Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Dynamic properties of corticogeniculate excitatory transmission in the rat dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus in vitro

The feedback excitation from the primary visual cortex to principal cells in the dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus (dLGN) is markedly enhanced with firing frequency. This property presumably reflects the ample short‐term plasticity at the corticogeniculate synapse. The present study aims to explore corticogeniculate excitatory postsynaptic currents (EPSCs) evoked by brief trains of stimulation with whole‐cell patch‐clamp recordings in dLGN slices from DA‐HAN rats. The EPSCs rapidly increased in amplitude with the first two or three impulses followed by a more gradual growth. A double exponential function with time constants 39 and 450 ms empirically described the growth for 5–25Hz trains. For lower train frequencies (down to 1Hz) a third component with time constant 4.8 s had to be included. The different time constants are suggested to represent fast and slow components of facilitation and augmentation. The time constant of the fast component changed with the extracellular calcium ion concentration as expected for a facilitation mechanism involving an endogenous calcium buffer that is more efficiently saturated with larger calcium influx. Concerning the function of the corticogeniculate feedback pathway, the different components of short‐term plasticity interacted to increase EPSC amplitudes on a linear scale to firing frequency in the physiological range. This property makes the corticogeniculate synapse well suited to function as a neuronal amplifier that enhances the thalamic transfer of visual information to the cortex.
Desempenho de Ocimum basilicum L. Sob Efeitos de Preparados Homeopáticos

O cultivo de plantas medicinais vem crescendo significativamente, sendo impulsionada pela atual busca por produtos naturais e pela crescente utilizacao na industria. O objetivo do trabalho foi avaliar o efeito de preparados homeopaticos no rendimento do oleo essencial de manjericao (Ocimun basilicum L.). O Trabalho foi conduzido no Instituto Federal Catarinense – Campus Rio do Sul, no periodo de agosto de 2014 a junho de 2015. Tratamentos foram completamente casualidades com 4 repeticoes e 9 plantas por repeticao. Os tratamentos foram compostos pelos preparados homeopaticos de Silicea nas potencias 7, 12 e 30 CH, Equisetum nas potencias 12, 14 e 16 CH e agua destilada. Os resultados obtidos foram submetidos a analise de variância pelo teste F e posterior comparacao das media pelo teste Tukey, a 5%. O preparado homeopatico Silicea na 30CH foi aquele que apresentou maior incremento na producao de oleo essencial (141%), em comparacao a testemunha. A homeopatia e uma tecnica viavel na producao de plantas medicinais apresentando bons incrementos na producao do oleo essencial de manjericao com baixo custo e sem residuos.
Balance and mobility following stroke: effects of physical therapy interventions with and without biofeedback/forceplate training.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Visual biofeedback/forceplate systems are often used for treatment of balance disorders. In this study, the researchers investigated whether the addition of visual biofeedback/forceplate training could enhance the effects of other physical therapy interventions on balance and mobility following stroke. SUBJECTS The study included a sample of convenience of 13 outpatients with hemiplegia who ranged in age from 30 to 77 years (mean=60.4, SD=15.4) and were 15 to 538 days poststroke. METHODS Subjects were assigned randomly to either an experimental group or a control group when the study began, and their cognitive and visual-perceptual skills were tested by a psychologist. Subjects were also assessed using the Berg Balance Scale and the Timed "Up & Go" Test before and after 4 weeks of physical therapy. Both groups received physical therapy interventions designed to improve balance and mobility 2 to 3 times per week. The experimental group trained on the NeuroCom Balance Master for 15 minutes of each 50-minute treatment session. The control group received other physical therapy for 50 minutes. RESULTS Following intervention, both groups scored higher on the Berg Balance Scale and required less time to perform the Timed "Up & Go" Test. These improvements corresponded to increased independence of balance and mobility in the study population. However, a comparison of mean changes revealed no differences between groups. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION Although both groups demonstrated improvement following 4 weeks of physical therapy interventions, no additional effects were found in the group that received visual biofeedback/forceplate training combined with other physical therapy.
Optimization of Phosphorus Index and Costs of Manure Management on a New York Dairy Farm

