Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Shared Idiotypic Determinants on B and T Lymphocytes Reactive Against the Same Antigenic Determinants

In the rat the major histocompatibility locus antigens are determined by the Ag‐B locus. In the present article evidence is presented that the sera and urine ui normal adult rats contain naturally occurring antibody‐like molecules with reactivity to allogeneic Ag‐B antigens. Such molecules can be shown to contain both antigen‐binding capacity for the relevant antigens and the idiotypic markers signifying such specific reactivity. The molecules could be shown to be composed of two groups of molecules, one around 7S IgG in size and the other around 35,000 in molecular weight. Only the smaller molecules were found in the urine. From other data we know that the 7S molecules are produced by B lymphocytes and the 35,000‐molecular‐wfight molecules by T cells. Purified natural anti‐Ag‐B factors, when inoculated into rabbits or chickens, lead to the production of specific anti‐idiotypic antibodies that will selectively inactivate rat T lymphocytes with the capacity to react against the relevant Ag‐B antigens while leaving other reactivity intact. We thus conclude that the present system allows the purification of naturally occurring idiotypic B‐ and T‐cell products with antigen‐binding specificity for further biochemical and functional analysis.
Predictions of Psychophysical Measurements for Sinusoidal Amplitude Modulated (SAM) Pulse-Train Stimuli From a Stochastic Model

Two approaches have been proposed to reduce the synchrony of the neural response to electrical stimuli in cochlear implants. One approach involves adding noise to the pulse-train stimulus, and the other is based on using a high-rate pulse-train carrier. Hypotheses regarding the efficacy of the two approaches can be tested using computational models of neural responsiveness prior to time-intensive psychophysical studies. In our previous work, we have used such models to examine the effects of noise on several psychophysical measures important to speech recognition. However, to date there has been no parallel analytic solution investigating the neural response to the high-rate pulse-train stimuli and their effect on psychophysical measures. This work investigates the properties of the neural response to high-rate pulse-train stimuli with amplitude modulated envelopes using a stochastic auditory nerve model. The statistics governing the neural response to each pulse are derived using a recursive method. The agreement between the theoretical predictions and model simulations is demonstrated for sinusoidal amplitude modulated (SAM) high rate pulse-train stimuli. With our approach, predicting the neural response in modern implant devices becomes tractable. Psychophysical measurements are also predicted using the stochastic auditory nerve model for SAM high-rate pulse-train stimuli. Changes in dynamic range (DR) and intensity discrimination are compared with that observed for noise-modulated pulse-train stimuli. Modulation frequency discrimination is also studied as a function of stimulus level and pulse rate. Results suggest that high rate carriers may positively impact such psychophysical measures.
Affirmative Action and Job Satisfaction: Self-Interested v. Public Spirited Perspectives on Social Equity—Some Sobering Findings from the Academic Workplace

This study utilizes a national study of university faculty, including a sizeable proportion of Afro-American and female respondents, to examine university faculty attitudes toward affir mative action. It has been argued by some that self-interested motivations underlie attitudes about affirmative action policies, while others have argued that "public spirit" (Kelman, 1987) and "other regarding" (Wilson and Banfield, 1964) motivations more properly serve to account for attitudes relating to social equity and societal welfare issues. University faculty were chosen as a particularly appropriate group to study; if any segment of society is likely to be public spirited in this way it is likely to be the best educated among us. The central question to be investigated is: how do individuals embedded in a meritocratic system such as the University perceive affirmative action and the benefits and harms it holds for both white males and protected category persons? How, in turn, does this set of attitudes about affirmative action affect the job satisfaction of white male professors? The results indicate that little "pub lic spirit" is in evidence, suggesting that future implementation of this policy will hold only continued conflict for Academe. Somewhat fortunate, however, is the finding that job satisfac tion for white males is little related to their views on affirmative action.
Redox outside the Box: Linking Extracellular Redox Remodeling with Intracellular Redox Metabolism*

