Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
La influencia del capital intelectual en el desempeño de las pequeñas y medianas empresas manufactureras de México: el caso de Baja California.

El satisfactorio desempeño de las organizaciones puede deberse a varios factores, entrelos que se encuentra el capital intelectual, que ha cobrado especial relevancia debido a que los bienes intangibles generan más valor que incluso los tangibles. La literatura al respecto señala que el incremento del valor en las pequeñas y medianas empresas recae en gran medida en el mantenimiento de un capital intelectual próspero y en constante evolución. El presente artículo tiene como objetivo establecer la influencia del capital intelectual en el desempeño de las pequeñas y medianas empresas del sector manufacturero de la región mexicana de Baja California. Para ello, se diseñó un cuestionario aplicado a 149 empresas de la región. Los resultados obtenidos recibieron un tratamiento estadístico basado primeramente en un análisis factorial de tipo exploratorio,seguido de uno confirmatorio; posteriormente, mediante el uso de regresiones lineales, se pudo dar comprobación a las hipótesis planteadas en el estudio. Los resultados mostraron que efectivamente existe una fuerte influencia del capital intelectual sobre el desempeño de las organizaciones. Asimismo, de manera específica se demostró que el capital organizativo es el que mayor influencia presenta en relación con el capital social y del cliente; en contraste, el capital tecnológico y humano no presentaron asociación alguna con el desempeño de las organizaciones. Los resultados permiten detectar áreas de oportunidad e implementar estrategias que revaloricen sus intangibles y, con ello, generen mayor valor para sus organizaciones.
Reconstruction and analysis of a deciduous sapling using digital photographs or terrestrial-LiDAR technology.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS To meet the increasing need for rapid and non-destructive extraction of canopy traits, two methods were used and compared with regard to their accuracy in estimating 2-D and 3-D parameters of a hybrid poplar sapling. METHODS The first method consisted of the analysis of high definition photographs in Tree Analyser (TA) software (PIAF-INRA/Kasetsart University). TA allowed the extraction of individual traits using a space carving approach. The second method utilized 3-D point clouds acquired from terrestrial light detection and ranging (T-LiDAR) scans. T-LiDAR scans were performed on trees without leaves to reconstruct the lignified structure of the sapling. From this skeleton, foliage was added using simple modelling rules extrapolated from field measurements. Validation of the estimated dimension and the accuracy of reconstruction was then achieved by comparison with an empirical data set. KEY RESULTS TA was found to be slightly less precise than T-LiDAR for estimating tree height, canopy height and mean canopy diameter, but for 2-D traits both methods were, however, fully satisfactory. TA tended to over-estimate total leaf area (error up to 50 %), but better estimates were obtained by reducing the size of the voxels used for calculations. In contrast, T-LiDAR estimated total leaf area with an error of <6 %. Finally, both methods led to an over-estimation of canopy volume. With respect to this trait, T-LiDAR (14·5 % deviation) greatly surpassed the accuracy of TA (up to 50 % deviation), even if the voxels used were reduced in size. CONCLUSIONS Taking into account their magnitude of data acquisition and analysis and their accuracy in trait estimations, both methods showed contrasting potential future uses. Specifically, T-LiDAR is a particularly promising tool for investigating the development of large perennial plants, by itself or in association with plant modelling.
Households Energy Consumption Pattern and Demand in Pakistan

This study examined household energy consumption pattern in Pakistan using Linear Approximate Almost Ideal Demand System (LA-AIDS). Price and expenditure elasticities estimated for the energy demand using a household income and expenditure data of the year 2011-12. The energy consumption expenditure pattern of rural and urban region is different. The study reveals that electricity is the most important and highly consumable source of energy for the household living in the country. Electricity and natural gas are the highly consumed fuel in the urban areas, whereas, electricity and firewood in the rural areas. The energy consumption expenditure is inelastic with respect to changes in income except for firewood for urban region. All the estimated expenditure elasticities of the energy types were found less than one indicating that energy consumption is the necessity for the household
Vitamin E Deficiency in Developing Countries

