Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Determinants of epidermal nerve fiber density in normal individuals

We studied the relationship between epidermal innervation and age, gender, height, and weight. Intraepidermal nerve fiber density (IENFD) of skin biopsies obtained from the proximal thigh and ankle of 84 normal individuals was quantified. A linear regression model was performed using IENFD at the thigh, IENFD at the ankle, and the thigh IENFD/ankle IENFD ratio, with age, gender, and height–weight interaction as predictors. An independent, negative correlation was found between age and IENFD at the ankle. No correlation was found between age and IENFD at the thigh. With increasing age the thigh IENFD/ankle IENFD ratio, a measure of the length‐dependent distal‐to‐proximal gradient of epidermal nerve density, increased significantly. Gender, height, and body weight did not independently influence IENFD at either site. In normal individuals, distal epidermal innervation decreases in a length‐dependent manner with advancing age. This must be considered when interpreting IENFD in disease states. Muscle Nerve, 2006
Epigenetic regulation of Igf2/H19 imprinting at CTCF insulator binding sites

The mouse insulin‐like growth factor II (Igf2) and H19 genes are located adjacent to each other on chromosome 7q11‐13 and are reciprocally imprinted. It is believed that the allelic expression of these two genes is regulated by the binding of CTCF insulators to four parent‐specific DNA methylation sites in an imprinting control center (ICR) located between these two genes. Although monoallelically expressed in peripheral tissues, Igf2 is biallelically transcribed in the CNS. In this study, we examined the allelic DNA methylation and CTCF binding in the Igf2/H19 imprinting center in CNS, hypothesizing that the aberrant CTCF binding as one of the mechanisms leads to biallelic expression of Igf2 in CNS. Using hybrid F1 mice (M. spretus males × C57BL/6 females), we showed that in CNS, CTCF binding sites in the ICR were methylated exclusively on the paternal allele, and CTCF bound only to the unmethylated maternal allele, showing no differences from the imprinted peripheral tissues. Among three other epigenetic modifications examined, histone H3 lysine 9 methylation correlated well with Igf2 allelic expression in CNS. These results suggest that CTCF binding to the ICR alone is not sufficient to insulate the Igf2 maternal promoter and to regulate the allelic expression of the gene in the CNS, thus challenging the aberrant CTCF binding as a common mechanism for lack of Igf2 imprinting in CNS. Further studies should be focused on the identification of factors that are involved in histone methylation and CTCF‐associated factors that may be needed to coordinate Igf2 imprinting. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Mutual fund ownership, firm specific information, and firm performance: evidence from China

This paper shows empirically that the positive association between mutual fund ownership and firm value in China is mainly driven by the informed trading of mutual funds. Utilizing the unique short term feature of mutual fund holdings for the period from 2001 to 2010, we provide an informational link between a decomposed component of market-to-book ratio (firm specific valuation component) and mutual fund holdings. Specifically, we find that firms with a higher level of mutual fund ownership are associated with a higher specific value. Moreover, the positive association between the specific value of a firm and mutual fund ownership is more pronounced in firms with a higher level of specific information (or higher idiosyncratic volatility). We argue that in an emerging market such as China, mutual funds help to improve market efficiency by incorporating private information into stock prices through their informed trading although they are really a lack of incentive to monitor management.
Marketing the Anti-Drug Message: Media, Source and Message Credibility Interactions

This paper investigates the role of media, source and message credibility in the process of preventing/reducing drug use. An original contribution of the study is that this investigation was conducted with a sample segmented by level of marijuana use. The findings raise questions about the effectiveness of traditional mass media campaigns employed by Government agencies to reduce the use of illicit drugs. The following section provides a background to the development of anti-drug campaigns in Australia, and in particular, anti-marijuana campaigns.
Multi-gas Mitigation Analysis on Stabilization Scenarios Using Aim Global Model

