Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Interaction between hepatitis C virus and metabolic factors.

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection disrupts the normal metabolism processes, but is also influenced by several of the host's metabolic factors. An obvious and significantly detrimental pathophysiological feature of HCV infection is insulin resistance in hepatic and peripheral tissues. Substantial research efforts have been put forth recently to elucidate the molecular mechanism of HCV-induced insulin resistance, and several cytokines, such as tumor necrosis factor-α, have been identified as important contributors to the development of insulin resistance in the distant peripheral tissues of HCV-infected patients and animal models. The demonstrated etiologies of HCV-induced whole-body insulin resistance include oxidative stress, lipid metabolism abnormalities, hepatic steatosis and iron overload. In addition, myriad effects of this condition have been characterized, including glucose intolerance, resistance to antiviral therapy, progression of hepatic fibrosis, development of hepatocellular carcinoma, and general decrease in quality of life. Metabolic-related conditions and disorders, such as visceral obesity and diabetes mellitus, have been shown to synergistically enhance HCV-induced metabolic disturbance, and are associated with worse prognosis. Yet, the molecular interactions between HCV-induced metabolic disturbance and host-associated metabolic factors remain largely unknown. The diet and lifestyle recommendations for chronic hepatitis C are basically the same as those for obesity, diabetes, and metabolic syndrome. Specifically, patients are suggested to restrict their dietary iron intake, abstain from alcohol and tobacco, and increase their intake of green tea and coffee (to attain the beneficial effects of caffeine and polyphenols). While successful clinical management of HCV-infected patients with metabolic disorders has also been achieved with some anti-diabetic (i.e., metformin) and anti-lipid (i.e., statins) medications, it is recommended that sulfonylurea and insulin be avoided.
ASSESSMENT OF THE PRACTICAL APPLICATION OF CORPORATE BANKRUPTCY PREDICTION MODELS

In order to accurately and objectively evaluate the performance of the company and to determine the factors influencing the company's financial condition and results of operations, it is necessary to use an integrated methodology of bankruptcy forecasting. The aim of the article is to evaluate the validity of conceptual economic principles in bankruptcy prediction models and evaluate the potential practical application of these models. To achieve the aim of the article and using comparative literature analysis and descriptive approach the summarize of corporate bankruptcy prediction models is done in the theoretical aspects, empirically tested the appropriateness of their application in real situations, assessed the dynamics of corporate bankruptcies and trends in Lithuania in 2006-2010. In order to clarify the reliability of bankruptcy prediction models as well as using current bankruptcy tendencies of Lithuanian companies the probability of bankruptcy in companies is evaluated, which usually meets at least one failing business signs: 1. the company is attributed to small and medium seized business category; 2 . According to the classification of economic activities, company is attributed to wholesale or retail trade, construction or manufacturing industry; 3. The company operates in metropolitan of Lithuania. The probability of bankruptcy is evaluated in five currently operating companies and two already bankrupted companies using Altman, Springate, Zavgren and Chesser models. After the verification of availability and application of bankruptcy prediction models in seven companies, findings show that linear discrimination model reflects the most accurate financial condition of the company. Whereas the results of logistic analysis model do not reflect the actual performance of the the company and there is no purpose to use it for bankruptcy forecasting. DOI: http://dx.doi. org/10.5755/j01.em. 17.3. 2106
Generation of targeted mutant rice using a CRISPR‐Cpf1 system

Summary CRISPR‐Cpf1 is a newly identified CRISPR‐Cas system, and Cpf1 was recently engineered as a molecular tool for targeted genome editing in mammalian cells. To test whether the engineered CRISPR‐Cpf1 system could induce the production of rice mutants, we selected two genome targets in the OsPDS and OsBEL genes. Our results show that both targets could be efficiently mutated in transgenic rice plants using CRISPR‐Cpf1. We found that pre‐crRNAs with a full‐length direct repeat sequence exhibited considerably increased efficiencies compared with mature crRNAs. In addition, the specificity and transmission of the mutation were investigated, and the behaviours of crRNA‐Cpf1‐induced plant targeted genome mutagenesis were assessed. Taken together, our results indicate that CRISPR‐Cpf1 expression via stable transformation can efficiently generate specific and heritable targeted mutations in rice and thereby constitutes a novel and important approach to specific and precise plant genome editing.
Inhibition of human lung cancer cell growth by the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma agonists through induction of apoptosis.

