Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effect of Co-transfection of Anti-myostatin shRNA Constructs in Caprine Fetal Fibroblast Cells

ABSTRACT Knockdown of myostatin gene (MSTN), transforming growth factor-β superfamily, and a negative regulator of the skeletal muscle growth, by RNA interference (RNAi), has been reported to increase muscle mass in mammals. The current study was aimed to cotransfect two anti-MSTN short hairpin RNA (shRNA) constructs in caprine fetal fibroblast cells for transient silencing of MSTN gene. In the present investigation, approximately 89% MSTN silencing was achieved in transiently transfected caprine fetal fibroblast cells by cotransfection of two best out of four anti-MSTN shRNA constructs. Simultaneously, we also monitored the induction of IFN responsive genes (IFN), pro-apoptotic gene (caspase3) and anti-apoptotic gene (MCL-1) due to cotransfection of different anti-MSTN shRNA constructs. We observed induction of 0.66-19.12, 1.04-4.14, 0.50-3.43, and 0.42-1.98 for folds IFN-β, OAS1, caspase3, and MCL-1 genes, respectively (p < 0.05). This RNAi based cotransfection method could provide an alternative strategy of gene knockout and develop stable caprine fetal fibroblast cells. Furthermore, these stable cells can be used as a cell donor for the development of transgenic cloned embryos by somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) technique.
The Relevance of Foreign Ownership and Financial Liberalization for Determining Banking Risk: A Comparative Analysis of European Countries

The goal of this study is to empirically identify how foreign capital group and financial liberalization affect the risk profiles of the banking sector in Europe. Through a dataset that covers 381 European banks spanning the 1995–2015 period and the methodology of panel regression, the empirical findings document the heterogeneity of banking risk determinants. We examine the implications of banks’ risk adjusted ROA that manifest themselves as spreading and growing instability. It also contributes to the literature by fo-cusing on a group of countries from Central and Eastern and Advanced Europe that have not been studied before. The extended model provides a causal link between the risk in the banking sector and the growth of the financial sector and economy.
Corporate governance mechanisms and accounting information quality of listed firms in Ghana

This paper analyses the implications of internal corporate governance mechanisms for accounting information quality which uses discretionary accrual as a proxy. The empirical research is based on a sample of 20 non-financial institutions listed on the Ghana stock exchange (GSE) for an 11-year period, 2003 to 2013. The results show that the operational earnings are more persistent than operational cash flow which suggests that in predicting future values from current ones, operational earnings gives a better output in looking at the long-term sustainability aim of a firm, than operational cash flows. The results also suggest that the board independence and foreign ownership constraint opportunistic managers to manipulate the earnings leading to a higher level of accounting information quality. By extension, these results have important policy implications for regulators in assessing the effectiveness of corporate governance on earnings quality.
Species-specific toxicity of copper nanoparticles among mammalian and piscine cell lines

Abstract The four copper nanoparticles (CuNPs) with the size of 25, 50, 78 and 100 nm and one type of micron-sized particles (MPs) (∼500 nm) were exposed to two mammalian (H4IIE and HepG2) and two piscine (PLHC-1 and RTH-149) cell lines to test the species-specific toxicities of CuNPs. The results showed that the morphologies, ion release and size of the particles all played an important role when investigating the toxicity. Furthermore, the authors found that the particle forms of CuNPs in suspensions highly contribute to the toxicity in all exposed cell lines whereas copper ions (Cu2+) only caused significant responses in mammalian cell lines, indicating the species-specific toxicity of CuNPs. This study revealed that the morphologies, ion release rate of NPs as well as the species-specific vulnerabilities of cells should all be considered when explaining and extrapolating toxicity test results among particles and among species.
Differential-algebraic systems as differential equations on manifolds

Based on the theory of differential equations on manifolds, existence and uniqueness results are proved for a class of mixed systems of differential and algebraic equations as they occur in various applications. Both the autonomous and nonautonomous case are considered. Moreover, a class of algebraically incomplete systems is introduced for which existence and uniqueness results only hold on certain lower-dimensional manifolds. This class includes systems for which the application of ODE-solvers is known to lead to difficulties. Finally, some solution approach based on continuation techniques is outlined.
A new two-layer reinforcement learning approach the control of a 2DOF manipulator

