Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Evidence for genetic mediation of executive control: a study of aging male twins.

The objective of this study was to investigate the genetic and environmental influences on indexes of executive control in elderly male twins (members of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Twin Study). Multivariate genetic modeling was applied to performance on four tests: Digit Symbol Substitution, color--word interference, Trail Making B, and verbal fluency. After exclusion of individuals with a positive stroke history, data were available for 80 monozygotic and 78 dizygotic twin pairs of ages 69--80 years. Performance on all measures was adjusted for age and education. Significant genetic and environmental influences to performance on each measure of executive control were identified (range of heritability = 34%--68%). Multivariate analyses revealed that a model with a latent executive control factor most adequately fit the observed covariances on test performance, chi(2)(58, N = 316) = 69.7, p =. 14. The shared executive control factor had a heritability of 79% and accounted for 10%--56% of the genetic variance in performance on each of the four tests. Of the 4 tests examined in this analysis, Digit Symbol Substitution appeared to be the marker of executive control with the largest genetic component, whereas verbal fluency stood out as displaying a pattern of genetic and environmental influences distinct from the other 3 measures.
Impacto Sobre o Desempenho Escolar do Pagamento de Bônus aos Docentes do Ensino Fundamental do Estado de São Paulo

Politicas de bonificacao tem se popularizado como mecanismo de inducao de melhoria da qualidade da educacao. Dada a escassa evidencia dessas politicas para o Brasil, este artigo avalia o efeito do programa de bonificacao de professores do estado de Sao Paulo sobre o desempenho escolar dos alunos utilizando os metodos de Propensity Score Matching e Diferencas em Diferencas. Foram encontrados efeitos positivos e significativos para Matematica (0,42 desvios-padrao) e Portugues (0,14 desvios-padrao) para o quinto ano do ensino fundamental entre 2007 e 2009, mas em 2011 ha uma diminuicao expressiva desse efeito positivo. Para o nono ano, nao foram encontrados efeitos e, para algumas especificacoes e grupos de controle utilizados, houve impacto negativo sobre a proficiencia em 2009 e 2011. Os resultados foram robustos a diferentes grupos de controle.
Effects of kappa-opioid receptor agonists on responses to colorectal distension in rats with and without acute colonic inflammation.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of kappa-opioid receptor agonists on pressor and visceromotor responses to colorectal distension in awake, unrestrained rats, a model of visceral pain. Because visceral pain can be enhanced in the presence of inflammation, the study was conducted in rats that had been given either intracolonic saline or 5% acetic acid 6 hr before drug administration. We developed a method of staircase colorectal distension as a means of obtaining stimulus-response functions over a short period of time. Kappa-opioid receptor agonists, given i.v. in a cumulative dose paradigm, dose-dependently attenuated both the pressor and visceromotor responses to colorectal distension. In addition, all drugs tested also increased response threshold. The rank order of potency of the drugs tested was: CI977 > U69,593 > U50,488 > or = morphine > or = EMD61,753 > ICI204,448. Effective doses of these drugs were antagonized by naloxone, but not by either of two kappa-opioid receptor-selective antagonists (nor-binaltorphimine and 2-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)-N-methyl-N-(1-[3-isothiocyanate phenyl]-2-[1-pyrrolidinyl]ethyl)-acetamide). Acute inflammation of the colon did not lead to changes in the potency of the agonists tested. The present results provide further evidence that kappa-opioid receptor agonists significantly attenuate visceral nociception and, in conjunction with other information, suggest that a peripherally restricted kappa-opioid receptor agonist would be therapeutically effective in relieving visceral pain.
A translational signature for nucleosome positioning in vivo

In vivo nucleosomes often occupy well-defined preferred positions on genomic DNA. An important question is to what extent these preferred positions are directly encoded by the DNA sequence itself. We derive here from in vivo positions, accurately mapped by partial micrococcal nuclease digestion, a translational positioning signal that identifies the approximate midpoint of DNA bound by a histone octamer. This midpoint is, on average, highly A/T rich (∼73%) and, in particular, the dinucleotide TpA occurs preferentially at this and other outward-facing minor grooves. We conclude that in this set of sequences the sequence code for DNA bending and nucleosome positioning differs from the other described sets and we suggest that the enrichment of AT-containing dinucleotides at the centre is required for local untwisting. We show that this signature is preferentially associated with nucleosomes flanking promoter regions and suggest that it contributes to the establishment of gene-specific nucleosome arrays.
Consensus in Correlated Random Wireless Sensor Networks

