Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Assessment of transposition of the great arteries associated with multiple malformations using dual-source computed tomography

Purpose To determine the value of dual-source computed tomography (DSCT) in depicting the morphological characteristics and diagnosing the associated malformations for patients with transposition of the great arteries (TGA) before surgery. Materials and methods Twenty-five patients with TGA who underwent DSCT and transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) examination were retrospectively reviewed. The morphological types of TGA, the spatial relationship between the pulmonary artery and the aorta, as well as coronary artery-associated abnormalities were assessed by DSCT. In contrast to TTE, the diagnostic accuracy of associated malformations on DSCT were analyzed and calculated with reference to surgical or digital subtraction angiography (DSA) findings. Effective doses (EDs) were also calculated. Results Among the 25 patients, 12 (48%) had ventricular septal defects and left ventricular outflow tract stenosis. Sixteen patients (16/25, 64%) had great arteries with an oblique spatial relationship on DSCT. In addition, we found seven patients (7/25, 28%) with coronary artery malformation, including five with an abnormal coronary origin and two with signs of a myocardial bridge. According to DSA or surgical findings, DSCT was superior to TTE in demonstrating extracardiac anomalies (sensitivity, anomalies of great vessels: 100% vs. 93.33%, other anomalies: 100% vs. 46.15%). The mean estimated ED for those aged <10 years was <2 mSv (1.59 ± 0.95 mSv). Conclusions DSCT can achieve an overall assessment of patients with TGA, including any associated malformations as well as the identification of the spatial relationship of the great arteries. DSCT can therefore be considered as an alternative imaging modality for surgical decision making.
Thinking about the value of property from a sustainable perspective

This Journal Article is brought to you by the Institute of Sustainable Development and Architecture at ePublications@bond. It has been accepted for inclusion in Mirvac School of Sustainable Development by an authorized administrator of ePublications@bond. For more information, please contact Bond University's Repository Coordinator. Recommended Citation Lynne Armitage. (2009) "Thinking about the value of property from a sustainable perspective" The Australian and New Zealand Property Journal, 2 (1), 5-15: ISSN 1836-6635.
Drug discovery for remyelination and treatment of MS

Glia constitute the majority of the cells in our nervous system, yet there are currently no drugs that target glia for the treatment of disease. Given ongoing discoveries of the many roles of glia in numerous diseases of the nervous system, this is likely to change in years to come. Here we focus on the possibility that targeting the oligodendrocyte lineage to promote regeneration of myelin (remyelination) represents a therapeutic strategy for the treatment of the demyelinating disease multiple sclerosis, MS. We discuss how hypothesis driven studies have identified multiple targets and pathways that can be manipulated to promote remyelination in vivo, and how this work has led to the first ever remyelination clinical trials. We also highlight how recent chemical discovery screens have identified a host of small molecule compounds that promote oligodendrocyte differentiation in vitro. Some of these compounds have also been shown to promote myelin regeneration in vivo, with one already being trialled in humans. Promoting oligodendrocyte differentiation and remyelination represents just one potential strategy for the treatment of MS. The pathology of MS is complex, and its complete amelioration may require targeting multiple biological processes in parallel. Therefore, we present an overview of new technologies and models for phenotypic analyses and screening that can be exploited to study complex cell–cell interactions in in vitro and in vivo systems. Such technological platforms will provide insight into fundamental mechanisms and increase capacities for drug–discovery of relevance to glia and currently intractable disorders of the CNS.
Transnational corporations : the international legal framework

Volume 17: Transnational Corporations and Innovatory Activities Edited by John Cantwell Part One - Theory and analytical foundations Part Two - The internationalization of technological activity Part Three - New organizational forms: innovation through inter-firm cooperation, by Third World transnational corporations, and the organizational development of Japanese transnational corporations Part Four - The ownership and location of innovative capacity, the internationalization of economic activity, and policies for national competitivenessVolume 18: Transnational Corporations and Technology Transfer to Developing Countries Edited by Edward Chen Part One - The role of transnational corporations in technology transfer Part Two - Forms, costs and conditions of technology transfer Part Three - Impacts on host and home countriesVolume 19: Transnational Corporations and National Law Edited by Seymour J Rubin and Don Wallace, Jr Part One - The corporation - basic law and nationality Part Two - National regulations and solutions to particular problemsVolume 20: Transnational Corporations: The International Legal Framework Edited byA.A. Fatouros Part One - Towards an international legal framework Part Two - Principal lawmaking methods and instruments Part Three - Major disruptions of the operations of transnational corporations Part Four - The establishment and operations of transnational corporations _
Debt financing and tunneling of Chinese listed firms

