Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effects of raclopride in the core of the nucleus accumbens on ethanol seeking and consumption: the use of extinction trials to measure seeking.

BACKGROUND A previous study using a sipper procedure of ethanol self-administration found that blockade of the D2 dopamine (DA) receptors in the nucleus accumbens resulted in a reduction in ethanol-seeking behavior with only slight effects on ethanol drinking. However, because of procedural matters in that study, it was unclear as to the extent of the reduction in seeking behavior that occurred. This study expanded that study to examine in more depth the role of DA transmission in the nucleus accumbens in ethanol-seeking and consummatory behaviors. METHODS Male Long-Evans rats were initiated to self-administer 10% ethanol with a sipper-tube procedure. Once initiated, in a once-a-day session, pressing a lever 30 times resulted in a sipper tube containing the ethanol solution being made available for 20 min. By using extinction trials in which no sipper was presented and responses were recorded for 20 min, a measure of ethanol seeking, with no effects of consumption, could be obtained. Bilateral microinjections of 1.0, 3.0, and 10.0 microg of raclopride into the nucleus accumbens were tested on both consummatory and extinction trials. RESULTS There were significant decreases in ethanol-seeking responses at both the 3.0- and 10.0-microg doses of raclopride, whereas no effects of those doses on consumption were observed. The effects on extinction responding were the same for the first run of responses as for total responding, without effecting rates of responding. CONCLUSIONS These findings replicate and expand the initial study with this model of ethanol self-administration and indicate that DA transmission at the D2 receptor in the nucleus accumbens is important for processing information related to stimulus control and goal-directed behavior. The results also suggest that DA has at most a minor role in controlling ethanol consumption once a drinking bout has begun.
Pension Funds: Retirement-Income Security, and Capital Markets: An International Perspective

Coping with the ageing of the population without major economic disruption is undoubtedly one of the major challenges facing the global economy and world financial markets both now and for the coming decades. In this context, this book assesses the major economic issues raised by occupational pension funds, as they have arisen in 12 OECD countries---the US, the UK, Germany, Japan, France, Italy, Canada, Australia, Denmark, Sweden, Switzerland and the Netherlands, as well as in Chile and Singapore. Particular emphasis is placed on the performance of funds in financial markets, the influence on funds of fiscal and regulatory conditions, and the consequences of funds' development for capital markets, corporate finance and international investment. The relationship with social security, the comparativ advantages of defined benefit and defined contribution funds and the role of funds in developing countries are also examined in detail.
Managing Career Plateauing in the Quebec Public Sector

Many events in recent decades have made promotion opportunities increasingly scarce, thus significantly changing the career prospects of a large number of individuals. Feelings of career failure can have negative consequences for both individuals and organizations. Based on a survey of 192 managers and professionals in the Quebec public sector, our results indicate that the absence or inadequacy of practices linked to career planning, development, and support, as well as the lack of opportunities to play new roles and participate in work groups, accentuates the perception of career plateauing. In order for working conditions to be conducive to individual development, Quebec's public sector organizations will need to modify management practices related to the career plateau phenomenon.
Deposit Insurance, Capital Requirements, and Financial Stability

This paper assesses the effects of insurance and capital requirements on assets' equilibrium returns in a capital-asset-pricing model in which intermediaries possess better information than the public about the yields on a set of assets. Equilibrium returns depend on two risk premiums that intermediaries incur on their liabilities: an explicit premium that reflects the public's view of the risks inherent in intermediaries' assets and an implicit premium that reflects intermediaries' risk of losing a share of their rent by leveraging their capital. Insurance reduces intermediaries' cost of funds, thereby reducing risk premiums on assets and stabilizing equilibrium returns when the public's assessment of yields changes. Because fair insurance premiums typically are small compared to intermediaries' own implicit premiums, any subsidy that low insurance premiums might confer does not induce intermediaries to increase their leverage excessively. Greater capital requirements increase intermediaries' implicit risk premium and diminish their capacity to stabilize equilibrium returns. When the yields of assets fall significantly, both insurance and capital requirements can precipitate disintermediation abruptly. This disintermediation can occur most frequently when intermediaries must maintain their scale of operations in order to earn their rent. Because financial stability ultimately depends on the stability of returns on capital goods, macroeconomic policy ultimately underwrites the lower cost of capital promised by insurance and the security promised by capital requirements.
The pharmacokinetics of levetiracetam in healthy dogs concurrently receiving phenobarbital.

