Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Mitochondrial Gene Expression: A Playground of Evolutionary Tinkering

This article introduces the Mitochondria theme of the Annual Review of Biochemistry, Volume 85. 65 Click here to view this article's online features: • Download figures as PPT slides • Navigate linked references • Download citations • Explore related articles • Search keywords ANNUAL REVIEWS Further A nn u. R ev . B io ch em . 2 01 6. 85 :6 576 . D ow nl oa de d fr om w w w . a nn ua lr ev ie w s. or g A cc es s pr ov id ed b y U ni ve rs id ad d e B ue no s A ir es o n 09 /0 7/ 16 . F or p er so na l u se o nl y. BI85CH04-Neupert ARI 21 May 2016 9:42
PRAS40 Regulates mTORC1 Kinase Activity by Functioning as a Direct Inhibitor of Substrate Binding*

Mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) functions in two distinct signaling complexes, mTORC1 and mTORC2. In response to insulin and nutrients, mTORC1, consisting of mTOR, raptor (regulatory-associated protein of mTOR), and mLST8, is activated and phosphorylates eukaryotic initiation factor 4E-binding protein (4EBP) and p70 S6 kinase to promote protein synthesis and cell size. Previously we found that activation of mTOR kinase in response to insulin was associated with increased 4EBP1 binding to raptor. Here we identify prolinerich Akt substrate 40 (PRAS40) as a binding partner for mTORC1. A putative TOR signaling motif, FVMDE, is identified in PRAS40 and shown to be required for interaction with raptor. Insulin stimulation markedly decreases the level of PRAS40 bound by mTORC1. Recombinant PRAS40 inhibits mTORC1 kinase activity in vivo and in vitro, and this inhibition depends on PRAS40 association with raptor. Furthermore, decreasing PRAS40 expression by short hairpin RNA enhances 4E-BP1 binding to raptor, and recombinant PRAS40 competes with 4E-BP1 binding to raptor. We, therefore, propose that PRAS40 regulates mTORC1 kinase activity by functioning as a direct inhibitor of substrate binding.
SENTIMENT CLASSIFICATION OF THE LOCAL VISITORS' SOCIAL MEDIA REVIEWS

The aim of this study is to classify the local visitors’ reviews shared on social media after their visits to historical and touristic regions. In this context, sentiment analysis was conducted for social media reviews by using supervised learning approach from machine learning methods. For the analysis, the local visitors’ reviews, on Istanbul and Antalya, which are Turkey’s two important tourism cities, were imported from TripAdvisor website. The reviews were classified as positive, negative, and neutral. In the study, the data distribution was processed in positive, negative, and neutral classifications with KNIME software, and then it was tested with the learning method of decision trees from the supervised learning models. As a result of the decision trees learning test that is one of the supervised learning models, 75.7% was found as the success rate.
Risk of fractures after stroke

Objective: To determine the risk of fractures after stroke. Methods: Using the Ontario Stroke Registry, we identified a population-based sample of consecutive patients seen in the emergency department or hospitalized with stroke (n = 23,751) or TIA (n = 11,240) at any of 11 stroke centers in Ontario, Canada, and discharged alive between July 1, 2003, and March 31, 2012. We compared the risk of low-trauma fractures in patients with stroke vs those with TIA using propensity score methods to adjust for differences in baseline factors. Secondary analyses compared fracture risk poststroke with that in age-/sex-matched controls without stroke or TIA (n = 23,751) identified from the Ontario Registered Persons Database. Results: The 2-year rate of fracture was 5.7% in those with stroke compared to 4.8% in those with TIA (adjusted cause-specific hazard ratio [aHR] for those with stroke vs TIA 1.32; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.19–1.46) and 4.1% in age-/sex-matched controls (aHR for those with stroke vs controls 1.47; 95% CI 1.35–1.60). In the cohort with stroke, factors associated with fractures were older age, female sex, moderate stroke severity, prior fractures or falls, and preexisting osteoporosis, rheumatoid arthritis, hyperparathyroidism, and atrial fibrillation. Conclusions: Stroke is associated with an increased risk of low-trauma fractures. Individuals with stroke and additional risk factors for fractures may benefit from targeted screening for low bone mineral density and initiation of treatment for fracture prevention.
Domestic water cultures of Iranian migrant households living in the Sydney metropolitan region

