Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Abolition of prescription copayments in Wales: an observational study on dispensing rates.

OBJECTIVE To assess effects of abolition of prescription copayments in Wales on rates of dispensing. METHODS General practice-level monthly dispensing data were compared before/after abolition between Wales and North East (NE) England where the charge was retained. Data for 14 medicines that had most items dispensed subject to charge before abolition were similarly compared with NE England. For those with over-the-counter substitutes, wholesale sales to pharmacies were examined. A survey examined local initiatives, which might differentially affect dispensing between the two areas. RESULTS Total dispensing rates (items/1000 patients) increased significantly in both areas but significantly less so in Wales (difference = -19.7, P = 0.024, 95% confidence interval [CI] = -36.7 to -2.6). For the 14 selected medicines, combined dispensing rates increased significantly in both areas but significantly more in Wales (difference = 27.51, P < 0.0001, 95% CI = 23.66-31.35). There was much variation for individual drugs, but categories tended to show this same trend except for antibiotics, where rates increased in Wales but decreased in NE England. The survey revealed few local initiatives that could explain these differences. Sales of over-the-counter substitutes did not explain the changes in dispensing. CONCLUSIONS The Welsh policy was associated with a modest increase in dispensing rates relative to NE England for the 14 medicines with the highest number of items dispensed subject to charge before abolition. Although factors besides the copayment may have influenced these observations, the smaller relative increase in total dispensing rates in Wales suggests that the overall impact of abolition was minimal.
High-Throughput Sequencing Enhanced Phage Display Identifies Peptides That Bind Mycobacteria

Bacterial cell wall components have been previously used as infection biomarkers detectable by antibodies. However, it is possible that the surface of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tb), the causative agent of tuberculosis (TB), also possesses molecules which might be non-antigenic. This makes the probing of biomarkers on the surface of M. tb cell wall difficult using antibodies. Here we demonstrate the use of phage display technology to identify peptides that bind to mycobacteria. We identified these clones using both random clone picking and high throughput sequencing. We demonstrate that random clone picking does not necessarily identify highly enriched clones. We further showed that the clone displaying the CPLHARLPC peptide which was identified by Illumina sequencing as the most enriched, binds better to mycobacteria than three clones selected by random picking. Using surface plasmon resonance, we showed that chemically synthesised CPLHARLPC peptide binds to a 15 KDa peptide from M.tb H37Rv whole cell lysates. These observations demonstrate that phage display technology combined with high-throughput sequencing is a powerful tool to identify peptides that can be used for investigating potential non-antigenic biomarkers for TB and other bacterial infections.
A graphical method for evaluating static characteristics of the human finger by force manipulability

Static characteristics of the human finger are investigated using a mechanical planar model of the finger. They are represented by mapping a tendon force vector to a manipulating force vector of the fingertip. Force manipulability of the fingertip is defined as a force manipulability set obtained from the mapping under the condition that the norm of the tendon force vector is not more than a unit value. The shapes of the sets are geometrically obtained and graphically represented in the simulation results. The simulation visually demonstrates the static characteristics of the finger.
The neural substrates of cognitive empathy

Abstract Neuroscientific research has consistently found that the perception of an affective state in another activates the observer's own neural substrates for the corresponding state, which is likely the neural mechanism for “true empathy. ” However, to date there has not been a brain-imaging investigation of so-called “cognitive empathy”, whereby one “actively projects oneself into the shoes of another person,” imagining someone's personal, emotional experience as if it were one's own. In order to investigate this process, we conducted a combined psychophysiology and PET and study in which participants imagined: (1) a personal experience of fear or anger from their own past; (2) an equivalent experience from another person as if it were happening to them; and (3) a nonemotional experience from their own past. When participants could relate to the scenario of the other, they produced patterns of psychophysiological and neuroimaging activation equivalent to those of personal emotional imagery, but when they could not relate to the other's story, differences emerged on all measures, e.g., decreased psychophysiological responses and recruitment of a region between the inferior temporal and fusiform gyri. The substrates of cognitive empathy overlap with those of personal feeling states to the extent that one can relate to the state and situation of the other.
Comparison of the effects of minimally invasive percutaneous pedicle screws osteosynthesis and open surgery on repairing the pain, inflammation and recovery of thoracolumbar vertebra fracture