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs), members of the nuclear hormone receptors superfamily, have an important regulatory role in adipogenesis and inflammation. PPAR-gamma ligands induce terminal differentiation and growth inhibition of human breast cancer cells and prostatic cancer cells. In this study, we demonstrated that PPAR-gamma, but not PPAR-alpha, was expressed in human lung cancer cell lines by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and Western blot analysis. We also found that the synthetic PPAR-gamma agonist thiazolidinedione compounds (troglitazone) and the endogenous PPAR-gamma ligand, 15-deoxy-Delta(12,14)-prostaglandin J(2) (15d-PGJ(2)), inhibited the growth of human lung cancer cells through the induction of apoptosis. However, PPAR-alpha agonist (bezafibrate) and other prostanoids (PGE(2), PGF(2alpha)) did not induce apoptosis. These findings suggest that PPAR-gamma may play an important role in the pathogenesis of lung cancer and that PPAR-gamma agonist may be useful therapeutic agents in the treatment of human lung cancer.
Partner violence and health: Results from the first national study on violence against women in Norway

Background: Violence against women has long been considered a hidden health burden. Questions about violence have not been included in health surveys; hence, little is known about prevalence and the consequences for health in the general population. No national study has been conducted in Norway. Aims: To estimate the prevalence of partner violence in Norway and the relationship between victimization and somatic health and depression and anxiety and post-traumatic stress symptoms. Methods: Data collection was performed by Statistics Norway. Among a random sample of women aged 20—55 years, 2,407 women returned the questionnaire (63.3%), of whom 2,143 were ever-partnered. Selected demographic characteristics were obtained from registers. Results: In total, 26.8% of 2,143 ever-partnered women had experienced any violence by their partner during their lifetime, and 5.5% in the year before the study. Low educational level, being unmarried, separated or divorced, currently being unemployed, receiving social security benefits and having no children were significantly associated with reporting partner violence. Exposure to partner violence was associated with poor health, depressive and post-traumatic stress symptoms, gynaecological complaints, injuries, and disability, and remained so after controlling for age, education, unemployment, relationship break-up and low economic status. Conclusions: Partner violence is common and was associated with a range of somatic and mental health problems. Thus, violence against women by their partners is an important public health concern.
Senior women in higher education institutions: perceived development needs and support

This paper analyses a survey of leadership development needs and current challenges of senior women at two different Australian universities. It found that their leadership development needs were quite similar: over 80 per cent of respondents considered that a senior women's leadership programme would provide knowledge and skills for leadership in the current tough working environment. The preferred content included skills in people management, political awareness, operational issues and career development, and preferred format was mentoring, peer networks, coaching and 360 degree feedback, and shadowing and mentoring at another university. The qualitative responses indicated several strong themes: the impact of excessive workloads and high levels of administration on their effectiveness; the need for peer and supervisor support and networks, underpinned by effective organisational skills and administrative support; and the gendering of careers, especially academic careers, evident in male colleagues receiving more support, resources and recognition.
The Collective Model of the Household and an Unexpected Implication for Child Labor: Hypothesis and an Empirical Test

The authors use the collective model of the household and show, theoretically, that as the woman's power rises, child labor will initially fall, but beyond a point it will tend to rise again. A household with a balanced power structure between the husband and the wife is least likely to send its children to work. An empirical test of this relationship using data from Nepal strongly corroborates the theoretical hypothesis.
Durable Improvement of Renal Function After Perindopril Withdrawal in Lyon Hypertensive Rats

To determine whether the persistent antihypertensive effect observed after withdrawal of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibition was specific and whether it was associated with durable improvement of renal function. Lyon hypertensive (LH) rats were treated from 3 and 12 weeks of age with perindopril at the dose of 0.4 (P0.4) or 1.5 (P1.5) mg·kg−1·d−1, with double (hydralazine 75 mg·kg−1·d−1 and hydrochlorothiazide 15 mg·kg−1·d−1), or triple antihypertensive therapy (reserpine 0.75 mg·kg−1·d−1 was added). Blood pressure (BP) was recorded by telemetry, and renal functions were evaluated in freely moving rats. Despite similar BP reduction after perindopril withdrawal in P0.4 and P1.5 groups, greater decrease in proteinuria was observed in P1.5 group. Double or triple therapy prevented the hypertension of LH rats, but without any persistent antihypertensive or antiproteinuric effect after its withdrawal. Salt load elicited an increase in BP that was similar in untreated LH and both perindopril-pretreated groups (+30 mm Hg), but more pronounced in double therapy-pretreated or triple therapy-pretreated groups (+50 mm Hg). The pressure-natriuresis curve shifted to lower BP levels in P0.4 and P1.5 groups, whereas it was blunted in double and triple therapy groups. Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibition has a durable renoprotection after treatment withdrawal that is independent of BP lowing.
Professional Management and Local Government Service Delivery: Strategic Decisions Across Alternative Markets

