Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Oxidative stress as a mechanism of chronic cadmium-induced hepatotoxicity and renal toxicity and protection by antioxidants.

The role of oxidative stress in chronic cadmium (Cd) toxicity and its prevention by cotreatment with antioxidants was investigated. Adult female Sprague-Dawley rats were injected sc with 5 micromol CdCl2/kg/day, 5 times a week, for up to 22 weeks. Serum alanine amino transferase and lactate dehydrogenase activities were elevated after 9 weeks of Cd administration, indicating hepatic damage. Renal toxicity, indicated by elevation in urinary lactate dehydrogenase activity and protein, was also observed around this time. Chronic Cd administration resulted in a gradual rise in hepatic as well as renal cortex glutathione levels. In spite of this, lipid peroxidation increased in both tissues, particularly during the second half of the Cd exposure period. Depletion of glutathione following buthionine sulfoximine administration at the end of Week 5, or inhibition of catalase by aminotriazole at the end of Week 7, resulted in the development of acute nephrotoxicity within 6 h. Coadministration of antioxidants, N-acetylcysteine (50-100 mg/kg, sc), or vitamin E (100-150 mg/kg, sc) with Cd, starting from the early phases of Cd exposure, controlled Cd-induced lipid peroxidation and protected the animals against hepatic as well as renal toxicity. A Japanese hepatoprotective drug, Stronger Neo-Minophagen C, containing glycyrrhizin, glycine, and cysteine, was also effective in reducing the chronic Cd nephrotoxicity. In conclusion, oxidative stress appears to play a major role in chronic Cd-induced hepatic and renal toxicity since inhibition of components of the antioxidant defense system accelerated and administration of antioxidants protected against Cd toxicity.
Regulation of intrinsic axon growth ability at retinal ganglion cell growth cones.

PURPOSE Mammalian central nervous system neurons fail to regenerate after injury or disease, in part due to a progressive loss in intrinsic axon growth ability after birth. Whether lost axon growth ability is due to limited growth resources or to changes in the axonal growth cone is unknown. METHODS Static and time-lapse images of purified retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) were analyzed for axon growth rate and growth cone morphology and dynamics without treatment and after manipulating Kruppel-like transcription factor (KLF) expression or applying mechanical tension. RESULTS Retinal ganglion cells undergo a developmental switch in growth cone dynamics that mirrors the decline in postnatal axon growth rates, with increased filopodial adhesion and decreased lamellar protrusion area in postnatal axonal growth cones. Moreover, expressing growth-suppressive KLF4 or growth-enhancing KLF6 transcription factors elicits similar changes in postnatal growth cones that correlate with axon growth rates. Postnatal RGC axon growth rate is not limited by an inability to achieve axon growth rates similar to embryonic RGCs; indeed, postnatal axons support elongation rates up to 100-fold faster than postnatal axonal growth rates. Rather, the intrinsic capacity for rapid axon growth is due to both growth cone pausing and retraction, as well as to a slightly decreased ability to achieve rapid instantaneous rates of forward progression. Finally, we observed that RGC axon and dendrite growth are regulated independently in vitro. CONCLUSIONS Together, these data support the hypothesis that intrinsic axon growth rate is regulated by an axon-specific growth program that differentially regulates growth cone motility.
Double-Row Repair Lowers the Retear Risk After Accelerated Rehabilitation

