Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Sumoylation of CCAAT/Enhancer-binding Protein α and Its Functional Roles in Hepatocyte Differentiation*

The sumoylation of CCAAT/enhancer-binding proteins (C/EBPs) by small ubiquitin-related modifier-1 (SUMO-1) has been reported recently. In this study, we investigated the functional role of the sumoylation of C/EBPα in the differentiation of hepatocytes. The amount of sumoylated C/EBPα gradually decreased during the differentiation, which suggests that the sumoylation is important for the control of growth/differentiation especially in the fetal liver. To analyze the function of the sumoylation of C/EBPα in liver-specific gene expression, we studied its effects on the expression of the albumin gene. The C/EBPα-mediated transactivation of the albumin gene was reduced by sumoylation of C/EBPα in primary fetal hepatocytes. The enhancement of C/EBPα-mediated transactivation by BRG1, a core subunit of the SWI/SNF chromatin remodeling complex, was hampered by sumoylation in a luciferase reporter assay. In addition, we discovered that sumoylation of C/EBPα blocked its inhibitory effect on cell proliferation by leading to the disruption of a proliferation-inhibitory complex because of a failure of the sumoylated C/EBPα to interact with BRG1. BRG1 was recruited to the dihydrofolate reductase promoter in nonproliferating C33a cells but was not detected in proliferating cells where C/EBPα, BRG1, and SUMO-1 were overexpressed. This result suggests that BRG1 down-regulates the expression of the dihydrofolate reductase gene. These findings provide the insight that SUMO acts as a space regulator, which affects protein-protein interactions.
A young bipolar outflow from IRAS 15398-3359

Changing physical conditions in the vicinity of protostars allow for a rich and interesting chemistry to occur. Heating and cooling of the gas allows molecules to be released from and frozen out on dust grains. These changes in physics, traced by chemistry, as well as the kinematical information allows us to distinguish between different scenarios describing the infall of matter and the launching of molecular outflows and jets. We aim at determining the spatial distribution of different species, of different chemical origin. This is to examine the physical processes in play in the observed region. From the kinematical information of the emission lines we aim at determining the nature of the infalling and outflowing gas in the system. We also aim at determining the physical properties of the outflow. Maps from the Sub-Millimeter Array reveal the spatial distribution of the gaseous emission toward IRAS15398-3359. The line radiative transfer code LIME is used to construct a full 3D model of the system taking all relevant components and scales into account. CO, HCO+ and N2H+ are detected and are shown to trace the motions of the outflow. For CO, also the circumstellar envelope and the surrounding cloud have a profound impact on the observed line profiles. N2H+ is detected in the outflow, but is suppressed towards the central region, perhaps due to the competing reaction between CO and H3+ in the densest regions as well as destruction of N2H+ by CO. N2D+ is detected in a ridge south-west from the protostellar condensation. The morphology and kinematics of the CO emission suggests that the source is younger than 1000 years. The mass, momentum, momentum rate, mechanical luminosity, kinetic energy and mass-loss rate are also all estimated to be low. A full 3D radiative transfer model of the system can explain all the kinematical and morphological features in the system.
Does Political Competition Matter for Economic Performance? Evidence from Sub-national Data

The study utilizes data on major Indian states for 1980-2004 to explore the impact of political competition on state-level income and fiscal variables. The findings suggest that increase in political competition leads to an increase in state per capita income and growth. Focusing on fiscal variables, the analysis indicates that tighter political competition increases economic expenditure.
An Evaluation of feedback in Document Retrieval using Co‐Occurrence Data

