Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Behavioral modulation of the cardiovascular effects of l-norepinephrine in the squirrel monkey.

The effects of norepinephrine on mean arterial blood pressure and heart rate were studied under controlled behavioral conditions. Squirrel monkeys, prepared with chronic arterial and venous catheters, responded (pressed a key) under fixed-ratio schedules of termination of a stimulus associated with occasional electric shock or under fixed-ratio schedules of food presentation. When no behavioral scluedule was in effect, norepinephrine produced dose-dependent increases in blood pressure and decreases in heart rate. Under the fixed-ratio schedules, periods of rapid responding alternated with periods of no responding, and episodic increases in both blood pressure and heart rate occurred in phase with responding. While norepinephrine was being infused under these conditions, blood pressure was high; heart rate was correspondingly low during periods of no responding, but increased markedly during periods of responding, often returning to levels prevailing before infusion. Phenylephrine produced similar effects, whereas angiotensin had much less tendency to decrease heart rate at doses which increased blood pressure. Neostigmine, which decreased the resting heart rate, enhanced the episodic increases in heart rate with little or no change in blood pressure. Under all of these conditions, methyl atropine markedly attenuated the behaviorally induced episodic changes in heart rate. The results indicate that withdrawal of the vagally mediated bradycardia induced by the baroreceptor reflex occurs during schedule-controlled responding. Further, they suggest that heart rate modulation in the squirrel monkey under conditions of these behavioral experiments is controlled primarily by changes in vagal activity.
Comparison of antibody production against aflatoxin B1 in goats and rabbits

Antibody production against aflatoxin B1 was compared in three rabbits and one goat. Titers obtained were 20 times higher in the rabbits than in the goat. The goat antiserum appeared to have a higher degree of cross-reactivity for other aflatoxins and related metabolites than did the rabbit antiserum.
Functional Attributes of Mucosal Immunity in Cervical Intraepithelial Neoplasia and Effects of HIV Infection

The role of mucosal immunity in human papillomavirus (HPV)-related cervical diseases is poorly understood. To characterize the local immune microenvironment in cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) 2/3 and determine the effects of HIV infection, we compared samples from three groups: normal cervix, CIN 2/3 from immunocompetent women (HIV− CIN 2/3), and CIN 2/3 from HIV seropositive women (HIV+ CIN 2/3). CIN 2/3 lesions contained increased numbers of immune cells from both the acquired and innate arms of the immune response in stroma [CD4+ and CD8+ T cells, macrophages, mast cells, B cells, neutrophils, and natural killer (NK) cells] and dysplastic epithelium (CD4+ T cells, macrophages, and NK cells). Immune cells in CIN 2/3 expressed activation markers, as measured by interleukin-2 receptor (IL-2R) and transcription factor T bet. Interferon-γ production was significantly up-regulated in CIN lesions and was expressed by CD4+ and CD8+ T cells and NK cells, indicating the activation of immune cells. Abundant presence of transforming growth factor-β+ CD25+ cells in the infiltrates associated with CIN lesions, and of immature CD1a+ dendritic cells expressing IL-10 and transforming growth factor-β, indicate that CIN is associated with an influx of immune cells that produce a mixture of proinflammatory and regulatory cytokines. In HIV+ CIN, immune cell densities (CD4+ T cells, macrophages, neutrophils, and NK cells) and expression of interferon-γ were significantly decreased compared with HIV− CIN. Regulatory cytokines were also down-regulated in this group. Therefore, both pro- and anti-inflammatory responses present in CIN 2/3 lesions are suppressed in HIV-seropositive women.
Intrauterine, Environmental, and Genetic Influences in the Relationship Between Birth Weight and Lipids in a Female Twin Cohort

