Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Antisecretory Drugs for Diarrheal Disease

Acute diarrhea is a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Infants and pre-school children are the most vulnerable in whom there are 2–3 million deaths each year as a result of the associated dehydration and acidosis. Although oral rehydration therapy has reduced mortality during the past 30 years ago, the search for agents that will directly inhibit intestinal secretory mechanisms and thereby reduce faecal losses in patients with high-volume watery diarrhea has continued for more than 20 years. A variety of potential targets for antisecretory agents have been explored which include loci within the enterocyte (the chloride channel, calcium-calmodulin) and other sites such as enteric nerves and endogenous mediators (such as 5-HT, prostaglandins). Although the potential of calcium-calmodulin inhibition has as yet not been realised, preliminary studies suggest that there are chloride channel blockers under development that will find a place in the management of secretory diarrheas. Recent work has highlighted the importance of neurohumoral mechanisms in the pathogenesis of acute diarrhea. Potentiation of the effects of endogenous enkephalin activity by enkephalinase inhibition has already produced a safe, effective anti-secretory drug, racecadotril. Speculative early work indicates that there may be a role for antagonists of 5-HT, substance P, and VIP receptors. There now seems to be a real possibility that antisecretory therapy will become more widely available in the future.
Depression Screening in Primary Care: Why the Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health Care Did the Right Thing

Objective: To review the recent recommendation against routinely screening adults for depression in primary care settings by the Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health Care (CTFPHC). Methods: We reviewed the CTFPHC recommendation and discussed it in the context of relevant evidence. Results: Depression screening, which involves using depression symptom questionnaires to attempt to identify patients who have unrecognized depression, was previously recommended by the CTFPHC in primary care settings with staff-assisted depression care programs in place to ensure accurate diagnosis, effective treatment, and follow-up, but not in the absence of such programs. The CTFPHC recently updated this guideline and recommended against routinely screening adults for depression in primary care because there have not been any randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that have shown depression screening to be beneficial and because of a concern about the potentially high number of false-positive screens that would occur. Without evidence from RCTs of better health outcomes from screening, there are numerous factors that suggest that depression screening, even with collaborative depression care, may not be beneficial for patients, including the high rate of patients already treated, uncertainty about the ability of depression screening tools to accurately identify previously unrecognized patients, and relatively small treatment effects among patients with less severe depression who would be most likely to be identified through screening. Routine screening would expose some patients to avoidable risks and would pose a significant cost burden. Conclusion: The CTFPHC recommendation to not screen for depression in primary care is consistent with available evidence. Clinicians in primary care settings should be alert to signs of depression and attend to symptoms through assessment and, as appropriate, referral or management, as recommended by the CTFPHC.
Power Dissipation Analysis of CMOS VLSI Circuits by means of Switch-Level Simulation

A method has been defined to analyze the power dissipation of CMOS VLSI circuits by means of switch-level simulation. Random vectors are used as stimuli to the circuit to ensure vector-independentness. The method has been implemented using an existing mixed-level simulator. Results are described for a range of circuits, including a 20,000 transistor one.
Proteomic analysis of bronchoalveolar lavage fluid samples obtained from West Highland White Terriers with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, dogs with chronic bronchitis, and healthy dogs.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate protein expression in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) obtained from West Highland White Terriers with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), dogs with chronic bronchitis, and healthy control dogs to identify potential biomarkers for IPF. SAMPLES BALF samples obtained from 6 West Highland White Terriers with histologically confirmed IPF, 5 dogs with chronic bronchitis, and 4 healthy Beagles. PROCEDURES Equal amounts of proteins in concentrated BALF samples were separated via 2-D differential gel electrophoresis. Proteins that were differentially expressed relative to results for healthy control dogs were identified with mass spectrometry and further verified via western blotting. RESULTS Expression of 6 proteins was upregulated and that of 1 protein was downregulated in dogs with IPF or chronic bronchitis, compared with results for healthy dogs. Expression of proteins β-actin, complement C3, α-1-antitrypsin, apolipoprotein A-1, haptoglobin, and transketolase was upregulated, whereas expression of lysozyme C was downregulated. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE Proteomics can be used to search for biomarkers and to reveal disease-specific mechanisms. The quantitative comparison of proteomes for BALF obtained from dogs with IPF and chronic bronchitis and healthy dogs revealed similar changes for the dogs with IPF and chronic bronchitis, which suggested a common response to disease processes in otherwise different lung diseases. Specific biomarkers for IPF were not identified.
The strategic practices of middle managers in public services : a case of institutional work upwards and outwards

