Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Comparative Representations of the Middle East: National Values and Russian State-aligned Media

Situating its analysis post-cold war and post-9/11, this paper examines how Russian state-aligned media coverage of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict (2006-08) not only reports the events as they unfold but also reveals specific national values as the state seeks to establish an international and diplomatic role for itself. It provides the example of a country in the process of transition a decade and a half after the collapse of the Soviet system and discusses findings from both quantitative and qualitative investigations conducted over a two-year period of analysis. Using news values and agenda-setting as the methodological framework, the paper draws on additional comparative research into similar coverage by France’s 20 Heures and BBC’s News at Ten to emphasize how, in portrayals of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, Russian state-aligned media is widely employed as an instrument within Putin’s nation-building campaign.
Cryptococcosis in human immunodeficiency virus-infected children.

BACKGROUND Cryptococcosis is a common opportunistic infection in adults with AIDS. Few cases of cryptococcosis complicating pediatric AIDS have been reported. To our knowledge there are no studies that describe the epidemiology, clinical manifestations and outcome of cryptococcosis in a large population of HIV-infected children. METHODS We identified the cases of cryptococcosis through a retrospective review of the hospital records of the 473 HIV-infected children prospectively monitored in the Pediatric Branch of the National Cancer Institute during the 8 years from 1987 to 1995. RESULTS Four (0.85%) patients developed cryptococcosis during the study period. All patients had profound depression of the absolute CD4 counts, a history of previous opportunistic infections, and onset of cryptococcosis in the second decade of life. Cryptococcosis developed as a disseminated infection or a localized process of the lungs. Intermittent fever was the most common presenting manifestation. Serum cryptococcal antigen was positive in all patients and gradually declined after the institution of the antifungal therapy. All patients were treated with amphotericin B with or without flucytosine as initial therapy. Suppressive therapy consisted of fluconazole with or without flucytosine. There were no deaths due to Cryptococcus neoformans. CONCLUSIONS Cryptococcosis is an infrequent yet treatable opportunistic infection of advanced pediatric AIDS that may present with subtle manifestations and warrants careful consideration in the evaluation of febrile HIV-infected children.
Modulation of T-Cell Costimulation as Immunotherapy or Immunochemotherapy in Experimental Visceral Leishmaniasis

ABSTRACT CD40 ligand (CD40L)-deficient C57BL/6 mice failed to control intracellular Leishmania donovani visceral infection, indicating that acquired resistance involves CD40-CD40L signaling and costimulation. Conversely, in wild-type C57BL/6 and BALB/c mice with established visceral infection, injection of agonist anti-CD40 monoclonal antibody (MAb) induced killing of ∼60% of parasites within liver macrophages, stimulated gamma interferon (IFN-γ) secretion, and enhanced mononuclear cell recruitment and tissue granuloma formation. Comparable parasite killing was also induced by MAb blockade (inhibition) of cytotoxic T lymphocyte antigen-4 (CTLA-4) which downregulates separate CD28-B7 T-cell costimulation. Optimal killing triggered by both anti-CD40 and anti-CTLA-4 required endogenous IFN-γ and involved interleukin 12. CD40L−/− mice also failed to respond to antileishmanial chemotherapy (antimony), while in normal animals, anti-CD40 and anti-CTLA-4 synergistically enhanced antimony-associated killing. CD40L-CD40 signaling regulates outcome and response to treatment of experimental visceral leishmaniasis, and MAb targeting of T-cell costimulatory pathways (CD40L-CD40 and CD28-B7) yields macrophage activation and immunotherapeutic and immunochemotherapeutic activity.
Is thyroid inadequacy during gestation a risk factor for adverse pregnancy and developmental outcomes?

