Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Acute Phase Reactants as Novel Predictors of Cardiovascular Disease

Acute phase reaction is a systemic response which usually follows a physiological condition that takes place in the beginning of an inflammatory process. This physiological change usually lasts 1-2 days. However, the systemic acute phase response usually lasts longer. The aim of this systemic response is to restore homeostasis. These events are accompanied by upregulation of some proteins (positive acute phase reactants) and downregulation of others (negative acute phase reactants) during inflammatory reactions. Cardiovascular diseases are accompanied by the elevation of several positive acute phase reactants such as C-reactive protein (CRP), serum amyloid A (SAA), fibrinogen, white blood cell count, secretory nonpancreatic phospholipase 2-II (sPLA2-II), ferritin, and ceruloplasmin. Cardiovascular disease is also accompanied by the reduction of negative acute phase reactants such as albumin, transferrin, transthyretin, retinol-binding protein, antithrombin, and transcortin. In this paper, we will be discussing the biological activity and diagnostic and prognostic values of acute phase reactants with cardiovascular importance. The potential therapeutic targets of these reactants will be also discussed.
Evolutionary features and parameter optimization of spiking neural networks for unsupervised learning

This paper introduces two new hybrid models for clustering problems in which the input features and parameters of a spiking neural network (SNN) are optimized using evolutionary algorithms. We used two novel evolutionary approaches, the quantum-inspired evolutionary algorithm (QIEA) and the optimization by genetic programming (OGP) methods, to develop the quantum binary-real evolving SNN (QbrSNN) and the SNN optimized by genetic programming (SNN-OGP) neuro-evolutionary models, respectively. The proposed models are applied to 8 benchmark datasets, and a significantly higher clustering accuracy compared to a standard SNN without feature and parameter optimization is achieved with fewer iterations. When comparing QbrSNN and SNN-OGP, the former performed slightly better but at the expense of increased computational effort.
Exploring the Customer Perspective of Agile Development: Acceptance Factors and On-Site Customer Perceptions in Scrum Projects

In recent years, agile development methodologies have attracted great attention. Although the success of agile development projects depends considerably on the willingness of customers to actively participate, little research has examined which factors of such methodologies customers perceive as benefits or drawbacks. Employing an exploratory, primarily qualitative study design and the Diffusion of Innovations Theory as theoretical lens, we identify several acceptance factors of Scrum as a specific methodology and describe how customers perceive them. As basis for our examination, we use empirical data that was collected at a world-wide leading insurance company and a mixed-method approach that combines qualitative with quantitative data analyses. The results suggest that customers found Scrum to deliver relative advantages. Furthermore, they indicate that Scrum is perceived as more compatible to the way customers prefer to work in development projects. Factors that characterize the perceived complexity of Scrum were viewed as potential acceptance barriers, however.
Effectiveness of Programmes to Reduce School Bullying

Brå – a centre of knowledge on crime and measures to combat crime The Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention (Brottsförebyggande rådet – Brå) works to reduce crime and improve levels of safety in society by producing data and disseminating knowledge on crime and crime prevention work and the justice system's responses to crime.
An Examination of Prototypes and Leader-Member Exchange

Because cognitive categories associated with the evaluation of a working relationship are stable at times, yet dynamic under specific conditions, understanding leader-member exchange (LMX) and identifying cognitive correlates associated with exchange quality is perplexing (Foti, Knee & Backert, 2008). The purpose of this study was to investigate how congruence between a leader’s and follower’s leader and follower prototypes affects the quality of the leader-member exchange relationship as assessed by each partner in the dyadic pair. Leaders and followers in 68 dyadic pairs performed a series of tasks in a laboratory setting. Multiple assessments of liking and trust for each other, as well as LMX quality from their perspective were made. Congruence on leader prototypes significantly predicted follower assessed LMX; followers’ liking and trust for leaders fully mediated this relationship. In addition, congruence on follower prototypes significantly predicted leader assessed LMX; leaders’ liking for followers fully mediated this relationship. These results emphasize the reciprocal nature of LMX relationships. Practical implications of having high quality LMX include, but are not limited to, higher satisfaction and commitment, less conflict, and higher performance ratings.
EVALUATION AND CHARACTERISATION OF REACTIVITY METRICS

