Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Effect of NR2B Subunit Palmitoylation at the Spinal Level After Chronic Dorsal Root Ganglia Compression in Rats

BACKGROUND:The NR2B subunit (N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor 2B subunit) regulates the source of pain, and it participates in the formation of central sensitization. Palmitoylation was shown to be involved in the regulation of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor internalization. In the present study, we investigated the effects of NR2B subunit palmitoylation in a chronic dorsal root ganglia compression (CCD) rat model. METHODS:Paw mechanical withdrawal threshold and paw withdrawal thermal latency were used to assess mechanical allodynia and thermal hyperalgesia after a CCD operation and an intrathecal injection of the inhibitor of palmitoylation (2-bromopalmitate [2-BP]). The acyl-biotinyl exchange method, Western blotting, and coimmunoprecipitation were used to investigate the effects of pain processing and the expression of levels of NR2B palmitoylation and phosphorylation at the spinal level. RESULTS:CCD rats had long-lasting thermal hyperalgesia and mechanical allodynia, leading to upregulation of the level of NR2B palmitoylation and phosphorylation at the spinal level. An intrathecal treatment with 2-BP on day 14 after CCD surgery markedly improved pain behaviors and downregulated the expression of NR2B palmitoylation and phosphorylation. CONCLUSIONS:These data suggest that upregulated NR2B palmitoylation in CCD-induced neuropathic pain and intrathecal injection of 2-BP could reduce pain behaviors and NR2B phosphorylation. Our findings indicate that spinal NR2B palmitoylation is an important component of CCD-induced neuropathic pain, and it might be a potential target for chronic pain therapy.
Cholesterol-lowering efficacy of a microencapsulated bile salt hydrolase-active Lactobacillus reuteri NCIMB 30242 yoghurt formulation in hypercholesterolaemic adults

Several studies have reported limited or no reduction in serum cholesterol in response to probiotic formulations. Recently, probiotics have shown promise in treating metabolic disease due to improved strain selection and delivery technologies. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the cholesterol-lowering efficacy of a yoghurt formulation containing microencapsulated bile salt hydrolase (BSH)-active Lactobacillus reuteri NCIMB 30242, taken twice per d over 6 weeks, in hypercholesterolaemic adults. A total of 114 subjects completed this double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomised, parallel-arm, multi-centre study. This interventional study included a 2-week washout, 2-week run-in and 6-week treatment period. Subjects were randomised to consume either yoghurts containing microencapsulated L. reuteri NCIMB 30242 or placebo yoghurts. Over the intervention period, subjects consuming yoghurts containing microencapsulated L. reuteri NCIMB 30242 attained significant reductions in LDL-cholesterol (LDL-C) of 8·92 % (P = 0·016), total cholesterol (TC) of 4·81 % (P = 0·031) and non-HDL-cholesterol (HDL-C) of 6·01 % (P = 0·029) over placebo, and a significant absolute change in apoB-100 of − 0·19 mmol/l (P = 0·049). Serum concentrations of TAG and HDL-C were unchanged over the course of the study. Present results show that consumption of microencapsulated BSH-active L. reuteri NCIMB 30242 yoghurt is efficacious and safe for lowering LDL-C, TC, apoB-100 and non-HDL-C in hypercholesterolaemic subjects. The efficacy of microencapsulated BSH-active L. reuteri NCIMB 30242 yoghurts appears to be superior to traditional probiotic therapy and akin to that of other cholesterol-lowering ingredients.
Inherited phenotype instability of inflorescence and floral organ development in homeotic barley double mutants and its specific modification by auxin inhibitors and 2,4-D.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS Barley (Hordeum vulgare) double mutants Hv-Hd/tw2, formed by hybridization, are characterized by inherited phenotypic instability and by several new features, such as bract/leaf-like structures, long naked gaps in the spike, and a wide spectrum of variations in the basic and ectopic flowers, which are absent in single mutants. Several of these features resemble those of mutations in auxin distribution, and thus the aim of this study was to determine whether auxin imbalances are related to phenotypic variations and instability. The effects of auxin inhibitors and 2,4-D (2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid) on variation in basic and ectopic flowers were therefore examined, together with the effects of 2,4-D on spike structure. METHODS The character of phenotypic instability and the effects of auxin inhibitors and 2,4-D were compared in callus cultures and intact plants of single homeotic Hv-tw2 and Hv-Hooded/Kap (in the BKn3 gene) mutants and alternative double mutant lines: offspring from individual plants in distal hybrid generations (F9-F10) that all had the same BKn3 allele as determined by DNA sequencing. For intact plants, two auxin inhibitors, 9-hydroxyfluorene-9-carboxylic acid (HFCA) and p-chlorophenoxyisobutyric acid (PCIB), were used. KEY RESULTS Callus growth and flower/spike structures of the Hv-tw2 mutant differed in their responses to HFCA and PCIB. An increase in normal basic flowers after exposure to auxin inhibitors and a decrease in their frequencies caused by 2,4-D were observed, and there were also modifications in the spectra of ectopic flowers, especially those with sexual organs, but the effects depended on the genotype. Exposure to 2,4-D decreased the frequency of short gaps and lodicule transformations in Hv-tw2 and of long naked gaps in double mutants. CONCLUSIONS The effects of auxin inhibitors and 2,4-D suggest that ectopic auxin maxima or deficiencies arise in various regions of the inflorescence/flower primordia. Based on the phenotypic instability observed, definite trends in the development of ectopic flower structures may be detected, from insignificant outgrowths on awns to flowers with sterile organs. Phenotypically unstable barley double mutants provide a highly promising genetic system for the investigation of gene expression modules and trend orders.
Changing Forms of Wage Labour in Zimbabwe’s New Agrarian Structure

