Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Multicomponent Collection (MCS): A New Trend in Transfusion Medicine

book pag. 46. 13. Mayer D, Belgiero DC, Sayus M, Price T, Benson D, Slichter S. Red in collection by apheresis technology transfusion 1993; 33: 819-24. 14. Ciavarella D. Con (Should) Apheresis supplement whole blood collection? Transfusion Sci 1992; 13: 201-5
Congenital Jaundice in Rats with a Mutation in a Multidrug Resistance-Associated Protein Gene

The human Dubin-Johnson syndrome and its animal model, the TR− rat, are characterized by a chronic conjugated hyperbilirubinemia. TR− rats are defective in the canalicular multispecific organic anion transporter (cMOAT), which mediates hepatobiliary excretion of numerous organic anions. The complementary DNA for rat cmoat, a homolog of the human multidrug resistance gene (hMRP1), was isolated and shown to be expressed in the canalicular membrane of hepatocytes. In the TR− rat, a single-nucleotide deletion in this gene resulted in a reduced messenger RNA level and absence of the protein. It is likely that this mutation accounts for the TR− phenotype.
Journal maps on the basis of Scopus data: A comparison with the Journal Citation Reports of the ISI

Using the Scopus dataset (1996-2007) a grand matrix of aggregated journal-journal citations was constructed. This matrix can be compared in terms of the network structures with the matrix contained in the Journal Citation Reports (JCR) of the Institute of Scientific Information (ISI). Since the Scopus database contains a larger number of journals and covers also the humanities, one would expect richer maps. However, the matrix is in this case sparser than in the case of the ISI data. This is due to (i) the larger number of journals covered by Scopus and (ii) the historical record of citations older than ten years contained in the ISI database. When the data is highly structured, as in the case of large journals, the maps are comparable, although one may have to vary a threshold (because of the differences in densities). In the case of interdisciplinary journals and journals in the social sciences and humanities, the new database does not add a lot to what is possible with the ISI databases.
Current Opinions on the Control and Role of Vascular Smooth Muscle Cell Adhesion, Calcium Sensitization, and the Cytoskeleton in Vascular Structure and Function

Vascular smooth muscle contraction and relaxation play a preponderant role on the active (acute) and structural (long‐term) control of vascular diameter. This editorial overview summarizes and highlights the opinions expressed in seven reviews contained in this special topic issue of Microcirculation. The reviews address diverse aspects of the mechanisms that influence cell adhesion, calcium homeostasis, and cytoskeletal remodeling, and how these mechanisms affect vascular structure and function at different levels of the circulation.
The sacral autonomic outflow is sympathetic

Sacral neurons reassigned The autonomic nervous system regulates the function of internal organs such as the gut. The parasympathetic and sympathetic arms of this system tend to operate antagonistically. Espinosa-Medina et al. used anatomical and molecular analyses to reevaluate the assignment of neurons in the sacral autonomic nervous system (see the Perspective by Adameyko). Previously categorized as parasympathetic, these neurons are now identified as sympathetic. The results resolve a persistent confusion about how the two systems developed and open the avenue to more predictable outcomes in developing treatments targeted to the pelvic autonomic nervous system. Science, this issue p. 893; see also p. 833 Contrary to a century-old dogma, the pelvic nerves and ganglia do not belong to the parasympathetic nervous system but to the sympathetic one. A kinship between cranial and pelvic visceral nerves of vertebrates has been accepted for a century. Accordingly, sacral preganglionic neurons are considered parasympathetic, as are their targets in the pelvic ganglia that prominently control rectal, bladder, and genital functions. Here, we uncover 15 phenotypic and ontogenetic features that distinguish pre- and postganglionic neurons of the cranial parasympathetic outflow from those of the thoracolumbar sympathetic outflow in mice. By every single one, the sacral outflow is indistinguishable from the thoracolumbar outflow. Thus, the parasympathetic nervous system receives input from cranial nerves exclusively and the sympathetic nervous system from spinal nerves, thoracic to sacral inclusively. This simplified, bipartite architecture offers a new framework to understand pelvic neurophysiology as well as development and evolution of the autonomic nervous system.
Female mounting in Japanese macaques: Proximate and ultimate perspectives on non-conceptive sex

