Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Elevation of cytokeratin 19 fragment in serum in patients with hepatoma: its clinical significance

Objectives Cytokeratin 19 fragment (CK19) levels in serum have already been documented as a useful tumour marker for lung cancer. In the present study, we hypothesize that CK19 may be increased in serum from patients with hepatoma. Methods We measured the CK19 levels in serum from patients with hepatoma and evaluated the correlation between CK19 level and each clinical parameter. We studied 70 patients diagnosed with hepatoma, and used 14 patients with chronic hepatitis C and 45 patients with liver cirrhosis as controls. Results In 33 of 70 patients (47.1%) with hepatoma, the serum CK19 level was elevated to above the normal range. CK19 levels in serum from patients with hepatoma were significantly correlated with levels of α-fetoprotein and prothrombin induced by vitamin K absence for factor II (PIVKA-II). In 57 patients with hepatoma in whom both CK19 and α-fetoprotein were measured, only CK19 was elevated in seven patients (12.3%). Immunohistochemical studies using hepatoma tissues demonstrated that hepatoma cells were stained by anti-human CK19 antibody. We also demonstrated that the HepG2 cell line expressed CK19. Conclusions Our data demonstrate that hepatomas aberrantly express CK19, and that measurement of CK19 might be a useful tumour marker in diagnosing hepatoma.
The Mix of Graduate and Intermediate-level Skills in Britain: What should the balance be?

The recent rapid growth in graduate supply in Britain has contributed to a sharp increase in employment of graduates relative to people with intermediate (craft- and technician-level) skills. This substitution process is being driven by changes in demand as well as by supply factors. However, recent evidence of employer difficulties in recruiting graduates suggests that concerns about 'quality shortcomings' in some graduate job applicants - in particular, lack of practical work experience and commercial understanding - reflect a continuing demand by employers for the skills and knowledge that are most easily acquired through employment-based intermediate skills training. The article considers various ways in which employment-based training could be more closely integrated with higher education courses in order to expand the supply of intermediate skills while still recognising the desire (and ability) of many intermediate-level people to eventually qualify as graduates.
Wildlife Harvest in Integrated Conservation and Development Projects: Linking Harvest to Household Demand, Agricultural Production, and Environmental Shocks in the Serengeti

This paper develops a model coupling wildlife population dynamics to endogenous human consumption and poaching behavior in an environment of imperfect labor and product markets and static agricultural production technology subject to environmental shocks. Using a model of the Serengeti wildebeest herd, we simulate how long an integrated conservation and development project based on managed wildlife harvest might effectively delay biodiversity loss by preempting poaching. Alternative interventions that more directly tackle the problem of time-varying returns to peasant agricultural labor appear to offer more durable solutions to the challenge of wildlife conservation in the midst of endemic rural poverty.
IC performance of Indian pharmaceutical and textile industry

Purpose – The purpose of the present study is to make a comparison of intellectual capital performance between Indian pharmaceutical and textile industry. Further, the study attempts to investigate association between intellectual capital efficiency with financial performance and market valuation.Design/methodology/approach – An empirical study was carried out on data collected from CMIE database Prowess. VAIC was calculated on a select sample of 105, pharmaceutical companies and 102, textile companies. Correlation and OLS regressions models are used on panel data for the analysis.Findings – Results indicated that profitability and intellectual capital are positively associated but no significant relationship is observed between intellectual capital with productivity and market valuation in both industries. In spite of the growing importance of intellectual capital, its reflection is not proportionally observed in the financial performance of the select sample of companies.Research limitations/implication.
THE OXYGEN CONSUMPTION OF LUMINOUS BACTERIA

Oxygen consumption of luminous bacteria determined by the Thunberg micro respirometer and by the time which elapses before the luminescence of an emulsion of luminous bacteria in sea water begins to dim, when over 99 per cent of the dissolved oxygen has been consumed, agree exactly. Average values for oxygen consumption at an average temperature of 21.5°C. are 4.26 x 10–11 mg. O2 per bacterium; 2.5 x 104 mg. per kilo and 5.6 mg. O2 per sq. m. of bacterial surface. The only correct comparison of the oxygen consumption of different organisms or tissues is in terms of oxygen used per unit weight with a sufficient oxygen tension so that oxygen consumption is independent of oxygen tension. Measurement of the oxygen concentration which just allows full luminescence, compared with a calculation of the oxygen concentration at the surface of a bacterial cell just necessary to allow the observed respiration throughout all parts of the cell, indicates that oxygen must diffuse into the bacterium much more slowly than through gelatin or connective tissue but not as slowly as through chitin.
Ontario's agencies, boards, and commissions come of age

