Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Dynamic survey of mitochondria by ubiquitin

Ubiquitin is a post‐translational modifier with proteolytic and non‐proteolytic roles in many biological processes. At mitochondria, it performs regulatory homeostatic functions and contributes to mitochondrial quality control. Ubiquitin is essential for mitochondrial fusion, regulates mitochondria‐ER contacts, and participates in maternal mtDNA inheritance. Under stress, mitochondrial dysfunction induces ubiquitin‐dependent responses that involve mitochondrial proteome remodeling and culminate in organelle removal by mitophagy. In addition, many ubiquitin‐dependent mechanisms have been shown to regulate innate immune responses and xenophagy. Here, we review the emerging roles of ubiquitin at mitochondria.
Do people with schizophrenia display theory of mind deficits in clinical interactions?

Background. Having a ‘theory of mind’ (ToM) means that one appreciates one's own and others' mental states, and that this appreciation guides interactions with others. It has been proposed that ToM is impaired in schizophrenia and experimental studies show that patients with schizophrenia have problems with ToM, particularly during acute episodes. The model predicts that communicative problems will result from ToM deficits. Method. We analysed 35 encounters (>80 h of recordings) between mental health professionals and people with chronic schizophrenia (out-patient consultations and cognitive behaviour therapy sessions) using conversation analysis in order to identify how the participants used or failed to use ToM relevant skills in social interaction. Results. Schizophrenics with ongoing positive and negative symptoms appropriately reported first and second order mental states of others and designed their contributions to conversations on the basis of what they thought their communicative partners knew and intended. Patients recognized that others do not share their delusions and attempted to reconcile others' beliefs with their own but problems arose when they try to warrant their delusional claims. They did not make the justification for their claim understandable for their interlocutor. Nevertheless, they did not fail to recognize that the justification for their claim is unconvincing. However, the ensuing disagreement did not lead them to modify their beliefs. Conclusions. Individuals with schizophrenia demonstrated intact ToM skills in conversational interactions. Psychotic beliefs persisted despite the realization they are not shared but not because patients cannot reflect on them and compare them with what others believe.
Growth performance, digestibility, and blood biochemical parameters of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) reared in floating cages and fed poultry by-product meal

ABSTRACT A 120-day feeding trial was conducted in floating cages to evaluate growth performance and digestibility of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) juveniles fed diets containing different levels of poultry by-product meal (PBM) as a replacement for fishmeal. Nile Tilapia with an average body weight of 56.6 ± 0.28 g were used in this experiment. Five diets were formulated to contain graded levels of PBM at 0%, 5%, 10%, 20%, and 30% poultry by-product meal (PBM) and are referred as PBM0, PBM5, PBM10, PBM20, and PBM30, respectively. Groups of 25 Nile tilapia were fed close to the apparent satiation, three times a day. The results showed that growth performance, survival and whole-body composition for fish fed the experimental diets were not significantly different (P > .05) than fish fed the control diet. Apparent digestibility of dry matter, protein, lipid and amino acids of fish fed the PBM20 and PBM30 were lower compared to the other treatments (P < .05). The PBM dietary levels significantly lowered total protein, high-density-lipoprotein (HDL) and cholesterol concentration. The results of this study indicated that good quality PBM can be used up to 30% in commercial diets for Nile tilapia without any adverse effect.
Effect of Ozone Treatment on Surface Properties of Activated Carbon

The combined use of ozone and activated carbon has recently started to be developed for the treatment of toxic effluents. However, the effect of ozone on the properties of activated carbon is not fully elucidated. A study was undertaken of modifications in the surface properties of a commercial activated carbon produced by its ozonation during different time periods. Surface chemistry of the activated carbon samples was characterized by selective neutralization, temperature-programmed desorption, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and pH of the point of zero charge. Surface area and volume of micropores and mesopores were obtained from nitrogen adsorption isotherms at 77 K. Adsorption properties were determined by methylene blue adsorption index. Results show that the higher the ozone dose, the higher is the oxidation of the carbon and the greater is the number of acid groups present on the carbon surface, especially carboxylic groups, whereas the pH of the point of zero charge decreases. The surface area,.
The Diagnostic Value of Gastrin-17 Detection in Atrophic Gastritis

