Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Genetic Architecture of Parallel Pelvic Reduction in Ninespine Sticklebacks

Teleost fish genomes are known to be evolving faster than those of other vertebrate taxa. Thus, fish are suited to address the extent to which the same vs. different genes are responsible for similar phenotypic changes in rapidly evolving genomes of evolutionary independent lineages. To gain insights into the genetic basis and evolutionary processes behind parallel phenotypic changes within and between species, we identified the genomic regions involved in pelvic reduction in Northern European ninespine sticklebacks (Pungitius pungitius) and compared them to those of North American ninespine and threespine sticklebacks (Gasterosteus aculeatus). To this end, we conducted quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping using 283 F2 progeny from an interpopulation cross. Phenotypic analyses indicated that pelvic reduction is a recessive trait and is inherited in a simple Mendelian fashion. Significant QTL for pelvic spine and girdle lengths were identified in the region of the Pituitary homeobox transcription factor 1 (Pitx1) gene, also responsible for pelvic reduction in threespine sticklebacks. The fact that no QTL was observed in the region identified in the mapping study of North American ninespine sticklebacks suggests that an alternative QTL for pelvic reduction has emerged in this species within the past 1.6 million years after the split between Northern European and North American populations. In general, our study provides empirical support for the view that alternative genetic mechanisms that lead to similar phenotypes can evolve over short evolutionary time scales.
The Cultural Adaptation Process during a Short-Term Study Abroad Experience in Swaziland.

Globalization continuously shapes our world and influences post-secondary education. This study explored the cultural adaptation process of participants during a short-term study abroad program. Participants experienced stages which included initial feelings, cultural uncertainty, cultural barriers, cultural negativity, academic and career growth, feelings throughout the program, and cultural growth. The findings from this study should be used to design and implement short-term study abroad programs that infuse cultural learning with academic learning and focus on experiential learning practices.
Postnatal maturation of nonpyramidal neurons in the visual cortex of the cat

A Golgi study of nonpyramidal neurons in the visual cortex of kittens aged from 1 to 80 days revealed that different neuronal types undergo a differential sequence of maturation. The earliest nonpyramidal cells to differentiate are large multipolar cells of layers 3–5, which appear around birth and whose axons gradually establish long lateral, intracortical connections. They are followed by spiny stellate cells of layer 4, which appear in the first postnatal, week, and by neuroglioform cells in layers 4 and 5, a cell type which at 10 days displays a highly differentiated axonal plexus. In general, most classes of local axon cells can be identified by the end of the second week, though still possessing a very immature morphology, the axonal‐tuft cells of layer 2 maturing later, in the third week. With some exceptions, most neurons exhibit an adultlike axonal arborization by the end of the first month; however, immature chandelier terminals are observed until the 40th day, and in kittens aged from 30 to 80 days, the vertical terminal segments of chandelier cells are larger than in the adult. Some neuronal types seem to present an exuberant growth of axonal fibers in the late postnatal period and a subsequent reduction up to the adult stage.
The use of analogy in speech motor performance

Abstract The acoustic correlates of pitch variation were examined in 40 participants who received analogy instructions or explicit instructions that required them to modulate their intonation during speech production. First, using focus group methodology, professional speech-language pathologists were asked to identify analogies that best described minimum pitch variation (monotone), moderate pitch variation (normal intonation), and maximum pitch variation (exaggerated intonation) in speech. The focus group established that an appropriate pitch variation metaphor may be related to imagery of “waves at sea”, with minimum pitch variation represented by a flat calm sea, moderate pitch variation represented by a moderate sea, and maximum pitch variation represented by a choppy sea. Forty adult participants without speech impairments were asked to read aloud a standard paragraph using their habitual pitch variation (control condition). They were then allocated randomly to an analogy or an explicit instruction group and were asked to read aloud different paragraphs with minimum, moderate, or maximum pitch variations. Results revealed that acoustic correlates of pitch variation (standard deviation of fundamental frequency, SDF0) were not different for the control condition, or moderate and maximum pitch variation conditions in the two groups. However, the analogy instruction was significantly more effective than the explicit instruction for inducing minimum pitch variation. Analysis of participants in each group who showed higher than normal pitch variation in the control condition (>.5 SD above the group SDF0) revealed that the analogy instruction was more effective than the explicit instruction in the minimum variation condition. It was concluded that analogy instructions may be a useful tool in speech rehabilitation.
The experiences of physical rehabilitation in individuals with spinal cord injuries: a qualitative thematic synthesis

