gebhart/patrepeval huggingface dataset:
Dietary β-Glucan Regulates the Levels of Inflammatory Factors, Inflammatory Cytokines, and Immunoglobulins in Interleukin-10 Knockout Mice (2011)

β-Glucan is known to have anti-inflammatory properties, and several studies have demonstrated the beneficial effects of dietary β-glucan on inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). However, it is unknown how β-glucan mediates its protective effects on IBD. Therefore, we used a well-established mouse model for IBD, interleukin (IL)-10(-/-) mice, to explore the protective effects of β-glucan on IBD-like symptoms caused by IL-10 deficiency. The mice were divided into two groups: IL-10(-/-) and IL-10(-/-) + β-glucan treatment groups. IL-10(-/-) mice treated with dietary β-glucan exhibited less inflammation within the colon. The levels of immunoglobulins A and E were lower in the serum, spleen, mesenteric lymph nodes, and Peyer's patches in the IL-10(-/-) mice compared with the IL-10(-/-) + β-glucan mice. Also, the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines was lower in the IL-10(-/-) + β-glucan mice compared with the IL-10(-/-) mice. Histological analysis also revealed that administration of dietary β-glucan in IL-10(-/-) mice reduced colonic tissue damage. Finally, the expression of the pro-inflammatory cytokine tissue necrosis factor-α was significantly lower with dietary β-glucan treatment in IL-10(-/-) mice. In conclusion, dietary β-glucan reduces the inflammation associated with IBD caused by IL-10 deficiency.
Plastic deformation magnetic assembly (PDMA) of out-of-plane microstructures: Technology and application (2001)

This paper presents results on the development and application of a three-dimensional (3-D) microstructure assembly technique-Plastic deformation magnetic assembly (PDMA). In PDMA, certain part of the microstructure to be assembled is plastically deformed by the magnetic force generated from the interaction between a magnetic material piece deposited on the microstructure and an external magnetic field. As a result, the entire microstructure can remain at a rest angle with respect to the substrate surface due to the plastic deformation. The amount of plastic deformation and the rest angle are found to he strongly dependent on the properties and the geometric parameters of the deformation region of the microstructure and also the magnetic material piece. A general design rule for PDMA has been given, PDMA is capable of batch-scale assembly. It has been successfully applied to fabricate novel micromachined devices with high yield and good controllability. As an example, the results of a novel vertical planar spiral inductor realized by the application of PDMA have also been presented in the paper.
Zeugnisse des Urmenschen aus den Cannstatter Sauerwasserkalke (2016)

[nicht vorhanden / not available]
Post-Translational Modification of HMGB1 Disulfide Bonds in Stimulating and Inhibiting Inflammation (2021)

High mobility group box 1 protein (HMGB1), a highly conserved nuclear DNA-binding protein, is a "damage-associated molecular pattern" molecule (DAMP) implicated in both stimulating and inhibiting innate immunity. As reviewed here, HMGB1 is an oxidation-reduction sensitive DAMP bearing three cysteines, and the post-translational modification of these residues establishes its proinflammatory and anti-inflammatory activities by binding to different extracellular cell surface receptors. The redox-sensitive signaling mechanisms of HMGB1 also occupy an important niche in innate immunity because HMGB1 may carry other DAMPs and pathogen-associated molecular pattern molecules (PAMPs). HMGB1 with DAMP/PAMP cofactors bind to the receptor for advanced glycation end products (RAGE) which internalizes the HMGB1 complexes by endocytosis for incorporation in lysosomal compartments. Intra-lysosomal HMGB1 disrupts lysosomal membranes thereby releasing the HMGB1-transported molecules to stimulate cytosolic sensors that mediate inflammation. This HMGB1-DAMP/PAMP cofactor pathway slowed the development of HMGB1-binding antagonists for diagnostic or therapeutic use. However, recent discoveries that HMGB1 released from neurons mediates inflammation via the TLR4 receptor system, and that cancer cells express fully oxidized HMGB1 as an immunosuppressive mechanism, offer new paths to targeting HMGB1 for inflammation, pain, and cancer.
Improving Stimulation Effectiveness – Field Results in the Haynesville Shale (2010)

