Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effects of serum and autologous conditioned serum on equine articular chondrocytes treated with interleukin-1β.

OBJECTIVE To compare the effects of autologous equine serum (AES) and autologous conditioned serum (ACS) on equine articular chondrocyte metabolism when stimulated with recombinant human (rh) interleukin (IL)-1β. SAMPLE Articular cartilage and nonconditioned and conditioned serum from 6 young adult horses. PROCEDURES Cartilage samples were digested, and chondrocytes were isolated and formed into pellets. Chondrocyte pellets were treated with each of the following: 10% AES, 10% AES and rhIL-1β, 20% AES and rhIL-1β, 10% ACS and rhIL-1β, and 20% ACS and rhIL-1β, and various effects of these treatments were measured. RESULTS Recombinant human IL-1β treatment led to a decrease in chondrocyte glycosaminoglycan synthesis and collagen II mRNA expression and an increase in medium matrix metalloproteinase-3 activity and cyclooxygenase-2 mRNA expression. When results of ACS and rhIL-1β treatment were compared with those of AES and rhIL-1β treatment, no difference was evident in glycosaminoglycan release, total glycosaminoglycan concentration, total DNA content, or matrix metalloproteinase-3 activity. A significant increase was found in chondrocyte glycosaminoglycan synthesis with 20% AES and rhIL-1β versus 10% ACS and rhIL-1β. The medium from ACS and rhIL-1β treatment had a higher concentration of IL-1β receptor antagonist, compared with medium from AES and rhIL-1β treatment. Treatment with 20% ACS and rhIL-1β resulted in a higher medium insulin-like growth factor-I concentration than did treatment with 10% AES and rhIL-1β. No difference in mRNA expression was found between ACS and rhIL-1β treatment and AES and rhIL-1β treatment. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE Minimal beneficial effects of ACS treatment on proteoglycan matrix metabolism in equine chonrocytes were evident, compared with the effects of AES treatment.
A new circularly polarized antenna for GNSS applications

A new and circularly polarized (CP) antenna is proposed for global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) applications. The antenna employs a single feed and two orthogonally elliptical printed dipoles. The dipoles are crossed through a 90° phase delay line of a vacant-quarter printed ring to achieve CP radiation. In order to achieve broad beamwidth, four metallic cylinders are introduced. The proposed antenna has achieved a bandwidth of about 43% from 1.08 to 1.69 GHz for S11 < −10 dB. Meanwhile, the CP bandwidth is from 1.55 to 1.63 GHz (L1) and 1.12 to 1.26 GHz (L2, L5) for axial ratio < 3 dB. Additionally, the antenna yields right-hand circular polarization (RHCP) and high antenna efficiency over a wide frequency band. The simulated results have shown that the proposed antenna is a good candidate for GNSS applications.
Long-Term Follow-Up of Trigeminal Neuralgia Treatment Using a Linear Accelerator

While most of the studies examining radiosurgery for trigeminal neuralgia have used a Gamma Knife, a linear accelerator can also be utilized for treatment. We report on 20 patients with trigeminal neuralgia who received 23 treatments with a linear accelerator that delivered a maximum dose of 82.3–100 Gy. The median patient follow-up was 56.5 months, 70% of patients had received previous surgical treatment and 20% had secondary (nonessential) trigeminal neuralgia. Eight (35%) radiosurgery treatments resulted in complete pain relief; 5 (63%) patients with initial pain relief had pain recurrence at a mean time of 21.5 months. Ten (43%) patients reported a 50% or more decrease in pain severity but have not achieved a pain-free state. A total of 18 (78%) treatments resulted in no pain or a 50% or greater improvement in pain. Five treatments (22%) resulted in less than 50% improvement in pain. We conclude that linear accelerator stereotactic radiosurgery is a viable treatment option for trigeminal neuralgia patients, especially for patients who have not had a previous invasive treatment.
Stable Expression of the Human Kinin B1 Receptor in Chinese Hamster Ovary Cells