This essay examines the changing nature of farm wage labour in the context of the extensive redistributive land reform since 2000. Using field research from two districts in Zimbabwe with contrasting agro-ecology and socio-economic patterns, it shows that agrarian wage labour is not the preserve of large-scale capitalist farms (LSCFs), which it is usually associated with. The new agrarian structure dominated by the peasantry not only employs an expanded base of unpaid family labourers, but also employs ‘informal’ wage labour whose character and conditions of employment are qualitatively different from the full and part-time labour of the past. Yet, there is continuation of the super-exploitation of agrarian wage labourers that is reflected by the payment of poor wages and differing degrees of the institution of the residential labour tenancy in both the old and new farm compounds. Landlessness and/or land shortage continues to be a key characteristic of farm wage labourers as in the past suggesting the persistence of the labour reserve dynamic.
Appearance of neuronal S-100 beta during development of the rat brain.

In addition to being an astroglial protein, S-100 beta is localised in distinct populations of neurons in the adult rat hindbrain. We report, here, the expression of S-100 beta in both neurons and glia of the rat brain during development. Prenatally, S-100 beta immunoreactivity was confined to glial cells close to the germinal zone. After birth, S-100 beta positive glial cells were seen mainly in the brainstem and cerebellum, while only a few were detected in cerebral cortex and hippocampus. The number of S-100 beta containing glial cells increased steadily during the first 2 postnatal weeks after which the adult pattern was attained. No S-100 beta containing neurons were present prenatally. The first S-100 beta containing neurons were seen in the mesencephalic trigeminal nucleus at postnatal day 1 (P1), and in the motor trigeminal nucleus at P3. Neuronal S-100 beta immunoreactivity in other nuclei was mostly attained from the 10th to the 21st postnatal day. The neuronal S-100 beta immunoreactivity was first detected in the cell nuclei during development, then increased in the cytoplasm with ages. A nuclear staining in many immunoreactive neurons persisted until the adult. It usually took 1 to 2 weeks for neuronal S-100 beta to attain the adult staining pattern, i.e., heavy staining of the cytoplasm and processes, after its appearance. The forebrain never contained S-100 beta positive neurons. The S-100 beta is first expressed in glial cells, suggesting it is primarily of the glial origin. Coupled with neurotrophic effects of the protein, the time course of neuronal S-100 beta expression during the critical period of neuronal development implies that it may be involved in neuronal differentiation and maturation.
Impact of Manure Fertilization on the Abundance of Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria and Frequency of Detection of Antibiotic Resistance Genes in Soil and on Vegetables at Harvest

