Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A strenuous path for sustainable supply chains in the footwear industry: A business strategy issue

Abstract In the age of sustainability, the fashion industry is very concerned about environmental and social issues; nevertheless, it is considered not completely sustainable. This study investigated the sustainable orientation of the complex and under-investigated footwear industry. This paper presents the results of an exploratory, case-based research highlighting the internal and external drivers that footwear companies perceive as relevant in terms of sustainable configuration of their supply chain and the subsequent impact on their business. The study analyzed all the stages of the footwear supply chain to better define which processes and decision-making practices can lead companies to make their supply chains sustainable. The findings showed the existence of different approaches and a different influence on the internal and external drivers; the relevant roles of corporate values and the values of entrepreneurs are highlighted.
Alterations of microRNAs are associated with impaired growth of MCF-7 breast cancer cells induced by inhibition of casein kinase 2.

BACKGROUND AND AIM Protein Kinase (casein kinase 2, CK2) is a pleiotropic serine-threonine kinase that is frequently dysregulated in many human tumors; microRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of small noncoding RNAs which play important roles in human cancers. This study aimed to investigate the role of CK2 and miRNA expression in breast cancer. METHODS Casein kinase 2 in MCF-7 breast cancer cell line was inhibited by the CK2 inhibitor TBB (4,5,6,7-tetrabromobenzotriazole), then cell proliferation was studied using MTT assay, and cell cycle distribution and apoptosis were detected by flow cytometry. The alteration of microRNAs expression profile was determined by microarray technology, followed by RT-PCR confirmation. RESULTS Here, we for the first time showed that inhibition of CK2 in MCF-7 breast cancer cells causes suppressed cell growth, which was related with dysregulation of the miRNA profile and altered expression. CK2 inhibition induced the up-regulated expression of 17 miRNAs and 10 down-regulated microRNAs which contributed to the impaired growth, inhibited cell cycle progress and increased apoptosis of MCF-7 cells by a CK2 inhibitor. CONCLUSIONS These findings highlight the potential role of dysregulated miRNA expression regulated by CK2 in breast cancer.
Computing as a new compulsory subject in the Macedonian primary schools curriculum

Coding (programming) is a skill that nowadays is considered as an important asset. Teaching programming is an activity that becomes more and more popular. In the last few years there are great discussions on inclusion of coding in schools. These initiatives impacted the policy makers in Macedonia to include coding as a part of a new compulsory subject for the pupils at the age of 8. In this paper our focus is on the newest change in the Macedonian curriculum - the introduction of the course "Working with computers and basics of programming", which can be shortly named as "Computing" in 2015. Here, we present the proposed and accepted curriculum with emphasis on the topics about computational thinking and programming. Then we discuss the available software and tools suitable for the implementation of the before mentioned topics, and present a newly developed game. At the end we explain the background of the teachers, give the format of the preliminary training of all primary school teachers in the country and present the first impressions of the trainers that conducted the training, and we elaborate the teachers' feedback.
Nutritional evaluation of detoxified and raw common vetch seed (Vicia sativa L.) using diets of broilers

This work demonstrates that both processed and raw common vetch seed (Vicia sativa L.) can substitute for 10% of the corn−soybean in a balanced diet for 1 month without affecting the growth and feed utilization of young broilers. Two specimens of processed vetch, detoxified by cooking with decantation, contained 22.4 and 25.8% crude protein (N × 6.25). The amino acid composition remained close to that of raw vetch. Processed and raw vetch seeds have relatively high contents of lysine, leucine, arginine, and phenylalanine plus tyrosine and low contents of methionine plus cystine and tryptophan. The lack of toxicity observed for raw vetch is consistent with the dietary level of β-cyanoalanine. Low, but detectable, residues (<0.02%) of this toxin were present in the chicken muscle. The findings are relevant to the potential use of processed vetch for human nutrition and of raw vetch for young poultry. Keywords: Processed and raw common vetch seed; Vicia sativa L. ; nutrition; broilers; β-cyanoalanine
Efficiency of Hedging Against Fluctuating Prices of Dairy Products

