Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
International Myeloma Working Group consensus statement for the management, treatment, and supportive care of patients with myeloma not eligible for standard autologous stem-cell transplantation.

PURPOSE To provide an update on recent advances in the management of patients with multiple myeloma who are not eligible for autologous stem-cell transplantation. METHODS A comprehensive review of the literature on diagnostic criteria is provided, and treatment options and management of adverse events are summarized. RESULTS Patients with symptomatic disease and organ damage (ie, hypercalcemia, renal failure, anemia, or bone lesions) require immediate treatment. The International Staging System and chromosomal abnormalities identify high- and standard-risk patients. Proteasome inhibitors, immunomodulatory drugs, corticosteroids, and alkylating agents are the most active agents. The presence of concomitant diseases, frailty, or disability should be assessed and, if present, treated with reduced-dose approaches. Bone disease, renal damage, hematologic toxicities, infections, thromboembolism, and peripheral neuropathy are the most frequent disabling events requiring prompt and active supportive care. CONCLUSION These recommendations will help clinicians ensure the most appropriate care for patients with myeloma in everyday clinical practice.
Marketing in “survivor” medium‐sized British manufacturing firms: 1987‐1997

For many years scholars of marketing have advocated the importance of marketing as a key determinant of business performance, and particularly for small and medium‐sized enterprises. In the UK, efforts have been made to translate theory into practice in an attempt to improve the competitiveness of the country's small and medium‐sized enterprises. Indeed, since the mid‐1980s, it has been a matter of government policy that a considerable emphasis be placed on seeking to improve the marketing performance of small‐ and medium‐sized firms. Thus, this article examines the marketing activities of a sample of 42 medium‐sized manufacturing firms over a ten‐year period. It reveals that the 42 firms known to have survived the economic exigencies of the decade were amongst the most market oriented of those surveyed in 1987, and that they have embraced both the substance and trappings of marketing.
Detrending, stylized facts and the business cycle

The stylized facts of macroeconomic time series can be presented by fitting structural time series models. Within this framework, we analyze the consequences of the widely used detrending technique popularized by Hodrick and Prescott (1980). It is shown that mechanical detrending based on the Hodrick-Prescott filter can lead investigators to report spurious cyclical behavior, and this point is illustrated with empirical examples. Structural time-series models also allow investigators to deal explicitly with seasonal and irregular movements that may distort estimated cyclical components. Finally, the structural framework provides a basis for exposing the limitations of ARIMA methodology and models based on a deterministic trend with a single break. Copyright 1993 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The Interaction between the AsiA Protein of Bacteriophage T4 and the ς70 Subunit of Escherichia coli RNA Polymerase*

The AsiA protein of bacteriophage T4 binds to the ς70 subunit of Escherichia coli RNA polymerase and plays a dual regulatory role during T4 development: (i) inhibition of host and phage early transcription, and (ii) coactivation of phage middle-mode transcription, which also requires the T4 DNA binding transcriptional activator, MotA. We report that the interaction between AsiA and ς70 occurs with a 1:1 stoichiometry. When preincubated with RNA polymerase, AsiA is a potent inhibitor of open complex formation at the lac UV5 promoter, whereas it does not perturb preformed open or intermediate promoter complexes. DNase I footprinting and electrophoretic mobility shift analyses of RNA polymerase-DNA complexes formed at the T4 early promoter P15.0 show that AsiA blocks the initial RNA polymerase binding step that leads to the formation of specific closed promoter complexes. A contrasting result is obtained on the T4 middle promoter PrIIB2, where AsiA stimulates the formation of both closed complexes and open complexes. Therefore, we propose that AsiA modulates initial DNA binding by the RNA polymerase, switching promoter usage at the level of closed complex formation.
HRM and TQM: association with job involvement

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to examine the perceptions of individual employees on the influence of eight elements of HRM/TQM (i.e. leadership, training and development, employee participation, reward and recognition, customer focus, empowerment, teamwork, and communication) on employees' job involvement in six major Malaysian semiconductor contract manufacturing organizations. Despite extensive research and voluminous literature on HRM/TQM, very little empirical research has examined this scope of investigative study. Therefore, the hypotheses are developed with the intention of examining this relationship. Design/methodology/approach - Original researches using self-completed questionnaires, distributed to employees within these organizations, are thoroughly reported. The study sample consisted of 377 employees, resulting in a response rate of 75.4 percent. A questionnaire developed by Kanungo was used for ascertaining the level of overall job involvement. Data were analyzed by employing correlation and multiple regression analysis. Findings - The results of this study revealed that teamwork, empowerment, customer focus, reward and recognition and communication are positively associated with employees' job involvement. Where empowerment was found to be a dominant practice, strong associations with employees' job involvement existed. Originality/value - This study contributes in advancing the HRM/TQM research literature to a better understanding of the association between HRM/TQM and employees' job involvement within the context of the Malaysian semiconductor sector.
Men matter: Additive and interactive gendered preferences and reproductive behavior in kenya

