Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Immunopathology of post kala‐azar dermal leishmaniasis (PKDL): T‐cell phenotypes and cytokine profile

In Sudan, post kala‐azar dermal leishmaniasis (PKDL) caused by Leishmania donovani develops in half of the patients treated for visceral leishmaniasis (kala‐azar). In most patients lesions heal spontaneously, but in others symptoms are severe and persist for years. This study examined the immunological response in lesions of PKDL patients by immunohistochemistry and compared the findings with results obtained using peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). In all lesions, parasites or parasite antigen were present and provoked the formation of an inflammatory infiltrate consisting of a mixture of macrophages, lymphocytes, and plasma cells. In patients who had high interferon‐gamma (IFNγ) responses to Leishmania antigen in vitro, compact epithelioid granulomas were formed. The inflammatory cells were mainly CD3+ and interleukin‐10 (IL10) was the most prominent cytokine in the lesions. However, IFNγ was found in all and IL4 in most lesions, in varying amounts. PBMCs from all patients responded to Leishmania antigen by IFNγ production or proliferation. The results indicate that PKDL develops as a result of an influx of immunocompetent cells into skin, which harbours parasites. The inflammatory response to the parasites is complex. It involves several cell types and cytokines, of which some are antagonistic. It is conceivable that the balance between these cytokines determines the outcome of the disease. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The Frontal Assessment Battery as a Tool for Evaluation of Frontal Lobe Dysfunction in Patients With Parkinson Disease

Background: Frontal-type cognitive deficits are common in patients with Parkinson disease (PD). The Frontal Assessment Battery (FAB) was developed to assess frontal lobe functions. However, many studies found that it also correlated with a variety of other general neuropsychological tests. Objectives: To evaluate whether the FAB has an added value over the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and other bedside neuropsychological tests in reflecting cognitive deficits in patients with PD. Methods: Seventy-two consecutive patients with PD underwent cognitive assessment including the FAB, the MMSE, and a variety of other neuropsychological tests. Correlations were examined using the Spearman’s r. Results: Highly significant correlations were found between the total FAB score and tests of attention, executive functions, and memory. To evaluate the contribution of the FAB beyond that of the MMSE, partial correlation was used. Analyses revealed that the FAB still correlated with most of the tests. Dividing the patients according to the median MMSE score revealed that the high correlation between the FAB and the MMSE was preserved in the low MMSE group, while in the high MMSE group the correlation was relatively low. In the high MMSE group, the FAB correlated with 11 tests compared to the MMSE that correlated with one (P < .001), while in the low MMSE group the number of correlations was 13 versus 7, respectively (P = .05). Conclusions: In our sample of patients with PD, the FAB correlated with dysfunction in a variety of cognitive domains including attention, memory, and executive functions. The FAB has an added value over the MMSE, particularly among nondemented patients, an advantage that can be used in clinical practice.
Transmembrane protein Sun2 is involved in tethering mammalian meiotic telomeres to the nuclear envelope

Dynamic repositioning of telomeres is a unique feature of meiotic prophase I that is highly conserved among eukaryotes. At least in fission yeast it was shown to be required for proper alignment and recombination of homologous chromosomes. On entry into meiosis telomeres attach to the nuclear envelope and transiently cluster at a limited area to form a chromosomal bouquet. Telomere clustering is thought to promote chromosome recognition and stable pairing of the homologs. However, the molecular basis of telomere attachment and movement is largely unknown. Here we report that mammalian SUN-domain protein Sun2 specifically localizes to the nuclear envelope attachment sites of meiotic telomeres. Sun2–telomere association is maintained throughout the dynamic movement of telomeres. This association does not require the assembly of chromosomal axial elements or the presence of A-type lamins. Detailed EM analysis revealed that Sun2 is part of a membrane-spanning fibrillar complex that interconnects attached telomeres with cytoplasmic structures. Together with recent findings in fission yeast, our study indicates that the molecular mechanisms required for tethering meiotic telomeres and their dynamic movements during bouquet formation are conserved among eukaryotes.
Probabilistic spinning reserves with interruptible loads