Levetiracetam (LEV) is a commonly used add-on medication in dogs with refractory epilepsy. The objective of this study was to determine if the pharmacokinetics of LEV are altered by concurrent administration of phenobarbital (PB). Six healthy dogs received a single oral dose of LEV (16.7-27.8 mg/kg). Blood samples were collected at baseline and intermittently for 24 h. The study was repeated after the dogs received oral PB (2.0-3.3 mg/kg) twice daily for 21 days. Plasma LEV levels were evaluated by high pressure liquid chromatography, and data analyzed using a compartmental model. Compared with values determined when LEV was administered alone, concurrent administration of PB resulted in a decrease in LEV peak concentration (C(max) ) from 32.39 ± 6.76 to 18.22 ± 8.97 (P = 0.0071), a decrease in elimination half-life (T(1/2) ) from 3.43 ± 0.47 to 1.73 ± 0.22 (P = 0.0005), and an increase in oral clearance from 124.93 ± 26.93 to 252.99 ± 135.43 ml/h/kg (P < 0.0001). Concurrent PB administration significantly alters the pharmacokinetics of LEV in the dog, indicating that dosage adjustments might be necessary when the drug is administered with PB.
The Effectiveness of Reputation as a Disciplinary Mechanism in Sell-Side Research

We examine whether the quality differentials in earnings forecasts between reputable and nonreputable analysts vary with the severity of conflicts of interest. We measure personal reputation using the Institutional Investor All-American (AA) awards, and bank reputation using Carter-Manaster ranks. While both personal and bank reputation are associated with higher quality forecasts overall, their effectiveness against conflicts of interest differs. The severity of conflicts has a negative and significant effect on the performance of non-AAs at top-tier banks relative to other analysts, while it has a positive and significant effect on the performance of AAs at top-tier banks relative to others. Thus personal reputation is an effective disciplinary device against conflicts of interest, while bank reputation alone is not. The Author 2009. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Society for Financial Studies. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org. , Oxford University Press.
On the Effects of Downstream Entry

We study the effects of entry in a downstream market where firms (e.g., Compaq and IBM; CVS and Safeway) buy an input (e.g., microprocessor, grocery items) from an upstream supplier (e.g., Intel, Procter & Gamble) and sell their output to consumers. We show demand conditions where, contrary to conventional wisdom, entry of a new downstream firm lowers the downstream-market output and increases the consumer price. Thus consumers may be better off with fewer sellers in such markets. We also show that this entry may cause the profit of each incumbent downstream firm to: (i) remain unchanged; (ii) decrease; or (iii) even increase. Also, for a class of widely used demand conditions, the supplier's optimal price is shown invariant to the entry/exit of its downstream buyer firms. We classify all possible effects of downstream entry in terms of fundamental market demand conditions.
Tourism Research Co-authorship Networks in China

The primary objective of this study is to explore the patterns of collaborations in the tourism research community in China. The study reveals that co-authorship is fast-growing over the past 10 years. Using a common binary undirectional network model, this paper explores some network characteristics of the tourism research co-authorship network in China (TRCNC) and discusses the significance of the results. The results show that the TRCNC is typically a complex network with scale-free and small-world properties. The analyses of density and centrality indicate loose collaborations and a clear “leading scholars” phenomenon in the TRCNC. Clique analysis shows that there are lots of academic teams in tourism research in China in which scholars collaborate closely but out of which the scientific collaboration is less. In the TRCNC, those whose networks bridge structural holes are all well-known scholars in China, which is beneficial for making academic factions flourish while maybe incurring sluggish academic innovation ability.
Full symptomatic recovery does not ensure full recovery of muscle-tendon function in patients with Achilles tendinopathy

