Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Determination of Genotypic Diversity of Mycobacterium avium Subspecies from Human and Animal Origins by Mycobacterial Interspersed Repetitive-Unit-Variable-Number Tandem-Repeat and IS1311 Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism Typing Methods

ABSTRACT Members of the Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) are ubiquitous bacteria that can be found in water, food, and other environmental samples and are considered opportunistic pathogens for numerous animal species, mainly birds and pigs, as well as for humans. We have recently demonstrated the usefulness of a PCR-based mycobacterial interspersed repetitive-unit-variable-number tandem-repeat (MIRU-VNTR) typing for the molecular characterization of M. avium subsp. paratuberculosis and M. avium strains exclusively isolated from AIDS patients. In the present study we extended our analysis, based on eight MIRU-VNTR markers, to a strain collection comprehensively comprising the other M. avium subspecies, including M. avium subsp. avium, M. avium subsp. hominissuis, and M. avium subsp. silvaticum, isolated from numerous animal species, HIV-positive and HIV-negative humans, and environmental sources. All strains were fully typeable, with the discriminatory index being 0.885, which is almost equal to that obtained by IS1311 restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) typing as a reference. In contrast to IS1311 RFLP typing, MIRU-VNTR typing was able to further discriminate M. avium subsp. avium strains. MIRU-VNTR alleles strongly associated with or specific for M. avium subspecies were detected in several markers. Moreover, the MIRU-VNTR typing-based results were consistent with a scenario of the independent evolution of M. avium subsp. avium/M. avium subsp. silvaticum and M. avium subsp. paratuberculosis from M. avium subsp. hominissuis, previously proposed on the basis of multilocus sequence analysis. MIRU-VNTR typing therefore appears to be a convenient typing method capable of distinguishing the three main subspecies and strains of the complex and providing new epidemiological knowledge on MAC.
The production of soft power: practising solidarity in Brazilian South–South development projects

Abstract Brazil's development cooperation and solidarity discourse have been portrayed as soft power resources. However, few studies have analysed how Brazil implements development cooperation, and soft power theory itself suffers from a lack of empirical evidence. This article looks at the perceptions of participants in three Brazilian projects, particularly how soft empowerment is manifested through the demand-driven and horizontality approaches to development cooperation. I contend that these approaches have produced a positive image among the “recipients”, and I show that their perceptions of development cooperation emphasise the style, rather than the completion, of project activities.
Tracking of physical activity from early childhood through youth into adulthood.

PURPOSE The aim of the study was to investigate the tracking of physical activity (PA) from preschool age to adulthood in six age cohorts of males and females. METHODS A random sample of 3596 boys and girls age 3-18 yr participated in the Cardiovascular Risks in Young Finns Study in 1980. The follow-up measurements were repeated in 1986, 1992, 2001, and 2007. The PA was measured by mother's report in 3- and 6-yr-olds and self-report in 9-yr-olds and older. Tracking of PA was analyzed using the Spearman rank-order correlation and a simplex model. RESULTS Mother-reported PA at age 3 and 6 yr significantly predicted self-reported PA in youth and in young adulthood, and there was a significant indirect effect of mother report on adult PA 2007 in males. Simplex models that fitted the data very well produced higher stability coefficients than the Spearman rank-order correlations showing moderate or high tracking. The tracking was higher in males than that in females. CONCLUSION This study has shown that physically active lifestyle starts to develop very early in childhood and that the stability of PA is moderate or high along the life course from youth to adulthood.
The contextual impacts on job satisfaction of employees in the developing states like Pakistan

