Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Multicultural Personality Questionnaire: Development of a Short Form

This study reports on the development of the Multicultural Personality Questionnaire–Short Form among 511 participants. Using a split-sample scale validation design, Study 1 (N = 260) employed a principal component analysis and rigorous item selection criteria to extract a 40-item short form (MPQ–SF) from the original 91-item Multicultural Personality Questionnaire (MPQ; van der Zee & van Oudenhoven, 2000, 2001). In Study 2 (N = 251), the MPQ–SF was subjected to confirmatory factor analysis and resulted in a reasonably good fit to the data (comparative fit index = .94; root mean squared error of approximation = .066). Satisfactory coefficient alphas and high correlations with the original scales were found. Moreover, relationships with related scales were largely in the predicted direction. Specific directions for follow-up research are posited.
Distribution of the cyclosporine binding protein cyclophilin in human tissues.

Cyclophilin (CYP) is the major intracellular binding protein for the immunosuppressive drug cyclosporine (CS). CYP distribution was investigated in human tissues by solid-phase immunoassay, Western and Northern blot analysis as well as immunohistochemistry. CYP was found in all tissues examined at concentrations in the range of 1 microgram/mg protein. Furthermore, mRNA specific for CYP was found in every tissue, indicating local production of the protein. Immunohistochemical investigations revealed preferential parenchymal and only little stromal localization. Within certain organs, e.g. kidneys, regional differences of immunoreactive CYP was evident. The presence of CYP was also investigated in several lymphoid and non-lymphoid cell lines and was found at comparable concentrations. Immunogold staining confirmed cytosolic, but revealed also nuclear localization of CYP. The possible role of this abundant CS binding protein is discussed.
FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH THE OCCURRENCE OF STRIAE GRAVIDARUM

A scoring system was used to study the occurrence of abdominal striae gravidarum in a group of 74 primiparae during the puerperium. The striae score was correlated with maternal age, height, weight, weight gain, abdominal skinfold thickness and with the birthweight of the infant. Striae were less common when birthweight was low and more common in the heavier, fatter women. The prophylactic use of olive oil to massage the abdomen was associated with a low incidence of striae.
Impact of community-based mass treatment for trachoma with oral azithromycin on general morbidity in Gambian children.

BACKGROUND The World Health Organization has recently targeted the elimination of trachoma as a public health problem by the year 2020. Community-based treatment with antibiotics, including oral azithromycin, is recommended for severely affected communities. The incidence of adverse effects after azithromycin treatment is not known in trachoma endemic communities. METHODS We compared the effects of azithromycin with those of topical tetracycline given as mass treatment for trachoma on childhood morbidity in eight rural Gambian villages. The entire population of four villages received oral azithromycin suspension (Zithromax, Pfizer) in doses of 20 mg/kg on Days 1, 8 and 15; the other four villages received topical tetracycline eye ointment for 42 days. Morbidity surveys of subjects 3 months to 14 years old were conducted on Days 0, 7, 14, 21 and 28. RESULTS Of the 804 subjects recruited complete follow-up data were available on 791 (412 azithromycin, 379 tetracycline). Fever and headache were the most common complaints. Apart from cough other symptoms were equally prevalent in both groups at baseline. The azithromycin group had 20% fewer illness, fever and headache episodes and 40% fewer diarrhea and vomiting episodes at follow-up than did the tetracycline group. CONCLUSIONS Azithromycin treatment for trachoma had favorable short term effects on childhood morbidity in rural Gambian villages, particularly in the high malaria transmission season, and adverse effects were not a problem.
Microphysical characteristics of MJO convection over the Indian Ocean during DYNAMO

The microphysical characteristics of precipitating convection occurring in various stages of the Madden‐Julian Oscillation (MJO) over the Indian Ocean are determined from data obtained from the National Center for Atmospheric Research dual‐polarimetric Doppler S‐band radar, S‐PolKa, deployed as part of the Dynamics of the MJO (DYNAMO) field experiment. Active MJO events with increased rainfall occurred in October, November, and December 2011. During each of these active MJO phases, in addition to enhanced rainfall, convection became deeper and ice‐phase microphysics played a greater role. S‐PolKa consistently showed nonoriented small ice particles dominating the radar echoes at altitudes of 9–10 km, dry aggregates concentrated between 7 and 9 km, and wet aggregates and graupel near the melting level (~5 km). Graupel occurred mainly in actively convective towers, while the wet aggregates occurred almost exclusively in the stratiform regions of mesoscale convective systems (MCSs). During each of the three multiweek MJO active phases, the maximum rainfall occurred in short bursts lasting a few days. Each multiday rainy period began with deepening convective elements and a concurrent increase in occurrence of dry aggregates, which maximized just prior to organization into MCSs. The peak rainfall occurrence coincided with the maximum coverage of the radar domain by MCSs, reflecting large stratiform regions that exhibited the most frequent occurrence of wet aggregates. During the December active MJO phase, however, the MCSs were shallower and had a slightly lower tendency for wet aggregates in the stratiform regions and, therefore, generally weaker brightbands.
The Lindelöf property and fragmentability

