Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
IAtROGENIC bILE duCt INjuRY

Iatrogenic bile duct injuries (BDI) are still a challenging diagnostic and therapeutic problem. With the introduction of the laparoscopic technique for the treatment of cholecystolithiasis, the incidence of iatrogenic BDI increased. the aim of the study was a retrospective analysis of 69 patients treated at the department due to iatrogenic BDI in the years 2004–2014. material and methods. In this paper, we presented the results of a retrospective analysis of 69 patients treated at the Department due to iatrogenic BDI in the years 2004–2014. The data were analysed in terms of age, sex, type of biliary injury, clinical symptoms, the type of repair surgery, the time between the primary surgery and the BDI management, postoperative complications and duration of hospital stay. Results. 82.6% of BDI occurred during laparoscopic cholecystectomy, 8.7% occurred during open cholecystectomy, whereas 6 cases of BDI resulted from surgeries conducted for other indications. In order to assess the degree of BDI, Bismuth and Neuhaus classifications were used (for open and laparoscopic cholecystectomy respectively). 84.1% of patients with confirmed BDI, were transferred to the Department from other hospitals. The average time between the primary surgery and reoperation was 6.2 days (SD 4). The most common clinical symptom was biliary fistula observed in 78.3% of patients. In 28 patients, unsuccessful attempts to manage BDI were made prior to the admission to the Department in other centres. The repair procedure was mainly conducted by laparotomy (82.6%) and by the endoscopic approach (15.9%). Hepaticojejunostomy was the most common type of reconstruction following BDI (34.7%). Conclusions. The increase in the rate of iatrogenic bile duct injury remains a challenging surgical problem. The management of BDI should be multidisciplinary treatment. Referring patients with both suspected and confirmed iatrogenic BDI to tertiary centres allows more effective treatment to be implemented. key words: iatrogenic bile duct injuries, cholecystectomy, complications
Synergistic Growth Inhibitory Effects of Chrysin and Metformin Combination on Breast Cancer Cells through hTERT and Cyclin D1 Suppression

Objective: To explore the possibility of a novel chemopreventive strategy for improving breast cancer treatment, the anticancer effects of a combination two natural compounds, Chrysin and Metformin, against T47D breast cancer cells were investigated. Materials and Methods: After treatment of T47D cells with Metformin, Chrysin and the two drugs in combination, toxicity to cancer cells was evaluated by MTT assay. Real time PCR was then used to determine the expression levels of hTERT and cyclin D1 genes. Results: The MTT test findings showed that the combination of metformin and chrysin had high synergistic effects in killing cancer cells. In addition PCR demonstrated a significant decrease in cyclin D1 and hTERT gene expression in the T47D breast cancer cell line. Conclusion: The conmbination of metformin and chrysin suppressing hTERT and cyclin D1 gene expression might offer an appropriate approach for breast cancer therapy.
Varieties of Capitalism, Power Resources, and Historical Legacies: Explaining the Slovenian Exception

Although Slovenia is a small, relatively new nation-state, it has been justifiably called “neocorporatist” and a “coordinated market economy,” making it unique among postcommunist societies, including ten new EU member states. The authors explore how it became so, and in the process shed light on the debate between varieties of capitalism (VoC) and power resources theories about how coordinated or neocorporatist economies emerge. Although several of the elements predicted by the varieties of capitalism perspective were present in Slovenia, others were not. The authors also find that a significant mobilization by organized labor at a crucial point played an essential role, and overall find that power resources theory has greater explanatory power in this case. However, in turning from explaining how the Slovenian model was formed to why it was so unique among postcommunist cases, they find that specific historical legacies were critical, particularly those from the distinct Yugoslav form of communism.
Polymorphisms in innate immunity genes and lung cancer risk in Xuanwei, China

The high incidence of lung cancer in Xuanwei County, China has been attributed to exposure to indoor smoky coal emissions that contain polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). The inflammatory response induced by coal smoke components may promote lung tumor development. We studied the association between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in genes involved in innate immunity and lung cancer risk in a population‐based case–control study (122 cases and 122 controls) in Xuanwei. A total of 1,360 tag SNPs in 149 gene regions were included in the analysis. FCER2 rs7249320 was the most significant SNP (OR: 0.30; 95% CI: 0.16–0.55; P: 0.0001; false discovery rate value, 0.13) for variant carriers. The gene regions ALOX12B/ALOX15B and KLK2 were associated with increased lung cancer risk globally (false discovery rate value <0.15). In addition, there were positive interactions between KLK15 rs3745523 and smoky coal use (OR: 9.40; Pinteraction = 0.07) and between FCER2 rs7249320 and KLK2 rs2739476 (OR: 10.77; Pinteraction = 0.003). Our results suggest that genetic polymorphisms in innate immunity genes may play a role in the genesis of lung cancer caused by PAH‐containing coal smoke. Integrin/receptor and complement pathways as well as IgE regulation are particularly noteworthy. Environ. Mol. Mutagen. , 2009. Published 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
TESTING FOR DIFFERENT RATES OF CONTINUOUS TRAIT EVOLUTION USING LIKELIHOOD

