Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Hepatitis delta virus antigen forms dimers and multimeric complexes in vivo

Although the hepatitis delta virus genome contains multiple open reading frames, only one of these reading frames is known to be expressed during replication of the virus. This open reading frame encodes two distinct molecular species of hepatitis delta antigen (HDAg), p24 delta and p27 delta, depending on the location of the stop codon which terminates translation. We found antibody specific for p27 delta to be capable of precipitating p24 delta in extracts of infected liver, indicating that p27 delta and p24 delta form heterologous complexes in vivo. After cross-linking with 0.05% glutaraldehyde, specific HDAg dimers were detected in antigen prepared from both the liver and serum of an HDV-infected woodchuck carrier of woodchuck hepatitis virus. Guanidine HCl-denatured HDAg extracted from liver and dialyzed against phosphate-buffered saline sedimented in rate-zonal sucrose density gradients as 15S multimeric complexes. These 15S multimers were stable in the presence of 1.2% Nonidet P-40. After RNase digestion, the 15S complex was reduced to a 12S complex without associated RNA, while boiling for 3 min in 1% sodium dodecyl sulfate-0.5% 2-mercaptoethanol further reduced the 15S complex to 3S HDAg monomers. In the absence of glutaraldehyde cross-linking, HDAg extracted from liver migrated as monomer species in reducing and nonreducing gels, suggesting that the conserved cysteine residue present in p27 delta does not play a role in the formation of either dimers or multimers. On the other hand, an amino-terminal chymotrypsin-digested HDAg fragment, with a predicted length of 81 or less amino acids, retained the ability to form dimers, consistent with the hypothesis that a coiled-coil motif present between residues 27 and 58 may play a role in HDAg protein interactions in vivo.
Expression of matrix metalloproteinases and their inhibitors in human bronchopulmonary carcinomas: Quantificative and morphological analyses

The expression of various matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and their tissue inhibitors (TIMPs) in 88 primary bronchopulmonary cancers and in 13 neighbouring pulmonary parenchyma samples was quantified by Northern‐blot analysis, and morphologically examined by in situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry in order to evaluate the involvement of MMPs in the pathophysiology of these carcinomas and to look for potential markers of aggressivity of lung tumours. Northern‐blot analysis showed that the predominantly expressed MMPs in bronchopulmonary cancers were gelatinase A (66%), its activator MT1‐MMP (membrane‐type‐1 matrix metalloproteinase) (56%) and stromelysin‐3 (61%). MMP expression frequencies and mRNA levels increased progressively with malignant phenotype, lack of differentiation and TNM stage of the tumours, whereas TIMP expression decreased very early during tumour progression. Moreover, the principal MMPs were significantly co‐expressed in primary tumours, suggesting their co‐regulation. Morphological studies revealed the expression of MMPs and TIMPs essentially in stromal cells in close contact with tumour clusters. These results indicate that tumour progression in bronchopulmonary carcinomas implies a progressive disruption of the MMP/TIMP balance leading to an excess of several MMPs that act in concert in vivo. Furthermore, the fact that stromal cells are the principal source of MMPs emphasizes the close cooperation between host cells and cancer cells in tumour invasion. Int. J. Cancer 72:556–564, 1997. © 1997 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Development at the Urban Fringe and Beyond: Impacts on Agriculture and Rural Land

Land development in the United States is following two routes: expansion of urban areas and large-lot development (greater than 1 acre per house) in rural areas. Urban expansion claimed more than 1 million acres per year between 1960 and 1990, yet is not seen as a threat to most farming, although it may reduce production of some high-value or specialty crops. The consequences of continued largelot development may be less sanguine, since it consumes much more land per unit of housing than the typical suburb. Controlling growth and planning for it are the domains of State and local governments. The Federal Government may be able to help them in such areas as building capacity to plan and control growth, providing financial incentives for channeling growth in desirable directions, or coordinating local, regional, and State efforts.
Dynamic bivariate mixture models : Modeling the behavior of prices and trading volume

