Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Shift Work and Quality of Personal, Professional, and Family Life among Health Care Workers in a Rehabilitation Center in Greece

Context: Adverse work schedules and conditions may affect the physical, mental, and social wellbeing of workers, impairing quality of life and causing conflict between family and work roles. Aims: To compare quality of life, professional quality of life (ProQOL), and work/family conflict (WFC) between shift workers and nonshift workers and explore possible associations with demographic characteristics. Settings and Design: A cross-sectional study was conducted in a rehabilitation center in Central Greece, recording demographic, occupational, and family characteristics. Materials and Methods: Participants answered the World Health Organization-5 Well-Being Index, the ProQOL questionnaire [compassion satisfaction (CS), and the burnout (BO) and secondary traumatic stress scales], and the WFC scale. Statistical Analysis Used: IBM Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 19.0 for Windows. Results: Ninety-one employees (68.7% shift workers) participated, with mean age 33.5. Females reported higher compassion/satisfaction level (P = 0.031). Nursing profession was associated with higher levels of BO (P = 0.021), impact of work to family life (P = 0.008), and impact of family to work (FtW), and WFC (P = 0.008). Parenthood increased the impact of FtW (P = 0.008) and predispose to WFC (P = 0.023). In general, wellbeing was significantly correlated with CS (r = 0.368, P < 0.01), BO (r = −0.538, P < 0.01), and levels of WFC (P = 0.003). Work and family roles conflict was statistically significantly correlated with levels of BO (r = 0.497, P < 0.01), and CS (r = −0.288, P < 0.01). Conclusions: The interaction between general, professional, and family quality of life can guide interventions in the workplace in order to improve workers' quality of life and promote workers' health.
Physical activity: its implication on attention span and quality of life in children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

This study examined the effects of physical activity on the attention span and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) children in Singapore. Male participants (N = 12) aged 2-6 years, diagnosed with ASD were randomly assigned to either a physical activity or non-physical activity group. In the physical activity group, participants were administered 8 tri-cycling sessions; both groups of participants were measured for their attention span, and their parents completed the HRQoL questionnaires. Results indicate that as the exercise increases, the physical activity group demonstrated increasingly longer duration of attention span. These results extend the findings that physical activity enhances cognition of ASD children and support its consideration into the early intervention programs.
When Institutions Matter:Union Growth and Decline in Western Europe, 1950–1995

During the early post-war period, Western trade union movements grew in membership and achieved an institutionalized role in industrial relations and politics. However, during the last decades, many trade unions have seen their membership decline as they came increasingly under pressures due to the social, economic and political changes. This article reviews the main structural, cyclical and institu-tional factors explaining union growth and decline. Concentrating on Western Europe, the empirical analysis compares cross-national union density data for 13 countries over the first period (1950-75) and for 16 countries over the second, "crisis" period (1975-95). The quantitative correlation and re-gression analysis indicates that structural and cyclical factors fail explain the level and changes in unionization across Western Europe, while institutional variables fare better. In a second, qualitative comparative analysis, the authors stress the need to explain cross-national differences in the level or trend of unionization by a set of institutional arrangements: the access of unions to representation in the workplace, the availability of a selective incentive in the form of a union-administered unemploy-ment scheme, recognition of employers through nation-wide and sectoral corporatist institutions, and closed shop arrangements for forced membership. Such institutional configurations support member-ship recruitment and membership retention, and define the conditions for the strategic choice of trade unions in responding to structural social-economic, political and cultural changes
Two Cheers for Corporatism. One for the Market

