Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An Overview of Coefficient Alpha and a Reliability Matrix for Estimating Adequacy of Internal Consistency Coefficients with Psychological Research Measures

The present article addresses issues in reliability assessment that are often neglected in psychological research such as acceptable levels of internal consistency for research purposes, factors affecting the magnitude of coefficient alpha (α), and considerations for interpreting α within the research context. A new reliability matrix anchored in classical test theory is introduced to help researchers judge adequacy of internal consistency coefficients with research measures. Guidelines and cautions in applying the matrix are provided.
Ultrasonic plate waves in wood-based composite panels

V TABLE OF CONTENTS . VII LIST OF TABLES . X LIST OF FIGURES . XI CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES. 1 CHAPTER 2: BACKGROUND . 5 CHAPTER 3: EXPERIMENTAL PLAN . 17 MATERIALS . 17 Material Property Validation Specimens. 17 Defect Detection Specimen . 21 METHODS. 21 Plate Wave Setup . 21 Plate Wave Signal Processing . 26 Defect Detection Setup. 30 Defect Detection Signal Processing. 31 Mechanical Plate Bending . 31 Mechanical Coupon Tests. 33 CHAPTER 4: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION . 35
Chronic Melioidosis in a Patient with Cystic Fibrosis

ABSTRACT Burkholderia pseudomallei, the causative agent of melioidosis, is endemic in Southeast Asia and northern Australia, where it can be found in soil and surface water. We report a case of chronic pulmonary melioidosis in a patient with cystic fibrosis who had traveled to an area where B. pseudomallei is endemic.
Market Reactions to Information Security Breach Announcements: An Empirical Analysis

Losses due to information security breaches are notoriously difficult to measure. An event study of the effect of such breaches on financial performance found that they do not earn significantly negative abnormal returns. To verify whether this finding resulted from the aggregation of data across different characteristics (e.g., the nature of the breaches, the types of firms, the time periods of the study) the impact of each characteristic was analyzed. Again the results were not significantly negative. The study found that a negative bias followed the events of September 11, 2001. It also found that there was a difference in investor reactions to events during the dot-com era, when firms earned higher negative abnormal returns, and after the dot-com era. The implications are discussed.
Stabilizing Sparse Cox Model using Clinical Structures in Electronic Medical Records

Stability in clinical prediction models is crucial for transferability between studies, yet has received little attention. The problem is paramount in high dimensional data which invites sparse models with feature selection capability. We introduce an effective method to stabilize sparse Cox model of time-to-events using clinical structures inherent in Electronic Medical Records. Model estimation is stabilized using a feature graph derived from two types of EMR structures: temporal structure of disease and intervention recurrences, and hierarchical structure of medical knowledge and practices. We demonstrate the efficacy of the method in predicting time-to-readmission of heart failure patients. On two stability measures - the Jaccard index and the Consistency index - the use of clinical structures significantly increased feature stability without hurting discriminative power. Our model reported a competitive AUC of 0.64 (95% CIs: [0.58,0.69]) for 6 months prediction.
CHCHD2 Is Coamplified with EGFR in NSCLC and Regulates Mitochondrial Function and Cell Migration

Coiled-coil-helix-coiled-coil-helix domain-containing 2, a mitochondrial protein, encoded by CHCHD2 is located at chromosome 7p11.2 and proximal to the EGFR gene. Here, bioinformatic analyses revealed that CHCHD2 is consistently coamplified with EGFR in non–small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC). In addition, CHCHD2 and EGFR protein expression levels were positively correlated and upregulated relative to normal lung in NSCLC tumor-derived xenografts. Knockdown of CHCHD2 expression in NSCLC cells attenuated cell proliferation, migration, and mitochondrial respiration. CHCHD2 protein–protein interactions were assessed by the complementary approaches of affinity purification mass spectrometry and in vivo proximity ligation. The CHCHD2 interactome includes the apparent hub proteins C1QBP (a mitochondrial protein) and YBX1 (an oncogenic transcription factor), and an overlapping set of hub-associated proteins implicated in cell regulation. Implications: CHCHD2 influences mitochondrial and nuclear functions and contributes to the cancer phenotype associated with 7p11.2 amplification in NSCLC. Mol Cancer Res; 13(7); 1119–29. ©2015 AACR.
Study on the Intelligent Extraction Based on Hyper-Spectral Characteristics of Typical Vegetation

