Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Betaherpesvirus-Conserved Cytomegalovirus Tegument Protein ppUL32 (pp150) Controls Cytoplasmic Events during Virion Maturation

ABSTRACT The UL32 gene of human cytomegalovirus (CMV) encodes a prominent betaherpesvirus-conserved virion tegument protein, called pp150 (basic phosphoprotein/ppUL32), that accumulates within a cytoplasmic inclusion adjacent to the nucleus at late times during infection. Using a UL32 deletion mutant (ΔUL32-BAC) (where BAC is bacterial artificial chromosome), we demonstrate that pp150 is critical for virion maturation in the cytoplasmic compartment. Cotransfection of a pp150 expression plasmid with ΔUL32-BAC DNA led to complementation of the replication defect with focus formation due to secondary spread. Deletion of the amino terminus of pp150 or disruption of the betaherpesvirus conserved regions, CR1 and CR2, revealed these regions to be critical for replication. In contrast, deletion of the carboxyl terminus only partially compromised maturation while disruption of glycosylation sites had no effect. An African green monkey CMV UL32 homolog complemented ΔUL32-BAC replication but murine CMV M32 failed to complement, consistent with evolutionary divergence of rodent and primate cytomegaloviruses. Infection with ΔUL32-BAC showed normal expression of all kinetic classes of viral genes and replication of viral DNA, with accumulation of viral DNA-containing particles in the cytoplasm; however, mutant virus did not spread to adjacent cells. In contrast to this block in virion infectivity, cell-to-cell transfer of pp65-containing particles was observed, suggesting that release of dense bodies continued in the absence of pp150. These observations demonstrate that pp150 is critical for virion egress, possibly at the stage of final envelopment.
Influence of body temperature on bacterial growth rates in experimental pneumococcal meningitis in rabbits

We examined the role of fever as a host defense in experimental pneumococcal meningitis in rabbits. Twelve hours after intracisternal inoculation of an encapsulated type 3 Streptococcus pneumoniae strain, body temperature was manipulated by using two different anesthetic drugs: pentobarbital, which did not affect temperature, and urethane, which mitigated the febrile response to infection. Growth rates of pneumococci in cerebrospinal fluid were dramatically influenced by modification of the febrile response. Rabbits whose fever was not suppressed had mean bacterial doubling times of 2.76 +/- 1.43 h. Animals with a blunted febrile response had a significantly faster mean bacterial growth rate (doubling time = 1.10 +/- 0.27 h; P less than 0.02). When the antipyretic effect of urethane was counteracted by raising the ambient temperature, animals also showed a marked reduction in pneumococcal growth rates. In vitro, the pneumococci grew well at 37 degrees C in Trypticase soy broth (doubling time = 0.61 +/- 0.05 h) and in pooled rabbit cerebrospinal fluid (doubling time = 0.85 +/- 0.07 h). However, at 41 degrees C neither medium supported growth. Thus, body temperature appears to be a critical determinant of pneumococcal growth rates in experimental meningitis, and fever could be a host defense in this disease.
Prior Probability Disclosure And Loan Officers Judgments - Some Evidence Of The Impact

The findings of recent studies on commercial loan officers' predictive accuracy of corporate failure have been inconsistent. Using only limited sets of data consisting primarily of financial ratio profiles, subjects in studies by Libby [1975] and Zimmer [1980] predicted corporate failure for samples of real-life firms with 74 and 77 percent accuracy, respectively. Participants in studies by Abdel-khalik and El-Sheshai [1980] and Casey [1980], however, achieved only 62 and 57 percent accuracy, respectively. ' In earlier studies, Abdel-khalik [1973] and Kennedy [1975] found that approximately one-half of the subjects' probability judgments were greater than 50 percent for the incorrect alternative. Commenting on the poorer performance of loan officers in Casey's study relative to his own and Libby's, Zimmer remarked that the inconsistency "appears to be attributable to the fact that Casey declined to reset subjects' priors" [1980, p. 635]. Libby and Lewis [in press] also believe Zimmer's results support the notion that different performance results can occur depending on whether subjects know the probabilities of failure for their samples of firms. The current study was undertaken to provide some empirical evidence
Multi mobile robots formation in presence of obstacles

In this paper, the design of an fuzzy intelligent coordination algorithm is introduced for a team of multi mobile robots (MMR) that are confronted with obstacles. As well as obstacle avoidance, the controllers work to make the robots arrive concurrently at their target points by adjusting each of the robot's velocities as they move along their desired paths. The simulation results of three mobile robots traveling on different paths in unknown environments are presented to show the accuracy of obtaining control, coordination and obstacle avoidance by using the designed fuzzy algorithm.
Characterization of whey cheese packaged under vacuum.

