Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Proline transport by brush-border membrane vesicles of lobster antennal glands.

Purified brush-border membrane vesicles (BBMV) of lobster antennal gland labyrinth and bladder were separately formed by a magnesium precipitation technique. L-[3H]proline uptake was stimulated by a transmembrane NaCl gradient [outside (o) greater than inside (i)] to a greater extent in BBMV from labyrinth than those from the bladder. Detailed study of the labyrinth proline-transport processes revealed a specific dependence on NaCl, with negligible stimulatory effects by NaSCN, Na-gluconate, or KCl. A transmembrane proton gradient (o greater than i) was without stimulatory effect on proline transport. A transmembrane potential difference alone, in the presence of equilibrated NaCl and L-[3H]proline, led to net influx of the labeled amino acid, suggesting that the uptake process was electrogenic and capable of bringing about the net transfer of positive charge to the vesicle interior. Although a transmembrane Na gradient alone, in the presence of equilibrated Cl and L-[3H]proline, was able to bring about the net influx of the amino acid, a transmembrane Cl gradient alone under Na- and L-[3H]proline-equilibrated conditions was not, suggesting that only the Na gradient could energize the carrier process through cotransport, while the anion served an essential activating role. Proline influx by these vesicles occurred by the combination of at least one saturable Michaelis-Menten carrier system (apparent Kt = 0.37 mM; apparent JM = 1.19 nmol.mg protein-1.10 s-1) and apparent diffusion (P = 0.33 nmol.mg protein-1.10 s-1.mM-1). Static head analysis of the transport process suggested a cotransport stoichiometry of 2 Na:1 proline with essential activation by Cl ion.
Empathy of medical students and personality: Evidence from the Five-Factor Model

The main aim of this study was to test hypothetical associations between personality dimensions and empathy scores in medical students. The Portuguese version of NEO-FFI was administered in order to characterize participants in terms of five personality traits: Neuroticism, Extraversion, Agreeableness, Openness to Experience, and Conscientiousness. Self-reported empathy measures were obtained with the Portuguese version of the Jefferson Scale of Physician Empathy (JSPE-spv), a Likert-type questionnaire specifically developed for administration in health sciences settings that measures domains, such as compassionate care and perspective taking. Correlation analysis, multivariate analysis of covariance, and logistic regression analysis were conducted. The results confirmed positive associations between agreeableness, openness to experience and empathy, and did not support our hypothesis of negative associations between neuroticism and empathy. It is suggested that that the personality of students should be taken into account in programs to enhance empathy in undergraduate medical education.
Empirical Research on Corporate Governance in China: A Review and New Directions for the Future

ABSTRACT The ownership structure of Chinese firms has experienced significant changes over the last three decades, including the development of a fast growing stock market through which a large number of domestic firms have become publicly traded corporations. These changes have drawn increasing attention from researchers of corporate governance. In this article, we review the empirical research on corporate governance in China, with a focus on the internal and external governance mechanisms that have been investigated and the findings about the effectiveness of these mechanisms. On the basis of our review of 132 studies, we summarize the major findings and discuss the limitation of agency theory in understanding the governance issue in Chinese firms. We offer several ideas (e.g., the importance of the social context, new conceptualization of governance, different outcomes of governance, and data/method issues) for a new agenda to guide future research in the corporate governance of firms operating in the Chinese and other emerging economy contexts.
Antimicrobial Properties of Optimized Microwave-assisted Pyroligneous Acid from Oil Palm Fiber

The demands for an antimicrobial agent of natural origin has increasingly grown in recent years due to the adverse health effects from the long-term application of conventional chemical-based agent. To date, there are very few reports available on the use of pyroligneous acid produced in optimized condition, as antimicrobial agent. Thus, this study reports on the evaluation of the antimicrobial properties of oil palm fiber-derived pyroligneous acid produced using microwave heating at optimum condition (MWPA). The optimized MWPA was concentrated and extracted using ethyl acetate and was further determined for its antimicrobial properties against Gram positive and Gram negative bacterial strains through Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) and Minimum Biocidal Concentration (MBC) analysis. Results obtained shows that MWPA exhibited high inhibition zone that varied between 13 ± 0.58 to 28.67 ± 0.88 mm toward all strains screened in the present study with low range of MIC value from 0.651 ± 0.13 to 1.563 ± 0.00 mg/ml. This indicated that CPAEA MWPA derived from OPF exhibited a strong antimicrobial activity and might be projected as alternative natural source as antimicrobial agent.
Urinary Catecholamines and Cortisol in Recent-Onset Posttraumatic Stress Disorder After Motor Vehicle Accidents

