Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Circularly permuted monomeric red fluorescent proteins with new termini in the β‐sheet

Circularly permuted fluorescent proteins (FPs) have a growing number of uses in live cell fluorescence biosensing applications. Most notably, they enable the construction of single fluorescent protein‐based biosensors for Ca2+ and other analytes of interest. Circularly permuted FPs are also of great utility in the optimization of fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET)‐based biosensors by providing a means for varying the critical dipole–dipole orientation. We have previously reported on our efforts to create circularly permuted variants of a monomeric red FP (RFP) known as mCherry. In our previous work, we had identified six distinct locations within mCherry that tolerated the insertion of a short peptide sequence. Creation of circularly permuted variants with new termini at the locations corresponding to the sites of insertion led to the discovery of three permuted variants that retained no more than 18% of the brightness of mCherry. We now report the extensive directed evolution of the variant with new termini at position 193 of the protein sequence for improved fluorescent brightness. The resulting variant, known as cp193g7, has 61% of the intrinsic brightness of mCherry and was found to be highly tolerant of circular permutation at other locations within the sequence. We have exploited this property to engineer an expanded series of circularly permuted variants with new termini located along the length of the 10th β‐strand of mCherry. These new variants may ultimately prove useful for the creation of single FP‐based Ca2+ biosensors.
Local councils and public consultation: extending the reach of democracy

This article considers public consultation in the context of New Zealand local government. Although by international standards New Zealand possesses a rich culture of citizen engagement and public consultation (OECD, 2015), the quality of consultation presents itself as a problem to local government, as their efforts have often been perceived as unsatisfactory (Asquith, 2012; Barrett, 2011; Barrett and Scott, 2008; Bond, 2007; Cheyne, 2015; Woodward, 2016). New Zealand’s consultation environment is particular too, in that local government engagement with Maori, including with iwi organisations such as runanga, with matawaka (Maori living outside the rohe of their iwi affiliations) and via central government, is integral to decision-making processes (Ryks, Pearson and Waa, 2016). We begin by sketching some theoretical underpinnings of consultation, and the legislative requirements for consultation in New Zealand. We then consider two examples – Loomio in Wellington and Share an Idea in Christchurch – before signalling some areas in which public consultation could be improved and local government can increase its democratic efficacy.
Kinetic study of the bioaccumulation of heavy metals (Cu, Pb, and Cd) in Chinese domestic oyster Ostrea plicatula

Much attention has been given to heavy metal contamination in coastal waters and on seafood safety induced by bioaccumulation of aquatic organisms in China. To obtain the kinetic characteristics of heavy metal bioaccumulation in Chinese native organisms, the accumulation and elimination of three heavy metals (Cu, Pb, and Cd) in domestic oyster Ostrea plicatula were investigated in both laboratory and field conditions. The kinetic parameters of bioaccumulation, including the uptake rate constant (K 1), elimination rate constant (K 2), bioconcentration factors (BCFs), and biological half-life (t 1/2), were estimated through nonlinear curve fitting using a two-compartment model. The results showed that the Pb and Cd metal concentration data perfectly fitted the two-compartment model, and good agreement was obtained between the predicted data and those obtained by the goodness-of-fit test. However, the Cu data did not fit the model. The modeling results indicated that the Pb and Cd concentrations in O. plicatula could reflect the contamination status of seawater and that O. plicatula is a potentially dependable indicator for monitoring heavy metal (Pb and Cd) contamination and seafood safety in the coastal areas of China.
Binaural Interaction in Human Neonatal Auditory Brainstem

Binaural interaction (BI) in brainstem auditory evoked response (BAER) were examined in normal term neonates. The BI components coincided consistently with the latency range of BAER wave IV through wave VII. Most BI components seen in the adults could be identified in the neonates, but the later components, i.e. those with longer latency, were underdeveloped in wave form. Wave DV was the most consistent and reproducible BI component. A marked difference between the neonatal and adult BI wave forms was that wave DVII was particularly small in the neonates. It appears that neuronal responses contributing to later BI components such as wave DVII are particularly immature at birth. Wave latencies and interpeak intervals were longer and amplitudes were smaller in the neonates than in the adults, which was associated with the differences between the neonates and adults in the BAER components. Changes in the BI components with stimulus intensity and rate in the neonates were fundamentally similar to but more significant compared with those in the adults. These findings suggest that neural connections in human auditory brainstem subserving the BI are established at birth but, particularly at higher levels of the brainstem, are immature.
Randomized trial of omalizumab (anti-IgE) for asthma in inner-city children.