Manure allocation on large-scale confinement animal feeding operations is a complex management decision. This study assesses the cost effectiveness and the risk of P loss associated with various combinations of manure management options for a typical midsized dairy farm in New York State. The farm has 587 adult dairy cows (Bos taurus) and 430 young animals (1202 animal units). Fifty-three fields (26 cornfields and 27 pastures) ranging in size from 1 to 15 ha are available to receive livestock manure. Morgan's Soil Test P values range from 1.1 to 87.3 kg ha - 1 (mean of 20.1 kg ha - 1 ). Options included optimal allocation of manure in time and space, surface application, incorporation, and manure storage facilities of three-, six-, and eight-month storage capacities. The decision process considered nutrient management costs (manure handling and fertilization) and the New York State P Site Index (P Index) as an indicator of one of the environmental impacts of manure management. Mathematical programming techniques and utility functions are used to select the best combination of manure management practices. The results show a convergence indicating that the best management decision would be to follow a manure allocation scheme optimized in time and space, to have three months of manure storage capacity, and to surface-apply manure. Compared with current practices, the recommended combination of practices results in an approximate 45% reduction in the mean area-weighted P Index (64.2 vs. 36.1) for a cost increase of less than 2% ($146 573 vs. $148 821).
A quantitative electron microscope study of the perikaryal projections of sensory ganglion neurons. I. Cat and rabbit

With a quantitative method and serial sections a study was carried out under the electron microscope of the perikaryal projections of the neurons in the thoracic spinal ganglia of cat and rabbit. These projections usually appear as finger‐shaped evaginations which run roughly parallel to the surface of the nerve cell body. Their length ranges between 0.3 and 3.25 μm, and they show a nearly circular cross section with a rather uniform transverse diameter having an average value of about 0.2 μm.
Relationship between triglyceride concentrations and LDL size evaluated by malondialdehyde-modified LDL.

BACKGROUND Hypertriglyceridemia is associated with decreased HDL-cholesterol (HDL-C) and increased small dense LDL. In addition, small dense LDL is known to be susceptible to oxidation. METHODS We measured LDL particle size, using gradient gel electrophoresis, and malondialdehyde-modified LDL (MDA-LDL), using an ELISA, and investigated the association between triglyceride (TG) concentrations, LDL size, and MDA-LDL. RESULTS TG concentrations correlated negatively with the predominant LDL size (r = -0.650) and HDL-C concentration (r = -0.556). The relationship between TG concentration and LDL size, evaluated by measuring MDA-LDL, distinguished subgroups derived from four subfractions of TG concentrations and four distribution ranges of LDL size. These experiments indicated that there is a threshold for oxidation susceptibility at an LDL size of 25.5 nm and a TG concentration of 1500 mg/L. To investigate the relationship between LDL size, MDA-LDL concentration, and other lipids (TGs, HDL-C, apolipoprotein B, and total cholesterol), we evaluated them in control subjects and patients with diabetes mellitus or hypertriglyceridemia. When the size range for normal LDL was postulated to be 25.5 < or = phi (LDL diameter) < 26.5 nm, the MDA-LDL concentration was significantly higher in the subgroups of patients with LDL in the size range 24.5 < or = phi < 25.5 nm compared with patients with normal LDL. This result also suggests that the threshold is at a LDL size of 25.5 nm. CONCLUSION The threshold for oxidation susceptibility coincided with the point of LDL size separation between the LDL subclass patterns A and B as an atherosclerotic risk.
Investigation of Symmetry Influence in Substrate Integrated Waveguide (SIW) Band-Pass Filters using Symmetric Inductive Posts

We present the investigation of symmetry influence in substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) band-pass filters using symmetrical posts for the suppression of TEi0 modes, with i = 2,4, . This is of particular importance for SIW band-pass filters with a wide bandwidth. We show theoretical and experimental results for a particular filter with a bandwidth of more than 28% demonstrating an improvement in the suppression of spurious transmission by 19 dB.
Milk production, wet weight, dry weight, potassium, and nucleic acid measurements of cows' udders.

