We have performed precision measurements of the double-spin virtual-photon asymmetry A1 on the neutron in the deep inelastic scattering regime, using an open-geometry, large-acceptance spectrometer ...and a longitudinally and transversely polarized 3He target. Our data cover a wide kinematic range 0.277≤x≤0.548 at an average Q2 value of 3.078 (GeV/c)2, doubling the available high-precision neutron data in this x range. We have combined our results with world data on proton targets to make a leading-order extraction of the ratio of polarized-to-unpolarized parton distribution functions for up quarks and for down quarks in the same kinematic range. Our data are consistent with a previous observation of an A1n zero crossing near x=0.5. We find no evidence of a transition to a positive slope in (Δd+Δd¯)/(d+d¯) up to x=0.548.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
Acute liver failure (ALF) still represents a major therapeutic challenge for hepatologists due to its high mortality rate as a result of multiorgan failure. Although emergency orthotopic liver ...transplantation represents a major advance in the management of selected patients, it is not applicable to all candidates due to limited organ availability. Therefore, new therapeutic options should be developed to bridge selected patients to transplantation or to treat patients not candidates for liver transplantation. Although new techniques for cell culture and perfusion have resulted in a number of promising devices for the provision of temporary liver support in acute liver failure, their clinical efficacy is as yet uncertain. Controlled trials on a multi-centre basis in well-defined patient groups and with standardised outcome measures, including the extent to which treatment influences cell damage and regeneration and prevents or reverses multiorgan failure, will be essential to properly evaluate the clinical value of current and evolving artificial and bioartificial devices. The same considerations must also apply to the assessment of therapeutic efficacy of hepatocyte transplantation. A better understanding of mechanisms responsible for the development of liver cell death, along with cellular and molecular mechanisms allowing surviving cells to proliferate in a hostile environment, will be required if a more targeted therapeutic approach to decreasing hepatocellular injury and enhancing liver regeneration is to be achieved. Whether extracorporeal devices or the transplantation of primary hepatocytes, stem cells or cells genetically engineered to over-express key metabolic functions, a proliferative phenotype and/or cytoprotective pathways will be best suited to meeting these demanding challenges remains to be determined.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK
Introduction: Glaucoma is the second leading cause of blindness worldwide and despite its prevalence, there are still many unanswered questions related to its pathogenesis. There is evidence that ...oxidative stress and inflammation play a major role in disease progression. Glaucoma patients from several studies showed altered gene expression in leukocytes, revealing the possibility of using peripheral biomarkers to diagnose or stage glaucoma. The fact that glaucoma is associated with gene expression changes in tissues distant from the retina underscores the possible involvement of systemic oxidative stress and inflammation as potential contributing or compounding factors in glaucoma. Methods: We assembled a list of oxidative stress and inflammatory markers related to glaucoma based on a review of the literature. In addition, we utilized publicly available data sets of gene expression values collected from peripheral blood mononuclear cells and macrophages from two patient groups: those chronically infected by the hepatitis C virus and those who have cleared it. Activation of the innate immune response can render cells or tissues more responsive to a second delayed proinflammatory stimulus. Additional gene expression data from these cells after subsequent polyinosinic:polycytidylic acid treatment, used to elicit an acute inflammatory response, allowed for the investigation of the acute inflammatory response in these groups. We used fold-change comparison values between the two patient groups to identify genes of interest. Results: A comparison analysis identified 17 glaucoma biomarkers that were differentially expressed in response to HCV-mediated inflammation. Of these 17, six had significant p-values in the baseline vs treated values. Expression data of these genes were compared between patients who had cleared the Hepatitis C virus versus those who had not and identified three genes of interest for further study. Discussion: These results support our hypothesis that inflammation secondary to Hepatitis C virus infection affects the expression of glaucoma biomarker genes related to the antioxidant response and inflammation. In addition, they provide several potential targets for further research into understanding the relationship between innate responses to viral infection and inflammatory aspects of glaucoma and for potential use as a predictive biomarker or pharmacological intervention in glaucoma. Keywords: in silico analysis, inflammation, expression analysis, peripheral blood mononuclear cells
Electroweak and BSM Physics at the EIC Kumar, K.S.; Deshpande, A.; Huang, J. ...
EPJ Web of Conferences,
01/2016, Volume:
112
Journal Article, Conference Proceeding
Peer reviewed
Open access
We discuss the QCD and electroweak physics that becomes accessible by the analysis of semi-leptonic neutral weak amplitudes in polarized electron-light ion collisions at an EIC. Specifically, we ...discuss the reach for precise weak mixing angle measurements at much higher Q2 than fixed target measurements, new neutral current spin-independent and -dependent interference structure functions, and searches for e − τ charged lepton flavor violation.
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IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UL, UM, UPUK
Toll-like receptors (TLR's) are critical receptors that promote innate immune responses to pathogen-associated molecular patterns. Activation of TLR's leads to production of pro-inflammatory ...cytokines such as tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha. This study investigates whether peripheral blood monocyte expression of TLR's is disturbed in patients with chronic hepatitis C and whether levels of expression of these molecules are significantly correlated with hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype, viral load, hepatic necroinflammatory activity, histological stage and circulating TNF-alpha concentrations.
