Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Biodiversity and local government: a reporting and accountability perspective

Purpose - – The purpose of this study is to illuminate the disclosure of biodiversity material contained in the reported information of 151 local government authorities (LGAs) in New South Wales, Australia. The introduction of the 1992 Convention on Biological Diversity (an international treaty to sustain the rich diversity of life on earth) has made the issue of fauna management and monitoring, and the associated requirement for cost-effective information, much more important. As local communities are best placed to make decisions about the protection of their local environments, the content in external reports and other disclosures allows stakeholders to gauge how accountable LGAs are regarding the conservation of biodiversity within their geographical jurisdiction. Design/methodology/approach - – Content analysis was used to analyze the disclosures of these LGAs. Findings - – The results reveal marked differences in the reporting of biodiversity issues. In fact, LGAs in the state of New South Wales (Australia) have been, at best, lukewarm in their disclosure of strategic information relating to biodiversity, particularly in their strategic goals and plans. Originality/value - – This paper contributes to the academic literature on biodiversity reporting by investigating existing reporting practices and providing evidence that a universally adopted framework for biodiversity reporting and reporting of local native fauna is required. In particular, the impacts of these practices need to be properly understood for LGAs to provide accountability to their stakeholders.
Phenotypic variability of rusty crayfish (
 Faxonius rusticus
 ) at the leading edge of its riverine invasion

Species around the globe are undergoing phenotypic shifts at ecologically relevant timescales as they invade new ecosystems and respond to changing environments. Disentangling the contribution of environmental gradients from the process of range expansion in shaping these changes, and identifying the specific traits undergoing selection, are both critical to anticipate the secondary spread and impact of invasive species. Here, we investigate phenotypic changes in rusty crayfish (Faxonius rusticus), a nuisance invasive species, through an extensive survey of their invasion gradient in multiple tributaries of the John Day River (JDR, Oregon, U.S.A.), a major tributary of the Columbia River. Rusty crayfish in the JDR have developed better physiological condition (intrinsic growth and/or reproductive potential measured as RNA/DNA ratio) but less competitive morphology (lighter body and smaller claws) as they spread upstream and downstream from their location of initial introduction. In addition, rusty crayfish in invasion front populations are at a lower trophic level than conspecifics closer to core areas. By accounting for variations in temperature, primary productivity, and prey (macroinvertebrates) biomass throughout the invasion extent of rusty crayfish, our findings suggest that low conspecific densities at the invasion edge and spatial sorting primarily drive these phenotypic changes. The trends observed here are thus likely to intensify over time as rusty crayfish continues to rapidly spread throughout the JDR and reach the mainstem Columbia River. Our study shows that phenotypic shifts can manifest rapidly over environmental gradients experienced during the range expansion of aquatic invasive species. Patterns in both morphological and functional traits documented in the JDR demonstrate the importance of both environmental factors and dispersal processes in shaping these responses in riverine networks.
Relative importance of high and low density lipoproteins in the regulation of cholesterol synthesis in the adrenal gland, ovary, and testis of the rat.

