Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Management of Operations

The purpose is to develop a structured new product development (NPD) process portfolio for manufacturing companies that facilitates the organization of NPD processes for both standardized products, focusing on time-to-market, and customized products, focusing on time-to-customer. The research combines different literature streams, enriching and advancing the understanding of decoupling thinking in NPD processes of manufacturing companies. It includes extensive empirical data from six manufacturing companies and presents testable propositions for further research. The resulting NPD process portfolio separates technology development from product development, acknowledges the different drivers and outcomes of processes and addresses the lead-time trade-offs. It provides an overview of potential options for NPD processes and shows different pathways through the processes. Companies can use the portfolio to support decisions related to the overall configuration of their NPD portfolios, the role and the range of different NPD processes, as well as to determine when and how to engage customers. ARTICLE HISTORY Received 9 March 2018 Accepted 24 May 2019
Adsorption of methylamine cations on kaolinite basal surfaces: A DFT study

To explore the interaction of alkylamine surfactants with kaolinite, the density functional theory (DFT) method was used to calculate the single adsorption of different methylamine cation on kaolinite basal surfaces and the competitive adsorption of methylamine cation and water molecule on kaolinite basal surfaces, respectively. Different methylamine cations can adsorb on kaolinite basal surfaces by electrostatic interaction and hydrogen bonds, and the methylamine cations more easily adsorbed on kaolinite Si-O surface. In the case of competitive adsorption with water molecule, the methylamine cation is capable of flushing out the surrounding water molecule to get rid of its steric effect and stably adsorbing on kaolinite basal surfaces, and the adsorption state of the competitive adsorption system is more stable. The adsorption mechanism of methylamine cation on kaolinite basal surface should be the result of electrostatic interaction and hydrogen bonds, and the electrostatic interaction plays the main role.
The Effect of Mandalynth Tracing as a Mindfulness- Based Training Technique on Anxiety and Self- Perception of Ability to Participate in Meaningful Activities

According to the World Health Organization (WHO) [1], mental health is defined as, “a state of well-being in which each individual realizes his or her own potential, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to her or his community”. By this definition, mental health can be understood as a continuum. An individual’s specific location on this continuum can fluctuate depending on a variety of internal and external variables, which can include stressors, anxiety, or physiological changes. The WHO has identified mental health as “a growing cause of disability worldwide and predicts that in the future, mental illness.will be the top cause of disability”.
A Phenomenological Investigation of Doctoral Students’ Gatekeeping Experiences

There is a clear need for further investigations of professional impairment and gatekeeping practices of counselor education programs. A vast majority (92%) of counselor educators report having at least one student with a professional impairment, and training programs dismissed 20% of these students (Crawford & Gilroy, 2013). Gatekeeping is an ethical responsibility of counselors, entailing ongoing monitoring of suitability for professional practice (American Counseling Association (ACA), 2014). At its core, gatekeeping is a mechanism to provide intervention, including facilitating exit from the profession, on behaviors that could threaten client welfare (Foster & McAdams, 2009). The Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP, 2016) lists gatekeeping as a national accreditation requirement for both master’s and doctoral-level programs. For the purpose of this study, gatekeeping is viewed within the university setting and involves preand post-admission evaluation and remediation to monitor students’ ongoing fitness for the program and professional field (Ziomek-Daigle & Christensen, 2010). Gatekeeping requires counselor educators and supervisors to make developmentally appropriate assessments of student counselors’ progress. Faculty evaluations of counselors-in-training occur in academic (e.g., course grades) and interpersonal contexts; including interactions during supervision in practicum and internships, and interactions in and outside of class (Ziomek-Daigle & Christensen, 2010). As counselor educators-in-training, doctoral students have opportunities to serve in evaluative roles as teaching assistants and supervisors of master’s level students (Scarborough, Bernard, & Morse, 2006; Fernando, 2013). As part of these roles, doctoral students hold gatekeeping responsibilities (CACREP, 2016; Limberg et al., 2013). However, the literature has yet to thoroughly explore doctoral students’ experiences as gatekeepers (Rapp, Moody, & Stewart, 2018).
Ribosomal Proteins and their Extra Ribosomal Functions in Abiotic Stress Tolerance of Plants