Abstract Effective hydraulic fracturing has become a critical component in the successful development of most unconventional gas reservoirs, including the massive Haynesville Shale. The rig count in the Haynesville currently exceeds 130 active units and is expected to continue to climb. Many hundred horizontal wells have been drilled and completed, and several thousand stages have been hydraulically fractured. With this large and sometimes diverse cross section of wells, best practices have begun to emerge for various aspects of the stimulation design. This paper focuses on several areas of the completion and hydraulic fracture design in the Haynesville Shale that are identified as critical to the success of this play, including: The impact of lateral length, number of fracture stages and perf clusters The impact of effective fracture length The impact of fracture conductivity This paper will review production data from 56 wells completed in close proximity by a single operator to evaluate the impact of fracture design on initial production rates and sustained productivity after six and twelve months. These findings will be compared to reservoir simulator predictions, pressure transient testing, and production data analysis interpretations to evaluate the mechanisms constraining well production. Readers of this paper who are currently working in the Haynesville will be able to compare their current completion techniques to those presented in the paper. The authors hope this paper will promote a continued dialog on best completion practices among operators in this massive shale play. The findings in this paper may also be used by engineers as a guide for moving up the learning curve in other unconventional plays.
The ability of locked nucleic acid oligonucleotides to pre-structure the double helix: A molecular simulation and binding study (2019)

Locked nucleic acid (LNA) oligonucleotides bind DNA target sequences forming Watson-Crick and Hoogsteen base pairs, and are therefore of interest for medical applications. To be biologically active, such an oligonucleotide has to efficiently bind the target sequence. Here we used molecular dynamics simulations and electrophoresis mobility shift assays to elucidate the relation between helical structure and affinity for LNA-containing oligonucleotides. In particular, we have studied how LNA substitutions in the polypyrimidine strand of a duplex (thus forming a hetero duplex, i.e. a duplex with a DNA polypurine strand and an LNA/DNA polypyrimidine strand) enhance triplex formation. Based on seven polypyrimidine single strand oligonucleotides, having LNAs in different positions and quantities, we show that alternating LNA with one or more non-modified DNA nucleotides pre-organizes the hetero duplex toward a triple-helical-like conformation. This in turn promotes triplex formation, while consecutive LNAs distort the duplex structure disfavoring triplex formation. The results support the hypothesis that a pre-organization in the hetero duplex structure enhances the binding of triplex forming oligonucleotides. Our findings may serve as a criterion in the design of new tools for efficient oligonucleotide hybridization.
The intraparietal sulcus governs multisensory integration of audiovisual information based on task difficulty (2017)

Object recognition benefits maximally from multimodal sensory input when stimulus presentation is noisy, or degraded. Whether this advantage can be attributed specifically to the extent of overlap in object-related information, or rather, to object-unspecific enhancement due to the mere presence of additional sensory stimulation, remains unclear. Further, the cortical processing differences driving increased multisensory integration (MSI) for degraded compared with clear information remain poorly understood. Here, two consecutive studies first compared behavioral benefits of audio-visual overlap of object-related information, relative to conditions where one channel carried information and the other carried noise. A hierarchical drift diffusion model indicated performance enhancement when auditory and visual object-related information was simultaneously present for degraded stimuli. A subsequent fMRI study revealed visual dominance on a behavioral and neural level for clear stimuli, while degraded stimulus processing was mainly characterized by activation of a frontoparietal multisensory network, including IPS. Connectivity analyses indicated that integration of degraded object-related information relied on IPS input, whereas clear stimuli were integrated through direct information exchange between visual and auditory sensory cortices. These results indicate that the inverse effectiveness observed for identification of degraded relative to clear objects in behavior and brain activation might be facilitated by selective recruitment of an executive cortical network which uses IPS as a relay mediating crossmodal sensory information exchange.
Ultrafast Light-Controlled Growth of Silver Nanoparticles for Direct Plasmonic Color Printing (2018)

