Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Superantigen-Induced Proliferation of Human CD4+CD25− T Cells Is Followed by a Switch to a Functional Regulatory Phenotype

Bacterial superantigens are potent T cell activators. In humans they cause toxic shock and scarlet fever, and they are implicated in Kawasaki’s disease, autoimmunity, atopy, and sepsis. Their function remains unknown, but it may be to impair host immune responses increasing bacterial carriage and transmission. Regulatory (CD25+FOXP3+) T cells (Tregs) play a role in controlling inflammatory responses to infection. Approximately 2% of circulating T cells are naturally occurring Tregs (nTregs). Conventional Ag stimulation of naive FOXP3− T cells induces Ag-specific Tregs. Polyclonal T cell activation has been shown to produce non–Ag-specific Tregs. Because superantigens are unique among microbial virulence factors in their ability to trigger polyclonal T cell activation, we wanted to determine whether superantigen stimulation of T cells could induce non–Ag-specific Tregs. We assessed the effect of superantigen stimulation of human T cells on activation, regulatory markers, and cytokine production by flow cytometry and T cell suppression assays. Stimulation of PBMCs with staphylococcal exotoxin A and streptococcal pyrogenic exotoxins A and K/L resulted in dose-dependent FOXP3 expression. Characterization of this response for streptococcal pyrogenic exotoxin K/L confirmed its Vβ specificity, that CD25+FOXP3+ cells arose from CD25− T cells and required APCs. These cells had increased CTLA-4 and CD127 expression, typical of the recently described activated converted Treg-like cells, and exhibited functional suppressor activity comparable to nTregs. Superantigen-stimulated CD25+FOXP3+ T cells expressed IL-10 at lower superantigen concentrations than was required to trigger IFN-γ production. This study provides a mechanism for bacterial evasion of the immune response through the superantigen induction of Tregs.
BARRAGE-Data Storage in BAR Model

Peer-to-peer networks have emerged as a relevant architecture for executing scientific computations. However, this kind of networks poses several problems. This thesis addresses the problem of data storage in a peer-to-peer architecture. We consider several distinct behaviors of the participating nodes. To deal with this variety, we use the BAR model, that comprises byzantine, rational, and altruist peers. In this report, we provide a survey on peer-to-peer storage solutions and on different approaches to deal with byzantine and rational peers. We also propose a new sub-system for data storage that tolerates byzantine behavior, by assuming an upper bound on the number of these nodes. It also provides incentives to rational peers to behave as desired, by constantly monitoring their actions, rewarding good behavior, and applying appropriate penalties to misbehaved nodes.
Sensitivity and specificity of blood cultures obtained through intravascular catheters

The reliability of blood cultures obtained through indwelling intravascular catheters is controversial. In this study, the results of 200 catheter blood cultures were compared with those of an equal number of peripheral blood cultures drawn at the same time. Catheter blood cultures were found to be 96% sensitive (95% confidence interval, 89% to 100%) and 98% specific (95% confidence interval, 96% to 100%) for the detection of septicemia. Factors thought to have influenced these favorable results were the relatively short duration of catheter placement and the particular emphasis given to aseptic technique. (Crit Care Med 1990; 18:152)
Effect of aflatoxin experimental ingestion and Eimeira vaccine challenges on intestinal histopathology and immune cellular dynamic of broilers: applying an Intestinal Health Index

