Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Does maternal smoking influence leptin levels in term, appropriate-for-gestational-age newborns?

Objectives: Leptin, a hormone produced in adipose tissue and the placenta, is correlated with neonatal growth. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of maternal smoking during pregnancy on cord blood leptin concentrations in term, appropriate-for-gestational-age infants. Methods: Two groups of term, appropriate-for-gestational-age newborns were selected: 19 infants of smoking mothers and 91 infants of non-smoking mothers. Neonatal anthropometric measurements were taken and leptin levels were measured by radioimmunoassay. Results: Leptin concentrations were similar (p = 0.915) between the groups. Leptin levels correlated only with ponderal index (p < 0.01) and gestational age of the newborns (p < 0.05). Conclusions: This study indicates that maternal smoking during pregnancy does not affect cord blood leptin levels in term, appropriate-for-gestational-age infants.
The confounding impact of industry innovations on new venture performance

The causal relation between innovations developed by a focal firm and its performance has for some time been inconclusive. This paper examines the Australian manufacturing industry of the 1990s as a functional institutional environment with relatively efficient firms to examine the potentially confounding effect of innovations undertaken by other firms in the same industry sub-sector. Our results show that new ventures in an industry where firms undertake advanced innovations (e.g., many innovations considered new to the industry worldwide, with a long time to commercialization, etc.) experienced higher sales growth than those in an industry with less advanced innovations ? capturing a 'rising-tide-raises-all-boats' effect. However, those new ventures developing innovations themselves perform worse in the same industry with more advanced innovations than those in an industry with less advanced innovations, in terms of both sales growth and returns on assets. This latter effect is indicative of the high entry barrier of innovations set up by industry with advanced innovations, and is akin to a ? red queen effect? in terms of firms competing with one another on ever more advanced innovations. In particular, the latter effect can be so large as to mask the former effect.
Antigenic and immunogenic properties of defined physical forms of tick-borne encephalitis virus structural proteins

Polymeric, delipidated glycoprotein complexes of defined size and composition were prepared from tick-borne encephalitis virus by solubilization with Triton X-100 or cetyltrimethylammonium bromide, followed by centrifugation into detergent-free sucrose density gradients. The antigenic reactivities and immunogenicities of these complexes were compared with those of complete inactivated virus. These glycoprotein preparations induced hemagglutination-inhibiting and neutralizing antibodies which proved to be protective in passive mouse protection tests and monospecifically reacted only with the viral envelope and not with the internal core. In a competitive radioimmunoassay the glycoprotein complexes revealed about 10-fold higher antigenicity than whole virus when tested at equal protein concentrations. The important implications of these results with respect to antigen quantification in vaccines are discussed. As shown in the mouse challenge potency test, glycoprotein complexes prepared after Triton X-100 solubilization actively protected mice almost as well as did complete inactivated virus at the same protein concentration, whereas those prepared after cetyltrimethylammonium bromide solubilization had a somewhat lower protective activity per microgram of protein.
Measurement Techniques for Cellular Biomechanics In Vitro

Living cells and tissues experience mechanical forces in their physiological environments that are known to affect many cellular processes. Also of importance are the mechanical properties of cells, as well as the microforces generated by cellular processes themselves in their microenvironments. The difficulty associated with studying these phenomena in vivo has led to alternatives such as using in vitro models. The need for experimental techniques for investigating cellular biomechanics and mechanobiology in vitro has fueled an evolution in the technology used in these studies. Particularly noteworthy are some of the new biomicroelectromechanical systems (Bio-MEMS) devices and techniques that have been introduced to the field. We describe some of the cellular micromechanical techniques and methods that have been developed for in vitro studies, and provide summaries of the ranges of measured values of various biomechanical quantities. We also briefly address some of our experiences in using these methods and include modifications we have introduced in order to improve them.
Clinical evaluation of cefotiam and cefamandole in respiratory tract infections.

