Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Neuronal differentiation requires a biphasic modulation of gap junctional intercellular communication caused by dynamic changes of connexin43 expression

It was suggested that gap junctional intercellular communication (GJIC) and connexin (Cx) proteins play a crucial role in cell proliferation and differentiation. However, the mechanisms of cell coupling in regulating cell fate during embryonic development are poorly understood. To study the role of GJIC in proliferation and differentiation, we used a human neural progenitor cell line derived from the ventral mesencephalon. Fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP) showed that dye coupling was extensive in proliferating cells but diminished after the induction of differentiation, as indicated by a 2.5‐fold increase of the half‐time of fluorescence recovery. Notably, recovery half‐time decreased strongly (five‐fold) in the later stage of differentiation. Western blot analysis revealed a similar time‐dependent expression profile of Cx43, acting as the main gap junction‐forming protein. Interestingly, large amounts of cytoplasmic Cx43 were retained mainly in the Golgi network during proliferation but decreased when differentiation was induced. Furthermore, down‐regulation of Cx43 by small interfering RNA reduced functional cell coupling, which in turn resulted in a 50% decrease of both the proliferation rate and neuronal differentiation. Our findings suggest a dual function of Cx43 and GJIC in the neural development of ReNcell VM197 human progenitor cells. GJIC accompanied by high Cx43 expression is necessary (1) to maintain cells in a proliferative state and (2) to complete neuronal differentiation, including the establishment of a neural network. However, uncoupling of cells is crucial in the early stage of differentiation during cell fate commitment.
Physical Mapping Evidence for a Duplicated Region on Chromosome 10qter Showing High Homology with the Facioscapulohumeral Muscular Dystrophy Locus on Chromosome 4qter

Abstractp13E-11, a probe (D4F104S1 locus) derived from chromosome 4q35, detects -EcoRI-rearranged fragments less than 28 kb in both sporadic and familial cases of facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD). These fragments are smaller than those observed in healthy individuals. The interpretation of Southern blots is complicated by the fact that pl3E-11 reveals two pairs of polymorphic alleles, one 4q35-specific and the other unlinked to 4q35, that sometimes overlap each other. We cloned a non-4q35 13-kb fragment not related to the disease from a sporadic FSHD patient of Italian origin. Haplotype analysis and in situ hybridization experiments showed that this fragment was located on the 10qter region. Restriction mapping of the 10qter clone, when compared with the 4q35 fragment, indicates a similar arrangement of KpnI tandemly repeated units and flanking sequences. However 4q35 and 10q26 EcoRI clones can be distinguished by restriction analysis with SfiI and SfyI. This observation could be exploited for future applications in the field of molecular diagnosis and genetic counseling. In addition the isolation of two 10q26 cosmid clones (D10S1484 and D10S1485) from a human genomic library and the construction of a detailed physical map, spanning about 40 kb, showed that the structural homology extended upstream of the EcoRI sites, suggesting that a duplicated FSHD locus resided in the subtelomeric region of the long arm of chromosome 10. We cannot exclude the involvement of the duplicated locus in the molecular mechanism of the disease and in the genetic heterogeneity of FSHD syndromes.
Liberatory Consequences of Literacy: A Case of Culturally Relevant Instruction for African American Students.

Richards further asserts that "African culture is amazingly resilient. In spite of the most culturally destructive forces in history, it has not disappeared" (p. 229). Indeed, Africans and their culture are a pervasive force throughout the world. "Diaspora," a term most often attributed to the Jewish people and the Jewish community outside of Palestine, also refers to the dispersion of African descent peoples throughout the world. The African Diaspora is readily apparent in North, South, and Central America as well as the Caribbean. Despite the cruel Middle Passage, the barbaric process of seasoning in the Caribbean, and the experience of slavery, distinctive features of African culture persist among members of the African Diaspora. Boykin and Tom (1985) have identified nine dimensions of African American cultural expression that have parallel referents throughout Africa and the Diaspora. These cultural expressions include the dimensions of spirituality, harmony, movement, verve, affect, orality, communalism, expressive individualism, and social time perspective. However, there is a persistent ethos in U.S. culture that attempts to dismiss these cultural connections in an effort to move African Americans toward some mythical, homogenized American identity that is solely formed on this side of the Atlantic (Schlesinger, 1991). Evidence of this lack of cultural continuity, Schlesinger notes, is the alleged rejection of
Critic review on MPEG-4 face and body animation

