Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Physical Profile and Impact of a Calcium-Incorporated Implant Surface on Preosteoblastic Cell Morphologic and Differentiation Parameters: A Comparative Analysis.

PURPOSE To assess and compare topographic features and preosteoblastic cell responses of a new hydrothermally treated, calcium-incorporated surface against other commercially available implant surfaces. MATERIALS AND METHODS Four different surfaces were the subject of comparison in this study: machined (MC), resorbable blast media (RBM), sandblasted/large-grit/acid-etched (SLA), and calcium-incorporated SLA (Ca-SLA). Surface morphology and roughness were first characterized by scanning electron microscope (SEM) and white light interferometer, respectively. Preosteoblastic MC3T3-E1 cells were then cultured on the titanium surfaces. Cell morphology was observed at 24 hours, 48 hours, 7 days, and 15 days by SEM; differentiation was assessed at 7, 11, and 15 days by assaying alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity and osteocalcin (OCN) levels. RESULTS Surface characterization revealed nanotopographic features on Ca-SLA. At topographic analysis, SLA and Ca-SLA showed similar roughness values. Significant differences in cell differentiation parameters were found only at 15 days between the SLA surfaces (both Ca-incorporated and nonincorporated) and MC. CONCLUSION Collectively, this study demonstrated that hydrothermal treatment determines the formation of nanotopography without altering the SLA microtopography. Moreover, Ca-SLA and SLA induce MC3T3-E1 cell differentiation at comparable levels.
The role of inflammation and infection in the pathogenesis of prostate carcinoma

Two of the mini reviews are about aspects of prostate cancer that are currently often discussed. The role of inflammation in the pathogenesis of prostate cancer is of great interest and has led to many important changes in our approaches to the subject of prostate cancer. Intermittent androgen deprivation has been an alternative therapeutic option for some time, but the absence of a large multicentre randomized controlled trial has delayed its general acceptance; this is discussed in detail in this section.
Coordinate changes of myosin light and heavy chain isoforms during forced fiber type transitions in rabbit muscle.

Skeletal muscle fibers are versatile entities, capable of changing their phenotype in response to altered functional demands. In the present study, fast-to-slow fiber type transitions were induced in rabbit tibialis anterior (fA) muscles by chronic low-frequency stimulation (CLFS). The time course of changes in relative protein concentrations of fast and slow myosin light chain (MLC) isoforms and changes in their relative synthesis rates by in vivo labeling with [35S]methionine were followed during stimulation periods of up to 60 days. Generally, relative synthesis rates and protein concentrations changed in parallel; i.e., fast isoforms decreased and slow isoforms increased. MLC3f, however, which turns over at a higher rate than the other light chains, exhibited a conspicuous discrepancy between a markedly reduced relative synthesis but only a moderate decrease in protein amount during the initial 2 weeks of CLFS. Apparently, MLC3f is regulated independent of MLC1f, with protein degradation playing an important role in its regulation. The exchange of fast MLC isoforms with their slow counterparts seemed to correspond to the ultimate fast-to-slow (MHCIIa-->MHCI) transition at the MHC level. However, due to an earlier onset of the fast-to-slow transition of the regulatory light chain and the delayed fast-to-slow exchange of the alkali light chains, a spectrum of hybrid isomyosins composed of fast and slow light and heavy chains must have existed transiently in transforming fibers. Such hybrid isomyosins appeared to be restricted to MHCIIa- and MHCI-based combinations. In conclusion, fiber type specific programs that normally coordinate the expression of myofibrillar protein isoforms seem to be maintained during fiber type transitions. Possible differences in post-transcriptional regulation may result in the transient accumulation of atypical combinations of fast and slow MLC and MHC isoforms, giving rise to the appearance of hybrid fibers under the conditions of forced fiber type conversion.
Flipping chromosomes in deep-sea archaea

One of the major mechanisms driving the evolution of all organisms is genomic rearrangement. In hyperthermophilic Archaea of the order Thermococcales, large chromosomal inversions occur so frequently that even closely related genomes are difficult to align. Clearly not resulting from the native homologous recombination machinery, the causative agent of these inversions has remained elusive. We present a model in which genomic inversions are catalyzed by the integrase enzyme encoded by a family of mobile genetic elements. We characterized the integrase from Thermococcus nautili plasmid pTN3 and showed that besides canonical site-specific reactions, it catalyzes low sequence specificity recombination reactions with the same outcome as homologous recombination events on DNA segments as short as 104bp both in vitro and in vivo, in contrast to other known tyrosine recombinases. Through serial culturing, we showed that the integrase-mediated divergence of T. nautili strains occurs at an astonishing rate, with at least four large-scale genomic inversions appearing within 60 generations. Our results and the ubiquitous distribution of pTN3-like integrated elements suggest that a major mechanism of evolution of an entire order of Archaea results from the activity of a selfish mobile genetic element.
Impact of Herd Behavior on Investment Decision of Investors And Stock Market Price Volatility – An Empirical Study

