Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Functional Characterization of the Alphavirus TF Protein

ABSTRACT Alphavirus dogma has long dictated the production of a discrete set of structural proteins during infection of a cell: capsid, pE2, 6K, and E1. However, bioinformatic analyses of alphavirus genomes (A. E. Firth, B. Y. Chung, M. N. Fleeton, and J. F. Atkins, Virol. J. 5:108, 2008) suggested that a ribosomal frameshifting event occurs during translation of the alphavirus structural polyprotein. Specifically, a frameshift event is suggested to occur during translation of the 6K gene, yielding production of a novel protein, termed transframe (TF), comprised of a C-terminal extension of the 6K protein in the −1 open reading frame (ORF). Here, we validate the findings of Firth and colleagues with respect to the production of the TF protein and begin to characterize the function of TF. Using a mass spectrometry-based approach, we identified TF in purified preparations of both Sindbis and Chikungunya virus particles. We next constructed a panel of Sindbis virus mutants with mutations which alter the production, size, or sequence of TF. We demonstrate that TF is not absolutely required in culture, although disrupting TF production leads to a decrease in virus particle release in both mammalian and insect cells. In a mouse neuropathogenesis model, mortality was <15% in animals infected with the TF mutants, whereas mortality was 95% in animals infected with the wild-type virus. Using a variety of additional assays, we demonstrate that TF retains ion-channel activity analogous to that of 6K and that lack of production of TF does not affect genome replication, particle infectivity, or envelope protein transit to the cell surface. The TF protein therefore represents a previously uncharacterized factor important for alphavirus assembly.
An improved eigenvalue corrector formula for solving the Schrödinger equation for central fields

1. Introduction. The wave equation for the nuclear motion of a diatomic molecule, in the Born-Oppenheimer approximation, is one which is encountered frequently in quantum-theoretical calculations. Numerical methods for its solution have been developed and used [1, 2, 3, 4] over many years for atomic problems where the potential is one obtained by Hartree-Fock self-consistent fields or the Thomas-Fermi-Dirac statistical field methods. Only relatively recently have computational techniques and the application of electronic computers enabled one to obtain accurate theoretical internuclear potentials at enough internuclear distances to calculate the wave functions for the motion of the nuclei and use them to obtain averages, over the nuclear motion, of molecular properties. The present investigation is concerned with obtaining an accurate method for calculating the nuclear wave functions and vibrational-rotational energies of diatomic molecules with some economy in the number of values of the internuclear potential required. An improved formula for the correction of trial eigenvalues, which does not depend so much for its accuracy upon the smallness of the stepsize in the radial coordinate, and an analysis of the convergence of the procedure are given. A computer subroutine was written and numerical results obtained from it are described for a case where exact analytical solutions are known. In what follows, the vibrational quantum number v, v = 0, 1, 2, , will be used as a subscript to index the eigenvalues Ev with the usual convention that Eo < E1 ? E2 ?
Robust and Secure Resource Allocation for Full-Duplex MISO Multicarrier NOMA Systems

In this paper, we study the resource allocation algorithm design for multiple-input single-output (MISO) multicarrier non-orthogonal multiple access (MC-NOMA) systems, in which a full-duplex base station serves multiple half-duplex uplink and downlink users on the same subcarrier simultaneously. The resource allocation is optimized for maximization of the weighted system throughput while the information leakage is constrained and artificial noise is injected to guarantee secure communication in the presence of multiple potential eavesdroppers. To this end, we formulate a robust non-convex optimization problem taking into account the imperfect channel state information of the eavesdropping channels and the quality-of-service requirements of the legitimate users. Despite the non-convexity of the optimization problem, we solve it optimally by applying monotonic optimization which yields the optimal beamforming, artificial noise design, subcarrier allocation, and power allocation policy. The optimal resource allocation policy serves as a performance benchmark since the corresponding monotonic optimization-based algorithm entails a high computational complexity. Hence, we also develop a low-complexity suboptimal resource allocation algorithm which converges to a locally optimal solution. Our simulation results reveal that the performance of the suboptimal algorithm closely approaches that of the optimal algorithm. Besides, the proposed optimal MISO NOMA system can not only ensure downlink and uplink communication security simultaneously but also provides a significant system secrecy rate improvement compared with the traditional MISO orthogonal multiple access systems and two other baseline schemes.
The Performance-Enhancing Drug Game Reconsidered

