Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Comparison of the Nucleotide Sequences of 16S rRNA, 444Ep-ank, and groESL Heat Shock Operon Genes in Naturally Occurring Ehrlichia equi and Human Granulocytic Ehrlichiosis Agent Isolates from Northern California

ABSTRACT We examined 11 naturally occurring isolates of Ehrlichia equi in horses and two human granulocytic ehrlichiosis agent isolates in California for sequence diversity in three genes.Ehrlichia equi isolates were from Sierra (n = 6), Mendocino (n = 3), Sonoma (n = 1), and Marin (n = 1) counties, and human granulocytic ehrlichiosis (HGE) agent isolates were obtained from Humboldt county. PCR with specific primers for 16S rRNA, 444Ep-ank and groESL heat shock operon genes successfully produced amplicons for all 13 clinical samples. The 444Ep-ank gene of the HGE agent and E. equiisolates from northern California is different from the eastern U.S. isolates BDS and USG3. The translated amino acid sequence of thegroESL heat shock operon gene fragment is identical amongE. equi, the HGE agent, and E. phagocytophila, with the exception of the northern Californian equine CASOLJ isolate. Microheterogeneity was observed in the 16S rRNA gene sequences of HGE agent and E. equi isolates from northern California. These results suggest that E. equi and the HGE agent found in California are similar or identical but may differ from the isolates of equine and human origin found in the eastern United States.
Use of Global Value Chains by Labor Organizers

Understanding global value chains is important for labor as well as business. However, to be useful for labor organizers, workers must first be located as entities in global value chains. Further modification can reveal possible strengths and weaknesses in the chain, identify worker allies and reveal necessary steps in the organizing process. This paper examines ways that labor educators have modified global value chains to teach workers about their industries, and uses two case studies to illustrate the application that global value chains have to comprehensive organizing campaigns. The paper argues that labor organizers should go one step further by using global value chains to conceptualize global plans to stabilize employment for workers after the end of the Multi-Fiber Arrangement, and to raise wages in this context.
National unions and transnational workers: the case of Olkiluoto 3, Finland

This article argues, through analysing industrial relations at the Olkiluoto 3 nuclear power plant construction site in Finland, that national unionism is inappropriately structured for the transnational construction industry. Olkiluoto 3 is being built by a French/German consortium employing mostly posted migrants via transnational subcontractors from around Europe. Despite the strong Finnish unions, contractors successfully contested the right of Finnish actors to regulate the site, placing labour relations in a deregulated space between national systems. Although the posted migrants eventually self-organized, Finnish unions remained unresponsive, reluctant to act outside the normal Finnish social partnership industrial relations paradigm. The case illustrates how the nationally based structure of the labour movement is ill-suited to represent a pan-European labour force.
Pegylated interferon-alpha-2a plus ribavirin for treatment-naive Asian patients with hepatitis C virus genotype 1 infection: a multicenter, randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND Comparable sustained virologic response (SVR) rates have been documented between Asian patients who received 24 weeks of pegylated interferon (IFN) plus ribavirin and white patients who received 48 weeks of combination therapy for hepatitis C virus genotype 1 (HCV-1) infection. Whether a 48-week course of combination therapy shows a better SVR rate than a 24-week course of such therapy among Asian patients with HCV-1 infection has not been confirmed in multicenter, randomized studies. METHODS In this multicenter, randomized trial, 308 treatment-naive HCV-1-infected Asian patients were randomly assigned to receive either 24 or 48 weeks of pegylated IFN-alpha-2a (180 microg per week) plus ribavirin (1000-1200 mg/day) therapy. The primary end point was SVR, defined as an undetectable serum HCV RNA level 24 weeks after discontinuation of therapy. In addition, rapid virologic response (RVR) was defined as an undetectable serum HCV RNA level at week 4 of therapy, and complete early virologic response was defined as an undetectable serum HCV RNA level at 12 weeks of therapy in the absence of RVR. RESULTS By intention-to-treat analysis, patients who received 48 weeks of therapy had a significantly higher SVR rate than did those who received 24 weeks of therapy (76% vs. 56%; P < .001). Among patients with a baseline serum HCV RNA level <800,000 IU/mL and RVR, SVR rates were comparable between 24- and 48-week courses of therapy (94% vs. 100%; P = .13). In contrast, 48 weeks of therapy was associated with a significantly higher SVR rate than was 24 weeks of therapy among patients without RVR (39% vs.16%; P = .01) and among those who achieved a complete early virologic response (44% vs. 20%; P = .02). CONCLUSIONS In treatment-naive Asian patients with HCV-1 infection, 48 weeks of pegylated IFN-alpha-2a plus ribavirin therapy is associated with a higher SVR rate, compared with 24 weeks of such therapy. Patients with a baseline serum HCV RNA level <800,000 IU/mL and who have achieved an RVR can receive a 24-week course of therapy without compromising the SVR rates; however, those who have not achieved an RVR but who have achieved a complete early virologic response should receive a 48-week course of therapy.
NACTIVATION OF PREFRONTAL CORTEX ABOLISHES CORTICAL CETYLCHOLINE RELEASE EVOKED BY SENSORY OR SENSORY ATHWAY STIMULATION IN THE RAT