This contribution studies the convergence of consensus algorithms in random wireless sensor networks with spatially correlated links. Aiming at reducing the convergence time, we adopt an optimization criterion based on the minimization of the spectral radius of a matrix for which we derive closed-form expressions for both directed and undirected topologies. We show that the minimization of the spectral radius assuming constant link weights is a convex optimization problem. The expressions derived subsume known protocols found in literature.
Towards an awareness-based semantics for security protocol analysis

We report on work-in-progress on a new semantics for analyzing security protocols that combines complementary features of security logics and inductive methods. We use awareness to model the agents’ resource-bounded reasoning and, in doing so, capture a more appropriate notion of belief than those usually considered in security logics. We also address the problem of modeling interleaved protocol executions, adapting ideas from inductive methods for protocol verification. The result is an intuitive, but expressive, doxastic logic for formalizing and reasoning about attacks. As a case study, we use awareness to characterize, and demonstrate the existence of, a man-in-the-middle attack upon the Needham-Schroeder Public Key protocol. This is, to our knowledge, not only the first doxastic analysis of this attack but also the first practical application of an awareness logic. Even though defining the awareness sets of the agents, a task that is left unspecified in formal works on awareness logics, turns out to be surprisingly subtle, initial results suggest that our approach is promising for modeling, verifying and reasoning about security protocols and their properties.
Audit Committees and Internal Control Quality: Evidence from Nonprofit Hospitals Subject to the Single Audit Act

This study examines the impact of audit committees on the internal control quality of nonprofit organizations. Based on resource dependency theory that stresses an entity's economic needs for internal control over administering federal funding, we select a sample of nonprofit hospitals subject to the Single Audit Act in the United States, from 2001 to 2008. Our results show that hospitals that had audit committees and also employed Big 4 auditors were associated with better internal control quality. In addition, we find that Big 4 auditors were negatively associated with reported deficiencies of internal control over administering major federal programs in the early years (2001–2004), but positively associated with reported deficiencies of the same kind in the later years (2005–2008), suggesting a possible effect of the Sarbanes‐Oxley Act.
Evaluation of constitutive iron reductase (AtFRO2) expression on mineral accumulation and distribution in soybean (Glycine max. L)

Iron is an important micronutrient in human and plant nutrition. Adequate iron nutrition during crop production is central for assuring appropriate iron concentrations in the harvestable organs, for human food or animal feed. The whole-plant movement of iron involves several processes, including the reduction of ferric to ferrous iron at several locations throughout the plant, prior to transmembrane trafficking of ferrous iron. In this study, soybean plants that constitutively expressed the AtFRO2 iron reductase gene were analyzed for leaf iron reductase activity, as well as the effect of this transgene’s expression on root, leaf, pod wall, and seed mineral concentrations. High Fe supply, in combination with the constitutive expression of AtFRO2, resulted in significantly higher concentrations of different minerals in roots (K, P, Zn, Ca, Ni, Mg, and Mo), pod walls (Fe, K, P, Cu, and Ni), leaves (Fe, P, Cu, Ca, Ni, and Mg) and seeds (Fe, Zn, Cu, and Ni). Leaf and pod wall iron concentrations increased as much as 500% in transgenic plants, while seed iron concentrations only increased by 10%, suggesting that factors other than leaf and pod wall reductase activity were limiting the translocation of iron to seeds. Protoplasts isolated from transgenic leaves had three-fold higher reductase activity than controls. Expression levels of the iron storage protein, ferritin, were higher in the transgenic leaves than in wild-type, suggesting that the excess iron may be stored as ferritin in the leaves and therefore unavailable for phloem loading and delivery to the seeds. Also, citrate and malate levels in the roots and leaves of transgenic plants were significantly higher than in wild-type, suggesting that organic acid production could be related to the increased accumulation of minerals in roots, leaves, and pod walls, but not in the seeds. All together, these results suggest a more ubiquitous role for the iron reductase in whole-plant mineral accumulation and distribution.
Water and Land as Quantity-Rationed Inputs in California Agriculture: Empirical Tests and Water Policy Implications

