Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
[Investigation on activities of hammerhead ribozyme embedded in genomic RNA of hepatitis delta virus].

OBJECTIVE To develop HDV as a vehicle to deliver hammerhead ribozyme into hepatocytes, the effects of modified HDV was assessed on the activity of embedded hammerhead ribozyme in vitro and in vivo. METHODS In vitro activity of ribozyme or HDV-driven ribozyme was assessed by incubating with the [alpha-32 P]-ATP labeled HBV RNA substrates at different temperature. Huh-7 cells were cotransfected with ribozyme or HDV-ribozyme chimera and HBV genome, by which inhibition of ribozymes on HBV transcription in vivo were examined. RESULTS The results indicated that both temperature and secondary structure influenced the cleavage activity of HDV-driven ribozyme significantly. When the factors were eliminated, the HDV-driven ribozyme could act as well as its counterpart naked ribozyme. While in cultured cells the HDV-driven ribozyme had higher inhibition to HBV gene expression than that of ribozyme alone. CONCLUSION The results demonstrated that HDV may weaken the activity of embedded ribozyme in vitro, but make it enhanced in cultured cells. Thus, this study could provide a useful evidence to develop HDV as vector for liver-special delivery of ribozyme to against chronic HBV infection.
Adaptive Fingerprinting in Multi-Sensor Fusion for Accurate Indoor Tracking

Indoor Localization and Tracking have become an attractive research topic because of the wide range of potential applications. These applications are highly demanding in terms of estimation accuracy and rise a challenge due to the complexity of the scenarios modeled. Approaches for these topics are mainly based on either deterministic or probabilistic methods, such as Kalman or Particles Filter. These techniques are improved by fusing information from different sources, such as wireless or optical sensors. In this paper, a novel MUlti-sensor Fusion using adaptive fingerprint (MUFAF) algorithm is presented and compared with several multi-sensor indoor localization and tracking methods. MUFAF is mainly divided in four phases: first, a target position estimation (TPE) process is performed by every sensor; second, a target tracking process stage; third, a multi-sensor fusion combines the sensor information; and finally, an adaptive fingerprint update (AFU) is applied. For TPE, a complete environment characterization in combination with a Kernel density estimation technique is employed to obtain object position. A Modified Kalman Filter is applied to TPE output in order to smooth target routes and avoid outliers effect. Moreover, two fusion methods are described in this paper: track-to-track fusion and Kalman sensor group fusion. Finally, AFU will endow the algorithm with responsiveness to environment changes by using Kriging interpolation to update the scenario fingerprint. MUFAF is implemented and compared in a test bed showing that it provides a significant improvement in estimation accuracy and long-term adaptivity to condition changes.
Selective Enhancement of the Slow Component of Delayed Rectifier K+ Current in Guinea‐Pig Atrial Cells by External ATP

1 The effects of external ATP on the rapidly and slowly activating components (IKr and IKg, respectively) of the delayed rectifier K+ current (IK) in guinea‐pig atrial myocytes were determined using the whole‐cell configuration of the patch‐clamp technique. 2 An envelope of tails test was conducted by applying depolarizing pulses to +40 mV from a holding potential of −40 mV for various durations between 50 ms and 2 s under control conditions and during exposure to 50 μM ATP. The ATP‐induced IK, obtained by digital subtraction, exhibited a constant ratio (0.37) of the tail current to time‐dependent current, regardless of the pulse duration. This current ratio was compatible with the predicted ratio of the driving force at +40 and −40 mV for a non‐rectifying K+ conductance, suggesting that the ATP‐induced IK is due primarily to IKs. 3 The amplitude of IKr isolated from the IK enhanced by ATP, determined as an E‐4031 (5 μM)‐sensitive current, was similar to the control magnitude of IKr, thus showing that external ATP did not cause an increase in IKr. 4 The voltage‐dependent activation of the ATP‐induced IK during 500 ms depolarizing test pulses could be described by a Boltzmann equation with a half‐activation voltage (V1/2) of 11.5 mV and slope factor (k) of 12.0 mV, which were close to those of IKg(V1/4 of 12.1 mV and k of 12.3 mV), determined as an E‐4031‐resistant IK, under the same isochronal (500 ms) activation conditions. 5 These results provide evidence to suggest that extracellular ATP selectively potentiates the slow component of IK (IKg), with no measurable effects on IKr, in guinea‐pig atrial myocytes.
High Tolerance to Gate Misalignment in Low Voltage Gate-Underlap Double Gate MOSFETs

