Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Identification and localization of two membrane-bound esterases from Escherichia coli

Hydrolytic activities of isolated membrane fractions of Escherichia coli against chromogenic substrates, p-nitrophenyl ester and beta-naphthyl ester derivatives of N-substituted amino acids, were investigated by spectrophotometric and electrophoretic methods. Although detergents were absolutely necessary for the solubilization of enzymes, the amount of solubilized activities was increased by adding salt, such as NaCl or KCl. Two esterases were identified and separated by PAGE and by chromatography of the solubilized proteins in the presence of detergent. One hydrolyzed the alanine derivatives preferentially, whereas the other was mainly active on phenylalanine derivatives. Only the first was inactivated by diisopropyl fluorophosphate, a serine hydrolase inhibitor. Whereas the chymotrypsin-like enzyme was equally distributed between the inner and the outer membrane, the alanine activity was only detected in the inner membrane. They were both resistant to extraction with high salt concentrations, indicating their integral association with membranes. A study of the accessibility of these enzymes to their substrate in membrane vesicles with known polarity suggests that both alanine and phenylalanine activities are localized near the external surface of the cytoplasmic (inner) membrane. However, the phenylalanine activity (chymotrypsin-like enzyme) appears to be deeply buried inside the outer membrane. Because of its insensitivity to diisopropyl fluorophosphate, this last esterase seems to be distinct from the previously isolated periplasmic endopeptidase, protease I, which is also a chymotrypsin-like enzyme.
Non-cavitated carious lesions detection methods: a systematic review.

The aim of this study was to critically appraise the performance of detection methods for non-cavitated carious lesions (NCCLs). A detailed search of Medline (via OVID), the Cochrane Collaboration, Scielo and EMBASE identified 2054 publications. After title and abstract review by three investigators (JG, MT, AI), 124 publications were selected for further review. The final publications evaluated the following methods: Visual (V), Caries Lesion Activity Assessment (CLAA), Laser Fluorescence (LF), Radiographic (R), Fibre-optic Transillumination (FOTI), Electrical Conductance (EC) and Quantitative Light-induced Fluorescence (QLF). All included studies used histological assessment as a gold standard for in vitro studies or clinical/visual validation for the in vivo designs. They reported outcomes measures such as sensitivity (SE), specificity (SP), area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC) and reliability. Data were extracted from the selected studies independently by two reviewers and checked for errors. The quality of the studies was evaluated as described by Bader et al. (2002). Of the 124 articles, 42 were included that described 85 clinical assessments. Overall, the quality of evidence on detection methods was rated ‘poor’, except for EC that was rated ‘fair’. The SE rates were as follows: V (0.17–0.96), LF or DIAGNOdent (DD) (0.16–0.96), R (0.12–0.84), FOTI (0.21–0.96), EC (0.61–0.92) and QLF (0.82). The SP rates were as follows: V (0.46–1.0), LF (0.25–1.00), R (0.55–0.99), FOTI (0.74-0.88), EC (0.73–1.0) and QLF (0.92). There is a large variation in SE and SP values for methods and a lack of consistency in definition of disease and analytical methods. EC and QLF seem to be promising for detection of early lesions. For both cost and practicality considerations, visual methods should remain the standard for clinical assessment in dental practice.
Vertical Leakage/Breakdown Mechanisms in AlGaN/GaN-on-Si Devices

Vertical leakage/breakdown mechanisms in AlGaN/GaN high-electron-mobility transistors grown on low-resistivity p-type (111) Si substrate are studied by temperature-dependent current-voltage ( I-V) measurements. It is found that the top-to-substrate vertical breakdown voltage (BV) is dominated by the space-charge-limited current conduction involving both acceptor and donor traps in the GaN buffer/transition layer. From the temperature-dependent transient backgating measurements, the acceptor level at EV + 543 meV and the donor level at EC-616 meV were identified.
[Risk factors and clinical outcomes of nosocomial infections caused by multidrug resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa].

