Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Effect of Nigella Sativa Extract (Thymoquinone) on Glucose Insulin Levels and Body Weight of Induced Diabetic Female Rats

Background: Diabetes is one of the most common chronic diseases in the world. It characterized by hyperglycemia resulting from defects in insulin secretion or action or both. Chronic complications of diabetes such as cardiovascular damage, cataracts and retinopathy, nephropathy and polyneuropathy. Induction of experimental diabetes in rodentsis used by Streptozotocin (STZ). A number of therapeutic effects including the effect on diabetes have been described for the Nigella sativa extract (Thymoquinone). Aim: The goal of this study to investigate the effect of Nigella sativa extract (Thymoquinone) as a herbal medicines on female induced diabetic rat, and hence investigating the comparison of changes in body weight, levels of glucose and insulin in serum, between normal and diabetic rats. Methods: Adult female Wister rats, weighing 200–250 g, were used. Rats were divided into four groups normal control (Group A), experimental control group (Group B) rats were given 0.5 ml of the single sodium-citrate buffer injection and 1ml of Sesame oil orally via gavage. (Group C) treated STZ-diabetic (60 mg/kg B. W., IP), with of low Nigella sativa extract (Thymoquinone) (5 mg/kg B. W, IP), and (Group D) treated STZ-diabetic (60 mg/kg B. W., IP), with of high Nigella sativa extract (Thymoquinone) (10 mg/kg B. W., IP) and until the end of experiment were evaluated to assess its effect on body weight, glucose and insulin levels in different groups. Results: The results indicated that significant reduction in glucose levels of high dose of treated group with Nigella sativa extract (Thymoquinone) (10 mg/kg b. w.) compared to low dose. Both dose of treated group with Nigella sativa extract (Thymoquinone) (5 and 10 mg/kg b. w.) very high significantly (p < 0.001) reduced in body weight and insulin levels in comparison to both group normal control and experimental control groups. Moreover, there was no significant difference observed in body weight between normal control and experimental control groups. The present findings suggest an antidiabetic effect of Nigella sativa extract (Thymoquinone) may attributed through a decrease in hepatic gluconeogenesis. Conclusions: Thymoquinone has the ability to improve oxidative stress in plasma and tissues of STZ induced diabetic rats as evidenced by improved glycemic. Thus, Thymoquinone could be considered as a treatment strategy for diabetic complications.
Testing VRIN framework: Resource value and rareness as sources of competitive advantage and above average performance

In this study, structural equation model that analy zes the impact of resource and capability characteristics, more specifically value and rareness, on sustainable competitive advantage and above average performance is developed and empirically tested. According to the VRIN framework , if a company possesses and exploits valuable, rare, inimitable and non-substit utable resources and capabilities, it will achieve sustainable competiti ve advantage. Although the above mentioned statement is widely accepted in the strat egy literature, there is a lack of research on characteristics of resources, especiall y at the conceptual level. An empirical analysis was conducted on 265 large and m edium-sized Croatian companies from all industries. All relationships hy pothesized by the model are statistically significant and in the expected direc tion. The findings suggest that the companies with more valuable and rare resources ach ieve higher levels of sustainable competitive advantage and performance. Since there is an interdependence between resource value and rareness , their impact on competitive advantage is both direct and indirect.
Asexual sporulation facilitates adaptation: The emergence of azole resistance in Aspergillus fumigatus

Understanding the occurrence and spread of azole resistance in Aspergillus fumigatus is crucial for public health. It has been hypothesized that asexual sporulation, which is abundant in nature, is essential for phenotypic expression of azole resistance mutations in A. fumigatus facilitating subsequent spread through natural selection. Furthermore, the disease aspergilloma is associated with asexual sporulation within the lungs of patients and the emergence of azole resistance. This study assessed the evolutionary advantage of asexual sporulation by growing the fungus under pressure of one of five different azole fungicides over seven weeks and by comparing the rate of adaptation between scenarios of culturing with and without asexual sporulation. Results unequivocally show that asexual sporulation facilitates adaptation. This can be explained by the combination of more effective selection because of the transition from a multicellular to a unicellular stage, and by increased mutation supply due to the production of spores, which involves numerous mitotic divisions. Insights from this study are essential to unravel the resistance mechanisms of sporulating pathogens to chemical compounds and disease agents in general, and for designing strategies that prevent or overcome the emerging threat of azole resistance in particular.
Tolerabilities of Artemisinin-Based Combination Drugs among Patients with Uncomplicated Malaria in a Tertiary Institution Benin City, Nigeria

