gebhart/patrepeval huggingface dataset:
Stabilizing Effects of Various Polyelectrolyte Multilayer Films on the Structure of Adsorbed/Embedded Fibrinogen Molecules:  An ATR−FTIR Study (2001)

The structural changes in fibrinogen as a consequence of its adsorption onto the surface of or its embedding into the interior of poly(allylamine hydrochloride) (PAH) or poly(styrenesulfonate) (PSS) multilayers are investigated by means of attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared (ATR−FTIR) spectroscopy. It is found that both adsorption and embedding preserve the secondary structure of the fibrinogen molecules. Furthermore, the interactions of the polyelectrolytes with the protein molecules prevent their aggregation, especially in the embedded state, at room temperature. Thus, it seems that the structure and the biological activity of proteins adsorbed on or embedded in polyelectrolyte multilayers could largely be preserved, which opens up great perspectives in the design of new bioactive surfaces. The nature and the extent of the polyelectrolyte−protein interactions are further studied via analysis of the thermotropic responses of the different architectures. It is found that both PAH- and PSS-terminated polyelectrolyte multilayers can elevate the onset temperature of the structural changes in adsorbed/embedded fibrinogen molecules by about 5 °C as compared with that for fibrinogen in solution. These polyelectrolytes also broaden the thermally induced structural transitions in the adsorbed/embedded fibrinogen molecules. The magnitude of these thermally induced structural changes is polyelectrolyte- and architecture-dependent. Whereas multilayer PAH−fibrinogen and multilayer PSS−fibrinogen constructions exhibit roughly the same large-scale thermally induced structural changes, in all architectures where fibrinogen is embedded the scale of these structural changes is restricted. The restriction becomes stronger as the presence of PSS at the polyelectrolyte−fibrinogen interfaces increases (PAH−fib−PAH < PAH−fib−PSS ≈ PSS−fib−PAH < PSS−fib−PSS). In the PSS−fib−PSS arrangement, the secondary structure of fibrinogen as determined from its infrared spectrum changes only slightly up to 90 °C. The underlying processes of the thermally induced structural changes is, in addition, different for fibrinogen molecules adsorbed onto or embedded into PAH-terminated polyelectrolyte multilayers. A tentative model based on “encapsulation” of the embedded protein by the polyelectrolytes is proposed to explain the observed features.
3-O-Desacyl Monophosphoryl Lipid A Derivatives:  Synthesis and Immunostimulant Activities (1999)

The synthesis of a series of novel analogues of lipid A, the active principle of lipopolysaccharide, is reported. In these compounds, the 1-O-phosphono and (R)-3-hydroxytetradecanoyl moieties of native Salmonella minnesota R595 lipid A have been replaced with hydrogen and the length of the normal fatty acyl residues has been systematically varied. Normal fatty acid chain length in the 3-O-desacyl monophosphoryl lipid A (MLA) series is shown to be a critical determinant of iNOS gene expression in activated mouse macrophages and the induction of proinflammatory cytokines in human peripheral monocytes. Examination of pyrogenicity in rabbits and lethal toxicity in D-galactosamine-treated mice shows that toxic effects in the MLA series can be ameliorated by modifying fatty acid chain length. When used as an adjuvant for tetanus toxoid vaccines, certain MLA derivatives enhance the production of tetanus toxoid-specific antibodies in mice.
Versatile new metalorganic process for preparing superconducting thin films (1988)

A new technique for producing thin films of the high-temperature perovskite superconductors, LnBa2Cu3O7−x, where Ln represents a rare-earth element, using spin-on metalorganic precursors is described. Pyrolysis of the spin-coated films, consisting of mixed metal (2-ethyl hexanoates), leads to black films up to several microns thick whose degree of orientation is a function of the processing temperature and duration. Representative films of YBa2Cu3O7−x on MgO begin to exhibit orientation with the c axis perpendicular to the film plane at heat treatments above 900 °C. The superconducting behavior of a highly oriented film produced at 990 °C is characterized by Tc(onset)=89 K, Tc(R=0)=77 K, and Jc=103 A cm−2 at 65 K.
Differential Regulation of β1 Integrins by Chemoattractants Regulates Neutrophil Migration through Fibrin (1999)

