Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Immobilization and catalytic properties of lipase on chitosan for hydrolysis and esterification reactions

The objective of this study was to evaluate the immobilization of lipase on a chitosan support by physical adsorption, aiming at its application in hydrolytic and synthetic reactions. Two types of chitosan (flakes and porous) were used for immobilizing lipase from a microbial source (Candida rugosa) and animal cells (porcine pancreas). The best results for recovery of total activity after immobilization were obtained for microbial lipase and porous chitosan beads. This set was selected for further immobilization studies, including full characterization of the immobilized derivative in aqueous and organic media. In aqueous medium, the operational and thermal stabilities of this preparation were quantified. In organic medium, the direct synthesis of n-butyl butyrate in organic solvent was chosen as a model reaction. The influence of several parameters, such as temperature, initial butyric acid concentration and amount of enzyme in the reaction system, was analyzed. Production of n-butyl butyrate was optimized and an ester yield response equation was obtained, making it possible to predict ester yields from known values of the three main factors. Use of this immobilized preparation was extended to the direct esterification of a large range of carboxylic acids (from C2 to C12) with a variety of alcohols (from C2 to C10).
Pemetrexed versus gefitinib as a second-line treatment in advanced nonsquamous nonsmall-cell lung cancer patients harboring wild-type EGFR (CTONG0806): a multicenter randomized trial.

BACKGROUND CTONG0806 assessed the efficacy of pemetrexed versus gefitinib as second-line treatment in advanced nonsquamous nonsmall-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) harboring wild-type epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). PATIENTS AND METHODS Patients with locally advanced or metastatic nonsquamous NSCLC harboring wild-type EGFR, detected by direct sequencing, and previously treated with platinum-based chemotherapy were randomized to receive gefitinib (250 mg/day) orally or pemetrexed (500 mg/m(2)) i.v. on day 1 of a 21-day cycle until disease progression or unacceptable toxicity. The primary end point was progression-free survival (PFS). The Independent Review Committee (IRC) evaluated all pictorial data. RESULTS From February 2009 to August 2012, 161 patients were enrolled, and 157 were assessable (81 in the gefitinib arm, 76 in the pemetrexed arm). Baseline characteristics were balanced between the two arms. The median PFSs were 4.8 versus 1.6 months in the pemetrexed and gefitinib arms, respectively [hazard ratio (HR) 0.54, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.40-0.75, P < 0.001] as confirmed by IRC evaluation (5.6versus 1.7 months, HR 0.53, 95% CI 0.38-0.75, P < 0.001). The median overall survival (OS) showed a trend of superiority in the pemetrexed arm (12.4 versus 9.6 months, HR 0.72, 95% CI 0.49-1.04, P = 0.077). Quality-of-life assessment showed no marked difference between the arms. No unexpected adverse events were found. Of 108 patients with sufficient DNA samples, EGFR mutation status was re-tested by Scorpion amplification refractory mutation system (ARMS); 32 (29.6%) tested positive (19 in the pemetrexed arm, 13 in the gefitinib arm; median PFS: 8.1 versus 7.0 months, HR 0.94, 95% CI 0.43-2.08, P = 0.877). CONCLUSIONS CTONG0806 is the first trial to show significant improvement in PFS and an improved OS trend with pemetrexed compared with gefitinib as second-line setting treatment of EGFR wild-type advanced nonsquamous NSCLC. ARMS is superior to direct sequencing in excluding false-negative patients. CLINICALTRIALSGOV IDENTIFIER NCT00891579.
Acrylonitrile‐induced oxidative DNA damage in rat astrocytes

