Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Social Factors that Influence Loan Accessibility by Youth Entrepreneurs in Kenya: A Case of Youth Enterprise Development Fund in Gatundu South Constituency

The objective for this study was to assess the social factors that influence loan accessibility by youth entrepreneurs in Kenya. Data for analysis was received from 112 youth entrepreneurs from Gatundu south constituency collected using questionnaires while using statistical analysis tool of SPSS to analyze data. Social factors such as background characteristics of youth entrepreneurs’ i.e. personal interest to entrepreneurship, entrepreneurship education and supportive family and friends were attributable in influencing youth entrepreneurs to access loan facilities. 93.9% of respondents indicated that they accessed youth fund because they had personal interest to be entrepreneurs, 64% were influenced by their family and friends who provided information on sources of finance, business ideas and moral support. Individual lending model was preferred by 52% of respondents to group lending model which was rated 86% as being ineffective. Group lending model on the other hand work effectively where therise cohesion and proper leadership. The study recommended review of policies on access to loans by youth entrepreneurs by government, policy makers and financial institutions with regards to social factors.
Uptake and Bioaccumulation of Pentachlorophenol by Emergent Wetland Plant Phragmites australis (Common Reed) in Cadmium Co-contaminated Soil

Despite many studies on phytoremediation of soils contaminated with either heavy metals or organics, little information is available on the effectiveness of phytoremediation of co-occurring metal and organic pollutants especially by using wetland species. Phragmites australis is a common wetland plant and its potential for phytoremediation of cadmium pentachlorophenol (Cd-PCP) co-contaminated soil was investigated. A greenhouse study was executed to elucidate the effects of Cd (0, 10, and 20 mg kg−1) without or with PCP (0, 50, and 250 mg kg−1) on the growth of the wetland plant P. australis and its uptake, accumulation and removal of pollutant from soils. After 75 days, plant biomass was significantly influenced by interaction of Cd and PCP and the effect of Cd on plant growth being stronger than that of PCP. Coexistence of PCP at low level lessened Cd toxicity to plants, resulting in improved plant growth and increased Cd accumulation in plant tissues. The dissipation of PCP in soils was significantly influenced by interactions of Cd, PCP and plant presence or absence. As an evaluation of soil biological activities after remediation soil enzyme was measured.
Practical Consideration about Cost Functions of Spatial Independent Component Analysis in Medical Image Processing

Independent component analysis (ICA) is widely used for signal separation in various fields. However, low signal to noise ratio (SNR) of data sometimes causes failures in component estimation. We have proposed a spatial ICA-based method for extracting a blood-related component from medical images measured with positron emission tomography (PET) to omit arterial blood sampling, in which a cost function was designed in consideration of statistical properties of components. In this study, spatial ICA with the proposed cost function or kurtosis, a conventional cost function, was applied to real PET images measured with three kinds of radiopharmaceuticals, and the estimation results were compared. The proposed cost function fails to estimate components from the PET data with low SNR because it is sensitive to outliers. Experimental results suggest that a cost function should be selected depending on SNR of data
Endothelial nitric oxide synthase polymorphism (G894T) and nonarteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy

Abstract Nonarteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION) is associated with vascular risk factors and a genetic predisposition for NAION. In this study, we examined the potential association of endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) G894T polymorphism with NAION. For this, 45 patients (29 men and 16 women) and 193 controls (122 men and 71 women) were enrolled prospectively and genotyped for eNOS genes. Genotypes were determined by polymerase chain reaction and restriction enzyme analysis. The prevalence of eNOS polymorphisms was estimated in NAION patients and controls. Genotype frequencies were estimated with chi-square test, and odds ratios were calculated. We found that eNOS G894T polymorphism is not associated with NAION occurrence as the genotype and allele frequencies were not significantly different between the control and patient groups (TT vs. GG + GT: P = 0.646 and T vs. G: P = 0.86). The precise mechanism of NAION occurrence has not been elucidated yet; since NAION may occur when a compromised watershed microcirculation is combined with insufficient autoregulation of systematic circulation, other alterations in the eNOS gene or polymorphism of genes involved in systematic circulation may be associated with NAION occurrence.
DO HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PRACTICES MATTER IN REDUCING CYBERLOAFING AT WORK: EVIDENCE FROM JORDAN

