Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Protein Kinase SGK Mediates Survival Signals by Phosphorylating the Forkhead Transcription Factor FKHRL1 (FOXO3a)

ABSTRACT Serum- and glucocorticoid-inducible kinases (SGKs) form a novel family of serine/threonine kinases that are activated in response to a variety of extracellular stimuli. SGKs are related to Akt (also called PKB), a serine/threonine kinase that plays a crucial role in promoting cell survival. Like Akt, SGKs are activated by the phosphoinositide-3 kinase (PI3K) and translocate to the nucleus upon growth factor stimulation. However the physiological substrates and cellular functions of SGKs remained to be identified. We hypothesized that SGKs regulate cellular functions in concert with Akt by phosphorylating common targets within the nucleus. The best-characterized nuclear substrates of Akt are transcription factors of the Forkhead family. Akt phosphorylates Forkhead transcription factors such as FKHRL1, leading to FKHRL1's exit from the nucleus and the consequent shutoff of FKHRL1 target genes. We show here that SGK1, like Akt, promotes cell survival and that it does so in part by phosphorylating and inactivating FKHRL1. However, SGK and Akt display differences with respect to the efficacy with which they phosphorylate the three regulatory sites on FKHRL1. While both kinases can phosphorylate Thr-32, SGK displays a marked preference for Ser-315 whereas Akt favors Ser-253. These findings suggest that SGK and Akt may coordinately regulate the function of FKHRL1 by phosphorylating this transcription factor at distinct sites. The efficient phosphorylation of these three sites on FKHRL1 by SGK and Akt appears to be critical to the ability of growth factors to suppress FKHRL1-dependent transcription, thereby preventing FKHRL1 from inducing cell cycle arrest and apoptosis. These findings indicate that SGK acts in concert with Akt to propagate the effects of PI3K activation within the nucleus and to mediate the biological outputs of PI3K signaling, including cell survival and cell cycle progression.
Analysis of risk factors and diseases associated with atherosclerosis in the progression of carotid artery stenosis

Objective The objective of this study was to analyze the roles of demographic, clinical, and laboratory factors on the progression of atherosclerotic stenosis in carotid bifurcation. It was based on prospective information from records entered on a specific application form for follow-up outpatients at a tertiary university service. Methods Consecutive symptomatic and asymptomatic patients (n = 210) who had undergone more than one carotid duplex scan but no surgical intervention were selected for the analysis. The patients were divided into two groups: patients whose duplex scans did not show bilateral progression of carotid stenosis and patients with carotid stenosis progression of <50%, 50%–69%, or >70%. Clinical and demographic parameters were compared between groups. Results Group II levels of plasma urea (51.6 ± 27.8 mg/dl) and fibrinogen (493.2 ± 113.3 mg/dl) were higher than the Group I levels (43.0 ± 14.9 mg/dl and 441.3 ± 106.7 mg/dl, respectively) with statistical significance (p urea = 0.013 and p fibrinogen = 0.018). Paradoxically, the mean body mass index was higher in Group I (26.4 ± 4.6 kg/m2) than in Group II (24.6 ± 3.9 kg/m2; p = 0.02). Conclusions Traditional risk factors for the development of atherosclerosis in a carotid bifurcation are important but not unique. Metabolic and inflammatory factors can contribute to disease progression.
Simultaneous measurements of magnesium, calcium and sodium influxes in perfused squid giant axons under membrane potential control.

