Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Diagnostic utility of cortactin antibodies in myasthenia gravis

Patients with myasthenia gravis (MG) without antibodies to the acetylcholine receptor (AChR) or muscle‐specific tyrosine kinase (MuSK) have been classified as having double‐seronegative myasthenia gravis (dSNMG). We used the sera from six dSNMG patients with positive immunohistochemistry assays in a protein array to screen reactivity with 9000 human proteins. We identified cortactin, an intracellular protein that interacts with agrin/MuSK favoring AChR aggregation, as a new antigen in dSNMG. We then designed an in‐house enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay as a screening assay and confirmed these results by western blot. We found that 19.7% of dSNMG patients had anti‐cortactin antibodies. In contrast, patients with AChR+ MG or other autoimmune disorders and healthy controls were positive at significantly lower rates. Five percent of healthy controls were positive. In a recent study, we screened sera from 250 patients (AChR+ MG, MuSK+ MG, dSNMG) and 29 healthy controls. Cortactin antibodies were identified in 23.7% of dSNMG and 9.5% AChR+ MG patients (P = 0.02). None of the MuSK+ MG patients, patients with other autoimmune disorders, or healthy controls had antibodies against cortactin. Patients with dSNMG cortactin+ MG were negative for anti‐striated muscle and anti‐LRP4 antibodies. Patients with dSNMG cortactin+ MG presented ocular or mild generalized MG without bulbar symptoms. We conclude that cortactin autoantibodies are biomarkers of MG that, when present, suggest that the disease will be mild.
Another Look at Cross-Language Competition in Bilingual Speech Production: Lexical and Phonological Factors.

How does lexical selection function in highly-proficient bilingual speakers? What is the role of the non-response language during the course of lexicalization? Evidence of cross-language interference was obtained by Hermans, Bongaerts, De Bot and Schreuder (1998) using the picture-word interference paradigm: participants took longer to name the picture when it appeared with a word phonologically related to the target's translation than when it was accompanied by a control (phono-translation interference). Here we report two picture-word interference experiments that explored whether the same pattern of interference is present for highly-proficient bilinguals producing speech in L2. The results of the two experiments partially replicate those of Hermans et al. (1998), revealing the reliability of the phono-translation effect. We discuss some possible loci of this effect during the lexicalization process, and its implications for models of bilinguals speech production.
The Effect of Relaxation Music Listening on Sleep Quality in Traumatized Refugees: A Pilot Study.

BACKGROUND Traumatized refugees often suffer from severe sleep problems, with serious consequences in physiological and psychological areas of functioning. Recent research suggests that music may be a viable intervention to improve sleep quality. OBJECTIVE The aim of this pilot study was to investigate whether sleep quality of traumatized refugees could be improved by listening to relaxation music at bedtime, and whether such an improvement would affect the experience of trauma symptoms and well-being. METHODS This study used a two-group pretest/posttest design with repeated measures taken for sleep quality. Dependent variables included sleep quality measured by the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, trauma symptoms as measured by the PTSD-8 and well-being measured by the "How Do You Feel? " questionnaire designed specifically for refugees. Fifteen traumatized refugees with sleep problems participated in the study. The intervention group received the music listening condition (relaxing music played at night through a music player nested in an ergonomic pillow); the control group received only the ergonomic pillow. RESULTS Statistical comparisons showed a significant improvement of sleep quality in the music group, but not in the control group. A significant increase in well-being was found only in the intervention group, but there were no changes in trauma symptoms in either of the groups. CONCLUSIONS These results support the use of relaxation music listening at bedtime to improve sleep quality in traumatized refugees.
Women and religious practices in Uzbekistan: transformation and changes in the capital of Uzbekistan in the light of the post-Soviet period

