Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Rhizobium leguminosarum hupE Encodes a Nickel Transporter Required for Hydrogenase Activity

ABSTRACT Synthesis of the hydrogen uptake (Hup) system in Rhizobium leguminosarum bv. viciae requires the function of an 18-gene cluster (hupSLCDEFGHIJK-hypABFCDEX). Among them, the hupE gene encodes a protein showing six transmembrane domains for which a potential role as a nickel permease has been proposed. In this paper, we further characterize the nickel transport capacity of HupE and that of the translated product of hupE2, a hydrogenase-unlinked gene identified in the R. leguminosarum genome. HupE2 is a potential membrane protein that shows 48% amino acid sequence identity with HupE. Expression of both genes in the Escherichia coli nikABCDE mutant strain HYD723 restored hydrogenase activity and nickel transport. However, nickel transport assays revealed that HupE and HupE2 displayed different levels of nickel uptake. Site-directed mutagenesis of histidine residues in HupE revealed two motifs (HX5DH and FHGX[AV]HGXE) that are required for HupE functionality. An R. leguminosarum double mutant, SPF22A (hupE hupE2), exhibited reduced levels of hydrogenase activity in free-living cells, and this phenotype was complemented by nickel supplementation. Low levels of symbiotic hydrogenase activity were also observed in SPF22A bacteroid cells from lentil (Lens culinaris L.) root nodules but not in pea (Pisum sativum L.) bacteroids. Moreover, heterologous expression of the R. leguminosarum hup system in bacteroid cells of Rhizobium tropici and Mesorhizobium loti displayed reduced levels of hydrogen uptake in the absence of hupE. These data support the role of R. leguminosarum HupE as a nickel permease required for hydrogen uptake under both free-living and symbiotic conditions.
Isoflurane improves long-term neurologic outcome versus fentanyl after traumatic brain injury in rats.

Despite routine use of fentanyl in patients after traumatic brain injury (TBI), it is unclear if it is the optimal sedative/analgesic agent. Isoflurane is commonly used in experimental TBI. We hypothesized that isoflurane would be neuroprotective versus fentanyl after TBI. Rats underwent controlled cortical impact (CCI) and received 4 h of N2O/O2 (2:1) and either fentanyl (10 microg/kg i.v. bolus, 50 microg/kg/h infusion) or isoflurane (1% by inhalation) with controlled ventilation. Shams underwent identical preparation, without CCI. Functional outcome (beam balance, beam walking, Morris water maze [MWM] tasks) was assessed over 20 days. Lesion volume and hippocampal neuron survival were quantified on day 21. Additional rats underwent identical CCI and anesthesia with intracranial pressure (ICP) monitoring, and brain water content was assessed. Motor and MWM performances were better in injured rats treated with isoflurane versus fentanyl (p < 0.05). CA1 hippocampal damage was attenuated in isoflurane-treated rats (p < 0.05). Fentanyl-treated rats had higher mean arterial blood pressure after injury (p < 0.05); however, ICP and brain water were similar between groups. Isoflurane improved functional outcome and attenuated damage to CA1 versus fentanyl in rats subjected to CCI. Isoflurane may be neuroprotective by augmenting cerebral blood flow and/or reducing excitotoxicity, not by reducing ICP or brain water content. Alternatively, fentanyl may be detrimental. Isoflurane may mask beneficial effects of novel agents tested in TBI models. Additionally, fentanyl may not be optimal early after TBI in humans.
Molecular cloning and characterization of a novel splicing variant of the Kir3.2 subunit predominantly expressed in mouse testis