In addition to its role as a potent antioxidant, vitamin E is involved in a wide range of physiological processes, ranging from immune function and control of inflammation to regulation of gene expression and cognitive performance. Results from multiple studies suggest that poor nutritional status and higher prevalence of other oxidative stressors such as malaria and HIV infection predispose populations in developing countries for vitamin E deficiency. Although direct comparison between study outcomes is complicated by varied definitions of vitamin E deficiency, data trends indicate that children and the elderly are more vulnerable age groups and that men may be at higher risk for deficiency than women. Public health initiatives aimed at improving the vitamin E status of high-risk populations in developing countries would be prudent to counteract oxidative stress, improve immune function, and protect against neurologic and cognitive deficits. Additional research is needed to estabish dose—response relationships of various interventions and to develop cost-effective, culturally-appropriate, and targeted programs.
Protein-tyrosine Phosphatase DEP-1 Controls Receptor Tyrosine Kinase FLT3 Signaling*

Fms-like tyrosine kinase 3 (FLT3) plays an important role in hematopoietic differentiation, and constitutively active FLT3 mutant proteins contribute to the development of acute myeloid leukemia. Little is known about the protein-tyrosine phosphatases (PTP) affecting the signaling activity of FLT3. To identify such PTP, myeloid cells expressing wild type FLT3 were infected with a panel of lentiviral pseudotypes carrying shRNA expression cassettes targeting different PTP. Out of 20 PTP tested, expressed in hematopoietic cells, or presumed to be involved in oncogenesis or tumor suppression, DEP-1 (PTPRJ) was identified as a PTP negatively regulating FLT3 phosphorylation and signaling. Stable 32D myeloid cell lines with strongly reduced DEP-1 levels showed site-selective hyperphosphorylation of FLT3. In particular, the sites pTyr-589, pTyr-591, and pTyr-842 involved in the FLT3 ligand (FL)-mediated activation of FLT3 were hyperphosphorylated the most. Similarly, acute depletion of DEP-1 in the human AML cell line THP-1 caused elevated FLT3 phosphorylation. Direct interaction of DEP-1 and FLT3 was demonstrated by “substrate trapping” experiments showing association of DEP-1 D1205A or C1239S mutant proteins with FLT3 by co-immunoprecipitation. Moreover, activated FLT3 could be dephosphorylated by recombinant DEP-1 in vitro. Enhanced FLT3 phosphorylation in DEP-1-depleted cells was accompanied by enhanced FLT3-dependent activation of ERK and cell proliferation. Stable overexpression of DEP-1 in 32D cells and transient overexpression with FLT3 in HEK293 cells resulted in reduction of FL-mediated FLT3 signaling activity. Furthermore, FL-stimulated colony formation of 32D cells expressing FLT3 in methylcellulose was induced in response to shRNA-mediated DEP-1 knockdown. This transforming effect of DEP-1 knockdown was consistent with a moderately increased activation of STAT5 upon FL stimulation but did not translate into myeloproliferative disease formation in the 32D-C3H/HeJ mouse model. The data indicate that DEP-1 is negatively regulating FLT3 signaling activity and that its loss may contribute to but is not sufficient for leukemogenic cell transformation.
The development of mental terms: pragmatics or semantics?

ABSTRACT The distinctions between the mental terms, know, think and sure was examined in an experiment with 60 children between three and six years of age. The children were required to find an object hidden in one of two places. Their only clues were two statements involving contrasting mental terms, with each statement referring to one of the possible hiding places. Results showed a significant improvement with age for the know-think and sure-think contrasts, with think treated as a less reliable index of location than both know and sure by four to five years of age. No change with age was found for know-sure contrast. It is concluded that by four to five years of age, children recognize the function of mental terms to express degrees of certainty, and that this understanding is probably not based on the factive properties of the terms.
[Effect of S-adenosyl-L-methionine sulfate tosylate (FO-1561) on functional recovery after transient cerebral ischemia in rats].

