Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Nitric oxide reduces paracellular resistance in rat thick ascending limbs by increasing Na+ and Cl- permeabilities.

About 50% of the Na+ reabsorbed in thick ascending limbs traverses the paracellular pathway. Nitric oxide (NO) reduces the permselectivity of this pathway via cGMP, but its effects on absolute Na+ ([Formula: see text]) and Cl- ([Formula: see text]) permeabilities are unknown. To address this, we measured the effect of l-arginine (0.5 mmol/l; NO synthase substrate) and cGMP (0.5 mmol/l) on [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] calculated from the transepithelial resistance (Rt) and [Formula: see text]/[Formula: see text] in medullary thick ascending limbs. Rt was 7,722 ± 1,554 ohm·cm in the control period and 6,318 ± 1,757 ohm·cm after l-arginine treatment (P < 0.05). [Formula: see text]/[Formula: see text] was 2.0 ± 0.2 in the control period and 1.7 ± 0.1 after l-arginine (P < 0.04). Calculated [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] were 3.52 ± 0.2 and 1.81 ± 0.10 × 10-5 cm/s, respectively, in the control period. After l-arginine they were 6.65 ± 0.69 (P < 0.0001 vs. control) and 3.97 ± 0.44 (P < 0.0001) × 10-5 cm/s, respectively. NOS inhibition with Nω-nitro-l-arginine methyl ester (5 mmol/l) prevented l-arginine's effect on Rt Next we tested the effect of cGMP. Rt in the control period was 7,592 ± 1,470 and 4,796 ± 847 ohm·cm after dibutyryl-cGMP (0.5 mmol/l; db-cGMP) treatment (P < 0.04). [Formula: see text]/[Formula: see text] was 1.8 ± 0.1 in the control period and 1.6 ± 0.1 after db-cGMP (P < 0.03). [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] were 4.58 ± 0.80 and 2.66 ± 0.57 × 10-5 cm/s, respectively, for the control period and 9.48 ± 1.63 (P < 0.007) and 6.01 ± 1.05 (P < 0.005) × 10-5 cm/s, respectively, after db-cGMP. We modeled NO's effect on luminal Na+ concentration along the thick ascending limb. We found that NO's effect on the paracellular pathway reduces net Na+ reabsorption and that the magnitude of this effect is similar to that due to NO's inhibition of transcellular transport.
Hydrodynamic signal perception in the copepod Acartia tonsa

Copepods may remotely detect predators from the velocity gradients these generate in the ambient water. Each of the different components and characteristics of a velocity gradient (acceleration, vorticity, longitudinal and shear deformation) can cause a velocity difference between the copepod and the ambient water and may, therefore, be perceived by mechanoreceptory setae. We hypothesised that the threshold value for escape response to a particular component depends solely on the magnitude of the velocity difference (= signal strength) it generates. In experiments we isolated the different components and noted the minimum intensities to which the copepod Acartia tonsa responded. As hypothesised, threshold signal strengths due to longitudinal and shear deformation were similar, ∼0.015 cm s -1 , and were invariant with developmental stage. The latter implies that the threshold deformation rate for response scales inversely with size, i.e. that large stages respond to lower fluid deformation rates than small stages and, hence, may detect predators at longer distances. Signals due to vorticity and acceleration did not elicit escape responses, even though their magnitude exceeded threshold signal strength due to deformation. We suggest that A. tonsa cannot distinguish such signals from those due to their own behaviour (sinking, swimming, passive reorientation due to gravity) because they cause a similar spatial distributions of the signal across the body. Reinterpretation of data from the literature revealed that threshold signal strength due to deformation varies by ca 2 orders of magnitude between copepods and exceeds the neurophysiological response threshold by more than a factor of 10. In contrast, threshold deformation rates vary much less, ∼ 0.5 to 5 s -1 . Model calculations suggest that such threshold deformation rates are just sufficient to allow efficient predator detection while at the same time just below maximum turbulent deformation rates, thus preventing inordinate escapes.
Citrinin toxicity in young chicks.

