Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
High genetic diversity among Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Acinetobacter spp. isolated in a public hospital in Brazil

In Brazil and other regions of the world, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Acinetobacter spp. have emerged as important agents of nosocomial infection and are commonly involved in outbreaks. The main objective of the present study was to evaluate the genetic relationship among P. aeruginosa and Acinetobacter spp. isolated from patients in a public university hospital in northwestern Parana, Brazil, and report their antimicrobial resistance profile. A total of 75 P. aeruginosa and 94 Acinetobacter spp. isolates were phenotypically identified and tested for antibiotic susceptibility using automated methodology. Polymyxin B was tested by disk diffusion for P. aeruginosa. Metallo-β-lactamase (MBL) was detected using a disk approximation test. Genotyping was performed using enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus polymerase chain reaction (ERIC-PCR). Approximately 55% of the P. aeruginosa isolates and 92% of the Acinetobacter spp. isolates were multiresistant, but none were MBL-producers. ERIC-PCR revealed the presence of small clusters of carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter spp. , most likely OXA-type carbapenemase producers. Furthermore, high genetic diversity in P. aeruginosa and Acinetobacter spp. clinical isolates was observed, suggesting that cross-transmission is not very frequent in the studied hospital.
Work Without End?

The common finding in the work–family literature that workplace scheduling flexibility reduces work‐to‐family conflict may not be generalizable to service occupations with intense client demands. This qualitative analysis of stockbrokers finds that brokers in firms granting scheduling flexibility experience more work‐to‐family conflict than those in the firm with scheduling rigidity. Although brokers in the latter firm lose autonomy from their employer (and earning potential), bureaucratic rigidity buffers them from client pressures that intrude on family life. This finding should be tested in other occupations requiring extensive client interactions in a 24‐hour economy.
From Rising Stars and Falling Angels: On the Relationship Between the Performance and Ratings of German Mutual Funds

The aim of this article is to analyze the relationship between a fund’s Morningstar rating and 1) its subsequent performance and 2) its rating and subsequent inflows or outflows of funds. The authors distinguish between actual and expected predictability as perceived by investors. This study is the first to analyze a prolonged investment period on the German market after Morningstar implemented essential changes in its rating methodology in 2002. The empirical findings suggest that the Morningstar rating has a limited ability to predict future fund quality for the German fund market and that the Sharpe ratio may be a better forecasting tool than the Morningstar rating, although neither is ultimately reliable. Furthermore, the fund flow performance relationship strongly depends on overall market movements. Highly rated funds suffered much greater outflows than lower-rated funds, especially during bear markets. An event study reveals, however, that investors do perceive rating changes as new information. German investors seem to react later than American investors, suggesting they are less influenced by Morningstar ratings in their allocation decisions.
Comparing the incidence of anterior cruciate ligament injury in collegiate male soccer, taekwondo and basketball players.

The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of the most commonly disrupted ligaments in the knee. Male college basketball, taekwondo and soccer athletes have higher rates of anterior cruciate ligament injury. Rates of anterior cruciate ligament injuries for men in collegiate in this three sport activity have not been examined. Understanding anterior cruciate ligament injury incidence in basketball, taekwondo and soccer, a contact and non-contact sport for men, could further injury prevention efforts. Data were collected from Sports Cultural Olympiad male students 2010-2014 and analyzed to compare anterior cruciate ligament injuries in male college basketball, taekwondo and soccer athletes from the questionnaire (n = 372) and through interviews with injured players (n = 138). Our results indicate collegiate male basketball is a high - risk sport for anterior cruciate ligament injury. In fact, anterior cruciate ligament injury incidence in basketball, soccer and taekwondo in our study indicated that basketball has the greatest number of ACL injuries (α = 1%) and after basketball, Football had the highest injury in ACL and finally taekwondo with 46.8% has a minimum rate of ACL injury. Our finding may be explained by the fact that basketball involves more contact than soccer. Factors such as age, sex, chronicity of injury, associated pathology, activity level, attitude, range of motion and motivation must all be considered to compare of ACL injury. It was suggested that these data would be helpful for the reduction of injury risks and the costs besides with proper onsite precautions.
Strategic HRM and organisational learning in the Chinese private sector during second-pioneering