We compared the clinical effects of minimally invasive percutaneous pedicle screws osteosynthesis (MIPPSO) and open surgery on the repair of thoracolumbar vertebra fracture. Seventy patients, who suffered from thoracolumbar vertebra fracture and received treatment at our hospital, were selected and randomly divided into either the minimally invasive percutaneous pedicle screws osteosynthesis group (MIPPSO group) and the traditional open pedicle screws osteosynthesis group (TOPSO group) with 35 cases in each group. The perioperative parameters including length of incision, duration of operation, bleeding during operation, length of hospital stay, the changes of pre-operative and post-operative VAS pain scores, inflammatory indexes including serum C-reactive protein (CRP) and creatine kinase (CK), and imaging indexes including Cobb's angle and anterior margin height of vertebral body of both groups were compared. The length of incision, duration of operation, bleeding volume during operation and length of hospital stay in the MIPPSO group were significantly lower than those in the TOPSO group (P<0.05). Both minimally invasive surgery and traditional surgery effectively alleviated the pain (P<0.05), which was more significant in MIPPSO group (P<0.05). The post-operative inflammatory indexes, CRP and CK levels, of both groups were higher compared to the pre-operation (P<0.05), which was more significant in TOPSO group (P<0.05). The differences of imaging indexes, including Cobb's angle and anterior margin height of injured vertebra, were statistically significant between pre-operation and post-operation for each group (P<0.05); however, there were no statistically significant differences between two groups at either pre-operation or post-operation (P>0.05). The effect of minimally invasive percutaneous pedicle screws osteosynthesis is similar to the traditional open surgery, however, the MIPPSO technique has the advantages of small trauma, less bleeding, short duration of operation, rapid post-operative recovery, light pain, less economic cost, and better aesthetic effect and is therefore worthy of clinical promotion.
AdWords and generalized on-line matching

How does a search engine company decide what ads to display with each query so as to maximize its revenue? This turns out to be a generalization of the online bipartite matching problem. We introduce the notion of a tradeoff revealing LP and use it to derive two optimal algorithms achieving competitive ratios of 1-1/e for this problem.
Graded and All-or-None Electrogenesis in Arthropod Muscle

Conversion of graded responsiveness of lobster muscle fibers to all-or-none activity by alkali-earth and tetraethylammonium (TEA) ions appears to be due to a combination of effects. The membrane is hyperpolarized, its resistance is increased, and its sensitivity to external K+ is diminished, all effects which indicate diminished K+ conductance. While the spikes are prolonged, the conductance is higher throughout the response than it is in the resting membrane. Repetitive activity becomes prominent. These effects indicate maintained high conductance for an ion which causes depolarization. This is normally Na+, since its presence in low concentrations potentiates the effects of Ba++, but the alkali-earth ions and TEA can also carry inward charge. Ba++, Sr++, and TEA appear to be more effective than is Ca++ in its normal role, which is probably to depress K+ conductance and Na inactivation. Thus, conversion of graded to all-or-none responsiveness appears to occur because of the relative increase of depolarizing inward ion flux and decrease of repolarizing outward flux.
The Effectiveness of Collaborative Medicine Reviews in Delaying Time to Next Hospitalization for Patients With Heart Failure in the Practice Setting: Results of a Cohort Study

Background—Randomized controlled trials have demonstrated that collaborative medication reviews can improve outcomes for patients with heart failure. We aimed to determine whether these results translated into Australian practice, where collaborative reviews are nationally funded. Methods and Results—This retrospective cohort study using administrative claims data included veterans 65 years and older receiving bisoprolol, carvedilol, or metoprolol succinate for which prescribing physicians indicated treatment was for heart failure. We compared those exposed to a general practitioner–pharmacist collaborative home medication review with those who did not receive the service. The service includes physician referral, a home visit by an accredited pharmacist to identify medication-related problems, and a pharmacist report with follow-up undertaken by the physician. Kaplan-Meier analyses and Cox proportional hazards models were used to compare time until next hospitalization for heart failure between the exposed and unexposed groups. There were 273 veterans exposed to a home medicines review and 5444 unexposed patients. Average age in both groups was 81.6 years (no significant difference). The median number of comorbidities was 8 in the exposed group and 7 in the unexposed (P<0.0001). Unadjusted results showed a 37% reduction in rate of hospitalization for heart failure at any time (hazard ratio, 0.63; 95% CI, 0.44 to 0.89). Adjusted results showed a 45% reduction (hazard ratio, 0.55; 95% CI, 0.39 to 0.77) among those who had received a home medicines review compared with the unexposed patients. Conclusion—Medicines review in the practice setting is effective in delaying time to next hospitalization for heart failure in those treated with heart failure medicines.
The solid trefoil knot as an algebraic surface

We give an explicit polynomial of degree 14 in three real variables x, y and z such that the zero set gives the solid trefoil knot. The polynomial depends on two further parameters which enable a deformation from an embedded torus. We use only elementary methods such that the proofs are also accessible to graduate math work groups for pupils in secondary schools. The results can be easily visualized using the free SURFER software of Oberwolfach.
Reconceptualizing synergism and antagonism among multiple stressors