The success of economic policies in the Netherlands with regard to enhancing job growth and bringing down unemployment has attracted international attention, especially against the background of persistent high unemployment in many continental European countries. The paper considers the role of Dutch industrial relations, and in particular trade unions, in the turnaround from the ‘Dutch disease’ to the current ‘employment miracle’. It is argued that Dutch unions, weakened by the severe jobs and membership crisis of the early 1980s but assured of continued institutional support, have chosen a public-regarding ‘jobs before wages’ strategy. The two main features are continued wage moderation and negotiated flexibility of working hours, particularly part-time jobs. The paper stresses the importance of co-ordination within the unions as well as between unions and employers, and compares the contents, causes and consequences of the two central accords of 1982 and 1993. Finally, it considers the renewal of Dutch corporatism in an environment of increased market pressure.
Neuroforecasting Aggregate Choice Brian

Advances in brain-imaging design and analysis have allowed investigators to use neural activity to predict individual choice, while emerging Internet markets have opened up new opportunities for forecasting aggregate choice. Here, we review emerging research that bridges these levels of analysis by attempting to use group neural activity to forecast aggregate choice. A survey of initial findings suggests that components of group neural activity might forecast aggregate choice, in some cases even beyond traditional behavioral measures. In addition to demonstrating the plausibility of neuroforecasting, these findings raise the possibility that not all neural processes that predict individual choice forecast aggregate choice to the same degree. We propose that although integrative choice components may confer more consistency within individuals, affective choice components may generalize more broadly across individuals to forecast aggregate choice.
Quantitative genetic variability maintained by mutation-stabilizing selection balance in finite populations.

Summary Models of variability in quantitative traits maintained by a balance between mutation and stabilizing selection are investigated. The effects of mutant alleles are assumed to be additive and to be randomly sampled from a stationary distribution. With a two-allele model the equilibrium genetic variance in an infinite population is independent of the distribution of mutant effects, and dependent only on the total number of mutants appearing per generation. In a finite population, however, both the shape and standard deviation of the distribution of mutant effects are important. The equilibrium variance is lower when most of the mutational variance is contributed by few genes of large effect. Genes of small effect can eventually contribute substantially to the variance with increasing population size (N). The equilibrium variance can be higher in a finite than an infinite population since near-neutral alleles can drift to intermediate frequencies where selection is weakest. Linkage leads to a reduction in the maintained variance which is small unless linkage is very tight and selection is strong, but the reduction becomes greater with increasing N since more mutants segregate. A multi-allele model is simulated and it is concluded that the two-allele model gives a good approximation of its behaviour. It is argued that the total number of loci capable of influencing most quantitative traits is large, and that the distribution of mutant effects is highly leptokurtic with the effects of most mutants very small, and such mutants are important in contributing to the maintained variance since selection against them is slight. The weakness of the simple optimum model is discussed in relation to the likely consequences of pleiotropy.
Giving Meaning to GI Web Service Descriptions

SUMMARY Current GI service composition based on syntactic descriptions such as WSDL are error-prone because the meaning of the labels used in these descriptions is unclear. We identify three types of problems that can result from such semantically heterogeneous descriptions during service composition. These problems call for a Semantic Reference System for semantically annotating symbols, referencing symbols to concepts and semantically grounding these concepts. We present a three level architecture for such a Semantic Reference System and illustrate how it can be used for solving the problems identified using a real world example for service composition.
Mirror writing: neurological reflections on an unusual phenomenon

Mirror writing is an unusual script, in which the writing runs in the opposite direction to normal, with individual letters reversed, so that it is most easily read using a mirror. This writing is seen in healthy individuals; it is also associated with various focal lesions that most commonly involve the left hemisphere, as well as with certain diffuse cerebral disorders. Mirror writing is nearly always undertaken with the left hand, and left-handers, and those whose languages are written leftwards, have an unusual facility for this writing. Concerning possible underlying processes, the implications of using the left hand when writing are considered first. Motor pathways that may be important, the surrogate model of bimanual mirror movements and the contribution of the corpus callosum are then discussed. The reasons why left-handed writing is mirrored, and the factors that tend to inhibit mirroring, are outlined. After commenting on mirrored motor and visual engrams, the possibility that the right hemisphere may play an important part is entertained, and Leonardo da Vinci’s unique, habitual mirror writing proves to be of unexpected relevance. Further investigations, ranging from epidemiological to functional imaging studies, may provide valuable insights into mirror writing.
Dynamic Abandon/Extract Decisions for Failed Cardiac Leads

