Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effect of dietary sodium phytate and microbial phytase on the lipase activity and lipid metabolism of broiler chickens

The objective of the present study was to investigate the effect of dietary phytate and microbial phytase on the lipase activity, lipid metabolism and mRNA expressions of fatty acid synthase (FASN) and leptin in broiler chickens. The study was conducted as a 2 × 3 factorial arrangement of treatments with phytate phosphorus at 0·20 and 0·40 % (added as the sodium phytate) and supplemental microbial phytase at 0, 500, or 1000 phytase units/kg. The results showed that phytase improved (P < 0·05) the growth performance and ileal digestibility of nutrients of broilers, but phytate had no effect (P>0·05) on these parameters, except the decrease (P < 0·01) in the digestibility of Ca. Phytate decreased (P < 0·05) the lipase activity, serum total cholesterol (T-CHO) and hepatic TAG, and elevated (P < 0·01) serum NEFA and HDL cholesterol. Phytase decreased (P < 0·05) serum NEFA, but increased (P < 0·01) serum T-CHO and hepatic TAG. Phytate and phytase also influenced (P < 0·01) the mRNA expressions of leptin in the liver. There were significant (P < 0·05) interactions of phytate and phytase on the concentrations of serum TAG and LDL cholesterol, hepatic NEFA and T-CHO, and the mRNA expressions of FASN. The results suggest that phytate and phytase can affect lipase activity and lipid metabolism of broiler chickens.
Cramer-Rao Bound Analysis of Quantized RSSI Based Localization in Wireless Sensor Networks

Localizing sensor nodes in a distributed system of wireless sensors is an essential process for self-organizing wireless sensor networks. Localization is a fundamental problem in wireless sensor networks, and the behavior of localization has not been thoroughly studied. In this paper, we formulate the quantized received signal strength indicator based localization as a parameter estimation problem and derive the Cramer-Rao lower bound for the localization problem. We study the effect of quantization level and network configuration parameters on the lower bound of localization error variance and understand the relationship between network configuration and localization accuracy
EVA Reconsidered for the Greek Capital Market

The present study examines the explanatory power of one value based performance measure (Economic Value Added) and three other traditional accounting measures (Earnings Per Share, Return On Investment, Return On Equity) in explaining stock market returns in the framework of Athens Stock Exchange for the period 1996-2005. Methodology is based on studies performed for the same capital market by Maditinos, Theriou and Sevic (2005; 2006), Maditinos, Sevic and Theriou G (2007), Maditinos, Sevic, Chatzoglou and Theriou (2007) and Maditinos, Sevic, Theriou and Demetriadis (2007). Results show EPS to provide the greatest value relevance in explaining stock market returns consistent with that of previous studies. Moreover, the explanatory power of the pair wise combinations of EVA with each traditional accounting performance measure is also examined. The pair wise combination of EVA with EPS grants for a significant increase of the explanatory power, compared to EPS explanatory power examined alone (from 2.9 to 7.6 per cent), in explaining stock market returns, consistent again with the previous findings.
Formation of Chromosomal Domains by Loop Extrusion

* Joint first authors listed alphabetically 1. Graduate Program in Biophysics, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA. 2. Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA. 3. Program for Research in Mathematics, Engineering and Science for High School Students (PRIMES) and Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP), MIT, Cambridge Massachusetts, USA. 4. Program in Computational and Systems Biology, MIT, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.
THE EFFECT OF ETHICAL LEADERSHIP ON EMPLOYEES’ JOB SATISFACTION: A STUDY ON MUNICIPALITIES IN KONYA

