Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Neuro Psycho Physiological Effects of Chronic and Excessive Stress

Stress is an unavoidable aspect of our daily lives. We face deadlines and get stuck in traffic, experience conflict and financial struggles, and live in a race against time. All things considered, humans are remarkably resilient against stress. It’s even useful to a point. When stress becomes chronic or excessive, however, it can exceed our natural ability to cope, resulting in harmful consequences for both the body and mind (Benson & Stuart, 1992). In this literature review, we will closely examine the biological components of stress in order to fully understand its impact. We will then see how these components can lead to serious neurobiological, physiological, and psychological consequences when prolonged or in excess. The review concludes with research-based interventions that could aid in both the prevention and treatment of various physical and psychological illnesses. More prevalent utilization of these approaches could potentially improve the effectiveness of our current efforts, while promoting overall health and wellness throughout society.
Monitoring Voltage-Dependent Charge Displacement of Shaker B-IR K+ Ion Channels Using Radio Frequency Interrogation

Here we introduce a new technique that probes voltage-dependent charge displacements of excitable membrane-bound proteins using extracellularly applied radio frequency (RF, 500 kHz) electric fields. Xenopus oocytes were used as a model cell for these experiments, and were injected with cRNA encoding Shaker B-IR (ShB-IR) K+ ion channels to express large densities of this protein in the oocyte membranes. Two-electrode voltage clamp (TEVC) was applied to command whole-cell membrane potential and to measure channel-dependent membrane currents. Simultaneously, RF electric fields were applied to perturb the membrane potential about the TEVC level and to measure voltage-dependent RF displacement currents. ShB-IR expressing oocytes showed significantly larger changes in RF displacement currents upon membrane depolarization than control oocytes. Voltage-dependent changes in RF displacement currents further increased in ShB-IR expressing oocytes after ∼120 µM Cu2+ addition to the external bath. Cu2+ is known to bind to the ShB-IR ion channel and inhibit Shaker K+ conductance, indicating that changes in the RF displacement current reported here were associated with RF vibration of the Cu2+-linked mobile domain of the ShB-IR protein. Results demonstrate the use of extracellular RF electrodes to interrogate voltage-dependent movement of charged mobile protein domains — capabilities that might enable detection of small changes in charge distribution associated with integral membrane protein conformation and/or drug–protein interactions.
Preparation of Tween 80-Zn/Al-Levodopa-Layered Double Hydroxides Nanocomposite for Drug Delivery System

We incorporated anti-Parkinsonian drug, levodopa (dopa), in Zn/Al-LDH by coprecipitation method to form dopa-LDH nanocomposite. Further coating of Tween-80 on the external surfaces of dopa-LDH nanocomposite was achieved through the oxygen of C=O group of Tween-80 with the layer of dopa-LDH nanocomposite. The final product is called Tween-dopa-LDH nanocomposite. The X-ray diffraction indicates that the Tween-dopa-LDH nanocomposite was formed by aggregation structure. From the TGA data, the Tween-80 loading on the surface of LDH and dopa-LDH was 8.6 and 7.4%, respectively. The effect of coating process on the dopa release from Tween-dopa-LDH nanocomposite was also studied. The release from Tween-dopa-LDH nanocomposite shows slower release compared to the release of the drug from dopa-LDH nanocomposite as done previously in our study, presumably due to the retarding shielding effect. The cell viability study using PC12 showed improved viability with Tween-80 coating on dopa-LDH nanocomposite as studied by mitochondrial dehydrogenase activity (MTT assay).
Professional Sports Facilities, Franchises and Urban Economic Development

Local political and community leaders and the owners of professional sports teams frequently claim that professional sports facilities and franchises are important engines of economic development in urban areas. These structures and teams allegedly contribute millions of dollars of net new spending annually and create hundreds of new jobs, and provide justification for hundreds of millions of dollars of public subsidies for the construction of many new professional sports facilities in the United Sates over the past decade. Despite these claims, economists have found no evidence of positive economic impact of professional sports teams and facilities on urban economies. We critically review the debate on the economic effects of professional sports and their role as an engine of urban economic redevelopment, with an emphasis on recent economic research.
Argumentations in proving discourses in mathematics classrooms

