Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
CONJUGATED LINOLEIC ACID : SOURCES , SYNTHESIS AND POTENTIAL HEALTH BENEFITS-AN OVERVIEW

Conjugated linoleic acid is a group of positional and geometrical isomers of linoleic acid (C18:2, cis-9, cis-12), an essential fatty acid for human and animals. It is produced in ruminants via biohydrogenation of poly-unsaturated fatty acids and during the mechanical processing of dairy products. Meat and dairy products from ruminant animals (such as milk, butter, yogurt and cheese) are the principal natural sources of CLA in the human diet. Because of its reported biological activities (i.e. anticarcinogenic, antiatherogenic, immune-enhancing and weight-reducing properties) in animal models, CLA has become a subject of interest as a supplement for human nutrition. However, further research is required to check the efficacy and role of CLA, the good fat, in cancer and other disease prevention; and to form the basis of evaluating its effect in humans by observational studies and clinical trials.
Effects of Helicobacter pylori infection on mucin expression in gastric carcinoma and pericancerous tissues

Background: Helicobacter pylori infection is one of the major causes of human gastric carcinoma and can disturb the gastric mucosa barrier. Mucins have not only lubricating and protecting functions, but are also related to signal transduction, turnover of gastric epithelium and carcinogenesis of gastric mucosa. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between H. pylori infection and aberrant mucin expression in patients with gastric carcinoma.
Sphingosine‐1‐phosphate signaling in physiology and diseases

Sphingosine‐1‐phosphate (S1P), which acts as both the extracellular and intracellular messenger, exerts pleiotropic biological activities including regulation of formation of the vasculature, vascular barrier integrity, and lymphocyte trafficking. Many of these S1P actions are mediated by five members of the G protein‐coupled S1P receptors (S1P1–S1P5) with overlapping but distinct coupling to heterotrimeric G proteins. The biological activities of S1P are based largely on the cellular actions of S1P on migration, adhesion, and proliferation. Notably, S1P often exhibits receptor subtype‐specific, bimodal effects in these cellular actions. For example, S1P1 mediates cell migration toward S1P, that is, chemotaxis, via Gi/Rac pathway whereas S1P2 mediates inhibition of migration toward a chemoattractant, that is, chemorepulsion, via G12/13/Rho pathway, which induces Rac inhibition. In addition, S1P1 mediates stimulation of cell proliferation through the Gi‐mediated signaling pathways including phosphatidylinositol 3‐kinase (PI3K)/Akt and ERK whereas S1P2 mediates inhibition of cell proliferation through mechanisms involving G12/13/Rho/Rho kinase/PTEN‐dependent Akt inhibition. These differential effects of S1P receptor subtypes on migration and proliferation lead to bimodal regulation of various biological responses. An observed biological response is likely determined by an integrated outcome of the counteracting signals input by S1P receptor subtypes. More recent studies identified the new intracellular targets of S1P including the inflammatory signaling molecule TRAF2 and histone deacetylases HDAC1 and HDAC2. These interactions of S1P regulate NF‐κB activity and gene expression, respectively. Development of S1P receptor agonists and antagonists with improved receptor subtype‐selectivity, inhibitors, or modulators of sphingolipid‐metabolizing enzymes, and their optimal drug delivery system provide novel therapeutic tactics. © 2012 International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.
Cooperativity in Ion Hydration

Wet Twists and Turns When salts dissolve in water, their constituent positively and negatively charged ions are pulled apart and surrounded by shells of H2O molecules (see the Perspective by Skinner). Ji et al. (p. 1003) looked closely at the motion in these shells, using a type of vibrational spectroscopy sensitive to both the orientation and to the neighbors of the targeted molecules. In agreement with recent theoretical predictions, the individual water molecules shifted orientation between an anion and the surrounding liquid in sudden discrete steps, rather than by making smooth incremental rotations. Tielrooij et al. (p. 1006) compared the relative impacts of cations and anions on the rigidity of the wider water network, using spectroscopic techniques sensitive to the role of each ion. Certain cation/anion combinations, such as magnesium sulfate, appeared to act together to restrict water motion beyond the boundaries of individual shells. When salts dissolve in water, the separated cations and anions can still collectively impact the liquid structure. Despite prolonged scientific efforts to unravel the effects of ions on the structure and dynamics of water, many open questions remain, in particular concerning the spatial extent of this effect (i.e., the number of water molecules affected) and the origin of ion-specific effects. A combined terahertz and femtosecond infrared spectroscopic study of water dynamics around different ions (specifically magnesium, lithium, sodium, and cesium cations, as well as sulfate, chloride, iodide, and perchlorate anions) reveals that the effect of ions and counterions on water can be strongly interdependent and nonadditive, and in certain cases extends well beyond the first solvation shell of water molecules directly surrounding the ion.
Contact allergy to an epoxy reactive diluent: 1,4‐butanediol diglycidyl ether