This thesis is an anthropological study of Uzbek women’s everyday life and religious rituals, focusing on the experience and transformation of women’s religious and ritual lives in the capital Tashkent, after Soviet rule lasting seventy-three years ended in 1991. The research was conducted over four years, covering English, Russian, and Uzbek language literature, periodical press, archive materials, and oral histories of women who experienced the challenges of the Soviet system and the social changes of the period since independence in 1991. A large body of literature has been written about women’s ritual life in Islam, but relatively little about Uzbek women’s ritual life within Islam since independence. This thesis introduces an ethnographic contribution to the literature by investigating Uzbek women’s everyday life since independence. This thesis will lay out the historical background to the changes in the government of Uzbekistan between 1991 and 2011, in particular the transition from Soviet to independent rule. It will then examine the particular impact this change in government had on women’s religious and ritual life, by comparing data gathered before and after the transition. The existing body of literature on women’s ritual life will be critically assessed in relation to the particular findings of women’s experience in Tashkent, and differences and similarities will be discussed. The thesis argues that religious rituals and the everyday life of Uzbek women change continuously because of the influence of social forces and institutions. The ritual and everyday life of women has adapted to historical circumstance and political systems. Women’s rituals are controlled and partly constructed by the state and religious institutions for the purpose of national identity-building, ideological legitimation, and controlling women’s everyday lives. In the following study, I argue that women have incorporated change and transformation into their everyday (ritual and religious) lives, thus revealing their agency and self-expression as they navigate the social and gender realities of twenty-first century Uzbekistan.
JPS 09-481 . R 2 ( 22087 ) Internalization and Intracellular Trafficking of a PTD-Conjugated Anti-Fibrotic Peptide , AZX 100 , in Human Dermal Keloid Fibroblasts

Journal of Pharm 2010 Wiley-Liss ABSTRACT: A challenge in advanced drug delivery is selectively traversing the plasma membrane, a barrier that prohibits the intracellular delivery of most peptide and nucleic acid-based therapeutics. A variety of short amino acid sequences termed protein transduction domains (PTDs) first identified in viral proteins have been utilized for over 20 years to deliver proteins nondestructively into cells, however, the mechanisms by which this occurs are varied and cell-specific. Here we describe the results of live cell imaging experiments with AZX100, a cellpermeable anti-fibrotic peptide bearing an ‘‘enhanced’’ PTD (PTD4). We monitored fluorescently labeled AZX100 upon cell surface binding and subsequent intracellular trafficking in the presence of cellular process inhibitors and various well-defined fluorescently labeled cargos. We conclude that AZX100 enters cells via caveolae rapidly, in a manner that is independent of glycoconjugates, actin/microtubule polymerization, dynamins, multiple GTPases, and clathrin, but is associated with lipid rafts as revealed by methyl-b-cylodextrin. AZX100 treatment increases the expression of phospho-caveolin (Y14), a critical effector of focal adhesion dynamics, suggesting a mechanistic link between caveolin-1 phosphorylation and actin cytoskeleton dynamics. Our results reveal novel and interesting properties of PTD4 and offer new insight into the cellular mechanisms facilitating an advanced drug delivery tool. 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc. and the American Pharmacists Association J Pharm Sci 9999:1–23, 2010
Low-complexity centralized joint power and admission control in cognitive radio networks

This letter introduces a centralized joint power and admission control algorithm for cognitive radio networks. Its novelty lies in the proposed admission metric. Unlike those in existing algorithms, our metric predetermines the admission order of N secondary users which intend to access the network. This allows us to search a group of admitted secondary users with the bisection method. The proposed algorithm is shown by simulation to achieve a comparable performance to existing algorithms, and the computational complexity is reduced from O(N3) to O(N2 log2 N).
THE USE OF STREPTOMYCES ISOLATE WITH PLANT GROWTH PROMOTING TRAITS IN THE PRODUCTION OF ENGLISH RYEGRASS