Two experiments were conducted to demonstrate the capacity of citrinin to cause dose-related increases in water consumption and urine excretion. In Experiment 1, chicks 24 days old were fed mixtures of untreated and inoculated corn containing citrinin to provide 0, 50, 100, 150, 200, and 250 micrograms of the toxin per gram of blended corn. The corn was fed for 4 hr, and water intake and urine excretion were measured. Chicks consumed 0, 1.23, 2.37, 3.68, 4.26 and 5.44 mg citrinin from the respective treatments. Compared with chicks consuming no citrinin, water intake and urine excretion of treated chicks increased (P less than .05) when chicks consumed 3.68 mg or more citrinin. Measures of the difference between water intake and urine excretion were similar for all treatments except for chicks consuming 3.68 mg citrinin; for those chicks the difference was significantly greater (P less than .05) than for chicks consuming 1.23 mg citrinin. In Experiment 2, inoculated corn was heated in a microwave oven for 1, 2, 8, and 16 min. Temperatures of the heated corn samples, when removed from the oven, were 76 C, 100 C and 105 C, respectively. Chicks that were 28 days old were fed these various samples of corn for 4 hr. Heating corn for 2 min to a temperature of 76 C caused no apparent loss of citrinin activity based on water intake and urine excretion measures. Heating the corn for 8 min to a temperature of 100 C destroyed some of the citrinin activity. Heating citrinin-contaminated corn to 105 C for 16 min destroyed the diuretic effect of the mycotoxin.
Soluble Organic and Inorganic Nutrient Fluxes in Clearcut and Mature Deciduous Forests

The mechanisms by which forest ecosystems retain or lose soluble inorganic nutrients after disturbance are well known, but substantial amounts of soluble organic nutrients may also be released from cut vegetation. Our objective was to compare the leaching of dissolved organic and inorganic nutrients in cut and mature forest stands and to develop hypotheses about factors controlling the retention of soluble organic nutrients after disturbance. Solution chemistry was measured for 2 yr after dearcutting a small area in the surrounding undisturbed deciduous forest on a reference watershed at the Coweeta Hydrologic Laboratory in the Appalachian Mountains. Concentrations of dissolved organic C (DOC) and N (DON) in slash leachate were 2.6 to 3.2 times the concentrations in throughfall from undisturbed forest. Concentrations in forest floor, A horizon, and B horizon solutions from cut plots were 1.2 to 3.8 times those from undisturbed forest. Dissolved organic P (DOP) concentrations in cut plots were 3.1 and 3.6 times those of uncut plots in solutions from slash and forest floor, respectively, but did not differ in mineral soil. Fluxes of DOC, DON, and DOP in all strata were greater in cut plots than uncut plots. Fluxes of DON were greater than those of ammonium plus nitrate N in all strata of both cut and uncut plots. We hypothesize that the well-recognized retention mechanisms for inorganic nutrients combine with equilibrium adsorption of dissolved organic matter to efficiently buffer against leaching of both soluble inorganic and organic nutrients after clearcutting.
A Crowdsourcing Approach to Developing and Assessing Prediction Algorithms for AML Prognosis

Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) is a fatal hematological cancer. The genetic abnormalities underlying AML are extremely heterogeneous among patients, making prognosis and treatment selection very difficult. While clinical proteomics data has the potential to improve prognosis accuracy, thus far, the quantitative means to do so have yet to be developed. Here we report the results and insights gained from the DREAM 9 Acute Myeloid Prediction Outcome Prediction Challenge (AML-OPC), a crowdsourcing effort designed to promote the development of quantitative methods for AML prognosis prediction. We identify the most accurate and robust models in predicting patient response to therapy, remission duration, and overall survival. We further investigate patient response to therapy, a clinically actionable prediction, and find that patients that are classified as resistant to therapy are harder to predict than responsive patients across the 31 models submitted to the challenge. The top two performing models, which held a high sensitivity to these patients, substantially utilized the proteomics data to make predictions. Using these models, we also identify which signaling proteins were useful in predicting patient therapeutic response.
Point counting on K3 surfaces and an application concerning real and complex multiplication

We report on our project to find explicit examples of $K3$ surfaces having real or complex multiplication. Our strategy is to search through the arithmetic consequences of RM and CM. In order to do this, an efficient method is needed for point counting on surfaces defined over finite fields. For this, we describe algorithms that are $p$-adic in nature.
Influence of light intensity on behavior and performance of broiler chickens.