This paper focuses on argumentations in proving discourses in mathematics classrooms. Examples of different types of argumentations that were observed in a comparative study of French and German lessons on the Pythagorean Theorem are presented. These illustrate different argumentations within two kinds of proving discourse. In one case the argumentation is characterised as intuitive-visual, and in the other as conceptual. It is suggested that there is an epistemological basis for the differences between these discourses and that comparative studies like this one provide a way to investigate these further.
An examination of software engineering work practices

This paper presents work practice data of the daily activities of software engineers. Four separate studies are presented; one looking longitudinally at an individual SE; two looking at a software engineering group; and one looking at company-wide tool usage statistics. We also discuss the advantages in considering work practices in designing tools for software engineers, and include some requirements for a tool we have developed as a result of our studies.
Reflections on the Past, Present and Possible Future of Women's Alcoholism Treatment

Summary The past twenty years have produced both good news and bad news in the treatment of alcoholic women. The impact of important strides in our clinical knowledge and skills is limited by the fact that women's access to effective alcoholism treatment peaked in the 1980s and is in decline. In 2002 we face the reality that providing excellent treatment for alcoholic women is as much a political and societal challenge as a clinical one; the treatment field must take on the challenge of opening our doors to all women in need of treatment. We must do this both by creating new, more accessible treatment models and through activism to push for increased access to current treatment resources.
Wafer-scale nanostructure formation inside vertical nano-pores

We propose a wafer-scale technique for nanostructure formation inside vertically oriented, through-membrane nano-pores. It uses 50 nm monocrystalline silicon pillars as a mold, embedded in a silicon nitride membrane formed in an innovative step. The proposed technique paves the way towards advanced functionalization of parallel oriented nano-pores for actuation, sensing, filtering/trapping purposes.
Automatic 3D coordinate estimation of feature points for building modeling using stereo images

In dense urban areas, close-range digital photogrammetry is appropriate for three-dimensional (3D) modeling in terms of cost and portability. In this method, passpoints between stereo images must be extracted in the orientation process. Because of the number of buildings and obstacles in urban areas, automatic selection of passpoints is complex, whereas manual selection is time-consuming. However, for detailed modeling, components of a building must be extracted. Therefore, the method is developed to automatically extract components of a building for efficient modeling in this study. In the proposed method, homogenous surfaces are extracted by using RGB bright values and passpoints are accurately matched by using an association program automatically. Then, 3D coordinates are calculated. This method was validated by using photographic images taken near Kodaiji temple. The RMSE was about 16 cm, showing that the proposed method of automatic estimation of feature points generates acceptable models in terms of accuracy.
Problem Çözme Stratejilerinin Problem Çözme Başarısını Yordama Gücü

Bu calismanin amaci ilkogretim 4. ve 5. sinif ogrencilerinin matematik problemlerinin cozumunde kullandiklari problem cozme stratejilerini belirlemek ve bu stratejilerin problem cozme basarisini yordama gucunu ortaya koymaktir. Arastirma ilkogretim 4. ve 5. sinifa devam eden rastlantisal ornekleme yoluyla secilen 162 ogrenci ile yapilmistir. Arastirmanin verilerini toplamak amaciyla arastirmaci tarafindan gelistirilen “Matematik Problemlerini Cozme Stratejilerini Belirleme Olcegi” ile Sadik (2006) tarafindan gelistirilen “Problem Cozme Basari Testi” kullanilmistir. Arastirma sonunda hem 4. hem de 5. sinif ogrencilerinin problem cozme stratejilerini kullanma duzeyinin yuksek oldugu ve 4. sinif ogrencilerinin problem cozme stratejilerini daha fazla kullandiklari bulunmustur. Arastirmada problem cozme stratejilerini kullanma durumlarinin cinsiyet degiskeni acisindan anlamli bir farklilik gostermedigi saptanmistir. Problem cozme stratejilerinden problemi okuma ve anlama ile problemi farkli ifade etme stratejilerinin problem cozme basarisini yordamada etkili oldugu gorulmustur.
The Work Has Been Developed in the Fv/slm 'advanced Development Multimedia Systems' Department at Robert

