Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Understanding the Dynamics of Labor Income Inequality in Latin America

Since the early 2000s, after a long period of wide and persistent gaps, Latin America has experienced a steady decline in income inequality. This paper presents evidence of a trend reversal in labor income inequality, which is considered the main factor behind such a decline in income inequality across the region. The analysis shows that, while labor income inequality increased during the 1990s, with heterogeneous experiences across countries, it fell in a synchronized way across countries beginning in the early 2000s. This systematic decline was supported by an expansion in real hourly earnings among the bottom of the wage distribution and, to a lesser extent, the middle part of the earnings distribution, thus reducing upper and lower tail inequality. This trend reversal is explained by a lower dispersion of earnings among workers with observable different attributes and by a much less extensive dispersion of residual labor inequality. Regarding the earnings differentials among workers with observable different attributes, the analysis concludes that the decline in labor inequality in Latin America has been closely associated with a reduction in the college/primary education premium and in the urban-rural earnings gap, coupled with a steady drop in the high school/primary education premium, which accelerated markedly since the 2000s, as well as a reduction in the experience premium across all age groups.
Evidence for altered platelet nitric oxide synthesis in essential hypertension

Objectives: To determine whether platelet aggregation to collagen was abnormal in patients with essential hypertension and whether nitric oxide donors and inhibitors of nitric oxide synthesis affect platelet aggregation differently in hypertensives compared with healthy controls Design: Platelet aggregation assays were conducted ex vivo from both hypertensive and normal subjects simultaneously Methods: Platelet aggregation in response to collagen was measured in platelet-rich plasma from 16 patients with untreated essential hypertension and 16 healthy volunteers matched for age, sex and smoking habits. The effect of sodium nitroprusside (a nitric oxide donor) and NG- monomethyl-L-arginine (L-NMMA), a specific nitric oxide synthase inhibitor, was studied Results: In healthy controls L-NMMA caused a marked increase in platelet aggregation, whereas in hypertensive patients a small inhibition of aggregation was seen. This was significantly different from the response seen in normal controls. No difference was seen in the aggregatory response to collagen between hypertensive patients and healthy controls. Sodium nitroprusside caused inhibition of aggregation in hypertensive patients and in controls, but there was no significant difference in the degree of inhibition between the two groups Conclusions: We conclude that in platelets from hypertensive patients there is a markedly reduced sensitivity to L-NMMA, which could be explained by a reduction in nitric oxide synthesis
Diagnostic utility of microsatellite genotyping for molar pregnancy testing.

CONTEXT Molecular genotyping by analysis of DNA microsatellites, also known as short tandem repeats (STRs), is an established method for diagnosing and classifying hydatidiform mole. Distinction of both complete hydatidiform mole and partial hydatidiform mole from nonmolar specimens is relevant for clinical management owing to differences in risk for persistent gestational trophoblastic disease. OBJECTIVE To determine the technical performance of microsatellite genotyping by using a commercially available multiplex assay, and to describe the application of additional methods to confirm other genetic abnormalities detected by the genotyping assay. DESIGN Microsatellite genotyping data on 102 cases referred for molar pregnancy testing are presented. A separate panel of mini STR markers, flow cytometry, fluorescence in situ hybridization, and p57 immunohistochemistry were used to characterize cases with other incidental genetic abnormalities. RESULTS Forty-eight cases were classified as hydatidiform mole (31, complete hydatidiform mole; 17, partial hydatidiform mole). Genotyping also revealed 11 cases of suspected trisomy and 1 case of androgenetic/biparental mosaicism. Trisomy for selected chromosomes (13, 16, 18, and 21) was confirmed in all cases by using a panel of mini STR markers. CONCLUSIONS This series illustrates the utility of microsatellite genotyping as a stand-alone method for accurate classification of hydatidiform mole. Other genetic abnormalities may be detected by genotyping; confirmation of the suspected abnormality requires additional testing.
Large brachial artery diameter is associated with angiographic coronary artery disease in women.

