Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Evidence that phosphorylation and dephosphorylation regulate the distribution of excitation energy between the two photosystems of photosynthesis in vivo: Photoacoustic and fluorimetric study of an intact leaf.

State 1-state 2 transitions in an intact tobacco leaf were monitored by the photoacoustic method. Modulated oxygen evolution yield and its enhancement by continuous far-red light ("Emerson enhancement") were used to characterize the balance of light distribution between the two photosystems. These measurements were additionally supported by fluorimetry. Adaptation of the leaf to far-red light (lambda [unk] 700 nm), mainly absorbed in photosystem I (light 1), results in state 1, where short-wavelength light (light 2) is distributed in favor of photosystem II. This is shown by a low yield of oxygen evolution, a high extent of Emerson enhancement, a concomitantly high extent of fluorescence quenching by far-red light, and a low ratio of the 77 K emission peaks at 730 and 695 nm. The magnitudes of these parameters were reversed when the leaf was adapted to light 2 (state 2), indicating a change towards a more equal distribution of the excitation between the two photosystems. Preincubation of an intact leaf with NaF, a specific phosphatase inhibitor, stimulated the extent of adaptation to light 2, shown by all the above criteria, and completely abolished adaptation to light 1. Light 1 preillumination prior to NaF treatment resulted initially in state 1, but then a transition to state 2 was irreversibly induced by any light. The NaF effect was specific because NaCl did not affect the state 1-state 2 transitions. Leaching out the NaF restored the original physiological transitions of the leaf. NaF presumably acts here in the same way as it acts in isolated thylakoids-by blocking the dephosphorylation of membranal proteins (particularly the chlorophyll a/b-protein complex) phosphorylated by a light 2-activated kinase. Our results give direct support to the suggestion [Allen, J. F. , Bennett, J., Steinback, K. E. & Arntzen, C. J. (1981) Nature (London) 291, 25-29] that it is the phosphorylation level of thylakoid proteins that controls the light distribution between the two photosystems in vivo, shown previously in isolated thylakoids.
Key Ingredients in the Search for Social Justice: A Case Study of Best Practices in a Calcutta School

This article examines the key ingredients in a Catholic inner-city school that have contributed to a paradigm shift in the school community. The school has relinquished a comfortable niche educating children of Calcutta’s elite in favor of the messy and risky business of engaging with the poor. It has asserted the right of every child to quality education, dared to cross social boundaries, and succeeded in integrating a widely disparate parent and child community. The article elaborates on a cluster of key ingredients which together constitute a pathway for transforming schools into those which practice social justice and provide quality education. It examines widely recognized change principles in action within a particular setting and relates that the achievement of equity and excellence are not mutually exclusive. It explores the distinctive values, ethos, teaching and learning strategies, leadership, staff and culture of the school that promote learning despite flouting conventional selection and social class norms, in order to distill the key ingredients which make for excellence and equity. This essay begins by setting the study in context, describes the research methodology briefly, and then provides an analysis of a model of best practice and a pathway to social transformation that the school has adopted.
Organisational antecedents of innovative firms: a focus on entrepreneurial orientation in South Africa

A longstanding literature has theorised corporate entrepreneurship as a multidimensional phenomenon, which incorporates the behaviour and interactions of the individual and organisational factors within organisations. However, adopting a firm level entrepreneurial orientation (EO) is difficult as organisational antecedents are a prerequisite for the type of environment that promotes or inhibits EO. This article is motivated by the dearth of empirical research on understanding EO in an African context. A model is tested in terms of the causal links between organisational antecedents, EO and firm performance. Survey data from South African corporates is collected to test the hypotheses using structural equation modelling. Study findings reveal that the antecedents of management support and rewards and reinforcement significantly influence EO, which in turn has a strong influence on firm performance. The study findings also have contextual relevance when considering the effectiveness of African organisations is severely limited.
Virologic Differences Do Not Fully Explain the Diversification of Swine Influenza Viruses in the United States

