Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Contribution of Genetic Polymorphisms in Human Health

Human health is influenced by various factors; these include genetic inheritance, behavioral lifestyle, socioeconomic and environmental conditions, and public access to care and therapies in case of illness, with the support of the national health system. All these factors represent the starting point for the prevention and promotion of a healthy lifestyle. However, it is not yet clear to what extent these factors may actually affect the health of an entire population. The exposures to environmental and occupational factors are several, most of which might be poorly known, contributing to influencing individual health. Personal habits, including diet, smoking, alcohol, and drug consumption, together with unhealthy behaviors, may inevitably lead people to the development of chronic diseases, contributing to increasing aging and decreasing life expectancy. In this article, we highlight the role of susceptibility biomarkers, i.e., the genetic polymorphisms of individuals of different ethnicities, with particular attention to the risk factors in the response to specific exposures of Europeans. Moreover, we discuss the role of precision medicine which is representing a new way of treating and preventing diseases, taking into account the genetic variability of the individual with each own clinical history and lifestyle.
Structure of Gravitational Sources

The purpose of this paper is to propose a definition of multipole structure of gravitational sources in terms of the characteristic initial data for asymptotic solutions of the field equations. This definition is based upon a detailed study of the corresponding data for the linearized equations and upon the close analogy between the Maxwell and the linearized gravitational fields.
Influence of oxygen on the ro-vibrational kinetics of a non-equilibrium discharge in CO2–O2 mixtures

Storing excess renewable energy in hydrocarbons produced from CO2 potentially solves the intermittency issue of renewable energy sources in a green manner. The required reduction of CO2 to CO can be efficiently accomplished with non-equilibrium plasma conversion. On an industrial scale, effects of impurities on the reduction must be taken into account. During this study, the effects of oxygen are considered, as the impurity O2 is both a product of the reduction reaction and abundant in air. In this paper, the influence of O2 addition on the ro-vibrational kinetics of a pulsed DC CO2 glow discharge at 2.5–6.0 Torr—serving as a model non-equilibrium system—is studied in situ with quantum cascade laser infrared absorption spectroscopy. The temporal evolution of the ro-vibrational temperatures is measured, as well as the conversion of CO2 to CO. Trends in the temperature evolutions when increasing the flow rate from 7.4 to 30.0 sccm, varying the pressure, and increasing the O2 admixture up to 90% in increments of 10% are utilised to determine the underlying kinetic processes. Our results show that any decrease in the conversion of CO2 to CO caused by increasing O2 addition cannot be attributed to an induced change in the vibrational kinetics, since the asymmetric stretch mode of CO2—which is associated with dissociation via vibrational excitation—is not quenched. Measured changes in the temporal temperature trends are explained by species-dependent intra- and intermolecular collisional energy transfer processes.
Numerical study of cloud electrification in an axisymmetric, time-dependent cloud model

