Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Destination or Distraction? Querying the Linkage Between Off-Farm Work and Food Crop Investments in Kenya

The relationship between off-farm work and farm input use in Sub-Saharan Africa has been documented, although results are mixed concerning the direction of effect. Here, we explore the robustness of this linkage by applying a range of econometric models to panel data collected in Kenya, using maize as an example because of its importance as a major food crop among smallholder farmers. We test the relationship between rates of fertilizer use and three types of off-farm earnings (labour on other farms, known as farm kibarua); income from self-employment and informal businesses and earnings from regular employment (salaries, pensions or wages). Consistent with previous research, we find a strong, negative linkage between non-farm work and rates of fertiliser use in maize production, indicating trade-offs in labour allocation and farm investments. However, the relationship between fertiliser use in maize production and earnings from farm kibarua appears to be positive, illustrating the role this type of work can play in easing cash constraints for destitute households. Adding to previous research, model comparisons illustrate the sensitivity of some estimated parameters to modelling assumptions. Further, the application of the general propensity score matching demonstrates that the magnitude of the marginal effects of non-farm income on fertiliser use rates varies as income changes. In the case of non-farm earnings, the response of fertiliser to additional income is negative at lower income levels, but positive at higher levels.
Results on DoA finding system based on five-port discriminator

Direct detection of direction of arrival (DoA) with no frequency conversion simplifies the design of DoA measurement systems and alleviates base band processing. We present in this paper results of direct detection of DoA based on five-port system and antenna array using the MUSIC(MUltiple SIgnal Classification) estimation method. We also show that sweeping the transmitter frequency allows the five-port to detect propagation time delay.
Inhibition of MAPK and NF-κB Pathways Is Necessary for Rapid Apoptosis in Macrophages Infected with Yersinia1

Macrophages respond to infection with pathogenic Yersinia species by activating MAPK- and NF-κB-signaling pathways. To counteract this response, Yersiniae secrete a protease (Yersinia outer protein J (YopJ)) that is delivered into macrophages, deactivates MAPK- and NF-κB-signaling pathways, and induces apoptosis. NF-κB promotes cell survival by up-regulating expression of several apoptosis inhibitor genes. Previous studies show that deactivation of the NF-κB pathway by YopJ is important for Yersinia-induced apoptosis. To determine whether deactivation of the NF-κB pathway is sufficient for Yersinia-induced apoptosis, two inhibitors of the NF-κB pathway, IκBα superrepressor or A20, were expressed in macrophages. Macrophages expressing these proteins were infected with Yersinia pseudotuberculosis strains that secrete functionally active or inactive forms of YopJ. Apoptosis levels were substantially higher (5- to 10-fold) when active YopJ was delivered into macrophages expressing IκBα superrepressor or A20, suggesting that deactivation of the NF-κB pathway is not sufficient for rapid Yersinia-induced apoptosis. When macrophages expressing A20 were treated with specific inhibitors of MAPKs, similar levels of apoptosis (within ∼2-fold) were observed when active or inactive YopJ were delivered during infection. These results suggest that MAPK and NF-κB pathways function together to up-regulate apoptosis inhibitor gene expression in macrophages in response to Yersinia infection and that YopJ deactivates both pathways to promote rapid apoptosis. In addition, treating macrophages with a proteasome inhibitor results in higher levels of infection-induced apoptosis than can be achieved by blocking NF-κB function alone, suggesting that proapoptotic proteins are stabilized when proteasome function is blocked in macrophages.
TCP transcription factor, BRANCH ANGLE DEFECTIVE 1 (BAD1), is required for normal tassel branch angle formation in maize

In grass inflorescences, a structure called the “pulvinus” is found between the inflorescence main stem and lateral branches. The size of the pulvinus affects the angle of the lateral branches that emerge from the main axis and therefore has a large impact on inflorescence architecture. Through EMS mutagenesis we have identified three complementation groups of recessive mutants in maize having defects in pulvinus formation. All mutants showed extremely acute tassel branch angles accompanied by a significant reduction in the size of the pulvinus compared with normal plants. Two of the complementation groups correspond to mutations in the previously identified genes, RAMOSA2 (RA2) and LIGULELESS1 (LG1). Mutants corresponding to a third group were cloned using mapped-based approaches and found to encode a new member of the plant-specific TCP (TEOSINTE BRANCHED1/CYCLOIDEA/PROLIFERATING CELL NUCLEAR ANTIGEN FACTOR) family of DNA-binding proteins, BRANCH ANGLE DEFECTIVE 1 (BAD1). BAD1 is expressed in the developing pulvinus as well as in other developing tissues, including the tassels and juvenile leaves. Both molecular and genetics studies show that RA2 is upstream of BAD1, whereas LG1 may function in a separate pathway. Our findings demonstrate that BAD1 is a TCP class II gene that functions to promote cell proliferation in a lateral organ, the pulvinus, and influences inflorescence architecture by impacting the angle of lateral branch emergence.
Grazing system and floor type effects on blood biochemistry, growth and carcass characteristics of Nguni goats

