Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Exogenous abscisic acid alleviates zinc uptake and accumulation in Populus × canescens exposed to excess zinc.

A greenhouse experiment was conducted to study whether exogenous abscisic acid (ABA) mediates the responses of poplars to excess zinc (Zn). Populus × canescens seedlings were treated with either basal or excess Zn levels and either 0 or 10 μm ABA. Excess Zn led to reduced photosynthetic rates, increased Zn accumulation, induced foliar ABA and salicylic acid (SA), decreased foliar gibberellin (GA3 ) and auxin (IAA), elevated root H2 O2 levels, and increased root ratios of glutathione (GSH) to GSSG and foliar ratios of ascorbate (ASC) to dehydroascorbate (DHA) in poplars. While exogenous ABA decreased foliar Zn concentrations with 7 d treatments, it increased levels of endogenous ABA, GA3 and SA in roots, and resulted in highly increased foliar ASC accumulation and ratios of ASC to DHA. The transcript levels of several genes involved in Zn uptake and detoxification, such as yellow stripe-like family protein 2 (YSL2) and plant cadmium resistance protein 2 (PCR2), were enhanced in poplar roots by excess Zn but repressed by exogenous ABA application. These results suggest that exogenous ABA can decrease Zn concentrations in P. × canescens under excess Zn for 7 d, likely by modulating the transcript levels of key genes involved in Zn uptake and detoxification.
Impairment due to cannabis and ethanol: clinical signs and additive effects.

AIMS Studies have shown that the impairing effects of Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) are dose-related. Cannabis intake increases the risk of traffic accidents. The purpose of this study was to see how different clinical tests and observations were related to blood THC concentrations and to determine whether the combined influence of THC and ethanol was different from either drug alone. DESIGN A retrospective cross-sectional forensic database study. SETTING Drivers apprehended by the police suspected of driving under the influence of alcohol and other drugs. PARTICIPANTS We investigated 589 cases positive for THC only. In addition, 894 cases with THC and ethanol were included. A comparison was made with 3480 drivers with only ethanol in their blood and 79 drivers who tested negative. MEASUREMENTS Data were analytical results of blood samples and the 27 clinical tests and observations included in the Norwegian clinical test for impairment (CTI). FINDINGS No relationship was found between blood THC concentration and most of the CTI tests. Blood THC concentration was, however, related to conjunctival injection, pupil dilation and reaction to light and to the overall risk of being judged impaired. When THC and ethanol were detected together the risk of being judged impaired was increased markedly. CONCLUSIONS This study demonstrates that cannabis impairs driving ability in a concentration-related manner. The effect is smaller than for ethanol. The effect of ethanol and cannabis taken simultaneously is additive. Conjunctival injection, dilated pupils and slow pupil reaction are among the few signs to reveal THC influence.
Structural alterations in mutant precursors of the yeast tRNALeu3 gene which behave as defective substrates for a highly purified splicing endoribonuclease.

We have produced a highly purified preparation of the Xenopus laevis splicing endonuclease (XlaI RNase). The purified enzyme correctly cleaves tRNA precursors, creating substrates for subsequent ligation. The 5′‐half molecules have a 2′,3′ cyclic phosphate at their 3′ termini. Assuming that splicing enzymes recognize primarily structural elements in the ‘mature domain’, we have been studying the conformation of three splicing‐defective precursors made from mutants of the yeast tRNALeu3 gene. The mutations alter base‐pairing in the D‐stem region and two of the mutants are absolute defectives. Enzymatic probing of the structures of the altered tRNA precursors shows that the structural perturbations in these mutants are localized on the ‘inside’ of the ‘L’‐shaped three‐dimensional structure. The implications of this finding for the recognition process are discussed.
Perceptions of Drinking among Hispanic College Students: How Qualitative Research Can inform the Development of Collegiate Alcohol Abuse Prevention Programs

