Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Exploring Mediation Between Environmental and Structural Attributes: The Penetration of Communication Technologies in Manufacturing Organizations

The relationship between organizational structures and information technology (IT) has been the subject of much discussion in IS research. While studies have not yielded conclusive results, the importance of examining the relationship between structure and technology is increasing in an environment where organizations are using contemporary IT to redesign themselves in order to compete more effectively. This paper presents a study that examines the relationship between the use of an important class of IT, communications technologies, and organizational structural attributes within a broad contingency context. Hypotheses are proposed, based on theory from the information-processing paradigm examining the mediating role of communications technologies (CT) in the relationship between environmental characteristics and organizational structural characteristics. Data from 153 manufacturing firms are collected and analyzed. The results show that CT seems to play a direct role in reinforcing structures that emerge from environmental dictates. The expanded set of variables considered in this study and the results provide potentially strong implications for future work in this important area.
Direct measurement of adenosine release during hypoxia in the CA1 region of the rat hippocampal slice

1 We have used an enzyme‐based, twin‐barrelled sensor to measure adenosine release during hypoxia in the CA1 region of rat hippocampal slices in conjunction with simultaneous extracellular field recordings of excitatory synaptic transmission. 2 When loaded with a combination of adenosine deaminase, nucleoside phosphorylase and xanthine oxidase, the sensor responded linearly to exogenous adenosine over the concentration range 10 nM to 20 μM. 3 Without enzymes, the sensor when placed on the surface of hippocampal slices recorded a very small net signal during hypoxia of 40 ± 43 pA (mean ±s.e.m.; n= 7). Only when one barrel was loaded with the complete sequence of enzymes and the other with the last two in the cascade did the sensor record a large net difference signal during hypoxia (1226 ± 423 pA; n= 7). 4 This signal increased progressively during the hypoxic episode, scaled with the hypoxic depression of the simultaneously recorded field excitatory postsynaptic potential and was greatly reduced (67 ± 6.5 %; n= 9) by coformycin (0.5‐2 μM), a selective inhibitor of adenosine deaminase, the first enzyme in the enzymic cascade within the sensor. 5 For 5 min hypoxic episodes, the sensor recorded a peak concentration of adenosine of 5.6 ± 1.2 μM (n= 16) with an IC50 for the depression of transmission of approximately 3 μM. 6 In slices pre‐incubated for 3‐6 h in nominally Ca2+‐free artificial cerebrospinal fluid, 5 min of hypoxia resulted in an approximately 9‐fold greater release of adenosine (48.9 ± 17.7 μM; n= 6). 7 High extracellular Ca2+ (4 mM) both reduced the adenosine signal recorded by the sensor during hypoxia (3.5 ± 0.6 μM; n = 4) and delayed the hypoxic depression of excitatory synaptic transmission.
Hepatoprotective Effect of Cleome gynandra on Carbon Tetrachloride Induced Hepatotoxicity in Wistar Rats

Cleome gynandra has been used widely in Indian indigenous system. In the present study the hepatoprotective effect of methonolic extract of C. gynandra (MECG) was investigated against carbon tetrachloride (CCl 4 ) induced hepatocellular injury in wistar rats. The various parameters like serum glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase (SGOT), serum glutamic-pyruvic transaminase (SGPT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and total bilirubin (TB) were studied in the present study. The hepatoprotective activity was also supported by histopathological studies of liver tissue. Administration with MECG (200 and 400 mg/kg, P.O.) for 14 days significantly reduced the impact of CCl 4 toxicity on the serum markers of liver damage, serum glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase, serum glutamic-pyruvic transaminase, alkaline phosphatase and total bilirubin. The histopathological studies in the liver of rats also supported that cleome gynandra extract markedly reduced the toxicity of CCl 4 and preserved the histoarchitecture of the liver tissue to near normal. Thus, the results suggest that cleome gynandra extract acts as a potent hepatoprotective agent against CCl 4 induced hepatotoxicity in rats.
Interactions between physical activity and diet in the regulation of body weight

