julilili42/papers huggingface dataset:
German Version of ItchyQoL: Validation and Initial Clinical Findings
2013-01-01

Pruritus is a major symptom of numerous skin and systemic diseases and causes a substantial burden on patients' quality of life (QoL). We report here the validation of the German version (GerItchyQoL) of the first pruritus-specific QoL instrument ItchyQoL. GerItchyQoL was created from the original version following standard protocols. It was completed by 308 patients with chronic pruritus of different origin and tested for validity, reliability and responsiveness. Factor analysis of Ger-ItchyQoL revealed the 4 domains symptoms, functioning, feelings, and self-perception. Reliability was demonstrated by good internal consistency of all domains. We confirmed convergent validity by comparing the instrument with itch severity, as measured with a visual analogue scale (VAS 0-10), and with the Short-Form-12 (SF-12), a widely used generic health-related QoL instrument. Concurrent validity was shown by the ability to discriminate between patient groups of different itch severity. Changes in GerItchyQoL scores correlated with changes in itch severity (VAS), suggesting responsiveness of the German tool. This study provides preliminary evidence of validity, reliability and responsiveness of GerItchyQoL and also shows a high impact of chronic pruritus on QoL. Further translations of ItchyQoL into additional languages will enable large-scale international, multilingual trials.
Hsa-mir-124-3 CpG island methylation is associated with advanced tumours and disease recurrence of patients with clear cell renal cell carcinoma
2013-01-01

Whether methylation of the microRNA (mir)-124-3 CpG island is of relevance for the clinical course of a solid cancer and whether it shows association with clinicopathology or survival of patients with renal cell cancer (RCC) is not known as yet.In a cross-sectional study, relative methylation of mir-124-3 was measured in 111 RCC samples and 77 paired normal appearing tissues using quantitative methyl-specific PCR. Results were statistically compared with tumour histology, clinicopathological parameters and disease recurrence.We found tumour-specific hypermethylation of mir-124-3 in samples of RCCs with clear cell histology (ccRCC) compared with paired normal appearing tissues (P<0.0001). Methylation was significantly increased in tumours with state of advanced disease (P<0.0001). Higher relative methylation was associated with worse recurrence-free survival in both univariate (hazard ratio=9.37; P=0.0005) as well as bivariate Cox regression analyses considering age, sex, diameter of tumours and state of advanced disease, metastasis and lymph node metastases as covariates (hazard ratios=5.9-18.2; P-values of 0.0003-0.008).We identified mir-124-3 CpG islands (CGI) methylation as a relevant epigenetic mark for ccRCC thus underlining the need for functional studies of potentially affected signalling pathways in kidney tumour models. Methylation of mir-124-3 is suggested as an independent prognosticator for ccRCC.
cAMP promotes the differentiation of neural progenitor cells in vitro via modulation of voltage-gated calcium channels
2013-01-01

The molecular mechanisms underlying the differentiation of neural progenitor cells (NPCs) remain poorly understood. In this study we investigated the role of Ca(2+) and cAMP (cyclic adenosine monophosphate) in the differentiation of NPCs extracted from the subventricular zone of E14.5 rat embryos. Patch clamp recordings revealed that increasing cAMP-signaling with Forskolin or IBMX (3-isobutyl-1-methylxantine) significantly facilitated neuronal functional maturation. A continuous application of IBMX to the differentiation medium substantially increased the functional expression of voltage-gated Na(+) and K(+) channels, as well as neuronal firing frequency. Furthermore, we observed an increase in the frequency of spontaneous synaptic currents and in the amplitude of evoked glutamatergic and GABAergic synaptic currents. The most prominent acute effect of applying IBMX was an increase in L-type Ca(2+)currents. Conversely, blocking L-type channels strongly inhibited dendritic outgrowth and synapse formation even in the presence of IBMX, indicating that voltage-gated Ca(2+) influx plays a major role in neuronal differentiation. Finally, we found that nifedipine completely blocks IBMX-induced CREB phosphorylation (cAMP-response-element-binding protein), indicating that the activity of this important transcription factor equally depends on both enhanced cAMP and voltage-gated Ca(2+)-signaling. Taken together, these data indicate that the up-regulation of voltage-gated L-type Ca(2+)-channels and early electrical excitability are critical steps in the cAMP-dependent differentiation of SVZ-derived NPCs into functional neurons. To our knowledge, this is the first demonstration of the acute effects of cAMP on voltage-gated Ca(+2)channels in NPC-derived developing neurons.
Nanostructured catalysts via metal amide-promoted smart grafting
2013-01-01