1. Giant axons from the squids Dosidicus gigas, Loligo forbesi and Loligo vulgaris were internally perfused with 550 or 275 mM KF plus sucrose and bathed in artificial sea water containing 45Ca, 28Mg or mixtures of 45Ca‐28Mg or 45Ca‐22Na. Resting influxes and extra influxes during voltage‐clamp pulses were measured by collecting and counting the internal perfusate. 2. For Dosidicus axons in 10 mM‐CaCl2 the resting influx of calcium was 0‐016 +/‐ 0‐007 p‐mole/cm2 sec and a linear function of external concentration. For two experiments in 10 and 84‐7 mM‐CaCl2, 100 nM tetrodotoxin had no effect. Resting calcium influx in 10 mM‐CaCl2 was 0‐017 +/‐ 0‐013 p‐mole/cm2 sec for Loligo axons. 3. With 55 mM‐MgCl2 outside the average resting magnesium influx was 0‐124 +/‐ 0‐080 p‐mole/cm2 sec for Loligo axons. Discarding one aberrant point the value is 0‐105 +/‐ 0‐046 which is not significantly different from the resting calcium influx for Dosidicus fibres in 55 mM‐CaCl2, given as 0‐094 p‐mole/cm2 sec by the regression line shown in Fig. 1. In two experiments 150 nM tetrodotoxin had no effect. 4. With 430 mM‐NaCl outside 100 nM tetrodotoxin reduced the average resting influx of sodium in Dosidicus axon from 27‐7 +/‐ 4‐5 to 25‐1 +/‐ 6‐2 p‐mole/cm2 sec and for Loligo fibres in 460 mM‐NaCl from 50‐5 +/‐ 4 to 20 +/‐ 8 p‐mole/cm2 sec. 5. Using depolarizing pulses of various durations, the extra calcium influx occurred in two phases. The early phase was eliminated by external application of tetrodotoxin. The results of analysis are consistent with, but do not rigorously demonstrate, the conclusion that the tetrodotoxin sensitive calcium entry is flowing through the normal sodium channels (cf. Baker, Hodgkin & Ridgway, 1971). 6. Measurements of extra influxes using 22Na and 45Ca simultaneously indicate that the time courses of tetrodotoxin sensitive calcium and sodium entry are similar but not necessarily identical. It is very doubtful that any significant calcium entry occurs before the sodium or is involved in the activation of the sodium system. 7. These measurements confirm for Loligo, as previously shown for Dosidicus axons, that the magnitude and time course of the sodium entry during a depolarizing pulse deduced from electrical measurements is the same as that measured with 22Na. 8. Using 28Mg, or mixtures of 45Ca and 28Mg, we observed a single phase of magnesium entry which was insensitive to external tetrodotoxin or internal tetraethyl ammonium. The magnitude of the magnesium influx was considerably greater than the calcium extra entry and large enough to have been detected in the experiments of Meves & Vogel (1973) if it represented current. 9. We suggest the possibility that the calcium and magnesium extra influxes, after external treatment with tetrodotoxin, during a depolarizing pulse, do not contribute to the measured current.
Dwarfs and Cranes. Baltic-Finnish Mythologies in Eurasian and American Perspective (70 years after Yrjö Toivonen)

Tales about the struggle between dwarfs and birds are widespread across Eurasia and the Americas. About half of them were known to Toivonen (1937), but a large part of the American and some of the Asian materials re- mained beyond the scope of his research. The southernmost Eurasian version is from Nagaland. The closest parallels are between Ancient Greek, Fennoscandian, Chinese, Lower Amur and North-American tales. In eastern South America (Upper Xingu) dwarfs at the edge of the earth are replaced with the souls of the dead in the sky. Among 35,000 texts included into the author's electronic data- base, about 100 Eurasian, North- and South-American cases are relevant to the theme. Several motifs, partially overlapped and variously combined, reflect a unique set of cosmological ideas. Creatures different from (normal) human be- ings who live in a distant land fight with non-human enemies (birds, crabs, hares, etc.); man readily helps these creatures because for him their enemies are not dangerous; birds attack man who comes to the other world; migratory birds fly from our world to another one; at the boundary, sky is constantly mov- ing in respect to earth or the opening leading to other world is narrow, many birds perish; there is a person at the passage to other world who feeds on birds; mistress of birds lives on the other side of the moving obstacle. The spread of this complex across all the New World allows us to date the corresponding ideas to the time of the initial peopling of the Americas (about 14,000 BP). The com- plex had taken its final shape in Northern Eurasia. The existence of South American versions and the absence of parallels in Australia and most of South and Southeast Asia (African materials are still not processed) is evidence in favor of historic connections between all known cases. Ecological factors are not sufficient to explain their independent emergence.
Good days, bad days