Son yillarda, tekrarlayan etik skandallar, etik ve ahlaki degerlere liderlik kapsaminda daha buyuk bir onem atfedilmesini saglamistir. Organizasyonlarda etik liderlik davranisi uzere yapilan calismalar da artis gostermektedir. Bunun yaninda, calisanlarin isi ile ne kadar tatmin olduklari da liderler icin onem arz etmektedir cunku calisanlarin is tatmininin, kisisel performanslarini ve sonucunda da orgutu olumlu etkileyecegi ongorulmektedir. Calismalar, etik liderlik davranislarinin is tatminini arttirdigi yonundedir. Bu calismada, etik liderlik ile calisanlarin is tatmini duzeyleri arasindaki iliski, mevcut literature dayali olarak ve hipotez testinde yapisal esitlik modellemesi (YEM) kullanilarak analiz edilmistir. Calisma digerlerinden YEM kullanilmasi sebebi ile ayrismaktadir. Veriler, Konya Buyuksehir Belediyesi ve Merkez Il Belediyelerinde (Selcuklu Belediyesi, Meram Belediyesi, ve Karatay Belediyesi) calisan 224 idari personelden toplanmistir. Bu calismada, Brown, M. E. , Trevino, L. K. ve Harrison, D. A. (2005) tarafindan gelistirilen etik liderlik anketi ve Weiss, D. J., Davis, R. V. , England, G. W. ve Lofquist, L. H. (1967) tarafindan gelistirilen is tatmini anketi - Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire (MSQ) kullanilmaktadir. Yapisal esitlik modeli ile yapilan analizlerinden elde edilen sonuclar, etik liderligin calisanlarin is tatmini duzeyini olumlu yonde etkiledigini ortaya koymustur. Arastirma sonuclari, etik liderlik davranis algisinin is tatmini seviyesini yukselttigini ongoren teorik kavrami guclendirmektedir.
The multiplicity conjecture in low codimensions

Abstract. We establish the multiplicity conjecture of Herzog, Huneke, and Srinivasan about the multiplicity of graded Cohen-Macaulay algebras over a field, for codimension two algebras and for Gorenstein algebras of codimension three. In fact, we prove stronger bounds than the conjectured ones allowing us to characterize the extremal cases. This may be seen as a converse to the multiplicity formula of Huneke and Miller that inspired the conjectural bounds.
The Murid Herpesvirus-4 gL Regulates an Entry-Associated Conformation Change in gH

The glycoprotein H (gH)/gL heterodimer is crucial for herpesvirus membrane fusion. Yet how it functions is not well understood. The Murid Herpesvirus-4 gH, like that of other herpesviruses, adopts its normal virion conformation by associating with gL. However, gH switched back to a gL-independent conformation after virion endocytosis. This switch coincided with a conformation switch in gB and with capsid release. Virions lacking gL constitutively expressed the down-stream form of gH, prematurely switched gB to its down-stream form, and showed premature capsid release with poor infectivity. These data argue that gL plays a key role in regulating a gH and gB functional switch from cell binding to membrane fusion.
Lifestyle Factors that Can Induce an Independent and Persistent Low-GradeSystemic Inflammatory Response: A Wholistic Approach

Subclinical inflammation was first shown in numerous chronic medical illnesses and in the early 1900s, activation of immune-inflammatory pathways was initially observed in a lifestyle-related disorder such as depression. A chronic mild inflammatory state is also a key feature of obesity as well as insulin resistance and other metabolic diseases. This particular form of immune process has given rise to the concept ofmetaflammation � (metabolically triggered inflammation) because it can target vital organs and tissues that are critical for the regulation of metabolism, and ultimately disrupt systemic homoeostasis with detrimental health effects. However, accumulating evidence demonstrates a link between metaflammation and a number of lifestyle factors. Lifestyle variables such as ultra-endurance exercise, physical inactivity, extremes of sleep duration, cigarette smoking, burnout, anxiety, and depression can activate multiple immune-inflammatory pathways. Therefore, this review of the literature that bears hallmarks of a systematic review investigates and presents published research data of these lifestyle factors that can induce an independent and persistent low-grade systemic inflammatory response, within the human body, evaluated through the measurement of various biomarkers.
An Advanced Bolus Calculator for Type 1 Diabetes: System Architecture and Usability Results