Objective: To assess the relationship between muscle-tendon function and symptoms in patients with Achilles tendinopathy using a validated test battery. Design: A prospective non-randomised trial. Setting: Orthopaedic Department, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Sweden. Patients: 37 patients with a clinical diagnosis of Achilles tendinopathy in the midportion of the tendon, with symptoms for >2 months, were evaluated at the initiation of the study and after 1 year. Intervention: The patients were treated using a rehabilitation programme, under the supervision of a physical therapist, for 6 months. Main outcome measurements: The patients were evaluated using the Swedish version of the Victorian Institute of Sports Assessment—Achilles questionnaire (VISA-A-S) for symptoms, and a test battery for evaluation of the lower leg muscle-tendon function. Results: There were significant improvements in the VISA-A-S score (p<0.00, n = 37) and the test battery (p<0.02, n = 19) at the 1-year follow-up. The VISA-A-S questionnaire had an effect size of 2.1 and the test battery had an effect size of 0.73. A low correlation (r = 0.178, p>0.05) was found between the VISA-A-S score and the test battery. A high correlation (r = 0.611, p<0.05) was found between the drop counter movement jump and the VISA-A-S score. All other tests in the test battery had low correlations (r = −0.305 to 0.155, p>0.05) with the VISA-A-S score. Only 25% (4/16) of the patients who had full symptomatic recovery had achieved full recovery of muscle–tendon function as measured by the test battery. Conclusion: Full symptomatic recovery in patients with Achilles tendinopathy does not ensure full recovery of muscle–tendon function. The VISA-A-S questionnaire and the test battery are sensitive to clinically relevant changes with treatment and can be recommended for use in both the clinic and research.
Segmentation of Different Types of Hallyu Tourists Using a Multinomial Model and Its Marketing Implications

The aim of this study was to classify types of Hallyu tourists based on their preferences for “Korean wave” products and to identify the factors influencing each tourist type. Results of cluster analysis suggested that the three-cluster solution was the most coherent and interpretable. Cluster 1 was named the “low involvement type,” and Clusters 2 and 3 were named the “consumption seeking type” and the “active film-induced tourism seeking type,” respectively. According to the results of the application of the multinomial logit model, the factors influencing the three tourist types were different. Additionally, the mean willingness-to-pay values were distinctive. The results of this study indicate both theoretical and marketing strategies for the tourism industry. One of the most important marketing implications is that there is a need to develop products including events involving famous television or movie stars, invitations to previews, tours of a television or film set, and honeymoon trips to film locations.
Utilizing Interactive Simulation-Based Modules for Enhancing Learning Outcomes in Basic Computing Skills Course

The utilization of interactive simulation-based instructional materials for teaching an introductory computer course plays a big contribution in leveraging student learning outcomes. Simulation can provide learners a guided environment wherein they learn the content by doing it. This paper focuses on the discussion of the positive outcomes and benefits gained by students in Sultan Qaboos University from the IT Foundation Program while utilizing an online course that is fully equipped with simulation-based training modules. It includes presentation of findings from an experiment to measure the impact of simulation in improving students learning engagement and performance. Whilst students responded favorably on the use of simulation tools and perceived that their comprehension and retention of the learning material were satisfied, the implication of this study is for educators to consider the incorporation of simulation-based modules in teaching. This paper also tackles some of the challenges affecting the implementation of simulation tools in teaching an online introductory computer course in the university. Discussions of results contained in this paper are supported with quantitative and qualitative data describing students perceptions on the employment of simulation-based modules. Furthermore, discussions about future directions of integrating ICT tools such as simulation-based instructional tools in Sultan Qaboos University context will also be presented for consideration.
Mdmx and Mdm2: Brothers in Arms?

The p53 tumor suppressor pathway is inactivated in most if not all human tumors. In about 50% of the cases this is accomplished directly by gene mutations. The tumors that retain wild type p53 frequently show defects either in effector target genes, or in the expression of p53 regulatory proteins. The Mdm2 protein is generally considered THE master regulator of the p53 tumor suppressor activity. Recently, however, the Mdm2-related protein Mdmx is taking the stage in the p53-Mdm2-Mdmx play. We summarize here observations unambiguously assigning a critical role for the Mdmx protein in the regulation of p53 function during development and tumor formation.
The role of prostanoids in neonatal cerebral blood flow autoregulation.

