Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
piRNA-mediated transgenerational inheritance of an acquired trait

The maintenance of genome integrity is an essential trait to the successful transmission of genetic information. In animal germ cells, piRNAs guide PIWI proteins to silence transposable elements (TEs) in order to maintain genome integrity. In insects, most TE silencing in the germline is achieved by secondary piRNAs that are produced by a feed-forward loop (the ping-pong cycle), which requires the piRNA-directed cleavage of two types of RNAs: mRNAs of functional euchromatic TEs and heterochromatic transcripts that contain defective TE sequences. The first cleavage that initiates such an amplification loop remains poorly understood. Taking advantage of the existence of strains that are devoid of functional copies of the LINE-like I-element, we report here that in such Drosophila ovaries, the initiation of a ping-pong cycle is exclusively achieved by secondary I-element piRNAs that are produced in the ovary and deposited in the embryonic germline. This unusual secondary piRNA biogenesis, detected in the absence of functional I-element copies, results from the processing of sense and antisense transcripts of several different defective I-element. Once acquired, for instance after ancestor aging, this capacity to produce heterochromatic-only secondary piRNAs is partially transmitted through generations via maternal piRNAs. Furthermore, such piRNAs acting as ping-pong initiators in a chromatin-independent manner confer to the progeny a high capacity to repress the I-element mobility. Our study explains, at the molecular level, the basis for epigenetic memory of maternal immunity that protects females from hybrid dysgenesis caused by transposition of paternally inherited functional I-element.
Oral lichen planus: An update on pathogenesis and treatment

Oral lichen planus (OLP) is a chronic inflammatory disease that affects the mucus membrane of the oral cavity. It is a T-cell mediated autoimmune disease in which the cytotoxic CD8+ T cells trigger apoptosis of the basal cells of the oral epithelium. Several antigen-specific and nonspecific inflammatory mechanisms have been put forward to explain the accumulation and homing of CD8+ T cells subepithelially and the subsequent keratinocyte apoptosis. A wide spectrum of treatment modalities is available, from topical corticosteroids to laser ablation of the lesion. In this review, we discuss the various concepts in the pathogenesis and current treatment modalities of OLP.
Is game immersion just another form of selective attention? : an empirical investigation of real world dissociation in computer game immersion

When your daughter is playing video-games and you call her to dinner but she fails to respond, do you assume she heard you and ignored you? Everyday descriptions of game immersion suggest that the real world dissociation experienced by gamers could be an extreme form of selective attention. If this were the case, this would mean that your daughter really did not hear you call, due to the complexity of the game environment and a lack of available cognitive resources. This thesis describes a grounded theory that suggests that immersion is a result of self-motivated attention which is enhanced through feedback from the game. Five experimental studies are then described. The experimental studies show that the extent to which a player thinks they are doing well in the game significantly affects their level of immersion, as measured via the Immersive Experience Questionnaire; and has objective effects on their awareness of other things in the environment, namely recall of auditory distracters and reaction time to a visual distracter. Together the evidence suggests that immersion cannot be accounted for solely by selective attention: much of the real world is attenuated during game-play due primarily to the gamer’s motivation to continue the immersive experience. Interestingly, the auditory items that do get through the attenuation filter and are heard by the gamer are those that are personal in some way; so if you used your daughter’s name when you called her, and she did not respond, then based on our findings one might suggest that she chose to ignore you in order to keep her sense of immersion. Additionally, the final experiment shows a dissociation between immersion and cognitive load. This suggests that the differences in immersion were not a result of increased sensory features or task demands, but purely due to motivation.
Type II Translation

This article summarizes research on Type II translation of prevention interventions aimed at enhancing the adoption of effective programs and practices in communities. The primary goal of Type II translation is to institutionalize evidence-based programs, products, and services. First, the authors describe theoretical frameworks that are useful to guide Type II translation research. Second, research on prevention program implementation, including fidelity of implementation and factors that are associated with successful program implementation, is summarized. The authors describe interventions designed to enhance the dissemination of preventive interventions in community and public health settings. Third, they describe strategies used by prevention program developers who have taken programs to scale. Fourth, they present a case example of Project Towards No Drug Abuse (TND), an empirically validated high school–based substance abuse prevention program. They describe ongoing research on the dissemination of Project TND. Finally, they provide suggestions for future Type II translation research.
Students’ learning styles and academic performance in first year chemistry

