Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Beneficial Effects of Weekly Low-dose Vitamin A Supplementation on Acute Lower Respiratory Infections and Diarrhea in Ecuadorian Children

Background. Previous studies of large-dose vitamin A supplementation on respiratory morbidity have produced conflicting results in a variety of populations. The influence of malnutrition has not been examined in the majority of these trials. We hypothesized that weekly low-dose vitamin A supplementation would prevent respiratory and diarrheal disease morbidity and that malnutrition might influence the efficacy of vitamin A supplementation. Methods. In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled field trial of 400 children, 6 to 36 months of age in a high Andean urban slum, half of the children received 10 000 IU of vitamin A weekly and half received placebo for 40 weeks. Children were visited weekly at home by physicians and assessed for acute diarrheal disease and acute respiratory infections. Results. Acute diarrheal disease and acute respiratory infection did not differ globally or by severity between supplement-treated and placebo groups. However, the incidence of acute lower respiratory infection (ALRI) was significantly lower in underweight (weight-for-age z score [WAZ] <−2 SD) supplement-treated children than in underweight children on placebo (8.5 vs 22.3 per 103 child-weeks; rate ratio: 0.38 [95% CI: 0.17–0.85]). ALRI incidence was significantly higher in normal-weight (WAZ >−2 SD) supplement-treated children than in normal-weight children on placebo (9.8 vs 4.4 per 103 child-weeks; rate ratio: 2.21 [95% CI: 1.24–3.93]). By logistic regression analysis the risk of ALRI was lower in underweight supplement-treated children than in underweight children on placebo (point estimate 0.148 [95% CI: 0.034–0.634]). In contrast, risk of ALRI was higher in normal-weight supplement-treated children (WAZ >−1 SD to mean) than in normal-weight children on placebo in the same WAZ stratum (point estimate: 2.51 [95% CI: 1.24–5.05]). The risk of severe diarrhea was lower in supplement-treated children 18 to 23 months of age than in children on placebo in this age group (point estimate: 0.26 [95% CI: 0.06–1.00]). Conclusions. Weekly low-dose (10 000 IU) vitamin A supplementation in a region of subclinical deficiency protected underweight children from ALRI and paradoxically increased ALRI in normal children with body weight over −1 SD. Protection from severe diarrhea was consistent with previous trials. Additional research is warranted to delineate potential beneficial and detrimental interactions between nutritional status and vitamin A supplementation regarding ALRI.
Synapse formation on adult‐born hippocampal neurons

It is now widely accepted that adult neurogenesis plays a fundamental role in hippocampal function. Neurons born in the adult dentate gyrus of the hippocampus undergo a series of events before they fully integrate in the network and eventually become undistinguishable from neurons born during embryogenesis. Adult hippocampal neurogenesis is strongly regulated by neuronal activity and neurotransmitters, and the synaptic integration of adult‐born neurons occurs in discrete steps, some of which are very different from perinatal synaptogenesis. Here, we review the current knowledge on the development of the synaptic input and output of neurons born in the adult hippocampus, from the stem/progenitor cell to the fully mature neuron. We also provide insight on the regulation of adult neurogenesis by some neurotransmitters and discuss some specificities of the integration of new neurons in an adult environment. The understanding of the mechanisms regulating the synaptic integration of adult‐born neurons is not only crucial for our understanding of brain plasticity, but also provides a framework for the manipulation and monitoring of endogenous adult neurogenesis as well as grafted cells, for potential therapeutic applications.
Real-time Feedback and Electricity Consumption: A Field Experiment Assessing the Potential for Savings and Persistence

