Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effect of increased bronchial venous pressure on lung lymph flow.

We postulated that if the bronchial circulation affects lung fluid balance, increases in bronchial venous pressures may influence lung lymph flow. This hypothesis was tested in eight anesthetized sheep prepared with acute lung lymph fistulas. After control data, we increased bronchial venous pressure by infusing saline directly into the bronchial vein at a controlled infusion pressure of 20-25 cmH2O. Evans blue dye (2.5 mg/ml) was added into the saline as a marker for assessing leakage that might occur from either the catheter or the ruptured bronchial veins. Lymph flow was measured every 15 min. Lymph as well as plasma samples were collected every 30 min for measurement of protein. In five sheep we also measured Evans blue dye content both in lymph and plasma to further characterize the role of bronchial circulation in lung fluid balance. The control lymph flow was 1.9 +/- 0.2 ml/15 min, and lymph-to-plasma protein ratio was 0.65 +/- 0.3 (mean +/- SE). With infusion of saline into the bronchial vein, the mean lung lymph flow and lymph-to-plasma protein ratio did not change significantly. There was a progressive increase in dye content both in lymph and plasma. The mean Evans blue dye content in lymph was 0.087, 0.16, and 0.26 microgram/ml, whereas in plasma it was 0.43, 1.15, and 1.45 microgram/ml in samples obtained at 30, 60, and 90 min, respectively. The dye content was significantly higher in the plasma compared with the lymph in all three samples (less than 0.05). Pulmonary arterial pressure, pulmonary capillary wedge pressure, and cardiac output did not change significantly throughout the experiment. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Mouse Model of SCN5A-Linked Hereditary Lenègre’s Disease: Age-Related Conduction Slowing and Myocardial Fibrosis

Background—We have previously linked hereditary progressive cardiac conduction defect (hereditary Lenègre’s disease) to a loss-of-function mutation in the gene encoding the main cardiac Na+ channel, SCN5A. In the present study, we investigated heterozygous Scn5a-knockout mice (Scn5a+/− mice) as a model for hereditary Lenègre’s disease. Methods and Results—In Scn5a+/− mice, surface ECG recordings showed age-related lengthening of the P-wave and PR- and QRS-interval duration, coinciding with previous observations in patients with Lenègre’s disease. Old but not young Scn5a+/− mice showed extensive fibrosis of their ventricular myocardium, a feature not seen in wild-type animals. In old Scn5a+/− mice, fibrosis was accompanied by heterogeneous expression of connexin 43 and upregulation of hypertrophic markers, including &bgr;-MHC and skeletal &agr;-actin. Global connexin 43 expression as assessed with Western blots was similar to wild-type mice. Decreased connexin 40 expression was seen in the atria. Using pangenomic microarrays and real-time PCR, we identified in Scn5a+/− mice an age-related upregulation of genes encoding Atf3 and Egr1 transcription factors. Echocardiography and hemodynamic investigations demonstrated conserved cardiac function with aging and lack of ventricular hypertrophy. Conclusions—We conclude that Scn5a+/− mice convincingly recapitulate the Lenègre’s disease phenotype, including progressive impairment with aging of atrial and ventricular conduction associated with myocardial rearrangements and fibrosis. Our work provides the first demonstration that a monogenic ion channel defect can progressively lead to myocardial structural anomalies.
Estimating Linear Size and Scale: Body rulers

The National Science Education Standards emphasise the use of concepts and skills that cut across the science domains. One of these cross‐cutting areas is measurement. Students should know measurement systems, units of measurement, tools and error in measurement as well as the importance of measurement to scientific endeavours. Even though measurement is an essential skill, little is known about how students estimate and use measurement in different contexts. This study examines the impact of teaching students to use their bodies as rough measurement tools (body rulers) on their ability to estimate linear measurements. Nineteen middle school students participated in metric intervention tasks and completed a pre‐instruction and a post‐instruction Linear Measurement Assessment. Results showed that teaching students to use rough body measures as tools (a body ruler) for estimation had a significant influence on their estimation accuracy. After instruction, students were better able to estimate the sizes of objects, use their body in making estimations of size, and estimate while touching an object or pacing a distance. Furthermore, proportional reasoning was significantly correlated with students’ post‐instruction scores on the Linear Measurement Assessment.
Different Smad2 partners bind a common hydrophobic pocket in Smad2 via a defined proline‐rich motif