These studies were undertaken to determine the relative importance of plasma lipoproteins and trophic hormones as regulators of cholesterol synthesis in three endocrine glands of the rat. In rats treated with 4-aminopyrazolo[3,4-dlpyrimidine, the plasma cholesterol level was reduced from 56 to 5 mg/dl and this resulted in a decrease in cholesterol ester content in the adrenal gland from 26.26 to 1.12 mg/g and in the ovary from 4.61 to 2.54 mg/g but no change in the testis. The rates of sterol synthesis were markedly increased in adrenal gland (42-fold) and ovary (2.7-fold) but not in testis. In the presence of normal levels of endogenous plasma lipoproteins administration of adrenocorticotropin (ACTH) gel did not alter the rates of sterol synthesis in the adrenal gland but did essentially double the tissue content of cholesterol esters. In contrast, the administration of chorionic gonadotropin increased the rate of sterol synthesis in the ovary 4.1-fold while decreasing the cholesterol ester level from 7.32 to 1.15 mg/g and increased the rate of synthesis in the testis lOA-fold under circumstances where there was no decrease in ester content. In the ovary the effect of the simultaneous administration of 4-aminopyrazolo[3,4-dlpyrimidine and chorionic gonadotropin was additive, resulting in a 6to ? -fold increase in the rate of sterol synthesis and a still further decrease in tissue cholesterol ester content. In 4-aminopyrazolo[3,4-d]pyrimidine-treated animals, the continuous infusion of 20 mg of cholesterol carried in high density lipoprotein over 42 h increased the cholesterol ester content of the adrenal gland from 1.4 to 18.8 mg/g and suppressed sterol synthesis from 381 to 29 nmol/g/h. In contrast, the infusion of an identical amount of cholesterol carried in low density lipoprotein caused only a slight increase in the cholesterol ester content and a modest suppression of synthetic activity. Similar results were found in ovary and testis. Finally, in these same groups of rats the increase in the plasma corticosterone, progesterone and testosterone levels was 6to la-fold higher with infusion of high density lipoprotein than with low density lipoprotein. It is concluded that lipoprotein cholesterol, rather than cholesterol newly synthesized in the glands, is the major substrate for the production of steroid hormones in the adrenal gland, ovary, and testis of the rat. Furthermore, these three endocrine glands preferentially take up and utilize high density lipoprotein cholesterol rather than low density lipoprotein cholesterol.
SECUREWALL -A F RAMEWORK FOR FINE - GRAINED PRIVACY CONTROL IN ONLINE SOCIAL NETWORKS

Enormous popularity of Social Networking Sites has introduced a great number of privacy risks. Even the most popular of all the social networking sites have characterized access control policies in terms of explicit tracking of the interpersonal relationships between the subjects, objects and their inter relation. In this paper we present a novel paradigm that accounts for a secure, yet sociable information flow model based on access control policies. We took advantage of real time success of the access control security policies in operating systems by implementing them on online social networks at the mandatory level so that the user’s privacy does not have to be at stake by the growth of social network and activities or by the level of user understanding of the privacy settings provided by the social networking sites based on discretionary access control. We used Facebook and Google+ as case study and implemented the security policy in SecureWall to mitigate possible privacy leakage scenarios observed. We have implemented Chinese wall policy for community level privacy, Bell la-Padulla access control model to assure confidentiality to the user and Biba Access control model for providing Integrity. Since Bell la-Padulla and Biba models are basically meant to serve military security and therefore can risk sociability, we have combined the two models using Lipner Security Matrix in order to provide security without risking sociability. Our research can be adopted by online social networking sites for the mandatory level security especially for social networking in organizational specific activities.
A state-of-the-art review and guidelines for tumor treating fields treatment planning and patient follow-up in glioblastoma

Tumor treating fields (TTFields) are an integral treatment modality in the management of glioblastoma and extend overall survival when combined with maintenance temozolomide in newly diagnosed patients. Complexities exist regarding correct selection of imaging sequences with which to perform TTFields treatment planning. Guidelines are warranted first, to facilitate treatment planning standardization across medical disciplines and institutions, to ensure optimal TTFields delivery to the tumor and peritumoral brain zone while maximizing patient safety, and also to mitigate the risk of premature cessation of a potentially beneficial treatment. This summary guideline outlines methods for starting patients on TTFields, for monitoring patient response to therapy and provides a framework for evaluating when therapy should be re-planned, based on the extent of sequential imaging changes.
Segmental portal/superior mesenteric vein resection and reconstruction with the iliac vein after pancreatoduodenectomy

