Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Photoperiod Modulates Pubertal Shifts in Behavioral Responsiveness to Testosterone

This study examined the effect of photoperiod on pubertal maturation of steroid-dependent reproductive behaviors in male European ferrets (Mustela putoriusfuro). In the first experiment, levels of neck gripping, mounting, and pelvic thrusting in gonadally intact prepubertal (PRE) ferrets were compared with those of adults that had undergone puberty either while housed in short days (8 hr light/16 hr darkness per day; SD), or after transfer from SD to long days (18 hr light/6 hr darkness per day; LD) at 12 weeks of age. Both LD and SD adults demonstrated significantly greater amounts of neck gripping and mounting than PRE males. In addition, a significantly greater proportion of adults in both SD and LD displayed at least one incidence of the three behaviors compared to PRE ferrets. There were no statistically significant differences in behavior of the gonadally intact LD and SD adults. In the second experiment, dose-response curves for behavioral responses to subcutaneous injections of 0, 0.5, 1.25, 2.5, 5, and 10 mg/kg testosterone propionate (TP) in oil were generated in castrated PRE, SD, and LD males. The lowest dose of TP elicited significantly greater amounts of all three behaviors in LD adults than in PRE ferrets. In addition, levels of mounting and thrusting elicited by the lowest dose of TP were significantly greater in LD adults than in SD adults. These data indicate that pubertal activation of male sexual behavior in male ferrets is accompanied by a pubertal increase in responsiveness to the behavioral effects of testosterone. Furthermore, the degree of behavioral responsiveness of adult ferrets to testosterone is modulated by environmental photoperiod experienced during reproductive maturation.
Retinal gene expression after central retinal artery ligation: effects of ischemia and reperfusion.

PURPOSE To investigate the morphologic and molecular consequences of 30- and 90-minute central retinal artery ligation (CRAL)-induced retinal ischemia, followed by 3 and 12 hours of reperfusion, and to identify potential targets for therapy. METHODS Retinal ischemia was induced for 30 and 90 minutes by ligating the rat central retinal artery, and corresponding effects were examined histologically, immunocytochemically, and molecularly at 3 hours and 12 hours of reperfusion. Patterns of gene expression revealed significantly upregulated and downregulated genes by gene array analyses and were verified by quantitative RT-PCR. Functional pathways were correlated using gene set enrichment analysis. RESULTS Substantial morphologic changes occurred from 3 hours to 7 days after CRAL in rats, resulting in a cellular loss in most retinal layers, particularly in inner nuclear and ganglion cell layers. After 30 minutes of CRAL and 3 hours of reperfusion, transcription-related genes such as ATF3, ID2, Klf4, BTG2, c-Fos, and c-Jun were activated. After 12 hours of reperfusion, the genes associated with kinase and caspase molecular pathways-including MAP kinases, Casp3 and Casp9-were upregulated. CRAL of 90 minutes and 3 hours of reperfusion induced glycolysis and gluconeogenesis-related genes such as G6PC. However, prolonged reperfusion of 12 hours was characterized by prominent activation of apoptosis-related genes, including Tp53, Akt1, Akt3, Pik3R1, Prkcb1, caspases (Casp3, Casp7, Casp9), and TNF. CONCLUSIONS CRAL is a clinically relevant retinal ischemia model, and gene expression analysis can provide information regarding the molecular mechanisms underlying the pathophysiological processes during retinal ischemia. In addition, CRAL represents an effective experimental model with which to study retinal inflammation, development, aging, and, neurodegeneration.
Microtubule dynamics and kinetochore function in mitosis.

INTRODUCTION 527 DYNAMIC INSTABILITY . 52R Free Microtubule Ends . 528 Microtubule Ends at the Kinetochore . 530 ISOLATED KINETOCHORES . 531 Nucleation . 531 Microtubule Capture . 531 Microtubule Depo! ymerization at the Kinetochore 532 Microtubule Polymerization at the Kinetochore . 534 KINETOCHORE MICROTUBULE DYNAMICS IN THE SPINDLE 535_, Anaphase . 535 Metaphase . 537 Prometaphase , 541 KINETOCHORE STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION . 542 Force Generationfrom Depolymerization 542 Force Generationfrom Polymerization 544 . Regulation of Dynamics at the Kinetochore 544 ' Molecules Involved in Force Generation . 546
A Low Abundance Pool of Nascent p21WAF1/Cip1 Is Targeted by Estrogen to Activate Cyclin E·Cdk2*

