Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Risk-taking, skill diversity, and the quality of human capital: how insurance affects innovation

We argue that human capital does a better job of fostering innovation when an economy has a diverse portfolio of specialist skills to draw on. While such a diverse portfolio is beneficial for a country, it includes many individual skill packages that are subject to considerable labour market risk. In the absence of strong income insurance (job security or unemployment insurance), the flight to safety in human capital investments will produce a national skill portfolio which is poorly diversified and less conducive to innovation. Using country-level data for 25 OECD countries from 1985 to 2009, we find evidence that income insurance raises the marginal effect of human capital on innovation, with the latter measured by patenting. At the same time, we find a direct negative effect of insurance on patenting; at low-medium levels of human capital, the direct negative effect more than offsets the positive indirect effect, while at high levels of human capital the indirect positive effect dominates. We draw implications for income insurance and education policy.
Herding by mutual funds: impact on performance and investors’ response†

ABSTRACT In this paper we investigate whether herding by actively managed equity funds affects their performances and flows over the 1980–2013 period. We show that during the herding quarter, on average, funds that trade with the herd benefit from this behavior. Although this does not directly translate into a positive association between the extent to which funds herd and their subsequent performance, we find that the funds that follow the herd earn negative abnormal returns whereas the ones that lead earn no abnormal returns. Our results also indicate that investors react adversely to follower funds while they are neutral towards the leader funds.
UNISTEP (university students exercise and physical activity) study: a pilot study of the effects of accumulating 10,000 steps on health and fitness among university students.

BACKGROUND Recent public health initiatives have promoted accumulating 10,000 steps per day. Little previous research has evaluated its effects in young adults. The aim of this study was to determine the effects of taking 10,000 steps per day on fitness and cardiovascular risk factors in sedentary university students. METHODS Healthy, sedentary students (mean age 21.16 ± SD 6.17) were randomly allocated to take 10,000 steps per day or to a control group who maintained their habitual activity. Members of the 10,000 step group wore a pedometer and reported daily step count in a diary. Outcome measurements (20-meter multistage shuttle run, BMI, and blood pressure) were measured before and after 6 weeks. RESULTS There were no significant differences between the groups at baseline. After 6 weeks, the 10,000 steps group were taking significantly more steps (8824.1 ± SD 5379.3 vs. 12635.9 ± SD 6851.3; P = .03). No changes were observed in fitness, or BMI (P > .05). Significant reductions in blood pressure (P = .04) in the 10,000 step group. CONCLUSIONS A daily target of 10,000 steps may be an appropriate intervention in sedentary university students to increase their physical activity levels. The positive health benefits of simple everyday physical activity should be promoted among health professionals.
Assessment of Two Commercial Susceptibility Test Methods for Determination of Daptomycin MICs

ABSTRACT Daptomycin is a lipopeptide antibiotic with activity against several important gram-positive bacterial pathogens, including drug-resistant staphylococci and enterococci. Because the mechanism of action of daptomycin is calcium-dependent depolarization of the cell membrane, susceptibility testing requires medium supplemented with a physiological level of calcium. This study assessed two Food and Drug Administration-cleared commercial test devices for determination of daptomycin MICs, Etest and JustOne. A collection of 220 selected isolates, including Staphylococcus aureus, coagulase-negative staphylococci, Enterococcus faecalis, E. faecium, E. avium, E. durans, E. casseliflavus, and E. gallinarum, were tested by both methods. Included in the collection were 22 S. aureus and 14 Enterococcus sp. isolates that were recovered from patients and were nonsusceptible on the basis of the daptomycin MICs. As the reference method for comparison, all isolates were tested by the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute broth microdilution method incorporating cation-adjusted Mueller-Hinton broth with 50 μg/ml calcium. Daptomycin MICs agreed, within 1 twofold dilution, for 97% of the isolates by Etest and for 100% by JustOne. However, daptomycin MICs determined by Etest were 1 dilution lower than the reference MICs for 65% of the Enterococcus sp. isolates tested. This resulted in 28.5% very major (VM) errors (4/14) with enterococci (all E. faecium) but none (0/22) with staphylococci. Use of JustOne yielded MICs that were 1 dilution lower than the reference MICs for 69% of the staphylococci and 25% of the enterococci. This resulted in 13.6% VM errors (3/22) with staphylococci and 14.3% VM errors (2/14) with enterococci. The manufacturer-recommended JustOne inoculum preparation resulted in mean colony counts of only 5 × 104 to 1 × 105 CFU/ml in the wells of the strip. Increasing the inoculum to 3 × 105 to 4 × 105 CFU/ml eliminated two of five VM errors upon retesting. No major interpretive errors occurred with either device. In summary, daptomycin MICs generated by the Etest or JustOne method generally agreed within 1 dilution of the reference daptomycin MICs. However, both devices produced slightly lower MICs that resulted in some VM errors.
Plants used against snakebite by tribal people of Koraput district of Odisha, India

