64 nM is comparable to the 0.7 nM given by the inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry measurement. The FCS assay appears to be an efficient method for the quantification of gold nanorods when correctly interpreted. However, even with the saturation considered in the fitting model, the fitted rotational and translational diffusion rates are getting faster as the power increases. This indicates that other effects such as photothermal effects may raise the local temperature, and thus increasing the rotational and translational diffusion rate. Microsc. Res. Tech. 76:882–889, 2013. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Hu Proteins Regulate Polyadenylation by Blocking Sites Containing U-rich Sequences*

A recent genome-wide bioinformatic analysis indicated that 54% of human genes undergo alternative polyadenylation. Although it is clear that differential selection of poly(A) sites can alter gene expression, resulting in significant biological consequences, the mechanisms that regulate polyadenylation are poorly understood. Here we report that the neuron-specific members of a family of RNA-binding proteins, Hu proteins, known to regulate mRNA stability and translation in the cytoplasm, play an important role in polyadenylation regulation. Hu proteins are homologs of the Drosophila embryonic lethal abnormal visual protein and contain three RNA recognition motifs. Using an in vitro polyadenylation assay with HeLa cell nuclear extract and recombinant Hu proteins, we have shown that Hu proteins selectively block both cleavage and poly(A) addition at sites containing U-rich sequences. Hu proteins have no effect on poly(A) sites that do not contain U-rich sequences or sites in which the U-rich sequences are mutated. All three RNA recognition motifs of Hu proteins are required for this activity. Overexpression of HuR in HeLa cells also blocks polyadenylation at a poly(A) signal that contains U-rich sequences. Hu proteins block the interaction between the polyadenylation cleavage stimulation factor 64-kDa subunit and RNA most likely through direct interaction with poly(A) cleavage stimulation factor 64-kDa subunit and cleavage and polyadenylation specificity factor 160-kDa subunit. These studies identify a novel group of mammalian polyadenylation regulators. Furthermore, they define a previously unknown nuclear function of Hu proteins.
The effectiveness of aid on savings and investment in Sub-Saharan Africa: do volatility and institutional quality matter?

ABSTRACT The effectiveness of aid is somewhat subject to its volatility. This study investigates the impact of aid volatility, especially on savings and investment, with a particular focus on the role of institutional quality in 45 Sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries over the period from 1990 to 2013. We used the Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) technique combined with a measure of volatility, namely an averaged data method involving six 4-year sub-periods. Our results suggest that while aid is positively associated with savings and investment, its volatility is harmful to savings and investment. However, when higher quality institutions exist, the volatility of aid has a less negative impact on savings and investment. The policy implications are diverse; first, donors and SSA aid-dependent countries need to take into account the diversity of shocks to which aid can respond in mitigating its unpredictability. Secondly, SSA countries should be encouraged to establish the conditions for better quality institutions to mitigate the negative effects of the volatility of aid on macroeconomic aggregates such as savings and investment.
Systematic Review of the Diagnostic Accuracy and Therapeutic Effectiveness of Sacroiliac Joint Interventions.

