Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
p75NTR immunoreactivity in the rat dentate gyrus is mostly within presynaptic profiles but is also found in some astrocytic and postsynaptic profiles

To localize neurotrophin binding sites within the rat dentate gyrus, the distribution of low‐affinity p75 neurotrophin receptor (p75NTR) immunoreactivity (IR) was examined by using antiserum raised against the cytoplasmic domain of the receptor. Semiquantitative electron microscopic examination of p75NTR‐labeled sections showed that most p75NTR‐labeled profiles were axons and axon terminals (72% from a total of 3,975); p75NTR‐IR was observed throughout the extent of these structures and was not limited to the plasmalemmal surface. Axons and axon terminals containing p75NTR‐IR were distributed in approximately equal proportions across the hilus, infragranular zone, and the inner, middle, and outer molecular layers; significantly fewer p75NTR‐labeled profiles were observed in the granule cell layer. Axon terminals containing p75NTR‐IR, which made synapses (296 of 552), formed equal proportions of symmetric and asymmetric synapses, primarily with the shafts and spines of dendrites. The remainder of the p75NTR‐labeled terminals apposed unlabeled somata and dendrites without forming synapses in the single sections analyzed. In addition, p75NTR‐IR was contained within some astrocytes (17.5% of 3,975) and dendritic shafts (3%) and spines (5%). Within dendritic spines, p75NTR‐IR was most often associated with the plasmalemmal surface near postsynaptic densities; in dendritic shafts, p75NTR labeling was associated with microfilaments distant from the plasmalemma. Most p75NTR‐labeled dendritic profiles were located in the molecular layer, and some originated from granule cells. Moreover, in some granule cell somata (<1% of 3,975), p75NTR‐IR was associated with endosomes. The primary localization of p75NTR‐IR to presynaptic structures in the dentate gyrus, presumably arising from medial septal/diagonal band neurons, agrees with previous reports. However, p75NTR‐IR within some astrocytes, somata, and dendritic structures suggests that this receptor may also be involved in controlling local neurotrophin levels and possibly modulating the viability of local hippocampal cell populations. J. Comp. Neurol. 407:77–91, 1999. © 1999 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Communicating Public Relations Research

In this article, I report a study on the extent and nature of research in the public relations industry. I begin with a document analysis of all campaigns submitted to a national industry awards in 1991 and 1992 and then investigate the research experience of public relations practitioners by using interviews with a sample of award-winning practitioners. The discussion provides insights into attitudes toward research. The implications of the study are useful for assessing the development of the profession, the issues facing practitioners in competing for resources, and the usefulness of initial and continuing public relations education. Critical theory is used to examine the way individuals conceptualize their research activity and focus on the importance of the language used by practitioners to describe their data-gathering processes, its significance for understanding and rewarding public relations contributions to organizational effectiveness, and its relevance for communicating across disciplines.
Evidence that the pregnane X and retinoid receptors PXR, RAR and RXR may regulate transcription of the transporter hOCT1 in chronic myeloid leukaemia cells

The expression and activity of the uptake transporter human organic cation transporter 1 (hOCT1; SLC22A1) is an independent predictor of response to imatinib treatment in patients with chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML). We have recently shown that peroxisome proliferator‐activated receptor (PPAR) activation can increase the killing effect of imatinib in CML cells, due to upregulated hOCT1 gene expression and increased imatinib uptake. To investigate the role of activation of nuclear receptors other than PPAR in the transcriptional regulation of hOCT1, CML cells were treated with agonists for 13 adopted orphan receptors and endocrine receptors. It was found that hOCT1 expression was upregulated by the agonists for pregnane X receptor (PXR), retinoid acid receptor (RAR) and retinoid X receptor (RXR) in CML cell line and primary CML cells (P = 0.04; Wilcoxon rank test). Hence, agonists for PXR, RAR and RXR may be potentially used to improve the efficacy of imatinib in patients with CML.
Cytomegalovirus genotypes present in cerebrospinal fluid of HIV-infected patients

Objective:To compare cytomegalovirus (CMV) strains found in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of patients with HIV infection and CMV encephalitis with those present in the general population with respect to genetic variation in the N terminus of the glycoprotein B (gBn)-gene. Design and Methods:We sequenced gBn, which is a major target of the antiviral immune response, of CMV strains present in CSF of nine HIV-infected patients with acute encephalitis, in serum of 18 immunocompetent patients with primary CMV infection, and in serum of nine HIV-infected patients without neurological illness. Sequences were compared to prototype strains and analysed by use of phylogeny. Results:Fourty-four percent (4/9) of gBn-sequences present in CSF did not cluster with any of the four gBn-prototype strains. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that these sequences represented two further, distinct genotypes and comparison of sequences was highly suggestive for intragenic recombination. In immunocompetent patients and HIV-infected patients without neurological illness, genotype gBn1 was the predominant strain (4/9, 44% and 8/18, 42%, respectively). Genotypes distinct from prototype strains were found in none of the immunocompetent patients and 22% (2/9) of HIV- infected patients without neurological illness. Conclusions:CMV strains present in CSF of HIV-infected patients with encephalitis differ significantly from those present in the general population. Intragenic recombination of CMV may be common in patients with advanced HIV infection and a source of new CMV strains with altered biological properties.
Taurine protects against early and late skeletal muscle dysfunction secondary to ischaemia reperfusion injury.

