Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Preferential Duplication of Conserved Proteins in Eukaryotic Genomes

A central goal in genome biology is to understand the origin and maintenance of genic diversity. Over evolutionary time, each gene's contribution to the genic content of an organism depends not only on its probability of long-term survival, but also on its propensity to generate duplicates that are themselves capable of long-term survival. In this study we investigate which types of genes are likely to generate functional and persistent duplicates. We demonstrate that genes that have generated duplicates in the C. elegans and S. cerevisiae genomes were 25%–50% more constrained prior to duplication than the genes that failed to leave duplicates. We further show that conserved genes have been consistently prolific in generating duplicates for hundreds of millions of years in these two species. These findings reveal one way in which gene duplication shapes the content of eukaryotic genomes. Our finding that the set of duplicate genes is biased has important implications for genome-scale studies.
AMPK activation by peri-sciatic nerve administration of ozone attenuates CCI-induced neuropathic pain in rats

Neuropathic pain is a debilitating clinical condition with few efficacious treatments, warranting development of novel therapeutics. Ozone is widely used as an alternative therapy for many different pain conditions, with exact mechanisms still elusive. In this study, we found that a single peri-sciatic nerve injection of ozone decreased mechanical allodynia and thermal hyperalgesia, and normalized the phosphorylation of protein kinase C γ, N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor, and extracellular signal-regulated kinase in a chronic constriction injury (CCI) model in rat sciatic nerve. Meanwhile, ozone significantly suppressed CCI-induced activation of spinal microglia. More importantly, the anti-nociceptive effect of ozone depended on the activation of 5'-adenosine monophosphate (AMP)-activated protein kinase (AMPK), which was proved by the fact that the phosphorylated AMPK level increased during the ozone therapy and AMPK antagonist abolished the effect of ozone in vivo and in vitro. In addition, direct injection of AMPK agonist could replicate the anti-nociceptive effect of ozone in CCI rats. In conclusion, our observations indicate that peri-sciatic nerve injection of ozone activates AMPK to attenuate CCI-induced neuropathic pain.
Sociological Analysis of Fulfillment of Nursing Needs and Expectations of Patients in Teaching Hospitals in Northern Nigeria

Nurses have become central to many lives but how well nurses have fulfilled clients’ expectations is often a matter of great concern. Therefore, this study was conducted to examine fulfillment of nursing needs and expectations of patients in teaching hospitals in Northern Nigeria. Descriptive cross-sectional survey design was adopted for the study. Questionnaire, structured interview and focus group discussion (FGD) were used as instruments for data collection. The quantitative data was coded and analysed using descriptive methods such as frequency tables, percentages and measure of central tendencies while inferential statistics (chi-square analysis) was used to test the hypothesis. These were triangulated with the content analyses of information from the focus group discussions. The finding showed that the mean age of respondents is 41 years and they cut across socio-economic classes and units of the hospitals. Some (41.5%) of the respondents said their social needs/expectations were not met or satisfied while 33.5% claimed that their psychological needs/expectations was not fulfilled by nurses during hospitalization. On the other hand, majority (77.9%) and (69.4%) of the patients said that their security and physical needs/expectations from nurses were respectively fulfilled. The test of significant relationship between the variables showed that there were statistically significant differences in the patients’ nursing care needs/expectations and fulfillment of needs and expectations by nurses in the teaching hospitals in Northern Nigeria. It is therefore recommended that, curriculum of nursing training, workshops and seminars should be strengthened with the components of human relation and behavioral science. Keywords: Patients, Hospital, Nursing needs, Expectations, Fulfillment, Satisfaction
Associations Between Length of Music Training and Reading Skills in Children

previous research has found that music training in childhood is associated with word decoding, a fundamental reading skill related to the ability to pronounce individual words. These findings have typically been explained by a near transfer mechanism because music lessons train auditory abilities associated with those needed for decoding words. Nevertheless, few studies have examined whether music training is associated with higher-level reading abilities such as reading comprehension, which would suggest far transfer. We tested whether the length of time children took music lessons was associated with word decoding and reading comprehension skills in 6- to 9-year-old normal-achieving readers. Our results revealed that length of music training was not associated with word decoding skills; however, length of music training predicted reading comprehension performance even after controlling for age, socioeconomic status, auditory perception, full-scale IQ, the number of hours that children spent reading per week, and word decoding skills. We suggest that if near transfer occurs, it is likely strongest in beginning readers or those experiencing reading difficulty. The strong association in our data—between length of music training and reading comprehension—is consistent with mechanisms involving far transfer.
HISTOMORPHOLOGY OF THE THYROID GLAND IN THE DOMESTIC FOWL ( Callus domesticus ) *

