Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Oral Multiple Sclerosis Drugs Inhibit the In vitro Growth of Epsilon Toxin Producing Gut Bacterium, Clostridium perfringens

There are currently three oral medications approved for the treatment of multiple sclerosis (MS). Two of these medications, Fingolimod, and Teriflunomide, are considered to be anti-inflammatory agents, while dimethyl fumarate (DMF) is thought to trigger a robust antioxidant response, protecting vulnerable cells during an MS attack. We previously proposed that epsilon toxin from the gut bacterium, Clostridium perfringens, may initiate newly forming MS lesions due to its tropism for blood-brain barrier (BBB) vasculature and central nervous system myelin. Because gut microbiota will be exposed to these oral therapies prior to systemic absorption, we sought to determine if these compounds affect C. perfringens growth in vitro. Here we show that Fingolimod, Teriflunomide, and DMF indeed inhibit C. perfringens growth. Furthermore, several compounds similar to DMF in chemical structure, namely α, β unsaturated carbonyls, also known as Michael acceptors, inhibit C. perfringens. Sphingosine, a Fingolimod homolog with known antibacterial properties, proved to be a potent C. perfringens inhibitor with a Minimal Inhibitory Concentration similar to that of Fingolimod. These findings suggest that currently approved oral MS therapies and structurally related compounds possess antibacterial properties that may alter the gut microbiota. Moreover, inhibition of C. perfringens growth and resulting blockade of epsilon toxin production may contribute to the clinical efficacy of these disease-modifying drugs.
Genetic diversity of traditional South American Landraces of Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz): an analysis using microsatellites

The extent and structure of the genetic variability of traditional varieties of cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) have been little documented, despite considerable evidence for this cropś great varietal diversity in traditional agroecosystems. We used microsatellite markers to assess the genetic structure of traditional landraces of sweet and bitter cassava collected from five South American sites. As reference, we used a sample of 38 accessions from a world collection of cultivated cassava. For a total of 10 loci examined, we found 15 alleles that were not represented in this sample. Ten of these had been previously detected in wild Manihot species. The geographical structure of genetic variability was weak, but the genetic differentiation between bitter and sweet landraces was significant, suggesting that each form had evolved separately after domestication. Our results showed that traditional landraces form an important source of genetic diversity and merit more attention from managers of crop genetic resources. RésuméA extensão e a estruturação da variabilidade genética de variedades tradicionais de mandioca (Manihot esculenta Crantz) têm sido pouco documentadas, apesar de existirem evidências sugerindo uma grande diversidade varietal desta cultura em agroecosistemas tradicionais. No presente trabalho, foram usados marcadores de DNA, do tipo microssatélite, para avaliar a estrutura genética de variedades tradicionais de mandioca brava e mandioca de mesa coletadas em cinco localidades da América do Sul. Como referência, usou-se um conjunto de 38 acessos de uma coleção mundial de germoplasma de mandioca. Entre as variedades tradicionais, foram encontrados 15 alelos que não estavam presentes nesta amostragem da coleção mundial. Dez destes alelos já haviam sido detectados em espécies silvestres de Manihot. Apenas uma leve estruturação geográfica da variabilidade foi observada. No entanto, foi evidenciada uma diferenciação genética entre variedades bravas e de mesa, sugerindo que cada forma tenha evoluído separadamente após a domesticaç~ao. Nossos resultados mostram que variedades tradicionais constituem uma importante fonte de diversidade genética e deveriam receber maior atenção no manejo de recursos genéticos de plantas cultivadas.
The “core category” of grounded theory: Making constant comparisons

Approximately 40 years ago, Barney Glaser and Anselm Strauss and their joint research approach, the constant comparative method of grounded theory, were at the forefront of what can be called a qualitative revolution. The publication of their book, The discovery of grounded theory (1967), was a breakthrough because of the systematic procedures for qualitative research that were presented. Prior to this publication, qualitative research methodology was traditionally most often taught orally. Through their book, Glaser and Strauss defended the method of qualitative research and countered the prevailing opinion that quantitative research provided the one and only approach to scientific inquiry. They argued that qualitative research is a field of inquiry in its own right, not merely to be used for pre-studies to “real” statistically based studies. The grounded theory method fits in with life world research, because the emphasis is on individuals as unique living wholes and the researcher focuses on the world as it is experienced by the individual. The researcher does not formulate any hypothesis in advance and tries to approach the research area with as few preconceptions as possible. Preconceptions, taken-for-granted assumptions, and interpretations must be handled by reflexive strategies in line with what Dahlberg () has labelled “bridling”. Grounded theory offers the researcher a set of guidelines for building conceptual frameworks that specify the relationships among categories. The guidelines should be used as flexible tools rather than being seen as rigid rules. Grounded theory is a broad method with distinct procedures that work in practice and that are suitable to pragmatic researchers. The “core category” in grounded theory is, as I see it, the constant comparative method. The grounded theory method has been modified by the era within which it exists and by new ideas encountered in the world of inquiry (Annells, ). Varying views of what reality is and how it can be known affect the modes of the grounded theory method.
Factors Influencing the Academic Achievement of First-Generation College Students

