Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Characterization of ionotrophic purinergic receptors in hepatocytes

Ionotrophic purinergic (P2X) receptors function as receptor‐gated cation channels, where agonist binding leads to opening of a nonselective cation pore permeable to both Na+ and Ca2+. Based on evidence that extracellular adenosine 5′‐triphosphate (ATP) stimulates glucose release from liver, these studies evaluate whether P2X receptors are expressed by hepatocytes and contribute to ATP‐dependent calcium signaling and glucose release. Studies were performed in isolated hepatocytes from rats and mice and hepatoma cells from humans and rats. Transcripts and protein for both P2X4 and P2X7 were detectable, and immunohistochemistry of intact liver revealed P2X4 in the basolateral and canalicular domains. In whole cell patch clamp studies, exposure to the P2X4/P2X7 receptor agonist 2′3′‐O‐(4‐benzoyl‐benzoyl)‐adenosine 5′‐triphosphate (BzATP; 10 μM) caused a rapid increase in membrane Na+ conductance. Similarly, with Fluo‐3 fluorescence, BzATP induced an increase in intracellular [Ca2+]. P2X4 receptors are likely involved because the calcium response to BzATP was inhibited by Cu2+, and the P2X4 modulators Zn2+ and ivermectin (0.3‐3 μM) each increased intracellular [Ca2+]. Exposure to BzATP decreased cellular glycogen content; and P2X4 receptor messenger RNA increased in glycogen‐rich liver samples. Conclusion: These studies provide evidence that P2X4 receptors are functionally important in hepatocyte Na+ and Ca2+ transport, are regulated by extracellular ATP and divalent cation concentrations, and may constitute a mechanism for autocrine regulation of hepatic glycogen metabolism. (HEPATOLOGY 2007.)
Sildenafil citrate therapy in 22 dogs with pulmonary hypertension.

BACKGROUND Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is a disease condition characterized by abnormally increased pulmonary artery pressures and often is associated with a poor prognosis. Sildenafil is a phosphodiesterase inhibitor that causes pulmonary arterial vasodilation and reduction in pulmonary artery pressures. HYPOTHESIS Treatment with sildenafil will improve echocardiographic determinants of PH in dogs, while also improving quality of life and survival. ANIMALS Twenty-two dogs with clinical and echocardiographic evidence of pulmonary hypertension. METHODS A retrospective study evaluating the effects of sildenafil on physical examination, ECG and radiographic findings, blood pressure and echocardiographic findings of PH, clinical score, and outcome was completed. PH was defined as a peak tricuspid regurgitation flow velocity > or = 2.8 m/s or a peak pulmonic insufficiency flow velocity > or = 2.2 m/s. RESULTS Sixteen of 22 dogs with PH were elderly females of small body size. Their clinical score was significantly improved (P = .0003) with sildenafil treatment, but physical examination findings remained unchanged. Heart rate, respiratory rate, vertebral heart size, ECG heart rate, and systolic blood pressure did not change significantly with sildenafil treatment (P > .05). Peak tricuspid regurgitation flow velocities did not change significantly with the treatment of sildenafil, but selected systolic time intervals were significantly improved. Survival times for all dogs ranged from 8 to > 734 days. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE Sildenafil did not significantly lower the degree of measurable PH in dogs. Clinical improvement and increased quality of life was seen with sildenafil treatment, despite lack of significant change in other variables.
Single phase NPC inverter controller with integrated MPPT for PV grid connection

This paper presents a single-stage three-level Neutral Point Clamped (NPC) inverter for connection to the electrical power grid, with integrated Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) algorithm to extract the maximum power available from solar photovoltaic (PV) panels. This single-stage topology is more compact than the traditional topology, it was chosen because with the proper control strategy. It is suitable to connect the PV panels to the power grid. The paper describes the design of a 5 kW NPC inverter for the interface of PV panels with the power grid, presenting the circuit parameters and the description of the control algorithms. A phase locked loop control is used to connect the inverter into the grid. Then, a proposed DC Link voltage control to regulate the input voltage of the inverter. Although an MPPT algorithm was used to optimize the energy extraction and the system efficiency. Inverter Output Current control to produce an output current (current injected in the power grid) with low Total Harmonic Distortion (THD) implemented in a DSP. Simulation and experimental results verify the correct operation of the proposed system, even with fluctuations in the solar radiation.
Are Current Fisheries Management Models Wrong? An Error Correction Approach to Reconciling the Historical Records on Fish Stocks.

