Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Information systems services outsourcing reality in large Portuguese organisations

Outsourcing has become a major component of information technology strategy in many companies around the world. From the early 1990s to the present, the reality of sourcing has varied significantly, an example being the services that companies typically choose to transfer to external providers, which are now different from those of one or two decades ago. This paper discusses the results of a survey conducted to determine the current outsourcing status of information systems services in large Portuguese organisations, by identifying the services that companies keep inside their boundaries and services that companies outsource to vendors. It also presents a comparison of the results from this study with results from studies developed in other countries. These findings should be useful both for researchers, who can use it to study the outsourcing and information systems function evolution, and for practitioners, mainly vendors, who may use it to build up its offer in agreement with the buyers' needs and wishes.
Investigating duration of illness and duration of untreated illness in obsessive compulsive disorder reveals patients remain at length pharmacologically untreated

Abstract Aim: Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) is a disabling condition, often associated with early onset and chronic course. Early onset combined to the secretiveness that frequently characterises the condition, as well as patient's beliefs that OC symptoms do not represent a medical condition and that OCD can remit spontaneously, are all factors contributing to delayed diagnosis and first treatment, particularly of pharmacological nature. Methods: In this short report, authors performed a review of the most recent literature in the field. Conclusions: The current literature clearly delineates a duration of untreated illness of several years (around 7 years in the majority of the reports), which represented, on average, a portion ranging between the 40 and 70% of the overall duration of untreated illness.
UC Office of the President Recent Work Title Less Is More : An Adaptive Branch-Site Random Effects Model for Efficient Detection of Episodic Diversifying Selection Permalink

Over the past two decades, comparative sequence analysis using codon-substitution models has been honed into a powerful and popular approach for detecting signatures of natural selection from molecular data. A substantial body of work has focused on developing a class of “branch-site” models which permit selective pressures on sequences, quantified by the ! ratio, to vary among both codon sites and individual branches in the phylogeny. We develop and present a method in this class, adaptive branch-site random effects likelihood (aBSREL), whose key innovation is variable parametric complexity chosen with an information theoretic criterion. By applying models of different complexity to different branches in the phylogeny, aBSREL delivers statistical performance matching or exceeding best-in-class existing approaches, while running an order of magnitude faster. Based on simulated data analysis, we offer guidelines for what extent and strength of diversifying positive selection can be detected reliably and suggest that there is a natural limit on the optimal parametric complexity for “branch-site” models. An aBSREL analysis of 8,893 Euteleostomes gene alignments demonstrates that over 80% of branches in typical gene phylogenies can be adequately modeled with a single ! ratio model, that is, current models are unnecessarily complicated. However, there are a relatively small number of key branches, whose identities are derived from the data using a model selection procedure, for which it is essential to accurately model evolutionary complexity.
Glucagon‐like peptide‐1‐based therapies and cardiovascular disease: looking beyond glycaemic control

Type 2 diabetes mellitus is a well‐established risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD). New therapeutic approaches have been developed recently based on the incretin phenomenon, such as the degradation‐resistant incretin mimetic exenatide and the glucagon‐like peptide‐1 (GLP‐1) analogue liraglutide, as well as the dipeptidyl dipeptidase (DPP)‐4 inhibitors, such as sitagliptin, vildagliptin, saxagliptin, which increase the circulating bioactive GLP‐1. GLP‐1 exerts its glucose‐regulatory action via stimulation of insulin secretion and glucagon suppression by a glucose‐dependent way, as well as by weight loss via inhibition of gastric emptying and reduction of appetite and food intake. These actions are mediated through GLP‐1 receptors (GLP‐1Rs), although GLP‐1R‐independent pathways have been reported. Except for the pancreatic islets, GLP‐1Rs are also present in several other tissues including central and peripheral nervous systems, gastrointestinal tract, heart and vasculature, suggesting a pleiotropic activity of GLP‐1. Indeed, accumulating data from both animal and human studies suggest a beneficial effect of GLP‐1 and its metabolites on myocardium, endothelium and vasculature, as well as potential anti‐inflammatory and antiatherogenic actions. Growing lines of evidence have also confirmed these actions for exenatide and to a lesser extent for liraglutide and DPP‐4 inhibitors compared with placebo or standard diabetes therapies. This suggests a potential cardioprotective effect beyond glucose control and weight loss. Whether these agents actually decrease CVD outcomes remains to be confirmed by large randomized placebo‐controlled trials. This review discusses the role of GLP‐1 on the cardiovascular system and addresses the impact of GLP‐1‐based therapies on CVD outcomes.
Mobile Applications for Diabetes Self-Management: Status and Potential

