Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Does Zika Really Have the Capacity to Affect the Nervous System and Cause Microcephaly or

Although the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that brain abnormalities in infants with laboratory-confirmed Zika infection include microcephaly, disrupted brain growth, intracranial calcifications, and abnormal eye findings—it is not known presently if the Zika virus itself causes any of these. In a recent 2016 review of Zika dealing with possible brain abnormalities appearing with Zika, Melo et al. mention that among the Flaviviruses, which Zika is, such brain insults and pathologic findings are practically unheard of. Melo et al. conclude that until more cases are diagnosed and more histopathological proofs are obtained, the possibility of other causes besides Zika cannot be ruled out. This paper considers just such other possible causes that have, to this point, escaped general notice. The Aedes aegypti and other Aedes species can transmit tiny viral-like, cell-wall-deficient mycobacterial forms, independent of viruses, yet prevalent in the very same Rhesus Monkey used in the original 1952 Zika communication—which spoke of “A filterable transmissible agent”. In addition, the universal fetal prenatal vaccination of Brazilian neonates is considered, strongly discouraged by The Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne, which forbids BCG vaccination of pregnant women and those immunosuppressed or already having tuberculosis (TB) or AIDS. And finally thought is focused on the prime candidate itself, towards explaining what an alternative cause for “Zika” might look like—an infectious agent with transmissible, filterable, viral-like forms. One which can be transmitted by the very same Aedes mosquitoes that carry Zika—one that is neurotrophic, and extremely prevalent in Brazil—and that can disrupt brain growth, cause microcephalus, cause a fever, is sexually transmissible, instigates Guillain-Barre syndrome and causes cranial calcifications—the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex, which includes the Mycobacterium africanum prevalent, yet completely ignored, in the Rhesus monkeys used in the original Zika study.
The Relation between Idiosyncratic Volatility and Returns: A Growth Option Model with Stochastic Volatility and Jumps

We develop a zero beta industry model of growth options to explain the conflicting empirical findings on the relation between stock returns and idiosyncratic return volatility at the firm level. By allowing for the volatility of the underlying idiosyncratic choice variables to exhibit independent switches between a high and low volatility regime, we show that the options’ constant expected returns are composed of (i) a state dependent drift term that relates positively with the volatility regime, and (ii) a state dependent sporadic jump term that relates inversely with the volatility regime, even though the sources of uncertainty are not priced. Our model is able to jointly explain why stock returns and idiosyncratic volatility are contemporaneously positively correlated in the cross section of stocks (Duffee (1995), and why high idiosyncratic volatility stock portfolios significantly under perform their low volatility counterparts (Ang, Hodrick, Xing, and Zhang (2006) and Ang, Hodrick, Xing, and Zhang (2009), among other regularities. At a more general level, we propose a new perspective for understanding the puzzling view that idiosyncratic volatility may seem to be priced in the cross section of stocks.
An examination of the medicinal potential of Scaevola spinescens: Toxicity, antibacterial, and antiviral activities

Background: Scaevola spinescens is an endemic Australian native plant with a history of use as a medicinal agent by indigenous Australians. Yet the medicinal bioactivities of this plant are poorly studied. Materials and Methods: S. spinescens solvent extracts were tested for antimicrobial activity, antiviral activity and toxicity in vitro. Results: All extracts displayed antibacterial activity in the disc diffusion assay. The methanol extract proved to have the broadest specificity, inhibiting the growth of 7 of the 14 bacteria tested (50%). The water, ethyl acetate, chloroform, and hexane extracts inhibited the growth of 6 (42.9%), 5 (35.7%), 5 (35.7%), and 4 (28.6%) of the 14 bacteria tested, respectively. S. spinescens methanolic extracts were equally effective against Gram-positive (50%) and Gram-negative bacteria (50%). All other extracts were more effective at inhibiting the growth of Gram-negative bacteria. All extracts also displayed antiviral activity in the MS2 plaque reduction assay with the methanol, water, ethyl acetate, chloroform, and hexane extracts inhibiting 95.2 ± 1.8%, 72.3 ± 6.3%, 82.6 ± 4.5%, 100 ± 0% and 47.7 ± 12.9% of plaque formation, respectively. All S. spinescens extracts were nontoxic in the Artemia fransiscana bioassay with no significant increase in mortality induced by any extract at 24 and 48 h. The only increase in mortality was seen for the water extract at 72 h, although even this extract displayed low toxicity, inducing only 41.7 ± 23.3% mortality. Conclusions: The lack of toxicity of the S. spinescens extracts and their inhibitory bioactivity against bacteria and viruses validate the Australian Aboriginal usage of S. spinescens and indicates its medicinal potential.
Design, Synthesis and Biological Evaluation of Some Triazole Schiff’s Base Derivatives as Potential Antitubercular Agents

