Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Odor Control in Waste Management Lagoons via Reduction of p-Cresol using Horseradish Peroxidase

Para-cresol, p-ethyl phenol and isovaleric acid have been identified as the most persistent and most significant contributors to odor 1.6 km downwind from waste lagoons in concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs), even though more than 200 volatile compounds contribute to odor from these lagoons. Previous studies have indicated that horseradish peroxidase (HRP) coupling with p-cresol generates a high yield of a unique product, Plummerer's ketone. Our preliminary laboratory studies with synthetic p-cresol, hydrogen peroxide, and HRP demonstrated that p-cresol can be reduced significantly in a hydrogen peroxide catalyzed reaction with HRP. Using GC/MS and SPME technologies, a 75% reduction was observed in relative concentrations of 100 ml 1% p-cresol after treatment with 1 ml of 170 units of HRP (prepared at 170 units/mg and 1 mg/ml) in the presence of 3% hydrogen peroxide. Further analyses using semi- volatile organic analyses- GC/MS shows a 41% reduction in the amount of p-cresol in the samples treated with HRP in the presence of hydrogen peroxide. Data obtained from these preliminary studies demonstrate that HRP has the potential to reduce the p-cresol content in CAFO effluent and has been a basis for further studies.
Recombinant human erythropoietin in preoperative autologous blood donation did not influence the haemoglobin recovery after surgery

Background: Recombinant human erythropoietin in combination with preoperative autologous blood donation is an established regime for avoiding allogenic blood transfusions. The aim of the study was to determine endogenous erythropoietin production and haemoglobin recovery after preoperative autologous blood donation and surgery, with or without recombinant human erythropoietin treatment.
Evolutionary Game Analysis of Security Information Sharing in Virtual Enterprise

Virtual enterprises take advantage of Internet technology to share information in order to win more market opportunities, thus it is critical to ensure the security of the process of information sharing, and security information sharing can effectively enhance the safety level of VE. We analyze the security information sharing of VE based on Evolutionary Game Theory, sets up the security information sharing model by the payoff matrix and analyze the evolutionary game in three kinds of situations by using Replicator Dynamics. The result reveals that sharing cost, income, potential loss and spillovers are the keys for information security sharing in VE.
Analyzing and Predicting Large Vector-, Graph- and Spatio-Temporal Data

Large social graph datasets, complex vector data and petabytes of sensor data are being generated every day. Employing this flood of data for the benefit of all, is one of the main challenges of the 21st century. This thesis advances the field of data mining and machine learning for a variety of data types. Additionally it shows a way to integrate these methods in modern main-memory databases, employing examples of classical clustering and classification approaches.
Coronary heart disease and cardiovascular risk factors among people aged 25–65 years, as seen in Romanian primary healthcare

Background: In Romania data on cardiovascular risk factors are sparse. Objective: To describe the prevalence and distribution of cardiovascular risk factors in a primary care setting in Romania. Methods: In a cross-sectional study, patients aged 25–65 years on the lists of four general practitioners in Iasi (Romania), selected by 1/5 systematic sampling, were invited for a cardiovascular risk evaluation (interview, physical examination, blood tests for cholesterol and glucose). Prevalence rates for coronary heart disease (CHD), diabetes (DM) and other risk factors were estimated, SCORE risk was determined, and treatment targets were evaluated. Results: The response rate was 79% (325 men, 476 women). Prevalence rates were: CHD 7.4%, DM 3.2%, hypercholesterolemia (>190 mg%) 47.2%, hypertension 23.7%, obesity 21.2%, and smoking 33.8%. In women, obesity and lack of physical exercise were more prevalent, whereas in men, higher rates were found for smoking and an unhealthy diet. The proportion of patients considered to be at high risk (CHD, DM or SCORE ≥ 5%) was 39.2%. Female patients failed to meet targets for systolic blood pressure, total cholesterol and glucose, whereas smoking cessation will be the greatest challenge for men. Conclusion: There were relevant gender differences in modifiable cardiovascular risk factors. Many patients failed to meet treatment targets.
Sources of Financial Risk for Central Counterparties

Central counterparties (CCPs) play an important role in managing the risks present in financial markets and in increasing the overall stability of the financial system. This requires CCPs to be sufficiently financially resilient so that they can withstand extreme but plausible events that would pose significant stress. As use of CCPs becomes more widespread, increasing attention is being paid to how CCPs conduct stress tests to evaluate the adequacy of their financial resources. This article describes the sources of, and the circumstances in which CCPs are exposed to, financial risks and how CCPs typically manage these risks.
Glucose intolerance in uremia. Quantification of pancreatic beta cell sensitivity to glucose and tissue sensitivity to insulin.

