Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Ethnic and genetic factors of iron status in women of reproductive age.

Background: African Americans are at increased risk of iron deficiency (ID) but also have higher serum ferritin (SF) concentrations than those of the general population. The Hemochromatosis and Iron Overload Screening (HEIRS) Study was a multicenter study of ethnically diverse participants that tested for the hemochromatosis (HFE) C282Y genotype and iron status.Objective: We sought to determine the prevalence and predictors of ID (SF concentration ≤15 μg/L) and elevated iron stores (SF concentration >300 μg/L) in HEIRS women of reproductive age (25-44 y). Design: The HEIRS Study was a cross-sectional study of iron status and HFE mutations in primary care patients at 5 centers in the United States and Canada. We analyzed data for women of reproductive age according to whether or not they were pregnant or breastfeeding at the time of the study.Results: ID was present in 12.5% of 20,080 nonpregnant and nonbreastfeeding women compared with 19.2% of 1962 pregnant or breastfeeding women (P < 0.001). Asian American ethnicity (OR ≤0.9; P ≤ 0.049) and HFE C282Y (OR ≤0.84; P ≤ 0.060) were independently associated with a decreased risk of ID in nonpregnant and nonbreastfeeding women and in pregnant or breastfeeding women. Hispanic ethnicity (OR: 1.8; P < 0.001) and African American ethnicity (OR: 1.6; P < 0.001) were associated with an increased risk of ID in nonpregnant and nonbreastfeeding women. Elevated iron stores were shown in 1.7% of nonpregnant and nonbreastfeeding women compared with 0.7% of pregnant or breastfeeding women (P = 0.001). HFE C282Y homozygosity had the most marked independent association with elevated iron stores in nonpregnant and nonbreastfeeding women and in pregnant or breastfeeding women (OR >49.0; P < 0.001), but African American ethnicity was also associated with increased iron stores in both groups of women (OR >2.0; P < 0.001). Asian American ethnicity (OR: 1.8; P = 0.001) and HFE C282Y heterozygosity (OR: 1.9; P = 0.003) were associated with increased iron stores in nonpregnant and nonbreastfeeding women.Conclusions: Both ID and elevated iron stores are present in women of reproductive age and are influenced by ethnicity and HFE C282Y. Efforts to optimize iron status should keep these findings in view. This study was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT03276247.
Contrôle et performance des joint-ventures internationales dans les pays émergents: cas des JVI implantées en Turquie

L’objectif de cet article est d’examiner l’impact du contrôle sur la performance des partenaires locaux dans les joint-ventures internationales. Nous avons mobilisé la théorie des coûts de transaction, comme cadre d’analyse de la performance du partenaire local. Cette étude a été conduite auprès de 123 JVI implantées en Turquie recueillies à partir d’une base de données sur les IDE publiées par le Sous-Sécrétaire au Trésor Turc. D’abord, une synthèse des travaux ayant traité de la problématique du contrôle dans les joint-ventures internationales est présentée. Ensuite, nous débattrons de la question controversée de la performance dans le cadre des joint-ventures internationales. En effet, grâce à des modèles de régression simple, nous avons testé l’impact de différentes dimensions du contrôle (répartition du capital, étendue, etc.) sur la performance objective et subjective de la joint-venture internationale. Pour cela, nous avons formulé à chaque fois une hypothèse pour ces deux types de performance. Enfin, les résultats empiriques montrent que, dans un contexte de pays émergent, le contrôle exercé par le partenaire local n’a pas d’impact sur la performance subjective. De plus, il ressort que la théorie des coûts de transaction ne convient pas pour analyser la performance des joint-ventures internationales du point de vue du partenaire local. Ces résultats corroborent les travaux de Bertrand et Meschi (2006). Notre travail se veut un premier pas vers une approche plus complète intégrant d’autres déterminants pouvant influencer la performance (e.g. la confiance) et vers une meilleure compréhension des théories qui constituent un cadre théorique expliquant cette relation Contrôle-Performance.
Altered frontal‐amygdala effective connectivity during effortful emotion regulation in bipolar disorder

