Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Moment-Angle Relations in the Initial Time of Contraction

Standard moment-angle relations are typically obtained for values at maximum of contraction. Muscle properties for contraction times, similar to the short times of powerful athletic activities, may be more important than muscle properties that are obtained at maximum (TMAX) of contraction. The research question was whether moment-angle relations obtained during the initial time course of contraction are linearly scaled reflections of moment-angle relations obtained at maximum of contraction. The isometric moment of the knee extensor and the electromyographic activity (EMG) of the knee extensor and flexor muscles were measured at 9 knee angles in 22 elite female track and field jumpers. Absolute moments (Nm), relative moments (%TMAX) and EMG integrals were determined at 30 ms, 50 ms, 150 ms and 200 ms from the onset of contraction and at maximum. For moment-angle relations obtained during the initial time course of contraction, there was a shift of the optimum knee angle to a more extended knee. During the initial time course of the contraction, %TMAX moment was greater near full knee extension. The EMG activity was the same across knee angles. The results may have important practical implications for muscular force evaluation for activities where maximum force production is coupled to a short activation time.
Testing the Determinants of Computerized Reservation System Users’ Intention to Use Via a Structural Equation Model

This study examines the relationship between users’ personal perceptions and beliefs of the proposed system and their normal day-to-day usage in the context of the travel industry’s computerized reservation systems (CRSs). Using a technology acceptance model as a theoretical background, the influences of three dimensions of fit (i.e., task fit, career fit, and organization fit) on CRS users’ daily routine usage are further explored. Results suggested that proposed users’ usage intentions are motivated by their various evaluations of the given system. Diverse system features and functions should thus be experienced and emphasized in advance according to each organization’s unique business situation. Such experience with the proposed CRS enables users to develop more favorable perceptions and beliefs of the given system, leading consequently to a higher level of day-to-day usage.
‘Selective Flexicurity’ in Segmented Labour Markets: The Case of Italian ‘Mid-Siders’

Abstract The article is focused on the analysis of flexicurity arrangements in the Italian case with a twofold aim. The first aim is substantive: analysing and evaluating recent labour market reforms in Italy with particular reference to the possible emergence of a new flexicurity model. The second goal is to contribute to the debate on labour market development and flexicurity by enriching and refining the available analytical tools. More specifically, we argue that the traditional conceptual ‘lenses’ focusing on the ‘insiders’/‘outsiders’ divide are inadequate to grasp the ongoing changes in the Italian labour market. This leads us to identify a third category of workers, the ‘mid-siders’, who are increasingly relevant in the Italian case and may prove to be relevant in other labour markets too. Moreover, we introduce the concept of ‘selective flexicurity’, referring to the fact that in the Italian case flexibility and security measures have been applied differently across the various categories of workers.
Nanomechanics of the subtectorial space caused by electromechanics of cochlear outer hair cells

The stereocilia of the cochlear inner hair cells (IHCs) transduce vibrations into the sensory receptor current. Until now, mechanisms for deflecting these stereocilia have not been identified experimentally. Here, we identify a mechanism by using the electromechanical properties of the soma of the outer hair cell to produce an intracochlear, mechanical force stimulus. It is known that the soma of this cell generates mechanical force in response to a change of its transmembrane potential. In the present experiments, the force was induced by intracochlear electrical stimulation at frequencies that covered the entire functionally relevant range of 50 kHz. Vibration responses were measured in the transverse direction with a laser Doppler vibrometer. For frequencies up to ≈3 kHz in the first three turns of the guinea-pig cochlea, the apical surface of the IHC and the opposing surface of the tectorial membrane were found to vibrate with similar amplitudes but opposite phases. At high frequencies, there was little relative motion between these surfaces in the transverse direction. The counterphasic motion up to ≈3 kHz results in a pulsatile motion of the fluid surrounding the stereocilia of the IHCs. Based on physical principles of fluid flow between narrowly spaced elastic plates, we show that radial fluid motion is amplified relative to transverse membrane motion and that the radial motion is capable of bending the stereocilia. In conclusion, for frequencies up to at least 3 kHz, there appears to be direct fluid coupling between outer hair cells and IHCs.
Experience, Tenure, and the Perceptions of Employers

