Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Adopting E-Mailing Systems Technology: Challenges Confronting Government Institutions in Jordan

Insight into the reasons why people adopt or reject technology is one of the most challenging issues in information technology research. This chapter draws on the Electronic Commerce Technology Acceptance (ECTA) framework, which is in turn based on Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and examines Jordanian government’s employees’ attitudes towards adoption and use of Electronic Mailing systems within their job. The chapter is aimed at providing an overview of the current state of use, adoption and implementation of electronic mailing innovation within organisations, specifically governmental institutions in developing countries like Jordan. More precisely, the author first quantify constructs relating to the current state of governmental institutions’ beliefs and attitudes toward E-Mailing systems technology in Jordan, and then develop and validate the relationships between the various factors that drive the adoption and acceptance of such innovation. A quantitative survey is used to establish and illustrates employee’s behavioural intention and decision to e-mailing systems. The main influencing issues discussed in this chapter that affect these employees imply perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, employees’ attitudes towards new technologies, and behavioural intentions to use. Whereas, these various issues are suggested in the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), the enhanced Technology Acceptance Model extends them to include the external social factors proposed in this chapter such as trust, cultural beliefs, and sociology of technology. Eventually, the significant insight emanated from the findings identifies ways of assisting and spurring employees to make use of technology more effectively.
A role for activated endothelial cells in red blood cell clearance: implications for vasopathology

Background Phosphatidylserine exposure by red blood cells is acknowledged as a signal that initiates phagocytic removal of the cells from the circulation. Several disorders and conditions are known to induce phosphatidylserine exposure. Removal of phosphatidylserine-exposing red blood cells generally occurs by macrophages in the spleen and liver. Previously, however, we have shown that endothelial cells are also capable of erythrophagocytosis. Key players in the erythrophagocytosis by endothelial cells appeared to be lactadherin and αv-integrin. Phagocytosis via the phosphatidylserine-lactadherin-αv-integrin pathway is the acknowledged route for removal of apoptotic innate cells by phagocytes. Design and Methods Endothelial cell phagocytosis of red blood cells was further explored using a more (patho)physiological approach. Red blood cells were exposed to oxidative stress, induced by tert-butyl hydroperoxide. After opsonization with lactadherin, red blood cells were incubated with endothelial cells to study erythrophagocytosis and examine cytotoxicity. Results Red blood cells exposed to oxidative stress show alterations such as phosphatidylserine exposure and loss of deformability. When incubated with endothelial cells, marked erythrophagocytosis occurred in the presence of lactadherin under both static and flow conditions. As a consequence, intracellular organization was disturbed and endothelial cells were seen to change shape (‘rounding up’). Increased expression of apoptotic markers indicated that marked erythrophagocytosis has cytotoxic effects. Conclusions Activated endothelial cells show significant phagocytosis of phosphatidylserine-exposing and rigid red blood cells under both static and flow conditions. This results in a certain degree of cytotoxicity. We postulate that activated endothelial cells play a role in red blood cell clearance in vivo. Significant erythrophagocytosis can induce endothelial cell loss, which may contribute to vasopathological effects as seen, for instance, in sickle cell disease.
Asymptotic performance analysis of LDPC codes with channel estimation error

In this paper we investigate the asymptotic behavior of belief propagation algorithm for low density parity check (LDPC) codes over additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) channel when there is an incorrect estimate of the channel noise power. We propose a computationally efficient method to compute the convergence threshold values for both regular and irregular codes and show that these values are consistent with simulation results for the codes with finite block lengths. The effect of imperfect channel estimation on EXIT charts of variable nodes and check nodes is also investigated.
Albuminuria, cognitive functioning, and white matter hyperintensities in homebound elders.

