Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Transitioning to a more sustainable society: unpacking the role of the learning–action nexus

Abstract In recent years, action on sustainability has been highly influential around the globe and many now recognize the importance of individual and social learning for inspiring action and achieving sustainability outcomes. Transformative learning theory has been criticized, however, for insufficient development of the link between learning and action. The purpose of this paper is to deepen our understanding of the learning–action cycle among adult learners in the sustainability context. We consider this through insights from two studies in Kenya and Canada, utilizing a qualitative approach. Both studies employed semi-structured interviews as their primary data collection instrument and used other tools such as focus groups and journal writing. Three broad nodes of social action—individual, interpersonal and collective—are identified and defined based on the data collected. Results show that while all three types of action were evident in the outcomes of participants, individual social action was the most common and collective social action was the least. Barriers to applying learning in action are also derived from the data, including situational, personal, interpersonal, sociocultural and environmental obstacles. Factors that assist in overcoming such barriers include community support networks and skills training.
The effects of phytate on intestinal absorption and secretion of zinc, and whole-body retention of Zn, copper, iron and manganese in rats

1. The inclusion of phytate (10 g/kg) in a purified diet containing zinc (15 mg/kg) fed to young male rats significantly reduced growth rate and food intake, and promoted a cyclic pattern of food intake characteristic of an uncomplicated Zn deficiency. The decreased growth rate could be accounted for by the reduced food consumption. 2. Rats maintained on a Zn-deficient diet (0.5 mg Zn/kg) were found to have a cyclic pattern of food intake and a very slight weight gain. The addition of phytate (10 g/kg) to the Zn-deficient diet promoted a net loss of mean body-weight. 3. Rats maintained on the Zn-supplemented diet containing phytate excreted significantly more Zn in their faeces than either pair-fed or ad lib. -fed control rats. Rats given the Zn-deficient diet supplemented with phytate excreted more Zn in their faeces than Zn-deficient control rats. 4. Dietary phytate significantly reduced the average daily accumulation (μg/d) and wholebody retention (relative to dietary intake) of iron, copper, manganese and Zn, whether or not the diet was supplemented with Zn. 5. The addition of phytate to the lumen fluid of ligated loops of rat duodenum maintained in situ significantly inhibited 65Zn absorption, compared with the control systems without added phytate. 6. Other studies using ligated duodenal and ileal loops indicated that Zn is secreted into the gut lumen and approximately one-third of this is normally reabsorbed. Recycling of endogenous Zn may be a significant process in the over-all body economy of this trace element. 7. The absorption of 65Zn added to the diet was significantly reduced by dietary phytate. Dietary phytate also reduced the biological half-life of body 65Zn from 91 to 211 h post-administration, possibly by inhibiting reabsorption of endogenous 65Zn and thus promoting a more rapid loss from the body.
Screening Methods to Identify TALEN-Mediated Knockout Mice

Genome editing with site-specific nucleases, such as zinc-finger nucleases or transcription activator-like effector nucleases (TALENs), and RNA-guided nucleases, such as the CRISPR/Cas (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats/CRISPR-associated) system, is becoming the new standard for targeted genome modification in various organisms. Application of these techniques to the manufacture of knockout mice would be greatly aided by simple and easy methods for genotyping of mutant and wild-type pups among litters. However, there are no detailed or comparative reports concerning the identification of mutant mice generated using genome editing technologies. Here, we genotyped TALEN-derived enhanced green fluorescent protein (eGFP) knockout mice using a combination of approaches, including fluorescence observation, heteroduplex mobility assay, restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis and DNA sequencing. The detection sensitivities for TALEN-induced mutations differed among these methods, and we therefore concluded that combinatorial testing is necessary for the screening and determination of mutant genotypes. Since the analytical methods tested can be carried out without specialized equipment, costly reagents and/or sophisticated protocols, our report should be of interest to a broad range of researchers who are considering the application of genome editing technologies in various organisms.
Effect of Eicosapentaenoic Acid on Body Composition and Inflammation Markers in Patients with Head and Neck Squamous Cell Cancer from a Public Hospital in Mexico