Effective participation of potential reserve providers such as interruptible loads in the power market environment would reduce the total offer cost. In the proposed market clearing process, both the reliability and performance records of the generators and interruptible loads are taken into consideration. Besides, the method presented can explicitly incorporate the reliability needs in the system optimization process. The proposed cost/benefit analysis is proved to be an efficient tool to achieve a reasonable and optimal reliability level. It is believed that the customers' interest will be well taken care of and a uniform reliability across all hours can be maintained via a proper reserve management.
WDM soliton transmission system using dispersion slope compensators

A new scheme of dispersion slope compensator by writing Bragg gratings at different positions in a dispersion compensation fiber is proposed for the wavelength division multiplexing soliton transmission system. This scheme can compensate in-line for the accumulated dispersion of each channel and suppress the dispersive waves which are caused by the incomplete filtering of the signals of the neighboring channels by using Fabry-Perot or Butterworth filters and the different propagating paths of the signals of the different channels in the dispersion slope compensator.
Antigenicity of peptide of ribosomal digest in Ehrlich ascites tumor ∗

Antigenicity of the peptide of ribosomal digest in Ehrlich ascites tumor was studied. The peptide was purified by DEAE Sephadex A-50 column chromatography. The peptide was electrophoretically basic, single, and 1.32 S20w sedimentation coefficient with poor content of tyrosine and phenylalanine. The maximum absorbancy was at 267 mμ. Mice and rabbits were immunized with the mixture of the purified peptide with Freund’s complete adjuvant. The inhibitory effect of immune γ-globulin on the tumor growth was demonstrated in vitro cultured JTC-11 cells. A single precipitin line was observed between rabbit antiserum and tumor cell extract of Ehrlich ascites cells in ouchterlony double diffusion chamber and immunoelectrophoresis. The sedimentation coefficient of the effective fraction in immune-serum was 17 S20w. The precipitin line was observed at β2-γ region in immunoelectrophoresis. ∗PMID: 4256472 [PubMed indexed for MEDLINE] Copyright c ©OKAYAMA UNIVERSITY MEDICAL SCHOOL Acta Merl. Okayama 24, 537-547 (1970) ANTIBODY FORMATION FOR MALIGNANT TUMOR fi! ANTIGENICITY OF PEPTIDE OF RIBOSOMAL DIGEST IN EHRLICH ASCITES TUMOR y asuhisa YAMAMOTO, Dairoku J ITUIKI and Yasuo Y ABUKI Department of Surgery, Okayama University Medical School Okayama, Japan (Director: Prof. S. Tanaka) Received for publication, August 8, 1970 Antitumor activity in regional lymph node protein of mice transplanted with Ehrlich ascites tumor was reported (1). The antigenicity of tumor low density lipoprotein was demonstrated in the previous experiment, which was clarified that the phospholipids of low density lipoprotein have an important role for the antibody formation (2). In the present experiment, the specific peptide of the ribosome of Ehrlich ascites tumor was studied, and the antitumor activity of the mouse serum immunized with this peptide was demonstrated JTC-ll cells cultured in vitro and immuno-diffusion technique. MATERIALS AND METHODS Materials: Albino dd mice were inoculated subcutaneously withJTC11 cells (3) as described previously (l). The tumors on the tenth day after transplantation were extirpated, minced in Waring blender, and then homogenized in a glass-Teflon homogenizer with 10 volumes of O. 05 M Tris-HCl buffer containing 0.025 M KCl and 0.005 M MgC12, pH 7.6. The homogenate was centrifuged twice at 12, 000 X g for 40 min. in a Hitachi Ultracentrifuge Model 40P at 2°C, and the supernatant was centrifuged at 50, 000 X g for 50 min. The precipitate was resuspended with 20 ml of Tris-HCl buffer, and 8 % sodium desoxycholate was added to give the final concentration of 0.8 %. The suspension was allowed to stand for 2 hrs at room temperature, and centrifuged at 144, 000 xg for 1 hr. The precipitate, yellowish jelly, was crude ribosome. About 100 mg of precipitate of crude ribosome was dialyzed in O. 005 M MgC12, suspended in 10 ml of Tris-HCl buffer, and incubated with 15 mg of RNase and 5 mg of DNase. Thus, ribosomal digest was obtained. Preparation of Peptide: The ribosomal digest solution was fractionated on DEAE Sephadex A-50 column (3 X 30 cm) with O. 05 M Tris-HCl buffer
The Development and Psychometric Assessment of the Adolescent Sexual Coercion Risk Scale

