Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Interictal photosensitivity associates with altered brain structure in patients with episodic migraine

Background Migraine attacks manifest with hypersensitivities to light, sound, touch and odor. Some people with migraine have photosensitivity between migraine attacks, suggesting persistent alterations in the integrity of brain regions that process light. Although functional neuroimaging studies have shown visual stimulus induced “hyperactivation” of visual cortex regions in migraineurs between attacks, whether photosensitivity is associated with alterations in brain structure is unknown. Methods Levels of photosensitivity were evaluated using the Photosensitivity Assessment Questionnaire in 48 interictal migraineurs and 48 healthy controls. Vertex-by-vertex measurements of cortical thickness were assessed in 28 people with episodic migraine who had interictal photosensitivity (mean age = 35.0 years, SD = 12.1) and 20 episodic migraine patients without symptoms of interictal photosensitivity (mean age = 36.0 years, SD = 11.4) using a general linear model design. Results Migraineurs have greater levels of interictal photosensitivity relative to healthy controls. Relative to migraineurs without interictal photosensitivity, migraineurs with interictal photosensitivity have thicker cortex in several brain areas including the right lingual, isthmus cingulate and pericalcarine regions, and the left precentral, postcentral and supramarginal regions. Conclusion Episodic migraineurs with interictal photosensitivity have greater cortical thickness in the right parietal-occipital and left fronto-parietal regions, suggesting that persistent light sensitivity is associated with underlying structural alterations.
The modulatory effect of anandamide on nitroglycerin-induced sensitization in the trigeminal system of the rat

Background One of the human and animal models of migraine is the systemic administration of the nitric oxide donor (NO) nitroglycerin (NTG). NO can provoke migraine-like attacks in migraineurs and initiates a self-amplifying process in the trigeminal system, probably leading to central sensitization. Recent studies suggest that the endocannabinoid system is involved in nociceptive signal processing and cannabinoid receptor (CB) agonists are able to attenuate nociception in animal models of pain. Aim The purpose of the present study was to investigate the modulatory effects of a CB agonist anandamide (AEA) on the NTG-induced expression of transient receptor potential vanilloid type 1 (TRPV1), neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS), nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB), cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and kynurenine aminotransferase-II (KAT-II) in the upper cervical spinal cord (C1–C2) of the rat, where most of the trigeminal nociceptive afferents convey. Methods A half hour before and one hour after NTG (10 mg/kg) or placebo injection, adult male Sprague-Dawley rats (n = 44) were treated with AEA (2 × 5 mg/kg). Four hours after placebo/NTG injection, the animals were perfused and the cervical spinal cords were removed for immunohistochemistry and Western blotting. Results and conclusion Our results show that NTG is able to increase TRPV1, nNOS, NF-κB and COX-2 and decrease KAT-II expression in the C1–C2 segments. On the other hand, we have found that AEA modulates the NTG-induced changes, thus it influences the activation and central sensitization process in the trigeminal system, probably via CBs.
Synchronization coupling investigation using ICA cluster analysis in resting MEG signals in reading difficulties

The understanding of the mechanisms of human brain is a demanding issue for neuroscience research. Physiological studies acknowledge the usefulness of synchronization coupling in the study of dysfunctions associated with reading difficulties. Magnetoencephalogram (MEG) is a useful tool towards this direction having been assessed for its superior accuracy over other modalities. In this paper we consider synchronization features for identifying brain operations. Independent Component Analysis (ICA) is applied on MEG surface signals in controls and children with reading difficulties and are clustered to representative components. Then, coupling measures of mutual information and partial directed coherence are estimated in order to reveal dysfunction of cerebral networks and its related coordination.
Comprehensive modeling of the formation process of sound-quality