A workshop entitled, "The Impact of Maternal Thyroid Diseases on the Developing Fetus: Implications for Diagnosis, Treatment, and Screening," was held in Atlanta, Georgia, January 12-13, 2004. This paper reports on the individual session that examined thyroid inadequacy during gestation as a risk factor for adverse pregnancy and developmental outcomes. For this session the following papers were presented: "Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes"; "Thyroid Physiology in the Fetus"; "New England Data: Cretinism Revisited-Preventing Fetal Brain Damage when Mothers Have Subclinical Hypothyroidism"; "Dutch Data: Pregnancy, Maternal Thyroid (Dys)function and Outcome of the Offspring"; and "Report on the Wales Controlled Antenatal Thyroid Screening Study (CATS); A Prospective RCT. " These presentations were formally discussed by invited respondents well as others in attendance. Salient points from this session about which there was agreement include the following. Maternal hypothyroidism is associated with complications of pregnancy and adverse effects on the fetus. These risks are greater in women with overt hypothyroidism compared to subclinical hypothyroidism, and also appear to be increased in women with euthyroid autoimmune thyroid disease. If maternal hypothyroidism is treated adequately, this appears to reduce the risk for adverse outcomes. The demonstration of a pattern of ontogeny of fetal cerebral cortex deiodinases and thyroid hormone receptors, beginning by 7-8 weeks' gestation, is circumstantial evidence that thyroid hormone plays an important role in fetal neurodevelopment. Significant fetal thyroid hormone production and secretion does not begin until approximately 20 weeks' gestation. If there is a significant role for thyroid hormone in fetal neurodevelopment before 20 weeks' gestation, it likely is of maternal origin. Studies demonstrate low levels of thyroxine in the fetal coelomic fluid and blood prior to 12-14 weeks' gestation. Published data consistently document a relationship between maternal thyroid deficiency during pregnancy and problems with neuropsychological development of the offspring.
Cdc20 overexpression is involved in temozolomide-resistant glioma cells with epithelial-mesenchymal transition

ABSTRACT Glioma remains one of the most aggressive and lethal cancers in central nervous system. Temozolomide (TMZ) is the most commonly used chemotherapeutic agent in gliomas. However, therapeutic benefits of TMZ could be very limited and all patients would finally suffer from tumor progression as the tumors develop resistance to TMZ. In this study, we aim to investigate the underlying mechanism of chemoresistance in glioma cell line and to identify whether there is still a close link between epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and TMZ resistance in gliomas. The real-time RT-PCR and Western blotting were used to measure the expression of EMT markers in TMZ-resistant cells. The migration and invasion assays were conducted to detect the cell motility activity in TMZ-resistant cells. The transfection was used to down-regulate the Cdc20 expression. The student t-test was applied for data analysis. We established stable TMZ-resistant glioma cells and designated as TR. Our results revealed that TR cells exhibited a significantly increased resistance to TMZ compared with their parental cells. Moreover, TMZ-resistant cells had acquired EMT-like changes. For the mechanism study, we measured a significant increased expression of CDC20 and decreased expression of Bim in TR cells. Moreover, upon suppression of CDC20 by shRNA transfection, TR cells underwent a reverse of EMT features. Importantly, knockdown of CDC20 enhanced the drug sensitivity of TR cells to TMZ. Our results suggested that inactivation of CDC20 could contribute to the future therapy that possibly overcomes drug resistance in human cancers.
Empirical Investigation on Computer Self-Efficacy Influencing the Intention to Use Facebook

Environments of social networking sites (SNS) allow individuals to build an online public profile within a bounded system that aims for relationships with other users (called "friends"). Even though the growth of access to SNS has been lower than the average growth of access to the Internet, SNS are increasingly incorporated into the routine of Brazilian people. In order to emphasize the user’s point of view, this study is based on the intention to use Facebook from an individual perception. So the objective of this study is to examine how computer self-efficacy (CSE) may influence the intention to use Facebook. We conducted this study in three phases: (1) exploratory procedures, which were developed from a review of the literature in order to refine the specification of the constructs of our research model; (2) definition of the instrument and data collection, which were then used to analyze the variables of each construct; and (3) an empirical investigation, which was performed with 161 Brazilian users of Facebook to assume an effective treatment of our research model. Our findings highlighted that there is a statistically positive relationship of influence between general and specific CSE and intention to use Facebook. Finally, we may contribute by suggesting that predictions of CSE are strongly influenced by the user’s experience.
Trends in Spring Phenology of Western European Deciduous Forests

Plant phenology is changing because of recent global warming, and this change may precipitate changes in animal distribution (e.g., pests), alter the synchronization between species, and have feedback effects on the climate system through the alteration of biogeochemical and physical processes of vegetated land surface. Here, ground observations (leaf unfolding/first leaf separation of six deciduous tree species) and satellite-derived start-of-growing season (SOS) are used to assess how the timing of leafing/SOS in Western European deciduous forest responded to climate variability between 2001 and 2011 and evaluate the reliability of satellite SOS estimates in tracking the response of forest leafing to climate variability in this area. Satellite SOS estimates are derived from the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) time series of the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS). Temporal trends in the SOS are quantified using linear regression, expressing SOS as a function of time. We demonstrated that the growing season was starting earlier between 2001 and 2011 for the majority of temperate deciduous forests in Western Europe, possibly influenced by regional spring warming effects experienced during the same period. A significant shift of up to 3 weeks to early leafing was found in both ground observations and satellite SOS estimates. We also show that the magnitude and trajectory of shifts in satellite SOS estimates are well comparable to that of in situ observations, hence highlighting the importance of satellite imagery in monitoring leaf phenology under a changing climate.
On evidence supporting the FEAST hypothesis and the laws of software evolution