This paper reports experiments with a term weighting model incorporating relevance information in which it is assumed that index terms are distributed dependently. Initially this model was tested with complete relevance information against a similar model which assumes index terms are distributed independently. The experiments demonstrated conclusively that index terms are not independent for a number of diverse document collections. It was concluded that the use of relevance information together with dependence information could potentially improve retrieval effectiveness. As a result of further experiments the initial strict dependence model was modified and in particular a new relevance‐based term weight was developed. This modified dependence model was then used as the basis for relevance feedback, i.e. with partial relevance information only, and significant increases in retrieval effectiveness were achieved. The evaluation method used in the feedback experiments emphasized the effect of the feedback on documents which the potential user would not previously have seen. Finally the incorporation of relevance feedback in an operational system is considered and in particular it is argued that if high recall searches are required, relevance feedback based on the modified dependence model may be superior to the widely used Boolean search.
Construction of Advanced Navigation System

In order to solve the severer and difficult problem on maritime society, Advanced Navigation System was constructed by TUMSAT in 2010. This system is used for education and training for student, and study and research on effective navigation support method and system. Using this system, we can treat many kind of information needed for safety and efficiency navigation, such as radar echo, AIS data, weather data, etc. Also, since the researchers can share information, they can study cross-cutting issues. We can use the result of the study in this system, and we can go to next step on navigation support technology. In this paper, we show the outline of Advanced Navigation System.
Coronary Thrombolysis With Desmodus Salivary Plasminogen Activator in Dogs: Fast and Persistent Recanalization by Intravenous Bolus Administration

DSPA (Desmodus salivary plasminogen activator) is a new thrombolytic agent corresponding to a natural plasminogen activator discovered in the saliva of the vampire bat Desmodus rotundus. Compared with tissue plasminogen activator (TPA), DSPA, produced in a recombinant cell line, is more fibrin cofactor dependent than TPA. Methods and ResultsThe thrombolytic properties of DSPA and TPA were compared in a canine model of copper coilinduced coronary thrombosis. All dogs received heparin 200 IU/kg IV and SC. Whereas controls did not reperfuse within 180 minutes (none of six), intravenous bolus administration of DSPA at 25, 50, and 100 μg/kg resulted in a 100% incidence (6 of 6) of recanalization within 37, 23, and 18 minutes, respectively. TPA at 63 and 125 mu;g/kg reopened the coronaries in 33% (two of six) and 50% (three of six) of cases within 40 minutes. Eighty-three percent (5 of 6) of the arteries were still patent 3 hours after 50 and 100 mu;/kg DSPA, whereas only 20% (one of five) of all coronaries originally recanalized with both doses of TPA were still open at 3 hours. Plasma levels of α2-antiplasmin decreased significantly only with 125 mu;g/kg TPA. The clearance of DSPA (2.3 to 3.5 mL · min−1 · kg−1) was lower compared with TPA (11.4 to 20 mL · min−1 · kg−1) due to a prolonged terminal half- life. ConclusionsIn a canine coronary thrombosis model, DSPA exhibited higher potency and recanalized coronary arteries faster and with a lower incidence of reocclusion than TPA. Its properties may translate into a higher efficacy in patients compared with available thrombolytic agents. The long halflife of DSPA may allow for single bolus administration in the treatment of acute myocardial infarction.
Naming and subcultures in The Netherlands

As everywhere in Europe, in The Netherlands the naming mechanisms changed considerably during the last century. Until 1950 the naming after relatives was dominant and far over 90 % of the children got the first name of a grandparent (and subsequently aunt or uncle) by rule of tradition. This has radically changed since then, leaving freedom for parents to follow their own preferences. We assume that these preferences are related to social-economic factors that originate in subcultures in society. On the basis of the first names of all 3,5 million children in the Netherlands which were born during the period 1983-1999, we will show that naming patterns can be identified that can be related to geographical, cultural, economical and social factors.
An Automatic System for the Real-Time Characterization of Vehicle Headlamp Beams Exploiting Image Analysis

