Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Endothelium‐independent dilation in children and adolescents

Peak brachial artery dilation post‐nitroglycerin (NTG) administration occurs between 3 and 5 min in adults. The purpose of this study was to identify the time to peak dilation response to sublingual NTG (0·3 mg) in youth. Endothelium‐independent dilation (EID) was measured in 198 healthy (113 males, 85 females) youth (6–18 years) via ultrasound imaging of the brachial artery following NTG administration. Time to peak EID was 268 s following NTG administration, with no significant (P = 0·6) difference between males and females. There was a significant (P<0·001) difference between EID post‐NTG at the 3 versus 4 min, 4 versus 5‐min, and 3 versus 5 min time points. Peak EID (males: 24·8 ± 0·5 versus females: 25·3 ± 0·6%, P = 0·6) was not significantly different after accounting for baseline diameter. Peak response to NTG administration occurs between 4 and 5 min. The results demonstrate the importance of measuring EID up to 5‐min post‐NTG administration in youth.
A comparison of the intraspecific variability of Phlebotomus sergenti Parrot, 1917 (Diptera: Psychodidae)

ABSTRACT Phlebotomus sergenti populations from different areas of the Mediterranean basin are known to exhibit high intraspecific variability. Previous studies of ITS2 revealed the presence of two branches that may represent sibling species. To corroborate this finding by other tools, two colonies of P. sergenti originating from Turkey and Israel, each belonging to a different ITS2 branch, were compared by three different methods: geometric morphometric analysis of wing shape, RAPD (random amplified polymorphic DNA), and cross-mating study. For geometric morphometric analysis, two-dimensional Cartesian coordinates of 16 landmarks from the wings were digitized and analyzed. Significant shape differences were found between colonies but not between sexes within each colony. RAPD results formed two distinctive clades corresponding to the origin of the colony but also showed heterogenity among members of both colonies. In cross-mating studies, viable hybrid F1 and F2 progeny were obtained when both Turkish males/Israeli females and Israeli males/Turkish females were crossed. F1 progeny was included in RAPD analysis and these hybrids formed a distinctive clade with an intermediate position between the two parental clades. No significant differences were found in egg production of crossed sand flies. The cross-mating study showed that there is no reproductive barrier between P. sergenti from different geographical areas. On the other hand, RAPD and geometric morphometric analysis revealed a significant difference between colonies and confirmed the suitability of previous ITS2 analysis for discrimination among sand fly populations. Further development of molecular markers should resolve a possible existence of sibling species within Phlebotomus sergenti.
Credit, Capital Flows and Monetary Policy: A Post-Keynesian Analysis

The credit channel literature implicitly relies on the fact that capital spending requires and depends on financing and that credit is the main form of financing. The mainstream model tries to avoid this implication by recourse to artificial concepts and variables such as the “external finance” premium. We, by contrast, explicitly model capital expenditures as a function of the credit volume along with other relevant variables. This formulation has roots in the Post-Keynesian logico-temporal ordering of production and the realization of income. The inclusion of credit in expenditure functions result in a simple income determination model making the roles of credit and monetary policy transparent. A financial block is added to the model to determine the interest rates and credit aggregates. Principles of consistent macro modelling on Post-Keynesian principles are carefully delineated. In particular, the principle of Keynesian dichotomy and necessity of an appropriate lead-lag structure in simultaneous equation models compatible with the logico-temporal ordering of production is stressed. A comparative static/dynamic example based on the model demonstrates the ability of the model in generating a reasonable account of possible outcomes in response to changes to underlying conditions.
Urban Mobility and Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Status, Public Policies, and Scenarios in a Developing Economy City, Natal, Brazil

This study aims to deepen the understanding of the role of the urban mobility sector in the current and future greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of a middle-sized city of Brazil, which is also a developing economy. With the cross-reference between road and rail mobility data, governmental mobility planning, the Global Protocol for Community-Scale Greenhouse Gas Emission Inventories (GPC) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) emission quantification methodology, and the creation of scenarios for up to 10 subsequent years, it is possible to verify that individual motorized transport accounts for 60% of the total emissions from the urban transportation sector, with the largest amount of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO 2eq ) emissions per passenger among all of the forms of mobility. However, in the case of this study, government mobility planning, by not encouraging more energy-efficient transport and non-motorized modes, ends up aggravating GHG emissions in the scenarios considered for 2020 and 2025. In turn, the mitigation scenarios proposed herein integrate public transport and non-motorized transport solutions that would reduce the total of equivalent carbon dioxide (tCO 2eq ) by at least 45,000 tCO 2eq per year by 2025. This cross-referencing of the environmental impact of government mobility policies can be replicated in other cities in developing countries that do not yet present municipal inventories or emission monitoring.
Endogenous real wage rigidity in a search frictions model