Objective This study examined relationships among stress hormone levels, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) diagnosis and symptoms, and gender shortly after a common civilian trauma. Methods Levels of catecholamines and cortisol in 15-hour urine samples were examined in 55 adults who had been in serious motor vehicle accidents and in 22 age-matched control. Results Catecholamines were related to PTSD diagnosis and symptoms, but only among men: PTSD-symptomatic men who had been in an accident exhibited elevated levels of epinephrine and norepinephrine 1 month after the accident and had higher epinephrine levels 5 months later. Intrusive thoughts predicted catecholamine levels at 1 month, and avoidance of trauma-relevant stimuli was associated with higher epinephrine levels 5 months later. These effects were not significant among women. Urinary cortisol was also elevated among PTSD-symptomatic men, but not women, and only immediately (1 month) after the accident. For men and women, greater emotional numbing predicted a lower cortisol level 6 months after the accident. Conclusions These findings were interpreted as limited support for the generalizability of findings in men with chronic, combat-related PTSD and indicate the need for additional research on psychoendocrine assessment of traumatized women and specific dimensions of PTSD symptomatology.
Necessary and sufficient conditions for an environmental Kuznets curve with some illustrative examples

We propose a set of necessary and sufficient conditions for the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) phenomenon in a general model that permits non-smooth preferences and feasible sets and corner solutions for welfare maximisation. These conditions pertain to the relationship between the sets of preference and technology-based shadow prices at an outcome reached by an emission-held-fixed-effect (EHFE), where the emission policy does not adjust to an increase in the economic resource base and only consumption adjusts. In particular, an EKC arises if and only if there exists a threshold level of resource such that, at any level of resource below (respectively, above) the threshold, the outcome reached by the EHFE is one where the set of preference-based shadow prices lies completely below (respectively, above) the set of technological shadow prices. This characterisation is employed to study and construct examples of preference-technology combinations that can potentially result in an EKC, when emission is a consumption externality. In particular, the cases of homothetic economies, increasing returns to abatement, emission as a normal good, and EKC in a model with economic growth are studied.
GMM-Based Tests of Efficient Market Learning and an Application to Testing for a Small Firm Effect in Equity Pricing

In this paper, we extend Bossaerts’ (2004) analysis of the implications of the efficient learning market hypothesis (ELM) for asset prices by reformulating it in a GMM setting. Our representation is more amenable to widespread application and allows the econometrician, in testing ELM, to make use of the full range of specification tests that have been developed by the empirical literature in the context of tests of the more restrictive Efficient Market Hypothesis (EMH). We apply this framework to test for efficient learning in the pricing of small capitalization stocks. We find evidence of mispricing of small stocks but we cannot rule out that, in spite of possibly incorrect priors about the future payoffs of small firms, the market efficiently processes information as it becomes available over time. That is, our evidence contradicts the Efficient Market Hypothesis (EMH) but it is not incompatible with efficient learning in the manner of Bossaerts (2004).
Physical Interaction between the Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1 Exonuclease, UL12, and the DNA Double-Strand Break-Sensing MRN Complex

ABSTRACT The herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) alkaline nuclease, encoded by the UL12 gene, plays an important role in HSV-1 replication, as a UL12 null mutant displays a severe growth defect. The HSV-1 alkaline exonuclease UL12 interacts with the viral single-stranded DNA binding protein ICP8 and promotes strand exchange in vitro in conjunction with ICP8. We proposed that UL12 and ICP8 form a two-subunit recombinase reminiscent of the phage lambda Red α/β recombination system and that the viral and cellular recombinases contribute to viral genome replication through a homologous recombination-dependent DNA replication mechanism. To test this hypothesis, we identified cellular interaction partners of UL12 by using coimmunoprecipitation. We report for the first time a specific interaction between UL12 and components of the cellular MRN complex, an important factor in the ATM-mediated homologous recombination repair (HRR) pathway. This interaction is detected early during infection and does not require viral DNA or other viral or cellular proteins. The region of UL12 responsible for the interaction has been mapped to the first 125 residues, and coimmunoprecipitation can be abolished by deletion of residues 100 to 126. These observations support the hypothesis that cellular and viral recombination factors work together to promote efficient HSV-1 growth.
Definition of software fault emulation operators: a field data study

This paper proposes a set of operators for software fault emulation through low-level code mutations. The definition of these operators was based on the analysis of an extensive collection of real software faults. Using the Orthogonal Defect Classification as a starting point, faults were classified in a detailed manner according to the high-level constructs where the faults reside and their effects in the program. We observed that a large percentage of faults fall in well-defined classes and can be characterized in a very precise way, allowing accurate emulation through a small set of mutation operators. The resulting operators closely emulate a broad range of common programmer mistakes. Furthermore, as the mutation is performed directly at the executable code, software faults can be injected in targets for which source code is not available.
Comparison of immunogenicity test methods used in clinical studies of infliximab and its biosimilar (CT-P13)

