Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Use of Radioactive Precursors for Biochemical Characterization the Biosynthesis of Isoprenoids in Intraerythrocytic Stages of Plasmodium falciparum

Malaria continues to be one of the major threats to human health, affecting 300-500 million people and causing the death of approximately 1 million individuals per year, mostly children under 5 years of age (WHO 2010b). Human malaria is caused by five species of the genus Plasmodium, namely Plasmodium falciparum, Plasmodium vivax, Plasmodium ovale, Plasmodium malariae and Plasmodium knowlesi, whereas the latter is found exclusively in the Southeast Asian region (Cox-Singh & Singh 2008). Current estimates suggest that approximately 2.4 billion people are at risk of stable or unstable Plasmodium falciparum transmission, similar global estimates are also available for P. vivax, and while there is considerably less mortality attributed to this species, its geographical reach is far greater. An estimated 2.9 billion people are at risk for vivax malaria, with an estimated 80 million to 300 million clinical cases annually (Guerra et al., 2010). These global estimates are a direct result of an increasing ability to collate and assimilate large data sets that also allow the monitoring of trends in malaria incidence and parasite prevalence. P. falciparum is strongly associated with a potentially fatal form of the disease, although recent reports indicate an underestimation of the severity of P. vivax infections (Alexandre et al., 2010). Efforts were made to eradicate malaria and although these were successful over large geographical areas, they did not succeed in tropical Africa or in many parts of Asia. In the past few years, malaria has once again attracted more attention partly because of increasing recognition that the malaria prevalence in sub-Saharan Africa has increased during the past decade. The main cause of the worsened malaria situation recorded in recent years has been the spread of drug-resistant parasites, which has led to rising malariaassociated mortality, especially in east Africa.
Comments on the Sub-group Reports of the EU Technical Expert Working Group on the Revision of Directive 86/609/EEC on the Protection of Animals Used for Experimental and Other Scientific Purposes

A critical analysis is presented of the reports produced by four Technical Expert Working Group Sub-groups (SGs) on Ethical Review, Cost–Benefit, Authorisation and Scope, which were published on the EC website (http://ec.europa.eu/environment/chemicals/lab_animals/ia_info_en.htm), as part of the European Commission (EC)'s review of EU Directive 86/609 EEC. This is in addition to our official response to the internet consultation questionnaire, submitted to the Commission on behalf of FRAME. Whilst the respective SG reports were extensive and detailed, we have identified several shortcomings, and in particular, a frequent lack of consensus among the SG members, resulting in a lack of clear guidance for the EC on what the revised Directive should contain, with reference to a number of crucial issues. Such indecisiveness could lead to wide discrepancies in the approaches of the EC, the European Parliament and the EU Member States concerning many issues of importance to animal welfare and the implementation of alternatives to animal experiments. These concerns range from logistical issues, such as requirements for named officers in authorised establishments, and the recording and publishing of statistics on animal use, to ethical and scientific problems, including the use of non-human primates, local ethical review, and education and training on the essential link between the Three Rs concept and best scientific practice. In each case, the basis for our concerns is explained, and suggestions for improvements to be incorporated into the revised Directive are made, in the hope that the harmonisation of approaches to laboratory animal experimentation and the use of alternative methods in the Member States can be maximised.
On the relationship between subjective and objective measures of fatigue

Abstract Objective: Objective and subjective methods have been used in the past to assess workplace fatigue, but little is known about correlations between them. We examine correlations between subjective and objective measures, including measures collected in a workplace scenario. Methods: 15 young and 17 older participants were assessed before and after work with four types of fatigue measure: objective physical (posturography), objective mental (psychomotor vigilance task), subjective physical and mental (self-assessment), objective and subjective realistic (oculomotor behaviour, observer-rated facial expression, typing performance). Results: Pre- and post-test scores were analysed with an ANOVA, significant differences were submitted to a factor analysis. It yielded three factors: one representing posturography, the second self-rated mental and physical fatigue and the third observer-rated facial expression. Conclusions: Results advocate the existence of three independent fatigue components: Objective physical fatigue, introspective and extrospective fatigue. Practitioner Summary: This study analyses correlations between different subjective and objective fatigue markers to better understand the complex nature of workplace fatigue. Measurements were conducted directly at the workplace. Results reveal that fatigue comprises three independent fatigue components: Objective physical fatigue, introspective and extrospective fatigue.
Gas exchange and carbon isotope discrimination of Juniperus osteosperma and Juniperus occidentalis across environmental gradients in the Great Basin of western North America.