The extent of men’s roles in reproductive decision-making in Africa is a subject of contention. Despite the volume of work on the roles men play in fertility decisions, there have been few attempts to derive direct empirical estimates of the effect of men’s preferences on reproductive behavior. I employ 1989 and 1993 Kenya Demographic and Health Surveys to examine the relative roles of the reproductive preferences of males and females on contraceptive use. Additive and interactive measures of preferences document a significant effect of men’s preferences, which may eclipse women’s preferences. The implications of these findings are discussed.
Qualitative Analysis of Student Perceptions of E-Portfolios in a Teacher Education Program

Abstract In the last decade, e-portfolios have moved to the forefront of teacher preparation programs across the United States. With its widespread use, faculty and administrators need to understand teacher candidates’ perspectives to meet their needs. In the present study, the researchers gathered in-depth information from 244 students who were required to create e-portfolios for their academic program. The researchers asked students, using open-ended survey items, about the advantages, disadvantages, and obstacles they faced when creating and disseminating their e-portfolios. Additionally, each student described his or her most significant e-portfolio learning experience and how to make the process more meaningful. Overall, there were seven themes: increased scope, guidance, timing, alignment with standards, reflection and growth, organization of work, and the inaccessibility of the e-portfolio system to persons outside of the university. This article discusses findings as well as practical recommendations for e-portfolio integration and ideas for future research.
Restructuring in the Industrial Areas of Budapest in the Period of Transition

In recent decades, and especially since the late 1970s, the industry and industrial areas of Western cities have undergone considerable restructuring. In east European cities, however, these changes began later and accelerated only after 1989, when radical political change permitted economic and social reforms. This study aims to examine the most important trends in the restructuring of industrial areas in Budapest. In particular, the study considers: how industrial restructuring affected the spatial structure of industry, the urban space and land use and, whether and to what extent these changes are similar to or different from processes in western and other east European cities.
Liberty, Preference, and Choice

Ever since its first publication in 1970, Amartya Sen's paper “The Impossibility of a Paretian Liberal” (reprinted in Sen, 1982) has served as the starting point for almost all discussions of liberty in social choice theory. However, a number of people, myself included, have argued that Sen's theorem rests on a misleading characterization of liberty (Nozick, 1974, pp. 164–166; Bernholz, 1974; Sugden, 1978, 1981, pp. 193–198; Garden-fors, 1981; Levi, 1982). In a recent paper, addressed to a philosophical audience, Sen (1983) has provided a careful defence of his theorem against this charge. I shall argue that this defence does not work.
Young adult outcome of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: a controlled 10-year follow-up study

Background. Our objective was to estimate the lifetime prevalence of psychopathology in a sample of youth with and without attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) through young adulthood using contemporaneous diagnostic and analytic techniques. Method. We conducted a case-control, 10-year prospective study of ADHD youth. At baseline, we assessed consecutively referred male, Caucasian children with (n=140) and without (n=120) DSM-III-R ADHD, aged 6–18 years, ascertained from psychiatric and pediatric sources to allow for generalizability of results. At the 10-year follow-up, 112 (80%) and 105 (88%) of the ADHD and control children, respectively, were reassessed (mean age 22 years). We created the following categories of psychiatric disorders: Major Psychopathology (mood disorders and psychosis), Anxiety Disorders, Antisocial Disorders (conduct, oppositional-defiant, and antisocial personality disorder), Developmental Disorders (elimination, language, and tics disorder), and Substance Dependence Disorders (alcohol, drug, and nicotine dependence), as measured by blinded structured diagnostic interview. Results. The lifetime prevalence for all categories of psychopathology were significantly greater in ADHD young adults compared to controls, with hazard ratios and 95% confidence intervals of 6·1 (3·5–10·7), 2·2 (1·5–3·2), 5·9 (3·9–8·8), 2·5 (1·7–3·6), and 2·0 (1·3–3·0), respectively, for the categories described above. Conclusions. By their young adult years, ADHD youth were at high risk for a wide range of adverse psychiatric outcomes including markedly elevated rates of antisocial, addictive, mood and anxiety disorders. These prospective findings provide further evidence for the high morbidity associated with ADHD across the life-cycle and stress the importance of early recognition of this disorder for prevention and intervention strategies.
Comparison of litter decomposing ability among diverse fungi in a cool temperate deciduous forest in Japan