Let K be a compact Hausdorff space and C(K) the space of continuous real functions on K. In this paper we prove that any tp(K)-Lindelbf subset of C(K) which is compact for the topology tp(D) of pointwise convergence on a dense subset D C K is norm fragmented; i.e., each non-empty subset of it contains a non-empty tp(D)-relatively open subset of small supremum norm diameter. Several applications are given.
Inconsistency Handling in Multperspective Specifications

The development of most large and complex systems necessarily involves many people-each with their own perspectives on the system defined by their knowledge, responsibilities, and commitments. To address this we have advocated distributed development of specifications from multiple perspectives. However, this leads to problems of identifying and handling inconsistencies between such perspectives. Maintaining absolute consistency is not always possible. Often this is not even desirable since this can unnecessarily constrain the development process, and can lead to the loss of important information. Indeed since the real-world forces us to work with inconsistencies, we should formalize some of the usually informal or extra-logical ways of responding to them. This is not necessarily done by eradicating inconsistencies but rather by supplying logical rules specifying how we should act on them. To achieve this, we combine two lines of existing research: the ViewPoints framework for perspective development, interaction and organization, and a logic-based approach to inconsistency handling. This paper presents our technique for inconsistency handling in the ViewPoints framework by using simple examples. >
Exacerbation of Psoriasis During Nivolumab Therapy for Metastatic Melanoma.

© 2016 The Authors. doi: 10.2340/00015555-2212 Journal Compilation © 2016 Acta Dermato-Venereologica. ISSN 0001-5555 Programmed cell death (PD)-1 is an immune checkpoint receptor expressed on antigen-stimulated T cells. Several types of anti-PD-1 antibodies have demonstrated a remarkable benefit for metastatic melanoma, with a low incidence of severe adverse events. A fully human antiPD-1 antibody, nivolumab, has been approved in Japan for patients with unresectable melanoma. We report here a case of metastatic melanoma with lung metastasis in which psoriasis was exacerbated along with the development of interstitial pneumonia during nivolumab therapy.
Effect of Epidural Analgesia on Glucose Tolerance During Surgery

Intravenous glucose tolerance tests were performed on 12 surgical patients the day before surgery and during surgery. Six patients were anaesthetized with enflurane and six were operated on during an epidural lumbar blockade (Th8‐S5). In the general anaesthesia group the plasma glucose concentration was significantly higher after the intraoperative glucose load than after the preoperative load. The pre‐ and intraoperative glucose tolerance tests were identical in the epidural group. Pre‐ and intraoperative glucose disappearance rates and plasma insulin responses were similar in the two groups, indicating that the observed differences in plasma glucose were caused by differences in hepatic glucose release, rather than differences in peripheral glucose utilization.
Cell Divisions Are Required for L1 Retrotransposition

ABSTRACT LINE-1 (L1) retrotransposons comprise a large fraction of genomic DNAs of many organisms. Many L1 elements are active and may generate potentially deleterious mutations by inserting into genes, yet little is known about the control of retrotransposition by the host. Here we examined whether retrotransposition depends on the cell cycle by using a retrotransposition assay with cultured human cells. We show that in both cancer cells and primary human fibroblasts, retrotransposition was strongly inhibited in the cells arrested in the G1, S, G2, or M stage of the cell cycle. Retrotransposition was also inhibited during cellular senescence in primary human fibroblasts. The levels of L1 transcripts were strongly reduced in arrested cells, suggesting that the reduction in L1 transcript abundance limits retrotransposition in nondividing cells. We hypothesize that inhibition of retrotransposition in nondividing cells protects somatic tissues from accumulation of deleterious mutations caused by L1 elements.
Determining the Spatial Autocorrelation of Dengue Vector Populations: Influences of Mosquito Sampling Method, Covariables, and Vector Control