The regulatory role of prostanoids in acute cerebrovascular adaptations in newborns was determined using awake neonatal piglets (ages 0-5 days, n = 60). Cerebral blood flow (CBF) was measured by radiolabelled microspheres before and 45 s after intracarotid injections of PGE1 (0.1-10 micrograms/kg, n = 6), PGE2 (0.01-2 micrograms/kg, n = 6), PGF2 alpha (0.01 microgram/kg, n = 8) and PGI2 (0.1 microgram/kg, n = 6). CBF increased with PGE1 (10 micrograms/kg) by 39.5% and with all doses of PGE2 (p < 0.01) compared to zero dose. PGF2 alpha, a known adult vasoconstrictor increased total CBF from 97 +/- 8 to 130 +/- 14 ml/min per kg. PGI2 also increased CBF by 27% (p < 0.01). When CBF and prostanoid levels were measured with balloon catheters placed at the aortic root and the descending aorta and were inflated to adjust arterial blood pressure (BP) from 17 to 117 mmHg, sagittal sinus concentrations of prostanoids inversely correlated with total CBF (for PGs, tau = -0.52 to -0.66, p < 0.001; for TXB2, tau = -0.91 to 0.99, p < 0.0001). During hypotension (MABP < 50 mmHg) PGE, PGF2(2)alpha, 6-keto-PGF1 alpha and TXB2 increased by 311 +/- 56, 330 +/- 50, 301 +/- 44 and 658 +/- 44%, respectively. Net cerebrovascular production [total CBF x (sagittal sinus-arterial plasma prostanoid concentration)] of PGE, PGF2 alpha, and 6-keto-PGF1 alpha and TXB2 increased during hypotension compared to normotension (BP = 50-90 mmHg). At MABP = 91-117 mmHg, net production of prostanoids increased by 142-31%. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Presidents, Parties, and Policy Competition

Presidential systems present a unique possibility for spatial competition between elected political agents, since presidents may represent different policy positions than the parties to which they belong. Previous research, however, has lacked a firm empirical basis on which to measure these differences. We remedy this situation, providing independent estimates of positions and saliencies for presidents and parties on multiple policy dimensions in 18 Latin American countries, from original expert survey data. Our results offer strong evidence that positioning on nearly all political issues neatly reduces to a single dimension of left-right contestation. Furthermore, contrasting differences between the positioning of presidents and their own parties, we show that presidents tend to position themselves independently of their parties more in bicameral and proportional representation systems, when they differ in the importance they assign to a given policy dimension, and when elections with legislatures are nonconcurrent.
Spillover Effects of Minimum Wages in Experimental Wage Negotiations

We conduct a laboratory experiment to study spillover effects of minimum wages on wages above the minimum. In a bilateral firm-worker bargaining setting, the participants sit face-to-face and make alternating offers. We find that the introduction of a minimum wage exerts upward pressure on wages even if the minimum wage is too low to be a binding restriction. Furthermore, raising the minimum wage to a binding level increases bargained wages strictly above the new minimum wage level. Our results show that wage negotiations might be an additional channel through which spillover effects of minimum wages might arise. (JEL codes: C91, J30, J38)
Related Adhesion Focal Tyrosine Kinase and the Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor Mediate the Stimulation of Mitogen-activated Protein Kinase by the G-protein-coupled P2Y2 Receptor

