Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Краткие сообщения Short communications

The postischemic inflammatory response plays a significant role in the pathogenesis of acute ischemic stroke (IS). It has been established that acute IS is accompanied by aseptic inflammation, which induces the activation of costimulatory molecules in the process of innate immunity response to brain tissue damage. The constantly progressive destruction of neuronal antigens contributes to an increase in the volume of the ischemic lesion. Evidence continues to accumulate indicating an important role of NLRP3-mediated inflammation in the pathogenesis of IS. It has been shown that autophagy is involved in the inflammatory cascade in acute IS. Many of the anti-inflammatory mechanisms mediated by autophagy in acute IS involve the key autophagic proteins Beclin-1, LC3, and p62. Experimental studies have shown that autophagy suppresses the activation of NLRP3 inflammation. Data on cross interactions between apoptosis and autophagy in the pathogenesis of IS are still controversial. The aim of the study was to evaluate the relationship between biomarkers of autophagy, inflammation, and apoptosis in the dynamics of the acute period of atherothrombotic IS. The article presents the results of a dynamic study of the serum concentration of the key autophagy biomarkers Beclin-1, LC3 and p62, apoptosis indicators Bcl-2 and p53, pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-1 β , TNF α , IL-8, IL-18 which are involved in postischemic neuroinflammation. A statistically significant increase in the studied parameters was established in comparison with the control group. The maximum increase in the studied biomarkers is noted on the 1 st day after the development of ischemia in patients with a severe course of the disease. The relationship between autophagy activity, apoptosis biomarkers, and some indicators of the systemic inflammatory response in patients with moderate and severe atherothrombotic stroke was revealed. The results obtained confirm the literature data on the involvement of autophagy in the regulation of the postischemic inflammatory response.
Working Papers in Economic History

GDP figures for Africa are unreliable. More dependable information can be found in government expenditure and international trade records. These records, though, provide little insight into non-market output. In this paper an attempt is made to draw explicit conjectures on real output per head in pre-independence Africa on the basis of trade data so that conjectures can be established about Africa’s long-run growth. Two alternative approaches are considered. One estimates per capita GDP by assuming no increase in output per head outside the tradable sector, for which the purchasing power of per capita exports is accepted as a proxy. Another approach establishes an econometric association between real per capita GDP and the income terms of trade per head for 1950-1990 and, on the basis of the prediction equation’s parameters and the values of the RHS variables, infers real output per head for 1870-1938. Trends in real output per head are then drawn for Africa (and its main regions). By comparing these trends with those from other developing regions, some conjectures about Africa’s relative position over time are put forward. It emerges that economic growth started earlier than usually assumed and there is continuity in growth before and after colonial independence. Sub-Saharan Africa’s retardation is a gradual process, as growing and falling behind took place simultaneously. But it is in the period 1975-1995 when the worst setback in modern Africa’s history took place.
FACULTAD DE CIENCIAS EMPRESARIALES Y ECONOMIA

We study the problem of a regulator who must control the emissions of a given pollutant from a series of industries when the (cid:133)rms(cid:146)abatement costs are unknown. We develop a mechanism in which the regulator asks (cid:133)rms to report their abatement costs and implements the most stringent emissions standard consistent with the (cid:133)rms(cid:146) declarations. He also inspects one of the (cid:133)rms in each industry which declared the cost structure consistent with the least stringent emissions standard and with an arbitrarily small probability, he discovers whether the report was true or not. The (cid:133)rm is punished with an arbitrarily small (cid:133)ne if and only if its report was false. This mechanism is simple, is implementable in practice, its unique equilibrium is truth telling by (cid:133)rms, it implements the (cid:133)rst best pollution standards and shares some features of the regulatory processes actually observed in reality.
Risk Factors for Mortality in Hospitalized Patients with COVID-19: A Cross-Sectional Study in Southwestern Iran

Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has become a global health challenge with high transmission and mortality rates. Objectives: This study aimed to identify the risk factors for mortality in hospitalized patients with COVID-19 in Behbahan, Southwestern of Iran. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, information of 800 patients with COVID-19 admitted to Shahidzadeh Hospital in Behbahan, Southwest of Iran, were investigated from March 20, 2020, to January 20, 2021. Subsequently, the demographic characteristics, clinical symptoms, vital signs, pharmacotherapy, laboratory findings, and the patients' underlying diseases were extracted from their medical records. Multivariable Cox regression with proportional hazard assumption was used to investigate the risk factors of death . Results: The present study included 800 patients with COVID-19 with a mean age of 57.51±16.83 years at the time of diagnosis. Overall, 447 (55.8%) male and 353 (44.1%) female patients were included in this study, respectively. Among the total patients, 116 (14.5%) and 684 (85.5%) cases died and recovered, respectively. Based on the multivariable Cox regression analysis, age (HR=1.04; 95% CI: 1.03-1.05; P<0.001), cardiovascular diseases (HR=2.46; 95% CI: 1.63-3.70; P<0.001), and renal failure (HR=2.77; 95% CI: 1.43-534; P<0.001) were found to be associated with the death hazard in patients with COVID-19 . Conclusion: According to the findings of this study, the patient's age at the time of diagnosis, cardiovascular diseases, and renal failure were indicated to be the risk factors of high mortality rate in patients with COVID-19. Identification of these risk factors can be helpful in the timely intervention of patients at high risk of death for health care providers .
Comparison of Single and Multiuser Immersive Mobile Virtual Reality Usability in Construction Education

: Immersive virtual reality (IVR) and mobile technologies have been identified as important in reimaging information delivery and pedagogy. This, coupled with evolving research in single (SUVR) and multiuser (MUVR) IVR environments, may enhance educational practice. However, there is limited research on the impact of such technologies on the learners ’ experience in authentic learning environments, such as building information modeling in architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) workflows. This paper addresses this through a study of forty-eight participants recruited from a postgraduate construction course at an Australian University to answer a research question on how mobile MUVR is more useable than mobile SUVR when experiencing building information models. A within-subjects ’ experiment was performed using a mixed-methods approach assessing participant mobile IVR Usability on a 5-point Likert scale across four constructs and analysis of reflective sentiment and essays. The results show that when the participants moved from SUVR to MUVR, this significantly increased the overall perceived mobile IVR Usability. Combined with the qualitative analysis, these results suggest that MUVR influences mobile IVR Usability and an increase in learner experience. This study can be used as a launchpad for future research that will explore the causes of the evolution of the enhancement that MUVR provides, expanding beyond the scope of AEC education
The Influence of Biased Local Newspaper Endorsements

This paper investigates the direct effects of political endorsements on election results. I focus on analyzing county-level vote shares in statewide elections for Governor and U.S. Senate, where voters across the state participate in the same election but are “treated” with different local newspaper exposure. I find that credible endorsements have a small but statistically significant effect on vote shares of about 1.3 percentage points. I also demonstrate that county-level newspaper bias and vote shares are positively correlated, and that candidate quality per se can explain about three-fourths of the raw correlation between newspaper endorsements and electoral performance. In aggregate, endorsement effects only change election outcomes in a small subset of very close elections, but in those cases endorsements almost always help the higher quality candidate win. The results suggest that local newspapers play a role in improving political outcomes and that at least some voters may rely on newspaper endorsements to inform their perceptions of candidate quality.
A New Approach To Time Varying Parameters in Vector Autoregressive Models

We propose a flexible means of estimating vector autoregressions with time-varying parameters (TVP-VARs) by introducing a latent threshold process that is driven by the absolute size of parameter changes. This enables us to dynamically detect whether a given regression coefficient is constant or time-varying. When applied to a medium-scale macroeconomic US dataset our model yields precise density and turning point predictions, especially during economic downturns, and provides new insights on the changing effects of increases in short-term interest rates over time.
CAPITAL STRUCTURE AND CORPORATE PERFORMANCE OF LISTED PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANIES IN NIGERIA

