Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Hypericum Perforatum L. Hypericaceae/Guttiferae Sunflower, Olive and Palm Oil Еxtracts Attenuate Cold Restraint Stress – Induced Gastric Lesions

Three Hypericum perforatum L. , Hypericaceae (St. John’s Wort) oil extracts (HPE) were prepared according to the prescriptions from traditional medicine – fresh flowering tops were macerated in three different vegetable oils: sunflower (E1), olive (E2) and palm oil (E3) for 40 days, exposed to the sunlight. The aim of the study was to investigate the gastroprotective activity of the obtained extracts in respect to their quercetin content. HPLC analysis confirmed the presence of quercetin in all of the investigated HPEs, but in different amounts: 15.1, 5.8 and 21.7 μg/mL in E1, E2, and E3, respectively. Gastroprotective activity was evaluated using cold-restraint stress (CRS) induced rat gastric mucosa lesions test. All of the HPEs showed gastroprotective activity, which was close to that achieved by the one of the most studied anti-ulcer flavonoids, quercetin [percentages of inhibition of ulcer index (UI) were 35, 62 and 40 % in E1, E2 and E3, respectively]. Contrary to the lowest quercetin content, HPE prepared with olive oil (E2) offered the highest protection against gastric damaging action of CRS. It may be assumed that this is due to other constituents of E2, which probably play an additional role in complex gastroprotective activity.
Evaluating the impact of microcredit on women's empowerment in Pakistan

In this paper we evaluate the impact of microcredit on indicators of women's empowerment in the urban slums of the Lahore district of Pakistan. A household level instrument that contains information on different dimensions of household decisions: child related, health, social mobility, economic and major household purchase decisions was specifically designed and implemented to explore the link between microcredit and women's empowerment. After controlling for endogeneity in our estimation by using proxies for initial levels of empowerment, matching the controls and treated units on observable characteristics and finally instrumenting for the treatment, this paper finds no difference between the level of empowerment of treated and control units. Participation in the microcredit program is found to be insignificant in explaining all the outcome indicators of empowerment for the sampled households.
The Effect of "-tocopherol on Cholesterol and Lipoproteins Levels in Rats

The effect of the "-tocopherol on the reduction of plasma cholesterol, HDL, and LDL have been investigated in rats. No significant differences were observed on the rate of body weight gain, food intake, and food efficiency of rats fed with diet supplemented with "-tocopherol. There were significant decreases in serum cholesterol, and LDL+VLDL of animals fed "-tocopherol supplementation compared to control. In contrast the HDL cholesterol showed no significant decrease in animal groups fed "-tocopherol compared to control group. The lowest bile acid levels were in feces of control group, and the highest levels were for the groups fed "-tocopherol supplementation.
Dietary eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid from fish oil. Their incorporation into advanced human atherosclerotic plaques.

The incorporation of fatty acids from dietary fish oil was measured in obstructive atherosclerotic plaques removed from 11 patients fed fish oil, rich in omega-3 fatty acids, for 6-120 days before a planned arterial endarterectomy. The fatty acids of plasma and atheroma were analyzed with special reference to docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, 20:5), the principal omega-3 fatty acids of fish oil. The omega-3 fatty acid content increased greatly in plasma from 0.9% of fatty acids to 14.8% in cholesteryl esters, from 3.8% to 22.1% in phospholipids, and from 1.3% to 21.9% in triglycerides. The omega-3 fatty acid content of the atherosclerotic plaques was also greater when compared with that of plaques removed from 18 non-fish oil-fed controls. The omega-3 fatty acid in cholesteryl esters of the plaques was 4.9% in the experimental group versus 1.4% in control plaque, in phospholipids it was 8.8% versus 1.8%, and in triglycerides it was 4.7% versus 0.7% (p less than 0.001 for each lipid class). The two major omega-3 fatty acids (DHA and EPA) behaved differently. Compared with their respective plasma levels, relatively more DHA than EPA was deposited into the plaques. Whereas the increase of omega-3 fatty acids in plasma reached a plateau 3 weeks after initiation of fish oil feeding, a linear increase in plaque omega-3 fatty acids continued with time. As a result of the changes in fatty acid composition, the lipid classes of both plasma and plaque had a higher unsaturation index in the fish oil-fed group. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Migrating Service-Oriented System to Cloud Computing: An Experience Report

