Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Platelet activating factor: the good and the bad in the ischemic/reperfused heart

The present review is focused on the dual role played by platelet-activating factor (PAF) in ischemia and reperfusion (I/R) injury of the heart. Although the involvement of PAF in the pathogenesis of myocardial reperfusion injury is well established, in the last few years it has emerged that very low concentrations of PAF exert cardioprotective effects, comparable to that afforded by ischemic preconditioning (IP). PAF is a potent phosphoglyceride involved in different pathophysiological conditions affecting the cardiovascular system, including the development of myocardial I/R injury. PAF is released from the I/R myocardium in concentrations (1–10 nmol/L) high enough to negatively modulate coronary circulation as well as electrical and contractile activities. PAF may act either directly, via generation of secondary mediators, or through the activation of inflammatory cells like platelets and polymorphonuclear neutrophils, which exacerbate postischemic myocardial injury. The effects of PAF are mediated through specific receptors (PAFRs) that belong to the superfamily of G protein-coupled receptors. Since cardiomyocytes not only produce PAF but also possess PAFRs, it is likely that PAF acts as an autocrine/paracrine mediator. Although the negative effects exerted by high concentrations of PAF are well established, several recent findings from our and other laboratories have demonstrated that very low concentrations (pmol/L) of PAF infused before ischemia induce cardioprotective effects similar to those afforded by IP, and that endogenous PAF production participates in the induction of IP itself. The IP-like action exerted by low concentrations of PAF is due to the activation/phosphorylation of kinases included in the reperfusion injury salvage kinase (RISK) pathway, such as protein kinase C, Akt/PkB and nitric oxide synthase. Together with the activation of mitochondrial KATP channels, these events may allow prevention of mitochondrial permeability transition pores opening at reperfusion. Moreover, the nitric oxide-dependent S-nitrosylation of L-type Ca2+ channels induced by PAF reduces intracellular Ca2+ overload.
INFORMATION ECONOMICS, INSTRUMENT OF ANALYSIS IN NEW MICROECONOMICS

In the New Microeconomics the walrasian postulate of perfect information is replaced by two theorems concerning production of information: 1. the acquisition and dissemination of information raise production costs; 2. the specialisation in information activity is efficient; there are specialists in the production or use of information. Information economics or the economics of information studies decisions in transaction where one party has more or better information than the other. Incomplete and asymmetric information could generate two types of risks: adverse selection, which can be reduced with signaling games and screening games, and moral hazard, studied in the frame of agency theory, by the principal-agent model. The principal-agent model treats the difficulties that arise when a principal hires an agent to pursue the interests of the former. There are some mechanisms that align the interests of the agent in solidarity with those of the principal, such as commissions, promotions, profit sharing, efficiency wages, deferred compensation, fear of firing and so on.
The effects of single and dual sensory loss on symptoms of depression in the elderly

The primary purposes of this study were to determine the effect of dual sensory loss (i.e. combined hearing and vision loss) on depressive symptoms, to determine whether dual sensory loss has an effect on depressive symptoms when controlling for common covariates of depression, and to determine whether persons with dual sensory loss were more likely than those with a single sensory loss to experience depressive symptoms.
Are Countries Participating into Regional Integration Performing Better in Growth and Liberalization Than Non-Participators? A Study on European Countries

This study conducted towards identifying practical scenario of effectiveness of regional integration on indicators of trade liberalization and economic growth. Empirical analysis using secondary yet quantitative data using eight ratio and trend analysis on 49 European countries (28 EU and 21 Non-EU) portrays outcome in favor of regional integration. While EU countries seem to be performing consistently in both the categories, Non-EU countries are lagging behind. This outcome comes in the support of the traditional supports of free trade and integration and declares that trade integration creates both dynamic and static effects and trades (open and participatory) actually benefit all.
The chicken game: Organization and integration in the Norwegian agri-food sector

