Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The effect of environmental temperature on exercise-dependent release of brain-derived neurotrophic factor

ABSTRACT Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is a biomarker of cognitive function that is released into the blood stream following exercise, and cognitive function is impaired by environmental temperatures that are hot and cold. Purpose: To evaluate the exercise-dependent release of BDNF in different environmental temperatures. Methods: Recreationally trained males each completed three trials consisting of cycling for 1 h at 60% Wmax at three different temperatures: 33°C (hot), 7°C (cold), and 20°C (moderate room temperature). Blood was taken from the antecubital vein pre-exercise, immediately post-exercise, and 3 h post-exercise. Respiratory gases were collected periodically throughout exercise and recovery. Results: BDNF was elevated immediately following an exercise bout (1711 ± 766 pg·ml−1) regardless of temperature from pre-exercise (1257 ± 653 pg·ml−1, p = 0.001) and returned to basal levels following 3 h of recovery (1289 ± 650 pg·ml−1, p = 0.786). There was no effect (p > 0.05) of temperature on BDNF following the exercise bout. Plasma glucose was elevated in hot (6.2 ± 0.9 mmol) over cold (5.3 ± 0.6 mmol, p = 0.035) and moderate room temperature (5.2 ± 0.5, p = 0.008). VO2 was elevated during exercise in hot (3.01 ± 0.45 L·min−1) over cold (2.67 ± 0.35 L·min−1, p = 0.005) and moderate room temperature (2.80 ± 0.38 L·min−1, p = 0.001). There was no relationship between BDNF and plasma glucose (p > 0.05) or VO2 across any time point or temperature (p > 0.05). Conclusion: With aerobic exercise, BDNF is elevated; however, the release of BDNF is not impacted by different environmental temperatures during exercise.
DETERMINANTES DA QUALIDADE DA GOVERNANÇA CORPORATIVA DAS COMPANHIAS ABERTAS BRASILEIRAS

This paper investigates the determinants of firm-level corporate governance of Brazilian listed companies, trying to uncover which firm’s characteristics lead some companies to have higher corporate governance ratings than others in the same contractual environment. A corporate governance index was built based on four dimensions considered important by the literature for evaluating governance practices: access to information; information content; Board of Directors’ structure; and ownership and control structure. A multiple regression analysis was conducted using cross-sectional data from a sample of 161 companies and a set of explanatory variables whose choice was based on the relevant literature. The results suggest that ownership structure influences corporate governance ratings. Specifically, it was found a significant negative relation between control rights held by controlling shareholders and the corporate governance level of quality. A similar negative relation was obtained between control rights in excess of cash flow rights of controlling shareholders and the corporate governance rating. Furthermore, the results indicate that larger companies, ADR issuers, and firms with better performance display, on average, better corporate governance. The adhesion to Bovespa's corporate governance differentiated levels does not seem to influence firm’s governance ratings.
Forensic Analytics: Methods and Techniques for Forensic Accounting Investigations

DESCRIPTION Discover how to detect fraud, biases, or errors in your data using Access or Excel With over 300 images, Forensic Analytics reviews and shows how twenty substantive and rigorous tests can be used to detect fraud, errors, estimates, or biases in your data. For each test, the original data is shown with the steps needed to get to the final result. The tests range from high-level data overviews to assess the reasonableness of data, to highly focused tests that give small samples of highly suspicious transactions. These tests are relevant to your organization, whether small or large, for profit, nonprofit, or government-related.
Detection of antibodies to Ureaplasma urealyticum in pregnant women by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay using membrane antigen and investigation of the significance of the antibodies