ABSTRACT Local governments explore alternative delivery strategies for their service portfolios by engaging both private markets of for-profit firms and public markets of intergovernmental agreements. This study investigates the critical role of professionally structured local governments in selecting between these alternative markets. The analysis of national data on U.S. local government for the year 2007 includes new measures of management motivators and obstacles to contract with both for-profit and intergovernmental agents, as well as new measures for transaction cost, citizen interest, and market competition for the full portfolio of services provided by local governments. The study finds that council-manager governments are more responsive to market competition and citizen interest, and manage political motivation and opposition by exploring alternative forms of service delivery. However, public intergovernmental contract markets are a means to address management difficulties for governments of both types.
A CXCR4-Dependent Chemorepellent Signal Contributes to the Emigration of Mature Single-Positive CD4 Cells from the Fetal Thymus1

Developing thymocytes undergo maturation while migrating through the thymus and ultimately emigrate from the organ to populate peripheral lymphoid tissues. The process of thymic emigration is controlled in part via receptor-ligand interactions between the chemokine stromal-derived factor (SDF)-1, and its cognate receptor CXCR4, and sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P) and its receptor S1PR. The precise mechanism by which S1P/S1PR and CXCR4/SDF-1 contribute to thymic emigration remains unclear. We proposed that S1P-dependent and -independent mechanisms might coexist and involve both S1P-induced chemoattraction and SDF-1-mediated chemorepulsion or fugetaxis of mature thymocytes. We examined thymocyte emigration in thymi from CXCR4-deficient C57BL/6 embryos in a modified assay, which allows the collection of CD62Lhigh and CD69low recent thymic emigrants. We demonstrated that single-positive (SP) CD4 thymocytes, with the characteristics of recent thymic emigrants, failed to move away from CXCR4-deficient fetal thymus in vitro. We found that the defect in SP CD4 cell emigration that occurred in the absence of CXCR4 signaling was only partially overcome by the addition of the extrathymic chemoattractant S1P and was not associated with abnormalities in thymocyte maturation and proliferative capacity or integrin expression. Blockade of the CXCR4 receptor in normal thymocytes by AMD3100 led to the retention of mature T cells in the thymus in vitro and in vivo. The addition of extrathymic SDF-1 inhibited emigration of wild-type SP cells out of the thymus by nullifying the chemokine gradient. SDF-1 was also shown to elicit a CXCR4-dependent chemorepellent response from fetal SP thymocytes. These novel findings support the thesis that the CXCR4-mediated chemorepellent activity of intrathymic SDF-1 contributes to SP thymocyte egress from the fetal thymus.
Urban Youth, Worklessness and Sport: A Comparison of Sports-based Employability Programmes in Rotterdam and Stoke-on-Trent

The potential value of sport as a vehicle through which urban regeneration and social renewal policy can be delivered has been extensively examined. However, there are an increasing number of initiatives aiming to use sports-based programmes as a way to address worklessness and social exclusion amongst young people which have received less attention. This paper provides a critical comparative analysis of two such programmes, one based in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, and the other in Stoke-on-Trent in the UK. Using qualitative data collected from participants, staff and other stakeholders, the paper details the nature and perceived merits of the programmes before considering the limitations and constraints of employability initiatives using sport. The paper concludes by suggesting that a fundamental shift in policy discourse is required for such programmes to be able to achieve sustainable positive outcomes for workless young people with complex problems and needs.
The Asset Pricing Implications of Dividend Volatility

This paper establishes dividend volatility as a fundamental risk metric that prices assets. We theoretically incorporate dividend volatility clustering into a model in which narrow-framing investors are loss averse over fluctuations in the value of their investments. Our model shows that dividend volatility positively predicts future asset returns, with the predictive power increasing with the forecasting horizon; our model also sheds light on a variety of other asset-pricing phenomena. We further provide supporting empirical evidence that dividend volatility is indeed priced in the data. More specifically, aggregate dividend volatility predicts and is predicted by aggregate price-to-dividend ratios; aggregate dividend volatility predicts future aggregate market returns; and dividend volatility of portfolios sorted by size, book-to-market ratios, and past returns predicts future portfolio-level returns, respectively. This paper was accepted by Wei Xiong, finance.
The Returns to Education for Opportunity Entrepreneurs, Necessity Entrepreneurs, and Paid Employees

We assess the relevance of formal education for the productivity of the self-employed and distinguish between opportunity entrepreneurs, who voluntarily pursue a business opportunity, and necessity entrepreneurs, who lack alternative employment options. We expect differences in the returns to education between these groups because of different levels of control. We use the German Socio-economic Panel and account for the endogeneity of education and non-random selection. The results indicate that the returns to a year of education for opportunity entrepreneurs are 3.5 percentage points higher than the paid employees’ rate of 8.1%, but 6.5 percentage points lower for necessity entrepreneurs.
Risk Preferences of Dairy and Hog Producer in Quebec