In this letter, we demonstrate for the first time that gate misalignment is not a critical limiting factor for low voltage operation in gate-underlap double gate (DG) devices. Our results show that underlap architecture significantly extends the tolerable limit of gate misalignment in 25 nm devices. DG MOSFETs with high degree of gate misalignment and optimal gate-underlap design can perform comparably or even better than self-aligned nonunderlap devices. Results show that spacer-to-straggle (s/sigma) ratio, a key design parameter for underlap devices, should be within the range of 2.3-3.0 to accommodate back gate misalignment. These results are very significant as the stringent process control requirements for achieving self-alignment in nanoscale planar DG MOSFETs are considerably relaxed without compromising the performance.
Population Growth and Industrialization

The role of population growth in the process of industrialization is studied in a general equilibrium model. It provides a formal presentation of Rostow’s insight of the role of a leading sector in industrialization. Population growth may lead to a shortage of food and a breakdown of the industrialization process. However, population growth may benefit the manufacturing sector in the adoption of increasing returns to scale technologies. Elasticity of demand for agricultural goods plays an important role in determining whether an improvement of agricultural technology or an increase of population is beneficial to the manufacturing sector. A comparison of China and Britain before the Industrial Revolution shows that research and development are necessary for sustained growth. Achieving industrialization independently requires a combination of a sufficiently large market size from the demand side and a sufficiently large supply of technologies from the supply side. (JEL O14, E10, N10, Q01)
Drivers and Consequences of Citizen Satisfaction: An Application of the American Customer Satisfaction Index Model to New York City

Using data from two telephone surveys of New York City residents conducted during 2000 and 2001, this article employs the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) model to examine the drivers—and behavioral consequences—of overall satisfaction with local government services. While the ACSI model has been widely used to analyze customer satisfaction in the private sector and, more recently, in the federal government, it has not been tried in a local government context. Applying the ACSI model to New York City, we find the perceived quality of public schools and especially the police, as well as road conditions and subway service, are the most salient drivers of satisfaction, but the significance of each service varies across income, race, and geography. For all groups in the city, overall satisfaction drives both trust in local government officials and intentions to move out of the city. Advantages and limitations of using the ACSI model to assess the quality of local government services are discussed.
A Test of the Strategic Effect of Basel Ii Operational Risk Requirements on Banks

Most problematic of the Basel II capital adequacy requirements is the subset of Pillar I, requiring provision for operational risk (OR) as distinct from credit and market risk. Previous tests of the strategic effect of this new regulation from three prior Quality Impact Studies (QIS) conducted in G10 countries under the guidance of the Bank for International Settlements, have concluded that OR requirements poses difficulties of definition, implementation, and strategic planning. Anticipated strategic effects include dramatic changes to product development, investment and asset mix, as well as the necessity to rapidly develop new risk rating models and techniques, together with vastly expanded internal and external audit compliance routines. Unlike QIS1, 2 and 3, QIS4 focuses on operational risk, but still has drawbacks. This paper discusses its approach, in view of the ongoing difficulties that banks are experiencing with operational risk, particularly in the construction of a database. It concludes by listing the unanswered questions that have not even been addressed in four studies of the strategic impact of Basel II? s OR requirements. It also suggests that many smaller banks and emerging nations may not be able to use the sophisticated approaches and hence will suffer a competitive disadvantage. Hence in view of drawbacks in the simpler approaches such as lack of correlation of operational risk and revenue, other indicators such as the standard deviation of efficiency measures are suggested.
Schools that Overcome the Disparities of Academic Achievements among Children : Searching for Japanese Effective Schools

