889 research outputs found
Meshal Haqadmoni: Fables from a Distant Past. A Parallel Hebrew-English Text [Reseña]
Reseña completa: Isaac Ibn Sahula. Meshal Haqadmoni: Fables from
a Distant Past. A Parallel Hebrew-English Text.
Editado y traducido por Raphael Loewe. 2 vol.
Oxford y Portland, Oregon: The Littman Library
of Jewish Civilization, 2004
The Composition of Human Milk and Infant Faecal Microbiota Over the First Three Months of Life: A Pilot Study
peer-reviewedHuman milk contains a diverse array of bioactives and is also a source of bacteria for the developing infant gut. The aim of this study was to characterize the bacterial communities in human milk and infant faeces over the first 3 months of life, in 10 mother-infant pairs. The presence of viable Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus in human milk was also evaluated. MiSeq sequencing revealed a large diversity of the human milk microbiota, identifying over 207 bacterial genera in milk samples. The phyla Proteobacteria and Firmicutes and the genera Pseudomonas, Staphylococcus and Streptococcus were the predominant bacterial groups. A core of 12 genera represented 81% of the microbiota relative abundance in milk samples at week 1, 3 and 6, decreasing to 73% at week 12. Genera shared between infant faeces and human milk samples accounted for 70–88% of the total relative abundance in infant faecal samples, supporting the hypothesis of vertical transfer of bacteria from milk to the infant gut. In addition, identical strains of Bifidobacterium breve and Lactobacillus plantarum were isolated from the milk and faeces of one mother-infant pair. Vertical transfer of bacteria via breastfeeding may contribute to the initial establishment of the microbiota in the developing infant intestine
Occupancy Anticipation for Efficient Exploration and Navigation
State-of-the-art navigation methods leverage a spatial memory to generalize
to new environments, but their occupancy maps are limited to capturing the
geometric structures directly observed by the agent. We propose occupancy
anticipation, where the agent uses its egocentric RGB-D observations to infer
the occupancy state beyond the visible regions. In doing so, the agent builds
its spatial awareness more rapidly, which facilitates efficient exploration and
navigation in 3D environments. By exploiting context in both the egocentric
views and top-down maps our model successfully anticipates a broader map of the
environment, with performance significantly better than strong baselines.
Furthermore, when deployed for the sequential decision-making tasks of
exploration and navigation, our model outperforms state-of-the-art methods on
the Gibson and Matterport3D datasets. Our approach is the winning entry in the
2020 Habitat PointNav Challenge. Project page:
http://vision.cs.utexas.edu/projects/occupancy_anticipation/Comment: Accepted in ECCV 2020. 19 pages, 6 figures, appendix at en
Effect of Diet on the Vitamin B Profile of Bovine Milk-Based Protein Ingredients
peer-reviewedThe influence of diet on the water-soluble vitamin composition of skim milk powder and
whey protein ingredients produced from the milk of cows fed pasture or concentrate-based diets
was examined. Fifty-one Holstein-Friesian cows were randomly assigned into three diets (n = 17)
consisting of outdoor grazing of perennial ryegrass (GRS), perennial ryegrass/white clover (CLV),
or indoor feeding of total mixed ration (TMR) for an entire lactation. Raw mid-lactation milk from
each group was processed into skim milk powder and further processed to yield micellar casein whey
and acid whey. Sweet whey was also produced by renneting of pasteurised whole milk from each
system. The water-soluble vitamin profile of each sample was analysed using a combination of direct
injection mass spectrometry and reverse-phase liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry. Vitamin
B3 and B3-amide concentrations were significantly higher (p < 0.05) in TMR-derived samples than
in those from CLV and GRS, respectively. Vitamin B1, B2, and B7 concentrations were significantly
higher in GRS and CLV-derived samples than those from TMR. Significant differences in vitamins B1,
B2, and B3-amide were also observed between protein ingredient types. This study indicates that
bovine feeding systems have a significant effect on B vitamin composition across a range of protein
ingredient types
Stable Engraftment of Bifidobacterium longum AH1206 in the Human Gut Depends on Individualized Features of the Resident Microbiome
Live bacteria (such as probiotics) have long been used to modulate gut microbiota and human physiology, but their colonization is mostly transient. Conceptual understanding of the ecological principles as they apply to exogenously introduced microbes in gut ecosystems is lacking. We find that, when orally administered to humans, Bifidobacterium longum AH1206 stably persists in the gut of 30% of individuals for at least 6 months without causing gastrointestinal symptoms or impacting the composition of the resident gut microbiota. AH1206 engraftment was associated with low abundance of resident B. longum and underrepresentation of specific carbohydrate utilization genes in the pre-treatment microbiome. Thus, phylogenetic limiting and resource availability are two factors that control the niche opportunity for AH1206 colonization. These findings suggest that bacterial species and functional genes absent in the gut microbiome of individual humans can be reestablished, providing opportunities for precise and personalized microbiome reconstitution
Parmodulins Inhibit Thrombus Formation Without Inducing Endothelial Injury Caused by Vorapaxar
