Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Association of TNF2, a TNF-alpha promoter polymorphism, with septic shock susceptibility and mortality: a multicenter study.

CONTEXT Tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) is believed to be a cytokine central to pathogenesis of septic shock. TNF2, a polymorphism within the TNF-alpha gene promoter, has been associated with enhanced TNF-alpha production and negative outcome in some severe infections. OBJECTIVES To investigate the frequency of the TNF2 allele in patients with septic shock and to determine whether the allele is associated with the occurrence and outcome of septic shock. DESIGN Multicenter case-control study conducted from March 1996 to June 1997. SETTING Seven medical intensive care units in university hospitals. SUBJECTS Eighty-nine patients with septic shock and 87 healthy unrelated blood donors. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Frequency of the TNF2 allele among patients with septic shock and among those who died and the level of corresponding TNF-alpha concentrations. RESULTS Mortality among patients with septic shock was 54%, consistent with the predicted mortality from the Simplified Acute Physiologic Score (SAPS II) value. The polymorphism frequencies of the controls and the patients with septic shock differed only at the TNF2 allele (39% vs 18% in the septic shock and control groups, respectively, P =.002). Among the septic shock patients, TNF2 polymorphism frequency was significantly greater among those who had died (52% vs 24% in the survival group, P =.008). Concentrations of TNF-alpha were higher in 68% and 52% with the TNF2 and TNF1 polymorphisms, respectively, but their median values (48 pg/mL vs 29 pg/mL) were not statistically different (P = .31). After controlling for age and the probability of death, derived by the SAPS II score, multiple logistic regression analysis showed that, for the same rank of SAPS II value, patients with the TNF2 allele had a 3.7-fold risk of death (95% confidence interval, 1.37-10.24). CONCLUSION The TNF2 allele is strongly associated with susceptibility to septic shock and death due to septic shock.
Research on Cassandra Data Compaction Strategies for Time-Series Data

Storage and analysis of time-series data is a subject of intense interest in the current international database research field. Time series data, a sequence of collected data information points by fixing time interval, is an important basis to proceed business analysis and prediction in the future. As an excellent NoSQL database, Cassandra is often used to storage time-series data because of its characteristics of data model. In the scene of real application, time-series data used to proceed the management of data life cycle by setting up TTL; the real delete operation would not be executed immediately, while unnecessary data will be deleted during the compaction course. This paper focuses on the issue of the effect of different strategies for time-series data storage and the research on three Cassandra storage strategies: Size-Tiered Compaction Strategy, Leveled Compaction Strategy and Date-Tiered Compaction Strategy; and comparative test based on stable data storage, recording speed sorted string tables file numbers and so on. Finally, the compaction strategies suitable for time-series data application scenarios are obtained by carrying on experiments.
Fatty acid metabolism in neurodevelopmental disorder: a new perspective on associations between attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, dyslexia, dyspraxia and the autistic spectrum.

There is increasing evidence that abnormalities of fatty acid and membrane phospholipid metabolism play a part in a wide range of neurodevelopmental and psychiatric disorders. This proposal is discussed here in relation to attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), dyslexia, developmental coordination disorder (dyspraxia) and the autistic spectrum. These are among the most common neurodevelopmental disorders of childhood, with significant implications for society as well as for those directly affected. However, controversy still surrounds both the identification and management of these conditions, and while their aetiology is recognized as being complex and multifactorial, little progress has yet been made in elucidating predisposing factors at the biological level. An overview is provided here of the contents of this Special Issue, which contains a selection of reports from a unique multidisciplinary workshop involving both researchers and clinicians. Its purpose was to explore the possibility that ADHD, dyslexia, dyspraxia and autism fall within a phospholipid spectrum of disorders. This proposal could explain the high degree of co-morbidity between these conditions, their aggregation within families and relation to other psychiatric disorders, and a range of associated features that are already well known at a clinical level. The existing evidence for fatty acid abnormalities in these disorders is summarized, and new approaches are outlined that have the potential to improve both the identification and the management of these and related neurodevelopmental and psychiatric conditions.
Is Once Really Enough? Making Generalizations about Advertising's Convex Sales Response Function

ABSTRACT This article examines the generalizability of convex-shaped advertising response functions. Using single-source data, we analyzed the response functions of brands in four consumer goods categories. This study supports the prior finding that convex response functions are typical, but not universal. While the convex response function is found to apply across a range of conditions, more work is needed to understand measurement issues, exceptions, and boundary conditions.
From a Repressilator-Based Circadian Clock Mechanism to an External Coincidence Model Responsible for Photoperiod and Temperature Control of Plant Architecture in Arabodopsis thaliana