Optimal conditions of a microenzyme-linked immunosorbent assay using a group-specific membrane antigen of Ureaplasma urealyticum serotype 7 were established with rabbit antisera and applied for the evaluation of immunoglobulin M (IgM) and IgG antibodies in 139 serum specimens from pregnant women between 26 and 38 weeks of gestation, and the assay was compared with microorganism culture and investigated to determine the role of U. urealyticum in perinatal morbidity and mortality. U. urealyticum was isolated from 75 (54%) of 139 patients; 40 had a colonization greater than or equal to 10(6) cells per ml of swab (29%); 64 (85%) of 75 culture-positive patients had IgG antibodies (absorbance mean, 0.650), versus 4 (6%) of 64 culture-negative patients (absorbance mean, 0.103) (P less than 0.001). There was no cross-reactivity with Chlamydia trachomatis infection from patients from whom no mycoplasmas were isolated, but this cross-reactivity occurred in 24% of patients with other mycoplasma infections. There was a good correlation between quantitative evaluation of U. urealyticum colonization and antibody level (P less than 0.05). However, IgM antibody was found in 30% of culture-positive patients but also in 25% of the culture-negative group. Frequency of U. urealyticum colonization was greater in unmarried young women (less than 25 years old) with a history of genital infection, and a significantly greater frequency was detected in patients who smoked (P less than 0.01) and had a lower socioeconomic status (P less than 0.001). A lower infant birth weight was more associated with U. urealyticum colonization greater than or equal to 10(5) cells per ml. The enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay provided an additional means to diagnose and evaluate U. urealyticum infection in pregnant women.
The Viable-but-Nonculturable Condition Is Induced by Copper in Agrobacterium tumefaciens andRhizobium leguminosarum

ABSTRACT Many bacteria respond to changes in environmental conditions by entering the viable-but-nonculturable state. We have determined that copper can induce nutrient-starved Agrobacterium tumefaciens and Rhizobium leguminosarum cells to become viable but nonculturable. This is the first report of a chemical inducer of this condition.
Analysis of true jitter arising from pulse-stuffing schemes

In synchronous digital hierarchy and plesiochronous digital hierarchy networks, it is frequently necessary to recover a data clock from a gapped clock derived from stuff information present at the desynchronizer. In this paper, a comprehensive analysis of the timing jitter resulting from phase-locked loop-type desynchronizers is presented. This analysis is different from the conventional analysis where the jitter is represented using a phase-error sequence. It is shown that such a simplified approach cannot accurately describe the jitter at the output of the desynchronizer. From the detailed analysis, it is also shown how the use of threshold modulation at the synchronizer reduces the low-frequency jitter at the desynchronizer. It has been demonstrated in the paper that when threshold modulation is used at the synchronizer, the dominating low-frequency jitter terms cannot be explained by the conventional jitter analysis methods. Therefore, in future networks, where tighter jitter performances are to be imposed on the synchronizers, jitter characterization using the proposed true jitter analysis technique would be very useful.
Stock Out Analysis: An Empirical Study on Forecasting, Re-Order Point and Safety Stock Level at PT Combiphar, Indonesia

Inventory is one of the most important assets in the companies, especially in manufacturing company. In the event of problems related to inventory, the company's business processes will be disrupted. One example of the inventory problems is stock out case. Stock out is a condition in which the company is unable to meet customer demand due to inventory shortage in the warehouse. This problem is common in manufacturing companies which adapted make to stock system, for example pharmaceutical companies. PT. Combiphar is one of the pharmaceutical company in Indonesia that adapting the system. With this system, the company is required to perform demand forecasting to avoid shortages or excess inventory in the future. Another thing that must be determined by the company is the re-ordering time and safety stock levels in anticipation of stock out in the warehouse due to the long lead time. Inventory management is an important aspect in supply chain management which can adjust level of inventory in the warehouse taking into costs such as: ordering cost, carrying cost and item cost. Inventory is needed to anticipate the stock out, avoid the price and lead time uncertainty. Economic Order Quantity (EOQ) is one of the inventory models that calculate the maximum inventory level to be ordered at the lowest cost. This study uses quantitative method, includes: forecasting calculation with double exponential smoothing models to determine the level of demand in 2013 and 2014, determining the re-order point and safety stock level to know when company have to order and how much inventory is anticipated, also EOQ calculations to know how many orders of raw materials at the lowest cost.
Chemical Immobilization of Red Foxes (Vulpes vulpes)