An axisymmetric, time-dependent, numerical cloud model has been applied to study how an isolated convective cloud can be electrified when rain and cloud particles are allowed to be charged by two particle charging mechanisms: ion attachment and polarization. Charge transports by electrical conduction, air convection, turbulent mixing, and the particle terminal velocities are all simulated. The close tie-in of the electrical development with the evolutions of the cloud growth is one of the distinctive features of the study. The full dynamical-microphysical-electrical interactions are allowed in the simulation. The results of numerical experiments make it appear likely that the polarization charging mechanism is an important one for the electrification of warm clouds. The results also show that with the inclusion of the polarization charging mechanism and depending on the growth stage of the cloud the cloud can be electrified into various charge center structures, which have been observed and reported in the literature for many years. The numerical results show that the cloud cannot be rapidly electrified until rainwater forms and the polarization charging mechanism operates. Initially, the cloud is charged into a ‘positive dipole’ structure with a positive charge center in the upper part of the cloud and a negative one below. As the cloud grows further, another positive charge center forms below the main negative one. This weaker positive center is closely associated with the positively charged rain formed in that region. As the rain falls out of the cloud, this positive center extends below the cloud base. When the cloud top reaches its maximum level, the cloud base starts to rise and the cloud grows weaker thereafter. In the later stage of the development the charge distribution patterns of the rain field dominate the whole electrical structure of the model. The electrical pattern thereafter is greatly affected by the downward movement of the rain. With the fallout of the rain the cloud charge centers exhibit successfully a positive dipole structure and then a ‘negative dipole’ structure consisting of a negative charge center in the upper part of the cloud and a positive one below. The electrical force effects on the terminal velocities of the rain and cloud particles are also included in the study. The results show that the rain particle terminal velocities start to decrease by a few meters per second in a region where the electric field strength grows beyond 2 × 105 or 3 × 105 V/m. The cloud particle terminal velocities reach only several centimeters per second, even in the thunderstorm electrical state. As a result of the levitation effect on rain, the simulated cloud in the present study develops double maxima in the cloud water content, giving it a more irregular appearance than the weakly electrified or nonelectrified cloud.
Sulphated penta-galloyl glucopyranoside (SPGG) is glycosaminoglycan mimetic allosteric inhibitor of cathepsin G

Abstract Objective Cathepsin G (CatG) is a cationic serine protease with wide substrate specificity. CatG is reported to play a role in several inflammatory pathologies. Thus, we aimed at identifying a potent and allosteric inhibitor of CatG to be used as a platform in further drug development opportunities. Methods Chromogenic substrate hydrolysis assays were used to evaluate the inhibition potency and selectivity of SPGG towards CatG. Salt-dependent studies, Michaelis–Menten kinetics and SDS-PAGE were exploited to decipher the mechanism of CatG inhibition by SPGG. Molecular modelling was also used to identify a plausible binding site. Key findings SPGG displayed an inhibition potency of 57 nM against CatG, which was substantially selective over other proteases. SPGG protected fibronectin and laminin against CatG-mediated degradation. SPGG reduced VMAX of CatG hydrolysis of a chromogenic substrate without affecting KM, suggesting an allosteric mechanism. Resolution of energy contributions indicated that non-ionic interactions contribute ~91% of binding energy, suggesting a substantial possibility of specific recognition. Molecular modelling indicated that SPGG plausibly binds to an anion-binding sequence of 109SRRVRRNRN117. Conclusion We present the discovery of SPGG as the first small molecule, potent, allosteric glycosaminoglycan mimetic inhibitor of CatG. SPGG is expected to open a major route to clinically relevant allosteric CatG anti-inflammatory agents.
Problems on independence systems solvable by the greedy algorithm

Abstract One of the key results of the theory of matroids is the well-known Rado–Edmonds theorem which states that the problem of maximising an additive function on an independence system is solvable by the greedy algorithm if and only if the independence system is a matroid. Many generalisations of the Rado–Edmonds theorem were related in main with extension of the set of feasible solutions of the maximisation problem, as a rule an independence system was replaced by an accessible set system. Extension of the class of objective functions was also accompanied by extension of the feasible sets. In this paper, we investigate the maximisation problems of nonadditive functions of sets on independence systems. We suggest a characterisation of the class of objective functions of the problems on matroids which are solvable by the greedy algorithm. We proved a generalisation of the Rado–Edmonds theorem for the maximisation problem on the independence system of a nonadditive function of a given class.
Improved Ionospheric Electrodynamic Models and Application to Calculating Joule Heating Rates