Abstract Real-time information feedback delivered via technology has been reported to produce up to 20 percent declines in residential energy consumption. There are however large differences in estimates of the effect of real-time feedback technologies on energy use. In this study, we conduct a field experiment to obtain an estimate of the impact of a real-time feedback technology. Access to feedback leads to an average reduction in household electricity consumption of 5.7percent. Significant declines persist for up to four weeks. In examining time of day reduction effects, we find that the largest reductions were observed initially at all times of the day but as time passes, morning and evening intervals show larger reductions. We find no convincing evidence that household characteristics explain heterogeneity in our treatment effects; we examine demographics, housing characteristics and psychological variables.
Interrelation between plaque surface morphology and degree of stenosis on carotid angiograms and the risk of ischemic stroke in patients with symptomatic carotid stenosis. On behalf of the European Carotid Surgery Trialists' Collaborative Group.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The risk of ischemic stroke distal to an atherothrombotic carotid stenosis increases with the degree of stenosis. The main mechanism of stroke is thought to be embolism from fissured or ruptured plaque, but there are few published data on the relationship between plaque morphology and severity of stenosis and their independent effects on the risk of ischemic stroke. We sought to determine the interrelation between plaque surface morphology, degree of carotid stenosis, and the risk of ipsilateral ischemic stroke. METHODS Severity of stenosis and plaque surface morphology were assessed on angiograms of the symptomatic carotid artery in 3007 patients in the European Carotid Surgery Trial and were related to baseline clinical characteristics, pathological characteristics of plaques examined at endarterectomy, and the risks of carotid territory ipsilateral ischemic stroke and other vascular events on follow-up. RESULTS The early risk of ipsilateral ischemic stroke on medical treatment was closely related to the degree of carotid stenosis. However, the initial degree of carotid stenosis was not predictive of strokes occurring >2 years after randomization. Angiographic plaque surface irregularity and plaque surface thrombus at endarterectomy increased in frequency as the degree of stenosis increased (both P<0.0001). However, the degree of stenosis was still predictive of the 2-year risk of stroke on medical treatment after correction for plaque surface irregularity. Angiographic plaque surface irregularity was an independent predictor of ipsilateral ischemic stroke on medical treatment at all degrees of stenosis (hazard ratio=1.80; 95% CI, 1. 14 to 2.83; P=0.01). This relationship was maintained when the analysis was confined to strokes occurring >2 years after randomization (hazard ratio=2.75; 95% CI, 1.30 to 5.80; P=0.01). Neither the degree of stenosis nor plaque surface irregularity was predictive of the "background" stroke risk after endarterectomy or the risk of nonstroke vascular events. CONCLUSIONS Angiographic plaque surface irregularity is associated with an increased risk of ipsilateral ischemic stroke on medical treatment at all degrees of stenosis. The increase in stroke risk with degree of stenosis is partly accounted for by the parallel increase in plaque surface irregularity and thrombus formation, but the degree of narrowing of the vessel lumen is still an independent predictor of ischemic stroke within 2 years of presentation.
TOWARDS INSTITUTIONAL ARRANGEMENTS TO ENSURE OPTIMAL ALLOCATION AND SECURITY OF SOUTH AFRICA'S WATER RESOURCES

The ever-increasing pressure on the nation's water resources challenges water management institutions to be constantly changing in order to serve the changing needs. The institutional development of the water industry had been characterised by restrictions and inequitable distribution hence inefficient use of water from a total welfare perspective. The current institutional arrangement since the new democratic dispensation makes ample provisions to correct the deficiencies of the past. Despite the progress, water allocation is still supply-side dominated, the Minister holds the power, decision support and management tools are lacking or inadequate to help the proposed CMAs and WUAs to allocate water optimally and efficiently. In an effort to close this gap, an alternative institutional framework, Capacity Sharing (CS), to augment the current institutional arrangement is therefore proposed to address such issues. A strategy to drive water allocation through efficient pricing hence achieving water security under CS is suggested.
Social Intermediation in Base‐of‐the‐Pyramid Markets