The aim of this study was the isolation and characterization of actinomycetes (Streptomyces sp.) with PGP traits in the rhizosphere of perennial ryegrass, and monitoring the impact of their use on the parameters of the English ryegrass (Lolium perenne) yield and microbiological activity in its rhizosphere. The isolates had different growth characteristics. All three isolates produced a greater amount of indole-acetic acid (IAA) in the medium with added L-tryptophan. Isolate A3 produced siderophors and hydrogen cyanide, while isolates A1 and A2 utilized organic phosphorus. All isolates were produced cellulase, urease and gelatinase but not amylase. Isolates A1 and A3 produced lipase while A2 produced a protease. Isolate A3 was chosen for the examination of the isolate impact on plant yield. When evaluated on English Ryegrass in the field, during the first year of experiment, the isolate A3 affected positively the yield of fresh and dry mass, root and stem length. During the second year, the isolate A3 statistically significant enhanced the measured parameters over the control. In relation to Trichoderma asperellum, application of isolate A3 had a better effect on the plant yield. The number of investigated group of microorganisms and dehydrogenase activity in the inoculated variant increased in comparison with the control.
Interpolation of Functions with Parameter Dependent Jumps by Transformed Snapshots

Functions with jumps and kinks typically arising from parameter dependent or stochastic hyperbolic PDEs are notoriously difficult to approximate. If the jump location in physical space is parameter dependent or random, standard approximation techniques like reduced basis methods, PODs, polynomial chaos, etc., are known to yield poor convergence rates. In order to improve these rates, we propose a new approximation scheme. It relies on snapshots for the reconstruction of parameter dependent functions so that it is efficiently applicable in a PDE context. However, the physical domain of each individual snapshot is transformed before its use in the reconstruction, which allows realignng the moving discontinuities and yields high convergence rates. The transforms are automatically computed by minimizing a training error. In order to show feasibility of this approach, it is tested by numerical experiments with one and two physical dimensions and one parameter dimension.
Bodily Fitness Versus Aerobic In The Mitigating Of The Depression

This study investigated the influence of eight-week bodily fitness versus aerobic exercise interventions in mitigating of depression in the young people. The first 52persons from100 participates who had more depression score than others were determined. Participates (M age = 20.29, N = 52) were randomly assigned to one of three groups: bodily fitness, and aerobic and control group. Classes met 1 hour, 3 days per week, for 8 weeks. Beck Depression inventory was used to the individuals. Pre and post-test were used to the experimental and control groups. Results were analysis with ANOVA and it revealed decreases in depression over the intervention. Both groups benefited from the physical exercise intervention and there was no difference between the two groups. Physical exercise have a very key important to mitigating young people depression. These findings indicate that both type of the exercise can mitigate depression and that these result are not depend on the one of the two exercises.
Paramedic Tracheal Intubation Using the Intubating Laryngeal Mask Airway

Objective. Tracheal intubation through the intubating laryngeal mask airway (ILMA) has been evaluated, in controlled settings, as an acceptable alternative to laryngoscopic intubation. Our observational study was designed to examine the success rate of tracheal intubation using the ILMA in the prehospital setting after mannequin-based training. Methods. We examined all oral tracheal intubations performed by the Tasmanian Ambulance Service (TAS) from April 2005 to April 2006. TAS paramedics are occasional intubators, as defined in the study by Reeves et al.,8 on average performing two intubations per paramedic per year. Fifty-eight paramedics received training in tracheal intubation through the ILMA. The primary outcome measure was tracheal intubation success. Our hypothesis was that paramedics would be able to successfully perform out-of-hospital tracheal intubation using the ILMA with minimal training. Results. During the study period, 106 patients had out-of-hospital tracheal intubation performed by ambulance paramedics. Comparisons were made between the intubations with the ILMA andby laryngoscopy. The overall intubation success rate was 91% with the laryngoscope and92% with the ILMA. The success rate for the first attempt at intubation was higher with the ILMA (81%) than with direct laryngoscopy (57%) (RR (95% CI): 1.74 (95% CI: 1.18–2.59, p = 0.009), regardless of ultimate success. The success rate when intubating unconscious patients using the ILMA was significantly higher (88%) than intubation using the laryngoscope (63%). These intubations were achieved without the administration of any sedation or paralytic medication. Conclusions. Intubation via the ILMA was as successful as conventional laryngoscopic intubation, requiring fewer attempts, although this was not statistically significant.
Knowledge sharing barriers in global teams

