Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The role of phenotype on ventilation and exercise capacity in patients affected by COPD: a retrospective study

Background The idea of phenotype in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) has evolved in the last decades, and the importance of peculiar treatment strategies has now been acknowledged. Although dyspnea and exercise limitation are hallmarks of COPD, this aspect has never been fully explored in literature in terms of disease phenotype. The aim of the present study was to explore the relevance of clinical COPD phenotypes on exercise ventilation and maximal capacity. Methods In this observational cohort retrospective study we analyzed the data of 50 COPD patients who underwent cardiopulmonary exercise test, categorized as emphysematous (n=29), and non-emphysematous (n=21) according to a previously validated model. Results We found a significant difference in terms of VE/VCO2 slope (median values 32.4 vs 28.0, p=0.015) and VE/VCO2 ratio at nadir (median values 37 vs. 33, p=0.004), which resulted higher in emphysematous patients, who also presented lower PETCO2 values (median values 32.6 vs 35.6, p=0.008). In a subgroup of 31 tests which met the maximality criteria, emphysematous patients presented a significantly lower work rate at peak (median value 51 vs 72% predicted, p=0.016), and showed a lower peak oxygen consumption, although at the limit of significance (median values of 63 vs 85 % predicted, p=0.051). Conclusions This study extends our knowledge about the characterization of the COPD phenotypical expression of disease, showing that patients affected by emphysema are more prone to ventilatory inefficiency during exercise, and that this is likely to be an important cause of their overall reduced exercise capacity.
Fertilizer management and nutrient use efficiency on rice paddy in integrated system

Nitrogen budget under integrated production system in fish farming is one of the acceptable practices in maintaining ecological balance and circulation. This result reveals the patterns of pond water and nutrient flows which were strongly influenced by the main fish farming activities resulting to large amount of nitrogen inputs. The main nutrient input sources of nitrogen into the system were found to be pig manure, feed and maggot while outputs were in water, soil, harvested fish and rice; and also in unaccounted forms as a result to discharge. Nutrient composition of rice paddy in integrated production system records 17% N, 19% P and 64% K. The NPK value recorded in integration production system throughout the period of the experiment showed significant difference (p>0.05). There was a positive correlation between nitrogen in rice and rice growth r=0.8373 and 0.7709. The Increase in nutrient is correlated with the increase in the rating of rice growth. The increase in nutrient of unaccounted forms which accumulate in the sediments absorbed by the plant from the soil plays an important role in balance of an aquaculture system. Thus, in order to ensure sustainable productivity there is need to enhance the management of all the nutrient input channels while minimizing the nutrient output through crop intensification. Key words: Nutrient budget, nutrient input, nutrient output, pond effluent, soil, amendment.
Seasonal acclimation of thermal performance in two species of reef-building corals

Thermal performance curves describe the relationship between temperature and the rate of biological processes. These relationships can vary among species and environments, allowing organisms to acclimatize to their local thermal regime. This study quantified the seasonal variation in the thermal performance of several coral and symbiont-dominated physiological traits for the thermally tolerant coral species Porites cylindrica and the thermally sensitive coral species Acropora valenciennesi. Photosynthesis rates, respiration rates, maximum photosystem II (PSII) quantum yield and electron transport rates were measured in winter and summer on coral fragments exposed to an acute temperature increase and decrease up to 5 degrees C above and below the average seawater temperature in each season. Results showed that colonies of A. valenciennesi acclimated primarily by shifting their optimal temperature to a higher temperature in summer, whereas colonies of P. cylindrica had broader thermal breadth during summer. For symbionts within both species, performance was higher at all temperatures in summer, while the thermal optima and performance breadth remained unchanged. Despite these changes in thermal performance, the thermal optima of most traits did not match the ambient environmental temperature, but fell between the summer and winter temperatures. Overall, these results showed that both coral species were physiologically plastic in response to temperature change, but that there are constraints on the rate or capacity for acclimation that prevent a perfect match between the average temperature of the environment and the thermal optimum of the species.
LAND USE/LAND COVER CHANGE AND ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS IN THE NORTHEASTERN QINGHAI-TIBET PLATEAU FROM 1980 TO 2015

Abstract. The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau ecosystem is sensitive and fragile, the grassland degradation and soil erosion in the plateau are still increasing. In this paper, we conducted a quantitative study to clarify the characteristics of land use/land cover change, the driving factors, and the environmental effects in the plateau. We focused on the northeastern Qinghai-Tibet Plateau as an example, and created land use change matrices and determined the relative change rate, vegetation cover, and environmental quality index using land use data and NDVI3g data from 1980 to 2015. The results show that there were significant differences in land use/land cover change in the study area around 2000, while the farmland did not increase significantly, and the water areas exhibited a decreasing trend initially followed by an increasing trend, the unused land first increased and then decreased, and residential areas increased significantly after 2000. The relative change rate of the grassland was the largest between 1980 and 2015, while most of the grassland was converted into farmland, residential land, and unused land. In addition, grassland degradation increased significantly. Considerable spatial heterogeneity in vegetation and land use/land cover was observed in the study area. The vegetation cover decreased in some areas due to the grassland degradation, however, the others areas showed improvements due to the influences of policies and climate change. The environmental index and ecological service value of the study area declined and the environment deteriorated during the study period.
Research with children as theologians: Ethical and methodological issues

