Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
In vitro efficacy of sulbactam combined with ampicillin against anaerobic bacteria

An ampicillin-sulbactam combination was compared with ampicillin alone, chloramphenicol, clindamycin, and metronidazole against 272 strains of anaerobic bacteria. Chloramphenicol and ampicillin-sulbactam were the most effective, inhibiting 98 to 99% of strains tested at breakpoint (16 micrograms/ml). The combination of sulbactam and ampicillin was much more effective than ampicillin alone against Bacteroides fragilis strains but did not differ substantially from ampicillin alone against Fusobacterium spp. , gram-positive rods, and gram-positive cocci.
Vulnerability to perimenstrual mood change: the relevance of a past history of depressive disorder.

&NA; A past history of depressive illness, defined in terms of treatment by antidepressants, was found to be more common in women seeking help for premenstrual syndrome (PMS) (31.3%; N = 83) than in women complaining of menorrhagia (8.9%; N = 90) or controls (5.8%; N = 104) with dysmenorrhea sufferers (22%; N = '50) reporting intermediate rates. Such a history in the clinical groups was associated with a tendency for premenstrual depression to be relatively prolonged (i.e., persisting through the menstrual phase and sometimes into the postmenstrual week) and with more severe depressive symptoms during the premenstrual, menstrual, and to a lesser extent, postmenstrual phases of the cycle. This, association was not evident for reported heaviness of menstrual bleeding and only weakly evident for severity of pain during the menstrual phase. Women with a depressive history gave higher neuroticism scores. A history of depression, as defined, seems to increase the vulnerability of women to depressive perimenstrual mood change in terms of both duration and severity. This effect on duration may hitherto have served to obscure the relationship between history of depression and premenstrual syndrome.
Getting the Most out of Macroeconomic Information for Predicting Stock Returns

This paper documents the fact that the factors extracted from a large set of macroeconomic variables contain information that can be useful for predicting monthly US excess stock returns over the period 1975 – 2014. Factor-augmented predictive regression models improve upon benchmark models that include only valuation ratios and interest rate related variables, and possibly individual macro variables, as well as the historical average excess return. The improvements in out-of-sample forecast accuracy are significant, both statistically and economically. The factor-augmented predictive regressions have superior market timing abilities, such that a mean–variance investor would be willing to pay an annual performance fee of several hundreds of basis points to switch from the predictions offered by the benchmark models to those of the factor-augmented models. One important reason for the superior performance of the factor-augmented predictive regressions is the stability of their forecast accuracy, whereas the benchmark models suffer from a forecast breakdown during the 1990s.
Leisure innovation and the transition to retirement

Abstract Innovation theory posits that adopting new leisure activities contributes to well-being in later life. We explored the relevance of innovation theory among Canadian baby boomers transitioning to retirement. Using grounded theory and online qualitative methods, we recruited baby boomers who had recently retired or were planning to retire in the next five years. Twenty-five participants engaged in three two-week blogging sessions, followed by face-to-face focus groups/interview over about one year. Data, including blog posts from each session and focus group/interview transcripts, were analyzed using initial, focused, and theoretical coding. Two main themes, embracing retirement and pursuing new and former leisure, highlighted nuances of leisure and the transition to retirement as participants adjusted to increased free time along with shifting priorities and available resources. The findings supported innovation theory and suggested areas of refinement.
Interlaboratory Standardization of the Sandwich Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay Designed for MATS, a Rapid, Reproducible Method for Estimating the Strain Coverage of Investigational Vaccines

ABSTRACT The meningococcal antigen typing system (MATS) sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was designed to measure the immunologic cross-reactivity and quantity of antigens in target strains of a pathogen. It was first used to measure the factor H-binding protein (fHbp), neisserial adhesin A (NadA), and neisserial heparin-binding antigen (NHBA) content of serogroup B meningococcal (MenB) isolates relative to a reference strain, or “relative potency” (RP). With the PorA genotype, the RPs were then used to assess strain coverage by 4CMenB, a multicomponent MenB vaccine. In preliminary studies, MATS accurately predicted killing in the serum bactericidal assay using human complement, an accepted correlate of protection for meningococcal vaccines. A study across seven laboratories assessed the reproducibility of RPs for fHbp, NadA, and NHBA and established qualification parameters for new laboratories. RPs were determined in replicate for 17 MenB reference strains at laboratories A to G. The reproducibility of RPs among laboratories and against consensus values across laboratories was evaluated using a mixed-model analysis of variance. Interlaboratory agreement was very good; the Pearson correlation coefficients, coefficients of accuracy, and concordance correlation coefficients exceeded 99%. The summary measures of reproducibility, expressed as between-laboratory coefficients of variation, were 7.85% (fHbp), 16.51% (NadA), and 12.60% (NHBA). The overall within-laboratory measures of variation adjusted for strain and laboratory were 19.8% (fHbp), 28.8% (NHBA), and 38.3% (NadA). The MATS ELISA was successfully transferred to six laboratories, and a further laboratory was successfully qualified.
A new test procedure for the choice of dependence structure in risk measurement: application to the US and UK stock market indices

