Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Toxicity Investigation of the Botanical Insecticides on the Common Pistachio Psyllid, Agonoscena pistaciae Burckhardt and Lauterer (Hemiptera: Psyllidae)

The common pistachio psyllid, Agonoscena pistaciae, is the key pest of pistachio trees in Iran. Both nymphs and adults suck sap from leaves and reduce plant vigor and yield, increase the number of blank, half growth kernel and unsplit nuts and also cause defoliation and buds drop. Detrimental effects of chemical synthetic insecticides and the resistance of common psyllid pistachio to them and the effect of three botanical insecticides, Sirinol (garlic extract), Tondexir (pepper extract) and Palizin (eucalyptus extract), were investigated as a randomized complete block design experiments in field conditions. The sampling was done 2, 7, 14, 21 and 28 days after treatment. The results showed that the highest mortality in Palizin treatment occurred after 2 and 7 days. The sampling of 14, 21 and 28 days post-treatment were showed the highest and lowest mortality in Sirinol and Tondexir treatments, respectively. Generally, there were no significant differences between Sirinol and Palizin 28 days post-treatment, but these compounds showed significant differences with Tondexir. As a result, these botanical insecticides are suitable in integrated pest management of common pistachio psyllid.
Commentary: The value of complexity

This case is complex.1 For undergraduate learning “complex and elaborate examples are likely to be suboptimal as effective teaching tools,”2 but is the same true for postgraduate learners? What do we learn in the midst of complexity? Initially we are caught up in the urgency of lifesaving measures as the desperately ill patient fails to respond to primary interventions, and then when she does respond to steroids we have to ask ourselves why. The authors reflect the frustration of clinicians and patient alike as potential diagnostic clues are followed down blind alleys. There is rich learning here about our clinical reasoning processes. Now that we know the denouement …
Activation of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A Transcription in Tumorigenic Glioblastoma Cell Lines by an Enhancer with Cell Type-specific DNase I Accessibility*

Unregulated expression of vascular endothelial growth factor-A (VEGF-A) plays an important role in tumor growth. We have identified a cell type-specific enhancer, HS-1100, that contributes to VEGF-A transcriptional activation in tumorigenic glioblastoma cell lines. This enhancer exhibits increased accessibility to DNase I in glioblastoma cell lines that express high levels of VEGF-A but not in several other cell lines that express much lower levels of VEGF-A. HS-1100 contains a number of sequence elements that are highly conserved among human, mouse, and rat, including the hypoxia-response element (HRE). We show that the HRE contributes significantly to the cell type-specific enhancer activity of HS-1100 in U87MG glioblastoma cells. We use chromatin immunoprecipitation assays to show that endothelial PAS domain protein 1 (EPAS1) can efficiently bind to the endogenous HRE in U87MG cells but not in HEK293 cells in which the chromosomal HS-1100 is not accessible to DNase I. A dominant negative EPAS1 significantly reduces HS-1100 enhancer activity and VEGF-A levels in U87MG cells. Our results provide insight into the molecular mechanisms of VEGF-A up-regulation during cancer development.
Mechanistic studies examining the efficiency and fidelity of DNA synthesis by the 3TC-resistant mutant (184V) of HIV-1 reverse transcriptase.