We determined how ecophysiological characteristics of two juniper species, Juniperus occidentalis Hook. (western juniper) and Juniperus osteosperma (Torr.) Little (Utah juniper), changed along altitudinal and regional environmental gradients in the Great Basin of western North America. We obtained diurnal measurements of leaf gas exchange and xylem water potential (Psi) from plants at a low and a high altitude site within each of six mountain ranges during fall 1994, spring, summer, and fall 1995, and summer 1996. We also determined carbon isotope composition (delta(13)C) of leaf cellulose produced during the 1995 growing season. Overall, leaf gas exchange, Psi and delta(13)C did not differ significantly between species. Differences in daily (A(d)) and season-long (A(s)) carbon assimilation among mountain ranges suggested two groupings-a group of northern ranges and a group of southern ranges. Each group contained one mountain range with J. occidentalis and two with J. osteosperma. Differences in carbon assimilation based on this grouping were associated with two findings: (1) conductance of CO(2) from substomatal cavities to the site of carboxylation (g(m)) for junipers in the northern ranges averaged almost twice that of junipers in the southern ranges; and (2) physiological shifts occurred such that A(d) of junipers in the northern ranges was influenced more by Psi(pd), whereas A(d) of junipers in the southern ranges was influenced more by leaf temperature. Mean delta(13)C over all trees at a site was significantly correlated with annual precipitation. Significant differences in A(d) occurred between altitudes, but these differences were associated with differences in the timing of optimum leaf temperature for photosynthesis rather than with physiological acclimation to temperature, irradiance, or Psi. Most gas exchange parameters (e.g., assimilation, transpiration, stomatal conductance, and water use efficiency) varied seasonally, and the seasonal differences were strongly influenced by water stress.
Trading strategies based on yield curve forecasting models using macroeconomic data

This paper aims at constructing profitable trading strategies based on yields forecasts from interest rates models with macroeconomic data. I first construct and estimate AR, VAR, Dynamic Nelson Siegel (DNS) and Affine Term Structure Model (ATSM) . The Monte Carlo simulation results together with the estimation results suggest that little benefit is achieved by adding macro factors to the DNS and ATSM in the estimation stage. In this regard, I propose a new way of exploiting predictability contained in macro factors, the 3PRFRF approach, to extract efficient macro information. I evaluate the forecast performance of each model with and without macro factors and combine forecasts using the Model Confidence Set (MCS) to arrive at an optimal forecast that I show to be able to out-perform the Random Walk. I give a comprehensive evaluation of the interest rate models as well as different macro factor incorporation approaches based on the estimation and forecasting results. I show that the 3PRF residual forecasting approach performs better than conventional principal components augmented forecasting approach. Furthermore, I construct trading strategies using individual model forecasts and use Model Confidence Set to yield combined trading strategies. I show that macro factors play a crucial role in the profitability of trading strategies. Lastly, I apply the forecast model to the period of recent financial crisis and find that neither no-arbitrage assumptions nor macro fundamentals significantly improve the forecast or the trading strategies performance as they do in the pre-crisis period.
Genome Sequence of a Promising Hydrogen-Producing Facultative Anaerobic Bacterium, Brevundimonas naejangsanensis Strain B1

ABSTRACT Brevundimonas naejangsanensis strain B1 is a newly isolated, facultative anaerobic bacterium capable of producing hydrogen with high efficiency. Here, we present a 2.94-Mb assembly of the genome sequence of strain B1, which may provide further insights into the molecular mechanism of hydrogen production from bioresource.
Biogenesis of zearalenone (F-2) by Fusarium roseum 'Graminearum'.

The biogenesis of zearalenone or F-2 (2,4-dihydroxy-6-(10-hydroxy-6-oxo-trans-1-undecenyl) benzoic acid lactone) was examined. Of several possible precursors, acetate and malonate were incorporated.
Facial caricature generation using a quadratic deformation model

In this paper we propose a novel approach for generating expressive caricatures from an input image. The novelty of this work comes from combining an Active Appearance Model facial feature extraction system with a quadratic deformation model representation of facial expressions. The extracted features are deformed using the quadratic deformation parameters, resulting in an expressive caricature. The facial feature extraction requires an offline training process which uses natural expression annotated images from 30 model subjects, selected randomly from the Cohn-Kanade Database. The results show that from an input facial image, expressive caricatures are generated for the main six face expressions (smile, sad, fear, surprise, disgust, and anger). The proposed approach yields to promising expressive caricatures, and could lead to future research directions in the field of non-photorealistic rendering. In addition, the proposed approach can be employed in entertaining standalone applications or caricature animations.
Discovering phenotype specific gene module using a novel biclustering algorithm in colorectal cancer