Background: Tuberculosis (TB) is the second important cause of death worldwide caused by a bacterium called Mycobacterium tuberculosis. There is a need to find and develop new Anti-TB medications that are effective, inexpensive and suitable with human immunodeficiency virus and other anti-TB drugs used in many countries and mainly the developing countries where the disease is widespread. These drugs must be designed to shorten treatment time and to be active against resistant forms of the mycobacteria that will help to increase the patients compliance. A key compound which could be used as a lead to meet these requirements, is the thiolactomycin (TLM). This antibiotic which is naturally available has an ability to treat M. tuberculosis by inhibiting condensing enzymes called FAS II (mtFabH, KasA and KasB) which are related to biosynthesis of mycolic acid. Methods: Our main aims are to design and synthesize analogues of TLM as new lead molecules which could be a possible anti–TB candidate. To overcome the synthetic challenges associated with preparing the chiral TLM analogues; we synthesized and investigated a series of triazole analogues as inhibitors of KasA enzyme and the whole cell Mycobacteria. A series of twelve compounds were synthesized, purified and fully characterized using several spectroscopic techniques. Molecular modelling studies for our synthesised compounds were achieved by using a modelling program called AutoDock 4.2 utilising rigid docking. Results: Our results indicate that analogues of TLM show a good activity as compared to TLM. Conclusion: The activity obtained for the synthesized compounds against Mycobacteria tuberculosis indicate that the synthesised compounds 1, 2, 6 and 9 are pharmacologically active as they restrained the growth of the Mycobacteria bacteria.
Factors Affecting Transfer of Training in Thailand

This document contains three papers from a symposium on human resource development (HRD) effectiveness and transfer of learning. "Factors Affecting Transfer of Training in Thailand" (Siriporn Yamnill, Gary N. McLean) discusses how the Learning Transfer System Inventory was validated in Thailand by administering it to 1,029 employers and analyzing their responses to identify factors affecting transfer of training and compare transfer systems. "Characteristics Expanding HRD Effectiveness" (A.A.M. [Ida] Wognum), Bernard P. Veldkamp, Wendy E. Ankersmit, J. Annechien van de Lagemaat) reports how data from seven surveys were analyzed to determine the relative impact of the following categories of characteristics on HRD programs' effectiveness: setting HRD goals; stakeholder involvement; HRD programs' form; and HRD programs' content field. "Expanding the Transfer of Training Domain of Structured On-the-Job Training" (Chan Lee, Jin Hyuk Kim, Ronald L. Jacobs) proposes that structured on-the-job training can be used in both near transfer of training (training whose content and outcomes related to one work task and whose design is based on specific concepts, procedures, problem solving, and decision making) and far transfer of training (training whose content and outcomes relate to a set of related work tasks and whose design is based on general concepts, broad principles, problem-solving rules, and decision-making rules). All papers include substantial bibliographies. (MN) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. 2002 AHRD Conference HRD Effectiveness and Transfer of Learning U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Office of Educational Research and Improvement EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC) 4 This document has been reproduced as received from the person or organization originating it. 1:1 Minor changes have been made to improve reproduction quality. Points of view or opinions stated in this document do not necessarily represent official OERI position or policy. Symposium 17
Accuracy of a single measurement site for self-monitoring of patients with breast cancer at risk for lymphedema

