Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
TOTAL PANCREATECTOMY IN THE PIG FOR ISLET TRANSPLANTATION TECHNICAL ALTERNATIVES

Pigs appear to be a suitable biological and logistical animal donor of islets for xenotransplantation in human diabetic type I recipients. To improve the islet isolation technique in this species, to evaluate the islet function in vivo, and to assess the toxic effects of various immunosuppressive regimens on transplanted islets will necessitate a model of the pancreatectomized pig suitable for islet autotransplantation. We describe three techniques of total pancreatectomy in pigs. The first removed the pancreas in order to study postoperative management and pig survival; no attempt was made to preserve the pancreas for islet isolation. The second consisted of a pancreatectomy in a surviving pig, with careful preservation of the whole pancreas for subsequent islet isolation. The third was rapid en bloc procurement of the pancreas and duodenum, to obtain a pancreas solely for the purpose of islet isolation. We conclude that pigs tolerate and survive a total pancreatectomy—they are suitable animals for islet isolation and possible autotransplantation. The result of islet isolation does not appear related to the pancreas procurement technique; however, the islet yield must be improved before autotransplantation can be functionally successful.
Organizational empowerment: A vital step toward intrapreneurship

Intrapreneurship as a transformational strategy in non-profit organizations, including libraries, requires special arrangements through improvement of employees’ cooperation and tendency to entrepreneurial activities. Organizational empowerment is a mechanism which not only influences the staff’s attitude toward the organization through creating/enhancing loyalty, value congruence, and affective commitment but also leads to self-empowerment. Consequently, it seems that organizational empowerment in librarians can be one of the contextual factors which can directly lead to more intrapreneurship in libraries. Thus, this study aimed to investigate the status of organizational empowerment, intrapreneurship and the effect of organizational empowerment on intrapreneurship in the university libraries of Iran. The research population of this questionnaire-based survey consisted of 105 individuals who come from two different classes of librarians in two top universities in Iran. Participants were selected from each class through stratified random sampling. The findings demonstrated that organizational empowerment and intrapreneurship did not enjoy adequate status within these two university libraries. In addition, the effect of organizational empowerment on intrapreneurship was confirmed.
Caractéristiques et tendances épidémiologiques de l ’ incidence des morsures d ’ animaux dans la préfecture de Makou

This study examined the epidemiological characteristics and incidence over time of animal bites in Maku County. Data were obtained from health centre records of animal bites from 2003 to 2012. Information on demographic characteristics and bite-related factors were recorded. A total of 2232 people were bitten; the frequency of bites was highest among males (75.4%), rural residents (72.3%) and those Caractéristiques et tendances épidémiologiques de l’incidence des morsures d’animaux dans la préfecture de Makou (République islamique d’Iran), 2003-2012
Expression of accumulated capacity for initiation of chromosome and minichromosome replication in dnaA mutants of Escherichia coli

Chromosome and minichromosome replication were examined in temperature-sensitive dnaA mutants of Escherichia coli growing at temperatures between permissive and nonpermissive. Periodicities in [14C]thymidine uptake were detected as cultures incubated at intermediate temperatures approached late exponential-early stationary phase of growth. Exposure of the cultures to a nutritional shift-up caused a stimulation of chromosome replication associated with a rapid initiation of new rounds of replication, very similar to that observed after exposure to chloramphenicol. Addition of rifampin also caused a stimulation, but to a much lesser extent. The induced initiations of chromosome replication took place in two waves, as was the case when the cultures were simply shifted to permissive temperature. Minichromosomes were also stimulated to replicate by the addition of chloramphenicol at intermediate temperatures, providing further evidence that the chromosomal region which responded to the chloramphenicol treatment was in the vicinity of oriC. The findings are consistent with the conclusion that the initiations induced by chloramphenicol are consequences of the involvement of the dnaA gene product in a transcriptional step at initiation, as suggested by Orr et al. The results also suggest that the activity of the dnaA gene product is not normally involved in controlling the frequency of initiation of chromosome replication.
Increased Serum Levels of Advanced Glycation End Products (AGEs) in Children and Adolescents With IDDM

