Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Microglial control of neuronal death and synaptic properties

Microglia have long been characterized by their immune function in the nervous system and are still mainly considered in a beneficial versus detrimental dialectic. However a review of literature enables to shed novel lights on microglial function under physiological conditions. It is now relevant to position these cells as full time partners of neuronal function and more specifically of synaptogenesis and developmental apoptosis. Indeed, microglia can actively control neuronal death. It has actually been shown in retina that microglial nerve growth factor (NGF) is necessary for the developmental apoptosis to occur. Similarly, in cerebellum, microglia induces developmental Purkinje cells death through respiratory burst. Furthermore, in spinal cord, microglial TNFα commits motoneurons to a neurotrophic dependent developmental apoptosis. Microglia can also control synaptogenesis. This is suggested by the fact that a mutation in KARAP/DAP12, a key protein of microglial activation impacts synaptic functions in hippocampus, and synapses protein content. In addition it has been now demonstrated that microglial brain‐derived neurotrophin factor (BDNF) directly regulates synaptic properties in spinal cord. In conclusion, microglia can control neuronal function under physiological conditions and it is known that neuronal activity reciprocally controls microglial activation. We will discuss the importance of this cross‐talk which allows microglia to orchestrate the balance between synaptogenesis and neuronal death occurring during development or injuries. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Coal consumption and economic growth in South Africa: An empirical investigation

In this paper, we examine the causal relationship between coal consumption and economic growth in South Africa, which is one of the largest coal producers and consumers in the world. We incorporate employment as an intermittent variable between coal consumption and economic growth – thereby creating a simple trivariate causality model. Using the ARDL bounds testing approach, we find that there is a unidirectional causal flow from economic growth to coal consumption in South Africa – both in the short run and in the long run. The results also show that there is a short-run unidirectional causal flow from coal consumption to employment, as well as a bidirectional causality between economic growth and employment. The study, therefore, concludes that for South Africa, it is economic growth, which Granger-causes coal consumption, and not vice versa. This implies that coal conservation could be achieved in South Africa – without necessarily compromising economic growth.
Effect of primary treatment on survival in anaplastic thyroid carcinoma.

AIMS Anaplastic thyroid carcinoma (ATC) is a fatal disease despite combined treatment consisting of chemotherapy, radiotherapy and surgery. The optimal sequence of treatment modalities is not known. The purpose of our retrospective non-randomized study was to find out whether timing of the treatment modality had any influence on survival, and to find out if primary surgery prolongs survival in comparison to primary chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy. METHODS From our database of 162 patients with ATC treated at the Institute of Oncology Ljubljana from 1972-98, 79 patients (26 men, 53 women; age: 40-86 years, mean age 65 years) were included in this retrospective study. The 83 patients with distant metastases on admission, with the survival shorter than one month or patients without any treatment were excluded. The 79 patients were classified into (1) primary surgery group (n=26) and (2) primary chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy group (n=53), including the 12 patients in whom surgery was performed after chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy. The survival of both groups was compared by log-rank test and group characteristics by ANOVA and(2 test using SPSS program. RESULTS In comparison to the primary surgery group, the patients from the primary chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy group were older and had faster growing, and larger tumours, which were not confined to the thyroid, and more frequently had regional metastases. There was no difference in the survival of the two groups (P=0.17). Survival for longer than one year was observed in 25% of patients with primary surgery and in 21% of patients with primary chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy. The best results (50% survival at one year) were obtained in patients in whom the tumour was surgically removed after primary chemotherapy and radiotherapy. CONCLUSION This study suggests that the timing of the treatment modalities has an impact on survival and that treatment should start with chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy, with surgery to follow if possible. )
A Closer Look at Calcium Absorption and the Benefits and Risks of Dietary Versus Supplemental Calcium

Abstract Objective: To perform a thorough search of the literature on calcium research and specifically address the topic of calcium absorption. Methods: PubMed and Ovid were the main engines used for primary literature searches; textbooks, review articles, and book chapters are examples of the other sources used for supplemental information. Results: Regarding calcium absorption, it seems apparent that the absorption efficiency of all calcium salts, regardless of solubility, is fairly equivalent and not significantly less than the absorption efficiency of dietary calcium. However, dietary calcium has been shown to have greater impact in bone building than supplemental calcium. This is likely due to improved absorption with meals and the tendency of people to intake smaller amounts more frequently, which is more ideal for the body's method of absorption. In addition, the cardiovascular risks of excessive calcium intake appear to be more closely related to calcium supplements than dietary calcium; this relationship continues to be controversial in the literature. Conclusions: We conclude that further studies are needed for direct comparison of supplemental and dietary calcium to fully establish if one is superior to the other with regard to improving bone density. We also propose further studies on the cardiovascular risk of long-term increased calcium intake and on physician estimates of patients' daily calcium intake to better pinpoint those patients who require calcium supplementation.
DBD-RCO: Derivative Based Detection and Reverse Combinatorial Optimization to improve heart beat detection for wearable devices