This study examined capital structure and corporate performance of listed pharmaceutical companies in Nigeria. The study specifically analyzed the impact of short-term debt (STD), long term debt (LTD) and Firms Size (FZ) on return on equity (ROE). The study focused on five pharmaceutical companies listed on the Nigeria stock exchange. Secondary data were collected from annual reports of sampled pharmaceutical companies over a period of six years (2012-2017) and were analyzed using descriptive analysis, correlation analysis, pooled OLS estimator, fixed effect estimator, and random effect estimator and Hausman test. The most consistent and efficient estimator revealed that short term debt exerts insignificant positive effect on return on equity, with coefficient estimate of 0.094800 (p=0.0946> 0.05), effect of long-term debt is negative and significant, with coefficient estimate of -0.302446 (p=0.0094< 0.05), and firms size exert insignificant negative impact on return on equity, with coefficient estimate of -0.026763 (p=0.3892> 0.05). The study concluded that using large proportion of debt significantly influence the performance of pharmaceutical companies in Nigeria. The study recommends that firms should consider the mixture of equity and debt for better performance of the organization, since they are major determinants of corporate performance.
FINANCIAL MARKETS: AN EXPERIMENTAL STUDY

We consider an experimental setting where traders i n stock markets or exchange rate markets receive one stylized piece of inf rmation at a time about the value of an asset. We find that havi ng limited knowledge about the prior distribution of true asse t values does not hamper the decision making by traders and markets. There is empirical support for the common modeling assumptio n f simplifying agent heterogeneity into two types, a r ational one and a less rational one. A correspondence exists between the average degree of belief conservatism found with individual buying and selling prices and that observed with market prices.
Turnover in Imperfectly Competitive Markets” PIER Working Paper 03-010

This paper is motivated by the empirical regularity that industries di ﬀ er greatly in the level of ﬁ rm turnover, and that entry and exit rates are positively correlated across industries. Our objective is to investigate the e ﬀ ect of sunk costs and, in particular, market size on entry and exit rates, and hence on the age distribution of ﬁ rms. We analyze a stochastic dynamic model of a monopolistically competitive industry. Each ﬁ rm’s e ﬃ ciency is assumed to follow a Markov process. We show existence and uniqueness of a stationary equilibrium with simultaneous entry and exit: e ﬃ cient ﬁ rms survive while ine ﬃ cient ones leave the market and are replaced by new entrants. We perform comparative dynamics with respect to the level of sunk costs: entry costs are negatively and ﬁ xed production costs positively related to entry and exit rates. A central empirical prediction of the model is that the level of ﬁ rm turnover is increasing in market size. The intuition is as follows. In larger markets, price-cost margins are smaller since the number of active ﬁ rms is larger. This implies that the marginal surviving ﬁ rm has to be more e ﬃ cient than in smaller markets. Hence, in larger markets, the expected life span of ﬁ rms is shorter, and the age distribution of ﬁ rms is ﬁ rst-order stochastically dominated by that in smaller markets. In an extension of the model with time-varying market size, we explore the comovements between market size and entry and exit rates. It is shown that both entry and exit rates tend to rise over time in growing markets. In the empirical part, the prediction on market size and ﬁ rm turnover is tested on industries where ﬁ rms compete in well-de ﬁ ned geographical markets of di ﬀ erent sizes. Using data on hair salons in Sweden, we show that an increase in market size or ﬁ xed costs shifts the age distribution of ﬁ rms towards younger ﬁ rms, as predicted by the model.
: Auditor gender,