It is hypothesized that female-male mounting is an adaptive behaviour, functioning to prompt sluggish males to mount females in return. This hypothesis has been proposed many times and independently by different authors, however it had yet to be tested. Furthermore, the proximate mechanisms that drive the behaviour, specifically the male and female movements and actions that prompt its occurrence, are relatively unknown, having only been reported in an anecdotal sense. In this chapter, I investigated both the adaptive function and proximate mechanisms that drive female-male mounting. In accordance with the “proceptivity hypothesis”, I predicted that female-male mounting should be related to both an increase likelihood of occurrence and an increased frequency of subsequent male-female mounting, As for proximate mechanisms, I found that females were the initiators of female-male mounting during 79% of observed mounts. Furthermore, males were found to rise to be mounted in response to both ambiguous cues (i.e. females moving their bodies to position themselves into the mounter position) and explicit signals (i.e. females grasping the males’ hindquarters) emitted by females initiating and carrying out the female-male mounting process. These results suggest that males anticipate and facilitate female-male mounting.
Among a sample of Iranian premenopausal and menopausal women differences in mood, sleep and health quality are small

Abstract Background. Anecdotal evidence suggests that mood, sleep, and health quality change in women from premenopausal to menopausal period; however, data supporting these assumptions from non-Western countries are scarce. The aim of the present study was therefore to assess premenopausal and menopausal Iranian women with regard to mood, sleep, and general health. Methods. One hundred and twenty Iranian women took part in the study. Sixty were in a premenopausal state (mean age (M): = 46.9 years) and 60 in a menopausal state (M = 53.8 years). They completed a series of self-rating questionnaires related to sleep, mood, and health quality. Results. Compared to premenopausal women, menopausal women reported more difficulties such as falling asleep, and less general physical activities and vitality. No statistically significant differences were found for sleep quality, sleep schedules, difficulties in social life, general mood state, or general physical and mental health. Menopausal women reported to be more irritable, and to have more energy. Conclusions. Data suggest that among a sample of Iranian premenopausal and menopausal women, differences in mood, sleep, and general health are small. Data, therefore, do not support “beliefs” and hearsay that mood, sleep, and general health do decrease from premenopausal to menopausal state.
A 4.5 MGy TID-Tolerant CMOS Bandgap Reference Circuit Using a Dynamic Base Leakage Compensation Technique

The total-ionizing-dose (TID) radiation tolerance of bandgap references in deep-submicron CMOS technology is generally limited by the radiation introduced leakage current in diodes. An analysis of this phenomenon is given in this paper, and a dynamic base leakage compensation (DBLC) technique is proposed to improve the radiation hardness of a bandgap reference built in a standard 0.13 μm CMOS technology. A temperature coefficient of 15 ppm/<sup>°</sup>C from -40<sup>°</sup>C to 125<sup>°</sup>C is measured before irradiation. The voltage variation from 0<sup>°</sup>C to 100<sup>°</sup>C is only ±1 mV for an output voltage of 600 mV. Gamma irradiation assessment proves that the bandgap reference is tolerant to a total ionizing dose of at least 4.5 MGy. The output reference voltage exhibits a variation of less than 3% during the entire experiment, when the chip is irradiated by gamma ray at a dose rate of 27 kGy/h.
Fuzzy embedded MPPT modeling and control of PV system in a hybrid power system

The literature is populated with different Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) methods for Photovoltaic (PV) system to obtain maximum power from it. This piece of work provides an artificial intelligence-based fuzzy logic MPPT modeling and control of PV system in a grid connected hybrid power system under different weather patterns. The proposed technique uses seven fuzzy sets with seven linguistic variables applied to a DC-DC converter. Furthermore, a battery module is added as an energy storage system during surplus power and/or backup device during load demand. The overall operation of system is performed by classical logic power management switching algorithm. The performance of proposed method is compared with and without Proportional Integral Derivative (PID) MPPT controllers. MATLAB simulation results show better behavior of proposed method in terms of load tracking and reliability.
Study of an Eighth-Harmonic Large-Orbit Gyrotron in the Terahertz Band