The objective of this study was to develop a psychometric measure of risk for sexual victimization from adolescent peers. Items were generated on the basis of the literature and on consultations with a multidisciplinary group of key informants. The items were administered to a sample of 327 female Grade-9 students and examined using exploratory factor analysis. The Adolescent Sexual Coercion Risk Scale items formed two lower-order factors composed of items regarding signaling sexual boundaries and displaying risk behaviors, respectively. Subsequent confirmatory factor analysis supported the two factors, and preliminary psychometric analyses demonstrated that the factors have satisfactory internal consistency. In addition, low scores on the ability to signal sexual boundaries and high scores on risk behaviors were associated with self-reported peer sexual victimization, supporting the validity of the factors as measures of risk. Future validation and potential usage of the measure are discussed.
Swelling activated chloride currents in the electrical activity of pulmonary vein cardiomyocytes

Background Pulmonary veins (PVs) contain cardiomyocytes with a high arrhythmogenicity for inducing atrial fibrillation. The swelling‐activated outwardly rectifying Cl− currents (ICl,swell) are important in the electrical activity of cardiomyocytes. This study was to investigate whether ICl,swell play a role in the PV electrophysiological characteristics.
Detection of Magnetic Nanoparticles Using the Second-Harmonic Signal

We developed a detection system for magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) using the second-harmonic signal. By measuring the second-harmonic signal from MNPs, we can significantly reduce the interference of the excitation field, compared to the case of measuring the fundamental signal. First, we explored the properties of harmonic signals from MNPs when both a DC bias field and an AC field were applied. We obtained the relationship between the DC and AC fields under which the second harmonic reached its peaks. On the basis of these results, we developed a detection system for MNPs using a simple inductive pickup coil gradiometer. The sensitivity of the gradiometer was 7668 V/T and the minimum detectable field was 10 pT at a signal frequency of 38.6 kHz. We could detect 100 μg of MNPs located under the pickup coil at a distance of 30 mm. The position of MNPs was also detected from the contour map of the signal field. This simple detection system will be used in medical applications such as sentinel lymph node biopsy.
Rapid Identification of Bifidobacteria in Dairy Products by Gene-targeted Species-specific PCR Technique and DGGE

In this paper, a rapid and reliable gene-targeted species-specific polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique based on a two-step process was established to identify bifidobacteria in dairy products. The first step was the PCR assay for genus Bifidobacterium with genus specific primers followed by the second step, which identified the species level with species-specific primer mixtures. Ten specific primer pairs, designed from nucleotide sequences of the 16-23S rRNA region, were developed for the Bifidobacterium species including B. angulatum, B. animalis, B. bifidum, B. breve, B. catenulatum, B. infantis, B. longum, B. minimum, B. subtile, and B. thermophilum. This technique was applied to the identification of Bifidobacterium species isolated from 6 probiotic products, and four different Bifidobacterium spp. (B. bifidum, B. longum, B. infantis, and B. breve) were identified. The findings indicated that the 16S-23S rDNA gene-targeted species-specific PCR technique is a simple and reliable method for identification of bifidobacteria in probiotic products. PCR combined with Denaturing Gradient Gel Electrophoresis (DGGE) for identification of the bifidobacteria was also evaluated and compared with the gene-targeted species-specific technique. Results indicated that for fermented milk products consistency was found for both species-specific PCR and PCR-DGGE in detecting species. However, in some lyophilized products, the bands corresponding to these species were not visualized in the DGGE profile but the specific PCR gave a positive result.
Association between a common IL10 distal promoter haplotype and IgE production in individuals with atopic dermatitis

