Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Mimicry and Inhibition of Nerve Growth Factor Effects: Interactions of Staurosporine, Forskolin, and K252a in PC12 Cells and Normal Rat Chromaffin Cells In Vitro

Abstract: The structurally similar compounds staurosporine and K252a are potent inhibitors of protein kinases. K252a has previously been reported to inhibit most or all of the effects of nerve growth factor (NGF) on PC12 pheochromocytoma cells, and staurosporine has been reported both to inhibit and to mimic NGF‐induced neurite outgrowth from a PC12 cell subclone in a dose‐dependent manner. We have studied the interactions of these agents with each other, with NGF, and with forskolin, an activator of adenylate cyclase, on the parent PC12 cell line and on normal neonatal and adult rat chromaffin cells. Staurosporine alone or in conjunction with forskolin induces outgrowth of short neurites from PC12 cells but does not substitute for NGF in promoting cell survival. It does not abolish NGF‐induced neurite outgrowth but does reverse the effects of NGF on catecholamine synthesis. K252a abolishes NGF‐induced neurite outgrowth but only partially decreases outgrowth induced by NGF plus forskolin. It does not inhibit neurite outgrowth produced by staurosporine or staurosporine plus forskolin. These findings with PC12 cells suggest that staurosporine might act downstream from K252a and NGF on components of one or more signal transduction pathways by which NGF selectively affects the expression of certain traits. Both neonatal and adult rat chromaffin cells show dramatic flattening and extension of filopodia in response to staurosporine, an observation suggesting that some of the same pathways might remain active in cells that do not exhibit a typical NGF response. Only a small amount of neurite outgrowth is observed, however, and only in neonatal cultures. Staurosporine might be useful in studying both the actions of NGF and the ways in which those actions are altered in the course of normal development and tumor formation.
Child and youth mental health service referrals: physicians' knowledge of mental health services and perceptions of a centralized intake model.

OBJECTIVE We conducted a survey to assess physicians' attitudes and knowledge of mental health services and centralized intake services for mental health. METHOD A survey consisting of 51 questions was sent to 735 physicians in active practice within the catchment area of a regional centralized intake for child and youth mental health services. The survey was conducted during the summer of 2006. RESULTS Of 735 eligible physicians, 388 completed and returned the survey (52.8% response rate). The majority of physicians were aware of mental health services offered by their hospital. Physicians reported lower confidence levels for delivering counselling and psychopharmacological treatments for mental health. Furthermore, over 72% indicated that they did not feel they had time in practice to provide mental health counselling. Over 65% of physicians reported that mental health referrals should have appropriate/defined criteria. The majority (92%) of physicians had referred to specialized mental health services provided by their hospital. With respect to centralized intake services, 57.2% of physicians indicated they were aware of the service and 73.9% said it should be continued. However, only 34% reported satisfaction with the centralized intake referral service. Predictors of satisfaction with the service were satisfaction with mental health feedback and satisfaction with response time of the centralized intake service. CONCLUSIONS Physician confidence levels in providing mental health services vary greatly. While doctors favour a centralized intake for mental health services, their satisfaction with such a service somewhat depends on variables beyond the control of the centralized intake, such as wait times and feedback from mental health providers.
Comparison of DPEI Based on PSO and GA for constructing fund of fundsy

The purpose of this study is to make a comparison between the performance based DPEI on PSO and GA to compose the fund of funds. In this study, the DEA investment portfolio efficiency index (DPEI) is applied to choose the superior sub-funds. Particle Swam Optimization (PSO) and Genetic Algorithm (GA) are then used to allocate weighted capital. By applying PSO and GA, the best distribution of weighted capital in the two experiments can be found so that the fund of funds model can be formulated. These two models are named DPEI_PSO Model and DPEI_GA Model. The period of experiment of the study was from January 2007 to December 2009. The results of the experiment for the study show that the rate of return of a fund of funds chosen by DPEI_PSO is superior to DPEI_GA and the best fund of funds currently available.
PAX8-PPAR&ggr; Rearrangement in Thyroid Tumors: RT-PCR and Immunohistochemical Analyses

