Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
WHEN VICARS MEET: A NARROW CONTACT ZONE BETWEEN MORPHOLOGICALLY CRYPTIC PHYLOGEOGRAPHIC LINEAGES OF THE RAINFOREST SKINK, CARLIA RUBRIGULARIS

Abstract Phylogeographic analyses of the fauna of the Australian wet tropics rainforest have provided strong evidence for long-term isolation of populations among allopatric refugia, yet typically there is no corresponding divergence in morphology. This system provides an opportunity to examine the consequences of geographic isolation, independent of morphological divergence, and thus to assess the broader significance of historical subdivisions revealed through mitochondrial DNA phylogeography. We have located and characterized a zone of secondary contact between two long isolated (mtDNA divergence > 15%) lineages of the skink Carlia rubrigularis using one mitochondrial and eight nuclear (two intron, six microsatellite) markers. This revealed a remarkably narrow (width < 3 km) hybrid zone with substantial linkage disequilibrium and strong deficits of heterozygotes at two of three nuclear loci with diagnostic alleles. Cline centers were coincident across loci. Using a novel form of likelihood analysis, we were unable to distinguish between sigmoidal and stepped cline shapes except at one nuclear locus for which the latter was inferred. Given estimated dispersal rates of 90–133 m × gen−1/2 and assuming equilibrium, the observed cline widths suggest effective selection against heterozygotes of at least 22–49% and possibly as high as 70%. These observations reveal substantial postmating isolation, although the absence of consistent deviations from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium at diagnostic loci suggests that there is little accompanying premating isolation. The tight geographic correspondence between transitions in mtDNA and those for nuclear genes and corresponding evidence for selection against hybrids indicates that these morphologically cryptic phylogroups could be considered as incipient species. Nonetheless, we caution against the use of mtDNA phylogeography as a sole criterion for defining species boundaries.
Fish Exports and Economic Growth: The Pakistan’s Experience

This study attempts to explore first time ever the relationship between fish exports and economic growth of Pakistan by employing annual time series data for the period 1974–2013. Autoregressive distributed lag and Johansen and Juselius cointegration results confirm the existence of a positive long-run relationship among the variables. Further, the error correction model reveals that no immediate or short-run relationship exists between fish exports and economic growth. Different sensitivity analyses indicate that initial results are robust. Rolling window analysis has been applied to identify the yearly behaviour of fish exports, and it remains negative from 1979 to 1982, 1984 to 1988, 1993 to 1999, 2004 and from 2010 to 2013, and it shows positive impact from 1989 to 1992, 2000 to 2003 and from 2005 to 2009. Furthermore, the variance decomposition method and impulse response function suggest the bidirectional causal relationship between fish exports and economic growth. The findings are beneficial for policymakers in the area of export planning. This study also provides some policy implications in the final section.
Relationship of deep white matter hyperintensities and apolipoprotein E genotype to depressive symptoms in older adults without clinical depression.

OBJECTIVE This study examined whether evidence of cerebrovascular disease in the form of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) signal hyperintensities in white matter was associated with depressive symptoms in a high-functioning group of normal elderly volunteers. METHOD Ninety-two community-dwelling elderly individuals participating in a study of white matter hyperintensities (WMHs) in normal aging whose apolipoprotein E (APOE) genotype had been determined completed the Geriatric Depression Scale and received an MRI scan. Univariate analyses of variance were used to examine the relationship between depressive symptoms and the location of WMHs (in deep white matter versus in periventricular white matter) and to determine whether WMHs were more likely to be associated with symptoms of impaired motivation and concentration or with mood symptoms. The effect on depressive symptoms of the interaction between severity of cerebrovascular disease as evidenced by WMHs and APOE genotype was also examined. RESULTS Hyperintensities in the deep white matter, but not in the periventricular white matter, were associated with depressive symptoms, especially symptoms of impaired motivation, concentration, and decision making. The relationship between deep WMHs and depressive symptoms was especially strong in individuals carrying the APOE-4 allele. CONCLUSIONS The pattern of depressive symptoms associated with WMHs in this study was similar to the pattern described in the literature as characterizing "vascular" depression in older persons with major depression. The results suggest that cerebrovascular disease may also underlie the depressive symptoms often found in older individuals who are not clinically depressed.
In Vitro Polymerization of a Functional Escherichia coli Amyloid Protein*

