Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Prospective evaluation of brush cytology of biliary strictures during endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography.

BACKGROUND AND STUDY AIMS Cytological methods may be used to differentiate benign from malignant biliary strictures. We evaluated the diagnostic accuracy of an endobiliary cytotechnique which can easily be performed during endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography. PATIENTS AND METHODS Cytological samples were obtained by brushing biliary strictures via a guide wire in 86 patients with strictures of unknown status. Samples were classified by an expert cytologist as normal (including reactive cells), severely dysplastic (atypical cells suspicious of malignancy) and clearly malignant. A final diagnosis was achieved in 78 patients based on intraoperative findings and histological investigation, autopsy or prolonged follow-up. Strictures were malignant in 57 cases (31 pancreatic carcinoma, 20 cholangiocarcinoma, 6 others) and benign in 21 cases (11 chronic pancreatitis, 5 chronic nonspecific inflammation, 5 others). RESULTS The overall results for brush cytological investigation were sensitivity 56.1%, specificity 90.5%, positive predictive value 94.1%, negative predictive value 43.2 %, and accuracy 65.4 %. Sensitivity was significantly higher (P<0.005) in cholangiocarcinoma (80%) compared with pancreatic carcinoma (35.5%). The overall specificity of less than 100 % resulted from dysplasia in two patients with chronic pancreatitis and inflammatory mass. No procedure-related complications occurred. CONCLUSIONS Brush cytology is helpful for differentiating between benign and malignant biliary strictures, especially in suspected cholangiocarcinoma. Dysplastic cells may occur in the absence of malignancy and their presence should therefore be interpreted cautiously.
A model of bank behaviour for the assessment of the potential balance sheet impact of the NSFR liquidity requirement

This paper provides a framework to examine the potential balance sheet adjustments of individual financial institutions for complying with the NSFR liquidity requirement. The suggested approach, which is also flexible enough to be applied in assessing the potential balance sheet impact of other regulatory proposals affecting the balance sheet of financial institutions, is an optimum model of bank behaviour, in which a bank statically rearranges its observed balance sheet by maximizing its profit with respect to constraints representing the balance sheet equality and various regulatory measures. According to our results, banks react to the introduction of the NSFR by strongly increasing their high-quality liquid assets, as well as fundamentally altering their short-term interbank funding to long-term. In addition, assuming no market frictions in the market for long-term funding from financial institutions, lending to the real economy decreases rather moderately as a consequence of the measure.
Risk factors for musculoskeletal symptoms among call center operators of a bank in São Paulo, Brazil.

OBJECTIVE Identify risk factors for musculoskeletal symptoms among call center operators of a bank in São Paulo, Brazil. METHODS Ergonomic work analysis was carried out, involving work observation and interviews. Self-answered questionnaires performed by 108 call center operators. RESULTS Women represented 88% of the call center operators, 70% of them were in the age bracket of 18 to 23 yr. Daily working time was 6-h with one 30 min break. Workers remained seated 95% of the time, typing and answering telephone calls. Men' s work consisted of more active telemarketing and women's of customer services. Among female operators the prevalence of neck/shoulder symptoms was 43% (95% CI, 33-53) and of wrist/hand was 39% (95% CI, 29-49). Risk factors associated with wrist/hand symptoms were: inadequate height of table (Odds ratio (OR) 3.67, 95% CI, 1.12-11.96) and to answer above 140 calls/d (OR 3.36, 95% CI, 1.16-9.71). Risk factors associated with neck/shoulder symptoms were making fewer rest breaks (OR 3.17, 95% CI, 1.11-8.97) and inadequate thermal comfort (OR 3.06, 95% CI, 1.09-8.62). CONCLUSIONS Prevention of musculoskeletal disorders among call center operators requires an integrated approach including improved workstation design, thermal comfort environment, well-scheduled work-rest regime and realistic production goals.
On the blending of the Landsat and MODIS surface reflectance: predicting daily Landsat surface reflectance