Bivariate mixture models have been used to explain the stochastic behavior of daily price changes and trading volume on fmancial markets. In this class of m odels price changes and volume follow a mixture of bivariate distributions with the unobservable number of price relevant information serving as the mixing variable. The time series behavior of this mixing variable determines the dynamics of t he price-volume system. In this paper, bivariate mixture specifications with a serially correlated mixing variable are estimated by simulated maximum likelihood and analyzed concerning their ability to account for the observed dynamics on financial markets, especially the persistence in the variance of price changes. The results based on German stock market data reveal that the dynamic bivariate mixture models cannot account for the persistence in the price change variance.
Impact of Prior Inappropriate Fluconazole Dosing on Isolation of Fluconazole-Nonsusceptible Candida Species in Hospitalized Patients with Candidemia

ABSTRACT Prior use of fluconazole is a modifiable risk factor for the isolation of fluconazole-nonsusceptible Candida species. Optimization of the use of fluconazole by appropriate dose or duration may be able to minimize the risk of resistance. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of prior fluconazole therapy, including the dose and duration, on fluconazole susceptibility among Candida species isolated from hospitalized patients with candidemia. A retrospective cohort study of hospitalized patients with a first occurrence of nosocomial candidemia, from 2006 to 2009, was carried out. The relationships between the initial dose and duration of prior fluconazole therapy and the isolation of fluconazole-nonsusceptible Candida species were assessed. An initial fluconazole dose greater than 2 mg/kg and less than 6 mg/kg of body weight was considered suboptimal. A total of 177 patients were identified, of whom 133 patients aged 61 ± 16 years (56% male, 51% Caucasian, 51% with an APACHE II score of ≥15) had candidemia more than 2 days after the hospital admission day. Nine of 107 (8%) patients with fluconazole-susceptible Candida species and 9 of 26 (35%) patients with fluconazole-nonsusceptible Candida species had prior fluconazole exposure (risk ratio [RR], 3.03; 95% confidence interval [95% CI], 1.57 to 5.86; P, 0.0022). Preexposure with an initial dose of fluconazole greater than 2 mg/kg and less than 6 mg/kg occurred in 3 of 9 (33%) and 8 of 9 (89%) patients with fluconazole-susceptible and fluconazole-nonsusceptible Candida species, respectively (P, 0.0498). We conclude that patients with candidemia due to fluconazole-nonsusceptible Candida species were more likely to have received prior fluconazole therapy. Suboptimal initial dosing of prior fluconazole therapy was associated with candidemia with fluconazole-nonsusceptible Candida species.
Demand for Pasture-Raised Livestock Products in Michigan: Results of Consumer Surveys and Experimental Auctions

Pasture-raised livestock products present a niche-marketing opportunity for small- and medium-scale farmers; growth of this market may enhance the economic, social, and environmental sustainability of livestock agriculture. Results from an earlier statewide poll in Michigan found that consumers place great importance on product attributes associated with the pasture-based production model. This report presents findings from a combination of consumer surveys conducted at three Michigan retail locations and a series of experimental auctions. Participants in both the survey and auction components view pasture-raised beef and milk products very favorably, believing these products are healthy for humans to eat and are raised in environmentally friendly and humane ways. Survey respondents reported high likelihood of purchase; both the survey and auction subjects expressed willingness to pay a premium for pasture-raised products. We discuss these findings, particularly implications for the â€œfour Pâ€™sâ€ of marketing.
Decreased oxygen tension lowers reactive oxygen species and apoptosis and inhibits osteoblast matrix mineralization through changes in early osteoblast differentiation

