Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Immunologic cross-reactions of enterotoxins from Escherichia coli and Vibrio cholerae.

Immunologic similarities among enterotoxins from four serotypes of Escherichia coli and from one strain of Vibrio cholerae, all isolated in India from adults with severe diarrhea, were studied in the ileal-loop model in rabbits. The animals were immunized with preparations of enterotoxin of known biological activity and consisting of dialyzed, lyophilized culture filtrates; antitoxin activity of the immune sera was determined by neutralization of the different enterotoxins. These enterotoxins produced by different serotypes of E. coli were immunologically crossreactive, related to cell-wall antigens, and antigenically related to V. cholerae enterotoxin. Immunization with E. coli enterotoxins, however, failed to protect ileal loops against challenge with enterotoxin, while immunization with V. cholerae enterotoxin conferred protection against homologous challenge, but did not protect against challenge with E. coli enterotoxin. These results indicate the theoretical feasibility of further study of preparations of common antigen as possible vaccines against enterotoxic diarrhea mediated by E. coli.
Heart rate variability analysis during a dehydration protocol on athletes

Athletes usually start the training with normal body water content, and then they dehydrate during exercise. The water deficit may contribute to increased heart rate and therefore impaired heart rate variability (HRV) postexercise. This paper presents a protocol to study the dehydration from the electrocardiographic signal in athletes, which comprised three phases: (i) Rest (RE): before any physical activity, (ii) post-exercise (PE): athletes performed a physical activity by pedaling a stationary bike, iii) post-hydration (PH): the subjects drank water ad libitum. In each phase, an electrocardiographic acquisition and weight measure were performed. In RE phase height was measured and in PE phase subjective effort perception of Borg was performed. The protocol was carried out in the morning. The sample consisted of 17 male athletes. The study of HRV in each of the electrocardiographic signals was performed by obtaining time-domain parameters (RR, RMSSD, SDRR), frequency-domain parameters (LF, HF) and non-linear parameters (SD1, SD2, approximate entropy and scaled exponents: α1 and α2). The findings in this paper imply that parameters: RR, RMSSD, SDRR, LF, HF, α2, SD1 and SD2 from HRV, are able to differentiate between phases of hydration and dehydration in the individual athlete, which could be used in the early detection of dehydration using the ECG signal, that is readily available and also noninvasively measure.
HYBRID GENETIC ALGORITHM FOR ASSEMBLY FLOW-SHOP SCHEDULING PROBLEM WITH SEQUENCE-DEPENDENT SETUP AND TRANSPORTATION TIMES

Flow shop assembly production system is a system that combines different manufactur ing operat ions independently and simultaneously and then the manufacturing parts are collected and transmitted to assembly line. In this problem, a set of parts is produced by independent production line and finally converted to the product by assembly stage. This type of assembly manufacturing system can be a solution to respond to market pressure to manufacture different products. Global competition and the need to control production costs, lead companies to manufacture products, so that by combining parts and sub-assemblies they will be able to manufacture more various products. This is one of the greatest benefits of these structures. In scheduling perspective, this type of manufacturing systems can be modeled such as two-stage assembly flow shop. Considering the time of collection and transportation of parts from the production stage to the assembling stage, we will face a more realistic model of the two-stage assembly flow-shop problem. It is possible to put this assumption as a discrete phase between the production and assembly stages. Thus the model can be closer to reality and we will have a three-stage model. Three-stage flow shop assembly problem is an extended mode of the two-stage flow shop assembly problem. In the two-stage flow shop assembly problem, it is assumed that each job is made of pieces, which are produced on parallel machines. The required time for collecting and transporting m completed parts from the first stage to the second is very short. This assumption is particularly inappropriate especially when we use the twostage assembly flow shop problem for the simulation of manufacturing systems with several industrial units (Factory) and a unit assembly. In these systems the main m m
The Relationship between Neurocognitive Behavior of Executive Functions and the EFPT in Individuals with Multiple Sclerosis