In this article, the author incorporates fair play norms into the analysis of the basic performance-enhancing drug game proposed in 2004 by Haugen (in the Journal of Sports Economics). In some cases, it leads to a modification in the very nature of the game, switching it from a prisoner's dilemma to a stag hunt game characterized by two pure-strategy equilibria: a risk-dominant doping equilibrium but also a payoff-dominant no-doping one. In such cases, the main problem for athletes becomes to coordinate their intentions and, hence, find a reliable coordinating device. The author suggests that some kind of preplay communication about doping and formal agreements through an antidoping charter may serve as such a device.
Estimation and Determinants of the Philippines' Household Carbon Footprint

type="main"> Estimation of a household carbon footprint in developed countries is abundant in the literature but there are few studies from developing countries. This paper presents an estimation of household carbon emission from the consumption of various goods and services in the Philippines. We estimate household emissions by combining input–output analysis with household expenditure for 2000 and 2006. After controlling for household characteristics, the analyses reveal that income has a significant nonlinear relationship with emissions, depicting an inverted U-shaped with a turning point beyond the current income distribution. Unless consumption patterns change, it is likely that there will be further increases in emissions as households become more affluent.
Internet Use and Its Relation with the Psychosocial Situation for a Sample of University Students

This study was carried out to determine the general characteristics of Internet use among university students in Turkey and to examine the relation between the Internet use and the psychosocial conditions of the students. Among the 730 university students who participated, the average age was 20.84 (SD=1.95), and the majority were females. The average Internet use period of the students was detected as 2.80 (SD=1.33) years for females and 3.59 (SD=1.60) years for males. The average score of the Online Cognition Scale (OCS) used for determining problematic use was 84.64 (SD=33.50): for females, 77.99 (SD=30.70); for males, 92.16 (SD=34.96). Students of social sciences scored highest on the OCS. It was determined that as the OSC score increased, students' performance of Internet activities such as general information searches and academic research decreased and that performance of interactive and entertainment Internet activities such as chat, financial transactions, game playing, sex, downloading programs, and listening to MP3s increased. While a positive correlation was found between problematic use and loneliness and depression, a negative correlation was found between problematic use and perceived social support.
Engendering Climate Change: The Swedish Experience of a Global Citizens Consultation

Research on gender dimensions of climate change response is needed if we are to succeed in providing decision-makers with a relevant scientific basis for climate change policy. Although action at the municipal level has become a high priority for Swedish climate change response, knowledge of how gender perspectives affect that response is scarce. This paper contributes knowledge of how to integrate a gender perspective in planning for climate change response, through the modification and application of a system of gender categorization that was originally developed for evaluating the World Bank's performance of environmental impact assessments. That system is used, in this paper, to analyse the Swedish component of a global citizen consultation, World Wide Views on Global Warming. The research is based on analysis of our participation in the World Wide Views as well as interviews and documentation. A conclusion from our analysis is that the Swedish part of the citizen consultation was driven by an approach that, according to the system of gender categorization, strongly demonstrated both feminine and masculine attributes. The results show that an approach that incorporates not only masculine attributes, but also feminine ones, is likely to generate a more robust and concrete climate change response.
Partial Overlap Stereo

The paper gives a contribution in the field of three-dimensional visualization, by the definition of a complete processing chain for partial overlap stereo. The acquisition of a stereoscopic video to be fed into a partial overlap device requires some additional care with respect to the standard parallel projection -full overlap stereo. A procedure devoted to the correction of the stereorig external calibration towards an ideal convergent/divergent configuration, will be presented. Also, we will derive the warp to be applied to the stereoscopic video before visualization on 3D devices with partial overlap. Results will be presented with regards to the class of head mounted display visualization devices.
The Civic Achievement Gap: Why poor and minority students are disproportionately disengaged in civic life – and what can be done about it.

