Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Interactions of stress and CRF in ethanol-withdrawal induced anxiety in adolescent and adult rats.

BACKGROUND Repeated stress or administration of corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) prior to ethanol exposure sensitizes anxiety-like behavior in adult rats. Current experiments determined whether adolescent rats were more sensitive to these challenges in sensitizing ethanol withdrawal-induced anxiety and altering CRF levels in brain during withdrawal. METHODS Male adult and adolescent Sprague-Dawley rats were restraint stressed (1 hour) twice 1 week apart prior to a single 5-day cycle of ethanol diet (ED; stress/withdrawal paradigm). Other rats received control diet (CD) and three 1-hour restraint stress sessions. Rats were then tested 5, 24, or 48 hours after the final withdrawal for anxiety-like behavior in the social interaction (SI) test. In other experiments, adolescent rats were given two microinjections of CRF icv 1 week apart followed by 5 days of either CD or ED and tested in social interaction 5 hours into withdrawal. Finally, CRF immunoreactivity was measured in the central nucleus of the amygdala (CeA) and paraventricular nucleus (PVN) after rats experienced control diet, repeated ethanol withdrawals, or stress/withdrawal. RESULTS Rats of both ages had reduced SI following the stress/withdrawal paradigm, and this effect recovered within 24 hours. Higher CRF doses were required to reduce SI in adolescents than previously reported in adults. CRF immunohistochemical levels were higher in the PVN and CeA of CD-exposed adolescents. In adolescent rats, repeated ethanol withdrawals decreased CRF in the CeA but was not associated with decreased CRF cell number. There was no change in CRF from adult treatments. CONCLUSIONS In the production of anxiety-like behavior, adolescent rats have equal sensitivity with stress and lower sensitivity with CRF compared to adults. Further, adolescents had higher basal levels of CRF within the PVN and CeA and reduced CRF levels following repeated ethanol withdrawals. This reduced CRF within the CeA could indicate increased release of CRF, and future work will determine how this change relates to behavior.
Mexican American Children Have Differential Elevation of Metabolic Biomarkers Proportional to Obesity Status

Objectives: There is a health disparity for obesity among Mexican Americans compared with other racial/ethnic groups. In particular, Mexican American children who are obese are likely to become obese adults. The purpose of this study was to examine traditional and nontraditional risk factors in a subset of Mexican American children before their participation in a larger clinical weight loss study. Methods: Venous blood samples were collected from self-identified Mexican American children (12–14 years old) who were assigned to 1 of 3 weight groups based on their standardized body mass index; normal weight (N = 66), overweight (N = 23), or obese (N = 39). Serum was analyzed for interleukin-6, tumor necrosis factor-&agr;, C-peptide, ghrelin, glucagon-like protein, gastric inhibitory polypeptide-1, glucagon, insulin, leptin, macrophage chemoattractant protein 1, and pancreatic polypeptide using a Luminex MagPix-based assay. Total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, triglycerides, and glucose were analyzed using enzymatic assays. Data were analyzed for significance using separate analysis of variance tests, with significance set at P < 0.05. Results: Relative to normal weight and overweight children, obese children had significantly elevated C-peptide (P < 0.0001), insulin (P < 0.0001), leptin (P < 0.0001), macrophage chemoattractant protein 1 (P = 0.005), and tumor necrosis factor-&agr; (P = 0.006). Conclusions: We observed that Mexican American children as a function of body weight had elevated serum concentrations of several biomarkers that have been linked to chronic disease development in adults. More research is needed to understand how these differences affect disease risk in adulthood.
Immune Response to Hepatitis B Virus Proteins: Relevance of the Murine Model

