Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Virological and histological re-evaluation of Labrea hepatitis.

BACKGROUND a peculiar form of fulminant hepatitis known as Labrea hepatitis, probably related to hepatitis B and D, has been reported in Brazilian Amazon as early as the 1930s. METHODS we reviewed the postmortem liver biopsies of 9 patients with Labrea Hepatitis. Immunostaining for HBV and HDV antigens were performed. RESULTS we found several important characteristics in the liver tissues: 1) moderate hepatocellular necro-inflammation, 2) hepatocellular ballooning, 3) ballooned hepatocytes with fat droplets surrounding the nucleus (morula-like cells or spongiocytes), 4) mild to moderate necrosis and/or mild portoseptal fibrosis. Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) was identified in 7 of the 9 cases and was concentrated in the Morula-like cells. Hepatitis B core antigen (HBcAg) was present in 5 cases, mostly in the hepatocyte's nucleous. The hepatitis D virus antigen (HDV Ag) was present in 5 cases, mostly in the cytoplasm and concentrated in the Morula-like cells. CONCLUSION labrea hepatitis is a fatal disease mostly affecting isolated communities in the Amazon. Evidence implicates HBV and HDV in the etiology of this disease, but this hypothesis needs to be confirmed with genotyping and sequencing research on HBV DNA and HDV RNA extracted from the liver and sera of these patients.
Helping Others?

This article examines the relationship between poverty and family instability during childhood on prosocial behavior—volunteerism—during late adolescence. The 1996 Young Adult supplements of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY) are linked to mother and family records from the 1979-1996 main NLSY sample to create life history records spanning childhood and adolescence. Adolescents—especially males—from single-parent families are less likely than those growing up in married-couple households to be involved in volunteer work. Volunteerism is more strongly related to time spent in poverty among females than males. The results support a mediational model, in which negative effects of childhood social and economic disadvantages on later prosocial behavior occur indirectly through effects on socioemotional development and life experiences during adolescence. The results inform current concerns about putative declines in a civil society and the elevation of individualism over communalism among today's young people.
The effect of interactivity on user experience: Comparing visual cues and actual use

Interactivity has become a key technological feature of web interfaces. Although online interactive tools normally require users’ interaction (actual use), research has suggested their mere appearance (visual cues) may be powerful enough to trigger positive user experiences. Responding to the debate, this study looks at the psychological effects of interface interactivity in terms of visual cues and actual use of interactivity functions. Undergraduate students (N = 82) participated in an experimental study with three conditions (control, visual cues, actual use) of interactivity in a virtual travel website and answered questions about user experience and cognitive processing. The study finds the effects of visual cues do not significantly differ from the effects of actual use on most measures of user experience. In addition, participants in the visual cues condition used more heuristic processing than participants in the actual use condition. The study lends support to the MAIN model (Sundar, 2008a) and adds to the literature on dual-processing models.
[The positive effect of sildenafil on LUTS from BPH while treating ED].

OBJECTIVE To explore the possible relationship between erectile dysfunction (ED) and benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH) in men, and to assess the positive effect of Sildenafil on the lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) from BPH while treating ED. METHODS Thirty-two patients with ED and BPH were offered oral Sildenafil and reviewed before and six months after the administration of Sildenafil by the International Index of Erectile Function-5 (IIEF-5) and the International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) questionnaires. Scores were tested by chi-square. RESULTS IIEF-5 scores were increased by 42.36% and IPSS scores declined by 20.14%, with statistical significance (P < 0.01). CONCLUSION Treatment of ED with Sildenafil appears to improve urinary symptom scores. A lower IPSS at baseline seems to predict a better response to Sildenafil therapy for ED.
An Evaluation of the Implementation of Continuous Assessment (CA): The Case of St. Mary's University College

Students' achievement might not be fully measured through a single or a couple of written tests (examinations). Various types of assessment methods should be in place. Alternative ways of assessing students take into account variation in students' needs, interests and learning styles (Shaaban, 2001). The objective of this study is to evaluate the practices of continuous assessment at Saint Mary's University College. To this end, data were collected through questionnaire, document analysis and interview. The results of the study showed that teachers appeared to have good perceptions about CA, but they did not practise it and use various tools of CA; instead they relied on the traditional modes of measuring students' performance, testing. Upon the results obtained, conclusions were given.
Reconstruction of the chronically insufficient anterior cruciate ligament with the central third of the patellar ligament.