Car applications demand more and more the use of speech technologies. Drivers must concentrate on controlling the car and the non-use of hands makes the voice a valuable tool. Here we analyze the possibility of identifying the user of a car through her/his voice in order to develop some useful applications, and establish preferences, some of them related to music. The identification will be done in parallel to speech commands which will be given to devices in the car in the future. Once the user is identified, the system loads a personal profile. It includes music preferences which can be downloaded from the Internet databases using e.g. MPEG-7 .
Network Structure or Tie Content? The Impact of Managerial Networks on Career Outcomes and Influence

Social networks are crucial for gaining information, enhancing one's own influence and promoting the career advancement. This paper addresses the question which network properties explain intra-organizational outcomes at work. Following the idea of Burt concerning the benefits of structural holes, I explore on the one hand the impact of structural holes on influence and career outcomes in a knowledge intensive firm. Considering the specific characteristics of knowledge intensive firms, I incorporate the importance of tie strength and professional closeness in my analysis of organizational outcomes. On the other hand, I explore the resources gained through different tie contents. The relational resources are clustered and analyzed with regard to their structural properties. Data was collected using online questionnaires in a Swiss service firm. The ego-networks of 288 managers were analyzed, using eight name-generating questions. Two effects stand out: Firstly, structural holes, strong ties and professional closeness do enhance influence and career success. Secondly, the networks can be clustered in three different groups: i) work related information, ii) strategic information or cultural norms and iii) personal support. The results show the relevance of tie content for network analysis. The consideration of the resource flow allows a better understanding of the contribution of structural properties to organizational outcomes.
Nitrogen Controls on Climate Model Evapotranspiration

Most evapotranspiration over land occurs through vegetation. The fraction of net radiation balanced by evapotranspiration depends on stomatal controls. Stomates transpire water for the leaf to assimilate carbon, depending on the canopy carbon demand, and on root uptake, if it is limiting. Canopy carbon demand in turn depends on the balancing between visible photon-driven and enzyme-driven steps in the leaf carbon physiology. The enzymedriven component is here represented by a Rubisco-related nitrogen reservoir that interacts with plant‐soil nitrogen cycling and other components of a climate model. Previous canopy carbon models included in GCMs have assumed either fixed leaf nitrogen, that is, prescribed photosynthetic capacities, or an optimization between leaf nitrogen and light levels so that in either case stomatal conductance varied only with light levels and temperature. A nitrogen model is coupled to a previously derived but here modified carbon model and includes, besides the enzyme reservoir, additional plant stores for leaf structure and roots. It also includes organic and mineral reservoirs in the soil; the latter are generated, exchanged, and lost by biological fixation, deposition and fertilization, mineralization, nitrification, root uptake, denitrification, and leaching. The root nutrient uptake model is a novel and simple, but rigorous, treatment of soil transport and root physiological uptake. The other soil components are largely derived from previously published parameterizations and global budget constraints. The feasibility of applying the derived biogeochemical cycling model to climate model calculations of evapotranspiration is demonstrated through its incorporation in the Biosphere‐Atmosphere Transfer Scheme land model and a 17-yr Atmospheric Model Inter comparison Project II integration with the NCAR CCM3 GCM. The derived global budgets show land net primary production (NPP), fine root carbon, and various aspects of the nitrogen cycling are reasonably consistent with past studies. Time series for monthly statistics averaged over model grid points for the Amazon evergreen forest and lower Colorado basin demonstrate the coupled interannual variability of modeled precipitation, evapotranspiration, NPP, and canopy Rubisco enzymes.
SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells: a model system for studying biosynthesis of NAAG