BACKGROUND Noninvasive methods are needed for the identification of women at highest risk for coronary artery disease (CAD) who might benefit most from aggressive preventive therapy. Identification of brachial artery atherosclerosis, which correlates with coronary artery atherosclerosis, may be useful to estimate or stratify CAD risk. Because atherosclerosis disrupts the arterial architecture that regulates vessel size, we hypothesized that noninvasively measured large brachial artery diameter is a manifestation of atherosclerosis that is associated with angiographic CAD in women with chest pain. METHODS We examined 376 women (mean age, 57.1 years) with chest pain in the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute's Women's Ischemia Syndrome Evaluation study who underwent B-mode ultrasound scan measurement of brachial artery diameter at rest and during hyperemic stress (to quantify flow-mediated dilation), quantitative coronary angiography, and risk factor assessment. RESULTS Large resting brachial artery diameter was associated with significant angiographic CAD (3.90 +/- 0.79 mm vs 3.52 +/- 0.59 mm in women with CAD vs no CAD; P <.001). Impaired flow-mediated dilation, which correlated with resting diameter (r = -0.17; P =.001), was weakly associated with significant CAD (2.74% +/- 7.11% vs 4.48% +/- 9.52% in CAD vs no CAD; P =.046). After adjustment for age, body size, and CAD risk factors, women with large resting brachial artery diameters (>4.1 mm) had 3.6-fold increased odds (95% confidence interval, 1.8 to 7.1; P <.001) of significant angiographic CAD compared with those with small brachial arteries (</=3.6 mm). CONCLUSION Large resting brachial artery diameter is an independent predictor of significant CAD in women with chest pain. Therefore, a simple ultrasonographic technique may be useful in the identification of women with chest pain who are at increased risk for CAD.
Middle School Teacher Beliefs about Classroom Diversity and Their Influence on Differentiated Instructional Practices

Diversity across U.S. classrooms is on the rise which is leading to renewed calls for teachers to meet individual learning needs. Studies indicate the failure to address individual learning needs can lead to higher rates of student disengagement, off-task behaviors, and diminished learning outcomes. Differentiated instruction is an approach to teaching that meets the growing diversity of individual learning needs by considering students’ readiness, interest, and learning styles. Differentiated instructional approaches help teachers meet individual learning needs by allowing them to modify instruction as needed. However, despite the apparent benefits of differentiated instruction, teachers are hesitant to abandon other educational models. Research has shown beliefs about student learning influence teachers classroom practices. If teachers do not possess beliefs supporting differentiated classroom practices, then calls for additional implementation may go unheeded. Thus it is important to examine teacher beliefs that may help or hinder implementation of differentiated instructional practices. The purpose of this study was to explore teacher beliefs connected to teaching, learning, and differentiated instruction in diverse classrooms. This study used qualitative case study methodologies to interview, survey, and observe the beliefs and practices of four white, female, veteran middle level educators operating in diverse classroom settings. Data analysis led to the identification of revealed the following themes: (a) differentiated instruction is considered essential, (b) teachers’ diversity definitions influenced their differentiated instructional strategies, (c) the classroom environment influences teachers self-efficacy, and (d) professional development sessions support differentiated instructional practices. Conclusions drawn
Molecular Evolutionary Patterns in Breast Cancer

Geno-phenotypic patterns of pre-invasive and invasive lobular breast cancers and infiltrating ductal carcinomas of low, intermediate, and high grade are reviewed. One of the main differences between lobular breast cancers and ductal carcinomas is the presence of inactivating E-cadherin gene mutations in lobular breast cancers. In many other respects, lobular breast cancers and low-grade ductal carcinomas exhibit similar geno-phenotypic profiles. The development of p53 dysfunction may be a hallmark of infiltrating ductal cancers of intermediate and high grade. Sequential Her-2/neu and ras abnormalities define a subset of aggressive high-grade tumors, and the development of Rb dysfunction may define a separate subset of aggressive ductal cancers. Based on these observations, a branching molecular evolutionary model for the development and progression of breast cancer is proposed.
Adipose-Derived Stromal Cells from Lipomas: Isolation, Characterisation and Review of the Literature

