Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Activation of Myeloid Cell-Specific Adhesion Class G Protein-Coupled Receptor EMR2 via Ligation-Induced Translocation and Interaction of Receptor Subunits in Lipid Raft Microdomains

ABSTRACT The adhesion class G protein-coupled receptors (adhesion-GPCRs) play important roles in diverse biological processes ranging from immunoregulation to tissue polarity, angiogenesis, and brain development. These receptors are uniquely modified by self-catalytic cleavage at a highly conserved GPCR proteolysis site (GPS) dissecting the receptor into an extracellular subunit (α) and a seven-pass transmembrane subunit (β) with cellular adhesion and signaling functions, respectively. Using the myeloid cell-restricted EMR2 receptor as a paradigm, we exam the mechanistic relevance of the subunit interaction and demonstrate a critical role for GPS autoproteolysis in mediating receptor signaling and cell activation. Interestingly, two distinct receptor complexes are identified as a result of GPS proteolysis: one consisting of a noncovalent α-β heterodimer and the other comprising two completely independent receptor subunits which distribute differentially in membrane raft microdomains. Finally, we show that receptor ligation induces subunit translocation and colocalization within lipid rafts, leading to receptor signaling and inflammatory cytokine production by macrophages. Our present data resolve earlier conflicting results and provide a new mechanism of receptor signaling, as well as providing a paradigm for signal transduction within the adhesion-GPCR family.
Breed, sex and age distribution in dogs with chronic liver disease: a demographic study

Breed, sex and age distribution were studied in dogs with histopathologically diagnosed chronic (active or progressive) hepatitis and liver cirrhosis in Sweden. The study was based on clinical and histopathological records obtained during three years from a histopathological laboratory and during six years from an animal hospital. Some breeds were significantly (P<0–001) over-represented: American and English cocker spaniels, labrador retrievers and West Highland white terriers. In both spaniel breeds the males were most frequent whereas in the labrador retriever, the females were over represented. In the West Highland white terrier there was no sex difference. The average age at presentation was approximately five years in spaniels and West Highland white terriers and seven years in labrador retrievers. The high incidence of chronic liver disease and liver cirrhosis in certain breeds indicate that hereditary factors may be of importance in the development of chronic hepatitis and liver cirrhosis.
A scoring system for subjective health complaints (SHC)

The aim of this study is to present a complete scoring system for subjective health complaints (SHC) as they are experienced by the lay population. The scoring system records the complaints, and does not map attributions or medical diagnoses. In all, 1,219 subjects (323 men, 896 women) from various occupations were tested with a scoring system, the SHC inventory, previously referred to as the Ursin Health Inventory (UHI). The SHC consists of 29 questions concerning severity and duration of subjective somatic and psychological complaints. The SHC inventory yields scores on single items and a total number of health complaints categorized into five factors: musculoskeletal pain (α=0.74), pseudoneurology (α=0.73), gastrointestinal problems (α=0.62), allergy (α=0.58) and flu (α=0.67). The SHC inventory is a systematic, easy, and reliable way to score subjective health complaints. The prevalence of these complaints is high, and should be considered before conclusions are reached about new diseases and new attributions of environmental hazards.
Two Molecularly Distinct G2/M Checkpoints Are Induced by Ionizing Irradiation