ABSTRACT Influenza A(H1N1) viruses entered the U.S. swine population following the 1918 pandemic and remained genetically stable for roughly 80 years. In 1998, there was an outbreak of influenza-like illness among swine that was caused by A(H3N2) viruses containing the triple reassortant internal gene (TRIG) cassette. Following the TRIG cassette emergence, numerous reassortant viruses were isolated in nature, suggesting that the TRIG virus had an enhanced ability to reassort compared to the classical swine virus. The present study was designed to quantify the relative reassortment capacities of classical and TRIG swine viruses. Reverse genetic viruses were generated from the classical H1N1 virus A/swine/MN/37866/1999 (MN/99), the TRIG virus A/swine/NC/18161/2002 (NC/02), and a seasonal human H3N2 virus, A/TX/6/1996 (TX/96), to measure in vitro reassortment and growth potentials. After coinfection with NC/02 or MN/99 plus TX/96, H1/H3 double-positive cells were identified. Delayed TX/96 infection was fully excluded by both swine viruses. We then analyzed reassortant H3 viruses. Seventy-seven of 81 (95.1%) TX/96-NC/02 reassortants contained at least one polymerase gene segment from NC/02, whereas only 34 of 61 (55.7%) MN/99-TX/96 reassortants contained at least one polymerase gene segment from MN/99. Additionally, 38 of 81 (46.9%) NC/02-TX/96 reassortants contained all NC/02 polymerase gene segments, while none of the MN/99-TX/96 reassortants contained all MN/99 polymerase genes. There were 21 H3 reassortants between MN/99 and TX/96, compared to only 17 H3 reassortants between NC/02 and TX/96. Overall, the results indicate that there are no distinct differences in the ability of the TRIG to reassort with a human virus compared to the classical swine virus. IMPORTANCE There appear to be no differences in the abilities of classical swine and TRIG swine viruses to exclude a second virus, suggesting that under the right circumstances both viruses have similar opportunities to reassort. The increased percentage of TRIG polymerase gene segments in reassortant H3 viruses indicates that these viruses may be more compatible with gene segments from other viruses; however, this needs to be investigated further. Nevertheless, the classical swine virus also showed the ability to reassort, suggesting that factors other than reassortment capacity alone are responsible for the different epidemiologies of TRIG and classical swine viruses. The post-TRIG diversity was likely driven by increased intensive farming practices rather than virologic properties. Our results indicate that host ecology can be a significant factor in viral evolution.
Altered Growth Characteristics of Recombinant Respiratory Syncytial Viruses Which Do Not Produce NS2 Protein

ABSTRACT The second gene in the 3′-to-5′ gene order in respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) encodes the nonstructural protein NS2, for which there is no assigned function. To study the function of NS2, we have used a recently developed reverse genetics system to ablate expression of NS2 in recombinant RSV. A full-length cDNA copy of the antigenome of RSV A2 strain under the control of a T7 promoter was modified by introduction of tandem termination codons within the NS2 open reading frame (NS2stop) or by deletion of the entire NS2 gene (ΔNS2). The NS2 knockout antigenomic cDNAs were cotransfected with plasmids encoding the N, P, L, and M2-1 proteins of RSV, each controlled by the T7 promoter, into cells infected with a vaccinia virus recombinant expressing T7 RNA polymerase. Recombinant NS2stop and ΔNS2 RSVs were recovered and characterized. Both types of NS2 knockout virus displayed pinpoint plaque morphology and grew more slowly than wild-type RSV. The expression of monocistronic mRNAs for the five genes examined (NS1, NS2, N, F, and L) was unchanged in cells infected with either type of NS2 knockout virus, except that no NS2 mRNA was detected with the ΔNS2 virus. Synthesis of readthrough mRNAs was affected only for the ΔNS2 virus, where the NS1-NS2, NS2-N, and NS1-NS2-N mRNAs were replaced with the predicted novel NS1-N mRNA. Upon passage, the NS2stop virus stock rapidly developed revertants which expressed NS2 protein and grew with similar plaque morphology and kinetics wild-type RSV. Sequence analysis confirmed that the termination codons had reverted to sense, albeit not the wild-type assignments, and provided evidence consistent with biased hypermutation. No revertants were recovered from recombinant ΔNS2 RSV. These results show that the NS2 protein is not essential for RSV replication, although its presence greatly improves virus growth in cell culture. The attenuated phenotype of these mutant viruses, coupled with the expected genetic stability associated with gene deletions, suggests that the ΔNS2 RSV is a candidate for vaccine development.
An Inquiry Into the Impact of Teacher Variances Within the Implementation of the Success for All Reading Program in Two School Districts.