Transforming growth factor‐β (TGF‐β)/activin‐induced Smad2/Smad4 complexes are recruited to different promoter elements by transcription factors, such as Fast‐1 or the Mix family proteins Mixer and Milk, through a direct interaction between Smad2 and a common Smad interaction motif (SIM) in the transcription factors. Here we identify residues in the SIM critical for Mixer–Smad2 interaction and confirm their functional importance by demonstrating that only Xenopus and zebrafish Mix family members containing a SIM with all the correct critical residues can bind Smad2 and mediate TGF‐β‐induced transcriptional activation in vivo. We identify significant sequence similarity between the SIM and the Smad‐binding domain (SBD) of the membrane‐associated protein SARA (Smad anchor for receptor activation). Molecular modelling, supported by mutational analyses of Smad2 and the SIM and the demonstration that the SARA SBD competes directly with the SIM for binding to Smad2, indicates that the SIM binds Smad2 in the same hydrophobic pocket as does the proline‐rich rigid coil region of the SARA SBD. Thus, different Smad2 partners, whether cytoplasmic or nuclear, interact with the same binding pocket in Smad2 through a common proline‐rich motif.
FEEDBACK PROCEDURES IN COMPUTER-ASSISTED ARITHMETIC INSTRUCTION

Summary. A computer-assisted instruction (CAI) system can provide detailed and immediate feedback following every student response. Two such procedures, labelled ‘active’ and ‘passive’ were designed for helping children to multiply two- and three-digit numbers by one-digit numbers. The active feedback procedure required an overt response to be given to each element in the procedure for computing the answer. The ‘passive’ procedure merely printed a feedback message. Two experiments are described which had treatment conditions of (i) no feedback, (ii) passive, and (iii) active feedback. As well as on-line performances being recorded in detail by the computer, pre-and post-tests were given. Substantial gains on pre-and post-tests were recorded for the feedback groups, and a regression analysis showed that greatest effects were with pupils whose initial level of achievement was low. Overall differences between the two feedback groups did not reach significance. Finally, a simple model to account for multiplication performance is proposed.
The inositol phosphate-calcium signaling system in nonexcitable cells.

I. Introduction IN 1983, Michael Berridge proposed (1), and subsequently with collaborators demonstrated (2), that d-myo-inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate [(1,4,5)IP3], generated in the course of receptor-activated inositol lipid turnover, was a second messenger signaling the release of stored calcium from intracellular sites to the cytoplasm of activated cells. The significance of this discovery was enormous. The explosion of interest and research in this area in the last decade has demonstrated that the inositol phosphate-calcium signaling system plays a critical role in the mechanisms by which hormones regulate diverse processes such as muscle contraction, cell secretion, metabolism, and cell growth and differentiation. Despite the consensus regarding the central role of (1,4,5)IP3 in intracellular Ca2+ mobilization, the extremely complex nature of Ca2+ signaling and inositol phosphate metabolism has spawned controversies. What is the meaning of the enigmatically complex pathways of inositol phosphate metab.
Co-Release of GABA Does Not Occur at Glycinergic Synapses onto Lumbar Motoneurons in Juvenile Mice