[1] Improved techniques have been developed for empirical modeling of the high-latitude electric potentials and magnetic field-aligned currents (FAC) as a function of the solar wind parameters. The FAC model is constructed using scalar magnetic Euler potentials and functions as a twin to the electric potential model. The improved models have more accurate field values plus more accurate boundary locations. Nonlinear saturation effects in the solar wind-magnetosphere coupling are also better reproduced. The models are constructed using a hybrid technique, which has spherical harmonic functions only within a small area at the pole. At lower latitudes the potentials are constructed from multiple Fourier series functions of longitude at discrete latitudinal steps. It is shown that the magnetic (FAC) and electric potential models can be used together to calculate the total Poynting flux and Joule heating in the ionosphere. An additional model of the ionospheric conductivity is not required to obtain the ionospheric currents and Joule heating, as the conductivity variations as a function of the solar inclination are implicitly contained within the FAC model's data. The models' outputs are shown for various input conditions and are also compared with satellite measurements. The calculations of the total Joule heating are compared with results obtained by the inversion of ground-based magnetometer measurements. Like their predecessors, these empirical models should continue to be useful research and forecast tools.
Leadership and Turnover Intentions in a Public Hospital: The Mediating Effect of Organisational Commitment and Moderating Effect by Activity Department

This research aimed to study the effect of leadership (transformational and transactional) on turnover intentions and whether this relationship is mediated by organisational commitment and moderated by the department of activity. To this end, it was hypothesized that: (1) leadership has a negative and significant association with turnover intentions; (2) leadership has a positive and significant association with affective organisational commitment; (3) organisational commitment has a negative and significant association with turnover intentions; (4) organisational commitment has a mediating effect on the relationship between leadership and turnover intentions; (5) the department to which the employee belongs has a moderating effect on the relationship between leadership and organisational turnover intentions. The sample consists of 477 participants working at the Hospital Professor Doutor Fernando Fonseca (HFF) in Portugal, performing their functions in several departments. This is a quantitative, correlational, and cross-sectional study. The results indicate that transformational leadership has a negative and significant effect on turnover intentions and a positive and significant effect on affective and normative commitment. Transactional leadership negatively and significantly affects all three components of organisational commitment. Affective and normative commitment has a negative and significant effect on turnover intentions. Calculative commitment has a positive and significant effect on turnover intentions. Affective commitment and calculative commitment have a partial mediating effect on the relationship between transformational leadership and organisational turnover intentions. The department to which the employee belongs does not have a moderating effect on the relationship between leadership and turnover intentions. It has been proven that leadership plays an extremely important role in the smooth running of this hospital unit.
Absolute extinction and the influence of environment: dark cloud sight lines toward VCT 10, 30 and Walker 67

The range of validity of the average absolute extinction law (AAEL) proposed by Cardelli et al. (1988 and 1989) is investigated, combining published visible and NIR data with IUE UV observations for three lines of sight through dense dark cloud environments with high values of total-to-selective extinction. The characteristics of the data sets and the reduction and parameterization methods applied are described in detail, and the results are presented in extensive tables and graphs. Good agreement with the AAEL is demonstrated for wavelengths from 3.4 microns to 250 nm, but significant deviations are found at shorter wavelengths (where previous studies of lines of sight through bright nebulosity found good agreement with the AAEL). These differences are attributed to the effects of coatings on small-bump and FUV grains. 52 refs.
Stabilization of beam-weibel instability by equilibrium density ripples

In this paper, we present an approach to achieve suppression/complete stabilization of the transverse electromagnetic beam Weibel instability in counter streaming electron beams by modifying the background plasma with an equilibrium density ripple, shorter than the skin depth; this weakening is more pronounced when thermal effects are included. On the basis of a linear two stream fluid model, it is shown that the growth rate of transverse electromagnetic instabilities can be reduced to zero value provided certain threshold values for ripple parameters are exceeded. We point out the relevance of the work to recent experimental investigations on sustained (long length) collimation of fast electron beams and integral beam transport for laser induced fast ignition schemes, where beam divergence is suppressed with the assistance of carbon nano-tubes.
How Do Households Allocate Their Assets? Stylised Facts from the Eurosystem Household Finance and Consumption Survey

