Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Reviewing Counterfactual Analyses to Assess Impacts of EU Rural Development Programmes: What Lessons Can Be Learned from the 2007–2013 Ex-Post Evaluations?

Counterfactual analysis has been recommended as a means of assessing the impacts of European Rural Development Programmes (RDP) over recent years, although its application has been scarce to date. This paper examines the use of counterfactual analysis to assess socioeconomic impacts in a set of 2007–2013 ex-post evaluations. The analysis undertaken shows that a wide variety of counterfactual approaches have been applied, although certain barriers still remain to address the estimation of RDP impacts following the EU evaluation standards. Furthermore, we noted that impacts provided by individual RDP evaluations may hardly be aggregated, making it difficult to draw clear conclusions about the effectiveness of rural development policy at the EU level.
Does the OTA Open Fracture Classification Predict the Need for Limb Amputation? A Retrospective Observational Cohort Study on 512 Patients

Background: Few studies have examined the utility of the Orthopaedic Trauma Association Open Fracture Classification (OTA-OFC) compared to the traditional Gustilo-Anderson classification for prediction of treatment outcomes in patients with open fractures. Questions/Objectives: (1) How do the Gustilo-Anderson classification and OTA-OFC systems compare in accuracy of predicting limb amputation, infection, and need for soft tissue coverage? (2) Is there an OTA-OFC summative threshold score that may guide the discussion and decision-making with regard to limb salvage or amputation? Design: Retrospective observational cohort study; Level IV evidence. Setting: Level I trauma center and urban safety-net institution. Patients/Participants: Consecutive adult patients with open long bone fractures who underwent operative treatment between January 1, 2007 and December 31, 2012. Main Outcome and Measurements: Postoperative complications of infection, early limb amputation, and requirement for soft-tissue procedures. Results: The study cohort comprised 512 patients with mean age 49.6 ± 14.9 years. Nineteen patients (3.7%) underwent amputation. The Gustilo-Anderson classification demonstrated no correlations with any of the primary outcome measures, while OTA-OFC summative scores significantly varied between all outcome comparison groups. The skin injury component of the OTA-OFC was an independent predictor of limb amputation (OR, 5.44; 95% CI, 2.37–12.47), and an OTA-OFC summative score of ≥10 best correlated with need for amputation (P < 0.001). Sensitivity and specificity of the reported model were 79% and 94%, respectively. Conclusions: Our results should be interpreted with caution due to the retrospective nature of our study. Based on our data, the OTA-OFC is superior to the Gustilo-Anderson classification system for prediction of postoperative complications and treatment outcomes in patients with open long bone fractures. A summative threshold score of 10 seems to identify increased odds of successful limb salvage.
Inflation-Growth Nexus in the CFA Franc Zone and BRICS: Evidence from Panel Threshold Regression Estimation

This paper examines the impact of inflation on economic growth in a panel of 13 African countries in the franc zone (CFA) and BRICS. Contrary to previous studies that focus on a linear relationship, the present study uses the Panel Smooth Transition Regression model to examine this relationship. The results of this method strongly support the idea that the relationship between inflation and growth is non-linear with a threshold of 3.17% in the Central African Economic and Monetary Union (CAEMU), 11.30% for the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) and 7.04% for the BRICS. In particular, the study indicates that the 2% target set by the BCEAO for WAEMU countries can be revised upwards without adversely affecting growth. For the BRICS, they should avoid inflation rates above 7%. Keywords : inflation; growth; monetary policy; threshold effects; dynamic panel; WAEMU; CAEMU; BRICS. DOI : 10.7176/JESD/10-2-07
Oral irritant properties of piperine and nicotine: psychophysical evidence for asymmetrical desensitization effects.

