Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
BODY TISSUE TYPE COMPOSITION IN PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC OBSTRUCTIVE PULMONARY DISEASE AND OBESITY

: Background. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is one of the most widespread diseases worldwide. Evaluation of body composition and nutrition is currently considered to be an important factor in diagnosis, assessment and treatment of COPD. Objective: to describe body composition in COPD patients (in accordance with body weight) and to analyze association between body composition and disease severity (symptoms, spirometry, and systemic inflammation markers). Material and methods. The study included 176 patients with COPD, which were divided into 2 groups. The first group included 88 normal weight patients with COPD: 71 men and 17 women, mean age 62.40 ± 8.83 years. The second group included 88 patients with COPD and obesity: 64 men and 24 women, mean age 62.94 ± 5.96 years. We assessed the severity of symptoms such as dyspnea, sputum production, fatigue. Spirometry, six-minute walk test and analysis of body tissue type composition were performed. Levels of leptin, adiponectin, interleukins-4,6,8,10, interferon-γ, c-reactive protein (CRP), tumor necrosis factor receptor 1 (TNF-R1), tumor necrosis factor receptor 2 (TNF-R2), tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) were measured in blood serum. Results. In patients with COPD and obesity, a low severity of symptoms (specifically dyspnea, sputum production and fatigue) was observed. Levels of CRP, interferon-γ, TNF-α, TNF-R1, TNF-R2 were significantly higher in obese patients compared with normal weight patients, indicating greater systemic inflammation. Patients with COPD and obesity were significantly higher in % fat while normal weight patients were significantly higher in % water. Waist, hip circumference and their ratio were also significantly higher in patients with COPD and obesity. There was no difference in % of muscle mass. Conclusion. It is necessary to distinguish COPD phenotypes, such as COPD phenotype with normal weight and COPD phenotype with obesity to identify new possible approaches to its assessment and treatment. Further investigations of body tissue type composition are required to determine its role in COPD pathophysiology. composition and disease severity (symptoms, spirometry, systemic inflammation markers)
DEER DAMAGE PREVENTION EFFORTS IN PENNSYLVANIA DEER DAMAGE PREVENTION EFFORTS IN PENNSYLVANIA

: Research at the Pennsylvania State University was directed towards finding effective repellents to control damage caused by white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) and to develop a low-cost alternative to the traditional 2.4 m woven wire barrier fence, considered to be deer-proof, but too expensive for mgt agricultural uses. Fourteen repellents were screened and 9 were found to be more effective than the others. These 9 repellents were further investigated under semi-field conditions and only 1 repellent was found to be consistent in reducing deer feeding. A vertical electric deer fence was effective in excluding deer at field sites containing alfalfa, small grains, vegetables, orchards and young coniferous trees. This fence offers producers a low-cost alternative to the 2.4 m woven wire fence.
2 0 1 5 WORKING PAPER SERIES 2

The theoretical literature gives conflicting predictions on how bank competition should affect financial stability, and dozens of researchers have attempted to evaluate the relationship empirically. We collect 598 estimates of the competition-stability nexus reported in 31 studies and analyze the literature using meta-analysis methods. We control for 35 aspects of study design and employ Bayesian model averaging to tackle the resulting model uncertainty. Our findings suggest that the definition of financial stability and bank competition used by researchers influences their results in a systematic way. The choice of data, estimation methodology, and control variables also affects the reported coefficient. We find evidence for moderate publication bias. Taken together, the estimates reported in the literature suggest little interplay between competition and stability, even when corrected for publication bias and potential misspecifications.
RMHP_A_311869 2333..2344

1Department of Tuberculosis Control and Prevention, Zhejiang Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Hangzhou, People’s Republic of China; 2School of Medicine, Ningbo University, Ningbo, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Tuberculosis Control and Prevention, Xiaoshan District Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Hangzhou, People’s Republic of China; 4Key Laboratory of Vaccine, Prevention and Control of Infectious Disease of Zhejiang Province, Hangzhou, People’s Republic of China
The representation of space in the rat hippocampus

