Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
[Prevalence of hypovitaminosis D in elderly institutionalized residents: influence of a substitutive treatment].

BACKGROUND Osteoporosis in the elderly is a common and severe disease, vitamin D deficiency being an important causative factor. Hypovitaminosis D is frequent in old people, particularly those living in nursing homes. SUBJECTS AND METHOD We performed a cross-sectional study of 100 randomly recruited elderly institutionalized subjects. The prevalence of hypovitaminosis D and its possible repercussion on the phosphocalcium metabolism were assessed. The degree of sun exposure and the existence of co-morbidity were also recorded. Individuals with hypovitaminosis D were included in a longitudinal study (6 months' duration) aimed at assess the efficacy of treatment with calcium and two different therapeutic regimens with calcidiol (16,000 IU/week or 16,000 IU every 3 weeks). RESULTS 87% of individuals had hypovitaminosis D; 21.8% of them had secondary hyperparathyroidism. The study population had a low degree of sun exposure and a high level of co-morbidity. The two doses of calcidiol led to a normalization of 25-OHD3 levels, increased calciuria and compensated secondary hyperparathyroidism, yet higher 25-OHD3 levels were achieved with the weekly therapeutic scheme. CONCLUSIONS Hypovitaminosis D prevalence appears to be very high In the elderly institutionalized population. Calcium and calcidiol supplementation normalized 25-OHD3, improved calcium absorption and compensated secondary hyperparathyroidism. Calcium and vitamin D supplementation should be employed routinely in the elderly institutionalized population.
Human DNA polymerase η activity and translocation is regulated by phosphorylation

Human DNA polymerase η (pol η) can replicate across UV-induced pyrimidine dimers, and defects in the gene encoding pol η result in a syndrome called xeroderma pigmentosum variant (XP-V). XP-V patients are prone to the development of cancer in sun-exposed areas, and cells derived from XP-V patients demonstrate increased sensitivity to UV radiation and a higher mutation rate compared with wild-type cells. pol η has been shown to replicate across a wide spectrum of DNA lesions introduced by environmental or chemotherapeutic agents, or during nucleotide starvation, suggesting that the biological roles for pol η are not limited to repair of UV-damaged DNA. The high error rate of pol η requires that its intracellular activity be tightly regulated. Here, we show that the phosphorylation of pol η increased after UV irradiation, and that treatment with caffeine, siRNA against ATR, or an inhibitor of PKC (calphostin C), reduced the accumulation of pol η at stalled replication forks after UV irradiation or treatment with cisplatin and gemcitabine. Site-specific mutagenesis (S587A and T617A) of pol η at two putative PKC phosphorylation sites located in the protein–protein interaction domain prevented nuclear foci formation induced by UV irradiation or treatment with gemcitabine/cisplatin. In addition, XP-V cell lines stably expressing either the S587A or T617A mutant form of pol η were more sensitive to UV radiation and gemcitabine/cisplatin than control cells expressing wild-type pol η. These results suggest that phosphorylation is one mechanism by which the cellular activity of pol η is regulated.
HATs Off to Capping: A New Mechanism for Myc

The mechanism of transcriptional activation by Myc has been a subject of considerable interest for many years. In a recent issue of Molecular and Cellular Biology, we report a novel Myc biochemical function in gene regulation which is distinct from conventional transcriptional activation. We show that Myc can induce global RNA pol II carboxy terminal domain phosphorylation and enhanced mRNA cap methylation on a subset of mRNAs. Remarkably, Myc can induce many of these effects in the complete absence of its DNA binding domain. In the following article we discuss the mechanism of Myc-induced cap methylation, its synergistic relationship with Myc-induced transcription, and the role of Myc in cell proliferation.
NEW PRINCIPLES FOR A SAFE INTERRUPTION OF LOW CURRENTS IN HIGH-VOLTAGE HIGH-RUPTURING CAPACITY FUSES

Based on the definition of IEC 60282-1, backup-fuses have to interrupt currents higher than the minimal breaking current. Full-range fuses have to interrupt all currents, which are able to melt the fusing element. Severe circumstances like reduced heat-transfer or external heating might trip the fuse when the actual operating current is below the minimum breaking current or the melting current. In consequence the fuse can explode. Therefore the use of fuses in severe environments with high operating temperatures like fuse canisters and cubicles for electrical switchgears can dramatically aggravate a high risk of failure. Utilizing novel concepts like high-energy materials will enable a defined temperature-dependent tripping of the fuse. Combining this technology with a novel enhanced arc quenching material will lead to an interruption of very low and critical over-currents also in fuse canisters and cubicles under severe thermal conditions.
Green tea polyphenol EGCG signaling pathway through the 67-kDa laminin receptor.

