Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Recombinant Vaccine Displaying the Loop-Neutralizing Determinant from Protective Antigen Completely Protects Rabbits from Experimental Inhalation Anthrax

ABSTRACT We previously showed that a multiple antigenic peptide (MAP) vaccine displaying amino acids (aa) 304 to 319 from the 2β2-2β3 loop of protective antigen was capable of protecting rabbits from an aerosolized spore challenge with Bacillus anthracis Ames strain. Antibodies to this sequence, referred to as the loop-neutralizing determinant (LND), are highly potent at neutralizing lethal toxin yet are virtually absent in rabbit and human protective antigen (PA) antiserum. While the MAP vaccine was protective against anthrax, it contains a single heterologous helper T cell epitope which may be suboptimal for stimulating an outbred human population. We therefore engineered a recombinant vaccine (Rec-LND) containing two tandemly repeated copies of the LND fused to maltose binding protein, with enhanced immunogenicity resulting from the p38/P4 helper T cell epitope from Schistosoma mansoni. Rec-LND was found to be highly immunogenic in four major histocompatibility complex (MHC)-diverse strains of mice. All (7/7) rabbits immunized with Rec-LND developed high-titer antibody, 6 out of 7 developed neutralizing antibody, and all rabbits were protected from an aerosolized spore challenge of 193 50% lethal doses (LD50) of the B. anthracis Ames strain. Survivor serum from Rec-LND-immunized rabbits revealed significantly increased neutralization titers and specific activity compared to prechallenge levels yet lacked PA or lethal factor (LF) antigenemia. Control rabbits immunized with PA, which were also completely protected, appeared sterilely immune, exhibiting significant declines in neutralization titer and specific activity compared to prechallenge levels. We conclude that Rec-LND may represent a prototype anthrax vaccine for use alone or potentially combined with PA-containing vaccines.
Modeling Network Value of a Product The Setting

Traditionally, the value of a product has been assessed according to the direct revenues the product creates. However, products do not exist in isolation but rather influence one another’s sales. Such influence is especially evident in e-commerce environments, in which products are often presented as a collection of web pages linked by recommendation hyperlinks, creating a large-scale product network. The authors present a systematic approach to estimate products’ true value to a firm in such a product network. Their approach, which is in the spirit of the PageRank algorithm, uses available data from large-scale e-commerce sites and separates a product’s value into its own intrinsic value, the value it receives from the network, and the value it contributes to the network. The authors demonstrate their approach using data collected from the product network of books on Amazon.com. Specifically, they show that the value of low sellers may be underestimated, whereas the value of best sellers may be overestimated. The authors explore the sources of this discrepancy and discuss the implications for managing products in the growing environment of product networks.
Evaluating Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Using Multiple Informants: The Incremental Utility of Combining Teacher with Parent Reports.

In a sample of students referred to a school-based Pupil Assistance Committee, the Inattention and Hyperactivity-impulsivity factors of the Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) Rating Scale-IV were used to predict diagnostic status, determined by a parent-reported diagnostic interview and teacher rating scale. Results of logistic regression and receiver operating curve analyses indicated that the Inattention and Hyperactivity-Impulsivity factors differentiated students with ADHD from controls and distinguished children with different ADHD subtypes. Symptom utility estimates demonstrated that a single informant approach was best suited for ruling out ADHD, whereas a combined informant method was optimal for positively diagnosing this disorder. Methods for determining the incremental utility of combining teacher with parent reports were demonstrated.
The Impact of Reading to Engage Children With Autism in Language and Learning (RECALL)

