Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Inhibition of Aldose Reductase Prevents Experimental Allergic Airway Inflammation in Mice

Background The bronchial asthma, a clinical complication of persistent inflammation of the airway and subsequent airway hyper-responsiveness, is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in critically ill patients. Several studies have shown that oxidative stress plays a key role in initiation as well as amplification of inflammation in airways. However, still there are no good anti-oxidant strategies available for therapeutic intervention in asthma pathogenesis. Most recent studies suggest that polyol pathway enzyme, aldose reductase (AR), contributes to the pathogenesis of oxidative stress–induced inflammation by affecting the NF-κB-dependent expression of cytokines and chemokines and therefore inhibitors of AR could be anti-inflammatory. Since inhibitors of AR have already gone through phase-III clinical studies for diabetic complications and found to be safe, our hypothesis is that AR inhibitors could be novel therapeutic drugs for the prevention and treatment of asthma. Hence, we investigated the efficacy of AR inhibition in the prevention of allergic responses to a common natural airborne allergen, ragweed pollen that leads to airway inflammation and hyper-responsiveness in a murine model of asthma. Methods and Findings Primary Human Small Airway Epithelial Cells (SAEC) were used to investigate the in vitro effects of AR inhibition on ragweed pollen extract (RWE)-induced cytotoxic and inflammatory signals. Our results indicate that inhibition of AR prevents RWE -induced apoptotic cell death as measured by annexin-v staining, increase in the activation of NF-κB and expression of inflammatory markers such as inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), cycloxygenase (COX)-2, Prostaglandin (PG) E2, IL-6 and IL-8. Further, BALB/c mice were sensitized with endotoxin-free RWE in the absence and presence of AR inhibitor and followed by evaluation of perivascular and peribronchial inflammation, mucin production, eosinophils infiltration and airway hyperresponsiveness. Our results indicate that inhibition of AR prevents airway inflammation and production of inflammatory cytokines, accumulation of eosinophils in airways and sub-epithelial regions, mucin production in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid and airway hyperresponsiveness in mice. Conclusions These results suggest that airway inflammation due to allergic response to RWE, which subsequently activates oxidative stress-induced expression of inflammatory cytokines via NF-κB-dependent mechanism, could be prevented by AR inhibitors. Therefore, inhibition of AR could have clinical implications, especially for the treatment of airway inflammation, a major cause of asthma pathogenesis.
RETINAL NERVE FIBER LAYER IS ASSOCIATED WITH BRAIN ATROPHY IN MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS

dysarthria, emotional lability, or imbalance. Although none had MRI evidence of brainstem lesions, they propose that OPN, and to some extent PBN, malfunction would account for the findings based on prior pathologic and modeling evidence. Perhaps because the RIP lies adjacent to the PPRF, none of the reported cases showed selective deficits of horizontal saccades like Jain et al.’s cases. However, experiments in monkeys showed that rostral PPRF lesions cause selective loss of horizontal saccades but leave vertical movements intact, whereas caudal PPRF lesions led in addition to a severe disruption of vertical saccades. The issue of mesial temporal lobe changes and seizures in some patients is intriguing. Hippocampal CA1 neurons are vulnerable to ischemic injury, leading to reorganization in the CA3 network, reduction of GABAergic inhibitory potentials, and a potential substrate for postischemic epilepsy. Perhaps OMN, with their high tonic inhibitory firing rate, have a similar susceptibility in the setting of hypothermic cardiopulmonary arrest. However, other neuronal populations must be affected as evidenced by additional symptoms that have been observed.
What to know and how to get to know? A fieldwork study outlining the understanding of knowing the patient in facilities for short-term stay.