ABSTRACT: We investigated spatial autocorrelation of female Aedes aegypti L. mosquito abundance from BG-Sentinel trap and sticky ovitrap collections in Cairns, north Queensland, Australia. BG-Sentinel trap collections in 2010 show a significant spatial autocorrelation across the study site and over a smaller spatial extent, while sticky ovitrap collections only indicate a non-significant, weak spatial autocorrelation. The BG-Sentinel trap collections were suitable for spatial interpolation using ordinary kriging and cokriging techniques. The uses of Premise Condition Index and potential breeding container data have helped improve our prediction of vector abundance. Semiovariograms and prediction maps indicate that the spatial autocorrelation of mosquito abundance determined by BG-Sentinel traps extends farther compared to sticky ovitrap collections. Based on our data, fewer BG-Sentinel traps are required to represent vector abundance at a series of houses compared to sticky ovitraps. A lack of spatial structure was observed following vector control treatment in the area. This finding has implications for the design and costs of dengue vector surveillance programs.
The p53 positive Bcl‐2 negative phenotype is an independent marker of prognosis in breast cancer

The purpose of this work was to determine if the immunohistochemical p53 (+) Bcl‐2 (−) phenotype predicts survival in breast cancer patients. Tissue from 819 cases of resected primary breast cancer, presented between 1986 and 1998, were assembled in tissue microarray format. Clinicopathological data and prospective disease specific survival data were collected prospectively and immunohistochemical analyses of p53 and Bcl‐2 expression were performed using antibodies DO‐7 (p53) and 124 (Bcl‐2) employing a standard IHC protocol. The expression data were correlated with clinicopathological variables and outcomes in both univariate (χ2) and multivariate (Cox's regression) analyses. Abnormal p53 expression and positive Bcl‐2 expression were detected in 29% (193/673) and 46% (307/673) of tumours, respectively. On univariate analysis Bcl‐2 expression was correlated with the clinicopathological features of less aggressive disease and loss of Bcl‐2 expression correlated with a reduction in survival (log rank = 11.91; p < 0.001). p53 expression correlated with the clinicopathological features of aggressive cancers and a reduction in survival (log rank = 17.81; p < 0.001). Nineteen percent (127/673) of tumours displayed a p53 (+) Bcl‐2 (−) phenotype. Kaplan–Meier analysis revealed a significant reduction in survival in these cases (log rank 34.01; p < 0.001). Multivariate analysis showed that while neither p53 expression nor Bcl‐2 expression alone had independent prognostic significance, the p53 (+) Bcl‐2 (−) phenotype remained independently associated with a worse prognosis (HR 1.79 95%CI 1.10–2.89 p = 0.018). © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Initial weight computation method with rapid convergence for adaptive array antennas

This paper presents a rapid initial weight computation method for adaptive array antennas. The proposed method estimates a correlation matrix and a correlation vector, where the correlation matrix is estimated using not only received samples with the desired signal, but also those before starting the transmission of the desired signal. The proposed method reduces the number of known symbols required for weight convergence. Furthermore, the combined use of the proposed method and the decision-feedback minimum mean square error combining method significantly improves weight convergence. Numerical results show that the combined method converges an array with sixteen antennas by using less than ten known symbols.
Influence of complement on neutrophil extracellular trap release induced by bacteria.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Neutrophil extracellular trap (NET) release has generally been studied in the absence of serum, or at low concentrations of untreated or heat-inactivated serum. The influence of serum complement on NET release therefore remains unclear. We examined the DNA release induced by Staphylococcus aureus and three oral bacteria: Actinomyces viscosus, Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans and Fusobacterium nucleatum subsp. vincettii. MATERIAL AND METHODS Bacteria-stimulated NET release from the neutrophils of healthy donors was measured fluorometrically. Various complement containing and complement blocking conditions were used, including heat inactivation of the serum and antibody blockade of complement receptors 1 (CR1, CD35) and 3 (CR3, CD11b/CD18). RESULTS While the presence of serum markedly enhanced NET release induced by S. aureus, A. actinomycetemcomitans, and to a lesser extent by A. viscosus, there was no enhancement of NET release induced by F. nucleatum. The serum-mediated enhancement of NET release by A. actinomycetemcomitans was neutralized by heat inactivation of serum complement, while this was not the case for S. aureus. Blockade of CR1, significantly reduced NET release induced by S. aureus, A. actinomycetemcomitans and A. viscosus, while blockade of CR3, had no effect. However, opsonization of S. aureus with antibodies may also have contributed to the enhancing effect of serum, independently of complement, in that purified IgG promoted NET release. CONCLUSIONS In conclusion, complement opsonization promotes NET release induced by a variety of bacteria, including A. actinomycetemcomitans, and CR1 plays a dominant role in the process. Complement consumption or deficiency may compromise NETosis induced by some bacterial species, including A. actinomycetemcomitans. Within biofilms, the complement-inactivating abilities of some bacteria may protect other species against NETosis, while these are more vulnerable when adopting a planktonic lifestyle.
A Staged Service Innovation Model