Chemoattractants differ in their capacity to stimulate neutrophils to adhere to and to migrate through matrices containing fibrin. Formyl methionyl leucyl phenylalanine (fMLP) stimulates neutrophils to adhere closely to, but not to migrate into, fibrin gels. Leukotriene B4 (LTB4) stimulates neutrophils to adhere loosely to and to migrate through fibrin gels. We report that alpha5beta1 integrins regulate the different migratory behaviors on fibrin gels of neutrophils in response to these chemoattractants. fMLP, but not LTB4, activated neutrophil beta1 integrins, as measured by binding of mAb 15/7 to an activation epitope on the beta1 integrins. Antibodies or peptides that block alpha5beta1 integrins prevented fMLP-stimulated neutrophils from forming zones of close apposition on fibrin and reversed fMLP's inhibitory effect on neutrophil chemotaxis through fibrin. In contrast, neither peptides nor antibodies that block beta1 integrins affected the capacity of LTB4-stimulated neutrophils to form zones of loose apposition or to migrate through fibrin gels. These results suggest that chemoattractants generate at least two different messages that direct neutrophils, and perhaps other leukocytes, to accumulate at specific anatomic sites: a general message that induces neutrophils to crawl and a specific message that prepares neutrophils to stop when they contact appropriate matrix proteins for activated beta1 integrins.
Case 12-2000 (2000)

Presentation of CaseA 60-year-old man was referred to the hospital because of a pituitary macroadenoma.The patient had been well until three years earlier, when he became impotent and his libido decreased. Two months before his referral to this hospital, his nipples became sore. The prolactin level was 33.6 ng per milliliter (normal range, 0 to 15); the total testosterone level was 306 ng per deciliter (10.6 nmol per liter; normal range, 270 to 1070 ng per deciliter [9.36 to 37.1 nmol per liter]). Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed a mass, 11 mm in diameter, in the right pituitary . . .
Simple technique for culture of highly differentiated cells from dog tracheal epithelium (1991)

Cultures of dog tracheal epithelium have proved very useful in studies of ion transport. Their short-circuit current (Isc), however, is usually much less than the original tissue. We have tested a variety of conditions in an attempt to produce large numbers of cells with electrical properties comparable with the original tissue. Of several growth supports, human placental collagen (HPC) gave the best results. When plated at 2.5 x 10(5) cells/cm2 onto HPC, cells grown in serum-free, growth factor-supplemented medium (GF medium) showed increases in cells per unit area, thickness of cell sheet, numbers of domes, numbers of apical microvilli, and degree of basolateral membrane interdigitation compared with cells grown in medium containing 5% fetal calf serum (FCS medium). Transepithelial resistance (Rte) and the increases in Isc and intracellular Ca in response to isoproterenol were also increased. However, baseline Isc and adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate levels were not changed. The improved electrical properties were maintained for up to 4 mo. GF medium combined with an air interface produced further increases in Rte, Isc, and changes in Isc in response to amiloride and isoproterenol. Ultrastructural features such as the presence of cilia, greater thickness of the cell sheet, and increased amplification of apical and basolateral membranes also indicated improved differentiation. Our results show that GF medium and an air interface can be combined with a simple growth support and a relatively low-plating density to allow the easy production of greater than 500 cm2 of cultured cells from a single trachea, with a level of differentiation similar to that of the original tissue.
Reduced Expression of the Mevalonate Pathway Enzyme Farnesyl Pyrophosphate Synthase Unveils Recognition of Tumor Cells by Vγ9Vδ2 T Cells (2009)

Abstract Human Vγ9Vδ2 T cells are characterized by a unique specificity for certain tumors (e.g., Daudi), cells presenting so-called phosphoantigens such as isopentenyl pyrophosphate (IPP), or cells treated with aminobisphosphonates. We now report conversion of hematopoietic and nonhematopoietic tumor cell lines into Vγ9Vδ2 T cell activators by means of short hairpin RNA-mediated knockdown of expression of the IPP-consuming enzyme, farnesyl pyrophosphate synthase (FPPS). FPPS knockdown cells activated Vγ9Vδ2 T cells, as measured by increased levels of CD69 and CD107a, killing of FPPS knockdown cells, and induction of IFN-γ secretion. The IPP-synthesis-inhibiting drug mevastatin reduced Vγ9Vδ2 T cell activation by FPPS knockdown cells but not activation by the phosphoantigen bromohydrin pyrophosphate. In conclusion, our data support the concept of Vγ9Vδ2 T cells as sensors of a dysregulated isoprenoid metabolism and suggest therapeutic down-modulation of FPPS expression as an additional tool to target tumor cells to Vγ9Vδ2 T cell-mediated immunosurveillance.
Road tracking, lane segmentation and obstacle recognition by mathematical morphology (2003)

