Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Identification of a major polypeptide of the nuclear pore complex

The nuclear pore complex is a prominent structural component of the nuclear envelope that appears to regulate nucleoplasmic molecular movement. Up to now, none of its polypeptides have been defined. To identify possible pore complex proteins, we fractionated rat liver nuclear envelopes and microsomal membranes with strong protein perturbants into peripheral and intrinsic membrane proteins, and compared these fractions on SDS gels. From this analysis, we identified a prominent 190-kilodalton intrinsic membrane polypeptide that occurs specifically in nuclear envelopes. Lectin binding studies indicate that this polypeptide (gp 190) is the major nuclear envelope glycoprotein. Upon treatment of nuclear envelopes with Triton X-100, gp 190 remains associated with a protein substructure of the nuclear envelope consisting of pore complexes and nuclear lamina. We prepared monospecific antibodies to gp 190 for immunocytochemical localization. Immunofluorescence staining of tissue culture cells suggests that gp 190 occurs exclusively in the nucleus during interphase. This polypeptide becomes dispersed throughout the cell in mitotic prophase when the nuclear envelope is disassembled, and subsequently returns to the nuclear surfaces during telophase when the nuclear envelope is reconstructed. Immunoferritin labeling of Triton-treated rat liver nuclei demonstrates that gp 190 occurs exclusively in the nuclear pore complex, in the regions of the cytoplasmic (and possibly nucleoplasmic) pore complex annuli. A polypeptide that cross-reacts with gp 190 is present in diverse vertebrate species, as shown by antibody labeling of nitrocellulose SDS gel transfers. On the basis of its biochemical characteristics, we suggest that gp 190 may be involved in anchoring the pore complex to nuclear envelope membranes.
The Effects of Special Class Placement on the Self-Concept of Exceptional Children

The impact of placement decisions on a child's self-concept will be a growing concern as mainstreaming efforts increase. A child's feelings of self-worth may vary from setting to setting and from one aspect of life to another. This paper well illustrates that self-concept is a complex entity. As Ribner demonstrates, both research and practice must consider these complexities, especially when the child's self-concept is in question. — G.M.S. The self-concept of minimally brain damaged children in special classes was compared with that of children with similar disabilities who were in the regular grades. Those in regular grades had significantly lower self-concepts in school adequacy but not in general competence. When compared with normal children, both groups of minimally brain damaged children had significantly lower self-concepts in school adequacy, but only those in regular grades held significantly lower self-concepts than normal children in general competence. No relationship was found between self-concept and length of stay in special classes.
Steps in the development of chemical and electrical synapses by pairs of identified leech neurons in culture

Experiments have been made to follow the development of chemical and electrical transmission between pairs of leech neurons in culture. 1. The cell bodies of identified neurons were isolated from the CNS by suction after mild enzyme treatment, together with a length of the initial segment (or ‘stump’). The neurons tested were Retzius cells (R), annulus erector motoneurons (AE), Anterior pagoda cells (AP) and pressure sensory cells (P). Pairs of cells were placed together in various configurations, with different sites on their surfaces making contact. 2. When pairs of Retzius cells were apposed with their stumps touching, serotonergic, chemically mediated synaptic transmission became apparent before electrical transmission. By 2.5 h impulses in either of the two Retzius cells produced hyperpolarizing inhibitory potentials in the other. These potentials were reversed by raised intracellular CI and showed clear facilitation. The strength of chemical transmission between Retzius cells increased over the next 72 h. 3. After chemical transmission had been established, weak non-rectifying electrical transmission became apparent between Retzius cells at about 24–72 h. By 4 days coupling became stronger and tended to obscure chemically evoked synaptic potentials. 4. When pairs of Retzius cells were aligned in culture with the tip of one cell stump touching the soma of the other, chemical transmission also developed rapidly. Transmission was, however, in one direction, from stump to soma. At later stages non-rectifying electrical coupling developed as with stump-stump configuration. With the cell bodies of two Retzius cells apposed, electrical coupling developed after several days, before chemical transmission could be observed. 5. When Retzius and P cells were cultured with their stumps in contact, inhibitory chemical synaptic transmission developed within 24 h. Transmission was always in one direction, from Retzius to P cell. Electrical coupling of Retzius and P cells never occurred whatever the spatial relations of the cells to one another. 6. Annulus erector motoneurons, which contain ACh and a peptide resembling FMRFamide, first developed electrical coupling when the two stumps were in contact and then, later, bi-directional chemical transmission. Anterior Pagoda pairs placed stump-to-stump showed electrical connections. 7. Electronmicrographs revealed the presence of synaptic structures within24 h after Retzius-Retzius, Retzius-P or AE–AE stumps were apposed. 8. The specificity of connections between cultured cells was similar to that observed in earlier experiments. A marked difference was in the speed and reliability with which chemical synapses developed when stumps were in contact. The results show that the tip of a neuron represents a preferential site for the formation of chemical synapses.
Inferring protein-protein interactions through high-throughput interaction data from diverse organisms