The influence of two light intensity treatments, 180 and 6 lx, on behavior and performance of broiler chickens was examined in two experiments. The first experiment tested male chickens reared to 9 wk of age and the second experiment tested both sexes reared separately to 6 wk. Behavioral data were collected by scan sampling of behavior recorded on video tape. Standing, walking, and total activity were higher under the 180 lx than the 6-lx treatment (P less than .01), whereas feeding and drinking were not significantly affected by light intensity. Body weight, feed and water consumption, and feed conversion were unaffected by light intensity. Incidence of leg disorders at 6 wk and the percentage of bruised carcasses at 64 days were significantly lower under the higher light intensity treatment in the first experiment, as was mortality to 3 and 6 wk in the second experiment. No significant light intensity X sex interactions were detected. Results did not support the hypothesis that brighter lighting reduces performance due to increased chicken activity. Use of brighter lighting had no adverse effects on performance and there was some evidence that it may have a beneficial effect on welfare by reducing bruising.
OnabotulinumtoxinA treatment of moderate to severe glabellar lines in Chinese subjects after laser therapy: A prospective, open-label, noncomparative study

ABSTRACT Introduction: This study evaluated safety and efficacy of onabotulinumtoxinA for moderate to severe glabellar lines (GL) following laser therapy in Chinese subjects. Materials and Methods: Subjects (n = 173) were followed for 120 days following a single onabotulinumtoxinA (20 U) treatment for GL after recent laser therapy. Subjects completed validated patient-reported outcomes, including Facial Lines Outcome 11-item (FLO-11) Questionnaire and Facial Lines Satisfaction Questionnaire (FLSQ). Physicians and subjects assessed GL severity at maximum frown and at rest using the Facial Wrinkle Scale with Asian Photonumeric Guide (FWS-A). Results: Mean total FLO-11 scores increased from 47.7 (baseline) to 75.9 (day 120) (p < 0.0001), with mean improvement of at least two grades for most items maintained to day 120. Most subjects were mostly or very satisfied, per the FLSQ. Percentages of subjects with at least one-grade improvement in FWS-A (responders) at maximum frown per subjects and physicians were 93.1% and 97.1%, respectively, at day 30, and 72.3% and 81.5% at day 120 (all, p < 0.0001). More than 70% were FWS-A responders at day 120. All adverse events were mild or moderate; none were related to onabotulinumtoxinA. Conclusions: A single onabotulinumtoxinA (20 U) treatment following laser therapy was safe and effective in correcting GL for up to 120 days.
Pharmacokinetics of tetracycline in chickens after intravenous administration.

Plasma levels of tetracycline in chickens were determined after intravenous (iv) administration of a 65-mg/kg dose. The disposition kinetics of tetracycline in chickens were fitted to a two-compartment open model. Pharmacokinetic parameters were found to be: A (microgram/ml) = 2000 +/- 450, alpha (hr-1) = 4.3 +/- . 5, B (microgram/ml) = 82 +/- 6, beta (hr-1) = . 252 +/- . 009, K12 (hr-1) = 1.515, K21 (hr-1) = . 049, and K10 (hr-1) = 2.652. Biliary excretion of tetracycline was also studied in chickens fitted with cannulae inserted into both bile ducts. The maximum values for tetracycline biliary excretion rate (407 and 606 micrograms/hr) were reached at about 1 hr after iv administration of 10- and 15-mg/kg doses. First-order rate constants for the biliary excretion, Kbi (hr-1), were . 834 and . 665, respectively. The cumulative biliary excretion study showed that about 7% of both administered doses was recovered from the bile within the first 6 hr. In contrast, there was a low recovery of antibiotic in the bile after oral administration of 100 and 200 mg/kg doses.
Eggshell quality as influenced by sodium bicarbonate, calcium source, and photoperiod.

