Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Cysteine String Protein (CSP) Inhibition of N-type Calcium Channels Is Blocked by Mutant Huntingtin*

Cysteine string protein (CSP), a 34-kDa molecular chaperone, is expressed on synaptic vesicles in neurons and on secretory vesicles in endocrine, neuroendocrine, and exocrine cells. CSP can be found in a complex with two other chaperones, the heat shock cognate protein Hsc70, and small glutamine-rich tetratricopeptide repeat domain protein (SGT). CSP function is vital in synaptic transmission; however, the precise nature of its role remains controversial. We have previously reported interactions of CSP with both heterotrimeric GTP-binding proteins (G proteins) and N-type calcium channels. These associations give rise to a tonic G protein inhibition of the channels. Here we have examined the effects of huntingtin fragments (exon 1) with (huntingtinexon1/exp) and without (huntingtinexon1/nonexp) expanded polyglutamine (polyQ) tracts on the CSP chaperone system. In vitro huntingtinexon1/exp sequestered CSP and blocked the association of CSP with G proteins. In contrast, huntingtinexon1/nonexp did not interact with CSP and did not alter the CSP/G protein association. Similarly, co-expression of huntingtinexon1/exp with CSP and N-type calcium channels eliminated CSP's tonic G protein inhibition of the channels, while coexpression of huntingtinexon1/nonexp did not alter the robust inhibition promoted by CSP. These results indicate that CSP's modulation of G protein inhibition of calcium channel activity is blocked in the presence of a huntingtin fragment with expanded polyglutamine tracts.
A robotic micro-assembly process inspired by the construction of the ancient pyramids and relying on several thousand flagellated bacteria acting as micro-workers

Photograph of the Djoser Step pyramid known as an important, initial milestone in the history of man-made structures. This pyramid has inspired the new micro-assembly method proposed here where several thousand human workers of the ancient Egypt have been replaced by several thousand micro-workers represented by flagellated magnetotactic bacteria of type MC-1, each having a diameter of approximately 2 micrometers. ACTERIA can be used as computer-controlled bio-actuators and means of propulsion for microrobots and other micro-scaled entities to accomplish precise operations as first proposed by our research group in [1] and demonstrated later experimentally in [2]. The last reference confirmed that the propulsion force provided by the flagella being connected to molecular motors embedded in the bacterial cell, could be exploited to replace more conventional technologies being presently used in robotics but which could not be implemented at such a scale. In a coherent effort, our group also pioneered a method of not only harnessing instead of mimicking nature by using flagellated bacteria and more specifically Magnetotactic Bacteria (MTB) for propulsion and transport, but also for the controlled steering or computerized directional swimming control of bacterial micro-nanorobots [3]. Magnetotactic Bacteria (MTB) have a tendency to use the earth's magnetic field to navigate towards a depth corresponding to an optimum oxygen concentration. This phenomenon called magnetotaxis [4] is comprised of two elements: 1. Nanometer-scaled ferromagnetic particles called magnetosomes which orientate bacterial cells along the earth's magnetic field and 2. Two flagella bundles (in the case of the MC-1 cell) that propel each bacterium like a biological motor along the magnetic field. The polar magnetotactic bacteria of strain MC-1 have been identified by our research group as excellent candidates to implement and validate our new concept of bacterial micro-nanorobots and bacterial micro-assembly. The experiment validating the concept of bacterial micro-assembly was observed using a Zeiss AxioImager Z1 microscope with dark field illumination. A special configuration of electromagnets acting under computer control has been installed at the microscope stage. Each electromagnet had a ferromagnetic core and could generate a magnetic field of 250 Gauss at each end of the visible field or field of view of the microscope. This experimental setup forced the bacteria to accumulate in the center of the microscope image. While all electromagnets were controlled by a computer, a CCD camera was used to acquire the images. The images of the video depicted in Figs. 2 and 3 show the …
Bilateral high‐frequency stimulation of the internal globus pallidus in advanced Parkinson's disease

We report here the results of an open prospective study in 9 patients suffering from severe Parkinson's disease with on/off fluctuations and restricted off‐period mobility, who underwent bilateral implantation of stimulating electrodes in the internal pallidum. At 3‐month follow‐up, the total Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) motor score in the medication‐off state was reduced from 54.1 ± 14.8 to 23.9 ± 11.7 (44.2%) when stimulation was turned on. Comparison of UPDRS subscores revealed significant improvements for tremor, rigidity, bradykinesia, gait and posture, and dyskinesias. The results of the clinical scoring could be confirmed by significant changes in the quantitative assessment of hand function and walking. Bilateral pallidal stimulation reduced the amount and severity of on/off fluctuations. Additional follow‐up at 6 months (n = 6), 9 months (n = 6), and 12 months (n = 4) did not show a decline in effectiveness of stimulation. There was no permanent morbidity associated with the procedure. A subtle reduction of verbal fluency, which was not evident to the patients, was the only cognitive side effect of the procedure in neuropsychological testing. Chronic bilateral high‐frequency stimulation of the internal pallidum seems to be a neurologically safe and highly effective treatment for “off” symptoms, dyskinesias, and motor fluctuations in advanced stages of Parkinson's disease.
Production of 3-Nitrosoindole Derivatives by Escherichia coli during Anaerobic Growth