The potential for complex synergistic or antagonistic interactions between multiple stressors presents one of the largest uncertainties when predicting ecological change but, despite common use of the terms in the scientific literature, a consensus on their operational definition is still lacking. The identification of synergism or antagonism is generally straightforward when stressors operate in the same direction, but if individual stressor effects oppose each other, the definition of synergism is paradoxical because what is synergistic to one stressor's effect direction is antagonistic to the others. In their highly cited meta-analysis, Crain et al. (Ecology Letters, 11, 2008: 1304) assumed in situations with opposing individual effects that synergy only occurs when the cumulative effect is more negative than the additive sum of the opposing individual effects. We argue against this and propose a new systematic classification based on an additive effects model that combines the magnitude and response direction of the cumulative effect and the interaction effect. A new class of “mitigating synergism” is identified, where cumulative effects are reversed and enhanced. We applied our directional classification to the dataset compiled by Crain et al. (Ecology Letters, 11, 2008: 1304) to determine the prevalence of synergistic, antagonistic, and additive interactions. Compared to their original analysis, we report differences in the representation of interaction classes by interaction type and we document examples of mitigating synergism, highlighting the importance of incorporating individual stressor effect directions in the determination of synergisms and antagonisms. This is particularly pertinent given a general bias in ecology toward investigating and reporting adverse multiple stressor effects (double negative). We emphasize the need for reconsideration by the ecological community of the interpretation of synergism and antagonism in situations where individual stressor effects oppose each other or where cumulative effects are reversed and enhanced.
Evaluating a training package for staff working with people with learning disabilities prior to hospital closure

As part of the process of deinstitutionalization and hospital retraction, agencies for people with learning disabilities have attempted to develop a new vision of their services creating a need for training initiatives aimed at enabling stafftotake on new roles. The evaluation of such training programmes is problematic. Mansell (1989) has noted that assessing "whether training, or any other kind of innovation, has any effect in complex organizations is difficult and is, therefore, rarely attempted" (p. 142). Evaluations of such training programmes have measured various outcomes including attitude change (Rose and Holmes, 1991), self-ratings (Mansell, 1989) and evidence of changes in practice (e.g. the number of staffed housing schemes developed after training: Mansell, 1989). The present study attempted to evaluate the effects of a training package for staff employed by an independent agency Community Care (a pseudonym) which was to take responsibility for accommodating over a hundred people with learning disabilities following the retraction of Willowfield (a pseudonym), a hospital, in March 1991.
GidA is an FAD‐binding protein involved in development of Myxococcus xanthus

A gene encoding a homologue of the Escherichia coli GidA protein (glucose‐inhibited division protein A) lies immediately upstream of aglU, a gene encoding a WD‐repeat protein required for motility and development in Myxococcus xanthus. The GidA protein of M. xanthus shares about 48% identity overall with the small (≈ 450 amino acid) form of GidA from eubacteria and about 24% identity overall with the large (≈ 620 amino acid) form of GidA from eubacteria and eukaryotes. Each of these proteins has a conserved dinucleotide‐binding motif at the N‐terminus. To determine if GidA binds dinucleotide, the M. xanthus gene was expressed with a His6 tag in E. coli cells. Purified rGidA is a yellow protein that absorbs maximally at 374 and 450 nm, consistent with FAD or FMN. Thin‐layer chromatography (TLC) showed that rGidA contains an FAD cofactor. Fractionation and immunocytochemical localization show that full length GidA protein is present in the cytoplasm and transported to the periplasm of vegetative‐grown M. xanthus cells. In cells that have been starved for nutrients, GidA is found in the cytoplasm. Although GidA lacks an obvious signal sequence, it contains a twin arginine transport (Tat) motif, which is conserved among proteins that bind cofactors in the cytoplasm and are transported to the periplasm as folded proteins. To determine if GidA, like AglU, is involved in motility and development, the gidA gene was disrupted. The gidA– mutant has wild‐type gliding motility and initially is able to form fruiting bodies like the wild type when starved for nutrients. However, after several generations, a stable derivative arises, gidA*, which is indistinguishable from the gidA– parent on vegetative medium, but is no longer able to form fruiting bodies. The gidA* mutant releases a heat‐stable, protease‐resistant, small molecular weight molecule that acts in trans to inhibit aggregation and gene expression of wild‐type cells during development.
Normative Feedback and Adolescent Readiness to Change

For adolescents with substance use problems, it is unknown whether the provision of normative feedback is a necessary active ingredient in motivational interviewing (MI). This study investigated the impact of normative feedback on adolescents’ readiness to change and perceptions of MI quality. Adolescents referred for substance use disorder (SUD) assessments were randomized to MI with normative feedback (NF; MI + NF, n = 26) or MI only (MI, n = 22). There were no significant differences between the MI + NF or MI conditions with reference to changes in readiness, and although not significant, there was a decline in readiness for the overall sample. Treatment satisfaction and ratings of MI quality were generally high with no between-group differences. Post hoc analyses revealed a nonsignificant trend where race interacted with treatment condition. Larger replication studies are needed to further study the effects of NF and potential NF by participant characteristic interactions.
Functional Dissection of the Oct6 Schwann Cell Enhancer Reveals an Essential Role for Dimeric Sox10 Binding