BACKGROUND The sacroiliac joint is well known as a cause of low back and lower extremity pain. Prevalence estimates are 10% to 25% in patients with persistent axial low back pain without disc herniation, discogenic pain, or radiculitis based on multiple diagnostic studies and systematic reviews. However, at present there are no definitive management options for treating sacroiliac joint pain. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the diagnostic accuracy and therapeutic effectiveness of sacroiliac joint interventions. STUDY DESIGN A systematic review of the diagnostic accuracy and therapeutic effectiveness of sacroiliac joint interventions. METHODS The available literature on diagnostic and therapeutic sacroiliac joint interventions was reviewed. The quality assessment criteria utilized were the Quality Appraisal of Reliability Studies (QAREL) checklist for diagnostic accuracy studies, Cochrane review criteria to assess sources of risk of bias, and Interventional Pain Management Techniques-Quality Appraisal of Reliability and Risk of Bias Assessment (IPM-QRB) criteria for randomized therapeutic trials and Interventional Pain Management Techniques-Quality Appraisal of Reliability and Risk of Bias Assessment for Nonrandomized Studies (IPM-QRBNR) for observational therapeutic assessments. The level of evidence was based on a best evidence synthesis with modified grading of qualitative evidence from Level I to Level V. Data sources included relevant literature published from 1966 through March 2015 that were identified through searches of PubMed and EMBASE, manual searches of the bibliographies of known primary and review articles, and all other sources. OUTCOME MEASURES For the diagnostic accuracy assessment, and for the therapeutic modalities, the primary outcome measure of pain relief and improvement in functional status were utilized. RESULTS A total of 11 diagnostic accuracy studies and 14 therapeutic studies were included. The evidence for diagnostic accuracy is Level II for dual diagnostic blocks with at least 70% pain relief as the criterion standard and Level III evidence for single diagnostic blocks with at least 75% pain relief as the criterion standard. The evidence for cooled radiofrequency neurotomy in managing sacroiliac joint pain is Level II to III. The evidence for conventional radiofrequency neurotomy, intraarticular steroid injections, and periarticular injections with steroids or botulinum toxin is limited: Level III or IV. LIMITATIONS The limitations of this systematic review include inconsistencies in diagnostic accuracy studies with a paucity of high quality, replicative, and consistent literature. The limitations for therapeutic interventions include variations in technique, variable diagnostic standards for inclusion criteria, and variable results. CONCLUSION The evidence for the accuracy of diagnostic and therapeutic effectiveness of sacroiliac joint interventions varied from Level II to Level IV.
k-Nearest Neighborhood Structure (k-NNS) based alignment-free method for fingerprint template protection

In this paper we focus on constructing k-Nearest Neighborhood Structure(k - NNS) for minutiae points in a fingerprint image. For each minutiae point in a fingerprint, a k - NNS is constructed taking the local and global features of minutiae points. This structure is quantized and mapped onto a 2D array to generate a fixed length 1D bit-string. Further this bit string is applied with a DFT to generate a complex vector. Finally the complex vector is multiplied by a user specific random matrix to generate the cancelable template. We tested our proposed method on database FV C2002 and experimental results depicts the validity of the proposed method in terms of requirements of cancelable biometrics namely diversity, accuracy, irreversibility and revocability.
Logic Programs With Uncertainties: A Tool for Implementing Rule-Based Systems

One natural way to implement rule-based expert systems is via logic programs. The rules in such systems are usually definite clauses, or can easily be expressed as such, and the inference mechanbms used by such systems are built into the Prolog interpreter, or can be implemented in Prolog without much effort. The one component of expert systems which is not readily available in logic programs is a language for specifying certainties of rules and data, and a mechanism for computing certainties of conclusions, given certainties of the premises. Clark and McCabe [1] suggest an implementation technique for solving this problem. They augment each predicate in the rule-language wi th an additional argument, whose value is the certainty of the solution returned in this predicate, and augment the condition of each clause wi th an additional goal, whose purpose is ' to compute the certainty of the conclusion of the clause, given the certainties of solutions to the goals in the condition of the clause. In this paper we propose a different way of implementing rule-based expert systems within Prolog, in which evaluation of certainties of solutions is carried out at the meta-level, within the logic program interpreter itself. This resulting framework, called logic programs with uncertainties, has the following properties: • It is amenable to theoretical analysis. In particular, a precise semantics can be given to logic programs wi th uncertainties. • Standard logic programs are a special case of logic programs wi th uncertainties. If all certainty factors are 1, then the semantics defined and the interpreters developed degenerate to the standard semantics and the standard interpreter for logic programs.
Why Leadership-Skilled Women Teachers are Saying “No” to the Principal's Role: A Matter of Individual Choice or Institutional Constraint?