Objective The results of segmental venous resection (VR) combined with pancreatoduodenectomy (PD) are controversial but may be promising. Few studies have described reconstruction of the portal/superior mesenteric vein (PV/SMV) with the iliac vein harvested from donation after cardiac death (DCD). Methods From January 2014 to April 2016, PD combined with segmental excision of the PV/SMV (VR group) was performed in 21 patients with adenocarcinoma of the head of the pancreas (ADHP). The authors established a new technique of venous reconstruction using the iliac vein from DCD and analysed patients’ long-term survival. Results The tumour dimensions and tumour staging were greater and the operation time was longer in the VR than PD group; however, no differences in the resection degree, blood loss, complications, reoperation rate, or mortality rate were found. The median survival was similar between the VR and PD groups. The long-term patency of the donor iliac vein was 90%. The degree of resection was a strong predictor of long-term survival. Conclusion Segmental PV/SMV resection combined with PD is applicable to selective patients with venous invasion by ADHP if R0 resection has probably been achieved. An iliac vein obtained by DCD provides an effective graft for venous reconstruction.
KCNQ Modulators Reveal a Key Role for KCNQ Potassium Channels in Regulating the Tone of Rat Pulmonary Artery Smooth Muscle

Potassium channels are central to the regulation of pulmonary vascular tone. The smooth muscle cells of pulmonary artery display a background K+ conductance with biophysical properties resembling those of KCNQ (KV7) potassium channels. Therefore, we investigated the expression and functional role of KCNQ channels in pulmonary artery. The effects of selective KCNQ channel modulators were investigated on K+ current and membrane potential in isolated pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells (PASMCs), on the tension developed by intact pulmonary arteries, and on pulmonary arterial pressure in isolated perfused lungs and in vivo. The KCNQ channel blockers, linopirdine and XE991 [10,10-bis(4-pyridinylmethyl)-9(10H)-anthracenone], inhibited the noninactivating background K+ conductance in PASMCs and caused depolarization, vasoconstriction, and raised pulmonary arterial pressure without constricting several systemic arteries or raising systemic pressure. The KCNQ channel openers, retigabine and flupirtine, had the opposite effects. PASMCs were found to express KCNQ4 mRNA, at higher levels than mesenteric artery, along with smaller amounts of KCNQ1 and 5. It is concluded that KCNQ channels, most probably KCNQ4, make an important contribution to the regulation of pulmonary vascular tone, with a greater contribution in pulmonary compared with systemic vessels. The pulmonary vasoconstrictor effect of KCNQ blockers is a potentially serious side effect, but the pulmonary vasodilator effect of the openers may be useful in the treatment of pulmonary hypertension.
Exploring the Role of ICT-enabled Social Innovation for the Active Inclusion of Young People

This Report presents the final results of the study ‘ICT-enabled social innovation services for active inclusion of young people’ (IESI-Youth) which has been commissioned by the European Commission's Joint Research Centre, Institute for Prospective Technological Studies (JRC-IPTS) and implemented by Arcola Research in 2014. The overall objective of the study was to review the state of the art in the domain of active inclusion services for young people, with a specific focus on how ICTs can support active inclusion of disadvantaged youth to strengthen their skills and capacities and support them to participate fully in employment and social life. The study was conducted as preparatory activity contributing to the development of the broader research project on 'ICT enabled Social Innovation in support of the Implementation of the Social Investment Package (IESI) being implemented by JRC-IPTS in collaboration with DG Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion (DG EMPL).
Role of resting state functional connectivity MRI in presurgical investigation of mesial temporal lobe epilepsy

Objective The authors aimed to determine the ability of resting-state functional connectivity MRI (fcMRI) to lateralise/localise the epileptogenic zone in patients presenting with mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (MTLE) at the individual level. Methods Basal functional connectivity (BFC) was evaluated in each hemisphere of 22 MTLE patients. 200 volumes were acquired using a single-shot GE-EPI sequence during a resting period of 10 min at 1.5 T. The signal time-course was extracted from 10 regions of interest (ROIs), five ROIs in each hemisphere, usually involved in epileptogenic networks of MTLE. Normalised correlation coefficients between pairs of ROIs signal time-courses were computed to reflect BFC. Based on normative BFC values obtained from 36 controls, the number of BFC decreases and increases were determined in each hemisphere for each patient. Results BFC decreases were found bilaterally, although the number of decreased links was significantly higher in the epileptogenic side (p=0.025). Conversely, BFC increases were found almost exclusively in the contralateral lobe leading to a strong test effect for locating the non-epileptic lobe with a sensitivity of 64% and a specificity of 91% (p<0.001). The most frequently disconnected areas were the entorhinal cortex and the anterior hippocampus in the epileptic lobe, while contralateral BFC increases involved preferentially hippocampus and amygdala. Conclusions This study demonstrates that the presence of BFC increases in the non-epileptic side was paradoxically the most specific marker of epileptogenic zone localisation, and suggests that a single resting-state fcMRI could be useful in the presurgical assessment of MTLE at an individual level.
The Organizational State: Social Choice in National Policy Domains