This paper analyses the influence of herding behaviour on Indian retail and professional investors and its impact on stock market price volatility in financial capital Market. By referring to psychology and pointing out the imperfections of a human mind, it reveals mistakes committed by both individual and professional investors. In the 2008 financial crisis, behavioral inclinations affected not only the investors but also market-supporting entities and regulatory institutions. This study mainly study on how irrational behavior influence on retail and professional investors and how they will take investment decisions based on different available sources.
Synthesis of next state feedback control of discrete event systems by using Petri net unfoldings

A method for synthesizing feedback control logic for live and safe marked graphs has been given by Holloway and Krogh. The method strongly depends on the structure of marked graphs, and thus it has not been extended to wider classes. This paper considers the same problem of synthesizing the maximal permissive feedback control for a special condition by using unfoldings. Structural characteristics of unfoldings are similar to that of marked graphs. Transforming a Petri net to an unfolding allows us to apply the Holloway's approach to general bounded Petri nets.
Comparison of the respiratory microbiome in healthy nonsmokers and smokers.

RATIONALE Results from 16S rDNA-encoding gene sequence-based, culture-independent techniques have led to conflicting conclusions about the composition of the lower respiratory tract microbiome. OBJECTIVES To compare the microbiome of the upper and lower respiratory tract in healthy HIV-uninfected nonsmokers and smokers in a multicenter cohort. METHODS Participants were nonsmokers and smokers without significant comorbidities. Oral washes and bronchoscopic alveolar lavages were collected in a standardized manner. Sequence analysis of bacterial 16S rRNA-encoding genes was performed, and the neutral model in community ecology was used to identify bacteria that were the most plausible members of a lung microbiome. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS Sixty-four participants were enrolled. Most bacteria identified in the lung were also in the mouth, but specific bacteria such as Enterobacteriaceae, Haemophilus, Methylobacterium, and Ralstonia species were disproportionally represented in the lungs compared with values predicted by the neutral model. Tropheryma was also in the lung, but not the mouth. Mouth communities differed between nonsmokers and smokers in species such as Porphyromonas, Neisseria, and Gemella, but lung bacterial populations did not. CONCLUSIONS This study is the largest to examine composition of the lower respiratory tract microbiome in healthy individuals and the first to use the neutral model to compare the lung to the mouth. Specific bacteria appear in significantly higher abundance in the lungs than would be expected if they originated from the mouth, demonstrating that the lung microbiome does not derive entirely from the mouth. The mouth microbiome differs in nonsmokers and smokers, but lung communities were not significantly altered by smoking.
Towards a behavioral theory of the exchange rate

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Switching from the unfolded to the folded state of the helix‐loop‐helix domain of the Id proteins based on the O‐acyl isopeptide method

The inhibitors of DNA binding and cell differentiation Id1–4 are helix‐loop‐helix (HLH) proteins that negatively regulate DNA transcription by forming inactive dimers with ubiquitous and tissue‐specific bHLH proteins, including E47 and MyoD, respectively. Their highly conserved HLH domains are essential for heterodimerization, but can also self‐associate to highly stable, α‐helix‐rich structures at low micromolar peptide concentrations. Here, we show that the introduction of an O‐acyl isodipeptide unit involving the putative N‐cap serine residue of the C‐terminal helix completely abrogates the propensity of the Id HLH analogue for any secondary and tertiary structure, resulting in a random coil, as shown by CD measurements in nonbuffered aqueous solutions. However, the HLH fold reappears as soon as an O → N intramolecular acyl migration, which occurs spontaneously under physiological conditions, restores the native N‐cap serine residue. These results show that changes addressing the N‐terminus of the C‐terminal helix can dramatically influence the HLH structure, and suggest that local interactions at the junction between the loop and the C‐terminal helix might be crucial during the HLH folding process. Furthermore, the present study contributes to the evaluation of the O‐acyl isodipeptide unit as a powerful tool to introduce a conformational switch into peptides. Copyright © 2008 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
International trade, pollution, and economic structure: evidence on CO2 emissions for the North and the South

ABSTRACT This study investigates the mechanics of international trade and CO2 emissions in two blocs of countries (‘North’ and ‘South’) by analyzing data from the World Input–Output Database. We adapt the Miyazawa technique to estimate the linkages between international trade and the environment at a global scale. Therefore, this study is in line with the idea of highlighting the role of feedback effects as well as the nature and extent of extra-regional influences on an economy in response to an additional stimulus. This is a contribution that, to our best knowledge, has not yet appeared in the literature. Our results suggest that both the North and the South have become less pollution-intensive (technique effect) over the years. Interestingly and in contrast to much of the literature, we also find support to the hypothesis that the South has specialized in relatively more pollution-intensive activities (composition effect).
Power to the Periphery? the Failure of Regional Convergence in Canada, 1890-2006

