Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Epidural Analgesia During Labor and Delivery: Effects on the Initiation and Continuation of Effective Breastfeeding

This prospective cohort study examined the association between epidural analgesia during labor and delivery, infant neurobehavioral status, and the initiation and continuation of effective breastfeeding. Healthy, term infants delivered vaginally by mothers who received epidural analgesia (n = 52) or no analgesia (n = 63) during labor and delivery were assessed at 8 to 12 hours postpartum, followed by a telephone interview with the mothers at 4 weeks postpartum. There was no significant difference between the epidural analgesia and no-analgesia groups in breastfeeding effectiveness or infant neurobehavioral status at 8 to 12 hours or in the proportion of mothers continuing to breastfeed at 4 weeks. Therefore, epidural analgesia did not appear to inhibit effective breastfeeding. There was a positive correlation between infant neurobehavioral status and breastfeeding effectiveness (Spearman [.rho] = 0.48, P = .01), suggesting that neurobehavioral assessment may prove beneficial in identifying infants at greater risk for breastfeeding difficulties.
Decentralisation Policies, Subnational Autonomy and Federal Executive Power: A Comparison of Brazil and Mexico

Decentralisation is assumed to benefit subnational government by increasing its autonomy from central government. This paper challenges this assumption by arguing that decentralisation can have mixed effects on vertical intergovernmental relations (national-subnational). Some decentralisation policies may result in greater subnational autonomy from national government, while some decentralisation policies may paradoxically increase a subnational unit’s dependence on national government. By deconstructing decentralisation into its administrative, fiscal and political nature, and by identifying different patterns of fiscal and administrative decentralisation, the paper examines decentralisation policies in Mexico and Brazil. Although both countries have undergone decentralisation, its nature and patterns were very different and explain the different intergovernmental relations that resulted in each
Mass of a Charged Particle with Complex Structure in Zeropoint Field

A charged particle immersed in the fluctuating zeropoint field may be visualized as an oscillator and such an oscillating particle is considered to possess an extended structure with center of mass and center of charge separated by radius of rotation in a complex vector space. Considering stochastic electrodynamics with spin, the zeropoint energy absorbed by the particle due to its internal motion has been derived. One may initially assume a massless charged particle with complex structure and after interaction with zeropoint field, the absorbed energy of the particle may correspond to the particle mass. This gives an idea that an elementary particle may acquire mass from the interaction of zeropoint field. When the particle moves as a whole, there appears to be a small energy correction of the order of fine structure constant and it may be attributed to the mass correction due to particle motion in the zeropoint field.
Biologically-Inspired Model for Hybrid-Order Chromatic Texture Boundary Detection

In this thesis, a hybrid-order texture boundary detection technique inspired from human visual system (HVS) was presented. The proposed algorithm integrates three important visual primitives: luminance, texture, and color into a functional system. At present, the related works were developed for specific applications such that an overall investigation of the texture segregation process would be inaccessible. Therefore, the thesis focuses on relevant fundamental researches on HVS and systematic integration to investigate the task of texture boundary detection thoroughly. Moreover, some critical but ignored issues from the procedure of hybrid-order feature extraction, such as false response, weights selection, etc., were also discussed and solved in this thesis. Transmission with antagonism such as receptive field profile and opponent color is the critical point that HVS can effectively process visual information. This thesis employs the encoding form in HVS with systematic integration to build up a complete algorithm for texture boundary detection. Color images are firstly decomposed into three opponent axes and the 1and 2order features are extracted by a Gaussian filter and Gabor filters. With the proposed adaptive weights selecting mechanism, the hybrid-order boundary can be obtained. Among extensive tests, boundaries between uniform textures can be detected successfully and accurately. For textures that are non-uniform or non-regular, the results also reflect some meaningful properties which are consistent to human visual sensation. In addition to satisfying testing results, processing employed in this algorithm is very simple and intuitive with only few assumptions and no training procedure involved. Compared with the present researches, the proposed algorithm has a good application potential.
An Evidence-Based Systematic Review of Elderberry and Elderflower (Sambucus nigra) by the Natural Standard Research Collaboration

ABSTRACT An evidence-based systematic review of elderberry and elderflower (Sambucus nigra) by the Natural Standard Research Collaboration consolidates the safety and efficacy data available in the scientific literature using a validated, reproducible grading rationale. This article includes written and statistical analysis of clinical trials, plus a compilation of expert opinion, folkloric precedent, history, pharmacology, kinetics/dynamics, interactions, adverse effects, toxicology, and dosing.
Rabbit Serum Paraoxonase 3 (PON3) Is a High Density Lipoprotein-associated Lactonase and Protects Low Density Lipoprotein against Oxidation*