The effects of Ca source (limestone or a mixture of one-third limestone and two-thirds oyster shell), NaHCO3 (0 or .5%) and feeding photoperiod (16 or 24 hr) were studied in a 16-week experiment involving 240 Hy-Line W-36 Leghorn hens, 25 weeks of age. Neither egg production (percent hen-day and egg mass, kg egg/bird per 16 weeks) nor feed conversion ratio (kg feed per kg egg) were significantly (P greater than .05) affected by dietary treatment or photoperiod. However, extending the photoperiod to 24 hr significantly (P less than .05) increased feed consumption with a consequent increase in egg weight (P less than .01). Feeding oyster shell in combination with limestone significantly (P less than .05) improved specific gravity of eggs, whereas dietary NaHCO3 significantly (P less than .01) improved elasticity of the egg shell as measured by deformation. Eggshell quality was improved by increasing the photoperiod to 24 hr and was most pronounced when hens were fed diets supplemented with . 5% NaHCO3 and limestone as the only source of Ca.
Plasticity in the lung: making and breaking cell identity

In contrast to a prior emphasis on the finality of cell fate decisions in developmental systems, cellular plasticity is now emerging as a general theme in the biology of multiple adult organ systems. In the lung, lineage tracing has been used to identify distinct epithelial stem and progenitor cell populations. These cells, together with their differentiated progeny, maintain a stable identity during steady state conditions, but can display remarkable lineage plasticity following injury. This Review summarizes our current understanding of the different cell lineages of the adult mammalian lung and their responses to injury. In the lung, which is constantly exposed to infection and aerosolized toxins, epithelial plasticity might be more of a rule than an exception, and it is likely that different injuries elicit different facultative responses. Summary: This Review discusses the different lung stem and progenitor cells that exist during normal homeostasis and that display remarkable lineage plasticity following injury.
Diamond anvil cell behavior up to 4 Mbar

Significance Diamond anvil cell (DAC) could be one of the most popular and versatile devices to generate static high pressure. By using beveled anvils, researchers can study materials up to 4 Mbar, which is considered as a limit pressure of conventional DAC; however, very few experiments have visited this pressure region. Here, we have systematically studied the behaviors of three DACs with three typical culet sizes, one of which reached 4 Mbar. In addition, by using submicrometer synchrotron X-ray probe, double cupping of beveled diamond anvils up to 4 Mbar is reported experimentally. Our results provide important guidance for future DAC studies to extreme high pressures. The diamond anvil cell (DAC) is considered one of the dominant devices to generate ultrahigh static pressure. The development of the DAC technique has enabled researchers to explore rich high-pressure science in the multimegabar pressure range. Here, we investigated the behavior of the DAC up to 400 GPa, which is the accepted pressure limit of a conventional DAC. By using a submicrometer synchrotron X-ray beam, double cuppings of the beveled diamond anvils were observed experimentally. Details of pressure loading, distribution, gasket-thickness variation, and diamond anvil deformation were studied to understand the generation of ultrahigh pressures, which may improve the conventional DAC techniques.
Programming Requests/Responses with GreatFree in the Cloud Environment

Programming request with GreatFree is an efficient programming technique to implement distributed polling in the cloud computing environment. GreatFree is a distributed programming environment through which diverse distributed systems can be established through programming rather than configuring or scripting. GreatFree emphasizes the importance of programming since it offers developers the opportunities to leverage their distributed knowledge and programming skills. Additionally, programming is the unique way to construct creative, adaptive and flexible systems to accommodate various distributed computing environments. With the support of GreatFree code-level Distributed Infrastructure Patterns, Distributed Operation Patterns and APIs, the difficult procedure is accomplished in a programmable, rapid and highly-patterned manner, i.e., the programming behaviors are simplified as the repeatable operation of Copy-Paste-Replace. Since distributed polling is one of the fundamental techniques to construct distributed systems, GreatFree provides developers with relevant APIs and patterns to program requests/responses in the novel programming environment.
Optimal data structures for stochastic driven simulations