Background: The policy governing the treatment of malaria in Nigeria was changed in 2005 instituting the Artemisinin-Based Combination Therapies [ACTs] as first-line Drugs instead of Chloroquine due to rapidly developing resistance of Plasmodium falciparum. Methodology: The tolerability to [ACTs] was assessed in patients using a structured questionnaire and Visual analogue scale. These instruments were distributed systematically among the patients that presented with uncomplicated malaria after obtaining consent from the University of Benin Teaching Hospital, Benin City, Nigeria. Results: Among the five hundred and twenty patients that participated in the tolerability assessment of four different types of ACTs, male and female ratio was 1.3:1, Mean age 32.06 ± 2.3 years [Mean ± SD]. Artemether-Lumefantrine was the most frequently utilized and most tolerable. Two hundred and five [52.69%] respondents reported with forty-one different types of adverse effects of nine major systemic classes. Body weakness was the most frequent adverse effects reported in 112[54.63%] respondents. Adverse effects were significantly dependent on the type of ACTs used p<0.05; these were found to be most common with Artesunate-Mefloquine. Eleven patients were hospitalized due to very severe Body weakness and Dizziness. These severities were found common with Artesunate-Amodiaquine and Artesunate- Mefloqunie respectively. Despite the adverse effects, four hundred and seventy-six respondents (91.53%) were willing to repeat ACTs another time they have malaria. There were significant differences in symptomatic response on Days 0, 1, 2, 3, 7, 14 and 28 (p<0.05). 93% respondents felt extremely sick on Day 0, 68% had persistent fever on the third day of treatment and 71% had improved response after day 7. Conclusion: Anecdotal reports showed that ACTs have a modest tolerability, they are therefore recommended for patients that have uncomplicated malaria.
Occupational Hazards of Halogenated Volatile Anesthetics and their Prevention: Review of the Literature

The harmful effect of inhalational anesthetics on the working environment of anesthetists is one of most controversial areas, where speculations can easily arise. In the present review the authors summarize the possible sources of environmental pollution in the operating theatre with special emphasis on the importance of air suctioning and air conditioning systems. A full-spectrum of the previously published animal and human studies is provided about the possible health hazards of inhalational agents including effects on the central nervous, reproductive and hematologic systems, on the liver functions and also on the carcinogenesis. A list of the proposed measures to decrease pollution to the minimum in the operating theatre environment is provided. It is concluded that according to the present knowledge, the use of inhalational agents may be considered safe if the prescribed limits of halogenated anesthesia gases are met.
Regional growth and unemployment in the medium run: asymmetric cointegrated Okun’s Law for UK regions

This article tests for the presence of a medium-run asymmetric Okun’s Law relationship between regional output and regional unemployment rate in UK regions. The test is performed with a panel data version of the hidden cointegration technique suggested by Granger and Yoon. A novelty of the article is to combine the method of hidden cointegration with a panel data method of removing cross-sectional dependence. The medium-run Okun relationship for regions in the UK appears to confirm results found elsewhere in the literature on countries as a whole, although the coefficients tend to be smaller.
Endodontic Management of Mandibular Second Premolar Having Type-V Vertucci Canal Configuration – Case Series