Drawing from the new product development (NPD) literature, service quality literature (SERVQUAL), and empirically grounded research with 53 service innovation decision makers, we develop a staged service innovation model (SIM) for decision makers. We tested the model using empirical data from 329 firms across five industries. The empirical results show that integrating prelaunch service quality training into new service development process leads to successful service innovation. The model developed in this article can be used as a decision support tool and diagnostic model for assessing service innovation ideas, evaluating performance of ongoing service innovations, allocating resources, and improving success rate of service innovations. Decision makers can use the measures developed in this study as a checklist to identify their strengths in delivering service quality to their own customers as well as areas of improvement. This article extends service innovation research by combining NPD and service quality development into a single study and opens the door to further work that could help improve the success rate of service innovations. The model can serve as a base model for future research extensions in service innovation research. A major takeaway for the academic reader is that the SIM demonstrates the value of using the SERVQUAL literature to understand how best to provide excellent quality that results in more fully satisfied customers and, ultimately, improved service performance.
Differences in prevalence of asthma, rhinitis, and eczema between parental and self‐completed questionnaires in adolescents

This study was undertaken to compare, for the first time in a developing country, the prevalence of asthma, rhinitis, and eczema in children aged 13–14 years when questionnaires from the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC) were independently completed by children and parents. A random sample of 3,178 children completed the ISAAC questionnaire at school, while in another sample of 3,387 children, the questionnaire was completed by their parents at home. The prevalence of asthma, rhinitis, and eczema symptoms was significantly higher when questionnaires were completed by adolescents themselves rather than by the parents, particularly for those symptoms that could be better perceived by children or that were more severe, e.g., wheezing with exercise, severe episodes of wheezing, nocturnal cough, and awaking with wheezing in the last 12 months. The diagnosis of hay fever and eczema was also reported more frequently by adolescents compared to their parents. The prevalence of asthma ever and wheezing in the last 12 months was not significantly different between the two samples. In a randomly selected subset of 550 pairs where adolescents and parents came from the same family, asthma ever had the highest agreement (kappa = 0.72, 95% CI: 0.64–0.80), but agreement was poor for rhinitis and eczema ever. In conclusion, the prevalence of asthma, rhinitis, and eczema symptoms varied according to whether the information was reported by independent samples of adolescent or parents. However, the prevalence of wheezing in the last 12 months and asthma ever was quite similar between adolescents and parents, suggesting that these questions are crucial for assessing asthma in epidemiological studies. Pediatr Pulmonol. 2006; 41:482–487. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Determination of cyclosporine, tacrolimus, sirolimus and everolimus by liquid chromatography coupled to electrospray ionization and tandem mass spectrometry: Assessment of matrix effects and assay performance

Abstract Objective. The immunosuppressants cyclosporine, tacrolimus, sirolimus and everolimus are used in rejection prophylaxis after transplantation. Liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) has become a widely used methodology for monitoring of the drug levels to ensure therapeutic exposure. The main objective of the study was to evaluate the existence and potential influence of matrix effects on LC-MS/MS measurements of the immunosuppressants in clinical blood samples. Methods. The samples were prepared by protein precipitation and thereafter analysed by reversed-phase chromatography coupled to MS/MS via an electrospray interface. Assay performance including within- and between-series imprecision and deviations from external controls were examined. Elution of overall matrix components and glycerophosphocholines were investigated. The MS/MS signals were monitored in post-column infusion experiments, and post-precipitation addition of compounds provided a basis for quantification of the matrix effects. The influence of matrix effects on assay performance was investigated after dilution of quality controls with blood from multiple individuals. Results. Between-series coefficients of variation were ≤ 5.1, ≤ 6.6, ≤ 11.0 and ≤ 7.4 %, and the mean deviations from external controls were −10.3, −6.7, 15.6 and 4.3% for cyclosporine, tacrolimus, sirolimus and everolimus, respectively. The elution of matrix components including glycerophosphocholines overlapped to some extent with the target compounds, and the average ion suppression ranged from 8.5–21%. However, the drugs and internal standards were correspondingly influenced. Conclusion. The internal standards consistently corrected the between-individual variability of matrix effects. These findings consolidate the reliability of the assay.