Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Bacterial toxins: cellular mechanisms of action

INTRODUCTION . DIPHTHERIA TOXIN . PSEUDOMONAS EXOTOXIN A . PSEUDOMONAS EXOENZYME S . SHIGELLA TOXIN . CHOLERA TOXIN . E. COLI ENTEROTOXINS. PERTUSSIS TOXIN . ANTHRAX TOXIN . TETANUS TOXIN . BOTULINUM TOXIN . CONCLUDING REMARKS . ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. LITERATURE CITED. 199 201 207 209 209 210 213 213 213 214 215 215 215 215
QuestioNs ischemic stroke : Pathophysiology and Principles of localization

1. vasospasm and ischemic stroke are frequent complications of aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (saH). Nimodipine, a calcium channel antagonist, has been shown to improve outcomes when administered soon after diagnosis of saH. what is the most likely mechanism? (A) Prevention of segmental arterial vasospasm by relaxing arterial smooth muscle (B) Reduced severity of SAH-associated myocardial shock by diminishing cardiac afterload (C) Reduction of pathologic calcium influx in ischemic cells, inhibiting apoptosis (D) Vasodilation of the cerebral vasculature facilitating passive perfusion 2. a 28-year-old woman is found on the floor by a friend. the patient is a known intravenous heroin user. on arrival to the hospital, the patient is obtunded. she receives several doses of naloxone, but her mental status fails to improve. on examination, she is unresponsive except for decorticate posturing in response to noxious stimulation. Brainstem reflexes are intact. diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (Mri) is performed 1 week later (Figure). what is the most likely mechanism of this patient’s neurologic impairment? (A) Acute spongiform encephalopathy from heroin inhalation (“chasing the dragon”) (B) Bacterial meningitis (C) Bilateral middle cerebral artery infarctions (D) Bilateral watershed infarctions (E) Hypoxia
Artificial Cardiac Muscle with or without the Use of Scaffolds

During the past several decades, major advances and improvements now promote better treatment options for cardiovascular diseases. However, these diseases still remain the single leading cause of death worldwide. The rapid development of cardiac tissue engineering has provided the opportunity to potentially restore the contractile function and retain the pumping feature of injured hearts. This conception of cardiac tissue engineering can enable researchers to produce autologous and functional biomaterials which represents a promising technique to benefit patients with cardiovascular diseases. Such an approach will ultimately reshape existing heart transplantation protocols. Notable efforts are accelerating the development of cardiac tissue engineering, particularly to create larger tissue with enhanced functionality. Decellularized scaffolds, polymer synthetics fibrous matrix, and natural materials are used to build robust cardiac tissue scaffolds to imitate the morphological and physiological patterns of natural tissue. This ultimately helps cells to implant properly to obtain endogenous biological capacity. However, newer designs such as the hydrogel scaffold-free matrix can increase the applicability of artificial tissue to engineering strategies. In this review, we summarize all the methods to produce artificial cardiac tissue using scaffold and scaffold-free technology, their advantages and disadvantages, and their relevance to clinical practice.
School Nurses' Role in Identifying and Referring Children at Risk of Noise-Induced Hearing Loss

Young people are likely to experience noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL), as the use of personal listening devices and other damaging factors (e.g., video games) increases. Little research has examined the role of school health personnel in the prevention and early identification of hearing impairment. A 32-item, valid and reliable survey was developed regarding elementary and middle school nurses' practices concerning hearing loss screening and prevention. The survey instrument was based on the Stages of Change theory and the Health Belief Model. A random sample of 800 nurses was obtained from The National Association of School Nurses. A two-wave mailing was used to achieve a 58% response rate. Forty eight percent indicated there were not many educational programs that addressed NIHL in students. Performing hearing screenings routinely can help identify those students at risk. School nurses need to become advocates for policies and programs that mandate hearing screenings and educational programs to help reduce hearing loss.
Marketing and political campaigning: mutually exclusive or exclusively mutual?

Questions the nature of marketing methods in political campaigns based on a grounded theoretical approach conducted using in‐depth interviews. Suggests that if marketing success is measured solely by the level of turnout then the use of marketing in political campaigns would appear to be failing. Other reasons, however, may also explain this lack of success. The use of marketing may be less effective because the “market” is more restrictive, or marketing methods whilst actually being appropriate may be being used inappropriately. Concludes that, although the political “market” is different and restrictive, this does not negate the role of marketing in political campaigning.
Differential Fecundity and Gender Biased Parental Investment

Parents invest differently in sons and daughters. This paper formally re-examines the application of the Trivers Willard hypothesis to humans. Differential fecundity and assortive matching in marriage are necessary for parents to invest differently in the skills of their sons and daughters. Unlike the Trivers Willard hypothesis, better endowed parents do not necessarily invest relatively more on the survival of their sons relative to worse endowed parents. Parents invest more on the health of the child that they value higher. They do not necessarily invest more on the skills of the child that they value higher. The theory generates endogenous population growth.
City size, diversification, and income smoothing