(-)-Epigallocatechin-3-gallate（EGCG）は他の茶カテキンと比較して多彩かつ強力な生理活性を示すとともに，茶以外の植物には見出されていないことから緑茶の機能性を特徴づける成分である．ここでは，EGCGの生理活性を仲介する細胞膜上の受容体（緑茶カテキン受容体）として筆者らが同定した67 kDaラミニンレセプター（67LR）を介した作用とその発現機序（緑茶カテキンシグナリング）について紹介する．67LRはEGCG受容体として，EGCGの細胞増殖抑制作用，多発性骨髄腫細胞に対するアポトーシス誘導作用，好塩基球におけるヒスタミン放出阻害作用や高親和性IgE受容体発現低下作用を仲介する．EGCGによる細胞増殖抑制作用には，ミオシン軽鎖のリン酸化レベルの低下とそれを触媒するミオシン軽鎖ホスファターゼの活性調節サブユニットMYPT1の活性化が関与すること，また，こうした作用は67LRのノックダウンにより阻害されることから，67LRからMYPT1の活性化につながるシグナル伝達経路の存在が示唆された．そこで本経路をつなぐ分子を検討し，eukaryotic elongation factor 1 alpha（eEF1A）を同定した．一方，67LR，eEF1A，MYPT1の各分子をそれぞれノックダウンしたマウスメラノーマ細胞を移植した全てのマウス腫瘍モデルにおいて，経口投与されたEGCGによる腫瘍成長抑制作用は消失した．以上の結果から，これらの分子がEGCGの抗がん活性を伝達する分子として働くことが示された．
Effect of persistent patent ductus arteriosus on mortality and morbidity in very low‐birthweight infants

Aim: Because New Caledonia is geographically isolated from the nearest cardiac surgical centre, surgical closure of ductus arteriosus is not performed in very low‐birthweight (VLBW) infants who have a persistent patent ductus in spite of having undergone treatment with ibuprofen. This study aimed at investigating the possible effect of persistent patent ductus in VLBW infants.
FPGA design and implementation of Electrocardiogram biomedical embedded system

This paper presents a FPGA design and implementation of Electrocardiogram (ECG) biomedical embedded system (ECG-SoC). It performs ECG pre-processing and heart rate variability (HRV) feature extraction which suitable for remote homecare monitoring and rural health care application. The ECG-SoC is designed using hardware/software co-design technique based on offline dataset from MIT-BIH database. Altera Cyclone II DE2-115 FPGA platform was used for system prototyping and functionality verification. The computation results are displayed on Nios II-Linux terminal and produce output files for post analysis executed on the host personal computer (PC).
Hypomethylation of host cell DNA synthesized after infection or transformation of cells by herpes simplex virus

Infection of rat embryo cells with herpes simplex virus type 2 caused undermethylation of host cell DNA synthesized during infection. DNA made prior to infection was not demethylated, but some of its degradation products, including methyl dCMP, were incorporated into viral DNA. The use of mutant virus showed that some viral DNA synthesis appears to be required for the inhibition of methylation. Inhibition of methylation cannot be explained by an absence of DNA methyltransferase as the activity of this enzyme did not change during the early period of infection. Inhibition of host cell DNA methylation may be an important step in the transformation of cells by herpesviruses, and various transformed cell lines tested showed reduced levels of DNA methylation.
First trimester High maternal haemoglobin-- an independent risk factor for Pre-eclampsia ( PIH )