Our study explores the structuring decisions made by intermediaries seeking to alleviate poverty by connecting base‐of‐the‐pyramid markets with more developed markets. Using intermediation theory to ground our study, we collected qualitative data on 29 social intermediation projects located within Latin America, Africa, and Asia. Our findings suggest that ‘socializing’ intermediation theory to more accurately explain and predict structural outcomes across more diverse contexts requires three key modifications: (1) the attenuation of opportunism, which creates an internalizing social force; (2) the accommodation of non‐monetary objectives, which creates an externalizing social force; and (3) the perception of transaction capabilities as tractable, which serves as a guidepost for reconciling these two opposing social forces.
A cost-minimization analysis comparing immediate sequential cataract surgery and delayed sequential cataract surgery from the payer, patient, and societal perspectives in the United States.

IMPORTANCE The cost difference is evaluated between delayed sequential cataract surgery (DSCS) and immediate sequential cataract surgery (ISCS) in the United States for patients covered by Medicare. OBJECTIVE To perform a cost-minimization analysis comparing ISCS with DSCS in the United States from the payer, patient, and societal perspectives for the West Tennessee region and nationally. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS A cost-minimization analysis using cataract surgery volume and eligibility estimates, 2012 Medicare reimbursement schedules, and actual or estimated patient cost data for the West Tennessee region and nationally was performed comparing ISCS with DSCS. The West Tennessee model was set in a mixed small city and rural private practice setting and was extrapolated to a national model. Ambulatory surgery center and hospital outpatient department setting costs were evaluated. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES West Tennessee and national Medicare payer costs per patient and the total national Medicare payer cost for DSCS and for ISCS, as well as West Tennessee and national Medicare patient (direct medical, travel, and lost wages) costs for DSCS and for ISCS. RESULTS Nationally, Medicare was estimated to reduce costs by approximately $522 million with the switch from DSCS to ISCS in 2012. With a change to ISCS, a West Tennessee Medicare patient was estimated to reduce costs by $174 for direct medical costs, $40 for travel costs, and $138 for lost wages (total cost reduction range, $329-$649). The total Medicare-based societal cost reduction was $783 million. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE Payers and patients would benefit from an economic standpoint by switching from DSCS to ISCS. Patients and their families would benefit from fewer visits. This becomes important given the increasing number of future cataract surgical procedures that will be performed as the baby boomer generation ages, especially given the fact that Medicare is already financially strained. Further research is needed to evaluate the effect of switching to ISCS from the physician and surgical facility perspectives.
The Impact of Ecological Niche on Adaptive Flexibility of Sensory Circuitry

Evolution and development are interdependent, particularly with regard to the construction of the nervous system and its position as the machine that produces behavior. On the one hand, the processes directing development and plasticity of the brain provide avenues through which natural selection can sculpt neural cell fate and connectivity, and on the other hand, they are themselves subject to selection pressure. For example, mutations that produce heritable perturbations in neuronal birth and death rates, transcription factor expression, or availability of axon guidance factors within sensory pathways can markedly affect the development of form and thus the function of stimulus decoding circuitry. This evolvability of flexible circuits makes them more adaptable to environmental variation. Although there is general agreement on this point, whether the sensitivity of circuits to environmental influence and the mechanisms underlying development and plasticity of sensory pathways are similar across species from different ecological niches has received almost no attention. Neural circuits are generally more sensitive to environmental influences during an early critical period, but not all niches afford the same access to stimuli in early life. Furthermore, depending on predictability of the habitat and ecological niche, sensory coding circuits might be more susceptible to sensory experience in some species than in others. Despite decades of work on understanding the mechanisms underlying critical period plasticity, the importance of ecological niche in visual pathway development has received little attention. Here, I will explore the relationship between critical period plasticity and ecological niche in mammalian sensory pathways.
Novel Approach to Analyzing RNA Aptamer-Protein Interactions: Toward Further Applications of Aptamers