Purpose – The creation of offshore units allows companies to invest in countries that offer tax incentives, and provides global presence. Nevertheless, knowledge sharing in global teams may be challenger. The aim of this paper is to analyze the barriers of knowledge sharing in global teams.Design/methodology/approach – This is a qualitative research based on interviews in two firms.Findings – The interviewees confirmed the relevance of the barriers to knowledge sharing identified in the literature. The interviewees also cited other four barriers: technology, professional skills, cost and methodology of software development. Other results were: the relationship between the barriers, for example, cultural differences are negatively related to absorptive capacity; and, the barriers could also be enablers for knowledge sharing.Research limitations/implications – The limitations identified were: the use the interview as the only form of data collection, since the firms did not authorize the collection of docum.
Triage of HR-HPV Positive Women with Minor Cytological Abnormalities: A Comparison of mRNA Testing, HPV DNA Testing, and Repeat Cytology Using a 4-Year Follow-Up of a Population-Based Study

Objective Expression of the viral E6/E7 oncogenes of high-risk human papillomaviruses (HR-HPV) is necessary for malignant conversion and maintenance in cervical tissue. In order to determine whether HR-HPV E6/E7 mRNA testing more effectively predicts precancerous lesions and invasive cervical cancer than HR-HPV DNA testing, we aimed to compare triage using HR-HPV E6/E7 mRNA testing by APTIMA HPV Assay (APTIMA) to HPV16 DNA testing, HPV16/18 DNA testing, and repeat cytology. Methods Liquid-based (PreservCyt) cell samples were obtained from HR-HPV-positive women diagnosed with atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance (ASCUS) and low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (LSIL) within the framework of the population-based cervical cancer screening program in Stockholm, Sweden. Samples were tested for HR-HPV E6/E7 mRNA by APTIMA (Gene-Probe Inc., San Diego, CA, USA). Women were followed up for 4 years after the index cytology via medical and laboratory records, and the Stockholm Oncology Center. Results Nine of 25 (36%) women in the ASCUS group, and 64 of 180 (36%) women in the LSIL group developed cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) grade 2 or worse during 4 years of follow-up. 162 (74%) women were APTIMA-positive, and APTIMA had the highest sensitivity to predict CIN2 or worse and CIN3 or worse in the ASCUS (77.8% and 100%) and LSIL (78.1 and 75.8%) groups, although specificity was insufficient (<50%). HPV16 DNA testing and repeat cytology were more specific than APTIMA. Conclusion The results of this population-based study with comprehensive follow-up support the use of APTIMA as a triage test for women with ASCUS. More focused investigation is required for women with LSIL.
ORIGINAL RELATION AMONG SATISFACTION AND LOYALTY OF THE USERS OF NAUTICAL CAMPS RELACIÓN ENTRE SATISFACCIÓN Y LEALTAD DE LOS USUARIOS DE CAMPAMENTOS NÁUTICOS

The main objective of this paper is to measure satisfaction and loyalty through the psychological commitment and the word of mouth. We analyzed a total of 350 surveys of the consumer segment realized among 6 and 12 years of age, and in the context of the nautical camps. The measurement of these variables for the subsequent establishment of causal relationships between them, run taking into account the age of consumers, adapting both the conditions of data collection as the vocabulary of the measuring instrument. The results show to psychological commitment as one indicator of satisfaction and the word of mouth as the only valid indicator to measure the behavioural intentions. Between the satisfaction and the word of mouth a positive causal relationship is established.
Scleractinian corals (Fungiidae, Agariciidae and Euphylliidae) of Pulau Layang-Layang, Spratly Islands, with a note on Pavona maldivensis (Gardiner, 1905)

