gebhart/patrepeval huggingface dataset:
Toughness and Strength of Wood Cellulose-based Nanopaper and Nanocomposites (2014)

Cellulose nanopaper in the form of nanofiber networks show superior mechanical performance and new functional characteristics compared with the brittle paper and fiberboard materials and thermoplastic biocomposites, which are commercially available. The chapter analyzes the potential to combine toughness and strength in polymer matrix nanocomposites based on cellulose nanofiber networks.
A Single Point Mutation in the Gene Encoding Gb3/CD77 Synthase Causes a Rare Inherited Polyagglutination Syndrome (2012)

Rare polyagglutinable NOR erythrocytes contain three unique globoside (Gb4Cer) derivatives, NOR1, NOR(int), and NOR2, in which Gal(α1-4), GalNAc(β1-3)Gal(α1-4), and Gal(α1-4)GalNAc(β1-3)Gal(α1-4), respectively, are linked to the terminal GalNAc residue of Gb4Cer. NOR1 and NOR2, which both terminate with a Gal(α1-4)GalNAc- sequence, react with anti-NOR antibodies commonly present in human sera. While searching for an enzyme responsible for the biosynthesis of Gal(α1-4)GalNAc, we identified a mutation in the A4GALT gene encoding Gb3/CD77 synthase (α1,4-galactosyltransferase). Fourteen NOR-positive donors were heterozygous for the C>G mutation at position 631 of the open reading frame of the A4GALT gene, whereas 495 NOR-negative donors were homozygous for C at this position. The enzyme encoded by the mutated gene contains glutamic acid instead of glutamine at position 211 (substitution Q211E). To determine whether this mutation could change the enzyme specificity, we transfected a teratocarcinoma cell line (2102Ep) with vectors encoding the consensus Gb3/CD77 synthase and Gb3/CD77 synthase with Glu at position 211. The cellular glycolipids produced by these cells were analyzed by flow cytometry, high-performance thin-layer chromatography, enzymatic degradation, and MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry. Cells transfected with either vector expressed the P1 blood group antigen, which was absent from untransfected cells. Cells transfected with the vector encoding the Gb3/CD77 synthase with Glu at position 211 expressed both P1 and NOR antigens. Collectively, these results suggest that the C631G mutation alters the acceptor specificity of Gb3/CD77 synthase, rendering it able to catalyze synthesis of the Gal(α1-4)Gal and Gal(α1-4)GalNAc moieties.
Fiber coupler for generating orbital angular momentum modes (2011)

We propose a fiber coupler consisting of a central ring and four external cores to generate up to ten orbital angular momentum (OAM) modes. Four coherent input lights are launched into the external cores and then coupled into the central ring waveguide to generate OAM modes. By changing the size of the external cores, one can selectively excite a high-order OAM mode. The quality of the generated OAM modes can be enhanced by adjusting the polarization state and the phase of input lights. We show the generation of OAM modes with odd charge numbers of -9 to +9 (i.e., 10 modes totally) with mode purity of >99% using <2 mm long fiber. This fiber coupler design can be extended to enable all-fiber spatial-mode (de)multiplexing.
Distinct Gene Expression Pattern of CD34+ Stem and Progenitor Cells Mobilized by Pegfilgrastim after Cytotoxic Therapy in Multiple Myeloma in Comparison to G-CSF. (2005)