Red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) were immobilized with one of the following drug combinations: ketamine/xylazine (n = 22), ketamine/promazine (n = 35), ketamine/midazolam (n = 13), or tiletamine/zolazepam (n = 22). Foxes given ketamine/xylazine had the shortest induction and longest recovery times relative to other drug combinations, whereas foxes given ketamine/midazolam had the longest induction times. Recommended doses for the various combinations are given. Foxes given ketamine/xylazine were given either 0.1, 0.2, 0.4 mg/kg yohimbine, or saline 40 min after anesthetic induction. Administration of yohimbine significantly shortened arousal and recovery times relative to control values (P < 0.001).
Initial Public Offerings and Insider Participation: The Role of Venture Capitalists and Corporate Partners in the IPO Process

Past empirical research has shown that subscription precommitments by large blockholders can help certify firm value in new equity issues and influence the subscription decisions of small, relatively uninformed investors. We propose that subscription precommitments and insider buying by preexisting investors during the IPO acts as a bonding mechanism for credible certification of the IPO issue price and provides a direct proxy for ex ante uncertainty about an IPO’s valuation. This paper examines the association between insider participation and IPO underpricing, price revision, and post-IPO stock return volatility. We find that insider participation is unassociated with IPO underpricing, but when disentangling venture capitalists and corporate partners, the latter is associated with lower IPO underpricing. On the contrary, venture capitalist participation is negatively associated with price revisions and remains robust when examining changes in venture capitalist participation in the bookbuilding period. A detailed analysis of ownership data documents in many instances a continuing role for venture capitalists as shareholders in the years after going public, which is consistent with the certification hypothesis. This paper sheds light on the role of venture capitalists and corporate partners in the initial public offering process and contrasts past research considering IPOs as exit events.
Comparative genomics reveals conservation of filaggrin and loss of caspase-14 in dolphins

The expression of filaggrin and its stepwise proteolytic degradation are critical events in the terminal differentiation of epidermal keratinocytes and in the formation of the skin barrier to the environment. Here, we investigated whether the evolutionary transition from a terrestrial to a fully aquatic lifestyle of cetaceans, that is dolphins and whales, has been associated with changes in genes encoding filaggrin and proteins involved in the processing of filaggrin. We used comparative genomics, PCRs and re‐sequencing of gene segments to screen for the presence and integrity of genes coding for filaggrin and proteases implicated in the maturation of (pro)filaggrin. Filaggrin has been conserved in dolphins (bottlenose dolphin, orca and baiji) but has been lost in whales (sperm whale and minke whale). All other S100 fused‐type genes have been lost in cetaceans. Among filaggrin‐processing proteases, aspartic peptidase retroviral‐like 1 (ASPRV1), also known as saspase, has been conserved, whereas caspase‐14 has been lost in all cetaceans investigated. In conclusion, our results suggest that filaggrin is dispensable for the acquisition of fully aquatic lifestyles of whales, whereas it appears to confer an evolutionary advantage to dolphins. The discordant evolution of filaggrin, saspase and caspase‐14 in cetaceans indicates that the biological roles of these proteins are not strictly interdependent.
Porphyromonas gingivalis-Induced Reactive Oxygen Species Activate JAK2 and Regulate Production of Inflammatory Cytokines through c-Jun

ABSTRACT Pathogen-induced reactive oxygen species (ROS) play a crucial role in host innate immune responses through regulating the quality and quantity of inflammatory mediators. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms of this effect have yet to be clarified. In this study, we examined the mechanism of action of ROS stimulated by Porphyromonas gingivalis in gingival epithelial cells. P. gingivalis induced the rapid production of ROS, which lead to the phosphorylation of JAK2 and increased levels of secreted proinflammatory cytokines interleukin-6 (IL-6) and IL-1β. Neutralization of ROS by N-acetyl-l-cysteine (NAC) abrogated the phosphorylation of JAK2 and suppressed the production of IL-6 and IL-1β. ROS-mediated phosphorylation of JAK2 induced the phosphoactivation of c-Jun amino-terminal protein kinase (JNK) and the downstream transcriptional regulator c-Jun. Inhibition of JAK2, either pharmacologically or by small interfering RNA (siRNA), reduced both the phosphorylation of these molecules and the production of proinflammatory cytokines in response to P. gingivalis. Furthermore, pharmacological inhibition or siRNA-mediated gene silencing of JNK or c-Jun mimicked the effect of JAK2 inhibition to suppress P. gingivalis-induced IL-6 and IL-1β levels. The results show that ROS-mediated activation of JAK2 is required for P. gingivalis-induced inflammatory cytokine production and that the JNK/c-Jun signaling axis is involved in the ROS-dependent regulation of IL-1β and IL-6 production.
Factors affecting the age at menopause