Abstract Rates of phenotypic evolution have changed throughout the history of life, producing variation in levels of morphological, functional, and ecological diversity among groups. Testing for the presence of these rate shifts is a key component of evaluating hypotheses about what causes them. In this paper, general predictions regarding changes in phenotypic diversity as a function of evolutionary history and rates are developed, and tests are derived to evaluate rate changes. Simulations show that these tests are more powerful than existing tests using standardized contrasts. The new approaches are distributed in an application called Brownie and in r8s.
Towards sustainable consumption : Understanding the adoption and practice of environmental actions in households

Securing public participation in environmental actions (EAs) such as recycling as a means of making progress towards sustainable consumption is a central issue in UK environmental policy. Participation in EAs has typically been studied from the individual perspective, thereby ignoring the relevance of the social context of the household. This thesis advances understanding of the adoption and practice of EAs from the household perspective. A qualitative -research approach is taken, utilising focus groups with 29 households within a constructivist grounded theory methodology. In terms of theoretical contributions, the unlinked literatures on participation in EAs and household decision making are integrated in light of the research findings resulting in a conceptual framework of the adoption and practice of EAs in households which is grounded in the data. This framework considers EAs in isolation and patterns across EA repertoires and is applicable to the variety of commonly-promoted EAs and household types and different levels of engagement in EAs. Elements of the framework include the multiple units which drive EA adoption and are responsible for EA practice; the situational, household and individual characteristics which shape these units; the multiple routes to EA practice and their tentative differentiation in terms of desirability from a policy perspective; factors facilitating the maintenance of repetitive EAs; types and means of socialisation influence from a leader to other individuals; from where and how knowledge for action is acquired and transmitted through the household; and communication within the household about EAs. Particular empirical contributions include the recognition of the decoupling of attitudes towards an EA and behaviour as a result of factors pertaining to the social context of the household; a new understanding of motivation to engage in EAs relating to how a leader's motivation is established in the first instance and then transferred to other household members; and the recognition that specialised roles relating to EA adoption and practice may be taken up gradually. In terms of methodological contributions, the literatures on focus groups and qualitative family research are integrated to coin the term 'household focus group'. To produce the necessary detail, an original interview activity involving the diagrammatic representation of EA adoption and practice is developed, which is extended into an original means of data analysis involving detailed visual representations of the processes within the household.
Functional magnetic resonance imaging of facial affect recognition in children and adolescents.

OBJECTIVE To examine further the role of the amygdala in the recognition of facial expression in adolescents. METHOD Twelve healthy adolescents were studied using functional magnetic resonance imaging technology during a task of facial affect recognition and a visual control task. RESULTS All subjects demonstrated a significant increase in signal intensity in the amygdala for the facial expression recognition task. CONCLUSIONS The data are consistent with previous work in healthy adult subjects implicating the amygdala as essential for the recognition of fearful facial expression.
An adrenocorticotropin-regulated phosphoprotein intermediary in steroid synthesis is similar to an acyl-CoA thioesterase enzyme.

We have previously reported the purification of a phosphoprotein (p43) intermediary in steroid synthesis from adrenal zona fasciculata [Paz C. , Dada, L. A. , Cornejo Maciel, M. F. , Mele, P. G. , Cymeryng, C. B. , Neuman, I. , Mendez, C. F. , Finkielstein, C. V. , Solano, A. R. , Park, M. , Fischer, W. H. , Towbin, H. , Scartazzini, R. & Podestá, E. J. (1994) Eur J. Biochem. 224, 709-716]. Here, we describe the cloning and sequencing of a cDNA encoding p43 as well as the hormonal regulation of the p43 transcript. The protein resulted homologous to a very recently described mitochondrial peroxisome-proliferator-induced very-long-chain acyl-CoA thioesterase (MTE-I). The deduced amino acid sequence of the protein shows consensus sites for phosphorylation by different protein kinases, and a lipase serine motif. Antibodies raised against a synthetic peptide that includes the lipase serine motif and against the N-terminal region of p43 block the action of the protein. The transcript of p43 was detected in ovary of pseudopregnant rats, rat adrenal zona fasciculata and glomerulosa, mouse Leydig tumor cell line (MA-10), rat brain and human placenta. Inhibition of adrenocorticotropin hormone (ACTH) release and steroid synthesis by dexamethasone produced a dose-dependent decrease in the abundance of the adrenal transcript. The transcript was induced by in vivo stimulation of the adrenals with ACTH. The effect had a rapid onset (5 min), reached maximal stimulation (62%) at 15 min, and returned to basal levels at 30 min. The effect of ACTH on the p43 transcript was inhibited by actinomycin D and enhanced by cycloheximide. Our results provide the first evidence linking acyl-CoA thioesterases with very-long-chain specificities, and a protein intermediary in steroid synthesis, thereby supporting a regulatory role for acyl-CoA thioesterases in steroidogenic tissues.
Corporate social responsibility and financial performance