The diffusion of wearable sensors enables the monitoring of heart physiology in real-life contexts. Wearable technology is characterized by important advantages but also by technical limitations that affect the quality of the collected signals in terms of movement artifacts and presence of noise. Therefore specific signal processing algorithms are required to cope with the lower quality and different characteristic of signals collected with wearable sensor units. Here we propose and validate a pipeline to detect heartbeats in cardiac signals, extract the Inter Beat Intervals (IBI) and compute the Heart Rate Variability (HRV) indicators from wearable devices. In particular, we describe the novel Derivative-Based Detection (DBD) algorithm to estimate the beat position in Blood Volume Pulse (BVP) signals and the Reverse Combinatorial Optimization (RCO) algorithm to identify and correct IBI extraction errors. The pipeline is first validated on data from clinical-grade sensors, then on a benchmark dataset including examples of movement artifacts in a real-life context. The accuracy of the DBD algorithm is assessed in terms of precision and recall of the detection; error in the IBI values is quantified by root mean square error. The reliability of HRV indicators is evaluated by the Bland-Altman ratio. The DBD algorithm performs better than a state-of-art algorithm for both medical-grade and wearable devices. However, as already found in similar studies, worse reliability is found with the BVP signal in computing frequency domain HRV indicators, in particular with wearable devices.
Micro force plate array for measurement of ground reaction force of insect running

This paper reports on a micro force plate array for measurement of ground reaction forces of insect legs during running. The micro force plate is composed of a plate base and three beams whose surface and sidewall area are doped, which enable to detect both pressure and shear force. The device size and force resolution are 2000 μm × 500 μm × 20 μm (length × width × height) and 1 μN, respectively. Using this force plate array, the ground reaction forces of an ant was able to be measured.
Multitasking Planning and Executing of Intelligent Vehicles for Restaurant Service by Networking

Indoor intelligent vehicles have been applied widely in restaurant service, where they are usually demanded to work for long period for multiple tasks and face the challenges of uncertainty, efficiency, and working online. In this paper, we propose an approach of multitasking planning and executing by networking for intelligent vehicles working for restaurant service. As to increase the efficiency of accomplishing multiple tasks, traditional HTN model is adapted to present the property of executing in parallel for the plan. As working online, the new inserted task is decomposed to get its individual plan, which is then merged into the global plan by optimization modelled as a maximal weight clique problem through evaluating the relations among actions and optimizing based on maximal cost saving first. Additionally, the protected states and goal states of an action are monitored in execution monitoring while action executing. Once exception occurs, the replanning based on partially backtracking would repair it. Moreover, with the mechanism of cooperation by networking, vehicles can allocate tasks, share information, and cooperate for execution monitoring. Finally, the test and demonstration of the experiment for drink service in restaurant environment show the feasibility and the improvement on the efficiency of multitasking.
Reconciling Commercial (Universal) Banking with Microfinance Institutions in Ghana, Case Study: Greater Accra Region

The study focused on reconciling commercial banking with microfinance institutions in the Greater Accra region. The study identifies that microfinance institutions were not able to eradicate the poverty level among Ghanaians which calls for the indulgence of commercial banks to rescue the nation from poverty through the provisions of some of the microfinance services. The study uses a sample size of 500 respondents and adopted both descriptive and quantitative analysis. The descriptive analysis takes into accounts both pie charts, bar-graphs and tables whereas the quantitative analysis used both probit and Ordered probit regression model to analyze whether or not commercial banks are providing microfinance services and their level of performance in executing the role of the MFIs respectively. The main objective of the study was to identify the role of commercial banks in comparison to that of Microfinance institutions and to further examine the extent to which commercial banks meet the criteria of MFIs as well as some challenges the commercial banks faced. The study also revealed that door-to-do banking services are offered by both commercial banks and Microfinance institution. The study finds out that the structures (administrative staff, logistics, collateral requirements, etc) that are required for the operating of microfinance services on the market are completely different from that needed to offer pure commercial banking services. The study further finds out that high default rate among customers seems to be part of the major challenges the bank faces in discharging microfinance services. In the nut-shell the study revealed that commercial banks go out of their various banking halls to the individual on the market often times to promote/ market their product available in the banks and not necessarily offer microfinance services to petty traders and other small business units. Keywords: Microfinance, commercial banks, financial institutions, loans, savings
Efficacy and safety of fluvastatin in children and adolescents with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia

Aim: To assess whether early initiation of statin therapy for heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia favourably affects lipid profiles or vascular morphological changes. Methods: Children and adolescents aged 10–16 y with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia were administered fluvastatin (80 mg/d) for 2 y in a single‐arm two‐centre study. Carotid B‐mode intima‐media thickness (IMT) and M‐mode arterial wall stiffness (β) were recorded. Eighty of the 85 enrolled subjects completed the trial. Results: The median decrease in low‐density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol from baseline at last study visit was 33.9%; median decreases in total cholesterol, triglycerides and apolipoprotein B were 27.1%, 5.3% and 24.2%, respectively; the median increase in high‐density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol was 5.3%. Changes in carotid arterial wall thickness and stiffness versus baseline were fractional and statistically non‐significant (ΔIMT −0.005 mm, 95% CI −0.018 to +0.007 mm, n=83; and Δβ= 0.017, 95% CI −0.219 to +0.253, n=79). Adverse events, all non‐serious, were reported by 58 subjects (68.2%); four were suspected to be drug‐related. Change in hormone levels and sexual maturation were appropriate for this age group.
A Swan Song for the Value Driver Model-Modern Theory and Application of Constant-Growth Equity Valuation Models

In this paper we shed new light on the most widely used terminal valuation tool: the accounting based value driver model (VDM). Based on a purely cash flow-driven approach we identify the requirements necessary for proper application of the VDM under a conservative accounting regime and show that, contrary to pure cash based models, the VDM only works accurately in an aseptic academic environment. A scenario analysis emphasises the noticeable quantitative impact of any violations of these assumptions. Artificially adjusting real world figures to the required aseptic academic environment is principally possible but entails additional workload and bloats the valuation model. We further show that the VDM is not only a fragile valuation tool from a technical/theoretical perspective but also prone to be misused in valuation practice due to its reliance on book rates of return rather than economic rates of return. The paper contributes to the current literature on accounting based equity valuation in various ways, as it shows that the original Gordon/Shapiro (1956)-model is misspecified as long the accounting system exhibits the characteristics of conservativeness, it lends fresh support to the Ritter/Warr (2002) critique of residual income valuation models, it highlights new problems of accounting based valuation models and it introduces new practice-relevant aspects into the discussion about terminal value estimates between Penman/Sougiannis (1998) and Lundholm/O’Keefe (2001 and 2001a). This paper stands for a renunciation of the VDM as well as an embracement of purely cash driven models.
The influence of gender and country-of-origin effects on student processes in team projects

This paper presents results from a study investigating the influence of gender and country-of-origin effects on individual level student processes occurring within clearly divisible academic student team projects. The study was exploratory in nature and aimed at unravelling 'possibilities' rather than reaching definitive conclusions. While a number of variables were researched, statistically significant results were found in a few areas. One was in relation to gender and measures exploring social approval and the 'sucker effect', which is when team member performance is detrimentally affected by perceived lack of effort by other team members. Statistical significance also emerged between overseas-born students and Australian-born students on social approval, as well as self-efficacy (or students' own confidence) in completing team projects. The paper discusses the implications of this research for the management of student team projects and outlines directions for future research. The overall conclusion arising from this study is that effective management of gender and country-of-origin effects in student projects is linked to improvement in students' interpersonal skills. This concurs with a conclusion reached in a broader study of individual level student processes occurring in academic student team projects (Caspersz, Wu & Skene: 2002).
Trade Politics: A Brief Survey of International Political Economy

International political economy has already been shown to be powerful to explain the global trade growth. In this paper we offer a brief survey of international political economy of trade policy. In addition to this, we also try to address three questions: (1) How does electoral competition affect trade policy? Suppose two parties compete for the power over trade policy, would the two parties choose the same tariff? (2) We observe that the US tariffs decline over time, so do the declining U.S. tariffs lead to the fall of the Democratic vote share in the election? (3) What is the relationship between trade globalization and political liberalization? Put it another way, how does trade affect democracy? And conversely, how does democracy affect trade?
A SysML-Based Methodology for Manufacturing Machinery Modeling and Design