Context (social, organizational, human and job-related) plays dominant role in the determination of the job satisfaction of employees in any organization however; its role differs from advanced to developing countries both in terms of number of the factors as well as the intensity of different contexts. The context of organizations in the developing states is more biblical and orthodox while at the same time the contextual forces are not moderate rather extremist. It is therefore argued that the researchers in developing states like Pakistan must identify the context of job satisfaction but with special focus on the unique contextual attributes that signify the work environment of a particular country .
Book review: The Shift to the Entrepreneurial Society: A Built Economy in Education, Sustainability and Regulation

development programmes promoting entrepreneurship, since the conditions that enable and/or constrain the process are affected by the wider social, economic, political and institutional context over which the state has a major influence (Smallbone and Welter, 2001). The book is well structured and based on two research projects: ‘Cross-border cooperation in Belarus, Moldova and Ukraine’ (2005–2007) and ‘Cross-border cooperation and entrepreneurship development’ (2006–2008). Overall, the book successfully examines the issues involved in cross-border entrepreneurship, cross-border cooperation and economic development in Europe’s border regions. The book also successfully discusses the policy implications for cross-border entrepreneurship, and suggests that policies to promote cross-border entrepreneurship should reflect the wider state policy towards entrepreneurship and economic development generally. Therefore, I recommend this book as a good read to researchers, practitioners and policymakers.
Responses of Gastrointestinal Peptides and Motor Activity to Milk and Water Feedings in Preterm and Term Infants

ABSTRACTS: Because duodenal motor activity differs between preterm and term infants during fasting, this study evaluated the responses of motor activity and peptide release in response to feeding. In the first study, fasting concentrations of gastrin, gastric inhibitory peptide, neurotensin, and peptide YY (PYY) were determined in 53 preterm and 20 term infants. Plasma concentrations of gastrin and neurotensin were significantly lower in preterm infants than in healthy adults reported previously by our lab (p < 0.01). Plasma concentration of gastric inhibitory peptide and PYY were higher than in healthy adults (p < 0.01). Gastrin concentrations in preterm and term infants varied directly with gestational age (p < 0.005); PYY varied inversely with gestational age (p < 0.005). In a secondary study, intestinal manometry was recorded and serial peptide concentrations were determined in 43 preterm babies who were given their first enteral feeding intraduodenally with formula or sterile water. Although none of the four peptide plasma concentrations changed in response to feeding with water, plasma concentrations of gastric inhibitory peptide, neutrotensin, and PYY significantly increased with formula feedings (p < 0.05 or less). In addition, plasma gastrin increased significantly in seven infants fed milk compared with eight fed water by orogastric tube (p < 0.01). In contrast to the peptide response to feeding, motor activity changed in response to feeding with either water or milk; motility indices increased and periods of motor quiescence decreased significantly during feeding as compared with fasting (p < 0.02). Responses of both motor activity and peptides to feeding were time related. Although fasting concentrations of four regulatory peptides were immature in preterm infants compared with adults, postprandial responses to nutrient feedings were present in the first days of life. This discrepancy in functional maturation of the preterm intestine during fasting and feeding is present for both motor activity and peptide response, and we speculate that the controlling mechanisms of these two phases of digestion may mature independently at different postconceptual ages.
Practices Of Corporate Social Responsibility (Csr) In Banking Sector In India: An Assessment

At present, the world over, there is an increasing awareness about Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), Sustainable Development (SD) and Non-Financial Reporting (NFR). The contribution of financial institutions including banks to sustainable development is paramount, considering the crucial role they play in financing the economic and developmental activities of the world. In this paper authors have high lighting the CSR practices in Indian banking and financial institutions, different case studies and key findings of the study and a few conclusions. The present study is based on the case study method and an effort has made to know the status of CSR and strategies adopted for CSR in the Banking sector. Twelve banking and financial institutions are selected under stratified random sampling method from the vast network of banking and financial institutions of the country. Data are collected from the secondary sources most particularly from concerned Banks Annual Report, web sites, newsletters and other secondary sources. The study covers the time period 2007 to 2010. From the case study, it is observed that all the financial and banking institutions of the country are directly engaged in social banking and developing banking approach. Further, all banking and financial institutions under study undertakes both fund based and non-fund based activities as a part of CSR activity.
[Peculiarities of induced sputum inflammatory cell counts in allergic versus non-allergic asthma].

