Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Ectopic p21WAF1 Expression Induces Differentiation-specific Cell Cycle Changes in PC12 Cells Characteristic of Nerve Growth Factor Treatment*

Nerve growth factor treatment of PC12 cells results in neuronal differentiation, a process accompanied by induction of the Cdk inhibitor p21WAF1. To determine the role of p21 in differentiation, PC12 clones containing an inducible p21 construct were utilized to induce growth arrest. Expression of p21 led to accumulation of cyclins D1 and E and to a decrease in cyclins A and B. Levels of Cdc2 and Cdk4 also decreased after p21 induction. Initially, thymidine incorporation into DNA was dramatically inhibited; however, low levels of incorporation were observed during prolonged p21 expression. Fluorescence-activated cell sorter analysis revealed that this low level of DNA synthesis resulted in the generation of polyploid cells. Results from Western blots were consistent with phosphorylation of p21 protein coincident with the resumption of DNA synthesis. Finally, treatment of p21-arrested populations with epidermal growth factor, a known PC12 mitogen, resulted in neurite extension, a key feature of neuronal differentiation. Overall, cell cycle changes following p21 overexpression in PC12 cells closely mimic distinctive events previously shown to occur during differentiation. These results suggest that the mechanism by which nerve growth factor induces the many cellular changes associated with growth arrest during differentiation is through p21WAF1 induction.
Actin polymerization and ATP hydrolysis.

This paper surveys several aspects of the consequences of ATP hydrolysis associated with actin polymerization, and their physiological implications. ATP hydrolysis occurs on F-actin in two subsequent reactions, cleavage of ATP followed by the slower release of Pi. The latter reaction is linked to a conformation change of the actin subunit that causes a destabilization of the actin-actin interactions in the filament, i.e., a structural change of the filament. The nature of the nucleotide bound to terminal subunits therefore affects the dynamics of actin filaments. It is shown that this regulation is different at the two ends, terminal F-ADP-Pi subunits being present at steady state at the barbed end, while F-ADP-subunits are present at the pointed end. While cleavage of ATP on F-actin is irreversible, Pi release is reversible, which allows the regulation of filament dynamics by cellular Pi. The nature of the divalent metal ion--Ca2+ or Mg2(+)--tightly bound to actin, in direct interaction with ATP, also affects the conformation of actin and the rate of ATP hydrolysis, therefore regulating actin dynamics. Finally, the rate of nucleotide exchange on G-actin is relatively slow, which allows the critical concentration to increase with the number of filaments in ATP, a property largely used by the cell via the action of severing proteins.
Malaria parasites of rodents of the Congo (Brazzaville): Plasmodium chabaudi adami subsp. nov. and Plasmodium vinckei lentum Landau, Michel, Adam and Boulard, 1970.

Descriptions are given of the blood forms, sporogonic stages and enzyme forms of Plasmodium chabaudi adami subsp. -nov. and P. vinckei lentum, malaria parasites of the thicket-rat Thamnomys rutilans of the Brazzaville region. The two species differ from each other in both morphological and enzymic characters. P.c. adami and P. v. lentum differ from the other subspecies of P. chabaudi and P. vinckei principally by their enzyme forms.
Protection from Abortion by Heme Oxygenase-1 Up-Regulation Is Associated with Increased Levels of Bag-1 and Neuropilin-1 at the Fetal-Maternal Interface1

Tolerance mechanisms allowing pregnancy success resemble those involved in allograft acceptance. Heme oxygenase (HO) is a tissue-protective molecule, which allows graft acceptance and is known to have antiapoptotic effects on several cell types. We previously reported down-regulated levels of HO-1 and HO-2 in placenta from allopregnant mice undergoing abortion. In this study, we analyzed whether the up-regulation of HO-1 by cobalt-protoporphyrin (Co-PP) during implantation window can rescue mice from abortion. Induction of HO-1 by Co-PP treatment prevented fetal rejection, whereas the down-regulation of HOs by zinc-protoporphyrin application boosted abortion. The beneficial effect of HO-1 induction was not related to a local shift to Th2-profile or to a change in the NO system. Interestingly, the expression of the antiapoptotic/cytoprotective molecule Bag-1 as well as the levels of neuropilin-1, a novel marker for T regulatory cells, were up-regulated after Co-PP treatment. Our data strongly support a very important role for HO-1 in fetal allotolerance and suggest that HO-1 might be protective by up-regulating tissue protective molecules, i.e., Bag-1, and by activating T regulatory cells rather than by changing the local cytokine profile.
Changes in enzyme titres with age in four geographical strains of Aedes aegypti and their association with insecticide resistance

