Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Sperm incorporation in Xenopus laevis: characterisation of morphological events and the role of microfilaments

Scanning and transmission electron microscopy were used to determine the morphological changes in the egg plasma membrane associated with sperm binding, fusion and incorporation in Xenopus laevis. Sperm incorporation in Xenopus is rapid, occurring within 3-5 min following addition of sperm. Images have been obtained of both early sperm-egg interactions and fertilisation bodies. Additionally, two drugs that specifically alter F-actin dynamics, latrunculin and jasplakinolide, were used to determine whether sperm incorporation is a microfilament-dependent process. Jasplakinolide did not prevent sperm incorporation, cortical granule exocytosis or cortical contraction, suggesting these events can occur without depolymerisation of existing, stabilised filaments. Latrunculin A, which competes with thymosin β4 in ooplasm for binding actin monomer, did not inhibit cortical granule exocytosis, but blocked cortical contraction in 100% of eggs at a concentration of 5 μM. Although a single penetrating sperm was found on an egg pretreated in latrunculin, fertilisation bodies were never observed. At <5 μM latrunculin, many eggs did undergo cortical contraction with some exhibiting severe distortions of the plasma membrane and abnormal accumulations of pigment granules. Preincubation of eggs in jasplakinolide before latrunculin mitigated both these effects to some degree. However, eggs incubated in latrunculin either prior to or after insemination never progressed through first cleavage.
Asymptotics and stability for global solutions to the Navier-Stokes equations

On considere une solution forte et globale des equations de Navier-Stokes. On montre qu'elle se comporte comme une solution petite en temps grand. En combinant ce resultat asymptotique avec des proprietes de moyenne en temps, on obtient la stabilite d'une telle solution globale.
Rhoticity in Black South African English – a sociolinguistic study

Abstract This article investigates the phenomenon of rhoticity in the speech of black speakers of South African English. Historically, South African English is non-rhotic. Thus, any shift towards a rhotic variant is a significant language change. Thirty-nine interviews were conducted with both males and female participants. The two groups were evenly split into more and less affluent groups. It was found that rhoticity in Black South African English is preferentially a female phenomenon, found most frequently in affluent female speakers. Male speakers also exhibit this feature but less frequently so. Of the affluent females 90% displayed some degree of rhoticity. None of the less affluent males displayed any rhoticity. The data gathered seem to suggest that a covert prestige exists amongst men to use their African languages. This is in contrast to the overt prestige amongst women to use English. The research thus isolates an important socio-economic stratification, providing evidence that both gender and affluence influences the degree in which a group creates a new language variety. We also speculate about reasons for the adaptation of rhoticity in affluent, female speakers, thus providing the basis for a follow-up study in which the sociological dimension of this linguistic phenomenon is explored in more detail.
Derogating obese individuals : The role of blame, contempt, and disgust

Weight stigma is pervasive and has profound negative consequences for obese individuals. The attribution-emotion approach of stigmatization holds that blame attributions relate to derogation stigmatized groups indirectly through anger and pity. Other research suggests that disgust is related to weight stigma. In the present studies, we investigate whether contempt is a reliable predictor of biases against obese individuals. Study 1 (N = 297) shows that contempt partially mediates the relation between blame and both prejudice and support for weight related discrimination policies. Studies 2 and 3 (total N = 406) added disgust and show that both contempt and disgust relate to social distance and prejudice. Contempt mediated the relation between blame and negative reactions toward obese individuals, even after controlling for other emotions, while disgust only mediated these relations in Study 2. Anger and pity did not show this mediating role, but pity was moderately associated with weight bias. Contempt is likely to play an important role in how people react to members of this stigmatized group.
The Political Economy of Social Spending by Local Government: A Study of the 3×1 Program in Mexico