This article investigates the mechanisms by which the cities of the United States smooth out fluctuations in their income. Contributions for social security and government transfers (the government channel) take the bulk of smoothing (17 per cent), and intercity mobility ranks high: about 6 per cent of income shocks are smoothed via the choice of working in a city different from the place of residence. The empirical analysis also shows that the various channels of income smoothing operate differently according to the size and the degree of diversification of the city.
Rewiring Interventions? UK Provincial Reconstruction Teams and ‘Stabilization’

This article explores developments in the UK's institutional arrangements for managing ‘stabilization’ operations. It suggests that ‘stabilization’ activity takes place within a different framework of priorities from either ‘development’ or military-led ‘hearts and minds’ frameworks. It argues for a sharpening of, and to some extent a returning to basics for, Civil–Military Cooperation (CIMIC) while creating capabilities for a more developed form of ‘stabilization CIMIC’. It also highlights the need for new and widely understood institutions that enhance the capacity for comprehensive and integrated (rather than sequential or coordinated) interdepartmental operational planning. It stresses the difficulties with stabilization models that imply a generic sequencing of activities, rather than approaches that represent a mixture of simultaneity and ‘critical path analyses. The debates framed in this article are rooted in institutional developments witnessed in 2006 and 2007.
Cloning, characterization and construction of htrA and htrA-like mutants of Brucella abortus and their survival in BALB/c mice.

A genomic library of Brucella abortus S2308 was screened for expression of recombinant proteins recognized by sera from mice and from cattle infected with B. abortus. A positive clone, BA1, expressing a 50 kDa peptide was recognized by both sera. Plasmid pBA1, isolated from BA1, was shown by restriction enzyme digestion to possess a 1.9 kb insert. The nucleotide sequence of the pBA1 insert revealed an open reading frame with of 1539 bases with a coding capacity of 513 amino acids and a predicted molecular weight of 50,992. The predicted amino acid sequence showed 37% identity to E. coli HtrA, a temperature inducible serine protease. A second B. abortus htrA gene, designated htrA-like, was identified on a different cloned fragment that also encoded B. abortus recA. The nucleotide sequence of the htrA-like gene revealed an open reading frame of 1422 nucleotides with a coding capacity of 474 amino acids and a predicted molecular weight of 50,155. The deduced amino acid sequence of the htrA-like gene showed 42% and 36% identity with B. abortus and E. coli HtrAs respectively. Western blotting of E. coli lysate containing the htrA-like gene was not recognized by sera from B. abortus-infected cattle or mice. B. abortus htrA but not htrA-like relieved the temperature sensitive phenotype and permitted growth of an E. coli htrA mutant at 42 degrees C. B. abortus htrA and htrA-like mutants were constructed and their survival and growth in BALB/c mice was compared to the parental strain S2308. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Accounting Research and Accounting Policy: What Kind of Gap?

This paper is a response to Singleton-Green's examination of the relationship between scholarly financial accounting research and financial accounting policymaking and, in particular, the failure of policymakers to make much use of contemporary research (Accounting in Europe, 7(2), pp. 129–145, 2010). He argues that a major cause of this failure is a communication gap between academics and policymakers but this paper suggests that there is a major gulf between the interests and approaches of the academic and policymaking communities that will not be overcome by improving communication. Thus, his conclusion is too optimistic and may lead policymakers to expect much more from engagement with academic research than they are likely to obtain and academics employing contemporary research paradigms to believe that their work will be received by policymakers with more enthusiasm than is likely to be the case.
The case for a cause-effect linkage between environmental contamination and development in eggs of the common snapping turtle (Chelydra S.serpentina) from Ontario, Canada.