Accumulating data show that oxygen tension can have an important effect on cell function and fate. We used the human pre‐osteoblastic cell line SV‐HFO, which forms a mineralizing extracellular matrix, to study the effect of low oxygen tension (2%) on osteoblast differentiation and mineralization. Mineralization was significantly reduced by 60–70% under 2% oxygen, which was paralleled by lower intracellular levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and apoptosis. Following this reduction in ROS the cells switched to a lower level of protection by down‐regulating their antioxidant enzyme expression. The downside of this is that it left the cells more vulnerable to a subsequent oxidative challenge. Total collagen content was reduced in the 2% oxygen cultures and expression of matrix genes and matrix‐metabolizing enzymes was significantly affected. Alkaline phosphatase activity and RNA expression as well as RUNX2 expression were significantly reduced under 2% oxygen. Time phase studies showed that high oxygen in the first phase of osteoblast differentiation and prior to mineralization is crucial for optimal differentiation and mineralization. Switching to 2% or 20% oxygen only during mineralization phase did not change the eventual level of mineralization. In conclusion, this study shows the significance of oxygen tension for proper osteoblast differentiation, extra cellular matrix (ECM) formation, and eventual mineralization. We demonstrated that the major impact of oxygen tension is in the early phase of osteoblast differentiation. Low oxygen in this phase leaves the cells in a premature differentiation state that cannot provide the correct signals for matrix maturation and mineralization. J. Cell. Physiol. 227: 1309–1318, 2012. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Does it Pay to Pray? Evaluating the Economic Return to Religious Ritual

Time-consuming and costly religious rituals pose a puzzle for economists committed to the idea of rational economic behavior. We propose that religious rituals promote in-group trust and cooperation that help to overcome collective-action problems. We test this hypothesis on communal societies for whom mutual cooperation is a matter of survival. We design field experiments to measure the in-group cooperative behavior of members of religious and secular Israeli kibbutzim. Our results show that religious males (the primary practitioners of collective religious ritual in Orthodox Judaism) are more cooperative than religious females, secular males and secular females. Moreover, the frequency with which religious males engage in collective religious rituals predicts well their degree of cooperative behavior. We use our results to understand differences in the returns to religious observance in capitalist and developing economies.
A deep learning approach for generalized speech animation

We introduce a simple and effective deep learning approach to automatically generate natural looking speech animation that synchronizes to input speech. Our approach uses a sliding window predictor that learns arbitrary nonlinear mappings from phoneme label input sequences to mouth movements in a way that accurately captures natural motion and visual coarticulation effects. Our deep learning approach enjoys several attractive properties: it runs in real-time, requires minimal parameter tuning, generalizes well to novel input speech sequences, is easily edited to create stylized and emotional speech, and is compatible with existing animation retargeting approaches. One important focus of our work is to develop an effective approach for speech animation that can be easily integrated into existing production pipelines. We provide a detailed description of our end-to-end approach, including machine learning design decisions. Generalized speech animation results are demonstrated over a wide range of animation clips on a variety of characters and voices, including singing and foreign language input. Our approach can also generate on-demand speech animation in real-time from user speech input.
A polymorphism within ErbB4 is associated with risk for hepatocellular carcinoma in Chinese population.

AIM To investigate the association between hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) susceptibility and a 12-bp insertion/deletion polymorphism (rs6147150) in the 3'UTR of ErbB4. METHODS Using a case-control design, the rs6147150 genotypes in 270 patients with HCC and 270 healthy controls were determined by direct polymerase chain reaction and polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Logistic regression was used to analyze the association between the polymorphism and cancer risk. RESULTS Computational modeling suggested that rs6147150 was located in the seed region of hsa-let-7c, a potential target sequence in ErbB4 3'UTR. Logistic regression analysis showed that, compared with individuals homozygous for wild-type, heterozygotes [adjusted odds ratio (OR) = 1.48, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.03-2.17, P = 0.034] and individuals homozygous for 12-bp del/del (OR = 2.50, 95% CI = 1.37-4.56, P = 0.001) were at significantly higher risk of HCC. Carriers of the "del" allele of rs6147150 had a 1.59-fold increased risk for HCC (95% CI = 1.22-2.07, P = 0.003). CONCLUSION rs6147150 may be associated with HCC risk, in part through let-7c-mediated regulation, and may be involved in the pathogenesis of HCC in Chinese populations.
Use of dipstick tests for the rapid diagnosis of malaria in nonimmune travelers.