bstract—Sensory stimulation and electrical stimulation of ensory pathways evoke an increase in acetylcholine release rom the corresponding cortical areas. The pathways by hich such sensory information reaches the cholinergic neuons of the basal forebrain that are responsible for this reease are unclear, but have been hypothesized to pass hrough the prefrontal cortex (PFC). This hypothesis was ested in urethane-anesthetized rats using microdialysis to ollect acetylcholine from somatosensory, visual, or auditory ortex, before and after the PFC was inactivated by local icrodialysis delivery of the GABA-A receptor agonist musimol (0.2% for 10 min at 2 l/min). Before PFC inactivation, eripheral sensory stimulation and ventral posterolateral thaamic stimulation evoked 60 and 105% increases, respecively, in acetylcholine release from somatosensory cortex. timulation of the lateral geniculate nucleus evoked a 57% ncrease in acetylcholine release from visual cortex and stimlation of the medial geniculate nucleus evoked a 72% inrease from auditory cortex. Muscimol delivery to the PFC ompletely abolished each of these evoked increases (overall ean change from baseline 7%). In addition, the spontaeous level of acetylcholine release in somatosensory, viual, and auditory cortices was reduced by 15–59% following FC inactivation, suggesting that PFC activity has a tonic acilitatory influence on the basal forebrain cholinergic neuons. These experiments demonstrate that the PFC is necesary for sensory pathway evoked cortical ACh release and trongly support the proposed sensory cortex-to-PFC-toasal forebrain circuit for each of these modalities. © 2007 BRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Learning to make external sensory stimulus predictions using internal correlations in populations of neurons

Significance To produce appropriate behavioral responses, such as catching fast-moving prey, the visual system copes with significant sensory processing delays. Spiking activity in the retina captures some of the most predictive aspects of the visual information, but this information must be accessible to downstream circuits. We tested how efficiently predictive information could be read out in downstream neurons and how difficult it is to learn to read out this information, using biologically plausible rules applied only to local inputs. Very simple learning rules could find near-optimal readouts of predictive information without any external instructive signal. This suggests that bottom-up prediction may play an important role in sensory processing. To compensate for sensory processing delays, the visual system must make predictions to ensure timely and appropriate behaviors. Recent work has found predictive information about the stimulus in neural populations early in vision processing, starting in the retina. However, to utilize this information, cells downstream must be able to read out the predictive information from the spiking activity of retinal ganglion cells. Here we investigate whether a downstream cell could learn efficient encoding of predictive information in its inputs from the correlations in the inputs themselves, in the absence of other instructive signals. We simulate learning driven by spiking activity recorded in salamander retina. We model a downstream cell as a binary neuron receiving a small group of weighted inputs and quantify the predictive information between activity in the binary neuron and future input. Input weights change according to spike timing–dependent learning rules during a training period. We characterize the readouts learned under spike timing–dependent synaptic update rules, finding that although the fixed points of learning dynamics are not associated with absolute optimal readouts they convey nearly all of the information conveyed by the optimal readout. Moreover, we find that learned perceptrons transmit position and velocity information of a moving-bar stimulus nearly as efficiently as optimal perceptrons. We conclude that predictive information is, in principle, readable from the perspective of downstream neurons in the absence of other inputs. This suggests an important role for feedforward prediction in sensory encoding.
Note-Optimal Long-Run Equilibrium Advertising Level for the Blattberg-Jeuland Model