ABSTRACT Introduction: Head and neck cancer patients are at high risk of anorexia-cachexia syndrome and literature shows that Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) could regulate it. We aim to determine the EPA effect on body composition and pro-inflammatory markers in patients with head neck cancer. Materials and methods: A randomized single-blind placebo-controlled clinical trial was conducted in patients with head and neck squamous cell cancer who received a polymeric diet with 2 g of EPA or a standard polymeric diet for six weeks before antineoplastic treatment. We assessed body composition by bioelectrical impedance analysis and determined IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α and IFN-γ, CRP, serum proteins, and blood count at baseline and at the end of the study. Results: 32 patients received EPA (2 g/day) and 32 became controls. A decrease in serum levels of IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α, and IFN-γ was observed in the experimental group, as well as regulation of body weight (−0.3 ± 5.9 vs. −2.1 ± 3.7), lean body mass (−0.2 ± 3.8 vs. −1.3 ± 3.6), body fat mass (0.2 ± 3.5 vs. −1.2 ± 3.8), and quality of life (10 ± 33 vs. 5 ± 34). Conclusion: Supplementing with 2 g/day of EPA to head and neck cancer patient during antineoplastic treatment regulates serum pro-inflammatory cytokines, body weight, lean body mass, and improve quality of life.
The Economic Implications of Corporate Financial Reporting

We survey 401 financial executives, and conduct in-depth interviews with an additional 20, to determine the key factors that drive decisions related to reported earnings and voluntary disclosure. The majority of firms view earnings, especially EPS, as the key metric for outsiders, even more so than cash flows. Because of the severe market reaction to missing an earnings target, we find that firms are willing to sacrifice economic value in order to meet a short-run earnings target. The preference for smooth earnings is so strong that 78% of the surveyed executives would give up economic value in exchange for smooth earnings. We find that 55% of managers would avoid initiating a very positive NPV project if it meant falling short of the current quarter's consensus earnings. Missing an earnings target or reporting volatile earnings is thought to reduce the predictability of earnings, which in turn reduces stock price because investors and analysts hate uncertainty. We also find that managers make voluntary disclosures to reduce information risk associated with their stock but try to avoid setting a disclosure precedent that will be difficult to maintain. In general, management's views provide support for stock price motivations for earnings management and voluntary disclosure, but provide only modest evidence in support of other theories of these phenomena (such as debt, political cost and bonus plan based hypotheses).
The mid‐infrared colour–magnitude relation of early‐type galaxies in the Coma cluster as measured by Spitzer‐IRS

We use 16 µm, Spitzer-IRS, blue peakup photometry of 50 early-type galaxies in the Coma cluster to define the mid-infrared colour-magnitude relation. We compare with recent simple stellar population models that include the mid-infrared emission from the extended, dusty envelopes of evolved stars. The Ks-[16] colour in these models is very sensitive to the relative population of dusty Asymptotic Giant Branch (AGB) stars. We find that the passively evolving early-type galaxies define a sequence of approximately constant age (� 10 Gyr) with varying metallicity. Several galaxies that lie on the optical/near-infrared colour-magnitude relation do not lie on the midinfrared relation. This illustrates the sensitivity of the Ks-[16] colour to age. The fact that a colour-magnitude relation is seen in the mid-infrared underlines the extremely passive nature of the majority (68 %) of early-type galaxies in the Coma cluster. The corollary of this is that 32% of the early-type galaxies in our sample are not ‘passive’, insofar as they are either significantly younger than 10 Gyr or they have had some rejuvenation episode within the last few Gyr.
Evolutionary ecology of humanbirth sex ratio under the compound influence of climate change , famine , economic crises andwars

