Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Kidney growth and renal functions under the growth hormone replacement therapy in children

Abstract Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the kidney growth and renal functions in children receiving recombinant human growth hormone (rhGH) treatment. Materials and methods: A total of 37 children who received rhGH for 1.5 years before the study was started and 48 healthy controls were included at first evaluation. Hormone levels were determined and kidney sizes were measured by ultrasound. Kidney functions were assessed by serum creatinine and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR). After 3 years of first evaluation, 23 patients were re-assessed. Results: Kidney sizes were found to be lower in rhGH received children compared with controls at first evaluation (p < 0.05). Significant positive correlations were found between anthropometric measurements and kidney length and kidney volume (p < 0.05). Height was the most significant predictor of kidney volume in rhGH received children (p < 0.001). After 3-years of follow-up significantly increases were found in kidney length and volume compared with the first measurements (p < 0.05). Increase percentage of body height was similar to increasing percent of kidney length and liver long axis (14.2%, 11.7.1% and 7.7%, respectively, p > 0.05). Although no abnormal renal function test results were found at first and second evaluations; rhGH received children had significantly lower eGFR, at first evaluation, compared with controls; however, renal functions significantly increased after 3 years of follow-up (p < 0.05). Conclusions: In conclusion, effect rhGH treatment on kidney growth is parallel to growth in body height and other visceral organs. A 3-years rhGH treatment resulted in significant increases in renal functions.
Media Sentiment, Institutional Investors and Probability of Stock Price Crash: Evidence from Chinese Stock Markets

Using a large sample of firm‐level media reports data, we examine whether and how media reports affect the probability of stock price crash in China. We find that positive media reports reduce the probability of stock price crash, while the relationship between negative reports and the probability of price crash is U‐shaped. The probability of stock price crash is more sensitive to the media reports in SOEs and large firms. Furthermore, we find evidence to support the media management behaviour of institutional investors. Such behaviour significantly changes the probability of stock price crash. However, we only observe the media management behaviour of institutional investors in firms held by non‐block institutions, in support of the notion that transient investors behave opportunistically and reap short‐term investment gains through media management.
Gender Norms, Work-Family Policies, and Labor Force Participation among Immigrant and Native-born Women in Western Europe

Though women’s labor force participation has increased over recent decades, it remains lower than men’s in nearly every advanced democracy. Some groups of migrant and ethnic minority women have especially low rates of labor force participation, which is often attributed to cultures of origin that are less normatively supportive of women’s paid work outside the home. I argue in this paper that the gender norms women have been exposed to in their families and countries of origin interact with work-family policies to shape patterns of labor force participation. Cultural and familial norms about women’s employment outside the home are influential for women’s labor force participation in contexts of weak work-family policies. However, they cease to matter in determining women’s labor force participation in contexts of strong work-family policies.
Combining Spatial Filters for the Classification of Single-Trial EEG in a Finger Movement Task

Brain-computer interface (BCI) is to provide a communication channel that translates human intention reflected by a brain signal such as electroencephalogram (EEG) into a control signal for an output device. In recent years, the event-related desynchronization (ERD) and movement-related potentials (MRPs) are utilized as important features in motor related BCI system, and the common spatial patterns (CSP) algorithm has shown to be very useful for ERD-based classification. However, as MRPs are slow nonoscillatory EEG potential shifts, CSP is not an appropriate approach for MRPs-based classification. Here, another spatial filtering algorithm, discriminative spatial patterns (DSP), is newly introduced for better extraction of the difference in the amplitudes of MRPs, and it is integrated with CSP to extract the features from the EEG signals recorded during voluntary left versus right finger movement tasks. A support vector machines (SVM) based framework is designed as the classifier for the features. The results show that, for MRPs and ERD features, the combined spatial filters can realize the single-trial EEG classification better than anyone of DSP and CSP alone does. Thus, we propose an EEG-based BCI system with the two feature sets, one based on CSP (ERD) and the other based on DSP (MRPs), classified by SVM
Democratic Tipping Points

I examine whether transitory events can tip the scales against authoritarian regimes and lead to persistent democratization. I think of situations where this is a possibility as democratic tipping points. The transitory events I focus on are rainfall shocks in the most agricultural countries in the world. I show that while these shocks only affect agricultural output contemporaneously, they have persistent effects on political institutions. Authoritarian regimes experiencing negative rainfall shocks are more likely to be democratic three, five, and ten years later.
Automated fundoscopic recognition of diabetic retinopathy features: a review

