Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
M30 expression demonstrates apoptotic cells, correlates with in situ end-labeling, and is associated with Ki-67 expression in large intestinal neoplasms.

CONTEXT The monoclonal antibody M30 recognizes a neoepitope of cytokeratin 18 produced during apoptosis. It is reactive in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue and has great potential in the study of apoptosis in clinical and experimental material. OBJECTIVES To compare the results of M30 immunoexpression with a more established technique of demonstrating apoptosis in tissue sections, in situ end-labeling. A secondary objective was to compare the results with immunoexpression of the proliferation-associated antigen Ki-67. DESIGN Retrospective analysis of adenomas and adenocarcinomas of the large intestine. INTERVENTIONS Immunohistochemistry for M30 and Ki-67, and in situ end-labeling. Formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue was used. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES The number of cells positive for M30, Ki-67, and in situ end-labeling, expressed as a proportion of the total number of cells counted. RESULTS A strong positive correlation was found between in situ end-labeling and expression of M30, although the counts were widely scattered around the regression line. Counts of Ki-67 were strongly correlated with both M30 expression and in situ end-labeling. Immunoexpression of M30 was generally easier to interpret than in situ end-labeling, and the procedures for M30 immunohistochemistry were technically less exacting. CONCLUSION These findings support the application of M30 immunoreactivity in the study of apoptosis.
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SERUM LACTATE LEVELS AND MORBIDITY OUTCOMES IN CARDIOVASCULAR PATIENTS AFTER CABG

ORIGINAL ARTICLE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SERUM LACTATE LEVELS AND MORBIDITY OUTCOMES IN CARDIOVASCULAR PATIENTS AFTER CABG MIRMOHAMMAD-SADEGHI M, ETESAMPOUR A, GHARIPOUR M, SAEIDI M, KIANI A, SHAMSOLKOTABI H, TORKNEZHAD MR, FARAHMAND N
Inhibitory effects of some spice essential oils on Aspergillus ochraceus NRRL 3174 growth and ochratoxin A production

Inhibitory effects of essential oils of oregano (Origanum vulgare), mint (Menta arvensis), basil (Ocimum basilicum), sage (Salvia officinalis) and coriander (Coriandrum sativum), on the mycelial growth and ochratoxin A production by Aspergillus ochraceus NRRL 3174 were studied. Cultures were incubated on yeast extract‐sucrose (YES) broth, at concentrations of 0, 500, 750 and 1000 p.p.m. of essentials oils during 7, 14 and 21 d at 25 °C. At 1000 p.p.m. , oregano and mint completely inhibited the fungal growth and ochratoxin A production up to 21 d, while basil was only effective up to 7 d. At 750 p.p.m. , oregano was completely effective up to 14 d, whereas mint allowed fungal growth but no ochratoxin A production up to 14 d. At 500 p.p.m. , no evident inhibition could be observed with any of the essential oils under analysis. Sage and coriander showed no important effect at any of the concentrations studied. These inhibitory effects are interesting in connection with the prevention of mycotoxin contamination in many foods and they could be used instead of synthetic antifungal products.
Total Flavonoid Determination for the Quality Control of Aqueous Extractives from Phyllanthus niruri L.