Non-CO2 gas (CH4, N2O and F gas) emissions account for 25percent of all greenhouse gas in the year of2000. Main sources of CH4 and N2O emissions are agriculture-related activities such as enteric fermentation, paddy rice cultivation, soil management. A recursive dynamic CGE (Computer General Equilibrium) model has been developed to analyze greenhouse gas reduction options including non-CO2 gas abatement technologies. Multi-regional, multisectoral and multi-gas CGE model and simple climate change model simulated long-term climate stabilization emission path. Preliminary results showed that multi gas mitigation options including CH4 and N2O abatement technologies will reduce GDP loss more than CO2 only mitigation options for long-term climate stabilization, even though CO2 mitigation options will reduce not only CO2 emissions but non-CO2 gas emissions simultaneously. It is necessary to collect regional non-CO2 gas data (emission, technology options, and so on) and conduct more sensitivity analysis with computer simulation model to reduce uncertainty of non-CO2 gas.
Diazoxide Causes Recovery of β-Cell Glucose Responsiveness in 90% Pancreatectomized Diabetic Rats

Chronic hyperglycemia causes near-total disappearance of glucose-induced insulin secretion. The etiology has been suggested to be a nonsustainable stimulation of insulin release that causes β-cells to become unresponsive to glucose through an undefined mechanism. We used an inhibitor of insulin secretion, diazoxide, to test this hypothesis in 90% pancreatectomized (Px) rats. Px rats were given 5 days of diazoxide (30 mg/kg orally twice a day) or tap water starting on postoperative day 8, 15, or 22. In vitro pancreas perfusions were conducted 36 h posttreatment (2, 3, or 4 weeks after surgery) using a protocol of 15 min of 16.7 mM glucose followed by 15 min of 16.7 mM glucose plus 10 mM arginine. In 2-week Px rats, insulin responses to 16.7 mM glucose and to glucose/arginine were both appropriate for the reduced β-cell mass, i.e., no defect in β-cell glucose responsiveness had yet occurred. Diazoxide had no affect on insulin release at this time. Between 2 and 3 weeks after pancreatectomy, insulin output to 16.7 mM glucose fell 75%, and that to glucose/arginine fell 50%. Diazoxide given at this time partially blocked the fall in glucose-induced insulin secretion and totally prevented that with arginine. The increased insulin secretion caused by diazoxide was accompanied by 1) lower nonfasting plasma glucose values, 2) improved glucose tolerance after oral glucose load, and 3) a 50% increase in pancreatic insulin content. Our results support the concept that excessive insulin secretion is a major cause of the hyperglycemia-induced loss of β-cell glucose responsiveness. A leading candidate for the mechanism of this effect is depleted pancreatic insulin stores. Overstimulation of insulin secretion provides a new target for pharmacological therapy aimed at reducing glucose intolerance in non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus.
Prudent Debt Targets and Fiscal Frameworks

The sharp rise in debt experienced by most OECD countries raises questions about debt indicators and the prudent government debt level countries should target. It also raises questions about the fiscal frameworks needed to reach the prudent debt level and to accommodate cyclical fluctuations along the convergence path towards a prudent debt target. The objective of this paper is to define long-run prudent debt targets for OECD countries and country-specific fiscal rules. The paper presents a comprehensive analysis of government liabilities and assets and formulates recommendations for debt indicators. It also reviews the different linkages between government debt and the economic activity. The lessons from these analyses are combined with an assessment of the uncertainties surrounding the development of macroeconomic variables to define a prudent debt target. Different fiscal rules are compared with regard their impact on fiscal discipline and the risk of recession for country-specific fiscal rules recommendations.
The waveform ICGS technique for parallel transient simulation of semiconductor devices

In this paper, the parallelization aspects of the accelerated waveform relaxation algorithms for the transient simulation of semiconductor devices on parallel distributed memory computers are studied. These methods are competitive with standard pointwise methods on serial architectures, but are significantly faster on parallel computers. We make use of an improved parallel version of the conjugate gradient squared method (ICGS) combining elements of numerical stability and parallel algorithm design, for solving the resulting sequence of time-varying sparse linear differential-algebraic initial-value problems arising at each linearization step with waveform Newton. We reorganize the algorithm such that all the inner products, matrix-vector multiplications and vector updates of a single iteration step are independent and communication time required for inner product can be overlapped efficiently with computation time of vector updates. Therefore, the bottleneck of the performance, namely the cost of global communication on parallel distributed memory computers can be significantly reduced. The resulting ICGS algorithm maintains the favorable properties of the original algorithm while not increasing the computational costs.
How Exercise Affects Lipid Profiles in Women

