Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Platelet-rich concentrate in serum-free medium enhances cartilage-specific extracellular matrix synthesis and reduces chondrocyte hypertrophy of human mesenchymal stromal cells encapsulated in alginate

Abstract Platelet-rich concentrate (PRC), used in conjunction with other chondroinductive growth factors, have been shown to induce chondrogenesis of human mesenchymal stromal cells (hMSC) in pellet culture. However, pellet culture systems promote cell hypertrophy and the presence of other chondroinductive growth factors in the culture media used in previous studies obscures accurate determination of the effect of platelet itself in inducing chondrogenic differentiation. Hence, this study aimed to investigate the effect of PRC alone in enhancing the chondrogenic differentiation potential of human mesenchymal stromal cells (hMSC) encapsulated in three-dimensional alginate constructs. Cells encapsulated in alginate were cultured in serum-free medium supplemented with only 15% PRC. Scanning electron microscopy was used to determine the cell morphology. Chondrogenic molecular signature of hMSCs was determined by quantitative real-time PCR and verified at protein levels via immunohistochemistry and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Results showed that the cells cultured in the presence of PRC for 24 days maintained a chondrocytic phenotype and demonstrated minimal upregulation of cartilaginous extracellular matrix (ECM) marker genes (SOX9, TNC, COL2, ACAN, COMP) and reduced expression of chondrocyte hypertrophy genes (Col X, Runx2) compared to the standard chondrogenic medium (p < 0.05). PRC group had correspondingly higher levels of glycosaminoglycan and increased concentration of chondrogenic specific proteins (COL2, ACAN, COMP) in the ECM. In conclusion, PRC alone appears to be very potent in inducing chondrogenic differentiation of hMSCs and offers additional benefit of suppressing chondrocyte hypertrophy, rendering it a promising approach for providing abundant pool of chondrogenic MSCs for application in cartilage tissue engineering.
Physiological Peculiarities of Lignin-Modifying Enzyme Production by the White-Rot Basidiomycete Coriolopsis gallica Strain BCC 142

Sixteen white-rot Basidiomycota isolates were screened for production of lignin-modifying enzymes (LME) in glycerol- and mandarin peel-containing media. In the synthetic medium, Cerrena unicolor strains were the only high laccase (Lac) (3.2–9.4 U/mL) and manganese peroxidase (MnP) (0.56–1.64 U/mL) producers while one isolate Coriolopsis gallica was the only lignin peroxidase (LiP) (0.07 U/mL) producer. Addition of mandarin peels to the synthetic medium promoted Lac production either due to an increase in fungal biomass (Funalia trogii, Trametes hirsuta, and T. versicolor) or enhancement of enzyme production (C. unicolor, Merulius tremellosus, Phlebia radiata, Trametes ochracea). Mandarin peels favored enhanced MnP and LiP secretion by the majority of the tested fungi. The ability of LiP activity production by C. gallica, C. unicolor, F. trogii, T. ochracea, and T. zonatus in the medium containing mandarin-peels was reported for the first time. Several factors, such as supplementation of the nutrient medium with a variety of lignocellulosic materials, nitrogen source or surfactant (Tween 80, Triton X-100) significantly influenced production of LME by a novel strain of C. gallica. Moreover, C. gallica was found to be a promising LME producer with a potential for an easy scale up cultivation in a bioreactor and high enzyme yields (Lac-9.4 U/mL, MnP-0.31 U/mL, LiP-0.45 U/mL).
An Emperical Study on Influence of Inflation on performance of Sensex in India

Stock Market plays a vital role in any countries economic growth and development. They have always been an area of serious concern for policy makers, economists and researchers. They are often defined as the barometer of any economy because they reflect the change and direction of pressure on the economy. The available literature suggests that since the inception of stock markets researchers are making attempts to establish relationship between change in macroeconomic factors and stock market returns. The main domestic macroeconomic factors affecting the stock market in long run are industrial production; inflation (wholesale price index) and interest rate. The present research study makes an attempt to study the lag-lead relationship between Inflation and stock returns after analyzing the inflation into expected and unexpected components. The stock returns-inflation relationship was examined during the period 1998 to 2008 using indexes of BSE Sensex with WPI (Wholesale Price Index). The period is characterized by different reforms in Indian economy and the global meltdown. Therefore, boom and recessionary phases were observed during this period. The results obtained through all standard econometric tests showed that there is no relation between stock returns and inflation during the studied period. The unit root tests, Granger causality test and regressions were performed for the purpose. The unit root tests indicated that both the series, i.e., Inflation and Sensex returns are stationary. The Granger causality test results suggested no significant relation between stock returns and inflation. Thus, the results of the study suggest that there exists no significant relation between inflation and stock returns in the post-reform period in India. It implies that stock returns do not provide a hedge against inflation. It can be said that investors aim at better returns and do not invest in stocks to hedge against inflation.
Molecular architectures of benzoic acid-specific type III polyketide synthases

