Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An event-level examination of successful condom negotiation strategies among young women

This study examines the effect of condom negotiation strategies on condom use and partner type and substance use before sex as moderators of strategy effectiveness. Women reported their daily sexual behavior during the last month. Withholding sex was more strongly associated with condom use when utilized with a non-casual sex partner. Directly requesting condom use was more strongly and using deceptive reasons to influence condom use was less strongly related to condom use during substance use. Results underscore the importance of understanding the contexts in which condom negotiation strategies are successful in order to improve HIV/sexually transmitted infection prevention efforts among women.
Direct laser printing of chiral plasmonic nanojets by vortex beams

Donut-shaped laser radiation, carrying orbital angular momentum, namely optical vortex, was recently shown to provide vectorial mass transfer, twisting transiently molten material and producing chiral micro-scale structures on surfaces of different bulk materials upon their resolidification. In this paper, we show that nanosecond laser vortices can produce chiral nanoneedles (nanojets) of variable size on thin films of such plasmonic materials, as silver and gold films, covering thermally insulating substrates. These results suggest optical interference of the incident and reflected laser beams as a source of complex surface intensity distributions in metal films, possessing spiral components and driving both center-symmetric and spiral thermocapillary melt flows to yield in frozen nanoneedles with their pre-determined spiral nanocarving.
Estimation of stature in archaeological human skeletal remains from Britain.

OBJECTIVES For archaeological populations of northwest European origin, the Trotter and Gleser () "White" equations are generally used to estimate stature from long-bone length. The aim of this research is to investigate the reliability of these formulae for this purpose. MATERIALS AND METHODS Stature estimated using the Trotter and Gleser formulae was evaluated by comparing estimates with anatomically reconstructed stature in adult skeletons (N = 40) from Mediaeval England. Performance of the Trotter and Gleser equations based on femur length was compared (using standard error of the estimate (SEE) and mean percentage error (%error)) with others that have been derived from archaeological and recent European ancestry populations. Performance of ordinary least squares (OLS) and reduced major axis (RMA) versions of some of the equations was also evaluated. RESULTS 14 male and 11 female femoral equations were investigated. For females, the original (OLS) Trotter and Gleser "White" equations produced the lowest SEE and %error. For the males, the most reliable was the RMA version of the Trotter and Gleser "White" WWII equation; the Trotter and Gleser equations based on the Korean War dead performed poorly. DISCUSSION In an archaeological target population, stature estimation equations devised using archaeological reference populations from a similar ecogeographic zone did not perform better than those based on recent populations. There was no indication that either the RMA or OLS approach produced consistently lower SEE and %error, but the former more faithfully represented the variation in anatomically reconstructed stature present in the study group.
Capacity Releasing Diffusion for Speed and Locality A . CRD inner procedure

Note an ineligible arc (v, u) must remain ineligible until the next relabel of v, so we only need to check each arc out of v once between consecutive relabels. We use current(v) to keep track of the arcs out of v that we have checked since the last relabel of v. We always pick an active vertex v with the lowest label. Then for any eligible arc (v, u), we know m(u) ≤ d(u), so we can push at least 1 along (v, u) (without violating m(u) ≤ 2d(u)), which is crucial to bound the total work. We keep the list Q in non-decreasing order of the vertices’ labels, for efficient look-up of the lowest labeled active vertex, and Add, Remove, Shift are the operations to maintain this order. Note these operations can be implemented to take O(1) work. In particular, when we add a node u to Q, it will always be the active node with lowest label, so will be put at the beginning. We only remove the first element v from Q, and when we shift a node v in Q, we know l(v) increases by exactly 1. To maintain Q, we simply need to pick two linked lists, one containing all the active nodes with non-decreasing labels, and another linked list containing one pointer for each label value, as long as there is some active node with that label, and the pointer contains the position of first such active node in Q. Maintaining this two lists together can giveO(1) time Add, Remove, Shift.
Consumer Behavior Modeling Based on Social Psychology and Complex Networks

Service innovation necessitates the acceptance by customers. The evaluation of the acceptance is problematic as word-of-mouth type of advertising becomes popular. We developed a consumer behavior modeling framework that consists of consumer agents and consumer network, using snowball sampling technique. The differentiating technologies are social psychology and complex networks. Our data analysis and multi-agent simulations proved the feasibility of this framework.
Salt Modulates Gravity Signaling Pathway to Regulate Growth Direction of Primary Roots in Arabidopsis1[C]