The thesis aim is to explore everyday water practices of people who migrated from Iran to Australia through a project design that employed a mixed-qualitative method. The theoretical approach of the thesis brings into conversation the work of Elizabeth Shove and Sarah Pink. In doing so, the everyday water practices are conceived as relational, comprised through the intersection of competencies, ideas, materials and situated knowledge. The question guiding this thesis is: Following migration to Australia, how do the everyday water practices of migrants from the Islamic Republic of Iran persist, change or stop. Insights are offered from 15 Iranian-Australian people, who consented to participate in a project comprised of semi-structure interviews and home insights. The results are present across three chapters that investigate waterrelated practices of bathrooms, kitchens and laundries. Attention is drawn to the how socio-cultural practices of low cost piped tap-water supply that were integral to nation building in Iran since the 1950s alongside Islamic inflected ideas of cleanliness continue to shape practices in Australia of washing-up dishes, showering, toileting and washing clothes. The thesis underscores the importance of migrant diversity in socio-cultural research on household sustainability in Australia and other multi-cultural societies.
The Arab Awakening

upheavals were about to take place in the Arab world. The region seemed frozen in its old ways, with authoritarian regimes firmly in place and tamed populations struggling to cope with economic malaise and political stagnation. The permanent features of the region’s security and political landscape – the vicissitudes of the Israeli–Arab peace track, the prospect of a protracted cold war with Iran, the relative stabilisation of Iraq and the downhill trajectory of Yemen – were disturbed only by the publication by WikiLeaks, the anti-secrecy group, of confidential US diplomatic cables. These disclosures injected awkwardness into the region’s political theatrics; they also further hurt the standing of the United States as Arab leaders measured the damage done by the revelation of their private utterances. Yet the disclosures did not seem to change the region’s fundamental dynamics. By 14 January 2011, however, the ossified Arab political order was facing its biggest challenge in decades, one that came from within rather than from without. That day, Zine el-Abedine Ben Ali, Tunisia’s president since 1987, fled the country after a month of spreading street protests and political contestation that followed the self-immolation of street vendor Mohamed Bouazizi after an argument with the municipal police. This was the first time that a popular uprising – rather than a military coup – had ousted a sitting Arab head of state. To many, Tunisia seemed an improbable place for such upheaval. The security state built by Ben Ali looked impregnable, its economic development surpassed that of the rest of the region and its wellChapter 2
A Transition Arm Modular Multilevel Universal Pulse-Waveform Generator for Electroporation Applications

High-voltage (HV) pulses are used in electroporation to subject pulsed electric field (PEF) onto a sample under treatment. Pulse-waveform shape, voltage magnitude, pulse duration, and pulse repetition rate are the basic controllable variables required for particular PEF application. In practice, a custom-made pulse generator is dedicated for each PEF application with limited flexibility in changing these variables. In this paper, a universal pulse-waveform generator (UPG) is proposed, where the controller software algorithm can manipulate a basic generated multilevel pulse waveform to emulate many different PEF pulse waveforms. The commonly used PEF HV pulse waveforms can be generated as bipolar or monopolar with controllable pulse durations, repetition times, and voltage magnitudes. The UPG has the ability to generate multilevel pulses that have controllable $dv/dt$, which allows reduction of the electromagnetic interference generated by the converter. The UPG topology is based on half-bridge modular multilevel converter (HB-MMC) cells forming two transition arms in conjunction with two bistate arms, together creating an H-bridge. The HB-MMC cell capacitors provide a controllable energy source which charge from the dc input supply and discharge across the load, while the two bistate arms allow charging the HB-MMC cell capacitors. Hence, the UPG topology offers modularity, redundancy, and scalability. The HB-MMC individual cell capacitance is low and the cell voltages are balanced by employing the sorting and rotating algorithm used in conventional HB-MMC topologies for HV dc transmission applications. The viability of the proposed UPG converter is validated by MATLAB/Simulink simulation and scaled-down experimentation.
Association of the BCRP C421A polymorphism with nonpapillary renal cell carcinoma