A PAX8-PPAR&ggr; rearrangement has been recently identified in follicular thyroid carcinomas, but not in follicular adenomas or other thyroid tumors. We report here the analyses of PAX8-PPAR&ggr; in a series of 118 thyroid tumors using a newly developed RT-PCR assay to detect this rearrangement in frozen and paraffin-embedded tissues and using immunostaining with a PPAR&ggr; antibody. PAX8-PPAR&ggr; was detected by RT-PCR in eight of 15 (53%) follicular carcinomas and two of 25 (8%) follicular adenomas but not in 35 papillary carcinomas (including 12 follicular variants), 12 Hurthle cell carcinomas, 12 Hurthle cell adenomas, two anaplastic carcinomas, one poorly differentiated carcinoma, or 16 hyperplastic nodules. The prevalence was higher in follicular carcinomas from patients with a history of radiation exposure (three of three). Strong, diffuse nuclear immunostaining with the PPAR&ggr; antibody correlated with the presence of PAX8-PPAR&ggr; detected by RT-PCR. Most sporadic follicular carcinomas positive for PAX8-PPAR&ggr; were overtly invasive, whereas tumors lacking the rearrangement were predominantly minimally invasive. The two follicular adenomas positive for PAX8-PPAR&ggr; had trabecular growth pattern and thick capsule, but no invasion, and thus may represent “pre-invasive” follicular carcinomas. The absence of PAX8-PPAR&ggr; rearrangements in Hurthle cell tumors and papillary thyroid carcinomas highlights the differences in the molecular pathogenesis of these thyroid tumors.
A novel tubular permanent magnet linear synchronous motor used for elevator door

A novel elevator door driven by the tubular permanent magnet linear synchronous motor (PMLSM) is presented. In this paper, the magnetic field, back EMF and thrust force of the motor are analyzed by the finite element analysis (FEA). Optimization design of the PM is made to reduce the harmonic components of the magnetic field and improve the performance of the motor. The test experiment is finished on the prototype motor and elevator door, the test results conform to the FEA results, and the performance of the motor and the novel elevator door is satisfying.
How can we improve accuracy of macroevolutionary rate estimates?

Nee et al. (1994) presented likelihood equations for estimating speciation and extinction rates based on phylogenies of only extant species; in particular their method can infer extinction patterns without extinct species data. Meanwhile, even for the simplest model of speciation and extinction, namely, the constant rate birth–death process, a number of studies have been published using different likelihood equations (Thompson 1975; Rannala and Yang 1996; Yang and Rannala 1997; Gernhard 2008; Stadler 2009). The likelihood functions differ due to conditioning the likelihood on different quantities, like the age of the tree, survival of the tree, or the number of species in the tree. Which conditionings yield the most accurate speciation and extinction rate estimates? In order to answer this question, I present an overview of 7 likelihood functions (which have been published in previous articles), conditioning on different aspects of the tree. I investigate and discuss the impact of the different conditionings toward accuracy of the maximum-likelihood rate estimates by inferring rates based on simulated phylogenies. The second part of this article discusses a possible bias in speciation and extinction rate estimates when analyzing incomplete phylogenies, that is, phylogenies in which not all extant species are included. The analytic considerations reveal that we cannot estimate the fraction of nonsampled species, but have to know it, when estimating speciation and extinction rates. The conclusions reached in this article, assuming the simple constant rate birth–death model, will also apply when assuming the more realistic macroevolutionary models allowing for nonconstant rates (Rabosky 2007; Alfaro et al. 2009; FitzJohn et al. 2009; Morlon et al. 2011; Stadler 2011a; Silvestro et al. 2011; Etienne et al. 2012), as these general models all contain the constant rate birth– death model as a special case. This article ends with contrasting these different method implementations (Table 1) and providing some recommendations for end users in order to facilitate model comparison across packages. SEVEN TREE LIKELIHOOD FUNCTIONS
The impact of obstetric unit closures on maternal and infant pregnancy outcomes.