First-generation college students face a number of unique challenges in college. These obstacles may have a disparate effect on educational outcomes such as academic achievement. This study presents findings from an analysis of the Baccalaureate & Beyond Longitudinal Study using hierarchical multiple regression techniques to measure the influence of first-generation status on cumulative grade point average (GPA) in college, controlling for precollege and college variables. Findings suggest that firstgeneration status is a significant predictor of GPA controlling for an extensive array of background and intervening variables. Initially, background variables accounted for a small but significant proportion of college GPA variance. Final results suggest that first-generation status significantly explains differences in cumulative GPA, accounting for nearly 22% (p < .001) of GPA variance. Findings are congruent with college impact theory and support prior conclusions. Still, a number of important relationships and implications for future research are discussed.
Constraints in the performance of bimanual tasks and their expression in unskilled and skilled subjects

ABSTRACT Unskilled and skilled subjects were asked to perform a variety of bimanual tapping tasks. Three major effects were seen. First, right-handers performed dual tasks better when the preferred hand took the “figure” and when the nonpreferred hand took the “ground” of the dual movement. This effect was not seen in left-handers. Second, subjects performed a simple slow/fast dual task better when they commenced the task with the fast rather than with the slow hand. This effect was seen in right- and lefthanders. Third, both unskilled and skilled subjects showed marked interdependence of movements such that performance of one hand was a function of movements in the other hand. The results are in agreement with a model that postulates the presence of a superordinate control mechanism that initiates action in subordinate control mechanisms, which in turn set the movement trajectories in the two hands. The results also show that attention is an important factor in the interaction between these two levels of.
Sociolinguistic nostalgia and the authentication of identity

Sociolinguistic nostalgia and the authentication of identity 1 Mary Bucholtz University of California, Santa Barbara INTRODUCTION Although sociolinguistics has become a fragmented ®eld since its initial broad conceptualization in the 1960s (e.g. Bright 1966; Gumperz and Hymes 1972), the now-divergent strands of sociolinguistic research continue to share a concern with something that has been called `real language. ' Against the idealism of the Chomskyan paradigm, sociolinguistics positioned itself as an empirical discipline in which language was taken to mean the systematic use of language by social actors in social situations. I employ the term sociolinguistics here in its original wide reference to include not only the disparate quantitative and qualitative approaches that claim this name but also linguistic anthropo- logy, conversation analysis, and other socially and culturally oriented forms of discourse analysis. For despite the many dierences that divided these research traditions, `real language' remains central to each. And although methods of data collection and analysis vary widely across these approaches, what is meant by real language (or by some more theoretically elaborated equivalent term) has remained for the most part remarkably consistent: real language ± that is, authentic language ± is language produced in authentic contexts by authentic speakers. For this reason, authenticity underwrites nearly every aspect of sociolinguis- tics, from our identi®cation of socially meaningful linguistic phenomena, to the de®nition of the social groups we study, to the methods we use to collect our data, to the theories we draw on in our analysis. Yet despite its pervasiveness in the ®eld, this pivotal concept is rarely a topic of investigation in its own right. In addition, because researchers frequently assume some notion of authenticity in the sociolinguistic study of identity, the latter concept too remains theoretically underdeveloped within sociolinguistics. In the following discussion, I consider the sociolinguistic investment in authenticity as an implicit theory of identity. I then explore the original reasons for this investment and discuss some of the problems and limitations associated with it in the current context of socio- linguistic research. Finally, I oer an alternative vision for the sociolinguistic study of authenticity ± one that, rather than presupposing the authentic as an # Blackwell Publishing Ltd. 2003
Impact of LDD Depth Variations on the Performance Characteristics of SONOS NAND Flash Device

In this paper, we investigate a new physical phenomenon for short-channel NAND Flash memory devices. Herein, we intend to examine the effect of lightly doped drain (LDD) depth variations on the “ON ” current after the erase operation and the erase speed of the short-channel SONOS device. Additionally, we also investigate the electron trap density (residual charge) in charge trap (CT) layer after erase operation and its effect on the device erase characteristics. Furthermore, we carry out the simulation to find the effect of residual charge on the device endurance and the program performance of a SONOS device. Based on our results, the effect of residual charge on the “ON” current after the erase operation that becomes smaller as the LDD depth increases. This phenomenon is contrary to the result of higher residual charge in the CT layer with a higher LDD depth and explained from device physics. Furthermore, program performance is found to be degraded with the presence of high residual charge.
On the Link between Academia and the Practice of Social Work