Amyloid formation is characterized by the conversion of soluble proteins into biochemically and structurally distinct fibers. Although amyloid formation is traditionally associated with diseases such as Alzheimer disease, a number of biologically functional amyloids have recently been described. Curli are amyloid fibers produced by Escherichia coli that contribute to biofilm formation and other important physiological processes. We characterized the polymerization properties of the major curli subunit protein CsgA. CsgA polymerizes into an amyloid fiber in a sigmoidal kinetic fashion with a distinct lag, growth, and stationary phase. Adding sonicated preformed CsgA fibers to the polymerization reaction can significantly shorten the duration of the lag phase. We also demonstrate that the conversion of soluble CsgA into an insoluble fiber involves the transient formation of an intermediate similar to that characterized for several disease-associated amyloids. The CsgA core amyloid domain can be divided into five repeating units that share sequence and structural hallmarks. We show that peptides representing three of these repeating units are amyloidogenic in vitro. Although the defining characteristics of CsgA polymerization appear conserved with disease-associated amyloids, these proteins evolved in diverse systems and for different purposes. Therefore, amyloidogenesis appears to be an innate protein folding pathway that can be capitalized on to fulfill normal physiological tasks.
Beyond universal remedies for good water governance: a political and contextual approach HElEN INgRAM

Introduction The water resources research and practice community excels at the development of innovative and varied ideas and blueprints to replace existing flawed water management institutions. History is littered with formulas that were embraced by both scholars and practitioners, but either failed to take hold, or, when implemented, failed to live up to their promise. One after another, multi-objective planning, principles and standards, centralization, coordinated river basin planning and management, watershed management, devolution and decentralization, markets, privatization and many other formulas have had some period of years in the sun and then faded. Often these ideas corrected errors and made things better in some places, but proved to be no panacea for the ills of water governance in many other contexts. Today, hopes are fixed upon Integrated Water Resources Management and Adaptive Management, which envision more collaborative governance and a more flexible and engaged role for science. I will argue in this paper that there is much old wine in these new bottles. But, beyond suggesting that there is much to be learned from past experience, the larger point is that the realities of water governance unfold on the ground (or in this case on the water), and that not only must remedies be designed for the context, they also actually must be implemented.
Overweight patients are more susceptible for acute liver failure.

BACKGROUND/AIMS To determine a potential correlation of gender, age, and/or body mass index (BMI) with the development of acute-on-chronic liver failure (AOC). METHODOLOGY A retrospective 2.5-year study employed 34 patients (65% females and 35% males, aged 37.9 +/- 12.6 years) fulfilling established criteria for acute liver failure (ALF). Patients were subdivided into ALF (n = 18) and AOC (n = 16) groups, according to a history of prior chronic liver disease. Causes of liver failure included drug toxicity (52.9%), viral hepatitis (26.5%), and acute excessive ethanol abuse (11.8%). all anamneses were thoroughly reviewed. Throughout the course of the study, the patients were monitored for established clinical signs and laboratory parameters indicating acute liver injury. Gender, age, and BMI were correlated with the clinical outcome. RESULTS Twelve patients (35.3%) received an orthotopic liver allograft, with one re-transplantation. Six patients (17.6%), including two transplanted individuals, died in the course of the study. Of all parameters evaluated, BMIs were significantly higher in AOC vs. ALF (p < 0.002), revealing values of > 25 in 62.5% of the AOC patients. When subjected to acute risk factors, elevated BMI clearly coincided with a higher rate of AOC. Importantly, half of all patients initially classified as ALF by employing current criteria thus suffered from AOC coinciding with increased mortality. CONCLUSIONS Generally, these results call for a reduction of the BMI. Specifically, our findings argue for a closer BMI monitoring of patients at risk of developing chronic liver disease.
Examination of a Large Patient Population for the Presence of Symptoms and Signs of Temporomandibular Disorders

