Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Both Lobes of the Soluble Receptor of the Periplasmic Histidine Permease, an ABC Transporter (Traffic ATPase), Interact with the Membrane-bound Complex

The histidine permease of Salmonella typhimurium is an ABC transporter (traffic ATPase). The liganded soluble receptor, the histidine-binding protein HisJ, interacts with the membrane-bound complex HisQMP2 and stimulates its ATPase activity, which results in histidine translocation. In this study, we utilized HisJ proteins with mutations in either of the two lobes and wild type HisJ liganded with different substrates to show that each lobe carries an interaction site and that both lobes are involved in inducing (stimulating) the ATPase activity. We suggest that the spatial relationship between the lobes is one of the factors recognized by the membrane-bound complex in dictating the efficiency of the induction signal and of translocation. Several of the key residues involved have been identified. In addition, using constitutive ATPase mutants, we show that the binding protein provides some additional essential function(s) in translocation that is independent of the stimulation of ATP hydrolysis, and one possible mechanism is proposed, which includes the notion that liganded HisJ has different optimal conformations for signaling and for translocation.
Pentamidine Dosage: A Base/Salt Confusion

Pentamidine has a long history in the treatment of human African trypanosomiasis (HAT) and leishmaniasis. Early guidelines on the dosage of pentamidine were based on the base-moiety of the two different formulations available. Confusion on the dosage of pentamidine arose from a different labelling of the two available products, either based on the salt or base moiety available in the preparation. We provide an overview of the various guidelines concerning HAT and leishmaniasis over the past decades and show the confusion in the calculation of the dosage of pentamidine in these guidelines and the subsequent published reports on clinical trials and reviews. At present, only pentamidine isethionate is available, but the advised dosage for HAT and leishmaniasis is (historically) based on the amount of pentamidine base. In the treatment of leishmaniasis this is probably resulting in a subtherapeutic treatment. There is thus a need for a new, more transparent and concise guideline concerning the dosage of pentamidine, at least in the treatment of HAT and leishmaniasis.
Do crude oil prices influence new crop sunflower seed futures price discovery in Hungary

The oil produced from sunflower seed is primarily used for human consumption. It can substitute for other edible vegetable oils, such as rapeseed oil, processed into biodiesel in the European Union. This paper assesses the influence of crude oil futures on new crop sunflower seed futures in Hungary during the growing seasons of sunflower by applying standard cointegration analysis for the period 2004-2013. Tests were performed for the entire period and each sunflower growing season. For comparison, the influence of Paris rapeseed futures on sunflower seed futures was also assessed. The contrasting estimations for the global and seasonal characteristics of the variables suggest that standard cointegration analysis may not be appropriate for multiannual price series of agricultural commodities with strong seasonality in production because it will not capture the periodical shocks in supply and demand. The results are briefly discussed from the aspect of the fundamentals of the sunflower seed market.
Statin, a nonproliferation‐specific protein, is associated with the nuclear envelope and is heterogeneously distributed in cells leaving quiescent state

Statin, a protein of 57,000 daltons, is present primarily in the nuclei of nonproliferating cells of terminally differentiated tissues or of in vitro aged fibroblast cultures. In young growing cells, the protein can be induced to appear in the nuclei once the cell‐cycle traverse is blocked by various tissue culture manipulations, such as serum starvation; this expression, however, can be rapidly removed by addition of serum. The disappearance of statin in cells leaving the quiescent state is not uniform along the periphery of the nucleus; it can be distributed in various patterns, such as caps, nodules, patches, or irregular granules. This unusual distribution seems to suggest that preferential sites exist at the region of the nuclear envelope where statin presence may residually remain. The concentration of statin at the nuclear envelope region in cells at GO‐quiescent phase is confirmed by the intense staining of fluorescent antibody at the periphery of isolated rat liver nuclei. Further examination of the isolated nuclei reveals that the protein is associated with the lamina compartment of the nuclear envelope; this is evidenced by the results of immunoblotting experiments showing statin presence in the fraction enriched for lamins A‐C. Immunogold labelling studies show that the protein is located in the general area of the nuclear envelope. These results suggest that statin in GO‐quiescent cells is located predominantly at the nuclear envelope region and that in this vicinity there may exist geometrically sites of statin concentration as evidenced by the heterogeneous distribution in those cells experiencing the departure from the quiescent state.
Lycopodiaceae in Brazil. Conspectus of the family III. The genera Huperzia and Phlegmariurus

