Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effects of high‐intensity endurance exercise training in the G93A mouse model of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

The G93A transgenic mouse has a mutation in copper/zinc superoxide dismutase (CuZnSOD) that results in oxidative stress and motor neuron loss. Endurance exercise training is known to increase antioxidant capacity in skeletal muscle. Therefore, we hypothesized that endurance training may extend onset of disease or survival in the G93A mouse. We examined the effects of high‐intensity endurance exercise training (45 min/day, 5 times/week, progressive increase from 9 to 22 m/min) on disease onset and survival in G93A mice. Endurance training did not affect clinical onset, although it hastened death in male mice (P < 0.05). Endurance‐trained males had a statistically significant decrease in rotarod performance at 112 days (P < 0.05), whereas sedentary males decreased at 119 days (P < 0.05). Endurance‐trained and sedentary females decreased at 126 days and 129 days, respectively (P < 0.05). Female mice lived longer than males (P < 0.05), and there was a trend for hastened clinical onset in males (P = 0.062). We conclude that high‐intensity endurance exercise training does not affect onset of clinical symptoms in G93A mice but hastens a decrease in motor performance and death following onset of clinical symptoms in male mice only. In light of a recent report describing increased survival following low‐intensity endurance training, it appears that training intensity is an important determinant of survival in the G93A mouse. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Muscle Nerve 29: 656–662, 2004
Audience Involvement in Advertising: Four Levels

The effectiveness of advertising messages is widely believed to be moderated by audience involvement. In this paper, psychological theories of attention and levels of processing are used to establish a framework that can accommodate the major consumer behavior theories of audience involvement. Four levels of involvement are identified (in order from low to high) as preattention, focal attention, comprehension, and elaboration. These levels allocate increasing attentional capacity to a message source, as needed for analysis of the message by increasingly abstract—and qualitatively distinct—representational systems. Lower levels use relatively little capacity and extract information needed to determine whether higher levels will be invoked. The higher levels require greater capacity and result in increasingly durable cognitive and attitudinal effects.
Optimization of Bi-Layer Biosensors: Trade-off Between Sensitivity and Enzyme Volume

The research is focused on investigation of impact of parameters of bi-layer mono- enzyme amperometric biosensor to its characteristics: the sensitivity and the enzyme volume. The bi-objective optimization problem of determination of the optimal thicknesses of the layers and maximal enzymatic rate of the biosensor with respect to maximization of the sensitivity and simultaneously minimization of the enzyme volume is formulated. The influence of the parame- ters of the biosensor to the objectives of the problem has been experimentally investigated. The simulated biosensor responses and the set of different parameters' values systematically chosen with respect to the real-life experiments have been used in the investigation.
PGC‐1α overexpression by in vivo transfection attenuates mitochondrial deterioration of skeletal muscle caused by immobilization

Prolonged immobilization (IM) causes skeletal muscle atrophy characterized by mitochondrial deterioration and proteolysis. Muscle remobilization (RM) increases reactive oxygen species generation, proinflammatory cytokine expression, and oxidative stress, preventing muscle from quick recovery. Thus, we hypothesized that overexpression of peroxisome proliferator‐activated receptor γ coactivator 1‐α (PGG1α) via in vivo transfection would promote mitochondrial biogenesis and antioxidant defense, thus ameliorating the aforementioned deteriorations in a mouse model with 14‐d IM followed by 5‐d RM. PGC‐1α transfection in tibialis anterior muscle resulted in a 7.2‐ and 4‐fold increase in PGC‐1α content in cytosol and nucleus, respectively. Mitochondrial biogenic (cytochrome c, mitochondrial transcription factor A), morphologic (mitochondrial density, mDNA/ nDNA ratio), and functional (cytochrome c oxidase activity, ATP synthesis rate) markers, as well as fiber cross‐sectional area, significantly increased in IM‐RM muscle by PGC‐1α overexpression. These effects were accompanied by an 18% decrease in H2O2, 30% decrease in nuclear factor‐κB‐DNA binding, and 25% reduction of IL‐1β and‐6 production in IM‐RM muscle. There was a 34% increase in superoxide dismutase‐2 activity, along with a 3.5‐fold increase in NAD‐dependent deacetylase sirtuin‐3 expression caused by enhanced PGC‐1α‐estrogen‐related receptor a binding. Our findings highlighted the importance of PGC‐la in protecting muscle from metabolic and redox disturbances caused by IM. —Kang, C. , Goodman, C. A. , Horberger, T. A. , Ji, L. L. PGC‐1α overexpression by in vivo transfection attenuates mitochondrial deterioration of skeletal muscle caused by immobilization. FASEB J. 29, 4092‐4106 (2015). www.fasebj. org
Importance of vaccination against herpes zoster