Purpose : This study investigates the association between individual auditor characteristics (gender, experience and sector expertise) and audit opinions in Belgian nonprofit organizations (NPOs). The purpose is to identify auditor characteristics that imply a better assurance of financial statement (FS) quality. FS quality is essential to enhance financial accountability towards the resource providers of NPOs and the public at large. Design : Multinomial regressions are conducted on a data set of Belgian NPOs. Propensity Score Matching is used to control for potential self-selection bias. Findings : Auditors with sector expertise are found to provide better assurance than their non-sector-expert counterparts. The former are more likely to disclose FS errors and uncertainties in their audit report. Originality/value : This study contributes to the auditing literature by focusing on an understudied audit market, namely the nonprofit audit market. The number of nonprofit studies that investigates determinants of audit quality is very scarce, and none of them explores the determinants of audit opinions. Moreover, these studies ignore individual auditor characteristics as determinants of audit quality. The findings of this paper provide meaningful information for several actors in the NP field and for audit firms.
Melbourne Institute Working Paper Series

The study of the innovative output of organizations often relies on a count of patents filed at one single office of reference such as the European Patent Office (EPO). Yet, not all organizations file their patents at the EPO, raising the specter of a selection bias. Using novel datasets of the whole population of patents by Belgian firms and German universities, we show that the single-office count results in a selection bias that affects econometric estimates of invention production functions. We propose a methodology to evaluate whether estimates that rely on the single-office count are affected by a selection bias.
Environmental management legislation and competitiveness: case studies from Brazil, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom

Globally, consumption and production levels have risen markedly in recent decades. These rises have led to costs/externalities (e.g. pollution and production of waste). Environmental regulations are employed as a means of controlling and managing these externalities. Using Germany, Italy, Brazil and the UK as case study countries, this study sought to examine the manner in which environmental regulations impacted upon business competitiveness within selected sectors. The results suggest that environmental regulations did impact upon competitiveness (as measured by levels of innovation). However, this influence varied within and between countries, and sectors, with for example, a higher impact in Germany, and within the manufacturing and construction sectors. The key implications for these findings are also discussed.
Journal of Counseling Sexology & Sexual Journal of Counseling Sexology & Sexual Wellness: Research, Practice, and Education Wellness: Research, Practice, and Education

Previous research has shown that counselors feel uncomfortable addressing clients’ sexual concerns due to a lack of education on topics related to human sexuality. Various studies have attempted to identify the characteristics of vaginal orgasm, including whether women and other people with vaginas (PWV) can achieve di ﬀ erent kinds of orgasms. The current study examines responses to participants surveyed across the United States on their orgasm response and compares responses of participants who achieved orgasm through masturbation and those who achieved orgasm through sex with a partner to determine whether PWV experience one kind of orgasm during masturbation and experience a di ﬀ erent kind of orgasm during sex with a partner. Results from the current study suggest that there are two distinct orgasm experiences achieved by PWV which di ﬀ er in physiological and psychological response. Counselors and counselor educators can use results from this study to help expand their knowledge on sexual response to feel more conﬁdent in their practice.
Physical Therapy Interventions for Knee Pain Secondary to Osteoarthritis