: Ontario's 580 agencies, boards, and commissions (ABCs), including the 91 administrative tribunals, have been a collection of bodies, the product of ad hoc government decisions, with no overall planning or coordination of their operations. During the past decade, on their own initiative, they have developed a coordinating capacity which, if responded to by the government, can enhance their operations as well as assure a more effective program of reform. Sommaire: Les 580 agences et commissions de l'Ontario, y compris les 91 tribunaux administratifs, constituent un groupe d'organismes resultant de decisions gouvernementales ad hoc, sans aucune planification ou coordination globale quant a leur fonctionnement. Au cours de la derniere decennie, suivant leur propre initiative, elles ont developpe leur propre fonction de coordination. Si le gouvernement repond a cette initiative, il sera des lors possible d'ameliorer leur fonctionnement et de rendre plus efficace leur programme de reforme.
Performance measures for lower gastrointestinal endoscopy: a European Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ESGE) quality improvement initiative

The European Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy and United European Gastroenterology present a short list of key performance measures for lower gastrointestinal endoscopy. We recommend that endoscopy services across Europe adopt the following seven key performance measures for lower gastrointestinal endoscopy for measurement and evaluation in daily practice at a center and endoscopist level: 1 rate of adequate bowel preparation (minimum standard 90%); 2 cecal intubation rate (minimum standard 90%); 3 adenoma detection rate (minimum standard 25%); 4 appropriate polypectomy technique (minimum standard 80%); 5 complication rate (minimum standard not set); 6 patient experience (minimum standard not set); 7 appropriate post-polypectomy surveillance recommendations (minimum standard not set). Other identified performance measures have been listed as less relevant based on an assessment of their importance, scientific acceptability, feasibility, usability, and comparison to competing measures.
Cultural capital, social capital and communities of practice in social marketing

The overall goal of this thesis is to examine three divergent literature streams, cultural capital, social capital and communities of practice (CoPs), in the context of social marketing theory. The thesis explores the means through which social and cultural capital are exchanged between two groups using social marketing techniques within a CoP framework and considers anti-social behaviour, experiential marketing and relationship marketing literatures. Four theoretical propositions are examined using mixed method and longitudinal action research approaches within a practical road safety intervention. The goal of the ‘live’ intervention sought to encourage the adoption of advanced driving practices in a group of young male drivers. Behaviour change was measured pre- and post- intervention using In Vehicle Data Recorders (IVDRs), questionnaire surveys and measured driver assessments. Supplementary qualitative insights were generated using observations, one-to-one interviews and focus groups. An understanding of advanced driving practices was achieved through extensive participation in advanced driver training by the researcher. The results of the investigation identified two groups of road users each exhibiting distinct tastes and preferences within a framework of concepts derived from the work of French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu. The evidence suggests that following intervention, and including the socialisation of these groups, a positive shift occurred in the adoption of advanced driving practices. Contribution is made to social marketing theory through the application of Bourdieu’s cultural capital ‘taste zones’ applied to a social marketing context. Social marketing is then portrayed as playing a ‘bridging’ function between two groups. This approach portrays the role of social marketing as a facilitator of positive ‘customer–customer’ interactions as opposed to a more traditional ‘customer–change-agent’ orientation. Furthermore, the CoP concept is suggested as a viable mechanism through which this modified orientation can be achieved. Key words: social marketing, cultural capital, social capital, communities of practice, road safety, advanced driving.
The Structure of Sunspot Equilibria: The Role of Multiplicity

This paper examines the structure of sunspot equilibria in a standard two period exchange economy with real assets. We show that for a generic choice of utility functions and endowments, there exists an open set of real asset structures whose payoffs are independent of sunspots such that the economy with this asset structure has a regular sunspot equilibrium. An important implication of our result is that the multiplicity of non-sunspot equilibria is not necessary for the existence of sunspot equilibria. Our technique is general and can be applied to show the existence of sunspot equilibria in other frameworks.
River discharge in the Kone River basin (Central Vietnam) under climate change by applying the BTOPMC distributed hydrological model