A vehicle's headlamp orientation and luminous and geometrical beam properties are a matter that is strictly ruled by the European Commission for transportation. To test the headlamps, a test system is usually manually aligned to the vehicle, and the human being has the definite opinion even on the beam-related measures. This paper presents a fully automatic system that exploits vision-based technology to extract the geometric parameters of the light profiles that are projected by vehicle headlamps in real time. The 3-D orientation of the longitudinal axis of the vehicle is recovered using stereoscopy. Furthermore, image analysis is used to automatically characterize the shadow-light border of a beam profile, as it would be perceived by an experienced human operator. A locally adaptive thresholding algorithm allows our system to automatically adjust to a wide range of light sources of different power. The alignment procedure and the beam characterization algorithm have been assessed through proper measuring apparatus that is capable of yielding accurate ground-truth data. In particular, the headlamp has been mounted on a special three-axis numerical control unit whose accuracy has been previously assessed, again using image analysis. Experimental results, which are carried out on a large number of different headlamps, show that our method is able to achieve accurate measurements in compliance with current regulations. Finally, it is worth remarking that our solution is fully automatic, and it just requires a simple setup procedure.
Simplified methods for renewable generation capacity credit calculation: A critical review

Capacity credits are widely used to quantify the ability of different generating technologies to support demand. Most practical capacity credit calculations are based on detailed risk modelling, however a wide range of simplified approaches are also in use. This paper presents a critical review of these simplified approaches, ranging from annual peak calculations and probabilistic representations of wind, to closed-form expressions derived for small installed wind capacities. The principal themes are that simplified methods must retain the key features of the problem at hand, and that to be of interest simplified methods must either bring substantial computational advantages, or provide additional insight beyond that from a more detailed risk calculation.
Mesenchymal Stem Cell Therapy for Cutaneous Wounds.

BACKGROUND Mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) treatment of wounds results in accelerated wound closure, increased granulation tissue formation, and increased angiogenesis. These adult stem cells exert their therapeutic effects primarily by secreting soluble factors that regulate cellular responses to cutaneous injury. THE PROBLEM There is an urgent need for novel therapies for the treatment of wounds with delayed healing. Current treatment options for chronic nonhealing wounds and burns are limited and not always effective, despite significant advances in wound care including application of bioengineered skin equivalents and growth factors. BASIC/CLINICAL SCIENCE ADVANCES The three target articles advance the field by addressing critical gaps in knowledge about MSC function and mechanism during wound healing. The first target article provides the first evidence that MSCs regulate macrophage phenotype in wounds. The second target article demonstrates that diabetes mellitus impairs the ability of MSCs to promote wound healing and this can be rescued by a novel lipid mediator deficit in diabetic wounds. The final target article reports that the surgical technique of tissue expansion is enhanced by MSCs. CLINICAL CARE RELEVANCE MSC therapy suppresses inflammation in wounds and may be more effective when used in conjunction with other therapeutics that modulate the diabetic wound environment. It also shows potential as an adjunctive therapy for surgical tissue expansion. CONCLUSION MSCs represent promising emerging therapies for wounds with delayed healing such as chronic nonhealing wounds and burns.
Cholesterol Depletion from the Plasma Membrane Triggers Ligand-independent Activation of the Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor*

We recently demonstrated that depletion of plasma membrane cholesterol with methyl-β-cyclodextrin (MβCD) caused activation of MAPK (Chen, X., and Resh, M. D. (2001) J. Biol. Chem. 276, 34617–34623). MAPK activation was phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)-dependent and involved increased tyrosine phosphorylation of the p85 subunit of PI3K. We next determined whether MβCD treatment induced tyrosine phosphorylation of other cellular proteins. Here we report that cholesterol depletion of serum-starved COS-1 cells with MβCD or filipin caused an increase in Tyr(P) levels of a 180-kDa protein that was identified as the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). Cross-linking experiments showed that MβCD induced dimerization of EGFR, indicative of receptor activation. Reagents that block release of membrane-bound EGFR ligands did not affect MβCD-induced tyrosine phosphorylation of EGFR, indicating that MβCD activation of EGFR is ligand-independent. Moreover, MβCD treatment resulted in increased tyrosine phosphorylation of EGFR downstream targets and Ras activation. Incubation of cells with the specific EGFR inhibitor AG4178 blocked MβCD-induced phosphorylation of EGFR, SHC, phospholipase C-γ, and Gab-1 as well as MAPK activation. We conclude that cholesterol depletion from the plasma membrane by MβCD causes ligand-independent activation of EGFR, resulting in MAPK activation by PI3K and Ras-dependent mechanisms. Moreover, these studies reveal a novel mode of action of MβCD, in addition to its ability to disrupt membrane rafts.
Hyponatremia normalization as an independent prognostic factor in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer treated with first-line therapy