OBJECTIVE To investigate the risk factors for multi-drug resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa (MDRP) infections, and the factors related with poor prognosis of P. aeruginosa infections. METHODS The data of 44 cases of MDRP nosocomial infections were analyzed from Jan, 1999. to Dec, 2002 in Peking Union Medical Hospital; 68 cases of antibiotic-sensitive P. aeuroginosa infection were randomized as control. T test, chi-square test and Logistic regression analysis were used for statistics. RESULTS According to univariate analysis, the factors associated with the development of MDRP nosocomial infection were age, APACHE II, co-infection with other pathogens, hospital acquired pneumonia (HAP), mechanical ventilation, COPD, fluoroquinolone and imipenem/meropenem use 15 days before isolation of MDRP. Multivariate logistic regression analysis identified two independent factors: mechanical ventilation and previous imipenem/meropenem use. Of 44 cases of MDRP infections, 24 died, and 20 survived. Univariate analysis revealed that three factors (APACHE II, mechanical ventilation, resistance switch) were associated with clinical prognosis. But a ccording to multivariate logistic regression analysis, only resistance switch was a predictive factor. CONCLUSIONS Mechanical ventilation and previous imipenem/meropenem use were independent risk factors for MDRP infection. Resistance switch was a predictive factor for the prognosis of MDRP infection.
Personality of young adults born prematurely: the Helsinki study of very low birth weight adults.

BACKGROUND Today, the first generations of very low birth weight (VLBW <or= 1500 g) infants are entering adulthood but very little is known of their personality traits, associated with both psychopathological vulnerability and resilience. METHODS In this cohort study we compared personality traits among young adults (age range 18 to 27 years, mean 21.4, SD 2.19) with VLBW (n = 158) with those of term-born controls (n = 168) of same gender, age, and maternity hospital. The participants completed the Neo-Personality Inventory. RESULTS Of the five main traits, the VLBW participants scored significantly higher in conscientiousness (MD .1, 95% CI .0 to .3; p < .03), agreeableness (MD .2, 95% CI .0 to .3; p < .001), and lower in openness to experience (MD -.1, 95% CI -.2 to .0; p < .02). In addition, the VLBW group differed from the controls with regard to facets of neuroticism (lower hostility and impulsivity, ps < .05) and extraversion (less assertiveness p < .01). Furthermore, there were fewer undercontrolled personality profiles among the VLBW subjects (p < .01). All differences were independent of gender, age at assessment, parental education, individual school grade average, and maternal pre-eclampsia and smoking during pregnancy. CONCLUSIONS Young adults born with VLBW showed markedly different personality traits compared with their controls. The VLBW group displayed less negative emotions, were more dutiful and cautious, and displayed more warmth in their social relationships than their term-born peers. We present two potential mechanisms underlying these findings. The first relates to parental influences and the other to evidence linking biological mechanisms associated with prematurity with personality characteristics in adulthood.
Small body size increases the regional differentiation of populations of tropical mantellid frogs (Anura: Mantellidae)

The processes affecting species diversification may also exert an influence on patterns of genetic variability within species. We evaluated the contributions of five variables potentially influencing clade diversification (body size, reproductive mode, range size, microhabitat and skin texture) on mtDNA divergence and polymorphism among populations of 40 species of frogs (Mantellidae) from two rainforest communities in Madagascar. We report an inverse association between body size and nucleotide divergence between populations but find no influence of other variables on genetic variation. Body size explained ca. 11% of the variation in nucleotide divergence between populations and was coupled with high FST levels and an absence of haplotype sharing in small‐bodied and medium‐sized frogs. Low dispersal ability is likely the proximate mechanism producing higher population differentiation in small mantellids. The lack of genetic cohesion among populations establishes regional genetic fragmentation which in turn has the potential to accelerate rates of allopatric speciation in small frogs relative to large species. However, there is little evidence of increased speciation rates in these or other small‐bodied organisms. We reconcile these contradictory observations by suggesting that lower dispersal ability also curbs colonization of new areas, decelerating diversification in weak dispersers. Our results imply that the intermediate dispersal model also applies to amphibians and may explain inconsistent previous results on the correlation of body size and speciation rate.
Changes to the frequency and appropriateness of vitamin D testing after the introduction of new Medicare criteria for rebates in Australian general practice: evidence from 1.5 million patients in the NPS MedicineInsight database

