Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Directors culture and environmental disclosure practice of companies in Malaysia

This study sets out to investigate the effect of director’s culture on the level of environmental disclosures among companies quoted on the main stream of the Bursa Malaysia.The study uses the ethnic background of the directors to categorize the culture of the board.The dependent variable environmental disclosure in the annual report of the selected companies is measured by an index score based on the content.The study employed the multiple regression technique to estimate the data.Our result indicate a significant relationship between environmental disclosure and boards dominated by Bumiputra directors, board dominated by foreign directors, firm size and leverage.The study has public policy implications for Malaysia as well as a number of developing countries.
Histological characteristics of chronic gastritis reported in gastric biopsies from children aged 1 to 16 years at the Hospital Infantil de San José from september 2008 to september 2010

Received: 05-12-11 Accepted: 15-05-12 Abstract Gastritis is an inflammation of the lining of the gastric mucosa which occurs in response to an injury. It can be acute, chronic or mixed, and it can be associated with intestinal metaplasia and atrophy. There are multiple etiologic factors including irritation, chemical, immunological, genetic and infectious factors. Among the latter, Helicobacter pylori is the most common causative agent. Objective: The objective of this study was to characterize histologic findings of chronic gastritis in children aged 1-16 years at the Hospital Infantil de San Jose from September 2008 to September 2010. Materials and methods: This was an observational and descriptive cross sectional study. Information was obtained from gastric biopsy reports from children between 1 and 16 years of age who had been evaluated at the Hospital Infantil de San Jose from September 2008 to September 2010. Results: We reviewed 826 reports of gastric biopsies from children with chronic gastritis. 59.2% of the sample was female, and the mean age was 9 years. Helicobacter pylori was present in 58.96% of this population, gastric atrophy was present in 0.7% and intestinal metaplasia in 1%. It was found that the presence of Helicobacter pylori was related to the degree of chronic inflammation and polymorphonuclear neutrophil activity levels. Conclusions: Helicobacter pylori infection is common in chronic gastritis in children and its presence is related to the degree of chronic inflammation and polymorphonuclear neutrophil activity.
Prevalence and antimicrobial resistance of health care associated bloodstream infections at a general hospital in Saudi Arabia.

OBJECTIVE To determine the trend of health care associated blood stream infection (HA-BSI) at Saudi Aramco Medical Services Organization. METHODS This prospective survey was conducted during the year 2002-2006. Definitions of HA-BSI infections were based on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention categories. RESULTS There were a total of 1103 distinct episodes of HA-BSI with annual average rates of 8.5 per 1000 discharges and 18 per 10,000 patient-days. Of all episodes, 38% were primary, 47% were central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI), and the remaining 15% were secondary bacteremias. The hospital wide BSI rate per 1000 discharges increased from 7.8 to 11.9 (p<0.001). Secondary bacteremia remained relatively stable over the study period at 3/10,000 patient-days (p=0.41). Primary BSI increased from 6.9 to 10.6 per 10,000 patient-days (p<0.001). Hospital wide CLABSI increased from 3.2 to 6 per 1000 discharges (p<0.001) and from 7 to 11.8 per 10,000 patient-days (p=0.039). Coagulase negative staphylococcus was the leading pathogen (23.7%) followed by Staphylococcus aureus (11.1%) and Escherichia coli (11.1%). Of all episodes, candida caused 5%, Klebsiella pneumoniae (9%) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (7.3%). CONCLUSION The rate of secondary BSI remained relatively stable over the study period. However, primary BSI and CLABSI increased over time. Coagulase negative staphylococcus, Staphylococcus aureus, and Escherichia coli were the most frequent microorganisms.
C-myc oncoprotein expression and prognosis in patients with carcinoma of the cervix: an immunohistochemical study.