The Federal Government in the United States is a government "of the people, by the people, and for the people. " Presidents are elected by popular vote in the nation (filtered through the electoral college), Senators are elected by popular vote in their states, and Representatives are elected by popular vote in their Congressional districts. Cabinet members and agency heads are appointed by the elected president, as are members of the Supreme Court. But this says nothing about politics. Professor Lauman and Knoke have asked, in this book, how policies were made, in the period 1977-1980, in the areas of energy and health. The question is a very different one from the question of how the positions of president and Congress are filled.
Radiation dose estimation using preclinical imaging with I124-metaiodobenzylguanidine (MIBG) PET.

PURPOSE A pretherapyI124-metaiodobenzylguanidine (MIBG) positron emission tomography (PET)/computed tomography (CT) provides a potential method to estimate radiation dose to normal organs, as well as tumors prior to I131-MIBG treatment of neuroblastoma or pheochromocytoma. The aim of this work was to estimate human-equivalent internal radiation dose of I124-MIBG using PET/CT data in a murine xenograft model. METHODS Athymic mice subcutaneously implanted with NB1691 cells that express high levels of human norepinephrine transporter(n=4) were imaged using small animal microPET/CT over 96 h (approximate imaging time points: 0.5, 2, 24, 52, and 96 h) after intravenous administration of 3.07-4.84 MBq of I124-MIBG via tail vein. The tumors did not accumulate I124-MIBG to a detectable level. All four animals were considered as control and organ radiation dosimetry was performed. Volumes of interest were drawn on the coregistered CT images for thyroid, heart, lung, liver, kidney, and bladder, and transferred to PET images to obtain pharmacokinetic data. Based on tabulated organ mass distributions for both mice and adult male human, preclinical pharmacokinetic data were extrapolated to their human-equivalent values. Radiation dose estimations for different age groups were performed using the OLINDA|EXM software with modified tissue weighting factors in the recent International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) Publication 103. RESULTS The mean effective dose fromI124-MIBG using weighting factors from ICRP 103 to the adult male was estimated at 0.25 mSv/MBq. In different age groups, effective doses using values from ICRP 103 were estimated as follows: Adult female: 0.34, 15-yr-old: 0.39 mSv/MBq, 10-yr-old: 0.58 mSv/MBq, 5-yr-old: 1.03 mSv/MBq, 1-yr-old: 1.92 mSv/MBq, and newborn: 3.75 mSv/MBq. For comparison, the reported effective dose equivalent of I124-NaI for adult male (25% thyroid uptake, MIRD Dose Estimate Report No. 5) was 6.5 mSv/MBq. CONCLUSIONS The authors estimated human-equivalent internal radiation dose ofI124-MIBG using preclinical imaging data. As a reference, the effective dose estimation showed that I124-MIBG would deliver less radiation dose than I124-NaI, a radiotracer already being used in patients with thyroid cancer.
Efficiency Analysis and Optimization Control for Input-Parallel Output-Series Wireless Power Transfer Systems

Wireless power transfer (WPT) technology has shown its significant role in various applications, such as electric vehicles and consumer electronics. In this paper, an input-parallel output-series circuit topology based on a compact double-sided decoupled coupler is presented to upgrade the power capacity of the WPT system with low-power and low-cost semiconductors. To avoid the potential risk of magnetic saturation, the phase difference between the transmitter currents is controlled to be 90° to achieve a symmetrical magnetic flux distribution for the magnetic coupler. Most importantly, an analytical model, which illustrates the relation between the efficiency and the ratio of the output voltages of the transmitter-side inverters under various misalignments, has been derived. Based on this, a control strategy is developed to maximize the energy efficiency under various misalignment conditions. The experimental results based on a 2.5-kW laboratory prototype show that, in comparison with the traditional method with identical inverters output voltages, the overall efficiency is improved by 2.32% by using the proposed method.
Spectro-temporal processing during speech perception involves left posterior auditory cortex