2 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This report describes the evaluation and characterisation of reactivity metrics to support the United States Environmental Protection Agency's efforts to update its reactivity policy for the attainment of ozone air quality standards. The review is based on three detailed computer modelling studies which taken together have made a significant contribution to basic understanding of the likely role that reactivity considerations could play in ozone control strategies. Reactivity-based policies should work efficiently on both the urban and regional scales by reducing episodic peak ozone levels and by reducing exceedances of the ozone air quality standards. Two preferred metrics have been selected as the most promising for policy development and these are the EKMA and Regional or 3-D Maximum Incremental Reactivity metrics. 3-D Eulerian regional air quality models have been demonstrated to be ideal tools for the visualisation of the ozone impacts of reactivity-based VOC substitution strategies across central California, the southwestern and southeastern United States of America. The choice of chemical mechanism, together with its adequacy and completeness, are crucial to the estimation of reactivity metrics and the compilation of reactivity scales. If the potential value of reactivity-based VOC control strategies is to become accepted by policy-makers for the attainment of ozone air quality standards, then two basic tools will be required. The first is an evaluated reactivity scale that expresses our best understanding of the relative importance of each of upwards of 100 to 200 VOCs in photochemical ozone formation under given environmental conditions. The second is a 3-D Eulerian regional air quality model to provide the best possible visualisation of the urban and regional scale ozone impacts of candidate reactivity-based VOC control strategies.
A Novel Neurotrophic Drug for Cognitive Enhancement and Alzheimer's Disease

Currently, the major drug discovery paradigm for neurodegenerative diseases is based upon high affinity ligands for single disease-specific targets. For Alzheimer's disease (AD), the focus is the amyloid beta peptide (Aß) that mediates familial Alzheimer's disease pathology. However, given that age is the greatest risk factor for AD, we explored an alternative drug discovery scheme that is based upon efficacy in multiple cell culture models of age-associated pathologies rather than exclusively amyloid metabolism. Using this approach, we identified an exceptionally potent, orally active, neurotrophic molecule that facilitates memory in normal rodents, and prevents the loss of synaptic proteins and cognitive decline in a transgenic AD mouse model.
Learning English as a Second Language through Social Media: Saudi Arabian Tertiary Context

This paper aims to identify the role of social media in learning English as a second language among Saudi Arabian students. Four year students majoring B A in English at Al Ardh college of Science and Arts for girls in Jazan University were identified as the participants of this study. The instrument of this study is a comprehensive questionnaire, which is constructed in order to explore the students’ perceptions and attitudes on using social media for English language learning. It is found that majority of the participants use social media to enhance their communication skills. Moreover, the result revealed that collaborative learning that are embedded in a social media may help improve learning activities which in turn leads to the success of learning English as a second language. Apart from that, some of the problems encountered when using social media and combined group work in the learning and teaching of English as a second language at Tertiary level are also highlighted. Most importantly, the students agreed that social media has by and large affected in their English language learning skills.
QP structure , nominalizations , and the role of DP : setting the stage

• Address recent developments in the discussion of the structure of quantificational phrases, nominalizations, and the linking element D. • Invite discussions among the various paradigms-syntax, semantics, within various theoretical frameworks-towards a more comprehensive understanding of how quantification and nominalizations are encoded in the grammar. • Keep track, and assess, the role of cross-linguistic variation.
The Plasmodium falciparum Cell-Traversal Protein for Ookinetes and Sporozoites as a Candidate for Preerythrocytic and Transmission-Blocking Vaccines

ABSTRACT Recent studies have shown that immune responses against the cell-traversal protein for Plasmodium ookinetes and sporozoites (CelTOS) can inhibit parasite infection. While these studies provide important evidence toward the development of vaccines targeting this protein, it remains unknown whether these responses could engage the Plasmodium falciparum CelTOS in vivo. Using a newly developed rodent malaria chimeric parasite expressing the P. falciparum CelTOS (PfCelTOS), we evaluated the protective effect of in vivo immune responses elicited by vaccination and assessed the neutralizing capacity of monoclonal antibodies specific against PfCelTOS. Mice immunized with recombinant P. falciparum CelTOS in combination with the glucopyranosyl lipid adjuvant-stable emulsion (GLA-SE) or glucopyranosyl lipid adjuvant-liposome-QS21 (GLA-LSQ) adjuvant system significantly inhibited sporozoite hepatocyte infection. Notably, monoclonal antibodies against PfCelTOS strongly inhibited oocyst development of P. falciparum and Plasmodium berghei expressing PfCelTOS in Anopheles gambiae mosquitoes. Taken together, our results demonstrate that anti-CelTOS responses elicited by vaccination or passive immunization can inhibit sporozoite and ookinete infection and impair vector transmission.
Use of hormones and nutritional supplements among gyms' attendees in Riyadh