Misusing the Internet at work for non-work related purposes or cyberloafing has become a worrisome phenomenon in organizations. As such, ways to address the issue have received increasing attention by researchers and scholars alike. The present study attempts to add to the literature by exploring the role of human resource practices (HRP) in influencing and hence reducing cyberloafing at work. Two-hundred eighty four employees in four different Jordanian universities were selected to respond to a structured questionnaire. Multiple regressions indicated that out of four types of HRP (performance appraisal, compensation practices, employment security, and career advancement) only performance appraisal and career advancement were found to negatively predict cyberloafing. No significant observations were found on the effect of compensation and employment security on cyberloafing. Implications to practice and theory are discussed.
Medium-frequency cycles and the remarkable near trend-stationarity of output

This paper builds a dynamic stochastic general equilibrium (DSGE) model of endogenous growth that generates large medium-frequency cycles while robustly matching the near trend-stationary path of observed output. This requires a model in which standard business cycle shocks lead to highly persistent movements around trend, without significantly altering the trend itself. The robustness of the trend also requires that we eliminate the scale effects and knife edge assumptions that plague most growth models. In our model, when products go out of patent protection, the rush of entry into their production destroys incentives for process improvements. Consequently, old production processes are enshrined in industries producing non-protected products, and shocks that affect invention rates change the proportion of industries with advanced technologies. In an estimated version of our model, a financial-type shock to the stock of ideas emerges as the key driver of the medium frequency cycle.
The phenotype of murine wound macrophages

The phenotype of wound macrophages has not been studied by direct examination of these cells, yet macrophages recruited to sites of injury are described as alternatively activated macrophages, requiring IL‐4 or IL‐13 for phenotypic expression. This study characterized wound macrophage phenotype in the PVA sponge wound model in mice. Eighty‐five percent of wound macrophages isolated 1 day after injury expressed Gr‐1, but only 20% of those isolated at 7 days expressed this antigen. Macrophages from 1‐, 3‐, and 7‐day wounds expressed markers of alternative activation, including mannose receptor, dectin‐1, arginase 1, and Ym1, but did not contain iNOS. Day 1 wound macrophages produced more TNF‐α, more IL‐6, and less TGF‐β than Day 7 wound macrophages. Wound macrophages did not produce IL‐10. The cytokines considered necessary for alternative activation of macrophages, IL‐4 and IL‐13, were not detected in the wound environment and were not produced by wound cells. Wound macrophages did not contain PStat6. Wound fluids inhibited IL‐13‐dependent phosphorylation of Stat6 and contained IL‐13Rα2, a soluble decoy receptor for IL‐13. The phenotype of wound macrophages was not altered in mice lacking IL‐4Rα, which is required for Stat6‐dependent signaling of IL‐4 and IL‐13. Wound macrophages exhibit a complex phenotype, which includes traits associated with alternative and classical activation and changes as the wound matures. The wound macrophage phenotype does not require IL‐4 or IL‐13.
Protecting SDN controller with per-flow buffering inside OpenFlow switches

Software Defined Networking (SDN) is a paradigm shift that changes the working principles of IP networks by separating the control logic from routers and switches, and logically centralizing it within a controller. In this architecture the control plane (controller) communicates with the data plane (switches) through a control channel using a standards-compliant protocol, that is, OpenFlow. While having a centralized controller creates an opportunity to monitor and program the entire network, as a side effect, it causes the control plane to become a single point of failure. Denial of service (DoS) attacks or even heavy control traffic conditions can easily become real threats to the proper functioning of the controller, which indirectly detriments the entire network. In this paper, we propose a solution to reduce the control traffic generated primarily during table-miss events. We utilize the buffer_id feature of the OpenFlow protocol, which has been designed to identify individually buffered packets within a switch, reusing it to identify flows buffered as a series of packets during table-miss, which happens when there is no related rule in the switch flow tables that matches the received packet. Thus, we allow the OpenFlow switch to send only the first packet of a flow to the controller for a table-miss while buffering the rest of the packets in the switch memory until the controller responds or time out occurs. The test results show that OpenFlow traffic is significantly reduced when the proposed method is used.
Effects of non‐catalytic, distal amino acid residues on activity of E. coli DinB (DNA polymerase IV)

