Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Familial prostate cancer.

Familial prostate cancer is commonly defined as a family in which there are two first-degree relatives or one first-degree and at least two second-degree relatives with prostate cancer. Data on the familial component of prostate cancer and evidence to support a role of genetic susceptibility in this disease are reviewed in the article. The document presents data from case-control cohort cross-sectional and twin studies which provide consistent evidence for an inherited form of prostate cancer. Studies noted the role of inherited genes in the development of prostate cancer and suggested that this effect is independent of environmental factors. As such segregation analyses were undertaken to characterize the genetic models that may explain the familial/hereditary pattern of prostate cancer incidence. Moreover six prostate cancer susceptibility loci have been identified: 1q24-25 1q42 1q27-28 Xq27-28 1p36 and 20q13 and 17p. The study implies that the identification of men prone to develop prostate cancer based on their genetic background may be used to target prevention programs.
Cognitive Bias in the Articulated Thoughts of Depressed and Nondepressed Psychiatric Patients

Beck's cognitive theory of depression postulates several types of cognitive bias among depressed patients. Empirical studies supporting this hypothesis have usually used questionnaire “endorsement” measures of cognition, which may suggest responses to subjects. We used the articulated thoughts during simulated situations (ATSS) method of cognitive assessment in comparing cognitive processes of 15 outpatients with major depression with those of 15 nondepressed psychiatric outpatients in three simulated situations. Depressed patients exceeded nondepressed patients in cognitive bias only in the negative (not the neutral or positive) simulated situation. Discussion centered on the possible utility of ATSS for research on cognition in stressful situations.
Evaluation of the efficacy of perorally administered glutamic acid-chelated iron and iron-dextran injected subcutaneously in Duroc and Norwegian Landrace piglets.

The goals of this study were to evaluate the effect of orally administered amino acid-chelated iron (Fe) compared to injected Fe-dextran on haematology and weight gain in two different breeds raised under commercial conditions. Altogether 92 Duroc (D) pigs and 84 Norwegian Landrace (L) pigs from two different herds were included in the study. The day after birth the litters were divided in two groups (split litters). Group (Gr.) 1 was given 4 ml of a 50% solution of Super Fe-MAX (52 mg glutamic acid-chelated Fe in a water solution) orally, while Gr. 2 was subcutaneously (s.c.) injected with Idofer (180 mg Fe as ferridextran). Until weaning at 5 weeks, all the piglets had free access to a 3% solution of Super Fe-MAX (0.78 mg Fe/ml), access to pelleted food being given from 1 week of age. The piglets were weighed and bled before treatment the day after birth (day 1) and on days 4, 7, 14, 21 and 35. All piglets were weighed on days 28 and 49, while 72 of the L pigs were also weighed on days 77, 98 and 119. At weaning D pigs in Gr. 1 and Gr. 2 had a mean body weight of 8.64 kg and 8.30 kg, respectively, the corresponding figures for the L pigs being 10.82 kg and 10.34 kg. As regards the 72 L pigs followed to day 119, the mean weight in Gr. 1 and Gr. 2 was 80.6 kg and 80.2 kg, respectively. A significantly lower weight gain in the piglets with a birth weight below 1.2 kg in Gr. 2 compared with Gr. 1 indicated that excess administration of Fe to small piglets may have a detrimental effect on weight gain. From day 7 (D pigs) and on days 14 and 21 (L pigs), Gr. 2 had a significantly higher haemoglobin concentration (Hb) than Gr. 1. Nevertheless, Hb levels were also adequate in Gr. 1 in both breeds. There was a negative correlation between changes in Hb during the first weeks and the initial value. Though haematological values seemed to show inter-breed differences, with higher average erythrocyte counts (RBC) and Hb and lower mean cell volume (MCV) in the D pigs, the ability to avoid Fe deficiency nevertheless appeared to be the same in both breeds.
Extinction vulnerability of tropical montane endemism from warming and upslope displacement: a preliminary appraisal for the highest massif in Madagascar