The existing literature often incorporates ad hoc models of exogenous real wage rigidity into search frictions models of the labour market in order to match the large volatility of unemployment observed in the data. In this paper, we develop an alternative version of the search frictions model that incorporates insights from behavioural economics. We derive a model in which endogenous real wage rigidity emerges from optimal wage-setting and show that this model can match the observed volatility of unemployment. Thus our proposed model can match the data as closely as the existing literature but without the disadvantage of assuming exogenous and ad hoc forms of real wage rigidity.
A randomized controlled trial of the effectiveness of topical amethocaine in reducing pain during arterial puncture.

OBJECTIVE To determine if topical 4% amethocaine gel can reduce the pain associated with arterial punctures. DESIGN Randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blinded trial with parallel groups. SETTING Teaching hospital. PATIENTS Adults requiring arterial punctures for blood gas estimation as part of routine care. INTERVENTIONS Four percent amethocaine gel applied for 30 min prior to the radial arterial puncture, compared with a placebo gel. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Pain scored on a visual analog scale from 0 to 100, and heart rate during the procedure. RESULTS The mean pain score for the amethocaine group was 16.0 (SD, 23.3) and for the placebo group was 20.7 (SD, 18.5). The mean heart rates during arterial puncture were 84.1 beats/min (SD, 10.7) for the amethocaine group, and 83.8 beats/min (SD, 12.7) for the placebo group. These differences were not statistically significant. CONCLUSION The topical use of 4% amethocaine gel does not reduce the pain associated with arterial puncture.
Oxidative one-carbon cleavage of the octyl side chain of olanexidine, a novel antimicrobial agent, in dog liver microsomes

1. The oxidative one-carbon cleavage reaction in the octyl side chain of olanexidine [l-(3,4-dichlorobenzyl)-5-octylbiguanide], a new potent biguanide antiseptic, was characterized in dog liver microsomes. 2. Olanexidine was initially biotransformed to a monohydroxylated metabolite, 8-[5- (3,4-dichlorobenzyl)-l-biguanidino]-2-octanol (DM-215), and DM-215 was subsequently oxidized to the diol derivative, 8-[5-(3,4-dichlorobenzyl)-l-biguanidino]-l,2-octandiol (DM-220). DM-220 was further biotransformed to 2-hydroxy aldehyde derivative, 2-hydroxy carboxylic acid derivative, and an oxidative C-l –C-2 bond cleavage metabolite, 7-[5-(3,4-dichlorobenzyl)-l-biguanidino] heptanoic acid [DM-223 (C7), a seven-carbon chain derivative], after incubation with dog liver microsomes. 3. DM-223 formation required NADPH as a cofactor and was inhibited by quinidine and quinine, relatively selective inhibitors of CYP2D subfamilies in dogs. 4. The results suggest that the one-carbon fragment of the octyl side chain of olanexidine could be removed by the oxidative C-C bond cleavage with the possible involvement of cytochrome P450 systems such as CYP2D subfamily. This oxidative C-C bond cleavage reaction by cytochrome P450s could play an important role in the removal of one-carbon fragment of other drugs or endogenous compounds containing aliphatic chains.
Phylogenetics of seed plants : An analysis of nucleotide sequences from the plastid gene rbcL

We present the results of two exploratory parsimony analyses of DNA sequences from 475 and 499 species of seed plants, respectively, representing all major taxonomic groups. The data are exclusively from the chloroplast gene rbcL, which codes for the large subunit of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (RuBisCO or RuBPCase). We used two different state-transformation assumptions resulting in two sets of cladograms: (i) equal-weighting for the 499-taxon analysis; and (ii) a procedure that differentially weights transversions over transitions within characters and codon positions among characters for the 475-taxon analysis. The degree of congruence between these results and other molecular, as well as morphological, cladistic studies indicates that rbcL sequence variation contains historical evidence appropriate for phylogenetic analysis at this taxonomic level of sampling. Because the topologies presented are necessarily approximate and cannot be evaluated adequately for internal support, these results should be assessed from the perspective of their predictive value and used to direct future studies, both molecular and morphological. In both analyses, the three genera of Gnetales are placed together as the sister group of the flowering plants, and the anomalous aquatic Ceratophyllum (Ceratophyllaceae) is sister to all other flowering plants. Several major lineages identified correspond well with at least some recent taxonomic schemes for angiosperms, particularly those of Dahlgren and Thorne. The basalmost clades within the angiosperms are orders of the apparently polyphyletic subclass Magnoliidae sensu Cronquist. The most conspicuous feature of the topology is that the major division is not monocot versus dicot, but rather one correlated with general pollen type: uniaperturate versus triaperturate. The Dilleniidae and Hamamelidae are the only subclasses that are grossly polyphyletic; an examination of the latter is presented as an example of the use of these broad analyses to focus more restricted studies. A broadly circumscribed Rosidae is paraphyletic to Asteridae and Dilleniidae. Subclass Caryophyllidae is monophyletic and derived from within Rosidae in the 475-taxon analysis but is sister to a group composed of broadly delineated Asteridae and Rosidae in the 499-taxon study.
Hepatic taurine transport: a Na+-dependent carrier on the basolateral plasma membrane.