Economic historians have long signalled the importance of location-specific resource booms in the Canadian development experience, but a full analysis of the dynamics of Canada's internal income dynamics is conspicuously absent. This article presents comprehensive estimates of regional inequality in Canada from 1890 to 2006 and assesses the sources of convergence and divergence across Canadian provinces. Our convergence decompositions support the central role of resource booms in accounting for regional income dynamics, and show that structural change contributing relatively little to the development process. Our findings are in sharp contrast to the historical experience of other countries, including the United States.
Fission, forking and fine tuning

Abstract Does innovation proceed from the top down or the bottom up? This is a crucial question for those who think about the sources of economic growth and especially for those who think about policies and institutions to promote innovation. The answer lies in part with the structure of the existing system of production and the array of assets that an innovation would displace, especially on the extent of complementarity and modularity in that structure. But it also depends on institutions. This paper argues for the centrality of decision rights to the process of innovation. Especially if it takes place in a systemic, non-modular way, innovation may require unified decision rights, often implying integrated control of complementary stages of production, in order to overcome the dynamic transaction costs of change. But the processes of subdivision, differentiation, and learning – the processes of fission, forking, and fine tuning – may also require changes in decision rights in order to overcome dynamic transaction costs. I illustrate these points with a case study of three generations of an American family of inventor-entrepreneurs in electricity and electronics.
Effect on Cerebral Blood Flow of Orally Administered Indomethacin‐loaded Poly(isobutylcyanoacrylate) and Poly(DL‐lactide) Nanocapsules

Abstract— Nanocapsules, containing indomethacin, were prepared either by interfacial polymerization of isobutylcyanoacrylate monomers or by interfacial deposition of a preformed (DL‐lactide) polymer. In‐vitro release of indomethacin from nanocapsules was dependent on the pH of the sink solution and was enhanced by addition of albumin. A decrease in cerebral blood flow was noted 15 min after oral administration to rats of indomethacin nanocapsules (5 mg kg−1) and lasted over 3 h. Empty nanocapsules had no effect. Since release of indomethacin from nanocapsules is unlikely to occur in the lumen of the stomach, due to unsuitable pH conditions, and nanocapsules have been previously shown to be able to cross the intestinal barrier, to reach the villi vessels intact and to protect against the ulcerating effect of the free drug, it is suggested that the rapid onset of the pharmacological effect was sufficiently induced by free indomethacin released in the plasma following absorption of the intact nanocapsules.
Stochastic Modeling of Wind Derivatives in Energy Markets

We model the logarithm of the spot price of electricity with a normal inverse Gaussian (NIG) process and the wind speed and wind power production with two Ornstein–Uhlenbeck processes. In order to reproduce the correlation between the spot price and the wind power production, namely between a pure jump process and a continuous path process, respectively, we replace the small jumps of the NIG process by a Brownian term. We then apply our models to two different problems: first, to study from the stochastic point of view the income from a wind power plant, as the expected value of the product between the electricity spot price and the amount of energy produced; then, to construct and price a European put-type quanto option in the wind energy markets that allows the buyer to hedge against low prices and low wind power production in the plant. Calibration of the proposed models and related price formulas is also provided, according to specific datasets.
Zinc inhibition of monomeric and dimeric proton channels suggests cooperative gating

Voltage‐gated proton channels are strongly inhibited by Zn2+, which binds to His residues. However, in a molecular model, the two externally accessible His are too far apart to coordinate Zn2+. We hypothesize that high‐affinity Zn2+ binding occurs at the dimer interface between pairs of His residues from both monomers. Consistent with this idea, Zn2+ effects were weaker in monomeric channels. Mutation of His193 and His140 in various combinations and in tandem dimers revealed that channel opening was slowed by Zn2+ only when at least one His was present in each monomer, suggesting that in wild‐type (WT) HV1, Zn2+ binding between His of both monomers inhibits channel opening. In addition, monomeric channels opened exponentially, and dimeric channels opened sigmoidally. Monomeric channel gating had weaker temperature dependence than dimeric channels. Finally, monomeric channels opened 6.6 times faster than dimeric channels. Together, these observations suggest that in the proton channel dimer, the two monomers are closely apposed and interact during a cooperative gating process. Zn2+ appears to slow opening by preventing movement of the monomers relative to each other that is prerequisite to opening. These data also suggest that the association of the monomers is tenuous and allows substantial freedom of movement. The data support the idea that native proton channels are dimeric. Finally, the idea that monomer–dimer interconversion occurs during activation of phagocytes appears to be ruled out.
Feasibility of Blood Glucose Self-Monitoring in Unstable Insulin-dependent Diabetes