The impact of climate change on local discharge variability is investigated in the Kone River basin located in Central Vietnam. In this study, historical and predicted river discharge trends are discussed. The predicted discharge is simulated using the BTOPMC model based on the A1B scenario as a scientific basis for socioeconomic development and integrated water resource management in the Kone River basin, during the period 2011–2034. During the period 1979–2007, annual discharge in the Kone River basin trended upwards slightly. However, both maximum and minimum discharges declined. The results of the predicted discharge under the A1B scenario suggest that river flow will increase slightly in the Kone River basin in the future. Both annual and flood season discharges will tend to increase during the period 2011–2034. In contrast, discharge during the low flow season will tend to decrease over the same period. For the period 2011–2034, the discharge volume in the Kone River will increase by 3%, in comparison with the period 1980–1999. Water volume will decrease by about 18.6% during the flood season and increase by approximately 90.0% during the low flow season relative to the period 1980–1999.
Some evidence on the news content of preliminary earnings estimates

SYNOPSIS AND INTRODUCTION: This article provides evidence on the news content of managements' preliminary earnings estimates, which we define as projections of earnings conveyed in expectational language after the end of the reporting period but before the release of final earnings numbers. We examine stock price changes to assess whether a preponderance of these disclosures are interpreted as "good news" by investors, and the extent to which good news releases are disclosed earlier than bad news. Associated with preliminary earnings estimates are disclosure and timing issues. While previous theoretical work suggests managers have incentives to suppress or delay disclosure of adverse information (Verrecchia 1983; Dye 1985), studies examining the disclosure issue using management forecasts produced inconsistent results, and results on the timing of corporate earnings announcements are ambiguous. Although there is evidence on the information content of preliminary earnings estimates (Foster 1973), no study has used these data in investigating the relation between corporate disclosure and news content. Preliminary estimates are important because they embody aspects of disclosure choice similar to other voluntary disclosures such as forecasts, and the time lags between preliminary estimates and earnings releases are short, thereby assuring a strong timing aspect to their release. We document significant negative mean abnormal returns associated with the disclosure ot preliminary estimates. The median is negative, but not significant at conventional levels. Tests on the timing issue indicate an ambiguous relation
Effects of Phospholipid Composition on MinD-Membrane Interactions in Vitro and in Vivo*

The peripheral membrane ATPase MinD is a component of the Min system responsible for correct placement of the division site in Escherichia coli cells. By rapidly migrating from one cell pole to the other, MinD helps to block unwanted septation events at the poles. MinD is an amphitropic protein that is localized to the membrane in its ATP-bound form. A C-terminal domain essential for membrane localization is predicted to be an amphipathic α-helix with hydrophobic residues interacting with lipid acyl chains and cationic residues on the opposite face of the helix interacting with the head groups of anionic phospholipids (Szeto, T. H., Rowland, S. L., Rothfield, L. I., and King, G. F. (2002) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A. 99, 15693–15698). To investigate whether E. coli MinD displays a preference for anionic phospholipids, we first examined the localization dynamics of a green fluorescent protein-tagged derivative of MinD expressed in a mutant of E. coli that lacks phosphatidylethanolamine. In these cells, which contain only anionic phospholipids (phosphatidylglycerol and cardiolipin), green fluorescent protein-MinD assembled into dynamic focal clusters instead of the broad zones typical of cells with normal phospholipid content. In experiments with liposomes composed of only zwitterionic, only anionic, or a mixture of anionic and zwitterionic phospholipids, purified MinD bound to these liposomes in the presence of ATP with positive cooperativity with respect to the protein concentration and exhibited Hill coefficients of about 2. Oligomerization of MinD on the liposome surface also was detected by fluorescence resonance energy transfer between MinD molecules labeled with different fluorescent probes. The affinity of MinD-ATP for anionic liposomes as well as liposomes composed of both anionic and zwitterionic phospholipids increased 9- and 2-fold, respectively, relative to zwitterionic liposomes. The degree of acyl chain unsaturation contributed positively to binding strength. These results suggest that MinD has a preference for anionic phospholipids and that MinD oscillation behavior, and therefore cell division site selection, may be regulated by membrane phospholipid composition.
The medical aspects of soccer injury epidemiology

In this article, the six major studies of soccer injury epidemiology are reviewed. Strengths and weaknesses of each epidemiologic design are critiqued and the crucial importance of the definition of injury is empha sized. The effect of age, sex, and intensity of play on injury rates is discussed. Our present knowledge of injury rate by anatomical site, player position, and the type of playing surface are reviewed. We examined the importance of player factors such as flexibility, joint laxity, weakness, and incomplete rehabilitation from other injuries. In addition, we reviewed the role played by inadequate equipment, field conditions, and rule violations. A successful program for soccer injury pre vention is described, and guidelines for future soccer injury epidemiology research are proposed.
Biological variability in serum anti-Müllerian hormone throughout the menstrual cycle in ovulatory and sporadic anovulatory cycles in eumenorrheic women.