OBJECTIVE Evaluation of the prognostic significance of c-Myc expression in carcinoma of the cervix. MATERIALS AND METHODS 132 patients with carcinoma of the cervix presenting at the Cancer Institute in Chennai from 1996-1999 were included in the study. All the cases were treated with a radical course of radiotherapy and had a median follow-up of 36 months. Paraffin blocks obtained from the punch biopsies from the tumours were used for immunohistochemistry. RESULTS c-Myc nuclear immunoreactivity was observed in 44/132 (33.3%) of tumours. Patients with tumours in Stages 11 B and III B accounted for 112/132 (84.8%) of the cases. Patients with tumours expressing c-Myc nuclear immunoreactivity were found to have more advanced disease; less likely to achieve complete remission (54.5% vs. 78.4%; p < 0.005) and lower disease-free status (52.3% versus 73.8%; p < 0.014). The poor prognostic feature of c-Myc nuclear immunoreactivity was seen in both stage II B (52.9% vs. 76.3%) and stage III B (38.1% vs. 69.4%; p < 0.025). CONCLUSIONS c-Myc nuclear immunoreactivity is a predictor of poorer response to radiotherapy and poorer disease free status in stage II B and III B carcinoma of the cervix.
Target-Specific Regulation of Synaptic Efficacy in the Feeding Central Pattern Generator of Aplysia: Potential Substrates for Behavioral Plasticity?

The contributions to this symposium are unified by their focus on the role of synaptic plasticity in sensorimotor learning. Synaptic plasticities are also known to operate within the central pattern generator (CPG) circuits that produce repetitive motor programs, where their relation to adaptive behavior is less well understood. This study examined divergent synaptic plasticity in the signaling of an influential interneuron, B20, located within the CPG that controls consummatory feeding-related behaviors in Aplysia. Previously, B20 was shown to contain markers for catecholamines and GABA (Díaz-Ríos et al., 2002), and its rapid synaptic signaling to two follower motor neurons, B16 and B8, was found to be mediated by dopamine (Díaz-Ríos and Miller, 2005). In this investigation, two incremental forms of increased synaptic efficacy, facilitation and summation, were both greater in the signaling from B20 to B8 than in the signaling from B20 to B16. Manipulation of the membrane potentials of the two postsynaptic motor neurons did not affect facilitation of excitatory postsynaptic potentials (EPSPs) to either follower cell. Striking levels of summation in B8, however, were eliminated at hyperpolarized membrane potentials and could be attributed to distinctive membrane properties of this postsynaptic cell. GABA and the GABAB agonist baclofen increased facilitation and summation of EPSPs from B20 to B8, but not to B16. The enhanced facilitation was not affected when the membrane potential of B8 was pre-set to hyperpolarized levels, but GABAergic effects on summation were eliminated by this manipulation. These observations demonstrate a target-specific amplification of synaptic efficacy that can contribute to channeling the flow of divergent information from an intrinsic interneuron within the buccal CPG. They further suggest that GABA, acting as a cotransmitter in B20, could induce coordinated and target-specific pre- and postsynaptic modulation of these signals. Finally, we speculate that target-specific plasticity and its modulation could be efficient, specific, and flexible substrates for learning-related modifications of CPG function.
Aragonite infill in overgrown conceptacles of coralline Lithothamnion spp. (Hapalidiaceae, Hapalidiales, Rhodophyta): new insights in biomineralization and phylomineralogy

New empirical and quantitative data in the study of calcium carbonate biomineralization and an expanded coralline psbA framework for phylomineralogy are provided for crustose coralline red algae. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive spectrometry (SEM‐EDS) pinpointed the exact location of calcium carbonate crystals within overgrown reproductive conceptacles in rhodolith‐forming Lithothamnion species from the Gulf of Mexico and Pacific Panama. SEM‐EDS and X‐ray diffraction (XRD) analysis confirmed the elemental composition of these calcium carbonate crystals to be aragonite. After spore release, reproductive conceptacles apparently became overgrown by new vegetative growth, a strategy that may aid in sealing the empty conceptacle chamber, hence influencing the chemistry of the microenvironment and in turn promoting aragonite crystal growth. The possible relevance of various types of calcium carbonate polymorphs present in the complex internal structure and skeleton of crustose corallines is discussed. This is the first study to link SEM, SEM‐EDS, XRD, Microtomography and X‐ray microscopy data of aragonite infill in coralline algae with phylomineralogy. The study contributes to the growing body of literature characterizing and speculating about how the relative abundances of carbonate biominerals in corallines may vary in response to changes in atmospheric pCO2, ocean acidification, and global warming.
Inactivation of human white blood cells in platelet products after pathogen reduction technology treatment in comparison to gamma irradiation

