Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A randomized controlled trial: branched‐chain amino acid levels and glucose metabolism in patients with obesity and sleep apnea

There is evidence that changes in branched‐chain amino acid (BCAA) levels may correlate with the efficacy of therapeutic interventions for affecting improvement in metabolic control. The objective of this study was to evaluate whether serum concentrations of BCAAs (leucine, isoleucine, valine) could mediate in insulin sensitivity and glucose tolerance after continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) treatment in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). A prospective randomized controlled trial of OSA patients with morbid obesity was conducted. Eighty patients were randomized into two groups: 38 received conservative treatment and 42 received CPAP treatment for 12 weeks. Plasma levels of BCAA, glucose tolerance and insulin resistance were evaluated at baseline and after treatment. After treatment, significant decreases of leucine levels were observed in both groups when compared with baseline levels (P < 0.005). With respect to patients with normal glucose tolerance (NGT), patients with impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) had higher baseline levels of isoleucine (78 ± 16 versus 70 ± 13 μmol L−1, P = 0.014) and valine (286 ± 36 versus 268 ± 41 μmol L−1, P = 0.049), respectively. Changes in levels of leucine and isoleucine after treatment were related negatively to changes in fasting plasma glucose and glycosylated haemoglobin values only in the conservative group (P < 0.05). In summary, we found that the treatment with CPAP for 12 weeks caused similar changes in circulating BCAAs concentrations to conservative treatment and a differential metabolic response of CPAP and conservative treatment was observed between the relationship of BCAAs and glucose homeostasis. Additional studies are needed to determine the interplay between branched‐chain amino acids and glucose metabolism in patients with sleep apnea.
In vitro susceptibility of human vascular wall cells to infection with Chlamydia pneumoniae

Chlamydia pneumoniae is a common respiratory pathogen. Recent studies have demonstrated the presence of C. pneumoniae in coronary and aortic atherosclerotic lesions. To study the role of C. pneumoniae in atherosclerosis, we investigated the susceptibilities of three different cells of the human vascular wall to infection with C. pneumoniae AR-39. These cell types were endothelial cells, smooth muscle cells, and macrophages derived from peripheral blood monocytes. Infection was assessed by using a direct fluorescent antibody to assess inclusion counts. Duplicate cell samples were harvested 3 days postinfection and were passed in HL cells, a susceptible human epithelial cell line, to determine if infectious organisms were produced. Endothelial cells, smooth muscle cells, and macrophages were capable of supporting C. pneumoniae growth in vitro. These results showed that three different cell types known to be important in atherogenesis are susceptible to infection with C. pneumoniae.
Dendritic cells issued in vitro from bone marrow produce PGE(2) that contributes to the immunomodulation induced by antigen-presenting cells.

Given that preliminary work has indicated that prostaglandins can play a role in modulating dendritic cell (DC) functions, we addressed the prostaglandin E(2) (PGE(2)) biosynthetic capacity of mouse DC produced in vitro from bone marrow cells. We observed production of significant amounts of PGE(2), which was reduced by at least 80% when cells were incubated in the presence of indomethacin, a COX-1 preferential inhibitor. Indeed, when tested by Western blot analysis with specific COX-1 and COX-2 antibodies, only COX-1 expression could be detected in the bone marrow (BM)-DC. For lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-treated BM-DC, inhibition of PGE(2) production by indomethacin or by NS-398 (a COX-2-selective inhibitor) used alone was less potent. After LPS treatment of BM-DC, COX-1 and COX-2 expression was potent, and inhibition of PGE(2) synthesis needed the presence of both indomethacin and NS-398. We also observed that exogenous PGE(2) diminished the expression of MHC class II molecules by BM-DC and that prostaglandin and indomethacin had antagonistic effects on cell proliferation during the mixed lymphocyte reaction using BM-DC as stimulatory cells. This assessment of PGE(2) suggests that endogenous PGE(2) produced by DC might play a role as an immunomodulating factor during the immune response. This hypothesis is sustained by the fact that IL-12 production by BM-DC is modulated by exogenous PGE(2) as well as endogenous prostaglandin, since either the addition of exogenous PGE(2) or the presence of LPS (which increases endogenous PGE(2) synthesis) decreases IL-12 production, while NS-398 (which decreases LPS-induced PGE(2) synthesis) increases IL-12 synthesis.
University Stakeholder Management and University Social Responsibility