ABSTRACT Purpose: Early detection of breast cancer-related lymphedema through simple self-monitoring techniques may lead to early treatment and improved outcomes. Methods: Prospective study of circumference measurements at four time points before, during, and after adjuvant chemotherapy with docetaxel, doxorubicin, and cyclophosphamide. Volume was calculated using the 10-cm interval circumference measurement method (reference test) and percentage difference between arms, for volume and circumference, was determined. First, the most valid single measurement location was determined by calculating Pearson’s correlation coefficient relative to the reference test. Second, to evaluate the responsiveness to change over four time points, outcomes of the selected single measurement and the reference test were analyzed by repeated-measures ANOVA. Third, area under the curve (AUC) was used to determine the optimal sensitivity and specificity of the selected single measurement site (index test). Relationship between lymphedema (yes/no) and heaviness and swelling (yes/no) was analyzed using phi-coefficient. Results: The measurement point 30 cm proximal to the styloid process showed the highest correlation with percentage difference in total arm volume (r = 0.80) and detected increased percentage difference between arms after treatment. Analyses showed high accuracy (AUC = 0.94; 95% CI 0.90–0.99) and good sensitivity (0.85) and specificity (0.85) using a cutoff score of 4% circumference difference between arms at this location. A moderate correlation between feelings of heaviness and swelling to lymphedema was observed (rφ = 0.64). Conclusions: Circumference difference between arms of 4% measured at 30 cm proximal to the styloid process can be used as a surveillance site for further monitoring of patients at risk for lymphedema and may contribute to early diagnosis. Feelings of heaviness or swelling have moderate relationship with lymphedema, which needs to be confirmed in clinical practice.
Scale Economies and Plant Vintage: Toward a Factory Classification

Industrial location theory has concentrated upon the determination of the optimum location of new factories and has tended to neglect the process of adjustment by established factories to changing operating conditions [19]. Yet, as Townroe [21] has shown, the decision to construct a new plant represents but one of several policy strategies which may affect the spatial distribution of manufacturing activity. Other strategies include the expansion of existing factories, the take-over of competing factories as part of a rationalization scheme, and factory closure. The present work is concerned with the issue of factory survival, and is specifically directed toward industries in which there are strong potential internal economies of scale. Such industries frequently present the seeming paradox of the survival of small factories along with units operating at a much larger scale. Moses [11] has explored some of the spatial implications of economies of scale within the framework of location theory. Commencing with the least cost approach it has been shown that, since different scales of operation involve differing combinations of inputs, the pull of these input sources will vary with the scale of operation, resulting in the possibility of there being different optimum locations for differing sizes of factory. When spatial variation in demand is introduced the probability of there being a number of viable scale-location
Free Trade under Fire: Fourth Edition

Growing international trade has helped lift living standards around the world, and yet free trade is always under attack. Critics complain that trade forces painful economic adjustments, such as plant closings and layoffs of workers, and charge that the World Trade Organization serves the interests of corporations, undercuts domestic environmental regulations, and erodes America's sovereignty. Why has global trade—and trade agreements such as NAFTA—become so controversial? Does free trade deserve its bad reputation? In Free Trade under Fire, Douglas Irwin sweeps aside the misconceptions that litter the debate over trade and gives the reader a clear understanding of the issues involved. This fourth edition has been thoroughly updated to include the most recent policy developments and the latest research findings on the impact of trade.
12-month outcome of patients with bipolar disorder following hospitalization for a manic or mixed episode.

OBJECTIVE The authors studied the 12-month course of illness following hospitalization for a manic or mixed episode of bipolar disorder to identify potential outcome predictors. METHOD They recruited 134 patients with DSM-III-R bipolar disorder who were consecutively admitted for the treatment of a manic or mixed episode. Diagnostic, symptomatic, and functional evaluations were obtained at the index hospitalization. Patients were reevaluated at 2, 6, and 12 months after discharge to assess syndromic, symptomatic, and functional outcome. Factors associated with outcome were identified by using multivariate analyses. RESULTS During the 12-month follow-up period, there were no significant differences in outcome between patients with manic compared with mixed bipolar disorder. Although syndromic recovery occurred in 48% of the overall group, symptomatic recovery occurred in only 26% and functional recovery in only 24%. Predictors of syndromic recovery included shorter duration of illness and full treatment compliance. Medication treatment compliance was inversely associated with the presence of comorbid substance use disorders. Symptomatic and functional recovery occurred more rapidly and in a greater percentage of patients from higher social classes. CONCLUSIONS A minority of patients with bipolar disorder achieved a favorable outcome in the year following hospitalization for a manic or mixed episode. Shorter duration of illness, higher social class, and treatment compliance were associated with higher rates of recovery and more rapid recovery.
Effects of losartan and allopurinol on cardiorespiratory regulation in obstructive sleep apnoea