OBJECTIVE To investigate whether the serum levels of advanced glycation end products (AGEs) are increased in IDDM children and adolescents and to study the effect of puberty on serum levels of AGEs (S-AGEs). RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS A total of 68 children and adolescent IDDM patients (age, 13.3 ± 4.0 years; duration of diabetes, 5.0 ± 3.6 years; HbA1c, 8.2 ± 2.0%; Tanner stage [public hair], 1 vs. 2–5, 24/42) recruited from the pediatric outpatient clinic at Aker University Hospital were compared with 25 healthy nondiabetic control subjects. S-AGEs were measured by a fluoremetric immunoassay. RESULTS S-AGEs were significantly elevated in the diabetic group when compared with the control group (14.4 ± 3.5 vs. 11.7 ± 3.0 U/ml, P < 0.002). A significant correlation (r = 0.26, P < 0.04) was found between S-AGEs and HbA1c in the diabetic group but not in the control group. No significant correlation was found between S-AGEs and the duration of diabetes in the diabetic group or S-AGEs and blood glucose concentration or age in either group. We found no difference between S-AGEs in boys and girls and in prepubertal and pubertal diabetic or control subjects. CONCLUSIONS S-AGEs are increased in young patients with diabetes before puberty. Since AGEs are linked to the pathogenesis of vascular complications, this observation suggests that the pathological processes leading to diabetic late complications start even before puberty.
Evaluation of spot CAMP test for identification of group B streptococci

The CAMP (Christie-Atkins-Munch-Petersen) test is commonly used for the presumptive identification of Streptococcus agalactiae (Lancefield group B). Using 350 clinical isolates of beta-hemolytic streptococci, we compared a 30-min spot CAMP test with the standard overnight CAMP test and the Lancefield precipitin test. We found 99% agreement among all three tests for all streptococci tested. The spot CAMP test is a rapid, inexpensive, and accurate method for identifying group B streptococci.
On-Line Event-Driven Scheduling for Electric Vehicle Charging via Park-and-Charge

Large-scale charging stations become indispensable infrastructure to support the rapid proliferation of electric vehicles. Their operation modes have drawn great attention from both academia and industry. One promising mode called park-and-charge has been recently introduced. This new mode allows customers to park their electric vehicles at a parking lot, where the vehicles are charged during the parking time. Several small-scale experiments, such as the V-Charge project and General Motors' E-Motor plant, have demonstrated its potential. A key enabler for deploying this mode to large-scale stations is effective and efficient charging load scheduling methods. Most existing works confine to the time-driven scheduling policy due to their sole focus on the charging service. Applying their solutions to the park-and-charge mode would jeopardize the unitization of charging resource or cause frequent charging mode switching. This inapplicability motivates us to explore the feasibility and benefits of exploiting the event-driven scheduling policy in park-and-charge systems. Further, to better characterize charging load in this mode, we propose to adopt a metered model, by which a system gains value in proportion to the served charging demand. To be specific, the objective of this paper is to carry out both theoretical and experimental analysis for event-driven algorithms adapted to this metered model. We leverage both the competitive analysis and resource augmentation to demonstrate the non-constant and constant performance bounds for the earliest-deadline-first and highest-value-first algorithms respectively. Moreover, we provide a stronger theoretical result, i.e., the performance bound for the whole class of work-conserving scheduling algorithms. Through extensive simulations, we validate the proposed theoretical results and further provide interesting findings from the in-depth analysis of the simulation results.
A Bayesian VAR Benchmark for COMPASS

We estimate a Bayesian VAR analogue to the Bank of England’s DSGE model (COMPASS) and assess their relative performance in forecasting GDP growth and CPI inflation in real time between 2000 and 2012. We find that the BVAR outperformed COMPASS when forecasting both GDP and its expenditure components. In contrast, the performance of these models was similar when forecasting CPI. We also find that, despite underpredicting inflation at most forecast horizons, the BVAR density forecasts outperformed those of COMPASS. Both models overpredicted GDP growth at all forecast horizons, but the BVAR outperformed COMPASS at forecast horizons up to one year ahead. The BVAR’s point and density forecast performance is also comparable to that of a Bank of England in-house statistical suite for both GDP and CPI inflation and to the Inflation Report projections. Our results are broadly consistent with the findings of similar studies for other advanced economies.
Condom Use and Other Factors Affecting Penile Human Papillomavirus Detection in Men Attending a Sexually Transmitted Disease Clinic

