Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The zinc finger repressor, ZBP‐89, recruits histone deacetylase 1 to repress vimentin gene expression

Vimentin, a member of the intermediate filament (IF) protein family, exhibits a complex pattern of tissue‐ and developmental‐specific expression. Although vimentin is widely expressed in the embryo, its expression becomes restricted during terminal differentiation. Moreover, it is often expressed in tissue culture cells despite their embryological origin and is a marker for the metastatic tumor cell. Previously, the vimentin promoter has been shown to contain several positive‐ and negative‐acting cis‐elements. The negative elements bind the transcription factor ZBP‐89. Interestingly, ZBP‐89 can be either an activator or a repressor of gene expression. For instance, ZBP‐89 has been shown to activate p21waf1/cip1 expression by recruiting p300 to the p21 promoter. Here, we have investigated the mechanism of ZBP‐89 repression. The histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor TSA enhances vimentin gene expression requiring the proximal promoter region including GC‐box 1, a known Sp1/Sp3 binding site. Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assays document an increase in the acetylation status of histone H3 on the endogenous vimentin gene concomitant with TSA treatment. However, EMSAs, DNA precipitation, co‐immunoprecipitation and ChIP data show that it is not Sp1, but rather ZBP‐89, which recruits HDAC1. From these studies we conclude that ZBP‐89 functions as a repressor by recruiting HDAC1 to the vimentin promoter.
Possible role of cytotoxic T cells in acute liver injury in hepatitis C virus cDNA transgenic mice mediated by Cre/loxP system

A line of hepatitis C virus (HCV) transgenic mice was established previously that was mediated by Cre/loxP system using HCV cDNA, including core, E1, E2 and NS2 genes. Intravenous infection of a recombinant adenovirus that expresses Cre DNA recombinase (AxCANCre) induced HCV structural protein expression in the liver of transgenic mice. HCV core protein production and transgene recombination in the mouse liver were serially evaluated after AxCANCre infusion. Core proteins were expressed efficiently and transgene was almost completely recombined in the liver of mice after 3 days and then the levels of both core protein production and transgene recombination decreased continuously for 28 days. However, 30.6% of the transgene recombination remained at 28 days and only 2.7% of core production remained at 28 days after infection. Compared with non‐transgenic controls, the serum alanine aminotransferase levels in transgenic mice were significantly higher 10, 14, and 21 days after adenovirus infection. Histological scoring also indicated severe pathological changes in the liver of transgenic mice after adenovirus infection. AxCANCre infusion increased CD8+ lymphocyte infiltration into the liver of transgenic mice compared with that of non‐transgenic controls. Furthermore, cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) isolated from transgenic mice during liver injury were specific for the HCV proteins. These results suggest that HCV structural proteins expressed in the liver of transgenic mice enhanced liver injury. HCV‐specific CTLs may be to enhance hepatitis. Thus, the present HCV transgenic mouse model provides a useful model of liver injury due to HCV, and the host immune response may play a pivotal role(s) in the pathogenesis of HCV. J. Med. Virol. 62:308–317, 2000. © 2000 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
An expanding syphilis epidemic in China: epidemiology, behavioural risk and control strategies with a focus on low-tier female sex workers and men who have sex with men

Syphilis has made a dramatic resurgence in China during the past two decades. During the Cultural Revolution (1966–76), sexually transmitted infections (STI) were so uncommon that they were removed from standard Chinese medical training curricula.1 As China's market economy expanded during 1980s economic reforms, reported STI, including syphilis infection, quickly re-appeared. An evolving STI reporting infrastructure largely assembled in the 1990s has noted increasing syphilis cases, particularly during the past 5 years (figure 1). 2 3 Now syphilis is among the top five reported communicable diseases in many major province-level municipalities and provinces.4 While China's syphilis case reporting system and potential determinants of spread have been outlined in other reviews,2 there have been many studies on syphilis infection among female sex workers (FSW),5 6 this review analyses syphilis in China from the perspective of two critical high-risk populations: men who have sex with men (MSM) and low-tier FSW. Here we define low-tier FSW as women who usually solicit clients on the street or public outdoor places and sell sex for less than approximately €2–10 per client. Although preventing adverse outcomes associated with syphilis in pregnancy is important,7 this review focuses …
Exploring the Effectiveness of Seller Reputation Mechanism Using Online Sales Data