OBJECTIVE To assess the efficacy of the cytoprotective B-amino acid taurine in prevention of skeletal muscle dysfunction secondary to ischaemia-reperfusion (IR) injury. DESIGN Randomised controlled animal study. SETTING Biomedical research laboratory, teaching hospital, Republic of Ireland. ANIMALS 96 Sprague Dawley rats. INTERVENTIONS Rats were randomised into three groups (n = 24/group): control (sham); ischaemia-reperfusion (untreated); and ischaemia-reperfusion + taurine. A further 24 rats were given taurine alone. The rat cremaster skeletal muscle model of four hours of ischaemia followed by reperfusion was used. Taurine 4%wt/vol was given in the animals' water throughout the experiment, beginning 48 hours before the ischaemia was initiated. OUTCOME MEASURES 8 rats were killed from each group and muscle contractile function was assessed using electrical field stimulation in a tissue bath at 24 hrs, 48 hrs and 7 days. RESULTS Ischaemia followed by 24 hours, 48 hours or 7 days of reperfusion resulted in significant reduction in both muscle twitch and tetanic contractile function (p < 0.05). This was reversed by taurine, which resulted in significant preservation of twitch and tetanic contractility at all time points including one week of reperfusion (p < 0.05). There was no difference in muscle function between muscle treated with taurine after ischaemia-reperfusion and control muscle, with the same operation but without ischaemia, from 48 hours onwards. CONCLUSIONS These data show that pharmaceutical use of the endogenous amino acid taurine, unlike many-other agents, protects electrophysiological function in skeletal muscle against both early and late ischaemia-reperfusion injury.
Instructional characteristics of online continuing education courses.

OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study was to determine the instructional characteristics of online continuing dental education courses on the World Wide Web. METHOD AND MATERIALS One hundred fifty-seven online courses offered by 32 providers were reviewed for 34 criteria. RESULTS Courses of various types spanned a variety of topics. Approximately half of all courses offered continuing dental education credit. The relationship between credit hours and course length was quite variable. Most courses consisted of text and images. Very few courses used advanced media such as video clips. Measured against an index of instructional quality developed for this study, the instructional quality of the courses, in general, was poor. Most for-credit courses contained self-assessment questions, but only 28% of courses scored the questions online. Basic information that was missing on many courses included the authors' names (29%); the intended audience (81%); goals and objectives (77%); and references (85%). In 47% of the courses, there was no opportunity to provide feedback to either the author or the provider. CONCLUSION The theoretical advantages of Web-based continuing dental education are numerous, but the currently available online resources are mostly of unacceptable quality.
Clinical response to apatinib monotherapy in advanced non‐small cell lung cancer

Apatinib, an oral tyrosine kinase inhibitor mainly targeting VEGFR‐2, exerts both antiangiogenesis and antiproliferation effects. Apatinib shows clinical benefit in advanced non‐small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) at an initial dose of 750 mg qd. We further assessed the efficacy and safety of apatinib at a more frequently used dose of 500 mg qd. The preliminary clinical outcome of apatinib in patients with brain metastases was also reported.
Social sustainability in the supply chain: analysis of enablers

Purpose - – This study aims to identify various enablers and the inter-relationships among them in adopting social sustainability measures in the supply chain. Social sustainability in the supply chain has received growing attention in the recent years, due to growing awareness on equity, health and safety, education, child and bonded labor and ethical practices in corporates. Design/methodology/approach - – Various enablers and their contextual relationships were identified. The enablers were classified based on dependence and driving power (DP) with the help of MICMAC analysis. In addition to this, a structural model of the enablers to the social sustainability problem has been put forward using the interpretive structural modeling technique. Findings - – In this study, 14 relevant enablers were identified from literature review and subsequent discussions with experts from academia and the industry. Competitive pressure leads at the bottom of the digraph with high DP, followed by customers ' - requirements, financial liquidity and social concern. Social sustainability awareness was found to be at the last level with less DP. Research limitations/implications - – Enablers were developed based on literature survey and expert opinions. Hence, the model is not statistically validated. This model also does not quantify the adverse effect of each of the variables on social sustainability practices in the supply chain. Practical implications - – The development of a hierarchy not only helps the supply chain managers to understand the enablers better, based on their importance, but also helps in decision making in the supply chain, which in turn enables the corporations to be competitive. Social implications - – Findings of this article will help the corporations to be more socially sustainable by understanding the various enablers and their contextual relationships in the supply chain. Originality/value - – The structured social sustainability model helps supply chain managers and experts to understand interdependence of the enablers. This also helps in identifying different enablers with different degree of importance, which will be very much useful in adopting social sustainability measures in the supply chain.
Vulnerability Assessment of Developing Countries: The Case of Small-Island Developing States