In this article, I explain why it is important for theologians to involve children in empirical research, and why children themselves can and should be considered as ‘theologians’. Therefore, I refer to theories in childhood studies and child theology (children as active participants and subjects), and also to contemporary trends in empirical research and practical theology (views on theology and ethnography, lived religion etc.). Counter-arguments for involving children in empirical research are discussed as well. In the second step, I deal with ethical issues and discuss which aspects have to be taken into account when doing research with children.
Telehealth Efforts to Reduce Hospital Readmissions of Congestive Heart Failure Patients

Telehealth Efforts to Reduce Hospital Readmissions of Congestive Heart Failure Patients by Sirfornia L. Deasfernandes MSA, Central Michigan University, 2004 BBA, Davenport University, 2002 Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Health Services
Hyperkalaemia in patients in hospital.

Abstract A survey of all laboratory blood specimens with a plasma potassium concentration greater than or equal to 5.5 mmol/L was conducted over a three month period. Of 331 specimens with hyperkalaemia, 71 were excluded because the specimens was haemolysed, old or contaminated. The laboratory served a population of 348,561 and during this time measured the plasma potassium on 25,016 occasions. Sixty-six outpatients and 20 neonates were not evaluated. The survey was undertaken on 86 of 102 inpatients (46 males), 48 of whom were over 66 years of age. Fifty-seven patients were admitted under a medical service and 29 under a surgical service. Fifty-nine had a single episode of hyperkalaemia. Thirty-two underwent a surgical procedure. The commonest contributing factor was impaired renal function which was present in 71 (83%) patients. Although a definitive causative role for drugs could be identified in only five patients, in 52 (60%) patients drugs were a contributing factor (potassium supplements 24, ACE inhibitors 16, nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs 12). Thirty-five of the 86 (41%) patients died during their hospital admission. Nineteen of the 35 deaths occurred within three days of the hyperkalaemia being recorded. A normal plasma potassium was eventually documented in 50 of the 86 patients. Of the remaining 36 patients, 25 (69%) subsequently died. In general the treatment of patients with hyperkalaemia focused on identifying and treating the underlying cause. Hyperkalaemia must always be considered seriously and regard given to the overall clinical status of the patient, with particular attention to drug therapy, renal and cardiac function, acid base status and the possibility of sepsis.
Fisher Effect: An Empirical Re-examination in Case of India

This study examines the Fisher's hypothesis by utilizing the dataset on India's macroeconomic variables with the objective to check whether long-run empirical relationship between the nominal interest rate and inflation expectation exists. To this end, study is conducted on monthly data from Jan-1993 to Mar-2015 by utilizing the autoregressive distributed lag model or bounds testing approach developed by Pesaran, Shin, and Smith (2001). The bounds testing is applied to analyze the co-integration and short-and long-run relationship among variables, for a different combination of the Fisher hypothesis. The present study concludes the existence of a long-run relationship between Treasury bill and expected inflation (estimated by WPI), with a long-run coefficient equal to 0.54, implying partial Fisher effect. While the long-run relationship does not exist between Treasury bill and expected inflation (estimated by CPI). Similarly, long-run relationship although not of one to one in nature, between call money rate and expected inflation (estimated by WPI), is found with a coefficient equal to 0.51; but not for any another combination. The implication of the result shows that the market interest rate is a good indicator of inflationary expectations (i.e. WPI). And the conduct of monetary policy is responsible for favoring the partial Fisher's effect in India.
A new genus and species of sabretooth, Oriensmilus liupanensis (Barbourofelinae, Nimravidae, Carnivora), from the middle Miocene of China suggests barbourofelines are nimravids, not felids