Sound quality is not an inherent property of sounds, but sound quality happens in a complex process which is specified by judgments where the “character” of the sound is compared to conceptual references that represent the expectations of the listeners. The references are task- and listener-specific. Here, the question will be addressed of how the complex process of quality formation may be modeled with a comprehensive model of auditory processing that contains both bottom-up (signals driven) as well as top-down (hypothesis-driven) processes. The generation of hypotheses requires inherent knowledge, namely, a specific aural-world model. To obtain ground-truth data for the world model, sound quality can be analyzed in terms of plausibility. It can be attempted to assess plausibility in an indirect fashion, observing listeners' involvement and immersion into auditory scenes and, thereby, implicitly considering the meaning associated with it. In this way, instead of mere form-related fidelity, the ability of sounds under test to convey meaning to listeners could also be considered, in other words, taking the function aspect into account, in addition to the form aspect. In this paper, a general architecture for such a comprehensive modeling system will be proposed and discussed for the example of evaluating sound reproduction systems.
The Transmissibility and Control of Pandemic Influenza A (H1N1) Virus

Flu's Tricky Tricks After vaccination against influenza A virus, single-point mutations are selected in hemagglutinin (the virus molecule that binds to sialic acid molecules on the surface of host cells) that escape neutralization by polyclonal antibody responses. Hensley et al. (p. 734) have discovered that in mice these mutations increased the virus's avidity for sialic acid. Amino acid substitutions that occur during reiterations of immune escape and avidity modulation can thus drive antigenic variation. This constant evolution of influenza viruses requires us to change vaccine components annually, and, for equine influenza, Park et al. (p. 726) show that as the match between virus and vaccine strains drifts apart with time, the probability of becoming infected and the length of the infectious period increase to the point where outbreaks occur. Nevertheless, even imperfect vaccines may be of benefit to a population because increasing the proportion of vaccinated individuals can supply enough herd immunity to offset a poor antigenic match, especially if used in conjunction with antiviral drugs. For humans, Yang et al. (p. 729, published online 10 September) estimate that the rate of transmission within U.S. households puts influenza A 2009 H1N1 (the current pandemic “swine flu”) in the higher range of transmissibility, compared to past seasonal and pandemic strains. Thus, to achieve mitigation this fall, children should be the first recipients of vaccine, followed by adults—aiming overall for 70% coverage of the population. A detailed picture of the pandemic potential of swine-origin influenza offers guidance for effective mitigation strategies. Pandemic influenza A (H1N1) 2009 (pandemic H1N1) is spreading throughout the planet. It has become the dominant strain in the Southern Hemisphere, where the influenza season has now ended. Here, on the basis of reported case clusters in the United States, we estimated the household secondary attack rate for pandemic H1N1 to be 27.3% [95% confidence interval (CI) from 12.2% to 50.5%]. From a school outbreak, we estimated that a typical schoolchild infects 2.4 (95% CI from 1.8 to 3.2) other children within the school. We estimated the basic reproductive number, R0, to range from 1.3 to 1.7 and the generation interval to range from 2.6 to 3.2 days. We used a simulation model to evaluate the effectiveness of vaccination strategies in the United States for fall 2009. If a vaccine were available soon enough, vaccination of children, followed by adults, reaching 70% overall coverage, in addition to high-risk and essential workforce groups, could mitigate a severe epidemic.
Magnetic Coulomb Phase in the Spin Ice Ho2Ti2O7

Magnetic Monopoles Magnets come with a north and a south pole. Despite being predicted to exist, searches in astronomy and in high-energy particle physics experiments for magnetic monopoles (either north or south on their own) have defied observation. Theoretical work in condensed-matter systems has predicted that spin-ice structures may harbor such elusive particles (see the Perspective by Gingras). Fennell et al. (p. 415, published online 3 September) and Morris et al. (p. 411, published online 3 September) used polarized neutron scattering to probe the spin structure forming in two spin-ice compounds—Ho2Ti2O7 and Dy2Ti2O7—and present results in support of the presence of magnetic monopoles in both materials. Neutron scattering measurements on two spin-ice compounds show evidence for magnetic monopoles. Spin-ice materials are magnetic substances in which the spin directions map onto hydrogen positions in water ice. Their low-temperature magnetic state has been predicted to be a phase that obeys a Gauss’ law and supports magnetic monopole excitations: in short, a Coulomb phase. We used polarized neutron scattering to show that the spin-ice material Ho2Ti2O7 exhibits an almost perfect Coulomb phase. Our result proves the existence of such phases in magnetic materials and strongly supports the magnetic monopole theory of spin ice.
A First-Generation Haplotype Map of Maize

