Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Early post‐natal development of neuronal function in the kitten's visual cortex: a laminar analysis.

The normal post‐natal development of visual cortical functions was studied by recording extracellularly from 612 single neurones in the striate and parastriate cortex of anaesthetized and paralysed kittens, ranging in age from 6 to 24 days. Analyses have been made of laminar differences in the developmental trends of receptive field properties such as orientation specificity and spatial organization of 'on' and 'off' zones. At the beginning of the second post‐natal week the majority of neurones (76%) only respond to light 'off' (unimodal 'off' neurones). Only later does the frequency of occurrence of unimodal 'on' neurones and of bimodal or multimodal neurones (with spatially segregated 'on' and 'off' zones arranged side by side) increase so that, by the middle of the fourth week, about equal numbers of these three receptive field types are found. The proportion of 'on‐off' neurones (with spatially coincident 'on' and 'off' zones) remains low (between 9% and 12%) during the early post‐natal period. In layers 4 and 6 of areas 17 and 18 the frequency of occurrence of visual neurones is quite normal even in the youngest kittens, whereas the probability of recording neurones in layers 2/3 and 5 in kittens less than 14 days old is remarkably low and only gradually improves up to the middle of the fourth week. A very rudimentary order in the spatial arrangement of orientation‐specific neurones and ocular dominance distribution is observed even in very young kittens. This order improves rapidly and reaches adult levels during the fourth post‐natal week. In visually inexperienced kittens, on average 11% of all responsive neurones are selective for the orientation of elongated visual stimuli, and 58% are biased. The proportion of orientation‐selective cells begins to increase rapidly about two days after lid opening, and proportions of orientation‐selective cells similar to that in the adult are reached by the end of the fourth post‐natal week. Orientation‐selective neurones in kittens less than 10 days old are only found in layers 4 and 6 and the lower part of layer 3. In layers 2/3 and 5 they are first seen in larger proportions by the beginning of the third post‐natal week. Our results show that, during the first post‐natal month, the time course of the functional development of visual cortical neurones depends on receptive field type and on intracortical location. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
MicroRNAs regulate Dendritic Cell Development and Function

microRNAs have emerged as a novel layer of regulation of cellular development and function, including cells of the immune system. microRNA expression profiles and function of several microRNAs have been elucidated in granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor derived dendritic cells (GM-CSF DC). In this study we determined the microRNA expression profile from plasmacytoid DC (pDC) and conventional DC (cDC) generated in murine FMS-related tyrosine kinase 3 ligand (Flt3L) bone marrow culture. We observed distinct miRNA expression signatures in these two different DC subsets and found that pDC were closer related to CD4+ T cells than to cDC. Expression of a selected subset of microRNAs was also compared between cDC and GM-CSF DC. Furthermore, we show that inhibition of two differentially expressed microRNAs, miR-221 and miR-222, during differentiation resulted in skewed pDC/cDC ratios. Among the confirmed or potential targets for miR-221 and miR-222 are c-Kit, p27kip1 and E2-2. While cKit is expressed by DC progenitors and p27kip1 is a cell cycle regulator, E2-2 does transcriptionally regulate pDC development. Our data demonstrate that microRNAs can influence Flt3-driven DC differentiation. © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Epidemiology of Wilms tumor.

Wilms tumor affects approximately one child per 10,000 worldwide before the age of 15 years. Incidence rates appear to be slightly elevated for U.S. and African Blacks in comparison to Whites, but are only half as great among Asians. Several case-control studies have suggested that paternal occupational or maternal hormonal exposures during pregnancy may increase the risk of Wilms tumor, but small numbers of subjects and inconsistencies in the patterns of exposures do not permit firm conclusions to be drawn. It is unlikely that such environmental exposures play a major role in the etiology of Wilms tumor. The median age-at-onset of Wilms tumor is 38 months in the U.S. National Wilms Tumor Study series, with cases in girls occurring on average 6 months later than in boys. Patients with bilateral tumors, aniridia, cryptorchism/hypospadias, Beck-with-Wiedemann syndrome, or intralobar nephrogenic rests tend to be diagnosed much younger than average (median 17-27 months). Those with familial disease or multicentric tumors have intermediate age-at-onset distributions, while those with perilobar nephrogenic rests are diagnosed at older ages. The epidemiologic features suggest that somatic mosaicism, rather than a germline mutation, may be responsible for some of the bilateral and multicentric cases.
DNA supercoiling in Escherichia coli: topA mutations can be suppressed by DNA amplifications involving the tolC locus