The experimental murine models offer unique opportunities to study the genetic, cellular, and molecular basis for variable immune responsiveness to HBV-encoded antigens. The mouse has provided a means of studying the immunogenicity of the pre-S regions of HBsAg and has elucidated the independent H-2-linked genes regulating antibody production to pre-S and S region determinants. The ability to circumvent genetic nonresponsiveness has implications for the design of future HBV vaccines. Mice also afforded the opportunity to examine the ability of HBcAg to activate B cells directly, and to prime Th cells capable of eliciting antibody to envelope proteins. These observations have potential clinical relevance, implications for vaccine design, and may explain the ability of HBcAg vaccination to protect against HBV infection. The murine system ha also facilitated the mapping of T-cell and B-cell recognition sites within HBV proteins, which at least conceptually enhances the prospects for development of a synthetic HBV vaccine. Antibody-binding sites appear to be similar in humans and mice; the extent to which their T-cell repertoires overlap is not known. However, the chemical and structural constraints imposed on T-cell antigenicity, and the fact that MHC-encoded class II molecules and the cellular mechanisms mediating T-cell recognition are conserved across species, make such overlaps appear likely. Furthermore, the ability to generate transgenic mice that express the various HBV proteins has yielded important insights into possible immunopathogenic mechanism and immunologic tolerance mechanisms that may predispose to chronic infection.
Simple visual analysis of brain perfusion on HMPAO SPECT predicts early outcome in acute stroke.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) is used in patients with acute stroke but as yet is of controversial value. We investigated an association of brain perfusion changes in stroke patients with stroke severity, volume of brain damage, and recovery. METHODS Consecutive patients with hemispheric stroke were studied prospectively with serial neurological examinations using the Canadian Neurological Scale (CNS), CT. and 99mTc-hexamethylpropyleneamine oxime (HMPAO) SPECT. Visual SPECT patterns of brain perfusion (normal, high, mixed, low, and absent) were correlated with the severity of stroke, lesion volume, and short-term outcome. RESULTS SPECT studies were performed in a total of 458 consecutive acute stroke patients within 2 weeks after the onset (mean time, 5 days; range, 1 to 12 days). SPECT perfusion patterns correlated with stroke severity (CNS score) during the first 2 weeks (P < .001). Focal absence of brain perfusion on SPECT was associated with the largest volume of brain damage: 104 +/- 84 mL (P < .0001). SPECT perfusion patterns predicted the shortterm outcome: 97% of patients with normal and increased HMPAO uptake made good recovery, 52% of those with decreased perfusion had moderate stroke, and 62% of patients with absent patterns fared badly. In a multiple logistic regression model, admission CNS scores had the strongest predictive value (P = .0001). SPECT had its own prognostic value independent of clinical judgment (P = .03). SPECT statistically improved predictive power of the CNS score (+1% receiver operating characteristic curve area, [X2]2 = 20, P < .001) because of distinction between focal decrease or absence of brain perfusion in patients studied within the first 72 hours of stroke. CONCLUSIONS Visual brain perfusion patterns correlate with the extent, severity, and short-term outcome of hemispheric stroke. HMPAO SPECT may improve the prognostic value of clinical examination if performed during the first 72 hours of stroke.
Calibration of geometric and non-geometric errors of an industrial robot

Inaccurate positioning of the robot end effector causes joint deformation as well as geometric errors when an industrial robot has a payload at its end effector. We propose a new approach of calibration which deals with joint angle dependent errors to compensate for these phenomena. To implement this method, we divided the robot workspace into several local regions, and built a calibration equation by generating the constraint conditions of the end effector's motion in each local region using a three-dimensional position measurement system. The parameter errors obtained this way were interpolated using the Radial Basis Function Network (RBFN) so as to estimate calibration errors in the regions that we did not measure. We used this technique to improve the performance of a six DOF industrial robot used for arc welding.
Local government transparency in East Central Europe

Abstract Decentralisation and democratisation have proceeded simultaneously in the post-communist space of East Central Europe. Decentralisation to elected local governments was encouraged to facilitate democratisation, combat corruption and provide better public services and goods. To evaluate the success of such efforts, I examine recently archived (2001, 2002) surveys of local government chief administrative officers from Romania, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Estonia and Latvia. My analysis suggests variation in local government transparency to be a function of the density of political and civil society, and the institutions that mediate between them, as opposed to socioeconomic development or locality size.
Slotted Permanent-Magnet Machines: General Analytical Model of Magnetic Fields, Torque, Eddy Currents, and Permanent-Magnet Power Losses Including the Diffusion Effect

