Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Contamination of disinfection solution bottles used by contact lens wearers.

We investigated the contamination of disinfection solution bottles after 2 weeks of patient use. Forty-four subjects participated in the study and each used three soft lens care systems (cross-over study). The order in which the three care systems were dispensed was randomized to eliminate systematic bias. Sixteen subjects used only one of the systems (disinfection solutions) over three consecutive 2-week periods (reliability study). Contamination of the disinfection solution bottles occurred in 12 of the 180 bottles sampled (7%), and the level of contamination of these bottles ranged up to 10(5) colony forming units per milliliter. A wide range of microorganisms was identified in these positive samples, many of which were potential ocular pathogens. None of the subjects in the study (n = 60) showed contamination in more than one of the three solution bottles sampled, suggesting that the phenomenon was not strongly patient specific. The rate of contamination of disinfection solution bottles was not influenced by contact lens wearing experience (i.e., familiarity with care procedures), by the time of year (season) at which the samples were collected, or by the subjects' compliance with hand washing. However, among the 44 subjects in the cross-over study, the rate of contamination of disinfection solution bottles was influenced by the type of disinfection solution.
Complex Protein Interactions within the Human Polyadenylation Machinery Identify a Novel Component

ABSTRACT Polyadenylation of mRNA precursors is a two-step reaction requiring multiple protein factors. Cleavage stimulation factor (CstF) is a heterotrimer necessary for the first step, endonucleolytic cleavage, and it plays an important role in determining the efficiency of polyadenylation. Although a considerable amount is known about the RNA binding properties of CstF, the protein-protein interactions required for its assembly and function are poorly understood. We therefore first identified regions of the CstF subunits, CstF-77, CstF-64, and CstF-50, required for interaction with each other. Unexpectedly, small regions of two of the subunits participate in multiple interactions. In CstF-77, a proline-rich domain is necessary not only for binding both other subunits but also for self-association, an interaction consistent with genetic studies in Drosophila. In CstF-64, a small region, highly conserved in metazoa, is responsible for interactions with two proteins, CstF-77 and symplekin, a nuclear protein of previously unknown function. Intriguingly, symplekin has significant similarity to a yeast protein, PTA1, that is a component of the yeast polyadenylation machinery. We show that multiple factors, including CstF, cleavage-polyadenylation specificity factor, and symplekin, can be isolated from cells as part of a large complex. These and other data suggest that symplekin may function in assembly of the polyadenylation machinery.
Performance investigation on the High-Resolution Wide-Swath SAR system operating in Multisubpulse mode

The High-Resolution Wide-Swath (HRWS) is the spaceborne Synthetic Aperture Radar system, founded by the German Aerospace Centre, conceived to obtain simultaneously high spatial resolution and width swaths. Its main distinctive features are the multichannel architecture, the use of Digital Beamforming on receive and Scan on Receive algorithm. The HRWS allows for a spatial resolution of 1 m over swaths 70 km wide in the basic Stripmap mode, and a resolution of 8 m over a swath of 360 km in the advanced Ultra-Wide ScanSAR mode. In this paper a performance investigation in the novel operational mode, denoted as Multisubpulse, is presented: design constraints, proposed solutions and achievable SAR performance are explained and analyzed.
Genotoxic stress causes the accumulation of the splicing regulator Sam68 in nuclear foci of transcriptionally active chromatin

