Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Capital Account Liberalization and Aggregate Productivity: The Role of Firm Capital Allocation

We study the effects of capital account liberalization on firm capital allocation and aggregate productivity in ten Eastern European countries. Using a large firm-level dataset, we show that capital account liberalization decreases the dispersion of the return to capital across firms, particularly in sectors more dependent on external finance. We provide evidence that capital account liberalization improves capital allocation by allowing financially-constrained firms to demand more capital and produce at a more efficient level. Finally, we use a model of misallocation and document that capital account liberalization increases aggregate productivity through a more efficient firm capital allocation by 10% to 16%.
Functional Capillary Density Decreases after the First Week of Life in Term Neonates

Background: Changes in the microcirculation have been recognized to play a crucial role in many disease processes. In premature neonates, functional capillary density (FCD) decreases during the first months of life. Objectives: The aims of this study were to obtain microcirculatory parameters in term neonates and older children who did not present with compromised respiration or circulation and to determine developmental changes in the microcirculation in young children. Methods: This single-center prospective observational study was performed at a level III university children’s hospital. Subjects eligible for inclusion were children up to the age of 3 years who did not have any respiratory compromise, circulatory compromise or signs of dehydration. The buccal mucosa of 45 children was assessed, using orthogonal polarization spectral imaging. Results: We found a significantly higher FCD in neonates younger than 1 week compared with older children. The median FCD was 8.1 cm/cm2 (range 7.3–9.4) for 0- to 7-day-old neonates (n = 12), 6.9 cm/cm2 (range 4.7–8.7) for 8- to 28-day-olds (n = 10), 7.3 cm/cm2 (range 6.1–8.8) for 1- to 6-month-olds (n = 19) and 6.7 cm/cm2 (range 6.5–9.2) for 3-year-olds (n = 4). After the first week, there was no significant correlation between age and FCD. Conclusion: FCD of the buccal mucosa decreases after the first week of life.
Role of nitric oxide in pathogenesis of herpes simplex virus encephalitis in rats.

The role of nitric oxide (NO) in the pathogenesis of viral encephalitis was investigated by using an experimental model of herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) encephalitis in Lewis rats. The expression of inducible NO synthase (iNOS) mRNA determined by Northern blotting was observed first in the olfactory bulb and the brain stem on day 5 after intranasal inoculation of HSV-1, and thereafter iNOS mRNA was detected in other brain regions, i.e., cerebrum and cerebellum. In various parts of the brain, excessive NO production was identified by electron spin resonance spectroscopy. The temporal and spatial patterns of iNOS expression coincided with those of viral propagation, as demonstrated by polymerase chain reaction for HSV-1 gene expression as well as by the plaque-forming assay. Immunohistochemical study determined that iNOS was localized mainly in monocyte-derived macrophages. Treatment of virus-infected animals with the NOS inhibitor Nomega-monomethyl-l-arginine (l-NMMA), but not Nomega-monomethyl-d-arginine, significantly ameliorated not only clinical symptoms such as paralysis and seizures but also mortality. Virus yield from brain tissue was not affected by l-NMMA treatment. It is of interest that increased expression of the antioxidant enzyme heme oxygenase-1 was observed in the HSV-1-infected brain; this increased expression was strongly inhibited by l-NMMA treatment. These data suggest that the high level of NO produced by iNOS is a pathogenic factor in HSV-1-induced encephalitis in rats.
Histological Appearances in Post-Partum de Quervain’s Disease

Six patients who developed de Quervain’s disease during pregnancy or within 12 months of childbirth were treated surgically. Histopathological examination of the tendon sheaths using alcian blue stain showed that myxoid degeneration was responsible for the thickening observed in the sheath. Characteristic intramural deposits of mucopolysaccharides were present, predominantly in the sub-synovial region. Acute or chronic inflammatory changes were not seen. These findings were the same as those described in patients with de Quervain’s disease unrelated to pregnancy or childbirth.
Implementation of a competency-based residency curriculum: experiences from a resource-limited environment in the Caribbean