This paper attempts to explore the effectiveness of the seller reputation mechanism by an empirical study using online sales data collected from TaoBao.com. A comparison analysis of seller reputation metrics of TaoBao, Amazon, and jd are carried out before the selection of the seller reputation metrics. The seller reputation metrics of small appliances are used as the input for the study considering the quality homogeneity among different sellers of the market, and the sales performance is measured by the sales amount of the recent month. The univariate analysis are performed to find out the effect of different seller reputation metrics on the sales performance, and the attribute selection technique is then applied to reveal the most significant factors contributing to the sales performance. The result indicates the significance of the user subjective assessment on the sales performance.
Investigating heterogeneous ensembles with filter feature selection for software effort estimation

Ensemble Effort Estimation (EEE) consists on predicting the software development effort by combining more than one single estimation technique. EEE has recently been investigated in software development effort estimation (SDEE) in order to improve the estimation accuracy. The overall results suggested that the EEE yield better prediction accuracy than single techniques. On the other hand, feature selection (FS) methods have been used in the area of SDEE for the purpose of reducing the dimensionality of a dataset size by eliminating the irrelevant and redundant features. Thus, the SDEE techniques are trained on a dataset with relevant features which can lead to improving the accuracy of their estimations. This paper aims at investigating the impact of two Filter feature selection methods: Correlation based Feature Selection (CFS) and RReliefF on the estimation accuracy of Heterogeneous (HT) ensembles. Four machine learning techniques (K-Nearest Neighbor, Support Vector Regression, Multilayer Perceptron and Decision Trees) were used as base techniques for the HT ensembles of this study. We evaluate the accuracy of these HT ensembles when their base techniques were trained on datasets preprocessed by the two feature selection methods. The HT ensembles use three combination rules: average, median, and inverse ranked weighted mean. The evaluation was carried out by means of eight unbiased accuracy measures through the leave-one-out-cross validation (LOOCV) technique over six datasets. The overall results suggest that all the attributes of most datasets used are relevant for building an accurate predictive technique since the ensembles constructed without features selection outperformed in general the ones using features selection. As for the combination rule, the median generally produces better results than the other two used in this empirical study.
Playing Support: Social Connectedness Amongst Male Videogame Players

While video games are becoming increasingly social, little is known regarding whether games might also facilitate social support. In tandem, while both genders experience similar overall rates of mental illness [1], men seek and use health services less often than women [2]. A series of interviews (N=15) were held with male social video game players to determine if video game play provides a means for them to access social support. Preliminary analyses suggest that games afford a means of gaining support from new connections, describes how these trusting relationships develop, and demonstrates that gameplay itself offers some emotional benefits. This research contributes to the understanding of how men use technology to support their emotional and social needs.
Association Between Lung Function and Exposure to Smoke Among Firefighters at Prescribed Burns

We investigated the short-term effects of exposures to PM3.5, acrolein, formaldehyde, and carbon monoxide on lung function in a group of firefighters performing prescribed burns. Spirometric measurements were made on 65 firefighters at the beginning, midpoint, and end of their work shift, while exposure was measured over the entire day. The interquartile range (IQR) of daily personal PM3.5 exposures was 235 μg/m3 to 1317 μg/m3, with an average daily exposure of 882 μg/m3. Concentrations of acrolein (IQR: [0.002, 0.018] ppm), formaldehyde (IQR: [0.008, 0.085] ppm), and carbon monoxide (IQR: [2.10, 10.48] ppm) were similarly elevated. In this group of firefighters, FEV1 changed by −0.125 L from preshift to postshift (p < .001). We examined the association between this cross-shift lung function decrement and smoke exposure. A 1000 μg/m3 increase in PM3.5 was associated with a −0.030 L change in the cross-shift FEV1 (95% CI [−0.087, 0.026]). Acrolein, formaldehyde, and carbon monoxide exposure were also not significantly associated with changes in FEV1, FVC, or FEF25–75. We concluded that while firefighters' lung function significantly decreased from preshift to postshift, firefighters exposed to greater concentrations of respiratory irritants did not experience greater lung function decrements. We could not establish a significant link to any of the individual toxic components of smoke we measured.
Sexual satisfaction and risk of disability in older women.