Breast cancer resistance protein (BCRP), the second member of the ATP‐binding cassette membrane transporter family, has a single nucleotide polymorphism, C421A (resulting in Q141K), that is of functional importance. Our aim was to explore the relationship between this polymorphism of the BCRP gene and the risk of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) development. For a case‐control study, DNA samples from 200 nonpapillary RCC patients and 200 healthy control subjects were analyzed using the TaqMan technique. The genotypic frequencies of the BCRP C421A polymorphism were compared between RCC patients and control subjects. The frequency of the C/C genotype was significantly higher in RCC patients than in control subjects (age‐ and gender‐adjusted OR = 1.96, 95% CI 1.32–2.93). No associations were observed between the BCRP C421A polymorphism and clinicopathologic or epidemiologic factors, including age, gender, tumor grade, stage, cigarette smoking, family history of cancer and body mass index. Carriers with the C/C genotype of the BCRP C421A polymorphism are at risk of developing nonpapillary RCC. These data suggest that BCRP is a candidate RCC susceptibility gene. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Financial leverage and asset growth: Evidence from non-financial firms in Nigeria.

This study analysed the relationship between financial leverage and asset growth of 80 nonfinancial firms quoted on the Nigerian Stock Exchange over the period of 2000 to 2015. Financial leverage measures used include the total debt to capital ratio, debt to equity ratio, cost of debt, debt to asset ratio and long term debt to capital ratios. The panel regression analysis model which includes the pooled regression model, fixed effect model and the random effect model was used for data analysis with the Hausman Test for appropriate model choice. The result states that there is a significant relationship with all the financial leverage variables except the cost of debt. Asset growth also shows a significant negative relationship with all the control variables such as the interest rate, inflation rate and exchange rates. We therefore recommend that quoted firms should employ financial leverage in such a way that the cost of debt does not outweigh its benefits as proposed by the trade off theory and also that financial decisions should be made in consonance with the prevailing inflation, interest and exchange rates by the management of quoted firms in Nigeria.
Creatine kinase-MB elevation after coronary artery bypass grafting surgery in patients with non-ST-segment elevation acute coronary syndromes predict worse outcomes: results from four large clinical trials.

AIMS To assess the significance of creatine kinase (CK)-MB elevations in outcomes of patients with non-ST-segment elevation acute coronary syndromes (NSTE ACS) who have undergone coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) surgery. METHODS AND RESULTS This analysis includes data from 26 465 patients with NSTE ACS enrolled in four major trials. In total, 4626 (17.5%) of patients had CABG within 30 days. Patients were excluded if CK-MB was elevated within 24 h before surgery and there was no CK-MB measured after surgery. Overall, 4401 patients were included in these analyses. The incidence of mortality increased with peak CK-MB ratios of 0-1, >1-3, >3-5, >5-10, and>10x the upper limit of normal measured at the local lab (P<0.001 across categories): 1.1, 2.8, 2.4, 3.1, and 10.8% in hospital; 1.1, 3.0, 2.9, 3.5, and 10.2% at 30 days; and 1.6, 4.4, 4.7, 6.0, and 10.9% at 180 days. Multivariable predictors of 6-month mortality included age, heart rate and randomization, peak CK-MB ratio, time to CABG, prior angina, signs of congestive heart failure and randomization, three- and two-vessel coronary disease, enrolment infarction, ST-segment depression at enrolment, female sex, experimental treatment, and systolic blood pressure. CONCLUSION CK-MB elevations after CABG are independently associated with increased risk of mortality in patients with NSTE ACS.
Selective nitration of PsbO1, PsbO2, and PsbP1 decreases PSII oxygen evolution and photochemical efficiency in intact leaves of Arabidopsis

ABSTRACT Exposure of intact Arabidopsis leaves to 40 ppm nitrogen dioxide (NO2) in light resulted almost exclusively in nitration of PsbO1, PsbO2, and PsbP1 of photosystem II (PSII), with minor nitration of four non-PS II proteins, including peroxiredoxin II E, as reported previously. Our previous findings that light-triggered selective nitration of PsbO1 decreased oxygen evolution and that inhibition of photoelectric electron transport inhibited nitration of PsbO1 implied that the nitratable tyrosine residue of PsbO1 is redox-active. However, whether the nitratable tyrosine residues of PsbO2 and PsbP1 are redox-active is unknown. In this study, we determined the oxygen evolution and maximal photochemical efficiency of PSII in intact Arabidopsis leaves following exposure to 40 ppm NO2 in light and found that these parameters were decreased to 60 and 70% of the non-exposed control, respectively. Because PsbO1, PsbO2, and PsbP1 accounted for > 80% of anti-3-nitrotyrosine antibody signal intensities, observed decreases in the oxygen evolution and maximal photochemical efficiency of PSII were mainly attributable to nitration of the tyrosine residues of these PSII proteins. Thus, it is postulated that nitratable tyrosine residues of PsbO2 and PsbP1 are redox-active, as in the case of PsbO1. A new hypothetical model is proposed.
Sporadic coordinated shifts of regional ventilation and perfusion in juvenile pigs with normal gas exchange