Objective—To investigate the association between birth weight and lipid levels in a cohort of UK female twins. Methods and Results—Birth weights and fasting blood lipid levels were available for 2900 women aged 18 to 80 years. Individual level regressions indicated that a 1-kg increase in birth weight was associated with a 0.08-mmol/L decrease in total cholesterol (95% confidence interval [CI], −0.12, −0.04) and a 0.06-mmol/L decrease in low-density lipoprotein (−0.10, −0.03). Using a regression model that includes both mean twin pair birth weight and individual twin's difference from the pair mean, we found that these significant relationships were between twin pairs only and not within pairs. We found no significant relationships for high-density lipoprotein. When monozygotic and dizygotic twins were analyzed separately we found similar effect sizes. Restricting the analysis to postmenopausal women we found stronger relationships between birth weight and lipid levels, which was attenuated after adjustment for body mass index (BMI). Conclusions—These novel results suggest that significant relationships between birth weight and lipids are mediated through shared influences on the maternal environment and do not support the hypothesis that fetal malnutrition is an important determinant of adult lipid levels. Adjustment for BMI also indicates that postnatal growth may be more important than prenatal growth.
Prognosegüte alternativer Frühindikatoren für die Konjunktur in Deutschland

Untersuchungen zur Prognosegute sollten nicht nur Prognosefehler, die auf der Schatzung der Parameter beruhen, berucksichtigen, sondern auch solche, die aus der stichprobenabhangigen Auswahl des Prognosemodells resultieren. Wird die Prognosefehlervarianz durch rekursive Out-of-Sample Prognosen geschatzt, so sollte dabei nicht nur die Parameterschatzung, sondern auch die Modellselektion rekursiv vorgenommen werden. Wir wenden dieses Prinzip auf die Analyse der Prognosegute dreier wichtiger Indikatoren fur die Konjunktur in Deutschland an, den vom ifo-Institut erhobenen "Geschaftserwartungen", den vom Zentrum fur Europaische Wirtschaftsforschung veroffentlichten "Konjunkturerwartungen" und des von der "Wirtschaftswoche" berechneten "Earlybird"-Indikators. Es zeigt sich, dass die Prognosefehler bei der realistischeren rekursiven Modellauswahl groser sind als bei nicht-rekursiver Spezifikation. Die untersuchten Indikatoren liefern unter bestimmten Umstanden bessere Prognosen als ein einfaches autoregressives Modell
Power quality measurements of wind energy converters with full-scale converter according to IEC 61400-21

Wind energy has reached remarkable shares in the electrical energy production in many countries worldwide. However, the connection of multi-megawatt wind farms leads to the necessity to examine the impact on the grid closely. The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) developed and released the IEC-standard 61400-21 as part of the IEC 61400 standards for testing and assessing power quality characteristics of grid-connected wind energy converters (WECs) in a consistent and accurate way. To easily compare WECs of different types it defines a measurement excerpt that states the key power quality characteristics: wind turbine specifications, active and reactive power output, flicker, harmonics, control of active and reactive power, protection, voltage dip response and reconnection time. Based on the measurement results in that excerpt the maximum grid connection capacity can be determined for a chosen connection point in order to fulfil the given national or international power quality requirements. Different wind turbine types have different power quality characteristics. As a pioneer in advanced WEC technology and grid integration, ENERCON has developed a range of certified WEC types to address the most demanding international grid codes. In recent years the power quality characteristics of all these types were tested and certified according to IEC 61400-21 by independent testing institutes. Reasons for the good power quality characteristics can be found in the design of these WECs based on an annular generator, injecting power via full-scale power electronics and associated control systems. Additional control features like soft-start without inrush currents, Storm Control and wind farm control systems to control the voltage, power factor or reactive power can, to a certain extent, even improve power quality in power systems.
Using a multicultural lens to understand illnesses among Haitians living in America.

Currently, ethnic and racial minority individuals represent a large proportion of the U.S. population, andresearchers expect that they will represent the majority of the population by 2050. This shift in U.S.demographics calls for a greater awareness and integration of cultural issues into the assessment andtreatment of ethnically and linguistically diverse clients. This article examines the unique beliefs andmanifestations of illnesses among Haitians in connection with the American Psychological Associations(APA, 2002) Multicultural Guidelines. The authors use a common culture-bound syndrome, Se´izisman ,to illustrate the cultural beliefs, assessment, and treatment of illnesses among Haitians. In so doing, theydemonstrate how to incorporate the APA Multicultural Guidelines into treatment with clients of diversecultural and racial backgrounds.Keywords: multicultural, Haitian, illnesses, cultural beliefs, Se´izisman
The network of the Italian stock market during the 2008-2011 financial crises