Circadian clocks enable organisms to define subjective time, that is, to anticipate diurnal day and night cycles. Endogenous circadian rhythms regulate many aspects of an organism's physiological and morphological growth and development. These daily oscillations are synchronized to the environment by external cues such as light and temperature, resulting in enhanced fitness and growth vigor in plants. Recent findings concerning biochemical properties of central oscillators in Arabidopsis thaliana have advanced our understanding of circadian clock function. Central oscillators are composed of three classes of transcriptional repressors. The interactions among them include a repressilator structure. Output from the circadian clock is transduced through regulating transcription of downstream genes directly by the oscillator components. The essential role of the output pathway in the circadian system is to make different elementary steps responsible for daily cellular processes exert maximum effects at specific times of the day. Recently, significant progress was made in defining the mechanisms by which plant growth on a day-to-day basis is activated at specific times of the day in a manner dependent on photoperiod and temperature conditions. Plant growth is controlled by the clock through interactions with light and phytohormone signaling. This review focuses on the node that connects clock output to light and phytohormone signaling that coordinates plant growth with rhythmic changes in the environment.
Inhibition of Nuclear Factor‐Kappa B Sensitises Anterior Pituitary Cells to Tumour Necrosis Factor‐α‐ and Lipopolysaccharide‐Induced Apoptosis

Nuclear factor‐kappa B (NF‐κB), an important pro‐inflammatory factor, is a crucial regulator of cell survival. Both lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and tumour necrosis factor (TNF)‐α activate NF‐κB signalling. Oestrogens were shown to suppress NF‐κB activation. Oestrogens exert a sensitising action to pro‐apoptotic stimuli such as LPS and TNF‐α in anterior pituitary cells. In the present study, we show by western blotting that 17β‐oestradiol (E2) decreases TNF‐α‐induced NF‐κB/p65 and p50 nuclear translocation in primary cultures of anterior pituitary cells from ovariectomised (OVX) rats. Also, the in vivo administration of E2 decreases LPS‐induced NF‐κB/p65 and p50 nuclear translocation. To investigate whether the inhibition of NF‐κB pathway sensitises anterior pituitary cells to pro‐apoptotic stimuli, we used an inhibitor of NF‐κB activity, BAY 11‐7082 (BAY). BAY, at a concentration that fails to induce apoptosis, has permissive action on TNF‐α‐induced apoptosis of lactotrophs and somatotrophs from OVX rats, as assessed by terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labelling (TUNEL). Pharmacological inhibition of NF‐κB signalling enhances E2‐sensitising effect to TNF‐α‐induced apoptosis in lactotrophs but not in somatotrophs. In vivo administration of BAY allowed LPS‐induced apoptosis in anterior pituitary cells from OVX rats (determined by fluorescence activated cell sorting). Furthermore, LPS‐induced expression of Bcl‐xL in pituitaries of OVX rats is decreased by E2 administration. Our results show that inhibition of the NF‐κB signalling pathway sensitises anterior pituitary cells to the pro‐apoptotic action of LPS and TNF‐α. Because E2 inhibits LPS‐ and TNF‐α‐activated NF‐κB nuclear translocation, the present study suggests that E2 sensitises anterior pituitary cells to TNF‐α‐ and LPS‐induced apoptosis by inhibiting NF‐κB activity.
Public-Private Wage Differentials and the Quality of Government Workers in the Philippines

This paper estimates the wage diÂ¤erential between public sector employees and their private sector counterparts in a developing country, the Philippines. It finds that public sector workers in this country are receiving an hourly wage premium over private sector employees of similar background. This wage premium is associated with a higher degree of pro-social behaviour among government workers relative to private sector workers. However, government employees are found to be working fewer hours than their counterparts in the private sector. College graduates are more likely to work in the government than non-college graduates but among college graduates, those with more specialized skills tend to be employed in the private sector rather than the public sector.
On providing real-time guarantees in cloud-based platforms

Cloud technologies are gaining more and more attentions in recent years. Cloud-based service brings benefits in cost, energy efficiency, sharing of resources, increased flexibility, adaptability and evolvability. However, there are a number of associated challenges that need to be properly addressed before applying the cloud technique generally in industries. Providing efficient and predictable computation and communication is one of the important challenges, since many industrial systems (e.g. a control system) have specific timing requirements. Our current work thus focuses on guaranteeing the predictability of a cloud-based service. Virtualization, as one of the key technologies in Cloud Computing, is used to abstract details of resources away from end-services which simplifies the resource sharing. It thus improves the resource utilization and saves budget for end-users. In this preliminary work, we have implemented a distributed system using virtualization techniques (including virtual machines and virtual switches). Additionally, we generate a number of experiments to investigate how QoS policies can help us to provide real-time communication guarantees.
Adverse Effects of D-Penicillamine in Rheumatoid Arthritis