Eighty-two adult hospitalized patients suffering from respiratory tract infections were treated with cefotiam or cefamandole in an open comparative study. The patients were allocated randomly to one of the two treatments. The recommended dosage regimens (i.m. or i.v.) were used for both groups (cefotiam 1 g b.i.d., cefamandole 1 g t.i.d.). The duration of treatment was 7 to 14 days according to the response of the disease condition. 80 patients were analyzed. The tolerability of both drugs was good and comparable. The clinical and bacteriological efficacy of both drugs was equivalent. The radiological examinations showed a better improvement of the patients treated with cefotiam.
Response of hyperlipoproteinemia to cholestyramine resin.

Cholestyramine resin, an anion exchange resin, was given for 38 to 416 days to 21 patients with hyperlipoproteinemia. Fourteen patients with essential hypercholesterolemia (type II hyperlipoproteinemia) responded with a 24% decline in serum cholesterol level. Seven patients with other forms of hyperlipoproteinemia had no significant decrease in cholesterol during therapy with cholestyramine. Serum triglyceride levels remained unchanged in all patients at the dose of cholestyramine given. Gastrointestinal side effects were mild and no other toxic effects of long-term treatment were observed. These results suggest that patients with essential hypercholesterolemia may respond more effectively to cholestyramine therapy than patients with other forms of hyperlipoproteinemia.
Need for uniqueness: shopping mall preference and choice activity

Since the store mix and product offerings of many regional shopping malls are very similar, often the primary discriminator between many of these centres is merely location. Making the choice to shop at a regional shopping mall other than the one nearest to one′s place of residence, therefore, does not appear to be a logical choice in many instances. Such behaviour, however, appears to be relatively common. It would appear, therefore, that regional shopping mall choice may not always be based solely on the offerings and location of the available shopping alternatives. Appears to provide support for the hypothesis that regional shopping mall choice can be an avenue for expression of an individual′s need for uniqueness. Suggests that outshopping activity as it relates to choice of regional shopping mall, may, at least in part, be prompted by the personal uniqueness which can be experienced by choosing to patronize regional shopping malls other than the one which is nearest to one′s place of residence.
Immune Responses to Pertussis Antigens in Infants and Toddlers after Immunization with Multicomponent Acellular Pertussis Vaccine

ABSTRACT Given the resurgence of pertussis despite high rates of vaccination with the diphtheria-tetanus-acellular pertussis (DTaP) vaccine, a better understanding of vaccine-induced immune responses to Bordetella pertussis is needed. We investigated the antibody, cell-mediated, and cytokine responses to B. pertussis antigens in children who received the primary vaccination series (at 2, 4, and 6 months) and first booster vaccination (at 15 to 18 months) with 5-component acellular pertussis (aP) vaccine. The majority of subjects demonstrated a 4-fold increase in antibody titer to all four pertussis antigens (pertussis toxin [PT], pertactin [PRN], filamentous hemagglutinin [FHA], and fimbriae [FIM]) following the primary series and booster vaccination. Following the primary vaccine series, the majority of subjects (52 to 67%) mounted a positive T cell proliferative response (stimulation index of ≥3) to the PT and PRN antigens, while few subjects (7 to 12%) mounted positive proliferative responses to FHA and FIM. One month after booster vaccination (age 16 to 19 months), our study revealed significant increase in gamma interferon (IFN-γ) production in response to the PT and FIM antigens, a significant increase in IL-2 production with the PT, FHA, and PRN antigens, and a lack of significant interleukin-4 (IL-4) secretion with any of the antigens. While previous reports documented a mixed Th1/Th2 or Th2-skewed response to DTaP vaccine in children, our data suggest that following the first DTaP booster, children aged 16 to 19 months have a cytokine profile consistent with a Th1 response, which is known to be essential for clearance of pertussis infection. To better define aP-induced immune responses following the booster vaccine, further studies are needed to assess cytokine responses pre- and postbooster in DTaP recipients.
Microbiological effects of prior vancomycin use in patients with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia.