We reported the major findings of our research based on our own academic achievement tests towards elementary school and junior high school pupils in 2002. We then pointed out the fact that the differences of achievement between social groups have been expanded. Nowadays, that issue is seen to be one of the most serious educational problems in contemporary Japan. Although the differences of various educational outcomes such as academic achievements or educational aspirations between social groups are always emphasized, it is surprising that they seldom discuss about the ways in which those differences could be made smaller. I myself have been exploring the issue in these several years. In this paper, I will describe the progress and the future directions of our academic exploration on this particular educational issue.
Ivermectin and its target molecules: shared and unique modulation mechanisms of ion channels and receptors by ivermectin

Ivermectin (IVM) is an antiparasitic drug that is used worldwide and rescues hundreds of millions of people from onchocerciasis and lymphatic filariasis. It was discovered by Satoshi Ōmura and William C. Campbell, to whom the 2015 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded. It kills parasites by activating glutamate‐gated Cl− channels, and it also targets several ligand‐gated ion channels and receptors, including Cys‐loop receptors, P2X4 receptors and fernesoid X receptors. Recently, we found that IVM also activates a novel target, the G‐protein‐gated inwardly rectifying K+ channel, and also identified the structural determinant for the activation. In this review, we aim to provide an update and summary of recent progress in the identification of IVM targets, as well as their modulation mechanisms, through molecular structures, chimeras and site‐directed mutagenesis, and molecular docking and modelling studies.
Towards a better understanding of global land grabbing: an editorial introduction

Over the past several years, the convergence of global crises in food, energy, finance, and the environment has driven a dramatic revaluation of land ownership. Powerful transnational and national economic actors from corporations to national governments and private equity funds have searched for ‘empty’ land often in distant countries that can serve as sites for fuel and food production in the event of future price spikes. This is occurring globally, but there is a clear North–South dynamic that echoes the land grabs that underwrote both colonialism and imperialism. In addition, however, there is an emerging ‘South–South’ dynamic today, with economically powerful non-Northern countries, such as Brazil and Qatar, getting significantly involved. The land— and water and labor—of the Global South are increasingly perceived as sources of alternative energy production (primarily biofuels), food crops, mineral deposits (new and old), and reservoirs of environmental services. National governments have looked inward as well, in what is often internal colonialism whereby land seen officially as marginal or empty is set aside for commodity production. The pace and extent of these land deals has been rapid and widespread (GRAIN 2008). Estimates by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) suggest that roughly 20 million hectares exchanged hands in the form of land grabs between 2005 and 2009 (von Braun and Meinzen-Dick 2009). The World Bank report on land grabs (or, as the Bank calls it, agricultural investment), released in September 2010, estimated this global phenomenon at 45 million hectares (World Bank 2010). Sub-Saharan Africa is the site of the most speculative major land deals, including one thwarted deal in Madagascar that brought down the government (Cotula et al. 2009), while major areas are being targeted for commodity crops, fuel crops, investment, and ecosystem services in South America, Central America, Southeast Asia, and the former USSR (Zoomers 2010, Visser and Spoor 2011). There are various mechanisms through which land grabbing occurs, ranging from straightforward private–private purchases and public–private leases for biofuel production to acquisition of large parcels of land for conservation arrangement, with variegated initial outcomes (Hall 2011, Wolford 2010). Some of this land has been cleared of existing inhabitants and users but not yet put into production; in many cases buyers and investors are simply preparing for the next global crisis. The Journal of Peasant Studies Vol. 38, No. 2, March 2011, 209–216
Welfare Effects of Technology Transfer

