Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Impact of adjuvant chemoradiotherapy for rectal cancer on the long-term quality of life and late side effects: a multicentric clinical evaluation by the Turkish Oncology Group.

AIM Although preoperative chemoradiatherapy (CRT) has proven its benefits in terms of decreased toxicity, there is still a considerable amount of cases that do not receive postoperative CRT. Oncologists at different geographic locations still need to know the long-term effects of this treatment in order to manage patients successfully. The current paper reports on long-term quality of life (QOL) and late side effects after adjuvant CRT in rectal cancer patients from 5 centers in Anatolia. METHODS Rectal cancer patients treated with postoperative CRT with minimum 1-year follow-up and were in complete remission, were evaluated according to RTOG and LENT-SOMA scales. They were also asked to complete Turkish version of EORTCQLQ-C30 questionnaire and the CR-38 module. Each center participated with the required clinical data. RESULTS Two hundred and thirty patients with median age of 55 years participated and completed the study. Median follow-up time was 5 years. All patients received RT concomitant with chemotherapy. Common parameters that both increased functional health scales and yielded better symptom scores were long term interval after treatment and sphincter-saving surgery. In addition, surgery type and follow-up time were determined to be predictors of QOL scores and late toxicity grade. CONCLUSION Postoperative CRT was found to have a great impact on the long term QOL and side effects in rectal cancer survivors. The factors that adversely affect these are abdominoperineal resection and shorter interval. The findings may encourage life-long follow-up and cooperation with patients, which should be mentioned during the initial counseling.
Identifying Barriers to the Adoption of e-Government Services in Malaysia

Studies have shown that low adoption rate among citizens has been hindering the progressiveness and the optimization of e Government services especially in developing countries. Hence, one of the challenges that has to be undertaken is to identify possible barriers in order to facilitate a higher rate of adoption. Six main constructs partially adapted from Gilbert & Balestrini (2004) were developed. These constructs were deduced from three main approaches namely diffusion of innovation, extension of existing theory to technology and the application of existing framework to technology. Data taken from 997 respondents residing in the state of Selangor are used to validate the constructs. A multiple regression was performed and the results shows that significant variables that act as barriers to adoption are easy to use, enjoyable , secure, reliable, cost and language constraint.
Increasing papers' discoverability with precise semantic labeling: The sci.AI publishing platform

The number of published findings in biomedicine increases continually. At the same time, specifics of the domain’s terminology complicates the task of relevant publications retrieval. In the current research, we investigate influence of terms’ variability and ambiguity on a paper’s likelihood of being retrieved. We obtained statistics that demonstrate significance of the issue and its challenges, followed by presenting the sci.AI platform, which allows precise terms labeling as a resolution.
Do we need different frameworks to explain infant MNEs from developing countries

Applying extant IB theory, I argue that initial firm internationalisation is shaped by the interdependence and dynamic interaction between its O assets and the L assets of its home location. Regardless of nationality, the initial O assets of an infant MNE tend to be constrained by the L assets available to them, rather than by their strategy. I also contrast the modus operandi of developing country (DC) infant MNEs with those from advanced economies, highlighting the similarities and differences. The O assets of DC MNEs are largely determined by home country influences. Advanced economy MNEs have a larger set of L assets to draw from, because a wider variety of non-home country influences exist. Strategy and host countries begin to play a greater role once MNEs have moved past the nascent stage. I also take a look at the changes due to globalization and how it has affected the propensity of firms to internationalise. I argue that successful firms (regardless of nationality) will increasingly explore internationalisation, but the basic pre-condition - that of possessing competitive O assets - remains the same. There is also no reason to believe that this is likely to happen disproportionately from the developing countries.
The epidemiology of heart failure.