&NA; The present study evaluated the effect of aflatoxin B1 and Eimeria vaccine challenges and their interaction on intestinal morphology, applying the morphometric index “I See Inside” (ISI). Immune cellular response and broiler chicken performance were also studied. A total of 240 broiler chickens were divided in a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement with 4 treatments, T1: Control diet and no challenge (CON), T2: Aflatoxin B1 (AFLA), T3: Control diet and Eimeria challenge (COC), and T4: Aflatoxin B1 and Eimeria challenge (AFLA+COC). The mathematical morphometric index ISI was applied to evaluate macro and microscopic alterations. Samples of liver and jejunum were analyzed for macrophages, CD4+, and CD8+ cells counting by immunohistochemistry at 7, 14, and 21 d of age. Chickens challenged with Eimeria presented higher ISI of macroscopic alterations associated to Eimeria lesion at the medium small intestine, lower body weight gain (BWG) and feed intake (FI), and worse feed conversion ratio compared to non‐challenged birds. Both Eimeria and aflatoxin challenges modulated the immune cells in the jejunum and liver, generally increasing the number of macrophages, CD4+, and CD8+ cells in relation to the control group. Birds from COC and COC+AFLA groups presented higher ISI histological score in the jejunum at 7 and 14 d of age compared to the CON and AFLA groups. The reduction of FI and BWG was correlated to high histological ISI and resulted in a high presence of immune cells in tissues, suggesting immune response demand. The histological ISI had statistical correlation to broiler performance.
Human Capital, Information, and the Early Adoption of New Technology

When producers are uncertain or have imperfect information about the profitability of adopting new technology, their adoption behavior depends on the endowment of human capital and the investment in adoption information. This study analyzes the role of education, experience, and information acquisition in the decision to be an early adopter. The findings support the hypothesis that adoption decision-making is a human capital intensive activity. The econometric evidence presented suggests that education and information reduce adoption costs and uncertainty, and thereby raise the probability of early adoption. Adoption behavior is also shown to vary significantly across firm size.
Registered report: Melanoma genome sequencing reveals frequent PREX2 mutations

The Reproducibility Project: Cancer Biology seeks to address growing concerns about reproducibility in scientific research by conducting replications of 50 papers in the field of cancer biology published between 2010 and 2012. This Registered Report describes the proposed replication plan of key experiments from ‘Melanoma genome sequencing reveals frequent PREX2 mutations’ by Berger and colleagues, published in Nature in 2012 (Berger et al., 2012). The key experiments that will be replicated are those reported in Figure 3B and Supplementary Figure S6. In these experiments, Berger and colleagues show that somatic PREX2 mutations identified through whole-genome sequencing of human melanoma can contribute to enhanced lethality of tumor xenografts in nude mice (Figure 3B, S6B, and S6C; Berger et al., 2012). The Reproducibility Project: Cancer Biology is a collaboration between the Center for Open Science and Science Exchange, and the results of the replications will be published by eLife. DOI: http://dx.doi. org/10.7554/eLife.04180. 001
Determinants of hypertension and left ventricular function in end stage renal failure: a pilot study using cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging

Cardiovascular disease is the principal cause of mortality in patients with renal failure. Left ventricular (LV) abnormalities are adverse prognostic indicators for cardiovascular outcome. The aim of this study was to use cardiac magnetic resonance scanning (CMR) to define LV functional abnormalities in haemodialysis (HD) patients and clarify the determinants of blood pressure (BP) and the effect of anaemia in this population. We studied 44 HD patients and 11 controls with CMR performed following dialysis. Forty patients and 11 controls completed the study. LV mass (P<0·001) and estimated systemic vascular resistance (SVR) (P = 0·002) were significantly higher in the dialysis group compared to controls. LV ejection fraction (P = 0·002) and SV (P = 0·043) were lower than controls. In the HD patients, BP correlated significantly with cardiac output (CO; r = 0·569, P<0·001) and end diastolic volume (EDV; r = 0·565, P<0·001) but there was no correlation between BP and SVR (r = 0·201, P = 0·594). Haemoglobin was inversely correlated with both CO (r = −0·531, P<0·001) and EDV (r = −0·493, P = 0·001) and positively with SVR (r = 0·402, P = 0·009). HD patients had a higher LV mass and lower ejection fraction than controls. The relationship of BP with CO, but not SVR, supports the theory that a major determinant of BP is intravascular volume and CO rather than vascular resistance although there was a fixed increase in SVR in this population. Improved understanding of the mechanisms underlying increased SVR and improved control of CO and intravascular volume may allow better therapeutic strategies. CMR provides insights into the pathophysiology of hypertension and LV dysfunction in HD patients.
The Impact of Health on Individual Retirement Plans: a Panel Analysis comparing Selfreported versus Diagnostic Measures