The current study examined the relationship between two separate but complementary methods of assessing executive functions in individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS): (1) a neurocognitive approach with the Tower of London−DX (TOL-DX) test and (2) a functional top-down approach with the Executive Function Performance Test (EFPT). Sixty-eight individuals with MS (79% female) and 38 healthy controls (68% female) were administered both the TOL-DX test and the EFPT. For the group with MS, significant differences were found on the TOL-DX test and the EFPT executive components and functional tasks. For the group with MS, the number of moves to complete the TOL-DX tasks was significantly positively correlated to the Organization and Sequencing executive components of the EFPT and the Simple Cooking and Bill Payment tasks of the EFPT. The results demonstrate the relationship of executive function behavior and performance of instrumental activities of daily living tasks.
Identification of Steroidogenic Enzyme mRNAs in the Human Lacrimal Gland, Meibomian Gland, Cornea, and Conjunctiva

Purpose: Sex steroids exert a significant influence on the health and well-being of the ocular surface and adnexa. These hormones affect multiple aspects of the lacrimal and meibomian glands, conjunctiva, and cornea, and have been linked to the development of many ocular surface pathologies. We hypothesize that these hormone actions, as in other tissues, occur predominantly after the local synthesis of androgens and estrogens from adrenal precursors. To begin to test this hypothesis, we analyzed whether human ocular surface and adnexal tissues and cells contain the steroidogenic enzyme mRNAs necessary for the intracrine synthesis and metabolism of sex steroids. Methods: Total RNA was isolated from human lacrimal and meibomian glands and immortalized corneal and conjunctival epithelial cells. Samples were reverse transcribed to cDNA and analyzed for the presence of enzyme mRNAs by real-time PCR. Positive and negative controls included human placental cDNA and the absence of template, respectively. Results: Our results show that human lacrimal and meibomian glands and corneal and conjunctival epithelial cells contain the mRNAs for steroid sulfatase, 3&bgr;-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (HSD)-&Dgr;-5&Dgr;4-isomerase type 1, 17&bgr;-HSD types 1 and 3, aromatase, and glucuronosyltransferase. In contrast, only lacrimal and meibomian tissues appeared to contain detectable mRNA for sulfotransferase. Conclusions: If the corresponding mRNAs are translated, our results indicate that human ocular surface and adnexal tissues contain the enzymatic machinery necessary for the intracrine synthesis and metabolism of sex steroids.
The effect of soil on the growth performance of tropical species with contrasting distributions

Within the tropics, a marked gradient in rainfall between dry and wet forests correlates with a well documented turnover of plant species. While water availability along these gradients is an important determinant of species distributions, other abiotic and biotic factors correlate with rainfall and may also contribute to limit species distribution. One of these is soil fertility, which is often lower in the wetter forests. To test its possible role in species distribution along a rainfall gradient, we performed a screen-house experiment where we measured the growth performance of seedlings of 23 species with contrasting distributions across the Isthmus of Panama. We grew seedlings in soils collected from the drier Pacific side and the wetter Atlantic side. Differences in soil fertility across the Isthmus were large enough to significantly influence the growth performance of the seedlings. However, we found no evidence of home-soil advantage among species with contrasting distributions. Dry-distribution species grew on average slower than wet-distribution species suggesting a cost to drought adaptations. The response to soil differences correlated with the growth rate of the species, such that fastgrowing species responded more to changes in soil quality. We hypothesize that inherently slow growth rates of some drydistribution tropical species may be a more important factor limiting their colonization of wetter sites along the rainfall gradient.
Characterization of I-Ppo, an intron-encoded endonuclease that mediates homing of a group I intron in the ribosomal DNA of Physarum polycephalum