The increasing worldwide prevalence of obesity suggests that there is a chronic positive energy balance. This situation implies poor coupling between energy intake and energy expenditure, but the contribution of each of these factors remains unclear. Epidemiological data suggests that physical activity has a role in the prevention of weight gain, although there is little evidence that it has a beneficial role in weight loss. High-fat diets have also been implicated, evidence from a variety of sources suggests that diets high in fat undermine appetite regulatory mechanisms. There has been much research to investigate the coupling between energy expenditure and energy intake in the short term in an attempt to elucidate some of the mechanisms involved. However, mechanisms regulating appetite are very complex, and it is currently unclear at which points physical activity and diet may have an influence.
Egg size and food abundance interactively affect juvenile growth and behaviour

Summary 1. Comparative evidence from several animal taxa suggests that juveniles hatching from larger eggs have fitness benefits when growing up in a harsh environment, whereas under benign conditions egg size should be of less importance. However, the physiological and behavioural mechanisms responsible for these context-dependent fitness differences are as yet poorly understood. 2. We studied the interactions between the phenotype of developing offspring and their environment in the mouthbrooding cichlid Simochromis pleurospilus. We hand-raised young from large and small eggs, and measured their initial body size and burst swimming speed. Thereafter we raised half of each egg-size class on high ration and half on low food ration and followed their growth trajectories and behavioural development until the age of 12 weeks. 3. We found that larger eggs gave rise to larger young that had a higher burst swimming speed. Food ration greatly influenced long-term growth, while egg size predominantly affected fish size during the first 2 weeks of life. However, large egg size caused a size advantage of juveniles persisting throughout the experimental period. 4. Egg size and food ration interactively affected the hiding and foraging behaviour of young. In the low-food treatment, individuals from small eggs spent less time in shelter and showed a higher commitment to foraging than individuals from large eggs. In a natural setting, this should markedly increase predation risk of young originating from small eggs, particularly in poor environments. In contrast, when food was plentiful juveniles behaved similarly, irrespective of egg size. 5. Our results show that egg size affects juvenile growth trajectories and behaviour differently in different environments. While it is well-established that a large egg size raises offspring fitness particularly in harsh environments, our study suggests that this advantage arises through riskaverse behaviour being tightly linked to offspring size.
Physical activity at the government-recommended level and obesity-related health outcomes: a longitudinal study (Early Bird 37)

Background: In the UK and USA, government guidelines for childhood physical activity have been set (⩾60 min/day at ⩾3 metabolic equivalents of thermogenesis (METs)), and body mass index (BMI) chosen as the outcome measure. Aim: To determine the extent to which physical activity at the government-recommended intensity is associated with change in body mass/fat and metabolic health in pre-pubertal children. Methods: Non-intervention longitudinal study of 113 boys and 99 girls (born 1995/96) recruited from 54 schools. Physical activity (Actigraph accelerometers), changes in body mass (raw and age/gender-standardised BMI), fatness (skin-fold thickness and waist circumference) and metabolic status (insulin resistance, triglycerides, cholesterol/HDL ratio and blood pressure – separately and as a composite metabolic z score) were measured on four annual occasions (5, 6, 7 and 8 years). Results: Mean physical activity did not change over time in either sex. Averaging the 7-day recordings from four time points rather than one increased the reliability of characterising a child’s activity from 71% to 90%. Some 42% of boys and 11% of girls met the guideline. There were no associations between physical activity and changes in any measurement of body mass or fatness over time in either sex (eg, BMI standard deviation scores: r = −0.02, p = 0.76). However, there was a small to moderate inverse association between physical activity and change in composite metabolic score (r = −0.19, p<0.01). Mixed effects modelling showed that the improvement in metabolic score among the more active compared to the less active children was linear with time (−0.08 z scores/year, p = 0.001). Conclusions: In children, physical activity above the government-recommended intensity of 3 METs is associated with a progressive improvement in metabolic health but not with a change in BMI or fatness. Girls habitually undertake less physical activity than boys, questioning whether girls in particular should be encouraged to do more, or the recommendations adjusted for girls.
Evaluation of Real-Time PCR Laboratory-Developed Tests Using Analyte-Specific Reagents for Cytomegalovirus Quantification

