Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Reproductive Physiology and Development of Artificial Insemination Technology in Killer Whales (Orcinus orca)1

Abstract Research was conducted to define the basic reproductive physiology of killer whales (Orcinus orca) and to use this knowledge to facilitate the development of artificial insemination procedures. The specific objectives were 1) to determine the excretory dynamics of urinary LH and ovarian steroid metabolites during the estrous cycle; 2) to evaluate the effect of an exogenously administered, synthetic progesterone analog on reproductive hormone excretion; 3) to validate the use of transabdominal ultrasound for ovarian evaluation and timing of ovulation; 4) to examine the quality of semen after liquid storage and cryopreservation; and 5) to develop an intrauterine insemination technique. Based on urinary endocrine monitoring of 41 follicular phases and 26 complete cycles from five females, estrous cycles were 41 days long and comprised a 17-day follicular phase and a 21-day luteal phase. A consistent temporal relationship was observed between peak estrogen conjugates and the LH surge, the latter of which occurred approximately 0.5 days later. Two animals placed on oral altrenogest (three separate occasions for 30, 17, and 31 days, respectively) excreted peak urinary estrogen concentrations 25 days after withdrawal that were followed by sustained elevations in urinary pregnanediol-3α-glucuronide excretion. Mean preovulatory follicle diameter was 3.9 cm (n = 6), and ovulation occurred 38 h (n = 5) after the peak of the LH surge. Based on visual estimates of motility, liquid-stored semen maintained 92% of its raw ejaculate sperm motility index (total progressive motility × kinetic rating [0–5 scale, where 0 = no movement and 5 = rapid progressive movement]) when held at 4°C for 3 days postcollection. Semen cryopreserved using a medium freezing rate demonstrated good postthaw total motility (50%), progressive motility (94%), and kinetic rating (3.5). Insemination during eight estrous cycles resulted in three pregnancies (38%), two from liquid-stored and one from cryopreserved semen. Two calves were delivered after gestation lengths of 552 and 554 days, respectively. These data demonstrate the potential of noninvasive endocrine monitoring combined with serial ultrasonography to improve our understanding of the reproductive biology of cetaceans. This fundamental knowledge was essential for ensuring the first successful conceptions, resulting in live offspring, using artificial insemination in any cetacean species.
Spinal injury resulting from car accident: Focus to prevention

Aim: To determine and compare the patterns of spinal injury in car occupants. Materials and Methods: Retrospective cross-sectional study enrolling all patients with spinal fracture after car accidents, who were admitted to hospital more than 24 h during 2004–2009. Results: The lumbosacral spine was the most commonly involved region (64.8). Six patients had spinal cord injury (6.6%). The majority of the victims were drivers of the vehicle (86.8%) and remaining were passengers. There was a significant difference in lumbar anatomic region (P = 0.05) and place of accident (P = 0.05) in car occupants' position (P = 0.05). Car rollover was the most common mechanism of spinal fractures. There was a significant difference in lumbar anatomic region (P = 0.05), and two or more associated organ injuries (P ≤ 0.05) in car accident mechanism (P = 0.05). Conclusion: The chance of sustaining serious spine and associated multiple injuries in car accidents is quite high in our today's society. This may be due to the low level of standards for car manufacturing, absence or inadequacy of appropriate safety measures in cars, and poorly designed roads and problems in quality of driving to mention some reasons. Therefore, these victims are prone to significant morbidity and even mortality and need more specific prehospital supportive interventions.
Scheduling of Time Triggered Messages in Static Segment of FlexRay

FlexRay is a hybrid in-vehicle communication protocol for automotive networks, which handles time-triggered messages in static segment as well as event-triggered messages in dynamic segment. In this paper, we study the problem of holistic scheduling of time-triggered tasks and messages in FlexRay. Our solution is based on synchronous scheduling between tasks executions and message transmissions, and supports slot multiplexing as defined by FlexRay V3.0 specification. Our objective is to obtain an optimum schedule with respect to minimizing used bandwidth, subject to FlexRay specifications and delay requirements. We demonstrate the efficiency of our approach using case studies consisting of an X-by-wire system on actual prototype vehicles.
Curcumin improves the paclitaxel-induced apoptosis of HPV-positive human cervical cancer cells via the NF-κB-p53-caspase-3 pathway

