Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Long run determinants of credit in Brazil: Liquidity versus bank capital

This study addresses the issue of the bank-lending channel in Brazil, with monthly aggregated data for the period 2004:12 to 2013:11. Using Vector Error Correction Model (VECM), the paper identifies the functions of long-term demand and supply of bank loans through exclusion restrictions and exogeneity, applied to the estimated cointegration relations. The research extends previous results (Mello and Pisu, 2010) for Brazil, showing that the supply of loans depends on the banking spread and that, for the analyzed period, the stock of bank credit contains information about the future path of inflation. In addition , it performs robustness test in relation to the results obtained in Bezerra et al. (2016 ) using the bank capital measure initially used in Mello and Pisu (2010 ) and notes that the bank capital and systemic liquidity have strong statistical significance.
Serum Sex Hormones, IGF-1, and IGFBP3 Exert a Sexually Dimorphic Effect on Lean Body Mass in Aging.

BACKGROUND Endogenous and exogenous sex hormones affect changes in body composition during aging via independent and dependent effects on the growth hormone/insulin-like growth factor-1 (GH/IGF-1) axis and associated binding proteins (BP). METHODS Fasting serum IGF-1, IGFBP3, testosterone, estrone, and sex hormone binding globulin were analyzed in 48 women on hormone replacement (HRT) (unopposed oral estrogen, HRT+, 74.0 +/- 6 years), 135 women not on HRT (HRT-, 77.3 +/- 7 years), and 128 healthy men (men, ). Total lean body mass (LBM) and total fat were measured by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry. RESULTS Total LBM decreased with age in all groups (p = .05). LBM was greater, and IGF-1, IGFBP3, and testosterone were lower in HRT+ versus HRT- women (p = .02, p = .01, p = .04, and, respectively). LBM in men was positively related to IGF-1 (p = .02) and testosterone (p < .01), whereas LBM was associated with IGFBP3 (p = .04) and total fat (p < .001) in female HRT+ and total fat (p < .01) in HRT- women. IGF-1 decreased with age in men and HRT- women (p < .01) but did not decrease in HRT+ women. Total fat significantly decreased across age (p < .05). Controlling for age and HRT, the rate of decrease in fat was slower in men versus women (p = .02). IGFBP3 decreased in all groups across age (p < .01), and the ratio of IGF-1 to IGFBP3 decreased faster in men compared to HRT+ and HRT- women (p = .02). CONCLUSIONS Our data indicate divergent influences of sex steroids, IGF-1, and IGFBP3 on age-related changes in LBM in healthy elderly men and women.
Identification of new prognostic factors of pulmonary hypertension.

BACKGROUND Pulmonary hypertension (PH) still remains a serious disease, for which the plasma level of brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) and hemodynamic variables (eg, cardiac index: CI) are established prognostic factors. The aim of the present study was to identify new additional prognostic factors of the disorder to improve the management of PH. METHODS AND RESULTS The study cohort comprised 136 consecutive PH patients admitted to hospital from 1974 to 2008, all of whom were closely followed every 6-12 months. During the follow-up period of 53.5+/-4.5 [SEM] months, 47 patients died of cardiopulmonary causes. The patients who were initially treated with monotherapy showed improved pulmonary hemodynamics when subsequently treated with combination therapy. Multivariate analysis showed that BNP and CI were significant and independent prognostic factors in all PH patients. However, in PH patients with low CI at diagnosis, only CI improvement by PH therapy was a significant and independent prognostic factor. Indeed, the patients with low CI at diagnosis (CI <2.5) followed by subsequent normalization in response to therapy (CI > or =2.5) showed a significantly better survival compared with those without such normalization. CONCLUSIONS CI normalization in response to treatment is an independent new prognostic factor of PH in patients with low CI at diagnosis, suggesting the importance of intensive therapy to achieve CI normalization.
Combination of a Ptgs2 Inhibitor and an Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor‐Signaling Inhibitor Prevents Tumorigenesis of Oligodendrocyte Lineage‐Derived Glioma‐Initiating Cells