Since the early 2000s, a revival of a felid relationship for barbourofeline sabretooths has become popular due to recent discoveries of fragmentary fossils from Africa. According to this view, barbourofelines trace their common ancestor with felids through shared similarities in dental morphology going back to the early Miocene of Africa and Europe. However, whether or not such an idea is represented in the basicranial morphology, a conservative area of high importance in family-level relationships, is yet to be tested. A nearly complete skull of Oriensmilus liupanensis gen. and sp. nov. from the middle Miocene Tongxin Basin of northern China represents the most primitive known barbourofeline with an intact basicranial region, affording an opportunity to re-examine the relationship of felids and nimravines. We also present an update on East Asian records of barbourofelines. The new skull of Oriensmilus possesses a suite of characters shared with nimravines, such as the lack of an ossified (entotympanic) bullar floor, absence of an intrabullar septum, lack of a ventral promontorial process of the petrosal, presence of a small rostral entotympanic on the dorsal side of the caudal entotympanic, and a distinct caudal entry of the internal carotid artery and nerve that pierces the caudal entotympanic at the junction of the ossified and unossified caudal entotympanics. The absence of an ossified bullar floor in O. liupanensis and its presence in those from the middle Miocene of Sansan, France thus help to bracket the transition of this character, which must have happened in the early part of the middle Miocene. Spatial relationships between bullar construction and the middle ear configuration of the carotid artery in Oriensmilus strongly resemble those in nimravines but are distinctly different from felids and other basal feliforms. Despite the attractive notion that early barbourofelines arose from a Miocene ancestor that also gave rise to felids, the basicranial evidence argues against this view. http://zoobank.org/urn:http://lsid:zoobank.org:pub:2DE98DBC-4D02-4E18-9788-0B0D8587E73F
Adaptive market hypothesis: An empirical analysis of time –varying market efficiency of cryptocurrencies

Abstract This study examines the adaptive market hypothesis (AMH) in relation to time-varying market efficiency by using three tests, namely Generalized Spectral (GS), Dominguez-Lobato (DL) and the automatic portmanteau test (AP) test on four-digital currencies; Bitcoin, Monaro, Litecoin, and Steller over the sample period of 2014–2018. The study applies Jarque-Bera test, ADF test, Ljung-Box statistics and ARCH-LM test for testing normality of returns, stationarity of series, serial correlation and volatility clustering in returns and squared returns of selected cryptocurrencies. Further, the study adopts an extremely important category of martingale difference hypothesis (MDH), which uses non-linear methods of dependencies for identifying changing linear and non-linear dependence in the price movement of currencies. The results indicate that price movements with linear and nonlinear dependences varies over time. Our tests also reveal that Bitcoin, Monaro and Litecoin have the longest efficiency periods. While Steller shows the longest inefficient market period. In view of varying market conditions, the results indicate that different market periods have significant impact on prices fluctuations of cryptocurrencies. Therefore, our findings suggest implementing the adaptive market hypothesis (AMH) as predicting changes in cryptocurrency prices over time must consider the time-varying market conditions for efficient forecasting.
Determination of Antioxidant Value and Chemical Groups in Selected Medicinal Plants Used for Conditions Associated with Herpes Simplex and Herpes Zoster Infections in Kakamega County, Kenya

Aims: To Determine antioxidant value and chemical groups in selected medicinal plants used for conditions associated with Herpes simplex and Herpes zoster infections in Mukhwa sub-location, Kakamega County, Kenya. Study Design: A qualitative ethnobotanical survey for plant identification and chemical analysis for antioxidant assay and chemical group detection. Place and Duration of Study: Plant samples were collected in Mukhwa sub-location in September 2014. Sample processing and chemical group detection was carried out at the Center of Traditional Medicine and Drug Research of Kenya Medical Research Institute. Antioxidant assay was carried out at the Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences of the Kenya Medical Training College. Original Research Article Radol et al.; AJOB, 8(4): 1-10, 2019; Article no.AJOB. 54049 2 Methodology: All 12 Community Health Workers, comprising 7 females and 5 males, were interviewed for identification of plant species. Antioxidant assay was carried out using the 2,2Diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) reduction assay and detection of flavonoids, terpenoids, alkanoids, saponins and phenols carried out using physicho-chemical methods. Results: Caesalpinia decapetala, Garcinia buchananii and Entada abyssinica, were the most potent sources of antioxidant with the concentration giving 50% DPPH reduction (RSa50) of 50, 20 and 10 μg/ml, respectively. The most abundant chemical groups were; alkaloids in Schkuhria pinnata, terpenoids in E. abyssinica, flavonoids in G. buchananii, the latter also contained the highest amount of phenols. Conclusion: The findings of antioxidant and chemical groups in selected medicinal plants support their use for HIV conditions.
Cash and the Hidden Economy: Laboratory and Artefactual Field Experimental Evidence on Fighting Tax Evasion in Small Business Transactions