SUMMARY. The purpose of this study has been the development of an adequate methodology for the quality control of Phyllanthus niruri aqueous extracts. The assay method was tested, with various modifications, to determine its suitability for the quantitative determination of total flavonoids within the crude drug raw material and aqueous extracts. The assay technique for such chemical group is based on the spectrophotometric evaluation of a complex with AlCl 3 after acid hydrolysis of the glycosides. Statistical analyses demonstrated the adequacy for the quantitative analysis of the raw material, but it had limitations for the assay of the aqueous extractive solutions. These limitations could be overcome by using a defined range of raw material amount and a standard aliquot of a stock extract solution. RESUMEN “ Determinacio n de flavonoides totales para el control de calidad de extractivos acuosos de Phyllantus niruri L. ” El objetivo de este estudio ha sido el desarrollo de una metodolog ia de control de calidad tecnol o gico para la determinacio n de flavonoides en extractos acuosos de Phyllanthus niruri. El me todo de analisis se evaluo , con varias modificaciones, para determinar su adecuabilidad para la determinaci o n cuantitativa de flavonoides totales en la materia prima vegetal y en sus extractos acuosos. El m e todo de analisis para este grupo qu imico se basa en una evaluacio n espectrofotome trica de un complejo formado con cloruro de aluminio tras la hidro lisis acida de los gluco sidos. Los analisis estadisticos han demostrado que el me todo es adecuado para el analisis cuantitativo de la materia prima vegetal, pero presenta limitaciones para la evaluaci o n de las soluciones extractivas acuosas. Dichas limitaciones pueden ser solucionadas utilizando un rango definido de cantidad de materia prima vegetal y una al icuota estandar de la solucio n extractiva obtenida.
IMMUNE SYSTEM FUNCTION AND DEVELOPMENT IN BROILERS

Significant progress has been made during the past 10-15 years in understanding the development and function of the immune system in avian species. However, most of the research in avian immunology has focused on egg-type chickens. This is due, in part, to the availability of genetically defined lines, biomedical animal models, and specificpathogen-free (SPF) individuals within the egg-type chicken strains. Considering both the differences in the genetic selection pressures imposed on meat-type versus egg-type chickens, as well as, the observation that body weight is negatively correlated with immune function (Han and Smyth, Jr., 1972, Parmentier et al., 1996), basic immunological norms established in egg-type chickens may not be readily applied to meat-type chickens (broilers). With the continued increase in the economic importance of broilers, a better understanding of the development and function of the immune system in these birds is necessary. This knowledge will find direct application in breeder selection programs, which have to include selection for early immunocompetence and high disease resistance to meet the demands of modern intensive broiler production systems. Although current information on basic broiler immunology is limited, it will be the focus of this discussion. In the first section of this paper, the basic concepts of chicken immunology will be presented. In the second section, studies on specific (humoral and cell-mediated) immunity in broilers will be discussed.
Attenuated and Replication-Competent Vaccinia Virus Strains M65 and M101 with Distinct Biology and Immunogenicity as Potential Vaccine Candidates against Pathogens

ABSTRACT Replication-competent poxvirus vectors with an attenuation phenotype and with a high immunogenic capacity of the foreign expressed antigen are being pursued as novel vaccine vectors against different pathogens. In this investigation, we have examined the replication and immunogenic characteristics of two vaccinia virus (VACV) mutants, M65 and M101. These mutants were generated after 65 and 101 serial passages of persistently infected Friend erythroleukemia (FEL) cells. In cultured cells of different origins, the mutants are replication competent and have growth kinetics similar to or slightly reduced in comparison with those of the parental Western Reserve (WR) virus strain. In normal and immune-suppressed infected mice, the mutants showed different levels of attenuation and pathogenicity in comparison with WR and modified vaccinia Ankara (MVA) strains. Wide genome analysis after deep sequencing revealed selected genomic deletions and mutations in a number of viral open reading frames (ORFs). Mice immunized in a DNA prime/mutant boost regimen with viral vectors expressing the LACK (Leishmania homologue for receptors of activated C kinase) antigen of Leishmania infantum showed protection or a delay in the onset of cutaneous leishmaniasis. Protection was similar to that triggered by MVA-LACK. In immunized mice, both polyfunctional CD4+ and CD8+ T cells with an effector memory phenotype were activated by the two mutants, but the DNA-LACK/M65-LACK protocol preferentially induced CD4+ whereas DNA-LACK/M101-LACK preferentially induced CD8+ T cell responses. Altogether, our findings showed the adaptive changes of the WR genome during long-term virus-host cell interaction and how the replication competency of M65 and M101 mutants confers distinct biological properties and immunogenicity in mice compared to those of the MVA strain. These mutants could have applicability for understanding VACV biology and as potential vaccine vectors against pathogens and tumors.
Integrative assessment of multiple pesticides as risk factors for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma among men