The heterogenization of homogeneous catalysts is a current topic in sustainable chemistry and catalysis. Such immobilized molecular catalysts provide access to environmentally benign chemical syntheses due to the ease of product separation and concomitant waste decrease. This perspective focuses on the fabrication of nanostructured catalysts by using amorphous (non)porous silica or metal oxides and periodic mesoporous (organo)silicas PM(O)S as 1(st) and 2(nd) generation supports, respectively, as well as metal (silyl)amide complexes as tailor-made grafting precursors. The pertinent SOMC (SOMC = surface organometallic chemistry) places special emphasis on organometallic hybrid materials that display properties distinct from the respective molecular catalysts and on new catalytic avenues which originate from 2(nd) generation supports.
Ionizing radiation, ion transports, and radioresistance of cancer cells
2013-01-01

The standard treatment of many tumor entities comprises fractionated radiation therapy which applies ionizing radiation to the tumor-bearing target volume. Ionizing radiation causes double-strand breaks in the DNA backbone that result in cell death if the number of DNA double-strand breaks exceeds the DNA repair capacity of the tumor cell. Ionizing radiation reportedly does not only act on the DNA in the nucleus but also on the plasma membrane. In particular, ionizing radiation-induced modifications of ion channels and transporters have been reported. Importantly, these altered transports seem to contribute to the survival of the irradiated tumor cells. The present review article summarizes our current knowledge on the underlying mechanisms and introduces strategies to radiosensitize tumor cells by targeting plasma membrane ion transports.
Regulation of STIM1/Orai1-dependent Ca2+ signalling in platelets
2013-01-01

Summary Platelet secretion and aggregation as well as thrombus formation of blood platelets critically depend on increase of cytosolic Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i) mainly resulting from intracellular Ca2+ release followed by store operated Ca2+ entry (SOCE) through Ca2+ release activated channels (CRAC). SOCE is in part accomplished by the pore forming unit Orai and its regulator stromal interaction molecule (STIM). Orai1 and STIM1 transcription is stimulated by NFkB (nuclear factor kappa B). Serum- and glucocorticoid-inducible kinase 1 (SGK1) up-regulates NFkB-activity in megakaryocytes and thus Orai1- expression and SOCE in platelets. SGK1 is thus a powerful regulator of platelet Ca2+-signalling and thrombus formation and presumably participates in the regulation of platelet activation by a variety of hormones as well as clinical conditions (e.g. type 2 diabetes or metabolic syndrome) associated with platelet hyperaggregability and increased risk of thromboocclusive events. SOCE in platelets is further regulated by scaffolding protein Homer and chaperone protein cyclophilin A (CyPA). Additional potential regulators of Orai1/STIM1 and thus SOCE in platelets include AMP activated kinase (AMPK), protein kinase A (PKA), reactive oxygen species, lipid rafts, pH and mitochondrial Ca2+ buffering. Future studies are required defining the significance of those mechanisms for platelet Orai1 abundance and function, for SOCE into platelets and for platelet function in cardiovascular diseases.
An Evolutionarily Conserved Signaling Mechanism Mediates Far-Red Light Responses in Land Plants
2013-01-01