This paper presents a new machine learning approach, based on reinforcement learning, to control a highly nonlinear robot demonstrator. Learning is achieved using an on-policy temporal difference learning agent framework. The agent controls the movements of the robot by choosing torques for each joint and immediately receives a feedback signal. The implemented SARSA-agent uses an update rule that calculates the estimate of the current state-action by using the current state-action value, the received reward and the following state-action value. To handle the high number of state-action value pairs, a hash-table is used to efficiently store and access these values inside the lookup-table. To accelerate the learning process of more complex motions, a new second layer approach is introduced. In this approach, a library of simple motions is created in the first layer. The second layer-agent then combines the gathered experiences to achieve a faster solution for more complex motions. The evaluation of the two-layer agent shows that the combination of both layers dramatically increases the speed of finding a solution. Additionally, its solution is often better than the solution found by the pure reinforcement learning agent.
Chaos synchronization of a fractional-order modified Van der Pol-Duffing system via new linear control, backstepping control and Takagi-Sugeno fuzzy approaches

In this article, based on the stability theory of fractional-order systems, chaos synchronization is achieved in the fractional-order modified Van der Pol–Duffing system via a new linear control approach. A fractional backstepping controller is also designed to achieve chaos synchronization in the proposed system. Takagi-Sugeno fuzzy models-based are also presented to achieve chaos synchronization in the fractional-order modified Van der Pol–Duffing system via linear control technique. Numerical simulations are used to verify the effectiveness of the synchronization schemes. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Complexity, 2015
Primal and dual criteria for robust stability and their application to systems interconnected over a bipartite graph

A dual formulation of a standard stability criterion from robust control is derived and investigated. The dual provides additional insight into the stability criterion and is sometimes easier to use than the primal. This is illustrated for a class of systems interconnected over a bipartite graph. The dual criterion reveals structural properties of the interconnection which in some cases are easy to investigate using low complexity tests.
New ICTs and social interaction: Modelling communication frequency and communication mode choice

New information and communication technologies (ICTs) have provided new ways of communicating and maintaining social networks. However, relatively little is known on the effect of ICT-use on social interaction. Therefore, this article aims to explore the factors influencing individuals’ communication frequency and choice of communication mode. The analyses are based on social interaction diary data gathered in 2008 in the Eindhoven region in the Netherlands among 747 respondents. Using these data two models are estimated analysing the number of social interactions in two days and the choice of a communication mode used for the social interaction. Many significant effects of personal and household characteristics were found. In addition, the results for communication mode choice show the importance of including characteristics of the contacted person(s) to explain communication mode choice. The findings allow us to reconstruct the generation of social activities and the relationship between face-to-face and ICT-mediated communication.
Phase 1 Dose-Ranging Safety Trial of Lactobacillus crispatus CTV-05 for the Prevention of Bacterial Vaginosis

Background: Bacterial vaginosis is a very common vaginal infection. The lack of endogenous lactobacilli and overgrowth of pathogens facilitate numerous gynecological complications. Methods: A phase I dose-ranging safety trial tested the safety, tolerability, and acceptability of Lactobacillus crispatus CTV-05 (LACTIN-V) administered by vaginal applicator. Twelve healthy volunteers were enrolled in 3 blocks of 4 (5 × 108, 1 × 109, and 2 × 109 cfu/dose). Each block was randomized in a 3:1 ratio of active product to placebo. Participants used study product for 5 consecutive days, returned for follow-up on days 7 and 14, and had phone interviews on days 2 and 35. Results: All 12 participants took 5 doses and completed study follow-up. Overall, 45 adverse events (AEs) occurred, of which 31 (69%) were genitourinary (GU) AEs. GU AEs appeared evenly distributed between the 3 treatment blocks and between LACTIN-V and placebo arms. The most common GU AEs were vaginal discharge in 5 subjects (42%), abdominal pain in 4 subjects (33%), metrorrhagia in 4 subjects (33%), vulvovaginitis in 4 subjects (33%), vaginal candidiasis in 3 subjects (25%), and vaginal odor in 3 subjects (25%). Forty-one (91%) AEs were mild (grade 1) in severity. All 4 moderate AEs (grade 2) were unrelated to product use. No grade 3 or 4 AEs or serious adverse events (SAE) occurred. Laboratory parameters and colposcopy findings were within normal limits or clinically insignificant. The product was well-tolerated and accepted. Conclusion: All 3 dose levels of LACTIN-V appeared to be safe and acceptable in healthy volunteers.
Regulation of in vitro and in vivo transcription of early-region IV of adenovirus type 5 by multiple cis-acting elements

