Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Population-based analysis of the frequency of HFE gene polymorphisms: Correlation with the susceptibility to develop hereditary hemochromatosis

Hereditary hemochromatosis (HH) is an autosomal recessive genetic disease, characterized by increased dietary iron absorption. Due to the absence of an effective excretory mechanism, the excess iron in the body may accumulate resulting in toxic effects. The HFE gene also affects the activity of hepcidin, a hormone which acts as a negative regulator of iron metabolism. In this study, we performed a population-based analysis of the distribution of three hemochromatosis-related polymorphisms in the HFE gene (rs1800562, rs1799945 and rs1800730). DNA from 1,446 non-related individuals of Greek ethnicity was collected and analyzed, either from whole blood or buccal swabs. The frequency distribution of these HFE gene polymorphisms was then determined. The results revealed that in our Greek population cohort (gr) the frequencies of each polymorphism were as follows: rs1800562: GG (wild-type)=97.0%, GA=1.5%, AA=1.5%; rs1799945: CC (wild-type)=74.4%, CG=23.4%, GG=2.2%; rs1800730: AA (wild-type)=98.1%, AT=1.5% and TT=0.4%. No association between the HFE polymorphisms rs1800562, rs1799945 and rs1800730 and gender could be established. As regards the rs1800562 polymorphism, the A allele (mutant) was ~1.8-fold more frequent in the European population (eur) than in the Greek population [(gr)=2,3%<(eur)=4%]. As for the rs1799945 polymorphism, the G allele (mutant) was 1.2-fold more frequent in the European population than in the Greek population [(gr)=13,9%<(eur)=17%]. As regards the rs1800730 polymorphism, the T allele (mutant) was ~1.7-fold more frequent in the European population than in the Greek population [(gr)=1.2%<(eur)=2%]. However, these pathogenic mutations were found more frequently in the Greek population compared to the global population (gl) [rs1800562: (gl)=1%<(gr)=2,3%; rs1799945: (gl)=7%<(gr)=13,9%; rs1800730: (gl)=<1%<(gr)=1.2%]. This suggests that the Greek population may differ genetically from the northern European population, due to influences from neighboring Asian and African populations. These findings also suggest that there is no gender-associated inheritance of these polymorphisms, and gender-specific symptoms appear as a result of independent biological processes. Thus, the early detection of the tendency towards iron accumulation may be achieved by the genotypic analysis of the polymorphisms that may contribute to the development of the hemochromatosis.
Série Scientifique Scientific Series 2009 s-21 Dependence Structure and Extreme Comovements in International Equity and Bond Markets

