Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
High-velocity microsprays enhance antimicrobial activity in S . mutans biofilms

Streptococcus mutans in dental plaque biofilms play a role in caries development. The biofilm’s complex structure enhances the resistance to antimicrobial agents by limiting the transport of active agents inside the biofilm. We assessed the ability of high-velocity water microsprays to enhance delivery of antimicrobials into 3-days old S. mutans biofilms. Biofilms were exposed to a 90° or 30° impact, firstly using a 1-μm tracer beads solution (10 9 beads/mL) and secondly, a 0.2% Chlorhexidine (CHX) or 0.085% Cetylpyridinium chloride (CPC) solution. For comparison, a 30-sec diffusive transport and simulated mouthwash were also performed. Confocal microscopy was used to determine number and relative bead penetration depth (RD) into the biofilm. Assessment of antimicrobial penetration was determined by calculating the killing depth (KD) detected by live/dead viability staining. We firstly demonstrated that the microspray was able to deliver significantly more microbeads deeper in the biofilm compared to diffusion and mouthwashing exposures. Next our experiments revealed that the microspray yielded better antimicrobial penetration evidenced by deeper killing inside the biofilm and a wider killing zone around the zone of clearance than a diffusion transport with the same antimicrobials. Interestingly the 30° impact in the distal position delivered approximately 16 times more microbeads and yielded approximately 20% more bacteria killing (for both CHX and CPC) than the 90 o impact. These data suggest that high-velocity water microsprays can be used as an effective mechanism to deliver microparticles and antimicrobials inside S. mutans biofilms. High shear stresses generated at the biofilm/burst interface might have enhanced beads and antimicrobials delivery inside the remaining biofilm by combining forced advection into the biofilm matrix and physical restructuring of the biofilm itself. Further, the impact angle has potential to be optimized both for biofilm removal and active agents’ delivery inside biofilm in those protected areas where some biofilm might remain.
SOVEREIGN CREDIT RISK and CREDIT DEFAULT SWAP SPREAD REFLECTIONS

The already experienced turbulence in the global financial system has focused the attentions of market participants to especially sovereign risk; its major determinants, systematic nature as well as its contagion potential. In this study, the direction of the analysis of the sovereign risk is within the framework of the credit default swap (cds) transactions. The sovereign risk can also be elaborated by using the bond spreads of the sovereign but the latter is also driven by factors other than the sovereign risk such as the interest rate movements, supply conditions, and liquidity. The already available economical and financial data provides invaluable opportunity to analyze the sovereign risk anticipation of the financial markets as it incorporates the valuation of cds in real crisis times of 2008 and 2009 and 2011-first half of 2012 as well as the before and after economic and financial data of the selected countries namely Brazil, Turkey, Russia, Korea, Greece and Spain. The relationship between the global financial variables and cds spreads reveals the fact that the risk appetite in the global financial market affects the credit risk perception and consequently cds spreads regardless of the employed indicator of the risk appetite. Specifically, it is also determined that domestic economic situation has significant effects on cds spreads (excluding Greece who experienced considerable turmoil in its economical and financial position), the local variables explain more than 75 percent of the cds spread level and this ratio increases to more than 80 percent when four emerging market countries are referred.
MicroRNA-497 inhibits tumor growth through targeting insulin receptor substrate 1 in colorectal cancer

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have been demonstrated to serve an important role in diverse biological processes and cancer progression. Downregulation of microRNA-497 (miR-497) has been observed in human colorectal cancer (CRC) tissues, but the function of miR-497 in CRC has not been well investigated. In the present study, it was demonstrated that expression of miR-497 was significantly downregulated in human CRC tissues compared to adjacent normal tissues. Enforced expression of miR-497 inhibited proliferation, migration and invasion abilities of CRC cell lines SW1116 and SW480. Furthermore, overexpression of miR-497 inhibited phosphoinositide 3-kinase/AKT and mitogen-activated protein kinase/extracellular signal-regulated kinase signaling by targeting insulin receptor substrate 1 (IRS1). In human clinical specimens, IRS1 was inversely correlated with miR-497 in CRC tissues. Collectively, the results of the present study demonstrate that miR-497 is a tumor suppressor miRNA and indicate its potential application for the treatment of human CRC in the future.
Competing in the 21st century supply chain through supply chain management and enterprise resource planning integration

Purpose – To investigate the integration of supply chain management (SCM) and enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems for competing in the twenty‐first century supply chain.Design/methodology/approach – A case study with a paper manufacturing company in China is conducted. Primary data is collected through interviews with managers of the company. The reengineering activities and processes, and the soft issues of supplier relationship are examined.Findings – Breaking the traditional decentralised system and introducing the concept of a single, integrated plan, which a company could work together with their suppliers has led to cost reduction, lead‐time reduction, improved visibility, reduced time to market, and increased efficiency in the company.Research limitations/implications – This research is based on a single case study in process manufacturing industry in China, which perhaps limits its usefulness elsewhere.Practical implications – One should not rely solely on ERP systems for managing their sup.
Prediction of muscle length during walking by neural networks