ABSTRACT Cell cycle checkpoints are among the multiple mechanisms that eukaryotic cells possess to maintain genomic integrity and minimize tumorigenesis. Ionizing irradiation (IR) induces measurable arrests in the G1, S, and G2 phases of the mammalian cell cycle, and the ATM (ataxia telangiectasia mutated) protein plays a role in initiating checkpoint pathways in all three of these cell cycle phases. However, cells lacking ATM function exhibit both a defective G2 checkpoint and a prolonged G2 arrest after IR, suggesting the existence of different types of G2 arrest. Two molecularly distinct G2/M checkpoints were identified, and the critical importance of the choice of G2/M checkpoint assay was demonstrated. The first of these G2/M checkpoints occurs early after IR, is very transient, is ATM dependent and dose independent (between 1 and 10 Gy), and represents the failure of cells which had been in G2 at the time of irradiation to progress into mitosis. Cell cycle assays that can distinguish mitotic cells from G2 cells must be used to assess this arrest. In contrast, G2/M accumulation, typically assessed by propidium iodide staining, begins to be measurable only several hours after IR, is ATM independent, is dose dependent, and represents the accumulation of cells that had been in earlier phases of the cell cycle at the time of exposure to radiation. G2/M accumulation after IR is not affected by the early G2/M checkpoint and is enhanced in cells lacking the IR-induced S-phase checkpoint, such as those lacking Nbs1 or Brca1 function, because of a prolonged G2 arrest of cells that had been in S phase at the time of irradiation. Finally, neither the S-phase checkpoint nor the G2 checkpoints appear to affect survival following irradiation. Thus, two different G2 arrest mechanisms are present in mammalian cells, and the type of cell cycle checkpoint assay to be used in experimental investigation must be thoughtfully selected.
Biomarkers in the Diagnosis and Prognosis of Alzheimer’s Disease

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease that inhibits cognitive functions and has no cure. This report reviews the current diagnostic standards for AD with an emphasis on early diagnosis using the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers amyloid-beta, t-tau, and p-tau and fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography imaging. Abnormal levels of these CSF biomarkers and decreased cerebral uptake of glucose have recently been used in the early diagnosis of AD in experimental studies. These promising biomarkers can be measured using immunoassays performed in singleplex or multiplex formats. Although presently, there are no Food and Drug Administration–approved in vitro diagnostics (IVDs) for early detection of AD, a multiplex immunoassay measuring a panel of promising AD biomarkers in CSF may be a likely IVD candidate for the clinical AD diagnostic market. Specifically, the INNO-BIA AlzBio3 immunoassay kit, performed using bead arrays on the xMAP Luminex analyzer, allows simultaneous quantification of amyloid-beta, t-tau, and p-tau biomarkers. AD biomarkers can also be screened using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays that are offered as laboratory-developed tests.
A Low-Cost and High-Resolution Droplet Position Detector for an Intelligent Electrowetting on Dielectric Device

A low-cost and high-resolution capacitive-to-digital converter integrated circuit is used for droplet position detection in a digital microfluidic system. A field-programmable gate array FPGA is used as the integrated logic hub of the system for a highly reliable and efficient control of the circuit. A fast-fabricating PCB (printed circuit board) substrate microfluidic system is proposed. Smaller actuation threshold voltages than those previously reported are obtained. Droplets (3 µL) are actuated by using a 200 V, 500 Hz modulating pulsed voltage. Droplet positions can be detected and displayed on a PC-based 3D animation in real time. The actuators and the capacitance sensing circuits are implemented on one PCB to reduce the size of the system. With the capacitive droplet position detection system, the PCB-based electrowetting on dielectric device (EWOD) reported in this work has promise in automating immunohistochemistry experiments.
Microcentrifuge or Automated Hematological Analyzer to Assess Hematocrit in Exercise? Effect on Plasma Volume Loss Calculations

The assessment of plasma volume loss (∆PV) induced by exercise can be estimated from changes in hematocrit (Htc) and hemoglobin (Hb), and it is essential when investigating the metabolic or biologic response to exercise of circulating biomarkers. We aimed to ascertain whether the estimation of ∆PV may differ when Hb and Htc are determined by automated hematological analyzer (AHA) versus manual methods. Twenty-five healthy male subjects performed a maximal running incremental exercise. Blood samples were taken before exercise, immediately after exercise, and after a 30-min recovery. Hb and Htc (Htc-AHA) were determined by an AHA. Htc was also determined by microcentrifugation (Htc-M). The ∆PV immediately after exercise and after recovery was calculated. The serum concentrations of several specimens were determined and corrected for ∆PV derived from Htc-AHA (∆PVAHA) and from Htc-M (∆PVM). Htc-M was found to be higher than Htc-AHA at all time points (p < 0.001). However, no differences were observed between ∆PVM and ∆PVAHA either post exercise (∆PVM −12.43% versus ∆PVAHA −12.41%, p = 0.929) or after recovery (∆PVM 1.47% versus ∆PVAHA 1.97%, p = 0.171). No significant differences were found between both ∆PV corrected concentrations of any biomarker (p ≥ 0.076). In conclusion, both AHA and the microcentrifuge may be reliably used to estimate ∆PV during exercise.
Developments in the Implementation of Acoustic Droplet Ejection for Protein Crystallography