We have studied the impact of home blood glucose measurements with the Ames Dextrostix/Eyetone system on the metabolic control of 17 insulin-dependent, ketosis-prone, unstable diabetic patients. Thirteen patients (69 patient-months) were enrolled in a comprehensive program designed to achieve excellent metabolic control and which included the daily use of the Eyetone meter. Eleven of these patients were diabetic kidney recipients on daily prednisone. The improvement of the metabolic control, as assessed by daily home blood glucose measurements, was highly significant (P < 0.001) in 11 patients (85%). The control was still inadequate, however, in at least seven patients. In four unstable diabetic patients who were given the meter for 4 mo but were not followed closely during this period, modest or no improvement in metabolic control was observed. The Eyetone meter proved highly precise and accurate in our patients' hands. Several patients achieved a coefficient of variation of less than 5 (in 10 consecutive determinations) and a correlation coefficient with the Beckman glucose analyzer of 0.96. We concluded that the metabolic control can be markedly improved in the most unstable diabetic patients with home blood glucose measurements, provided the patients receive adequate and frequent encouragement and diabetic teaching. Without the latter, at least in unstable diabetes, whether patients are compliant or not, the instrument may have little impact on control.
Automatic estimation of the noise model in fundus images

For several years, a lot of studies have been done on image analysis and image understanding. In medical imaging, the retinal images are usually corrupted by noise in its acquisition or transmission. There are various sources of noise inherent in the use of CCD's (Charge Coupled Device) and other external effects such as space radiation (cosmic rays) can have negative effects on the obtained data. In the context of retinal image denoising, most of algorithms assumes the noise is additive and independent of the RGB image data, and is also a Gaussian sample. However, the type and level of the noise generated by digital cameras are unknown if we don't have enough informations about the sensor and circuitry of a digital camera. Therefore, these approaches cannot effectively recover the ”true” signal (or its best approximation) from these noisy acquired observations. Thus, modeling noise in retinal images is an important and huge step before any processing task. The purpose of this paper is to explore CCD's and understand an algorithm for estimating the noise model in fundus image.
Chinese Exports and Non-Tariff Measures: Testing for Heterogeneous Effects at the Product Level

Concerns about a possible turn of the global trade policy agenda are on the rise. Indeed, even if tariffs are at a historically low levels, non-tariff measures (NTMs) play an important – and growing – role in global trade policy. In this paper, using a recently released database on NTMs (UNCTAD), and relying on a gravity model, we focus on Chinese exports with two aims in mind: the first is to test for possible heterogeneous effects of different type of NTMs. The second is to verify empirically whether NTMs have larger negative effects for specific set of goods, i.e. final goods. We find that 1) technical NTMs tend to have positive effects on trade flows, whereas non-technical NTMs do not have clear effects at the aggregate level and 2) NTMs have heterogeneous effects at the product level: in the case of final goods, non-technical NTMs have negative and significant effects.
Pathologic characteristics of second breast cancers after breast conservation for ductal carcinoma in situ

The number of women diagnosed with ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) is increasing. Although many eventually develop a second breast cancer (SBC), little is known about the characteristics of SBCs. The authors described the characteristics of SBC and examined associations between the pathologic features of SBC and index DCIS cases.
The Assembly of Progesterone Receptor-hsp90 Complexes Using Purified Proteins*

The progesterone receptor can be reconstituted into hsp90-containing complexes in vitro, and the resulting complexes are needed to maintain hormone binding activity. This process requires ATP/Mg2+, K+, and several axillary proteins. We have developed a defined system for the assembly of progesterone receptor complexes using purified proteins. Five proteins are needed to form complexes that are capable of maintaining hormone binding activity. These include hsp70 and its co-chaperone, hsp40, the hsp70/hsp90-binding protein, Hop, hsp90, and the hsp90-binding protein, p23. The proteins Hip and FKBP52 were not required for this in vitro process even though they have been observed in receptor complexes. Each of the five proteins showed a characteristic concentration dependence. Similar concentrations of hsp70, hsp90, and p23 were needed for optimal assembly, but hsp40 and Hop were effective at about 1/10 the concentration of the other proteins, suggesting that these two proteins act catalytically or are needed at levels similar to the receptor concentration. ATP was required for the functioning of both hsp70 and hsp90. The binding of hsp70 to the receptor requires hsp40 and about 10 μm ATP; however, hsp90 binding appears to occur subsequent to hsp70 binding and is optimal with 1 mm ATP. A three-step model is presented to describe the assembly process.