Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Antimonial Resistance in Leishmania donovani Is Associated with Increased In Vivo Parasite Burden

Leishmania donovani is an intracellular protozoan parasite that causes visceral leishmaniasis (VL). Antimonials (SSG) have long been the first-line treatment against VL, but have now been replaced by miltefosine (MIL) in the Indian subcontinent due to the emergence of SSG-resistance. Our previous study hypothesised that SSG-resistant L. donovani might have increased in vivo survival skills which could affect the efficacy of other treatments such as MIL. The present study attempts to validate these hypotheses. Fourteen strains derived from Nepalese clinical isolates with documented SSG-susceptibility were infected in BALB/c mice to study their survival capacity in drug free conditions (non-treated mice) and in MIL-treated mice. SSG-resistant parasites caused a significant higher in vivo parasite load compared to SSG-sensitive parasites. However, this did not seem to affect the strains' response to MIL-treatment since parasites from both phenotypes responded equally well to in vivo MIL exposure. We conclude that there is a positive association between SSG-resistance and in vivo survival skills in our sample of L. donovani strains which could suggest a higher virulence of SSG-R strains compared to SSG-S strains. These greater in vivo survival skills of SSG-R parasites do not seem to directly affect their susceptibility to MIL. However, it cannot be excluded that repeated MIL exposure will elicit different adaptations in these SSG-R parasites with superior survival skills compared to the SSG-S parasites. Our results therefore highlight the need to closely monitor drug efficacy in the field, especially in the context of the Kala-azar elimination programme ongoing in the Indian subcontinent.
Hitting the nail on the head: the importance of specific staff development for effective blended learning

Developing effective teaching practices within the higher education sector is an area of growing concern. Universities within the UK are judged on their competence in this area by mechanisms such as the National Student Survey and universities are anxious to be perceived as offering good quality teaching and learning experiences. The use of technologies, such as online learning environments, has pervaded many university courses and the teaching ‘blend’ increasingly relies upon these technologies to contribute towards programme delivery. It is claimed that student learning is supported by these systems; however, many academics remain frustrated with these teaching mediums. This paper reports results from a survey of 529 UK university lecturers who answered questions on their pedagogical beliefs and online teaching practices. The survey found a considerable difference between university lecturers’ reported pedagogical beliefs and their actual practices when teaching online and concludes that online learning environments are rarely used effectively to promote student learning and any benefits attributed to their use can, therefore, be assumed to be largely rhetorical. Some student-centred practice was found, however. Those lecturers with teaching qualifications who had received specific training in the use of online learning environments were significantly more likely to use these environments in an effective way. Notably, more general forms of learning and teaching development appeared to contribute little to effective practice in this area. As UK universities face challenging financial constraints, the proportion of the online teaching ‘blend’ seems likely to increase in order to achieve more cost-effective programmes. The empirical research reported here suggests that in order to ensure that this blend is effective, and promotes student learning, specific pedagogical and technological staff development in this area is vital.
Improvement of osteogenic potential of biphasic calcium phosphate bone substitute coated with synthetic cell binding peptide sequences

Purpose The aim of this study was to evaluate the improvement of osteogenic potential of biphasic calcium phosphate (BCP) bone substitute coated with synthetic cell-binding peptide sequences in a standardized rabbit sinus model. Methods Standardized 6-mm diameter defects were created bilaterally on the maxillary sinus of ten male New Zealand white rabbits, receiving BCP bone substitute coated with synthetic cell binding peptide sequences on one side (experimental group) and BCP bone substitute without coating (control group) on the other side. Histologic and histomorphometric analysis of bone formation was carried out after a healing period of 4 or 8 weeks. Results Histological analysis revealed signs of new bone formation in both experimental groups (4- and 8-week healing groups) with a statistically significant increase in bone formation in the 4-week healing group compared to the control group. However, no statistically significant difference in bone formation was found between the 8-week healing group and the control group. Conclusions This study found that BCP bone substitute coated with synthetic cell-binding peptide sequences enhanced osteoinductive potential in a standardized rabbit sinus model and its effectiveness was greater in the 4-week healing group than in the 8-week healing group.
Interferon-Like Viral Inhibitor in Rabbits after Intravenous Administration of Endotoxin

