Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Cost-utility analysis of screening intervals for diabetic retinopathy in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

CONTEXT Annual eye screening for patients with diabetes mellitus is frequently proposed as a measure of quality of care. However, the benefit of annual vs less frequent screening intervals has not been well evaluated, especially for low-risk patients. OBJECTIVE To examine the marginal cost-effectiveness of various screening intervals for eye disease in patients with type 2 diabetes, stratified by age and level of glycemic control. DESIGN Markov cost-effectiveness model. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS Hypothetical patients based on the US population of diabetic patients older than 40 years from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Patient time spent blind, quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs), and costs of annual vs less frequent screening compared by age and level of hemoglobin A1c. RESULTS Retinal screening in patients with type 2 diabetes is an effective intervention; however, the risk reduction varies dramatically by age and level of glycemic control. On average, a high-risk patient who is aged 45 years and has a hemoglobin A1c level of 11% gains 21 days of sight when screened annually as opposed to every third year, while a low-risk patient who is aged 65 years and has a hemoglobin A1c level of 7% gains an average of 3 days of sight. The marginal cost-effectiveness of screening annually vs every other year also varies; patients in the high-risk group cost an additional $40530 per QALY gained, while those in the low-risk group cost an additional $211570 per QALY gained. In the US population, retinal screening annually vs every other year for patients with type 2 diabetes costs $107510 per QALY gained, while screening every other year vs every third year costs $49760 per QALY gained. CONCLUSIONS Annual retinal screening for all patients with type 2 diabetes without previously detected retinopathy may not be warranted on the basis of cost-effectiveness, and tailoring recommendations to individual circumstances may be preferable. Organizations evaluating quality of care should consider costs and benefits carefully before setting universal standards.
Boycotting for Sabbath: religious consumerism as a political strategy

Such prosperity, whole emporia dedicated to cheeses, ribbons, Shaker furniture, is protection of a sort. This commercial wellbeing is robust and will defend itself to the last. It isn’t rationalism that will overcome the religious zealots, but ordinary shopping and all that it entails—jobs for a start, and peace, and some commitment to realizable pleasures, the promise of appetites sated in this world, not the next. Rather shop than pray. Ian McEwan, Saturday
Septohippocampal properties of N‐methyl‐D‐aspartate‐induced theta‐band oscillation and synchrony

Microinfusion of N‐methyl‐D‐aspartate (NMDA) into apical dendrites of hippocampal CA1 pyramidal cells of urethane‐anesthetized rats resulted in long lasting (20–30 min) induction of hippocampal synchrony at the field and cellular level. Power but not frequency of NMDA‐induced theta was significantly greater than tail pinch‐induced theta activity. This effect was antagonized by intrahippocampal infusion of AP5, but unaffected by i.v. atropine sulfate. During AP5 blockade tail pinch theta frequency and power were significantly reduced. Microinfusion of NMDA into the medial septum also resulted in long lasting induction of hippocampal theta field activity. Contrary to the results of hippocampal NMDA microinfusions, frequency but not power of NMDA‐induced theta was significantly greater than tail pinch‐ induced theta activity. Microinfusion of AP5 into the medial septum significantly lowered power of tail pinch‐induced theta but did not affect frequency. Wheel running behavior of rats induced by low levels of electrical stimulation of the posterior hypothalamic nucleus (PH) was completely abolished by microinfusion of AP5 into the medial septum, accompanied by a significant reduction in theta power and frequency. Wheel running and theta were maintained at control levels with high intensity PH stimulation. We propose that: (1) the glutamatergic septohippocampal projection represents a third pathway capable of generating hippocampal field and cellular synchrony, independent of that generated by the septohippocampal cholinergic and GABAergic projections, and (2) the septohippocampal glutamatergic projection serves to function as an interface between cholinergic and GABAergic modulated sensory processing Type 2 theta and movement related Type 1 theta. Synapse 61:185–197, 2007. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
DETERMINANTS OF ORGANISATIONAL CREATIVITY: A LITERATURE REVIEW