One of the predicted biological responses to climate warming is the upslope displacement of species distributions. In the tropics, because montane assemblages frequently include local endemics that are distributed close to summits, these species may be especially vulnerable to experiencing complete habitat loss from warming. However, there is currently a dearth of information available for tropical regions. Here, we present a preliminary appraisal of this extinction threat using the herpetological assemblage of the Tsaratanana Massif in northern Madagascar (the island's highest massif), which is rich with montane endemism. We present meteorological evidence (individual and combined regional weather station data and reanalysis forecast data) for recent warming in Madagascar, and show that this trend is consistent with recent climate model simulations. Using standard moist adiabatic lapse rates, these observed meteorological warming trends in northern Madagascar predict upslope species displacement of 17–74 m per decade between 1993 and 2003. Over this same period, we also report preliminary data supporting a trend for upslope distribution movements, based on two surveys we completed at Tsaratanana. For 30 species, representing five families of reptiles and amphibians, we found overall mean shifts in elevational midpoint of 19–51 m upslope (mean lower elevation limit 29–114 m; mean upper elevation limit −8 to 53 m). We also found upslope trends in mean and median elevational observations in seven and six of nine species analysed. Phenological differences between these surveys do not appear to be substantial, but these upslope shifts are consistent with the predictions based on meteorological warming. An elevational range displacement analysis projects complete habitat loss for three species below the 2 °C ‘dangerous’ warming threshold. One of these species is not contracting its distribution, but the other two were not resampled in 2003. A preliminary review of the other massifs in Madagascar indicates potential similar vulnerability to habitat loss and upslope extinction. Consequently, we urgently recommend additional elevational surveys for these and other tropical montane assemblages, which should also include, when possible, the monitoring of local meteorological conditions and habitat change.
Quantitative analyses link modulation of sonic hedgehog signaling to continuous variation in facial growth and shape

Variation is an intrinsic feature of biological systems, yet developmental biology does not frequently address population-level phenomena. Sonic hedgehog (SHH) signaling activity in the vertebrate forebrain and face is thought to contribute to continuous variation in the morphology of the upper jaw, but despite its potential explanatory power, this idea has never been quantitatively assessed. Here, we test this hypothesis with an experimental design that is explicitly focused on the generation and measurement of variation in multivariate shape, tissue growth, cellular behavior and gene expression. We show that the majority of upper jaw shape variation can be explained by progressive changes in the spatial organization and mitotic activity of midfacial growth zones controlled by SHH signaling. In addition, nonlinearity between our treatment doses and phenotypic outcomes suggests that threshold effects in SHH signaling may play a role in variability in midfacial malformations such as holoprosencephaly (HPE). Together, these results provide novel insight into the generation of facial morphology, and demonstrate the value of quantifying variation for our understanding of development and disease.
A Compound of Chinese Herbs Protects against Alcoholic Liver Fibrosis in Rats via the TGF-β1/Smad Signaling Pathway

Alcoholic liver fibrosis (ALF) has become a major public health concern owing to its health impacts and the lack of effective treatment strategies for the disease. In this study, we investigated the effect of a compound composed of Chinese herbs Pueraria lobata (Willd.), Salvia miltiorrhiza, Schisandra chinensis, and Silybum marianum on ALF. An ALF model was established. Rats were fed with modified Lieber–Decarli alcohol liquid diet and injected with trace CCl4 at late stage. The rats were then treated with several doses of the compound. Biochemical and fibrosis-relevant parameters were measured from the sera obtained from the rats. Liver tissues were obtained for hematoxylin and eosin and Masson's trichrome staining. Matrix metalloproteinase-13 and tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-1 were determined by immunohistochemistry assays. The mRNA and protein expression levels of transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1), Smad2, Smad3, and Smad7 on the livers were also measured by quantitative polymerase chain reaction and Western blot. Results showed that the compound treatment alleviated pathological lesions in the liver, decreased the serum levels of hyaluronan, laminin, and hydroxyproline, and diminished the expression of hepatic tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-1. Compound treatment also increased hepatic matrix metalloproteinase-13 expression and inhibited the TGF-β1/Smad signaling pathway. In conclusion, the compound has a protective effect against ALF in rats, and an underlying mechanism is involved in the TGF-β1/Smad signaling pathway.
Automatic Personalized Spam Filtering through Significant Word Modeling