BACKGROUND Most studies evaluating sexuality in older adults have focused on men, and relatively little research has evaluated the relationship between sexual satisfaction and health outcomes in older women. The aims of this study were to describe correlates of sexual satisfaction in community-dwelling older women with moderate to severe levels of disability and to examine the association of sexual satisfaction with progression of disability in this population. METHOD A total of 980 moderately to severely disabled women aged 65 years or older who had participated in The Women's Health and Aging Study entered this study. Baseline evaluations took place from 1992 through 1995. Participants rated their satisfaction with their level of sexual activity on a 0-to-10 scale. Women scoring > or = 8 were considered sexually satisfied. The onset of new severe disability was determined by semiannual assessments, over 3 years, of disability in performing activities of daily living (ADLs) and walking across a room. RESULTS Of 203 (49.8%) women living with a spouse, 101 were satisfied with their level of sexual activity. In this group, older age, white race, and higher level of physical function were independent predictors of sexual satisfaction. In addition, among women living with a spouse, higher sexual satisfaction was associated with a significantly decreased risk for incident disability in performing ADLs (hazard ratio [HR] = 0.58, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.36 to 0.94) and walking across a small room (HR = 0.38, 95% CI = 0.18 to 0.79). Among women not living with a spouse, the response on the sexual satisfaction question showed different determinants and was not associated with disability risk. CONCLUSION Sexual satisfaction in community-dwelling, older, disabled women living with their spouse is associated with reduced risk for subsequent new severe disabilities.
A novel damage-free high-k etch technique using neutral beam-assisted atomic layer etching (NBALE) for sub-32nm technology node low power metal gate/high-k dielectric CMOSFETs

For the first time, a novel damage-free neutral beam-assisted atomic etching process has successfully demonstrated the removal of the residual high-k dielectric layer after gate patterning. Due to its neutralized atomic flux and chemical reaction, high etch selectivity is observed to improve device performance and reliability. This process should significantly enhance high-k/metal gate manufacturability.
Compact inline e-plane waveguide resonators and bandpass filters with I-shaped resonant insets

In this paper, waveguide resonators and bandpass filters with E-plane inserts containing I-shaped resonant insets are presented. These insets introduce to the response finite transmission zeros much less sensitive than those produced by cross-couplings. Also, their use results in structure compactness, unlike bandstop resonant cavities that add volume. Two kinds of extracted pole sections that demonstrate response flexibility of the proposed resonators are designed at 10 GHz and tested. One is based on the dominant mode with a transmission zero in the upper stopband and the other on a pair of higher order modes with a transmission zero in the lower stopband. Also, a 3rd order filter for 11 GHz band combining both dominant and higher order mode resonators is modeled to illustrate the scalability of such a modular design. These filters are very suitable for low-cost mass production.
Cardiac magnetic resonance fluoroscopy

A technique is described for high speed interactive imaging of the heart with either white or black blood contrast. Thirty‐two views of a segmented, magnetization‐prepared gradient echo sequence are acquired during diastole. Using three‐quarter partial Fourier sampling, data for a complete 128 × 128 image are acquired in three cardiac cycles. High speed reconstruction provides an image update of each cardiac cycle 159 ms after measurement. An independent graphical user interface facilitates interactive control of section localization and contrast by permitting pulse sequence parameter modification during scanning. The efficiency and image quality of the cardiac MR fluoroscopy technique were evaluated in 11 subjects. Compared with the conventional graphic prescription method, the cardiac fluoroscopy technique provides an approximate eightfold reduction in the time required to obtain subject‐specific double oblique sections. Image quality for these scout acquisitions performed during free breathing was sufficient to identify small cardiac structures.
A role for T-type Ca 2 1 channels in the synergistic control of aldosterone production by ANG II and K 1