Estrogens regulate cell proliferation in target tissues, including breast cancer by stimulating G1-S phase transition. Activation of cyclin E·Cdk2 through abrogation of the ability of p21WAF1/Cip1 to bind to and inhibit cyclin-CDKs is a pivotal event in this process in MCF-7 breast cancer cells. A proposed mechanism is p21 sequestration into cyclin D1·Cdk4/6 complexes driven by estrogen-induced transcriptional activation of cyclin D1 gene expression. However, we now show that some E2-induced cyclin E·Cdk2 activation occurs in the absence of increased cyclin D1 levels and requires decreased p21 protein synthesis. Both mechanisms operate in the absence of major changes in total p21 protein levels and instead target a low abundance subset of newly synthesized p21. E2-induced activation of cyclin E·Cdk2 is mimicked by targeted inhibition of nascent p21 expression by antisense p21 oligonucleotides. Cyclin E·Cdk2 activation is completely inhibited by a combination of antisense cyclin D1 oligonucleotide transfection and elimination of the decrease in nascent p21 by infection with adenoviral-p21. These findings strongly support a central role for p21 in the early phase of E2-induced mitogenesis and highlight a major functional role for newly synthesized CDK inhibitory proteins.
A novel partially insulated junctionless transistor for low power nanoscale digital integrated circuits

In this paper, a novel device structure named as partially insulated (Pi-OX) junctionless transistor (JLT) is proposed and the simulated results below 20 nm have been compared with existing silicon-on-insulator (SOI) JLT. Further, drain-induced barrier lowering (DIBL), subthreshold swing (SS), on-state drive current (ION), off-state leakage current (IOFF), ION/IOFF ratio and static power dissipation (PSTAT) of the proposed Pi-OXJLT and SOIJLT has also been compared. It has been found that, IOFF, DIBL and SS in the case of proposed Pi-OXJLT are reduced by 57%, 17% and 10% respectively over the existing SOIJLT device. The fabrication flow of the proposed Pi-OXJLT is proposed.
Genetic and environmental predictors of latent trajectories of alcohol use from adolescence to adulthood: a male twin study.

BACKGROUND Adolescence is characterized by higher levels of novelty-seeking and risk-taking behavior, including initiation of alcohol use. Also, there is considerable heterogeneity in the change and continuity of alcohol use over time, which emphasizes the need to examine factors predicting alcohol use and the patterns of use over time. METHODS Retrospective data on average monthly alcohol use and risk and protective factors were obtained through interviews and questionnaires in 1,560 adult male twins. Latent class growth analysis in Mplus was performed on data of alcohol use over ages 15 to 36. Second, logistic regression analyses were used to associate risk and protective characteristics with membership in distinct latent trajectories of alcohol use. RESULTS Six trajectories of alcohol use were identified, varying in the level of alcohol use, the rate of change in use in early adolescence and the persistence of use into adulthood. Genetic risk of externalizing disorder and peer deviance showed the greatest risks for unfavorable alcohol trajectories with higher levels of use and higher rates of early increase in use. Parental monitoring and involvement in social activities showed protective effects. Involvement in religious activities was strongly associated with reduced persistence of high-level drinking in univariate but not multivariate regression analyses. CONCLUSIONS Risk and protective factors impacted differentially on level of alcohol use, rate of increase in use during adolescence, and persistence of heavy alcohol use over time. Insight into the different ways in which predictors impact on alcohol use is relevant for the development of new intervention strategies. For this purpose, causality of the associations should be further examined.
The development of sustained attention (vigilance) and inhibition in children: some normative data.