Alcohol abuse on college campuses continues to be a significant public health issue and health promotion strategies are being directed at changing the culture of collegiate drinking. From a qualitative research perspective such efforts remain uniformed since this area of research is currently dominated by large-scale surveys that illuminate little regarding undergraduate perceptions of alcohol use. This study describes results conducted on perceptions of drinking among college students, and discusses the implications these results may have for developing collegiate alcohol abuse prevention programs.
Toll‐Like Receptors in Older Adults

Toll‐like receptors (TLRs) recognize a limited number of conserved elements in pathogens and, by activating antigen‐presenting cells such as dendritic cells and monocytes and macrophages, play a crucial role in the immune response to infection and vaccination. Most data on TLR function in the context of human aging focus on responses to lipopolysaccharide, an integral component of gram‐negative bacteria, which signals through TLR4. However, such studies have not led to a consensus conclusion and are limited by differences in epidemiological and laboratory methods. A recent comprehensive evaluation of TLR function in monocytes from older adults was conducted using a multivariable mixed statistical model to account for covariates. It was found that cytokine production after TLR1/2 engagement, which is essential for the recognition of triacylated lipopeptides found in a variety of bacteria, is substantially lower in monocytes from older adults. The upregulation of costimulatory proteins such as CD80, essential for optimal activation of T cells, on monocytes from older adults was less for all TLR ligands tested than for cells from young individuals, and the extent of CD80 upregulation predicted subsequent antibody response to influenza immunization. These and other consequences of aging on human TLR function may impair activation of the immune response and contribute to poorer vaccine responses and greater morbidity and mortality from infectious diseases in older adults. Such age‐associated alterations have particular relevance in view of the interest in TLR agonists as therapeutic agents not only for infections, but also for allergic, autoimmune, and malignant disease.
Ability of Earnings and Cash Flows in Forecasting Future Cash Flows: A Study in the Context of Saudi Arabia

We examine a capability of Current Earnings (CEs) and Cash Flows (CFs) and disaggregation of earnings to forecast the Future Operating Cash Flows (FOCF) for 45 Saudi Arabian companies belonging to different sectors from 2006 to 2015. We found significant positive relationship between the CEs and FOCF. Further, we found that the disaggregation of earnings into accruals has greater predictive ability of Forecasting Future Cash Flows (FFCF), while disaggregated earnings into other accrual components has decreased the predictive power. The results of the study are in contrast to the assertion of Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) that earnings have the better ability than CFs in FFCF.
Long-term effects of risperidone versus haloperidol on verbal memory, attention, and symptomatology in schizophrenia

There is evidence in the literature that cognitive functions in schizophrenia (SC) may be improved by atypical neuroleptics (NLPs) in contrast to typical medication, but there is still controversy regarding this apparent superiority of atypical drugs. In this study, we assessed the differential effects of risperidone and haloperidol on verbal memory, attention, and psychiatric symptoms in SC. The performance of 28 SC participants, randomly assigned to risperidone (2–6 mg/day) or haloperidol (2–40 mg/day), was compared with that of healthy controls. The California Verbal Learning Test (CVLT), the d2 Cancellation Test, and the Positive and Negative Symptoms Scale were administered at baseline and 3, 6, and 12 months. Relative to controls, all SC participants showed markedly impaired verbal memory and processing speed at each assessment period. There was no differential effect between the two NLPs on CVLT and d2 performance. However, risperidone was more effective than haloperidol in reducing psychiatric symptoms. Improvement in symptom severity was not associated with improvement in neurocognitive performance on these specific tests. Neither conventional nor atypical neuroleptic medications improved neurocognitive functioning over a 12-month follow-up, suggesting that psychopathological improvement under risperidone is independent of cognitive function. (JINS, 2008, 14, 110–118.)
Cytogenetic characterization of peripheral nerve sheath tumours: a report of the CHAMP study group

