Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The anti-bone-resorptive agent calcitonin also acts in vitro to directly increase bone formation and bone cell proliferation.

The studies summarized in this report were intended to determine whether salmon calcitonin had direct effects on bone formation indices in vitro. The results of these investigations demonstrate acute effects of calcitonin on skeletal tissues derived from embryonic chickens to increase calvarial cell proliferation ([3H]thymidine incorporation into DNA) and bone matrix synthesis ([3H]proline incorporation into collagen, as [3H]hydroxyproline) in intact calvaria and tibiae. The effects of calcitonin on [3H]thymidine incorporation were significant at 1 mU/ml (0.08 nM; P less than 0.05), additive with respect to the action(s) of F (calcitonin increased the maximum effect of F, and F increased the effect of low dose calcitonin; P less than 0.01 for each), associated with an increase in total cell protein (r = 0.82; P less than 0.02), and inversely dependent on osteoblastic differentiation (r = -0.96; P less than 0.005). The effects of calcitonin to increase bone matrix synthesis ([3H]hydroxyproline incorporation, 139% and 155% of untreated control values for tibiae and calvaria, respectively; P less than 0.005 for each) were maximal at approximately 5 mU/ml (0.4 nM) and associated with a proportional increase in alkaline phosphatase activity in the bones (r = 0.71; P less than 0.05 for tibiae). These effects of calcitonin were not dependent on continuous exposure. [3H]Thymidine incorporation was increased in calvarial cells 16 h after a 4-h limited (inductive) exposure to calcitonin (at 3 mU/ml; P less than 0.01). [3H]Proline incorporation in embryonic chicken calvaria was also increased during 3 days of limited exposure (i.e. 4 h/day) to 10 mU/ml calcitonin (P less than 0.02). The proliferative action(s) of calcitonin was not unique to chicken osteoblastline cells. Salmon calcitonin also increased [3H]thymidine incorporation in the transformed murine calvarial cell lines MMB and MC-3T3-E1 and in primary cultures of cells prepared from newborn mouse calvaria (P less than 0.05 for each). Furthermore, these effects were observed at calcitonin doses (3-30 mU/ml) that also decreased murine bone resorption (i.e. 45Ca release from prelabeled neonatal mouse calvaria; P less than 0.01).
Understanding HSV‐1 entry glycoproteins

Herpes Simplex Virus‐1 is a common infectious agent, but the precise detail of entry and infection of cells has only now begun to be clarified. Four viral surface glycoproteins (gB, gD, gH and gL) are required. This review summarises the known structure and function of each of these essential viral envelope glycoproteins, and explores what is known about their close cooperation with each other in mediating cellular membrane fusion. It is suggested that, following gD binding to one of its entry receptors, membrane fusion is mediated by gB and the heterodimer gH/gL. Significantly, these four entry glycoproteins also play a key role in the interaction between HSV and the host immune system. The glycoproteins serve an important role as targets of adaptive immunity. However, recent studies have demonstrated that the same proteins also play a key role in initiating the early innate immune response to HSV. Understanding the complex functions of these HSV proteins may be essential for successful development of vaccines for HSV. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Increased Malonyl-CoA Levels in Muscle From Obese and Type 2 Diabetic Subjects Lead to Decreased Fatty Acid Oxidation and Increased Lipogenesis; Thiazolidinedione Treatment Reverses These Defects

