Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Investigação da rentabilidade de clientes: um estudo no setor hoteleiro do Nordeste

This study presents an investigation about customer profitability in the hotel industry. It exposes the hotel industry ́s history and its managerial environment, besides its importance to the society and economy, considering the increasement of the hotel industry. It realizes a literature survey about the customer profitability, emphasizing the informations that are necessary to measurement. In order to perceive the hotel reality, a questionnaire was applied in some hotels classified as middle and great size. It has covered five Brasilian Northeast states. The objective of the research is to investigate the existence of an individual measurement to the customer profitability, through the hotel ́s information systems. The results reveal that 81,6% of the sampled hotels do not evaluate the individual profitability obtained with the customers , while 18,4% do it. Although, 85,8% recognize the importance of the electronic system that supplies this information for decisions. Finally, it concludes that the informations about individual customer profitability may provide a good opportunity to the hotel maximize your customer relationships. KEY-WORDS: Customer, Profitability, Information.
Oats to children with newly diagnosed coeliac disease: a randomised double blind study

Background: Treatment of coeliac disease (CD) requires lifelong adherence to a strict gluten free diet (GFD) which hitherto has consisted of a diet free of wheat, rye, barley, and oats. Recent studies, mainly in adults, have shown that oats are non-toxic to CD patients. In children, only open studies comprising a small number of patients have been performed. Aim: To determine if children with CD tolerate oats in their GFD. Patients and methods: In this double blind multicentre study involving eight paediatric clinics, 116 children with newly diagnosed CD were randomised to one of two groups: one group was given a standard GFD (GFD-std) and one group was given a GFD with additional wheat free oat products (GFD-oats). The study period was one year. Small bowel biopsy was performed at the beginning and end of the study. Serum IgA antigliadin, antiendomysium, and antitissue transglutaminase antibodies were monitored at 0, 3, 6, and 12 months. Results: Ninety three patients completed the study. Median (range) daily oat intake in the GFD-oats group (n = 42) was 15 (5–40) g at the six month control and 15 (0–43) g at the end of the study. All patients were in clinical remission after the study period. The GFD-oats and GFD-std groups did not differ significantly at the end of the study regarding coeliac serology markers or small bowel mucosal architecture, including numbers of intraepithelial lymphocytes. Significantly more children in the youngest age group withdrew. Conclusions: This is the first randomised double blind study showing that the addition of moderate amounts of oats to a GFD does not prevent clinical or small bowel mucosal healing, or humoral immunological downregulation in coeliac children. This is in accordance with the findings of studies in adult coeliacs and indicates that oats, added to the otherwise GFD, can be accepted and tolerated by the majority of children with CD.
Small intestinal neuroendocrine tumors: Prognostic factors and survival

Objective. Small intestinal neuroendocrine tumors (SI-NETs) make up 38% of gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors. We report our experience with SI-NETs at the National Center for Neuroendocrine Tumors in Norway, focusing on prognostic factors and survival. Material and methods. The medical records of 258 patients with SI-NETs diagnosed between 1983 and 2007 were retrospectively reviewed. Demographic, clinical and tumor characteristics were registered in a database. Results. Median age at diagnosis was 62 years (range 28–84); 53% of patients were men. Median survival was 9.3 years [95% confidence interval (CI) 7.6;10.8]. Survival did not improve for patients diagnosed between 1998 and 2007 compared with those diagnosed between 1990 and 1997 (p=0.44), median survival 8.1 [7.1;9.1] versus 6.8 [4.0;9.5] years. Overall 5-year survival was 72%, while expected 5-year survival in the general population was 92%. The corresponding relative 5-year survival for the patient group was 78%. Distant metastases, urinary 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid ratio ≥3.7 times the upper limit of normal, chromogranin A ratio ≥6.2 times the upper limit of normal, age ≥64, male gender, carcinoid heart disease, and Ki-67 ≥5% were associated with decreased survival. Using multivariate analysis, only distant metastases (hazard ratio (HR) 1.98 [1.04;3.76], p=0.04), chromogranin A ratio ≥6.2 (HR 1.90 [1.12;3.20], p=0.02), and age ≥64 (3.12 [1.93;5.04], p<0.001) remained independent predictors. Conclusions. Survival did not improve over the study period. Overall and relative 5-year survival compared favorably with that in population-based studies. Distant metastases, elevated chromogranin A levels, and advanced age were the only independent predictors of poor survival.
A Dominant-negative Mutant of Human DNA Helicase B Blocks the Onset of Chromosomal DNA Replication*