Concentrations of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), dibenzo-p-dioxins, and dibenzofurans, organochlorine pesticides, and their metabolites were measured in eggs of the common snapping turtle (Chelydra s.serpentina) collected from four wetlands on the shorelines of Lakes Ontario, and Erie, and one control location in central Ontario, Canada. Snapping turtle eggs from these sites were also artificially incubated to determine hatching success, and incidence of deformities in embryo and hatchling turtles. The hypothesis that elevated incidences of egg death and/or deformities of hatchling turtles would occur in populations with high concentrations of organochlorine contaminants in eggs was tested. The results were elevated using epidemiological criteria. Unhatched eggs and deformities occurred at significantly higher rates in eggs from Lake Ontario wetlands. Two of three sites from Lake Ontario had substantially higher levels of PCBs, dioxins, and furans compared to eggs from Lake Erie and the control site. It could not be shown that contamination of eggs preceded the occurrence of poor development of eggs, although excellent hatching success and low numbers of deformities in eggs from the control site were considered representative of development in healthy eggs. The statistical association between contaminant levels in eggs and poor development of these eggs supported the hypothesis that eggs from sites with the greatest contamination had the highest rates of abnormalities. PCBs were the most strongly associated chemicals, although possible effects due to the presence of other chemicals in eggs was a confounding factor. The deformities and rates of unhatched eggs were similar to those occurring in other vertebrates collected from highly contaminated areas of the Great Lakes. There were several chemicals present in the eggs that can cause similar reproductive effects in other species; therefore a specific chemical effect was not identified. Results were coherent with known statistical and biological information. Theoretical and factual evidence of PCB contamination in wild-caught snapping turtles supported and hypothesis. However, lack of controlled studies of reproductive effects of polychlorinated hydrocarbons upon this species hindered the agreement of all factual and theoretical evidence with the hypothesis.
The Public Pension System in the Czech Republic from the Point of View of Public Finance

The Czech public pension system is fiscally unsustainable in the long run because of population ageing, which is particularly pronounced in the Czech Republic. Some parametrical adjustments have been implemented since the beginning of the 1990s, but in contrast to other central European transition countries, the Czech pension scheme is still awaiting a fundamental reform. An independent working group was established in 2004 to analyse the pension reform proposals of the main political parties, and is expected to finalise its analysis by mid-2005. Its results will ideally contribute to the pension reform process, although the timing of the pension reform remains uncertain owing to political considerations.
Right ventricular volumes and ejection fraction with fast cine MR imaging in breath‐hold technique: Applicability, normal values from 52 volunteers, and evaluation of 325 adult cardiac patients

Our goal was to establish right ventricular (RV) volume and ejection fraction (EF) values in normal volunteers with fast magnetic resonance (MR) imaging using a breath‐hold technique, to assess the frequency and severity of RVEF abnormality in cardiac patients and to compare RV with left ventricular (LV) data. We performed simultaneously derived RV and LV fast cine measurements in 52 normals and 325 patients with coronary artery disease (CAD), acquired valvular disease (VD), cardiomyopathy (CM), or congenital heart disease (CHD). RVEF was reduced in 31% (102) of all patients, in 50% dilated CM, 39% CHD, 34% CAD, and 22% acquired VD patients. Solitary abnormally low RVEF was found in only 15/325 (5%) of all patients, whereas combined with LVEF deterioration in 87/172 (51%) patients. RVEF reduction was mild in 64%, moderate in 25%, and severe in 11%. Although RVEF correlated significantly (r = 0.55, P < 0.001) with LVEF, the predictive value of LVEF for RVEF was low. We conclude that RV volumes can be routinely assessed with fast MRI and should be performed in addition to LV evaluation in CHD, in right‐sided VD, and in all patients with an abnormal LVEF.J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 1999; 10:908–918. © 1999 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Is Structure-Conduct-Performance a case of structure-performance?: Structural Equation Modelling of Indian industries

Based on Bain's work, a theoretical model for the Structure-Conduct-Performance (SCP) paradigm is conceptualised. Two basic hypotheses are tested. The first hypothesis is that structure affects performance mediated through conduct of firms in an industry. The second hypothesis is exactly the same but with opposite causal direction. Six additional variants of these two basic models are also tested. The results indicate that direct and total effects of industry structure on firms' profitability are positive and significant while the indirect effects (mediated through the conduct variables) are insignificant. It is observed that in the presence of entry barriers, industry concentration has no significant effect on firms' profitability.
The Politics of Broadband: Labor and New Information Technology from Hawke to Gillard

Labor's broadband policy influenced key regional independents to support the formation of the minority Gillard government. However, analysing information technology policy doesn't only demonstrate continuing differences between Labor and the Coalition. It also demonstrates changing Labor attitudes on issues ranging from neoliberalism, globalisation and social inclusion to conceptions of market failure and the rising power of Asia. In particular, this article compares and contrasts the attitudes of the Rudd government to those of the Hawke and Keating governments, arguing that the Rudd government placed much more emphasis on the role that market failure had played in contributing to Australia's poor broadband provision. The resulting policy involved an increased role for government in rolling out broadband not only to the cities but also to regional Australia. That approach benefitted Gillard. It also reflected ideological differences between not just Labor and the Liberals, but also between Rudd and his Labor predecessors.
An Investigation of Differences in Residents' Perceptions on the Sunshine Coast: Tourism Impacts and Demographic Variables