Earlier studies have concluded that the use of self-reported health in retirement models is likely to yield an unreliable impact of health on retirement due to “justification bias”. A few recent studies based on younger cohorts approaching retirement age have found little support for this hypothesis. This paper adds fresh evidence to this debate by considering the effect of health on retirement plans in samples of older workers and retirees drawn from a Danish panel survey from 1997-2002 merged to longitudinal register data. Using a wide array of alternative health measures, we compare the role of subjectively versus objectively measured health as a determinant of retirement planning. We control for unobserved heterogeneity as well as account for endogeneity and measurement error of health in retirement, and estimate separate models for women as well as men. As in the more studies, justification bias turns out not to be important. Self-rated physical and mental health are important predictors of retirement planning, in fact more important than economic factors, both among men as well as women. At a disaggregated level, back problems and myalgia significantly hasten male retirement, while back problems, osteoporosis and depression are conditions that significantly affect retirement among women. Retirement planning is in general unaffected by being hospitalised for a serious condition. Looking at health changes strengthens the conclusion that health is an important factor in retirement planning. In fact, health shocks seem to increase the propensity to retire earlier. However, health seems to be less important for retirement planning in Denmark compared to the US.
Poland's Jump to the Market Economy

In Poland's Jump to the Market Economy, Jeffrey Sachs provides an insider's analysis of the political events and economic strategy behind the country's swift transition to capitalism and democracy. Sachs reviews Poland's striking progress since the start of the economic reforms three years ago, which he helped to design. He discusses the gains - more than half of employment and GDP is now in the private sector, exports to Western Europe have more than doubled, and economic growth and confidence are returning - as well as the serious problems that remain.
The Devil Made Me Do It: The Corporate Purchase of Insurance

Despite the fact that public corporations ought to be risk neutral, they often carry insurance. This note first considers why insurance (or, more precisely, the package of services provided by insurance companies) might create value, regardless of the risk preferences of managers, shareholders, or other corporate stakeholders. One motive is that their contractual counterpartiesbuyers, lessors, and lendersrequire that they carry insurance. Three explanations for why the requirement might be value enhancing are proposed
INTRAMETROPOLITAN EMPLOYMENT DISTRIBUTION IN MONTREAL, 1981-1996

A major theme in the recent urban literature concerns the intrametropolitan distribution of economic activities. In North American metropolitan areas, the most recent phase of post-World War II employment decentralization has involved high-order services and has culminated in the creation of “suburban downtowns” or “edge cities” that often are direct competitors to the central business district (CBD). In this paper, we examine (1) the extent to which Montreal has undergone a decentralization of employment over the period 1981-1996 and (2) whether the observed decentralization involves a reconcentration in a limited number of employment poles (polycentricity) or a more generalized dispersion (scatteration). Our analysis is based upon place-of-work employment data at the census tract level (n = 613) for total employment, service employment, business services, consumer services, and manufacturing. The results indicate that decentralization is indeed a reality in Montreal, and that it tends to be of a polycentric nature, rather than the more widely dispersed form that appears to be characterizing many United States metropolitan areas. Business services and, somewhat surprisingly, manufacturing play major roles in the process of multinucleation. [Key words: employment decentralization, employment centers, metropolitan structure, multinucleation. ]
Preparation of scirpentriol and triacetoxyscirpenol in good yield from cultures of Fusarium sambucinum NRRL 13495

Crude extracts of filtrates of cultures of Fusarium sambucinum NRRL 13495 were acetylated or hydrolyzed. After chromatography on cartridge columns of silica gel and recrystallization three times from mixtures of ethyl acetate and hexane, 3,4,15-triacetoxyscirpenol (435 +/- 10 mg/liter of filtrate; mean +/- standard error [n = 3]) and the parent alcohol scirpentriol were isolated (261 +/- 29 mg/liter of filtrate; mean +/- standard error [n = 3]) in 68 and 53% yield for a 130- and 14-fold improvement, respectively, over prior reports.
Cloning and Characterization of Soluble and Transmembrane Isoforms of a Novel Component of the Murine Type I Interferon Receptor, IFNAR 2*