Highly purified rat basolateral liver plasma membrane vesicles were used to examine the mechanism and the driving forces for hepatic uptake of the beta-amino acid, taurine. An inwardly directed 100 mM NaCl gradient stimulated the initial rate of taurine uptake and energized a transient twofold accumulation of taurine above equilibrium ("overshoot"). In contrast, uptake was slower and no overshoot was detected in the presence of a KCl gradient. A negative intravesicular electrical potential generated by the presence of permeant anions or an outwardly directed K+ gradient with valinomycin increased Na+-stimulated taurine uptake. External Cl- stimulated Na+-dependent taurine uptake independent of effects on the transmembrane electrical potential difference. Na+-dependent taurine uptake showed a sigmoidal dependence on extravesicular Na+ concentration, suggesting multiple Na+ ions are involved in the translocation of each taurine molecule. Na+-dependent taurine uptake demonstrated Michaelis-Menten kinetics with a maximum velocity of 0.537 nmol.mg protein-1.min-1 and an apparent Km of 174 microM. [3H]taurine uptake was inhibited by the presence of excess unlabeled taurine, beta-alanine, or hypotaurine but not by L-glutamine or L-alanine. In summary, using basolateral liver plasma membrane vesicles, we have shown that hepatic uptake of taurine occurs by a carrier-mediated, secondary active transport process specific for beta-amino acids. Uptake is electrogenic, stimulated by external Cl-, and requires multiple Na+ ions for the translocation of each taurine molecule.
Personality traits among currently eating disordered, recovered and never ill first-degree female relatives of bulimic and control women

Background. A combined family study and recovered study design was utilized to examine several hypothesized relationships between personality and bulimia nervosa (BN). Methods. We studied 47 women with a lifetime history of DSM-III-R BN (31 currently ill and 16 recovered), 44 matched control women (CW) with no history of an eating disorder (ED), and their first-degree female relatives (N = 89 and N = 100, respectively), some of whom had current or previous EDs. Results. BN probands' relatives with no ED history had significantly elevated levels of perfectionism, ineffectiveness, and interpersonal distrust compared to CW probands' relatives with no ED history. In contrast, diminished interoceptive awareness, heightened stress reactivity and perfectionistic doubting of actions were found among the previously eating disordered relatives of bulimic probands compared to their never ill relatives. Finally, a sense of alienation and emotional responsivity to the environment were elevated among currently ill compared to recovered bulimic probands. Conclusions. The fact that perfectionism, ineffectiveness and interpersonal distrust are transmitted independently of an ED in relatives suggests that they may be of potential aetiological relevance for BN. In contrast, diminished interoceptive awareness, heightened stress reactivity and perfectionistic doubting of actions are more likely consequent to, or exacerbated by, previously having experienced the illness. Finally, a sense of alienation and emotional responsivity to the environment are more likely to be associated with currently having BN.
Resource Status and Curse Threshold -- An Empirical Study Based on Cross-national Panel Data

Different from the existing literatures, this paper investigates the nonlinear relationship between natural resource economic growth and resource curse threshold, with particular attention paid to the impact on resource curse of the resource status i.e. the global economic development mode. The empirical results based on the panel data of 90 countries from 1972 to 2011 show that, the impact of natural resource on economic growth is nonlinear and the relationship between them presents an inverted U-shape curve, that is, only when resource abundance cross threshold value, the resource curse effect will occur. In addition, we find the change of resource status has a significant impact on the relationship between resource and economic growth and the resource curse, that is, the rise of the resource status can lower the threshold of resource curse and it is possible that more countries are plagued by the resource curse effect. Keywords—natural resource; economic growth; curse threshold; resource status
Three Essays on Total Returns to the Employment Relationship