Cloud computing has gained significant attention of industry and academic sectors which are interested in adopting or experimenting with this technology. An increasing number of companies are expected to migrate their systems to cloud enabled infrastructures. However, there has not been much attention paid to provide sufficient process support. Since migration projects are likely to encounter several kinds of challenges, it is important to identify and share the process and logistical requirements of migration projects in order to build a body of knowledge of appropriate process, methods, and tools. This paper purports to contribute to the growing knowledge of how to migrate existing systems to cloud computing by reporting our effort aimed at migrating an Open Source Software (OSS) framework, Hackystat, to cloud computing. We report the main steps followed, the process and technical challenges faced, and some of the strategies that helped us to address those challenges. We expect the reported experiences can provide readers with useful insights into the process and technical aspects that should be considered when migrating existing software systems to cloud computing infrastructures.
The Impact of Language Characteristics in Mathematics Test Items on the Performance of English Language Learners and Students With Disabilities

The impact of language characteristics in mathematics test items on student performance was evaluated for students with disabilities (SWD) and English language learners (ELL) as well as a large general student sample. Relationships were examined for test items and students at 4th, 7th, and 10th grades. The individual test item was the unit of analysis. Student performance was represented by item difficulty, or the probability of answering the item correctly. Regression analyses were conducted to examine relationships between item linguistic characteristics as independent variables with item difficulty as the dependent variable. Language characteristics had moderate effects on item difficulty at 4th grade, dropping to small-to-medium effects at 10th grade. ELL and SWD groups were not disproportionately affected by language characteristics in these test items. Difficult mathematics vocabulary had a consistent effect on performance for all students at all grades. Ambiguous or multiple-meaning words increased item difficulty at 4th grade.
Understanding mechanism of in vitro maturation, fertilization and culture of sheep embryoes through in silico analysis

Protein interations are presently required to understand the mechanisms of in vitro maturation, fertilization and culture of sheep embryoes through in silico analysis. The present work has been conducted on TCM-199 supplemented with epidermal growth factor (EGF), fetal bovine serum (FBS) or wheat peptones The maturation rate of oocyte was significantly higher in the FBS supplemented group when compared with BSA and wheat peptone supplemented groups. The in silico protein interaction studies has shown that the proteins EGFR (epidermal growth factor receptor), CCK (cholecystokinin)- a peptide hormone, Alb – a serum albumin, ESR- estrogen receptor 1, TGFA- transforming growth factor, STAT- signal transducer and FN1- fibronectin 1 has direct interaction and produces cell growth in in vitro culture. Alb is directly activates EGF and promotes MAPK3 that mediates diverse biological functions such as cell growth, adhesion and proliferation. Alb may also involve in stress response signalling and may be in cell cycle control.
Relationship between supramaximal flow during cough and mortality in motor neurone disease

The main function of cough is clearance of intrathoracic airways. A normal cough is characterized by a transient increase in expiratory flow above the maximal flow-volume loop envelope, known as cough “spikes”. They may be absent in patients with motor neurone disease. The relationship between cough pattern, pulmonary function and survival was studied. Fifty-three patients were recruited (25 bulbar). Vital capacity, maximal inspiratory and expiratory mouth pressures and cough flow/volume curves were performed on all patients, and the presence or absence of spikes were recorded. The primary endpoints were mortality or initiation of ventilatory support over a period of 18 months. Thirty-five patients died over the 18-month period of the study (including the six who were started on noninvasive ventilation). Twelve of the 24 patients with spikes died compared to 23 out of 29 patients without spikes (p<0.05). Patients without spikes were more likely to be bulbar on clinical grounds (p<0.0001) and had poorer lung function. The results showed an association between the absence of cough spikes and increased mortality. However the main determinants of survival in motor neurone disease are age, vital capacity and inspiratory mouth pressure, and it remains to be shown whether regular monitoring of cough conveys any additional advantage.
Policies for Second Generation Biofuels: Current status and future challenges

This report reviews the current status of second generation biofuels. First generation biofuels continue to be substantially subsidized, and this has contributed to the increasing use of such fuel. However, recent studies claim that the future of biofuels lies in second generation biofuels, in particular biochemical ethanol made from cellulose. Thus, in this report we ask the following three questions: How far is second generation biofuels from being a competitive GHG abatement technology? Is it likely that first generation biofuels will bridge the development of second generation biofuels? Should trade policy be used to protect domestic infant second generation biofuels industry from import of low cost first generation biofuels from developing countries?
Automatic Generation of System Test Cases from Use Case Specifications: an NLP-based Approach