Paula Q. Barrett. Arole for T-type Ca 2 1 channels in the synergistic control of aldosterone production by ANG II and K 1 . Am. J. Physiol. 276 ( Renal Physiol. 45): F674–F683, 1999. —Independently, plasma K 1 and ANG II stimulate aldosterone secretion from adrenal glomerulosa (AG) cells, but together they synergistically control production. We studied mechanisms to mediate this synergy using bovine AG cells studied under physiological conditions (in 1.25 mM Ca 2 1 at 37°C). Increasing K 1 from 2 to 5 mM caused a potentiation of ANG II-induced aldosterone secretion and a substantial membrane depolarization ( , 21 mV). ANG II inhibited a K 1 -selective conductance in both 2 and 5 mM K 1 but caused only a slight depolarization because, under both conditions, membrane potential was close to the reversal potential of the ANG II-induced current. ANG II activated calcium/calmodu-lin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII) equivalently in 2 and 5 mM K 1 . However, CaMKII activation caused a hyperpolarizing shift in the activation of T-type Ca 2 1 channels, such that substantially more current was elicited at membrane potentials established by 5 mM K 1 . We propose that synergy in aldosterone secretion results from K 1 -induced depolarization andANG II-induced modulation of T-type channel activation, such that together they promote enhanced steady-state Ca 2 1 ﬂux. The for mM CaCl , 0.1% BSA, and 0.35 U/ml collagenase The mechanically, ﬁltered a 20-µm nylon mesh ﬁlter Elmsford, collected by centrifugation, and resuspended in KRB containing 1.25 mM CaCl 2 and 0.2% BSA. This procedure was repeated once. Second digestion cells were collected and further puriﬁed on a two-step (30%/ 56%) discontinuous Percoll gradient (Pharmacia, and resuspended in standard KRB buffer. Cells were plated to glass coverslips in media containing 100 U/ml penicillin and 100 µg/ml streptomycin. All patch-clamp studies were performed within 24 h of isolation. as a percentage of Ca 2 1 /CaM-dependent CaMKII activity. Aldosterone radioimmunoassay . After overnight storage at 4°C (in a 95% air-5% CO 2 evacuated container), AG cells were equilibrated and preincubated at 37°C. Incubations (0.5 3 10 6 cells/ml of KRB) with agonists were initiated on the addition of an equal volume of KRB to give 2 or 5 mM K 1 with and without ANG II (from 10 pM to 10 nM). After 0.5 or 1 h incubation, cells were placed on ice to prevent further steroidogenesis and centrifuged at 1,000 g for 10 min at 4°C. Medium was removed from the pelleted cells and stored at 2 20°C. Aldosterone content in the samples was measured by radioim- munoassay (Diagnostic Products, Los Angeles, CA) using a speciﬁc antibody.
Induction of Invasive Mouse Skin Carcinomas in Transgenic Mice with Mutations in Both H-ras and p53

Synergistic interaction between H-ras and p53 were systematically examined during skin tumorigenesis. Concurrent expression of an activated H-ras gene and a mutant p53 gene was accomplished by crossing p53Val135/wt mice with TG·AC mice. Topical application to wild-type mice with benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) alone produced ∼26% skin tumor incidence, whereas BaP treatment of p53wt/wtHrasTG·AC/wt, p53Val135/wtHraswt/wt, and p53Val135/wtHrasTG·AC/wt mice produced a 75%, 77%, and 100% incidence of skin tumors, respectively. An average of 0.33 tumor per mouse was observed in wild-type (p53wt/wtHraswt/wt) mice, whereas ∼1.54, 1.96, and 3.08 tumors per mouse were seen in BaP-treated p53wt/wtHrasTG·AC/wt, p53Val135/wtHraswt/wt, and p53Val135/wtHrasTG·AC/wt mice, respectively. The effects on total tumor volume were even more striking with 7-, 48-, and 588-fold increases in tumor volume compared with wild-type (p53wt/wtHraswt/wt) in p53wt/wtHrasTG·AC/wt, p53Val135/wtHraswt/wt, and p53Val135/wtHrasTG·AC/wt mice, respectively. Histopathologically, all tumors from p53wt/wtHraswt/wt mice were either papillomas or well-differentiated squamous cell carcinomas, whereas the tumors in p53wt/wtHrasTG·AC/wt, p53Val135/wtHraswt/wt, and p53Val135/wtHrasTG·AC/wt mice were principally squamous cell carcinomas with varying degree of invasiveness. Particularly, tumors in p53Val135/wtHrasTG·AC/wt mice exhibited the most rapid growth and the extreme form of tumor invasion. Microarray analysis revealed that dominant-negative p53 (Val135) and activated H-ras affected several cellular processes involved in tumorigenesis possibly through its effects on apoptosis, cell cycle arrest, and Ras-mitogen-activated protein kinase pathways. The present study provides the first in vivo evidence that a germ line p53 mutation and activated H-ras act synergistically to profoundly enhance tumor progression.
A Similar DNA-binding Motif in NFAT Family Proteins and the Rel Homology Region (*)