Ribosomal proteins (RPs) that include both small (RPS) and large subunit (RPL) proteins have been known to be involved in several very important functions in ribosome assembly, protein synthesis and other basic cellular functions in association with several other components [1]. The composition of ribosomal protein subunits that are involved in ribosome assembly is heterogeneous [2] indicating clearly that individual subunit protein components have other functions apart from the basic cellular functions they are associated with. Although each RP gene has multiple paralogs, the expression of all of them appears to be differentially regulated for normal development with some of them functioning in spatio-temporal and signal-induced manner while others exhibit binding properties. The expression of ribosomal proteins has been shown to be regulated by various environmental cues and treatments with signaling molecules [3,4]. The involvement of ribosomal proteins in extra ribosomal functions in animal systems has also been well documented [5].
Mlh1 haploinsufficiency induces microsatellite instability specifically in intestine

Tumors of Lynch syndrome (LS) patients display high levels of microsatellite instability (MSI), which results from complete loss of DNA mismatch repair (MMR), in line with Knudson’s two-hit hypothesis. Why some organs, in particular those of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, are especially prone to tumorigenesis in LS remains unknown. We hypothesized that MMR is haploinsufficient in certain tissues, compromising microsatellite stability in a tissue-specific manner before tumorigenesis. Using mouse genetics, we tested how levels of MLH1, a central MMR protein, affect microsatellite stability in vivo and whether elevated MSI is detectable prior to loss of MMR function and to neoplastic growth. We assayed MSI by sensitive single-molecule PCR in normal jejunum and spleen of 4- and 12-month old Mlh1+/+, Mlh1+/− and Mlh1−/− mice, accompanied by measurements of Mlh1 mRNA and MLH1 protein expression levels. While spleen MLH1 levels of Mlh1+/− mice were, as expected, approximately 50% compared to wildtype mice, MLH1 levels in jejunum varied substantially between individual Mlh1+/− mice and decreased with age. Apparently, Mlh1+/− mice with soma-wide Mlh1 promoter methylation were the most venerable to MLH1 expression level decrease in jejunum. MLH1 levels (prior to complete loss of the protein) inversely correlated with MSI severity in Mlh1+/− jejunum, while in spleens of the same mice, MLH1 levels and microsatellites remained stable. Thus, Mlh1 haploinsufficiency affects specifically the intestine where MMR levels are particularly labile, inducing MSI in normal cells long before neoplasia. A similar mechanism likely also operates in the human GI epithelium, and could explain the wide range in age of onset of LS-associated tumorigenesis.
Information Quality in the public sector

In the world of organizations, computerized systems have become indispensable as tools to support management. With regard to public service, people management requires the use of these systems to meet the expectations of its users and its customers — both the government workers themselves, and the population — through functionalities that meet the demands of the decision, strategic, tactical, and operational levels. This paper focuses on research of the Information Quality (IQ) involved in the routines and processes of the Integrated Human Resources Management System, Sistema Integrado de Gestao de Recursos Humanos (SIGRH); managed by the Santa Catarina Department of State Administration, Secretaria de Estado da Administracao de Santa Catarina (SEA); or more specifically, by the Directorate for the Management and Development of Government Workers, Diretoria de Gestao e Desenvolvimento de Pessoas (DGDP). The objective of the research was to verify the current state of IQ through its dimensions and categories, the identification of items with low quality levels, and the correlation between the dimensions. The research method used was the application of the House of Quality (HoQ) tool, adapted to the specifics of the organization selected by the authors. Finally, it is through the consequent analysis of the results obtained that it was possible to suggest actions of improvement to be taken by managers.
User Behavior and the Importance of Stereo for Depth Perception in Fish Tank Virtual Reality

