Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Enhanced Protection against Bovine Tuberculosis after Coadministration of Mycobacterium bovis BCG with a Mycobacterial Protein Vaccine-Adjuvant Combination but Not after Coadministration of Adjuvant Alone

ABSTRACT Current efforts are aimed at optimizing the protective efficacy of Mycobacterium bovis BCG by the use of vaccine combinations. We have recently demonstrated that the protection afforded by BCG alone is enhanced by vaccinating cattle with a combination of vaccines comprising BCG and a protein tuberculosis vaccine, namely, culture filtrate proteins (CFPs) from M. bovis plus an adjuvant. In the current study, three different adjuvant systems were compared. The CFP was formulated with a depot adjuvant, dimethyldioctadecyl ammonium bromide (DDA), together with one of three different immunostimulants: monophosphoryl lipid A (MPL), a synthetic mycobacterial phosphatidylinositol mannoside-2 (PIM2), and a synthetic lipopeptide (Pam3Cys-SKKKK [Pam3CSK4]). Groups of cattle (n = 10/group) were vaccinated with BCG-CFP-DDA-PIM2, BCG-CFP-DDA-MPL, or BCG-CFP-DDA-Pam3CSK4. Two additional groups (n = 10) were vaccinated with BCG alone or BCG-adjuvant (DDA-MPL), and a control group was left unvaccinated. Protection was assessed by challenging the cattle intratracheally with M. bovis. Groups of cattle vaccinated with BCG-CFP-DDA-PIM2, BCG-CFP-DDA-MPL, BCG-CFP-DDA-Pam3CSK4, and BCG alone showed significant reductions in three, three, five, and three pathological and microbiological disease parameters, respectively, compared to the results for the nonvaccinated group. Vaccination with the combination of BCG and the DDA-MPL adjuvant alone abrogated the protection conferred by BCG alone. The profiling of cytokine gene expression following vaccination, prior to challenge, did not illuminate significant differences which could explain the latter result. Vaccination of cattle with a combination of BCG and protein tuberculosis vaccine enhances protection against tuberculosis.
The effect of experience on the hunting success of newly emerged spiderlings

Initial interactions with prey may affect a predator's subsequent foraging success. With experience, second-instar Misumena vatia spiderlings (Thomisidae) that had recently emerged from their egg sacs oriented faster to fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster) than näive individuals. Orientation time of these spiderlings decreased rapidly for the first two to three runs (every third day) in a simple laboratory setting, and then remained low and relatively constant. Time to capture a fly also declined initially, but subsequently became extremely variable, increasing prior to moult. Increase in capture time and the failure to capture prey appeared associated with impending moult, rather than satiation. Spiderlings oriented to prey more rapidly at the beginning of the third instar than at the start of the second instar, suggesting that experience still enhanced performance after a moult cycle. Overall capture times at the beginning of the third instar decreased from those at the end of the second instar, but did not differ significantly from the beginning of the second instar, although spiderlings gaining the most biomass had the shortest mean capture times. In a second experiment, time to orient and time to capture prey did not differ in näive, second-instar siblings run 1 and 3 days after emergence from their egg sacs. However, 3-day individuals that had captured prey each day (confiscated before they could feed) oriented faster than näive 3-day-old siblings, but did not differ in the time taken to capture prey. Experience, rather than age or energetic condition, best explains these changes in performance. Copyright 2000 The Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour.
Uncertainty and the Role of Information Acquisition in the Evolution of Context-Dependent Emigration

There is increasing empirical evidence that individuals utilize social and environmental cues in making decisions as to whether or not to disperse. However, we lack theory exploring the influence of information acquisition and use on the evolution of dispersal strategies and metapopulation dynamics. We used an individual-based, spatially explicit simulation model to explore the evolution of emigration strategies under varying precision of information about the natal patch, cost of information acquisition, and environmental predictability. Our findings show an interesting interplay between information use and the evolved emigration propensity. Lack of information led to higher emigration probabilities in more unpredictable environments but to lower emigration probabilities in constant or highly predictable scenarios. Somewhat-informed dispersal strategies were selected for in most cases, even when the acquisition of information was associated with a moderate reproductive cost. Notably, selection rarely favored investment in acquisition of high-precision information, and the tendency to invest in information acquisition was greatest in predictable environments when the associated cost was low. Our results highlight that information use can affect dispersal in a complex manner and also emphasize that information-acquisition behaviors can themselves come under strong selection, resulting in evolutionary dynamics that are tightly coupled to those of context-dependent behaviors.
Results of delayed follow-up imaging in traumatic brain injury.