Standard flsheries models used in economics and for management purposes almost always assume parameter values of the flshing system are stable. In this paper, we put forth models where the parameters of the biological growth model systematically change over time. The models considered are fundamentally difierent from those in the literature (e.g., Reed (1979), Clark and Kirkwood (1986), Weitzman (2002), and Sethi et al. (forthcoming)) that made one or more aspects of flsh growth, quantity harvested, or the stock level stochastic, because the random component in those models does not have any time series properties. We consider models where the time series component is deterministic (and known) and where there is a true stochastic component. In cases with time-varying underlying biology, we get very difierent results from the conventional wisdom. In particular, the concept of maximum sustainable yield (MSY) which drives much of flshing policy is no longer well deflned in the sense of a single number although we show that the concept of maximizing economic rent is. Further, the usual management objective of sustaining a particular time invariant catch level can greatly damage a flshery even when that catch level was earlier sustainable over reasonably long time periods. The other common objective of keeping the stock size constant can become unfeasible and no longer provides useful guidance in terms of either protecting the population or maximizing economic rents. The flnal part of the paper deals with "integrated" flsheries species where the presence of multiple prey flsh can give rise to the appearance of stability in a predator flsh population. However, if this mathematical representation adequately represents the flshery, arbitrarily small selective harvest quotas can drive a prey flsh species to extinction. In this sense flshing down the food chain or setting harvest policies on difierent flsheries can lead to unexpected adverse consequences.
Critical research on the governance of tourism and sustainability

Tailored and effective governance is a key requirement for implementing sustainable tourism: it can enhance democratic processes, provide direction and offer the means to make practical progress. This introduction explains how the papers in this collection provide critical assessments of the theory and practice of tourism governance and sustainability. It argues that theoretical frameworks are crucial to research on the subject as they affect the issues examined and the policy recommendations made. Several papers in the collection focus on relevant theoretical frameworks and concepts, while others consider governance at different geographical scales and the interconnections between those scales. The temporal dimensions of governance are also explored because sustainable development relates to long time horizons. Governance is also considered in relation to trade-offs, policy failures, learning processes, adaptive management, the public sphere and the principle of subsidiarity.
Book Review: Income and Social Security and Substandard Working Conditions: Creating Economic Opportunities: The Role of Labour Standards in Industrial Restructuring

in family income inequality. Surprisingly, the equalizing impact of wives' earnings on inequality among married couples increased in recent years. Both chapters identify rising inequality of male earnings as the major cause of the trends they examine. McKinley Blackburn, David Bloom, and Richard Freeman take on the task of understanding changes in earnings inequality among race and gender groups during the 1980s. Their rich analysis of this core issue assigns much of the responsibility for the changes to shifts in occupational and industrial employment mixes, changes in the industrial wage distribution, the falling real value of the minimum wage, declines in union density, and changes in relative supplies of more-educated workers. With the exception of Wolfe and Hill's trenchant discussion of policy options to reduce poverty among single mothers with severe health problems, the policy discussions at the ends of most chapters are too short to explore the issues in any detail and sometimes bear little relation to the specific chapter findings. In the final chapter's "policy forum," an edited transcript of a roundtable discussion, six contributors each briefly advocate policies to reduce poverty and inequality and engage in a short exchange. The relatively small ideological differences among the contributors make for bland reading. This chapter is not up to the quality of the rest of the volume. Readers looking for new theoretical insights about determinants of inequality and poverty or detailed policy guidance will need to consult other sources. But no book can cover all the issues needed to understand the American record of poverty and inequality at the end of the twentieth century. This one deserves a place in the library of anyone needing careful empirical analyses of that record.
Regional and sectoral foreign direct investment in Portugal since joining the European union: a dynamic portrait

type="main" xml:lang="en"> Despite few studies regarding foreign direct investment (FDI) in Portugal – especially regarding its effects – FDI can be an important catalyst for regional economic development and growth. This work studies existing FDI in the Portuguese regions, analyzing its distribution by Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics III, the sectors in which FDI has more weight in each region, and its evolution from 1986–2009. Although the relative weight of FDI firms in Portugal remained constant over the years analyzed (around 1%), at the same time these firms spread to all regions of the country, not only concentrating in Lisboa and Porto, the main economic and service agglomerations. Regions attracted FDI not only in specialized sectors, but also for other activities, diversifying the regional productive structure of the country. The increase and diversification of FDI coincided with the tertiarization of the economy, being closer to the productive specialization pattern of the country, while continuing to focus mainly on manufacturing.
Epidermal Wnt/β-catenin signaling regulates adipocyte differentiation via secretion of adipogenic factors