Objective Purpose was to determine the effects of grazing system and floor type on concentrations of blood metabolites, activity of creatine kinase, body weight and carcass characteristics of castrated Nguni goats. Methods Forty eight, 7 month old goats were randomly allocated to herding and tethering treatments from 0800 to 1300 hours and accommodated on slatted and earth floors daily. Blood samples were collected by jugular venipuncture every fifteenth day for metabolite analysis. Slaughter was done at a commercial abattoir following 5 months of monitoring. Results Tethered goats had significantly higher concentrations of urea (5.19 mmol/L) (p< 0.001), creatinine (55.87 μmol/L) (p<0.05), total protein (64.60 g/L) (p<0.01), and globulin (49.79 g/L) (p<0.001), whereas herded goats had higher glucose (3.38 mmol/L) (p<0.001), albumin (15.33 g/L) (p<0.05), albumin/globulin ratio (0.34) (p<0.01), and body weight (24.87 kg) (p< 0.001). Slatted floors caused higher (p<0.01) albumin at 15.37 g/L. The interaction of grazing system and floor type affected creatinine, total protein, globulin at (p<0.01) and albumen/globulin ratio at (p<0.01). The least creatinine concentration and albumin/globulin ratio was in herded and tethered goats that were accommodated on earth floors, respectively. The highest total protein and globulin concentrations were in serum of tethered goats that were accommodated on earth floors. The highest (p<0.05) dressing percentage (45.26%) was in herded goats accommodated on slatted floors. Conclusion Herding of goats lowered globulin concentration, improved estimated feed intake, blood glucose and albumin concentrations, albumin globulin ratio, increased body weights and weight related carcass characteristics. Floor type had very little effects on metabolites where earth floors only reduced albumin concentration. Tethering and housing goats on earth floors resulted in double stress that increased chronic infections.
Factors influencing Pension Privatization in former communist countries in Eastern Europe and Central Asia

From 1990 onwards, a significant number of former communist countries from Eastern Europe and Central Asia decided to reform their public pension system by creating a mandatory private pillar. Other ex-communist countries from the same two regions only made some parametric changes to their public pension system. There are concurrent theories trying to explain why certain countries implemented a paradigmatic reform on the pension systems while others did not. All these theories are focusing on what factors determine the decision makers to reform the public pension system: the coercion of international financial institution, demographic and economic pressures, political support, the relative strength of government and unions or the proportion of peer countries that have adopted similar measures. This study tests the influence of all the factors mentioned above on the decision to adopt the pension privatization in former communist countries from Eastern Europe and Central Asia. Using event history analysis with time-varying covariates of data from 24 states between 1990 and 2013 the study shows that the probability to reform the public pension system in one country increases as the proportion of neighbor countries who adopted the same measure rises. The conclusions of this research can be compared with those taken from the interviews with the decision makers from countries of interest. Also, the research can be used as a starting point for studying the steps backwards made on this path by Hungary, Poland and Argentina. These countries had reversed the pension privatization by transferring savings under management by private pension funds back to the public sector.
Psychological distress in mothers of children admitted to a nutritional rehabilitation unit in Malawi - a comparison with other paediatric wards.

In a previous study we found a very high prevalence of psychological distress in mothers of children admitted to a nutritional rehabilitation unit (NRU) in Malawi, Africa. The objective of this study was to compare the prevalence and severity of maternal distress within the NRU with that in other paediatric wards. Given the known association between poor maternal psychological well-being and child undernutrition in low- and middle-income countries, we hypothesised that distress would be higher among NRU mothers. Mothers of consecutive paediatric inpatients in a NRU, a high-dependency (and research) unit and an oncology ward were assessed for psychological distress using the Self-Reporting Questionnaire (SRQ). Two hundred sixty-eight mothers were interviewed (90.3% of eligible). The prevalence of SRQ score ≥8 was 35/150 {23.3% [95% confidence interval (CI) 16.8- 30.9%]} on the NRU, 13/84 [15.5% (95% CI 8.5-25.0%)] on the high-dependency unit and 7/34 [20.6% (95% CI 8.7-37.9%)] on the oncology ward (χ(2) = 2.04, P = 0.36). In linear regression analysis, the correlates of higher SRQ score were child diarrhoea on admission, child diagnosed with tuberculosis, and maternal experience of abuse by partner; child height-for-age z-score fell only just outside significance (P = 0.05). In summary, we found no evidence of greater maternal distress among the mothers of severely malnourished children within the NRU compared with mothers of paediatric inpatients with other severe illnesses. However, in support of previous research findings, we found some evidence that poor maternal psychological well-being is associated with child stunting and diarrhoea.
Celecoxib-induced increase in cytosolic Ca2+ levels and apoptosis in HA59T human hepatoma cells

