Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Fluctuations of ultrasonic transducer vibration measurement quadrature interferometer for transducer vibration measurement

Langevin type transducers are being used by reason of the high transmitting power capability for various purposes. The peak-to-peak value of the transducer mechanical oscillation is in order of tens of the nanometers (for the resonant frequency and two ring transducer). Transducer vibration parameters depend considerably on excitation voltage and frequency. Beyond the resonant frequency some parasitic resonance frequencies are produced. Precise measurement of vibration with nanometer accuracy in the range of the ultrasonic frequencies can be done with using optical interferometry. Results show high distortion of the transducer displacement waveforms and poor amplitude stability.
Trait changes in a harvested population are driven by a dynamic tug-of-war between natural and harvest selection

Selective harvest of large individuals should alter natural adaptive landscapes and drive evolution toward reduced somatic growth and increased reproductive investment. However, few studies have simultaneously considered the relative importance of artificial and natural selection in driving trait changes in wild populations. Using 50 years of individual-based data on Windermere pike (Esox lucius), we show that trait changes tracked the adaptive peak, which moved in the direction imposed by the dominating selective force. Individual lifetime somatic growth decreased at the start of the time series because harvest selection was strong and natural selection was too weak to override the strength of harvest selection. However, natural selection favoring fast somatic growth strengthened across the time series in parallel with the increase in pike abundance and, presumably, cannibalism. Harvest selection was overridden by natural selection when the fishing effort dwindled, triggering a rapid increase in pike somatic growth. The two selective forces appear to have acted in concert during only one short period of prey collapse that favored slow-growing pike. Moreover, increased somatic growth occurred concurrently with a reduction in reproductive investment in young and small female pike, indicating a tradeoff between growth and reproduction. The age-specific amplitude of this change paralleled the age-specific strength of harvest pressure, suggesting that reduced investment was also a response to increased life expectancy. This is the first study to demonstrate that a consideration of both natural selection and artificial selection is needed to fully explain time-varying trait dynamics in harvested populations.
GENETIC TRANSFORMATION AND HYBRIDIZATION

Cytokinins play important roles in regulating plant growth and development. A new genetic construct for regulating cytokinin content in plant cells was cloned and tested. The gene coding for isopentenyl transferase (ipt) was placed under the control of a 0.821 kb fragment of the 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) oxidase gene promoter from Lycopersicon esculentum (LEACO1) and introduced into Nicotiana tabacum (cv. Havana). Some LEACO10.821 kb-ipt transgenic plant lines displayed normal shoot morphology but with a dramatic increase in the number of flower buds compared to nontransgenic plants. Other transgenic lines produced excessive lateral branch development but no change in flower bud number. Isolated leaves of transgenic tobacco plants showed a significantly prolonged retention of chlorophyll under dark incubation (25◦C for 20 days). Leaves of nontransformed plants senesced gradually under the same conditions. Experiments with LEACO10.821 kb-gus transgenic tobacco plants suggested auxin and ethylene involvement in induction of LEACO10.821 kb promoter activity. Multiple copies of nucleotide base sequences associated with either ethylene or auxin response elements were identified in the LEACO10.821 kb promoter fragment. The LEACO10.821 kbipt fusion gene appears to have potential utility for improving certain ornamental and agricultural crop species by increasing flower bud initiation and altering branching
Servant Leadership, Leader–Member Exchange and Proactive Behavior in the Public Health Sector

Very limited attention has been given by scholars to the relationship between servant leadership and employee behaviors in the public sector and not much is known about the mechanisms through which this relationship may take place. This study examines the relationship between servant leadership and proactive behaviors in the Egyptian public health sector and investigates the role of leader–member exchange (LMX) as a mediator. Using a sample of Egyptian public hospital nurses, the results of structural equation modeling (SEM) indicate that servant leadership was positively related to LMX which, in turn, had a significant positive association with proactive behavior. Thus, servant leaders encourage employees to engage in proactive behavior through enhancing the quality of their exchange relationship with their supervisors.
Youth unemployment in Albania, causes and consequences

