gebhart/patrepeval huggingface dataset:
Polyamide 6/silica nanocomposites prepared byin situ polymerization (1998)

A polyamide 6 (PA 6)/silica nanocomposite was obtained through a novel method, in situ polymerization, by first suspending silica particles in ϵ-caproamide under stirring and then polymerizing this mixture at high temperature under a nitrogen atmosphere. The silicas were premodified with aminobutyric acid prior to the polymerization. The effects of the addition of unmodified and modified silicas on the dispersion, interfacial adhesion, isothermal crystallization, and mechanical properties of PA 6 nanocomposites were investigated by using scanning electron microscopy, dynamic mechanical analysis, differential scanning calorimetry, and mechanical tests, respectively. The results show that the silicas dispersed homogeneously in the PA 6 matrix. The addition of silicas increases the glass transition temperature and crystallization rate of PA 6. The mechanical properties such as impact strength, tensile strength, and elongation at break of the PA 6/modified silica nanocomposites showed a tendency to increase and decrease with increase of the silica content and have maximum values at 5% silica content, whereas those of the PA 6/unmodified silica system decreased gradually. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 69: 355–361, 1998
Super multi-view windshield display for long-distance image information presentation (2011)

A three-dimensional (3D) windshield display can display driving information in the vicinity of objects in the driver's front scene. We propose a super multi-view windshield display that can present the information in a wide depth range. The super multi-view display technique provides a smooth motion parallax. Motion parallax is the only physiological cue for perceiving the depths of 3D images displayed at far distances; these cannot be perceived by other physiological cues such as vergence, binocular disparity, and accommodation. A prototype system, which generates 36 viewing zones with a horizontal interval of 3.61 mm, was constructed. The smoothness of the motion parallax and the accuracy of the depth perception were evaluated.
Demonstrating Pathogenicity of Enterobacter cloacae on Macadamia and Identifying Associated Volatiles of Gray Kernel of Macadamia in Hawaii (2007)

Gray kernel is an important disease of macadamia (Macadamia integrifolia) that affects the quality of kernels, causing gray discoloration and a permeating, foul odor. Gray kernel symptoms were produced in raw, in-shell kernels of three cultivars of macadamia that were inoculated with strains of Enterobacter cloacae. Koch's postulates were fulfilled for three strains, demonstrating that E. cloacae is a causal agent of gray kernel. An inoculation protocol was developed to consistently reproduce gray kernel symptoms. Among the E. cloacae strains studied, macadamia strain LK 0802-3 and ginger strain B193-3 produced the highest incidences of disease (65 and 40%, respectively). The other macadamia strain, KN 04-2, produced gray kernel in 21.7% of inoculated nuts. Control treatments had 1.7% gray kernel symptoms. Some abiotic and biotic factors that affected incidence of gray kernel in inoculated kernels were identified. Volatiles of gray and nongray kernel samples also were analyzed. Ethanol and acetic acid were present in nongray and gray kernel samples, whereas volatiles from gray kernel samples included the additional compounds, 3-hydroxy-2-butanone (acetoin), 2,3-butanediol, phenol, and 2-methoxyphenol (guaiacol). This is believed to be the first report of the identification of volatile compounds associated with gray kernel.
ICAM-1 Deficiency Reduces Atherosclerotic Lesions in Double-Knockout Mice (ApoE − /− /ICAM-1 − /− ) Fed a Fat or a Chow Diet (2000)

Intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM)-1, a major adhesion molecule, plays a critical role in the homing of leukocytes to sites of atherosclerotic lesions. However, very little is known on the role of ICAM-1 in initiating and perpetuating vascular lesions in ApoE(-/-) mice fed a chow or a fat diet. This study has investigated the mean aortic lesions in mice (C57BL6 background) with a single-knockout (ApoE(-/-)) or double-knockout (DKO; ApoE(-/-), ICAM-1(-/-)) fed a chow or a fat diet over a period of 3, 6, 15, and 20 weeks. A 3-fold reduction in lesion size was observed at all time points in DKO mice fed a chow diet. However, in DKO mice fed a fat diet, a marked reduction in the aortic lesion was observed at 3 and 15 weeks, which did not reach a significant level at 6 and 20 weeks. This study shows in essence that DKO mice are protected from developing significant lesions for up to 6 weeks when fed a chow diet and from 3 to 6 weeks when fed a fat diet. After 6 weeks, the lesion size of the DKO mice follows that of the single-knockout mice when fed a chow diet and gets to the same level in mice fed a fat diet. Plasma cholesterol levels were not altered as a result of ICAM-1 deficiency. These studies show that ICAM-1 is implicated in the formation and progression of atherosclerotic lesions.
Reduced Risk of Pertussis Among Persons Ever Vaccinated With Whole Cell Pertussis Vaccine Compared to Recipients of Acellular Pertussis Vaccines in a Large US Cohort (2013)