Abstract Purpose: The purpose of this thematic synthesis review was to identify and synthesise published qualitative research on the perspectives of individuals with spinal cord injuries with respect to physical rehabilitation interventions. Materials and methods: The peer-reviewed literature was searched across seven databases and identified abstracts were independently screened by two reviewers. A thematic synthesis methodology was used to code and synthesise the results from the included studies. Results: In total, 7233 abstracts were identified; 31 articles were selected for inclusion, representing 26 physical rehabilitation interventions. The methodological quality of studies was moderate (Standards for Reporting Qualitative Research mean ± standard deviation = 14.39 ± 3.61). The four main themes developed were: (1) Benefits of physical rehabilitation, (2) Challenges of physical rehabilitation, (3) Need for support, and (4) Issue of control. Conclusions: This qualitative thematic synthesis provides key insights into the experiences of individuals with spinal cord injuries who received physical rehabilitation. Recommendations for practice, based on the findings, include creating a diverse, encouraging, and educational physical rehabilitation experience with supportive staff who focus on communication and person-centred care. Implications for Rehabilitation Physical rehabilitation provides psychological as well as physical benefits to people with spinal cord injuries, including motivation, hope, improved self-confidence, and acceptance. Challenges identified during physical rehabilitation for people with spinal cord injuries, such as comparisons, negative emotions, recovery expectations, and slow progress, should be addressed by healthcare professionals to ensure person-centred care. People with spinal cord injuries identified a need for support from health care professionals, family, and friends, as well other people with spinal cord injuries. There is an issue of control in physical rehabilitation for people with spinal cord injuries, which can result in a fight with oneself or with healthcare professionals to regain the control that has been lost.
Effects of Mild and Severe Vitamin B1 Deficiencies on the Meiotic Maturation of Mice Oocytes

We investigated the effects of vitamin B1 deficiency on the meiosis maturation of oocytes. Female Crl:CD1 (ICR) mice were fed a 20% casein diet (control group) or a vitamin B1–free diet (test group). The vitamin B1 concentration in ovary was approximately 30% lower in the test group than in the control group. Oocyte meiosis was not affected by vitamin B1 deficiency when the deficiency was not accompanied by body weight loss. On the contrary, frequency of abnormal oocyte was increased by vitamin B1 deficiency when deficiency was accompanied by body weight loss (referred to as severe vitamin B1 deficiency; frequency of abnormal oocyte, 13.8% vs 43.7%, P = .0071). The frequency of abnormal oocytes was decreased by refeeding of a vitamin B1–containing diet (13.9% vs 22.9%, P = .503). These results suggest that severe vitamin B1 deficiency inhibited meiotic maturation of oocytes but did not damage immature oocytes.
Justification of Effective Reactive Power Reserves With Respect to a Particular Bus Using Linear Sensitivity

A constant reactive power (Q) reserve (CQR) is measured by the difference between the maximum reactive power generation and its current. However, all reactive power sources must not affect the entire power system when severe contingencies occur. Thus, generators must be evaluated as to whether or not they will have an impact on the maximum permissible loading of buses. This definition considers some generators to still have reactive power reserves when the system faces voltage collapse. This remaining reactive power reserve, although available, cannot be used in an arbitrary manner. This paper proposes the concept of an effective reactive power reserve and it is calculated on the basis of a sensitivity analysis. The computed reactive power reserve is analyzed using static and dynamic simulations in bulk power systems.
Overexpression of the Transmembrane Protein IQGAP3 Is Associated with Poor Survival of Patients with Gastric Cancer