3 female workers in a brush factory developed contact allergy from a 2‐component epoxy glue containing epoxy resin (37% w/w), reactive diluents: i.e., l,4‐butanediol diglycidyl ether (BDDGE) 3%, glycidyl ethers of aliphatic alcohols (Epoxide 8) 0.03% and phenyl glycidyl ether (PGE) 0.01%: and inert fillers. All 3 patients were positive to the resin component of the glue and to BDDGE, indicating that BDDGE was the main allergen. 2 of the patients reacted to PGE, but none to the 3rd reactive diluent (Epoxide 8) in the glue. 2 of the patients did not react to epoxy resin, indicating that BDDGE may be an even stronger sensitizer in humans than epoxy resin, and that it does not cross‐react with epoxy resins. Permeation studies revealed that BDDGE penetrates disposable PVC and rubber gloves in less than 30 min; thus, contaminated gloves should be replaced immediately. Reactive diluents should be included in patch test series if contact allergy to epoxy products is suspected.
National population-based biobanks for genetic research

Clinical practice guidelines derived from genetic research using population-based biobanks could dramatically change the nature of personal and public health medicine. Centralized population-based biobanks have been established or proposed in at least nine countries to date, and many lessons have been learned from these landmark developments. Scientific and governmental leaders in the United States are currently contemplating pending federal legislation regarding the establishment of centralized and networked biobanks. Public health practitioners and clinical care providers may be called on to serve pronounced planning roles at the state level. Possible responsibilities include: formulating legislation, gathering public comment, reviewing research proposals, and developing procedures for informed consent, participant withdrawal, and confidentiality protection. State health agencies may also need to create and/or administer banking facilities. Proper planning may ensure that individual rights are protected while research benefits are maximized.
Measuring the cost of health care technologies

Currently used methods for estimating the contribution of technical innovations to health care costs are discussed. It is argued that these methods are unhelpful and imprecise in developing disaggregated estimates of the costs of different types of technologies. What is required is a careful attempt to measure the effects of innovations in hardware and software technology on health care costs. <<ETX>>
An Anti-Photo Spoof Method in Face Recognition Based on the Analysis of Fourier Spectra with Sparse Logistic Regression

Among others, spoofing with photos is one of the most common manner to intrude a face recognition system. In this paper, we presents a novel method to deal with this problem, based on the observation that the difference between a photo and a real face usually leads to different distribution behavior in the frequency domain. In particular, we propose to first use a DoG (Difference of Gaussian) filter on the given image to preserve rich information for the subsequent stages while suppressing less-discriminative energy as much as possible. A two- dimensional discrete Fourier transformation is then applied on the filtered image, which produces an input to a sparse logistic regression model to give the final determinant. Furthermore, we adopt an early stoping strategy to prevent the logistic model from overfiting when our training set has class imbalance problem. We also investigate the influence of degree of sparsity on the performance of the system. Extensive experiments on a large scale testing set verify the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed method.
Triaging transient ischemic attack and minor stroke patients using acute magnetic resonance imaging