We found a markedly increased risk of disease associated with an entirely aP series. This risk was mitigated, but not eliminated, by the presence of a sixth dose of pertussis vaccine (Tdap). Receipt of 1 or more wP doses markedly augmented the durability of immunity from subsequent aP doses. It appears that a wholly acellular pertussis vaccine series is significantly less effective and durable than one that contains the traditional whole cell vaccine.
Direct 3D Printing of Shear‐Thinning Hydrogels into Self‐Healing Hydrogels (2015)

Supramolecular hydrogels are used in the 3D printing of high-resolution, multi-material structures. The non-covalent bonds allow the extrusion of the inks into support gels to directly write structures continuously in 3D space. This material system supports the patterning of multiple inks, cells, and void spaces.
Stimulation of 92-kDa Gelatinase B Promoter Activity by ras Is Mitogen-activated Protein Kinase Kinase 1-independent and Requires Multiple Transcription Factor Binding Sites Including Closely Spaced PEA3/ets and AP-1 Sequences (1996)

The 92-kDa type IV collagenase (92-kDa gelatinase B also referred to as MMP-9), which plays a critical role in extracellular matrix degradation, is regulated by growth factors that mediate their effects through the ras proto-oncogene. The current study was undertaken to determine the transcriptional requirements for the induction of 92-kDa gelatinase B expression by an activated ras oncogene. Transfection of OVCAR-3 cells with an expression vector encoding an activated Ha-ras increased 92-kDa gelatinolytic activity and stimulated (over 10-fold) the activity of a CAT reporter driven by 670 nucleotides of 5' flanking sequence of the 92-kDa gelatinase B gene. Transient assays using a CAT reporter driven by 5' deleted fragments of the 92-kDa gelatinase B promoter indicated that a region spanning -634 to -531 was required for optimal induction of the promoter. The individual deletion, or mutation, of a PEA3/ets (-540) motif, AP-1 sites (-533, -79), a NF-kappa B (-600) consensus sequence, and a GT box (-52) substantially reduced the activation of the promoter by ras. An expression vector encoding the PEA3 transcription factor caused a 3-fold stimulation of the wild type but not the PEA3/ets-deleted 92-kDa gelatinase B promoter. Coexpression of a dominant negative c-jun antagonized the ras-dependent stimulation of the 92-kDa gelatinase B promoter-driven CAT reporter. The signaling pathway mediating the induction of 92-kDa gelatinase B promoter activity by ras was examined. The expression of a phosphatase (CL100) which inactivates multiple mitogen-activate protein kinase members abrogated the stimulation of 92-kDa gelatinase B promoter activity by ras. However, the expression of a kinase-deficient mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase 1 (MEK1) did not prevent activation of the 92-kDa gelatinase B promoter by ras and a constitutively activated c-raf expression vector was insufficient for 92-kDa gelatinase B promoter activation. Thus, the stimulation of the 92-kDa gelatinase B promoter by ras requires multiple elements including closely spaced PEA3/est and AP-1 sites and is MEK1-independent.
The Use of Semantic Human Description as a Soft Biometric (2008)

Gait as a biometric has a unique advantage that it can be used when images are acquired at a distance and other biometrics are at too low a resolution to be perceived. In such a situation, there is still information which can be readily perceived by human vision, yet is difficult to extract automatically. We examine how this information can be used to enrich the recognition process. We call these descriptions semantic annotations and investigate their use in biometric scenarios. We outline a group of visually assessable physical traits formulated as a mutually exclusive set of semantic terms; we contend that these traits are usable in soft biometric fusion. An experiment to gather semantic annotations was performed and the most reliable traits are identified using ANOVA. We rate the ability to correctly identify subjects using these semantically prescribed traits, both in isolation as well as in fusion with an automatically derived gait signature.
Tie2 Expression and Phosphorylation in Angiogenic and Quiescent Adult Tissues (1997)