Chronic administration of acrylonitrile results in a dose‐related increase in astrocytomas in rat brain, but the mechanism of acrylonitrile carcinogenicity is not fully understood. The potential of acrylonitrile or its metabolites to induce direct DNA damage as a mechanism for acrylonitrile carcinogenicity has been questioned, and recent studies indicate that the mechanism involves the induction of oxidative stress in rat brain. The present study examined the ability of acrylonitrile to induce DNA damage in the DI TNC1 rat astrocyte cell line using the alkaline Comet assay. Oxidized DNA damage also was evaluated using formamidopyrimidine DNA glycosylase treatment in the modified Comet assay. No increase in direct DNA damage was seen in astrocytes exposed to sublethal concentrations of acrylonitrile (0–1.0 mM) for 24 hr. However, acrylonitrile treatment resulted in a concentration‐related increase in oxidative DNA damage after 24 hr. Antioxidant supplementation in the culture media (α‐tocopherol, (−)−epigallocathechin‐3 gallate, or trolox) reduced acrylonitrile‐induced oxidative DNA damage. Depletion of glutathione using 0.1 mM DL‐buthionine‐[S,R]‐sulfoximine increased acrylonitrile‐induced oxidative DNA damage (22–46%), while cotreatment of acrylonitrile with 2.5 mM L‐2‐oxothiazolidine‐4‐carboxylic acid, a precursor for glutathione biosynthesis, significantly reduced acrylonitrile‐induced oxidative DNA damage (7–47%). Cotreatment of acrylonitrile with 0.5 mM 1‐aminobenzotriazole, a suicidal inhibitor of cytochrome P450, prevented the oxidative DNA damage produced by acrylonitrile. Cyanide (0.1–0.5 mM) increased oxidative DNA damage (44–160%) in astrocytes. These studies demonstrate that while acrylonitrile does not directly damage astrocyte DNA, it does increase oxidative DNA damage. The oxidative DNA damage following acrylonitrile exposure appears to arise mainly through the P450 metabolic pathway; moreover, glutathione depletion may contribute to the induction of oxidative DNA damage by acrylonitrile. Environ. Mol. Mutagen. , 2006. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
The Organisation: Risk, Resilience and Governance

Organisations are a fundamental part of our society and economic system whether they are private, public or not-for-profits. There are very few aspects of our society and economy that don't rely wholly or in part on the performance of organisations. Disasters and crises are complex and very challenging environments for organisations. How can effective transformational and adaptive capacity become institutionalised and a core part of good governance of organisations? Effective risk management is a critical element in meeting organisational objectives in a turbulent and uncertain environment.
In vitro activity of fosfomycin against Escherichia coli strains isolated from recurrent urinary tract infections

Aim To investigate the prevalence of susceptibility of E.coli isolates causing recurrent urinary tract infections (UTIs) to fosfomycin. Methods A total of 679 urine samples obtained from 524 patients with UTI prediagnosis, which revealed E.coli in the microbiological culture in the period between August 2011 and January 2013 was included in the study. Antimicrobial susceptibility was determined by disk diffusion method according to Clinical and Laboratory Standard Institute (CLSI). Recurrent UTI was defined as UTI which occurred in the same patients at least twice at two different time periods that were more than two months after the previous infection in the 18-month-period of the study, all of which were caused by E.coli. Results Among 524 patients, ten isolates (1.9%) were found resistant to fosfomycin. With respect to fosfomycin resistance, no significant differences were found between extendedspectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL)-producing and ESBL-negative isolates (p=0.23). Resistance to fosfomycin was significantly higher in the recurrent UTI group (3/31; 9.7%) compared to the non-recurrent UTI group, (7/493; 1.4%) (p=0.03). Conclusion Fosfomycin is still a good alternative in E.colicaused UTIs. However, in recurrent UTI cases, resistance can develop to fosfomycin, so susceptibility to this agent should be determined.
Small choroidal melanoma.

In this issueof theArchives, the Collaborative Ocular Melanoma Study (COMS) Group reports on factors that are predictive of growth and treatment of small choroidal melanomas based on data generated from their small-tumor observational study. 1 Their article sets the stage for an ongoing debate in the evaluation and management of patients with presumed small choroidal melanomas. Uveal melanoma is the most common primary intraocular malignant neoplasm in adults. The management of patients with this malignancy has been a topic of controversy for decades. In 1985 the National Eye Institute,joined by the National Cancer Institute in 1991, funded the COMS Group to evaluate the treatment of choroidal melanoma. 2 The COMS was structured in 3 protocols: 2 randomized clinical trials to evaluate treatment of medium and large choroidal melanomas and a third, nonrandomized study of small choroidal melanomas. 3 The large-tumor treatment trial compared fractionated external beam radiotherapy prior
Numerical stress analysis of resin cracking in LSI plastic packages under temperature cyclic loading — Part III: Material properties and package geometries

