Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
HISTORICAL MATCHING AND ORGANIZATIONAL CAPABILITIES IN THE US BANKING INDUSTRY

In this paper, I explore the nature and dynamics of how the past continues to influence the present by examining how historically-developed organizational capabilities exert a persistent effect on the actions of US banking firms. I study how variation in institutional, technical and economic environments in which banks are founded account for differences in their ability to coordinate across units and that these founding conditions have profound effects in more recent times. I hypothesize that banks founded in environments that fostered inter-unit coordination should subsequently be more likely to engage in activities such as acquisitions that require that coordination capability. Controlling for contemporary conditions, results show that banks founded in states in which branching was permitted are currently more likely to acquire other firms, and that this effect is modified by the development of transportation infrastructure, urbanization and state wealth. My more general theoretical contribution is the understanding that congruence between historical and contemporary environments can yield insights into firm strategy and how industries are structured.
Effect Of Information And Communication Technology On Organizational Performance In Unga Limited Eldoret , Kenya

The great expansion of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) that has taken place during the last decade has set the stage for a new age of opportunities and challenges in many economic regions. The adoption of quality technologies in many developed countries has been found to have positive effect on the organization’s performance. But not all countries are taking advantage of this kind of revolution in the same way and at the same pace (Owuor, 2004). Brynjolfsson, Hitt& Yang (2002) showed that firms with a decentralized organizational structure gained higher performance from investments in ICTs than firms with a centralized structure. These results are consistent with the thesis of strategic complementarities between ICTs and organizational performance originally highlighted by Milgrom & Roberts (1990). In addition, Gretton, (2004) have observed that the impacts of ICTs' use on the performance growth in Australian firms were generally related to the level of human capital and skills within firms, as well as experience of these firms in innovation, adoption of advanced professional practices and intensity of organizational changes, Gera & Gu, Abstract: The purpose of the study was to assess the effect of ICT on the performance of Unga Ltd, Eldoret. The population under the study included the management team, heads of department and employees of Unga Ltd, Eldoret with a total of 65. Questionnaire was used as the data collection instrument. Descriptive and qualitative methods were employed in analyzing data. Tables were used in data presentation. The study found out that the presence of ICT improves service delivery, promotes quality service delivery and increasing organization performance. It was also found out that ICT enhances production in the company, strengthens organizational infrastructure and ensures all the systems are effectively and efficiently working. This study found out that ICT is very important in an organization whereby it enhances in capacity by increasing employees’ efficiency and also it promotes in increasing employee service delivery. ICT was an important aspect on competitiveness of Unga Ltd since it improves supply chain effectively and efficiently by promotes the flow of goods in the organization. The study concludes that ICT is an important aspect on company performance since it increases organization performance based on service delivery, production, employee work force and competitive advantage. The following recommendations were made from the study; the management needs to implement total quality management in the purchase of quality machines in order to increase service delivery. The management also needs to make sure that the ICT equipments used in the processing of the flour are of high quality in order to increase production.
Effect of Different Warm-up Procedures on the Performance of Resistance Training Exercises

Warm-up has been shown to mediate numerous acute physiological alterations that have been purported to confer beneficial effects on performance. This study investigated the acute effects of different warm-up procedures on resistance training performance. Employing a randomized, counterbalanced crossover design, 15 men performed 3 exercises (4 sets of bench press, squat, and arm curl at 80% of 1RM) to failure in 4 conditions (control, specific, aerobic, and combined). Outcome measures included the sum of repetitions and a fatigue index measuring the decline between sets. There was no significant difference for the sum of repetitions or for fatigue index among conditions for the 3 exercises. Performance in the resistance training exercises was not influenced by warm-up.
Risk factors of gestational diabetes mellitus in Wuhan city of China--a case control study

Objective: To explore the main risk factors of gestational diabetes mellitus in Wuhan, China. Methods: 206 women with gestational diabetes mellitus who were diagnosed in Hubei Maternal and Child Health Hospital between January 2014 and December 2015 were selected as case group. Meanwhile, 286 healthy pregnant women, who were delivered at the same time, were selected as control group. Maternal age, occupation, race/ethnicity, gestation status, and family history, etc. were obtained from the face-to-face interviews as well as their medical records. Univariate logistic regression analysis and multivariate logistic regression analysis were conducted to explore the risk factors. Results: The factors included into multivariate logistic regression model were maternal age, menarche age, history of menstrual cycle disorder, spontaneous abortion frequency, maternal history of diabetes, and paternal history of diabetes. The Odds Ratios (95%CI) were 1.50 (1.14~2.04), 0. 36 (0.16~0.84), 3.85 (1. 59~9. 36), 3.00 (1.56~5.77), 3.89 (1.15~13.17) and 6.54 (2.42~17.69), respectively. Conclusion: The risk factors of gestational diabetes mellitus were advanced maternal age, history of menstrual cycle disorder, spontaneous abortion frequency, maternal history of diabetes, and paternal history of diabetes, while advanced menarche age was a protective factor for gestational diabetes mellitus. Correspondence to: Qiong Dai, Department of Child Health Care, Hubei Maternal and Child Health Hospital, Wuhan city, Hubei province, 430070, China, E-mail: daiqiong74@163.com
Acid resistance of Helicobacter pylori depends on the UreI membrane protein and an inner membrane proton barrier