Background: Advancements in smartphone technology coupled with the proliferation of data connectivity has resulted in increased interest and unprecedented growth in mobile applications for diabetes self-management. The objective of this article is to determine, in a systematic review, whether diabetes applications have been helping patients with type 1 or type 2 diabetes self-manage their condition and to identify issues necessary for large-scale adoption of such interventions. Methods: The review covers commercial applications available on the Apple App Store (as a representative of commercially available applications) and articles published in relevant databases covering a period from January 1995 to August 2012. The review included all applications supporting any diabetes self-management task where the patient is the primary actor. Results: Available applications support self-management tasks such as physical exercise, insulin dosage or medication, blood glucose testing, and diet. Other support tasks considered include decision support, notification/alert, tagging of input data, and integration with social media. The review points to the potential for mobile applications to have a positive impact on diabetes self-management. Analysis indicates that application usage is associated with improved attitudes favorable to diabetes self-management. Limitations of the applications include lack of personalized feedback; usability issues, particularly the ease of data entry; and integration with patients and electronic health records. Conclusions: Research into the adoption and use of user-centered and sociotechnical design principles is needed to improve usability, perceived usefulness, and, ultimately, adoption of the technology. Proliferation and efficacy of interventions involving mobile applications will benefit from a holistic approach that takes into account patients' expectations and providers' needs.
A methodology for transforming memory tests for in-system testing of direct mapped cache tags

While any efficient test developed for off-line testing of memory chips can be easily adapted for in-system testing of single level memory systems, no efficient methodology is known to transform such a test for in-system testing of multilevel memory systems that have one or more levels of cache. The main challenge is in transforming the known test to test the tags of the cache (testing of the data part of the cache is relatively straightforward). In this paper we present a general methodology to transform march tests for in-system testing of tags of direct mapped caches. The transformation has been used to obtain new versions of March B and March X tests. It is shown that the new versions of tests detect the same sets of faults in the cache tags as their original versions detect in memory chips. Finally, it is demonstrated that the proposed version of March B has significantly lower time complexity than previously proposed tests and can be applied without any modification of the memory system hardware.
Experience of Médecins Sans Frontières in laboratory medicine in resource-limited settings

Abstract In medical humanitarian assistance, the diagnosis of diseases plays a crucial role. Laboratory investigations are one of the main diagnostic tools utilized in Médecins Sans Frontières’ (MSF) programs. Currently MSF supports and/or operates more than 130 laboratories in approximately 45 countries. The variety of analysis offered depends largely on the context of the program and the availability of context adapted tools and ranges from sophisticated laboratories specializing in tuberculosis culture to small laboratories within a primary health care program or operating as mobile clinics. The largest laboratories in MSF are found in programs with the main objective to diagnose, treat and monitor patients with tuberculosis and/or human immunodeficiency virus. Other MSF programs are either disease-specific (e.g., malaria, Chagas, kala azar or visceral leishmaniasis, sleeping sickness, malnutrition, sexually transmitted infections) or are integrated in primary or secondary health care structures.
Split-Second Sequential Selective Activation in Human Secondary Visual Cortex