Aerobic organisms generate reactive oxygen species as metabolic side products and must achieve a delicate balance between using them for signaling cellular functions and protecting against collateral damage. Small molecule (e.g. glutathione and cysteine)- and protein (e.g. thioredoxin)-based buffers regulate the ambient redox potentials in the various intracellular compartments, influence the status of redox-sensitive macromolecules, and protect against oxidative stress. Less well appreciated is the fact that the redox potential of the extracellular compartment is also carefully regulated and is dynamic. Changes in intracellular metabolism alter the redox poise in the extracellular compartment, and these are correlated with cellular processes such as proliferation, differentiation, and death. In this minireview, the mechanism of extracellular redox remodeling due to intracellular sulfur metabolism is discussed in the context of various cell-cell communication paradigms.
Argumentation at the table-talk level of middle school students participating in scientific cafés

"Scientific cafe" refers to the public discussion of socially pertinent questions which have scientific content in an informal setting, typically a bar. This scheme has been adapted to middle and high school class settings. This paper presents an experimental organizational scheme which uses electronic voting. The scheme is evaluated with respect to student engagement and participation, as well as the relationship between the preliminary, private discussion in the small groups and students' public space interventions.
Effects of masticatory muscle training on maximum bite force and muscular endurance

Abstract Objective. This study evaluates the effects of chewing training on strength and endurance of the masticatory muscles. Materials and methods. Of the 49 healthy young adults included in the study, nine served as controls for a baseline measurement of bite force. The 40 participants who actively trained their masticatory muscles were randomly divided into a ‘continuous training group' (CTG) and an ‘intermittent training group' (ITG). The participants performed oral motor training by clenching silicon tubes (Chewy Tubes™) according to a designed protocol. The muscular strength was studied in terms of maximum bite force. Muscular endurance was evaluated by measuring the duration for which the participants held 50% of their maximum bite force value. Results. Both the maximum bite force and the muscular endurance capacity increased after intensive training for both groups. After 2 months, the ITG stopped training for 1 month. At this point, a significant difference was identified both in the mean bite force values and the mean muscular endurance duration: the ITG exhibited lower values. For both groups, the highest values were attained after 3 months of training. The maximum bite force values and the muscular endurance duration were observed to follow similar patterns. The effects attained decreased rapidly in both groups when the training stopped. Conclusions. For both the continuous and intermittent training groups, 4 months of chewing exercises strengthened masticatory muscles, but such effects diminished gradually for both groups when the exercises stopped.
Electrophysiological Study of a Novel Large Pore Formed by Bax and the Voltage-dependent Anion Channel That Is Permeable to Cytochrome c *

The Bcl-2 family of proteins, consisting of anti-apoptotic and pro-apoptotic members, regulates cell death by controlling mitochondrial membrane permeability that is crucial for apoptotic signal transduction. We have recently shown that some of these proteins, such as Bcl-xL, Bax, and Bak, directly modulate the mitochondrial voltage-dependent anion channel (VDAC) and thus regulate apoptogenic cytochrome crelease and potential loss. To elucidate the molecular mechanisms of VDAC regulation by Bcl-2 family proteins, an electrophysiological study was carried out. It was found that VDAC and pro-apoptotic Bax created a large pore, with conductance levels 4- and 10-fold greater than those of the VDAC and Bax channels, respectively. Although the VDAC and Bax channels both show ion selectivity and voltage-dependent modulation of their activity, the VDAC-Bax channel had neither of their properties. Anti-apoptotic Bcl-xL and its BH4 oligopeptide completely closed the VDAC, in contrast to the Bax. Cytochromec passed through a single VDAC-Bax channel but not through the VDAC or Bax channel in a planar lipid bilayer. These data provide direct evidence that VDAC forms a novel large pore together with Bax.
Labour, official school improvement and equality

After the experience of a Conservative government characterized by substantial social inequalities in education, what impact will the policies of the new Labour government have? In this paper I argue that Labour government's economic and social policies will tend to sustain and recreate inequality, and that its education policies are themselves governed by the same imperatives of competitiveness in the global market, human capital theory, corporate managerialism and electoral calculation. The resulting agenda, which I have called Official School Improvement, is not orientated towards effectively tackling education inequality in terms of either its conceptual base, its aims or its policies.
The GH3 Acyl Adenylase Family Member PBS3 Regulates Salicylic Acid-Dependent Defense Responses in Arabidopsis1[W][OA]