Using a bipolar rating scale, human subjects rated the intensity of irritation sensation evoked by repeated application of piperine (75 p.p.m.) or nicotine (0.12%) to one side of the dorsal surface of the tongue. The intensity of irritation elicited by repeated application of piperine significantly increased, while irritation elicited by repeated nicotine significantly decreased. We additionally tested if nicotine or piperine desensitized the tongue. After either piperine or nicotine was repeatedly applied to one side of the tongue, a 5 or 10 min rest period ensued, followed by re-application of piperine or nicotine to both sides of the tongue. Subjects were asked to choose which side of the tongue gave rise to a stronger irritation in a two-alternative forced choice (2-AFC) paradigm. In addition, they gave separate ratings of the intensity of irritation on the two sides of the tongue. When piperine was applied bilaterally after unilateral pretreatment with piperine and a 10 min rest period, subjects consistently chose the non-pretreated side to yield stronger irritation and assigned significantly higher ratings to that side, indicative of piperine self-desensitization. A similar self-desensitization effect was found when bilateral application of nicotine followed unilateral treatment with nicotine and a 5 min rest period. Unilateral treatment with piperine also reduced nicotine-evoked irritation on the pretreated side (cross-desensitization), but treatment with nicotine did not affect piperine-evoked irritation. This asymmetrical cross-desensitization pattern is similar to that observed between capsaicin and nicotine and constitutes an additional similarity between piperine and capsaicin.
Systemic Neutralization of Interleukin-8 Markedly Reduces Neutrophilic Pleocytosis during Experimental Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Meningitis in Rabbits

ABSTRACT Interleukin-8 (IL-8) is elevated in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of patients with meningitis and is proposed to participate in subarachnoid-space pleocytosis. However, intracisternal injection of IL-8 into rabbits failed to induce indices typical of meningitis (leukocyte, tumor necrosis factor, or protein accumulation in the CSF or histopathological changes), indicating that merely increasing the CSF level of this chemokine is insufficient to induce inflammation in this anatomical site. IL-8 treatment did not affect inflammatory responses to subsequently intracisternally administered lipopolysaccharide (LPS). IL-8 was chemotactic for rabbit neutrophils in vitro, and subcutaneous injection of IL-8 (diluted in buffer or CSF) proved the in vivo activity of this peptide and suggested the absence of an IL-8 inhibitor in normal rabbit CSF. LPS-dependent pleocytosis was only slightly diminished by intracisternally administered murine anti-rabbit IL-8 monoclonal antibody (MAb) WS-4 but was dramatically reduced by intravenously administered MAb. Therefore, elevated CSF IL-8 levels may contribute to, but cannot solely account for, neutrophil influx into the subarachnoid space during meningitis. However, inhibition of IL-8 activity of the bloodstream side of the blood-brain barrier effectively reduces pleocytosis, indicating a central role of IL-8 in neutrophil influx into CSF during bacterial meningitis. Thus, inhibition of IL-8 is a possible therapeutic target for adjunct treatment of meningitis.
The Role of Customer Awareness in Promoting Firm Sustainability and Sustainable Supply Chain Management

In light of the growing complexity of globally dispersed, multi-tier supply chains; sustainable supply chain management (SSCM) has become instrumental in the quest for achieving sustainability compliance along the supply chain. This study investigates how sustainability capability develops within a firm, and then extends to SSCM. Using a fixed-effect model and a global dataset of 2,206 firms between 2002 and 2015, this study shows that a firm’s information environment, proxied by their customers awareness, has a significantly positive effect on their sustainability performance, and on their implementation of SSCM. Our analysis suggests that the influence of a firm’s information environment on a firm’s SSCM performance is mediated by the firm’s own sustainability capability. We also find that this relationship is affected by stakeholder engagement. This research is relevant because, by investigating the factors that influence the development of SSCM, it provides guidance for firms that wish to achieve sustainability improvements in their supply chains during an era when the natural environment, social responsibility and the related strategic opportunities have increased in importance.
Review: The importance of early symptom relief in antidepressant treatment: focus on agomelatine