The level of DNA supercoiling is crucial for many cellular processes, Including gene expression, and is determined, primarily, by the opposing actions of two enzymes: topoisomerase I and DNA gyrase. Escherichia coli strains lacking topoisomerase I (topA mutants) normally fail to grow in the absence of compensatory mutations which are presumed to relax DNA. We have found that, in media of low osmolarity, topA mutants are viable in the absence of any compensatory mutation, consistent with the view that decreased extracellular osmolarity causes a relaxation of cellular DNA. At higher osmolarity most compensatory mutations, as expected, are in the gyrA and gyrB genes. The only other locus at which compensatory mutations arise, designated toc, is shown to involve the amplification of a region of chromosomal DNA which includes the tolC gene. However, amplification of tolC alone is insufficient to explain the phenotypes of toc mutants. tolC insertion mutations alter the distribution of plasmid topoisomers in vivo. This effect is probably indirect, possibly a result of altered membrane structure and an alteration in the cell's osmotic barrier. As tolC is a highly pleiotropic locus, affecting the expression of many genes, it is possible that some of the TolC phenotypes are a direct result of this topological change. The possible relationship between toe and tolC mutations, and the means by which tolC mutations might affect DNA supercoiling, are discussed.
The Design and Implementation of Multimedia Reusable Components

A truck construction for an attraction type, magnetically levitated vehicle having four electromagnets or electromagnet groups arranged at vertex points in a rectangular plane figure to confront a pair of left and right armature rails laid on the ground. The electromagnets or electromagnet groups are connected to each other by means of girders having a simple structure each constituted by a web and flanges to form a truck having a rectangular plane shape having overall high resistance to torsion. The truck or a group of such trucks are attached to a vehicle through shock absorbing members.
A suppressive lymphokine of platelet cytotoxic functions.

The in vitro stimulation of mononuclear cells from human peripheral blood with mitogens is known to induce the release of factors (monokines and lymphokines) that possess distinct biologic activities. The present data describe the presence in Con A- and antigen-stimulated T cell supernatants (of man or rat) of a factor able to inhibit, in a dose-dependent manner, the platelet cytotoxicity toward the young larvae of Schistosoma mansoni. The production of oxygen metabolites by IgE-coated platelets, stimulated by anti-IgE or the specific antigen, was, likewise, strongly inhibited by this lymphokine. The producing T lymphocyte subpopulation was identified as OKT 8+. This suppressive lymphokine of platelet functions had an m.w. of 15,000 to 20,000 and a pI of 4.6. It was heat- and acid-stable and sensitive to trypsin and proteinase K, but neuraminidase had no effect on its activity. This platelet suppressive activity was specifically absorbed by platelet membrane, suggesting its action through the binding to a receptor.
Sorption, uptake, and biotransformation of 17β‐estradiol, 17α‐ethinylestradiol, zeranol, and trenbolone acetate by hybrid poplar

Hormonally active compounds may move with agricultural runoff from fields with applied manure and biosolids into surface waters where they pose a threat to human and environmental health. Riparian zone plants could remove hormonally active compounds from agricultural runoff. Therefore, sorption to roots, uptake, translocation, and transformation of 3 estrogens (17β‐estradiol, 17α‐ethinylestradiol, and zeranol) and 1 androgen (trenbolone acetate) commonly found in animal manure or biosolids were assessed by hydroponically grown hybrid poplar, Populus deltoides x nigra, DN‐34, widely used in riparian buffer strips. Results clearly showed that these hormones were rapidly removed from 2 mg L–1 hydroponic solutions by more than 97% after 10 d of exposure to full poplar plants or live excised poplars (cut‐stem, no leaves). Removals by sorption to dead poplar roots that had been autoclaved were significantly less, 71% to 84%. Major transformation products (estrone and estriol for estradiol; zearalanone for zeranol; and 17β‐trenbolone from trenbolone acetate) were detected in the root tissues of all 3 poplar treatments. Root concentrations of metabolites peaked after 1 d to 5 d and then decreased in full and live excised poplars by further transformation. Metabolite concentrations were less in dead poplar treatments and only slowly increased without further transformation. Taken together, these findings show that poplars may be effective in controlling the movement of hormonally active compounds from agricultural fields and avoiding runoff to streams. Environ Toxicol Chem 2015;34:2906–2913. © 2015 SETAC
Piecewise linear constrained control for continuous-time systems