The pbs3-1 mutant, identified in a screen for Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) mutants exhibiting enhanced susceptibility to the avirulent Pseudomonas syringae pathogen DC3000 (avrPphB), also exhibits enhanced susceptibility to virulent P. syringae strains, suggesting it may impact basal disease resistance. Because induced salicylic acid (SA) is a critical mediator of basal resistance responses, free and glucose-conjugated SA levels were measured and expression of the SA-dependent pathogenesis-related (PR) marker, PR1, was assessed. Surprisingly, whereas accumulation of the SA glucoside and expression of PR1 were dramatically reduced in the pbs3-1 mutant in response to P. syringae (avrRpt2) infection, free SA was elevated. However, in response to exogenous SA, the conversion of free SA to SA glucoside and the induced expression of PR1 were similar in pbs3-1 and wild-type plants. Through positional cloning, complementation, and sequencing, we determined that the pbs3-1 mutant contains two point mutations in the C-terminal region of the protein encoded by At5g13320, resulting in nonconserved amino acid changes in highly conserved residues. Additional analyses with Arabidopsis containing T-DNA insertion (pbs3-2) and transposon insertion (pbs3-3) mutations in At5g13320 confirmed our findings with pbs3-1. PBS3 (also referred to as GH3.12) is a member of the GH3 family of acyl-adenylate/thioester-forming enzymes. Characterized GH3 family members, such as JAR1, act as phytohormone-amino acid synthetases. Thus, our results suggest that amino acid conjugation plays a critical role in SA metabolism and induced defense responses, with PBS3 acting upstream of SA, directly on SA, or on a competitive inhibitor of SA.
Real appreciation and output

This paper discusses the positive and negative effects on the Russian economy that are caused by the real appreciation which has taken place in Russia since 1993. As we were not able to find reliable co-integrating relationships between the studied non-stationary variables (and this is not surprising, since the available data only cover between four and six years), all the econometric estimations have been done using stationary differences. So, the economic relationships that we have tested are the ones between shortrun adjustments to shocks, and our conclusions can not be automatically extended to knowledge about level dependencies. Based on the Granger causality tests, we conclude that short-term adjustments in the real price of crude oil exported to non-CIS countries causes short-term adjustments in the physical volume of exports to nonCIS, as well as to CIS, countries. Stable (i. e. constant over time) month-to-month changes in the real export price influence the non-CIS export volume positively, but in the case of CIS exports, only unstable price changes matter. Short-term changes in the volumes of natural gas exports are insensitive to adjustments in the price of exported goods. Further, it is shown that short-run adjustments in the real prices of imported white sugar and meat were not a cause of the month-to-month changes in import volumes. Larger short-run adjustments in import volumes did result in more month-to-month decreases in the domestic production of meat, but this was not the way in which the real appreciation affected output. We found out that the effect of the increase in the rate of real appreciation on short-term adjustments in the consumption of the population is negative under the assumption that month-to-month changes in real disposable income and real wealth remain constant. Our estimation of the cumulative effect of the real exchange rate on output suggests that the higher month-to-month real appreciation resulted in higher short-run increases in aggregate supply and real GDP.
Identification of an immunodominant mouse minor histocompatibility antigen (MiHA). T cell response to a single dominant MiHA causes graft-versus-host disease.