The article further develops the theoretical resources of stakeholder theory, stakeholder management and corporate social responsibility, created for the needs of enterprises. It deals with the possibility of using them for the needs of universities. The theory is interconnected with the outcomes of the survey in the areas of university stakeholder management and university social responsibility. The paper defines university stakeholders, suggests their classification and gives some recommendations on selection and application of the strategy for negotiation with individual university stakeholders. Attention is also paid to relationships between stakeholders and social responsibility concept. The basic resources of the university social responsibility are described and its key areas and problems are identified on the example of Czech universities.
Solution processing of CdTe nanocrystals for thin-film solar cells

We describe solution-processed sintered nanocrystal solar cells. As the absorber layer, thin-films of CdTe nanocrystals were deposited using a layer-by-layer spin coating process. For Schottky barrier solar cells (ITO/CdTe/Ca/Al), an efficiency of 3.0±0.3% with V<sub>oc</sub>= 0.53±0.03 V, J<sub>sc</sub>= 13.2±0.2 mA/cm<sup>2</sup>, and FF=43.1±4.2% was measured under AM1.5G conditions. In order to overcome the limitations associated with the Schottky barrier structure, heterojunction solar cells incorporating solution-processed CdSe nanocrystals as an n-type layer were fabricated and characterized. Under darkness, heterojunction devices (ITO/CdTe/CdSe/Al) showed an improved current rectification ratio of 4.53×10<sup>2</sup> at ±1V in comparison to Schottky barrier solar cells, indicating that a well-defined junction is formed between CdSe and CdTe. Under illumination (AM1.5G), the devices exhibited an average efficiency of ~2% with V<sub>oc</sub>=0.50±0.02 V.
Robust TDOA-based joint source and microphone localization in a reverberant environment using medians of acceptable recovered TOAs

A robust method is presented for time difference of arrival (TDOA)-based joint source and microphone localization that overcomes a problem with a previously developed technique for estimating time of arrivals (TOAs) from only TDOA observations using the low-rank property of TOA measurements. In that technique, closed-form solutions for the localization are derived by TOA recovery. However, in a reverberant environment, TDOA estimation can have a large error, in which case the recovery does not work well. The method presented uses the concept of acceptable solution to find subsets of the TDOA measurements with small errors. The medians of the TOAs recovered from all TDOA measurements and all TDOA subsets yielding acceptable solutions are used for localization. Evaluation using actual data of the proposed method in a reverberant environment demonstrated its validity.
Static output feedback sliding mode control for stochastic descriptor systems

This paper is concerned with static output feedback stabilization for stochastic Itô descriptor systems via integral sliding mode technique. A novel integral sliding mode control strategy using the output information is proposed for stochastic Itô descriptor systems. It is shown that the proposed integral sliding mode control approach removes a restrictive assumption often employed in the sliding mode control for stochastic Ito systems. Output-based sliding mode controllers are designed to keep the reachability of sliding surfaces from the beginning almost surely, and the asymptotically mean square admissibility of resultant sliding motion can bstochastic Itô descriptor systemse determined by solving a linear matrix inequality(LMI).
Fat-specific protein 27 modulates nuclear factor of activated T cells 5 and the cellular response to stress[S]