In the control of linear systems with nonsymmetrical input constraints, larger domains of initialization can be obtained by allowing slow initial dynamics of the system in closed loop and making it faster during its evolution. The positive invariance concept application leads to a piecewise linear constrained control using nonsymmetrical nested polyhedral sets.
Non-classical processes in surface hemostasis: mechanisms for the poly-N-acetyl glucosamine-induced alteration of red blood cell morphology and surface prothrombogenicity

It is well established that platelets and the intrinsic plasma coagulation pathway can be activated when blood contacts artificial surfaces. Experiments were performed to assess the effect of hemostatic poly-N-acetyl glucosamine (pGlcNAc) nanofibers on red blood cells. The pGlcNAc nanofibers, isolated from a marine diatom, interact with red blood cells (RBCs) to produce stomatocytes. The stomatocytes could be converted to echinocytes by treatment with echinocytic reagents, as measured by electron microscopy. Electrophoretic and Western blot analysis of RBC surface proteins demonstrated that pGlcNAc fibers were bound to band 3 of the RBC. An important and unique result of the interaction of RBCs with pGlcNAc fibers was the activation of the intrinsic coagulation cascade. This prothrombotic effect was associated with the presentation of phosphatidylserine on the outer layer of the surface membrane of nanofiber bound RBCs. The results demonstrate that RBCs can play a direct and important role in achieving surface hemostasis by accelerating the generation of thrombin, and add to the growing body of evidence that RBCs can strongly interact with hemostatic systems.
A short history of the General Medical Council

Introduction The General Medical Council (GMC) regulates British doctors through the Medical Act. The Council comprises doctors (who predominate) and laypeople. It registers doctors for UK practice, sets professional standards, regulates basic medical education, and manages doctors' fitness to practise. The GMC sits uneasily at the interface between the medical profession, the public, Parliament and the National Health Service. Herein lie the seeds of inertia and conflict.
A BOTTOM-UP REMOTE SENSING DATA MINING AND REDISTRIBUTION PROJECT IN THE AGE OF THE ‘ WEB 2 . 0

A project was devised to develop a set of freely available applications and web services that can (1) simplify access from Mobile Devices to TOVAS data and (2) support the development of new datasets through data repackaging and mash-up. The bottom-up approach enables the multiplication of new services, often of limited direct interest to the organizations that produces the original, global datasets, but significant to small, local users. Through this multiplication of services, the development cost is transferred to the intermediate or end users and the entire process is made more efficient, even allowing new players to use the data in innovative ways.
Analysis of a nonsynchronized Sinusoidally Driven Dynamical System

A nonautonomous system, i.e. a system driven by an external force, is usually considered as being phase synchronized with this force. In such a case, the dynamical behavior is conveniently studied in an extended phase space which is the product of the phase space ℝm of the undriven system by an extra dimension associated with the external force. The analysis is then performed by taking advantage of the known period of the external force to define a Poincare section relying on a stroboscopic sampling. Nevertheless, it may so happen that the phase synchronization does not occur. It is then more convenient to consider the nonautonomous system as an autonomous system incorporating the subsystem generating the driving force. In the case of a sinusoidal driving force, the phase space is ℝm+2 instead of the usual extended phase space ℝm × S1. It is also demonstrated that a global model may then be obtained by using m + 2 dynamical variables with two variables associated with the driving force. The obtained model characterizes an autonomous system in contrast with a classical input/output model obtained when the driving force is considered as an input.
Associations Between Temperament and DSM-IV Externalizing Disorders in Children and Adolescents