Up until recent years, all agricultural production in Norway was strictly regulated through spatial policy (location), production quotas and other price and market regulations. Prices and products were handled by the farmers’ cooperatives. International (e.g. WTO agreements) and domestic pressure has gradually loosened the governmental regulation of chicken and eggs. Economic (e.g. new ownerships), technological (innovations throughout the whole chain), political and institutional (liberalization) and cultural (e.g. in consumption and farming) changes have reconfigured the landscapes of chicken meat production, opening up new opportunities for the chicken industry. Chicken therefore makes a particularly good case for exploring recent major changes in the agri-food system. In this chapter, we investigate evolving rules, risks, challenges and opportunities in and around chicken meat value chains. Empirically, we build on interviews, document studies and statistics on the structural development of the chicken industry and we discuss how these changes are developing in other parts of the Norwegian agri-food system.
A simulation of the effects of youth initiation policies on overall cigarette use.

OBJECTIVES We developed a simulation model to predict the effects of policies aimed at reducing smoking initiation by youths younger than 18 years. METHODS The model projected the number of smokers, never smokers, and ex-smokers by age, sex, and racial/ethnic group and the effects of reductions in youth initiation. RESULTS The model predicted that even if tobacco policies eliminated youth initiation, the number of smokers would not be halved for more than 30 years. If initiation were halved and some of the initiation were delayed rather than eliminated, substantially smaller reductions would result. CONCLUSIONS Policies that increase cessation rates are needed to reduce the number of current smokers and the more near-term health problems.
Coexistence of Low Damping and Strong Magnetoelastic Coupling in Epitaxial Spinel Ferrite Thin Films

Low‐loss magnetization dynamics and strong magnetoelastic coupling are generally mutually exclusive properties due to opposing dependencies on spin–orbit interactions. So far, the lack of low‐damping, magnetostrictive ferrite films has hindered the development of power‐efficient magnetoelectric and acoustic spintronic devices. Here, magnetically soft epitaxial spinel NiZnAl‐ferrite thin films with an unusually low Gilbert damping parameter (<3 × 10−3), as well as strong magnetoelastic coupling evidenced by a giant strain‐induced anisotropy field (≈1 T) and a sizable magnetostriction coefficient (≈10 ppm), are reported. This exceptional combination of low intrinsic damping and substantial magnetostriction arises from the cation chemistry of NiZnAl‐ferrite. At the same time, the coherently strained film structure suppresses extrinsic damping, enables soft magnetic behavior, and generates large easy‐plane magnetoelastic anisotropy. These findings provide a foundation for a new class of low‐loss, magnetoelastic thin film materials that are promising for spin‐mechanical devices.
Rates of and factors associated with recurrence of preterm delivery.

CONTEXT Information about risk of recurrent preterm delivery is useful to clinicians, researchers, and policy makers for counseling, generating etiologic leads, and measuring the related public health burden. OBJECTIVES To identify the rate of recurrence of preterm delivery in second pregnancies, factors associated with recurrence, and the percentage of preterm deliveries in women with a history of preterm delivery. DESIGN AND SETTING Population-based cohort study of data from birth and fetal death certificates from the state of Georgia between 1980 and 1995. SUBJECTS A total of 122 722 white and 56174 black women with first and second singleton deliveries at 20 to 44 weeks' gestation. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE Length of gestation (categorized as 20-31, 32-36, or > or =37 weeks) at second delivery compared with length of gestation at first delivery, by age and race. RESULTS Most women whose first delivery was preterm subsequently had term deliveries. Of 1023 white women whose first delivery occurred at 20 to 31 weeks, 8.2% (95% confidence interval [CI], 6.6%-10.1%) delivered their second birth at 20 to 31 weeks and 20.1% (95% CI, 17.7%-22.8%) at 32 to 36 weeks. Of 1084 comparable black women, 13.4% (95 % CI, 11.4%-15.6%) delivered at 20 to 31 weeks and 23.4% (95% CI, 20.9%-26.1%) delivered at 32 to 36 weeks. Among women whose first delivery occurred at 32 to 36 weeks, all corresponding rates were lower than those whose first birth was at 20 to 31 weeks; the rates of second birth at 20 to 31 weeks were substantially lower (for white women, 1.9% [95% CI, 1.7%-2.2%]; for black women, 3.8% [95% CI, 3.4%-4.2%]). Compared with women aged 20 to 49 years at their second delivery, women younger than 18 years had twice the risk of recurrence of delivery at 20 to 31 weeks. Of all second deliveries at 20 to 31 weeks, 29.4% for white women and 37.8% for black women were preceded by a preterm delivery. CONCLUSIONS Our data suggest that recurrence of preterm delivery contributes a notable portion of all preterm deliveries, especially at the shortest gestations.
Increased Acylphosphatase Levels in Erythrocytes, Muscle and Liver of Tri-Iodothyronine Treated Rabbits