Plant root architecture is highly plastic during development and can adapt to many environmental stresses. The proper distribution of roots within the soil under various conditions such as salinity, water deficit, and nutrient deficiency greatly affects plant survival. Salinity profoundly affects the root system architecture of Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana). However, despite the inhibitory effects of salinity on root length and the number of roots, very little is known concerning influence of salinity on root growth direction and the underlying mechanisms. Here we show that salt modulates root growth direction by reducing the gravity response. Exposure to salt stress causes rapid degradation of amyloplasts in root columella cells of Arabidopsis. The altered root growth direction in response to salt was found to be correlated with PIN-FORMED2 (PIN2) messenger RNA abundance and expression and localization of the protein. Furthermore, responsiveness to gravity of salt overly sensitive (sos) mutants is substantially reduced, indicating that salt-induced altered gravitropism of root growth is mediated by ion disequilibrium. Mutation of SOS genes also leads to reduced amyloplast degradation in root tip columella cells and the defects in PIN2 gene expression in response to salt stress. These results indicate that the SOS pathway may mediate the decrease of PIN2 messenger RNA in salinity-induced modification of gravitropic response in Arabidopsis roots. Our findings provide new insights into the development of a root system necessary for plant adaptation to high salinity and implicate an important role of the SOS signaling pathway in this process.
Hypomagnesemia linked to new-onset diabetes mellitus after kidney transplantation: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract Background: New-onset diabetes after kidney transplantation (NODAT) is associated with both renal allograft failure and increased mortality. The objective of this meta-analysis was to evaluate the risk of NODAT in patients with hypomagnesemia. Methods: A literature search was performed using MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews from inception through May, 2015. Studies that reported relative risks, odd ratios or hazard ratios comparing the risk of NODAT in patients with hypomagnesemia were included. Pooled risk ratios (RR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated using a random-effect, generic inverse variance method. Results: Five cohort studies with 1699 patients were included in the analysis to assess the risk of NODAT in patients with hypomagnesemia. The pooled RR of NODAT in patients with hypomagnesemia was 1.25 (95% CI, 1.08–1.45). When meta-analysis was limited only to studies with the post-transplant hypomagnesemia, the pooled RR of NODAT was 1.22 (95% CI, 1.09–1.38). Conclusion: Our meta-analysis demonstrates a significant association between hypomagnesemia and NODAT in kidney transplant recipients. This finding suggests the need for a large randomized controlled trial–with very careful attention to assess the effects of normalizing Mg levels and the risk of NODAT.
Long-Term Clinical and MRI Results of Matrix-Assisted Autologous Chondrocyte Implantation for Articular Cartilage Defects of the Knee

Objective To evaluate the long-term clinical and radiological outcome of matrix-assisted autologous chondrocyte implantation (mACI) for articular cartilage defects in the knee joint. Design Clinical evaluation was assessed in 21 patients with full-thickness cartilage defects, International Cartilage Repair Society (ICRS) grade IV. Clinical scoring was performed preoperatively and 12 years after transplantation using the International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) score, the Lysholm score, the Knee injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS), and the Noyes sports activity rating scale. Morphologic evaluation of the repair tissue was assessed by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in 14 patients using the Kreuz-Henderson score. Results Clinical evaluation revealed significant improvement in the IKDC, the Lysholm, the KOOS, and the Noyes score. Morphological evaluation by MRI showed moderate to complete defect filling in 10 of 14 patients, demonstrating normal to nearly normal values in mean 74.29% of all assessed parameters. Significant correlation of the parameter cartilage signal and clinical outcome was found with the IKDC, Lysholm, and KOOS subscales ADL (activities of daily living) and QoL (quality of life). Conclusions The clinical and radiological outcomes 12 years after transplantation suggest the confirmation of the promising results of the mid-term follow-up. This study therefore provides first indications that the implantation of mACI might be a suitable option for long-term cartilage repair. Future controlled studies need to address the exact parameters influencing the long-term outcome of mACI.
Inhibiting HIV-1 integrase by shifting its oligomerization equilibrium

Proteins are involved in various equilibria that play a major role in their activity or regulation. The design of molecules that shift such equilibria is of great therapeutic potential. This fact was demonstrated in the cases of allosteric inhibitors, which shift the equilibrium between active and inactive (R and T) states, and chemical chaperones, which shift folding equilibrium of proteins. Here, we expand these concepts and propose the shifting of oligomerization equilibrium of proteins as a general methodology for drug design. We present a strategy for inhibiting proteins by “shiftides”: ligands that specifically bind to an inactive oligomeric state of a disease-related protein and modulate its activity by shifting the oligomerization equilibrium of the protein toward it. We demonstrate the feasibility of our approach for the inhibition of the HIV-1 integrase (IN) protein by using peptides derived from its cellular-binding protein, LEDGF/p75, which specifically inhibit IN activity by a noncompetitive mechanism. The peptides inhibit the DNA-binding of IN by shifting the IN oligomerization equilibrium from the active dimer toward the inactive tetramer, which is unable to catalyze the first integration step of 3′ end processing. The LEDGF/p75-derived peptides inhibit the enzymatic activity of IN in vitro and consequently block HIV-1 replication in cells because of the lack of integration. These peptides are promising anti-HIV lead compounds that modulate oligomerization of IN via a previously uncharacterized mechanism, which bears advantages over the conventional interface dimerization inhibitors.
Proteomic analysis of eutopic and ectopic endometriotic tissues based on isobaric peptide tags for relative and absolute quantification (iTRAQ) method.

