Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Morphology and microsatellite instability in sporadic serrated and non‐serrated colorectal cancer

Colorectal serrated adenocarcinoma originates from serrated adenoma, but definite histological criteria have not yet been established. It presents with frequent DNA microsatellite instability (MSI), but the frequency of low‐level (MSI‐L) and high‐level MSI (MSI‐H) and the expression of mismatch‐repair (MMR) enzymes in serrated adenocarcinoma are not known. To address these questions, morphological criteria for serrated cancers were established, their validity was tested, and MSI analysis was performed with NIH consensus markers and MMR enzyme immunohistochemistry for hMLH1, hMSH2, and hMSH6 in 35 serrated and 75 non‐serrated colorectal carcinomas. Serrated carcinomas frequently showed a serrated, mucinous or trabecular growth pattern; abundant eosinophilic cytoplasm; chromatin condensation; preserved polarity; and the absence of necrosis. With these features, it was possible to distinguish them from non‐serrated cancers, with the mean kappa score for five observers being 0.509. MSI analysis was successful in 31 serrated and 73 non‐serrated carcinomas. 54.8% of serrated carcinomas were microsatellite‐stable (MSS), 29.0% presented with MSI‐L, and 16.1% presented with MSI‐H, whereas 78.1% of non‐serrated carcinomas were MSS, 13.7% were MSI‐L, and 8.2% were MSI‐H. MSI‐L was more common in serrated cancers (p = 0.035) and it was associated with patchy immunohistochemical staining (33.3%) of MLH1. MSI‐H did not differ between serrated and non‐serrated cancers (p = 0.14). These results suggest that the biological background of serrated carcinomas differs from sporadic non‐serrated colorectal cancer, but is not directly related to MSI. Copyright © 2005 Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
revisiting the evidence

This paper investigates whether legal reforms intended to create a market-friendly regulatory business environment have a positive impact on economic and financial outcomes. After conducting a critical review of the legal origins literature, the authors first analyze the evolution of legal rules and regulations during the last decade (2006-2014). For that purpose, the authors use legal/regulatory indicators from the Doing Business Project (World Bank). The authors findings indicate that countries have actively reformed their legal systems during this period, particularly French civil law countries. A process of convergence in the evolution of legal rules and regulations is observed: countries starting in 2006 in a lower position have improved more than countries with better initial scores. Also, French civil law countries have reformed their legal systems to a larger extent than common law countries and, consequently, have improved more in the majority of the Doing Business indicators used. Second, the authors estimate fixed-effects panel regressions to analyze the relationship between changes in legal rules and regulations and changes in the real economy. The authors findings point to a lack of systematic effects of legal rules and regulations on economic and financial outcomes. This result stands in contrast to the widespread belief that reforms aiming to strengthen investor and creditor rights (and other market-friendly policies) systematically lead to better economic and financial outcomes. It seems that improvements in these legal rules are not sufficient conditions for that. Finally, the authors conduct an exploratory analysis of the determinants of the effectiveness of legal reforms and the gap between legal rules and the reality on the ground.
Serially Concatenated Unity-Rate Codes Improve Quantum Codes Without Coding-Rate Reduction

Inspired by the astounding performance of the unity rate code (URC) aided classical coding and detection schemes, we conceive a quantum URC (QURC) for assisting the design of concatenated quantum codes. Unfortunately, a QURC cannot be simultaneously recursive as well as non-catastrophic. However, we demonstrate that, despite being non-recursive, our proposed QURC yields efficient concatenated codes, which exhibit a low error rate and a beneficial interleaver gain, provided that the coding scheme is carefully designed with the aid of EXtrinsic Information Transfer (EXIT) charts.
Capacitated Covering Problems in Geometric Spaces