Abstract. The enzymes acetylcholinesterase, glutathione S‐transferase (GST), glucose 6‐phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD), and general esterases were assayed in four strains of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes aged between 1 and 30 days. Microtitre plate methods were used to assay activity in the homogenates of individual mosquitoes. The levels of GST and G6PD declined with the age of the mosquitoes, while the activity for the other enzymes remained constant. Soluble protein content was also found to decline with mosquito age in all the strains.
Identification of an HLA‐A24‐Restricted OY‐TES‐1 Epitope Recognized by Cytotoxic T‐Cells

OY‐TES‐1 was identified as a human homologue of the mouse, guinea pig, and pig proacrosin binding protein sp32 precursor. Differential expression levels of OY‐TES‐1 mRNA between testis and other normal tissues, and its expression in cancers indicated that OY‐TES‐1 would be classified as a cancer/testis antigen and considered to be a candidate of target antigen for cancer immunotherapy. In this study, we showed identification of HLA‐A24‐binding OY‐TES‐1 peptide, TES401–409 (KTPFVSPLL) recognized by CD8 T‐cells. Purified CD8 T‐cells from healthy donors stimulated in vitro with the peptide‐pulsed autologous DC and PBMC produced IFN7 in response to the peptide‐pulsed PBMC and showed cytotoxicity against the peptide‐pulsed autologous EBV‐B specifically. Furthermore, cytotoxicity was also observed against an OY‐TES‐1 mRNA‐expressing tumor line, LK79. The retention time of the fraction in HPLC of the acid eluate from LK79 cells that showed positive sensitization against autologous EBV‐B cells in recognition by CD8 CTL was the same as that of the fraction of the TES401–409 peptide itself, suggesting that the TES401–409 was a naturally processed peptide on LK79.
THE IMPORTANCE OF REACHING LIPID TARGETS: STATINS AND THE PREVENTION OF ATHEROSCLEROSIS

To help prevent the development of coronary heart disease (CHD), the European and NCEP guidelines have recommended target cholesterol levels for all individuals. Lifestyle changes are advocated for individuals not achieving these targets. Intervention with lipid‐modifying agents may be required for patients at high risk of a cardiovascular event and statins are generally recognised as first‐line therapy. Unfortunately, large numbers of patients at risk of cardiovascular events are not being treated to the guideline targets. Primary care physicians are in a good position to improve lipid management by assessing risk factors, implementing lipid management strategies, monitoring whether targets are being reached and amending treatment appropriately. Furthermore, by educating and motivating patients, primary care physicians may improve compliance with lifestyle changes and medication. These approaches may help more patients to achieve recommended lipid levels and prevent the development of cardiovascular disease.
Down regulation of poliovirus receptor RNA in HeLa cells resistant to poliovirus infection

A line of HeLa cells (SOFIA) was previously isolated that is resistant to poliovirus infection and does not express functional virus binding sites at the cell surface. The expression of the poliovirus receptor (PVR) gene in SOFIA cells was examined to determine the molecular basis for the failure of these cells to express PVRs. Southern blot analysis of genomic DNA revealed that the PVR gene in SOFIA cells did not contain gross alterations. However, PVR transcripts were not detected in Northern (RNA) blot analysis of SOFIA cell RNA. In vitro nuclear run-on analysis showed that transcription of PVR-specific RNA was reduced in SOFIA cells. Treatment of SOFIA cells with 5-azacytidine restored susceptibility to poliovirus infection, which correlated with the appearance of PVRs at the cell surface, as detected with anti-PVR monoclonal antibody D171. PVR RNA was detected in clones derived from 5-azacytidine-treated SOFIA cells. SOFIA cells were converted to poliovirus sensitivity at a rate of 5 to 7%, suggesting that down regulation of PVR expression involved few cellular targets. Resistance of SOFIA cells to poliovirus infection therefore appears to result from down regulation of PVR RNA, leading to lack of PVR expression at the cell surface. Methylation may play a role in regulating the expression of the PVR gene, which is not essential for survival of HeLa cells.
Understanding the role of local food in sustaining Chinese destinations

