Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The effects of semen collection on fertility in captive, naturally fertile, sandhill cranes

We tested to see if semen collection interferes with fertility in naturally fertile pairs of cranes. We used 12 naturally fertile, Florida sandhill crane (Grus canadensis pratensis) pairs for this study, 6 control and 6 experimental. All pairs had previously produced fertile eggs. Semen was collected on Tuesday mornings and Friday afternoons from 26 February 1993 to 4 June 1993. We used standard artificial insemination methods to collect and to evaluate the semen and spermatozoa. Semen collection had minimal effect on semen quality and semen quantity. Semen volume, sperm density, sperm motility, sperm morphology, sperm viability, sperm number per collection, and male response to semen collection exhibited significant daily variation. Although semen collection began 13 days before the first egg in the experimental group, we did not observe differences in the date offirst egg laid or in fertility between experimental and control groups. Also, we observed no statistically significant differences in the interval between clutches or in the percentage of broken eggs between experimental and control groups. However, 4 eggs were broken by adults during the disturbance associated with capturing birds for semen collection. We found that females with mates from which we consistently gathered better semen samples produced fewer fertile eggs than females with sires producing poorer semen samples (r = 0.60). We interpret these results to mean that males that were successfully breeding with their mates had little left at the time of our collection. PROCEEDINGS NORTH AMERICAN CRANE WORKSHOP 8:185-194
Platelet-Rich Fibrin - A Review of Its Impact in Endodontics

As with every aspect of science, Endodontics is in a perpetual quest for the best outcome. In Endodontic surgery, this entails a faster and predictable healing, of both soft tissue and hard tissue. One of the recently reported adjuncts that has the potential to achieve this objective is platelet-rich fibrin (PRF). PRF is one among a group of compounds derived from blood platelets, with a positive influence on wound healing, by virtue of their content of growth factors. This paper is aimed at a detailed description of the preparation, effects and endodontic applications of PRF.
Inhibition of 5 alpha-reductase in genital skin fibroblasts and prostate tissue by dietary lignans and isoflavonoids.

Isoflavonoids and lignans, constituents of many plant foods, have been proposed as protective agents in those populations with a low incidence of hormone-dependent cancers. They may act by their inhibition of the metabolism of growth-promoting steroid hormones. This report describes the inhibition of 5 alpha-reductase and 17 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase by six isoflavonoids and two lignans in human genital skin fibroblast monolayers and homogenates, and in benign prostatic hyperplasia tissue homogenates. In genital skin fibroblasts, genistein, biochanin A and equol were the most potent inhibitors of 5 alpha-reductase activity, each resulting in greater than 80% inhibition at a concentration of 100 microM. The IC50 values for genistein and a seven-compound mixture were approximately 35 microM and 20 microM (2.9 microM of each compound) respectively. Of the lignans, enterolactone was the most potent inhibitor. Inhibition by biochanin A was shown to be reversible. When genital skin fibroblast homogenates were used, biochanin A was found to inhibit 5 alpha-reductase isozymes 1 and 2 to differing extents (30% and 75% respectively). Genistein was shown to inhibit 5 alpha-reductase 2 in a non-competitive nature (Vmax and Km values without and with inhibitor were 30 and 20 pmol/mg protein per h and 177 and 170 nM respectively). All of the compounds tested inhibited 17 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase activity in genital skin fibroblast monolayers. When prostate tissue homogenates were used, the compounds tested were better inhibitors of 5 alpha-reductase 1 than 2. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Analysis of Third-order Intermodulation in Receiver Down-Converter Employing Multiband Feedback

This paper presents an analysis of the third-order intermodulation characteristics of a recently reported receiver down-converter with multiband feedback and current reuse. This design not only achieves very a high gain with a low-current requirement but also provides an inherent cancellation mechanism for enhancing the linearity of the topology. By employing the signal feedback scheme, the inherent second-order nonlinearity of the tail current sources of differential pairs that are used to provide gain at baseband can be used to cancel the third-order intermodulation distortion resulting from the same devices. Circuit simulation using 0.13-¿m RF CMOS process shows an IIP3 improvement of 4 dB in comparison to its normal cascaded counterpart.
A Compact Wideband Dual-Polarized Slot Antenna With Five Resonances