Elementary school students walk single file to their respective classrooms where literacy should miraculously transpire. For literacy to occur, some schools adopt reading programs provided by their local district or state, while others utilize externally developed program designs. This multiple-case qualitative inquiry examined the externally developed program, Success for All, a program designed to benefit high poverty schools, founded by Robert Slavin and Nancy Madden as well as their cohorts at Johns Hopkins University. This research study examined the variances among seven teachers implementing the SFA reading program, “Reading Wings," in three schools in two school districts in Louisiana. It addressed the following questions: (a) To what extent do the teachers follow the “prescribed teaching methods" required by the Success for All reading program? (b) What are the attitudes and beliefs of the teachers toward the implementation of the Success for All reading program? (c) How do the teachers perceive themselves as reading teachers when utilizing the reading program? (d) What components of balanced reading instruction are implemented within the Success for All reading program? Several findings were forthcoming from the questions. First, none of the teachers followed the SFA requirements each day in the exact same manner; they deviated in use of time and activities. Second, many of the teachers considered the program to be a source of stress; they felt they never had enough time to complete either the paperwork or their regular duties.
The economic impact of state restrictions on abortion: parental consent and notification laws and Medicaid funding restrictions.

State-legislative support for liberalized abortion policies, the availability of abortion providers, and actual abortion rates vary widely across states. This article uses national data to examine the impact of the following three major, enforceable state abortion restrictions as of 1988 on the access to and use of abortion services: state restrictions on Medicaid financing of abortions for low-income women (36 states), state requirements for parental consent or parental notification for minors to obtain abortions (11 states), and state restrictions on insurance coverage of abortion for public employees (8 states). The impact of state abortion restrictions is becoming an increasingly important policy issue as the number and types of restrictions which can be enforced in the US increase rapidly. The Supreme Court in Webster v. Reproductive Health Services (1989) upheld a Missouri law banning abortions in public hospitals and the involvement of public employees in the performance of abortions; states via this ruling may also enforce mandatory testing for viability after a specified point in the pregnancy. The Supreme Court then in Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey (1992) effectively ruled that states can enforce a 24-hour waiting period and a state-prescribed talk on abortion for women seeking abortion. Analysis of the data found that there are significantly fewer hospitals, clinics, and private physicians' offices providing abortions in states with parental consent or notification laws. Moreover the rate of minors' abortions per 1000 teen pregnancies is 16% lower, and the rate of minors' abortions per 1000 women aged 15-19 is 25% lower in states with such laws compared to states without the laws. Data from abortion clinics and referral services in Massachusetts, Minnesota, and Rhode Island suggest that 20-55% of minors are going to court instead of informing their parents. 35% of minors who contacted a clinic in Massachusetts and 49% in Rhode Island went out of state for abortions. As for Medicaid restrictions, there are significantly fewer hospitals, clinics, and private physicians' offices providing abortions in states which restrict funding of abortions as compared to states which do not. State restrictions on insurance coverage of abortion for public employees do not appear to be associated with statistically significant differences in abortion rates or abortion availability.
Brain dynamic states analysis based on 3D convolutional neural network