AbstractA meta-analysis was performed to assess the diagnostic value of gastrin-17 (G-17) for the early detection of chronic atrophic gastritis (CAG). An extensive literature search was performed, with the aim of selecting publications that reported the accuracy of G-17 in predicting CAG, in the following databases: PubMed, Science Direct, Web of Science, Chinese Biological Medicine, Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang, and VIP. To assess the diagnostic value of G-17, the following statistics were estimated and described: sensitivity, specificity, diagnostic odds ratios (DOR), summary receiver operating characteristic curves, area under the curve (AUC), and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Thirteen studies that met the inclusion criteria were included in this meta-analysis, comprising 894 patients and 1950 controls. The pooled sensitivity and specificity of these studies were 0.48 (95% CI: 0.45–0.51) and 0.79 (95% CI: 0.77–0.81), respectively. The DOR was 5.93 (95% CI: 2.93–11.99), and the AUC was 0.82. G-17 may have potential diagnostic value because it has good specificity and a moderate DOR and AUC for CAG. However, more studies are needed to improve the sensitivity of this diagnostic tool in the future.
Do Predictors of Career Success Differ between Swedish Women and Men? Data from the Swedish Longitudinal Occupational Survey of Health (SLOSH)

The aim of this prospective study was to explore predictors of objective career success among Swedish women and men, focussing on gender differences. Data were drawn from the 2008 and 2010 waves of the Swedish Longitudinal Occupational Survey of Health (SLOSH) with a total of 3670 female and 2773 male participants. Odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals for job promotion and an above-average salary increase between 2008 and 2010 were obtained through binary logistic regression analyses. Individual and organisational factors measured in 2008 were used as predictors in analyses stratified by sex. Mutual adjustment was performed for these variables, as well as for labour market sector and staff category at baseline. In both sexes, younger age predicted both job promotion and an above-average salary increase. Job promotion was also in both sexes predicted by being part of decision-making processes, having conflicts with superiors, and being eager to advance. Furthermore, promotion was predicted by, among men, being educated to post-graduate level and having an open coping strategy and, among women, working >60 hours/week. An above-average salary increase was predicted in both sexes by having a university education. Postgraduate education, having children living at home, and being very motivated to advance predicted an above-average salary increase among women, as did working 51–60 hours/week and being part of decision-making processes in men. Gender differences were seen in several predictors. In conclusion, the results support previous findings of gender differences in predictors of career success. A high level of education, motivation to advance, and procedural justice appear to be more important predictors of career success among women, while open coping was a more important predictor among men.
Mutagenesis of the Bacterial RNA Polymerase Alpha Subunit for Improvement of Complex Phenotypes

ABSTRACT Combinatorial or random methods for strain engineering have been extensively used for the improvement of multigenic phenotypes and other traits for which the underlying mechanism is not fully understood. Although the preferred method has traditionally been mutagenesis and selection, our laboratory has successfully used mutant transcription factors, which direct the RNA polymerase (RNAP) during transcription, to engineer complex phenotypes in microbial cells. Here, we show that it is also possible to impart new phenotypes by altering the RNAP core enzyme itself, in particular through mutagenesis of the alpha subunit of the bacterial polymerase. We present the use of this tool for improving tolerance of Escherichia coli to butanol and other solvents and for increasing the titers of two commercially relevant products, l-tyrosine and hyaluronic acid. In addition, we explore the underlying physiological changes that give rise to the solvent-tolerant mutant.
The Anatomage table: Differences in student ratings between initial implementation and established use

Introduction: Increased student numbers and limited cadaver/prosected materials in health courses at Curtin University have required reviewing the way in which we teach our students in laboratory classes. The Anatomage table, an interactive tablet for viewing life-size anatomical images, was introduced into first-year human biology classes in 2013 to replace cadaver materials. Methods: Two student cohorts were surveyed in 2013 and 2014 on their perception of the usefulness of the Anatomage table and other anatomy resources to their learning. On a scale of 0–100, students were asked to rate a range of anatomy learning tools, including the Anatomage table. Results: Respondents (2013, n = 333; 2014, n = 329) rated video/animations most useful for learning (77.8/100), followed by models (63.9/100), plastinates (58.4/100) and the Anatomage table (42.4/100), a pattern consistent across gender, use of digital devices and cohort year. In 2014, respondents rated the Anatomage table more favourably (42.4/100) than in 2013 (36.9/100) ( p = 0.022). The Anatomage table was rated most helpful for understanding relative sizes of organs but least helpful for using correct anatomical terminology. Qualitative data showed that in 2013, students were frustrated by screen-freezing problems and low-quality graphics, issues that were mostly addressed by 2014. Across both years, student comments were positive regarding the 3D aspect, seeing organ sizes and relationships, the slice tool for cross-sections and avoiding the need for cadaver specimens. Students also liked the Anatomage structured activities and pre-set images but wanted more time to explore and less than eight students around the table at any one time. Students felt unprepared for using the Anatomage table, and the single touch capacity was limiting when working in groups. Conclusions: These findings indicate that touch-screen technology needs careful curriculum design and training for both students and staff to optimise its usefulness for learning.
Excitatory Local Interneurons Enhance Tuning of Sensory Information