The relative contributions of impaired insulin secretion and of tissue insensitivity to insulin to the carbohydrate intolerance of uremia were investigated in 10 chronically uremic subjects. Two types of glucose-clamp experiments were performed in each patient before and after 10 wk of thrice weekly hemodialysis. In both types the blood glucose concentration was maintained at a constant level by the periodic adjustment of a variable glucose infusion with a negative feedback formula.Hyperglycemic clamp. The blood glucose concentration was acutely raised and maintained 125 mg/dl above basal levels for 2 h. Since the glucose concentration was held constant, the glucose infusion rate is an index of glucose metabolism (M). After dialysis M increased in all patients from an average of 4.23 to 6.30 mg/kg body wt per min (P < 0.001). The plasma insulin responses (I) both pre- and postdialysis were biphasic with an early burst within the first 2-5 min, followed by a phase of gradually increasing insulin concentration. After dialysis the plasma insulin response diminished slightly. Consequently, the M/I ratio, an index of tissue sensitivity to endogenous insulin, increased postdialysis in all subjects by an average of 92% (P < 0.01). Euglycemic clamp. The plasma insulin concentration was acutely raised and maintained by a primecontinuous insulin infusion. The blood glucose concentration was held constant at the basal level by a variable glucose infusion as above. M/I again is a measure of tissue sensitivity to insulin (exogenous) and increased in all patients postdialysis by an average of 57% (P < 0.01). In two patients hepatic glucose production was measured with tritiated glucose during the euglycemic clamp and declined by 84% predialysis. A similar decrease (82%) was observed postdialysis. Thus, both the hyperglycemic and euglycemic clamp techniques demonstrated tissue insensitivity to insulin to be the dominant carbohydrate defect in uremia. The surprising apparent lack of consistency in the change in beta cell response postdialysis is explained by the strong inverse correlation between beta cell sensitivity to glucose and tissue sensitivity to insulin (r = -0.920; P < 0.001). Those individuals who showed the most striking improvement in tissue sensitivity to insulin actually decreased their serum insulin response to hyperglycemia; those whose improvement in tissue sensitivity was more modest showed increases in beta cell responses.
MORPHOLOGICAL PARAMETERS OF A SPITZER SURVEY OF STELLAR STRUCTURE IN GALAXIES

The morphology of galaxies can be quantified to some degree using a set of scale-invariant parameters. Concentration (C), asymmetry (A), smoothness (S), the Gini index (G), the relative contribution of the brightest pixels to the second-order moment of the flux (M20), ellipticity (E), and the Gini index of the second-order moment (GM) have all been applied to morphologically classify galaxies at various wavelengths. Here, we present a catalog of these parameters for the Spitzer Survey of stellar structure in Galaxies, a volume-limited, near-infrared (NIR) imaging survey of nearby galaxies using the 3.6 and 4.5 μm channels of the Infrared Array Camera on board the Spitzer Space Telescope. Our goal is to provide a reference catalog of NIR quantified morphology for high-redshift studies and galaxy evolution models with enough detail to resolve stellar mass morphology. We explore where normal, non-interacting galaxies—those typically found on the Hubble tuning fork—lie in this parameter space and show that there is a tight relation between concentration (C82) and M20 for normal galaxies. M20 can be used to classify galaxies into earlier and later types (i.e., to separate spirals from irregulars). Several criteria using these parameters exist to select systems with a disturbed morphology, i.e., those that appear to be undergoing a tidal interaction. We examine the applicability of these criteria to Spitzer NIR imaging. We find that four relations, based on the parameters A and S, G and M20, GM, C, and M20, respectively, select outliers in morphological parameter space, but each selects different subsets of galaxies. Two criteria (GM > 0.6, G > −0.115 × M20 + 0.384) seem most appropriate to identify possible mergers and the merger fraction in NIR surveys. We find no strong relation between lopsidedness and most of these morphological parameters, except for a weak dependence of lopsidedness on concentration and M20.
The detection bound of the probability of error in compressed sensing using Bayesian approach

