nils-herrmann/clean_scirepeval huggingface dataset:
Isoflurane preconditioning protects against ischemia-reperfusion injury partly by attenuating cytochrome c release from subsarcolemmal mitochondria in isolated rat hearts

To examine if isoflurane preconditioning can attenuate ischemia/reperfusion injury by reducing cytochrome c release from inner mitochondrial membrane.Isolated hearts of Sprague-Dawley rats were perfused on Langendorff apparatus. Hearts were randomly assigned to a non-treated group (CON group, n=12) or three isoflurane preconditioning groups (0.5% ISC group, 1.0% ISC group, and 2.0% ISC group; n=12). In the latter three groups, isoflurane was given at concentrations of 0.5%, 1.0%, and 2.0% for 15 min with 15-min washout before 30-min ischemia. Subsarcolemmal mitochondria of the myocardium were isolated after 60-min reperfusion. Hemodynamics of the each heart was recorded, infarct size of the hearts and contents of cytosolic cytochrome or mitochondrial cytochrome c were measured at the end of reperfusion. Morphology of isolated mitochondria in the four groups was evaluated, respectively.Compared with the CON group, cytosolic cytochrome c in 0.5% ISC group, 1.0% ISC group, and 2.0% ISC group were significantly decreased along with a significant increase of mitochondrial cytochrome c. Infarct size of the hearts in the four groups were 56%±12%, 41%±12%, 32%±7% and 33%±11%, respectively. The values of the three isoflurane preconditioning groups were significantly lower than that of the CON group (P < 0.05). Isoflurane exposure before ischemia can attenuate the change of morphology of mitochondria after reperfusion. The effects of 2.0% isoflurane on reducing cytochrome c release were more remarkable than 0.5% and 1.0% concentrations of isoflurane.Myocardioprotective effects of isoflurane preconditioning were associated with attenuation of cytochrome c loss from the inner membrane of subsarcolemmal mitochondria.

Field of study: Biology, Chemistry, Medicine
Novel Approach to Chlorins and Bacteriochlorins: [8π+2π] Cycloaddition of Diazafulvenium Methides with Porphyrins

New and unprecedented [8π+2π] cycloaddition of diazafulvenium methides with porphyrins and chlorins is reported. The synthetic methodology allowed the access to a new type of 4,5,6,7-tetrahydropyrazolo[1,5-a]pyridine-fused chlorins and bacteriorins in a selective fashion.

Field of study: Chemistry
Impedance study of the Li°/electrolyte interface upon cycling

The Li/electrolyte interface of Li/LiMn2O4 plastic batteries was characterized during galvanostatic cycling by means of impedance spectroscopy. The impedance diagrams acquired during the charge and discharge of the battery were modeled and interpreted, in order to determine the lithium plating/stripping processes on the Li°-electrode. By means of known Li°/electrolyte interface models, a mechanism was then proposed by considering the passivation film and charge transfer effects. These results were also confirmed by three-electrode measurements.

Field of study: Materials science
Looking for Earths: The Race to Find New Solar Systems, by Alan Boss

Add this article to private library Remove from private library Submit corrections to this record View record in the new ADS The ultimate insider's account of astronomy's fantastic voyage in search of brave new worlds in faraway galaxies "Highly recommended." -Science and Technology "Full of humor, heartbreak, and a deep understanding of the ardor and luck that compose years of research. . . . The reader becomes not merely a receiver of Boss's vision, but a fellow explorer." Astronomy "A rewarding account."  Are we alone in the universe . . . or are there other planets generating and sustaining life? The question may be as old as civilization, but in the twilight of a century marked by countless frustrated quests to find other solar systems, several teams of pioneering astronomers have at last discovered a rich crop of mammoth, Jupiter-sized gas planets -the first compelling evidence that there may indeed be life in other galaxies. In Looking for Earths, a prominent planetary scientist takes us along on this thrilling hunt for new life, revealing the behind-the-scenes stories of scientific determination, frustration, and triumph. Ushering us to the mountaintop observatories that house the world's most powerful telescopes, and into the tensionfilled scientific meetings where new results are announced and old results overturned, Alan Boss brings the process of exploration vividly alive. Experience the roller-coaster ride as intricate observations of minuscule stellar wobbles raise hopes that at last a true planet has been found, only to be almost immediately shattered by more powerful observations. Boss also introduces the principal players whose dreams defied all odds and made the first major discovery possible. Like no other book, Looking for Earths captures the lively tension between theory and observation that defines cutting-edge astronomical discovery, along with the heated battles that will determine the direction of big-ticket American astronomy for years to come. "You will find no better introduction to one of the truly revolutionary developments in modern astronomy."-Natural History Bibtex entry for this abstract Preferred format for this abstract

