Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Production , Manufacturing and Logistics Balancing staffing and switching costs in a service center with flexible servers

In this paper, we study the problem of balancing staffing and switching costs in a service center with multiple types of customers and time-dependent service demand. We assume that servers are flexible and can be switched from serving one type of customers to another. The objective is to minimize the total staffing and switching costs subject to service level constraints. Column generation heuristics are developed based on a formulation from the perspective of servers. Computational experiments show that the heuristics perform well. Furthermore, an extension of the model is presented for the situation where there is a penalty if some of the service requests are not covered (satisfied). 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Possible Early Prediction of Preterm Birth by Determination of Novel Proinflammatory Factors in Midtrimester Amniotic Fluid

Abstract: Interferon‐γ‐inducible T cell‐α chemoattractant (ITAC) is a chemokine, directing activated T lymphocytes toward sites of inflammation. ADAM‐8 (A disintegrin and metalloprotease‐8) is a glycoprotein expressed in cells promoting inflammation. Elastase, a protease targeting at the degradation of intra‐ or extracellular proteins, is inhibited by secretory leukocyte proteinase inhibitor (SLPI), which protects against microbial invasion. Adhesion molecules (soluble intercellular adhesion molecule—sICAM‐1 and soluble vascular cell adhesion molecule—sVCAM‐1) serve as markers of inflammation or tissue damage. We hypothesized that elevated midtrimester amniotic fluid concentrations of above substances, and decreased levels of SLPI could possibly be useful predictors of asymptomatic intra‐amniotic inflammation and/or infection, eventually resulting in preterm labor and delivery. The study involved 312 women undergoing midtrimester amniocentesis. Thirteen cases, progressing to preterm delivery (<37 weeks), were matched with 21 controls (delivering >37 weeks) for age, parity, and gestational age at amniocentesis. Amniotic fluid levels of the above substances were measured by enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Only amniotic fluid ITAC and ADAM‐8 levels were significantly higher (P= 0.005 and P < 0.02, respectively) in women delivering at <37 weeks than at >37 weeks. SLPI concentrations significantly increased in women going into labor without ruptured membranes irrespective of pre‐ or term delivery (P < 0.007, P < 0.001, respectively) and correlated with elastase (r= 0.508, P < 0.002). In conclusion, elevated midtrimester amniotic fluid levels of ITAC and ADAM‐8 could predict occult infections/inflammations, possibly resulting in preterm birth.
L'effet de la langue sur le développement de l'expression verbale et gestuelle du "mouvement" : une comparaison entre Tchèques et Français de groupes d'âges différents

L’objectif de cette these est de contribuer a la discussion generale sur l’impact de la langue, de la culture et de l’âge sur la conceptualisation et sur l’expression multimodale du « mouvement ». Le « mouvement » est compris ici en termes de combinaison d’une trajectoire (monter, descendre) et d’une maniere (courir, nager) particulieres. Le cadre theorique combine l’hypothese sur la determination linguistique de la conceptualisation cognitive, la typologie des langues a cadrage verbal contre les langues a cadrage satellitaire, et la conception du tandem gestualite-langage. L’etude observe comment les Francais et les Tcheques – les enfants âges de 5 et 10 ans et les adultes – comprennent et representent le mouvement dans le langage et la gestualite. Notre echantillon compte 144 participants (24 dans chaque groupe de langue et d’âge). Apres avoir vu un dessin anime contenant un evenement de mouvement pertinent, chaque participant raconte ce qui s’est passe. Quatre types differents de presentation video du mouvement sont utilises et compares : 1) trajectoire accentuee, 2) maniere accentuee, 3) les deux accentuees et 4) aucune accentuee. Bien que les Tcheques et les Francais different au niveau de la description du mouvement (les Tcheques verbalisent a la fois de la trajectoire de la maniere, et les incluent dans une seule proposition, tandis que les Francais expriment seulement la trajectoire, la maniere etant parfois rajoutee dans une deuxieme proposition), leur gestualite est tres similaire (une forte preference pour la trajectoire). Les enfants adoptent tres tot des schemas verbaux typiques de leur langue respective. Cependant, nous avons egalement observe une croissance generale de la quantite d’informations fournies a propos du mouvement. Les enfants utilisent les memes schemas gestuels que les adultes, mais ils emploient aussi des schemas (des gestes exprimant la maniere) qui diminuent avec l’âge. Le type de presentation video a un impact important sur le contenu ainsi que la structure du langage et de la gestualite.Nos resultats suggerent que la gestualite ne doit pas etre entierement determinee par la langue dans le sens ou elle peut jouer un role compensatoire par rapport au langage en cas de non-accessibilite de moyens linguistiques appropries. De plus, cette these, pour la premiere fois, rassemble differentes methodologies utilisees par des etudes precedentes realisees dans le domaine de la recherche sur l’expression du mouvement, afin de montrer et d’expliquer leurs effets sur les resultats.
Integrating Adaptation and HCI Concepts to Support Usability in User Interfaces - A Rule-based Approach