We build the network of the top 190 Italian quoted companies during the two financial crises of 2008-2009 (US credit crisis) and 2010-2011 (European sovereign debt crisis) and compare its structure to the pre-crises years, using both minimum spanning trees and the full network with thresholds. We also analyze the centrality and compactness of industry sectors. We find a general contraction of the network during the crises, both numerically due to stronger correlation as well as topologically, with the appearance of central dominant companies which attract the other ones into a very large cluster, dominated by financial institutions (commercial banks and insurance companies). In particular, we note the role of insurance behemoth Assicurazioni Generali, which rises from a pre-crises subordinate role to become the central company in the minimum spanning tree after the crises period. The few sectors which maintain compactness before and during the crises are utilities, publishing, and construction.
Antibacterial Activity of Human Neutrophil Defensin HNP-1 Analogs without Cysteines

ABSTRACT The antibacterial activity of human neutrophil defensin HNP-1 analogs without cysteines has been investigated. A peptide corresponding to the HNP-1 sequence without the six cysteines (HNP-1ΔC) exhibited antibacterial activity toward gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria. Truncated analogs wherein the nine N-terminal residues of HNP-1 and the remaining three cysteines were deleted (HNP-1ΔC18) or the G was replaced with A (HNP-1ΔC18A) also exhibited antibacterial activity. Substantial activity was observed for HNP-1ΔC and HNP-1ΔC18 in the presence of 100 mM NaCl, except in the case of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The linear peptides were active in the presence of carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone (CCCP), indicating that proton motive force was not essential for killing of bacteria by the peptides. In fact, in the presence of CCCP, the peptides were active against P. aeruginosa even in the presence of 100 mM NaCl. The antibacterial activity of HNP-1ΔC, but not that of the shorter, 18-residue peptides, was attenuated in the presence of serum. The generation of defensins without cysteines would be easier than that of disulfide-linked defensins. Hence, linear defensins could have potential as therapeutic agents.
People Who Choose Time Over Money Are Happier

Money and time are both scarce resources that people believe would bring them greater happiness. But would people prefer having more money or more time? And how does one’s preference between resources relate to happiness? Across studies, we asked thousands of Americans whether they would prefer more money or more time. Although the majority of people chose more money, choosing more time was associated with greater happiness—even controlling for existing levels of available time and money. Additional studies and experiments provide insight into choosers’ underlying rationale and the causal direction of the effect.
Cyberlangage et orthographe : quels effets sur le niveau orthographique des élèves de CM2, 5e et 3e ?

Tres peu d’etudes s’interessent au cyberlangage (utilise dans les forums de discussion sur Internet ou avec les telephones portables). Celles qui existent se sont attachees a decrire les caracteristiques syntaxiques de cette langue, sans les mettre en relation avec l’orthographe classique du francais. Le but de cette recherche est de creer ce lien manquant, en etudiant les relations qu’entretiennent le cyberlangage et l’orthographe classique, chez des enfants (scolarises en CM2) et de jeunes adolescents (5e et 3e). Les resultats indiquent, entre autres, que les enfants de CM2, les meilleurs en orthographe, utilisent le mieux le style « SMS ». Pour les eleves de 3e, il existe une correlation negative entre le score obtenu au questionnaire, portant sur les pratiques de l’Internet et le score obtenu en dictee. Ainsi, plus ces enfants ont de connaissances sur le cyberlangage, plus leurs performances orthographiques sont faibles, et inversement.
A quiet ego quiets death anxiety: humility as an existential anxiety buffer.