Acoustic droplet ejection (ADE) enables crystallization experiments at the low-nanoliter scale, resulting in rapid vapor diffusion equilibration dynamics and efficient reagent usage in the empirical discovery of structure-enabling protein crystallization conditions. We extend our validation of this technology applied to the diverse physicochemical property space of aqueous crystallization reagents where dynamic fluid analysis coupled to ADE aids in accurate and precise dispensations. Addition of crystallization seed stocks, chemical additives, or small-molecule ligands effectively modulates crystallization, and we here provide examples in optimization of crystal morphology and diffraction quality by the acoustic delivery of ultra-small volumes of these cofactors. Additional applications are discussed, including set up of in situ proteolysis and alternate geometries of crystallization that leverage the small scale afforded by acoustic delivery. Finally, we describe parameters of a system of automation in which the acoustic liquid handler is integrated with a robotic arm, plate centrifuge, peeler, sealer, and stacks, which allows unattended high-throughput crystallization experimentation.
Novel Acoustic Loading of a Mass Spectrometer

High-throughput, direct measurement of substrate-to-product conversion by label-free detection, without the need for engineered substrates or secondary assays, could be considered the “holy grail” of drug discovery screening. Mass spectrometry (MS) has the potential to be part of this ultimate screening solution, but is constrained by the limitations of existing MS sample introduction modes that cannot meet the throughput requirements of high-throughput screening (HTS). Here we report data from a prototype system (Echo-MS) that uses acoustic droplet ejection (ADE) to transfer femtoliter-scale droplets in a rapid, precise, and accurate fashion directly into the MS. The acoustic source can load samples into the MS from a microtiter plate at a rate of up to three samples per second. The resulting MS signal displays a very sharp attack profile and ions are detected within 50 ms of activation of the acoustic transducer. Additionally, we show that the system is capable of generating multiply charged ion species from simple peptides and large proteins. The combination of high speed and low sample volume has significant potential within not only drug discovery, but also other areas of the industry.
A Method for Global Attack Graph Generation

Existing attack graph generation methods can only generate attack graphs for the single target, and the scale of the generated graphs is too large. To solve these problems, a global attack graph generation method is proposed on the basis of breadth-first search algorithm. The strategies that limit attack steps and success probability of attack paths are adopted to reduce the scale of the attack graph. The experimental results indicate that using the graph which is generated by this method can analyze network vulnerabilities from the global angle. In addition, this method is validated that it is effective to remove the redundancy edges and nodes of the attack graph, consequently reduces the scale of the attack graph.
Spontaneous healing of lateral femoral cutaneous nerve injury and improved quality of life after total hip arthroplasty via a direct anterior approach