Social spending by central governments in Latin America has, in recent decades, become increasingly insulated from political manipulation. Focusing on the 3×1 Program in Mexico in 2002–2007, we show that social spending by local government is, in contrast, highly politicized. The 3×1 Program funds municipal public works, with each level of government—municipal, state, and central—matching collective remittances. Our analysis shows that 3×1 municipal spending is shaped by political criteria. First, municipalities time disbursements according to the electoral cycle. Second, when matching collective remittances, municipalities protect salaries of personnel, instead adjusting budget items that are less visible to the public, such as debt. Third, municipalities spend more on 3×1 projects when their partisanship matches that of the state government. Beyond the 3×1 Program, our findings highlight the considerable influence that increasing political and economic decentralization can have on local government incentives and spending choices, in Mexico and beyond.
Histological recurrence and depth of loop treatment of the cervix in women of reproductive age: incomplete excision versus adverse pregnancy outcome

Please cite this paper as: Ang C, Mukhopadhyay A, Burnley C, Faulkner K, Cross P, Martin-Hirsch P, Naik R. Histological recurrence and depth of loop treatment of the cervix in women of reproductive age: incomplete excision versus adverse pregnancy outcome. BJOG 2011;118:685–692. Objective Recent meta-analyses have shown that loop treatment of the cervix of >10 mm depth may be associated with adverse outcomes in future pregnancies. The aim of this study is to assess the rate of incomplete excision and recurrent disease in relation to depth of excision in women of reproductive age undergoing loop treatment. Design Observational cohort study. Setting Colposcopy Clinic, Northern Gynaecological Oncology Centre, Gateshead, UK. Population In all, 1558 women undergoing loop treatment for high-grade cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (HGCIN) between 1998 and 2003. Methods Women were followed up until 2008. Recurrence was analysed using Kaplan–Meier plots. Outcome measures Incomplete excision rates and recurrence rates. Recurrence was defined as post-treatment disease with high-grade histology. Any dyskaryotic cytology on follow-up was also documented. Results Recurrent high-grade disease on histology was found in 57/1558 (3.7%) women. In women ≤35 years old, despite a greater rate of incomplete excision at the endocervical margin at loop depths 35 years. Conclusion In women of reproductive age requiring treatment for HGCIN, colposcopists performing loop excision should aim for <10 mm depth. This provides adequate treatment for HGCIN and minimises the potential risk of adverse outcomes in future pregnancies.
The Complete Gene Sequence of Titin, Expression of an Unusual ≈700-kDa Titin Isoform, and Its Interaction With Obscurin Identify a Novel Z-Line to I-Band Linking System

Titin is a giant vertebrate striated muscle protein with critical importance for myofibril elasticity and structural integrity. We show here that the complete sequence of the human titin gene contains 363 exons, which together code for 38 138 residues (4200 kDa). In its central I-band region, 47 novel PEVK exons were found, which contribute to titin’s extensible spring properties. Additionally, 3 unique I-band titin exons were identified (named novex-1 to -3). Novex-3 functions as an alternative titin C-terminus. The novex-3 titin isoform is ≈700 kDa in size and spans from Z1-Z2 (titin’s N-terminus) to novex-3 (C-terminal exon). Novex-3 titin specifically interacts with obscurin, a 721-kDa myofibrillar protein composed of 57 Ig/FN3 domains, followed by one IQ, SH3, DH, and a PH domain at its C-terminus. The obscurin domains Ig48/Ig49 bind to novex-3 titin and target to the Z-line region when expressed as a GFP fusion protein in live cardiac myocytes. Immunoelectron microscopy detected the C-terminal Ig48/Ig49 obscurin epitope near the Z-line edge. The distance from the Z-line varied with sarcomere length, suggesting that the novex-3 titin/obscurin complex forms an elastic Z-disc to I-band linking system. This system could link together calcium-dependent, SH3-, and GTPase-regulated signaling pathways in close proximity to the Z-disc, a structure increasingly implicated in the restructuring of sarcomeres during cardiomyopathies.
Differential Expression and Immunolocalization of Antioxidant Enzymes in Entamoeba histolytica Isolates during Metronidazole Stress