OBJECTIVE To define the association between large-scale obstetric unit closures and relative changes in maternal and neonatal outcomes. DATA SOURCES/STUDY SETTING Birth and death certificates were linked to maternal and neonatal hospital discharge records for all births between January 1, 1995 and June 30, 2005 in Philadelphia, which experienced the closure of 9 of 19 obstetric units between 1997 and 2005, and five surrounding counties and eight urban counties that did not experience a similar reduction in obstetric units. DESIGN A before-and-after study design with an untreated control group compared changes in perinatal outcomes in Philadelphia to five surrounding control counties and eight urban control counties after controlling for case mix differences and secular trends (N = 3,140,782). RESULTS Relative to the preclosure years, the difference in neonatal mortality (odds ratio (OR) 1.49, 95 percent CI 1.12-2.00) and all perinatal mortality (OR 1.53, 95 percent CI 1.14-2.04) increased for Philadelphia residents compared with both control groups between 1997 and 1999. After 2000, there was no statistically significant change in any outcome in Philadelphia county compared with the preclosure epoch. CONCLUSIONS Obstetric unit closures were initially associated with adverse changes in perinatal outcomes, but these outcomes ameliorated over time.
Developmental effects of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine: a review

±3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) is a chemical derivative of amphetamine that has become a popular drug of abuse and has been shown to deplete serotonin in the brains of users and animals exposed to it. To date, most studies have investigated the effects of MDMA on adult animals. With a majority of users of MDMA being young adults, the chances of the users becoming pregnant and exposing the fetuses to MDMA are also a concern. Evidence to date has shown that developmental exposure to MDMA results in learning and memory impairments in the Morris water maze, a task known to be sensitive to hippocampal disruption, when the animals are tested as adults. Developmental MDMA exposure leads to hypoactivity in the offspring as adults but does not affect outcome on tests of anxiety. MDMA administration decreases pup weight, increases corticosterone and brain-derived neurotrophic factor levels during treatment while decreasing brain levels of serotonin; a decrease that initially dissipates and then reappears in adulthood. Neonatal MDMA exposure increases the sensitivity of the serotonin 1A receptor, a possible mechanism underlying the learning and memory deficits seen. Taken together, the evidence shows that MDMA exposure has adverse effects on the developing brain and behavior. The animal and human data on developmental MDMA exposure are reviewed and their public health implications discussed.
Implementation and evaluation of fine-grain run-time power gating for a multiplier

In a 32b×32b multiplier, when the bit width of both operands is less than 16-bit, the upper array of the multiplier computing the upper bits of the product does not need to operate and hence consumes wasteful leakage energy. We propose a technique to control run-time power gating (RTPG) for the upper array by dynamically detecting the operand width. Since RTPG suffers from energy overhead due to turning on/off power switches, the sleep time at each sleep event should be longer than the break-even time (BET) to gain in energy savings. Using an analytical model we built, we show that BET reduces exponentially with higher temperature. Since the chip temperature goes up during the operation, the sleep time becomes more likely to exceed the shortened BET, leading to the increase of energy savings. We evaluated our technique through designing a 32b×32b multiplier and implementing in a commercial 90nm CMOS technology. Post-layout simulation results showed that BET reduces from 32 cycles at 25°C to 10 cycles at 65°C and to 3 cycles at 100°C at 100MHz. We also simulated energy dissipation by incorporating our multiplier into a MIPS R3000 based CPU and running a JPEG encoding program. Results showed that our technique reduces energy by 5% at 65°C and by 39% at 100°C over the PG-disabled case even counting the overhead. In contrast, energy was increased by 36% at 25°C. The ground bounce at the wakeup was effectively suppressed to 91mV by using delay-skewed buffering for power switches, while achieving the wakeup time of 1.44ns.
The phylogenetic relationships and molecular systematics of scincid lizards of the genus Heremites (Sauria, Scincidae) in the Middle East based on mtDNA sequences