ABSTRACT Viral load testing for cytomegalovirus (CMV) has become the standard for the diagnosis of infection and monitoring of therapy at many transplant centers. However, no viral load test has been approved by the FDA. Therefore, many laboratories rely on laboratory-developed assays. This study evaluated the performance characteristics of two real-time PCR tests developed using the artus CMV analyte-specific reagents (ASRs). One version is distributed by Abbott Molecular and the other by QIAGEN. For plasma specimens, the Abbott test had a limit of detection of 2.3 log10 copies/ml and a linear range up to at least 6.0 log10 copies/ml. Comparison of plasma viral loads using the Abbott test and the Roche Amplicor Monitor test showed a mean difference of −0.012 log10 copies/ml. In addition, the Abbott test viral loads correlated with the Digene Hybrid Capture assay ratios. Viral loads obtained from plasma specimens tested by the Abbott and QIAGEN tests were in very close agreement (mean difference, 0.144 log10 copies/ml). When the QIAGEN test was evaluated with the QIAGEN, MagNA Pure, and easyMAG extraction methods, the viral loads for all three methods were within 0.370 log10 copies/ml. Thus, there is good agreement between viral loads obtained by the different tests using the same extraction method or by the same test using different extraction methods. The availability of real-time PCR ASRs provides additional reagents that can be used for CMV viral load testing.
Emerging monoclonal antibodies for the treatment of renal cell carcinoma (RCC)

ABSTRACT Introduction: Advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC) was considered refractory to most cancer therapies until the 1980s, after which immune modulating agents and targeted agents were developed. Recently the rapid development of therapeutic monoclonal antibodies targeting immune checkpoint pathways has provided significant clinical benefit in patients with many distinct cancer types. Nivolumab, an anti-PD1 monoclonal antibody showed improvement in response rate and overall survival in patients with previously treated RCC and received US FDA approval in late 2015. Current efforts with anti-PD1-based therapy include combinations with ipilimumab and with VEGF pathway blockers in the hopes on building on the activity of single agent therapy. Areas covered: We describe our current understanding of tumor immunology including the basis of the tumor-specific immune response and the adaptive mechanisms used by the tumor for immune escape. We describe the mechanisms of action as well as the therapeutic application of the antibodies, ipilimumab, nivolumab and atezolizumab in patients with RCC. We identify key areas of active research in biomarker development and combination therapies. Expert opinion: Clinical trials and the field of RCC therapeutics are expected to move in the direction of combination therapies using immune checkpoint inhibitors, extending overall survival as a benchmark for new drug approvals, and biomarker validation for improved selection of patients for specific therapies.
Fluvastatin and low-density lipoprotein oxidation in hypercholesterolemic renal transplant patients.