BACKGROUND Research has underscored the effects of exposure and sensitization to allergens on the severity of asthma in inner-city children. It has also revealed the limitations of environmental remediation and guidelines-based therapy in achieving greater disease control. METHODS We enrolled inner-city children, adolescents, and young adults with persistent asthma in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group trial at multiple centers to assess the effectiveness of omalizumab, as compared with placebo, when added to guidelines-based therapy. The trial was conducted for 60 weeks, and the primary outcome was symptoms of asthma. RESULTS Among 419 participants who underwent randomization (at which point 73% had moderate or severe disease), omalizumab as compared with placebo significantly reduced the number of days with asthma symptoms, from 1.96 to 1.48 days per 2-week interval, a 24.5% decrease (P<0.001). Similarly, omalizumab significantly reduced the proportion of participants who had one or more exacerbations from 48.8 to 30.3% (P<0.001). Improvements occurred with omalizumab despite reductions in the use of inhaled glucocorticoids and long-acting beta-agonists. CONCLUSIONS When added to a regimen of guidelines-based therapy for inner-city children, adolescents, and young adults, omalizumab further improved asthma control, nearly eliminated seasonal peaks in exacerbations, and reduced the need for other medications to control asthma. (Funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and Novartis; ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00377572.).
EFFECTS OF DIFFERENTIAL STRETCHING PROTOCOLS DURING WARM‐UPS ON HIGH‐SPEED MOTOR CAPACITIES IN PROFESSIONAL SOCCER PLAYERS

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of different modes of stretching within a pre-exercise warm-up on high-speed motor capacities important to soccer performance. Eighteen professional soccer players were tested for countermovement vertical jump, stationary 10-m sprint, flying 20-m sprint, and agility performance after different warm-ups consisting of static stretching, dynamic stretching, or no stretching. There was no significant difference among warm-ups for the vertical jump: mean ± SD data were 40.4 ± 4.9 cm (no stretch), 39.4 ± 4.5 cm (static), and 40.2 ± 4.5 cm (dynamic). The dynamic-stretch protocol produced significantly faster 10-m sprint times than did the no-stretch protocol: 1.83 ± 0.08 seconds (no stretch), 1.85 ± 0.08 seconds (static), and 1.87 ± 0.09 seconds (dynamic). The dynamic- and static-stretch protocols produced significantly faster flying 20-m sprint times than did the nostretch protocol: 2.41 ± 0.13 seconds (no stretch), 2.37 ± 0.12 seconds (static), and 2.37 ± 0.13 seconds (dynamic). The dynamic-stretch protocol produced significantly faster agility performance than did both the no-stretch protocol and the staticstretch protocol: 5.20 ± 0.16 seconds (no stretch), 5.22 ± 0.18 seconds (static), and 5.14 ± 0.17 seconds (dynamic). Static stretching does not appear to be detrimental to high-speed performance when included in a warm-up for professional soccer players. However, dynamic stretching during the warm-up was most effective as preparation for subsequent high-speed performance.
The Impact of Financial Flows on U.S. Investment, 1948-1992: An Empirical Model of Institutional Investment Theory

The role of investment in contributing to weak and negative GDP growth is well established by Keynesian theory. There are substantial differences among theories of the determinants of investment behavior, however. Post Keynesian models rely on capital costs and financial constraints in a flexible accelerator framework, but recent experience suggests that other institutional factors may play a greater role. Despite the lowest capital costs and most stimulative monetary policy since the 1960s, the rate of new investment in the early 1990s was lower than ever experienced during the postwar period. The institutional view is that investment is responsive to economic conditions and financial flows, which are based in the institutions and practices of commerce and banking. Hyman Minsky distinguishes two types of changes in financial institutions that lead to investment fluctuations: legislated and evolutionary. The former occur because of the perceived necessity of reform, often in response to adverse evolutionary institutional change. Evolutionary change involves the financing practices of firms and the banking system and occurs because of profit opportunities that arise during business cycle expansions, when intense
Lentibacter algarum gen. nov., sp. nov., isolated from coastal water during a massive green algae bloom.

Two novel Gram-stain-negative, aerobic strains (ZXM100(T) and ZXM098) were isolated from seawater in the coastal region of Qingdao (36.027° N 120.184° E), China, during a massive green algae bloom. Cells were ovoid to irregular short rods and lacked flagella. Poly-β-hydroxybutyrate was accumulated. Cells did not contain bacteriochlorophyll a. The isolates grew at NaCl concentrations of 3-9 % and 22-28 °C. C(18 : 1)ω7c, C(18 : 0) and C(16 : 0) were the major fatty acid components. The polar lipids of ZXM100(T) were phosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylcholine, a single lipid and an unidentified aminolipid. The predominant isoprenoid quinone of ZXM100(T) was Q-10. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences showed that strains belonged to the family Rhodobacteraceae. Based on the results obtained in this study, strain ZXM100(T) was considered to represent a novel species in a new genus, for which the name Lentibacter algarum gen. nov., sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is ZXM100(T) ( = LMG 24861(T) = CGMCC 1.10234(T)); the DNA G+C content of the type strain is 54.6 mol%.
Present and future of marketing communication in border regions