Abstract Background: Current regimens for peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) mobilization in patients with multiple myeloma are based on daily subcutaneous injections of G-CSF starting shortly after cytotoxic therapy. Recently a polyethylenglycole (PEG)-conjugated G-CSF (pegfilgrastim) has been introduced which has a substantially longer half-life than the original formula. Here, we compared the molecular phenotypes of CD34+ stem and progenitor cells mobilized by G-CSF with those mobilized by pegfilgrastim. Study design and Methods: We examined immunomagnetically enriched CD34+ cells from leukapheresis products of 8 patients who received G-CSF and of 8 patients who were given pegfilgrastim using Affymetrix HG Focus GeneChips covering 8793 genes. The statistical scripting language ‘R’ was used for data analysis. Significantly differentially expressed genes were identified with the Significance Analysis of Microarrays (SAM) algorithm. Results: Comparing CD34+ cells mobilized by G-CSF with pegfilgrastim-mobilized CD34+ cells 108 genes were differentially expressed (fold change 1.25 – 14.0, q- value 2.45–14.44%). 38 genes had a higher and 70 genes had a lower expression in CD34+ cells mobilized by G-CSF. We found upregulation of genes characteristic for erythropoietic differentiation including haemoglobin chains and Erythroid Kruppel-like factor in G-CSF-mobilized CD34+ cells. Utilizing clonogenic assays we were able to functionally corroborate this finding as G-CSF-mobilized cells gave rise to a significantly higher number of burst-forming units erythroid (BFU-E) as compared to colony forming units granulocyte-macrophage (CFU-GM) (p=0.016). Cell cycle regulating genes were differentially expressed as well. Genes encoding for proteins that cause cell cycle arrest including human HTm4 were upregulated in G-CSF-mobilized cells, as opposed to an upregulation of cell cycle-promoting genes including Cyclin D2 and Hepatocyte Leukemia Factor (HLF) in pegfilgrastim-mobilized cells. Moreover in pegfilgrastim-mobilized CD34+ cells we saw an upregulation of multiple genes involved in cellular immunogenicity like MHC class I and II antigens and genes encoding for proteins playing a role in antigen presentation. Conclusion: Unconjugated G-CSF seems to be associated with an increased mobilisation of erythroid progenitors or an induction of erythropoiesis. Pegfilgrastim might result in mobilization of more immunogenic CD34+ cells. Unconjugated G-CSF and pegfilgrastim both seem to have an effect on cell cycle. Unconjugated G-CSF might rather induce cell cycle arrest and pegfilgrastim seems to lead to an increase of the cell cycle activity. This may be due to potentially different effects of continuously high serum levels of G-CSF maintained by pegfilgrastim and the pulsatile daily G-CSF injections on CD34+ cells.
460. Cytotoxic compounds. Part II. Some amides of the “nitrogen mustard” type (1961)

M. H. Benn, A. M. Creighton, L. N. Owen and G. R. White, J. Chem. Soc., 1961, 2365 DOI: 10.1039/JR9610002365
Structural characterization of a cross-protective natural chimera of factor H binding protein from meningococcal serogroup B strain NL096 (2022)

Invasive meningococcal disease can cause fatal sepsis and meningitis and is a global health threat. Factor H binding protein (fHbp) is a protective antigen included in the two currently available vaccines against serogroup B meningococcus (MenB). FHbp is a remarkably variable surface-exposed meningococcal virulence factor with over 1300 different amino acid sequences identified so far. Based on this variability, fHbp has been classified into three variants, two subfamilies or nine modular groups, with low degrees of cross-protective activity. Here, we report the crystal structure of a natural fHbp cross-variant chimera, named variant1-2,3.x expressed by the MenB clinical isolate NL096, at 1.2 Å resolution, the highest resolution of any fHbp structure reported to date. We combined biochemical, site-directed mutagenesis and computational biophysics studies to deeply characterize this rare chimera. We determined the structure to be composed of two adjacent domains deriving from the three variants and determined the molecular basis of its stability, ability to bind Factor H and to adopt the canonical three-dimensional fHbp structure. These studies guided the design of loss-of-function mutations with potential for even greater immunogenicity. Moreover, this study represents a further step in the understanding of the fHbp biological and immunological evolution in nature. The chimeric variant1-2,3.x fHbp protein emerges as an intriguing cross-protective immunogen and suggests that identification of such naturally occurring hybrid proteins may result in stable and cross-protective immunogens when seeking to design and develop vaccines against highly variable pathogens.
Effects of macromolecular additives and urea on the intestinal absorption of acetaminophen in rats. (1979)

The effects of sodium carboxymethylcellulose (CMC), sodium arginate (SA), methylcellulose (MC) and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) on the intestinal absorption of acetaminophen in situ were investigated in rats. Among the macromolecular additives, only PVP exhibited an inhibitory effect on the absorption of the drug. Studies in vitro (solubility and dialysis experiments) showed that there is an interaction between acetaminophen and PVP. The inhibitory effect of PVP on the intestinal absorption of acetaminophen was suppressed by the addition of urea. Dialysis data showed that urea tends to reduce the binding between acetaminophen and PVP.
Polarization independent isotropic near-zero-index metamaterials composed of dielectric spheres for 3-D invisibility cloaks (2017)