Fat-specific protein 27 (FSP27), a member of the cell death-inducing DNA fragmentation factor α-like effector (Cide) family, is highly expressed in adipose tissues and is a lipid droplet (LD)-associated protein that induces the accumulation of LDs. Using a yeast two-hybrid system to examine potential interactions of FSP27 with other proteins, a direct interaction with the N-terminal region of nuclear factor of activated T cells 5 (NFAT5) was identified. NFAT5 is a transcription factor that induces osmoprotective and inflammatory genes after its translocation to the nucleus. The interaction between FSP27 and NFAT5 was confirmed by bimolecular fluorescence complementation and coimmunoprecipitation. Using immunocytochemistry, NFAT5 is detected in the cytoplasm and in the nucleus under isotonic conditions; however, overexpression of FSP27 inhibited the hypertonic-induced nuclear translocation of NFAT5. Consistent with the suppression of NFAT5 nuclear translocation, in cells transfected with a reporter construct containing the NFAT5 response element from the monocyte chemoattractant protein 1 (MCP1) promoter, FSP27 overexpression repressed hypertonic-induced luciferase activity and the expression of NFAT5 target genes. Knockdown of FSP27 in differentiated 3T3-L1 adipocytes increased the NFAT5-mediated rise in MCP1. These results suggest that FSP27 not only modulates LD homeostasis but also modulates the response to osmotic stress via a physical interaction with NFAT5 at the LD surface.
Auxological Evaluation in Patients with a 22q11.2 Microdeletion Syndrome: Normal Prevalence of Obesity and Neonatal Length and Gender Influence on Body Mass Index Evolution

Aims: To evaluate auxological parameters in children and adults with a 22q11.2 microdeletion syndrome (22q11.2 DS) and to compare prevalence of obesity to that in the French general population. Methods: 102 patients with 22q11.2 DS (49 males, 53 females) were recruited from birth to adulthood through a reference center in southern France. Results: Mean BMI Z score and mean height were normal (0.07 ± 1.49 SD, –0.87 ± 1.36 SDS, respectively). 16.1% of patients were overweight (including obese), 57% out of them being born small for gestational age for length versus 25% of non-overweight patients. During infancy, BMI increased in girls (+0.89 SD Z score). Childhood: 14.7% were overweight, prevalence similar to that of the in French children population. Adulthood: 19.2% were overweight. BMI Z scores were inversely correlated with neonatal length (p = 0.026) and female sex (p = 0.032) but positively associated with neonatal weight (p = 0.036). From analysis of neonatal data, 22q11.2 DS newborns were significantly shorter with regard to their weight (p < 0.01), even though mean neonatal measures were above –2 SDS. Conclusions: Our study did not find a higher prevalence of overweight in 22q11.2 DS to that in the French population. The BMI Z score was inversely correlated with neonatal length and female gender but positively associated with neonatal weight.
Protective effect of cyclooxygenase‐2 (COX‐2) inhibitors but not non‐selective cyclooxygenase (COX)‐inhibitors on ethanol withdrawal‐induced behavioural changes

Cyclooxygenase (COX) is reported to play a significant role in neurodegeneration. Recent studies have shown that chronic ethanol administration up‐regulates cyclooxygenase expression. In the present study we examined the effect of nimesulide (a preferential COX‐2 inhibitor), rofecoxib (a highly selective COX‐2 inhibitor) or naproxen (a non‐selective COX‐inhibitor displaying high affinity towards the COX‐1 isoenzyme) on alcohol‐induced withdrawal symptoms. Mice were made physically dependent on alcohol by the chronic administration of ethanol (2g/kg of 10% v/v), intragastrically, twice on day 1 and then once‐daily on successive days for a total of 7 days. Nimesulide [2.5mg/kg, intraperitoneally (i.p.)], rofecoxib (2mg/kg, i.p.) or naproxen (7mg/kg, i.p.) were administered daily for 7 days before administering alcohol intragastrically. After 24 hours of the last alcohol administration, the treatments were reversed and the mice were tested for withdrawal, so that the animals that had received COX‐inhibitors followed 30 minutes later by ethanol on days 1–7 were challenged with saline. Similarly, the animals which received saline followed 30 minutes later by ethanol received only saline. Behavioural analysis revealed hyperlocomotor activity, increased anxious response and increased hyperalgesia in mice. Also, alcohol withdrawal decreased the threshold for Pentylenetetrazole‐(PTZ)‐induced convulsions. Pretreatment with COX‐inhibitors rofecoxib (2mg/kg, i.p.) or nimesulide (2.5mg/kg, i.p.) displayed significant protection against ethanol‐induced withdrawal symptoms, while naproxen (7mg/kg, i.p.) was not effective in reversing alcohol‐induced withdrawal symptoms. The results of the present study suggest strongly the possible role of cyclooxygenases, particularly COX‐2 inhibitors, on ethanol‐induced withdrawal symptoms and the potential use of COX‐2 inhibitors in their prevention and treatment.
A Novel Carbamoyl-Phosphate Synthetase from Aquifex aeolicus *

