Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Persistence of PCR-Detectable Bacteroides distasonis from Human Feces in River Water

ABSTRACT To evaluate the persistence of PCR-detectable Bacteroides distasonis in surface water, whole human feces were dispersed into water from the Ohio River and incubated in flasks in the laboratory or in diffusion chambers in situ. Duplicate samples were taken daily, and material that pelleted at 16,000 × gwas assayed by PCR. Persistence of PCR-detectable DNA from this anaerobe depended upon temperature and predation, two of the factors shown by others to influence the survival of aerobic bacteria detected by culture. B. distasonis was detected by PCR for at least 2 weeks at 4°C but for only 4 to 5 days at 14°C, 1 to 2 days at 24°C, and 1 day at 30°C. In filtered water or in the presence of cycloheximide, a eukaryotic inhibitor, persistence at 24°C was extended by at least a week.
One Without the Other? Behavioural and Incentive Policies for Household Waste Management

This paper provides a review of economic studies that analyses the use of multiple policies to cope with waste management problems. We discuss the factors that influence selective sorting behaviour, and the most appropriate policies for their promotion. Based on the works analysed, our survey shows the original features of waste as an environmental problem requiring regulation. The traditional approach in which decisions respond to rational behaviour, particularly cost savings, has some limits. Although not all public policies seem justified, we argue that there might be a need for specific policies to promote recycling, preferably based on the provision of information to consumers or on behavioural instruments. Indeed, personal factors specific to each individual – such as emotions and the influence of social interaction – should be taken into account in the development of public policies. We review the literature related to different rationales and identify some avenues for future research.
Smoking, Gender, and Ethnicity Predict Somatic BRAF Mutations in Colorectal Cancer

Approximately 5% to 15% of all colorectal cancers (CRC) have an activating BRAF somatic mutation, which may be associated with a distinct risk profile compared with tumors without BRAF mutations. Here, we measured the prevalence and epidemiologic correlates of the BRAF V600E somatic mutation in cases collected as a part of a population-based case-control study of CRC in northern Israel. The prevalence of BRAF V600E was 5.0% in this population, and the mutation was more likely to be found in tumors from cases who were of Ashkenazi Jewish descent [odds ratio (OR), 1.87; 95% confidence interval (95% CI), 1.01-3.47], female (OR, 1.97; P = 1.17-3.31), and older (73.8 years versus 70.3 years; P < 0.001). These results were similar when restricting to only tumors with microsatellite instability. Whether smoking was associated with a BRAF somatic mutation depended on gender. Although men were less likely to have a tumor with a BRAF somatic mutation, men who smoked were much more likely to have a tumor with a somatic BRAF mutation (ORinteraction, 4.95; 95% CI, 1.18-20.83) than women who never smoked. We note the strong heterogeneity in the reported prevalence of the BRAF V600E mutation in studies of different ethnicities, with a lower prevalence in Israel than other Western populations but a higher prevalence among Jewish than non-Jewish Israeli cases. Epidemiologic studies of CRC should incorporate somatic characteristics to fully appreciate risk factors for this disease. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 19(3); 838–43
Generation of animal form by the Chordin/Tolloid/BMP gradient: 100 years after D'Arcy Thompson

The classic book “On Growth and Form” by naturalist D'Arcy Thompson was published 100 years ago. To celebrate this landmark, we present experiments in the Xenopus embryo that provide a framework for understanding how simple, quantitative transformations of a morphogen gradient might have affected evolution and morphological diversity of organisms. D'Arcy Thompson proposed that different morphologies might be generated by modifying physical parameters in an underlying system of Cartesian coordinates that pre‐existed in Nature and arose during evolutionary history. Chordin is a BMP antagonist secreted by the Spemann organizer located on the dorsal side of the gastrula. Chordin generates a morphogen gradient as first proposed by mathematician Alan Turing. The rate‐limiting step of this dorsal–ventral (D‐V) morphogen is the degradation of Chordin by the Tolloid metalloproteinase in the ventral side. Chordin is expressed at gastrula on the dorsal side where BMP signaling is low, while at the opposite side peak levels of BMP signaling are reached. In fishes, amphibians, reptiles and birds, high BMP signaling in the ventral region induces transcription of a secreted inhibitor of Tolloid called Sizzled. By depleting Sizzled exclusively in the ventral half of the embryo we were able to expand the ventro‐posterior region in an otherwise normal embryo. Conversely, ventral depletion of Tolloid, which stabilizes Chordin, decreased ventral and tail structures, phenocopying the tolloid zebrafish mutation. We explain how historical constraints recorded in the language of DNA become subject to the universal laws of physics when an ancestral reaction‐diffusion morphogen gradient dictates form.
Technical aspects of network neutrality