Abstract Temporomandibular Disorder (TMD) is a term generally applied to a condition or conditions characterized by pain and/or dysfunction of the masticatory apparatus. Its characterization has been difficult because of the large number of symptoms and signs attributed to this disorder and to variation in the number and types manifested in any particular patient. For this study, data on 4,528 patients, presenting over a period of 25 years to a single examiner for TMD treatment, was made available for retrospective analysis and determination of whether the TMD care-seeking patient can be profiled, particularly pain difficulties. All patients in this database filled out a questionnaire and were examined for the prevalence of a range of symptoms and clinical examination findings (signs) commonly attributed to TMD. There was no attempt in this study to assign patients to TMD diagnostic subcategories. The data collected were analyzed to determine which of these symptoms and signs were sufficiently “characteristic of the TMD condition” that they might be used in diagnosis, research and treatment, especially in patients needing relief from pain and discomfort. All 4,528 patients reported symptoms and all but 190 of them also showed signs upon examination. Symptoms most commonly reported on the questionnaire included (i) pain (96.1%), (ii) headache (79.3%), (iii) temporomandibular joint discomfort or dysfunction (75.0%) and (iv) ear discomfort or dysfunction (82.4%). In the 4,338 patients who showed signs, the most prevalent was tenderness to palpation of the pterygoid muscles (85.1%), followed by tenderness to palpation of the temporomandibular joints (62.4%). Pain symptoms and signs were often accompanied by compromised mandibular movements, TMJ sounds and dental changes, such as incisal edge wear and excessive overbite. Clearly prevalence of pain disclosed by the symptoms and signs examinations was high. Patients showed variable prevalence and nonprevalence of eight categories of painful symptoms and seven categories of painful signs. Despite the variability, these might be developed in the future into TMD scores or indices for studying and unraveling the TMD conundrum.
[Effect of twirling-reinforcing-reducing needling manipulations on contents of serum acetylcholine and arterial NOS and cGMP in stress-induced hypertension rats].

OBJECTIVE To observe the effect of twirling-reinforcing or reducing needling manipulations on plasma acetylcholine (Ach) content and expression of nitric oxide synthetase (NOS) and cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) in thoracic artery tissue in stress-induced hypertension rats. METHODS A total of 60 male rats were randomly divided into blank control, model, acupuncture (no-needle-manipulation) , twirling-reinforcing needling and twirling-reducing needling groups (n = 12 in each group). The stress hypertension model was established by giving the animals with noise and electric shock stimulation (paw), twice a day for 15 days. Acupuncture stimulation was applied to bilateral "Taichong" (LR 3) for 1 min, followed by retaining the needles for 20 min. The treatment was conducted once daily for 7 days. Systolic blood pressure of the rat's tail was detected with non-invasive method and plasma Ach, and NOS and cGMP contents in the thoracic artery tissue were measured using ELISA method. RESULTS Compared with the control group, the systolic blood pressure was significantly higher in the model group after 15 days' stress stimulation (P < 0.01), while the contents of plasma Ach, arterial NOS and cGMP were markedly down-regulated (P < 0.01). Following 7 days' acupuncture interventions, the increased blood pressure was down-regulated in the no-needle-manipulation, twirling-reinforcing needling and twirling-reducing needling groups (P < 0.05, P < 0.01); and the decreased Ach and NOS in the 3 treatment groups, and cGMP levels in the twirling-reinforcing and twirling-reducing needling groups were remarkably up-regulated (P < 0.01, P < 0.05). No significant change of arterial cGMP content was found in the no-needle-manipulation group (P > 0.05). The effect of the twirling-reducing needling was superior to that of no-needle-manipulation and twirling-reinforcing needling in lowering blood pressure and raising plasma Ach content (P < 0.05, P < 0.01). CONCLUSION The twirling-reducing needling of acupuncture has a significant anti-hypertensive effect in stress hypertension rats, which may be associated with its effects in raising blood Ach, and arterial NOS and cGMP levels.
The association between attitudes toward suicide and suicidal ideation in adolescents