Software testing plays a crucial role to ensure the conformance of software systems with their requirements. Exhaustive testing procedures are enforced by functional safety standards which mandate that each requirement be covered by system test cases. Test engineers need to identify all the representative test execution scenarios from requirements, determine the runtime conditions that trigger these scenarios, and finally provide the test input data that satisfy these conditions. Given that requirements specifications are typically large and often provided in natural language (e.g., use case specifications), the generation of system test cases tends to be expensive and error-prone. In this paper, we present Use Case Modelling for System Tests Generation (UMTG), an approach that supports the generation of executable system test cases from requirements specifications in natural language, with the goal of reducing the manual effort required to generate test cases and ensuring requirements' coverage. More specifically, UMTG automates the generation of system test cases based on use case specifications and a domain model for the system under test, which are commonly produced in many development environments. Unlike existing approaches, it does not impose strong restrictions on the template of use case specifications. It relies on recent advances in natural language processing to automatically identify test scenarios and to generate formal constraints that capture conditions triggering the execution of the scenarios, thus enabling the generation of test data. In two industrial case studies, UMTG automatically and correctly translated 95% of the use case specification steps into formal constraints required for test data generation; furthermore, it generated test cases that exercise critical scenarios not previously considered by engineers.
A fine balance : assessing the quality of governance in Botswana

This inaugural Democracy Index for Botswana is intended to set a benchmark for democracy to be measured against. The tool, developed and honed by Idasa over many years, assesses the depth of democracy in a country through five focus areas: participation, elections, accountability, political rights, and human dignity. The research relies on expert analysis to answer a set of questions that interrogate how closely, in practice, democracy meets the broad ideal of self-representative government. More specifically, to what extent can citizens control elected officials and government appointees who make decisions about public affairs? And how equal are citizens to one another in this accountability process? The purpose of the scores is to assist citizens in making their own judgements, based on the information made available, to stimulate national debate and to provide democracy promoters with a tool for identifying issues and needs that can be addressed by education, advocacy, training, institution building and policy revision. Idasa’s Democracy Index – initially developed for South Africa – is being expanded into Southern Africa in an effort to broaden the capacity of individuals and organisations monitoring and supporting democratic governance efforts in the region.
Cyberbullying, Problematic Internet Use, and Psychopathologic Symptoms among Korean Youth

To evaluate the associations between cyberbullying behaviors and problematic internet use, and to compare psychopathologic symptoms in victims, perpetrators, and victims-perpetrators of cyberbullying to those in youths who were not involved in cyberbullying. A total of 4531 youths (11-14 years of age) were recruited from elementary and middle schools. Among 4531 youths, 9.7% were involved in cyberbullying; 3.3% were only victims; 3.4% were only perpetrators; and 3.0% were victims-perpetrators. Cyberbullying behaviors were associated with problematic internet use as well as various psychopathologic symptoms. Depressive symptoms were associated with cyberbullying victimization, and rule-breaking behaviors and aggressive behaviors have relevance to cyberbullying perpetration. Greater attention needs to be paid to identify youths earlier who are involved in cyberbullying and prevent serious adverse consequences in them.
Phosphorylation of the Herpes Simplex Virus Tegument Protein VP22 Has No Effect on Incorporation of VP22 into the Virus but Is Involved in Optimal Expression and Virion Packaging of ICP0

ABSTRACT Herpes simplex virus VP22 is a major tegument protein of unknown function. Very recently, we reported that the predominant effect of deleting the VP22 gene was on the expression, localization, and virion incorporation of ICP0. In addition, the Δ22 virus replicated poorly in epithelial MDBK cells. We have also previously shown that VP22 interacts with the tegument protein VP16 and the cellular microtubule network. While the majority of VP22 in infected cells is highly phosphorylated, the nonphosphorylated form of VP22 is the predominant species in the virion, suggesting a differential requirement for phosphorylation through virus replication. Hence, to study the significance of VP22 phosphorylation, we have now constructed two recombinant viruses expressing green fluorescent protein-VP22 (G22) in which the previously identified serine phosphorylation sites have been mutated either to alanine to abolish the phosphorylation status of VP22 (G22P−) or to glutamic acid to mimic permanent phosphorylation (G22P+). Localization studies indicated that the G22P− protein associated tightly with microtubules in some infected cells, suggesting that VP22 phosphorylation may control its interaction with the microtubule network. By contrast, VP22 phosphorylation had no effect on its ability to interact with VP16 and, importantly, had no effect on the relative packaging of VP22. Intriguingly, virion packaging of ICP0 was reduced in the G22P+ virus while ICP0 expression was reduced in the G22P− virus, suggesting that these two ICP0 defects, previously observed in the Δ22 virus, were attributable to different forms of VP22. Furthermore, the Δ22 virus replication defect in MDBK cells correlated with the expression of constitutively charged VP22 in the G22P+ virus. Taken together, these results suggest an important role for VP22 phosphorylation in its relationship with ICP0.
Parenting in Youth Sport: From Research to Practice