Abstract Since one of the most important aspects of a Fish Tank Virtual Reality (FTVR) system is how well it provides the illusion of depth to users, we present a study that evaluates users' depth perception in FTVR systems using three tasks. The tasks are based on psychological research on human vision and depth judgments common in VR applications. We find that participants do not perform well under motion parallax cues only, when compared with stereo only or a combination of both kinds of cues. Measurements of participants' head movement during each task prove valuable in explaining the experimental findings. We conclude that FTVR users rely on stereopsis for depth perception in FTVR environments more than they do on motion parallax, especially for tasks requiring depth acuity.
Recombinant DnaK Orally Administered Protects Axenic European Sea Bass Against Vibriosis

Vibrio anguillarum causes high mortality in European sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax) larviculture and is a hindering factor for successful sustainable aquaculture of this commercially valuable species. Priming of the innate immune system through administration of immunostimulants has become an important approach to control disease outbreaks in marine fish larviculture. This study was conducted to evaluate immunostimulation by Escherichia coli HSP70 (DnaK) in axenic European sea bass larvae in order to protect the larvae against vibriosis. DnaK stimulates the immune response in crustaceans and juvenile fish against bacterial infections. The use of axenic fish larvae allows to study immunostimulation in the absence of an interfering microbial community. At 7 days post-hatching, larvae received a single dose of alginate encapsulated recombinant DnaK. Two non-treated control groups in which animals either received empty alginate microparticles (C1) or no alginante microparticles (C2 and C3) were included in the study. Eighteen hours later, all larvae, except the ones from group C3 (non-infected control) were challenged with V. anguillarum (105 CFU, bath infection). Mortality was daily recorded until 120 h post infection and at 18, 24, and 36 h post infection, larvae were sampled for expression of immune related genes. Results showed that V. anguillarum induced an immune response in axenic sea bass larvae but that the innate immune response was incapable to protect the larvae against deadly septicaemic disease. In addition, we showed that administration of alginate encapsulated DnaK to axenic European sea bass larvae at DAH7 resulted in a significant, DnaK dose dependent, upreglation of immune sensor, regulatory and effector genes. Significant upregulation of cxcr4, cas1 and especially of hep and dic was correlated with significant higher survival rates in V. anguillarum infected larvae. In the future recombinant DnaK might perhaps be used as a novel immunostimulant in sea bass larviculture.
Ambulatory Assessment of Psychological and Physiological Stress on Workdays and Free Days Among Teachers. A Preliminary Study

Objective Teachers are affected by high levels of job stress, leading to one of the highest rates of burnout. The purpose of our pilot study was to investigate the diurnal course of teachers’ psychological and physiological stress responses [cortisol levels, alpha-amylase, heart rate (HR), and heart rate variability (HRV)]. Another aim of the project was to test the applicability of ambulatory assessment methods in daily teaching situations. Methods In a non-clinical sample of eight primary school teachers (mean age = 43, SD = 15.22, 6 females) in Switzerland, continuous biopsychological data on two workdays and a free day were assessed. The teachers’ HRs and HRV were measured continuously using an ambulatory ECG. Additionally, eight saliva samples were collected from the teachers repeatedly throughout the day to determine the diurnal course of salivary cortisol and alpha-amylase (sAA). Perceived stress and anger ratings were assessed simultaneously. Results As hypothesized, the teachers’ morning cortisol levels, perceived stress, and anger levels were significantly higher, and their overall HRV was significantly lower on workdays than on a free day. Conversely, sAA levels and HRs showed no significant differences between working and free days. Salivary markers exhibited the expected diurnal course, with decreasing cortisol and increasing sAA levels over the course of the day, while self-rated stress reached the maximum at midday during working days. Conclusion The results of the present explorative study show that physiological and psychological parameters differ within working and free days for teachers. A comparison between working and free days resulted in differences in morning cortisol levels, HRV as well as stress and anger levels. The ambulatory assessment method was found to be applicable in daily teaching situations.
Near Infrared Spectroscopy Measurements of Mitochondrial Capacity Using Partial Recovery Curves