BACKGROUND Albuminuria, a kidney marker of microvascular disease, may herald microvascular disease elsewhere, including in the brain. STUDY DESIGN Cross sectional. SETTING & PARTICIPANTS Boston, MA, elders receiving home health services to maintain independent living who consented to brain magnetic resonance imaging. PREDICTOR Urine albumin-creatinine ratio (ACR). OUTCOME Performance on a cognitive battery assessing executive function and memory by using principal components analysis and white matter hyperintensity volume on brain imaging, evaluated in logistic and linear regression models. RESULTS In 335 participants, mean age was 73.4 +/- 8.1 years and 123 participants had microalbuminuria or macroalbuminuria. Each doubling of ACR was associated with worse executive function (beta = -0.05; P = 0.005 in univariate and beta = -0.07; P = 0.004 in multivariable analyses controlling for age, sex, race, education, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, hypertension, medications, and estimated glomerular filtration rate [eGFR]), but not with worse memory or working memory. Individuals with microalbuminuria or macroalbuminuria were more likely to be in the lower versus the highest tertile of executive functioning (odds ratio, 1.18; 95% confidence interval, 1.06 to 1.32; odds ratio, 1.19; 95% confidence interval, 1.05 to 1.35 per doubling of ACR in univariate and multivariable analyses, respectively). Albuminuria was associated with qualitative white matter hyperintensity grade (odds ratio, 1.13; 95% confidence interval, 1.02 to 1.25; odds ratio, 1.15; 95% confidence interval, 1.02 to 1.29 per doubling of ACR) in univariate and multivariable analyses and with quantitative white matter hyperintensity volume (beta = 0.11; P = 0.007; beta = 0.10; P = 0.01) in univariate and multivariable analyses of log-transformed data. Results were similar when excluding individuals with macroalbuminuria. LIMITATIONS Single measurement of ACR, indirect creatinine calibration, and reliance on participant recall for elements of medical history. CONCLUSIONS Albuminuria is associated with worse cognitive performance, particularly in executive functioning, as well as increased white matter hyperintensity volume. Albuminuria likely identifies greater brain microvascular disease burden.
The Hadia Story: Digital Storytelling in Election Campaigns

Digital storytelling in election campaigns is a relatively recent phenomenon, which needs to be investigated in order to enhance our understanding of changes and developments in modern political communication. This article is an analysis of how the Norwegian-Pakistani Labour politician, Hadia Tajik, has used digital storytelling to construct her political identity, and a discussion of the consequences of her experiments with this genre. The focus is on the five video stories she released during the 2009 parliamentary election campaign and the reactions they evoked on the net and in the traditional media during the same (time) period. During the 2009 electoral campaign Tajik moved from being a relatively unknown politician to becoming a political household name and the only member of the new Parliament with a migrant background. The digital stories were instrumental in this development for numerous reasons, the most important probably being that they gave her prime time television coverage. Norwegian news media have in general been very concerned with Web 2.0 and Tajik’s videos were regarded as an innovative kind of political communication. The videos also functioned as an effective marketing tool on the net. As an integral part of her extensive viral network, they attracted numerous views and they were with a few exceptions met with positive reactions. This was probably due to their relatively high production values and their catch-all communication strategy that downplayed her ethnic, educational and political background and emphasized her universal human qualities.
Dual olfactory representation in the rat thalamus: An anatomical and electrophysiological study

A combination of electrophysiological and anatomical techniques was used to determine the sites of termination of olfactory projections to the thalamus and the distribution of the cells of origin of these projections within the olfactory cortex. Following electrical stimulation of the olfactory bulb, short‐latency unit responses were recorded not only in the central segment of the mediodorsal thalamic nucleus but also in the ventral and anterior parts of the submedial thalamic nucleus. Responses were not obtained in the ventral or lateral parts of the mediodorsal nucleus, in the dorsal part of the submedial nucleus, or in the intralaminar nuclei between the mediodorsal and submedial nuclei.
Physicochemical variability of cambuci fruit (Campomanesia phaea) from the same orchard, from different locations and at different ripening stages.

BACKGROUND The present study evaluated the variability of cambuci fruit (Campomanesia phaea) cultivated in São Paulo State in the towns of Mogi das Cruzes, Paraibuna, Paranapiacaba and Rio Grande da Serra, and characterized it at different maturity stages with respect to size, firmness, soluble solids content, titratable acidity, phenolic content, ethylene production, respiration rate and in vitro antioxidant capacity. RESULTS Ripe fruit from the same locality, Paraibuna, showed large variations in size and acidity. Ripe fruit from different towns showed significant variation of total phenolics and, consequently, variation in antioxidant capacity. During maturation, the phenolic content and firmness decreased from unripe to ripe stages. The total soluble solids/titratable acidity ratio can be used as a parameter to differentiate cambuci at different maturity stages. However, the decrease in firmness combined with the absence of an ethylene climacteric peak does not allow us to conclude whether cambuci is climacteric or non-climacteric. CONCLUSION Genetic and soil composition studies are needed to assess the reasons for the differences found among fruit from the same location, as well as the variability among fruit harvested in four localities. The best parameters for assessing the maturity stages of cambuci comprise the rounding of its corners and its firmness because the more mature the pulp, the softer is the fruit. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry.
A History of Action Research

The origins of action research are unclear within the literature. Authors such as Kemmis and McTaggert (1988), Zuber-Skerrit (1992), Holter and Schwartz-Barcott (1993) state that action research originated with Kurt Lewin, an American psychologist. McKernan (1988 as cited in McKernan 1991) states that action research as a method of inquiry has evolved over the last century and careful study of the literature shows "clearly and convincingly that action research is a root derivative of the scientific method' reaching back to the Science in Education movement of the late nineteenth century. " (McKernan 1991:8)
Absence of a relationship between subjective memory complaint and objective memory impairment in mild cognitive impairment (MCI): is it time to abandon subjective memory complaint as an MCI diagnostic criterion?