The aim of the present study is to provide a comprehensive picture of the medicinal plants with antisnake venom activity that is used by the tribal people of Koraput district, Odisha. Information on ethnomedicinal plants were collected from eight indigenous communities viz. Paraja, Bhumia, Gadaba, Bhatra, Kondha, Gouda, Mali and Paika in eighteen villages under six community development blocks (Boipariguda, Kundra, Koraput, Jeypore, Similiguda and Nandapur) of Koraput district. During the survey a total of 38 plants species belonging to 36 genera and 29 families were identified as being used for treatment of snakebite. The plants were enumerated alphabetically according to their scientific name, habit, local name, family, parts used and mode of preparation of medicine. Maximum number of medicinal plants used for snakebite was recorded under the family Apocynaceae and 68% of plants were used orally or internally, where as 32% of plants were externally applied to the affected area. The most commonly used species for treatment of snakebite was Rauvolfia serpentina with highest use value among tribals followed by Curcuma longa, Achyranthes aspera and Mimosa pudica. The plant with very less use value reported from study area were Rauvolfia tetraphylla, Bryophyllum pinnatum, Andrographis paniculata, Asparagus racemosus, Musa paradisiaca, Nyctanthes arbortristis and Piper longum. Further work is suggested to elucidate the possible mechanism of action of these plant extracts against snake venom.
Bandwidth-Variable Transceivers based on Four-Dimensional Modulation Formats

In this invited contribution, we discuss technology options for bandwidth-variable transceivers which are key components for the realization of flexible software-defined optical networking. Bandwidth-variable transceivers enable the software-controlled adaptation of physical layer parameters such as transmitted bit rate, spectral efficiency and transparent reach according to the traffic demands at hand. In particular, we focus on recent advances in four-dimensional modulation formats and in modulation format transparent data-aided digital signal processing. It is argued that four-dimensional modulation formats present an attractive complement to conventional polarization-multiplexed formats in the context of bandwidth-variable transceivers, where they enable a smooth transition with respect to spectral efficiency while requiring marginal additional hardware effort. Results of numerical simulations and experiments supporting this statement are presented. For the cost-efficient hardware implementation of bandwidth-variable transceivers supporting several polarization-multiplexed and four-dimensional modulation formats, digital signal processing algorithms are required which operate format transparent and consume little hardware resources. We discuss data-aided signal processing as one possible option, in particular with respect to carrier frequency recovery and channel estimation in combination with frequency domain equalization.
Benznidazole Anti-Inflammatory Effects in Murine Cardiomyocytes and Macrophages Are Mediated by Class I PI3Kδ