Five studies tested the hypothesis that a quiet ego, as exemplified by humility, would buffer death anxiety. Humility is characterized by a willingness to accept the self and life without comforting illusions, and by low levels of self-focus. As a consequence, it was expected to render mortality thoughts less threatening and less likely to evoke potentially destructive behavior patterns. In line with this reasoning, Study 1 found that people high in humility do not engage in self-serving moral disengagement following mortality reminders, whereas people low in humility do. Study 2 showed that only people low in humility respond to death reminders with increased fear of death, and established that this effect was driven uniquely by humility and not by some other related personality trait. In Study 3, a low sense of psychological entitlement decreased cultural worldview defense in response to death thoughts, whereas a high sense of entitlement tended to increase it. Study 4 demonstrated that priming humility reduces self-reported death anxiety relative to both a baseline and a pride priming condition. Finally, in Study 5, experimentally induced feelings of humility prevented mortality reminders from leading to depleted self-control. As a whole, these findings obtained from relatively diverse Internet samples illustrate that the dark side of death anxiety is brought about by a noisy ego only and not by a quiet ego, revealing self-transcendence as a sturdier, healthier anxiety buffer than self-enhancement.
CHARACTERISTICS INFLUENCE ON COLOUR CHANGES OF HEAT TREATED PRINTED SUBSTRATES

Original scientific paper This paper presents experimental usage of updated control methods such as thermovision and spectrophotometric analysis in graphic industry. These methods were applied to research the influence of ink volume and material characteristics on colour and heat treated printed substrates. Samples used in these experiments were printed by digital ink jet printing technique using Mimaki JV22 printing machine and J-Eco Subly Nano inks. As printing substrates, three different types of materials were used. Materials were different in respect of fabric weight and thread count, while material composition was the same for all three materials. The appropriate test card consisting of fields of CMYK colours was printed, varying the number of ink layers applied. Samples were exposed to heat treatment after printing. The heat applied was measured by thermovision camera. Spectrophotometric measurements were conducted before and after heat treatment. Based on data gathered by spectrophotometric measurements colour difference ΔE76 was calculated. Results showed that increasing number of layers, as well as right choice of substrates, can improve behaviour of printed product during exploitation.
Impact of age and overt proteinuria on outcomes of stage 3 to 5 chronic kidney disease in a referred cohort.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Population-based studies have reported outcomes and risk factors for patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD), defined primarily by decreased estimated GFR (eGFR). They are characterized by old age, low proteinuria level, and stage 3 CKD. However, many patients referred to nephrologists are younger and have overt proteinuria and advanced CKD. This study evaluated the association between outcomes and those factors among referred CKD patients. DESIGN, SETTING, PARTICIPANTS, & MEASUREMENTS We retrospectively reviewed 461 referred patients with stage 3 to 5 CKD from January 2003 to December 2007. Key outcomes were death and ESRD. Patients were followed from the time of first serum creatinine measurement to December 2009. RESULTS The median age of subjects was 67.0 years, and median follow-up was 3.2 years. Overt proteinuria was present in 57.0% of subjects. For stage 3, 4, and 5 CKD, cumulative mortality and probability of ESRD at 3 years was 9.5 and 6.5%, 11.2 and 27.8%, and 16.5 and 79.1%, respectively. Using proportional-hazards regression models, age was a determinant for death, whereas overt proteinuria was strongly associated with ESRD. Among stage 3 CKD patients older than 65 years without overt proteinuria, the incidence of death before renal replacement therapy (RRT) was 2.8/100 patient-years and none had ESRD. In patients with advanced CKD and overt proteinuria, the incidence of ESRD was substantially higher than that of death before RRT. CONCLUSIONS Stratification by age, proteinuria level, and CKD stage could predict the competing outcomes of death before RRT and ESRD among CKD patients.
Vitiligo as an inflammatory skin disorder: a therapeutic perspective

From a therapeutic standpoint, vitiligo is still regarded by many physicians as a simple problem of regenerative medicine, with the main aim to repopulate the depigmented skin with functional melanocytes from the margins of the lesions or from intact progenitors in hair follicles. However, recent research in vitiligo suggests that various local triggers alert the skin immune innate system and may precede adaptive immune responses targeting melanocytes. This scenario is close to that of other common skin inflammatory disorders like psoriasis and atopic, and suggests to target as a priority this clinically silent inflammatory component of he disease. This perspective highlights possible targets for intervention.
Fast 3D Object Alignment from Depth Image with 3D Fourier Moment Matching on GPU

