Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A RhoA and Rnd3 cycle regulates actin reassembly during membrane blebbing

Significance The plasma membrane and the underlying actin cortex show dynamic interactions. When the plasma membrane detaches from the actin cortex, the plasma membrane protrudes. The protruded membrane is called a membrane bleb and is often observed during cell migration or cytokinesis. In the present study, we determined the molecular mechanisms involved in the reassembly of the actin cortex in membrane blebs using live-cell imaging. The actin cytoskeleton usually lies beneath the plasma membrane. When the membrane-associated actin cytoskeleton is transiently disrupted or the intracellular pressure is increased, the plasma membrane detaches from the cortex and protrudes. Such protruded membrane regions are called blebs. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying membrane blebbing are poorly understood. This study revealed that epidermal growth factor receptor kinase substrate 8 (Eps8) and ezrin are important regulators of rapid actin reassembly for the initiation and retraction of protruded blebs. Live-cell imaging of membrane blebbing revealed that local reassembly of actin filaments occurred at Eps8- and activated ezrin-positive foci of membrane blebs. Furthermore, we found that a RhoA–ROCK–Rnd3 feedback loop determined the local reassembly sites of the actin cortex during membrane blebbing.
The effectiveness of eucalyptus oil, orange oil, and xylene in dissolving different endodontic sealers

Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate the dissolution effectiveness of eucalyptus oil, orange oil, xylene, and distilled water on three different endodontic sealers. Materials and Methods: About 240 samples of root canal sealers (eighty for each sealer) were prepared and divided into four groups of 20 each for immersion in different organic solvents. Each group was further subdivided into two subgroups (n = 10) for 2 and 10 min of immersion time. The mean percentage of weight loss was determined for each sealer in each solvent at both time periods. Data were statistically analyzed by two factor analysis of variance and significance of mean difference was obtained by Tukey's post hoc test (P < 0.05). Results: The lowest level of solubility was observed for Adseal followed by Apexit Plus and Endomethasone N at both time periods in all solvents. Apexit Plus showed no significant (P > 0.05) difference in its dissolution in all the organic solvents except distilled water at both the time periods. The solubility profile of Endomethasone N and Adseal did not differ significantly among eucalyptus oil, orange oil, and xylene at 2 min and between eucalyptus oil and orange oil at 10 min. However, at 10 min, Endomethasone N and Adseal showed a more pronounced solubility in xylene as compared to both eucalyptus oil and orange oil. Conclusions: In general, xylene was the most effective in dissolving root canal sealers than other organic solvents. Essential oils (eucalyptus oil and orange oil) were found similar in their ability to dissolve Apexit Plus and Endomethasone N.
Periorbital Contour Abnormalities: Hollow Eye Ring Management with Hyalurostructure

Purpose:A new technique for treating “periorbital hollowing” with hyaluronic gel filling using a unique cannula designed specifically for periorbital use. Method: The study was conducted from December 2008 to July 2009. All the patients presenting to the Alcazar aesthetic and Orbital clinic for periorbital contour abnormality complains where included. A total of 26 patients (52 injections) in both functional and aesthetic categories were identified. The inclusion criteria where contour abnormalities in the periorbital area. These included contour abnormalities of the periorbital and brow region that presented clinically as: “hollow eye ring” and “hollow cavities” and “deflated eyebrow”. The aim was to evaluate a new technique with a cannula specific for periorbital injections. This was designed in consultation with the author and was manufactured by the Thiebaud Company. Treatments where performed using local anaesthesia (emla 5% and an injection of 1% Xylocaïne adrenalised to 32-gauge needle) using the same protocol as Coleman lipostructure but using hyaluronic acid gel. The hyaluronic acid gel used in each case was Restylane (Q-Med-Sweden). Follow-up was over 6 months and performed photographically and with a patient self-evaluation questionnaire. The clinical postoperative assessment examined for bruising or swelling postinjection. The rates of complication were compared to published results and the authors own series before switching to the new cannula. Results: After analysis of the patient responses 24 patients (92%) with a 6 months’ follow-up were satisfied or very satisfied of aesthetic result after hyalurostructure of periorbital region. The use of the specially designed cannula led to less complication. There were 3 cases of bruising (3/52) and 4 cases of lymphatic stasis (4/52). We also noted fewer surface irregularities and a better distribution of the product as the injection was a retro orbicular pre periosteal plane). Conclusion: Treatment of the periorbital region and tear trough by hyaluronic acid injection has been described previously. But often the risks of this delicate anatomic region and bruises caused by needles followed by the appearance of hollow eye ring due to deposition of haemosiderin have limited the development of this technique. We propose a new treatment for hollow eye rings and for peri orbital region adapted from Lipostructure but with hyaluronic acid and facilitating treatment protocol of that region with improved aesthetic results: hyalurostructure.
Magnetic Nanoparticles for Magnetoresistance-Based Biodetection

Magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) have been studied widely as a powerful diagnostic probe and therapeutic agent for biomedical applications. In recent years, they are also found to be sensitive to magnetoresistive (MR) devices and MNP-MR biochips are predicted to be more affordable, portable and sensitive than the conventional optical detection methods. In this MNP-MR biochip design, MNP probes are required to have high magnetic moment, high susceptibility, and be target-specific. This review summarizes recent advances in chemical syntheses and functionalization of MNPs with controlled magnetic properties for sensitive MR detection and for bio-sensing applications.
In vivo Dentin Microhardness beneath a Calcium-Phosphate Cement

A minimally invasive caries-removal technique preserves potentially repairable, caries-affected dentin. Mineral-releasing cements may promote remineralization of soft residual dentin. This study evaluated the in vivo remineralization capacity of resin-based calcium-phosphate cement (Ca-PO4) used for indirect pulp-capping. Permanent carious and sound teeth indicated for extraction were excavated and restored either with or without the Ca-PO4 base (control), followed by adhesive restoration. Study teeth were extracted after 3 months, followed by sectioning and in vitro microhardness analysis of the cavity floor to 115-µm depth. Caries-affected dentin that received acid conditioning prior to Ca-PO4 basing showed significantly increased Knoop hardness near the cavity floor. The non-etched group presented results similar to those of the non-treated group. Acid etching prior to cement application increased microhardness of residual dentin near the interface after 3 months in situ.
Pattern Structures for Treatment Optimization in Subgroups of Patients

A comparison of different treatment strategies does not always result in determining the best one for all patients, one needs to study subgroups of patients with significant difference in efficiency between treatment strategies. To solve this problem an approach to subgroups generation is proposed, where data are described in terms of a pattern structure and pattern concepts stay for patient subgroups and their descriptions. To find the most promising pattern concepts in terms of the difference of treatment strategies in efficiency a version of CbO algorithm is proposed. An application to the analysis of data on childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia is considered.
Anisotropic 3-D wavelet packet bases for video coding

Video coding algorithms based on 3-D wavelet transforms exist which have a competitive rate-distortion performance and are very fast because motion compensation is not needed. The compression efficiency of these algorithms can be increased by the use of more general wavelet packet transforms. Anisotropic wavelet packets are an even more generalized type of wavelet transform, where multidimensional wavelets do not necessarily have equal dilations in each dimension. This property is advantageous especially for 3-D video coding because video data has different characteristics in the time and spatial dimensions. This paper develops methods to adapt the SMAWZ codec to anisotropic 3-D wavelet packet bases and investigates algorithm complexity and the resulting rate-distortion performance. It can be shown that there exists a fixed anisotropic wavelet packet basis that is able to outperform MPEG-4 by up to 4dB especially for video sequences with low motion.
Vitamin B 12 and metformin.