Adverse effects to D-penicillamine were studied prospectively over 3 years in 259 patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Ninety-five percent had had gold therapy previously, yet 70% benefited from D-penicillamine therapy. Of the 275 courses given, 160 (58%) were complicated by at least one reaction, including rashes (44%), dysgeusia (20%), gastrointestinal upset (18%), stomatitis (10%), proteinuria (7%), thrombocytopenia (3%), and leukopenia (2%). Their occurrences peaked in the first 6 months of treatment, except for proteinuria and thrombocytopenia, which peaked in the second 6 months. Reactions were commoner at daily doses above 250 mg; mean daily doses for proteinuria, thrombocytopenia, and leukopenia were higher (approximately 600 mg/d) than for the others (approximately 500 mg/d). Of 114 discontinued courses, 73 (27%) were due to adverse reactions. The remaining reactions were controlled by altering dosages and symptomatic treatment. Only obliterative bronchiolitis (two cases) was irreversible; it resulted in the only death in our series, possibly attributable to penicillamine.
Lack of sequence variations in the C4b‐BP β‐chain in patients with type III protein S deficiency bearing the Ser 460 to Pro mutation: description of two new intragenic isomorphisms in the C4b‐BP β‐chain gene (C4BPB)

Type III protein S (PS) deficiency, characterized by low levels of free PS and normal total PS levels, is often associated with the Ser 460 to Pro substitution. However, some patients bearing this mutation have normal PS levels, suggesting that another gene defect may account for this phenotype. We postulated that this defect was located in the C4b‐BP β‐chain gene (C4BPB) and searched for a mutation in the coding regions of this gene in 35 propositi with type III PS deficiency and bearing the Ser 460 to Pro mutation. No mutations explaining the phenotype of type III PS deficiency were identified. We did, however, find two frequent nucleotide changes, one being located in the donor splice site of intron d and the second in the codon corresponding to Asn 137. We used these two polymorphisms to establish C4BPB gene haplotype in five informative type III PS‐deficient families and exclude a role of the C4BPB gene in this phenotype of three of them. Finally, increased C4b‐BP β‐chain levels were not responsible for the phenotype of type III PS deficiency as the C4BPB haplotype did not correlate with C4b‐BP β‐chain levels.
Water contents in mantle xenoliths from the Colorado Plateau and vicinity: Implications for the mantle rheology and hydration‐induced thinning of continental lithosphere

[1] Nominally anhydrous minerals (e.g., olivine, clinopyroxene, and orthopyroxene) in peridotite xenoliths collected from the Colorado Plateau and southern Basin and Range in western North America were systematically analyzed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy for water contents. Measured water contents range from 2 to 45 ppm for olivine, from 53 to 402 ppm for orthopyroxene, and from 171 to 957 ppm for clinopyroxene. The Colorado Plateau has the highest water contents (up to 45 ppm H2O in olivine, 402 ppm H2O in orthopyroxene, and 957 ppm H2O in clinopyroxene), while San Carlos in the southern Basin and Range has the lowest water contents (up to 4 ppm H2O in olivine, 82 ppm H2O in orthopyroxene, and 178 ppm H2O in clinopyroxene). With the exception of San Carlos, the olivine and pyroxenes from all other localities (Dish Hill, Grand Canyon, and Navajo) have water contents close to or higher than that inferred for the fertile asthenospheric mantle. We interpret the high water contents measured here to have been introduced into the base of the lithospheric mantle by rehydration associated with the subduction of the Farallon plate beneath North America during the early Cenozoic. Application of an updated flow law for dislocation creep of wet olivine to lithospheric mantle conditions beneath the Colorado Plateau predicts that for a given background shear stress, hydration alone can result in approximately 1 order of magnitude drop in the effective viscosity at the base of the lithosphere. If viscosity alone is used to distinguish the lithosphere from underlying asthenosphere, this suggests that hydration could have resulted in more than 10 km of lithospheric thinning. Viscosity reduction and lithospheric thinning of even larger extents (up to ∼100 km) are predicted when thicker lithosphere (such as Archean cratons) and larger water contents (up to water-saturated conditions) are considered. If our interpretations are correct, the implications of our study go beyond western North America and hint at a possible way of recycling continental mantle, including cratonic mantle, back into the convecting mantle.
THE ASIAN FINANCIAL CRISIS - Implications for the Environment

The recent economic crisis in Asia has resulted in sharp declines in the currencies, stock markets, and other asset prices of many Asian countries and has put pressure on the global economy. The environmental issue is considered long term and government policy remains generally unaffected by the economic crisis. However, in the countries hardest hit by the recent Asian crisis, environmental policies that present a cost to industry are being delayed. In addition, capital spending programs for wastewater, solid waste and air pollution have been cut as these countries rely heavily on imported technology and services for key components of their environmental
Volatile Environments and Interfirm Governance: Does Trust Matter?