In today’s competitive business environment, global competition forces companies to perpetually seek ways of improving their products/services. Organisations increasingly aspire to become more creative and capitalise on the benefits of creativity, and perceive the development of conditions that encourage creativity within their working environment as a long‐term process rather than a quick fix to their current problems. While the capability of an organisation to become more creative must start at the level of the individual, individual creativity in itself is not enough. A vital, often ignored component of creativity is the creativity that occurs at the organisational level. This paper reviews writings in an attempt to clearly identify the factors that influence organisational creativity and hence that need to be taken into consideration when managing creativity in organisational settings. The literature review summarises five key factors that affect organisational creativity, namely organisational climate, leadership style, organisational culture, resources and skills and the structure and systems of an organisation.
Democracy in the European Union: Integration Through Deliberation?

1. Post-national integration Erik Oddvar Eriksen and John Erik Fossum 2. Beyond the Nation-State? On Some Consequences of Economic Globalization Jurgen Habermas 3. Deliberative Supranationalism in the EU Erik Oddvar Eriksen 4. The Uses of Democracy: Reflections on the European Democratic Deficit Richard Bellamy and Dario Castiglione 5. Subsidiarity and Democratic Deliberation Andreas Follesdal 6. Constitution-making in the European Union John Erik Fossum 7. The Anonymous Hand of Public Reason. Interparliamentary Discourse and the Quest for Legitimacy Lars Chr. Blichner 8. Challenging the Bureaucratic Challenge Christian Joerges and Michelle Everson 9. Demanding Public Deliberation. The Council of Ministers: Some Lessons from the Anglo-American History Roberto Gargarella 10. Can the European Union Become a Sphere of Publics? Philip Schlesinger and Deidre Kevin 11. Indigenous Rights and the Limitations of the Nation State Else Grete Broderstad 12. Erik Oddvar Eriksen and John Erik Fossum Conclusion Bibliography
The Changing Face of Public Employee Unionism

This article provides a brief picture of the various unions that currently represent state and local government employees in the United States, including teachers and professors. It reviews the factors that have contributed to union decline in the private sector, and those factors explaining union growth in the public sector. Its purpose is purely descriptive, seeking to illustrate the ability of unions to seize opportunities to organize public employees, thereby increasing their “strength in numbers. ”
Gene Profiling of Plant Cell Wall Biosynthesis for Genetic EnhancingBiomass Enzymatic Saccharification in Cereal Crops

Cereal crops, including rice, wheat, corn, and sweet sorghum, produce major food grains for humans and generate huge amount biomass for biofuels production. Due to lignocellulose recalcitrance, however, the most biomass residues of cereal crops are not well used for biofuel application, and genetic modification of plant cell walls has thus proposed as a promising solution for enhancing biomass enzymatic saccharification. In the present review, we described plant cell wall compositions and wall polymer features in four cereal crops, and presented their major wall factors that significantly affect biomass enzymatic digestibility under various pretreatments including cellulose crystallinity, arabinose substitution degree of hemicellulose and three monomers proportions of lignin. Furthermore, using globe genomic sequence database and gene expression information, we compared all candidate genes that are involved in cell wall biosynthesis in the four cereal crops, and discussed the potential cell wall modifications for increasing both biomass yields and lignocellulose enzymatic saccharification in the cereal crops by using desire genes and selecting appropriate genetic manipulation approaches.
Isolation and characterization of six new genome types of human adenovirus types 1 and 2

Several of the 41 types of human adenovirus have been divided into genome types based on aberrant restriction endonuclease digestion patterns of viral DNA. In the process of screening a large number of clinical adenovirus isolates by restriction endonuclease digestion of viral DNA, we have identified nine isolates from eight patients which were identified by neutralization as adenovirus type 1 or 2 but had aberrant cleavage patterns. Cleavage sites for the enzymes SmaI, EcoRI, HindIII, KpnI, and HpaI were mapped. The variants could be placed in six distinct groups based on cleavage patterns. The designation genome types 1a, 1b, 1c, 2b, 2c, and 2d are proposed for these isolates.
A retrospective study comparing neutral protamine hagedorn insulin with glargine as basal therapy in prednisone-associated diabetes mellitus in hospitalized patients.