Summary A postal questionnaire was sent out in September 1977 to all women aged between 40 and 60 years in Ede, the Netherlands. The design of the study was similar to that used by Jaszmann et al. in 1967 in the same locality. The response rate was 66·6%. Data were analysed using theprobit analysis, a segmentation analysis and by applying chi-squared tests to cross tabulations. The median age at menopause was 51·7 years, 3 months later than in 1967. When, however, women who were taking oral contraceptives at the time of the survey were excluded the median age at menopause was found to be virtually the same as 10 years previously. The effect of factors associated with early or late menopause was studied. The results are discussed. The concept of a secular trend is briefly commented upon.
Online-Offline Channel Switching Behaviour of Retail Consumers: Towards a Model of Consumer Value

This thesis explores the factors driving the online buying decision process and answers the research question: “What and why do consumers purchase online? ” The objectives of this thesis in pursuit of the research question were to determine: The types of retail products consumers search for, evaluate and purchase online, the factors influencing the consumer to shop solely online and solely offline, the factors influencing the consumer to switch from the online to the offline retail channel and vice versa to make their purchase, and the development and testing of a consumer value model. The methodology adopted for this research comprised three distinct stages, a literature review, a qualitative exploration consisting of depth interviews and focus groups and finally, a quantitative survey of the Australian population. The theoretical implications of this research are: the identification of product attributes as the key driver of the consumer value creation process, the identification of product and pricing information as the key channel switching drivers during the buying decision process, the identification of the development of consumer trust as a function of product attributes and product and pricing information, confirmation that why consumer value is created is constant and how it is created is a function of the product under consideration, and the development of a model of consumer value. The practical implications of this research has identified: the likely impact of the online channel to incumbent retailers, the product types with the potential to be adapted to the online channel using current technology, and potential future product adaptations, and new product developments. The research conducted in this thesis has provided opportunities for further research in three areas; delimitations of scope, the further testing and validation of the scales and models developed and finally the methodology used. ; Submitted in fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, University of the Sunshine Coast, 2006.
Contrast affects the transmission of visual information through the mammalian lateral geniculate nucleus.

1. We recorded with one electrode action potentials of single principal cells in the lateral geniculate nucleus (l.g.n.) of cats and monkeys, together with their retinal inputs, recorded as synaptic potentials (S potentials; Bishop, Burke & Davis, 1958; Cleland, Dubin & Levick, 1971; Kaplan & Shapley, 1984). 2. We studied the effect of stimulus contrast on the transmission of visual information from the retina to the l.g. n. , compared the spontaneous discharge of l.g. n. cells with that of their retinal inputs, and studied the driven (modulated) and maintained (unmodulated) discharge of l.g. n. neurones and their retinal drives. 3. The spontaneous discharge of l.g. n. cells was considerably lower than that of their retinal drives. 4. The maintained (unmodulated) discharge of l.g. n. cells during stimulation was lower than that of their retinal drives, and was largely unaffected by the stimulus contrast. 5. The responses of both the retinal input and l.g. n. cells increased with contrast, but at different rates: a given increment of contrast caused a larger increment of response in the retinal input than in the l.g. n. target cells. 6. The transmission ratio (l.g.n. response/retinal response) for most cells depended upon the stimulus contrast. This dependence indicates the presence of a non‐linear contrast gain control. 7. The amount by which the l.g. n. attenuated the retinal input depended upon the temporal frequency, and, to a lesser extent, upon the spatial frequency of the stimulus. 8. The effect of contrast on signal transmission between the retina and l.g. n. was essentially the same in the macaque monkey as in the cat. 9. The attenuation of the retinal input by the l.g. n. contrast gain control could serve to prevent saturation and extend the dynamic range of cortical units, which probably receive input from several l.g. n. units.
On the Specific Role of the Occipital Cortex in Scene Perception