The fast inhibitory neurotransmitters glycine and GABA are co-localized in synaptic terminals of inhibitory interneurons in the spinal cord and co-released onto lumbar motoneurons in neonatal rats. We performed whole-cell voltage-clamp experiments on spinal cord preparations obtained from juvenile (P8–14) mice to determine whether inhibitory currents exhibited GABAergic components in motoneurons of animals of weight-bearing age. Subsequently we established whether or not GABA is co-released at glycinergic synapses onto motoneurons by determining if it conferred modulatory effects on the kinetics of glycinergic currents. Exponential fitting analysis showed that evoked and miniature inhibitory post-synaptic currents (IPSCs) were best-fitted with a single decay time constant. Responses recorded from connected interneuron-motoneuron pairs showed no effect of a benzodiazepine or a GABAA receptor antagonist. Similarly IPSCs evoked by extracellular stimulation and miniature IPSCs were not affected by either agent, indicating the absence of co-detection. Experimental manipulation of the relative content of pre-synaptic GABA and glycine conferred no effect on post-synaptic responses. It is thus unlikely that GABA is co-released in biologically relevant amounts at glycinergic synapses onto lumbar motoneurons in mice of this age.
Construction and characterization of mutant water-soluble PQQ glucose dehydrogenases with altered K(m) values--site-directed mutagenesis studies on the putative active site.

Based on a PCR mutant enzyme of water-soluble glucose dehydrogenase-harboring pyrroloquinoline quinone as the prosthetic group, PQQGDH-B, a site-directed mutagenesis study was carried out. The substitution of Glu277 residue with Gly resulted in a decrease in the K(m) value for glucose and altered the substrate specificity profile, compared with the wild-type enzyme. Mutational analyses on the neighboring amino acid residues of Glu277 were also carried out and constructed Asp275Glu, Asp276Glu, Ile278Phe, and Asn279His. Considering that Asp275Glu, Asp276Glu and also Glu277Gly showed drastic decreases in EDTA tolerance, this region may construct a PQQGDH-B putative active site, such as a binding site for Ca(2+), which is responsible for the binding PQQ. A series of Glu277 variants, Glu277 substituted by Ala, Val, Asp, Asn, His, Gln, or to Lys, was constructed and they all showed decreased K(m) values and altered substrate specificity profiles. Among them, Glu277Lys showed similar thermal stability with the wild-type enzyme, but its catalytic efficiency increased significantly, compared with the wild-type enzyme. The potential applications of Glu277Lys in analytical use are also discussed.
A 3D Feature for Building Segmentation based on Shape-from-Shading

An important cue that can assist towards an accurate building detection and segmentation is 3D information. Because of their height, buildings can easily be distinguished from the ground and small objects, allowing for their successful segmentation. Unfortunately, 3D knowledge is not always available, but there are ways to infer 3D information from 2D images. Shape-from-shading techniques extract height and surface normal information from a single 2D image by taking into consideration knowledge about illumination, reflectance and shape. In this paper, a novel feature is proposed that can describe the 3D information of reconstructed images based on a shape-from-shading technique in order to successfully acquire building boundaries. The results are promising and show that such a 3D feature can significantly assist in a correct building boundary detection and segmentation.
FAST SUPERVISED LEARNING ARCHITECTURE - A WORK POINT COUNT SYSTEM COUPLED WITH RESILIENT BACK - PROPAGATION ALGORITHM FOR SOLVING DOUBLE DUMMY BRIDGE PROBLEM

Contract Bridge is an intelligent game, which enhances the creativity with multiple skills and quest to acquire the intricacies of the game, because no player knows exactly what moves other players are capable of during their turn. The Bridge being a game of imperfect information is to be equally well defined, since the outcome at any intermediate stage is purely based on the decision made on the immediate preceding stage. One among the architectures of Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) is applied by training on sample deals and used to estimate the number of tricks to be taken by one pair of bridge players is the key idea behind Double Dummy Bridge Problem (DDBP) implemented with the neural network paradigm. This study mainly focuses on Cascade-Correlation Neural Networks (CCNN) which is used to solve the Bridge problem by using Resilient Back- Propagation (RBP) Algorithm and Work Point Count System.
Missed connections: quantifying and optimizing multi-modal interconnectivity in cities

