Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Overall and cause‐specific mortality in Crohn's disease: A meta‐analysis of population‐based studies

Background: An overview of mortality risk among unselected patients with Crohn's disease (CD) is lacking. We therefore performed a systematic review and meta‐analysis of population‐based studies on overall and cause‐specific mortality in CD. Methods: MEDLINE (January 1965 to February 2008), abstracts from international conferences and reference lists of selected articles were searched systematically. All articles fulfilling the predefined inclusion criteria were scrutinized for data on population size, time of follow‐up, gender, age, and observed to expected deaths. STATA meta‐analysis software was used to calculate overall and cause‐specific pooled standardized mortality ratios (SMR, observed/expected). Results: Nine studies were included with overall SMRs ranging from 0.72–3.2, resulting in a significantly increased pooled SMR of 1.39 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.30–1.49). Regarding cause‐specific mortality, a significantly increased risk of death from cancer (SMR 1.50, 95% CI: 1.18–1.92), in particular of pulmonary cancer (SMR 2.72, 95% CI: 1.35–5.45), as well as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (SMR 2.55, 95% CI: 1.19–5.47), gastrointestinal diseases (SMR 6.76, 95% CI: 4.37–10.45), and genitourinary diseases (SMR 3.28, 95% CI: 1.69–6.35) was observed. Conclusions: Among unselected patients with CD, overall mortality was slightly but significantly higher than in the general population—primarily explained by deaths from gastrointestinal, respiratory, and genitourinary diseases. Notably, mortality from colorectal cancer was not increased. Inflamm Bowel Dis 2009
The role of leadership in building and managing corporate reputation of 4 and 5 star hotels

This paper deals with the building and managing of corporate reputation of 4 and 5 star hotels in Athens-Attica, as well as with the role of leadership in corporate reputation. A primary research in hotel firms in Athens-Attica helped identify i) to which extent a charismatic leadership and the skills of a leader positively affect the reputation of hotels, and ii) to which extent a charismatic leadership is related to the leader's skills. The statistical analysis of the research results revealed on the one hand a number of positive correlations between the factors and variables examined and on the other hand some not particularly strong correlations between their sub-factors, thus allowing both reaching conclusions and making suggestions for further research.
Physical Activity and Sports Involvement in 8‐ and 13‐Year‐Old Children in Sweden

ABSTRACT. The physical activity of randomly selected 8‐ and 13‐year‐old children, living in four different regions of Sweden, was investigated by means of a questionnaire. The younger children of each sex were found to be physically more active than the older ones, and within each age group the boys were physically more active than the girls. The results points to higher sports involvement today compared with 10–15 years ago, especially among younger children. It was also shown that regular physical training constituted a smaller proportion of the total physical activity among the younger children than among the older ones. At both ages and in both sexes the rate of regular physical training was lower in municipalities of less than 1000 inhabitants, and in the 8‐year‐old children it was also lower in municipalities of less than 5 000 inhabitants. Among the girls regular physical training was more common in those whose fathers had a high educational level compared with the girls who had fathers of a lower educational level.
Regulation of the Escherichia coli K5 capsule gene cluster by transcription antitermination

The expression of the Escherichia coli K5 (group II) capsular polysaccharide requires the rfaH gene. By reverse transcriptase‐polymerase chain reaction (RT‐PCR) it was possible to demonstrate that RfaH increases the transcription of region 2 genes by readthrough transcription from the region 3 promoter. A mutation in the rfaH gene reduced this readthrough transcription from the region 3 promoter by 10‐fold as measured by quantitative RT‐PCR. The region 3 promoter was mapped to 741 bp 5′ of the initiation codon of the kpsM gene. Deletion and insertion mutagenesis of the JUMPstart sequence, which is 28 bp 5′ of kpsM and is conserved upstream of RfaH‐regulated operons and other polysaccharide biosynthesis genes, confirmed that this sequence was required for expression of the K5 antigen and for the antitermination activity of RfaH. The JUMPstart sequence could cause RfaH‐dependent antitermination at other Rho‐dependent terminators, suggesting that the JUMPstart sequence may function in a manner analogous to a λnut site. On the basis of these results we propose a model by which RfaH regulates expression of E. coli group II capsule gene clusters by allowing readthrough transcription to proceed from region 3 into region 2 and that sequences within the JUMPstart sequence are essential for this process.
Least-Squares Channel Estimation for Mobile OFDM Communication on Time-Varying Frequency-Selective Fading Channels