What is the central question of this study? In sleep apnoea, a putative link between intermittent hypoxia and hypertension is the generation of oxygen radicals by angiotensin II and xanthine oxidase within the chemoreflex arc and vasculature. We tested whether chemoreflex control of sympathetic outflow, hypoxic vasodilatation and blood pressure are altered by angiotensin blockade (losartan) and/or xanthine oxidase inhibition (allopurinol). What is the main finding and its importance? Both drugs lowered blood pressure without altering sympathetic outflow, reducing chemoreflex sensitivity or enhancing hypoxic vasodilatation. Losartan and allopurinol are effective therapies for achieving blood pressure control in sleep apnoea.
Potent arterial antithrombotic effect of direct factor-Xa inhibition with ZK-807834 administered to coronary artery disease patients

Summary It was the objective of this study to evaluate the anti-thrombotic potency of direct factor-Xa inhibition with ZK-807834 in stable coronary patients, using an ex-vivo model of arterial thrombus formation. Tissue factor pathway is important in atherothrom-bosis. Direct factor-Xa blockade may more potently reduce thrombosis and prevent coronary events. Badimon Perfusion Chamber 5-minute quantitative studies have shown 40-55% arterial thrombus reduction with abciximab, 23% with Clopidogrel, but none with heparin. Coronary patients (n= 18, 59 ± 9 years, 55% males) were blindly randomized to four groups receiving 24-hour infusion of a low, medium or high dose of direct factor-Xa inhibitor ZK-807834, or placebo. Arterial thrombus formation was measured in Badimon Chamber at baseline, end-of-infusion [Eol], and four hours and eight hours after Eol, and factor-X activity, prothrombin time [PT] ratio and plasma drug levels were measured simultaneously. For the low-, medium- and high-dose ZK-807834 groups, mean percent-reduction in thrombus size from baseline to Eol were 29%, 34% and 68%, respectively (p<0.00l), and at 8-h post Eol were 11%, 19% and 27%, respectively (p<0.01). Mean PT-ratio prolongation showed a strong linear relationship (Pearson’s r=0.93) with ZK-807834 plasma concentration. Mean percent-reduction in factor-X activity from baseline was 13%, 42% and 58%, respectively. Placebo had no effect on thrombus size or factor-X activity. In conclusion, direct factor-Xa inhibition with ZK-807834 markedly reduces ex-vivo arterial thrombus formation and factor-X activity in a dose-dependent manner. Plasma levels of ZK-807834 show a strong linear correlation with PT ratio. This direct factor-Xa inhibitor may reduce the need for additional potent glycoprotein llbllla inhibition.
Evaluation of Fatigue Behavior in Dental Implants from In Vitro Clinical Tests: A Systematic Review

In the area of dentistry, there is a wide variety of designs of dental implant and materials, especially titanium, which aims to avoid failures and increase their clinical durability. The purpose of this review was to evaluate fatigue behavior in different connections and implant materials, as well as their loading conditions and response to failure. In vitro tests under normal and dynamic loading conditions evaluating fatigue at implant and abutment connection were included. A search was conducted in PubMed, Scopus, and Science Direct. Data extraction was performed independently by two reviewers. The quality of selected studies was assessed using the Cochrane Handbook proposed by the tool for clinical trials. Nineteen studies were included. Fourteen studies had an unclear risk and five had high risk of bias. Due to the heterogeneity of the data and the evaluation of the quality of the studies, meta-analysis could not be performed. Evidence from this study suggests that both internal and morse taper connections presented a better behavior to failure. However, it is necessary to unify criteria in the methodological design of in vitro studies, following methodological guidelines and establishing conditions that allow the homogenization of designs in ISO (International Organization for Standardization) standards.
Monophosphoryl lipid a attenuates radiation injury through TLR4 activation