A cDNA encoding a human ortholog of mouse DNA helicase B, which may play a role in DNA replication, has been cloned and expressed as a recombinant protein. The predicted human DNA helicase B (HDHB) protein contains conserved helicase motifs (superfamily 1) that are strikingly similar to those of bacterial recD and T4 dda proteins. The HDHB gene is expressed at low levels in liver, spleen, kidney, and brain and at higher levels in testis and thymus. Purified recombinant HDHB hydrolyzed ATP and dATP in the presence of single-stranded DNA, displayed robust 5′-3′ DNA helicase activity, and interacted physically and functionally with DNA polymerase α-primase. HDHB proteins with mutations in the Walker A or B motif lacked ATPase and helicase activity but retained the ability to interact with DNA polymerase α-primase, suggesting that the mutants might be dominant over endogenous HDHB in human cells. When purified HDHB protein was microinjected into the nucleus of cells in early G1, the mutant proteins inhibited DNA synthesis, whereas the wild type protein had no effect. Injection of wild type or mutant protein into cells at G1/S did not prevent DNA synthesis. The results suggest that HDHB function is required for S phase entry.
Tandem genes of Chlamydia psittaci that encode proteins localized to the inclusion membrane

Chlamydiae are obligate intracellular bacteria that replicate within a non‐acidified vacuole, termed an inclusion. To identify chlamydial proteins that are unique to the intracellular phase of the life cycle, a lambda expression library of Chlamydia psittaci DNA was differentially screened with convalescent antisera from infected guinea pigs and antisera directed at formalin‐fixed purified chlamydial elementary bodies (EBs). One library clone was identified that harboured two open reading frames (ORFs) with coding potential for similar‐sized proteins of ≈20 kDa. These proteins were subsequently termed IncB and IncC. Sequencing of the cloned insert revealed a strong Escherichia coli‐like promoter sequence immediately upstream of incB and a 36 nt intergenic region between the ORFs. Sequence analysis of the region upstream of incB and incC revealed two ORFs that had strong homologies to an amino acid transporter and a sodium‐dependent transporter. Immunoblotting with antisera directed at IncB or IncC demonstrated that these proteins are present in C. psittaci‐infected HeLa cells but are absent or below the level of detection in purified EBs. Reverse transcriptase‐polymerase chain reactions provided evidence that incB and incC are transcribed in an operon. Immunofluorescence microscopy demonstrated that IncB and IncC are each localized to the inclusion membrane of infected cells. No primary sequence similarity is evident between IncA, IncB or IncC, but each contains a large hydrophobic domain of similar size and character as in IncA. Analysis of the recently completed C. trachomatis serovar D genome database has revealed C. trachomatis ORFs encoding homologues to incB and incC, indicating that these genes are conserved among the chlamydiae.
Working together: relatedness and economy amongst the Rukai of Taiwan

This dissertation examines the mutual construction of relatedness and the economy amongst the Rukai of Taiwan. A person is imagined as the embodiment of a couple's collaborative efforts at work, and hence practices of work are central to making a person the site of relatedness. Significantly, work refers to both human efforts and human agency in contrast to ritual performance. With respect to their experience of capitalism, I suggest that money not only embodies the fruit of labour for the Rukai, but is also thought to be a living thing with fertility that is important for domestic reproduction as well as the realisation of inter-house relations. Rukai workers consider work for kin paid by piece rate to be the enactment of kinship morality rather than undertaken just for payment. With kin-employer's provision of gifts to kin-workers, an act of exploitation is transfigured into a practice implying reciprocity. Above all, workers emphasise conviviality in doing piecework in the company of kin, and such work enacts domestic sociality in the Rukai context. By contrast, labour paid in daily wages is viewed as toil, and a wage is seen as 'bitter money'. This is associated with experiences of unreasonable labour time on the shop floor. With the payment of a daily wage, moreover, an employer is sensitive to workers' speed of work in order to secure surplus value. Given that both parties recognise the fact that work paid in wages is grounded in the pursuit of monetary gain rather than on kinship morality, I argue that the rupture between relatedness and the 'economy' comes into being. In the wake of increasing unemployment, the moral code stemming from kinship in turn underpins the provision of food to jobless kin. Meanwhile, the Rukai expect the government, viewed as a superior, powerful caretaker, to offer them opportunities of employment in terms of'having pity on' the unemployed. However, Rukai engagement in wage labour is, strikingly, experienced as bodily affliction. I argue that Rukai participation in charismatic healing practices for the purpose of repairing distress and affliction is tantamount to implicit resistance to the encroachment of capitalism.
Where Do Cohesion Policy Funds Flow and Do They Have any Impact? The Polish Lesson

This article sums up the results of analyses of the differences of scale and structure of investments partly financed by EU funds and evaluates their compliance with the needs of the nodes of development and development peripheries in Poland, the largest, new, post-socialist EU Member State. The analysis evaluates how development factors correspond to the directions of intervention of regional policies related to their creation and enhancement. Their added value stems from a comprehensive analysis of the relations between developmental differences, the unique factors determined by different territorial capitals and the directions of interventions of development policy in Poland.
Essential Quality Attributes In Fresh Produce Purchase by Malaysian Consumers