ABSTRACT When Escherichia coli K-12 is grown anaerobically in medium containing tryptophan and sodium nitrate, it produces red compounds. The reaction requires functional genes for trytophanase (tnaA), a tryptophan permease (tnaB), and a nitrate reductase (narG), as well as a natural drop in the pH of the culture. Mass spectrometry revealed that the purified chromophores had mass/charge ratios that closely match those for indole red, indoxyl red, and an indole trimer. These compounds are known products of chemical reactions between indole and nitrous acid. They are derived from an initial reaction of 3-nitrosoindole with indole. Apparently, nitrite that is produced from the metabolic reduction of nitrate is converted in the acid medium to nitrous acid, which leads to the nitrosation of the indole that is generated by tryptophanase. An nfi (endonuclease V) mutant and a recA mutant were selectively killed during the period of chromophore production, and a uvrA strain displayed reduced growth. These effects depended on the addition of nitrate to the medium and on tryptophanase activity in the cells. Unexpectedly, the killing of a tnaA+ nfi mutant was not accompanied by marked increases in mutation frequencies for several traits tested. The vulnerability of three DNA repair mutants indicates that a nitrosoindole or a derivative of a nitrosoindole produces lethal DNA damage.
A performance analysis of EtherCAT and PROFINET IRT

Ethernet is emerging as the preferred industrial communication platform upon which a multitude of protocols and solutions specially targeted at industrial communication requirements have been developed. This paper concentrates on a set of protocols popularly referred to as the Real-time Ethernet protocols and analyses two key technologies, namely PROFINET IRT and EtherCAT. The real-time performance characteristics of PROFINET IRT and EtherCAT is compared by looking into what factors affect their performance in a set of realistic scenarios. The goal is to provide a scientifically solid study on this subject where many presentations are seriously flawed by basic mistakes, misunderstandings or biased views. The detailed analysis presented here shows that EtherCAT has a performance advantage over PROFINET IRT and the reasons for this are discussed.
LMI constraints on system eigenvalues placement in dynamic output control design

The paper addresses the problem of pole placement control for continuous-time linear systems under control of dynamic output controllers. Sufficient conditions for design feasibility are outlined in terms of linear matrix inequalities and equalities for a prescribed D-stable circular region in the open left-half plane. In addition it is proven that by this way formulated pole placement problem is equivalently uttered using a quadratic constraint being added to Lyapunov function. The proposed design principle is generalized in an enhanced form giving the possibility to solve this task.
Kisspeptin modulates sexual and emotional brain processing in humans

BACKGROUND. Sex, emotion, and reproduction are fundamental and tightly entwined aspects of human behavior. At a population level in humans, both the desire for sexual stimulation and the desire to bond with a partner are important precursors to reproduction. However, the relationships between these processes are incompletely understood. The limbic brain system has key roles in sexual and emotional behaviors, and is a likely candidate system for the integration of behavior with the hormonal reproductive axis. We investigated the effects of kisspeptin, a recently identified key reproductive hormone, on limbic brain activity and behavior. METHODS. Using a combination of functional neuroimaging and hormonal and psychometric analyses, we compared the effects of kisspeptin versus vehicle administration in 29 healthy heterosexual young men. RESULTS. We demonstrated that kisspeptin administration enhanced limbic brain activity specifically in response to sexual and couple-bonding stimuli. Furthermore, kisspeptin’s enhancement of limbic brain structures correlated with psychometric measures of reward, drive, mood, and sexual aversion, providing functional significance. In addition, kisspeptin administration attenuated negative mood. CONCLUSIONS. Collectively, our data provide evidence of an undescribed role for kisspeptin in integrating sexual and emotional brain processing with reproduction in humans. These results have important implications for our understanding of reproductive biology and are highly relevant to the current pharmacological development of kisspeptin as a potential therapeutic agent for patients with common disorders of reproductive function. FUNDING. National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), Wellcome Trust (Ref 080268), and the Medical Research Council (MRC).
MicroRNA dysregulation in spinal cord injury: causes, consequences and therapeutics