Cardiovascular disease remains one of the most important causes of morbidity and mortality in Western society. Although much is known about the epidemiology of coronary heart disease, less is known about the epidemiology of heart failure despite its considerable economic impact on health services due to the cost of long-term drug treatment and frequent hospitalization. This burden may increase further as the prognosis of patients with heart failure is improved by medical and surgical interventions'"', as the proportion of the elderly within the population increases'' and as survival from myocardial infarction improves with widespread and prompt administration of thrombolytic therapy'''. In this review we will draw almost exclusively on data collected in the last 40 years. Prior to this time the classification and understanding of heart failure bears little resemblance to current knowledge and practice.
Émissions de méthane des vaches laitières: influence des graines oléagineuses dans la ration

L’ajout a la ration des vaches laitieres de composants alimentaires oleagineux peut influencer la fermentation ruminale et donc la formation de methane dans le rumen. Dans une etude menee avec 33 vaches laitieres des races Holstein/Red Holstein, des chercheurs et chercheuses ont etudie durant douze semaines l’influence de deux types de graines oleagineuses (graines de lin extrudees et graines de colza moulues) ajoutees a la ration sur l’ingestion alimentaire, la performance laitiere, la fermentation ruminale et les emissions de methane des vaches laitieres, en comparaison a une variante de controle (graisse ruminostable). L’ingestion et la production laitiere de chaque animal ont ete enregistrees quotidiennement. De plus, les composants du lait provenant de la traite du soir et du matin de chaque vache ont ete analyses chaque semaine. Des valeurs hebdomadaires individuelles de rejets de methane ont ete recueillies a l’aide de deux stations GreenFeed. Au cours des semaines 6, 9, 12 et 15, du jus de panse a ete preleve chez 18 vaches (six par variante d’essai) au moyen d’une sonde oesophagienne et les acides gras volatils, l’ammoniac et des micro-organismes selectionnes y ont ete analyses. Les vaches consommant des graines de lin extrudees avaient une ingestion alimentaire reduite et la teneur en matiere grasse de leur lait etait plus faible, mais elles produisaient davantage de lait par jour. Les deux types de graines oleagineuses ont entraine une reduction de 7 % de la production quotidienne de methane, qui s’est accompagnee d’une reduction de l’abondance relative des microorganismes methanogenes dans le rumen. L’intensite de production de methane (g par kg de lait corrige par rapport a sa teneur en energie) etait reduite non significativement de 15 a 17 % avec les deux graines oleagineuses. Ces resultats permettent de conclure qu’une certaine reduction des emissions de methane peut etre obtenue par l’ajout a la ration de graines oleagineuses, mais que celle-ci varie fortement en fonction de la base de calcul utilisee.
Quenched spectrum with staggered fermions.

In this paper we present results for the hadron spectrum in the quenched approximation using staggered fermions. Pinning down the quenched spectrum is an important step in the program of using lattice calculations to extract physically useful quantities. If we cannot extract the masses of the lightest few states with small errors, and make reliable extrapolations to zero quark mass, then calculations of more complicated quantities are suspect. Furthermore, we would like to know how well the quenched approximation reproduces the physical spectrum, for this gives us some indication of the trustworthiness of other quenched calculations. We present results for the spectrum of QCD in the quenched approximation using staggered fermions at {beta} = 5.7, 6.0 and 6.2. We use extended wall sources, which give a better projection onto the ground state, and allow us to study many non-local pion and rho states, as well as the Delta baryon. Staggered flavor symmetry breaking reduces dramatically from {beta} = 5.7 to 6.2. For {beta} = 6, the ratio m{sub N}/m{sub p} lies significantly below 1.5 for m{sub q} < m{sub s}. At {beta} = 6 we study finite volume effects using 16{sup 3} {times} 40 and 24{sup 3} {times} 40 lattices.more » We reanalyze our old data at {beta} = 6.2 and resolve the problem of the anomalously light scalar state. 20 refs., 19 figs., 11 tabs. « less
Bone marrow transplants from unrelated donors for patients with chronic myeloid leukemia.