A-Maize-ing Maize is one of our oldest and most important crops, having been domesticated approximately 9000 years ago in central Mexico. Schnable et al. (p. 1112; see the cover) present the results of sequencing the B73 inbred maize line. The findings elucidate how maize became diploid after an ancestral doubling of its chromosomes and reveals transposable element movement and activity and recombination. Vielle-Calzada et al. (p. 1078) have sequenced the Palomero Toluqueño (Palomero) landrace, a highland popcorn from Mexico, which, when compared to the B73 line, reveals multiple loci impacted by domestication. Swanson-Wagner et al. (p. 1118) exploit possession of the genome to analyze expression differences occurring between lines. The identification of single nucleotide polymorphisms and copy number variations among lines was used by Gore et al. (p. 1115) to generate a Haplotype map of maize. While chromosomal diversity in maize is high, it is likely that recombination is the major force affecting the levels of heterozygosity in maize. The availability of the maize genome will help to guide future agricultural and biofuel applications (see the Perspective by Feuillet and Eversole). In maize, recombination in the genome has been a limiting factor affecting evolution and breeding efforts. Maize is an important crop species of high genetic diversity. We identified and genotyped several million sequence polymorphisms among 27 diverse maize inbred lines and discovered that the genome was characterized by highly divergent haplotypes and showed 10- to 30-fold variation in recombination rates. Most chromosomes have pericentromeric regions with highly suppressed recombination that appear to have influenced the effectiveness of selection during maize inbred development and may be a major component of heterosis. We found hundreds of selective sweeps and highly differentiated regions that probably contain loci that are key to geographic adaptation. This survey of genetic diversity provides a foundation for uniting breeding efforts across the world and for dissecting complex traits through genome-wide association studies.
Age dependent changes in arsenic and nicotine induced oxidative stress in male rat

Abstract The present study was planned to compare the differential toxicity of arsenic and nicotine among three different age groups of rats. In this study blood and tissue oxidative stress was determined in different age group of rats exposed to arsenic (2 mg/kg, i.p.) and nicotine (6 mg/kg, i.p.) for 2 weeks. Arsenic inhibited blood δ-aminolevulinic acid dehydratase activity in all age groups of rats while, a moderate inhibition was noted following nicotine exposure in young and old rats. Arsenic caused an increase in blood reactive oxygen species in young and old rats while glutathione level increased only in young rats unlike nicotine. A significant increase in thiobarbituric acid reactive substance was noted in liver of young and old rats while, hepatic GSH showed an increase in young and a decrease in old rats. Catalase activity decreased significantly in arsenic exposed young and old rats. At the given dose and duration both toxicants did not induce oxidative stress in rat brain. Blood arsenic conc.
Genome Sequence, Comparative Analysis, and Population Genetics of the Domestic Horse

A Horse Is a Horse, of Course The history of horse domestication is closely tied to the history of the human society. Wade et al. (p. 865) report on the sequencing and provide a single nucleotide polymorphism map of the horse (Equus caballus) genome. Horses are a member of the order perissodactyla (odd-toed animals with hooves). The analysis reveals an evolutionarily new centromere on equine chromosome 11 that displays properties of an immature but fully functioning centromere and is devoid of centromeric satellite sequence. The findings clarify the nature of genetic diversity within and across horse breeds and suggest that the horse was domesticated from a relatively large number of females, but few males. The horse genome reveals an evolutionary new centromere and conserved chromosomal sequences relative to other mammals. We report a high-quality draft sequence of the genome of the horse (Equus caballus). The genome is relatively repetitive but has little segmental duplication. Chromosomes appear to have undergone few historical rearrangements: 53% of equine chromosomes show conserved synteny to a single human chromosome. Equine chromosome 11 is shown to have an evolutionary new centromere devoid of centromeric satellite DNA, suggesting that centromeric function may arise before satellite repeat accumulation. Linkage disequilibrium, showing the influences of early domestication of large herds of female horses, is intermediate in length between dog and human, and there is long-range haplotype sharing among breeds.
Seminars in Cardiothoracic and Vascular Anesthesia

down is a better term. Health care delivery and financing did not experience any radical changes for 2 millennia. Now, management techniques used just 5 years ago to maintain the business aspects of health care are no longer viable. Physicians do not have solo practices, and hospitals cannot stand alone. Billion-dollar corporations buy out hospitals and practices. These billion-dollar corporations are merged with even larger corporations that change the culture and place human kindness in jeopardy. Big business it is. The estimated costs associ-
Persistent idiopathic facial pain