A precision photoreduction technology for the ultrafast high-precision light-controlled growth of silver nanoparticles for printing plasmonic color images is presented. Ultraviolet (UV) patterns with about a million pixels are generated to temporally and spatially regulate the photoreduction of silver salts to precisely create around a million clusters of distinct silver nanoparticles on a titanium dioxide (TiO2)-capped quartz substrate. The silver nanoparticle–TiO2–quartz structure exhibits a Fano-like reflection spectrum, whose spectral dip can be tuned by the dimension of the silver nanoparticles for plasmonic color generation. This technology allows the one-step production of multiscale engineered large-area plasmonic substrates without the use of either nanostructured templates or additional nanofabrication processes and thus offers an approach to plasmonic engineering for a myriad of applications ranging from structural color decoration to plasmonic microdevices and biosensors.
Transglutaminase-Catalyzed Protein-Protein Cross-Linking Suppresses the Activity of the NF-κB–Like Transcription Factor Relish (2013)

Cross-linking of proteins by mammalian transglutaminases (TGs) plays important roles in physiological phenomena such as blood coagulation and skin formation. We show that Drosophila TG suppressed innate immune signaling in the gut. RNA interference (RNAi) directed against TG reduced the life span of flies reared under conventional nonsterile conditions but not of those raised under germ-free conditions. In conventionally reared flies, TG RNAi enhanced the expression of genes encoding antimicrobial peptides in the immune deficiency (IMD) pathway. Wild-type flies that ingested gut lysates prepared from conventionally reared TG RNAi-treated flies had shorter life spans. In conventionally reared flies, TG RNAi triggered apoptosis in the gut and induced the nuclear translocation of Relish, the NF-κB (nuclear factor κB)-like transcription factor of the IMD pathway. Wild-type flies that ingested synthetic amine donors, which inhibit the TG-catalyzed protein-protein cross-linking reaction, showed nuclear translocation of Relish and enhanced expression of genes encoding IMD-controlled antimicrobial peptide genes in the gut. We conclude that TG-catalyzed Relish cross-linking suppressed the IMD signaling pathway to enable immune tolerance against commensal microbes.
Videoendoscopic analysis of nasal steroid distribution. (1999)

Topical corticosteroids are one of the main pillars in the treatment of nasal polyps. The exact topography of their intranasal deposition has not yet been adequately visualised. The intranasal distribution of a 1% sodium fluorescein solution applied with original Pulmicort Topinasal (budesonide) metered pump bottles was analysed by videoendoscopy. The study group included eight healthy subjects and ten patients who had undergone endonasal sinus surgery. Videoendoscopy was performed in the study group within the first minute after application of the fluorescein solution. Additionally the deposition pattern of Pulmicort Topinasal was analyzed using a nasal model. The examination showed that the majority of the substance is deposited on the anterior portion of the nasal septum and the head of the inferior turbinate. Only a small fraction actually reaches the middle meatus. The distribution is improved by application during the decongested phase of the nasal cycle, after use of vasoconstricting nasal drops and maintaining a spraying angle of 45 degrees upwards. The development of new delivery techniques and systems could improve the efficacy of intranasally administered corticosteroids and reduce the complication rate.
Aerodynamic Analysis of Blunt Trailing Edge Airfoils (2003)

The adoption of blunt trailing edge airfoils for the inboard region of large wind turbine blades has been proposed. Blunt trailing edge airfoils would not only provide a number of structural benefits, such as increased structural volume and ease of fabrication and handling, but they have also been found to improve the lift characteristics of airfoils. Therefore, the incorporation of blunt trailing edge airfoils would allow blade designers to more freely address the structural demands without having to sacrifice aerodynamic performance. Limited experimental data make it difficult for wind turbine designers to consider and conduct tradeoff studies using these section shapes and has provided the impetus for the present analysis of blunt trailing edge airfoils using computational fluid dynamics. Several computational techniques are applied, including a viscous/inviscid interaction method and three Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes methods.
ChemInform Abstract: STERICALLY HINDERED OLEFINS. IX. REDUCTIVE COUPLING REACTIONS OF KETONES OF THE SERIES OF 1‐INDANONE, 1‐TETRALONE, AND 9‐FLUORENONE; CONFORMATIONAL EFFECTS IN THE SERIES OF INDANYLIDENEINDANES AND TETRALINYLIDENETETRALINS (1984)