Vacuum packaging was assayed at 4 degrees C and was tested in comparison to unpackaged counterparts, in both microbiological and physicochemical terms, in studies pertaining to the preservation of Requeijão, a traditional Portuguese whey cheese. Bacteria were absent (i.e., <10 CFU/g) in whey cheeses on the day of manufacture as a result of thermal processing. After storage, both unpackaged and packaged cheeses exhibited high viable counts of Bacillus, Pseudomonas, Enterobacteriaceae, and lactic acid bacteria (especially lactococci). Yeasts, staphylococci, enterococci, and spore-forming clostridia were severely inhibited by the package vacuum combined with the increasing acidification developed therein. Whey cheeses packaged under vacuum underwent substantial acidification, slight depletion of lactose, and no significant variation in moisture content or texture; conversely, unpackaged whey cheeses exhibited substantial loss of water and a concomitant increase in rigidity. Vacuum packaging strongly inhibited lipolysis (even if viable counts of some microbial groups were high); saturated fatty acids (mainly C16:0 and C14:0) accounted for ca. 73% of the total free-fatty acid content, whereas the most concentrated unsaturated fatty acids were C18:1 and C18:2 (ca. 14% each). The conclusions generated in our study are, in general, useful for a wide range of whey cheeses worldwide: i.e., Requéson (Spain), Ricotta (Italy), Broccio (France), and Anthotyro (Greece). In addition, our conclusions are particularly helpful in terms of improving the safety of Requeijão, a widely acclaimed dairy specialty.
THE EXCHANGE RATE IN THE EURO ZONE THROUGH NONTRADABLE GOODS AND THE INCOME EFFECT *

This paper shows those fundamental macroeconomics variables which explain the behaviour of the real exchange rate (RER) in the Euro Zone, with special emphasis in tariff rates. Diminishing tariffs on imports affect tradable and non-tradable sectors depending on substitution or income effects. When the substitution effect prevails, lower tariffs increase imports and the demand for foreign currency depreciates the euro. When the income effect is stronger, lower tariffs increase demand for goods in both tradable and non-tradable sectors. It boosts productivity and increases relative prices in the non-tradable sector.
Identifying Subcultures and their Perceptions towards Knowledge Management Systems

Knowledge and culture are inextricably linked in organizati ons. Effective deployment of Knowledge Management Systems (KMS) requires an understanding of the culture of the knowledge workers in the organization and their perceptions towards such systems. It would be a mistake to perceive the organization as a homogenous culture. Instead, organizations are composed of multiple subcultures that co-exist and interact with each other, with each subculture having its distinct set of values, norms and work practices. Based on a survey of 230 knowledge workers in Singapore about their work environment and practices, this study first investigates the subcultures that exist among knowledge workers and then analyzes how each subculture perceives the various features in a KMS. Data collected were subjected to cluster and discriminant analyses and four distinct subcultures emerged from this study, namely (1) Conformists, (2) Craftsmen, (3) Technocrats and (4) Artists. Further analysis revealed that there is a highly significant effect of subcultures on how user perceives KMS features. Understanding subcultures and their perceptions towards common KMS features is crucial as it guides organizations when planning and designing new features for their KMS.
Evaluation of traumatic extremity vascular injuries in surviving and non-surviving patients

Citation: Engin M, Aydın H. Evaluation of traumatic extremity vascular injuries in surviving and non-surviving patients. Turk J Vasc Surg 2019;28(x):i-vi ABSTRACT Objectives: This study aims to investigate surgical outcomes of traumatic extremity vascular injuries. Patients and methods: A total of 98 patients (89 males, 9 females; mean age 30.7±12.9 years; range, 4 to 68 years) who were operated for vascular injury due to extremity trauma in our clinic between October 2013 and October 2018 were retrospectively analyzed. Demographic data, type of damage, repair methods, and results of the patients were recorded from the hospital records. Results: Of the patients, 16 (16.3%) presented with hypotensive hemodynamic shock. The mean Mangled Extremity Severity Score (MESS) of the patients were 3.2±1.8. Injury etiologies were mostly gunshot injuries (57%). Femoral artery was the most common affected artery in 32.3% of cases. Primary repair was the most common repair in 47.3% of cases. Advanced age, higher MESS scores, and increased blood transfusion were found to be most effective factors for mortality (p<0.001). Conclusion: Based on our study results, we suggest that the success rate of treatment increases, if blood loss is reduced and the patient is taken to rapid surgery with effective intervention during patient transfer.
Comb-shaped polymer-based Dry electrodes for EEG/ECG measurements with high user comfort