Background and Objectives: Human papillomavirus (HPV) is the primary cause of cervical, anal, and other anogenital cancers, but risk factors for penile HPV detection in men have not been well-characterized. Goal: The goal of this study was to identify correlates of penile HPV detection in ethnically diverse men attending a sexually transmitted disease clinic. Study: A cross-sectional investigation was conducted among 393 men. Participants completed a risk-factor questionnaire and underwent testing for penile HPV DNA. Presence of HPV DNA was assessed using polymerase chain reaction with PGMY primers and reverse line blot genotyping. Logistic regression analyses were conducted to identify variables associated with any-type, oncogenic, and nononcogenic HPV. Results: Circumcision was associated with reduced risk for oncogenic, nononcogenic, and overall HPV. Regular condom use was associated with reduced risk for oncogenic and overall HPV. Conclusion: These findings, if confirmed by other studies, could impact public health practices and messages regarding HPV.
Three Studies of Transitions of Young People in Public Care: A Focus on Educational Outcomes

1 General Introduction . 3 Child Welfare Context . 3 Objectives and Contribution. 4 Study 1: Risk and Protective Factors Associated with Academic Success of Children in Care: Generalizability of Predictors Suggested by a Systematic Review . 6 Individual Child-Level Factors Associated with Educational Achievement Among Young People in Care . 9 Age . 9 Gender . 10 Ethnicity . 10 Mental health and well-being . 11 Behavioural problems . 12 Special educational needs . 13 Caregiver or Placement-Level Factors Associated with Educational Achievement Among Young People in Care . 13 Caregiver educational aspirations . 13 Neglect as a reason for entry into care . 13 Age of first entry into care . 14 Placement stability or instability. 15 Placement type. 15 School-Level Factors Associated with Educational Achievement Among Young People in Care . 16 School instability. 16 Grade retention. 16 Young people’s educational aspirations. 16 Summary . 17 Study Objectives . 17 Hypotheses . 18 Method . 19 Service Context . 19 THREE STUDIES OF YOUNG PEOPLE IN PUBLIC CARE iv Participants . 20 Cross-sectional sample. 20 Longitudinal sample. 21 Instrument. 21 Measure of Dependent (Criterion) Variable: Academic Success . 22 Measures of Independent (Predictor) Variables . 24 Contextual Risk Factors . 24 Individual Risk Factors . 26 Contextual Protective Factors . 29 Individual Protective Factors . 30 Gender as a Potential Moderator: Gender-by-Predictor Multiplicative Terms . 31 Data Analysis . 32 Missing data and multiple imputation. 32 Hierarchical regression analyses. 35 Results . 36 Descriptive and Psychometric Results . 36 Intercorrelations . 39 Hierarchical Regressions . 39 Cross-sectional sample (N = 3,662). 39 Longitudinal Subsample (n = 962). 40 Gender as a Moderator of the Predictor Variables . 42 Discussion . 43 Predictors of Academic Success . 43 Unrelated Factors . 46 Limitations and Directions for Future Research . 48 Study 2: Does the Time Gap Between Assessments Made of Young People in Care and Later in Transitional Living Modify Our Ability to Predict Their Educational Outcomes? 51 Study Objective . 56 Hypotheses . 57 Method . 58 Service Context . 58 Instrument. 58 THREE STUDIES OF YOUNG PEOPLE IN PUBLIC CARE v Data Preparation . 60 Participants . 61 Measures. 62 1. Educational Outcome (Criterion) Variables. 62 2. Predictor Variables . 64 3. Exact Gap Length as a Potential Moderator of the Predictor Variables . 68 Data Analysis . 68 Missing data and multiple imputation. 68 Hierarchical regression analyses. 69 Results and Discussion .
Optimal Duration of Antibiotic Therapy in Patients With Hematogenous Vertebral Osteomyelitis at Low Risk and High Risk of Recurrence.