Middle managers play a crucial role in contributing to strategy. Much existing research focuses on trying to understand the desired characteristics and competencies of these managers, in order to explain their ability to sell issues to top executives (upwards) and external stakeholders (outwards). Though this yields valuable insights, it does not account for the role of an institution as: 'more or less taken for granted behaviour that is underpinned by normative systems and cognitive understanding that give meaning to social exchange and thus enable self-reproducing social order' (Greenwood, Oliver, Sahlin and Suddaby; 2008:4). This thesis examines how middle managers sell issues upwards and outwards, in a setting where attending to institutions is central: public service reform, concerning home improvement. It does so by looking through the lens of institutional work. This allows insight into how different jurisdictions and organizational and professional boundaries overlap and at times conflict. In analysing interviews and observations, the thesis mobilizes a central concept in institutional work: the concept of institutional pillars, to explain differential levels of success in implementing reform. These pillars can be regulatory (to do with policies and conventions), cultural ('the way we do things around here'), or normative (concerning basic values). In broad terms the thesis demonstrates that reform in this setting is progressively less likely to be implemented as one moves from the regulatory domain, to the cultural and normative domains. This complements accounts of middle manager competence, with a more fine-grained insight into how contextual complexities can prefigure the likelihood of successful strategy implementation.
Disruption of Type IV Intermediate Filament Network in Mice Lacking the Neurofilament Medium and Heavy Subunits

Abstract : To clarify the role of the neurofilament (NF) medium (NF‐M) and heavy (NF‐H) subunits, we generated mice with targeted disruption of both NF‐M and NF‐H genes. The absence of the NF‐M subunit resulted in a two‐ to threefold reduction in the caliber of large myelinated axons, whereas the lack of NF‐H subunits had little effect on the radial growth of motor axons. In NF‐M‐/‐ mice, the velocity of axonal transport of NF light (NF‐L) and NF‐H proteins was increased by about twofold, whereas the steady‐state levels of assembled NF‐L were reduced. Although the NF‐M or NF‐H subunits are each dispensable for the formation of intermediate filaments, the absence of both subunits in double NF‐M ; NF‐H knockout mice led to a scarcity of intermediate filament structures in axons and to a marked approximately twofold increase in the number of microtubules. Protein analysis indicated that the levels of NF‐L and α‐internexin proteins were reduced dramatically throughout the nervous system. Immunohistochemistry of spinal cord from the NF‐M‐/‐ ; NF‐H‐/‐ mice revealed enhanced NF‐L staining in the perikaryon of motor neurons but a weak NF‐L staining in axons. In addition, axonal transport studies carried out by the injection of [35S]methionine into spinal cord revealed after 30 days very low levels of newly synthesized NF‐L proteins in the sciatic nerve of NF‐M‐/‐ ; NF‐H‐/‐ mice. The combined results demonstrate a requirement of the high‐molecular‐weight subunits for the assembly of type IV intermediate filament proteins and for the efficient translocation of NF‐L proteins into the axonal compartment.
How the Crude Oil Market Affects the Natural Gas Market? Demand and Supply Shocks