The results of reconstruction of the anterior cruciate ligament with the central third of the patellar ligament as a free, autogenous, non-vascularized graft were retrospectively reviewed at our institution. Eighty reconstructions in seventy-nine patients were evaluated after a minimum of two years. In forty-eight (60 per cent) of the knees, the reconstruction was augmented with an extra-articular lateral sling of iliotibial band. The patients were evaluated with a physical examination, a KT-1000 arthrometer, radiographs, a subjective questionnaire, and a revision of the scale of The Hospital for Special Surgery for rating ligaments. Postoperatively, seventy-six (95 per cent) of the eighty knees no longer gave way, and the pivot-shift test was negative in sixty-seven (84 per cent) of the knees. The average score on the ligament-rating scale was 93 points. All of the patients who had clinical instability at the time of the most recent follow-up had associated ligamentous instability that had not been appreciated or addressed at the time of reconstruction. Arthrometric evaluation revealed that the laxity differed by three millimeters or less from that of the untreated knee in sixty (76 per cent) of the treated knees. In the patient who had bilateral reconstruction, the laxity was the same in both knees. Seventeen patients, who had more than three millimeters of translation, also had additional related ligamentous instability, most commonly posterolateral instability and insufficiency of the medial collateral ligament. We think that major associated ligamentous instability predisposes the reconstruction to failure and should be corrected in conjunction with the reconstruction. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Changing Culture to Facilitate Organisational Change: A Case Study

As the pace of change continues, the ability of individuals to change their ways of working in order to incorporate new skills and knowledge becomes critical to individual and organisational success. The aim of this paper is to highlight the importance of culture change to the overall organisational change and development process, using a case study of a not-for-profit organisation. No other single factor was mentioned as often, or was reported to have had as much impact on the change efforts as the culture within the organisation. The findings reinforce the often espoused theory that providing a supportive and inclusive culture provides a sound foundation for organisational change.
Electronics Structure of Monochalcogenide Materials MX (M = Ge, Sn and Pb; X = S and Se) Buckled Square Lattice

The electronics structure of monochalcogenide materials buckled square lattice is investigated by computation based on Density Functional Theory (DFT). The investigation shows that there is spin splitting on xy-plane at Γ point and M point as a Rashba effect. Perturbation theory k.p and symmetry group C2v used to calculate the originates of the spin splitting. The results show that there are strong Rashba splitting for materials with center atom Pb (with Rashba parameter 5∼ eVÅ). Spin orientation displayed by spin-texture and show that there is time reversal symmetry between upper band and lower band. This condition explains that monochalcogenide materials buckled square lattice as potential candidates for spintronics devices.
The role of parents in problematic internet use among us adolescents

The internet has transformed the way youth communicate, learn, and network, with implications for their broader social, psychological, and physical health and well-being. With the technological capability of accessing the internet from anywhere, at any time, paired with the enormous variety of internet activities in which youth engage—from social networking to chatting to streaming videos to playing games to watching television content—instances of problematic internet behavior have emerged. We conducted an online national survey of 629 US adolescents ages 12–17 years old and a matching survey of one of their parents. We investigated the relationship between problematic internet behavior and parental monitoring, parental mediation of internet use, and parental estimates of their adolescent’s time spent using computers. Analyses showed that problematic internet use was associated with less parental monitoring and parental mediation and poorer parental relationships. Adolescents that spent a lot of time on the computer were also more likely to engage in problematic internet use. Although we cannot determine the direction of the relationships, results support the important role of parents in adolescents’ problematic internet use.
A Bit-to-Symbol Mapping Scheme for Spatial Modulation With Partial Channel State Information

This letter presents a bit to symbol mapping scheme for spatial modulation multiple input single output systems. The proposed scheme relies on the transmitter knowledge of partial information about the channel’s magnitude and the phase for each transmit antenna. The aim of the proposed mapping is to minimize the hamming distance between adjacent symbols, which consequently, reduces the average bit error rate at the receiver. Monte Carlo simulation results corroborate the effectiveness of the proposed scheme as compared with the conventional and hybrid mapping schemes in the literature. As well, the proposed scheme is shown to be less complex as compared with the transmit antenna selection algorithms.
CAT8, a new zinc cluster-encoding gene necessary for derepression of gluconeogenic enzymes in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae

The expression of gluconeogenic fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase (encoded by the FBP1 gene) depends on the carbon source. Analysis of the FBP1 promoter revealed two upstream activating elements, UAS1FBP1 and UAS2FBP1, which confer carbon source-dependent regulation on a heterologous reporter gene. On glucose media neither element was activated, whereas after transfer to ethanol a 100-fold derepression was observed. This gene activation depended on the previously identified derepression genes CAT1 (SNF1) (encoding a protein kinase) and CAT3 (SNF4) (probably encoding a subunit of Cat1p [Snf1p]). Screening for mutations specifically involved in UAS1FBP1 derepression revealed the new recessive derepression mutation cat8. The cat8 mutants also failed to derepress UAS2FBP1, and these mutants were unable to grow on nonfermentable carbon sources. The CAT8 gene encodes a zinc cluster protein related to Saccharomyces cerevisiae Gal4p. Deletion of CAT8 caused a defect in glucose derepression which affected all key gluconeogenic enzymes. Derepression of glucose-repressible invertase and maltase was still normally regulated. A CAT8-lacZ promoter fusion revealed that the CAT8 gene itself is repressed by Cat4p (Mig1p). These results suggest that gluconeogenic genes are derepressed upon binding of Cat8p, whose synthesis depends on the release of Cat4p (Mig1p) from the CAT8 promoter. However, gluconeogenic promoters are still glucose repressed in cat4 mutants, which indicates that in addition to its transcription, the Cat8p protein needs further activation. The observation that multicopy expression of CAT8 reverses the inability of cat1 and cat3 mutants to grow on ethanol indicates that Cat8p might be the substrate of the Cat1p/Cat3p protein kinase.
Delineation of a Novel Pathway That Regulates CD154 (CD40 Ligand) Expression