A novel and only recently recognized class of enzymes is composed of the site-specific endonucleases encoded by some group I introns. We have characterized several aspects of I-Ppo, the endonuclease that mediates the mobility of intron 3 in the ribosomal DNA of Physarum polycephalum. This intron is unique among mobile group I introns in that it is located in nuclear DNA. We found that I-Ppo is encoded by an open reading frame in the 5' half of intron 3, upstream of the sequences required for self-splicing of group I introns. Either of two AUG initiation codons could start this reading frame, one near the beginning of the intron and the other in the upstream exon, leading to predicted polypeptides of 138 and 160 amino acid residues. The longer polypeptide was the major form translated in vitro in a reticulocyte extract. From nuclease assays of proteins synthesized in vitro with partially deleted DNAs, we conclude that both polypeptides possess endonuclease activity. We also have expressed I-Ppo in Escherichia coli, using a bacteriophage T7 RNA polymerase expression system. The longer polypeptide also was the predominant form made in this system. It showed enzymatic activity in bacteria in vivo, as demonstrated by the cleavage of a plasmid carrying the target site. Like several other intron-encoded endonucleases, I-Ppo makes a four-base staggered cut in its ribosomal DNA target sequence, very near the site where intron 3 becomes integrated in crosses of intron 3-containing and intron 3-lacking Physarum strains.
Linked record medical information systems

Linked record medical information systems generate cumulative person or family records from data on events or processes occurring to the individual at separate times and places. The special purposes of time-based and family statistics from these systems are exemplified by studies in health care, epidemiology and genetics. Methods of linking records on a large scale and some of the difficulties are described. The value and practicability of computer-assisted linked record systems are discussed in the light of experience with the Oxford Record Linkage Study and the northeast Scottish Psychiatric Case Register, both of which have been in existence for a decade.
Automated Discovery in a Chemistry Laboratory

We describe an application of the discovery system FAHRENHEIT in a chemistry laboratory. Our emphasis is on automation of the discovery process as oposed to human intervention and on computer control over real experiments and data collection as opposed to the use of simulation. FAHRENHEIT performs automatically many cycles of experimentation, data collection and theory formation. We report on electrochemistry experiments of several hour duration, in which FAHRENHEIT has developed empirical equations (quantitative regularities) equivalent to those developed by an analytical chemist working on the same problem. The theoretical capabilities of FAHRENHEIT have been expanded, allowing the system to find maxima in a dataset, evaluate error for all concepts, and determine reproducibility of results. After minor adjustments FAHRENHEIT has been able to discover regularities in maxima locations and heights, and to analyse repeatability of measurements by the same mechanism, adapted from BACON, by which all numerical regularities are detected.
Racial Differences in CT Phenotypes in COPD

Abstract Background: Whether African Americans (AA) are more susceptible to COPD than non-Hispanic Whites (NHW) and whether racial differences in disease phenotype exist is controversial. The objective is to determine racial differences in the extent of emphysema and airway remodeling in COPD. Methods: First, 2,500 subjects enrolled in the COPDGene study were used to evaluate racial differences in quantitative CT (QCT) parameters of% emphysema, air trapping and airway wall thickness. Independent variables studied included race, age, gender, education, BMI, pack-years, smoking status, age at smoking initiation, asthma, previous work in dusty job, CT scanner and center of recruitment. Results: Of the 1,063 subjects with GOLD Stage II-IV COPD, 200 self-reported as AA. AAs had a lower mean% emphysema (13.1% vs. 16.1%, p = 0.005) than NHW and proportionately less emphysema in the lower lung zones. After adjustment for covariates, there was no statistical difference by race in air trapping or airway wall thickness. Measured QCT parameters were more predictive of poor functional status in NHWs compared to AAs. Conclusions: AAs have less emphysema than NHWs but the same degree of airway disease. Additional factors not easily assessed by current QCT techniques may account for the poor functional status in AAs.
Association of TAP1 and TAP2 with systemic sclerosis in Japanese.