Recent findings have demonstrated that malignant tumors, including glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), contain cancer‐initiating cells (CICs; also known as cancer stem cells), which self‐renew and are malignant. However, it remains controversial whether such CICs arise from tissue‐specific stem cells, committed precursor cells, or differentiated cells. Here, we sought to examine the origin of the CICs in GBM. We first showed that the overexpression of oncogenic HRasL61 transformed p53‐deficient oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs) and neural stem cells (NSCs) into glioma‐initiating cell (GIC)‐like cells in mice. When as few as 10 of these GIC‐like cells were transplanted in vivo, they formed a transplantable GBM with features of human GBM, suggesting that these GIC‐like cells were enriched in CICs. DNA microarray analysis showed that widespread genetic reprogramming occurred during the OPCs' transformation: they largely lost their OPC characteristics and acquired NSC ones, including the expression of prominin1, hmga2, ptgs2, and epiregulin. In addition, the combination of a Ptgs2 inhibitor and an epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)‐signaling inhibitor prevented the tumorigenesis of transformed OPCs and human GICs (hGICs) obtained from anaplastic oligodendroglioma, but not of transformed NSCs or hGICs obtained from GBM. Together, these findings suggest that GBM can arise from either OPCs or NSCs and that the therapeutic targets for GBM might be different, depending on each GIC's cell‐of‐origin. STEM Cells 2011;29:590–599
SRAM Alpha-SER Estimation From Word-Line Voltage Margin Measurements: Design Architecture and Experimental Results

Experimental results from a 65 nm CMOS commercial technology SRAM test chip reveal a linear correlation between a new electrical parameter -the word-line voltage margin (VWLVM)- and the measured circuit alpha-SER. Additional experiments show that no other memory cell electrical robustness-related parameters exhibit such correlation. The technique proposed is based on correlating the VWLVM to the SER measured on a small number of circuit samples to determine the correlation parameters. Then, the remaining non-irradiated circuits SER is determined from electrical measurements (VWLVM) without the need of additional radiation experiments. This method represents a significant improvement in time and cost, while simplifying the SER-determination methods since most of the circuits do not require irradiation. The technique involves a minor memory design modification that does not degrade circuit performance, while circuit area increase is negligible.
Relay node placement in mission critical smart grid networks

Mission critical network offers a reliable, delay minimized available communication network that accomplishes a mission for the community. Smart grid is an example of these networks which is a modernized electrical grid that uses communication technologies to gather and act on information. Delay is one of the main requirements of this network that needs to be carefully studied. Considering the vast geographical area being covered by Smart Grid, a good approach for decreasing delay is to divide the network into a number of subareas and place the relay nodes in each one. This placement should be accomplished in a way that communication delay for all nodes become less than an accepted maximum. In this paper, firstly, an Integer Linear Programming (ILP) problem formulated which cannot be solved for a large network like Smart Grid. To lessen the complexity of this model, we added a preprocessing phase on the input and changed the model to accept this new input. A heuristic algorithm also implemented and compared with the proposed method. The simulation results show that our method drastically decreases the solving time while keeping the optimality of the answers. In addition, it was found that the heuristic algorithm finds the sub-optimal answers for dense networks. So due to the inherent tree topology of Smart Grid and its optimality requirements, our method surpass the heuristic algorithm.
Efficiency of LiFePO4 battery and charger with passive balancing

This paper is intended as the first part of a two paper series that evaluate the efficiency of a battery pack with charger that has an integrated cell balancing method. For the first paper a simple passive balancing method is used while for the second an active shared transformer balancing method will be used. The paper first discusses the existing works on the subject of cell balancing efficiency. Further the results of experimental testing of cell capacity are provided. A previously designed modular passive balancing system is briefly introduced as it is used for the battery efficiency evaluation. Testing results reveal the battery pack efficiency with balancing as the difference between the energy that is required to charge the pack and the energy that can be obtained when the battery the battery is discharged. While the first efficiency test uses a laboratory power supply to charge the battery pack, the second efficiency test uses a prototype charger circuit. The same charger circuit with different secondary side is to be used for the second article. The prototype charger is required so that the efficiencies of both passive and active balancing methods can be reliably compared.
The Impact of Diabetes and Comorbidities on the Outcome of Heart Failure Patients Treated With Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy: Implications for Patient Management.