Abstract Die Ketone (I) bzw. (IV) lassen sich durch niedrigwertiges Ti‐Salz zu den Olefinen (II) [daneben 36 die Z‐Isomeren (III)] bzw. (V) (ausschließlich) kuppeln.
El Consorci de Biblioteques Universitàries de Catalunya en 2011 (2011)

The activities and developments of the Consortium of Academic Libraries of Catalonia (CBUC) are described. Topics dealed are interlending; impact of the economic crisis on subscriptions; digital preservation of theses; and updatimg of digital repository softwares (for TDX / TDR; MDC, federated search, and Recercat). The library users of CBUC university members can request and to borrow documents from other CBUC libraries, free of charge in a self-service basis (except blocked users in their institution, and also taking into account that some documents are not for lending). The institutions respond in case of lost or not returned books. Some statistics are presented.
Proteolytic Degradation of reduced Human Beta Defensin 1 generates a Novel Antibiotic Octapeptide (2019)

Microbial resistance against clinical used antibiotics is on the rise. Accordingly, there is a high demand for new innovative antimicrobial strategies. The host-defense peptide human beta-defensin 1 (hBD-1) is produced continuously by epithelial cells and exhibits compelling antimicrobial activity after reduction of its disulphide bridges. Here we report that proteolysis of reduced hBD-1 by gastrointestinal proteases as well as human duodenal secretions produces an eight-amino acid carboxy-terminal fragment. The generated octapeptide retains antibiotic activity, yet with distinct characteristics differing from the full-length peptide. We modified the octapeptide by stabilizing its termini and by using non-natural D-amino acids. The native and modified peptide variants showed antibiotic activity against pathogenic as well as antibiotic-resistant microorganisms, including E. coli, P. aeruginosa and C. albicans. Moreover, in an in vitro C. albicans infection model the tested peptides demonstrated effective amelioration of C. albicans infection without showing cytotoxity on human cells. In summary, protease degradation of hBD-1 provides a yet unknown mechanism to broaden antimicrobial host defense, which could be used to develop defensin-derived therapeutic applications.
Growth of thick GaN layers by hydride vapor‐phase epitaxy (1998)

The hydride vapor-phase epitaxy method, useful for growing thick layers, and the epitaxial lateral-overgrowth (ELO) method, useful for reducing the number of dislocations that occur in heteroepitaxy, have been combined to grow thick GaN layers with a low dislocation density (∼ 107 cm−2). A mechanism that reduces the dislocation density was recently found; it is accompanied by facet formation at the beginning of ELO. Using these GaN layers as a substrate, InGaN MQW structures were grown. A substrate with a low dislocation density was found to improve the optical quality of these structures. © 1998 Scripta Technica, Electron Comm Jpn Pt 2, 81(7): 57–63, 1998.
Glutamate is required to maintain the steady-state potassium pool in Salmonella typhimurium. (1996)

In many bacteria, accumulation of K+ at high external osmolalities is accompanied by accumulation of glutamate. To determine whether there is an obligatory relationship between glutamate and K+ pools, we studied mutant strains of Salmonella typhimurium with defects in glutamate synthesis. Enteric bacteria synthesize glutamate by the combined action of glutamine synthetase and glutamate synthase (GS/GOGAT cycle) or the action of biosynthetic glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH). Activity of the GS/GOGAT cycle is required under nitrogen-limiting conditions and is decreased at high external ammonium/ammonia ((NH4)+) concentrations by lowered synthesis of GS and a decrease in its catalytic activity due to covalent modification (adenylylation by GS adenylyltransferase). By contrast, GDH functions efficiently only at high external (NH4)+ concentrations, because it has a low affinity for (NH4)+. When grown at low concentrations of (NH4)+ (< or = 2 mM), mutant strains of S. typhimurium that lack GOGAT and therefore are dependent on GDH have a low glutamate pool and grow slowly; we now demonstrate that they have a low K+ pool. When subjected to a sudden (NH4)+ upshift, strains lacking GS adenylyltransferase drain their glutamate pool into glutamine and grow very slowly; we now find that they also drain their K+ pool. Restoration of the glutamate pool in these strains at late times after shift was accompanied by restoration of the K+ pool and a normal growth rate. Taken together, the results indicate that glutamate is required to maintain the steady-state K+ pool -- apparently no other anion can substitute as a counter-ion for free K+ -- and that K+ glutamate is required for optimal growth.
Pedestrian Detection and Tracking Using Three-dimensional LADAR Data (2010)