OBJECTIVE There is a paucity of scientific evidence available about the benefits of outpatient follow-up imaging for traumatic brain injury patients. In this study, 1 year of consecutive patients at a Level 1 trauma center were analyzed to determine if there is any benefit to routinely obtaining CT of the head at the outpatient follow-up visit. METHODS This single-institution retrospective review was performed on all patients with a traumatic brain injury seen at a Level 1 trauma center in 2013. Demographic data, types of injuries, surgical interventions, radiographic imaging in inpatient and outpatient settings, and outcomes were assessed through a review of the institution's trauma registry, patient charts, and imaging. RESULTS Five hundred twenty-five patients were seen for traumatic brain injury in 2013 at Regional One Health in Memphis, Tennessee. One hundred eighty-five patients (35%) presented for outpatient follow-up, all with CT scans of the head. Seven of these patients (4%) showed worsening of their intracranial injuries on outpatient imaging studies; however, surgical intervention was recommended for only 3 of these patients (2%). All patients requiring an intervention had neurological deterioration prior to their follow-up appointment. CONCLUSIONS These experiences suggest that outpatient follow-up imaging for traumatic brain injury should be done selectively, as it was not helpful for patients who did not exhibit worsening of neurological signs or symptoms. Furthermore, routine outpatient imaging results in unnecessary resource utilization and radiation exposure.
Pricing model of convertible bonds with default risk in a generic Levy process

Based on the underlying stock price S_t = S_0 exp[(r-q)t + X_t],where Xt is a generic Levy process,this thesis has established a pricing model of convertible bonds,making use of residue theorem and Fourier transform.Further more,on the assumption that the default timeτis a stopping time of {F_t,t≥0} under the equivalent martingale measure Q,and the average intensity ofτon[t,T]isλ~*,the pricing model of convertible bonds with default risk is obtained.The pricing formula is more veracious, because the redemption provisions and the put provisions are taken into account all the while.
In Vivo Function of PTEX88 in Malaria Parasite Sequestration and Virulence

ABSTRACT Malaria pathology is linked to remodeling of red blood cells by eukaryotic Plasmodium parasites. Central to host cell refurbishment is the trafficking of parasite-encoded virulence factors through the Plasmodium translocon of exported proteins (PTEX). Much of our understanding of its function is based on experimental work with cultured Plasmodium falciparum, yet direct consequences of PTEX impairment during an infection remain poorly defined. Using the murine malaria model parasite Plasmodium berghei, it is shown here that efficient sequestration to the pulmonary, adipose, and brain tissue vasculature is dependent on the PTEX components thioredoxin 2 (TRX2) and PTEX88. While TRX2-deficient parasites remain virulent, PTEX88-deficient parasites no longer sequester in the brain, correlating with abolishment of cerebral complications in infected mice. However, an apparent trade-off for virulence attenuation was spleen enlargement, which correlates with a strongly reduced schizont-to-ring-stage transition. Strikingly, general protein export is unaffected in PTEX88-deficient mutants that mature normally in vitro. Thus, PTEX88 is pivotal for tissue sequestration in vivo, parasite virulence, and preventing exacerbation of spleen pathology, but these functions do not correlate with general protein export to the host erythrocyte. The presented data suggest that the protein export machinery of Plasmodium parasites and their underlying mechanistic features are considerably more complex than previously anticipated and indicate challenges for targeted intervention strategies.
The First World War and German National Identity: The Dual Alliance at War