Sufficient prefrontal top‐down control of limbic affective areas, especially the amygdala, is essential for successful effortful emotion regulation (ER). Difficulties in effortful ER have been seen in patients with bipolar disorder (BD), which could be suggestive of a disturbed prefrontal‐amygdala regulation circuit. The aim of this study was to investigate whether BD patients show abnormal effective connectivity from the prefrontal areas to the amygdala during effortful ER (reappraisal).
Different responses of Caco-2 and MCF-7 cells to silver nanoparticles are based on highly similar mechanisms of action

Abstract The mode of action of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) is suggested to be exerted through both Ag+ and AgNP dependent mechanisms. Ingestion is one of the major NP exposure routes, and potential effects are often studied using Caco-2 cells, a well-established model for the gut epithelium. MCF-7 cells are epithelial breast cancer cells with extensive well-characterized toxicogenomics profiles. In the present study, we aimed to gain a deeper understanding of the cellular molecular responses in Caco-2 and MCF-7 cells after AgNP exposure in order to evaluate whether epithelial cells derived from different tissues demonstrated similar responses. These insights could possibly reduce the size of cell panels for NP hazard identification screening purposes. AgNPs of 20, 30, 60, and 110 nm, and AgNO3 were exposed for 6 h and 24 h. AgNPs were shown to be taken up and dissolve intracellularly. Compared with MCF-7 cells, Caco-2 cells showed a higher sensitivity to AgNPs, slower gene expression kinetics and absence of NP size-dependent responses. However, on a molecular level, no significant differences were observed between the two cell types. Transcriptomic analysis showed that Ag(NP) exposure caused (oxidative) stress responses, possibly leading to cell death in both cell lines. There was no indication for effects specifically induced by AgNPs. Responses to AgNPs appeared to be induced by silver ions released from the AgNPs. In conclusion, differences in mRNA responses to AgNPs between Caco-2 and MCF-7 cells were mainly related to timing and magnitude, but not to a different underlying mechanism.
THE HYPERTENSIVE HEART

As regards the degree of resistance that can be attained by the selection of favourable genetic factors within a host strain the evidence is somewhat conflicting. The term 'resistance', it will have been noted, has been used to cover a range of differences extending from a slight delay in time to death to the survival of a relatively high proportion of the infected individuals. It seems a little doubtful whether a group of animals all of which succumb to the experimental infection can be regarded as resistant in any effective sense, even though they live significantly longer than unselected controls. On the other hand, the differences between the selected and unselected groups in final mortality are in some cases (though by no means in all) very large. But so far there is no evidence that by selective breeding a strain can be obtained which is uniformly immune to a given bacterial infection, even when the test of immunity is only a single injection of a dose of a pathogenic bacterium that fails to kill 100 per cent. of controls.
Scalable Structural Modal Identification Using Dynamic Sensor Network Data with STRIDEX

This article uses the formulation of the structural identification using expectation maximization (STRIDE) algorithm for compatibility with the truncated physical model (TPM) to enable scalable, output‐only modal identification using dynamic sensor network (DSN) data. The DSN data class is an adaptable and efficient technique for storing measurements from a very large number of sensing nodes, which is the case in mobile sensor networks and BIGDATA problems. In this article, the STRIDEX output‐only identification algorithm is proposed for the stochastic TPM to estimate structural modal properties (frequencies, damping ratios, and mode shapes) directly from DSN data. The spatial information produced by this novel algorithm, called STRIDEX (“X” for extended), is scalable, as demonstrated in a strategy to construct high‐resolution mode shapes from a single DSN data set using a series of independent identification runs. The ability to extract detailed structural system information from DSN data in a computationally scalable framework is a step toward mobile infrastructure informatics in a large urban setting. The performance of the STRIDEX algorithm is demonstrated, using the simulated response of a 5,000 DOF structure, and experimentally, using measurements from two mobile sensor cars, which scanned about 8,000 points on a beam specimen in the laboratory. In the experimental results, a mobile sensor is shown to provide over 120 times more mode shape points than a fixed sensor.
MLK1 and MLK2 Coordinate RGA and CCA1 Activity to Regulate Hypocotyl Elongation in Arabidopsis thaliana[OPEN]