Anti-drug antibodies against biologic drugs affect efficacy and safety; therefore, it is important to use appropriate assays for immunogenicity testing in clinical studies. This review describes the electrochemiluminescent (ECL) immunoassay, ELISA, radioimmunoassay, and homogeneous mobility shift assay. The characteristics of ECL, used to assess immunogenicity in comparison trials of CT-P13 (Remsima®, Inflectra®) versus its reference medicinal product, infliximab (Remicade®), are also compared with the other assays, based on published literature. These comparisons show that ECL is more sensitive than ELISA, radioimmunoassay, and homogeneous mobility shift assay, and less affected by drug interference than ELISA. Similar immunogenicity was observed for CT-P13 and reference medicinal product using ECL, demonstrating the reliability of this method to assess immunogenicity in comparative studies.
The influence of Examinations Stress on Changes in Heart Rate regulatory Mechanism indicators in Students of the First to Third Grades Talented High School

Examinations are of the most important stressful factors in schools and universities and have different psycho-physiologic consequences; however, their effects in students have been less focused. To study the effects of educational pressures and examinations stress on changes in the mechanism of heart function, a test was conducted on 120 students, age range of 15-17 years of both genders. Divided in two groups, each consisting 20 students of first to third grades of high school, 60 boys and 60 girls from two high schools (one boys high school and one girls high school) in three stages (2 months before the examination(normal), 1hour before and 1hour after the examinations) in the same educational conditions in the city of Sari. Activity of heart rate regulatory mechanisms was recorded of ECG and next was processed by the method of Baevsky pulsometry variation. The statistical elaboration of the obtained data from the three stages of test has been carried out using Biostat computer programmer. Based on the results of this study, the least stress effects on changes in the heart function was during 2 months before the examination(normal) and affected activity of vagotonic and normotonic systems and the highest stress effects was observed during 1hour before the examination and affected activity of normotonic and sympathicotonic systems. The effects were significant at differences experimental stages (P<0.001). The effects decreased during 1hour after the examination influenced normotonic system activity. The highest stress effects were observed in examination time in the first grade and third grade high school students. It showed that course volume and pressure, type of course and stress of examination time caused sympathetic system activity which influenced on changes in the mechanism of heart rate function. In comparison, in all test stages, stress effects in boys group were higher than in girl students. The results of this search shows that the factors like age, gender, personality, psychophysiological status, course volume and pressure, type of course, examination time and anxiety, individual typological characteristics and the state of autonomic nervous system affected on changes in the mechanism of heart rate function in students [R. Goli Skardi, N.Shahabi Majd, S. Minasian A. Khalilian, A. Mohseni Kiasari. The influence of Examinations Stress on Changes in Heart Rate regulatory Mechanism indicators in Students of the First to Third Grades Talented High School. Life Sci J 2012;9(3):382-388] (ISSN:1097-8135). http://www.lifesciencesite. com. 53
EXPERIMENTAL FACILITATION OF THE SENSED PRESENCE IS PREDICTED BY THE SPECIFIC PATTERNS OF THE APPLIED MAGNETIC FIELDS, NOT BY SUGGESTIBILITY: RE-ANALYSES OF 19 EXPERIMENTS

If all experiences are generated by brain activity, then experiences of God and spirits should also be produced by the appropriate cerebral stimulation. During the last 15 years experiments have shown that the sensed presence of a “Sentient Being” can be reliably evoked by very specific temporal patterns of weak (<1 microT) transcerebral magnetic fields applied across the temporoparietal region of the two hemispheres. Recently attributed these effects to suggestibility and exotic beliefs. Re-analyses with additional data for 407 subjects (19 experiments) showed that the magnetic configurations, not the subjects' exotic beliefs or suggestibility, were responsible for the experimental facilitation of sensing a presence. On the other hand, the subjects' histories of sensed presences before exposure to the experimental setting were moderately correlated with exotic beliefs and temporal lobe sensitivity. Several recent experiments have shown that the side attributed to the presence at the time of the experience is sensitive to the temporal parameters of the fields, the hemisphere to which they are maximized, and the person's a priori beliefs. The importance of verifying the specific timing and temporal pattern of the software-generated fields and following an effective protocol is emphasized.
Does university prepare students for employment? Alignment between graduate attributes, accreditation requirements and industry employability criteria