OBJECTIVE According to the Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA, updated 2004), although non-allergic asthma has a different clinical profile than allergic asthma, it is not a distinct immunopathological entity. We aimed to investigate the peculiarities of inflammatory cell counts in induced sputum from patients with allergic and non-allergic asthma. METHODS We investigated 41 steroid naive patients (mean age 51.8+/-1.5 years) with mild persistent asthma. Depending on the results of allergic anamnesis and skin prick test, patients were divided into the two groups: 21-with allergic asthma, 20-with non-allergic asthma. Spirometry, bronchial provocation test with methacholine (PD20) and sputum induction with hypertonic saline were performed. Cytospins of induced sputum were stained with May-Grunwald-Giemsa for differential cell counts. RESULTS. In samples from non-allergic asthmatics we detected a significantly higher number of total cells (1.97+/-0.33 vs 1.23+/-0.11x10(6)/ml, p<0.01), neutrophils (1.34+/-0.18 vs 0.41+/-0.06x10(6)/ml, p<0.01) and lymphocytes (0.36+/-0.04 vs 0.15+/-0.03x10(6)/ml, p<0.01), than in samples from allergic asthmatics. Number of eosinophils and macrophages did not significantly differ between two groups. In non-allergic asthmatics, number of lymphocytes correlated with PD20 (Rs=0.41, p<0.05); in allergic asthmatics, number of eosinophils in induced sputum correlated with PD20 (Rs=0.71, p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS Our data suggest that lymphocytes might play a more important role in pathogenesis of non-allergic asthma, while eosinophils -- in allergic asthma.
Document clustering optimization with synonym dictionary check function

Document clustering is an unsupervised process to group documents into the suitable category based on document's similarity. Before being clustered, generally set of documents are transformed into bag-of-words that was produced by preprocessing steps. Preprocessing is the initial steps that usually composed by case folding, tokenizing, stemming and filtering processes. But this traditionally bag-of-words representation have many drawbacks, such as the identification of synonym terms, high dimension and ineffective computation time. To resolve these problems, we propose the addition of functions in preprocessing stage. These additional functions are LSA, TF-IDF and the combination of TF-IDF/LSA function. Furthermore, these functions will be combined with synonym dictionary check function. The research uses 100 computer science documents in Bahasa Indonesia. The clustering process was implemented with K- Means clustering algorithm. According to the results, the addition of these functions will improved cluster accuracy compared to traditional preprocessing steps in document clustering. The experiment results also showed that the cluster accuracy was increasing while these functions were combined with synonym dictionary check function. The best accuracy achieved by the combination of TF-IDF/LSA with synonym dictionary check function in preprocessing stage. On the other hand, the addition of synonym dictionary check function has improved the completion time for clustering process as well. However, the addition of other functions such as TF-IDF, LSA or TF-IDF will cause longer completion time for clustering process.
Adoption and Diffusion of e-Government Services: the Impact of Demography and Service Quality

This study attempts to analyze the impact of demography and service quality on the adoption and diffusion of e-government services in the context of India. The objective of this paper is to study the users' perception about e-Government services and investigate the key variables that are most salient to the Indian populace. The outcome of the study could be used by government agencies in designing, updating, and promoting e-government services to enhance public participation leading to better efficiency, convenience, engagement, and transparency. At the completion of this study, a research model that would help understand the relationship involving the demographic variables and service quality dimensions, and the willingness to adopt e-government services in India is expected to be developed.
An ongoing role for Wnt signaling in differentiating melanocytes in vivo

A role for Wnt signaling in melanocyte specification from neural crest is conserved across vertebrates, but possible ongoing roles in melanocyte differentiation have received little attention. Using a systems biology approach to investigate the gene regulatory network underlying stable melanocyte differentiation in zebrafish highlighted a requirement for a positive‐feedback loop involving the melanocyte master regulator Mitfa. Here, we test the hypothesis that Wnt signaling contributes to that positive feedback. We show firstly that Wnt signaling remains active in differentiating melanocytes and secondly that enhanced Wnt signaling drives elevated transcription of mitfa. We show that chemical activation of the Wnt signaling pathway at early stages of melanocyte development enhances melanocyte specification as expected, but importantly that at later (differentiation) stages, it results in altered melanocyte morphology, although melanisation is not obviously affected. Downregulation of Wnt signaling also results in altered melanocyte morphology and organization. We conclude that Wnt signaling plays a role in regulating ongoing aspects of melanocyte differentiation in zebrafish.
Neurological Manifestations of Scrub Typhus: A Case Series from Tertiary Care Hospital in Southern East Rajasthan