A single amino acid substitution from methionine-184 to valine (M184V) of HIV-1 reverse transcriptase (RT) evokes the 1000-fold 3TC (Lamivudine) resistance by the HIV-1 virus observed in the clinic. The M184V mutant HIV-1 RT was studied to assess its catalytic efficiency during single nucleotide incorporation using a transient kinetic approach. The maximum rate of polymerization (k(pol)), binding affinity (K(d)), and incorporation efficiency (k(pol)/K(d)) were determined for incorporating dCTP and 3TC-TP by wild-type and 3TC-resistant HIV-1 RT. The 3TC-resistant HIV-1 RT showed a similar efficiency of incorporation compared with the wild-type enzyme during DNA-dependent DNA polymerization; however, the incorporation efficiency is reduced 3.5-fold during RNA-dependent polymerization. A dramatic 146- and 117-fold decrease in incorporation efficiency was observed for 3TC-MP incorporation by M184V RT for DNA- and RNA-dependent DNA polymerization, respectively, as compared with wild-type HIV-1 RT. While the k(pol) was slower and the K(d) was weaker for 3TC-TP incorporation by the M184V RT, the decrease in the efficiency of incorporation is primarily due to a substantially reduced binding affinity for the 3TC-TP to the enzyme.DNA (or RNA) complex poised for DNA elongation. The fidelity of M184V RT was also examined to evaluate mispair formation since this mutant has been suggested to exhibit a higher level of fidelity. The results of our studies indicate that there is a maximum 2.4-fold increase in fidelity for M184V RT as compared with wild-type HIV-1 RT. Both the wild-type and 3TC-resistant mutant RT showed higher fidelity using an RNA template as contrasted with the corresponding DNA template. This mechanistic information provides insight into our understanding of the molecular mechanism of 3TC-drug resistance and supports suggestions that increased RT fidelity and decreased fitness of the M184V HIV-1 virus may be factors contributing to the strong antiviral effect of AZT-3TC combination therapy.
Parametric study of selective removal of atmospheric aerosol by coagulation, condensation and gravitational settling

This work studies the scavenging efficiencies of aerosol particles after a given mechanism of removal (coagulation, heterogeneous nucleation and gravitational settling) as a function of time. It also analyses the health impact of the aerosol before and after the above dynamic mechanisms by comparing the respirable dust fractions. The well-known equations of scavenging are applied to three atmospheric environments (clear, hazy and urban) that represent the aerosol PSDs in the countryside, industry and the city, respectively. From this study it is inferred that respirable dust is hardly scavenged and when compared with the initial volume of respirable aerosol, roughly 10% remains after 18 h of gravitational settling. Therefore, gravitational settling is the main removal mechanism of respirable aerosol compared to condensation and coagulation and is almost six times better than rainout .
A Typology of Big Data Capabilities from Resources to Dynamic Capabilities. Evidence from a Ghanaian Health Insurance Firm

Big data is generating a lot of interest across different industries, with firms seeking to leverage big data to obtain enormous benefits. In the health insurance industry, especially in developing countries, there are efforts to use big data to increase healthcare access and at the same time reduce cost. Despite these efforts, there is a lack of literature on how to develop big data capabilities. Conceptually, the typology of capabilities has been suggested to follow a hierarchical order from resources and finally lead to dynamic capabilities in firms. This research examines the typology of big data capabilities in a health insurance developing country firm, to achieve dynamic capabilities from resources.
The Accuracy of Genomic Selection in Norwegian Red Cattle Assessed by Cross-Validation

Genomic Selection (GS) is a newly developed tool for the estimation of breeding values for quantitative traits through the use of dense markers covering the whole genome. For a successful application of GS, accuracy of the prediction of genomewide breeding value (GW-EBV) is a key issue to consider. Here we investigated the accuracy and possible bias of GW-EBV prediction, using real bovine SNP genotyping (18,991 SNPs) and phenotypic data of 500 Norwegian Red bulls. The study was performed on milk yield, fat yield, protein yield, first lactation mastitis traits, and calving ease. Three methods, best linear unbiased prediction (G-BLUP), Bayesian statistics (BayesB), and a mixture model approach (MIXTURE), were used to estimate marker effects, and their accuracy and bias were estimated by using cross-validation. The accuracies of the GW-EBV prediction were found to vary widely between 0.12 and 0.62. G-BLUP gave overall the highest accuracy. We observed a strong relationship between the accuracy of the prediction and the heritability of the trait. GW-EBV prediction for production traits with high heritability achieved higher accuracy and also lower bias than health traits with low heritability. To achieve a similar accuracy for the health traits probably more records will be needed.
Fibroblastic response to treatment with different preparations rich in growth factors

Objectives: Preparations rich in growth factors (PRGF) release them plus bioactive proteins at localized sites, with the aim of triggering healing and regenerative processes. The prevailing paradigm suggests that their influence on proliferation, angiogenesis and the extracellular matrix synthesis is minimal. However, variations in their composition and impact on different cell phenotypes have not been examined.
Health Beliefs, Attitudes and Service Utilization among Haitians