ABSTRACT Background: Subjective memory complaints are a requirement in the diagnosis of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) as they are thought to indicate a decline in objective memory performance. However, recent research suggests that the relationship between subjective memory complaint and objective memory impairment is less clear. Thus, it is possible that many people without subjective memory complaints who develop Alzheimer's disease are precluded from a diagnosis of MCI. Methods: The present study examined the relationship between subjective memory complaint assessed using the Multifactorial Memory Questionnaire (MMQ) and objective memory impairment assessed using standard neuropsychological measures in cases of amnestic MCI (n = 48), non-amnestic MCI (n = 27), and unimpaired healthy participants (n = 64). Results: Correlational and regression analyses indicated that subjective memory complaints displayed a poor relationship with objective memory performance. A subsequent discriminant function analysis indicated that subjective memory complaints failed to improve the diagnostic accuracy of MCI and resulted in increased rates of false negative and false positive diagnoses. Conclusion: The results of the present study suggest that a diagnostic criterion of subjective memory complaint reduces the accuracy of MCI diagnosis, resulting in an elevated rate of false positive and false negative diagnoses. The results of this study in conjunction with recent research indicate that a criterion of subjective memory complaint should be discarded from emerging diagnostic criteria for MCI.
The Common Enemy Rationale: An Attempt to Apply Concepts of Cognitive Consistency to the Portrayals of the United States in the Foreign Press

In discussions of the declining U.S. image in foreign countries, the emphasis is usually placed on either the shortcomings of U.S. policies and actions, or on the political, psychological and cultural circumstances in foreign countries. This dyadic approach ignores the important role of “third parties” in the development of international attitudes toward the United States. In this article, an attempt was made to demonstrate a reciprocal relationship between a foreign country’s press portrayals of the U.S. and its views of international terrorism. More than 2,000 articles from the mainstream print media in nine countries, published in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, provided the data to support this assumption. Related topics, including (a) the differences between press representations of the U.S. in the West versus in the Muslim World, and (b) the affects of press censorship on America’s image in China, are also discussed.
Primary Cilium Regulates CaV1.2 Expression Through Wnt Signaling

Primary cilia are sensory organelles that provide a feedback mechanism to restrict Wnt signaling in the absence of endogenous Wnt activators. Abnormal Wnt signaling has been shown to result in polycystic kidney disease (PKD) although the exact mechanism has been debated. Previously, we reported that the calcium channel CaV1.2 functions in primary cilia. In this study, we show that CaV1.2 expression level is regulated by Wnt signaling. This occurs through modulation of mitochondrial mass and activity resulting in increased reactive oxygen species which generate oxidative DNA lesions. We found that the subsequent cellular DNA damage response triggers increased CaV1.2 expression. In the absence of primary cilia where Wnt signaling is upregulated, we found that CaV1.2 is overexpressed as a compensatory mechanism. We show for the first time that CaV1.2 knockdown in zebrafish results in classic primary cilia defects including renal cyst formation, hydrocephalus, and left‐right asymmetry defects. Our study shows that suppressed Wnt signaling prevents CaV1.2 expression ultimately resulting in PKD phenotypes. Thus, CaV1.2 expression is tightly regulated through Wnt signaling and plays an essential sensory role in primary cilia necessary for cellular homeostasis. J. Cell. Physiol. 229: 1926–1934, 2014. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Implications of pain in generalized anxiety disorder: efficacy of duloxetine.