When a cardiac lead fails, physicians implant a new lead and may opt to extract the failed lead and/or any previously abandoned leads. Because the risk of extraction increases in lead age, physicians may extract leads to reduce the future risk of mandatory extraction, due to either infection or limited space in the vein. We develop discrete-time semi-Markov decision process models for various types of cardiac devices to determine patient-specific, lifetime-maximizing extraction policies as a function of patient age and the age of every implanted lead. We use clinical data to calibrate these models and present insightful numerical results, including comparisons to policies commonly used in practice. Our numerical experiments suggest that extracting failed leads only when forced to because of space limitations is usually a good rule of thumb, but that following the optimal policy, as opposed to the commonly used heuristic policies, can extend an average patient’s expected lifetime by up to 1.2 years and dec.
Impact of CAR Agonist Ligand TCPOBOP on Mouse Liver Chromatin Accessibility

Activation of the nuclear receptor and transcription factor CAR (Nr1i3) by its specific agonist ligand TCPOBOP (1, 4-bis[2-(3, 5-dichloropyridyloxy)]benzene) dysregulates hundreds of genes in mouse liver and is linked to male-biased hepatocarcinogenesis. To elucidate the genomic organization of CAR-induced gene responses, we investigated the distribution of TCPOBOP-responsive RefSeq coding and long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) genes across the megabase-scale topologically associating domains (TADs) that segment the genome, and which provide a structural framework that functionally constrains enhancer-promoter interactions. We show that a subset of TCPOBOP-responsive genes cluster within TADs, and that TCPOBOP-induced genes and TCPOBOP-repressed genes are often found in different TADs. Further, using DNase-seq and DNase hypersensitivity site (DHS) analysis, we identified several thousand genomic regions (ΔDHS) where short-term exposure to TCPOBOP induces localized changes (increases or decreases) in mouse liver chromatin accessibility, many of which cluster in TADs together with TCPOBOP-responsive genes. Sites of chromatin opening were highly enriched nearby genes induced by TCPOBOP and chromatin closing was highly enriched nearby genes repressed by TCPOBOP, consistent with TCPOBOP-responsive ΔDHS serving as enhancers and promoters that positively regulate CAR-responsive genes. Gene expression changes lagged behind chromatin opening or closing for a subset of TCPOBOP-responsive ΔDHS. ΔDHS that were specifically responsive to TCPOBOP in male liver were significantly enriched for genomic regions with a basal male bias in chromatin accessibility; however, the male-biased response of hepatocellular carcinoma-related genes to TCPOBOP was not associated with a correspondingly male-biased ΔDHS response. These studies elucidate the genome-wide organization of CAR-responsive genes and of the thousands of associated genomic sites where TCPOBOP exposure induces both rapid and persistent changes in chromatin accessibility.
Molecular Diagnosis of Diffuse Gliomas through Sequencing of Cell-Free Circulating Tumor DNA from Cerebrospinal Fluid

