Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Diagnostic moléculaire des infections à mycobactéries Molecular diagnosis of mycobacteria

71 La Lettre du Pneumologue Volume VI no 2 mars-avril 2003 L e genre Mycobacterium regroupe de nombreuses espèces impliquées en pathologie humaine, notamment Mycobacterium tuberculosis, agent de la tuberculose, et les mycobactéries dites atypiques comme Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare ou Mycobacterium xenopi, plus fréquemment rencontrées chez les immunodéprimés ou les patients présentant des bronchopathies chroniques. L’examen direct ne permet pas de réaliser un diagnostic différentiel entre les espèces de mycobactéries impliquées en pathologie humaine. L’identification de l’espèce et la réalisation de l’antibiogramme sont deux étapes longues et parfois complexes du diagnostic bactériologique d’une mycobactériose, compte tenu de la lenteur de croissance de la plupart des mycobactéries. Les mesures prophylactiques ainsi que le traitement à instaurer sont différents selon l’espèce impliquée, d’où l’intérêt de poser un diagnostic d’espèce rapide. De plus, l’apparition de souches de M. tuberculosis résistantes, voire multirésistantes, aux antituberculeux impose également la réalisation rapide d’un antibiogramme. Ces dernières années, l’évolution des techniques bactériologiques appliquées au diagnostic des infections à mycobactéries a permis de raccourcir notablement les délais d’obtention des résultats, en optimisant les milieux de culture utilisés, en automatisant la détection de la croissance mycobactérienne et, enfin, en utilisant des techniques de biologie moléculaire (1). En bactériologie, les infections à mycobactéries ont été parmi les premières à bénéficier d’un diagnostic moléculaire avec Chlamydia et Mycoplasma. En ce qui concerne la tuberculose, ces techniques ont été développées à la fois pour permettre la détection directe de M. tuberculosis dans les prélèvements mais aussi pour l’identification de l’espèce et l’étude de la sensibilité des mycobactéries aux antituberculeux. Dans cet article, nous allons nous attacher à décrire les méthodes de biologie moléculaire actuellement disponibles pour le diagnostic des infections à mycobactéries, ainsi que leur intérêt pour le diagnostic et la prise en charge de la tuberculose et des mycobactérioses. Diagnostic moléculaire des infections à mycobactéries Molecular diagnosis of mycobacteria
A genetically-informed population viability analysis reveals conservation priorities for an isolated population of Hyla arborea

Population Viability Analysis (PVA) is a commonly used tool to predict the fate of endangered populations. However, although amphibians are the most endangered group of vertebrates, PVAs have so far been underrepresented in their conservation management. In the last decades, the European tree frog (Hyla arborea) has experienced drastic declines mainly caused by habitat fragmentation and loss of suitable breeding sites. In the present study, we used the PVA software VORTEX to predict the viability of a H. arborea population, comprising about 70 adults and inhabiting an isolated pond in the region of Hannover (Germany), by combining life history data with genotypic information derived from eight polymorphic microsatellite markers. The PVA revealed a high probability of extinction over the next 50 years, with juvenile survival being a crucial demographic parameter for population persistence. Simulated immigration through metapopulation processes or population supplementation prevented genetic erosion, and markedly increased the probability of population survival. Future management interventions should consider pond management to enhance survival at early stages, and the creation of migration corridors to allow connectivity with adjacent demes and/or the translocation of individuals. To our knowledge, this is one of the first studies which applies a genetically-informed PVA to the management of endangered anuran amphibians.
Species Diversity, Distribution, and Conservation Status in a Mesoamerican Region

The Uxpanapa-Chimalapas region, with one of the most extensive and best preserved tropical forest areas in Mexico, is undergoing major anthropogenic changes, and only some portions of the territory are under the protection of local communities. Although the biodiversity of the region is known to be high, no study has yet analyzed the diversity of amphibian species in the region or contributed to valuing the region in a context of amphibian conservation. Based on a review of databases and the existing scientific literature, as well as our own fieldwork, in this study, we analyze the amphibian species richness, species composition, their spatial distribution, and their conservation status in the Uxpanapa-Chimalapas region. Additionally, we compare this information with the available data for seven other tropical regions in central-northern Mesoamerica. The amphibian fauna recorded at the study region comprises 51 species, which makes it the richest tropical region in amphibian species in central-northern Mesoamerica and Mexico. Among the regions compared, this one stands out as the one with the most distinctive composition of amphibian species, sharing on average only 35% of its species with the other regions. However, it is also the region with the highest number of threatened species since one third of its species are in higher extinction risk categories. These characteristics turn the Uxpanapa-Chimalapas into a high-priority region for both Mexico and Mesoamerica, and a regional conservation plan is necessary for the immediate protection of areas where the forest is being replaced and to promote or to support community protected areas.
Factors Contributing the Effectiveness in Public Relation Practices