Intravenous injection into rabbits of endotoxin or killed cells of Escherichia coli induced, in 1 hour, a viral inhibitor detectable in serum. The inhibitor disappeared from the serum in 7 to 24 hours, and was only active after incubation with rabbit cell cultures. Like interferon, it did not preferentially inactivate virus directly, was ineffective in chick cells, was inactivated by trypsin, and was not sedimentable. Unlike interferon, the inhibitor was heat labile. Nucleic acid or nucleotides apparently play no role in its induction.
States of White Ignorance, and Audit Masculinity in English Higher Education

Drawing upon recent literature on what has been called "epistemologies of ignorance" in relation to race, this paper examines an audit of a research project on equality and diversity in a UK university. It argues the audit functioned as a technology of ignorance. This paper suggests that the audit drew upon the cultural associations between white male academic masculinity with notions of quantification, detachment, and disembodied aggression. In this way, ignorance is seen as a form of labor. In particular, this paper suggests that current forms of neoliberal audit in UK universities could be understood in terms of Haraway's notion of scientific gentlemanly modest witnessing. But rather than the scientific gentlemanly masculinity, neoliberal audit legitimates a hyper-rational audit masculinity which casts women and racialized minorities as subjective, interested, and emotional and in so doing performs epistemic violence which maintains whiteness.
Worry and its psychological disorders: theory, assessment and treatment

About the Editors. List of Contributors. Preface. Part I: The Nature of Worry. Chapter 1: The Epidemiology of Worry and Generalized Anxiety Disorder (Robert M. Holaway, Thomas L. Rodebaugh, and Richard G. Heimberg). Chapter 2: Worry and Rumination: Styles of Persistent Negative Thinking in Anxiety and Depression (Costas Papageorgiou). Chapter 3: Worry in Psychopathology (Christine Purdon and Jennifer Harrington). Chapter 4: Worry and Information-processing (Gerald Matthews and Gregory J. Funke). Chapter 5: Worry in Older Adults (Julie L. Wetherell). Chapter 6: Worry in Childhood and Adolescence (Sam Cartwright-Hatton). Part II: The Assessment of Worry. Chapter 7: The Penn State Worry Questionnaire (PSWQ) (Helen M. Startup and Thane M. Erickson). Chapter 8: The Anxious Thoughts Inventory and Related Measures of Metacognition and Worry (Adrian Wells). Chapter 9: Assessment of Generalized Anxiety Disorder (Cynthia L. Turk and Andrew T. Wolanin). Chapter 10: The Catastrophising Interview Procedure (Graham C.L. Davey). Part III: Theories of Chronic and Pathological Worry. Chapter 11: The Metacognitive Model of Worry and Generalised Anxiety Disorder (Adrian Wells). Chapter 12: A Cognitive Model of Generalized Anxiety Disorder: The Role of Intolerance of Uncertainty (Naomi Koerner and Michel J. Dugas). Chapter 13: A Mood-As-Input Account of Perseverative Worrying (Graham C.L. Davey). Chapter 14: The Cognitive Avoidance Theory of Worry (Nicholas J. Sibrava and T.D. Borkovec). Part IV: Treatment Methods Chapter 15: Metacognitive Therapy for Worry and Generalised Anxiety Disorder (Adrian Wells). Chapter 16: Applied Relaxation and Cognitive Therapy for Pathological Worry and Generalized Anxiety Disorder (T.D. Borkovec). Chapter 17: A Cognitive-Behavioral Treatment Targeting Intolerance of Uncertainty (Melisa Robichaud and Michel J. Dugas). Chapter 18: Pharmacological Treatments for Worry: Focus on Generalised Anxiety Disorder (Ian M. Anderson and Marisha E. Palm). Chapter 19: Case Histories: Treating Worry Across Disorders (Paul King). Chapter 20: The Efficacy of Psychological Treatments for Generalised Anxiety Disorder? (Peter L. Fisher). Chapter 21: Predictors of Treatment Outcome (Robert C. Durham). Index.
Endogenous Cholinergic Input to the Pontine REM Sleep Generator Is Not Required for REM Sleep to Occur