Field of study: Physics
The Open Architecture of European Human Rights Law

The evolution of the European human rights regime is often described in constitutionalist terms: as the move towards an integrated order with the European Convention of Human Rights as its “constitutional instrument” at the top. In this article, I seek to show that this description is misguided and that the regime is better regarded as pluralist – as characterised by a heterarchical relationship between its constituent parts that is ultimately defined politically and not legally. The emergence and workings of this pluralist order are traced through the interaction of the European Court of Human Rights with domestic courts in Spain, France, the European Union and the United Kingdom. All these cases not only show conflicts over questions of ultimate supremacy but also significant convergence and harmony in day-to-day practice. I begin to identify factors that have led to this convergence and conclude that central characteristics of pluralism – incrementalism and the openness of ultimate authority – seem to have contributed to the generally smooth evolution of the European human rights regime in a significant way. This finding suggests a broader appeal of pluralist models as alternatives to constitutionalism in the construction of postnational authority and law.

Field of study: Law
Construction and characterization of a chimeric fusion protein consisting of an anti-idiotype antibody mimicking a breast cancer-associated antigen and the cytokine GM-CSF.

Anti-idiotype antibody, 11D10 mimics biologically and antigenically a distinct and specific epitope of the high molecular weight human milk fat globule (HMFG), a cancer-associated antigen present in over 90% of breast tumor samples. To augment the immunogenicity of 11D10 without the aid of a carrier protein or adjuvant, we made a chimeric 11D10-GM-CSF fusion protein for use as a vaccine. An expression plasmid for 11D10 was made by ligation of the DNA sequences of the 11D10 light-chain variable region upstream of the human kappa constant region. The heavy-chain plasmid carrying GM-CSF was made by ligation of the heavy-chain variable region sequences upstream of the human gamma1 constant region CH1 fused to the DNA fragment encoding the mature GM-CSF peptide 3' to the CH3 exon. NS1 plasmacytoma cells were transfected with the light and heavy-chain vectors by electroporation. Fusion protein secreted in the culture medium was purified and was characterized by gel electrophoresis as well as by determination of the biological activity of the fused GM-CSF. In nonreducing SDS-polyacrylamide gels, a single band approximately 200 Kd reacted with anti-human kappa, anti-human lambda1 and anti-GM-CSF antibodies. In reducing polyacrylamide gels, a approximately 74 kd protein reacted with anti-human lambda1 and anti-GM-CSF antibodies. The fusion protein induced proliferation of GM-CSF dependent NFS-60 cells. These results suggest that the protein is a chimeric anti-idiotype antibody consisting of 11D10 variable domains, human kappa and lambda1 constant domains and that the GM-CSF moiety fused to the constant region lambda1 is biologically active.

Field of study: Biology
Micro-PIXE/PIGE analysis of Palaeolithic mammoth ivory: Potential chemical markers of provenance and relative dating

Micro-Proton Induced X-ray and Gamma-ray Emission (micro-PIXE/PIGE) provide non-destructive methods for the evaluation of the major, minor and trace element compositions of archaeological material. The current study applies micro-PIXE/PIGE analysis to mammoth ivory artefacts from four Palaeolithic sites (Abri Castanet, Vogelherd Cave, Grottes de la Verpilliere I and II) in France and Germany in order to assess the effectiveness of this approach to material older than 30,000 y BP. It has thus far not been established whether such methods of analysis can yield results of scientific and archaeological interest on ivory material that has undergone such extended periods of diagenesis. This approach evaluated preservation state in terms of mean elemental concentrations (Mg vs. Ca) and a comparative assessment of F-content as an indication of relative burial time. The results also indicate that analysis of trace elements (Sr, Zn, Br) can provide chemical markers of archaeological provenance. The results of this study are compared to data in the existing database established by the same methods of analysis on ivory objects from several different time periods and archaeological sources. The implications of these results for the study of archaeological ivories from Palaeolithic contexts are discussed.