Many factors influence students’ learning – such factors include (but are not limited to) students’ learning style preferences, their interest in the material under study, and the learning environment. A student’s learning style preference refers to the way they respond to stimuli in a learning context, and to their characteristic way of acquiring and using information. These learning styles recognise that individuals learn in different ways, and thus that the students in any course will place a variety of different interpretations onto their lessons (Bailey and Garratt 2002). Felder (1993) reported that alignment between students’ learning styles and an instructor’s teaching style leads to better recall and understanding, as well as to more positive post-course attitudes. Since learning style preferences vary between students, the most effective mode of instruction will also vary. Furthermore, it has been reported that teaching is most effective when it caters for a range of learning styles, in part because occasionally having to learn in a less preferred style helps to broaden students’ range of skills (Felder, Felder and Dietz 2002). If any consideration is to be given to accommodating students’ learning style preferences when considering the design of instructional or assessment materials, then it is necessary to know firstly whether the academic performance of students is dependent upon their preferred learning style, and secondly the distribution of learning style preferences within a student cohort must be known. This paper reports the distribution of learning styles amongst first year chemistry students at the University of Sydney, and investigates the relationship between academic performance in the end-of-semester examination and these styles. Some of the implications of these findings for teaching and learning are also discussed.
Trade Liberalization and Exports Promotion: A Dynamic and Heterogeneous Analysis Under the Case of Chile

ABSTRACT We develop a dynamic and heterogeneous firm model that embodies a firm’s joint decisions to export and innovate and allows both decisions to affect the firm’s production growth. We then calibrate the model with data obtained from Chilean manufacturing plants between 2005 and 2007 and simulate the impact of trade liberalization under different combinations of industry age and speed of trade liberalization. On the one hand, a quickly implemented trade liberalization policy significantly increases the exports intensity of a young industry newly opening up to the world. The increase in exports intensity is greater with quicker implementation of trade liberalization. On the other hand, trade liberalization for a mature industry does not lead to a significant impact on exports intensity.
A novel soft-switched, high-frequency, high-efficiency, high-current 12 V voltage regulator-the phase-shift buck converter

This paper presents two novel soft-switched high-frequency high-efficiency, fast transient response 12 V voltage regulator (VR) topologies-the phase-shift buck (PSB) and the matrix-transformer phase-shift buck (MTPSB)-for high current applications. They improve efficiency at high switching frequencies and also feature very simple magnetic structures. For future high-frequency, high-current 12 V VRs, PSB and MTPSB converters are the cost-effective solutions. Experimental results confirm the theoretical prediction.
Evaluation of a QT nomogram for risk assessment after antidepressant overdose.

AIMS A QT-heart rate nomogram has recently been proposed as a means of identifying patients at risk of torsades de pointes after antidepressant overdose, based on published cases of drug-induced torsades de pointes. The present study sought to examine the performance of the nomogram in patients who ingest an antidepressant overdose but do not develop arrhythmia. METHODS A retrospective case control study of patients presenting to hospital after overdose of citalopram, mirtazapine and venlafaxine was carried out. The primary outcome variable was QT higher than the nomogram, and was compared with occurrence of QT(c) (QT corrected by Bazett's formula) greater than ≥440 ms and QT(c) ≥500 ms, with comparison between drugs. Data are expressed as proportions in each group with 95% confidence intervals. RESULTS There were 858 electrocardiograms from 541 patients. QT was higher than the nomogram in 2.4% (1.4, 4.1%), whereas QT(c) was ≥440 ms in 23.1% (95% CI 19.8, 26.8%), and QT(c) was ≥500 ms in 1.1% (0.5, 2.5%). Citalopram overdose was more likely to be associated with QT higher than the nomogram compared with the other agents (difference 7.0%, 95% CI 2.9, 11.9%, P = 0.001) and more likely to be associated with QT(c) ≥440 ms (difference = 11.0%, 95% CI 2.6, 19.0%, P = 0.013). CONCLUSIONS The QT nomogram was associated with a lower false positive rate than widely accepted QT(c) criteria, and allowed detection of different effects of individual drugs. The nomogram offers potential advantages over QT(c) criteria and merits further investigation in a clinical setting.
THE PRACTICE OF EXPOSURE ASSESSMENT: A STATE-OF-THE-ART REVIEW

Each of us encounters hundreds of toxic agents everyday, without exposure and subsequent absorption (uptake) however, there is no risk of injury. Thus, exposure assessment is one of the three legs of the stool (along with toxicity assessment and dose-response assessment) upon which the practice of risk assessment rests. The field of exposure assessment has evolved out of at least 3 other disciplines over the past 50 years, including health physics, industrial hygiene, and epidemiology. Exposure assessments are a necessary component to understanding the hazard posed by exposure to naturally (e.g., aflatoxins in foods, radon in air) and nonnaturally occurring toxicants (e.g., benzene in groundwater, MTBE in air, and food additives). This article presents a thorough review of the field, including a discussion of the terminology used in exposure assessment, a description of how to quantitatively estimate dose for the major sources of exposure (food, water, air, and soil), and many of the best sources of information. In addition, techniques for assessing both variability and uncertainty are presented. Lessons learned over the past twenty years are emphasized. Some example calculations are included, nearly 400 references are cited, and a glossary of terms is provided.
Educating Physicians Internationally in the Diagnosis of Child Sexual Abuse: Evaluation of a Brief Educational Intervention in Malawi