Product attribute is one of the most important criteria in consumers’ purchase decision making. This study examines consumers’ perceptions on the essential quality attributes of fresh produce. For this purpose, 1,562 usable responses were analysed. Findings show that quality product attributes such as absence of defect, absence of blemishes, ripeness, freshness, absence of pesticides, absence of preservatives, nutritional value and cleanliness are consistently rated as important for both fruits and vegetables.
HDAC inhibition as a treatment concept to combat temsirolimus-resistant bladder cancer cells

Introduction Although the mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) might be a promising molecular target to treat advanced bladder cancer, resistance develops under chronic exposure to an mTOR inhibitor (everolimus, temsirolimus). Based on earlier studies, we proposed that histone deacetylase (HDAC) blockade might circumvent resistance and investigated whether HDAC inhibition has an impact on growth of bladder cancer cells with acquired resistance towards temsirolimus. Results The HDAC inhibitor valproic acid (VPA) significantly inhibited growth, proliferation and caused G0/G1 phase arrest in RT112res and UMUC-3res. cdk1, cyclin B, cdk2, cyclin A and Skp1 p19 were down-regulated, p27 was elevated. Akt-mTOR signaling was deactivated, whereas acetylation of histone H3 and H4 in RT112res and UMUC-3res increased in the presence of VPA. Knocking down cdk2 or cyclin A resulted in a significant growth blockade of RT112res and UMUC-3res. Materials And Methods Parental (par) and resistant (res) RT112 and UMUC-3 cells were exposed to the HDAC inhibitor VPA. Tumor cell growth, proliferation, cell cycling and expression of cell cycle regulating proteins were then evaluated. siRNA blockade was used to investigate the functional impact of the proteins. Conclusions HDAC inhibition induced a strong response of temsirolimus-resistant bladder cancer cells. Therefore, the temsirolimus-VPA-combination might be an innovative strategy for bladder cancer treatment.
Trade Credit or Bank Credit? – Lessons Learned from Hungarian Firms between 2010 and 2015

This paper addresses the way in which trade credit was used by Hungarian firms in the period between 2010 and 2015. Relying on Burkart and Ellingsen’s (2004) theory of trade credit, we use panel data on 14,554 Hungarian firms (including 68 large corporations) to estimate the relationship of trade credit and short-term bank credit. Estimated on sub-samples broken down by profitability, our results only confirm a complementary relationship. We also examine the relationship separately for each category of firm size. We found a complementary relationship for small and microenterprises, whereas the results obtained for large corporations imply a substitution effect. In Hungary, in the period after 2013 accounts payable tended to be increased by financially constrained micro and medium-sized enterprises and mostly held steady by financially unconstrained firms.
Equilibrium Degradation Levels in Irradiated and Pumped Erbium-Doped Optical Fibers

This paper investigates the local interplay between radiation-induced darkening and pump-induced bleaching in erbium-doped silica optical fibers. Thanks to proper characterization conditions using short fiber samples, we demonstrate that degradation levels can be tuned reversibly between equilibrium levels by varying the pump power and/or the dose rate while the dose is being accumulated. This novel finding inspires a local physical model of the radiation-induced degradation of erbium-doped fibers in active conditions. This model is shown to reproduce all empirical features, including dose rate and pump power dependencies. This validated local model could be implemented in long fiber amplifier simulations.
Frequency regulation of an isolated hybrid power system with Battery energy storage system

This paper presents operation and control of a hybrid Photovoltiac Power, Diesel-Engine Generator (DEG) - Battery energy storage system (BESS) connected to an isolated power system. A case study on the impact of BESS operations on the frequency stability of the hybrid system has been carried out. The limits on state of charge (SOC) due to limited storage capacity have also been incorporated. Simulation of a hybrid system model has been carried out in two cases, steady state analysis of hybrid system using step load response with PI controller and other real time performance analysis for a typical day with random variation in load demand. Parameters of controllers are optimized with Genetic Algorithm. Simulation of a hybrid system model is done with the Matlab/Simulink environment. Simulation results indicate that BESS system can contribute to frequency stability in both cases when the load increases and when the load drops. This feature of BESS system will be helpful if it is operated along with a hybrid Wind-PV System.
Rabo-advisors: How can automated investment advice change risk profiling practices