The purpose of this note is to formulate and solve a dynamic optimization problem based on the Blattberg-Jeuland advertising model. Also examined is the behavior of the optimal long-run equilibrium level of advertising with respect to changes in some important parameters of the problem. In particular, a new interesting result, showing that the equilibrium optimal level of advertising for the B-J model is a nonmonotone function of the rate of decay parameter, is derived. That is, the equilibrium optimal level of advertising is an increasing function of the rate of decay for smaller rates of decay and a decreasing function for larger rates of decay than a critical rate of decay. This phenomenon is analogous to a sink effect and is intuitively appealing. It is also shown that the equilibrium optimal level of advertising is a decreasing function of the insertion cost and discount rate parameters. Finally, the framework presented in this note is also useful in analyzing further extensions of the problem solved here.
North-South Local Authority and Governance Differences in EU Networks

The current pattern of spatial disparities in Europe increasingly reflects the different networking capacity and competitive orientation of European localities. The article focuses on the north-south pattern of disparities and discusses the particularities of the economic and socio-political contexts of urbanization and local governance in the southern states of Spain, Greece and Portugal. The European Union (EU) networking initiatives, it is argued, have limited provisions in their structures for the north-south divergence of European local governance, endangering an increase in disparities. The responses of seven northern and southern local authorities to two EU RECITE networks (1992-1997) are comparatively examined in this framework.
Equal Opportunities in Educational Management in Institutions of Higher Learning: An Agenda for Gender

The article discusses the issue of gender disparities within education which have been long standing in many parts of the world. The discussion centres on the need for educational management boards to balance the selection and ranking of administrative-cum-managerial staff by practising non discrimination and by ensuring equal rights in the appropriate steps to higher positions of management, based on the notion of meritocracy and gender representation. Relevant examples have been drawn from the Zimbabwean context. Concerns about gender disparities within education have been long standing in many parts of the world (Davies 1990, Dorsey et al 1989, Gray 1989, Shakeshaft 1887, Saint 1992). Major differences of status and position, have divided men and women teachers throughout. Recently, the issue of equity in educational administration has become of increasing concern to educational policy makers, especially in developing countries. For example, in a review of the national planning documents of a number of countries, Davies (1990) found that inequality in the workplace was a key consideration of their governments. As she noted, although most developing countries refer to equality and egalitarianism in their policy documents, they have done very little to fulfil these noble objectives. In Zimbabwe, for instance, teaching has remained a male dominated profession, as shown by the fact that at 2003, the 15% women secondary school heads in the country were drawn from only 42% women secondary school teachers. The figures at primary school level were even more disproportionate, with only 5% of the school heads being female, drawn from a 50% female teaching force nationwide (Zimbabwe Government 1994). Within the organisational structures and processes of the educational institutions themselves, gender plays a much larger role than is often realised. Indeed, until recently when women began to speak out loudly about their concerns about being marginalised, gender issues in education in the developing countries remained largely un-addressed and, therefore, unresolved. Because of the growing agitation of the issues by women, it is no longer possible for governments to ignore them. That the marginalisation
Long-term dietary restriction in older-aged rhesus monkeys: effects on insulin resistance.