We examined whether the presence of diffusion‐weighted imaging (DWI) lesions and vessel occlusion on acute brain magnetic resonance images of minor stroke and transient ischemic attack patients predicted the occurrence of subsequent stroke and functional outcome. 120 transient ischemic attack or minor stroke (National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale ≤ 3) patients were prospectively enrolled. All were examined within 12 hours and had a magnetic resonance scan within 24 hours. Overall, the 90‐day risk for recurrent stroke was 11.7%. Patients with a DWI lesion were at greater risk for having a subsequent stroke than patients without and risk was greatest in the presence of vessel occlusion and a DWI lesion. The 90‐day risk rates, adjusted for baseline characteristics, were 4.3% (no DWI lesion), 10.8% (DWI lesion but no vessel occlusion), and 32.6% (DWI lesion and vessel occlusion) (p = 0.02). The percentages of patients who were functionally dependent at 90 days in the three groups were 1.9%, 6.2%, and 21.0%, respectively (p = 0.04). The presence of a DWI lesion and a vessel occlusion on a magnetic resonance image among patients presenting acutely with a transient ischemic attack or minor stroke is predictive of an increased risk for future stroke and functional dependence. Ann Neurol 2005;57:848–854
Construção de separadores globalmente suaves para conjuntos de pontos no R2 e geração de base mínima

Esta tese tem duas partes relativamente independentes. A primeira estuda o problema de construir uma curva suave (C1) que separa dois conjuntos de pontos do plano. Especificamente, a curva e definida por uma equacao implicita F(x, y) = 0 onde F e uma spline polinomial de grau 2 com continuidade adequada. O objetivo e determinar uma unica conica se possivel, senao uma curva que minimiza uma funcao quadratica de "energia". O problema e reduzido a um problema de minimizacao quadratica com restricoes, que e resolvido por uma biblioteca existente (CGAL). A segunda parte descreve um algoritmo geral para determinar uma base de elementos finitos em um espaco de splines arbitrario, definido por exemplo por restricoes lineares homogeneas de continuidade ou contorno. Neste caso o problema e caracterizado como o problema de encontrar uma base de peso maximo em um matroide e, portanto, pode ser resolvido pelo algoritmo guloso de Edmonds. Esse algoritmo tem custo exponencial no numero n de celulas da malha. Entretanto, esta tese mostra que para casos de interesse - onde existe uma base de elementos finitos com suporte de k celulas, no maximo - o algoritmo pode ser melhorado de modo a terminar em tempo O(n km3), onde m e a dimensao do espaco (que e geralmente O(n)) Abstract
A comparison of two ELISAs for the detection of antibodies to bovine leucosis virus in bulk-milk.

OBJECTIVE To estimate the sensitivity, specificity and detection limits for two bulk-milk enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays, the Svanovir BLV-gp51-Ab and the Lactelisa BLV Ab Bi indirect tank 250, for the detection of antibody to bovine leucosis virus in milk. PROCEDURE Milk samples from 27 cows known to have enzootic bovine leucosis (EBL) were serially diluted with milk from a herd known to be free from the disease. The dilution at which antibodies could no longer be detected by each test was determined. A total of 1959 bulk-milk samples submitted to a laboratory for the Victorian (EBL) eradication program were tested with both the Svanovir and the Lactelisa assays. A Bayesian approach was used to calculate maximum-likelihood estimates of test sensitivity and specificity. An additional 660 bulk-milk samples were tested with both the Svanovir and the Lactelisa assays. Herds that had positive results on either or both of the assays were subjected to blood or milk testing of individual cattle. RESULTS The dilution of milk at which the Svanovir assay failed to detect enzootic bovine leucosis antibody in half of the samples was 1 in 40, whereas the comparable value for the Lactelisa was 1 in 200. Computer modeling of the operating characteristics of the Svanovir assay indicated that the sensitivity of that assay would be considerably lower than that for the Lactelisa, and the specificity was estimated to be higher. Evaluation of the assays using 660 bulk-milk samples showed that the Lactelisa assay detected four infected herds that were not detected by the Svanovir test. No false positive results were recorded for either assay. CONCLUSION Use of the Lactelisa assay in the Victorian EBL eradication program will enhance disease detection and eradication, but may also result in an increased frequency of false positive bulk-milk test results.
Space time transmit site diversity for OFDM multi base station system

In a single frequency network (SFN) using OFDM, the signals from plural base stations cannot be combined coherently at the receiver and large diversity gain cannot be achieved. We consider a system using space time transmit diversity (STTD) for site diversity between base stations. The site diversity technique using STTD is used in each sub-carrier of OFDM. We call this technique space time transmit site diversity method. STTD is a transmit diversity technique based on space time block coding and this technique does not require to know the channel condition at the transmitter. Consequently, using computer simulation, we show that the proposed system can improve the performance compared with the conventional SFN.
A study of the antigenicity of Rickettsia helvetica proteins using two‐dimensional gel electrophoresis