We utilized interdependence theory and conservation of resources to understand how relational sacrifices and hassles impact positive relationship quality constructs (i.e., satisfaction, closeness, and commitment) in romantic relationships (N = 164 couples; 328 individuals). Using daily diary data to examine actor and partner effects, we found that individuals’ sacrifices were positively linked with their own commitment but not with satisfaction or closeness. We also found that hassles were negatively linked with one’s own and one’s partner’s satisfaction and closeness but not with commitment. When examined together, sacrifices remained beneficial for one’s own commitment but only when increased sacrifices occurred on days with low hassles. We discuss the unique pathways of sacrifices and hassles, both on their own and considered together.
Nonlinear Acoustic Echo Cancellation Based on a Sliding-Window Leaky Kernel Affine Projection Algorithm

Acoustic echo cancellation (AEC) is used in speech communication systems where the existence of echoes degrades the speech intelligibility. Standard approaches to AEC rely on the assumption that the echo path to be identified can be modeled by a linear filter. However, some elements introduce nonlinear distortion and must be modeled as nonlinear systems. Several nonlinear models have been used with more or less success. The kernel affine projection algorithm (KAPA) has been successfully applied to many areas in signal processing but not yet to nonlinear AEC (NLAEC). The contribution of this paper is three-fold: (1) to apply KAPA to the NLAEC problem, (2) to develop a sliding-window leaky KAPA (SWL-KAPA) that is well suited for NLAEC applications, and (3) to propose a kernel function, consisting of a weighted sum of a linear and a Gaussian kernel. In our experiment set-up, the proposed SWL-KAPA for NLAEC consistently outperforms the linear APA, resulting in up to 12 dB of improvement in ERLE at a computational cost that is only 4.6 times higher. Moreover, it is shown that the SWL-KAPA outperforms, by 4-6 dB, a Volterra-based NLAEC, which itself has a much higher 413 times computational cost than the linear APA.
Neurodynamics of mental exploration

Thinking allows an animal to take an effective action in a novel situation based on a mental exploration of possibilities and previous knowledge. We describe a model animal, with a neural system based loosely on the rodent hippocampus, which performs mental exploration to find a useful route in a spatial world it has previously learned. It then mentally recapitulates the chosen route, and this intent is converted to motor acts that move the animal physically along the route. The modeling is based on spiking neurons with spike-frequency adaptation. Adaptation causes the continuing evolution in the pattern of neural activity that is essential to mental exploration. A successful mental exploration is remembered through spike-timing-dependent synaptic plasticity. The system is also an episodic memory for an animal chiefly concerned with locations.
New miniature 15-20-GHz continuous-phase/amplitude control MMICs using 0.18-/spl mu/m CMOS technology

The design and performance of two new miniature 360/spl deg/ continuous-phase-control monolithic microwave integrated circuits (MMICs) using the vector sum method are presented. Both are implemented using commercial 0.18-/spl mu/m CMOS process. The first phase shifter demonstrates all continuous phase and an insertion loss of 8 dB with a 37-dB dynamic range from 15 to 20 GHz. The chip size is 0.95 mm /spl times/ 0.76 mm. The second phase shifter can achieve all continuous phase and an insertion loss of 16.2 dB with a 38.8-dB dynamic range at the same frequency range. The chip size is 0.71 mm /spl times/ 0.82 mm. To the best of the authors' knowledge, these circuits are the first demonstration of microwave CMOS phase shifters using the vector sum method with the smallest chip size for all MMIC phase shifters with 360/spl deg/ phase-control range above 5 GHz reported to date.
The Central Office Role in Instructional Improvement 1

ABSTRACT A major activity for central office staff is to promote instructional improvement The research reported in this article indicates that a key way of accomplishing improvement is to facilitate staff members’ access to and use of important bodies of instructional knowledge. The extent to which this knowledge is imparted helps explain district success in enabling all students to become successful learners. Instructional improvement is most effectively enacted through giving a clear and consistent message that instruction and its improvement is the primary expectation for adults in the system. Furthermore, this message is a function of central office staff involvement, support, and communication. 1Appreciation is expressed to Joan Buttram, Van Dempsey, Ken Leithwood, and Jaci Webb for reacting to drafts of this paper. The preparation of this paper was supported by funds from the U.S. Department of Education. ‐Office of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI). The opinions expressed do not necessari.
An alternative drug (paracetamol) in the management of patent ductus arteriosus in ibuprofen-resistant or contraindicated preterm infants