A series of deletion mutants spanning the promoter of the adenovirus early-region IV (EIV) gene were tested for transcriptional activity, using both in vitro and in vivo assays. Four distinct domains had additive effects on efficient transcription from the EIV promoter in HeLa whole-cell extracts. The first resided 20 to 27 bases upstream of the initiation site and included the TATA box. Deletion of the TATA box drastically reduced the transcriptional activity in vitro but had a lesser effect in vivo. The second region extended from -32 to -177 and contained two 17-base-pair inverted repeats, centered around -40 and -162. Sequences lying between -140 and -173 were important for efficient transcription since deletion of this region reduced the activity fourfold. Deletion of either one of the two inverted repeats or insertion of DNA fragments between them resulted in the synthesis of extra transcripts that initiated at sites upstream from the EIV site. The third region was located between -198 and -250 and contains three guanosine-plus-cytosine-rich sequences, present around -212 (GGGCGG), -233 (GGGCGG), and -251 (CGCGGG). The fourth, most upstream region was located between -260 and -307. Deletion of this region, which contains the NF-1 factor-binding site, slightly reduced transcriptional activity both in vivo and in vitro. The data indicate that multiple cis-acting elements are required for efficient transcription from the EIV promoter in both in vitro and in vivo systems.
Synthetic cannabinoid WIN55,212‐2 inhibits generation of inflammatory mediators by IL‐1β‐stimulated human astrocytes

Activated glial cells have been implicated in the neuropathogenesis of many infectious and inflammatory diseases of the brain. A number of inflammatory mediators have been proposed to play a role in glial cell‐related brain damage; e.g., free radicals such as nitric oxide (NO), cytokines, and chemokines. Our laboratory has been interested in the effect of psychoactive drugs and their derivatives on the production of these mediators. Cannabinoids have been shown to possess immunomodulatory as well as psychoactive properties. We previously have shown that interleukin (IL)‐1β‐stimulated human astrocytes, but not microglia, produce NO. In this study, we investigated the effects of the synthetic cannabinoid WIN55,212‐2 on the production of several key inflammatory mediators by human fetal astrocytes activated by IL‐1β. Expression of the cannabinoid receptors CB1 and CB2 was detected on human astrocytes. WIN55,212‐2 (10−5 M) potently inhibited inducible NO synthase (iNOS) and corresponding NO production by IL‐1β‐stimulated astrocytes. The CB1 and CB2 receptor‐specific antagonists SR141716A and SR144528, respectively, partially blocked this suppressive effect. In addition, treatment of astrocytes with WIN55,212‐2 downregulated in a concentration‐dependent manner IL‐1β‐induced tumor necrosis factor (TNF)‐α release. Treatment with WIN55,212‐2 also inhibited production of the chemokines CXCL10, CCL2 and CCL5 by IL‐1β‐activated astrocytes. These findings indicate that WIN55,212‐2 inhibits the production of inflammatory mediators by IL‐1β‐stimulated human astrocytes and suggest that comparable agents may have therapeutic potential for the management of brain inflammation. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Decisions for maintenance-intervals of equipment in thermal power stations, based on few data

This paper describes a maintenance scheduling for pump systems in thermal power stations in order to reduce the maintenance cost during the whole period of operation, while keeping the current reliability level of the pump system. The dimensional reduction method is used to solve the problem in which a few available data are used together with other factors relating to the failures of pumps. The problem, that the available data are limited to a short range of the operation period compared with the mean time to failure, is solved by extrapolating the whole distribution of period of failure using available actual data. Weibull distribution approximation is used for this purpose: the data analyzed for failure and population statistics are those of 569 pumps, during the past 17 years which were recorded at 19 thermal power stations owned by Kyushu Electric Power Company. The results of the analysis by the proposed method provided the most suitable maintenance interval for each pump, and hence are helpful to reduce the expense of unnecessary maintenance.
Business-oriented development methodology for complex event processing: demonstration of an integrated approach for process monitoring