This dissertation examines the total returns to the employment relationship from a variety of perspectives. In the first chapter, I examine different forms of training and study its influence on individual turnover. My second chapter examines the impact of mandatory volunteer/work experience in high school on the employment and wage decisions of youths. In my final chapter, I examine flexible work hours as a moderator in the relationship between workplace strategy and organizational performance. The first chapter highlights the importance of the type of training provided to the employee in order to avoid voluntary turnover. I compare the impact of institutional training compared to course training on voluntary turnover. Estimates indicate that employees who receive course training are more likely to leave the firm for another job, while employees who receive institutional training are more likely to stay with the firm. The results indicate that different types of training have differential impacts on the employee’s turnover decision. The second chapter utilizes a provincial policy reform that requires either working at a paid job or volunteering as a mandatory high school graduation requirement and examines its impact on employment outcomes. I propose that this reform causes a change in the perceptions of work by
Placebo and nocebo responses in randomised controlled trials of drugs applying for approval for fibromyalgia syndrome treatment: systematic review and meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVES The superiority of true drug treatment over placebo in reducing symptoms of fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) is small and bought by relevant rates of drop-outs due to adverse events. Recent systematic reviews demonstrated that a substantial proportion of the beneficial and adverse effects of true drug is attributable to placebo in chronic pain trials. We determined the magnitude of the placebo and nocebo response and its impact on the benefits and harms of true drug in trials of drugs which were submitted for approval for treatment of FMS. METHODS CENTRAL, MEDLINE and clinicaltrials.gov were searched from inception to June 30, 2012 for randomized double-blind placebo controlled trials with a parallel design for duloxetine, milnacipran, pregabalin and sodium oxybate in FMS-patients. The magnitude of placebo response was assessed by the pooled estimate of a 50% placebo pain reduction. The magnitude of nocebo response was determined by the pooled estimate of drop-out rates due to adverse events in placebo groups. RESULTS 18 studies with 3546 patients on placebo were included. The pooled estimate of a 50% pain reduction by placebo was 18.6% (95% CI 17.4 to 19.9%). The pooled estimate of drop-out due to adverse events in placebo groups was 10.9% (95% CI 9.9 to 11.9%). CONCLUSIONS The magnitude of placebo and nocebo response in trials of drugs applying for approval for FMS treatment was substantial. Study investigators aim to reduce placebo response. By contrast, clinicians often utilise placebo effects. Strategies to reduce nocebo responses in clinical trials and practice should be developed.
The effects of cortisol on hepatocyte metabolism in rainbow trout: a study using the steroid analogue RU486.

The objective of this study was to examine if RU486, a corticosteroid antagonist, modified hepatocyte metabolism and blocked the metabolic effects of exogenously administered cortisol in rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss). The fish were given a single intraperitoneal implant of either coconut oil alone or coconut oil containing RU486 (100 mg.kg-1), cortisol (100 mg.kg-1), or a combination of RU486 and cortisol and were sampled 7 days postimplantation. The RU486 implants had no effect on plasma cortisol and glucose concentrations, hepatocyte glycogen content, and total glucose production, but increased in vitro hepatocyte glycogen breakdown. Cortisol implantation had no effect on plasma glucose concentration, hepatocyte glycogen content, glycogen breakdown, or total glucose production, while it significantly increased alanine oxidation and gluconeogenesis in rainbow trout hepatocytes. Hepatocyte responsiveness to epinephrine and glucagon stimulation of total glucose production was not modified by either RU486 or cortisol treatment, whereas the insulin response on total glucose production was decreased with cortisol. RU486 treatment modified hepatocyte glycogen metabolism and blocked the cortisol-induced increases in alanine gluconeogenesis and glycogen mobilization for endogenous use by the hepatocytes. These results indicate that cortisol enhances the metabolic potential of hepatocytes, thereby adapting the fish to cope with stress. This study provides further validation of RU486 as a tool for studying metabolic actions of cortisol in fish.
What Factors Influence Consumer Preferences for Search and Credence Seafood Characteristics? an Empirical Analysis in Kentucky and South Carolina

Abstract Consistent with preferences for other food products, consumers increasingly care about a range of search and credence seafood characteristics such as: environmental effects and product form. This study utilized a dataset obtained from an online survey, and a Multivariate Ordered Probit formulation to examine the impact of: demographic characteristics, lifestyle preferences, and seafood consumption frequency on preferences for selected seafood attributes. The findings indicate that the factors influencing consumer preferences differ across the attributes examined. Although some demographic variables have a statistically significant effect on consumers’ preferences for seafood attributes other than price, their predictive power was limited regarding preferences for wild-caught, fresh seafood and the impact of sustainability on purchasing decisions. Furthermore, consumers who utilize direct marketing outlets have stronger preferences towards fresh and wild-caught seafood products.