In this paper, we consider the theoretical bound of the probability of error in compressed sensing (CS) with the Bayesian approach. In the detection problem, the signal is sparse and is reconstructed from a compressed measurement vector. Utilizing the oracle estimator in CS, we provide a theoretical bound of the probability of error when the noise in CS is white Gaussian noise (WGN). We show that without any additional information in CS, the probability of error obtained using the signal reconstructed by four recovery algorithms: the basis pursuit denoising (BPDN) algorithm, the Dantzig selector, the orthogonal matching pursuit (OMP) method and the compressive sampling matching pursuit (CoSaMP) algorithm is always larger than the derived theoretical bound. Simulation results demonstrate the effectiveness of our result.
Serial Processing Shown by Mutual Masking of Icons

In a procedure called mutual masking, two compound words were tachistoscopically exposed successively at the same location. Perceptual accuracy for both words was examined. With fixation at the center of the arrays, Ss often identified the component at the left within the temporally first word and at the right within the second. These results imply a left-to-right serial processing. With fixation on beginning or end component, Ss tended to identify the component away from fixation of the first word and the fixated part of the second. This implies scanning from periphery toward fixation. Therefore, sequential processing of iconic information was obtained, with direction of processing determined by specific conditions.
Postnatal phenotype and localization of spinal cord V1 derived interneurons

Developmental studies identified four classes (V0, V1, V2, V3) of embryonic interneurons in the ventral spinal cord. Very little is known, however, about their adult phenotypes. Therefore, we characterized the location, neurotransmitter phenotype, calcium‐buffering protein expression, and axon distributions of V1‐derived neurons in the adult mouse spinal cord. In the mature (P20 and older) spinal cord, most V1‐derived neurons are located in lateral LVII and in LIX, few in medial LVII, and none in LVIII. Approximately 40% express calbindin and/or parvalbumin, while few express calretinin. Of seven groups of ventral interneurons identified according to calcium‐buffering protein expression, two groups (1 and 4) correspond with V1‐derived neurons. Group 1 are Renshaw cells and intensely express calbindin and coexpress parvalbumin and calretinin. They represent 9% of the V1 population. Group 4 express only parvalbumin and represent 27% of V1‐derived neurons. V1‐derived Group 4 neurons receive contacts from primary sensory afferents and are therefore proprioceptive interneurons. The most ventral neurons in this group receive convergent calbindin‐IR Renshaw cell inputs. This subgroup resembles Ia inhibitory interneurons (IaINs) and represents 13% of V1‐derived neurons. Adult V1‐interneuron axons target LIX and LVII and some enter the deep dorsal horn. V1 axons do not cross the midline. V1‐derived axonal varicosities were mostly (>80%) glycinergic and a third were GABAergic. None were glutamatergic or cholinergic. In summary, V1 interneurons develop into ipsilaterally projecting, inhibitory interneurons that include Renshaw cells, Ia inhibitory interneurons, and other unidentified proprioceptive interneurons. J. Comp. Neurol. 493:177–192, 2005. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
The Role of Altered Lipid Metabolism in Septic Myocardial Dysfunction

Despite the novel pathogenetic and therapeutic acquisitions sepsis remains the main cause of death in the critically ill patient (p.). The incidence of sepsis is increasing, with more than 750 000 cases occurring in the United States every year; sepsis is complicated by organ dysfunction giving rise to severe sepsis which causes more than 200 000 deaths each year [1]. The cardiovascular syndrome is the cause of the major part of the fatalities leading to the picture of the septic shock with 90,000 deaths annually. The myocardial dysfunction in sepsis has been widely studied and many causes of heart dysfunction have been described. The presence of a metabolic compromise is well known in chronic heart failure and has been considered as a basis for contractile failure, interestingly similar alterations have been recently described also in sepsis. The purpose of this study is to examine the current available data on this topic.
Regulation of Tooth Development by the Novel Type I TGFβ Family Member Receptor Alk8