Protease-activated receptor-1 (PAR1) couples the coagulation cascade to platelet activation during myocardial infarction and to endothelial inflammation during sepsis. This receptor demonstrates marked signaling bias. Its activation by thrombin stimulates prothrombotic and proinflammatory signaling, whereas its activation by activated protein C (APC) stimulates cytoprotective and antiinflammatory signaling. A challenge in developing PAR1-targeted therapies is to inhibit detrimental signaling while sparing beneficial pathways. We now characterize a novel class of structurally unrelated small-molecule PAR1 antagonists, termed parmodulins, and compare the activity of these compounds to previously characterized compounds that act at the PAR1 ligand–binding site. We find that parmodulins target the cytoplasmic face of PAR1 without modifying the ligand-binding site, blocking signaling through Gαq but not Gα13 in vitro and thrombus formation in vivo. In endothelium, parmodulins inhibit prothrombotic and proinflammatory signaling without blocking APC-mediated pathways or inducing endothelial injury. In contrast, orthosteric PAR1 antagonists such as vorapaxar inhibit all signaling downstream of PAR1. Furthermore, exposure of endothelial cells to nanomolar concentrations of vorapaxar induces endothelial cell barrier dysfunction and apoptosis. These studies demonstrate how functionally selective antagonism can be achieved by targeting the cytoplasmic face of a G-protein–coupled receptor to selectively block pathologic signaling while preserving cytoprotective pathways
Change in glomerular filtration rate over time in the Oxford Renal Cohort Study:observational study
Background: Decline in kidney function can result in adverse health outcomes. The Oxford Renal Cohort Study has detailed baseline assessments from 884 participants ≥60 years of age. Aim: To determine the proportion of participants with a decline in estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), identify determinants of decline, and determine proportions with chronic kidney disease (CKD) remission. Design and setting: Observational cohort study in UK primary care. Method: Data were used from baseline and annual follow-up assessments to monitor change in kidney function. Rapid eGFR decline was defined as eGFR decrease >5 ml/min/1.73 m2/year, improvement as eGFR increase >5 ml/min/1.73 m2/year, and remission in those with CKD at baseline and eGFR >60 ml/min/1.73 m2 during follow-up. Cox proportional hazard models were used to identify factors associated with eGFR decline. Results: There was a net decline in eGFR in the 884 participants over 5 years of follow-up. In 686 participants with >2 eGFR tests with a median follow-up of 2.1 years, 164 (24%) evidenced rapid GFR decline, 185 (27%) experienced eGFR improvement, and 82 of 394 (21%) meeting CKD stage 1-4 at baseline experienced remission. In the multivariable analysis, smoking status, higher systolic blood pressure, and being known to have CKD at cohort entry were associated with rapid GFR decline. Those with CKD stage 3 at baseline were less likely to exhibit GFR decline compared with normal kidney function. Conclusion: This study established that 24% of people evidenced rapid GFR decline whereas 21% evidenced remission of CKD. People at risk of rapid GFR decline may benefit from closer monitoring and appropriate treatment to minimise risks of adverse outcomes, although only a small proportion meet the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence criteria for referral to secondary care.</p
Effect of using reporting guidelines during peer review on quality of final manuscripts submitted to a biomedical journal: masked randomised trial
Objective To investigate the effect of an additional review based on reporting guidelines such as STROBE and CONSORT on quality of manuscripts
Double-Stranded RNA Attenuates the Barrier Function of Human Pulmonary Artery Endothelial Cells
Circulating RNA may result from excessive cell damage or acute viral infection and can interact with vascular endothelial cells. Despite the obvious clinical implications associated with the presence of circulating RNA, its pathological effects on endothelial cells and the governing molecular mechanisms are still not fully elucidated. We analyzed the effects of double stranded RNA on primary human pulmonary artery endothelial cells (hPAECs). The effect of natural and synthetic double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) on hPAECs was investigated using trans-endothelial electric resistance, molecule trafficking, calcium (Ca2+) homeostasis, gene expression and proliferation studies. Furthermore, the morphology and mechanical changes of the cells caused by synthetic dsRNA was followed by in-situ atomic force microscopy, by vascular-endothelial cadherin and F-actin staining. Our results indicated that exposure of hPAECs to synthetic dsRNA led to functional deficits. This was reflected by morphological and mechanical changes and an increase in the permeability of the endothelial monolayer. hPAECs treated with synthetic dsRNA accumulated in the G1 phase of the cell cycle. Additionally, the proliferation rate of the cells in the presence of synthetic dsRNA was significantly decreased. Furthermore, we found that natural and synthetic dsRNA modulated Ca2+ signaling in hPAECs by inhibiting the sarco-endoplasmic Ca2+-ATPase (SERCA) which is involved in the regulation of the intracellular Ca2+ homeostasis and thus cell growth. Even upon synthetic dsRNA stimulation silencing of SERCA3 preserved the endothelial monolayer integrity. Our data identify novel mechanisms by which dsRNA can disrupt endothelial barrier function and these may be relevant in inflammatory processes
Lecture Capture Policies: A Survey of British Universities
The integration of digital and convergent technologies into the classroom poses policy level
challenges for universities, as these constitute a wider process of digitalization and
marketization of the Higher Education Institutions (HEI) ranging from open access publishing
to augmenting pedagogy through learning platforms. Digital technologies not only augment
teaching and learning, they present HEIs with a multitude of challenges from copyright of third
party materials to performance rights. This paper surveyed Lecture Capture policies in 149
British universities in 2015-2016. As mobile and capture technologies become part of the
classroom and extend their construction beyond the physical realms, this paper assesses the
policy challenges that have emerged with the incorporation of lecture capture technologies into
HEIs. Lecture Capture is part of the ‘digitalization’ of the HEI sector, illuminating both the
investments into digital modes of delivery and dissemination and in tandem the numerous
challenges (structural, pedagogic, legal and ethical) that face the sector today through the
increasing incorporation of technologies into everyday teaching practices, policy and delivery
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