Risk profiling is integral for the construction of portfolio allocations in investment advice. Roboadvisors are a new kind of investment advisor that solely conducts risk profiling through online means. This contrasts with traditional investment advisors, whose focus does not lie solely on provision of investment advice. The aim of this paper was to see whether these robo-advisors can change risk profiling. The differences between the risk profiling process and the methodologies employed were assessed. The future potential for robo-advisors if they use technology efficiently was also assessed. It was found that robo-advisors generally use the same risk profiling process and risk tolerance measures. They also provide advice in the same way as their traditional counterparts, excluding some exceptions. Because of their high interactivity, robo-advisors have the potential to gather and incorporate more data on their clients’ lives into their risk profiling. Additionally they can further explore new portfolio allocation theories that incorporate mental accounts. Furthermore, they can extend the scope of their advice to also extend to personal or household finances. Additionally, they have the potential to offer clients new ways in which they can learn about investing. If they incorporate these things, they potentially can change risk profiling. Table of
Experimental Escherichia coli ascending pyelonephritis in rats: active peroral immunization with live Escherichia coli

Peroral immunization with a live strain of Escherichia coli O6K13H1 against experimental ascending pyelonephritis caused by the same strain was studied in rats, and the effect of immunization on antibody titers against the O and K antigens and lipid A was determined. Peroral immunization with live bacteria protected significantly against pyelonephritis. Sera collected 1 week after infection from the immunized group were increased in immunoglobulin G (IgG) anti-O6 and IgM anti-K13 in comparison with the nonimmunized group. The peroral immunization did not correspondingly affect the response to lipid A. In urine, there was an IgG antibody response to the O6 antigen. In bronchopulmonary secretion, IgM, IgG, and IgA antibodies to O6 were detected. Perorally immunized animals had significantly higher levels of IgG and IgA anti-O6 compared with the nonimmunized group 1 week after infection. Passive transfer of anti-lipid A did not increase resistance against pyelonephritis.
The Impact of Ethiopian Productive Safety-Net Program on Children's Educational Aspirations

The Productive Safety Net Program (PSNP) was launched by the government of Ethiopia in 2005 to support food-insecure rural households. In this paper, we evaluate the impact of PSNP on children's educational aspirations and actual attainments. We use longitudinal data from the Ethiopian sample of the Young Lives' survey and by means of a differences-in-differences, individual fixed-effects estimator, we find that the program increases both educational aspirations and actual attainment of children. In our preferred specification, the immediate effect (after 3 years) of the program is to increase by 1.05 years of educational aspirations and by about 0.35 years actual education of children. Furthermore, there is evidence that the program has significant effect even in the long run (after 6 years). The results point to broad and long-lasting positive effects on children education of a program designed primarily to relieve chronically poor households from food insecurity.
DEPRESSIVE AND ANXIOUS SYMPTOMATOLOGY IN RELATION TO A PRIMARY BRAIN TUMOR

The findings on depression and anxiety among brain tumor patients have so far been based on case series and case samples. In Finland, psychiatric research in relation to psychiatric symptoms among patients with different types of brain tumors is lacking. The study population of this thesis consisted of 101 patients (39 males and 62 females) aged between 20 and 82 years with a solitary primary brain tumor treated surgically at the Oulu Clinic for Neurosurgery, Oulu University Hospital between February 1990 and March 1992. The major histological subgroup consisted of gliomas (40%), and the rest were meningiomas (33%), acoustic neurinomas (13%), pituitary adenomas (8%) and other types (6%). The psychiatric symptoms of the patients were assessed at three time points, namely before tumor operation as well as at three months and at one year after operation by two valid measurement instruments, the Beck Depression Inventory and the Crown Crisp Experiential Index. In addition, the patients' functional state was evaluated by the Karnofsky Performance Scale and their quality of life according to Sintonen 15 D. Prevalence of at least mild depression before tumor operation was 30% for males and 38% for females. The mean depressive scores decreased significantly for up to one-year during follow-up for both males and females, but they remained notably high in all patients. Decreased functional status (KPS under 70) in the patients was significantly associated with high depressive scores at all measurement points. The decrease in the mean depressive scores was significant among patients with an anterior tumor and those with a pituitary adenoma. Five-year survival of the brain tumor patients was found to be mainly associated with the histology of the tumor. Survival time in months (SD) of the patients with high-grade (III–IV) gliomas was shown to be 22.5 (21.4), while it was 50.2 (19.9) for the patients with low-grade (I–II) gliomas, and 58.2 (9.4) for the rest of the patients. Depression among low-grade glioma patients was significantly associated with worse survival at five years follow-up. The level of anxiety was shown to be significantly higher among patients with a primary brain tumor in the right hemisphere compared to the anxiety scores among patients with left hemispheric tumors. A significant increase was found in the level of obsessionality over time in the female patients with a brain tumor in the left anterior location of the brain at three months after operation. The level of quality of life (QOL) was significantly worse among female brain tumor patients compared to males. Depressive females had significantly lower quality of life compared to that of non-depressive females up to one-year follow-up after surgical operation of the tumor. Depression, anxiety and obsessive-compulsive symptoms have to be recognized and be treated by psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy as soon as possible at every unit where brain tumor patients are followed and encountered.