Background: An increased rate of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL) has been repeatedly observed among farmers, but identification of specific exposures that explain this observation has proven difficult. Methods: During the 1980s, the National Cancer Institute conducted three case-control studies of NHL in the midwestern United States. These pooled data were used to examine pesticide exposures in farming as risk factors for NHL in men. The large sample size (n = 3417) allowed analysis of 47 pesticides simultaneously, controlling for potential confounding by other pesticides in the model, and adjusting the estimates based on a prespecified variance to make them more stable. Results: Reported use of several individual pesticides was associated with increased NHL incidence, including organophosphate insecticides coumaphos, diazinon, and fonofos, insecticides chlordane, dieldrin, and copper acetoarsenite, and herbicides atrazine, glyphosate, and sodium chlorate. A subanalysis of these “potentially carcinogenic” pesticides suggested a positive trend of risk with exposure to increasing numbers. Conclusion: Consideration of multiple exposures is important in accurately estimating specific effects and in evaluating realistic exposure scenarios.
Information Technology Training for a Globalized Workforce - Challenges, Tools and Research Directions

IT training research is one of the dominant themes in IS research for the past two decades and has provided a rich knowledge base of tools and techniques to impart IT training to employees (Compeau et al. 1995; Sharma and Yetton 2007). IT training is a critical enabler of information system acceptance and use, because employees who undergo training have higher positive attitudes than those who do not (Cooper and Zmud 1990, Xia and Lee 2000). But conducting business in a global workspace has created additional challenges for IT training professionals and organizational consultants. Training service firms with names such as " Global Computer Education, " " International Training Services, " Training for a Global World, " are becoming quite commonplace. Business Information systems, instead of being simple one-user systems, have become complex, large, integrated systems used by many different employees and require more learning and coordination efforts on the part of employees methods such as virtual training, situational learning, and behavior modeling are being researched to support employee learning and expand upon the traditional face-to-face lecture based training (Alavi and have to play a critical role as trainers as they support employees' learning process long after training programs are completed (Haggerty and Compeau 2002, Pawlowski and Robey 2004). IT staff/trainers can learn from these research findings that could help them better manage training on new information technologies and cope with training employees in a global workspace. The purpose of this panel discussion is to cull key IT training research ideas and discuss their implications for IT staff and trainers. Questions that will be addressed are: What must be the motivation, background, and skills expected of trainees in this training environment? How should
Integrating on a S patial N etwork W ithout C oordinates

Calculating surface and volume integrals is a useful operation for space-approximating networks. For example a sensor network might estimate crowd size by integrating the density of people in an area, or estimate the severity of a pollutant spill by calculating the area of the affected region. More exotically, a smart material might integrate force to find the weight it is supporting, or a bio-film computer might monitor its activity by integrating the flow of nutrients through a volume.
HLA-B27-restricted CD8+ T cell response to cartilage-derived self peptides in ankylosing spondylitis.