This paper evaluates competing models of input use for two inputs, surface water and land, in central California agriculture. Applying a model of the multiproduct firm, a variable input model is compared to a fixed input model using model specification tests. Test results support the fixed input model for both surface water and land. The finding that surface water is a quantity-rationed input addresses an important water policy issue, implementation of the Central Valley Project Improvement Act. Water rationing has implications for three key provisions of the act involving water price increases, water marketing, and water supply restrictions.
Combined Treatment with Exendin-4 and Metformin Attenuates Prostate Cancer Growth

Introduction Recently, the pleiotropic benefits of incretin-based therapy have been reported. We have previously reported that Exendin–4, a glucagon-like peptide–1 (GLP–1) receptor agonist, attenuates prostate cancer growth. Metformin is known for its anti-cancer effect. Here, we examined the anti-cancer effect of Exendin–4 and metformin using a prostate cancer model. Methods Prostate cancer cells were treated with Exendin–4 and/or metformin. Cell proliferation was quantified by growth curves and 5-bromo–2′-deoxyuridine (BrdU) assay. TUNEL assay and AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) phosphorylation were examined in LNCaP cells. For in vivo experiments, LNCaP cells were transplanted subcutaneously into the flank region of athymic mice, which were then treated with Exendin–4 and/or metformin. TUNEL assay and immunohistochemistry were performed on tumors. Results Exendin–4 and metformin additively decreased the growth curve, but not the migration, of prostate cancer cells. The BrdU assay revealed that both Exendin–4 and metformin significantly decreased prostate cancer cell proliferation. Furthermore, metformin, but not Exendin–4, activated AMPK and induced apoptosis in LNCaP cells. The anti-proliferative effect of metformin was abolished by inhibition or knock down of AMPK. In vivo, Exendin–4 and metformin significantly decreased tumor size, and further significant tumor size reduction was observed after combined treatment. Immunohistochemistry on tumors revealed that the P504S and Ki67 expression decreased by Exendin–4 and/or metformin, and that metformin increased phospho-AMPK expression and the apoptotic cell number. Conclusion These data suggest that Exendin–4 and metformin attenuated prostate cancer growth by inhibiting proliferation, and that metformin inhibited proliferation by inducing apoptosis. Combined treatment with Exendin–4 and metformin attenuated prostate cancer growth more than separate treatments.
Escherichia coli Heat-Stable Enterotoxin Mediates Na+/H+ Exchanger 4 Inhibition Involving cAMP in T84 Human Intestinal Epithelial Cells

The enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli strains lead to diarrhoea in humans due to heat-labile and heat-stable (STa) enterotoxins. STa increases Cl-release in intestinal cells, including the human colonic carcinoma T84 cell line, involving increased cGMP and membrane alkalization due to reduced Na+/H+ exchangers (NHEs) activity. Since NHEs modulate intracellular pH (pHi), and NHE1, NHE2, and NHE4 are expressed in T84 cells, we characterized the STa role as modulator of these exchangers. pHi was assayed by the NH4Cl pulse technique and measured by fluorescence microscopy in BCECF–preloaded cells. pHi recovery rate (dpHi/dt) was determined in the absence or presence of 0.25 μmol/L STa (30 minutes), 25 μmol/L HOE-694 (concentration inhibiting NHE1 and NHE2), 500 μmol/L sodium nitroprusside (SNP, spontaneous nitric oxide donor), 100 μmol/L dibutyryl cyclic GMP (db-cGMP), 100 nmol/L H89 (protein kinase A inhibitor), or 10 μmol/L forskolin (adenylyl cyclase activator). cGMP and cAMP were measured in cell extracts by radioimmunoassay, and buffering capacity (ßi) and H+ efflux (J H +) was determined. NHE4 protein abundance was determined by western blotting. STa and HOE-694 caused comparable reduction in dpHi/dt and J H + (~63%), without altering basal pHi (range 7.144–7.172). STa did not alter ßi value in a range of 1.6 pHi units. The dpHi/dt and J H + was almost abolished (~94% inhibition) by STa + HOE-694. STa effect was unaltered by db-cGMP or SNP. However, STa and forskolin increased cAMP level. STa–decreased dpHi/dt and J H + was mimicked by forskolin, and STa + HOE-694 effect was abolished by H89. Thus, incubation of T84 cells with STa results in reduced NHE4 activity leading to a lower capacity of pHi recovery requiring cAMP, but not cGMP. STa effect results in a causal phenomenon (STa/increased cAMP/increased PKA activity/reduced NHE4 activity) ending with intracellular acidification that could have consequences in the gastrointestinal cells function promoting human diarrhoea.
Discounted Cash Flow: A Theory of the Valuation of Firms