Celecoxib has been shown to have antitumor effect in previous studies but the mechanisms are unclear. The effect of celecoxib on cytosolic Ca2+ concentrations ([Ca2+]i) and viability in HA59T human hepatoma cells was explored. The Ca2+-sensitive fluorescent dye fura-2 was applied to measure [Ca2+]i. Celecoxib at concentrations of 10–50 μM induced a [Ca2+]i rise in a concentration-dependent manner. The response was reduced by 80% by removing Ca2+. Celecoxib induced Mn2+ influx, leading to quenching of fura-2 fluorescence. Celecoxib-evoked Ca2+ entry was suppressed by nifedipine, econazole, SK&F96365, and protein kinase C modulators. In the absence of extracellular Ca2+, incubation with the endoplasmic reticulum Ca2+ pump inhibitor thapsigargin nearly abolished celecoxib-induced [Ca2+]i rise. Incubation with celecoxib abolished thapsigargin-induced [Ca2+]i rise. Inhibition of phospholipase C with U73122 abolished celecoxib-induced [Ca2+]i rise. At 1–50 μM, celecoxib inhibited cell viability by less than 20%, which was not reversed by chelating cytosolic Ca2+ with 1,2-bis(2-aminophenoxy)ethane-N, N, N′, N′-tetraacetic acid/acetoxy methyl (BAPTA/AM). Celecoxib (10–50 μM) also induced apoptosis. In sum, in HA59T hepatoma cells, celecoxib induced a [Ca2+]i rise by evoking phospholipase C-dependent Ca2+ release from the endoplasmic reticulum and Ca2+ entry via protein kinase C-sensitive store-operated Ca2+ channels. Celecoxib also caused cell death via apoptosis.
Rhizobacteria of Populus euphratica Promoting Plant Growth Against Heavy Metals

The heavy metal-resistant bacteria from rhizospheric soils of wild Populus euphratica forest growing in arid and saline area of northwestern China were investigated by cultivation-dependent methods. After screening on medium sparked with zinc, copper, nickel and lead, 146 bacteria strains with different morphology were isolated and most of them were found to be resistant to at least two kinds of heavy metals. Significant increase in fresh weight and leaf surface area of Arabidopsis thaliana seedlings under metal stress were noticed after inoculated with strains especially those having multiple-resistance to heavy metals such as Phyllobacterium sp. strain C65. Investigation on relationship between auxin production and exogenous zinc concentration revealed that Phyllobacterium sp. strain C65 produced auxin, and production decreased as the concentration of zinc in medium increased. For wheat seedlings treated with zinc of 2 mM, zinc contents in roots of inoculated plants decreased by 27% (P < 0.05) compared to the uninoculated control. Meanwhile, zinc accumulation in the above-ground tissues increased by 22% (P < 0.05). The translocation of zinc from root to above-ground tissues induced by Phyllobacterium sp. strain C65 helped host plants extract zinc from contaminated environments more efficiently thus alleviated the growth inhibition caused by heavy metals.
Vascular patterning and permeability in prostate cancer models with differing osteogenic properties

Bone metastasis is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in prostate cancer. However, the lack of clinically relevant models hinders our understanding of the disease as well as development of effective therapies and imaging approaches. We used noninvasive MRI, histology and micro CT to further characterize the newly established prostate cancer bone metastases‐derived model MDA‐PCa‐118b, and to compare it to the well‐established PC‐3MM2 model with regard to bone structure and vascular patterning. The PC‐3MM2 model is highly osteolytic whereas the MDA‐PCa‐118b model shows a robust osteoblastic reaction, as often seen in clinical cases. Macromolecular contrast enhanced MRI revealed differences in vascular permeability patterns, which appeared peripheral for PC‐3MM2 and nodular for MDA‐PCa‐118b, matching the microscopic cellular composition of each model: PC‐3MM2 exclusively recruits endothelial cells to form thin tumor‐core blood vessels and enlarged, leaky peripheral vessels, whereas MDA‐PCa‐118b also recruits bone‐forming cells and pericytes such that small tumor nests are encircled with leaky vessels and embedded in bone‐like tissue dotted with pericyte‐covered vessels. Despite these structural differences, vascular permeability was reduced in both tumor models by either imatinib or SU10944 treatment. This study highlights the importance of clinically relevant osteogenic models of human prostate cancer and the value of such models not only in enhancing our understanding of tumorigenesis, metastasis and response to therapy, but also for development of appropriate methods for noninvasive imaging of these processes. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Measuring patients’ experiences with individual primary care physicians