This paper examines how group-based assessments concerning employee ability impact employee compensation. The employer learns about worker ability through Bayesian updating, creating an additional channel for wage growth that is not available to those workers with only general labor market experience. Consistent with the model’s predictions, results from National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY) indicate that black workers fare much better relative to white workers in returns to tenure than in returns to experience. Finally, parameter estimates in the structural model suggest that employers initially undervalue black males but that their wages rise with learning by employers over time.
Preemption and Rent Equalization in the Adoption of New Technology

We study the adoption of a new technology to illustrate the effects of preemption in games of timing. We show that the threat of preemption equalizes rents in a duopoly, but that this result does not extend to the general oligopoly game. If the gain to preemption is sufficiently small, then the optimal symmetric outcome, which involves "late" adoption, is an equilibrium. This contrasts with Reinganum's result that in precommitment equilibria there must be "diffusion". We develop a new and richer formalism for modeling games of timing, which permits a continuous-time representation of the limit of discrete-time mixed-strategy equilibria.
Aldose reductase and protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B inhibitory active compounds from Syzygium cumini seeds

Abstract Context: Syzygium cumini (L.) Skeels (Myrtaceae), commonly known as jamun, is an Indian plant, traditionally well known for its medicinal properties including antidiabetic activity. Objective: To isolate the antidiabetic compounds from Syzygium cumini seeds and evaluate their activity using aldose reductase (AR) and protein-tyrosine phosphatase 1B (PTP1B) inhibition assays. Materials and methods: The dried seeds were extracted with methanol and partitioned with ethyl acetate, butanol, and water. The extracts were screened for antidiabetic activity at a concentration of 100 µg/mL using in vitro AR and PTP 1B inhibition assays. Results and discussion: The highly enriched fractions obtained from broad ethyl acetate fraction yielded maslinic acid (1), 5-(hydroxymethyl) furfural (2), gallic acid (3), valoneic acid dilactone (4), rubuphenol (5), and ellagic acid (6). Structures were elucidated by 1H-NMR and 13C-NMR. The initial ethyl acetate fraction showed AR inhibitory activity with the IC50 value of 2.50 μg/mL and PTP1B enzyme inhibition with the IC50 value of 26.36 μg/mL. Compounds 3, 4, 5, and 6 were found to inhibit AR with IC50 values of 0.77, 0.075, 0.165, and 0.12 μg/mL while the compounds 4, 5, and 6 inhibited PTP1B with IC50 values of 9.37, 28.14, and 25.96 μg/mL, respectively. Conclusion: The results of this study demonstrate that the isolated constituents show promising in vitro antidiabetic activity and, therefore, can be candidates for in vivo biological screening using relevant models to ascertain their antidiabetic activity.
FURTHER EVIDENCE OF LONG MEMORY IN THE SOUTH AFRICAN STOCK MARKET

This paper expands and augments the results of the paper by Jefferis and Thupayagale) and tests the efficiency of the South African stock market with Wavelet and Markov Switching Regime analyses of selected shares and the a ALSI 40 data. The Wavelet analysis indicated that most of the individual share prices and the share index time series are mean reverting over the long run and follow a long memory process, offering evidence against weak-form efficient market hypothesis (EMH). The Markov model modelled the financial and prevalent economic conditions accurately and established the presence of patterns in the historic time series, providing additional support against the weak-form EMH.
The Return to Capital in China

China's investment rate is one of the highest in the world, which naturally leads one to suspect that the return to capital in China must be quite low. Using the data from China's national accounts, we estimate the rate of return to capital in China. We find that the aggregate rate of return to capital averaged 25% during 1978-1993, fell during 1993-1998, and has become flat at roughly 20% since 1998. This evidence suggests that the aggregate return to capital in China does not appear to be significantly lower than the return to capital in the rest of the world. We also find that the standard deviation of the rate of return to capital across Chinese provinces has fallen since 1978.
Squamous cell carcinoma antigen in human liver carcinogenesis