Rickettsia helvetica is an obligate intracellular Gram‐negative microorganism found in Ixodes ricinus ticks. When R. helvetica was first discovered in 1979, little was known about its physiology and it fell into oblivion until it recently was suspected of being pathogenic to humans. However, all efforts to isolate R. helvetica from patients have been unsuccessful, although serological responses against R. helvetica can be demonstrated. The aim of our study was to investigate the protein profile of R. helvetica and study the antigenicity of its proteins using two‐dimensional (2D) immunoblot in order to characterize the immunological response against R. helvetica infection. Our results show that in addition to the known PS120 and OmpB antigenic R. helvetica proteins, three other antigens exist: a 60 kDa GroEL protein, a 10 kDa GroES protein and a hitherto unknown 35 kDa hypothetical protein that has similarities with ORF‐RC0799 of Rickettsia conorii. Furthermore, the lipopolysaccharide showed strong antigenicity. In this study, we present the first proteome map and the first 2D immunoblot profile of R. helvetica and finally we present the 35 kDa R. helvetica as an additional antigen to the previously known rickettsial antigens.
Groundwater and Alberta's Oil Sands Mines

Introduction Alberta’s world-class reserve of nonconventional oil has attracted investment from around the world. Vast deposits of oil sands are a huge economic resource for both Alberta and Canada, but their development presents many challenges to the local, regional, and global environment. The recent growth in development of oil sands mines and related infrastructure, due to the demand for oil, impacts the natural environment and as a consequence, the industry has attracted international scrutiny. Energy and water are linked in Alberta’s oil sands; the management of water resources, including groundwater, is a key issue in oil sands mining. The world’s second largest oil reserves are located under the boreal forests of northern Alberta, Canada (Figure 1). These proven oil reserves of 171 billion barrels are surpassed only by those in Saudi Arabia. Alberta’s oil sands deposits are located in three major areas: Peace River, Athabasca, and Cold Lake (Figure 1). The Athabasca is the largest single deposit of oil in the world
Inhibition of adenovirus cytotoxicity, replication, and E2a gene expression by adeno-associated virus.

Adeno-associated virus (AAV) and the other parvoviruses have long been known to inhibit proliferation of nonpermissive cells. The mechanism of this inhibition is not thoroughly understood. To learn how AAV interacts with host cells, we have begun an investigation into AAV's relationship with adenovirus (Ad), AAV's most efficient helper virus. AAV, but not UV-inactivated AAV, delayed Ad-induced cytotoxicity and inhibited Ad E2a gene expression. AAV, but not UV-inactivated AAV or a recombinant AAV vector, inhibited Ad DNA replication. To determine whether AAV or its replication (Rep) proteins alter Ad early gene expression, we measured steady state E2a mRNA levels in AAV and Ad coinfected cultures and in a cell line (Neo6) that inducibly expresses the Rep proteins. AAV, but not UV-AAV, and Rep expression resulted in diminution of E2a protein and mRNA levels. To determine whether the AAV Rep proteins directly affect the individual Ad early promoters, we constructed luciferase reporter plasmids containing each of the five early promoters. Cotransfection of Ad-luciferase and an AAV rep gene-expressing plasmid in HeLa cells demonstrated that Rep78 repressed the E1a, E2a, and E4 promoters but trans-activated the E1b and E3 promoters. In the presence of a cotransfected E1a-expressing plasmid, Rep78 repressed expression from all five promoters. These results indicate that Rep may have different effects on the Ad early promoters dependent upon the presence of the E1a trans-activating protein.
Nuevos riesgos tóxicos por exposición a nanopartículas