Extrapolation from this data suggests that only some 10%,b of postoperative liver damage is likely to be attributable to anaesthetic agents. Furthermore, we are currently engaged in a study of postoperative jaundice occurring in Great Britain and Eire. Up to the present time, in the majority of cases investigated, the jaundice is probably due to factors other than the anaesthetic agent used. However, it can be seen from Table IV on p. 21 that every case reported to the Committce on Safety of Drugs has been included in Figure 2, p. 19. It is highly unlikely, therefore, that all of these cases are unexplained, and an "excess" of cases in which a cause and effect relationship is attributable to halothane may not exist. The high incidence of jaundice after operations repeated within a month remains of interest and concern. (Similar arguments may be applied to Figure 3.) We endorse the view that "the rare occurrence of jaundice after halothane anaesthesia is of much concern to anaesthetists. " Regrettably, however, we conclude that the paper by Professor Mushin and his colleagues does not reduce the uncertainty as to whether or not halothane hepatitis exists. Indeed, the statement that "this complication could be avoided if the use of halothane were stopped altogether" is open to misinterpretation by nonanaesthetists who may not appreciate that most anaesthetic agents and techniques have been incriminated following the occurrence of postoperative liver damage. It may well be that, if the advice not to repeat halothane is taken "because of the possible greater overall safety of administration of two halothane anesthetics as opposed to administration of one halothane followed or preceded by one non-halothane anesthetic, the epidemiologic consequences of withholding halothane from almost all patients returning for a second surgical procedure might well be the opposite of those intended. "3-We are, etc.,
Aglycosylated antibodies and antibody fragments produced in a scalable in vitro transcription-translation system

We describe protein synthesis, folding and assembly of antibody fragments and full-length aglycosylated antibodies using an Escherichia coli-based open cell-free synthesis (OCFS) system. We use DNA template design and high throughput screening at microliter scale to rapidly optimize production of single-chain Fv (scFv) and Fab antibody fragments that bind to human IL-23 and IL-13α1R, respectively. In addition we demonstrate production of aglycosylated immunoglobulin G (IgG1) trastuzumab. These antibodies are produced rapidly over several hours in batch mode in standard bioreactors with linear scalable yields of hundreds of milligrams/L over a 1 million-fold change in scales up to pilot scale production. We demonstrate protein expression optimization of translation initiation region (TIR) libraries from gene synthesized linear DNA templates, optimization of the temporal assembly of a Fab from independent heavy chain and light chain plasmids and optimized expression of fully assembled trastuzumab that is equivalent to mammalian expressed material in biophysical and affinity based assays. These results illustrate how the open nature of the cell-free system can be used as a seamless antibody engineering platform from discovery to preclinical development of aglycosylated monoclonal antibodies and antibody fragments as potential therapeutics.
Ultrasound Synthetic Aperture Focusing with the Delay Multiply and sum beamforming algorithm

The Delay Multiply and Sum (DMAS) beamforming algorithm was originally conceived for microwave imaging of breast cancer. In a previous work, we demonstrated that, by properly modifying and improving the algorithm processing steps, DMAS can be successfully applied to ultrasound signals for B-mode image formation and that it outperforms standard Delay and Sum (DAS) beamforming in terms of contrast resolution. As previously pointed out, however, DMAS-beamformed B-mode images, in which fixed and dynamic focusing are applied respectively during transmit and receive operations, show an intensity drop away from the transmit focal depth compared to DAS images. This could be due to the fact that DMAS beamforming is based on a measure of backscattered signal coherence, which reaches its maximum only at the transmit focus, where signals are perfectly realigned. The preliminary results presented in this work show that, by employing Synthetic Aperture Focusing (SAF), which allows to achieve dynamic focusing both on transmission and reception, this intensity loss is compensated, as DAS and DMAS images have almost the same maximum amplitude level at all depths.
Sphingosine Suppresses Mesothelioma Cell Proliferation by Inhibiting PKC-δ and Inducing Cell Cycle Arrest at the G₀/G1 Phase