The present investigation was undertaken to examine the recovery of functions, spontaneous EEG activity and cerebral ATP content during blood recirculation following cerebral ischemia in rats. The ischemia was induced by bilateral carotid artery 30 min-occlusion 24 hr after the permanent electrocauterization of bilateral vertebral arteries. EEG spectral analysis was performed by the Berg transform. The recovery of EEG activity was assessed by the time elapsing from the onset of blood recirculation until the delta (0.5-4 Hz), theta (4-8 Hz), alpha (8-13 Hz) or beta (13-32 32 Hz) band reappeared and the relative proportion of the four bands at 45 and 60 min after recirculation. Following the 20 min recirculation, the brains were frozen in situ with liquid nitrogen and then stored at -80 degrees C for later extraction for analysis. Concentrations of ATP in the cerebral cortex were determined with enzymatic methods. In animals administered FO-1561 (10 approximately 100 mg/kg, i.v.) simultaneously with blood recirculation, the reduction of time elapsing until reappearance of the theta, alpha and beta bands, the decrease in proportion of the delta band and the increase in that of the theta, alpha and beta bands which indicated the facilitation of transition to the normal state were observed. In animals administered FO-1561 (100 mg/kg), the improvement of ATP content was detected. These results demonstrate that FO-1561 may have a beneficial effect on the recovery from dysfunctions due to cerebrovascular disorder.
A randomized trial of vitamin E supplementation and cognitive function in women.

BACKGROUND Oxidative stress may play a key role in the development of cognitive impairment. Long-term supplementation with vitamin E, a strong antioxidant, may provide cognitive benefits. METHODS The Women's Health Study is a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of vitamin E supplementation (600 IU [alpha-tocopherol acetate], on alternate days) begun between 1992 and 1995 among 39 876 healthy US women. From 1998, 6377 women 65 years or older participated in a cognitive substudy. Three cognitive assessments of general cognition, verbal memory, and category fluency were administered by telephone at 2-year intervals. The primary outcome was a global composite score averaging performance on all tests. Repeated measures analyses were conducted to examine mean performance and mean differences in cognitive change, and logistic regression was used to estimate relative risks of substantial decline. RESULTS There were no differences in global score between the vitamin E and placebo groups at the first assessment (5.6 years after randomization: mean difference, -0.01; 95% confidence interval [CI], -0.04 to 0.03) or at the last assessment (9.6 years of treatment: mean difference, 0.00; 95% CI, -0.04 to 0.04). Mean cognitive change over time was also similar in the vitamin E group compared with the placebo group for the global score (mean difference in change, 0.02; 95% CI, -0.01 to 0.05; P = .16). The relative risk of substantial decline in the global score in the vitamin E group compared with the placebo group was 0.92 (95% CI, 0.77 to 1.10). CONCLUSION Long-term use of vitamin E supplements did not provide cognitive benefits among generally healthy older women.
Hip muscle imbalance and low back pain in athletes: influence of core strengthening.

PURPOSE The influence of a core-strengthening program on low back pain (LBP) occurrence and hip strength differences were studied in NCAA Division I collegiate athletes. METHODS In 1998, 1999, and 2000, hip strength was measured during preparticipation physical examinations and occurrence of LBP was monitored throughout the year. Following the 1999-2000 preparticipation physicals, all athletes began participation in a structured core-strengthening program, which emphasized abdominal, paraspinal, and hip extensor strengthening. Incidence of LBP and the relationship with hip muscle imbalance were compared between consecutive academic years. RESULTS After incorporation of core strengthening, there was no statistically significant change in LBP occurrence. Side-to-side extensor strength between athletes participating in both the 1998-1999 and 1999-2000 physicals were no different. After core strengthening, the right hip extensor was, on average, stronger than that of the left hip extensor (P = 0.0001). More specific gender differences were noted after core strengthening. Using logistic regression, female athletes with weaker left hip abductors had a more significant probability of requiring treatment for LBP (P = 0.009) CONCLUSION The impact of core strengthening on collegiate athletes has not been previously examined. These results indicated no significant advantage of core strengthening in reducing LBP occurrence, though this may be more a reflection of the small numbers of subjects who actually required treatment. The core program, however, seems to have had a role in modifying hip extensor strength balance. The association between hip strength and future LBP occurrence, observed only in females, may indicate the need for more gender-specific core programs. The need for a larger scale study to examine the impact of core strengthening in collegiate athletes is demonstrated.
Postoperative Care Following Pituitary Surgery