ureI encodes an inner membrane protein of Helicobacter pylori. The role of the bacterial inner membrane and UreI in acid protection and regulation of cytoplasmic urease activity in the gastric microorganism was studied. The irreversible inhibition of urease when the organism was exposed to a protonophore (3,3′,4′,5‐tetrachlorsalicylanide; TCS) at acidic pH showed that the inner membrane protected urease from acid. Isogenic ureI knockout mutants of several H. pylori strains were constructed by replacing the ureI gene of the urease gene cluster with a promoterless kanamycin resistance marker gene (kanR). Mutants carrying the modified ureAB‐kanR‐EFGH operon all showed wild‐type levels of urease activity at neutral pH in vitro. The mutants resisted media of pH > 4.0 but not of pH < 4.0. Whereas wild‐type bacteria showed high levels of urease activity below pH 4.0, this ability was not retained in the ureI mutants, resulting in inhibition of metabolism and cell death. Gene complementation experiments with plasmid‐derived H. pylori ureI restored wild‐type properties. The activation of urease activity found in structurally intact but permeabilized bacteria treated with 0.01% detergent (polyoxy‐ethylene‐8‐laurylether; C12E8), suggested a membrane‐limited access of urea to internal urease at neutral pH. Measurement of 14C‐urea uptake into Xenopus oocytes injected with ureI cRNA showed acid activation of uptake only in injected oocytes. Acceleration of urea uptake by UreI therefore mediates the increase of intracellular urease activity seen under acidic conditions. This increase of urea permeability is essential for H. pylori survival in environments below pH 4.0. ureI‐independent urease activity may be sufficient for maintenance of bacterial viability above pH 4.0.
Observer-based stabilization of switching linear systems

In this paper, we present a “deep pole assignment method” to study the observer-based stabilization of switching linear systems where the dynamics of each mode are known a priori but the switching times of modes are arbitrary. The design can be used for both 8nite and in8nite switched linear systems. We emphasize our paper on the case where the switchings of the observer and controller do not coincide with those of the system. 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
Structural Basis of a Phototropin Light Switch

Phototropins are light-activated kinases important for plant responses to blue light. Light initiates signaling in these proteins by generating a covalent protein–flavin mononucleotide (FMN) adduct within sensory Per-ARNT-Sim (PAS) domains. We characterized the light-dependent changes of a phototropin PAS domain by solution nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and found that an α helix located outside the canonical domain plays a key role in this activation process. Although this helix associates with the PAS core in the dark, photoinduced changes in the domain structure disrupt this interaction. We propose that this mechanism couples light-dependent bond formation to kinase activation and identifies a signaling pathway conserved among PAS domains.
An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay to detect PCR products of the rfbS gene from serogroup D salmonellae: a rapid screening prototype

We describe a digoxigenin-based enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (DIG-ELISA) following a PCR to detect the amplified lipopolysaccharide rfbS gene as a means for rapid screening of serogroup D salmonellae in stool specimens. For pure bacterial cultures, the sensitivity of the PCR DIG-ELISA was approximately 10 bacteria. In the presence of stool materials, the salmonellae were first isolated by an immunomagnetic separation technique with an O9-specific monoclonal antibody. MATy-O9, followed by PCR and DIG-ELISA. The corresponding sensitivity was about 10 to 100 bacteria. To evaluate the assay performance clinically, 203 stool samples from patients with diarrhea were subjected to the routine culture techniques and the PCR ELISA method with overnight enrichment. The conventional culture method identified 145 salmonellae (31 serogroup B, 27 serogroup C, 83 serogroup D, and 5 serogroup E isolates) and 58 non-salmonella bacteria. The PCR ELISA method correctly identified all 82 serogroup D salmonellae (A405 by ELISA, 2.54 +/- 0.74) but was negative for the other Salmonella serogroups (A405, 0.26 +/- 0.08; n = 63) and non-Salmonella isolates (A405, 0.16 +/- 0.04; n = 58). In order to obtain a visible result, the assay takes approximately 6 h (PCR, 4 h; ELISA, 2 h), along with brief enrichment cultivation of the samples (from 4 to 16 h). Thus, the PCR DIG-ELISA offers a fast, accurate, semiquantitative means of detecting infectious agents such as salmonellae, and future robotic automation is possible.
Determinants of Acceptance and Use of DHIS2: Survey Instrument Validation and Preliminary Findings using PLS-SEM

