Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Nutrition meets the microbiome: micronutrients and the microbiota

There is increasing evidence that food is an important factor that influences and shapes the composition and configuration of the gut microbiota. Most studies have focused on macronutrients (fat, carbohydrate, protein) in particular and their effects on the gut microbiota. Although the microbiota can synthesize different water‐soluble vitamins, the effects of vitamins synthesized within the microbiota on systemic vitamin status are unclear. Few studies exist on the shuttling of vitamins between the microbiota and intestine and the impact of luminal vitamins on the microbiota. Studying the interactions between vitamins and the microbiota may help to understand the effects of vitamins on the barrier function and immune system of the intestinal tract. Furthermore, understanding the impact of malnutrition, particularly low micronutrient supply, on microbiota development, composition, and metabolism may help in implementing new strategies to overcome the deleterious effects of malnutrition on child development. This article reviews data on the synthesis of different micronutrients and their effects on the human microbiota, and further discusses the consequences of malnutrition on microbiota composition.
Joint Precoding of High Efficiency MPSK Transmitters in MISO Channels

This work addresses the multiple input single output (MISO) channel when the transmitted waveform at the antenna belongs to small discrete constellation. We do not allow precoding matrix between the modulators and the antennas that modifies the constellation at the antenna. In the proposed scheme, the constellation at each antenna is the original modulation by limiting the available precoding to relative phase shift and relative gain between the antennas. This way, simple modulation hardware can be used, as well as high efficiency power amplifiers working near saturation. The mutual information of the MISO Gaussian channel with channel state information (CSI) at the receiver and the transmitter is maximized by simple beamforming, if the input constellation is dense. We show that in case the constellation at the antenna is small, like MPSK, the beamforming solution does not lead to the highest rate. The optimal solution is obtained by precoding and joint signal shaping through nonuniform constellation transmission. A gain is achieved since the combination of few small constellations provides richer constellation in the receiver than the original constellation. We discuss in detail the case of a system with two transmitting antennas and one receiving antenna and QPSK modulation. We address two types of power constraints: the Tx power constraint and Rx power constraint, wherein in each case the capacity is maximized at the respective power constraint. We show that the optimal solution is highly dependent on the SNR and on the type of constraint. For example in the case of Tx power constraint, beamforming is the optimal solution in low SNR while in medium to high SNR nontrivial solutions are obtained. Additionally, the shaping distribution behaves inversely to the typical shaping: instead of Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution, we obtain what we call Inverse Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution.
Meaning Transfer in Sports News and Sponsorship: Promoting Canadian Olympic Triathlete Simon Whitfield

This paper critically examines the processes of meaning creation and transfer in sports celebrity endorsements. It uses findings from a qualitative case study that investigated how Canadian journalists covered Simon Whitfield's gold medal win in the inaugural men's triathlon Sydney Olympic Games in 2000, and how sponsors subsequently capitalised on his media image. The results highlight key factors that influence Olympic sports reporting and their implications for leveraging an Olympic athlete's media image as part of a product endorsement strategy.
[The Effects of a Mobile Application Social Support Program on Postpartum Perceived Stress and Depression].

BACKGROUND Postpartum depression is a common health problem for women following childbirth. Using effective social support to reduce postpartum depression has become an important issue. The current popularity of smartphones offers new possibilities for interventional methods. PURPOSE To investigate the effects of mobile-application-based social support programs on perceived stress and postpartum depression in postpartum women. METHODS The present study employs an experimental research design. 126 smartphone users at 36 weeks' gestation were assigned randomly to the intervention (n = 61) or the control (n = 65) group. The intervention group received a social-support intervention via the mobile application Line twice per week for a period of 4 weeks after childbirth. The control group did not receive the intervention. The Perceived Stress Scale-Chinese version and Edinburg Postnatal Depression Scale were used to evaluate the outcome. RESULTS Participants in the intervention group had significantly lower perceived stress (F = 27.25, p < .001) and postpartum depression (F = 35.73, p < .001) than their control group peers. CONCLUSIONS Social-support programs that are delivered via mobile applications such as Line may significantly reduce the perceived stress and postpartum depression of women during the early postpartum period. The results support the implementation of mobile-application-based social support programs in postpartum care.
Molecular cloning, expression, and characterization of mouse single-chain fragment variable antibody against Citrus tristeza virus