We present a methodology to measure multi-modal interconnectivity between different transportation modes that operate in a city. The interconnectivity of an urban network represents how well different services integrate to offer seamless transportation options to users. On the supply side, we leverage open data sources that cities provide to accurately model the services that they offer. On the demand side, we account for myopic user behavior through the use of journey planners and travel demand estimates. The reciprocal interaction between supply and demand is then used to characterize interconnectivity. In a multi-modal setting, we present different measures that can be employed to understand shortcomings in connectivity across the network. Using these metrics, improvements in service schedules are proposed using an optimization model that seeks to perturb existing schedules to improve transit connectivity. Real-world data from Washington, D.C. is used to demonstrate presented measures and optimal schedule perturbation for one route are presented which result in a 19% reduction in delays.
Attributability, Answerability, and Accountability: Toward a Wider Theory of Moral Responsibility*

Recently T. M. Scanlon and others have advanced an ostensibly comprehensive theory of moral responsibility—a theory of both being responsible and being held responsible—that best accounts for our moral practices. I argue that both aspects of the Scanlonian theory fail this test. A truly comprehensive theory must incorporate and explain three distinct conceptions of responsibility—attributability, answerability, and accountability—and the Scanlonian view conflates the first two and ignores the importance of the third. To illustrate what a truly comprehensive theory might look like, I investigate what it would say about the difficult case of the psychopath.
Reconsideration of the threshold voltage variability estimated with pair transistor cell array

The standard deviation of threshold voltage, σVTH, which is estimated with Pair Transistor cell Array (PTA), is examined using the test chip fabricated by 65-nm technology. It is found that the errors are caused by two problems: 1) the problem in the approximation and 2) leak current in the isolation region. Taking them into account, the application of PTA to the test structure in scribe line is studied.
Saccharomyces cerevisiae RNA Polymerase I Terminates Transcription at the Reb1 Terminator In Vivo

ABSTRACT We have mapped transcription termination sites for RNA polymerase I in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. S1 nuclease mapping shows that the primary terminator is the Reb1p terminator located at +93 downstream of the 3′ end of 25S rRNA. Reverse transcription coupled with quantitative PCR shows that approximately 90% of all transcripts terminate at this site. Transcripts which read through the +93 site quantitatively terminate at a fail-safe terminator located further downstream at +250. Inactivation of Rnt1p (an RNase III involved in processing the 3′ end of 25S rRNA) greatly stabilizes transcripts extending to both sites and increases readthrough at the +93 site. In vivo assay of mutants of the Reb1p terminator shows that this site operates in vivo by the same mechanism as has previously been delineated through in vitro studies.
Immunoradiometric assay for intact human osteocalcin(1-49) without cross-reactivity to breakdown products.

BACKGROUND Osteocalcin (Oc), a serum marker of bone turnover, circulates in several forms. We developed an assay for intact human Oc and investigated its clinical features. METHODS We generated goat antibodies and N- and C-terminal Oc. The former was used on solid phase (polystyrene beads), and the latter was used as the tracer in an IRMA. RESULTS The assay was linear with no cross-reactivity to Oc(1-43), total imprecision (CV) of <10%, and recovery of 100% +/- 10%. Assay values for intact Oc in EDTA plasma samples were unchanged at 18-25 degrees C for 6 h. Values for intact Oc in serum, EDTA plasma, and heparin plasma samples did not change after storage on ice for 8 h. Serum samples from patients with various conditions were stored at -70 or -135 degrees C for up to 5 years and yielded z-scores comparable to an Oc(1-43) IRMA for all conditions except for renal failure. In renal failure, the Oc(1-43) assay values were increased, whereas the intact assay values were in the reference interval. CONCLUSION Decreases in Oc assay values are inhibited by calcium chelation, and slowed by reduced temperatures. The described assay for intact Oc allows improved specificity for bone compared with an assay for Oc(1-43).
Adoptive immunotherapy with cytokine-induced killer cells generated with a new good manufacturing practice-grade protocol.

