Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of antidiabetic activity of Miglitol nanoparticles in Streptozotocin induced diabetic rats

Diabetes mellitus is a group of metabolic disorder characterized by a complete lack of insulin, a relative lack of insulin, or insulin resistance. In response to the need for better control of diabetes, several new classes antidiabetic drugs were introduced. Among these are Alpha Glucosidase Inhibitors which are used to treat the Type II Diabetes mellitus by inhibiting the Alpha Glucosidase enzymes in the small intestine. The biological half-life of Miglitol is 2 Hrs and by conventional dosage form it requires oral administration of three times daily. Hence to overcome this problem, we developed controlled release formulation of Miglitol loaded nanoparticles will help to release the drug in continuously for 12 Hrs. The effect of newly formulated Miglitol loaded nanoparticles was studied in diabetic rates. Diabetes was induced by streptozotocin in Wistar rats. At first, Maltose was administered orally to all the groups. Along with maltose, the newly formulated Miglitol loaded nanoparticles and marketed conventional release tablets was administered in diabetic rates and Blood glucose was measured at predefined interval. After the initial Maltose load, in the interval of 6 Hrs, Maltose load to the animal was repeated for two more times. After administration of the first maltose load, there was steady attenuation in the plasma glucose values after the same time point in the groups treated with Miglitol formulations. After initial administration of drug, the pharmacological actions are similar for marketed conventional release dosage form and Nanoparticle. However, the conventional release dosage form could not control the peak postprandial plasma glucose after second & third loading of maltose. Whereas, the Nanoparticle formulation significantly (P<0.001) controlled the peak postprandial plasma glucose after second & third loading of maltose.
MESOPOROUS FUNCTIONALIZED ACID CATALYSTS AND THEIR USE AS ENVIRONMENTALY FRIENDLY CATALYSTS IN ESTERIFICATION OF GLYCEROLS FOR MONOGLYCERIDE PRODUCTION

Monoglycerides are valuable compounds with wide applications as emulsifiers in food, pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries. They can be produced by esterification of glycerols with fatty acids. Traditional homogeneous catalysts are usually used in the reaction for commercial scale productions. The processes utilizing homogeneous catalysts possess some drawbacks due to environmental aspect, such as corrosiveness, hazards of waste catalysts, etc. Because of simplicity in catalysts removal and minimization of the amount of waste formed, the utilization of heterogeneous or solid acid catalysts, as an alternative for this process, is an emerging topic on the aspect of the green–chemical processes. However, diffusion limitation of liquids within porous solids dictates that the use of mesoporous materials with pore diameter ranging from 20 o A to 100 o A is expected to be successful in liquid-phase reactions. The discovery of a family of ordered mesoporous silicas opens up new possibilities for preparing heterogeneous catalysts for liquid phase reactions. This review highlights on recent developments in the synthesis of mesoporous functionalized acid catalysts, for esterification of glycerols by fatty acids to produce monoglycerides.
Digestible tryptophan:lysine ratio for laying hens

The objective of this study was to evaluate the requirement of digestible tryptophan for white laying hens in the production stage fed diets of different digestible tryptophan:digestible lysine ratios, as well as animal performance and histological alterations in their reproductive and digestive systems. A total of 280 white laying hens at 29 weeks of age were distributed in a completely randomized design with five treatments and seven replications with eight birds in each. The treatments consisted of a base feed, formulated with corn, soybean meal and corn gluten meal, and supplemented with the synthetic amino acids L-lysine, DL-methionine, L-threonine, L-isoleucine, L-arginine, and L-valine, so as to meet the nutritional requirements for laying hens, except for digestible tryptophan. The basal diet was supplemented with 0.00; 0.017; 0.035; 0.052; and 0.069 g/kg of L-tryptophan in substitution for corn starch with the objective of reaching the levels of 0.151; 0.167; 0.183; 0.199; and 0.215 g/kg of digestible tryptophan in the feed. For the ratio between digestible amino acids and lysine, the recommendation of Brazilian Tables for Poultry and Swine was followed, except for the digestible tryptophan:digestible lysine ratios, which were 19, 21, 23, 25 and 27 for each treatment. The variation in the digestible tryptophan:digestible lysine ratio promoted changes in performance and in the histological characteristics, improving the results. The digestible tryptophan:digestible lysine ratio of 24.5% in the feed of white laying hens in production stage promotes better animal performance and histological results.
The linear programming relaxation permutation symmetry group of an orthogonal array defining integer linear program