This study examines the relationship between strategic human resource management (HRM) and organisational learning in Chinese private firms during the second-pioneering stage, which involves a process of transition from ‘opportunism’ to ‘capability building’. It specifically examines how this relationship is influenced by environmental uncertainty and guanxi dependence. Using data from a face-to-face survey of 107 Chinese private firms, the findings show that strategic HRM has a positive effect on all four dimensions of organisational learning: knowledge acquisition, knowledge distribution, knowledge interpretation and organisational memory. In addition, task environmental uncertainty positively moderates the relationship between strategic HRM and organisational learning. However, the moderating effects of institutional environmental uncertainty and guanxi dependence on this relationship are not significant. These results highlight the importance of strategic HRM for organisational learning in uncertain task environments to promote organisational transition.
The Cost-effectiveness and Budget Impact of 2-Drug Dolutegravir-Lamivudine Regimens for the Treatment of HIV Infection in the United States.

BACKGROUND Recommended human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) treatment regimens in the United States contain 3 antiretroviral agents, costing >$30 000/person/year. Pilot studies are evaluating the efficacy of dual therapy with dolutegravir (DTG) and lamivudine (3TC). We examined the potential cost-effectiveness and budget impact of DTG + 3TC regimens in the United States. METHODS Using a mathematical model, we projected the clinical and economic outcomes of antiretroviral therapy (ART)-naive patients under 4 strategies: (1) no ART (for modeling comparison); (2) 2-drug: initial regimen of DTG + 3TC; (3) induction-maintenance: 48-week induction regimen of 3 drugs (DTG/abacavir [ABC]/3TC), followed by DTG + 3TC maintenance if virologically suppressed; and (4) standard of care: 3-drug regimen of DTG/ABC/3TC. Strategy-dependent model inputs, varied widely in sensitivity analyses, included 48-week virologic suppression (88%-93%), subsequent virologic failure (0.1%-0.6%/month), and Medicaid-discounted ART costs ($15 200-$39 600/year). A strategy was considered cost-effective if its incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) was <$100 000/quality-adjusted life-year (QALY). RESULTS The 3 ART strategies had the same 5-year survival rates (90%). The ICER was $22 500/QALY for induction-maintenance and >$500 000/QALY for standard of care. Two-drug was the preferred strategy only when DTG + 3TC 48-week virologic suppression rate exceeded 90%. With 50% uptake of either induction-maintenance or 2-drug for ART-naive patients, cost savings totaled $550 million and $800 million, respectively, within 5 years; savings reached >$3 billion if 25% of currently suppressed patients were switched to DTG + 3TC maintenance. CONCLUSIONS Should DTG + 3TC demonstrate high rates of virologic suppression, this regimen will be cost-effective and would save >$500 million in ART costs in the United States over 5 years.
Guillain–Barré syndrome and Campylobacter jejuni infection

Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS) is the most common cause of acute neuromuscular paralysis, usually due to acute inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy. The presence of activated T lymphocytes and antibodies against peripheral nerve myelin suggests an autoimmune pathogenesis, although there is wide heterogeneity. Gangliosides are sialylated glycolipids widely distributed in nervous system membranes. GBS is usually preceded by an infection, most frequently Campylobacter jejuni enteritis, but also cytomegalovirus, Mycoplasma pneumoniae or Epstein-Barr virus. Patients with GBS and C. jejuni infection are more likely to have neurophysiological features of axonal neuropathy, antibodies to ganglioside GM1, pure motor GBS, a less elevated CSF protein concentration and a worse outcome than other GBS patients. Although molecular mimicry between peripheral nerve gangliosides and epitopes present on C. jejuni lipopolysaccharide could explain some of these associations, this hypothesis is inadequate to account for many aspects of the pathogenesis of GBS.
Corporate Governance and Bank Risk‐Taking

