Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
What Are B Chromosomes

ABC Fax + 41 61 306 12 34 E-mail karger@karger.ch www.karger. com © 2004 S. Karger AG, Basel 0301–0171/04/1064–0165$21.00/0 Accessible online at: www.karger. com/cgr Abstract. In humans, the presence of supernumerary chromosomes is an unusual phenomenon, which is often associated with developmental abnormalities and malformations. In contrast to most animal and plant species, the extensive knowledge of the human genome and the ample set of molecular and cytogenetic tools available have permitted to ascertain not only that most human supernumerary chromosomes (HSCs) derive from the A chromosome set, but also the specific A chromosome from which most of them arose. These extra chromosomes are classified into six types on the basis of morphology and size. There are both heterochromatic and euchromatic HSCs, the latter being more detrimental. Most are mitotically stable, except some producing individual mosaicism. No information is available on the HSC transmission rate since extensive familial studies are not usually performed generally because of death of the relatives or lack of cooperation. The main B chromosome property failing in HSCs seems to be their population spread as polymorphisms, since most HSCs seem to correspond to extra A chromosomes or centric fragments spontaneously arisen in the analysed individual or one of his/her parents. However, we cannot rule out at this moment, that more intensive studies on population distribution and frequency of those HSCs most closely resembling B chromosomes (i.e. those heterochromatic and thus less detrimental) would reveal possible HSCs polymorphisms. Although HSCs cannot be considered B chromosomes, some of them might be a source for future B chromosomes. The best candidates would be heterochromatic HSCs, which might manage to drive in either sex. To ascertain this possibility, research on inheritance and population studies would be very helpful in combination with the powerful cytogenetic and molecular tools available for our species.
Modelleren en regelen van een actief-slibinstallatie op basis van respirometrie.

1. Inleiding Bij QUEST INTERNATIONAL, een geur-en smaakstoffenindustrie, wordt het afvalwater in een carrousel gezuiverd. Er zijn twee afvalwaterstromen. De eerste laag verontreinigde stroom (LW)C 500-4.500 mg CZV/1) bevat afvalwater afkomstig van kantoren, laboratoria, regenwater en dergelijke. De tweede, zwaar verontreinigde stroom (PW)C 7.000-45.000 mg CZV/1) is proceswater afkomstig van verschillende produktieafdelingen.
Synthesis and characterization of suspension‐polymerized poly(vinyl alcohol) beads with core–shell structure

A new method of preparing large spherical PVA beads (up to 1.5 mm diameter) with a core-shell structure has been developed. This involves a stepwise saponification of suspension polymerized PVAc beads, followed by a stepwise crosslinking of the PVA core and shell with glutaraldehyde. The resulting composite PVA beads have thin, highly crosslinked outer shells and lightly to moderately crosslinked inner cores of different degrees of crosslinking. In addition to the characterization of structural parameters, the kinetics of solute release and the swelling dynamics, including the transient dimensional changes, have been investigated using proxyphylline as a model compound. © 1992 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Physicochemical properties, total phenol and tocopherol of some Acacia seed oils

BACKGROUND: Recently, there has been an increase in the number of investigations into the possible use of vegetable oils as a source of oleochemicals to supplement petrochemicals. We have therefore determined the physicochemical properties of Acacia oils and compared them with groundnut oil as a first step toward their possible industrial utilization. RESULTS: The chemical properties of Acacia oils compared well and surpassed those of groundnut oil in iodine value (1549.3, 1783.3 and 1093.1 g iodine kg−1 oil for A. colei, A. tumida and groundnut oils, respectively), saponification value (201.74, 202.15 and 198.01 g KOH kg−1 oil for A. colei, A. tumida and groundnut oils, respectively). Total phenol and tocopherol content of Acacia oils were also higher compared with groundnut oil. Refractive index, specific gravity and viscosity were higher in Acacia seed oils than in groundnut oil but the smoke point of Acacia oil was lower than that of groundnut oil. Acacia oils were higher in some essential elements (Mg, Ca, Fe, Zn and Cu) when compare with groundnut oil. CONCLUSION: The properties of Acacia oils revealed that they could be useful as drying oils, in soap making and as lubricants at low temperatures. They could also be dietary sources of natural antioxidants and essential elements. Copyright © 2007 Society of Chemical Industry
Syntheses of 12-arm star polymers and star diblock copolymers by nitroxide-mediated radical polymerization using dendritic dodecafunctional macroinitiators

