Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Gender diversity, financial expertise and its effects on accounting quality

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyze whether gender diversity on board and financial expertise on audit committee affect accounting conservatism in banking sector. Additionally, the authors focus on the effects of board characteristics on bank earnings quality and examine their effects on earnings persistence. Design/methodology/approach The authors use a large sample of 159 banks from nine different countries from the period 2004-2010. The authors study whether the differences in the timeliness of earnings to bad news and earnings quality across governance structures of banks are driven by differences across investor protection and bank regulation levels in banks. Findings The findings confirm the monitoring role of both female and financial experts, noting a positive effect of them on accounting conservatism and earnings quality in banks. According to the institutional characteristics, the results suggest the complementary role of banking regulation and investor protection levels in these effects, noting that in contexts of higher regulatory and greater investor protection environments, gender diversity and financial expertise on boards have more influence on the conservatism and earnings quality of banks. Originality/value The authors contribute to both the accounting quality literature and the corporate governance literature by identifying board characteristics that are associated with higher conservatism and quality of earnings in banks around the world. In addition, this study also contributes to the ethics literature by highlighting the benefits of gender diversity and financial expertise in upholding the integrity of financial reporting. Moreover, this paper adds to prior literature about board of directors and accounting quality by identifying additional complementary factors – bank regulation and investor protection – and by focusing on a specific industry, the banking industry.
Infection with Leishmania amazonensis upregulates purinergic receptor expression and induces host‐cell susceptibility to UTP‐mediated apoptosis

Nucleotides are released into the extracellular milieu from infected cells and cells at inflammatory sites. The extracellular nucleotides bind to specific purinergic (P2) receptors and thereby induce a variety of cellular responses including anti‐parasitic effects. Here we investigated whether extracellular nucleotides affect leishmanial infection in macrophages, and found that UTP reduces strongly the parasite load in peritoneal macrophages. Ultrastructural analysis of infected cells revealed that UTP induced morphological damage in the intracellular parasites. Uridine nucleotides also induced dose‐dependent apoptosis of macrophages and production of ROI and RNI only in infected macrophages. The intracellular calcium measurements of infected cells showed that the response to UTP, but not UDP, increased the sensitivity and amplitude of cytosolic Ca2+ changes. Infection of macrophages with Leishmania upregulated the expression of P2Y2 and P2Y4 receptor mRNA. The data suggest indirectly that Leishmania amazonensis infection induces modulation and heteromerization of P2Y receptors on macrophages. Thus UTP modulates the host response against L. amazonensis infection. UTP and UTP homologues should therefore be considered as novel components of therapeutic strategies against cutaneous leishmaniasis.
Submillisecond kinetics and low efficacy of parallel fibre‐Golgi cell synaptic currents in the rat cerebellum

1 The whole‐cell configuration of the patch clamp technique was used to record from Golgi cells in thin slices of the rat cerebellum (P12‐P25). Their active membrane properties and the input that they receive from the parallel fibres were characterized. 2 Most cells were filled with biocytin and morphologically identified by the presence of a large axonal arbor restricted to the granular layer. The morphological parameters of eighteen of the best‐preserved cells were quantified. 3 A slow capacitive current transient, characteristic of the Golgi cell axon, was used to identify Golgi cells whenever their morphology could not be preserved. 4 Golgi cells fire action potentials spontaneously at 3 ± 1.7 Hz (n= 17). Their firing frequency increases linearly with the amplitude of depolarizing current pulses and displays marked adaptation. 5 When hyperpolarized Golgi cells display an anomalous rectification which is blocked by 2 mM CsCl, indicating the presence of an Ih‐like current. 6 Golgi cells receive a spontaneous excitatory input from parallel fibres. This input is composed of small amplitude, mostly monoquantal, EPSCs. Chemical stimulation of granule cells by locally applied kainate evokes tetrodotoxin (TTX)‐dependent events with similar properties. 7 The parallel fibre‐Golgi cell EPSCs have both AMPA and NMDA components. The NMDA component is blocked by 1 mM external magnesium at ‐60 mV and decays with time constants of 31 ± 9 ms and 170 ± 15 ms (at +61 mV in the presence of magnesium). 8 In the presence of 10 μM internal spermine, the AMPA component of the spontaneous EPSCs is markedly slowed (0.96 ± 0.25 ms to 1.86 ± 0.47 ms; n= 4) and reduced in amplitude (49 ± 7 %; n= 4) when depolarizing the cell from ‐70 mV to +61 mV. 9 The decay kinetics of individual AMPA EPSCs were found to be variable, in part because of dendritic filtering. A more detailed analysis reveals that the synaptic AMPA conductances are regulated during development and close faster at days P19‐P25 than at days P13‐P16. 10 These data suggest that the efficacy of the parallel fibre‐Golgi cell input is rather low. This places strong constraints on the conditions in which the inhibitory feedback exerted by the Golgi cell can be operational. 11 The possibility is considered that the Golgi cell‐granule cell circuit shows an oscillatory behaviour. This hypothesis is discussed in relation to the models of Albus and Marr.
Development of a Spiritually Based Educational Program to Increase Colorectal Cancer Screening Among African American Men and Women