Unique institutional structure of Chinese stock market often leads to the distortion of corporate financing behavior, which is a phenomenon widely documented in the literature. However, most previous studies in this field have concentrated on equity financing, especially rights offering, while ignoring debt financing as an important alternative. This paper examines the debt financing behavior of firms after making the decision to utilize rights offering. Empirical findings suggest that debt financing increases significantly after rights offering, which results in a higher leverage ratio. Changes in leverage are positively influenced by rights offering scale, which is consistent with the ”money encirclement” hypothesis. Our evidence also indicates that with the increase in ownership concentration, the leverage also increases.
Personalized cyber face: a novel facial modeling approach using multi-level radial basis function

In this paper, we propose a facial modeling system using our novel multilevel adaption procedure. We model a template head model with physical structure to synthesize the various facial expressions. To make the template model suitable for different facial geometry, landmarks compliant to MPEG-4 facial definition parameters (FDP) are labeled on this model. Then another personalized 3D head with different geometrical information is labeled with a subset of these feature points. An iterative multilevel training process is performed to get a transformation function from the template model to the personalized model. We use compactly supported radial basis function (CSRBF) to assure the locality detail of the adapted model. A curvature based searching scheme is also used to find the feature points in the iterative process
00 Application-Specific Residential Microgrid Design Methodology

Level Microgrid Simulate & Validate Microgrid Planning Logical Simulation & Validation Application-Specific Microgrid Design Flow Check Rules & Constraints (Alg. 2) Multiple revisions and optimization needed for validation Select Components Microgrid Optimization (Eqn. 5) Optimized Microgrid Functional Microgrid Design (Alg. 1)
NG2‐expressing cells in the central nervous system: Are they oligodendroglial progenitors?

Antibodies against the chondroitin sulphate proteoglycan, NG2, are increasingly being used to identify the widespread population of oligodendrocyte progenitor cells in the adult mammalian CNS. However, the specificity of this marker and the role of NG2‐expressing cells in CNS function are still open to question. In this review we consider the evidence that NG2+ cells in the CNS are part of the oligodendrocyte lineage and whether they can give rise to new oligodendrocytes following demyelination. In both the developing and mature rodent CNS, NG2+ cells express the established oligodendrocyte lineage marker PDGF‐αR and from P7, the late progenitor antigen O4, which persists in immature oligodendrocytes. They do not express markers of other CNS populations, such as OX42 or GFAP, at any developmental age. NG2+ cells represent the major cycling cell population in the normal adult rat CNS, suggesting they have stem cell‐like properties. NG2 immunoreactivity is upregulated as a result of physical, viral, excitotoxic and inflammatory insults to the CNS. Following demyelination NG2+ cell number increases in the immediate vicinity of the lesion and rapid remyelination ensues. NG2 expression has also been investigated in human tissue. Multi‐process bearing cells, which morphologically resemble those identified with antibodies against O4, persist in chronically demyelinated multiple sclerosis lesions. J. Neurosci. Res. 61:471–479, 2000. © 2000 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Accumulation of bis(monoacylglycero)phosphate and gangliosides in mouse models of neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis

The neuronal ceroid lipofuscinoses comprise a group of inherited severe neurodegenerative lysosomal disorders characterized by lysosomal dysfunction and massive accumulation of fluorescent lipopigments and aggregated proteins. To examine the role of lipids in neurodegenerative processes of these diseases, we analysed phospho‐ and glycolipids in the brains of ctsd−/− and nclf mice, disease models of cathepsin D and CLN6 deficiency, respectively. Both ctsd−/− and nclf mice exhibited increased levels of GM2 and GM3 gangliosides. Immunohistochemically GM2 and GM3 staining was found preferentially in neurons and glial cells, respectively, of ctsd−/− mice. Of particular note, a 20‐fold elevation of the unusual lysophospholipid bis(monoacylglycero)phosphate was specifically detected in the brain of ctsd−/− mice accompanied with sporadic accumulation of unesterified cholesterol in distinct cells. The impaired processing of the sphingolipid activator protein precursor, an in vitro cathepsin D substrate, in the brain of ctsd−/− mice may provide the mechanistic link to the storage of lipids. These studies show for the first time that cathepsin D regulates the lysosomal phospho‐ and glycosphingolipid metabolism suggesting that defects in the composition, trafficking and/or recycling of membrane components along the late endocytic pathway may be critical for the pathogenesis of early onset neuronal ceroid lipofuscinoses.
Peripheral blood CD8highCD57+ lymphocyte levels may predict outcome in melanoma patients treated with adjuvant interferon-alpha.

BACKGROUND The objective of this study was to evaluate the significance of CD8highCD57+ lymphocytes for the survival of high risk melanoma patients treated with adjuvant interferon-alpha (IFN-alpha). PATIENTS AND METHODS The prognostic significance of peripheral blood CD8highCD57+ lymphocyte levels for survival was analysed retrospectively in 16 IFN-alpha-treated melanoma patients with resected regional lymph node metastases. The survival of the patients was analyzed using the Kaplan-Meier method. The difference between survival curves was determined using the log-rank test. RESULTS The median survival time of patients with >23% CD8highCD57+ lymphocytes prior to treatment with IFN-alpha was 14.2 months, whereas the median survival time of patients with < 23% CD8highCD57+ lymphocytes was not reached at the time of analysis (median follow-up 24.6 months). CONCLUSION Larger prospective studies are justified to investigate the precise value of CD8highCD57+ lymphocytes in the selection of melanoma patients for adjuvant treatment with IFN-alpha.
Distributed, price-based control approach to market-based operation of future power systems

In this paper we present, discuss and illustrate on examples the price-based control paradigm as a suitable approach to solve some of the challenging problems facing future, market-based power systems. It is illustrated how global objectives and constraints are optimally translated into time-varying prices. The real-time varying price signals are guaranteed to adequately reflect the state of the physical system and present the signals that optimally shape, coordinate and synchronize local, profit driven behaviors of producers/consumers to mutually reinforce and guarantee global objectives and constraints. As an illustrative example, the real-time pricebased power balance control with congestion management is presented.
The international classification of childhood cancer

The International Classification of Childhood Cancer (ICCC) updates the widely used Birch and Marsden classification scheme. ICCC is based on the second edition of the International Classification of Diseases for Oncology (ICD‐O‐2). The purpose of the new classification is to accommodate important changes in recognition of different types of neoplasms, while preserving continuity with the original classification. The grouping of neoplasms into 12 main diagnostic groups is maintained. The major changes are: (1) intracranial and intraspinal germ‐cell tumours now constitute a separate subgroup within germ‐cell tumours; (2) histiocytosis X (Langerhans‐cell histiocytosis) is excluded from ICCC; (3) Kaposi's sarcoma is a separate subgroup within soft‐tissue sarcomas; (4) skin carcinoma is a separate subgroup within epithelial neoplasms; (5) “other specified” and “unspecified” neoplasms are now usually separate sub‐categories within the main diagnostic groups. Draft copies of the ICCC were distributed to some 200 professionals with interest and expertise in the field and their comments are considered in this final version. This classification will be used for presentation of data in the second volume of the IARC Scientific Publication “International Incidence of Childhood Cancer. ” A computer programme for automated classification of childhood tumours coded according to ICD‐O‐I or ICD‐O‐2 is now available from IARC. © 1996 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Skills Development Training Among Women Hospitality Industry Entrepreneurs in South Sudan