BACKGROUND We sought to determine whether prior vancomycin use (within 30 days) in patients who develop methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteraemia is associated with isolates of reduced vancomycin susceptibility and killing in vitro. METHODS Thirty-eight MRSA from previously vancomycin-treated patients and 43 MRSA from vancomycin-naive patients were evaluated by vancomycin and daptomycin CLSI broth microdilution and killing assays. PCR was used to determine accessory gene regulator (agr) type and staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec (SCCmec) type, and nucleotide sequencing was used to determine spa type. RESULTS Vancomycin MICs were 0.5, 1.0 and 2.0 mg/L for 19, 55 and 7 isolates, respectively. Daptomycin MICs were 0.25, 0.5, 1.0 and 2.0 mg/L for 4, 50, 26 and 1 isolate, respectively. The agr-type distribution was agr group II (59%), group I (25%) and group III (16%); 90% harboured SCCmec II. The genetic background extrapolated by spa-typing showed that 58% of the isolates were of clonal complex 5. MRSA bloodstream isolates from patients who had received vancomycin within the preceding 30 days had a significantly decreased vancomycin killing at 24 h in vitro (median log(10) decrease, 3.1 versus 2.2 cfu/mL; P = 0.021) and a significantly higher vancomycin MIC than isolates obtained from patients without that history (P = 0.002). CONCLUSIONS MRSA bloodstream isolates from patients recently treated with vancomycin may demonstrate reduced susceptibility and increased tolerance to vancomycin in vitro. Given that such microbiological phenotypes have been associated with reduced vancomycin efficacy, consideration may be given to alternative Gram-positive antimicrobial therapy in patients who have recently been treated with vancomycin.
Z-Score as Predictor of Analyst Coverage of IPOs

In this study, we attempt to predict which IPOs will benefit from analyst coverage with information contained in their prospectus or revealed immediately after the first day of trading. We find that the predictive models are very accurate in classifying approximately 75% of the US IPOs over the period from 1994 to 2012 correctly. We identify best predictors for analyst coverage. These are (i) underpricing, (ii) high tech firms and (iii) bookbuilding method. For example, CART model classifies orphan IPOs with slightly worse accuracy (70.6%) than non orphan IPOs (81.1%). This result is evidence that analyst coverage can be predicted with only information contained in the IPO prospectuses or immediately after the first day of trading.
Effect of Intrarenal Infusion of Angiotensin–(1–7) in the Dog

Angiotensin–(1–7), (Ang–(1–7)), a metabolite of Ang II and /or Ang I, was infused into the renal artery (i.r.a) of anesthetized dogs in order to demonstrate its possible direct renal action. The dose administered, 15 Ìg/kg BW/min in isotonic saline (0.072 ml/kg BW/min) throughout the experiment, did not influence the systemic arterial pressure and water and sodium excretion from the contralateral noninfused kidney. Renal blood flow (RBF) was measured by an electromagnetic flowmeter, glomerular filtration rate (GFR) by (exogenous) creatinine clearance. In other groups of animals, either EXP 3174, an AT–1 receptor antagonist alone (30 Ìg/kg BW/ min) or together with Ang–(1–7) (15 Ìg/kg BW/min), were infused. In the last group, the AT–2 receptor antagonist PD 123319, 10 Ìg/kg BW/min, was added to the infusion of Ang–(1–7). A small but significant decrease of RBF from 4.51±0.32 to 3.8±0.29 ml/g BW/min occurred after Ang–(1–7); this decrease was very similar when PD 123319 was added. However, an increase to 4.98±0.34 ml/g BW/min was seen after the addition of EXP 3174 to the i.r. a. infusion of Ang–(1–7); this increase was similar to the increase observed after EXP 3174 alone (5.21±0.33; p<0.02 in both cases). A very small but significant increase in GFR was seen after Ang–(1–7) + EXP 3174 or after the AT–1 blocker alone (0.64±0.049 and 0.62±0.05 vs. 0.6±0.05 ml/g BW/min in the Time Control Group, p<0.01 and 0.05, respectively). Water, sodium and urea excretion rates were increased in all groups infused with Ang–(1–7); after the combination of Ang–(1–7) + EXP 3174, all increases were higher than after every substance alone; however, statistical significance (p<0.05) was reached in sodium excretion values only. Potassium excretion rates were increased just in those groups in which EXP 3174 was present in the infusion fluid. In summary, Ang–(1–7) i.r. a. infusion in the dog is followed by increases in water, sodium and urea (but not potassium) excretion rates, highly probably of tubular origin. This effect is not completely blocked by the AT–1 – and not at all by the AT–2 receptor antagonist – thus indirectly suggesting another receptor could play a role. A small decrease in RBF disappears after EXP 3174, thus indicating an AT–1 receptor action.
The Role of Institutional Investors in Equity Trading: An Explanation of the Home Bias Puzzle