After menopause, women have less favorable lipid profiles than before menopause. While regular exercise improves lipid metabolism in men, the specifics for doing so in pre- and postmenopausal women are not fully understood. Literature review suggests that higher-volume aerobic exercise programs increase high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels in both pre- and postmenopausal women. Although longitudinal studies of resistance training did not reveal increases in HDL-C levels in women, other favorable benefits observed included decreases in low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, total cholesterol, and body fat. Cross-sectional studies, however, seem to favor high-volume exercise for increasing HDL-C levels.
International Tourists' Decision Timing: Cross-National Differences

This study concerns decision timing in international tourism; that is, the amount of time that elapses between a decision being made to visit a foreign country and the trip actually taking place. In particular, the focus is on differences in decision times among tourists of different nationalities. The empirical setting is the inbound summer tourism market in Norway, and the data are based on a large-scale visitor survey conducted in 2011. The average international tourist visiting Norway during the 2011 summer season made the decision to do so about six months in advance; however, there were noticeable national differences in this regard. Furthermore, the results show that certain other independent variables contribute to the statistical explanation of variations in decision times. The implications for further research and marketing are discussed.
Ohlson Model Testability: Empirical Tests Findings

This paper analyses the empirical testability of Ohlson Model (OM). The methodology used comprises: (i) exploratory research with regards to the study objective; (ii) bibliography research with regards to the applicable procedures; and (iii) qualitative research with regards to problem approach. Literature research has comprised both origin (dividend discount, assessment of residual income etc) and the model subjacent theory. The linear information dynamics (LID) and the assessment formulae were discussed concerning the model internal consistency, as well as the establishment of the required inputs (parameters and variables). Empirical studies have been analyzed both in terms of their structuring and their achieved results. The study has concluded that: (1) no consensus has yet been achieved over the appropriate way to measure the parameters of persistency; (2) doubts as to the appropriate way of capturing the parameters w and y, and the variable v prevents verification of the effective explanatory capabilities of the Ohlson Model; (3) empirical testability is limited to absences of consistent proxies that may capture persistency and previsibility of the institution's future income.
Sorting Nexins – Unifying Trends and New Perspectives

The sorting nexins (SNXs) are a family of PX domain‐containing proteins found in yeast and mammalian cells that have been proposed to regulate intracellular trafficking. Mammalian SNXs have been suggested to function variously in pro‐degradative sorting, internalization, endosomal recycling, or simply in endosomal sorting. In yeast, the defining function for these proteins is a regulation of cargo retrieval. Here we examine recent data on the SNX family of proteins and attempt to draw out unifying themes between the work performed in yeast and mammalian systems.
Short-chain fatty acids act as antiinflammatory mediators by regulating prostaglandin E(2) and cytokines.