Understanding the factors that influence health beliefs, attitudes, and service use among Haitians in the United States is increasingly important for this growing population. We undertook a qualitative analysis to explore the factors related to cancer screening and utilization of health services among Haitians in Boston. Key informant interviews (n=42) and nine focus groups (n=78) revealed that Haitians experience unique barriers to health services. These include language barriers, unfamiliarity with preventive care, confidentiality concerns, mistrust and stigma concerning Western medicine, and a preference for natural remedies. Results suggest that many Haitians could benefit from health system navigation assistance, and highlight the need for comprehensive, rather than disease-focused programs, to decrease stigma and increase programmatic reach. Faith-based organizations, social service agencies, and Haitian media were identified as promising channels for disseminating health information. Leveraging positive cultural traditions and existing communication networks could increase the impact of Haitian health initiatives.
ARTIFICIAL NEURAL NETWORK SLIDING MODE CONTROL FOR MULTI-MACHINE WEB WINDING SYSTEM

1 Bechar University, Faculty of Sciences and technology, Laboratory of Command, Analysis and Optimization of the ElectroEnergizing Systems, B.P. 417 Bechar, 08000, Algeria, E-mail: bouchiba_bousmaha@yahoo.fr 2 University of Sidi Bel-Abbes, Laboratory of ICEPS Intelligent Control and Electrical power Systems Algeria, E-mail: mkfellah@yahoo.fr ARTIFICIAL NEURAL NETWORK SLIDING MODE CONTROL FOR MULTI-MACHINE WEB WINDING SYSTEM
A Delayed Case of Fatal Atrioesophageal Fistula Following Radiofrequency Ablation for Atrial Fibrillation

A Delayed Case of Fatal Atrioesophageal Fistula. We describe the case of a 61‐year‐old man with a fatal atrioesophageal fistula following radiofrequency ablation (RFA) for paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (PAF). Esophageal injury was first noted on computed tomography (CT) scan 10 days following RFA. Fistulization occurred 41 days following the procedure. This is a delayed time course in comparison with published reports. The patient declined intervention and we have serial CT imaging documenting the natural progression from ulceration to fistula. Although the patient was on acid suppression, he received 2 courses of corticosteroids, which may have contributed to the progression of his esophageal ulcer. (J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol, Vol. 21, pp. 708‐711, June 2010)
Tetramerization of the AKT1 plant potassium channel involves its C‐terminal cytoplasmic domain

All plant channels identified so far show high conservation throughout the polypeptide sequence except in the ankyrin domain which is present only in those closely related to AKT1. In this study, the architecture of the AKT1 protein has been investigated. AKT1 polypeptides expressed in the baculovirus/Sf9 cells system were found to assemble into tetramers as observed with animal Shaker‐like potassium channel subunits. The AKT1 C‐terminal intracytoplasmic region (downstream from the transmembrane domain) alone formed tetrameric structures when expressed in Sf9 cells, revealing a tetramerization process different from that of Shaker channels. Tests of subfragments from this sequence in the two‐hybrid system detected two kinds of interaction. The first, involving two identical segments (amino acids 371–516), would form a contact between subunits, probably via their putative cyclic nucleotide‐binding domains. The second interaction was found between the last 81 amino acids of the protein and a region lying between the channel hydrophobic core and the putative cyclic nucleotide‐binding domain. As the interacting regions are highly conserved in all known plant potassium channels, the structural organization of AKT1 is likely to extend to these channels. The significance of this model with respect to animal cyclic nucleotide‐gated channels is also discussed.
A history of miscarriages and mild prognathism as possible mode of presentation of mosaic trisomy 18 in women

A 22‐year‐old woman seeking medical assistance for hypofertility after two miscarriages had very slight anomalies: mild macrogenia and prognathism, and temporal depilation. Peripheral lymphocytes and fibroblastic karyotypes disclosed the tenth published case of low‐level mosaicism for trisomy 18 with normal intelligence. Subfertility is frequently observed among these patients. As women with this anomaly are at risk of trisomy 18 pregnancies and as five cases have been reported recently, this particular chromosomal anomaly may not be so exceptional and should be investigated in cases of hypofertility.
Why the disorder induced by GATA1 Arg216Gln mutation should be called "X-linked thrombocytopenia with thalassemia" rather than "X-linked gray platelet syndrome".