Purpose: Diffuse gliomas are the most common primary tumor of the brain and include different subtypes with diverse prognosis. The genomic characterization of diffuse gliomas facilitates their molecular diagnosis. The anatomical localization of diffuse gliomas complicates access to tumor specimens for diagnosis, in some cases incurring high-risk surgical procedures and stereotactic biopsies. Recently, cell-free circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) has been identified in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of patients with brain malignancies. Experimental Design: We performed an analysis of IDH1, IDH2, TP53, TERT, ATRX, H3F3A, and HIST1H3B gene mutations in two tumor cohorts from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) including 648 diffuse gliomas. We also performed targeted exome sequencing and droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) analysis of these seven genes in 20 clinical tumor specimens and CSF from glioma patients and performed a histopathologic characterization of the tumors. Results: Analysis of the mutational status of the IDH1, IDH2, TP53, TERT, ATRX, H3F3A, and HIST1H3B genes allowed the classification of 79% of the 648 diffuse gliomas analyzed, into IDH-wild-type glioblastoma, IDH-mutant glioblastoma/diffuse astrocytoma and oligodendroglioma, each subtype exhibiting diverse median overall survival (1.1, 6.7, and 11.2 years, respectively). We developed a sequencing platform to simultaneously and rapidly genotype these seven genes in CSF ctDNA allowing the subclassification of diffuse gliomas. Conclusions: The genomic analysis of IDH1, IDH2, TP53, ATRX, TERT, H3F3A, and HIST1H3B gene mutations in CSF ctDNA facilitates the diagnosis of diffuse gliomas in a timely manner to support the surgical and clinical management of these patients. Clin Cancer Res; 24(12); 2812–9. ©2018 AACR.
Support needs of patients with COPD: a systematic literature search and narrative review

Introduction Understanding the breadth of patients’ support needs is important for the delivery of person-centered care, particularly in progressive long-term conditions such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Existing reviews identify important aspects of managing life with COPD with which patients may need support (support needs); however, none of these comprehensively outlines the full range of support needs that patients can experience. We therefore sought to systematically determine the full range of support needs for patients with COPD to inform development of an evidence-based tool to enable person-centered care. Methods We conducted a systematic search and narrative review of the literature. Medline (Ovid), EMBASE, PsycINFO, Cochrane Library, and CINAHL were systematically searched for papers which included data addressing key aspects of support need, as identified by patients with COPD. Relevant data were extracted, and a narrative analysis was conducted. Results Thirty-one papers were included in the review, and the following 13 domains (broad areas) of support need were identified: 1) understanding COPD, 2) managing symptoms and medication, 3) healthy lifestyle, 4) managing feelings and worries, 5) living positively with COPD, 6) thinking about the future, 7) anxiety and depression, 8) practical support, 9) finance work and housing, 10) families and close relationships, 11) social and recreational life, 12) independence, and 13) navigating services. These 13 domains of support need were mapped to three of the four overarching categories of need commonly used in relevant national strategy documents (ie, physical, psychological, and social); however, support needs related to the fourth category (spiritual) were notably absent. Conclusion This review systematically identifies the comprehensive set of domains of support need for patients with COPD. The findings provide the evidence base for a tool to help patients identify and express their support needs, which underpins a proposed intervention to enable the delivery of person-centered care: the Support Needs Approach for Patients (SNAP).
Gualou Xiebai Decoction, a Traditional Chinese Medicine, Prevents Cardiac Reperfusion Injury of Hyperlipidemia Rat via Energy Modulation

Background: Gualou Xiebai Decoction (GLXB) is a classic prescription of Chinese medicine used for the treatment of cardiac problems. The present study was designed to explore the effect and mechanism of GLXB on ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) induced disorders in myocardial structure and function, focusing on the regulation of energy metabolism and the RhoA/ROCK pathway. Methods: After hyperlipidemic rat model was established by oral administration of high fat diet, the rats were treated with GLXB for 6 weeks and subjected to 30 min occlusion of the left anterior descending coronary artery (LADCA) followed by 90 min reperfusion to elicit I/R challenge. Myocardial infarct size was assessed by Evans blue-TTC staining. Myocardial blood flow (MBF) and cardiac function were evaluated. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was performed to examine the content of ATP, ADP, AMP, CK, CK-MB, LDH, cTnT, cTnI, and IL-6. Double staining of F-actin and terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling was conducted to assess myocardial apoptosis. Expressions of ATP synthase subunit δ (ATP 5D), and RhoA and ROCK were determined by Western blotting. Results: Administration with GLXB at high dose for 6 weeks protected heart against I/R-induced MBF decrease, myocardial infarction and apoptosis, ameliorated I/R-caused impairment of cardiac function and myocardial structure, restored the decrease in the ratio of ADP/ATP and AMP/ATP, and the expression of ATP 5D with inhibiting the expression of RhoA and ROCK. Conclusions: Treatment with GLXB effectively protects myocardial structure and function from I/R challenge, possibly via regulating energy metabolism involving inactivation of RhoA/ROCK signaling pathway.
Fuzzy Multiple-Level Sequential Patterns Discovery from Customer Transaction Databases