A multiple baseline across participants design was used to investigate the impact of RECALL (Reading to Engage Children With Autism in Language and Learning) on the correct, unprompted responding and initiations of young children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). RECALL is an adapted shared reading intervention based on dialogic reading. RECALL embeds systematic instructional procedures and supports known to facilitate the learning of children with ASD (e.g., prompting hierarchy and visual supports). Interventionists read aloud with a child with autism and a peer 3 days a week for approximately 2.5 months. Following intervention, all four participating children decreased the frequency of incorrect responding and gradually improved their correct, spontaneous responding to fact- and inference-based questions about story content. In addition, three of the four participants increased the frequency of their initiations. Findings suggest that young children with ASD can participate in and benefit from shared reading interventions with supports. Implications for the implementation of shared reading interventions with young children with ASD are discussed.
How does coaching interviewees affect the validity of a structured interview

Coaching interviewees to perform in employment interviews can influence the interview scores. We describe different types of coaching, emphasizing interventions designed to focus interviewees on core, interview-relevant content and to help them convey the content accurately (as opposed to interventions designed to teach interviewees to manipulate their scores using peripheral means). We then study the effects of the former type of intervention in relation to the criterion-related validity of a structured employment interview. In a combined sample of 146 public safety job incumbents, a predictive validation study was conducted using scores from a situational panel interview. Predictive validity and reliability was observed to be higher in a sample of coached interviewees compared to a sample of uncoached interviewees. Implications for future research and practice in organizational behavior are discussed. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Negative correlation between plasma thyroid hormone levels and chlorinated hydrocarbon levels accumulated in seals from the coast of Hokkaido, Japan

Chlorinated hydrocarbon (CHC) levels in the blubber of larga seals (Phoca largha) and ribbon seals (Phoca fasciata) collected from the coastal waters of Hokkaido, Japan, were determined in order to assess the hormonal effects of CHC exposure in free‐ranging pinnipeds. Plasma thyroid hormone levels, including total thyroxine (T4), free thyroxine (free T4), total triiodothyronine (T3), and free triiodothyronine (free T3), were also measured. Higher concentrations of polychlorinated biphenyl congeners (PCBs), dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane and its metabolites, and chlordane compounds were found in the range of 380 to 2,600 ng/g, 350 to 2,600 ng/g, and 120 to 760 ng/g on a wet‐weight basis, respectively. Spearman rank correlation analyses showed that in larga seals, plasma total T3 and free T3 levels negatively correlated with levels of all the CHCs analyzed, although there was no such correlation between total or free T4 levels and CHC concentrations. In ribbon seals, total T3 levels significantly decreased with an increase of di‐ortho PCB (PCB170 and 180) residues. These findings indicated that the plasma T3 deficiency could be associated with some CHC exposure in larga and ribbon seals and that the responses of plasma thyroid hormones may be useful biomarkers for CHC exposure in ribbon seals.
Glial-Derived Neurotrophic Factor Upregulates Expression of Functional SNS and NaN Sodium Channels and Their Currents in Axotomized Dorsal Root Ganglion Neurons

Dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons produce multiple sodium currents, including several different TTX-sensitive (TTX-S) currents and TTX-resistant (TTX-R) currents, which are produced by distinct sodium channels. We previously demonstrated that, after sciatic nerve transection, the levels of SNS and NaN sodium channel α-subunit transcripts and protein in small (18–30 μm diameter) DRG neurons are reduced, as are the amplitudes and densities of the slowly inactivating and persistent TTX-R currents produced by these two channels. In this study, we asked whether glial-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF), which has been shown to prevent some axotomy-induced changes such as the loss of somatostatin expression in DRG neurons, can ameliorate the axotomy-induced downregulation of SNS and NaN TTX-R sodium channels. We show here that exposure to GDNF can significantly increase both slowly inactivating and persistent TTX-R sodium currents, which are paralleled by increases in SNS and NaN mRNA and protein levels, in axotomized DRG neurons in vitro. We also show that intrathecally administered GDNF increases the amplitudes of the slowly inactivating and persistent TTX-R currents, and SNS and NaN protein levels, in peripherally axotomized DRG neurons in vivo. Finally, we demonstrate that GDNF upregulates the persistent TTX-R current in SNS-null mice, thus demonstrating that the upregulated persistent sodium current is not produced by SNS. Because TTX-R sodium channels have been shown to be important in nociception, the effects of GDNF on axotomized DRG neurons may have important implications for the regulation of nociceptive signaling by these cells.
Relations between students' approaches to learning, experienced emotions and outcomes of learning