AIM To report a descriptive study of nursing in facilities for short-term stay aiming to outline what 'knowing the patient' means in an endoscopic outpatient clinic. BACKGROUND 'Knowing the patient' is indispensable to the effort of tailoring nursing to the individual patient's needs. Structural changes in the practice environments, however, reduce the amount of time a nurse spends getting to know the patient. Despite recent years' focus on the subject, no uniform description of 'knowing the patient' in facilities for short-term stay exists. DESIGN A fieldwork study influenced by practical ethnographic principles was performed in a high-technology endoscopic outpatient clinic during 2008-2010. METHODS Data were collected using participant observation for 12 weeks and semi-structured interviews with eight patients and four nurses. FINDINGS Findings were summarized into two categories 'What to know? ' and 'How to get to know? ' The former concerned practical issues in relation to gastroscopy and was described in terms of the patient's level of anxiety, wish for medication and previous experiences. The latter 'How to get to know? ' concerned instruments employed in getting to know the patient and was described in terms of the use of communication and sensing. CONCLUSIONS 'Knowing the patient' in the endoscopic outpatient clinic was understood in a very practical sense. Conversation and the use of the eyes and physical touch enabled a situational awareness. It helped tailor nursing to the patient's needs and allowed the nurse to treat every patient as a unique individual.
Introduction to Part II: Trauma and Juvenile Delinquency: New Directions in Interventions

This article introduces the second part of a two-part special issue featuring new directions in research with traumatized youth involved in the juvenile justice system. The articles in this issue focus on cutting-edge evidence-based interventions designed to help youth to overcome the sequelae associated with trauma exposure and to support them in returning to a prosocial developmental pathway. The interventions described vary in the targets of therapeutic change, ranging from parental internal working models of relationship alone, to relational functions in the larger family system, to traumagenic dynamics among delinquent girls and their therapeutic foster parents, to the empowerment of groups of youth through participation in musical theatre, to changes directed at the detention milieu itself to, at the policy level, the creation of a more trauma-informed juvenile justice system overall. However, what unites all these efforts is thoughtful attention to an underlying theory of change and consideration of principles of evidence-based and best practices in intervention implementation and research.
Intensification of Antiretroviral Therapy with a CCR5 Antagonist in Patients with Chronic HIV-1 Infection: Effect on T Cells Latently Infected

Objective The primary objective was to assess the effect of MVC intensification on latently infected CD4+ T cells in chronically HIV-1-infected patients receiving antiretroviral therapy. Methods We performed an open-label pilot phase II clinical trial involving chronically HIV-1-infected patients receiving stable antiretroviral therapy whose regimen was intensified with 48 weeks of maraviroc therapy. We analyzed the latent reservoir, the residual viremia and episomal 2LTR DNA to examine the relationship between these measures and the HIV-1 latent reservoir, immune activation, lymphocyte subsets (including effector and central memory T cells), and markers associated with bacterial translocation. Results Overall a non significant reduction in the size of the latent reservoir was found (p = 0.068). A mean reduction of 1.82 IUPM was observed in 4 patients with detectable latent reservoir at baseline after 48 weeks of intensification. No effect on plasma residual viremia was observed. Unexpectedly, all the patients had detectable 2LTR DNA circles at week 24, while none of them showed those circles at the end of the study. No changes were detected in CD4+ or CD8+ counts, although a significant decrease was found in the proportion of HLA-DR+/CD38+ CD4+ and CD8+ T-cells. LPS and sCD14 levels increased. Conclusions Intensification with MVC was associated with a trend to a decrease in the size of the latent HIV-1 reservoir in memory T cells. No impact on residual viremia was detected. Additional studies with larger samples are needed to confirm the results. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00795444
STAFF AND PEER ASSESSMENT ‐ MEASURING AN INDIVIDUAL'S CONTRIBUTION TO GROUP PERFORMANCE

Group Modelling is expanding in the UK and has provided a suitable medium for Communication training at Robert Gordon's Institute of Technology. The CNAA has approved a scheme in which 10% of the marks in Mathematical Models and Methods course are peer awarded. The criteria which students use are not cited explicitly because the scheme wishes to reflect the shift from staff‐sponsored instruction to self/peer sponsored perception of relationships and the tender of solutions. The scheme provides the opportunity to measure what happens outside class contact hours and is proving an effective method of group assessment.
Efficacy of autologous platelets in macular hole surgery