Common negative extreme variations in returns are prevalent in international equity markets. This has been widely documented with statistical tools such as exceedance correlation, extreme value theory, and Gaussian bivariate GARCH or regime-switching models. We point to limits of these tools to characterize extreme dependence and propose an alternative regime-switching copula model that includes one normal regime in which dependence is symmetric and a second regime characterized by asymmetric dependence. Moreover, to fully appreciate the potential effects of this asymmetric dependence in terms of portfolio diversification, we apply this model to international equity and bond markets, to allow for inter-market movements. Empirically, we find that dependence between international assets of the same type is strong in both regimes, especially in the asymmetric one, but weak between equities and bonds, even in the same country. We study analytically how and when asymmetric dependence may amplify empirically documented phenomena such as flight to safety and home bias in portfolio allocation.
Efficacy of Anti-VEGF/VEGFR Agents on Animal Models of Endometriosis: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background/Objective Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is the most important promotor of angiogenesis. Some studies indicate that anti-angiogenic agents that interfere with VEGF and its receptor (VEGFR), i.e., anti-VEGF/VEGFR agents, may be applied to treat endometriosis. This meta-analysis investigated the efficacy of anti-VEGF/VEGFR agents in animal models of endometriosis. Methods A systematic literature search was performed for animal studies published in English or Chinese from January 1995 to June 2016, which evaluated the effect of anti-VEGF/VEGFR agents on endometriosis. The databases were: PubMed, Web of Science, BIOSIS, Embase, and CNKI. The quality of included studies was assessed using the SYRCLE tool. The random-effect models were used to combine the results of selected studies. Heterogeneity was assessed using H2statistic and I2 statistic. Subgroup analyses were performed to determine the source of heterogeneity in endometriosis scores and follicle numbers. Results We identified 13 studies that used anti-VEGF/VEGFR agents in various animal models. The meta-analysis showed that anti-VEGF/VEGFR agents were associated with smaller size (standardized mean difference (SMD) –0.96, 95% CI –1.31 to –0.62; P < 0.0001) and weight (SMD –1.70, 95% CI –2.75 to –0.65; P = 0.002) of endometriosis lesions, relative to the untreated controls, as well as a lower incidence rate of endometriosis (risk ratio 0.26, 95% CI 0.07 to 0.93; P = 0.038) and endometriosis score (SMD –1.17, 95% CI –1.65 to –0.69; P < 0.0001); the number of follicles were similar (SMD –0.78, 95% CI –1.65 to 0.09; P = 0.08). Conclusions Anti-VEGF/VEGFR agents appeared to inhibit the growth of endometriosis, with no effect on ovarian function. Anti-angiogenic therapy may be a novel strategy in treating endometriosis.
Screening for delirium after surgery: validation of the 4 A's test (4AT) in the post‐anaesthesia care unit

Postoperative delirium is common and has multiple adverse consequences. Guidelines recommend routine screening for postoperative delirium beginning in the post‐anaesthesia care unit. The 4 A's test (4AT) is a widely used assessment tool for delirium but there are no studies evaluating its use in the post‐anaesthesia care unit. We evaluated the performance of the 4AT in the post‐anaesthesia care unit in a tertiary German medical centre. Adults who were able to provide informed consent, were not scheduled for postoperative intensive care, and who did not have dementia or severe neuropsychiatric disorders underwent screening by trained research staff with the Nurse Delirium Screening Scale and a new German translation of the 4AT in a random order at the point of discharge from the post‐anaesthesia care unit. Reference standard assessment of delirium was psychiatric evaluation by experienced clinicians. Five hundred and forty‐three patients (mean age (SD) 52 (18) years) were analysed; 22 (4.1%) patients developed delirium. The sensitivity and specificity of the 4AT were 95.5% (95%CI 77.2–99.9) and 99.2% (95%CI 98.1–99.8), respectively. The area under the receiver operator characteristic curve was 0.998 (95%CI 0.995–1.000). The Nursing Delirium Screening Scale had a sensitivity of 27.3% (95%CI 10.7–50.2) and specificity of 99.4% (95%CI 98.3–99.9), with an area under the curve of 0.761 (95%CI 0.629–0.894). These findings suggest that the 4AT is an effective and robust instrument for delirium detection in the post‐anaesthesia care unit.
Academic Decisions as a Function of Writing Apprehension.

The decision to select one academic major over others is important for those enrolled in programs of higher education. Each of the approximately eleven million full-time college students currently involved in degree programs have made or will make such decisions. Future students, presently of high school age or even younger, will face the same issue at a later date. While such choices are made in some systematic fashion by students, the various psychological components involved are not well specified. Research which has explored academic choice-making typically falls back on schemes devised by scholars interested in occupational or vocational decision-making (Crites, 1969; Holland, 1966). Those models generally suggest the individual will select an occupation which he or she perceives can maximize available rewards and minimize associated negative consequences. Many suggest as well that optimal satisfaction with an occupation derives from a close psychological "fit" between individual characteristics and the inherent requirements of the job. Working within such frameworks scholars have found a number of personality variables predictive of major choice in the academic setting (Goldschmid, 1967; Morrow, 1971). Individual differences such as cognitive style (Osipow, 1969), flexibility (Sherrick, Davenport, & Colina, 1971), impulsiveness (Kipnis, Lane, & Berger, 1967), and achievement motivation (Isaacson, 1964; Malone, 1969; Wish & Hasazi, 1973) have been successfully utilized as discriminators of students' choice-making. An inherent requirement of any college major is a certain amount of writing. Beyond basic, across-the-board requirements, academic majors obviously vary in the amount demanded. Journalism or English majors might expect to write more in their collegiate career than Physics or Mathematics majors. And beyond classroom requirements, the particular academic area chosen foreshadows future vocational opportunities themselves differing in writing demands (Daly & Shamo, 1976). Given that academic majors differ in the amount of writing required, we might expect individual differences directly related to writing to play an important role in making decisions about majors. More specifically, an individual's level of writing apprehension should predict his or her evaluation and choice of majors given some specified or expected level of required writing.
Basoluminal Carcinoma: A New Biologically and Prognostically Distinct Entity Between Basal and Luminal Breast Cancer