Diabetic Retinopathy (DR) is an eye ailment affecting millions of diabetes patients globally. DR is a systemic pathology, one that occurs due to problems in the insulin levels of the body. Glucose intolerance badly affects the blood circulatory network including the micro-vascular structure of the retina where damaged vessels dump unwanted liquids into it. Early detection is the key here and if not detected and treated in time, DR results in partial to complete blindness in a high percentage of all diabetics worldwide [1]. This review is an attempt at a rundown of various image processing algorithms and systems employed for the recognition of these retinal pathologies. Although the grading efficacy is examined, most of the algorithms are honed in for a target set of patients so abstraction among these is not easy. It is also exhibited that the feature extraction of these pathology detection algorithms has seen stable improvement so much so that their efficiency now competes human expert levels diagnosis.
Introduction: The Re-evolution of Energy Policy in Europe

To truly appreciate European integration development, it is crucial to understand the role energy has played (and has still the potential for) throughout the more than 50 years’ history of this process. Indeed, it is hardly possible to explain the origins of the European Union (EU) without considering what happened in Europe just after the end of World War II (Lucas, 1977). Starting with the establishment of the European Coal Organisation (ECO) in 1946 and then the Organisation for European Economic Co-operation (OEEC) in 1948, energy was a cornerstone of European integration. The rationale for establishing the first Community organization in 1951, the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), lay explicitly with the energy-related challenges that Europe had to face during those years. A similar motivation lay behind the creation of the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom) in 1957, with both the latter and the ECSC constituting the basic pillars of the European Economic Community (EEC). Thus, it is accurate to argue that energy is not only deeply rooted in European construction, but that it has been in itself – with more or less success – a driver of integration. That said, it is fairly paradoxical that the integration process has never developed so far as to lay the foundations for a fully fledged and coherent common energy policy, which has instead become one of the weakest policy areas to date. During the 1980s, energy policy was considered a ‘spectacular failure’ of integration (Andersen, 2000). However, this condition has been
Do House Prices Sink or Ride the Wave of Immigration?

The sharp rise in international migration is a pressing social and economic issue, as seen in the recent global trend towards nationalism. One major concern is the impact of immigration on housing. We assemble a comprehensive database of 474 estimates of immigration's impact on house prices in 14 destination countries and find that immigration increases house prices, on average. However, attitudes to immigrants moderate this effect. In countries less welcoming to immigrants, house price increases are more limited.
Intracerebroventricular administration of NMDA‐R1 antisense oligodeoxynucleotide significantly alters the activity of ventral tegmental area dopamine neurons: An electrophysiological study

In this study, we determined the activity of midbrain dopamine (DA) neurons in male albino rats following the intracerebroventricular (i.c.v.) administration of antisense oligodeoxynucleotide (aODN) against the mRNA for the NR1 subunit of the NMDA receptor. In addition, the effect of aODN on the specific binding of the NMDA receptor ligand [3H]MK‐801 was also examined in various brain areas, including the midbrain. Antisense ODN against the NR1 mRNA, the corresponding sense ODN (sODN) or saline was continuously administered into the right ventricle of rats by osmotic minipumps for 7 days (20 nmol/day). Autoradiographic binding studies indicated that aODN significantly reduced the density of [3H]MK‐801 binding by an average of 20–30% in several forebrain regions, including the anterior cingulate cortex, caudate putamen, and nucleus accumbens. However, [3H]MK‐801 binding was not significantly altered in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) or substantia nigra pars compacta (SNC). Subsequently, using the technique of extracellular single‐unit recording, the number, as well as the firing pattern, of spontaneously active DA neurons was determined in the VTA and SNC. The administration of aODN did not significantly alter the number of spontaneously active VTA and SNC DA neurons compared to saline‐ of sODN‐treated animals. Furthermore, the firing pattern of spontaneously active SNC DA neurons was not significantly altered. However, for spontaneously active VTA DA neurons, the administration of aODN significantly decreased the percent events in bursts, number of bursts, and percentage of DA neurons exhibiting a bursting pattern compared to saline‐ and sODN‐treated animals, i.e., neurons show less bursting activity. The present results suggest that subchronic aODN treatment against the mRNA for the NR1 subunit of the NMDA receptors can reduce NMDA receptor number and can result in an altered activity of spontaneously active VTA DA neurons in anesthetized rats. Synapse 40:275–281, 2001. © 2001 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Generation of knock‐in mice that express nuclear enhanced green fluorescent protein and tamoxifen‐inducible Cre recombinase in the notochord from Foxa2 and T loci