In 18 non-cirrhotic patients with biopsy-proven, virologically-confirmed chronic hepatitis C and 32 controls, we measured expression of TLR2 and TLR4 on peripheral blood monocytes. HCV genotype, viral load, serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels, histological stage of disease and circulating TNF-alpha and endotoxin levels were also determined.
Peripheral blood monocyte expression of TLR2 and TLR4 were significantly increased in patients with chronic hepatitis C compared to controls, irrespective of HCV genotype or histological stage of disease. Circulating levels of TNF-alpha were also significantly increased in patients with chronic hepatitis C. In both the overall study cohort and patients with chronic hepatitis C, monocyte expression of TLR2, but not of TLR4, correlated significantly with serum TNF-alpha levels. In patients with chronic hepatitis C, monocyte expression of TLR2, but not of TLR4, also correlated significantly with serum ALT levels. Expression of TLR's was not significantly correlated with viral load.
Up-regulation of peripheral blood monocyte expression of TLR2 and TLR4 occurs in patients with chronic hepatitis C. Increased monocyte expression of TLR2, but not of TLR4, correlates significantly with both increased circulating TNF-alpha levels and hepatic necroinflammatory activity in this disorder.
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EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
To conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis of lung cancer among acrylonitrile-exposed workers.
A literature search through April 2020 was performed to identify relevant cohort and case-control ...studies. Data from these studies were meta-analyzed to generate summary relative risk estimates (SRREs). Heterogeneity was examined in sub-group and sensitivity analyses, and by meta-regression.
Twenty-two studies were reviewed systematically, and 10 cohort studies and one case-control study were meta-analyzed. Individual relative risk estimates reported across studies were heterogeneous, with most being relatively weak in statistical strength and non-statistically significant on both sides of the null value. Meta-analysis of these data resulted in an SRRE of 1.04 (95% CI: 0.89–1.21; overall model, largely consisting of all workers exposed to acrylonitrile). Sub-group analyses and meta-regression did not support patterns of positive dose-response relationships by duration of exposure/employment or cumulative exposure.
Although some positive associations have been reported in internal comparison analyses based on increasing exposure categories, few associations are statistically significant, there are no apparent or consistent patterns of dose-response, and the confounding influence of cigarette smoking was not adequately controlled. Thus, findings from this review and meta-analysis do not support an increased risk of lung cancer among acrylonitrile workers.
•Acrylonitrile has been in commercial production since the 1940s.•Hundreds of thousands of workers have been exposed to this chemical.•Associations for lung cancer among acrylonitrile-exposed workers have been variable across epidemiologic studies.•Results from this meta-analysis are not supportive of an increased risk of lung cancer among acrylonitrile-exposed workers.•Most studies did not have smoking history information.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK
19.
Single-Chain Antigen-Binding Proteins Bird, Robert E.; Hardman, Karl D.; Jacobson, James W. ...
Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science),
10/1988, Volume:
242, Issue:
4877
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Single-chain antigen-binding proteins are novel recombinant polypeptides, composed of an antibody variable light-chain amino acid sequence (V$_{\text{L}}$) tethered to a variable heavy-chain sequence ...(V$_{\text{H}}$) by a designed peptide that links the carboxyl terminus of the V$_{\text{L}}$ sequence to the amino terminus of the V$_{\text{H}}$ sequence. These proteins have the same specificities and affinities for their antigens as the monoclonal antibodies whose V$_{\text{L}}$ and V$_{\text{H}}$ sequences were used to construct the recombinant genes that were expressed in Escherichia coli. Three of these proteins, one derived from the sequence for a monoclonal antibody to growth hormone and two derived from the sequences of two different monoclonal antibodies to fluorescein, were designed, constructed, synthesized, purified, and assayed. These proteins are expected to have significant advantages over monoclonal antibodies in a number of applications.
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BFBNIB, NMLJ, NUK, PNG, SAZU, UL, UM, UPUK
Two 42-d experiments compared the nutritional value of the glyphosate-tolerant corn event NK603 (Roundup Ready corn) (experiment 1) and the combined traits, insect-protected corn event MON 810 ...(YieldGard com) x glyphosate-tolerant corn event NK603 (experiment 2) to their respective non-transgenic controls and to commercial reference corn, when fed to growing broilers. For each experiment, a randomized complete block design was used with eight dietary treatments in each of five replicated blocks of pens (eight pens for males and eight pens for females per block). Final live weights and feed conversion were not different (P > 0.05) across all treatments in both experiments. In experiment 1, broilers fed diets containing Roundup Ready corn had similar feed conversion adjusted for mortalities to those fed the non-transgenic control and one of the commercial corn diets. Chill weights and thigh, drum, and wing weights were not affected by diets. Differences (P < 0.05) were noted for breast meat and fat pad weights across treatments. In experiment 2, the adjusted feed conversion and carcass parameters were not affected by diets. Differences (P < 0.05) were noted only for protein content of breast meat. Differences observed in both experiments were consistent with natural variability. Broilers in general performed consistently and had similar carcass yields and meat compositions when fed diets containing Roundup Ready corn or YieldGard x Roundup Ready corn as compared with their respective non-transgenic control and commercial diets supporting similar feeding values among diets.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
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