The sequences encoding the mouse heavy-chain (VH) and light-chain (VL) variable region genes were isolated by PCR and joined into a single-chain Fv (scFv) DNA by using a DNA linker encoding (Gly4Ser)3 peptide. The scFv DNA fragment was cloned into the phagemid pCANTAB5E and expressed in Escherichia coli as a fusion protein with M13 phage p3 polypeptide and E tag. The scFv fusion protein was displayed on the surfaces of recombinant M13 phages in the presence of the helper phage M13K07. High-affinity scFv phage-bodies against citrus tristeza virus (CTV) were enriched through affinity selection on immobilized recombinant CTV coat protein preparations. The selected recombinant phages were used to infect Escherichia coli HB2151 for the production of soluble scFv antibodies. One selected clone in HB2151 secreted a soluble scFv antibody that detected CTV in extracts of infected citrus plants with a sensitivity comparable to that of a commercial monoclonal antibody. The nucleotide sequence of the light-chain and heavy-chain portions were closely related to other published scFv against CTV. The potential of this scFv was demonstrated in routine field testing using an inexpensive tissue print–ELISA.
Estimation of single sweep steady-state visual evoked potentials by adaptive line enhancement

The adaptive line enhancer (ALE) was used to obtain estimates of the single sweep steady-state visual evoked potential (SSVEP). Some relevant theoretical properties of the ALE are reviewed in the context of designing the ALE for this particular application. Using power spectral density estimates of the unprocessed and enhanced SSVEP data it was found that the method enhanced the estimated signal-to-noise ratio of the single sweep SSVEP by as much as 10 dB. <<ETX>>
Application-level System and Tool Support for Auto-ID Application Development

Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) systems have begun to find greater use in the consumer object identification market, in industrial automation, and in mobile asset and supply chain management, in a wide range of industries such as retail, pharmaceutical, and defense. The term automatic identification (Auto-ID) applications is used to generalize RFID applications and includes other Auto-ID technologies such as barcode or Bluetooth. More complex Auto-ID applications also use sensor technologies not only to identify objects but also to track their state (e.g. temperature sensors to ensure quality of perishable goods). Bridging the gap between the physical world of objects (e.g., products and logistical units) and the digital world of IT systems to improve existing business processes is the main driver of the widespread RFID adoption. However, even if the gap between the physical and the digital world is bridged, there is still a gap between applications or enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems on one side and Auto-ID systems on the other. Application developers are faced with several challenges: Instead of concentrating on the application or business logic they have to deal with Auto-ID specific details such as readers, tags, or specific error sources. They also have to duplicate code when developing a new application for capturing Auto-ID data from readers, for filtering and aggregating Auto-ID data to increase their accuracy, for providing persistent storage and querying capabilities, and for reacting to business events such as the arrival of a shipment. To facilitate the development of Auto-ID applications, this thesis provides concepts, programming models, building blocks and tools that abstract from Auto-ID specific details and provide the necessary services and the appropriate level of reuse. In particular, the contributions are: • an Auto-ID Object Model that abstracts from low-level Auto-ID and sensor concepts which provides the means for an application to model and represent its domain as the base for the application logic. The model focuses on the domain of Auto-ID applications, that is,
Notice of Retraction Innovative approaches towards data collection process for new product development

This paper examines different novel methods in today's internet technology dominated era to capture consumer inputs and inspirations to benefit the process of developing new goods and services till their placement in the market. Taking exploratory research and inductive approach based on literature view as the methodology, the paper compares and contrasts similarities and differences between traditional and non-traditional means of obtaining consumers' perceptions about future goods and services, and makes an attempt to define some qualities that companies lack regarding the adoption of internet-based means for generating new product ideas. Our findings reveal that internet-based methods, compared to traditional means, are more efficient in acquiring consumer insights for further usage in NPD process. The paper points out that the main problems that hinder the usage of internet-based methods are non-sensitive and non-enthusiastic management and incapable staff. And by highlighting these problems, the paper serves as guide for business managers to take appropriate approaches during data collection process for New Product Development.
Delay insensitive system-on-chip interconnect using 1-of-4 data encoding

The demands of System-on-Chip (SoC) interconnect increasingly cannot be satisfied through the use of a shared bus. A common alternative, using unidirectional, point-to-point connections and multiplexers, results in much greater area requirements and still suffers from some of the same problems. This paper introduces a delay-insensitive, asynchronous approach to interconnect over long paths using 1-of-4 encoded channels switched through multiplexers. A reimplementation of the MARBLE SoC bus (as used in the AMULET3H chip) using this technique shows that it can provide a higher throughput than the simpler tristate bus while using a narrower datapath.
Computerized experience-sampling approach for realtime assessment of stress