N-Acetylaspartylglutamate (NAAG) is a neuropeptide that is thought to modulate neurotransmitter release through pre-synaptic mGluR3 receptors. Despite years of research into NAAG biochemistry, almost nothing is known about NAAG biosynthesis. To date, NAAG biosynthesis has only been demonstrated conclusively in explanted animal neural tissues, including frog retina, rat dorsal root ganglia and crayfish nerve cord, but not in human cells or tissues. We show here that a human neuroblastoma cell line, SH-SY5Y, provides a good model system for the study of NAAG biosynthesis. Radiolabled NAAG synthesis occurred using both L-[3H]glutamic acid and L-[3H]glutamine as precursors, with glutamine being the preferred substrate. Differentiation of SH-SY5Y cells with retinoic acid resulted in decreased radiolabel incorporation into NAAG, whereas differentiation with nerve growth factor did not affect radiolabel incorporation.
Bayesian Degradation Analysis Considering Competing Risks and Residual-Life Prediction for Two-Phase Degradation

3 Acknowledgments . 4 List of Tables . 7 List of Figures . 8
Enhancement of Doxorubicin Cytotoxicity on Human Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma Cells by Indomethacin and 4-[5-(4-Chlorophenyl)-3-(trifluoromethyl)-1H-pyrazol-1-yl]benzenesulfonamide (SC236) via Inhibiting P-Glycoprotein Activity

Doxorubicin is a chemotherapeutic drug widely used for the treatment of advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. However, its efficacy is usually limited by the development of multidrug resistance (MDR), which has been linked to the up-regulation of P-glycoprotein (P-gp) in cancer cells. Conventional nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and cyclooxygenase 2 (COX-2)-selective inhibitors have been demonstrated to overcome MDR in some cancer cells. Here we sought to elucidate the effect of COX inhibitors on doxorubicin-induced cytotoxicity in relation to P-gp function in human esophageal squamous cell carcinoma cells. Among the five tested COX inhibitors [indomethacin, 4-[5-(4-chlorophenyl)-3-(trifluoromethyl)-1H-pyrazol-1-yl]-benzenesulfonamide (SC236), 5-(4-chlorophenyl)-1-(4-methoxyphenyl)-3-trifluorom-ethylpyrazole (SC560), nimesulide, and N-(2-cyclohexyloxy-4-nitrophenyl)methanesulfonamide (NS398)], all of which substantially suppressed prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) production to a similar extent, only the nonselective COX inhibitor indomethacin and the COX-2-selective inhibitor SC236 enhanced cytotoxic effects of doxorubicin on HKESC-1 and HKESC-2 cells. Moreover, these effects could not be reversed by the addition of PGE2. Knockdown of COX-2 by small interference RNA also failed to mimic the enhancing effects of indomethacin or SC236, implicating that their action is COX- and PGE2-independent. To this end, we observed that indomethacin and SC236 directly functioned as noncompetitive inhibitors of P-gp, which were manifested as a reduction of P-gp ATPase activity. Collectively, these findings suggest that the direct inhibitory effects of indomethacin and SC236 on P-gp may contribute to their ability to increase the intracellular retention of doxorubicin and thus enhance its cytotoxicity. The combination of indomethacin or SC236 with doxorubicin may have significant potential clinical application, especially in the circumvention of P-gp-mediated MDR in cancer cells.
Design of the Passive Joints of Underactuated Modular Soft Hands for Fingertip Trajectory Tracking

In this letter, we propose a method to design tendon-driven underactuated hands whose fingertips can track a predefined trajectory, when actuated. We focus on passively compliant hands composed of deformable joints and rigid links. We first introduce a procedure to determine suitable joints stiffness and tendon routing, then a possible realization of a robotic underactuated finger is shown. The kinematic and kinetostatic analysis of a tendon-driven robotic finger is necessary to define the overall stiffness values of the finger joints. A structural analysis of the element constituting each passive joint allowed to define a relation between the stiffness and joint's main dimensional and material properties. We validated the proposed framework both in simulation and with experiments using the robotic Soft-SixthFinger as a case study. The Soft-SixthFinger is a wearable robot for grasping compensation in patients with a paretic hand. We demonstrated that different fingertip trajectories can be achieved when joint stiffness and tendon routing are properly designed. Moreover, we demonstrated that the device is able to grasp a wider set of objects when a specific finger flexion trajectory is designed. The proposed framework is general and can be applied to robotic hands with an arbitrary number of fingers and joints per finger. The modular approach furthermore allows the user to easily customize the hand according to specific tasks or trajectories.
Systemic Complement Depletion Diminishes Perihematomal Brain Edema in Rats