The purpose of this paper is to look into the cause, effect and solution to youth unemployment problems in Albania. The youth unemployment rate reached the highest level of 40.34% in 1993, while the lowest level was 21.44% in 2006. Data for this paper was obtained from the World Bank and, processed by the SPSS.20 program. By linear regression, we have analysed the youth unemployment relationship with some of the main economic indicators. The link between economic growth and youth unemployment is weakly negative, while the link between foreign direct investment and youth unemployment is also negative.Youth participation from the workforce is positively linked with youth unemployment. The main problem for youth unemployment in Albania is “economic growth that brings poverty”, which does not bring employment and bridge the gap between the labour market and skills.
Chinese immigrant entrepreneurship: Embeddedness and the interaction of resources with the wider social and economic context

This article investigates the factors that influenced the entrepreneurial start-up businesses among Chinese immigrants who had been granted residency under three different immigration policies in Australia. These immigrant groups differed in their resources and experienced different market conditions which led to different opportunity structures and subsequent choices of entrepreneurial activities. The mixed embeddedness model was identified as being useful for analysing the factors contributing to the business start-ups of these Chinese immigrant entrepreneurs. The research contributes to the existing literature by developing a dynamic analysis of the interaction of personal resources and economic conditions in the pursuit of business ventures. Also, the intersectionality of gender, race and class is analysed in relation to the mixed embeddedness model. Importantly, this research emphasises the need to look beyond either broad cultural factors or single factors in attempting to analyse the pathways selected by immigrant entrepreneurs.
Structure and mechanism of ATP-binding cassette transporters

ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters constitute a large superfamily of integral membrane proteins that includes both importers and exporters. In recent years, several structures of complete ABC transporters have been determined by X-ray crystallography. These structures suggest a mechanism by which binding and hydrolysis of ATP by the cytoplasmic, nucleotide-binding domains control the conformation of the transmembrane domains and therefore which side of the membrane the translocation pathway is exposed to. A basic, conserved two-state mechanism can explain active transport of both ABC importers and ABC exporters, but various questions remain unresolved. In this article, I will review some of the crystal structures and the mechanistic insight gained from them. Future challenges for a better understanding of the mechanism of ABC transporters will be outlined.
It’s a Sentence, Not a Word

Keyword analysis has been championed as a methodological option for expanding the insights that can be extracted from qualitative datasets using various properties available in qualitative software. Intrigued by the pioneering applications of Clive Seale and his colleagues in this regard, we conducted keyword analyses for word frequency and “keyness” on a qualitative database of interview transcripts from a study on cancer communication. We then subjected the results from these operations to an in-depth contextual inquiry by resituating word instances within their original speech contexts, finding that most of what had initially appeared as group variations broke down under close analysis. In this article, we illustrate the various threads of analysis, and explain how they unraveled under closer scrutiny. On the basis of this tentative exercise, we conclude that a healthy skepticism for the benefits of keyword analysis within a qualitative investigative process seems warranted.
The Credit Channel at the Zero Lower Bound through the Lens of Equity Prices

This study examines the impact of unconventional monetary policies on the stock market when the short‐term nominal interest rate is stuck at the zero lower bound (ZLB). Unconventional monetary policies appear to have significant effects on stock prices and the effects differ across stocks. In agreement with existing credit channel theories, I find that firms subject to financial constraints react more strongly to unconventional monetary policy shocks [especially large‐scale asset purchases (LSAPs)] than do less constrained firms. These results imply that the credit channel is as important as the interest rate channel in the transmission of unconventional monetary policies at the ZLB.
Serine/threonine kinase 39 is a candidate gene for primary hypertension especially in women: results from two cohort studies in Swedes