A 0.42-THz eighth-harmonic large-orbit gyrotron (LOG) operating with TE8,1,1 mode has been designed and studied. The LOG design is characterized by the requirement of low external magnetic field and short cavity length to limit the ohmic loss. The cold cavity analysis is presented and followed by the hot cavity simulation with the 3-D particle-in-cell code. It is shown in the initial hot test that by proper choice of the electron beam source, the eighth harmonic of the electron cyclotron resonance can be selectively excited at 0.42 THz with an output power of 3.8 kW, which requires an external magnetic field as low as 2.8 T. Based on the model, the starting oscillation process of TE8,1,1 mode at the eighth harmonic and the dynamic of beam-wave interaction are investigated. Upon verification of the design and modeling, a number of parameter variation studies are conducted to draw broader conclusions about the beam-wave interaction behavior in a high-harmonic LOG. The design procedure and the conclusion of this paper can be generalized and applied to other LOGs.
The Box-Cox transformation technique: a review

Box & Cox (1964) proposed a parametric power transformation technique in order to reduce anomalies such as non-additivity, non-normality and heteroscedasticity. Although the transformation has been extensively studied, no bibliography of the published research exists at present. An attempt is made here to review the work relating to this transformation.
Electrical properties of Au/C60/n-Si photodiode structures with pristine and dithioloctane-functionalized C60 nanolayers

The dithioloctane-treatment of C60 film was shown to ensure the deposition on it of gold nanoparticles with the controlled size and shape leading to enhancement of the Au/C60/n-Si structure photocurrent due to the excitation of local plasmons in metal nanoparticles. In this work the detailed investigation of the electrical properties of these structures with the pristine and dithioloctane-treated C60 interlayers was made. The current-voltage and capacitance-voltage dependencies were measured in the temperature range from 80 to 320 K. The mechanisms of the current flow and their parameters were determined. It was shown, that the used of dithioloctane-treatment of C60 layer did not change the mechanisms of the in current flow in Au/C60/n-Si structure, specifically, in a decrease of the series resistance, determined by C60 layer, and in a decrease of the effective height of barrier for the reverse current flow.
Board Ancestral Diversity and Firm Performance Volatility

We proxy for board members’ opinions and values using directors’ ancestral origins and show that diversity has costs and benefits, leading to high performance volatility. Consistent with the idea that diverse groups experiment more, firms with ancestrally diverse boards have more numerous and more cited patents. In addition, their strategies conform less to those of the industry peers. However, firms with greater ancestral diversity also have more board meetings and make less predictable decisions. These findings suggest that diversity may lead to inefficiencies in the decision-making process and conflicts in the boardroom.
Genetic aspects of persistency of milk yield in Boutsico dairy sheep

Test-day records (n=13677) sampled from 896 ewes in 5-9 (μ=7.5) monthly test-days were used to estimate genetic and phenotypic parameters of test-day yields, lactation milk yield (TMY), length of the milking period (DAYS)and three measures of persistency of milk yield in Boutsico dairy sheep. The measures of persistency were the slope of the regression line (β), the coefficient of variation (CV) of the test-day milk yields and the maximum to average daily milk yield ratio (MA). The estimates of variance components were obtained under a linear mixed model by restricted maximum likelihood. The heritability of test-day yields ranged from 0.15 to 0.24. DAYS were found to be heritable (h 2 =0.11). Heritability estimates of β, CV and MA were 0.15, 0.13, 0.10, respectively. Selection for maximum lactation yields is expected to result in prolonged milking periods, high rates of decline of yields after peak production, variable test-day yields and higher litter sizes. Selection for flatter lactation curves would reduce lactation yields, increase slightly the length of the milking period and decrease yield variation as well as litter size. The most accurate prediction of TMY was obtained with a linear regression model with the first five test-day records.
Decreased Superoxide Dismutase Activity after ECT and Correlation