This paper postulates that management performance evaluation is a source of divergence between institutional investors and households’ optimal portfolio decisions. In a partial equilibrium setting, the objective of a representative household is modeled as the maximization of expected utility (an increasing and concave function, in order to accommodate risk aversion) of final wealth. Yet, the institutional investor is assumed to maximize utility (same type of function) of final wealth minus a benchmark. Under these assumptions, the optimal portfolio choices of both types of investors are derived and compared. The specific objective function of the representative institutional investor is shown to induce a divergence between her optimal portfolio and that of the representative household. We study the effects of this optimal strategy in asset trading on a simple one-period equilibrium model and obtain a multibeta CAPM; as a novelty, a new factor-risk is brought into the analysis: the active management risk. This new beta is defined as the normalized (to the benchmark’s variance) covariance between asset’s excess return and the excess return of the market over the benchmark index. We test this model using a data sample of 220 US securities and the S&P 500 as the benchmark index. The sample consists of monthly returns from January, 1973 through December, 1997. We show that the index is relevant in order to explain the excess return of domestic securities. The test supports the predictions of the model. As an extension of the previous results to an international framework, we show that the model provides an alternative explanation of the home bias puzzle. In a partial equilibrium setting, the specific objective function of the representative institutional investor induces a home bias in her portfolio. The bias obtains for certain (and plausible) combinations of the volatilities of domestic and foreign asset markets and the covariances between the domestic and international securities.
Governance implications of non-GM private standards on poultry meat value chains

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the governance implications of non-genetically modified (GM) voluntary private standards on the private label poultry meat value chain of the leading Italian retailer. Considered aspects are: first, the organizational practices adopted along the chain to assure effective segregation; second, the changes in the characteristics and governance of the key transaction (meat processor-retailer); finally, what makes the chain economically sustainable. Design/methodology/approach – A picture of the chain is obtained collecting information from the businesses involved; the snowball selection criterion is used in identifying people to interview. Transaction Cost Economics (TCE) is used to conceptualize the organizational changes in the meat processor-retailer transaction; the coherence of expected-actual variations in asset specificity, uncertainty and frequency, as well as of the observed governance with TCE predictions is assessed. Findings – The creation of t.
Guanxi, Communication, Power, and Conflict in Industrial Buyer-Seller Relationships: Mitigations Against the Cultural Background of Harmony in China

