Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Altered resting-state EEG source functional connectivity in schizophrenia: the effect of illness duration

Despite the increasing body of evidence supporting the hypothesis of schizophrenia as a disconnection syndrome, studies of resting-state EEG Source Functional Connectivity (EEG-SFC) in people affected by schizophrenia are sparse. The aim of the present study was to investigate resting-state EEG-SFC in 77 stable, medicated patients with schizophrenia (SCZ) compared to 78 healthy volunteers (HV). In order to study the effect of illness duration, SCZ were divided in those with a short duration of disease (SDD; n = 25) and those with a long duration of disease (LDD; n = 52). Resting-state EEG recordings in eyes closed condition were analyzed and lagged phase synchronization (LPS) indices were calculated for each ROI pair in the source-space EEG data. In delta and theta bands, SCZ had greater EEG-SFC than HV; a higher theta band connectivity in frontal regions was observed in LDD compared with SDD. In the alpha band, SCZ showed lower frontal EEG-SFC compared with HV whereas no differences were found between LDD and SDD. In the beta1 band, SCZ had greater EEG-SFC compared with HVs and in the beta2 band, LDD presented lower frontal and parieto-temporal EEG-SFC compared with HV. In the gamma band, SDD had greater connectivity values compared with LDD and HV. This study suggests that resting state brain network connectivity is abnormally organized in schizophrenia, with different patterns for the different EEG frequency components and that EEG can be a powerful tool to further elucidate the complexity of such disordered connectivity.
Knowledge of critical care nurses on cardiac medications-need for reinforcement workshop

Cardiovascular disease remains a major health problem in today's society. It is estimated that more than 6 million people have a history of myocardial infarction and/or angina. Hypertension is another major health problem affecting at least 50 million people in the United States. Due to the high prevalence of these conditions, many patients will be taking one or more cardiac medications. The present study was carried out with the objectives to assess the knowledge of critical care nurses on cardiac medications and to find out the association between the qualification, clinical experience and the previous experience of attending cardiac emergencies. The research approach used for this study was survey approach. Descriptive survey design was adopted. About 108 critical care nurses were selected using convenient sampling technique. The data collection instruments were: Demographic Proforma and Structured knowledge questionnaire on cardiac medications. Content validity of the tools was established by giving it to five experts in the field of nursing, general medicine cardiac medicine and pharmacology. Modifications were made according to experts’ suggestions. The tools were pretested before use among five critical care nurses. Reliability coefficient of Structured knowledge questionnaire was found out by using Split half technique and the tool was found reliable (r=0.806). Descriptive statistics was used to analyze the data. The significant findings of the study were: Majority 74(68.5%) of the participants were between the age group of >25–40 years, Majority 85 (78.7%) were females. About 65 (60.2%) were with the GNM qualification, majority 62(57.4%) were with the clinical experience of >1–5 years and 35 (32.4%) mentioned that they had attended cardiac emergencies during their clinical experience. It was found that the majority 47 (43.5%) of the participants shared equally good and average knowledge on cardiac medications. It was found that there was no significant association between the knowledge of critical care nurses on cardiac medications and education (χ2=2.295, p=0.317) and clinical experience(χ2 =8.551, p<0.200).
Diets and Liveweight Changes of Cattle Grazing Fall Burned Gulf Cordgrass

We investigated effects of fall burning of gulf cordgrass (Spurtina spartime) rangeland on winter diets and liveweight gains of cattle on the Texas Coastal Prairie during 1979-1981. Gulf cordgrass dominated steer diets (21-76s) regardless of burning treatment. However, Texas wintergrass (Stipa leucotricha) on adjacent upland sites accounted for 13 to 36% of animal diets during winter growth periods. Burning increased dietary crude protein content from January to March in all years and increased in vitro organic matter digestibility during February and March. Cattle gained or maintained weights on burned pastures but maintained or lost weight on unburned pastures. Weight gains of animals with access to burned gulf cordgrass, but not Texas wintergrass, equaled gains of animals grazing unburned gulfcordgrass and Texas wintergrass. Burned gulf cordgrass can provide alternative green forage that will improve diet quality of cattle when cool-season species are absent. Gulf cordgrass (Spartino spartinae), a perennial warm-season species, provides abundant but poor quality forage for cattle grazing the Texas Coastal Prairie (Gould 1975, McAtee et al. 1979 a, b). Oefinger and Scifres (1977) and McAtee et al. (1979 a,b) determined prescribed burning or shredding could enhance nutritional value of gulf cordgrass without damaging stand integrity. However, it remains uncertain whether burning results in direct benefits to grazing livestock. This study was undertaken to test 3 hypotheses: that gulf cordgrass rangeland burned during fall provides greater dietary crude protein and energy during winter than unburned gulf cordgrass; that fall burning increases the proportion of gulf cordgrass in the diet of free-ranging cattle during the winter; and that cattle grazing fall burned gulf cordgrass rangeland have greater gains in liveweight than cattle grazing unburned areas.
RISK FACTORS OF CYTOMEGALOVIRUS INFECTION DURING PREGNANCY