The MPEG-4 face and body animation (FBA) specifications aims at standardizing an interchange format for specifying virtual face and body modeling and related animation parameters. The scene graph concept, the FBA nodes, semantics and representation of the animation parameters as well as compression and streaming capabilities are successively addressed. The compatibility between virtual character animation techniques and MPEG-4 FBA is analyzed in terms of modeling, deformation behavior and animation capabilities.
Constructing masculinity in women's worlds: Men working as pre-school teachers and hairdressers

In late modernity masculinity and gender differences might be seen as commodities in the labour market. This article discusses from a poststructural perspective different concepts of masculinity and gender equality among men working as pre-school teachers and hairdressers in Sweden. The men both reproduce and renegotiate gender relations. The same man uses different, sometimes arbitrary, discourses. Stereotypes linked to the occupations and the male body are actualizing the heterosexual matrix in the workplace. Two strategies are found. Some men do not stress gender as a categorization and emphasize similarities between men and women while other men actualize gender difference.
Technology and Counter-hegemonic Movements: The case of Nike Corporation

This paper examines ways in which the Internet and alternative forms of media have been employed to enhance political struggle in contemporary society, and are in fact redefining political struggle. It uses a case study of Nike Corporation to highlight that although the power and autonomy of transnational corporations operating within the global economy has been enhanced over the past few decades, there are accompanying modes of grassroots organizing which foster globalized resistance to such hegemonic tendencies. The analysis argues that the Internet provides the resources and environment necessary for cohesive organized resistance to corporate culture across the domains of production (labor issues) and consumption issues (marketing). The Internet and independent media have facilitated organizing strategies among emerging new social movements, such as the anti-sweatshop movement and the Culture Jammers movement. This paper draws on both modern and postmodern theory to explore ways in which marginal groups can utilize the new modes of technology for their own ends, and use micro-level forms of resistance to challenge macro-level trends.
Microstructured superhydrorepellent surfaces: effect of drop pressure on fakir-state stability and apparent contact angles

In this paper we present a generalized Cassie–Baxter equation to take into account the effect of drop pressure on the apparent contact angle θapp. Also we determine the limiting pressure pW which causes the impalement transition to the Wenzel state and the pull-off pressure pout at which the drop detaches from the substrate. The calculations have been carried out for axial-symmetric pillars of three different shapes: conical, hemispherical-topped and flat-topped cylindrical pillars. Calculations show that, assuming the same pillar spacing, conical pillars may be more inclined to undergo an impalement transition to the Wenzel state, but, on the other hand, they are characterized by a vanishing pull-off pressure which causes the drop not to adhere to the substrate and therefore to detach very easily. We infer that this property should strongly reduce the contact angle hysteresis as experimentally observed in Martines et al (2005 Nano Lett. 5 2097–103). It is possible to combine large resistance to impalement transition (i.e. large value of pW) and small (or even vanishing) detaching pressure pout by employing cylindrical pillars with conical tips. We also show that, depending on the particular pillar geometry, the effect of drop pressure on the apparent contact angle θapp may be more or less significant. In particular we show that in the case of conical pillars increasing the drop pressure causes a significant decrease of θapp in agreement with some experimental investigations (Lafuma and Quéré 2003 Nat. Mater. 2 457), whereas θapp slightly increases for hemispherical or flat-topped cylindrical pillars.
Membrane Potential, Ca2+ Influx, and Ca2+ Release in Single Vascular Muscle Cells