Objective: The aim of this study was to characterize adipose-derived stromal cells (ADSCs) from patients diagnosed with multiple symmetric lipomatosis (MSL) in order to obtain potentially new insights into the pathophysiology, pathogenesis and treatment of this disease. Methods: Cells from the stromal vascular fraction were analysed by the colony-forming efficiency assay and flow cytometry using standard markers. Moreover, the power of adipogenic plasticity was evaluated. Finally, a literature review was performed from 1982 to 2015 using the US National Institutes of Health's PubMed database. Results: Three European-descent patients diagnosed with either MSL type I or II could be identified for analysis. The resulting mean colony-forming efficiency assay was 14.3 ± 5%. Flow-cytometric analysis of the ADSCs revealed high levels of CD34 (70 ± 9%), CD45 (37 ± 13%) and CD73 (55.8 ± 14%), whereas low levels of CD31 (16.8 ± 14%) and CD105 (5.8 ± 0.7%) were detected. Furthermore, ADSCs showed a strong adipogenic potential, which is in line with the literature review. The stem cell pool in lipoma shows several alterations in biological activities, such as proliferation, apoptosis and stemness. Conclusions: ADSCs from lipoma may be interesting in the application of regenerative medicine. We discuss possible molecular treatment options to regulate their activities at the source of the MSL.
Multi-DOF 3D printing with visual surveillance

In this poster, we propose a multi-DOF (degree of freedom) 3D printing system with visual surveillance assistance. Different from common 3D printers with only three translational axes, our printer is equipped with two additional rotational axes, and a visual surveillance module which helps to enhance the printing precision during the rotation. The input model is first segmented such that each part can be printed in a direction with less supporting material. We demonstrate that the proposed system could save most of the supporting materials compared to existing works.
Endotoxemic renal failure in mice: Role of tumor necrosis factor independent of inducible nitric oxide synthase.

BACKGROUND Renal failure is a frequent complication of sepsis with a high mortality. Tumor necrosis factor (TNF) has been suggested to be a factor in the acute renal failure in sepsis or endotoxemia. Recent studies also suggest involvement of nitric oxide (NO), generated by inducible NO synthase (iNOS), in the pathogenesis of endotoxin-induced renal failure. The present study tested the hypothesis that the role of TNF in endotoxic renal failure is mediated by iNOS-derived NO. METHODS Renal function was evaluated in endotoxemic [Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide (LPS), 5 mg/kg IP] wild-type and iNOS knockout mice. The effect of TNF neutralization on renal function during endotoxemia in mice was assessed by a TNF-soluble receptor (TNFsRp55). RESULTS An injection of LPS to wild-type mice resulted in a 70% decrease in glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and in a 40% reduction in renal plasma flow (RPF) 16 hours after the injection. The results occurred independent of hypotension, morphological changes, apoptosis, and leukocyte accumulation. In mice pretreated with TNFsRp55, only a 30% decrease in GFR without a significant change in RPF in response to LPS, as compared with vehicle-treated mice, was observed. Also, the serum NO concentration was significantly lower in endotoxemic wild-type mice pretreated with TNFsRp55, as compared with untreated endotoxemic wild-type mice (260 +/- 52 vs. 673 +/- 112 micromol/L, P < 0.01). In LPS-injected iNOS knockout mice and wild-type mice treated with a selective iNOS inhibitor, 1400W, the development of renal failure was similar to that in wild-type mice. As in wild-type mice, TNFsRp55 significantly attenuated the decrease in GFR (a 33% decline, as compared with 75% without TNFsRp55) without a significant change in RPF in iNOS knockout mice given LPS. CONCLUSIONS These results demonstrate a role of TNF in the early renal dysfunction (16 h) in a septic mouse model independent of iNOS, hypotension, apoptosis, leukocyte accumulation, and morphological alterations, thus suggesting renal hypoperfusion secondary to an imbalance between, as yet to be defined, renal vasoconstrictors and vasodilators.
Diverse Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1 Thymidine Kinase Mutants in Individual Human Neurons and Ganglia