Chapter 1. Introduction Chapter 2. Overview of Issues Associated with Parenting in Youth Sport Chapter 3. Participation in Youth Sport Chapter 4. Youth Sport as a Vehice for Youth Development: Benefits and Risks Chapter 5. Parenting Styles Chapter 6. Parenting Involvement at Competitions Chapter 7. Talent Development and Roles of Parents Chapter 8. Stressors, Parenting and Coping in Youth Sport Chapter 9. Interactions Between Parents and Coaches Chapter 10. Putting Research into Practice: Working with Families Chapter 11. Communicating Research.
Understanding bank runs

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Therapeutic Efficacy and Macrofilaricidal Activity of Doxycycline for the Treatment of River Blindness

The efficacy of 4–6 weeks of oral doxycycline in depleting Wolbachia from Onchocerca volvulus is >95% in the majority of patients. Wolbachia depletion induces a 70%–80% reduction in worm life span, confirming doxycycline as a potent macrofilaricide.
Implications of Resource Reallocation and Technical Progress for Macroeconomic Fluctuations: Evidence from Plant-Level U.S. Manufacturing Data

contributions to aggregate productivity growth over this period. While reallocation is important for aggregate productivity growth, it contributes little to fluctuations in aggregate productivity growth at business cycle frequencies. Almost all of the volatility in aggregate productivity growth was due to variation in the growth rate of technical efficiency. In contrast, aggregate reallocation is relatively stable and almost always positive, contributing 1 percentage point per year to aggregate productivity growth.
Pacific Decadal Variability: Structure and Mechanisms

Unlike El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO), spatiotemporal structures of Pacific decadal variability (PDV) remains to be robustly defined, due, in part, to the relative short lengths of available data sets; subsurface observations relevant to PDV are especially few and sparse. The resulting ambiguity in PDV characterization, among others, leads to difficulties in analyzing the mechanisms operative in PDV. The first part of the proposed work is to improve characterization of PDV structures and evolution. The primary analysis will be based on rotated extended empirical orthogonal function (EOF) of a variety of ocean-atmosphere data sets; the analysis will be designed such that all major modes of Pacific low-frequency variability (e.g., biennial variability, ENSO, PDV, etc.) are extracted in a single step. Features of the analysis include using of unfiltered data, a Pan-Pacific analysis domain and inclusion of all four seasons in the analysis; all for the purpose of a consistent way of modal extraction. The results from rotated extended EOF will be corroborated with those from other analysis (e.g., canonical correlation analysis). Stability/physicality of the extracted modes is one major concern, which will be assessed via sensitivity tests and/or correlations with non-physical data, say, biological productivity. Expectation is to provide a robust and physically meaningful PDV modal extraction, which proves to be promising according to a pilot analysis of a century-long sea surface temperature (SST) data set. The second part of the work involves exploration of PDV mechanisms, via data analysis and diagnostic modeling. Lead/lag relationships between key oceanic and atmospheric variables will be analyzed in observations and in coupled simulations, in context of PDV; of interest is SST anomalies in the Pacific Tropics and midlatitudes that are connected via atmospheric and/or oceanic " bridges ". Diagnostic modeling is proposed to help understand the influence of SST anomalies on local and remote near-surface circulation and fluxes at different stages of PDV evolution. The role of upper ocean, on the other hand, will be investigated by analyzing the PDV-covarying heat content. Volumetric heat balance in the upper ocean will be evaluated in an effort to understand the relative importance of surface heat fluxes and subsurface processes in PDV context.
Ieee Transactions on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence Large-scale Image Geo-localization Using Dominant Sets

—This paper presents a new approach for the challenging problem of geo-locating an image using image matching in a structured database of city-wide reference images with known GPS coordinates. We cast the geo-localization as a clustering problem on local image features. Akin to existing approaches on the problem, our framework builds on low-level features which allow partial matching between images. For each local feature in the query image, we find its approximate nearest neighbors in the reference set. Next, we cluster the features from reference images using Dominant Set clustering, which affords several advantages over existing approaches. First, it permits variable number of nodes in the cluster which we use to dynamically select the number of nearest neighbors (typically coming from multiple reference images) for each query feature based on its discrimination value. Second, as we also quantify in our experiments, this approach is several orders of magnitude faster than existing approaches. Thus, we obtain multiple clusters (different local maximizers) and obtain a robust final solution to the problem using multiple weak solutions through constrained Dominant Set clustering on global image features, where we enforce the constraint that the query image must be included in the cluster. This second level of clustering also bypasses heuristic approaches to voting and selecting the reference image that matches to the query. We evaluated the proposed framework on an existing dataset of 102k street view images as well as a new dataset of 300k images, and show that it outperforms the state-of-the-art by 20% and 7%, respectively, on the two datasets.