Purpose – This paper aims to investigate the interaction between sustainability and financial performance. Can socially responsible investors, integrating environmental, social and ethical issues in their investment policy, expect the same return as traditional investors? Design/methodology/approach – Based on the sustainability ratings of a specialized rating agency, Vigeo, a Fama and French approach is performed to adapt for style biases in the performances.Findings – The results indicate that, on a style‐adjusted basis, high sustainability‐rated portfolios have performed better than low‐rated portfolios, but, probably due to the short horizon, not to a significant extent. The same results are found for four out of the five sub‐ratings of which the sustainability rating is composed, suggesting that sustainability is a broad and multidimensional concept that cannot be attributed to one specific theme or topic. The results also indicate that investors are ready to pay a premium for companies with good mana.
Robust Tests for Single‐marker Analysis in Case‐Control Genetic Association Studies

Choosing an appropriate single‐marker association test is critical to the success of case‐control genetic association studies. An ideal single‐marker analysis should have robust performance across a wide range of potential disease risk models. MAX was designed specifically to achieve such robustness. In this work, we derived the power calculation formula for MAX and conducted a comprehensive power comparison between MAX and two other commonly used single‐marker tests, the one‐degree‐of‐freedom (1‐df) Cochran‐Armitage trend test and the 2‐df Pearson χ2 test. We used a single‐marker disease risk model and a two‐marker haplotype risk model to explore the performances of the above three tests. We found that each test has its own “sweet” spots. Among the three tests considered, MAX appears to have the most robust performance.
Dynamics of canopy stomatal conductance, transpiration, and evaporation in a temperate deciduous forest, validated by carbonyl sulfide uptake

Abstract. Stomatal conductance influences both photosynthesis and transpiration, thereby coupling the carbon and water cycles and affecting surface–atmosphere energy exchange. The environmental response of stomatal conductance has been measured mainly on the leaf scale, and theoretical canopy models are relied on to upscale stomatal conductance for application in terrestrial ecosystem models and climate prediction. Here we estimate stomatal conductance and associated transpiration in a temperate deciduous forest directly on the canopy scale via two independent approaches: (i) from heat and water vapor exchange and (ii) from carbonyl sulfide (OCS) uptake. We use the eddy covariance method to measure the net ecosystem–atmosphere exchange of OCS, and we use a flux-gradient approach to separate canopy OCS uptake from soil OCS uptake. We find that the seasonal and diurnal patterns of canopy stomatal conductance obtained by the two approaches agree (to within ±6 % diurnally), validating both methods. Canopy stomatal conductance increases linearly with above-canopy light intensity (in contrast to the leaf scale, where stomatal conductance shows declining marginal increases) and otherwise depends only on the diffuse light fraction, the canopy-average leaf-to-air water vapor gradient, and the total leaf area. Based on stomatal conductance, we partition evapotranspiration (ET) and find that evaporation increases from 0 to 40 % of ET as the growing season progresses, driven primarily by rising soil temperature and secondarily by rainfall. Counterintuitively, evaporation peaks at the time of year when the soil is dry and the air is moist. Our method of ET partitioning avoids concerns about mismatched scales or measurement types because both ET and transpiration are derived from eddy covariance data. Neither of the two ecosystem models tested predicts the observed dynamics of evaporation or transpiration, indicating that ET partitioning such as that provided here is needed to further model development and improve our understanding of carbon and water cycling.
What do we know when we know a person across contexts? Examining self-concept differentiation at the three levels of personality.