Repeated high‐resolution measurements of both regional pulmonary ventilation and regional blood flow (r) have revealed that ∼6 to 10% of the summed spatial and temporal heterogeneity can be attributed to spontaneous temporal variability. To test the hypothesis that the spontaneous temporal shifts of r and r are coordinated, 12 anaesthetized juvenile pigs had pairs of colours of aerosol and intravenous fluorescent microspheres (FMS) administered simultaneously at 20 min intervals to mark r and r. The animals were killed, the lungs inflated, air‐dried and cut into ∼2 cm3 cubes. The concentrations of FMS colours from each cube, representing r and r at every 20 min interval, were measured with a fluorescence spectrophotometer. The correlation between per‐piece temporal shifts in r and r, calculated as the mean within‐piece covariance, was positive (P < 0.001) for every temporally adjacent pair of measurements in every animal, although there were large differences in the magnitude of the mean temporal covariance among animals. The individual cubes with the most positive temporal covariance across all measurement periods usually demonstrated a large single‐interval coordinated shift of r and r, with average temporal covariance observed at the other intervals. The largest between‐interval shifts in r and r included equal proportions of coordinated increases and coordinated decreases. High‐resolution measurements of r and r acquired over 20 min intervals reveal that the overall positive correlation between temporal changes in r and r is driven by relatively infrequent large‐magnitude changes within small regions of the lung.
Precariousness and call centre work: Operators’ perceptions in Portugal and Brazil

We present comparative research on operators’ perceptions of the work process in two telecommunications call centres, one in Portugal and the other in Brazil. We argue that, despite the different pace of economic performance in recent years in Portugal and Brazil, there is a common trend towards casualization. Despite differences between the two call centres, both case studies show a process that imposes standardized behaviour. By exploring the subjective perceptions of call centre operators, we contribute to the ‘pessimistic’ (but probably more realistic) strand of literature on call centre work.
Recent Warming Reverses Long-Term Arctic Cooling

Climate Reversal The climate and environment of the Arctic have changed drastically over the short course of modern observation. Kaufman et al. (p. 1236) synthesized 2000 years of proxy data from lakes above 60° N latitude with complementary ice core and tree ring records, to create a paleoclimate reconstruction for the Arctic with a 10-year resolution. A gradual cooling trend at the start of the record had reversed by the beginning of the 20th century, when temperatures began to increase rapidly. The long-term cooling of the Arctic is consistent with a reduction in summer solar insolation caused by changes in Earth's orbit, while the rapid and large warming of the past century is consistent with the human-caused warming. A 2000-year-long Arctic cooling trend seen in a surface air temperature reconstruction was reversed during the last century. The temperature history of the first millennium C.E. is sparsely documented, especially in the Arctic. We present a synthesis of decadally resolved proxy temperature records from poleward of 60°N covering the past 2000 years, which indicates that a pervasive cooling in progress 2000 years ago continued through the Middle Ages and into the Little Ice Age. A 2000-year transient climate simulation with the Community Climate System Model shows the same temperature sensitivity to changes in insolation as does our proxy reconstruction, supporting the inference that this long-term trend was caused by the steady orbitally driven reduction in summer insolation. The cooling trend was reversed during the 20th century, with four of the five warmest decades of our 2000-year-long reconstruction occurring between 1950 and 2000.
Adverse Obstetric Outcomes Associated With In Vitro Fertilization in Singleton Pregnancies

