Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The structural relationship between TQM, employee satisfaction and hotel performance

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the structural relationships between total quality management (TQM) and employee satisfaction and hotel performance. ,A judgmental sampling technique was employed in this study. A total of 25 (four- and five-star) hotels were selected in four cities in Malaysia. A total of 625 questionnaires were distributed randomly to both employees and managers. ,The results of this study showed that seven TQM constructs have significant relationships with employee satisfaction and hotel performance. Leadership and customer focus play significant roles in enhancing employee satisfaction and hotel performance. ,Employees who are highly satisfied with their jobs will be willing to support their coworkers. They will be loyal to their jobs and enhance hotel performance. Hoteliers must provide a friendly working atmosphere, as well as a blueprint and strategic map, to increase employee satisfaction and improve hotel performance. ,This research study provides a substantial contribution to the hospitality management literature by explaining how TQM practices can be used as a predictor of employee satisfaction and consequently improve hotel performance. A better understanding of these relationships will help hoteliers in developing their marketing strategies to maintain the relationship with hotel customers.
Do Agritourism Visitors Care about Landscapes? An Examination with Producer-Level Data

This article develops a random utility model of tourist demand for agritourism destinations. Prior research has largely focused on modeling the effect of visitor characteristics and demographics on the demand for agritourism. In contrast, we analyze cross-section data on producer-reported visits to measure the effects of destination attributes. This allows us to examine whether tourists choose destinations based on landscape attributes. The destination choice model is applied to agritourism demand in Oklahoma. We calculate elasticities from both conditional logit and Poisson interpretations of the model. The results provide no evidence that landscapes affect the demand for single-day sites, but do suggest local land use plays a role in the demand for overnight destinations.
Equity, Sustainability and Incentive-Based Conservation Measures. Community Reflections from Mt. Elgon, Uganda

Incentive-based measures are increasingly being employed as a strong motive to encourage conservation yet the evidence that they are generating sustainable resource-use, improving rural livelihoods or aiding biodiversity protection remains inconclusive. To provide empirical evidence to this discourse, in this study the McDermott et al (2013) equity framework is used to explore how different benefit-sharing arrangements have shaped twenty-five years of Integrated Conservation and Development projects (ICDP) neighbouring the Mt. Elgon National Park, Uganda. Applying a self-reported, post-hoc, quasi-experimental design, a time-series of participatory mapping activities revealed that despite the willingness of targeted groups to adopt ‘green’ technologies (distributional equity), maintaining and up-scaling these activities remained limited at the landscape level. Social network analysis uncovered that limited knowledge, restricted access (contextual equity) and the lack of inclusion in decision-making (procedural equity) impeded this development. Tracking the Mt. Elgon Regional Eco-System Conservation Programme (MERECP) as a specific case study, the analyses then showed that wealthier members of society and the political elite were the principle beneficiaries of conservation inputs. In the cases where these institutionalised hierarchies were purposely sidestepped (a measure to ensure marginalised stakeholders gained funds), cases of conflict and resentment arose. Overall, communities that had loose, expansive conservation networks adopted the greatest number of simple technologies. Nevertheless, those that have built a high level of trust both amongst one another and with supporting organisations resulted in the most socially equitable and biologically efficient outcomes. Portraying a future rich in sustainable land-use practises, communities do aspire to protecting their natural resources. Whilst this may be a time-consuming, expensive process, building sound adaptive ‘co-management’ relationships that respect cultural norms, provide suitable alternatives and maximises local knowledge is the key to implementing incentive-based conservation measures across Mt. Elgon.
Quantifying levels of function between different subgroups of chronic ankle instability

