Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Antiobesity and Antidiabetes Effects of a Cudrania tricuspidata Hydrophilic Extract Presenting PTP1B Inhibitory Potential

Diabetes and obesity represent the major health problems and the most age-related metabolic diseases. Protein-tyrosine phosphatase 1B (PTP1B) has emerged as an important regulator of insulin signal transduction and is regarded as a pharmaceutical target for metabolic disorders. To find novel natural materials presenting therapeutic activities against diabetes and obesity, we screened various herb extracts using a chip screening allowing the determination of PTP1B inhibitory effects of the tested compounds using insulin receptor (IR) as the substrate. Cudrania tricuspidata leaves (CTe) had a strong inhibitory effect on PTP1B activity and substantially inhibited fat accumulation in 3T3-L1 cells. CTe was orally administrated to diet-induced obesity (DIO) mice once daily for 3 weeks after which changes in glucose, insulin metabolism, and fat accumulation were examined. Hepatic enzyme markers (aspartate aminotransferase, AST, and alanine aminotransferase, ALT) and total fat mass and triglyceride levels decreased in CTe-treated mice, whereas body weight and total cholesterol concentration slightly decreased. CTe increased the phosphorylation of IRS-1 and Akt in liver tissue. Furthermore, CTe treatment significantly lowered blood glucose levels and improved insulin secretion in DIO mice. Our results strongly suggest that CTe may represent a promising therapeutic substance against diabetes and obesity.
Incidence of Bank Corporate Income Taxes Revisited

In this paper, we revisit the question of the banks’ ability to shift corporate income taxes to customers by increasing their net interest margins. We estimate tax incidence for 1,411 European commercial banks over the period 1992-2008. Unlike earlier studies which suffer from endogeneity problems or misspecification of the tax burden, we do not find any significant relationship between implicit taxes and interest margins. Our result is in line with the theory because income tax does not affect the profit maximization function and, consequently, should not be passed on.
Information System Success Model for Customer Relationship Management System in Health Promotion Centers

Objectives Intensified competitiveness in the healthcare industry has increased the number of healthcare centers and propelled the introduction of customer relationship management (CRM) systems to meet diverse customer demands. This study aimed to develop the information system success model of the CRM system by investigating previously proposed indicators within the model. Methods The evaluation areas of the CRM system includes three areas: the system characteristics area (system quality, information quality, and service quality), the user area (perceived usefulness and user satisfaction), and the performance area (personal performance and organizational performance). Detailed evaluation criteria of the three areas were developed, and its validity was verified by a survey administered to CRM system users in 13 nationwide health promotion centers. The survey data were analyzed by the structural equation modeling method, and the results confirmed that the model is feasible. Results Information quality and service quality showed a statistically significant relationship with perceived usefulness and user satisfaction. Consequently, the perceived usefulness and user satisfaction had significant influence on individual performance as well as an indirect influence on organizational performance. Conclusions This study extends the research area on information success from general information systems to CRM systems in health promotion centers applying a previous information success model. This lays a foundation for evaluating health promotion center systems and provides a useful guide for successful implementation of hospital CRM systems.
Does adding pharmaceutical medication contribute to empirically supported psychological treatment for anxiety disorders?

BACKGROUND The goal of this work is to determine whether the combined use of empirically supported psychological treatments (ESTs) and pharmacological therapy (PT) achieves better results than the isolated use of ESTs in the treatment of Anxiety Disorders (AD) in a welfare clinical setting. METHOD A quasi-experimental study was designed, with a sample of 287 patients with primary diagnosis of AD. Of the patients, 25.1% (n = 72) received ESTs+PT and 74.9% (n = 216), only ESTs. At pretreatment, no intergroup differences were observed in anxiety and depressive symptoms, duration of the problem and comorbidity, but there were differences for previous treatments (they were fewer in the EST group). RESULTS After the intervention, both groups showed similar degree of completion, compliance with treatment, task performance and similar effectiveness at post treatment but EST+PT was significantly longer (16.58 sessions vs. 13.04 sessions). CONCLUSIONS It is concluded that adding PT to EST does not improve the results but it does increase the cost and duration of treatment, thereby reducing the efficiency of the intervention.
Representations of Space and Time in the Maximization of Information Flow in the Perception-Action Loop