Paclitaxel, isolated from Taxus brevifolia, is considered to be an efficacious agent against a wide spectrum of human cancers, including human cervical cancer. However, dose-limiting toxicity and high cost limit its clinical application. Curcumin, a nontoxic food additive, has been reported to improve paclitaxel chemotherapy in mouse models of cervical cancer. However, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. In this study, two human cervical cancer cell lines, CaSki [human papilloma virus (HPV)16-positive] and HeLa (HPV18-positive), were selected in which to investigate the effect of curcumin on the anticancer action of paclitaxel and further clarify the mechanisms. Flow cytometry and MTT analysis demonstrated that curcumin significantly promoted paclitaxel-induced apoptosis and cytotoxicity in the two cervical cell lines compared with that observed with paclitaxel alone (P<0.05). Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction indicated that the decline of HPV E6 and E7 gene expression induced by paclitaxel was also assisted by curcumin. The expression levels of p53 protein and cleaved caspase-3 were increased significantly in the curcumin plus paclitaxel-treated HeLa and CaSki cells compared with those in the cells treated with paclitaxel alone (P<0.01). Significant reductions in the levels of phosphorylation of IκBα and the p65-NF-κB subunit in CaSki cells treated with curcumin and paclitaxel were observed compared with those in cells treated with paclitaxel alone (P<0.05). This suggests that the combined effect of curcumin and paclitaxel was associated with the NF-κB-p53-caspase-3 pathway. In conclusion, curcumin has the ability to improve the paclitaxel-induced apoptosis of HPV-positive human cervical cancer cell lines via the NF-κB-p53-caspase-3 pathway. Curcumin in combination with paclitaxel may provide a superior therapeutic effect on human cervical cancer.
The Ability to Judge the Romantic Interest of Others

The ability to judge another individual's romantic interest level—both toward oneself and toward others—is an adaptively important skill when choosing a suitable mate to pursue. We tested this ability using videos of individuals on speed dates as stimuli. Male and female observers were equally good at predicting interest levels, but they were more accurate when predicting male interest: Predictions of female interest were just above chance. Observers predicted interest successfully using stimuli as short as 10 s, and they performed best when watching clips of the middle or end of the speed date. There was considerable variability between daters, with some being very easy to read and others apparently masking their true intentions. Variability between observers was also found. The results suggest that the ability to read nonverbal behavior quickly in mate choice is present not only for individuals in the interaction, but also for third-party observers.
CONTRIBUTION OF LENSED SCUBA GALAXIES TO THE COSMIC INFRARED BACKGROUND

The surface density of submillimeter (sub-mm) galaxies as a function of flux, usually termed the source number counts, constrains models of the evolution of the density and luminosity of starburst galaxies. At the faint end of the distribution, direct detection and counting of galaxies are not possible. However, gravitational lensing by clusters of galaxies allows detection of sources which would otherwise be too dim to study. We have used the largest catalog of sub-mm-selected sources along the line of sight to galaxy clusters to estimate the faint end of the 850 μm number counts; integrating to S = 0.10 mJy, the equivalent flux density at 850 μm is νIν = 0.24 ± 0.03 nW m−2 sr−1. This provides a lower limit to the extragalactic far-infrared background and is consistent with direct estimates of the full intensity from the FIRAS. The results presented here can help to guide strategies for upcoming surveys carried out with single-dish sub-mm instruments.
Transforming growth factor β1 +869T/C gene polymorphism and essential hypertension: a meta-analysis involving 2708 participants in the Chinese population.