Long-term dietary restriction to maintain constant body weight in adult rhesus monkeys prevents the development of impaired glucose tolerance, hyperglycemia, and noninsulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. We sought to determine whether these positive antidiabetogenic effects of reduced calorie intake with maintenance of normal lean body weight might be mediated through prevention of the development of insulin resistance. Insulin-stimulated glucose uptake was assessed by the euglycemic hyperinsulinemic clamp technique in seven older-aged rhesus monkeys (20.7 +/- 0.6 years) who had been dietary restricted for 9 +/- 2 years. Results were compared to seven ad libitum-fed nondiabetic monkeys of similar age (21.0 +/- 1.3 years). Results showed that the dietary restricted monkeys had significantly higher in vivo insulin action compared to the ad libitum-fed group (14.06 +/- 2.4 vs 7.75 +/- 0.9 mg/kg FFM/min, respectively; p < .03). We conclude that long-term dietary restriction is an effective means of mitigating the development of significant insulin resistance in older-aged rhesus monkeys, and may be the mechanism underlying the prevention of Type II diabetes in this model.
CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY - AN IMPLEMENTATION GUIDE FOR BUSINESS

One of humankind’s greatest challenges this century is to ensure sustainable, just and balanced development. The needs of current and future generations cannot be met unless there is respect for natural systems and international standards protecting core social and environmental values. In this context, it is increasingly recognized that the role of the business sector is critical. As a part of society, it is in business interest to contribute to addressing common problems. Strategically speaking, business can only flourish when the communities and ecosystems in which they operate are healthy. It is broadly acknowledged among government, business and stakeholders that Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is not about charity, but that it belongs to the core business of a company and therefore should be an integral part of doing business. Companies are under increasing pressure from society to take their social responsibility.
Effect of Apocynin, an inhibitor of NADPH oxidase, in the inflammatory process induced by an experimental model of spinal cord injury

Abstract NADPH-oxidase is an enzyme responsible for reactive oxygen species production, and inhibition of this enzyme represents an attractive therapeutic target for the treatment of many diseases. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of Apocynin, NADPH-oxidase inhibitor, in the modulation of secondary injury in the spinal cord. The injury was induced by application of vascular clips to the dura via a four-level T5–T8 laminectomy in mice. Treatment with Apocynin 1 and 6 h after the trauma significantly decreased (1) the degree of spinal cord inflammation and tissue injury, (2) neutrophil infiltration, (3) adhesion molecule expression, (4) nuclear transcription factor–κB expression, (5) nitrotyrosine and poly-ADP-ribose formation, (6) pro-inflammatory cytokines production, (7) apoptosis and (8) mitogen-activated protein kinase activation. Moreover, Apocynin significantly ameliorated the loss of limb function (evaluated by motor recovery score). Thus, it is proposed that Apocynin may be useful in the treatment of inflammation associated with spinal cord trauma.
Effects of exports on productivity and growth in India: an industry–based analysis

This study analyses the effects of exports on the level of output per capita using the panel estimates of an extended version of the Mankiw, Romer and Weil (The Quarterly Journal of Economics, CVII, 407-37, 1992) model, and on the total factor productivity using the time series estimators. The analysis is carried out for ten industries in the manufacturing sector in India. The results do not provide any evidence of convergence, and instead support the contrary evidence of divergence among industries. The exports do not induce convergence and instead seem to accentuate the process of divergence among industries. The study provides some evidence for the significant effects of exports on the level of output per capita and TFP in the manufacturing sector. The effects of exports on TFP are significant in half of the sample industries, while in the remaining half these are statistically insignificant.
Accounting and the Moral Order: Justice, Accounting, and Legitmate Moral Authority