BACKGROUND Swift diagnosis of falciparum malaria in nonendemic areas is frequently complicated by lack of experience on the side of involved laboratory personnel. Diagnostic tools based on the dipstick principle for the detection of plasmodial histidine-rich protein 2 (HRP-2) (ICT Malaria P.f. (R)) and parasite-specific lactate-dehydrogenase (pLDH) (OptiMal(R)), respectively, have become available for the qualitative detection of falciparum malaria. METHODS In order to evaluate currently available assays, a series of studies was conducted: sensitivity and specificity were evaluated by investigation of specimens from 231 febrile returnees from endemic areas, cross reactivity in patients with rheumatoid factor (RF) was assessed among 92 patients from a rheumatology unit, and the quality of dipstick self-use by febrile travelers was tested in Kenya. RESULTS Whereas the test kit based on the detection of HRP-2 performed with a sensitivity of 92.5% and a specificity of 98.3%, the kit for the detection of pLDH showed a sensitivity of 88.5% and a specificity of 99.4%. Cross-reactions with sera positive for rheumatoid factor occurred in 6.6% with the ICT Malaria P.f. (R), and in 3.3% with the OptiMal(R) test. Only ICT Malaria P.f. (R) was tested for quality of self-use among travelers. This dipstick assay was performed successfully by 67 patients (68.4%), but 31 (31.6%) were unable to obtain a result. CONCLUSION Dipstick tests have the potential of enhancing speed and accuracy of the diagnosis of falciparum malaria, especially if nonspecialized laboratories are involved. However, microscopical testing remains mandatory in every single patient with the possible diagnosis of malaria. Self-use of dipstick tests for malaria diagnosis by travelers should only be recommended after appropriate instruction and training, including a successful performance of the test procedure.
Policy implementation in poor countries

During the 1990s several alarming reports have been filed concerning policy failures in Third World countries. They indicate that globalisation and the structural adjustment policies of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund have reduced the capacity of government to conduct education and social policies that counteract poverty. Here we suggest an alternative explanation focusing upon internal factors within a Third World country. First, there is the risk of a poverty trap where a low level of economic output implies a low level of human development. Second, there is the danger of corruption, where political instability dissipates any advances in economic growth. INTRODUCTION The problems connected with public policy implementation in Third world countries are intertwined with basic economic and political conditions. Governments conducting public policies in order to improve the quality of life find they are restricted by the weak extractive capacity of the state in relation to the economy as well as by the dissipation of any resources through corruption. Thus, the basic equation that regulates what governments can do to improve the human predicament includes the negative impact from a low GDP as well as from political instability. However, there are a few bright circumstances in an otherwise gloomy picture where many Third World countries are overwhelmed by poverty and attending social problems like the aids epidemic. Public policy can make a difference also in a poor country by increasing quality of life, as for instance when policies in relation to infrastructure, education and health care work. Whether a top-down or a bottom-up approach to policy implementation is the optimal route to ameliorating the poverty of Third World countries is an open question, where the answer depends upon the policy in question and the contingencies. As long as the country has not embarked on a sustained economic growth path, a top-down approach may be the only realistic way. The improvement in reducing the poverty predicament depends not only upon the economy but also on political stability. Economic development is a necessary condition for policy implementation. Yet, human development, or the improvement of the quality of life can only occur when there is political stability. In this article we will present the argument that policy implementation can improve the quality of life when there is a minimum of both economic development and political stability meaning that corruption can be restrained. This optimistic argument consist of two parts, one economic and one political. First, there is a real opportunity for a rapid amelioration of the situation of poor countries, provided that they can embark upon sustained economic development. If world poverty were to be reduced, then a larger GDP would have to provide
The recognition of first time international entrepreneurial opportunities