Although herpes zoster is not a reportable condition in the United States, its incidence has been inferred from a variety of studies to range from 3.2 to 4.2 per 1,000 patient-years. This incidence translates into an estimated 1 million cases of herpes zoster annually. Overall, an estimated 32% of persons in the United States will have herpes zoster during their lifetimes. In a recent population-based study in Olmsted County, Minn. , researchers found that the incidence of herpes zoster was 3.6 per 1,000 patient-years. The researchers also found that the incidence and rate of complications increased with age, with 68% of cases occurring in those aged 50 years and older. There is a substantial increase in herpes zoster incidence for individuals aged 60 years and older, making the annual incidence in this population approximately 10 per 1,000 patient-years. Herpesviridae have been known to science for many years. The family contains more than 100 types of viruses that infect vertebrates, though only eight types are known to infect humans—herpes simplex virus type 1, herpes simplex virus type 2, varicellazoster virus (VZV), Epstein-Barr virus, cytomegalovirus, and human herpesviruses 6, 7 and 8. Varicella-zoster virus is highly contagious and causes two distinct clinical syndromes—a primary infection that is manifested as varicella (ie, chicken pox) and a secondary latent infection that is manifested as herpes zoster (ie, shingles).
The Endothelin‐Aldosterone Axis and Cardiovascular Diseases

Summary: The results of the Randomized Aldactone Evaluation Study (RALES) and of several experimental studies have indicated that excess aldosterone detrimentally affects cardiovascular morbidity and mortality by acting through both classical and non‐classical mineralocorticoid receptors. The effects mediated through classical mineralocorticoid receptors entail enhanced sodium and water reabsorption, potassium loss and hypokalaemia, congestion, increased vascular resistance and hypertension. Those occurring through non‐classical mineralocorticoid receptors located on myofibroblasts comprise cardiac hypertrophy and fibrosis, which may be due to a direct effect of aldosterone on collagen synthesis. Data obtained in primary aldosteronism patients demonstrated left ventricular hypertrophy, as well as changes in left ventricular filling that can be accounted for by cardiac fibrosis. Available clinical data indicate that in a considerable proportion of congestive heart failure (CHF) patients treated with angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors, aldosterone secretion can escape from blockade of the renin‐angiotensin system, thus suggesting that additional mechanisms, besides angiotensin II, can play an important role in the regulation of aldosterone secretion. Compelling evidence indicates that endothelin (ET)‐1 is overtly increased in severe CHF and thus is a likely candidate for the aldosterone 'escape' phenomenon in CHF. Endothelin‐1 is expressed in the adrenal cortex, together with its receptor subtypes A (ETA) and B (ETB), and directly stimulates aldosterone secretion in different species, in humans by acting via both ETA and ETB receptor subtypes. Moreover, we have recently found that the novel endothelin peptide ET‐1(1‐31), by acting as an ETA agonist, can also be involved in the regulation of growth of the adrenal cortex, as well as in the pathogenesis of Conn's adenoma. In this paper, we review the findings suggesting a relationship between activation of the ET‐1 system, enhanced aldosterone secretion and cardiac fibrosis and discuss the implications of endothelin antagonism for cardiovascular disease.
Material properties under drawing and extrusion with cyclic torsion