To the editor: GATA1 mutations induce 2 X-linked thrombocytopenias: dyserythropoietic anemia with thrombocytopenia (Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man [OMIM] 300367) and X-linked thrombocytopenia with thalassemia (XLTT; OMIM314050). The former has been described in 6 families with 5 different
Chicken Major Histocompatibility Complex and Disease

The chicken MHC (B complex) initially described by Briles as controlling blood antigens, is now known to be composed of at least three regions, L, F and G. Two of these, F and G, were described on the basis of recombinants found in a study of over 10,000 chickens. On the basis of biochemical, tissue distribution and functional analyses, F corresponds to the murine H‐2 K/D regions. The G region is unique to the chicken since the antigenic product is expressed only on erythrocytes and their progenitors. L was identified by serological studies and corresponds to the H‐2 I region; the L antigen is expressed predominantly on B lymphocytes, monocytes and 10% of T lymphocytes, and differences in the L region result in variations in immune responsiveness. A number of functional similarities exist between the chicken MHC and that of other species such as regulation of graft rejection, graft‐versus‐host reaction (GVHR) and mixed lymphocyte reactions (MLR), mitogenic and immune responsiveness and resistance to RNA and DNA virus infection. The chicken MHC also controls the severity of autoimmune disease, as exemplified by the spontaneous thyroiditis of Obese strain (OS) chickens. It differs from mammalian MHC's by having a lower crossing‐over frequency and no apparent gene duplication.
Mediation of spontaneous knee osteoarthritis by progressive chondrocyte ATP depletion in Hartley guinea pigs.

OBJECTIVE Because articular chondrocytes reside in a hypoxic milieu, anaerobic glycolysis is central in generating ATP to support chondrocyte matrix synthesis and viability, with mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation possibly providing physiologic reserve ATP generation. Nitric oxide (NO) potently suppresses mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation. Because enhanced cartilage NO generation occurs in osteoarthritis (OA), we systematically tested for mitochondrial dysfunction in the pathogenesis of OA. METHODS We assessed chondrocytes for ATP depletion and for in situ changes in mitochondrial ultrastructure prior to and during the evolution of spontaneous knee OA in male Hartley guinea pigs, a model in which chondrocalcinosis also supervenes. RESULTS Spontaneous NO release from knee cartilage samples in organ culture doubled between ages 2 months and 8 months as knee OA developed. Concomitantly, chondrocyte intracellular ATP levels declined by approximately 50%, despite a lack of mitochondrial ultrastructure abnormalities in knee chondrocytes. As ATP depletion progressed with aging in knee chondrocytes, an increased ratio of lactate to pyruvate was observed, consistent with an adaptive augmentation of glycolysis to mitochondrial dysfunction. Furthermore, we observed progressive elevation of chondrocyte ATP-scavenging nucleotide pyrophosphatase/phosphodiesterase (NPP) activity and extracellular levels of the NPP enzymatic end product inorganic pyrophosphate (PPi), which stimulate chondrocalcinosis. CONCLUSION Profound chondrocyte ATP depletion develops in association with heightened NO generation in guinea pig knee OA. Increased NPP activity and concordant increases in extracellular PPi, which are strongly associated with human aging-associated degenerative arthropathy and directly stimulate chondrocalcinosis, may be primarily driven by chondrocyte ATP depletion. Our findings implicate a decreased mitochondrial bioenergetic reserve as a pathogenic factor in both degenerative arthropathy and chondrocalcinosis in aging.
Extragonadal synthesis of estradiol is protective against kainic acid excitotoxic damage to the hippocampus

Gonadal or exogenous estradiol is neuroprotective in multiple experimental paradigms. The role exerted by endogenous extragonadal estradiol synthesis in neuroprotection, however, is poorly understood. Here we show that a dose of kainic acid (3 mg/kg body weight) that does not produce detectable neuronal damage in control male and female gonadectomized rats induces a significant loss of hippocampal hilar neurons after the systemic inhibition of aromatase, the enzyme involved in estradiol biosynthesis from androgens. Extragonadal aromatase inhibition exerts a similar neuronal loss in both male and female rats (26% and 30% reduction in the number of hilar neurons, respectively). These findings indicate that extragonadal estradiol exerts a neuroprotective effect in both sexes, which prevents neuronal loss as a consequence of mild neurodegenerative signals.
The serial sevens test.