A least-squares (LS) channel estimation (CE) technique for mobile orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) communications over a rapidly time-varying frequency-selective fading channel is investigated in this paper. The proposed technique keeping the comb-type pilot arrangement can achieve a low error probability by accurately estimating channel impulse response (CIR) and effectively tracking rapid CIR time variations. The LS CE technique proposed here is conducted in the time domain (TD). Meanwhile, a generic estimator is serially performed block by block without assistance from a priori channel information and without increasing computational complexity. By taking advantage of linearly frequency-modulated (LFM) or pseudorandom signals transceived for jointly sounding pilot subchannels, the proposed LS CE can inherently perform pseudonoise (PN) matched filtering (MF) to suppress multipath interference (MPI) caused by frequency-selective fading and intercarrier interference (ICI) resulting from data subchannels. The optimality of the proposed technique is verified by taking Cramer-Rao lower bounds (CRLBs) into comparison both on noise- and interference-dominant signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) conditions. In addition, the dual optimality of the LFM and PN pilot symbols is verified for both TD and frequency-domain (FD) CEs. Furthermore, the proposed technique also exhibits good resistance against residual timing errors occurring with the discrete Fourier transform (DFT) demodulation. Extensive computer simulations in conjunction with statistical derivations show the superiority of the proposed technique.
Multiday Measurements of Pneumatic Controller Emissions Reveal the Frequency of Abnormal Emissions Behavior at Natural Gas Gathering Stations

Gas-driven pneumatic controllers (PCs) and actuators used in all natural gas sectors vent uncombusted natural gas to the atmosphere during operation and contribute approximately 20% of methane emissions from the natural gas supply chain. In this study, multiday measurements were utilized to better characterize PC emission rate profiles. Emissions from 72 PCs were successfully measured at 16 gathering compressor stations for an average of 76 h each between June 2017 and May 2018. These measurements are the first known multiday recordings of emissions of PCs in situ at operating natural gas facilities. These measurements revealed previously unidentified emissions behaviors. A review by an expert panel identified 30 PCs (42% of measured devices) that exhibited abnormal emissions behavior, including 25 of 40 intermittent-vent PCs, 5 of 24 low-bleed PCs, and 0 of 8 high-bleed PCs measured. Abnormally operating PCs had emissions substantially higher than the emissions of those operating normally. For intermitte.
Regulation of Ubiquitination and Degradation of p53 in Unstressed Cells through C-terminal Phosphorylation*

Previously, we found that the protein kinase C (PKC) inhibitor H7 stimulates p53 to accumulate in a form incapable of inducing transcription from p53-dependent promoters. We concluded that H7 inhibits constitutive C-terminal phosphorylation of p53, which regulates its turnover in unstressed cells. We now show that p53 and its inhibitor MDM2 (HDM2 in human cells) are together in the nuclei of H7-treated cells and can be co-immunoprecipitated. Despite this association of p53 with the ubiquitin ligase MDM2, ubiquitinated p53 was not detected in H7-treated cells. Furthermore, co-treatment with H7 and the proteosome inhibitor LLnL prevented the accumulation of ubiquitinated p53 that was observed in cells treated solely with LLnL. In addition, treatment of cells with the PKC activator phorbol ester stimulated the ubiquitination of p53 and reduced its ability to accumulate after stress. H7 did not induce the phosphorylation of human p53 on Ser-15 (Ser-18 in mouse protein), a modification that occurs in response to DNA damage and leads to the release of MDM2 and to transactivation by p53. We conclude that phosphorylation of the C-terminal domain of p53 by PKC increases its ubiquitination and degradation in unstressed cells.
The 52-Week High and Momentum Investing: Implications for Asset Pricing Models