Abstract Udders were from 15 dry and 35 lactating cows of several dairy breeds. After trimming, udders were weighed and 39-potassium, 40-potassium, dry fat-free tissue weight, deoxyribonucleic acid, and ribonucleic acid were determined. Simple correlation coefficients and linear regression coefficients were calculated for all 50 udders and for the 35 lactating udders, giving a total of 60 comparisons. The highest correlation was between wet weight and 39-potassium at . 98 for all 50 udders while the correlation between deoxyribonucleic acid and milk production for the 35 lactating udders was only . 22. For all udders deoxyribonucleic acid related highest to dry fat-free tissue weight with a correlation of . 86. Milk production related highest to 39-potassium and ribonucleic acid with correlations of . 70 in both comparisons. For every gram increase in udder 39-potassium, there was a 1.11kg increase in milk production. While deoxyribonucleic acid in lactating udders was 2.42 g/kg wet weight and 3.51 g/kg wet weight in dry udders, total deoxyribonucleic acid in lactating udders was 28.7g and only 16.0g in dry udders.
Correlation of NRAS Mutations With Clinical Response to High-dose IL-2 in Patients With Advanced Melanoma

The purpose of this study is to identify clinical and molecular characteristics of melanoma patients that predict response to high-dose interleukin-2 (HD IL-2) to improve patient selection for this approved but toxic therapy. We reviewed the records of 208 patients with unresectable stage III/IV melanoma treated with HD IL-2 at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center (n=100) and the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (n=108) between 2003 and 2009. The BRAF and NRAS mutation status of the tumors was determined for patients with available tissue samples and the mutation status and clinical characteristics were compared with clinical outcomes. Pretreatment serum lactate dehydrogenase levels were available for most patients (n=194). Tissue was available for mutational analysis on a subset of patients (n=103) and the prevalence of mutations was as follows: BRAF 60%, NRAS 15%, WT/WT 25%. In the subset of patients for which mutational analysis was available, there was a significant difference in the response rate based on the mutation status: NRAS 47%, BRAF 23%, and WT/WT 12% (P=0.05). Patients with NRAS mutations had nonstatistically longer overall survival (5.3 vs. 2.4 y, P=0.30) and progression-free survival (214 vs. 70 d, P=0.13). Patients with an elevated lactate dehydrogenase level had a decreased progression-free survival (46 vs. 76 d, P<0.0001), decreased overall survival (0.56 vs. 1.97 y, P<0.0001), and trended toward a decreased response rate (7% vs. 21%, P=0.08). NRAS mutational status is a new candidate biomarkers for selecting patients with melanoma for HD IL-2 treatment.
Neutral antagonist activity of naltrexone and 6β‐naltrexol in naïve and opioid‐dependent C6 cells expressing a µ‐opioid receptor

Background and purpose: Adenylyl cyclase sensitization occurs on chronic agonist activation of µ‐opioid receptors and is manifested by an increase in cAMP levels (overshoot) on challenge with antagonist. It has been proposed that a long lasting constitutively active receptor is formed on chronic µ‐opioid exposure and that antagonists with inverse agonist activity rapidly return the receptor to a basal state causing a cAMP overshoot and a more severe withdrawal response in vivo. This hypothesis depends on an accurate characterization of neutral and inverse agonist properties of opioid antagonists.
A Bubble‐Mediated Intelligent Microscale Electrochemical Device for Single‐Step Quantitative Bioassays

An intelligent microscale electrochemical device (iMED) for one-step, quantitative and multiplexed electrochemical detection of biomarkers for infectious diseases and tumors is developed. A "plug-in-cartridge" technology is introduced and adapted for use in screen-printed electrodes (SPEs) in electrochemical devices. Using this iMED, biomarkers for two types of tumors and one infectious disease are detected at sub-ng/mL levels in less than 30 min.
Principles of solid-organ preservation by cold storage.