Entamoeba histolytica infections are endemic in the Indian subcontinent. Five to eight percent of urban population residing under poor sanitary conditions suffers from Entamoeba infections. Metronidazole is the most widely prescribed drug used for amoebiasis. In order to understand the impact of metronidazole stress on the parasite, we evaluated the expression of two antioxidant enzymes, peroxiredoxin and FeSOD, in Entamoeba histolytica isolates during metronidazole stress. The results reveal that, under metronidazole stress, the mRNA expression levels of these enzymes did not undergo any significant change. Interestingly, immunolocalization studies with antibodies targeting peroxiredoxin indicate differential localization of the protein in the cell during metronidazole stress. In normal conditions, all the Entamoeba isolates exhibit presence of peroxiredoxin in the nucleus as well as in the membrane; however with metronidazole stress the protein localized mostly to the membrane. The change in the localization pattern was more pronounced when the cells were subjected to short term metronidazole stress compared to cells adapted to metronidazole. The protein localization to the cell membrane could be the stress response mechanism in these isolates. Colocalization pattern of peroxiredoxin with CaBp1, a cytosolic protein, revealed that the membrane and nuclear localization was specific to peroxiredoxin during metronidazole stress.
The Impact of US Drone Strikes on Terrorism in Pakistan and Afghanistan

This study analyzes how airstrikes by unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) drones aect insurgent and terrorist behavior. Some argue that civilian casualties inicted by drone strikes inadvertently worsen terrorism by radicalizing local populations. Theories of violence in asymmetric war suggest a second mechanism: militants will increase their use of violence as they lose control over the local population, particularly when locals provide intelligence on militant activities that can be used to target operatives. We develop a third hypothesis: by enabling both intelligence collection through overhead surveillance and direct targeting of suspected terrorists, drones reduce militant violence by increasing the costs of militant activities and creating an incentive for militants to lie low to avoid being targeted. We use geo-referenced data on U.S. drone strikes and militant attacks in northwestern Pakistan to test each theory’s implications. The results suggest that while overall levels of violence remain high in northwestern Pakistan and neighboring regions of Afghanistan, drone strikes are associated with decreases in the number and lethality of militant attacks in the areas where strikes are conducted. Overall, these results are robust to spatial analysis of the hypothesis that drone strikes in militant sanctuaries simply lead the militants to shift their operations elsewhere. Despite the moral and legal ambiguity of targeted killings, drone strikes do appear to curtail insurgent and terrorist violence in militant sanctuaries.
Cortisol, sexual arousal, and affect in response to sexual stimuli.

INTRODUCTION Theoretically, the physiological response to stress should inhibit the sexual response. This has been demonstrated experimentally in animal models, and correlationally in studies of human reproduction. It is reasonable to expect, then, that the stress response would be blunted during sexual arousal, and several researchers have found a pattern of decreasing cortisol during sexual arousal. AIM In the present study, we explored individual differences in women's cortisol response to sexual arousal in a laboratory setting. We also examined how cortisol response in the laboratory related to a validated measure of sexual arousal functioning in real life. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Cortisol levels were measured in saliva via enzyme immunoassay. Subjective arousal was measured by a self-report questionnaire, and genital arousal was measured by a vaginal photoplethysmograph. METHODS Subjective and physiological responses to an erotic film were assessed in 30 women. Saliva samples were taken at baseline and following the film. RESULTS The majority of women (N = 20) showed a decrease in cortisol; nine women showed an increase in response to an erotic film. The women who showed an increase in cortisol had lower scores on the Arousal, Desire, and Satisfaction domains of the Female Sexual Function Index. Genital arousal in the laboratory was not related to cortisol change. CONCLUSIONS Women who show an increase in cortisol in response to sexual stimuli in the laboratory have lower levels of functioning in certain areas of their sexual life compared with women who show a decrease in cortisol. Stress related to sexual performance may interfere with sexual arousal.
Marketing tactics and parents' loyalty: the mediating role of school image