To achieve a big success, an organization must emphasis on effectiveness in its practices especially in significant areas such as public relations. To maintain the relationship between an organization and its public, many factors must be recognized. This study explores what factors will contribute in the process of gaining effectiveness in public relations practices. To collect primary data, the researcher had disseminated 384 sets of questionnaires to 384 respondents in Kuala Terengganu and used SPSS version 20 to analyze the data. The finding shows that 4 factors (attitude, trust, skills, and control mutuality) are closely related to effectiveness in public relations practices. However, only attitude and skills affect effectiveness in public relations practices.
BASES GENÉTICAS DE LA OBESIDAD: NUTRIGENÉTICA, EPIGENÉTICA, METAGENOMA Y OBESIDAD

Overweight and obesity are defined as an excess or abnormal accumulation of fat, leading into a positive energetic balance that could be harmful for the human health. Its prevalence grows through an accelerated manner day by day worldwide, reaching an incidence of pandemic proportions. This extraordinary growing capacity could be explained due to the existence, in the last decades, of huge food availability, some of them high energetic and because of the decreasing level of exercise. Nevertheless, even though generally some obese indicators, as the corporal mass, have increased at most countries, some people seem to be more sensitive to these changes at their lifestyle, while some others are less sensible of having obesity even if their environment is unprepared for it. This could be explained because of genetic differences between human beings. Because of the impact that along the last years the studies that relate obesity to genetic factors, epigenetic mechanisms and intestinal microbiome have had, this project is focused into the selection of the studies that have revealed new knowledge in these areas. Main objective is to do a study of the recent developments about the obesity knowledge from a genetic point of view, having the main purpose of evaluating the environmental, genetic variations, epigenist and intestinal microbiome factors that have influence on the enhancement of the obese pathogen. A bibliographic revision has been established, evaluating the physiopathology, genetic bases, and genetic classification of the obesity as an initial point.
Lamin AC mutations and heart: Nuclear envelope damage or disruption of transcription?

Mutations in the LMNA gene, which encodes the nuclear lamin A/C protein, are implicated in the pathogenesis of over ten phenotypically diverse diseases, including dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). Two hypotheses have been proposed to explain the tissue specificity of LMNA mutations: 1) Nuclear fragility which may affect to a greater extent mechanically stressed tissues such as cardiac muscle (structural hypothesis); and 2) dysregulation of gene transcription. The objective of this study was to determine which hypothesis explains how LMNA mutations cause DCM. In our cohort of 25 DCM patients, 34% displayed cardiomyocytes with nuclear abnormalities, however, point mutations or large deletions of the lamin A/C gene were found in both patients with or without nuclear envelope damage. Moreover, some DCM patients with nuclear damage were free of lamin A/C gene somatic mutation. These results provide support for the structural hypothesis, but do not exclude the hypothesis of dysregulation of gene transcription. To test the latter hypothesis, we used cellular models expressing lamin A/C mutant proteins. We showed that, although the distributions of some proteins known to be involved in transcription regulation, such as SUMOl or Ubc9 are disturbed, lamin A/C mutants have no significant effect on transcriptional activity of GATA-4 and MEF2C, two sumoylated transcription factors involved in cardiac gene transcription. In conclusion, we confirmed that structural hypothesis plays a role in DCM pathogenesis, however at this point, the gene-regulation hypothesis can not be excluded. We showed for the first time that a large deletion encompassing several exons of the LMNA gene and leading to a marked reduction of lamin A/C proteins in cardiac tissue, and thus to haploinsufficiency, is a new molecular mechanism associated with dilated cardiomyopathy.
Effects of shading, nutrient application and warming on leaf growth and shoot densities of dwarf shrubs in two arctic-alpine plant communities