T cell responses to non-MHC antigens are targeted to a restricted number of immunodominant minor histocompatibility antigens whose identity remains elusive. Here we report isolation and sequencing of a novel immunodominant minor histocompatibility antigen presented by H-2Db on the surface of C57BL/6 mouse cells. This nonapeptide (AAPDNRETF) shows strong biologic activity in cytotoxic T lymphocyte sensitization assays at concentrations as low as 10 pM. C3H.SW mice primed with AAPDNRETF in incomplete Freund's adjuvant generated a potent anti-C57BL/6 T cell-mediated cytotoxic activity, and T lymphocytes from AAPDNRETF-primed mice caused graft-versus-host disease when transplanted in irradiated C57BL/6 recipients. These results (a) provide molecular characterization of a mouse dominant minor histocompatibility antigen, (b) identify this peptide as a potential target of graft-versus-host disease and, (c) more importantly, demonstrate that a single dominant minor antigen can cause graft-versus-host disease. These findings open new avenues for the prevention of graft-versus-host disease and should further our understanding of the mechanisms of immunodominance in T cell responses to minor histocompatibility antigens.
The Underlying Link Between Fiscal Policy Patterns and International Reserves

This paper extends the model in Aizenman and Marion (2004) to study the underlying link and interaction between fiscal policy patterns and international reserves in developing countries. It shows that because of conditional access to international credit markets, the immediate impact of an adverse shock on an emerging economy is a lower level of international reserves and a procyclical fiscal policy. However, facing the uncertainty of future shocks, the authorities in this economy then have a strong incentive to hoard more precautionary reserves if possible. If the economy successfully accumulates more reserves, it can have a lower tax rate in the second period and its fiscal policy would be more countercyclical. The model's predictions are consistent with new empirical findings.
A 10-Bit Low-Power High-Color-Depth Column Driver With Two-Stage Multi-Channel RDACs for Small-Format TFT-LCD Driver ICs

This study proposes a 10-bit low-power high-color-depth LCD column driver IC with two-stage multi-channel RDACs and switch resistance compensation. The design removes intermediate buffers from two-stage RDACs and uses global reference buffers to isolate the global resistor string and output channels. Because the global resistor string is isolated from output channels, the global resistor string can use a larger resistance value to achieve lower power consumption. This study proposes a class-AB buffer for the global reference buffers to compensate for the errors caused by the voltage drop on switches connected in series with the channel resistor string. The channel resistor strings also reuse the output stage current of the global buffer to reduce power consumption. A prototype of a 200-channel column driver was fabricated using 0.18- μm/0.35- μm CMOS technology with the worst DNL/INL being 1.2/1.1 LSB. The proposed 10-bit DAC occupies only 66% of the area of a conventional 8-bit RDAC using the same technology. The 200-channel column driver consumes a total static current of only 0.38 mA.
Regulation of renal hemodynamics after protein feeding: effects of proximal and distal diuretics.

The purpose of these studies was to compare the effects of proximally and distally acting diuretics on the renal hemodynamic response to protein feeding to determine the importance of the proximal tubule in postprandial renal vasodilation. In chronically instrumented conscious dogs, a meat meal (10 g/kg raw beef) caused glomerular filtration rate (GFR) to increase from 63 +/- 5 to 87 +/- 10 ml/min and effective renal plasma flow (ERPF) to increase from 189 +/- 20 to 249 +/- 20 ml/min, while plasma alpha-amino nitrogen levels rose from 4.0 +/- 0.1 to 6.8 +/- 0.4 mg/dl. Administration of amiloride (0.2 mg/kg + 0.003 mg.kg-1.min-1) or potassium canrenoate (1.76 mg/kg + 1.76 mg.kg-1.h-1), diuretics that act in the distal tubule, had no effect on the renal hemodynamic responses to a meat meal. However, the normal renal hemodynamic responses to protein feeding were abolished during administration of a diuretic that acts in the proximal tubule, acetazolamide (20 mg/kg + 20 mg.kg-1.h-1), although plasma alpha-amino nitrogen levels increased after the meat meal in all experiments. These data suggest that normal proximal tubular sodium reabsorptive function is necessary for acute protein-stimulated renal vasodilation and are consistent with the hypothesis that a tubuloglomerular feedback mechanism may mediate postprandial renal vasodilation.
Structural insight into dimeric interaction of the SARAH domains from Mst1 and RASSF family proteins in the apoptosis pathway