Purpose: Manufacturers in volatile environments should rely on governance mechanisms to reduce the risks inherent in those environments. However, it remains to be determined which governance mechanism a given manufacturer will develop in volatile environments in order to manage the relationship with its supplier. The principal objective of this study is to explain circumstances in which different governance mechanisms function under volatile environmental conditions. Methodology: The empirical test was conducted with manufacturing companies in the context of manufacturer-supplier relationships. Construct measures were based on existing measures and previous research. Measurement reliability and validity were established using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis and an overall measurement model was assessed with structural equation modeling using LISREL 8.54. Findings: The results of this study showed that manufacturers should consider the level of trust they bestow on their suppliers to select an appropriate governance mechanism to deal with environmental volatility. When a manufacturer does not trust its supplier under conditions of environmental volatility, the manufacturer should consider adopting unilateral governance. If a manufacturer trusts its supplier, it should consider bilateral governance to respond in a timely manner to changes in the resource market. Contribution: This study introduced trust to explain governance mechanisms in an uncertain environment and showed that interorganizational trust is a condition for influencing a manufacturer's propensity toward a specific governance mechanism.
Neuropsychological aspects of multiple sclerosis: a quantitative review.

Neuropsychological studies of multiple sclerosis (MS) from a 20-year period were reviewed using meta-analytic and vote-count techniques. Mean effect sizes comparing MS and healthy control groups on variables categorized by neuropsychological domain were small to moderate in magnitude; all were statistically significant (M(r) = . 22 (.13) to . 46 (.15), rW = . 23 to . 43, all p < . 05). Interhemispheric transfer, general cognitive ability, and learning/memory were more highly related to MS than were visuoperceptual, visuospatial, and visuoconstructional ability, language and conceptual ability (all p < .05); other domains were generally intermediate. Despite previous reports to the contrary, disease subtype was not shown to be consistently related to neuropsychological status independently of other potential explanatory variables. Findings were interpreted with regard to future research and clinical activities involving patients with MS, including selection of tests for brief neuropsychological screening examinations.
Real Earnings Management Around CEO Turnovers

Following a change in CEO, US firms manage earnings downward by adjusting real business activities and accruals. The decision of new-CEO firms to give earnings a “bath” is influenced by CEO compensation, institutional investor concentration, analyst following, capital structure, and quarterly earnings pattern. The choice of real versus accrual-based earnings management strategies depends on the firm’s ability to use an accrual-based bath. These earnings baths are more pronounced after external CEO successions.
Institutional distance and location choice of multinational enterprises

Even though scholars have realized the importance of the impact of the institutional environment on the strategy of MNEs, most of them have overlooked the first and essential step of the FDI decision—location choice. In this paper, we link institutional theory and location choice literature and propose that the difference in the host country and home country‘s institutional environments institutional distance has a negative effect on the FDI‘s location choice. We also formulate hypotheses about firm specific attributes that may moderate this impact of institutional distance on location choice. Using data on Japanese companies‘ FDI information and the World Bank Governance indicator, we empirically test these ideas and the results show that the greater institutional distance significantly diminishes the MNE's intention to invest
Internet Reduces the Time Before Lease-up or Sale of Office Properties

The time an office property remains available on the Internet before lease-up or sale is a parameter that has not been documented to this point. This paper estimates and compares this time to the corresponding time on the traditional market. The study area comprises of states and cities across the United States with a dataset of thousands of Internet office properties. The average time reduction on the Internet was approximately estimated as 50% for leases and 10-15% for sales compared to the time on the traditional market.
A QPCR‐based reporter system to study post‐transcriptional regulation via the 3′ untranslated region of mRNA in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Post‐transcriptional regulation via the 3′ untranslated region (3′ UTR) of mRNA is an important factor in governing eukaryotic gene expression. Achieving detailed understanding of these processes requires highly quantitative systems in which comparative studies can be performed. To this end, we have developed a plasmid reporter system for Saccharomyces cerevisiae, in which the 3′ UTR can be easily replaced and modified. Accurate quantification of the tandem affinity purification tag (TAP)‐reporter protein and of TAP‐mRNA is achieved by immuno‐QPCR and by RT‐QPCR, respectively. We have used our reporter system to evaluate the consequences on gene expression from varying the 3′ UTR, a problem often encountered during C‐terminal tagging of proteins. It was clear that the choice of 3′ UTR was a strong determinant of the reporter expression, in a manner dependent on the growth conditions used. Mutations affecting either decapping (lsm1Δ) or deadenylation (pop2Δ) were also found to affect reporter gene expression in a highly 3′ UTR‐dependent manner. Our results using this set‐up clearly indicate that the common strategy used for C‐terminal tagging, with concomitant replacement of the native 3′ UTR, will very likely provide incorrect conclusions on gene expression. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.