Dendritic multifunctional macroinitiators having 12 TEMPO-based alkoxyamines were prepared by the reaction of a benzyl alcohol having 4 TEMPO-based alkoxyamines with 1,3,5-tris[(4-chlorocarbonyl)phenyl]benzene and 1,3,5-tris(4-isocyanatophenyl)benzene. Using the dodecafunctional macroinitiators, TEMPO-mediated radical polymerizations of styrene (St) were carried out at 120 °C, and 12-arm star polymers (star-12) with narrow polydispersities of Mw/Mn = 1.06–1.26 were obtained. To evaluate the livingness for the TEMPO-mediated radical polymerizations of St, hydrolysis of the ester bonds of the 12-arm star polymers and subsequent SEC measurements were carried out. Furthermore, using star-12 as the macroinitiator, TEMPO-mediated radical polymerization of 4-vinylpyridine (4-VP) was carried out, and well-defined poly(St)-b-poly(4-VP) 12-arm star diblock copolymers with Mw/Mn = 1.18–1.19 were obtained. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 43: 3689–3700, 2005
Effect of carbon‐oxygen and carbon‐sulphur surface complexes on the adsorption of mercuric chloride in aqueous solutions by activated carbons

Several activated carbons obtained from commercial sources have been tested for their ability to remove mercuric chloride (HgCl2) from aqueous solutions. The chemical nature of the surface of the activated carbons was changed by introducing carbon-oxygen and carbon-sulphur surface complexes. The influence of these types of complexes on the adsorption of HgCl2 by the activated carbons has been studied. It seems that the existence of hydroquinonic, phenolic and hydrosulphide groups on the surface of the carbon reduces Hg(II) to Hg(I). However, there was an increase in the adsorption of Hg(II) when sulphide or hydrosulphide groups were present on the surface of the carbon. The effect of the pH of the solutions on HgCl2 adsorption was also studied; when the pH was changed from 1 to 7 there was an enhancement of the adsorption of HgCl2 by the activated carbons.
Lipase Covalently Attached to Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubes as an Efficient Catalyst in Organic Solvent

Lipase was covalently attached to multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs). Structural changes of the lipase upon attachment onto MWNTs were analyzed through circular dichroism and FTIR spectroscopy. The conjugate was utilized for the resolution of a model compound (R,S)-1-phenyl ethanol, and the reaction medium was n-heptane. The enzymatic resolutions were carried out at temperatures from 35 to 60°C. The results show that the lipase attached onto MWNTs has significantly affected the performance of the enzyme in terms of temperature dependence and resolution efficiency. The activity of MWNT–lipase was less temperature-dependent compared with that of the native lipase. The resolution efficiency was much improved with MWNT–lipase. MWNT–lipase retained the selectivity of the native lipase for (R)-1-phenyl ethanol. The consecutive use of MWNT–lipase showed that MWNT–lipase had a good stability in the resolution of (R,S)-1-phenyl ethanol. © 2010 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2010
Polymerization of furfuryl alcohol with trifluoroacetic acid: the influence of experimental conditions

Furfuryl alcohol was polymerized by trifluoroacetic acid in methylene chloride to give a colored polymer. This polymer possesses two main sequences in which the furan rings are connected by methylene groups (sequence 1) or by dimethylene ether groups (sequence 2). The polymer is not linear but highly branched, as detected by 1H and 13C NMR spectroscopy. Variations of the experimental conditions, such as the presence of air, the trifluoroacetic acid concentration, the reaction temperature and the solvent, do not allow a significant increase in the linear structure of the polymer. However, an increase in the acid concentration or an increase in temperature produce a decrease in the ether-bridged structure (sequences 2).
Behavioral modeling: inspiring college students to intervene in instances of sexual assault