The introduction of optical coherence tomography has allowed accurate measurement of the size of macular holes. A retrospective consecutive review was performed of 21 patients undergoing macular hole repair with vitrectomy, gas tamponade, and autologous platelet injection and we assessed the effect of macular hole parameters on anatomic and functional outcomes. We looked at the demographic features, final visual outcome, and anatomical closure. Twenty-one patients were included in the study. They underwent routine vitrectomy with gas tamponade (C3F8) and injection of autologous platelets. All patients were advised to maintain a facedown posture for 2 weeks. Anatomical closure was confirmed in all cases and 20 out of 21 of patients had improved postoperative visual acuity by two or more lines. In our series, the macular hole dimensions did not have much effect on the final results. The use of autologous platelets and strict facedown posture seems to be the deciding factor in good anatomical and visual outcome irrespective of macular hole dimensions.
Policy, practice and purpose in the field of education: a critical review

This paper provides a critical review of papers in this special issue on Bourdieu and practice. What is different about this collection is that, in analysing policy and practice through a Bourdieusian lens, the thinking tools of field, disposition (collective and individual), logics of practice and doxa have been mobilised with regard to the social practices of educational policy – its production, circulation and reception. First, these papers illustrate how, as a field, education has its own language, boundaries and power relations informed by particular modes of distinction and legitimation around different forms of capital formation, thus providing explanations for both social mobility and social stratification. Second, this collection foregrounds ‘policy as practice’ in terms of the social practices involved in the production of policy, the practices involved with the articulation and vernacularisation of policy through the processes of its reception, as well as the intent and effects of policy changing practice. Third, in focusing on specific policy problematics in higher education and schools, teacher professional development, leadership and educational reform, these contributions illustrate multiple methodological approaches as to how Bourdieu's thinking tools can be used to theorise educational policy, change, practice and effects. The value of Bourdieu's work lies on getting past the impasses between divisions between material and cultural analyses, between the materialist and linguistic focus, by talking about social practices, what people are doing, how they are thinking and how they are acting.
Optimal Link Bombs are Uncoordinated

We analyze the recent phenomenon termed a Link Bomb , and investigate the optimal attack pattern for a group of web pages attempting to link bomb a spe-ciﬁc web page. The typical modus operandi of a link bomb is to associate a particular page with a search text and then boost that page’s pagerank . (The at-tacking pages can only control their own content and outgoing links.) Thus, when a search is initiated with the text, a high prominence will be given to the at-tacked page. We show that the best organization of links among the attacking group to maximize the increase in rank of the attacked node is the direct individual attack , where every attacker points directly to the victim and nowhere else. We also discuss optimal attack patterns for a group that wants to hide itself by not pointing directly to the victim. We quantify our results with experiments on a variety of random graph models.
Observation of macroscopic quantum tunneling through the Coulomb energy barrier.

The conductance of linear arrays of two and three normal-metal small tunnel junctions is studied for bias voltages V below the Coulomb-blockade threshold. At low temperature, we find evidence for macroscopic quantum tunneling of the electric charge (q-MQT) through the Coulomb energy barrier. For double junctions the tunneling rate scales as V 3 , and approximately as the product of the junction conductances, as predicted by the theory of inelastic q-MQT
Les sepsis intra-abdominaux diffus post-operatoires: aspects épidémiologiques, diagnostiques et thérapeutiques au Service de Chirurgie Générale du CHU Aristide Le Dantec de Dakar