Food is a sustainable part of destination tourism. However, few studies attempt to separate and examine the role played by local foods within tourists’ overall experience when claiming the benefits that local foods can bring to a destination. Using Mainland China as the case in point, this study aims to evaluate the potential for destinations to use local food as a sustainable marketing tool. This is achieved through examining how local food, as part of the tourist experience, can contribute to tourists’ destination loyalty. This study proposes a structural model addressing the potential relationships between tourist food-related behaviours (tourists’ food-related motivation, information search, food involvement, and food satisfaction) and destination loyalty among domestic tourists in China. Useable data was collected from 1353 respondents at eight destinations in China, this was screened and analysed with SPSS 21 and partial least squares-structural equation modelling. The results reveal the positive correlation between tourists’ food satisfaction and destination loyalty, confirming the value of local food in China as a sustainable marketing tool. However, the paper highlights that tourists’ food-related motivation, information search, and involvement are not in direct correlation to their destination loyalty. Possible implications for destination marketers and researchers are provided.
Personality disorders in prisoners and their motivation for dangerous and disruptive behaviour.

OBJECTIVES To examine the associations between DSM-III, axis II, personality disorder, motivation and disruptive behaviour in prisoners. METHOD Interviews were carried out with 81 prisoners in prison special units in England using research diagnostic instruments and an item sheet measuring disruptive behaviours and their motivations. Independent associations were established using logistic regression. RESULTS Specific associations were established between psychopathy and axis II disorders with violent and disruptive behaviour and motivations for these behaviours. CONCLUSIONS The study supported a cognitive model explaining the functional association between personality disorder and antisocial behaviour. Personality disorders act as predisposing factors influencing the development of motivations and subsequently facilitate the enactment of disordered behaviour, in a linear progression. Assessment of personality disorder should be routine in disruptive and dangerous prisoners.
Transnational political engagement and emigrant voting

ABSTRACT Globalisation, European integration and increased migration have made life more mobile. Consequently, electorates have become increasingly dispersed geographically. Utilising survey data compiled from Finnish citizens residing` abroad (n = 1,067), we study transnational political participation of emigrant voters. First, we examine how national identification relates with turnout in parliamentary elections and which factors influence emigrants’ voting decision. Second, we analyse how transnational political engagement of Finnish emigrants could be described. The key findings suggest that identification with the sending country has little or no influence on the likelihood of voting in homeland parliamentary elections. Instead, distance to the closest polling station, interest in politics, time lived abroad, age and educational level significantly influence an emigrant’s probability of voting. We suggest that ‘zero-sum relationship’ best describes transnational political engagement among Finnish emigrants: increased engagement in one country leads to decreased involvement in the other. This finding contributes significantly to knowledge of transnational political participation, a topic that has been rarely surveyed from emigrants’ perspectives.
Directional couplers based on substrate integrated waveguide

High isolation and wideband single-layer planar directional coupler with coupling degree 10dB based on substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) technology is presented. The proposed couplers are realized with several short-slit by placing metallic-vias, fabricated on a glass-epoxy FR4 substrate, thus making it a very low cost solution. Two prototypes of couplers are presented respectively in this paper. The first show the isolation and return loss with 10% relative bandwidth, and the last one with new prototype shows the isolation and return loss with above 30% relative bandwidth. The coupler with new prototype exhibits return loss better than −25dB for frequency range from 4.5 to 6GHz. A peak isolation of 40dB is achieved, with the overall isolation above 30dB for the range of 4 to 6GHz. This design with new prototype also shows coupling degree with 10dB for the frequency range from 4 to 6GHz.
Growth and Phase Stability of Titanium Aluminum Nitride Deposited by High Power Impulse Magnetron Sputtering