ABSTRACT The choice of an appropriate dependence structure in modelling multivariate risks is an important issue because different tail structure embedded in copula leads to a different capital requirement for the institution. We present how to select a well-specified dependence structure to given application data. Using a simple simulation technique, we develop a statistical test to assess the adequacy of a specific dependence structure. We examine the sensitivity of risk estimates to the choice of copulas using the S&P 500 and FTSE 100 stock indices.
Self-management and its part in knowledge workers’ experiences of high performance

This study focuses on knowledge workers’ experiences of high performance, and whether there can be found evidence of self-management in those experiences. In previous researches, there has been found that self-management practices can result in higher performance by increasing motivation, organizational engagement and satisfaction with their work. At workplace, employees are able to utilize the process of self-management to pursue their goals more effectively. Some of these goals are set by the organization, in which case the employee can optimize their strategies for ensuring their possibilities to achieve the goals. The employee can also set personal goals regarding their reputation or status at work, regarding their career advancement, or their development in specific skills. The aim of this study was to examine, if implementing self-management practices in employees’ work activities can improve their task performance. This was studied with a phenomenological approach by analyzing the participants’ descriptions of their experiences of high performance. The descriptions were collected through a written interview from employees, who had relevant experience from different knowledge working positions. The results were in line with previous researches about self-management; there was evidence that reducing control-oriented management orientation and including self-management practices in workplace can result in higher performance of knowledge workers. Circumstances of the work task, the work environment, and personal sovereignty and attitudes were the themes that arose from the participants’ answers as having an effect on their performance. Participants also stated, that the experience of high performance has a positive effect on their future work tasks. These findings contribute to the discussion of which kind of management orientation can be used to enhance performance of the employees, and therefore, the whole organization. Managers can utilize these findings about the positive effect of self-management in their organizations to improve the performance of their subordinates. Because the participants in this study were Finnish knowledge workers, these findings can confidently be generalized only to employees from similar cultures than in Finland. More research is needed on validation of these findings to other cultures, industries, and different personalities.
Modelling Exchange Rate Volatility by Macroeconomic Fundamentals in Pakistan

What drives volatility in foreign exchange market in Pakistan? This paper undertakes an analysis of modelling exchange rate volatility in Pakistan by potential macroeconomic fundamentals well-known in the economic literature. For this, monthly data on Pak Rupee exchange rates in the terms of major currencies (US Dollar, British Pound, Canadian Dollar and Japanese Yen) and macroeconomics fundamentals is taken from April, 1982 to November, 2011. The results show thatthe PKR-USD exchange rate volatility is influenced by real output volatility, foreign exchange reserves volatility, inflation volatility, and productivity volatility. The PKR- GBP exchange rate volatility is influenced by foreign exchange reserves volatility and terms of trade volatility. The PKR- CAD exchange rate volatility is influenced by terms of trade volatility. The findings of this paper reveal that exchange rate volatility in Pakistan results from real shocks rather than nominal shocks.
SYSTEMATIC RISK ASSESMENT USING OLS METHOD - THE CASE OF THE CAPITAL MARKET OF BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA

The Sharpe-Lintner Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) implies a simple linear equation for pricing risky financial assets, individually and in portfolios. CAPM finds that the relevant risk measure of individual financial assets held as a portion of a well-diversified portfolio is not a variance (or a standard deviation) of financial assets, as proposed by the Modern Portfolio Theory, but a contribution of financial assets to the portfolio variance, measured by the financial asset beta. Beta coefficient is the measure of the systematic risk of risky assets. This paper explores beta coefficients of stocks of the Bosnia and Herzegovina capital market. This capital market is new and underdeveloped, with a modest supply of securities and with a small number of marketable securities. It is interesting to explore whether the beta coefficients of domestic stocks are efficient and whether they could be used in portfolio management. The paper employs the OLS method to estimate the standard Sharpe-Linter CAPM model. As in most other new markets, this market has a non-synchronous trading problem, which determined the selection of the sample used in the econometric analysis. A representative sample of stocks with satisfactory marketability is analyzed over a five-year period, i.e. 2005- 2009. The basic hypothesis of the research is: beta coefficient as a measure of systematic risk is a relevant risk measure for the capital market of Bosnia and Herzegovina. A special aim of the paper is to explore whether estimated models satisfy the presumptions of the linear regression model, which is being examined using a series of diagnostic tests. The results of this paper can be widely used and have significant implications for business purposes. Special attention is dedicated to estimating efficient beta coefficients that may be considered as reliable in a wide use of the CAPM model in financial practice.
Effect of level and time of nitrogen application with and without vermicompost on yield, yield attributes and quality of malt barley (Hordeum vulgare)