1 One of the features of weaver mutant mice is male infertility, which suggests that Kir3.2, a G‐protein‐gated inwardly rectifying K+ channel subunit, may be involved in spermatogenesis. Therefore, we have characterized the Kir3.2 isoform in mouse testis using immunological, molecular biological and electrophysiological techniques. 2 Testicular membrane contained a protein that was recognized by the antibody specific to the C‐terminus of Kir3.2c (aG2C‐3). Its molecular mass was ≈45 kDa, which was smaller than that of Kir3.2c (≈48 kDa). The immunoprecipitant obtained from testis with aG2C‐3 contained a single band of the 45 kDa protein, which could not be detected by the antibody to the N‐terminus common to the known Kir3.2 isoforms (aG2N‐2). 3 A novel alternative splicing variant of Kir3.2, designated Kir3.2d, was isolated from a mouse testis cDNA library. The cDNA had an open reading frame encoding 407 amino acids, whose molecular mass was calculated to be ≈45 kDa. Kir3.2d was 18 amino acids shorter than Kir3.2c at its N‐terminal end, which was the only difference between the two clones. The 18 amino acid region possesses the epitope for aG2N‐2. 4 In heterologous expression systems of both Xenopus oocytes and mammalian cells (HEK 293T), Kir3.2d either alone or with Kir3.1 exhibited G‐protein‐gated inwardly rectifying K+ channel activity. 5 Prominent Kir3.2d immunoreactivity in the testis was detected exclusively in the acrosomal vesicles of spermatids, while Kir3.1 immunoreactivity was diffuse in the spermatogonia and spermatocytes. These results indicate the possibility that the testicular variant of Kir3.2, Kir3.2d, may assemble to form a homomultimeric G‐protein‐gated K+ channel and be involved in the development of the acrosome during spermiogenesis.
Student assessment: Moving over to programmatic assessment

149 Although considered very “hot” topic in medical education workshops, assessment remains one of the most misunderstood area of education. The most commonflaw is to relate assessment to measurement This canbe seen by the emphasis on objectivity, multiplicity of psychometric methods, data manipulation using various mathematical models and believing that it is possible to capture the working of human mind in a model Often, objectivity is also related to reliability, to the extent that less objective or subjective methods are totally discarded when designing assessment There is plenty of literature support to show that this is not so[1] ‐ rather, “considered subjectivity,” as Cassidy calls it,[2] is one of the strengths of assessment
SOURCES OF REGIONAL INCOME INEQUALITY: AN EXAMINATION OF SMALL REGIONS IN QUEENSLAND

In this study, data for the 125 Local Government Areas of Queensland are used to explain the crossâ€ sectional variation in the Gini coefficient of income inequality. This study updates earlier work for Australian regions that has used the 1981, 1986 and 1991 census data sets and incorporates a wider range of variables, allowing the testing of several competing hypotheses. The study commences with an analysis of the spatial pattern of income inequality in Queensland. Previous work in this area has not considered problems such as spatial autocorrelation, and although no evidence of this is found, the testing uncovers heteroscedasticity with the estimation techniques used in the final version of the model accounting for this problem.
Development of a Homogeneous High-Throughput Live-Cell G-Protein-Coupled Receptor Binding Assay

The measurement of ligand receptor binding parameters for G-protein-coupled receptors is indispensable in the drug discovery process. Traditional ligand receptor binding assays require scale-up of cells and membrane preparations, which is an expensive and time-consuming process. In this report, the authors describe the development of a homogeneous live-cell binding assay for GPCRs using a fluorophore-labeled nonpeptide ligand. The model assay used Cy3B-labeled telenzepine and Chinese hamster ovary cells expressing M1 muscarinic acetylcholine receptors. This homogeneous live-cell fluorescence binding assay format is superior to the traditional binding methods because it measures binding of a ligand to intact receptors on living cells. The assay requires no washing or separation steps, thereby allowing a real-time kinetic readout for the determination of ligand association and dissociation from the intact receptors. The results also suggest that miniaturization is feasible without compromising the data quality. ( Journal of Biomolecular Screening 2008:748-754)
Determinants of Government Expenditures: New Evidence from Disaggregative Data