BACKGROUND Chronic myeloid leukemia can be cured by marrow transplantation from an HLA-identical sibling donor. The use of transplants from unrelated donors is an option for the 70 percent of patients without an HLA-identical sibling, but the morbidity and mortality associated with such transplants have been cause for concern. We analyzed the safety and efficacy of transplants from unrelated donors for the treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia and identified variables that predict a favorable outcome. METHODS Between May 1985 and December 1994, 196 patients with Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myeloid leukemia in chronic phase received marrow transplants from unrelated donors. RESULTS The median follow-up was 5 years (range, 1.2 to 10.1). Graft failure occurred in 5 percent of patients who could be evaluated. Acute graft-versus-host disease of grade III or IV severity was observed in 35 percent of patients who received HLA-matched transplants, and the estimated cumulative incidence of relapse at five years was 10 percent. The Kaplan-Meier estimate of survival at five years was 57 percent. Survival was adversely affected by an interval from diagnosis to transplantation of one year or more, an HLA-DRB1 mismatch, a high body-weight index, and an age of more than 50 years. Survival was improved by the prophylactic use of fluconazole and ganciclovir. The Kaplan-Meier estimate of survival at five years was 74 percent (95 percent confidence interval, 62 to 86 percent) for patients who were 50 years of age or younger who received a transplant from an HLA-matched donor within one year after diagnosis. CONCLUSIONS Transplantation of marrow from an HLA-matched, unrelated donor is safe and effective therapy for selected patients with chronic myeloid leukemia.
Condition Monitoring: A Decade of Proposed Techniques

Power conversion systems are dependent on the performance and reliability of static converters. However, they are subject to frequent functional and environmental strains, which can induce failures. The anticipation of these failures is difficult but important so the operation of a system can be halted before a breakdown occurs. In the case of photovoltaic (PV) power plants, the system can be simplified into two distinct blocks: the solar panels/modules and the power inverter. A breakdown in either of these blocks can cause significant downtime in the system. Nevertheless, multiple solar module failures can often be tolerated and not lead to a total breakdown of the entire array, whereas a single component failure in the inverter can lead to a collapse of the entire system. Furthermore, solar panel/module manufacturers often offer warranties of up to 20 years, while warranties for inverters rarely reach the ten-year mark [1]. As such, the overall cost of a PV inverter can increase by a factor of two or three if it undergoes one or two failures during the life of the system. Although the market competition between PV inverter manufacturers has traditionally focused on the efficiency of their product, a failure that induces a downtime of just a few days can easily negate the yield attained through a 1% efficiency improvement. Oversizing the inverter or introducing redundancy into the inverter system is one option to improve reliability; however, often, this is not economical.
TNFA Gene Promoter Polymorphisms and Susceptibility to Recurrent Pregnancy Loss in Italian Women

The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between serum tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) levels and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of the TNFA gene promoter (-376G/A, -308G/A, and -238G/A) in 100 Italian Caucasian women with reproductive failure and 100 fertile controls. Molecular analysis of TNFA SNPs showed higher frequencies of -238G allele (P = .028) as well as the presence of a 3-loci haplotype (-376G/-308A/-238G; P = .020) in fertile controls compared to women with reproductive failure. Serum TNF-α levels were higher in study women compared to controls ( P = .001). Of interest, the TNFA -376G/-308A/-238G haplotype was an independent predictor of low TNF-α levels (P = .021) and miscarriage (P = .023) in multivariate analyses. In conclusion, these findings support the concept of an association of TNFA polymorphisms and recurrent pregnancy loss (RPL). In particular, the TNFA -238GG variant and the TNFA -376G/-308A/-238G haplotype might represent protective factors, probably through reduced TNF-α production and/or mediated responses.
Inhibition of bovine kidney alpha-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase complex by reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide in the presence or absence of calcium ion and effect of adenosine 5'-diphosphate on reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide inhibition.