ABSTRACT Consumption of vegetables represents a route of direct human exposure to bacteria found in soil. The present study evaluated the complement of bacteria resistant to various antibiotics on vegetables often eaten raw (tomato, cucumber, pepper, carrot, radish, lettuce) and how this might vary with growth in soil fertilized inorganically or with dairy or swine manure. Vegetables were sown into field plots immediately following fertilization and harvested when of marketable quality. Vegetable and soil samples were evaluated for viable antibiotic-resistant bacteria by plate count on Chromocult medium supplemented with antibiotics at clinical breakpoint concentrations. DNA was extracted from soil and vegetables and evaluated by PCR for the presence of 46 gene targets associated with plasmid incompatibility groups, integrons, or antibiotic resistance genes. Soil receiving manure was enriched in antibiotic-resistant bacteria and various antibiotic resistance determinants. There was no coherent corresponding increase in the abundance of antibiotic-resistant bacteria enumerated from any vegetable grown in manure-fertilized soil. Numerous antibiotic resistance determinants were detected in DNA extracted from vegetables grown in unmanured soil. A smaller number of determinants were additionally detected on vegetables grown only in manured and not in unmanured soil. Overall, consumption of raw vegetables represents a route of human exposure to antibiotic-resistant bacteria and resistance determinants naturally present in soil. However, the detection of some determinants on vegetables grown only in freshly manured soil reinforces the advisability of pretreating manure through composting or other stabilization processes or mandating offset times between manuring and harvesting vegetables for human consumption.
Fasting plasma glucose in non-diabetic elderly women predicts increased all-causes mortality and coronary heart disease risk.

AIM To confirm the hypothesis that upper normal plasma glucose levels in non-diabetic subjects are independently predictive of mortality and cardiovascular disease (CVD). METHODS The study reports on 113 months' follow-up in a prospective study of CVD in the Australian elderly, The Dubbo Study. The cohort, first examined in 1988-89, consisted of 2805 men and women 60 years and older. Of the cohort, 2419 (86%) were defined as non-diabetic. The prediction of outcomes by quartile of fasting plasma glucose was examined in a Cox proportional hazards model, after linkage to hospital and death records. RESULTS All-causes mortality increased progressively across quartile of fasting plasma glucose in both sexes, reaching statistical significance only in women. Coronary heart disease (CHD) incidence increased similarly, the increases being proportionately greater in women. Ischaemic stroke did not show a consistent gradient with fasting plasma glucose. After adjustment for age and other risk factors, all-causes mortality, CHD and ischaemic stroke incidence were not significantly related to plasma glucose in men. In women, all-causes mortality and CHD incidence showed a significant gradient with glucose quartile. Hazard Ratio (95% confidence intervals) for death in glucose Quartile IV (5.3-6.0 mmol/L) was 1.49 (1.03-2.14) and for CHD incidence was 1.52 (1.08-2.15). Subjects in the upper quartiles of fasting plasma glucose showed a clustering of overweight, hypertension, elevated serum triglycerides, reduced high density lipoprotein cholesterol and excess of small dense low density lipoprotein, suggestive of the Insulin Resistance Syndrome. CONCLUSION Fasting plasma glucose levels in the upper normal range in non-diabetic elderly subjects appear to be associated with increased all-causes mortality and CHD, especially in women.
Neighborhood Design and Rates of Walking and Biking to Elementary School in 34 California Communities