Background: Worldwide, studies have shown a high prevalence of hormones and nutritional supplement use by athletes and gym members. Many athletes consume unproven, potentially harmful or even banned supplements. Objectives: To assess the prevalence of the use of hormones and nutritional supplements by people who exercise in gyms in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and the types of supplements they most commonly use and to obtain a general view of the main reasons for using these enhancements. Materials And Methods: A cross-sectional study using a self-administered questionnaire was conducted at gyms in Riyadh that were selected randomly from different sectors of the city. The sample size was estimated at 289, but the actual number of randomly selected participants in the study was 457. Results: The number of gym members who participated in this study was 457. Approximately 47.9% of the sample reported an intake of nutritional supplements and 7.9% reported that they took hormones. Protein powder was consumed by 83.1% of the participants. Approximately 16.8% of supplement users had noticed some side effects, and 25.7% of those who took hormones had stopped taking them because of adverse effects. Only half of the hormone users (54.2%) reported that they had had medical checkups. The major source of information on supplement and hormone use was non-health professionals; friends being major source (40%) of information on the use of hormones. The use of nutritional supplements was significantly associated with BMI (OR = 1.89, CI = 1.06-3.39), duration of daily exercise (OR = 4.23, CI = 2.06-8.68), and following a special diet (OR = 8.42, CI = 5.37-13.2). There was a very strong association between nutritional supplement consumption and hormone use (P < 0.001). Conclusion: Approximately half of the participants who regularly exercised in gyms took nutritional supplements, and most had received their information from nonhealth professionals. There was an association between the duration of exercise and the use of hormones and supplements. Fewer than half of hormone users had obtained a health-care provider′s advice before taking it. The atmosphere in the gym can play an important role in members′ decisions. Educating gym employees and members may have a positive influence on the use of supplements and hormones.
AtSOFL1 and AtSOFL2 Act Redundantly as Positive Modulators of the Endogenous Content of Specific Cytokinins in Arabidopsis

Background Although cytokinins have been known for decades to play important roles in the regulation of plant growth and development, our knowledge of the regulatory mechanism of endogenous content of specific cytokinins remains limited. Methodology/Principal Findings Here, we characterized two SOB five-like (SOFL) genes, AtSOFL1 and AtSOFL2, in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) and showed that they acted redundantly in regulating specific cytokinin levels. Analysis of the translational fusion AtSOFL1:AtSOFL1-GUS and AtSOFL2:AtSOFL2-GUS indicated that AtSOFL1 and AtSOFL2 exhibited similar expression patterns. Both proteins were predominantly expressed in the vascular tissues of developing leaves, flowers and siliques, but barely detectable in roots and stems. Overexpression of either AtSOFL1 or AtSOFL2 led to increased cytokinin content and obvious corresponding mutant phenotypes for both transgenic seedlings and adult plants. In addition, overexpression and site-directed mutagenesis experiments demonstrated that the SOFL domains are necessary for AtSOFL2's overexpression phenotypes. Silencing or disrupting either AtSOFL1 or AtSOFL2 caused no obvious developmental defects. Endogenous cytokinin analysis, however, revealed that compared to the wild type control, the SOFL1-RNAi62 sofl2-1 double mutant accumulated lower levels of trans-zeatin riboside monophosphate (tZRMP) and N6-(Δ2-isopentenyl)adenosine monophosphate (iPRMP), which are biosynthetic intermediates of bioactive cytokinins. The double mutant also displayed decreased response to exogenous cytokinin in both callus-formation and inhibition-of-hypocotyl-elongation assays. Conclusions/Significance Taken together, our data suggest that in plants AtSOFL1 and AtSOFL2 work redundantly as positive modulators in the fine-tuning of specific cytokinin levels as well as responsiveness.
Binomial and Monotonic Behavior of the Probability of Undetected Error and the 2r-Bound

Proper linear codes play an important role in error detection. They are characterized by an increasing probability of undetected error p ue (ε,C) and are considered " good for error detection ". A lot of CRCs commonly used to protect data transmission via a variety of field busses are known for being proper. In this paper the weight distribution of proper linear codes on a binary symmetric channel without memory is investigated. A proof is given that its components are upper bounded by the binomial coefficients in a certain sense. Secondly an upper bound of the tail of the binomial is given, and the results are then used to derive estimates of p ue (ε,C). If a code is not proper, it would be desirable to have at least subintervals, where p ue (ε,C) increases, or where it satisfies the 2-r-bound. It is for this reason that next the range of monotonicity and of the 2-r-bound is determined. Finally, applications on safety integrity levels are studied.
Metformin increases the PGC-1alpha protein and oxidative enzyme activities possibly via AMPK phosphorylation in skeletal muscle in vivo.

AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), which was activated by an antihyperglycemic drug metformin, has been hypothesized to mediate metabolic adaptations. The purposes of the present study were 1) to confirm whether acute metformin administration induced AMPK phosphorylation and 2) to determine whether chronic metformin treatment increased the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma coactivator-1alpha (PGC-1alpha) protein expression, glycolytic and oxidative enzyme activities, and cytochrome c and glucose transporter-4 (GLUT4) protein expressions in the rat soleus and red and white gastrocnemius muscles. The single oral administration of metformin (300 mg/kg body wt) enhanced the AMPK phosphorylation at 5 and/or 6 h after treatment. In the chronic study, rats were fed either normal chow or chow containing 1% metformin for 14 days. Metformin treatment resulted in a mean daily metformin intake of 631 mg.kg body wt(-1). day(-1). Metformin increased the PGC-1alpha content in all three muscles. Metformin increased the hexokinase activity in the white gastrocnemius, the citrate synthase activity in all three muscles, and the beta-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase activity in the soleus. The cytochrome c protein content in the soleus muscle also increased. The GLUT4 content was unchanged by metformin. These results suggest that metformin enhances the PGC-1alpha expression and mitochondrial biogenesis possibly at least in part via AMPK phosphorylation in the skeletal muscle. Metformin has thus been proposed to possibly ameliorate insulin resistance, at least partially, by means of such metabolic effects.
Single-blind randomized clinical trial to evaluate clinical and radiological outcomes after one year of immediate versus delayed implant placement supporting full-arch prostheses

Purpose: To evaluate and compare peri-implant health, marginal bone loss and success of immediate and delayed implant placement for rehabilitation with full-arch fixed prostheses. Material and Methods: The present study was a prospective, randomized, single-blind, clinical preliminary trial. Patients were randomized into two treatment groups. In Group A implants were placed immediately post-extraction and in Group B six months after extraction. The following control time-points were established: one week, six months and twelve months after loading. Measurements were taken of peri-implant crevicular fluid volume, plaque index, gingival retraction, keratinized mucosa, probing depth, modified gingival index and presence of mucositis. Implant success rates were evaluated for the two groups. The study sample included fifteen patients (nine women and six men) with a mean average age of 63.7 years. One hundred and forty-four implants were placed: 76 placed in healed sites and 68 placed immediately. Results: At the moment of prosthetic loading, keratinized mucosa width and probing depth were higher in immediate implants than delayed implants, with statistically significant differences. However, after six and twelve months, differences between groups had disappeared. Bone loss was 0.54 ± 0.39 mm for immediate implants and 0.66 ± 0.25 mm for delayed implants (p=0.201). No implants failed in either group. Conclusions: The present study with a short follow-up and a small sample yielded no statistically significant differences in implant success and peri-implant marginal bone loss between immediate and delayed implants with fixed full-arch prostheses. Peri-implant health showed no statistically significant differences for any of the studied parameters (crevicular fluid volume, plaque index, gingival retraction, keratinized mucosa, probing depth, modified gingival index and presence of mucositis) at the twelve-month follow-up. Key words:Immediate implants, delayed implants, peri-implant health, success rate.
Study on Dynamic Simulation and Cutting Parameters Optimization on Complex Cutting Conditions Milling Process

Considering the deficiency in cutting conditions optimization of milling process, based on the dynamic modeling of milling process, a dynamic simulation software of complex cutting conditions milling process was developed successfully in Matlab-VB.net hybrid environment. On the basis of measurement of machining system’s dynamics and corresponding experimental modal analysis results, the simulation system can provide some physical parameters such as dynamic cutting forces, spindle power, torque, vibrations of tool and workpiece, as well as stability lobe diagram (SLD) of a complex cutting conditions milling process, in which both a linear or circular tool-path and a cutting tool with complicated geometry can be used. According to the corresponding dynamic simulation results, the cutting conditions optimization can be accomplished effectively, so it can provide some instructive directions for the CNC operators. The major functions of the simulation system have been validated successfully in workshop application.
An fMRI-investigation on the neural correlates of tool use in young and elderly adults

i OVERVIEW . iii CONTENT . v Chapter 1: Introduction – Tool Use in the young, elderly and damaged Brain . 1 The basic elements of Tool Use and their neural underpinnings . 2 The ventral stream and object recognition . 3 Object function and knowledge of object manipulation . 3 Reaching and grasping . 5 Multiple ways to analyze Tool Use . 6 Summary of the elements of Tool Use . 9 Connecting all elements of Tool Use . 10 The Impacts of Healthy Aging on Tool Use . 11 Tool Use and Apraxia . 14 Aim of the Thesis . 16 Chapter 2: The Neural Correlates of Planning and Executing Actual Tool Use . 19 Chapter 3: Age-related Changes in the Neural Correlates of Complex Object Manipulations. 33 Chapter 4: The Tool in the Brain: Apraxia in ADL. Behavioral and Neurological Correlates of Apraxia in Daily Living . 67 Chapter 5: General Discussion – The Characteristics of the Tool Use Network . 83 Summary . 83 Common conclusions from all studies and associations to current literature . 85 Lateralization . 86 The Tool Use Network . 88 Dorsal-to-ventral organization of the tool use and action network . 90 Elderly and Apraxia . 93 Methodological advances and limitations . 95 Conclusion . 97 BIBLIOGRAPHY . 99 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS . 117 CURRICULUM VITAE . 119 PUBLICATIONS . 121 EIDESSTATTLICHE VERSICHERUNG/AFFIDAVIT. 123