Purpose – This paper aims to investigate how marketing tactics can enhance parents' loyalty in the educational context. Building on extant research, it proposes an integrated framework in which perceived marketing tactics are related to school image, which in turn is related to parents' loyalty.Design/methodology/approach – Five marketing tactics are selected. A questionnaire is constructed, and data are collected from 1,200 parents of schoolchildren studying in 60 elementary schools in Taiwan. A multiple regression analysis is conducted to analyze the data.Findings – The results show that the selected marketing tactics all significantly and meaningfully predicted the perception of school image, however promotion tactics were the most effective strategy. In addition school image is an effective predictor of parents' behavior. Finally school image mediates the relationship between marketing tactics and parents' loyalty.Originality/value – The finding suggests that school administrators can use marketing ta.
Case study approach in neuropsychological research

Abstract The contribution of the neurological case study approach for establishing the functional organisation of cognitive subsystems is assessed. A number of potential problems are considered, including “resource artefacts”, the nature of the lengthy clinical/experimental procedure used, statistical selection artefacts, reorganisation of function, atypical lateralisation, and the existence of associated deficits. It is argued that, despite these problems, the case study approach is the most promising neuropsychological technique for providing information on the functional organisation of cognitive subsystems.
Taking care of suicidal patients with new technologies and reaching-out means in the post-discharge period

Suicide is a global public health problem with over one million people dying by suicide each year worldwide. Research efforts have focused on developing and testing novel suicide prevention strategies employing recent technological advances. In order to provide a review regarding the role of new technologies (e.g., postcards/letters, text messages, crisis cards, telephone contacts, online interventions) in suicide prevention, we searched PubMed, ScienceDirect, ResearchGate, and Crisis to identify all papers in English from 1977 to 2016. Our results indicated that brief contact interventions show promise in reducing the number of episodes of repeated self-harm and/or suicide attempts following discharge from the Emergency Department or psychiatric units. Innovative methods of contact (e.g., text messages) are easily implemented by clinicians and received by patients in the period of post discharge and have been shown to be beneficial. However, more research employing randomized clinical trials investigating the potential benefits of these novel suicide prevention methods is warranted. Future researchers should continue improving and testing new technologies in the prevention of suicide.
Acquisition of voice onset time in toddlers at high and low risk for autism spectrum disorder

Although language delay is common in autism spectrum disorder (ASD), research is equivocal on whether speech development is affected. We used acoustic methods to investigate the existence of sub‐perceptual differences in the speech of toddlers who developed ASD. Development of the distinction between b and p was prospectively tracked in 22 toddlers at low risk for ASD (LRC), 22 at high risk for ASD without ASD (HRA−), and 11 at high risk for ASD who were diagnosed with ASD at 36 months (HRA+). Voice onset time (VOT), the main acoustic difference between b and p, was measured from spontaneously produced words at 18, 24, and 36 months. Number of words, number of tokens (instances) of syllable‐initial b and p produced, error rates, language scores, and motor ability were also assessed. All groups' mean language scores were within the average range or slightly higher. No between‐group differences were found in number of words, b's, p's, or errors produced; or in mean or standard deviation of VOT. Binary logistic regression showed that only diagnostic status, not language score, motor ability, number of words, number of b's and p's, or number of errors significantly predicted whether a toddler produced acoustically distinct b and p populations at 36 months. HRA+ toddlers were significantly less likely to produce acoustically distinct b's and p's at 36 months, which may indicate that the HRA+ group may be using different strategies to produce this distinction. Autism Res 2017. © 2017 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Autism Res 2017, 10: 1269–1279. © 2017 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
ERROR ESTIMATES FOR THE RECURSIVE LINEARIZATION OF INVERSE MEDIUM PROBLEMS

This paper is devoted to the mathematical analysis of a general recursive linearization algorithm for solving inverse medium problems with multi-frequency measurements. Under some reasonable assumptions, it is shown that the algorithm is convergent with error estimates. The work is motivated by our effort to analyze recent significant numerical results for solving inverse medium problems. Based on the uncertainty principle, the recursive linearization allows the nonlinear inverse problems to be reduced to a set of linear problems and be solved recursively in a proper order according to the measurements. As an application, the convergence of the recursive linearization algorithm [Chen, Inverse Problems13(1997), pp.253-282] is established for solving the acoustic inverse scattering problem.
Hypertension and breast cancer risk in a 19‐year follow‐up study (the DOM cohort)