This paper presents an exact analytical subdomain model of slotted permanent-magnet (PM) machines, taking into account the diffusion effect. The model gives the magnetic fields, both the eddy currents and the power losses in the PM, the instantaneous and average torque. In the model, eddy currents are not assumed to be resistance limited, contrary to what is done in the conventional exact subdomain models of the slotted machines. The model is hence general and valid both at low and high frequencies. It shows that it is possible to calculate the power losses in the PMs, only knowing the fields in the air gap. The model takes into account the presence of tooth-tips. The comparison with conventional exact subdomain models shows that the model presented in this paper is more accurate. The model is validated using the finite-element methods.
Macroeconomic Determinants of Retirement Timing

We analyze lifetime earnings histories of white males during 1960-2010 and categorize the labor force status of every worker as either working full-time, partially retired or fully retired. We find that the fraction of partially retired workers has risen dramatically (from virtually 0 to 15 percent for 60-62 year olds), and that the duration of partial retirement spells has been steadily increasing. We estimate the response of retirement timing to variations in unemployment rate, inflation and housing prices. Flows into both full and partial retirement increase significantly when the unemployment rate rises. Workers around normal retirement age are especially sensitive to variations in the unemployment rate. Workers who are partially retired show a differential response to a high unemployment rate: younger workers increase their partial retirement spell, while older workers accelerate their transition to full retirement. We also find that high inflation discourages full-time work and encourages partial and full retirement. Housing prices do not have a significant impact on retirement timing.
Nomenclature for factors of the HLA system, update September 2010

The following sequences have been submitted to the Nomenclature Committee since the August 2010 nomenclature update and, following agreed policy, have been assigned official allele designations Marsh et al. (2010). Full details of all sequences will be published in a forthcoming report. Below are listed the newly assigned sequences (Table 1) and confirmations of previously reported sequences (Table 2). The accession number of each sequence is given and these can be used to retrieve the sequence files from the EMBL, GenBank or DDBJ data libraries. Although accession numbers have been assigned by the data-libraries and most sequences are already available, there is still the possibility that an
Brain Amyloid Deposition Is Associated With Lower Instrumental Activities of Daily Living Abilities in Older Adults. Results From the MAPT Study.

BACKGROUND Brain amyloid deposition is one of the key pathological hallmarks underlying the cognitive changes associated with Alzheimer's disease. Growing interest has been given to the earliest clinical manifestations of amyloid plaques. However, the relationship between amyloid status and activities of everyday function remains largely unknown. In the present study, we examined the relationship between instrumental activities of daily living performance (using the ADL-PI score) and amyloid status in older adults. METHODS Cross-sectional analyses of data from the Multidomain Alzheimer Preventive Trial (MAPT) were performed. Volunteers underwent a brain 18F-AV45 positron emission tomography examination. Bivariate analysis and regression models were conducted to study the relationships between brain amyloid deposition and the total ADL-PI score. RESULTS We included 271 participants (women = 60%; age = 76±4 years). Amyloid positron emission tomography was positive (standard uptake value ≥1.17) for 103 participants (38%). The ADL-PI score was lower in amyloid positive participants than in their amyloid negative counterparts (38.8 vs 40.3, p = .007). This association was also confirmed in regression models adjusted for age, gender, and familial history of Alzheimer's disease (odds ratio = 0.94; 95% confidence interval 0.89-0.99; p = .02). This finding was consistent in cognitively normal individuals and in those with mild cognitive impairment, using the clinical dementia rating scale. CONCLUSIONS This study highlighted an association between early functional limitations and brain amyloid deposition in elderly subjects. These symptoms could be the clinical manifestations of amyloid plaques even in the absence of overt dementia. Further prospective studies are warranted for examining the evolution of ADL-PI score over the course of Alzheimer's disease.
Analgesia and sedation for painful interventions in children and adolescents.