We designed this pilot study to assess physician knowledge and comfort evaluating child sexual abuse in Malawi and to evaluate the feasibility of a brief educational intervention to improve physician knowledge. A survey was administered to 21 physicians before receiving training on child sexual abuse. The survey was administered again, 3 days later, to assess improvement. Prior to the training, 48% correctly identified the hymen in a photograph, and 24% correctly interpreted the photograph as normal. Of the 11 physicians available for the posttest 3 days later, significant improvement was found in their ability to correctly identify the hymen (6 of 11 pretraining and all 11 posttraining, p = 0.011) and to interpret the photograph correctly (1 of 11 correct pretraining, 9 of 11 posttraining, p = 0.001). This study demonstrates the feasibility of designing trainings on child sexual abuse in a low-income country.
Chloride currents activated by caffeine in rat intestinal smooth muscle cells.

1. Current responses to caffeine in single smooth muscle cells isolated from rat intestine were studied with the whole‐cell patch clamp technique. Intracellular calcium concentration, [Ca2+]i, was simultaneously monitored with fura‐2 (0.1 mM) introduced into the cell through a patch pipette. 2. With a potassium‐containing pipette solution, caffeine (10 mM) produced an outward current at a holding potential of 0 mV and an inward current at ‐60 mV, both of which were accompanied by parallel increases in [Ca2+]i. The outward current response disappeared after the removal of K+ from pipette solutions, indicating that caffeine activates a Ca(2+)‐activated K+ conductance. 3. When NaCl was present in both pipette and external solutions as the major constituent, caffeine evoked an inward current at ‐60 mV simultaneously with a rise in [Ca2+]i. The reversal potential (Er) of this current was about 0 mV. 4. Substitution of Tris+ or choline+ for external Na+ did not alter the Er. When external Cl‐ was replaced by thiocyanate‐, iodide‐ or glutamate‐, the Er changed to respectively ‐55, ‐38 and +35 mV. 5. The current response to caffeine decreased with increasing concentration of EGTA in the pipette solution. The caffeine‐induced current and the intracellular Ca2+ transient was still observed for a few minutes after exposure of the cells to Ca(2+)‐free external solution containing 2 mM EGTA. Caffeine failed to produce an inward current and Ca2+ transient after treatment with extracellular ryanodine. 6. It is concluded that caffeine caused an increase in membrane Cl‐ conductance and in K+ conductance resulting from a rise in [Ca2+]i derived from ryanodine‐sensitive intracellular Ca2+ stores in isolated smooth muscle cells of the rat intestine.
Effects of Aging on Gender Differences in Financial Markets

Gender differences in risk-taking and investment decisions have been widely documented in the financial markets. Utilizing trading information from individual investor brokerage accounts, this paper explores the effects of aging on gender differences in terms of portfolio turnover and returns. We document that male investors trade more frequently than female investors and yield lower portfolio returns, but these gender differences attenuate substantially with age. Our study suggests that gender differences documented by experiments or surveys with young participants might not be generalized across age groups.
Lexical Bundles in Learner Writing : An Analysis of Formulaic Language in the ALESS Learner Corpus

Lexical bundles are empirically derived formulaic units of language which are register-specifi c and perform a variety of discourse functions. Because these units of language contribute to the linguistic make up of specifi c registers, they can be important indicators for determining the success of language users within these discourse communities. Therefore, language learners need to assimilate appropriate use of lexical bundles in order to create effective and successful, register convergent discourse. The present research examines the type and frequency of lexical bundles in the ALESS Learner Corpus. Three analyses are performed focusing on accuracy, grammatical class and function of lexical bundles in learner writing, and the fi ndings are compared with other corpora in order to assess convergence of learner use with native speaker use and published academic writing. The fi ndings reveal a number of areas where pedagogical applications and further research are recommended.
Effects of rTMS Conditioning over the Fronto-parietal Network on Motor versus Visual Attention