OBJECTIVE The contribution of polymorphism of transporter associated with antigen processing 1 and 2 (TAP1 and 2) alleles to the pathogenesis of Japanese SSc was studied. METHODS TAP1 and TAP2 typing was carried out in 55 Japanese SSc patients and 95 normal Japanese subjects by the PCR-RFLP (restriction fragment length polymorphism) method. HLA-DR typing and HLA DRB1*15, *16 and *08 genotyping were carried out by the PCR and the PCR-SSCP (single-stranded DNA conformation polymorphism) methods, respectively. RESULTS The frequencies of the TAP1A and TAP2A alleles were significantly increased in SSc with diffuse scleroderma (100%, p < 0.005; 80.0%, p < 0.001, respectively) and in SSc with antitopoisomerase 1 antibody (a-Scl-70), (93.2%, p = not significant (NS); 63.6%, p < 0.05). In contrast, the TAP1B allele was significantly decreased in diffuse scleroderma (0%, p < 0.005) and SSc with a-Scl-70 (4.5%, p < 0.05), and TAP2B was decreased in diffuse scleroderma (12.5%, p < 0.01). CONCLUSION Association analysis among TAP1A, TAP2A and DRB1*1502 indicated that increases in TAP1A and TAP2A were not primary, but were reflective of an increase in HLA DRB1*1502 in Japanese SSc patients with diffuse scleroderma and SSc with a-Scl-70.
Context based resource classification using open directory project categories

People often search information to complete their information intensive tasks in which users make use of different information resources to achieve their goal. Once a user finds a useful information resource, he/she frequently reuses it for different tasks. Each resource used in a task has a specific task context having diverse aspects such as informational and physical context. For understanding the holistic view of a resource user may need its content as well as context. With the increase of information on users' personal computers, information resources relating to a task may exist on more than one machine, and also on various portable devices. This results in contextual information fragmentation giving rise to issues related with subsequent information searching from already searched or stored information. This large information store is not categorized according to the preferences of the user's related informational tasks. For categorization we exploited existing Web-based directories. These directories employ categorization by experts and not by individual users of personal information management systems who, at times, may like to assert their own categories. Proper contextual categorization of information resources according to task preferences could decrease in overload and fragmentation of information for that particular user. A framework for task based information management using automatic contextual classification of information in user defined task categories is proposed which is extended from Open Directory Project categories.
A conceptual framework for supply chain collaboration: empirical evidence from the agri‐food industry

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to analyse the concept of supply chain collaboration and to provide an overall framework that can be used as a conceptual landmark for further empirical research. In addition, the concept is explored in the context of agri-food industry and particularities are identified. Finally, the paper submits empirical evidence from an exploratory case study in the agri-food industry, at the grower-processor interface, and information regarding the way the concept is actually applied in small medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) is presented. Design/methodology/approach - The paper employed case study research by conducting in-depth interviews in the two companies. Findings - Supply chain collaboration concept is of significant importance for the agri-food industry however, some constraints arise due to the nature of industry's products, and the specific structure of the sector. Subsequently, collaboration in the supply chain is often limited to operational issues and to logistics-related activities. Research limitations/implications - Research is limited to a single case study and further qualitative testing of the conceptual model is needed in order to adjust the model before large scale testing. Practical implications - Case study findings may be transferable to other similar dual relationships at the grower-processor interface. Weaker parts in asymmetric relationships have opportunities to improve their position, altering the dependence balance, by achieving product/process excellence. Originality/value - The paper provides evidence regarding the applicability of the supply chain collaboration concept in the agri-food industry. It takes into consideration not relationships between big multinational companies, but SMEs.
Elimination of error in speckle photography.