BACKGROUND Painful procedures on children and adolescents often have to be performed with the aid of analgesia and sedation in order to prevent pain and emotional distress. Moreover, many procedures can be performed more rapidly and more effectively in a relaxed patient. Because the combination of analgesia and sedation can cause serious or even life-threatening complications, it must be accompanied by the same safety precautions as a general anesthetic. METHODS Selective review of the literature. RESULTS A high level of safety can be achieved by adherence to the published guidelines of the societies for anesthesiology and pediatrics. The depth of sedation during procedures performed under combined analgesia and sedation is often equivalent to that resulting from general anesthesia. Therefore, in order to avoid serious complications, combined analgesia and sedation should only be administered by physicians trained in pediatric anesthesia or pediatric critical care. This is particularly so when propofol is used, because it has a narrow therapeutic range and can cause cardiorespiratory respiratory problems without warning. As long as the appropriate safety precautions are followed, non-anesthesiologists can also administer propofol in combination with an analgesic, such as ketamine, to children and adolescents. CONCLUSION In children and adolescents, the combination of analgesia and sedation can prevent the emotional trauma that would result from a painful procedure, while often enhancing the quality of the procedure itself. This method should be considered a variant of general anesthesia. Accordingly, any non-anesthesiologist employing this method must be as well versed as an anesthesiologist in the management of its specific side effects and complications.
Relative Demand Shocks

This paper introduces the concept of relative demand shocks into a multi-sector dynamic general equilibrium model. Relative demand shocks change the instantaneous structure of preferences. Under relative demand shocks consumer tastes randomly shift across different commodities, as manifested by unexpected relative increases or decreases in the marginal utility of the various consumption goods. There are no exogenous technology (productivity) shocks in the model. There are three main results. First, the model proposes an original theoretical mechanism for generating aggregate fluctuations and sectoral comovement by using inter-sectoral and idiosyncratic shocks. This mechanism is complementary to the standard Real Business Cycle theory. Second, the model is effectively able to reproduce the main stylized facts of the U.S. economy, also those that the standard Real Business Cycle model fails to explain. Third, the model generates a false Solow Residual, even though there is no technological progress in the model. Its size and time series properties are analogous to the actual Solow Residual.
Sphingomyelin/cholesterol liposomal vincristine: a new formulation for an old drug

Sphingomyelin/cholesterol liposomal vincristine (SV) is a novel formulation of vincristine encapsulated in the aqueous interior of liposomes composed of sphingomyelin and cholesterol. Benefits of the liposomal formulation include prolongation of the circulation half-life of total vincristine and an increase in drug delivery to sites of tumour growth resulting in enhanced efficacy. In addition, higher doses of vincristine than ordinarily administered can be prescribed without significant toxicity. Phase II studies have demonstrated that SV is active and well tolerated in relapsed diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL), including patients who have relapsed following an autologous stem cell transplant. SV has been successfully substituted for free vincristine in the CHOP regimen for those with previously untreated aggressive B cell non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, and is undergoing study in other settings. The achievement of responses in heavily pretreated patients with DLBCL and its low toxicity profile make SV a potential therapy for the palliative treatment of patients with multiply relapsed DLBCL. Ultimately, it is likely to be incorporated into combination chemotherapy regimens for use in untreated or relapsed patients. Its true value both as a single agent in heavily pretreated patients and in combination regimens will need to be established in Phase III trials.
Mr. Harris, Mr. Rae and Union Activity in Ontario

In 1990 Bob Rae's New Democratic (NDP) government was elected in Ontario and in 1993 they passed labour relations legislation favouring organized labour. In 1995 Mike Harris' Progressive Conservative (PC) government was elected and they quickly passed legislation much less favourable toward unions. Monthly data, 1987-98, are used to estimate the effects of the changes in government and legislation on certification and decertification activity and complaints of unfair labour practices. Certification activity increased and decertification activity decreased after the NDP legislation was passed. The opposite occurred with the election of Harris' Conservatives and the change of government had a significant impact, even before new legislation was passed. Complaints of unfair labour practice rose during the NDP tenure but returned close to historical levels under the PCs.
Gamification of software engineering curriculum