In this paper, the global structural relationship between the prices of crude oil and natural gas is investigated using the recently introduced decomposition of the real price of crude oil by Kilian (2009). A four-variable structural vector autoregressive model (SVAR) for oil and natural gas markets is developed for this investigation. We find some evidence that the crude oil market affects the natural gas market through a combination of demand shocks rather than through oil supply shocks. The uncertainty about future oil supply causes precautionary demand in the oil market, which shifts to the natural gas market and increases the natural gas price as the primary substitute for oil. Meanwhile, global demand shocks influence both crude oil and natural gas prices, which leads to similar fluctuations in the prices of oil and natural gas. Consequently, demand shocks link oil and natural gas markets and produce similar changes in their prices
Toward portable breath acetone analysis for diabetes detection

Diabetes is a lifelong condition that may cause death and seriously affects the quality of life of a rapidly growing number of individuals. Acetone is a selective breath marker for diabetes that may contribute to the monitoring of related metabolic disorder and thus simplify the management of this illness. Here, the overall performance of Si-doped WO3 nanoparticles, made by flame spray pyrolysis, as portable acetone detectors is critically reviewed focusing on the requirements for medical diagnostics. The effect of flow rate, chamber volume and acetone dissociation within the measuring chamber is discussed with respect to the calibration of the sensor response. The challenges for the fabrication of portable breath acetone sensors based on chemo-resistive detectors are underlined indicating possible solutions and novel research directions.
Immunosuppressive effects of mesenchymal stem cell transplantation in rat burn models.

OBJECTIVE This study is to investigate the effects of mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) transplantation in burn treatment. METHODS Wharton's Jelly was stripped from neonatal umbilical cord, and human umbilical cord MSCs were then cultured. Burn models were constructed in male SD rats weighted at 200±5 g, and the rats were randomly divided into control and MSCs transplantation groups. The rats in transplantation group were injected subcutaneously with MSCs (2×10(6)) at 24 h after burning. Blood samples were collected at 0 d, 1 d, 2 d, 3 d, 5 d and 7 d after burning and the contents of white blood cells (WBC), C-reactive protein (CRP), interferon-γ (IFN-γ), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and interleukin-10 (IL-10 ) were detected. The wound healing rate at 7 d, 14 d, 21 d and 28 d together with the wound healing time were compared and analyzed statistically by analysis of variance (ANOVA). RESULTS WBC and CRP in control group increased significantly at 1 d and 2 d, 2 d and 3 d, respectively. IFN-γ, IL-6 and IL-10 levels in serum showed increasing till 5th day and TNF-α arrived its peak value at 7th day. By contrast, WBC, CRP, TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-10 in the MSCs transplantation group showed slight increase after burning and the differences were verified by statistically analysis. IFN-γ showed no significant difference between the two groups. MSCs transplantation group showed significantly higher wound healing rate at 14 d, 21 d, 28 d and showed shorter wound healing time than control. CONCLUSIONS MSCs transplantation could suppress secondary inflammatory reaction by lowering inflammatory cytokines after burning, thus promoting wound healing and scald repair in burn animal model.
DAMPAK ASIMETRIS TERHADAP OUTPUT DALAM SEBUAH SERIKAT MONETER DENGAN PENDEKATAN META-ANALYSIS

The regional impact of the monetary policy has been a crucial issue especially on its distributional impact. Using Meta-Analysis, this paper run a quantitative survey on previous studies to explain the asymmetric impact of national policy on economic growth across region. Based on selected criteria we have similar researches on sample data; mainly they used VAR method. Our model estimation shows the significant and importance of capital intensity degree, the financial depth and several macroeconomic indicators in explaining the different result across region and period of these studies. In general our finding confirms the robustness of their result.
The Two-State Implicit Filter Recursive Estimation for Mobile Robots