Field of study: Environmental science, Geography
FENÔMENO SOCIAL ESPORTE NA FORMAÇÃO PROFISSIONAL EM EDUCAÇÃO FÍSICA

Regarding sport as a sociocultural phenomenon, its insertion in the curriculum for professional training in physical education is discussed in this paper refuting the exclusiveness of current technical dimension. A course that gives too much relevance to sport technical dimension won’t be training professionals able to consider the continuous change of sport modalities meaning by different human groups in the course of time. Instead of a course curriculum structured by sport modalities, this paper proposes that sport may be considered in three dimensions or moments. The “eyes training”, the sport pedagogy and the division into groups of modalities. It is intended to be a contribution to the training of physical education professionals so that they may work within a more critical and transforming perspective, and not only reproduce the technical dimension.

Field of study: Education
Differentially increased IL-6 mRNA expression in liver and spleen following injection of liposome-encapsulated haemoglobin.

Injection of the red cell substitute liposome-encapsulated haemoglobin (LEH) induces increased serum interleukin (IL)-6 in the absence of other inflammatory cytokines. In vitro studies found that IL-6 mRNA was increased in Mphi and endothelial cell lines by co-culture with LEH. In the present study, cytokine mRNA expression in extracts of livers, spleens, lungs and kidneys after LEH injection was determined by semi-quantitative RT-PCR. The distribution of cells expressing IL-6 mRNA in livers and spleens was visualized by in situ hydridization; extracts of kidney and lung did not show increased IL-6 mRNA and were not studied further. IL-6 mRNA accumulation in livers and spleens was increased at 4 h following LEH injection and had declined by 24 h. In the liver, cells expressing IL-6 mRNA were located in endothelia of hepatic and portal veins, and hepatic sinuses, Kupffer cells and epithelial cells of bile ducts. Endothelium of hepatic arteries did not express IL-6 mRNA. Lymphocytes, haematopoietic cells and macrophages expressed IL-6 mRNA in spleens. The data suggest that cells of the reticuloendothelial system (RES) might be a significant source of increased plasma IL-6 in vivo after LEH administration.

Field of study: Medicine
Sedimentary and tectonic evolution of the eastern Hyblean Plateau (southeastern Sicily) during late Cretaceous to Quaternary time

Two palaeogeographic domains have been distinguished in the Cretaceous-Quaternary sequences which crop out in the Hyblean region of southeastern Sicily. In the northeast shallow-water algal-bryozoan calcarenites of Oligocene-Miocene age overlie either Cretaceous rudist limestones or volcanics. Further to the northeast, the stratigraphic gap increases as the Miocene limestone thins, and in the A.G.I.P. well Catania 10, Plio-Pleistocene sediments and volcanics directly overlie Upper Jurassic rocks. In the southwestern part of the Hyblean Plateau pelagic sediments occupy the Cretaceous-Miocene interval. They were deposited in a shallow basin dipping gently towards the southwest. The transition between the two zones is marked by much evidence of synsedimentary tectonic activity, such as widespread slumping and the development of megabreccias composed of Cretaceous and Eocene blocks. The palaeogeographic picture is one of carbonate reefs and volcanic seamounts developing in the Upper Cretaceous. They formed platforms, fault bounded to the west and southwest, from which were derived the detrital sediments found in the basin, and occasional spectacular gravity slides. In present-day terms the structural high probably corresponds to the northeastern margin of the Hyblean Plateau and in part to the (Siracusa) Syracuse-Malta Escarpment. The pattern is little changed in the Upper Miocene with volcanoclastics of phreatomagmatic origin, intercalated with coral bioherms, overlying algal-bryozoan calcarenites. Upper Tortonian-Lower Messinian limestones with a restricted fauna indicate a shallow-water environment which grades up into continental conditions. In the eastern Hyblean Plateau, the Tertiary sequence is capped by Pliocene submarine to subaerial mafic lava flows. Lower Pleistocene sediments consist of biocalcarenites and clays which fill deep graben delimited by Plio-Pleistocene faults, the inshore continuation of the Malta-Syracuse Escarpment system of faults. From a tectonic standpoint the Hyblean region, a gently deformed segment of the African continental margin, acted as a foreland during Tertiary times. A Cretaceous-Eocene tectonic phase was responsible for the palaeogeographic pattern which existed during most of the Cenozoic. The present pattern is the result of three main tectonic phases following the regional Upper Miocene uplift, of Early-Middle Pliocene, Pleistocene and middle Pleistocene-Recent age which influenced the tectonic evolution of the present Ionian coast and the Malta-Syracuse Escarpment.