Antidepressants were traditionally considered to have delayed onset of action, and clinical opinion often stated that patients may not experience noticeable improvement for 4—6 weeks. Recent studies have shown, however, that antidepressants have more rapid onset of effect, within 1—2 weeks, and that this early response may be associated with later sustained response. Moreover, there is emerging evidence that some medications may have faster onset of therapeutic effect than others. The new antidepressant agomelatine, with its novel pharmacological profile as an agonist at melatonergic (MT1 and MT2) receptors and antagonist at 5-HT2C receptors, has in several studies produced earlier symptom improvement than comparator selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors and serotonin—noradrenaline reuptake inhibitors. In particular, beneficial effects on sleep and daytime functioning are noticeable as early as the first week of treatment. These therapeutic benefits may, in part, be related to its regulatory effects on circadian and sleep— wake cycles. Agomelatine therefore combines early symptom relief with a favorable side-effect profile and short-term and long-term antidepressant efficacy. These properties suggest that agomelatine can be considered a first-line treatment for patients with major depression.
Awareness of authorship criteria and conflict: survey in a medical institution in India.

CONTEXT Assignment of appropriate authorship on a scientific paper is important for researchers and the public; inappropriate authorship may generate conflict. OBJECTIVES To determine the extent of: (a) awareness of criteria for authorship and acknowledgment among researchers in a medical institution, (b) conflict concerning authorship issues in the research environment, and (c) their interrelationship. DESIGN AND SETTING A questionnaire self-administered by the faculty in a teaching hospital in India in March 2006. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Rate and level of awareness of International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals, or other rate and level of awareness of international published authorship criteria; rate and type of authorship conflict. RESULTS Ninety-five teaching faculty were contacted; 77 responded. Fifty respondents (65%) reported that they were aware that authorship criteria existed, but only 34 (44%) correctly identified a source. Overall, 30 (39%) respondents reported conflict over authorship issues relating mainly to ownership of data, gift authorship, and issues like academic competition, personality differences, intellectual passion, or order of authorship. There was no difference between number of authorship criteria correctly identified by respondents who reported conflict compared with those who did not (P = .78). CONCLUSIONS There was poor awareness of criteria for authorship and acknowledgement among the faculty in research publications. Conflict over authorship issues existed in the research environment, but was not influenced by the level of awareness.
An Empirical Comparison of Algorithms to Find Communities in Directed Graphs and Their Application in Web Data Analytics

Detecting communities in graphs is a fundamental tool to understand the structure of Web-based systems and predict their evolution. Many community detection algorithms are designed to process undirected graphs (i.e., graphs with bidirectional edges) but many graphs on the Web-e.g., microblogging Web sites, trust networks or the Web graph itself-are often directed. Few community detection algorithms deal with directed graphs but we lack their experimental comparison. In this paper we evaluated some community detection algorithms across accuracy and scalability. A first group of algorithms (Label Propagation and Infomap) are explicitly designed to manage directed graphs while a second group (e.g., WalkTrap) simply ignores edge directionality; finally, a third group of algorithms (e.g., Eigenvector) maps input graphs onto undirected ones and extracts communities from the symmetrized version of the input graph. We ran our tests on both artificial and real graphs and, on artificial graphs, WalkTrap achieved the highest accuracy, closely followed by other algorithms; Label Propagation has outstanding performance in scalability on both artificial and real graphs. The Infomap algorithm showcased the best trade-off between accuracy and computational performance and, therefore, it has to be considered as a promising tool for Web Data Analytics purposes.
Transoral laser resection or radiotherapy? Patient choice in the treatment of early laryngeal cancer: a prospective observational cohort study