BACKGROUND The optimal duration of antibiotic treatment for hematogenous vertebral osteomyelitis (HVO) should be based on the patient's risk of recurrence, but it is not well established. METHODS A retrospective review was conducted to evaluate the optimal duration of antibiotic treatment in patients with HVO at low and high risk of recurrence. Patients with at least 1 independent baseline risk factor for recurrence, determined by multivariable analysis, were considered as high risk and those with no risk factor as low risk. RESULTS A total of 314 patients with microbiologically diagnosed HVO were evaluable for recurrence. In multivariable analysis, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infection (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 2.61; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.16-5.87), undrained paravertebral/psoas abscesses (aOR, 4.09; 95% CI, 1.82-9.19), and end-stage renal disease (aOR, 6.58; 95% CI, 1.63-26.54) were independent baseline risk factors for recurrence. Therefore, 191 (60.8%) patients were classified as low risk and 123 (39.2%) as high risk. Among high-risk patients, there was a significant decreasing trend for recurrence according to total duration of antibiotic therapy: 34.8% (4-6 weeks [28-41 days]), 29.6% (6-8 weeks [42-55 days]), and 9.6% (≥8 weeks [≥56 days]) (P = .002). For low-risk patients, this association was still significant but the recurrence rates were much lower: 12.0% (4-6 weeks), 6.3% (6-8 weeks), and 2.2% (≥8 weeks) (P = .02). CONCLUSIONS Antibiotic therapy of prolonged duration (≥8 weeks) should be given to patients with HVO at high risk of recurrence. For low-risk patients, a shorter duration (6-8 weeks) of pathogen-directed antibiotic therapy may be sufficient.
Firm growth and liquidity constraints: evidence from the manufacturing and service sectors in Italy

ABSTRACT We use a large firm-level panel data set to analyse the relevance of liquidity constraints on firm growth in Italy. In most European countries, mainstream financial institutions are scantly able to provide affordable credit facilities to small firms. Thus, these firms are forced to finance their growth almost exclusively through retained earnings. We estimate a dynamic version of Gibrat-law, incorporating cash flow as a measure of financial constraints, for two different size classes within small and medium size enterprises and for several industries in manufacturing and service sectors. The findings show that, in general, small manufacturing firms have higher growth-cash flow sensitivities with respect to medium firms. Conversely, our results highlight, for the services, a significant heterogeneity in the impact of liquidity constraints on firm growth. In particular, the sensitivity of growth rates to the cash flow appears relatively high for small firms belonging to Knowledge Intensive Business Services. Validation of Gibrat-law in the services suggests that an important group of industries, with a superior capacity of encouraging firm’s competitiveness, need more financial resources to promote their growth and that of the manufacturing sectors with whom they are connected.
An intervention to decrease patient identification band errors in a children's hospital

Context Patient misidentification continues to be a quality and safety issue. There is a paucity of US data describing interventions to reduce identification band error rates. Setting Monroe Carell Jr Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt. Key measures Percentage of patients with defective identification bands. Strategies for change Web-based surveys were sent, asking hospital personnel to anonymously identify perceived barriers to reaching zero defects with identification bands. Corrective action plans were created and implemented with ideas from leadership, front-line staff and the online survey. Data from unannounced audits of patient identification bands were plotted on statistical process control charts and shared monthly with staff. All hospital personnel were expected to “stop the line” if there were any patient identification questions. Effects of change The first audit showed a defect rate of 20.4%. The original mean defect rate was 6.5%. After interventions and education, the new mean defect rate was 2.6%. Lessons learnt (a) The initial rate of patient identification band errors in the hospital was higher than expected. (b) The action resulting in most significant improvement was staff awareness of the problem, with clear expectations to immediately stop the line if a patient identification error was present. (c) Staff surveys are an excellent source of suggestions for combating patient identification issues. (d) Continued audit and data collection is necessary for sustainable staff focus and continued improvement. (e) Statistical process control charts are both an effective method to track results and an easily understood tool for sharing data with staff.
A magnetic gearbox with an active region torque density of 239Nm/L