List of Figures. List of Symbols. List of Definitions, Theorems, etc. Acknowledgments. Introduction. 1. Basic Elements. 1.1 Fundamental terms. 1.1.1 Cash flows. 1.1.2 Taxes. 1.1.3 Cost of capital. 1.1.4 Time. Problems. 1.2 Conditional expectation. 1.2.1 Uncertainty and information. 1.2.2 Rules. 1.2.3 Example. Problems. 1.3 A first glance at business values. 1.3.1 Valuation concept. 1.3.2 Cost of capital as conditional expected returns. 1.3.3 A first valuation equation. 1.3.4 Fundamental theorem of asset pricing. Problems. 1.4 Further literature. 2. Corporate Income Tax. 2.1 Unlevered firms. 2.1.1 Valuation equation. 2.1.2 Weak auto-regressive cash flows. 2.1.3 Example (continued). Problems. 2.2 Basics about levered firms. 2.2.1 Equity and debt. 2.2.2 Earnings and taxes. 2.2.3 Financing policies. 2.2.4 Default. 2.2.5 Example (finite case continued). Problems. 2.3 Autonomous financing. 2.3.1 Adjusted present value (APV). 2.3.2 Example (continued). Problems. 2.4 Financing based on market values. 2.4.1 Flow to equity (FTE). 2.4.2 Total cash flow (TCF). 2.4.3 Weighted average cost of capital (WACC). 2.4. 4 Miles-Ezzell- and Modigliani-Miller adjustments. 2.4. 5 Example (continued). Problems. 2.5 Financing based on book values. 2.5. 1 Assumptions. 2.5. 2 Full distribution policy. 2.5. 3 Replacement investments. 2.5. 4 Investment policy based on cash flows. 2.5. 5 Example (continued). Problems. 2.6 Other financing policies. 2.6. 1 Financing based on cash flows. 2.6. 2 Financing based on dividends. 2.6. 3 Financing based on debt-cash flow ratio. 2.6. 4 Comparing alternative forms of financing. Problems. 2.7 Further literature. 3. Personal Income Tax. 3.1 Unlevered and levered firms. 3.1.1 'Leverage' interpreted anew. 3.1.2 The unlevered firm. 3.1.3 Income and taxes. 3.1.4 Fundamental theorem. 3.1. 5 Tax shield and distribution policy. 3.1. 6 Example (continued). Problems. 3.2 Excursus: Cost of equity and tax rate. Problems. 3.3 Retention policies. 3.3.1 Autonomous retention. 3.3.2 Retention based on cash flow. 3.3.3 Retention based on dividends. 3.3.4 Retention based on market value. Problems. 3.4 Further literature. 4. Corporate and Personal Income Tax. 4.1 Assumptions. 4.2 Identification and evaluation of tax advantages. 4.3 Epilogue. Problems. Appendix: Proofs. A.1 Proofs of theorems. A.2 Proof of theorem. A.3 Proof of theorem. A.4 Proofs of theorems. A.5 Proof of theorem. A.6 Proofs of theorems. A.7 Proof of theorem. A.8 Proof of theorem. Index.
Freely Floating Exchange Rates Do Not Systematically Overshoot