BACKGROUND: Measuring and reporting patients’ experiences with health plans has been routine for several years. There is now substantial interest in measuring patients’ experiences with individual physicians, but numerous concerns remain.OBJECTIVE: The Massachusetts Ambulatory Care Experiences Survey Project was a statewide demonstration project designed to test the feasibility and value of measuring patients’ experiences with individual primary care physicians and their practices.DESIGN: Cross-sectional survey administered to a statewide sample by mail and telephone (May–August 2002). PATIENTS: Adult patients from 5 commercial health plans and Medicaid sampled from the panels of 215 generalist physicians at 67 practice sites (n=9,625). MEASUREMENTS: Ambulatory Care Experiences Survey produces 11 summary measures of patients’ experiences across 2 domains: quality of physician-patient interactions and organizational features of care. Physician-level reliability was computed for all measures, and variance components analysis was used to determine the influence of each level of the system (physician, site, network organization, plan) on each measure. Risk of misclassifying individual physicians was evaluated under varying reporting frameworks.RESULTS: All measures except 2 achieved physician-level reliability of at least 0.70 with samples of 45 patients per physician, and several exceeded 0.80. Physicians and sites accounted for the majority of system-related variance on all measures, with physicians accounting for the majority on all “interaction quality” measures (range: 61.7% to 83.9%) and sites accounting for the largest share on “organizational” measures (range: 44.8% to 81.1%). Health plans accounted for neglible variance (<3%) on all measures. Reporting frameworks and principles for assuring misclassification risk ≤ 2.5% were identified.CONCLUSIONS: With considerable national attention on the importance of patient-centered care, this project demonstrates the feasibility of obtaining highly reliable measures of patients’ experiences with individual physicians and practices. The analytic findings underscore the validity and importance of looking beyond health plans to individual physicians and sites as we seek to improve health care quality.
catena-Poly[[manganese(III)-bis{μ-2-[(2-hydroxyethyl)iminomethyl]-6-methoxyphenolato-κ3 O 1,N:O 2;κ3 O 2:N,O 1}] iodide]

In the title one-dimensional coordination polymer, {[Mn(C10H12NO3)2]I}n, the potentially tetradentate (O,O,O,N) 2-[(2-hydroxyethyl)iminomethyl]-6-methoxyphenol (H2 L) ligands are mono-deprotonated (as HL −) and coordinated by the metal ions in a tridentate chelate-bridging fashion [2.0111112]. The MnIII atom possesses a distorted trans-MnO4N2 octahedral coordination environment. The bridging ligands lead to [010]-chain polymeric cations {[Mn(HL)2]+}n in the crystal. The charge-balancing iodide ions are disordered over two sites in a 0.690 (2):0.310 (2) ratio and a weak O—H⋯I hydrogen bond occurs. The crystal studied was found to be a racemic twin.
Competition and efficiency in the MENA banking region: a non-structural DEA approach

ABSTRACT The goal of this article is to empirically assess the relationship between competition and efficiency in the banking sector of Middle East and North African (MENA) countries spanning the period 1997–2011. To measure the level of competition, the article estimates the non-structural indicator known as the H-statistic, while the level of bank efficiency is estimated through the nonparametric methodology of the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and the Bootstrap Data Envelopment Analysis (BDEA), respectively. The empirical results are robust under six econometric methodologies, providing sufficient evidence for the presence of a one-way (negative) Granger causality, running from efficiency to competition. The empirical findings lead to the rejection of the ‘Efficient Structure Hypothesis’, implying that increases in competition do not precede increases in cost efficiency.
Sparse representation classification for battlefield textual information

Sparse representation based classification has recently been shown to provide excellent results in many object recognition and classification tasks. The high cost of computing, however, is a major obstacle that limits the applicability of these methods in battlefield information process scenarios where process time and computational power is restricted. In this paper, we study a fast and computationally efficient sparse representation classification scheme for battlefield textual information in which the block sparsity of sparse coefficients is exploited. A novel sparse approximation algorithm tailored for this low complexity classification method is proposed. Experiment results show that our classification algorithm that leverages the sparse structure of the textual information outperforms plain sparse representation classification procedures in both classification accuracy and computationally efficiency.
The relationship between TMT characteristics and R&D investment: Empirical analysis of Chinese manufacture listed firms on GEM

Based on Shenzhen GEM listed company data in June, 2012, combined the Upper Echelons Theory in TMT study with the CEM in diversity research, this paper studies empirically with STATA 10.0 software to explore the relationship between TMT characteristics and R&D investment. The results show that TMT with younger members and rich working experiences tends to invest more on R&D however, the average age and gender diversity do not have significant affect. The results verify the proposition in CEM, which states that the elaboration of task-relevant information and perspectives is an important mediating variable between group diversity and organization innovation performance.