Manuscript type. Review. Research Question/Issue. Bank governance has become the focus of a flurry of recent research and heated policy debates. However, the literature presents seemingly conflicting evidence on the implications of governance for bank risk‐taking. The purpose of this paper is to review prior work and propose directions for future research on the role of governance on bank stability. Research Findings/Insights. We highlight a number of key governance devices and how these shape bank risk‐taking: the effectiveness of bank boards, the structure of CEO compensation, and the risk management systems and practices employed by banks. Theoretical/Academic Implications. Prior work primarily views bank governance as a mechanism to protect the interests of bank shareholders only. However, given that taxpayer‐funded guarantees protect a substantial share of banks’ liabilities and that banks are highly leveraged, shareholder‐focused governance may well subordinate the interests of other stakeholders and exacerbate risk‐taking concerns in the banking industry. Our review highlights the need for internal governance mechanisms to mitigate such behavior by reflecting the needs of shareholders, creditors, and the taxpayer. Practitioner/Policy Implications. Our review argues that the relationship between governance and risk is central from a financial stability perspective. Future research on issues highlighted in the review offer a footing for reforming bank governance to constrain potentially undesirable risk‐taking by banks.
Application of the Shapley Value on transmission cost allocation in the competitive power market environment

The Shapley value of cooperative game theory is proposed to allocate the transmission cost incurred to accommodate all the loads. This method overcomes the drawbacks of conventionally used methods, such as postage-stamp method and MW-miles method, and encouraging the economically optimal usage of the transmission facilities. The simulation results showed that the allocation solution met the requirements of an appropriate pricing strategy and generated the allocation solution that impartial observers would consider fair and desirable.
Management of innovation: role of psychological empowerment, work engagement and turnover intention in the Indian context

The current study, while examining the fields of psychological empowerment, work engagement and innovation, found that psychological empowerment affected work engagement and led to high innovation and lower turnover intention. Psychological empowerment was found to have strong predictive power on work engagement and innovation. The sample respondents were 291 managers from the Indian industrial sectors of pharmaceutical, heavy engineering, IT, electronics and aeronautics engineering. Results of structural equation model revealed work engagement as a strong mediator between psychological empowerment and innovation. The current study provides strong empirical relationship among constructs of psychological empowerment, work engagement, innovation and turnover intention. The theoretical implications to multi-level research are drawn in the study and practical implications are discussed.
SME Financing Conditions in Europe: Credit Crunch or Fundamentals?

Cross-country divergence in credit availability to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) has been a salient feature of the recent Euro Area economic crisis. This paper uses firm level and macroeconomic data to identify heterogeneity in SME credit conditions within the Euro Area since 2009. By taking account of differences in firm quality and in the risk-free interest rate, we use remaining residual differences in credit supply conditions to identify a ‘credit crunch’. We investigate whether macroeconomic conditions such as real economy growth and private sector leverage can explain these residual credit crunches, finding that banks respond to these factors when allocating credit to SMEs. The analysis allows identification of economies where credit conditions appear both unexpectedly restrictive and accommodative.
Cloning and light regulation of expression of the phycocyanin operon of the cyanobacterium Anabaena.