The 16-day revisit cycle of Landsat has long limited its use for studying global biophysical processes, which evolve rapidly during the growing season. In cloudy areas of the Earth, the problem is compounded, and researchers are fortunate to get two to three clear images per year. At the same time, the coarse resolution of sensors such as the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer and Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) limits the sensors' ability to quantify biophysical processes in heterogeneous landscapes. In this paper, the authors present a new spatial and temporal adaptive reflectance fusion model (STARFM) algorithm to blend Landsat and MODIS surface reflectance. Using this approach, high-frequency temporal information from MODIS and high-resolution spatial information from Landsat can be blended for applications that require high resolution in both time and space. The MODIS daily 500-m surface reflectance and the 16-day repeat cycle Landsat Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) 30-m surface reflectance are used to produce a synthetic "daily" surface reflectance product at ETM+ spatial resolution. The authors present results both with simulated (model) data and actual Landsat/MODIS acquisitions. In general, the STARFM accurately predicts surface reflectance at an effective resolution close to that of the ETM+. However, the performance depends on the characteristic patch size of the landscape and degrades somewhat when used on extremely heterogeneous fine-grained landscapes
An empirical test of Woody and Bowers’s dissociated-control theory of hypnosis

Woody and Bowers’s dissociated-control theory predicts impaired performance on tasks indexing frontally mediated supervisory attentional functions during hypnosis, especially for high susceptibles. This prediction is tested using Stroop task behavioral performance to measure aspects of anterior-mediated supervisory attentional function. All measures of anterior-mediated attentional functions significantly declined during hypnosis. Interactions between susceptibility and hypnosis condition showed specific changes among hypnotized high susceptibles. Total Stroop errors (failures of attentional suppression) were significantly higher in hypnosis for high, but not low, susceptibles. Tellegen’s experiential mental set was highest for hypnotized highs. Use of rehearsal strategy (instrumental set) decreased significantly in hypnosis but more so for highs than lows. Results suggest that “absorption” in hypnosis may be a consequence of dissociated anterior attentional control. It is proposed that dissociated control emerges from the functional disconnection of left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and anterior cingulate cortex.
Integrated biological and chemical control of rice sheath blight by Bacillus subtilis NJ-18 and jinggangmycin.

BACKGROUND Sheath blight caused by Rhizoctonia solani Kühn is a major disease of rice that greatly reduces yield and grain quality and jinggangmycin is the most widely used fungicide to control this disease in China. Bacillus subtilis NJ-18 has broad antimicrobial activity to many phytopathogenic bacteria and fungi; it is especially effective against Rhizoctonia solani. Laboratory, greenhouse and field tests were conducted to determine the effect of combining the biological control agent Bacillus subtilis NJ-18 with the fungicide jinggangmycin for control of rice sheath blight. RESULTS Growth of NJ-18 in vitro was not affected by jinggangmycin. In a greenhouse experiment, disease control was greater with a mixture of NJ-18 and jinggangmycin than with either alone; a mixture of NJ-18 at 10(8) cfu mL(-1) and jinggangmycin at 50 or 100 mg L(-1) reduced lesion length by 35% and 20%, respectively, and the combinations showed a synergistic action. In three field trials, disease control was significantly greater with a mixture of NJ-18 at 10(8) cfu mL(-1) and jinggangmycin at 75 or 150 g a.i. ha(-1) than with either component alone. CONCLUSION The results of the study indicate that, when Bacillus subtilis NJ-18 strain was combined with jinggangmycin, there was an increased suppression of rice sheath blight, and thus could provide an alternative disease control option.
EFFECT OF TRIBENDIMIDINE ON ADULT ECHINOSTOMA CAPRONI HARBORED IN MICE, INCLUDING SCANNING ELECTRON MICROSCOPIC OBSERVATIONS