The structures of biphenyl synthase, of biphenyl synthase complexed with benzoyl-CoA and of benzophenone synthase are compared with that of a chalcone synthase homolog. These structures reveal that benzoic acid-specific type III polyketide synthases contain distinct structural elements, including a novel pocket, which underlie their evolutionary emergence.
Evaluating government export promotion: some conceptual and empirical approaches

This article addresses an important aspect of marketing that has not received its due place in the research and academic literature devoted to international trade: It endeavors to provide an authoritative analysis of how to tackle the evaluation of government-funded export programs for companies participating in, for example, trade fairs, missions, symposia, or “weeks. ” The article distinguishes particularly export promotion at the macro (government) level and the micro (firm) levels—this distinction is often blurred in the sparse literature on the subject. A general “a priori” analysis from first principles is followed by a specific, quantified approach of a cost / benefit nature; this is applied on a multiyear basis to produce the outcome needed to identify incremental revenues accruing to exporting and participating companies. Another specific approach using return on investment is also explored. The article concludes with some observations about current research and indicates further issues on which w.
Against nature ? Why ecologists should not diverge from natural history

A sort of dichotomy pervaded ecological studies in the last decades. On the one hand, an important part of ecologists had the diffuse perception that the observational approach of natural history had to fade away in favour of more formal experimental or modelling approaches. Others, on the other hand, had an increasing perception that these formal approaches were dismissing important cultural components of natural history that fed ecology since its very beginning. We provide here a reconstruction of ecological thinking from natural history arguing that the above mentioned schism between ’schools of thinking’ should be reconciled. Modern ecology and natural history deserve reciprocal scientific respect and both seek understanding nature, its components at different hierarchical levels (from species to ecosystems and beyond) and the way it works. Ecology needs natural history to figure out meaningful scenarios, select relevant variables and conceive meaningful hypotheses based on sound knowledge of species up to ecosystems. Similarly, natural history needs more structured ecological thinking for selecting appropriate experimental and/or quantitative approaches to ultimately move from field insight to hypothesis testing.
Natural Disasters: Lessons from the Past – Concerns for the Future

AbstractSummary The statistics of natural disasters with respect to number of deaths, economic losses and insured losses are each dominated by different types of events: earthquakes and storm surges represent the deadliest threat, floods and earthquakes exert the most severe economic strains on societies, and storms are responsible for the highest insurance losses. Disasters in mountain areas are usually much smaller as their consequences are felt only locally. The number of great natural disasters has increased by a factor of 3.2 from the 1960s to the 1990s. In the same period, the economic and insured losses they generated increased by factors of 8.6 and 16.1 respectively. The main causes for this development are: the increasing concentration of people and values in areas that are exposed to unfavourable natural conditions; the increasing vulnerability of structures and goods; the — often unjustified — trust in protection systems; and changes in environmental conditions including climate change. Despite all the efforts being made to prevent disasters by structural countermeasures, the risks in mountain areas are increasing due to the growing number of tourists and the unchanged practice of using hazardous mountain sites for residential and recreational purposes.
Competitive bidding under asymmetrical information: behavior and performance in Gulf of Mexico drainage lease sales, 1959-1969

In past Outer Continental Shelf oil and gas lease sales, winners of drainage tracts have tended to realize a higher economic return than winners of wildcat tracts. This paper finds empirical support for the hypothesis that adjacent lessees have an information advantage when bidding for drainage tracts under the cash bonus bidding system. This leads to superior economic returns, and thus explains the difference in returns between wildcat and drainage leases. The paper concludes that this difference and its cause do not pose a policy problem given empirical evidence that the government receives fair market value for the two lease categories combined.
The 1998 National Survey Of U.S. Public Library Outlet Internet Connectivity: Final Report