Background Persistent idiopathic facial pain (PIFP) is a chronic disorder recurring daily for more than two hours per day over more than three months, in the absence of clinical neurological deficit. PIFP is the current terminology for Atypical Facial Pain and is characterized by daily or near daily pain that is initially confined but may subsequently spread. Pain cannot be attributed to any pathological process, although traumatic neuropathic mechanisms are suspected. When present intraorally, PIFP has been termed ‘Atypical Odontalgia’, and this entity is discussed in a separate article in this special issue. PIFP is often a difficult but important differential diagnosis among chronic facial pain syndromes. Aim To summarize current knowledge on diagnostic criteria, differential diagnosis, pathophysiology and management of PIFP. Methods We present a narrative review reporting current literature and personal experience. Additionally, we discuss and differentiate the common differential diagnoses associated with PIFP including traumatic trigeminal neuropathies, regional myofascial pain, atypical neurovascular pains and atypical trigeminal neuropathic pains. Results and conclusion The underlying pathophysiology in PIFP is still enigmatic, however neuropathic mechanisms may be relevant. PIFP needs interdisciplinary collaboration to rule out and manage secondary causes, psychiatric comorbidities and other facial pain syndromes, particularly trigeminal neuralgia. Burden of disease and psychiatric comorbidity screening is recommended at an early stage of disease, and should be addressed in the management plan. Future research is needed to establish clear diagnostic criteria and treatment strategies based on clinical findings and individual pathophysiology.
Positron emission tomography quantification of serotonin transporter binding in medication‐free bipolar disorder

Objectives: Bipolar disorder (BD) is associated with abnormalities in the serotonin transporter (5‐HTT), but specific in vivo findings have been discrepant. Using positron emission tomography (PET) and [11C]DASB, we compared 5‐HTT binding between unmedicated depressed BD subjects and healthy volunteers (HVs). Experimental Design: 5‐HTT binding in six brain regions was compared between 17 depressed, unmedicated BD subjects and 31 HVs, using the outcome measure of VT/fP (proportional to the total number of available transporters). Alternative outcome measures were examined as well. 47% of BD were BP I; and 65% reported a prior suicide attempt. Principal Observations: 5‐HTT binding (VT/fP) did not differ between BD and HV groups considering six brain regions of interest simultaneously (P = 0.24). In contrast, alternative outcome measures (BPF*, BPP*, and BPND*) indicated lower binding in BD compared with HV across these six regions of interest (BPF*: P = 0.047; BPP*: P = 0.032; BPND*: P = 0.031). 5‐HTT binding was unrelated to suicide attempt history, depression severity, bipolar subtype, or history of past substance use disorder. Conclusions: Choice of outcome measure strongly affects comparisons of serotonin transporter binding using PET with [11C]DASB. We do not find evidence of abnormal 5‐HTT binding in bipolar depression using our primary outcome measure, VT/fP. However, we did observe lower 5‐HTT binding in BD with alternative outcome measures that are frequently used with [11C]DASB. Relative merits and assumptions of different outcome measures are discussed. Evaluation in larger samples and during different mood states, including remission, is warranted. Synapse 70:24–32, 2016. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, multi-center study of the safety and efficacy of ADAM zolmitriptan for the acute treatment of migraine