The litter decomposing ability of 79 fungal isolates (41 genera, 60 species) was assessed with the pure culture decomposition test. The isolates were collected qualitatively in a cool temperate deciduous forest in Japan during a 21-mo period. Loss of original weight of sterilized litter ranged from 0.1% to 57.6%. Six isolates in the Basidiomycota caused high weight losses ranging from 15.1% to 57.6%. Fourteen isolates in Xylaria and Geniculosporium (the Xylariaceae and its anamorph) also caused high weight losses ranging from 4.0% to 14.4%. Other isolates in the Ascomycota and associated anamorphs and in the Zygomycota caused low weight losses on mean. Six fungi in the Basidiomycota, and all in the Xylariaceae showed a bleaching activity of the litter and caused lignin and carbohydrate decomposition. Mean lignin/weight loss ratios (L/W) and lignin/carbohydrate loss ratios (L/C), were 0.9 and 0.7 for the Basidiomycota and 0.7 and 0.4 for the Xylariaceae, respectively. Significant differences were found in L/W and L/C between the two groups when the result of Xylaria sp. that showed marked delignification was excluded. These differences in lignin and carbohydrate utilization patterns are discussed in relation to the structural and the chemical properties of the decomposed litter and to the implications for organic chemical changes during litter decomposition processes.
Strategic performance management: A balanced approach to performance management issues in local government

Abstract The drive for reform in the public sector worldwide has focussed attention on the measurement of performance in public sector organizations. This is particularly true in local government. Local government has traditionally been concerned with measuring the delivery of primary objectives, or results, at the expense of secondary objectives, or the determinants of organizational performance. Current strategic management literature suggests that there should be a strong linkage between strategic plans and performance measures.Kaplan and Norton’s (1992) balanced scorecard and Fitzgerald et al. ’s (1991) results and determinants framework can provide this linkage. This paper reports on research into performance management systems in local government using the four dimensions of the balanced scorecard: financial, community, internal business processes and innovation and learning. It shows how the focus in this system of local government has been on the results of council work, ie. financial performance and to a lesser extent on how the community views performance. Local government performance measurement pays much less attention to the determinants, or means of achieving long-term, sustained organizational improvement in internal business processes, and innovation and learning. Whilst these issues are recognized as important, there are few measurement processes in place to manage performance in these areas. Strategic performance management demands an approach that recognizes the importance of a focus on both results and the means of achieving these results. This paper highlights a suggested framework for strategic and balanced local government performance measurement.
Understanding the new Investors in People standard – lessons from experience

Investors in People (IIP), the government initiative designed to enhance organisation training and development practices, adopted a new standard in 1999, which focuses on the development of a “training culture” within an organisation. Previous studies of IIP have been conducted on firms accredited using the old standard, and most of these have focused on large firms. Few studies have examined the process of implementing IIP through the eyes of people within the firm and from the point of view of all organisation members. Likewise few studies have examined the process by which accreditation for IIP is achieved under the new standard in small firms where various pressures to adopt the standard may result in significant and wide‐ranging effects on existing organisation culture. This paper discusses the differences between the old and the new standard from a cultural perspective and explores the challenges and impact of implementing the new standard in one small printing firm, Checkprint Ltd, through the eyes of those in the firm. The paper considers possible changes required in the way IIP is implemented and evaluates the applicability of methods used by IIP to determine qualification for accreditation. The paper concludes with implications and recommendations concerning the implementation of IIP.
Impact of Modified Treatment in Echocardiographically Confirmed Pseudo-Pulseless Electrical Activity in Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest Patients with Constant End-Tidal Carbon Dioxide Pressure during Compression Pauses

This study evaluated the ability of focused echocardiography (FE) and capnography to differentiate between pulseless electrical activity (PEA) and pseudo-PEA in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, and the potential survival benefits with modified treatment. In PEA patients with stable end-tidal carbon dioxide pressure (P etCO2) during the compression pause and concomitant FE showing cardiac kinetic activity, the compression pause was prolonged for 15 s and an additional 20 IU vasopressin was administered. If pulselessness persisted, compressions were continued. Fifteen of the 16 patients studied (94%) achieved restoration of spontaneous circulation (ROSC); eight patients (50%) attained a good neurological outcome (Cerebral Performance Category 1–2). In an historical PEA group with stable P etCO2 values (n = 48), ROSC was achieved in 26 patients (54%); four patients (8%) attained Cerebral Performance Category 1–2. Echocardiographical verification of the pseudo-PEA state enabled additional vasopressor treatment and cessation of chest compressions, and was associated with significantly higher rates of ROSC, survival to discharge and good neurological outcome.
Molecular identification and population dynamics of the major malaria vectors in a rainforest zone of Nigeria