To know the association of first trimester, high maternal haemoglobin with occurrence of pre-eclampsia (PIH). Pre-eclampsia is a pregnancy specific, multisystem, hypertensive disorder characterized by new onset hypertension and proteinuria after 20 weeks of gestation and remission of signs after delivery, which is the leading cause of maternal, fetal and neonatal mortality and morbidity . Despite extensive research, the etiology and pathogenesis of Pre-eclampsia remain obscure and poorly understood. So are the association of first trimester, high maternal haemoglobin with occurrence of pre-eclampsia (PIH). The longitudinal study was conducted in the 200 pregnant women, who were enrolled in first trimester of pregnancy and followed till the delivery, with 100 pregnant women with haemoglobin >13gm% as cases and100 pregnant women haemoglobin 11 to 13 gm% as controls. Statistical analysis was done by using Chi-square test. The pregnant women with higher haemoglobin concentration in first trimester had higher risk of developing pre-eclampsia (PIH) comparing to other pregnant women. (p value –0.003). With higher haemoglobin concentration in first trimester of pregnancy, there is higher risk for developing pre-eclampsia.
Internalization of the m2 Muscarinic Acetylcholine Receptor

Recent studies have identified agonist-dependent phosphorylation as a critical event in the rapid uncoupling of the m2 muscarinic cholinergic receptors (mAChR) from G-proteins and sequestration of the receptors away from the cell surface. However, mutant m2 mAChRs were identified that were phosphorylated but unable to desensitize in adenylyl cyclase assays, while they internalized like wild type (WT) mAChRs. We have tested whether these properties might stem from differences in the abilities of the WT and mutant mAChR to bind arrestins, proteins implicated in both receptor/G-protein uncoupling and internalization. We have determined that arrestin binding requires phosphorylation at a cluster of Ser/Thr residues in amino acids 307–311 in the m2 mAChR. A strong correlation was found between the ability of WT and mutant receptors to bind arrestins in vitro or in vivo and to desensitize in adenylyl cyclase assays. However, the phosphorylation-dependent internalization of the m2 mAChR in HEK-tsA201 cells did not require arrestins and did not proceed via clathrin-mediated endocytosis. While the m2 mAChR was able to enter a clathrin- and arrestin-dependent pathway when arrestin 2 or arrestin 3 was significantly overexpressed, the preferred pathway of internalization of WT and certain mutant m2 mAChR in HEK-tsA201 cells did not involve participation of arrestins. The results suggest that the phosphorylation-mediated regulation of the m2 mAChR may involve arrestin-dependent and -independent events.
Severity Based Adaptation for ASR to Aid Dysarthric Speakers

Automatic speech recognition (ASR) for dysarthric speakers is one of the most challenging research areas. The lack of corpus for dysarthric speakers makes it even more difficult. This paper introduces the Intra-Severity adaptation, using small amount of speech data, in which data from all participants in a given severity type will use for adaptation of that type. The adaptation is performed for two types of acoustic models, which are the Controlled Acoustic Model (CAM) developed using rich phonetic corpus, and Dysarthric Acoustic Model (DAM) that includes speech collected from dysarthric speakers suffering from variety level of severity. This paper compares two adaptation techniques for building ASR systems for dysarthric speakers, which are Maximum Likelihood Linear Regression (MLLR) and Constrained Maximum Likelihood Linear Regression (CMLLR). The result shows that the Word Recognition Accuracy (WRA) for the CAM outperformed DAM for both the Speaker Independent (SI) and Speaker Adaptation (SA). On the other hand, it was found that MLLR is outperformed the CMLLR for both Controlled Speaker Adaptation (CSA) and Dysarthric Speaker Adaptation (DSA).
Literacy and Occupational Mobility in Rural versus Urban Victorian England: Evidence from the Linked Marriage Register and Census Records for Birmingham and Norfolk, 1851 and 1881

Samples drawn from marriage registers in Birmingham and rural Norfolk, England, which report the occupational status for both the groom and his father, were matched with the 1851 and 1881 English censuses, which also contain occupational information. After performing several checks for selection bias, the author concludes: First, although most occupational mobility took place within 10 years of marriage—when the groom was roughly between the ages of 25 and 35—some continued after he turned 50. Second, approximately 35 percent of the men in each area eventually had an occupational status different from their fathers, and about 30 percent changed occupational status over their careers, belying the stereotype of impenetrable walls between classes in Victorian England. Third, upward occupational mobility seemed to slow in both regions as the period under consideration progressed. Fourth, although occupational mobility rates overall were comparable in these urban and rural areas, it was much easier for an individual to rise from an unskilled to a skilled status in Birmingham than it was in Norfolk. Fifth, and perhaps most surprising, literacy had a greater effect on social mobility in rural Norfolk than in urban Birmingham.
Progression of coronary artery disease predicts clinical coronary events. Long-term follow-up from the Cholesterol Lowering Atherosclerosis Study.