Abstract The subfamily Huperzioideae of the Lycopodiaceae includes 41 species in Brazil. The genus Huperzia is represented by a single species, and Phlegmariurus has 40 species. They occur in most habitat types with a humid climate, from tropical lowland forest, to montane forest, and campo vegetation in the highlands. There are 25 endemics, more than half of the species. The present treatment includes nomenclature, descriptions and illustrations of all species, and a key for their identification. Reference collections are cited and summarize the distribution of the species and document their identity. Short discussions deal with problems of species delimitation and compare closely related species.
Automatic learning-based selection of beam angles in radiation therapy of lung cancer

The treatment of lung cancer using external beam radiation requires an optimal selection of the radiation beam directions to avoid unnecessarily treatment of normal healthy tissues. We introduce an automated beam selection method, based on learning the relations between beam angles and anatomical features. Using a large dataset of clinical plans, we train a random forest regressor to predict beam angle likelihood. We then use an optimization procedure that incorporates inter-beam dependencies and selects the treatment beams. We present validation results, demonstrating the equivalence of automatically-selected beams and the derived radiation therapy plans to the clinical, manually-planned, ground-truth. The proposed method may be a useful clinical tool for reducing the manual planning workload, while sustaining plan quality.
Retrieval of forest above ground biomass using automatic KNN model

Forest is an important component of terrestrial ecosystems, so it is necessary to estimate the forest aboveground biomass (AGB) accurately in order to reduce the uncertainty of the carbon stock in forest ecosystem. In this study, a fast, efficient and automatic method has been proposed, called as Automatic KNN(AKNN). Using the Landsat 8 OLI data, airborne polmetric SAR (PolSAR) data, the AKNN has been applied to estimate the forest AGB and stem volume at two levels, the pixel and the subcompartment levels, respectively. The results showed that the power of AKNN in quantitative retrieval at two levels(R2=0.75, RMSE=23.43t/ha; R2=0.52 and RMSE=21.86m3/ha, respectively).
An Improved Classification Course Based on Mapreduce

It is an importance step for near-duplication detection to perform file classification in the data mining field, in this paper an improved classification course is proposed which consists of training and test course corresponding to its algorithm respectively. It utilizes the MapReduce computing model created by Google to conduct the classification calculation. Specially, the Sogou news data with various data amounts which simulated the massive data set was used for testing effectiveness and a comparative evaluation on execution time and speedup was accomplished on the experimental circumstance. The results obtained shows that the classification course obviously reduces the execution times greatly and gains the ideal speedup ratio when increasing data amounts, achieves the better performance.
Understanding Student Collaboration in Interdisciplinary Computing Activities

Many students are introduced to computing through its infusion into other school subjects. Advocates argue this approach can deepen learning and broaden who is exposed to computing. In many cases, such interdisciplinary activities are student-driven and collaborative. This requires students to balance multiple learning goals and leverage knowledge across subjects. When working in groups, students must also negotiate this balance with peers based on their collective expertise. Balance and negotiation, however, are not always easy. This paper presents data from a project to infuse computing into high school statistics using the R programming language. We analyze multiple episodes of video data from two pairs of students as they negotiated (1) the statistics and computing goals of an activity, (2) the knowledge needed to meet those goals, and (3) whose expertise can help achieve those goals. One pair consistently reached agreement along these dimensions, and engaged productively with both subject matter and computing. The other pair did not reach agreement, and struggled to accomplish their tasks. This work provides examples of productive and unproductive interdisciplinary computing collaborations, and contributes tools to study them.
Enhanced activation of Ca2+/Calmodulin‐dependent protein kinase II upon downregulation of cyclin‐dependent kinase 5‐p35