This paper presents the architecture and initial usability results of an advanced insulin bolus calculator for diabetes (ABC4D), which provides personalized insulin recommendations for people with diabetes by differentiating between various diabetes scenarios and automatically adjusting its parameters over time. The proposed platform comprises two main components: a smartphone-based patient platform allowing manual input of glucose and variables affecting blood glucose levels (e.g., meal carbohydrate content and exercise) and providing real-time insulin bolus recommendations; and a clinical revision platform to supervise the automatic adaptations of the bolus calculator parameters. The system implements a previously in silico validated bolus calculator algorithm based on case-based reasoning, which uses information from similar past events (i.e., cases) to suggest improved personalized insulin bolus recommendations and automatically learns from new events. Usability of ABC4D was assessed by analyzing the system usage at the end of a six-week pilot study (n = 10). Further feedback on the use of ABC4D has been obtained from each participant at the end of the study from a usability questionnaire. On average, each participant requested 115 $\pm$ 21 insulin recommendations, of which 103 $\pm$ 28 (90%) were accepted. The clinical revision software proposed a total of 754 case revisions, where 723 (96%) adaptations were approved by a clinical expert and updated in the patient platform.
MANUFACTURING MANAGEMENT QUALITY AND FACTORY PERFORMANCE

Recent studies on the use of Total Quality Management (TQM) tools in manufacturing management have produced mixed evidence of their performance benefits. This study builds on the resource approach, the manufacturing strategy literature and the process reengineering literature to develop a model of manufacturing management quality. The latter is defined as a combination of the six quality dimensions, delegation and integration supported by participation, process measurement, communication, and employee development. Management quality applied across the key business processes yields process improvement as an outcome. An improvement track record, in turn, drives factory growth. We find empirical evidence for this model, based on data from two separate data sets: • Higher manufacturing management quality leads to higher continuous improvement in the key manufacturing processes, which in turn leads to higher volume growth for the plant. • We find support for the resource-based view of the firm: manufacturing management quality offers competitive advantage because its six dimensions are characterized by resource dependence and time compression diseconomies, which makes management quality difficult to imitate. • Manufacturing management quality is found to be higher in the automotive and electronics industries than in other sectors. This provides evidence that even imperfectly imitable management practices diffuse sooner or later, first within and then across industries. No competitive advantage lives forever. • There are differences in growth drivers by economic region. In Japan, most profitability leverage derives from improvements in new product introduction into the plant, and in the US and Europe from new product development. Manufacturing improvements are important across all three regions.
Medical Hypothesis, Discovery &innovation Topical Nepafenac in Treatment of Acute Central Serous Chorioretinopathy

This study had been performed to investigate the anatomic and functional outcomes of nepafenac 0.1% therapy in acute central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC). The medical records of 30 patients with acute CSC were reviewed for a total of 31 eye charts. Seventeen eye records of 16 patients who were treated with topical nepafenac 0.1% three times daily for four weeks and continued until complete resolution of subretinal fluid were appraised. Fourteen patients with acute CSC (a total of 14 eye records) who did not receive treatment served as the control group also had been recorded. The proportion of eyes with complete resolution of subretinal fluid, serial changes in the mean best corrected visual acuity (BCVA), and the mean central foveal thickness (CFT) at 6 months of therapy were the outcomes measured. Mean age was 42.6±8.2 years in the treatment group and 41.1±7.1 years in the control group (p=0.85). At 6 months, 14 eyes (82.3%) in the treatment group and 6 eyes (42.8%) in the control group revealed a complete resolution in the subretinal fluid (p=0.02). In the treatment group, mean BCVA (LogMAR) significantly improved from 0.19±0.17 at baseline to 0.09±0.12 at 6 months (p=0.01). In the control group, mean BCVA (LogMAR) was 0.13±0.14 at baseline and decreased to 0.1±0.11 at 6 months (p=0.28). In the treatment group, mean CFT was 349±115 µm at baseline and significantly improved to 221±95 µm at 6 months (p<0.01). In the control group, mean CFT declined from 391±138 µm at baseline to 301±125 µm at 6 months (p=0.06). No treatment-related ocular or systemic side effects were observed. In conclusion, nepafenac 0.1% has the potential to treatment acute CSC. Further trials are warranted to study its safety and efficacy for this disease.
Experimental Investigation of 193-nm Laser Breakdown in Air