Many cold and hot worked metals undergo strain softening and hardening when subjected to cyclic plastic deformation. The degree of strain softening depends on the amount of prior cold work or heat treatment and upon the strain magnitude and cycles applied. In this work, a lead bar was extruded and a copper bar was drawn through a cyclically twisting die in a specifically designed experimental rig. The drawing/extrusion load fluctuated at the same frequency as that of die twisting. The maximum load was equivalent to monotonic deformation when the die was changing direction. The degree of the reduction in load for both the drawing and extrusion depends on the deformation conditions and requires optimisation for the process.
Prebiotic chemistry: a new modus operandi

A variety of macromolecules and small molecules—(oligo)nucleotides, proteins, lipids and metabolites—are collectively considered essential to early life. However, previous schemes for the origin of life—e.g. the ‘RNA world’ hypothesis—have tended to assume the initial emergence of life based on one such molecular class followed by the sequential addition of the others, rather than the emergence of life based on a mixture of all the classes of molecules. This view is in part due to the perceived implausibility of multi-component reaction chemistry producing such a mixture. The concept of systems chemistry challenges such preconceptions by suggesting the possibility of molecular synergism in complex mixtures. If a systems chemistry method to make mixtures of all the classes of molecules considered essential for early life were to be discovered, the significant conceptual difficulties associated with pure RNA, protein, lipid or metabolism ‘worlds’ would be alleviated. Knowledge of the geochemical conditions conducive to the chemical origins of life is crucial, but cannot be inferred from a planetary sciences approach alone. Instead, insights from the organic reactivity of analytically accessible chemical subsystems can inform the search for the relevant geochemical conditions. If the common set of conditions under which these subsystems work productively, and compatibly, matches plausible geochemistry, an origins of life scenario can be inferred. Using chemical clues from multiple subsystems in this way is akin to triangulation, and constitutes a novel approach to discover the circumstances surrounding the transition from chemistry to biology. Here, we exemplify this strategy by finding common conditions under which chemical subsystems generate nucleotides and lipids in a compatible and potentially synergistic way. The conditions hint at a post-meteoritic impact origin of life scenario.
Effect of methanol extract of musa sapientum leaves on protein glycation and erythrocyte antioxidant status in alloxan-induced diabetic Wistar rats.

BACKGROUND Increased generation of free radicals from protein glycation has been associated with compromised integrity of erythrocytes in diabetes. Musa sapientum has been reported to possess anti-diabetic properties and this study investigated the effect of methanol extract of Musa sapientum on protein glycation and erythrocyte integrity. METHODS Forty-two male Wistar rats (180-200g) were randomly grouped into seven: 1 (control), 2 (diabetic untreated), 3 (normal extract-treated (250 mg/kg)), 4 (normal metformin-treated (150 mg/kg)), 5 (diabetic extract-treated (250 mg/kg)), 6 (diabetic metformin-treated (150 mg/kg)), 7 (diabetic insulin-treated (1 IU/kg)). Diabetes was induced with single intraperitoneal injection of 120 mg/kg alloxan. Animals were treated for 14 days and blood (3 mls) was collected from retro-orbital plexus to determine serum fructosamine level, erythrocyte superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activities. Glycated haemoglobin (HbA(1c)) level was estimated using a conversion formula. Animals were sacrificed thereafter by cervical dislocation and pancreatic tissues were excised and stained with haematoxylin and eosin for histological study. Statistical significance at P < 0.05 was analyzed by one-way ANOVA and Newman-Keuls' post-hoc test. RESULTS Diabetic rats treated with extract, metformin and insulin had significant reduction in serum fructosamine level by 62.64%, 74.63% and 56.05% respectively while HbA(1c) level reduced by 45.06%, 50.62% and 40.57% respectively. Activities of erythrocyte SOD and GPx were increased in the extract-treated group. Histological studies showed regeneration of islet cells in the diabetic extract-treated rat which was comparable to normal. CONCLUSION The extract inhibited protein glycation, regenerated the islet cells and improved erythrocyte antioxidant status in diabetic rats.
NC-TODIM Based MAGDM under Neutrosophic 1 Cubic Set Environment 2