The purpose of this original investigation was to determine if selected sensorimotor, mechanical, and self‐reported measures are different among chronic ankle instability (CAI) subgroups, healthy control participants, and lateral ankle sprain copers (LAS‐Copers). Ninety‐four participants volunteered and were categorized into perceived ankle instability (PI) alone (n = 13), recurrent ankle sprains (RAS) alone (n = 12), PI in combination with RAS (PI‐RAS; n = 25), LAS‐Copers (n = 18), and controls (n = 26). Participants completed self‐assessed global, regional, and psychological health‐related quality‐of‐life (HRQOL) questionnaires and assessments of sensorimotor function and mechanical joint laxity. One‐way ANOVAs were performed with the intention of reducing the number of original outcomes into a smaller number of predictor variables. Discriminant functional analysis was used to establish which specific measures best differentiate between groups. Eight outcome measures from neural excitability, postural control, static postural control, and HRQOL showed a significant differentiation between five groups (Wilk's λ = 0.26, χ232 = 114 45, P < 0.001, canonical correlation = 0.80) and correctly determined only 58.1% of group membership, and the PI‐RAS and control groups were the only fit in the proposed model. A different model or other sensorimotor outcomes from more dynamic and complex tasks may be needed for the PI, RAS, and LAS‐Coper groups.
Food scare crisis: the effect on Serbian dairy market

The increasing trend of food scandal crises is not well followed in recent studies of spatial price transmission. This paper analyses the impact on the domestic market of an Aflatoxin M1 outbreak in the Serbian dairy sector during 2013/2014 using a spatial price transmission approach. Monthly farm milk prices in Serbia for the period 2007/2014 were contrasted with leading dairy exporting countries New Zealand, USA and Germany, which did not have a food scare in their dairy sectors. To estimate the impacts a Markov-switching vector error-correction model was utilized. For all four dairy markets the model identified two price change regimes: standard and extreme. Although it was predictable, an extreme regime was not identified during the Aflatoxin M1 crises in Serbia because of some specific characteristics of its dairy production. The results suggest that the Aflatoxin M1 outbreak ‘froze’ the Serbian dairy market and temporally disconnected it from the world milk market. Farmer’s prices fell below their l.
An Assembly and Offset Assignment Scheme for Self-similar Traffic in Optical Burst Switched Networks

This paper proposes a Forward Equivalence Classification (FEC) assembly scheme to efficiently assemble self-similar traffic and a Pareto-offset assignment scheme for offset assignment. Two buffers, a packet buffer and a burst buffer, are implemented at the Label Edge Router (LER) to buffer traffic in the electronic domain. Burst assembly and offset assignment schemes are implemented in a complementary manner to improve QoS of an OBS network. We show that OBS network performance is directly related to burst assembly and offset assignment. We present simulation results of the assembly and offset assignment proposals using the ns2 network simulator. Our results show that combining the proposed FEC-Based assembly scheme and the Pareto-offset assignment scheme gives better network performance in terms of burst drop, resource contention, and delay.
Campylobacter jejuni infection in the ferret: an animal model of human campylobacteriosis.

Campylobacter infection in weanling ferrets (Mustela putorius furo) was studied as an animal model for enteric campylobacteriosis in persons. The screening of fecal cultures on selective campylobacter media showed that Campylobacter jejuni/coli was not present in the normal enteric flora. Intragastric feeding of a mixture of cat feed and 2.5 X 10(8) C jejuni isolated from ferrets with naturally occurring proliferative colitis was accomplished. All ferrets (n = 8) became infected on 3 days after they were inoculated, and at 5 to 7 days, they had bile-tinged, liquid feces with excessive mucus and blood. Ferrets gradually recovered from the diarrhea, and feces were normal 10 to 14 days after inoculation was done. Feces contained C jejuni at 14, 23, 28, 39, 46, 60, 91, 101, 109 and 144 days. In the second experiment, weanling ferrets initially were treated with 10% sodium bicarbonate, and 1 X 10(10) C jejuni organisms were administered in the cat feed. Diarrhea with fecal leukocytes and occult blood with occasional mucus appeared in almost all of the 21 ferrets from days 4 through 7. Campylobacter jejuni was isolated from the blood of 11 ferrets between 3 hours and 14 days after they were inoculated. Campylobacter jejuni bactericidal antibodies were present in serum samples at 14 days, with titers of 1:16 to 1:32. Intestinal lesions including cellular infiltration with mononuclear and polymorphonuclear leukocytes were in the lamina propria of the pyloric mucosa and small intestine of infected and control ferrets. The colon of 3 infected ferrets had small focal infiltrates of neutrophils on the lamina propria; one ferret had perivascular cuffing. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor captopril reverses the adverse cardiovascular effects of polymerized hemoglobin.