Increased accumulation of fatty acids and their derivatives can impair insulin-stimulated glucose disposal by skeletal muscle. To characterize the nature of the defects in lipid metabolism and to evaluate the effects of thiazolidinedione treatment, we analyzed the levels of triacylglycerol, long-chain fatty acyl-coA, malonyl-CoA, fatty acid oxidation, AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC), malonyl-CoA decarboxylase, and fatty acid transport proteins in muscle biopsies from nondiabetic lean, obese, and type 2 subjects before and after an euglycemic-hyperinsulinemic clamp as well as pre–and post–3-month rosiglitazone treatment. We observed that low AMPK and high ACC activities resulted in elevation of malonyl-CoA levels and lower fatty acid oxidation rates. These conditions, along with the basal higher expression levels of fatty acid transporters, led accumulation of long-chain fatty acyl-coA and triacylglycerol in insulin-resistant muscle. During the insulin infusion, muscle fatty acid oxidation was reduced to a greater extent in the lean compared with the insulin-resistant subjects. In contrast, isolated muscle mitochondria from the type 2 subjects exhibited a greater rate of fatty acid oxidation compared with the lean group. All of these abnormalities in the type 2 diabetic group were reversed by rosiglitazone treatment. In conclusion, these studies have shown that elevated malonyl-CoA levels and decreased fatty acid oxidation are key abnormalities in insulin-resistant muscle, and, in type 2 diabetic patients, thiazolidinedione treatment can reverse these abnormalities.
Characterization of the expression of MHC proteins in human embryonic stem cells

Human embryonic stem (ES) cells are pluripotent cells that may be used in transplantation medicine. These cells can be induced to differentiate into cells from the three embryonic germ layers both in vivo and in vitro. To determine whether human ES cells might be rejected after transplantation, we examined cell surface expression of the MHC proteins in these cells. Our results show very low expression levels of MHC class I (MHC-I) proteins on the surface of human ES cells that moderately increase on in vitro or in vivo differentiation. A dramatic induction of MHC-I proteins was observed when the cells were treated with IFN-γ but not with IFN-α or -β. However, all three IFNs induced expression of MHC-I proteins in differentiated human ES cells. MHC-II proteins and HLA-G were not expressed on the surface of undifferentiated or differentiated cells. Ligands for natural killer cell receptors were either absent or expressed in very low levels in human ES cells and in their differentiated derivatives. In accordance, natural killer cytotoxic assays demonstrated only limited lysis of both undifferentiated and differentiated cells. To initiate a histocompatibility databank of human ES cells, we have isotyped several of the published ES cell lines for their human leukocyte antigens. In conclusion, our results demonstrate that human ES cells can express high levels of MHC-I proteins and thus may be rejected on transplantation.
(De-)Constructing coherence? Strategic entrepreneurs, policy frames and the integration of climate and energy policies in the European Union

This paper looks at the way policy entrepreneurs construct horizontal coherence through problem definition and the promotion of policy frames that bond different objectives and instruments together. Building on the case of the 2009 climate and energy package, the paper analyses how the European Commission and successive European Union Presidencies exploited a growing climate change momentum to devise, assemble and facilitate the adoption in an exceptionally short period of an ambitious legislative package cutting across traditional sectoral boundaries. The recourse to a narrative presenting Europe at the vanguard of a green revolution and the framing of European internal policies as a tool for international climate leadership were instrumental in constructing the package as a coherent response to the joint energy and climate change challenges, and in rallying wide support. However, the paper shows that the institutionalization of this framing has been undermined by the economic crisis and stalled international negotiations.
Legitimisation strategies and managerial capture: a critical discourse analysis of employment relations in Nigeria

Abstract Irrespective of the fundamental role of legitimacy in industrial relations as well as social and organisational life, little is known of the subtle meaning-making strategies through which organisational concepts, such as employment relations and engagement, are legitimised in modern world of work, particularly in developing countries such as Nigeria, which results in managerial capture. As a result, this paper explores the discursive legitimisation strategies used when making sense of employment relations in Nigeria’s conflictual, non-participatory employment relations terrain. Relying on Leeuwen’s legitimisation strategies, critical discourse analysis (CDA) and call by Bailey, Luck & Townsend and Legge to widen employment relations discourse, we explore interview, focus group and shadow report data, and distinguish and analyse five legitimisation strategies. The strategies include authorisation, moralisation, mythopoesis, rationalisation, and management. Therefore, we contend that while these specific legitimisation strategies appear in separate data source, their recurrent manifestation and application underscores legitimising discourse of managerial capture in Nigeria’s employment relations.
A Novel Multi-Bit Decision Adaptive Cooperative Spectrum Sensing Algorithm Based on Trust Valuations in Cognitive OFDM System

