Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Relationship of Procedural and Declarative Knowledge of Science Teacher Candidates in Newton's Laws of Motion to Understanding *

In this research, it was found that the levels of procedural and declarative knowledge of science teacher candidates in Newton’s laws of motion are 10%, 41% and 30%; whereas their success level was found to be 55%. These findings show that students’ success levels do not reflect their knowledge levels. A decline by 31% (66%45%) was observed in students’ level of declarative knowledge; which suggests that students experienced some problems while converting procedural knowledge into declarative knowledge, and due to these problems, they failed to “understand” Newton’s laws of motion adequately.
Anti‐CD11b monoclonal antibody reduces ischemic cell damage after transient focal cerebral ischemia in rat

We investigated the effect of an anti‐CD11b monoclonal antibody (1B6c) on ischemic cell damage after transient middle cerebral artery occlusion. We divided animals into three groups: MAb 1 group (n = 5)—rats were subjected to 2 hours of transient occlusion and 1B6c (1 mg/kg) was administered intravenously at 0 and 22 hours of reperfusion; MAb 2 group (n = 5)—same experimental protocol as MAb 1 group, except that the initial dose of 1B6c was increased to 2 mg/kg; and control group (n = 5)—same experimental protocol as MAb 2 group, except that an isotype‐matched control antibody was administered. Animals were weighed and tested for neurological function before and after occlusion of the middle cerebral artery. Forty‐six hours after reperfusion, brain sections were stained with hematoxylin and eosin for histology evaluation. We observed a significant reduction of weight loss and improvement in neurological function after ischemia in the MAb 2 animals compared to MAb 1 and vehicle‐treated animals (p < 0.05). The lesion volume was significantly smaller in the MAb 2 group (19.5 ± 1.9%) compared to MAb1 (29.9 ± 2.6%) and vehicletreated (34.2 ± 5.4%) group (p < 0.01). Tissue polymorphonuclear cell numbers were reduced in both 1B6c‐administered groups. Our data demonstrate that administration of anti‐CD11b antibody results in a dose‐dependent, significant functional improvement and reduction of ischemic cell damage after transient focal cerebral ischemia in the rat.
Performance Investigation on three-classes of MANET Routing Protocols

Routing in ad hoc networks has received significant attention with a number of different routing protocols proposed in recent years. These routing protocols may be classified into three main categories: proactive, reactive and hybrid. Prior work aimed at comparing the performance of routing protocols has mainly focused on comparing reactive and proactive protocols. In this paper, we present a simulation study of different routing protocols from all three categories. We also explore the benefits and performance of each routing category. Further, we present a discussion of future research directions for routing in ad hoc networks.
Evaluation of the Auxacolor System for Biochemical Identification of Medically Important Yeasts

ABSTRACT We compared the Auxacolor yeast identification system (Sanofi Diagnostics Pasteur) with the API 20C Aux (bioMerieux-Vitek) using 105 isolates of medically important yeasts. The Auxacolor system provided more rapid, accurate results and displayed less interobserver variability than the API 20C Aux.
Identification of the nitration site of insulin by peroxynitrite

Our previous investigation indicated that insulin can be nitrated by peroxynitrite in vitro. In this study, the preferential nitration site of the four tyrosine residues in insulin molecule was confirmed. Mononitrated and dinitrated insulins were purified by RP‐HPLC. Following reduction of insulin disulfide bridges, Native‐PAGE indicated that A‐chain was preferentially nitrated. Combination of enzymatic digestion of mononitrated insulin with endoproteinase Glu‐C, mass spectrometry confirmed that Tyr‐A14 was the preferential nitration site when insulin was treated with peroxynitrite. Tyr‐A19, maybe, was the next preferential nitration site. According to the crystal structure, Tyr‐B26 between the two tyrosine residues in insulin B‐chain was likely easier to be nitrated by peroxynitrite. Copyright © 2006 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Contrast‐Enhanced Black and White Images