Abstract:Responses in shoot growth and activation of new meristems of dominant dwarf shrubs were measured after six years of shading or temperature enhancement with and without NPK fertilizer addition to a heath and a fellfield 450 m above sea level and 1150 m above sea level, respectively, in northern Sweden. Amongst the treatments shading generally had the greatest effects on the growth of individual shoots. It decreased the specific leaf weight of all species, but did not affect the activation of new meristems. Fertilizer addition stimulated both the growth of individual shoots and meristem activation at the fellfield, but stimulated only activation of new meristems at the heath, which led to increased leaf area index and leaf biomass per ground area. Temperature enhancement at the fellfield generally increased shoot growth and meristem activation and explained more of the total experimental variance than the fertilizer addition. At the heath, shoot growth was largely unaffected by temperature changes,.
Self-Adaptation in Bacterial Foraging Optimization Algorithm

Bacterial Foraging Optimization (BFO) is a recently developed nature-inspired optimization algorithm, which is based on the foraging behavior of E. coli bacteria. However, BFO possesses a poor convergence behavior over complex optimization problems as compared to other nature-inspired optimization techniques like Genetic Algorithm (GA) and Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO). This paper first analyzes how the run-length unit parameter controls the exploration and exploitation ability of BFO, and then presents a variation on the original BFO algorithm, called the Self-adaptive Bacterial Foraging Optimization (SA-BFO), employing the adaptive search strategy to significantly improve the performance of the original algorithm. This is achieved by enabling SA-BFO to adjust the run-length unit parameter dynamically during evolution to balance the exploration/exploitation tradeoff. Application of SA-BFO on several benchmark functions shows a marked improvement in performance over the original BFO.
International Subarachnoid Aneurysm Trial (ISAT) of neurosurgical clipping versus endovascular coiling in 2 143 patients with ruptured intracranial aneu-rysms: a randomised trial

背景:作为某些破裂脑动脉瘤手术开颅夹闭治疗的替代手段,血管内可脱性弹簧圈治疗的应用日益广泛,但这两种方法的相对益处至今仍未阐明. 我们对同时适合进行这2种治疗的破裂脑动脉瘤患者进行了一项多中心随机试验,对血管内弹簧圈栓塞治疗的安全性和疗效与常规神经外科夹闭进行了比较. 方法:我们对2 143例破裂脑动脉瘤患者随机分配进行神经外科夹闭(n=1 070)或血管内弹簧圈栓塞治疗(n=1 073). 在治疗后2个月和1年时根据患者的再出血和死亡情况对临床转归进行评估. 主要转归指标以治疗后1年时改良Rankin评分为3～6分(生活不能自理或死亡)的患者比例为依据. 当试验筹划指导委员会经过有计划的分析后可终止试验. 分析是根据有效样本进行的. 结果:在血管内治疗组中,23.7%(190/801)的患者治疗后1年时生活不能自理或死亡,而外科手术组为30. 6%(243/793,P=0.001 9). 血管内治疗组生活不能自理或死亡的相对和绝对危险性分别比外科手术组下降了22. 6%(95%CI,8.9%～34.2%)和6. 9%(95%CI,2.5%～11.3%). 治疗后1年,破裂动脉瘤再出血的危险性在血管内治疗组和外科手术组分别为2/1 276和0/1 081. 解释:对于同时适合进行血管内弹簧圈栓塞治疗和神经外科夹闭治疗的破裂脑动脉瘤患者,根据治疗后1年时的无残疾存活来判断临床转归,血管内治疗组显著优于外科手术组. 现有数据表明,采用2种方法治疗后的远期再出血危险性都很低,尽管血管内治疗组略高.
Comparative effects of exogenous fatty acid supplementations on the lipids from the cyanobacterium Spirulina platensis

The accumulation of γ-linolenic acid (γ-C18:3) in membrane lipids of Spirulina platensis PCC 8005 was studied in cultures supplemented with large amounts of linoleic acid (C18:2), the immediate precursor of γ-C18:3. Analyses of lipid and fatty acid compositions showed that the percentages of C18:2 and γ-C18:3 were largely affected in all lipid classes, specially in monogalactosyldiacylglycerol (MGDG), the major galactolipid and digalactosyldiacylglycerol (DGDG). The distribution of fatty acids at positions 1 and 2 of the glycerol moiety of MGDG was modified. In sharp contrast with the classical structure of cyanobacterial lipids, C18:2 and γ-C18:3 were found esterified on both carbons 1 and 2 of the glycerol
The Agent/Affectee ambiguity and beyond