Initial theories of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep generation posited that induction of the state required activation of the pontine subceruleus (SubC) by cholinergic inputs. Although the capacity of cholinergic neurotransmission to contribute to REM sleep generation has been established, the role of cholinergic inputs in the generation of REM sleep is ultimately undetermined as the critical test of this hypothesis (local blockade of SubC acetylcholine receptors) has not been rigorously performed. We used bilateral microdialysis in freely behaving rats (n = 32), instrumented for electroencephalographic and electromyographic recording, to locally manipulate neurotransmission in the SubC with select drugs. As predicted, combined microperfusion of D-AP5 (glutamate receptor antagonist) and muscimol (GABAA receptor agonist) in the SubC virtually eliminated REM sleep. However, REM sleep was not reduced by scopolamine microperfusion in this same region, at a concentration capable of blocking the effects of cholinergic receptor stimulation. This result suggests that transmission of REM sleep drive to the SubC is acetylcholine-independent. Although SubC cholinergic inputs are not majorly involved in REM sleep generation, they may perform a minor function in the reinforcement of transitions into REM sleep, as evidenced by increases in non-REM-to-REM sleep transition duration and failure rate during cholinergic receptor blockade. Cholinergic receptor antagonism also attenuated the normal increase in hippocampal θ oscillations that characterize REM sleep. Using computational modeling, we show that our in vivo results are consistent with a mutually excitatory interaction between the SubC and cholinergic neurons where, importantly, cholinergic neuron activation is gated by SubC activity.
Effect of selected drugs used in asthma treatment on morphology and elastic properties of red blood cells

Background The main function of red blood cells is to transport oxygen to all parts of the body with the help of hemoglobin. Other proteins of the cell membrane can attach xenobiotics (eg, drugs) from the blood and transport them throughout the body. Only drugs able to bind to the membrane of the red blood cell can modify its structure and elastic properties. The morphology and local elastic properties of living red blood cells incubated with drug solutions commonly used in the treatment of severe asthma were studied by atomic force microscopy and nanoindentation with an atomic force microscopy tip. Methods The elasticity modules of native red blood cells, as well as those incubated with two types of drugs, ie, aminophylline and methylprednisolone, were determined from experimentally measured nanoindentation curves. Results The elasticity modules of erythrocytes incubated with aminophylline were substantially higher than those obtained for nonincubated native, ie, healthy, red blood cells. Conclusion The increase of the elasticity module obtained for aminophylline can reduce the cell’s ability to bind oxygen and transport it through capillaries.
Test Reviews : Kaufman, A. S., & Kaufman, N. L. (1993). Kaufman Adolescent and Adult Intelligence Test (KAIT). Circle Pines, MN: American Guidance Service