Purpose: How the symptomatology of lateral femoral cutaneous nerve (LFCN) injury changes after total hip arthroplasty (THA) via direct anterior approach (DAA) is not known. Our hypothesis was that the symptoms of LFCN injury after THA via DAA in longer follow-up periods would resolve spontaneously, leading to an improved quality of life (QOL). The aims of this study were to investigate how the symptom LFCN injury changed after DAA–THA, and how those changes affected QOL. Methods: We investigated the incidence of LFCN injury after DAA–THA using self-reported questionnaires at two time points (initial survey: August 2014, present survey: August 2015). QOL was assessed by the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index, the Japanese Orthopaedic Association Hip Disease Evaluation Questionnaire, and the Forgotten Joint Score-12 (FJS-12). Types (dysesthesia or hypesthesia) and changes of the symptom were surveyed. Results: About 122 hips at average12.8 months postoperatively (initial survey), and of those, 89 hips at average 26.2 months postoperatively (present survey) were analyzed. The incidence of LFCN injury decreased significantly, from 31.9% to 11.2% (p < 0.001). Spontaneous improvement of symptoms was seen in 96%. The difference of FJS-12 between patients with and without LFCN injury at the initial survey disappeared at the present survey. The dysesthesia group showed significant correlations between rate of improvement in LFCN injury and increase of QOL. Conclusion: Most symptoms of LFCN injury resolved spontaneously with longer follow-up periods. In particular, improvement of dysesthesia as a symptom of LFCN injury was associated with better QOL.
Carotid artery disease: treatment and associated risks

Carotid artery stenosis is a major risk factor of stroke. Carotid endarterectomy is the established treatment of choice for severe carotid stenosis. Carotid stenting has gained widespread acceptance as alternative treatment, although trials of safety and efficacy have been inconclusive and contradictory. The history of our understanding of stroke and carotid atherosclerotic disease is sketched. Landmark trials of stroke prevention, including the carotid endarterectomy trials are discussed. The long-term results of one of the first trials of endovascular treatment, the Carotid And Vertebral Transluminal Angioplasty Study (CAVATAS) are presented and the results placed in context of other clinical trials of endovascular treatment for carotid stenosis. This Cochrane Review informed the largest completed trial of stenting and surgery in symptomatic carotid stenosis, the International Carotid Stenting Study (ICSS), whose short-term results up to 120 days after treatment are detailed. Age-related white matter changes are thought to be associated with an increased risk of per-procedural stroke and death. A study investigating the risk of stroke or death associated with age-related white matter changes is presented and discussed. CAVATAS has suggested that the risks and benefits of endovascular treatment for carotid stenosis may be similar to those of carotid endarterectomy. The Cochrane review revealed variable results of published randomised clinical trials. ICSS showed that carotid stenting was associated with a significantly higher short-term risk of stroke, myocardial infarction or death up to 120 days after treatment than carotid endarterectomy. Age-related white matter changes were shown to increase the risk of stroke or death in both treatment arms. Carotid endarterectomy should remain the treatment of choice for symptomatic carotid stenosis but stenting remains an option for certain patients, especially those less suitable for carotid endarterectomy. Scope for further research remains to improve patient selection and to compare invasive treatment to modern medical therapy.
User Ordering and Subchannel Selection for Power Minimization in MIMO Broadcast Channels using BD-GMD

This paper studies the power minimization problem for the MIMO broadcast channel. The optimal solution involves interference-balancing (IB) and iterative convex optimization procedures. In this paper, the zero-forcing (ZF) problem is considered, with dirty paper coding (DPC), resulting in a simple non-iterative implementation using the block diagonal geometric mean decomposition (BD-GMD). Subchannel selection is applied in order to approach the performance of the optimal IB solution. Optimal and near-optimal solutions are provided to find the encoding order and subchannel selection for each user. The advantages of the methods proposed are their non-iterative nature and much reduced computational complexity. Simulations run on both uncorrelated and correlated channels show that a transmit power close to the optimal IB solution can be reached.
A New Design of Iterative Detection and Decoding with Soft Interference Cancellation

This paper aims to improve the design of iterative detection and decoding (IDD) based on the soft interference cancellation with minimum mean squared error (SC-MMSE) detector, which shows low performance compared to the maximum a posteriori (MAP) detector. Such low performance is attributed to that the "pure" (original) turbo principle is not always best for IDD with SC-MMSE. Thus, we propose a new IDD architecture based on the SC-MMSE detector which uses new a priori information. Extrinsic information transfer (EXIT) chart analysis and simulation results show that the performance of the proposed IDD is very close to that of IDD based on the MAP detector.
Posterior hip approach yields better functional results vis-à-vis anterolateral approach in total hip arthroplasty for patients with severe hip dysplasia: A prospective randomized controlled clinical study