Technological and economic development and related social changes have significantly influenced and will influence marketing and marketing policies of companies, organizations and regions. Changes in the market environment have been causing changes in marketing communication. When we talk about fundamental changes in marketing communication within the last 20 years, then new trends and expectations in the coming years will bring changes even more crucial. The ambition of this paper is therefore to identify changes and trends in marketing communication using an analysis of traditional approaches and resources, which include monographs of experts from the sector of marketing and marketing communication on the one hand and the opinions of experts from relevant major companies operating in the most developed markets in terms of both target market audience requirements and used marketing communication tools. Subsequently, then consider the reflection of acquired knowledge in terms of supporting border regions development especially from the point of marketing communication of organizations in these regions. The paper is supplemented with partial research results realized in the tourism sector in the typical border area and documenting the situation in the use of tools of marketing communication in relation to foreign (cross-border) tourists.
Influence of Foresight on Public Policy in Flanders

Authors: Ellen Fobé ellen.fobe@soc.kuleuven. be Marleen Brans marleen.brans@soc.kuleuven. be Sponsors: Flemish government: Policy Research Centre – Governmental Organization in Flanders 2007-2011 Type: Assessment of influence of foresight on public policy Organizer: Research project: Evidence-based policy-making: matching supply and demand of quantitative policy information and foresight. Project supervisor: Prof. Dr. Marleen Brans; researcher: Ellen Fobé Duration: 2010-2011 Budget: N/A Time Horizon: 2007-2011 Date of Brief: June 2011
Radiation therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma

Technologic advances have provided the means to deliver tumoricidal doses of radiation therapy (RT) to patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) while avoiding critical normal tissues, providing the opportunity to use RT for curative intent treatment of HCC. For the current report, the expanded role of external beam RT in the setting of HCC from palliation to cure was reviewed. A systematic literature search was undertaken using the MEDLINE data base and secondary references to identify peer‐reviewed, English‐language articles that reported clinical outcomes after external beam RT alone or in combination with other treatments for HCC. Abstracts from the 2005 American Society of Clinical Oncology, American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology, American Gastrointestinal Association, and Society of Surgical Oncology Gastrointestinal Cancer Symposium also were included in the search. More than 60 articles reporting on clinical outcomes among patients who received RT for HCC have been published since 1990, including 20 articles that described unique sets of at least 15 patients. RT was used for palliation, to improve local control, and with curative intent in a wide spectrum of patients who most often were unsuitable for surgery and other treatments. Pain reduction following RT was noted in approximately 75% of patients with bone metastases from HCC who received RT. For patients with liver‐confined disease treated with conformal RT, proton beam RT, and/or image guided RT with or without transarterial chemoembolization (TACE), local control response rates ranged from 40% to 90%, and the median survival ranges from 10 months to 25 months. For patients with HCC who had portal vein thrombus, the median survival after RT to treat the thrombus and/or the hepatic tumor with or without TACE ranged from 5.3 months to 9.7 months. Although outcomes after high‐dose conformal RT for liver‐confined HCC were excellent, the potential survival benefit of RT should be tested in randomized controlled trials that require international collaboration. Cancer 2006. © 2006 American Cancer Society.
Energy consumption modelling and forecasting in automotive paint shop

The subject of this paper is a model able to give an analytical formulation of physical phenomena involved in the automotive paint shop processes and to provide energy consumption forecasts. To test and validate the model an assembly plant of the FCA group was chosen. The validation work, still in place, coincided with a measurement campaign carried out in the selected factory in order to gather actual energy consumption data from each sub-process, and to compare these with expected consumptions. The monitoring activity performed has developed a transferable methodology useful to test the model in other factories.
Access to Vision Care in an Urban Low-Income Multiethnic Population