Cyclin‐dependent kinase 5 (Cdk5)‐p35 is downregulated in cultured neurons by N‐methyl‐d‐aspartate (NMDA) via the proteasomal degradation of p35. However, it is not known where in neurons this downregulation occurs or the physiologic meaning of the reaction. We show the enrichment of Cdk5 and p35 in the postsynaptic density and the NMDA‐induced degradation of postsynaptic p35 using brain slices and cultured neurons. To evaluate the role of this downregulation, we examined the relationship between Ca2+/calmodulin‐dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII) activation and Cdk5 downregulation, as events downstream from NMDA stimulation. Glutamate or NMDA stimulation induced CaMKII autophosphorylation over a time course that mirrored the time course of p35 degradation. To simulate the downregulation of postsynaptic Cdk5 in invitro experiments, we used the Cdk5 inhibitor roscovitine. The inhibition of Cdk5 activity by roscovitine enhanced CaMKII autophosphorylation and activation in cultured neurons, and in an isolated postsynaptic‐density‐enriched fraction. These results suggest that Cdk5 activity suppresses CaMKII activation, and that the downregulation of Cdk5 activity after treatment withNMDA facilitates CaMKII activation, leading to the easier induction of long‐term potentiation. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Myelodysplastic syndromes: Analysis of clinical and prognostic features in 96 patients

In a retrospective study of 96 patients with a myelodysplastic syndrome the FAB classification, Bournemouth score and other parameters were correlated with leukaemic transformation and survival. Diagnosis was refractory anaemia (RA) in 7 patients, acquired idiopathic sideroblastic anaemia (AISA) in 2, chronic myelomonocytic leukaemia (CMML) in 31, refractory anaemia with excess of blasts (RAEB) in 34 and RAEB in transformation (RAEB‐t) in 22. Median survival for all patients was 37 weeks (RA and AISA 103, CMML 67, RAEB 35, RAEB‐t 27). Scoring according to the Bournemouth criteria showed significant differences in survival between groups A, B and C. Of the separate variables, only percentage of bone marrow blasts and haemoglobin level were prognostically significant. A modified scoring system based upon these two variables was even more discriminative. It proved to be particularly useful in CMML, a subtype with a wide range of survival times. Leukaemic transformation was seen in 39% (RA and AISA 0%, CMML 30%, RAEB 39%, RAEB‐t 75%).
Real Time Fuzzy Logic Control of Laser Surface Heat Treatments

This article introduces a new real time incremental fuzzy logic controller for laser surface heat treatments, which allows to improve notably the uniformity and final quality of the process, reducing the rejection rate and increasing significantly the productivity and efficiency of the process. Besides to analyze the main characteristics and advantages of the developed control system, using the typical validation and analyze criteria, such as the overshooting and the settling time, in a complementary way, it is analyzed other unusual parameters of great practical interest, as the design and tuning time, as well as the experience and knowledge necessary for their design and implementation.
Quality-of-Service Driven Power and Sub-Carrier Allocation Policy for Vehicular Communication Networks

To improve power efficiency in vehicle-to-roadside infrastructure (V2I) communication networks, this paper proposes a joint power and sub-carrier assignment policy under delay aware quality of service (QoS) requirements. Due to the real-time nature of the V2I transmissions, the proposed policy should satisfy delay aware QoS requirements with a minimized power consumption. In particular, we develop a cross-layer framework in which orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) is employed at the physical layer and the proposed power and sub-carrier assignment policy works at the data link layer. Under the assumption that the instantaneous channel state information (CSI) of all users is known, the optimization problem can be formulated and solved with the help of a time-sharing factor. The obtained results show that both the optimal power allocation and the optimal sub-carrier assignment depend on the delay aware QoS requirements of each user. We also theoretically prove that the proposed power allocation policy converges to the classical water-filling policy if we do not consider the QoS requirements. Experimental results reveal that the proposed policy offers a superior performance over the existing resource allocation policies.
Enteric neuronal plasticity and a reduced number of interstitial cells of Cajal in hypertrophic rat ileum

