Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Characterization of paracetamol binding with normal and glycated human serum albumin assayed by a new electrochemical method

In the present study the interactions between paracetamol (PC) and human serum albumin, in non-glycated (HSA) and glycated form (GHSA), were investigated using continuous cyclic voltammetry in acetate buffer pH 7.4. The results showed lack of significant changes in formal potential E0 and electrode reaction constant rate, ks, of PC. The decay in the drug current, after the addition of protein, showed a decrease in free drug concentration and formation of a biocomplex. The contentious coulometry was also used to determine the binding parameters. The binding constant and binding ratio for HSA and GHSA were 2.0×104 and 7.8×103 mol L-1, respectively, and the number of binding was 2:1 for HSA-PC and 1:1 for GHSA-PC. These results were confirmed by UV-Vis spectroscopy. Thus, the new electrochemical analysis method described here provides an easy and fast method for evaluation of drug-protein interactions with significant clinical implication in diabetes.
Landscape Assessment ( LA ) Sampling and Analysis Methods

Landscape Assessment primarily addresses the need to identify and quantify fire effects over large areas, at times involving many burns. In contrast to individual case studies, the ability to compare results is emphasized along with the capacity to aggregate information across broad regions and over time. Results show the spatial heterogeneity of burns and how fire interacts with vegetation and topography. The quantity measured and mapped is “burn severity,” defined here as a scaled index gauging the magnitude of ecological change caused by fire. In the process, two methodologies are integrated. Burn Remote Sensing (BR) involves remote sensing with Landsat 30-meter data and a derived radiometric value called the Normalized Burn Ratio (NBR). The NBR is temporally differenced between preand postfire datasets to determine the extent and degree of change detected from burning (fig. LA-1). Two timeframes of acquisition identify effects soon after fire and during the next growing season for Initial and Extended Assessments, respectively. The latter includes vegetative recovery potential and delayed mortality. The Burn Index (BI) adds a complementary field sampling approach, called the Composite Burn Index (CBI). It entails a relatively large plot, independent severity ratings for individual strata, and a synoptic rating for the whole plot area. Plot sampling may be used to
On core-collapse supernovae in normal and in Seyfert galaxies

This paper estimates the relative frequency of different types of core-collapse supernovae, in terms of the ratio S between the number of type Ib–Ic and of type II supernovae. We estimate S independently for all normal and Seyfert galaxies whose radial velocity is �14000 km s 1 , and which had at least one supernova event recorded in the Asiago catalogue from January 1986 to August 2000. We find that the ratio S is � 0.23±0.05 in normal galaxies. This value is consistent with constant star formation rate and with a Salpeter Initial Mass Function and average binary rate � 50%. On the contrary, Seyfert galaxies exceed the ratio S in normal galaxies by a factor � 4 at a confidence level > 2�. A caveat is that the numbers for Seyferts are still small (6 type Ib-Ic and 6 type II supernovae discovered as yet). Assumed real, this excess of type Ib and Ic with respect to type II supernovae, may indicate a burst of star formation of young age (� < � 20 Myr), a high incidence of binary systems in the inner regions (r < � 0.4R25) of Seyfert galaxies, or a top-loaded mass function.
Cost-effectiveness of detemir-based basal/bolus therapy versus NPH-based basal/bolus therapy for type 1 diabetes in a UK setting: an economic analysis based on meta-analysis results of four clinical trials