Isolated single vascular muscle cells from azygous vein of rats were used to make measurements of intracellular Ca2+ release, using a differential interference contrast 2 wavelength system and the Ca2+ indicator arsenazo III (Az III). Ca2+ release in spontaneously contracting isolated single muscle cells was extremely nonuniform, giving Ca2+ signals in some areas that were at least five times as great as those in others. Some areas of the cell showed virtually no detectable increase in Ca2+ activity during contraction, and these differences in Ca2+ activity corresponded with differences in contractile filament movement within the cell. The possibility that the nonuniformity of the Ca2+ signals was due to localization of Az III, which had been introduced by liposomes, was excluded because optical density at the 580 nm isosbestic point in any 5–20 μm2 area varied by not >50% from the average Az III concentration. In contrast, when isolated single vascular muscle cells were stimulated with electric current pulses, Ca2+ release and contraction were uniformly synchronized throughout the cell. Our data suggest that the uptake and removal process by intracellular transport is the major determinant of intracellular Ca2+ activity in azygous venous vascular muscle cells.
Streptomyces tateyamensis sp. nov., Streptomyces marinus sp. nov. and Streptomyces haliclonae sp. nov., isolated from the marine sponge Haliclona sp.

Three Gram-positive, NaCl-requiring actinobacteria were isolated from a marine sponge, Haliclona sp. , collected from the coast of Tateyama City, Japan. Comparison of 16S rRNA gene sequences indicated that these strains represent novel members of the genus Streptomyces, exhibiting low 16S rRNA gene sequence similarities of 98.3-97.4 % with recognized members of the genus. The cell hydrolysates contained the LL-isomer of diaminopimelic acid and the predominant quinones were MK-9 (H(6) and/or H(8)). The DNA G+C contents were in the range 72-75mol%. A polyphasic study of the strains and comparison of the characters with related species of the genus show that these strains represent three novel species of the genus Streptomyces. Therefore, the names Streptomyces tateyamensis sp. nov., Streptomyces haliclonae sp. nov. and Streptomyces marinus sp. nov. are proposed for strains Sp080513SC-30(T) (=NBRC 105048(T) =DSM 41969(T)), Sp080513SC-31(T) (=NBRC 105049(T) =DSM 41970(T)) and Sp080513GE-26(T) (=NBRC 105047(T) =DSM 41968(T)), respectively.
Construction of a Spatial Housing Price Index by Estimating an Almost Ideal Demand System

The aim of this article is to build a spatial housing price index for the Chilean communes (the commune political body similar to a municipality or county). The first step is to recover hedonic prices of three housing attributes by estimating a mixed index model (Bowden, 1992) using a generalized method of moments procedure. Secondly, a censored almost ideal demand system (Deaton and Muellbauer, 1980) is estimated to build expenditures for every commune and to compare them among different spatial units, while maintaining a constant utility level. Using micro data from the 2009 CASEN survey, we show that there are important differences in housing prices among Chilean communes and the axiomatic approach tends to understate spatial index compared to economic approach.
Friendship Patterns and Culture: The Control of Organizational Diversity