Quantitative analyses conducted on the self-reports of first year university students suggest that there is a relationship between the ways they emotionally experience their course and the approach they take to the learning of that course. Students who more strongly experience positive emotions, such as hope and pride, and more weakly experience negative emotions (such as anger, boredom, anxiety and shame), are likely to be adopting more of a deep approach to learning. In comparison, students who describe more of a surface approach to learning are more likely to report an experience of lower positive emotions and higher negative emotions. Both the experience of more positive emotions and the adoption of a deeper approach are associated with higher achievement scores. Lower achievement is associated with surface approaches to learning and negative emotional experiences. The value of these results lies in enhancing awareness of the elements that make up the learning experience for students, and of the need for consideration of the full range of emotional and approach to learning elements in designing new learning environments.
Estudio relacional entre el perfil morfológico y estima corporal en la selección andaluza de gimnasia rítmica deportiva

El principal objetivo de este trabajo fue analizar las relaciones entre el perfil morfologico y la estima corporal en jovenes practicantes de Gimnasia Ritmica Deportiva. Para ello, se ha realizado un estudio descriptivo utilizando material cineantropometrico para analizar diversas caracteristicas morfologicas: somatocarta, compartimentos corporales, indices de proporcionalidad y el test psicologico (BESC para valorar la imagen corporal). Las pruebas fueron realizadas a 20 deportistas pertenecientes a la Seleccion Andaluza de Gimnasia Ritmica Deportiva con un rango de edad de 9 a 15 anos (media ± desviacion tipica: 11,20 ± 4,5), divididas en dos grupos de edades competitivas: Grupo A (12 gimnastas de categoria alevin 9-11 anos) y Grupo B (8 gimnastas de categoria infantil-junior de 12- 15 anos). Los resultados mostraron solo una correlacion significativa inversamente proporcional entre la Estima Corporal y porcentaje graso en las gimnastas de mayor edad. Key Words: Gimnasia Ritmica, cineantropometria, estima corporal
A Safe Education for All

This article addresses the pervasiveness of harassment in schools in the United States and presents ways to recognize and stem bullying in music classrooms. Music educators are in a unique position to recognize atypical behaviors in their students. Music educators who teach middle and high school ensembles often retain the same students in their classrooms over the course of many years. Because of the unique nature of the ensemble experience, coupled with the opportunity for extended instruction, music teachers can closely monitor the well-being of their students. However, music teachers should understand how difficult it may be for students who have been harassed to come forward with information about harassment. Sometimes harassment is overt and easy to recognize (e.g., name-calling, inappropriate gestures, graffiti). However, harassment can also occur in contexts that are not readily recognized but are just as hurtful. When students observe teachers taking a stand against bullying and harassment, they recognize the intention for a safe classroom. When students feel safe, they are more likely to ask questions and engage in class in dynamic and meaningful ways—both musically and nonmusically. Only when students feel safe can they learn. Music teachers need to gain a further understanding of various forms of harassment and further consider their role in creating a welcoming and secure environment.
Further Data on Misclassification