Background and Purpose— The complement cascade is activated after experimental intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). It remains unclear, however, whether depleting the complement system will improve injury resulting from ICH. This study investigated the effects of systemic complement depletion on brain edema formation after ICH. Methods— Fifty-six pentobarbital-anesthetized Sprague-Dawley rats were used. Treatment animals were complement-depleted with cobra venom factor (CVF) (intraperitoneally). Control rats received an equal volume of saline injection (intraperitoneally). In both treatment and control rats, autologous blood (100 &mgr;L) was infused stereotaxically into the right basal ganglia. Rats were killed 2, 24, or 72 hours later for brain water, ion, and tumor necrosis factor-&agr; (TNF-&agr;) measurements, for Western blot analysis, and for immunohistochemical studies. Brain edema was quantitated by wet/dry weight. TNF-&agr; levels were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Western blot analysis was applied for C9 semiquantification. Immunohistochemistry was used to detect complement C3d, C5a, C9, and myeloperoxidase. Results— Perihematomal brain edema was reduced by systemic complement depletion at 24 hours (78.8±0.6% versus 81.5±0.8% in control, P <0.01) and 72 hours (81.5±1.5% versus 83.6±0.9% in control, P <0.05), while cerebellar water content was unaffected (78.2±0.3% versus 78.0±0.1%). Complement depletion reduced TNF-&agr; production 2 hours after ICH. Immunocytochemistry showed that complement depletion significantly reduced perihematomal C9 deposition, C3d production, and the number of C5a- and myeloperoxidase-positive cells. Conclusions— Complement depletion by CVF attenuates brain edema in ICH, indicating that complement activation plays an important role in ICH-induced brain edema. Preventing complement activation may be effective in the treatment of ICH.
From ERPs to Academics.

Standardized tests have been used to forecast scholastic success of school-age children, and have been related to intelligence, working memory, and inhibition using neuropsychological tests. However, ERP correlates of standardized achievement have not been reported. Thus, the relationship between academic achievement and the P3 component was assessed in a sample of 105 children during performance on a Go/NoGo task. The Wide Range Achievement Test - 3(rd) edition was administered to assess aptitude in reading, spelling, and arithmetic. Regression analyses indicated an independent contribution of P3 amplitude to reading and arithmetic achievement beyond the variance accounted for by IQ and school grade. No such relationship was observed for spelling. These data suggest that the P3, which reflects attentional processes involved in stimulus evaluation and inhibitory control may be a biomarker for academic achievement during childhood.
Identification of ERGIC-53 as an intracellular transport receptor of α1-antitrypsin

Secretory proteins are exported from the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) by bulk flow and/or receptor-mediated transport. Our understanding of this process is limited because of the low number of identified transport receptors and cognate cargo proteins. In mammalian cells, the lectin ER Golgi intermediate compartment 53-kD protein (ERGIC-53) represents the best characterized cargo receptor. It assists ER export of a subset of glycoproteins including coagulation factors V and VIII and cathepsin C and Z. Here, we report a novel screening strategy to identify protein interactions in the lumen of the secretory pathway using a yellow fluorescent protein–based protein fragment complementation assay. By screening a human liver complementary DNA library, we identify α1-antitrypsin (α1-AT) as previously unrecognized cargo of ERGIC-53 and show that cargo capture is carbohydrate- and conformation-dependent. ERGIC-53 knockdown and knockout cells display a specific secretion defect of α1-AT that is corrected by reintroducing ERGIC-53. The results reveal ERGIC-53 to be an intracellular transport receptor of α1-AT and provide direct evidence for active receptor-mediated ER export of a soluble secretory protein in higher eukaryotes.