The disclosed horizontally divisible furnace shell comprises a spherically shaped bottom section and truncated cone cover-like shaped middle and top wall sections stacked upon the bottom section, the form of the middle and top sections resulting in barrel-shaped shell walls. Each of the three modular sections has a metal casing with a refractory lining which may be made of firebrick or fireclay. Each wall section has an inwardly projecting ledge at its lower end for supporting the refractory lining. For interconnecting and aligning the sections, tapered locating pins and sockets are provided between all sections. Water-cooled flanges are preferably provided at the upper and lower ends of the top wall section. The joint between the middle and top wall sections is stepped upwardly adjacent the pouring spout so that such joint will be above the level of the molten metal, even when the furnace is tilted to pour out the metal. The middle wall section is provided with a molten metal discharge opening and a pouring spout extending outwardly beneath such opening. At least one slag discharge opening is formed in the middle and top wall sections. Modular removable water-cooled members are provided along the sides and the top of such slag discharge opening. A movable water-cooled heat resistant door is provided to close the slag discharge opening. Beneath the slag discharge opening, the middle wall section is provided with an apron which preferably has refractory material in the form of graphite blocks to prevent the slag from adhering to the apron. The bail for lifting and transporting the separate modular shell sections has a non-symmetrical shape and adjustable links, such shape being adapted to accommodate the middle and top wall sections, which have different lifting point locations and different centers of gravity. Using the lifting bail, the entire middle or top wall section, complete with its refractory lining, may then be lifted from the furnace or into place on the furnace. Thus, the worn-out refractory lining may be removed from the shell section, and the new lining may be installed when the wall section is dismounted from the furnace. It is preferred to provide spare wall sections so that they can be fitted with new refractory linings while the furnace is operating. The replacement of the used wall section or sections having worn-out refractory linings with the spare wall section or sections having new refractory linings may be performed quickly, with only a short shutdown of the furnace.
Abscisic acid (ABA)- and methyl jasmonate (MeJA)-induced stomatal closure are accompanied by cytosolic alkalization

stomatal closure are accompanied by cytosolic alkalization in guard cells. However, it remains to be clarifi ed how the alkalization functions in not only ABA signaling but also MeJA. We investigated cytosolic alkalization in guard cells during ABA-, MeJAand Ca 2 + -induced stomatal closure of wild type, abi1-1 , abi2-1 , ost1-2 and coi1 using a pHsensitive fl uorescent dye, BCECF-AM. ABA induced cytosolic alkalization in guard cells of wild-type and coi1 but not in ost1-2 guard cells whereas MeJA elicited cytosolic alkalization in wild-type and ost1-2 guard cells but not in coi1 . Neither ABA nor MeJA induced cytosolic alkalization in abi1-1 and abi2-1 guard cells. Exogenous Ca 2 + induced stomatal closure accompanied by cytosolic alkalization in guard cells of wild-type, abi1-1 , abi2-1 , ost1-2 and coi1 plants. An agent to acidify cytosol, butyrate, suppressed Ca 2 + -induced cytosolic alkalization and ABA-, MeJAand Ca 2 + -induced cytosolic Ca 2 + oscillation in wild-type guard cells to prevent stomatal closure. These results indicate that cytosolic alkalization and cytosolic Ca 2 + oscillation coordinately function in ABA and MeJA signaling in Arabidopsis guard cells.
Effect of Internal Marketing on Internal Supply Chain Management through Mediation of Employees’ Affective Commitment

--- This study examined the relationship of internal marketing and employees’ affective commitment with internal supply chain integration. Furthermore, this study also uncovered the mediation mechanism by proposing employees’ affective commitment as mediator between internal marketing and internal supply chain integration for services firms. Data of 245 usable responses was collected from five major banks of Thailand through self-administered questionnaire by utilizing convenience sampling. Structural equations modeling was carried out in Smart-PLS 3 in order to test the proposed hypotheses. Results depicted that internal marketing is a significant predictor of internal supply chain integration and this relationship becomes stronger with the intervention of employees’ affective commitment. This study sheds a light on the importance of employees for service organizations and provide a way forward to managers for policy making about their employees in order to develop profitable and competitive assets for the organization.
The Effects of the GAA15 on Lower Extremity Injury Incidence and Neuromuscular Functional Outcomes in Collegiate Gaelic Games.