Sequential pattern discovery is a very important research topic in data mining and knowledge discovery and has been widely applied in business analysis. Previous works were focused on mining sequential patterns at a single concept level based on definite and accurate concept which may not be concise and meaningful enough for human experts to easily obtain nontrivial knowledge from the rules discovered. In this paper, we introduce concept hierarchies firstly, and then discuss a mining algorithm F-MLSPDA for discovering multiple-level sequential patterns with quantitative attribute based on fuzzy partitions.
20(S)-Protopanaxadiol-Induced Apoptosis in MCF-7 Breast Cancer Cell Line through the Inhibition of PI3K/AKT/mTOR Signaling Pathway

20(S)-Protopanaxadiol (PPD) is one of the major active metabolites of ginseng. It has been reported that 20(S)-PPD shows a broad spectrum of antitumor effects. Our research study aims were to investigate whether apoptosis of human breast cancer MCF-7 cells could be induced by 20(S)-PPD by targeting the Phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/Protein kinase B/Mammalian target of rapamycin (PI3K/AKT/mTOR) signal pathway in vitro and in vivo. Cell cycle analysis was performed by Propidium Iodide (PI) staining. To overexpress and knock down the expression of mTOR, pcDNA3.1-mTOR and mTOR small interfering RNA (siRNA) transient transfection assays were used, respectively. Cell viability and apoptosis were evaluated by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT)-test and Annexin V /PI double-staining after transfection. The antitumor effect in vivo was determined by the nude mice xenograft assay. After 24 h of incubation, treatment with 20(S)-PPD could upregulate phosphorylated-Phosphatase and tensin homologue deleted on chromosome 10 (p-PTEN) expression and downregulate PI3K/AKT/mTOR-pathway protein expression. Moreover, G0/G1 cell cycle arrest in MCF-7 cells could be induced by 20(S)-PPD treatment at high concentrations. Furthermore, overexpression or knockdown of mTOR could inhibit or promote the apoptotic effects of 20(S)-PPD. In addition, tumor volumes were partially reduced by 20(S)-PPD at 100 mg/kg in a MCF-7 xenograft model. Immunohistochemical staining indicated a close relationship between the inhibition of tumor growth and the PI3K/AKT/mTOR signal pathway. PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway-mediated apoptosis may be one of the potential mechanisms of 20(S)-PPD treatment.
A novel fabrication method of capillary tubes on quartz for chemical analysis applications

The concept of micro flow systems for chemical analysis integrated on silicon (Si) and quartz (SiO/sub 2/) substrates was investigated as an alternative to conventional chemical sensors. A commonly used manufacturing method for capillary tubes includes the etching of capillary channels in a silicon substrate, oxidation of Si and subsequent wafer bonding to form the capillary. A novel fabrication method to produce the capillaries in a wide range of dimensions on a quartz substrate is presented. The manufacturing sequence consists only of the standard steps of Very Large Scale Integration (VLSI) process: photolithography, oxidation, wet and dry etch and Low Pressure Chemical Deposition (LPCVD). Very well defined capillary tubes with the width from 10 mm to 200 mm were produced using this method. Resistance measurements performed on capillaries filled with KCl solution showed very good agreement with the theoretical calculations of the resistance values for given geometrical shapes. The original chip was designed and fabricated on quartz to investigate the effect of electroosmotic pumping of liquid. The first experimental results confirm the possibility of using this fabrication method to produce micro capillary systems for chemical analysis applications.