Abstract The taxonomic status of species included in the genus Heremites in Iran and Iraq is uncertain. Three of these species have been assigned to the genus based on morphology: Heremites auratus transcaucasica, H. vittatus, and H. septemtaeniatus. We examined the phylogenetic relationships and taxonomic status of the Iranian and Iraqi species of Heremites by performing phylogenetic analyses using mitochondrial DNA sequences (cytochrome b and 16S rRNA). Phylogenetic relationships and estimated genetic distances indicated that the Heremites populations of the area (Iran and Iraq) form five distinct clades. Three of these clades are found only in Iran, specifically in: (1) Fars and Hormozgan provinces; (2) Northeastern Khuzestan; and (3) Khorasan and Isfahan provinces. The fourth clade (H. septemtaeniatus) is found in west and Mahshahr in Iran as well as in eastern and northern parts of Iraq. The fifth clade, Heremites vittatus, is found in Iran and Iraq. We also confirm the absence of H. auratus in Iran and Iraq. It also indicated that H. vittatus is sister taxon to the other groups that our analyses estimate the divergence of this clade in the Middle Miocene (15.9 Mya). The clade containing the Fars-Hormozgan and Khuzestan populations diverged at the end of the Miocene (8.5 Mya). The Isfahan and Khorasan populations separated at the Pliocene (4.2 Mya) from the western Iranian group, the group in Mahshahr, Iran and the groups in northern and eastern Iraq.
Translation and linguistic validation of the korean version of the pelvic pain and urgency/frequency patient symptom scale.

PURPOSE The objective of this study was to achieve a linguistic adaptation of the original version of the Pelvic Pain and Urgency/Frequency (PUF) Patient Symptom Scale into Korean. MATERIALS AND METHODS Between June 2008 and December 2008, a linguistic adaptation was carried out by 2 native Korean speakers who were also fluent in English. First, the original English version of the PUF was translated into Korean. A panel, which included the 2 translators, reviewed the translations to form a single reconciled forward translation of the Korean version. Then, another bilingual translator, having never seen the original version, back-translated the first draft of the Korean version of the PUF into English, and this back-translation was subsequently assessed for equivalence to the original. The panel discussed all discrepancies and produced a second version. After revising the 2nd version, 10 participants [5 interstitial cystitis (IC) patients and 5 persons from the general population], stratified variously by age, sex, and educational level, answered the PUF and were systematically debriefed afterwards. A summary of the changes from the patient interviews were incorporated into the third version. After the spelling, grammar, layout, and formatting were checked, the third version was verified as the final Korean version of the PUF, without modifications. RESULTS The multi-step process of forward translation, reconciliation, back-translation, cognitive debriefing, and proofreading of the Korean version of the PUF was completed. CONCLUSIONS The Korean version of the PUF scale may be helpful for screening IC patients in the Korean population and can now be used in Korea.
Immigration Politics and Partisan Realignment

This article demonstrates how the party identification of various demographic groups in California and Texas changed in response to the gubernatorial campaigns of Pete Wilson and George W. Bush. Using aggregated time series of Field Poll, Texas Poll, and Gallup data, difference-in-differences results show that Wilson’s embrace of Proposition 187 was followed by significant Hispanic movement toward the Democratic Party in California. Time series analysis substantiates that this action led to a long-term 7.1 percentage point Democratic shift among California’s Hispanics. This suggests that state-level actors can influence partisan coalitions in their state, beyond what would be expected from national-level factors.
Hormology with inorganic compounds.