The findings of characteristic, sometimes pathognomonic, chromosome aberrations in several types of soft tissue tumours have not only added to our understanding of the mechanisms behind the genesis of these tumours, but have also revealed the importance of cytogenetic analysis as a diagnostic tool. For many soft tissue tumours, including peripheral nerve sheath tumours, the number of analysed cases is, however, still very low, precluding evaluations of the clinical or biological significance of different chromosomal patterns. As part of an ongoing project aiming at identifying clinical–histopathological–cytogenetic correlations among soft tissue tumours, a series of 46 benign, the vast majority of which were located in the extremities, and 20 malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumours (BPNSTs and MPNSTs, respectively) that had been successfully analysed by chromosome banding techniques were evaluated with regard to clinical, morphological, and cytogenetic features. Clonal chromosome aberrations were found in 20 BPNSTs, with abnormal karyotypes being significantly more frequent among Schwannomas than among neurofibromas. Recurrent aberrations, all of which were confined to the Schwannoma subtypes, included loss of 22q material, loss of a sex chromosome, and trisomy 7. The results show that the cytogenetic features of Schwannomas are not dependent on the site of origin. The MPNSTs, all of which had clonal chromosome aberrations, displayed complex karyotypes with numerous structural and numerical changes, except in two cases showing +7 and −22, respectively, as the sole changes. None of the recurrent imbalances was restricted to either NF1‐associated or sporadic MPNST, nor was any of the imbalances significantly associated with clinical outcome. The presence of a triploid or tetraploid clone was, however, associated with grade 3 tumours and a poor prognosis. The cytogenetic findings in peripheral nerve sheath tumours show that the karyotype is a good discriminator between BPNSTs and MPNSTs, and that the pattern of aberrations among the latter may add prognostic information. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
5′‐N‐ethylcarboxamidoadenosine is not a paralog‐specific Hsp90 inhibitor

The molecular chaperone Hsp90 facilitates the folding and modulates activation of diverse substrate proteins. Unlike other heat shock proteins such as Hsp60 and Hsp70, Hsp90 plays critical regulatory roles by maintaining active states of kinases, many of which are overactive in cancer cells. Four Hsp90 paralogs are expressed in eukaryotic cells: Hsp90α/β (in the cytosol), Grp94 (in the endoplasmic reticulum), Trap1 (in mitochondria). Although numerous Hsp90 inhibitors are being tested in cancer clinical trials, little is known about why different Hsp90 inhibitors show specificity among Hsp90 paralogs. The paralog specificity of Hsp90 inhibitors is likely fundamental to inhibitor efficacy and side effects. In hopes of gaining insight into this issue we examined NECA (5′‐N‐ethylcarboxamidoadenosine), which has been claimed to be an example of a highly specific ligand that binds to one paralog, Grp94, but not cytosolic Hsp90. To our surprise we find that NECA inhibits many different Hsp90 proteins (Grp94, Hsp90α, Trap1, yeast Hsp82, bacterial HtpG). NMR experiments demonstrate that NECA can bind to the N‐terminal domains of Grp94 and Hsp82. We use ATPase competition experiments to quantify the inhibitory power of NECA for different Hsp90 proteins. This scale: Hsp82 > Hsp90α > HtpG ≈ Grp94 > Trap1, ranks Grp94 as less sensitive to NECA inhibition. Because NECA is primarily used as an adenosine receptor agonist, our results also suggest that cell biological experiments utilizing NECA may have confounding effects from cytosolic Hsp90 inhibition.
Molecular characterization of two proteins involved in the excision of the conjugative transposon Tn1545: homologies with other site‐specific recombinases.

Excision is probably the initial and rate‐limiting step of the movements of conjugative transposons of Gram‐positive bacteria such as Tn916 and Tn1545. We have shown, by molecular cloning and DNA sequencing, that a 2058 bp Sau3A right‐junction fragment of transposon Tn1545 specifies two gene products that are involved in the excision of the element. The DNA sequence of these genes, designated orf1 and orf2, has been determined and the corresponding proteins, ORF1 and ORF2, have been identified in a bacterial cell‐free coupled transcription‐translation system. These proteins are freely diffusible since they are able to trans‐complement in vivo a deletion derivative of Tn1545 defective for excision. Using an in vivo complementation assay, we have demonstrated that ORF2 alone is able to catalyse excision and that ORF1 strongly stimulates the activity of ORF2. We also found that ORF1 and ORF2 display local homology with, respectively, proteins Xis and Int from lamboid phages, which suggests that these excision systems have a common origin. Based on the functional properties of the integrase of bacteriophage lambda, on the analysis of the nucleotide sequence of the junction fragments and of the target before insertion and after excision, a model is proposed for ORF2‐catalysed excision of Tn1545 and related conjugative transposons.
Wealth and the democratization of Global Economic Governance