Objective To determine the efficacy, tolerability, and safety of ascending doses of Adhesive Dermally-Applied Microarray (ADAM) zolmitriptan versus placebo for acute migraine treatment. Background ADAM is a novel patient-administered system for intracutaneous drug administration. In a phase 1 pharmacokinetic study, zolmitriptan administered using ADAM had much faster absorption than oral administration with higher exposure in the first two hours. Methods This was a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group Phase 2b/3 study evaluating ADAM zolmitriptan 1 mg, 1.9 mg, and 3.8 mg versus placebo. Co-primary endpoints were pain freedom and freedom from most bothersome other migraine-associated symptom 2 hours post-dose. Results Of patients treated with ADAM zolmitriptan 3.8 mg or placebo, 41.5% and 14.2%, respectively were pain-free 2 hours post-dose (p = 0.0001) and 68.3% and 42.9% were free from their most bothersome other symptom (p = 0.0009). Due to the fixed sequential testing methodology, formal statistical significance was not established for secondary endpoints. However, the proportion of patients who were photophobia-free, phonophobia-free, and nausea-free at 2 hours post-dose was higher in the ADAM zolmitriptan 3.8 mg group compared with placebo, as were the percentages of patients who were pain-free, and who experienced pain relief up to 48 hours post-dose. Systemic adverse events were consistent with previous triptan trials, and included dizziness, paresthesia, muscle tightness, and nausea, all of which occurred in < 5% of patients in any group. Application site reactions were generally mild and resolved within 48 hours, although erythema and bruising persisted for longer periods in some patients. Conclusion ADAM zolmitriptan 3.8 mg provides effective relief of migraine headache and associated most bothersome symptoms compared with placebo, and is well-tolerated. ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02745392
From Hydrogenases to Noble Metal–Free Catalytic Nanomaterials for H2 Production and Uptake

Electrolysis at Nickel One drawback of solar and wind power is the need for an efficient storage system to release accumulated energy when neither source is readily available (during still nights, for example). Hydrogen derived from electrolysis of water is potentially a useful medium for this purpose, but catalyzing the interconversion efficiently at large scale would currently require a substantial amount of the scarce precious metal platinum. An alternative approach would be to mimic natural enzymatic reactions, which accomplish the interconversion using hydrogenases that incorporate the more abundant metals iron and nickel. In this vein, Le Goff et al. (p. 1384; see the Perspective by Hambourger and Moore) have lightly modified a hydrogenase-inspired nickel complex in order to append it to a conductive carbon nanotube support. The resulting hybrid material shows promising catalytic efficiency for reversible aqueous electrolysis in a standard apparatus. A nickel electrocatalyst supported on carbon nanotubes shows promising activity for proton-hydrogen interconversion in water. Interconversion of water and hydrogen in unitized regenerative fuel cells is a promising energy storage framework for smoothing out the temporal fluctuations of solar and wind power. However, replacement of presently available platinum catalysts by lower-cost and more abundant materials is a requisite for this technology to become economically viable. Here, we show that the covalent attachment of a nickel bisdiphosphine–based mimic of the active site of hydrogenase enzymes onto multiwalled carbon nanotubes results in a high–surface area cathode material with high catalytic activity under the strongly acidic conditions required in proton exchange membrane technology. Hydrogen evolves from aqueous sulfuric acid solution with very low overvoltages (20 millivolts), and the catalyst exhibits exceptional stability (more than 100,000 turnovers). The same catalyst is also very efficient for hydrogen oxidation in this environment, exhibiting current densities similar to those observed for hydrogenase-based materials.
Investigating the effects of norepinephrine α1 receptor blockade on dopamine levels: A pilot PET study with [11C]‐(+)‐PHNO in controls

Interest in a role for norepinephrine (NE) in substance use disorders has increased over recent years. In particular, its interaction with dopamine (DA) is of importance. In this study, positron emission tomography (PET) was used to explore the impact of prazosin (an alpha 1 NE antagonist) on DA levels. Healthy volunteers were administered prazosin for approximately 4 weeks at the daily dose of 15 mg to reach steady state. Participants were scanned with PET imaging and the [11C]‐(+)‐PHNO tracer at baseline (before prazosin), at steady state, and after a wash out period. Prazosin administration was associated with an increase of [11C]‐(+)‐PHNO binding potential in the dorsal caudate relative to baseline, which corresponds to a decrease in DA levels. This study is the first to demonstrate interactions between DA and NE in healthy humans.