In this demonstration, we showcase an integrated approach for event-driven process monitoring in the Internet of Services. Our business-oriented development methodology for Complex Event Processing (CEP) utilizes the idea of the Zachman framework with modeling on different perspectives. Starting with the Business Motivation Model (BMM) on a strategic perspective, an Event Hierarchy with key performance indicators (KPIs), objectives, noticeable situations and reactions is successively built in a top-down approach. The demonstration includes an Eclipse-based prototype for modeling and a runtime component using the open source CEP engine Esper with a seamless integration.
Serum Zinc, Calcium and Albumin Levels in Pulmonary Tuberculosis Patients Co-Infected with HIV

5 Abstract: Zinc is a component of both structural and catalytic proteins of HIV. Zinc deficiency affects host defense by decreasing phagocytosis and reducing the number of circulating T cells The present study was carried out to estimate serum zinc, calcium and albumin levels in newly detected adult active pulmonary tuberculosis patients co-infected with HIV and to compare them with the levels in controls (healthy family members). Standard methods were adopted to collect an early morning fasting blood sample for zinc and calcium (by Inductively Coupled Plasma-Optical Emission Spectrophotometer) and albumin (estimated by the bromocresol green method). Partec CyFlow Counter analysis of CD4 counts for Normal, Pulmonary Tuberculosis patient, PTB patient co-infected with HIV and HIV patient are 1773 / ul, 793 / ul, 379/ ul and550 / ul respectively. Serum albumin levels of PTB patient co-infected with HIV (1.8 g/dL) had lower level than normal (3.78 g/dL) healthy individual. The zinc and calcium levels of PTB patient co-infected with HIV is (Zn: 467.5bp, Ca: 20750bp) lower than the zinc and calcium levels (Zn: 1251bp, Ca: 41580bp) of normal (control) healthy individual. All three parameters were significantly low in active PTB patients with HIV. These changes may be attributable to nutritional factors, enteropathy and acute phase reactant proteins. Hence, the National AIDS Control Organization (NACO) in India is providing nutritional supplements to those HIV-infected cases inducted for antiretroviral therapy and nutritional counseling for others as a part of a national policy.
Age‐related changes in central nervous system phosphatidylserine decarboxylase activity

A significant portion of brain phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) is synthesized by a pathway involving the mitochondrial enzyme phosphatidylserine decarboxylase (PSDC), in a process by which phosphatidylserine (PS) is transferred from the endoplasmic reticulum to mitochondria. Aging changes the fatty acid composition of brain phospholipids, PS and PE being the most affected. The present study was carried out to determine PSDC activity in cerebral cortex (CC) and cerebellum (CRBL) mitochondrial fraction from adult (4‐month‐old) and aged (30‐month‐old) rats and to compare these activities with that found in liver. To study the effect of 22:6n‐3 content on the PSDC activity, PSs from different sources were prepared: rPS (from bovine retina, containing 36 mol % of 22:6n‐3); adPS (from adult rat CC microsomal membranes, with 25 mole % 22:6n‐3 content) and agPS (from aged rat CC microsomal membranes, with 21 mole % 22:6n‐3 content). For aged CC PSDC, the preferred substrate was agPS (the physiological substrate for aged animals), whereas in adult CC PSDC the substrate preference was inverse (rPS > adPS > agPS). Furthermore, CRBL PSDC does not show any substrate preference based on 22:6n‐3 content. CRBL PSDC activity in aged membranes using agPS as substrate is lower than PSDC activity in adult membranes in the presence of adPS. These results indicate that under physiological conditions, cerebellar PSDC is inhibited during aging. Liver PSDC activity showed the same substrate preference in adult and aged rats as adult CC PSDC. These findings lead us to conclude that PSDC activity has a differential tissue‐dependent substrate preference characteristic of the aging process. © 2002 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Restoration of MAGI-1 Expression in Human Papillomavirus-Positive Tumor Cells Induces Cell Growth Arrest and Apoptosis