Purpose: Breast carcinomas expressing basal epithelium cytokeratins constitute a tumor subgroup that is typically hormone receptor negative and shows a distinct gene expression profile. Based on variable basal cytokeratin immunostaining patterns, we hypothesized that the “basal phenotype” tumor group may comprise more than one biological entity. Experimental Design: Basal cytokeratins 5 and 14 (CK5/14) were stained by immunohistochemistry and the percentage of positive cells was defined by image analysis. The results thus obtained were compared with clinicopathologic characteristics and relapse-free survival. Results: Of the 506 breast tumors, 53 (10.5%) showed immunoreactivity for CK5/14. Basal cytokeratin expression showed up as two microscopically distinguishable subtypes, i.e., a uniformly positive type (“basal”) and a partially positive type (“basoluminal”) often displaying a checkerboard-type intratumoral heterogeneity. These subgroups could also be separated with a third basal cytokeratin (CK17, P < 0.0001). Both basal and basoluminal subtypes were hormone receptor negative and of high grade, but differed with respect to the Ki-67 labeling index (P = 0.0014), vimentin (P = 0.005), and c-kit (P = 0.02), which were more frequently expressed in basal than in basoluminal tumors. In contrast, the amplification of HER-2 was found almost exclusively in the basoluminal subgroup (P = 0.009). Compared with the basal tumors, basoluminal tumors associated with significantly shorter relapse-free survival (P = 0.01), which was not explained by their more frequent HER-2 amplification. Conclusions: We conclude that the intratumoral heterogeneity in basal cytokeratin expression can be used to define two distinct breast cancer subtypes, basal and basoluminal, with distinctive features related to proliferation activity, oncogene and biomarker status, and patient survival.
Purification and Identification of Antioxidant Peptides from Enzymatic Hydrolysates of Tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) Frame Protein

Tilapia frame protein was hydrolyzed by different proteases, including properase E, pepsin, trypsin, flavourzyme, neutrase, gc106 and papain, to obtain antioxidant peptides. The tilapia frame protein hydrolysate (TFPH) obtained by trypsin exhibited the highest degree of hydrolysis and antioxidant activity. Three series of peptides (TFPH1, TFPH 2 and TFPH 3) were obtained by ultrafiltration of TFPH through molecular weight cut-off membranes of 5, 3 and 1 kDa, respectively, and their IC50 values on scavenging 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical, superoxide anion radical (•O2), hydrogen peroxides (H2O2) and hydroxyl radical (•OH) activities were determined and compared with glutathione (GSH). The results showed that TFPH1 had the highest antioxidant activity. TFPH1 was further purified using ion exchange chromatography, gel filtration chromatography, and reversed phase high performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC). Finally, two antioxidant peptides were identified and the amino acid sequences were identified as Asp-Cys-Gly-Tyr (456.12 Da) and Asn-Tyr-Asp-Glu-Tyr (702.26 Da), respectively. The IC50 values of two peptides on hydroxyl radical scavenging activity were 27.6 and 38.4 μg/mL, respectively.
Context-Specific Stressors, Work-Related Social Support and Work-Family Conflict: A Mediation Study