OBJECTIVE Several hypotheses have been proposed to explain the strong association between HLA-B27 and ankylosing spondylitis (AS). Among these, the arthritogenic peptide theory proposes that certain B27 subtype alleles bind specific arthritogenic peptide(s) due to their unique amino acid anchor residues. Cartilage antigens have been discussed as candidate targets for the immune response in AS. The recognition of HLA-B27-peptide complexes by self-reactive CD8+ T cells might contribute to joint-specific tissue damage. Therefore, we investigated the presence of autoreactive CD8+ T cells specific for cartilage-derived peptides in patients with AS. METHODS An HLA-B27-binding prediction program and a proteasome-cutting prediction program for the human 20S proteasome were used to screen 18 human cartilage proteins for potentially immunogenic nonamer peptides. The peptides identified were used to stimulate peripheral blood mononuclear cells from 20 HLA-B27-positive patients with AS and synovial fluid (SF) mononuclear cells from 7 HLA-B27-positive patients with AS. Activation of T cells was measured by antigen-specific intracellular cytokine staining and quantified by flow cytometry. RESULTS From the screening analysis, we identified 121 nonamer peptides. Of these, 1 peptide derived from type II collagen and 1 from type VI collagen were stimulatory for peripheral blood CD8+ T cells in only 1 of 20 patients. However, in 4 of 7 SF samples the same type VI collagen-derived nonamer peptide stimulated SF CD8+ T cells, but none of the other peptides was stimulatory. This CD8+ T cell response could be blocked by an anti-HLA-B27 antibody, confirming an HLA-B27-restricted immune response. CONCLUSION Our findings suggest that cartilage-directed cellular autoimmunity might play an important role in joint-specific tissue damage in patients with AS. Future research is necessary to determine whether the identified peptide is of pathogenetic relevance.
Map‐aided localization in sparse global positioning system environments using vision and particle filtering

A map‐aided localization approach using vision, inertial sensors when available, and a particle filter is proposed and empirically evaluated. The approach, termed PosteriorPose, uses a Bayesian particle filter to augment global positioning system (GPS) and inertial navigation solutions with vision‐based measurements of nearby lanes and stop lines referenced against a known map of environmental features. These map‐relative measurements are shown to improve the quality of the navigation solution when GPS is available, and they are shown to keep the navigation solution converged in extended GPS blackouts. Measurements are incorporated with careful hypothesis testing and error modeling to account for non‐Gaussian and multimodal errors committed by GPS and vision‐based detection algorithms. Using a set of data collected with Cornell's autonomous car, including a measure of truth via a high‐precision differential corrections service, an experimental investigation of important design elements of the PosteriorPose estimator is conducted. The algorithm is shown to statistically outperform a tightly coupled GPS/inertial navigation solution both in full GPS coverage and in extended GPS blackouts. Statistical performance is also studied as a function of road type, filter likelihood models, bias models, and filter integrity tests. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Expression of GAP‐43 mRNA in Mouse Spinal Cord Following Unilateral Peripheral Nerve Damage: is There a Contralateral Effect?

Two new oligonucleotide anti‐sense probes and their corresponding sense probes specific for mouse GAP‐43 mRNA were synthesized and end‐labelled with digoxygenin. They were used to localize GAP‐43 mRNA in the spinal cords of normal mice and in mice 3 and 7 days following unilateral sciatic nerve cut. GAP‐43 mRNA was found to be expressed at low levels in motor and other neurons of the normal spinal cords. As expected from other studies, up‐regulation occurred in the cell bodies of axotomized motor neurons but, in addition, up‐regulation was also observed in the cell bodies of intact motor neurons contralateral to the lesion. Densitometer measurements showed that the up‐regulation of GAP‐43 mRNA was less in the intact, contralateral motor neuron cell bodies than in the axotomized motor neuron cell bodies and furthermore was transient, being higher at 3 days than at 7 days following axotomy. Both anti‐sense probes gave the same result, although differences in cellular localization were observed, and the two sense probes were negative. Probe binding was abolished by pretreatment of the sections with ribonuclease and hybridization was carried out under different conditions of stringency in order to ascertain whether the contralateral expression of GAP‐43 mRNA was a true reflection of its distribution in vivo. There is conflicting evidence on the presence or absence of contralateral effects following unilateral peripheral nerve injury in the literature, and it is suggested that these differences can be accounted for by the methodology and type of probe used.
Multistar implementation of expandable shufflenets

ShuffleNet is one of the many architectures proposed for multihop lightwave networks. Its advantages include low mean-internodal distance and simple routing. Modular growth of ShuffleNets, however, is generally difficult and requires many hardware and software reconfigurations. The authors consider a multistar implementation of ShuffleNet and discuss how a (p,k) ShuffleNet can be expanded to a (p,k+1) ShuffleNet in modular phases, where each phase increases the number of nodes by only a small fraction and requires only minor hardware and software reconfigurations. >
Mcl1p Is a Polymerase α Replication Accessory Factor Important for S-Phase DNA Damage Survival