Successful endodontic treatment depends on thorough knowledge in root canal morphology, appropriate assessment of pulp chamber floor, critical interpretation of radiograph, and on biomechanical preparation followed by three dimensional obturation of root canal system. The possibility of additional root /canal should be considered even in teeth a low frequency of abnormal root canal anatomy. Mandibular premolars have earned the reputation for having aberrant anatomy. This article reports and discusses the successful endodontic management of mandibular second premolar with one canal is bifurcating into two canals.
Genetic variation in natural populations of Abies nephrolepis Max. in South Korea

Abies nephrolepis Max. is a fir species occurring in Northeast China, the extreme southeast of Russia and Korea. In Korea, A. nephrolepis is one of only three native fir species growing in high, mountainous areas with a disjunct distribution. We investigated genetic variation in A. nephrolepis by examining 24 ISSR polymorphic loci in 248 individuals representing eight natural populations in Korea. The level of intra-population genetic diversity (He = 0.240) was similar to or slightly lower than that of plants with similar ecological traits and life history. Most of the genetic diversity was allocated among individuals within populations (GST = 0.082, ΦST = 0.041) and the number of migrants per generation (Nm) was 5.56. Nei’s genetic distances were small (D = 0.027) and unrelated to geographic distances between populations. Implications for the conservation of genetic variation in A. nephrolepis in South Korea were discussed. RésuméAbies nephrolepis Max. est un sapin présent dans le Nord-Est de la Chine, l’extrême Sud-Est de la Russie et en Corée. En Corée, A. nephrolepis est une des trois espèces autochtones de sapin poussant dans des zones disjointes en haute montagne. Nous avons étudié la variabilité génétique chez A. nephrolepis grâce à 24 locus polymorphes ISSR sur un échantillon de 248 individus représentant huit populations naturelles en Corée. Le niveau de diversité génétique intra-population obtenu (He = 0,240) était semblable ou légèrement plus faible que celui obtenu pour des plantes avec des caractères écologiques ou une histoire semblables. La plus grande part de la diversité génétique était représentée par la variabilité entre individus dans populations (GST = 0,082, ΦST= 0,041) et le nombre de migrants par génération (Nm) était de 5,56. Les distances génétiques de Nei étaient faibles (D = 0,027) et sans relation avec les distances géographiques entre populations. Les implications pour la conservation de la diversité génétique de A. nephrolepis en Corée du Sud sont discutées.
Ontogenetic Effects on Snake Hemipenial Morphology

Abstract In this study we investigate hemipenial variation through ontogeny by preparing specimens of known-aged individuals from captive-bred Plains Gartersnakes, Thamnophis radix, descended from a wild population in northern Illinois, USA. We examined males at two different ages (215–254 days, N = 9) and (829–867 days, N = 12) to compare both juvenile and adult morphologies. Hemipenis length increased isometrically with tail length, and there were no significant differences detected between right and left hemipenis length or width. In addition, this study is the first to explore variation in hemipenial morphology within and among litters. We found significant litter effects on hemipenis length, on the elevation (but not the slope) of the relationship between hemipenis length and tail length, and on number of basal hooks, suggesting a possible genetic basis to these characteristics. These results highlight the importance of examining multiple males through ontogeny, as well as reporting body-size measurements for all specimens, to obtain an accurate representation of the hemipenis morphology of a species for comparative ecological, taxonomic, and evolutionary studies.
Simulation and performance prediction for the radiation patterns of few-moded and multi-moded corrugated horns

Corrugated horn assemblies are the most common method of feeding bolometer cavities for power detection on CMB experiments. Traditionally these have been single moded, whether polarised or unpolarised, but if polarisation is not required greater throughput can be obtained from few-moded or multi-moded horns. The simulation of these assemblies is far more computationally intensive than for single moded systems, and the effort is often compounded by the design of the assemblies. Here we show that multi-moded horn assemblies can be modelled reliably and do perform as required, but performance prediction requires attention to manufacturing tolerances as well as the system design.
The Role of Economic Space in Decision Making