Objectives To assess changes in the frequency of vitamin D testing and detection of moderate/severe vitamin D deficiency (<30 nmol/L) among adults after the introduction of new Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) rebate criteria (November 2014), and their relationship to sociodemographic and clinical characteristics. Design Dynamic (open) cohort study Setting Primary care Participants About 1.5 million ‘active’ patients aged 18+ years visiting a general practitioner and included in the National Prescribing Service MedicineInsight database. Outcome measures The frequency of vitamin D testing (per 1000 consultations) and moderate/severe vitamin D deficiency (%) recorded between October 2013 and March 2016, stratified by the release of the new MBS criteria for rebate. Results More patients were female (57.7%) and 30.2% were aged 60+ years. Vitamin D testing decreased 47% (from 40.3 to 21.4 tests per 1000 consultations) after the new MBS criteria, while the proportion of tests with no indication for being performed increased from 71.3% to 76.5%. The proportion of patients identified as moderate/severe vitamin D deficient among those tested increased from 5.4% to 6.5%. Practices located in high socioeconomic areas continued to have the highest rates of testing, but moderate/severe vitamin D deficiency detection remained 90% more frequent in practices from low socioeconomic areas after the rebate change. Furthermore, the frequency of individuals being tested was reduced independent of the patients’ sociodemographic or clinical condition, and the gap in the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency detection between those meeting or not meeting the criteria for being tested remained the same. Moderate/severe vitamin D deficiency detection decreased slightly among patients with hyperparathyroidism or chronic renal failure. Conclusions Although the new criteria for rebate almost halved the frequency of vitamin D testing, it also lessened the frequency of testing among those at higher risk of deficiency, with only a small improvement in vitamin D deficiency detection.
Preventing HIV in injection drug users: Choosing the best mix of interventions for the population

Injection drug users (IDUs) transmit the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) via both needle sharing and sex. This analysis explores the effects of population risk behaviors, intervention effectiveness, intervention costs, and budget and capacity constraints when allocating funds between two prevention programs to maximize effectiveness. The two interventions, methadone maintenance and street outreach, address different types of risk behavior. We developed a model of the spread of HIV and dwided IDUs into susceptible (uninfected) persons and infective persons and separately portrayed sex and injection risk. We simulated the epidemic in San Francisco, California, and New York City for periods from the mid-1980s to the mid-1990s and incorporated the behavioral effects of the two interventions. We used the simulation to find the allocation of a fixed budget to the two interventions that averted the greatest number of infections in the IDUs and their noninjecting sex partners. We assumed that interventions have increasing marginal costs. In the epidemic scenarios, our analysis found that the best allocation nearly always involves spending as much as possible on street outreach. This result is largely insensitive to variations in epidemic scenario, intervention efficacy, and cost. However, the absolute and relative benefits of the best allocation varied. In mid-1990s San Francisco, maximizing spending on outreach averted 3.5% of total HIV infections expected and 10 times the 0.3% from maximizing spending on treatment. In late 1980s New York City, the difference is five-fold (2.6% vs. 0.44%, respectively). Our analyses suggest that, even though prevention works better in higher risk scenarios, the choice of intervention mix is more important in the lower risk scenarios. Models and analyses such as those presented heve may help decision makers adapt individual prevention programs to their own communities and to reallocate resources among programs to reflect the evolution of their own epidemics.
How does the inner circle shape the policy-planning network in France?