Purpose – This paper aims to complement existing theories of internationalization by studying an important aspect which has been neglected in previous studies: the process of international entrepreneurial opportunity recognition. International market entry is conceptualized as an entrepreneurial, innovative act; and opportunity recognition consists of both discovery as well as deliberate and systematic search.Design/methodology/approach – The methodology employed involves eight case studies of small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) operating in knowledge‐based industries in Australia. The unit of analysis is the “opportunity‐firm” nexus.Findings – The paper finds that firms with little or no prior international knowledge tend to make use of opportunity discovery rather than deliberate/systematic search. In contrast, firms with extensive prior international experience and knowledge were found to deliberately search and discover their first international opportunity. International opportunity discovery d.
Staphylococcus caprae bone and joint infections: a re-emerging infection?

Staphylococcus caprae has been recently classified as a human pathogen, but the incidence of S. caprae in human bone and joint infections (BJIs) is under-reported. In this study, we report 25 cases of S. caprae BJI, and we review the 31 cases published in the literature. Molecular techniques and matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry improved the identification of clinically relevant S. caprae strains. In this study, 96% of S. caprae BJIs were localized to the lower limbs, and 88% of the cases involved orthopaedic device infections. S. caprae joint prosthesis infections (JPIs), internal osteosynthesis device infections (I-ODIs) and BJIs without orthopaedic device infections were recorded in 60%, 28% and 12% of cases, respectively. Ten (40%) S. caprae BJIs were polymicrobial infections. These infections were associated with past histories of malignancy (p 0.024). Of the 14 bacterial species related to S. caprae BJI, 57% were staphylococci. I-ODIs were significantly associated with polymicrobial infections (p 0.0068), unlike JPIs, which were monomicrobial infections (p 0.0344). Treatment with rifampicin and fluoroquinolone was recorded in 40% of cases. Surgical treatment was performed in 76% of cases, e.g. prosthesis removal (36%), osteosynthesis device removal (24%), and surgical debridement (16%). Thirty per cent of cases were not treated. Relapses were observed mainly in the patients treated by surgical debridement only (p 0.033). In summary, S. caprae BJI is an underestimated hospital-acquired emerging infection. S. caprae BJI is correlated with infections in orthopaedic devices, which must be removed to control the infection.
Live, Attenuated Coronavirus Vaccines through the Directed Deletion of Group-Specific Genes Provide Protection against Feline Infectious Peritonitis

ABSTRACT Feline infectious peritonitis (FIP) is a fatal immunity-mediated disease caused by mutants of a ubiquitous coronavirus. Since previous attempts to protect cats under laboratory and field conditions have been largely unsuccessful, we used our recently developed system of reverse genetics (B. J. Haijema, H. Volders, and P. J. M. Rottier, J. Virol. 77:4528-4538, 2003) for the development of a modified live FIP vaccine. With this objective, we deleted the group-specific gene cluster open reading frame 3abc or 7ab and obtained deletion mutant viruses that not only multiplied well in cell culture but also showed an attenuated phenotype in the cat. At doses at which the wild-type virus would be fatal, the mutants with gene deletions did not cause any clinical symptoms. They still induced an immune response, however, as judged from the high levels of virus-neutralizing antibodies. The FIP virus (FIPV) mutant lacking the 3abc cluster and, to a lesser extent, the mutant missing the 7ab cluster, protected cats against a lethal homologous challenge; no protection was obtained with the mutant devoid of both gene clusters. Our studies show that the deletion of group-specific genes from the coronavirus genome results in live attenuated candidate vaccines against FIPV. More generally, our approach may allow the development of vaccines against infections with other pathogenic coronaviruses, including that causing severe acute respiratory syndrome in humans.