The paper deals with technical aspects of network neutrality. General concept of network neutrality is elaborated and two problems are identified: the problem of network capacity and traffic management. The experimental network model is proposed with regard to different classes of Internet services and bandwidth. Each class represents a set of users with similar web related interests/needs and includes different combinations of web based services corresponding to specific user interests and online activities. The bandwidth allocations are based on quality of experience (QoE) measures. The proposed model is evaluated on the Croatian academic network topology. Evaluation results propose number of users per each class depending on the available bandwidth.
Homophilic complex formation of MT1‐MMP facilitates proMMP‐2 activation on the cell surface and promotes tumor cell invasion

Activation of proMMP‐2 by MT1‐MMP is considered to be a critical event in cancer cell invasion. In the activation step, TIMP‐2 bound to MT1‐MMP on the cell surface acts as a receptor for proMMP‐2. Subsequently, adjacent TIMP‐2‐free MT1‐MMP activates the proMMP‐2 in the ternary complex. In this study, we demonstrate that MT1‐MMP forms a homophilic complex through the hemopexin‐like (PEX) domain that acts as a mechanism to keep MT1‐MMP molecules close together to facilitate proMMP‐2 activation. Deletion of the PEX domain in MT1‐MMP, or swapping the domain with the one derived from MT4‐MMP, abolished the ability to activate proMMP‐2 on the cell surface without affecting the proteolytic activities. In addition, expression of the mutant MT1‐MMP lacking the catalytic domain (MT1PEX‐F) efficiently inhibited complex formation of the full‐length enzymes and activation of pro MMP‐2. Furthermore, expression of MT1PEX‐F inhibited proMMP‐2 activation and Matrigel invasion activity of invasive human fibrosarcoma HT1080 cells. These findings elucidate a new function of the PEX domain: regulating MT1‐MMP activity on the cell surface, which accelerates cellular invasiveness in the tissue.
Political Risks of Western Companies in a Transforming Country. Evidence from Russia 2014

Foreign companies form an integral part of the economic landscape in their respective host countries. Western enterprises have to face specific risks and obstacles related to the current local democratic and economic development stage and they are confronted with political risks such as corruption, favouritism or legal uncertainty. This paper is based on the evidence collected during a field study conducted between March and September 2014 in Austria and Russia. The author conducted 23 qualitative interviews with Austrian business representatives operating in Russia and Russian experts concerning various aspects of the business environment. The results of this study are intended to be used for the improvement of the understanding of specific business conditions prevailing in Russia. This paper should be considered a valuable foundation for further in-depth research both on political risks and individual factors.
Foreign aid and Foreign direct investment in Sub-Saharan Africa: A panel data analysis

Funding constraints experienced by Sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries has led to reliance on foreign direct investment (FDI) and foreign aid as alternative sources of finance. Despite the importance of FDI for growth, SSA has failed to attract an increasing share of global FDI and at the same time faces volatile aid flows. This study examines the role of foreign aid in enhancing FDI inflows to 31 SSA countries for the period 1995 to 2012. Using panel data estimation techniques, the results suggest that productive infrastructure aid is complementary to FDI inflows and socio-economic infrastructure aid has no significant impact on FDI inflows. When resource (oil) motive of FDI is considered, the results indicate that productive and socio-economic infrastructure aid to oil-producing SSA countries results in less FDI inflows compared to non-oil producing SSA countries. Finally, the significance of sectoral aid analysis is highlighted by the finding of a complementary role of energy infrastructure aid to FDI inflows and an insignificant impact of transport infrastructure aid.
An electromagnetic transient model and control strategy for the voltage source converter based HVDC transmission