Typically, spam filters are built on the assumption that the characteristics of e-mails in the training set is identical to those in individual users' inboxes on which it will be applied. This assumption is oftentimes incorrect leading to poor performance of the filter. A personalized spam filter is built by taking into account the characteristics of e-mails in individual users' inboxes. We present an automatic approach for personalized spam filtering that does not require users' feedback. The proposed algorithm builds a statistical model of significant spam and non-spam words from the labeled training set and then updates it in multiple passes over the unlabeled individual user's inbox. The personalization of the model leads to improved filtering performance. We evaluate our algorithm on two publicly available datasets. The results show that our algorithm is robust and scalable, and a viable solution to the server-side personalized spam filtering problem. Moreover, it outperforms published results on one dataset and its performance is equivalent to the others on the second dataset.
Infusion of brain‐derived neurotrophic factor into the ventral tegmental area switches the substrates mediating ethanol motivation

Recent work has shown that infusion of brain‐derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) into the ventral tegmental area (VTA) promotes a switch in the mechanisms mediating morphine motivation, from a dopamine‐independent to a dopamine‐dependent pathway. Here we showed that a single infusion of intra‐VTA BDNF also promoted a switch in the mechanisms mediating ethanol motivation, from a dopamine‐dependent to a dopamine‐independent pathway (exactly opposite to that seen with morphine). We suggest that intra‐VTA BDNF, via its actions on TrkB receptors, precipitates a switch similar to that which occurs naturally when mice transit from a drug‐naive, non‐deprived state to a drug‐deprived state. The opposite switching of the mechanisms underlying morphine and ethanol motivation by BDNF in previously non‐deprived animals is consistent with their proposed actions on VTA GABAA receptors.
Improving Chinese Dependency Parsing with Auto-extracted Dependency Triples

To solve the data sparseness problem in dependency parsing, most previous studies used features extracted from large-scale auto-parsed data. Unlike previous work, we propose a novel approach to improve dependency parsing with dependency triples (DT) extracted by self-disambiguating patterns (SDP). The use of SDP makes it possible to avoid the dependency on a baseline parser and explore the influence of different types of DTs one by one. Experiments show that, when DT features are integrated into a maximum spanning tree (MST) dependency parser, the new parser improves significantly over the baseline MST parser. Comparative results also show that DTs with dependency relation labels perform much better than DTs without dependency relation label.
Agents, emergence, emotion and representation

This paper analyses issues pertaining to the relation between computational emergence and emotion in cognitive agent systems. We consider how a developing computational theory of cognition can be used to monitor and manage interactions with and within complex systems. Goal-based agent systems sometimes need to postpone or abandon important goals in favor of more immediate concerns. In more sophisticated goal-based agent systems goals may need to be abandoned due to conflict of motivations. This can lead to the emergence of perturbant behavior analogous in type to (negative) emotion-litre states. Agent systems need mechanisms to recognize this type of scenario or otherwise risk compromising their design rationale. Through the development and use of a dynamic representation of emotion, a computational agent can harness unwanted and emergent states and behaviors before the agent system becomes dysfunctional. A comparison is made between emergent computational states and emotional states. This paper weaves these threads together in a consideration of the nature of sophisticated dynamic representations (e.g. goals and motivations), emotion and philosophical issues related to the modeling of cognitive agent systems and the relevance in future computational systems responsible for complex human machine interactions.
Serum cholesterol concentration and coronary heart disease in population with low cholesterol concentrations.