Purpose: This research aims to investigate how guanxi influences conflict occurrence and conflict-related behavior in transactions of equipment with state-owned enterprises (SOEs) against the cultural background of harmony in China. The influence of guanxi on conflict-avoidance behaviors is discussed, and a model is proposed depicting the relationship between guanxi, the selection of communication modality, the exercise of power, and manifest conflict. Methodology/Approach: Data was collected from persons selling equipment in the oil industry. The partial least squares method is applied to analyze the collected data. Findings: Guanxi at the individual level positively influences the use of informal communication and the exercise of non-coercive power and negatively influences the use of formal communication and the exercise of coercive power at the organizational level. The use of informal communication is inversely related to the intensity of conflict, whereas the use of formal communication and the exercise of coercive power are positively related to the intensity of conflict. The combination of these effects is that the guanxi between representatives of business partners is negatively related to manifest conflict at the organizational level. Contribution: This empirical research is among the earliest studies attempting to examine how guanxi influences interorganizational conflict occurrence and conflict-related behavior in industrial buyer-seller relationships in China, and it reveals a significant relationship between guanxi and the selection of communication modality, the exercise of power, and the occurrence of conflict in a guanxi-intensive market in China. Practical Implications: First, our findings will help members of the seller's management team, especially foreign members, to better understand the behavior of their Chinese employees. Secondly, our findings should help sellers improve the effectiveness of their conflict management to increase good word-of-mouth and maximize reorders. Thirdly, our findings should help the purchasing managers of SOEs to better understand how to manage conflict to lower the project risk. Lastly, firms doing business with SOEs should take both cultural and political factors into account in their business activities.
Organizational distance and use of collateral for business loans

This paper examines the effect of organizational distance (i.e. distance between the headquarters of the bank that grants a loan and the location of the borrower) on the use of collateral for business loans by Spanish banks on the basis of the recent lender-based theory of collateral [Inderst and Mueller (2007)]. We find that, for the average borrower, the use of collateral is higher for loans granted by local lenders than by distant ones. We also show that the difference in the likelihood of collateral in loans granted by local lenders, relative to distant lenders, is higher among older and larger firms and among firms with longer duration of the lender-borrower relationship, than, respectively, younger, smaller firms and shorter duration. We also find that banks use lending technologies that are different for near and for distant firms, in response to organizational diseconomies.
4.5 A 16nm FinFET heterogeneous nona-core SoC complying with ISO26262 ASIL-B: Achieving 10−7 random hardware failures per hour reliability

The role of car information systems (commonly referred to as car infotainment) is expanding from dedicated navigation systems to joint car-cockpit systems, including the dashboard meter, telematics for the internet/cloud, and advanced driver-assistance systems (ADASs), such as adaptive cruise control and a pre-crash safety system. The expanding role for car information systems requires higher computational performance, but also safety mechanisms which prevent serious accidents. This paper presents an SoC for the next generation of car infotainment, achieving high performance powered by nine heterogeneous CPUs and a high level of safety, complying with ISO26262 ASIL-B. It has two key features: 1) Run-time test for functional safety, which can detect wear-out faults, such as random fault, time-dependent dielectric breakdown, and electromigration; 2) A killer-droop (critical voltage droop) monitor with droop prediction, which can avoid a delay fault caused by voltage droop.
Missense mutations but not allelic variants alter the function of ATM by dominant interference in patients with breast cancer

The human genetic disorder ataxia-telangiectasia (A-T) is characterized by hypersensitivity to ionizing radiation and an elevated risk of malignancy. Epidemiological data support an increased risk for breast and other cancers in A-T heterozygotes. However, screening breast cancer cases for truncating mutations in the ATM (A-T mutated) gene has failed largely to reveal an increased incidence in these patients. It has been hypothesized that ATM missense mutations are implicated in breast cancer, and there is some evidence to support this. The presence of a large variety of rare missense variants in addition to common polymorphisms in ATM makes it difficult to establish such a relationship by association studies. To investigate the functional significance of these changes we have introduced missense substitutions, identified in either A-T or breast cancer patients, into ATM cDNA before establishing stable cell lines to determine their effect on ATM function. Pathogenic missense mutations and neutral missense variants were distinguished initially by their capacity to correct the radiosensitive phenotype in A-T cells. Furthermore missense mutations abolished the radiation-induced kinase activity of ATM in normal control cells, caused chromosome instability, and reduced cell viability in irradiated control cells, whereas neutral variants failed to do so. Mutant ATM was expressed at the same level as endogenous protein, and interference with normal ATM function seemed to be by multimerization. This approach represents a means of identifying genuine ATM mutations and addressing the significance of missense changes in the ATM gene in a variety of cancers including breast cancer.