We propose and test a new 4-factor asset pricing model, modifying the method of estimating the momentum risk factor, based on the conclusions of George and Hwang (2004). We proceed to compare the performance of our model with those of Fama and French (1993, 1996) and Carhart (1997)'s. We find that the authors' 52-week high strategy achieves a positive, though statistically insignificant return in 1980-2014, with severely divergent performances in subperiods 1980-2000 (significantly positive) and 2001-2014 (significantly negative). Overall, our model for portfolios built on momentum outperforms the 3-factor model but falls short from Carhart (1997)'s. Subperiod analysis shows results in line with the complete sample for 1980-2000, while both momentum models' performance in subperiod 2001-2014 seems influenced by the unanticipated momentum crash of 2009. We conclude that a momentum risk factor should be included in a given asset pricing model, but evidence suggests it should be based on Jegadeesh and Titman (1993).
A rating scale for phobic disorders

ABSTRACT– – Scales were constructed for the rating of phobic disorders, taking into account both behaviour therapeutic and psycho‐dynamic aspects. The scales rate phobic behaviour with regard to anxiety (situational and anticipatory) and coping (avoidance and escape). The target phobia as well as seven common phobias are rated, the former being divided into: fairly easy, moderately difficult, and very difficult situations. The scales also include free anxiety (10 items), ego‐restriction (11 items), and social function (six items with regard to interpersonal relations, and one each for capacity to work and leisure activities), and finally, a global rating. The inter‐rater reliability was good (mostly around 0.90). Construct validity was supported by the result in effect studies of short‐term psychotherapy.
Prepositions, Case and Verbal Prefixes

This monograph is concerned with prepositional elements in Slavic languages, prepositions, verbal prefixes and functional elements of prepositional nature. It argues that verbal prefixes are incorporated prepositions projecting their argument structure in the complement of the verbal root and that their meaning is based on the two-argument meaning of prepositions, enriched with the CAUSE operator. The book investigates idiomaticity in the realm of prefixed verbs and proposes a novel analysis of non-compositional prefixed verbs based on the operation of predicate transfer. It also offers a uniform analysis of cases. Prepositional as well as non-prepositional cases are treated as a reflection of the agreement operation, whereat the type of prepositional case is determined by semantic properties of the decomposed preposition. Furthermore, it examines prepositions from a diachronic perspective and argues that they can be grammaticalised as future markers under certain circumstances.
A comparative study of nutrient digestibility, kinetics of digestion and passage and rumen fermentation pattern in goats and sheep offered medium quality forages at the maintenance level of feeding.

The in vivo digestibility and the rates of degradation and passage of alfalfa hay (AH) and vetch straw (VS) were compared in three Granadina goats and three Segureña wethers fed at approximately maintenance level, using a change over design. The nylon bag technique was used to estimate the fractional rate of degradation of the feeds in the rumen. The fractional outflow rate of hay and straw particles was determined with chromium as a marker. No significant differences in the digestibility coefficients of nutrients between animal species were found. Nitrogen retention expressed as coefficients of both nitrogen intake and digested nitrogen was lower (P < 0.01) in goats than in sheep when VS was offered. There was no significant difference between goats and sheep in the effective degradability (measured at outflow rates in the range of 0.027 to 0.032 h-1) of dry matter (DM) for either forage. However, the effective degradabilities of the neutral detergent fibre (NDF) and crude protein (CP) of VS were lower (P < 0.01 and P < 0.001, respectively), in goats than in sheep. The degradation rates of DM, NDF and CP were not significantly different (P > 0.05) between goats and sheep. Also, the fractional rate of passage of particles from the rumen was not different (P = 0.056) between species, although there was a tendency for an increased outflow rate in goats. In a second experiment the effects of animal species, type of diet and frequency of feeding on rumen fermentation pattern were studied following a factorial design. Four goats and four wethers were used. They were randomly allocated to three dietary treatments: AH, VS or a 50:50 mixture of AH and VS (AH/VS). Rations were offered in two or three meals daily and samples of rumen content were obtained at 09.00, 11.00, 13.00, 15.00, 17.00 and 19.00 h. No difference in rumen pH was found between goats and sheep. Total volatile fatty acids and ammonia concentrations were higher (P < 0.001) in sheep than in goats. The molar proportions of acetate and isovalerate were higher (P < 0.01 and P < 0.001, respectively) in goats than in sheep, whereas the opposite was true for the molar proportion of n-butyrate. Feeding frequency had a slight effect on the rumen parameters measured. It is concluded that only minor differences in the digestive capacity and rumen activity of sheep and goats can be expected when they are fed on medium quality forages.
Direct Identification of Vibrio vulnificus in Clinical Specimens by Nested PCR