Background To investigate whether hypertension and the use of anti-hypertensive drugs are associated with breast cancer risk. Methods This was a prospective study of 11 011 women living in Utrecht, the Netherlands, aged 50–65 years at enrolment in a breast cancer screening project (DOM cohort). Women attended screening rounds between 1974 and 1985 at which blood pressure was measured and information on drug use and breast cancer risk factors was ascertained. Since 1974 (median follow-up time 19 years), information on breast cancer occurrence and death has been registered. Hypertension was defined as a systolic blood pressure >160 mmHg or a diastolic blood pressure >95 mmHg or current use of drugs for the indication hypertension. Cox's regression analysis was used to investigate the association between hypertension (treated or untreated) and subsequent breast cancer risk. Analyses were adjusted for age, body mass index, height, parity, familial breast cancer, smoking and oral contraceptive use. Results A total of 523 women were diagnosed with breast cancer. Hypertensive women experienced a statistically significant increased breast cancer risk of 23% (age-adjusted hazard ratio (HRa) = 1.23; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.01–1.49). After adjustment for all confounders, the increase was 14% (HR = 1.14; 95% CI 0.93 ± 1.40). The decline in risk was mainly attributable to the effect of BMI. The risk was similar in treated (HR = 1.22; 95% CI 0.91–1.63) and untreated hypertensive women (HR = 1.13; 95% CI 0.91–1.40). Conclusion These results do not support an association between hypertension and breast cancer, and if there is a link, it is likely to be positive and relatively small in size (+14%). This relation, if present, is not attributable to anti-hypertensive drugs, since the relation is also present in non-drug users.
The China A shares follow random walk but the B shares do not

The China A-Share stocks and the China B-Share stocks are common stocks issued by companies incorporated in China. These two classes of common stocks differ in the nationality of the investors each is restricted to by law. For the most part, the A shares, quoted in the Chinese yuan, or renminbi, are for Chinese nationals while the B shares, quoted in foreign currencies, are for non-Chinese nationals and residents of Macau, Hong Kong and Taiwan. This paper identified eighty-six companies issuing both the A and B shares and tested if these shares weekly returns follow a random walk. Employing the Lo and MacKinlay variance ratio test statistics, it is discovered that five times more B shares rejected the random walk as did the A shares. Moreover, both the Shenzhen and Shanghai B-Share indexes reject the random walk while neither the Shenzhen nor Shanghai A-Share index reject the random walk.
Effectiveness of an Incentive-Based Online Physical Activity Intervention on Employee Health Status

Objective: The objective of this study was to test whether a financial incentive integrated with health benefits for an online physical activity program was associated with increased employee participation and improved health status among participants compared with nonparticipants. Methods: Participation in the Virtual Fitness Center (VFC), an online physical activity program associated with a $150 cash rebate, was assessed. Risk status for 2004 VFC participants and nonparticipants was compared using a health risk appraisal. Results: A total of 53.8% of total eligible employees were VFC participants and reduced their risk for physical inactivity (8.4% points), life dissatisfaction (2.1), low perception of health (1.9), high risk status (1.3), smoking (0.4), and high body weight (0.2). Conclusions: Providing a cash incentive is one strategy for encouraging VFC participation and eliciting improved health status in an employer-sponsored, web-based physical activity program.
Tera-Scale Translation Models via Pattern Matching

Translation model size is growing at a pace that outstrips improvements in computing power, and this hinders research on many interesting models. We show how an algorithmic scaling technique can be used to easily handle very large models. Using this technique, we explore several large model variants and show an improvement 1.4 BLEU on the NIST 2006 Chinese-English task. This opens the door for work on a variety of models that are much less constrained by computational limitations.