Objective: To compare the obstetric outcomes of women treated with in vitro fertilization (IVF), women with indicators of subfertility but without assisted reproductive technologies, and fertile women with singleton pregnancies. Methods: A prospective cohort study was conducted from March 2013 to February 2016 at the Hunan Provincial Maternal and Child Health Hospital in China. Finally, 1260 eligible mothers were recruited into the IVF group, 1899 into the subfertile group, and 2480 into the fertile group. Results: Compared to the fertile group, gestational diabetes mellitus (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 2.36; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.67-3.34), pregnancy-induced hypertension (aOR = 2.23; 95% CI: 1.37-3.64), placenta previa (aOR = 4.11; 95% CI: 2.12-7.96), premature rupture of membranes (aOR = 4.60; 95% CI: 2.71-7.81), anemia in pregnancy (aOR = 2.17; 95% CI: 1.42-3.31), preterm birth (PTB; aOR = 2.19; 95% CI: 1.59-3.02), low birth weight (aOR = 2.82; 95% CI: 2.02-3.94), perinatal mortality (aOR = 2.72; 95% CI: 1.67-4.03), and congenital malformations (aOR = 6.07; 95% CI: 3.14-11.72) were evidently increased in the IVF group, while placenta previa (aOR = 1.67; 95% CI: 1.05-2.67), PTB (aOR = 1.31; 95% CI: 1.05-1.64), low birth weight (aOR = 1.42; 95% CI: 1.12-1.81), and congenital malformations (aOR = 2.03; 95% CI: 1.28-3.21) were also increased in the subfertile group. Additionally, the IVF group compared to the subfertile group was at a higher risk of gestational diabetes mellitus (aOR = 1.40; 95% CI: 1.08-1.83), premature rupture of membranes (aOR = 1.45; 95% CI: 1.00-2.10), PTB (aOR = 1.26; 95% CI: 1.01-1.58), low birth weight (aOR = 1.75; 95% CI: 1.36-2.24), perinatal mortality (aOR = 1.95; 95% CI: 1.02-3.46), and congenital malformations (aOR = 1.81; 95% CI: 1.12-2.92). Conclusion: An increased risk of adverse outcomes in IVF pregnancies may be a result of the IVF procedures themselves and the infertility itself together.
1kW fuel cell power conditioner suited for renewable stand-alone power supply systems

Normally fuel cell based power supply system needs a power conditioner to convert the low DC output voltage generated by the fuel cell into usable AC voltage for any practical application. For proper power conditioning design fuel cell electrical characteristics as well as customer requirements must be taken into account. Therefore, in this paper, a practical design methodology for two-stage power conditioner architecture suited for using in stand-alone power generation systems with 120VAC output voltage (sinusoidal single-phase) and low input voltage (26VDC) is presented. Proposed power conditioner architecture, which consists of an active clamp full-bridge boost converter (ACFBC) for the DC-DC stage and a full-bridge sinusoidal pulse width modulation (SPWM) inverter for DC-AC stage is designed, simulated and implemented. In order to validate proposed power conditioner architecture, experimental results for 1kW power conditioner prototype are presented.
Potyviral helper-component proteinase expressed in transgenic plants enhances titers of Potato leaf roll virus but does not alleviate its phloem limitation.

Coinfection of Nicotiana benthamiana with Potato virus A (PVA, a potyvirus) and Potato leaf-roll virus (PLRV, a luteovirus) induces a synergistic interaction manifested by enhanced titers of PLRV. The helper component proteinase (HC-Pro) of potyviruses is involved in viral vascular movement and suppression of an antiviral defense mechanism in plants. Data of our study showed that accumulation of PLRV in transgenic N. benthamiana expressing the PVA HC-Pro was enhanced on average by 4.5-fold, as compared to a 6.0-fold enhancement in wild-type N. benthamiana plants doubly infected with PVA and PLRV. Enhancement of PLRV accumulation was directly proportional to the concentration of the HC-Pro in leaves. In the HC-Pro-transgenic plants and wild-type plants, PLRV was almost exclusively confined to the phloem, but the HC-Pro-transgenic plants had a fourfold greater number of PLRV-infected cells within the phloem tissues, as revealed by immunohistochemical staining. In the leaves doubly infected with PLRV and PVA, PLRV was found to exit the phloem in 25.0% of the veins, infecting all types of leaf cells, but, on average, PLRV accumulation was not enhanced more than by sixfold at the whole-leaf level. Therefore, potyviral/luteoviral synergism seems to be based on two mechanisms. One of them is mediated by the HC-Pro and increases luteovirus accumulation without allowing detectable egress from vascular tissue. The other mechanism probably depends on additional potyviral proteins and alleviates the normal phloem limitation of PLRV.