Drowsiness driving is one major factor of traffic accident. Monitoring the changes of brain signals provides an effective and direct way for drowsiness detection. One 3D convolutional neural network (3D CNN)-based forecasting system has been proposed to monitor electroencephalography (EEG) signals and predict fatigue level during driving. The limited weight sharing and channel-wise convolution were both applied to extract the significant phenomenon in various frequency bands of brain signals and the spatial information of EEG channel location, respectively. The proposed 3D CNN with limited weight sharing and channel-wise convolution has been demonstrated to predict reaction time (RT) of driving with low root mean square error (RMSE) through the brain dynamics. This proposed approach outperforms with the state-of-the-art algorithms, such as traditional CNN, Neural Network (NN), and support vector regression (SVR). Compared with traditional CNN and Artificial Neural Network, the RMSE of 3D CNN-based RT prediction has been improved 9.5% (RMSE from 0.6322 to 0.5720) and 8% (RMSE from 0.6217 to 0.5720), respectively. We envision that this study might open a new branch between deep learning application in neuro-cognitive analysis and real world application.
Systematic Review: Vitamin D and Calcium Supplementation in Prevention of Cardiovascular Events

BACKGROUND Vitamin D and calcium may affect the cardiovascular system independently and interactively. PURPOSE To assess whether vitamin D and calcium supplements reduce the risk for cardiovascular events in adults. DATA SOURCES Studies published in English from 1966 to July 2009 in MEDLINE, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials. STUDY SELECTION Two investigators independently selected 17 prospective studies and randomized trials that examined vitamin D supplementation, calcium supplementation, or both and subsequent cardiovascular events. DATA EXTRACTION Three investigators extracted and checked data about study designs, participants, exposures or interventions, outcomes, and data quality. DATA SYNTHESIS Five prospective studies of patients receiving dialysis and 1 study involving a general population showed consistent reductions in cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality among adults who received vitamin D supplements. Four prospective studies of initially healthy persons found no differences in incidence of CVD between calcium supplement recipients and nonrecipients. Results of secondary analyses in 8 randomized trials showed a slight but statistically nonsignificant reduction in CVD risk (pooled relative risk, 0.90 [95% CI, 0.77 to 1.05]) with vitamin D supplementation at moderate to high doses (approximately 1000 IU/d) but not with calcium supplementation (pooled relative risk, 1.14 [CI, 0.92 to 1.41]), or a combination of vitamin D and calcium supplementation (pooled relative risk, 1.04 [CI, 0.92 to 1.18]) compared with placebo. LIMITATIONS Only articles published in English that reported cardiovascular event outcomes were included. The small number of studies, the lack of trials designed specifically to assess primary effects on cardiovascular outcomes, and important between-study heterogeneity preclude definitive conclusions. CONCLUSION Evidence from limited data suggests that vitamin D supplements at moderate to high doses may reduce CVD risk, whereas calcium supplements seem to have minimal cardiovascular effects. Further research is needed to elucidate the role of these supplements in CVD prevention. PRIMARY FUNDING SOURCE The American Heart Association and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.
SWI2/SNF2 chromatin remodeling ATPases overcome polycomb repression and control floral organ identity with the LEAFY and SEPALLATA3 transcription factors

Patterning of the floral organs is exquisitely controlled and executed by four classes of homeotic regulators. Among these, the class B and class C floral homeotic regulators are of central importance as they specify the male and female reproductive organs. Inappropriate induction of the class B gene APETALA3 (AP3) and the class C gene AGAMOUS (AG) causes reduced reproductive fitness and is prevented by polycomb repression. At the onset of flower patterning, polycomb repression needs to be overcome to allow induction of AP3 and AG and formation of the reproductive organs. We show that the SWI2/SNF2 chromatin-remodeling ATPases SPLAYED (SYD) and BRAHMA (BRM) are redundantly required for flower patterning and for the activation of AP3 and AG. The SWI2/SNF2 ATPases are recruited to the regulatory regions of AP3 and AG during flower development and physically interact with two direct transcriptional activators of class B and class C gene expression, LEAFY (LFY) and SEPALLATA3 (SEP3). SYD and LFY association with the AP3 and AG regulatory loci peaks at the same time during flower patterning, and SYD binding to these loci is compromised in lfy and lfy sep3 mutants. This suggests a mechanism for SWI2/SNF2 ATPase recruitment to these loci at the right stage and in the correct cells. SYD and BRM act as trithorax proteins, and the requirement for SYD and BRM in flower patterning can be overcome by partial loss of polycomb activity in curly leaf (clf) mutants, implicating the SWI2/SNF2 chromatin remodelers in reversal of polycomb repression.
Regulation of tryptophanyl-tRNA synthetase formation