Background & aim Congenital heart malformation (CHM) is one of the most frequent and important abnormalities in newborns. In this study we retrospectively analyzed the frequency and distribution of the congenital heart diseases in our NICU. Method Newborns hospitalized in NICU between 2005 and 2011 were retrospectively analyzed. Gestational age, birth weight, consanguinity, type of congenital heart disease extracted from the computerized database. CHMswere classified as follows; left-to-right shunt, obstructive, cyanotic with decreased pulmonary flow, cyanotic with increased pulmonary flow and others. Results A total of 706 newborns were diagnosed as congenital heart disease during 7-year study period among the 7450 admission (9.5%). Consanguinity rate was 22.3% and 30.4% of these were first degree relatives. 42.7%, 17.3%, 13%, 11.6% were left-to-right shunt, obstructive, cyanotic with decreased pulmonary flow, cyanotic with increased pulmonary flow and others, respectively. Most frequent heart malformations were ASD (25.5%), VSD (12.6%), Aortic coarctation (10.8%), PDA (9.5%), TGA (8.8%), pulmonary atresia (8.2%), AVSD (4.1%), hypoplastic left heart (3.8%), pulmonary stenosis (3.1%), TOF (2.5%). 37 % of the newborns had at least one congenital malformation in other organ systems. Conclusion ASD, VSD and aortic coarctation were most common congenital heart disease followed in our NICU.
The Expert-Performance Approach as a Framework for Understanding and Enhancing Coaching Performance, Expertise and Learning

The expert-performance approach is critically evaluated for its potential to be used as the guiding framework for understanding and enhancing coaching performance, expertise and learning. The three-stage approach involves: i) identifying representative tasks that capture the essence of expertise in the domain; ii) having expert (and possibly novice) performers participate in those tasks, recording the mechanisms that mediate the expert's superior performance; and iii) tracing the acquisition of those skills and mechanisms. The approach enables the assessment of coaches' performance to be measured, identification of their respective strengths and weaknesses, and refinement of training activities to promote effective learning and the development of future generations of expert coaches.
The Toll-Like Receptor Agonist Imiquimod Is Active against Prions

Using a yeast-based assay, a previously unsuspected antiprion activity was found for imiquimod (IQ), a potent Toll-like receptor 7 (TLR7) agonist already used for clinical applications. The antiprion activity of IQ was first detected against yeast prions [PSI +] and [URE3], and then against mammalian prion both ex vivo in a cell-based assay and in vivo in a transgenic mouse model for prion diseases. In order to facilitate structure-activity relationship studies, we conducted a new synthetic pathway which provides a more efficient means of producing new IQ chemical derivatives, the activity of which was tested against both yeast and mammalian prions. The comparable antiprion activity of IQ and its chemical derivatives in the above life forms further emphasizes the conservation of prion controlling mechanisms throughout evolution. Interestingly, this study also demonstrated that the antiprion activity of IQ and IQ-derived compounds is independent from their ability to stimulate TLRs. Furthermore, we found that IQ and its active chemical derivatives inhibit the protein folding activity of the ribosome (PFAR) in vitro.
Canine intestinal secretion during and after rapid distention of the small bowel.

CAREN,JEFFREY F. , JAMES H. MEYER, AND MORTON I. GROSSMAN. Canine intestinal secretion during and after rapid distention of the small bowel. Am. J. Physiol. 227( 1) : 183-l 88. 1974. -In dogs with Thiry-Vella loops of jejunum and ileum, intestinal secretion was studied during and after ileal loop distention with latex balloons. Intraluminal pressures during distentions, as well as fluid outputs and plasma protein clearance into the loops before, during and after distention were measured. Tactile stimulation (with distention volumes producing little sustained increase in intraluminal pressure) significantly increased fluid output during contact and for 30 min thereafter. This response was abolished by both atropine and hexamethonium. Distention (with larger volumes producing sustained increases in intraluminal pressures) resulted in no increase in secretion during distention but sustained rises in fluid outputs for 2 or more hours following distention. This effect was abolished by hexamethonium. Plasma protein clearance accounted for only 12 yi1 of secreted volumes before, during, and after distention. Jejunal loop outputs did not increase when ileal outputs did. We conclude: I) tactile stimulation produces a different secretory response than distention; 2) neither response is hormonally mediated; 3) both responses can be modified by hexamethonium.
Assembly of root-associated bacteria communities: interactions between abiotic and biotic factors.