Background—Partial obstruction of the ileum causes a notable hypertrophy of smooth muscle cells and enteric neurones in the proximally located intestine. Aims—To study the expression of neuromessengers in the hypertrophic ileum of rat as little is known about neuromessenger plasticity under these conditions. To investigate the presence of interstitial cells of Cajal (ICC) in hypertrophic ileum. Methods—Ileal hypertrophy was induced by circumferential application of a strip of plastic film for 18–24 days. Immunocytochemistry, in situ hybridisation, nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) diaphorase histochemistry, and ethidium bromide staining were used to investigate the number of enteric neurones expressing neuropeptides and nitric oxide synthase, and the frequency of ICC. Results—In the hypertrophic ileum several neuronal populations showed changes in their expression of neuromessengers. Myenteric neurones expressing vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP), pituitary adenylate cyclase activating peptide, and galanin were notably increased in number. In submucous ganglia the number of VIP immunoreactive neurones decreased while those expressing VIP mRNA increased. NADPH diaphorase positive submucous neurones increased dramatically while the number of neuronal type nitric oxide synthase expressing ones was unchanged. The number of ICC decreased notably in hypertrophic ileum. Conclusion—Enteric neurones change their levels of expression of neuromessengers in hypertrophic ileum. ICC are also affected. The changes are presumably part of an adaptive response to the increased work load.
Web accessibility at Kentucky's academic libraries

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide an update on the implementation of web accessibility guidelines at Kentucky academic library web sites.Design/methodology/approach – The academic library home pages of Bachelor‐degree granting institutions of Kentucky were tested for accessibility compliance using an online automated program. In addition, a series of manual accessibility tests were performed. Data were collected on errors against accessibility guidelines for each site. Data collected in 2003 were compared to data collected in 2007.Findings – The number of library home pages complying with basic accessibility guidelines is increasing. However, most sites that score well are built to comply with checkpoints that can be tested automatically. Few institutions included accessibility features which required manual verification.Research limitations/implications – This study relies largely on data collected with an imperfect accessibility‐checking software program. Some accessibility checkpoints c.
Outage performance of NOMA with TAS/MRC in dual hop AF relaying networks

We study outage performance of a downlink multiple-input multiple-output non-orthogonal multiple access (MIMO-NOMA) in dual hop amplify-and-forward (AF) relay communication system over frequency non-selective and slow fading channels with Nakagami-m distribution. In the network, the base station (BS) and mobile users equipped by multiantenna communicate by the help of fixed gain AF relay with single antenna. In the network, transmit antenna selection (TAS) and maximal ratio combining (MRC) diversity techniques are employed at the BS and mobile users, respectively. Exact closed-form outage probability is derived. Analytical results are validated by Monte Carlo simulations.
Quantifying associations of the dietary share of ultra-processed foods with overall diet quality in First Nations peoples in the Canadian provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba and Ontario

Abstract Objective To quantify associations of the dietary share of ultra-processed foods (UPF) with the overall diet quality of First Nations peoples. Design A cross-sectional analysis of data from the First Nations Food, Nutrition and Environment Study, designed to contribute to knowledge gaps regarding the diet of First Nations peoples living on-reserve, south of the 60th parallel. A multistage sampling of communities was conducted. All foods from 24 h dietary recalls were categorized into NOVA categories and analyses were performed to evaluate the impact of UPF on diet quality. Setting Western and Central Canada. Subjects First Nations participants aged 19 years or older. Results The sample consisted of 3700 participants. UPF contributed 53·9 % of energy. Compared with the non-UPF fraction of the diet, the UPF fraction had 3·5 times less vitamin A, 2·4 times less K, 2·2 times less protein, 2·3 times more free sugars and 1·8 times more Na. As the contribution of UPF to energy increased so did the overall intakes of energy, carbohydrate, free sugar, saturated fat, Na, Ca and vitamin C, and Na:K; while protein, fibre, K, Fe and vitamin A decreased. Diets of individuals who ate traditional First Nations food (e.g. wild plants and game animals) on the day of the recall were lower in UPF. Conclusions UPF were prevalent in First Nations diets. Efforts to curb UPF consumption and increase intake of traditional First Nations foods and other fresh or minimally processed foods would improve diet quality and health in First Nations peoples.
Cancer-Targeted BikDD Gene Therapy Elicits Protective Antitumor Immunity against Lung Cancer