Scrub typhus is an acute febrile infectious illness caused by rickettsia species Orientia tsutsugamushi. In recent years, scrub typhus has reemerged as a life-threatening disease in India Scrub typhus has diverse clinical manifestations ranging from a nonspecific febrile illness to severe multiorgan dysfunction, and neurological complications are also common. Spectrum of neurological complications varies from common complications such as aseptic meningitis, meningoencephalitis and cerebellitis to rare complications such as myelitis, cerebral hemorrhage, acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM), and cerebral infarction. Scrub typhus is not a common cause of acute febrile illness in state like Rajasthan, but has emerged as a life-threatening disease in recent years along with dreaded neurological complications. This case series highlights various neurological manifestations of scrub typhus as early diagnosis and treatment of neurological complications have good prognosis.
A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled pilot trial of safety and tolerability of two doses of divalproex sodium in outpatients with probable Alzheimer's disease.

OBJECTIVE The Alzheimer's Disease Cooperative Study (ADCS) is conducting a clinical trial to address whether chronic valproate treatment can delay emergence of behavioral symptoms in outpatients with AD. Since there were no data on the safety and tolerability of divalproex sodium in outpatients with dementia, we undertook a pilot study to inform the design of the ADCS study. METHODS We recruited 20 outpatients with probable AD, MMSE 10-20, without history of agitation or psychosis. This was a 10-week randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study assessing the safety and tolerability of 1,000 mg/day and 1,500 mg/day of divalproex sodium delayed-release for 8 weeks followed by extended-release for 2 weeks. Other outcome measures addressed cognition, function, global status, side effects, and laboratory data. RESULTS Participants assigned to active treatment ingested approximately 30% less of their prescribed study medication compared to those receiving placebo (p < .05 Wilcoxon Rank Sum test). The average tolerated dose for all participants at week 8 was 810 mg/day or 11.5 mg/kg/day, similar to the dose tolerated by nursing home patients. The most common side effects were sleepiness and tiredness, with worse cognitive performance in those assigned to 1500 mg/day. CONCLUSIONS These results were used to design the multi-center ADCS trial. Doses of less than 1000 mg/day of divalproex sodium were the maximum tolerated by these outpatients with AD. A larger study of divalproex sodium dose tolerability is needed to define treatment in outpatients with Alzheimer's disease.
Neuroepidemiology Increases Impact Factor

Accessible online at: www.karger. com/ned This last issue of 2003 brings excellent news to the readers, editorial board, and publishers of Neuroepidemiology. According to the Institute for Scientific Information (ISI), Neuroepidemiology increased its impact factor (IF) to 2.139 in 2002 from 1.390 in 2001. This culminates an upward 5-year trend that reflects the increasing quality of the work submitted for publication in this journal. The IF is considered a putative marker of journal quality [1]. A creation of Eugene Garfield, the founder of ISI, the IF was described in 1972 as a ratio between citations and citable items published in a particular period [2]. The numerator for this ratio is the number of all current year (2002) citations in the literature; the denominator is the number of citable items, i.e., articles published in the journal during the preceding two years (2000, 2001). Large-volume publications and review journals have the highest IFs, but from thousands of journals only a minority achieve an IF 13.0 [3]. Despite persistent [4] and sometimes vociferous criticisms of its role [5], the IF is associated with higher methodological quality of clinical research articles [6], often reflecting higher rejection rates. The latter are a measure of the quality control exerted by peer reviewers, deputy editors, and members of the editorial board. In the final analysis, this increase of Neuroepidemiology’s IF reflects the coming of age of this young discipline, with ramifications to all clinical subspecialties of neurology.
Outcome of Acute Prosthetic Joint Infections Due to Gram-Negative Bacilli Treated with Open Debridement and Retention of the Prosthesis