Organizational culture is often described as a management control device, but this view obscures the importance of informal social interactions for the emergence and modification of culture. We elicited seven cultural dimensions used by employees to predict and make sense of the behavior patterns of others in an entrepreneurial firm. Forty-seven key employees rated each other on these dimensions. Consistent with predictions, friends, relative to nonfriends, made similar attributions about fellow employees across the seven dimensions. The pattern of results remained significant even controlling for demographic and positional similarities. Further, the more people disagreed with their friends, the more they tended to be dissatisfied with their jobs. The control of organizational diversity may be as much an interpersonal initiative as it is a prerogative of management manipulation.
Efficacy of Nintendo Wii training on mechanical leg muscle function and postural balance in community-dwelling older adults: a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND Older adults show increased risk of falling and major risk factors include impaired lower extremity muscle strength and postural balance. However, the potential positive effect of biofeedback-based Nintendo Wii training on muscle strength and postural balance in older adults is unknown. METHODS This randomized controlled trial examined postural balance and muscle strength in community-dwelling older adults (75±6 years) pre- and post-10 weeks of biofeedback-based Nintendo Wii training (WII, n = 28) or daily use of ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer insoles (controls [CON], n = 30). Primary end points were maximal muscle strength (maximal voluntary contraction) and center of pressure velocity moment during bilateral static stance. RESULTS Intention-to-treat analysis with adjustment for age, sex, and baseline level showed that the WII group had higher maximal voluntary contraction strength (18%) than the control group at follow up (between-group difference = 269 N, 95% CI = 122; 416, and p = .001). In contrast, the center of pressure velocity moment did not differ (1%) between WII and CON at follow-up (between-group difference = 0.23 mm(2)/s, 95% CI = -4.1; 4.6, and p = . 92). For secondary end points, pre-to-post changes favoring the WII group were evident in the rate of force development (p = .03), Timed Up and Go test (p = .01), short Falls Efficacy Scale-International (p = .03), and 30-second repeated Chair Stand Test (p = .01). Finally, participants rated the Wii training highly motivating at 5 and 10 weeks into the intervention. CONCLUSIONS Biofeedback-based Wii training led to marked improvements in maximal leg muscle strength (maximal voluntary contraction; rate of force development) and overall functional performance in community-dwelling older adults. Unexpectedly, static bilateral postural balance remained unaltered with Wii training. The high level of participant motivation suggests that biofeedback-based Wii exercise may ensure a high degree of compliance to home- and/or community-based training in community-dwelling older adults.
Temozolomide Therapy for Aggressive Pituitary Tumors: Results in a Small Series of Patients from Argentina

We evaluated results of temozolomide (TMZ) therapy in six patients, aged 34–78 years, presenting aggressive pituitary tumors. In all the patients tested O6-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT) immunoexpression in surgical specimens was absent. Patients received temozolomide 140–320 mg/day for 5 days monthly for at least 3 months. In two patients minimum time for evaluation could not be reached because of death in a 76-year-old man with a malignant prolactinoma and of severe neutro-thrombopenia in a 47-year-old woman with nonfunctioning pituitary adenoma. In two patients (a 34-year-old acromegalic woman and a 39-year-old woman with Nelson's syndrome) no response was observed after 4 and 6 months, respectively, and the treatment was stopped. Conversely, two 52- and 42-year-old women with Cushing's disease had long-term total clinical and radiological remissions which persisted after stopping temozolomide. We conclude that TMZ therapy may be of variable efficacy depending on—until now—incompletely understood factors. Cooperative work on a greater number of cases of aggressive pituitary tumors should be crucial to establish the indications, doses, and duration of temozolomide administration.
Induction of Anthocyanin Accumulation by Cytokinins in Arabidopsis thaliana

Arabidopsis thaliana plants treated with exogenous cytokinins accumulate anthocyanin pigments. We have characterized this response because it is potentially useful as a genetic marker for cytokinin responsiveness. Levels of mRNAs for four genes of the anthocyanin biosynthesis pathway, phenylalanine ammonia lyase 1 (PAL1), chalcone synthase (CHS), chalcone isomerase (CHI), and dihydroflavonol reductase (DFR) were shown to increase coordinately in response to benzyladenine (BA). However, nuclear run-on transcription experiments suggested that although CHS and DFR are controlled by BA at the transcriptional level, PAL1 and CHI are controlled by BA posttranscriptionally. CHS mRNA levels increased within 2 h of BA spray application, and peaked by 3 h. Levels of PAL1 mRNA did not increase within 6 h of BA spray. We also showed that PAL1, CHS, CHI, and DFR mRNA levels fluctuate during a 24-h period and appear to be controlled by a circadian clock. The relation between cytokinin regulation and light regulation of CHS gene transcription is discussed.
Weighted average instantaneous frequency based on adaptive signal decomposition