This paper investigates contrast enhancement as an approach to tone reduction, aiming to convert a photograph to black and white. Using a filter‐based approach to strengthen contrast, we avoid making a hard decision about how to assign tones to segmented regions. Our method is inspired by sticks filtering, used to enhance medical images but not previously used in non‐photorealistic rendering. We amplify contrast of pixels along the direction of greatest local difference from the mean, strengthening even weak features if they are most prominent. A final thresholding step converts the contrast‐enhanced image to black and white. Local smoothing and contrast enhancement balances abstraction and structure preservation; the main advantage of our method is its faithful depiction of image detail. Our method can create a set of effects: line drawing, hatching, and black and white, all having superior details to previous black and white methods.
The World Health Organization Guidelines on Hand Hygiene in Health Care and Their Consensus Recommendations

The World Health Organization's Guidelines on Hand Hygiene in Health Care have been issued by WHO Patient Safety on 5 May 2009 on the occasion of the launch of the Save Lives: Clean Your Hands initiative. The Guidelines represent the contribution of more than 100 international experts and provide a comprehensive overview of essential aspects of hand hygiene in health care, evidence- and consensus-based recommendations, and lessons learned from testing their Advanced Draft and related implementation tools.
Studies on the Sm-Co Magnet as a Dental Material

The Sm-Co magnet has superior and convenient magnetic properties as compared with conventional ones used hitherto in prosthesis, and even very small pieces can provide the force necessary in dentistry. Also, the magnet has high corrosion resistance and is innocuous to tissues. Therefore, it can be used as a dental material, overcoming the limitations in past applications.
Panel 6: Vaccines

Objective To review the literature on progress regarding (1) effectiveness of vaccines for prevention of otitis media (OM) and (2) development of vaccine antigens for OM bacterial and viral pathogens. Data Sources PubMed database of the National Library of Science. Review Methods We performed literature searches in PubMed for OM pathogens and candidate vaccine antigens, and we restricted the searches to articles in English that were published between July 2011 and June 2015. Panel members reviewed literature in their area of expertise. Conclusions Pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCVs) are somewhat effective for the prevention of pneumococcal OM, recurrent OM, OM visits, and tympanostomy tube insertions. Widespread use of PCVs has been associated with shifts in pneumococcal serotypes and bacterial pathogens associated with OM, diminishing PCV effectiveness against AOM. The 10-valent pneumococcal vaccine containing Haemophilus influenzae protein D (PHiD-CV) is effective for pneumococcal OM, but results from studies describing the potential impact on OM due to H influenzae have been inconsistent. Progress in vaccine development for H influenzae, Moraxella catarrhalis, and OM-associated respiratory viruses has been limited. Additional research is needed to extend vaccine protection to additional pneumococcal serotypes and other otopathogens. There are likely to be licensure challenges for protein-based vaccines, and data on correlates of protection for OM vaccine antigens are urgently needed. Implications for Practice OM continues to be a significant health care burden globally. Prevention is preferable to treatment, and vaccine development remains an important goal. As a polymicrobial disease, OM poses significant but not insurmountable challenges for vaccine development.
Basis for heterogeneity of para-aminohippurate secretion in rabbit proximal tubules.

Para-aminohippurate (PAH) is secreted at different rates in S1, S2, and S3 segments of isolated perfused proximal tubules of rabbit kidney. To characterize PAH transport we determined the maximal rate of secretion (Vmax) and the apparent Michaelis constant (Km) for each segment by examining the relationship between bath concentration of PAH and net PAH secretion (Jb leads to lPAH) transposed for Lineweaver-Burk analysis. The passive component of secretion for all segments was estimated by slope analysis at relatively high concentrations of PAH, by the component of PAH secretion insensitive to inhibition by probenecid, and, additionally, in S2 segments, from PAH efflux from lumen to bath. Subtraction of the passive component from Jb leads to lPAH (probenecid method) gave Vmax values for S1, S2, and S3 segments of 1,097 +/- 336 (n = 6), 7,430 +/- 1,338 (n = 6), 1,647 +/- 138 (n = 8) X 10(-15) mol.min-1.mm-1 (+/- SE) and apparent Km values of 139 +/- 37 (n = 6), 195 +/- 37 (n = 6), and 113 +/- 16 (n = 6) X 10(-6) M, respectively. Thus, Vmax for S2 greater than S3 congruent to S1, whereas apparent Km was not consistently different among the segments. On the basis of these results we suggest that axial heterogeneity of PAH secretion may reflect an increased basolateral membrane density of PAH transporters of common affinity in the S2 segment of the proximal tubule.
Productivity and chemical composition of pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum) as response to NPK fertilization and biofertilizer