BACKGROUND The transforming growth factor β1 (TGFB1) +869T/C gene polymorphism has been suggested to be linked to susceptibility to essential hypertension (EH). OBJECTIVE AND METHODS To investigate the relationship between TGFB1 +869T/C gene polymorphism and EH, 5 separate studies with 2,708 subjects in the Chinese population on the relation between TGFB1 +869T/C gene polymorphism and EH were analyzed by meta-analysis. The random effect model was selected to calculate the pooled odds ratio (ORs) and its corresponding 95% confidence interval (95%). RESULTS There was a significant association between TGFB1 +869T/C gene polymorphism and EH. The pooled OR for CC/TC+TT genotype was 2.50 (95% CI: 1.46-4.28, P (heterogeneity) <0.0001, p=0.0008). The pooled OR for the frequency of C allele was 1.43 (95% CI:1.18-1.73, P (heterogeneity) =0.02, p=0.0002). CONCLUSION The current meta-analysis suggested that C allele and CC genotype of TGFB1 +869T/C gene polymorphism might be related to the increased risk of EH in the Chinese population.
Metabolic Syndrome and Colorectal Cancer

The effect of Mediterranean diet on colorectal cancer, in the presence of the metabolic syndrome, was evaluated in 250 patients with first developed cancer (63 ± 12 years, 59% males) and 250 age–gender-matched controls. Adherence to the Mediterranean diet was evaluated with the modified-MedDietScore (theoretical range 0-75), while assessment of the metabolic syndrome (MetS) was based on the third Adult Treatment Panel ([ATP III] National Cholesterol Education Program) criteria. Presence of MetS (1.66, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.02, 2.69), age (4.25, 95% CI 2.33, 7.77), smoking (1.85, 95% CI 1.27, 2.70), and family history of colorectal cancer (3.37, 95% CI 1.69, 6.75) had a detrimental effect, whereas adherence to the Mediterranean diet (0.88, 95% CI 0.84, 0.92) and body mass index (0.93, 95%CI 0.89, 0.98) had a protective role regarding colorectal cancer. Mediterranean diet had the same effect in relation to colorectal cancer, in both participants with (0.84, 95% CI 0.76, 0.93) and without MetS (0.89, 95% CI 0.85, 0.94).
Potenciar o Desenvolvimento Turístico a Partir de um Processo de Planeamento Estratégico de Marketing: o Caso de Almeida

Os espaços rurais deparam-se hoje em dia com os desafios resultantes da reestruturação das actividades económicas tradicionais e das imposições ditadas por mercados mais amplos. Estes desafios têm promovido localmente novas políticas de desenvolvimento que valorizam os recursos locais e a diversificação das actividades rurais. Neste contexto, o turismo é considerado, em muitos casos, um sector-chave para a reabilitação económica desses territórios. Potenciar o desenvolvimento de Almeida através de um processo de planeamento estratégico de marketing foi o objectivo de um caso de estudo efectuado naquele espaço rural periférico português. O turismo surge como um vector estratégico para o desenvolvimento de Almeida, através da fixação de um conjunto de objectivos e de acções que visam rentabilizar os recursos locais. O estudo apresenta um conjunto de acções que pretendem potenciar o desenvolvimento do turismo e superar alguns obstáculos que têm inibido a afirmação desse sector em Almeida.
Finding Online Extremists in Social Networks

Online extremists in social networks pose a new form of threat to the general public. These extremists range from cyberbullies who harass innocent users to terrorist organizations such as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) that use social networks to recruit and incite violence. Currently social networks suspend the accounts of such extremists in response to user complaints. The challenge is that these extremist users simply create new accounts and continue their activities. In this work we present a new set of operational capabilities to deal with the threat posed by online extremists in social networks. Using data from several hundred thousand extremist accounts on Twitter, we develop a behavioral model for these users, in particular what their accounts look like and who they connect with. This model is used to identify new extremist accounts by predicting if they will be suspended for extremist activity. We also use this model to track existing extremist users as they create new accounts by identifying if two accounts belong to the same user. Finally, we present a model for searching the social network to efficiently find suspended users' new accounts based on a variant of the classic Polya's urn setup. We find a simple characterization of the optimal search policy for this model under fairly general conditions. Our urn model and main theoretical results generalize easily to search problems in other fields.
Negative regulation of the interferon response by an interferon-induced long non-coding RNA