Ionizing radiation causes severe damage to human body, and normal tissue toxicity in cancer radiotherapy also limits its further application. It is urgently required to develop safe and effective radioprotector. Our previous study has shown that toll like receptor 4 (TLR4) was dispensable for basal radiation resistance. However, severe toxicity of its traditional agonist lipopolysaccharide limits the clinical application. In present study, we demonstrated that monophosphoryl lipid A (MPLA), a potent TLR4 agonist with low toxicity, effectively attenuated radiation injury on in vitro and in vivo. MPLA increased cell survival and inhibited cell apoptosis after irradiation, and cell cycle arrest was also inhibited. Radiosensitive tissues including spleen, intestine, bone marrow and testis were protected from radiation damages in a TLR4 dependent manner. We also found that myeloid differentiation factor 88 (MyD88) accounted more than Toll/IL-1R domain-containing adaptor inducing IFN-β (TRIF) for the radioprotective effects of MPLA. In conclusion, our finding suggests TLR4 agonist MPLA as a safe and effective radioprotector for clinical application.
Rosalaevigata Michx extract inhibits oxidative stress in diabetic nephropathy by activating Nrf 2 / ARE signaling

Objective: Oxidative stress is a key factor in the development of diabetic nephropathy (DN), and transcription factor NF-E2 related factor (Nrf2) is a central regulator of cellular anti-oxidative stress. Therefore, this study investigated the Nrf2/ARE (anti-oxidative response element) signaling mechanisms in Rosalaevigata Michx extract, which inhibits DN oxidative stress. Methods: The streptozotocin (STZ)-induced DN rats were randomly divided into DN model group (DN group) and Rosalaevigata Michx treatment group (DN+RLM group), with normal control group (NC group) and Rosalaevigata Michx control group (NC+RLM group) as controls. The levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS), malondialdehyde (MDA), IL-6, IL-1β and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), and the activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and total anti-oxidant capacity (T-AOC) in serum and kidney tissues were measured. The expression of molecules in the Nrf2/ARE signal pathway affected by the plant extract was analyzed by immunohistochemistry, Western blot and qRT-PCR. Results: In serum and kidney tissues of DN rats, the levels of ROS, MDA, IL-6, IL-1β and MCP-1 significantly increased, and T-AOC and SOD activity decreased significantly. Rosalaevigata Michx extract significantly reduced the levels of IL-6, IL-1 and MCP-1 as well as the levels of ROS and MDA, and increased the activity of SOD and T-AOC in serum and kidney tissue of the diabetic nephropathy rats. Rosalaevigata Michx extract significantly up-regulated DN rat renal Nrf2 protein expression and up-regulated antioxidant genes hemeoxygenase-1 (HO-1), γ-glutamate synthase (γ-GCS) expression. Conclusion: Rosalaevigata Michx extract improves DN oxidative stress and inflammation, mediated by the activation of Nrf2 /ARE signal pathway and up-regulation of HO-1 and γ-GCS expression.
Polynomial Convergence of Gradient Descent for Training One-Hidden-Layer Neural Networks

We analyze Gradient Descent applied to learning a bounded target function on $n$ real-valued inputs by training a neural network with a single hidden layer of nonlinear gates. Our main finding is that GD starting from a randomly initialized network converges in mean squared loss to the minimum error (in 2-norm) of the best approximation of the target function using a polynomial of degree at most $k$. Moreover, the size of the network and number of iterations needed are both bounded by $n^{O(k)}$. The core of our analysis is the following existence theorem, which is of independent interest: for any $\epsilon > 0$, any bounded function that has a degree-$k$ polynomial approximation with error $\epsilon_0$ (in 2-norm), can be approximated to within error $\epsilon_0 + \epsilon$ as a linear combination of $n^{O(k)} \mbox{poly}(1/\epsilon)$ randomly chosen gates from any class of gates whose corresponding activation function has nonzero coefficients in its harmonic expansion for degrees up to $k$. In particular, this applies to training networks of unbiased sigmoids and ReLUs.