Trauma to the spinal cord causes permanent disability to more than 180,000 people every year worldwide. The initial mechanical damage triggers a complex set of secondary events involving the neural, vascular, and immune systems that largely determine the functional outcome of the spinal cord injury (SCI). Cellular and biochemical mechanisms responsible for this secondary injury largely depend on activation and inactivation of specific gene programs. Recent studies indicate that microRNAs function as gene expression switches in key processes of the SCI. Microarray data from rodent contusion models reveal that SCI induces changes in the global microRNA expression patterns. Variations in microRNA abundance largely result from alterations in the expression of the cells at the damaged spinal cord. However, microRNA expression levels after SCI are also influenced by the infiltration of immune cells to the injury site and the death and migration of specific neural cells after injury. Evidences on the role of microRNAs in the SCI pathophysiology have come from different sources. Bioinformatic analysis of microarray data has been used to identify specific variations in microRNA expression underlying transcriptional changes in target genes, which are involved in key processes in the SCI. Direct evidences on the role of microRNAs in SCI are scarcer, although recent studies have identified several microRNAs (miR-21, miR-486, miR-20) involved in key mechanisms of the SCI such as cell death or astrogliosis, among others. From a clinical perspective, different evidences make clear that microRNAs can be potent therapeutic tools to manipulate cell state and molecular processes in order to enhance functional recovery. The present article reviews the actual knowledge on how injury affects microRNA expression and the meaning of these changes in the SCI pathophysiology, to finally explore the clinical potential of microRNAs in the SCI.
Observations on intermittent electron emission in liquefied nitrogen

Recently breakdown and conduction in liquefied gases have been studied by many investigators. The earliest measurements of electric breakdown in liquefied gases were predominantly undertaken to develop understanding of the breakdown mechanism.1–4 With increasing interest in practical application of liquefied gases, for example super-conducting cable for power transmission lines, engineering research has also been done.5
Quality of care for people with osteoarthritis: a qualitative study.

AIM The overall aim of this qualitative study was to explore within primary care the experiences of management and care of individuals with end-stage lower limb osteoarthritis who are on the waiting list for joint replacement. BACKGROUND Osteoarthritis, one of the most common chronic diseases, causes loss of physical function and severe pain among sufferers. Improving quality of care and service provision for individuals with chronic diseases is high on the UK's NHS agenda. METHODS Data were collected by semi-structured qualitative interviews with 21 individuals with osteoarthritis who were waiting for a hip or knee replacement operation. Interviews were analysed using framework analysis. RESULTS Participants had been suffering with osteoarthritis for between seven months and 38 years. The management by health professionals for people on the waiting list for joint replacement was minimal. However, participants spoke of 'hiding' their symptoms from health professionals and were trying to 'self-manage' their symptoms. Families became more involved in helping individuals with osteoarthritis to manage with everyday life. CONCLUSION Management of individuals' osteoarthritis while on the waiting list needs to be given consideration by health professionals in primary and secondary care. Health professionals need to be working with each other to provide more comprehensive care across the primary and secondary care interface. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE Case managers or community matrons could be identified as the co-ordinator and assessor of the needs of patients with osteoarthritis so as to try and improve pain management and service provision for these individuals especially while on the waiting list.
Continuous Turnover of Carotenes and Chlorophyll a in Mature Leaves of Arabidopsis Revealed by 14CO2 Pulse-Chase Labeling[OA]

Carotenoid turnover was investigated in mature leaves of Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) by 14CO2 pulse-chase labeling under control-light (CL; 130 μmol photons m−2 s−1) and high-light (HL; 1,000 μmol photons m−2 s−1) conditions. Following a 30-min 14CO2 administration, photosynthetically fixed 14C was quickly incorporated in β-carotene (β-C) and chlorophyll a (Chl a) in all samples during a chase of up to 10 h. In contrast, 14C was not detected in Chl b and xanthophylls, even when steady-state amounts of the xanthophyll-cycle pigments and lutein increased markedly, presumably by de novo synthesis, in CL-grown plants under HL. Different light conditions during the chase did not affect the 14C fractions incorporated in β-C and Chl a, whereas long-term HL acclimation significantly enhanced 14C labeling of Chl a but not β-C. Consequently, the maximal 14C signal ratio between β-C and Chl a was much lower in HL-grown plants (1:10) than in CL-grown plants (1:4). In lut5 mutants, containing α-carotene (α-C) together with reduced amounts of β-C, remarkably high 14C labeling was found for α-C while the labeling efficiency of Chl a was similar to that of wild-type plants. The maximum 14C ratios between carotenes and Chl a were 1:2 for α-C:Chl a and 1:5 for β-C:Chl a in CL-grown lut5 plants, suggesting high turnover of α-C. The data demonstrate continuous synthesis and degradation of carotenes and Chl a in photosynthesizing leaves and indicate distinct acclimatory responses of their turnover to changing irradiance. In addition, the results are discussed in the context of photosystem II repair cycle and D1 protein turnover.
ABC-boost: adaptive base class boost for multi-class classification