STUDY QUESTION Does serum anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) vary significantly throughout both ovulatory and sporadic anovulatory menstrual cycles in healthy premenopausal women? SUMMARY ANSWER Serum AMH levels vary statistically significantly across the menstrual cycle in both ovulatory and sporadic anovulatory cycles of healthy eumenorrheic women. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY Studies to date evaluating serum AMH levels throughout the menstrual cycle have conflicting results regarding intra-woman cyclicity. No previous studies have evaluated an association between AMH and sporadic anovulation. STUDY DESIGN, SIZE, DURATION We conducted a prospective cohort study of 259 regularly menstruating women recruited between 2005 and 2007. PARTICIPANTS/MATERIALS, SETTING, METHODS Women aged 18-44 years were followed for one (n = 9) or two (n = 250) menstrual cycles. Anovulatory cycles were defined as any cycle with peak progesterone concentration ≤5 ng/ml and no serum LH peak on the mid or late luteal visits. Serum AMH was measured at up to eight-time points throughout each cycle. MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCE Geometric mean AMH levels were observed to vary across the menstrual cycle (P < 0.01) with the highest levels observed during the mid-follicular phase at 2.06 ng/ml, decreasing around the time of ovulation to 1.79 ng/ml and increasing thereafter to 1.93 (mid-follicular versus ovulation, P < 0.01; ovulation versus late luteal, P = 0.01; mid-follicular versus late luteal, P = 0.05). Patterns were similar across all age groups and during ovulatory and anovulatory cycles, with higher levels of AMH observed among women with one or more anovulatory cycles (P = 0.03). LIMITATIONS, REASONS FOR CAUTION Ovulatory status was not verified by direct visualization. AMH was analyzed using the original Generation II enzymatically amplified two-site immunoassay, which has been shown to be susceptible to assay interference. Thus, absolute levels should be interpreted with caution, however, patterns and associations remain consistent and any potential bias would be non-differential. WIDER IMPLICATIONS OF THE FINDINGS This study demonstrates a significant variation in serum AMH levels across the menstrual cycle regardless of ovulatory status. This variability, although statistically significant, is not large enough to warrant a change in current clinical practice to time AMH measurements to cycle day/phase. STUDY FUNDING/COMPETING INTERESTS This research was supported by the Intramural Research Program of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD (Contracts # HHSN275200403394C, HHSN275201100002I Task 1 HHSN27500001). The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.
GSPN (Generalized Stochastic Petri Nets) based navigation behavior control of an indoor service robot

In this paper, we propose a behavior selection scheme between a reactive motion control combined with a global path planning algorithm and combined with a trajectory tracking algorithm. We design two navigation behaviors. One is a plan-based reactive navigation behavior, the AutoMovereactive, which exploits the conventional Dynamic Window Approach (DWA) as the reactive motion controller. The other behavior is AutoMovetracking, which exploits trajectory tracking controller. Two navigation schemes are based on different navigation assumptions. As a result, the two schemes have completely different advantages and disadvantages. We selected the appropriate navigation behavior based on the Generalized Stochastic Petri Nets (GSPN) discrete control framework.
Cross-modal search for fashion attributes

In this paper we develop a neural network which learns inter-modal representations for fashion attributes to be utilized in a cross-modal search tool. Our neural network learns from organic e-commerce data, which is characterized by clean image material, but noisy and incomplete product descriptions. First, we experiment with techniques to segment e-commerce images and their product descriptions into respectively image and text fragments denoting fashion attributes. Here, we propose a rule-based image segmentation approach which exploits the cleanness of e-commerce images. Next, we design an objective function which encourages our model to induce a common embedding space where a semantically related image fragment and text fragment have a high inner product. This objective function incorporates similarity information of image fragments to obtain better intermodal representations. A key insight is that similar looking image fragments should be described with the same text fragments. We explicitly require this in our objective function, and as such recover information which was lost due to noise and in-completeness in the product descriptions. We evaluate the inferred intermodal representations in cross-modal search. We demonstrate that the neural network model trained with our objective function on image fragments acquired with our rule-based segmentation approach improves the results of image search with textual queries by 198% for recall@1 and by 181% for recall@5 compared to results obtained by a state-of-the-art image search system on the same benchmark dataset.