MUT9p-LIKE PROTEIN1 (MLK1) and MLK2 mediate the interaction between gibberellins and the circadian clock, thereby regulating plant growth in Arabidopsis. Gibberellins (GAs) modulate diverse developmental processes throughout the plant life cycle. However, the interaction between GAs and the circadian rhythm remains unclear. Here, we report that MUT9p-LIKE KINASE1 (MLK1) and MLK2 mediate the interaction between GAs and the circadian clock to regulate hypocotyl elongation in Arabidopsis thaliana. DELLA proteins function as master growth repressors that integrate phytohormone signaling and environmental pathways in plant development. MLK1 and MLK2 interact with the DELLA protein REPRESSOR OF ga1-3 (RGA). Loss of MLK1 and MLK2 function results in plants with short hypocotyls and hyposensitivity to GAs. MLK1/2 and RGA directly interact with CIRCADIAN CLOCK ASSOCIATED1 (CCA1), which targets the promoter of DWARF4 (DWF4) to regulate its roles in cell expansion. MLK1/2 antagonize the ability of RGA to bind CCA1, and these factors coordinately regulate the expression of DWF4. RGA suppressed the ability of CCA1 to activate expression from the DWF4 promoter, but MLK1/2 reversed this suppression. Genetically, MLK1/2 act in the same pathway as RGA and CCA1 in hypocotyl elongation. Together, our results provide insight into the mechanism by which MLK1 and MLK2 antagonize the function of RGA in hypocotyl elongation and suggest that MLK1/2 coordinately mediate the regulation of plant development by GAs and the circadian rhythm in Arabidopsis.
Investigation of InAsSbP quantum dot mid-infrared sensors

Abstract. This work presents the results of investigations of a low bias mid-infrared(IR) photoconductive cell (PCC) with InAsSbP quantum dots (QDs). The self-assembled nanostructures were grown on an InAs(100) substrate by modified liquid phase epitaxy. The coarsening of the QDs due to Ostwald ripening was discussed. Hysteresis with a remnant capacitance of 0.483 pF and contra-directional oscillations on the PCC's capacitance–voltage characteristic at 78 K were observed. Additionally, peaks at 3.48, 3.68 and 3.89 μm on the room temperature photoresponse spectrum of a quantum dot photoconductive cell were detected. Room temperature photo-sensing properties were investigated under an irradiation of 3.39 μm as well. At a power density of 0.07 W cm−2, the surface resistance of quantum dot PCC was reduced by up to 7 %. A current responsivity of 0.2 mA W−1 was measured at an applied voltage of 8 mV.
Observation of Cleft Palate in an Individual with SOX11 Mutation

Objective: Point mutations and deletions within the SOX11 gene have recently been described in individuals with a rare variant of Coffin-Siris syndrome, OMIM 615866, an intellectual disability syndrome with associated features of nail hypoplasia, microcephaly, and characteristic facial features including a wide mouth and prominent lips. Participant: We describe a further patient with a mutation in SOX11 and phenotype resembling mild Coffin-Siris syndrome. Results: This boy had a cleft palate, a feature not previously seen in other patients with SOX11 mutations. Conclusion: We discuss This adds to the current evidence that SOX11 is a gene involved in palatogenesis.
Effects of ovarian hormones upon the sexual skin and mounting behaviour in the free-ranging chacma baboon (Papio ursinus).

Implants of oestradiol induced turgescence of the sexual skin of ovariectomised baboons and stimulated mounting by males when the females were released into a study troop. The addition of a progestational agent caused deturgescence of the sexual skin and suppressed sexual activity. There was no dose-response relationship between oestrogen and behaviour. Mounting was not quantitatively related to the degree of swelling of the sexual skin.
Active in Situ Biomonitoring of Pesticide Pulses Using Gammarus spp. in Small Tributaries of Lake Constance