This paper investigates sentences whose subject can be interpreted either as an Agent or an Affectee in Japanese and English. It argues that a purely semantic approach (Amano 1995) and a causation-based approach (Kageyama 1996) cannot be maintained as they stand, and shows that a syntactic factor must be involved in determining the distribution of Affectees. Specifically, it proposes a Case-theoretic approach in conjunction with minimal assumptions about the argument structure of verbs. Evidence in favor of this approach comes from languages in which an Agent and an Affectee can co-occur.
The Association between mrna Expression Levels of Ephx1 and Prognosis of Acute Myeloid Leukemia

The human epoxide hydrolase 1 (EPHX1) is a metabolism gene, which is responsible for the first phase of the xenobiotic metabolism. The product, microsomal epoxide hydrolase (mHE), plays an important role in the detoxification of carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Many reports also have studied the correlation between EPHX1 gene polymorphisms and development and generation of cancers. However, few of studies on EPHX1 participating in chemotherapeutics metabolism were reported. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the prognostic significance of the EPHX1gene expression in acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Using real timeâquantitative polymerase chain reaction (RTâqPCR), mRNA expression levels of EPHX1gene was measured in bone marrow samples of newly diagnosed AML patients (n=46) and control group (n=12) without tumors. The levels expression of EPHX1 had a significant association with the treatment response and prognosis of AML patients. Additionally, the EPHX1 expression levels can aid for an improved understanding of the multidrug resistant mechanism in AML.
The Relationship between Dominance and Vocal Communication in the Male Ring-tailed Lemur (Lemur catta)

Sex-specific calls are used in male-male agonistic encounters and male-female courtship in many animal species. The ring-tailed lemur (Lemur catta) is a gregarious Malagasy strepsirhine with twenty-two distinct vocalizations for adults, including two male-specific vocalizations and an additional vocalization with male-specific functions: the howl, the squeal, and the purr. Proposed intra-sexual agonistic functions for these three vocalizations have never been empirically tested. This study’s purpose was to investigate the functions of howling, squealing, and purring in the ring-tailed lemur, and to assess the relationships between the rates of these vocalizations and male dominance. From March to July 2010, I collected 600 hours of total data and 480 hours of focal data on male ring-tailed lemurs aged three and older at Beza Mahafaly Special Reserve, Madagascar. I observed each male continuously for 30 minutes at a time and noted behaviours including all vocalizations and all agonism using one–zero sampling at 2.5-min intervals. I calculated male dominance rank and vocalization rates from these data. My results indicated that male dominance rank is correlated with male purring rate and with squealing rate, but not with howling rate. Male purring rate increased during intra-sexual agonism and was associated with aggression in agonistic encounters. Squealing rate increased during male-male agonism and indicated both aggression and submission in male-male encounters. Howling rate increased
DNA fragmentation in blue mussel (Mytilus edulis) sperm: aquaculture and fisheries implications

The objective of this study was to assess sperm DNA longevity in blue mussels (Mytilus edulis) using a dynamic assessment of sperm DNA fragmentation (SDF) after sperm activation. Mature blue mussels (n = 57) in Vigo (Galicia, Spain) were obtained, specifically rope farmed blue mussels (n = 38) and wild blue mussels (n = 19). After the sperm collection, a subsample was assessed for SDF (0 h), while the rest of the sample was incubated for 6, 9, 12, 24 and 48 h at 15°C, assessing each time point using the Sperm-Halomax kit (Halotech DNA, Madrid, Spain). The Kaplan–Meier estimator, log-rank (Mantel–Cox) test and Mann–Whitney U-test were used for statistical analyses (spss v. 16.0), α = 0.05. The rate of SDF (r-SDF) between rope farmed and wild blue mussels over 0–6 h incubation was not significantly different (P = 0.278), but was for 6–24 h (P = 0.004). Differences in r-SDF were observed when comparing the means between the two groups (P < 0.0001). Individual differences in r-SDF existed among the rope farmed (P < 0.0001) and wild blue mussels (P < 0.0001). Wild blue mussels presented a higher DNA longevity than the farmed blue mussels. Selection of blue mussel males with a low level of sperm DNA damage and greater sperm DNA longevity may result in better fertilization and seed production.
Increased D-Values for Salmonella enteritidis Following Heat Shock.