In our previous reports [1], [2], geometries of the delaminations which are most likely to lead to resin cracking in large scale integration (LSI) packages subjected to temperature cyclic loading were identified for both Cu alloy and alloy 42 leadframe packages. In this paper, assuming these delaminations, we conduct comprehensive numerical stress analysis of resin cracking to study the effect of properties of encapsulant resin and die-bonding materials and the package geometry factors. The impacts of these design parameters on resin cracking are determined and package design guide is established.
Consumers’ identification with corporate brands: Brand prestige, anthropomorphism and engagement in social media

This paper aims to examine relationships between consumer-brand identification (CBI), brand prestige (BP), brand anthropomorphism (BA) and consumers’ active engagement in brand activities on social media in corporate brand settings. ,Data collected with an online survey on a sample randomly drawn from an online panel of consumers were used to test the proposed theoretical model. ,Anthropomorphism and prestige of corporate brands were found to positively influence consumer-brand identification. Also, CBI positively affects consumers’ active engagement and fully mediates the effect of BP and BA on consumers-brand engagement (CBE) with corporate brands. ,Further research in other markets and on a broader set of corporate brands would additionally validate results and enable comparisons of impacts among different brand categories. The data were gathered in one country, so further research in other markets would additionally validate results of this study. ,Chief executives responsible for corporate brand management are provided with some insights on how appropriate corporate brand identity management can strengthen CBI and stimulate CBE on social media. ,This paper provides some novel insights into the research on consumer-brand identification. It is the first study (to the authors’ knowledge) that empirically supports the positive influence of brand anthropomorphism on CBI in corporate brand settings. It also contributes to the clarification of previously inconsistent results of the influence of BP on CBI. By showing that consumers’ identification with a corporate brand plays a vital role in increasing consumers’ active engagement on social media, the study contributes to the relatively sparse body of research on CBE.
Exploration of Bee keeping as a coping strategy in a deregulated economy

This study examined the inputs used in honey production; investigated number ofhives colonized and determined the viability ofhoney production in Oyo State. All eighty-seven registered members ofBeekeepers Association ofNigeria, Oyo State chapter were interviewed through the use of questionnaire. All beekeepers (100%) made use ofbeehive, bee smoker, bee suit, rubber boot, pail andhandgloves; majority ofthe beekeepers (52.5%) colonized between 11 and20 hives and most respondents (65%) collected between 350.7 and 525 liters of honey per season. Almost 98% of the respondents'perceived honey production as a viable venture. From theforegoing, it is recommended that unemployed youths and graduates should be trained on the necessary skills andknowledge requiredfor honey production to make them self-reliant.
Determinants of tourist arrivals in European Mediterranean countries: Analysis of competitiveness

This research employs a gravity framework to evaluate the tourism in European Mediterranean countries. The paper analyses the destination competitiveness as a means for tourism attraction and also verifies whether more competitive countries can be used as a point of reference for the development of those lagging behind. The gravity equations are used because of their proven effectiveness in estimating other similar studies fields. The study focuses on the Mediterranean European countries, mainly due essentially, to the wide span of their positions along the TTCI ranking (Spain ranks first, whereas Montenegro is in 67th place). Results reveal that these European destinations are not efficiently exploiting their tourism capacity and they need apply policies to foster this economic activity and enable the transformation of competitiveness into greater numbers of visitors.
The Distributional Effects of Taxes and Transfers Under Alternative Income Concepts

This article investigates how the distribution of income changes when the standard disposable income (DI) is replaced by an extended income (EI) concept that includes the three “I”s: indirect taxes, imputed rent, and in-kind benefits. Second, it assesses the distributional effects of the main types of tax-benefit instruments under different income concepts. The analysis covers three European countries (Belgium, Greece, and the United Kingdom) characterized by substantially different tax-benefit systems. The overall redistributive effect of the tax-benefit systems depends heavily on the income concept considered and the differences across countries are smaller when considering the EI. Moreover, the common use of a narrower income concept, such as the DI, can lead to the overestimation of the redistributive effect of the cash tax-benefit instruments (in relative terms), the extent of this varying across countries, due to the size and distribution of three “I”s and the adoption of the needs-adjusted equivalence scale.
Trust-based Incentive Mechanisms for Community-based Multiagent Systems