Understanding the antecedents of work-family conflict is important as it allows organisations to effectively engage in work design for professional employees. This study examines the impact of sources of social support as antecedents of work-family conflict. The hypotheses were tests using Partial Least Squares modelling on a sample of 366 professional employees. The path model showed that context-specific stressors impacted positively on job demand, which led to higher levels of work-family conflict. Contrary to our expectation, non-work related social support did not have any statistical relationship with job demand and work-family conflict. In addition, individuals experiencing high job demands were found to obtain more social support from both work and non-work-related sources. Individuals with more work-related social support were less likely to have less work-family conflict. Surprisingly, non-work social support sources had no statistically significant relationship with work-family conflict.
Primers for fourteen protein-coding genes and the deep phylogeny of the true yeasts

The Saccharomycetales or ‘true yeasts’ consist of more than 800 described species, including many of scientific, medical and commercial importance. Considerable progress has been made in determining the phylogenetic relationships of these species, largely based on rDNA sequences, but many nodes for early-diverging lineages cannot be resolved with rDNA alone. rDNA is also not ideal for delineating recently diverged species. From published full-genome sequence data, we have identified 14 regions of protein-coding genes that can be PCR-amplified in a large proportion of a diverse collection of 25 yeast species using degenerate primers. Phylogenetic analysis of the sequences thus obtained reveals a well-resolved phylogeny of the Saccharomycetales with many branches having high bootstrap support. Analysis of published sequences from the Saccharomyces paradoxus species complex shows that these protein-coding gene fragments are also informative about genealogical relationships amongst closely related strains. Our set of protein-coding gene fragments is therefore suitable for analysing both ancient and recent evolutionary relationships amongst yeasts.
Word Embedding Based Extension of Text Categorization Topic Taxonomies

Collaborative interdisciplinary research has the added difficulty, that researchers from different fields have different backgrounds and employ heterogeneous technical vocabularies. Certain problems could have already been solved in one field, but the solution is described in such a fashion, that it is difficult for researchers from another field to understand, yet alone to know the correct terms to search for. Text categorization (TC) is the act of automatically placing text into content-based categories. These categories can be interrelated forming hierarchical taxonomies of knowledge. Different from classic query-ing-based information retrieval (IR), TC-based IR allows for an exploration of topics without prior knowledge about them, by inspecting the individual topics and related documents within the taxonomies. TC also plays a major role in argumentation mining (AM), the automated extraction of arguments from large quantities of text. In AM, TC is used to identify argument structures within analyzed texts. Another potential use for TC in AM is the restriction of data sources to relevant topics because AM in too-large text corpora can be prohibitively time consuming. As mankind’s knowledge constantly expands it is logical to conclude, that the taxonomies organizing this knowledge must expand as well. We propose a method to aid in extending existing topic taxonomies by us-ing word embeddings. These extended topic taxonomies can then be used in the categorization of texts, and to filter argument-extraction sources. We additionally outline an alternative usage of these techniques in argumentation mining.
Too much automation? The bellwether effect and its implications for transfer learning

“Transfer learning”: is the process of translating quality predictors learned in one data set to another. Transfer learning has been the subject of much recent research. In practice, that research means changing models all the time as transfer learners continually exchange new models to the current project. This paper offers a very simple “bellwether” transfer learner. Given N data sets, we find which one produces the best predictions on all the others. This “bellwether” data set is then used for all subsequent predictions (or, until such time as its predictions start failing-at which point it is wise to seek another bellwether). Bellwethers are interesting since they are very simple to find (just wrap a for-loop around standard data miners). Also, they simplify the task of making general policies in SE since as long as one bellwether remains useful, stable conclusions for N data sets can be achieved just by reasoning over that bellwether. From this, we conclude (1) this bellwether method is a useful (and very simple) transfer learning method; (2) “bellwethers” are a baseline method against which future transfer learners should be compared; (3) sometimes, when building increasingly complex automatic methods, researchers should pause and compare their supposedly more sophisticated method against simpler alternatives.
Use of Aspirin Versus Clopidogrel Plus Aspirin After Coronary Artery Bypass Graft Surgery