Early stationary-phase cells of Salmonella enteritidis (ATCC 4931) were heat shocked at 42°C for 60 min. Following heat shock, the cells were transferred to casein soymeal peptone-yeast extract broth medium and experiments were conducted to generate survivor curves and D-values. Survivors were enumerated after heat shock under both aerobic and strict anaerobic conditions. Control cells were not stressed. Heat-shocked cells had significantly (P < 0.05) higher D-values than unstressed cells at 52, 54, and 56°C, but not at 58°C. Anaerobic enumeration further increased D-values, but not always to a significant extent. Heat shock resulted in the overexpression of seven proteins, detected by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. This study suggests that (i) short-term temperature abuse of foods containing S. enteritidis may render these cells more resistant to subsequent heat treatments; (ii) anaerobic microenvironments may enhance survival of heat-stressed S. enteritidis ; and (iii) heat shock results in the overexpression of proteins that may be related to increased thermotolerance.
Role of Polyamines in Plant Abiotic Stress Responses

ABA Abscisic acid ABF ABRE-binding factor ABRE ABA-responsive elements ACC Oxidase 1-amino-cyclopropane-1-carboxylicacid oxidase ACC Synthase 1-amino-cyclopropane-1-carboxylicacid synthase ADC Arginine decarboxylase AdoMet S-adenosyl-l-methionine AdoMetDC AdoMet decarboxylase AIH Agmatine iminohydrolase COR Cold responsive CPA N-carbamoylputrescine amidohydrolase CuAO Copper-containing amine oxidases DAO Diamine oxidases DAP Diaminopropane DcAdoMet Decarboxylated S-adenosyl-l-methionine DHH Deoxyhypusine hydroxylase DHS Deoxyhypusine synthase DRE Dehydration-responsive element GABA γ-Aminobutyric acid H2O2 Hydrogen peroxide LAT l-Type amino acid transporter CONTENTS
The Impact of Stock Prices on Consumption and Interest Rate in Turkey: Evidence from a Time Varying Vector Autoregressive Model

This paper aims to examine the spillovers from stock prices onto consumption and interest rate for Turkey by using a time-varying vector autoregressive model with stochastic volatility. A three-variable time-varying vector autoregressive model is estimated to capture the time-varying nature of the macroeconomic dynamics in the Turkish economy between real consumption, nominal interest rate and real stock prices. In order to obtain the macroeconomic dynamics in a small open economy, the data covers the period 1987:Q1 until 2013:Q3 in Turkey. The sample data is gathered from the official website of Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey. Overall, this study provides the evidence of significant time-varying spillovers on consumption and interest rate coming from the stock market during financial crises and implications of monetary policy in Turkey. In addition, a timevarying vector autoregressive model with stochastic volatility offers remarkable results about the impact of price shock on consumption levels in Turkey.
Genetic structure of the fire salamander Salamandra salamandra in the Polish Sudetes

We analysed genetic variation within and differentiation between nineteen populations of the fire salamander Salamandra salamandra inhabiting the north-eastern margin of the species range in the Sudetes Mountains (south-western Poland). The results were compared with those obtained recently for the Polish part of the Carpathians. Variation of 10 nuclear microsatellite loci was analysed in 744 individuals to estimate genetic structure, gene flow, isolation and to test for a geographic gradient of genetic variation. Mitochondrial DNA control region (D-loop) of 252 specimens from all localities was used to identify the origin of populations currently inhabiting its north-eastern range. We found little genetic differentiation among populations in the Sudetes indicating substantial recent or ongoing gene flow. The exceptions were one isolated peripheral population located outside the continuous distribution range which displayed extremely reduced genetic variation probably due to a combination of long term isolation and low population size, and one population located at the eastern margin of the Polish Sudetes. Populations inhabiting the Sudetes and the Carpathians formed two separate clusters based on microsatellite loci. In accordance with available phylogeographic information, single mitochondrial haplotype (type IIb) fixed in all populations indicates their origin from a single refugium and may suggest colonization from the Balkan Peninsula. The analysis of geographic gradient in variation showed its decline in the westerly direction suggesting colonization of Poland from the east, however, alternative scenarios of postglacial colonization could not be rejected with the available data.