This paper, drawn from a book in progress, summarizes evidence of a civic achievement gap between non-white, poor, and/or immigrant youth, on the one hand, and white, wealthier, and/or native-born youth, on the other. Young people (and adults) in the former group demonstrate consistently lower levels of civic and political knowledge, skills, positive attitudes, and participation, as compared to their wealthier and white counterparts. As a result, they face serious political disadvantages.
Understanding and Contributing to the Enigma of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Assurance in the United States

SUMMARY: This paper provides an empirical examination of the corporate social responsibility (CSR) assurance market in the United States. Various constituencies have found this market puzzling, as the level of assurance significantly lags international levels (Simnett et al. 2009; KPMG 2011). Results shed light on this enigma by demonstrating that, unlike their international counterparts, U.S. finance and utilities firms are not more likely (than firms in other industries) to obtain CSR assurance despite facing significant social and environmental risks. As these industries are highly regulated in the United States, regulatory oversight may be acting as a substitute for CSR assurance. We also find that highly leveraged firms are less likely to obtain CSR assurance, potentially due to stringent bank monitoring indirectly suppressing demand. Nonetheless, examining the capital market responses to CSR assurance makes the low demand even more puzzling. Specifically, CSR assurance is associated with lower cost.
Reduction of inappropriate anti-tachycardia pacing therapies and shocks by a novel suite of detection algorithms in heart failure patients with cardiac resynchronization therapy defibrillators: a historical comparison of a prospective database.

AIMS Implantable cardioverter defibrillators improve survival of patients at risk for ventricular arrhythmias, but inappropriate shocks occur in up to 30% of patients and have been associated with worse quality of life and prognosis. In heart failure patients with cardiac resynchronization therapy defibrillators (CRT-Ds), we evaluated whether a new generation of detection and discrimination algorithms reduces inappropriate shocks. METHODS AND RESULTS We analysed 1983 Medtronic CRT-D patients (80% male, 67 ± 10 years), 1368 with standard devices (Control CRT-D) and 615 with new generation devices (New CRT-D). Expert electrophysiologists reviewed and classified the electrograms of all device-detected ventricular tachycardia/fibrillation episodes. Total follow-up was 3751 patients-years. Incidence of inappropriate shocks at 1 year was 2.8% [95% confidence interval (CI) = 2.0-3.5] in Control CRT-D and 0.9% (CI = 0.4-2.2) in New CRT-D (hazard ratio = 0.37, CI = 0.21-0.66, P < 0.001). In New CRT-D, inappropriate shocks were reduced by 77% [incidence rate ratio (IRR) = 0.23, CI = 0.16-0.35, P < 0.001] and inappropriate anti-tachycardia pacing by 81% (IRR = 0.19, CI = 0.11-0.335, P < 0.001). Annual rate per 100 patient-years for appropriate VF detections was 3.0 (CI = 2.1-4.2) in New CRT-D and 3.2 (CI = 2.1-5.0) in Control CRT-D (P = 0.68), for syncope was 0.4 (CI = 0.2-0.9) in New CRT-D and 0.7 (CI = 0.5-1.0) in Control CRT-D (P = 0.266), and for death was 1.0 (CI = 0.6-1.6) in New CRT-D and 3.5 (CI = 3.0-4.1) in Control CRT-D (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION Detection and discrimination algorithms used in new generation CRT-D significantly reduced inappropriate shocks when compared with standard CRT-D. This result, with no compromise on VF sensitivity or risk of syncope, has important implications for patients' quality of life and prognosis.
Synthesis and Pharmacological Activity of Diterpenylnaphthoquinone Derivatives

New diterpenylquinones, combining a diterpene diacid and a naphthoquinone, were prepared from junicedric acid and lapachol. The new derivatives were assessed as gastroprotective agents by the HCl-EtOH-induced gastric lesions model in mice as well as for basal cytotoxicity on the following human cell lines: Normal lung fibroblasts (MRC-5), gastric epithelial adenocarcinoma (AGS), and hepatocellular carcinoma (Hep G2). Several of the new compounds were significantly active as antiulcer agents and showed selective cytotoxicity against AGS cells.
Randomized Clinical Study to Compare the Accuracy of Navigated and Non-Navigated Thoracic Pedicle Screws in Deformity Correction Surgeries