Field of study: Environmental science, Geography
Governance Disclosure on the Internet: The Case of Australian State Government Departments

This paper examines corporate governance disclosures on the websites of Australian state government departments. The study focuses on the nature and extent of governance information and the ease of finding this information directly on department websites and also in annual reports which are downloadable from websites. Our sample comprises six departments from each of the six states in Australia, giving a sample size of 36 departments. Our findings indicate considerable variability in both the level of disclosure and the accessibility of the information disclosed. The study also highlights a lack of consensus regarding the meaning of governance and what governance comprises, together with the need for a more structured approach to communicating governance information to stakeholders.

Field of study: Political science
A Longitudinal Study of Active Treatment of Adaptive Skills of Individuals with Profound Mental Retardation

A longitudinal study indicated that a single group of adults living in a large state institution (O'Berry Center in Goldsboro, North Carolina) benefited from receiving active treatment, although no control group was permitted. After five years, 59 individuals with profound mental retardation improved their skills in six general areas of dressing, grooming, eating, toileting, communication, and social interaction. After five more years of active treatment, 51 persons who had remained in the program maintained their skills in dressing, grooming, eating, and communication. Significant improvement in the use of toilet and a loss in social interaction were observed. Although the participants were 10 years older at the end of this study, their adaptive behaviors, in comparison to the date of entry, either improved or were maintained. Therefore, aging was not associated with decline in skills.

Field of study: Psychology
Galaxies within galaxies in the TIMER survey: stellar populations of inner bars are scaled replicas of main bars

Inner bars are frequent structures in the local Universe and thought to substantially influence the nuclear regions of disc galaxies. In this study we explore the structure and dynamics of inner bars by deriving maps and radial profiles of their mean stellar population content and comparing them to previous findings in the context of main bars. To this end, we exploit observations obtained with the integral-field spectrograph MUSE of three double-barred galaxies in the TIMER sample. The results indicate that inner bars can be distinguished based on their stellar population properties alone. More precisely, inner bars show elevated metallicities and depleted [$\alpha$/Fe] abundances. Although they exhibit slightly younger stellar ages compared to the nuclear disc, the typical age differences are small, except at their outer ends. These ends of the inner bars are clearly younger compared to their inner parts, an effect known from main bars as orbital age separation. In particular, the youngest stars (i.e. those with the lowest radial velocity dispersion) seem to occupy the most elongated orbits along the (inner) bar major axis. We speculate that these distinct ends of bars could be connected to the morphological feature of ansae. Radial profiles of metallicity and [$\alpha$/Fe] enhancements are flat along the inner bar major axis, but show significantly steeper slopes along the minor axis. This radial mixing in the inner bar is also known from main bars and indicates that inner bars significantly affect the radial distribution of stars. In summary, based on maps and radial profiles of the mean stellar population content and in line with previous TIMER results, inner bars appear to be scaled down versions of the main bars seen in galaxies. This suggests the picture of a "galaxy within a galaxy", with inner bars in nuclear discs being dynamically equivalent to main bars in main galaxy discs.

Field of study: Physics
Structural Phase Transformation, Intermediate States and Electronic Properties of PbTe Under High Pressure

In this work, density functional theory calculations in the framework of local density approximation (LDA) are performed using the Siesta software package in order to theoretically predict the phase transition mechanism and electronic properties of lead telluride (PbTe) under high hydrostatic pressure. PbTe undergoes a structural phase transformation from the cubic NaCl-type structure (B1) belongs to $$ {\hbox{Fm}}\bar{3}{\hbox{m}} $$ Fm 3 ¯ m space group to another cubic CsCl-type structure (B2) belongs to $$ {\hbox{Pm}}\bar{3}{\hbox{m}} $$ Pm 3 ¯ m space group with the influence of external pressure through the simulations. According to simulation results, we suggest a phase transition mechanism having four intermediate states with space groups of $$ {\hbox{P}}\bar{1},\;{\hbox{C}}2/{\hbox{m}},\;{\hbox{R}}\bar{3}{\hbox{m}}\;{\hbox{and}}\;{\hbox{Cmmm}} . $$ P 1 ¯ , C 2 / m , R 3 ¯ m and Cmmm .