Simulations where we have some prior information on the probability distribution of possible outcomes are common in many fields of science (physics, chemistry, biochemistry, etc). Optimal data structures that allow dynamic updates without regenerating the whole structure are crucial for both efficient and accurate results, especially at large scale. In this paper, we describe three different methods: the Binary Tree, the Rejection algorithm and the Composition-Rejection algorithm. We analyze the expected time to extract and update an outcome, for each of the studied methods, for different distributions of the rates of outcomes. We give both a theoretical analysis, and an experimental verification in a real-life setting, and show for different settings which methods give the best expected times.
Investigation of Microstructure, Morphology, Mechanical, and Dielectric Properties of PVA/PbO Nanocomposites

The present article deals with the preparation and characterization of pure and lead oxide (PbO) nanoparticles embedded polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) films by using a colloidal processing technique. PbO nanoparticles were successfully synthesized using the simple precipitation method. Polymer/ceramic-based flexible and self-standing films were obtained and further characterized using various analytical techniques. The mechanical and dielectric properties were also investigated. The Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) results indicate that the structural characterization of PVA is strongly affected by the incorporation of PbO. Thermal analysis results indicate that the thermal stability of the PbO-doped PVA film has improved as compared with the neat PVA film. The mechanical property of nanocomposites has improved significantly due to an increase in filler loadings, indicating that a good interaction exists between PbO nanoparticles and PVA matrix. The dielectric constant of PVA/PbO nanocomposites has significantly improved with comparatively low dielectric loss values, indicating that the nanocomposites can be considered as an attractive material for embedded capacitor applications.
Research note: responses of laying hens on saline drinking water to dietary supplementation with various zinc compounds.

Production variables, eggshell defects, eggshell quality, the concentration of calcium-binding protein (CaBP), and the activity of carbonic anhydrase (CA) in the shell gland mucosa were determined in hens receiving town water (10 mg Na/L), or town water supplemented with 2 g NaCl/L (796 mg Na/L). Five treatments were examined. Control hens received town water and a proprietary layer mash containing . 17% Na. The remaining four treatments received the water containing NaCl (2 g/L). Hens of Treatment 2 were fed the proprietary layer mash and those of Treatments 3, 4, and 5 received, respectively, the layer mash containing supplements of Zn-methionine (Zinpro-200; .5 g/kg), Zn sulfate (ZnSO4.7H2O; .46 g/kg), or chelated Zn-EDTA (.54 g/kg) to supply the same concentration of Zn (.1 g/kg). The treatments were applied for 6 wk. Hens receiving the saline drinking water without any dietary Zn supplement produced significantly (P < .05) more eggs with shell defects than hens receiving the town water. This increase in the incidence of eggshell defects was associated with significant reductions in eggshell breaking strength, the concentration of CaBP, and the activity of CA. Supplementing the saline drinking water with any of the three Zn compounds significantly reduced the incidence of eggshell defects and in some cases improved shell breaking strength, the concentration of CaBP, and the activity of CA.
Externally induced frontoparietal synchronization modulates network dynamics and enhances working memory performance

Cognitive functions such as working memory (WM) are emergent properties of large-scale network interactions. Synchronisation of oscillatory activity might contribute to WM by enabling the coordination of long-range processes. However, causal evidence for the way oscillatory activity shapes network dynamics and behavior in humans is limited. Here we applied transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) to exogenously modulate oscillatory activity in a right frontoparietal network that supports WM. Externally induced synchronization improved performance when cognitive demands were high. Simultaneously collected fMRI data reveals tACS effects dependent on the relative phase of the stimulation and the internal cognitive processing state. Specifically, synchronous tACS during the verbal WM task increased parietal activity, which correlated with behavioral performance. Furthermore, functional connectivity results indicate that the relative phase of frontoparietal stimulation influences information flow within the WM network. Overall, our findings demonstrate a link between behavioral performance in a demanding WM task and large-scale brain synchronization. DOI: http://dx.doi. org/10.7554/eLife.22001. 001
Correlation detection with firing rate estimation based on temporal coincidence coding

In this paper, the firing rate of the neuron based on temporal coincidence coding is estimated for correlation detection. Two cases are considered: the independent inputs are stochastic spike trains that are modeled by the homogeneous Poisson process or the renew process. The situation that the inputs are correlated is also considered and the conditions for the neuron to detect the correlation among inputs are discussed. The results are demonstrated by the simulations.