Abstract Sensor evolution in nature aims at improving the acquisition of information from the environment and is intimately related with selection pressure toward adaptivity and robustness. Our work in the area indicates that information theory can be applied to the perception-action loop. This letter studies the perception-action loop of agents, which is modeled as a causal Bayesian network. Finite state automata are evolved as agent controllers in a simple virtual world to maximize information flow through the perception-action loop. The information flow maximization organizes the agent's behavior as well as its information processing. To gain more insight into the results, the evolved implicit representations of space and time are analyzed in an information-theoretic manner, which paves the way toward a principled and general understanding of the mechanisms guiding the evolution of sensors in nature and provides insights into the design of mechanisms for artificial sensor evolution.
Spectrally efficient maximum-likelihood detection for chaotic underdetermined MIMO systems

In this paper, we present a technique that provides spatial diversity for a Chaos Shift Keying (CSK) transceiver. The system transmits and receives chaos-based modulated signals through multiple antennas with high spectral efficency. We show that Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO) systems greatly improve the Bit-error-rate (BER) performance of chaotic communications over the Rayleigh channel. The robustness of the method proposed herein supports signal detection over Virtual MIMO systems (N < M). Furthermore, we discuss the performance of our proposed ML chaotic detector when perfect CSI is not available at the receiver side. A joint channel estimation and signal detection method is adapted based on the received signal subspace analysis made by [8] which uses statistics from the entire transmitted data frame.
Surveys for z > 3 Damped Lyα Absorption Systems: The Evolution of Neutral Gas

We have completed spectroscopic observations using LRIS on the Keck 1 telescope of 30 very high redshift quasars, 11 selected for the presence of damped Lyα absorption systems and 19 with redshifts z > 3.5 not previously surveyed for absorption systems. We have surveyed an additional 10 QSOs with the Lick 120'' and the Anglo-Australian Telescope. We have combined these with previous data, resulting in a statistical sample of 646 QSOs and 85 damped Lyα absorbers with column densities N ≥ 2 × 1020 atoms cm-2 covering the redshift range 0.008 ≤ z ≤ 4.694. Four main features of how the neutral gas in the universe evolves with redshift are evident from these data.
Integration of teamwork and critical thinking skills in the process of teaching students

Reforms taking place in the educational process of higher professional school impose new requirements on the quality of training students. Today, graduates of higher educational institutions are required to have new professional thinking, high mobility, competence, tolerance and focus on intra-group activities carried out in teams. With the team form of the organisation of training, an environment is created that allows students to master not only the skills and abilities of business interaction and cooperation, but also to form their ability to think critically, which includes the ability to think creatively, use new information and apply the knowledge in practice. Theoretical justification jointly with quantitative and qualitative data obtained as a result of the experimental work carried out by the authors confirms the efficiency of team learning, which contributes to developing critical thinking skills in higher education students. Keywords: Students, education, formation, interaction, critical thinking, team, skills, competences
The Effects and Challenges of Integrating GoAnimate Video Creator with TaskBased Language Teaching (TBLT) in Teaching English to a Grade 11 Omani Class