This work addressed early selection based on nonspatial visual features, using event-related potentials (ERPs) with high temporal resolution and dipole-source modeling. Subjects were presented rapid sequences of gratings varying in spatial frequency and orientation, and were instructed to attend to gratings with one spatial frequency and ignore those with another. Attention effects started at 120-msec latency as anterior positivity and proceeded as posterior negativity (200 msec) and anterior negativity (265 msec). Dipole-source modeling suggested that these effects reflect the sequential selective activation of, on average, posterior dorsalmedial, posterior ventrallateral, and anterior medial cortical areas. In contrast, stimulus-specific activity was observed well before 100-msec latency and characterized by dipoles with locations significantly posterior to those of the attention-modulated activity. These results indicate that even with highly discriminable spatial frequencies, selection is not as early as before the 100-msec latency, unlike what is often found for location selection. It is also separated in time and anatomically from the earliest stimulus-specific cortical activity. Reducing discriminability of the selection feature resulted in longer selection latencies, becoming manifest only at 175 msec as an apparent combination of posterior and anterior negativities, and in an elevated criterion for overt responding.
Subunit exchange and ligand binding. II. The mechanism of the allosteric effect in hemoglobin.

of the same patient.5 Oxidation to the met or cynomet derivatives was carried out as before.2 Hemoglobin H and the ,6 chains were oxidized at 370C in order to prevent concommitant oxidization of -SH groups as discussed elsewhere.5 The measurement of oxygen binding by hemoglobin and mixtures of ferr- and ferrohemoglobin has been described in detail.2' 5, 23 In the experiments in which a and is chains were used in the form of the cyanomet derivatives, each point on the oxygen equilibrium curve was obtained on a separate sample.
Compassion satisfaction, compassion fatigue, and burnout in a national sample of trauma treatment therapists

Abstract For behavioral health professionals working with traumatized clients, continuous and prolonged exposure to the stress of working with the myriad of trauma-related stressors experienced by their clients can lead to various responses including burnout, compassion fatigue, and compassion satisfaction. The present study investigates the impact of using evidence-based practices on compassion fatigue, burnout, and compassion satisfaction in a random, national sample of self-identified trauma specialists (N=532). The 30-item Professional Quality of Life Scale (Stamm, 2005) and the 19-item Trauma Practices Questionnaire (Craig & Sprang, 2009) were included in a survey to licensed social workers and psychologists from professional membership rosters. Age and years of experience proved to be powerful predictors of only two of the three criterion variables, with younger professionals reporting higher levels of burnout and more experienced providers endorsing higher levels of compassion satisfaction. The utilization of evidence-based practices predicted statistically significant decreases in compassion fatigue and burnout, and increases in compassion satisfaction. The utility of these findings in understanding the process of trauma transmission between therapist and client as well as directions for future research are discussed.
P2Y1 receptor signaling enhances neuroprotection by astrocytes against oxidative stress via IL‐6 release in hippocampal cultures

Cell survival is a critical issue in the onset and progression of neurodegenerative diseases and following pathological events including ischemia and traumatic brain injury. Oxidative stress is the main cause of cell damage in such pathological conditions. Here, we report that adenosine 5′‐triphosphate (ATP) protects hippocampal astrocytes from hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)‐evoked oxidative injury in astrocyte monocultures. The effect of ATP was prevented by a selective antagonist of or siRNAs against P2Y1R. Interestingly, in astrocyte‐neuron cocultures, ATP also produced neuroprotective effects against H2O2‐evoked neuronal cell death, whereas ATP did not produce any neuroprotective effects in monocultures. The ATP‐induced neuroprotection in cocultures was completely inhibited by silencing of astrocytic P2Y1R expression, indicating that ATP acts on astrocytes and enhances their neuroprotective functions by activating P2Y1R. Furthermore, this neuroprotective effect was mimicked by applying conditioned medium from astrocytes that had been stimulated by ATP, implying an involvement of diffusible factors from astrocytes. We found that, in both purified astrocyte cultures and astrocyte‐neuronal cocultures, ATP and the P2Y1R agonist 2‐methylthioadenosine 5′ diphosphate (2MeSADP) induced the release of interleukin‐6 (IL‐6), but this did not occur in neuron monocultures. Moreover, exogenous IL‐6 produced a neuroprotective effect, and the neuroprotection induced by P2Y1R‐stimulated astrocytes was prevented in the presence of an anti‐IL‐6 antibody. Taken together, these results suggest that P2Y1R‐stimulated astrocytes protect against neuronal damage induced by oxidative stress, and that IL‐6 is a crucial signaling molecule released from astrocytes. Thus, activation of P2Y1R in astrocytes may rescue neurons from secondary cell death under pathological conditions. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
[Influence factors of Schistosoma japonicum infection among fishermen in eastern Dongting Lake Region].