ABSTRACT The cancer-causing high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) E6 oncoproteins target a number of cellular proteins that contain PDZ domains. However, the role of many of these interactions in either the HPV life cycle or in HPV-induced malignancy remains to be defined. Previous studies had shown that MAGI-1 was one of the most strongly bound PDZ domain-containing substrates of E6, and one consequence of this interaction appeared to facilitate the perturbation of tight junctions (TJs) by E6. In this study, we describe the generation of a mutation, K499E, within the MAGI-1 PDZ1 domain, which is resistant to E6 targeting. This mutant allows restoration of MAGI-1 expression in HPV-positive cells and defines additional activities of MAGI-1 that are overcome as a consequence of the association with E6. The reexpression of MAGI-1 in HPV-positive cells results in an increased recruitment of ZO-1 and PAR3 to sites of cell-cell contact, repression of cell proliferation, and induction of apoptosis. While the K499E mutation does not significantly affect these intrinsic activities of MAGI-1 in HPV-negative cells, its resistance to E6 targeting in an HPV-positive setting results in more cells expressing the mutant MAGI-1 than the wild-type MAGI-1, with a corresponding increase in TJ assembly, induction of apoptosis, and reduction in cell proliferation. These studies provide compelling evidence of a direct role for the perturbation of MAGI-1 function by E6 in the HPV life cycle and in HPV-induced malignancy. IMPORTANCE It is clear that the targeting of PDZ-containing substrates by E6 is important for the normal viral life cycle and for the progression to malignancy. Nevertheless, which of these PDZ domain-containing proteins is relevant for HPV pathology is still elusive. In a previous study, we provided evidence that MAGI-1 is a sensitive proteolytic substrate for both the HPV-16 and HPV-18 E6 oncoproteins; however, the biological consequences associated with loss of MAGI-1 expression in HPV-positive cervical cancer cells are still poorly understood. Using a mutant MAGI-1, resistant to E6-mediated degradation, we show that its expression in cervical cancer cells promotes membrane recruitment of the tight junction-associated proteins ZO-1 and PAR3, represses cell proliferation, and promotes apoptosis. These findings suggest that E6-mediated inhibition of MAGI-1 function contributes to HPV pathology by perturbing tight junction assembly with concomitant stimulation of proliferation and inhibition of apoptosis.
The Evi1 proto‐oncoprotein blocks endomitosis in megakaryocytes by inhibiting sustained cyclin‐dependent kinase 2 catalytic activity

The 3q21q26 syndrome leukaemias are characterised by dystrophic megakaryocytes, elevated platelet counts, ectopic EVI1 protein production and poor prognosis. To investigate the molecular basis of this disease, we developed a model system to examine the biological activity of EVI1 in a megakaryocyte progenitor cell line. For this purpose, Evi1 was conditionally expressed in human erythroleukaemia cells (HEL) that progress along the megakaryocyte lineage in the presence of 12‐O‐tetradecanoylphorbol 13‐acetate (TPA). TPA‐stimulated HEL cells normally undergo: (1) growth arrest; (2) altered morphology; (3) endomitosis and (4) characteristic changes in gene expression, including reduction of the erythroid‐specific glycophoryn A and elevation of the specific glycoproteins GPIIIa and GPVI. Enforced Evi1 expression alone had no effect upon HEL cell proliferation or differentiation but a phenotype was manifest upon stimulation to differentiate. Evi1‐expressing, TPA‐treated HEL cells still showed growth arrest, had reduced and enhanced glycophoryn A and GPIIIa mRNA's, respectively, but failed to significantly elevate GPVI mRNA. This was accompanied by inhibition of endomitosis and altered cell morphology. Sustained CDK2 catalytic activity, typically associated with megakaryocyte endomitosis, was dramatically decreased in TPA‐stimulated Evi1‐expressing HEL cells because of significantly reduced levels of cyclin A. Therefore, enforced Evi1 expression could inhibit megakaryocyte differentiation although retention of some characteristic molecular changes, in combination with a block in endomitosis and altered morphology, suggest a defect in lineage progression. These results suggest that ectopic Evi1 expression contributes to a defective megakaryocyte differentiation programme and is likely to contribute to the phenotype observed in 3q21q26 syndrome leukaemias.