The aims of this study were to determine whether adolescent attitudes to suicide could be grouped into distinct factors, and then to examine the relationship between these factors and the psychosocial parameters known to be associated with suicide, and between attitudes towards suicide and suicidal ideation. A questionnaire designed to assess attitudes to suicide was distributed to a total of 525 Israeli adolescents. Statistical analysis indicated that the attitude items could be grouped into four distinct factors: the right of society to prevent suicide; suicide as a symptom of mental illness; the right of the individual to talk about suicide; and taking suicidal behaviour seriously. Each factor was differentially associated with the various psychosocial parameters examined. The association between the attitude factors and subjects' suicidal ideation was significant and at least as strong as that of the psychosocial parameters normally associated with adolescent suicide, namely gender and exposure to suicide. A generally approving attitude towards suicide was correlated with a high level of suicidal ideation.
Pitfalls in the modeling of labor market flows: a reappraisal

ABSTRACT We discuss the relevance of the internationally adopted methodology for modelling labour market flows and comparing labour market flexibility. This is based on a two-state labour market model that neglects inactivity and uses aggregate stock data to derive transition rates. Traditionally, the results suggest that continental European labour markets are inflexible and unable to adjust quickly to aggregate demand or supply shocks compared with their Anglo-Saxon counterparts. This evidence has driven us to gain a better understanding of the relevance of such a modelling approach and critically discuss its main methodological hypothesis. We relax its assumptions by including inactivity and by using flow data for the period 2010–2017. We compare the results thus obtained with transition rates derived using a three-state labour market model for France, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom. These countries represent the institutional settings of continental Europe on the one hand and Anglo-Saxon nations on the other. The implied transition rates are much higher, even in continental Europe, when inactivity is considered, thus suggesting that conclusions derived using an incomplete representation of the labour market are misleading. Inactivity therefore plays a crucial role and its inclusion provides a more exhaustive picture of labour mobility.
Possible role of human papilloma virus infection in response to neoadjuvant therapy in patients with esophageal cancer.

BACKGROUND/AIMS Human papilloma virus (HPV) infection in esophageal cancer cases has been found in 0-70%, depending on different methods and geographical variances. Complete pathological response has been found in 30% of cases after neoadjuvant chemo-radiation (CRX). The aim of this study was to discover a possible relation between HPV-infection and response. METHODOLOGY DNA was obtained from 26 esophageal cancer patients undergoing CRX and surgery. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and Southern Blot hybridization was used to detect HPV-infection (HPV-16 and -18). Clinicopathological parameters, disease-free survival and overall survival were also analyzed. RESULTS Complete response (26.9%) and partial response (38.5%) after CRX was correlated significantly with better prognosis. Six patients had HPV-infection (3 from the CR- and 3 from PR-group). CONCLUSIONS There was correlation between HPV-infection and response, but further analyses are necessary. Both responder-groups had a significantly better prognosis than non-responders.
Reduction in quantization lobes due to digital phase shifters for phased array radars