AIM To investigate the effect of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) on production of prostaglandin E(2) (PGE(2)), cytokines and chemokines in human monocytes. METHODS Human neutrophils and monocytes were isolated from human whole blood by using 1-Step Polymorph and RosetteSep Human Monocyte Enrichment Cocktail, respectively. Human GPR41 and GPR43 mRNA expression was examined by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. The calcium flux assay was used to examine the biological activities of SCFAs in human neutrophils and monocytes. The effect of SCFAs on human monocytes and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) was studied by measuring PGE(2), cytokines and chemokines in the supernatant. The effect of SCFAs in vivo was examined by intraplantar injection into rat paws. RESULTS Human GPR43 is highly expressed in human neutrophils and monocytes. SCFAs induce robust calcium flux in human neutrophils, but not in human monocytes. In this study, we show that SCFAs can induce human monocyte release of PGE(2) and that this effect can be enhanced in the presence of lipopolysaccharide (LPS). In addition, we demonstrate that PGE(2) production induced by SCFA was inhibited by pertussis toxin, suggesting the involvement of a receptor-mediated mechanism. Furthermore, SCFAs can specifically inhibit constitutive monocyte chemotactic protein-1 (MCP-1) production and LPS-induced interleukin-10 (IL-10) production in human monocytes without affecting the secretion of other cytokines and chemokines examined. Similar activities were observed in human PBMC for the release of PGE(2), MCP-1 and IL-10 after SCFA treatment. In addition, SCFAs inhibit LPS-induced production of tumor necrosis factor-alpha and interferon-gamma in human PBMC. Finally, we show that SCFAs and LPS can induce PGE(2) production in vivo by intraplantar injection into rat paws (P < 0.01). CONCLUSION SCFAs can have distinct antiinflammatory activities due to their regulation of PGE(2), cytokine and chemokine release from human immune cells.
Immigration sceptics, xenophobes or racists? Radical right-wing voting in six West European countries

Given how central the immigration issue has been for the new radical right-wing parties in Western Europe, many have turned to immigration-related factors in trying to explain their emergence and electoral mobilisation. This research has convincingly shown that immigration scepticism (i.e., wanting to reduce immigration) is among the principal factors for predicting who will vote for a radical right-wing party. However, earlier studies have often uncritically equated immigration scepticism with xenophobia or even racism. By using data from the first round of the European Social Survey (2003) involving six West European countries (Austria,Belgium,Denmark,France,the Netherlands and Norway),this article differentiates between immigration scepticism and xenophobic attitudes. The analy- ses strongly indicate that xenophobic attitudes are a far less significant factor than immigra- tion scepticism for predicting who will vote for the new radical right. Moreover, this article analyses the extent to which anti-immigration frames employed by radical right-wing parties resonate with attitudes held by supporting voters,and to what extent they make a difference for people's decision to vote for the radical right.The analyses indicate that frames linking immigration to criminality and social unrest are particularly effective for mobilising voter support for the radical right. Finally, the article criticises earlier research that explained radical right-wing voting with reference to ethnic competition theory.In contrast to much of the earlier research that used macro-level measures and comparisons, this study uses (self- reported) individual-level data on the degree of ethnic heterogeneity of people's area of residence. Hypotheses derived from ethnic competition theory receive less support than expected, which indicates that earlier research may have overestimated the significance of these factors.
Hormonal regulation of the expression of la antigens on mammary gland epithelium

Guinea pig and mouse mammary gland epithelial cells express Ia antigen‐like molecules that react specifically with a rabbit anti‐la antigen antiserum. The murine Ia antigen‐like molecules were shown to share alloantigenic determinants with regular spleen cell Ia antigens. The expression of the mammary gland Ia antigens is under hormonal control, i.e. the Ia antigen expression is induced by pregnancy and lactation and can also be induced by the exogenous administration of lactotropic hormones.
Paths To the Bench in Britain: a Quasi-Experimental Study of the Recruitment of a Judicial Elite

HIS PAPER has three purposes one descriptive, one explanatory, and one methodological. Descriptively, it seeks to summarize the social -*and career characteristics of the persons serving in the higher British judiciary since its reorganization in the 1870s. Its explanatory purpose is to identify the crucial factors which promote recruitment up the ranks of the British judicial hierarchy or, alternatively, the factors which promote differential, recruitment to the various ranks of that hierarchy. In seeking to explain the recruitment of British judges it will also serve a methodological purpose: that of illustrating the desirability of applying a &dquo;quasi-experimental&dquo; research design
Mathematical College Majors and the Gender Gap in Wages

College graduates with mathematical college majors earn more than other college graduates. Women are less likely than men to pursue mathematical college majors. This does not, however, explain the entire gender wage differential. In a representative cross-section of recent college graduates, women earn 9% less than men with equally mathematical college majors. The gender wage disadvantage faced by women with technical college majors is no larger than that faced by women with non-technical college majors.
Ouabain-insensitive K-adenosine triphosphatase in distal nephron segments of the rabbit.