ABSTRACT Mutations in the thymidine kinase gene (tk) of herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) explain most cases of virus resistance to acyclovir (ACV) treatment. Mucocutaneous lesions of patients with ACV resistance contain mixed populations of tk mutant and wild-type virus. However, it is unknown whether human ganglia also contain mixed populations since the replication of HSV tk mutants in animal neurons is impaired. Here we report the detection of mutated HSV tk sequences in human ganglia. Trigeminal and dorsal root ganglia were obtained at autopsy from an immunocompromised woman with chronic mucocutaneous infection with ACV-resistant HSV-1. The HSV-1 tk open reading frames from ganglia were amplified by PCR, cloned, and sequenced. tk mutations were detected in a seven-G homopolymer region in 11 of 12 ganglia tested, with clonal frequencies ranging from 4.2 to 76% HSV-1 tk mutants per ganglion. In 8 of 11 ganglia, the mutations were heterogeneous, varying from a deletion of one G to an insertion of one to three G residues, with the two-G insertion being the most common. Each ganglion had its own pattern of mutant populations. When individual neurons from one ganglion were analyzed by laser capture microdissection and PCR, 6 of 14 HSV-1-positive neurons were coinfected with HSV tk mutants and wild-type virus, 4 of 14 were infected with wild-type virus alone, and 4 of 14 were infected with tk mutant virus alone. These data suggest that diverse tk mutants arise independently under drug selection and establish latency in human sensory ganglia alone or together with wild-type virus.
Pseudo-Outbreak of Imipenem-Resistant Acinetobacter baumannii Resulting from False Susceptibility Testing by a Rapid Automated System

ABSTRACT Introduction of the Vitek GNS-506 susceptibility testing cards in the Hippokration General Hospital, Thessaloniki, Greece, resulted in an apparently high prevalence of imipenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii. When 35 of these isolates were further tested by disk diffusion, broth microdilution, and agar dilution assays, 32 were imipenem sensitive by all tests and three were sensitive or intermediate, depending on the method. The pseudoresistant acinetobacters did not form a genetically homogeneous group. It is suggested that the detection of imipenem-resistant A. baumannii isolates by this system should be confirmed by an additional susceptibility test.
Income mobility, persistent inequality and age, recent experiences from Finland

We use a very large register based Finnish income panel data with detailed information on the composition of income over a ten year time period, 1995–2004 to examine Finnish income mobility. We use measures of income mobility which are based on the degree of income reduction over time (Shorrocks 1978). There is significant income mobility in the Finnish income distribution and mobility is decreasing with age and with a further drop near retirement age. We find a decrease in income mobility if the late 1990’s are compared with early 2000’s. The drop in mobility is largest among the youngest age groups and the probability of staying in the lowest income decile has also increased. Permanent income inequality has increased in five year cumulated incomes. The results suggest that distribution of lifetime income has widened. Since there has a general downward trend in mobility affecting the working age groups the income mobility in the groups 50–54 and 55–59 years old are currently at the same level as in the age group 60–64 old. Decompositions of cumulated incomes by income components reveal that the increase in annual values of income inequality has been transformed almost one-toone into an increase in permanent inequality. Capital income although it represents in our data less than 5 percent of the total equivalised disposable income has increased its contribution to overall inequality equally to that of labour income which represents for about 95 percent of disposable income. Similar analysis of gross income reveals that the recent decline in the progressivity of taxation seems to be permanent and not due to temporal year to year variation.
Growth Mindset, Performance Avoidance, and Academic Behaviors in Clark County School District. REL 2017-226.