We consider the following capacitated covering problem. We are given a set P of n points and a set $${\mathcal {B}}$$ B of balls from some metric space, and a positive integer U that represents the capacity of each of the balls in $${\mathcal {B}}$$ B . We would like to compute a subset $${\mathcal {B}}' \subseteq {\mathcal {B}}$$ B ′ ⊆ B of balls and assign each point in P to some ball in $${\mathcal {B}}'$$ B ′ that contains it, so that the number of points assigned to any ball is at most U . The objective function that we would like to minimize is the cardinality of $${\mathcal {B}}'$$ B ′ . We consider this problem in arbitrary metric spaces as well as Euclidean spaces of constant dimension. In the metric setting, even the uncapacitated version of the problem is hard to approximate to within a logarithmic factor. In the Euclidean setting, the best known approximation guarantee in dimensions 3 and higher is logarithmic in the number of points. Thus we focus on obtaining “bi-criteria” approximations. In particular, we are allowed to expand the balls in our solution by some factor, but optimal solutions do not have that flexibility. Our main result is that allowing constant factor expansion of the input balls suffices to obtain constant approximations for this problem. In fact, in the Euclidean setting, only $$1+\epsilon $$ 1 + ϵ factor expansion is sufficient for any $$\epsilon > 0$$ ϵ > 0 , with the approximation factor being a polynomial in $$1/\epsilon $$ 1 / ϵ . We obtain these results using a unified scheme for rounding the natural LP relaxation; this scheme may be useful for other capacitated covering problems. We also complement these bi-criteria approximations by obtaining hardness of approximation results that shed light on our understanding of these problems.
Characterization of conductive polymer inks based on PEDOT: PSS

Since the discovery of conductive polymers in the mid-1970, they have been very popular and widely researched among scientists worldwide. Nowadays, polymeric materials exhibiting electrical conductivity are very promising for applications in low-cost and disposable electronics. In addition, some polymeric materials can be solution processable, which makes the implementation of existing printing technologies to electronics manufacture possible. Among conductive polymers, the properties and performance of polyaniline (PANI) and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxy-thiophene)-poly(styrene sulfonate) (PEDOT: PSS) inks are studied and optimized for deposition by different printing methods. The present work focuses on properties of PEDOT: PSS based polymer inks. Electrical conductivity of PEDOT: PSS films can be increased by addition of alcohols; ethylene glycol was used in this work to enhance conductivity. Other modifications made to aqueous solution of PEDOT:PSS were addition of ethanol and non-ionic surfactant. Applicability of the PEDOT:PSS ink to printing process was addressed with consideration of surface tension, surface roughness of the deposited films and their electrical conductivity depending on the ink formulation. The reduction of surface tension of water based solution of conductive polymer was studied by two different methods. The resulting inks were characterized in terms of static (pendant drop) and dynamic surface tension (maximum differential bubble pressure) and dynamic contact angle (sessile drop). Surface topography of PEDOT:PSS films was studied using white light interferometry and atomic force microscopy. Surface uniformity has significantly improved for inks with addition of ethylene glycol. It was observed that the addition of ethylene glycol increased the conductivity of the films almost 20 times as measured by four-point probe technique.
The effect of cyclization on the enzymatic degradation of herpes simplex virus glycoprotein D derived epitope peptide

One linear and three cyclic peptides corresponding to the 278–287 (278LLEDPVGTVA287) sequence of glycoprotein D (gD‐1) of herpes simplex virus were synthesized for the analysis of the effect of cyclization on protection against enzymatic degradation. In this design, the turn‐forming motif (281DPVG284) was positioned in the central part of the peptide and elongated by three amino acids at both termini. Cyclopeptide formation was achieved by the introduction of a peptide bond, a disulfide bridge or a thioether link. The stability of these peptides was compared in human serum and also in rat lysosomal preparations. The data obtained in 10% and 50% human serum show that all three types of cyclization enhanced the stability, but at different levels. Complete stability was only achieved by the introduction of a thioether link, while the presence of a disulfide or peptide bond resulted in improved, but partial resistance against hydrolytic decomposition. In lysosomal preparations the presence of cyclic primary structure provided full protection against enzymatic hydrolysis. Taken together, these findings indicate that by appropriate structural modification it is feasible to construct a synthetic antigen with high stability against enzymatic degradation in complex biological fluids. Further studies are in progress to identify enzymes responsible for degradation in diluted human sera as well as in the lysosomal preparations and to gain more detailed information on the mechanism of action. Copyright © 2005 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Reducing ammonia emissions from laying-hen houses through dietary manipulation