Thyroid is an unique endocrine gland, having a widely separated pair of thyroid lobes on each side of the trachea at the level of the clavicle in birds. The literature regarding the histomorphology of the thyroid gland in the domestic fowl is scanty, which prompted to take up this study. This study forms a basis for correlating the possible functions of the thyroid gland in relation to growth, production of layer and broiler chicken and the diagnosis of deficiency syndrome.
Penetratin-Mediated Transepithelial Insulin Permeation: Importance of Cationic Residues and pH for Complexation and Permeation

ABSTRACTPenetratin is a widely used carrier peptide showing promising potential for mucosal delivery of therapeutic proteins. In the present study, the importance of specific penetratin residues and pH was investigated with respect to complexation with insulin and subsequent transepithelial insulin permeation. Besides penetratin, three analogues were studied. The carrier peptide-insulin complexes were characterized in terms of size and morphology at pH 5, 6.5, and 7.4 by dynamic light scattering (DLS) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), respectively. At pH 7.4 mainly very large complexes were present, while much smaller complexes dominated at pH 5. Presence of arginine residues in the carrier peptide proved to be a prerequisite for complexation with insulin as well as for enhanced transepithelial insulin permeation in vitro. Rearrangement of tryptophan residues resulted in significantly increased insulin permeation as compared to that of the parent penetratin. In general, pre-complexation with penetratin and its analogues at pH 5 gave rise to increased insulin permeation as compared to that observed at pH 7.4; this finding was further supported by a preliminary in vivo study using the parent penetratin.
Association of the Cholinergic Muscarinic M2 Receptor with Autonomic Nervous System Activity in Patients with Schizophrenia on High-Dose Antipsychotics

Background: Patients with schizophrenia have abnormal autonomic nervous system (ANS) activity compared with the general population. One reason for this difference is the muscarinic affinity for antipsychotic drugs; therefore, single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of the muscarinic receptor gene influence this ANS dysfunction. This study sought to determine the effect of SNPs of the cholinergic muscarinic receptor (CHRM) gene on ANS activity in patients with schizophrenia receiving antipsychotic drugs. Methods: A total of 173 Japanese patients with schizophrenia were included in this study. Heart rate variability (HRV) was measured as an index of ANS activity. SNPs in CHRM1 (rs542269 and rs2075748), CHRM2 (rs324640, rs8191992, rs1824024, and rs7810473), and CHRM3 (rs3738435, rs4620530, and rs6429157) were genotyped using the TaqMan® method. Patients were grouped according to standard equivalent conversions of chlorpromazine (CP) into a high-CP group (HG; ≥1,000 mg) and a low-CP group (LG; <1,000 mg). ANS activity was compared between the groups. In addition, we compared the total, low-frequency (LF), high-frequency (HF), and LF/HF components of the patients' HRV, and the genotype of the SNPs in both the HG and LG groups. Bonferroni correction was applied for multiple comparisons, and the Bonferroni-corrected critical p value was <0.005. Results: The A allele of the CHRM2 rs8191992 polymorphism in HG was associated with decreased ANS activity. Conclusion: Our results show reduced ANS activity in association with the CHRM2 rs8191992 polymorphism in patients with schizophrenia on high-dose antipsychotics. CHRM2 polymorphisms may play an important role in ANS activity in patients with schizophrenia.
Research at Work: Understanding Regression Tables in Research Studies

Understanding and interpreting regression tables is not the exclusive purview of academics. Social workers and allied professionals in micro and macro practice, regardless of whether they are undergraduate or graduate trained, can use the information provided in a research article to make informed decisions about practice and assessment. Regression tables are interpretable once the reader has a basic understanding of regression terms, tables, and criteria for causal inferences. While not an exhaustive discussion of multiple regression, this overview functions as a heuristic understanding for how to interpret multiple regression tables and statistics, and provides a framework for drawing causal inferences.
The Resilience of Male Inmates in Medaeng Prison Resiliensi pada Narapidana Laki-laki di Lapas Klas 1 Medaeng

This study is useful to look at the dynamics of resilience in male inmates. Resilience is consideredimportant in the context of prisoners, as prisoners are not resilient, once released will tend torepeat the same mistake of not being able to adapt and rise from the ground. Theme resiliencemale inmates selected because of the lack of resilience theme that uses subject prisoners inIndonesia. The lack of resilience topics male prisoners in Indonesia due to the concept ofresilience is more widely used in the context of natural disasters. This study uses interviews andLife History Quesionaire given to 6 inmates. As a result, individuals who have a high resiliencedue to the support person nearby, spirituality, and age. While the length of sentences has noeffect on the ability of prisoners resilience capability.
Document de travail “Impacts of Immigration on Aging Welfare-State An Applied General Equilibrium Model for France”