We propose <b><i>abc-boost</i></b> (adaptive base class boost) for multi-class classification and present <b><i>abc-mart</i></b>, an implementation of <i>abc-boost</i>, based on the multinomial logit model. The key idea is that, at each boosting iteration, we <b><i>adaptively</i></b> and greedily choose a <b><i>base</i></b> class. Our experiments on public datasets demonstrate the improvement of <i>abc-mart</i> over the original <i>mart</i> algorithm.
Combined Carbohydrates Support Rich Communities of Particle-Associated Marine Bacterioplankton

Carbohydrates represent an important fraction of labile and semi-labile marine organic matter that is mainly comprised of exopolymeric substances derived from phytoplankton exudation and decay. This study investigates the composition of total combined carbohydrates (tCCHO; >1 kDa) and the community development of free-living (0.2–3 μm) and particle-associated (PA) (3–10 μm) bacterioplankton during a spring phytoplankton bloom in the southern North Sea. Furthermore, rates were determined for the extracellular enzymatic hydrolysis that catalyzes the initial step in bacterial organic matter remineralization. Concentrations of tCCHO greatly increased during bloom development, while the composition showed only minor changes over time. The combined concentration of glucose, galactose, fucose, rhamnose, galactosamine, glucosamine, and glucuronic acid in tCCHO was a significant factor shaping the community composition of the PA bacteria. The richness of PA bacteria greatly increased in the post-bloom phase. At the same time, the increase in extracellular β-glucosidase activity was sufficient to explain the observed decrease in tCCHO, indicating the efficient utilization of carbohydrates by the bacterioplankton community during the post-bloom phase. Our results suggest that carbohydrate concentration and composition are important factors in the multifactorial environmental control of bacterioplankton succession and the enzymatic hydrolysis of organic matter during phytoplankton blooms.
Imaging of one- and two-dimensional Fiske modes in Josephson tunnel junctions.

We report on spatially resolved measurements of dynamic states of Josephson tunnel junctions in an external magnetic field. Using low-temperature scanning electron microscopy we imaged the beam-induced change of the maximum Fiske-step currents and the voltage change of current-biased step states. The excitation of one- and two-dimensional self-resonant cavity modes is clearly visible with a spatial resolution of about 3 \ensuremath{\mu}m. We used a 50\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}50 \ensuremath{\mu}${\mathrm{m}}^{2}$ Nb/${\mathrm{Al}}_{2}$${\mathrm{O}}_{3}$/Nb tunnel junction representing a junction of intermediate size. Our experimental results agree well with a qualitative model for the signal generation based on the global change of the junction quality factor Q due to the local electron-beam irradiation. In addition, we present results of a calculation based on the perturbed sine-Gordon equation that takes into account the suppression of the critical current density in the area of the electron beam irradiation.
Hepatic complications of erythropoietic protoporphyria

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Barriers to the Adoption of Big Data Analytics in the Automotive Sector

Big data analytics as source of competitive advantages is pivoting the automotive sector. Today’s original equipment manufacturers, however, are confronted by several barriers to the successful adoption of big data analytics. First, the cross-disciplinary nature of big data analytics requires (1) sufficient and skilled resources, (2) the collaboration of different business departments, supported by (3) appropriate organizational structures, (4) a data-driven culture, and (5) a defined business value, and (6) access to relevant data pools to achieve commitment and relevance within the organization. Drawing on the results of a revelatory case study as well as on the socio-technical systems theory I have identified six barriers to the adoption of big data analytics. From an academic perspective, these barriers contribute to the current body of knowledge of the adoption of big data analytics. For practice, they provide guidance for firms in the automotive sector as well as other traditionally goods-dominant industries which barriers need to be tackled to leverage the business value of big data analytics.
Sentiment Analysis Using Random Forest Ensemble for Mobile Product Reviews in Kannada

Sentiment Analysis(SA) for Kannada documents has been explored recently. In the recent study [8], the sentiment analysis for Kannada text is explored using Naive Bayes classifier. The objective of this work is to improve the performance of the previous study on the sentiment analyzer for Kannada language explored in the paper [8]. In this work, we propose the ensemble of classifier with random forest technique to identify the polarity of the sentiment and test the performance of the same. Also in this work, some of the limitations of [8] such as handling multi class labels, identification of sentiment polarity of comparative and conditional statements have been addressed. The over all accuracy is improved from 65% to 72 %, indicating our approach based on Random Forest technique is more efficient for SA for Kannada.