The First World War and German National Identity is an original and carefully researched study of the coalition between Imperial Germany and Austria-Hungary during the First World War. Focusing on the attitudes taken by governmental circles, politically active groups, intellectuals, and the broader public towards the German-speaking population in the Habsburg Monarchy, Jan Vermeiren explores how the war challenged established notions of German national identity and history. In this context, he also sheds new light on key issues in the military and the diplomatic relationship between Berlin and Vienna, re-examining the German war aims debate and presenting many new insights into German-Hungarian and German-Slav relations in the period. The book is a major contribution to German and Central European history and will be of great interest to scholars of the First World War and the complex relationship between war and society. -Comprehensive study of the alliance between Imperial Germany and Austria-Hungary during the First World War, focusing not just on military and diplomatic history, but also on the social and cultural dimension -Provides a reassessment of German war ideology and nationalism, enhancing understanding of the war's significance, and defeat, for German history and identity -Offers an in-depth survey of the special relationship between Berlin and Vienna, relating this to questions of national identity
Which way for wireless power: High Q or high k?

The current popular technical paradigm insists high resonator quality factor Q, and by implication high frequency operation, is essential for efficient power transmission by means of resonant induction. This paper examines the theoretical argument and the experimental evidence against the current paradigm. It shows high frequency operation has few, if any, operational advantages and indeed has several significant disadvantages. Instead the paper makes the case that the path forward for efficient and inexpensive resonant induction wireless power should be based upon maximizing the transfer coil pair coupling coefficient k, rather than Q, in combination with a relatively low operating frequency. Data from a number of independent researchers as well as the work of Momentum Dynamics point to the need for same-size couplers. The advantages include reduced eddy current heating of vehicle structures, better misalignment tolerance, reduced flux density, higher overall power transfer efficiency, and reduced stray magnetic field emissions. The mathematical basis for preferring lower Q and higher coupling will be explained.
Impact of reservoirs on river discharge and irrigation water supply during the 20th century

This paper presents a quantitative estimation of the impact of reservoirs on discharge and irrigation water supply during the 20th century at global, continental, and river basin scale. Compared to a natural situation the combined effect of reservoir operation and irrigation extractions decreased mean annual discharge to oceans and significantly changed the timing of this discharge. For example, in Europe, May discharge decreased by 10%, while in February it increased by 8%. At the end of the 20th century, reservoir operations and irrigation extractions decreased annual global discharge by about 2.1% (930 km3 yr−1). Simulation results show that reservoirs contribute significantly to irrigation water supply in many regions. Basins that rely heavily on reservoir water are the Colorado and Columbia River basins in the United States and several large basins in India, China, and central Asia (e.g., in the Krishna and Huang He basins, reservoirs more than doubled surface water supply). Continents gaining the most are North America, Africa, and Asia, where reservoirs supplied 57, 22, and 360 km3 yr−1 respectively between 1981–2000, which is in all cases 40% more than the availability in the situation without reservoirs. Globally, the irrigation water supply from reservoirs increased from around 18 km3 yr−1 (adding 5% to surface water supply) at the beginning of the 20th century to 460 km3 yr−1 (adding almost 40% to surface water supply) at the end of the 20th century. The analysis is performed using a newly developed and validated reservoir operation scheme within a global‐scale hydrology and vegetation model (LPJmL).
Large‐scale identification of serotype 4 Streptococcus pneumoniae virulence factors