This letter deals with recursive filtering for dynamic systems where an explicit process model is not easily devisable. Most Bayesian filters assume the availability of such an explicit process model, and thus may require additional assumptions or fail to properly leverage all available information. In contrast, we propose a filter that employs a purely residual-based modeling of the available information and thus achieves higher modeling flexibility. While this letter is related to the descriptor Kalman filter, it also represents a step toward batch optimization and allows the integration of further techniques, such as robust weighting for outlier rejection. We derive recursive filter equations that exhibit similar computational complexity when compared to their Kalman filter counterpart—the extended information filter. The applicability of the proposed approach is experimentally confirmed on two different real mobile robotic state estimation problems.
Nuclear actin polymerization from faster growing ends in the initial activation of Hox gene transcription

The HoxB cluster expression is activated by retinoic acid and transcribed in a collinear manner. The DNA-binding Pknox1-Pbx1 complex modulates Hox protein activity. Here, NT2-D1 teratocarcinoma cells, a model of Hox gene expression, were used to show that upon retinoic acid induction, Pknox1 co-localizes with polymeric nuclear actin. We have found that globular actin aggregates, polymeric actin, the elongating RNA polymerase II, and THOC match euchromatic regions corresponding to nuclear speckles. Moreover, RNA polymerase II, N-WASP, and transcription/splicing factors p54nrb and PSF were validated as Pknox1 interactors by tandem affinity purification. PSF pulled down with THOC and nuclear actin, both of which co-localize in nuclear speckles. Although latrunculin A slightly decreases the general level of HoxB gene expression, inhibition of nuclear actin polymerization by cytochalasin D blocks the expression of HoxB transcripts in a collinear manner. Thus, our results support the hypothesis that nuclear actin polymerization is involved in the activation of HoxB gene expression by means of nuclear speckles.
KITECH-Hand: A Highly Dexterous and Modularized Robotic Hand

This paper presents an anthropomorphic robotic hand named “KITECH-Hand,” along with its kinematic analysis and detailed mechanical features. From a kinematic perspective, the authors particularly focus on the structure of the metacarpophalangeal (MCP) joints of the fingers. The KITECH-Hand adopts a new “roll–pitch”-type MCP structure to replace conventional “yaw–pitch” structures. The proposed structure provides benefits such as enhanced kinematic performance and ease of the mechanical design. Through the kinematic analysis, it is shown that the KITECH-Hand shows remarkably high dexterity, well surpassing that of existing robotic hands with conventional MCP joints. The unique MCP structure also helps modularize the robot at the joint level, which simplifies its mechanical structure and enables the production cost to be reduced. The performance of the KITECH-Hand, including its dexterity feature, was experimentally verified through a series of experiments, which included object in-hand manipulation and a Cutkosky taxonomy test.
The Difference a Job Makes: The Effects of Employment among People with Disabilities

How does employment affect the lives of people with disabilities? While employment can have a variety of benefits for all individuals, it may play an especially positive role for members of minority groups who have been socially marginalized and often denied access to jobs. People with disabilities have especially low employment rates, partly reflecting a history of social exclusion and discrimination (US Commission on Civil Rights 1983; Yuker 1988). In the past two decades there have been significant efforts to improve employment opportunities for people with disabilities, shown most clearly by the growth of the disability rights movement and the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in 1990. Employment of people with disabilities has been promoted not only for its economic benefits but also because it can improve their skill levels and integrate them more fully into mainstream society. Using the Survey of Income and Program Participation and two recent national household surveys, this paper provides new evidence on the effects of employment for people with and without disabilities. Comparisons are made not only on economic measures but also on a variety of social, psychological, and political measures in order to gain a more complete picture of the particular value that employment can have for people with disabilities and of the importance of policies to increase their job opportunities.
Municipalities and Facebook Use: Which Key Drivers? Empirical Evidence from Italian Municipalities

ABSTRACT New information and communication technologies are changing the relationship between municipalities and citizens. Municipalities are using Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube as social media to connect and interact directly with citizens. The aim of this study is to explore how municipalities use Facebook, construct a synthetic indicator to measure the use of Facebook by local government, and find out which drivers predict its diffusion through a quantitative methodology: ordinary least squares regression. A sample of Italian municipalities during 2013 is analyzed. The results suggest that the political position, the gender of the Mayor, the geographical position, the financial autonomy of municipalities, and the citizens’ wealth seem to predict the diffusion of Facebook use by municipalities.
Long-term attention problems in children with traumatic brain injury.