Advances in computer gaming technology, digital game design, game engine development, mobile computing, and mobile software engineering, stimulated active research on gamification of processes and activities in "serious" areas such as education, learning, corporate training, management, administration, marketing, simulations of complex physical objects and phenomena, engineering, project management, Wellness, healthcare, chemistry, and other areas. The performed analysis of the current status of serious games' applications in industry clearly shows that it will soon need a significant number of well educated and highly skilled specialists in gamification of main business processes, including serious games' software engineers, analysts, designers, developers, testers, etc. The findings and outcomes of performed analysis motivated the authors - faculty and graduate student at Bradley University (Peoria, IL, U.S.A.) - to work collaboratively, propose a new approach and ways of gamification of software engineering curriculum.
An Interaction between the Human T Cell Leukemia Virus Type 1 Basic Leucine Zipper Factor (HBZ) and the KIX Domain of p300/CBP Contributes to the Down-regulation of Tax-dependent Viral Transcription by HBZ*

Activation of human T cell leukemia virus type 1 (HTLV-1) transcription is established through the formation of protein complexes on the viral promoter that are essentially composed of the cellular basic leucine zipper (bZIP) transcription factor cAMP-response element-binding protein (CREB (or certain other members of the ATF/CREB family), the HTLV-1-encoded transactivator Tax, and the pleiotropic cellular coactivators p300/CBP. HTLV-1 bZIP factor (HBZ) is a protein encoded by HTLV-1 that contains a bZIP domain and functions to repress HTLV-1 transcription. HBZ has been shown to repress viral transcription by dimerizing with CREB, which occurs specifically through the bZIP domain in each protein, and preventing CREB from binding to the DNA. However, we previously found that HBZ causes only partial removal of CREB from a chromosomally integrated viral promoter, and more importantly, an HBZ mutant lacking the COOH-terminal bZIP domain retains the ability to repress viral transcription. These results suggest that an additional mechanism contributes to HBZ-mediated repression of HTLV-1 transcription. In this study, we show that HBZ binds directly to the p300 and CBP coactivators. Two LXXLL-like motifs located within the NH2-terminal region of HBZ are important for this interaction and specifically mediate binding to the KIX domain of p300/CBP. We provide evidence that this interaction interferes with the ability of Tax to bind p300/CBP and thereby inhibits the association of the coactivators with the viral promoter. Our findings demonstrate that HBZ utilizes a bipartite mechanism to repress viral transcription.
A DEVELOPMENTALLY REGULATED HYALURONIDASE OF HAEMONCHUS CONTORTUS

The trichostrongylid nematode Haemonchus contortus released a hyaluronic acid–degrading enzyme during in vitro development from the third (L3) to fourth (L4) larval stage. The enzyme did not degrade chondroitin sulfate A. Enzyme activity was optimal between pH 4.0 and 6.0, and the enzyme was inhibited by high concentrations of NaCl; the divalent cations Cu2+, Zn2+, Ca2+, and Mn2+ were not inhibitory. The hyaluronidase had a molecular mass estimated at 57 kDa by sucrose density gradient centrifugation and at 111 kDa by substrate sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (reducing and nonreducing conditions), suggesting the formation of a dimer during the electrophoretic separation conditions. The level of hyaluronidase released during in vitro development peaked between 24 and 48 hr in culture and then gradually decreased, with little or no activity present in the 168-hr culture fluid. The enzyme was not detected in culture fluid from 24-hr incubations of either the mid-L4 stage (obtained from sheep 7 days postinfection) or the adult stage (obtained from sheep 30–35 days postinfection). The temporal expression of the hyaluronidase suggested a role for this enzyme in the early stages of the L3–L4 developmental process.