We appreciate Cheng and Powell’s (henceforth C&P) comment on our 2007 article on the effects of racial misclassification, and we are very enthusiastic about the growing field of research, using several different data sources, on the differences between self-identification and the perceptions of others (e.g., Herman 2010; Penner and Saperstein 2008; Roth 2010; Saperstein 2006, 2009; Saperstein and Penner 2010; Stepanikova 2010). C&P focus on a key conundrum facing researchers who wish to use racial and ethnic data from surveys: because racial identification is a reflection of a socially constructed and ongoing life course process, any survey measure is necessarily an imperfect snapshot rather than a flawless measure of a stable individual trait. We completely agree with the idea that this is an issue that all research on race and ethnicity needs to take seriously, and we value the care with which C&P investigated the issue in this particular case. As they point out, inconsistency in survey responses about race is an important window into the complexity of racial and ethnic identification. In our reply, we review the concerns they raise, propose avenues for addressing them, and offer an analysis of data drawn from an alternative survey. This analysis provides further support for our hypothesis that when a respondent believes other people’s expectations conflict with the respondent’s expectations for herself, the conflict generates stress (Moore 1985; Troyer and Younts 1997). CHENG AND POWELL’S CRITIQUE
Chapter III: Development and Application of Tests of Special Aptitude

J. HERE HAS been little published research on the development and application of tests of special aptitude. Apparently, much of it is not published in the regular channels, since it may be relevant only to the particular setting in which it is carried out, and is circulated only to the persons most directly concerned. Some of the work done in research facilities in the armed forces, in industry, and in school systems, colleges, and universities may be of this nature. Also, many research reports that, in former years, would have been published in journals are printed privately and circulated to persons most likely to be interested in them. Examples are Guilford's reports from the Psychological Laboratory of the University of Southern California, reports by Paul Horst at the University of Washington, and the Educational Testing Service research bulletins. Perhaps the time lag and constricted space allocations of journals are causing them to lose their role as a primary means of communication among scholars. In considering whether to note a particular bit of research in this chapter, it was necessary to define aptitudes and aptitude tests. Relatively little attention has been given recently to the a priori nature of aptitudes. Empiricism has been dominant, and it is said that a person has high aptitude for performance X if he does well on a test that predicts X. The same test may be called an achievement test in one setting and an aptitude test in another. The distinction between aptitude and achievement tests probably has broken down because achievement tests have been found to provide generally better predictions of future achievement than have aptitude tests. Herein lies a major problem. Immediate practical pressures have brought about an overemphasis on predictive accuracy for a rather restricted range of situations at the expense of assessment of educationally and psychologically important traits that would provide information of more general utility. Super (1956) has discussed this point in a plea for "multipo tentiali ty. " There is some profit in distinguishing between aptitudes and abilities, and between aptitude tests and achievement tests. Twenty-five years ago, Bingham (1937) defined aptitude as an index of fitness to acquire proficiency in a pursuit and to engage in it with satisfaction. He would include interest, therefore, as a facet of aptitude. From the standpoint of test construction, interest would not be included because it is considered desirable to maintain the separation between "maximum" performance
Structure and Mechanisms of South Indian Ocean Climate Variability

A unique open-ocean upwelling exists in the tropical South Indian Ocean (SIO), a result of the negative wind curl between the southeasterly trades and equatorial westerlies, raising the thermocline in the west. Analysis of in situ measurements and a model-assimilated dataset reveals a strong influence of subsurface thermocline variability on sea surface temperature (SST) in this upwelling zone. El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is found to be the dominant forcing for the SIO thermocline variability, with SST variability off Sumatra, Indonesia, also making a significant contribution. When either an El Nino or Sumatra cooling event takes place, anomalous easterlies appear in the equatorial Indian Ocean, forcing a westward-propagating downwelling Rossby wave in the SIO. In phase with this dynamic Rossby wave, there is a pronounced copropagation of SST. Moreover, a positive precipitation anomaly is found over, or just to the south of, the Rossby wave-induced positive SST anomaly, resulting in a cyclonic circulation in the surface wind field that appears to feedback onto the SST anomaly. Finally, this downwelling Rossby wave also increases tropical cyclone activity in the SIO through its SST effect. This coupled Rossby wave thus offers potential predictability for SST and tropical cyclones in the western SIO. These results suggest that models that allow for the existence of upwelling and Rossby wave dynamics will have better seasonal forecasts than ones that use a slab ocean mixed layer. The lagged-correlation analysis shows that SST anomalies off Java, Indonesia, tend to precede those off Sumatra by a season, a time lead that may further increase the Indian Ocean predictability.
Wild-Type and A328W Mutant Human Butyrylcholinesterase Tetramers Expressed in Chinese Hamster Ovary Cells Have a 16-Hour Half-Life in the Circulation and Protect Mice from Cocaine Toxicity