Surface plasmon-resonance analysis using a Biacore biosensor is a powerful tool for the detailed study of biomolecular interactions. The authors examined the methods of immobilizing proteins on the surface of NTA, SA, and CM5 sensor chips to study RNA aptamer-protein interactions. RNA aptamers and their deletion variants were loaded onto a protein-immobilized sensor chip, and their binding affinities were analyzed. Immobilizing the protein on a CM5 sensor chip via an anti-His-tag antibody was the only strategy that clearly detected the kinetic parameters of the interactions. ΔNEO-III-14U, one of the deletion variants of the NS3 aptamer, had the highest binding affinity for the ΔNS3 protein in this study (KD = 4 × 10-8). Moreover, the 29-amino-acid spacer fragment was essential for protein immobilization using this strategy. This novel method will be useful in comparing the affinity of various RNA aptamers and selecting the most suitable candidates for a given target, as well as facilitating the in vitro selection procedure itself.
Deletion of Yeast p 24 Genes Activates the Unfolded Protein Response

Yeast cells lacking a functional p24 complex accumulate a subset of secretory proteins in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and increase the extracellular secretion of HDEL-containing ER residents such as Kar2p/BiP. We report that a loss of p24 function causes activation of the unfolded protein response (UPR) and leads to increased KAR2 expression. The HDEL receptor (Erd2p) is functional and traffics in p24 deletion strains as in wild-type strains, however the capacity of the retrieval pathway is exceeded. Other conditions that activate the UPR and elevate KAR2 expression also lead to extracellular secretion of Kar2p. Using an in vitro assay that reconstitutes budding from the ER, we detect elevated levels of Kar2p in ER-derived vesicles from p24 deletion strains and from wild-type strains with an activated UPR. Silencing the UPR by IRE1 deletion diminished Kar2p secretion under these conditions. We suggest that activation of the UPR plays a major role in extracellular secretion of Kar2p.
Communicating the complexity of computer‐integrated operations: An innovative use of process modelling in a North East hospital Trust

The English National Health Service has undergone unprecedented political, economic and technological change. This has resulted in a requirement for radical improvements in operational efficiency and effectiveness. An effective IT infrastructure supporting key operational processes and management reporting is now seen as essential. This paper outlines the findings from empirical research in a North East hospital Trust. The authors collaborated on a requirements analysis project to investigate and model business processes and information flows using an automated IDEF0 software tool. A participatory action research framework was used, informed by principles derived from critical social theory, to describe the complexity of the situation and provide improved communication amongst stakeholders. The paper concludes by reflecting on the need for more “ideal” speech situations in order to deal with complex operations management problems where political, power and social issues can obstruct effective implementation of new computer‐integrated operations.
Genetic effects of thymine glycol: site-specific mutagenesis and molecular modeling studies.

The mutational specificity and genetic requirements for mutagenesis by 5,6-dihydroxy-5,6-dihydrothymine (thymine glycol), one of the principal DNA lesions induced by oxidation and ionizing radiation, has been investigated in Escherichia coli. Thymine glycol was positioned at a unique site in the single-stranded genome of a bacteriophage M13mp19 derivative. Replication of the genome in E. coli yielded targeted mutations at a frequency of 0.3%; the mutations were exclusively T----C. Mutagenesis was independent of SOS and nth (nth encodes endonuclease III, a thymine glycol repair enzyme). The adduct was not detectably mutagenic in duplex DNA. A chemical rationalization for the mutation observed for thymine glycol was developed by applying molecular modeling and molecular mechanical calculations to the same DNA sequence studied in vivo. Modeling suggested that the 5R,6S isomer of cis-thymine glycol, when not base paired, was displaced laterally by approximately 0.5 A toward the major groove in comparison to the position that thymine would otherwise occupy. This perturbation of DNA structure should increase the likelihood of a guanine.thymine glycol wobble base pair during replication, which would explain the mutational specificity of the base observed in the genetic experiments.
The risky business of public–private partnerships