To delineate ligand binding and functional characteristics of the human B1 kinin receptor, a stable clone of Chinese hamster ovary cells expressing a single class of binding sites for [3H]des-Arg10-lysylbradykinin with a Kd of 0.3 nM and a Bmax of 38 fmol/mg protein (∼40,000 receptors/cell) was isolated. Studies with peptide analogs showed that a lysine residue at position 1 (based on the lysylbradykinin sequence) of ligands was essential for high affinity binding to the human B1 receptor. In marked contrast to cloned Chinese hamster ovary cells expressing the human kinin B2 receptor, which internalized approximately 80% of the ligand within 5 min upon exposure to 2 nM [3H]bradykinin, exposure of cells expressing the B1 receptor to 1 nM [3H]des-Arg10-lysylbradykinin resulted in minimal ligand internalization. Stimulation of the B1 receptor led to inositol phosphate generation and transient increases in intracellular calcium, confirming coupling to phospholipase C, while immunoprecipitation of photoaffinity-labeled G-proteins from membranes indicated specific coupling of the receptor to Gαq/11 and Gαi1,2. The B1, unlike the B2, receptor does not desensitize (as demonstrated by continuous phosphoinositide hydrolysis), enhancing the potential role of this receptor during inflammatory events.
A qualitative investigation of the organization of traumatic memories.

OBJECTIVE Previous research has indicated that cohesive organization of traumatic memories may be necessary for the processing and resolution of post-trauma symptoms. The present study aimed to evaluate the qualitative features of memory organization, dissociation and perception of threat in traumatic memories recalled by individuals with and without acute stress disorder (ASD). DESIGN Survivors of motor vehicle accidents (MVA) with either ASD or no ASD participated in a study on traumatic memories within 12 twelve days of the MVA. METHOD Participants' audiotaped recollections of their memories of the MVA were coded in terms of disorganized structure, dissociative content and perception of threat. RESULT The recollections of ASD participants were characterized by disorganization and dissociation more than those of non-ASD participants. CONCLUSION The current findings suggest that disorganized memory structure may be one process that impedes access to, and modification of, trauma-related cognitive schema.
Creatine supplementation reduces sleep need and homeostatic sleep pressure in rats

Sleep has been postulated to promote brain energy restoration. It is as yet unknown if increasing the energy availability within the brain reduces sleep need. The guanidine amino acid creatine (Cr) is a well‐known energy booster in cellular energy homeostasis. Oral Cr–monohydrate supplementation (CS) increases exercise performance and has been shown to have substantial effects on cognitive performance, neuroprotection and circadian rhythms. The effect of CS on cellular high‐energy molecules and sleep–wake behaviour is unclear. Here, we examined the sleep–wake behaviour and brain energy metabolism before and after 4‐week‐long oral administration of CS in the rat. CS decreased total sleep time and non‐rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep significantly during the light (inactive) but not during the dark (active) period. NREM sleep and NREM delta activity were decreased significantly in CS rats after 6 h of sleep deprivation. Biochemical analysis of brain energy metabolites showed a tendency to increase in phosphocreatine after CS, while cellular adenosine triphosphate (ATP) level decreased. Microdialysis analysis showed that the sleep deprivation‐induced increase in extracellular adenosine was attenuated after CS. These results suggest that CS reduces sleep need and homeostatic sleep pressure in rats, thereby indicating its potential in the treatment of sleep‐related disorders.
Analysis of inherent randomness of the Linux kernel

While analyzing latency data from real-time Linux variants we found that there are distinct parts to the system jitter - those that can be attributed to software constructs and those that are inherent in complex software systems running on non-deterministic hardware. Initial investigations focussed on explaining these results by considering various caches (L1,L2,BTB,TLB,etc) [12]. While this seemed to allow some level of explanation it did not satisfactory explain the distributions found during analysis. Essentially hunting for the maxima of latency, which was the common initial approach, only can detect grave latency issues, like excessively long holding of locks - but it is not able to detect low-level latency causes like miss-alignments, or short term locks that are in a hot path and thus contribute signiﬁcantly to the systems overall latency and jitter. Further the maxima - if the assumption of inherent randomness hold - are not associated with a speciﬁc code-path but rather with the code-path being executed in a speciﬁc,
Christchurch Psychiatric Epidemiology Study, Part II: Six Month and other Period Prevalences of Specific Psychiatric Disorders