Adult female mosquito vectors were collected from three villages in a typical rain forest area of Nigeria where no information exists on the major malaria vectors associated with human malaria. Sampling was carried out between January 2004 and January 2005 using pyrethrum and Human landing catch (HLC) techniques. A total catch of 2010 mosquitoes was recorded out of which 1800 were morphologically identified as female Anopheline mosquitoes. Further identification of the Anopheline species using the morphological keys revealed that 1399 (77.7%) belonged to the Anopheles gambiae s.l. and 401 (22.3%) to Anopheles funestus . A PCR based test on the Anopheles gambiae group identified 636 (45.5%) as Anopheles gambiae s.s and 763 (54.5%) as Anopheles arabiensis respectively . The cocktail PCR-assay on the total Anopheles funestus group showed 307 (76.6%), to be Anopheles funestus s.s and 94 (23.4%) to be Anopheles leesoni . The total number of Anopheles gambiae collected across the 3 villages was significantly higher (P Anopheles funestus caught within the same period. However, there was a seasonal difference in the population of Anopheline species collected in which the wet season collections constitute 45.4% An.gambiae s.l and 17.7% An.funestus while the dry season population constitutes 32.3% An.gambiae s.l and 4.5% An.funestus . The dry season collections were predominantly An. arabiensis producing 23.9% of the total catch in. The overall number of Anopheles mosquitoes collected in the wet season was significantly higher than that of the dry season (P Keywords : An. gambiae, An arabiensis, An.funestus, An. Lessoni , PCR, ELISA, Nigeria Biokemistri Vol. 17(2) 2005: 171-178
Regulation of Sustained Actin Dynamics by the TCR and Costimulation as a Mechanism of Receptor Localization

The localization of receptors, signaling intermediates, and cytoskeletal components at the T cell/APC interface is thought to be a major determinant of efficient T cell activation. However, important questions remain open. What are the dynamics of the T cell cytoskeleton as a potential mediator of such localization? How are they regulated by the TCR and costimulatory receptors? Do they actually mediate receptor localization? In this study, we have addressed these questions. Even under limiting T cell activation conditions, actin accumulated immediately and transiently at the T cell/APC interface, the microtubule organizing center reoriented toward it. In contrast, sustained (>5 min) actin accumulation in highly dynamic patterns depended on an optimal T cell stimulus: high concentrations of the strong TCR ligand agonist peptide/MHC and engagement of the costimulatory receptors CD28 and LFA-1 were required in an overlapping, yet distinct, fashion. Intact sustained actin dynamics were required for interface accumulation of TCR/MHC in a central pattern and for efficient T cell proliferation, as established using a novel approach to selectively block only the sustained actin dynamics. These data suggest that control of specific elements of actin dynamics by TCR and costimulatory receptors is a mechanism to regulate the efficiency of T cell activation.
Stakeholder Management Strategies of Festivals

ABSTRACT The extent to which festivals can function as sustainable attractions, while fulfilling their social and cultural roles at the community level, is an issue of considerable importance. In this context, sustainability will often depend upon the political and tangible support of key stakeholders. Accordingly, this article addresses festival stakeholder issues and related management strategies, with the dual aims of contributing to event management theory and improving festival viability. A questionnaire survey of 14 live-music festivals in Sweden yielded data on stakeholder types, dependency issues, and stakeholder management strategies. With regard to their long-term sustainability, festival managers indicated the importance of attaining ‘institutional status,’ occupying a unique ‘niche’ in the community, sustaining committed stakeholders, and practicing constant innovation.
From fictions and aggregates to real entities in the theory of the firm

Abstract According to the dominant ‘nexus of contracts’ and ‘collection of assets’ views of the firm, the firm is a either a fiction or an aggregate. Although legal personality is important in both accounts, everything is said to be achieved by private contract alone and the law's role in creating legal entity status is dismissed. The paper challenges both these aspects by reconsidering an alternative ‘real entity theory’ that dominated debates at the turn of the twentieth century. This forgotten view holds that the firm is neither a fiction nor an aggregate but a real entity, and underlines the creation of legal entity status as a fundamental role of the law. The paper discusses this view's ontological and legal insights, clarifies the proposition that the firm is a real entity, and proposes it as a starting point for a theory of the firm.