The serial subtraction of seven beginning with the number 100 is a conventional part of mental status evaluation of patients. My observations of its administration by medical students and residents clearly indicates they do not administer it as originally described, eg, not done as a timed test, nor do they know how to interpret the results obtained. Hayman 1 proposed the test in 1942 as a "two minute clinical test for measurement of intellectual impairment in psychiatric disorders," stating the following: The test is administered orally, the subject being asked to take 7 away from 100, to take 7 away from the answer obtained, and so on. The subjects are placed as much at ease as possible and encouragement is freely given, but no assistance. Each subtraction is considered as a unit and calculations are made on the basis of the 14 possible correct subtractions, that is 93-86-79-72-65-58-51-44-37-30-23-16-9-2. Answers more
Depicting and comparing the time to normalize "erythrocyte sedimentation rate" following two combination therapies in rheumatoid arthritis patients: a randomized clinical trial.

BACKGROUND Erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) is one of the predictors of improvement in handling rheumatoid arthritis. This study was designed to define and compare the time of achieving normal ESR and also the percentage for the normalization of this marker at several points of time in two different combination therapies. METHODS Fifty-two rheumatoid arthritis patients randomly received methotrexate, chloroquine, prednisolone (MCP) or azathioprine, chloroquine, prednisolone (ACP) and all were followed up for 34 weeks. Chloroquine and azathioprine were given, 150 mg/d and 2 mg/kg/d, respectively. Methotrexate was given, 0.2 mg/kg/week and simultaneously increased 2.5 mg monthly if no clinical response was seen. Prednisolone was started, 0.3 mg/kg/d and tapered after one week. ESR at baseline and during follow-up were checked. The data were collected and analyzed. This clinical trial was registered in the Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials (www.irct.ir) with registration number ID: 2012110611383N1. RESULTS The percentages of obtaining normal ESR after 2nd, 4th, 6th, 8th, 18th, 34th weeks of follow up were 42.4%, 53.9%, 57.7%, 65.4%, 88.5%, 96.2% in the MCP group and 47.9%, 65.3%, 74%, 78.3%, 82.7%, 87% in the ACP group. The mean time of obtaining normal ESR was 9.15 (95%CI, 5.58 to 12.73) weeks in MCP group and 9.04 (4.04 to 14.05) weeks in the ACP group (p>0.05). CONCLUSION The results show that the time to achieve normal ESR and percentage of its normalization were almost the same in both treated groups.
Vitreous body glutamate concentration in dogs with glaucoma.

OBJECTIVE To analyze the vitreal amino acid concentrations in dogs with breed-related primary glaucoma to determine whether excitotoxic amino acids associated with retinal genglion cell death in other species were present in affected dogs. SAMPLES 11 normal control and 10 glaucomatous canine eyes. PROCEDURE Amino acid analyses were performed by high-pressure liquid chromatography in masked manner. RESULTS Eyes from dogs with primary glaucoma had significantly high vitreal glutamate concentration, compared with values for eyes of clinically normal control dogs. Mean (+/-SD) glutamate concentrations were 31.7 +/- 12.4 and 6.9 +/- 6.3 microM in glaucomatous and normal eyes, respectively (P < 0.0001). Eyes from dogs with glaucoma also had lower vitreal glycine (37.0 +/- 17.0 vs 59.4 +/- 28.2 microM; P < 0.043) and higher of vitreal tryptophan (39.0 +/- 22.8 vs 17.5 +/- 11.2 microM; P < 0.012) concentrations, compared with values for normal eyes. CONCLUSION Glutamate concentration potentially toxic to retinal ganglion cells is associated with the pathogenesis of primary glaucoma in dogs. Increased glutamate concentration provides evidence of an ischemic mechanism for retinal ganglion cell death and optic nerve atrophy in dogs with glaucoma. CLINICAL RELEVANCE The emphasis on reduction and normalization of high intraocular pressure as the primary focus of treatment for glaucoma in dogs should be augmented by other therapeutic approaches.