SUMMARY Background: A meta-analysis of results from four clinical trials in type 1 diabetes patients showed that insulin detemir (IDet)-based basal/bolus treatment of type 1 diabetes led to improved HbA1c (0.15%-points lower), reduced risk of major hypoglycaemic events (by 2%) and reduction in body mass index (BMI) (0.26kg/m2) compared to protamine Hagedorn human (NPH) insulin-based basal/bolus therapy in type 1 patients. Methods: A published, validated, peer-reviewed Markov simulation model (the CORE Diabetes Model) projected short-term results obtained from the fixed-effects (weighted average) meta-analysis to long-term incidence of complications, improvements in quality-adjusted life years (QALY), long-term costs and the cost-effectiveness for IDet combinations versus NPH combinations in type 1 diabetes patients. Probabilities of complications and HbA1c-dependent adjustments were derived from the DCCT and other studies. Costs of treating complications in the UK were retrieved from published sources. Total direct costs (complications + treatment costs) for each arm were projected over patient lifetimes from a UK National Heath Service perspective. Both costs and clinical outcomes were discounted at 3.5% annually. Results: Improved glycaemic control, decreased hypoglycaemic events and BMI with IDet-based basal/bolus therapy led to fewer diabetes-related complications, an increase in quality-adjusted life expectancy of 0.09 years, increased total lifetime costs/patient of £1707 and an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of £19,285 per QALY gained. Results were stable under a wide range of reasonable assumptions. Conclusions: Short-term improvements seen with IDet combinations versus NPH combinations led to decreased complications, improvements in QALYs and reductions in complication costs, which partially offset the additional costs of detemir, leading to a cost-effectiveness ratio which fell within a range considered to represent excellent value for money (< £35,000/QALY gained).
The Determinants of Purchase Intention towards Counterfeit Mobile Phones in Pakistan

The alarming emergence of global economic phenomenon of counterfeiting and the deficiency of research work in the context of consumer purchase intentions towards counterfeits makes the study more worthwhile than ever before. This study intends to examine the relationship of value consciousness, low price, past experience peer pressure and attitude on consumer purchase intentions in the context of counterfeit mobile phones in Pakistan. A sample of 329 students with the help of a questionnaire containing 22 statements related beliefs about counterfeited mobiles was taken. The data were analyzed using linear regression. The findings support the significant influence of past experience and low price on attitude towards counterfeit mobile phones, weak support for the role of value consciousness. Positive association between past experience, peer pressure and attitude towards counterfeit mobile phones were found and there is also a positive association of attitude with young consumer’s purchase intentions. Strangely, low price was not significant in influencing the purchase intentions. For both practitioners and academics, the findings of this study hold important implications. The paper guides the policy makers and academics about the main predictors of consumer’s attitude towards counterfeit mobile phones.
A second case of multivalent meiotic configurations in diploid species of Anura

We analyzed the meiotic chromosomes of specimens from the two karyological groups of Physalaemus petersi (Jimenez de la Espada, 1872) described in the literature. Multivalent configurations (rings or chains) were observed in both groups. This meiotic organization resulted from the terminal association of non-homologous chromosomes, and an analysis of C-banded multivalents indicated no involvement of heterochromatic regions in these associations. A possible explanation for such meiotic configurations is the occurrence of heterozygous translocations. Thus, multivalents may indicate the involvement of translocation events in the karyotypic evolution of P. petersi.
the borders of H 3 K 27 me 3 domains CTCF tandemly aligns with other insulator proteins at Drosophila Material Supplemental

Genome Res. January , 2009 19: 24-32 Suresh Cuddapah, Raja Jothi, Dustin E. Schones, et al. regions reveals demarcation of active and repressive domains Global analysis of the insulator binding protein CTCF in chromatin barrier Genome Res. September , 2012 22: 1680-1688 Hao Wang, Matthew T. Maurano, Hongzhu Qu, et al. Widespread plasticity in CTCF occupancy linked to DNA methylation Genome Res. May , 2010 20: 578-588 Dominic Schmidt, Petra C. Schwalie, Caryn S. Ross-Innes, et al. A CTCF-independent role for cohesin in tissue-specific transcription Genome Res. August , 2008 18: 1259-1269 Brian P. Chadwick antisense transcripts chromosome and acquires a novel inactive X-specific role involving CTCF and DXZ4 chromatin adopts an opposing conformation to that of the surrounding Genome Res. August , 2004 14: 1594-1602 Rituparna Mukhopadhyay, WenQiang Yu, Joanne Whitehead, et al. Methylation-Free Domains Genome-Wide The Binding Sites for the Chromatin Insulator Protein CTCF Map to DNA
Essex Finance Centre Working Paper Series Working Paper No 28 : 01-2018 A Bootstrap Stationarity Test for Predictive Regression Invalidity “