Abstract This study investigates the differences in residents' perceptions of various tourism development impacts by the location of their residence, gender, age, annual household income level, ethnic background, occupation and the level of education attained. A survey approach was used to collect data from residents of the Sunshine Coast region (n = 732). The study found that more residents living in the coastal area with high tourist activity nearby perceived a higher positive impact of tourism than residents of hinterland areas in the vicinity of high tourist activity. However, the residents of hinterland areas were more likely to perceive social impact positively than the people living in coastal areas. The results also suggest that the residents of suburban areas perceived economic impact positively when compared with the residents of rural or urban areas. Significant differences were also noted for perceptions of tourism impacts according to respondents' level of household income, ethnic background and occupation. However, there is no notable difference in the perceptions of tourism impact in relation to respondents' age, gender and level of education.
Comparative Political Studies Christian Breunig Democracies Reduction , Stasis , and Expansion of Budgets in Advanced

This article investigates changes within national budget by examining actors’ behavioral predilections and the institutional constraints under which they operate. The article presents three theoretical propositions about the influence of attention and institutions on all magnitudes of programmatic budget changes ranging from large cuts to massive expansions. Using quantile regression, the author is able to uncover which distinct processes bear on cuts, stasis, and expansion across spending categories within a budget. An examination of budgetary data from Denmark, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States from 1964 to 1999 leads to the conclusion that attention shifts lead to contractions and expansions of budgetary items, whereas preference-based explanations have marginal support. In addition, institutional costs involved in budgetary politics amplify budgetary shifts. The author closes the article by discussing the implications of the findings for partisan theories of government and institutional theories.
Experimental constraint on dark matter-standard model coupling with optical atomic clocks

We have shown that a single optical atomic clock can be used as a detector for the hypothetical dark matter in the form of stable topological defects, for example, monopoles, strings or domain walls. We exploited differences in the susceptibilities to the fine-structure constant of essential parts of an optical atomic clock, i.e. the atoms and the cavity. We perform an experiment which constrained the strength of atomic coupling to hypothetical dark-matter cosmic objects. Under the conditions of our experiments, the degree of constraint was found to exceed the previously reported limits by more than three orders of magnitude [1].
Universalising electronic government services: facing the digital divide challenge

Many governments have made considerable efforts to develop and offer egovernment services. It has been argued that e-government services have been made available in many countries, but unequal access and ineffective usage are major obstacles for the realisation of e-government benefits. Inequality includes, but is not limited to, a low-level of education, limited access to quality ICT, a lack of willingness to use the services, and a low-level of income. Such disadvantaged groups experience difficulty in accessing and benefitting from the online services. This dissertation aims to analyse the challenges hindering the universalisation of e-government services in the context of the digital divide. It will focus on the issues from the demand side which refers to the viewpoint of citizens concerning the use of e-government. A literature review was conducted in which 42 articles were carefully selected and reviewed. The analysis of these studies has revealed that there are three main barriers which would function as obstacles to the universalisation of e-government services and those barriers are demographic, geographical and a lack of digital skills. Some theoretical and practical implications are presented.
Sustaining homeownership: the experience of city-based affordable homeownership

foreclosures has sparked a renewed debate over the government’s role in promoting homeownership, particularly among low-income and minority borrowers. Increasingly, questions are emerging about the benefits of homeownership for lower-income households. Commentators on the crisis note that homeownership is not for everyone, and argue that efforts to expand homeownership opportunities for lower-income households are misguided at best. The most vocal of critics have argued that government programs designed to expand access to credit and homeownership, such as the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) and the affordable housing goals established for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, helped to precipitate the current subprime meltdown. What these critics fail to consider, however, is that affordable homeownership programs have long been able to help lower-income families overcome the financial barriers to owning a home, and have done so in a way that is both responsible and sustainable. It is a mistake to conflate efforts to expand access to homeownership with the subprime lending boom: indeed, the dramatic rise in subprime lending may be better viewed as the antithesis of these efforts. Rather than support affordable homeownership, the characteristics of “subprime” lending—including high interest rates, high debt-to-income and loan-to-value ratios, limited documentation, and the layering of exotic loan terms such as interest-only and negative amortization payment schedules—all served to make homeownership a risky proposition, not only for lower-income families, but for many middleand upper-income families as well. Indeed, studies conducted by the Federal Reserve Board of Governors and the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco both found that subprime lending was not targeted Sustaining Homeownership The Experience of City-Based Affordable Homeownership Programs By Carolina Reid1 ye on C om m uity D evlopm nt
Noise-robust double-talk detection based on normalized cross correlation and a noise offset

This paper presents a noise-robust double-talk detection algorithm based on normalized cross-correlation and a noise offset. The noise offset alleviates undesirable influence by the background noise existing in the microphone signal. It is estimated from the echo-cancelled signal when its autocorrelation is low and its power is smaller than the echo-replica power. A detection threshold of the new normalized cross-correlation is adaptively controlled based on the echo-to-NES (near-end speech) ratio. Simulation results demonstrate superior performance of the new algorithm.