ABSTRACT Mcl1p is an essential fission yeast chromatin-binding protein that belongs to a family of highly conserved eukaryotic proteins important for sister chromatid cohesion. The essential function is believed to result from its role as a Pol1p (polymerase α) accessory protein, a conclusion based primarily on analogy to Ctf4p's interaction with Pol1p. In this study, we show that Mcl1p also binds to Pol1p with high affinity for the N terminus of Pol1p during S phase and DNA damage. Characterization of an inducible allele of mcl1+, nmt41mcl1-MH, shows that altered expression levels of Mcl1p lead to sensitivity to DNA-damaging agents and synthetic lethality with the replication checkpoint mutations rad3Δ, rqh1Δ, and hsk1-1312. Further, we find that the overexpression of the S-phase checkpoint kinase, Cds1, or the loss of Hsk1 kinase activity can disrupt Mcl1p's interaction with chromatin and Pol1p during replication arrest with hydroxyurea. We take these data to mean that Mcl1p is a dynamic component of the polymerase α complex during replication and is important for the replication stress response in fission yeast.
Biotic systems to mitigate landfill methane emissions

Landfill gases produced during biological degradation of buried organic wastes include methane, which when released to the atmosphere, can contribute to global climate change. Increasing use of gas collection systems has reduced the risk of escaping methane emissions entering the atmosphere, but gas capture is not 100% efficient, and further, there are still many instances when gas collection systems are not used. Biotic methane mitigation systems exploit the propensity of some naturally occurring bacteria to oxidize methane. By providing optimum conditions for microbial habitation and efficiently routing landfill gases to where they are cultivated, a number of bio-based systems, such as interim or long-term biocovers, passively or actively vented biofilters, biowindows and daily-used biotarps, have been developed that can alone, or with gas collection, mitigate landfill methane emissions. This paper reviews the science that guides bio-based designs; summarizes experiences with the diverse natural or engineered substrates used in such systems; describes some of the studies and field trials being used to evaluate them; and discusses how they can be used for better landfill operation, capping, and aftercare.
Endothelin-1 Influences the Efficacy of Inhaled Nitric Oxide in Experimental Acute Lung Injury

Beneficial effects of inhaled nitric oxide (iNO) on arterial oxygenation in acute lung injury (ALI) suggest the presence of vasoconstriction in ventilated lung regions and this may be influenced by endothelin-1 (ET-1). We studied a possible interaction between ET-1 and iNO in experimental ALI. Sixteen piglets were anesthetized and mechanically ventilated (inspired O2 fraction, 1.0). After induction of ALI by surfactant depletion, animals were randomly assigned to either inhale 30 ppm NO (iNO group, n=8), or to receive no further intervention (controls, n=8). Measurements were performed during the following 4 hrs. In all animals, induction of ALI significantly decreased arterial oxygen tension (PaO2) from 569 ± 15 (prelavage) to 58 ± 3 mm Hg. Inhaled NO significantly increased PaO2 when compared with controls (iNO group: 265 ± 51 mm Hg; controls: 50 ± 4 mm Hg, values at 4 hrs, P < 0.01). Prelavage ET-1 plasma levels were comparable between groups (iNO: 0.74 ± 0.03, controls: 0.71 ± 0.03 fmol/ml, NS). During the protocol, the ET-1 levels increased and were different at 3 hrs (iNO: 0.93 ± 0.06, controls: 1.25 ± 0.09 fmol/ml; P < 0.05). PaO2 changes induced by iNO revealed a moderate and significant correlation with ET-1 plasma levels (R = 0.548, P = 0.001). Our data suggest that endogenous ET-1 production influences the efficacy of iNO in ALI. Furthermore, iNO reduced ET-1 plasma levels, possibly indicating anti-inflammatory properties of iNO in the early phase of ALI.