There is always a natural embedding of $S_{s}\wr S_{k}$ into the linear programming (LP) relaxation permutation symmetry group of an orthogonal array integer linear programming (ILP) formulation with equality constraints. The point of this paper is to prove that in the $2$ -level, strength- $1$ case the LP relaxation permutation symmetry group of this formulation is isomorphic to $S_{2}\wr S_{k}$ for all $k$ , and in the $2$ -level, strength- $2$ case it is isomorphic to $S_{2}^{k}\rtimes S_{k+1}$ for $k\geqslant 4$ . The strength- $2$ result reveals previously unknown permutation symmetries that cannot be captured by the natural embedding of $S_{2}\wr S_{k}$ . We also conjecture a complete characterization of the LP relaxation permutation symmetry group of the ILP formulation. Supplementary materials are available with this article.
"Qi-Invigorating" Chinese Tonic Herbs (Shens) Stimulate Mitochondrial ATP Generation Capacity in H9c2 Cardiomyocytes in Situ and Rat Hearts ex Vivo

In the study, using ethanol extracts of Renshen (Panax ginseng C A Meyer), Xiyangshen (Panax quinquefolius L.) and Dangshen (Codonopsis pilosulae), we investigated the effect of these “Qi-invigorating” Chinese tonic herbs on mitochondrial ATP generation capacity (ATP-GC) in H9c2 cardiomyocytes in situ and rat hearts ex vivo. All three types of “Shens” stimulated mitochondrial ATP-GC, with Renshen being most potent. While a parallel enhancement in mitochondrial ATP-GC was observed in Renshen- and Xiyangshen-pretreated rats, Dangshen treatment did not produce detectable effect ex vivo. The discrepancy between in situ and ex vivo assays for Dangshen may be attributed by its limited oral-bioavailability to the heart. The tissue specific activity of Shens on mitochondrial ATP-GC may be explained by the “Meridian Theory” in traditional Chinese medicine.
Processing of faces and emotional expressions in infants at risk of social phobia

Individuals with social phobia display social information processing biases yet their aetiological significance is unclear. Infants of mothers with social phobia and control infants’ responses were assessed at 10 days, 10 and 16 weeks, and 10 months to faces versus non-faces, variations in intensity of emotional expressions, and gaze direction. Infant temperament and maternal behaviours were also assessed. Both groups showed a preference for faces over non-faces at 10 days and 10 weeks, and full faces over profiles at 16 weeks; they also looked more to high vs. low intensity angry faces at 10 weeks, and fearful faces at 10 months; however, index infants’ initial orientation and overall looking to high-intensity fear faces was relatively less than controls at 10 weeks. This was not explained by infant temperament or maternal behaviours. The findings suggest that offspring of mothers with social phobia show processing biases to emotional expressions in infancy.
Sugar accumulation in 'Zweigelt' grapes as affected by "Traubenwelke"

"Traubenwelke" (berry shrivel, grape wilting), a physiological disorder during berry ripening, is a severe threat to grape production in numerous winegrowing areas worldwide. Investigations in Austrian viticulture, focusing on the particularly sensitive grape cultivar 'Blauer Zweigelt' ( Vitis vinifera L.), showed that afflicted clusters exhibited insufficient colouring, loss of turgor, low sugar content and high acidity. The aim of this study was to determine the chronological disease development on the basis of the process of sugar accumulation in both unhealthy and healthy clusters in relation to the emergence of visual symptoms. Sugar accumulation in afflicted clusters stopped shortly after veraison, well (approx. 20 days) before visible symptoms were detectable, and subsequently the degree of ripeness remained unchanged until harvest. The results suggested that development of "Traubenwelke" initiated before veraison. Distal clusters were more frequently affected than proximal clusters, whereas the position of the shoot on the vine did not impact frequency of occurrence. The gas exchange of leaves positioned opposite to healthy clusters was not significantly different than that of leaves opposite to unhealthy clusters.
Energy transport, polar amplification, and ITCZ shifts in the GeoMIP G1 ensemble