Heart failure (HF) affects 1% to 2% of the population in developed countries, with a marked rise of its prevalence in subjects aged >70 years1. It has been estimated that ≈15 of 900 million Europeans and ≈5.7 of 300 million US Americans may present HF.1,2 It is worrisome to consider that the prevalence of HF is expected to further increase, as a result of the increasing aging of the population. See Article by Echouffo-Tcheugui et al HF is a major driver of morbidity for affected patients and of costs for healthcare systems. It has been reported that there are >1 million hospitalizations for HF annually in both the United States and Europe.2 This burden is also related to the high risk of rehospitalization because after discharge, the 3-month rate for death and readmission is close to 17% and 32%, respectively.3 The outcome of patients affected by HF is generally poor, with a 1-year occurrence of the combined end point of mortality or HF hospitalization of 36% for acute HF and of 14.5% for chronic HF4. At 5 years, the survival rate of patients with HF is close to 50%, and it is, therefore, worse than that of the most common cases of diagnosed cancer.5 With this epidemiological profile, the consequent financial burden is impressive: the costs for HF-related care can come to ≈$40 billion each year.2 Comorbidities are important in the management and the outcome of patients with HF1. The majority of patients with HF enrolled in the EORP-HF registry (Eurobservational Research Programme –Heart Failure Pilot; 74%) had at least 1 comorbidity, the most prevalent being chronic kidney disease (CKD; 41%), anemia (29%), and diabetes mellitus (29%). Co-morbidities were independently associated with higher age, higher New York …
A 2.25–2.7 GHz Area-Efficient Subharmonically Injection-Locked Fractional-N Frequency Synthesizer With a Fast-Converging Correlation Loop

An area-efficient subharmonically injection-locked fractional-N frequency synthesizer is presented. The phase domain analysis confirms that a second-order subharmonically injection-locked phase-locked loop (SIPLL) can be stable even if the loop filter is composed of only a tiny capacitor. Thus, the area of the loop filter shrinks dramatically to realize an area-efficient SIPLL. Besides, a fast-converging correlation loop is used to calibrate the gain error of the digital-to-time converter in background by using a binary search algorithm. It ensures the initial output of the correlator close to the final one and is insensitive to process/supply/temperature variations. The chip is fabricated in a 40 nm process and occupies a core area of 0.0104 mm2. The converging time of the correlation loop is within $30~\mu \text {s}$ . The power consumption is 3.19 mW from a 1.1 V supply.
Regulation of alternative splicing of alpha-actinin transcript by Bruno-like proteins.

BACKGROUND The Bruno-like or CELF proteins, such as mammalian CUGBP1 and Etr-3, Xenopus EDEN-BP, and Drosophila Bruno (Bru), are regulators of gene expression at the post-transcriptional level, and contain three RNA-recognition motifs (RRMs). It has been shown that mammalian CUGBP1 and Etr-3 regulate alternative splicing of cardiac troponin T pre-mRNA via binding to CUG-triplet repeats. RESULTS Using in vitro selection and UV-crosslinking experiments, we found that zebrafish Bruno-like proteins bound to repeat elements of uridine and purine (termed UREs). It is known that non-muscle (NM) and smooth muscle (SM) exons of the rat alpha-actinin gene are used in a mutually exclusive manner. Transfection experiments in mammalian cells showed that zebrafish Brul and Etr-3 induced the muscle-specific splicing of rat alpha-actinin pre-mRNA via binding to the URE at the branch point upstream of the NM exon. In contrast, zebrafish Etr-1 promoted skipping of both the NM and SM exons in a manner which was not dependent on URE-binding. CONCLUSIONS Our results showed that Bruno-like proteins bind to UREs and regulate the alternative splicing of alpha-actinin pre-mRNA. Members of the Bruno family play multiple roles in splicing regulation.
A universal structure for self-aligned in situ on-chip micro tensile fracture strength test

This paper presents a universal self-aligned in situ on-chip micro tensile fracture strength tester designed for tensile strength extraction and process evaluation, which will provide, for the first time as far as the authors know, great force(above 100mN) to in situ on-chip specimen without the introduction of precise instrument, especially suitable for bulk micromachining related tests. The whole structure and process is simple, so it meets the requirements of various process in massive production, the feasibility and universality have been proved by practical evaluation of the several foundries. Its advantages also include self-position, self-measure and self-adaption for loading. In our tests, tensile fracture strength of the etched Si film is between 0.13 to 1.2GPa.
A Role for the Small GTPase Rab6 in Assembly of Human Cytomegalovirus