This functional magnetic resonance imaging study investigates the neural underpinnings of spectro-temporal integration during speech perception. Participants performed an auditory discrimination task on a set of sine-wave analogues that could be perceived as either nonspeech or speech. Behavioural results revealed a difference in the processing mode; spectro-temporal integration occurred during speech perception, but not when stimuli were perceived as nonspeech. In terms of neuroimaging, we observed an activation increase in the left posterior primary and secondary auditory cortex, namely Heschl's gyrus and planum temporale encroaching onto the superior temporal sulcus, reflecting a shift from auditory to speech perception. This finding demonstrates that the left posterior superior temporal lobe is essential for spectro-temporal processing during speech perception.
Japan's Economic Growth and Balance of Trade

In the literature on the relation between eco nomic growth and balance of payments, the famil iar two country framework is often used for analytical purposes. The countries may be used to represent a particular country whose balance of payments is under consideration and the rest of the world. Within this framework, it might be expected that, other things being equal, if country A's income rises due to productivity increases, country A's demand for country B's exports would rise, and the balance of payments would turn against country A. Sir John Hicks [4], however, has pointed out that in practice, the opposite re sult is possible. Such a "weird case" may be at tributable, according to Hicks, to the presence of biased rather than uniform growth. It is the purpose of this paper to study the case of post-war Japan to shed some light on Hicks' argument. The Japanese case is interesting be cause, while it has been growing faster relative to the rest of the world, it has a tendency to experi ence trade surpluses. Our paper is organized as follows: Section II presents our theoretical model, extending a famil iar aggregate model to disaggregate levels. The method of estimating the parameters of our model is explained and the empirical results given in Section III. Section IV summarizes our findings with some concluding remarks.
Intestinal epithelial cell caveolin 1 regulates fatty acid and lipoprotein cholesterol plasma levels

ABSTRACT Caveolae and their structural protein caveolin 1 (CAV1) have roles in cellular lipid processing and systemic lipid metabolism. Global deletion of CAV1 in mice results in insulin resistance and increases in atherogenic plasma lipids and cholesterol, but protects from diet-induced obesity and atherosclerosis. Despite the fundamental role of the intestinal epithelia in the regulation of dietary lipid processing and metabolism, the contributions of CAV1 to lipid metabolism in this tissue have never been directly investigated. In this study the cellular dynamics of intestinal Cav1 were visualized in zebrafish and the metabolic contributions of CAV1 were determined with mice lacking CAV1 in intestinal epithelial cells (CAV1IEC-KO). Live imaging of Cav1–GFP and fluorescently labeled caveolae cargos shows localization to the basolateral and lateral enterocyte plasma membrane (PM), suggesting Cav1 mediates transport between enterocytes and the submucosa. CAV1IEC-KO mice are protected from the elevation in circulating fasted low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol associated with a high-fat diet (HFD), but have increased postprandial LDL cholesterol, total free fatty acids (FFAs), palmitoleic acid, and palmitic acid. The increase in circulating FAs in HFD CAV1IEC-KO mice is mirrored by decreased hepatic FAs, suggesting a non-cell-autonomous role for intestinal epithelial cell CAV1 in promoting hepatic FA storage. In conclusion, CAV1 regulates circulating LDL cholesterol and several FA species via the basolateral PM of enterocytes. These results point to intestinal epithelial cell CAV1 as a potential therapeutic target to lower circulating FFAs and LDL cholesterol, as high levels are associated with development of type II diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Summary: Caveolin 1, which forms caveolae, localizes to the basolateral membrane of zebrafish intestinal epithelial cells and regulates circulating murine fatty acid and lipoprotein cholesterol levels.