Background: Recently, an accelerated rehabilitation protocol after rotator cuff (RC) repair has been proposed for patients at risk of postoperative stiffness. Purpose: To investigate, in patients undergoing early accelerated mobilization, whether double-row (DR) repair provides better clinical outcomes and a lower retear rate compared with single-row (SR) configurations. Study Design: Randomized controlled trial; Level of evidence, 1. Methods: A total of 58 patients were randomized to undergo either SR or DR repair. After 2 years of follow-up, 12 men and 13 women (mean age, 61.8 years; range, 52-67 years) in the SR group and 15 men and 10 women (mean age, 58.9 years; range, 51-69 years) in the DR group were evaluated. To assess the retear rate, magnetic resonance imaging of the shoulder was performed at 2-year follow-up. The clinical evaluation was based on the modified University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) shoulder score and range of motion (ROM) measurements. Results: Magnetic resonance arthrography showed a significantly lower full-thickness retear rate for the DR group than for the SR group (8% vs 24%, respectively; P < .05). Conversely, at both 6-month and 2-year follow-up, there was no statistically significant difference in terms of the rate of stiffness in the SR and DR groups (8% vs 12% and 0% vs 0%, respectively; P > .05). No clinical differences were recorded regarding the UCLA score (SR group: mean, 32.6 [range, 30-35]; DR group: mean, 33.3 [range, 29-35]; P = .61) and ROM. Conclusion: In selected patients at a high risk of shoulder stiffness and therefore necessitating accelerated postoperative rehabilitation, DR repair of the RC could lower retear rates.
Bimanual coordination during a goal‐directed task in children with hemiplegic cerebral palsy

Most studies of impaired hand function in children with hemiplegic cerebral palsy (CP) have focused on either the involved or the non‐involved extremity in isolation. Coordination of the involved and non‐involved hand during bimanual tasks in these children is not well understood. The present study examined bimanual coordination using a drawer‐opening task under speed and hand constraints in 10 children with hemiplegic CP (5 males and 5 females, mean age 13y 5mo, range 8y to 16y) and 10 age‐matched right‐handed developing typically children (6 males and 4 females, mean age 13y 1mo). Children were asked to reach forward and open a drawer with one hand and then activate a light switch inside the drawer with the contralateral hand. The role of the two hands (open drawer and activate switch) and speed (self‐paced vs fast‐as‐possible) were varied. The children with hemiplegic CP were slower (p<0.001) and less coordinated in this task, with reduced movement overlap of the two hands (p<0.001) and sequential completion of the two movement objectives (p<0.001). Moreover, the hand used for each task subcomponent affected task performance for the children with hemiplegic CP (p<0.05). Interestingly, faster speed facilitated better bimanual coordination for the children with hemiplegic CP (p<0.001). Results highlight the importance of movement constraints on task performance and suggest that movement speed might facilitate better bimanual coordination.
Factors Influencing Physician Assistant Program Choice Among Pre‐Physician Assistant Students

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine the factors that are most important to the pre‐physician assistant (PA) student when choosing among two or more PA programs. Methods: Seventy‐four pre‐PA students completed a survey that assessed the importance of 33 decision factors pertaining to program selection. Results: The five decision factors with the highest importance score were quality of faculty and staff, quality and availability of clinical rotations, tuition, morale of faculty and staff, and a positive interview experience. Additionally, this study showed that specific decision factors are more important to specific groups of pre‐PA students, based on gender, marital status, and age. Conclusion: Knowing what decision factors are important to pre‐PA students may empower PA programs to modify program characteristics to retain more accepted students.
Infrastructure financing and economic growth in India: an empirical investigation

Purpose This paper aims to suggest the preferred mode of financing for major sub-sectors of infrastructure: roads, seaports, telecommunication and energy by examining which mode of infrastructure financing – public, private or public–private partnership (PPP) – has the maximum positive impact on the overall GDP of India. The same exercise was carried out for the overall infrastructure sector by integrating data from all the four sub-sectors. Design/methodology/approach The structural vector autoregressive approach was used with the period of analysis taken from 1995 to 2014. The stationary properties of the variables were checked by the Phillips–Perron unit root. Findings The PPP mode of financing was found to make the maximum positive impact on the GDP of India. Considering the four sub-sectors individually, it was concluded that the private mode of financing in roads, energy and telecom sectors has the maximum positive impact on the GDP, while the PPP gives optimal benefit to the seaports sector. Practical implications Results will aid the Indian Government and policymakers to efficiently design and develop their economic policies accordingly. Originality/value The study is novel in a sense that it helps to address the lack of research into the area of infrastructure financing in India.
Analysis of The Effect of Monetary Policy on Government Sharia Securities (SBSN) in Indonesia