As part of its study of the impact of feedback in the global software process on software product evolution, the FEAST/1 project has examined metric data relating to various systems in different application areas. High level similarities in the growth trends of the systems studied support the FEAST hypothesis. Inter alia, the results provide evidence compatible with the laws of software evolution, subject only to minor adjustments of the latter.
Neural precursors exhibit distinctly different patterns of cell migration upon transplantation during either the acute or chronic phase of EAE: A serial MR imaging study

As the complex pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis contributes to spatiotemporal variations in the trophic micromilieu of the central nervous system, the optimal intervention period for cell‐replacement therapy must be systematically defined. We applied serial, 3D high‐resolution magnetic resonance imaging to transplanted neural precursor cells (NPCs) labeled with superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles and 5‐bromo‐2‐deoxyuridine, and compared the migration pattern of NPCs in acute inflamed (n = 10) versus chronic demyelinated (n = 9) brains of mice induced with experimental allergic encephalomyelitis (EAE). Serial in vivo and ex‐vivo 3D magnetic resonance imaging revealed that NPCs migrated 2.5 ± 1.3 mm along the corpus callosum in acute EAE. In chronic EAE, cell migration was slightly reduced (2.3 ± 1.3 mm) and only occurred in the lateral side of transplantation. Surprisingly, in 6/10 acute EAE brains, NPCs were found to migrate in a radial pattern along RECA‐1+ cortical blood vessels, in a pattern hitherto only reported for migrating glioblastoma cells. This striking radial biodistribution pattern was not detected in either chronic EAE or disease‐free control brains. In both acute and chronic EAE brain, Iba1+ microglia/macrophage number was significantly higher in central nervous system regions containing migrating NPCs. The existence of differential NPC migration patterns is an important consideration for implementing future translational studies in multiple sclerosis patients with variable disease. Magn Reson Med, 2011. © 2011 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
An intervention for preventing alcohol use among inner-city middle school students.

OBJECTIVE To examine the effectiveness of a brief, school-based intervention for preventing alcohol use. DESIGN AND SETTING Randomized, control trial assigning inner-city public school students to an intervention program or a comparison program. PARTICIPANTS Sixth, seventh, and eighth grade students in Jacksonville, Fla (N=104). INTERVENTIONS Students assigned to the intervention program were given a self-instructional module and corresponding audiotape, a health consultation with a physician or nurse, and a follow-up consultation with a trained peer health model. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Alcohol consumption during the month after the intervention and students' assessments of the interventions were measured. RESULTS Students' t tests showed participants were more satisfied with physician or nurse consultations than with peer consultations or the self-instructional module and audiotapes (P=.05). Analysis of covariance tests showed significant main effects for 30-day quantity of alcohol use (F=5.15, P=.02), with intervention students reporting less alcohol consumption at follow-up than comparison students, and for 30-day frequency of alcohol use (F=5.92,P=.01) with intervention students again showing less frequent use at follow-up. CONCLUSIONS A multicomponent, school-based intervention using print and audiotape media, brief physician or nurse consultations, and follow-up peer contacts holds promise in altering short-term alcohol use and selected behavioral factors among inner-city youth.
The impact of health care access on the community reintegration of male parolees

Author(s): Marlow, Elizabeth | Advisor(s): Chesla, Catherine A | Abstract: THE IMPACT OF HEALTH CARE ACCESS ON THE COMMUNITY REINTEGRATION OF MALE PAROLEES Elizabeth Marlow ABSTRACT Of the 784,400 individuals released from prison in 2005, most were likely to have not finished high school, have limited employment skills, represent ethnically diverse and marginalized communities, and have multiple health problems. These individuals often have long criminal histories and their time in the free world is punctuated by frequent reincarcerations. The purpose of this study was to understand how health care access affects the community reintegration of male parolees. The specific aims were to: examine the health beliefs and practices regarding general health care and specific medical conditions from the parolee's perspective; identify the perceived barriers and facilitators parolees encountered in accessing community health care services; describe the impact of health care access on reintegration from the parolee's perspective; and identify specific events in the parolee's life that may have affected his reintegration. Hermeneutic phenomenology guided the study conduct and data analysis. Data were collected via repeat individual interviews with chronically ill male parolees 40 to 65 years of age. Thirty-two in-depth interviews with 17 participants were completed. Study results included: structural barriers to health care; personal and group responses to interacting with health care while on parole and how these interactions facilitated or diminished reintegration efforts; social barriers and facilitators to health care participation, e.g. the influence of a clinican's caring professional demeanor on participation in clinical care; the role that addiction disorders play in the need to access and utilize health care; and the influence of institutional and criminal adaptations, e.g. interpersonal distrust, social isolation and institutional dependence, on reintegration efforts. These findings suggest a need for new ways of conceptualizing reintegration that includes health more centrally in the processes of success or failure. The health care system has the potential be a positive influence in these individuals' lives. In order to effectively support and care for chronically ill individuals on parole, the health care system, as an institution and as individual clinicians, must begin to integrate the problems and issues of long-term involvement in street and prison life into its evaluation and treatment of these individuals.
Critical conditions of bed sediment entrainment due to debris flow