SUMMARY A normative study of 230 children from Sydney pre-schools and primary schools (aged 3–7 years) was carried out using a Continuous Performance Test of Vigilance (CPT), the Draw-a-Line Slowly test (DALS) for motor inhibition, and the Sprague Ballistographic Chair for motility. The study demonstrated a clear age development in capacity for sustained attention (vigilance) and in motor inhibition between 4 and 6 years of age, in normal children. Correlations between components of the CPT, Mean Reaction Time (MRT), and the DALS test were shown suggesting a need for further multivariate studies. Sex differences were not found for the CPT, or DALS tests, but were shown for Chair Score and for motor components of the DALS test (DALO and DALF), for which boys scored higher motility scores and faster DALO and DALF scores.
Influence of Age, Gender, and Ethnicity on Nasal Mucociliary Clearance Function

Nasal mucociliary clearance functions were measured in 46 healthy Chinese adult subjects (21 women and 25 men; age range, 27 to 75 years). A single droplet of Tc-99m MAA was placed on the floor of the nasal meatus about 1 cm behind the mucocutaneous junction, and its course was followed with a gamma camera. The nasal mucociliary clearance function was presented as the velocity (mm/minute) of nasal mucociliary transport of the Tc-99m MAA droplet. The results showed the velocity to be 4.42 \pm 2.12 mm/minute (4.61 \pm 2.37 mm/minute in the right nostril; 4.24 \pm 1.83 mm/minute in the left nostril). When the patients were grouped according to age or gender the velocity was 4.8 \pm 1.9 mm/minute (right nostril), 4.4 \pm 1.9 mm/minute (left nostril) in the older subjects (60 years and older), and 4.4 \pm 2.7 mm/ minute (right nostril), 4.1 \pm 1.8 mm/minute (left nostril). In the younger subjects (59 years old and younger) (P > 0.05) the velocity was 5.0 \pm 2.7 mm/minute (right nostril), 4.3 \pm 1.8 mm/minute (left nostril) in men and 4.1 \pm 2.0 mm/minute (right nostril), 4.2 \pm 2.0 mm/minute (left nostril), in women (P > 0.05). The authors concluded that the influence of age or gender on healthy Chinese adults is not apparent. In addition, the velocity of flow in Chinese adults is slower than those in other previously reported ethnic studies.
Implementation of Service-Oriented it Management: an Empirical Study on Swiss it Organizations

Due to an enhanced customer focus in the planning, development and delivery of IT services, service-oriented IT management has become increasingly important. This paper investigates to what effect service-oriented IT management has already been put into place in Swiss IT organizations. Success factors for the implementation are analyzed and the benefit of a service-oriented IT organization is studied. For this purpose 53 Swiss IT organizations were analyzed by using both, structured questionnaires as well as structured interview technique. Based on the survey, this paper shows five typical benefit categories of service-oriented IT management and identifies three success factors of pertinent reorganization projects. Findings can serve as guidelines for other IT organizations and can be used as enabler for getting informed decisions regarding the initiation of service-oriented IT management
AN EXCESS OF MID-INFRARED EMISSION FROM THE TYPE Iax SN 2014dt

Supernovae Type Iax (SNe Iax) are less energetic and less luminous than typical thermonuclear explosions. A suggested explanation for the observed characteristics of this subclass is a binary progenitor system consisting of a CO white dwarf primary accreting from a helium star companion. A single-degenerate explosion channel might be expected to result in a dense circumstellar medium (CSM), although no evidence for such a CSM has yet been observed for this subclass. Here we present recent Spitzer observations of the SN Iax 2014dt obtained by the SPIRITS program nearly one year post-explosion that reveal a strong mid-IR excess over the expected fluxes of more normal SNe Ia. This excess is consistent with 10−5 M ⊙ ? > of newly formed dust, which would be the first time that newly formed dust has been observed to form in a Type Ia. The excess, however, is also consistent with a dusty CSM that was likely formed in pre-explosion mass-loss, thereby suggesting a single degenerate progenitor system. Compared to other SNe Ia that show significant shock interaction (SNe Ia-CSM) and interacting core-collapse events (SNe IIn), this dust shell in SN 2014dt is less massive. We consider the implications that such a pre-existing dust shell has for the progenitor system, including a binary system with a mass donor that is a red giant, a red supergiant, or an asymptotic giant branch star.
Flexible RF/Microwave Switch-PIN Diodes Using Single-Crystal Si-Nanomembranes

We report, to the best of our knowledge, the first realization of flexible single-crystal Si PIN diodes that are monolithically integrated on low-cost, low-temperature, flexible plastic substrate. 200-nm thin Si (001) nanomembrane is deprived from silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrate after selective n-and p-type doping on the designated regions. The detailed fabrication of Si-nanomembrane (SiNM) PIN diodes on plastic substrate is described. The flexible SiNM PIN diodes demonstrate typical rectifying characteristics. S-parameter measurements on these PIN diodes show an insertion loss of less than 1.7 dB with isolation higher than 20 dB from DC up to 5 GHz at low bias conditions.
HPLC-ESI-QTOF-MS as a powerful analytical tool for characterising phenolic compounds in olive-leaf extracts.