BACKGROUND Progression of coronary artery disease is assumed to be a surrogate end point for clinical coronary events. Because no single method or measure for a coronary angiographic end point is uniformly accepted as optimal, the utility and validity of surrogate end points for predicting clinical coronary events remain unsettled. METHODS AND RESULTS The Cholesterol Lowering Atherosclerosis Study randomized 162 nonsmoking, 40- to 59-year-old men with previous coronary artery bypass graft surgery to colestipol/niacin plus diet or placebo plus diet. Atherosclerosis change on 2-year coronary angiograms was evaluated by a consensus panel and by quantitative coronary angiography (average per-subject change in percent diameter stenosis [%S] and minimum lumen diameter [MLD). With all three end points, the benefit of colestipol/niacin treatment on coronary artery atherosclerosis has been reported. Annual follow-up for an average of 7 years (range, 6.3 months to 10 years) has been carried out on all subjects who completed the 2-year angiogram. Clinical coronary events (need for revascularization, nonfatal acute myocardial infarction, and coronary death) have been documented. Risk of clinical coronary events was positively related to coronary lesion progression for all three surrogate end points (P<.05). New lesion formation in bypass grafts (P=.02) and progression of mild/moderate lesions ( < 50%S) were predictive of clinical coronary events (P<.01). Change in MLD contributed significantly to the prediction of clinical coronary events beyond a model with %S alone (P<.05). CONCLUSIONS In this population of nonsmoking men with previous bypass surgery, both the consensus panel- and quantitative coronary angiography-based end points of coronary artery disease progression predict clinical coronary events. Subjects who demonstrate greater coronary artery lesion progression have an increased risk of future clinical coronary events. Design of shorter, smaller trials of antiatherosclerotic agents is justified.
Effects of surface and subsurface irregularities on the amplitudes of monochromatic waves

Measurements of surface ground motion generated by forced vibration of a nine-story reinforced concrete building at a distance of 2 to 5.5 km are described. Three components of the displacement field were measured at 13 points along a line traversing an elongated canyon underlain by a shallow and dipping alluvial layer. The variations of measured displacement amplitudes have been modeled by (a) a two dimensional surface topographic feature corresponding to the average cross section of the canyon and (b) by a two-dimensional model of an alluvium valley excited by a line source. Comparison of the observed and computed amplitude variations with distance suggests that for the geometry corresponding to this experiment the effect of the dipping layer of alluvium seems to play a considerably more important role than the canyon.
Factors influencing variability and potential uptake routes of heavy metals in black kites exposed to emissions from a solid‐waste incinerator

Exposure to heavy metals from emissions of the solid‐waste incinerator (SWI) of Madrid (Spain) was assessed by determining the relationships between the distance from black kite (Milvus migrans) nests to the SWI and metal concentrations in nestling blood and failed eggs. Lead levels increased as the distance to the SWI decreased, while no significant relationship was found for the remaining elements. Analysis of frequency distributions showed that Pb was normally distributed, suggesting a generalized exposure to this contaminant. Variability in metal levels within and between nests indicated a differential nest exposure to contaminant metals with sibling chicks showing similar metal levels. Correlations between essential and contaminant metals suggested detoxifying mechanisms mediated by essential metals. The contribution of metal residues in blood coming from deposition in eggs was minimal compared with residues coming from posthatch exposure. Exposure to particulate volatile Pb in the form of dust from fly ash emitted to the air by the SWI is suggested to be the main route of uptake via inhalation, while both dietary and respiratory routes may contribute to Cd uptake. The increasing human population living close to the SWI may be increasingly at risk from exposure to air‐borne contaminants depending on the emission standards from the SWI.
Cingulate Lesions Presenting With Epileptic Spasms

Purpose: To describe the novel finding of epileptic spasms arising from a cingulate lesion. Methods: We describe two children presenting with epileptic spasms who had lesions of the cingulate gyrus on MRI. Results: In both patients, the lesions involved the midcingulate cortex. Seizures were characterized by prominent motor manifestations and resembled spasms. Both patients had a complete resolution of seizures after resection of their cingulate lesions. Discussion: Cingulate seizures can present with a variety of behaviors including complex motor manifestations, vocalizations, and autonomic changes. Lesions in the midcingulate cortex can also produce epileptic spasms.
Preventing new sensitization and asthma onset by allergen immunotherapy: the current evidence