Streptococcus pneumoniae (the pneumococcus) is carried in the nasopharynx of healthy individuals, but can spread to other host sites and lead to pneumonia, bacteraemia, otitis media and meningitis. Although it is logical to think a priori that differential gene expression would contribute to the ability of this patho‐gen to colonize different sites, in fact very few genes have been demonstrated to play tissue specific roles in virulence or carriage. Using signature‐tagged mutagenesis to screen 6149 mariner ‐transposon insertion strains, we identified 387 mutants attenuated for infection in a murine model of pneumonia. Among these mutants are ones with disruptions in a number of putative tissue‐specific transcriptional regulators, surface proteins, metabolic proteins and proteins of unknown function, most of which had not previously been associated with virulence. A subset of these, including most of those with insertions in putative transcriptional regulators, was examined for phenotypes in murine models of bacteraemia and nasopharyngeal carriage. Four classes of mutants defective in infection models of the: (I) lung, (II) lung and blood, (III) lung and nasopharynx, and (IV) all three tissues were identified, thus demonstrating the ex‐istence of tissue‐specific pneumococcal virulence factors. Included in these strains were two with disruptions in a genetic locus that putatively codes for a transcriptional regulator, three surface proteins and three sortase homologues. Mutation analysis revealed that three of the seven genes in this locus are virulence factors that are specific to mucosal surfaces.
Comparative evaluation of power loss in HVAC and HVDC transmission systems

Researches on renewable energy sources have been carried out and ways to reduce energy consumption and energy wastage have been discussed and studied to tackle the world's power shortage problems. Wind farm, one of the prominent renewable sources, is usually remotely far from onshore and needs long transmission to bring generated power to populated areas. This paper covers the analysis of the traditional high voltage alternating current (HVAC) transmission system and comparison of the aforementioned system with high voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission in terms of power loss. In this paper, the converter that used in HVDC transmission system is voltage source converter (VSC). To observe and evaluate the power losses, the HVAC and HVDC transmission models are simulated in PSCAD. It is seen that cable contributes to large portion of losses in HVAC system, increasingly so with longer transmission distance. Whereas for HVDC system, converter loss is found to outweigh cable loss.
Micropapillary Variant of Transitional Cell Carcinoma of the Urinary Bladder Histologic Pattern Resembling Ovarian Papillary Serous Carcinoma

Eighteen cases of transitional cell carcinoma (TCC) of the urinary bladder containing a micropapillary component (MPC) (>90%, three cases; 50–90%, nine cases; <50%, six cases) are presented. The patients' mean age was 66.6 years (range, 47–81 years) with a male predominance (male-to-female ratio of 5:1). The MPC was part of the surface noninvasive TCC in 16 cases and part of the invasive portion of the TCC in all 18 cases. Eight patients had metastases, each with a predominant (≥50%) MPC in the metastases; local recurrence was documented in one case, and the tumor was locally invasive into pelvic structures in three cases. Histologically, the surface MPC comprised slender, delicate filiform processes or small papillary clusters of tumor cells, whereas the deep MPC was composed of infiltrating tight clusters of micropapillary aggregates that were often present within lacunae. Vascular-lymphatic invasion was consistently present in the micropapillary areas. The cytologic features of the MPC were those of grade 3 TCC. A concurrent TCC in situ was identified in 10 cases, noninvasive papillary TCC component in all cases, and glandular differentiation of the invasive TCC in five cases. The initial stage at presentation was usually high stage: one patient with stage A, nine with stage B, six with stage C, and two with stage D. Follow-up data (mean, 44.8 months; range, 6–96 months) indicated that four patients were alive with disease, seven patients were dead of disease, and there was no evidence of disease in seven patients. In five cases, DNA ploidy analyzed by static image analysis showed nondiploid indices within the micropapillary TCC component, and in three cases the DNA index of the MPC (noninvasive, invasive, or at metastatic site) exceeded the DNA index of the noninvasive papillary TCC. In conclusion, the presence of a MPC in TCC is associated with high-grade and high-stage TCC with a tendency to vascular invasion. Our data suggest that a surface MPC in bladder biopsy specimens is a poor prognostic histologic feature and, if the biopsy does not contain muscularis propria, deeper biopsies should be recommended to determine the presence of muscle invasion.
Reduced-Complexity Timing Detectors for MC-CDMA Signals

In this paper, two reduced-complexity timing detectors for MC-CDMA signals based on incorporating the on-time arm in timing error signal update are proposed and analyzed. By theoretical analysis and simulations, it is shown that the simplified approaches provide superior performance for low Eb/N0 with respect to the classical non-coherent early-late gate detector
Biolistics for high-throughput transformation and RNA interference in Drosophila melanogaster