This study describes the development of a spiritually based intervention to increase colorectal cancer screening through African American churches by framing the health message with spiritual themes and scripture. The intervention development phase consisted of ideas from an advisory panel and core content identified in focus groups. In the pilot-testing phase, prototypes of the intervention materials were tested for graphic appeal in additional focus groups, and content was tested for acceptability and comprehension in cognitive interviews. Participants preferred materials showing a variety of African Americans in real settings, bright color schemes, and an uplifting message emphasizing prevention and early detection. Spiritual themes such as stewardship over the body, being well to serve God, and using faith to overcome fear, were well received. The materials were then finalized for implementation and will be used by community health advisors to encourage screening.
Utilizing Wideband AMC Structures for High-Gain Inkjet-Printed Antennas on Lossy Paper Substrate

Significant gain and bandwidth improvement of inkjet-printed antennas with integrated artificial magnetic conductor (AMC) is achieved by utilizing wideband ground-backed frequency selective surfaces (FSSs) to overcome the high losses of organic substrates such as paper. A microstrip-fed monopole mounted on an artificial magnetic conductor is demonstrated to improve the gain by 5 dB over previous works and exhibit much wider impedance bandwidth while maintaining a thin antenna profile and a 20% electrical size reduction. The effect of AMC bandwidth on substrate losses and the gain reduction caused by finite AMC array effects are investigated in an effort to produce high-gain, miniaturized, low-cost wearable and structure mount antennas.
Study of Constellation Labeling for Iteratively Decoded Bit-Interleaved Space-Time Coded Modulation with Some Space-Time Schemes

In this paper, we consider the design of constellation labeling for iteratively decoded bit-interleaved space-time coded modulation (BI-STCM-ID) over fast Rayleigh-fading MIMO channels. Based on the largest asymptotic coding gain criterion, we show that, for some known space-time coding scheme, such as threaded algebraic space-time code (TAST), linear dispersion space-time code (LDC), orthogonal space-time block code (OSTBC), V-BLAST, etc., multidimensional constellation labeling design can be reduced to maximizing the power mean of the complete set of squared Euclidean distances associated with all "error-free feedback" events in the constellation.
Towards gene therapy in prosthesis loosening: efficient killing of interface cells by gene‐directed enzyme prodrug therapy with nitroreductase and the prodrug CB1954

Loosening is a major complication in prosthesis surgery. To stabilize loosened orthopedic implants, the interface tissue surrounding the implant must be removed. As an alternative to manual removal, we explored the possibility of removing the tissue by gene‐directed enzyme prodrug therapy. In the current study we investigated whether interface cells can be transduced by an HAdV‐5 vector carrying the E.coli‐derived nitroreductase gene and sensitized to the prodrug CB1954.
Life expectancy and human capital: long-run evidence from a panel of countries

ABSTRACT This article examines the long-run impact of life expectancy on human capital investment for a panel of 14 countries over the period 1870–2010. Using recently developed panel time series techniques, we find (i) that life expectancy at birth has a statistically significant long-run effect on schooling and (ii) that long-run causality is unidirectional from life expectancy to schooling.
Investigation of the Effect of Fading Correlation on Performance of MIMO Systems Using an RCS Channel Model

In this paper, the effect of receive and transmit antenna correlation on the performance (BER vs. SNR) of MIMO (multiple input multiple output) systems is determined by using an RCS (radar cross section) channel model. In this physical model, the scatterers existing in the propagation environment are modeled by their RCS so that the correlation of the receive signal complex amplitudes, i.e., both magnitude and phase, can be estimated. The proposed RCS channel model is then compared with classical models.
Fractionation of Verbal Memory Impairment in Schizophrenia and Schizophreniform Psychosis