BACKGROUND Hyperlipidemia contributes to the development and progression of vascular disease in organ transplant patients. Oxidative modification of low-density lipoproteins (LDLs) has been suggested as a key event in early atherogenesis. METHODS We conducted a pilot study in renal transplanted patients with persistent hypercholesterolemia above 6.5 mmol/liter. We studied the LDL oxidation before and after one year of fluvastatin treatment. Twenty patients (12 males and 8 females, 46 +/- 10 years old) who received a kidney transplant 24 +/- 18 months before the study were treated with fluvastatin (20 mg/day for 12 weeks). Patients with a total cholesterol under 6.3 mmol/liter continued to receive 20 mg/day for another 40 weeks (group I, N = 10). Nine patients with a total cholesterol above 6.3 mmol/liter received 40 mg/day for a further 40 weeks (group II). RESULTS Cyclosporine levels did not experience a significant variation. Total and LDL cholesterol decreased significantly in both groups (21.7 and 27.9% in group I, 18.3 and 27.2% in group II, respectively). The lag-phase time, which was significantly enlarged before fluvastatin treatment in the patients with respect to the controls (N = 18, 82 +/- 45 vs. 50 +/- 8 min) was shortened after one year of fluvastatin treatment (64 +/- 24 vs. 50 +/- 8 min, P = 0.04). Fluvastatin was stopped in only one patient because of nausea and vomiting. Transaminases and creatin-phospho-kinase were not altered. All of the patients maintained a functioning graft during the study period. CONCLUSIONS Fluvastatin significantly reduced total and LDL cholesterol, without interferences with cyclosporine A through levels. Fluvastatin has not demonstrated an antioxidant effect in our renal hypercholesterolemic transplant patients.
Safety standard for uninterruptible power supply equipment

Publication, by the Underwriters Laboratory, of a safety standard for uninterruptible power supply (UPS) equipment is reported. It is used for evaluating UPS units to determine that the design provides a reasonable reduction of the risk of injury to persons and damage to property during use. The standard covers static-type UPSs that are cord and plug connected or permanently wired. Products used with UPSs are also covered, including remote battery supply cabinets with or without batteries, remote status panels, bypass switches, and maintenance bypass switches. The standard will be submitted for processing as an American National Standard by the American National Standards Institute. <<ETX>>
Lightweight key management in distributed multi-channel cognitive radio networks

In this paper, lightweight identity-based and certificate-based distributed key management algorithms are proposed for self-organized multi-channel cognitive radio networks. Both key management schemes use threshold secret sharing. In identity-based scheme, after system initialization, each cognitive radio sends its channel key request to distributed private key generators. Then, it can construct the channel key based on its received shares. In certificate-based scheme, channel certificate can be constructed by receiving certificate authority shares at the cognitive radio. Simulation results show that the proposed identity-based and certificate-based schemes significantly increase the average battery life of cognitive radios and decrease the traffic overhead in multi-channel cognitive radio networks.
Efficacy of Corticosteroid Therapy in Severe Decompensation of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Requiring Mechanical Ventilation

The purpose of this study was to analyze the efficacy of corticosteroids in severe acute decompensation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease requiring mechanical ventilation and intensive care unit (ICU) admission. Pairwise retrospective case–control study with 1:1 matching. Patients were defined as cases when they received corticosteroids and as controls when they did not received any steroids. Patients were matched according to age, severity factors at admission represented by the PaO2/FiO2 ratio, and simplified acute physiology score. Thirty-four patients were included. There were 17 patients in the case group and 17 patients in the control group. There were 27 men (80%) and 7 women (20%). The mean age (±SD) was 70 ± 9 years with a range of 40–85 years. Thirty-two patients (94 %) were older than 60 years. The comparison between the 2 groups showed that they had the same epidemiological, clinical, and biological findings on ICU admission. Homodynamic parameters were also not significantly different between the 2 groups. Moreover, there is the same proportion of invasive mechanical ventilation use in 2 groups. Concomitant drugs used were also not significantly different between the 2 groups. Finally, the comparison of outcome between the steroid and steroid-free groups showed that mortality rate was not significantly different (64% vs. 58%, P = 0.72). However, systemic corticosteroid therapy was associated with a significant increase in a reduction in the duration of mechanical ventilation (P = 0.004) and a trend toward a shorter length of ICU stay (P = 0.053). Although the authors detected no significant difference in mortality rate at the time of discharge between steroid and streroid-free patients, this study confirms that systemic corticosteroid therapy in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease exacerbations requiring mechanical ventilation is associated with a significant reduction in the duration of mechanical ventilation. Other studies are needed on this subject.
Assessing the viability of electric vehicles in daily life: A longitudinal assessment (2008–2012)