The dualism of knowledge and values as well as of the objective and the subjective views has accompanied the social work profession from its inception and presents a particular dilemma for the link between academia and practice. It is either that academia is split off from the practice of social work, or that these two fields of professional activity merge into each other. Either of these solutions impoverishes the profession. The key for the understanding of this dilemma as well as its resolution rests with the particular ontological definitions adhered to by the profession. It is proposed that by fostering the moral ontology the dualism inherent in the nature of the profession may enrich it and a fruitful link between academia and the practice of social work will evolve. The arguments presented as well as the resolution proposed are illustrated by theoretical explanations, empirical studies and clinical practice in the area of the parent-infant relationship.
Virtual try-on of footwear in augmented reality using RGB-D cameras

This paper presents a novel system for personalized design of footwear using commercial depth-sensing technologies. The system allows users to virtually try on 3D shoe models in a live video stream. A two-stage object tracking algorithm was developed to correctly align shoe models to moving feet during the try-on process. Tracking was driven by an iterative closest point (ICP) algorithm that superimposed the captured depth data and predefined reference foot models. Test data showed that the two-stage approach produced increased positional accuracy compared with tracking using only surface registration. Trimming the reference model using the instant view angle improved the computational efficiency of the ICP algorithm. The developed virtual try-on function is an effective tool for realizing human-centered design. This study also showed a new application of RGB-D Cameras to product design.
Fisher information in quantum statistics

Braunstein and Caves (Braunstein S L and Caves C M 1994 Phys. Rev. Lett. 72 3439-43) proposed to use Helstrom's quantum information number to define, meaningfully, a metric on the set of all possible states of a given quantum system. They showed that the quantum information is nothing other than the maximal Fisher information in a measurement of the quantum system, maximized over all possible measurements. Combining this fact with classical statistical results, they argued that the quantum information determines the asymptotically optimal rate at which neighbouring states on some smooth curve can be distinguished, based on arbitrary measurements on n identical copies of the given quantum system. We show that the measurement which maximizes the Fisher information typically depends on the true, unknown, state of the quantum system. We close the resulting loophole in the argument by showing that one can still achieve the same, optimal, rate of distinguishability, by a two-stage adaptive measurement procedure. When we consider states lying not on a smooth curve, but on a manifold of higher dimension, the situation becomes much more complex. We show that the notion of `distinguishability of close-by states' depends strongly on the measurement resources one allows oneself, and on a further specification of the task at hand. The quantum information matrix no longer seems to play a central role.
Utility of Low-Copy Nuclear Gene Sequences in Plant Phylogenetics

Low-copy nuclear genes in plants are a rich source of phylogenetic information. They hold a great potential to improve the robustness of phylogenetic reconstruction at all taxonomic levels, especially where universal markers such as cpDNA and nrDNA are unable to generate strong phylogenetic hypotheses. Low-copy nuclear genes, however, remain underused in plant phylogenetic studies due to practical and theoretical complications in unraveling the evolutionary dynamics of nuclear gene families. The lack of the universal markers or universal PCR primers of low-copy nuclear genes has also hampered their phylogenetic utility. It has recently become clear that low-copy nuclear genes are particularly helpful in resolving close interspecific relationships and in reconstructing allopolyploidization in plants. Gene markers that are widely, if not universally, useful have begun to emerge. Although utilizing low-copy nuclear genes usually requires extra lab work such as designing PCR primers, PCR-cloning, and/or Southern blotting, rapid accumulation of gene sequences in the databases and advances in cloning techniques have continued to make such studies more feasible. With the growing number of theoretical studies devoted to the gene tree and species tree problem, a solid foundation for reconstructing complex plant phylogenies based on multiple gene trees began to build. It is also realized increasingly that fast evolving introns of the low-copy nuclear genes will provide much needed phylogenetic information around the species boundary and allow us to address fundamental questions concerning processes of plant speciation. Phylogenetic and molecular evolutionary analyses of developmentally important genes will add a new dimension to systematic and evolutionary studies of plant diversity.
Insulin-Like Growth Factor-1 as a Vascular Protective Factor