Implementing Information and Communication Technology (ICT) systems in an organization-wide setting is usually a costly venture, yet there is no guarantee that the targeted users of such systems will adopt and use them effectively for the benefit of the organization. Technology acceptance studies have been conducted widely and various models developed in an attempt to predict the critical determinants of technology acceptance, specifically from the users’ perspective. One such model is the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT). It has reportedly been able to explain up to 69% of user intention to use technology under different settings. These settings did not however include a healthcare context in a developing country, with all the unique challenges of implementing ICT under such settings. This study sought to establish the applicability of an adapted UTAUT model in establishing critical determinants of acceptance of a web-based health information management software, the DHIS2, in Kenya. In the pilot phase of the study, the researchers used Partial Least Squares structural equation modeling technique for the analysis of the complex relationships postulated to explain technology acceptance under such settings. The survey instrument’s content validity, as well as the adapted model’s constructs reliability and validity were confirmed, and the preliminary finding was that the model was able to explain 63.4% of the user intention to use DHIS2.
No-fault compensation for treatment injury in New Zealand: identifying threats to patient safety in primary care

Background In 2005, the injury compensation legislation in New Zealand was reformed to extend coverage for medical injury removing both ‘error’ and ‘severity’ from eligibility criteria. This led to an increase in claiming and claims acceptance rate, thus enlarging the treatment injury claims database. This database provides an unusual ‘no-fault’ perspective of patient safety events. Methods The authors analysed the first 4 years of primary care treatment injury claims data to identify the type, incidence, severity and cause of injury in primary care. Results There were 6007 primary care treatment injury claims; 64% were accepted as treatment injuries. Most claims arose in general practice (62%), and most claimants were female (62%). Most claims were assessed as minor (83%), 12% major, 4% serious and 1% sentinel. Medication caused most injuries (38%) and most serious and sentinel injuries (60%). Dental treatment caused 16% of injuries; injections and vaccinations combined caused 10%; and venepuncture, cryotherapy and ear syringing combined caused 13.5% of injuries, mostly minor. ‘Delay in diagnosis’ caused few injuries overall (2%), but a disproportionate number of serious and sentinel injuries (16%) and deaths (50%). Spinal/ neck manipulation caused 2% of serious and sentinel injuries. Conclusions New Zealand's no-fault treatment injury claims database provides information about primary care patient safety events from an unusual ‘no-fault’ perspective. This analysis reinforces previous research identifying medication as a high-risk primary care activity and further identifies other primary care activities (dental care, injections, venepuncture, cryotherapy and ear syringing) as carrying important risks for patient harm.
Apical Transportation during Removal of Root Canal Filling with Different Retreatment Systems

Introduction This study aimed to compare apical transportation during retreatment using ProTaper Universal retreatment (PTUR), Mtwo R and D-RaCe instruments in curved root canals. Methods 36 extracted mandibular molar teeth with curved mesiobuccal roots were selected. The teeth were embedded into acrylic blocks. The blocks were fixed on the experimental setup. After determining the working length (WL), mesiobuccal canals were prepared with ProTaper Universal rotary instruments to size F1 (20/0.06). After the obturation, the teeth were randomly divided into groups; the PTUR files were used as D1 (30/0.09) for coronal third and D2 (25/0.08) at WL Mtwo R files, R1 (15/0.05) and R2 (25/0.05) were used at WL D-RaCe files were used as DR1 (30/.10) in cervical third and DR2 (25/0.04) at WL Image J analysis software was used to measure the apical transportation. Differences between the 3 groups were analyzed with a 1-way ANOVA or Kruskal-Wallis tests. Results There was no significant difference between groups in the apical transportation in either the mesiodistal (p = 0.166) or buccolingual (p = 0.518) direction. Among the 3 groups, the apical transportation was the greatest in the D-RaCe group. Conclusions It can be concluded that all retreatment systems caused a similar level of apical transportation.
Quantitative susceptibility mapping in a diabetes mellitus rat model: Iron accumulation in the brain