The POU domain transcription factor Pou3f1 (Oct6/Scip/Tst1) initiates the transition from ensheathing, promyelinating Schwann cells to myelinating cells. Axonal and other extracellular signals regulate Oct6 expression through the Oct6 Schwann cell enhancer (SCE), which is both required and sufficient to drive all aspects of Oct6 expression in Schwann cells. Thus, the Oct6 SCE is pivotal in the gene regulatory network that governs the onset of myelin formation in Schwann cells and provides a link between myelin promoting signaling and activation of a myelin-related transcriptional network. In this study, we define the relevant cis-acting elements within the SCE and identify the transcription factors that mediate Oct6 regulation. On the basis of phylogenetic comparisons and functional in vivo assays, we identify a number of highly conserved core elements within the mouse SCE. We show that core element 1 is absolutely required for full enhancer function and that it contains closely spaced inverted binding sites for Sox proteins. For the first time in vivo, the dimeric Sox10 binding to this element is shown to be essential for enhancer activity, whereas monomeric Sox10 binding is nonfunctional. As Oct6 and Sox10 synergize to activate the expression of the major myelin-related transcription factor Krox20, we propose that Sox10-dependent activation of Oct6 defines a feedforward regulatory module that serves to time and amplify the onset of myelination in the peripheral nervous system.
Initial identity level and cooperation in face-to-face and computer-mediated contexts

Organizations today are increasingly encouraging employees to engage in pro-social behaviors at work, though this effort may be hindered by the increasing reliance on computers to mediate workplace interpersonal interactions. While much research has been directed at computer-mediated teams performing highly interdependent tasks, there is a need to examine the effect of computer mediation on individual vs. collective identification and cooperation for employees in less overtly interdependent tasks. This study examined the role of group members' conscious and non-conscious identity level in the relationship between physical context and cooperation with a work group. 50 groups of 4 participants each worked in either a face-to-face or computer-mediated workspace to complete puzzles. The study hypotheses were tested using mediated hierarchical modeling. Unexpectedly, computer mediation was related to higher levels of cooperation and was unrelated to participants' identity level. An interaction between prior ability and cooperation was found, with more capable group members cooperating more, but only in the computer-mediated context. Implications for research and practice on the role of computer technology at work are discussed.
The Moral Milieu of Information Technology: Using Domain and Affordance Theory to Explain Situational and Technological Effects on Ethical IT Decision Making.

Unethical behavior in the use of IT may result in significant negative impacts on the productivity, profitability, and reputation of the organization. IT exacerbates moral problems through its constant evolution, multi-faceted nature and encroachment into our personal and professional lives. People have difficulty recognizing moral characteristics, applying moral decision-making heuristics, and anticipating consequences of ethical problems when IT is present. These qualities highlight the moral milieu of ethical IT problems in organizations. The dissertation investigates this phenomenon through three perspectives. First, while moral development in childhood and adolescence predispose people toward particular moral reasoning, situational and contextual factors of ethical IT dilemmas may unearth other different moral reasoning patterns. The deviation of people's situational moral reasoning from broader moral dispositions is explored. Second, the scenario-specific situational moral reasoning is further framed into patterns of decision-making heuristics using the domain theory of moral development. Third, research in IT ethics has largely ignored the properties and characteristics of IT artifacts in ethical decision-making. Using affordance theory from ecological psychology, the dissertation proposes a framework of moral affordances, including ownership, anonymity, reproducibility, etc. that shapes ethical IT decision-making, intentions and behaviors. The study surveys 321 individuals across three ethical IT dilemmas of varying moral character and technology use. Ethical intentions and decisions deviated significantly from when situational moral judgments were considered, emphasizing utilitarian and relativist judgments. These decision-making models are transformed when ethical IT dilemmas were attributed to different domains of morality, exhibiting not only different patterns of moral reasoning but also an entirely different moral character. Finally, the salience of IT moral affordances varied between ethical dilemmas and demonstrated some influence on ethical IT decisions and intentions; however, these moral affordances lacked predictive efficacy within the broader ethical IT decision-making model.
Credit Card Fraud Detection Using Neural Networks

Today, people are more used to online shopping and payment due to which frauds related to online payment is on the rise. The main modes of online payment are credits cards, debit cards, net banking. The fraud related to credit cards is increasing nowadays because people prefer using them as an easy mode of payment. In this paper, we have implemented a mechanism to detect credit card fraud using neural networks using Neuroph IDE. This paper presents the various parameters that were considered while training and testing the neural network. Also, we have presented the results and conclusions of our experiment.