Purpose. This study evaluates the relationship between neighborhood design and rates of students walking and biking to elementary school. Design. Pairwise correlations and multiple regression models were estimated based on a cross-sectional study of elementary schools and their surrounding neighborhoods. Setting and Subjects. Thirty-four (23%) of 150 California public elementary schools holding October 1999 Walk to School Day events participated in the study. Measures. Teachers asked fifth-grade students how they arrived to school 1 week before Walk to School Day. 1990 U.S. Census data measured population density and number of intersections per street mile, whereas 1998–1999 California Department of Education data measured school size, the percentage of students receiving public welfare, and the percentage of students of various ethnicities. Results. Population density (p = .000) and school size (p = .053) were significantly associated with walking and biking rates in regression models controlling for number of intersections per street mile, the percentage of students receiving public welfare, and the percentage of students of various ethnicities. The number of intersections per street mile was associated with walking and biking rates in pairwise correlations (p = .003) but not in regression models. Conclusions. The results support the hypothesis that the walking and biking rates are higher in denser neighborhoods and to smaller schools but do not support the hypothesis that rates are higher in neighborhoods with a high number of intersections per street mile. We suggest that detailed data for a larger sample of students would allow statistical models to isolate the effect of specific design characteristics.
State-of-the-Art: A Systematic Literature Review on Agile Information Systems Development

Principles of agile information systems development (ISD) have attracted the interest of practice as well as research. The goal of this literature review is to validate, update and extend previous reviews in terms of the general state of research on agile ISD. Besides including categories such as the employed research methods and data collection techniques, the importance of theory is highlighted by evaluating the theoretical foundations and contributions of former studies. Since agile ISD is rooted in the IS as well as software engineering discipline, important outlets of both disciplines are included in the search process, resulting in 482 investigated papers. The findings show that quantitative studies and the theoretical underpinnings of agile ISD are lacking. Extreme Programming is still the most researched agile ISD method, and more efforts on Scrum are needed. In consequence, multiple research gaps that need further research attention are identified.
Infant EEG and temperament negative affectivity: Coherence of vulnerabilities to mothers' perinatal depression

Abstract Associations between infants' frontal EEG asymmetry and temperamental negative affectivity (NA) across infants' first year of life and the potential moderating role of maternal prenatal depressive symptoms were examined prospectively in infants (n = 242) of mothers at elevated risk for perinatal depression. In predicting EEG, in the context of high prenatal depressive symptoms, infant NA and frontal EEG asymmetry were negatively associated at 3 months of age and positively associated by 12 months of age. By contrast, for low depression mothers, infant NA and EEG were not significantly associated at any age. Postnatal depressive symptoms did not add significantly to the models. Dose of infants' exposure to maternal depression mattered: infants exposed either pre- or postnatally shifted from a positive association at 3 months to a negative association at 12 months; those exposed both pre- and postnatally shifted from a negative association at 3 months to a positive association at 12 months. Prenatal relative to postnatal exposure did not matter for patterns of association between NA and EEG. The findings highlight the importance of exploring how vulnerabilities at two levels of analysis, behavioral and psychophysiological, co-occur over the course of infancy and in the context of mothers' depressive symptomatology.
Incidence and consequences of acute kidney injury in kidney transplant recipients.

BACKGROUND In the nontransplant setting, acute kidney injury (AKI) may lead to chronic kidney disease (CKD) and end-stage renal disease, but the epidemiology of AKI in transplant recipients has not been characterized. The purpose of this study was to determine the incidence and consequences of AKI in kidney transplant recipients outside the peritransplant period and unrelated to acute rejection. STUDY DESIGN Retrospective longitudinal cohort study. SETTING & PARTICIPANTS 27,232 adult Medicare-insured transplant recipients with transplant survival of 6 months or longer in the US Renal Data System in 1995-2000. PREDICTORS International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM) hospital discharge diagnostic codes were used to identify AKI during the first 3 posttransplant years. OUTCOMES Transplant loss from any cause, mortality (death with a functioning transplant), and death-censored transplant loss. MEASUREMENTS Estimated glomerular filtration rate calculated by the MDRD (Modification of Diet in Renal Disease) Study equation 6 months posttransplant. RESULTS 3,066 (11.3%) patients had 4,181 hospitalizations with AKI, of which 14.8% required dialysis therapy. The incidence of AKI more than doubled during the study, and AKI was more frequent in patients with lower levels of transplant function. AKI was associated independently with increased risk of transplant loss from any cause (HR, 2.74; 95% CI, 2.56-2.92), death with a functioning transplant (HR, 2.36; 95% CI, 2.14-2.60), and death-censored transplant loss (HR, 3.17; 95% CI, 2.91-3.46). However, AKI-associated risks paradoxically were higher in patients with earlier CKD stage. LIMITATIONS Because of the limited sensitivity of ICD-9-CM codes for non-dialysis-requiring AKI events, the overall incidence of AKI likely is underestimated in this study. CONCLUSIONS We conclude that AKI is increasingly common and associated with transplant failure and death. Later CKD stage increases the risk of AKI, but AKI-associated risks of transplant failure were greater in those with higher levels of kidney function (earlier CKD stage).
Characterization of the Localized Immune Response in the Respiratory Tract of Ferrets following Infection with Influenza A and B Viruses