Gene clustering is a method for finding gene sets which are related to the same biological processes or molecular function. In order to find these gene sets, previous studies have clustered genes which showed similar mRNA expression or a specific expression pattern in a (sub) sample set. However, for two contrasting groups of samples, it is not easy to identify gene sets which show significant expression pattern in only one group using current gene clustering methods. Existing biclustering methods use only one group (disease) of samples. It is hard to identify disease specific biclusters which are differentially expressed in the disease although those methods can find biclusters which have specific expression pattern. Here, we proposed a novel method using a genetic algorithm in gene expression data, in order to find gene sets which can represent specific subtype of cancer. Proposed method finds gene sets which have statistically differential mRNA expression on two contrasting samples and fraction of cancer samples. The resulting gene modules share higher number of GO (Gene Ontology) terms related to a specific disease than gene modules identified by current algorithms. We also identify that when we integrate protein-protein interaction data with gene expression data of colorectal cancer samples, proposed method can find more functionally related gene sets.
Performance implications of board size, composition and activity: empirical evidence from the Indian banking sector

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the performance implications of board size, composition and frequency of board meetings on the performance of banks. Design/methodology/approach The performance of banks is assessed on various parameters such as return on assets (ROA), Tobin’s Q, non-performing asset ratio (NPA ratio) and the net write-off ratio (NWO ratio). The effects of changes in board size and composition and frequency of meetings on the performance of banks are investigated using feasible generalized least square (FGLS) estimation of panel data covering a time span of five years concerning 40 banks incorporated in India. Frequency of board meetings is taken as a proxy for board activity and involvement. The authors have also tested for endogeneity issues in the model. Findings A curvilinear relationship was found between the board size and performance of banks. The authors have modelled a cubic form of the relationship for Indian banks. The authors’ findings indicate that an increase in board size is associated with better bank performance within both low and high board size ranges. Alternatively, increased board size is negatively associated with bank performance in the intermediate board size range. The study did not find any significant relationship between performance and frequency of board meetings and board composition. Research limitations/implications The behavioural variables reflecting the involvement of the board have not been incorporated in the model to determine the impact of board involvement on the performance of banks owing to the availability of data. It is hoped that this paper will be useful for major regulatory bodies such as the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA), Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), Company Law Board (CLB) and stock exchanges in India and other emerging economies in devising listing norms and other governance-related aspects. Originality/value Non-linear relationships between the board size and performance are not normally prevalent in emerging economies, especially in the banking sector. However, such a relationship exists among the Indian banks. This paper is the first of its kind to identify and address the same.
Bayesian econometric modelling of informed trading, bid-ask spread and volatility

Recent developments in global financial markets have increased the need for research aimed at the measurement and possible reduction of liquidity risk. In particular, market crashes have been partly blamed on the sudden withdrawal of liquidity in markets and increases in liquidity risk. To this end, it is important to develop better approaches for inferring or quantifying liquidity risk. Liquidity risk caused by some investors trading on their information advantage (informed trading) has been a subject of market microstructure research in the last few decades. Researchers have employed information-based models that use observed or inferred order flow to investigate this problem. The Probability of Informed Trading (PIN) is a measure which uses inferred order flow to quantify the extent information asymmetry. However, a number of computational issues have been reported to effect the estimation of PIN. Using an alternative methodology, we address the numerical problem associated with the estimation of PIN. Varied evidence of a relationship between volume and bid-ask spread has been documented in the extant literature. In particular, theory suggests that bid-ask spread and volume are jointly driven by a common process as both variables measure an aspect of liquidity. The complex relationship between these variables is time-varying since the informed trading component of order flow changes as trading takes place. Thus, volume and bid-ask spread may provide insight on the time-varying composition of economic agents trading an asset. We exploit the nonlinear relationship between traded volume and bid-ask spread to develop a model that can be used to infer informed and uninformed trading components of volume. The structure of the model and estimation methodology enhances the sequential processing and incorporation of past volume and bid-ask spread as conditioning information. The model is applied to two equities that trade on the New York Stock Exchange. Finally, to increase our understanding on the effects of liquidity risk on volatility, we also examine whether separating volume into informed and uninformed components can provide further insight on the relationship between liquidity risk and volatility.
A study on the statistical properties of double hoyt fading channels