In order for predictive regression tests to deliver asymptotically valid inference, account has to be taken of the degree of persistence of the predictors under test. There is also a maintained assumption that any predictability in the variable of interest is purely attributable to the predictors under test. Violation of this assumption by the omission of relevant persistent predictors renders the predictive regression invalid, and potentially also spurious, as both the finite sample and asymptotic size of the predictability tests can be significantly inflated. In response we propose a predictive regression invalidity test based on a stationarity testing approach. To allow for an unknown degree of persistence in the putative predictors, and for heteroskedasticity in the data, we implement our proposed test using a fixed regressor wild bootstrap procedure. We demonstrate the asymptotic validity of the proposed bootstrap test by proving that the limit distribution of the bootstrap statistic, conditional on the data, is the same as the limit null distribution of the statistic computed on the original data, conditional on the predictor. This corrects a long-standing error in the bootstrap literature whereby it is incorrectly argued that for strongly persistent regressors and test statistics akin to ours the validity of the fixed regressor bootstrap obtains through equivalence to an unconditional limit distribution. Our bootstrap results are therefore of interest in their own right and are likely to have applications beyond the present context. An illustration is given by re-examining the results relating to U.S. stock returns data in Campbell and Yogo (2006).
The Impact of Obesity on the Social Participation of Older Adults

Previous research (e.g., R. Puhl & K. P. Brownell, 2001) has indicated that stigma associated with obesity contributes to diminished social engagement for the obese, but there is evidence that this stigma is more pronounced in younger age groups. The present authors investigated whether the negative association between obesity and social participation that is apparent in younger age groups continues in older adulthood. The authors analyzed interview data from 1,439 participants aged 60-93 years (M age = 71 years, SD = 5.7 years) from the Changing Lives of Older Couples Study (D. Carr, R. Nesse, & C. Wortman, 2005). Regression results indicated that hypothesized interactions between age and body mass index (BMI) in predicting social participation were not significant after controlling for demographic variables, health status, depression, and self-esteem. In fact, higher BMI was associated with greater overall and formal social participation (i.e., organizations, volunteer work, church), suggesting not only that stigmatization against the obese appears to decrease with age but also that additional factors play a role.
Targeting etoposide to acute myelogenous leukaemia cells using nanostructured lipid carriers coated with transferrin

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the diverse properties of transferrin (Tf)-conjugated nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs) prepared using three different fatty amines, including stearylamine (SA), dodecylamine (DA) and spermine (SP), and two different methods for Tf coupling. Etoposide-loaded NLCs were prepared by an emulsion–solvent evaporation method followed by probe sonication. Chemical coupling of NLCs with Tf was mediated by an amide linkage between the surface-exposed amino group of the fatty amine and the carboxyl group of the protein. The physical coating was performed in a Ringer-Hepes buffer medium. NLCs were characterized by their particle size, zeta potential, polydispersity index, drug entrapment percentage, drug release profiles and Tf-coupling efficiency. The cytotoxicity of NLCs on K562 acute myelogenous leukaemia cells was studied by MTT assay, and their cellular uptake was studied by a flow cytometry method. SA-containing NLCs showed the lowest particle size, the highest zeta potential and the largest coupling efficiency values. The drug entrapment percentage and the zeta potential decreased after Tf coupling, but the average particle size increased. SP-containing formulations released their drug contents comparatively slower than SA- or DA-containing NLCs. Unconjugated NLCs released moderately more drug than Tf-NLCs. Flow cytometry studies revealed enhanced cellular uptake of Tf-NLCs compared to unconjugated ones. Blocking Tf receptors resulted in a significantly higher cell survival rate for Tf-NLCs. The highest cytotoxic activity was observed in the chemically coupled SA-containing nanoparticles, with an IC50 value of 15-fold lower than free etoposide.
The Man Who Never Was: The Story of Operation Mincemeat (1953) - Book - The Robert Menzies Collection: A Living Library