The approach investigated in this work employs three-dimensional LADAR measurement to detect and track pedestrians over time. The sensor is employed on a moving vehicle. The algorithm quickly detects the objects which have the potential of being humans using a subset of these points, and then classifies each object using statistical pattern recognition techniques. The algorithm uses geometric and motion features to recognize human signatures. The perceptual capabilities described form the basis for safe and robust navigation in autonomous vehicles, necessary to safeguard pedestrians operating in the vicinity of a moving robotic vehicle.
Improved efficiency of materials processing by dual action of XUV/Vis-NIR ultrashort laser pulses and comprehensive study of high-order harmonic source at PALS (2009)

We demonstrate a novel experimental method for improvement of efficiency of structural surface modification of various solids (PMMA, amorphous carbon) achieved by simultaneous action of XUV (21.6 nm), obtained from high-order harmonic generation (HHG), and VIS-NIR (410/820 nm) laser pulses. Although the fluence of each individual pulse was far below the surface ablation threshold, very efficient and specific material modification was observed after irradiation by a single or a few shots of mixed XUV/VIS-NIR radiation. We also report results on comprehensive characterization of ultrafast coherent X-ray beamline at Prague Asterix Laser System (PALS). The beamline is based on 1 kHz, table-top, high-order harmonic generation source capable to deliver fully coherent beam in the 30 nm spectral range. Ti:sapphire (810 nm, 1 kHz) laser pulses with a duration of 35 fs and energy 1.2 mJ have been focused into gas cell containing conversion medium (Ar). To achieve highly efficient HHG we will apply the technique of guided laser pulses. Source parameters were investigated.
A simple and universal method for the separation and identification of phospholipid molecular species (2008)

One of the major challenges in lipidomics is to obtain as much information about the lipidome as possible. Here, we present a simple yet universal high-performance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC/MS/MS) method to separate molecular species of all phospholipid classes in one single run. The method is sensitive, robust and allows lipid profiling using full scan mass spectrometry, as well as lipid class specific scanning in positive and negative ionisation mode. This allows high-throughput processing of samples for lipidomics, even if different types of MS analysis are required. Excellent separation of isobaric and even isomeric species is achieved, and original levels of lyso-lipids can be determined without interference from lyso-lipids formed from diacyl species by source fragmentation. As examples of application of this method, more than 400 phospholipid species were identified and quantified in crude phospholipid extracts from rat liver and the parasitic helminth Schistosoma mansoni.
Translational Peptide-associated Nanosystems: Promising Role as Cancer Vaccines (2015)

Cancer is a heterogeneous disease that results from a multi-step process, being characterized by uncontrolled proliferation, invasion and metastasis. The understanding that tumor cells can be recognized by host immune cells has highlighted the potential advantages of using vaccination purposes to eliminate cancer cells, while avoiding severe side effects associated to conventional cancer treatments. Interesting outcomes have been obtained with the new identified tumor associated antigens (TAAs), including recombinant proteins and peptides. However, these molecules are weakly immunogenic, demanding the concomitant use of adjuvants to boost and achieve a strong tumor-specific immune response. Different classes of nanosystems have been used to protect and deliver several vaccine components. In vitro and preclinical studies have emphasized their promising role to attain a prolonged eradication of cancer cells, including metastasis. However, some studies support the co-entrapment of multiple adjuvants and TAAs within a single particulate carrier, while others indicate that stronger immune responses were obtained using a mixture of nanocarriers entrapping different combinations of TAAs and adjuvants. These apparently contradictory results may be related to nanocarrier physicochemical properties, which have a profound impact on their interaction with targeted cells and consequent biological effects. This review discusses the application of nanoscale systems as cancer vaccines, highlighting the particular characteristics of tumor biology and immunology that have been used to guide the design of these nanodelivery tools. We also aim to explore the major weaknesses that have prevented their wide application in the clinic to overcome the delivery, efficacy and safety issues associated to biological entities.
Maillard Reaction: an ever green hot topic in food and biological science (2013)

A graphical abstract is available for this content