Background: The introduction of competency-based curricula in institutions situated in resource-limited environments is likely to pose new challenges for the implementation process. The St. Elisabeth Hospital (SEHOS) in Curaçao, Dutch Caribbean, is affiliated to university teaching hospitals in the Netherlands. It is a teaching hospital in a resource-limited environment. Aims: Following the revision of the curriculum of the Dutch paediatric residency training, the country's paediatric society mandated its implementation in all training institutions within Dutch sovereignty. We set out to implement the revised curriculum in SEHOS and highlight the benefits it may have in a setting like Curacao. Method: The intended learning outcomes for the 16-week project were (1) the implementation of the core changes in the curriculum and (2) conduct an assessment of the learning environment. The strategies used included informative meetings, workshop and lecture-based trainings, questionnaire surveys, and focus group interviews. Results: Registrars and staff were successfully trained in how to use brief clinical assessments and digital portfolios. ‘Departmental portfolio’ was introduced as an innovative method of evaluating and monitoring departmental educational activities. Conclusions: Competency-based curricula can be successfully implemented in resource-limited environments. Educational experts in the local setting are crucial for the success of the process.
Association of anophthalmia and esophageal atresia: Four new cases identified by the anophthalmia/microphthalmia clinical registry

We report four new cases of the rare association of anophthalmia and esophageal atresia. There are only nine cases previously reported in the literature with this association. Our cases appear to be distinct from those already reported, thus increasing the number of cases to thirteen. Advances in developmental biology have shown that mutations in developmental genes active early in embryogenesis can lead to birth defects in multiple, seemingly unrelated systems. The network of genes that directs development has been highly conserved through evolution. Several transcription factors have been shown to be important in regulating eye development. Mutations in these developmental genes may be the cause of this clinical association. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Design of Pattern Reconfigurable Antennas Based on a Two—Element Dipole Array Model

A new method for pattern reconfigurable antenna (PRA) design is introduced on the basis of a two-element dipole array model in this communication. Firstly, a two-element dipole array loaded with varactor diodes is analyzed in detail. The two dipoles of the array are folded to form a square and the reconfigurable pattern characteristics of the array can be still explained by the phased array theory. And then, based on the two-element dipole array model, a patch top-loaded monopole antenna is proposed to design the PRA (denoted as PTMPRA). Applying the field equivalence principle, the antenna radiation can be analyzed with two couples of magnetic dipoles. The phase of the magnetic dipoles may be adjusted by the loaded varactor diodes, and the antenna can reconfigure the patterns in two orthogonal planes. The antenna is fabricated and measured. The studies validate that the new method for designing pattern reconfigurable patch antenna is simple and efficient.
Comprehension and production of gesture in combination with speech in one-word speakers

ABSTRACT This study explores the role that gesture plays in the earliest stages of language learning. We describe how one-word speakers use gesture in combination with speech in their spontaneous communications, and interpret gesture presented in combination with speech in an experimental situation. Forty one-word speakers (ages 1;2.22 to 2;4.6) were videotaped in a free-play session which provided data on the child's spontaneous gesture and speech production. The children were also given a comprehension task in which the presence and absence of gesture were systematically varied in relation to speech. We found that (1) all of the children spontaneously produced gestures in combination with speech, and (2) all of the children were able to understand gesture when it was presented in combination with speech, not only when the gesture was redundant with speech but also when the gesture substituted for speech. These data suggest that, even at this young age, gesture naturally forms an integrated system with speech in both production and comprehension.
Results of surgical resection after induction chemoradiation for Pancoast tumours †.