This paper examines a women’s skills development training program in basic hospitality skills that was designed and facilitated with the cooperation of a multinational donor and its partners with an objective of promoting entrepreneurship among women in post war South Sudan. A brief review of the entrepreneurship development literature from an international donor perspective is conducted along with a discussion of the entrepreneurship program as a targeted approach for empowering and sustaining women's economic situation in South Sudan. Emphasis is placed on women Small Scale Enterprises (SSE) entrepreneurs and current involvement of multinational assistance agencies to regenerate hospitality skills training in a poor country after decades of devastation civil political conflict.
The Effects of Low-Intensity Ultrasound on Medial Collateral Ligament Healing in the Rabbit Model

Background Ruptured medial collateral ligaments are capable of healing over time, but biomechanical and biochemical properties remain inferior to normal tissue. Low-intensity ultrasound may improve healing. Hypothesis Medial collateral ligaments treated with ultrasound will demonstrate superior healing. Study Design Controlled laboratory study. Methods Twenty-one late-adolescent male rabbits underwent bilateral ligament transection. One ligament from each rabbit received ultrasound treatment every other day for 6 total treatments. Contralateral ligaments received sham treatments. After 3 or 6 weeks, ligaments were evaluated biomechanically and assayed for collagen concentration and the relative proportions of types I and III collagen. Results Areas of sonicated specimens were significantly larger (10.6% ± 4.90%) at 6 weeks. Ultimate load (39.5% ± 17.0%), ultimate displacement (24.5% ± 8.0%), and energy absorption (69.1% ± 22.0%) were significantly higher for sonicated specimens at 6 weeks. No significant biomechanical differences were observed at 3 weeks. The relative proportion of type I collagen was significantly higher in sonicated ligaments at 3 weeks (8.61% ± 4.0%) and 6 weeks (6.91% ± 3.0%). No significant differences in collagen concentration were observed at either 3 or 6 weeks. Conclusion Subtle improvement with ultrasound treatment may be apparent by 3 weeks after injury, suggested by increased proportion of type I collagen. Ultrasound appears to improve some structural properties and to modestly increase scar cross-sectional area and type I collagen present at 6 weeks after injury in this model. Clinical Relevance Ultrasound treatments after ligament injury may facilitate earlier return to activities and decrease risk of reinjury.
Requirement of the Zinc-Binding Domain of ClpX for Spx Proteolysis in Bacillus subtilis and Effects of Disulfide Stress on ClpXP Activity

ABSTRACT Spx, a transcriptional regulator of the disulfide stress response in Bacillus subtilis, is under the proteolytic control of the ATP-dependent protease ClpXP. Previous studies suggested that ClpXP activity is down-regulated in response to disulfide stress, resulting in elevated concentrations of Spx. The effect of disulfide stress on ClpXP activity was examined using the thiol-specific oxidant diamide. ClpXP-catalyzed degradation of either Spx or a green fluorescent protein derivative bearing an SsrA tag recognized by ClpXP was inhibited by diamide treatment in vitro. Spx is also a substrate for MecA/ClpCP-catalyzed proteolysis in vitro, but diamide used at the concentrations that inhibited ClpXP had little observable effect on MecA/ClpCP activity. ClpX bears a Cys4 Zn-binding domain (ZBD), which in other Zn-binding proteins is vulnerable to thiol-reactive electrophiles. Diamide treatment caused partial release of Zn from ClpX and the formation of high-molecular-weight species, as observed by electrophoresis through nonreducing gels. Reduced Spx proteolysis in vitro and elevated Spx concentration in vivo resulted when two of the Zn-coordinating Cys residues of the ClpX ZBD were changed to Ser. This was reflected in enhanced Spx activity in both transcription activation and repression in cells expressing the Cys-to-Ser mutants. ClpXP activity in vivo is reduced when cells are exposed to diamide, as shown by the enhanced stability of an SsrA-tagged protein after treatment with the oxidant. The results are consistent with the hypothesis that inhibition of ClpXP by disulfide stress is due to structural changes to the N-terminal ZBD of ClpX.
Small to modest impact of social group on the gut microbiome of wild Costa Rican capuchins in a seasonal forest