The paraoxonase gene family contains at least three members: PON1, PON2, andPON3. The physiological roles of the corresponding gene products are still uncertain. Until recently, only the serum paraoxonase/arylesterase (PON1) had been purified and characterized. Here we report the purification, cloning, and characterization of rabbit serum PON3. PON3 is a 40-kDa protein associated with the high density lipoprotein fraction of serum. In contrast to PON1, PON3 has very limited arylesterase and no paraoxonase activities but rapidly hydrolyzes lactones such as statin prodrugs (e.g.lovastatin). These differences facilitated the complete separation of PON3 from PON1 during purification. PON3 hydrolyzes aromatic lactones and 5- or 6-member ring lactones with aliphatic substituents but not simple lactones or those with polar substituents. We cloned PON3 from total rabbit liver RNA and expressed it in mammalian 293T/17 cells. The recombinant PON3 has the same apparent molecular mass and substrate specificity as the enzyme purified from serum. Rabbit serum PON3 is more efficient than rabbit PON1 in protecting low density lipoprotein from copper-induced oxidation. This is the first report that identifies a second PON enzyme in mammalian serum and the first to describe an enzymatic activity for PON3.
High Arctic Hydrological, Landscape and Ecosystem Responses to Climate Change

Water is crucial for northern communities and ecosystems and plays a vital role, in conjunction with climate and permafrost, in the morphology and stability of arctic landscapes. To determine the impacts of climate change on freshwater quality and availability in the High Arctic, we created a watershed and landscape ecosystem observatory. The research is conducted primarily at the Cape Bounty Arctic Watershed Observatory (CBAWO) on Melville Island, near the Nunavut/NWT border, with additional work at Polar Bear Pass on Bathurst Island. Research will investigate how climate change will affect rivers, permafrost, soils, vegetation, greenhouse gas emissions and the release of contaminants into High Arctic rivers, lakes and ponds. Our integrated watershed network will provide an unprecedented understanding of the sensitivity and anticipated future effects of climate change to the High Arctic water, permafrost and ecosystem. By closely integrating related water and ecosystem process studies, this project will identify key environmental and societal vulnerabilities. Our goal is to develop impact models to assess linkages between anticipated environmental change and possible adaptations by communities and government agencies (clean water supply and ecological integrity) and industry (resource extraction, infrastructure protection).
ANTAGONISTIC POTENTIAL OF BACILLUS SUBTILIS AND PSEUDOMONAS FLUORESCENS ON MELOIDOGYNE INCOGNITA OF GREEN ONION ( ALLIUM FISTULOSUM )

Biological control is considered as new efficient method that becomes widely used for controlling plant parasitic nematodes, as aim to decrease the extent of environment degradation and the effect of the excessive toxic nematicides. Vitro experiments conducted for the evaluation of bio-control agents viz., Pseudomonas fluorescensand Bacillus subtilis, against root-knot nematode, Meloidogyne incognita in onion (Allium fistulosum) revealed that soil application of both P. fluorescens and B. subtilis alone or in combination was able to reduce the nematode population and improve the onion growth parameters in terms of shoot length, root length, shoot fresh and dry weight, root fresh weight.
Perception of Envelope-Enhanced Speech in the Presence of Noise by Individuals with Auditory Neuropathy

Objective: To investigate the effect of background noise on perception of unprocessed and envelope-enhanced speech in individuals with auditory neuropathy (AN). Design: Open-set speech identification abilities were assessed for unprocessed and envelope-enhanced speech in quiet and at three signal to noise ratios (10, 5, and 0 dB signal to noise ratio) in 15 individuals with AN. Results: Results revealed that speech identification ability was affected more in the presence of noise than in quiet. The participants were classified into two groups, Good Performers and Poor Performers, based on their speech identification scores in quiet. It was observed that the reduction in mean speech identification scores in noise was less for Good Performers when compared with that of Poor Performers. Envelope enhancement of the signal improved speech identification scores in both the groups. The analysis of results also showed that Good Performers showed a significant improvement in all the conditions, whereas Poor Performers showed improvement only in quiet and +10 dB signal to noise ratio. Conclusions: For individuals with AN, listening in background noise is more difficult than in quiet condition. Envelope enhancement of speech signal improves speech identification scores in quiet and in background noise for individuals with AN. However, the benefit obtained varies depending on the speech identification ability in quiet.
Streamers: chemotactic mutants of Dictyostelium discoideum with altered cyclic GMP metabolism.