Abstract. The polar amplification of warming and the ability of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) to shift to the north or south are two very important problems in climate science. Examining these behaviors in global climate models (GCMs) running solar geoengineering experiments is helpful not only for predicting the effects of solar geoengineering but also for understanding how these processes work under increased carbon dioxide (CO2). Both polar amplification and ITCZ shifts are closely related to the meridional transport of moist static energy (MSE) by the atmosphere. This study examines changes in MSE transport in 10 fully coupled GCMs in experiment G1 of the Geoengineering Model Intercomparison Project (GeoMIP), in which the solar constant is reduced to compensate for the radiative forcing from abruptly quadrupled CO2 concentrations. In G1, poleward MSE transport decreases relative to preindustrial conditions in all models, in contrast to the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project phase 5 (CMIP5) abrupt4xCO2 experiment, in which poleward MSE transport increases. We show that since poleward energy transport decreases rather than increases, and local feedbacks cannot change the sign of an initial temperature change, the residual polar amplification in the G1 experiment must be due to the net positive forcing in the polar regions and net negative forcing in the tropics, which arise from the different spatial patterns of the simultaneously imposed solar and CO2 forcings. However, the reduction in poleward energy transport likely plays a role in limiting the polar warming in G1. An attribution study with a moist energy balance model shows that cloud feedbacks are the largest source of uncertainty regarding changes in poleward energy transport in midlatitudes in G1, as well as for changes in cross-equatorial energy transport, which are anticorrelated with ITCZ shifts.
Tectonic history and the biogeography of the freshwater fishes from the coastal drainages of eastern Brazil: an example of faunal evolution associated with a divergent continental margin

The eastern Brazilian coastal drainages are of great biogeographical significance, because of their highly endemic fish faunas. Phylogenetic patterns suggest a close biotic relationship between the rivers that flow into the Atlantic and those on the adjacent upland crystalline shield. However, little has been said on the dynamics of the geological processes causally related to the cladogenetic events between these areas. Distributional and phylogenetic patterns suggest a close association with the geological history of the passive continental margin of South America, from the Cretaceous to the present day. In this area megadome uplifts, rifting, vertical movements between rifted blocks and the erosive retreat of the South American eastern continental margin are hypothesized as the main geological forces controlling the distribution of freshwater fishes. The tectonic activity associated with the break-up of Gondwana and separation of South America and Africa formed six megadomes that control most of the current courses of the main crystalline shield river basins. Except for basins located at the edges of such megadomes, these river systems developed long, circuitous routes over the ancient Brazilian crystalline shield before emptying into the recently opened Atlantic Ocean. Initial cladogenetic events between upland crystalline drainages and Atlantic tributaries were probably associated with vicariant processes, and some ancient basal sister-groups of widespread inclusive taxa are found in these coastal hydrographic systems. Later, generalized erosive denudation resulted in an isostatic adjustment of the eastern margin of the platform. These, along with reactivations of ancient rifts led to vertical movements between rifted blocks and gave rise, in southeastern Brazil, to taphrogenic (rift related) basins. These basins, such as the Taubate, Sao Paulo, Curitiba and Volta Redonda basins, among others, captured adjacent upland drainages and fauna. The fossil fishes from the Tremembe Formation (Eocene-Oligocene of Taubate Basin) exemplify this process. Other taphrogenic systems of Tertiary age were also identified in other segments of the Atlantic continental margin, such as in Borborema province, in NE Brazil, with marked influence over drainage patterns. At the same time, erosive retreat of the eastern margin of the platform successively captured upland rivers, which became Atlantic tributaries evolving associated to main rift systems. The continued nature of these processes explains the mixed phylogenetic and distributional patterns between Atlantic tributaries and the upland crystalline shield areas, especially in the southeastern continental margin, represented by successively, less inclusive sister-groups associated with cladogenetic events from the Late Cretaceous to the present.
Analyzing the Role of Self-Esteem Dimensions in Student’s Achievement Motivation (A Case of M.Sc. Students of Agriculture in Tehran University)