Les sepsis intra-abdominaux diffus postopératoires (SIADPO) ont encore une fréquence alarmante. Ils mettent rapidement en cause l'intégrité des grandes fonctions. Le but de cette étude était d’évaluer leur prise en charge. Il s'agissait d'une étude rétrospective descriptive sur 10 ans (janvier 2000 à décembre 2009) portant sur 45 cas de SIADPO. Nous avons étudié les aspects épidémiologiques, diagnostiques, thérapeutiques et pronostiques. Il s'agissait de 45 cas dont 25 hommes et 20 femmes avec un sex-ratio de 1,25. L’âge moyen des patients était de 34 ans avec des extrêmes de 20 et 70 ans. Le SIADPO survenait au décours d'une intervention septique en urgence dans 68,8% des cas. Le délai moyen de diagnostic était de 10 jours. Les signes cliniques étaient dominés par les troubles du transit (80%), la douleur abdominale (77,7%), la fièvre (66,7%), le météorisme abdominal (33%). Une hyperleucocytose a été retrouvée dans 60% des cas. Le liquide intra-abdominal était polymicrobien. Tous les patients ont bénéficié d'une laparotomie xipho-pubienne dans les 72 heures. Nous avons noté 82,2% de péritonites secondaires notamment post-opératoires et 17,8% de péritonites persistantes. Les étiologies étaient dominées par le lâchage de suture digestive ou gynécologique (66,7% des cas). La stomie digestive a été le geste le plus fréquemment réalisé (41%). La guérison est survenue chez 75,5%. La morbidité opératoire était de 42% faite de suppuration pariétale (10 cas), de fistule entérocutanée (6 cas), d’éviscération (2 cas). La mortalité était de 24,5% en rapport avec le retard diagnostique et les défaillances multi-viscérales. Les interventions septiques en urgence sont les plus grandes pourvoyeuses de SIADPO. La mortalité reste encore élevée en rapport avec la défaillance viscérale. La précocité du diagnostic et de la réintervention conditionnent ainsi le pronostic.
A Web Searcher Agent Based on Contextual Rules and Collaboration among Agents

This paper presents a study to develop a Web searcher agent for semantic information retrieval on the Web. This agent uses semantic rules defined by an ontology to filter the search context. For this study a literature search was performed and the agent was developed to test the results. The literature search provides the basis to development of the agent. The agent was developed using the SemantiCore framework and Jena API. The SemantiCore framework was used to develop the agents and its interactions while the Jena API enabled the reading and manipulation of the ontology used for semantic filtering. This study concludes that searching using semantic rules defined by ontologies is a viable alternative to improve web search results.
A review of mentation in REM and NREM sleep: “Covert” REM sleep as a possible reconciliation of two opposing models

Numerous studies have replicated the finding of mentation in both rapid eye movement (REM) and nonrapid eye movement (NREM) sleep. However, two different theoretical models have been proposed to account for this finding: (1) a one-generator model, in which mentation is generated by a single set of processes regardless of physiological differences between REM and NREM sleep; and (2) a two-generator model, in which qualitatively different generators produce cognitive activity in the two states. First, research is reviewed demonstrating conclusively that mentation can occur in NREM sleep; global estimates show an average mentation recall rate of about 50% from NREM sleep – a value that has increased substantially over the years. Second, nine different types of research on REM and NREM cognitive activity are examined for evidence supporting or refuting the two models. The evidence largely, but not completely, favors the two-generator model. Finally, in a preliminary attempt to reconcile the two models, an alternative model is proposed that assumes the existence of covert REM sleep processes during NREM sleep. Such covert activity may be responsible for much of the dreamlike cognitive activity occurring in NREM sleep.
Major alterations of the regulation of root NO(3)(-) uptake are associated with the mutation of Nrt2.1 and Nrt2.2 genes in Arabidopsis.

The role of AtNrt2.1 and AtNrt2.2 genes, encoding putative NO(3)(-) transporters in Arabidopsis, in the regulation of high-affinity NO(3)(-) uptake has been investigated in the atnrt2 mutant, where these two genes are deleted. Our initial analysis of the atnrt2 mutant (S. Filleur, M.F. Dorbe, M. Cerezo, M. Orsel, F. Granier, A. Gojon, F. Daniel-Vedele [2001] FEBS Lett 489: 220-224) demonstrated that root NO(3)(-) uptake is affected in this mutant due to the alteration of the high-affinity transport system (HATS), but not of the low-affinity transport system. In the present work, we show that the residual HATS activity in atnrt2 plants is not inducible by NO(3)(-), indicating that the mutant is more specifically impaired in the inducible component of the HATS. Thus, high-affinity NO(3)(-) uptake in this genotype is likely to be due to the constitutive HATS. Root (15)NO(3)(-) influx in the atnrt2 mutant is no more derepressed by nitrogen starvation or decrease in the external NO(3)(-) availability. Moreover, the mutant also lacks the usual compensatory up-regulation of NO(3)(-) uptake in NO(3)(-)-fed roots, in response to nitrogen deprivation of another portion of the root system. Finally, exogenous supply of NH(4)(+) in the nutrient solution fails to inhibit (15)NO(3)(-) influx in the mutant, whereas it strongly decreases that in the wild type. This is not explained by a reduced activity of NH(4)(+) uptake systems in the mutant. These results collectively indicate that AtNrt2.1 and/or AtNrt2.2 genes play a key role in the regulation of the high-affinity NO(3)(-) uptake, and in the adaptative responses of the plant to both spatial and temporal changes in nitrogen availability in the environment.
Inter-Talker Differences in Intelligibility for Two Types of Degraded Speech