Food-borne trematodiasis is an emerging public health problem with more than 10% of the world's population at risk of infection, yet there are only 2 drugs available for treatment and morbidity control. We assessed the effect of a promising broad-spectrum anthelmintic drug, i.e., tribendimidine, with an experimental focus on adult Echinostoma caproni. Female NMRI mice were infected with 30 E. caproni for 2 wk and then administered single oral doses of tribendimidine ranging between 25 and 500 mg/kg. Three days post-treatment, mice were necropsied, and adult worms were recovered from their intestines. Worm burden reductions were assessed against untreated control mice. In addition, scanning electron microscopic observations were done on adult E. caproni recovered from mice given a single dose of 150 mg/kg tribendimidine intragastrically 2, 4, and 8 hr post-treatment. Worm burden reductions of 100% were achieved at doses of 125 mg/kg and above. Severe damage of the tegument, including extensive peeling, formation of blebs, and structural loss of the definition of collar and tegumentary spines already occurred within 2 hr after drug administration. Our findings call for further investigations using tribendimidine in other trematode– animal models, because this compound shows promising trematocidal activity.
The Effect of Shame in Dictator Games with Information Asymmetry

This study introduces a theoretical model of inequality aversion which can also be used in an environment with information asymmetries. The model is based on the non-paternalistic approach where, the own utility function incorporates the utility of other people as perceived by a decision maker. Moreover it allows extensions for other motives which may result in pro-social behavior. I extend the model by adding shame aversion as an additional driver for apparently altruistic behavior. Threat of shame is induced by different levels of exposure of either own actions or identity to the third party observers. I also experimentally test predictions of the model using a very simple environment of a dictator’s game. The experimental design aims to remove additional confounding behavioral effects present in the previous literature. The results suggest that even a very small exposure results in significantly higher amounts sent to recipients. The analysis also shows that the agents, who believe that they can conceal their own actions in front of the less informed counterpart, exploit this information asymmetry for their monetary benefit.
Effect of antiretroviral triple combinations including the protease inhibitor nelfinavir in heavily pretreated children with HIV-1 infection.

BACKGROUND In this retrospective study the effect of antiretroviral triple therapy including the protease-inhibitor nelfinavir (NFV) on CD4-cells and viral load (VL) in heavily pretreated HIV-infected children was evaluated. PATIENTS AND METHODS 20 children (<18 years) were included. Median duration of antiretroviral pretreatment was 27 months (range, 7 65), median initial VL was 4.7 log subset 10 (3.2 6.1) and median relative CD4-cells was 17.5% (3 33). Patients were put on combinations with NFV because of treatment failure (increasing VL), intolerance to prior therapy with PIs or adherence problems with prior indinavir. Viral load (RT-PCR, detection limit 50 copies/ml) and CD4-cells were measured every 4-8 weeks. RESULTS Median viral load decreased 1.2 log(10) (-1.3 2.5), 0.9 log(10) (-0.8 - 2.5) and 0.4 log(10) (-0.5 - 3.0) after 12, 24 and 36 weeks. The VL of 2 patients was below the detection limit (50 copies/ml) after 24 weeks. The relative CD4-cell count increased from a median of 17.5% to 22%, 23% and 25% after 12, 24 and 36 weeks, respectively. Side effects of NFV were usually mild. WHO grade 1 or 2 diarrhea occurred in 70% and moderate elevations of triglycerides in 40% of the patients. At 48 weeks 18/20 patients had to be switched to other combinations due to virological failure. CONCLUSIONS In children with intensive prior antiretroviral therapy combination therapy including NFV lead to a modest short-term reduction of the VL and increase in CD4-cells. However, the long-term antiretroviral effect was poor.
Occupational pension scheme: an innovative tool in HRM