Angiogenesis, the process of new vessels sprouting from the existing vasculature, is a critical process during early development. However, angiogenesis rarely occurs in the adult, except in response to cyclic hormonal stimulation in the ovary and uterus, in response to injury, and in response to pathological conditions such as tumorigenesis and diabetes mellitus. Tie2 (also known as Tek) is a novel endothelium-specific receptor tyrosine kinase, which has been demonstrated to be essential for the development of the embryonic vasculature; Tie2 knockout mice die by embryonic day 10.5 with specific defects in the formation of microvessels. Tie2 is downregulated later in embryogenesis, and its function in the adult has been relatively unexplored. To gain insight into the potential functions of Tie2 in the adult vasculature, Tie2 expression was examined in adult tissues undergoing angiogenesis and in quiescent tissues. Tie2 expression was localized by immunohistochemistry to the endothelium of neovessels in rat tissues undergoing angiogenesis during hormonally stimulated follicular maturation and uterine development and in healing skin wounds. Immunoprecipitation and RNase protection assay demonstrated upregulation of Tie2 protein and mRNA in rat and mouse skin wounds, respectively. Moreover, Tie2 immunoprecipitated from skin wounds was tyrosine-phosphorylated, indicating active downstream signaling. Surprisingly, Tie2 was also expressed in the entire spectrum of the quiescent vasculature (arteries, veins, and capillaries) in a wide range of adult tissues, and Tie2 immunoprecipitated from quiescent adult tissues was also tyrosine-phosphorylated. Together, these results suggest a dual function for Tie2 in adult tissues involving both angiogenesis and vascular maintenance.
Knowledge-assisted document retrieval: I. The natural-language interface (1987)

In this article we describe the conceptual model and processing of (constrained) natural-language queries in information retrieval systems. A language interface based on fuzzy set techniques is proposed to handle the uncertainty inherent in natural-language semantics. The conceptual model is developed and exemplified in the context of document retrieval. Specifically, the user query is considered to be a triple, q = (qc, qy, qn), where qc indicates the part of the query that deals with concepts and operators that link these concepts, qy identifies the publication period the user is interested in, and qn, pertains to the number of documents to be retrieved. We describe query decomposition using an augmented transition network parser and the assignment of functions and relations needed by each portion of the query to represent uncertainties inherent in the natural language. The output of the natural-language interface is then passed to a knowledge-based retrieval mechanism that will be described in a companion article (Part II). © 1987 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
The Aylesbury Story — Development of New Work and Daytime Opportunities For People with Mental Health Problems in Aylesbury Vale (2000)

This is a story of partnership in action — the successful transformation of an outdated industrial therapy unit into a range of services that meet the diverse needs of individuals in an economically mixed locality in the south of England. The article is also a product of collaboration between people and perspectives.
Mice expressing a neutrophil elastase mutation derived from patients with severe congenital neutropenia have normal granulopoiesis (2002)

Severe congenital neutropenia (SCN) is a syndrome characterized by an isolated block in granulocytic differentiation and an increased risk of developing acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Recent studies have demonstrated that the majority of patients with SCN and cyclic neutropenia, a related disorder characterized by periodic oscillations in the number of circulating neutrophils, have heterozygous germline mutations in the ELA2 gene encoding neutrophil elastase (NE). To test the hypothesis that these mutations are causative for SCN, we generated transgenic mice carrying a targeted mutation of their Ela2 gene ("V72M") reproducing a mutation found in 2 unrelated patients with SCN, one of whom developed AML. Expression of mutant NE mRNA and enzymatically active protein was confirmed. Mice heterozygous and homozygous for the V72M allele have normal numbers of circulating neutrophils, and no accumulation of myeloid precursors in the bone marrow was observed. Serial blood analysis found no evidence of cycling in any of the major hematopoietic lineages. Rates of apoptosis following cytokine deprivation were similar in wild-type and mutant neutrophils, as were the frequency and cytokine responsiveness of myeloid progenitors. The stress granulopoiesis response, as measured by neutrophil recovery after cyclophosphamide-induced myelosuppression, was normal. To define the leukemogenic potential of V72M NE, a tumor watch was established. To date, no cases of leukemia have been detected. Collectively, these data suggest that expression of V72M NE is not sufficient to induce an SCN phenotype or leukemia in mice.
The Nucleolin Targeting Aptamer AS1411 Destabilizes Bcl-2 Messenger RNA in Human Breast Cancer Cells (2008)