This paper examines the welfare effects of aid tied to technology transfer in a two-country general equilibrium model. In the recipient country, some factors of production employed in a particular industry are difficult to use in other industries because their properties are specific to that industry. Technology transfer facilitates 'factor movement' and improves the efficiency of factor markets in the recipient. We identify and interpret the conditions under which technology transfer benefits the recipient and harms the donor. We also show that technology transfer can enrich (or harm) both the donor and the recipient under certain conditions. Copyright 2006 Blackwell Publishing Ltd
Quality, Experience, and Monopoly: The Soviet Market for Weapons Under Stalin

Monopoly is a particular problem in markets where experience goods are traded, since the consumer cannot respond to bad experiences by switching repeat purchases to another supplier. New evidence shows how the defence ministry as buyer in the Soviet market for military goods responded to this problem by investing in an evaluation of quality prior to purchase, by showing reluctance to buy, and by exploiting the available non-market means to influence the defence industry as supplier. The effectiveness of these stratagems was limited by the defence industry's counteractions and because the buyer had no choice but to come to a compromise with the supplier.
Debt Financing under Asymmetric Information

The authors analyze the optimal design of debt maturity, coupon payments, and dividend payout restrictions under asymmetric information. They show that, if the asymmetry of information is concentrated around long-term cash flows, firms finance with coupon-bearing long-term debt that partially restricts dividend payments. If the asymmetry of information is concentrated around near-term cash flows and there exists considerable refinancing risk, firms finance with coupon-bearing long-term debt that does not restrict dividend payments. Finally, if the asymmetry of information is uniformly distributed across dates, firms finance with short-term debt. Copyright 1995 by American Finance Association.
RATE ALLOCATION IN OVERLAY NETWORKS

We address the problem of distributed path selection and rate allocation for media streaming in overlay networks. Under the assumption that each node has only a local view of the network, we propose a distributed algorithm for joint path selection, and rate allocation, in order to minimize the end-to-end media distortion. The distributed algorithm performs iteratively, by greedy rate allocation for all incoming media flows on the outgoing links at each intermediate node. Our algorithm is shown to converge to the optimal rate allocation solution in a very small number of iterations, and to outperform heuristic distributed rate allocation mechanisms for a number of random network topologies.
A role for phospholipase D1 in neurotransmitter release

Phosphatidic acid produced by phospholipase D (PLD) as a result of signaling activity is thought to play a role in membrane vesicle trafficking, either as an intracellular messenger or as a cone-shaped lipid that promotes membrane fusion. We recently described that, in neuroendocrine cells, plasma membrane-associated PLD1 operates at a stage of Ca2+-dependent exocytosis subsequent to cytoskeletal-mediated recruitment of secretory granules to exocytotic sites. We show here that PLD1 also plays a crucial role in neurotransmitter release. Using purified rat brain synaptosomes subjected to hypotonic lysis and centrifugation, we found that PLD1 is associated with the particulate fraction containing the plasma membrane. Immunostaining of rat cerebellar granule cells confirmed localization of PLD1 at the neuronal plasma membrane in zones specialized for neurotransmitter release (axonal neurites, varicosities, and growth cone-like structures). To determine the potential involvement of PLD1 in neurotransmitter release, we microinjected catalytically inactive PLD1(K898R) into Aplysia neurons and analyzed its effects on evoked acetylcholine (ACh) release. PLD1(K898R) produced a fast and potent dose-dependent inhibition of ACh release. By analyzing paired-pulse facilitation and postsynaptic responses evoked by high-frequency stimulations, we found that the exocytotic inhibition caused by PLD1(K898R) was not the result of an alteration in stimulus-secretion coupling or in vesicular trafficking. Analysis of the fluctuations in amplitude of the postsynaptic responses revealed that the PLD1(K898R) blocked ACh release by reducing the number of active presynaptic-releasing sites. Our results provide evidence that PLD1 plays a major role in neurotransmission, most likely by controlling the fusogenic status of presynaptic release sites.
New parties, information uncertainty, and government formation: evidence from Central and Eastern Europe