The Man Who Never Was: The Story of Operation Mincemeat (1953) - Book - The Robert Menzies Collection: A Living Library - The Robert Menzies Collection: A Living Library is a biographical and bibliographical database documenting more than 4000 books from the personal collection of Sir Robert Gordon Menzies held at the University of Melbourne Library.
A Robust Luby Transform Encoding Pattern-Aware Symbol Packetization Algorithm for Video Streaming Over Wireless Network

In this paper, we propose a Luby transform encoding pattern-aware symbol packetization algorithm to minimize the quality degradation of video streaming service caused by packet losses over wireless network. To achieve this goal, the relationship among Luby transform encoded symbols is analyzed based on Luby transform encoding pattern, and the proposed packetization algorithm is designed to minimize packet loss effects by reducing the dependency among packets conveying Luby transform encoded symbols. Finally, experimental results are provided to show the performance of the proposed algorithm.
Cloud Removal From Multitemporal Satellite Images Using Information Cloning

A cloud removal approach based on information cloning is introduced. The approach removes cloud-contaminated portions of a satellite image and then reconstructs the information of missing data utilizing temporal correlation of multitemporal images. The basic idea is to clone information from cloud-free patches to their corresponding cloud-contaminated patches under the assumption that land covers change insignificantly over a short period of time. The patch-based information reconstruction is mathematically formulated as a Poisson equation and solved using a global optimization process. Thus, the proposed approach can potentially yield better results in terms of radiometric accuracy and consistency compared with related approaches. Some experimental analyses on sequences of images acquired by the Landsat-7 Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus sensor are conducted. The experimental results show that the proposed approach can process large clouds in a heterogeneous landscape, which is difficult for cloud removal approaches. In addition, quantitative and qualitative analyses on simulated data with different cloud contamination conditions are conducted using quality index and visual inspection, respectively, to evaluate the performance of the proposed approach.
Learning from neural control for a class of discrete-time nonlinear systems

In this paper, based on a recent result on deterministic learning theory, we investigate learning from adaptive neural control for a class of discrete-time nonlinear systems. First, we use an adaptive neural control law without any robustification term to ensure the finite time tracking error convergence. With the tracking convergence of the system states to a periodic reference orbit, a partial PE condition of internal states is satisfied. Secondly, by using the stability result of linear discrete time-varying systems, it will be shown that exponential stability of the weight estimation subsystem along the tracking orbit is achieved, and convergence of certain neural weights of the neurons centered along the tracking orbit to their optimal values is guaranteed. Thus, locally-accurate NN approximation of the unknown dynamics is achieved by constant RBF networks. A neural learning control scheme is also presented in which the learned knowledge stored in constant RBF networks is embedded, and good tracking performance is achieve without further adaptation of neural weights. Simulation studies are included to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach.
The Acute Effect of Cold Air Exercise in Determination of Exercise-Induced Bronchospasm in Apparently Healthy Athletes