AIM Cell-free hemoglobin-based oxygen carriers (HBOCs) may increase the risk of myocardial infarction and death. We studied the effect of an angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor on HBOC-induced adverse cardiovascular outcomes and elucidated the underlying mechanisms. RESULTS With a dog cardiopulmonary bypass model, we demonstrated that a high-dose HBOC (3%, w/v) did not reduce-but aggravated-cardiac ischemia/reperfusion injury. Animals administered a high-dose HBOC experienced coronary artery constriction and depression of cardiac function. Exposure of isolated coronary arteries or human umbilical vein endothelial cells to high-dose HBOC caused impaired endothelium-dependent relaxation, increased endothelial cell necrosis/apoptosis, and elevated NAD(P)H oxidase expression (gp91(phox), p47(phox), p67(phox), and Nox1) and reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. All observed adverse outcomes could be suppressed by the ACE inhibitor captopril (100 μM). Co-incubation with free radical scavenger tempol or NAD(P)H oxidase inhibitor apocynin had no effect on captopril action, suggesting that the positive effects of captopril are ROS- and NAD(P)H oxidase dependent. ACE inhibition by captopril also contributed to these effects. In addition, bioavailable nitrite oxide (NO) reduced by high-dose HBOC was preserved by captopril. Furthermore, HBOC, at concentrations greater than 0.5%, inhibited large conductance Ca(2+)-activated K(+) channel currents in vascular smooth muscle cells in a dose-dependent manner, although captopril failed to improve current activity, providing additional evidence that captopril's effects are mediated by the endothelium, but not by the smooth muscle. INNOVATION AND CONCLUSION Captopril alleviates high-dose HBOC-induced endothelial dysfunction and myocardial toxicity, which is mediated by synergistic depression of NAD(P)H oxidase subunit overproduction and increases in vascular NO bioavailability.
Hollow Chevrel-Phase NiMo3 S4 for Hydrogen Evolution in Alkaline Electrolytes.

Electrochemical water splitting to generate molecular hydrogen requires catalysts that are cheap, active, and stable, particularly for alkaline electrolyzers, where the cathodic hydrogen evolution reaction is slower in base than in acid even on platinum. Herein, we describe the synthesis of new hollow Chevrel-phase NiMo3 S4 and its alkaline hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) performance: onset potential of -59 mV, Tafel slope of 98 mV per decade, and exchange current density of 3.9×10-2 mA cm-2 . This Chevrel-phase chalcogenide also demonstrates outstanding long-term stability under harsh HER cycling conditions. Chevrel-phase nanomaterials show promise as efficient, low-cost catalysts for alkaline electrolyzers.
Blessing or Burden? The Impact of Peace Services on Peace and Violence in Nepal

Recent literature highlights the potential of infrastructures for peace for peacebuilding and violence prevention. An increasing number of studies examine cases of infrastructures for peace, yet little is known about the services individuals actually use when facing conflict. This study investigates local agency in the context of infrastructures for peace in Nepal. Adopting a quantitative approach, we explore the relationship between use of third party support for dealing with conflict (‘peace services’) and individual experiences of peace and violence. Results show that the more respondents reported use of services that actively engage their recipients in dealing with their conflicts, such as mediation, the more peace they experienced in different dimensions of their lives and the lower their propensity for violence was. In contrast, the more respondents reported use of services that require only passive involvement and do not directly focus on the conflict at hand, such as sharing information, the less intrapersonal and intercommunity peace they experienced and the higher their propensity for violence was. Encouraging the use of active peace services could allow more people to enjoy their benefits and ultimately prevent violence and strengthen peace. Future research could further explore the linkages between everyday use of third party support and people's experience of peace and violent behaviour, including direction of effect.
Prediction of irinotecan pharmacokinetics by use of cytochrome P450 3A4 phenotyping probes.