Patients undergoing surgery for pituitary tumors represent a heterogeneous population each with unique clinical, biochemical, radiologic, pathologic, neurologic, and/or ophthalmologic considerations. The postoperative management of patients following pituitary surgery often occurs in the context of a dynamic state of the hypothalamic-pituitary-end organ axis. Consequently, a significant component of the postoperative care of these patients focuses on vigilant screening and observation for neuroendocrinologic perturbations such as varying degrees of hypopituitarism and disorders of water balance (diabetes insipidus and the syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone). Additionally, one must be cognizant of other potential complications specific to the transsphenoidal approach for tumor removal including cerebrospinal fluid leakage and meningitis. This review addresses the postoperative management of patients undergoing pituitary surgery with an emphasis on careful screening and recognition of complications.
Chronic Pelvic Pain: An Integrated Approach to Diagnosis and Treatment

Chronic pelvic pain affects upward of 15% of women and is a frustrating condition for both patients and physicians. Chronic pelvic pain is not a disease, but a syndrome that results from a complex interaction between neurologic, musculoskeletal, and endocrine systems that is further influenced by behavioral and psychologic factors. Traditional approaches to this disorder have been surgical, although long-term success rates have been disappointing. Placebo response to surgery is common, and many conditions that contribute to the pain cannot be identified or treated with a surgical approach. Many patients will require a combination of both pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic treatments in addition to various types of invasive procedures. It is now recognized that many disorders contribute to the chronic pelvic pain symptom complex; thus, an integrated multidisciplinary approach to diagnosis and treatment is essential to achieve the greatest success. Target Audience: Obstetricians & Gynecologists, Family Physicians Learning Objectives: After completion of this article, the reader will be able to describe the pathophysiology of chronic pelvic pain, to outline the evaluation of a patient with chronic pelvic pain, and to explain the treatment options for patients with chronic pelvic pain.
Peculiar T-Cell Signaling Does Not Preclude Positive Selection in the Diabetes-Prone BB Rat

Various studies have provided evidence that peripheral T-cells from the diabetes-prone BB-DP rat are abnormal in function and cell surface phenotype. These characteristics have often been interpreted as indicators of immaturity and/or short life span. In this study, we describe a CD4-dependent signaling abnormality in BB-DP peripheral T-cells. In spite of the fact that CD4 plays a critical role in thymocyte development, the abnormal signaling does not appear to influence thymocyte development at the stage when the T-cell receptor is rearranged and the recombinase enzymes RAG-1 and RAG-2 transcripts are downregulated. Therefore, if a maturation defect leading to the seeding of the periphery with immature T-cells occurs in the BB-DP rat, it does not preclude the initial selection of the self major histocompatibility complex-restricted T-cell repertoire.
Urban Decarbonization: Politics and Practices of Carbon Neutrality