Outstanding Government Sharia Securities (SBSN) in Indonesia from the first published on 2008 continued to experience significant growth. Monetary indicators often associated with capital markets are inflation, exchange rate and interest rate (BI Rate) show a fluctuating pattern, these factors can inhibitSBSN growth.This study aims to analyze the effect of monetary policy(inflation, exchange rate and BI Rate) on Government Sharia Securities (SBSN) and the contribution of Government Sharia Securities (SBSN) tothe state budget(APBN). Using monthly time series data from January 2010 until July 2016 and Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL), the estimation results conclude that there is a co-integration in the models studied. While the estimation result of ARDL shows in the long term, exchange rate significantly has an effect on SBSN. While inflation and BI Rate have no significant effect on SBSN either in the short or long term. This study also shows the positive contribution of SBSN as deficit financing and development project. Therefore, the government must optimize the state sukuk by increasing the issuance of state sukuk in the structure of the state budget and supported by the control of inflation and exchange rate. For investors can take advantage of the state sukuk to invest, this is consistent with the insignificant effect of interest rate so that the investment is safe with sharia principles.
Toxicological evaluation of an electrically heated cigarette. Part 1: Overview of technical concepts and summary of findings

This series of papers provides a description of the toxicological evaluation of an electrically heated cigarette (EHC). With this novel cigarette design the tobacco is heated by a series of electric heating elements, which allows for greater control of the available heat and results in lower temperatures and less combustion compared with conventional lit‐end cigarettes. This design was subjected to testing, including an evaluation of smoke chemistry, in vitro bacterial genotoxicity, in vitro mammalian cell cytotoxicity and a 90‐day smoke inhalation study in rats. A conventional lit‐end cigarette, the University of Kentucky Reference Cigarette 1R4F, was used as a point of comparison in these experiments. When adjusted for the yield of total particulate matter, the EHC delivered 50% lower amounts of about two‐thirds of the 69 smoke constituents measured. Mutagenic activity (Salmonella reverse mutation assay) of the particulate phase material in the presence of metabolic activation was ca. 90% lower, with a slight reduction of activity in the absence of metabolic activation. Cytotoxic activity (neutral red assay) of the particulate phase material was ca. 40% lower, with about equal activity of the gas/vapor‐phase material. Equal activity was noted between cigarette types in a whole smoke rat inhalation assay. The results from this series of tests demonstrate that the EHC produces a much different smoke — with an at least partially reduced yield of smoke constituents and biological activity — from that of a standard reference cigarette. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Dietary prevention of malignant glioma aggressiveness, implications in oxidant stress and apoptosis

Our study explored the influence of diet on gliomagenesis and associated systemic effects (SE) in rats. The experimental diet contained various ingredients supposed to interfere with carcinogenesis, mainly phytochemicals (PtcD for phytochemical diet) and its effects were compared to those of the same diet without the phytochemicals (BD for basal diet). Glioma was induced by ethylnitrosourea to pregnant females fed the diets from the start of gestation until the moment of sacrifice of the offpsrings. In male rats fed the PtcD or the BD the incidence of gliomas was markedly reduced compared to rats fed a standard diet (StD). In females this effect was weaker and was limited to the PtcD. A significant proportion of rats with brain tumors and fed the StD exhibited SE evidenced by weight loss, a shorter survival, reduction in liver weight and an increased proportion of liver mitochondria, effects that were not observed in their counterpart fed PtcD. Comparison of the expression of genes involved in the balance proliferation/apoptosis and in the response to oxidative stress in male brain tumors showed that the prevention of SE was associated with an increase in bcl‐2 and catalase and a decrease in ki‐67, sod‐1 and sod‐2 transcripts. These results show that the degree of agressiveness of gliomas can be modulated by dietary interventions and suggest that some phytochemicals with antioxidant properties could participate to the mechanism. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Estimated glomerular filtration rate, chronic kidney disease and antiretroviral drug use in HIV-positive patients