We have recently identified, in zebrafish, a novel type I receptor of the TGFβ family, alk8, that participates in Bmp signaling pathways to mediate early dorsoventral patterning of neurectodermal and mesendodermal tissues. Since Bmps play significant roles in tooth specification, initiation, and differentiation, we hypothesized that alk8 may play a role in directing the Bmp-mediated epithelial mesenchymal cell interactions regulating tooth development. Immunohistochemical analysis demonstrates that Alk8 is expressed in developing zebrafish and mouse teeth. Examination of tooth development in zebrafish with disrupted alk8 signaling revealed specific defects in tooth development. Ectopic expression of constitutively active Alk8 results in the formation of elongated tooth structures, while expression of dominant-negative Alk8 results in arrested tooth development at the bud stage. These results are consistent with the established requirements for Bmp signaling in tooth development and demonstrate that Alk8 is a key regulator of tooth development.
Zarządzanie ekologicznymi gospodarstwami rolnymi w Polsce – badania własne uzupełnione o przykłady międzynarodowe

W artykule zidentyfikowano uwarunkowania rozpoczęcia ekologicznej produkcji rolnej jak również bariery towarzyszące procesowi konwersji i prowadzeniu tego typu gospodarstw. Na potrzeby opracowania wykorzystane zostały raporty o stanie rolnictwa ekologicznego sporządzane przez GIJHARS, a także wyniki badania własnego, przeprowadzonego na grupie 55 ekologicznych gospodarstw rolnych. Przeprowadzone analizy dowodzą, iż najistotniejszym aspektem, warunkującym założenie gospodarstwa ekologicznego, jest wyższe dofinansowanie do gospodarstw ekologicznych względem konwencjonalnych. Największą barierą, towarzyszącą założeniu gospodarstwa ekologicznego, jest dostosowanie charakteru i sposobu zarządzania gospodarstwem, do zasad prowadzenia rolnictwa ekologicznego. Wśród barier towarzyszących prowadzeniu gospodarstwa ekologicznego, najbardziej uciążliwe jest uzyskanie adekwatnego wynagrodzenia za wyroby ekologiczne. W artykule przedstawiono także wyniki badań międzynarodowych, dotyczące rolnictwa ekologicznego w różnych krajach świata, celem pokazania, że problemy polskich gospodarstw ekologicznych, są podobne do problemów gospodarstw ekologicznych w innych krajach, we wczesnym etapie rozwoju.
Effect of Capacity Building Programme of Development Agencies on Well Being of Beneficiaries in Niger Delta Nigeria

The study examined the effect of capacity building programmes of development agencies (NDDC and SPDC) on well being of beneficiaries in the Niger delta, by assessing participant’s income before and after participation and their perception about the effects of the training programme on them using multidimensional criteria such as their educational, health, shelter, skill acquisition and general standard of living needs. A sample size of 300 respondents was selected from the 22 capacity development (study) centers chosen from Rivers and Bayelsa state using purposive-cluster and random sampling techniques. The result of the study indicates that there was a nominal positive change of income in favour of the participating youths exposed to the programme, the study concluded that the skills acquisition pogrammes of the development agencies were effective at improving the wellbeing needs of the participants. It was recommended that donors of both programmes SPDC and NDDC should ensure sustainability by creating more study centres with well-equipped facilities for the training; effective supervision, and monitoring. There is need for adequate funding to ensure prompt payment of stipends and starter packs. Apart from this, experts and professionals should be engaged to train this youth.
How Brain Cells Make Memories

Remembering a lot of things at the same time is difficult. As an experiment, read these numbers: 07041776. Then, close your eyes and try to say them aloud, in order. How did you do? We would guess that you remembered around half of the numbers. Now, try again but think of the same numbers as a date: 07-04-1776. Did you remember more of the numbers this time? You just demonstrated something called working memory. Working memory (“WM” for short) is the ability to hold onto and process pieces of information. WM activates when you experience and remember events in your life, learn new facts, talk to people, read, and do math. WM is a basic human behavior. As shown in the numbers experiment, WM has limited capacity. How does the brain support WM? And, what is happening in the brain that limits our capacity to store multiple memories at the same time?
Predictors of early acute lung injury at a combat support hospital: a prospective observational study.