Presents the work performed at the CMM as part of the European PROMETHEUS project. The research deals with the road edge detection, lane segmentation and obstacle recognition in a dynamic scene acquired by a monochrome monocular camera. The image processing is based on morphological segmentation tools. The experiments on over a thousand images show that the approach works well on difficult cases such as dense traffic, and roads without land markers.< <ETX xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">&gt;</ETX>
Modularity of the slit protein (1992)

Since our characterization of the slit cDNA sequence, encoding a protein secreted by glial cells and involved in the formation of axonal pathways in Drosophila, we have discovered that the protein contains two additional sequence motifs that are highly conserved in a variety of proteins. A search of the GenPept database with the 73 amino acids at the carboxy terminus of slit revealed that this region contains significant similarity to a carboxy-terminal domain found in six other exported proteins. This observation has allowed us to define a new carboxy-terminal protein motif. In addition, comparisons with a 202 amino acid domain residing between epidermal growth factor (EGF) repeats in slit shows this region to be conserved in laminin, agrin and perlecan and, strikingly, also to lie between EGF repeats in both agrin and perlecan. Our analysis suggests this motif is involved in mediating interactions among extracellular proteins. Consistent with our previous characterization of the slit protein, both new motifs are found only in extracellular proteins. The identification of these two conserved motifs in slit reveals that the entire 1469 amino acids of the protein are made up of modular regions similar to those conserved in other extracellular proteins.
Metal cofactors of lysine-2,3-aminomutase. (1991)

Lysine-2,3-aminomutase from Clostridium SB4 contains iron and sulfide in equimolar amounts, as well as cobalt, zinc, and copper. The iron and sulfide apparently constitute an Fe-S cluster that is required as a cofactor of the enzyme. Although no B12 derivative can be detected, enzyme-bound cobalt is a cofactor; however, the zinc and copper bound to the enzyme do not appear to play a role in its catalytic activity. These conclusions are supported by the following facts reported in this paper. Purification of the enzyme under anaerobic conditions increases the iron and sulfide content. Lysine-2,3-aminomutase purified from cells grown in media supplemented with added CoCl2 contains higher levels of cobalt and correspondingly lower levels of zinc and copper relative to enzyme from cells grown in media not supplemented with cobalt. The specific activity of the purified enzyme increases with increasing iron and sulfide content, and it also increases with increasing cobalt and with decreasing zinc and copper content. The zinc and copper appear to occupy cobalt sites under conditions of insufficient cobalt in the growth medium, and they do not support the activity of the enzyme. The best preparations of lysine-2,3-aminomutase obtained to date exhibit a specific activity of approximately 23 units/mg of protein and contain about 12 g atoms of iron and of sulfide per mol of hexameric enzyme. These preparations also contain 3.5 g atoms of cobalt per mol, but even the best preparations contain small amounts of zinc and copper. The sum of cobalt, zinc, and copper in all preparations analyzed to date corresponds to 5.22 +/- 0.75 g atoms per mol of enzyme. An EPR spectrum of the enzyme as isolated reveals a signal corresponding to high spin Co(II) at temperatures below 20 K. The signal appears as a partially resolved 59Co octet centered at an apparent g value of 7. The 59Co hyperfine splitting (approximately 35 G) is prominent at 4.2 K. These findings show that lysine-2,3-aminomutase requires Fe-S clusters and cobalt as cofactors, in addition to the known requirement for pyridoxal 5'-phosphate and S-adenosylmethionine.
Expression of c‐met/HGF Receptor in Human Non‐small Cell Lung Carcinomas in vitro and in vivo and Its Prognostic Significance (1996)