OBJECTIVES Pancoast tumour is a rare neoplasia in which the optimal therapeutic management is still controversial. The traditional treatment of Pancoast tumour (surgery, radiotherapy or a combination of both) have led to an unsatisfactory outcome due to the high rate of incomplete resection and the lack of local and systemic control. The aim of the study was to determine the efficacy of the trimodality approach. METHODS Fifty-six patients (male/female ratio: 47/9, median age: 64 years) in stage IIB to IIIB were treated during a period between 1994 and 2013. Induction therapy consisted of 2-3 cycles of a platinum-based chemotherapy associated with radiotherapy (30-44 Gy). After restaging, eligible patients underwent surgery 2 to 4-week post-radiation. RESULTS Thirty-two (57.1%) patients were cT3 and 24 (42.9%) cT4, 47 (83.9%) were N0 and 9 (16.1%) N+. Forty-eight (85.7%) patients underwent R0 resection and 10 (17.9%) had a complete pathological response (CPR). Thirty-day mortality rate was 5.4%, major surgical complications occurred in 6 (10.7%) patients. At the end of the follow-up, 17 (30.4%) patients were alive and 39 (69.6%) died (29 for cancer-related causes), with an overall 5-year survival of 38%. At statistical analysis, stage IIB (P = 0.003), R0 resection (P = 0.03), T3 tumour (P = 0.002) and CPR (P = 0.01) were significant independent predictors of better prognosis. CONCLUSIONS This combined approach is feasible, and allows for a good rate of complete resection. Long-term survival rates are acceptable, especially for early stage tumours radically resected. Systemic control of disease still remains poor, with distant recurrence being the most common cause of death.
New Evidence on the State of Stress of the San Andreas Fault System

Contemporary in situ tectonic stress indicators along the San Andreas fault system in central California show northeast-directed horizontal compression that is nearly perpendicular to the strike of the fault. Such compression explains recent uplift of the Coast Ranges and the numerous active reverse faults and folds that trend nearly parallel to the San Andreas and that are otherwise unexplainable in terms of strike-slip deformation. Fault-normal crustal compression in central California is proposed to result from the extremely low shear strength of the San Andreas and the slightly convergent relative motion between the Pacific and North American plates. Preliminary in situ stress data from the Cajon Pass scientific drill hole (located 3.6 kilometers northeast of the San Andreas in southern California near San Bernardino, California) are also consistent with a weak fault, as they show no right-lateral shear stress at ∼2-kilometer depth on planes parallel to the San Andreas fault.
Australian snowsports: gendered and contested spaces?

In seeking to understand the level of women’s participation in snowsports, this article analyses Australian snowsports tourism images through a scale for measuring sexism in tourism images and explores the impact of the historically gendered, contested and fluid nature of the space in which the activities occur. The results of the analysis highlight the dominance of stereotypical images which convey men as active and competent participants, while women are often conveyed as inactive ‘eye candy’. Further reflections and questions are raised about the application of the scale and the impact of the researchers’ prior snowsports and life experiences upon what is ‘seen’ in the images and thus the lack of objectivity of the scale.
An Exploration of Factors that Limit the Long-Term Survival and Development of Micro and Survivalist Enterprises: Empirical Evidence from the Informal Economy in South Africa

This research explores the factors that limit the long-term survival and development of micro and survivalist enterprises of a selected informal sector in Durban, South Africa. Micro and survivalist enterprises play a critical role in social economic development, but despite the enterprises’ significance, several studies have shown that these enterprises fail within their first five years. The high failure rate is partially attributed to lack of support from external sources of support as well as the enterprises own internal weaknesses. The study employed non-probability, convenience sampling to collect data from 108 micro and survivalist businesses using questionnaires. The results obtained identified a number of limiting factors for the selected informal enterprises’ long-term survival and development. The limiting factors, that are internal to the businesses, included: poor planning, lack of networking, insufficient business experience, poor pricing knowledge, managerial and business knowledge incompetence and lack of literacy, education and training. External business factors comprised of inadequate knowledge in terms of the institutional and supportive environment. Few respondents knew about financial and non-financial services and access to training and development programmes provided by government, semi-government and other institutions. As a result, recommendations to increase awareness of the different incentives available to micro and survivalist enterprises have been set. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2013. v4n13p237
Mechanisms of toxicity associated with six tyrosine kinase inhibitors in human hepatocyte cell lines