OBJECTIVE--To examine the relation between serum cholesterol concentration and mortality (from coronary heart disease and from other causes) below the range of cholesterol values generally seen in Western populations. DESIGN--Prospective observational study based on 8-13 years of follow up of subjects in a population with low cholesterol concentrations. SETTING--Urban Shanghai, China. SUBJECTS--9021 Chinese men and women aged 35-64 at baseline. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE--Death from coronary heart disease and other causes. RESULTS--The average serum cholesterol concentration was 4.2 mmol/l at baseline examination, and only 43 (7%) of the deaths that occurred during 8-13 years of follow up were attributed to coronary heart disease. There was a strongly positive, and apparently independent, relation between serum cholesterol concentration and death from coronary heart disease (z = 3.47, p less than 0.001), and within the range of usual serum cholesterol concentration studied (3.8-4.7 mmol/l) there was no evidence of any threshold. After appropriate adjustment for the regression dilution bias, a 4 (SD 1)% difference in usual cholesterol concentration was associated with a 21 (SD 6)% (95% confidence interval 9% to 35%) difference in mortality from coronary heart disease. There was no significant relation between serum cholesterol concentration and death from stroke or all types of cancer. The 79 deaths due to liver cancer or other chronic liver disease were inversely related to cholesterol concentration at baseline. CONCLUSION--Blood cholesterol concentration was directly related to mortality from coronary heart disease even in those with what was, by Western standards, a "low" cholesterol concentration. There was no good evidence of an adverse effect of cholesterol on other causes of death.
ZHP-3 Acts at Crossovers to Couple Meiotic Recombination with Synaptonemal Complex Disassembly and Bivalent Formation in C. elegans

Crossover recombination and the formation of chiasmata normally ensure the proper segregation of homologous chromosomes during the first meiotic division. zhp-3, the Caenorhabditis elegans ortholog of the budding yeast ZIP3 gene, is required for crossover recombination. We show that ZHP-3 protein localization is highly dynamic. At a key transition point in meiotic prophase, the protein shifts from along the length of the synaptonemal complex (SC) to an asymmetric localization on the SC and eventually becomes restricted to foci that mark crossover recombination events. A zhp-3::gfp transgene partially complements a null mutation and reveals a separation of function; although the fusion protein can promote nearly wild-type levels of recombination, aneuploidy among the progeny is high, indicating defects in meiotic chromosome segregation. The structure of bivalents is perturbed in this mutant, suggesting that the chromosome segregation defect results from an inability to properly remodel chromosomes in response to crossovers. smo-1 mutants exhibit phenotypes similar to zhp-3::gfp mutants at higher temperatures, and smo-1; zhp-3::gfp double mutants exhibit more severe meiotic defects than either single mutant, consistent with a role for SUMO in the process of SC disassembly and bivalent differentiation. We propose that coordination of crossover recombination with SC disassembly and bivalent formation reflects a conserved role of Zip3/ZHP-3 in coupling recombination with SC morphogenesis.
Consumption of pomegranate decreases serum oxidative stress and reduces disease activity in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis: a pilot study.

BACKGROUND Pomegranate extract (POMx) consumption has been shown to reduce the incidence and severity of collagen-induced arthritis in mice. OBJECTIVES To investigate whether pomegranate consumption affects disease activity in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), in relation to their serum oxidative status. METHODS In this pilot 12 week open-labeled study eight patients with active RA consumed POMx (10 ml/day) for 12 weeks. Patients' joint status and serum oxidative status (lipid peroxidation, total thiols group, paraoxonase 1 activity) were evaluated at baseline and at week 12. RESULTS Six patients completed the study. POMx consumption significantly (P < 0.02) reduced the composite Disease Activity Index (DAS28) by 17%, which could be related mostly to a significant (P < 0.005) reduction in the tender joint count (by 62%). These results were associated with a significant (P < 0.02) reduction in serum oxidative status and a moderate but significant (P < 0.02) increase in serum high density lipoprotein-associated paraoxonase 1 (PON1) activity. The addition of POMx to serum from RA patients reduced free radical-induced lipid peroxidation by up to 25%. CONCLUSIONS The pomegranate consumption reduced DAS28 in RA patients, and this effect could be related to the antioxidative property of pomegranates. Dietary supplementation with pomegranates may be a useful complementary strategy to attenuate clinical symptoms in RA patients.
Average Capacity of Optical Wireless Communication Systems Over Atmospheric Turbulence Channels