DinB is one of two Y family polymerases in E. coli and is involved in copying damaged DNA. DinB is specialized to bypass deoxyguanosine adducts that occur at the N2 position, with its cognate lesion being the furfuryl adduct. Active site residues have been identified that make contact with the substrate and carry out deoxynucleotide triphosphate (dNTP) addition to the growing DNA strand. In DNA polymerases, these include negatively charged aspartate and glutamate residues (D8, D103, and E104 in E. coli DNA polymerase IV DinB). These residues position the essential magnesium ions correctly to facilitate nucleophilic attack by the primer hydroxyl group on the α‐phosphate group of the incoming dNTP. To study the contribution of DinB residues to lesion bypass, the computational methods THEMATICS and POOL were employed. These methods correctly predict the known active site residues, as well as other residues known to be important for activity. In addition, these methods predict other residues involved in substrate binding as well as more remote residues. DinB variants with mutations at the predicted positions were constructed and assayed for bypass of the N2‐furfuryl‐dG lesion. We find a wide range of effects of predicted residues, including some mutations that abolish damage bypass. Moreover, most of the DinB variants constructed are unable to carry out the extension step of lesion bypass. The use of computational prediction methods represents another tool that will lead to a more complete understanding of translesion DNA synthesis. Mol. Mutagen. 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Geometrical and conformational preferences of the 9‐fluorenylmethoxycarbonyl‐amino moiety

Structural parameters, originating from x‐ray crystallographic data, have been compiled for 13 derivatives of amino acids, peptides and related compounds, which contain a total of 14 Fmoc‐NH– moieties. For these moieties, molecular geometries and conformations—described by the ω0, θ1, θ2 and θ3′ torsion angles—were analysed and compared with the corresponding parameters for the Z‐NH– and Boc‐NH– moieties (290 and 553, respectively). To gain a deeper insight into the conformational features of the Fmoc‐NH– moiety, ab initio free molecule calculations were performed for fully relaxed minima. Also the potential energy surface as a function of the torsion angles (θ3′, θ2) was generated. The conformational features of the Fmoc‐NH– moiety: (i) two possible values for the angle ω0 (∼180° or, rarely, ∼0° ) and (ii) the angle θ1 = 180° ± 15°, are common to the Z‐NH– and Boc‐NH– systems. By contrast, the θ2 and θ3 angles in the Fmoc, Z and Boc groups differ essentially. In the Fmoc groups θ2 mostly has values of 180° ± 30° and values up |115°| seem to be forbidden, whereas fewer than half of the Z groups adopt θ2 ∼ 180° and the remainder have θ2 in the range of |90° ± 20°|. On the other hand, the Boc methyl groups are staggered. The θ3 values observed for Fmoc are limited to the regions of 180° ± 20° and |60° ± 20°|, while for the Z group a variety of θ3 occurs. The orientation of the fluorenyl vs the urethane function is mostly trans. Our results suggest a lower conformational flexibility for the Fmoc group compared with that of the Z group. Our calculations confirm that the observed conformational features for the Fmoc‐NH– moiety are inherent properties. The Fmoc‐NH– moiety in crystals involves the participation of its OC–NH functionality in hydrogen bonds. Copyright © 2004 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Skin vasodilator effect of exogenous urotensin‐II in hypertensives not exposed to antihypertensive medication