This qualitative research explores the effects and challenges of integrating the GoAnimate web-based tool with task-based language teaching (TBLT) in teaching writing to a grade 11 EFL, Omani classroom. The literature review covers specific topics that form the basis of TBLT, such as constructivism, cooperative learning, group dynamics and the affective filter hypothesis. Moreover, it introduces GoAnimate and brings to light some current multimodality related studies as GoAnimate is part and parcel of it. When it comes to the methodology, convenience sampling is adopted and thus, the sample consists of 6 teachers and 34 students. Additionally, the instrument used to collect data is students’ and teachers’ focus group interviews and the researcher’s self-observational notes. Furthermore, the procedure involves designing a female GoAnimate character called ‘Awash’ and using her to teach a writing lesson while the researcher observes and takes notes. After the lesson, the focus group interviews are conducted. After that, the gathered data is analysed and the research questions are answered. The findings of this research indicate that the integration of GoAnimate in the Omani classroom faces some challenges. Nevertheless, those challenges can be overcome if addressed properly. Additionally, the findings highlight that GoAnimate has a positive effect on students’ motivation and thus, their learning. Based on these findings, some implications for practice and research are put forward.
Effect Sizes in Experimental Pain Produced by Gender, Genetic Variants and Sensitization Procedures

Background Various effects on pain have been reported with respect to their statistical significance, but a standardized measure of effect size has been rarely added. Such a measure would ease comparison of the magnitude of the effects across studies, for example the effect of gender on heat pain with the effect of a genetic variant on pressure pain. Methodology/Principal Findings Effect sizes on pain thresholds to stimuli consisting of heat, cold, blunt pressure, punctuate pressure and electrical current, administered to 125 subjects, were analyzed for 29 common variants in eight human genes reportedly modulating pain, gender and sensitization procedures using capsaicin or menthol. The genotype explained 0–5.9% of the total interindividual variance in pain thresholds to various stimuli and produced mainly small effects (Cohen's d 0–1.8). The largest effect had the TRPA1 rs13255063T/rs11988795G haplotype explaining >5% of the variance in electrical pain thresholds and conferring lower pain sensitivity to homozygous carriers. Gender produced larger effect sizes than most variant alleles (1–14.8% explained variance, Cohen's d 0.2–0.8), with higher pain sensitivity in women than in men. Sensitization by capsaicin or menthol explained up to 63% of the total variance (4.7–62.8%) and produced largest effects according to Cohen's d (0.4–2.6), especially heat sensitization by capsaicin (Cohen's d = 2.6). Conclusions Sensitization, gender and genetic variants produce effects on pain in the mentioned order of effect sizes. The present report may provide a basis for comparative discussions of factors influencing pain.
Tai chi training reduces self-report of inattention in healthy young adults

It is important to identify effective non-pharmacological alternatives to stimulant medications that reduce symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). In this study of healthy young adults, we measured the effects of training in tai chi, which involves mindful attention to the body during movement. Using a non-randomized, controlled, parallel design, students in a 15-week introductory tai chi course (n = 28) and control participants (n = 44) were tested for ADHD indicators and cognitive function at three points over the course of the 15-weeks. The tai chi students’ self-report of attention, but not hyperactivity–impulsivity, improved compared to controls. At baseline, inattention correlated positively with reaction time variability in an affective go/no-go task across all participants, and improvements in attention correlated with reductions in reaction time variability across the tai chi students. Affective bias changed in the tai chi students, as reaction times to positive- and negative-valenced words equalized over time. These results converge to suggest that tai chi training may help improve attention in healthy young adults. Further studies are needed to confirm these results and to evaluate tai chi as therapy for individuals with ADHD.
Social tag prediction

In this paper, we look at the "social tag prediction" problem. Given a set of objects, and a set of tags applied to those objects by users, can we predict whether a given tag could/should be applied to a particular object? We investigated this question using one of the largest crawls of the social bookmarking system del.icio. us gathered to date. For URLs in del.icio. us, we predicted tags based on page text, anchor text, surrounding hosts, and other tags applied to the URL. We found an entropy-based metric which captures the generality of a particular tag and informs an analysis of how well that tag can be predicted. We also found that tag-based association rules can produce very high-precision predictions as well as giving deeper understanding into the relationships between tags. Our results have implications for both the study of tagging systems as potential information retrieval tools, and for the design of such systems.
Exploring the factor structure of the Food Cravings Questionnaire-Trait in Cuban adults