Public–private partnerships (PPPs) are now a common strand of third way government policy, with better efficiency promised from the private funding of public infrastructure through the transfer of risks to private parties. This paper aims to investigate, on an empirical basis, the realities of risk transfers in PPPs and compare this experience against both the rhetoric of project proponents and the formal contract conditions. The paper outlines some conceptual frameworks underpinning PPPs and establishes the notions of risk shifting and risk sharing. The range of typical risks encountered in infrastructure projects is specially considered, and differences to traditional project delivery arrangements are articulated. Some empirical experience on the transfer of risks under PPPs is then outlined through a case study. This analysis shows the extent to which risks were shifted to the private parties as planned, or whether risks remained with government. It is argued that while commercial risks were largely well managed, governance risks were not. It is critical to understand better the nature of risk transfers in PPPs in view of the large financial implications of these deals along with long contract terms.
Appropriability and Public Support of R&D in Canada

This paper investigates the extent to which considerations of inappropriability, a form of market failure, guide federal support to private industrial R&D in Canada. Statistics of the overall allocation of subsidies between grants and tax credits show little evidence at an inappropriability rationale. Econometric analysis of grant distributions, using a recently proposed operational concept of inappropriability, supports this conclusion at an aggregate level, but gives different results when a particular grant program is probed.
Factors Contributing to Positive and Productive Superintendent-Governing Board Relationships

Superintendents of public school districts occupy positions of tremendous importance and influence (Sharp & Walter, 2004). In total, the nation’s approximately 14,000 superintendents are responsible for the educational outcomes of nearly 55 million K-12 students (US Department of Education, 2009). Critical to the superintendent’s ability to bring about and maintain positive change in a district is the quality of the relationship the superintendent upholds with the school board (Petersen & Fusarelli, 2001). This study sought to identify strategies that successful superintendents use to establish and maintain positive and productive relationships with their school boards. Successful superintendents in this study were defined as proactive and purposeful superintendents who have demonstrated the ability to get things done and move the school district forward in a coherent and positive direction. Following Brunner’s (2000) methodology, a group of six award-winning current and former superintendents were recruited to serve as recommenders, selecting the two superintendents who participated in this study. In an effort to avoid exclusive reliance on superintendent self-perceptions, two school board members from each district were randomly selected to participate. Superintendents and school board members provided data through participation in one of two parallel semi-structured interviews. The results of this study indicated that successful superintendents ultimately sought to develop and maintain within their board an appropriate understanding of their role as board members. This study posed a second question, “What characteristics and attributes do governing board members find desirable in their superintendent? ”
The Nature of Some Recent Trade Union Modernization Policies in the UK

This article draws on recent research to present findings concerning the nature of some recent trade union modernization policies in the UK. In response to decline, it can be seen that the unions have increasingly been encouraged to represent and service members more as individuals than as part of a collective. This appears to be consonant with the frequently expressed view that greater individualism, both in employment and in society more generally, has largely been responsible for recent union weaknesses, and that if they are to endure the unions should adapt to it. Using data generated from interviews with full-time officers from a number of unions and from a case study of Unison organization within a local authority, the paper identifies two crucial problems with such an approach. First, it is argued that the substantial difficulties that the unions have experienced recently have been caused by a process of decollectivization in employment relations, and not one of individualization. Second, an indication of the complexity of the relationship between individualism and collectivism within trade unionism is given, something that is entirely ignored by proponents of the thesis that unions should concentrate solely on appealing to individuals.
The Monetary Theory of Kalecki and Minsky

The monetary theory of Kalecki and Minsky is usually placed within the Post-Keynesian tradition, deriving from the monetary analysis of John Maynard Keynes. The paper argues that Kalecki and Minsky shared a common inheritance in Swedish and German monetary theory, rather than the Marshallian tradition. Thus the monetary analysis of Kalecki and Minsky emphasises the endogeneity of money through capitalist reproduction, rather than through the mechanisms connecting central bank money to credit creation in the banking system. This provides the link between the monetary theory of Kalecki and Minsky and modern circuit theory.