Cognitive radio has outstanding advantages in solving scarcity of spectrum resource and low utilization rate of spectrum in current wireless communication. Spectrum sensing method in multi-bit decision model can effectively improve the detection performance when comparing with the conventional 1bit decision model. Aiming at the actual scenarios that there may exist malicious users in the network, this paper proposes a multibit decision adaptive cooperative spectrum sensing algorithm based on trust valuations. In this algorithm, each cognitive user firstly makes local decision, and then the fusion center proceeds weighted fusion and makes the final decision. Moreover, the increment of each cognitive user's trust valuation is obtained according to the difference between its local decision and all cognitive nodes' weighted average decision results, and then to update each cognitive user's trust valuation. Furthermore, the weighted coefficient for the next detection using each cognitive user's trust valuation is obtained. The simulation results show that the system performance of detection probability, the system false dismissal probability and the system error probability can be improved. And the proposed algorithm can effectively improve the detection performance when there existing individual malicious users, especially to the system false alarm probability is constant. Keywords—cognitive radio; cooperative spectrum sensing; trust valuations; multi-bit decision; OFDM
The Transcriptional Co-activators CREB-binding Protein (CBP) and p300 Play a Critical Role in Cardiac Hypertrophy That Is Dependent on Their Histone Acetyltransferase Activity*

The CBP and p300 proteins are transcriptional co-activators that are involved in a variety of transcriptional pathways in development and in response to specific signaling pathways. We have previously demonstrated that the ability of both these factors to stimulate transcription is greatly enhanced by treatment of cardiac cells with the hypertrophic agent phenylephrine (PE). Here, we show that inhibition of either CBP or p300 with antisense or dominant negative mutant constructs inhibits PE-induced hypertrophy as assayed by atrial naturetic protein production, cardiac cell protein:DNA ratio and cell size. Furthermore, we show that overexpression of CBP or p300 can induce hypertrophy and that this effect requires their histone acetyltransferase (HAT) activity. Moreover, we show that PE can directly enhance CBP HAT activity and that artificial enhancement of HAT activity is sufficient to induce hypertrophy. Hence, CBP and p300 play an essential role in hypertrophy induced by PE, and this effect is mediated via PE-induced enhancement of their HAT activity. This is the first time a role for these factors, and their HAT activity, in hypertrophy has been directly demonstrated.
Formic Acid Treatment for Control of Varroa destructor (Mesostigmata: Varroidae) and Safety to Apis mellifera (Hymenoptera: Apidae) Under Southern United States Conditions

Abstract The efficacy of a formic acid pad formulation was field tested for control of the honey bee parasitic mite Varroa destructor Anderson & Trueman in Florida and Texas. This pad formulation gave 39.8 ± 11.1% control at the end of a 6-wk treatment period, which did not significantly differ from the initial sample date. Coumaphos treatment provided poor control (38.4 ± 11.1%) over the 6-wk period, confirming reports of coumaphos resistance in the region. Under relatively warm winter conditions in southern Texas, formic acid caused mortality of developing eggs and brood. If resistance by V. destructor to the two acaricides registered for its control in the United States continues, the formic acid pad could provide an alternative compound to use as part of an integrated pest management approach. Given the low control seen in this trial, however, modifications of application technology would seem necessary.
Optimal stochastic model for maximizing delivered messages in opportunistic networks

Opportunistic networks (ON) allow for routing in networks where contemporaneous end-to-end path are unstable. Due to uneven and fluctuant node density, both links and nodes in our uncertain environment may be inherently unreliable and disconnections may be long-lived. A critical challenge for ONs is determining routes through the network without ever having an end-to-end connection. Owing to these conditions, the optimized route has a significant role in the number of delivered messages, when the connection and meeting nodes are undefined. The main contribution of our paper is optimization routing models (multistage stochastic model) involving uncertain parameters, for which stochastic model are available. To our best knowledge, this is the first time that the problem is addressed. Upper bound on the network performance used in comparing with previous models is also obtained.
Immunohistochemical evaluation of O6‐methylguanine DNA methyltransferase (MGMT) expression in 117 cases of glioblastoma