We present the measurements and analysis of laser-induced breakdown processes in dry air at a wavelength of 193 nm by focusing 180-mJ 10-MW high-power 193-nm UV ArF laser radiation onto a 30-mum-radius spot size. We examine pressures ranging from 40 torr to 5 atm, for laser power densities of 1 TW/cm2, well above the threshold power flux for air ionization. The breakdown threshold electric field is measured and compared with classical and quantum theoretical ionization models at this short wavelength. A universal scaling analysis of these results allows one to predict aspects of high-power microwave breakdown based on measured laser breakdown observations. Comparison of 193-nm laser-induced effective field intensities for air breakdown data calculated based on the collisional cascade and multiphoton breakdown theories is used successfully to determine the collisional microwave scaled portion with good agreement regarding both pressure dependence and breakdown threshold electric fields. Using a laser shadowgraphy diagnostic technique, the plasma and shock-wave dynamics are analyzed. Blast shock-wave expansion of the plasma and laser-heated neutral gas is observed with average velocities of 47 km/s, and the temporal shock-wave velocity variation is used to determine electron temperature evolution just behind the shock wave.
Top Management Team Risk Taking Propensities and Firm Performance: Direct and Moderating Effects

We investigate the influence of top management team (TMT) risk takingpropensities on firm performance. Diverging from previous work on the risktaking-performance relationship, we rely on perceptual (rather than archival)measures of risk taking. In addition to financial performance, we examineother performance outcomes of risk taking, such as innovativeness andstakeholder satisfaction. Contrary to the findings of Bromiley (1991J andBowman (1980), we find that risk taking has a strong positive influence onfirm performance. In addition, the risk taking-performance relationship ismoderated by the dynamism of the firm's industry. More specifically, we findthat the benefits of TMT risk taking are reduced in more dynamic environments.
Reverse and Conventional Chemical Ecology Approaches for the Development of Oviposition Attractants for Culex Mosquitoes

Synthetic mosquito oviposition attractants are sorely needed for surveillance and control programs for Culex species, which are major vectors of pathogens causing various human diseases, including filariasis, encephalitis, and West Nile encephalomyelitis. We employed novel and conventional chemical ecology approaches to identify potential attractants, which were demonstrated in field tests to be effective for monitoring populations of Cx. p. quinquefasciatus in human dwellings. Immunohistochemistry studies showed that an odorant-binding protein from this species, CquiOBP1, is expressed in trichoid sensilla on the antennae, including short, sharp-tipped trichoid sensilla type, which house an olfactory receptor neuron sensitive to a previously identified mosquito oviposition pheromone (MOP), 6-acetoxy-5-hexadecanolide. CquiOBP1 exists in monomeric and dimeric forms. Monomeric CquiOBP1 bound MOP in a pH-dependent manner, with a change in secondary structure apparently related to the loss of binding at low pH. The pheromone antipode showed higher affinity than the natural stereoisomer. By using both CquiOBP1 as a molecular target in binding assays and gas chromatography-electroantennographic detection (GC-EAD), we identified nonanal, trimethylamine (TMA), and skatole as test compounds. Extensive field evaluations in Recife, Brazil, a region with high populations of Cx. p. quinquefasciatus, showed that a combination of TMA (0.9 µg/l) and nonanal (0.15 ng/µl) is equivalent in attraction to the currently used infusion-based lure, and superior in that the offensive smell of infusions was eliminated in the newly developed synthetic mixture.
Estimating the diversity of dinosaurs

Despite current interest in estimating the diversity of fossil and extant groups, little effort has been devoted to estimating the diversity of dinosaurs. Here we estimate the diversity of nonavian dinosaurs at ≈1,850 genera, including those that remain to be discovered. With 527 genera currently described, at least 71% of dinosaur genera thus remain unknown. Although known diversity declined in the last stage of the Cretaceous, estimated diversity was steady, suggesting that dinosaurs as a whole were not in decline in the 10 million years before their ultimate extinction. We also show that known diversity is biased by the availability of fossiliferous rock outcrop. Finally, by using a logistic model, we predict that 75% of discoverable genera will be known within 60–100 years and 90% within 100–140 years. Because of nonrandom factors affecting the process of fossil discovery (which preclude the possibility of computing realistic confidence bounds), our estimate of diversity is likely to be a lower bound.
Dietary patterns among older Europeans: the EPIC-Elderly study