The Christchurch Psychiatric Epidemiology Study determined the occurrence (over 2 weeks, 1 month, 6 months, 12 months and life-time) of a number of specific DWDSM-III psychiatric diagnoses in the Christchurch urban area. Data were collected on 1498 randomly selected adults, aged between 18 and 64 years. The Diagnostic interview Schedule (DIS) was used to collect information to make a DSM-III diagnosis. The six month prevalence rates of disorder are presented and compared with available results from the NlMH Epidemiological Catchment Area Program, Puerto Rico and Edmonton. Other period prevalences for the total sample are also presented. Christchurch is shown to have higher six month prevalence rates for major depression and alcohol abuse/dependence than other sites which have utilised the DIS in community surveys.
Tachykinins mediate the acute increase in airway responsiveness caused by toluene diisocyanate in guinea pigs.

Exposing guinea pigs to toluene diisocyanate (TDI) causes an acute increase in airway responsiveness to inhaled acetylcholine. The mechanism of this increase in airway responsiveness is unknown. Capsaicin-sensitive afferent nerves and the tachykinins they release upon activation are important in controlling bronchomotor tone in guinea pigs. To determine whether tachykinins are important in TDI-induced airway hyperresponsiveness, we studied the effects of tachykinin depletion, using capsaicin, and competitive tachykinin antagonism, using (D-Arg1, D-Pro2, D-Trp7.9, Leu11) substance P, on TDI-induced airway hyperresponsiveness. In 9 of 9 untreated animals, TDI exposure caused a large and significant increase in airway responsiveness to acetylcholine. The mean concentration of acetylcholine required to decrease specific airway conductance by 50% below baseline (the PD50) was 1.51% before TDI exposure and 0.17% after TDI exposure (p less than 0.0005). Capsaicin treatment had no effect on the PD50 but prevented the TDI-induced increase in airway responsiveness in 10 of 12 animals. (The PD50 was 1.03% before TDI and 1.27% after TDI exposure.) Treatment with the tachykinin antagonist (D-Arg1, D-Pro2, D-Trp7.9, Leu11) substance P also abolished the TDI-induced increase in airway responsiveness in all 5 animals treated. Although TDI exposure also causes airway edema, the effect of capsaicin treatment on TDI-induced airway hyperresponsiveness did not result from prevention of airway edema. TDI exposure caused a marked increase in tracheal extravasation of intravenously administered Evans blue dye that was not prevented by capsaicin treatment. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Absence of penicillin-binding protein 4 from an apparently normal strain of Bacillus subtilis

The phenotype of a Bacillus subtilis 168 strain with no detectable penicillin-binding protein 4 was examined. Despite the fact that penicillin-binding protein 4 is one of the most penicillin-sensitive proteins in the species, its apparent loss had no obvious effect on the organism or its susceptibility to various beta-lactam antibiotics.
Clinical outcome after surgical clipping or endovascular coiling for cerebral aneurysms: a pragmatic meta-analysis of randomized and non-randomized trials with short- and long-term follow-up

Background Two randomized trials have evaluated clipping and coiling in patients with ruptured aneurysms. Aggregated evidence for management of ruptured and unruptured aneurysms is missing. Objective To conduct a meta-analysis evaluating clinical outcome after aneurysm treatment. Methods PubMed, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and Clinicaltrials.gov were searched for studies evaluating aneurysm treatment. The primary outcome measure was an independent clinical outcome (modified Rankin scale 0–2, Glasgow Outcome Scale 4–5, or equivalent). Secondary outcomes were poor outcome and mortality. ORs were calculated on an intention-to-treat basis with 95% CIs. Outcome heterogeneity was evaluated with Cochrane's Q test (significance level cut-off value at <0.10) and I2 (significance cut-off value >50%) with the Mantel–Haenszel method for dichotomous outcomes. A p value <0.05 was regarded as statistically significant. Results Searches yielded 18 802 articles. All titles were assessed, 403 abstracts were evaluated, and 183 full-text articles were read. One-hundred and fifty articles were qualitatively assessed and 85 articles were included in the meta-analysis. Patients treated with coiling (randomized controlled trials (RCTs)) had higher independent outcome at short-term follow-up (OR=0.67, 95% CI 0.57 to 0.79). Independent outcome was favored for coiling at intermediate and long-term follow-up (RCTs and observational studies combined—OR=0.80, 0.68 to 0.94 and OR=0.81, 0.71 to 0.93, respectively). Independent outcome and lower mortality was favored after coiling in unruptured aneurysms (database registry studies) at short-term follow-up (OR=0.34, 0.29 to 0.41 and OR=1.74, 1.52 to 1.98, respectively). Conclusions This meta-analysis evaluating clinical outcome after coiling or clipping for intracranial aneurysms, indicates a higher independent outcome and lower mortality after coiling.
Trisomy 7 and Deletion of the 9p21 Locus As Novel Acquired Abnormalities in a Case Of Pediatric Biphenotypic Acute Leukemia