The expression of c-met/HGF receptor was evaluated in non-small cell lung cancers (NSCLC) by western blot analysis of 11 established cell lines and 104 surgically resected tissues. All cancer cell lines (eight adenocarcinomas, two squamous cell carcinomas and a large cell carcinoma) showed strong c-met protein bands of 145 kDa and 170 kDa. Moreover, c-met protein was demonstrated in 34 (72.3%) of 47 surgically resected adenocarcinomas, 20 (38.5%) of 52 squamous cell carcinomas and 3 of 5 others, and the results were mostly confirmed immunohistochemically in formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded tumors of the same case. Although squamous cell carcinomas showed relatively high c-met protein expression in established cell lines, more adenocarcinomas than squamous cell carcinomas showed c-met protein expression in the original cancers. Furthermore, two cell lines used in this study originated from primary cancers negative for c-met protein expression, suggesting that c-met protein expression might be influenced by cultivation. Furthermore, clinicopathological study revealed that NSCLC with c-met protein expression tended to be in a higher pathological tumor stage and to have a worse outcome than those without such expression. In conclusion, c-met protein is expressed in cell lines and primary tumors of NSCLC, and this phenomenon is probably closely related to the aggressive behavior or progression of NSCLC, especially of adenocarcinomas.
Review of Recent Patents on Chemical Heat Pump (2008)

The concerns of energy consumption and environmental pollution urge researchers to work on the development of clean energy and the utilization of waste energy. Sorts of novel technologies were developed and the achievements were patented. Among these patents, chemical heat pump system, is one important topic. It utilizes the transformation between potential energy and thermal power energy to realize the performance of heat pumping and refrigeration. The thermal-potential tansformation reversible reaction in chemical heat pump mainly includes liquid-gas absorption, solid-gas reaction and solid adsorption. According to the characteristic of transformation reaction, chemical heat pump is classified into mono-variant system and di-variant system. The mono-variant system includes solid-gas reaction system and liquid-gas reaction system, etc, the di-variant system is also known as solid adsorption system. In this paper, novel technology on chemical heat pump system and its components was surveyed and typical patents were introduced. With the achievements disclosed in these critical patents, the performance of chemical heat pump could be significantly improved. Keywords: Chemical heat pump, working pair, heat and mass transfer
Attribute considerations for access control systems (2019)

44 U.S.C. 3551 et seq., Public Law (P.L.) 113-283. NIST is responsible for developing information security standards and guidelines, including minimum
Tree-Structured Template Generation for Web Pages (2004)

As the web becomes an increasingly important source of information, tools for modeling, searching, and extracting information from Web pages are indispensable. By modeling the structure of a Web page defined by its markup tags, one can easily extract target information using structural templates. This paper introduces the Tree Template Automatic Generator (TTAG) that learns tree-structured templates from training Web pages. TTAG was applied to both query-based and frequently updated Web sites, and produced effective templates from a small number of examples. The experiments show that TTAG is a powerful extraction tool for semi-structured information sources.
Myocardial protective actions of nitric oxide donors after myocardial ischemia and reperfusion. (1995)

Coronary artery ischemia initiated by occlusion or thrombus formation produces myocardial ischemia that can ultimately result in myocardial cell injury and necrosis of the myocardium. Current clinical strategies for the treatment of acute myocardial ischemia include coronary angioplasty, directional coronary atherectomy, and the administration of thrombolytic agents to restore blood flow to the ischemic myocardium. While coronary reperfusion can salvage ischemic tissue, it may in itself also contribute to coronary vascular and myocardial cell injury (1-4). Myocardial reperfusion after coronary artery ischemia accelerates the necrosis of reversibly injured cardiac myocytes by enhancing cell swelling, the disruption of cell ultrastructure, formation of contraction bands, and the influx of calcium and other ions (2, 3). Recent experimental evidence strongly suggests that coronary artery endothelial dysfunction may be an early trigger for neutrophil-mediated myocardial reperfusion injury (4-7). Nitric oxide (NO.) release by the coronary vasculature is impaired within 5 mins after reperfusion of ischemic myocardium and results in a profound loss of vascular homeostasis (7). Polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN) begin to accumulate within the ischemic-reperfusion myocardium as a result of diminished coronary NO. release; activated PMNs then mediate myocardial cell injury and necrosis (6, 7). Novel therapeutic strategies aimed at the preservation or replenishment of coronary NO. concentrations may prove beneficial in the treatment of myocardial reperfusion injury in the future.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Superoxide-mediated inactivation of nitric oxide and peroxynitrite formation by tobacco smoke in vascular endothelium: studies in cultured cells and smokers (2009)