This letter presents the design and analysis of a compact dual-polarized slot antenna using a triple-mode stepped slot-line resonator and a dual-mode cross-shaped monopole. The orthogonal polarization is achieved by feeding the two ports symmetrically at the opposite positions of the slot. All the five resonance frequencies can be flexibly adjusted by tuning different dimension parameters, so by increasing the frequency difference between the five resonance modes, a very wide common operating band (1.63–2.93 GHz) is obtained and also with a high port isolation (< $-$32 dB). Finally, by loading two grounded lumped capacitors on the cusp sections of the monopole, its second resonance frequency can be independently reconfigured.
Carbamazepine level‐A in vivo–in vitro correlation (IVIVC): a scaled convolution based predictive approach

A method is presented for prediction of the systemic drug concentration profile from in vitro release/dissolution data for a drug formulation. The method is demonstrated using four different tablet formulations containing 200 mg carbamazepine (CZM), each administered in a four way cross‐over manner to 20 human subjects, with 15 blood samples drawn to determine the resulting concentration profile. Amount versus time dissolution data were obtained by a 75 rpm paddle method for each formulation. Differentiation, with respect to time, of a monotonic quadratic spline fitted to the dissolution data provided the dissolution rate curve. The dissolution curve was through time and magnitude scaling mapped into a drug concentration curve via a convolution by a single exponential, and the estimated unit impulse response function. The method was tested by cross‐validation, where the in vivo concentration profiles for each formulation were predicted based on correlation parameters determined from in vivo–in vitro data from the remaining three formulations. The mean prediction error (MPE), defined as the mean value of 100% x(observed−predicted)/observed was calculated for all 240 cross‐validation predictions. The mean values of MPE were in the range of 10–36% (average 22%) with standard deviations (S.D.s) in the range of 9–33% (average 13%), indicating a good prediction performance of the proposed in vivo–in vitro correlation (IVIVC) method. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
DIFFERENT ARBUSCULAR MYCORRHIZAL FUNGAL SPECIES ARE POTENTIAL DETERMINANTS OF PLANT COMMUNITY STRUCTURE

Almost all natural plant communities contain arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF). We hypothesized that the species composition of AMF communities could have the potential to determine plant community structure if the growth response to different AMF species or to communities of AMF species varies among plant species. To test the existence of such a differential response we conducted a pot experiment where each of three plant species, Hieracium pilosella, Bromus erectus, and Festuca ovina were inoculated with each of four AMF species, or with a mixture of these four AMF species, or were uninoculated. The AMF species originated from a calcareous grassland in which the three plant species also coexisted. We obtained three pieces of evidence suggesting that AMF have the potential to de- termine plant community structure. First, plant species differed in their dependency on AMF, thus varying in degree of benefit received. Second, specific AMF species and a mixture of these AMF species had significantly different effects on several plant growth variables, and these effects were not the same on each plant species. Third, the amount of variation in the growth response of a plant species to four AMF species and to the mixture of AMF species differed among the plant species. Hieracium differed greatly in its growth response to several AMF species while Bromus did not exhibit much variation in its response to different AMF species. The varying mycorrhizal dependency of different plant species has previously been proposed as a mechanism determining plant community structure. However, we found that the mycorrhizal dependency of a plant species can vary greatly because of differential growth responses to specific AMF species compared to the growth of the uninoculated plants. Consequently mycorrhizal dependency, as a measure indicating how much a plant depends on AMF for its growth, is not necessarily a fixed value and therefore cannot be used as a definitive term. In addition, those plant species with highly variable responses to single AMF species or to combinations of AMF species (AMF communities) will be strongly affected by the specific species of AMF that occupy their roots, in contrast to plant species that do not respond differently to different AMF species. We conclude that, through their differential effects on plant growth, AMF species that co-occur as natural AMF communities have the potential to determine plant community structure, and that future studies on plant population and community structure need to consider the strength of their role as a determinant.
Obstructive sleep apnoea during REM sleep and incident non-dipping of nocturnal blood pressure: a longitudinal analysis of the Wisconsin Sleep Cohort