It is often claimed that instantaneous frequency, taken as the derivative of the phase of the signal, is appropriate or meaningful only for mono-component signals, and that for multi-component signals a weighted average of individual instantaneous frequencies should be used. In this paper, we show if a signal is decomposed adaptively and we compute the matching pursuit distribution, then the first conditional spectral moment is exactly the weighted average instantaneous frequency. Two different signals will be analyzed and the above result will be illustrated in practice.
A Theory of Mind (TOM) and People with Learning Disabilities: The Effects of a Training Package

Sixteen adults from a local day centre were assessed using a first-order representation of false-belief task (Sally-Ann experiment) for their ‘theory of mind’ abilities (the ability to correctly reason about another's mental state). It was found that only 12.5% of participants could perform this task correctly. The study then went on to establish whether this ability could be trained, retrained and/or transferred. The results showed a significant improvement in participants' performance through training, this improvement was maintained over time and participants appeared to transfer this ability to a similar task. It was concluded that this research puts further doubt on an absence/impaired theory of mind being unique to autism. Implications were discussed in terms of social interaction and people with intellectual disabilities.
IEWPOINT ationale and Strategies for Implementing ommunity-Based Transfer Protocols for rimary Percutaneous Coronary Intervention for cute ST-Segment Elevation Myocardial Infarction

The focus for the initial approach to the treatment of acute ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) has shifted toward extending the benefits of mechanical reperfusion with primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) to patients who present to community hospitals that have no interventional capabilities. Several randomized clinical trials have shown that transferring STEMI patients to tertiary centers for primary PCI leads to better outcomes than when fibrinolytic therapy is administered at community hospitals. Furthermore, potent pharmacologic reperfusion regimens that enhance early reperfusion of the infarct vessel before primary PCI may enhance the positive result of the transfer approach. Despite these promising findings, several obstacles have hindered the adoption of patienttransfer strategies in the U.S., including greater distances between community and tertiary hospitals, a lack of integrated emergency medical services, and the medical community’s limited experience with centralized acute myocardial infarction (AMI) care networks. Nonetheless, the implementation of system-wide changes in the care of STEMI patients analogous to the creation of trauma networks could facilitate the creation and ongoing evaluation of dedicated patient transfer strategies and better early invasive care in the U.S. Within this context, a systematic, stepwise approach to the creation of AMI care networks and to the development of standard nomenclature and performance indicators is necessary to guide quality assurance monitoring and future research efforts as the care of STEMI patients is redefined. Consequently, this current evolution of reperfusion strategies has the potential to further reduce morbidity and mortality for patients presenting with STEMI. (J Am Coll Cardiol 2004;43:2153–9) © 2004 by the American College of Cardiology Foundation
Petasites hybridus root (butterbur) is an effective preventive treatment for migraine

Objective: To evaluate the clinical efficacy of a standardized special root extract from the plant Petasites hybridus as a preventive therapy for migraine. Methods: This is a three-arm, parallel-group, randomized trial comparing Petasites extract 75 mg bid, Petasites extract 50 mg bid, or placebo bid in 245 patients with migraine. Eligible patients met International Headache Society criteria for migraine, were ages 18 to 65, and had at least two to six attacks per month over the preceding 3 months. The main outcome measure was the decrease in migraine attack frequency per month calculated as percentage change from baseline over a 4-month treatment period. Results: Over 4 months of treatment, in the per-protocol analysis, migraine attack frequency was reduced by 48% for Petasites extract 75 mg bid (p = 0.0012 vs placebo), 36% for Petasites extract 50 mg bid (p = 0.127 vs placebo), and 26% for the placebo group. The proportion of patients with a ≥50% reduction in attack frequency after 4 months was 68% for patients in the Petasites extract 75-mg arm and 49% for the placebo arm (p < 0.05). Results were also significant in favor of Petasites 75 mg at 1, 2, and 3 months based on this endpoint. The most frequently reported adverse reactions considered possibly related to treatment were mild gastrointestinal events, predominantly burping. Conclusions: Petasites extract 75 mg bid is more effective than placebo and is well tolerated as a preventive therapy for migraine. Petasites 50 mg PO bid was not significantly more effective than placebo on the primary study endpoints.