OBJECTIVE To investigate schistosome infection among the professional fishermen in Yueyang County, East Dongting Lake Region and its influence factors. METHODS A total of 275 fishermen from two fisherman villages in Yueyang County were selected in 2009. They were investigated by fecal examination and questionnairing. The stool-egg positive individuals were detected by B ultrasound. The multivariate unconditional Logistic regression analysis was used to explore the related factors of schistosome infection and liver in fishermen. RESULTS The total infection rate in fishermen was 40.4% (111/275), and the geometric mean of EPG was 17.4 +/- 4.4. B ultrasound data showed among 111 egg positive individuals, 39 (35.1%) cases manifested as hepatomegaly, 22 (19.8%) had splenomegaly, 11 (9.9%) had portal vein expansion and 65 (58.6%) had hepatic fibrosis. Multivariate unconditional Logistic regression analysis showed that age groups (OR = 0.630), fishing working years (OR = 2.470), chemotherapy frequency (OR = 0.425) and chemotherapy in 2008 (OR = 0.290) were the influence factors on schistosome infection (P < 0.01). CONCLUSION Schistosome infection rate is high, Schistosoma japonicum-induced liver and spleen injuries are still severe in fisherman of Eastern Dongting Lake Region.
A Monte Carlo Simulation of the Influence of Sound Enamel Scattering Coefficient on Lesion Visibility in Light-Induced Fluorescence

Quantitative light-induced fluorescence (QLF) is based on the dark appearance of a white spot in otherwise highly fluorescent enamel. This can be explained by the increased scattering coefficient in the white spot compared with that of sound enamel. The aim of this study was to estimate the effect of different sound enamel scattering coefficients (s<sub>SE</sub>) and enamel thickness d, caused by developmental enamel differences, on the fluorescence appearance of white-spot lesions. We ran a Monte Carlo simulation of a 4 × 4 mm<sup>2</sup> illuminated enamel slab on a highly fluorescent background. The slab had a 0.7 × 0.7 mm<sup>2</sup>, 100-µm-deep, white spot in the center. Fluorescent and back-scattered photons re-emitted from the central 2 × 2 mm<sup>2</sup> were recorded. We found that the fluorescence photon excitance from the white spot (F<sub>WS</sub>) was less than that of sound enamel (F<sub>SE</sub>), with an optimum difference for S<sub>SE</sub> between 20 and 80/mm. For s<sub>SE</sub> <20/mm, both F<sub>SE</sub> and F<sub>WS</sub> decreased with d. We found no relation with d for s<sub>SE</sub> >20/mm. The results indicate that for small s<sub>SE</sub>, we are suffering from edge losses, which explains why the optimum for lesion visibility is not found at s<sub>SE</sub> = 0/mm, as would be expected.
Novel oral anticoagulants: focus on the direct factor Xa inhibitor darexaban