Prediction of the muscle-tendon behavior during walking is nowadays undergoing extensive analysis. The aim of this article is to introduce a possible method of predictions of muscle behavior which can be used for rehabilitation, and also for controlling the artificial muscles, actuators of prosthesis or rehabilitation facilities of the future. Our work focuses on predicting muscle-tendon lengths during human gait with the use of angle-time diagram. A group of healthy children was measured using a Vicon motion analysis system. The 3D kinematic data were recorded and the OpenSim software system was used to identify the joint angles and muscle length, which are represented by time diagrams. In conjunction with artificial intelligence, time diagrams offer a wide area of medical applications. We tested and verified new way of prediction of muscle-tendon length based on neural networks. Artificial neural networks for predicting the muscle behavior learned by time diagrams predicted the muscle-tendon behavior of healthy children. The new method based on angle-time diagrams and artificial neural networks for predicting the muscle behavior has never been described or used before. This work has attempted to describe potential ways of applying angle-time diagrams and graphs of the muscle length in conjunction with artificial intelligence. We have shown new methods that have subsequently been proved by simulations in MATLAB software.
Feature Weight and Its Application in Weight Determination of Medical Scale Items

Actually, the determination of medical scales items is feature weight problem in data-mining area. The framework of EC-based (Evolutionary computation) classification method for feature weight is presented contrasted with traditional statistical methods. And an improved EC-based k-NN algorithm for feature weight, GS-k-NN, is put forward and presented. Comparison between PSO and GA is made as well as among k-NN, GS-k-NN, C4.5, SVM in the paper. Results show that PSO-based GS-k-NN is more effective than other algorithms.
Cables, Sharks and Servers: Technology and the Geography of the Foreign Exchange Market

We analyze the impact of technology on production and trade in services, focusing on the foreign exchange market. We identify exogenous technological changes by the connection of countries to submarine fiber-optic cables used for electronic trading, but which were not laid for purposes related to the foreign exchange market. We estimate the impact of cable connections on the share of offshore foreign exchange transactions. Cable connections between local markets and matching servers in the major financial centers lower the fixed costs of trading currencies and increase the share of currency trades occurring onshore. At the same time, however, they attenuate the effect of standard spatial frictions such as distance, local market liquidity, and restrictive regulations that otherwise prevent transactions from moving to the major financial centers. Our estimates suggest that the second effect dominates. Technology dampens the impact of spatial frictions by up to 80 percent and increases, in net terms, the share of offshore trading by 21 percentage points. Technology also has economically important implications for the distribution of foreign exchange transactions across financial centers, boosting the share in global turnover of London, the world’s largest trading venue, by as much as one-third.
Longitudinal author cocitation mapping: The changing structure of macroeconomics

Author cocitation analysis was used to investigate changes in the intellectual structure of Macroeconomics over two consecutive time periods, 1972–1977 and 1978–1983. Profile analysis, nonmetric multidimensional scaling and clustering techniques were used to create two‐dimensional maps displaying the changing relationships among 41 authors as perceived by scholars citing their work over the two time periods. Clusters of points on the map, representing authors, correspond to theory groups or research areas. Authors in Rational Expectations Theory, Implicit Contracts, and a general group labeled “Post‐Monetarist” show a marked increase in mean cocitation rate. The first is a school of thought emerging as a new focal point of scholarly activity in Macroeconomics. Two types of scholarly “migration” are observed, based on patterns of significant increases and decreases in correlations among authors—“active migration” (the individual refocussing of a scholar's efforts) and “passive migration” (the result of reevaluation of an author's previous contributions in the context of the rise of new problem areas).
Consumer Savvy and Intergenerational Effects

The authors examine the concept of consumer savvy, distinguishing consumer savvy from marketing savvy, and examine three ways of measuring consumer savvy in adults and children. The measurement of human intelligence has a 100-year history, so the researchers' modest intention at this early stage of exploration is to provide a first view of the conceptual and research issues relating to consumer savvy. The paper also presents early exploratory research on certain aspects of consumer savvy. These include intergenerational effects based on the relationship between the 'know how' of a mother and her child. Implications for researchers (academics and practitioners) are examined. © 2008 The Market Research Society.
Mechanism of stakeholders relationship in nature tourism management in Indonesia.