Tyrosine kinase inhibitors have revolutionized the treatment of certain cancers. They are usually well tolerated, but can cause adverse reactions including liver injury. Currently, mechanisms of hepatotoxicity associated with tyrosine kinase inhibitors are only partially clarified. We therefore aimed at investigating the toxicity of regorafenib, sorafenib, ponatinib, crizotinib, dasatinib and pazopanib on HepG2 and partially on HepaRG cells. Regorafenib and sorafenib strongly inhibited oxidative metabolism (measured by the Seahorse‐XF24 analyzer) and glycolysis, decreased the mitochondrial membrane potential and induced apoptosis and/or necrosis of HepG2 cells at concentrations similar to steady‐state plasma concentrations in humans. In HepaRG cells, pretreatment with rifampicin decreased membrane toxicity (measured as adenylate kinase release) and dissipation of adenosine triphosphate stores, indicating that toxicity was associated mainly with the parent drugs. Ponatinib strongly impaired oxidative metabolism but only weakly glycolysis, and induced apoptosis of HepG2 cells at concentrations higher than steady‐state plasma concentrations in humans. Crizotinib and dasatinib did not significantly affect mitochondrial functions and inhibited glycolysis only weakly, but induced apoptosis of HepG2 cells. Pazopanib was associated with a weak increase in mitochondrial reactive oxygen species accumulation and inhibition of glycolysis without being cytotoxic. In conclusion, regorafenib and sorafenib are strong mitochondrial toxicants and inhibitors of glycolysis at clinically relevant concentrations. Ponatinib affects mitochondria and glycolysis at higher concentrations than reached in plasma (but possibly in liver), whereas crizotinib, dasatinib and pazopanib showed no relevant toxicity. Mitochondrial toxicity and inhibition of glycolysis most likely explain hepatotoxicity associated with regorafenib, sorafenib and possibly pazopanib, but not for the other compounds investigated.
Unique Expression of Suppressor of Cytokine Signaling 3 Is Essential for Classical Macrophage Activation in Rodents In Vitro and In Vivo1

On infiltrating inflamed tissue, macrophages respond to the local microenvironment and develop one of two broad phenotypes: classically activated (M1) macrophages that cause tissue injury and alternatively activated macrophages that promote repair. Understanding how this polarization occurs in vivo is far from complete, and in this study, using a Th1-mediated macrophage-dependent model of acute glomerulonephritis, nephrotoxic nephritis, we examine the role of suppressor of cytokine signaling (SOCS)1 and SOCS3. Macrophages in normal kidneys did not express detectable SOCS proteins but those infiltrating inflamed glomeruli were rapidly polarized to express either SOCS1 (27 ± 6%) or SOCS3 (54 ± 12%) but rarely both (10 ± 3%). Rat bone marrow-derived macrophages incubated with IFN-γ or LPS expressed SOCS1 and SOCS3, whereas IL-4 stimulated macrophages expressed SOCS1 exclusively. By contrast, incubation with IFN-γ and LPS together suppressed SOCS1 while uniquely polarizing macrophages to SOCS3 expressing cells. Macrophages in which SOCS3 was knocked down by short interfering RNA responded to IFN-γ and LPS very differently: they had enhanced STAT3 activity; induction of macrophage mannose receptor, arginase and SOCS1; restoration of IL-4 responsiveness that is inhibited in M1 macrophages; and decreased synthesis of inflammatory mediators (NO and IL-6) and costimulatory molecule CD86, demonstrating that SOCS3 is essential for M1 activation. Without it, macrophages develop characteristic alternatively activated markers when exposed to classical activating stimuli. Lastly, increased glomerular IL-4 in nephrotoxic nephritis inhibits infiltrating macrophages from expressing SOCS3 and was associated with attenuated glomerular injury. Consequently, we propose that SOCS3 is essential for development of M1 macrophages in vitro and in vivo.
ERD2, a Yeast Gene Required for the Receptor-Mediated Retrieval Proteins from the Secretory Pathway of Luminal ER