Abstract Phytochromes are plant photoreceptors important for development and adaptation to the environment. Phytochrome A (PHYA) is essential for the far-red (FR) high-irradiance responses (HIRs), which are of particular ecological relevance as they enable plants to establish under shade conditions. PHYA and HIRs have been considered unique to seed plants because the divergence of seed plants and cryptogams (e.g., ferns and mosses) preceded the evolution of PHYA. Seed plant phytochromes translocate into the nucleus and regulate gene expression. By contrast, there has been little evidence of a nuclear localization and function of cryptogam phytochromes. Here, we identified responses to FR light in cryptogams, which are highly reminiscent of PHYA signaling in seed plants. In the moss Physcomitrella patens and the fern Adiantum capillus-veneris, phytochromes accumulate in the nucleus in response to light. Although P. patens phytochromes evolved independently of PHYA, we have found that one clade of P. patens phytochromes exhibits the molecular properties of PHYA. We suggest that HIR-like responses had evolved in the last common ancestor of modern seed plants and cryptogams and that HIR signaling is more ancient than PHYA. Thus, other phytochromes in seed plants may have lost the capacity to mediate HIRs during evolution, rather than that PHYA acquired it.
Abnormal Neural Connectivity in Schizophrenia and fMRI-Brain-Computer Interface as a Potential Therapeutic Approach
2013-01-01

CONSIDERING THAT SINGLE LOCATIONS OF STRUCTURAL AND FUNCTIONAL ABNORMALITIES ARE INSUFFICIENT TO EXPLAIN THE DIVERSE PSYCHOPATHOLOGY OF SCHIZOPHRENIA, NEW MODELS HAVE POSTULATED THAT THE IMPAIRMENTS ASSOCIATED WITH THE DISEASE ARISE FROM A FAILURE TO INTEGRATE THE ACTIVITY OF LOCAL AND DISTRIBUTED NEURAL CIRCUITS: the "abnormal neural connectivity hypothesis." In the last years, new evidence coming from neuroimaging have supported and expanded this theory. However, despite the increasing evidence that schizophrenia is a disorder of neural connectivity, so far there are no treatments that have shown to produce a significant change in brain connectivity, or that have been specifically designed to alleviate this problem. Brain-Computer Interfaces based on real-time functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI-BCI) are novel techniques that have allowed subjects to achieve self-regulation of circumscribed brain regions. In recent studies, experiments with this technology have resulted in new findings suggesting that this methodology could be used to train subjects to enhance brain connectivity, and therefore could potentially be used as a therapeutic tool in mental disorders including schizophrenia. The present article summarizes the findings coming from hemodynamics-based neuroimaging that support the abnormal connectivity hypothesis in schizophrenia, and discusses a new approach that could address this problem.
Phenylalanine-containing cyclic dipeptides – the lowest molecular weight hydrogelators based on unmodified proteinogenic amino acids
2013-01-01

Cyclic dipeptides (diketopiperazines – DKPs) that are based on the proteinogenic amino acid phenylalanine in combination with serine, cysteine, glutamate, histidine and lysine are described as simple and remarkable low molecular weight hydrogelators. Blends of selected DKPs show remarkable pH-dependent properties and can be applied as easy to tune materials in drug delivery.
Platelets and neurovascular inflammation
2013-01-01

Summary Platelets participate in haemostasis and in thrombus formation in health and disease. Moreover, they contribute to inflammation and cooperate with immune cells in a magnitude of inflammatory/immune responses. Although the inflammatory response has been recognised to be critical in neuronal diseases such as Alzheimer ́s disease or multiple sclerosis and its mouse counterpart, experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis, the participation of platelets in these diseases is poorly investigated so far. Emerging studies, however, point to an interesting crosstalk between platelets and neuroinflammation. For instance, when the integrity of the blood brain barrier is compromised, platelets may be relevant for endothelial inflammation, as well as recruitment and activation of inflammatory cells, thereby potentially contributing to central nervous tissue pathogenesis. This review summarises recent insights in the role of platelets for neurovascular inflammation and addresses potential underlying mechanisms, by which platelets may affect the pathophysiology of neurovascular diseases.
Investigating reduction of dimensionality during single-joint elbow movements: a case study on muscle synergies
2013-01-01