Indonesia is a country with abundant natural resources and nature tourism potentials. However, the relationship among stakeholders involved in nature tourism management was not particularly harmonious: there were discords in the relationships among government institutions as the manager of tourism area and/or decision maker with other stakeholder, and also the relationship between nature tourism enterprises and the community involved in tourism management. The research aimed to formulate a mechanism of stakeholders' relationship in nature tourism management in Indonesia. The research was carried out during 2010 -2012 on several locations, namely Pegunungan Dieng in Central Java (as a representative of nature tourism area that integrated with culture), Teluk Cendrawasih National Park (as a representative of marine national park in East Indonesia), Bandar Lampung Municipality and its vicinity (as a representative of provincial capital), and Brebes District/Regency (as a representative of small city). Purposive sampling was employed in determining respondents. Data was collected through interview with key informant (snowball method), Þ eld observation, and document analysis. Stakeholder analysis, content analyses, and description of each stakeholder were used in the research. Stakeholder inventory showed that central government (area managers and Ministry of Tourism), local government (Tourism agencies and other agency related to resources in tourism area), private enterprises managing tourism, Tourism Associations (Hotel, Guide, Tourism Group), and the community were involved in nature tourism management. The form of relationship mechanism found among the stakeholders were: (1) subordinate, which means that the stakeholders involved were not treated as equals; and (2) independent, which means that there was not any relationship with other stakeholders. That kind of relationship had caused the absence of relationship mechanism between certain stakeholders with other stakeholders. Analysis on the existing documents showed that the existing regulations, particularly those issued by the municipality and provincial governments, had not accommodated the forming of relationships among stakeholders, particularly community participation. There was in fact regulation bridging stakeholders to form relation with each other, however there was a need of improvement in understanding the regulation for its successful implementation.
State-Dependent Delay System Model for Congestion Control

Abstract: This paper considers the problem of the stability for a control system with a state-dependent delay. Systems with state-dependent delays arise naturally in the data network congestion control schemes. Simple analytical studies of stability are provided for a particular set of initial conditions. Then, to verify these results and to extend the stability analysis, the Simulink-based simulator is presented and described. The developed simulator allows us to extend stability analysis for a variety of sets of initial conditions.
A Home Based Guide for Hands in Rheumatoid Arthritis – An Observational Study

Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate a home based program with instructions on joint protection and hand exercises on a group of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Methods: A concise handbook with some practical instructions on joint protection and hand exercises was applied on patients with RA. Hand pain (numeric pain scale NPS), hand function (Cochin Hand Functional Scale CHFS), grip strength and pinch strength (dynamometer) were evaluated at the beginning of the study and after eight weeks. The subjects’ comprehension, adherence and satisfaction with the intervention were evaluated at the end of protocol. Results: Fifteen subjects were enrolled in this home-based program. After intervention there was a significant pain (NPS) reduction and hand function (CHFS) improvement (p<0.05). The program was considered comprehensive and easy to follow and patients referred the intention to continue following its instructions. Conclusion: A concise home-based guide with joint protection instructions and hand exercises may help reduce pain and improve hand function. It can be a feasible and low cost adjuvant treatment in RA.
Temporal trends of trophic state variables in a shallow hypereutrophic subtropical lake, Lake Griffin, Florida, USA

Changes in the concentrations of selected trophic state parameters in Lake Griffin were examined over a 22-year period. Parameters included chlorophyll-a, total nitrogen and total phosphorus. Additional information was obtained for phytoplankton composition and nutrient limitation status of phytoplankton growth over a shorter period of time, from 2000 to 2002. The central goal of the study was to examine whether the efforts to manage water quality and habitat in the system by management agencies over the study period yielded observable changes in these trophic state parameters and the relationships between them. The results of the study show a downward trend in phosphorus concentrations over the study period. Variability in meteorological conditions had an apparent effect on short-term responses of trophic state parameters. The results also point toward a role for nitrogen availability in phytoplankton dynamics, and a stronger relationship between total phosphorus concentrations and chlorophyll-a toward the latter part of the sampling period, suggesting an increasing potential for phosphorus limitation.
Predictive Modeling in Healthcare Costs Using Regression Techniques

After President Obama signed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, as well as the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010, the United States healthcare system became subject to extensive changes in patient eligibility requirements. The Congressional Budget Office (2010) projected that these acts will reduce the number of uninsured nonelderly people by about 32 million, with only 23 million nonelderly citizens remaining uninsured by 2019. Using data from an insurance provider, we investigated healthcare expenditures and applied variable selection to produce models for predicting the cost that insurers will spend on covered members. Statistical techniques such as data transformation, linear regression, and least angle regression were used to develop the models. We pinpointed the effect of high cost factors and developed a method of predicting a member’s cost to the insurer by analyzing claims cost data. In this project, we used a dataset provided by a private insurance company which contained demographic, cost, and diagnostic data. Our analysis allowed us to determine which factors drove costs up and how these factors will affect the total cost for future years. We used linear regression and least angle regression (LAR) techniques to develop the models. We also implemented the special modification least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (lasso) to reduce the number of independent variables for our predictive model. These statistical techniques were performed using the open source statistical software R, including the lars package that implements LAR and lasso. Using Lars, we picked 13 key predictors for our model for determining the cost of insuring an individual, while maintaining an adjusted R of 0.4 which is consistent with the models published by the Society of Actuaries.
Classification, error detection, and reconciliation of process information in complex biochemical systems