Benznidazole (Bzl), the drug of choice in many countries for the treatment of Chagas disease, leads to parasite clearance in the early stages of infection and contributes to immunomodulation. In addition to its parasiticidal effect, Bzl inhibits the NF-κB pathway. In this regard, we have previously described that this occurs through IL-10/STAT3/SOCS3 pathway. PI3K pathway is involved in the regulation of the immune system by inhibiting NF-κB pathway through STAT3. In this work, the participation of PI3K in the immunomodulatory effects of Bzl in cardiac and immune cells, the main targets of Chagas disease, was further studied. For that, we use a murine primary cardiomyocyte culture and a monocyte/macrophage cell line (RAW 264.7), stimulated with LPS in presence of LY294002, an inhibitor of PI3K. Under these conditions, Bzl could neither increase SOCS3 expression nor inhibit the NOS2 mRNA expression and the release of NOx, both in cardiomyocytes and macrophages. Macrophages are crucial in the development of Chronic Chagas Cardiomyopathy. Thus, to deepen our understanding of how Bzl acts, the expression profile of M1-M2 macrophage markers was evaluated. Bzl inhibited the release of NOx (M1 marker) and increased the expression of Arginase I (M2 marker) and a negative correlation was found between them. Besides, LPS increased the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines. Bzl treatment not only inhibited this effect but also increased the expression of typical M2-macrophage markers like Mannose Receptor, TGF-β, and VEGF-A. Moreover, Bzl increased the expression of PPAR-γ and PPAR-α, known as key regulators of macrophage polarization. PI3K directly regulates M1-to-M2 macrophage polarization. Since p110δ, catalytic subunit of PI3Kδ, is highly expressed in immune cells, experiments were carried out in presence of CAL-101, a specific inhibitor of this subunit. Under this condition, Bzl could neither increase SOCS3 expression nor inhibit NF-κB pathway. Moreover, Bzl not only failed to inhibit the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines (M1 markers) but also could not increase M2 markers. Taken together these results demonstrate, for the first time, that the anti-inflammatory effect of Bzl depends on PI3K activity in a cell line of murine macrophages and in primary culture of neonatal cardiomyocytes. Furthermore, Bzl-mediated increase expression of M2-macrophage markers involves the participation of the p110δ catalytic subunit of PI3Kδ.
Relationship of HIV Viral Loads, CD4 Counts, and HAART Use to Health‐Related Quality of Life

Objective: To understand the relationship of viral load (VL), CD4 counts, and highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) use to health‐related quality of life (HRQL). Design: Cross‐sectional analysis of 513 HIV‐infected patients. Primary outcomes were four domains of HRQL: physical functioning (PF), role function (RF), energy levels (EL), and health perceptions (HP). The authors examined univariate and multivariate relationships between VL, CD4, and HAART use to each HRQL domain, after adjustment for potential confounders. Results: In univariate analyses, compared with patients with CD4 > 500, those with CD4 < 200 (p = .001) or 200 to 500 (p = .002) had lower PF and RF scores, and patients with undetectable VL had higher PF scores than patients with VL log10 2.6 to 4.0 (p = .02) and > log10 4.0 (p = .01). In multivariate analyses, compared with patients with CD4 > 500, patients with CD4 < 200 had lower PF (‐8.8 points; p < .01), RF (‐9.3 points; p < .01), and HP (‐7.8 points; p < .001). Patients with log10 VL 2.6 to 4.0 had lower PF scores (‐7.7 points; p < .01) versus undetectable VL. After adjusting for VL and CD4 counts, HAART use was associated with lower PF scores (‐5.4 points; p < .05). Conclusions: Efforts to improve patients' CD4 counts are likely to also improve HRQL. Lowering viral loads may improve physical functioning, but only if VL are suppressed to undetectable levels. In this analysis, HAART had negative effects on PF that were independent of its effects on CD4 and VL. For adherent patients, these adverse effects of HAART on PF are likely to be outweighed by the positive effects that HAART exerts through lowering VL and increasing CD4 counts.
Electronically Excited States of Potential Interstellar, Anionic Building Blocks for Astrobiological Nucleic Acids

Functionalizing deprotonated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) anion derivatives gives rise to electronically excited states in the resulting anions. While functionalization with −OH and −C2H, done presently, does not result in the richness of electronically excited states as it does with −CN done previously, the presence of dipole-bound excited states and even some valence excited states are predicted in this quantum chemical analysis. Most notably, the more electron withdrawing −C2H group leads to valence excited states once the number of rings in the molecule reaches three. Dipole-bound excited states arise when the dipole moment of the corresponding neutral radical is large enough (likely around 2.0 D), and this is most pronounced when the hydrogen atom is removed from the functional group itself regardless of whether functionalized by a hydroxyl or enthynyl group. Deprotonatation of the hydroxyl group in the PAH creates a ketone with a delocalized highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) unlike deprotonation of a hydrogen on the ring where a localized lone pair on one of the carbon atoms serves as the HOMO. As a result, hydroxyl functionlization and subsequent deprotonation of PAHs creates molecules that begin to exhibit structures akin to nucleic acids. However, the electron withdrawing −C2H has more excited states than the electron donating −OH functionalized PAH. This implies that the −C2H electron withdrawing group can absorb a larger energy range of photons, which signifies an increasing likelihood of being stabilized in the harsh conditions of the interstellar medium.
Characterization of recombinant, soluble beta-secretase from an insect cell expression system.