Background As recently pinpointed by a genome-wide association study the serine/threonine kinase 39 (STK39) is a candidate gene for hypertension. This kinase is strongly implicated in sodium reabsorption by the kidney through its modulating effect on furosemide-sensitive and thiazide-sensitive channels. The aim of our study was to test the effects of the STK39 rs35929607A>G polymorphism on blood pressure (BP) levels and the prevalence and incidence of hypertension in middle-aged Swedes participating in two urban-based surveys in Malmö (Sweden). Methods The rs35929607A>G polymorphism was genotyped in 5634 participants included in the cardiovascular cohort of the ‘Malmö Diet and Cancer-cardiovascular arm’ (MDC-CVA) study and successively in 17 894 participants of the ‘Malmö Preventive Project’ (MPP) both at baseline and at reinvestigation after a mean of 23 years. The effect of the same single nucleotide polymorphism on salt sensitivity was tested in 39 participants of the Salt Reduction to Avoid Hypertension study. Results Both before and after adjustment for covariates, the functional rs35929607A>G polymorphism was associated with higher SBP and DBP values in the MDC-CVA, but not in the MPP. In both surveys, the polymorphism was associated with hypertension prevalence; after adjustment using the autosomal-dominant model, the odds ratio for hypertension ranged between 1.077 (MPP at baseline) and 1.151 (MDC-CVA) with P-value less than 0.05. After stratification for sex, the results remained statistically significant in women, but not in men. Carriers of the G-allele displayed an increase in salt sensitivity. Conclusion Our results from two large cohort studies support previous evidence about the association of the STK39 rs35929607A>G variant with hypertension, especially in women. If further confirmed in successive studies, owing to its pivotal role in sodium reabsorption at the renal tubule level, STK39 might prove to be a suitable target for antihypertensive therapy. The greater effect of the STK39 rs35929607A>G polymorphism in women with respect to men deserves further investigation.
A Transmembrane Tight Junction Protein Selectively Expressed on Endothelial Cells and Platelets*

Searching for cell surface proteins expressed at interendothelial cell contacts, we have raised monoclonal antibodies against intact mouse endothelial cells. We obtained two monoclonal antibodies, 1G8 and 4C10, that stain endothelial cell contacts and recognize a protein of 55 kDa. Purification and identification by mass spectrometry of this protein revealed that it contains two extracellular Ig domains, reminiscent of the JAM family, but a much longer 120-amino acid cytoplasmic domain. The antigen is exclusively expressed on endothelial cells of various organs as was analyzed by immunohistochemistry. Immunogold labeling of ultrathin sections of brain as well as skeletal muscle revealed that the antigen strictly colocalizes in capillaries with the tight junction markers occludin, claudin-5, and ZO-1. Upon transfection into MDCK cells, the antigen was restricted to the most apical tip of the lateral cell surface, where it colocalized with ZO-1 but not with β-catenin. In contrast to JAM-1, however, the 1G8 antigen does not associate with the PDZ domain proteins ZO-1, AF-6, or ASIP/PAR-3, despite the presence of a PDZ-binding motif. The 1G8 antigen was not detected on peripheral blood mouse leukocytes, whereas similar to JAM-1 it was strongly expressed on platelets and megakaryocytes. The 1G8 antigen supports homophilic interactions on transfected Chinese hamster ovary cells. Based on the similarity to the JAM molecules, it is plausible that the 1G8 antigen might be involved in interendothelial cell adhesion.
Oestrogenic potencies of Zeranol, oestradiol, diethylstilboestrol, Bisphenol‐A and genistein: implications for exposure assessment of potential endocrine disrupters

We have compared the oestrogenic potency of the synthetic oestrogen Zeranol, used as a growth promoter in meat production, and five related compounds, with the potency of 17β‐oestradiol, diethylstilboestrol (DES), genistein, and Bisphenol‐A. The potency was assayed by analysing differences in expression levels of endogenous oestrogen‐regulated genes in human MCF7 cells, treated with different concentrations of the compounds. Zeranol, 17β‐oestradiol and DES were about equally potent, genistein was four to six orders of magnitude less potent than 17β‐oestradiol but an order of magnitude more potent than Bisphenol‐A. There were gene specific differences, the PS2 and TGFβ3 genes were about equally sensitive to Zeranol, 17β‐oestradiol and DES whereas a down‐regulation of MRG1/p35srj could be detected at fmol/l concentrations of Zeranol whereas 17β‐oestradioI was several orders of magnitude less potent. GST mu3 was sensitive to fmol/l concentrations of 17β‐oestradiol but much less sensitive to Zeranol and DES. The very high potency of Zeranol compared with other potential endocrine disrupters suggests that Zeranol intake from beef products could have greater impact on consumers than the amounts of the known or suspected endocrine disrupters that have been found in food. Since little data is available in man, there is an urgent need for reliable measurements of the concentration of Zeranol in human serum after ingestion of meat products from treated animals.
The 222- to 234-kilodalton latent nuclear protein (LNA) of Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (human herpesvirus 8) is encoded by orf73 and is a component of the latency-associated nuclear antigen