Anton G. Petrov1, Miroslava Dimitrova1, Elitsa H. Gyokova1, Yoana G. IvanovaYoncheva1, Iordan D. Popov1, Milena D. Karcheva2, Tihomir Rashev3, Rositsa V. Petrova4 1) Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Medical University, Pleven, Bulgaria 2) Department of Epidemiology, Parasitology and tropical medicine, Medical University, Pleven, Bulgaria 3) Department of Anatomy and biology, Medical University, Pleven, Bulgaria 4) Department of Hygiene, medical ecology, occupational diseases and disaster medicine, Medical University, Pleven, Bulgaria. Journal of IMAB Annual Proceeding (Scientific Papers). 2019 Jan-Mar;25(1) Journal of IMAB ISSN: 1312-773X https://www.journal-imab-bg.org
SLA MF1 is required for TLR4-mediated TRAM-TRIF– dependent signaling in human macrophages

molecule that initiates signal transduction networks in a variety of immune cells. In this study, we report that SLA MF1 is required for Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4)-mediated induction of interferon β (IFN β ) and for killing of Gram-negative bacteria by human macrophages. We found that SLA MF1 controls trafficking of the Toll receptor–associated molecule (TRAM) from the endocytic recycling compartment (ERC) to Escherichia coli phagosomes. In resting macrophages, SLA MF1 is localized to ERC, but upon addition of E. coli , it is trafficked together with TRAM from ERC to E. coli phagosomes in a Rab11-dependent manner. We found that endogenous SLA MF1 protein interacted with TRAM and defined key interaction domains as amino acids 68 to 95 of TRAM as well as 15 C-terminal amino acids of SLA MF1. Interestingly, the SLA MF1–TRAM interaction was observed for human but not mouse proteins. Overall, our observations suggest that SLA MF1 is a new target for modulation of TLR4–TRAM–TRIF inflammatory signaling in human cells.
Crecimiento de Tilapias (Oreochromis niloticus, L.) con piensos extrusionados de diferente nivel proteico

Se estudio el aprovechamiento nutritivo y crecimiento de tilapias ( Oreochromis niloticus) de pesos iniciales 6,6 g (Experimento 1) y 12,2 g (Experimento 2) alimentadas con piensos extrusionados que contenian tres niveles de proteina - 29, 34 y 39 p.100 - y tres niveles de carbohidratos - 48, 43 y 36 p.100 - respectivamente. No aparecieron diferencias significativas en el crecimiento, indices de conversion y P.E. R. de las tilapias del Experimento 1, mientras que en el Experimento 2, el mayor peso medio final se obtuvo con un nivel proteico de 39 p.100. En cuanto a la composicion corporal, se observo un incremento del contenido en lipidos y una reduccion de la proteina corporal a medida que se redujo el nivel proteico del pienso y aumento el nivel de carbohidratos. El sexo de las tilapias tuvo un efecto significativo en el crecimiento, pues los machos crecieron mas que las hembras.
The Role of KIM-1 Mediated Efferocytosis by Cancer Cells in Blocking the Immunogenicity of Tumor Cell Death