Using the Household Finance and Consumption Survey (HFCS), a large micro-level dataset on households' wealth in fifteen euro area countries, this paper explores how households allocate their assets. We derive stylized facts on asset participation as well as levels of asset holdings and investigate the systematic relationships between household characteristics and asset holding patterns. Real assets make up the bulk of total assets. Whereas ownership of the main residence varies strongly between countries, the value of the main residence tends to be the major asset for home-owners and is a significant part of total assets in all countries. While almost all households hold safe financial assets, a low share of households holds risky assets. The ownership rates of all asset categories generally increase with wealth (and income). The significance of inheritances for wealth accumulation is remarkable and underlines its key role in the process of persistent wealth inequality. We tentatively link differences in asset holding patterns across countries to differences in institutions, such as mortgage market institutions and house price-to-rent ratios.
The role of endometrial stem cells in the pathogenesis of endometriosis and their application to its early diagnosis†

Abstract Pelvic pain, infertility, and a high postoperative recurrence rate are associated with endometriosis and adversely affect the physical and mental health of patients. Moreover, these factors place a heavy burden on families and society. The identification of endometrial stem cells (EnSCs) in the eutopic endometrium, menstrual blood, and ectopic lesions of women with endometriosis not only provides new research objects in the context of endometriosis but also promotes and improves our understanding of its pathogenesis. Furthermore, based on previous studies, we reasonably suppose that dysfunctions of eutopic EnSCs play a critical role in the onset of endometriosis and directly cause abnormalities in the endometrium; subsequently, retrograde menstruation facilitates the delivery of abnormal endometrial tissues to the ovaries and pelvic cavity, where they ectopically implant, grow, and form ectopic lesions. Additionally, as a chronically progressive disease, there is a delay (3–11 years) from the first onset of symptoms to the diagnosis of endometriosis. Therefore, the development of a method for early diagnosis with high sensitivity and specificity is essential for endometriosis patients and has the potential to enable early treatment, prevent endometriosis progression, and relieve pain in patients. Thus, focusing on EnSCs will contribute to clarifying the potential pathogenesis of endometriosis and provide support for the application of EnSCs as therapeutic and early diagnostic targets in endometriosis treatment. Summary sentence Focusing on endometrial stem cells (EnSCs) will contribute to clarifying the potential pathogenesis of endometriosis and provide support for the application of EnSCs as therapeutic and early diagnostic targets in endometriosis treatment.
On the Variation of the Peak Asymmetry of Low-ℓ Solar p Modes

The resonant peaks of solar p modes show small amounts of asymmetry in frequency. Here, we use five independent sets of contemporaneous data, collected over a ≃8 yr period, to investigate whether peak asymmetry in low angular degree p modes changes over the solar activity cycle. Three of the data sets are from instruments on board the ESA/NASA SOHO spacecraft (GOLF, MDI, and VIRGO/SPM); and two are from ground-based networks (BiSON and GONG). Evidence for variation in asymmetry, well correlated with the activity cycle, is uncovered in the GOLF and BiSON Doppler velocity data. Suggestions of a similar trend are present in the GONG Doppler velocity data. Apparent changes in the MDI Doppler velocity data are somewhat less significant. Meanwhile, analysis of the SPM intensity data failed to uncover any evidence for significant change of the asymmetry parameter.
Ginga observations of X-ray flares on Algol

The Ginga X-ray satellite observed Algol (Beta Per) for 2 days in 1989 January, including both the primary optical eclipse and most of the secondary eclipse. We derive upper limits of about 20 and 10 percent, respectively, for the eclipsed flux fraction during the two eclipses. A large flare lasting over 12 hr was seen prior to and during secondary eclipse. High-temperature Fe line emission is clearly detected in the proportional counter data. The Fe line equivalent width is variable during the flare, ranging from 0.4-1.0 keV. Except for two intervals during the flare rise, the observed equivalent width is lower than predicted using solar abundances and an optically thin plasma model. Similar behavior has also been observed by Ginga in a large flare on UX Ari: in both events, opacity effects at line center may be playing a significant role. Loop model analysis of the large flare suggests that it involves a substantially longer loop or loops than a shorter duration Algol flare seen with Exosat.
Three-Dimensional Dynamo Waves In a Sphere