Temozolomide (TMZ) is an oral alkylating agent which is widely used in the treatment of glioblastoma (GBM) and is composed of astrocytic and/or oligodendroglial tumors, and the evaluation of O6‐methylguanine DNA methyltransferase (MGMT) expression is important to predict the response to TMZ therapy. In this study, we conducted immunohistochemical analysis of 117 cases of Japanese GBM including 19 cases of GBM with oligodendroglioma component (GBMO), using a scoring system for quantitative evaluation of staining intensity and proportion of MGMT, and performed survival analysis of these patients. Immunohistochemically, 55 cases (47%) were positive for MGMT with various intensities and proportions (total score (TS) ≥ 2), while 62 cases (53%) were negative (TS = 0). The distribution of MGMT expression pattern was not affected by any clinicopathological parameters such as the histological subtype (GBM vs. GBMO), age and gender. The survival analysis of these patients revealed that the minimal expression of MGMT (TS ≥ 2) was a significant unfavorable prognostic factor (P < 0.001) as well as resectability (P = 0.004). Moreover, multivariate analysis showed that minimal MGMT expression in GBM was the most potent independent predictor for progression free survival (P < 0.001) and also overall patient survival (P < 0.001). This is the first report employing the scoring system for both staining intensity and proportion to evaluate immunohistochemical MGMT expression in GBM. In addition, our results emphases the clinicopathological values of the immunohistochemical approach for MGMT expression in glioma patients as a routine laboratory examination.
When and how should patients with multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 be screened for thymic and bronchial carcinoid tumours?

Patients with multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 (MEN1) are commonly evaluated for clinical manifestations of this syndrome with the rationale that early diagnosis and adequate treatment will result in improved survival and quality of life. Thymic and bronchial carcinoid tumours are uncommon but important manifestations of MEN1. Current practice guidelines recommend evaluation with computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging scan of the chest every 1–2 years to detect these neoplasms. However, the certainty that patients will be better off (increased survival or quality of life) as a result of this case detection strategy is based on evidence at moderate–high risk of bias that yields only imprecise results of indirect relevance to these patients. In order to improve the care that patients with MEN1 receive, co‐ordinated efforts from different stakeholders are required so that large, prospective, multicentre studies evaluating patient important outcomes are carried out.
Toxicity evaluation of root canal sealers in vitro.

AIM To compare the toxicity of methacrylate resin-based root canal sealers with sealers based on epoxy resin and silicone by two-well established cell culture methods. METHODOLOGY Specimens of AH Plus, EndoREZ, RoekoSeal and Epiphany were prepared for direct contact in the Millipore filter diffusion test and as extracts in the MTT assay. Mouse fibroblasts (L929) were used as toxicity targets. Differences in cytotoxicity between fresh and set specimens and between the extracts of root canal sealers were determined by t-test (P < 0.05). RESULTS In the filter diffusion test, freshly mixed Epiphany and AH Plus were rated severely toxic and RoekoSeal and EndoREZ nontoxic. When set, Epiphany was moderately toxic, whereas AH Plus, RoekoSeal and EndoREZ were nontoxic. Epiphany was significantly more toxic than RoekoSeal and EndoREZ (P < 0.05). In the MTT assay with set specimens, Epiphany was rated severely toxic; AH Plus and RoekoSeal slightly toxic; and EndoREZ nontoxic. Epiphany was significantly more toxic than the other three materials in this test (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION The multi-methacrylate resin-based (Epiphany) root canal sealer was significantly more toxic to L-929 cells than the silicone-based Roeko Seal and the single methacrylate-based EndoREZ root canal sealers. AH Plus showed intermediate toxicity.
Long-term supplementation with selenate and selenomethionine: Selenium and glutathione peroxidase (EC 1.11.1.9) in blood components of New Zealand women