Nitrogen (N) deposition in many areas of the world is over an order of magnitude greater than it would be in absence of human activity. We ask how abiotic (N)and biotic (plant host and neighborhood) effects interact to influence root-associated bacterial (RAB)community assembly. Using 454 pyrosequencing, we examined RAB communities from two dominantal pine tundra plants, Geum rossii and Deschampsia cespitosa, under control, N addition and D. cespitosa removal treatments, implemented in a factorial design. We hypothesized that host would have the strongest effect on RAB assembly, followed by N,then neighbor effects.The most dominant phyla were Proteobacteria (mostly Gammaproteobacteria), Actinobacteria,Bacteroidetes and Acidobacteria. We found RAB communities were host specific, with only 17% overlap in operational taxonomic units. Host effects on composition were over twice as strong as Neffects. D. cespitosa RAB diversity declined with N, while G. rossii RAB did not. D. cespitosa removal did not influence G. rossii RAB community composition, but G. rossii RAB diversity declined with N only when D. cespitosa was absent. We conclude that RAB of both hosts are sensitive to N enrichment, and RAB response to N is influenced by host identity and plant neighborhood.
Investment Dynamics and the Timeliness Properties of Accounting Numbers

This paper examines the properties of accounting numbers using a real investment framework that predicts asymmetric timeliness of both investment and its outcomes (i.e. sales, earnings and operating cash flows) even in the absence of conservative accounting. In particular, I predict and find that firms are able to react more quickly to negative economic shocks (by cutting investment and employment) than to positive economic shocks (where there is a lag in implementing new investments or expanding employment). Next, I create the link between real investment and operating decisions and accounting by examining properties of sales and cash sales. I focus on analyzing sales and cash sales because real investment and operating activities are likely to have a great impact on the timeliness and time-series properties of these variables. I hypothesize that due to the slow investment adjustment to positive shocks, sales will exhibit a relatively stronger sensitivity to negative versus positive shocks. I also predict that sales will reflect a positive shock over time (positive autocorrelation) whereas a negative shock will be reflected in sales in a more immediate and permanent fashion. I find strong empirical support for both predictions. Crosssectional tests lend further support to my hypothesis that real operating and investment activities play a crucial role in determining the observed properties of accounting numbers. Thesis Supervisor: S.P. Kothari Title: Gordon Y Billard Professor of Accounting
Resurgence of Textile-Making in Contemporary Korean Culture

The purpose of this study was to investigate patterns and reasons for textile-making in women from non-Western culture, Korea, as well as to examine how these patterns and reasons reflected generational differences. Singelis's (1994) self-construal model was used to study values; Collier's (2011) survey was used to investigate patterns and reasons for making textile handcrafts. A total of 365 Korean participants completed the survey: 28% of the participants were young adults (18–25 years old), 42% were middle adults (26–45 years old), and 30% were older adults (46–97 years old). The results confirmed significant differences in the self-construals for different generations of Korean women. Older adults had the highest interdependence scores, followed by the middle adults; the young adults had the lowest scores. Significantly different patterns and reasons among the three Korean groups were also consistent with these results. By demonstrating significantly different patterns and reasons for textile-making between three generations in Korean culture, this study offers a unique contribution to the understanding of the resurgence of textile-making today.
Desire-Induced, Innate, Insatiable?

An explosion of interest in consumption has occurred among American and European historians. While social historians have paid the most attention to consumption a broad array including economic, communications and intellectual historians have taken up this issue. These authors have varying views of the nature of changes in consumption and of the dimensions and causes of these changes. This article attempts to summarize the historians' views.