II DEDICATIONS . III ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS . IV LIST OF TABLES . VIII LIST OF FIGURES . IX LIST OF APPENDICES . X ABBREVIATIONS . XI CHAPTER 1:INTRODUCTION . 1 1.1. 0 THE HALLMARKS OF CANCER . 1 1.1.1 Sustained Proliferative Signalling . 1 1.1.2 Avoiding Growth Suppressors . 2 1.1.3 Resisting Cell Death . 3 1.1.4 Angiogenesis . 4 1.1.5 Activating invasion and metastasis . 4 1.1.6 Enabling Replicative Immortality . 5 1.1.7 Enabling Characteristic: Genome Instability and Mutation . 5 1.1.8 Enabling Characteristic: Tumour Promoting Inflammation . 6 1.1.9 An Emerging Hallmark: Reprogramming Energy Metabolism . 6 1.1.10 An Emerging Hallmark: Evasion from Immune Destruction . 7 1.2. 0 THE CANCER IMMUNOSURVEILLENCE THEORY . 7 1.3. 0 FROM IMMUNE SURVEILLANCE TO IMMUNE EDITING . 9 1.4. 0 THE THREE PHASES OF CANCER SURVEILLANCE . 9 1.5. 0 EFFEROCYTOSIS . 11 1.6. 0. IMMUNOGENIC CELL DEATH . 11 1.7. 0 ADJUVANT ROLE FOR CELL DEATH DURING CHEMOTHERAPY OF CANCER . 12 1.8. 0 DYING CELLS TRIGGER STERILE INFLAMMATION . 13 1.9. 0 HIGH MOBILITY GROUP BOX-1 (HMGB1) . 13 1.10. 0 PROFESSIONAL VS. NON-PROFESSIONAL PHAGOCYTES . 16
Species specific mitochondrial Cytochrome c oxidase gene sequence of Manipuri pony

The Manipuri pony, a unique indigenous horse breed of India, is known for its fastness, intelligence, surefooted moves and high endurance. The use of DNA barcodes, short DNA sequences from a standardized region of the mitochondrial (mt) genome, has recently been proposed as a tool to facilitate species identification. However, for this emblematic species, there is lacking in the development of DNA barcode which will remain as the molecular tag in the future. A specific molecular identification tag of Manipuri pony was developed under the Accession no. JN228963, and analysis within this family found that the individuals of a single species grouped closely together. Using a set of primer (forward-5´CCAACCACAAAGACATTGGCAC 3´ and reverse- 5´ CTTCTGGGTGGCAA AGAATCA 3´), PCR amplification based on the total genomic DNA extracted from hair samples of Manipuri pony gave an amplification product of 669bp which lies within the barcode region of COI gene of the mitochondrial genome. The partial sequence of COI gene, which is the DNA barcode of Manipuri pony will remain as the molecular identification mark for this species in the future. Additionally, it will also enhance the conservation of genetic resources of Manipuri pony. COI sequence divergence for conspecific individuals of Equidae family was 0.46%, whereas those for congeneric species averaged 6.75% (3.3% to 9.5%). The present finding reaffirmed a very close genetic similarity among the Equidae species. The results showed that analysis based on mt COI gene can be useful for explaining the phylogenetic relationships in the family Equidae.
Characterization of Humanized Antibody produced by Apoptosis-Resistant CHO Cells under Sodium Butyrate-Induced Condition

Overexpression of human Bcl-2 protein in recombinant Chinese hamster ovary (rCHO) cells producing humanized antibody (SH2-0.32) considerably suppressed sodium butyrate (NaBu)-induced apoptosis during batch culture by using commercially available serum-free medium, which extended the culture longevity. Due to the extended culture longevity provided by the anti-apoptotic effect of Bcl-2 overexpression, the final antibody concentration of 14C6-bcl-2 culture (Bcl-2 high producer, 23 μg ml - 1 ) was 2 times higher than that of the SH2-0.32-Δbcl-2 culture (cells transfected with bcl-2-deficient plasmid, 10.5 μg ml - 1 ) in the presence of NaBu. To determine the effect of NaBu/Bcl-2 overexpression on the molecular integrity of protein products, antibodies purified from 14C6- bcl-2 and SH2-0.32-Δbcl-2 cultures in the presence of NaBu were characterized by using various molecular assay systems. For comparison, antibody purified from the parental rCHO cell culture (SH2-0.32) in the absence of NaBu was also characterized. No significant changes in molecular weight of antibodies could be observed by SDS-PAGE. From GlycoSep- N column analysis, it was found that the core oligosaccharide structure (GlcNAc2Man3GlcNAc2) was not affected by NaBu/ Bcl-2 overexpression, while the microheterogeneity of N- linked oligosaccharide structure was slightly affected. Compared with the antibody produced in the absence of NaBu, the proportion of neutral oligosaccharides was increased from 10% (14C6-bcl-2) to 16% (SH2-0.32-Δbcl-2) in the presence of NaBu, which was accompanied by the reduced proportion of acidic oligosaccharides, especially of monosialylated and disialylated forms. The changes in microheterogeneous oligoformal structures of antibody in turn affected the mobility of antibody isoforms in isoelectric focusing (IEF), resulting in the occurrence of some more basic antibody isoforms produced in the presence of NaBu. However, the antigen-antibody binding properties were not changed by alteration of glycosylation pattern. The competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) showed that the antibody produced by NaBu/Bcl-2 overexpression maintained its antigen-antibody binding properties with binding affinity of about 2.5◊10 9 M - 1 . Taken together, no significant effects of NaBu/Bcl-2 overexpression on the molecular integrity of antibodies, produced by using serum- free medium, could be observed by the molecular assay systems.
CALCINEURIN-MEDIATED SIGNALING IN ISCHEMIC PRECONDITIONING AND NEURONAL CELL DEATH