This paper investigates hedging and cross-hedging internationally traded milk derivative products with internationally traded commodities, recently launched New Zealand dairy futures, New Zealand agricultural products, and mature United States dairy market futures. The contribution of the paper is twofold. First, we show that international dairy commodities are a distinct commodities subgroup, as changes in prices of dairy products are uncorrelated with other worldwide traded commodities. Second, we show that New Zealand Stock Exchange dairy futures are an effective tool for hedging exposure to smaller size trades and may not necessarily be of large positions as required by cooperatives and multinationals
Market-based demand response integration in super-smart grids in the presence of variable renewable generation

Variable generator output levels from renewable energies is an important technical obstacle to the transition from fossil fuels to renewable resources. Super grids and smart grids are among the most effective solutions to mitigate generation variability. In a super grid, electric utilities within an interconnected system can share generation and reserve units so that they can produce electricity at a lower overall cost. Smart grids, in particular demand response programs, enable flexible loads such as plug-in electric vehicles and HVAC systems to consume electricity preferntially in a grid-friendly way that assists the grid operator to maintain the power balance. These solutions, in conjunction with energy storage systems, can facilitate renewable integration. This study aims to provide an understanding of the achievable benefits from integrating demand response into wholesale and retail electricity markets, in particular in the presence of significant amounts of variable generation. Among the options for control methods for demand response, market-based approaches provide a relatively efficient use of load flexibility, without restricting consumers’ autonomy or invading their privacy. In this regard, a model of demand response integration into bulk electric grids is presented to study the interaction between variable renewables and demand response in the double auction environment, on an hourly basis. The cost benefit
UAV Trajectory Optimization for Data Offloading at the Edge of Multiple Cells

In future mobile networks, it is difficult for static base stations (BSs) to support the rapidly increasing data services, especially for cell-edge users. Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is a promising method that can assist BSs to offload the data traffic, due to its high mobility and flexibility. In this correspondence, we focus on the UAV trajectory at the edges of three adjacent cells to offload traffic for BSs. In the proposed scheme, the sum rate of UAV-served edge users is maximized subject to the rate requirements for all the users, by optimizing the UAV trajectory in each flying cycle. The optimization is a mixed-integer nonconvex problem, which is difficult to solve. Thus, it is transformed into two convex problems, and an iterative algorithm is proposed to solve it by optimizing the UAV trajectory and edge user scheduling alternately. Simulation results are presented to show the effectiveness of the proposed scheme.
Higher Fluorosis Severity Makes Enamel Less Resistant to Demineralization

Fluorotic teeth could either be more resistant or more susceptible to the caries process than sound ones due to their higher enamel fluoride concentration and higher porosity (subsurface hypomineralization), respectively; however, there is no consensus on this subject. In this study, a total of 49 human unerupted third molars presenting Thylstrup and Fejerskov (TF) fluorosis scores 0-4 were used. Two enamel slabs were obtained from each tooth. The rest of the tooth crown was powdered, and the enamel was separated from the dentine. In purified powdered enamel, the calcium (Ca), inorganic phosphate (Pi), and fluoride (F) concentrations were determined. The F concentration gradient throughout the enamel and in the enamel volume was determined in one slab. The other enamel slab was isolated with acid-resistant varnish, subjecting the exposed enamel surface half to a pH-cycling model to evaluate its demineralization resistance and to calculate the demineralization area. The nonexposed surface was used to determine the natural hypomineralization area found in fluorotic enamel and normalize the demineralization data. The hypomineralization and demineralization areas were assessed by cross-sectional microhardness. For statistical analyses, the data for TF1 and 2, and for TF3 and 4 were pooled. Concentrations of powered enamel Ca and Pi were not significantly different (p > 0.05) among groups TF0, TF1-2 and TF3-4, but a higher F concentration was found in fluorotic enamel (p < 0.05). Highly fluorotic teeth (TF3-4) presented a greater hypomineralization subsurface area and demonstrated lower demineralization resistance than sound enamel (p < 0.05). The findings suggest that a higher severity of fluorosis makes enamel less resistant to the caries process due to its greater subsurface mineral area exposed to demineralization and deeper acid diffusion through the enamel.
Development and initial testing of a pulse oximetry prototype for measuring dental pulp vitality