Background: Squamous cell carcinoma antigen (SCCA) is a serine protease inhibitor that can be overexpressed in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) at both molecular and protein level, but no data are available on its expression in pre-malignant stages. Aim: To assess SCCA expression by immunohistochemistry in HCC and its nodular precursors in cirrhotic livers. Methods: 55 nodules from 42 explanted livers were evaluated: 7 large regenerative nodules (LRNs), 7 low-grade dysplastic nodules (LG-DNs), 10 high-grade DNs (HG-DNs), and 31 HCC. SCCA expression was semiquantitatively scored on a four-tiered scale. Results: SCCA hepatocyte immunostaining was always restricted to the cytoplasm, mainly exhibiting a granular pattern. Stain intensity varied, ranging from weak to very strong. Within the nodules, positive cells were unevenly distributed, either scattered or in irregular clusters. The prevalence of SCCA expression was 29% in LRNs, 100% in DNs and 93% in HCC. A significant difference emerged in both prevalence and score for LRNs versus LG-DNs (p<0.039), HG-DNs (p = 0.001), and HCC (p = 0.000). A barely significant difference (p = 0.49) was observed between LG-DNs and HG-DNs, while no difference in SCCA expression was detected between HG-DNs and HCC. Cirrhotic tissue adjacent to the nodules was positive in 96% of cases, with a significant difference in the score (p = 0.000) between hepatocytes adjacent to HCC and those surrounding LRNs. Discussion: This study provides the first evidence that aberrant SCCA expression is an early event in liver cell carcinomatous transformation.
Long-Term Effect of Folic Acid Therapy in Heart Transplant Recipients: Follow-Up Analysis of a Randomized Study

Background. Folic acid therapy reduces homocysteine plasma levels, which seem to influence occurrence of cardiac allograft vasculopathy, but its effect on medium- or long-term prognosis after heart transplantation is unknown. Methods. We analyzed 7-year outcome of 51 recipients randomized to receive 15 mg/day of methyltertrahydrofolate for 1 year after heart transplantation or standard therapy alone (originally, for intravascular ultrasound study of short-term cardiac allograft vasculopathy progression); recipients were observed for a further 5 to 6 years. Results. Overall, 13 deaths occurred (six oncologic, five cardiovascular, two infective). Estimated 7-year survival was better in recipients randomized to folate (88%±6% vs. 61%±9%, P=0.04). After adjusting for age, pretransplant coronary artery disease, and hyperhomocysteinemia, posttransplant folic acid therapy was associated with lower mortality (relative risk [RR] 0.53, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.25–0.97; P=0.036), apparently driven by reductions in both cancer-related and cardiovascular causes. Reduced mortality was marked in a high-risk subgroup comprising older recipients and patients transplanted because of coronary artery disease (RR 0.43, 95% CI 0.17–0.85) but not in the lower-risk subgroup (RR 1.11, 95% CI 0.22–5.61). Conclusions. Although further studies are needed, it seems reasonable to suggest folate therapy to heart transplant recipients. It is possible that properties other than homocysteine reduction may provide antitumoral benefits.
An Anatomic Study of the Percutaneous Endoscopically Assisted Calcaneal Osteotomy Technique to Correct Hindfoot Malalignment

Background: Open calcaneal osteotomy using traditional methods is associated with complications such as sural nerve injury and potential wound healing problems. We hypothesized that by using novel minimally invasive techniques, these potential risks could be mitigated. This anatomic cadaveric study serves to assess the safety of percutaneous endoscopically assisted calcaneal osteotomy (PECO) compared to a traditional open osteotomy technique. Methods: Anatomic safety of PECO was assessed using 8 fresh-frozen cadaver below-knee specimens. Lateral calcaneal nerve (LCN) damage was primarily noted and then secondly compared to a potential open surgical incision approach. Results: Only 1 of 11 LCN branches (n = 8 limbs) was transected using PECO, compared to up to 8 of 10 LCN branches (n = 6 limbs) that potentially would have been injured during open surgery. Conclusions: Percutaneous endoscopically assisted calcaneal osteotomy is a minimally invasive technique that had fewer nerve injuries in this cadaveric model than traditional open surgery. Clinical Relevance: Percutaneous endoscopically assisted calcaneal osteotomy due to its less invasive nature may result in fewer neurovascular injuries relative to an open procedure.
Low‐temperature (9°C) AMD treatment in a sulfidogenic bioreactor dominated by a mesophilic Desulfomicrobium species