In eukaryotic cells, apoptosis and cell cycle arrest by the Ras → RASSF → MST pathway are controlled by the interaction of SARAH (for Salvador/Rassf/Hippo) domains in the C-terminal part of tumor suppressor proteins. The Mst1 SARAH domain interacts with its homologous domain of Rassf1 and Rassf5 (also known as Nore1) by forming a heterodimer that mediates the apoptosis process. Here, we describe the homodimeric structure of the human Mst1 SARAH domain and its heterotypic interaction with the Rassf5 and Salvador (Sav) SARAH domain. The Mst1 SARAH structure forms a homodimer containing two helices per monomer. An antiparallel arrangement of the long α-helices (h2/h2′) provides an elongated binding interface between the two monomers, and the short 310 helices (h1/h1′) are folded toward that of the other monomer. Chemical shift perturbation experiments identified an elongated, tight-binding interface with the Rassf5 SARAH domain and a 1:1 heterodimer formation. The linker region between the kinase and the SARAH domain is shown to be disordered in the free protein. These results imply a novel mode of interaction with RASSF family proteins and provide insight into the mechanism of apoptosis control by the SARAH domain.
Integrin Fibronectin Receptors in Matrix Metalloproteinase-1–Dependent Invasion by Breast Cancer and Mammary Epithelial Cells

Integrins contribute to progression in many cancers, including breast cancer. For example, the interaction of α5β1 with plasma fibronectin causes the constitutive invasiveness of human prostate cancer cells. Inhibition of this process reduces tumorigenesis and prevents metastasis and recurrence. In this study, naturally serum-free basement membranes were used as invasion substrates. Immunoassays were used to compare the roles of α5β1 and α4β1 fibronectin receptors in regulating matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-1–dependent invasion by human breast cancer and mammary epithelial cells. We found that a peptide consisting of fibronectin PHSRN sequence, Ac-PHSRN-NH2, induces α5β1-mediated invasion of basement membranes in vitro by human breast cancer and mammary epithelial cells. PHSRN-induced invasion requires interstitial collagenase MMP-1 activity and is suppressed by an equimolar concentration of a peptide consisting of the LDV sequence of the fibronectin connecting segment, Ac-LHGPEILDVPST-NH2, in mammary epithelial cells, but not in breast cancer cells. This sequence interacts with α4β1, an integrin that is often down-regulated in breast cancer cells. Immunoblotting shows that the PHSRN peptide stimulates MMP-1 production by serum-free human breast cancer and mammary epithelial cells and that the LDV peptide represses PHSRN-stimulated MMP-1 production only in mammary epithelial cells. Furthermore, PHSRN stimulates MMP-1 activity in breast cancer cells and mammary epithelial cells with a time course that closely parallels invasion induction. Thus, down-regulation of surface α4β1 during oncogenic transformation may be crucial for establishment of the α5β1-induced, MMP-1–dependent invasive phenotype of breast cancer cells.
Association between HLA-DQB1*03:01 and Bullous pemphigoid in Iranian patients.

BACKGROUND A common Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) class II allele, DQβ1*03:01, seems to be associated with Bullous pemphigoid (BP) in Caucasians whereas previous studies in other ethnic groups showed other HLA class II alleles as genetic predisposing factors for BP. OBJECTIVE To investigate the association of HLA class II alleles and haplotypes with BP in Iranian population. METHODS Fifty patients with Bullous pemphigoid and 180 geographically matched, healthy individuals as control group enrolled into this study. HLA typing of class II (DR and DQ alleles) was carried out using polymerase chain reaction based on sequence-specific primers method. RESULTS Class II DQA1 and DQB1 typing showed a significantly higher frequency of HLA-DQA1*05:01 (45% vs. 33%, p=0.03), HLA-DQB1*03:01 (36% vs. 23.6%, p=0.02) and HLA-DQB1*04:01 (4% vs. 1.6%, p=0.04) in the BP patients compared with controls. For DRB1 allele frequencies, there were no significant disease associations. The frequency of DRB1*08:01/DQA1*05:01/DQB1*03:01 (3% vs. 0%, p=0.02) haplotype showed an increase among patients compared with controls. CONCLUSION Our data suggest that Iranian patients with BP present the same genetic predisposition linked to HLA-DQB1*03:01 previously reported in Caucasians.