The optical wireless communication systems are rapidly gaining popularity as effective means of transferring data at high rates over short distances. These systems facilitate rapidly deployable, lightweight, high-capacity communication without licensing fees and tariffs. On the other hand, the performance of this new technology depends strongly on the atmospheric conditions and the parameters of the link such as the length and the operation wavelength. In this work, we extract closed form mathematical expression for the evaluation of the average (ergodic) capacity of such a system, using the log-normal and gamma-gamma distribution, in order to model the atmospheric turbulence conditions and we study the influence of the above parameters on it.
SAG2 locus genotyping of Toxoplasma gondii in meat products of East Azerbaijan Province, North West of Iran During 2010-2011

Toxoplasmosis is an infection caused by Toxoplasma gondii , an intracellular obligate parasite. Its transmission is usually attributed to ingestion of undercooked or raw meat. The aim of this study was the detection and genotyping of T. gondii in meat products using the molecular method in East Azerbaijan. DNA was extracted from 164 meat products sample obtained from 15 commercial establishments. Nested polymerase chain reaction with specific primers for Toxoplasma gondii SAG2 locus was used for detection of the parasite in samples. Genotyping was carried out by digestion of PCR products with restriction enzymes Cfo1 and Sau3AI. T. gondii DNA was detected in 16.6, 19.1, 15 and 56.6%, in salami, sausages, and hamburger and kebab samples, respectively. Genotyping by restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis of SAG2 locus revealed that all of the samples belonged to genotype I. The detection of the parasite in uncooked meat and commercial meat products, and the high ratio of seropositive slaughtered animals, emphasis that the risk still exists for food -born toxoplasmosis.
ATM Expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells as a biomarker of insulin resistance

III OPSOMMING . V ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS . VII LIST OF FIGURES . XI LIST OF TABLES . XIII LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS . XIV CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW . 1 1. Ataxia Telangiectasia . 1 1.1 AT symptoms and characteristics . 1 2. Overview of ATM gene and protein . 1 2.1 ATM gene . 1 2.2 ATM protein kinase . 1 2.3 Localisation and functions of ATM . 2 3. ATM in insulin signalling . 3 4. ATM and adipocyte function . 5 5. ATM and insulin resistance . 6 6. P22 . 6 7. Insulin resistance . 7 7.1 Insulin resistance and diseases . 8 8. Cancer and AT . 16 9. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells . 17 9.1 Genetic material . 17 9.2 Environmental stimuli of gene expression . 17 9.3 Gene expression profiles . 18 9.4 Gene expression for diagnostics. 18 10. Ageing . 19 10.1 Ageing and DNA damage and repair . 19 10.2 Premature ageing in AT . 20 11. Motivation for this study . 21 12. Aim and Objectives . 22 CHAPTER 2: MATERIALS AND METHODS . 23 1. Setting up of PBMCs isolation protocol in an animal model . 23 1.1 Whole animal blood collection . 23 1.2 Percoll PLUS® as density gradient medium . 23 1.3 Comparison between Percoll PLUS® and Histopaque®-1077 . 24 Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za
Genetics, Inheritability Factors and Addiction

Addiction along with drug use disorders requires exposure to addictive agents. The renowned addictive agents include drugs such as alcohol, nicotine, and other hard drugs. Individuals who are susceptible to addiction include those who are increasingly exposed to the addictive agents. Nicotine use and abuse of alcohol are the most abused substances in the globe. These substances are responsible for the increasing mortality in both developing and developed worlds. The risk factors for addiction range from genetic factors to environmental factors. Alcohol dependence is mostly attributed to the short (S) allele. Similarly, this dependence is also linked to the environmental factors. Like alcohol, nicotine dependence is also linked to genetic factors. Various genetic studies indicate that nicotine dependence is heritable as there are many genes responsible for inheritance of smoking behavior. This study however notes that addiction to drugs is as a result of either heritable or inheritable factors. The study used 2000 smokers, 3000 alcohol addicts and 3000 cannabis dependents as the population for research. The researchers evaluated the contributions of genes to substance dependence. The results of the study showed that genetic and environmental factors contributed significantly to the addiction disorder.