By using hyper-spectral remote sensing data of desert vegetation, the original spectral data was simply pretreated firstly, then first order differential transform and smoothing was the hyper-spectral data. The spectral characteristics of different grassland types were extracted. The results showed that: desert vegetation has some unique spectral features of common green vegetation. However, affected by the underlying surface of spared leaves, low coverage, the spectrum of desert vegetation does not have obvious green peak, and the red edge characteristics decreased with the decline of vegetation coverage.
Determination of the spring constants of probes for force microscopy/spectroscopy

A direct, accurate and convenient procedure for calibrating the spring constants of probes used for force microscopy/spectroscopy is described. It amounts to deflecting an 'unknown' cantilever with a 'standard' lever, where the standard lever has been precalibrated. The absolute and relative accuracies of the procedure are ±20-30% and ±10-20%, respectively; the former is limited by uncertainties in the determination of the spring constant for the 'standard' lever, as well as that for the 'unknown'. The method differs from others of the static deflection variety by its exploitation of the routine features of current instruments. The technique is compared with other static and dynamic methods currently being used.
Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs Do Not Influence the Urinary Testosterone/Epitestosterone Glucuronide Ratio

The UDP Glucuronosyl Transferase (UGT) enzymes are important in the pharmacokinetics, and conjugation, of a variety of drugs including non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) as well as anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS). Testosterone glucuronidation capacity is strongly associated with a deletion polymorphism in the UGT2B17 gene. As the use of high doses of NSAIDs has been observed in athletes there is a risk for a drug–drug interaction that may influence the doping tests for AAS. In vitro studies show inhibitory potential on UGT2B7, 2B15, and 2B17 enzymes by NSAIDs. The aim of this study was to investigate if concomitant use of NSAIDs and a single dose of testosterone enanthate would affect the excretion rate of testosterone and epitestosterone glucuronide (TG and EG) as well as the T/E ratio, thereby affecting the outcome of the testosterone doping test. The study was designed as an open, randomized, cross-over study with subjects being their own control. The 23 male healthy volunteers, with either two, one or no allele (ins/ins, ins/del, or del/del) of the UGT2B17 gene, received the maximum recommended dose of NSAID (Ibuprofen or Diclofenac) for 6 days. On day three, 500 mg of testosterone enanthate was administered. Spot urine samples were collected for 17 days. After a wash-out period of 4 months the volunteers received 500 mg testosterone enanthate only, with subsequent spot urine collection for 14 days. The glucuronides of testosterone and epitestosterone were quantified. NSAIDs did not affect the excretion of TG or EG before the administration of testosterone. The concomitant use of NSAIDs and testosterone slightly increased the TG excretion while the EG excretion was less suppressed compared to testosterone use only. The effects of the NSAIDs on the TG and EG excretion did not differ between the UGT2B17 genotype groups. In conclusion, the outcome of testosterone doping tests does not seem to be affected by the use of NSAIDs.
[Growth of exclusively breastfed infants in the first 6 months of life].

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the growth of exclusively breastfed infants from birth to 6 months of life. METHODS This was a longitudinal study of 184 children who received primary care at a public institution (Exclusive Breastfeeding Stimulation Program, PROAME) in Belém, state of Pará, Brazil, between February 2000 and January 2001. A total of 102 children completed the study. All were born at full term with a birth weight greater than or equal to 2,500 g. No events were recorded during the neonatal period and the infants were exclusively breastfed, on demand, since their birth. The infants were followed up monthly, and the weight and length measured at birth and at the end of the first, fourth and sixth months of life were compared to the 50th percentile line of the NCHS growth charts and to other previous studies of Brazilian children who were exclusively breastfed. RESULTS Growth was adequate for all the children, who doubled their weight before the fourth month of life. Despite a slow-down in weight and height gain after the fourth month, the weight averages at 6 months were greater than the standards used for comparison. CONCLUSIONS The average weight of these exclusively breastfed children was above the 50th percentile of the NCHS curve at 6 months, thus confirming the nutritional advantages of breast milk, especially when the mothers receive guidance regarding the appropriate techniques for breastfeeding.
Knowledge about HPV and Screening of Cervical Cancer among Women from the Metropolitan Region of Natal, Brazil