Polarization independent isotropic near-zero-index metamaterials composed of dielectric spheres are presented. The constitutive parameters and the dispersion characteristics are obtained by full-wave simulations. It is shown that, with dielectric spheres of radius 1.5 mm and dielectric constant of 34, the medium exhibits a near-zero-index with little phase distributions at 24.53 GHz. In addition, 3-D invisibility cloaks are numerically demonstrated using the proposed near-zero-index metamaterials regardless of the cloaked materials.
Switchable Nonionic to Cationic Ethoxylated Amine Surfactants for CO2 Enhanced Oil Recovery in High-Temperature, High-Salinity Carbonate Reservoirs (2013)

Summary To improve sweep efficiency for carbon dioxide (CO2) enhanced oil recovery (EOR) up to 120°C in the presence of high-salinity brine (182 g/L NaCl), novel CO2/water (C/W) foams have been formed with surfactants composed of ethoxylated amine headgroups with cocoalkyl tails. These surfactants are switchable from the nonionic (unprotonated amine) state in dry CO2 to cationic (protonated amine) in the presence of an aqueous phase with a pH less than 6. The high hydrophilicity in the protonated cationic state was evident in the high cloudpoint temperature up to 120°C. The high cloud point facilitated the stabilization of lamellae between bubbles in CO2/water foams. In the nonionic form, the surfactant was soluble in CO2 at 120°C and 3,300 psia at a concentration of 0.2% (w/w). C/W foams were produced by injecting the surfactant into either the CO2 phase or the brine phase, which indicated good contact between phases for transport of surfactant to the interface. Solubility of the surfactant in CO2 and a favorable C/W partition coefficient are beneficial for transport of surfactant with CO2-flow pathways in the reservoir to minimize viscous fingering and gravity override. The ethoxylated cocoamine with two ethylene oxide (EO) groups was shown to stabilize C/W foams in a 30-darcy sandpack with NaCl concentrations up to 182 g/L at 120°C and 3,400 psia, and foam qualities from 50 to 95%. The foam produces an apparent viscosity of 6.2 cp in the sandpack and 6.3 cp in a 762-μm-inner-diameter capillary tube (downstream of the sandpack) in contrast with values well below 1 cp without surfactant present. Moreover, the cationic headgroup reduces the adsorption of ethoxylated alkyl amines on calcite, which is also positively charged in the presence of CO2 dissolved in brine. The surfactant partition coefficients (0 to 0.04) favored the water phase over the oil phase, which is beneficial for minimizing losses of surfactant to the oil phase for efficient surfactant usage. Furthermore, the surfactant was used to form C/W foams, without forming stable/viscous oil/water (O/W) emulsions. This selectivity is desirable for mobility control whereby CO2 will have low mobility in regions in which oil is not present and high contact with oil at the displacement front. In summary, the switchable ethoxylated alkyl amine surfactants provide both high cloudpoints in brine and high interfacial activities of ionic surfactants in water for foam generation, as well as significant solubilities in CO2 in the nonionic dry state for surfactant injection.
Pharmacological Inhibition of Caspase-2 Protects Axotomised Retinal Ganglion Cells from Apoptosis in Adult Rats (2012)

Severing the axons of retinal ganglion cells (RGC) by crushing the optic nerve (ONC) causes the majority of RGC to degenerate and die, primarily by apoptosis. We showed recently that after ONC in adult rats, caspase-2 activation occurred specifically in RGC while no localisation of caspase-3 was observed in ganglion cells but in cells of the inner nuclear layer. We further showed that inhibition of caspase-2 using a single injection of stably modified siRNA to caspase-2 protected almost all RGC from death at 7 days, offering significant protection for up to 1 month after ONC. In the present study, we confirmed that cleaved caspase-2 was localised and activated in RGC (and occasional neurons in the inner nuclear layer), while TUNEL⁺ RGC were also observed after ONC. We then investigated if suppression of caspase-2 using serial intravitreal injections of the pharmacological inhibitor z-VDVAD-fmk (z-VDVAD) protected RGC from death for 15 days after ONC. Treatment of eyes with z-VDVAD suppressed cleaved caspase-2 activation by >85% at 3-4 days after ONC. Increasing concentrations of z-VDVAD protected greater numbers of RGC from death at 15 days after ONC, up to a maximum of 60% using 4000 ng/ml of z-VDVAD, compared to PBS treated controls. The 15-day treatment with 4000 ng/ml of z-VDVAD after ONC suppressed levels of cleaved caspase-2 but no significant changes in levels of cleaved caspase-3, -6, -7 or -8 were detected. Although suppression of caspase-2 protected 60% of RGC from death, RGC axon regeneration was not promoted. These results suggest that caspase-2 specifically mediates death of RGC after ONC and that suppression of caspase-2 may be a useful therapeutic strategy to enhance RGC survival not only after axotomy but also in diseases where RGC death occurs such as glaucoma and optic neuritis.
Sarcopenia in Elderly Major Trauma; A Single Centre Retrospective Analysis of Psoas and Masseter Muscle Groups (2020)