The guiding principle of endodontic treatment is to preserve teeth while maintaining its aesthetic and functional roles. To accomplish this goal the assessment of teeth pulp vitality is very important since it will determine the procedures that should be adopted and define the therapy strategy. Currently, the most commonly tests for determining dental pulp state are the thermal and the electrical tests, which are based on nerve response and, because of that, have a relatively high rate of false positives and false negatives cases. In this work we present a simple test to be used in the clinical setting for evaluating noninvasively the existence of blood perfusion in dental pulp. This test is based on pulse oximetry principle that was devised to indirectly measure the amount of oxygen in blood. Although pulse oximetry has already demonstrated its usefulness in clinical environment its usage for the determination of dental pulp vitality has been frustrated by several factors, notably the absence of a suitable sensor to the complex shape of the various coronary teeth. We developed a suitable sensor and present the first trials with promising results, regarding the ability for distinguish teeth with and without blood perfusion.
Cell-Specific Expression of the Promoters of Two Nonlegume Hemoglobin Genes in a Transgenic Legume, Lotus corniculatus

The promoters of the hemoglobin genes from the nitrogen-fixing tree Parasponia andersonii and the related nonnitrogen-fixing Trema tomentosa both confer [beta]-glucuronidase reporter gene expression to the central zone of the nodules of a transgenic legume, Lotus corniculatus. [beta]-Glucuronidase expression was high in the uninfected interstitial cells and parenchyma of the surrounding boundary layer and was low in the Rhizobium-infected cells. This contrasts with the expression of both the P. andersonii hemoglobin protein in P. andersonii nodules and the endogenous Lotus leghemoglobins that are expressed in the infected cells at very high levels. The expression pattern of the P. andersonii and T. tomentosa hemoglobin promoters in L. corniculatus resembles that of a nonsymbiotic hemoglobin gene from Casuarina glauca, which was introduced into this legume, and suggests that only the nonsymbiotic functions of the P. andersonii promoter are being recognized. Deletion of the distal segments of both the P. andersonii and T. tomentosa promoters identified regions important for the control of their tissue-specific and temporal activity in Lotus. Potential regulatory elements, which enhance nodule expression and suppress nonnodule expression, were also identified and localized to a distal promoter segment. A proximal AAGAG motif is present in the P. andersonii, T. tomentosa, and nonsymbiotic Casuarina hemoglobin genes. Mutation of this motif in the P. andersonii promoter resulted in a significant reduction in both the nodule and root expression levels in L. corniculatus. Some of the regulatory motifs characterized are similar to, but different from, the nodulin motifs of the leghemoglobins.
Prediction of Employee Turnover in Organizations using Machine Learning Algorithms A case for Extreme Gradient Boosting