Significance The synchronized patterns of hair follicle growth and expansion of the dermal adipocyte layer have long been recognized. Although factors secreted by adipocytes are known to regulate the hair growth cycle, it is unclear whether, conversely, the epidermis can regulate adipogenesis. Our study now demonstrates that activation of epidermal Wnt/β-catenin signaling stimulates adipocyte differentiation in vivo and in vitro. The effect can be mediated by secreted factors, including insulin-like growth factor 2 and bone morphogenetic proteins 2 and 6. It has long been recognized that the hair follicle growth cycle and oscillation in the thickness of the underlying adipocyte layer are synchronized. Although factors secreted by adipocytes are known to regulate the hair growth cycle, it is unclear whether the epidermis can regulate adipogenesis. We show that inhibition of epidermal Wnt/β-catenin signaling reduced adipocyte differentiation in developing and adult mouse dermis. Conversely, ectopic activation of epidermal Wnt signaling promoted adipocyte differentiation and hair growth. When the Wnt pathway was activated in the embryonic epidermis, there was a dramatic and premature increase in adipocytes in the absence of hair follicle formation, demonstrating that Wnt activation, rather than mature hair follicles, is required for adipocyte generation. Epidermal and dermal gene expression profiling identified keratinocyte-derived adipogenic factors that are induced by β-catenin activation. Wnt/β-catenin signaling-dependent secreted factors from keratinocytes promoted adipocyte differentiation in vitro, and we identified ligands for the bone morphogenetic protein and insulin pathways as proadipogenic factors. Our results indicate epidermal Wnt/β-catenin as a critical initiator of a signaling cascade that induces adipogenesis and highlight the role of epidermal Wnt signaling in synchronizing adipocyte differentiation with the hair growth cycle.
Practical and Theoretical Issues Concerning Internal Audit Tools’ Usage

For presentation and substantiate the findings, in the intervention stage on the spot auditors use internal audit activity-specific instruments, known in the special literature as template of findings. In this material we propose a theoretical approach and a practical example of the methodology of development sites in terms of FIAP recommendations made by the International Standards on Internal Audit and internal audit standards in our country. Regarding the FIAP elaboration, the best practice in field recommends that document should be completed in three stages: First stage: gradual achievement, Second stage: Validation, Third stage: supervision.
Origin of Endowments in Public Good Games: The Impact of Effort on Contributions

University of ViennaPublic good games provide an experimental environment for the study of socialdilemmas. Typically, participants receive their endowments for the game from theexperimenter. However, what if these endowments were earned rather than given aswindfalls? Does the level of effort to earn the endowments insuence contributions tothe public good? Participants ( n 83) in a 2-stage experiment were required to earntheir endowments through making either greater or lesser efforts. They were subse-quently asked to play a linear public good game with the money. In contrast to themajority of previous studies undertaken, the participants in this experiment were notinformed as to the asymmetry of the origin of the endowment. The results showed thatcontributions to the public good were less if endowments were earned with greatereffort rather than with lesser effort.Keywords:
Analgesic response and plasma and brain extracellular fluid pharmacokinetics of morphine and morphine-6-beta-D-glucuronide in the rat.

The analgesic effects of subcutaneously administered morphine and morphine-6-beta-D-glucuronide (M6G) were determined in male Sprague-Dawley rats. Morphine produced a dose-dependent (2.5 to 10.0 mg/kg) analgesic response as measured by the tail-flick test. M6G in the same doses as morphine produced a greater degree of analgesia with longer duration of action. The concentrations of M6G and morphine were determined in plasma as the protein unbound form after the use of an equilibrium dialysis technique and in BECF after administration of the drugs (10.0 mg/kg s.c.). The concentrations of morphine and M6G in BECF were determined by using microdialysis. The concentration of M6G in plasma and BECF at each time interval after its administration was much higher than morphine. The maximal concentrations in plasma and AUC0-infinity values for M6G were, thus, significantly higher for M6G than for morphine in plasma and BECF. In BECF, the Tmax value for M6G was lower than for morphine, but the t1/2 beta values did not differ. In plasma, Tmax and T1/2 values for M6G and morphine did not differ, but volume of distribution and total clearance values for M6G were lower than for morphine. It is concluded that per milligram, M6G has a much higher analgesic potency than morphine in the rat and these differences may be related, in part, to the higher levels of M6G in comparison to morphine in plasma and BECF.
S-sulfhydration of MEK 1 leads to PARP-1 activation and DNA damage repair

The repair of DNA damage is fundamental to normal cell development and replication. Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is a novel gasotransmitter that has been reported to protect cellular aging. Here, we show that H2S attenuates DNA damage in human endothelial cells and fibroblasts by S-sulfhydrating MEK1 at cysteine 341, which leads to PARP-1 activation. H2S-induced MEK1 S-sulfhydration facilitates the translocation of phosphorylated ERK1/2 into nucleus, where it activates PARP-1 through direct interaction. Mutation of MEK1 cysteine 341 inhibits ERK phosphorylation and PARP-1 activation. In the presence of H2S, activated PARP-1 recruits XRCC1 and DNA ligase III to DNA breaks to mediate DNA damage repair, and cells are protected from senescence.
Public sector reform in Sub‐Saharan Africa: what can be learnt from the civil service performance improvement programme in Ghana?