An experiment was carried out at the rural community “Las Canoas” from the municipality Montes Claros, Minas Gerais to evaluate the productivity and chemical composition of the pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum), variety ADR 500 as response to NPK fertilization and biofertilizer. A completely randomized design with three replications and an additional treatment with mineral fertilization were applied. Dosages used were 0, 81.2, 161.2, 202.4 and 245.6 m3 ha-1 for the biofertilizer, 200 kg ha-1 of the complete formula and l50 kg-1 of urea in the chemical treatment. The chemical properties of the soil, the nutrient levels in the foliar biomass and the productivity of the pearl millet were determined. There were no differences between fertilization methods for the pearl millet productivity and the chemical composition of the soil. Only the relationship H + AL was higher (P < 0.05) in the chemical fertilization. Nutrient concentration in the plant was lower for P (0.53 dag kg-1) and K (1.03 dag kg-1) with mineral fertilization. The productivity of the pearl millet, the OM soil content, the ammonia nitrogen (N-NH4+) and the total mineral N augmented with increasing dosages of biofertilizer. Maximum values of fresh matter (25.49 t ha -1) and DM (5.31 t ha-1) were reached with dosages of 120.19 and 134.64 m3 ha-1, respectively. The application of 64.39 m3 h-1 of biofertilizer showed the highest OM content in the soil (3.42 dag kg-1). There was a linear increase for N-NH4+ (83.00 mg dm -3) and total mineral N (141.28 mgdm-3). The increasing application of biofertilizer reduced linearly the percentage of mineral material (MM) and ADF, besides improving the quality of the pearl millet for animal feeding. This strategy favored the P, K and Ca content of the pearl millet biomass. It is recommended under the conditions of this experiment to apply the dosage of 134.64 m3 ha-1 of biofertilizer for obtaining the maximum productivity of dry biomass in pearl millet.
EVOLUTIONARY REVERSALS OF ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE IN EXPERIMENTAL POPULATIONS OF PSEUDOMONAS AERUGINOSA

Antibiotic resistance mutations are accompanied by a fitness cost, and two mechanisms allow bacteria to adapt to this cost once antibiotic use is halted. First, it is possible for resistance to revert; second, it is possible for bacteria to adapt to the cost of resistance by compensatory mutations. Unfortunately, reversion to antibiotic sensitivity is rare, but the underlying factors that prevent reversion remain obscure. Here, we directly study the evolutionary dynamics of reversion by experimentally mimicking reversion mutations—sensitives—in populations of rifampicin‐resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa. We show that, in our populations, most sensitives are lost due to genetic drift when they are rare. However, clonal interference from lineages carrying compensatory mutations causes a dramatic increase in the time to fixation of sensitives that escape genetic drift, and mutations surpassing the sensitives’ fitness are capable of driving transiently common sensitive lineages to extinction. Crucially, we show that the constraints on reversion arising from clonal interference are determined by the potential for compensatory adaptation of the resistant population. Although the cost of resistance provides the incentive for reversion, our study demonstrates that both the cost of resistance and the intrinsic evolvability of resistant populations interact to determine the rate and likelihood of reversion.
GLOBAL STABILIZATION OF THE INVERTED PENDULUM USING MODEL PREDICTIVE CONTROL

Abstract Model Predictive Control (MPC) is used to improve the performance of energy control for swinging up a pendulum. A new MPC method is developed in continuous time, but it explicitly considers its digital implementation letting the control signal be piece-wise constant. The stability properties of the algorithm are analyzed in terms of the free MPC design parameters. The achieved performance improvement is witnesses by a detailed simulation study.
Morphometry of the head of the caudate nucleus in patients with velocardiofacial syndrome (del 22qll.2)

Velocardiofacial syndrome (VCFS) is a chromosomal anomaly syndrome characterized by multiple congenital malformations, including cleft palate and cardiac anomalies. Many patients have attention‐deficit (hyperactivity) disorders (AD[H]D) in childhood and schizophrenia in adulthood. We reviewed cranial magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans with particular attention to the head of the caudate nucleus and found that in control subjects, the head of the caudate was larger on the left than on the right, whereas VCFS patients showed a reversed right > left pattern or no significant asymmetry. A similar right > left asymmetry or a lack of this asymmetry has been reported in patients with AD(H)D.
The Natural History of Spine Curvature Progression in the Nonambulatory Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy Patient