<title>Abstract</title> <bold>Background: </bold> There is an emerging role for the radiological evaluation of the psoas muscle as a marker of sarcopenia, and as a prognostic discriminant in elderly patients with traumatic injuries. Older trauma patients are more likely to undergo cranial than abdomino-pelvic imaging. Identifying sarcopenia using masseter cross sectional area (M-CSA) has shown correlation with mortality. We sought to determine the correlation between psoas: lumbar vertebral index (PLVI) and the M-CSA, and their association with health outcomes. <bold>Methods: </bold>Patients aged 65 or above, who presented as a trauma call over a 1 year period were included if they underwent cranial or abdominal CT imaging. Images were retrospectively analyzed to obtain PLVI and mean M-CSA measurements. Electronic records were abstracted for demographics and outcomes. Logistic regression methods, log scale analyses, Cox regression model and Kaplan-Meier plots were used to determine association of sarcopenia with outcomes. <bold>Results: </bold>There were 155 eligible patients in the M-CSA group and 204 patients in the PLVI group. Sarcopenia was defined as the lowest quartile in each group.<bold> </bold>Both PLVI and M-CSA measurements were available in 142 patients. Pearson’s correlation indicated a weakly positive linear relationship (r=0.35, p&lt;0.001) between these. There was no statistical association between M-CSA sarcopenia status and any measured outcomes. Those with PLVI sarcopenia were more likely to die in hospital (adjusted OR 3.38, 95% CI 1.47-9.73, p=0.006) and at 2-years (adjusted HR 1.90, 95% CI 1.11-3.25, p=0.02). Only 29% patients with PLVI sarcopenia were discharged home, compared with 58% without sarcopenia (p=0.001).<bold>Conclusion: </bold>Sarcopenia, defined by PLVI, is predictive of increased in-patient and 2- year mortality. Our study did not support prognostic relevance of M-CSA. Further research should be directed at improving the validity of masseter measurements or identifying alternative radiological determinants of sarcopenia on cranial imaging.
Bioactive anthraquinones found in plant foods interact with human serum albumin and inhibit the formation of advanced glycation endproducts (2018)

The glycation of human serum albumin (HSA) plays a critical role in the development of many disorders. Herein, the anti-glycation effects of several natural dietary anthraquinone derivatives including aloin, aloe-emodin, chrysophanol, emodin, physcion, and rhein were evaluated. The anthraquinones at 100 μM reduced fructose-, methylglyoxal-, and glyoxal-induced HSA glycation by 21% (aloe-emodin) to 92% (aloin), 17% (physcion) to 94% (emodin), and 16% (anthraquinone) to 67% (emodin), respectively. These anthraquinone derivatives also protected HSA by maintaining its free amino acid residues and secondary protein structure as characterized by circular dichroism. The mechanisms of their anti-glycation effects were investigated using rhein as a representative anthraquinone. The interactions between rhein and HSA were evaluated by biophysical characterizations, namely, isothermal titration calorimetry and UV-vis spectroscopy as well as computational modeling. Our findings suggest that the anti-glycation effects of these anthraquinones may be attributed to their binding capacity and stabilization of the HSA protein structure.
Immunological tolerance in the therapy of rheumatoid arthritis. (2007)

Dramatic progress in the treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) has led to an early and aggressive treatment strategy, combining DMARDS with biological agents. Since these therapies are able to induce initial clinical control, attention has shifted toward the maintenance of this state. Tools to maintain long-term remission are still lacking but may be found in the ability to establish immunological tolerance. Tolerance can be induced in several specific and nonspecific ways, including manipulation of costimulatory signals, induction of regulatory T cells, and tolerization to heat shock proteins. Induction of disease control with the current combination therapies, followed by progressive withdrawal in parallel with re-establishing immunological tolerance, may be an attractive approach in the near future.
Oxygen consumption oscillates in single clonal pancreatic beta-cells (HIT). (2000)