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Previous national studies of public libraries and the Internet documented the state and changes of public library Internet connectivity, type of connectivity, public access services, and costs associated with such connectivity from public library central units or systems/ The 1998 data studied all library outlets (defined as both central or system/administrative units and branches, excluding bookmobiles and 227 outlets for which it was not possible to determine the geocodes), the poverty level of the users served by these outlets, and the library's metropolitan status as urban, suburban, and rural (see Figure 1 for a detailed breakdown of public library outlets and their poverty-metropolitan status categories). This comprehensive picture can provide the public library community, policy makers, and researchers with a more informed picture of which library outlets in different types of poverty and/or urban/rural settings provide what level and type of Internet connectivity. Such data provide an important benchmark describing how public library outlets support Universal Service objectives as legislated through the Telecommunications Act of 1996 (P.L. 104-104). The data can also inform policy makers as to possible future changes and impacts resulting from the disbursement of funds to these public library outlets in support of Universal Service objectives. Overall the study finds that there are some significant disparities among public library outlets in terms of their connectivity to the Internet, the type and speed of their public access connections to the Internet, and Internet-based service provision issues. The data also show, nationally, the degree to which public library outlets-especially those in rural areas and areas with high poverty-contribute to enhanced Universal Service as per the goals of the Telecommunications Act of 1996. The key findings presented here offer highlights from the study. The following sections of this report contain detailed results and tables describing public library outlet Internet access, connectivity, and use of the Internet. Overall, the data show that 83.6% of all public library outlets have some type of connection to the Internet. The study also found that some disparities exist among public library outlets in terms of Internet access by metropolitan status. For example: • 91.0% of urban public library outlets are connected to the Internet; • 88.1% of suburban public libraries are connected to the Internet; and • 78.4% of rural public library outlets are connected to the Internet. The study also shows that disparities in terms of connectivity by different poverty levels is …
Millimeter wave spread in delay and azimuth for small cell propagation channel at 60 GHz

The millimeter wave channel at 60 GHz for line-of-sight small cell scenarios was examined through analysis of the measured data using a wideband channel sounder. Full polarimetric directional data obtained at 3 different locations for which the emulation of small cell base-station (transmitter) antenna is at the height of 5 m from the ground floor, where the user-equipment (receiver) is located at 10 locations with different distances between 5 m to 50 m from the base-station. The base-station antenna is as wide to illumitate the small cell whereas at the user-equipment side a 5° beamwidth narrowbeam antenna is used to obtain the directional channel impulse response with high resolution in azimuth-of-arrival and delay. The analysis of the measured data confirms the dominance of the line-of-sight component with small root-mean-squared (RMS) values for delay. Few dominant scatterers can be observed at each environment which increase the delay and angular spread values.
Academic Strategy: The Management Revolution in American Higher Education

A chilling, instructive, literate, compelling discussion of the staggering problems facing U.S. higher education and the management strategies required to cope with them. -- Washington PostGeorge Keller's best seller allows us to understand how techniques of strategic management can help deal with future uncertainties and shows how a number of campuses have faced hard times creatively. -- Higher Education
Recent trends in factor income shares: a global perspective

Purpose–The purpose of this paper is to provide estimates of factor income shares for 79 developed, developing and transition economies representing close to 90 percent of the world output and to test for income share convergence. Design/methodology/approach–The paper uses data from the United Nations National Accounts and World Bank World Development Indicator databases and the factor-income-share estimation methodology developed in Bernanke and Gurkaynak (2001) and Gollin (2002). Findings–The authors estimate indicated that the average levels of capital income (profit) shares in developing and transition countries are 1.4-1.5 times higher than in developed economies. During the period studied, profit shares in all groups of countries trended upwards. As a result, the “global” profit share increased thus extending the “labor share squeeze” of the 1980s and 1990s. Practical implications–The finding of persistent and significant differences in factor shares in countries of different development levels calls into question the assumption of uniform factor shares’ often made in studies of economic growth. The detection of a broadly based upward trend in profit shares has implications for studies of income distribution and inequality. Originality/value–The paper's contribution is in providing updated estimates of factor income shares for the broad sample of countries, including in particular transition economies, not covered in previous studies; confirming the positive link between profit share and country's income level; countering claims of factor income convergence and establishing the upward trend in “global” profit share.
T Wave Complexity in Patients with Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy

The complexity of the T wave assessed by principal component analysis (PCA) has been proposed to reflect obnormal repolarization, which may be arrhythmogenic. To determine whether PCA can differentiate patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) from normal subfects and whether PCA is of prognostic importance in HCM, 112 patients with HCM (41 ±14 years, 64 males) and 72 healthy subjects (39 ± 9 years, 41 males) were studied. Patients with sinus node dysfunction, AV conduction block, flat T waves, QRS > 140 ms, and those < 15 years were excluded from this study. Standard 12‐lead ECGs were recorded digitally using the MAC‐VU system (Marquette Medical Systems). PCA parameters were computed using the QT Guard software package by Marquette. PCA ratio was significantly greater in HCM patients than in normal controls (23.9%± 12.4% vs 16.1%± 7.6%, P < 0.0001) and was correlated with QT‐end dispersion (r = 0.24. P = 0.01) and QT peak (Q point to T peak) dispersion (r = 0.35, P < 0.0001). HCM patients with syncope (n = 23) had increased PCA ratios compared with those without syncope (29.1%± 11.5% vs 22.5%± 12.3%, P = 0.01). PCA ratio was similar in patients with and without nonsustained ventricular tachycardia on Holter (25.9%± 11.4% vs 22.7%± 12.1%, P = 0.2), as well as in patients treated with amiodarone or sotalol versus those not on therapy. In conclusion, assessment of the complexity of the T wave by PCA differentiates HCM patients from normal subjects. PCA ratio correlated with QT dispersion and an increased PCA ratio was associated with a history of syncope in HCM.
Food deprivation during photosensitive and photorefractory life-history stages affects the reproductive cycle in the migratory Red-headed Bunting (Emberiza bruniceps)