Neurons in the insect antennal lobe represent odors as spatiotemporal patterns of activity that unfold over multiple time scales. As these patterns unspool they decrease the overlap between odor representations and thereby increase the ability of the olfactory system to discriminate odors. Using a realistic model of the insect antennal lobe we examined two competing components of this process –lateral excitation from local excitatory interneurons, and slow inhibition from local inhibitory interneurons. We found that lateral excitation amplified differences between representations of similar odors by recruiting projection neurons that did not receive direct input from olfactory receptors. However, this increased sensitivity also amplified noisy variations in input and compromised the ability of the system to respond reliably to multiple presentations of the same odor. Slow inhibition curtailed the spread of projection neuron activity and increased response reliability. These competing influences must be finely balanced in order to decorrelate odor representations.
Rehabilitative Interventions and Brain Plasticity in Autism Spectrum Disorders: Focus on MRI-Based Studies

Clinical and research evidence supports the efficacy of rehabilitative intervention for improving targeted skills or global outcomes in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, putative mechanisms of structural and functional brain changes are poorly understood. This review aims to investigate the research literature on the neural circuit modifications after non-pharmacological intervention. For this purpose, longitudinal studies that used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-based techniques at the start and at the end of the trial to evaluate the neural effects of rehabilitative treatment in subjects with ASD were identified. The six included studies involved a limited number of patients in the active group (from 2 to 16), and differed by acquisition method (task-related and resting-state functional MRI) as well as by functional MRI tasks. Overall, the results produced by the selected investigations demonstrated brain plasticity during the treatment interval that results in an activation/functional connectivity more similar to those of subjects with typical development (TD). Repeated MRI evaluation may represent a promising tool for the detection of neural changes in response to treatment in patients with ASD. However, large-scale randomized controlled trials after standardized rehabilitative intervention are required before translating these preliminary results into clinical use.
How to Avoid Yourself

PAFAS (Process Algebra for Faster Asynchronous Systems) is a process algebra where actions are assumed to occur within a given time bound, which for simplicity is taken to be 1. A testing-based faster-than relation is presented that compares asynchronous systems according to their worst-case eÆciency [4,3]. Main results are: the resulting pre-order based on the more realistic real-valued time is the same as the pre-order based on the simpler integer-valued time { so we use the latter; the faster-than relation can be characterized with some sort of refusal traces. A larger example studying implementations of a bu er can be found in [1]. While the testing de nition is qualitative, we point out that it can also be seen as considering a quantitative performance measure. Then we adapt the PAFASapproach to a setting, where user behaviour is known to belong to a very speci c, but often occurring class of request-response behaviours, and show how to determine an asymptotic performance measure for nite-state processes [2].
Migration, Remittances and Poverty in Ecuador

Abstract We analyse the influence of the recent wave of migration on the incidence of poverty among stayers in Ecuador. We draw our data from a survey that provides detailed information on migrants. The analysis reveals a significant negative effect of migration on poverty among migrant households. This effect is substantially smaller than the one that we find focusing on recipient households. We explore the factors that account for this divergence. Our analysis entails that the existing empirical evidence on the relationship between remittances and poverty does not need to be informative about the size of the direct poverty-reduction potential of migration.
Cues, emotions and experiences: How teaching assistants make decisions about teaching

ABSTRACT Scholars of teaching and learning have increasingly acknowledged the significance of attending to the experiences and development of undergraduate and graduate student teaching assistants (TAs). The present study aims to contribute to this growing body of research by exploring the ways in which TAs at one Canadian university make decisions during and about their teaching. Drawing on data from semi-structured interviews, which were supported and supplemented by audio-recordings and observations of participants’ teaching wherever possible, we consider what cues, factors, experiences and relationships shape and inform TAs’ thinking and actions as educators, as well as how these junior instructors experience the process of making decisions while teaching. Ultimately, the findings suggest the need for more sustained attention to both the immediate, concrete processes of teaching in university classrooms and the affective components of this work, laying the groundwork for new branches of research and development focused on early-career educators in higher education.
Attention and memory bias for positive emotional words