Kaposi's sarcoma (KS)-associated herpesvirus or human herpesvirus 8 (KSHV/HHV8) is the likely cause of KS and primary effusion lymphomas or body cavity-based lymphomas (BCBLs). A latency-associated nuclear immunofluorescence antigen (LANA) (D. H. Kedes, E. Operskalski, M. Busch, R. Kohn, J. Flood, and D. Ganem, Nat. Med. 2:918-924, 1996; S. J. Gao, L. Kingsley, M. Li, W. Zheng, C. Parravicini, J. Ziegler, R. Newton, C. R. Rinaldo, A. Saah, J. Phair, R. Detels, Y. Chang, and P. S. Moore, Nat. Med. 2:925-928, 1996) and a 222- to 234-kDa nuclear protein (LNA) (S. J. Gao, L. Kingsley, D. R. Hoover, T. J. Spira, C. R. Rinaldo, A. Saah, J. Phair, R. Detels, P. Parry, Y. Chang, and P. S. Moore, N. Engl. J. Med. 335:233-241, 1996) have previously been described in BCBL cell lines by immunofluorescence and Western blotting techniques, respectively. To identify the viral gene(s) encoding this antigen(s) we screened a cDNA library from HBL-6 cells, a B-cell lymphoma cell line persistently infected with KSHV/HHV8, with KS patient sera. One set of positive clones contained the 3' end of orf73, as well as the complete orf72 and orfK13, and another set contained the 5' end of orf73. Comparison of cDNA sequences with the KSHV/HHV8 genomic sequence revealed a splice event, occurring upstream of orf73. Immunoaffinity purified antibodies to a recombinant carboxy-terminal fragment of the orf73-encoded protein showed the characteristic speckled nuclear immunofluorescence pattern of LANA and reacted with the 222- to 234-kDa LNA on Western blots. Expression of full-length orf73 in bacteria and COS7 cells reproduced the LNA banding pattern. Immunohistochemistry on cases of nodular KS revealed that orf73/LNA is expressed in the nucleus of KS spindle cells. These findings demonstrate that orf73 encodes the 222- to 234-kDa LNA, is a component of LANA, and is expressed in KS tumor cells.
Meta‐analysis of radiation therapy with and without adjuvant chemotherapy for malignant gliomas in adults

Background. The value of chemotherapy after standard postoperative external beam radiation in the treatment of malignant gliomas remains controversial. Despite recent recommendations from the Brain Tumor Cooperative Group that chemotherapy should be considered part of the standard treatment of patients with highgrade astrocytomas, several recent trials have questioned the efficacy of this approach.
Human herpesvirus 6-induced inflammatory cardiomyopathy in immunocompetent children

Over the last decade, human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6) has been implicated in the etiology of pediatric myocarditis and subsequent dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). This review provides an overview of recent literature investigating the pathophysiological relevance of HHV-6 in inflammatory cardiomyopathy. We examined 11 cases of previously published pediatric myocarditis and/or DCM associated with HHV-6 and also our experience of detection of virus particles in vascular endothelium of HHV-6 positive endomyocardial biopsy tissue by electron microscopy. The exact role of the presence of HHV-6 and its load remains controversial as the virus is also found in the heart of healthy controls. Therefore, the question remains open whether and how cardiac HHV-6 may be of pathogenetic importance. Quantitative polymerase chain reaction or mRNA testing allows differentiation between low-level latent virus found in asymptomatic myocardium and active HHV-6 infection. Although only a small number of pediatric cases have been reported in literature, HHV-6 should be considered as a causative agent of inflammatory cardiomyopathy, especially in children under three who might be experiencing a primary infection. Future studies are needed to establish a threshold for determining active infection in biopsy samples and the role of coinfections other cardiotropic viruses.
Analysis of SOCS-3 Promoter Responses to Interferon γ*