SUMMARY In a seasonally breeding bird species, food deprivation affects reproduction. A key question is whether food shortage at any time in the year will affect reproduction even though the food supply subsequently becomes adequate. A prediction would be that a food supply that is of shorter duration than that optimally required during a life-history stage will have consequential effects on the succeeding life-history stages. Two experiments investigated this in gonadally regressed migratory Red-headed Buntings (Emberiza bruniceps) at two life-history stages: photosensitive and photorefractory. Experiment 1 employed two groups of photosensitive birds, and experiment 2 employed two groups of photorefractory birds. In both the experiments, birds were exposed for 8 weeks to a neutral day length at dim light intensity (12 h light: 12 h darkness, 12L:12D; L=∼5 lux, D=0 lux) with restricted feeding regimes (6 h food present: 18 h food absent, P:A 6:18 or P:A 12:12) and subsequently maintained for another 13 weeks at a highly stimulatory day length (16L:8D; L=400 lux; D=0 lux) with food ad libitum. We report that the pretreatment with restricted food cycles influenced the subsequent photoperiodic induction of reproductive (testis growth and molt) but not of metabolic (body fattening and mass gain) functions. The testicular response cycle under 16L:8D had a significantly lower amplitude in birds pretreated with P:A 6:18 than with P:A 12:12. Similarly, the recovery of photosensitivity was slower in photorefractory birds pretreated with P:A 6:18 than with P:A 12:12 food cycles. Overall, our findings show for the first time in a seasonally breeding vertebrate species that food deprivation during non-breeding periods of the annual cycle can affect reproductive functions later in the year.
Professional Norms and Organizational Goals: An Illusory Dichotomy

Because managerial systems are usually designed for organizational goals, they may conflict with the professional norms of the scientists. This article sheds light on these questions: Does the managerial system of a given laboratory promote congruence between professional norms? Does this managerial system permit professional norms to exert significant influence on the perceived role performance of the scientist?
Introduction to the Symposium on Taxation and the Family

The motivation for this symposium was the view that the problems of taxation of the family are very important, indeed central, for income tax policy, but are relatively neglected in theoretical public economics. We hope that this collection will stimulate interest and further work in this area. In this Introduction, rather than summarizing the collected papers (several of which are already in the nature of survey papers), we provide a historical background to the literature on what we see as the three central themes of family tax policy: the taxation of two-earner couples, the tax treatment of children, and the issues raised by the taxation of bequests. (JEL codes: D13, D64, D78, D82, E6, H21, H23, H24, H31, J12, J13, J16). Copyright The Author 2011. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Ifo Institute for Economic Research, Munich. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com, Oxford University Press.
New challenges in content dissemination networks

Recent changes in the production and use of multimedia content have fostered development of new ways to distribute this material to consumers. In particular, the increasing demand for this content has led to the design and deployment of new content distribution networks. The latest examples of these networks take advantage of new technological underpinnings. For example, they typically make use of larger, less expensive storage, and many incorporate peer-to-peer distribution technologies. The key challenges in designing this new generation of content distribution networks involve responding to changes in not only memory and network resources, but also content availability and popularity. This letter discusses the key design constraints for modern content distribution networks and some of the ways that these constraints can be met by innovative combinations of resource control algorithms. It also describes how a simulation environment is used to analyze some of these techniques in the context of video distribution requirements.
Electoral Coordination Strikes Again: The 2008 General Election in Spain

This paper analyses the results of the 2008 general election in Spain. Using individual and aggregate data, we show that in 2008 voters' behaviour does not differ much from the previous national election in 2004. This indicates a certain level of continuity since 1993, with the exception of 2000 when the conservative Partido Popular gained an absolute majority due to an unusually low turnout. The 2008 elections also confirm the crucial role played by electoral coordination, resulting in an increasing concentration of votes in the two dominant parties of the system.