The aim of the study was to assess, for the first time, the prognostic role of hyponatremia and sodium normalization in patients receiving first-line chemo- or targeted therapy for advanced non-small cell lung cancer. Four hundred thirty-three patients with advanced non small cell lung cancer were treated with first line chemo- or targeted therapy between 2006 and 2015 at our institutions. Patients were stratified in two groups, with or without hyponatremia (group A and B, respectively). Progression free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) were estimated using Kaplan-Meier method. A Cox regression model was carried out for univariate and multivariate analyses. Sixty-nine patients (16%) presented with hyponatremia at the start of first-line therapy. The median OS was 8.78 months in Group A and 15.5 months in Group B (p < 0.001), while the median PFS was 4.1 months and 6.3 months respectively (p = 0.24). In Group A, median OS was significantly higher in patients who normalized their sodium levels (11.6 vs. 4.7 months, p = 0.0435). Similarly, the median PFS was significantly higher in patients who normalized their sodium levels (6.7 vs. 3.3 months, p = 0.011). At multivariate analysis, sodium normalization was an independent prognostic factor for both OS and PFS. Sodium normalization during first-line therapy is an independent prognostic factor for OS and PFS in patients with advanced lung cancer treated with first-line therapies. Frequent clinical monitoring and prompt treatment of hyponatremia should be emphasized to optimize the outcome of these patients.
Clinical microbiology of coryneform bacteria

Coryneform bacteria are aerobically growing, asporogenous, non-partially-acid-fast, gram-positive rods of irregular morphology. Within the last few years, there has been a massive increase in the number of publications related to all aspects of their clinical microbiology. Clinical microbiologists are often confronted with making identifications within this heterogeneous group as well as with considerations of the clinical significance of such isolates. This review provides comprehensive information on the identification of coryneform bacteria and outlines recent changes in taxonomy. The following genera are covered: Corynebacterium, Turicella, Arthrobacter, Brevibacterium, Dermabacter. Propionibacterium, Rothia, Exiguobacterium, Oerskovia, Cellulomonas, Sanguibacter, Microbacterium, Aureobacterium, "Corynebacterium aquaticum," Arcanobacterium, and Actinomyces. Case reports claiming disease associations of coryneform bacteria are critically reviewed. Minimal microbiological requirements for publications on disease associations of coryneform bacteria are proposed.
Structural basis for substrate specificity of methylsuccinyl-CoA dehydrogenase, an unusual member of the acyl-CoA dehydrogenase family