"Policy-planning organizations have undergone significant development in France over the last two decades. Interconnecting the economic, political and intellectual elites, their study merits particular attention. This paper examines the active involvement of the business community in these organizations to highlight its role in the policy-planning process. Focusing on the top 100 corporations and the top 40 policy organizations, it analyses the structure of their interlocking directorates. The cohesion of the policy-planning network significantly relies on the brokering role of a few business leaders and economists. The network discloses a core-periphery structure and a left–right polarization. The results shed light on the relative convergence among the main policy organizations and the relegation of less consensual organizations to the network periphery. "
Bovine mammary involution following intramammary infusion on colchicine and endotoxin at drying off.

Effects of intramammary infusion of colchicine, endotoxin, and colchicine in combination with endotoxin on mammary involution were studied on 25 dairy cows in late lactation. Both quarters of right udder halves were infused at or near drying off while left udder halves received no infusion. Samples of mammary secretion were obtained 1 day prior to drying off, at drying off, and . 5, 1, 2, 3, and 7 days post drying off. Mammary secretion obtained during the early dry period from udder halves infused with colchicine or colchicine and endotoxin at or near drying off had elevated somatic cells, lactoferrin, serum albumin, immunoglobulin G, and pH as compared to left untreated udder halves. Citrate, molar ratio of citrate to lactoferrin, and the index of selective accumulation of immunoglobulin G were lower in infused than uninfused udder halves. Fluid volume removed from udders at 7 days involution was 40% less in udder halves infused with colchicine or colchicine and endotoxin as compared to uninfused udder halves. Intramammary infusion of colchicine and endotoxin at drying off accelerates bovine mammary involution.
Preindustrial Prime Movers and Fuels

Most people in preindustrial societies had to spend their lives as peasants, laboring in ways that in some societies remained largely unchanged for millennia. But the inconsistent food surpluses that they produced with the aid of a few simple tools and the exertion of their muscles and the draft of their animals sufficed to support the unevenly advancing complexity of urban societies.
A Review of SARS-CoV2: Compared With SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV

The outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been spreading rapidly in China and the Chinese government took a series of policies to control the epidemic. Studies found that severe COVID-19 is characterized by pneumonia, lymphopenia, exhausted lymphocytes and a cytokine storm. Studies have showen that SARS-CoV2 has significant genomic similarity to the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS-CoV), which was a pandemic in 2002. More importantly, some diligent measures were used to limit its spread according to the evidence of hospital spread. Therefore, the Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) has been established by the World Health Organization (WHO) with strategic objectives for public health to curtail its impact on global health and economy. The purpose of this paper is to review the transmission patterns of the three pneumonia: SARS-CoV2, SARS-CoV, and MERS-CoV. We compare the new characteristics of COVID-19 with those of SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV.
Thermal adjustments to nonexertional heat stress in mature and senescent Fischer 344 rats.

The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that the rise in colonic temperature (Tc) during nonexertional heat stress is exaggerated in senescent (SEN, 24 mo, n = 12) vs. mature (MAT, 12 mo, n = 15) conscious unrestrained Fischer 344 rats. On 2 separate days (48 h apart) each SEN and MAT animal was exposed to an ambient temperature (Ta) of 42 degrees C (relative humidity 20%) until a Tc of 41 degrees C was attained and then cooled at a Ta of 26 degrees C until Tc returned to the initial control level. Control Tc was similar in the two groups for both trials. The rate of Tc change during heating was 63% greater (0.070 +/- 0.005 vs. 0.043 +/- 0.004 degrees C/min, P less than 0.05) and the time to 41 degrees C reduced by 36% (54 +/- 6 vs. 85 +/- 10 min, P less than 0.05) in MAT vs. SEN animals during the first exposure, although the cooling rate was slower in the MAT (0.048 +/- 0.004 degrees C/min) vs. SEN (0.062 +/- 0.006 degrees C/min) animals (P less than 0.05). The heating rate was unchanged in MAT animals between trials 1 and 2. However, SEN animals had a 95% increase in heating rate in trial 2 compared with trial 1 (P less than 0.05), and the corresponding time to 41 degrees C was decreased by 44% (P less than 0.05). As a result, rate of heating and time to 41 degrees C were similar in the two groups during trial 2. The cooling rate was similar between trials within each group. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Fate of new neurons in adult canary high vocal center during the first 30 days after their formation