Objectives: We aimed to compare functional outcomes of two common hip approaches for patients with severe hip dysplasia in total hip replacement (THR) surgery. Materials and methods: Seventy hips of 68 patients randomized into two groups with regard to hip approach as posterior (group I) and anterolateral (group II). All patients underwent THR surgery with femoral shortening osteotomy. The groups were compared for operation time, preoperative and 6 months after abductor muscle strengths (AMSs), gait disorders, union time of the osteotomied site and dislocation rates. Results: There were two early dislocations in group I, and two early and one late dislocations in group II. No significant difference was observed regarding hip dislocations. Mean union time of the osteotomied site was 113.9 ± 51 days in group I while 111.1 ± 29.3 days in group II (p = 0.774). Six months after surgery, group I had higher AMS than group II (p < 0.0001). More patients in group II had Trendelenburg gait pattern (p = 0.043), while no difference was observed regarding antalgic and deviated gait patterns between groups. Conclusion: THR surgery for patients with severe developmental dysplasia of hip is a challenging procedure, and posterior approach provides better functional outcomes regarding gait and AMSs.
Improved delay-dependent stabilization conditions of Takagi-Sugeno fuzzy systems with state and input delays

This paper is concerned with the problem of the delay-dependent stabilization for Takagi-Sugeno fuzzy systems with state and input delays. The purpose is to design a statefeedback fuzzy controller such that the resulting closed-loop system is asymptotically stable with less conservative conditions than existing literature. The major difficulty that how to deal with those terms containing the fuzzy membership function hi(t-σ) caused by the presence of the input delay σ is overcome by selecting proper Lyapunov-Krasovskii functionals and using relaxed quadratic stabilization conditions. All the results are presented in terms of Linear matrix inequalities. Finally, a numerical example is also given to illustrate the effectiveness and feasibility of the approaches proposed in this paper.
NICE-MRP: A near-optimal radio-interference aware multi-path routing protocol for MANETs

Nowadays, with the miniaturization of communication devices, dense and highly mobile ad-hoc networks are very common. Besides, more and more devices have several radio interfaces. In such an environment, multi-path routing should be considered. Yet, only few multi-path ad-hoc routing protocols take into account the radio-interferences which might arise between two geographically close routes. Moreover, they generally only forbid the addition of interfering paths rather than looking for a different, more optimized, solution. This paper presents NICE-MRP, a novel multi-path routing protocol for mobile ad-hoc networks giving efficient solutions with respect to physical radio-interferences between paths. This protocol discovers and stores several combinations of non-interfering multi-path routes. The best multi-path route is used to transmit data, whereas alternative multi-path routes are kept to dynamically react to route breakages due to mobility and node failures. Compared to other well-known protocols, NICE-MRP presents good qualities in terms of latency, overhead and packet losses. Besides, these results end to be rather independent from the degree of mobility.
Hemophagocytic Syndrome in the Setting of AIDS and Disseminated Histoplasmosis

Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) is traditionally regarded as a rapidly progressive and often fatal illness. In patients with AIDS, HLH usually occurs secondary to opportunistic infections. Although popular guidelines exist for the diagnosis and management of HLH in general, no formal study has evaluated their applicability among adult patients who develop HLH in the setting of AIDS and opportunistic infections. The study reports on a case of HLH in a patient with AIDS and disseminated histoplasmosis. Eighteen other previously reported cases of HLH in the setting of AIDS and histoplasmosis were reviewed. Majority of the cases occurred in patients with a CD4 count of less than 70 cells/mm3. Overall mortality was 44%. Not getting antifungal treatment and having Histoplasma in blood were the 2 main risk factors for death. Among the patients who had a timely diagnosis of histoplasmosis and were initiated on antifungal therapy, the survival rates were significantly better, especially in the post-2000 ad period.