Background Non-dipping of nocturnal blood pressure (BP) is associated with target organ damage and cardiovascular disease. Obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) is associated with incident non-dipping. However, the relationship between disordered breathing during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep and the risk of developing non-dipping has not been examined. This study investigates whether OSA during REM sleep is associated with incident non-dipping. Methods Our sample included 269 adults enrolled in the Wisconsin Sleep Cohort Study who completed two or more 24 h ambulatory BP studies over an average of 6.6 years of follow-up. After excluding participants with prevalent non-dipping BP or antihypertensive use at baseline, there were 199 and 215 participants available for longitudinal analysis of systolic and diastolic non-dipping, respectively. OSA in REM and non-REM sleep were defined by apnoea hypopnoea index (AHI) from baseline in-laboratory polysomnograms. Systolic and diastolic non-dipping were defined by systolic and diastolic sleep/wake BP ratios >0.9. Modified Poisson regression models estimated the relative risks for the relationship between REM AHI and incident non-dipping, adjusting for non-REM AHI and other covariates. Results There was a dose–response greater risk of developing systolic and diastolic non-dipping BP with greater severity of OSA in REM sleep (p-trend=0.021 for systolic and 0.024 for diastolic non-dipping). Relative to those with REM AHI<1 event/h, those with REM AHI≥15 had higher relative risk of incident systolic non-dipping (2.84, 95% CI 1.10 to 7.29) and incident diastolic non-dipping (4.27, 95% CI 1.20 to 15.13). Conclusions Our findings indicate that in a population-based sample, REM OSA is independently associated with incident non-dipping of BP.
A Load-Sharing Strategy for the State of Charge Balancing Between the Battery Modules of Integrated Reconfigurable Converter

In the integrated reconfigurable converter (IRC) topology for high-voltage series-connected battery module systems, the converter can be reconfigured into a range of operating modes: “feeding a load” mode, “battery modules balancing” mode, “regenerative” mode, “charging” mode, and “backup” mode. In most battery applications, a battery-balancing system operates while another converter is used as a controllable power interface between the battery system and a load. However, during the conventional IRC operation, the “battery modules balancing” and “feeding a load” modes cannot be operated simultaneously. In this paper, a new balancing scheme is proposed that allows balancing the battery modules while they are powering the load. The proposed balancing strategy is able to distribute different amount of load between the battery modules based on their state of charge (SOC). When the load is disconnected, the battery modules can be still balanced using the conventional “battery modules balancing” mode. A scaled down prototype of the IRC is implemented with three series-connected battery modules. Experimental results are provided to verify the viability of the proposed balancing method.
Landholding, rural fertility and internal migration in developing countries: econometric evidence from cross-national data.

This article examines the relationship between rural fertility and rural-urban migration and land holding patterns, using data for 26 developing countries. A 2-equation stochastic model is developed with variables for the rural total fertility rate, the average annual rate of rural-urban migration, the gross domestic product per agricultural worker, the small holder index, the concentration index, the land ownership index, agricultural density, the literacy rate, and life expectancy at birth. Regression results for the rural fertility and migration equations show that the coefficient for lagged migration is positive, as expected. The lack of an effect of literacy is surprising, and may indicate that urban-rural differentials in literacy rates vary widely across countries. The positive coefficient for rural income provides evidence of a positive income effect on fertility in rural areas. The 3 land holding variables receive strong statistical support. The urbanization variable is very powerful; studies that do not take this into account may be seriously biased. The smallholding variable is significant and positive, but the diffusion of land ownership raises fertility and rural-urban migration rates. The reduced form equation highlights both opportunities and obstacles. The statistical results provide strong support for the major hypotheses of the effects of land holding patterns on rural fertility and rural-urban migration: higher fertility is positively related to higher rates of out-migration. Higher out-migration in the previous decade means higher subsequent fertility.
General and specific immunosuppression caused by antiviral T‐cell responses