MOTIVATION Identifying protein-protein interactions is critical for understanding cellular processes. Because protein domains represent binding modules and are responsible for the interactions between proteins, computational approaches have been proposed to predict protein interactions at the domain level. The fact that protein domains are likely evolutionarily conserved allows us to pool information from data across multiple organisms for the inference of domain-domain and protein-protein interaction probabilities. RESULTS We use a likelihood approach to estimating domain-domain interaction probabilities by integrating large-scale protein interaction data from three organisms, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Caenorhabditis elegans and Drosophila melanogaster. The estimated domain-domain interaction probabilities are then used to predict protein-protein interactions in S.cerevisiae. Based on a thorough comparison of sensitivity and specificity, Gene Ontology term enrichment and gene expression profiles, we have demonstrated that it may be far more informative to predict protein-protein interactions from diverse organisms than from a single organism. AVAILABILITY The program for computing the protein-protein interaction probabilities and supplementary material are available at http://bioinformatics.med.yale.edu/interaction.
Analysis of Univariate Nonstationary Subdivision Schemes with Application to Gaussian-Based Interpolatory Schemes

This paper is concerned with nonstationary subdivision schemes. First, we derive new sufficient conditions for $C^\nu$ smoothness of such schemes. Next, a new class of interpolatory $2m$-point nonstationary subdivision schemes based on Gaussian interpolation is presented. These schemes are shown to be $C^{L+\mu}$ with $L\in{\mathbb Z}_+$ and $\mu\in(0,1)$, where L is the integer smoothness order of the known $2m$-point Deslauriers–Dubuc interpolatory schemes.
COVARIATION OF SPECTRAL AND NONLINEAR EEG MEASURES WITH ALPHA BIOFEEDBACK

This study investigated how different spectral and nonlinear EEG measures covaried with alpha power during auditory alpha biofeedback training, performed by 13 healthy subjects. We found a significant positive correlation of alpha power with the largest Lyapunov-exponent, pointing to an increased dynamical instability of the EEG accompanying alpha enhancement. Alpha power amplification, moreover, was significantly correlated with a decrease of spectral entropy within the alpha range. This outcome reflects a sharpening of the alpha peak during biofeedback training. The fact that the sharpening effect clearly preceded the increase of alpha amplitude could be exploited in future biofeedback settings.
Learning object relationships which determine the outcome of actions

Infants extend their repertoire of behaviours from initially simple behaviours with single objects to complex behaviours dealing with spatial relationships among objects. We are interested in the mechanisms underlying this development in order to achieve similar development in artificial systems. One mechanism is sensorimotor differentiation, which allows one behaviour to become altered in order to achieve a different result; the old behaviour is not forgotten, so differentiation increases the number of available behaviours. Differentiation requires the learning of both sensory abstractions and motor programs for the new behaviour; here we focus only on the sensory aspect: learning to recognise situations in which the new behaviour succeeds. We experimented with learning these situations in a realistic physical simulation of a robotic manipulator interacting with various objects, where the sensor space includes the robot arm position data and a Kinect-based vision system. The mechanism for learning sensory abstractions for a new behaviour is a component in the larger enterprise of building systems which emulate the mechanisms of infant development.
Variation in vernier evoked cortical potential with age.