The activation of growth factor receptors and receptors coupled to heterotrimeric guanine nucleotide-binding proteins (G-proteins) can increase mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase activity in many cells. Previously, we demonstrated that the activation of G-protein-coupled P2Y2 receptors by extracellular ATP and UTP stimulated MAP (p42 ERK2) kinase by a mechanism that was dependent on the elevation of [Ca2+] i and the activation of related adhesion focal tyrosine kinase (RAFTK) (also called PYK2, CAKβ, and CADTK) and protein kinase C (PKC). Here, we examine further the signaling cascade between the P2Y2 receptor and MAP kinase. MAP kinase was transiently activated by exposure of PC12 cells to UTP. UTP, ionomycin, and phorbol ester (phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate) increased MAP kinase activity and also promoted the tyrosine phosphorylation of RAFTK, the epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor, SHC, and p120 cbl . Down-regulation of PKC and inhibition of the elevation of [Ca2+] i , conditions that block the activation of MAP kinase, also blocked the increases in the tyrosine phosphorylation of RAFTK and the EGF receptor. AG1478, a tyrphostin selective for the EGF receptor, reduced the activation of MAP kinase, the tyrosine phosphorylation of SHC, the association of Grb2 with SHC, and the tyrosine phosphorylation of the EGF receptor and p120 cbl but did not block the tyrosine phosphorylation of RAFTK. The similar effects of UTP, ionomycin, and phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) on these signaling proteins demonstrate that the two signaling molecules from phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate hydrolysis ([Ca2+] i , from inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate production, and diacylglycerol) can individually initiate the activation of MAP kinase in an EGF receptor-dependent manner. These results demonstrate that the P2Y2 receptor-mediated transactivation of the EGF receptor occurs at a point downstream of RAFTK and indicate that the EGF receptor is required for P2Y2 receptor-mediated MAP kinase activation. Although P2Y2 and EGF receptors may both activate a similar multiprotein signaling cascade immediately upstream of MAP kinase, the P2Y2 receptor appears to uniquely utilize [Ca2+] i , PKC, and, subsequently, RAFTK.
An alternative time series model of consumption: some empirical evidence

This paper presents some empirical evidence for a time series model of aggregate consumer' expenditure which is formulated in continuous time. It is argued that such models, expressed in terms of stochastic differential equations, are more realistic in representing the dynamic evolution of many economic time series, particularly at the aggregate level. However, such models impose complicated restrictions on the discretely observed data, which must be taken account of in estimation. The appropriate methodology is applied to a version of the consumption function for UK data, and is found to provide a good description of the data. The estimated continuous time model is compared with more popular discrete models, and is found to provide superior dynamic post-sample predictions over 16 quarters. The formulation of econometric models in continuous time may provide an alternative and potentially successful approach to the modelling of time series in many aspects of economics.
Distal Femoral Fresh Osteochondral Allografts: Follow-up at a Mean of Twenty-two Years.

BACKGROUND Osteochondral defects of the knee in young, active patients represent a challenge to the orthopaedic surgeon. Our study examined long-term outcomes of the use of fresh allograft for posttraumatic osteochondral and osteochondritis dissecans defects in the distal aspect of the femur. METHODS We reviewed the cases of sixty-three patients who underwent osteochondral allograft transplantation to the distal aspect of the femur between 1972 and 1995. Five patients who resided out of the country were lost to follow-up. Indications for the allograft procedure were an age of less than fifty years and a unipolar posttraumatic osteochondral or osteochondritis dissecans defect in the distal aspect of the femur that was larger than 3 cm in diameter and 1 cm in depth. RESULTS Fifty-eight patients ages eleven to forty-eight years at the time of surgery (mean age, twenty-eight years) were followed for a mean of 21.8 years (range, fifteen to thirty-two years). Thirteen of the fifty-eight cases required further surgery; three underwent graft removal, nine were converted to total knee arthroplasty, and one underwent multiple debridements followed by above-the-knee amputation. Three patients died during the study due to unrelated causes. A Kaplan-Meier analysis of graft survival showed rates of 91%, 84%, 69%, and 59% at ten, fifteen, twenty, and twenty-five years, respectively. Patients with surviving grafts had good function, with a mean modified Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) score of 86 at fifteen years or more following the allograft transplant surgery. Late osteoarthritic degeneration on radiographs was associated with lower HSS scores and poorer clinical outcomes. CONCLUSIONS Fresh osteochondral allograft was found to provide a long-term solution for large articular cartilage defects in the distal aspect of the femur in young, active patients. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE Therapeutic Level IV. See Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.