In this thesis we study peer-based communities which are online communities whose services are provided by their participant agents. In order to improve the services an agent enjoys in these communities, we need to improve the services other agents offer. Towards this goal, we propose a novel solution which allows communities to share the experience of their members with other communities. The experience of a community with an agent is captured in the evaluation rating of the agent within the community, which can either represent the trustworthiness or the reputation of the agent. We argue that exchanging this information is the right way to improve the services the agent offers since it: i) exploits the information that each community accumulates to allow other communities to decide whether to accept the agent while it also puts pressure on the agent to behave well, since it is aware that any misbehaviour will be spread to the communities it might wish to join in the future, ii) can prevent the agent from overstretching itself among many communities, since this may lead the agent to provide very limited services to each of these communities due to its limited resources, and thus its trustworthiness and reputation might be compromised. We study mechanisms that can be used to facilitate the exchange of trust or reputation information between communities. We make two key contributions. First, we propose a graph-based model which allows a particular community to determine which other communities to ask information from. We leverage consistency of past information and provide an equilibrium analysis showing that communities are best-off when they truthfully report the requested information, and describe how payments should be made to support the equilibrium. Our second contribution is a promise-based trust model where agents are judged based on the contributions they promise and deliver to the community. We outline a set of desirable properties such a model must exhibit, provide an instantiation, and an empirical evaluation.
Premature Delivery and Subsequent Reproduction

To examine the relationship between premature delivery and subsequent reproductive behavior, we attempted to trace 100 mothers four years after the birth of a surviving preterm or term infant. Seventy mothers were successfully traced. Maternal age, ethnicity, gravidity, parity, religion, and socioeconomic status, and the sex, birthweight, gestational age, mode of delivery, and hospital days of the index infant were jointly related to three outcome measures: occurrence of subsequent pregnancy, and, among those who again became pregnant, pregnancy interval and number of subsequent children. Among women who had one or more subsequent births during the follow-up period, those whose index infants were of lower gestational age had fewer subsequent births (r = 0.602, df = 32, p less than 0.011). No other variables, including cesarean birth, were significantly related to later reproductive behavior. These findings indicate that the birth of a premature infant may have a significant effect of decreasing or delaying subsequent reproduction. Through confirmatory studies are needed, awareness of this relationship may help obstetric perinatologists and neonatologists sensitively discuss plans for contraception and further childbearing with women who have experienced the stress of the birth of a premature infant.
Pregnancy Induces Expression of cPLA2 in Ovine Uterine Artery but Not Systemic Artery Endothelium

Objective: To determine whether pregnancy increases cytosolic phospholipase A2 (cPLA2) expression in uterine artery (UA) endothelial cells and vascular smooth-muscle (VSM) cells, and whether ovarian steroid mediate this effect. Methods: Uterine arteries and omnetal arteries (systemic control) were isolated from pregnant (120-130 days' gestation) ewes and from nonpregnant ewes synchronized to the corresponding phases of the ovarian cycle (follicular or luteal) or ovariectomized. In addition, ovariectomized ewes were treated with vehicle, estradiol-17β (E2β), progesterone (P4), or combined E2β/P4 for 10 days, and UAs were collected. Arteries from all studies were separated into mechanically isolated endothelial and VSM fractions. Proteins were then solubilized and separated on 7.5% sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis followed by Western immunoblotting using an affinity-purified mouse monoclonal antibody for cPLA2 . Results: Both UA endothelium and VSM fractions were seen to express cPLA2, detected as a single band with a molecuular mass similar to that observed in myometrium (about 100 kD). Distribution of cPLA2, when expressed per microgram of protein, was observed as 40% in UA endothelium compared with 60% in VSM fractions. Uterine artery endothelial cPLA2 expression was specifically increased 1.9-fold in pregnancy (P < .05), whereas there was no significant change from VSM. Furthermore, in variectomized sheep versus intact luteal or follicular phase animals, there was no significant change in cPLA2 expression in endothelium or VSM. Administration of E2β, P4, or their combination in ovariectomized sheep also failed to reproduce the pregnancy-induced increase in cPLA2 expression in UA endothelium. Omental artery endothelial and VSM cPLA2 expression was observed at similar magnitudes as UA expression, but levels were consistently unchanged by pregnancy, the ovarian cycle, or ovariectomy. Conclusions: cPLA2 was expressed throughout the endothelium and VSM of both uterine and omental arteries, but only in UA endothelium was pregnancy associated with elevated cPLA2 expression. The lack of change in cPLA2 expression with the ovarian cycle or in ovariectomized animals, even after prolonged treatment with E2β, P4, or E2β/P4 combined suggests this pregnancy-induced increase in cPLA2 may not be estrogen and/or progesterone dependent.
Activity of dalbavancin against staphylococci and streptococci, assessed by BSAC and NCCLS agar dilution methods.