Abstract. The present study describes entrainment characteristics of bed material into debris flow, based on flume tests, numerical and dimensional analyses. Flume tests are conducted to investigate influences of bed sediment size on erosion rate by supplying debris flows having unsaturated sediment concentration over erodible beds. Experimental results show that the erosion rate decreases monotonically with increase of sediment size, although erosion rate changes with sediment concentration of debris flow body. In order to evaluate critical condition of bed sediment entrainment, a length scale which measures an effective bed shear stress is introduced. The effective bed shear stress is defined as total shear stress minus yield stress on the bed surface. The results show that critical entrainment conditions can be evaluated well in terms of Shields curve using the effective bed shear stress instead of a usual bed shear stress.
Competency – views from one child protection front

Definitions of competent practice which were developed by a team of child protection workers are reexamined in light of current debates about enterprise competency standards. Such definitions indicate that competence is more aptly analysed in terms of the nature of workers' process objectives and their capacity to work within tensions and contradictions than in terms of listings of specific skills and knowledge.
The Group as the Container of Generalized Reciprocity

The results of an experiment with 91 Japanese participants confirmed the hypothesis that players of a Prisoner's Dilemma game would cooperate more with an in-group member than with an out-group member in the simultaneous game but not in the sequential game. The game used in the experiment was constructed such that each player gave his or her partner a portion of his or her own endowment of 300 yen. The group membership was created on the basis of participant's preferences for Klee's or Kandinski's paintings; each participant played the game once with an in-group member and once with an out-group member. In the simultaneous game, the two players decided simultaneously how much to give to the partner without knowing what the partner would do. In the sequential game, the first player made the decision; then the second player followed with full information on the first player's behavior. All the participants in the sequential game in fact took the role of the first player. The differential effect of the partner's group membership had been predicted on the basis of Yamagishi and his colleagues' argument that expectations of generalized reciprocity from in-group members is the source of in-group favoritism in a minimal group. A group is clearly distinguished from a mere aggregate of people. People who sit in the waiting area of an airport, for example, hardly constitute a group, nor do all people who wear eyeglasses. They share certain characteristics such as sitting in the same place or wearing eyeglasses, but this does not make them a group. The defining feature
Right Ventricular Function in Peripartum Cardiomyopathy at Presentation Is Associated With Subsequent Left Ventricular Recovery and Clinical Outcomes

Background—Peripartum cardiomyopathy has variable disease progression and left ventricular (LV) recovery. We hypothesized that baseline right ventricular (RV) size and function are associated with LV recovery and outcome. Methods and Results—Investigations of Pregnancy-Associated Cardiomyopathy was a prospective 30-center study of 100 peripartum cardiomyopathy women with LV ejection fraction (LVEF) <45% within 13 weeks after delivery. Baseline RV function was assessed by echocardiographic end-diastolic area, end-systolic area, fractional area change, tricuspid annular plane excursion, and RV speckle-tracking longitudinal strain. LV recovery was defined as LVEF of ≥50% at 1 year, persistent severe LV dysfunction as LVEF of ⩽35%, and major events as death, transplant, or LV assist device implantation. RV measurements were feasible for 90 of the 96 patients (94%) with echocardiograms available. Mean baseline LVEF was 36±9%. RV fractional area change was <35% in 38% of patients. Of 84 patients with 1-year follow-up data, 63 (75%) had LV recovery and 11 (13%) had LVEF of ⩽35% or a major event (4 LV assist devices and 2 deaths). Tricuspid annular plane excursion and RV strain did not predict outcome. Baseline RV fractional area change by multivariable analysis was independently associated with subsequent LV recovery and clinical outcome. Conclusions—Peripartum cardiomyopathy patients had a high incidence of LV recovery, but a significant minority had persistent LV dysfunction or a major clinical event by 1 year. RV function per echocardiographic fractional area change at presentation was associated with subsequent LV recovery and clinical outcomes and thus is prognostically important.