This article puts forward a spatial perspective in framing the methodology for vulnerability assessment (VA) of developing countries, with special reference to small-island developing states (SIDS). Geographic vulnerability from a developing-world perspective is defined by the country's susceptibility to physical and human pressures, risks and hazards in temporal and spatial contexts. In constructing the composite vulnerability index (CVI), four core indicators are selected as sub-indices. The study confirms the vulnerability of SIDS based on four dimensions, namely, coastal index (G1), peripherality index (G2), urbanisation indicator (G3) and vulnerability to natural disasters (G4), and advocates consideration of place vulnerability and temporal distinctions when assessing the vulnerability of SIDS in particular.
Essays in industrial organization

The thesis consists in three papers that investigate two debated topics in industrial organization (in particular in competition policy) through formal models based on game-theory. The first paper deals with potential effects of conglomerate mergers among leading brands in facilitating foreclosure of new suppliers through the retailing channel. The two remaining papers analyze antitrust policy with respect to monopolization of markets of spare parts and aftermarkets by monopolistic equipment manufacturers.
The impact of bitwise operators on hash uniformity in network packet processing

Hash functions are widely applied in network packet processing, and uniformity is one of their determinant attributes. This paper investigates into the impact of bitwise operators on the uniformity of such hash functions. To this end, we first define connection identifier as their input keyword, whose uniformity is quantized by deviation index. Then, we analyze the impact of all bitwise operators on the deviation indices of its operation results. As for binary bitwise operators, we give the conditions where AND, OR and XOR increase bit uniformity, respectively, and conclude that only XOR improves the uniformity of bits in the connection identifier effectively by verifying these conditions with real network traffic. Furthermore, we derive a positive linear relationship of the uniformity of a bit‐stream and that of its any bit under simple independence assumption. As for unary bitwise operators, we prove that NOT keeps bit‐stream uniformity as the same even combined with XOR. Nevertheless, we find that circular shift with XOR changes bit‐stream uniformity with a great probability. In particular, a way is proposed to determine the optimal staggered number of two bit‐streams before their XOR operation. Lastly, we provide guidelines to design uniform hash functions with circular shift and XOR. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Signal transducer and activator of transcription 1 in T cells plays an indispensable role in immunity to Leishmania major by mediating Th1 cell homing to the site of infection

The signal transducer and activator of transcription 1 (STAT1) signaling pathway mediates the biological functions of IFN‐γ. We have previously shown that the STAT1 pathway is indispensable for host resistance against Leishmania major infection. In this study, we examined the role of STAT1 in lymphocytes and specifically CD4+ and CD8+ T cells in mediating immunity against L. major by transferring T cells from wild‐type (WT) and STAT1−/− C57BL/6 mice into Rag2−/− C57BL/6 mice. Rag2−/− mice reconstituted with unfractionated STAT1−/− splenocytes (B cells and T cells) failed to mount an efficient Th1 response after L. major infection, produced more IL‐4, and developed large lesions full of parasites. In contrast, Rag2−/− mice reconstituted with WT (STAT1+/+) splenocytes mounted a Th1 response and developed self‐resolving lesions. Studies using Rag2−/− recipients that received a combination of purified CD4+ and CD8+ T cells from WT or STAT1−/− mice revealed that STAT1 deficiency in CD4+ T cells, but not in CD8+ T cells, leads to development of chronic, nonhealing lesions and systemic dissemination of parasites into the spleen after L. major infection. Further studies using Rag2−/− recipients of WT Thy1.1+ and STAT1−/− Thy1.2+ T cells showed that STAT1 in CD4+ T cells was not required for Th1 differentiation during L. major infection. However, it was critical for up‐regulation of CXCR3 on CD4+ T cells and their migration to the regional lymph node and the cutaneous site of infection. Together, these studies indicate that the STAT1 pathway in CD4+ T cells plays a critical role in immunity against L. major by controlling the migration of Th1 cells to the site of infection rather than their generation. Further, they reveal an essential role for CD4+ T cell STAT1 in preventing systemic dissemination of L. major infection. —Barbi, J., Snider, H. M. , Bhardwaj, N. , Lezama‐Davila, C. M. , Durbin, J. E. , Satoskar, A. R. Signal transducer and activator of transcription 1 in T cells plays an indispensable role in immunity to Leishmania major by mediating Th1 cell homing to the site of infection. FASEB J. 23, 3990–3999 (2009). www.fasebj. org
Assignment and sequence: why some students can't recognise a simple swap