The node and the notochord are important embryonic signaling centers that control embryonic pattern formation. Notochord progenitor cells present in the node and later in the posterior end of the notochord move anteriorly to generate the notochord. To understand the dynamics of cell movement during notochord development and the molecular mechanisms controlling this event, analyses of cell movements using time‐lapse imaging and conditional manipulation of gene activities are required. To achieve this goal, we generated two knock‐in mouse lines that simultaneously express nuclear enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) and tamoxifen‐inducible Cre, CreERT2, from two notochord gene loci, Foxa2 and T (Brachury). In Foxa2nEGFP‐CreERT2/+ and TnEGFP‐CreERT2/+ embryos, nuclei of the Foxa2 or T‐expressing cells, which include the node, notochord, and endoderm (Foxa2) or wide range of posterior mesoderm (T), were labeled with EGFP at intensities that can be used for live imaging. Cre activity was also induced in cells expressing Foxa2 and T 1 day after tamoxifen administration. These mice are expected to be useful tools for analyzing the mechanisms of notochord development. genesis 51:210–218, 2013. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Advanced Processing Sequence for 3-D THz Imaging

In this paper, we present an advanced image processing sequence to perform nondestructive inspection from 3-D terahertz (THz) images. We develop all the steps starting from a 3-D tomographic reconstruction of a sample from radiographs acquired with a monochromatic millimeter-wave imaging system to an automated segmentation, extracting the different volumes of interest (VOI) composing the sample. This leads to 3-D visualization and dimensional measurements. This inspection is completed by a skeletonization and caliber analysis providing an accurate assessment of the structure, geometry, and morphology of the acquired object. Overall sequence is implemented onto an unique software and validated through different sample analysis.
Temporal patterns of genetic variation in a salmon population undergoing rapid change in migration timing

Though genetic diversity is necessary for population persistence in rapidly changing environments, little is known about how climate‐warming influences patterns of intra‐population genetic variation. For a pink salmon population experiencing increasing temperatures, we used temporal genetic data (microsatellite = 1993, 2001, 2009; allozyme = 1979, 1981, 1983) to quantify the genetic effective population size (Ne) and genetic divergence due to differences in migration timing and to estimate whether these quantities have changed over time. We predicted that temporal trends toward earlier migration timing and a corresponding loss of phenotypic variation would decrease genetic divergence based on migration timing and Ne. We observed significant genetic divergence based on migration timing and genetic heterogeneity between early‐ and late‐migrating fish. There was also some evidence for divergent selection between early‐ and late‐migrating fish at circadian rhythm genes, but results varied over time. Estimates of Ne from multiple methods were large (>1200) and Ne/Nc generally exceeded 0.2. Despite shifts in migration timing and loss of phenotypic variation, there was no evidence for changes in within‐population genetic divergence or Ne over the course of this study. These results suggest that in instances of population stability, genetic diversity may be resistant to climate‐induced changes in migration timing.
Obscured Transparency? Compensation Benchmarking and the Biasing of Executive Pay

The disclosure of compensation peer groups is argued to provide shareholders with valuable information that can be used to scrutinize chief executive officer (CEO) compensation. However, research suggests that there are substantial incentives for executives and directors to bias the compensation peer group upward such that the CEO can extract additional rent. We leverage the idea that reciprocated peer nominations are unlikely to be biased to construct counterfactual peer groups that allow us to measure the bias of disclosed peer groups. Analyses of 11 years of comprehensive data on compensation peer groups demonstrate that the average firm uses an upwardly biased peer group. The size of the bias increases when incentives and opportunities to do so are more pronounced. Specifically, results show that bias is larger when financial targets are not met and when exercising discretion in the selection of peer firms is justifiable. More importantly, upward bias in compensation peer groups is highly predictive of an increase in CEO compensation, suggesting that there is a strong incentive for CEOs to strategically select peers. Finally, although average peer group bias has gone down in recent years, the predictive effect of bias on pay has gone up. These findings call into question the practical impact of recent efforts to introduce greater transparency into the process for determining executive compensation. This paper was accepted by Olav Sorenson, organizations.
Activation of codependent transcription factors is required for transcriptional induction of the vgf gene by nerve growth factor and Ras

Nerve growth factor (NGF) treatment of PC12 cells leads to the elaboration of a neuronal phenotype, including the induction of neuronally expressed genes such as vgf. To study vgf transcription, we have created chimeric vgf/beta-globin genes in which vgf promoter sequences drive the expression of the beta-globin reporter gene or of a chimeric beta-globin gene fused to 3' untranslated vgf gene sequences. We have found that the level of inducibility of the latter construct by NGF resembles that of the endogenous vgf gene. Using transient transfection of the chimeric reporter genes into PC12 cells, into PC12 subclones expressing activated or dominantly interfering mutant Ras proteins, and into PC12 variants expressing specific NGF receptor/Trk mutants, we show that transcriptional regulation of the vgf promoter by NGF is mediated through a Ras-dependent signaling pathway. By mutational analysis of the vgf promoter, we have identified three promoter elements involved in mediating transcriptional induction by NGF and Ras. In addition to the cyclic AMP-responsive element (CRE), which binds to ATF-1, ATF-2, and CRE-binding protein in PC12 nuclear extracts, a novel CCAAT element and its binding proteins were identified, which, like the CRE, is necessary but not sufficient for the Ras-dependent induction of the vgf gene by NGF. We also identify a G(S)G element unusually located between the TATA box and transcriptional start site, which binds the NGF- and Ras-induced transcription factor, NGFI-A, and amplifies the transcriptional response. Integrating data from studies of vgf promoter regulation and NGF signal transduction, we present a model for vgf gene induction in which transcriptional activation is achieved through the persistent, direct activation of multiple interacting transcription factors binding to CRE and CCAAT elements, coordinated with the delayed transcription factor action at a G(S)G element resulting from the induced expression of NGFI-A.
Elderly ovarian cancer: treatment with mitoxantrone-carboplatin.