A field experiment was conducted during the winter (rabi) season of 1998-99 and 1999-2000 at Hisar, to de- termine the impact of N fertilizer applied at different growth stages, with and without vermicompost on yield com- ponents, grain yield and malting quality of barley (Hordeum vulgare L., s.1.) in the first trial and to study the effect of different levels of nitrogen and phosphorus with and without vermicompost on yield and nutrient uptake by barley in the second. Nitrogen application significantly enhanced the grain and straw yields up to 90 kg Nlha. All the yield components, grain yield and nutrient uptake attained their maximum value with 10 tonneslha vermicompost. The grain and malt quality of barley was also influenced significantly with the application of vermicomposf and nitrogen levels. The result indicated that N fertilizer strategies for malting barley should en- sure relatively small amount of available one-third N at sowing for crop establishment and initial tiller develop- ment. Additional one-third N would then be applied at first irrigation (35 days after sowing) and one-third N at flowering (70 days). The highest grain yield and nutrient uptake were recorded with N,,P,, level of fertility.
Guard the guardian: A CRL4 ligase stands watch over histone production

ABSTRACT Histones are evolutionarily conserved proteins that together with DNA constitute eukaryotic chromatin in a defined stoichiometry. Core histones are dynamic scaffolding proteins that undergo a myriad of post-translational modifications, which selectively engage chromosome condensation, replication, transcription and DNA damage repair. Cullin4-RING ubiquitin E3 ligases are known to hold pivotal roles in a wide spectrum of chromatin biology ranging from chromatin remodeling and transcriptional repression, to sensing of cytotoxic DNA lesions. Our recent work uncovers an unexpected function of a CRL4 ligase upstream of these processes in promoting histone biogenesis. The CRL4WDR23 ligase directly controls the activity of the stem-loop binding protein (SLBP), which orchestrates elemental steps of canonical histone transcript metabolism. We demonstrate that non-proteolytic ubiquitination of SLBP ensures sufficient histone reservoirs during DNA replication and is vital for genome integrity and cellular fitness.
A molecular approach to identifying the relationship between resource use and availability in Eurasian otters (Lutra lutra)

In South Korea, the Eurasian otter (Lutra lutra (Linnaeus, 1758)), a semi-aquatic carnivore, is found mainly in lower order streams that tend to have a low abundance of preferred prey fish species. To investigate the relationship between resource use and availability, we used DNA barcoding to identify otter diet items in 24 otter spraints (faeces) from 16 sites along the Nakdong River basin from 4 to 6 June 2014. At these sites fish availability was assessed using scoop nets and casting nets. Fish formed the bulk of otter diet, which included also frogs, mammals, and reptiles. By DNA barcoding (success rate: 72.38%), we identified 79 prey items from 105 bone remains. The diet comprised mostly fish, but frogs, mammals, and reptiles were also identified. The fish fauna and otter diet composition differed significantly. Across the study sites, members of the Cyprinidae dominated in netted samples, but occurred less frequently in otter diet. Because most Cyprinidae are fast swimmers, otters also fed on benthic fishes and frogs, suggesting limited foraging flexibility in otters and specialization on more slowly moving prey.
Female genital mutilation/cutting – towards abandonment of a harmful cultural practice

Globally, the prevalence of, and support for, female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) is declining. However, the entrenched sense of social obligation that propagates the continuation of this practice and the lack of open communication between men and women on this sensitive issue are two important barriers to abandonment. There is limited evidence on the role of men and their experiences in FGM/C. Marriageability of girls is considered to be one of the main driving forces for the continuation of this practice. In some countries, more men than women are advocating to end FGM/C. Moreover, men, as partners to women with FGM/C, also report physical and psychosexual problems. The abandonment process involves expanding a range of successful programs, addressing the human rights priorities of communities and providing power over their own development processes. Anecdotal evidence exists that FGM/C is practised amongst African migrant populations in Australia. The Australian Government supports a taskforce to improve community awareness and education, workforce training and evidence building. Internationally, an African Coordinating Centre for abandonment of FGM/C has been established in Kenya with a major global support group to share research, promote solidarity, advocacy and implement a coordinated and integrated response to abandon FGM/C.
7 Optical Demultiplexing Based on Four-Wave Mixing in Semiconductor Optical Amplifiers