ABSTRACT In human-cytomegalovirus (HCMV)-infected cells, the localization of the viral protein pp150 to the virus assembly compartment (AC) is dependent on its direct interaction with the cellular protein Bicaudal D1 through a dynein- and microtubule-dependent mechanism. We found that the small GTPase Rab6 also interacts indirectly with pp150 through its interaction with Bicaudal D1. Inhibition of Rab6 activity in HCMV-infected cells interrupted the intracellular trafficking of pp150, significantly reducing infectious virus production without affecting the formation of the AC, arguing for an important function for this cellular GTPase in the intracellular localization of pp150 during virus assembly.
The multi-omics promise in context: from sequence to microbial isolate

Abstract The numbers and diversity of microbes in ecosystems within and around us is unmatched, yet most of these microorganisms remain recalcitrant to in vitro cultivation. Various high-throughput molecular techniques, collectively termed multi-omics, provide insights into the genomic structure and metabolic potential as well as activity of complex microbial communities. Nonetheless, pure or defined cultures are needed to (1) decipher microbial physiology and thus test multi-omics-based ecological hypotheses, (2) curate and improve database annotations and (3) realize novel applications in biotechnology. Cultivation thus provides context. In turn, we here argue that multi-omics information awaits integration into the development of novel cultivation strategies. This can build the foundation for a new era of omics information-guided microbial cultivation technology and reduce the inherent trial-and-error search space. This review discusses how information that can be extracted from multi-omics data can be applied for the cultivation of hitherto uncultured microorganisms. Furthermore, we summarize groundbreaking studies that successfully translated information derived from multi-omics into specific media formulations, screening techniques and selective enrichments in order to obtain novel targeted microbial isolates. By integrating these examples, we conclude with a proposed workflow to facilitate future omics-aided cultivation strategies that are inspired by the microbial complexity of the environment.
Anxiety and Depression Associated With Burden in Caregivers of Patients With Brain Metastases.

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES To describe and examine the relationship between caregiver burden and the affective disorders anxiety and depression in caregivers of patients with brain metastases. DESIGN Cross-sectional, descriptive, correlational. SETTING Moores Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego. SAMPLE 56 family caregivers of patients with brain metastases from solid tumors at other primary sites. METHODS Self-administered survey. MAIN RESEARCH VARIABLES Caregiver burden, anxiety, and depression. FINDINGS With the exception of caregiver esteem, no statistically significant relationships were noted between impact on schedule, a dimension of caregiver burden, and screening positive for affective disorders. CONCLUSIONS Findings from this study support previous reports indicating that the odds of having anxiety and depressive symptoms are greater in family caregivers who report higher levels of caregiver burden. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING The identification and management of caregiver burden are important considerations for a comprehensive cancer care program. Addressing the needs of the cancer caregiver, who is at heightened risk for various psychological, physical, financial, and social problems, is increasingly vital.
NK Cell Genotype and Phenotype at Diagnosis of Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia Correlate with Postinduction Residual Disease

Purpose: Not all natural killer (NK) cells are equally cytotoxic against leukemia because of differences in receptor gene content and surface expression. We correlated NK cell genotype and phenotype at diagnosis of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) with minimal residual disease (MRD) after induction chemotherapy. Experimental Design: The NK cells and leukemia blasts of 244 patients were analyzed at diagnosis by killer-cell immunoglobulin-like receptor (KIR) typing and immunophenotyping. The results were correlated statistically with postinduction MRD status. Results: The odds of being MRD positive in patients with KIR telomeric (Tel)-A/B genotype were 2.85 times the odds in those with Tel-A/A genotype (P = 0.035). MRD-positive patients were more likely to have KIR2DL5A (P = 0.006) and expressed less activating receptor NKp46 and FASL on their NK cells (P = 0.0074 and P = 0.029, respectively). The odds of being MRD positive increased by 2.01-fold for every percentage increase in NK cells expressing KIR2DL1 in the presence of HLA-C2 ligand (P = 0.034). The quantity of granzyme B inhibitor PI-9 in the leukemia blasts was greater in patients who were MRD positive (P = 0.038). Collectively, five NK cell–related factors (Tel-B–associated KIR2DL5A, NKp46, FASL, granzyme B, and PI-9) are strongly associated with MRD positivity at the end of induction with 100% sensitivity and 80% specificity. Conclusions: Our data support the hypothesis that NK cells with a strong effector phenotype in the setting of decreased leukemia resistance are associated with better leukemia control. Clin Cancer Res; 20(23); 5986–94. ©2014 AACR.
Possible role of cyclic AMP phosphodiesterases in the actions of ibudilast on eosinophil thromboxane generation and airways smooth muscle tone