PURPOSE To investigate the effects of age on transient vernier visual evoked potential (VEP) and vernier acuity estimated by extrapolation. METHODS Transient vernier VEPs were examined in normal subjects aged 20 to 75 years. Vernier offsets were presented for the first 350 msec of the stimulus period, and the segments were then realigned in the following 400 msec. The six vernier offsets used were 20, 40, 60, 80, 100, and 140 seconds of arc. Averaging for each offset setting produced vernier VEP waveforms, for which amplitude and latency of visual evoked response and background electroencephalographic (EEG) noise level were determined. Extrapolation of the function relating signal-to-noise ratio and log vernier offset to a ratio of 1.0 resulted in an estimate of vernier acuity. RESULTS Amplitude of vernier VEP waveforms was significantly reduced in subjects more than 60 years of age, and the latency to the first negative peak was progressively prolonged with increasing age. There was no statistically significant change in electroencephalographic (EEG) noise with advancing age. VEP vernier acuity was significantly degraded in the 61- to 75-year age group. These results are parallel to recent psychophysical findings that alignment performance is worse in older persons than in younger ones. CONCLUSIONS The present findings provide the first electrophysiological evidence of age-related cortical degeneration associated with vernier processing. Reduced neural activity probably contributes to the loss of vernier acuity with advancing age. Also provided are the first normative data for subjects of different ages for vernier VEP and VEP vernier acuity. Moreover, the present study has demonstrated that vernier VEP is sensitive to neural changes and therefore may be applied in clinical situations to evaluate the integrity of the visual system.
Neutrality of the Canonical NF-κB-Dependent Pathway for Human and Murine Cytomegalovirus Transcription and Replication In Vitro

ABSTRACT Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is known to rapidly induce activation of nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) after infection of fibroblast and macrophage cells. NF-κB response elements are present in the enhancer region of the CMV major immediate-early promoter (MIEP), and activity of the MIEP is strongly upregulated by NF-κB in transient-transfection assays. Here we investigate whether the NF-κB-dependent pathway is required for initiating or potentiating human and murine CMV replication in vitro. We show that expression of a dominant negative mutant of the inhibitor of NF-κB-alpha (IκBαM) does not alter the replication kinetics of human or mouse CMV in cultured cells. In addition, mouse embryo fibroblasts genetically deficient for p65/RelA actually showed elevated levels of MCMV replication. Mutation of all NF-κB response elements within the enhancer of the MIEP in a recombinant mouse CMV containing the human MIEP (hMCMV-ES), which we have previously shown to replicate in murine fibroblasts with kinetics equivalent to that of wild-type mouse CMV, did not negatively affect replication in fibroblasts. Taken together, these data show that, for CMV replication in cultured fibroblasts activation of the canonical NF-κB pathway and binding of NF-κB to the MIEP are dispensable, and in the case of p65 may even interfere, thus uncovering a previously unrecognized level of complexity in the host regulatory network governing MIE gene expression in the context of a viral infection.
Sudden cardiac death risk stratification in dilated cardiomyopathy: climbing the pyramid of knowledge.