ABSTRACT. This study investigated associations between child temperament and DSM-IV disorders in children. A total of 156 probands (97 boys, 59 girls; mean age = 10.78 years) and 154 randomly selected siblings were assessed using the Junior Temperament and Character Inventory (JTCI) and a structured DSM-IV interview. Subjects were placed in nonoverlapping groups of (1) attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) only, (2) disruptive behavior disorders (DBD) only, (3) DBD plus an affective and/or anxiety disorder (DBD+Int), and (4) controls with no diagnosis. Many JTCI scales were found to differ between diagnostic groups and controls. Regression analyses showed independent associations between low persistence and ADHD-only group membership, high novelty seeking (NS), and the DBD-only group and between high harm avoidance (HA) and DBD+Int group membership. The interaction NS × HA was related to the ADHD-only group. Future research is needed to determine the mechanism of these association.
Effect of Serine Protease Inhibitors on Posttraumatic Brain Injury and Neuronal Apoptosis

N-Tosyl-l-phenylalanyl chloromethyl ketone (TPCK), an inhibitor of chymotrypsin-like serine protease (CSP), prevents DNA fragmentation and apoptotic cell death in certain blood cell lines and was reported to reduce hippocampal neuronal damage caused by cerebral ischemia. We examined the role of CSP on recovery after lateral fluid percussion-induced traumatic brain injury (TBI) in rats, as well as on cell survival in various in vitro models of neuronal cell death. TBI caused significant time-dependent upregulation of CSP activity, but not trypsin-like serine protease activity in injured cortex. Intracerebroventricular administration of TPCK to rats after TBI did not significantly affect deficits of spatial learning but exacerbated motor dysfunction after injury. Moreover, TPCK did not prevent apoptotic neuronal cell death caused by serum/K(+) deprivation or by application of staurosporine or etoposide in cultured rat cerebellar granule cells, rat cortical neurons, or in the human neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cell line. Instead, at doses from 10 to 100 microM, TPCK was cytotoxic in all cultures tested. Similar results were obtained in cultures treated with another CSP inhibitor, 3,4-dichloroisocoumarin. Cell death caused by CSP inhibitors was neither caspase-dependent nor associated with oligonucleosomal DNA fragmentation. Taken together, these data do not support a neuroprotective role for CSP inhibitors. Rather, they suggest that CSPs may serve an endogenous neuroprotective role, possibly by modulating necrotic cell death.
Coin Production in the Low Countries: Fourteenth Century to the Present.

The new dataset and web application ‘Coin Production in the Low Countries: fourteenth century to the present’ provides scholars with user-friendly access to mintmasters’ accounts going back to the Middle Ages. They give insight into the production of legal tender (within the Low Countries and occasionally elsewhere as well), and provide access to such variables as regional production figures and coin denominations. This data article provides an introduction to the sources as well as the dataset, and suggests how the latter might contribute to new research into long-run economic and social history.
The clarity and comfort of printed text.

The successive lines of printed text form a pattern of ‘stripes’. The spatial characteristics of this pattern have been measured and found to be similar to those of patterns that induce discomfort, anomalous visual effects and even seizures. It is argued that reading provokes ‘eye-strain’ and seizures because of the striped properties of text, and that it is for this reason that headaches and seizures are reduced by covering the lines of text above and below those being read. In studies in which subjects are asked to judge the clarity of text it is shown that judgements of clarity are affected by the spatial characteristics of the pattern, in particular, the spacing between the lines. The average area of the page occupied by a letter (i.e. the product of the separation between the lines and the mean horizontal spacing between the centres of letters) accounts for less variance than does the separation between the lines of text. Within the constraints of conventional typography, the clarity of text could pe.
The Role of FAST-1 and Smads in Transcriptional Regulation by Activin during Early Xenopus Embryogenesis*