To explore a possible role of acylphosphatase in the regulation of energy metabolism, we measured this enzyme's activity and content in skeletal muscle, liver and erythrocytes of normal and tri-iodothyronine treated rabbits. Besides acylphosphatase we assayed (Na+ + K+)-ATPase, Ca2(+)-ATPase and several enzymes of carbohydrate metabolism. Acylphosphatase activity in erythrocytes rose steadily during treatment with triiodothyronine (25 micrograms/Kg per day for 5 weeks), and its increase occurred earlier and was much more pronounced than that of other soluble enzymes. In erythrocytes of treated animals (Na+ + K+)-ATPase declined whereas Ca2(+)-ATPase activity increased, in agreement with previously reported findings. In muscle and liver of the treated animals acylphosphatase activity was about twice as high as in the controls; in these tissues we found also increased activities for (Na+ + K+)-ATPase, fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase and glucose-6-phosphatase. In any case, among the enzymes we examined, acylphosphatase was one of the most strongly and regularly stimulated by the treatment. Furthermore we observed, through an immunochemical procedure, that there was a congruence between increases in acylphosphatase activity and content. On the basis of these results we conclude that the rise in acylphosphatase levels in treated animals is probably due to its increased biosynthesis. The possible significance of these findings in the metabolic modifications associated with hyperthyroidism are discussed.
The Gastric Ganglion of Octopus vulgaris: Preliminary Characterization of Gene- and Putative Neurochemical-Complexity, and the Effect of Aggregata octopiana Digestive Tract Infection on Gene Expression

The gastric ganglion is the largest visceral ganglion in cephalopods. It is connected to the brain and is implicated in regulation of digestive tract functions. Here we have investigated the neurochemical complexity (through in silico gene expression analysis and immunohistochemistry) of the gastric ganglion in Octopus vulgaris and tested whether the expression of a selected number of genes was influenced by the magnitude of digestive tract parasitic infection by Aggregata octopiana. Novel evidence was obtained for putative peptide and non-peptide neurotransmitters in the gastric ganglion: cephalotocin, corticotrophin releasing factor, FMRFamide, gamma amino butyric acid, 5-hydroxytryptamine, molluscan insulin-related peptide 3, peptide PRQFV-amide, and tachykinin–related peptide. Receptors for cholecystokininA and cholecystokininB, and orexin2 were also identified in this context for the first time. We report evidence for acetylcholine, dopamine, noradrenaline, octopamine, small cardioactive peptide related peptide, and receptors for cephalotocin and octopressin, confirming previous publications. The effects of Aggregata observed here extend those previously described by showing effects on the gastric ganglion; in animals with a higher level of infection, genes implicated in inflammation (NFκB, fascin, serpinB10 and the toll-like 3 receptor) increased their relative expression, but TNF-α gene expression was lower as was expression of other genes implicated in oxidative stress (i.e., superoxide dismutase, peroxiredoxin 6, and glutathione peroxidase). Elevated Aggregata levels in the octopuses corresponded to an increase in the expression of the cholecystokininA receptor and the small cardioactive peptide-related peptide. In contrast, we observed decreased relative expression of cephalotocin, dopamine β-hydroxylase, peptide PRQFV-amide, and tachykinin-related peptide genes. A discussion is provided on (i) potential roles of the various molecules in food intake regulation and digestive tract motility control and (ii) the difference in relative gene expression in the gastric ganglion in octopus with relatively high and low parasitic loads and the similarities to changes in the enteric innervation of mammals with digestive tract parasites. Our results provide additional data to the described neurochemical complexity of O. vulgaris gastric ganglion.
Vasomotor Rhinitis: Clinical Efficacy of Azelastine Nasal Spray in Comparison with Placebo