ABSTRACT This study was performed to establish optimal nested PCR conditions and a high-yield DNA extraction method for the direct identification ofVibrio vulnificus in clinical specimens. We designed two sets of primers targeting the V. vulnificushemolysin/cytolysin gene. The target of the first primer set (P1-P2; sense, 5′-GAC-TAT-CGC-ATC-AAC-AAC-CG-3′, and antisense, 5′-AGG-TAG-CGA-GTA-TTA-CTG-CC-3′, respectively) is a 704-bp DNA fragment. The second set (P3-P4; sense, 5′-GCT-ATT-TCA-CCG-CCG-CTC-AC-3′, and antisense, 5′-CCG-CAG-AGC-CGT-AAA-CCG-AA-3′, respectively) amplifies an internal 222-bp DNA fragment. We developed a direct DNA extraction method that involved boiling the specimen pellet in a 1 mM EDTA–0.5% Triton X-100 solution. The new DNA extraction method was more sensitive and reproducible than other conventional methods. The DNA extraction method guaranteed sensitivity as well, even when V. vulnificus cells were mixed with other bacteria such asEscherichia coli or Staphylococcus aureus. The nested PCR method could detect as little as 1 fg of chromosomal DNA and single CFU of V. vulnificus. We applied the nested PCR protocol to a total of 39 serum specimens and bulla aspirates from septicemic patients. Seventeen (94.4%) of the 18V. vulnificus culture-positive specimens were positive by the nested PCR. Eight (42.1%) of the 19 culture-negative samples gave positive nested PCR results.
Kinetic changes associated with load carriage using two rucksack designs

This study assessed changes in kinetics from unloaded walking associated with load carriage using both a traditional and a new rucksack design that incorporates front balance pockets (AARN). Nine subjects walked at 3(±0.05) km.h-1 over a force plate unloaded and carrying 25.6 kg in each of the rucksacks. The order of trials was randomized and speed-controlled by use of photoelectric cells and a millisecond timer. Anteroposterior and vertical ground reaction forces were analyzed using repeated measures ANCOVA (speed covariate). There was a trend for the AARN pack to elicit a shorter support time than the traditional pack, 1.025±0.049 versus 1.037±0.06 s (p = 0.056), while the unloaded condition produced the shortest support time, 1.016±0.04 s. Both braking and propulsive forces for the rucksacks were significantly greater than for unloaded walking. While there was no significant difference between the packs for the braking force, the AARN pack produced a significantly lower (p < 0.05) propulsive force than the traditional rucksack, 0.79±0.2 versus 0.94±0.16 N.kg bodyweight-1. Both rucksacks produced significantly greater (p < 0.001) vertical force peaks than unloaded walking, the increases being proportional to the increase in system weight. These findings indicate that there may be some advantage in terms of propulsive force production for the front/back system.
Literature vs. Practice: Challenges for International Students in the U.S.