Objective: Spheroid colony formation is a useful method of cancer stem cell (CSC) characterization. We previously showed that the IQ motif containing the GTPase-activating protein 3 gene (IQGAP3) is upregulated in spheroid body-forming gastric cancer (GC) cells compared with parental cells. We investigated IQGAP3 expression in GC. Methods: IQGAP3 protein expression was analyzed by immunohistochemistry in 165 GC cases. RNA interference was used to inhibit IQGAP3 expression in GC cell lines. Results: In non neoplastic gastric mucosa, weak staining of IQGAP3 was observed in the foveolar epithelium, while GC tissue showed stronger, more extensive staining. Of the 165 GC cases, 34 (21%) were positive for IQGAP3 expression. GC cases positive for IQGAP3 were found more frequently in stage II/III/IV cases than in stage I cases. Univariate and multivariate analyses demonstrated that IQGAP3 expression is an independent prognostic classifier of GC patients. Both the number and size of the spheres formed by MKN-74 cells were significantly reduced by knockdown of IQGAP3. The phosphorylation of Akt and Erk1/2 was inhibited by knockdown of IQGAP3. Conclusion: These results suggest that IQGAP3 plays an important role in gastric CSCs. The location of IQGAP3 on the cell membrane makes it a potential therapeutic target for GC.
Post-endocytic Sorting of Calcitonin Receptor-like Receptor and Receptor Activity-modifying Protein 1*

Calcitonin receptor-like receptor (CLR) and the receptor activity-modifying protein 1 (RAMP1) comprise a receptor for calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP). Although CGRP induces endocytosis of CLR/RAMP1, little is known about post-endocytic sorting of these proteins. We observed that the duration of stimulation with CGRP markedly affected post-endocytic sorting of CLR/RAMP1. In HEK and SK-N-MC cells, transient stimulation (10-7 m CGRP, 1 h), induced CLR/RAMP1 recycling with similar kinetics (2-6 h), demonstrated by labeling receptors in living cells with antibodies to extracellular epitopes. Recycling of CLR/RAMP1 correlated with resensitization of CGRP-induced increases in [Ca2+]i. Cycloheximide did not affect resensitization, but bafilomycin A1, an inhibitor of vacuolar H+-ATPases, abolished resensitization. Recycling CLR and RAMP1 were detected in endosomes containing Rab4a and Rab11a, and expression of GTPase-defective Rab4aS22N and Rab11aS25N inhibited resensitization. After sustained stimulation (10-7 m CGRP, >2 h), CLR/RAMP1 trafficked to lysosomes. RAMP1 was degraded ∼4-fold more rapidly than CLR (RAMP1, 45% degradation, 5 h; CLR, 54% degradation, 16 h), determined by Western blotting. Inhibitors of lysosomal, but not proteasomal, proteases prevented degradation. Sustained stimulation did not induce detectable mono- or polyubiquitination of CLR or RAMP1, determined by immunoprecipitation and Western blotting. Moreover, a RAMP1 mutant lacking the only intracellular lysine (RAMP1K142R) internalized and was degraded normally. Thus, after transient stimulation with CGRP, CLR and RAMP1 traffic from endosomes to the plasma membrane, which mediates resensitization. After sustained stimulation, CLR and RAMP1 traffic from endosomes to lysosomes by ubiquitin-independent mechanisms, where they are degraded at different rates.
Atlas selection strategy using least angle regression in multi-atlas segmentation propagation

In multi-atlas based segmentation propagation, segmentations from multiple atlases are propagated to the target image and combined to produce the segmentation result. Local weighted voting (LWV) method is a classifier fusion method which combines the propagated atlases weighted by local image similarity. We demonstrate that the segmentation accuracy using LWV improves as the number of atlases increases. Under this context, we show that introducing diversity in addition to image similarity by using least-angle regression (LAR) criteria is a more efficient way to rank and select atlases. The accuracy of multi-atlas segmentation converges faster when the atlases are selected in the order of LAR. We test the method on a hippocampal atlas set of 138 normal control (NC) subjects and another set of 99 Alzheimer's disease patients provided by ADNI. The result shows that LAR selection is more efficient than similarity based atlas selection. Fewer atlases were required using LAR selected atlases to achieve the same accuracy as fusing atlases from image similarity based selection.
Developing a Conceptual Map of Patient Information Needs in Prostate Cancer Screening