There have been a few case reports in adult patients who developed transient thrombocytopenia after receiving parenteral iron supplements. The possible mechanism is attributed to either an idiosyncratic reaction to parenteral iron therapy or a phenomenon described as stem cell steal. The erythrocytes and platelets share the same precursor stem cells and with replenishment of iron supply after severe iron deficiency anemia the hematopoiesis is probably shifted toward erythrocyte production, predominantly. This is a transient response and the platelet count starts to recover despite continuation of iron therapy. This is an extremely rare occurrence and has not been previously reported in pediatric population. Our case is unique as, to our knowledge; this is the first pediatric case being reported to demonstrate such a response. Second, our patient did not receive parenteral iron; rather he was transfused with packed red blood cells, demonstrating that this phenomenon is not limited to the use of parenteral iron administration. Third, our patient also developed mild neutropenia, which corrected the earliest. It is unclear, but probably the iron dependent enzymes involved in the hematopoiesis all favored erythropoiesis on the face of limited iron supply. As the iron stores became adequate, normal trilineage hematopoiesis was reestablished. Another possibility is that of a viral infection that led to a transient myelosupression in addition to severe iron deficiency anemia. However, viral titers for common viruses such as Epstein Barr virus, cytomegalovirus, and parvovirus B19 were all negative. Furthermore, our patient continued to demonstrate a rise in hemoglobin level despite a drop in platelet and neutrophil counts, which does not support the theory of myelosupression. In conclusion, transient pancytopenia can be encountered immediately after correction of iron deficiency. This can be a diagnostic challenge and may lead to further unnecessary investigations. This phenomenon is not well understood, but it resolves spontaneously with continued iron supplementation.
Clinical implications of delayed orthostatic hypotension

Objective: To define the long-term outcome of delayed orthostatic hypotension (OH). Hypothesis: Delayed OH is an early and milder form of OH that progresses over time. Methods: We reviewed the medical records of 230 previously reported patients who completed autonomic testing at our center from January 1, 2002, through December 31, 2003. All available information on clinical diagnosis, mortality, medication use, and autonomic testing were extracted and included in the reported outcomes. Standard criteria were used to define OH and delayed OH. Results: Forty-eight individuals with delayed OH, 42 individuals with OH, and 75 controls had complete follow-up data. Fifty-four percent of individuals with delayed OH progressed to OH. Thirty-one percent of individuals with delayed OH developed an α-synucleinopathy. The 10-year mortality rate in individuals with delayed OH was 29%, in individuals with baseline OH was 64%, and in controls was 9%. The 10-year mortality of individuals who progressed to OH was 50%. Progression to OH was associated with developing an α-synucleinopathy, baseline diabetes, and abnormal baseline autonomic test results. Conclusion: Delayed OH frequently progresses to OH with a high associated mortality.
Can Co‐stimulated Tumor Immunity be Therapeutically Efficacious?

Many tumors possess antigens that are tumor specific or, at least, expressed at a higher level in neoplastic than in normal cells (Hellstrom & Hellstrom 1991, Boon 1993), and cells from antigenic tumors can often be recognized and destroyed by properly activated T lymphocytes (Hellstrom & Hellstrom 1969, Greenberg 1991, Melief 1992). Two questions then arise; Why are these tumor cells not automatically eliminated in an immunocompetent host, and why have most attempts to treat tumors in the clinic by active immunotherapy (via tumor 'vaccines') failed? Recent studies on the role of co-stimulation of tumor-reactive T cells by B7-CD28 interactions shed some light on these questions. They also raise hope that it may become feasible to manipulate the immune response to some tumors towards therapeutic benefit. We shall review recent work in this area which has been performed on mouse tumors and refer to recent review articles (Linsley & Ledbetter 1993, June et al. 1994) for a general discussion of the role of co-stimulation in the induction of cellular and humoral immune responses.
Experimental Investigations of Biological Lubrication at the Nanoscale: The Cases of Synovial Joints and the Oral Cavity