Urban transformation for decarbonization is a significant challenge. Despite widespread and growing adoption of local goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, climate change mitigation action in cities has taken a piecemeal rather than systemic approach. This dissertation examines how urban low carbon transformations are being imagined, implemented and evaluated. The research design uses a mixed methods approach, including discourse analysis of policy storylines, textual network analysis of planned urban carbon neutrality configurations, and three in-depth urban case studies of Stockholm, London and San Francisco. First, the research examines how urban decarbonization is being imagined by identifying visions for the built environment in carbon neutral urban futures and the storylines driving those urban imaginaries. Key findings include that the developing sociotechnical imaginary of urban carbon neutrality is structuring shifts in policy and practice and that different imaginaries of energy futures are sending cities down divergent sociotechnical paths. Second, the research analyzes the implementation of urban decarbonization. Using a material politics approach, the dissertation examines patterns in which aspects of buildings and energy infrastructure are made to matter as actors implement low carbon measures in the case study cities and finds that emerging patterns in practice carry implications for whether or not cities are on trajectories toward decarbonization. iii Third, the dissertation contributes to methods of evaluating urban decarbonization by applying a different measure for assessing the effectiveness of urban climate measures – transformative capacity. Using this approach, the dissertation concludes that transformative capacity is under development for new urban space in the case studies, but the effort to change the existing built environment has faced challenges that have limited implementation. This research makes two main contributions to climate governance literature. First, it advances new ways to consider successful progress in urban carbon governance. By combining an examination of the material politics of implemented decarbonization efforts in cities with a policy scaling and entrenchment lens, this dissertation opens up the consideration of progress in carbon governance to encompass the messy, materially embedded and contested transformation of infrastructure. Second, this research develops a deeper understanding of urban carbon neutrality, which represents a new scope of urban action that is aiming for transformative change. The dissertation not only breaks down the building blocks of planned decarbonization, but also considers the ways that these elements are woven together to become narratives that tell an engaging story about the future of cities. Responding to the climate crisis means disruptive change to many of society’s systems in order to avoid catastrophe. While the scope of the transformation is daunting, the process of reimagining and reconfiguring cities can also open the door for new possibilities.
Cytotoxicity and Enterotoxicity of the Thermostable Direct Hemolysin‐Deletion Mutants of Vibrio parahaemolyticus

The thermostable direct hemolysin (TDH) has been proposed to be a major virulence factor of Vibrio parahaemolyticus. We have recently completed the genome sequence of a TDH‐producing V. parahaemolyticus strain, RIMD2210633. In this study, we constructed tdh‐deletion mutants from the sequenced strain by homologous recombination and analyzed their phenotypes. Although the deletion of both copies of tdh completely abolished the hemolytic activity of the wild‐type strain, the deletion did not affect the cytotoxicity to HeLa cells. Enterotoxicity, assayed by the rabbit ileal loop test, was lowered by tdh deletion, but the mutant still showed partial fluid accumulation in rabbit intestine. These results indicate that the cytotoxicity and enterotoxicity of TDH‐producing V. parahaemolyticus are not explained by TDH alone, and suggest that an unknown virulence factor(s) could be involved in these pathogenic activities.
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN FAIR VALUE ACCOUNTING AND FINANCIAL CRISIS OF EUROPEAN BANKING INDUSTRY

Abstract : The study aims to prove a correlation between fair value accounting and the financial crisis in European banking. The use of fair value accounting is considered to exacerbate the financial crisis and is the reason for the re-use of historical cost accounting. By using a logit regression model, this research proves that more fair value-oriented accounting indexes have a weaker relationship with the financial crisis in the banking system than more historically-oriented accounting. However, the grouping of fair value accounting valuation model into three levels creates different strength of the relationship with the financial crisis. The lower the level that is used in an accounting index, the stronger the association between fair value accounting and the financial crisis in the banking system. Moreover, it has been proven that the use of fair value accounting index on liabilities produces a stronger association with the financial crisis in the banking system than when it is used on assets. Abstract The study aims to prove a correlation between fair value accounting and the financial crisis in European banking. The use of fair value accounting is considered to exacerbate the financial crisis and is the reason for the re-use of historical cost accounting. By using a logit regression model, this research proves that more fair value-oriented accounting indexes have a weaker relationship with the financial crisis in the banking system than more historically-oriented accounting. However, the grouping of fair value accounting valuation model into three levels creates different strength of the relationship with the financial crisis. The lower the level that is used in an accounting index, the stronger the association between fair value accounting and the financial crisis in the banking system. Moreover, it has been proven that the use of fair value accounting index on liabilities produces a stronger association with the financial crisis in the banking system than when it is used on assets.