Summary: Immunosuppression caused by the non‐cytopathic lymphocytic choriomeningltis virus (LCMV) (an RNA virus) is mediated by anti‐viral cytotoxic T cells that destroy LCMV‐infected cells, also of the immune system. While this immunopathological destruction of antigen‐presenting cells, macrophages and follicular dendritic cells and of some CD4+ T cells causes general immunosuppression and impairs immune response to third party antigens, it also enhances exhaustion/deletion of LCMV‐specific CD8+ T‐cell responses. LCMV seems in addition to infect neutralizing antibody‐producing B cells via the specific receptor; immunopathological LCMV‐specific CD8T T‐cell‐mediated elimination of these infected B cells (but not of uninfected internal virus antigen‐specific B cells) causes a highly specific immunosuppression that delays neutralizing antibody responses and thereby enhances virus persistence. Both generalized and specific immunosuppression by CD8+ T‐cell‐mediated immunopathology may be involved in human infections with HIV; hepatitis B virus or hepatitis C virus.
Embryonic stem cells and tissue engineering: delivering stem cells to the clinic.

One of the challenges facing biomedical science is of its own making—namely, the progressive increase in lifespans. An increasing number of individuals require treatment and the treatments themselves have to work for longer. A shift in emphasis is therefore required towards biological approaches including the regeneration of tissues. Tissue engineering can be best defined by its goal—the design and construction in the laboratory of living components that can be used for the maintenance, repair or replacement of malfunctioning tissues. In this discipline, born in 1933 when tumour cells were wrapped in a polymer membrane and implanted into a pig,1 the life sciences and medicine come together with engineering in activities centred on three basic components—cells, scaffolds and signals. The development of tissue engineering has lately been spurred by the increased availability of cell sources, proteomics, the advent of new biomaterials, improvements in bioreactor design and increased understanding of healing. However, neither commercial development nor clinical application of tissue engineered products has kept pace with this rapidly evolving research. Industrial development has been hindered by difficulties in devising cost-efficient processes, guaranteeing product viability and satisfying the regulators. Nevertheless, the coming years will see a large increase in the number of patients benefiting from tissue engineering. For the cell biology component of tissue engineering, the greatest challenge is to optimize the isolation, proliferation and differentiation of cells and to design scaffolds or delivery systems that yield tissue growth in three dimensions. Ideally, we would harvest stem cells from a patient, expand them in cell culture, seed them on a scaffold and then implant the resultant tissue. Stem cells, when given the specific biological stimuli, can differentiate to become many types of specific mature cells, and use of these cells avoids the immunorejection that can occur with donor transplants. In addition, the technique of somatic nuclear transfer allows the creation of autologous cells and tissues from allogeneic embryonic stem cells. It is then important for the scaffold to act as a template and stimulus for proliferation and differentiation of the stem cells into the mature cells that will generate specific new tissue. The tissue can be grown on a scaffold that will resorb, so that only the new tissue will be implanted, or a 'biocomposite' of the scaffold and new tissue can be implanted. After implantation, the tissue-engineered construct must be able to survive, restore normal function and integrate with the surrounding tissues.
Neurotensin and a non‐peptide neurotensin receptor antagonist control human colon cancer cell growth in cell culture and in cells xenografted into nude mice