Background Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) has been used to measure muscle mitochondrial capacity (mVO2max) as the recovery rate constant of muscle metabolism after exercise. The current method requires as many as 50 short ischemic occlusions to generate two recovery rate constants. Purpose To determine the validity and repeatability of using a 6-occlusion protocol versus one with 22 occlusions to measure muscle mitochondrial capacity. The order effect of performing multiple Mito6 test was also evaluated. Method In two independent data sets (bicep n = 7, forearm A n = 23), recovery curves were analyzed independently using both the 6 and 22 occlusion methods. A third data set (forearm B n = 16) was generated on the forearm muscles of healthy subjects using four 6-occlusion tests performed in succession. Recovery rate constants were generated using a MATLAB routine. Results When calculated from the same data set, the recovery rate constants were not significantly different between the 22 occlusion and 6 occlusion methods for the bicep (1.43 ± 0.33 min–1, 1.43 ± 0.35 min–1, p = 0.81) and the forearm A (1.97 ± 0.40 min–1, 1.97 ± 0.43 min–1, p = 0.90). Equivalence testing showed that the mean difference was not different than zero and the 90% confidence intervals were within 5% of the average rate constant. This was true for the Mito6 and the Mito5∗ approaches. Bland–Altman analysis showed a slope of 0.21 min–1 and an r of 0.045 for the bicep dataset and a slope of −0.01 min–1 and an r of 0.045 for the forearm A dataset. When performing the four 6-occlusion tests; recovery rate constants showed no order effects (1.50 ± 0.51 min–1, 1.42 ± 0.54 min–1, 1.26 ± 0.41 min–1, 1.29 ± 0.47 min–1, P > 0.05). Conclusion The Mito6 analysis is a valid and repeatable approach to measure mitochondrial capacity. The Mito6 protocol used fewer ischemic occlusion periods and multiple tests could be performed in succession in less time, increasing the practicality of the NIRS mitochondrial capacity test. There were no order effects for the rate constants of four repeated 6-occlusion tests of mitochondrial capacity, supporting the use of multiple tests to improve accuracy.
Novel Surrogate Markers of CNS Inflammation in CSF in the Diagnosis of Autoimmune Encephalitis

Background: Autoimmune encephalitis (AE) is an important cause of refractory epilepsy, rapidly progressive cognitive decline, and unexplained movement disorders in adults. Whilst there is identification of an increasing number of associated autoantibodies, patients remain with a high clinical probability of autoimmune encephalitis but no associated characterized autoantibody. These patients represent a diagnostic and treatment dilemma. Objective: To evaluate routine and novel diagnostic tests of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in patients with a high probability of AE to attempt to identify better biomarkers of neuroinflammation. Methods: Over 18 months (2016–2018), adult patients with a high clinical probability of AE were recruited for a pilot cross-sectional explorative study. We also included viral polymerase-chain-reaction (PCR) positive CSF samples and CSF from neurology patients with “non-inflammatory” (NI) diagnoses for comparison. CSF was examined with standard investigations for encephalitis and novel markers (CSF light chains, and cytokines). Results and Conclusions: Thirty-two AE patients were recruited over 18 months. Twenty-one viral controls, 10 NI controls, and five other autoimmune neurological disease controls (AOND) were also included in the analysis. Our study found that conventional markers: presence of CSF monocytosis, oligoclonal bands, anti-neuronal immunofluorescence, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) changes could be suggestive of AE, but these investigations were neither sensitive nor specific. Promising novel makers of autoimmune encephalitis were the CSF cytokines IL-21 and IP10 which may provide better delineation between viral infections and autoimmune encephalitis than conventional markers, potentially leading to more immediate diagnosis and management of these patients.
Blockade of Stat3 oncogene addiction induces cellular senescence and reveals a cell-nonautonomous activity suitable for cancer immunotherapy