Tobacco smoke is known to cause nitric oxide ((*)NO) inactivation and endothelial dysfunction. In this work we evaluated the interplay between (.)NO and superoxide (O(2)(*-)) radicals and the consequent impact on (*)NO bioavailability and nitroxidative stress in bovine aortic endothelial cells exposed to cigarette smoke extract (CSE) and in smokers. Bovine aortic endothelial cells in the presence of CSE triggered O(2)(*-) production as indicated by spin-trapping electron paramagnetic resonance experiments. O(2)(*-) was produced both extracellulary (3.4 vs. 1.0 nmol.h(-1)*mg(-1); CSE vs. control; cytochrome c(3+) reduction assay) and intracellularly (40% inhibition of cytosolic aconitase). CSE also led to the production of peroxynitrite as evaluated by dihydrorhodamine oxidation and protein tyrosine nitration on cells. O(2)(*-) and peroxynitrite formation were decreased by ascorbate and alpha-tocopherol. Additionally, CSE led to the oxidation of endothelial nitric oxide synthase increasing the monomeric inactive form of endothelial nitric oxide synthase. Smokers and age-matched healthy volunteers were supplemented orally with 500 mg ascorbate plus 400 IU all-rac-alpha-tocopherol every 12 h for 165 days. Smokers had endothelial dysfunction compared with control subjects (95% confidence interval: 2.5, 8.3 vs. 10.6, 14.2; P < 0.05) as assessed by flow-mediated dilation of the brachial artery, and plasma levels of protein 3-nitrotyrosine were 1.4-fold higher. The loss of flow-mediated dilation in smokers reverted after a long-term antioxidant supplementation (95% confidence interval: 13.9, 19.9; P < 0.05), reaching values comparable with the control population. Our data indicate that elements on tobacco smoke, most likely through redox cycling, divert (*)NO toward peroxynitrite by inducing O(2)(*-) production in vascular endothelial cells both in vitro and in vivo.
Role of bacterial proteases in pseudomonal and serratial keratitis (2004)

Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Serratia marcescens can cause refractory keratitis resulting in corneal perforation and blindness. These bacteria produce various kinds of proteases. In addition to pseudomonal elastase (LasB) and alkaline protease, LasA protease and protease IV have recently been found to be more important virulence factors of P. aeruginosa . S. marcescens produces a cysteine protease in addition to metalloproteases. These bacterial proteases have a number of biological activities, such as degradation of tissue constituents and host defense-oriented proteins, as well as activation of zymogens (Hageman factor, prekallikrein and pro-matrix metalloproteinases) through limited proteolysis. In this article, the properties of these bacterial proteases are reviewed and the pathogenic roles of these proteases in pseudomonal keratitis are discussed.
Transcription of the Shiga-like toxin type II and Shiga-like toxin type II variant operons of Escherichia coli (1990)

Shiga-like toxin type II (SLT-II) and Shiga-like toxin type II variant (SLT-IIv) are cytotoxins produced by certain strains of Escherichia coli. Nucleotide sequence analyses had revealed that the structural genes for the A subunit and B subunit of SLT-II or SLT-IIv are arranged in an operon. Primer extension and S1 nuclease protection analyses identified a promoter for the slt-II operon 118 bases upstream of the slt-IIA gene. The slt-IIv promoter was demonstrated to be identical to the slt-II promoter. The slt-II and slt-IIv promoters differed significantly from the previously characterized Shiga toxin (stx) and Shiga-like toxin type 1 (slt-I) promoters. The transcriptional efficiencies of the stx and slt-II promoters were compared in fusions to the chloramphenicol acetyltransferase gene, and constitutive expression of the slt-II promoter was found to be equivalent to derepressed expression of the stx promoter. In contrast to the stx and slt-I promoters, the slt-II and slt-IIv promoters did not contain sequences for binding of the Fur repressor protein, and SLT-II production was not determined by iron levels in the media in various E. coli strains with wild-type or mutant ferric uptake regulation (fur) alleles. Northern (RNA) blot analysis demonstrated a single mRNA transcript for the slt-II operon, and further analysis of the slt-II operon by primer extension did not reveal an independent promoter for the B subunit gene. A putative rho-independent transcription terminator was identified 274 bases downstream of slt-IIB. These data indicated that the slt-II and slt-IIv operons differ from the stx/slt-I operon in regulation of their transcription by iron. Whether these regulatory differences enable the type I and type II groups of Shiga-like toxins to perform different roles in the pathogenesis of infectious diseases remains to be established.