Micromolar Ca2+ markedly reduces NADH inhibition of bovine kidney alpha-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase complex [Lawlis, V. B. , & Roche, T. E. (1980) Mol. Cell. Biochem. 32, 147-152]. Product inhibition patterns from initial velocity studies conducted at less than 10(-9) M or at 1.5 X 10(-5) M Ca2+ with NAD+, CoA, or alpha-ketoglutarate as the variable substrate showed that NADH was a noncompetitive inhibitor with respect to each of these substrates, except at high NAD+ concentrations, where reciprocal plots were nonlinear and the inhibition pattern for NADH vs. NAD+ changed from a noncompetitive to a competitive pattern. From slope and intercept replots, 2-fold to 12-fold higher inhibition constants were estimated for inhibition by NADH vs. the various substrates in the presence of 1.5 X 10(-5) M Ca2+ than for inhibition at less than 10(-9) M Ca2+. These inhibition patterns and the lack of an effect of Ca2+ on the inhibition of the dihydrolipoyl dehydrogenase component suggested that Ca2+-modulated NADH inhibition occurs at an allosteric site with competitive binding at the site by high levels of NAD+. Decarboxylation of alpha-keto[1-14C]glutarate by the resolved alpha-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase component was investigated in the presence of 5.0 mM glyoxylate which served as an efficient acceptor. NADH (0.2 mM) or 1.0 mM ATP inhibited the partial reaction whereas 15 muM Ca2+, 1.0 mM ADP, or 10 mM NAD+ stimulated the partial reaction and reduced NADH inhibition of this reaction. Thus these effectors alter the activity of the alpha-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase complex by binding at allosteric sites on the alpha-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase component. Inhibition by NADH over a wide range of NADH/NAD+ ratios was measured under conditions in which the level of alpha-ketoglutarate was adjusted to give matching control activities at less than 10(-9) M Ca2+ or 1.5 X 10(-5) M Ca2+ in either the presence or the absence of 1.6 mM ADP. These studies establish that both Ca2+ and ADP decreased NADH inhibition under conditions compensating for the effects of Ca2+ and ADP on S0.5 for alpha-ketoglutarate. ADP was particularly effective in reducing NADH inhibition; further studies are required to determine whether this occurs through binding of NADH and ADP at the same, overlapping, or interacting sites.
Cloning of lipase cDNA from Oleaeuropaea cv. Gemlik leaves and expression analysis in response to cold stress

The cDNA encoding lipase enzyme was cloned from Olea europaea var. europaea cv. Gemlik leaves using the RACE method. The full nucleotide sequence was 1546 bp long and encoded a putative protein of 412 amino acid long protein. The amino acid sequence showed identity to Triacylglycerol Lipase 1 sequences from different plants. A phylogenetic tree was constructed showing relations with various plant lipases. Multiple sequence alignment analysis of the putative protein sequence revealed that the enzyme contains conserved GXSXG pentapeptide motif, and the catalytic triad was predicted as Ser-182, His-379, and Asp-350 with bioinformatics tools. Real-time PCR was used to determine relative expression levels of lipase in leaves in response to cold stress.
Síndrome cerebelar por vacuolización neuronal y degeneración espinocerebelar en Rottweiler: primer caso descrito en España

espanolEn este trabajo se presenta un caso clinico de sindrome cerebelar en un Rottweiler hembra joven. Este sindrome se caracteriza por ataxia cerebelar progresiva, y las lesiones encontradas son una vacuolizacion neuronal difusa y una degeneracion espinocerebelar, muy similares a las encontradas en las conocidas encefalopatias espongiformes tanto de los animales como del hombre. Este caso es el primero descrito en Espana y, hasta el momento, mundialmente solo se han descrito en ocho perros, siempre en referencia a la raza Rottweiler, formando todos ellos un nuevo sindrome nervioso en esta raza. No ha sido posible determinar la etiologia del mismo aunque se ha descartado su relacion con una encefalopatia espongiforme, lo que podria hacer revisar los diagnosticos diferenciales de estas encefalopatias. EnglishThis work shows a clinical case of cerebelar syndrome in a young Rottweiler female. A characteristic of this syndrome is a progressive cerebelar ataxia and the lesions found are a diffuse neuronal vacuolation and espinocerebelar degeneration, very similar to the lesions found in the spongiform encephalopathies in animals as well as in human beings. This case is the first one described in Spain. Up to now, it has only been described in 8 dogs worldwide and always referred to the Rottweiler breed. All of them add a new neurologyc syndrome in this breed. Unfortunately, it has not been possible to determine its ethiology. However, its relationship with a spongiform encephalopathy has been rejected, so the differential diagnosis of these encephalopathies could be reviewed.
Heat-induced apoptosis via caspase-3 activation in tumour cells carrying mutant p53