The horizontal transmission of pathogenic and beneficial microbes has implications for health and development of socially living animals. Social group is repeatedly implicated as an important predictor of gut microbiome structure among primates, with individuals in neighboring social groups exhibiting distinct microbiomes. Here we examine whether group membership is a predictor of gut microbiome structure and diversity across three groups of white‐faced capuchins (Cebus capucinus imitator) inhabiting a seasonal Costa Rican forest. We collected 62 fecal samples from 18 adult females during four sampling bouts. Sampling bouts spanned the dry‐to‐wet‐to‐dry seasonal transitions. To investigate gut microbial composition, we sequenced the V4 region of the 16S rRNA gene. We used the DADA2 pipeline to assign amplicon sequence variants and the RDP database to classify taxa. Our findings are: 1) gut microbiomes of capuchins clustered by social group in the late dry season, but this pattern was less evident in other sampling bouts; 2) social group was a significant variable in a PERMANOVA test of beta diversity, but it accounted for less variation than season; 3) social group was not an important predictor of abundance for the ten most abundant microbial taxa in capuchins; 4) when examining log2‐fold abundances of microbes between social groups, there were significant differences in some pairwise comparisons. While this is suggestive of group‐wide differences, individual variation may have a strong impact and should be assessed in future studies. Overall, we found a minor impact of social group membership on the gut microbiota of wild white‐faced capuchins. Future research including home range overlap and resource use, as well as fine‐scale investigation of individual variation, will further elucidate patterns of socially structured microbes.
EU Social Policy in the 1990s: Towards a Corporatist Policy Community

Introductory Overview 1. Political Theory and EU Politics 2. Social Policy from Messina to Maastricht 3. Social Policy in the Maastricht Treaty 4. Policy-making under Social Protocol 5. The Evolution of Social Interest in Intermediation 6. Conclusions and Outlook
Turkiye’de Asgari Ucret–UFE Enflasyonu Iliskisi Uzerine Ampirik Bir Analiz

[TR] Bu notta, asgari ucret ile UFE (Uretici Fiyatlari Endeksi) enflasyonu arasindaki iliski incelenmektedir. Sektorlerin teknolojik ozelliklerinin bir sonucu olan kalifiye olmayan is gucu paylarindaki sektorel farkliliklar ve asgari ucretin isveren maliyetlerinde gozlenen degisimler kullanilarak yapilan ampirik analizler, asgari ucretin isverene maliyetindeki artisin kalifiye olmayan isci istihdamina daha fazla yer veren sektorlerde uretici fiyatlarini daha fazla artirdigini gostermektedir. Bu sonuclarin net asgari ucret artislari veriyken de gecerli oldugu gozlenmektedir. Dolayisiyla, kamu maliyesine ek bir yukun ortaya cikmayacagi bir senaryo altinda, net asgari ucret artislari veri iken, asgari ucretin isveren maliyetindeki dususlerin enflasyon gorunumunu olumlu etkileyebilecegi dusunulmektedir. [EN] In this note, the link between minimum wages and PPI inflation is analyzed. The empirical analysis, which exploits the heterogeneity in the unskilled labor ratio across industries and the changes in the employer’s cost of minimum wage, indicates that an increase in the employer’s cost of minimum wage yields a higher producer price increase in the sectors with a higher unskilled labor ratio. This result is robust when the change in the net minimum wage is also controlled for. Hence, the results suggest that for a given net minimum wage increase, a lower employer’s cost of minimum wage can be associated with lower producer price inflation under such a scenario that no additional pressure is asserted on the fiscal balance.
The CUP2 gene product, regulator of yeast metallothionein expression, is a copper-activated DNA-binding protein

CUP2 is a regulatory gene controlling expression of CUP1, which encodes the Cu-binding yeast metallothionein. CUP2, which is identical to the ACE1 gene, encodes a Cu-regulated DNA-binding protein. The CUP2 protein contains a cysteine-rich DNA-binding domain dependent on Cu+ and Ag+ ions which bind the cysteine residues and direct the refolding of the metal-free apoprotein. CUP2 mutant alleles from Cu-sensitive yeast strains have point mutations affecting the DNA-binding activity. These results establish CUP2 as the primary sensor of intracellular Cu+ in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, functioning as a Cu+-regulated transcriptional activator.