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) play critical roles in diverse cellular processes; however, their involvement in many critical aspects of the immune response including the interferon (IFN) response remains poorly understood. To address this gap, we compared the global gene expression pattern of primary human hepatocytes before and at three time points after treatment with IFN-α. Among ∼200 IFN-induced lncRNAs, one transcript showed ∼100-fold induction. This RNA, which we named lncRNA-CMPK2, was a spliced, polyadenylated nuclear transcript that was induced by IFN in diverse cell types from human and mouse. Similar to protein-coding IFN-stimulated genes (ISGs), its induction was dependent on JAK-STAT signaling. Intriguingly, knockdown of lncRNA-CMPK2 resulted in a marked reduction in HCV replication in IFN-stimulated hepatocytes, suggesting that it could affect the antiviral role of IFN. We could show that lncRNA-CMPK2 knockdown resulted in upregulation of several protein-coding antiviral ISGs. The observed upregulation was caused by an increase in both basal and IFN-stimulated transcription, consistent with loss of transcriptional inhibition in knockdown cells. These results indicate that the IFN response involves a lncRNA-mediated negative regulatory mechanism. lncRNA-CMPK2 was strongly upregulated in a subset of HCV-infected human livers, suggesting a role in modulation of the IFN response in vivo.
Surveying Nepal’s Sexual and Gender Minorities: An Inclusive Approach

In a recent survey of sexual and gender minorities in Nepal over 60 percent of respondents reported experiencing at least one incident of abuse or discrimination, and over one-third reported discrimination or abuse in three or more public settings. The research methodology and study was implemented through the Williams Institute and the Blue Diamond Society (BDS). The survey utilized Nepal’s inclusion of a third gender category in its national census, the first such attempt in the world. The survey reveals that LGBT people in Nepal continue to face a wide range of obstacles as individuals and as a community. These challenges include widespread bullying in schools, lack of protection from discrimination by employers, paucity of programming to address the reproductive health needs of lesbians, and the lack of sensitive HIV healthcare for transgender women and gay men who are at exponentially higher risk of HIV infection than the general population.
ANALISIS FAKTOR-FAKTOR MOTIVASI YANG MEMPENGARUHI MINAT BERWIRAUSAHA

The study was conducted to determine the student’s motivation and the motivation factors to influence on interest in entrepreneurship. A ccording to the vision and mission of the F aculty of E conomics and Business UNDIP , to shape the culture of entrepreneurship we needs to know the motivations of students to further accelerate the establishment of entrepreneurial culture . The target population of this study were students of the Faculty of Economics and Business UNDIP who have taken entrepreneurship courses. The number of samples used was 142 students. This study using a multiple linear regression analysis, where the analysis tool is used to understand the extent of the influence of risk tolerance, self-efficacy in entrepreneurship, and freedom in the work to student’s interest in entrepreneurship. In addition, this study also used ANOVA as the other analysis tools, ANOVA serves as a different test of variance. This study will analyze the differences between student interest in entrepreneurship with a background of parents who worked as an entrepreneur and non-entrepreneurs. The results obtained indicate that all independent variables has a positive and significant effect on the student’s interest to become an entrepreneur, self efficacy was the strongest variable affecting the interest in entrepreneurship . ANOVA test results for different test of variance showed that there was differences students interest in entrepreneurship among parents who work as entrepreneurs and non-entrepreneurs .
Power Optimization for Network Localization