OBJECTIVE Data concerning optimal treatment of elderly patients with ovarian cancer are scanty. The management of ovarian cancer in the aged patient is many-sided: the diagnosis can be difficult and delayed, and aggressive surgery is often not attempted because of concomitant morbidity. We tested a combination of carboplatin and mitoxantrone potentially associated with low toxicity in elderly patients with ovarian cancer. METHODS Eighty-two patients older than 70 years (median age, 75; range, 70-88) with epithelial ovarian cancer were referred to our multicenter group and enrolled into this pilot study. Carboplatin (JM8) was given at the dose of 230 mg/m2 and mitoxantrone at the dose of 9 mg/m2 every 28 days. RESULTS Dose-limiting toxicity was represented by 4 cases of thrombocytopenia and 1 case of gastrointestinal toxicity. These 5 episodes occurred in 328 assessable cycles, representing a low toxicity profile (3%). Of the 68 assessable patients, 36 (53%) did not respond to chemotherapy (no change + progressive disease), complete response was observed in 15 (22%), and partial remission was observed in 16 (23.5%), accounting for an overall response rate of 45%. CONCLUSION The carboplatin-mitoxantrone combination, at the dosage tested in this study, appears to be well tolerated by elderly patients with advanced ovarian cancer and is associated with an acceptable response rate. Optimally debulked patients also showed improved survival when compared with patients with more extensive tumor.
Implementing the Extended School Day Policy in Florida's 300 Lowest Performing Elementary Schools. REL 2017-253.

Since 2014, Florida law has required the 300 elementary schools with the lowest reading performance to provide supplemental reading instruction through an extended school day. This study found that in 2014/15, on average, the lowest performing schools were smaller than other elementary schools and served higher proportions of racial/ethnic minority students and students eligible for the federal school lunch program. Schools reported using a variety of strategies to comply with the extended school day policy such as increasing reading instruction time each day, increasing staff, providing professional development for teachers, and providing instruction in the extra hour that differed from instruction during the rest of the day. Increased professional development and curricular and pedagogic changes were identified as indirect benefits of implementation.
Some aspects of the taxonomy, biology, possible evolution and biogeography of nematodes of the spirurine genus Rhabdochona Railliet, 1916 (Rhabdochonidae, Thelazioidea)

At present the nematode genus Rhabdochona Railliet, 1916 (Rhabdochonidae) comprises 92 possibly valid species, mostly intestinal parasites of freshwater fishes in all zoogeographical regions. Because of the absence of any phylogenetic studies using molecular methods in this nematode group, an attempt to evaluate affinities among these parasites and their zoogeography on the basis of morphological features and host-parasite relationships has been carried out. Only true definitive hosts should be considered for such evaluation. It appears that, during the evolution of Rhabdochona spp. , there occur an increase in the number of anterior prostomal teeth, loss of lateral alae, the right spicule attains a boat-like shape and a dorsal barb develops on its distal tip, and the distal tip of the left spicule attains gradually a more complex structure; the eggs with a smooth surface are considered to be more primitive. Nematodes of this genus most probably originated in the region of present southern Asia at the beginning of Tertiary. Closest to the initial type appear to be members of the subgenus Globochona Moravec, 1972, from which lineages leading to the subgenera Globochonoides Moravec, 1975, Rhabdochona Railliet, 1916 and Sinonema Moravec, 1975 can be derived. The morphology of Rhabdochona spp. indicate a close relationship between the Palaearctic fauna of these nematodes with the Nearctic species, and the Oriental fauna with the Ethiopian fauna. The Neotropical species can be derived from Nearctic members of the subgenus Rhabdochona; the latter probably penetrated, along with leuciscine hosts into North America from Palaearctic Eurasia at the end of Tertiary. The distribution of Palaearctic species of Rhabdochona corresponds to faunistical complexes in the conception of ichthyologists.