Stroke is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States and worldwide. However, few effective therapeutic interventions exist to treat this devastating disease. A detailed understanding of endogenous cell-adaptive mechanisms in ischemia, as well as signaling pathways leading to ischemic neurodegeneration, will critically aid in developing better treatments for stroke. In this dissertation, I investigated calcineurin-mediated signaling pathways in ischemic preconditioning and neuronal cell death. Calcineurin is a calcium/calmodulin-dependent phosphatase that regulates important neuronal functions. An ischemic preconditioning stimulus triggers calcineurin-dependent changes in the localization, phosphorylation status, and voltage-gated activation of Kv2.1 channels, which are involved in promoting neuronal tolerance in the context of otherwise lethal excitotoxic injury. Recent studies suggest that the signaling pathways mediating Kv2.1 channel regulation are complex, and may not be calcineurin activity-dependent in all cases. Additionally, how these processes contribute to neuroprotection is not well defined. In this thesis, I tested the hypothesis that Kv2.1 channel declustering may be sufficient to promote neuronal tolerance. I discovered that preconditioning leads to calcineurin-dependent increases in cyclin E1 protein levels in cortical neurons, which induces Kv2.1 dephosphorylation and dispersal of channel clusters without a concomitant shift in voltage-gated activation. Importantly, cyclin E1 over-expression reduces excitotoxic cell death in neurons. Although calcineurin is required for normal neuronal function, dysregulated calcineurin activation may be neurotoxic. In the second part of my studies, I explored the isoform-specific effects of over-expressing Regulator of calcineurin 1 (RCAN1) in neurons. I found that RCAN1 mediates isoform-dependent, distinct neuroprotective and neurotoxic cell signaling pathways through calcineurin-dependent and independent mechanisms. Thus, the studies in this dissertation provide insight into calcineurin-mediated neuronal cell survival and neurotoxic signaling pathways that may be important in the pathology of stroke and other neurodegenerative disorders.
Hygienic risk assessment by monitoring pathogens in municipal sewage

The purpose of this study was to monitor the levels of human enteric viruses and enteric protozoa and to relate their presence to the microbes used as hygienic quality indicators in domestic sewage from a small community in Finland during a period of one year. Genome-based sensitive detection methods for the pathogens selected (astro- and Norwalk-like viruses, Giardia and Cryptosporidium) have become available only recently and thus no earlier data was available. The effluent sewage is delivered into a river that serves as raw water for a larger town and the pathogens therefore constitute a health risk. The results showed that all the monitored pathogens could be detected, and that enteric viruses were present at considerable concentrations in sewage. High concentrations of astrovirus in raw sewage were observed during a diarrhea epidemic in the local day-care centre. The presence of viruses did not correlate with the monitored bacterial indicators of faecal contamination (coliforms, E. coli and enterococci) or with bacteriophages (somatic coliphages, F-specific RNA phages and B. fragilis phages). Giardia cysts and Cryptosporidium oocysts were detected from one sample (1/10) each.
Edwardsiella tarda Isolated from Cultured Young Flounder

In October 1982, a bacterial disease occurred among cultured young flounder, Paralichthys olivaceus, in the Kurida Bay, Kyoto Prefecture. The diseased fish showed abdominal inflation and accumulation of ascites.Bacteria isolated from the diseased fish were identified as Edwardsiella tarda.The pathogenicity of the isolate for flounder and yellowtail, Seriola quinqueradiata, was proved positive by intra-peritoneal and/or intramuscular injections.
Correction: Year-Round Reproduction and Induced Spawning of Chinese Amphioxus, Branchiostoma belcheri, in Laboratory