BACKGROUND: During the transfusion of blood products, the transfer of allogeneic donor white blood cells (WBCs) can mediate adverse reactions in recipients. To minimize reactions, blood components are leukoreduced and/or exposed to gamma irradiation. Nucleic acid–targeted pathogen reduction technologies (PRTs) processes are well suited for WBC inactivation. The Mirasol PRT system (CaridianBCT Biotechnologies) uses riboflavin and ultraviolet light to reduce the active pathogen load and inactivate residual WBCs in blood products used for transfusion. The aim of this study was to compare the effect of PRT treatment to gamma irradiation.
Embeddability of abstract CR structures and integrability of related systems

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Evaluation of Guamanian dental caries preventive programs after 13 years.

OBJECTIVE To address the high prevalence of dental caries in Guamanian children, a school-based fluoride mouthrinse program, a clinic-based pit and fissure sealant program, and community water fluoridation were phased in over a 13-year period. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the impact of these programs on the prevalence of dental caries. METHODS Cross-sectional samples representative of schoolchildren in grades 1 through 8 were selected in 1976, 1979, 1984, 1986, and 1989. These years include the starting years for each of the three interventions and varying follow-up periods for each. About 1,000 children in each of the survey years were examined to derive DMF surface scores. RESULTS After eight years of fluoride mouthrinsing, DMFS scores were reduced by 25.4 percent in 6-14-year-olds. With two additional years of fluoride mouthrinsing and with pit and fissure sealants, overall DMFS scores declined an additional 44.4 percent. In 1989, three years after community water fluoridation was initiated on the island and continuation of the other two programs, there was a further decline in overall DMFS scores of 34.5 percent. Over the entire study period--during which there were 13 years of fluoride mouthrinsing in the schools, five years of sealant application, and three years of community water fluoridation--DMFS scores declined 72.8 percent overall (5.14 surfaces per child) and 71.9, 71.0, and 78.8 percent for occlusal, buccal-lingual, and proximal surfaces, respectively. CONCLUSIONS An intensified preventive dentistry program introduced on an island with high caries prevalence twice that of the US mainland was successful, and contributed to a reduction in the prevalence of caries to a level equivalent to that of the United States at the end of the study period.
The zero leverage mystery : an empirical study of Norwegian firms

The objective of this thesis is to document the puzzling evidence of Norwegian firms, both public and private, following a zero leverage policy. We have examined accounting data for all Norwegian firms in the period from 1993 to 2010. One of the most interesting findings from our study is that 19.1% of all private firms in the whole period had zero outstanding debt, which is more than twice as high when compared to public companies. Our results show that 29.2% of the private firms also had less than 5% book l everage, which is almost three times the rate for public firms. We found that zero leverage firms are smaller, more profitable, have larger cash balances, pay more dividends, have higher ratings, less tangible assets and they pay more taxes compared to firms with leverage. Firms are most profitable in the year they become zero leveraged, which is also the year they have the largest cash balances (as a ratio of total assets). Further on we find that zero leveraged firms differ quite substantially among themselves, especially when we compare dividend payers versus non-dividend payers. Our results indicate that zero leverage may be a persistent phenomenon, with almost 26% of zero leverage firms refraining from debt for at least 8 consecutive years.
Longitudinal Analysis of Corporate Social Responsibility on Company Websites