The beta-site amyloid precursor protein-cleaving enzyme (BACE) cleaves the amyloid precursor protein to produce the N terminus of the amyloid beta peptide, a major component of the plaques found in the brains of Alzheimer's disease patients. Sequence analysis of BACE indicates that the protein contains the consensus sequences found in most known aspartyl proteases, but otherwise has only modest homology with aspartyl proteases of known three-dimensional structure (i.e., pepsin, renin, or cathepsin D). Because BACE has been shown to be one of the two proteolytic activities responsible for the production of the Abeta peptide, this enzyme is a prime target for the design of therapeutic agents aimed at reducing Abeta for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. Toward this ultimate goal, we have expressed a recombinant, truncated human BACE in a Drosophila melanogaster S2 cell expression system to generate high levels of secreted BACE protein. The protein was convenient to purify and was enzymatically active and specific for cleaving the beta-secretase site of human APP, as demonstrated with soluble APP as the substrate in novel sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and Western blot assays. Further kinetic analysis revealed no catalytic differences between this recombinant, secreted BACE, and brain BACE. Both showed a strong preference for substrates that contained the Swedish mutation, where NL is substituted for KM immediately upstream of the cleavage site, relative to the wild-type sequence, and both showed the same extent of inhibition by a peptide-based inhibitor. The capability to produce large quantities of BACE enzyme will facilitate protein structure determination and inhibitor development efforts that may lead to the evolution of useful Alzheimer's disease treatments.
Negative predictive value of human papillomavirus test following conization of the cervix uteri.

OBJECTIVE The goal of this study was to determine/evaluate the negative predictive value of human papillomavirus (HPV) testing following conization of cervix uteri. METHODS A prospective analysis was undertaken on 79 cone biopsies of women with high-grade lesions (cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) III). HPV testing was performed on cervical smears before and after conization. We correlated the margin status (defined as positive cone margin or endocervical curettage status) and positive conization HPV status with the residual disease in a hysterectomy specimen. A Digene II kit was used to perform HPV testing. HPV detection was done by Hybrid Capture assay. RESULTS Of the 79 patients, 47(59.5%) had positive margins after conization. HPV testing was positive in 37 cases (78.7%) and negative in 10 cases (21.3%). Residual disease was found in 31 of 47 (66%) postconization hysterectomy specimens. No residual lesions were found in HPV-negative cases. Of the 32 cases with negative margins following conization, HPV testing was negative in 25 cases (78%) and was positive in 7 cases (22%). Among these 25 cases with negative HPV tests, no residual lesion was detected, and in 7 HPV-positive cases, only one residual lesion was found. CONCLUSION HPV testing is potentially an effective tool in predicting residual dysplasia after conization and could potentially assist in the decision between hysterectomy and conservative follow-up in women with CIN III.
Screening for retinopathy of prematurity--a comparison between binocular indirect ophthalmoscopy and RetCam 120.

AIM To compare the photographic screening for retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) using RetCam 120 with binocular indirect ophthalmoscope (BIO), which is the current gold standard. SETTING AND DESIGN Prospective, comparative study. MATERIALS AND METHODS A total of 87 RetCam examinations were performed on 27 premature babies. They were stored in a separate file after deleting the identifying information. At the same visit using the BIO with scleral depression, an experienced vitreoretinal surgeon evaluated the fundus in detail. A masked examiner then evaluated the RetCam photographs for presence or absence of ROP, the stage and zone of the disease and the presence or absence of plus disease. These data were then compared with the BIO findings to determine the sensitivity, specificity and the positive and negative predictive values of the method. RESULTS ROP was detected in 63 of 87 examinations by BIO and in 56 of 87 RetCam examinations. Nine RetCam examinations were false-negative and two were false-positive. Sensitivity of RetCam was 85.71% (54/63) and specificity was 91.66% (22/24). The positive and negative predictive values were 96.43% and 70.97% respectively. CONCLUSION Nine cases having ROP were missed by the RetCam. All these cases were either in zone 3 or the outer part of zone 2, which later regressed. These were missed mostly because of the restricted mobility of the camera head caused by its size and the barrier caused by the lid speculum arms. No case of threshold ROP was missed. RetCam may replace BIO for screening of ROP.
Hypothermia-treated neonates with hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy: Optimal timing of quantitative ADC measurement to predict disease severity