OBJECTIVE To compare glycemic outcomes in hospitalized patients with or without type 2 diabetes mellitus receiving neutral protamine Hagedorn insulin (NPH) vs glargine as basal insulin for management of glucocorticoid-associated hyperglycemia. METHODS We conducted a retrospective review of electronic medical records in prednisone-treated adult patients with hyperglycemia in a university hospital. Consecutive patients were selected in both the NPH and glargine cohorts using inclusion and exclusion criteria. Baseline characteristics were assessed in each cohort. Glycemic outcomes were analyzed by comparing fasting blood glucose, mean daily blood glucose concentration, median daily blood glucose concentration, and the number of hypoglycemic episodes on a prespecified index day. RESULTS One hundred twenty patients were included: 60 patients in the NPH cohort and 60 patients in the glargine cohort. The weight-based insulin requirement was lower in the NPH cohort than in the glargine cohort (0.27 ± 0.2 units/kg vs 0.34 ± 0.2 units/kg [P = .04] for basal insulin and 0.26 ± 0.2 units/kg vs 0.36 ± 0.2 units/kg [P = .03] for bolus insulin). NPH and glargine cohorts were similar regarding age, sex, race, body mass index, hemoglobin A1c, serum creatinine, and prednisone dosage. Glycemic outcomes in the NPH cohort compared with outcomes in the glargine cohort were similar regarding mean fasting blood glucose concentration (134 ± 49 mg/dL vs 139 ± 54 mg/dL [P = .63]), mean daily blood glucose (167 ± 46 mg/dL vs 165 ± 52 mg/dL [P = .79]), median blood glucose (160 ± 49 mg/dL vs 159 ± 57 mg/dL [P = .90]), and number of hypoglycemic episodes per day (0.12 ± 0.3 vs 0.10 ± 0.3 [P = .77]). CONCLUSIONS NPH and glargine appear to be equally effective as basal insulin in the management of hyperglycemia in hospitalized patients receiving prednisone. However, the total daily insulin doses used were lower in the NPH cohort.
Current NMR Techniques for Structure-Based Drug Discovery

A variety of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) applications have been developed for structure-based drug discovery (SBDD). NMR provides many advantages over other methods, such as the ability to directly observe chemical compounds and target biomolecules, and to be used for ligand-based and protein-based approaches. NMR can also provide important information about the interactions in a protein-ligand complex, such as structure, dynamics, and affinity, even when the interaction is too weak to be detected by ELISA or fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET)-based high-throughput screening (HTS) or to be crystalized. In this study, we reviewed current NMR techniques. We focused on recent progress in NMR measurement and sample preparation techniques that have expanded the potential of NMR-based SBDD, such as fluorine NMR (19F-NMR) screening, structure modeling of weak complexes, and site-specific isotope labeling of challenging targets.
Effects of ageing and exercise training on eNOS uncoupling in skeletal muscle resistance arterioles