Employee turnover has been identified as a key issue for organizations because of its adverse impact on work place productivity and long term growth strategies. To solve this problem, organizations use machine learning techniques to predict employee turnover. Accurate predictions enable organizations to take action for retention or succession planning of employees. However, the data for this modeling problem comes from HR Information Systems (HRIS); these are typically under-funded compared to the Information Systems of other domains in the organization which are directly related to its priorities. This leads to the prevalence of noise in the data that renders predictive models prone to over-fitting and hence inaccurate. This is the key challenge that is the focus of this paper, and one that has not been addressed historically. The novel contribution of this paper is to explore the application of Extreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost) technique which is more robust because of its regularization formulation. Data from the HRIS of a global retailer is used to compare XGBoost against six historically used supervised classifiers and demonstrate its significantly higher accuracy for predicting employee turnover. In this paper, the problem of employee turnover and the key machine learning algorithms that have been used to solve it are discussed. The novel contribution of this paper is to explore the application of extreme gradient boosting (XGBoost) as an improvement on these traditional algorithms, specifically in its ability to generalize on noise-ridden data which is prevalent in this domain. This is done by using data from the HRIS of a global retailer and treating the attrition problem as a classification task and modeling it using supervised techniques. The conclusion is reached by contrasting the superior accuracy of the XGBoost classifier against other techniques and explaining the reason for its superior performance. This paper is structured as follows. Section II gives a brief overview of the employee turnover problem, the importance of solving it, and the historical work done in terms of application of machine learning techniques to solve this problem. Section III explores the 7 different supervised techniques, including XGBoost, that this paper compares. Section IV outlines the experimental design in terms of the characteristics of the dataset, pre-processing, cross-validation, and the choice of metrics for accuracy comparison. Section V showcases the results of the study and its subsequent discussion. Section VI concludes the paper by recommending the XGBoost classifier for predicting turnover.
Proteomic analysis of the transition from quiescent to proliferating stages in rat liver hepatectomy model

The 70% (or 2/3) partial hepatectomy (PHx) rat liver model provides an effective medium for study of the transition and regulation of hepatocytes from quiescent to proliferating phase. Although the gene expression pattern has come under intense scrutiny, a differential proteomic study could help to reveal the mechanism of how the process is initiated and regulated. The proteomic changes were analyzed in two groups, 7 h after 70% PHx test group and sham‐operation control group, by two‐dimensional gel electrophoresis with 907 ± 33 and 910 ± 64 spots on gels, respectively. Twelve down‐regulated spots and twenty‐six up‐regulated spots were recognized using ImageMaster software and were identified by matrix‐assisted laser desorption/ionization‐mass spectrometry‐quadrupole time of flight mass spectrometry and/or tandem mass spectrometry reconfirmation. Some of the differential proteins were associated with stress defense, lipid metabolism, and macromolecular biosynthesis while the others were shown to be involved in regulating transcript factors associated with liver regeneration. A “proteomic model” for liver regeneration was suggested based on our data and related scientific literature to interpret the differential proteome pattern that reflected the transition of cells from quiescent to proliferating state, including but not limited to the rat liver after 70% PHx.
Structural and Functional Aspects of Salt Tolerance in Differently Adapted Ecotypes of Aeluropus lagopoides from Saline Desert Habitats

A study was conducted to investigate structural and functional modifications in three differently adapted ecotypes of Aeluropus lagopoides (Linn.) Trin. ex Thw. under saline conditions. Two ecotypes were collected from moderately saline Bailahwala Dahar (BD) and heavily salt-affected Ladam Sir (LS), respectively while one ecotype was selected from least saline Derawar Fort (DF), which was considered as a control. Vegetative shoots (ramets) of equal size were detatched from the mother plant and grown in hydroponic culture solution. Four treatments were maintained during the experiment, viz. 0 (contril), 100, 200 and 300 mM NaCl. Ecotype LS showed better growth in terms of morphological features like shoot length, root and shoot fresh and dry biomass, leaf area and number of tillers as well as physiological attributes like net assimilation rate, water use efficiency, turgor potential, root and shoot Ca 2+ and accumulation of free proline, than those in ecotypes BD and LS under saline conditions. The root aerenchyma was more prominent in ecotype LS than that in the other ecotypes. In addition, ecotype LS depicted large cortical cells, thick endodermis barrier, high sclerification and large phloem area, all being responsible for efficient conduction of salts and water under saline stress. Structural and functional modifications for salinity tolerance in all three ecotypes were very specific and can be related to their survival under harsh environmental conditions and degree of salt tolerance. Anatomical modifications were the true representatives of habitat ecology of A. lagapoides ecotypes. It is concluded that long-term exposure of A. lagopoides ecotypes to their specific habitats imposed changes in their genetic makeup, which ensure successful survival in their respective habitat. © 2017 Friends Science Publishers
Invariant NKT Cell Activation Induces Late Preterm Birth That Is Attenuated by Rosiglitazone