According to recent data, the pool of principal candidates is shrinking. How is the role perceived and what can school districts do to make it more attractive in recruiting and retaining highly qualified administrators? This open-ended, qualitative study sought to uncover the underlying reasons leadership-skilled women teachers choose to remain in the classroom rather than seek administrative positions. Analysis of the data revealed a complex mix of individual choice and institutional constraint. The participants’ strong sense of personal teaching efficacy, commitment to family, and satisfaction derived from nurturing (and mentoring) their colleagues combined with their negative perception of the principalship contributed to their reasons for saying “no” to the principal's role.
Self-deformable micro/nanomotors with organic-inorganic hybrid structures

This paper proposes a self-deformable structure consisting of tethered multiple micromotors. Pt/Au segmented microrods formed by electrodeposition were used as the micromotors. To fabricate flexible tethers, several approaches were tried including metal backbones, metallized DNA strands, and polymers stacked by layer-by-layer (LbL) self-assembly. For the metal backbones, shadowing effect of sputtering was used to deposit the backbones only on the half side of the micromotors. As the metallized DNA strands, λ-DNA strands with Au particle chain was formed. LbL self-assembled polymer bilayers was fabricated with a combination of poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) / poly(allylamine hydrochloride) (PAH) to encapsulate and tether the micromotors. The tethered structures were fabricated by removing a sacrificial Ag segments after the formation of the tethers. To evaluate the flexibility of the tethers, Brownian fluctuation of the open angle was traced. Micromotors tethered with the Au-metallized DNA strand and the cross-linked LbL polymers showed larger fluctuations (> 30°), whereas no fluctuation was observed with micromotors tethered with Au backbones. Furthermore, the close-to-open motion was observed with the LbL self-assembled polymer tethers.
Relationship between clinical features and blood levels of pentachlorodibenzofuran in patients with Yusho

Background: Yusho is a form of food poisoning that occurred in 1968, as a result of consuming rice bran oil contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and various dioxins such as polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs). The victims of Yusho suffered from various dermatological, ophthalmological, and mucosal symptoms in addition to general fatigue, weight loss, anorexia, headache, paresthesia of the extremities, abdominal pain, cough and sputa, dysmenorrhea, and growth retardation in infants and children. We measured the blood levels of dioxins in the annual medical check‐up of Yusho patients from 2001 to 2003. Purpose: To analyze the relationship between the concentrations of PCDFs/PCBs and the subjective/objective/laboratory findings of patients with Yusho. We also compared the present clinical findings with those collected in 1988. Results and discussion: The mean blood level of 2,3,4,7,8‐pentachlorodibenzofuran (PeCDF) in 359 patients with Yusho was 177.50 pg/g lipids, which was much higher than that of normal controls (15.2 ± 8.9 pg/g lipids). The blood levels of PeCDF were significantly correlated with total PCB levels, hexachlorobiphenyl levels, urinary sugar, 2‐h erythrocyte sedimentation rate, thymol turbidity test, and sodium levels. A significant correlation was also noted with dermatological findings (acneform eruption and comedones), mucosal findings (oral pigmentation), constipation, numbness in the extremities, body weight loss, and abnormal abdominal ultrasonography. The incidence and severity of most of the dermatological and ophthalmological symptoms decreased from 1988 to 2001–2003. In conclusion, high amounts of PCBs and PeCDF are still present in a number of patients with Yusho. The patients still suffer from various mucocutaneous and subjective symptoms. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Environ Toxicol 22: 124–131, 2007.
Developing Dynamic Mechanistic Species Distribution Models: Predicting Bird-Mediated Spread of Invasive Plants across Northeastern North America