Objectives:Chronic kidney disease (CKD) in HIV-positive persons might be caused by both HIV and traditional or non-HIV-related factors. Our objective was to investigate long-term exposure to specific antiretroviral drugs and CKD. Design:A cohort study including 6843 HIV-positive persons with at least three serum creatinine measurements and corresponding body weight measurements from 2004 onwards. Methods:CKD was defined as either confirmed (two measurements ≥3 months apart) estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) of 60 ml/min per 1.73 m2 or below for persons with baseline eGFR of above 60 ml/min per 1.73 m2 or confirmed 25% decline in eGFR for persons with baseline eGFR of 60 ml/min per 1.73 m2 or less, using the Cockcroft–Gault formula. Poisson regression was used to determine factors associated with CKD. Results:Two hundred and twenty-five (3.3%) persons progressed to CKD during 21 482 person-years follow-up, an incidence of 1.05 per 100 person-years follow-up [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.91–1.18]; median follow-up was 3.7 years (interquartile range 2.8–5.7). After adjustment for traditional factors associated with CKD and other confounding variables, increasing cumulative exposure to tenofovir [incidence rate ratio (IRR) per year 1.16, 95% CI 1.06–1.25, P < 0.0001), indinavir (IRR 1.12, 95% CI 1.06–1.18, P < 0.0001), atazanavir (IRR 1.21, 95% CI 1.09–1.34, P = 0.0003) and lopinavir/r (IRR 1.08, 95% CI 1.01–1.16, P = 0.030) were associated with a significantly increased rate of CKD. Consistent results were observed in wide-ranging sensitivity analyses, although of marginal statistical significance for lopinavir/r. No other antiretroviral dugs were associated with increased incidence of CKD. Conclusion:In this nonrandomized large cohort, increasing exposure to tenofovir was associated with a higher incidence of CKD, as was true for indinavir and atazanavir, whereas the results for lopinavir/r were less clear.
The associations between environmental disclosures with financial performance, environmental performance, and firm value

Purpose This study aims to investigate both the direct and indirect associations of environmental disclosures with financial performance, environmental performance and firm value. Design/methodology/approach The samples are companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange in the agriculture industry, mining industry, basic industry and chemicals, miscellaneous industry and consumer goods industry and that are participating in the Performance Rating Assessment Program on Environment Management (PROPER/Program Penilaian Peringkat Kinerja Perusahaan) of the Ministry of the Environment Republic of Indonesia or have been awarded the Green Industry Award by the Ministry of Industry Republic of Indonesia in 2012-2014. Data are collected from sustainability reports, annual reports and annual financial statements. The authors used simultaneous equation modeling and panel data regression analysis to analyze the data. Findings The authors find that the financial performance does not affect the environmental disclosures. The lagged environmental performance has a positive effect on the current environmental disclosures, and environmental disclosures do not affect the firm market value and do not mediate the effect of financial performance and environmental performance on firm value. Originality/value This study comprehensively examines both direct and indirect associations of environmental disclosures with financial performance, environmental performance and firm value, which is rarely examined in extant studies.
Quantitative heartbeat coupling measures in human-horse interaction

We present a study focused on a quantitative estimation of a human-horse dynamic interaction. A set of measures based on magnitude and phase coupling between heartbeat dynamics of both humans and horses in three different conditions is reported: no interaction, visual/olfactory interaction and grooming. Specifically, Magnitude Squared Coherence (MSC), Mean Phase Coherence (MPC) and Dynamic Time Warping (DTW) have been used as estimators of the amount of coupling between human and horse through the analysis of their heart rate variability (HRV) time series in a group of eleven human subjects, and one horse. The rationale behind this study is that the interaction of two complex biological systems go towards a coupling process whose dynamical evolution is modulated by the kind and time duration of the interaction itself. We achieved a congruent and consistent statistical significant difference for all of the three indices. Moreover, a Nearest Mean Classifier was able to recognize the three classes of interaction with an accuracy greater than 70%. Although preliminary, these encouraging results allow a discrimination of three distinct phases in a real human-animal interaction opening to the characterization of the empirically proven relationship between human and horse.
De Novo Donor HLA‐Specific Antibodies after Heart Transplantation Are an Independent Predictor of Poor Patient Survival