Many studies have shown that visuospatial orienting attention depends on a network of frontal and parietal areas in the right hemisphere. Rushworth et al. [Rushworth, M. F. , Krams, M. , & Passingham, R. E. The attentional role of the left parietal cortex: The distinct lateralization and localization of motor attention in the human brain. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 13, 698710, 2001] have recently provided evidence for a left-lateralized network of parietal areas involved in motor attention. Using two variants of a cued reaction time (RT) task, we set out to investigate whether high-frequency repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS; 5 Hz) delivered off-line in a virtual lesion paradigm over the right or left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) or the posterior parietal cortex (PPC) would affect performance in a motor versus a visual attention task. Although rTMS over the DLPFC on either side did not affect RT performance on a spatial orienting task, it did lead to an increase in the RTs of invalidly cued trials in a motor attention task when delivered to the left DLPFC. The opposite effect was found when rTMS was delivered to the PPC: In this case, conditioning the right PPC led to increased RTs in invalidly cued trials located in the left hemispace, in the spatial orienting task. rTMS over the PPC on either side did not affect performance in the motor attention task. This double dissociation was evident in the first 10 min after rTMS conditioning. These results enhance our understanding of the networks associated with attention. They provide evidence of a role for the left DLPFC in the mechanisms of motor preparation, and confirm Mesulam's original proposal for a right PPC dominance in spatial attention [Mesulam, M. M. A cortical network for directed attention and unilateral neglect. Annals of Neurology, 10, 309325, 1981].
SAVINGS AND ECONOMIC GROWTH IN MALAYSIA

Nowadays, saving regularly been seen as an important source for investment which indirectly influences the economic growth. However, some past literature has shown that higher savings was due to higher economic growth. Therefore, this study aims to examine the causal relationship between savings and economic growth in Malaysia by using Granger causality test. The empirical analysis is based on time series data for 30 years from 1978 to 2007. The findings reveal that savings granger causes economic growth and not vice versa. Therefore, policies that encourage savings should be designated so as to enhance the economic growth in Malaysia. The availability of a wide range of savings instruments for savers and easily accessible instrument, for example, is a necessary condition for effective mobilization of the nation’s savings. In future research, the ongoing evolution of an innovative, dynamic and diversified financial system in Malaysia is necessary so as to always encourage Malaysian people to save and invest for their future.
Adaptation and Validation of Standardized Aphasia Tests in Different Languages: Lessons from the Boston Diagnostic Aphasia Examination–Short Form in Greek

The aim of the current study was to adapt the Boston Diagnostic Aphasia Examination – Short Form (BDAE-SF) [1] to the Greek language and culture, determine the influence of demographic variables on performance and in particular the effects of age and education, develop normative data, and examine the discriminative validity of the test for acute stroke patients. A sample of 129 community healthy adults participated in the study (66 women), covering a broad range of ages and education levels so as to maximize representation of the Greek population and be able to examine the effects of age and education in language performance. Regression models showed that, overall, younger and more educated individuals presented higher performance on several subtests. Normative data for the Greek population are presented in percentile tables. Neurological patients' performance was compared to that of the neurologically intact population using Wilcoxon's rank sum test and for the most part was found to be significantly inferior, indicating good discriminant validity of the test. Qualitative errors of patients diagnosed with aphasia on the test are presented, and limitations and generalizable strengths of this adaptation are discussed.
THE EFFECT OF MINIMUM WAGES ON EMPLOYMENT IN INDONESIA

Minimum wages have been a major consideration in Indonesia in recent years, as the government has strongly pursued a minimum wage policy. The levels of regional minimum wages have been increased significantly since 1989, and there is a concern that these increases may have slowed employment growth. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to examine the employment effects of minimum wages, using data for 26 provinces, covering the period from 1988 to 1999. The study focuses on different groups of workers within the urban formal sector. The results of graphical and statistical analysis indicate some support for the conventional theory of the negative employment effects of minimum wages.
Effect of donor KIR2DL1 allelic polymorphism on the outcome of pediatric allogeneic hematopoietic stem-cell transplantation.

PURPOSE Killer-cell immunoglobulin-like receptors (KIRs) that regulate natural-killer cells are highly polymorphic. Some KIR2DL1 alleles encode receptors that have stronger signaling function than others. We tested the hypothesis that the clinical outcomes of allogeneic hematopoietic stem-cell transplantation (HSCT) could be affected by donor KIR2DL1 polymorphism. PATIENTS AND METHODS All 313 pediatric patients received allogeneic HSCT at a single institution. Donor KIR2DL1 functional allele typing was retrospectively performed using single nucleotide polymorphism assay. RESULTS Patients who received a donor graft containing the functionally stronger KIR2DL1 allele with arginine at amino acid position 245 (KIR2DL1-R(245)) had better survival (P = .0004) and lower cumulative incidence of disease progression (P = .001) than those patients who received a donor graft that contained only the functionally weaker KIR2DL1 allele with cysteine at the same position (KIR2DL1-C(245)). The effect of KIR2DL1 allelic polymorphism was similar in patients with acute myeloid leukemia or acute lymphoblastic leukemia among all allele groups (P ≥ .71). Patients who received a KIR2DL1-R(245)-positive graft with HLA-C receptor-ligand mismatch had the best survival (P = .00003) and lowest risk of leukemia progression (P = .0005) compared with those who received a KIR2DL1-C(245) homozygous graft. CONCLUSION Donor KIR2DL1 allelic polymorphism affects recipient outcomes after allogeneic HSCT. These findings have substantial implications for prognostication and donor selection.