Targeted cancer-specific gene therapy is a promising strategy for treating metastatic lung cancer, which is a leading cause of lung cancer–related deaths. Previously, we developed a cancer-targeted gene therapy expression system with high tumor specificity and strong activity that selectively induced lung cancer cell killing without affecting normal cells in immunocompromised mice. Here, we found this cancer-targeted gene therapy, SV-BikDD, composed of the survivin promoter in the VP16-GAL4-WPRE integrated systemic amplifier system to drive the apoptotic gene BikDD, not only caused cytotoxic effects in cancer cells but also elicited a cancer-specific cytotoxic T lymphocyte response to synergistically increase the therapeutic effect and further develop an effective systemic antitumoral immunity against rechallenges of tumorigenic dose of parental tumor cells inoculated at distant sites in immunocompetent mice. In addition, this cancer-targeted gene therapy does not elicit an immune response against normal tissues, but CMV-BikDD treatment does. The therapeutic vector could also induce proinflammatory cytokines to activate innate immunity and provide some benefits in antitumor gene therapy. Thus, this study provides a promising strategy with benefit of antitumoral immune response worthy of further development in clinical trials for treating lung cancer via cancer-targeted gene therapy. Mol Cancer Ther; 10(4); 637–47. ©2011 AACR.
Bovine S protein (vitronectin) increases phagocytosis of Streptococcus dysgalactiae

The effects of bovine S protein (vitronectin) on phagocytosis of Streptococcus dysgalactiae strains isolated from cattle with mastitis were investigated. Phagocytized streptococci were determined by a fluorometric microassay using glass adherent polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN). Preincubation of S. dysgalactiae with bovine S protein significantly increased their phagocytosis by PMN. Bovine S protein had no effect on phagocytic killing of non-S protein binding S. pyogenes cultures. Enzymatic digestion of the bovine S protein binding sites on S. dysgalactiae with pronase resulted in a significative reduction of the effects of S protein on phagocytosis. It could thus be concluded that in addition to its role as a promoter of cellular adhesion and complement inhibitor, bovine S protein may also influence the phagocytosis of S. dysgalactiae during inflammatory processes.
Combining Oncolytic HSV-1 with Immunogenic Cell Death-Inducing Drug Mitoxantrone Breaks Cancer Immune Tolerance and Improves Therapeutic Efficacy

Workenhe and colleagues show that the combination regimen of oncolytic virus with mitoxantrone significantly increases the efficacy of either treatment alone by enhancing the immunogenicity of and breaking immune tolerance against tumor-associated antigens, an Achilles' heel of current cancer therapy. Although antitumor activity of herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) ICP0 null oncolytic vectors has been validated in murine breast cancer models, oncolytic virus treatment alone is insufficient to break immune tolerance. Thus, we investigated enhancing efficacy through combination therapy with the immunogenic cell death–inducing chemotherapeutic drug, mitoxantrone. Despite a lack of enhanced cytotoxicity in vitro, HSV-1 ICP0 null oncolytic virus KM100 with 5 μmol/L mitoxantrone provided significant survival benefit to BALB/c mice bearing Her2/neu TUBO-derived tumors. This protection was mediated by increased intratumoral infiltration of neutrophils and tumor antigen-specific CD8+ T cells. Depletion studies verified that CD8-, CD4-, and Ly6G-expressing cells are essential for enhanced efficacy of the combination therapy. Moreover, the addition of mitoxantrone to KM100 oncolytic virus treatment broke immune tolerance in BALB-neuT mice bearing TUBO-derived tumors. This study suggests that oncolytic viruses in combination with immunogenic cell death–inducing chemotherapeutics enhance the immunogenicity of the tumor-associated antigens, breaking immunologic tolerance established toward these antigens. Cancer Immunol Res; 1(5); 309–19. ©2013 AACR.