DNA-damaging agents cause a multifaceted cellular stress response. Cells set in motion either repair mechanisms or programmed cell death pathways, depending on the extent of the damage and on their ability to withstand it. The RNA-binding protein (RBP) Sam68, which is up-regulated in prostate carcinoma, promotes prostate cancer cell survival to genotoxic stress. Herein, we have investigated the function of Sam68 in this cellular response. Mitoxantrone (MTX), a topoisomerase II inhibitor, induced relocalization of Sam68 from the nucleoplasm to nuclear granules, together with several other RBPs involved in alternative splicing, such as TIA-1, hnRNP A1 and the SR proteins SC35 and ASF/SF2. Sam68 accumulation in nuclear stress granules was independent of signal transduction pathways activated by DNA damage. Using BrU labelling and immunofluorescence, we demonstrate that MTX-induced nuclear stress granules are transcriptionally active foci where Sam68 and the phosphorylated form of RNA polymerase II accumulate. Finally, we show that MTX-induced relocalization of Sam68 correlates with changes in alternative splicing of its mRNA target CD44, and that MTX-induced CD44 splicing depends on Sam68 expression. These results strongly suggest that Sam68 is part of a RNA-mediated stress response of the cell that modulates alternative splicing in response to DNA damage.
Exon junction complexes mediate the enhancing effect of splicing on mRNA expression

Intron-containing genes are generally expressed more effectively in human cells than are intronless versions of the same gene. We have asked whether this effect is due directly to splicing or instead reflects the action of components of the exon junction complex (EJC) that is assembled at splice junctions after splicing is completed. Here, we show that intron removal does not enhance gene expression if EJC formation is blocked. Conversely, RNA tethering of the EJC components SRm160 or RNPS1 boosts the expression of intronless mRNAs but not of spliced mRNAs. Splicing and RNPS1 tethering are shown to enhance the same steps in mRNA biogenesis and function, including mRNA 3′ end processing and translation. Together, these data argue that the EJC is primarily responsible for the positive effect of splicing on gene expression.
Sensitivity to Perceived Facial Trustworthiness Is Increased by Activating Self-Protection Motives

Self-protection motives have been documented to influence a range of intergroup processes, including biased categorization of racially ambiguous targets as out-group members and a heightened ability to discriminate in-group from out-group members. In this work, the influence of self-protective states is extended to interpersonal processes. Specifically, in two experiments we demonstrate that activating self-protection motives (relative to a control experience) leads to more accurate detection of facial cues associated with trustworthiness. In Experiment 1, participants with salient self-protection concerns were better able to distinguish between faces pre-rated as appearing high and low in trustworthiness. In Experiment 2, we used dynamic cues associated with trustworthiness and found that participants with active self-protection goals more accurately distinguished genuine from false smiles. These results are among the first to document the influence of self-protection motives on interpersonal judgments, thereby expanding the scope and focus of fundamental motives research.
Beneficial effects of TCP on soman intoxication in guinea pigs: seizures, brain damage and learning behaviour

Poisoning with the potent nerve agent soman produces a cascade of central nervous system (CNS) effects characterized by severe convulsions and eventually death. In animals that survive a soman intoxication, lesions in the amygdala, piriform cortex, hippocampus and thalamus can be observed. In order to examine the mechanisms involved in the effects of soman and to evaluate possible curative interventions, a series of behavioural, electrophysiological and neuropathological experiments were carried out in the guinea pig using the NMDA antagonist N‐[1‐(2‐thienyl)cyclohexyl] piperidine (TCP) in conjunction with atropine and pyridostigmine. The NMDA antagonist TCP appeared to be very effective in the treatment of casualties who suffered from soman‐induced seizures for 30 min: Seizures were arrested within minutes after the TCP injection, confirmed by quantitative electroencephalogram (EEG), after fast Fourier analysis. Three hours after TCP the quantitative EEGs were completely normal in all frequency bands and remained normal during the entire 3‐week intoxication period. The power shift to the lower (delta) frequency bands, indicative for neuropathology and found in control animals intoxicated only by soman, was not observed in the soman–TCP group. The gross neuropathology found in soman control animals within 48 h after soman was prevented in soman–TCP animals and was still absent in 3‐week survivors. Instead, ultrastructural changes were observed, indicative of defense mechanisms of the cell against toxic circumstances. Twenty‐four hours after soman, soman–TCP animals were able to perform in the shuttle box and Morris water maze. The beneficial effects of TCP on the performance in these tests during the 3‐week intoxication period were very impressive, notwithstanding (minor) deficits in memory and learning. The increase in excitability after TCP was confirmed by an increase in the acoustic startle response. Taken together, these results confirmed the involvement of NMDA receptors in the maintenance of soman‐induced seizures and the development of brain damage. They underline the current hypothesis that cholinergic mechanisms are responsible for eliciting seizure activity after soman and that, most likely, the subsequent recruitment of other excitatory neurotransmitters and loss of inhibitory control are responsible for the maintenance of seizures and the development of subsequent brain damage. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Identification of Lipoproteins of Intestinal Origin in Human Atherosclerotic Plaque