The objective of this study is to investigate the nature of risk preferences of Quebec dairy and hog producers. The direct elicitation of utility method is employed to determine producers'degree of risk aversion. The Delphi process is used to obtain more refined and realistic responses. The results reveal that the risk preferences of the randomly selected Quebec farmers are highly diverse. The percentage of risk-taking farmers ranges from 8% to 23% depending upon the level of investment and the nature of the enterprise. On average, the majority of farmers in both groups are found to be risk averse. Based on the differences between the means as well as distributions, although not significant in all cases, hog producers are found to be consistently more risk averse than dairy producers. Moreover, the gap between the two groups widens as the level of investment increases. The implications of this result are that the stability of farm income due to supply management in dairy sector may facilitate investments of a given risk (for example, adoption of a new technology) more so than it would in the hog sector. Cette etude a comme objective determiner la nature des preferences des producteurs laitiers et porcins du Quebec devant le risque, L'induction directe de fonctions d'utilite est la methode utilisee afin de quantifier le degre d'aversion face au risque. La technique Delphi est, quant a elle, utilisee afin d'obtenir des donnees plus rajfinees et realistes. Les resultats demontrent un large evantail d'attitudes chez ces producteurs echantillonnes aleatoirement. Selon le niveau d'investissement et la nature de I'entreprise consideres, il y a entre 8 % et 23 % des individus qui aiment le risque. Neanmoins, en moyenne, les deux groupes sont consideres comme ayant une certaine aversion devant le risque. L‘analyse des moyennes et des distributions montre une aversion plus prononcee chez les producteurs porcins, ceci n’etant pas significatif dans tous les cas. De plus, cette ecart s'elargit a mesure que le niveau d'investissement augmente. Ces constatations tendent a demontrer que la stabilite des revenus engendree par la gestion de I‘offre dans le secteur laitier petit faciliter; plus que dans le secteur porcin, les investissements (comme I'adoption de nouvelle technologie) comportant un certain niveau de risque.
The capabilities of new firms and the evolution of the US automobile industry

Firms that diversify into new and existing industries typically outperform de novo entrants, but in some new industries diversifying firms are displaced by later-entering de novo firms. Little is known about when and how new firms can overcome the advantages of diversifying firms. This is investigated for one industry, automobiles, where new firms had considerable success. All the entrants into the industry from its inception in 1895 through 1966 are identified. The heritage of every entrant into the industry is traced, including the founders of de novo entrants, to explore how time of entry and pre-entry experience affected firm survival. While diversifying firms on average outperformed de novo entrants, de novo entrants founded by individuals that worked for the leading automobile firms outperformed all firms and dominated the industry. This is attributed to the novel organizational challenges faced by automobile firms, which made the leading firms ideal training grounds for new entrants. The implications of these findings for firm capabilities, industry competition and regional economic development are discussed. Copyright 2002, Oxford University Press.
Impact of Political Affiliation on Bank Profitability in Nigeria

The importance of bank profitability can be appraised at the micro and macro levels of the economy. At the micro level, profit is the essential prerequisite of a competitive banking institution and the cheapest source of funds. It is not merely a result, but also a necessity for successful banking in a period of growing competition on financial markets. Hence, the basic aim of a bank’s management is to achieve a profit, as the essential requirement for conducting any business. At the macro level, a sound and profitable banking sector is better able to withstand negative shocks and contribute to the stability of the financial system. The importance of bank profitability at both the micro and macro levels has made researchers, academics, bank managements and bank regulatory authorities to develop considerable interest on the factors that determine bank profitability. The broad aim of this paper is to analyze, on the basis of empirical evidence, the relationship between political affiliation and bank profitability in Nigeria.
SC-FDMA & OFDMA in LTE physical layer

This paper provides the introduction of LTE and the key components of its physical layer. These descriptions are simplified version of the detailed descriptions provided by 3gpp. In LTE, the OFDMA is used as downlink and SCFDMA as uplink modulation schemes; with OFDM as the basic building block. OFDMA is used for achieving high spectral efficiency in communication system; whereas, SC-FDMA for uplink multiple access scheme in LTE system. This paper evaluates the performance of SC-FDMA and OFDMA of LTE physical layer by considering different modulation schemes (BPSK, QPSK, 16QAM and 64QAM) on the basis of PAPR, BER and error probability. From the simulated results, it is observed that for a particular value of SNR, the BER increases for high order modulation (16- QAM and 64-QAM) in both OFDMA and SC-FDMA. However, the lower order modulation schemes (BPSK and QPSK) experience less BER at receiver; thus lower order modulations improve the system performance in terms of BER and SNR. In terms of bandwidth efficiency, the higher order modulation accommodates more data within a given bandwidth and is more bandwidth efficient as compared to lower order modulation. Thus, there exists a tradeoff between BER and bandwidth efficiency among these modulation schemes used in LTE. It is also observed that the error probability increases as order of modulation scheme increases. Therefore, the selection of modulation schemes in adaptive modulation is quite crucial based on these results.