Species distribution models are a fundamental tool in ecology, conservation biology, and biogeography and typically identify potential species distributions using static phenomenological models. We demonstrate the importance of complementing these popular models with spatially explicit, dynamic mechanistic models that link potential and realized distributions. We develop general grid-based, pattern-oriented spread models incorporating three mechanisms—plant population growth, local dispersal, and long-distance dispersal—to predict broadscale spread patterns in heterogeneous landscapes. We use the model to examine the spread of the invasive Celastrus orbiculatus (Oriental bittersweet) by Sturnus vulgaris (European starling) across northeastern North America. We find excellent quantitative agreement with historical spread records over the last century that are critically linked to the geometry of heterogeneous landscapes and each of the explanatory mechanisms considered. Spread of bittersweet before 1960 was primarily driven by high growth rates in developed and agricultural landscapes, while subsequent spread was mediated by expansion into deciduous and coniferous forests. Large, continuous patches of coniferous forests may substantially impede invasion. The success of C. orbiculatus and its potential mutualism with S. vulgaris suggest troubling predictions for the spread of other invasive, fleshy-fruited plant species across northeastern North America.
When losers become leavers: Rejection and turnover in internal labor markets

We investigate when internal “losers” (internal candidates rejected for jobs they have applied to within their organizations) are more or less likely to leave the organization. Compared with work that suggests that employees react negatively to rejection, we argue that employees may respond differently to rejection that provides information about their potential for future internal mobility. Specifically, we propose that internal losers use three sources of information from the hiring process in assessing their potential for future advancement: (1) whether the “winner” was an internal or external candidate, (2) how far they made it in the hiring process, and (3) how likely they were to be hired for the job. Drawing on insights from the literatures on vacancy chains, social exchange, and expectancy violations, we suggest that internal losers will perceive more chance for future mobility and therefore be less likely to voluntarily exit firms if: (1) the job is filled with another internal candidate, (2) the.
Investigation on FBGA block warpage by Finite Element Simulation

Warpage is a major reliability concern for IC packages. Package structure, material property and assembly process will all impact warpage behavior, which can be characterized by 3D Finite Element Analysis (FEA). Traditionally, the FEA simulation will only analyze warpage of a free standing package with thermo-mechanical stress induced by Coefficient of Thermal Expansion (CTE) mismatch during cooling process of Epoxy Molding Compound (EMC) from cure temperature to room temperature. In this paper, a dedicated FEA model has been developed to simulate a strip type Fine-Pitch Ball Grid Array (FBGA) package. Different from conventional simulation, effect of both EMC chemical shrinkage due to polymerization conversion during post molding cure and actual measurement operation on warpage have been taken into consideration in the FEA model. Parametric study with different package layout, die area and die thickness has been performed. Result showed package layout of the strip can significantly impact warpage; and die area had more influence on warpage than die thickness. Warpage performance can be improved by optimizing these parameters. Compare to measurement, the simulation result is in good agreement with actual package warpage.
Rating scales to measure side effects of antipsychotic medication: A systematic review

Introduction: Many patients experience side effects during treatment with antipsychotics. This article reviews the clinical use and psychometric characteristics of rating scales used to assess side effects in patients treated with antipsychotics. Methods: A systematic literature search was performed using the electronic databases PubMed and Embase, with predefined search terms. Results: In total, 52 different scales were used in the 440 articles retrieved. For multiple side effects measured with one scale, the Udvalg for Kliniske Undersøgelser Side Effects Rating Scale for Clinicians was used the most, whereas the Liverpool University Neuroleptic Side Effect Rating Scale had the best psychometric characteristics (Cronbach’s α 0.81 and test–retest reliability 0.89). The Simpson Angus Scale was used the most to rate extrapyramidal side effects, although the Maryland Psychiatric Research Center scale had the best characteristics (Cronbach’s α 0.80, test–retest reliability 0.92 and inter-rater reliability 0.81–0.90). The Arizona Sexual Experience Scale was used the most to assess sexual dysfunction, but the Antipsychotics and Sexual Functioning Questionnaire and the Nagoya Sexual Functioning Questionnaire had the best characteristics. Conclusion: This review will help researchers and clinicians make a purpose-oriented choice of which scale to use. Systematic review registration number: CRD42014013010.