The main purpose of this study was to analyze the role of self- esteem dimensions on student’s achievement motivation. The statistical population consisted of MSc students in College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Tehran (N=712). According to Cochran formula, 175 students were selected through quota sampling method. The instrument for data collection was a questionnaire which its validity was confirmed by a panel of experts. Its reliability was confirmed by Cronbach's alpha coefficients (α ≥0.7). The results of descriptive statistics showed that the amount of achievement motivation, global self-esteem, family self-esteem and social self-esteem found to be at a moderate level, whereas their educational self-esteem was found to be at a low level. The results of ANOVA showed that there are significant differences among students based on their levels of self-esteem and achievement motivation. Students with higher levels of self- esteem had achievement motivation more than others. Moreover, the results of logistic regression demonstrated that different aspects of self-esteem (including global self-esteem, social self-esteem and educational self-esteem) has a great ability to predict levels of students’ development. These factors explained 69.10 percent of the total variance.
Assessing the Effect of Loyalty Program Benefits in Satisfaction-Loyalty Relationship: Evidence from Malaysia

ABSTRACT This study aimed at examining the relationship among program benefits (utilitarian/monetary, hedonic, and symbolic), program satisfaction, and loyalty (program loyalty and store loyalty) in the retail context in Malaysia. A total of 300 questionnaires were collected via convenience sampling from program members of hypermarkets and superstores in Malaysia. A structural equation model that assessed the relationship between the proposed variables was tested using AMOS 20. The findings revealed that of the three program benefits, utilitarian benefits and symbolic benefits were statistically significant in influencing program satisfaction. In terms of loyalty, both hedonic and symbolic benefits were related to program loyalty and only hedonic benefit was positively related to store loyalty. Keywords: Loyalty program; utilitarian benefits; hedonic benefits; symbolic benefits; satisfaction; program loyalty; store loyalty; Malaysia ABSTRAK Kajian ini bertujuan untuk mengukur perhubungan di antara manfaat program kesetiaan (utilitarian / kewangan, hedonik, dan simbolik), kepuasan program, dan kesetiaan (kesetiaan terhadap program dan kesetiaan terhadap kedai) dalam konteks runcit di Malaysia. Sebanyak 300 soal selidik telah dikumpulkan melalui kaedah persampelan mudah dari ahli program kesetiaan yang dimiliki oleh pasar raya besar dan superstore di Malaysia. Satu model persamaan struktur yang dinilai hubungan antara pemboleh ubah yang dicadangkan telah diuji menggunakan Amos 20. Hasil kajian menunjukkan bahawa daripada tiga faedah program, faedah utilitarian dan manfaat simbolik didapati mempunyai pengaruh yang signifikan terhadap kepuasan program. Dari segi kesetiaan, kedua-dua manfaat hedonik dan simbolik berkaitan dengan kesetiaan program dan hanya manfaat hedonik mempunyai pengaruh positif yang signifikan dengan kesetiaan kedai. Kata kunci: Program kesetiaan; faedah utilitarian; faedah hedonik; faedah simbolik; kepuasan; kesetiaan terhadap program; kesetiaan terhadap kedai.
Why Forcing People to Save for Retirement May Backfire

If individuals are unable or unwilling to borrow, a higher than desired second pillar pension capital may induce people to retire earlier than they would have in the absence of such a scheme. Individuals thus leave the workforce as soon as the retirement income is deemed sufficient and the pension plan avails withdrawal of benefits. We provide evidence using individual data from a selection of Swiss pension funds, allowing us to perfectly control for pension scheme details. Our findings suggest that affordability is a key determinant in the retirement decisions. The higher the accumulated pension capital, the earlier individuals tend to leave the workforce.
Minds, Machines and Gödel

Gödei's Theorem seems to me to prove that Mechanism is false, that is, that minds cannot be explained as machines. So also has it seemed to many other people: almost every mathematical logician I have put the matter to has confessed to similar thoughts, but has felt reluctant to commit himself definitely until he could see the whole argument set out, with all objections fully stated and properly met. This I attempt to do.
On the Ratio between Static Pressure and Thickness of Growing AAAs