With twelve Drosophila genomes now sequenced, there is a growing need to develop higher-throughput methods for identifying the functions of the many newly identified genes. Genetic transformation and RNA interference are two technologies that have been used extensively to facilitate gene-function studies in Drosophila melanogaster, to introduce genes or block the expression of endogenous genes, respectively. Both of these technologies typically require the delivery of nucleic acids into developing insect embryos, and virtually all studies to date have relied on microinjection as the DNA delivery method of choice. In this study, we describe the use of biolistics as a higher-throughput method of nucleic acid delivery. By bombarding dechorionated D. melanogaster embryos with 1 Âµm gold beads coated with P-element or piggyBac transformation vectors, we observed transformation frequencies (3-4%) that are comparable to those achieved using microinjection methods, but in only a fraction of the time required for the DNA delivery. Biolistic delivery of double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) specific to a Î²-glucuronidase (gus) transgene resulted in a significant (71%) reduction in gus transcripts in embryos and the RNA interference (RNAi) persisted through two successive larval molts, albeit at reduced levels. DsRNAs specific to four essential genes were delivered to embryos and resulted in arrested development and phenotypes that closely match that of null mutations. These results suggest that biolistic delivery of dsRNA into embryos could be adapted for high throughput RNAi screens of early Drosophila developmental genes.
Differential Effects of a Rab6 Mutant on Secretory Versus Amyloidogenic Processing of Alzheimers -Amyloid Precursor Protein (*)

The Ras-related GTP-binding protein, Rab6, is localized in late Golgi compartments where it mediates intra-Golgi vesicular trafficking. Herein we report that coexpression of Alzheimer's β-amyloid precursor protein (βAPP) with a dominant-negative Rab6 mutant (Rab6) in human embryonal kidney 293 cells causes an increase in secretion of the soluble amino-terminal exodomain (s-APPα) derived from non-amyloidogenic processing of β-APP by α-secretase. The effect was specific to Rab6, since the corresponding mutation in Rab8 (i.e. Rab8), which has been implicated in protein transport to the plasma membrane, caused a modest reduction in s-APPα secretion. While Rab6 stimulated secretion of APPα, the accumulation of amyloid β peptide (Aβ) in the medium was either moderately reduced or unaffected. Similar differential effects of Rab6 on secretion of s-APPα versus Aβ were observed in cell cultures that were overproducing Aβ after transfection with a plasmid encoding the Swedish variant of βAPP. Moreover, assays of medium from the latter cultures revealed a marked increase in secretion of s-APPα relative to s-APPβ (the immediate product derived from cleavage of βAPP by β-secretase). The results indicate that vesicular transport events controlled by Rab6 occur at or near a critical juncture in the trans-Golgi network where βAPP is sorted into either the constitutive α-secretase pathway or the amyloidogenic β-secretase pathway.
The Effects of Innovation on Employment in Developing Countries: Evidence from Enterprise Surveys

While existing evidence in advanced economies suggests a possible role for technological innovation in job creation, its role in developing countries remains largely undocumented. This paper sheds light on the direct impact of technological as well as organizational innovation on firm level employment growth based on the theoretical model of Harrison, Jaumandreu, Mairesse, and Peters (2014) using a sample of over 15,000 firms in Africa, South Asia, Middle East and North-Africa and Eastern Europe and Central Asia. The results suggest that new sales associated with product innovations tend to be produced with just as much or higher levels of labor intensity. The effect is largest in lower income countries and the African region, where firms are further away from the technological frontier. More importantly, process innovations that involve automation of production do not have a short-term negative impact on firm employment. However, there is some evidence of a negative effect of automation on employment that manifests in increases in efficiency that reduce the elasticity of new sales to employment. Overall, these results are qualitatively similar to previous findings in advanced economies and highlight a positive direct role of innovation on the quantity of employment but at a decreasing rate as firms’ transition to the technological frontier.