The possibilities for the treatment of low‐temperature mine waste waters have not been widely studied. The amenability of low‐temperature sulfate reduction for mine waste water treatment at 9°C was studied in a bench‐scale fluidized‐bed bioreactor (FBR). Formate was used as the electron and carbon source. The first influent for the FBR was acidic, synthetic waste water containing iron, nutrients, and sulfate, followed by diluted barren bioleaching solution (DBBS). The average sulfate reduction rates were 8 mmol L−1 day−1 and 6 mmol L−1 day−1 with synthetic waste water and DBBS, respectively. The corresponding specific activities were 2.4 and 1.6 mmol SO 42− g VSS−1 day−1, respectively. The composition of the microbial community and the active species of the FBR was analyzed by extracting the DNA and RNA, followed by PCR‐DGGE with the universal bacterial 16S rRNA gene primers and dsrB‐primers specific for sulfate‐reducing bacteria. The FBR microbial community was simple and stable and the dominant and active species belonged to the genus Desulfomicrobium. In summary, long‐term operation of a low‐temperature bioreactor resulted in enrichment of formate‐utilizing, psychrotolerant mesophilic sulfate reducing bacteria. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2009; 104: 740–751 © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
μ-Opioid Receptor Trafficking on Inhibitory Synapses in the Rat Brainstem

Whole-cell recordings were made from identified gastric-projecting rat dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus (DMV) neurons. The amplitude of evoked IPSCs (eIPSCs) was unaffected by perfusion with met-enkephalin (ME) or by μ-, δ-, or κ-opioid receptor selective agonists, namely d-Ala2-N-Me-Phe4-Glycol5-enkephalin (DAMGO), cyclic [d-Pen2-d-Pen5]-enkephalin, or trans-3,4-dichloro-N-methyl-N-[2-(1-pyrolytinil)-cyclohexyl]-benzeneacetamide methane sulfonate (U50,488), respectively. Brief incubation with the adenylate cyclase activator forskolin or the nonhydrolysable cAMP analog 8-bromo-cAMP, thyrotropin releasing hormone, or cholecystokinin revealed the ability of ME and DAMGO to inhibit IPSC amplitude; this inhibition was prevented by pretreatment with the μ-opioid receptor (MOR1) selective antagonist d-Phe-Cys-Tyr-d-Trp-Orn-Thr-Pen-Thr-NH2. Conversely, incubation with the adenylate cyclase inhibitor dideoxyadenosine, with the protein kinase A (PKA) inhibitor N-[2-(p-Bromocinnamyl-amino)ethyl]-5-isoquinolinesulfonamide dihydrochloride (H89), or with the Golgi-disturbing agent brefeldin A, blocked the ability of forskolin to facilitate the inhibitory actions of ME. Immunocytochemical experiments revealed that under control conditions, MOR1 immunoreactivity (MOR1-IR) was colocalized with glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD)-IR in profiles apposing DMV neurons only after stimulation of the cAMP-PKA pathway. Pretreatment with H89 or brefeldin A or incubation at 4°C prevented the forskolin-mediated insertion of MOR1 on GAD-IR-positive profiles. These results suggest that the cAMP-PKA pathway regulates trafficking of μ-opioid receptors into the cell surface of GABAergic nerve terminals. By consequence, the inhibitory actions of opioid peptides in the dorsal vagal complex may depend on the state of activation of brainstem vagal circuits.
The outputs of retail activities: French evidence

A new economic framework is applied to the empirical analysis of retail margins. This framework is founded on the definition of profits and incorporates recent theoretical developments formalizing the role of distribution services as outputs of retail activities. The main results are: the measures of outputs of retail activities identified in the data perform as important and robust determinants of retail margins; variables that purport to capture the oligopolistic features of market structure have little association with the variation in retail margins; hypotheses of price setting and quantity setting under the assumptions of profit maximization and monopolistic competition are categorically rejected by the data. The data base is information on 50 retail sectors from the 1982 survey of firms in commerce and the 1983 survey of firms in services reported by INSEE.
Why IRR is Not the Rate of Return for Your Investment: Introducing AIRR to the Real Estate Community