The incredible advancement in the ICT sector has challenged technology developers, designers, and psychologists to reflect on how to develop technologies to promote mental health. Computerized experience-sampling method appears to be a promising assessment approach to investigate the real-time fluctuation of experience in daily life in order to detect stressful events. At this purpose, we developed PsychLog (http://psychlog.com) a free open-source mobile experience sampling platform that allows psychophysiological data to be collected, aggregated, visualized and collated into reports. Results showed a good classification of relaxing and stressful events, defining the two groups with psychological analysis and verifying the discrimination with physiological measures. Within the paradigm of Positive Technology, our innovative approach offers for researchers and clinicians new effective opportunities for the assessment and treatment of the psychological stress in daily situations.
When to use the Bonferroni correction

The Bonferroni correction adjusts probability (p) values because of the increased risk of a type I error when making multiple statistical tests. The routine use of this test has been criticised as deleterious to sound statistical judgment, testing the wrong hypothesis, and reducing the chance of a type I error but at the expense of a type II error; yet it remains popular in ophthalmic research. The purpose of this article was to survey the use of the Bonferroni correction in research articles published in three optometric journals, viz. Ophthalmic & Physiological Optics, Optometry & Vision Science, and Clinical & Experimental Optometry, and to provide advice to authors contemplating multiple testing.
A Simple CRLH LWA Circuit Condition for Constant Radiation Rate

A simple analytical condition for the radiation resistance and conductance (R, G) of an equivalent composite right/ left-handed (CRLH) balanced leaky-wave antenna unit-cell is pro- posed to achieve a constant radiation rate. Similar to the CRLH "balanced condition," which allows a smooth phase transition from the left-handed to the right-handed frequency regions, the pro- posed R-G condition provides a continuous and smooth transition of the radiation losses from the left-handed to the right-handed frequency region. Moreover, this condition also solves the phase fluctuations that traditionally occur around the CRLH transition frequency due to real radiation losses. Several numerical results are included to confirm the uniform radiation rate obtained when the new derived condition is used.
Globalization and Innovation in Indonesia: Evidence from Micro-Data on Medium and Large Manufacturing Establishments

In this paper we examine the impact of globalization on innovation in the Indonesian manufacturing sector. The lack of innovation data in the manufacturing survey has necessitated the use of R&D expenditure as an input in the innovation production function. Globalization is represented by being exporters, FDI and effective rate of protection (EPR). The model is set up such as within the concept of R&D as conditional input demand function, allowing labor productivity to have impact on R&D. In this case we find that less productive firms are less likely to venture into R&D activities. In terms of globalization variables we find that being exporters is important determinant of R&D. Meanwhile the impact of FDI firms on domestic R&D is only on the incidence not on the intensity of R&D. It will require a critical mass of firms within a location or an agglomeration to have a meaningful impact. Also lower ERP would induce firms to spend more on R&D. So lowering protection or trade barriers will have positive impact on R&D.
Chemical Synthesis of Oligonucleotides Containing Damaged Bases for Biological Studies

Since nucleic acids are organic molecules, even DNA, which carries genetic information, is subjected to various chemical reactions in cells. Alterations of the chemical structure of DNA, which are referred to as DNA damage or DNA lesions, induce mutations in the DNA sequences, which lead to carcinogenesis and cell death, unless they are restored by the repair systems in each organism. Formerly, DNA from bacteria and bacteriophages and DNA fragments treated with UV or γ radiation, alkylating or crosslinking agents, and other carcinogens were used as damaged DNA for biochemical studies. With these materials, however, it is difficult to understand the detailed mechanisms of mutagenesis and DNA repair. Recent progress in the chemical synthesis of oligonucleotides has enabled us to incorporate a specific lesion at a defined position within any sequence context. This method is especially important for studies on mutagenesis and translesion synthesis, which require highly pure templates, and for the structural biology of repair enzymes, which necessitates large amounts of substrate DNA as well as modified substrate analogs. In this review, the various phosphoramidite building blocks for the synthesis of lesion-containing oligodeoxyribonucleotides are described, and some examples of their applications to molecular and structural biology are presented.
Rapid and Sensitive Detection of H7N9 Avian Influenza Virus by Use of Reverse Transcription–Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification

ABSTRACT An epidemic of human H7N9 influenza virus infection recently emerged in China whose clinical features include high mortality and which has also resulted in serious economic loss. The novel reassortant avian-origin influenza A (H7N9) virus which was the causative agent of this epidemic raised the possibility of triggering a large-scale influenza pandemic worldwide. It seemed likely that fast molecular detection assays specific for this virus would be in great demand. Here, we report a one-step reverse transcription–loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RT-LAMP) method for rapid detection of the hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA) genes of H7N9 virus, the minimum detection limit of which was evaluated using in vitro RNA transcription templates. In total, 135 samples from clinical specimens (from either patients or poultry) were tested using this method in comparison with the real-time PCR recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO). Our results showed that (i) RT-LAMP-based trials can be completed in approximately 12 to 23 min and (ii) the detection limit for the H7 gene is around 10 copies per reaction, similar to that of the real-time PCR, whereas the detection limit for its counterpart the N9 gene is 5 copies per reaction, a 100-fold-higher sensitivity than the WHO-recommended method. Indeed, this excellent performance of our method was also validated by the results for a series of clinical specimens. Therefore, we believe that the simple, fast, and sensitive method of RT-LAMP might be widely applied for detection of H7N9 infections and may play a role in prevention of an influenza pandemic.
Abundance and species richness of overwintering ground beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae) are higher in the edge than in the centre of a woodlot

Semi-natural habitats are key components of rural landscapes because they shelter a significant number of overwintering arthropods that are beneficial to agriculture. However, woodlots are semi-natural habitats with high patch-level heterogeneity and this aspect has been poorly studied. The purpose of this study was to determine the influence of woodlot heterogeneity on overwintering ground beetles. Woodlot heterogeneity was characterized in terms of distance from the woodlot boundary and date of the most recent logging operation. We used emergence traps to quantify the population density of ground beetles that overwintered in the different parts of the woodlot. In woodlot edges the densities and species richness of ground beetles were significantly higher than in the rest of the woodlot. Ground beetles that are active in crop fields overwintered in the edges but not in the inner zone of the woodlot. Species assemblages of ground beetles overwintering in the edges were highly diverse. The date of the most recent logging operation did not explain the distribution of ground beetles that overwintered in the woodlot. Our results show that woodlots, and in particular their edges, are used as a winter shelter by ground beetles that spend part of their life in crops, which potentially favours biological control in adjacent crop fields.
Are PE firms better owners

Th is paper investigates the effect of PE ownership for 126 Scandinavian portfolio companies. We analyze the selection of portfolio companies, and whether the change to PE ownership has a positive effect on the companies’ value creation. Our findings reject Jensen’s (1986) free cash flow hypothesis, while supporting the underperformance hypothesis (among others Jensen and Meckling (1976) and Fox and Marcus (1992)) that PE firms select underperformers and improve performance post buyout. We also find that for the Norwegian portfolio companies the value created goes to all stakeholders, supporting the notion that PE firms create value to society as a whole.
Pipelining high-radix SRT division algorithms

This paper shows various ways to pipeline popular SRT division algorithms. Different logic gate families and circuit structures are used to explore possible overheads introduced in each implementation. Simulation results are compared to find out the fastest possible architecture and comparisons are explored from parasitically extracted AMI C5N 0.5 mum layouts.
Relationship between serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels and the SYNTAX score in patients with acute coronary syndrome

Objective: The extent of severity and complexity of coronary artery disease (CAD) in patients presenting with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and non-STEMI (NSTEMI) and possible correlations between serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) have not yet been adequately studied. We evaluated the relationship between 25(OH)D levels and the burden of CAD as assessed by the SYNTAX score (SXscore) in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) including STEMI and NSTEMI. Methods: After exclusion, a total of 113 patients who were admitted to our hospital due to ACS and who were referred for undergoing coronary angiography were prospectively included. Their mean age was 63.3±18.5 years, and 80.5% of them were men. In total, 44.2% of the patients had NSTEMI and the remaining had STEMI. Blood samples were drawn at admission to evaluate serum 25(OH)D levels. CAD severity was assessed using the SXscore. Patients were classified as having low (SXscore ≤22) or high (SXscore >22) SXscores. Pearson’s and Spearman’s correlation coefficients were used to examine the relationship between serum 25(OH)D levels and the SXscore. Results: 25(OH)D levels were significantly lower in the group with a high SXscore than in the group with a low SXscore (21.0±8.0 vs. 16.7±6.8, p=0.005). Correlation analysis showed a significant correlation between 25(OH)D levels and the SXscore. Multiple linear regression (MLR) analysis was used to determine the significance of the relationship between the SXscore and 25(OH)D, parathyroid hormone, and C-reactive protein levels and eGFR. MLR analysis revealed that only 25(OH)D levels (coefficient beta, -0.217, p=0.029) was significantly associated with the severity of CAD. Conclusion: The present study showed that serum 25(OH)D levels were significantly lower in patients with STEMI/NSTEMI and that low serum 25(OH)D levels were significantly correlated with CAD severity and extent. (Anatol J Cardiol 2017; 17: 293-7)