In this paper, we develop a fast and accurate 3D object alignment system which can be applied to detect objects and estimate their 3D pose from a depth image containing cluttered background. The proposed 3D alignment system consists of two main algorithms: the first is the 3D detection algorithm to detect the top-level object from a depth map of the cluttered 3D objects, and the second is the 3D Fourier based point-set alignment algorithm to estimate the 3D object pose from an input depth image. We also implement the proposed 3D alignment algorithm on a GPU computing platform to speed up the computation of the object detection and Fourier-based image alignment algorithms in order to align the 3D object in real time.
Surface-active phospholipid (surfactant) in equine tendon and tendon sheath fluid

Abstract AIM: To investigate the presence of surface-active phospholipid (SAPL, or surfactant) in equine tendon and tendon sheath fluid. METHODS: The left front flexor tendon and sheath were removed from five Thoroughbred horses. Phospholipid was extracted from tendon sheath fluid using Folch reagent and quantifi ed using spectroscopy. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) was used to observe the tendon surfaces. RESULTS: The presence of phospholipid (90.6 (SD 4.3) μg/ml) in tendon sheath fluid, plus the appearance of oligolamellar layers and lamellar bodies on the tendon surface were indicative of SAPL. CONCLUSIONS: Evidence of SAPL was found in equine tendon, and may have a similar lubricating function as reported for synovial joints. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: These findings may have important implications for normal tendon function and possible therapeutic adjuncts for tendon and tendon sheath injuries.
The Relationship between Market Structure and Innovation in Industry Equilibrium: A Case Study of the Global Automobile Industry

Abstract We specify and estimate a dynamic game to study the equilibrium relationship between market structure and innovation in the automobile industry. The quality of each firm’s product for the average consumer, the key state variable, is modeled as stochastically increasing in innovation, the dynamic control, which is proxied by patent applications. Equilibrium innovation is a function of market structure, the vector of quality levels of all active firms, and the cost of R&D. Our main findings are as follows: (a) optimal innovation has an inverted-U shape in own quality; (b) holding own quality constant, innovation is declining in average rival quality but increasing in quality dispersion; and (c) following entry, each incumbent’s innovation declines, but aggregate innovation increases in most market structures. These findings are broadly consistent with the Schumpeterian hypothesis that market power leads to more innovation.
Processing of Mammalian and PlantS-Adenosylmethionine Decarboxylase Proenzymes*

S-Adenosylmethionine decarboxylase (AdoMetDC) is a pyruvoyl enzyme, and the pyruvate is formed in an intramolecular reaction that cleaves a proenzyme precursor and converts a serine residue into pyruvate. The wild type potato AdoMetDC proenzyme processed much faster than the human proenzyme and did not require putrescine for an optimal rate of processing despite the presence of three acidic residues (equivalent to Glu11, Glu178, and Glu256) that were demonstrated in previous studies to be required for the putrescine activation of human AdoMetDC proenzyme processing (Stanley, B. A., Shantz, L. M., and Pegg, A. E. (1994) J. Biol. Chem. 269, 7901–7907). A fourth residue that is also needed for the putrescine stimulation of human AdoMetDC proenzyme processing was identified in the present studies, and this residue (Asp174) is not present in the potato sequence. The site of potato AdoMetDC proenzyme processing was found to be Ser73 in the conserved sequence, YVLSESS, which is the equivalent of Ser68 in the human sequence. Replacement of the serine precursor with threonine or cysteine by site-directed mutagenesis in either the potato or the human AdoMetDC proenzyme did not prevent processing but caused a significant reduction in the rate. Although the COOH-terminal regions of the known eukaryotic AdoMetDCs are not conserved, only relatively small truncations of 8 residues from the human protein and 25 residues from the potato proenzyme were compatible with processing. The maximally truncated proteins show no similarity in COOH-terminal amino acid sequence but each contained 46 amino acid residues after the last conserved sequence, suggesting that the length of this section of the protein is essential for maintaining the proenzyme conformation needed for autocatalytic processing.