Are the acoustic-phonetic factors that promote highly intelligible speech invariant across different listener populations and listening environments? Researchers have taken two approaches to investigate differences in intelligibility for a variety of listener populations: examining how speaking style affects intelligibility, and examining how inter-talker differences influence intelligibility. Following the latter approach, we compared the intelligibility of talkers under cochlear implant (CI) simulation (n=200), and in speech mixed with babble (n=200) with their intelligibility under quiet listening conditions (n=200, reported by Karl & Pisoni, 1994). The stimuli consisted of 20 native English talkers producing 100 sentences which were processed to simulate listening with an 8-channel CI or mixed with multi-talker babble. For each condition, stimuli were presented to listeners in a sentence transcription task. The results indicated that the most intelligible talkers in quiet were not the most intelligible talkers under CI-simulation or in babble. Furthermore, listeners demonstrated a greater degree of perceptual learning with the CI-simulated speech compared with the speech mixed with babble. While some of the acoustic-phonetic properties were correlated with intelligibility in all conditions, other properties differed in their degree of correlation among the three conditions. Overall, these results suggest that the acoustic-phonetic parameters that result in highly intelligible speech are dependent on listener characteristics and listening environment.
Thematic Representation of Short Text Messages with Latent Topics: Application in the Twitter context

The amount of information exchanged over the Internet is continuously growing, taking the form of short text messages on microblogging platforms such as Twitter. Due to the limited size of these types of messages, their understanding may require to know the context of their occurrence. In this paper, we propose a higher-level representation of short text messages based on a thematic model obtained by a Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA). We propose to evaluate the effectiveness of this short text message representation by using it in the experimental setup of the INEX 2012 tweet contextu- alization task. This topic-based representation allows to extend the message vocabulary by searching a set of thematically- related words. Results demonstrated the interest of this topic- space based approach for the tweet contextualization task. Keywords-Short text message, Thematic representation, La- tent Dirichlet Allocation, Keyword extraction, Twitter
Comprendre les motivations des développeurs de l'open source à partir de leur participation

Une large part de la litterature sur les projets open source s’est concentree sur les motivations permettant de predire le niveau de participation des membres. Toutefois, ces facteurs incitatifs ne garantissent pas pour autant une participation durable. En effet, la plupart des participants se retirent des que leurs besoins personnels sont satisfaits, si bien que beaucoup de projets sont arretes ou abandonnes faute d’avoir su conserver un nombre suffisant de participants actifs. Ce faisant, la question de recherche pourrait etre inversee afin d’apprehender dans quelles mesures la participation effective aux projets open source permet aux membres de donner sens a leurs propres motivations. L’objectif de cet article est de traiter cette question sous un angle enactiviste en considerant que les motivations ne sont pas des prealables a l’action mais se forment dans et par cette derniere (ici la participation). La partie empirique presente les resultats d’une enquete quantitative conduite, sur SourceForge, aupres de 93 membres de projets de logiciels libres destines aux entreprises. Les resultats revelent, en particulier, que la reputation, la reciprocite ainsi que les recherches d’opportunites professionnelles sont les variables les plus expliquees par le niveau de participation. En revanche, les motivations concernant l’apprentissage et l’ideologie du logiciel libre ne sont que faiblement determinees, ce qui vient contre-balancer les resultats des etudes qui avaient pourtant evalue un fort pouvoir predictif de ces deux variables sur le niveau de participation escompte. Ceci tend a montrer que la participation semble surtout donner du corps a des motivations pour lesquelles le participant dispose d’indicateurs pratiques quant a leur satisfaction.