The term dynamo wave was introduced by Parker to describe oscillatory solutions of the mean field induction equation containing differential rotation and an f -effect from helicity. In this article, we examine dynamo waves generated by a class of steady, three-dimensional flows in a sphere without using the mean-field approximation. The flows are defined by two parameters: D the differential rotation, and M the meridional circulation. Contrary to expectations based on the mean-field equations, most 3-dimensional solutions are stationary. Dynamo waves occupy a very narrow band in the parameter space of flows. They behave like solutions to the mean-field equations in three important ways: the magnetic Reynolds number approaches the asymptotic value, meridional circulation produces steady solutions, and radial and azimuthal components of flux tend to occupy the same region of the sphere. The last observation explains why steady solutions, in which radial and azimuthal flux occupy different parts of the sphere, dominate in 3-dimensions: the third dimension facilitates the separation of the two components. This kinematic result may apply to dynamical solutions in which any change in flow that tends to concentrate radial and azimuthal field in the same place leads to oscillations or reversal. This is a possible mechanism by which the Earth's magnetic field reverses.
Poly(ε-Caprolactone)/Poly(Lactic Acid) Blends Compatibilized by Peroxide Initiators: Comparison of Two Strategies

Poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) and poly(lactic acid) (PLA) blends were compatibilized by reactive blending and by copolymers formed during reaction in the solution. The reactive blending of PCL/PLA was performed using di-(2-tert-butyl-peroxyisopropyl)benzene (BIB) or dicumyl peroxide (DCP) as radical initiator. PCL-g-PLA copolymers were prepared using 1.0 wt. % of DCP or BIB via reaction in solution, which was investigated through a Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (FTIR) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) in order to better understand the occurring mechanisms. The effect of different additions such as PCL-g-PLA copolymers, DCP, or BIB on the properties of PCL/PLA blends was studied. The unmodified PCL/PLA blends showed a sea-island morphology typical of incompatible blends, where PLA droplets were dispersed in the PCL matrix. Application of organic peroxides improved miscibility between PCL and PLA phases. A similar effect was observed for PCL/PLA blend compatibilized by PCL-g-PLA copolymer, where BIB was used as initiator. However, in case of application of the peroxides, the PCL/PLA blends were cross-linked, and it has been confirmed by the gel fraction and melt flow index measurements. The thermal and mechanical properties of the blends were also investigated by means of differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), and tensile strength.
Detection of bovine viral diarrhea virus in stable flies following consumption of blood from persistently infected cattle

Control of bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV) relies on resource-intensive sampling to detect and remove persistently infected (PI) cattle. Herd-level surveillance tools would be useful for herds with unknown BVDV status and for monitoring herds with BVDV-free status. Our objective was to determine the feasibility of using stable flies as a sampling tool to detect BVDV at the herd level. Stable flies (Stomoxys calcitrans) were fed citrated blood from either BVDV-PI or BVDV-free cattle to establish pools of 100 flies with various proportions of BVDV-fed flies (0%, 1%, 10%, 20%, 40%, or 100% in each pool). BVDV-fed flies in these pools were harvested either 1, 2, or 3 d after consuming BVDV-PI blood to determine the impact of time after feeding. Two replicates of a 3-d by 6-dilution level matrix were produced. BVDV RNA was consistently detected on day 1 when ≥10% of the flies in the pool consumed PI blood. On days 2 and 3, positive BVDV RNA detection was variable and became less consistent. Our results demonstrate that BVDV RNA can be detected in stable flies after feeding on blood from PI cattle. Successful use of stable flies as a surveillance tool will require validation under field conditions.