The natural progression of the spinal curve of eight nonambulatory Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) patients were followed from 38 to 91 months (average, five years and two months). Curve progression was seen in all patients. In patients whose curves exceeded 40°, secondary complications, including loss of function, diminished sitting tolerance, use of the arms and hands to prop the body up when seated, pain, and a diminished vital capacity (12–16%), were present.
Cofilin-Mediated F-Actin Severing Is Regulated by the Rap GTPase and Controls the Cytoskeletal Dynamics That Drive Lymphocyte Spreading and BCR Microcluster Formation

When lymphocytes encounter APCs bearing cognate Ag, they spread across the surface of the APC to scan for additional Ags. This is followed by membrane contraction and the formation of Ag receptor microclusters that initiate the signaling reactions that lead to lymphocyte activation. Breakdown of the submembrane cytoskeleton is likely to be required for the cytoskeleton reorganization that drives cell spreading and for removing physical barriers that limit Ag receptor mobility. In this report, we show that Ag receptor signaling via the Rap GTPases promotes the dephosphorylation and activation of the actin-severing protein cofilin and that this results in increased severing of cellular actin filaments. Moreover, we show that this cofilin-mediated actin severing is critical for the changes in actin dynamics that drive B and T cell spreading, for the formation of BCR microclusters, and for the increased mobility of BCR microclusters within the plasma membrane after BCR engagement. Finally, using a model APC, we show that activation of this Rap–cofilin signaling module controls the amount of Ag that is gathered into BCR microclusters and that this is directly related to the magnitude of the resulting BCR signaling that is initiated during B cell–APC interactions. Thus, Rap-dependent activation of cofilin is critical for the early cytoskeletal changes and BCR reorganization that are involved in APC-dependent lymphocyte activation.
Spiritual and Religious Beliefs and Practices and Social Support’s Relationship to Diabetes Self-Care Activities in African Americans

Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship among spiritual and religious beliefs and practices, social support, and diabetes self-care activities in African Americans with type 2 diabetes, hypothesizing that there would be a positive association. Method This cohort study used a cross-sectional design that focused on baseline data from a larger randomized control trial. Diabetes self-care activities (Summary of Diabetes Self-Care Activities) and sociodemographic characteristics were assessed, in addition to spiritual and religious beliefs and practices and social support based on the Systems of Belief Inventory subscales I (beliefs and practices) and II (social support). Results There were 132 participants: most were women, middle-aged, obese, single, high school educated, and not employed. Based on Pearson correlation matrices, there were significant relationships between spiritual and religious beliefs and practices and general diet. Additional significant relationships were found for social support with general diet, specific diet, and foot care. Based on multiple linear regression, social support was a significant predictor for general diet, specific diet, and foot care. Sex was a significant predictor for specific diet, and income was a significant predictor for blood glucose testing. Conclusions The findings of this study highlight the importance of spiritual and religious beliefs and practices and social support in diabetes self-care activities. Future research should focus on determining how providers integrate patients’ beliefs and practices and social support into clinical practice and include those in behavior change interventions.
Linear Viscoelasticity of Leslie-Ericksen Liquid Crystal Polymers