Background/Aims: Sphingosine regulates cellular differentiation, cell growth, and apoptosis. The present study aimed at understanding sphingosine-regulated mesothelioma cell proliferation. Methods: Human malignant mesothelioma cells such as NCI-H28, NCI-H2052, NCI-H2452, and MSTO-211H cells were cultured. The siRNA to silence the protein kinase C (PKC)-δ-targeted gene was constructed and transfected into cells. MTT assay, cell cycle analysis using a flow cytometry, and cell-free PKC-δ assay were carried out. Results: For all the cell types sphingosine inhibited cell growth in a concentration (1-100 µM)-dependent manner. The sphingosine effect was not prevented by rottlerin, an inhibitor of protein kinase C-δ (PKC-δ); conversely, rottlerin further enhanced the sphingosine effect or rottlerin suppressed mesothelioma cell growth without sphingosine. In the cell-free PKC assay, sphingosine attenuated PKC-δ activity. Knocking-down PKC-δ induced cell cycle arrest at the G0/G1 phase and inhibited cell growth. Conclusion: The results of the present study show that sphingosine suppressed mesothelioma cell proliferation by inhibiting PKC-δ, to induce cell cycle arrest at the G0/G1 phase.
Practical Labeling Methodology for Choline‐Derived Lipids and Applications in Live Cell Fluorescence Imaging

Lipids of the plasma membrane participate in a variety of biological processes, and methods to probe their function and cellular location are essential to understanding biochemical mechanisms. Previous reports have established that phosphocholine‐containing lipids can be labeled by alkyne groups through metabolic incorporation. Herein, we have tested alkyne, azide and ketone‐containing derivatives of choline as metabolic labels of choline‐containing lipids in cells. We also show that 17‐octadecynoic acid can be used as a complementary metabolic label for lipid acyl chains. We provide methods for the synthesis of cyanine‐based dyes that are reactive with alkyne, azide and ketone metabolic labels. Using an improved method for fluorophore conjugation to azide or alkyne‐modified lipids by Cu(I)‐catalyzed azide‐alkyne cycloaddition (CuAAC), we apply this methodology in cells. Lipid‐labeled cell membranes were then interrogated using flow cytometry and fluorescence microscopy. Furthermore, we explored the utility of this labeling strategy for use in live cell experiments. We demonstrate measurements of lipid dynamics (lateral mobility) by fluorescence photobleaching recovery (FPR). In addition, we show that adhesion of cells to specific surfaces can be accomplished by chemically linking membrane lipids to a functionalized surface. The strategies described provide robust methods for introducing bioorthogonal labels into native lipids.
Avoiding the blues for airline travelers

The fast growth in airline passenger traffic combined with the slow growth in airport capacity worldwide is putting a severe strain on the capability of airlines to adapt their processes to maintain satisfactory levels of customer service. The urgent need to better utilize assets, handle more flights in shorter periods of time, increase the number of waves at hubs, coordinate schedules with alliance partners, and quickly respond to irregularities, such as weather and malfunctioning equipment delays, is confronting airlines worldwide. IBM Research and IBM's Travel and Transportation Industry Solution Unit are helping airlines and airports to use advanced information technology to get passengers through check-in, security, and boarding faster, and to improve baggage handling systems, thus improving the passenger experience. Simulation models, built using IBM's Journey Management Library/sup TM/ (IBM JML/sup TM/) are useful in helping airlines understand what impact new technologies, such as self-service kiosks, voice recognition check-in, smart cards, electronic ticketing, and radio frequency devices, will have on bottlenecks, personnel needs and customer service levels.
Self-Management of Hypertension in Hispanic Adults