Objective: The literature regarding effects of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) on oxidative metabolism (OM) reports conflicting changes in oxidant and antioxidant status in animal studies. The goal of this first human study was to investigate the changes in oxidants and antioxidants in plasma of depressed patients after ECT. Methods: Fourteen unipolar and two bipolar patients were included in the study. The blood samples were obtained within one hour before the 1 st and within one hour after the 7 th ECT sessions. Oxidants malondialdehyde (MDA), nitric oxide (NO), and xanthine oxidase (XO) and antioxidant superoxide dismutase (SOD) were measured in the plasma. Results: Before the 1 st and after the 7 th ECT sessions, the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS) scores were 32.63±9.54 and 16.50±7.22, respectively (t=7.92, df=15, p 0.05). However, pre-ECT SOD values were significantly and positively correlated with pre-ECT HDRS scores (r=0.641, p=0.007). Conclusion: The decrease in antioxidant enzyme SOD after ECT may damage the neurons by increasing oxidative stress. Thus, possible benefits of antioxidant supplementation during ECT should be investigated. Additionally, higher pre-ECT oxidant levels may predict a poor response to ECT in depression. (Archives of Neuropsychiatry 2010; 47: 247-51)
Association of GRIN1 and GRIN2A‐D With schizophrenia and genetic interaction with maternal herpes simplex virus‐2 infection affecting disease risk

N‐methyl‐D‐aspartate (NMDA) receptors are very important for proper brain development and several lines of evidence support that hypofunction of the NMDA receptors are involved in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. Gene variation and gene–environmental interactions involving the genes encoding the NMDA receptors are therefore likely to influence the risk of schizophrenia. The aim of this study was to determine (1) whether SNP variation in the genes (GRIN1, GRIN2A, GRIN2B, GRIN2C, and GRIN2D) encoding the NMDA receptor were associated with schizophrenia; (2) whether GRIN gene variation in the offspring interacted with maternal herpes simplex virus‐2 (HSV‐2) seropositivity during pregnancy influencing the risk of schizophrenia later in life. Individuals from three independently collected Danish case control samples were genotyped for 81 tagSNPs (in total 984 individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia and 1,500 control persons) and antibodies against maternal HSV‐2 infection were measured in one of the samples (365 cases and 365 controls). Nine SNPs out of 30 in GRIN2B were significantly associated with schizophrenia. One SNP remained significant after Bonferroni correction (rs1806194, Pnominal = 0.0008). Significant interaction between maternal HSV‐2 seropositivity and GRIN2B genetic variation in the offspring were observed for seven SNPs and two remained significant after Bonferroni correction (rs1805539, Pnominal = 0.0001 and rs1806205, Pnominal = 0.0008). The significant associations and interactions were located at the 3′ region of GRIN2B suggesting that genetic variation in this part of the gene may be involved in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
A Comparison of Blood Viscosity between the Adult Sheep and Newborn Lamb. The Role of Plasma and Red Blood Cell Type

Summary: Adult sheep and newborn lamb blood viscosity (Vc) have been compared by taking into account not only the hematocrit, but also the type of the red cells (adult or fetal) in the circulation and the plasma Vc. At all shear rates studied the whole blood Vc of the adult was higher than that of the newborn. Plasma Ve was 1.58 ± 0.18 centipoises in the adult compared to 1.21 ± 0.19 in the newborn group (P < 0.001). The mean relative apparent viscosity (whole blood Vc/plasma Vc) was higher in the newborn although the difference was not significant.
Role of GABA and NO in the Paraventricular Nucleus‐Mediated Reflex Inhibition of Renal Sympathetic Nerve Activity Following Stimulation of Right Atrial Receptors in the Rat