This paper analyzes the role that economic space plays in private and public decision making. Both geographic and characteristic space are considered. The choice of spatial location, whether it be a physical location or a product position, can have significant consequences for other economic decisions, and those secondary decisions are the focus of the paper. In particular, it is useful to have methods of measuring economic proximity in geographic and characteristic space and to have ways of determining the implications of that proximity for market outcomes. I summarize some of the methods that my coauthors and I have developed for estimating economic distance and for assessing its implications.
Conformational dynamics and stability of structured peptides and small proteins

Local structure elements such as α-helices or β-hairpins can form in the absence of tertiary interactions and may hence be of importance in the early stages of protein folding. α-Helical structures in peptides are only marginally stable with the exception of alanine-based helices. Despite their structural simplicity and considerable experimental and theoretical efforts, the dynamics of these α-helical peptides remain poorly understood. We recently used triplet-triplet energy transfer to measure local equilibrium folding and unfolding at different positions within helical peptides. Here we extend this approach to investigate the effect of temperature on local helix dynamics by placing triplet labels with i, i + 6 spacing in the centre of an alanine-based model helix. The data are interpreted in terms of a classical two-state formalism and are compared to a more realistic multi-state description of the system, obtained from a kinetic Ising model. The results from the experiments suggest that the helix folding is an entropy controlled process, whereas helix unfolding encounters a mainly enthalpic barrier. Comparison with the simulations indicates that the apparent low activation energy for helix folding is a result of the multi-state character of the system and that both, the addition and the removal of a helical segment at a helix boundary are associated with significant enthalpic barriers of about 40 kJ/mol. “Local Helix Dynamics: T-dependence” l B 3
The critical layer in linear-shear boundary layers over acoustic linings

Abstract Acoustics within mean flows are governed by the linearized Euler equations, which possess a singularity wherever the local mean flow velocity is equal to the phase speed of the disturbance. Such locations are termed critical layers, and are usually ignored when estimating the sound field, with their contribution assumed to be negligible. This paper studies fully both numerically and analytically a simple yet typical sheared ducted flow in order to investigate the influence of the critical layer, and shows that the neglect of critical layers is sometimes, but certainly not always, justified. The model is that of a linear-then-constant velocity profile with uniform density in a cylindrical duct, allowing exact Green’s function solutions in terms of Bessel functions and Frobenius expansions. For sources outside the sheared flow, the contribution of the critical layer is found to decay algebraically along the duct as $O(1/ {x}^{4} )$ , where $x$ is the distance downstream of the source. For sources within the sheared flow, the contribution from the critical layer is found to consist of a non-modal disturbance of constant amplitude and a disturbance decaying algebraically as $O(1/ {x}^{3} )$ . For thin boundary layers, these disturbances trigger the inherent convective instability of the flow. Extra care is required for high frequencies as the critical layer can be neglected only in combination with a particular downstream pole. The advantages of Frobenius expansions over direct numerical calculation are also demonstrated, especially with regard to spurious modes around the critical layer.
Egg production potentials of certain indigenous chicken breeds from South Africa

El objetivo de este estudio fue determinar el potencial de puesta de cuatro diferentes razas locales de gallinas presentes en Sudafrica. Estas fueron la Potchefstroom Koekoek, la Venda, la Ovambo y la Naked Neck (cuello desnudo). Se utilizo a la Leghorn Blanca como control. Los potenciales de puesta fueron evaluados a lo largo de dos ciclos consecutivos de produccion de 52 semanas (utilizados como duplicados). Los datos fueron tomados en la granja experimental del Consejo de Investigacion Agricola en Irene. Los medios del tratamiento fueron separados utilizando la prueba T protegida de Fisher, diferencia menos significativa al nivel de importancia del 5 percent, y el porcentaje de tasa de mortalidad por medio de una fila a traves de la prueba �O2. No se hallaron diferencias significativas entre razas con respecto a la edad de puesta del primer huevo. La Leghorn Blanca fue superior (p . 0.05) en cuanto al numero medio de huevos producidos, y para el porcentaje de huevos puestos por ciclo de produccion con respecto a las cuatro razas locales. La Potchefstroom Koekoek fue tambien superior (p . 0.05) con respecto al numero de huevos producidos en comparacion a las otras tres razas locales para los parametros mencionados anteriormente. No se evidenciaron diferencias entre la Ovambo y la Naked Neck. El porcentaje de mortalidad para la Leghorn Blanca (39,5 percent) fue significativamente diferente (p . 0.05) a las de la Venda, Ovambo y Potchefstroom Koekoek (22,2 percent). No se observaron diferencias entre la Potchefstroom Koekoek, la Venda, la Ovambo y la Naked Neck (32,2 percent), o entre la Leghorn Blanca y la Naked Neck, con respecto al porcentaje de mortalidad medio.
SDSS-IV MaNGA: Faint quenched galaxies - I. Sample selection and evidence for environmental quenching