The H1 antagonist azelastine is used in nasal sprays for the treatment of allergic rhinitis, but its therapeutic efficacy in vasomotor rhinitis is unknown. We performed a multicenter randomized double-blind placebo-controlled study of the efficacy and tolerance of azelastine nasal spray in 89 adult patients with vasomotor rhinitis (confirmed by negative Phadiatop). Following a washout period, patients were treated for 15 days with one puff three times daily per nostril of azelastine (n = 44) or placebo (n = 45) nasal spray. Efficacy was evaluated by the reduction in symptomatology and by rhinoscopy. Intent-to-treat analysis revealed better results in the azelastine group for all assessed symptoms; the significance level was reached for nasal obstruction on day 15 (p = 0.042). Using per protocol analysis (in 85 patients complying with the protocol), the significance level was reached for nasal obstruction on day 15 (p = 0.017) and for the percentage of success in rhinorrhea (p = 0.023). In the azelastine group, rhinoscopy examination showed a significantly higher reduction in the inflammatory level and edema of the nasal mucosa (p = 0.03 and 0.02 for VAS on day 15 respectively, per protocol analysis). General efficacy assessment by the physician and the patient was in favor of azelastine (with significance levels <0.01). No drowsiness or serious adverse event was reported, and the frequency of mouth dryness and headaches was similar in the two treatment groups. The present study demonstrates the efficacy of azelastine nasal spray in the treatment of vasomotor rhinitis. The best achieved results were a decrease in nasal obstruction and mucosal edema. Further studies are required to investigate if this therapeutic benefit results from H1 antagonism or from another, not well-characterized pharmacological action of azelastine.
Electromigration of microbial electron acceptors and nutrients: (I) Transport in synthetic media

Microbiological cleanup is a widely used in situ remediation strategy for organic soil and groundwater contaminations. However, often the availability of electron acceptors and nutrients are limiting factors for microbial pollutant degradation in the field. Electromigration represents a new approach for the transport of microbiological agents in soil. In this study, the electrokinetic transport of the microbial electron acceptors nitrate and sulfate and of the nutrients ammonium and phosphate was compared. All experiments were performed under standardized conditions, i.e. with constant voltage in demineralized water and a model sandy soil. Average transport rates for nitrate, sulfate, poly-phosphate, and ammonium were 1.34 cm/h, 1.91 cm/h, 0.48 cm/h, and 0.40 cm/h, respectively, in single compound studies. Transport velocities were dependent on applied voltage gradient but not on the initial ion concentration. Additionally, electrokinetic transport was studied with ion mixtures. The ion distribution in the soil was significantly influenced by the pH profile and the associated voltage gradient.
Effects of Inheritance Receipt

gifts account for a very substantial share of total household net worth in the U.S. While the exact share has been the subject of an ongoing debate in the literature, with estimates ranging from 20% to 80% of net worth, even the lower bound of the estimates suggests that transfers are quite large. For example, Brown and Weisbenner (2004) estimate the value of all transfers ever received at $5.4 Trillion in 1998, or just under one-fifth of total household net worth, and the value of expected future transfers at $2.9 Trillion. As not all families receive bequests, their importance for the families that do receive them is even greater than what these numbers suggest. Indeed, Brown and Weisbenner (2004) estimate that the value of past transfers accounts for half of net worth among the 22% of households who have received a transfer and that the expected value of future transfers accounts for over half of net worth for the 13% of households who expect a future transfer. When a bequest is received, a household has several options for how to spend it. The household may increase its current and future consumption and decrease its active saving. Household members may consume some of the new wealth in the form of leisure and decrease their labor supply, either by exiting the labor force, reducing hours, or switching to a job with a lower or more uncertain income but other desirable characteristics. The household also may change its plans to leave an inheritance or make an
Higher mortality in deprived areas: community or personal disadvantage?