Abstract Layang-Layang is a small island part of an oceanic atoll in the Spratly Islands off Sabah, Malaysia. As the reef coral fauna in this part of the South China Sea is poorly known, a survey was carried out in 2013 to study the species composition of the scleractinian coral families Fungiidae, Agariciidae and Euphylliidae. A total of 56 species was recorded. The addition of three previously reported coral species brings the total to 59, consisting of 32 Fungiidae, 22 Agariciidae, and five Euphylliidae. Of these, 32 species are new records for Layang-Layang, which include five rarely reported species, i.e., the fungiids Lithophyllon ranjithi, Podabacia sinai, Sandalolitha boucheti, and the agariciids Leptoseris kalayaanensis and Leptoseris troglodyta. The coral fauna of Layang-Layang is poor compared to other areas in Sabah, which may be related to its recovery from a crown-of-thorns seastar outbreak in 2010, and its low habitat diversity, which is dominated by reef slopes consisting of steep outer walls. Based on integrative molecular and morphological analyses, a Pavona variety with small and extremely thin coralla was revealed as Pavona maldivensis. Since specimens from Sabah previously identified as Pavona maldivensis were found to belong to Pavona explanulata, the affinities and distinctions of Pavona maldivensis and Pavona explanulata are discussed.
Nonlinear, multiple-input modeling of cerebral hemodynamics during baseline and hypercapnia in young and post-menopausal women

Normal aging is associated with changes in the cardiovascular system and more specifically in cerebral circulation. Sex-dependent changes in cerebrovascular CO2 reactivity, which may be related to hormonal levels, have been also reported. We therefore examined cerebral hemodynamics, i.e., dynamic pressure autoregulation and CO2 reactivity, by employing beat-to-beat values of mean arterial blood pressure and middle cerebral artery blood flow velocity, as well as breath-to-breath values of end-tidal CO2 tension during baseline and sustained, end-tidal forcing induced hypercapnia in pre- and post-menopausal women. For this purpose, we employed a recently proposed nonlinear, multiple-input model of cerebral hemodynamics. The results suggest that dynamic autoregulation and reactivity in response to spontaneous fluctuations are not affected in postmenopausal women and that CO2 reactivity to the larger, experimentally-induced hypercapnic stimuli are affected mildly. A significant decrease in CO2 reactivity to spontaneous fluctuations was also observed during hypercapnia in all three groups.
WAS THE UK PRISON SYSTEM DESIGNED BY MEN, FOR MEN?

Women’s prisons are surrounded in controversy and commentaries on the many issues relating to them such as drug abuse, mental illness and self-inflicted death have become increasingly visible to the public in the twenty-first century. A number of scholars and campaigners blame these issues upon a gendered design; believing that the UK prison system was designed by men, for men. The aim of the dissertation was to investigate the veracity of this notion using a secondary literary-based research approach. The lack of commentary in historical texts on women in prison has made it difficult to prove or disprove the belief, although evidence in the texts that do discuss women suggests that they have been imprisoned for as long as men – contradicting any claims that the system was applied to women retrospectively. Little evidence to support the claims has been found and in contrast, some evidence suggests that both lords and ladies reviewed the first modern prisons, with Millbank Penitentiary initially holding only female inmates. The research has also found that the most influential text in reinforcing beliefs that the UK prison system was intended for and designed by men has been the Corston Report (2007). The report is repeatedly quoted and paraphrased in the work of campaigners and scholars, despite the lack of supporting evidence. It is suggested that future research should concentrate less on gender-based arguments and undertake a more open-minded approach, looking for societal explanations for how the prison system has come to exist in its current form. Class discrimination may be an interesting avenue to follow as the use of ladies and lords to review prisons may have been part of a wider context in the UK society at the time, whereby prison was used as a means for the upper class to repress the lower classes.