In this paper a 1:4.25 ratio ferrite magnet and NdFeB magnet flux-focusing magnetic gearbox with a high pole count is analyzed. A simple parameter sweep analysis is used to show that higher than previously published torque density values are achievable. Experimental results are then presented for the NdFeB design that confirm the calculations and also demonstrate that the proposed magnetic gearbox can operate with a low torque ripple.
‘What's larvae got to do with it?’ Disparate patterns of post‐glacial population structure in two benthic marine gastropods with identical dispersal potential

In marine environments, many species have apparently colonized high latitude regions following the last glacial maximum (LGM) yet lack a life‐history stage, such as a free‐living larva, that is clearly capable of long‐distance dispersal. Two hypotheses can explain the modern high latitude distributions of these marine taxa: (1) survival in northern refugia during the LGM or (2) rapid post‐glacial dispersal by nonlarval stages. To distinguish these two scenarios, I characterized the genetic structure of two closely related northeastern Pacific gastropods that lack planktonic larvae but which have distributions extending more than 1000 km north of the southern limit of glaciers at the LGM. Despite having identical larval dispersal potential, these closely related species exhibit fundamentally different patterns of genetic structure. In Nucella ostrina, haplotype diversity among northern populations (British Columbia and Alaska) is low, no pattern of isolation by distance exists and a coalescent‐based model of population growth indicates that during the LGM population size was reduced to less than 35% of its current size. In the congeneric and often sympatric N. lamellosa, northern populations harbour a diversity of ancient private haplotypes, significant evidence of isolation by distance exists and regional subdivision was found between northern (Alaska) and southern (southern British Columbia, Washington and Oregon) populations. Estimates of coalescent parameters indicate only a modest reduction in population size during the LGM and that northern and southern populations of N. lamellosa split ∼50 Kyr before the LGM. The patterns are consistent with the hypothesis that N. ostrina recently reinvaded the northeastern Pacific but N. lamellosa survived the LGM in a northern refuge. A comparison of similar studies in this region indicates that depleted levels of genetic variation at high latitudes — evidence suggestive of recent colonization from a southern refuge — is more common among intertidal species that live relatively high on the shore, where exposure times to cold stress in air are longer than for species living lower on the shore. These data suggest that for some faunas, ecological differences between taxa may be more important than larval dispersal potential in determining species’ long‐term biogeographical responses to climate change.
Role of family history in identifying women with thrombophilia and higher risk of venous thromboembolism during oral contraception.

BACKGROUND Unrecognized thrombophilic defects increase the risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE) in women during oral contraception (OC). We evaluated the sensitivity and specificity of a family history of VTE to identify thrombophilia in women before OC and after venous thrombotic complications during OC. METHODS Thrombophilia screening was performed after obtaining a family history by means of a standardized questionnaire in (1) thrombosis-free women before OC and (2) women after an episode of VTE during OC. RESULTS We evaluated 479 thrombosis-free women before OC (age range, 15-49 years); family history was positive in 49 (10.2%). Thrombophilic defects were identified in 36 participants (7.5%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 5%-10%), 3 of whom had a positive family history (8.3%). The sensitivity and positive predictive value of family history of thrombophilic defects were 8.3% (95% CI, 2%-22%) and 6.1% (95% CI, 1%-17%), respectively. We also evaluated 189 women after VTE complications during OC (age range, 15-49 years); family history was positive in 48 (25.4%; 95% CI, 19%-32%), 22 of whom had a thrombophilic defect (45.8%; 95% CI, 31%-61%). Thrombophilic defects were identified in 81 women (42.8%; 95% CI, 36%-50%). The sensitivity and positive predictive value of family history of thrombophilic defects were 27.2% (95% CI, 18%-38%) and 45.8% (95% CI, 31%-61%), respectively. CONCLUSION Family history of VTE has low sensitivity and positive predictive value for identifying women with thrombophilia who are more susceptible to VTE complications during OC.