OBJECTIVE The present study aimed at performing proteomic analysis of matched eutopic endometrium and ovarian endometrioid cysts from women with endometriosis in order to discover any abnormal protein expression related to the disease. DESIGN AND SETTING The study included 8 women with stage III/IV endometriosis according to revised American Fertility Society (rAFS) classification and one woman with no signs of the disease as a reference. Proteomic analysis was performed using a novel isobaric tag-based methodology for relative and absolute peptide quantiﬁcation (iTRAQ) coupled with multidimensional liquid chromatography and tandem mass spectrometry. RESULTS The selection of 419 proteins was found in all endometriosis specimens. Using normal eutopic endometrium from woman without endometriosis as a reference, some proteins expressions were significantly increased in all endometriosis samples. They included collagen α1(XIV), calmodulin, collagen α(VI), plexin, integrin αVβ3, transgelin, desmin, and vimentin. The comparison of these proteins' expression in paired eutopic and ovarian endometriosis samples has revealed that only vimentin was significantly increased in ovarian endometrioma. CONCLUSIONS It was confirmed that endometriosis is associated with different expression of proteins in endometriotic samples. Nevertheless, further studies seem to be necessary as they may reveal possible markers that would be useful in clinical diagnosis of the disease.
Purification and characterization of toxins A and B of Clostridium difficile

Toxin preparations were obtained by growing Clostridium difficile VPI strain 10463 in 2-liter brain heart infusion dialysis flasks at 37 degrees C for 3 days. The initial step of the purification scheme involved ultrafiltration through an XM-100 membrane filter. Two toxic activities, designated toxins A and B, were separated by ion-exchange chromatography on DEAE-NaCl gradients. Toxin A was purified to homogeneity by an acetic acid precipitation at pH 5.5. Other separation techniques, including CM Sepharose CL-6B, (NH4)2SO4 and acetic acid precipitations, and hydrophobic interaction chromatography, were examined in attempts to further purify toxin B. Although these methods failed to increase the specific activity of toxin B, they provided additional evidence that the two toxins are distinct molecules. The toxins are acid and heat labile and are inactivated by trypsin and chymotrypsin, but not by amylase. The molecular weight of toxin A, as estimated by gel filtration and gradient polyacrylamide electrophoresis, ranged from 440,000 to 500,000. The estimated molecular weight of toxin B was 360,000 to 470,000.
Role of DNA Superhelicity in Regulation of Bacteroid-Associated Functions of Bradyrhizobium sp. Strain 32H1

Bradyrhizobium sp. strain 32H1 cells express a number of bacteroid-associated functions and repress some functions related to the free-living state when grown ex planta under conditions of low (0.2%) oxygen tension and relatively high levels (>8 mM) of medium K+. Expression of the bacteroid-associated phenotype was blocked by the DNA gyrase inhibitor novobiocin. Because the degree of negative supercoiling of DNA is the result of the activities of both DNA gyrase and topoisomerase I, we measured these enzymes in cells grown under nitrogen-fixing (low O2, high K+) and non-nitrogen-fixing conditions (low O2, low [50 μM] K+ or high O2, high K+). Lower topoisomerase I activities were seen in extracts from nitrogen-fixing cells than in those from non-nitrogen-fixing cells. In contrast, DNA gyrase levels were lower in high-O2-grown cells than under the other conditions tested. These differences are consistent with an increase in DNA superhelicity associated with growth under low-O2, high-K+ conditions. A spontaneous mutant resistant to the DNA gyrase inhibitor ciprofloxacin was found to be constitutive with respect to the K+ requirement, because it expressed the bacteroid-associated phenotype when grown under low-O2, low-K+ conditions. The mutant cells gave rise to effective nodules on Macroptilium atropurpureum and possessed the low topoisomerase I activities and high DNA gyrase levels of low-O2-, high-K+-grown wild-type cells. Our data suggest that changes in DNA supercoiling resulting from low O2 tension and a high K+ concentration exert a major influence on the expression of the bacteroid-associated phenotype.
Electromyographic Analysis of the Scapular Muscles During a Golf Swing