Gammarids are important members of a stream’s macrozoobenthos biocoenosis and food web. Moreover, they proved to be very sensitive towards different types of pollution. GamTox TM is a new in situ ecotoxicity test, based on survival and feeding behavior of caged gammarids for active monitoring of small streams in agricultural areas. GamTox TM has been applied in two streams with specific pollution problems in the catchment of Lake Constance. Ten organisms were exposed in 5 replicates in flow through test tubes containing one conditioned alder leaf, placed in baskets which were attached in the stream bottom and on the banks. Each week, the number of living animals was counted, the percentage of leaf skeletized estimated in semi-quantitative classes and a new elder leaf provided. Dead organisms were removed. Simultaneously, chemical analyses of pesticides and nutrients (N-compounds, P) were performed on cumulative water samples over one week. Moreover, macrozoobenthos was collected and determined according to the IBCH method, and the SPEAR index calculated. GamTox TM proved to be very sensitive to detect pesticides, copper as well as nutrients, both during acute pollution pulses and chronic exposures of up to 6 weeks. Survival turned out to be a more sensitive and less variable parameter than feeding. GamTox TM is easy to perform and directly provides a measure of ecotoxicological effects of toxicant/nutrient mixtures, which cannot be predicted by biological indices based on macrozoobenthos data such as IBCH and SPEAR-index. This study was co-financed by the InterReg IV project “Okotoxikologischer Index im Bodenseeraum”, no. 227 (2011-2013) supported by the EFRE.
Noninvasive assessment of haemodynamics in resistant hypertension: the role of the renal resistive index

Objective: The association of resistant hypertension (RHTN) with renal haemodynamics is unclear. Our aim was to evaluate differences in haemodynamic characteristics of patients with RHTN compared with patients with controlled hypertension (HTN) at the level of the heart, kidney and aorta. Methods: We studied 50 patients with RHTN confirmed by ambulatory blood pressure monitoring and 50 controlled hypertensive patients matched for age and sex. All participants underwent renal Doppler ultrasound to determine the renal resistive index (RRI), a complete echocardiographic study including measurements of diastolic function and evaluation of augmentation index. Results: Hypertensive patients with RHTN compared with those without RHTN had a significantly decreased E/A ratio (by 0.12, P = 0.043), an increased E/e′ ratio (by 3.1, P < 0.001), increased albumin-to-creatinine ratio levels (by 49 mg/g, P = 0.023) and a significantly higher RRI (by 0.078, P < 0.001) but similar augmentation index values (P = 0.79). Logistic regression revealed that presence of RHTN was the strongest predictor of an RRI more than 0.7 after controlling for other haemodynamic variables including blood pressure levels. Receiver-operator characteristic analysis revealed an area under the curve for prediction of RHTN by the RRI alone of 80.3% (95% confidence interval: 0.72–0.89, P < 0.001). An RRI cut-point of 0.648 has a sensitivity of 78% and a specificity of 72% for prediction of RHTN. Conclusion: In a well treated hypertensive population, patients with RHTN show more pronounced renal and cardiac haemodynamic dysfunction compared with patients with controlled HTN. A greater RRI seems to be associated with RHTN and may help identify such patients.
Lead-interacting proteins and their implication in lead poisoning

Abstract Lead is an important heavy metal used worldwide in several applications, especially in industry. People exposed to lead can develop a wide range of symptoms associated with lead poisoning. Many effects of lead poisoning are reported in the literature, showing a compromising of whole body health, with symptoms related to cardiovascular, immune, bone, reproductive, hematological, renal, gastrointestinal, and nervous system. However, the molecular lead targets as well as the pathways affected by lead poisoning are not completely described. The aim of this study was to construct a map of metabolic pathways impaired in lead poisoning by evaluating which biomolecules are directly affected by lead. Through manual literature curation, we identified proteins which physically interact with lead and subsequently determined the metabolic pathways those proteins are involved with. At total, we identified 23 proteins involved with heme synthesis, calcium metabolism, neurotransmission, among other biological systems, which helps to understand the wide range of lead-poisoning symptoms.
Trait and state binge eating predispose towards cocaine craving

Binge eating (BE) and drug seeking share similar behavioral features, including loss of control over consumption and compulsive seeking of the craved substance. Previous studies in animal models have demonstrated a complex interaction between ‘state’ BE, produced by intermittent access to a palatable diet, and ‘trait’ BE, a phenotypical proneness towards overeating. In the present study, we examined the relationship between state and trait BE and cocaine seeking. We used Otsuka Long Evans Tokushima Fatty rats, a genetic model for obesity that demonstrates BE‐like behavior, and Long Evans Tokushima Otsuka controls. They received a schedule of limited access to a palatable diet (3 days/week or 5 days/week access to Ensure for a month). Next, they underwent cocaine self‐administration training (1 mg/kg, 1 hour/day for 10 days) followed by extinction sessions (7 days). We found that the degree of BE‐like behavior and the state and trait BE combination predicted cocaine craving patterns. Lower levels of dopamine D2 receptors in the prefrontal cortex were correlated with increased drug craving. Moreover, restricted access to an attractive diet was found to be a risk factor for heightened cocaine craving, particularly in trait binge eaters, as rats on the 3 days/week access schedule persistently failed to cease cocaine seeking throughout extinction. Hence, we postulate a joint role of state and trait BE as risk factors for heightened cocaine craving.
Intraoperative Rupture of Unruptured Cerebral Aneurysm during Craniotomy: A Case Report