This study examined student and teacher attitudes and beliefs about growth mindset (beliefs about the malleability of ability and the payoff for student effort), performance avoidance (hiding one’s effort or refraining from making an effort due to concerns of failure or embarrassment), and academic behaviors (such as completing homework and participating in class) in Nevada’s Clark County School District. Most students reported beliefs that are consistent with a growth mindset. Students’ reported levels of growth mindset, performance avoidance, and academic behaviors differed significantly by grade level, prior academic achievement, English learner status, and race/ethnicity. By contrast, for the most part teachers’ beliefs did not vary significantly according to the characteristics of the students in their schools.
A time and space routing game model applied to visibility competition on online social networks

Companies or users that want to do advertising on Online Social Networks, need to know in which News Feed it would be more efficient to post, at what time of day the posts would have more visibility and which topic of message they should choose to reach popularity. We propose to answer these questions with the help of the Routing Game Theory, which considers a finite number of players and splittable demands. First, we propose a visibility measure on a News Feed. Next, we present our game based on visibility measures, which is similar to the Weighted Allocation Game. Following this consideration, we provide the uniqueness of the Nash Equilibrium, a characterization via concave programming, and its closed form. Then, we propose a two time scale decentralized algorithm where each user estimates the total flow of messages in each News Feed and uses stochastic gradient algorithm to update their own flows. Finally, we use a real data set in order to estimate the parameters of our model. The goal of this model is to provide to the Online Social Network Authority a better knowledge of posting behavior of competitive users.
Comparative analysis of glucagonergic cells, glia, and the circumferential marginal zone in the reptilian retina

Retinal progenitors in the circumferential marginal zone (CMZ) and Müller glia‐derived progenitors have been well described for the eyes of fish, amphibians, and birds. However, there is no information regarding a CMZ and the nature of retinal glia in species phylogenetically bridging amphibians and birds. The purpose of this study was to examine the retinal glia and investigate whether a CMZ is present in the eyes of reptilian species. We used immunohistochemical analyses to study retinal glia, neurons that could influence CMZ progenitors, the retinal margin, and the nonpigmented epithelium of ciliary body of garter snakes, queen snakes, anole lizards, snapping turtles, and painted turtles. We compare our observations on reptile eyes to the CMZ and glia of fish, amphibians, and birds. In all species, Sox9, Pax6, and the glucocorticoid receptor are expressed by Müller glia and cells at the retinal margin. However, proliferating cells were found only in the CMZ of turtles and not in the eyes of anoles and snakes. Similar to eyes of chickens, the retinal margin in turtles contains accumulations of GLP1/glucagonergic neurites. We find that filamentous proteins, vimentin and GFAP, are expressed by Müller glia, but have different patterns of subcellular localization in the different species of reptiles. We provide evidence that the reptile retina may contain nonastrocytic inner retinal glial cells, similar to those described in the avian retina. We conclude that the retinal glia, glucagonergic neurons, and CMZ of turtles appear to be most similar to those of fish, amphibians, and birds. J. Comp. Neurol. 524:74–89, 2016. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Activity performance, life satisfaction and locus of control in young women on sick leave.

OBJECTIVES (1) To elucidate the impact of long-term sick leave on activity patterns, life roles and life satisfaction in younger women; and (2) to deduce the locus of control orientation in these women. STUDY DESIGN Twelve women aged 21-30 years were interviewed in their own home concerning activities in daily life, family and work situations. A questionnaire containing checklists on activity preferences, occupational roles, life satisfaction, and locus of control was mailed to the participants prior to the interview. RESULTS Most of the women experienced restrictions in their activity pattern. Six of the women reported that they did not possess a role as a worker, while the majority had and appreciated the roles as home-maintainer, partner, family member and friend. Six of the women were satisfied with life as a whole. Only two were satisfied with vocational and financial situations. The mean value of locus of control indicates an external orientation. CONCLUSIONS Rehabilitation interventions for these clients need to be broad and problem-oriented. Occupational therapists seem to have an important role in assisting in the restoration of a more satisfactory life.