The aim of this study was to determine the site within the brain at which inhibition of renal sympathetic nerve activity (RSNA) occurs following right atrial receptor stimulation. The atrial receptors were stimulated by inflating a balloon at the right vena cava‐atrium junction and the reflex effect was observed before and during application of neurotransmitter agonists and antagonists into the paraventricular nucleus (PVN), or intrathecally to the spinal cord. Balloon inflation reduced RSNA by 29.1 ± 3% without changing blood pressure in anaesthetised Wistar rats. Microinjection of the GABAA receptor antagonist bicuculline (0.025 mM, 100 nl) into the PVN increased RSNA by 42.3 ± 5% and this was changed little by balloon inflation when PVN increased RSNA by 50.6 ± 6.3%. Microinjection of the nitric oxide synthase (NOS) inhibitors L‐NAME (0.1 mM, 100 nl) or L‐NMMA (0.2 mM, 100 nl) into PVN elicited increases in RSNA of 36 ± 8% or 54 ± 10%, respectively. Balloon inflation during PVN stimulation plus NOS inhibition resulted in RSNA activity of 8 ± 4% or ‐1 ± 1%, respectively, compared to baseline control. Baseline RSNA was similar throughout this series of tests ranging from 9.1 ± 1.3 to 11.5 ± 1.1 spike counts s−1. To rule out the possibility that the atrial reflex inhibition was in part dependent on a dopamine‐mediated PVN‐spinal projection pathway inhibiting RSNA at a spinal locus, a dopamine D1 receptor antagonist SCH 23390 was intrathecally applied to the spinal cord. The effect of subsequent balloon inflation on RSNA was not significantly reduced. It was concluded that atrial receptor activation causes an inhibition of RSNA at the PVN and that this effect is mediated by GABA.
Directed evolution: tailoring biocatalysts for industrial applications

Current challenges and promises of white biotechnology encourage protein engineers to use a directed evolution approach to generate novel and useful biocatalysts for various sets of applications. Different methods of enzyme engineering have been used in the past in an attempt to produce enzymes with improved functions and properties. Recent advancement in the field of random mutagenesis, screening, selection and computational design increased the versatility and the rapid development of enzymes under strong selection pressure with directed evolution experiments. Techniques of directed evolution improve enzymes fitness without understanding them in great detail and clearly demonstrate its future role in adapting enzymes for use in industry. Despite significant advances to date regarding biocatalyst improvement, there still remains a need to improve mutagenesis strategies and development of easy screening and selection tools without significant human intervention. This review covers fundamental and major development of directed evolution techniques, and highlights the advances in mutagenesis, screening and selection methods with examples of enzymes developed by using these approaches. Several commonly used methods for creating molecular diversity with their advantages and disadvantages including some recently used strategies are also discussed.
Content Based Image Retrieval Using Manifold-Ranking of Blocks

CBIR has been a challenging problem and we propose to extend the manifold-ranking based image retrieval method by using image block instead of the whole image as the unit in the manifold-ranking process. The retrieval score of each image is a fusion of the obtained ranking scores of the blocks in the image. The proposed approach can make full use of the intrinsic global manifold structure for the blocks of the images in the re-ranking process. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed approach can significantly improve the retrieval performance. Image block is validated to be a better unit than the whole image in the manifold-ranking process.
The application of reverse genetics technology in the study of rabies virus (RV) pathogenesis and for the development of novel RV vaccines

Rabies is a central nervous system (CNS) disease that is almost invariably fatal. Neurotropism, neuroinvasiveness, and transsynaptic spread are the main features that determine the pathogenesis of rabies. Recent advances in rabies virus (RV) research, which made direct genetic manipulations of the RV genome possible, greatly improved the understanding of the role of different viral and host cell factors in the pathogenesis of rabies. Here the authors discuss molecular mechanisms associated with rabies RV infection and its spread to the CNS.
Performance Analysis of Cognitive Radio Spectrum Access With Prioritized Traffic

Dynamic spectrum access (DSA) is an important design aspect for cognitive radio networks. Most of existing DSA schemes are to govern unlicensed user (i.e., secondary user, SU) traffic in a licensed spectrum without compromising the transmissions of the licensed users, in which all the unlicensed users are typically treated equally. In this paper, prioritized unlicensed user traffic is considered. Specifically, the unlicensed user traffic is divided into two priority classes (i.e., high and low priority). We consider a general setting in which the licensed users' transmissions can happen at any time instant. Therefore, the DSA scheme should perform spectrum handoff to protect the licensed user's transmission. Different DSA schemes (i.e., centralized and distributed) are considered to manage the prioritized unlicensed user traffic. These DSA schemes use different handoff mechanisms for the two classes of unlicensed users. We also study the impact of subchannel reservation for high-priority SUs in both DSA schemes. Each of the proposed DSA schemes is analyzed using a continuous-time Markov chain. For performance measures, we derive blocking probability, the probability of forced termination, call completion rate, and mean handoff delay for both high- and low-priority unlicensed users. The numerical results are verified using simulations.