The UK's Technology Strategy Board, with central and regional government support, funded the world's largest multi-site demonstration trial of ultra-low carbon passenger cars. 349 cars were deployed supported by the installation of approximately 500 electrical charging points. The trial has contributed to the UK Government's newly published ultra-low emission vehicle strategy. It has also helped vehicle manufacturers and energy suppliers understand how people use these cars and how they feel about them. Eight project teams comprising at least one vehicle manufacturer, an energy supplier, a local authority, infrastructure provider and a university have gained funding. The trial included two separate research activities: 1. Usage patterns - including time and duration of journeys, energy used and charging location. 2. User perception - questionnaires and interviews with users before, during and after the trail to help understand their feelings about the car and their behaviour with the car. The first 65 cars were handed over to users on 13th December 2009. By December 2011, 349 vehicles from 19 manufacturers had been deployed over a mix of private domestic, company pool or fleet vehicles. The vehicles have undertaken over 276,000 trips covering over 1,500,000 miles, and have charged over 51,000 times. The vehicle models included the plug-in electric Tata Indica, Mercedes Smart For Two, Nissan Leaf, Ford Transit Connect; BMW Mini-E, Mitsubishi i-MiEV, Allied conversions of the Peugeot Tepee MPVs; the hydrogen fuelled Microcab; and performance electric sports cars including the Ecotricity conversion of the Lotus Exige. The fleet also included plug-in versions of the diesel hybrid Land Rover Range-E and the petrol hybrid Toyota Prius. This paper provides details of the programme and results of the research to date, focusing especially on vehicle usage and perception data from 12 months of usage.
Quality of care for primary care patients with anxiety disorders.

OBJECTIVE This study evaluated quality of care for primary care patients with anxiety disorders in university-affiliated outpatient clinics in Los Angeles, San Diego, and Seattle. METHOD Three hundred sixty-six primary care outpatients who were diagnosed with panic disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, social phobia, and/or posttraumatic stress disorder (with or without major depression) were surveyed about care received in the prior 3 months. Quality indicators were mental health referral, anxiety counseling, and use of appropriate antianxiety medication during the previous 3 months. RESULTS Approximately one-third of patients with anxiety disorders had received counseling from their primary care provider in the prior 3 months. Fewer than 10% had receiving counseling from a mental health professional that included multiple elements of cognitive behavior therapy. Approximately 40% had received appropriate antianxiety medications in the previous 3 months, although only 25% had received them at a minimally adequate dose and duration. Overall, fewer than one in three patients had received either psychotherapy or pharmacotherapy that met a criterion for quality care. In multivariate analyses, patients with comorbid depression and/or medical illness were more likely-and patients from ethnic minorities were less likely-to receive appropriate antianxiety medications. CONCLUSIONS Rates of quality care for anxiety disorders are moderate to low in university-affiliated primary care practices. Although an appropriate type of pharmacotherapy was frequently used, it was often of inadequate duration. Cognitive behavior therapy was markedly underused. These findings emphasize the need for practice guidelines and implementation of quality improvement programs for anxiety disorders in primary care.
Improving the Transition to Home Healthcare by Rethinking the Purpose and Structure of the CMS 485: First Steps

ABSTRACT Transition points are the weak links in communication between providers. As an example, the discharge home often is a hurried “handoff” from inpatient physician to home care agency, whose visiting nurse admits the patient for a period of observation, medication management, rehabilitation, and teaching. The primary means of communication between physician and home health agency is the CMS 485, a form that contains the orders and that physicians frequently sign well after patients begin receiving services. This paper describes the first phase of a project that restructured and automated the CMS 485 using an existing electronic health record. The principles guiding the restructuring are described along with early reaction to and revision of the form to address operational issues. The paper also discusses evaluation plans and a web-based system of communication that will be developed in the second phase of the project.