The internal rate of return (IRR) is used extensively in the real estate sector, notwithstanding certain nagging deficiencies taught in most business school texts. One of those deficiencies is that the IRR may have multiple solutions which cannot be reconciled. Unbeknownst to most practitioners, this “nagging deficiency” has been refuted in the last decade, seemingly great news for IRR advocates. However, the elimination of this deficiency exposes a more fundamental criticism, one which is addressed in this article; and it is that the IRR calculation itself assumes interim investment values that are mechanically generated by the IRR equation itself and will almost surely differ from the true interim values of the project under consideration. To the extent that these values differ, the IRR result will not be an accurate rate of return. Furthermore, from an ex-post, i.e., performance reporting standpoint, such values implied by the IRR will almost certainly contradict any estimated project values being used for time-weighted rate of return (TWR) purposes. A new metric called AIRR (Average IRR) overcomes these criticisms and produces a correct money-weighted rate of return (MWR) for a project. Furthermore, AIRR has none of the other problems that the IRR has: e.g. it always exists and is unique, and it appropriately accounts for the amounts actually invested, from time to time, over the course of the investment.
De novo synthesis of PERIOD initiates circadian oscillation in cultured mouse suprachiasmatic nucleus after prolonged inhibition of protein synthesis by cycloheximide

The circadian oscillation is known to stop with prolonged inhibition of protein synthesis and to restart from a particular phase after the removal of inhibition. In order to know the underlying molecular mechanisms, the mouse suprachiasmatic nucleus was cultured and treated with a protein synthesis inhibitor, cycloheximide (CHX), for various durations. Circadian rhythms in Bmal1 expression and PER2 protein were monitored by means of bioluminescence reporters. Bmal1‐LUC and PER2::LUC bioluminescence decreased to basal levels after CHX application. CHX washout restarted the circadian rhythms from a fixed phase when CHX treatment exceeded 18 h. mRNA of Per1, Per2 and Rev‐erbα increased and reached high plateau levels in 18 h after CHX application, which continued for 48 h; whereas Bmal1 mRNA increased for the first 18 h but then decreased to the basal level. Immunoblot analysis showed a decreased PER2::LUC level at 24 h after CHX application, indicating that the transcription of Pers and Rev‐erbα was disinhibited by CHX. CHX washout increased PER2::LUC bioluminescence and protein level in a few hours. High Per mRNA levels induced the rapid increases of their proteins, which might trigger the restarting of circadian oscillation. These findings indicate that the circadian oscillation is stopped by disinhibition of Per1 and Per2 transcriptions, and restarted upon the recovery of the PER mediated auto‐feedback loop. De novo synthesis of PER protein is a key factor to initiate the circadian oscillation after prolonged inhibition of protein synthesis.
Impact of iron deficiency anaemia on T lymphocytes & their subsets in children.

BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVES While there is evidence of an altered immune profile in iron deficiency, the precise immunoregulatory role of iron is not known. Information particular in children who are vulnerable to iron deficiency and infection, is lacking. We undertook this study with the aim of documenting the changes in T cell subsets in children in the age group of 1 to 5 yr with iron deficiency. METHODS The levels of T lymphocytes, their CD4+ and CD8+ subsets and the CD4 : CD8 ratio were evaluated in 40 iron deficient and 30 healthy children. The impact of oral iron supplementation for three months on the same parameters was also noted in 30 children. RESULTS Significantly lower levels of T lymphocytes as well as CD4+ cells was observed in the iron deficient children (P<0.01 and 0.002 respectively). The CD4 : CD8 ratio was also significantly lower in this group (P<0.05). Iron supplementation improved the CD4 counts significantly. INTERPRETATION & CONCLUSION Our study demonstrated quantitatively altered T cell subsets in iron deficiency in children, and a relationship between the severity of haematological and immunological compromise. The clinical and epidemiological implications of this relationship have topical relevance since ID is the most common micronutrient deficiency worldwide.