In recent years there has been mounting scientific excitement about the perception of scenes containing more realistic and complex stimuli than simple objects or drawings. Visual recognition of scenes is a fast, automatic and reliable process. Experimental studies have shown that complex natural scenes can be categorized in a very short time (under 150 ms [1]), suggesting a simple and efficient coding process. Many studies have attested to the importance of the Fourier components of images in scene categorization. In terms of signal representation, an image can be expressed in the Fourier domain as amplitude and phase spectra [2-5]. The amplitude spectrum highlights the dominant spatial scales (spatial frequencies) and the dominant orientations of the image, while the phase spectrum describes the relationship between spatial frequencies. It is now well established that the primary visual cortex is mainly dominated by complex cells which respond preferentially to orientations and spatial frequencies [6-8]. Simulation and psychophysical experiments have shown that information from low/medium frequencies of the amplitude spectrum is sufficient to enable scene categorization [9, 10]. These data support current influential models of scene perception [11-14].
ctivation of muscarinic M-3 receptor may decrease glucose uptake and lipolysis n adipose tissue of rats

Role of muscarinic receptor in the regulation of glucose uptake or lipolysis in adipose tissue remained unclear. In epididymal white adipose tissue (WAT) isolated from Wistar rats, we observed that acetylcholine (ACh) attenuated the insulin-stimulated glucose uptake and the release of glycerol from WAT
R&D, demand fluctuations and credit constraints: comparative evidence from Europe

This paper contributes to the literature by investigating whether the cyclicality of R&D differs across countries with different levels of development. The paper uses micro-data from the World Bank/EBRD Business Environment and Enterprise Performance survey from 2001- 2007 and estimates bivariate probit model of firms' R&D conditioned on credit constraints. The main results are: (1) The likelihood of a firm conducting R&D increases with sales growth and decreases with credit constraints. (2) R&D by firms is counter-cyclical to exogenous industry output and a negative industry demand shock has a stronger countercyclical effect on R&D than a positive industry demand shock does. (3) R&D is more counter-cyclical to demand shocks the further the country is from the technological frontier
Transgene-Induced Silencing of the Zoosporogenesis-Specific NIFC Gene Cluster of Phytophthora infestans Involves Chromatin Alterations

ABSTRACT Clustered within the genome of the oomycete phytopathogen Phytophthora infestans are four genes encoding spore-specific nuclear LIM interactor-interacting factors (NIF proteins, a type of transcriptional regulator) that are moderately conserved in DNA sequence. NIFC1, NIFC2, and NIFC3 are zoosporogenesis-induced and grouped within 4 kb, and 20 kb away resides a sporulation-induced form, NIFS. To test the function of the NIFC family, plasmids expressing full-length hairpin constructs of NIFC1 or NIFC2 were stably transformed into P. infestans. This triggered silencing of the cognate gene in about one-third of transformants, and all three NIFC genes were usually cosilenced. However, NIFS escaped silencing despite its high sequence similarity to the NIFC genes. Silencing of the three NIFC genes impaired zoospore cyst germination by 60% but did not affect other aspects of the life cycle. Silencing was transcriptional based on nuclear run-on assays and associated with tighter chromatin packing based on nuclease accessibility experiments. The chromatin alterations extended a few hundred nucleotides beyond the boundaries of the transcribed region of the NIFC cluster and were not associated with increased DNA methylation. A plasmid expressing a short hairpin RNA having sequence similarity only to NIFC1 silenced both that gene and an adjacent member of the gene cluster, likely due to the expansion of a heterochromatic domain from the targeted locus. These data help illuminate the mechanism of silencing in Phytophthora and suggest that caution should be used when interpreting silencing experiments involving closely spaced genes.