Objectives: The characterization, aetiology, and course of verbal memory deficits in schizophrenia remain ill defined. The impact of antipsychotic medications is also unclear. The purpose of the present paper was to investigate verbal memory performance in established schizophrenia (SZ) and first-episode schizophreniform psychosis (FE). Method: Performances of 32 SZ and 33 FE patients were compared to those of 47 healthy volunteers on measures of verbal working memory, verbal associative learning and story recall. Results: Story recall deficits, but not deficits in working memory or paired associate learning, were demonstrated by both patient groups. Patients treated with typical neuroleptics had more impairment in associative learning with arbitrary word pairings than those treated with atypicals, regardless of patient group. Conclusions: The results are consistent with the notion that some neuropsychological impairment is present at the time of psychosis onset and that this impairment is non-progressive. However, deficits may be specific to subclasses of memory function.
A Fast and Robust Negative Mining Approach for Enrollment in Face Recognition Systems

Consider a face image data set from clients of a company and the problem of building a face recognition system from it. Video cameras can be used to acquire several images per client in order to maximize the robustness of the system. However, as the data set grows huge, the accuracy of the system might be seriously compromised since the number of negative samples for each user is increasing. We propose here a first solution for this problem, which (i) limits the number of negative samples in the training set for preserving responsiveness during user enrollment, (ii) selects the most informative negative samples with respect to each user for preserving accuracy, and (iii) builds a user-specific classification model. We combine a high-dimensional data representation from deep learning with a method that selects negative samples from a large mining set and builds, within interactive times, effective user-specific training set and classifier, using linear support vector machines. The method can also be used with other feature extractors. It has shown superior performance as compared to five baseline methods on three unconstrained data sets.
[Cerebral haematoma in the course of herpes simplex encephalitis].

INTRODUCTION Herpes simplex encephalitis (HSE) is the most common cause of infectious encephalitis at all ages. The usual presentation includes a high temperature, headache and confusion associated with convulsions and signs of a focal neurological deficiency. The typical findings shown by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) consist of hyperintense lesions, in T2 and FLAIR sequences, especially in the medial and inferior temporal lobe. AIMS. The aim of this paper is to report a case of HSE that associated a cerebral haematoma (CH) in its clinical course. CASE REPORT A 69 year old female patient who was admitted to hospital because of a syndrome of high temperature, confusion and urinary infection. Studies of the cerebrospinal fluid showed only a slight pleocytosis, and a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for the herpes simplex virus (HSV) was required. Initial MRI scanning showed an image that was compatible with cerebritis in the left parieto occipital lobe. A later RMI scan revealed a cerebral haematoma in the left parieto occipital lobe, together with new haemorrhagic foci in the bifrontal and in the right temporal lobes. The haematoma was drained surgically and empirical therapy was begun with acyclovir, and later a positive HSV PCR was received. The patient responded favourably to the therapy and was discharged from hospital. DISCUSSION A variety of atypical presentations in HSE have been reported. Our case presented scant pleocytosis, infrequent lesion topography and coursed with CH. Only a few cases of this last occurrence have been reported in the literature. CONCLUSION The presence of infrequent features, such as CH, within the framework of the clinical features of encephalopathy cannot exclude the possible existence of HSE.
Photovoltaic system modeling and simulation

This paper presents the modeling and simulation of a photovoltaic (PV) system. The equations governing the operation of the one-diode equivalent model are developed and the identification of the model parameters is performed through MATLAB script. The system studied encompasses a commercial PV panel, a dc-dc boost power converter, a battery and a dc load. The boost converter is controlled using voltage error PID compensator which has an input reference voltage computed by perturb-and-observe (P&O) maximum power point tracking (MPPT) technique. The system is simulated in MATLAB/Simulink environment for different irradiation levels and PV module temperature values. The control strategy is also validated in presence of rapidly varying irradiation conditions.
Uniaxial cell stretcher enables high resolution live cell imaging

Imaging adherent cells cultured on commercially available stretchable substrates presents challenges for high-magnification objectives. Namely, short working distances between the objective and focal plane, a moving focal plane due to Poisson's contraction with stretching, and issues of optical transparency or non-matching refractive indices. Beyond the advantages of visualizing biological structures in detail, we seek to implement specialized high-resolution fluorescence microscopy techniques such as Förster Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET) microscopy while stretching. Enabling FRET imaging of stretched cells provides a powerful tool for modern cell biology and mechanobiology [1]. FRET techniques require high magnification as well as a stable focal plane for imaging. Here, we address this requirement for stretchable substrates with a microfabricated cell strain device suitable for live cell imaging while allowing high-resolution FRET microscopy of cells. We adapt a uniaxial cell stretching concept previously demonstrated by Huh [2] for high magnification imaging by using thin bottom channels and membranes supported above an inverted oil immersion objective. This work presents a major advance for research in cell mechanobiology as it enables direct mechanical actuation combined with imaging of FRET probes engineered to report strained proteins in live cells.
The use of microRNAs to modulate redox and immune response to stroke.