To describe the role of the scapular muscles in the golf swing, we studied 15 competitive male golfers. Four muscles were studied bilaterally using dynamic elec tromyography and cinematography. In the trailing arm, the levator scapulae elevates while the rhomboid muscles retract the scapula during takeaway; both then stabilize the scapula through the remainder of the swing. In the leading arm, these muscles retract the scapula during forward swing and acceleration. The tra pezius muscle in the trailing arm also demonstrates high activity during takeaway to aid in scapular retraction. In the leading arm, trapezius activity is high in forward swing and through the remainder of the swing to pro mote scapular retraction. The serratus anterior muscle activity is high in the trailing arm during forward swing and through the remainder of the swing to maximize scapular protraction. In the leading arm, the serratus anterior muscle has constant activity through all phases of the swing, which may explain the clinical scenario of muscle fatigue in high demand golfers. The golf swing and uncoiling action requires that the scapular muscles work in synchrony to maximize swing arc and clubhead speed. This study demonstrates the importance of the scapular muscles in the golf swing and the need for specific strengthening exercises.
Deletions in the Transmembrane Domain of a Sindbis Virus Glycoprotein Alter Virus Infectivity, Stability, and Host Range

ABSTRACT The alphaviruses are composed of two icosahedral protein shells, one nested within the other. A membrane bilayer derived from the host cell is sandwiched between the protein shells. The protein shells are attached to one another by protein domains which extend one of the proteins of the outer shell through the membrane bilayer to attach to the inner shell. We have examined the interaction of the membrane-spanning domain of one of the membrane glycoproteins with the membrane bilayer and with other virus proteins in an attempt to understand the role this domain plays in virus assembly and function. Through incremental deletions, we have reduced the length of a virus membrane protein transmembrane domain from its normal 26 amino acids to 8 amino acids. We examined the effect of these deletions on the assembly and function of virus particles. We found that progressive truncations in the transmembrane domain profoundly affected production of infectious virus in a cyclic fashion. We also found that membrane composition effects protein-protein and protein-membrane interactions during virus assembly.
Automatic quantitative micro-computed tomography evaluation of angiogenesis in an axially vascularized tissue-engineered bone construct.

INTRODUCTION We invented an automatic observer-independent quantitative method to analyze vascularization using micro-computed tomography (CT) along with three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction in a tissue engineering model. MATERIALS AND METHODS An arteriovenous loop was created in the medial thigh of 30 rats and was placed in a particulated porous hydroxyapatite and beta-tricalcium phosphate matrix, filled with fibrin (10 mg/mL fibrinogen and 2 IU/mL thrombin) without (group A) or with (group B) application of fibrin-gel-immobilized angiogenetic growth factors vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF¹⁶⁵) and basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF). The explantation intervals were 2, 4, and 8 weeks. Specimens were investigated by means of micro-CT followed by an automatic 3D analysis, which was correlated to histomorphometrical findings. RESULTS In both groups, the arteriovenous loop led to generation of dense vascularized connective tissue with differentiated and functional vessels inside the matrix. Quantitative analysis of vascularization using micro-CT showed to be superior to histological analysis. The micro-CT analysis also allows the assessment of different other, more complex vascularization parameters within 3D constructs, demonstrating an early improvement of vascularization by application of fibrin-gel-immobilized VEGF¹⁶⁵ and bFGF. CONCLUSIONS In this study quantitative analysis of vascularization using micro-CT along with 3D reconstruction and automatic analysis exhibit to be a powerful method superior to histological evaluation of cross sections.
Concomitant loss of NDH complex‐related genes within chloroplast and nuclear genomes in some orchids

The chloroplast NAD(P)H dehydrogenase-like (NDH) complex consists of about 30 subunits from both the nuclear and chloroplast genomes and is ubiquitous across most land plants. In some orchids, such as Phalaenopsis equestris, Dendrobium officinale and Dendrobium catenatum, most of the 11 chloroplast genome-encoded ndh genes (cp-ndh) have been lost. Here we investigated whether functional cp-ndh genes have been completely lost in these orchids or whether they have been transferred and retained in the nuclear genome. Further, we assessed whether both cp-ndh genes and nucleus-encoded NDH-related genes can be lost, resulting in the absence of the NDH complex. Comparative analyses of the genome of Apostasia odorata, an orchid species with a complete complement of cp-ndh genes which represents the sister lineage to all other orchids, and three published orchid genome sequences for P. equestris, D. officinale and D. catenatum, which are all missing cp-ndh genes, indicated that copies of cp-ndh genes are not present in any of these four nuclear genomes. This observation suggests that the NDH complex is not necessary for some plants. Comparative genomic/transcriptomic analyses of currently available plastid genome sequences and nuclear transcriptome data showed that 47 out of 660 photoautotrophic plants and all the heterotrophic plants are missing plastid-encoded cp-ndh genes and exhibit no evidence for maintenance of a functional NDH complex. Our data indicate that the NDH complex can be lost in photoautotrophic plant species. Further, the loss of the NDH complex may increase the probability of transition from a photoautotrophic to a heterotrophic life history.