Thirty-three New Zealand women aged 18–23 years received daily for 32 weeks, 200 μg Se as Seenriched yeast (selenomethionine), or brewer's yeast mixed with selenate, or no added Se (placebo) in a double-blind trial. Se supplementation raised (P = 0.001), platelet glutathione peroxidase (EC 1.11.1.9; GSHPx) activity, and also Se and GSHPx in whole blood, erythrocytes and plasma. Selenomethionine was more effective in raising blood Se concentrations than selenate, but both were equally effective in raising GSHPx activities in whole blood, erythrocytes and plasma, indicating a similar bioavailability for the two forms. These observations and those of gel filtration studies of erythrocytes and plasma proteins reported elsewhere (Butler et al. 1991) are consistent with the incorporation of Se from selenomethionine into a general tissue protein pool while selenate is directly available for GSHPx synthesis, and explain the poorer correlation between Se and GSHPx in individuals with higher Se status. However, selenate raised platelet GSHPx activities to a greater extent than did selenomethionine suggesting some other effect of selenate on platelets which needs further investigation. A response of GSHPx activity in these New Zealand subjects indicates that their dietary Se intake is insufficient to meet recommended intakes based on the criterion of saturation of GSHPx activity, and could reflect a marginal Se status. The level of blood Se necessary for saturation of GSHPx of about 100 ng Se/ml whole blood confirms observations in earlier studies.
Incorporation of Bone Marrow-derived Flk-1-expressing CD34+ Cells in the Endothelium of Tumor Vessels in the Mouse Brain

OBJECTIVE:Neoangiogenesis is a prerequisite for the full phenotypic expression and growth of a malignant tumor mass. It is believed to be triggered by tissue hypoxia and involves proliferation and sprouting of the preexisting vessels and the recruitment of endothelial progenitor cells from bone marrow. METHODS:A chimeric mouse model was used to examine the contribution of these progenitor cells to the neovasculature of brain tumor. T-cell knockout (RAG/KO5.2) mice were irradiated lethally, and their bone marrow was repopulated with T-cell depleted green fluorescent protein (GFP)-expressing bone marrow cells. RAG/RT-2 glioma cells were implanted into the striatum of the animals. Neovascular formation at various times of tumor growth was monitored together with the extent of incorporation of GFP+ bone marrow-derived cells within the vascular tree, in particular, cells carrying the endothelial progenitor markers CD34 and Flk-1. RESULTS:The recruitment of GFP+ cells to the growing tumor and their incorporation into the vascular network occurred during the period of increasing vascular density and preceded the expansion of the tumor. The number of marrow-derived cells with endothelial morphology and phenotype was small but significant (4% of all endothelial cells at Day 12); 54% of all tumor vessels contained at least one GFP+ cell. CONCLUSION:Our results suggest that bone marrow cells are recruited to newly formed and remodeled tumor vessels. Their recruitment may occur in response to signals from a highly proliferating milieu, and their role is to support the neovascular complex and to promote tumor growth.
Low power integrated potentiostat design for &#x03BC;electrodes with improved accuracy

μelectrodes measuring smaller than 10 µm in size are seen as necessary for improving spatial resolution for detecting bio-activities at the cellular level. Improving measurement accuracy for μelectrodes is important due to their reduced signal magnitudes. Low power design of biosensor circuits with low bias current levels causes large random device mismatches in the potentiostat op amps, which must be calibrated out using offset correction. In addition, μelectrodes are prone to fowling due to their size. Conventional offset cancellation techniques using switched capacitor circuits can reduce the life time of μelectrodes. This paper presents an on-chip potentiostat design with a built-in offset correction circuit that is not detrimental to the life time of μelectrodes. The offset correction technique presented in this paper uses feedback amplifiers that are connected to the body terminals of the relevant PMOS devices in the potentiostat op amp to reduce the offset voltage. The full potentiostat design was implemented in the TSMC 0. 18µm process. Simulation results showed an improvement of offset voltage from ±26mV to ±1mV.