Overall dietary patterns have been associated with health and longevity. We used principal component (PC) and cluster analyses to identify the prevailing dietary patterns of 99 744 participants, aged 60 years or older, living in nine European countries and participating in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC-Elderly cohort) and to examine their socio-demographic and lifestyle correlates. Two PC were identified: PC1 reflects a ‘vegetable-based’ diet with an emphasis on foods of plant origin, rice, pasta and other grain rather than on margarine, potatoes and non-alcoholic beverages. PC2 indicates a ‘sweet- and fat-dominated’ diet with a preference for sweets, added fat and dairy products but not meat, alcohol, bread and eggs. PC1 was associated with a younger age, a higher level of education, physical activity, a higher BMI, a lower waist:hip ratio and never and past smoking. PC2 was associated with older age, less education, never having smoked, a lower BMI and waist:hip ratio and lower levels of physical activity. Elderly individuals in southern Europe scored positively on PC1 and about zero on PC2, whereas the elderly in northern Europe scored negatively on PC1 and variably on PC2. The results of cluster analysis were compatible with the indicated dietary patterns. ‘Vegetable-based’ and a ‘sweet- and fat-dominated’ diets are prevalent among the elderly across Europe, and there is a north–south gradient regarding their dietary choices. Our study contributes to the identification of groups of elderly who are likely to have different prospects for long-term disease occurrence and survival.
Decentralized support detection of multiple measurement vectors with joint sparsity

This paper considers the problem of finding sparse solutions from multiple measurement vectors (MMVs) with joint sparsity. The solutions share the same sparsity structure, and the locations of the common nonzero support contain important information of signal features. When the measurement vectors are collected from spatially distributed users, the issue of decentralized support detection arises. This paper develops a decentralized row-based Lasso (DR-Lasso) algorithm for the distributedMMVproblem. A penalty term on row-based total energy is introduced to enforce joint sparsity for the MMVs, and consensus constraints are formulated such that users can consent on the total energy, and hence the common nonzero support, in a decentralized manner. As an illustrative example, the problem of cooperative spectrum occupancy detection is solved in the context of wideband cognitive radio networks.
Generalized scalar measures for diffusion MRI using trace, variance, and entropy

This paper details the derivation of rotationally invariant scalar measures from higher‐rank diffusion tensors (DTs) and functions defined on a unit sphere. This was accomplished with the use of an expression that generalizes the evaluation of the trace operator to tensors of arbitrary rank, and even to functions whose domains are the unit sphere. It is shown that the mean diffusivity is invariant to the selection of tensor rank for the model used. However, this rank invariance does not apply to the anisotropy measures. Therefore, a variance‐based, general anisotropy measure is proposed. Also an information theoretical parametrization of anisotropy is introduced that is frequently more consistent with the meaning attributed to anisotropy. We accomplished this by associating anisotropy with the amount of orientational information present in the data, regardless of the imaging technique used. Using a simplified model of fibrous tissue, we simulated anisotropy values with varying orientational complexity and tensor models. Simulations suggested that a lower‐rank tensor model may produce artificially low anisotropy values in voxels with complex structure. This was confirmed with a spin‐echo experiment performed on an excised rat brain. Magn Reson Med 53:866–876, 2005. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Optimization of power and efficiency of thermoelectric devices with asymmetric thermal contacts

We report the theoretical efficiency of thermoelectric power generation with asymmetric thermal contacts to reservoirs. A key ingredient is the electrical and thermal co-optimization. Generic formula of the maximum power output and the optimum leg length are obtained. The Curzon-Ahlborn limit at maximum power can be rigorously derived when the dimensionless figure-of-merit is very large for any asymmetric thermal contact resistances. The results differ from cyclic thermodynamic engines, and some of the reasons are discussed. We also point out the similarity and differences with single-level quantum dot heat engines, which assume no explicit thermal contact resistance with reservoirs.