ABSTRACT Sexual assault is a troubling issue across universities in the United States. Bystanders who witness sexual assault can play a powerful role in preventing or reducing sexual assault; however, they often do not intervene when they still have the chance. The current study uses an experimental design to study the effect of prosocial bystander modeling on college students’ intention to intervene in future witnessed instances of sexual assault. Results indicate that perceived behavioral control is more influential on intention to intervene when participants are exposed to the prosocial bystander message. This result suggests that vicarious learning may increase individuals’ perceived ability to intervene. Our findings have practical implications for improving sexual assault prevention training on college campuses.
Effects of simulated solar radiation on the bioaccumulation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons by the duckweed Lemna gibba

Light (particularly ultraviolet B) results in photomodification of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) to products with increased polarity and water solubility and enhanced toxicity relative to the parent compounds. The uptake and depuration kinetics of three representative PAHs, anthracene (ANT), phenanthrene (PHE), and benzo [a]pyrene (BAP), and their photomodified products were determined for Lemna gibba. The 14C‐labeled PAHs were delivered to the plants in their aqueous growth medium either via a dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) carrier or adsorbed directly to sand placed in the medium. Assimilation was carried out under simulated solar radiation (SSR) and in darkness. The potential sites of PAH action within the plants were defined by identifying the subcellular location of both intact and photomodified PAHs following assimilation. Lemna gibba had a high capacity for intact ANT, PHE, and BAP in the dark regardless of the two routes of delivery. Depuration was also rapid. Net assimilation of all three PAHs in the dark was always higher when the chemicals were delivered with DMSO than from sand, although first‐order kinetics were apparent with both delivery systems. The relative levels of assimilation were PHE > ANT > BAP. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons were rapidly assimilated under SSR, albeit net assimilation for both the intact and photomodified forms was generally lower under SSR compared with darkness. This was also reflected in the bioconcentration factors, which were highest in darkness for each PAH and dropped significantly under SSR and after photomodification. Both intact and photooxidized PAHs accumulated preferentially in the thylakoids and microsomes of L. gibba, suggesting these to be the subcellular compartments most at risk from PAH damage.
Secondary school science teachers’ attitudes towards STEM education in Liberia

ABSTRACT Many Liberian teachers have limited experiences and low efficacy for teaching science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), which results in students receiving little preparation and having low levels of motivation to pursue STEM careers in Liberia. Teacher attitudes are central for efficient teaching STEM. However, little is known about the attitudes of teachers towards STEM education, as well as what factors influence these attitudes among Liberian teachers. This paper describes a novel study on Liberian science teachers’ attitudes, and it seeks to elucidate and comprehend the current attitudes toward STEM education among science teachers and identify the factors that might influence these attitudes. A questionnaire was developed to examine attitudes towards STEM education among 194 in-service science teachers and was reinforced by interviews with 10 science teachers. A significant difference was observed between private- and public-school science teachers with respect to their overall attitude scores. A marginally significant difference was found among teachers from different grades. Findings from regression analysis showed that professional and administrative support, peer collaboration, STEM training, and teaching time positively influence science teachers’ attitudes towards STEM education. Recommendations regarding how to support these teachers were also provided based on the analysis of interview data.
Using Evaluative Criteria to Review Youth Anxiety Measures, Part II: Parent-Report

This Evidence Base Update of parent-report measures of youth anxiety symptoms is a companion piece to our update on youth self-report anxiety symptom measures (Etkin et al., 2021). We rate the psychometric properties of the parent-report measures as Adequate, Good, or Excellent using criteria developed by Hunsley and Mash (2008) and Youngstrom et al. (2017). Our review reveals that the evidence base for parent-report measures is considerably less developed compared with the evidence base for youth self-report measures. Nevertheless, several measures, the parent-report Screen for Child Anxiety-Related Emotional Disorders, Multidimensional Anxiety Scale for Children, and Spence Children’s Anxiety Scale, were found to have Good to Excellent psychometric properties. We conclude our review with suggestions about which parent-report youth anxiety measures are best suited to perform different assessment functions and directions for additional research to expand and strengthen the evidence base.
Preparation of cellulose acetate dialysis membrane using d-glucose monohydrate as additive