ABSTRACT Stat3 is constitutively activated in several tumor types and plays an essential role in maintaining their malignant phenotype and immunosupression. To take advantage of the promising antitumor activity of Stat3 targeting, it is vital to understand the mechanism by which Stat3 regulates both cell autonomous and non-autonomous processes. Here, we demonstrated that turning off Stat3 constitutive activation in different cancer cell types induces senescence, thus revealing their Stat3 addiction. Taking advantage of the senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP) induced by Stat3 silencing (SASP-siStat3), we designed an immunotherapy. The administration of SASP-siStat3 immunotherapy induced a strong inhibition of triple-negative breast cancer and melanoma growth associated with activation of CD4 + T and NK cells. Combining this immunotherapy with anti-PD-1 antibody resulted in survival improvement in mice bearing melanoma. The characterization of the SASP components revealed that type I IFN-related mediators, triggered by the activation of the cyclic GMP-AMP synthase DNA sensing pathway, are important for its immunosurveillance activity. Overall, our findings provided evidence that administration of SASP-siStat3 or low dose of Stat3-blocking agents would benefit patients with Stat3-addicted tumors to unleash an antitumor immune response and to improve the effectiveness of immune checkpoint inhibitors.
Genome-wide analyses reveal the role of noncoding variation in complex traits during rice domestication

During rice domestication, selection for genome-wide change in the expression of long noncoding RNAs led to improved grain traits. Genomes carry millions of noncoding variants, and identifying the tiny fraction with functional consequences is a major challenge for genomics. We assessed the role of selection on long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) for domestication-related changes in rice grains. Among 3363 lncRNA transcripts identified in early developing panicles, 95% of those with differential expression (329 lncRNAs) between Oryza sativa ssp. japonica and wild rice were significantly down-regulated in the domestication event. Joint genome and transcriptome analyses reveal that directional selection on lncRNAs altered the expression of energy metabolism genes during domestication. Transgenic experiments and population analyses with three focal lncRNAs illustrate that selection on these loci led to increased starch content and grain weight. Together, our findings indicate that genome-wide selection for lncRNA down-regulation was an important mechanism for the emergence of rice domestication traits.
Does Comanagement of Patients With Hip Fracture Influence 30-Day Outcomes

Introduction: Comanagement of hip fractures is thought to optimize outcomes for these high-risk patients, but this practice is not universal. We aimed to determine whether comanagement of patients with hip fracture affects 30-day outcomes. Methods: The American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database was queried for all hip fractures between January 2015 and January 2017, totaling 15 461 patients (144 hospitals). Patients were divided into 3 cohorts: 11 233 comanaged throughout stay (CM), 2537 partially comanaged during stay (PCM), or 1691 not comanaged (NCM), by orthopedic surgeons with medicine physicians or geriatricians. Data collected included demographics, hip fracture type, postoperative outcomes, and length of stay (LOS). Logistic regression and linear regression analyses were performed. Results: Both CM and PCM patients were older, with more dementia, poorer mobility, and more comorbidities than NCM patients. Mortality rates were 4.55%, 0.81%, and 0.33% for CM, PCM, and NCM, respectively, and risk-adjusted odds ratios (ORs) were 1.63 (95% confidence interval = 1.22-2.23) and 1.22 (0.87-1.74) for CM and PCM, respectively, compared to NCM. Morbidity rates were 11.06%, 15.45%, and 7.63% for CM, PCM, and NCM, respectively, and ORs were 1.74 (1.41-2.16) and 1.94 (1.57-2.41) for CM and PCM, respectively, compared to NCM. Risk-adjusted mean square LOS was 6.38, 8.80, and 7.23 for CM, PCM, and NC, respectively (P < .01). Conclusions: Comanaged patients with hip fracture had poorer cognition, function, and general health, with the shortest LOS. Surprisingly, NCM was associated with reduced morbidity and mortality, which may relate to them being the healthiest patients. Overall, our findings still support orthogeriatric comanagement in this high-risk group to maximize outcomes.