The intestine is a large endocrine organ, but the dependence of colon cancer on hormones remains unknown. We show here that neurotensin, a paracrine/endocrine peptide in the gut, and the neurotensin receptor antagonist SR 48692 control colon cancer cell growth in vitro and in vivo by interacting with receptors that are ectopically expressed in colon cancers. In cell culture, neurotensin stimulates the growth of human colon cancer cell lines (SW480, SW620, HT29, HCT116 and Cl.19A) expressing the neurotensin receptor NTR1 but does not change the growth of Caco2 cells, which do not express NTR1. In SW480 cells, neurotensin is active in the 10–10 to 10–6 M concentration range (ED50 = 0.47 nM) while the neurotensin fragment (1–11) is inactive. Neurotensin also enhances the cellular cloning efficiency of SW480 cells in soft agar by inducing a 50% increase of colony formation. This effect is blocked by SR 48692, which alone does not alter colony formation. Subcutaneous delivery of neurotensin (0.54μmol/kg every 24 hr) by osmotic pumps to nude mice that have been xenografted with SW480 cells results in a significant increase of tumor volume, i.e., up to 255% of control at day 20 of treatment. SR 48692 administered alone (1.7 μmol/kg every 24 hr) by daily i.p. injections reduces the development of tumors formed by xenografting SW480 cells in nude mice. A significant mean reduction of tumor volume of 38% is observed during the 22‐day period of treatment. SR 48692 alone is also active at reducing tumor volume after xenografting HCT116 cells in nude mice. Our results support the notion that colon cancer growth may be dependent on blood‐borne neurotensin and suggest that non‐peptide neurotensin antagonists, such as SR 48692, may be useful for the development of novel therapeutic strategies of colon cancer. Int. J. Cancer 80:448–454, 1999. © 1999 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Prevalent mutations in prostate cancer

Quantitative and structural genetic alterations cause the development and progression of prostate cancer. A number of genes have been implicated in prostate cancer by genetic alterations and functional consequences of the genetic alterations. These include the ELAC2 (HPC2), MSR1, and RNASEL (HPC1) genes that have germline mutations in familial prostate cancer; AR, ATBF1, EPHB2 (ERK), KLF6, mitochondria DNA, p53, PTEN, and RAS that have somatic mutations in sporadic prostate cancer; AR, BRCA1, BRCA2, CHEK2 (RAD53), CYP17, CYP1B1, CYP3A4, GSTM1, GSTP1, GSTT1, PON1, SRD5A2, and VDR that have germline genetic variants associated with either hereditary and/or sporadic prostate cancer; and ANXA7 (ANX7), KLF5, NKX3‐1 (NKX3.1), CDKN1B (p27), and MYC that have genomic copy number changes affecting gene function. More genes relevant to prostate cancer remain to be identified in each of these gene groups. For the genes that have been identified, most need additional genetic, functional, and/or biochemical examination. Identification and characterization of these genes will be a key step for improving the detection and treatment of prostate cancer. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Detection of etiological agent for cholera by PCR protocol.

BACKGROUND PCR protocol for Vibrio cholerae, the causative agent of the diarrheal disease cholera has been described in this report. We report the detection of Vibrio species in drinking water samples in a duplex PCR reaction. The target loci used in the study were ctxA and tcpA. The sensitivity and efficiency of detection of this protocol can be applied in epidemic conditions, wherein monitoring of target organisms is very crucial. MATERIAL AND METHODS Single step thermocycling programs have been reported for amplification of specific target loci. We have demonstrated that a gradient multi-step thermocycling program is more efficient in improving the sensitivity of detection by PCR. The method for preparation of template DNA from environmental sample uses filtration of water followed by harvesting the possible bacterial residue. This was further treated with proteinase K and heat to yield DNA compatible for PCR. The protocol was optimized for amplification of target loci from standard strains as well as from environmental water samples. RESULTS The method can simultaneously detect two different loci of Vibrio cholerae in a single reaction. The sensitivity of detection achieved for the pathogen was 100 cells per reaction. The specificity of the primers was demonstrated by spiking the reaction with non-specific template. The developed protocol was successfully extended to environmental samples. CONCLUSIONS The developed duplex PCR protocol allows the simultaneous detection of two genetic loci of the target pathogen from water samples. This enhances the efficiency of detection and provides a sensitive tool for the rapid detection of the pathogen that can be useful in epidemic conditions where the time factor involved in the identification of target pathogen is very crucial.