Purpose This paper aims to recognize whether occupational pension scheme (OPS) is offered in a varied set of measures intended to design a coherent human resources management of people. Second, the authors will study the relationship of these OPS with job satisfaction and job change. The interest of this ultimate goal lies in the relationship between job satisfaction and employee motivation, commitment and loyalty. Design/methodology/approach Statistical methodology is carried out from three approaches. First, a descriptive analysis to define what type of companies are offering these OPS and what positions are occupying the OPS beneficiaries. Second, an exploratory analysis is conducted to establish associations between variables. The authors use the X2 tests with contingency tables and ANOVA of one and two factors. In all cases, the requirement of homoscedasticities is checked through Levene test. Third, the authors conduct a joint analysis between the studied variables. Multiple correspondence analysis is used to analyze the association between certain characteristics of the firm and the fact to offer OPS and other social benefits. Finally, to assess the potential impact of OPS on the decision to change the job, the authors conduct a binary logistic regression analysis, in which the authors used control variables of certain characteristics of the individual and the company. Findings Companies who develop the most innovative human resources management policies offering more training, more social benefits and incentives, are also most likely to implement OPS. The OPS beneficiaries have higher levels of satisfaction and are less likely to change the job, regardless of the position held and salary. Originality/value To the extent that the future is perceived as more uncertain, the savings will be more oriented toward prevision. OPS can be a saving instrument with broad appeal for business and workers. And of course, it can be a tool of differentiation in the recruitment policy, which attract workers to the company over other competitors which do not offer this kind of benefits.
Treatment of Incarcerated, Sexually-Abused Adolescent Females: An Outcome Study

ABSTRACT This study examined the psychosocial functioning of 100 adolescent females (ages 12–17) sentenced to secure care in a southeastern state and the impact of a gender-specific, cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) intervention on the psychosocial functioning of subjects who reported a history of sexual abuse. The Multidimensional Adolescent Assessment Scale (MAAS) was used to assess psychosocial functioning. Pre-test scores on the MAAS revealed significantly higher scores on 12 of 16 dimensions of psychosocial functioning and higher rates of serious criminal behavior for youth who subsequently disclosed sexual abuse histories as compared to those without such histories. At post-test, statistically significant improvements in psychosocial functioning were observed on 14 of 16 MAAS subscales for those who received the CBT intervention. Thus, incarcerated female adolescents who reported a history of sexual abuse demonstrated more impairment in their functioning as compared to those without a reported history of sexual abuse and responded positively to a gender-specific, CBT-based intervention.
Tourism Expansion and Economic Growth in Asia-Pacific Nations: A Panel Causality Approach

The aim of the present study is to investigate the causal nexus between tourism expansion and economic growth for the panel of 13 selected Asia-Pacific nations over the period 1995-2014. Using econometric techniques like tests for panel unit root, panel cointegration and Panel Vector Autoregressive (PVAR) model by means of Arellano and Bond (1991) Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) estimation, the results show that there is no long-run relationship between tourism expansion and economic growth for the selected Asia-Pacific nations. Besides, the results of PVAR-GMM estimation show that tourism expansion and economic growth are independent of each other in the short run and also do not validate either tourismled growth hypothesis or growth-led tourism hypothesis for the sample nations. The results suggest that the governments of the selected Asia-Pacific countries should give more importance to economic policies to promote economic growth more than paying attention towards promoting inbound tourism in the region.
The NF-kappa B binding site is necessary for efficient replication of simian immunodeficiency virus of macaques in primary macrophages but not in T cells in vitro

We demonstrate here that the nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-kappa B) binding site in the simian immunodeficiency virus (SIVmac) long terminal repeat is essential for efficient virus replication in primary alveolar macrophages but dispensable for efficient replication in primary T cells. Mutation of the NF-kappa B site does not seriously impair replication of a T-cell-tropic SIVmac239 or a macrophagetropic SIVmacEm* in peripheral blood lymphocytes or established CD4+ cell lines; however, mutation of the NF-kappa B site prevents efficient SIVmacEm* replication in primary alveolar macrophages. These data suggest that efficient replication in primary macrophages requires both envelope and long terminal repeat determinants.
Independent directors and firm value of group-affiliated firms