To investigate the effect of urotensin‐II (U‐II) on skin vascular tone in normotensive subjects and in patients with essential arterial hypertension (EHT), forearm skin blood flux and skin blood flowmotion (SBF) response to U‐II cathodal iontophoresis was investigated using laser Doppler flowmetry (LDF) and spectral Fourier analysis in 10 young normotensive subjects, before and after intra‐dermal injection of the nitric oxide synthetase inhibitor NG‐monometil‐l‐arginine (L‐NMMA). Forearm skin blood flux response to U‐II cathodal iontophoresis was also investigated using LDF in 15 newly diagnosed EHT patients, in 15 long‐standing EHT patients and in 15 age‐ and sex‐matched normotensive subjects. Intra‐dermal injection of L‐NMMA significantly blunted the increase in skin blood flux (from 342.5±153.0% to 193.5±78.9%, p<0.05) and completely inhibited the increase in spectral amplitude of 0.009–1.6 Hz total‐spectrum SBF, as well as of the 0.009–0.02 Hz component, related to endothelial activity, which occurred following U‐II iontophoresis in normotensive subjects. A significant increase in skin blood flux compared with baseline was also induced by U‐II iontophoresis in newly diagnosed (354±195% change from baseline) and long‐standing patient (324±180% change from baseline), without significant difference with normotensive subjects (400±251% change from baseline). These findings demonstrate that: (i) U‐II exerts a skin vasodilator effect in normotensive subjects, which is partly endothelial‐dependent; (ii) U‐II skin vasodilator effect is preserved in newly diagnosed and in long‐standing EHT patients.
Values for Recreational Beach Quality in Oahu, Hawaii

ABSTRACT Pristine coastal environments are the key to Hawaii's worldwide fame and attraction to tourists, yet their economic value remains understudied. This article examines preferences for characteristics associated with beach recreation in Oahu, Hawaii, among residents and tourists. Consideration is given to sand quality, water quality, congestion levels, and swimming safety conditions in the context of a choice experiment. The choice experiment conveys attribute levels almost entirely through pictures, and results suggest that this novel portrayal is well understood by respondents. Excessive congestion and water quality are regarded as the most important beach attributes, specifically the avoidance of poor water quality in favor of a chance to experience excellent water quality. Some evidence suggests that significantly different willingness to pay (WTP) exists among residents and tourists on Oahu with poor water quality and excellent water quality being more important to tourists, while residents place greater value on avoiding excessive congestion. JEL Codes: Q25, Q26.
Etiological study of lymphadenopathy in HIV-infected patients in a tertiary care hospital

Introduction: Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection has become a global pandemic. Persistent generalized lymphadenopathy (PGL) is very common manifestation of HIV infection. Moreover, different opportunistic infections such as tuberculosis (TB) and malignancies may present with lymphadenopathy. Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) infection is most common with cluster of differentiation (CD)4+ count ≤50 cells/μL. Fine-needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) offers a simple and effective modality for obtaining a representative sample of the material from lymph nodes, permitting cytological evaluation and other investigations. Aims and Objectives: The aim of this study is to find out the different etiologies of lymphadenopathy in HIV-infected patients and to establish a possible correlation with CD4+ count. Materials and Methods: A total of 100 HIV-infected patients having significant (>1 cm) extrainguinal lymphadenopathy were studied in 1 year at the Department of Pathology by FNAC and the stains used were Leishman–Giemsa, Ziehl–Neelsen (ZN), Papanicoloau, and Gram stains. For tubercular culture, Löwenstein–Jensen (LJ) medium was used. CD4+count was done by flow cytometer. Result: The present study revealed four types of cytomorphological variants in lymphadenopathy cases by FNAC, which include: Reactive hyperplasia and caseation necrosis; caseation necrosis and ill-formed granuloma; well-formed granuloma without any necrosis; and non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). The highest acid-fast bacilli (AFB) positivity was among the patients showing caseation necrosis. Tubercular culture in LJ media turned out as a more sensitive method for diagnosis than routine ZN staining. The 2 cases that showed well-formed epithelioid granuloma without any necrosis turned out to be histoplasmosis and cryptococcosis, respectively. In this study, we found 2 cases of NHL. The study also revealed that caseation necrosis and AFB positivity along with opportunistic infections increases with decreased CD4+ count.
Health information technology vendor selection strategies and total factor productivity