Reduced availability of tetrahydrobiopterin (BH4) contributes to the age‐related decline of nitric oxide (NO)‐mediated vasodilatation of soleus muscle arterioles. Depending on availability of substrate and/or necessary co‐factors, endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) can generate NO and/or superoxide (O2−). We evaluated the effects of age and chronic exercise on flow‐induced vasodilatation and levels of NO and O2− in soleus muscle arterioles. Young (3 months) and old (22 months) male rats were exercise trained or remained sedentary (SED) for 10 weeks. Flow‐stimulated NO and O2−, as well as BH4 and l‐arginine content, were determined in soleus muscle arterioles. Flow‐induced vasodilatation was assessed under control conditions and during the blockade of O2− and/or hydrogen peroxide. Exercise training enhanced flow‐induced vasodilatation in arterioles from young and old rats. Old age reduced, and exercise training restored, BH4 content and flow‐stimulated NO availability. Flow‐stimulated, eNOS‐derived O2− levels were higher in arterioles from old SED compared to those from young SED rats. Exercise training increased flow‐stimulated eNOS‐derived O2− levels in arterioles from young but not old rats. O2− scavenging with Tempol reduced flow‐induced vasodilatation from all groups except young SED rats. Addition of catalase to Tempol‐treated arterioles eliminated flow‐induced vasodilatation in arterioles from all groups. Catalase reduced flow‐induced vasodilatation from all groups. In Tempol‐treated arterioles, flow‐induced vasodilatation was restored by deferoxamine, an iron chelator. These data indicate that uncoupling of eNOS contributes to the age‐related decline in flow‐induced vasodilatation; however, reactive oxygen species are required for flow‐induced vasodilatation in soleus muscle arterioles from young and old rats.
Eliciting Student Expectations of the Returns to Schooling

We report here on the design and first application of an interactive computer-administered personal interview (CAPI) survey eliciting from high school students and college undergraduates their expectations of the income they would earn if they were to complete different levels of schooling. We also elicit respondents' beliefs about current earnings distributions. Whereas a scattering of earlier studies have elicited point expectations of earnings unconditional on future schooling, we elicit subjective earnings distributions under alternative scenarios for future earnings. We find that respondents, even ones as young as high school sophomores, are willing and able to respond meaningfully to questions eliciting their earnings expectations in probabilistic form. Respondents vary considerably in their earnings expectations but there is a common belief that the returns to a college education are positive and that earnings rise between ages 30 and 40. There is a common belief that one's own future earnings are rather uncertain. Moreover, respondents tend to overestimate the current degree of earnings inequality in American society.
The Benefits of Crises for Economic Reforms

This paper presents a model in which economic crises have positive effects on welfare. Periods of very high inflation create the incentive for the resolution of social conflict and thus facilitate the introduction of economic reforms and the achievement of higher levels of welfare. Policies to reduce the cost of inflation, such as indexation, raise inflation and delay the adoption of reforms, but have no effect on expected social welfare.
Measuring the Demand for Environmental Quality with Survey Data

Individuals' willingness to pay for public goods and services is a central concept in the analyses of public expenditures and of the performance of political institutions. This concept has proved very difficult to measure, both in the aggregate and for different groups of individuals. This paper presents the results of an approach based on the use of survey data and statistical estimation to make these measurements. The advantages of this approach are the ability directly to relate the measure to the proper theoretical concept and to estimate individual demands so that analyses of the equity implications of alternative policies can be discussed. Application of these measures and of the additional information derived from the individual level estimations is discussed.
The Europeanization of asylum policy: an assessment of the EU impact on asylum applications and recognitions rates

Asylum policy in the European nation-states has been a subject of increasing influence form the European Union over the last 12 years since the call for the establishment of a Common European Asylum System. This article presents an assessment of the EU impact on the asylum policy outcomes in the 27 member states, Norway and Switzerland. The article focuses on three central hypotheses about the effects of Europeanization – a race to the bottom, convergence and burden sharing. Using aggregate and origin-specific asylum data for the period 1999–2010 provided by the UNHCR, we show that the increasing Europeanization of asylum policy has not resulted in a race to the bottom in which asylum recognition rates and the numbers of admitted refugees have eroded. Contrary to existing literature, we find some evidence for convergence of the overall asylum recognition rates but important national differences in the recognition of applicants from the same country of origin persist. Europeanization has not led to more equal distribution of the applications and recognitions of asylum status in Europe. Overall, the EU has had only a limited impact on the changes in asylum policy outcomes.
Succeeding Generations: Realizing the Dream of Families in Business