Recent advances in cardiology have focused on proliferation and regeneration as potential cardiovascular defense mechanisms. Within this framework, growth factors are acquiring increasing importance; insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) emerges among them for its versatile pleiotropic actions. This review provides a current perspective on IGF-1 and vascular disease. The IGF-1 system is dynamic and complex,1,2 involving at least 6 IGF-1–binding proteins (IGFBP-1 through -6) and several binding protein–related proteases,1 including pregnancy-associated plasma protein-A (PAPP-A). The latter promotes IGF-1 bioavailability by cleaving IGFBP-4 and -5.3 Acute coronary syndromes have been associated with raised PAPP-A concentrations in blood, leading to the interpretation that PAPP-A may enhance the risk of coronary artery disease through increased IGF-1 in vascular tissues.4 Recent results, however, suggest a different relation between IGF-1 and ischemic syndromes. Indirect data have supported the concept that IGF-1 may be atherogenetic because it can induce vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) proliferation in vitro.5 Early studies on VSMCs from human and rabbit atherosclerotic arteries showed enhanced staining for IGF-1 and its receptor6,7 compared with normal tissues,7 with further enhancement after experimental angioplasty.7 Thus, IGF-1 has been considered a promoter of arterial obstructive lesions8; an alternative possibility, however (consistent with the higher IGF-1 expression after angioplasty), is that IGF-1 initiates a survival pathway aimed at compensating local vascular cell apoptosis (see sections III.C.3 and III.C.4). Randomized trials of the somatostatin analogue, angiopeptin, have been performed in the setting of postangioplasty restenosis and heart transplant vasculopathy to assess the possible benefits of lowering IGF-1 levels.9 Somatostatin analogues, however, have multiple actions: They reduce growth hormone (GH) release and the serum concentrations of other growth factors (epidermal growth factor, fibroblast growth factor, platelet-derived growth factor, and vascular endothelial growth factor [VEGF]) in addition to IGF-1,10,11 …
A Comparative Study of HLA Binding Affinity and Ligand Diversity: Implications for Generating Immunodominant CD8+ T Cell Responses1

Conventional CD8+ T cell responses against intracellular infectious agents are initiated upon recognition of pathogen-derived peptides presented at the cell surface of infected cells in the context of MHC class I molecules. Among the major MHC class I loci, HLA-B is the swiftest evolving and the most polymorphic locus. Additionally, responses restricted by HLA-B molecules tend to be dominant, and most associations with susceptibility or protection against infectious diseases have been assigned to HLA-B alleles. To assess whether the differences in responses mediated via two major HLA class I loci, HLA-B and HLA-A, may already begin at the Ag presentation level, we have analyzed the diversity and binding affinity of their peptide repertoire by making use of curated pathogen-derived epitope data retrieved from the Immune Epitope Database and Analysis Resource, as well as in silico predicted epitopes. In contrast to our expectations, HLA-B alleles were found to have a less diverse peptide repertoire, which points toward a more restricted binding motif, and the respective average peptide binding affinity was shown to be lower than that of HLA-A-restricted epitopes. This unexpected observation gives rise to new hypotheses concerning the mechanisms underlying immunodominance of CD8+ T cell responses.
Altered body image: appearance-related concerns of people with visible disfigurement.

AIM The aim of this paper is to report a study to establish the extent and type of psychosocial needs of outpatients attending for treatment of a wide range of disfiguring conditions. BACKGROUND Visible disfigurements can be associated with extensive psychosocial difficulties. The majority of research to date has been carried out with people identified by themselves or others as experiencing difficulties. Little is known about levels of distress in the broader population of patients receiving treatment for a range of disfiguring conditions. METHODS A cross-sectional survey was conducted, with a convenience sample. Participants (n = 458) drawn from 15 outpatient clinics completed standardized measures of anxiety and depression (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale), social anxiety and avoidance (Derriford Appearance Scale short-form) and quality of life (World Health Organization Quality of Life Brief Scale). A semi-structured interview was used to generate further quantitative and qualitative data about individual concerns, and satisfaction with the provision of care. Staff views about levels of psychosocial distress were elicited through group discussions. RESULTS The results revealed high levels of psychological distress in the sample, compared with normative values. The majority of difficulties related to problems experienced in social situations. Patient satisfaction with care was generally high; however, and 71% of participants expressed a moderate to strong desire for a health care professional with training to deal with their appearance-related concerns. Nursing staff felt unable to address patients' appearance-related difficulties because of time constraints, lack of an environment conducive to the discussion of patients' concerns, and lack of appropriate knowledge and training. CONCLUSION A significant proportion of participants experienced psychosocial distress in relation to their visible difference. Psychosocial needs were poorly met in current outpatient care provision, and a range of options could be considered to address these more effectively.
The meniscus tear : state of the art of rehabilitation protocols related to surgical procedures

Meniscal injuries represent one of the most frequent lesions in sport practicing and in particular in soccer players and skiers. Pain, functional limitation and swelling are typical symptoms associated with meniscal tears. Epidemiological studies showed that all meniscal lesions, in different sports athletes, involves 24% of medial meniscus, while 8% of lateral meniscus and about 20-30% of meniscal lesions are associated with other ligament injuries. Meniscal tears can be treated conservatively or surgically. Surgery leads in many cases to complete resolution of symptoms and allows the return to sport activity. However many studies show that this treatment can induce more frequently the development of degenerative conditions if not correctly associated to a specific rehabilitation protocol. The aim of this article is to compare different timing in specific rehabilitation programs related to the most actual surgical options.