Objective. The purpose of this study was to assess the knowledge level about HPV and screening of cervical cancer in women from the metropolitan region of Natal, Brazil. Materials and Methods. A descriptive cross-sectional study involving sexually active women was conducted. The participants were submitted to a face-to-face interview, using a structured questionnaire that permitted the quantification of data and opinions of the respondents. Results. Most participants (70.9%) had poor knowledge about HPV and also the Pap test (53.0%). The high level of knowledge about HPV was associated with age, education, marital status, household income, and pregnancy, while the high level of knowledge about the Pap test proved to be associated only with education and household income. Conclusion. The results highlight the need for performing educational campaigns emphasizing the role of HPV in the etiology of cervical lesions of different degrees, including cervical cancer, as well as the importance of having a Pap test regularly to prevent these diseases.
Effect of Fluconazole on Phagocytic Response of Polymorphonuclear Leukocytes in a Rat Model of Acute Sepsis

Recently, fluconazole (FLZ) has been shown to improve survival and reduce multiorgan failure in experimental and clinical septic shock. The mechanism by which FLZ affords protection against sepsis remains obscure. This study examines the effect of FLZ on phagocytic activity of polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNs) in a rat model of septic shock by inducing fecal peritonitis in male Wistar rats using intraperitoneal instillation (1 mL/kg) of fecal suspension in saline (1:1 w/v). Sham control rats received sterile fecal suspension and vehicle treatment. FLZ was administered in the doses of 0, 3, 10, and 30 mg/kg by gavage 30 minutes before fecal instillation. The samples of peritoneal fluid were collected 8 hours following fecal inoculation for the evaluation of phagocytic response of PMNs using zymosan-induced luminol-dependent chemiluminescence (CL). Fecal peritonitis caused massive infiltration of PMNs in the peritoneal cavity (ANOVA F4.45 = 6.322, P < .001). Although FLZ reduced the infiltration of PMNs, this effect was neither significant nor dose dependent. The actual CL response was significantly higher in the peritoneal fluid of rats subjected to peritonitis, which was significantly and dose-dependently attenuated by FLZ treatment (ANOVA F4.45 = 11.048, P < .001). Normalization of CL response for 1000 PMNs revealed that FLZ dose-dependently albeit insignificantly reduced the activity of PMNs. The high dose of FLZ caused 2.29-fold decrement in the area under curve (AUC) pertaining to cumulative CL response. The findings of this study suggest that FLZ protects rats against septic shock by inhibiting PMN-mediated inflammatory cascade without compromising their phagocytic activity.
O-Antigen Delays Lipopolysaccharide Recognition and Impairs Antibacterial Host Defense in Murine Intestinal Epithelial Cells

Although Toll-like receptor (TLR) 4 signals from the cell surface of myeloid cells, it is restricted to an intracellular compartment and requires ligand internalization in intestinal epithelial cells (IECs). Yet, the functional consequence of cell-type specific receptor localization and uptake-dependent lipopolysaccharide (LPS) recognition is unknown. Here, we demonstrate a strikingly delayed activation of IECs but not macrophages by wildtype Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica sv. (S.) Typhimurium as compared to isogenic O-antigen deficient mutants. Delayed epithelial activation is associated with impaired LPS internalization and retarded TLR4-mediated immune recognition. The O-antigen-mediated evasion from early epithelial innate immune activation significantly enhances intraepithelial bacterial survival in vitro and in vivo following oral challenge. These data identify O-antigen expression as an innate immune evasion mechanism during apical intestinal epithelial invasion and illustrate the importance of early innate immune recognition for efficient host defense against invading Salmonella.
Rupture de la rate au cours de l'accouchement: à propos d'un cas

La rupture de rate est une extrême urgence chirurgicale abdominale qui met très rapidement en jeu le pronostic vital. Les étiologies fréquemment retrouvées sont les traumatismes abdominaux par contusions ou plaies pénétrantes. La survenue d'une rupture de rate au cours de l'accouchement est un événement rare. Nous rapportons dans cette observation le cas d'une rupture splénique suite à des expressions abdominales survenue au cours d'un accouchement dystocique.
Energy Levels in Embedded Semiconductor Nanoparticles and Nanowires