To determine the optimal time window for MR imaging with quantitative ADC measurement in neonatal HIE after hypothermia treatment, a retrospective review was performed on consecutive hypothermia-treated term neonates with HIE, with an initial and follow-up MR imaging within the first two weeks of life. Three neuroradiologists categorized each set of MR imaging as normal, mild, moderate or severe HIE based on a consensus review of the serial imaging. The lowest ADC values from the white matter, corpus callosum, and basal ganglia/thalamus were measured. The ADC values between mild-moderate and severe HIE were compared using a Student’s t-test over a range of different time windows. A total of 33 MR imaging examinations were performed on 16 neonates that included three normal, four mild, five moderate, and four severe HIE. The time window of 3–10 days showed a statistically significant decrease in ADC value in severe HIE compared to mild-moderate HIE in all three locations, respectively: white matter 0.5 ± 0.22 versus 0.83 ± 0.27 (p value 0.01), corpus callosum 0.69 ± 0.19 versus 0.91 ± 0.17 (p value 0.01), and basal ganglia/thalamus 0.63 ± 0.16 versus 0.98 ± 0.06 (p value <0.01). The range of 3–10 days is the optimal time window for MR imaging with quantitative ADC after hypothermia treatment.
Role of Reactive Oxygen Species and p53 in Chromium(VI)-induced Apoptosis*

Apoptosis is a programmed cell death mechanism to control cell number in tissues and to eliminate individual cells that may lead to disease states. The present study investigates chromium(VI) (Cr(VI))-induced apoptosis and the role of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and p53 in this response. Treatment of human lung epithelial cells (A549) with Cr(VI) caused apoptosis as measured by DNA fragmentation, mitochondria damage, and cell morphology. Cr(VI)-induced apoptosis is contributed to ROS generation, resulting from cellular reduction of Cr(VI) as measured by flow cytometric analysis of the stained cells, oxygen consumption, and electron spin resonance spin trapping. Scavengers of ROS, such as catalase, aspirin, andN-acetyl-l-cysteine, decreased Cr(VI)-induced apoptosis, whereas NADPH and glutathione reductase, enhancers of Cr(VI)-induced ROS generation, increased it. p53 is activated by Cr(VI), mostly by ROS-mediated free radical reactions. Cr(VI)-induced ROS generation occurred within a few minutes after Cr(VI) treatment of the cells, whereas p53 induction took at least 5 h. The level of Cr(VI)-induced apoptosis was similar in both p53-positive cells and p53-negative cells independent of p53 status in the early stage (0–3 h) of Cr(VI) treatment. However, at the later stage (3–24 h), the level of the apoptosis is higher in p53-positive cells than in p53-negative cells. These results suggest that ROS generated through Cr(VI) reduction is responsible to the early stage of apoptosis, whereas p53 contributes to the late stage of apoptosis and is responsible for the enhancement of Cr(VI)-induced apoptosis at this stage.
Equity Market Impact Modeling: An Empirical Analysis for the Chinese Market

Market impact has become a subject of increasing concern among academics and industry experts. We put forward a price impact model which considers the heteroscedasticity of price in the time dimension and dependency between permanent impact and temporary impact. We discuss and derive the extremum of the expectation of permanent impact and realized impact by constructing several special trading trajectories. Given our use of a large trade and quote tick records of 17,213,238,343 compiled from the Chinese stock market, the model assessment ultimately suggest that our model is better than Almgren's model. Interestingly, the result of random effect analysis indicates the parameter $\alpha$, which is the exponent of the impact function, is a constant with a value of around 0.7 across all stocks. Our model and empirical result would give academia some insight of mechanism of Chinese market, and can be applied to algorithm trading.