This paper proposes an electromagnetic transient model and control strategy for the voltage source converter (VSC) based HVDC transmission. The electromagnetic transient model of the VSC AC-side in the synchronous d-q reference frame has been built; the DC-side dynamics are formulated based on the principle of instantaneous power balance, the instantaneous power absorbed by three-phase series inductors is also considered. For the purpose of control active power and reactive power separately and faster, a decoupled controller based on feed forward compensation method has been designed. The simulation tests realized by PSCAD/EMTDC that VSC-HVDC supplying passive network and connect active network have been adopted. The simulation results verify the validity of the mathematical model and the feasibility of the control strategies.
Caloric restriction increases neurotrophic factor levels and attenuates neurochemical and behavioral deficits in a primate model of Parkinson's disease

We report that a low-calorie diet can lessen the severity of neurochemical deficits and motor dysfunction in a primate model of Parkinson's disease. Adult male rhesus monkeys were maintained for 6 months on a reduced-calorie diet [30% caloric restriction (CR)] or an ad libitum control diet after which they were subjected to treatment with a neurotoxin to produce a hemiparkinson condition. After neurotoxin treatment, CR monkeys exhibited significantly higher levels of locomotor activity compared with control monkeys as well as higher levels of dopamine (DA) and DA metabolites in the striatal region. Increased survival of DA neurons in the substantia nigra and improved manual dexterity were noted but did not reach statistical significance. Levels of glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor, which is known to promote the survival of DA neurons, were increased significantly in the caudate nucleus of CR monkeys, suggesting a role for glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor in the anti-Parkinson's disease effect of the low-calorie diet.
Socioeconomic differences among Australian adults in consumption of fruit and vegetables and intakes of vitamins A, C and folate.

OBJECTIVE To determine whether socioeconomic groups differ in their food intakes for fruit and vegetables, their consumption of fruit and vegetables dense in vitamin A, folate and vitamin C, and their nutrient intakes of vitamin C, folate and vitamin A. METHODS The 1995 Australian National Nutrition Survey collected food intake data from 8883 adults aged 18-64 years using a 24-h dietary recall. Fruit and vegetables were measured as amount (g) consumed. Intakes of nutrients were estimated from the 24-h dietary recall data. Participants were categorized by whether or not they consumed fruit or vegetables high in vitamin A, folate and vitamin C. Gross annual household income was used to measure socioeconomic position. RESULTS Participants from low-income households consumed a smaller quantity of fruit and vegetables. They were also less likely to consume fruit and vegetables high in vitamin C, folate and vitamin A. Consistent with these findings, men and women from disadvantaged socioeconomic groups had lower intakes of vitamin C and folate compared with their more affluent counterparts. These differences were small to moderate in magnitude. Vitamin A intakes were not significantly related to income. CONCLUSION As well as promoting healthy dietary practices, nutrition-promotion strategies should target the nutrient intakes of lower socioeconomic groups. These programmes should focus on improving the quantity and choice of fruit and vegetables consumed by people from low-income households.
Plasma neuropeptide Y (NPY) and alpha-melanocyte stimulating hormone (a-MSH) levels in patients with or without hypertension and/or obesity: a pilot study.