1 Department of Mathematics, Nandalal Ghosh B.T. College, Panpur, P.O. -Narayanpur, District –North 24 4 Parganas, Pin code-743126, West Bengal, India; sura_pati@yahoo.co.in 5 2 Department of Mathematics, Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology, Shibpur, P.O. -Botanic 6 Garden, Howrah-711103, West Bengal, India; salam50in@yahoo.co.in (S.A.); roy_t_k@yahoo.co.in (T.K.R.) 7 * Correspondence: shyamal.rs2015@math.iiests. ac.in; Tel. : +91-9804234197 8
EgoTracker: Pedestrian Tracking with Re-identification in Egocentric Videos

We propose and analyze a novel framework for tracking a pedestrian in egocentric videos, which is needed for analyzing social gatherings recorded with a wearable camera. The constant camera and pedestrian movement makes this a challenging problem. The main challenges are natural head movement of wearer and target loss and reappearance in a later frame, due to frequent changes in field of view. By using the optical flow information specific to egocentric videos and also by modifying the learning process and sampling region of trackers which tracks by learning an SVM online, we show that re-identification is possible. The specific trackers chosen are STRUCK and MEEM.
GPS signal fine acquisition algorithm

In the applications of high sensitivity Global Position System (GPS) receiver, signals need to be processed are becoming weaker, so how to exactly estimate the signal parameter and smoothly transfer from acquisition to tracking in the high sensitivity is so important in the receivers' solution. This paper develops a method called fine acquisition to estimate the carrier frequency, which can make the final frequency error decreased to less than 1Hz. When increasing the coherent integration time, appropriate curve fitting function can make the frequency error even smaller. This fine acquisition algorithm can make the acquisition of the satellite signals more precise, in the same time decrease the time cost in signal pull-inning, and increase the sensitivity of signal pull-inning, which maybe the bottle-neck of the high sensitivity GPS receivers.
Flyback-Type Single-Phase Utility Interactive Inverter With Power Pulsation Decoupling on the DC Input for an AC Photovoltaic Module System

In recent years, interest in natural energy has grown in response to increased concern for the environment. Many kinds of inverter circuits and their control schemes for photovoltaic (PV) power generation systems have been studied. A conventional system employs a PV array in which many PV modules are connected in series to obtain sufficient dc input voltage for generating ac utility line voltage from an inverter circuit. However, the total power generated from the PV array is sometimes decreased remarkably when only a few modules are partially covered by shadows, thereby decreasing inherent current generation, and preventing the generation current from attaining its maximum value on the array. To overcome this drawback, an ac module strategy has been proposed. In this system, a low-power dc-ac utility interactive inverter is individually mounted on each PV module and operates so as to generate the maximum power from its corresponding PV module. Especially in the case of a single-phase utility interactive inverter, an electrolytic capacitor of large capacitance has been connected on the dc input bus in order to decouple the power pulsation caused by single-phase power generation to the utility line. However, especially during the summer season, the ac module inverters have to operate under a very high atmospheric temperature, and hence the lifetime of the inverter is shortened, because the electrolytic capacitor has a drastically shortened life when used in a high-temperature environment. Of course, we may be able to use film capacitors instead of the electrolytic capacitors if we can pay for the extreme large volume of the inverter. However, this is not a realistic solution for ac module systems. This paper proposes a novel flyback-type utility interactive inverter circuit topology suitable for ac module systems when its lifetime under high atmospheric temperature is taken into account. A most distinctive feature of the proposed system is that the decoupling of power pulsation is executed by an additional circuit that enables employment of film capacitors with small capacitance not only for the dc input line but also for the decoupling circuit, and hence the additional circuit is expected to extend the lifetime of the inverter. The proposed inverter circuit also enables realization of small volume, lightweight, and stable ac current injection into the utility line. A control method suitable for the proposed inverter is also proposed. The effectiveness of the proposed inverter is verified thorough P-SIM simulation and experiments on a 100-W prototype
Clindamycin, cephalosporins, fluoroquinolones, and Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea: this is an antimicrobial resistance problem.