In this paper we test a model of per capita spending for government services developed by Dao (1994) using data from a set of 105 countries. We are able to show that the income elasticity of the demand for public services depends on the type of devices and on how developed (economically or politically) a country is. We also find that population density explains variations in certain types of government expenditures among DCs, while the level of urbanization is a better empirical proxy for interdependencies which arise from the process of economic development. Per capita government spending for education and health is shown to vary positively with the relative price of public sector output (suggesting a price-inelastic demand for these two government services) and their provision is subject to scale economies in countries with large populations. Copyright 1995 by Blackwell Publishing Ltd
Quadratic boost converter with switched capacitor and coupled inductor for PV system applications

A quadratic boost converter topology based on a high conversion ratio dc/dc converter with an active zero-voltage switching (ZVS) snubber circuit is developed for PV system application. Combined with a reboost inductor, a coupled inductor and charge-pump circuits are proposed to achieve high voltage gain with quadratic function. A front inductor is proposed to reboost the voltage gain to make the output voltage higher. The converter operating principle of the proposed conversion scheme is described in the detailed converter analysis. Simulation and experimental results are used to verify and validate the performance of the quadratic boost converter with the fuzzy maximum power point tracking controller (MPPT) in the PV inverter system.
Risk Taking and Low Longer-Term Interest Rates: Evidence from the U.S. Syndicated Loan Market

We use supervisory data to investigate risk taking in the U.S. syndicated loan market at a time when longer-term interest rates are exceptionally low, and we study the ex-ante credit risk of loans acquired by different types of lenders, including banks and shadow banks. We find that insurance companies, pension funds, and, in particular, structured-finance vehicles take higher credit risk when investors expect interest rates to remain low. Banks originate riskier loans that they tend to divest shortly after origination, thus appearing to accommodate other lenders' investment choices. These results are consistent with a "search for yield" by certain types of shadow banks and, to the extent that Federal Reserve policies affected longer-term rates, the results are also consistent with the presence of a risk-taking channel of monetary policy. Finally, we find that longer-term interest rates have only a modest effect on loan spreads.
Arabic handwritten document preprocessing and recognition

Arabic handwritten documents present specific challenges due to the cursive nature of the writing and the presence of diacritical marks. Moreover, one of the largest labeled database of Arabic handwritten documents, the OpenHart-NIST database includes specific noise, namely guidelines, that has to be addressed. We propose several approaches to process these documents. First a guideline detection approach has been developed, based on K-means, that detects the documents that include guidelines. We then propose a series of preprocessing at text-line level to reduce the noise effects. For text-lines including guidelines, a guideline removal preprocessing is described and existing keystroke restoration approaches are assessed. In addition, we propose a preprocessing that combines noise removal and deskewing by removing line fragments from neighboring text lines, while searching for the principal orientation of the text-line. We provide recognition results, showing the significant improvement brought by the proposed processings.
Cardiac autonomic denervation in Parkinson's disease is linked to REM sleep behavior disorder

Recent studies have suggested a close connection between autonomic dysfunction and rapid eye movement sleep behavior disorder, which differs in nature from other early‐stage markers of Parkinson's disease. In this study we examined the relationship between rapid eye movement sleep behavior disorder and autonomic dysfunction in Parkinson's disease as measured by cardiac beat‐to‐beat variability.
Success factors in transition countries

The competitiveness of the transition countries depends on the ability of their companies to develop successful new products. Using 14 success factors proposed by Cooper and Kleinschmidt, their impact on the success of Slovenian new products was analysed, in order to obtain information needed to facilitate the development of new products in the transition countries. The comparison of the results obtained by Slovenian study with the results of other similar studies showed significant difference. It can be explained by the lack of the companies’ ability to innovate.
Contribution of Resident Endoneurial Macrophages to the Local Cellular Response in Experimental Autoimmune Neuritis