This report describes the cloning of cDNAs encoding transmembrane and soluble isoforms of a novel chain of the murine type I interferon (IFN) receptor and characterization of its capability to bind ligand and transduce signals. The transmembrane receptor (murine IFNAR 2c) has an extracellular domain of 215 amino acids and an intracellular domain of 250 amino acids, with 48% amino acid and 71% nucleotide identity with human IFNAR 2c. The cDNA for the soluble murine receptor (IFNAR 2a) encodes a 221-amino acid polypeptide identical to the first 210 amino acids of IFNAR 2c plus a novel 11 amino acids. Northern blot analyses show that murine IFNAR 2 is expressed as two transcripts of 4 kilobases encoding the transmembrane isoform and 1.5 kilobases encoding the more abundant soluble isoform. Studies using primary murine cells that lack IFNAR 1 show that IFNAR 2 is expressed, and cells bind type I IFN ligand, but do not transduce signals as detected by electrophoretic mobility shift assays of ISGF3 or GAF complexes binding to their cognate oligonucleotides. These cells show no effects on the ability of IFNγ to activate these complexes. These studies demonstrate that the IFNAR 2 transmembrane (2c) and soluble (2a) isoforms are conserved between the human and mouse and that IFNAR 2c has intrinsic ligand binding activity, but no intrinsic signal transducing activity as measured in this study.
Positive Psychology at Work: Psychological Capital and Thriving as Pathways to Employee Engagement

As chief executive officers and corporate leaders around the globe seek to truly differentiate their organizations, employee engagement, when grounded in the principals of positive psychology and more deeply explored in positive organizational scholarship, offers a genuine solution. This paper defines employee engagement, its history and its grounding in positive psychology. Further it explains how two constructs, Psychological Capital and Thriving, provide a point of entry for organizations to increase the emergence of employee engagement. Finally, it discusses how the organization that leverages these two constructs as a means to enhance the engagement of their individual employees has the potential to influence not only the individual employee, but also the wider organization, to the benefit of economic performance. Keywords Employee Engagement, Positive Psychology, Positive Organizational Scholarship, Organizational Culture, Conscious Capitalism, Psychological Capital, Thriving, Organizational Thriving, Employee Economic Performance, Stakeholder, Stakeholder Theory Disciplines Business Administration, Management, and Operations | Entrepreneurial and Small Business Operations | Leadership Studies | Organizational Behavior and Theory | Other Psychology | Performance Management | Training and Development | Work, Economy and Organizations This thesis or dissertation is available at ScholarlyCommons: http://repository.upenn. edu/mapp_capstone/88 Running head: POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY AT WORK: PSYCHOLOGICAL CAPITAL 1
Analysis of clustered and interval censored data from a community‐based study in asthma

Many authors in recent years have proposed extensions of familiar survival analysis methodologies to apply in dependent data settings, for example, when data are clustered or subject to repeated measures. However, these extensions have been considered largely in the context of right censored data. In this paper, we discuss a parametric frailty model for the analysis of clustered and interval censored failure time data. Details are presented for the specific case where the underlying time to event data follow a Weibull distribution. Maximum likelihood estimates will be obtained using commercially available software and the empirical efficiency of these estimators will be explored via a simulation study. We also discuss a score test to make inferences about the magnitude and significance of over‐dispersion in clustered data settings. These methods will be illustrated using data from the East Boston Asthma Study. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Particulate Matter in California: Part 2—Spatial, Temporal, and Compositional Patterns of PM2.5, PM10–2.5, and PM10