Projection neurons are added to the high vocal center (HVC) of adult songbirds. Here we report on events associated with their initial arrival in HVC. Neurons formed in adult canaries were labeled with [3H]‐thymidine and examined 8, 15, 22, and 31 days later. By 8 days, some [3H]‐labeled cells with the nuclear profile of postmigratory neurons were already present in HVC but could not be retrogradely labeled by Fluoro‐Gold injections in the robust nucleus of the archistriatum (RA); 7 days later, a few such cells could be backfilled from RA. Thus, new neurons may arrive in HVC as much as 1 week prior to establishing connections with RA. By 31 days, 43% of the [3H]‐labeled neurons could be backfilled from RA. In no case were new neurons backfilled by tracer injections into Area X, suggesting that newly formed HVC cells do not establish a transient connection with this region. At all survival times, the somata of new neurons were often clustered tightly together with other HVC neurons that differed in age and projection. Between days 15 and 25 after their birth, half of the new HVC neurons disappeared. We conclude: (1) that neurons arrive in HVC earlier than previously thought, (2) that soon after their arrival they become part of cell clusters in HVC, and (3) that in addition to the previously described death of new neurons that occurs over a period of months, there is an early wave of death that occurs soon after new neurons adopt a postmigratory phenotype. J. Comp. Neurol. 411:487–494, 1999. © 1999 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Probiotics as functional food in the treatment of diarrhea

Purpose of reviewA disturbance in microbial balance of the gastrointestinal tract is often associated with diarrhea. Therefore, probiotics, as beneficial microorganisms for host health, have attracted clinical attention for their potential therapeutic application in the treatment of diarrhea. This review focuses on new research findings relevant to the effects of probiotics on diarrhea prevention and treatment and potential mechanisms of action for this alternative therapy for diarrhea. Recent findingsClinical trials suggest potential beneficial effects of probiotic therapy for preventing and treating antibiotic-associated diarrhea, acute diarrhea including rotavirus-induced diarrhea, traveler's diarrhea, and diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome. The most extensively studied probiotics for diarrhea are Lactobacillus, Bifidobacterium and Saccharomyces, with potential mechanisms of therapeutic action based on the protection of intestinal epithelial cell and barrier function, prevention of enterotoxin binding to intestinal epithelial cells, and regulation of intestinal microbial environment. SummaryGrowing evidence suggests that probiotics may serve as a functional food in the treatment of diarrhea. Remaining challenges include identifying mechanisms of action to provide the basis of more refined hypothesis-driven clinical trials. The correct combination and concentration of probiotics applied to the appropriate gastrointestinal disorders may improve the efficacy of this approach for diarrhea and other diseases.
Customer experience management in hospitality: A literature synthesis, new understanding and research agenda

Purpose In the contemporary hospitality industry, superior customer experiences are essential to gaining customer loyalty and achieving a competitive advantage. However, limited research addresses this subject. The aim of this study is to advance scholarly research on customer experience management (CEM) in the hospitality field by providing a comprehensive overview of the key elements of CEM, a framework for managing customer experience, and a rich agenda for research. Design/methodology/approach An extensive literature review produces a comprehensive overview of existing knowledge of CEM. A synthesis of prior literature reveals a need for additional, contemporary information sources. The study is therefore supplemented by invited commentaries on CEM from senior scholars and hospitality managers. Findings The proposed model takes a holistic perspective on managing a positive customer experience, through collaboration among marketing, operations, design, human resources, and strategy, in association with .