This paper presents a method of eliminating the error introduced by the nonuniform diffraction halo in speckle photography. It is shown that, by proper aperturing of the imaging lens, the intensity distribution in the diffraction halo can be made constant over a certain frequency range. The measurements made on Young's fringes, present in this region, would be free from error due to varying intensity in the diffraction halo.
Abortion in a thoroughbred mare associated with an infection with avirulent Rhodococcus equi

An eight-year-old thoroughbred mare with no previous history of illness aborted a fetus at 196 days of gestation, and its internal tissues were examined immunohistologically and bacteriologically. The placenta was not examined, but specimens of the intrauterine fluids and the dam's faeces were collected four days after the abortion and examined bacteriologically. No significant histological lesions were found in the fetus but the amnion and the umbilical cord were oedematous and had petechial haemorrhages. Rhodococcus equi was isolated in pure culture from the lung, heart and stomach contents of the fetus and from an intrauterine specimen and faeces of the dam. The anti-R equi antibody titre of the mare was high after the abortion. The diagnosis was confirmed in the lung of the fetus by immunohistochemical staining with R equi-specific antibodies. Isolates from the fetus and mare were identified as avirulent R equi by pcr and the mouse pathogenicity test. The avirulent isolates were characterised by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis, which yielded only one VspI profile in all the isolates from the fetus and its dam.
The Simian Virus 40 Small-t and Large-T Antigens Jointly Regulate Cell Cycle Reentry in Human Fibroblasts

ABSTRACT Focus formation in human diploid fibroblasts (HDF cells) is known to require both the simian virus 40 (SV40) large-T and small-t antigens. Similarly, both SV40 proteins were required to stimulate confluent, density-arrested HDF cells to reenter the cell cycle. This study used defective recombinant adenoviruses to examine the roles of the individual SV40 proteins in altering specific steps in the cell cycle. Small-t antigen and, to a lesser extent, large-T antigen increased the level of the S phase cyclin cyclin A but without increasing the activity of associated cyclin kinases unless the two SV40 proteins were coexpressed. The absence of kinase activity reflected the presence in density-arrested cells of high levels of the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors p21WAF1 and p27KIP1. We report here that expression of SV40 large-T antigen reduced levels of p21WAF1, while expression of small-t antigen was required to decrease p27KIP1. The separate effects of large-T and small-t antigens on these two inhibitors may explain the joint requirement for the two proteins to drive cell cycle reentry of HDF cells and ultimately transform these cells.
Microchambers and devices for cells exposure: From the design to applications

In the last decades, the advances in the micro and nano-fabrication techniques have led to the development of microdevices that have improved the possibility of analysis at cell level. These devices can be used in different applications: cell detection and identification, manipulation, cell treatments, but in particular they seem extremely promising for nanosecond pulses applications, where the requisite of broadband matching becomes highly demanding. In this paper after a brief review of applicators for nanosecond pulses, a multi step procedure for a good design of microdevices is fixed and an example of microchamber design is given.
Coping Strategies for Low Frequency Noise

A small group (n=9), whose complaints of low frequency noise had not been resolved by Environmental Health Officers and related care professionals, were invited to attend a series of intervention sessions led by a psychotherapist. The aims of the sessions were to improve the participants' coping strategies and their quality of life, in order to relieve them from some of the distress caused by their belief that they were exposed to low frequency noise. Prior to the psychotherapy sessions the group was evaluated on a number of self report questionnaires, which measured individual responses for reaction to low frequency noise, quality of life, quality of coping and a personality questionnaire (Insights™ Discovery Preference Evaluator). A before and after, within group analysis of responses was based upon repeat measures of the three behavioural response questionnaires for noise reactivity, quality of life and coping. A general reduction in the subjects' stress levels was shown, suggesting positive effects of psychotherapy upon symptoms that had, in this group's case, proved resistant to improvement by conventional local authority and specialist interventions. This ‘therapeutic’ approach to LFN interventions could lead to improved health and effectiveness and fewer demands on local services. Although the techniques of tinnitus management were informative, analogy between the problems of low frequency noise sufferers and those of tinnitus sufferers fails at the point where low frequency noise sufferers believe that an external agency is the cause of their problems.