Objective: Abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs) are characterized by structural remodelling resulting in the gradual weakening and expansion of the aortic wall. Wall stress may furnish a usable indicator to prevent the failure. In order to evaluate this risk, static pressure aging on the cap was used to perform FEA, simulating an aneurysm varying its dimensions from 10 mm to 50 mm. Analyses were carried out by imposing different thickness of the cap, and obtaining correspondent equivalent Von Mises stresses. Understanding how these stresses are distributed and what factors influence stress distributions is critical in evaluating the potential for rupture. Methods: A representative FE model was created in order to simulate the historical evolution of the AAA. CFD analyses were performed to obtain data of the static pressure aging on the model. Patient informed consent and IRB approval were obtained. A linear law was speculated to understand thickness thinning in function of aneurysm’s growth. The obtained pressure maps were used as input to perform elastic linear analyses on the five different FE wrappings. Results: If the bloody pressure is increased, that increases also wall shear stress, and an adaptive increase in arterial luminal size is observed. Results have evidenced peaks of stress varying from 0,004 MPa, for a diameter of 10 mm, to 0,45 MPa, for a diameter of 50 mm. Top and bottom zones of aneurysm result more solicited than the middle ones, as it can be deducted by obtained strain values, ranging from 5,84e-7, for a diameter of 10 mm, to 3,14e-4, for a diameter of 50 mm. In order to evaluate the mechanical behaviour of the cap, related to its thickness at 50 mm of diameter, different FEA were conducted varying thickness, uniformly, from 1 to 0.4 mm. As it is possible to notice, stress increases exponentially while thickness decreases. Conclusions: Results indicate an equivalent Von Mises stress of about 0,45 MPa, close the to failure value, for a critical dimension of 50 mm. This means that failure conditions can depend at least, by two variables: thickness and pressure.
The Effect of Systematic Risk on Equity Valuation: An Extended Application of the Ohlson Equity Valuation Model

This research focuses on the problem of ”undefined non-accounting information” from the original Ohlson equity valuation model. Systematic risk is here regarded as the proxy variable in undefined non-accounting information for improving forecasting performance and observing the effect of systematic risk on stock prices. When U.S. and Taiwan stock markets are used as empirical samples spanning the period from Q2 1996 to Q4 2006, the results indicate that the revised Ohlson model displays better forecasting performance than the original model. The impacts of book value and abnormal earnings on equity value are significantly positive in both U.S. and Taiwan markets. For non-accounting information captured by systematic risk, both different effects and a greater impact on Taiwanese firms are shown. Commodity prices, exchange rates and real economic growth volatilities cause significant effects only in Taiwan; moreover, the interest rate volatility shows a significant but opposite effect in the two markets.
THE EFFECTS OF EXPENSE PREFERENCE ON FINANCIAL STABILITY

This paper analyses the effects of competition between banks with different ownership structure on financial stability, social welfare, risk-taking incentives and performance. We present a model of strategic competition in the retail banking sector where a profit-maximizing bank (a commercial bank) competes against a bank exhibiting expense preference behavior (i.e., a stakeholders’ bank). Our main conclusions are that the presence of a stakeholders’ bank makes competition fiercer, increases social welfare, and reduces systemic financial risk. We also show that stakeholders’ banks are less risk-inclined and obtain a higher market share than commercial ones, and that any bank is less stable and less profitable when competing against a stakeholders’ bank. Finally, using a cross-country panel database the main model conclusion -the presence of stakeholders banks in the system enhances financial stability- is empirically validated.
Trying To understand all-equity firms

This paper studies all equity firms and shows which are in US firms, the main drivers of zerodebt policy. I analyze 6763 U.S. listed companies in years 1987-2009, a total of 77442 firms year. I find that financial constrained firms show a higher probability to become unlevered. In the opposite side, firms producing high cash flow are also likely to become unlevered, paying their debt. Some firms create economies of scale in the use of funds, increasing the probability of become unlevered. The industry characteristics are also important to explain the zero-debt policy. However is the high perception of risk, the most important factor influencing this extreme behavior, which is consistent with trade-off theory.