Soft, comfortable polymer-based dry electrodes are fabricated. Impedance and biopotential measurements are carried out to compare the performance of conventional gel electrodes with our dry electrodes. The impedance of our dry electrodes is reduced by adding more conductive additives to the polymer material. To further lower the impedance, two skin pretreatment techniques are evaluated regarding their influence on skin impedance. However, these techniques are found to have only temporary beneficial effects. Finally biopotential measurements (both ECG and EEG) are performed using our soft polymer electrodes. The ECG signal acquired with both gel and our polymer electrodes demonstrates high degree of similarity. Therefore, heart beat detection is straightforward. To enable monitoring of EEG signals with smaller amplitudes, our dry electrodes need to be combined with pre-amplifiers. Initial EEG tests show that the alpha waves are clearly identifiable with the dry electrodes when subjects close their eyes. Based on the results, combining with sophisticated signal acquisition electronics, the dry electrodes provide a high user comfort solution for high quality biopotential measurements, even on very hairy skin.
The Development of and Prospects for Organic Aquaculture Worldwide

The organic sector is booming, with the largest ever wave of farm conversions under way. Negative environmental impacts, safety issues for aquaculture products, increased fish consumption and the increasing market share of organic foods have combined to focus attention on organic aquaculture. The objective of this paper is to give an overview of organic aquaculture throughout the world with regard to the differences between organic and conventional aquaculture, standards and certification programmes, along with development and prospects. The author also examines the key factors shaping organic aquaculture growth and offers recommendations for stimulating the success of organic aquaculture.
Safe Usage of Registers in BSPlib (Preprint)

Bulk Synchronous Parallel (BSP) is a simple but powerful high-level model for parallel computation. Using BSPlib, programmers can write BSP programs in the general purpose language C. Direct Remote Memory Access (DRMA) communication in BSPlib is enabled using registrations: associations between the local memories of all processes in the BSP computation. However, the semantics of registration is non-trivial and ambiguously specified and thus its faulty usage is a potential source of errors. We give a formal semantics of BSPlib with which we characterize correct registration. Anticipating a static analysis, we give a simplified programming model that guarantees correct registration usage, drawing upon previous work on textual alignment.
Optical Spectral Fingerprints of Tissues from Patients with Different Breast Cancer Histologies Using a Novel Fluorescence Spectroscopic Device

The fluorescence of paired human breast malignant and normal tissue samples was investigated using a novel fluorescence spectroscopic (S3-LED) ratiometer unit with no moving parts. This device can measure the emission spectra of key native organic biomolecules such as tryptophan, tyrosine, collagen and elastin within tissues by using LED (light emitting diode) excitation sources coupled to an optical fiber. With this device, the spectral profiles of 11 paired breast cancerous and normal samples from 11 patients with breast carcinoma were obtained. In each of the 11 cases, marked increases in the tryptophan levels were found in the breast carcinoma samples when compared to the normal breast tissues. In the breast cancer samples, there were also consistently higher ratios of the 340 to 440 nm and the 340 to 460 nm intensity peaks after 280 nm excitation, likely representing an increased tryptophan to NADH ratio in the breast cancer samples. This difference was seen in the spectral profiles of the breast cancer patients regardless of whether they were HER2 positive or negative or hormone receptor positive or negative, and was found regardless of meno-pausal status, histology, stage, or tumor grade.
Enterotoxin A and B production in strains of Staphylococcus aureus isolated from human beings and foods

Summary The production of enterotoxin A and B by strains of Staphylococcus aureus isolated from nasal swabs of healthy carriers, from lesions of hospital patients and from foods unconnected with outbreaks of food-poisoning was investigated. Sixty-six strains of S. aureus were obtained from human beings, two produced enterotoxin A, 45 produced enterotoxin B. seven produced enterotoxins A + B. Thirty-six strains were isolated from 111 samples of food, one produced enterotoxin A, 16 produced enterotoxin B. The relative incidence of A, B and A + B enterotoxigenicity was assessed.
A New Method of Identifying Influential Nodes in Complex Network ,-Diffusion Centrality

How to identify influential nodes in weighted complex network has drawn much attention in recent years. According to empirical observations, an individual in the real world usually influences its nearest neighbors and next nearest neighbors. The influence of the individual spreads from the center to the surrounds and follows a gradient descent rule. In this paper, we propose a new method to identify influential nodes in complex social networks and name it Diffusion Centrality. This measure describes the influence spread rules of the real world well. Numerical examples are provided to demonstrate the efficiency of the proposed method.
Evaluation of depression in patients with heart failure