SIGNIFICANCE Cerebral ischemia is a major cause of death and disability throughout the world, yet therapeutic options remain limited. The interplay between the cellular redox state and the immune response plays a critical role in determining the extent of neural cell injury after ischemia and reperfusion. Excessive amounts of reactive oxygen species (ROS) generated by mitochondria and other sources act both as triggers and effectors of inflammation. This review will focus on the interplay between these two mechanisms. RECENT ADVANCES MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are important post-transcriptional regulators that interact with multiple target messenger RNAs coordinately regulating target genes, including those involved in controlling mitochondrial function, redox state, and inflammatory pathways. This review will focus on the regulation of mitochondria, ROS, and inflammation by miRNAs in the chain of deleterious intra- and intercellular events that lead to brain cell death after cerebral ischemia. CRITICAL ISSUES Although pretreatment using miRNAs was effective in cerebral ischemia in rodents, testing treatment after the onset of ischemia is an essential next step in the development of acute stroke treatment. In addition, miRNA formulation and delivery into the CNS remain a challenge in the clinical translation of miRNA therapy. FUTURE DIRECTIONS Future research should focus on post-treatment and potential clinical use of miRNAs.
Working Paper No. 375 Inflation dynamics with labour market matching: assessing alternative specifications

This paper reviews recent approaches to modelling the labour market, and assesses their implications for inflation dynamics through both their effect on marginal cost and on price-setting behaviour. In a search and matching environment, we consider the following modelling set-ups: right-to-manage bargaining versus efficient bargaining, wage stickiness in new and existing matches, interactions at the firm level between price and wage-setting, alternative forms of hiring frictions, search on-the-job and endogenous job separation. We find that most specifications imply too little real rigidity relative to the data and, so, too volatile inflation. Models with wage stickiness and right-to-manage bargaining, or with firm-specific labour emerge as the most promising candidates.
Regulating the transcriptomes that mediate the conversion of fibroblasts to various nervous system neural cell types

Our understanding of the mechanism of cell fate transition during the direct reprogramming of fibroblasts into various central nervous system (CNS) neural cell types has been limited by the lack of a comprehensive analysis on generated cells, independently and in comparison with other CNS neural cell types. Here, we applied an integrative approach on 18 independent high throughput expression data sets to gain insight into the regulation of the transcriptome during the conversion of fibroblasts into induced neural stem cells, induced neurons (iNs), induced astrocytes, and induced oligodendrocyte progenitor cells (iOPCs). We found common down‐regulated genes to be mostly related to fibroblast‐specific functions, and suggest their potential as markers for screening of the silencing of the fibroblast‐specific program. For example, Tagln was significantly down‐regulated across all considered data sets. In addition, we identified specific profiles of up‐regulated genes for each CNS neural cell types, which could be potential markers for maturation and efficiency screenings. Furthermore, we identified the main TFs involved in the regulation of the gene expression program during direct reprogramming. For example, in the generation of iNs from fibroblasts, the Rest TF was the main regulator of this reprogramming. In summary, our computational approach for meta‐analyzing independent expression data sets provides significant details regarding the molecular mechanisms underlying the regulation of the gene expression program, and also suggests potentially useful candidate genes for screening down‐regulation of fibroblast gene expression profile, maturation, and efficiency, as well as candidate TFs for increasing the efficiency of the reprogramming process.
Regional Analysis of the Ependyma of the Third Ventricle of Rat by Light and Electron Microscopy

Ependymal lining of cerebral ventricles lies at the interface between the ventricular cavities and the brain parenchyma. Ependymal cells are involved in various functions within the brain and play a major role in the production of the chemical principals of the cerebrospinal fluid. Histological studies on the regional variation of the third ventricular ependyma and the subependyma of adult rats were carried out by light and electron microscopic methods. For light microscopic analysis, methacrylate sections were used. In addition to the routine haematoxylin and eosin (H and E) staining for histological studies, the sections were stained with toluidine blue, cresyl violet and periodic acid Schiff’s reagent (PAS). A regional analysis of the ependyma of the third ventricle showed that in most regions the ependyma was monolayered. The sidewalls and floor of the ventral portion of the third ventricle showed a multilayered ependyma. For descriptive purposes at the light microscopic level, the ependymal cells were classified, based on the cell shape (flat, cuboidal or columnar), presence or absence of cilia and the number of cytoplasmic granules present in the cells. Studies of transmission electron microscope have shown that these granules represent the cell organelles of the ependyma. The subependyma also showed a regional morphological variation, and, in most instances, contained glial and neuronal elements. In regions of specific brain nuclei, neurons were the major cell type of the subependyma. PAS staining did not show any positive granules in the ependymal cytosol. Characteristic supraependymal elements were present at the ependymal surface of the third ventricle.