BACKGROUND Irinotecan is a topoisomerase I inhibitor that has been approved for use as a first- and second-line treatment for colorectal cancer. The response to irinotecan is variable, possibly because of interindividual variation in the expression of the enzymes that metabolize irinotecan, including cytochrome P450 3A4 (CYP3A4) and uridine diphosphate glucuronosyltransferase 1A1 (UGT1A1). We prospectively explored the relationships between CYP3A phenotype, as assessed by erythromycin metabolism and midazolam clearance, and the metabolism of irinotecan and its active metabolite SN-38. METHODS Of the 30 white cancer patients, 27 received at least two treatments with irinotecan administered as one 90-minute infusion (dose, 600 mg) with 3 weeks between treatments, and three received only one treatment. Before the first and second treatments, patients underwent an erythromycin breath test and a midazolam clearance test as phenotyping probes for CYP3A4. Erythromycin metabolism was assessed as the area under the curve for the flux of radioactivity in exhaled CO2 within 40 minutes after administration of [N-methyl-14C]erythromycin. Midazolam and irinotecan were measured by high-performance liquid chromatography. Genomic DNA was isolated from blood and screened for genetic variants in CYP3A4 and UGT1A1. All statistical tests were two-sided. RESULTS CYP3A4 activity varied sevenfold (range = 0.223%-1.53% of dose) among patients, whereas midazolam clearance varied fourfold (range = 262-1012 mL/min), although intraindividual variation was small. Erythromycin metabolism was not statistically significantly associated with irinotecan clearance (P = .090), whereas midazolam clearance was highly correlated with irinotecan clearance (r = .745, P<.001). In addition, the presence of a UGT1A1 variant with a (TA)7 repeat in the promoter (UGT1A1*28) was associated with increased exposure to SN-38 (435 ng x h/mL, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 339 to 531 ng x h/mL in patients who are homozygous for wild-type UGT1A1; 631 ng x h/mL, 95% CI = 499 to 762 ng . h/mL in heterozygous patients; and 1343 ng x h/mL, 95% CI = 0 to 4181 ng x h/mL in patients who are homozygous for UGT1A1*28) (P = .006). CONCLUSION CYP3A4 phenotype, as assessed by midazolam clearance, is statistically significantly associated with irinotecan pharmacokinetics. Evaluation of midazolam clearance combined with UGT1A1*28 genotyping may assist with optimization of irinotecan chemotherapy.
Performance Improvement of Nitrogen Oxide Gas Sensors Using Au Catalytic Metal on SnO2/WO3 Complex Nanoparticle Sensing Layer

In this paper, to improve the sensing performances, the layers of SnO<sub>2</sub>/WO<sub>3</sub> complex nanoparticles, instead of pure SnO<sub>2</sub> or WO<sub>3</sub>, were applied for sensing nitrogen oxide (NO) gas. In general, the SnO<sub>2</sub> and WO<sub>3</sub> nanoparticles provide a large sensing area and, respectively, possess well sensing capability for NO and NO<sub>2</sub> gases. Because NO gas is prone to be transformed into NO<sub>2</sub> gas in the environment, the gas sensors with SnO<sub>2</sub>:WO<sub>3</sub> (1:0.25) complex nanoparticle sensing layer exhibited better NO sensing response compared with the gas sensors with pure SnO<sub>2</sub> nanoparticle sensing layer. Furthermore, by performing an annealing process at 500 °C and then depositing a gold (Au) catalytic metal layer on the annealed SnO<sub>2</sub>/WO<sub>3</sub> complex nanoparticles, the resulting NO gas sensors exhibited the sensing response of 10.61 under the NO gas concentration of 1 ppm. Moreover, the lowest detection limit of the NO gas sensors with Au covered SnO<sub>2</sub>:WO<sub>3</sub> (1:0.25) complex nanoparticle sensing layer was also extended from 200 to 150 ppb compared with the ones without Au catalytic metal.
Poly(I:C) Treatment Leads to Interferon-Dependent Clearance of Hepatitis B Virus in a Hydrodynamic Injection Mouse Model