In the current cycle of the continuing drive to discover why some students have such difficulty learning to program, the goalposts have been moving ever closer to the very fundamentals. On the basis of some very simple multiple-choice questions asked in tests in introductory and subsequent programming courses, it is proposed that many students have not grasped the concept of sequence in programming, the concept that a group of statements in a procedural programming language will be executed in the order in which they appear. This problem was discussed in the programming education literature as long as 25 years ago, but it seems that little has changed in that time. The consequences of the preliminary finding are discussed, and further work is proposed to confirm it or otherwise.
Internal audit outsourcing practice and rationales: SME evidence from New Zealand

Purpose - This study seeks to examine practices in, and rationales for, internal audit outsourcing in New Zealand (NZ) companies. The purpose is to assess whether practice and preference conform to expectations where small-to-medium businesses dominate. Design/methodology/approach - Senior financial managers of all 165 NZ Stock Exchange listed companies are surveyed. Questions are drawn from the strategic management and auditing literature. Relationships between size, international association and industry are tested or revealed from descriptive statistics and qualitative analyses. Comparisons to overseas studies, where possible, are drawn. Findings - Of 63 usable responses (38.2 per cent response rate), a comparatively low 57 per cent carry out some form of internal audit and a further 27 per cent claim interest in doing so. International companies are more likely to engage in internal audit, and preliminary findings point to less interest within consumer and equity/trust industries. As to outsourcers, 65 per cent (11) only began doing so recently, Big4 accounting firms are a major source, access to quality is an important reason and most 82 per cent (14 of 17) are aware of independence issues. Conclusions analyse legislative incentive patterns found and suggest further research. Originality/value - Recent scandals and legislation in the USA, UK and Australia highlight the importance of the internal audit function to industry. This study looks at practices in and rationales for internal audit outsourcing found within the NZ corporate sector.
Towards green loyalty: driving from green perceived value, green satisfaction, and green trust

This study proposed four original concepts – green perceived value, green satisfaction, green trust, and green loyalty – and discussed their relationships. The results showed that enhancing green perceived value, green satisfaction, and green trust of customers can increase their green loyalty. Furthermore, this study demonstrated that green perceived value can not only directly influence green loyalty positively, but also indirectly influence it positively via green satisfaction and green trust. In addition, this study undertook a comparative analysis between the original model and the four competing models. The results indicated that it is imperative to separate green perceived value, green satisfaction, green trust, and green loyalty from perceived value, satisfaction, trust, and loyalty. In the environmental era, if companies intend to raise their customers' green loyalty, they need to invest resources to raise their customers' green perceived value, green satisfaction, and green trust, rather than perceived value, satisfaction, and trust. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.
The clinical significance of the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio in multiple sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is one of the main chronic inflammatory diseases of the central nervous system that causes functional disability in young people. The aim of this study was to investigate the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) in patients with MS and the relationship between the NLR and the severity of the disease. One hundred and two MS patients (31 patients were in relapse; 71 patients were in remission) and 56 healthy controls were included. Complete blood counts as well as demographic and clinical data from MS patients were evaluated retrospectively. The NLRs were calculated for all participants and were compared; the cut-off value was also determined for the NLR and Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS). MS patients had a significantly higher NLR (p < 0.001) than the control group. The NLR levels were significantly higher in patients who were in relapse than patients in remission (p = 0.039). The cut-off value for the NLR to predict an MS diagnosis and activity were determined to be 2.04 and 3.90, respectively. The NLRs were directly correlated with erythrocyte sedimentation rate levels (r = 0.795, p < 0.001). Logistic regression analysis with dichotomous EDSS score showed that a high NLR was an independent predictor of the progression of disability. The NLR may be a biomarker that has simple, quick, inexpensive and reproducible properties in MS to predict patient's prognosis.
Where next for ISO 9000 companies

Many organisations take their quality improvement initiatives no further than ISO 9000. Others try to achieve TQM and fail, while others successfully make the transition. This may be because the requirements for TQM are not clear. However, the requirements for implementing the EFQM model criteria are clear and therefore may allow an organisation’s senior management to help drive their company towards excellence, perhaps with some external assistance. This paper investigates what happens with regard to quality management after an organisation has achieved ISO 9000. In particular, the extent of adoption of the EFQM excellence model is examined, as is the use of proven quality improvement tools and techniques such as statistical process control (SPC). Associated with these improvement techniques, the importance and standard of external assistance in implementing them are examined. The paper concludes that training, the use of SPC and working to the EFQM model criteria are all significant factors if an organisation is to be perceived as successful.