The linear viscoleasticity of seven lyotropic and thermotropic liquid crystalline polymers is characterized using the Leslie-Ericksen equations of defect-free nematodynamics for small amplitude oscillatory capillary Poiseuille flow, and using analytical, numerical and scaling methods. The experimental data sets used in this study correspond to the six Leslie viscosities coefficients for seven nematics liquid crystal polymers, that include shear flow-aligning and non-aligning materials. The predicted equivalent rheological responses between the shear flow-aligning and shear non-aligning polymers demonstrate the universality of nematodynamics. In this work the principles of superposition are developed, applied, and shown to be accurate in collapsing the data sets for both classes of polymers. The scaled resonance peak in the loss tangent (tan δ=G”/G’) as a function of the oscillation frequency shown to be a universal constant for monodomain nematics. Introduction The Leslie-Ericksen liquid crystal (LELC) is a mathematical material model for rodor disk-like uniaxial incompressible isothermal nematic liquid crystals widely used to describe anisotropic viscoelastic behavior [1]. A common rheological classification scheme for nematic liquid crystal polymers (LCPs) is based on their shear flow aligning characteristics, which is set by the sign and magnitude of the reactive order parameter λ [1,2,3]. Lyotropic LCPs are usually non-aligning at low shear rates and aligning at high shear rates [3]. On the other hand, main-chain thermotropic LCPs with flexible spacers are likely to be flow-aligning at all shear rates, while main-chain thermotropic LCPs without flexible spacers are apparently nonaligning. A data set of viscoelastic parameters for seven thermotropic and lyotropic LCPs was recently presented [4]; it shows the rheological differentiation between lyotropic and thermotropic LCPs. Small amplitude oscillatory flows (SAOFs) are a main rheological tool used to characterize viscoelasticity in terms of the storage G’(ω,T) and loss G”(ω,T) moduli as a function of frequency (ω) and temperature (T) [5]. This paper uses small-amplitude pressure driven Poiseuille capillary flow, and characterizes the linear viscoelasticity of seven LCPs [4] using the Leslie-Ericksen equations of defect-free nematodynamics that is useful to understand the nematics liquid crystals materials rheology. [1,2,6]. This paper also demonstrates that flow-aligning and non-aligning materials can exhibit identical viscoelastic responses, thus showing features of universality in the nematodynamics of lyotropic and thermotropic materials.
Epidemiology and Clonality of Methicillin-Resistant and Methicillin-Susceptible Staphylococcus aureus Causing Bacteremia in a Tertiary-Care Hospital in Spain

Abstract Objectives: To describe the relative proportions of nosocomial and community-onset Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia at our institution and the epidemiologic characteristics and clonal diversity of S. aureus isolates, as determined by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) and antimicrobial resistance patterns. Design: Retrospective cohort study of all cases of S. aureus bacteremia between October 2001 and October 2002. Setting: A 1,300-bed, tertiary-care hospital. Results: One hundred sixty-two unique episodes of S. aureus bacteremia were identified. Forty-three cases (26.5%) were caused by methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA). Most cases of S. aureus bacteremia, whether MRSA or methicillin susceptible (MSSA), were nosocomial in origin (77.2%) or were otherwise associated with the healthcare system (16%). Only 11 (6.8%) of the cases (all MSSA) were strictly community acquired. Thirty-five unique macrorestriction patterns were identified among the 154 isolates that were typed by PFGE. Four major genotypes were defined among the isolates of MRSA, with 36 (85.7%) represented by a single PFGE type. Of the isolates within this major clone, all (100%) were ciprofloxacin resistant and 77.8% were erythromycin resistant. In contrast, the 112 isolates of MSSA comprised 31 different PFGE types, 3 of which represented 42.9% of all MSSA isolates and were associated with both nosocomial and community-onset bacteremia. Conclusions: Most cases of S. aureus bacteremia in our healthcare region are nosocomial in origin or are acquired through contact with the healthcare system and are thus potentially preventable. To preclude dissemination of pathogenic clones, it is therefore necessary to redouble preventive measures in both the hospital and the community.
The RP105/MD‐1 complex: molecular signaling mechanisms and pathophysiological implications

Radioprotective 105 kDa (CD180) is an unusual TLR that lacks an intracellular Toll‐IL‐1R signaling domain and exhibits unconventional homodimerization behavior. Differential expression and functions of radioprotective 105 kDa have been associated with immune‐mediated pathologies, including infection, chronic inflammation, and autoimmune disorders. Radioprotective 105 kDa activates macrophages and B cells independently of canonical TLR signaling. Current understanding of the functional consequences of radioprotective 105 kDa signaling in B cells, macrophages, and dendritic cells indicates overlapping, but also some apparent opposing, cell‐specific roles for radioprotective 105 kDa in shaping cellular functions. This review compares interactions of radioprotective 105 kDa with its coreceptors, CD19, TLR4, and TLR2; integrates recent, novel findings on radioprotective 105 kDa‐mediated molecular signaling mechanisms; and summarizes current understanding of its contributions to infectious, inflammatory, and autoimmune disease.