Using kinematic maps from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) Mapping Nearby Galaxies at Apache Point Observatory (MaNGA) survey, we reveal that the majority of low-mass quenched galaxies exhibit coherent rotation in their stellar kinematics. Our sample includes all 39 quenched low-mass galaxies observed in the first year of MaNGA. The galaxies are selected with Mr > −19.1, stellar masses 109 M⊙ 1.9. They lie on the size–magnitude and σ–luminosity relations for previously studied dwarf galaxies. Just six (15 ± 5.7 per cent) are found to have rotation speeds ve, rot 5 × 1010 M⊙), supporting the hypothesis that galaxy–galaxy or galaxy–group interactions quench star formation in lowmass galaxies. The local bright galaxy density for our sample is ρproj = 8.2 ± 2.0 Mpc−2, compared to ρproj = 2.1 ± 0.4 Mpc−2 for a star-forming comparison sample, confirming that the quenched low-mass galaxies are preferentially found in higher density environments.
Simulations of a multipactor-inhibited waveguide geometry

Studies of multipactor resonances in coaxial and hollow waveguide via standard particle trajectory and secondary emission numerical simulation techniques are presented. Agreement between simulations and experimentally observed multipactor barriers gives confidence in results of simulation studies of a wedgeshaped hollow waveguide geometry that shows promise of being far less susceptible to multipactor resonances than standard coax and hollow rectangular waveguides. PACS Codes: 52.80. Vp, 52.80. Pi, 52.20. Dq
Schrödinger equation with multiparticle potential and critical nonlinearity

We study the existence and non-existence of ground states for the Schrodinger equations $-\Delta u -\lambda\sum_{i< j}u/|x_i-x_j|^2 = |u|^{2^*-2}u$, $x=(x_1,\ldots,x_m)\in {\mathbb R}^{mN}$, and $-\Delta u -\lambda u/|y|^2 = |u|^{2^*-2}u,\quad x=(y,z)\in {\mathbb R}^N$. In both cases we assume $\lambda\ne 0$ and $\lambda< \overline\lambda$, where $\overline\lambda$ is the Hardy constant corresponding to the problem.
Regional Scale Land Cover Characterization Using MODIS-NDVI 250 m Multi-Temporal Imagery: A Phenology-Based Approach

Currently available land cover data sets for large geographic regions are produced on an intermittent basis and are often dated. Ideally, annually updated data would be available to support environmental status and trends assessments and ecosystem process modeling. This research examined the potential for vegetation phenology-based land cover classification over the 52,000 km2 Albemarle-Pamlico estuarine system (APES) that could be performed annually. Traditional hyperspectral image classification techniques were applied using MODIS-NDVI 250 m 16-day composite data over calendar year 2001 to support the multi-temporal image analysis approach. A reference database was developed using archival aerial photography that provided detailed mixed pixel cover-type data for 31,322 sampling sites corresponding to MODIS 250 m pixels. Accuracy estimates for the classification indicated that the overall accuracy of the classification ranged from 73% for very heterogeneous pixels to 89% when only homogeneous pixels were examined. These accuracies are comparable to similar classifications using much higher spatial resolution data, which indicates that there is significant value added to relatively coarse resolution data though the addition of multi-temporal observations.