This paper deals with a study on the statistical properties of narrowband amplify-and-forward relay fading channels for Hoyt multipath propagation environments. We consider the basic radio link topology, where only one fixed relay station is used for the amplification. In this case, the envelope of the signal received over the overall multipath channel is modeled by the so-called double Hoyt fading process. Considering this multipath propagation channel model, analytical expressions for the first and second order statistics are provided. Specifically, the mean value, variance, probability density function (PDF), level-crossing rate (LCR), and average duration of fades (ADF) of double Hoyt processes are derived. In addition, an expression for the PDF of the corresponding channel phase is also provided. Since the double Rayleigh fading channel is a special case of the double Hoyt model, it will be shown how the derived expressions can be reduced to the results known for the double Rayleigh fading channel. Moreover, the validity of the derived quantities is confirmed by computer simulations.
Lasing in robust cesium lead halide perovskite nanowires

Significance Nanowire lasers are miniaturized light sources with great potential for integration into optoelectronic circuits. Many of the current nanowire lasers either require extreme conditions for synthesis or suffer from poor operational stability. We synthesize nanowires of a promising set of compositions, the cesium lead halides, and accomplish this under near-ambient conditions. These nanowires act as efficient laser cavities and are capable of lasing with relatively low excitation thresholds. They also demonstrate unprecedented stability for a perovskite-based nanowire laser and offer a new nanoscale platform for future study. The rapidly growing field of nanoscale lasers can be advanced through the discovery of new, tunable light sources. The emission wavelength tunability demonstrated in perovskite materials is an attractive property for nanoscale lasers. Whereas organic–inorganic lead halide perovskite materials are known for their instability, cesium lead halides offer a robust alternative without sacrificing emission tunability or ease of synthesis. Here, we report the low-temperature, solution-phase growth of cesium lead halide nanowires exhibiting low-threshold lasing and high stability. The as-grown nanowires are single crystalline with well-formed facets, and act as high-quality laser cavities. The nanowires display excellent stability while stored and handled under ambient conditions over the course of weeks. Upon optical excitation, Fabry–Pérot lasing occurs in CsPbBr3 nanowires with an onset of 5 μJ cm−2 with the nanowire cavity displaying a maximum quality factor of 1,009 ± 5. Lasing under constant, pulsed excitation can be maintained for over 1 h, the equivalent of 109 excitation cycles, and lasing persists upon exposure to ambient atmosphere. Wavelength tunability in the green and blue regions of the spectrum in conjunction with excellent stability makes these nanowire lasers attractive for device fabrication.
Antibody responses induced by immunization of inbred mice susceptible and resistant to African trypanosomes

We tested the ability of inbred mice that were either susceptible (strain A/J) or resistant (strain C57BL/6 and A/J X C57BL/6 hybrids) to African trypanosomes to produce specific antibodies to trypanosome antigens in the absence of living parasites. This experiment was carried out to eliminate the influence of trypanosome growth or metabolism on immune responsiveness. Mice were immunized with keyhole limpet hemocyanin or solubilized Trypanosoma brucei gambiense, and serum antibodies were measured in solid-phase radioimmunometric assays after primary and challenge injections. Both susceptible and resistant mice showed increases in keyhole limpet hemocyanin-specific or trypanosome-specific immunoglobulin M and immunoglobulin G after immunization. When immunized with trypanosome antigens, resistant mice made qualitatively and quantitatively superior specific immunoglobulin M responses, particularly to the trypanosome major variable surface glycoprotein. Susceptible A/J mice produced good specific antibody responses, although these were predominantly of the immunoglobulin G isotypes. These results show that A/J and C57BL/6 mice respond differentially in terms of immunoglobulin isotype and repertoire in response to injected antigens. The possibility that this differential antibody response influences susceptibility to African trypanosomes is discussed.
Three Essays in Health, Education, and Retirement

In chapter one I examine the impact of Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) coverage on the provision of preventive medicine procedures and undiagnosed disease. Rates of missed preventive care and undiagnosed conditions are substantially lower for middle-aged HMO enrollees compared to non-HMO enrollees. I control for selection with a novel quasi-experiment: turnover in group health insurance contracts at the firm level creates exogenous variation in plan type. The large age heterogeneity in the effect of HMO contracts is consistent with incentive structures in HMOs playing a role in the quality of patient care. In chapter two I use a regression discontinuity framework to analyze the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act’s attempt to reduce the achievement gap by requiring sociodemographic groups meet group based proficiency count targets. Using a panel of North Carolina public school students in grades three through eight from 2003-2012, I find when a student’s group is added to the set of existing accountable groups, it has a small positive impact on subject matter proficiency and test scores. Variation in the application of these laws comes the fact that groups are only held to academic proficiency standards if there are 40 or more tested students in the group within the school. In chapter three I estimate the potential earnings of retirees. Estimating the earnings structure of those no longer working is complex, because (1) health and cognition decline at older ages and drive workers into retirement, (2) retirement may cause changes in health and cognition, and (3) unobserved wage shocks may