Purpose of review Specific allergen immunotherapy is considered a key candidate for a successful preventive intervention in atopic diseases. The strong association of atopic manifestations such as rhinitis and asthma with atopic sensitizations (specific serum IgE) provide a rationale for early intervention in childhood and adolescence. Recent findings Currently, the documentation of the disease-modifying intervention effects is limited to the secondary prevention of asthma symptoms in children with allergic rhinoconjunctivitis. These effects appear to be rather allergen specific than nonspecific. Summary Documentation on disease modification including a reduction of asthma symptoms in children, particularly with grass pollen tablets has become quite robust. It is not clear up to now, if the new onset of allergic sensitizations can be modified. So far data on primary prevention are not conclusive.
On-chip interconnect for mm-wave applications using an all-copper technology and wavelength reduction

Transmission lines are implemented using an all-copper backend developed for RF and microwave applications. Wavelength reduction is used to achieve a Q factor >20 from 20GHz to 40GHz, about three times higher than conventional transmission lines implemented with the same technology. It has 0.3dB/mm loss, and reduces the wavelength of a conventional transmission line by half thereby minimizing the space for on-chip microwave devices.
Implied Volatilities of Caps: a Gaussian approach

Implied volatilities of interest rate derivatives present some distinctive features, like the inverse relation with the underlying rates and the humped or decreasing shape of their term structure. The objective of this paper is to analyze and explain such features in a Gaussian framework. We will use an approximate relation which separates in a simple and natural way the effects on the implied volatility of the level and of the uncertainty of the interest rates. This is a useful tool for understanding the features of different models and to interpret some characteristics of the market.
Thy-1: More than a Mouse Pan-T Cell Marker1

Thy-1 (CD90) is a small GPI-anchored protein that is particularly abundant on the surface of mouse thymocytes and peripheral T cells. T cell proliferation and cytokine synthesis in response to Thy-1 cross-linking by specific mAb suggests a role for Thy-1 in mouse T lymphocyte activation. However, a physiological ligand or counterreceptor for murine Thy-1 in the lymphoid compartment has not yet been identified. Thy-1 cross-linking, in the context of strong costimulatory signaling through CD28, results in an activating signal that can at least partially substitute for TCR signaling during mouse T cell activation. Remarkably, Thy-1 cross-linking also results in the potent costimulation of T cells activated through the TCR. This novel dual signaling capacity suggests a possible role for Thy-1 in the maintenance of T cell homeostasis in the absence of TCR triggering, as well as potentiating Ag-induced T cell responses.
Application of SVR with backtracking search algorithm for long-term load forecasting

Long-term load forecasting is an important issue for a country’s power suppliers to determine the future electric system plan, investment and operation. This paper presents a novel hybrid long-term forecasting method with support vector regression(SVR) and backtracking search algorithm(BSA) optimization algorithm, which is used to obtain the parameters of the SVR. The practical case of China’s annual electricity demand is used to evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed method. According to the results, the performance of the proposed method is better than the SVR model with default parameters, back propagation artificial neural network (BPNN) and regression forecasting models in annual load forecasting.
Experimental stability assessment of converter-dominated electrical grids

With the inclusion of renewable generation into the electrical grid, traditional fossil-fueled plants based on synchronous generators have been gradually replaced by converterbased systems, controlled using the standard vectorial current control (DQCI). From the grid point of view, this control strategy makes converter behave as current sources that inject power to the grid but have limited magnitude or angle voltage regulation. The shortage of this task implies a detriment of the stability of key parameters for a stable grid, exposing the system to huge diversions of frequency and voltage. Ultimately, this can make generators to disconnect, compromising with it the stability of the whole system thanks to a cascade failure. However, as it will be seen in this paper, it is possible to transform the converter into a real regulating voltage source changing just the control algorithm. Thanks to this change, same converters can create now reference nodes (also called grid building nodes) in the grid which DQCI converters can follow. This scheme would allow the possibility to a robust system based completely on converters. This scenario is object of test in this paper where a power quality and stability assessment is conducted in the lab.