Smads are signal transducers for the transforming growth factor-β superfamily of factors. In early Xenopusembryos, the transforming growth factor-β member activin induces the gene Mix.2 by stimulating the formation of a multiprotein complex, activin-responsive factor (ARF). This complex contains Smad2 or Smad3, Smad4, and a novel forkhead transcription factor, FAST-1, and binds to an enhancer (activin-responsive element; ARE) that confers activin regulation of Mix.2 transcription. Both FAST-1 and Smads can bind directly to the ARE; we have investigated 1) the role of FAST-1 and Smad DNA binding sites in ARF recognition of the ARE, 2) the contributions of FAST-1 and Smad binding to ARF binding in vitro and to ARE regulation in early Xenopus embryos, 3) the extent to which different Smads can replace Smad4 in regulation of the ARE. We find that ARF binds to ARE through both FAST-1 and Smad binding sites. FAST-1 recognition of the ARE is essential both for ARF binding in vitro and activin regulation in vivo. In contrast, Smad binding of ARE is unnecessary for ARF binding or activin regulation but does enhance the binding and regulatory activity of ARF. Also, Smad3 can partially substitute for Smad4 in the regulation of the ARE. These observations elucidate how broadly expressed signal transducers (Smads) regulate a developmentally specific transcriptional response in conjunction with a temporally restricted transcription factor, FAST-1.
Leukocytapheresis Is Effective in Inducing But Not in Maintaining Remission in Ulcerative Colitis

Goals and Background: Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a chronic inflammatory bowel disease characterized by dense infiltration of lymphocytes, plasma cells, neutrophils, and monocyte-macrophages into the colonic mucosa. Leukocytapheresis is a procedure for selectively removing white blood cells from withdrawn blood. It is used for the treatment of several autoimmune diseases. This study was performed to evaluate the effectiveness of leukocytapheresis for inducing and maintaining remission in corticosteroid-resistant UC, as compared with corticosteroid-responsive UC. Study: Forty-five patients with active UC who were treated with a dose of 1 mg/kg per day or more of prednisolone given systemically for at least 2 weeks were evaluated. Twenty patients (6 males, 14 females) in whom improvement was induced only by high doses of prednisolone were allocated as the corticosteroid-responsive group. The other 25 patients (11 males, 14 females) who did not respond to the above-mentioned dose of prednisolone therapy were allocated as the corticosteroid-resistant group and received leukocytapheresis therapy once a week for 5 weeks. Of patients who had a remission, the corticosteroid-responsive group continued to have the conventional therapy and the corticosteroid-resistant group were given leukocytapheresis once every 4 weeks for at least 2 years as maintenance therapy. Results: Remission was induced by 5 weeks of leukocytapheresis in 23 of the 25 (92%) patients with corticosteroid-resistant active UC. The number of days required to achieve remission of UC was fewer in patients who received leukocytapheresis than in those who did not. Follow-up study of the patients who had remission showed similar relapse rates at 2 years in the patients who received leukocytapheresis and those given high doses of prednisolone alone. Conclusions: Leukocytapheresis is an effective treatment of acute corticosteroid-resistant UC but does not prevent the recurrence of UC.
Heterogeneous Nuclear Ribonucleoprotein A1 and UP1 Protect Mammalian Telomeric Repeats and Modulate Telomere Replication in Vitro *

The heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein A1 protein and a shortened derivative (UP1) promote telomere elongation in mammalian cells. To gain insights into the function of A1/UP1 in telomere biogenesis, we have investigated the binding properties of recombinant A1/UP1 and derivatives to single-stranded DNA oligonucleotides. Our results indicate that UP1 prefers to bind to DNA carrying single-stranded telomeric extensions at the 3′ terminus. The RNA recognition motif 1 is sufficient for strong and specific binding to oligomers carrying vertebrate telomeric repeats. We find that the binding of A1/UP1 protects telomeric sequences against degradation by endo- and exonucleases. Moreover, A1/UP1 binding prevents extension by telomerase and terminal deoxynucleotidyltransferase and inhibits rNTP-dependent DNA synthesis in vitro. These observations are consistent with the hypothesis that A1/UP1 is a telomere end-binding protein that plays a role in the maintenance of long 3′ overhangs.