Abstract Objectives: The choices made by patients offered treatment for early laryngeal cancer with radiotherapy or transoral laser resection were reviewed. Methods: A prospective review was conducted of all patients diagnosed and treated for early laryngeal carcinoma from December 2002 to September 2009 at the Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust. A total of 209 patients with tumour stage T1 or T2 laryngeal cancer were treated; each new patient suitable for radiotherapy or transoral laser resection was seen jointly by the clinical (radiation) oncologist and head and neck surgeon, and offered the choice of treatment. Results: Of the patients, 47.4 per cent were given a choice between radiotherapy and transoral laser resection; 51.2 per cent were advised to have radiotherapy, and there were no records for the remaining 1.4 per cent. From those given the choice, 59.6 per cent chose transoral laser resection (p < 0.02 (t-test)) and 35.4 per cent chose radiotherapy. Conclusion: When given the choice, a statistically significant majority of patients choose transoral laser resection rather than radiotherapy.
TLR2 Ligand Induces Protection against Cerebral Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury via Activation of Phosphoinositide 3-Kinase/Akt Signaling

This study examined the effect of TLR2 activation by its specific ligand, Pam3CSK4, on cerebral ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury. Mice (n = 8/group) were treated with Pam3CSK4 1 h before cerebral ischemia (60 min), followed by reperfusion (24 h). Pam3CSK4 was also given to the mice (n = 8) 30 min after ischemia. Infarct size was determined by triphenyltetrazolium chloride staining. The morphology of neurons in brain sections was examined by Nissl staining. Pam3CSK4 administration significantly reduced infarct size by 55.9% (p < 0.01) compared with untreated I/R mice. Therapeutic treatment with Pam3CSK4 also significantly reduced infarct size by 55.8%. Morphologic examination showed that there was less neuronal damage in the hippocampus of Pam3CSK4-treated mice compared with untreated cerebral I/R mice. Pam3CSK4 treatment increased the levels of Hsp27, Hsp70, and Bcl2, and decreased Bax levels and NF-κB–binding activity in the brain tissues. Administration of Pam3CSK4 significantly increased the levels of phospho-Akt/Akt and phospho-GSK-3β/GSK-3β compared with untreated I/R mice. More significantly, either TLR2 deficiency or PI3K inhibition with LY29004 abolished the protection by Pam3CSK4. These data demonstrate that activation of TLR2 by its ligand prevents focal cerebral ischemic damage through a TLR2/PI3K/Akt-dependent mechanism. Of greater significance, these data indicate that therapy with a TLR2-specific agonist during cerebral ischemia is effective in reducing injury.
Relationship Between BCC-Deformation, Transformation Temperature and Microstructure in ${\rm Nb}_{3}{\rm Al}$ Wires

The authors have been developing the Nb3Al conductors through transformation process, where the Nb3Al phase forms from the BCC (body-centered cubic) Nb(Al) supersaturated solid solution phase; the BCC phase is quenched by rapid-cooling from a temperature around 2000degC. It was reported several times that deformation to the quenched BCC Nb(Al) phase influences the superconducting properties, usually improving . But, the results have not been discussed in detail so far from a metallurgical viewpoint. This work investigates the fundamental relationship between the BCC-deformation, transformation temperature, microstructure and superconducting properties. The transformation temperature is identified by DTA measurement, detecting the release of the free energy between the BCC and the phases. It was found that the transformation temperature has a tendency of monotonic decrease with the deformation. But, the transformation temperature does not seem to go down below a temperature of about 720 degC even by strong deformation. The microstructures observed by FESEM suggests that the grain size is reduced almost proportionally with the deformation. In case of reduction in area of 99%, the grain size is reduced down to about 250 nm from 1.2mum . The increases with deformation, not showing a peak. The Jc of the wire (ME365) with reduction in area of 86% shows the best performance of the wire ever reported. But, at least high-field Jc seems to saturate at a certain value.
Minimally invasive surgery for gastric cancer

Application of minimally invasive techniques to gastric cancer in the West has been curbed by concerns of feasibility and oncologic adequacy. Growing evidence supports improved short‐term and equivalent oncologic outcomes in selected patients undergoing laparoscopic surgery for early‐stage disease. Laparoscopic resection for advanced gastric cancer remains controversial due to few reliable studies on long‐term outcomes. We focus on important studies from Asia and highlight the Western experience with laparoscopic and robotic surgery for gastric carcinoma. J. Surg. Oncol. 2013;107:271–276. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Distributed Localization for Wireless Sensor Networks Using Binary Particle Swarm Optimization (BPSO)