A long standing hypothesis in the neuroscience community is that the central nervous system (CNS) generates the muscle activities to accomplish movements by combining a relatively small number of stereotyped patterns of muscle activations, often referred to as "muscle synergies." Different definitions of synergies have been given in the literature. The most well-known are those of synchronous, time-varying and temporal muscle synergies. Each one of them is based on a different mathematical model used to factor some EMG array recordings collected during the execution of variety of motor tasks into a well-determined spatial, temporal or spatio-temporal organization. This plurality of definitions and their separate application to complex tasks have so far complicated the comparison and interpretation of the results obtained across studies, and it has always remained unclear why and when one synergistic decomposition should be preferred to another one. By using well-understood motor tasks such as elbow flexions and extensions, we aimed in this study to clarify better what are the motor features characterized by each kind of decomposition and to assess whether, when and why one of them should be preferred to the others. We found that three temporal synergies, each one of them accounting for specific temporal phases of the movements could account for the majority of the data variation. Similar performances could be achieved by two synchronous synergies, encoding the agonist-antagonist nature of the two muscles considered, and by two time-varying muscle synergies, encoding each one a task-related feature of the elbow movements, specifically their direction. Our findings support the notion that each EMG decomposition provides a set of well-interpretable muscle synergies, identifying reduction of dimensionality in different aspects of the movements. Taken together, our findings suggest that all decompositions are not equivalent and may imply different neurophysiological substrates to be implemented.
A randomized controlled trial of a cognitive-behavioral program for the prevention of depression in adolescents compared with nonspecific and no-intervention control conditions.
2013-01-01

Adolescent depression is a common and recurrent disorder associated with significant impairment and other forms of psychopathology. Finding an effective intervention that prevents depression in adolescents is an important public health priority. Participants were 518 high school students (mean age = 15.09; SD = 0.76) from the mid-south of the United States. Participants were randomly assigned to 1 of 3 conditions: a cognitive-behavioral program (CB; n = 166), nonspecific control (NSp; n = 175), or a no-intervention control condition (NIC; n = 177). Both the CB and NSp conditions consisted of 90-min sessions administered once a week over a 10-week period during regular school hours. Depressive symptoms were assessed with the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI) at baseline; postintervention; and at 4-, 8-, and 12-month follow-ups. The Time × Condition interaction was significant, F(8, 478.57) = 3.32, p = .001, indicating that at the 4-month follow-up, youth in the CB condition had significantly lower CDI scores compared with those in the NSp (p = .047, g = 0.29; CI [0.06, 0.52]) and the NIC conditions (p = .003, g = 0.30; CI [0.07, 0.53]). Future studies need to examine the importance of theory-driven change mechanisms, interpersonal relationships, and structural circumstances in schools as factors impacting the long-term effects of CB prevention programs.
A Comprehensive Tutorial onIn VitroCharacterization of New Photosensitizers for Photodynamic Antitumor Therapy and Photodynamic Inactivation of Microorganisms
2013-01-01

In vitro research performed on eukaryotic or prokaryotic cell cultures usually represents the initial step for characterization of a novel photosensitizer (PS) intended for application in photodynamic therapy (PDT) of cancer or photodynamic inactivation (PDI) of microorganisms. Although many experimental steps of PS testing make use of the wide spectrum of methods readily employed in cell biology, special aspects of working with photoactive substances, such as the autofluorescence of the PS molecule or the requirement of light protection, need to be considered when performing in vitro experiments in PDT/PDI. This tutorial represents a comprehensive collection of operative instructions, by which, based on photochemical and photophysical properties of a PS, its uptake into cells, the intracellular localization and photodynamic action in both tumor cells and microorganisms novel photoactive molecules may be characterized for their suitability for PDT/PDI. Furthermore, it shall stimulate the efforts to expand the convincing benefits of photodynamic therapy and photodynamic inactivation within both established and new fields of applications and motivate scientists of all disciplines to get involved in photodynamic research.
Deficient fear conditioning in psychopathy as a function of interpersonal and affective disturbances
2013-01-01