A finite-depth square-well model is used to show that the band gap of a nanoparticle for a given size can be tuned by embedding the nanoparticle in different matrices. This may find a technological importance in different branches of physics. The band gaps calculated using this model are found to be consistent with reported experimental band gaps of semiconductor materials (PbS and CdS) embedded in different matrices. A new wave function for a one-dimensional semiconductor has been deduced to evaluate the size-dependent band gap of a semiconductor wire, explaining the variation of the band gap of porous Si with the ratio of Si−O and Si−H bond concentrations.
Gas transport and thermal characterization of mono- and di-polyethylene films used for food packaging

The permeability of carbon dioxide, oxygen, nitrogen and air through commercial monolayer and multilayer films, based on polyethylene (PE), biaxially oriented polypropylene (BOPP) and polyamide (PA), used for food packaging is reported. The influence of temperature (from 10 to 60oC) on permeability and DSC characteristics changes was also analyzed. Literature data for gas permeability of the mentioned monofilms are quite variable due to differences in additives, thermal history, and crystallinity. In this work the highest gas permeability is obtained for PE film at the higher temperature (50-60oC). Laminates exhibit different gas permeation behavior from that of monofilms. Generally, gas solubility coefficient increases at higher temperature (with an exception of PA/PE and BOPPcoex.met/PE), being higher for monofilms in comparison with laminates, while diffusion coefficients are lower for monofilms in comparison with laminates. The temperature dependence of the permeability, diffusivity and solubility of gases shows two different regions in PE, BOPPcoex/PE (10-40oC and 40-60oC), PA/PE and BOPPcoex.met (10-30oC and 40-60oC) films. Correlation between activation energies for permeation and diffusion as well as heat of sorption and 17 gas properties is performed.
Responses of sex steroid hormones to different intensities of exercise in endurance athletes

What is the central question of this study? What is the effect of different exercise intensities on sex steroid hormone concentrations in individuals with different degrees of physical fitness? What is the main finding and its importance? In endurance athletes, serum concentrations of sex steroid hormones increased only with high‐intensity exercise. Moreover, different responses of sex steroid hormone secretions were induced by different exercise intensities in individuals with low and high levels of physical fitness.
HIV drug resistance acquired through superinfection

Objective:HIV interclade B superinfection has previously been described in individuals initially infected with drug resistant virus who then become superinfected by a drug susceptible strain. We report an individual initially infected with a drug-sensitive clade B strain of HIV who was superinfected with another clade B strain resistant to two classes of antiretroviral drugs. Methods and design:To differentiate superinfection from possible co-infection we applied three independent molecular techniques: dye-primer sequencing of a pol fragment, length polymorphism analysis of the V4–5 coding region of the env gene and clonal sequencing of the V3 coding region of the env gene. To assess viral fitness we performed replication capacity assays of the pol gene. Results:These investigations supported the conclusion that this was a case of superinfection and not co-infection. Coincident with acquiring the new strain, the individual's viral load increased by about 10 000 copies/ml with a decrease of 150 × CD4 T cells/μl over the next 6 months. The greater in vivo fitness of the second virus was not supported by the replication capacity assay. Furthermore, superinfection negatively impacted this individual's treatment course. It was not known that he had acquired a drug resistant strain before entering a treatment study, and he had an incomplete response to therapy most likely because the superinfecting viral strain had a decreased susceptibility to two of the prescribed medications. Conclusion:HIV drug resistance acquired through superinfection significantly lowers the likelihood of successful antiretroviral therapy and undermines the clinical value of a patient's prior drug resistance testing and lack of prior antiretroviral use.
Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Is Necessary in the Development of Arteriosclerosis by Recruiting/Activating Monocytes in a Rat Model of Long-Term Inhibition of Nitric Oxide Synthesis