1. Human sex ratio at birth at the population level has been suggested to vary according to exogenous stressors such as wars, ambient temperature, ecological disasters and economic crises, but their relative effects on birth sex ratio have not been investigated. It also remains unclear whether such associations represent environmental forcing or adaptive parental response, as parents may produce the sex that has better survival prospects and fitness in a given environmental challenge. 2. We examined the simultaneous role of wars, famine, ambient temperature, economic development and total mortality rate on the annual variation of offspring birth sex ratio and whether this variation, in turn, was related to sex-specific infant mortality rate in Finland during 1865–2003. 3. Our findings show an increased excess of male births during theWorldWar II and during warm years. Instead, economic development, famine, short-lasting Finnish civil war and total mortality rate were not related to birth sex ratio. Moreover, we found no association between annual birth sex ratio and sex-biased infantmortality rate among the concurrent cohort. 4. Our results propose that some exogenous challenges like ambient temperature and war can skew human birth sex ratio and that these deviations likely represent environmental forcing rather than adaptive parental response to such challenges.
Investigation on Mental Health Status of Migrant Workers in Cenozoic

Objective To investigate the mental health status of migrant workers in Cenozoic,and help them to improve the mental health level.Methods 463 migrant-workers were investigated and analyzed with SCL-90.Results The score of migrant-workers in the somatization,obsessive-compulsive disorder,interpersonal sensitivity,depression,anxiety,hostility,terror,paranoia and Psychoticism were significantly higher than usual models;and the score of obsessive-compulsive symptoms,interpersonal sensitivity,depression,anxiety,hostile and paranoid significantly higher than that of the first generation of migrant workers.Conclusion The mental health status of migrant workers in Cenozoic is serious.
Differential Susceptibility to Hypertension Is Due to Selection during the Out-of-Africa Expansion

Hypertension is a leading cause of stroke, heart disease, and kidney failure. The genetic basis of blood pressure variation is largely unknown but is likely to involve genes that influence renal salt handling and arterial vessel tone. Here we argue that susceptibility to hypertension is ancestral and that differential susceptibility to hypertension is due to differential exposure to selection pressures during the out-of-Africa expansion. The most important selection pressure was climate, which produced a latitudinal cline in heat adaptation and, therefore, hypertension susceptibility. Consistent with this hypothesis, we show that ecological variables, such as latitude, temperature, and rainfall, explain worldwide variation in heat adaptation as defined by seven functional alleles in five genes involved in blood pressure regulation. The latitudinal cline in heat adaptation is consistent worldwide and is largely unmatched by latitudinal clines in short tandem repeat markers, control single nucleotide polymorphisms, or non-functional single nucleotide polymorphisms within the five genes. In addition, we show that latitude and one of these alleles, GNB3 (G protein β3 subunit) 825T, account for a major portion of worldwide variation in blood pressure. These results suggest that the current epidemic of hypertension is due to exposures of the modern period interacting with ancestral susceptibility. Modern populations differ in susceptibility to these new exposures, however, such that those from hot environments are more susceptible to hypertension than populations from cold environments. This differential susceptibility is likely due to our history of adaptation to climate.
Evaluation of the Diode laser (810nm,980nm) on dentin tubule diameter following internal bleaching

Background The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of diode laser irradiation and bleaching materials on the dentinal tubule diameter after laser bleaching. Material and Methods The dentin discs of 40 extracted third molar were used in this experiment. Each disc surface was divided into two halves by grooving. Half of samples were laser bleached at different wavelengths with two different concentrations of hydrogen peroxide. Other half of each disc with no laser bleaching remained as a negative control. Dentin discs were assigned randomly into four groups (n=10) with following hydrogen peroxide and diode laser wavelength specifications; Group 1 (30% - 810 nm), group 2 (30% - 980 nm), group 3 (46% - 810 nm) and group 4 (46% - 980 nm). All specimens were sent for scanning electron microscopic (SEM) analysis in order to measure tubular diameter in laser treated and control halves. Data were analyzed by ANOVA and Tukey test (p<0.05). Results A significant reduction in dentin tubule diameter was observed in groups 1, 2 and 4. There was no significant difference between groups 1 and 2 and between groups 3 and 4 after bleaching. Conclusions The SEM results showed that diode laser was able to reduce dentin tubule diameter and its effect on dentin was dependent on chemical action of bleaching material. Key words:Laser, diode, dentin, tubule, diameter.
Source pool geometry and the assembly of continental avifaunas