Abstract Geographic and temporal variations in the concentration and composition of particulate matter (PM) provide important insights into particle sources, atmospheric processes that influence particle formation, and PM management strategies. In the nonurban areas of California, annual-average PM2.5 and PM10 concentrations range from 3 to 10 [H9262]g/m3 and from 5 to 18 µg/m3, respectively. In the urban areas of California, annual-averages for PM2.5 range from 7 to 30 [H9262]g/m3, with observed 24-hr peaks reaching levels as high as 160 [H9262]g/m3. Within each air basin, exceedances are a mixture of isolated events as well as periods of elevated PM2.5 concentrations that are more prolonged and regional in nature. PM2.5 concentrations are generally highest during the winter months. The exception is the South Coast Air Basin, where fairly high values occur throughout the year. Annual-average PM2.5 mass, as well as the concentrations of major components, declined from 1988 to 2000. The declines are especially pronounced for the sulfate (SO4 2−) and nitrate (NO3 −) components of PM2.5 and PM10 and correlate with reductions in ambient levels of oxides of sulfur (SOx) and oxides of nitrogen (NOx). Annual averages for PM10–2.5 and PM10 exhibited similar downwind trends from 1994 to 1999, with a slightly less pronounced decrease in the coarse fraction.
Design Techniques for Ultra-Low Voltage Comparator Circuits

This paper presents a novel low-voltage rail-to-rail comparator circuit and derives optimal transistor size ratios for both conventional latch-based and the proposed comparators which operate in transistor subthreshold region. The obtained analytical results serve well as guidelines for designing low-voltage comparators and the proposed circuit is significantly faster than existing rail-to-rail comparator designs in ultra-low voltage operation.
A quantum behaved particle swarm approach to multi-objective optimization

Many real-world optimization problems have multiple objectives that have to be optimized simultaneously. Although a great deal of effort has been devoted to solve multi-objective optimization problems, the problem is still open and the related issues still attract significant research efforts. Quantum-behaved Particle Swarm Optimization (QPSO) is a recently proposed population based metaheuristic that relies on quantum mechanics principles. Since its inception, much effort has been devoted to develop improved versions of QPSO designed for single objective optimization. However, many of its advantages are not yet available for multi-objective optimization. In this thesis, we develop a new framework for multi-objective problems using QPSO. The contribution of the work is threefold. First a hybrid leader selection method has been developed to compute the attractor of a given particle. Second, an archiving strategy has been proposed to control the growth of the archive size. Third, the developed framework has been further extended to handle constrained optimization problems. A comprehensive investigation of the developed framework has been carried out under different selection, archiving and constraint handling strategies. The developed framework is found to be a competitive technique to tackle this type of problems when compared against the state-of-the-art methods in multi-objective optimization.
The human immunodeficiency virus type 1 Vpu protein: a potential regulator of proteolysis and protein transport in the mammalian secretory pathway.

HIV-1 Vpu is a small transmembrane phosphoprotein of 16 kDa which performs critical roles in CD4 proteolysis and virus release. Previous studies have demonstrated that Vpu-induced degradation of CD4 occurs in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), and that the proteolytic process is sequence specific requiring both the transmembrane and cytoplasmic domains of CD4. In the present study, we investigated the effects of Vpu expression on the intracellular membrane trafficking pathway of mammalian cells. In singly transfected cells, the HIV envelope glycoproteins and vesicular stomatitis virus glycoprotein (VSV G) were properly transported to the cell surface undergoing oligosaccharide modifications characteristic of their movement through the Golgi complex. In contrast, the cell surface delivery of glycoproteins was severely impeded in cells expressing Vpu. Biochemical analyses revealed that Vpu expression blocked the transfer of proteins from the ER-Golgi complex to the plasma membrane in a dose- and protein-dependent manner. Soluble gp120 exhibited extreme transport defects in the presence of Vpu, whereas transmembrane proteins (e.g., gp160, VSV) responded only moderately to wild-type Vpu. To gain insight into Vpu-mediated transport inhibition, we performed mutational analysis of the CK-2 phosphorylation sites (serines at 52 and 56) in the Vpu protein. CK-2 phosphorylation of Vpu has been shown to regulate the activity of the protein in reactions that involve the proteolysis of CD4 in the ER. We demonstrate here that the phosphorylation mutant is defective in both sequence-specific degradation of VRE-containing substrates and the transport inhibition of gp120 and VSV-G in the secretory pathway. Thus, these experiments have revealed that Vpu-mediated proteolysis and transport inhibition are mechanistically coupled requiring the same structural elements of the Vpu protein in both processes. We propose that the primary effect of Vpu expression is to impede the secretion process and then access glycoproteins bearing the VRE for Vpu-mediated proteolysis in the ER of mammalian cells.