Human butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) hydrolyzes cocaine to inactive metabolites. A mutant of human BChE, A328W, hydrolyzed cocaine 15-fold faster compared with wild-type BChE. Although the catalytic properties of human BChE secreted by Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells are identical to those of native BChE, a major difference became evident when the recombinant BChE was injected into rats and mice. Recombinant BChE disappeared from the circulation within minutes, whereas native BChE stayed in the blood for a week. Nondenaturing gel electrophoresis showed that the recombinant BChE consisted mainly of monomers and dimers. In contrast, native BChE is a tetramer. The problem of the short residence time was solved by finding a method to assemble the recombinant BChE into tetramers. Coexpression in CHO cells of BChE and 45 residues from the N terminus of the COLQ protein yielded 70% tetrameric BChE. The resulting purified recombinant BChE tetramers had a half-life of 16 h in the circulation of rats and mice. The 16-h half-life was achieved without modifying the carbohydrate content of recombinant BChE. The protective effect of recombinant wild-type and A328W mutant BChE against cocaine toxicity was tested by measuring locomotor activity in mice. Pretreatment with wild-type BChE or A328W tetramers at a dose of 2.8 units/g i.p. reduced cocaine-induced locomotor activity by 50 and 80%. These results indicate that recombinant human BChE could be useful for treating cocaine toxicity in humans.
Ethnic categorization and outgroup exclusion: Cultural values and social stereotypes in the construction of ethnic hierarchies

Abstract In this article three approaches to define and explain negative ethnic attitudes are discussed: the anthropology of cultural misunderstanding, the sociology of how differences in group positions are justified ideologically, and the social psychology of maintaining self‐esteem through intergroup differentiation. The‐ aim is to integrate these approaches into an interdisciplinary model. Social identity theory is used as a frame for this integration. The argument developed is that ingroup values are used for intergroup differentiation and evaluation. This leads to the development of stereotypes. Stereotypes reflect misunderstanding, but also anchor social representations of a hierarchy of group positions (ethnic hierarchy). Depending on the ethnic composition of the larger society, majority and minority groups will differ in their ethnic hierarchies. Discrepancies between ethnic hierarchies will lead to ethnic tension. From the perspective developed, a number of hypotheses is derived about how chang.
Method of Relating Grain Size Distribution to Hydraulic Conductivity in Dune Sands to Assist in Assessing Managed Aquifer Recharge Projects: Wadi Khulays Dune Field, Western Saudi Arabia

Planning for use of a dune field aquifer for managed aquifer recharge (MAR) requires that hydraulic properties need to be estimated over a large geographic area. Saturated hydraulic conductivity of dune sands is commonly estimated from grain size distribution data by employing some type of empirical equation. Over 50 samples from the Wadi Khulays dune field in Western Saudi Arabia were collected and the grain size distribution, porosity, and hydraulic conductivity were measured. An evaluation of 20 existing empirical equations showed a generally high degree of error in the predicted compared to the measured hydraulic conductivity values of these samples. Statistical analyses comparing estimated versus measured hydraulic conductivity demonstrated that there is a significant relationship between hydraulic conductivity and mud percentage (and skewness). The modified Beyer equation, which showed a generally low prediction error, was modified by adding a second term fitting parameter related to the mud concentration based on 25 of the 50 samples analyzed. An inverse optimization process was conducted to quantify the fitting parameter and a new empirical equation was developed. This equation was tested against the remaining 25 samples analyzed and produced an estimated saturated hydraulic conductivity with the lowest error of any empirical equation. This methodology can be used for large dune field hydraulic conductivity estimation and reduce planning costs for MAR systems.