Almost one third of the U.S. population has hypertension. Compared to non-Hispanic Whites, Hispanic individuals have significantly lower levels of hypertension awareness, treatment, and control. This article provides an integrative review of factors that may influence self-management of hypertension among Hispanic adults. A detailed literature search of articles published between 1985 and 2010 was performed. Twelve articles based on quantitative studies (n = 9) and qualitative studies (n = 3) were reviewed. Barriers and facilitators to self-management of hypertension were identified. The findings in this review may help health care professionals in recognizing factors that need to be considered in the development of self-management interventions for Hispanic patients with hypertension. Future research is needed to further explore facilitators to self-management, and to implement and evaluate intervention studies aimed at blood pressure management in Hispanics with hypertension.
Propriedades termoelétricas de filmes nanométricos de ligas de telúrio, bismuto, selênio e antimônio produzidos por Magnetron sputtering DC

The present thesis discusses a semiconductor targets production method whose material is obtained from commercial thermoelectric modules. The targets are used in a magnetron sputtering system. The materials consist of two semiconductor ternary alloys, one made of bismuth telluride and antimony, characterized as type P and the other of bismuth selenide and telluride, characterized as type N. These alloys of Bi2Te3−ySey and Bi2−xSbxTe3 systems exhibit high-performance thermoelectric properties within an ambient temperature range. Based on these data, thermoelectric lms of nanometric thickness were produced in two batches, whose samples were submitted to post-production thermal treatments. We investigated the thermoelectric properties of lms, at ambient temperature in the physical property measurement system (PPMS). To that end, the thermal transport option (TTO), which makes it possible to acquire data on physical quantities such as Seebeck coe cient α, thermal conductivity κ and electrical resistivity ρ, was applied. These quantities were used to calculate the power factor and gure of merit, which is an adimensional factor that determines how promising the material is for energy conversion and thermoelectric refrigeration applications. Measures of voltage current using the four-point collinear method showed that the type P semiconductor can be used as a thermal keying sensor. An important perspective is the development of a substrate, using lms as planar thermoelements, thereby functioning as a thermoelectric device capable of promoting thermal gradients in applications for other systems such as galvanomagnetic. Palavras-chave: Target, Bismuth Tellurid, Thermoelectric, Seebeck coe cient, Merit Figure.
Current knowledge on oxidative stress in hepatic ischemia/reperfusion

Abstract Ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury associated with hepatic resections and liver transplantation remains a serious complication in clinical practice, despite several attempts to solve the problem. The redox balance, which is pivotal for normal function and integrity of tissues, is dysregulated during I/R, leading to an accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Formation of ROS and oxidant stress are the disease mechanisms most commonly invoked in hepatic I/R injury. The present review examines published results regarding possible sources of ROS and their effects in the context of I/R injury. We also review the effect of oxidative stress on marginal livers, which are more vulnerable to I/R-induced oxidative stress. Strategies to improve the viability of marginal livers could reduce the risk of dysfunction after surgery and increase the number of organs suitable for transplantation. The review also considers the therapeutic strategies developed in recent years to reduce the oxidative stress induced by hepatic I/R, and we seek to explain why some of them have not been applied clinically. New antioxidant strategies that have yielded promising results for hepatic I/R injury are discussed.
Implementing Ecosystem Management in Public Agencies: Lessons from the U.S. Bureau of Land Management and the Forest Service

Abstract: Ecosystem management was formally adopted over a decade ago by many U.S. natural resource agencies, including the Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management. This approach calls for management based on stakeholder collaboration; interagency cooperation; integration of scientific, social, and economic information; preservation of ecological processes; and adaptive management. Results of previous studies indicate differences in the extent to which particular components of ecosystem management would be implemented within the U.S. Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management and suggest a number of barriers thought to impede implementation. Drawing on survey and interview data from agency personnel and stakeholders, we compared levels of ecosystem‐management implementation in the Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management and identified the most important barriers to implementation. Agency personnel perceived similarly high levels of implementation on many ecosystem‐management components, whereas stakeholders perceived lower levels. Agencies were most challenged by implementation of preservation of ecological processes, adaptive management, and integration of social and economic information, whereas the most significant barriers to implementation were political, cultural, and legal.