ABSTRACT The aim of our study was to evaluate the outcome of acute prosthetic joint infections (PJIs) due to gram-negative bacilli (GNB) treated without implant removal. Patients with an acute PJI due to GNB diagnosed from 2000 to 2007 were prospectively registered. Demographics, comorbidity, type of implant, microbiology data, surgical treatment, antimicrobial therapy, and outcome were recorded. Classification and regression tree analysis, the Kaplan-Meier survival method, and the Cox regression model were applied. Forty-seven patients were included. The mean age was 70.7 years, and there were 15 hip prostheses and 32 knee prostheses. The median number of days from the time of arthroplasty was 20. The most frequent pathogens were members of the Enterobacteriaceae family in 41 cases and Pseudomonas spp. in 20 cases. Among the Enterobacteriaceae, 14 were resistant to ciprofloxacin, while all Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates were susceptible to ciprofloxacin. The median durations of intravenous and oral antibiotic treatment were 14 and 64 days, respectively. A total of 35 (74.5%) patients were in remission after a median follow-up of 463 days (interquartile range, 344 to 704) days. By use of the Kaplan-Meier survival curve, a C-reactive protein (CRP) concentration of ≤15 mg/dl (P = 0.03) and receipt of a fluoroquinolone, when all GNB isolated were susceptible (P = 0.0009), were associated with a better outcome. By use of a Cox regression model, a CRP concentration of ≤15 mg/dl (odds ratio [OR], 3.57; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.05 to 12.5; P = 0.043) and receipt of a fluoroquinolone (OR, 9.09; 95% CI, 1.96 to 50; P = 0.005) were independently associated with better outcomes. Open debridement without removal of the implant had a success rate of 74.5%, and the factors associated with good prognosis were a CRP concentration at the time of diagnosis ≤15 mg/dl and treatment with a fluoroquinolone.
Behavioral and neurochemical effects of the dopamine transporter ligand 4-chlorobenztropine alone and in combination with cocaine in vivo.

The current studies evaluated the novel diphenylmethoxytropane analog 4-chlorobenztropine (4-Cl-BZT), cocaine, and combinations of the two drugs for their abilities to stimulate locomotor activity, produce cocaine-like discriminative stimulus effects, and elevate extracellular dopamine (DA) in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) as measured by in vivo microdialysis. Peripherally administered cocaine was approximately twice as efficacious as 4-Cl-BZT as a locomotor stimulant and was behaviorally active at a lower dose than was 4-Cl-BZT. Cocaine also was more efficacious than 4-Cl-BZT in producing discriminative-stimulus effects in rats trained to discriminate i.p. injections of 10 mg/kg cocaine from saline. The time course of behavioral activation differed markedly between the two drugs, with much shorter onset and duration of locomotor stimulant effects for cocaine relative to 4-Cl-BZT. Similarly, i.p. cocaine (10 and 40 mg/kg) induced a pronounced, rapid, and short-lived increase in DA in the NAc, whereas i.p. 4-Cl-BZT was effective only at the higher dose and produced a more gradual, modest, and sustained (>/=2 h) elevation in accumbens DA. In contrast to i.p. administration, local infusion of 4-Cl-BZT (1-100 microM) into the NAc through the microdialysis probe elevated extracellular DA to a much greater extent than did local cocaine (nearly 2000% of baseline maximally for 4-Cl-BZT versus 400% of baseline for cocaine) and displayed a much longer duration of action than cocaine. However, when microinjected bilaterally into the NAc at 30 or 300 nmol/side, cocaine remained a more efficacious locomotor stimulant than 4-Cl-BZT. Finally, pretreatment with i.p. 4-Cl-BZT dose dependently enhanced the locomotor stimulant, discriminative stimulus effects, and NAc DA response to a subsequent low-dose i.p. cocaine challenge. The diphenylmethoxytropane analog also facilitated the emergence of stereotyped behavior and convulsions induced by high-dose cocaine. The current results demonstrate that DA transporter ligands that do not share the neurochemical and behavioral profiles of cocaine nevertheless may enhance the effects of cocaine in vivo.