OBJECTIVE Previous research examining self-concept differentiation (SCD) has been characterized by (a) a focus on behavioral traits and (b) the conflation of mean-level and inter-contextual differentiation. In two studies, we considered non-conflated measures of SCD at the three levels of personality description in relation to adjustment. METHOD In Study 1, participants completed measures of adjustment, rated their behavioral tendencies (dispositional traits), produced a list of goals (characteristic adaptations), and recalled a self-defining memory (life narratives), from within professional and personal domains. In Study 2, the procedure was modified: Participants reporting either low or high levels of adjustment subsequently rated their behavioral traits, provided a list of goals, or produced a self-defining memory, from five contexts. RESULTS In Study 1, adjustment related positively to SCD at the level of characteristic adaptations but negatively to SCD at the level of life narratives. In Study 2, well-adjusted participants exhibited a greater degree of SCD at the level of characteristic adaptations but a greater degree of thematic consistency at the level of life narratives, relative to those low in adjustment. CONCLUSIONS These results highlight the dynamic nature of SCD across levels of personality and align with the notion that differentiation represents virtue and vice.
Entrepreneurship, Identity, and the Transformation of Marketing Systems

This paper examines how entrepreneurs operating in underground markets come to see laws governing marketing systems as illegitimate and explores the role identity plays in motivating entrepreneurs to challenge existing institutions. Analysis of interviews with 27 cannabis dispensary founders showed that entrepreneurs came to reject medical cannabis prohibition as illegitimate after direct experience with both cannabis and traditional medicines convinced them the factual basis upon which prohibition rested was flawed. Perception of prohibition’s illegitimacy fostered entrepreneur identification as a member of a superior in-group constrained by an illegitimate institution. Pursuing opportunities in illegal markets then became a vehicle for entrepreneurs to enact valued identities by challenging and undermining prohibition. This analysis extends work on informal economy entrepreneurship by showing that dis-identification with formal institutions does more than enable entrepreneurs to recognize economic opportunities ignored by those working within institutional boundaries; it also opens existing marketing systems to decay by providing economic and psychological resources for dismantling the laws that govern them.
Analysis of Rickettsia typhi‐infected and uninfected cat flea (Ctenocephalides felis) midgut cDNA libraries: deciphering molecular pathways involved in host response to R. typhi infection

Murine typhus is a flea‐borne febrile illness that is caused by the obligate intracellular bacterium, Rickettsia typhi. The cat flea, Ctenocephalides felis, acquires R. typhi by imbibing a bloodmeal from a rickettsemic vertebrate host. To explore which transcripts are expressed in the midgut in response to challenge with R. typhi, cDNA libraries of R. typhi‐infected and uninfected midguts of C. felis were constructed. In this study, we examined midgut transcript levels for select C. felis serine proteases, GTPases and defence response genes, all thought to be involved in the fleas response to feeding or infection. An increase in gene expression was observed for the serine protease inhibitors and vesicular trafficking proteins in response to feeding. In addition, R. typhi infection resulted in an increase in gene expression for the chymotrypsin and rab5 that we studied. Interestingly, R. typhi infection had little effect on expression of any of the defence response genes that we studied. We are unsure as to the physiological significance of these gene expression profiles and are currently investigating their potential roles as it pertains to R. typhi infection. To our knowledge, this is the first report of differential expression of flea transcripts in response to infection with R. typhi.
The Onchocerca volvulus Cysteine Proteinase Inhibitor, Ov-CPI-2, Is a Target of Protective Antibody Response That Increases with Age

Background Despite considerable efforts, a suitable vaccine against Onchocerca volvulus infection has remained elusive. Herein, we report on the use of molecular tools to identify and characterize O. volvulus antigens that are possibly associated with the development of concomitant immunity in onchocerciasis. Methodology/Principal Findings Third-stage larvae (L3) and molting L3 (mL3) O. volvulus stage-specific cDNA libraries were screened with a pool of sera from chronically infected patients who had likely developed such immunity. The 87 immunoreactive clones isolated were grouped into 20 distinct proteins of which 12 had already been cloned and/or characterized before and 4 had been proven to be protective in a small O. volvulus animal model. One of these, onchocystatin (Ov-CPI-2), a previously characterized O. volvulus cysteine proteinase inhibitor was, overall, the most abundant clone recognized by the immune sera in both the L3 and mL3 cDNA libraries. To further characterize its association with protective immunity, we measured the IgG subclass and IgE class specific responses to the antigen in putatively immune (PI) and infected (INF) individuals living in a hyperendemic area in Cameroon. It appeared that both groups had similar IgG3 and IgE responses to the antigen, but the INF had significantly higher IgG1 and IgG4 responses than the PI individuals (p<0.05). In the INF group, the IgG3 levels increased significantly with the age of the infected individuals (r = 0.241; p<0.01). The IgG1 responses in the INF were high regardless of age. Notably, culturing L3 in vitro in the presence of anti-Ov-CPI-2 monospecific human antibodies and naïve neutrophils resulted in almost complete inhibition of molting of L3 to L4 and to cytotoxicity to the larvae. Conclusions/Significance These results add to the knowledge of protective immunity in onchocerciasis and support the possible involvement of anti-Ov-CPI-2 IgG1 and/or IgG3 cytophilic antibodies in the development of protective immunity in the PI and the INF. The results further support the consideration of Ov-CPI-2 as a leading target for an anti-L3 vaccine.