Immigration is often seen as an instrument of adaptation for aging countries. In this paper, we evaluate, using a dynamic general equilibrium model, the contribution of migration policy in reducing the tax burden associated with the aging population in France. Four variants, compared to a baseline scenario based on oﬃcial projections, are simulated with the aim to quantify the immigration eﬀects on the French social protection ﬁnances. The ﬁrst variant assesses the economic eﬀects of immigration in France as projected into oﬃcial forecasts. The three other variants are built on the same more ambitious annual ﬂows of immigrants (corresponding to net migration that have characterized the second great wave of immigration in France in the twentieth century). These three variants only distinguish in terms of the skill structure of new migrants. We show that the age and skill structure of immigrants are the key feature that mainly determine the eﬀects on social protection ﬁnances. Overall, these eﬀects are all the more positive in the short-medium term that the migration policy is selective (in favor of more skilled workers). In the long term, beneﬁcial eﬀects of a selective policy may disappear. But the ﬁnancial gains from more consequent migration ﬂows are relatively moderated in comparison of demographic changes it implies. J.E. L. classiﬁcation number: C68, D58, E60, H55, H68, J61.
Perceptions of the Nature of Science by Geoscience Students Experiencing Two Different Courses of Study

Student knowledge of the Nature of Science (NOS) is critical to their understanding of science. NOS encapsulates the tenets of how science is regarded and the heuristics by which science is judged to be valid and appropriate. The importance of NOS to science education has lead to curricular and policy development that mandate the construct be taught throughout the K-12 science curriculum. If this curriculum is effective there is an expectation that students would enter post-secondary with foundational knowledge of NOS. Our research examined the perspectives of NOS among two different cohorts of undergraduate geoscience students, one of lower division students beginning their study of geoscience and a second of upper division students nearing the completion of their degree. We assessed their intellectual and emotional perceptions of NOS at the beginning of the semester. At the end of the semester we again assessed their perceptions of NOS and their conceptual understanding of geoscience. Our results indicate there was not a significant difference between the two cohorts and there was a significant drop in the emotional perceptions of NOS over the semester (p < .05). Conceptual understanding of geoscience was found to be significantly correlated with emotional perceptions of NOS. The results, implications, and directions for future research are discussed.
Reduced Susceptibility of Plasmodium falciparum to Artesunate in Southern Myanmar

Background Plasmodium falciparum resistance to artemisinins, the first line treatment for malaria worldwide, has been reported in western Cambodia. Resistance is characterized by significantly delayed clearance of parasites following artemisinin treatment. Artemisinin resistance has not previously been reported in Myanmar, which has the highest falciparum malaria burden among Southeast Asian countries. Methods A non-randomized, single-arm, open-label clinical trial of artesunate monotherapy (4 mg/kg daily for seven days) was conducted in adults with acute blood-smear positive P. falciparum malaria in Kawthaung, southern Myanmar. Parasite density was measured every 12 hours until two consecutive negative smears were obtained. Participants were followed weekly at the study clinic for three additional weeks. Co-primary endpoints included parasite clearance time (the time required for complete clearance of initial parasitemia), parasite clearance half-life (the time required for parasitemia to decrease by 50% based on the linear portion of the parasite clearance slope), and detectable parasitemia 72 hours after commencement of artesunate treatment. Drug pharmacokinetics were measured to rule out delayed clearance due to suboptimal drug levels. Results The median (range) parasite clearance half-life and time were 4.8 (2.1–9.7) and 60 (24–96) hours, respectively. The frequency distributions of parasite clearance half-life and time were bimodal, with very slow parasite clearance characteristic of the slowest-clearing Cambodian parasites (half-life longer than 6.2 hours) in approximately 1/3 of infections. Fourteen of 52 participants (26.9%) had a measurable parasitemia 72 hours after initiating artesunate treatment. Parasite clearance was not associated with drug pharmacokinetics. Conclusions A subset of P. falciparum infections in southern Myanmar displayed markedly delayed clearance following artemisinin treatment, suggesting either emergence of artemisinin resistance in southern Myanmar or spread to this location from its site of origin in western Cambodia. Resistance containment efforts are underway in Myanmar. Trial Registration Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry ACTRN12610000896077
The use of UTAUT to investigate the adoption of e-government in Jordan: a cultural perspective

E-government is believed to be vibrant in developing the public sectors around the globe, as it assures more accountability and transparency. Jordan, as a developing country, has developed a number of e-government services. The success of e-government services is dependent one both; the government support as well as citizens' willingness to adopt those e-government initiatives. This study adopted a modified version of the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) to examine factors that determine the adoption of e-government services in Jordan. Also, the study aims to examine whether and how national culture has an impact on e-government adoption. A survey collected data from 1,132 users of Jordan's e-government services. Using partial least squares (PLS) of structural equation modelling (SEM) analysis technique, the results show that all the five factors, namely: performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, facilitating conditions and behavioural intention have significant effect on the adoption of e-government services in Jordan.
Carbon Dioxide Insufflation Reduces Discomfort Due to Flexible Sigmoidoscopy in Colorectal Cancer Screening