OBJECTIVE To examine long-term attention problems and their cognitive correlates after childhood traumatic brain injury (TBI). METHOD Data were drawn from a prospective, longitudinal study conducted between 1992 and 2002. Participants included 41 children with severe TBI, 41 with moderate TBI, and 50 with orthopedic injury (OI), who were all between 6 and 12 years of age at the time of injury. Parent ratings of attention problems were obtained at a long-term follow-up on average 4 years post-injury and compared with ratings of premorbid attention problems obtained shortly after injury. At the long-term follow-up, children also completed several cognitive tests of attention and executive functions. RESULTS Hierarchical linear and logistic regression analyses indicated that the severe TBI group displayed significantly more attention problems than the OI group at 4 years post-injury, both behaviorally and cognitively, after controlling for race, socioeconomic status, and premorbid attention problems. At long-term follow-up, 46% of the severe TBI group displayed significant attention problems on the Child Behavior Checklist, as opposed to 26% of the OI group (odds ratio=3.38; 95% confidence interval, 1.15-9.94). On the Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Rating Scale, 20% of the severe TBI group displayed clinically significant attention problems compared with 4% in the OI group (odds ratio=9.59; 95% confidence interval, 1.24-73.99). However, group differences in behavioral symptoms were significantly larger for children with more premorbid symptoms than for children with fewer premorbid problems. Measures of executive functions were significantly related to behavioral attention problems, after controlling for group membership, race, and socioeconomic status. CONCLUSIONS Childhood TBI exacerbates premorbid attention problems. Long-term behavioral symptoms of attention problems are related to the cognitive deficits in attention and executive functions that often occur in association with childhood TBI.
POLD1 Germline Mutations in Patients Initially Diagnosed with Werner Syndrome

Segmental progeroid syndromes are rare, heterogeneous disorders characterized by signs of premature aging affecting more than one tissue or organ. A prototypic example is the Werner syndrome (WS), caused by biallelic germline mutations in the Werner helicase gene (WRN). While heterozygous lamin A/C (LMNA) mutations are found in a few nonclassical cases of WS, another 10%–15% of patients initially diagnosed with WS do not have mutations in WRN or LMNA. Germline POLD1 mutations were recently reported in five patients with another segmental progeroid disorder: mandibular hypoplasia, deafness, progeroid features syndrome. Here, we describe eight additional patients with heterozygous POLD1 mutations, thereby substantially expanding the characterization of this new example of segmental progeroid disorders. First, we identified POLD1 mutations in patients initially diagnosed with WS. Second, we describe POLD1 mutation carriers without clinically relevant hearing impairment or mandibular underdevelopment, both previously thought to represent obligate diagnostic features. These patients also exhibit a lower incidence of metabolic abnormalities and joint contractures. Third, we document postnatal short stature and premature greying/loss of hair in POLD1 mutation carriers. We conclude that POLD1 germline mutations can result in a variably expressed and probably underdiagnosed segmental progeroid syndrome.
Efficiency of Australian technical and further education providers

Budgetary constraints on the public purse have led Australian Federal and State governments to focus increasingly on the efficiency of public institutions, including Technical and Further Education (TAFE) institutes. In this study, we define efficiency as the relationship between financial and administrative inputs and educational outputs. We employ stochastic frontier analysis in determining the efficiency of Australian TAFE institutes using data sourced from institutional annual reports, the Student Outcomes Survey and administrative databases. We found significant economies of scale effects and conclude that increasing institutional size for very small institutions may result in increased efficiencies.