Bioprocess identification starts with collection of process information. Usually there is a variety of information available, consisting of actual measurement data, historical data, empirical kinetic and yield correlations, and general knowledge available from literature. A central problem is to find out how the various pieces of information should be integrated. In addition, one should know how to deal with missing, inconsistent, or too inaccurate data. Recently, a general systematic method for dealing with these problems, based on conservation constraints, was published, and application shown to simple black box systems. In this article, the scope is generalized by including metabolic network data and dispersed process information of diverse type and nature, such as multiple sources of the value of one particular quantity, use of kinetic expressions, analytical problems, cometabolism or mixed substrate utilization, and chemical reactions. The alkalophilic bacterium Acinetobacter calcoaceticus is used as a model organism, growing on acetate and converting xylose into xylonolactone. It is shown that all relevant pieces of information can be straightforwardly and systematically treated, by considering them as constaints. In general, it is illustrated how the search for directed process improvements starts with an optimal selection of information sources, followed by an accurate analysis of possible metabolic bottlenecks. In this particular case it is shown that the yield of A. calcoaceticus on acetate at varying xylose/acetate feed ratios can be accurately predicted using dispersed process information. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Observation of Nonlinear Differential-Algebraic Systems With Unknown Inputs

A method to carry out the state estimation is proposed for a class of nonlinear systems with unknown inputs whose dynamics is governed by differential-algebraic equations (DAE). We achieve, under suitable conditions, to replace the original DAE for a system with differential equations only by using a zeroing manifold algorithm inducing a state space dimension reduction. Observability conditions can be checked using the original system parameters. The state estimation is done using a sliding mode high order differentiator.
Increasing Trust in Bankers to Enhance Savings: Experimental Evidence from India

According to economic theory, repeated interactions can play a crucial role in shaping trust. We randomly allocated people to treatments that promote interactions with bankers. Next, these people played incentivized trust games with their own banker and with an anonymous other banker. While the effect on trust in their own banker is limited, the impact on trust in other bankers is important. We also find that account savings strongly associate with trust in one’s own banker. Our experiment suggests that trust in one’s banker matters for savings but that it is more difficult to influence than trust in bankers in general.
Phase I and pharmacokinetic study of the novel platinum analogue CI-973 on a 5-daily dose schedule.

CI-973, a platinum(II) derivative with a 2-methyl-1,4-butanediamine carrier ligand, has activity in cisplatin-resistant tumor models in vitro and in vivo. In a Phase I pharmacokinetic study, 31 patients were treated with CI-973 (24 to 50 mg/m2/day for 5 days; 28-day cycles) given i.v. over 30 min without routine antiemetic prophylaxis or hydration. Of the 29 patients evaluable for maximum tolerated dose determination, most had a performance status of 0 or 1, and most had received prior chemotherapy. Neutropenia was dose limiting at 40 and 50 mg/m2/day. Recovery from neutropenia was generally rapid with nadir counts and recovery usually occurring by Days 15 and 22, respectively. Drug-associated thrombocytopenia was uncommon and never severe, even in patients with Grade 4 neutropenia. Anemia was common, but did not appear dose related. Drug-related nausea and vomiting and changes in renal function were relatively infrequent and mild. No clinically evident ototoxicity was reported, although changes in audiograms were noted in several patients. CI-973 concentrations were measured in plasma ultrafiltrate and urine by high-pressure liquid chromatography. The harmonic mean terminal half-life was 2.0 h. The mean CI-973 renal and nonrenal clearance values were 42.3 and 37.4 ml/min/m2, respectively. The mean recovery of CI-973 in urine was 53% of the administered dose. The mean ratio of CI-973 renal clearance to creatinine clearance was 0.92. Total clearance correlated with creatinine clearance (r2 = 0.63). A relationship between toxicity, expressed as the percentage of reduction in absolute granulocyte count, and area under the CI-973 plasma concentration-time curve was found in a subgroup of "good-risk" patients. This relationship, described well by a sigmoidal Emax pharmacodynamic model, did not hold for patients with extensive prior therapy or poor performance status. A model for toxicity prediction based on dose and creatinine clearance has been derived and will be validated in future studies. The recommended Phase II dose of CI-973 is 30 mg/m2/day for 5 days.