The exchange rate literature contains two inconsistent strands. There is a large theoretical and empirical literature on overshooting. In that literature overshooting is an important explanation for exchange rate volatility. A separate literature says that exchange rates are martingales and that models do not beat a random walk. Both can not be true. I show that the evidence for overshooting is highly suspect while the evidence that flexible exchange rates are approximately martingales is rock solid. Given the strength of the evidence, models that imply overshooting probably should be rejected out of hand.
Credit-Induced Boom and Bust

Can a credit expansion induce a boom and bust in house prices and real economic activity? This paper exploits the federal preemption of national banks in 2004 from local laws against predatory lending to gauge the effect of the supply of credit on the real economy. Specifically, we exploit the heterogeneity in the market share of national banks across counties and in state anti-predatory laws to instrument for an outward shift in the supply of credit. First, a comparison between counties in the top and bottom deciles of presence of national banks in states with anti-predatory laws suggests that the preemption regulation resulted in a 11% increase in annual lending in the 2004-2006 period. Our estimates show that this lending increase is associated with a 3.3% rise in annual house price growth rate and a 2.2% expansion of employment in the non-tradable sectors. These effects are followed by a decline in loan origination, house prices and employment of similar magnitude in subsequent years. Furthermore, we show that the increase in the supply of credit reduced mortgage delinquency rates during the boom years but increased them in bust years. Finally, these effects are stronger for subprime and inelastic regions.
Financial deepening and economic growth in the Western Balkans

This paper explores whether financial deepening that occurred in the Western Balkans during the past decades had a significant impact on economic growth. We take into account different measures of financial deepening and estimate their impact on economic growth using panel data for seven countries over a period of thirty years. Our findings differ from expectations that financial deepening accelerates economic growth, but are in line with the findings of recent studies which emphasize that financial deepening at certain levels might become a drawback for economic growth.
Testing for Adverse Selection into Private Medical Insurance

We develop a test for adverse selection and use it to examine privatehealth insurance markets. In contrast to earlier papers that consider apurely private system or a system in which private insurance supplementsa public system, we focus our attention on a system where privately fundedhealth care is substitutive of the publicly funded one. Using a model ofcompetition among insurers, we generate predictions about the correlationbetween risk and the probability of taking private insurance under bothsymmetric information and adverse selection. These predictions constitutethe basis for our adverse selection test. The theoretical model is also usefulto conclude that the setting that we focus on is especially attractive to testfor adverse selection. Using the British Household Panel Survey, we findevidence that adverse selection is present in this market. We develop a test for adverse selection and use it to examine privatehealth insurance markets. In contrast to earlier papers that consider apurely private system or a system in which private insurance supplementsa public system, we focus our attention on a system where privately fundedhealth care is substitutive of the publicly funded one. Using a model ofcompetition among insurers, we generate predictions about the correlationbetween risk and the probability of taking private insurance under bothsymmetric information and adverse selection. These predictions constitutethe basis for our adverse selection test. The theoretical model is also usefulto conclude that the setting that we focus on is especially attractive to testfor adverse selection. Using the British Household Panel Survey, we find evidence that adverse selection is present in this market.
Biomechanics of cartilage

COMPOSITION AND STRUCTURE OF ARTICULAR CARTILAGE . 68 MECHANICAL BEHAVIOR AND MODELING . 68 MATERIAL PROPERTIES . 69 RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN MECHANICAL PROPERTIES AND COMPOSITION . 72 MECHANICAL FAILURE OF CARTILAGE . 73 JOINT LUBRICATION . 75 MODELS OF OSTEOARTHROSIS . 75 SUMMARY . 77
Soybean omics and biotechnology in China

Key scientific objectives of soybean biology research are to identify and define the functions of soybean genes, and uncover when and how genes work together to produce phenotypic traits. Novel omics and biotechnology tools offer enormous potential to investigate the regulatory networks controlling agronomic traits in soybean. Rapid progress in soybean genome sequencing has facilitated research in soybean omics and biotechnology in China. An overview of soybean omics and biotechnology research in China is presented in this article, which focuses on recent applications of functional genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, and metabolomics research. Soybean research in China is mainly based on various platforms such as molecular marker development, germplasm resources, mutation library construction, and cDNA library construction. Among the different agronomic traits of soybean, quality, stresses, and development are three major traits studied by Chinese soybean scientists. The future prospects of soybean research in China also are discussed.