Objective: This study applied a well-known, recently revised theoretical model of healthcare access and utilization, the Behavioral Model for Vulnerable Populations, to examine the relationship between access to care and utilization of eye care services among a mutiethnic, predominately minority sample of residents from low-income public housing. Design: Population-based, cross-sectional survey of community sample. Setting: Urban Public Housing Communities in Los Angeles County, California. Participants: A geographically defined stratified random sample of 152 residents (86% Latino or African American) 40 years of age and older from three urban public housing communities. Results: Only 62% of our sample of persons 40 years and older had received an eye examination within the past 2 years. Sixty-one percent of participants reported having vision care coverage. Yet, one out of four respondents claimed that no health care provider had ever told them that they needed an eye-examination. Applying multiple logistic regression and controlling for a number of predisposing, enabling, and need-for-care characteristics, the variables 1) receiving advice from health care providers for eye examination (OR = 3.9, p < 0.01), 2) possessing coverage for eye-care (OR = 3.2, p < 0.01), and 3) having regular and continuity of medical care (OR = 2.4, p < 0.01) remained significant predictors of eye-examination within the past 2 years. Conclusion: This study documents significantly diminished utilization of eye care services relative to recommended guidelines for a low-income, predominately minority sample of residents from public housing communities. We documented no association between presence of diabetes or hypertension and recency of eye examination. Affordability, continuity, and regular sources of care, as well as receiving physician advice, remain the core factors significantly associated with receiving vision care. These results underscore the need for continued efforts to ensure that the medically underserved minority have access to vision care services. These findings also point toward the urgent need for educational and motivational interventions that encourage health care providers serving underserved communities to promote eye examination, particularly among diabetic patients, hypertensive patients, and other individuals at risk for eye-related disease and complications.
Functional analysis of the cytoplasmic tail of Moloney murine leukemia virus envelope protein

The cytoplasmic tail of the immature Moloney murine leukemia virus (MoMuLV) envelope protein is approximately 32 amino acids long. During viral maturation, the viral protease cleaves this tail to release a 16-amino-acid R peptide, thereby rendering the envelope protein fusion competent. A series of truncations, deletions, and amino acid substitutions were constructed in this cytoplasmic tail to examine its role in fusion and viral transduction. Sequential truncation of the cytoplasmic tail revealed that removal of as few as 11 amino acids resulted in significant fusion when the envelope protein was expressed in NIH 3T3 cells, similar to that seen following expression of an R-less envelope (truncation of 16 amino acids). Further truncation of the cytoplasmic tail beyond the R-peptide cleavage site toward the membrane-spanning region had no additional effect on the level of fusion observed. In contrast, some deletions and nonconservative amino acid substitutions in the membrane-proximal region of the cytoplasmic tail (residues L602 to F605) reduced the amount of fusion observed in XC cell cocultivation assays, suggesting that this region influences the fusogenicity of full-length envelope protein. Expression of the mutant envelope proteins in a retroviral vector system revealed that decreased envelope-mediated cell-cell fusion correlated with a decrease in infectivity of the resulting virions. Additionally, some mutant envelope proteins which were capable of mediating cell-cell fusion were not efficiently incorporated into retroviral particles, resulting in defective virions. The cytoplasmic tail of MoMuLV envelope protein therefore influences both the fusogenicity of the envelope protein and its incorporation into virions.
Antigenic Characterization of the Fish Pathogen Flavobacterium psychrophilum

ABSTRACT Flavobacteria are a poorly understood and speciated group of commensal bacteria and opportunistic pathogens. The psychrotrophFlavobacterium psychrophilum is the etiological agent of rainbow trout fry syndrome and bacterial cold water disease, septicemic diseases that heavily impact salmonids. Consequently, two verified but geographically diverse isolates were characterized phenotypically and biochemically. A facile typing system was devised which readily discriminated between closely related species and was verified against a pool of recent prospective isolates. F. psychrophilum was found to be enveloped in a loosely attached, strongly antigenic outer layer comprised of a predominant, highly immunogenic, low-molecular-mass carbohydrate antigen as well as several protein antigens. Surface-exposed antigens were visualized by a combination of immunoflourescence microscopy, immunogold transmission, and thin-section electron microscopy and were discriminated by Western blotting using rabbit antisera, by selective extraction with EDTA-polymyxin B agarose beads, and by extrinsic labeling of amines with sulfo–N-hydoxysuccinimide–biotin and glycosyl groups with biotin hydrazide. The predominant ∼16 kDa antigen was identified as low-molecular-mass lipopolysaccharide (LPS), whereas high-molecular-mass LPS containing O antigen was not as prevalent on whole cells but was abundant in culture supernatants. Rainbow trout convalescent antisera recognized both molecular mass classes of LPS as well as a predominant ∼20-kDa protein. This study represents the first description at the molecular level of the surface characteristics and potential vaccine targets of confirmed F. psychrophilumstrains.
Differences in Survival among 13 Listeria monocytogenes Strains in a Dynamic Model of the Stomach and Small Intestine

ABSTRACT Thirteen Listeria monocytogenes strains were compared for the ability to survive in a dynamic gastrointestinal model. Strains displayed various degrees of susceptibility to gastric acidity; however, strain-to-strain variations became evident mainly after 90 min of exposure (pH 2.0). Cell levels transferred to the intestine depended on initial populations, while reductions during intestinal exposure were relatively small for all strains.