Feed additives can change the microbiological environment of the animal digestive track, nutrient composition of feces, and its gaseous emissions. This 2-yr field study involving commercial laying-hen houses in central Iowa was conducted to assess the effects of feeding diets containing EcoCal and corn-dried distillers grain with solubles (DDGS) on ammonia (NH3), hydrogen sulfide (H2S), and greenhouse gas (CO2, CH4, and N2O) emissions. Three high-rise layer houses (256,600 W-36 hens per house) received standard industry diet (Control), a diet containing 7% EcoCal (EcoCal) or a diet containing 10% DDGS (DDGS). Gaseous emissions were continuously monitored during the period of December 2007 to December 2009, covering the full production cycle. The 24-month test results revealed that mean NH3 emission rates were 0.58 ± 0.05, 0.82 ± 0.04, and 0.96 ± 0.05 g/hen/day for the EcoCal, DDGS, and Control diet, respectively. Namely, compared to the Control diet, the EcoCal and DDGS diets reduced NH3 emission by an average of 39.2% and 14.3%, respectively. The concurrent H2S emission rates were 5.39 ± 0.46, 1.91 ± 0.13, and 1.79 ± 0.16 mg/hen/day for the EcoCal, DDGS, and Control diet, respectively. CO2 emission rates were similar for the three diets, 87.3 ± 1.37, 87.4 ± 1.26, and 89.6 ± 1.6 g/hen/day for EcoCal, DDGS, and Control, respectively (P = 0.45). The DDGS and EcoCal houses tended to emit less CH4 than the Control house (0.16 and 0.12 vs. 0.20 g/hen/day) during the monitored summer season. The efficacy of NH3 emission reduction by the EcoCal diet decreased with increasing outside temperature, varying from 72.2% in February 2009 to −7.10% in September 2008. Manure of the EcoCal diet contained 68% higher ammonia nitrogen (NH3-N) and 4.7 times higher sulfur content than that of the Control diet. Manure pH values were 8.0, 8.9, and 9.3 for EcoCal, DDGS, and Control diets, respectively. This extensive field study verifies that dietary manipulation provides a viable means to reduce NH3 emissions from modern laying-hen houses. Implications This work demonstrated that dietary manipulation can be used to reduce NH3 emissions from high-rise laying-hen houses with no adverse effect on the hen production performances (to be presented separately). The NH3 reduction rates could vary with different climates and hence geographic locations. The dietary manipulation to lower NH3 emissions should be applicable to all egg production systems. The results of this study also contribute to the baseline data for improving the national air emissions inventory for livestock and poultry production facilities.
H pylori may trigger cancers by switching off a tumour suppressor

Aims: To evaluate the IRIS flow microscope for the examination of urine specimens and to compare its performance with that of manual methods; in addition, to assess its usefulness as a screening system for the detection of significant bacteriuria in a routine clinical laboratory. Methods: The IRIS system was compared with manual quantitative microscopy for the detection of formed elements and with a variety of culture methods to detect urinary tract infection. Results: The IRIS had a higher sensitivity for the detection of clinically significant formed elements than did manual methods, and using a combination of bacterial and white cell counts produced a sensitivity and specificity of 94.9% and 54.4%, respectively, for predicting positive significant growth, with a 98.5% predictive value for a negative result. Approximately 50% of specimens could be reported as negative on the day of receipt using the screening algorithm. Conclusions: The sensitivity and specificity of the IRIS is equivalent to that of other automated screening systems and would remove the need for manual microscopy for most specimens. The system was easy to operate and is a useful addition to the methods currently available for the examination of urine specimens.
A pilot study of nocturnal temporalis muscle activity in TMD diagnostic groups of women