The cyclosporin-sensitive factor NFATp cooperates with Fos and Jun family proteins to regulate transcription of the interleukin 2 gene in activated T cells. We have defined a 187-amino-acid fragment of NFATp, located centrally within the protein sequence, as the minimal region required for DNA binding and for complex formation with Fos and Jun. The sequence of this region of NFATp shows a low degree of similarity to the Rel homology region. One specific short sequence in NFATp (RAHYETEG), located near the NH2 terminus of the DNA-binding domain, resembles a highly conserved sequence (RFRYxCEG) that is located near the NH2 terminus of the Rel homology region and that has been implicated in DNA binding by Rel family proteins. Mutational analysis demonstrates that the residues in this sequence that are identical in NFATp and Rel family proteins contribute to DNA binding by NFATp. Further, mutation of the threonine residue in this sequence to cysteine, as in Rel proteins, confers on NFATp a sensitivity to sulfhydryl modification similar to that of Rel family proteins. The results suggest that NFATp and Rel family proteins bind to DNA using similar structural motifs.
Video Streaming Security: Window-Based Hash Chain Signature Combines with Redundancy Code - YouTube Scenario as an Internet Case Study

This paper provides a performance study for securing media streaming based on hash chain methodology. We introduce a new technique that combines the signature of window-based hash chain with redundancy codes for achieving high reliability and robustness against many attacks. Also, the Window technique integrates the Time-Stamped which strongly eliminates the anti-replay attack. It will also control the management of many users accessing the same video in different instant times. The Window-Based algorithm with redundancy code will be compared against Packet-Based or just Block-Based video streaming security. The analytical and simulation results indicate that, the Window-Based Hash Chain Signature combine with Redundancy Code (WB & RC) is a good solution for video streaming security in terms of reliability and robustness. The times of signature creation and verification are accepted under the standard delay recommendations of real time applications. Our case study provides You Tube as a successful scenario over Internet. The privacy of You Tube will relay on a secure email in user access which represents an efficient way in mobility issue.
Des indicateurs pour optimiser l’allocation des ressources ? Une enquête exploratoire au sein d’un réseau administré

En France, l’action sociale et medico-sociale est delivree au sein d’un reseau administre constitue d’associations et de leurs etablissements (ESSMS), lesquels sont finances et controles par une entite publique situee a trois niveaux geographiques. Face au constat d’ecarts injustifies entre ESSMS comparables, le niveau national du reseau a mis au point un tableau de bord partage (TDBP) afin d’ameliorer l’allocation des ressources. Ce TDBP peut-il remplir cet objectif ? A l’aide du modele d’Hofstede, nous montrons quel type de controle ce TDBP introduit entre le financeur et les ESSMS. Nous presentons ensuite les resultats d’une enquete exploratoire portant sur les pratiques d’allocation des ressources au sein du reseau.
Succession in the family business: drivers and pathways

Purpose – The succession process represents one of the most critical events in the family business lifecycle. The purpose of this paper is to explore this process while focussing first on the drivers behind the choice of successor and, second, on the impact of this choice on the entrepreneurial behavior of the siblings. Design/methodology/approach – The qualitative approach was used in which multiple case analyses were performed. A total of 12 cases were purposively selected from the Lebanese private sector, and semi-structured interviews were conducted with the successors and the founders when available. The interview data were transcribed and a coding scheme was created to generate relevant categories. Those categories were named and later re-assessed by an external researcher to ensure inter-rater reliability. Findings – The three dimensions of social capital were found to have a profound influence on the succession decision with much focus on familial stewardship as an emerging cognitive driving force.