Aquifex aeolicus, an extreme hyperthermophile, has neither a full-length carbamoyl-phosphate synthetase (CPSase) resembling the enzyme found in all mesophilic organisms nor a carbamate kinase-like CPSase such as those present in several hyperthermophilic archaea. However, the genome has open reading frames encoding putative proteins that are homologous to the major CPSase domains. The glutaminase, CPS.A, and CPS.B homologs from A. aeolicus were cloned, overexpressed inEscherichia coli, and purified to homogeneity. The isolated proteins could catalyze several partial reactions but not the overall synthesis of carbamoyl phosphate. However, a stable 124-kDa complex could be reconstituted from stoichiometric amounts of CPS.A and CPS.B proteins that synthesized carbamoyl phosphate from ATP, bicarbonate, and ammonia. The inclusion of the glutaminase subunit resulted in the formation of a 171-kDa complex that could utilize glutamine as the nitrogen-donating substrate, although the catalytic efficiency was significantly compromised. Molecular modeling, using E. coli CPSase as a template, showed that the enzyme has a similar structural organization and interdomain interfaces and that all of the residues known to be essential for function are conserved and properly positioned. A steady state kinetic study at 78 °C indicated that although the substrate affinity was similar for bicarbonate, ammonia, and glutamine, the K m for ATP was appreciably higher than that of any known CPSase. The A. aeolicuscomplex, with a split gene encoding the major synthetase domains and relatively inefficient coupling of amidotransferase and synthetase functions, may be more closely related to the ancestral precursor of contemporary mesophilic CPSases.
Novel cross-coupling topologies for planar microwave bandpass filters with asymmetric frequency response

In this paper the problem of designing simple low-cost planar microwave bandpass filters with strongly asymmetric characteristics, filters that can efficiently attenuate an adjacent channel, is investigated. The usual quadruplet structure of a fourth-order filter offers two transmission zeros, located one on each side of the passband. For one of the two adjacent channels, a considerably higher attenuation can be obtained by designing filters with both transmission zeros in the same (upper or lower) stopband. The new topology investigated in this paper offers the possibility of designing such quadruplets with two transmission zeroes located both on the same side of the passband, in prescribed and controlled positions. Filters with this novel structure can provide very high attenuation not only at a single frequency, but in a larger adjacent frequency band.
Efficiency of Energy-saving & Emission-reducing and the Affect Factors on Logistics Industry

Logistics industry is the main area of energy consumption and carbon emissions.By putting the non-consensual output into total factor production framework and based on the input and output-oriented DEA model,the efficiency and potential of energy-saving emissionreducing of logistics industry from 2006 to 2013is measured.The results reveal that logistics industry has lower efficiency on energy-saving potential and emission-reducing.The annual average efficiencies are 0.53 and 0.66 respectively.There is a downtrend in efficiency of emissionreducing.The west region has the lowest efficiency on energy-saving;the middle has the lowest efficiency on carbon emissions;and the northeast has the highest efficiencies both on energy consumption and carbon emissions.The affect factors regression results show that there is an inverted U-shaped curve relationship between efficiency and GDP per capita.RD intensity and FDI improve efficiency on energy-saving and emission-reducing,while industrialization and the ownership structure have negative effects on the efficiency.
Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 Vpu protein induces degradation of CD4 in vitro: the cytoplasmic domain of CD4 contributes to Vpu sensitivity