Preterm birth (PTB) is the leading cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality worldwide. Although intra-amniotic infection is a recognized cause of spontaneous preterm labor, the noninfection-related etiologies are poorly understood. In this article, we demonstrated that the expansion of activated CD1d-restricted invariant NKT (iNKT) cells in the third trimester by administration of α-galactosylceramide (α-GalCer) induced late PTB and neonatal mortality. In vivo imaging revealed that fetuses from mice that underwent α-GalCer–induced late PTB had bradycardia and died shortly after delivery. Yet, administration of α-GalCer in the second trimester did not cause pregnancy loss. Peroxisome proliferator–activated receptor (PPAR)γ activation, through rosiglitazone treatment, reduced the rate of α-GalCer–induced late PTB and improved neonatal survival. Administration of α-GalCer in the third trimester suppressed PPARγ activation, as shown by the downregulation of Fabp4 and Fatp4 in myometrial and decidual tissues, respectively; this suppression was rescued by rosiglitazone treatment. Administration of α-GalCer in the third trimester induced an increase in the activation of conventional CD4+ T cells in myometrial tissues and the infiltration of activated macrophages, neutrophils, and mature dendritic cells to myometrial and/or decidual tissues. All of these effects were blunted after rosiglitazone treatment. Administration of α-GalCer also upregulated the expression of inflammatory genes at the maternal–fetal interface and systemically, and rosiglitazone treatment partially attenuated these responses. Finally, an increased infiltration of activated iNKT-like cells in human decidual tissues is associated with noninfection-related preterm labor/birth. Collectively, these results demonstrate that iNKT cell activation in vivo leads to late PTB by initiating innate and adaptive immune responses and suggest that the PPARγ pathway has potential as a target for prevention of this syndrome.
Eradication of Helicobacter pylori Does Not Increase Acid Reflux in Patients with Mild to Moderate Reflux Oesophagitis

Background : A substantial minority of patients with gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GERD) are infected with Helicobacter pylori , but there is controversy as to whether these patients should be treated for their infection. We hypothesized that H. pylori eradication increases gastro-oesophageal acid reflux in such patients with time. Methods : Thirty-five consecutive H. pylori -infected patients (16 M and 19 F) with mild or moderate reflux oesophagitis were enrolled. Twenty-four-hour intra-oesophageal ( n = 35) and intragastric ( n = 12) pH-metry was recorded before and 15 months after H. pylori eradication. Gastric biopsy specimens from the antrum and corpus were obtained from 10 consecutive patients before and 15 months after H. pylori eradication. Results : Fifteen months after eradication of H. pylori there was a significant decrease in percentage time oesophageal pH <4 in the recumbent position only ( P = 0.04). Despite a marked reduction in the severity of gastritis, there was no significant change in gastric acidity, total intra-oesophageal acid exposure or symptom score. Heartburn improved in 12, worsened in 7, and remained unchanged in 16 patients ( P = 0.36) without any significant relationship to individual changes in acid exposure ( P = 0.60). Conclusions : H. pylori eradication does not increase gastric acidity or gastrooesophageal acid reflux in patients with mild to moderate reflux oesophagitis over the first 15 months.
Role Sensi Non of Growth Hormone in the tivity and Lipid Metabolism Insulin Dependent Diabetes Regulation in Patients Mellitus of wi Insulin th

plays a crucial role in the regulation of glucose metabolism in non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) and seems to be closely related to the development of diabetic complications such as sclerotic changes in arteries. On the other hand, insulin and insulin-antagonizing hormones including GH are known to regulate glucose metabolism and insulin sensitivity [1, 2]. We therefore attempted to investigate the effect of GH on insulin sensitivity in patients with NIDDM in order to clarify the role of GH in the regulation of insulin sensitivity.