As social issues increase, so does the scope of corporate social responsibility (CSR). Companies are expanding their CSR activities and making the terminology used to describe them more specific. This study compares website content of Fortune 500 companies in 2015 with content collected in 2011. Traditionally, two CSR issues have been the dominant focus on company websites: community and environment. Findings reveal that these terms have decreased in usage and new terms have emerged, such as supply chain and volunteer involvement. A shift has occurred that business practitioners will find helpful in communicating CSR initiatives.
Diagnostic Potential of Stokes Shift Spectroscopy of Breast and Prostate Tissues — A Preliminary Pilot Study

Stokes Shift (SS) Spectroscopy (SSS) of normal and abnormal breast and prostate tissues were studied. SS spectra is measured by simultaneously scanning both the excitation and emission wavelengths while keeping a fixed wavelength interval of Δλ = 20 nm. Characteristic, highly resolved peaks and significant spectral differences between normal and different pathological tissues of breast and prostate tissues were observed. The SS spectra of normal and different pathological breast and prostate tissues show the distinct peaks around 300, 350, 450, 500 and 600 nm may be attributed to tryptophan, collagen, NADH, flavin and porphyrin, respectively. Results of the current study demonstrate that the SS spectral changes due to tryptophan, collagen, hemoglobin, NADH, FAD and porphyrin have good diagnostic potential; therefore can be targeted as native tumor markers.
Do Buy and Build Strategies Increase Illiquidity of Private Equity Investments

Increasing holding periods are a notable trend in private equity and a concern to limited partners because they tie up committed capital. I investigate whether the frequent use of Buy and Build (B&B) strategies can explain this trend. I find that B&B increases holding periods by up to 29%, which is robust to different identification strategies including the application of a survival-time treatment effect estimator. Further investigating channels through which B&B increases holding periods, I identify factors that can mitigate but not avoid prolongation. Thus, my findings point at increasing illiquidity risk as an unintended "dark side" of B&B strategies.
Assessment of the functional status of elderly subjects in Qassim Region, Saudi Arabia

A cross-sectional study was carried out on a sample of elderly subjects aged 65 years and above, resident in Qassim region, in central Saudi Arabia. The sample size was 266 subjects (12%). The study objective was to assess the subjects' functional activities in the form of Activities of Daily Living (ADL) and Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADL). Wadu, the Muslim tradition of washing before the main five daily prayers was included in the ADL. The results showed that impairment of ADL, ADL and Wadu, and IADL was observed in 12.4%, 7.9% and 54.4% of subjects. Advancing age and female gender were found to be negatively, while male gender and having an occupation were found to be positively associated with functional activity.
Cyclopeptides of Linum usitatissimum

Cyclolinopeptide A (CLA), a cyclic nonapeptide from linseed, possesses strong immunosuppressive and antimalarial activity along with the ability to inhibit cholate uptake into hepatocytes. The structure of the peptide was studied extensively in solution as well as in the solid state. It is postulated that both the Pro–Pro cis‐amide bond and an ‘edge‐to‐face’ interaction between the aromatic rings of two adjacent Phe residues are important for biological activity. Structure–activity relationship studies of many linear and cyclic analogues of CLA suggest that the Pro‐Xxx‐Phe sequence and the flexibility of the peptide are important for the immunosuppressive activity. Copyright © 2006 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
SGX-Box: Enabling Visibility on Encrypted Traffic using a Secure Middlebox Module

A network middlebox benefits both users and network operators by offering a wide range of security-related in-network functions, such as web firewalls and intrusion detection systems (IDS). However, the wide usage of encryption protocol restricts functionalities of network middleboxes. This forces network operators and users to make a choice between end-to-end privacy and security. This paper presents SGX-Box, a secure middlebox system that enables visibility on encrypted traffic by leveraging Intel SGX technology. The entire process of SGX-Box ensures that the sensitive information, such as decrypted payloads and session keys, is securely protected within the SGX enclave. SGX-Box provides easy-to-use abstraction and a high-level programming language, called SB lang for handling encrypted traffic in middleboxes. It greatly enhances programmability by hiding details of the cryptographic operations and the implementation details in SGX enclave processing. We implement a proof-of-concept IDS using SB lang. Our preliminary evaluation shows that SGX-Box incurs acceptable performance overhead while it dramatically reduces middlebox developer's effort.
Duration of leg pain as a predictor of outcome after surgery for lumbar disc herniation: a prospective cohort study with 1-year follow up.