Abstract Apolipoproteins (apo) B48 and B100 are exclusive markers of lipoproteins derived from the intestine and liver, respectively. Lipoproteins of hepatic origin are causally related to atherosclerosis and are found in plaque. However, lipoproteins of intestinal origin have not previously been reported in human atherosclerotic tissue, although studies in animal models suggest that chylomicrons may contribute to arterial cholesterol entrapment. In this study, we report on the relative distribution of both apoB48 and apoB100 in human atherosclerotic tissue. Lipoproteins were isolated from human femoral and carotid endarterectomy samples, from varicose vein and aortic aneurysms. ApoB was determined by Western blot analysis and quantified based on the signal to apoB48 and apoB100 protein standards of known mass. ApoB48 and apoB100 were found in human carotid and femoral endarterectomy samples, but not in varicose vein or aortic aneurysm tissue. The level of apoB48 relative to hepatic lipoproteins (B100) was found to be much greater than would be predicted based on the relative plasma concentration and arterial exposure of the two lipoprotein groups. Intimal association was substantially greater in carotid endarterectomy samples compared to femoral, however, the ratio of chylomicrons to hepatic lipoproteins was greater in the latter. On the basis that chylomicron apoB48 was found in human atherosclerotic tissue and that each chylomicron particle contains substantial quantities of cholesterol, it is possible that the contribution of intestinal lipoproteins to atherosclerosis may be significant.
Wearable Devices for Sports: New Integrated Technologies Allow Coaches, Physicians, and Trainers to Better Understand the Physical Demands of Athletes in Real time

Elite-level athletes and professional sports teams are continually searching for opportunities to improve athletic performance and gain a competitive advantage on the field. Advances in technology have provided new avenues to maximize player health and safety. Over the last decade, time? motion analysis systems, such as video recording and computer digitization, have been used to measure human locomotion and improve sports performance. While these techniques were state of the art at the time, their usefulness is inhibited by the questionable validity of the acquired data, the labor-intensive nature of collecting data with manual hand-notation techniques, and their inability to track athlete position, movement, displacement, and velocity.
Allergen‐loaded biodegradable poly(d,l‐lactic‐co‐glycolic) acid nanoparticles down‐regulate an ongoing Th2 response in the BALB/c mouse model

Background and objective Biocompatible and biodegradable microparticles have gained interest as antigen delivery systems during the recent years. We investigated whether biodegradable poly(d,l‐lactic‐co‐glycolic) acid (PLGA) nanospheres could be used as allergen vehicles for few‐shot therapy of type I allergy.
A 10-year retrospective study of periodontal disease progression.

The purpose of this study was to record the rate of periodontal disease progression over a 10-year period with respect to individual subject, age and tooth type. 283 subjects, who had undergone a full-mouth radiographic examination in 1974-76 and at that time were 25-70 years old, were randomly selected from a larger patient sample for a new radiographic examination in 1985-86. 201 subjects (71%) agreed to participate. For each respondent, tooth loss over the 10-year period was calculated. The radiographic bone height at the mesial and distal aspect of all teeth was assessed by measuring the distance between the cemento-enamel junction and the bone crest. Difference in periodontal bone height between the 2 examinations was calculated for each tooth site. The results revealed that the mean number of teeth lost over the 10-year period was 3.8 (SD 4.6). Tooth mortality, expressed as a % of the no. of teeth present at the initial examination, increased with age and varied between 2.9%-28.5%. In all age groups, molars had the highest and canines the lowest rate of tooth mortality. The frequency of subjects with loss of greater than 10 teeth was highest for the initially 45-year old individuals (20%). 7 individuals (3%) had become edentulous. The mean annual reduction of alveolar bone height varied between 0.07-0.14 mm in the age groups 25-65 years. The initially 70-year old subjects showed a statistically significant higher annual rate of bone loss (0.28 mm). (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Physiological responses of elite junior Australian rules footballers during match-play.