Interactions between surfaces are ubiquitous phenomena in living organisms. Nature has developed sophisticated strategies for lubricating these systems, increasing their efficiency and life span. This includes the use of water-based lubricants, such as saliva and synovial fluid. These fluids overcome the limitations of water as a lubricant by the presence of molecules such as proteins, lipids, and polysaccharides. Such molecules may alter surface interactions through different mechanisms. They can increase viscosity enabling fluid-film lubrication. Moreover, molecules adsorb on the surfaces providing mechanisms for boundary lubrication and preventing wear. The mentioned molecules have typical sizes in the nanometer range. Their interaction, as well as the interaction with the entrapping surfaces, takes place through forces in the range of nanonewtons. It is therefore not surprising that the investigation of these systems have been boosted by development of techniques such as scanning probe microscopies and the surface force apparatus which allow studying tribological processes at the nanoscale. Indeed, these approaches have generated an enormous amount of studies over the last years. The aim of this review is to perform a critical analysis of the current stage of this research, with a main focus on studies on synovial joints and the oral cavity.
An Expressive Attribute-based Signature Scheme without Random Oracles

Attribute-based signatures (ABS) is a new cryptographic primitive and can play a great role in attributebased access control systems. In ABS, a signer can choose its attributes satisfying a policy of a verifier to generate a valid signature without reveal its identity or attributes, while the signature assures that the message is endorsed by an individual owning attributes the policy requiring. However, most existing works of ABS need random oracles, which is unpractical and results in the dependence of security on hash functions. In this paper, we refer to the mature techniques used in identity-based encryption (IBE) to propose an ABS scheme without random oracles. Our scheme support any expressive policy consisting of AND, OR, threshold gates, which offers great flexibility to the implementation of access control. Keywords-ABS;random oracles; policy; IBE
Flow cytometric characterization of phenotype, DNA indices and p53 gene expression in 55 cases of acute leukemia.

OBJECTIVE To characterize the phenotype of acute leukemia cases using flow cytometry, to detect mixed lineage cases and to use DNA index determination, including S-phase fraction (SPF) and p53 detection, to find if there was any correlation of SPF and p53 expression with outcome. STUDY DESIGN Fifty-five cases of acute leukemia were enrolled in this study. A complete hemogram and routine bone marrow examination, including cytochemistry, was done. Mycloperoxidase-negative cases were evaluated on a flow cytometer using monoclonal antibodies. DNA indices were determined by flow cytometry in all cases, and p53 was detected immunohistochemically using the alkaline phosphatase/antialkaline phosphatase technique. RESULTS Acute myeloblastic leukemia (AML) was diagnosed in 32 cases; acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) was diagnosed in 18 (14 B lineage and 4 T line age). Four cases showed mixed lineage leukemia, and undifferentiated acute leukemia was diagnosed in one case. The mean/range of SPF for these groups were 3.76/0.33-6.91, 6.25/0.15-21.4, 2.89/0.35-10.64, 2.60/0.72-6.94 and 7.34, respectively. Aneuploidy was detected in two cases of B-lineage ALL and tetraploidy in a case of AML-M7, while all others were diploid p53. Was detected in 6 of 55 cases (10.90%). Follow-up was available for 24 patients. Five patients relapsed, and four had B-cell type ALL and were diploid and expressed no p53 gene. SPF% did not show any correlation with outcome. CONCLUSION These data suggest that within acute leukemia subtypes, there is a wide variation in SPF. SPF does not seem to correlate with outcome. Immunophenotyping is essential to determine the lineage in myeloperoxidase-negative cases. It is perhaps the only way to diagnose mixed lineage leukemia and aberrant expression of markers presently. The p53 gene was detected less frequently. However, more studies are required from different centers with longer follow-up to evaluate prognostic significance.