Temporomandibular disorder (TMD) incidences are believed to be related to parafunctional behaviours like teeth clenching. This pilot study aimed to (i) develop an automated clench-detection algorithm, and (ii) apply the algorithm to test for differences in nocturnal clenching in women with and without TMD. Subjects gave informed consent to participate. Adult women were categorised using Diagnostic Criteria for TMD according to presence/absence (+/-) of both TM joint disc placement (DD) and chronic pain (P) into two groups (+DD+P, -DD-P) with 12 subjects each. Surface temporalis electromyography was recorded during oral tasks performed by subjects at two laboratory sessions. The data were used to characterise muscle activity per N of bite force (μV/N) for each subject, develop the clench-detection algorithm and test its accuracy. Ambulatory surface temporalis electromyography was self-recorded by each subject over three nights and analysed using the algorithm and bite force (N) versus muscle activity μV/N calibrations. Bonferroni-adjusted homoscedastic t-tests assessed for significant between-group differences in clenching (P < 0·05). Sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of algorithm-detected laboratory clenches were all ≥96%. During self-recordings 95% of clenches had durations of <4 s and peak forces of <10 N in both groups. Mean clench durations were significantly longer (P = 0·042) in +DD+P (1·9 ± 0·8 s) than -DD-P subjects (1·4 ± 0·4 s). Mean temporalis duty factors (%clench time/total recording time) were significantly larger (P = 0·041) in +DD+P (0·47 ± 0·34%) than -DD-P (0·26 ±0·22%) subjects. Nocturnal temporalis muscle activities detected by a validated algorithm were longer per clench and recording time in +DD+P compared to -DD-P women.
‘The floods came and we lost everything’: weather extremes and households’ asset vulnerability and adaptation in rural Ghana

Extreme weather events such as flooding have been observed to deplete households’ assets and render households vulnerable to shocks and poverty. Few empirical studies have however examined households’ asset vulnerability and adaptation to such extreme events in Ghana. Based on qualitative research with two ecologically fragile communities in Ghana, this paper explores the asset vulnerability and adaptation strategies of households against periodic flooding. Findings suggested that households’ assets most vulnerable to flooding were farmlands, human health, housing and financial savings. However, flooding did not affect households’ assets equally; the effects were gendered and differentiated, often occasioned by inequalities in exposure, vulnerability, access to resources, capabilities and opportunities. Nonetheless, many households are actively adapting their assets by acquiring new knowledge about early warning systems, employing different farming practices and diversifying their assets. Understanding the differences in households’ asset vulnerability as well as in the priorities that men and women, as well as the young and old, place on different asset adaptation strategies could therefore be important in the effectiveness of climate change adaptation as well as the sustainability of communities.
Surface morphology, optical and electrical characterization of poly (p-phenylenevinylene) multilayer films

In this work we report the topology characterization of poly(p-phenylenevinylene) - PPV multilayer films using statistical analysis of atomic force microscopy (AFM) images. PPV spin-coating multilayers were deposited on glass covered with indium thin oxide (ITO) anode using the precursor polymer route thermal converted at 200 /spl deg/C and under vacuum. On the top of the PPV films, aluminum thin film was evaporated and used as cathode to obtain a typical polymer light emitting diode structure. The AFM images were used to analyze the height distribution; the results show clearly the interaction with the substrate for low number of layers. In the case of thick films (5 layers) the polymer surface is more close to a random surface, indicating the loose of the interaction with the substrate. The physical parameters that characterizes the quality of the polymer diode, where also analyzed. The current vs. voltage curves display an increase in the operating voltage with the increment of the polymer layers. However, the probability of short curt decrease substantially for thick devices. The photoluminescence spectra present a decrease in the vibronic region associated with film disorder and/or intrinsic structural defects. The mean conjugation length seams to be similar for all thickness.
Cytoplasmic control of nuclear behavior during meiotic maturation of frog oocytes.