Australian Football (AF) is Australia's major football code. Despite research in other football codes, to date, no data has been published on the physiological responses of AF players during match play. Fifteen athletes (17.28 ± 0.76 yrs) participated in four pre-season matches, sanctioned by Australian Football League (AFL) Victoria, investigating Heart Rate (HR), Blood Lactate (BLa), Core Temperature (Tcore), and Hydration status. Match HR was measured continuously using HR monitors. BLa was measured via finger prick lancet at the end of each quarter of play. Tcore was measured by use of ingestible temperature sensor and measured wirelessly at the end of each quarter of play. Hydration status was measured using refractometry, measuring urine specific gravity, and body weight pre and post-match. Environmental conditions were measured continuously during matches. Results of HR responses showed a high exertion of players in the 85-95% maximum HR range. Elevated mean BLa levels, compared to rest, were observed in all players over the duration of the matches (p = 0.007). Mean Tcore rose 0.68 °C between start and end of matches. Mean USG increased between 0.008 g/ml (p = 0.001) with mean body weight decreasing 1.88 kg (p = 0.001). This study illustrates physiological responses in junior AF players playing in the heat as well as providing physiological data for consideration by AF coaching staff when developing specific training programs. Continued research should consider physiological measurements under varying environments, and at all playing levels of AF, to ascertain full physiological responses during AF matches. Key pointsSpecific conditioning sessions for junior athletes should include high intensity bouts; greater than 85% of heart rate maximum zone.Football anaerobic conditioning activities (e.g. sprint training) should be randomised throughout training sessions to replicate demands of the game (e.g. training in a fatigued state). Coaches and fitness staff should provide education and player management strategies for fluid replacement at key opportunities (pre-match, formal breaks and substation on and off the field) during matches.
Comparing crystal identification algorithms for PET block detectors

A high resolution detector is being developed for our small animal position emission tomography (MicroPET). Each scintillation event is mapped in a two dimensional (2-D) position through the relative ratio of the output signals of the PMTs. Crystal Look-up table (CLT) used in ThuMicroPET scanner defines the matching relation between signal position of a detected event to a corresponding detector pixel location. It has a direct impact on imaging quality and brings significant influence to the gantry overall performance. This paper compares Fuzzy C-Means (FCM) Clustering Algorithm, Self Organizing Feature Map (SOFM) neural network, and Watersheds algorithm for crystal identification. The primary result shows, the watersheds method has the fast speed and higher accuracy for crystal identification but sensitive with preprocessing; and SOFM has advantage of on-line monitoring and training, with also relatively reasonable accuracy, but unluckily long time cost. FCM have lower stability and accuracy in this experiment. In addition we present a new simple but powerful parameter Interaction Ratio (IR), to quantitatively assess the performance of Crystal Identification of detectors. As proved as experiment, not only it could be quantitatively evaluate the segmentation method generating LUT, but also assess the performance of block detector itself.
Double Dissociation of the Requirement for GluN2B- and GluN2A-Containing NMDA Receptors in the Destabilization and Restabilization of a Reconsolidating Memory