A new method to reduce quantization lobes for phased array antennas is proposed. Quantization lobes come to exist in far-field radiation patterns because phase errors occur due to digital phase shifters that quantize the ideal phase shifts needed to steer antenna beams. The proposed method is particularly useful for radar systems and makes it possible to reduce not only the peak quantization-lobe level but also the average level, which has not been possible with conventional methods. A possible implementation of the method in an actual radar system is presented. The method's validity was verified through simulations of radiation patterns of a linear array antenna. It was found that the same performance exhibited by a phased array antenna with higher-bit phase shifters can be realized with lower-bit phase shifters at the expense of time.
Estimation of Vegetation Parameters of Water Cloud Model for Global Soil Moisture Retrieval Using Time-Series L-Band Aquarius Observations

Using Aquarius middle beam scatterometer observations, the vegetation parameters of the water cloud model at large scale are estimated and applied to global soil moisture retrieval. Vegetation backscattering is derived using two models: Oh model is used to describe the scattering from bare soil surface, while the water cloud model is implemented to account for the effect of vegetation canopy. The vegetation parameters are estimated by minimizing the deviations between the Aquarius scatterometer observations and backscatter coefficients simulated by the water cloud model. The RMSE is less than 2 dB for both copolarizations and correlation is strong (CC > 0.6) in most areas. The vegetation parameters were used to retrieve global soil moisture from Aquarius radar data. The comparisons with the Aquarius soil moisture product derived from the Aquarius radiometer observations show low ubRMSE (0.06cm3 /cm3) and strong correlation (CC > 0.6) in most parts of the world. The impact of errors in input parameters of the water cloud model on the vegetation parameter estimation was assessed by using a Monte-Carlo simulation. The algorithm converges to the true values of the parameters when the input data is noise-free or only the radar measurement error is introduced. It was found that the errors in vegetation parameter are sensitive to the errors in input soil moisture. The errors in two vegetation parameters counteract each other to decrease the error of backscattering simulation. This study demonstrates that the water cloud model could be applied to global scatterometer observations to retrieve soil moisture if the vegetation parameters are appropriately set.
CAN: Creative Adversarial Networks, Generating "Art" by Learning About Styles and Deviating from Style Norms

We propose a new system for generating art. The system generates art by looking at art and learning about style; and becomes creative by increasing the arousal potential of the generated art by deviating from the learned styles. We build over Generative Adversarial Networks (GAN), which have shown the ability to learn to generate novel images simulating a given distribution. We argue that such networks are limited in their ability to generate creative products in their original design. We propose modifications to its objective to make it capable of generating creative art by maximizing deviation from established styles and minimizing deviation from art distribution. We conducted experiments to compare the response of human subjects to the generated art with their response to art created by artists. The results show that human subjects could not distinguish art generated by the proposed system from art generated by contemporary artists and shown in top art fairs. Human subjects even rated the generated images higher on various scales.
Effects of Aging on Hippocampal and Anterior Temporal Activations during Successful Retrieval of Memory for Face–Name Associations

Memory for face–name associations is an important type of memory in our daily lives, and often deteriorates in older adults. Although difficulty retrieving face–name associations is often apparent in the elderly, there is little neuroscientific evidence of age-related decline in this memory. The current fMRI study investigated differences in brain activations between healthy young and older adults during the successful retrieval of people's names (N) and job titles (J) associated with faces. During encoding, participants viewed unfamiliar faces, each paired with a job title and name. During retrieval, each learned face was presented with two job titles or two names, and participants were required to choose the correct job title or name. Retrieval success activity (RSA) was identified by comparing retrieval-phase activity for hits versus misses in N and J, and the RSAs in each task were compared between young and older adults. The study yielded three main findings. First, the hippocampus showed significant RSA in both tasks of N and J, and the activity was greater for young compared to older subjects. Second, the left anterior temporal lobe (ATL) showed greater RSA in N than in J, but there was no age difference in the activity in this region. Third, functional connectivity between hippocampal and ATL activities in both retrieval tasks was higher for young than for older adults. Taken together, age-related differences in hippocampal activities and hippocampus–ATL connectivity could contribute to age-related decline in relational memory and to complaints of poor retrieval of people's names by older adults.