Classical niche-assembly models propose that the composition of biotic communities in continental landscapes is determined chiefly by the autecology of species, interspecific competition, and the diversity of resources and habitats within a region. In contrast, stochastic models propose that simulation algorithms can replicate the macroecological patterns, if not the mechanisms, of community assembly. Despite fundamental differences in assumptions, both categories of models assume that species are drawn from regional source pools. We explored the implications of source pool geometry on the assembly of avian communities with an analysis of assemblage dispersion fields, which can be visualized by overlaying the geographic ranges of all species that occur in an assemblage. Contours of species richness surrounding focal quadrats illustrate the decay rate of assemblage similarity with distance and the probable geometry of assemblage source pools. We used a geographic database for 2,891 species of South American birds to characterize dispersion fields for assemblages sampled by 1° latitude-longitude quadrats (n = 1,676). We show that the median range size of dispersion fields varies by an order of magnitude across the continent. Because abundance generally correlates with geographic range size within taxonomic groups, the number of individuals per species in avifaunal source pools must also vary by an order of magnitude. Most significantly, dispersion field geometry was surprisingly asymmetrical and exhibited complex geographical patterns that were associated with the distribution of biomes. These results are broadly consistent with the predictions of niche-assembly models but offer little support for stochastic assembly models.
Relation of BMI to a dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry measure of fatness

Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) is a valid technique for measuring the fat, bone and lean (muscle, organs and water) masses of the body. We evaluated relationships of BMI (kg/m2) with independent measurements of fat and lean masses using DXA in 226 adult volunteers. The evaluation was an application of a general approach to compositional data which has not previously been used for describing body composition. Using traditional regression analyses, when lean mass was held constant, BMI varied with fat mass (men r 0·75, P < 0·05 ; women r 0·85, P < 0·05); when fat mass was held constant, BMI varied with lean mass (men r 0·63, P < 0·05; women r 0·47, P < 0·05). In contrast, a regression model for compositional data revealed that BMI was: (a) strongly associated with log fat mass in both sexes (b1 4·86, P < 0·001 for all women and b1 5·96, P < 0·001 for all men); (b) not associated with bone mass, except in older men; (c) related to lean mass in women but not in men (b3 −4·04, P < 0·001 for all women and b1 −2·59, P < 0·15 for all men). Women with higher BMI tended to have more fat mass and more lean mass than women with lower BMI. Men with higher BMI had more fat mass but similar lean mass to men with lower BMI. Investigators need to be alert to the inaccuracy of BMI to assign a fatness risk factor to individuals, especially among women.
Psychometric Properties of the Beck Depression Inventory—II (BDI-II) Among Community-Dwelling Older Adults

The psychometric properties of the Beck Depression Inventory—II (BDI-II) as a self-administered screening tool for depressive symptoms were examined in a sample of community-dwelling older and younger adults. Participants completed the BDI-II, the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale, the Coolidge Axis II Inventory, the Perceived Stress Scale, and the Short Psychological Well-Being Scale. Internal reliability of the BDI-II was found to be good among older and younger adults. The average BDI-II depression score did not differ between younger and older adults. Solid evidence for convergent and discriminant validity was demonstrated by correlations between the BDI-II with the other measures. The BDI-II appears to have strong psychometric support as a screening measure for depression among older adults in the general population. Implications for using the BDI-II as an assessment instrument in behaviorally based psychotherapy are discussed.
Spirulina and pentoxyfilline - a novel approach for treatment of oral submucous fibrosis.