Reliable and accurate localization of mobile objects is essential for many applications in wireless networks. In range-based localization, the position of the object can be inferred using the distance measurements from wireless signals exchanged with active objects or reflected by passive ones. Power allocation for ranging signals is important since it affects not only network lifetime and throughput but also localization accuracy. In this paper, we establish a unifying optimization framework for power allocation in both active and passive localization networks. In particular, we first determine the functional properties of the localization accuracy metric, which enable us to transform the power allocation problems into second-order cone programs (SOCPs). We then propose the robust counterparts of the problems in the presence of parameter uncertainty and develop asymptotically optimal and efficient near-optimal SOCP-based algorithms. Our simulation results validate the efficiency and robustness of the proposed algorithms .
Spectral Analysis of Chinese Medicinal Herbs Based on Delayed Luminescence

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) plays a critical role in healthcare; however, it lacks scientific evidence to support the multidimensional therapeutic effects. These effects are based on experience, and, to date, there is no advanced tool to evaluate these experience based effects. In the current study, Chinese herbal materials classified with different cold and heat therapeutic properties, based on Chinese medicine principles, were investigated using spectral distribution, as well as the decay probability distribution based on delayed luminescence (DL). A detection system based on ultraweak biophoton emission was developed to determine the DL decay kinetics of the cold and heat properties of Chinese herbal materials. We constructed a mathematical model to fit the experimental data and characterize the properties of Chinese medicinal herbs with different parameters. The results demonstrated that this method has good reproducibility. Moreover, there is a significant difference (p < 0.05) in the spectral distribution and the decay probability distribution of Chinese herbal materials with cold and heat properties. This approach takes advantage of the comprehensive nature of DL compared with more reductionist approaches and is more consistent with TCM principles, in which the core comprises holistic views.
Beneficial Effects of N-Acetylcysteine and Ebselen on Renal Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury

Abstract Introduction: It has been demonstrated that peroxynitrite accompanies acute renal ischemia and contributes to the pathophysiology of renal damage. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the roles of N-acetylcysteine (NAC), a well-known powerful antioxidant, and ebselen (E), a scavenger of peroxynitrite, on renal injury induced by renal ischemia/reperfusion injury (IRI) of rat kidney. Materials and methods: Forty male Sprague–Dawley rats were divided into five groups: sham, renal IRI, renal IRI+NAC, renal IRI+E, and renal IRI+NAC+E. IR injury was induced by 60 min of bilateral renal ischemia followed by 6 h of reperfusion. After reperfusion, kidneys and blood samples were obtained for histopathological and biochemical evaluations. Results: Renal IR resulted in increased malondialdehyde and nitrite/nitrate levels suggesting increased lipid peroxidation and peroxynitrite production and decreased superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase activities. Both NAC and E alone significantly decreased malondialdehyde and nitrite/nitrate levels and increased superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase activities. Additionally in the renal IRI+NAC+E group, all biochemical results were quite close to those of sham group. Histopathologically, the kidney injury in rats treated with combination of NAC and E was found significantly less than the other groups. Conclusions: Both NAC and E are able to ameliorate IRI of the kidney by decreasing oxidative and nitrosative stresses and increasing free radical scavenger properties. Additionally, combination of NAC and E prevents kidney damage more than when each drug is used alone, suggesting that scavenging peroxynitrite nearby antioxidant activity is important in preventing renal IRI.
Programmed Cell Death in Plants.

Throughout the life cycle of plants, programmed cell death (PCD) is involved in a wide range of deve­lopmental processes and responses against abiotic or biotic stresses. PCD is an active form of cellular suicide controlled by a network of genes. Such phenomenon is associated with recovery of cellular compounds and sustaining plant life. Basic morphological and biochemical features of PCD are believed to be conserved in both plants and animals. Nevertheless, recent studies demonstrate an involvement of organelles such as vacuole and chloroplast in plant cell death regulation, indicating that plants evolved own cell death machinery. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) generated by biotic and abiotic stresses act as a signal that induces plant PCD. This article describes some of the fundamental characteristics of plant PCD and raises points that may lead to a better understanding and novel strategies for plant molecular breeding.