CD4 is an integral membrane glycoprotein which functions as the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) receptor for infection of human host cells. We have recently demonstrated that Vpu, an HIV type 1 (HIV-1) encoded integral membrane phosphoprotein, induces rapid degradation of CD4 in the endoplasmic reticulum. In this report, we describe an in vitro model system that allowed us to define important parameters for Vpu-dependent CD4 degradation. The rate of CD4 decay in rabbit reticulocyte lysate was approximately one-third of that observed previously in tissue culture experiments in the presence of Vpu (40 versus 12 min) and required no other HIV-1 encoded proteins. Degradation was contingent on the presence of microsomal membranes in the assay and the coexpression of Vpu and CD4 in the same membrane compartment. By using the in vitro degradation assay, the effects of specific mutations in CD4, including C-terminal truncations and glycosylation mutants, were analyzed. The results of these experiments indicate that Vpu has the capacity to induce degradation of glycosylated as well as nonglycosylated membrane-associated CD4. Truncation of 13 C-terminal amino acids of CD4 did not affect the ability of Vpu to induce its degradation. However, the removal of 32 amino acids from the C-terminus of CD4 completely abolished sensitivity to Vpu. This suggests that Vpu targets specific sequences in the cytoplasmic domain of CD4 to induce its degradation. We also analyzed the effects of mutations in Vpu on its biological activity in the in vitro CD4 degradation assay. The results of these experiments suggest that sequences critical for this function of Vpu are located in its hydrophilic C-terminal domain.
Aminoglycoside Concentrations Required for Synergy with Carbapenems against Pseudomonas aeruginosa Determined via Mechanistic Studies and Modeling

ABSTRACT This study aimed to systematically identify the aminoglycoside concentrations required for synergy with a carbapenem and characterize the permeabilizing effect of aminoglycosides on the outer membrane of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Monotherapies and combinations of four aminoglycosides and three carbapenems were studied for activity against P. aeruginosa strain AH298-GFP in 48-h static-concentration time-kill studies (SCTK) (inoculum: 107.6 CFU/ml). The outer membrane-permeabilizing effect of tobramycin alone and in combination with imipenem was characterized via electron microscopy, confocal imaging, and the nitrocefin assay. A mechanism-based model (MBM) was developed to simultaneously describe the time course of bacterial killing and prevention of regrowth by imipenem combined with each of the four aminoglycosides. Notably, 0.25 mg/liter of tobramycin, which was inactive in monotherapy, achieved synergy (i.e., ≥2-log10 more killing than the most active monotherapy at 24 h) combined with imipenem. Electron micrographs, confocal image analyses, and the nitrocefin uptake data showed distinct outer membrane damage by tobramycin, which was more extensive for the combination with imipenem. The MBM indicated that aminoglycosides enhanced the imipenem target site concentration up to 4.27-fold. Tobramycin was the most potent aminoglycoside to permeabilize the outer membrane; tobramycin (0.216 mg/liter), gentamicin (0.739 mg/liter), amikacin (1.70 mg/liter), or streptomycin (5.19 mg/liter) was required for half-maximal permeabilization. In summary, our SCTK, mechanistic studies and MBM indicated that tobramycin was highly synergistic and displayed the maximum outer membrane disruption potential among the tested aminoglycosides. These findings support the optimization of highly promising antibiotic combination dosage regimens for critically ill patients.
Cardiovascular risk, cardiovascular events, and metabolic syndrome in renal transplantation: comparison of early steroid withdrawal and chronic steroids

Abstract: Background: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death with a functioning graft in renal transplant recipients. The purpose of this study was to compare Framingham Risk Score (FRS), metabolic syndrome (MS), and cardiovascular events (CVE) in patients receiving early corticosteroid withdrawal (ECSWD), or chronic corticosteroid therapy (CCS).
Risk and Returns of Sustainable Crop Intensification: The Case of Smallholder Rice and Potato Farmers in Uganda

To feed a growing and increasingly urbanized population, Uganda needs to increase crop production without further exhausting available resources. Therefore, smallholder farmers are encouraged to adopt sustainable crop intensification methods such as inorganic fertilizer or hybrid seeds. However, these farmers perceive these new technologies as risky hence adoption will depend on how well they can manage this additional risk. This paper documents patterns observed in socioeconomic data that suggest risk is an important barrier to sustainable crop intensification practices among Ugandan smallholder rice and potato farmers. In particular, we find that households that engage in risk management strategies, such as investing in risk-reducing technology or engaging in precautionary savings, are more likely to practice intensified cropping. However, our data also show only limited yield risk associated with the use of fertilizers or pesticides, suggesting part of the problem is related to perception. We also discuss the consequences for policy.