If you talk with international students about their experiences in U.S. universities, many of them will tell you that they feel there is a disconnect between what the literature suggests is “good practice” in accommodating international students and the reality of what is actually happening on U.S. campuses. Research suggests the importance of establishing relationships with international students so that other “good practices” may occur. After conducting an extensive review of the literature and current good practices, the authors concluded that United States (U.S.) institutions of higher education are not “practicing what they preach” when it comes to meeting the needs of international students. They are not using the research to drive practice in accommodating international students. This article reflects on the literature that describes what is considered good practice in U.S. international educational programs, and makes recommendations for improving those practices based on this review of the literature.
Reassortant rotaviruses containing structural proteins vp3 and vp7 from different parents induce antibodies protective against each parental serotype

Genetic studies of reassortant rotaviruses have demonstrated that gene segments 4 and 9 each segregate with the serotype-specific neutralization phenotype in vitro. Reassortant rotaviruses derived by coinfection of MA-104 cells with the simian strain SA11 and the antigenically distinct bovine strain NCDV were used to determine which viral genes coded for proteins which induced a protective immune response in vivo. In addition, reassortant rotaviruses containing only the gene segment 4 or 9 protein products (vp3 and vp7, respectively) from SA11 or NCDV were used to determine the serotypic specificities of both vp3 and vp7 in several mammalian rotavirus strains. vp3 and vp7 from the murine strain Eb were shown to be indistinguishable from the corresponding proteins from strain SA11. Adult mice orally inoculated with strain Eb developed neutralizing antibodies to both vp3 and vp7. The two naturally occurring bovine rotavirus strains NCDV and UK were shown to contain antigenically similar vp7 but distinct vp3 proteins. Mouse dams orally immunized with a reassortant virus containing only gene 9 from NCDV passively protected their progeny against UK challenge, whereas mouse dams orally immunized with a reassortant virus containing only gene 4 from NCDV did not. Finally, we constructed reassortant viruses that immunized against rotaviruses of two distinct serotypes. SA11 X NCDV reassortants that contained vp3 and vp7 from different parents induced a protective immune response against both parental serotypes. vp3 and vp7 were independently capable of inducing a protective immune response after oral immunization. An understanding of the serotypic specificities of both vp3 and vp7 of human rotavirus isolates will be necessary for the development of successful strategies to protect infants against severe rotavirus infections.
Effect of exercise on deposition and subsequent retention of inhaled particles.

To investigate the effect of exercise and its associated increase in ventilation on the deposition and subsequent retention of inhaled particles, we measured the fractional and regional lung deposition of a radioactively tagged (99mTc) monodisperse aerosol (2.6 microns mass median aerodynamic diam) in normal human subjects at rest and while exercising on a bicycle ergometer. Breath-by-breath deposition fraction (DF) was measured throughout the aerosol exposures by Tyndallometry. Following each exposure gamma camera analysis was used to 1) determine the regional distribution of deposited particles and 2) monitor lung retention for 2.5 h and again at 24 h. We found that DF was unchanged between ventilation at rest (6-10 l/min) and exercise (32-46 l/min). Even though mouth deposition was enhanced with exercise, it was not large enough to produce a significant difference in the deposition fraction of the lung (DFL) between resting and exercise exposures. The central-to-peripheral distribution of deposited aerosol was larger for the exercise vs. resting exposure, reflecting a shift of particle deposition to more central bronchial airways. Apical-to-basal distribution was not different for the two exposures. Retention at 2.5 h and 24 h (R24) was reduced following the exercise vs. the resting exposure, consistent with greater bronchial deposition during exercise. The product of DFL and R24 gave a measure of fractional burden at 24 h (B24), i.e., the fraction of inhaled aerosol residing in the lungs 24 h after exposure. B24 was not significantly different between rest and exercise exposures. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Power density of piezoelectric transformers improved using a contact heat transfer structure

Based on contact heat transfer, a novel method to increase power density of piezoelectric transformers is proposed. A heat transfer structure is realized by directly attaching a dissipater to the piezoelectric transformer plate. By maintaining the vibration mode of the transformer and limiting additional energy losses from the contact interface, an appropriate design can improve power density of the transformer on a large scale, resulting from effective suppression of its working temperature rise. A prototype device was fabricated from a rectangular piezoelectric transformer, a copper heat transfer sheet, a thermal grease insulation pad, and an aluminum heat radiator. The experimental results show the transformer maintains a maximum power density of 135 W/cm3 and an efficiency of 90.8% with a temperature rise of less than 10°C after more than 36 h, without notable changes in performance.