INTRODUCTION Olea europaea L. leaves may be considered a cheap, easily available natural source of phenolic compounds. In a previous study we evaluated the possibility of obtaining bioactive phenolic compounds from olive leaves by pressurised liquid extraction (PLE) for their use as natural anti-oxidants. The alimentary use of these kinds of extract makes comprehensive knowledge of their composition essential. OBJECTIVE To undertake a comprehensive characterisation of two olive-leaf extracts obtained by PLE using high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to electrospray ionisation and quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (HPLC-ESI-QTOF-MS). METHOD Olive leaves were extracted by PLE using ethanol and water as extraction solvents at 150°C and 200°C respectively. Separation was carried out in a HPLC system equipped with a C₁₈-column working in a gradient elution programme coupled to ESI-QTOF-MS operating in negative ion mode. RESULTS This analytical platform was able to detect 48 compounds and tentatively identify 31 different phenolic compounds in these extracts, including secoiridoids, simple phenols, flavonoids, cinnamic-acid derivatives and benzoic acids. Lucidumoside C was also identified for the first time in olive leaves. CONCLUSION The coupling of HPLC-ESI-QTOF-MS led to the in-depth characterisation of the olive-leaf extracts on the basis of mass accuracy, true isotopic pattern and tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) spectra. We may conclude therefore that this analytical tool is very valuable in the study of phenolic compounds in plant matrices.
Boost of CD34+-selected peripheral blood cells without further conditioning in patients with poor graft function following allogeneic stem cell transplantation.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES A proportion of patients develop poor graft function (PGF) following an allogeneic hemopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT). It is uncertain whether a boost of donor marrow or blood cells is beneficial in terms of trilineage recovery and non-relapse-related mortality (NRM). DESIGN AND METHODS The aim of this study was to compare outcomes in patients with PGF and full donor chimerism following an allogeneic HSCT who did or did not receive a boost of donor stem cells. The study included patients with primary PGF--i.e. those failing to achieve sustained graft function- and secondary PGF--i.e. those developing PGF after complete hematologic recovery. We studied 54 patients with PGF: 20 patients received no further donor cell infusion (group A), 14 received a boost of unmanipulated marrow or blood cells from the original donor, without further conditioning (group B), and 20 received donor cells after CD34 selection without conditioning (group C). The three groups were comparable for disease phase, patients' age, donor type, primary or secondary PGF, full donor chimerism and duration of PGF. RESULTS Trilineage recovery was seen in 40%, 36% and 75% of the patients in, respectively, groups A, B and C (p=0.02). In multivariate Cox analysis trilineage recovery was more frequent in patients with secondary PGF (RR of complete recovery 2.82, p=0.01) and in patients receiving CD34+-selected cells (RR of complete recovery 3.0; p=0.007). There was no effect of donor type on hematologic recovery. The rate of NRM was 55%, 64%, 20% in groups A, B and C, respectively (p=0.06) and was highly correlated with trilineage recovery (RR 0.36, p<0.0001). PGF was the primary cause of death in 30%, 21% and 10% of the patients in the three groups, graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) in 5%, 36%, and 10%. INTERPRETATIONS AND CONCLUSIONS In patients with poor graft function (a) a boost of CD34+-selected peripheral blood donor cells is associated with a high chance of trilineage recovery and a low risk of acute GVHD; (b) a boost of unmanipulated donor cells does not seem to offer a survival advantage over no infusion of cells; and (c) NRM is lower when using peripheral blood cells for the boost. These data may be useful when discussing second stem cell donations for patients with poor graft function.
Compensation du mouvement respiratoire en TEP/TDM à l'aide de la super-résolution. (Application of super-resolution to respiratory gated positron emission tomography)