The biliprotein phycocyanin (PC) is a major constituent of the light‐harvesting apparatus of cyanobacteria and red algae. A DNA fragment encoding the beta and alpha subunits of PC was isolated from a genomic library of the cyanobacterium Anabaena 7120 DNA. The single‐copy PC genes are part of a larger operon which consists of five open reading frames (ORFs) encoding, in order, the beta and alpha subunits of PC, two linker polypeptides associated with PC in phycobilisome rods, and a fifth ORF, which may encode a linker polypeptide involved in attachment of the phycobilisome rod to the core of the structure. The operon yields three major transcripts, the first of which (1.4 kb) encodes only the PC subunits. A second (3.6 kb) encodes all five ORFs, and appears to arise from partial read‐through of a terminator following the PC subunit genes. The third transcript (1.4 kb) encodes the last two ORFs. The relative levels of the three transcripts in vivo are modulated by light intensity, but they are not altered by the removal of fixed nitrogen from the growth medium. The site of light regulation appears to be the terminator following the PC genes, rather than a promoter.
Sex differences in the effects of stressful life events on changes in smoking status.

AIMS Stressful life events known to be associated with substance use were examined to determine if there were sex-specific responses to stress resulting in changes in smoking status. PARTICIPANTS AND MEASUREMENTS A community-based sample of ever smokers from the Americans' Changing Lives study (n = 1512, 45% female based on sample weights) was used to examine the interactive effects of sex and stressful life events on the likelihood of two outcomes; relapse among former smokers and failure to quit among current smokers. Logistic regression procedures were used to calculate odds ratios. Factors known to be associated with smoking status (e.g. depression, self-esteem, social support) were assessed as control variables. FINDINGS In the sample of former smokers (n = 729) interpersonal loss events were associated with continued abstinence, whereas change of residence and adverse financial events were associated with increased occurrence of relapse. Women were more likely than men to relapse in response to a financial event. In the sample of current smokers (n = 783), financial events were associated with continued smoking, whereas health events were associated with increased likelihood of quitting. Women were more likely than men to continue smoking in the presence of an adverse financial event and less likely than men to quit in response to an adverse health event. CONCLUSIONS Overall, stressful life events appear to have a greater deleterious effect on continued abstinence and the ability to quit smoking for women when compared to men. In particular, health and financial events are important risk factors for women and tobacco use.
Challenges in maintaining the regulatory capital requirements

Within the current theoretical literature it has been established that banks tend to maintain the regulatory capital requirements either by raising additional capital through equity issues or by selling/substituting risky assets. This paper bridges the gap for a comparative explanation in relation to Basel II system requirements by addressing three specific questions relating to capital adequacy, risk exposure and equity issues which have arisen as a result of two external factor changes: firstly, the adoption of the Basel II standards, and secondly, improvements to UK Financial Services Authority (FSA) regulations. Prior studies on UK banks have revealed that capital has been maintained by issuing equity rather than through the substitution of risky assets. In the light of the recent changes brought by the Basel II system of risk-based capital requirements, the approach adopted by UK banks might have changed. Thus, this paper presents an empirical research on how UK banks maintain the regulatory capital requirements when Basel II regulations are imposed. The findings suggest that there is no common mechanism adopted by UK banks for compliance with the regulatory standards.
MAGNET: A middleware for the proximal interaction of devices based on Wi-Fi direct

This paper presents MAGNET, a novel middleware infrastructure that exploits Wi-Fi Direct to provide a reliable and stable communication means for large numbers of mobile devices. This self-organizing middleware abstracts the multi-hop communication process by autonomously maintaining connectivity among devices. MAGNET also provides a discovery mechanism that exploits the MAC address of the different devices or the services they offer. MAGNET was evaluated both on our WiDiSi simulator for Wi-Fi Direct-based systems, and on real Android devices. The results we obtained in our evaluation illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed middleware, both in discovering and maintaining connectivity in large-scale dynamic scenarios.
Poppy Politics: American Agents, Iranian Addicts and Afghan Opium, 1945–80

This paper surveys the history of American support for Iranian counter-narcotics policy between 1945 and 1989. In particular, it explores the general failings of Tehran's attempt to ban the domestic production and consumption of opium. The significance of this period is two-fold. First, this essay argues that American-backed efforts to combat the opium trade in Iran highlighted the detrimental effects narcotics had upon both state and society in Iran. Second, it suggests that the Iranian ban upon narcotics helped to stimulate a rise in Afghan opium production before the Soviet invasion of 1979.
Simple Transfers, Complex Outcomes: The Impacts of Pensions on Poor Households in Brazil