ABSTRACT The expression of CD154 (CD40 ligand) by activated T lymphocytes plays a central role in humoral and cellular immunity. The fundamental importance of this protein in mounting an immune response has made it an attractive target for immunomodulation. Several studies have demonstrated that CD154 expression is regulated at the level of mRNA turnover in a manner distinct from other cytokine genes. We have purified, sequenced, and characterized the two major proteins that bind the CD154 3′ untranslated region (3′UTR) as members of the polypyrimidine tract binding protein (PTB) family. One of these proteins is a previously unreported alternatively spliced PTB isoform, which we call PTB-T. These proteins interact with a polypyrimidine-rich region within the CD154 3′UTR that lacks any known cis-acting instability elements. The polypyrimidine-rich region of the CD154 3′UTR was both necessary and sufficient to mediate changes in reporter gene expression and mRNA accumulation, indicating the presence of a novel cis-acting instability element. The presence of a cis-acting instability element in the polypyrimidine-rich region was confirmed using a tetracycline-responsive reporter gene approach. The function of this cis-acting element appears to be dependent on the relative cytoplasmic levels of PTB and PTB-T. Cotransfection of vectors encoding PTB-T consistently decreased the CD154 3′UTR-dependent luciferase expression. In contrast, transfection of plasmids encoding PTB tended to increase CD154 3′UTR-dependent luciferase expression. Thus, the CD154 3′UTR contains a novel cis-acting element whose function is determined by the binding of PTB and PTB-T. These data identify a specific pathway that regulates CD154 expression that can potentially be selectively targeted for the treatment of autoimmune disease and allograft rejection.
Temporary Contracts and Labour Market Segmentation in Spain: An Employment-Rent Approach

Deregulation through temporary employment has generated important inequalities in the Spanish labour market. The article presents a theoretical model as well as empirical evidence to explain this process. The main thrust of the model is seeing labour market structures as always being the result of micro-level strategies of employers and employees over employment rents. The employment-rent approach focuses on the impact of deregulation through temporary employment on the employment-rent optimization strategies of both employers and employees at the micro-level. Drawing on recent developments in labour economics, two main micro-level effects of deregulation are identified, the so-called 'incentive' and 'buffer' mechanisms. These two mechanisms are expected to reinforce each other until an equilibrium state in the segmentation process is reached. The employment-rent model is tested using data from the Spanish Labour Force Survey for the period 1987-1997, as well as data on wages drawn from the Survey on Class Structure, Class Consciousness and Class Biography (1991). The evidence proves consistent with the predictions of the model
Cognitive Stimulation in Patients with Dementia: Randomized Controlled Trial

Background/Aims: This study explores the effective outcomes of a structured cognitive stimulation treatment to improve cognition and behavioral symptoms in people with dementia (PWDs), using a randomized controlled clinical trial. Methods: Thirty PWDs were divided into three groups: experimental (treated with cognitive stimulation), placebo (treated with occupational therapy), and control (continuing with the usual activities of the nursing home). Assessment, at baseline and after a period of 8 weeks, was performed using the Clinical Dementia Rating Scale, activities of daily living, Mini-Mental State Examination, Esame Neuropsicologico Breve 2, Geriatric Depression Scale and Behavioral Pathology in Alzheimer's Disease Scale. Results: Only the experimental group improved its performance in cognitive tests (p < 0.05) and showed a significant decrease in behavioral symptoms (p < 0.01) after the treatment. Conclusions: The results suggest that a cognitive stimulation treatment for PWDs would improve not only their cognition, but also behavioral symptoms.
Joint Adaptive Modulation and Power Allocation in Cognitive Radio Networks

Link adaptation is an important issue in the design of cognitive radio networks, which aims at making efficient use of system resources. In this paper, we propose and investigate a joint adaptive modulation and power allocation algorithm in cognitive radio networks. Specifically, the modulation scheme and transmit power are adjusted adaptively according to channel conditions, interference limit and target signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR). As such the total power consumption of cognitive users (CUs) is minimized while keeping both the target SINR of CUs and interference to primary user (PU) at an acceptable level. Simulation results are provided to show that the proposed algorithm achieves a significant gain in power saving.
The interrelations of features of questions, mark schemes and examinee responses and their impact upon marker agreement