La tomographie par emission de positons (TEP) est une modalite d'imagerie fonctionnelle incontournable pour le diagnostic et le suivi therapeutique en oncologie. De nouvelles applications telles que la radiotherapie guidee par l'imagerie fonctionnelle sont en cours d'investigation. Les images TEP souffrent toutefois d'une faible resolution spatiale, encore degradee par les effets du mouvement respiratoire du patient dans le thorax et l'abdomen. La grande majorite des solutions proposees pour la correction de ce mouvement respiratoire reposent sur l'enregistrement du signal respiratoire pendant l'acquisition TEP et de la synchronisation de l'acquisition avec ce signal respiratoire. Les donnees peuvent ainsi etre separees selon la partie du cycle respiratoire pendant laquelle elles ont ete acquises. Les donnees correspondant a une meme position peuvent ensuite etre sommees et reconstruites. Les images resultantes sont cependant de qualite reduite, car elles ne contiennent qu'une portion de l'information. Il est donc necessaire de les combiner. Les solutions disponibles actuellement proposent de recaler et sommer les donnees synchronisees, avant, pendant, ou apres leur reconstruction, ce qui produit une image sans mouvement de qualite proche de celle qui aurait pu etre obtenue en l'absence de mouvement respiratoire. La super-resolution vise a ameliorer la resolution d'une image appartenant a une sequence d'images representant differentes vues de la meme scene. Elle exploite le mouvement present dans cette sequence afin d'obtenir une image d'une resolution superieure a celle permise par le systeme d'imagerie et ne contenant pas de recouvrement de spectre. Le but de cette these est d'appliquer une telle technique pour compenser le mouvement respiratoire. Nous avons d'abord applique un algorithme de super-resolution deja existant a une sequence d'images TEP synchronisees avec la respiration, ce qui represente une application inedite. Cette technique permet de corriger efficacement les effets du mouvement respiratoire. Les methodes de correction du mouvement respiratoire sont souvent plus performantes lorsqu'elles sont incorporees a la reconstruction plutot qu'appliquees aux images reconstruites. C'est pourquoi nous avons ensuite developpe de nouveaux algorithmes de reconstruction TEP incorporant la super-resolution. Les images ainsi reconstruites sont de meilleure qualite que celles corrigees par super-resolution apres reconstruction. Enfin, nous avons montre que la correction du mouvement respiratoire par super-resolution permet une precision accrue dans la planification du traitement par radiotherapie.
Water Content in Human Intervertebral Discs: Part I. Measurement by Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Tension—relaxation experiments were performed on human disc lamellae specimens. The water content was found to affect the viscoelastic behavior and a master relaxation curve was constructed from the experimental data. The water content of disc phantoms is measured by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques. MRI was used to compare the discs of patients of different ages. The possibility of obtaining cross-sectional water distribution in human intervertebral disc material using MRI techniques and its relation to the disc's mechanical properties was explored, with the goal of constructing a realistic mathematical model of the disc which takes into account the water content of the disc.
Identification of 16 sulfamidase gene mutations including the common R74C in patients with mucopolysaccharidosis type IIIA (Sanfilippo A)

Mucopolysaccharidosis type IIIA (MPS IIIA or Sanfilippo A disease) is a storage disorder caused by deficiency of the lysosomal enzyme sulfamidase. Mutation screening, using SSCP/heteroduplex analyses on cDNA and genomic DNA fragments, was performed in a group of 42 European patients. Sixteen of the 17 different gene mutations characterized have not been previously described. The spectrum of gene lesions consists of two 1‐bp deletions (1091delC, 1093delG), an 18‐bp duplication (421ins18), a splice site mutation (IVS2‐2A→G), and 13 different missense point mutations. As in other lysosomal storage disorders, the phenotypic heterogeneity is associated with a considerable genetic heterogeneity. The missense mutation R74C, which alters an evolutionary conserved amino acid in the active site of the enzyme, was found on 56% of alleles of 16 Polish patients, whereas it was less frequent among German patients (21% of disease alleles). R245H, a previously reported common mutation, represents 35% of disease alleles in German patients, but only 3% in Polish patients. As the combined frequency of the common mutations (R74C and R245H) in German and Polish populations exceeds 55%, screening for these two mutations will assist molecular genetic diagnosis of MPS IIIA and allow heterozygote testing in these populations. Hum Mutat 10:479–485, 1997. © 1997 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.