Relying upon the manner in which accountants speak about their practice, this paper provides an argument that accounting discourse suffers from incoherence. Arguing that accountants speak as if the institution of accounting is part of a moral order, it follows that for accounting to have moral standing it must be capable of providing good reasons for people to conform to accounting directives. Through the work of Baier (1995) and Habermas (1990), the paper describes the nature of a moral order and develops the conclusion that good reasons for accounting rules must be society anchored ones. Two examples are provided that illustrate why considerations of accounting as a deeply moral discourse are important. The first example is the iron law of accountability—which acts to subject people to accounting intrusions that may be unnecessary. The second example is the case of SFAS No. 106. The post‐retirement benefits standard is a recent example of the FASB establishing a supra‐legal definition of liability by as.
Influence of Emotional Distress among Supporters on the Outcome of Psychogeriatric Day Care

From a sample of consecutive referrals for psychogeriatric day care, the influence of the supporters' emotional distress and self-reported strain, together with the number of problems presented by the patient, was examined in relation to outcome, 6–7 months after initial attendance. A higher level of problems and the failure to achieve any reduction in reported distress were both found to contribute to the breakdown of community care and to the subsequent institutionalisation of the patient. Day hospital care was associated with a significant reduction in emotional distress for the majority of relatives, although for relatives whose distress was not alleviated by their dependents' attendance, admission to long-term care did produce such a reduction.
Reification and representation in the implementation of quality improvement programmes

The object of this paper is to explore superficiality in implementing improvement programmes. The reported lack of success of some quality improvement programmes in realising stated objectives is recognised, but what constitutes the superficial attempts at implementation may well be highly complex symbolic forms of representation and reification which have a multiplicity of meanings for the individuals involved. The project managers try to implement and the tools and activities used to do so are superficial and trivial, and very difficult for observers to associate with improving operations. However, for the managers themselves the superficial has a high degree of significance for their own progression in the organisation and, curiously enough, the means of convincing some outsiders of the organisation's competence. The dominant community of practice was not that of performance improvement, but creating the impression of doing so.
Prolonged therapeutic hypothermia after traumatic brain injury in adults: a systematic review.

CONTEXT The benefits of therapeutic hypothermia as a treatment for traumatic brain injury (TBI) remain unclear. OBJECTIVE To explore the effects of depth, duration, and rate of rewarming after discontinuation of hypothermia on mortality and neurologic outcome in adults after TBI. DATA SOURCES An electronic search of MEDLINE (OVID), EMBASE, Current Contents, the Cochrane library and a hand search of key journals were performed. Corresponding authors of identified studies were contacted for additional unpublished or ongoing clinical trials. STUDY SELECTION All randomized controlled trials of therapeutic hypothermia for at least 24 hours vs normothermia in adults with TBI. DATA EXTRACTION Demographic and clinical data, hypothermia interventions and cointerventions, mortality and neurologic outcomes, and methodological quality were abstracted by 2 independent reviewers. DATA SYNTHESIS Twelve trials met eligibility criteria and were included in the analysis. We also performed subanalyses by different hypothermia interventions (ie, depth, duration, and rapidity of rewarming after hypothermia) and methodological quality. Therapeutic hypothermia was associated with a 19% reduction in the risk of death (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.69-0.96) and a 22% reduction in the risk of poor neurologic outcome (95% CI, 0.63-0.98) compared with normothermia. Hypothermia longer than 48 hours was associated with a reduction in the risks of death and of poor neurologic outcome (relative risk [RR], 0.70; 95% CI, 0.56-0.87 and RR, 0.65; 95% CI, 0.48-0.89, respectively) compared with normothermia. Hypothermia to a target temperature between 32 degrees C and 33 degrees C, a duration of 24 hours, and rewarming within 24 hours were all associated with reduced risks of poor neurologic outcome compared with normothermia. Assessment of methodological quality did not reveal evidence of bias. CONCLUSIONS Therapeutic hypothermia may reduce the risks of mortality and poor neurologic outcome in adults with TBI. Outcomes were influenced, however, by depth and duration of hypothermia as well as rate of rewarming (<or=24 hours) after discontinuation of hypothermia. Nonetheless, the evidence is not yet sufficient to recommend routine use of therapeutic hypothermia for TBI outside of research settings.