La nanotecnologia es una ciencia multidisciplinar que esta teniendo un gran auge en la actualidad, ya que proporciona productos (nanoparticulas) con nuevas propiedades fisicoquimicas, que son las que hacen que tengan una gran cantidad de aplicaciones. La exposicion humana a estas nanoparticulas se puede producir principalmente por las vias respiratoria (nanoparticulas suspendidas en el aire), dermica (nanoparticulas ambientales, cosmeticos) y oral (alimentos, agua). Por via pulmonar las nanoparticulas activan los mecanismos de defensa o son internalizadas en los intersticios. Por via dermica se pueden acumular en el estrato corneo o en los foliculos pilosos, o bien atravesarlo y acumularse en la dermis. Por via oral pueden ser absorbidas por las celulas epiteliales del intestino. La exposicion tambien se puede producir a traves de la instrumentacion medica o practicas clinicas, ya que se usan, por ejemplo, en el tratamiento y diagnostico del cancer de mama y en el control de infecciones en cirugia. Una vez las nanoparticulas han sido absorbidas, se distribuyen por via sanguinea y linfatica, alcanzando diferentes organos, tales como huesos, rinones, pancreas, bazo, higado y corazon, en los que quedan retenidas y ejercen sus efectos toxicos, aunque esto tambien se utiliza como una forma de vectorizacion de farmacos. La toxicidad de estas nanoparticulas depende, entre otros factores, de su persistencia en los organos y de si el hospedador puede provocar una respuesta biologica para eliminarlas. Los mecanismos de toxicidad no se conocen con exactitud, aunque parece ser que se incluyen dano en membranas celulares, disrupcion del potencial de membrana, oxidacion de proteinas, genotoxicidad, formacion de especies reactivas de oxigeno e inflamacion. Estudios sobre las vias respiratorias han mostrado disminucion de la viabilidad celular in vitro, produccion de estres oxidativo e inflamacion. En la piel se ha demostrado toxicidad y estres oxidativo, pero otros autores destacan la ausencia de irritacion y reacciones alergicas. A nivel gastrointestinal in vitro se han observado reduccion de la viabilidad celular y alteracion del ADN, entre otros. Respecto a la legislacion, actualmente no existen directrices especificas sobre nanotecnologia y nanomateriales, en espera de un mayor conocimiento cientifico de sus efectos sobre la salud publica. La investigacion en este campo es, por tanto, un aspecto prioritario en la actualidad que va a determinar la relacion riesgo/beneficio de su uso y por tanto su futuro, que parece potencialmente prometedor.
Preconditioning with supply-demand imbalance limits infarct size in dog heart.

OBJECTIVE The aim was to examine whether an absolute reduction in energy supply is required for preconditioning against myocardial infarction, and whether an episode of increased adrenergic activity with or without supply-demand imbalance is capable of triggering cardioprotection. METHODS 41 anaesthetised dogs were subjected to 60 min left circumflex artery occlusion followed by 5 h reperfusion (control group, n = 8). The left stellate cardiac nerve was stimulated for 5 min starting 10 min before coronary occlusion in the stimulation group (STIM group, n = 8). The left circumflex artery flow increase that normally accompanies adrenergic stimulation was prevented by a pneumatic occluder in another group (STIM-R group, n = 8). Infarct size and area at risk were determined by triphenyl tetrazolium chloride staining and Evans blue dye, respectively. Regional myocardial blood flow during ischaemia and during stimulation (STIM-R group) was measured with radioactive microspheres. RESULTS In the STIM group, adrenergic stimulation increased the coronary blood flow by approximately twofold from baseline. In the STIM-R group, transmural myocardial blood flow in the flow restricted left circumflex artery region was 64% of the flow to the non-flow-restricted left anterior descending coronary artery region. Haemodynamic variables were not different among the experimental groups except during adrenergic stimulation. Collateral blood flow and area at risk were comparable among the three groups. Infarct size as a percentage of area at risk (%IS/AAR) was significantly smaller in the STIM-R group [7.6(3.2)%] than in the control group [27.9(7.3)%], whereas %IS/AAR in the STIM group [21.7(4.1)%] was not. Furthermore, the regression line between collateral blood flow and %IS/AAR was significantly shifted downward in the STIM-R group, but not in the STIM group. CONCLUSIONS (1) Transient energy supply-demand imbalance triggers infarct size limitation; an absolute reduction in energy supply is not required for preconditioning. (2) Increased adrenergic activity without supply-demand imbalance seems unable to trigger appreciable cardioprotection.