Fully grown oocytes of the frog (Rana pipiens) undergo cytoplasmic and nuclear maturation when treated with progesterone after the follicular envelopes have been removed. The mechanism of this maturation was investigated by injection of cytoplasm from progesterone-treated oocytes at various stages of maturation into fully grown but immature oocytes. The injected cytoplasm becomes effective in inducing maturation by 12 hours after progesterone administration, reaches a maximum effectiveness around 20 hours, and then declines after the donor oocytes complete maturation. However, even cytoplasm from early embryos retains some capacity to induce oocyte maturation. The frequency with which maturation is induced is proportional to the volume of the injected cytoplasm. Progesterone itself is not directly responsible for the maturation-producing effect of injected cytoplasm since injected progesterone does not promote maturation. However, externally applied progesterone does induce the completion of the first meiotic division, presumably by releasing a cytoplasmic “maturation promoting factor. ” The production of this cytoplasmic factor was not affected by removal of the nucleus. After completion of the first meiotic division, oocytes cease further development at the metaphase of the second meiotic division, where they remain until fertilized or activated to develop. Cytoplasm from such secondary oocytes when injected into one of the blastomeres at the two-cell stage of development suppresses mitosis as well as cleavage. Mitosis is usually arrested at metaphase. No such inhibition was brought about by injection of cytoplasm from cleaving blastomeres. Thus, the arrest of mitosis and cleavage can be attributed to a specific “cytostatic factor” in the cytoplasm of the secondary oocyte. Activation of donor secondary oocytes by insemination or pricking with a glass needle soon destroys the cytostatic factor. Likewise, addition of cortical cytoplasm to endoplasm from the secondary oocyte rapidly destroys the cytostatic capacity. This result implies that cortical material is involved in the process of removing the cytostatic factor at the time of normal activation or fertilization. Enucleation of oocytes demonstrated that production and removal of the cytostatic factor is independent of the nucleus.
N250 ERP Correlates of the Acquisition of Face Representations across Different Images

We used ERPs to investigate neural correlates of face learning. At learning, participants viewed video clips of unfamiliar people, which were presented either with or without voices providing semantic information. In a subsequent face-recognition task (four trial blocks), learned faces were repeated once per block and presented interspersed with novel faces. To disentangle face from image learning, we used different images for face repetitions. Block effects demonstrated that engaging in the face-recognition task modulated ERPs between 170 and 900 msec poststimulus onset for learned and novel faces. In addition, multiple repetitions of different exemplars of learned faces elicited an increased bilateral N250. Source localizations of this N250 for learned faces suggested activity in fusiform gyrus, similar to that found previously for N250r in repetition priming paradigms [Schweinberger, S. R. , Pickering, E. C. , Jentzsch, I. , Burton, A. M. , & Kaufmann, J. M. Event-related brain potential evidence for a response of inferior temporal cortex to familiar face repetitions. Cognitive Brain Research, 14, 398–409, 2002]. Multiple repetitions of learned faces also elicited increased central–parietal positivity between 400 and 600 msec and caused a bilateral increase of inferior–temporal negativity (>300 msec) compared with novel faces. Semantic information at learning enhanced recognition rates. Faces that had been learned with semantic information elicited somewhat less negative amplitudes between 700 and 900 msec over left inferior–temporal sites. Overall, the findings demonstrate a role of the temporal N250 ERP in the acquisition of new face representations across different images. They also suggest that, compared with visual presentation alone, additional semantic information at learning facilitates postperceptual processing in recognition but does not facilitate perceptual analysis of learned faces.