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a genetically determined inflammatory skin disease characterized by abnormal cytokine production, including increased production of interleukin 10 (IL10). Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) and haplotypes in the IL10 gene promoter region on chromosome 1q31‐32 have been implicated in several inflammatory diseases, but generally, only SNPs proximal to the transcription start site (TSS) have been investigated. The aim of this study was to identify proximal, distal and combined haplotype sets in the IL10 promoter region and to study their association with clinical phenotypes in atopic dermatitis. SNPs at positions –3575, –2849, –2779, –2763, –1082, –851, –819 and –592 in the IL10 promoter region were genotyped in individuals with atopic dermatitis (n= 47) and nonatopic control subjects (n= 40) using polymerase chain reaction‐based techniques and induced heteroduplex generator (IHG) analysis. Pan‐promoter, TSS‐proximal and TSS‐distal haplotypes were reconstructed using phase analysis. Fifteen haplotypes representing all eight SNPs were identified. Subgrouping identified four 4‐locus and three 3‐locus TSS‐proximal haplotypes; and nine 4‐locus TSS‐distal haplotypes. No difference was found in haplotype or SNP frequencies between the AD and control groups, or between patients with mild or severe disease. However, a common 4‐locus TSS‐distal haplotype (TGAC) was significantly increased in patients with IgE levels over 1000 kIU L−1. This study is the first to analyse the association between haplotype groups in the IL10 promoter region and clinical phenotypes in AD. We have demonstrated a significant association between the TSS‐distal haplotype TGAC, and IgE levels in AD patients. It remains to be shown if there is an association between the TGAC haplotype and IL10 production, which might account for the stimulation of IgE production.
HETEROCHRONY AND THE EVOLUTION OF POECILOGONY: GENERATING LARVAL DIVERSITY

Abstract Poecilogony is the production of more than one type of young within a single species of marine invertebrate. We chose a poecilogonous polychaete to investigate potential differences in morphogenesis among offspring that are polymorphic in dispersal potentials (planktonic, benthic) and trophic modes (planktotrophy, adelphophagy). Differences in morphogenesis occur and are strongly influenced by maternal type. Females that provide extra-embryonic nutrition (as nurse eggs; type III females) also produce offspring with an accelerated onset of juvenile traits, relative to planktotrophic offspring of females that do not provide extra-embryonic nutrition (type I females). Thus, progeny of some females appear morphologically preadapted for a benthic lifestyle. Surprisingly, differences in phenotype among offspring do not parallel offspring ecotype, as offspring with early onset of juvenile traits (III) are ecologically bimodal. Some Type III offspring eat the nurse eggs (adelphophagy), have accelerated development, and hatch as benthic juveniles. In contrast, their siblings hatch as small, planktotrophic, dispersive larvae that are morphologically similar to their type III siblings, but ecologically similar to Type I planktotrophic larvae. We propose that poecilogony evolved through sequence heterochrony in morphogenesis with accelerated onset of juvenile traits in type III offspring. In addition, we suggest that heterochrony in life-history events (hatching, metamorphosis) also occurs, thereby generating offspring that are dimorphic in both phenotype and ecotype. Over time, selection acting on different levels of ontogeny (morphogenesis vs. dispersal) may balance this polymorphism and allow poecilogony to persist.
MODELING THE TIME VARIABILITY OF SDSS STRIPE 82 QUASARS AS A DAMPED RANDOM WALK