AIM Obesity frequently co-exists with hypertension (HTN). Hypothalamus neuropeptides such as neuropeptide Y (NPY) and alpha-melanocyte stimulating hormone (a-MSH) interact with leptin, an anorexic peptide produced mainly by adipose tissue and are involved in the regulation of appetite, energy balance and sympathetic nervous system (SNS) activity, possibly contributing to blood pressure (BP) elevation. We compared plasma NPY and a-MSH levels between patients with or without hypertension and/or obesity and the differences in these neuropeptides between patients with or without pathological heart echo findings, aiming to investigate the possible role of these peptides in obesity induced HTN. PATIENTS AND METHODS 160 non-diabetic, treatment-naïve individuals were randomly recruited from our outpatient clinics. Study population was divided into 6 groups, according to body mass index-BMI (OB=obese, OW=overweight, NW=normal weight) and blood pressure. Waist circumference (WC) and heart rate (HR) were also recorded. A heart echo was performed and plasma NPY and a-MSH levels were measured for all participants. RESULTS Plasma NPY levels and HR were higher in OW and OB hypertensives compared with NW hypertensives. OW and OB hypertensives had also higher NPY concentrations compared with OW and OB normotensives, respectively. However, in NW patients, plasma NPY concentrations did not differ between hypertensives and normotensives. Patients with central obesity (COB) had also higher NPY levels compared with patients without COB, a difference also observed in hypertensives but not in normotensive patients. Furthermore, plasma NPY concentrations were significantly correlated with BMI, WC, HR, systolic and diastolic BP. Patients with left ventricle hypertrophy had higher plasma NPY levels compared with those with normal findings, but this was not seen in hypertensives. The majority of these differences were also observed in male and female patient populations. In contrast, plasma a-MSH levels were similar in all study groups. CONCLUSIONS These results suggest that NPY may be involved in obesity-related HTN, possibly via increased SNS activity. Further investigation is needed to elucidate the role of both NPY and a-MSH in obesity-related HTN.
Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid Cellular Characteristics, Functional Parameters and Cytokine and Chemokine Levels in Interstitial Lung Diseases

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), hypersensitivity pneumonitis (HP) and sarcoidosis belong to interstitial lung diseases (ILD) where an imbalance of regulatory, profibrotic and antifibrotic cytokines is hypothesized. The relationship of bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid (BALF) cytokines, BALF cell profile and ILD course is supposed. The aim of our study was to correlate BALF cytokine and chemokine levels with BALF cellular characteristics and lung function parameters in different ILD. Twenty‐two sarcoidosis, seven IPF and 11 HP patients underwent lung function tests and BAL. The BALF differential cell counts and superficial cell markers were characterized, and MCP‐1, MIP‐1α, MIP‐1β, RANTES, epithelial neutrophil‐activating protein (ENA)‐78, FGF, G‐CSF, GM‐CSF, IFN‐γ, interleukin (IL)‐1α, IL‐1RA, IL‐1β, ‐2β, ‐4β, ‐5β, ‐6β, ‐8β, ‐10β, ‐17β, tumour necrosis factor (TNF)‐α, thromobopoietin (Tpo) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) values measured. The BALF VEGF values were highest in sarcoidosis (P = 0.0526). IL‐1RA values were higher in IPF and HP compared with sarcoidosis (P = 0.0334). IL‐8/ENA‐78 ratio positively correlated with BALF neutrophil counts in IPF (r = 0.89, P = 0.04). Vital capacity and TLCO values positively correlated with VEGF and negatively with IL‐8 BALF levels in all ILDs but the correlations were most significant in sarcoidosis group. We suppose that VEGF plays a role in ILDs’ early phases and has rather angiogenic than profibrotic effect. On the contrary, IL‐8 is probably upregulated in advanced ILDs with prominent fibrosis and marked lung functions decline. We state that BALF VEGF, IL‐8 and ENA‐78 levels and IL‐8/ENA‐78 ratio could become useful markers of ILDs’ phase, activity and prognosis. They might also be helpful in treatment modality choice.
Caffeine treatment of ovine cytoplasts regulates gene expression and foetal development of embryos produced by somatic cell nuclear transfer