The results of this revealed that non-contact injuries in the group were 61% less than of the control group. This suggests that implementation of the could potentially noncontact injuries in Gaelic games by over half. Similar findings were reported following the implementation of a neuromuscular training program in female floorball players (23). Pasanen et al., (23) reported a 66% reduction in the number of non-contact injuries sustained by players in the intervention group compared to the control; these results are consistent with those in this current study. They attributed the reduction of non-contact injuries to improved motor skills and body control, and preparation of the neuromuscular system for sports specific maneuvers, factors which may have contributed to the observed results in this study.
Journal Pre-proof Cardiovascular and renal risk factors and complications associated with COVID-19

The current COVID-19 pandemic, caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome-Coronavirus-2), represents the largest medical challenge in decades. It has exposed unexpected cardiovascular vulnerabilities at all stages of the disease (pre-infection, acute phase and subsequent chronic phase). The major cardiometabolic drivers identified to have epidemiological and mechanistic associations with COVID-19 are abnormal adiposity, dysglycemia, dyslipidemia, and hypertension. Hypertension is of particular interest, because components of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS), which are critically involved in the pathophysiology of hypertension, are also implicated in COVID-19. multifunctional protein of the RAS, which is part of the protective axis of the RAS, is also the receptor through which SARS-CoV-2 enters host cells causing viral infection. Cardiovascular and cardiometabolic co-morbidities not only predispose to COVID-19, but are complications of SARS-CoV-2 infection. In addition, increasing evidence indicates that acute kidney injury is common in COVID-19, that it occurs early and in temporal association with respiratory failure and is associated with poor prognosis, especially in the presence of cardiovascular risk factors. Here we discuss cardiovascular and kidney disease in the context of COVID-19 and provide recent advances on putative pathophysiological mechanisms linking cardiovascular disease and COVID-19, focusing on the RAS and ACE2 as well as the immune system and inflammation. We provide up-to-date information on the relationship between hypertension, diabetes, and COVID-19 and emphasize the major cardiovascular diseases associated with COVID-19. We also briefly discuss emerging cardiovascular complications associated with long COVID-19, notably postural tachycardia syndrome (POTS).
Topological simplifications for mechanical vibration analysis

A theoretical method for representing the physical characteristics of a portion of a mechanical piping system in terms of a stiffness matrix involving only those joints at which the sub-system is connected into the overall system is presented herein. The use of this method in reducing the size of the matrices that are needed for finding the normal vibration frequencies of a piping system is discussed, and an outline for a digital computer program to use this method is presented. DUDLEY KNOX LIBRARY NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL MONTEREY, CA 93943-5101 TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter Title Page
First measurement of pp neutrinos in real time in the Borexino detector

The Sun is fueled by a series of nuclear reactions that produce the energy that makes it shine. Neutrinos (ν) produced by these nuclear reactions exit the Sun and reach Earth within minutes, providing us with key information about what goes on at the core of our star. For over twenty years since the first detection of solar neutrinos in the late 1960’s, an apparent deficit in their detection rate was known as the Solar Neutrino Problem. Today, the Mikheyev-Smirnov-Wolfenstein (MSW) effect is the accepted mechanism by which neutrinos oscillate inside the Sun, arriving at Earth as a mixture of νe, νμ and ντ , the latter two of which were invisible to early detectors. Several experiments have now confirmed the observation of neutrino oscillations. These experiments, when their results are combined together, have demonstrated that neutrino oscillations are well described by the Large Mixing Angle (LMA) solution of the MSW effect. This thesis presents the first measurement of pp neutrinos in the Borexino detector, which is another validation of the LMA-MSW model of neutrino oscillations. In addition, it is one more step towards the completion of the spectroscopy of pp chain neutrinos in Borexino, leaving only the extremely faint hep neutrinos undetected. This advance validates the experiment itself and its previous results. This is, furthermore, the first direct real-time measurement of pp neutrinos. We find a pp neutrino detection rate of 143±16 (stat)±10 (syst) cpd/100 t in the Borexino experiment, which translates, according to the LMA-MSW model, to (6.42±0.85)×1010 cm−2 s−1. We also report on a measurement of neutrons in a dedicated system within the Borexino detector, which resulted in an improved understanding of neutron rates in liquid scintillator detectors at Gran Sasso depths. This result is crucial to the development of novel direct dark matter detection experiments.
OPTH_A_268322 2983..2993