Background—It remains unclear whether vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is a proarteriosclerotic or an antiarteriosclerotic factor. We recently reported that long-term inhibition of nitric oxide by administering N&ohgr;-nitro-l-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME) induces coronary vascular inflammation and arteriosclerosis. Methods and Results—We used this animal model to investigate the role of VEGF in arteriosclerosis. We blocked VEGF activity in vivo by transfecting with plasmid DNA encoding the murine soluble FLT-1 (sFLT-1) gene into thigh muscle. Soluble FLT-1 can suppress VEGF activity both by sequestering VEGF and by functioning as a dominant-negative inhibitor of VEGF receptors. We observed vascular inflammation associated with increased VEGF expression within 3 days of L-NAME administration, which was prevented by pretreatment with ACE inhibitor, angiotensin II receptor antagonist, or neutralizing monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 antibody. The sFLT-1 gene transfer attenuated the early vascular inflammation and prevented late arteriosclerosis. The sFLT-1 gene transfer also inhibited increased expression of monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 and transforming growth factor-&bgr;, indicating creation of a positive feedback loop to cause arteriosclerosis. Conclusions—VEGF is necessary in the development of arteriosclerosis by mediating monocyte recruitment and activation in this model.
Sphingosine 1‐phosphate released from platelets during clotting accounts for the potent endothelial cell chemotactic activity of blood serum and provides a novel link between hemostasis and angiogenesis

ABSTRACT Recent studies have identified factors responsible for angiogenesis within developing tumors, but mediators of vessel formation at sites of trauma, injury, and wound healing are not clearly established. Here we show that sphingosine 1‐phosphate (S1P) released by platelets during blood clotting is a potent, specific, and selective endothelial cell chemoattractant that accounts for most of the strong endothelial cell chemotactic activity of blood serum, an activity that is markedly diminished in plasma. Preincubation of endothelial cells with pertussis toxin inhibited this effect of S1P, demonstrating the involvement of a Gαi‐coupled receptor. After S1P‐induced migration, endothelial cells proliferated avidly and differentiated forming multicellular structures suggestive of early blood vessel formation. S1P was strikingly effective in enhancing the ability of fibroblast growth factor to induce angiogenesis in the avascular mouse cornea. Our results show that blood coagulation initiates endothelial cell angiogenic responses through the release of S1P, a potent endothelial cell chemoattractant that exerts its effects by activating a receptor‐dependent process. —English, D. , Welch, Z. , Kovala, A. T. , Harvey, K. , Volpert, O. V. , Brindley, D. N. , Garcia, J. G. N. Sphingosine 1‐phosphate released from platelets during clotting accounts for the potent endothelial cell chemotactic activity of blood serum and provides a novel link between hemostasis and angiogenesis. FASEB J. 14, 2255–2265 (2000)
Constraint of gene expression by the chromatin remodelling protein CHD4 facilitates lineage specification

Chromatin remodelling proteins are essential for different aspects of metazoan biology, yet functional details of why these proteins are important are lacking. Although it is possible to describe the biochemistry of how they remodel chromatin, their chromatin-binding profiles in cell lines, and gene expression changes upon loss of a given protein, in very few cases can this easily translate into an understanding of how the function of that protein actually influences a developmental process. Here, we investigate how the chromatin remodelling protein CHD4 facilitates the first lineage decision in mammalian embryogenesis. Embryos lacking CHD4 can form a morphologically normal early blastocyst, but are unable to successfully complete the first lineage decision and form functional trophectoderm (TE). In the absence of a functional TE, Chd4 mutant blastocysts do not implant and are hence not viable. By measuring transcript levels in single cells from early embryos, we show that CHD4 influences the frequency at which unspecified cells in preimplantation stage embryos express lineage markers prior to the execution of this first lineage decision. In the absence of CHD4, this frequency is increased in 16-cell embryos, and by the blastocyst stage cells fail to properly adopt a TE gene expression programme. We propose that CHD4 allows cells to undertake lineage commitment in vivo by modulating the frequency with which lineage-specification genes are expressed. This provides novel insight into both how lineage decisions are made in mammalian cells, and how a chromatin remodelling protein functions to facilitate lineage commitment. Highlighted article: The chromatin remodelling protein CHD4 dampens transcriptional priming in totipotent cells, facilitating TE specification during murine embryogenesis.