BACKGROUND Oral submucous fibrosis is a habit associated insidious precancerous condition of the oral cavity commonly found in Asian countries. Many treatment modalities have been attempted in treating the condition apart from steroids which have been the main stay. Hence the present study was designed to assess the efficacy of spirulina and pentoxyfilline and also to compare them in oral submucous fibrosis. MATERIAL AND METHODS Fourty Patients with clinico-histological diagnosis of oral sub mucous fibrosis were selected and divided into two groups with 20 in each group by simple randomization method. Group I received Pentoxyfilline and Group II Spirulina for period of 3 months. The efficacy was assessed by parameters like mouth opening, burning sensation and tongue protrusion using vernier caliper, visual analog scale and a metric scale respectively along with the side effects. RESULTS Student's t-test was applied to obtain the results. Both Pentoxyfilline and Spirulina groups showed statistically significant results (p=0.000) in all the three parameters namely mouth opening, burning sensation and tongue protrusion. On comparing both the drugs statistically insignificant results were obtained for mouth opening (p=0.35) and tongue protrusion (p=0.25) but statistically significant difference was seen in subjective parameter i.e burning sensation (p=0.04). Side effects like bloating of stomach, nausea and gastritis were noted in the pentoxyfilline group in contrast to Spirulina group. CONCLUSION Newer drugs Pentoxyfilline and Spirulina showed promising results in treatment of Oral sub mucous fibrosis. Spirulina was used for the first time for treatment of Oral submucous fibrosis (OSMF) and it proved to be superior than pentoxyfilline as no side effects were observed. Also it was superior in reducing burning sensation and hence can be advised in OSMF patients suffering from severe subjective symptoms.
Investigation on quality of life and social support among people with HIV/AIDS

Objective To explore quality of life and social support among people living with HIV/AIDS and analyze the related factors.Methods Egihty-five people living with HIV/AIDS were selected using typical sampling.General condition questionnaire,infected history survey table,generic quality of life inventory-74(GQOLI-74) and social support scale(SSS)were used.One-way analysis and multiple linear regression analysis were used for the results.Results One-way analysis results suggested that people with different sexs and education degrees had differences in the scores of GQOLI-74(P(0.05)),people in the different villages had differences in SSS scores(P0.05). Multiple linear regression analysis revealed that negative life event was negative associated with social support(P0.05),while the harmonious neighbor relationship,bother pouring were the positive factors(P0.05). Conclusion Many factors might affect quality of life among people living with HIV/AIDS in rural north of Anhui province,the community care and social support of HIV/AIDS still should be enhanced greatly in Chinese country,a community care mode based on family and neighborhood is expected to established.
Expansion of Gammadelta T Cells from Cord Blood: A Therapeutical Possibility

Gammadelta (γδ) T cells are found in both blood and tissues and have antiviral and antitumor properties. The frequency of γδ T cells in umbilical cord blood (UCB) is low, and the majority express δ1, in contrast to blood, whereas the main subset is δ2γ9 T cells. UCB γδ T cells are functionally immature, which together with their scarcity complicates the development of UCB γδ T cell therapies. We aimed to develop an effective expansion protocol for UCB γδ T cells based on zoledronate and IL-2. We found that culture with 5 μM zoledronate and 200 IU IL-2/ml medium for 14 days promoted extensive proliferation. The majority of the cultured cells were γ9δ2 T cells. The fold expansion of this, originally infrequent, subset was impressive (median and maximum fold change 253 and 1085, resp.). After culture, the cells had a polyclonal γδ T cell repertoire and the main memory subset was central memory (CD45RO+ CD27+). The cells produced cytokines such as IL-1B, IL-2, and IL-8 and displayed significant tumor-killing capacity. These results show that development of in vitro expanded UCB γδ T cell therapies is feasible. It could prove a valuable treatment modality for patients after umbilical cord blood transplantation.