Background: Despite advances in medical therapy heart failure consists a prevalent debilitating disease of poor prognosis, strongly associated with high mortality and morbidity rates. On the same time, depression rates are higher in patients with heart failure than in the general population. Depression may be underdiagnosed and consequently undertreated in the patients, as symptoms can often be similar in the two disease states. Purpose: The purpose of the present study was to explore the frequency of occurrence of depression in patients with heart failure and to evaluate possible precipitating factors. Method and material: Study sample consisted of 139 patients with heart failure, who were hospitalized or visited outpatients' clinics in two major hospitals in Athens. Collection of data was performed using the Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale. Statistical analyses (Student's t-test, One-way ANOVA) were conducted using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences 13.0 (SPSS, Chicago, Il, USA). Results: 110 patients (79.1%) were male and only 29 patients were female, over the age of 40. 71.9% were outpatients, 20.2% were hospitalized in the departments of cardiology, while 7.9% were I.C. U. patients. Analysis of data showed that 34.6% of patients scored lower than 40 in Zung Self-Rating Scale, indicating absence of depression, 27.3% scored 40 to 47, indicating mild depression, 20.9% scored 48 to 55, indicating moderate depression, and 17.2% scored over 56, indicating severe depression. More specifically, it was found that, regarding patients' gender and age, women (p=0.001) and patients over the age of 60 (p=0.001) experienced higher levels of depression, while regarding educational background patients who received only basic education may have been more prone to depression (p=0.05, non-significant). In addition, higher levels of depression were observed for those retired (p=0.028), those living in metropolitan areas (p=0.021), patients at 2nd or 3rd stage of heart failure (p<0.001), patients who had been diagnosed for over 1 year (p=0.032), as well as those who reported that were less informed about the extent of their condition (p=0.001). Conclusions: The majority of patients with heart failure experience various levels of depression. The main precipitating factors are age, gender, educational and economic status, place of residence, amount of receiving information as well as the stage and the onset of the disease. Nurses and physicians must act towards identification, assessment and management of depression in this clinical population.
Relationship Between Acculturation and Elevated BMI Among Foreign-Born US Residents - NHANES 2015-2016

INTRODUCTION: Health risks and economic burden associated with obesity calls for prevention, reduction, and urgent need to bridge the racial and ethnic disparities in its prevalence. More so net international migration is projected to be the highest driver of population growth in the US by 2030. Hence, an exploratory study to understand the burden of obesity across racial/ethnic groups and various sociodemographic subgroups is imperative. AIM: To describe the relationship between acculturation and elevated BMI among Foreign-born US residents. METHODS: Using survey data from the 2015 2016 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), this thesis examined the relationship between acculturation using Length of stay as a proxy and elevated body mass index [BMI]) among racial-ethnic groups, Hispanics (n=946), nonHispanic black (n=145), non-Hispanic whites (n=81), non-Hispanic Asians (n=587), and Multiracial/others (n=29). Descriptive statistics were conducted for all participant characteristics including age, gender, race, marital status, education, and family to income ratio (PIR). Bivariate analyses were conducted using Chi-Square Test for categorical variables and the Wilcoxon Rank sum test for continuous variables. Multivariable logistic regression models were constructed to explore the association of the primary independent variable on elevated BMI outcome. The logistic regression results are reported as odd ratios (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI). RESULTS: The is a no significant risk for elevated BMI with length of stay after adjusting for other age, gender, race, education and poverty (adjusted OR 1.19, 95% CI 0.857, 1.654). This finding is at variance with existing literature that shows there is an association between obesity and duration of stay. Gender is a significant factor in the relationship between acculturation and BMI and differs by race/ethnicity. Conclusions: There is a need for future research to explore the relationship between gender and acculturation among immigrants of different racial-ethnic groups.
A stochastic numerical model of breast cancer growth that simulates clinical data.

A new stochastic numerical model of breast cancer growth is developed. First, the model suggests that Gompertzian kinetics does apply but that from time to time, in random fashion, there occurs a spontaneous change in the growth rate or rate of decay of growth, such that the overall growth pattern occurs in a stepwise fashion. According to the model, the average time for the tumor burden to increase from one cell to detection is probably in the range of 8 years. Secondly, the model suggests that there is a linear relationship between the number of axillary lymph nodes positive for metastasis at diagnosis and the number of other metastatic sites. This can be described mathematically by the equation S = 0.24 + 0.35N where S is the number of other metastatic sites and N is the number of positive lymph nodes. The model has been verified by simulating three data sets: (a) the survival times of untreated breast cancer patients as described by Bloom et al. [Br. Med. J., 2: 213-221, 1962]; (b) the growth rates of breast cancers immediately prior to diagnosis as described by Heuser and Spratt [Cancer (Phila.), 43: 1888-1894, 1979]; and (c) the disease-free survival time postmastectomy as described by Fisher et al. [Surg. Gynecol. Obstet. , 140: 528-534, 1975]. This model could have implications concerning the overall treatment rationale for breast cancer.
Systematic Literature Review (SLR) of Resource Scheduling and Security in Cloud Computing

Resource scheduling in cloud computing is a com-plex task due to the number and variety of resources available and the volatility of usage-patterns of resources considering that the resource setting is on the service provider. This compounded further when security issues are also factored in. This paper provide a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) that will help to identify as much prior relevant research that has been done in the area of research topic. Also, all papers that are found from the search will be classified into groups to stand on the current situation and to identify possible existing gaps.