The Kaufman Adolescent and Adult Intelligence Test (KAIT; Kaufman & Kaufman, 1993) is an individually administered measure of general intelligence for persons aged 11 to 85+ years. This battery is comprised of 10 subtests (M = 10, SD = 3) that can be combined in various ways to yield three composite scales: Fluid (Cj), Crystallized ( Gc) , and Composite Intelligence (M = 100, SD= 15). The subtests that comprise the KAIT’s Fluid intelligence scale include Mystery Codes, Logical Steps, and Rebus Learning. The subtests that comprise the KAIT’s Crystallized intelligence scale include Definitions, Auditory Comprehension, and Double Meanings. These six subtests comprise the KAIT’s Core Battery and together yield the Composite IQ, an estimate of general intelligence. The KAIT’s Expanded Battery includes four additional subtests: (a) an alternate subtest for the Fluid scale (Memory for Block Designs), (b) an alternate subtest for the Crystallized scale (Famous Faces), and (c) two memory subtests (Rebus Delayed Recall and Auditory Delayed Recall) that can be used to make comparisons between immediate and delayed memory. All KAIT subtests require high-level thinking and reasoning for success, since they were designed following Piaget’s stage of formal operations and Luria and Golden’s conception of planning ability. In addition to the Core and Expanded batteries, the KAIT offers a short Mental Status subtest that consists of 10 items designed to &dquo;assess attention and orientation to the world&dquo; (Kaufman & Kaufman, 1993, p. 7). The Mental Status subtest may be used to determine if suspected lowfunctioning individuals (e.g., neurologically impaired) can be assessed validly by the KAIT. For a complete description of the KAIT subtests, including underlying theoretical constructs and probable factors that influence test perfor-
Powerful Tests of Structural Change That are Robust to Strong Serial Correlation

This paper proposes powerful and serial correlation robust test statistics that can be used to test for the presence of structural change in the trend function of a univariate time series. Four models are analyzed, each model corresponding to a different way in which a trend break might occur. Given a model, the proposed tests are designed to detect a single break at an unknown date. The tests do not require the knowledge of the form of serial correlation in the data, and they are made robust to the presence of highly persistent serial correlation and a unit root in the errors by using a more comprehensive version of the scaling factor approach of Vogelsang (1998b). The tests utilize the popular nonparametric kernel variance estimators. The fixed-bandwidth asymptotic framework, proposed by Kiefer and Vogelsang (2003), is used to approximate the effects of the variance estimators on the test statistics. The fixed-bandwidth framework makes possible the choice of kernel and bandwidth that deliver tests with maximal asymptotic power within a specific class of tests. For each of the proposed tests, concrete and specific recommendations are made for the bandwidth and kernel to be used in practice. The recommended tests are shown to have good finite sample size and power properties.
Explaining the High False Positive Rate of the South Oaks Gambling Screen

The South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS) has been used extensively in estimating the prevalence of pathological gambling but produces a large number of false positive classifications. Ladouceur et al. (2000, Journal of Gambling Studies, 16, pp. 1–24) claim that misunderstanding of SOGS items is responsible for the high false positive rate. However, their study is open to a number of methodological criticisms. The current study, where clinical and non-clinical gamblers complete the SOGS with and without clarification, overcomes these problems. Results suggest that clarification does not have a significant overall effect on SOGS scores. This implies that item misunderstanding is not responsible for the false positive rate of the SOGS.
The Influence of the Way the Muscle Force is Modeled on the Predicted Results Obtained by Solving Indeterminate Problems for a Fast Elbow Flexion

A critical point in models of the human limbs when the aim is to investigate the motor control is the muscle model. More often the mechanical output of a muscle is considered as one musculotendon force that is a design variable in optimization tasks solved predominantly by static optimization. For dynamic conditions, the relationship between the developed force, the length and the contraction velocity of a muscle becomes important and rheological muscle models can be incorporated in the optimization tasks. Here the muscle activation can be a design variable as well. Recently a new muscle model was proposed [22]. A muscle is considered as a mixture of motor units (MUs) with different peculiarities and the muscle force is calculated as a sum of the MUs twitches. The aim of the paper is to compare these three ways for presenting the muscle force. Fast elbow flexion is investigated using a planar model with five muscles. It is concluded that the rheological models are suitable for calculation of the current maximal muscle forces that can be used as weight factors in the objective functions. The model based on MUs has many advantages for precise investigations of motor control. Such muscle presentation can explain the muscle co-contraction and the role of the fast and the slow MUs. The relationship between the MUs activation and the mechanical output is more clear and closer to the reality.
Teaching Mathematics to Secondary Students With Emotional and Behavioral Disorders: Challenges and Practical Suggestions for Teachers