ABSTRACT We have previously shown that poly(I:C) activates murine hepatic cells to produce interferon (IFN) and suppresses hepatitis B virus (HBV) replication in vitro. Therefore, we addressed whether poly(I:C) is able to induce the clearance of HBV in vivo. The chronic HBV replication mouse model was established by the hydrodynamic injection (HI) of pAAV-HBV1.2 into the tail veins of wild-type and IFN-α/βR-, IFN-γ-, and CXCR3-deficient C57BL/6 mice. Fourteen days post-HI of pAAV-HBV1.2, mice were administered poly(I:C) by intraperitoneal injection, intramuscular injection, or HI. Only treatment of poly(I:C) by HI led to HBV clearance in wild-type C57BL/6 mice. Serum HBsAg disappeared within 40 days postinfection (dpi) in mice that received poly(I:C) by HI, and this was accompanied by the appearance of anti-HBs antibodies. HBV-specific T-cell and antibody responses were significantly enhanced by HI of poly(I:C). HBV replication intermediates and HBcAg-positive hepatocytes were eliminated in the liver. HI of poly(I:C) induced the production of IFNs in mice and enhanced the levels of cytokines, IFN-stimulated genes, and T-cell markers in the liver. Importantly, poly(I:C)-induced HBV clearance was impaired in IFN-α/βR-, IFN-γ-, and CXCR3-deficient mice, indicating that the induction of type I IFN and the stimulation and recruitment of T cells into the liver are essential for HBV clearance in this model. Taken together, the application of poly(I:C) by HI into the liver enhances innate and adaptive immune responses and leads to HBV clearance in an HBV mouse model, implicating the potential of intrahepatic Toll-like receptor 3 (TLR3) activation for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B patients. IMPORTANCE It has become well accepted that immunomodulation is a potentially useful approach to treat chronic viral infection. Recently, combinations of antiviral treatment and therapeutic vaccinations were evaluated for therapies of chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. Activation of the innate immune branch may also be important for viral control and contributes to HBV clearance. Our present study demonstrated that hepatic TLR3 activation led to clearance of hepatitis B virus in an HBV mouse model. For the first time, we showed that HBV clearance in this model is dependent not only on type I interferon (IFN) but also on type II IFN, indicating a coordinated action of innate and adaptive immune responses. T-cell recruitment appeared to be critical for the success of TLR3-mediated antiviral action. These findings implicate the potential of intrahepatic TLR3 activation for the treatment of chronic HBV infection.
Transpupillary thermotherapy for age-related macular degeneration: long-pulse photocoagulation, apoptosis, and heat shock proteins.

OBJECTIVE To provide a biophysical foundation for using transpupillary thermotherapy (TTT) to manage choroidal neovascularization in age-related macular degeneration (ARMD). METHODS Retinal temperature rise in laser therapy is proportional to retinal irradiance (laser power/area) for a particular spot size, exposure duration, and wavelength. TTT is a low irradiance, large spot size, prolonged exposure (long-pulse), infrared laser photocoagulation protocol. Results from an experimentally confirmed, finite element model of retinal light absorption and heat conduction are used to analyze laser parameter selection and its consequences. Results from apoptosis, heat shock protein and hyperthermia research are used to examine how chorioretinal damage from clinical procedures might be reduced. RESULTS Chorioretinal thermal equilibration occurs during long-pulse TTT photocoagulation. Retinal temperature increases are similar in the RPE where laser radiation absorption is significant and in the adjacent neural retina where there is negligible radiation absorption. For parameters used to treat occult choroidal neovascularization in lightly-pigmented fundi (800-mW, 810-nm, 3-mm retinal spot diameter, 60-sec exposure duration), the maximum chorioretinal temperature elevation is calculated to be roughly 10 degrees C, significantly lower than the 20 degrees C temperature elevations measured in threshold, conventional short-pulse retinal photocoagulation. CONCLUSIONS To achieve a preselected temperature rise, TTT laser power must be increased or decreased in proportion to the diameter rather than the area of the laser spot. Clinical power settings should be adjusted for fundus pigmentation and media clarity because both of these factors affect absorbed retinal irradiance and thus retinal temperature rise. Noninvasive thermal dosimetry currently is unavailable for clinical retinal photocoagulation, but potential thermometric techniques include MRI, liposomal-encapsulated dyes, multispectral imaging or reflectometry, and subretinal or episcleral thermometry. TTT may be useful not only as independent therapy, but also as an adjunct to PDT, antiangiogenic drugs and ionizing radiation therapy in the management of neovascular ARMD. Low temperature, long-pulse photocoagulation is a potential strategy for decreasing neural retinal damage in subsequent TTT or short-pulse photocoagulation and perhaps even for treating glaucoma or retinal degenerations.