An electrogenic H-ATpase sensitive to inhibition by N-ethyl-maleimide has been reported to be present in renal distal tubules. In contrast to another H-ATPase (gastric H-K-ATPase), the renal enzyme is not stimulated by K+ and is not inhibited by vanadate. However, our preliminary observations indicated that a K-stimulated ATPase (K-ATPase) sensitive to inhibition by vanadate is present in renal medullary collecting duct (MCD). To localize and further characterize this renal tubular K-ATPase, we measured K-ATPase activity in eight specific segments of the rabbit nephron. K-ATPase activity was the difference in ATPase activity in the presence and absence of KCl but in the presence of ouabain (to inhibit Na-K-ATPase). ATPase activity was determined by a fluorometric microassay in which ATP hydrolysis is coupled to the oxidation of NADH. There was a significant K-ATPase activity (expressed as pmol.min-1.mm-1) in the connecting tubule (CNT, 17.0 +/- 3.3), cortical collecting duct (CCD, 6.6 +/- 0.7), and MCD (8.8 +/- 1.7), but not in the proximal segments and the thick ascending limbs. The renal tubular K-ATPase was not only inhibited by vanadate but also by omeprazole and SCH 28080 (relatively specific inhibitors of gastric H-K-ATPase). It is concluded that K-ATPase present in the CNT, CCD, and MCD has some properties in common with gastric H-K-ATPase. However, the physiological role of K-ATPase in the distal nephron segments remains to be elucidated.
Beyond posttraumatic stress disorder: object relations and reality testing disturbances in physically and sexually abused adolescents.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptom severity, object (interpersonal) relations disturbances, and reality testing disturbances in a sample of physically and sexually abused adolescents. METHOD Subjects were 37 students, 16 boys and 21 girls, enrolled at a private, residential school for children with various conduct problems. Students completed several psychological tests, including the Child Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Reaction Index (CPTSD-RI) and the Bell Object Relations and Reality Testing Inventory. RESULTS Of the 37 students, 22 (59.5%) had CPTSD-RI scores in the severe and the very severe ranges. The most common object relations and reality testing disturbances were insecure attachment and uncertainty of perception, respectively. CPTSD-RI scores were positively correlated with two of the four object relations scores (insecure attachment and egocentricity) and with all three reality testing scores (reality distortion, uncertainty of perception, and hallucinations/delusions). Mean CPTSD-RI scores were higher for students whose abuse had involved sex (sexual and physical abuse, sexual abuse only) than they were for students whose abuse had been physical only. Alienation and social incompetence, the two object relations disturbances not correlated with PTSD symptom severity, were associated with having experienced abuse at an early age and having been abused by a parent or stepparent (versus a nonparent). CONCLUSION To address more effectively the long-term difficulties associated with child maltreatment, clinicians and clinician-investigators ought to evaluate interpersonal and reality testing disturbances, as well as PTSD symptom severity.
Relationship between context and sensory processing in children with autism.

OBJECTIVE The purpose of the study was to determine the relationship between sensory processing and context for children with autism. We examined home and school contexts using the Sensory Profile (Dunn, 1999) and the Sensory Profile School Companion (Dunn, 2006a) questionnaires. METHOD Teachers of 49 students with autism completed the Sensory Profile School Companion, and parents completed the Sensory Profile. We conducted correlational analyses using the avoiding and seeking quadrant scores from the School Companion and corresponding avoiding and seeking quadrant scores from the Sensory Profile. RESULTS The avoiding quadrant score coefficient (.59) and the seeking quadrant score coefficient (.45) were statistically significant (p = .01) with good and fair correlations, respectively, suggesting that sensory processing patterns have both universal qualities and context-specific qualities in children with autism. CONCLUSION Findings from this study provide initial evidence that sensory processing and context for children with autism are related.