Increasing the tax compliance of self-employed business owners (particularly of trade-specific service providers) remains an ongoing challenge for tax authorities. From a compliance point of view, cash transactions are particularly problematic when services are paid for on the spot, as such exchanges are difficult to audit. As a novelty we present experimental evidence testing 11 different policy strategies in a setting that allows for cash transactions. Our sample includes both students and non-students active in service industries characterised by the opportunity to engage in cash transactions. While our results offer a positive outlook for the interventions reporting a significant effect, they particularly speak to the potential of moral suasion to increase compliance, as it may be implemented at relatively low cost. However, a carrot (offering support in tax declarations) as well as a stick (increasing the threat of audits) approach may be promising for increased compliance, especially where there is an evasion opportunity in cash-for-service payments between small businesses and individual customers who may share a common benefit from tax evasion. A stick approach is particularly efficient for those inclined to use cash transactions.
NATIVE ARBUSCULAR MYCORRHIZAL FUNGI FROM THE RHIZOSPHERE OF Agave cupreata AND THEIR EFFECT ON Agave tequilana GROWTH

Blue agave (Agave tequilana F.A.C. Weber var. Azul) is an important crop for Mexico, from which tequila is made. In 2018 1,138,800 t of agave were produced under aproduction system where the use of agrochemicals has become widespread; in particular, the excessive use of chemical fertilizers generates problems of environmental impact in the producing areas. An alternative to solve this problem is the use of soil microbial resources to reduce this impact. The use of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) as biofertilizers is a functional alternative in other crops that could be implemented in the production of blue agave. The aim of this research was to evaluate the effect of native mycorrhizal consortia isolated from the rhizosphere of A. cupreata from Michoacán on the growth of blue agave. An experiment was conducted under a randomized complete blocks design where eight AMF consortia, a commercial inoculum (Rhizophagus intraradices) and a control (without AMF) were evaluated on A. tequilana seedlings. The experiment was maintained for 300 d under greenhouse conditions and, at the end, growth and microbiological variables were analyzed; in addition, mycorrhizal dependency and the Dickson index were calculated as parameters of plant quality. Significant differences (Tukey, P ≤ 0.05) were found in the growth traits of agave plants when inoculated with AMF consortia compared to control plants. The agave plants inoculated with the native consortium Barranca de las Nueces showed greater growth and Dickson index, with a mycorrhizal colonization of 49 % and a mycorrhization dependency of 62 %, as well as the highest spore density (244 spores 100 g-1 of substrate). Results suggest that AMF could be a biotechnology alternative in the agricultural production process of blue agave.
Determinants of Dividend Policy of Banks: Evidence from Pakistan

Determinants of Dividend Policy of Banks: Evidence from Pakistan Nasir Nadeem, Adnan Bashir, Muhammad Usman Abstract This study examines the determinants of dividend policy of Pakistani banking sector from 2005 to 2015. By employing panel data techniques, the results of this study reveal that profitability, investment opportunities and last year dividend have significant positive effect on dividend payouts of Pakistani banks whereas growth and loan deposit ratio have significant negative influence. Moreover, the results of this study also highlight that last year dividend paid is the most significant factor affecting the dividend payout ratio of the banks. The results also reveal that there is no significant difference in the factors affecting dividend payout ratio before and after the financial crisis. Moreover, switch from Basel II to Basel III accord capital regulations did not have significant effect on the dividend policy of the Pakistani banks. Findings of the study support to dividend smoothing hypothesis, life cycle theory, signaling theory and pecking order theory.
Conservation of tropical tree biodiversity through macropropagation by shoot cutting of raru (Cotylelobium melanoxylon), a highly utilized dipterocarp in North Sumatra, Indonesia

Susilowati A, Hartini KS, Elfiati D, Rachmat HH, Kusuma YS, Sinaga MZE, Suhartati T. 2020. Macropropagation by shoot cutting of raru (Cotylelobium melanoxylon), a highly utilized dipterocarp in North Sumatra, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 21: 724-730. Cotylelobium melanoxylon (Hook.f.) Pierre, or locally named raru, is one of native tree species from North Sumatra that has many uses for its wood and medicinal purposes for anti-diabetic, anti laxative and blood coagulation. C. melanoxylon has been experiencing short supply due to its limited natural distribution, forest degradation, illegal harvesting for its wood and bark and uncertain fruiting season of the species. Along with these alterations, C. melanoxylon population has been decreasing. The objective of this research was to determine the effectiveness of C. melanoxylon propagation by shoot cutting. Randomized factorial design with 2 factors was employed in this research. The first factor (factor A) was the cutting media (i.e. topsoil only; topsoil and sand with proportion of 1:1 v/v), and the second factor (factor B) was commercial auxin addition (i.e. 1g/100cuttings; without auxin). The observed parameters were survival percentage, rooted percentage, number of primary and secondary root, length of primary and secondary root and root histology. The results showed that the interaction between media and auxin addition did not have any significant effect on all tested parameters. The average survival percentage was 70-90% and rooting percentage was 50-90%. Adventitious root formation on C. melanoxylon cutting was originated from cell differentiation on wounded area near cambium, followed by root primordia formation and root meristem formation. The success of artificial propagation technique for this species will provide basic practice of C. melanoxylon cultivation and may contribute to the effort of ex situ conservation for valuable and threatened tree species.