We sought to determine whether nucleolin, a bcl-2 mRNA-binding protein, has a role in the regulation of bcl-2 mRNA stability in MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells. Furthermore, we examined the efficacy of the aptamer AS1411 in targeting nucleolin and inducing bcl-2 mRNA instability and cytotoxicity in these cells. AS1411 at 5 micromol/L inhibited the growth of MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cells, whereas 20 micromol/L AS1411 had no effect on the growth rate or viability of normal MCF-10A mammary epithelial cells. This selectivity of AS1411 was related to a greater uptake of AS1411 into the cytoplasm of MCF-7 cells compared with MCF-10A cells and to a 4-fold higher level of cytoplasmic nucleolin in MCF-7 cells. Stable siRNA knockdown of nucleolin in MCF-7 cells reduced nucleolin and bcl-2 protein levels and decreased the half-life of bcl-2 mRNA from 11 to 5 hours. Similarly, AS1411 (10 micromol/L) decreased the half-life of bcl-2 mRNA in MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cells to 1.0 and 1.2 hours, respectively. In contrast, AS1411 had no effect on the stability of bcl-2 mRNA in normal MCF-10A cells. AS1411 also inhibited the binding of nucleolin to the instability element AU-rich element 1 of bcl-2 mRNA in a cell-free system and in MCF-7 cells. Together, the results suggest that AS1411 acts as a molecular decoy by competing with bcl-2 mRNA for binding to cytoplasmic nucleolin in these breast cancer cell lines. This interferes with the stabilization of bcl-2 mRNA by nucleolin and may be one mechanism by which AS1411 induces tumor cell death.
Treg increases HepG2 cell growth by RANK-RANKL pathway (2014)

Meeting abstracts In tumor microenvironment, CD4+CD25+CD127dim/- Regulatory T cells (Treg cells) belong to a group of negative regulatory cells, which play an important role in the mechanism of immune inhibition and immune escape of liver cancer [[1][1]]. In this study, we will explore the
Effects of Adrenoceptor Antagonists on the Cutaneous Blood Flow Increase Response to Sympathetic Nerve Stimulation in Rats with Persistent Inflammation. (2002)

There is some evidence that the sympathetic nervous system plays a role in the development and/or maintenance of painful states, and that sympathetic nervous function is altered in these conditions. Our previous experiments showed that electrical stimulation of the lumbar sympathetic trunk (sympathetic stimulation: SS), which normally induces a decrease in blood flow (BF) of plantar skin, induced its BF increase in about 50% of adjuvant-inflamed rats. To investigate the mechanism of this BF-increase response, we examined whether noradrenaline (NA) plays any role in this changed response to SS, and which receptor subtype is involved. We measured paw cutaneous BF response with a laser Doppler flowmeter in rats chronically inflamed with complete Freund's adjuvant. SS induced the BF-increase response in 50-67% of measured sites. Close-arterially injected NA induced the BF-increase response at dosages between 10-100 ng/kg only at the sites with the BF-increase response to SS. The BF-increase and -decrease responses to NA was significantly reduced after the close-arterial injection of either alpha1- or alpha2-adrenoceptor antagonists (p lt; 0.05, respectively). In contrast, although the BF-decrease responses to SS were significantly reduced by administration of alpha1- and alpha2-adrenoceptor antagonist, BF-increase response was reduced only by alpha1-adrenoceptor antagonist, and that only at a higher dose. In addition, the beta-adrenoceptor antagonist had no effects on both responses. These results suggest that the BF-increase response to SS involves, additionally to NA, a non-adrenergic mechanism.
Hyperglycemia-induced B cell toxicity. The fate of pancreatic islets transplanted into diabetic mice is dependent on their genetic background. (1990)