Presentation d'une nouvelle solution de conservation convenant aussi bien pour le refroidissement de l'organe in situ dans l'organisme du donneur que pour la conservation in vitro sous hypothermie. Integration des principes de base de l'ischemie hypothermique anaerobie et du metabolisme specifique de l'organe. La methode est appliquable non seulement au rein mais aussi au foie, au pancreas et probablement a d'autres organes
A new and five older Concurrent Memory Reclamation Schemes in Comparison (Stamp-it)

Memory management is a critical component in almost all shared-memory, concurrent data structures and algorithms, consisting in the efficient allocation and the subsequent reclamation of shared memory resources. This paper contributes a new, lock-free, amortized constant-time memory reclamation scheme called \emph{Stamp-it}, and compares it to five well-known, selectively efficient schemes from the literature, namely Lock-free Reference Counting, Hazard Pointers, Quiescent State-based Reclamation, Epoch-based Reclamation, and New Epoch-based Reclamation. An extensive, experimental evaluation with both new and commonly used benchmarks is provided, on four different shared-memory systems with hardware supported thread counts ranging from 48 to 512, showing Stamp-it to be competitive with and in many cases and aspects outperforming other schemes.
Going with the Flow: Trafficking‐Dependent and ‐Independent Regulation of Serotonin Transport

Antidepressant‐, cocaine‐ and 3,4‐methylenedioxymethamphetamine‐sensitive serotonin (5‐hydroxytryptamine, 5‐HT) transporters (SERTs) are expressed on presynaptic membranes of 5‐HT‐secreting neurons to provide efficient uptake of the biogenic amine after release. SERTs also support 5‐HT transport across platelet, placental, gastrointestinal and pulmonary membranes and thus play a critical role in central nervous system and peripheral nervous system 5‐HT signaling. SERTs are subject to multiple levels of posttranslational regulation that can rapidly alter 5‐HT uptake and clearance rates. Specific cell surface receptors are now known to regulate SERT trafficking and/or catalytic function, with pathways activating protein kinase C, protein kinase G and p38 mitogen‐activated protein kinase receiving the greatest attention. Remarkably, disease‐associated mutations in SERT not only impact basal SERT activity but also selectively impact one or more SERT regulatory pathway(s). In this review, we describe both trafficking‐dependent and trafficking‐independent modes of SERT regulation and also the suspected roles played in regulation by SERT‐associated proteins. Elucidation of the SERT ‘regulome’ provides important depth to our understanding of the likely origins of 5‐HT‐associated disorders and may help orient research to develop novel therapeutics.
Histology of Cerebral Lesions Produced by Focused Ultrasound.

defined and weli localized cone-shaped region about i cm. across the base and extending about a centimeter below the surface of the left cerebellar cortex. This region eibited acute edema with cavitation and dismemberment of the neuro-architecture. This was cially evident in the molecular layer. The Purinje cells were distorted and swollen (Fig. 9). The rmainder of the cerebelum and brain stem seemed normal. No structural changes were visible which could account for the sudden death of the animal.
Decoupled Stator Resistance Estimation for Speed-Sensorless Induction Motor Drives Considering Speed and Load Torque Variations

There are many adaptive full-order observer (AFO)-based simultaneous speed and stator resistance estimation techniques for speed-sensorless induction motor (IM) drives. However, they still need to be improved since the stator resistance estimator is sensitive to speed and load torque variations, especially under low-speed and light-load conditions. In response to this problem, an improved “phase-shift”-based compensation method is proposed for the stator resistance estimation in this paper. Compared with the existing methods, the proposed stator resistance estimation approach is decoupled with the speed estimator by adopting an operating-point-tracking compensation coefficient. Accordingly, the robustness of the stator resistance estimation is guaranteed to speed and load torque variations. The neglected estimated rotor flux error is first introduced for the proposed stator resistance estimator to distinguish the stator resistance error component. Then the sensitivity analysis of the proposed compensation coefficient against parameters variations is carried out. Furthermore, the stability of the speed estimator and the stator resistance estimator is guaranteed owing to the proposed method. The experimental results highlight the effectiveness of the proposed method for improving the accuracy and the stability of the stator resistance estimator under different speeds and load torque conditions.
Recognition of Affect Based on Gait Patterns

To provide a means for recognition of affect from a distance, this paper analyzes the capability of gait to reveal a person's affective state. We address interindividual versus person-dependent recognition, recognition based on discrete affective states versus recognition based on affective dimensions, and efficient feature extraction with respect to affect. Principal component analysis (PCA), kernel PCA, linear discriminant analysis, and general discriminant analysis are compared to either reduce temporal information in gait or extract relevant features for classification. Although expression of affect in gait is covered by the primary task of locomotion, person-dependent recognition of motion capture data reaches 95% accuracy based on the observation of a single stride. In particular, different levels of arousal and dominance are suitable for being recognized in gait. It is concluded that gait can be used as an additional modality for the recognition of affect. Application scenarios include monitoring in high-security areas, human-robot interaction, and cognitive home environments.
Amyloid filaments in inclusion body myositis. Novel findings provide insight into nature of filaments.