One of the primary goals of tertiary education is to prepare students for employment. There is debate as to whether university courses adequately provide students with 21st century workplace skills (Kaminski, Switzer, & Gloeckner, 2009; Kivunja, 2014). In a rapidly changing workforce, institutions must constantly adapt to maintain the practical utility of their courses. A thematic analysis was conducted to explore the degree of alignment between graduate attributes, accreditation requirements and industry employability criteria in nursing, psychology and education courses at an Australian University. Graduate attributes were obtained from the Course Approval and Management System. Relevant accreditation requirements were sourced from the respective bodies. A search of advertised job positions for the three discipline fields was conducted from a popular job-search engine (SEEK) to ascertain employability criteria. This analysis identified clear alignment between the university’s graduate attributes and the standards articulated by accreditation bodies for psychology, nursing and education. However, there were differences between graduate attributes and the employability criteria identified by job searches across the three disciplines. Analysis of the employability criteria suggest that employers seek and prioritise graduates who possess practical competencies and 21st century skills such as problem solving and communication. However, there was little to no mention of cultural understandings and attitudes towards inclusion and diversity, both a core graduate attribute and an aspect of professional accreditation. The findings of this study may inform the development of future graduate attributes that better reflect preparedness for the workforce. Alternatively, a reflection on graduate attributes and professional accreditation criteria might produce job advertisements that better reflect work contexts in an increasingly diverse society.
Acute respiratory distress syndrome: Pulmonary and extrapulmonary not so similar

Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is characterized by acute onset respiratory failure with bilateral pulmonary infiltrates and hypoxemia. Current evidence suggests different respiratory mechanics in pulmonary ARDS (ARDSp) and extrapulmonary ARDS (ARDSexp) with disproportionate decrease in lung compliance in the former and chest wall compliance in the latter. Herein, we report two patients of ARDS, one each with ARDSp and ARDSexp that were managed using real-time esophageal pressure monitoring using the AVEA ventilator to tailor the ventilatory strategy.
Exports, productivity and innovation: new firm level empirical evidence

This article examines the determinants of Portuguese exports, applying data from 277 manufacturing firms for the period 2006–2010. In 2010, these firms accounted for about 47% of total Portugal’s exports. Both the static and dynamic results of the estimated models confirm the positive influence of productivity on variations in exports. The dynamic estimations also suggest that exports in the previous period hold a positive effect on contemporaneous exports, confirming the Roberts and Tybout (1997) sunk cost hypothesis for exports. In the dynamic analysis, the labour costs and the size of the firm do not have a statistically significant effect on Portuguese exports with the findings also pointing to increased expenditure on research and development (R&D) generating no statistically significant effect on exports. The lagged R&D expenditure was also insignificant in explaining the change of Portuguese exports. Thus, these results suggest that applying a product or process innovation measure returns better results than indirect measures such as R&D expenditure.
Early Childhood Acceptance Rejection Questionnaire: Psychometric Properties of the Greek Version

Present study examined the ECPARQ with four different higher order techniques (Bifactor EFA, Bifactor CFA, Bifactor ESEM, Second-order CFA) plus a simple CFA (ICM CFA), evaluating a total of 19 models. All models were tested twice, one for the ECPARQ Mother version and one for the Father version. For each version, alternative models were tested with 2, 3 and 4-factor structures. All models were tested having item 13 both in the intended factor and alternatively in the Warmth factor. This comparison was made to empirically answer in what factor the item 13 belongs. All higher order models had an adequate fit, suggesting thus the theoretical construct of the Warmth dimension of Parenting is supported for the Greek cultural context, although further investigation is necessary. ICM-CFA had equally adequate fit, thus preferable based on parsimony. All models tested having item 13 in the Warmth factor had superior fit in comparison to their counterparts with item 13 in the Indifference/Neglect factor. Internal consistency reliability was adequate.
Deletion of tumor suppressors adenomatous polyposis coli and Smad4 in murine luminal epithelial cells causes invasive prostate cancer and loss of androgen receptor expression

Prostate cancer is the most diagnosed non-skin cancer in the US and kills approximately 27,000 men per year in the US. Additional genetic mouse models are needed that recapitulate the heterogeneous nature of human prostate cancer. The Wnt/beta-catenin signaling pathway is important for human prostate tumorigenesis and metastasis, and also drives tumorigenesis in mouse models. Loss of Smad4 has also been found in human prostate cancer and drives tumorigenesis and metastasis when coupled with other genetic aberrations in mouse models. In this work, we concurrently deleted Smad4 and the tumor suppressor and endogenous Wnt/beta-catenin inhibitor adenomatous polyposis coli (Apc) in luminal prostate cells in mice. This double conditional knockout model produced invasive castration-resistant prostate carcinoma with no evidence of metastasis. We observed mixed differentiation phenotypes, including basaloid and squamous differentiation. Interestingly, tumor cells in this model commonly lose androgen receptor expression. In addition, tumors disappear in these mice during androgen cycling (castration followed by testosterone reintroduction). These mice model non-metastatic castration resistant prostate cancer and should provide novel information for tumors that have genetic aberrations in the Wnt pathway or Smad4.