This study evaluated the susceptibility effects using quantitative susceptibility mapping (QSM) as a marker for regional brain iron alternations in diabetic rat brains. Otsuka Long‐Evans Tokushima Fatty (OLETF) rats (n = 7) and age‐matched lean Long‐Evans Tokushima Otsuka (LETO) control rats (n = 8) were scanned using a three‐dimensional gradient‐echo sequence in a 3 Tesla MRI to map QSM. The correlation analysis was performed to evaluate the relationship between the QSM value and the body weight and the fasting blood glucose value of the rats. QSM values in the OLETF group were significantly increased in hippocampi and thalami, as compared with those of the LETO group. The QSM values of the OLETF rats were negatively correlated with the body weight in putamen and were significantly correlated with the fasting blood glucose level in the left amygdala and right thalamus. With higher QSM values in diabetic rats than in control rats, QSM values in the diabetic group were significantly correlated with the body weight and the fasting blood glucose level, indicating that the QSM technique should be helpful to noninvasively investigate iron overload in the diabetic brain.
Post-infectious irritable bowel syndrome (PI-IBS) after infection with Shiga-like toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) O104:H4: A cohort study with prospective follow-up

Background In May/June 2011, the new Shiga-like toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) strain O104:H4 caused the severest outbreak ever recorded of hemorrhagic enterocolitis in 3842 patients in Germany. Objectives As bacterial enterocolitis is an established risk factor of subsequent irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), we aimed to estimate prevalence and incidence of post-infectious (PI)-IBS after six and 12 months in a cohort of STEC O104:H4 patients and to prospectively identify associated somatic and psychometric risk factors. Methods A total of 389 patients were studied prospectively at baseline and at six and 12 months after STEC infection using STEC disease-related questionnaires and validated instruments for IBS (Rome III) and psychological factors. Frequencies and logistic regression models using multiple imputations were applied to assess predictor variables. Results Prevalence of IBS increased from 9.8% prior to STEC infection to 23.6% at six and 25.3% at 12 months after STEC infection. In patients without IBS symptoms prior to STEC infection, incidence of new IBS was 16.9%. Logistic regression models indicated higher somatization and anxiety scores as risk factors for, and mesalazine treatment during, STEC infection as the only significant protective factor against IBS. No other factor analyzed, including disease severity, showed an association. Conclusions PI-IBS rates following this unusually severe STEC outbreak were similar to what has been observed after other infectious gastroenteritis outbreaks. Our findings suggest that mesalazine may have reduced the risk of subsequent PI-IBS. As altered mucosal immune activity is a pivotal pathogenic factor in PI-IBS, our observation of a potential protective effect of mesalazine might be explained by its known modulatory action on mucosal immunity, and may warrant further investigation.
Azithromycin monotherapy for patients hospitalized with community-acquired pneumonia: a 31/2-year experience from a veterans affairs hospital.

BACKGROUND Current American Thoracic Society (ATS) community-acquired pneumonia treatment guidelines recommend azithromycin monotherapy for a limited subset of hospitalized patients. We evaluated the effectiveness of azithromycin monotherapy in a more generalized population of patients hospitalized with mild-to-moderate community-acquired pneumonia. METHODS We reviewed medical records from a Veterans Affairs facility for patients admitted with community-acquired pneumonia between December 1, 1997, and June 30, 2001, comparing those receiving azithromycin monotherapy, other ATS-recommended antibiotics, and non-ATS-recommended antibiotics. We excluded patients with immunosuppression, metastatic cancer, or hospital-acquired pneumonia. Outcome measures included times to stability, meeting criteria for change to oral therapy, and eligibility for discharge; length of stay; intensive care unit transfer; and mortality. Outcomes were adjusted for pneumonia severity, skilled nursing facility status, and processes of care. RESULTS A total of 442 patients were eligible for the study (221 in the azithromycin monotherapy group, 129 in the ATS group, and 92 in the non-ATS group). Times to clinical stability and to fulfilling early switch criteria were not statistically significantly different among the 3 groups. Mean time to fulfilling early discharge criteria was 2.48 days for patients receiving azithromycin monotherapy vs 2.84 days for those receiving ATS antibiotics (P =.008) and 2.58 days for those receiving non-ATS antibiotics (P =.64). Overall mean length of stay was shorter in the azithromycin monotherapy group (4.35 days) vs the ATS (5.73 days) (P =.002) and non-ATS (6.21 days) (P<.001) groups. Mortality, intensive care unit transfer, and readmission rates were similar across the groups. CONCLUSION Azithromycin monotherapy is equally as efficacious as other ATS-recommended regimens for treating hospitalized patients with mild-to-moderate community-acquired pneumonia.