Macrophages are intimately involved in the pathogenesis of inflammatory neuropathies. The contribution of resident endoneurial macrophages is unknown since their differentiation from infiltrating macrophages is difficult due to missing cellular markers. Previous studies demonstrated the participation of resident macrophages in Wallerian degeneration and the pathogenesis of hereditary neuropathies. The question arises whether resident macrophages are involved in experimental autoimmune neuritis (EAN) where they could contribute to immunosurveillance and antigen presentation. To address this question we used bone marrow chimeric rats, allowing the differentiation between resident and hematogenous cells. Immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization were applied on to identify and characterize resident macrophages in terms of morphological features, expression of activation markers, proliferation, phagocytosis, and MHC-II expression. Endoneurial macrophages of resident origin were detectable at all stages of disease with a contribution of at least 27% of the total macrophages. They appeared activated by morphological and immunohistochemical criteria and proliferated early. MHC-II-positive resident macrophages were observed that had phagocytosed myelin. These results demonstrate that the macrophage response in EAN is partly of intrinsic origin. The rapid activation and proliferation of resident endoneurial macrophages points toward an active role of these cells in inflammatory peripheral nerve disease, especially early in disease.
Optimization of multiagent systems with increasing state dimensions: Hybrid LQ approach

In this paper, we study a specific optimal control problem associated with a multiagent dynamic system. The interest is placed on minimization of the tracking error in the multiagent leader-follower model. We replace this problem by a specific hybrid optimal control problem. In particular, we consider control systems with monotonically increasing dimensions of the state vector. The change of the state dimension has the character of a jump and is modeled by an impulsive hybrid system. The paper proposes an effective computational procedure for the above optimal tracking control problem in a multiagent setting. The theoretical and numerical approaches obtained in this contribution are tested on a practically motivated example.
Gene therapy for neuropathic pain induced by spared nerve injury with naked plasmid encoding hepatocyte growth factor

Neuropathic pain (NP) is a refractory disease in the clinic with a tremendous impact on the quality of life of patients. Gene therapy is a potential strategy for the management of NP. In the present study, we examined the analgesic effect and mechanism of hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) in vitro and in vivo.
Truncation and Endogenous Stratification in Various Count Data Models for Recreation Demand Analysis

This paper extends the truncated and endogenously stratified Poisson and negative binomial models to three alternative discrete distributions, namely the generalized Poisson, geometric, and Borel distributions. Our primary intention here is to demonstrate how improper treatment of the data generates divergent outcomes by applying those distributions to recreation trip data gathered from surveys of visitors to an indigenous horse park in Japan. Our empirical application shows that failure to account for overdispersion, truncation, and endogenous stratification leads to substantial changes in parameter estimates and their standard errors. The parameter on the travel cost tends to be underestimated in absolute value in the standard setups. This results in serious overestimation of the economic benefit that the recreation site offers to society. Even when the endogenous stratification is incorporated, ignoring overdispersion causes the per capita per trip consumer's surplus to be over seven times larger than that obtained when endogenous stratification and overdispersion are considered.
Political Business in East Asia

Preface Acknowledgements List of Tables List of Figures List of Contributors Introduction: Political Business in East Asia Edmund Terence Gomez 1. Development and Corruption: The East Asian Paradox Andrew Wedeman 2. Political Business Alliances: The Role of the State and Foreign and Domestic Capital in Economic Development Johannes Dragsbaek Schmidt 3. Political Business in Malaysia: Party Factionalism, Corporate Development and Economic Crisis Edmund Terence Gomez 4. KMT, Inc: Liberalization, Democratization and the Future of Politics in Business Karl Fields 5. State Predation and Rapid Growth: Politicization of Business in China Andrew Wedeman 6. The Political Business of Development in South Korea Peter Ward 7. Politics, Business and Democratization in Indonesia Stefan Eklof 8. Democratization and Economic Crisis in Thailand: Political Business and the Changing Dynamic of the State Tom Wingfield 9. State, Politics and Business in Singapore Stephen Haggard and Linda Low 10. Politics, Business and the Inescapable web of Structural Corruption in Japan James Babb
NON-TARIFF BARRIERS IN EAC CUSTOMS UNION: IMPLICATIONS FOR TRADE BETWEEN UGANDA AND OTHER EAC COUNTRIES