Government formation in multi-party democracies is notoriously ridden with information uncertainty. Uncertainty is aggravated when new parties enter parliament, which generally suggests a ‘newcomer handicap’ in government formation. However, relegating newcomers to the opposition comes with uncertainty in its own right, which suggests immediate cabinet participation as new leaders seize the opportunity and established parties pursue containment. We explore elite responses to this strategic problem in the postcommunist democracies of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) where new parties often gain parliamentary representation. Even in CEE, a newcomer handicap in government formation is apparent, controlling for other detrimental party attributes. However, this applies to small newcomers only. For larger parties the handicap turns into a bonus, an effect only qualified once the newcomer outnumbers its competitors. Either way, newness-induced uncertainty thus intensifies the strategic rationale of government formation. As party systems become more volatile, these findings are relevant beyond CEE.
Traversing the intact/fibrillated joint surface: a biomechanical interpretation

Cartilage taken from the osteoarthritic bovine patellae was used to investigate the progression of change in the collagenous architecture associated with the development of fibrillated lesions. Differential interference contrast optical microscopy using fully hydrated radial sections revealed a continuity in the alteration of the fibrillar architecture in the general matrix consistent with the progressive destructuring of a native radial arrangement of fibrils repeatedly interconnected in the transverse direction via a non‐entwinement‐based linking mechanism. This destructuring is shown to occur in the still intact regions adjacent to the disrupted lesion thus rendering them more vulnerable to radial rupture. Two contrasting modes of surface rupture were observed and these are explained in terms of the absence or presence of a skewed structural weakening of the intermediate zone. A mechanism of surface rupture initiation based on simple bi‐layer theory is proposed to account for the intensification of surface ruptures observed in the intact regions on advancing towards the fibrillation front. Focusing specifically on the primary collagen architecture in the cartilage matrix, this study proposes a pathway of change from intact to overt disruption within a unified structural framework.
Forecasting Net Energy Consumption Using Artificial Neural Network

The main goal of this study is to develop the equations for forecasting net energy consumption (NEC) using the artificial neural network (ANN) technique in order to determine the future level of the energy consumption in Turkey. Logistic sigmoid transfer function was used in the network. In order to train the neural network, population, and gross generation, installed capacity and years is used in input layer of network. The net energy consumption is in output layer. The input values in 1965, 1981, and 1997 are only used as test data to confirm this method. The statistical coefficient of multiple determinations (R 2-value) is equal to 0.9999 and 1 for training and test data, respectively. According to the results, the NEC using the ANN technique has been obviously predicted within acceptable errors. Apart from reducing the whole time required, the importance of the ANN approach is possible to find solutions that make energy applications more viable and thus more attractive to potential users. It is also expected that this study will be helpful in developing highly applicable and productive planning for energy policies.
Iron-Responsive Repression of Urease Expression in Helicobacter hepaticus Is Mediated by the Transcriptional Regulator Fur

ABSTRACT Persistent colonization of mucosal surfaces by bacteria in the mammalian host requires concerted expression of colonization factors, depending on the environmental conditions. Helicobacter hepaticus is a urease-positive pathogen that colonizes the intestinal and hepatobiliary tracts of rodents. Here it is reported that urease expression of H. hepaticus is iron repressed by the transcriptional regulator Fur. Iron restriction of growth medium resulted in a doubling of urease activity in wild-type H. hepaticus strain ATCC 51449 and was accompanied by increased levels of urease subunit proteins and ureA mRNA. Insertional inactivation of the fur gene abolished iron-responsive repression of urease activity, whereas inactivation of the perR gene did not affect iron-responsive regulation of urease activity. The iron-responsive promoter element was identified directly upstream of the H. hepaticus ureA gene. Recombinant H. hepaticus Fur protein bound to this ureA promoter region in a metal-dependent matter, and binding resulted in the protection of a 41-bp, Fur box-containing operator sequence located at positions −35 to −75 upstream of the transcription start site. In conclusion, H. hepaticus Fur controls urease expression at the transcriptional level in response to iron availability. This represents a novel type of urease regulation in ureolytic bacteria and extends the already diverse regulatory repertoire of the Fur protein.