The role of pancreatic B cell dysfunction in the phase preceding clinical onset of insulin-dependent and non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus has been much debated. In this investigation, the impact of a prolonged diabetic environment on pancreatic islet B cells transplanted syngeneically under the kidney capsule of C57BL/6 (B6) and C57BL/Ks (BKs) mice was studied. Alloxan-diabetic mice bearing a subcapsular islet graft insufficient to normalize the blood glucose level were rendered normoglycemic by a second intrasplenic islet graft after various period of hyperglycemia to examine the reversibility of hyperglycemia-induced B cell dysfunction. Using a perfusion technique of the graft-bearing, it was found that both strains of mice exhibited a diminished glucose-induced insulin secretion after 6 wk of hyperglycemia, when compared with normoglycemic mice carrying islet grafts. When normoglycemia was restituted by the splenic graft after 4 or 12 wk, there was a normalization of glucose-stimulated insulin secretion in the renal islet grafts in B6 mice, whereas insulin secretion from the grafted BKs islets remained impaired. Morphometric measurements of the islet grafts demonstrated a 50% reduction in the graft volume in diabetic BKs mice after 12 wk, compared with normoglycemic animals, whereas no such decrease was observed in B6 mice. Islet grafts removed from hyperglycemic mice of both strains exhibited diminished insulin mRNA contents, and in the BKs mice there was also a reduced glucose oxidation rate in the islet grafts in vitro. This metabolic dysfunction can only partly be explained by a reduced graft size. The present findings emphasize the genetic constitution as a decisive factor for the survival and function during a period of sustained stress on a limited B cell mass.
Apoptosis in the genesis and prevention of cancer. (1993)

A strong rationale exists for developing cancer control strategies designed to suppress or reverse the development of precancerous lesions in order to reduce the occurrence and recurrence of this disease. Whereas numerous agents have been identified that inhibit tumor development, little is known about how they work. Recently the hypothesis has been raised that misregulation of apoptosis results in a failure of tissue size regulation that contributes to the development of cancer. If validated, this concept has important implications for the prevention of carcinogenesis and could lead to the development of new cancer control approaches that have as their basis the restoration of competence to regulate tissue size. Thus, it is essential to consider the role of cell loss in the tumorigenic process. In this regard investigation of the role of specific types of cell death in tumorigenesis, particularly the role of apoptotic cell death in maintenance of tissue homeostasis, has been neglected. The fact that apoptosis is a highly conserved, specific, and selective means of controlling tissue mass and shape also suggests that it can be exploited for the prevention or control of cancer.
Partial Vagal Denervation Increases Vulnerability to Vagally Induced Atrial Fibrillation (2002)

Partial right atrial vagal denervation facilitated rather than prevented initiation of vagally mediated AF.
Infection, allergy and the hygiene hypothesis: historical perspective (2003)

The 'hygiene hypothesis' was popularized in the late 1980s to explain the high prevalence of atopic disorders in the developed countries. It links atopic disorders and the lack of early life infections. An association between the two is not novel and dates back to the beginnings of allergy, immunology and microbiology. Allergy and infection have always been closely related and the study of one has often provided new insights into the pathobiology of the other. Early research into bacterial infections led to the discovery of the human immune system and the concept of allergy. An important relationship exists between parasite infections and the development of atopic disorders. This review traces the long and intimate historical relationship between infection and allergy.
Emergence of Multi‐Dideoxynucleoside‐Resistant Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 Variants, Viral Sequence Variation, and Disease Progression in Patients Receiving Antiretroviral Chemotherapy (1998)

A set of five reverse transcriptase mutations, which include Q151M, is known to confer multi-dideoxynucleoside resistance (MDR) in human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1). MDR mutations were found in 6 (17%) HIV-1 isolates from 36 patients, most of whom were receiving long-term combination therapy. Q151M was among the first of the substitutions to appear. Additional substitutions were observed, although none were common among all 6 patients. Certain zidovudine-related mutations were not observed together with the MDR mutations, indicating possible enzymatic constraint. During chemotherapy, the HIV-1 RNA levels in the 6 patients initially decreased and then rose. Initially, CD4 cell counts also responded favorably but were near or below baseline beyond 40 months of therapy. Such loss of clinical benefits appeared to coincide with the appearance of the MDR mutations. A common background genotype was not observed among HIV-1 isolates with or without MDR.
Photonic integrated circuit switch matrix and waveguide delay lines for optical packet synchronization (2008)

The first integrated synchronizer is demonstrated using silica delays coupled to an InP switch. Error-free performance is presented for delays of 0, 2.96, 6.56 and 9.52ns.