In this paper, we propose binary particle swarm optimization (BPSO) algorithm for distributed node localization in wireless sensor networks (WSNs). Each unknown node performs localization under the measurement of distances from three or more neighboring anchors. The node that gets localized during iteration will be used as a reference for remaining nodes. A comparison of the performances of PSO, basic BPSO and modified BPSO in terms of localization error and computation time is presented using simulation in Matlab.
Frequent epigenetic inactivation of KIBRA, an upstream member of the Salvador/Warts/Hippo (SWH) tumor suppressor network, is associated with specific genetic event in B-cell acute lymphocytic leukemia

The WW-domain containing protein KIBRA has recently been identified as a new member of the Salvador/Warts/Hippo (SWH) pathway in Drosophila and is shown to act as a tumor suppressor gene in Drosophila. This pathway is conserved in humans and members of the pathway have been shown to act as tumor suppressor genes in mammalian systems. We determined the methylation status of the 5' CpG island associated with the KIBRA gene in human cancers. In a large panel of cancer cell lines representing common epithelial cancers KIBRA was unmethylated. But in pediatric acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) cell lines KIBRA showed frequent hypermethylation and silencing of gene expression, which could be reversed by treatment with 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine. In ALL patient samples KIBRA was methylated in 70% B-ALL but was methylated in < 20% T-ALL leukemia (p = 0.0019). In B-ALL KIBRA methylation was associated with ETV6/RUNX1 {t(12;21) (p13;q22)} chromosomal translocation (p = 0.0082) phenotype, suggesting that KIBRA may play an important role in t(12;21) leukemogenesis. In ALL paired samples at diagnosis and remission KIBRA methylation was seen in diagnostic but not in any of the remission samples accompanied by loss of KIBRA expression in disease state compared to patients in remission. Hence KIBRA methylation occurs frequently in B-cell acute lymphocytic leukemia but not in epithelial cancers and is linked to specific genetic event in B-ALL.
Severe Hyponatremia in a Single-Center Series of 84 Homogenously Treated Children With Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia

Electrolyte abnormalities are hallmark metabolic disturbances during the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Hyponatremia is an ominous laboratory sign in the setting of neoplasia. We analyzed the incidence, risk factors, associations, specific interventions and outcomes of severe hyponatremia in a single-center series of children with ALL. The incidence of severe hyponatremia, defined as serum sodium levels below 130 mmol/L on at least 2 of 3 consecutive days, was 11.9%. History of hyponatremia episode is associated with neurologic complications (P=0.023) and the presence of overt central nervous system leukemia (CNS3) at diagnosis (P=0.005). Most observed hyponatremia episodes resolved relatively quickly, rarely requiring specific treatment. All but 1 hyponatremia episodes occurred in the induction or reinduction phases, but none before the administration of cytotoxic drugs, pointing to the role of therapy complications rather than leukemia per se. Most patients received vincristine shortly before hyponatremia onset, and vincristine has been previously strongly implicated in hyponatremia. We also suggest a role for imatinib. Although every patient with severe hyponatremia requires swift and thorough diagnostics a serious sequelae in the setting of pediatric ALL is rare. Hyponatremia association with neurotoxicity likely points to vincristine hypersensitivity in the subgroup of patients with both complications.
Public investment efficiency and sectoral economic growth in Pakistan

This paper compares the effects of aggregate and sectoral public investments on sectoral private investment, output, and employment. We estimate the elasticities of private investment with respect to aggregate and sectoral public investments to find crowding-out or crowding-in phenomena in Pakistan. The study also reveals the changes in labor absorption or replacement due to additional capital and the effects on output. Our data covers eight sectors of the Pakistan economy and uses annual time series data from 1964 to 2011. This study uses vector autoregressive (VAR) techniques, as applied by Pereira (2000, 2001), which allows measuring the dynamic feedback effects among the variables.