This paper describes a modeling methodology to support the design process of complex systems. The main challenge in modern industrial applications is the sheer volume of data involved in the design process. While using high-level abstraction is necessary to manage this data and analyze the system “as a whole,” designers need also to retain all the low-level information of the system, in order to be able to perform optimizations and modifications at later times. The solution proposed here is to use a hierarchy of models, each one describing the system at different levels of abstraction, and arrange them in such a way that it is possible to easily “map” each level onto the others. The topmost layer of the system description is expressed in System Modeling Language, a general-purpose modeling language based on Unified Modeling Language.
Prevalence and characteristics of verotoxin‐producing Escherichia coli (VTEC) in stool samples from asymptomatic human carriers working in the meat processing industry in Switzerland

A total of 5590 stool samples from healthy employees in the meat industry were screened by PCR for verotoxin‐producing Escherichia coli (VTEC). The PCR product of VT‐encoding genes was detected in 3·5% of the samples. Phenotypic and genotypic traits of 47 VTEC strains isolated from asymptomatic carriers were characterized. A variety of serotypes was found; one strain belonged to the serotype O157:H7. The majority of the isolates proved to be VT2‐positive. Fifty‐seven percent of the verotoxin‐producing strains harboured the genes for one or several additional virulence associated factors, including intimin (eae, 8·5%), the 60 MDa plasmid (42·5%), enterohaemolysin (EHEC‐hlyA, 38·3%), the heat‐stable enterotoxin (astA, 6·4%), a serin protease (espP, 6·4%), colicin production (col D157, 12·8%) and a secretion system II (etpD, 10·6%). None of the strains was positive for a specific enzyme with catalase‐peroxidase activity (katP).
Limits of Microbial Existence: Temperature and pH

A microscopic survey made to detect the presence of bacteria in hot springs of varying temperature and pH characteristics revealed that in neutral and alkaline hot springs bacteria are found at temperatures up to the boiling point of water (92� to 100�C, depending on the altitude). In hot springs of increasing acidity the upper temperature limit at which bacteria are found decreases; at pH 2 to 3 the upper temperature limit is 75� to 80�C. Bacteria have thus been able to evolve with the ability to grow at either high temperature or high acidity, but not at both high temperature and high acidity. These results suggest that there are physicochemical limitations of the environment beyond which life is impossible.
Serum folate and risk for ischemic stroke. First National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey epidemiologic follow-up study.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE A serum folate concentration < or = 9.2 nmol/L has been associated with elevated levels of plasma homocyst(e)ine. Elevated homocyst(e)ine levels have been associated with ischemic stroke in case-control studies; however, the results from prospective studies have been equivocal. We investigated whether a folate concentration < or = 9.2 nmol/L was associated with ischemic stroke in a national cohort. METHODS We used data from the First National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey Epidemiologic Follow-up Study (n = 2006). Cox proportional hazards analyses were used to adjust for differences in follow-up time and covariates. During the 13-year follow-up, 98 ischemic strokes occurred. RESULTS After adjusting for age, race, sex, education, diabetes, history of heart disease, systolic blood pressure, body mass index, hemoglobin level, cigarette smoking, and alcohol intake, participants with a folate concentration < or = 9.2 nmol/L were at slightly increased risk for ischemic stroke (relative risk [RR], 1.37; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.82 to 2.29). There was a folate-race interaction (P = .11 for interaction term). Whites with a folate concentration < or = 9.2 nmol/L had a relative risk of 1.18 (95% CI, 0.67 to 2.08), whereas blacks had a relative risk of 3.60 (95% CI, 1.02 to 12.71). CONCLUSIONS These findings suggest that a folate concentration < or = 9.2 nmol/L may be a risk factor for ischemic stroke, especially in blacks. However, given the small number of stroke events, additional studies are needed to assess the role of folate in the epidemiology of ischemic stroke.
Growth, Acquisition and Investment: An Analysis of the Growth of Industrial Firms and Their Overseas Activities

Economic analysis has focused increasingly on the forces governing the growth and performance of firms in capitalist countries. This book presents the results of an empirical investigation into some aspects of firm growth which have either been relatively neglected or about which there is no recent evidence. Four aspects are examined in detail: the relationship between size, growth and profitability; the degree of trade-off between growth by acquisition and growth by new investment; the role of different forms of financing; and the implications of external markets and overseas production for firms' performance. These issues are important for understanding both firms, growth and the industrial and competition policies pursued in the UK and other capitalist countries recently. The results are based on the most comprehensive recent data on industrial companies in the UK or, indeed, in any other advanced country.