This chapter shows that the relationship between countries' wealth and global advocacy is best characterized as a curvilinear u-shaped slope. What is the relation between countries' wealth and global advocacy? This question is central to both political science scholars interested in uncovering the conditions that promote the proliferation of global advocacy, and normative scholars advancing the debate on the merits of different strategies of democratization of global governance. Moreover, the judicial system of the World Trade Organization is one of the cornerstones in global economic politics. The chapter proposes an alternative view about the relationship between countries' wealth and their representation within global interest communities. In exploring the dynamics of evolution of interest group communities at the domestic level, scholars have pointed out how their density and diversity are crucially affected by the nature of state economies.
In vitro and in vivo cholera toxin production by classical and El Tor isolates of Vibrio cholerae

A comparative study was carried out on the in vitro production of cholera toxin by 19 Vibrio cholerae El Tor isolates from patients with cholera in South Africa, one El Tor isolate from a patient in Malawi (a country approximately 1000 km north-northeast of South Africa), 6 El Tor and 12 classical type isolates from patients in Bangladesh, and 5 culture collection classical strains. Identical phage types and indistinguishable toxigenicities among the South African and Malawi V. cholerae, representing isolations obtained over a 10-year period, indicated that essentially a single strain was involved in the cholera of these regions. Similarly, phage typing and toxin profiles indicated that the 12 classical and 6 El Tor V. cholerae cultures in Bangladesh, all isolated in November 1983, represented just two strains. As assessed by titrations in Y-1 mouse adrenal and Chinese hamster ovary cell lines, the general order of toxigenicities was Bangladesh and culture collection classical greater than Bangladesh El Tor greater than southern African El Tor. The African isolates consistently gave rise to very low titers. Their relative reluctance to produce the toxin in vitro compared with the culture collection classical strains, particularly strain 569B, was confirmed by rocket electrophoresis. In somewhat of a contrast, maximum in vivo titers in rice water stools from cholera patients in South Africa and from both classical and El Tor type cholera patients in Bangladesh were essentially equal. It is postulated that under the continuous culture conditions that occur in vivo, cholera toxin concentrations can accumulate to a maximum level, depending on the rate of purging by the diarrheal fluid rather than the toxigenicity of the infecting stain. The relevance of these findings to the relative severities of classical and El Tor types of cholera is discussed.
Audit Firm Reputational Consequences of Alleged Non-Accounting Misconduct by Clients: How Bargaining Power Temporarily Shifts Around Securities Litigation

This study examines how auditor-client bargaining power changes when misconduct unrelated to accounting, which we proxy for using non-accounting securities fraud lawsuits, is revealed at another client of the auditor. This type of misconduct can cause perceived reputational damage for the auditor that temporarily increases client bargaining power. In the year after suit filing, fees are lower for clients in the same city-industry office as the sued client, but are unchanged for clients of other auditors in the same city-industry, suggesting the effect is not due to economic distress. This effect is stronger (1) when suits are severe, likely because the negative information is more salient, and (2) when client bargaining power is stronger. Overall, these results provide evidence that reputation is important for U.S. audit firms. Further, the results also support the notion that reputation is susceptible to temporary damage from events beyond auditors' control. JEL Classifications: K22; M42; M49.
Association between morningness–eveningness and mental and physical health in adolescents

Individuals differ in their biological rhythms and their preference for morning or evening hours. Morning types prefer morning hours for intellectual and physical activities while evening types feel and perform best at late afternoon or in the evening. This not only is a simple dichotomous classification but also can be viewed as a continuum. Individual differences in morningness–eveningness are an interesting facet of personality, but little is known about the relationship between psychological factors or health-related variables and morningness–eveningness in adolescents. In Study I, there were positive correlations between morningness and positive attitude towards life and a negative association between morningness and depression. In Study II, there were significant positive relationships between morningness and physical health, mental health, self-esteem, familial relationship, and school functioning. These results indicate that eveningness might be an unspecific risk factor for mental and physical health.
Free energy pathways of a multistable liquid crystal device.