Inclusion body myositis (IBM) represents a serious debilitating disease of muscle without identifiable cause or treatment. Muscle biopsy specimens have characteristic rimmed vacuoles, varying degrees of inflammation, and, most importantly, cytoplasmic and intranuclear filamentous inclusions of unknown composition. Fresh-frozen sections of muscle biopsy specimens from 24 IBM cases were stained with Congo red dye (pH, 10.5 to 11.0). Control biopsy specimens included polymyositis, dermatomyositis, hereditary vacuolar myopathies of unknown cause, acid maltase deficiency, distal myopathy, oculopharyngeal dystrophy, and chloroquine myopathy. Sections were also immunostained with antibody to transthyretin, human P component, and immunoglobulin light chains. In the vacuolated fibers in IBM, amyloidogenic green-birefringent deposits were seen. Some deposits were delicate and wispy appearing, and others were plaque-like. The size of deposits varied, measuring 1 x 2 to 8 microns, and rarely up to 20 microns in length. The number of amyloid-positive fibers correlated with the number of vacuolated fibers. Similar deposits were seen in one case of distal myopathy and one hereditary vacuolar myopathy. Other control cases were negative for amyloid deposits. Antibody staining for known amyloidogenic proteins was negative. This study demonstrates that the filaments in IBM share properties with amyloid proteins. The location implies that this amyloid material is formed intracellularly, rather than having a systemic derivation. The association of amyloid deposits with autophagic vacuoles in IBM raises the likely possibility that the filaments represent a modification of a normal protein within an acidic degradative vacuolar compartment. An alternative possibility, considering the shared properties of IBM filaments and prions (which include size and amyloidogenic properties), is that IBM represents a human prion disease. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
[Health and social environment].

Well, someone can decide by themselves what they want to do and need to do but sometimes, that kind of person will need some health and the social environment references. People with open minded will always try to seek for the new things and information from many sources. On the contrary, people with closed mind will always think that they can do it by their principals. So, what kind of person are you?
Distinct resistance patterns to etravirine and rilpivirine in viruses containing nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor mutations at baseline

Objective:The current in-vitro study examined HIV-1 drug resistance patterns following etravirine (ETR) and rilpivirine (RPV) drug pressure in viruses containing baseline nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NNRTI) resistance mutations. Design and method:Several baseline mutations were introduced into NL-4.3 (subtype B clone) by site-directed mutagenesis. This virus, together with two subtype C clinical isolates containing baseline mutations, was passaged in increasing drug pressure of NNRTIs in cord blood mononuclear cells. Genotypic analysis was performed at different weeks. Phenotypic resistance for ETR, RPV, and efavirenz (EFV) and the replication capacity of several mutations and combinations were tested. Results:In wild-type viruses and viruses containing K103N alone at baseline, E138K or E138G mutations were observed following pressure with either ETR or RPV prior to the appearance of other NNRTI resistance mutations. These changes were observed regardless of viral subtype. However, subtype B viruses containing Y181C generated V179I/F or A62V/A but not E138K following exposure to ETR or RPV, respectively, whereas subtype C viruses containing Y181C developed E138V together with Y188H and V179I under ETR pressure. The addition of mutations at position 138 to Y181C did not significantly enhance levels of resistance to ETR or RPV. The replicative capacity of viruses containing Y181C and either E138K or E138A was similar to that of viruses containing either E138K or E138A alone. Conclusion:These results demonstrate that ETR and RPV are likely to select for E138K as a major resistance mutation if no or very few other resistance mutations are present and that Y181C may be antagonistic to E138K.