Study Design. Randomized clinical trial (level I evidence). Objective. To compare the accuracy of non-navigation and Iso-C based navigation in pedicle screw fixation in thoracic spine deformities. Summary of Background Data. Thoracic pedicle screw insertion for spinal deformity correction can be associated with increased pedicle breaches. Iso-C based navigation has been reported to improve the accuracy of pedicle screw placement, but its use in the presence of deformity has not been reported. Methods. Twenty-seven patients with scoliosis and 6 patients with kyphosis had a total of 478 thoracic pedicle screws. The average Cobb angle was 58.4° ± 8° (range 50°–80°), and the mean kyphotic angle was 54.6° ± 4° (range 51°–76°). By random allocation, 17 patients had screw insertion under navigation (242 screws) and 16 under fluoroscopic control (236 screws). The 2 groups were compared for accuracy of screw placement, time for screw insertion, and the number of times the C-arm had to be brought into the field. Two independent blinded observers determined accuracy using postoperative computed tomography assessments. Results. There were 54 (23%) pedicle breaches in the non-navigation group as compared to only 5 (2%) in the navigation group (P < 0.001). Thirty-eight screws (16%) in the non-navigation group had penetrated the anterior or lateral cortex compared to 2 screws (0.8%) in the navigation group. Average screw insertion time in the non-navigation group was 4.61 ± 1.05 minutes (range 1.8–6.5) compared to 2.37 ± 0.72 minutes (range 1.16–4.5) in navigation group (P < 0.01). The C-arm had to be moved into the operation field on an average of 1.5 ± 0.25 times (range 1–3) per screw. With single screening data, an average of 11.4 pedicles (range 9–14) could be visualized without necessity to bring the C-arm into operating field again. Conclusions. Iso-C navigation increases accuracy, and reduces surgical time and radiation in thoracic deformity correction surgeries.
An alternative approach to entertainment education

Since the early years of international campaigns of population control sponsored by Population Communications International (PCI), entertainment education (E-E) programs have become the 'bellwether for bringing health information to audiences in developed and developing nations faced with extreme health challenges' (Davenport Sypher, McKinley, Ventsam & Valdeavellano 2002, p.192). The 1970s, 80s and 90s wit· nessed a steady growth in the funds allocated to E-E programs with communication, human resources and capital (funded primarily by western agencies) continuing to flow from the centre to the peripheries. In the new millennium, scholarship celebrating the E-E approach has reached its pinnacle, occupying the centre-stage of discussions about campaigns, being published in premier communication journals such as Communication Theory, ]aurnal of Health Communication and Communication Research (Singhal & Rogers 1999, 2002; Vaughan, Rogers, Singhal & Swalehe 2000). Acknowledging this trend in the growth of E-E in the latest edition of their seminal book Public Communication Campaigns, Rice and Atkin (2001) have listed the E-E strategy among new approaches and current challenges to communication campaigns. In spite of the vast sums spent on E-E programs and the narratives of success documented in the academic literature, third world nations continue to be plagued by death and disease, by the lack of access to medical resources, and by their inability to engage in healthful behaviours as defined by the core actors that define problems, contextualise them, and come up with solutions to be applied through E-E projects (Airhihenbuwa 1995; Airhihenbuwa & Obregon 2000; Hornik 1988). In an article published in the Journal of Health Communication, Collins Airhihenbuwa (1995) opened up the doors to critical dialogue about the values and gaps in the realm of international health campaigns by raising important questions about the traditional approaches to HIV I AIDS campaigns that have usually been taken for granted. I seek to continue that line of thought by examining one of the most widely used approaches that informs an exponentially growing body of campaign scholarship, the E-E approach (Singhal & Rogers 1999, 2002; Vaughan et al 2000). Arguing that it is particularly critical for both academics and practitioners to open up the doors to an honest dialogue about the purpose and effects of E-E strategies, this article seeks to locate alternative positions that offer thoughtful criticisms of the universalist approach of the E-E model (Airhihenbuwa 1995; Escobar 1995; Giroux
Risk factors for endometrial hyperplasia: Results from a case-control study