BACKGROUND AIMS We have recently shown that thymoglobulin (TG) efficiently expands cytokine-induced killer (CIK) cells in combination with interferon (IFN)-γ and interleukin (IL)-2 (ITG2 protocol). It is presently unknown whether the infusion of autologous immune effector cells generated by TG, IFN-γ and IL-2 is feasible and safe. METHODS Five patients with advanced and/or refractory solid tumors were enrolled in the present phase I/II study. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) collected by leukapheresis were stimulated under good manufacturing practice (GMP)-conditions with IFN-γ, followed by TG and IL-2. After 2-3 weeks in culture, a median of 4.65 × 10(6) immune effector cells per kilogram of recipient's body weight was obtained and infused intravenously. The median time from enrollment into the study to infusion of the expanded CIK cells was 30 days. RESULTS ITG2 efficiently expanded immune effector cells that comprised both conventional natural killer (NK) cells and CD3(+) CD16(+) CD56(+) CIK cells. One patient with advanced melanoma died because of disease progression before the infusion of CIK cells. The target dose of at least 2.5 × 10(6) CIK cells/kg of recipient's body weight was reached in four out of five evaluable patients. CIK cells were administered intravenously without any measurable toxicity. In vitro, CIK cells exerted lytic activity against cervical cancer cells. The median survival was 4.5 months (range 1-13) from the first infusion of CIK cells. CONCLUSIONS This study has highlighted the feasibility and safety of the administration of CIK cells generated with the ITG2 protocol. Whether CIK cells can help control disease burden in patients with advanced malignancies will be determined in future clinical trials.
Tracking as Repeated Figure/Ground Segmentation

Tracking over a long period of time is challenging as the appearance, shape and scale of the object in question may vary. We propose a paradigm of tracking by repeatedly segmenting figure from background. Accurate spatial support obtained in segmentation provides rich information about the track and enables reliable tracking of non-rigid objects without drifting. Figure/ground segmentation operates sequentially in each frame by utilizing both static image cues and temporal coherence cues, which include an appearance model of brightness (or color) and a spatial model propagating figure/ground masks through low-level region correspondence. A superpixel-based conditional random field linearly combines cues and loopy belief propagation is used to estimate marginal posteriors of figure vs background. We demonstrate our approach on long sequences of sports video, including figure skating and football.
Using the Child Behavior Checklist in Assessing Conduct Disorder: Issues of Reliability and Validity

To determine the reliability, validity, and usefulness of the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) and its supplements in the identification of conduct disorder, an extensive review of the literature cur rently available on the CBCL and its supplements was conducted. Research revealed that the CBCL and its supplements were reliable and valid. The extent of knowledge concerning its use fulness in detecting conduct disorder was somewhat limited; however, the available information suggested that the instruments were highly sensitive to the disorder, if not particularly specific. The CBCL and supplements are useful tools in social work practice, including the identification of conduct disorder, if used in combination with other assessment instruments.
Revisiting network scanning detection using sequential hypothesis testing

Network scanning is a common, effective technique to search for vulnerable Internet hosts and to explore the topology and trust relationships between hosts in a target network. Given that the purpose of scanning is to search for responsive hosts and network services, behavior-based scanning detection techniques based on the state of inbound connection attempts remain effective against evasion. Many of today's network environments, however, feature a dynamic and transient nature with several network hosts and services added or stopped (either permanently or temporarily) over time. In this paper, working with recent network traces from two different environments, we re-examine the Threshold Random Walk (TRW) scan detection algorithm, and we show that the number of false positives is proportional to the transiency of the offered services. To address the limitations found, we present a modified algorithm (Stateful Threshold Random Walk (STRW) algorithm) that utilizes active mapping of network services to take into account benign causes of failed connection attempts. The STRW algorithm eliminates a significant portion of TRW false positives (e.g., 29% and 77% in two datasets studied). Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.