BACKGROUND There is little information on the earliest changes in motor unit (MU) physiology in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and the development of the classical neurophysiological features of ALS over time. OBJECTIVE We studied the earliest abnormalities in MU physiology in ALS and changes over time. DESIGN Observational, cross-sectional and longitudinal study. POPULATION AND METH...

Farnesyl diphosphate synthase (FPS) is a key enzyme of isoprenoids biosynthesis. However, knowledge of the FPSs of euphorbiaceous species is limited. In this study, ten FPSs were identified in four euphorbiaceous plants. These FPSs exhibited similar exon/intron structure. The deduced FPS proteins showed close identities and exhibited the typical structure of plant FPS. The members of the FPS fa...

A high-performance algorithm for searching for frequent patterns (FPs) in transactional databases is presented. The search for FPs is carried out by using an iterative sieve algorithm by computing the set of enclosed cycles. In each inner cycle of level m FPs composed of m elements are generated. The assigned number of enclosed cycles (the parameter of the problem) defines the maximum length of...

BACKGROUND The recognition and treatment of depressive- and anxiety disorders is not always in line with current standards. The results of programs to improve the quality of care, are not encouraging. Perhaps these programs do not match with the problems experienced in family practice. This study aims to systematically explore how FPs perceive recognition, diagnosis and management of depressive...

Despite great advances in practical applications of fluorescent proteins (FPs), their natural function is poorly understood. FPs display complex spatio-temporal expression patterns in living Anthozoa coral polyps. Here we applied confocal microscopy, specifically, the fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP) technique to analyze intracellular localization and mobility of endogenous FPs...

BACKGROUND Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) patients show heightened fear responses to trauma reminders and an inability to inhibit fear in the presence of safety reminders. Brain imaging studies suggest that this is in part due to amygdala over-reactivity as well as deficient top-down cortical inhibition of the amygdala. Consistent with these findings, previous studies, using fear-potentia...

Current antidepressants are clinically effective only after several weeks of administration. We show that Fuzi polysaccharide-1 (FPS), a new water-soluble polysaccharide isolated from Fuzi, which has been used to treat mood disorders in traditional Chinese medicine for centuries, increases the number of newborn cells in the dentate gyrus in adult mice, and most of these cells subsequently diffe...

OBJECTIVE To examine the factors associated with FPs' referrals of patients with chronic noncancer pain to a tertiary care pain clinic. DESIGN A questionnaire-based survey; data were analyzed using univariate methods. SETTING A tertiary care pain clinic in Toronto, Ont. Participants All FPs who referred patients to the clinic between 2002 and 2005. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Variables explored...

BACKGROUND A wide array of fluorescent proteins (FP) is present in anthozoans, although their biochemical characteristics and function in host tissue remain to be determined. Upregulation of FP's frequently occurs in injured or compromised coral tissue, suggesting a potential role of coral FPs in host stress responses. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS The presence of FPs was determined and quan...

Near-infrared fluorescent proteins (NIR FPs), photoactivatable NIR FPs and NIR reporters of protein-protein interactions developed from bacterial phytochrome photoreceptors (BphPs) have advanced non-invasive deep-tissue imaging. Here we provide a brief guide to the BphP-derived NIR probes with an emphasis on their in vivo applications. We describe phenotypes of NIR FPs and their photochemical a...