Amphioxus is a best candidate for studying the evolutionary and developmental mechanisms of vertebrates, because of its vertebrate-like but much simpler morphology, embryonic development and genome structure. Producing live amphioxus embryos throughout the year is an ideal for comparative evolution and developmental studies. However, all amphioxus species have distinct breeding seasons in the wild and laboratory. We recently found that Chinese amphioxus B. belcheri could reproduce repeatedly beyond its natural breeding season when reared under proper conditions. In this study, we were able to extend further and produce embryos throughout the year from October 2011 to October 2012. We found all examined animals had spawned repeatedly during the examined period. In addition, both lancelets B. belcheri and B. japonicum could be induced to spawn by heat-shock method, although the induced spawning efficiency was not as high as that observed in the European lancelet. In general, we have succeeded in producing B. belcheri embryos almost daily throughout the year. This advancement will provide essential embryonic material for evolutionary and developmental studies, and have great implications for the cultivation and spawning induction of other amphioxus species. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.
Parasitic diseases of shellfish.

Numerous species of parasites have been described from various shellfish, especially representatives of the Mollusca and Crustacea (see Lauckner, 1983; Sparks, 1985; Sindermann and Lightner, 1988; Sindermann, 1990). Some parasites have had a serious impact on wild populations and shellfish aquaculture production. This chapter is confined to parasites that cause significant disease in economically important shellfish that are utilized for either aquaculture or commercial harvest. These pathogenic parasites are grouped taxonomically. However, the systematics of protozoa (protistans) is currently in the process of revision (Patterson, 2000; Cox, 2002; CavalierSmith and Chao, 2003). Because no widely accepted phylogeny has been established, parasitic protozoa will be grouped according to the hierarchy used in both volumes edited by Lee et al. (2000). In that publication, Perkins (2000b) tentatively included species in the genera Bonamia and Mikrocytos in the phylum Haplosporidia. As discussed below, subsequent analysis has verified that Bonamia spp. and Mikrocytos roughleyi are Haplosporidia but that Mikrocytos mackini is not and has unknown taxonomic affiliations. In addition, several other pathogenic protozoa (three species unofficially grouped as Paramyxea that parasitize oysters; and a recently encountered pathogen of pandalid shrimp) that were not mentioned in Lee et al. (2000) and have unknown taxonomic affiliations are discussed prior to presenting the metazoans that are problematic for shellfish.
CAD Modeling for 3D Bio-printing of Human Coronary Artery

The purpose of this study is to develop ComputerAided Design (CAD) tools to construct three dimensional (3D) bio-printing models of human coronary artery from medical images. Two methods are used to construct mimic models from Computed Tomography (CT) scans. A simple model is also constructed by simplifying the mimic model. Two local view method uses two orthogonal image to construct the model, while transverse image lofting method lofts a series of transverse image to construct the model. Both methods are effective. However, more mimic result can be acquired from transverse image lofting method. 
GENETIC AND HEMATOLOGICAL PROFILES OF Β-THALASSEMIAS IN EASTERN ALGERIA

The present work is a retrospective cross-sectional study of cases of β-thalassemia in the Pediatric Department of the Constantine Regional Military Hospital (HMRUC) over a period of 3 months. Our objective is to study through these patients, on the one hand, the epidemiological and para-clinical aspects of β-thalassemia, and on the other hand, a genetic study by searching by RFLP-PCR for possible associations between T3801C polymorphisms of the gene CYP1A1 and C677T of the MTHFR gene and β-thalassemia. We collected during this period 36 cases of β-thalassemias aged between 3 months and 10 years with an average of 1.9 years and a sex ratio (M/F) of 2.25. The parents are consanguineous in 55,56% of the cases. The blood count was marked by pseudo-polycythemia and hypochromic microcytic anemia in thalassemic trait carriers and a decrease in red blood cell count and severe microcytic anemia in patients with severe forms. Hemoglobin electrophoresis revealed heterozygous β-thalassemia in 11 cases (30.55%) and homozygous β-thalassemia in 25 cases (69.44%). Statistical analysis of the preliminary results of molecular genotyping, represented by Odds ratio and the p-value, indicates the absence of association between the polymorphisms, C677T of MTHFR and T3801C of CYP1A1 and β-thalassemia. However, the size of the sample does not make it possible to invalidate or to confirm with certainty the presence or absence of this association.