Abstract Objective: To investigate the association between level of social deprivation in electoral wards and premature mortality among residents, before and after allowing for levels of personal deprivation. Design: Longitudinal study of the Office of Population Censuses and Surveys. Setting: England. Subjects—Random sample of nearly 300 000 people aged between 16 and 65 at the 1981 census and followed up for nearly nine years. Main outcome measure—Death from all causes between ages of 16 and 70. Results: Without allowance for personal disadvantage, both sexes showed a clear, significant, and roughly linear positive relation between degree of deprivation of the ward of residence in 1981 and premature death before 1990. For men, this association was effectively explained away once allowance was made for individual socioeconomic circumstances. For women living in wards of above average deprivation, the association was also effectively removed, but the situation for other women was less clear. Conclusion: The excess mortality associated with residence in areas designated as deprived by census based indicators is wholly explained by the concentration in those areas of people with adverse personal or household socioeconomic factors. Health policy needs to target people as well as places.
A Membrane Protease Regulates Energy Production in Macrophages by Activating Hypoxia-inducible Factor-1 via a Non-proteolytic Mechanism*

Most cells produce ATP in the mitochondria by oxidative phosphorylation. However, macrophages, which are major players in the innate immune system, use aerobic glycolysis to produce ATP. HIF-1 (hypoxia-inducible factor-1) regulates expression of glycolysis-related genes and maintains macrophage glycolytic activity. However, it is unclear how HIF-1 activity is maintained in macrophages during normoxia. In this study, we found that macrophages lacking membrane type 1 matrix metalloproteinase (MT1-MMP/MMP-14), a potent invasion-promoting protease, exhibited considerably lower ATP levels than wild-type cells. HIF-1 was activated by an unanticipated function of MT1-MMP, which led to the stimulation of ATP production via glycolysis. The cytoplasmic tail of MT1-MMP bound to FIH-1 (factor inhibiting HIF-1), which led to the inhibition of the latter by its recently identified inhibitor, Mint3/APBA3. We have thus identified a new function of MT1-MMP to mediate production of ATP so as to support energy-dependent macrophage functions by a previously unknown non-proteolytic mechanism.
The Atorvastatin During Ischemic Stroke Study: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial

Objectives:Statins have antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anticoagulant, and profibrinolytic properties that might play a useful role in the acute phase of ischemic stroke. This pilot study assessed the possible neuroprotective action of high-dose atorvastatin administration during the first week after an ischemic stroke, to obtain data for planning a wider multicenter study. Methods:Sixty-two patients with ischemic stroke, aged 75.3 (SD, ±11.9) years (68% women), were randomized into a placebo (n = 31) and an atorvastatin 80 mg/d (n = 31) group. The double-blind treatment lasted 7 days. The primary end point was a decrease of National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score of 4 points or higher after 7 days. Infarct volume measured on computed tomographic scan after 3 days and a modified Rankin Scale of less than 2 at 3 months were secondary end points. Results:There was no difference in the primary end point between the 2 groups (odds ratio, atorvastatin vs placebo, 0.74; 95% confidence interval, 0.26-2.17). Infarct volume also was similar in the 2 groups. Instead, there were more patients with modified Rankin Scale of less than 2 at 3 months in the atorvastatin than in the placebo group (adjusted odds ratio, 6.7; 95% confidence interval, 1.0-45.0; P = 0.05). This prevalence concerned only the subgroup with mild strokes (National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale, ≤10; 53.8% vs 15.4%, respectively; P = 0.04). Atorvastatin was well tolerated. Conclusions:This pilot study was unable to show any short-term benefit of atorvastatin during the acute phase of ischemic stroke. However, it suggested a possible favorable functional effect at 3 months in the least severe strokes, which could be the primary end point for a future multicenter trial.