(2S)-methylsuccinyl-CoA dehydrogenase (MCD) belongs to the family of FAD-dependent acyl-CoA dehydrogenase (ACD) and is a key enzyme of the ethylmalonyl-CoA pathway for acetate assimilation. It catalyzes the oxidation of (2S)-methylsuccinyl-CoA to α,β-unsaturated mesaconyl-CoA and shows only about 0.5% activity with succinyl-CoA. Here we report the crystal structure of MCD at a resolution of 1.37 Å. The enzyme forms a homodimer of two 60-kDa subunits. Compared with other ACDs, MCD contains an ∼170-residue-long N-terminal extension that structurally mimics a dimer–dimer interface of these enzymes that are canonically organized as tetramers. MCD catalyzes the unprecedented oxidation of an α-methyl branched dicarboxylic acid CoA thioester. Substrate specificity is achieved by a cluster of three arginines that accommodates the terminal carboxyl group and a dedicated cavity that facilitates binding of the C2 methyl branch. MCD apparently evolved toward preventing the nonspecific oxidation of succinyl-CoA, which is a close structural homolog of (2S)-methylsuccinyl-CoA and an essential intermediate in central carbon metabolism. For different metabolic engineering and biotechnological applications, however, an enzyme that can oxidize succinyl-CoA to fumaryl-CoA is sought after. Based on the MCD structure, we were able to shift substrate specificity of MCD toward succinyl-CoA through active-site mutagenesis.
In vitro generated Rhnull red cells recapitulate the in vivo deficiency: A model for rare blood group phenotypes and erythroid membrane disorders

Lentiviral modification combined with ex vivo erythroid differentiation was used to stably inhibit RhAG expression, a critical component of the Rh(rhesus) membrane complex defective in the Rhnull syndrome. The cultured red cells generated recapitulate the major alterations of native Rhnull cells regarding antigen expression, membrane deformability, and gas transport function, providing the proof of principle for their use as model of Rhnull syndrome and to investigate Rh complex biogenesis in human primary erythroid cells. Using this model, we were able to reveal for the first time that RhAG extinction alone is sufficient to explain ICAM‐4 and CD47 loss observed on native Rhnull RBCs. Together with the effects of RhAG forced expression in Rhnull progenitors, this strongly strengthens the hypothesis that RhAG is critical to Rh complex formation. The strategy is also promising for diagnosis purpose in order to overcome the supply from rare blood donors and is applicable to other erythroid defects and rare phenotypes, providing models to dissect membrane biogenesis of multicomplex proteins in erythroid cells, with potential clinical applications in transfusion medicine. Am. J. Hematol. 88:343–349, 2013. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
A flow rejection algorithm for QoS maintenance in a variable bandwidth wireless IP environment

A flow rejection algorithm for the dynamic resource reservation protocol (dRSVP) protocol is proposed. dRSVP is an enhanced version of RSVP, aiming at providing dynamic quality-of-service (QoS) support in a variable bandwidth environment (e.g., wireless) through guarantees of ranges of bandwidth instead of specific values. Flow rejection occurs when the channel quality decreases to a level that even the minimum bandwidth requirements per flow cannot be fulfilled. The proposed algorithm aims at improving the flow dropping probability of dRSVP, without affecting the bandwidth utilization. Its operation is based on setting priority classes and rejecting the minimum required number of flows per class, in order to guarantee QoS to the remaining. Both mathematical analysis and simulation results show that the overall flow dropping probability can be significantly reduced.
Nutritional knowledge and the recognition and acceptability of fruit and vegetables amongst primary school children: age and gender differences

With the consumption of fruit and vegetables amongst primary school children in the UK being one of the lowest in Europe (Gregory et al., 2000), the need for research into the determinants of fruit and vegetable intake is essential in order for future interventions to be successful in increasing fruit and vegetable consumption (Rasmussen et al., 2006). This study, therefore, aimed to investigate possible gender and age differences amongst primary school children’s nutritional knowledge, and their recognition and acceptability of commonly available fruit and vegetables. In total, 73 children aged 8-11 years from Ellesmere Primary School in Shropshire, UK, took part. Both quantitative and qualitative measures were employed. A Chi Square Test revealed that only the acceptability of pineapple increased significantly with age, and a two-way ANOVA for the recognition of fruit and vegetables revealed no significant main effects for age or gender, or an interaction between the two variables. Analysis of the transcripts revealed that nutritional knowledge seemed to increase with age. Overall, few age and gender differences were found; however, future research should look to employ wider age ranges to identify where changes in acceptability of fruit and vegetables occur, in order for interventions to be appropriately tailored.