Preformed donor HLA‐specific antibodies are a known indicator for poor patient survival after cardiac transplantation. The role of de novo donor‐specific antibodies (DSA) formed after cardiac transplantation is less clear. Here we have retrospectively analyzed 243 cardiac transplant recipients, measuring HLA antibody production every year after transplantation up to 13 years post‐transplant. Production of de novo DSA was analyzed in patients who had been negative for DSA prior to their transplant. DSA including transient antibodies were associated with poor patient survival (p = 0.0018, HR = 3.198). However, de novo and persistent DSA was strongly associated with poor patient survival (p = 0.0001 HR = 4.351). Although complement fixing persistent DSA correlated with poor patient survival, this was not increased compared to noncomplement fixing persistent DSA. Multivariable analysis indicated de novo persistent DSA to be an independent predictor of poor patient survival along with HLA‐DR mismatch and donor age. Only increasing donor age was found to be an independent risk factor for earlier development of CAV. In conclusion, patients who are transplanted in the absence of pre‐existing DSA make de novo DSA after transplantation which are associated with poor survival. Early and regular monitoring of post‐transplant DSA is required to identify patients at risk of allograft failure.
Institutional Investors and the QE Portfolio Balance Channel

The operation of the portfolio balance channel has been emphasized by monetary policymakers as a key channel through which quantitative easing (QE) policies work. We assess whether the investment behavior of insurance companies and pension funds in the United Kingdom during the global financial crisis was consistent with such an effect by analyzing both sectoral and institution‐level data. Our results suggest QE led to institutional investors shifting their portfolios away from government bonds toward corporate bonds but did not lead to a shift into equities.
Motivating and Retaining Government Employees: The Role of Organizational Social Capital

ABSTRACT While a great deal of attention has been given to the role of performance pay and extrinsic rewards in understanding how to motivate and retain employees, this study points towards the importance of organizational social capital, defined as the sum of collaboration, trust, and value congruence among employees. Using a four-year panel data set of 170 federal agencies, we find a positive effect of social capital on intrinsic motivation but contradicting effects on turnover. Changes in social capital across time mitigate turnover intention but are unrelated to turnover behavior. A cross-sectional analysis shows, however, that the relationship between social capital and turnover behavior is curvilinear and has an inverted u-shape. The findings suggest that social capital can be a double-edged sword, as it is harmful in lower doses but beneficial if a critical mass of employees can participate in the social network, thereby avoiding conflict-laden in- and out-group constellations.
Effects of fiscal R&D incentives on R&D expenditure

Special tax incentives aiming to foster research and development (R&D) investment are widely spread among the members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OCED). I investigate the effect such tax incentives have on business R&D investment. Fiscal R&D incentives can be categorized as input-oriented tax incentives such as tax credits, super deductions and accelerated depreciation, and as output-oriented incentives such as patent box regimes. In the first part of my thesis I provide an overview over the methodology of the B-Index, a measure for the generosity of input-oriented tax incentives. Calculations of the B-Index for 33 OECD-countries and China from 1991 to 2014 show an overall trend towards an increase in the generosity of input-oriented fiscal R&D incentives. In the second part of my thesis, I create a panel with country-level data on business R&D investment provided by the OECD. I test reactions to changes in R&D tax incentives and find a positive effect of input-oriented R&D tax incentives, but no significant impact of output-oriented R&D tax incentives. A more detailed analysis on the industry-level shows that the results are driven by effects on business R&D investment in the manufacturing and services sector.