1Ventura County Retina Vitreous Medical Group, Ventura, California, USA; 2Sinclair Retina Associates, Media, Pennsylvania, USA; 3Brooklyn Hospital Medical Center, Brooklyn, New York, USA; 4Retinal Protective Sciences, LLC, Ojai, California, USA; 5The Eye Clinic, Kilkenny, Ireland 6. University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK Purpose: To determine the effect of panmacular low-intensity/high-density subthreshold diode micropulse laser (SDM) on age-related geographic atrophy (ARGA) progression. Methods: The retinal images of all eyes with ARGA in a previously reported database, consisting of all eyes with dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD) active in a vitreoretinal practice electronic medical record (EMR), were identified and analyzed to determine the velocity of radial linear ARGA progression during observation and after panmacular SDM. Results: Sixty-seven eyes of 49 patients with ARGA, mean age of 86 years were identified as having follow-up both before and after initiation of SDM treatment. All were included in the study. These eyes were followed a mean 910 days (2.5 years) prior to SDM treatment and a mean 805 days (2.2 years) after. Measurement masked to treatment vs observation found the radius of ARGA lesions progressed 1 to 540 μm per year (mean 137μm, SD 107) prior to treatment (controls); and −44 to 303 μm per year (mean 73μm, SD 59) after initiation of periodic panmacular SDM laser. Thus, the velocity of radial linear progression decreased 47% per year following panmacular SDM (p<0.0001). There were no adverse treatment effects. Conclusion: In cohort of eyes with high-risk dry AMD, panmacular SDM slowed linear radial ARGA progression velocity 47% per year (p<0.0001) without adverse treatment effects. Validated, these findings would constitute an important advance in the prevention of age-related visual loss and a benchmark for future therapies.
The wax inhibitor locus Iw2 in wild diploid wheat Aegilops phenotypic survey, genetic analysis, and implications for the evolution of common wheat

Background: Cuticular wax production on plant surfaces confers a glaucous appearance and plays important roles in plant stress tolerance. Most common wheat cultivars, which are hexaploid, and most tetraploid wheat cultivars are glaucous; in contrast, a wild wheat progenitor, Aegilops tauschii , can be glaucous or non-glaucous. A dominant non-glaucous allele, Iw2 , resides on the short arm of chromosome 2D, which was inherited from Ae. tauschii through polyploidization. Iw2 is one of the major causal genes related to variation in glaucousness among hexaploid wheat. Detailed genetic and phylogeographic knowledge of the Iw2 locus in Ae. tauschii may provide important information and lead to a better understanding of the evolution of common wheat. Results: Glaucous Ae. tauschii accessions were collected from a broad area ranging from Armenia to the southwestern coastal part of the Caspian Sea. Linkage analyses with five mapping populations showed that the glaucous versus non-glaucous difference was mainly controlled by the Iw2 locus in Ae. tauschii . Comparative genomic analysis of barley and Ae. tauschii was then used to develop molecular markers tightly linked with Ae. tauschii Iw2 . Chromosomal synteny around the orthologous Iw2 regions indicated that some chromosomal rearrangement had occurred during the genetic divergence leading to Ae. tauschii , barley, and Brachypodium . Genetic associations between specific Iw2 -linked markers and respective glaucous phenotypes in Ae. tauschii indicated that at least two non-glaucous accessions might carry other glaucousness-determining loci outside of the Iw2 locus. Conclusion: Allelic differences at the Iw2 locus were the main contributors to the phenotypic difference between the glaucous and non-glaucous accessions of Ae. tauschii . Our results supported the previous assumption that the D-genome donor of common wheat could have been any Ae. tauschii variant that carried the recessive iw2 allele.
Chemical Characterisation of Himalayan Rock Salt