ABSTRACT The burden of infection with seasonal influenza viruses is significant. Each year is typically characterized by the dominance of one (sub)type or lineage of influenza A or B virus, respectively. The incidence of disease varies annually, and while this may be attributed to a particular virus strain or subtype, the impacts of prior immunity, population differences, and variations in clinical assessment are also important. To improve our understanding of the impacts of seasonal influenza viruses, we directly compared clinical symptoms, virus shedding, and expression of cytokines, chemokines, and immune mediators in the upper respiratory tract (URT) of ferrets infected with contemporary A(H1N1)pdm09, A(H3N2), or influenza B virus. Gene expression in the lower respiratory tract (LRT) was also assessed. Clinical symptoms were minimal. Overall cytokine/chemokine profiles in the URT were consistent in pattern and magnitude between animals infected with influenza A and B viruses, and peak expression levels of interleukin-1α (IL-1α), IL-1β, IL-6, IL-12p40, alpha interferon (IFN-α), IFN-β, and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) mRNAs correlated with peak levels of viral shedding. MCP1 and IFN-γ were expressed after the virus peak. Granzymes A and B and IL-10 reached peak expression as the virus was cleared and seroconversion was detected. Cytokine/chemokine gene expression in the LRT following A(H1N1)pdm09 virus infection reflected the observations seen for the URT but was delayed 2 or 3 days, as was virus replication. These data indicate that disease severities and localized immune responses following infection with seasonal influenza A and B viruses are similar, suggesting that other factors are likely to modulate the incidence and impact of seasonal influenza. IMPORTANCE Both influenza A and B viruses cocirculate in the human population, and annual influenza seasons are typically dominated by an influenza A virus subtype or an influenza B virus lineage. Surveillance data indicate that the burden of disease is higher in some seasons, yet it is unclear whether this is due to specific virus strains or to other factors, such as cross-reactive immunity or clinical definitions of influenza. We directly compared disease severities and localized inflammatory responses to different seasonal influenza virus strains, including the 2009 pandemic strain, in healthy naive ferrets. We found that the disease severities and the cytokine and chemokine responses were similar irrespective of the seasonal strain or the location of the infection in the respiratory tract. This suggests that factors other than the immune response to a particular virus (sub)type contribute to the variable impact of influenza virus infection in a population.
Face recognition based dog breed classification using coarse-to-fine concept and PCA

Dog breed classification or identification is important for dog training, and curing. The conventional identification method is based on experts which is hard to find. This paper proposes a method to classify dog breed based on the dog face images. The proposed method is based on the coarse to fine concept, where the template matching technique is applied for coarsely classifying the images into 5 groups. Then, within each group, the principle component analysis (PCA) is applied to finely classifying the dog breed. In the PCA- based classification, face features are represented in term of a weight vector. A set of sample image of each dog breed are used for learning the features of the breed. The average weight vectors are stored as the templates of features for breeds after the coarse classification. During the running time after the coarse classification, a dog face image is passed through the PCA to find it vector representation. This vector will then be compared with feature template for each breed in the database. The image under test is classified as the breed that gives the minimum distance between the twp vectors. To evaluate the performance of the proposed method, experiments with 700 dog face images from 35 dog breeds had been performed. Before the testing, 5 dog face images from every breed (totally 175 dog faces) were used to train the system. The experiments showed that the proposed method (coarse classification and PCA for fine classification) gives approximately 93% accuracy which is better than the PCA-based classifier without the coarse classification. The improvement is 16% approximately.