The planar bistable device [Tsakonas et al., Appl. Phys. Lett. , 2007, 90, 111913] is known to have two distinct classes of stable equilibria: the diagonal and rotated solutions. We model this device within the two-dimensional Landau-de Gennes theory, with a surface potential and without any external fields. We systematically compute a special class of transition pathways, referred to as minimum energy pathways, between the stable equilibria that provide new information about how the equilibria are connected in the Landau-de Gennes free energy landscape. These transition pathways exhibit an intermediate transition state, which is a saddle point of the Landau-de Gennes free energy. We numerically compute the structural details of the transition states, the optimal transition pathways and the free energy barriers between the equilibria, as a function of the surface anchoring strength. For strong anchoring, the transition pathways are mediated by defects whereas we get defect-free transition pathways for moderate and weak anchoring. In the weak anchoring limit, we recover a cusp catastrophe situation for which the rotated state acts as a transition state connecting two different diagonal states.
The impact of M&A on bank’s financial performance: Evidence from emerging economy

The proliferation of bank M&A has been a global phenomenon. In many emerging economies, bank M&A has often been driven by policies for restructuring the banking industry in the hope of improving stability in the financial system. The Pakistan M&A market is relatively new and is characterized by several unique features. In this regards, our study aim is to examine the impact of pre and post M&A on the bank’s financial performance in Pakistan during the period (2004-2015). Our results reveal that liquidity, profitability and investment ratios of the banks are positively and significantly increased the performance after M&A. Nevertheless, the solvency ratios indicate negative effects which are mainly based on the fact that after undergoing M&A the acquiring bank has to deal with the greater amount of debt burden as compared to pre-M&A. In light of these results, this study suggests implications for both theory and practice and also recommends ideas for future research.
Polymorphic hydroxylation of S-mephenytoin and omeprazole metabolism in Caucasian and Chinese subjects.

Twelve Caucasian healthy men and women, of whom six were poor metabolizers (PMs) and six were extensive metabolizers (EMs) of S-mephenytoin, together with 13 Chinese healthy men and women (five PMs and eight EMs), received a single oral 20 mg dose of omeprazole. Plasma levels of omeprazole and its two main metabolites, omeprazole sulphone and hydroxyomeprazole, were determined by HPLC. The mean (+/- SD) area under the plasma concentration-time curve (AUC) for omeprazole was 11.1 +/- 2.6 and 0.9 +/- 0.4 microM h in the Caucasian PMs and EMs, respectively. Corresponding values for elimination half-life were 2.3 +/- 0.4 and 0.7 +/- 0.4 h. In the Chinese PMs and EMs the AUC of omeprazole as 13.3 +/- 5.6 and 2.6 +/- 1.8 microM h. The AUCs of omeprazole were significantly higher in the Chinese EMs than in the Caucasian EMs possibly due to the higher proportion of heterozygotes in the former than in the latter group. The elimination half-life in the Chinese PMs and EMs was 2.4 +/- 0.2 and 0.8 +/- 0.2 h--similar to the observations in the Caucasian subjects. The maximum plasma concentration of hydroxyomeprazole was five-fold and four-fold higher in EMs compared to PMs among Caucasians and Chinese, respectively. The elimination half-life of the hydroxy metabolite was also longer in PMs than in EMs in both populations. The ratio between AUC for omeprazole and AUC for hydroxyomeprazole was 11.9 +/- 2.1 and 0.6 +/- 0.1 in Caucasian PMs and EMs, respectively. Corresponding values in the Chinese were 13.1 +/- 2.9 and 1.6 +/- 0.5. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)