Field of study: Materials science
Strategy-proof Social Choice Correspondences

We study the possibilities of constructing strategy-proof rules that choose sets of alternatives as a function of agents' preferences over such sets. We consider two restrictions on the domain of individual preferences over sets. Assuming that all singletons are in the range of the rule, we show that only dictatorial rules can be strategy-proof on the larger domain. The smaller domain also allows for rules which select the set of best elements of two fixed agents.

Field of study: Economics
Community Support and Transition of Research to Operations for the Hurricane Weather Research and Forecasting Model

AbstractThe Hurricane Weather Research and Forecasting Model (HWRF) is an operational model used to provide numerical guidance in support of tropical cyclone forecasting at the National Hurricane Center. HWRF is a complex multicomponent system, consisting of the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) atmospheric model coupled to the Princeton Ocean Model for Tropical Cyclones (POM-TC), a sophisticated initialization package including a data assimilation system and a set of postprocessing and vortex tracking tools. HWRF’s development is centralized at the Environmental Modeling Center of NOAA’s National Weather Service, but it incorporates contributions from a variety of scientists spread out over several governmental laboratories and academic institutions. This distributed development scenario poses significant challenges: a large number of scientists need to learn how to use the model, operational and research codes need to stay synchronized to avoid divergence, and promising new capabilities need to be ...

Field of study: Environmental science
Correlation between Phototoxicity and Photoionization Efficiency of Phenothiazine Drugs

Irradiation of sodium hyaluronate (NaHA) in the presence of phenothiazine derivatives (PTZ) caused degradation of the biopolymer. It was found that measurement of the degradation efficiency was useful for estimation of the phototoxicity of the phenothiazine drugs. The results of laser photolysis suggested that the photoionization of PTZ is a key step in initiating degradation of NaHA.

Field of study: Chemistry
Die magnetische Suszeptibilität der Elektronen in Silizium, Germanium und Indiumarsenid

ZusammenfassungIn Halbleitern läßt sich im Gegensatz zu Metallen der Beitrag der freien Ladungsträger zur magnetischen Suszeptibilität experimentell getrennt ermitteln. Die Trägersuszeptibilität gibt unmittelbar Aufschluß über die effektive Masse oder, anders ausgedrückt, über die Art des Energiebandes.Elektronen in Germanium (Konzentration 5 · 1016 und 6 ·1018 cm−3) besitzen bei 141 und 297° K eine diamagnetische Suszeptibilität, die mit den Massenparametern für 4° K, wie sie von Cyclotronresonanzmessungen her bekannt sind, verträglich ist. Es folgt, daß das Leitfähigkeitsband vier (und nicht acht) Minima aufweist. Von 141 zu 297° K nimmt die effektive Masse zu.Elektronen in Silizium (Konzentration 4 ·1018 cm−3) besitzen bei denselben Temperaturen eine diamagnetische Suszeptibilität, die merklich kleiner ist als nach den Cyclotronresonanz-Massenparametern zu erwarten wäre, d.h. die effektive Masse bei 4° K ist merklich kleiner als über 100° K. Dieser Differenz wegen kann nicht entschieden werden, ob drei oder sechs Minima im Leitfähigkeitsband vorliegen.Elektronen in Indiumarsenid (Konzentration 5 · 1016 bis 6 · 1019 cm−3) besitzen eine mit der Trägerkonzentration zunächst steigende, dann wieder fallende diamagnetische Suszeptibilität. Die effektive Masse kann unmöglich konstant sein; das Leitfähigkeitsband weicht also stark von der einfachen Parabelform ab. Der Suszeptibilitätsverlauf läßt sich mit der vonStern theoretisch berechneten, mit der Konzentration wachsenden Masse, zumindest in großen Zügen, wiedergeben. — Meßverfahren und Apparatur werden in einer späteren Publikation beschrieben.

Field of study: Physics