Dialisis membran yang mengandungi sellulosa asetat (CA) sebagai polimer, asid formik (FA) sebagai pelarut dan glukosa-D monohidrat sebagai bahan tambah telah disediakan melalui proses fasa balikan. Objektif utama bagi penyelidikan ini adalah untuk menyelidik pengaruh bahan tambah glukosa–D terhadap prestasi membran dialisis dari segi pemisahan urea dan kreatinina. Kepekatan glukosa–D diubah daripada 2 hingga 10 wt%. Pemanasan menggunakan ketuhar mikrogelombang yang dapat memendekkan masa pelarutan digunakan untuk melarutkan CA polimer dalam pelarut asid formik. Keputusan menunjukkan bahawa membran yang dihasilkan daripada 20 wt% selulosa asetat, 70 wt% asid formik dan 10 wt% glukosa–D monohidrat memberi prestasi yang terbaik bagi penyingkiran urea and kreatinina sebanyak masing–masimg 49.77% dan 19.54%. Apabila membran yang sama dikaji bagi penahanan BSA, ia memberikan peratus penyingkiran larutan BSA sebanyak 96.78%. Berbanding dengan membran dialisis selulosa asetat komersial, didapati bahawa keputusan adalah memuaskan. Gambar SEM menunjukkan bahawa penambahan glukosa–D monohidrat dalam larutan memberi pembentukan struktur jejari. Kata kunci: Membran dialisis; selulosa asetat; penyingkiran urea; penyingkiran kreatinina; peratus penahanan BSA Dialysis membrane containing cellulose acetate (CA) as polymer, formic acid (FA) as solvent and D–glucose monohydrate as additive was prepared by phase inversion method. The main objective of this study is to investigate the influence of D–glucose monohydrate as an additive on the performance of dialysis membrane in terms of urea and creatinine clearance. The concentration of D–glucose is varied from 2 to 10 wt%. Microwave heating which is capable of reducing dissolution time was used to dissolve the CA polymer in the formic acid solvent. Results revealed that the membrane produced from the 20 wt% cellulose acetate, 70 wt% formic acid and 10 wt% D–glucose monohydrate gives the best performance with urea and creatinine clearance of 49.77% and 19.54% respectively. When testing the same membranes with BSA solutions, it gives a BSA rejection rate as high as 96.78%, which seems to be comparable with the commercial cellulose acetate dialysis membranes. Membrane morphology was observed by using a scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The SEM images illustrated that the increment of D–glucose monohydrate in casting solution tends to promote macrovoid formation. Key words: Dialysis membrane; cellulose acetate; SEM images; urea clearance; creatine clearance; BSA rejection rate
Respiratory and Cardiovascular Health Effects of e-Cigarette Substitution: Protocol for Two Living Systematic Reviews

Background: Despite the clear risks of tobacco use, millions of people continue to smoke. Electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS), commonly called e-cigarettes, have been proposed as a substitute for those who are unwilling or unable to quit. Current systematic and narrative reviews on the health effects of ENDS use, respiratory and cardiovascular effects in particular, have come to differing conclusions. Objective: The purpose of our two systematic reviews is to critically assess and synthesize the available human studies on the respiratory and cardiovascular health effects of ENDS substitution for people who smoke. The primary goal is to provide clinicians with evidence on the health effects of ENDS substitution to inform their treatment recommendations and plans. The twin goal is to promote the health literacy of ENDS users with facts on the health effects of ENDS. A secondary goal is to develop policy briefs to provide governmental bodies with a preliminary assessment of the potential public health impacts of ENDS. Methods: These two reviews will be living systematic reviews. The systematic reviews will be initiated with a baseline review. Studies will be evaluated with the JBI quality assessment tools and a checklist of biases drawn from the Centre for Evidence Based Medicine Catalogue of Bias. A narrative synthesis is planned due to the heterogeneity of data. A search for recently published studies will be conducted every three months, and an updated review published every six months for the duration of the project or possibly longer. Results: The baseline and updated reviews will be published in a peer review journal. The review findings will be reported in a white paper for clinicians, a fact sheet for people who use ENDS, and country-specific policy briefs. Conclusions: The substitution of ENDS for cigarettes is one of the ways to potentially reduce the risks of smoking. Clinicians and their patients need to understand the potential benefits and possible risks of substituting ENDS for cigarettes. Our living systematic reviews seek to highlight the best and most up-to-date evidence in this highly contentious and fast-moving field of research.
Influence of the Steel Channel Shaped Shear Connectors on the Stability of the Simply Supported Steel Bridge without the Intermediate Bracing System in the Construction Stage