Finding the right successor to a well-loved founder or president is often the most difficult task an organization can face--and the challenge can be even greater for family-run businesses. Succeeding Generations explores leadership transitions in family businesses, offering a clear-eyed assessment of the different options, from direct succession to building partnerships between siblings and cousins. Family-owned companies may dominate the worldwide business landscape, yet surprisingly few are successfully passed down from one generation to the next, and fewer still reach the third generation intact. Author Ivan Lansberg, an organizational psychologist who grew up in a family business, examines the reasons behind this high failure rate and reveals the factors that contribute to long-term success. He offers practical advice on how to mentor successors, how to set up a systematic selection process, and how to make the best use of the board of directors during times of transition. With a wealth of examples from companies in the United States, Europe, and Latin America, Succeeding Generations provides a thoughtful and comprehensive look at the sensitive dynamics of leadership succession in family businesses.
HR managers: Guardians of employee wellbeing?

This paper assesses the role of human resource (HR) managers adopting a strategic role and devolution of HR work to the line in work organisations, and details interviews with 46 line managers drawn from an exploratory study in three work organisations in the UK over a two‐year period. The study finds that HR managers can be seen to be both engaging in the process of enhancing employee wellbeing at work, and also acting against it. The conclusions drawn are that, while the advantages to employee wellbeing through adopting a strategic HR approach led by HR managers and devolution of HR work to the line are numerous, the potential costs to employee wellbeing are also significant. The latter must be addressed by organisations if future employee commitment to these organisations is to be secured.
A Proposed Research Agenda for the Refinement of the High Performance Work System Construct in the U.S. Restaurant Industry

Abstract The current research proposes a framework for the investigation and conceptualization of high performance work systems in the U.S. restaurant industry. The projected U.S. restaurant industry sales for 2006 are $511.1 billion according to the National Restaurant Association (National Restaurant Association, 2005). Because of its size and impact on the foodservice industry and the hospitality industry in general, improving the performance of the restaurant industry could help increase overall revenues and guest satisfaction in the foodservice and hospitality industry. By identifying a list of high performance work practices in the industry, a more in-depth exploration of these practices and then organizational policies can be aligned together to help improve overall performance in the U.S. restaurant industry. The current study provides theoretical background and support for the high performance work systems theory.
Interstitial microdeletion of the 1p34.3p34.2 region

Interstitial microdeletions of chromosome 1p34.3p34. 2 are rare, but are continuing to be identified by the use of chromosome microarray. There have been fewer than 10 individuals identified who have deletions of the 1p34.3p34. 2 region; all of these previously described individuals have deletions of the AGO1, AGO3, GRIK3, SLC2A1, or RIMS3 genes. Haploinsufficiency of these genes has been associated with neurodevelopmental delays.
Prolonged coexistence of transient and permanent circuitry elements in the developing cerebral cortex of fetuses and preterm infants

The aim of this paper is to evaluate correlative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and histological parameters of development of cortical afferents during pathfinding and target selection in transient fetal cerebral laminas in human fetuses and preterm infants. The transient fetal subplate zone, situated between the fetal white matter (i.e. intermediate zone) and the cortical plate, is the crucial laminar compartment for development of thalamocortical and corticocortical afferents. The prolonged coexistence of transient (endogenously active) and permanent (sensorydriven) circuitry within the transient fetal zones is a salient feature of the fetal and preterm cortex; this transient circuitry is the substrate of cerebral functions in preterm infants. Another transient aspect of organization of developing fibre pathways is the abundance of extracellular matrix and guidance molecules in periventricular crossroads of projection and corticocortical pathways. Both the subplate zone and periventricular crossroads are visible on MRI in vivo and in vitro. Hypoxic‐ischaemic lesions of periventricular crossroads are the substrate for motor, sensory, and cognitive deficits after focal periventricular leukomalacia (PVL). Lesions of distal portions of the white matter and the subplate zone are the substrate for diffuse PVL. The neuronal elements in transient fetal zones form a developmental potential for plasticity after perinatal cerebral lesions.