OBJECTIVE To conduct a post hoc evaluation of the prevalence of clinically significant pain and the efficacy of duloxetine in patients with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) and concurrent pain. METHOD Data from two 9- to 10-week double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized clinical trials of duloxetine (60 to 120 mg) in DSM-IV-defined GAD were analyzed (study 1 was conducted from July 2004 to September 2005; study 2 was conducted from August 2004 to June 2005). Efficacy was assessed with the Hamilton Rating Scale for Anxiety (HAM-A), visual analog scales (VAS) for pain, the Hospital Anxiety Depression Scale (HADS), the Clinical Global Impressions-Improvement of Illness (CGI-I) scale, the Patient Global Impressions-Improvement (PGI-I) scale, and the Sheehan Disability Scale (SDS) global functional impairment scale. RESULTS Of 840 patients randomly assigned to treatment, 61.3% (302 duloxetine, 213 placebo) had VAS scores ≥ 30 mm on at least 1 of the pain scales, indicating clinically significant pain. Among those patients with concurrent pain at baseline, change from baseline to endpoint in the HAM-A total score (42.9% change in mean scores for duloxetine, 31.4% for placebo), HADS anxiety scale (40.3% vs. 22.8%), HADS depression scale (36.1% vs. 20.5%), HAM-A psychic factor (45.9% vs. 29.9%), and SDS global functional improvement score (45.5% vs. 22.1%) was significantly (all p's < .001) greater for duloxetine compared with placebo. Improvement on the CGI-I (p = .003) and PGI-I (p < .001) was also significantly greater for duloxetine. Response (HAM-A total score decrease ≥ 50%) (49% vs. 29%) and remission (HAM-A total score ≤ 7 at endpoint) (29% vs. 18%) rates were significantly greater for duloxetine compared with placebo (p < .001 and p = .041, respectively). Duloxetine demonstrated statistically significantly greater reduction in pain on all 6 VAS pain scales (all p's < .001 except headaches with p < .002) (for duloxetine, percent change in means from baseline to endpoint ranged from 40.1% to 45.2% across the 6 VAS scales; for placebo, 22.0% to 26.3%). CONCLUSION Duloxetine, relative to placebo, improves anxiety symptoms, pain, and functional impairment among patients with GAD with concurrent clinically significant pain. TRIAL REGISTRATION clinicaltrials.gov Identifiers: NCT00122824 (study 1) and NCT00475969 (study 2).
Epigenetic Remodeling of the IL-2 and IFN-γ Loci in Memory CD8 T Cells Is Influenced by CD4 T Cells1

Memory T cells (TM) are able to rapidly exert effector functions, including immediate effector cytokine production upon re-encounter with Ag, which is critical for protective immunity. Furthermore, this poised state is maintained as TM undergo homeostatic proliferation over time. We examined the molecular basis underlying this enhanced functional capacity in CD8 TM by comparing them to defective CD8 TM generated in the absence of CD4 T cells. Unhelped CD8 TM are defective in many functions, including the immediate expression of cytokines, such as IL-2 and IFN-γ. Our data show that this defect in IL-2 and IFN-γ production is independent of clonal selection, functional avidity maturation, and the integrity of proximal TCR signaling, but rather involves epigenetic modification of these cytokine genes. Activated Ag-specific CD8 T cells exhibit rapid DNA demethylation at the IL-2 and IFN-γ loci and substantial histone acetylation at the IFN-γ promoter and enhancer regions. These epigenetic modifications occur early after infection at the effector stage and are maintained through memory development. However, activated unhelped CD8 T cells, which fail to develop into functional memory and are incapable of rapid cytokine production, exhibit increased DNA methylation at the IL-2 promoter and fail to acetylate histones at the IFN-γ locus. Thus, CD4 T cell help influences epigenetic modification during CD8 TM differentiation and these epigenetic changes provide a molecular basis for the enhanced responsiveness and the maintenance of a “ready-to-respond” state in CD8 TM.
Early Evidence for Factorial Structure of the Separation Anxiety Symptom Inventory in Italian Children

The aim of this study was to explore the internal consistency and confirm the factor structure of the Separation Anxiety Symptom Inventory for Children (SASI–C) in a community sample of 329 Italian children, ages 6 to 10 years. A confirmatory factor analysis yielded two interpretable factors. Correlations between scores for the SASI–C and the Italian Fear Survey Schedule for Children were calculated to estimate convergent validity; medium effect sizes are hypothesized. Implications regarding the clinical utility of the SASI–C are discussed.
p38α and p38γ Mediate Oncogenic ras-induced Senescence through Differential Mechanisms*

Oncogene-induced senescence is a tumor-suppressive defense mechanism triggered upon activation of certain oncogenes in normal cells. Recently, the senescence response to oncogene activation has been shown to act as a bona fide barrier to cancer development in vivo. Multiple previous studies have implicated the importance of the p38 MAPK pathway in oncogene-induced senescence. However, the contribution of each of the four p38 isoforms (encoded by different genes) to senescence induction is unclear. In the current study, we demonstrated that p38α and p38γ, but not p38β, play an essential role in oncogenic ras-induced senescence. Both p38α and p38γ are expressed in primary human fibroblasts and are activated upon transduction of oncogenic ras. Small hairpin RNA-mediated silencing of p38α or p38γ expression abrogated ras-induced senescence, whereas constitutive activation of p38α and p38γ caused premature senescence. Furthermore, upon activation by oncogenic ras, p38γ stimulated the transcriptional activity of p53 by phosphorylating p53 at Ser33, suggesting that the ability of p38γ to mediate senescence is at least partly achieved through p53. However, p38α contributed to ras-inducted senescence via a p53-indepdendent mechanism in cells by mediating ras-induced expression of p16INK4A, another key senescence effector. These findings have identified p38α and p38γ as essential components of the signaling pathway that regulates the tumor-suppressing senescence response, providing insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying the differential involvement of the p38 isoforms in senescence induction.