Apoptosis plays an important role in heat-induced cell death. However, the mechanism of heat-induced apoptosis has not yet been elucidated. In the present study, the signal transduction pathway underlying heat-induced apoptosis was investigated in heat-resistant HeLa cells carrying mutant p53 gene and heat sensitive HeLa cells that had been transduced with an antisense TNF gene. Induction of mutant p53, but not p21/WAF-1, was observed after heat treatment of both the resistant and sensitive cells. Heat-induced cytotoxicity was not inhibited in either cells with interleukin-1beta-converting enzyme (ICE: caspase-1) like protease inhibitor Ac-YVAD-CHO. In contrast, there was 48% and 63% inhibition of cytotoxicity in HeLa and transfectants, respectively, with a caspase-3 inhibitor (Ac-DEVD-CHO). Heat-induced apoptosis was also prevented by administration of Ac-DEVD-CHO in both cells. In addition, an augmentation of heat-induced cytotoxicity in transfectants was almost completely inhibited by Ac-DEVD-CHO. Further, caspase-3 mRNA expression was increased remarkably in heat-treated HeLa cells and transfectants. Taken together, these results suggest that activation of caspase-3 is involved in the signal transduction pathway of heat-induced apoptosis of the tumour cells carrying mutant p53.
Streptococcus suis Capsular Polysaccharide Inhibits Phagocytosis through Destabilization of Lipid Microdomains and Prevents Lactosylceramide-Dependent Recognition

ABSTRACT Streptococcus suis type 2 is a major swine pathogen and a zoonotic agent, causing meningitis in both swine and humans. S. suis infects the host through the respiratory route, reaches the bloodstream, and persists until breaching into the central nervous system. The capsular polysaccharide (CPS) of S. suis type 2 is considered a key virulence factor of the bacteria. Though CPS allows S. suis to adhere to the membrane of cells of the immune system, it provides protection against phagocytosis. In fact, nonencapsulated mutants are easily internalized and killed by macrophages and dendritic cells. The objective of this work was to study the molecular mechanisms by which the CPS of S. suis prevents phagocytosis. By using latex beads covalently linked with purified CPS, it was shown that CPS itself was sufficient to inhibit entry of both latex beads and bystander fluorescent beads into macrophages. Upon contact with macrophages, encapsulated S. suis was shown to destabilize lipid microdomains at the cell surface, to block nitric oxide (NO) production during infection, and to prevent lactosylceramide accumulation at the phagocytic cup during infection. In contrast, the nonencapsulated mutant was easily internalized via lipid rafts, in a filipin-sensitive manner, leading to lactosylceramide recruitment and strong NO production. This is the first report to identify a role for CPS in lipid microdomain stability and to recognize an interaction between S. suis and lactosylceramide in phagocytes.
NK cell triggering by the human costimulatory molecules CD80 and CD86.

NK cell-mediated effector functions are regulated by a delicate balance between positive and negative signals. Receptors transmitting negative signals upon engagement with target cell MHC class I molecules have been characterized in detail in recent years. In contrast, less information is available about receptor-ligand interactions involved in the transmission of positive or "triggering" signals to NK cells. Recently, it has been described that murine NK cells are triggered by the costimulatory molecules CD80, CD86, and CD40. Using NK cell lines derived from PBMC as effectors, we demonstrate that the human CD80 and CD86 gene products can function as triggering molecules for NK cell-mediated cytotoxicity. Expression of human CD80 or CD86 molecules in murine B16.F1 melanoma cells rendered these significantly more susceptible to lysis by human NK cell lines. Blocking of the transfected gene products with specific mAb reduced lysis levels to that of nontransfected control cell lines. Triggering of human NK cells by CD80 and CD86 appeared to be independent of CD28 and CTLA-4, at least as determined by the reagents used in the present study, because the expression of these molecules could not be detected on the NK cell lines by either flow cytometry or in redirected lysis assays. Thus, human NK cells may use receptors other than CD28 and CTLA-4 in their interactions with CD80 and CD86 molecules. Alternatively, interactions may involve variants of CD28 (and possibly CTLA-4) that are not recognized by certain anti-CD28 mAb.