Steel bridge structure without intermediate bracing system (IBS) has been widely used in several countries and one of them is Japan. In this type of structure, the main steel girder is not reinforced by the stiffeners. The stiffness of the main girder is enhanced with steel plate directly welded to the top flange of the main girder, forming the “beams–system”. The reinforced concrete deck slab with the set of main girder and steel plate works compositely through steel shear connectors whose shape is C (channel) or I character. As for steel bridge structures, the main role of shear connectors is shear resistance between the concrete deck slab and steel girder plate in the exploitation stage. However, previous research has shown that the density of shear connectors influences on the stability as well as the stiffness of the bridge structure. Therefore, it has approved that this appurtenance is able to not only have the ability of shear resistance but also enhance the stiffness of the steel bridge structure which is particularly surveyed with the type of especial bridge structure – the steel bridge structure without IBS. Hence, the shear connectors in this kind of bridge structure are deliberately researched as an extra role in the construction stage. The following factors of the channel shape shear connectors would be researched for evaluating their impacting level on the stability of the special steel bridge structure: the properties (the length and the moment of inertia of the cross-section) and the density on the steel plate. Through the analysis of impacting level to the stability of three mentioned factors (the length and density of the shear connectors; the moment of inertia of the cross-section), the expected result is as following: 1) The minimum density of shear connectors is proposed. 2) The influence of the moment of inertia of the cross-section, the density, and the length on the stability is quite clear. 3) As for the economy, the optimal designed range among three factors is also suggested.
Measurements of Displacement Cross Section of Tungsten under 389-MeV Proton Irradiation and Thermal Damage Recovery

For validating the number of displacements per atom (dpa) for tungsten under high-energy proton irradiation, we measured displacement cross sections related to defect-induced electrical resistivity changes in a tungsten wire sample under irradiation with 389-MeV protons under 10 K. The Gifford–McMahon cryocooler was used to cool the sample using a conductive coolant via thermal conduction plates of oxygen-free high-conductivity copper and electrical insulation sheets of aluminum nitride ceramic. In this experiment, the displacement cross section was 1612 ± 371 b for tungsten at 389 MeV. A comparison of the experimental displacement cross sections of tungsten with the calculated results obtained using Norgett–Robinson–Torrens (NRT) dpa and athermal recombination-corrected (arc) dpa cross sections indicates that arc-dpa was in better agreement with the experimental data than NRT-dpa; this is similar to the displacement cross sections of copper. From the measurements of damage recovery of the accumulated defects in tungsten through isochronal annealing, which is related to the defect concentration of the sample, approximately 20% of the damage was recovered at 60 K. This trend was similar to those observed in other experimental results for reactor neutrons.
Fine-Grained Time Complexity of Constraint Satisfaction Problems

We study the constraint satisfaction problem (CSP) parameterized by a constraint language Γ (CSPΓ) and how the choice of Γ affects its worst-case time complexity. Under the exponential-time hypothesis (ETH), we rule out the existence of subexponential algorithms for finite-domain NP-complete CSPΓ problems. This extends to certain infinite-domain CSPs and structurally restricted problems. For CSPs with finite domain D and where all unary relations are available, we identify a relation SD such that the time complexity of the NP-complete problem CSP({SD}) is a lower bound for all NP-complete CSPs of this kind. We also prove that the time complexity of CSP({SD}) strictly decreases when |D| increases (unless the ETH is false) and provide stronger complexity results in the special case when |D|=3.