In this work, we investigate the relation between the diffusion behavior of Ti1-xAlxN at elevated temperatures and the microstructure. Thin film samples are synthesized by reactive co-sputtering with two cathodes. One cathode equipped with Ti target is connected to a high power impulse magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS) power supply, and the other cathode equipped with Al target is operated with a direct current power source. The spinodal decomposition of cubic metastable Ti1-xAlxN controlled by thermally activated diffusion is observe for diffusion behavior. Various HiPIMS pulsing frequencies are used to achieve different microstructure, while altered power applied to Al target is used to change the Al content in films. In the phase composition analysis achieved by GI-XRD, the right-shift of (111) film peak along with increasing Al-power is observed. A saturation of the right-shift and h-AlN peaks are also observed at certain Al-power. The chemical composition determined by ERDA shows trends of reducing Al solubility limit in metastable phase and O contamination upon decreasing the pulsing frequency. More N deficiency is found in samples deposited with higher frequency. In the 500 Hz and 250 Hz samples deposited into similar composition and thickness, no apparent difference of the microstructure is observed from the SEM cross-sectional images. From HTXRD, we observe higher intensity of TiO2 and h-AlN peaks in 500 Hz sample at elevated temperature as compared with 250 Hz one. From the reduction of O contamination, denser Ti1-xAlxN films are able to be deposited with lower HiPIMS pulsing frequency. In addition, the higher intensity observed in HT-XRD patterns indicates that the 500 Hz sample is more open to diffusion and therefore allows the new formed phases to grow in larger grains.
DNA methylation controls unmethylated transcription start sites in the genome in trans.

AIM DNA methylation downregulates transcription. However, a large number of genes, which are unmethylated in the promoter region, are inactive. We tested the hypothesis that these genes are regulated by DNA methylation of upstream regulators. METHODS We inhibited DNMT1 with 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine or depleted it with shRNA to map the transcription initiation positions controlled by DNMT1 using ChIPseq with RNApolIIser5 antibody. Ingenuity pathway analysis identified potential methylated upstream regulators. Their functional role in controlling unmethylated promoters was determined by CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing. RESULTS We show that a large group of unmethylated promoters is regulated by DNMT1 through DNA methylation dependent silencing of upstream regulators such as transcription factor HNF4A. CONCLUSION The landscape of genes regulated by DNA methylation is more wide-ranging than genes downregulated by methylation of their own cis-regulatory sequences; regulation of unmethylated promoters is dependent on the methylation state of upstream trans regulators.
Characterization of Emetic Bacillus weihenstephanensis, a New Cereulide-Producing Bacterium

ABSTRACT Cereulide production has until now been restricted to the species Bacillus cereus. Here we report on two psychrotolerant Bacillus weihenstephanensis strains, MC67 and MC118, that produce cereulide. The strains are atypical with regard to pheno- and genotypic characteristics normally used for identification of emetic B. cereus strains. MC67 and MC118 produced cereulide at temperatures of as low as 8°C.
Coalizões de governo: uma medida de concentração alternativa

In the last 30 years, no Brazilian president has had a majority of congress members in the party that elected him/her. In order to have support in the legislature, their strategy has been to form a government coalition with other parties. The literature indicates that the main currency used by presidents is the distribution of ministries, and that this division is proportional to the number of members of each party in the coalition. The presupposition to this theme is that proportional parliaments would be more satisfied, and would therefore act in a more regulated manner because of their sense of justice. The main indicator used to measure the distribution of ministries is the Coalescence Rate. This paper argues that this index has no statistical consistency, and suggests an alternative concentration indicator: the G. Index.
Absence of anti-hypocretin receptor 2 autoantibodies in post pandemrix narcolepsy cases