Signaling at NMDA receptors (NMDARs) is known to be important for memory reconsolidation, but while most studies show that NMDAR antagonists prevent memory restabilization and produce amnesia, others have shown that GluN2B-selective NMDAR antagonists prevent memory destabilization, protecting the memory. These apparently paradoxical, conflicting data provide an opportunity to define more precisely the requirement for different NMDAR subtypes in the mechanisms underlying memory reconsolidation and to further understand the contribution of glutamatergic signaling to this process. Here, using rats with fully consolidated pavlovian auditory fear memories, we demonstrate a double dissociation in the requirement for GluN2B-containing and GluN2A-containing NMDARs within the basolateral amygdala in the memory destabilization and restabilization processes, respectively. We further show a double dissociation in the mechanisms underlying memory retrieval and memory destabilization, since AMPAR antagonism prevented memory retrieval while still allowing the destabilization process to occur. These data demonstrate that glutamatergic signaling mechanisms within the basolateral amygdala differentially and dissociably mediate the retrieval, destabilization, and restabilization of previously consolidated fear memories.
Hemifacial Spasm: Intraoperative Electromyographic Monitoring as a Guide for Microvascular Decompression

OBJECTIVE Microvascular decompression is the logical and well-accepted treatment of choice for hemifacial spasm (HFS). In experienced hands, good to excellent results can be obtained. However, sometimes the exact site of the vascular compression is unclear. The aim of this study was to analyze whether intraoperative monitoring by stimulated electromyography of the facial nerve may help to improve the results of vascular decompression for HFS. METHODS In a series of 74 patients operated for HFS, the impact of intraoperative facial nerve monitoring on the surgical procedure was analyzed by use of the clinical and operative patient records. The role of this type of monitoring, with assessment of the so-called abnormal muscle response, was broken down into four categories: a guiding, a confirming, an indirect confirming, or an inconclusive role. The relationship between abnormal muscle response monitoring results and final surgical outcome was analyzed. RESULTS The overall cure rate was 87.8%, including patients who had previously undergone unsuccessful operations. Complications were minor, and hearing impairment was found in 2.7% of patients. A guiding role of intraoperative monitoring was apparent in 33.8% of patients, and a confirming role was demonstrated in 52.7% of patients, which resulted in a positive contribution of approximately 87% for intraoperative facial monitoring in microvascular decompression for HFS. In patients defined as guiding cases, the cure rate was 92%. CONCLUSION This study demonstrates the applicability and usefulness of intraoperative facial nerve monitoring in microvascular decompression operations for HFS.
Predictive correlation between the International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF) and Sexual Health Inventory for Men (SHIM): implications for calculating a derived SHIM for clinical use.

INTRODUCTION Validated questionnaires are used to assess postoperative continence, sexual function, and other quality-of-life issues after radical prostatectomy. The International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF) is one such well-tested inventory that is routinely used. However, some centers use the Sexual Health Inventory for Men (SHIM) or the IIEF-6 to record erectile function, and comparison between the three can be difficult. AIMS To define if there was a predictive correlation between IIEF (or IIEF-6) and SHIM, and to explore a strategy for the use of an abbreviated and rapid functional assessment of erectile function in patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS Preoperative and postoperative IIEF questionnaires from the robotic prostatectomy program at our institution were included in the study. The total IIEF, IIEF-6, and SHIM scores were calculated and correlations between the three were sought. We also looked at the feasibility of using only two questions from the IIEF with an aim of calculating both the SHIM and IIEF scores. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES The power to differentiate between patients with SHIM >or=22 from those with SHIM <or=21 for (i) the ratio allowing direct conversion of IIEF (or IIEF-6) to SHIM; and (ii) a two-question-based recalculation of SHIM. RESULTS Two hundred seventy-five questionnaires were available for review. If the total IIEF score is known, the IIEF-derived SHIM score can be calculated by dividing the total IIEF score by a factor of 2.8 and then rounding off to a whole number. Furthermore, we have shown that an abbreviated questionnaire using Q5 and Q15 of the IIEF can be used to calculate the SHIM scores (two-question-SHIM). CONCLUSIONS We described an easy way to calculate the SHIM score when the IIEF (or IIEF-6) score alone is known. The two-question model can be used for a rapid assessment of the patients' sexual function.