Present study involves the chemical evaluation of rock salt samples collected from the plugging sites of Himalayan salt (Khewra salt mines and Kalabagh salt mines) for their moisture content, water insoluble matter, calcium, magnesium, sulphate content and trace minerals such as Fe,Cu,Cd,Pb,As,Ag and Zn determined by atomic absorption spectroscopy. Moisture content of Khewra and Kalabagh salt samples ranged from 0.03 wt. % to 0.09 wt. % and 0.06 % to 0.08 %, respectively. Water insoluble matter ranged from 0.08 wt. % to 1.4 wt. % and 1.5 wt. % to 2.8wt. % for Khewra and Kalabagh salt samples, respectively. Sulphate content for Khewra salt sample was from 0.39 % to 0.91 % and for Kalabagh salt mines from 0.75 wt. % to 0.95wt. %. For Khewra salt mines calcium ranged 0.15wt. % to 0.32wt. % and for Kalabagh salt samples from 0.1 wt. % to 0.27wt. %. Magnesium ranged from 0.11 wt. % to 0.35wt. % for Khewra salt mines, while for Kalabagh salt samples its range was 0.18wt. % to 0.89wt. %. Trace metals had the concentration ranges between 0.2 to 1.85 mg/kg for copper; between 0.21 to 0.42 mg/kg for manganese; between 0.04 to 0.06 mg/kg for zinc; between 0.12 to 0.18 mg/kg for arsenic and between 0.03 and 0.05 mg/kg for lead while cadmium content was either below the method’s detection limits or in very trace amounts. The results show that the concentrations of all the parameters studied are below the limits set by World Health Organization (WHO) and Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Therefore, it can be concluded from the paper that the Himalayan salt from the plugging sites of Khewra and Kalabagh salt mines are safe to use.
Imaging of Osteoarthritis in Geriatric Patients Alexandra S. Gersing & Thomas M. Link

Imaging of osteoarthritis (OA) in the elderly is gaining importance because of the aging population. It requires knowledge about ﬁndings relevant for patient management and others which are abnormal ﬁndings, but part of normal aging without relevance for patient management due to lack of clinical symptoms. This review will provide information on what imaging techniques are best used for knee OA and how to systematically assess knee joint structures in order to cover the most common asymptomatic and symptomatic MR ﬁndings in OA. We will discuss which ﬁndings are typically found in older patients and which are likely to progress to severe pain and disability, ﬁnally leading to total joint replacement. The review may aid radiologists and referring clinicians to better understand the evolution of symptomatic OA and the current or future clinical signiﬁcance of the most common symptomatic and asymptomatic ﬁndings.
Combination of rock inhibitor, hypoxia and melatonin improved differentiation of rabbit induced pluripotent stem cells into cardiac progenitor cells

Cardiac progenitors are a promising cell source for treating myocardial infarction. In this study, we improved the protocol for cardiac differentiation of rabbit induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) using Rho-associated protein kinase (ROCK) inhibitor (Y-27632), low O 2 tension (hypoxia) and melatonin treatments. In experiment 1, the rabbit iPSCs were differentiated into cardiac cell fate via embryoid body (EB) formation with or without ROCK inhibitor. EB diameters were measured on day 3 of differentiation. In experiment 2, the EBs were plated on gelatin-coated dishes and further cultured in different oxygen tensions, hypoxia (5% oxygen) and normoxia (20% oxygen). The plated EBs were examined for proliferative activity and the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Experiment 3 studied the effects of oxygen tensions and melatonin on the differentiation of cardiac cell fate in terms of cardiac progenitor gene expression ( NKX2.5 ) and FLK1 positive cells. ROCK inhibitor significantly improved EB formation by mean of increased EB diameter (P<0.05) compared with the control. Hypoxia also significantly increased the numbers of newly DNA synthetic cells indicating greater proliferative activity when compared with normoxia (P<0.05). The melanin treatment during iPSCs differentiation significantly decreased ROS production only in hypoxia (P<0.05). In addition, the combination of hypoxic condition and melatonin treatment significantly upregulated a NKX2.5 cardiac progenitor gene and FLK1 positive cells compared with the controls and normoxia-melatonin treatment (P<0.05). It is concluded that an optimizing condition using a combination of ROCK inhibitor, hypoxic condition and melatonin improved differentiation of rabbit iPSCs towards cardiac progenitor cells.