We model the time variability of ∼9000 spectroscopically confirmed quasars in SDSS Stripe 82 as a damped random walk (DRW). Using 2.7 million photometric measurements collected over 10 yr, we confirm the results of Kelly et al. and Kozłowski et al. that this model can explain quasar light curves at an impressive fidelity level (0.01–0.02 mag). The DRW model provides a simple, fast (O(N) for N data points), and powerful statistical description of quasar light curves by a characteristic timescale (τ) and an asymptotic rms variability on long timescales (SF∞). We searched for correlations between these two variability parameters and physical parameters such as luminosity and black hole mass, and rest-frame wavelength. Our analysis shows SF∞ to increase with decreasing luminosity and rest-frame wavelength as observed previously, and without a correlation with redshift. We find a correlation between SF∞ and black hole mass with a power-law index of 0.18 ± 0.03, independent of the anti-correlation with luminosity. We find that τ increases with increasing wavelength with a power-law index of 0.17, remains nearly constant with redshift and luminosity, and increases with increasing black hole mass with a power-law index of 0.21 ± 0.07. The amplitude of variability is anti-correlated with the Eddington ratio, which suggests a scenario where optical fluctuations are tied to variations in the accretion rate. However, we find an additional dependence on luminosity and/or black hole mass that cannot be explained by the trend with Eddington ratio. The radio-loudest quasars have systematically larger variability amplitudes by about 30%, when corrected for the other observed trends, while the distribution of their characteristic timescale is indistinguishable from that of the full sample. We do not detect any statistically robust differences in the characteristic timescale and variability amplitude between the full sample and the small subsample of quasars detected by ROSAT. Our results provide a simple quantitative framework for generating mock quasar light curves, such as currently used in LSST image simulations.
Endonasal endoscopic treatment of medial orbital wall fracture via rotational repositioning.

Various surgical approaches have been employed to treat the medial orbital wall fracture. It has been necessary to use grafts or splints in these approaches. We introduced a new technique to treat our patient with diplopia resulting from medial orbital fracture. In this new method, rotational repositioning of the fractured segment eliminates the use of any graft or synthetic material in the nose, ethmoid sinuses, or the orbit. The procedure could be done under local anesthesia, which facilitates intraoperative monitoring of the ocular movements to evaluate improvement of diplopia. Rotational repositioning technique could be an effective alternative method to previous approaches in treatment of selected medial orbital wall fractures.
Molecular phenotyping of maternally mediated parallel adaptive divergence within Rana arvalis and Rana temporaria

When similar selection acts on the same traits in multiple species or populations, parallel evolution can result in similar phenotypic changes, yet the underlying molecular architecture of parallel phenotypic divergence can be variable. Maternal effects can influence evolution at ecological timescales and facilitate local adaptation, but their contribution to parallel adaptive divergence is unclear. In this study, we (i) tested for variation in embryonic acid tolerance in a common garden experiment and (ii) used molecular phenotyping of egg coats to investigate the molecular basis of maternally mediated parallel adaptive divergence in two amphibian species (Rana arvalis and Rana temporaria). Our results on three R. arvalis and two R. temporaria populations show that adaptive divergence in embryonic acid tolerance is mediated via maternally derived egg coats in both species. We find extensive polymorphism in egg jelly coat glycoproteins within both species and that acid‐tolerant clutches have more negatively charged egg jelly – indicating that the glycosylation status of the jelly coat proteins is under divergent selection in acidified environments, likely due to its impact on jelly water balance. Overall, these data provide evidence for parallel mechanisms of adaptive divergence in two species. Our study highlights the importance of studying intraspecific molecular variation in egg coats and, specifically, their glycoproteins, to increase understanding of underlying forces maintaining variation in jelly coats.
Face Recognition in Uncontrolled Environment

This paper presents a novel method of facial image representation for face recognition in uncontrolled environment. It is named as augmented local binary patterns (A-LBP) that works on both, uniform and non-uniform patterns. It replaces the central non-uniform pattern with a majority value of the neighbouring uniform patterns obtained after processing all neighbouring non-uniform patterns. These patterns are finally combined with the neighbouring uniform patterns, in order to extract discriminatory information from the local descriptors. The experimental results indicate the vitality of the proposed method on particular face datasets, where the images are prone to extreme variations of illumination.