Treatment of ovine oocytes during the latter stages of maturation in vitro with caffeine, a phosphodiesterase inhibitor, can increase the activities of maturation promoting factor and mitogen‐activated protein kinases at metaphase II. When used as cytoplast recipients for somatic cell nuclear transfer (NT), caffeine‐treated oocytes produced blastocysts with increased cell numbers. The objectives of these studies were to determine the effects of caffeine treatment on the expression profile of genes involved in early embryonic development and whether induction or maintenance of pregnancy was subsequently altered. No differences in overall expression patterns were observed between fertilised, caffeine‐treated fertilised and parthenogenetic embryos. In control NT embryos, altered levels of gene expression were found for OCT4, five genes regulated by OCT4 (H2AF.Z, NANOG, SOX2, FGF4 and INFT) and the heat‐shock response genes (HSP27 and HSP70.1). Levels of OCT4, H2AF.Z, NANOG, HSP 27 and FGF4 decreased, while those of INFT, HSP70.1 and SOX2 increased. In contrast, expression levels of these genes in caffeine‐treated NT embryos were similar to those in fertilised controls. Following transfer to surrogate recipients no differences were observed in the frequency of pregnancy; however, ewes receiving caffeine‐treated embryos maintained pregnancies for longer periods and delivered a live lamb. Taken together, these results suggest that treatment of ovine oocytes with caffeine can affect gene expression and improve developmental competence. Further studies on the mechanisms behind this alteration of gene expression are required and will aid in understanding the molecular mechanisms involved in nuclear reprogramming. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 77:876–887, 2010. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Opportunistic packet scheduling algorithm for load balancing in a multi-hop relay-enhanced cellular OFDMA-TDD System

In this paper, we consider a multi-hop relay-enhanced cellular OFDMA-TDD system with the full frequency-reuse capability, in which a TDD frame can be asymmetrically divided into two different intervals, one for access link to mobile stations and the other for relay link to base station (BS)-relay station (RS) communication, while the same radio resource is fully reused by every RS in the cell. Since a single common boundary between access and relay links is employed for the system, some access link associated with an individual RS can be either overloaded or under-loaded when traffic load is non-uniformly distributed, which causes an inefficient resource allocation. This paper proposes a load-balancing opportunistic (LoBO) scheduling algorithm that improves the overall system throughput in a weighted proportional fairness manner while balancing the traffic load over the access link to be shared by all RSpsilas. The proposed algorithm dynamically determines the common access-to-relay interval boundary as a part of packet scheduling, which has been shown to outperform the conventional system in which the boundary selection and packet scheduling are implemented as the separate processes.
A longitudinal epidemiologic study of signs and symptoms of temporomandibular disorders from 15 to 35 years of age.

AIMS To study the development over 20 years of signs and symptoms of temporomandibular disorders (TMD) in an epidemiologic sample and to analyze possible correlations between these signs and symptoms and some other variables. METHODS The original group comprised 135 randomly selected 15-year-old subjects who were examined clinically and by means of a questionnaire for signs and symptoms of TMD. The examination was repeated after 5, 10, and 20 years by the same methods. After 20 years, when the original group had reached the age of 35 years, 124 individuals (92%) could be traced, and they were sent a questionnaire and invited for a clinical examination. The response rate was high: 114 subjects (92%) completed and returned the questionnaire, and 100 subjects (81%) attended the clinical examination. RESULTS There was a substantial fluctuation of both reported symptoms and clinically recorded signs over the 20-year period, but progression to severe pain and dysfunction of the masticatory system was rare. In both the 15-year-old and 35-year-old subjects, 13% reported 1 or more frequent TMD symptoms. At age 35, only 3 subjects (3%) were classified as having severe or moderate clinical signs of dysfunction according to the Helkimo Index, fewer than in previous investigations. Women reported TMD symptoms and headache and had muscle tenderness and joint sounds more often than men. Correlations between the studied variables were mainly weak. Among the highest correlations found (rs = 0.4) were those between reported clenching and bruxing habits and TMJ sounds and jaw fatigue. CONCLUSION In this epidemiologic sample followed from age 15 to 35 years, a substantial fluctuation of TMD signs and symptoms was found over time. Progression to severe pain and dysfunction was extremely rare.
Predictive technology modeling for 32nm low power design

In this paper, a new version of PTM down to 32nm node for low power design has been developed. Predictive Technology Model (PTM) for nanoscale CMOS was first developed in 2000. It was widely used in early stage design exploration, providing key insights into advanced process and design research. PTM for high performance design was further improved to achieve a more physical prediction by identifying the scaling trend of primary parameters and incorporating important correlations among them.The target Vth can be achieved by different combinations of channel doping, halo doping and the control of SCE for various design needs. Gate tunneling leakage and HK/MG have been implemented in this predictive model. With solid calibration at 65nm and 45nm nodes, the predictive methodology is applicable to 32nm node and beyond for advanced design research.