Mutants of Dictyostelium discoideum that developed huge aggregation streams in expanding clones were investigated using optical and biochemical techniques. Representatives of the six complementation groups previously identified (stmA-stmF) were found to be similar to the parental wild-type strain XP55 in both the extent and timing of their ability to initiate and relay chemotactic signals and in the formation of cyclic AMP receptors and phosphodiesterases. The mutants differed from the wild-type in producing an abnormal chemotactic (movement) response visible using both dark-field optics with synchronously aggregating amoebae on solid substrata and light scattering techniques with oxygenated cell suspensions. Mutants of complementation group stmF showed chemotactic movement responses lasting up to 520 s, rather than 100 s as seen in the parental and other strains. Measurements of cyclic GMP formed intracellularly in response to chemotactic pulses of cyclic AMP in stmF mutants showed that abnormally high concentrations of this nucleotide were formed within 10 s and were not rapidly degraded. A causal correlation between defective cyclic GMP metabolism and the altered chemotactic response is suggested, and a model is proposed that accounts for the formation of huge aggregation streams in clones of these mutants.U
Four weeks' inhalation exposure of Long Evans rats to 4-tert-butyltoluene: effect on evoked potentials, behaviour, and brain neurochemistry.

Long-lasting central nervous system (CNS) neurotoxicity of 4-tert-butyltoluene (TBT) has been investigated using electrophysiology, behaviour, and neurochemistry in Long Evans rats exposed by inhalation to 0, 20, or 40 p.p.m. TBT 6 hr/day, 7 days/week for 4 weeks. Flash evoked potentials and somatosensory evoked potentials were not affected by TBT. In Auditory Brain Stem Response there was no shift in hearing threshold, but the amplitude of the first wave was increased in both exposed groups at high stimulus levels. Three to four months after the end of exposure, behavioural studies in Morris water maze and eight-arm maze failed to demonstrate any TBT induced effects. Exposure was followed by a 5 months exposure-free period prior to gross regional and subcellular (synaptosomal) neurochemical investigations of the brain. TBT reduced the NA concentration in whole brain minus cerebellum. Synaptosomal choline acetyltransferase activity increased and acetylcholinesterase activity was unchanged suggesting increased synaptosomal ability for acetylcholine synthesis. The relative and total yield of synaptosomal protein was reduced suggesting reduced density and total number of synapses in situ, respectively. We hypothesise that a reduced yield of synaptosomal protein reflects a more general effect of organic solvent exposure on the software of the brain. The synaptosomal concentration per mg synaptosomal protein and the total amount of 5-hydroxytryptamine were not affected whereas the total amount of synaptosomal noradrenaline decreased. The concentration and the total amount of synaptosomal dopamine decreased. The noradrenergic and dopaminergic parts of CNS may be more vulnerable to TBT than the serotonergic, and these long-lasting effects may cause or reflect TBT-compromised CNS function.
BIONOMICS AND LIFE HISTORY OF THE CITRUS LEAF ROLLER, ARCHIPS ROSANUS IN NATURAL AND LABORATORY CONDITIONS

The citrus leaf roller (CLR), Archips rosanus (L.) (Lep.: Torticidae) is one of the most threatening pests of leaf buds and blossoms in fruit trees, which in recent years has caused considerable damage to citrus trees in some parts of Mazandaran province of Iran. The bionomics and life history of the pest was studied in natural and laboratory conditions in 2017. Based on the results obtained in vitro, five larval instars of the citrus leaf roller were found on both hosts of Thomson-Novel orange and Unshu mandarin trees. As the age of larvae increased, the width of the head capsule and the length of the larval body was expanded. The length of the body at the age of 4th instar larvae was between 9 and 11 mm in males and females. While this size was observed between 14 and 15 mm at the age of 5th instar. The longest period of larval instars was observed at age 5th, which was nearly between 6 and 7 days. The longevity of the adult insect was observed in laboratory conditions between 16 and 18 days. The longevity of the adult on the mandarin host was less than orange. The egg hatching time on the orange host was 8 days, while it lasted 10 days on the mandarin host. The results of experiments in field conditions were such that hatching all eggs on orange and mandarin hosts lasted 16 and 22 days, respectively. The activity of adult males captured by the pheromone traps containing the artificial pheromone capsule of the female was on January 15 to January 18 on ThomsonNovel orange and mandarin hosts in field conditions. The length of the flight period in the orange orchard was 33 days and, in the mandarin was 28 days. The length of the oviposition period on citrus cultivars lasted about 15 days. This moth has one generation per year and overwinters as the egg. The findings of this study can be useful in the Integrated Management Plan for citrus pest control, implemented by experts and practitioners.
Genetic and Environmental Factors in Autism

Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by impaired social interaction, and verbal and nonverbal communication as well as limited and repetitive behaviours. Although symptomatology of autism may be noticed around early months, diagnosis generally occurs around 24-36 months, however in some cases diagnosis may be delayed to adulthood [1]. Since behavioural symptoms and the degree of functional impairment are variable, the au‐ tistic disorder is described as a heterogenous symptom cluster of varying etiological and pathological basis [2]. Described as a multifactorial disorder created by interaction of neuro‐ logic, immunologic, environmental, and genetic factors, autistic disorder has no definite cause [3, 4]. In many cases in whom the etiology remains unclear are diagnosed as idiopath‐ ic autism or non-syndromic autism [5, 6]. Seventy percent of cases with idiopathic autism have basic symptoms without physical abnormalities whereas 30% have complex autism in which dysmorphic features are detected such as microcephaly and/or structural brain mal‐ formations [7]. Autism is associated with other syndromes such as Fragile X syndrome, Down Syndrome, and tuberosclerosis in 5-25% of the cases ([8, 9]. Although phenotypic het‐ erogeneity is the biggest challenge for research efforts directed to identify autism etiology [10], currently it is widely accepted that environmental and genetic factors play essential role in genesis of autistic disorder thanks to a recent advance in research techniques related to biological factors and widespread studies in this field [11, 12].
Surface Structure and Its Dynamic Rearrangements of the KcsA Potassium Channel upon Gating and Tetrabutylammonium Blocking*

KcsA is the first potassium channel for which the molecular structure was revealed. However, the high resolution structural information is limited to the transmembrane domain, and the dynamic picture of the full KcsA channel remains unsolved. We have developed a new approach to investigate the surface structure of proteins, and we applied this method to investigate the full length of the KcsA channel. Single-cysteine substitution was introduced into 25 sites, and specific reaction of these mutated channels to a bare surface of a flat gold plate was evaluated by surface plasmon resonance measurements. The surface plasmon resonance signals revealed the highest exposure for the mutant of the C-terminal end. When the gate of the KcsA channel is kept closed at pH 7.5, the extent of exposure showed periodic patterns for the consecutive sites located in the cytoplasmic (CP) and N-terminal domain. This suggests that these stretches take the α-helical structure. When the channel was actively gated at pH 4.0, many sites in the CP domain became exposed. Compared with the rigid structure in pH 7.5, these results indicate that the CP domain became loosely packed upon active gating. The C-terminal end of the M2 helix is a moving part of the gate, and it is exposed to the outer surface slightly at pH 4.0. By adding a channel blocker, tetrabutylammonium, the gate is further exposed. This suggests that in the active gating tetrabutylammonium keeps the gate open rather than being trapped in the central cavity.
GPS-Aided INS with Applications to Aircraft Turns AE 494 – B . Tech . Project ( Stage II )

The advent of Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) has brought about an additional navigational aid for aircrafts. The presence of GNSS (specifically, Global Positioning System GPS) receivers has become commonplace in the aircrafts of today. Due to their complementary error characteristic, approaches involving GPS coupled with the Inertial Navigation System (INS) are being looked into for complete navigation and attitude estimation of the aircraft. During the first stage of the project, a simplified model concerning GPS in aircrafts with a decoupled and ideal INS was considered. A Position Velocity – Extended Kalman Filter was developed for the above model and simulations were carried out for the same. In this report we present an integrated GPS – INS coupled approach with open loop tightly coupled architecture. Pseudorange measurements are used as navigational aid for the INS. A more detailed model considering spherical earth as opposed to the flat earth assumption for navigation equations is studied and simulated. Lastly, the simulations for a generic INS-configuration EKF are presented.
Ideal Secret Sharing Schemes: Combinatorial Characterizations, Certain Access Structures, and Related Geometric Problems

An ideal secret sharing scheme is a method of sharing a secret key in some key space among a finite set of participants in such a way that only the authorized subsets of participants can reconstruct the secret key from their shares which are of the same length as that of the secret key. The set of all authorized subsets of participants is the access structure of the secret sharing scheme. In this paper, we derive several properties and restate the combinatorial characterization of an ideal secret sharing scheme in Brickell-Stinson model in terms of orthogonality of its representative array. We propose two practical models, namely the parallel and hierarchical models, for access structures, and then, by the restated characterization, we discuss sufficient conditions on finite geometries for ideal secret sharing schemes to realize these access structure models. Several series of ideal secret sharing schemes realizing special parallel or hierarchical access structure model are constructed from finite projective planes.
THE MORPHOLOGICAL , ANATOMICAL AND KARYOLOGICAL PROPERTIES OF ENDEMIC SALV

In this study, morphological, anatomical and chromosome properties of Salvia hypargeia Fich. & Mey. which is an endemic plant of the Irano-Turanien phytogeographic region were investigated. The glandular and eglandular hair of this species were examined and classified. Morphologically, it was observed that the species have a perennial root system, the herbaceous stem is rectangular, leaves are simple type, glandular and eglandular hairs are present on the both surface of leaves. At the same time, inflorescence is raceme, kalix and corolla are bilabiate and also species contain two B type of stamen. Anatomically, the internal morphological properties of root, stem, leaf and petiole were determined. Chromosome morphology of this species was examined and diploid chromosome number was found to be 2n=22.