Introduction: Inhibition of the pathways of anticoagulation is widely used for the prevention and treatment of arterial and venous thrombosis. Vitamin K antagonists (VKAs) have been the mainstay of oral anticoagulation for more than 60 years. Their safety and effectiveness have been established in multiple clinical trials, for a variety of clinical indications. However, there are several limitations to the use of VKAs including delayed onset of action and dosage titration, numerous food and drug interactions and need for regular laboratory monitoring. To overcome some of the limitations of traditional agents, new oral anticoagulants (OACs) have been developed and evaluated. Areas covered: In the present review article, the pharmacokinetic properties of darexaban are presented, along with the available preliminary clinical data. The performance of darexaban in respect to safety and efficacy compared with its competitors is further discussed. Expert opinion: Darexaban is a potent direct factor Xa inhibitor that demonstrated impressive pharmacokinetic properties in pre-clinical studies. It was further successfully evaluated in the ONYX program for the prevention of venous thromboembolism in patients undergoing hip replacement. Finally, in the Phase II RUBY-1 trial, darexaban was tested on the top of standard antiplatelet therapy for the prevention of ischemic events in acute coronary syndrome (ACS) patients. Despite the fact that darexaban had a relatively uneventful clinical evaluation program, its further development was recently discontinued. This decision could probably reflect the non-favorite results in commercially attractive indications, such as secondary prevention post-ACS and the increased competition for less common or short-term indications such stroke prevention in AF or VTE prophylaxis respectively.
Values for urinary excretion of D-glucaric acid by normal individuals.

The urinary excretion of D-glucaric acid reflects the activity of hepatic enzymes that hydroxylate and detoxify many substances foreign to the body. We measured it in 38 healthy unmedicated males (ages, 3 to 90 years; weights 11.8 to 136 kg) and in 15 females (ages, 10 to 80). The males, regardless of age or weight, excreted 56.1 ± 15.7 (SD) nmol of D-glucaric acid per milligram of creatinine. A "standard man" would excrete 98 µmol of this compound per day, in agreement with observations by other workers. We infer that the normal hydroxylating activity of the liver is a direct function of body cell mass.
Evolution of cooperation in device-to-device communication

Device-to-device (D2D) communications are a promising paradigm to improve spectral efficiency in cellular wireless networks by enabling peer to peer communication. In particular, short D2D links can be used to relay data to reduce the burden on core infrastructure. However, this relies on some mechanism to either enforce or incentivise nodes to donate their resources in order to act as a relay without any guarantee that this will be reciprocated in the future. Indirect reciprocity has been well studied from the perspective of human behaviour, proposing mechanisms and conditions under which such behaviour naturally evolves. In this paper we consider D2D networks that formulate the decision to share resources as a donation game using a model of social comparison and examine the conditions under which cooperation evolves without the need for a central authority. Experimentation shows that the emergence of cooperation is sensitive to network conditions, such as node density and noise.
Total intravenous anaesthesia with propofol or inhalational anaesthesia with isoflurane for major abdominal surgery: Recovery characteristics and postoperative oxygenation—an international multicentre study

Two hundred and ten adult patients undergoing open cholecystectomy, vagotomy or gastrectomy were included in a randomised multicentre study to compare postoperative nausea and vomiting, oxygen saturations for the first three postoperative nights, time to return of gastrointestinal function, mobilisation, and discharge from the hospital following induction and maintenance of anaesthesia with propofol and alfentanil or with thiopentone, nitrous oxide, isoflurane and alfentanil. Recovery from anaesthesia was significantly faster in the propofol group (mean (SD) times to eye opening and giving correct date of birth of 14.0 (SD 13.8) and 25.5 (SD 29.5) minutes, and 18.5 (SD 14.8) and 35.5 (SD 37.2) minutes in the propofol and isoflurane groups respectively). There was significantly less nausea in the propofol group (15.4%) than in the isoflurane group (33.7%) in the first two postoperative hours (p < 0.003) but not thereafter. There were no significant differences between the groups in any other recovery characteristics. The incidence of hypoxaemia (arterial oxygen saturation less than 93%) was close to 70% in both groups for the first three postoperative nights, indicating the need for oxygen therapy after major abdominal surgery.