This paper focuses on public sector management reform ‘best-practice’ case experience from Sub-Sahara African (SSA). Given that ‘best-practice’ is a relative concept and often debatable, the paper uses the Ghana Civil Service Performance Improvement Programme (GCSPIP) experience as rather a ‘good-practice’ case with the view to sharing the outcome and lessons to encourage collaborative-learning. It seeks to share the outcome and lessons learnt by the Ghana civil service reform with future public service reformers and to contribute to the literature. The paper concludes with an adaptable three-dimensional framework. The framework argues that successful future public service reform (PSR) should consider three broad issues: first, are the ‘critical success factors’, including wholehearted political leadership commitment; wholehearted bureaucratic leadership commitment; thoughtful synergistic planning/preparation; patience for implementation and evaluation; capacity to convince; neutralise and accommodate reform-phobias and critics; sustainable financial and technical resource availability and conscious nurturing of general public support. Second, is the need for reformers to appreciate the concerns of the public and the civil society scepticism of public ‘institutions’ and its ‘operatives’ and finally placing any reform programme in a country-specific context, including understanding its history, culture, politics, economy, sociology, ideology and values. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Energy efficiency and sum-rate maximization in MIMO two-way relay networks

This paper compares energy efficiency of a multiple-input multiple-output two-way relay network while applying two different precoder design methods. The cooperation part of this study consists of a single amplify and forward (AF) two-way relay node equipped with multiple antennas. In order to compare the efficiency of the proposed schemes, energy efficiency (EE) is defined as the ratio of total bits of transmitted data to the total amount of consumed energy. In the first scenario, transceivers precoders are designed based on EE-maximization under some constraints on the transmit power of each node and quality of service (QoS) guarantee. The second scenario introduces an energy efficient precoder design at the transceiver nodes which maximizes total sum-rate under transmit power and QoS constraints. Additionally, an appropriate relay precoder matrix is designed in order to eliminate self-interference by applying zero-forcing (ZF) criterion in both scenarios. Two alternating algorithms are proposed to optimize transceivers and relay precoder matrices simultaneously. Simulation results are provided in order to evaluate and compare the performance of the proposed schemes which imply the efficiency of EE-maximization method.
The association between audit committee multiple-directorships, tenure, and financial misstatements

SUMMARY: This study examines the association between multiple-directorships and tenure of independent audit committee members and financial misstatements in the pre- and post-Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) reform environment. Regulatory reforms following the accounting scandals at Enron and WorldCom substantially expanded the responsibilities and scrutiny of the audit committee and, consequently, amplify the reputational and litigation risks facing the directors serving on the committee. Our results show a significant positive association between financial misstatements and multiple-directorships in the post-SOX environment. This finding suggests that independent audit committee members serving on multiple boards may be stretched too thinly to effectively perform their monitoring responsibilities. We also find a significant positive association between the tenure of independent audit committee members and financial misstatements in the post-SOX environment, suggesting that directors with longer tenure may not exerc.
Career development for host country nationals: a case of American and Japanese multinational companies in Vietnam

This paper focuses on how multinational companies (MNCs) localize human resources within their subsidiaries in the context of developing countries. It uses a qualitative research method and looks at a US and a Japanese automotive MNC operating in Vietnam. This paper identifies both home and host countries as significant moderating factors on MNCs' global staffing policies. An ethnocentric global staffing approach is evident in the Japanese MNC, while a polycentric one prevails in the US MNC. These global staffing approaches dictate possible career paths for local managers. Early selection of high potential staff and fast track systems to move them quickly through organizational ladders are evident in the US MNC. Meanwhile, in the Japanese MNC, identification of talent is primarily based on a ‘wait and see’ tactic. Local managers advance through a single ladder system and their promotion possibilities are strictly limited within the subsidiary. The paper suggests that while a developing host country possesses few formal constraint mechanisms relating to the implementation of staffing practices, informal constraint mechanisms present a complex and challenging situation for MNC operations and require from them a very high level of flexibility when implementing transferred managerial practices.
Economic integration and industrial sector fluctuations: evidence from Italy

This paper investigates the underlying sources of the Italian industrial sector fluctuations. It concentrates in particular on the role of different shocks on the manufacturing business cycle. To this end, it considers both domestic shocks (to hours worked and to technology) and external shocks (i.e. real exchange rate and world trade shocks). The former concern internal conditions such as labour market and productivity dynamics; the latter relate to the effects of economic integration, globalization and the world economy scenario on the manufacturing sector performance. The findings show evidence that the cyclical fluctuations are mainly determined by technology shocks,however,the hours worked and world trade shocks also contribute significantly to explaining the manufacturing business cycle.