Drawing on quantitative survey data and in-depth interviews, this article seeks to map out the potential direct and indirect effects of simple cash transfers on households in impoverished rural and urban settings. Brazil is shown to have an extensive system of old age pensions, which affords almost universal coverage to households containing older people. These benefits have a significant impact on levels of poverty and vulnerability in recipient households. They also facilitate access to essential healthcare items, such as drugs, which are seldom freely available through the state health system. The in-depth interviews reveal that pensions can have important effects on intra-household relations, but these effects were not generalizable nor easily captured by quantitative survey tools. There was clear evidence that pensions reduced the propensity of older people to remain economically active, but this must be understood in a context of limited employment opportunities for all age groups and a high prevalence of disability. Overall, the article demonstrates the complex effects of a relatively simple cash transfer, which policy makers need to take into account.
Foreign Direct Investments and Domestic Employment of German SMEs: The Moderating Effect of Owner Management

Despite considerable research, the relationship between foreign direct investment (FDI) and domestic employment is still inconclusive. The present paper contributes to extant research by providing differentiated findings on the FDI and domestic employment relationship. We examine how horizontal and vertical FDI impact domestic employment and how the effects are contingent on the ownership structure of the firm. Testing hypotheses on a dataset of 1,079 erman small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) shows that horizontal FDI has a positive influence, whereas vertical FDI has a negative influence on domestic employment. Furthermore, domestic downsizing due to the establishment of foreign production subsidiaries is less severe in owner‐managed SMEs.
Information technology usage and human resource roles and effectiveness

The human resource function has undergone dramatic change, owing, it would seem, to greater use of rapidly evolving information technology. This study presents the results of an empirical investigation into the associations between the use of information technology and the roles and effectiveness of the human resource function. The results support relationships between information technology use and greater involvement in the strategic HR roles of business partner and change agent. Positive associations between information technology use and technical and strategic effectiveness also revealed the transformational potential of information technology–supported human resource management applications. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
PALB2 Functionally Connects the Breast Cancer Susceptibility Proteins BRCA1 and BRCA2

BRCA1 and BRCA2 are prominently associated with inherited breast and ovarian cancer. The encoded proteins function in DNA damage responses, but no functional link between BRCA1 and BRCA2 has been established. We show here that PALB2 physically and functionally connects BRCA1 and BRCA2 into a DNA damage response network that also includes the RAD51 recombinase. PALB2 directly binds BRCA1, as determined with bacterially expressed fragments of each protein. Furthermore, PALB2 independently interacts with BRCA1 and BRCA2 through its NH2 and COOH termini, respectively. Critically, two point mutants (L21P and L24P) of the PALB2 coiled-coil domain or an NH2-terminal deletion (Δ1-70) disrupt its interaction with BRCA1. We have reconstituted PALB2-deficient cells with PALB2Δ1-70, PALB2-L21P, or PALB2-L24P, or with COOH-terminally truncated PALB2 that is deficient for interaction with BRCA2. Using extracts from these cells, we find that PALB2 mediates the physical interaction of BRCA2 with a COOH-terminal fragment of BRCA1. Analysis of the assembly of foci in these cells by BRCA1, PALB2, BRCA2, and RAD51 suggests that BRCA1 recruits PALB2, which in turn organizes BRCA2 and RAD51. Resistance to mitomycin C and the repair of DNA double-strand breaks by homologous recombination require the interaction of PALB2 with both BRCA1 and BRCA2. These results suggest that BRCA1 and BRCA2 cooperate in DNA damage responses in a PALB2-dependent manner, and have important implications for the genesis of breast/ovarian cancer and for chemotherapy with DNA interstrand cross-linking agents. (Mol Cancer Res 2009;7(7):1110–8)