In this paper we develop an evidence-based framework for considering many of the factors affecting marker agreement in GCSEs and A levels. A logical analysis of the demands of the marking task suggests a core grouping comprising: (i) question features; (ii) mark scheme features; and (iii) examinee response features. The framework synthesises several strands of previous empirical research. Additionally, we present new data, collected by observing the social dynamics of examiner meetings, to illustrate some effects of these interactions. We use our framework to argue that the two most important goals of research into marker agreement are prediction and control. That is, assessment agencies need to be able not only to predict the level of agreement between a marker’s mark and the ‘definitive’ mark, but also to anticipate the effects of different possible courses of action on the level of agreement. We conclude with a list of possible courses of action, considering their effect not only on marking accuracy, but also on overall validity – the overriding concern.
Random Walks in a Convex Body and an Improved Volume Algorithm

We give a randomized algorithm using O(n7 log’ n) separation calls to approximate the volume of a convex body with a fixed relative error. The bound is O(n6 log4 n) for centrally symmetric bodies and for polytopes with a polynomial number of facets, and O(n5 log4 n) for centrally symmetric polytopes with a polynomial number of facets. We also give an O(n6 log n) algorithm to sample a point from the uniform distribution over a convex body. Several tools are developed that may be interesting on their own. We extend results of Sinclair-Jerrum [43] and the authors [34] on the mixing rate of Markov chains from finite to arbitrary Markov chains. We also analyze the mixing rate of various random walks on convex bodies, in particular the random walk with steps from the uniform distribution over a unit ball. @ 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
A daily palatable meal without food deprivation entrains the suprachiasmatic nucleus of rats

Food is considered a potent Zeitgeber for peripheral oscillators but not for the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), which is entrained principally by the light–dark cycle. However, when food attains relevant properties in quantity and quality, it can be a potent Zeitgeber even for the SCN. Here we evaluated the entrainment influence of a daily palatable meal, without regular food deprivation, on the circadian rhythm of locomotor activity and the c‐Fos and PER‐1 protein expression in the SCN. Rats fed ad libitum, in constant darkness, received a palatable meal for 6 weeks starting in the middle of the subjective day. Locomotor activity showed entrainment when the offset of activity coincided with the palatable meal‐time. In the SCN, the peak expression of c‐Fos was observed at palatable meal‐time and PER‐1 showed a peak during the onset of subjective night, as predicted according to the behavioural entrained pattern. In addition, c‐Fos and PER‐1 expression in the paraventricular thalamic nucleus (PVT) showed increased expression at palatable meal‐time, while the intergeniculate leaflet did not, suggesting that the PVT may be involved as an input pathway of palatable food‐entrainment to the SCN. These results demonstrate that daily access to a palatable meal can entrain the SCN; several stimuli can be implicated in this process, including motivation and arousal.
The Effects of an Innovative Approach to Mathematics on Academically Low-Achieving Students in Inclusive Settings

This article presents results from a year-long study of an innovative approach to mathematics and its impact on students with learning disabilities as well as those at risk for special education. There is a considerable interest in the field regarding current mathematics reform, particularly as it reflects the simultaneous and conflicting movements toward national standards and inclusion. Results suggest that innovative methods in mathematics are viable for students with average and above average academic abilities and that students with learning disabilities or those at risk for special education need much greater assistance if they are to be included in general education classrooms. The success of the majority of students in this study raises questions about commonly advocated instructional methods in special education.
Transition to motherhood: A longitudinal study

A prospective longitudinal study assessed the development of the mother-child relationship within the context of other important aspects of transition to parenthood. In the prenatal phase, 238 women who were 8 months pregnant with their first child completed a set of questionnaires. At 1 month post-partum, 165 of these women completed a second set of questionnaires, and a subset of 86 were observed for 1 hour at home with their infants. When their child was 2 years old, 62 of the 86 mothers completed questionnaires and were observed in interaction with their toddler in the laboratory. The several hundred individual variables were reduced to internally consistent composite variables, 5 in the prenatal phase, 7 postpartum, and 14 in the toddler phase. Preliminary analyses reported in this paper assessed the structure of relationships among the composite variables within each phase (Pearson correlations) and whether there was significant prediction from one dimension to another across the phases, beyond stability in the predicted dimension (multiple regressions). Causal modeling analyses are still in progress. The results indicate that the development of maternal attachment is a gradual process and that feelings of attachment are related to a number of other measures of women's psychological well-being. Parenting confidence was found to play a central role in adaptation to motherhood within each phase, as well as from the prenatal to postpartum and postpartum to toddler phases.