Nonischemic dilated cardiomyopathy (NIDCM) is the second leading cause of sudden cardiac death (SCD) in the United States. As with coronary artery disease, large-scale clinical trials evaluating implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) therapy based on noninvasive risk markers have focused largely on left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF). 1,2 These studies demonstrate that ICD use in selected patients with NIDCM and depressed LVEF is associated with improved survival.3 The broader question is whether ICD use based on LVEF (and New York Heart Association class) as currently listed in the guidelines represents optimal deployment of this valuable but costly resource. As with ischemic cardiomyopathy, this question is easily answered by the observations that many SCD cases occur in patients whose LVEF is not within the guideline criteria for ICD implantation and that the majority of patients whose LVEF does fall within the guideline criteria do not experience appropriate shocks from their ICD. Although ICD shocks may overestimate the benefit of ICDs to reduce SCD, ICD shocks were reported in only 33 of 229 patients in Defibrillators in Non-Ischemic Cardiomyopathy Treatment Evaluation (DEFINITE). 4 This underscores the need for improved risk stratification to better deploy ICD use for SCD prevention. In addition to providing improved clinical outcomes, better ICD deployment via improved risk stratification could dramatically enhance the cost-effectiveness of this treatment. However, the question of how to achieve improved risk stratification endures. Article see p 1101 Pezawas et al5 report on the predictive value of LVEF, heart rate variability, baroreflex sensitivity, signal averaged ECG, and microvolt T wave alternans in patients with NIDCM. Although this is a fairly small study, important strengths are the inclusion of patients with a broad array of LVEFs, repeat testing at 3 years, and the long duration of follow-up (median, 7 years). Sixty percent …
Using the forced oscillation technique to evaluate respiratory resistance in individuals with silicosis.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the resistance values obtained through the use of the forced oscillation technique in patients with varying degrees of airway obstruction resulting from silicosis. METHODS A total of 40 never-smoking volunteers were analyzed: 10 were healthy subjects with no history of pulmonary disease or silica exposure, and 30 had silicosis. The forced oscillation technique was used to examine the subjects, and spirometry was used as a reference in order to classify the obstruction by degree. This classification resulted in five groups: control (n = 10); normal exam, composed of individuals diagnosed clinically and radiologically with silicosis but presenting normal spirometry results (n = 7); mild obstruction (n = 10); moderate obstruction (n = 8); and severe obstruction (n = 5). RESULTS The reduction observed in the spirometric values corresponded to a significant increase in the total respiratory resistance (p < 0.001), as well as in airway resistance (p < 0.003). A significant reduction in ventilation homogeneity was also observed (p < 0.004). CONCLUSION In individuals with silicosis, the additional respiratory resistance-related data obtained through the use of the forced oscillation technique can complement spirometric data. Therefore, the forced oscillation technique presents great potential for the analysis of such patients.
A feature selection method for comparision of each concept in big data

In this paper, we present a new feature selection method for comparison of each event in big data. The method selects appropriate features for comparing or evaluating each event when we prepare an event set. There are massive data on the Internet as big data. We have been able to retrieve appropriate data sets from them by using given keywords. However, it is still difficult to use these data to compare some concepts. For example, when you would like to compare the difference between your company and a rival company, it is difficult to compare them, because evaluation axes are needed to compare them. This method extracts evaluation axes as features in a data-driven manner. We can compare them by using the extracted axes as the features. This means that the system automatically selects the appropriate features which we should focus on when we compare them.
An Interactive Method for Generating Harmonious Color Schemes

We present an interactive visualization tool for generating color schemes that can be used by both professional artists and novice designers to improve their design efficiency. The method is developed on two color harmony principles of familial factors and rhythmic spans from conventional color theories. The interactive tool makes use of these principles for users to interactively generate colors palettes containing harmonious combinations in the hue, saturation, and lightness color space in as few steps as possible. A pilot study with 20 participants has shown that this tool provides efficient workflow, color-scheme harmony, and intuitive interaction, demonstrating the usefulness of the method. This work contributes to an artistic-theory driven harmonious color-scheme generation and to interactive user interfaces visualizing color relationships. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 39, 70–78, 2014
Mother Teresa: Saint or Celebrity?