Based on population studies, we have hypothesized that changes in metabolism in pancreatic beta-cells precede changes in Ca2+. It is well known from single-cell Ca2+ studies that variable oscillatory patterns in Ca2+ occur in response to glucose stimulation. The present studies, using the clonal beta-cell line HIT-T-15, were undertaken to evaluate the relationship between glucose concentration, insulin secretion, and O2 consumption and to determine the Ca2+ dependency of glucose-induced changes in O2 consumption. In population studies, an excellent correlation was found between respiration and insulin secretion, with half-maximal values at approximately 1 mmol/l glucose for both respiration and secretion. In the absence of Ca2+, glucose stimulated O2 consumption but not insulin secretion. In single clonal beta-cells, a self-referencing O2 electrode was used to assess O2 consumption. Large-amplitude oscillations were found to occur in response to stimulation by glucose and were blocked by uncoupling respiration with carbonylcyanide p-(trifluoromethoxy)phenylhydrazone (FCCP). They were also blocked and respiration totally inhibited by antimycin A, an inhibitor of complex III of the respiratory chain. Half of the cells sampled (approximately 100 total) exhibited increased oscillatory O2 consumption in response to glucose. Oscillations in O2 occurred in response to glucose even in the absence of Ca2+, and their amplitude increased further on restoration of a normal extracellular Ca2+ level. These studies indicated that oscillatory O2 consumption was not dependent on Ca2+ but that the amplitude of the O2 oscillations increased in the presence of Ca2+, possibly reflecting the additional work involved in insulin secretion and Ca2+ pumping. These studies demonstrated, for the first time, a direct correlation between O2 consumption and insulin secretion, the oscillatory nature of O2 consumption in single cells, and the feasibility of using a highly sensitive noninvasive on-line self-referencing O2 electrode to monitor single beta-cell respiration.
Extracting Discriminative Information from Medical Images: A Multivariate Linear Approach (2006)

Statistical discrimination methods are suitable not only for classification but also for characterization of differences between a reference group of patterns and the population under investigation. In the last years, statistical methods have been proposed to classify and analyze morphological and anatomical structures of medical images. Most of these techniques work in high-dimensional spaces of particular features such as shapes or statistical parametric maps and have overcome the difficulty of dealing with the inherent high dimensionality of medical images by analyzing segmented structures individually or performing hypothesis tests on each feature separately. In this paper, we present a general multivariate linear framework to identify and analyze the most discriminating hyper-plane separating two populations. The goal is to analyze all the intensity features simultaneously rather than segmented versions of the data separately or feature-by-feature. The conceptual and mathematical simplicity of the approach, which pivotal step is spatial normalization, involves the same operations irrespective of the complexity of the experiment or nature of the data, giving multivariate results that are easy to interpret. To demonstrate its performance we present experimental results on artificially generated data set and real medical data
Implications of hypnotic flexibility on patterns of clinical use. (2001)

Insomnia is common among the primary care patient population, 1.3 times more common in women than men, and the prevalence increases with age. Until recently, benzodiazepines (BZs) were the only first-line hypnotics, but with the availability of non-BZ sleep agents, the management of insomnia is changing. Zolpidem and zopiclone have adverse-effect profiles similar to BZs but lack next-day residual effects with bedtime dosing. Zaleplon is a fast-onset, rapidly eliminated medication that allows for dosing at bedtime or during the night with minimal concern for residual effects. In addition, the BZ-associated problems of tolerance and rebound effects are not evident with long-term zaleplon use. The pharmacokinetic profile of zaleplon has the potential to allow for the treatment of symptoms of sleeplessness when they occur, an approach that could replace the standard practice of always treating in anticipation of a problem.
Early Babesia canis transmission in dogs within 24 h and 8 h of infestation with infected pre-activated male Dermacentor reticulatus ticks (2018)

This study demonstrates the ability of male D. reticulatus to transmit B. canis to dogs. The study also illustrates for the first time that, regardless of the first host on which ticks may attach and start feeding, Babesia canis can be transmitted to dogs within 8 h of infestation. Since no minimal transmission time can be established for all possible natural situations, a strategy of prevention based on anti-attachment or repellency is recommended.