Background A recent publication suggested molecular mimicry of a nucleoprotein (NP) sequence from A/Puerto Rico/8/1934 (PR8) strain, the backbone used in the construction of the reassortant strain X-179A that was used in Pandemrix® vaccine, and reported on anti-hypocretin (HCRT) receptor 2 (anti-HCRTR2) autoantibodies in narcolepsy, mostly in post Pandemrix® narcolepsy cases (17 of 20 sera). In this study, we re-examined this hypothesis through mass spectrometry (MS) characterization of Pandemrix®, and two other pandemic H1N1 (pH1N1)-2009 vaccines, Arepanrix® and Focetria®, and analyzed anti-HCRTR2 autoantibodies in narcolepsy patients and controls using three independent strategies. Methods MS characterization of Pandemrix® (2 batches), Arepanrix® (4 batches) and Focetria® (1 batch) was conducted with mapping of NP 116I or 116M spectrogram. Two sets of narcolepsy cases and controls were used: 40 post Pandemrix® narcolepsy (PP-N) cases and 18 age-matched post Pandemrix® controls (PP-C), and 48 recent (≤6 months) early onset narcolepsy (EO-N) cases and 70 age-matched other controls (O-C). Anti-HCRTR2 autoantibodies were detected using three strategies: (1) Human embryonic kidney (HEK) 293T cells with transient expression of HCRTR2 were stained with human sera and then analyzed by flow cytometer; (2) In vitro translation of [35S]-radiolabelled HCRTR2 was incubated with human sera and immune complexes of autoantibody and [35S]-radiolabelled HCRTR2 were quantified using a radioligand-binding assay; (3) Optical density (OD) at 450 nm (OD450) of human serum immunoglobulin G (IgG) binding to HCRTR2 stably expressed in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO)-K1 cell line was measured using an in-cell enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Results NP 116M mutations were predominantly present in all batches of Pandemrix®, Arepanrix® and Focetria®. The wild-type NP109-123 (ILYDKEEIRRIWRQA), a mimic to HCRTR234-45 (YDDEEFLRYLWR), was not found to bind to DQ0602. Three or four subjects were found positive for anti-HCRTR2 autoantibodies using two strategies or the third one, respectively. None of the post Pandemrix® narcolepsy cases (0 of 40 sera) was found positive with all three strategies. Conclusion Anti-HCRTR2 autoantibody is not a significant biological feature of narcolepsy or of post Pandemrix® autoimmune responses.
A novel kernel-based nonparametric feature extraction method for remotely sensed hyperspectral image classification

Feature extraction has been an essential technique for enhancing the recognition of patterns. General feature extraction methods are constructed to extract linear features because constructing methods for extracting nonlinear features are not easy. Kernel-based method provides a framework for developing a nonlinear extension of one existing linear feature extraction. A novel kernel-base feature extraction method based on our previously proposed cosine-based nonparametric feature extraction (CNFE) were addressed and named KCNFE. The experimental results show that classifiers 1NN and SVM with KCNFE features can achieves better classification rate than some existing feature extraction methods.
Retinoic acid can induce markers of endocrine transdifferentiation in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma: preliminary observations from an in vitro cell line model

Background and hypothesis: The pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (HPAF) cells have a multipotent stem cell potential. It was hypothesised that all-trans-retinoic acid (atRA) can induce transdifferentiation of these cells into cells with an endocrine phenotype. Material and methods: To explore this hypothesis, an in vitro system of cells was established. Some cells were treated with atRA at concentrations of 100 nmol/l (non-apoptosis-inducing) and 5 μmol/l (apoptosis-inducing) and harvested. Cells were examined for cell cycle kinetics, apoptosis (terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase assay and p53 protein expression) and immunomorphological features of redifferentiation (MUC1 and DUPAN-2) and endocrine transdifferentiation (insulin, somatostatin, glucagon, neurone-specific enolase) by using immunoperoxidase staining methods. Levels of insulin, transforming growth factor (TGF) β2, TGFα and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The vehicle-treated cells served as a control group. Results: When compared with untreated cells, cells treated with 100 nmol/l and 5 μmol/l atRA were observed to show (1) decreased proliferative activity (cpm) as indicated by decreased incorporation of thymidine labelled with hydrogen-3; (2) cell cycle arrest; (3) increased apoptotic activity associated with p53 protein overexpression; (4) upregulated expression of the transdifferentiation and redifferentiation markers; (5) morphological changes indicative of transdifferentiation (increased cell size and appearance of dendrites); (6) decreased production of EGFR; (7) upregulation of TGFα and TGFβ2; and (8) increase in basal and glucose-induced insulin secretion. Conclusions: Functional endocrine transdifferentiation can be induced in HPAF lines by atRA. Further investigations are mandated to explore the underlying mechanisms of this transdifferentiation and to explore its in vivo extrapolation.