As the prevalence of shared decision-making increases as part of the patient-clinician relationship, patient needs for information become critical aspects of preventative care and treatment decisions. It has been shown that patients who have relevant information about healthcare options make choices and decisions which are more consistent with their personal values. This is especially useful when considering the various options regarding prostate cancer screening, (PCS). PCS remains extremely controversial given the uncertainty and lack of conclusive scientific evidence regarding the consequences of having the prostate specific antigen (PSA) test. It is vital that men are fully informed of the possible ramifications of the PSA test. The purpose of this study was to identify the information needs of male patients in PCS situations in primary care medical encounters. A deductive qualitative analysis was applied to uncover reoccurring themes and critical information presented by the subjects during conversations regarding PCS. From this analysis, a preliminary conceptual map was created in order to identify and understand the levels of information needed for patients to make informed PCS decisions. Future use and development of this map may improve PCS decisions by providing a structural approach to understanding the primary issues and implications of PCS for both the patient and clinician.
Value of the pretransplant evaluation in predicting toxic day-100 mortality among blood stem-cell and bone marrow transplant recipients.

PURPOSE To determine the value of pretransplant studies in predicting day 100 nonrelapse toxic mortality following high-dose therapy. PATIENTS AND METHODS A retrospective review of 383 consecutive hematopoietic stem-cell transplants was performed with attention to toxic mortality and pretransplant factors. Univariate log-rank analysis was used to yield the most significant cut-off values for individual factors. Multivariate analysis using Cox proportional hazards regression determined factors independently predictive of early toxic death. RESULTS Nonrelapse toxic mortality before day 100 occurred in 23 of 383 (6.0%) transplant recipients. Factors associated with an increased risk of toxic death by univariate analysis included forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1) less than 78% of predicted (P = .0002), allogeneic versus autologous transplant (P = .0003), diffusion capacity of carbon monoxide less than 52% of predicted (P = .002), serum creatinine concentration greater than 1.1 mg/dL (P = .003), Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status greater than 0 (P = .006), preparative regimen containing total-body irradiation versus chemotherapy alone (P = .006), marrow versus blood stem cell (P = .01), serum ALT greater than 50 IU/L (P = .02), diagnosis of hematologic disorder versus solid tumor (P = .06), serum bilirubin level greater than 1.1 mg/dL (P = .08), left ventricular ejection fraction (P = .09), and growth factor use (P = .09). In the multivariate model, transplant type (relative risk, 4.2), FEV1 (relative risk, 4.5), performance status (relative risk, 3.7), serum creatinine (relative risk, 3.8), and serum bilirubin (relative risk, 3.7) were found to be independent predictors of early toxic mortality. CONCLUSION The pretransplant evaluation is a useful tool to identify patients at risk for early toxic mortality following high-dose therapy.
THE DISTRIBUTION AND NATURE OF COLOUR VISION AMONG THE MAMMALS