Food cravings refer to an intense desire to eat specific foods. The Food Cravings Questionnaire-Trait (FCQ-T) is the most commonly used instrument to assess food cravings as a multidimensional construct. Its 39 items have an underlying nine-factor structure for both the original English and Spanish version; but subsequent studies yielded fewer factors. As a result, a 15-item version of the FCQ-T with one-factor structure has been proposed (FCQ-T-reduced; see this Research Topic). The current study aimed to explore the factor structure of the Spanish version for both the FCQ-T and FCQ-T-reduced in a sample of 1241 Cuban adults. Results showed a four-factor structure for the FCQ-T, which explained 55% of the variance. Factors were highly correlated. Using the items of the FCQ-T-reduced only showed a one-factor structure, which explained 52% of the variance. Both versions of the FCQ-T were positively correlated with body mass index (BMI), scores on the Food Thoughts Suppression Inventory and weight cycling. In addition, women had higher scores than men and restrained eaters had higher scores than unrestrained eaters. To summarize, results showed that (1) the FCQ-T factor structure was significantly reduced in Cuban adults and (2) the FCQ-T-reduced may represent a good alternative to efficiently assess food craving on a trait level.
The Role of Cholecystokinin 1 Receptor in Prolactin Inhibited Gastric Emptying of Male Rat

Background/Aims Prolactin (PRL) is essential for the lactating mammals, while cholecystokinin (CCK) does inhibit gastric emptying (GE). Present study attempted to determine whether both peptides interacted on the male rat GE, particularly the role of putative CCK1 receptor. Methods Acute hyperprolactinemia of male rats was induced by the intraperitoneal injection of ovine PRL (oPRL) in several divided doses 15 minutes before motility study. Rat chronic hyperprolactinemia was induced by the graft of 2 pituitary glands into the capsule of left kidney, while control rats received cerebral cortex graft only. Motility study was conducted 6 weeks later after graft surgery. Fifteen minutes after the intragastric feeding of radiochromium, rat was sacrificed to measure GE via the distribution of radioactivities within stomach and intestine. Among the CCK1 receptor blocking study using lorglumide, rats were divided to receive the regimens in terms of oPRL-vehicle plus lorglumide-vehicle, oPRL plus lorglumide-vehicle, oPRL-vehicle plus lorglumide and oPRL plus lorglumide. Plasma CCK level was measured using a homemade radioimmunoassay kit. Results Compared to vehicle treatment, acute hyperprolactinemic rats under highest dose (2.0 mg/kg) of oPRL treatment showed delayed GE (70.6% ± 3.0% vs 42.1% ± 6.6%, P < 0.05). Chronic hyperprolactinemic rats under graft surgery also showed inhibited GE (70.5% ± 1.7% vs 54.5% ± 4.7%, P < 0.05). Both models finally obtained elevated plasma CCK levels (P < 0.05). Lorglumide itself did not influence GE, however, delayed GE under oPRL treatment was restored following the concomitant lorglumide treatment. Conclusions Our study suggests that PRL may delay male rat GE via a mechanism of endogenous CCK activation involving the peripheral CCK1 receptor.
Asthma Knowledge and Behaviors among Hairdressing Salon Employees in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

Objectives: To assess asthma knowledge among salon employees and to examine their behaviors toward protective devices. Methods: This cross-sectional survey was conducted between July and September 2016. Thirty-five salons were randomly selected of the 785 salons in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. A total of 160 employees were interviewed using the Chicago Community Asthma Survey to assess their knowledge about asthma and their behaviors in response to chemicals in the workplace. Results: The participants’ mean age was 34 years; 28% of participants were hairdressers. Moreover, 30% of employees only possessed adequate knowledge about asthma. Education level (p = 0.044), Saudi nationality (p = 0.003), and a family history of asthma (p = 0.008) were significantly related to knowledge level. Further, a significant gap was noted between employees’ knowledge of the benefits of masks and gloves and the practice of wearing these devices while working. Conclusions: Asthma knowledge among most salon employees was inadequate, and a significant gap was found between employees’ knowledge and practice. Pre-employment education programs about asthma are recommended and may enhance the knowledge levels among this group of workers. In addition, future research directed to further understanding the gap between employees’ knowledge levels of the benefits of masks and gloves, and their actual implementation at work, is needed. Efforts are required to bridge this gap to protect employees in the workplace.
A new case of complete primary cerebellar agenesis: clinical and imaging findings in a living patient.