Three components of the dose-response reaction, usually seen as three separate curves, are reviewed as a single continuum of the effect of the dose of any agent upon an organism. The usual considerations of any agent in toxicology are the harmful actions. The individual considerations of an essential nutrient or of a hormone usually suggests a positive action. The third component is the stimulatory action as understood in hormone research and as seen in many studies with minute doses of toxic materials. The coelescence of these concepts into one continuum gives a broad viewpoint which is helpful to understand the biologic implications of any toxic, nutritious or stimulating material under a variety of conditions. Such a view is useful in predicting results and in understanding the reaction of living organisms to their environments; when small amounts of a chemical are added to a biologic system, one parameter may be affected in one way and another parameter in the opposite manner. Consideration of the complete dose-response curve led to the concept of hormology, the sutdy of excitation. The thesis of hormology is that any harmful agent may be stimulatory for any parameter when it is administered in subharmful quantities to an organism existing in a suboptimum environment. Concepts fro hormology allow the suggestion that the zero equivalent point (zep) could be used to replace zero tolerance as a practical, legislative concept for dangerous chemicals in our environment. A reivew of three pharmacology texts revealed four types of dose-response curves. The alpha curve demonstrated a simple toxicity, the beta curve exhibited a single stimulation peak followed by a toxicity as more material was added; the gamma curve showed an initial harmful reaction followed by a stimulatory reaction which, in turn, was followed by a toxic reaction as the quantity of material administered was increased; and the delta curve was essentially a sign wave in which two peaks of stimulation were separated by a "harmful valley", then, as greater concentrations of material were administered, toxicity was noted. A brief review of agents which are stimulatory in minute doses showed that a considerable amount of work had been done with radiation and late work has established emf as a stimulatory vehicle. Little work is done with other physical agents. Organic chemical compounds are known to be stimulatory in small quantities; e.g. dietary antibiotics. The fact that antibiotics stimulate growth in germfree animals and the fact that nongermicides stimulate classic animals proves their direct effect on the animal tissues.
Studying membrane proteins through the eyes of the genetic code revealed a strong uracil bias in their coding mRNAs

Posttranscriptional processes often involve specific signals in mRNAs. Because mRNAs of integral membrane proteins across evolution are usually translated at distinct locations, we searched for universally conserved specific features in this group of mRNAs. Our analysis revealed that codons of very hydrophobic amino acids, highly represented in integral membrane proteins, are composed of 50% uracils (U). As expected from such a strong U bias, the calculated U profiles of mRNAs closely resemble the hydrophobicity profiles of their encoded proteins and may designate genes encoding integral membrane proteins, even in the absence of information on ORFs. We also show that, unexpectedly, the U-richness phenomenon is not merely a consequence of the codon composition of very hydrophobic amino acids, because counterintuitively, the relatively hydrophilic serine and tyrosine, also encoded by U-rich codons, are overrepresented in integral membrane proteins. Interestingly, although the U-richness phenomenon is conserved, there is an evolutionary trend that minimizes usage of U-rich codons. Taken together, the results suggest that U-richness is an evolutionarily ancient feature of mRNAs encoding integral membrane proteins, which might serve as a physiologically relevant distinctive signature to this group of mRNAs.
Outcomes After Early Administration of Plasma Exchange in Pediatric Central Nervous System Inflammatory Demyelination

The use of plasma exchange has been described in steroid-refractory central nervous system inflammatory demyelination in adults, but less has been published regarding its use in children and adolescents. We describe 12 children treated with plasma exchange for acute severe central nervous system inflammatory demyelination. The clinical attack leading to plasma exchange included symptomatic spinal cord lesions in 10 and symptomatic brainstem lesions in 2 children. Diagnosis was acute transverse myelitis in 6, relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis in 5, and acute disseminated encephalomyelitis in 1 child. Adverse events related to plasma exchange necessitating intervention were observed in 3 children. Median Expanded Disability Status Scale score at plasma exchange start was 7.5 (range 4-9.5). At 3 months, 7 children were ambulatory without aid (Expanded Disability Status Scale score of ≤4). This retrospective study suggests that plasma exchange can be effective in ameliorating symptoms in severe pediatric central nervous system inflammatory demyelination, although lack of randomization or control group limits the ability to attribute this outcome entirely to plasma exchange.