While the Common Core State Standards and state learning standards guide teachers in what mathematical content knowledge should be addressed as well as the processes and proficiencies necessary for developing mathematical competence, several student- and teacher-related factors may hinder student access to the general education curriculum for secondary students with emotional and behavioral disorders. Consequently, secondary students with emotional and behavioral disorders often fail to receive equitable, high-quality mathematics instruction that is age-appropriate. The authors identified the challenges associated with teaching mathematics to secondary students with emotional and behavioral disorders and provided practical suggestions, on the basis of the limited existing research base, to help special educators understand how to teach mathematics to secondary students with emotional and behavioral disorders.
A cross-national study of the ecological worldview of senior consumers

This paper presents the results of a cross-national study into the ecological worldview of senior consumers using the New Ecological Paradigm (NEP) scale. It was designed to examine the extent to which senior respondents in the UK, Germany, Japan and Hungary are endorsing the NEP scale and which factors determine NEP in the four countries under study. Our study is the first of its kind to measure the ecological worldview of older consumers across different nations. Examinations of the overall frequency and mean distributions of the NEP scale showed that the majority of seniors in each country support the NEP statements, but there is no general support for pro-NEP orientation. The relationship between values [using list of values (LOV) scale] and environmental attitudes was tested through a series of regression analyses calculated separately for each country. According to the results, a very weak relationship between some of the LOV values and the NEP scale was found in all the samples. Our study contributes to both cross-cultural environmental attitude research and to consumer studies in general.
Methodology for the production and delivery of generative music for the personal listener : systems for realtime generative music production

This thesis will describe a system for the production of generative music through specific methodology, and provide an approach for the delivery of this material. The system and body of work will be targeted specifically at the personal listening audience. As the largest current consumer of music in all genres of music, this represents the largest and most applicable market to develop such a system for. By considering how recorded media compares to concert performance, it is possible to ascertain which attributes of performance may be translated to a generative media. In addition, an outline of how fixed media has changed how people listen to music directly will be considered. By looking at these concepts an attempt is made to create a system which satisfies societies need for music which is not only commodified and easily approached, but also closes the qualitative gap between a static delivery medium and concert based output. This is approached within the context of contemporary classical music. Furthermore, by considering the development and fragmentation of the personal listening audience through technological developments, a methodology for the delivery of generative media to a range of devices will be investigated. A body of musical work will be created which attempts to realise these goals in a qualitative fashion. These works will span the development of the composition methodology, and the algorithmic methods covered. A conclusion based on the possibilities of each system with regard to its qualitative output will form the basis for evaluation. As this investigation is seated within the field of music, the musical output and composition methodology will be considered as the primary deciding factor of a system’s feasibility. The contribution of this research to the field will be a methodology for the composition and production of algorithmic music in realtime, and a feasible method for the delivery of this music to a wide audience.
Counterexamples and Proof Loophole for the C/C++ to POWER and ARMv7 Trailing-Sync Compiler Mappings

The C and C++ high-level languages provide programmers with atomic operations for writing high-performance concurrent code. At the assembly language level, C and C++ atomics get mapped down to individual instructions or combinations of instructions by compilers, depending on the ordering guarantees and synchronization instructions provided by the underlying architecture. These compiler mappings must uphold the ordering guarantees provided by C/C++ atomics or the compiled program will not behave according to the C/C++ memory model. In this paper we discuss two counterexamples to the well-known trailing-sync compiler mappings for the Power and ARMv7 architectures that were previously thought to be proven correct. In addition to the counterexamples, we discuss the loophole in the proof of the mappings that allowed the incorrect mappings to be proven correct. We also discuss the current state of compilers and architectures in relation to the bug.