Sir, We read with great interest the articles previously published in Brain by Glickstein (1994) and Boyd (2010) describing the clinical evidence and review of cerebellar agenesis. Here we report a new case of a living patient whom we believe to be another patient with cerebellar agenesis. Cerebellar agenesis is an extremely rare condition implying complete absence of the cerebellum. The pathogenesis and molecular basis of this disease remain unknown. There are very few reported cases of complete cerebellar agenesis, making it challenging and controversial to understand the degree of cerebellum development necessary to avoid deficits in motor and non-motor functions. Further, a detailed description of neurological findings in a living adult with cerebellar agenesis is almost non-existent; most cases are reported based on autopsy reports. The patient presents with mild mental impairment and medium motor deficits. CT and MRI scans revealed no remnants of any cerebellar tissues, verifying complete absence of the cerebellum. A comprehensive literature review reveals novel implications for differential diagnosis. We conclude that primary cerebellar agenesis is actually the same diagnosis as Chiari malformation IV. A 24-year-old female patient was admitted to hospital complaining of dizziness and the inability to walk steadily for more than 20 years, and nausea and vomiting for ∼1 month. She is married with a daughter, and her pregnancy and delivery were described as uneventful. Her parents had no history of neurological disorders. Her four sisters and one brother are described as neurologically normal. According to her mother, she was 4 years old before she could stand unassisted, and did not begin to walk unassisted until the age of 7, with a persistently unsteady gait. She never ran or jumped. Her speech was not intelligible until 6 years of age and she did not enter school. A neurological examination revealed she could …
Supporting content retrieval from WWW via “basic level categories” (poster abstract)

Much bandwidth on the Internet is spent on multimel Language: Many more attributes are listed for dia feeds for a rather limited range of entertainment. words at the basic level than for the superordiHowever, as IR matures, researchers are becoming more nate, and few additional for the subordinate [5]. aware of the professional possibilities of multimedia, For physical objects and organisms, parts notably and hence in effective techniques to find such inforproliferate at the basic level [6]. Also, when people mation [l]. On WWW, systems as ‘Visual Seek’ and have to name a picture of an object at the suborQBIC perform with limited success on closed databases dinate level, they choose the word for the basic in small domains. level.
The discrete and continuous Painlevé VI hierarchy and the Garnier systems

We present a general scheme to derive higher-order members of the Painlevé VI (PVI) hierarchy of ODE's as well as their difference analogues. The derivation is based on a discrete structure that sits on the background of the PVI equation and that consists of a system of partial difference equations on a multidimensional lattice. The connection with the isomonodromic Garnier systems is discussed.
Author ' s personal copy The development of idiom comprehension : An investigation of semantic and contextual processing skills

Two experiments compared 7and 8-year-olds’ and 9and 10year-olds’ ability to use semantic analysis and inference from context to understand idioms. We used a multiple-choice task and manipulated whether the idioms were transparent or opaque, familiar or novel, and presented with or without a supportive story context. Performance was compared with that of adults (Experiment 1) and 11and 12-year-olds (Experiment 2). The results broadly support Cacciari and Levorato’s global elaboration model of figurative competence with a notable exception: Even the youngest children were able to use semantic analysis to derive the meanings of transparent idioms as well as being sensitive to meaning in context. The findings show that young children process language at both the small-grain phrase level and the discourse level to establish figurative meaning, and they demonstrate that the language processing skills that aid idiom comprehension, as well as idiom knowledge itself, are still not fully developed in 11and 12-year-olds. 2008 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.