Aspirin and clopidogrel together reduce the risk of recurrent thrombosis-related events in patients with acute coronary syndromes or stent revascularization and may reduce thrombosis-induced saphenous vein graft failure. In this retrospective, observational study, 4297 patients were assigned to 2 groups after coronary artery bypass graft surgery, based on medications prescribed at hospital discharge: aspirin only (n = 3318) or aspirin plus clopidogrel (n = 979). At 4-year follow-up, unadjusted survival was similar between the 2 groups (aspirin—clopidogrel, 87.9% vs aspirin-only, 88.8%, P = .43). After statistical adjustment using Cox regression analysis, dual anti-platelet therapy at hospital discharge was not associated with improved survival (odds ratio 1.055, 95% confidence interval 0.7-1.4, P = .72). In propensity score-based, case-matched populations (962 patients each), similar results were obtained (odds ratio 0.996, 95% confidence interval 0.7-1.4, P = .98). In our study population, aspirin plus clopidogrel did not provide survival benefit over treatment with aspirin alone in 4 years after coronary artery bypass graft surgery.
Wavelength conversion employing 120-fs optical pulses in an SOA-based nonlinear polarization switch

We demonstrate wavelength conversion based on nonlinear polarization rotation driven by ultrafast carrier relaxation in an InGaAsP-InGaAs multiquantum-well semiconductor optical amplifier. We use a continuous-wave (CW) probe beam at a center wavelength of 1555 nm, and a control pulse of duration of 120 fs at a center wavelength of 1520 nm. We have investigated wavelength conversion for different injection currents and for different control pulse energies. We show that a conversion efficiency of 12 dB can be obtained for control pulse energies of 10 pJ.
CHARACTERIZING THE ORBITAL AND DYNAMICAL STATE OF THE HD 82943 PLANETARY SYSTEM WITH KECK RADIAL VELOCITY DATA

We present an updated analysis of radial velocity data of the HD 82943 planetary system based on 10 yr of measurements obtained with the Keck telescope. Previous studies have shown that the HD 82943 system has two planets that are likely in 2:1 mean-motion resonance (MMR), with orbital periods about 220 and 440 days. However, alternative fits that are qualitatively different have also been suggested, with two planets in a 1:1 resonance or three planets in a Laplace 4:2:1 resonance. Here we use χ2 minimization combined with a parameter grid search to investigate the orbital parameters and dynamical states of the qualitatively different types of fits, and we compare the results to those obtained with the differential evolution Markov chain Monte Carlo method. Our results support the coplanar 2:1 MMR configuration for the HD 82943 system, and show no evidence for either the 1:1 or three-planet Laplace resonance fits. The inclination of the system with respect to the sky plane is well constrained at degrees, and the system contains two planets with masses of about 4.78 MJ and 4.80 MJ (where MJ is the mass of Jupiter) and orbital periods of about 219 and 442 days for the inner and outer planet, respectively. The best fit is dynamically stable with both eccentricity-type resonant angles θ1 and θ2 librating around 0°.
Multi‐cause degradation path model: a case study on rubidium lamp degradation

At the core of satellite rubidium standard clocks is the rubidium lamp, which is a critical piece of equipment in a satellite navigation system. There are many challenges in understanding and improving the reliability of the rubidium lamp, including the extensive lifetime requirement and the dearth of samples available for destructive life tests. Experimenters rely on degradation experiments to assess the lifetime distribution of highly reliable products that seem unlikely to fail under the normal stress conditions, because degradation data can provide extra information about product reliability. Based on recent research on the rubidium lamp, this article presents a multi‐cause degradation path model, including its application background, model description, modeling method, and parameter estimation method. Using the available data from degradation tests, we construct point estimates and interval estimates for rubidium lamp lifetimes using regression techniques. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.