Attention and Memory Bias for Positive Emotional Words by Gregory P. Strauss, B.S. Dr. Daniel N. Allen, Examination Committee Chair Associate Professor of Psychology University of Nevada, Las Vegas The current study examined the relationship between attention and memory for emotional words. Theories of “basic emotion” divide emotions into positive and negative classifications, and propose that discrete categories exist within the larger positive negative dichotomy. Previous research on emotion has yet to investigate the areas of attention and memory by dividing positive/negative words into discrete emotional categories. Participants included 30 undergraduate students between the ages 18-40. Attention and Memory were examined using an Emotional Stroop task. The Emotional Verbal Learning Test, and the California Verbal Learning Test-II, respectively. Stimuli for emotional tasks are divided into five emotional word categories of: happiness, sadness, anger, anxiety, and disgust. Results support the existence of the Pollyanna Principle in memory and attention; however, attention and memory were not significantly correlated within discrete emotion conditions.
Studying Users' Computer Security Behavior Using the Health Belief Model

The increasing frequency of security incidents is a major concern to organizations, and it is therefore important for organizations to protect themselves against security threats. Technological controls are important but not adequate, as the success of security also depends on the effective security behavior of individuals. Information security awareness programs are an important approach but such programs have to be effective in influencing user’s behavior. It is thus important to investigate the factors that will influence a user to practice computer security in the context of an organization. With such motivation in mind, this study uses the Health Belief Model, a well-established model from preventive healthcare, to study users’ computer security behavior. An instrument was developed based on health and security literature and conceptually validated. Data was collected from 134 employees of different organizations and analyzed using multiple regression analysis. Results show that perceived susceptibility, perceived benefits and self-efficacy are determinants of a user’s computer security behavior when applied to exercising care with email attachments. Theoretical and practical implications of this study are discussed.
Strategic Re-Engineering-Small Firms ' Tactics in a Mature Industry January 2000

Mature industries are characterised by static or declining sales, low average margins and intense competition between firms for market share. This paper develops a typology of strategic options for small firms in the furniture industry and examines the extent to which firms are adopting simple or complex strategies. Empirical analysis is based on data from 39 firms with between 10 and 100 employees in the Irish furniture industry. Three main results emerge from the analysis. First, there is some support for the suggestion that firms in mature industries such as furniture tend to adopt simple business development strategies. Second, in terms of strategy success, we find no evidence that simple strategies unambiguously out-perform more complex approaches. Instead, the success of either a simple or complex business strategy is directly related to the strength of firms’ resource base. Finally, marked differences were found in firms' ability or willingness to re-engineer their strategies in the light of their experience.
Predictive Effects of Writing Strategies for Self‐Regulated Learning on Secondary School Learners’
 EFL
 Writing Proficiency

Curriculum reform in China has aimed to teach students to self-regulate their learning (Ministry of Education, 2012). Teachers and researchers have acknowledged that being able to regulate one’s learning process is essential for achieving personal learning objectives (e.g., Ben-Eliyahu & Bernacki, 2015) and that self-regulated writing strategies are a reliable predictor of learners’ writing proficiency in English as a foreign language (EFL; L. S. Teng & Zhang, 2016). However, studies in exploring the predictive effects of self-regulated writing strategies on EFL writing proficiency are limited, particularly the extent to which self-regulated writing strategies contribute to secondary school students’ writing. This study is based on self-regulated learning (SRL) theory, which delineates the ways in which learners can actively and efficiently manage the learning process by employing various strategies (Zimmerman & Risemberg, 1997). As recognized in previous studies (e.g., Zimmerman & Schunk, 2011), learners who are more selfregulated often exhibit a greater sense of self-efficacy, are more cognizant of their strengths and weaknesses, and are more likely to seek opportunities to acquire new knowledge and skills. Self-regulated learners can be characterized by their ability to initiate metacognitive, cognitive, affective, motivational, and behavioral processes to realize their learning goals (Kizilcec, P erez-Sanagust ın, & Maldonado, 2017). The self-regulated learning process has also been conceptualized as a constellation of actions (e.g., monitoring, directing, regulating) carried out in pursuit of learning goals (Ziegler, Stoeger, & Grassinger, 2011) or a sequenced set of specific processes by a learner who controls internal and external misdirection (Ben-Eliyahu & Bernacki, 2015). In EFL teaching, SRL strategies and self-efficacy beliefs have been shown to predict EFL learners’ English proficiency (e.g., Wang & Bai, 2017). With the exception of a very limited number of studies