A previously constructed trp-S-lacZ fusion encoding a hybrid protein with beta-galactosidase activity was subcloned from a multicopy plasmid onto a lambda vector. Single-copy lysogens of lambda trpS-lacZ were used to determine whether trpS was regulated in a manner similar to that of other aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases. trpS regulation was found to resemble that of the majority of synthetases, in that expression of the lysogen-encoded hybrid beta-galactosidase varied with growth rate; beta-galactosidase activity increased 2.5-fold as the generation time decreased from 150 to 37 min. This regulatory response was confirmed by DNA/RNA hybridization experiments, which also suggested that this form of metabolic regulation occurred at the transcriptional level. No alteration in the level of hybrid beta-galactosidase was observed, however, when cells were starved for tryptophan.
Antidepressant and antihemolytic activities of Vicia sojakii.

OBJECTIVES Many pharmacological activities have been reported in Vicia (V.) genus. The aim of present study was to investigate antidepressant and antihemolytic activities of aerial parts of V. sojakii. MATERIALS AND METHODS Antidepressant activity of methanolic extract was evaluated by forced swimming test (FST) and tail suspension tests (TST) in male Swiss albino mice. Antihemolytic effect of extract was also determined. RESULTS Extract showed good antidepressant activity in both FST and TST. It shortened remarkably the immobility period in FST and TST and exhibited a dose dependent activity. Extract in 125 mg kg(-1) showed significant activity as compared to control (p < 0.05) in both test. Extract at 1500 mg kg(-1) showed the same activity of imipramine 15 mg kg(-1) (p > 0.05) in FST. Extract show good antihemolytic activity against H2O2 induced hemolysis. CONCLUSIONS Our report indicated the V. sojakii aerial parts extract was safe and showed remarkable antidepressant activity in FST and TST in mice. It also exhibited good antihemolytic activity. These results introduced V. sojakii as an easily accessible source of natural antidepressant.
Effects of Pilates and trunk strengthening exercises on health-related quality of life in women with chronic low back pain.

BACKGROUND Pilates programs are widely used as a form of regular exercise in a broad range of populations investigating their effectiveness for chronic low back pain (CLBP) treatment. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to compare the effects of a Pilates program and a trunk strengthening exercise program on functional disability and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in women with nonspecific CLBP. METHODS A total of 101 volunteer women with CLBP provided data with a 3-month follow-up. They were randomized to either a Pilates (n= 37), trunk strengthening exercise (n= 36) or a control group (n= 28), exercising for a period of 8 weeks, three times a week. Data were collected on HRQOL using the Short-Form 36 Health Survey (SF-36v2), and functional disability using the Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire prior to program initiation, mid-intervention, immediately after program termination, and three months post-intervention. RESULTS The Pilates participants reported greater improvements on self-reported functional disability and HRQOL compared with participants in the trunk strengthening exercise and control groups (p < 0.05). The effects were retained for a period of three months after program termination for the Pilates group and to a lesser extent for the trunk strengthening exercise group. CONCLUSIONS An 8-week Pilates program improved HRQOL and reduced functional disability more than either a trunk strengthening exercise program or controls among women with CLBP.
Demo: Towards Flexible and Scalable Indoor Navigation

Bootstrapping efforts and scalability issues hinder large-scale deployment of indoor navigation systems. We present FollowUs, an easily-deployable (bootstrap-free) and scalable indoor navigation system. In addition to robust navigation through real-time trace-following, FollowUs integrates cloud services to process and combine traces at large scale. It can also leverage optional floor plans to further enhance navigation performance. We designed and implemented FollowUs, including a mobile app and cloud services on Azure, and validate its real-world usability.