BACKGROUND Acute lung injury (ALI) is a syndrome consisting of noncardiogenic acute hypoxemic respiratory failure with the presence of bilateral pulmonary infiltrates and occurs in up to 33% of critically ill trauma patients. Retrospective and observational studies have suggested that a blood component resuscitation strategy using equal ratios of packed red blood cells (PRBCs) and fresh frozen plasma (FFP) may have a survival benefit in combat casualties. The purpose of this study was to determine whether this strategy is associated with an increased incidence of ALI. METHODS We performed a prospective observational study of all injured patients admitted to an intensive care unit (ICU) at a combat support hospital who required >5 units of blood transfusion within the first 24 hours of admission. Baseline demographic data along with Injury Severity Score (ISS), pulmonary injury, presence of long bone fracture, blood products transfused, mechanical ventilation data, and arterial blood gas analysis were collected. The primary endpoint of the study was the development of ALI at 48 hours after injury. Those who did not survive to ICU admission were excluded from analysis. Follow-up (including mortality) longer than 48 hours was unavailable secondary to rapid transfer out of our facility. A multivariate logistic regression was performed to determine the independent effects of variables on the incidence of early ALI. RESULTS During a 12-month period (from January 2008 to December 2008), 87 subjects were studied; of these, 66 patients met inclusion criteria, and 22 patients developed ALI at 48 hours (33%). Overall, the ratio of FFP to PRBC was 1:1.1. Those who developed ALI had a higher ISS (32 +/- 15 vs. 26 +/- 11; p = 0.04) and received more units of FFP (22 +/- 15 vs. 12 +/- 7; p < 0.001), PRBCs (22 +/- 16 vs. 13 +/- 7; p = 0.008), and platelets (5 +/- 11 vs. 1 +/- 2; p = 0.004) compared with those who did not develop ALI. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that presence of pulmonary injury (odds ratio, 5.4; 95% confidence interval, 1.3-21.9) and volume of FFP transfused (odds ratio, 1.2; 95% confidence interval, 1.1-1.3) had independent effects on ALI at 48 hours. CONCLUSION On the basis of this small, prospective, descriptive study of severely injured patients admitted to the ICU, we determined that the presence of pulmonary injury had the greatest impact on the incidence of early ALI. There was also an independent relationship between the amount of FFP transfused and the incidence of early ALI. Further studies are required to determine the effects of the development of early ALI from FFP transfusion on short- and long-term survival.
Open Enrollment Periods and Plan Choices

Open enrollment periods are pervasively used in insurance markets to limit adverse selection risks resulting when enrollees can switch plans at will. We exploit a change in the open enrollment rules of Medicare Advantage to analyze how beneficiaries responded to the option of switching to a 5-star-rated plan at anytime, in a setting where insurers adjusted premiums and benefit design to counterbalance the increased selection risk. We present three findings: Within-year switches to 5-star plans increase by 7-16%; demand for 5-star plans across the years does not decline; and the enrollees who switch to a 5-star plan during the year are in better health status than those who do not switch.
Oncogenic Ect2 signaling regulates rRNA synthesis in NSCLC

ABSTRACT The Rho GTPase family members Rac1, Cdc42 and RhoA play key contributory roles in the transformed phenotype of human cancers. Epithelial Cell Transforming Sequence 2 (Ect2), a guanine nucleotide exchange factor (GEF) for these Rho GTPases, has also been implicated in a variety of human cancers. We have shown that Ect2 is frequently overexpressed in both major forms of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), lung adenocarcinoma (LADC) and lung squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC), which together make up approximately 70% of all lung cancer diagnoses. Furthermore, we have found that Ect2 is required for multiple aspects of the transformed phenotype of NSCLC cells including transformed growth and invasion in vitro and tumorigenesis in vivo. More recently, we showed that a major mechanism by which Ect2 drives KRAS-mediated LADC transformation is by regulating rRNA (rRNA) synthesis. However, it remains unclear whether Ect2 plays a similar role in ribosome biogenesis in LSCC. Here we demonstrate that Ect2 expression correlates positively with expression of ribosome biogenesis genes and with pre-ribosomal 45S RNA abundance in primary LSCC tumors. Furthermore, we demonstrate that Ect2 functionally regulates rRNA synthesis in LSCC cells. Based on these data, we propose that inhibition of Ect2-mediated nucleolar signaling holds promise as a potential therapeutic strategy for improved treatment of both LADC and LSCC.