A key objective for the adoption of East African Community (EAC) Customs Union was to enhance economic gains through elimination of tariffs and non-tariff barriers (NTBs) within the member states. This study has established that several NTBs continue to exist, and some have persisted. The NTBs that have persisted for more than three years include a long list of customs documentation requirements, cumbersome formalities, and limited testing and certification arrangements. Other NTBs that still exist include: un-standardized weighbridges; several road blocks; lack of recognition of individual country’s standards; and the existence of several un-harmonised standards. The simulation results of spatial equilibrium model of maize trade with and without NTBs show that at the EAC level there are positive production, trade and welfare implications attributable to elimination of NTBs in intra-regional maize trade. The gains are greatest in trade and production in Uganda compared to Kenya and Tanzania. To eliminate the existing NTBs and to reduce the possibility of new ones being created, first and foremost, the EAC countries need to design effective mechanisms for identifying and verifying information about NTBs and ensuring their elimination. This will require giving the EAC Secretariat the mandate to compel individual countries to eliminate any identified NTB and to ensure that no new ones are created. Second, policy and legislative decisions made by, for example, Council of Ministers should be communicated in time for effective implementation.
Institutional design matters: institutional causes of the Brazilian wine industry’s poor performance

Triple Helix theory prescribes coordinated actions among government, research institutions and industry to achieve growth. However, the Brazilian wine industry case shows that simply having the institutions is not enough – the institutional framework matters. This paper shows three problems in the Brazilian institutional design that hamper wine quality improvements and impede the development of an effective, fully-fledged Triple Helix model in the Brazilian wine industry. They are: overlapping jurisdictions between the federal and state governments; dissociation between the policy-making locus and the industry; and over-institutionalization. The latter cause is not well developed in the Triple Helix literature as yet. These three factors create coordination problems that appear to be almost insoluble in the present state, and underscore the need for designing institutions carefully before this impasse is reached.
Ultrasonic sensing system for detecting water adulteration in milk

This paper presents an embedded system design and tests carried out in order to measure the adulteration of water in milk. The practice of adulteration is being carried out since a long time and now because of the sophistication of the methods it has become increasingly difficult to differentiate the adulterated milk from the unadulterated one. Adulteration also has serious health effects which if ignored can lead to irreparable damage of health. Many contact based methods are already in use but that leads to wastage of milk since sample cannot be reused again. Non-contact methods suffer from poor accuracy. In this paper we have used two parameters, the attenuation co-efficient and time of flight to analyze the fat content and the amount of water adulteration present in raw milk samples obtained from different dairies and skimmed milk samples with different fat content from popular Indian brands. A keypad and LCD have also been interfaced with an 8-bit ATmega microcontroller along with the sensor. The keypad and LCD provide the necessary user interface for the system. The system shows an accuracy of about 95% with a deviation of 1% either side. The misclassification accuracy obtained in the system is 2 times more than traditional methods like spectroscopy which is widely in use.
INTERTEMPORAL DETERMINATION OF THE MARKET PRICE OF RISK

THE SINGLE-PERIOD capital asset pricing model (hereafter CAPM), was advanced to explain the return differential on a risky asset. This model has received much theoretical and empirical attention in recent years. The original model demonstrates that the equilibrium return differential on a risky asset is determined by two factors: the market price of (unit) risk (MPR) which is a factor common to all risky assets; and the risk factor which is unique to each asset; that is
Consumer Rationality and Credit Cards

Borrowing on credit cards at high interest rates might appear irrational. However, even low transactions costs can make credit cards attractive relative to bank loans. Credit cards also provide liquidity services by allowing consumers to avoid some of the opportunity costs of holding money. The effect of alternative interest rates on the demand for card debits can explain why credit card interest rates only partially reflect changes in the cost of funds. Credit card interest rates that are inflexible relative to the cost of funds are not inconsistent with a competitive equilibrium that yields zero profits for the marginal entrant.