OBJECT The aim of this study was to investigate different variables in the duration of symptoms that can be used to predict outcome after lumbar microdiscectomy. METHODS In a prospective study of 132 consecutive patients who underwent surgery for lumbar disc herniation, the authors evaluated the prognostic value of different variables in the duration of symptoms for the 1-year period after surgery. The 1-year follow-up investigation was conducted by an independent observer. Assessment of outcome was performed using a clinical overall score (COS), which was recently assessed for its reliability and validity. As for factors predictive of outcome, only duration of leg pain and sick leave reached statistical significance in the multivariate analysis. Results of the univariate analysis demonstrated that in patients experiencing preoperative leg pain fewer than 4 months and between 4 and 8 months, a significantly lower COS at the 1-year follow up was demonstrated compared with those in whom the duration of leg pain was longer (> 8 months). One hundred eight patients returned to work within the 1st year after surgery. Patients who took a sick leave of more than 28 weeks before the operation were at higher risk of not returning to work. CONCLUSIONS Analysis of these results indicates that leg pain lasting more than 8 months correlates with an unfavorable postoperative outcome in patients with lumbar disc herniation, as well as a high risk of not returning to work.
Effects of rapid response systems on clinical outcomes: systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND A rapid response system (RRS) consists of providers who immediately assess and treat unstable hospitalized patients. Examples include medical emergency teams and rapid response teams. Early reports of major improvements in patient outcomes led to widespread utilization of RRSs, despite the negative results of a subsequent cluster-randomized trial. PURPOSE To evaluate the effects of RRSs on clinical outcomes through a systematic literature review. DATA SOURCES MEDLINE, BIOSIS, and CINAHL searches through August 2006, review of conference proceedings and article bibliographies. STUDY SELECTION Randomized and nonrandomized controlled trials, interrupted time series, and before-after studies reporting effects of an RRS on inpatient mortality, cardiopulmonary arrests, or unscheduled ICU admissions. DATA EXTRACTION Two authors independently determined study eligibility, abstracted data, and classified study quality. DATA SYNTHESIS Thirteen studies met inclusion criteria: 1 cluster-randomized controlled trial (RCT), 1 interrupted time series, and 11 before-after studies. The RCT showed no effects on any clinical outcome. Before-after studies showed reductions in inpatient mortality (RR = 0.82, 95% CI: 0.74-0.91) and cardiac arrest (RR = 0.73, 95% CI: 0.65-0.83). However, these studies were of poor methodological quality, and control hospitals in the RCT reported reductions in mortality and cardiac arrest rates comparable to those in the before-after studies. CONCLUSIONS Published studies of RRSs have not found consistent improvement in clinical outcomes and have been of poor methodological quality. The positive results of before-after trials likely reflects secular trends and biased outcome ascertainment, as the improved outcomes they reported were of similar magnitude to those of the control group in the RCT. The effectiveness of the RRS concept remains unproven.
Heterogeneity of clonal development in chronic myeloproliferative disorders

Recent reports have suggested a previously unexpected variability in the expression of the dominant neoplastic clone in myeloproliferative disorders (MPD). We evaluated 49 female patients with MPD and informative at the X‐linked androgen receptor (AR) locus to establish the X chromosome inactivation pattern of hemopoietic cells. Whereas in chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) the granulocytes (PMN) were uniformly of monoclonal origin, a striking heterogeneity of clonal development was found in PMN from patients with other MPD, with up to 50% of them expressing a polyclonal pattern of X inactivation. Am. J. Hematol. 60:158–160, 1999. © 1999 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.