Acknowledgments Preface by Professor David Marsh Introduction 1. Mother Teresa and Celebrity Culture 2. The Balkans Appropriation of Mother Teresa 3. The Forgotten Years 4. Mother Teresa's Attitude towards Her Early Years 5. Jesus the Divine Superstar 6. From Church Rebel to Church Asset Conclusion. Select Bibliography. Select Filmography. Index
Collaborative Augmented Reality Application for Information Visualization Support

In today's information systems, strategies for decision making and accurate results in a short time are crucial in many knowledge areas of industry, economic, medical etc. To support this demand to store and interpret relevant information, the area of information visualization coupled with several others, such as intelligent systems and data mining, is increasingly taking place in academic research and market. Aiming to increase to level of interaction and accurate results, this article presents a collaborative augmented reality application for information visualization support.
Coordinated Genetic Regulation of Growth and Lignin Revealed by Quantitative Trait Locus Analysis of cDNA Microarray Data in an Interspecific Backcross of Eucalyptus1

Phenotypic, genotypic, and transcript level (microarray) data from an interspecific backcross population of Eucalyptus grandis and Eucalyptus globulus were integrated to dissect the genetic and metabolic network underlying growth variation. Transcript abundance, measured for 2,608 genes in the differentiating xylem of a 91 (E. grandis × E. globulus) × E. grandis backcross progeny was correlated with diameter variation, revealing coordinated down-regulation of genes encoding enzymes of the lignin biosynthesis and associated methylation pathways in fast growing individuals. Lignin analysis of wood samples confirmed the content and quality predicted by the transcript levels measured on the microarrays. Quantitative trait locus (QTL) analysis of transcript levels of lignin-related genes showed that their mRNA abundance is regulated by two genetic loci, demonstrating coordinated genetic control over lignin biosynthesis. These two loci colocalize with QTLs for growth, suggesting that the same genomic regions are regulating growth, and lignin content and composition in the progeny. Genetic mapping of the lignin genes revealed that most of the key biosynthetic genes do not colocalize with growth and transcript level QTLs, with the exception of the locus encoding the enzyme S-adenosylmethionine synthase. This study illustrates the power of integrating quantitative analysis of gene expression data and genetic map information to discover genetic and metabolic networks regulating complex biological traits.
HUman MicroNucleus project: international database comparison for results with the cytokinesis‐block micronucleus assay in human lymphocytes: I. Effect of laboratory protocol, scoring criteria, and host factors on the frequency of micronuclei

Micronucleus (MN) expression in peripheral blood lymphocytes is well established as a standard method for monitoring chromosome damage in human populations. The first results of an analysis of pooled data from laboratories using the cytokinesis‐block micronucleus (CBMN) assay and participating in the HUMN (HUman MicroNucleus project) international collaborative study are presented. The effects of laboratory protocol, scoring criteria, and host factors on baseline micronucleated binucleate cell (MNC) frequency are evaluated, and a reference range of “normal” values against which future studies may be compared is provided. Primary data from historical records were submitted by 25 laboratories distributed in 16 countries. This resulted in a database of nearly 7000 subjects. Potentially significant differences were present in the methods used by participating laboratories, such as in the type of culture medium, the concentration of cytochalasin‐B, the percentage of fetal calf serum, and in the culture method. Differences in criteria for scoring micronuclei were also evident. The overall median MNC frequency in nonexposed (i.e., normal) subjects was 6.5‰ and the interquartile range was between 3 and 12‰. An increase in MNC frequency with age was evident in all but two laboratories. The effect of gender, although not so evident in all databases, was also present, with females having a 19% higher level of MNC frequency (95% confidence interval: 14–24%). Statistical analyses were performed using random‐effects models for correlated data. Our best model, which included exposure to genotoxic factors, host factors, methods, and scoring criteria, explained 75% of the total variance, with the largest contribution attributable to laboratory methods. Environ. Mol. Mutagen. 37:31–45, 2001 © 2001 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.