Carey, DG, Aase, KA, and Pliego, GJ. The acute effect of cold air exercise in determination of exercise-induced bronchospasm in apparently healthy athletes. J Strength Cond Res 24(8): 2172-2178, 2010-The primary objective of this study was to assess the acute effects for both cold and warm air running on pulmonary function testing and the diagnosis of exercise-induced bronchospasm (EIB). Subjects (n = 12, 8 men, 4 women) were distance runners (25.91 ± 4.91 miles·wk−1) with mean age 30.2 ± 5.1 years, mean height 179.0 ± 11.5 cm, and mean weight 77.1 ± 15.7 kg. Subjects first performed a maximal oxygen test on a motor-driven treadmill to assess &OV0312;o2max and maximal heart rate (MHR). On 2 subsequent days and within a 1-week time period, subjects ran 8 minutes in random order either on an outside 478.2-m course or on the treadmill at 6% grade. Speed was adjusted under both conditions to elicit 85-95% of MHR achieved on the &OV0312;o2max test. All tests were conducted in the month of January to maximize the potential for a cold climate. Pulmonary function test was performed immediately prerun, immediately postrun, and at 5, 10, 18, and 30 minutes postrun. There was no significant difference in any of the pulmonary function tests over time for cold vs. warm running (p > 0.05). Also, the pattern of change over time for the pulmonary function variables was not significantly different by condition (p > 0.05). Although group comparisons were not significant over time and for any variable between the 2 conditions, 7of our subjects (58.3%) at some point postexercise exhibited a change that would be considered a positive response and diagnostic of EIB. Cold running produced significantly more positive responses (75%) than warm running (25%) (p = 0.001). It is concluded that healthy individuals need not be concerned about the acute effects of cold air exercise on the lungs. Also, physicians need to be vigilant in prescribing medications and should use strict, objective criteria when doing so.
Memory-guided saccade abnormalities in schizophrenic patients and their healthy, full biological siblings

Background Ocular-motor inhibition errors and saccadic hypometria occur at elevated rates in biological relatives of schizophrenic patients. The memory-guided saccade (MS) paradigm requires a subject to inhibit reflexive saccades (RSs) and to programme a delayed saccade towards a remembered target. Method MS, RS, and central fixation (CF) tasks were administered to 16 patients who met the criteria for DSM-IV schizophrenia, 19 of their psychiatrically healthy siblings, and 18 controls. Results Patients and siblings showed elevated MS error rates reflecting a failure to inhibit RSs to a visible target, as required by the task. In contrast to controls, prior errors did not improve MS accuracy in patients and siblings. Conclusions The specific characteristics of the elevated MS error rate help to clarify the nature of the disinhibition impairment found in schizophrenics and their healthy siblings. Failure to inhibit premature saccades and to improve the accuracy of subsequent volitional saccades implicates a deficit in spatial working-memory integration, mental representation and/or motor learning processes in schizophrenia.
Determination of the oestrogenic (uterotrophic) activity of extracts of ‘general purpose polystyrene (GPPS)’ using immature female rats

In Japan there is growing concern about the possible adverse effects of consumption of food from styrene containers (mainly those made from polystyrene paper) due to the alleged oestrogenic activity of styrene oligomers (dimers and trimers), which may migrate into the food. To examine the possible oestrogenic activity of styrene dimers and trimers, extracts were made from ‘general purpose polystyrene (GPPS)’ and administered orally to immature female rats over a 4 day period. Increase of uterus weight (wet and blotted) was used for assessment of possible oestrogenic activity. To establish the sensitivity of the test method, immature rats were treated with diethylstilboestrol (DES), a well‐known oestrogenic compound.
Application of hyperpolarized [1‐13C]lactate for the in vivo investigation of cardiac metabolism

In addition to cancer imaging, 13C‐MRS of hyperpolarized pyruvate has also demonstrated utility for the investigation of cardiac metabolism and ischemic heart disease. Although no adverse effects have yet been reported for doses commonly used in vivo, high substrate concentrations have lead to supraphysiological pyruvate levels that can affect the underlying metabolism and should be considered when interpreting results. With lactate serving as an important energy source for the heart and physiological lactate levels one to two orders of magnitude higher than for pyruvate, hyperpolarized lactate could potentially be used as an alternative to pyruvate for probing cardiac metabolism. In this study, hyperpolarized [1‐13C]lactate was used to acquire time‐resolved spectra from the healthy rat heart in vivo and to measure dichloroacetate (DCA)‐modulated changes in flux through pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDH). Both primary oxidation of lactate to pyruvate and subsequent conversion of pyruvate to alanine and bicarbonate could reliably be detected. Since DCA stimulates the activity of PDH through inhibition of PDH kinase, a more than 2.5‐fold increase in bicarbonate‐to‐substrate ratio was found after administration of DCA, similar to the effect when using [1‐13C]pyruvate as the substrate. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.