Four-wave mixing (FWM) in semiconductor optical amplifiers (SOAs) has several important features, such as, high speed and high FWM conversion efficiency as well as optical demultiplexing (DEMUX) (Mecozzi et al., 1995; Mecozzi & Mrk, 1997; Das et al., 2000). The are several applications of FWM in SOAs for all-optical devices, such as, wavelength converters (Vahala et al., 1996), optical samplers (Inoue & Kawaguchi, 1998), optical phase conjugators (Kikuchi & Matsumura, 1998) and optical multiplexers/demultiplexers (Kawanishi et al., 1997; Kawanishi et al., 1994; Morioka et al., 1996; Uchiyama et al., 1998; Tomkos et al., 1999; Kirita et al., 1998; Buxens et al., 2000) have been demonstrated for optical communication systems. When a pulse of a time-multiplexed signal train (for example, a probe pulse) and a pump pulse are injected simultaneously into an SOA, gain and refractive index in the SOA are modulated and an FWM signal is generated by the modulations. Thus, we can obtain a demultiplexed signal as an FWM signal at the output of SOA. All-optical demultiplexing has been experimentally demonstrated up to 200 Gbit/s (Morioka et al., 1996). Tomkos et al., (Tomkos et al., 1999) suggested a number of ways to improve the performance of the dual-pump demultiplexer at 40 Gbit/s as follows; adjustment of the input wavelengths at the peak gain wavelength of the SOA under saturation conditions, the use of higher pump power at the input of the device, or/and the use of pulsed pumps with short pulsewidths. For the higher bit-rate, the overlap of the input to the FWM signal pulses may appear both in the time and spectral domain. The pattern effect may also appear in the FWM signal due to the slow components of the optical nonlinearities in SOAs (Saleh & Habbab, 1990). These effects degrade the usefulness of the FWM in SOAs as a practical DEMUX device in optical network/ communication systems. Therefore, it is very important to analysis the optical DEMUX characteristics based on FWM in SOAs for the ultrafast multi-bit input optical pulses.
Tuberculin skin test evaluation in healthcare workers and distribution by occupation

OBJECTIVE: Tuberculosis (TB) is a potential occupational threat for healthcare workers (HCWs) worldwide. We aimed to evaluate the tuberculin skin test (TST) and investigated if there was any difference between occupations. METHODS: This was designed as a prospective study. The analysis was performed on 331 participants. Purified protein derivative was administered to all cases. In addition, cases' age, gender, and smoking status were questioned and their comorbidities were recorded. Both shoulder areas were checked, and the Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) scar counts were recorded. RESULTS: Out of a total of 331 participants, 207 were female and 124 were male; mean age was 39 ± 8 (min; 18, max; 61) and TST was 12 ± 6 mm. The cases were categorized by considering participants' exposure to TB (Group-1 - Doctor; Group-2 - Midwife-Nurse-Health Technician-Laboratorian; Group-3 - Technician-Administrative Staff; Group-4 - Secretary-Auxilliary Staff; and Group-5 - Security, Cleaning, Cafeteria Staff). When compared in terms of TST, there was a statistically significant difference (P < 0.001). The cases had at least 1 and maximum 3 BCG scars. Based on this, three groups were formed. Two hundred and twenty-three cases had 2 scars, 58 had 1, and 41 had 3. Significant difference was found among three groups, and similarly, there was a statistically significant difference in paired comparisons (P < 0.001; for all comparisons). While the difference was detected in the group with two BCG scars, there was no difference in other groups (P = 0.7, 0.001, and 0.5, respectively). There was a significant difference in terms of TST between genders (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Exposure to TB may vary according to professions, but the socioeconomic situation cannot be determined by professions.
Success factors in university–industry PhD projects

Faced with ever-increasing pressure to innovate, firms consider universities to be significant sources of knowledge. Such knowledge flow can take place in a variety of ways such as academic publications and contract research, but also in more collaborative modes such as joint research projects. This paper focuses on a specific collaborative model, in which firms and universities are involved together in a PhD project. We analyze the effects of project management, communication, and supervision characteristics on the success of such PhD projects using a survey conducted at Eindhoven University of Technology, the Netherlands. We conclude that management decisions, supervision and communication characteristics have a significant impact on the ultimate success of a project. Among other things, the choice of university supervisor plays a pivotal role. Success is more likely if there is joint decision-making by both university and partner. We believe our findings help universities and firms to collaborate successfully.