Background: Flexible sigmoidoscopy is currently recommended as a screening modality for colorectal cancer. However, a substantial number of patients experience discomfort because of the procedure, possibly limiting compliance and thus screening success. During endoscopy, air is commonly used to insufflate the bowel. Carbon dioxide rather than air insufflation has been shown to reduce procedurerelated pain and discomfort in colonoscopy. The aim of the present study was to evaluate whether carbon dioxide insufflation reduces discomfort during and after flexible sigmoidoscopy for colorectal cancer screening. Methods: In a randomized, double-blinded design, 230 consecutive participants in a population-based flexible sigmoidoscopy colorectal cancer screening trial were assigned to have their examination performed with either carbon dioxide or air insufflation. Patients were asked to grade discomfort experienced both during and in the hours after the procedure on a visual analogue scale. Results: Carbon dioxide insufflation significantly reduced the amount of discomfort at 1, 3 and 6 h after the sigmoidoscopy. One hour after the examination, 84% of patients in the CO 2 group reported no discomfort, compared to 64% in the air group ( P = 0.006). No differences between the groups were observed during the examination. Conclusions: Carbon dioxide insufflation significantly reduced postexamination discomfort. The use of carbon dioxide rather than air insufflation may contribute to better public acceptance for flexible sigmoidoscopy screening.
Teacher implementation of trial-based functional analysis and function-based interventions for students with challenging behavior

SUSAN DAGENHART FLYNN. Teacher implementation of trial-based functional analysis and function-based interventions for students with challenging behavior. (Under the direction of DR. YA-YU LO) Children and youth with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) or emotional and behavioral disabilities (E/BD) often exhibit challenging behavior including aggression, self-injury, non-compliance, or property destruction (Kamps, Kravits, Rauch, Kamps, & Chung, 2000; National Autism Center, 2009). As a result, students with ASD or E/BD often miss out on critical opportunities for learning due to their challenging behavior. Fortunately, the literature provides information on the effectiveness of functional behavioral assessment (FBA) to assess or reduce challenging behavior and increase appropriate behavior of children and youth with ASD or E/BD (e.g., Hanley, Iwata, & McCord, 2003; Horner, Carr, Strain, Todd, & Reed, 2002; Lane, Kalberg, & Shepcaro, 2009; Simpson, 2005). Functional analysis (FA), conducted as a component of FBA or alone, is specifically used to identify the function of targeted challenging behavior via a systematic experiment. The literature suggests the importance of FA as a more valid method than indirect methods or descriptive analyses in identifying behavioral functions (Asmus, Vollmer, & Borrero, 2002). FA is the only method that can demonstrate a causal relationship between an antecedent stimulus or reinforcer and a behavior (Asmus et al., 2002); however, FA is rarely used in school settings. A possible reason is associated with the complexity of FA procedures (e.g., manipulating stimuli accurately) and time constraints. To address these issues, many variations to the standard FA have been made, including trial-based FA (i.e., TBFA).
Identification of potential biomarkers from microarray experiments using multiple criteria optimization

Microarray experiments are capable of determining the relative expression of tens of thousands of genes simultaneously, thus resulting in very large databases. The analysis of these databases and the extraction of biologically relevant knowledge from them are challenging tasks. The identification of potential cancer biomarker genes is one of the most important aims for microarray analysis and, as such, has been widely targeted in the literature. However, identifying a set of these genes consistently across different experiments, researches, microarray platforms, or cancer types is still an elusive endeavor. Besides the inherent difficulty of the large and nonconstant variability in these experiments and the incommensurability between different microarray technologies, there is the issue of the users having to adjust a series of parameters that significantly affect the outcome of the analyses and that do not have a biological or medical meaning. In this study, the identification of potential cancer biomarkers from microarray data is casted as a multiple criteria optimization (MCO) problem. The efficient solutions to this problem, found here through data envelopment analysis (DEA), are associated to genes that are proposed as potential cancer biomarkers. The method does not require any parameter adjustment by the user, and thus fosters repeatability. The approach also allows the analysis of different microarray experiments, microarray platforms, and cancer types simultaneously. The results include the analysis of three publicly available microarray databases related to cervix cancer. This study points to the feasibility of modeling the selection of potential cancer biomarkers from microarray data as an MCO problem and solve it using DEA. Using MCO entails a new optic to the identification of potential cancer biomarkers as it does not require the definition of a threshold value to establish significance for a particular gene and the selection of a normalization procedure to compare different experiments is no longer necessary.