Clostridium difficile–associated diarrhea (CDAD) is a unique hospital infection that occurs almost entirely in patients who have received previous antimicrobial treatment. Although not conclusively proven, the normal gastrointestinal flora is presumably disrupted by antimicrobials, which, in turn, enables ingested spores of toxigenic C. difficile to colonize the colon, produce toxins, and cause CDAD. Epi-demiologic evidence suggests that specific antimicrobials and classes of antimicro-bials are not created equal in terms of CDAD risk [1]. Two risks for CDAD are of interest because of how they relate to antimicrobial use: the relative risk of CDAD associated with use of a specific antimicrobial, and the attributable risk of CDAD in a particular population. Attributable risk incorporates both the relative risk of an antimicrobial and the frequency with which that drug is used in the population. Clindamycin was the highest-risk agent for CDAD in the 1970s, but its use has decreased in US and European hospitals , with a resultant reduction in attributable risk of antibiotic-associated diarrhea and CDAD [2]. By the late 1980s and through the 1990s, cephalosporin anti-microbials, particularly those of the second and third generation, such as cefu-roxime, cefotaxime, ceftazidime, and ceftriaxone, had become the agents with the highest relative risk and highest attributable risk of CDAD because of their frequent use in hospitals [1]. The risk of antimicrobial-associated CDAD is increased if C. difficile is resistant to the antimicrobial [3]. For clindamycin, C. difficile resistance is variable, and risk of CDAD associated with a clindamycin-resistant organism is increased in patients receiving clindamycin [3]. For the third-generation cephalosporins, C. difficile resistance is universal, and presumably any toxigenic C. difficile organism is capable of causing CDAD during cephalosporin administration. The good news has been that CDAD rates have markedly decreased when the use of clindamycin or third-generation cephalosporins has been reduced in hospitals where these agents were associated with high CDAD rates [3, 4]. More recently, the saga of CDAD risk and antimicrobial use has been extended to the fluoroquinolone class, as shown by Gaynes et al. [5] in this issue of Clinical Infectious Diseases and by others [6–8]. Fluoroquinolones had been considered relatively low-risk agents for CDAD on the basis of a number of observations with regard to ciprofloxacin that included poor anaerobic activity, failure of fecal emulsions treated with ciprofloxacin to support growth of C. difficile in vitro (compared with clindamycin-treated emulsions), and lack of observed CDAD or C. difficile …
Multifunctional behaviors of an indium tin oxide/PbLa(ZrTi)O3/indium tin oxide wafer illuminated by ultraviolet light

This article presents multifunctional behaviors of a Pb0.97La0. 03(Zr0.52Ti0.48)O3 (3/52/48) wafer subjected to ultraviolet light illumination with a focus on its photoresistive effects. When this PLZT wafer that is spurted with indium tin oxide electrodes and then polarized through thickness is illuminated by ultraviolet light, its resistance increases rather than decreases as observed in conventional photoresistors made of semiconductors. Giant negative voltage and resistance are detected when light is switched off. The bending deformation caused by the photovoltaic and converse piezoelectric effects is examined and the photoinduced electrical field strength is further investigated. The electrical fields in light on–off states are studied. Hysteresis and memristive features of the indium tin oxide/PbLa(ZrTi)O3/indium tin oxide (ITO/PLZT/ITO) sample under repetitive light on–off operations are investigated.
Living with skin diseases and topical treatment: Patients' and providers' perspectives and priorities

Objectives: Relationship‐centred care stresses the importance of taking both patients' and health‐care providers' values, expectations and preferences into account to improve health outcomes. The aim of this qualitative study was to identify patients' and providers' views and experiences of skin disease and topical treatment. Methods: Two types of focus group were used: (i) patients with chronic dermatological diseases and (ii) doctors, nurses and pharmacists working in dermatological care. Results: Three major categories emerged: (i) problems related to the disease, (ii) problems related to the treatment and (iii) strategies for improving everyday life for patients. Conclusion: Patients and providers made several suggestions for improving everyday life. Future research needs to focus on how to achieve preference‐matched shared decision‐making, or concordance, between patients and health‐care providers, taking different perspectives into account and how to evaluate the effect of the final, clinical, economical and humanistic outcomes of care and treatment. More seamless care and an increasingly shared understanding between patients and providers of their values, expectations and preferences for care and treatment may contribute to better health and better daily lives for patients.