Summary Resident proteins of the ER lumen carry a specific tetrapeptide signal (KDEL or HDEL) that prevents their secretion. We have previously described the isolation of yeast mutants that fail to retain such resident proteins within the cell. Here we describe ERDP, a gene required for retention. It encodes a 26 kd integral membrane protein whose abundance determines the efficiency and capacity of the retention system. Reduced expression of ERDP leads to secretion of proteins bearing the HDEL signal, whereas overexpression of ERDP improves retention both in wild-type cells and in other mutants. These results are consistent with other evidence that ERDP encodes the HDEL receptor (see accompanying paper). The gene is also required, perhaps indirectly, for normal protein transport through the Golgi, and hence for growth. We discuss possible roles for ERDP in the secretory pathway.
Prevention of Type I Diabetes by Low-Dose Gamma Irradiation in NOD Mice

Abstract Takahashi, M. , Kojima, S. , Yamaoka, K. and Niki, E. Prevention of Type I Diabetes by Low-Dose Gamma Irradiation in NOD Mice. Pretreatment with nonlethal, low-dose irradiation has been shown to have a protective effect against oxidative injury in animal tissues. Since oxidative injury of tissues is known to be a major cause of many human diseases, we examined the effect of low-dose irradiation on the progression of type I diabetes in mice. Nonobese diabetic (NOD) mice were treated with γ irradiation and the progression of the disease was monitored. An elevated level of glucose in urine was first detected at 15 weeks of age in the control NOD mice, whereas the detection was delayed as long as 7 weeks when the mice received a single dose of 0.5 Gy total-body irradiation between 12 and 14 weeks of age. The greatest effect was observed in the mice irradiated at 13 weeks of age. The increase in blood glucose and decrease in blood insulin were effectively suppressed by irradiation at 13 weeks of age. Both suppression of cell death by apoptosis and an increase in superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity were observed in the pancreas 1 week after irradiation. The results indicate that treatment with 0.5 Gy γ rays suppresses progression of type I diabetes in NOD mice. This is the first report on the preventive effect of low-dose irradiation on disease progression.
Inhibition of chemotaxis of neutrophil leukocytes to interleukin-8 by endotoxins of various bacteria

The effects of endotoxins from various bacteria (Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Vibrio cholerae, Shigella flexneri, Salmonella typhosa, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa) on chemotaxis of neutrophil leukocytes to formyl peptide and interleukin-8 were tested in an improved chemotaxis assay involving a "sparse-pore" polycarbonate (Nuclepore) membrane in a Boyden-type chamber. The possible chemotactic activity of the endotoxins themselves were tested by the same technique. In addition, the effects of these substances on random motility of neutrophils were tested with a corresponding assay involving similar chambers fitted with membranes of standard pore density. Possible activation of the complement system of serum by each endotoxin was tested with sheep erythrocyte assays and the maximum endotoxin concentration (100 micrograms/ml) used in the chemotaxis and motility assays. All endotoxins inhibited chemotaxis of neutrophils to interleukin-8. No endotoxin affected chemotaxis to formyl peptide or was itself chemotactic for neutrophils. Endotoxin of S. flexneri inhibited random motility of neutrophils, while the others had no such effect. Endotoxins of K. pneumoniae and of P. aeruginosa produced moderate and marked inhibition, respectively, of total complement, as measured by hemolysis of sheep erythrocytes, without affecting the levels of C3c and C4 in these assays. Endotoxins of the other bacteria had no demonstrable effect in any of these assays of complement activation. These results suggest that chemotaxis to interleukin-8 may be mediated by cellular mechanisms different from those involved in chemotaxis to formyl peptide. Furthermore, the presence of these endotoxins could be significant for the suppression of neutrophil accumulation in inflammatory lesions mediated by interleukin-8.