Objective: The aim of this study was to compare health information technology (HIT) adoption strategies’ relative performance on hospital-level productivity measures. Data Sources: The American Hospital Association’s Annual Survey and Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society Analytics for fiscal years 2002 through 2007 were used for this study. Study Design: A two-stage approach is employed. First, a Malmquist model is specified to calculate hospital-level productivity measures. A logistic regression model is then estimated to compare the three HIT adoption strategies’ relative performance on the newly constructed productivity measures. Principal Findings: The HIT vendor selection strategy impacts the amount of technological change required of an organization but does not appear to have either a positive or adverse impact on technical efficiency or total factor productivity. Conclusions: The higher levels in technological change experienced by hospitals using the best of breed and best of suite HIT vendor selection strategies may have a more direct impact on the organization early on in the process. However, these gains did not appear to translate into either increased technical efficiency or total factor productivity during the period studied. Over a longer period, one HIT vendor selection strategy may yet prove to be more effective at improving efficiency and productivity.
Prenatal diagnosis and treatment of fetal long QT syndrome: a case report

We report a case of a fetus presenting with bradycardia, intermittent atrioventricular (AV) block, ventricular tachycardia (VT) and the signs of fetal congestive heart failure (ascites and scrotal hydrocele) during mid‐gestation. Prenatal treatment with β‐adrenergic blocker (propranolol) and digitalis glycosides was prescribed because of suspicion of long QT syndrome occurring with fetal congestive heart failure. The male baby was born at 39 weeks of gestation and showed a prolonged QT interval (QTc = 492 ms) and frequent variable AV block or alternating left and right bundle branch block, depending on the atrial rate. Prenatal administration of lidocaine failed to correct the fetal VT. Conversely, propranolol decreased the attack frequency of fetal VT. Postnatal administration of the K+ channel opener (nicorandil) successfully shortened the QT interval and improved the outcome. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Association between TP53 R249S mutation and polymorphisms in TP53 intron 1 in hepatocellular carcinoma

Over 100 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) are validated in the TP53 tumor suppressor gene. They define haplotypes, which may differ in their activities. Therefore, mutation in cancer may occur at different rates depending upon haplotypes. However, these associations may be masked by differences in mutations types and causes of mutagenesis. We have analyzed the associations between 19 SNPs spanning the TP53 locus and a single specific aflatoxin‐induced TP53 mutation (R249S) in 85 in hepatocellular carcinoma cases and 132 controls from Thailand. An association with R249S mutation (P = 0.007) was observed for a combination of two SNPs (rs17882227 and rs8064946) in a linkage disequilibrium block extending from upstream of exon 1 to the first half of intron 1. This domain contains two coding sequences overlapping with TP53 (WRAP53 and Hp53int1) suggesting that sequences in TP53 intron 1 encode transcripts that may modulate R249S mutation rate in HCC. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
The role of third sector organizations in rural development

Third sector organizations reflect and shape community conditions. To show their role and importance in rural development we present theoretical and empirical approach to the rural third sector. The paper is based on a new economic theory of the third sector, the “rurality theory”. This theory was formulated by Vladislav Valentinov and assumes that the existence of the third sector is caused by the limitations of for-profit firms’ ability to satisfy human needs. The argument to their limitations is characteristics of rural areas and the resulting “rurality specific costs”. Thus, the rurality theory’s general hypothesis is that the rurality-specific transaction cost gives rise to the emergence of rural third sector organizations. There is some empirical evidence from different countries (e.g. USA and Belgium) either confirming or refuting the rural-urban distinction as a determinant of the third sector`s role in rural development. The paper presents the survey outline “Third sector organizations in rural development: a theoretical and empirical analysis” on the case of the Czech Republic. The research activities are expected to deliver a critical mass of theoretical and empirical material for testing the rurality theory.