This study aims to examine the effect of board independence on firm valuation of group-affiliated firms in distinct Indian setting. ,This study uses a sample of 317 listed firms comprising 1,350 firm-year observations for the period 2008-2012. The value-relevance model is used to examine the effect of board independence on market value of equity. ,The distinct finding of an inverse relationship between board independence and firm value of group-affiliated firms in India illustrates that effective monitoring by outside directors is largely influenced by the institutional setting and ownership structure. This study does not find any evidence of different valuation when comparing non-family CEOs and family CEOs. ,Independent directors play an important role to stop abusive use of related-party transactions in an environment where principal–principal conflict exists. The study’s findings will prove useful in determining whether one should rely merely on the independent status of outside directors or the influence of institutional setting on effective governance. ,This paper contributes to the existing literature in the following ways: it helps to gain a better understanding of business groups which are characterised by unique governance structures and the dominance of controlling families on the board, which makes the external governance mechanisms (i.e. independent directors and non-family CEOs) ineffective and it illustrates that effective monitoring by outside directors is largely influenced by the institutional setting and ownership structure.
Fiscal Policy-Economic Growth Correlates: Further Evidence from Nigeria Economy

The study investigated the impact of fiscal policy on economic growth in Nigeria from the period of 1970 to 2014. The data used was sourced from Central Bank of Nigeria Statistical Bulletin of various issues and World Bank Development Indicator (WDI) and the Co-integration and Error Correction (ECM) approaches were utilized in analyzing the data. The result of the unit root test shows that government capital expenditure, oil revenue, gross domestic product and tax revenue are stationary at first difference I(1), while government recurrent expenditure is stationary at levels at levels I(0). The co-integration result shows that there are 3 co integrating equations at 5 per cent level of significance. This shows that there exist a long-run relationship between fiscal policy and economic growth. The estimated ECM has the required negative sign of -0.447 (45%) and lies within the accepted region of less than unity although, government capital and recurrent expenditures at lagged two years was found insignificant and therefore has no impact on economic growth. Based on the findings from the empirical analysis, the study recommends among others, the need for the Nigerian government to invest in productive investment through increase in capital expenditure over and above recurrent expenditure to stimulate economic growth.
Adoption of African indigenous vegetables into agro-pastoral livelihoods for income and food security: Evidence from Kenya

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to determine the factors influencing adoption of African indigenous vegetables (AIVs) into the agro-pastoral farming systems aiming at improving livelihoods. Design/methodology/approach - The paper is based upon the diffusion theory which is linked to the random utility theory. A survey of 205 agro-pastoral households obtained through multistage sampling technique was used. Factors influencing adoption of AIVs were estimated using a logit model. Findings - Findings indicate that the acreage under AIVs was still very low compared to other crop enterprises with the most common types of AIVs grown being Research limitations/implications - Limitations include reliance on respondents’ willingness to provide correct information. Originality/value - This paper adds value in its contribution to literature on diversifying agro-pastoral livelihoods through production of AIVs for income and food security.
Does 2,2′,4,4′‐tetrabromodiphenyl ether interact directly with thyroid receptor?

2,2′,4,4′‐tetrabromodiphenyl Ether (BDE‐47) is a flame‐retardant chemical appearing at increasing concentrations and frequency in the environment and human samples. A number of health effects of exposure to BDE‐47 have been observed, thyroid disruption being the most sensitive. Our objective was to examine BDE‐47 interaction with thyroid receptor beta (TRβ). We used a variety of approaches, including in vitro binding assays, luciferase reporter‐gene transcriptional assays, and analysis of expression of thyroid responsive genes in rat offspring exposed perinatally to BDE‐47. We found that BDE‐47 alone or in mixture with 2,2′,4,4′,5‐pentabromodiphenyl ether (BDE‐99), 2,2′,4,4′,6‐pentabromodiphenyl ether (BDE‐100), and 2,2′,4,4′,5,5′‐hexabromodiphenyl ether (BDE‐153) does not compete with [125I]T3 for TRβ‐binding even at 4000 fold higher concentrations. Also, BDE‐47 does not affect thyroid responsive genes through TRβ in in vitro studies of transcription regulation. A subset of thyroid responsive genes were significantly differentially expressed in liver and frontal lobe brain samples of exposed pups, however, the action of BDE‐47 was neither agonistic or antagonistic to that of thyroid hormone. We conclude that BDE‐47 does not interact directly with TRβ1 nor does it influence its transcriptional activity. Developmental exposure of rats to BDE‐47 leads to differential expression of thyroid responsive genes in liver and brain due to unknown mechanism. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.