1 The possible role of cyclic AMP phosphodiesterase (PDE) in the inhibitory actions of ibudilast on tracheal smooth muscle contractility and eosinophil thromboxane generation was investigated. 2 Ibudilast was a non‐selective inhibitor of partially purified cyclic nucleotide PDE isoenzymes from pig aorta and bovine tracheal smooth muscle, exhibiting only moderate potency against bovine tracheal PDE IV (IC50 = 12 ± 4 μm, n = 3). Similar or slightly lower potencies were displayed against PDEs I, II, III and V. In contrast, rolipram exhibited selectivity for PDE IV (3 ± 0.5 μm, n = 3). 3 Ibudilast (IC50 = 0.87 ± 0.37 μm, n = 3), like rolipram (IC50 = 0.20 ± 0.04 μm, n = 3), was a more potent inhibitor of membrane‐bound PDE IV from guinea‐pig eosinophils than of partially purified PDE IV from bovine tracheal smooth muscle. The potency of ibudilast increased when the eosinophil enzyme was solubilised with deoxycholate and NaCl (IC50 = 0.11 ± 0.05 μm, n = 3) or exposed to vanadate/glutathione complex (V/GSH) (IC50 = 0.11 ± 0.02 μm, n = 3). The potency of rolipram was also increased by solubilization (IC50 = 0.012 ± 0.003, n = 3) or V/GSH (IC50 = 0.012 ± 0.003, n = 3). 4 In intact eosinophils, ibudilast (0.032 μm − 20 μm) potentiated isoprenaline‐induced cyclic AMP accumulation in a concentration‐dependent manner, being approximately 20 fold less potent than rolipram. Little or no effect on basal cyclic AMP levels was observed with either compound. The cyclic AMP‐dependent protein kinase activity ratio was significantly increased following incubation of eosinophils with either ibudilast (20 μm) or rolipram (20 μm) in the absence or presence of isoprenaline. 5 Leukotriene B4 (300 nm)‐induced thromboxane generation from guinea‐pig eosinophils was inhibited by ibudilast (IC50 = 11.3 ± 3.7 μm, n = 5) and rolipram (IC50 = 0.280 ± 0.067 μm, n = 5) in a concentration‐dependent manner. 6 Ibudilast (10 nm − 1 μm), whilst generally less potent than rolipram (1 nm − 1 μm), produced concentration‐dependent relaxation of spasmogen (methacholine, histamine, LTD4)‐induced tone in the guinea‐pig isolated tracheal strip. Ibudilast was less potent in reversing the methacholine (IC30 = 1.95 ± 0.40 μm, n = 6)‐induced contraction than those of histamine (IC50 = 0.18 ± 0.70 μm, n = 6) or leukotriene D4 (LTD4, IC50 = 0.12 ± 0.05 μm, n = 6). Rolipram also exhibited a similar pattern of activity, although the difference in potency against methacholine (IC50 = 0.1 ± 0.01 μm, n = 6) compared with the other two spasmogens, histamine (IC50 = 0.034 ± 0.017 μm, n = 7) and LTD4 (IC50 = 0.026 ± 0.008 μm, n = 7), was not as great. 7 These results demonstrate that ibudilast, like rolipram, has several biological actions on the eosinophil and airways smooth muscle which may be attributed to inhibition of cyclic AMP PDE. These actions may account, at least in part, for the recently reported anti‐asthma effects of ibudilast.