Abstract. Ricci E, Moroni S, Parazzini F, Surace M, Benzi G, Salerio B, Polverino G, La Vecchia C. Risk factors for endometrial hyperplasia: Results from a case-control study. We analyzed epidemiologic characteristics of women at risk for endometrial hyperplasia (EH), using data from a case-control study. One hundred twenty nine women aged 35–73 (median 51 years) with histologically confirmed complex endometrial hyperplasia without atypies identified at the University of Milan during the period 1990–99 were examined. Controls were 258 non hysterectomized women aged 36–74 (median 52 years), admitted to a network of hospitals covering the same area where cases had been identified for conditions other than gynecological, malignant, or hormone-related. Cases with EH were more educated than controls (OR > 12 years of education vs. < 7: 2.8, 95% CI 1.7–4.8), more frequently obese (OR 2.7, 95% CI 1.5–5.0) and diabetic (OR 2.4, 95% CI 0.8–6.9). Parous women (OR 1.8) and women reporting induced abortions (OR 1.6) showed an increased risk of EH, but the associations were not statistically significant. Compared to premenopausal women, the OR of EH was 0.2 (95% 0.1–0.5) for postmenopausal ones. Compared to women reporting menopause at age 50 or less, the OR of endometrial hyperplasia was 1.5 (95% CI 0.6–3.5) and 2.2 (95%CI 0.7–6.7), respectively, in women with menopause at age 50–52 and ≥ 53. Considering postmenopausal women only the OR was 3.1 (95% CI 1.1–9.3) for use of hormonal replacement therapy (HRT). We conclude that this study indicates that high education, obesity, diabetes, and HRT use increase the risk of endometrial hyperplasia.
A new Tomlinson-Harashima precoding scheme based on RVQ feedback with fewer bits

Tomlinson-Harashima precoding exceeds traditional linear precoding system with higher sum rate and lower bit error rate in high signal-to-noise ratio region. In this paper, a novel THP scheme based on limited feedback for Multi-user MIMO system is studied. Based on limited feedback bits, our proposed optimized THP scheme with a modified receiver, which needs feedback channel direction information only, gets the same performance as original system with perfect channel amplitude information (CMI) feedback, and about 3–4dB gains are obtained compared with no CMI feedback situation. Our analysis and the validity of the optimization algorithm are verified by simulation results. Without CMI feedback, the proposed scheme has cut down feedback overheads significantly in THP precoding system which is essential for its implementation for the next generation system. At the same time, the conclusion that channel vector quantization excels to unitary precoding codebook in THP scheme has also been drawn in this paper.
On the Temporal Causal Relationship Between Macroeconomic Variables

The present study examines the dynamic interactions among macroeconomic variables such as real output, prices, money supply, interest rate (IR), and exchange rate (EXR) in India during the pre-economic crisis and economic crisis periods, using the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) bounds test for cointegration, Johansen and Juselius multivariate cointegration test, Granger causality/Block exogeneity Wald test based on Vector Error Correction Model, variance decomposition analysis and impulse response functions. The empirical results reveal a stronger long-run bilateral relationship between real output, price level, IR, and EXR during the pre-crisis sample period. Moreover, the empirical results confirm a unidirectional short-run causality running from price level to EXR, IR to price level, and real output to money supply during the pre-crisis period. Also, it is evident from the test results that there exist short-run bidirectional relationships running between real output and EXR, price level and IR, and IR and EXR in the pre-crisis era, respectively. Most importantly, long-run bidirectional causality is found between real output, EXR, and IR during the economic crisis period. And the study results indicate short-run bidirectional causality between money supply and EXR, IR and price level, and IR and output in India during the crisis era. Also, a short-run unidirectional causality runs from prices to real output in the crisis period.