SOCS-3 (suppressor of cytokine signaling 3) is an intracellular protein that is selectively and rapidly induced by appropriate agonists and that modulates responses of immune cells to cytokines by interfering with the Janus kinase/signal transducer and activator of transcription (Jak/STAT) pathway. On the basis of the observations that interferon γ (IFNγ) up-regulates SOCS-3 gene and protein expression in primary mouse macrophages, J774 macrophage cell line and embryonal fibroblasts, we investigated which sequences of the 5′ SOCS-3 gene are responsive to IFNγ. By promoter deletion analysis we identified a functional IFNγ-responsive element, located at nucleotides -72/-64 upstream from the transcription initiation, whose presence and integrity is necessary to ensure responsiveness to IFNγ. This element contains a STAT consensus binding sequence (SOCS-3/STAT-binding element (SBE)) whose specific mutation totally abolished the responsiveness to IFNγ. In contrast, discrete deletion of other 5′ regions of the SOCS-3 promoter did not substantially modify the inducibility by IFNγ. Electromobility shift assay analyses revealed that IFNγ promotes specific DNA binding activities to an oligonucleotide probe containing the SOCS-3/SBE sequence. Even though IFNγ triggered tyrosine phosphorylation of both STAT1 and STAT3 in macrophages and J774 cells, only STAT1 was appropriately activated and thus found to specifically bind to the SOCS-3/SBE oligonucleotide probe. Accordingly, IFNγ-induced SOCS-3 protein expression was not impaired in STAT3-deficient embryonal fibroblasts. Taken together, these results demonstrate that the induction of SOCS-3 by IFNγ depends upon the presence of a STAT-binding element in the SOCS-3 promoter that is specifically activated by STAT1.
Kinetics of drug action in disease states. I. Effect of infusion rate on phenobarbital concentrations in serum, brain and cerebrospinal fluid of normal rats at onset of loss of righting reflex.

The purpose of this investigation was to develop a method to determine the effect of various diseases on the concentration-pharmacologic activity relationship of phenobarbital (PB) in a manner that excludes or accounts for pharmacokinetic variables affecting drug disposition. Adult female rats (congruent to 180 g) received an i.v. infusion of PB at one of five different rates (0.412-4.12 mg/min) until the animals lost their righting reflex (after 8.0 +/- 0.4 to 62 +/- 10 min of infusion). The total dose, the serum concentration (both total and unbound drug) and the brain concentration of PB at onset of loss of righting reflex (LRR) increased with increasing infusion rate. The PB concentration in cerebrospinal fluid at onset of LRR (mean +/- S.D.: 108 +/- 19 micrograms/ml, n = 29) was not affected by the infusion rate. Concomitant infusion of PB and its p-hydroxy metabolite had no apparent effect on the concentrations of PB at onset of LRR even though the serum concentration of p-hydroxy PB was higher than upon infusion of PB only. The results of this investigation indicate that cerebrospinal fluid, unlike some regions of the brain, equilibrates very rapidly with the biophase of the receptors for PB-induced LRR. Determination of PB concentrations in the cerebrospinal fluid at the onset (rather than offset) of action facilitates assessment of the effect of diseases on the PB concentration-pharmacologic activity relationship by avoiding development of acute tolerance and excluding or minimizing effects due to disease-associated pharmacokinetic variables such as altered plasma protein binding and body distribution of the drug. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Co-Staying: A Social Network for Increasing the Trustworthiness of Hotel Recommendations

Recommender systems attempt to match users’ preferences with items. To achieve this, they typically store and process a large amount of user profiles, item attributes, as well as an ever-increasing volume of user-generated feedback about those items. By mining user-generated data, such as reviews, a complex network consisting of users, items, and item properties can be created. Exploiting this network could allow a recommender system to identify, with greater accuracy, items that users are likely to find attractive based on the attributes mentioned in their past reviews as well as in those left by similar users. At the same time, allowing users to visualize and explore the network could lead to novel ways of interacting with recommender systems and might play a role in increasing the trustworthiness of recommendations. We report on a conceptual model for a multimode network for hotel recommendations and discuss potential interactive mechanisms that might be employed for visualizing it.