BACKGROUND Dalbavancin is a long-half-life (9-12 days) glycopeptide, now in Phase 3 development. Its pharmacokinetics may facilitate home intravenous therapy, early discharge and long prophylaxis. METHODS Dalbavancin and comparators were tested in vitro against staphylococci and streptococci to determine (i) activity and (ii) the comparability of agar dilution MICs by the BSAC and the NCCLS methods. The test panels comprised 92-93 isolates each of Staphylococcus aureus, coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS) and 'viridans' streptococci, chosen for epidemiological diversity and to over-represent strains resistant to conventional agents, including teicoplanin. RESULTS Dalbavancin MICs by the BSAC and NCCLS methods generally were identical, or else those by the BSAC method were two-fold lower. In both cases the MIC distributions of dalbavancin within species groups were unimodal, with peaks at 0.25, 0.12/0.25 and 0.12 mg/L for S. aureus, CoNS and viridans streptococci, respectively. MIC differences between the BSAC and NCCLS methods were similarly small for other glycopeptides and, generally, non-glycopeptides. Dalbavancin MICs were mostly two- to 16-fold below those of vancomycin and dalbavancin-like vancomycin-remained highly active against teicoplanin-non-susceptible staphylococci. CONCLUSIONS Dalbavancin has good activity versus streptococci and staphylococci, including teicoplanin-resistant strains. MICs by BSAC and NCCLS agar dilution methods were comparable to each other; slightly lower MIC values, nevertheless, have been recorded by broth microdilution.
Repeated cycles of chronic intermittent ethanol exposure leads to the development of tolerance to aversive effects of ethanol in C57BL/6J mice.

BACKGROUND Repeated cycles of chronic intermittent ethanol (CIE) exposure lead to increased voluntary ethanol (EtOH) intake in C57BL/6J mice. This study evaluates the development of tolerance to EtOH's aversive effects in CIE exposure. METHODS Adult male C57BL/6J mice were trained to drink 15% EtOH (vs. water) in a limited access procedure and then exposed to CIE (EtOH mice) or air (control [CTL] mice) for 5 cycles alternating with weekly access to EtOH drinking. Following the 4th CIE cycle, the aversive effects of EtOH were evaluated using a conditioned taste aversion (CTA) paradigm with 1% saccharin as the conditioned stimulus. Several doses of EtOH (0, 1, 2, and 3 g/kg) and LiCl (0.4 M, 0.02 ml/g) served as unconditioned stimuli. Finally, mice underwent a 5th CIE cycle to measure blood and brain concentrations following a 2 g/kg EtOH dose. RESULTS CIE exposure increased EtOH drinking in EtOH mice while drinking in CTL mice remained stable. The lowest EtOH dose (1 g/kg) did not induce CTA in either group, but the highest dose (3 g/kg) produced CTA in both groups (49% reduction for CTL vs. 25% reduction for EtOH) although the group differences were not statistically significant. However, the 2 g/kg EtOH dose induced a significant aversion in CTL mice (27% reduction) but not in EtOH mice (20% increase), indicating tolerance to EtOH's aversive effects. LiCl caused a similar aversion in CTL and EtOH mice (50% reduction). Finally, blood and brain ethanol concentrations were not different between CTL and EtOH mice following a 2 g/kg EtOH dose. CONCLUSIONS The data indicate that CIE exposure produces tolerance to the aversive effects of 2 g/kg EtOH. This effect does not appear to be related to a learning deficit or altered EtOH pharmacokinetics. These data support the notion that tolerance to EtOH's aversive effects may contribute to excessive EtOH drinking in EtOH-dependent mice.