BACKGROUND Osteoarthritis is a leading cause of disability. Nonsurgical treatment is a key first step. PURPOSE Systematic literature review of physical therapy (PT) interventions for community-dwelling adults with knee osteoarthritis. DATA SOURCES MEDLINE, the Cochrane Library, the Physiotherapy Evidence Database, Scirus, Allied and Complementary Medicine, and the Health and Psychosocial Instruments bibliography database. STUDY SELECTION 193 randomized, controlled trials (RCTs) published in English from 1970 to 29 February 2012. DATA EXTRACTION Means of outcomes, PT interventions, and risk of bias were extracted to pool standardized mean differences. Disagreements between reviewers abstracting and checking data were resolved through discussion. DATA SYNTHESIS Meta-analyses of 84 RCTs provided evidence for 13 PT interventions on pain (58 RCTs), physical function (36 RCTs), and disability (29 RCTs). Meta-analyses provided low-strength evidence that aerobic (11 RCTs) and aquatic (3 RCTs) exercise improved disability and that aerobic exercise (19 RCTs), strengthening exercise (17 RCTs), and ultrasonography (6 RCTs) reduced pain and improved function. Several individual RCTs demonstrated clinically important improvements in pain and disability with aerobic exercise. Other PT interventions demonstrated no sustained benefit. Individual RCTs showed similar benefits with aerobic, aquatic, and strengthening exercise. Adverse events were uncommon and did not deter participants from continuing treatment. LIMITATION Variability in PT interventions and outcomes measures hampered synthesis of evidence. CONCLUSION Low-strength evidence suggested that only a few PT interventions were effective. Future studies should compare combined PT interventions (which is how PT is generally administered for pain associated with knee osteoarthritis). PRIMARY FUNDING SOURCE Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.
E XCHANGE R ATE AND I NFLATION R ISK P REMIUMS IN THE EMU †

This paper tests the effects of exchange rate and inflation risk factors on asset pricing in the European Union (EU) stock markets. This investigation is motivated by the results of Vassalou (2000) [Journal of International Money and Finance, 19, 433-70] showing that both exchange rate and foreign inflation are generally priced in equity returns, and the opportunity to evaluate the causality between these sources of risk after the elimination of the EU currency risks because of the adoption of the single currency. Our results show that both exchange rate and inflation risks are significantly priced in the pre-and post-euro periods. Moreover, the size of exchange rate and inflation risk premiums are economically significant in the pre-and post-euro periods. Futhermore, the UK and excluding-UK inflation risk premiums explain in part our evidences about a large EUR/GBP exchange rate risk premia and the existence of an economically significant domestic –non-diversifiable risk after the Euro adoption. Hence overlooking inflation risk factors can produce an under/overestimation of the currency premiums and a miscalculation of the degree of integration of stock markets.
Effect of phyllosilicate minerals on the rheology, colloidal and flotation behaviour of chalcopyrite mineral

The effects of phyllosilicate minerals, namely illite, muscovite, talc, kaolinite and montmorillonite, on the flotation of chalcopyrite were investigated. For this purpose, the effect of these phyllosilicate minerals on the froth stability, rheological properties, zeta potential as well as copper flotation grade and recovery was investigated. It was found that various phyllosilicate minerals behave differently when added to the chalcopyrite slurries, however, they all caused the flotation grade to be reduced, albeit at different levels. The effect of different phyllosilicate minerals on the froth stability of chalcopyrite slurry followed the order of montmorillonite > muscovite > illite > kaolinite, talc. The effect on the rheology of chalcopyrite slurries was more or less negligible, except for montmorillonite where the suspension behaviour shifted from near Newtonian to pseudoplastic. The effect of phyllosilicate minerals on the zeta potential of chalcopyrite particles was also varied. While 30% montmorillonite and kaolinite had a very minimal effect, addition of 30% muscovite to the chalcopyrite slurry resulted in the zeta potential values being closer to the pure muscovite suggesting full surface coverage of chalcopyrite particles. Montmorillonite and talc had the most deleterious effect on chalcopyrite flotation. The deleterious effect of montmorillonite is attributed to both rheology and froth stability. The deleterious effect of muscovite is also attributed to the surface coatings of the chalcopyrite particles.
THE OLD AND NEW FACES OF CYCLIC AMP - Lessons from cAMP compartmentation in isolated cardiac myocytes

HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access archive for the deposit and dissemination of scientific research documents, whether they are published or not. The documents may come from teaching and research institutions in France or abroad, or from public or private research centers. L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires publics ou privés. THE OLD AND NEW FACES OF CYCLIC AMP Lessons from cAMP compartmentation in isolated cardiac myocytes Rodolphe Fischmeister, Francesca Rochais, Vandecasteele Grégoire, Jonas Jurevičius