The diminished fear reactivity is one of the most valid physiological findings in psychopathy research. In a fear conditioning paradigm, with faces as conditioned stimulus (CS) and electric shock as unconditioned stimulus (US), we investigated a sample of 14 high psychopathic violent offenders. Event related potentials, skin conductance responses (SCR) as well as subjective ratings of the CSs were collected. This study assessed to which extent the different facets of the psychopathy construct contribute to the fear conditioning deficits observed in psychopaths. Participants with high scores on the affective facet subscale of the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R) showed weaker conditioned fear responses and lower N100 amplitudes compared to low scorers. In contrast, high scorers on the affective facet rated the CS+ (paired) more negatively than low scorers regarding the CS- (unpaired). Regarding the P300, high scores on the interpersonal facet were associated with increased amplitudes to the CS+ compared to the CS-, while the opposed pattern was found for the antisocial facet. Both, the initial and terminal contingent negative variation indicated a divergent pattern: participants with pronounced interpersonal deficits, showed increased cortical negativity to the CS+ compared to the CS-, whereas a reversed CS+/CS- differentiation was found in offenders scoring high on the antisocial facet. The present study revealed that deficient fear conditioning in psychopathy was most pronounced in offenders with high scores on the affective facet. Event related potentials suggest that participants with distinct interpersonal deficits showed increased information processing, whereas the antisocial facet was linked to decreased attention and interest to the CS+. These data indicate that an approach to the facets of psychopathy can help to resolve ambiguous findings in psychopathy research and enables a more precise and useful description of this disorder.
The girdles of the oldest fossil turtle, Proterochersis robusta, and the age of the turtle crown
2013-01-01

The primary homology of the character "sutured pelvis" is unproblematic between P. robusta and extant pleurodires. However, integration of all new observations into the most complete phylogenetic analysis that support the pleurodiran nature of P. robusta reveals that this taxon is more parsimoniously placed along the phylogenetic stem of crown Testudines. All current phylogenetic hypotheses therefore support the basal placement of this taxon, imply that the sutured pelvis of this taxon developed independently from that of pleurodires, and conclude that the age of the turtle crown is Middle Jurassic.
Language influences on numerical development—Inversion effects on multi-digit number processing
2013-01-01

In early numerical development, children have to become familiar with the Arabic number system and its place-value structure. The present review summarizes and discusses evidence for language influences on the acquisition of the highly transparent structuring principles of digital-Arabic digits by means of its moderation through the transparency of the respective language's number word system. In particular, the so-called inversion property (i.e., 24 named as "four and twenty" instead of "twenty four") was found to influence number processing in children not only in verbal but also in non-verbal numerical tasks. Additionally, there is first evidence suggesting that inversion-related difficulties may influence numerical processing longitudinally. Generally, language-specific influences in children's numerical development are most pronounced for multi-digit numbers. Yet, there is currently only one study on three-digit number processing for German-speaking children. A direct comparison of additional new data from Italian-speaking children further corroborates the assumption that language impacts on cognitive (number) processing as inversion-related interference was found most pronounced for German-speaking children. In sum, we conclude that numerical development may not be language-specific but seems to be moderated by language.
Detection and quantification of a mycorrhization helper bacterium and a mycorrhizal fungus in plant-soil microcosms at different levels of complexity
2013-01-01

Real-time quantitative PCR assays provide a method for directly detecting and quantifying MHB and mycorrhizal fungi in plant microcosms. Our study indicates that the presence of microorganisms and plant roots can both affect the nature of MHB-fungus interactions, and that mycorrhizal fungi may enhance MHB growth.
From cyanate to cyanurate: cyclotrimerization reactions towards the novel family of metal cyanurates
2013-01-01

The novel metal cyanurates LiSr(O3C3N3) and Li3Sr2F(O3C3N3)2 were prepared by exothermic solid state metathesis reactions and characterized by single crystal X-ray diffraction. Crystalline powders were prepared by reactions of alkali earth halides (SrCl2 and SrF2) with Li(OCN) in 1:3 molar ratios, at 450 and 575 °C. The reaction with chloride yielded LiSr(O3C3N3), and the reaction starting from the fluoride yielded LiSr(O3C3N3)·1/2LiF, containing additional LiF in the structure. Both crystal structures revealed the presence of the (O3C3N3)(3-) ions which were formed by cyclotrimerization reaction of (OCN)(-) ions. The reactions were monitored by differential thermal analysis. Infrared spectra of the compounds are reported.