1. An oft-cited view, derived principally from the writings of Gordon L. Walls, is that relatively few mammalian species have a capacity for colour vision. This review has evaluated that proposition in the light of recent research on colour vision and its mechanisms in mammals. 2. To yield colour vision a retina must contain two or more spectrally discrete types of photopigment. While this is a necessary condition, it is not a sufficient one. This means, in particular, that inferences about the presence of colour vision drawn from studies of photopigments, the precursors of photopigments, or from nervous system signals must be accepted with due caution. 3. Conjoint signals from rods and cones may be exploited by mammalian nervous systems to yield behavioural discriminations consistent with the formal definition of colour vision. Many mammalian retinas are relatively cone-poor, and thus there are abundant opportunities for such rod/cone interactions. Several instances were cited in which animals having (apparently) only one type of cone photopigment succeed at colour discriminations using such a mechanism. it is suggested that the exploitation of such a mechanism may not be uncommon among mammals. 4. Based on ideas drawn from natural history, Walls (1942) proposed that the receptors and photopigments necessary to support colour vision were lost during the nocturnal phase of mammalian history and then re-acquired during the subsequent mammalian radiations. Contemporary examination of photopigment genes along with the utilization of better techniques for identifying rods and cones suggest a different view, that the earliest mammals had retinas containing some cones and two types of cone photopigment. Thus the baseline mammalian colour vision is argued to be dichromacy. 5. A consideration of the broad range of mammalian niches and activity cycles suggests that many mammals are active during photic periods that would make a colour vision capacity potentially useful. 6. A systematic survey was presented that summarized the evidence for colour vision in mammals. Indications of the presence and nature of colour vision were drawn both from direct studies of colour vision and from studies of those retinal mechanisms that are most closely associated with the possession of colour vision. Information about colour vision can be adduced for species drawn from nine mammalian orders. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Active specific immunotherapy of a murine mammary adenocarcinoma using a synthetic tumor-associated glycoconjugate.

A synthetic tumor-associated glycoconjugate (S-TAG) "vaccine" formulation was developed for active specific immunotherapy of a murine mammary adenocarcinoma (TA3-Ha). An S-TAG composed of the Thomsen Freidenreich hapten coupled to a conventional carrier protein (keyhole limpet hemocyanin) and emulsified in Ribi adjuvant, when administered s.c. (in four doses at 3 to 6 days apart) into hosts bearing TA3-Ha tumors, provided 25% long-term survival. When administration of this synthetic glycoconjugate was preceded by treatment with cyclophosphamide (100 mg/kg i.v.), 50% long-term survival was observed for hosts in which the tumor had been established for 5 days and up to 90% long-term survival for groups of mice with tumors established for 1 to 2 days. In contrast, a significantly (P less than 0.025) lower level of survival was observed when cyclophosphamide treatment was preceded by active immunizations with the S-TAG tumor vaccine. Surviving tumor-challenged mice that had been treated with cyclophosphamide and the S-TAG vaccine had relatively good IgG antibody and delayed-type hypersensitivity responsiveness to the synthetic Thomsen Friedenreich determinants. About 30% of these animals were also able to resist and sustain long-term survival when rechallenged with a high dose (1 x 10(4] of TA3-Ha tumor cells. Lymph node cells obtained from surviving animals were highly inhibitory to tumor growth in a Winn-type assay.
The pattern of MyoD and contractile protein localization in primary epaxial myotome reflects the dynamic progression of nascent myoblast differentiation

The localization of contractile and regulatory proteins in early stages of epaxial primary myotome development was analyzed by immunofluorescence microscopy. Contractile proteins that appear in an ordered sequence in the rostro‐caudal axis of somite development were found to reiterate that sequence in the dorso‐medial‐to‐ventro‐lateral axis of primary epaxial myotome development. Pair‐wise localization of MyoD–titin, desmin–titin, and desmin–myosin defined three zones extending from the dermomyotome dorso‐medial lip (DML) into the primary myotome layer. Zones M1 and M2, which were positive for MyoD + titin and MyoD + titin + desmin, respectively, were restricted to the dorso‐medial‐most extremity of the myotome layer and did not expand during the course of myotome development. Zone M3 was positive for MyoD, desmin, titin, myosin, and cardiac troponin T and was the only zone that expanded during primary myotome development. Myotome fibers in zone M3 were unit‐length, spanning the full rostro‐caudal axis of the myotome while fibers in zones M1 and M2 were shorter than unit length. Anti‐myoD immunofluorescence, when detected in cells lacking contractile‐protein‐positive cytoplasm, was restricted to the DML and nascent myotome cells immediately subjacent to the DML. These results demonstrate a dynamic spatio‐temporal sequence in the differentiation program of nascent myotome cells as they emerge from the DML; zones M1 and M2 reflect standing waves of sequential contractile protein activation during the maturation of nascent myotomal myoblasts, while the expanding zone M3 reflects the accumulation of mature myotome fibers expressing a full cohort contractile proteins. Developmental Dynamics 235:382–394, 2006. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.