An unruptured aneurysm was incidentally found in the right middle cerebral artery in a 67-year-old woman. During an attempt to turn the temporalis muscle for surgical clipping, systolic blood pressure suddenly increased. After opening the dura mater, we found a subarachnoid hemorrhage and severe brain swelling. We promptly expanded the craniotomy area to reach the aneurysm while pulling part of the frontal lobe to apply a clip. We retrospectively analyzed the aneurysm using computational fluid dynamics. Our analysis suggests that the rupture of the aneurysm occurred at a location with very low wall shear stress.
Roxithromycin penetration into gingiva and alveolar bone of odontoiatric patients.

The concentrations of the new macrolide antibiotic roxithromycin in plasma, saliva, gingiva, and alveolar bone were studied in 24 odontoiatric patients treated with a first dose of 300 mg p.o. followed by three maintenance doses of 150 mg p.o. , 12-hourly. Samples of blood, saliva, gingiva, and bone were collected at various time points up to 24 h after the last dosing, and the roxithromycin concentration was measured microbiologically, using Bacillus subtilis ATCC 6633 as the reference organism. Pharmacokinetic analysis was performed according to a two-compartment open model with first-order absorption. The plasma, gingiva, and alveolar bone peak concentrations were 6.12 +/- 1.94 mg/l, 6.55 +/- 2.54 mg/kg, and 5.09 +/- 1.60 mg/kg, respectively. Low levels of roxithromycin were detected in saliva (0.67 +/- 0.12 mg/l at the 3rd h). The values of the area under the concentration-time curve for plasma, gingiva, and bone were 59.47 mg/l.h, 51.88 mg/kg.h and 46.80 mg/kg.h, respectively; the half-life values were 7.52 h for plasma and 6.36 and 5.20 h for gingiva and bone, respectively. These results indicate that roxithromycin reaches high levels in periodontal tissues.
Serum HIV–1 RNA Levels Compared to Soluble Markers of Immune Activation to Predict Disease Progression in HIV–1–Infected Individuals

We assessed the value of HIV–1 RNA level compared to soluble immune activation markers, namely neopterin, β2–microglobulin and soluble TNF receptor 75 (sTNFR–75), to predict the change in the number of CD4+ T cells over a 1–year period, the development of AIDS, and survival (median follow–up 54 months). The study population comprised a cohort of 47 individuals for the analysis of the change in CD4+ T cells and survival (20 died), and a subgroup of 31 individuals with a baseline CD4+ T cells above 200×106/l for the development of AIDS (11 developed AIDS). HIV–1 RNA was measured from stored sera by quantitative PCR. The CD4+ T cell count obtained at study entry strongly correlated with baseline serum HIV–1 RNA levels (r = –0.47), and to a lesser extent with neopterin (r = –0.41) and β2–microglobulin (r = –0.29). The percentage change in CD4+ T cells over a 1–year period correlated with HIV–1 RNA levels (r = –0.32, p = 0.03), however, stronger correlations were found for neopterin, β2–microglobulin and sTNFR–75 (r = –0.51, r = –0.41, r = –0.42; p<0.01). No progression to AIDS or death was observed in individuals with baseline HIV–1 RNA levels below 20,000 copies/ml (10 of 31 and 15 of 47 individuals, respectively). A Cox’s proportional hazard model to predict AIDS revealed that HIV–1 RNA, the change in CD4+ cells over a 1–year period and sTNFR–75 levels independently predict AIDS; the change in CD4+ cells, the absolute CD4+ T cell count and neopterin were jointly significant to predict death. All results were adjusted for nucleoside monotherapy. In conclusion, to improve the predictive power, quantitation of HIV–1 RNA as a 'natural history marker’ may be supplemented by measurement of sTNFR–75 for 'early’–stage disease progression and neopterin for 'late’–stage disease progression.