: A common problem in information systems development is to provide support for adaptation , to automatically adjust their services to different users and contexts. User Interfaces (UI) are required to adapt to those contexts and to satisfy specific criteria and standards to guarantee usability. Several methods have been created to ensure a degree of usability in UI. However, these methods focus mainly in the design stage of the development process. The benefits of these methods may be lost during execution time, since they do not address the necessity to dynamically adapt the interfaces both to context and users. To address this issue it is necessary to integrate User Interface Design with Adaptation, to ensure that UI usability is preserved at the execution time, for different users and contexts. This paper proposes the framework Tukuchiy , a rule-based system that dynamically generates Adaptative User Interfaces, based in HCI precepts. This guarantees their usability during execution time, while taking into account user preferences and context. This paper focused in the rule-based system of Tukuchiy . That rule system includes usability criteria commonly used for web pages, which were mapped to a desktop application.
CD11c provides an effective immunotarget for the generation of both CD4 and CD8 T cell responses

The magnitude and quality of T cell responses generated when Ag is targeted to receptors on DC is influenced by both the specific receptor targeted and its distribution among DC subsets. Here we examine the targeting of the model Ag OVA to potential DC targets, including CD11c, CD205, MHC class II, CD40, TLR2 and FcγRII/III, using a panel of (Fab' × OVA) conjugates. In vitro studies identified CD11c, CD205 and MHC class II as superior and comparably effective immunotargets for the delivery of OVA to APC for presentation to T cells. In vivo studies, however, showed a marked advantage of targeting Ag to CD11c for both CD4 (OT‐II) and CD8 (OT‐I) responses, with robust stimulation after a single, low dose (equivalent to 0.5 μg OVA); in contrast, (anti‐CD205 × OVA) and (anti‐MHC class II × OVA) resulted in markedly less proliferation of both OT‐I and OT‐II cells. Biodistribution and immunohistochemical studies suggest that the exceptional ability of CD11c to capture Ag in lymphoid tissues may, at least partially, explain its ability to promote T cell responses. These results suggest that targeting antigen via CD11c offers a previously unappreciated strategy for vaccine development which, unlike most targets, delivers robust responses of both CD4 and CD8 T cells.
Involving Business Users in the Design of Complex Event Processing Systems

Complex Event Processing (CEP) gained more and more attention in research and practical usage during the last years. Several engines and languages have been created and adapted in order to handle complex events. To describe the aggregation of simple events to more complex ones, these engines use technical and formal languages which are difficult to handle for business experts. Hence, business experts are often not properly involved in the definition of complex events. This lack in the area of requirement engineering worsens the result of many CEP projects. Therefore this paper proposes a conceptual modeling language that allows business experts to specify complex events according to actual business needs. The proposed modeling language is demonstrated in a quality management scenario in the automotive manufacturing industry and is defined with OMG’s MOF standard. 1 This paper is based on our work in the research project ADiWa, which is funded by the German Ministry for Education and Research (BMBF) under funding reference number 01IA08006.
The Survey of Favorite Interests and Activities: Assessing and understanding restricted interests in children with autism spectrum disorder

Restricted interests are an established diagnostic symptom of autism spectrum disorder. While there is considerable evidence that these interests have maladaptive consequences, they also provide a range of benefits. This article introduces a new instrument, the Survey of Favorite Interests and Activities, and uses it to examine the nature of restricted interests in autism spectrum disorder. Respondents report substantial benefits of restricted interests as well as areas of difficulty. The Survey of Favorite Interests and Activities assesses Social Flexibility, Perseveration, Respondent Discomfort, Adaptive Coping, and Atypicality. All scales have Cronbach’s α > 0.70. Age and socioeconomic status have little effect on Survey of Favorite Interests and Activities scales; nor does gender with the exception of interest Atypicality. The expected pattern of correlations with existing scales was found. Research and clinical implications are discussed.
Chaos Synchronization of General Lur'e Systems via Time-Delay Feedback Control

This paper studies a master-slave type of chaos synchronization problem for a general form of Lur'e systems by a time-delay feedback control technique, improving some results of Yalcin et al. [2001]. Some fairly simple algebraic conditions are derived for easier verification, facilitating the design and applications of such chaos synchronization systems.
Associations between IL12B polymorphisms and tuberculosis in the Hong Kong Chinese population.

BACKGROUND Interleukin (IL)-12 plays a vital role in regulating cell-mediated immunity against tuberculosis (TB). METHODS To test whether IL12B genetic polymorphisms might contribute to human TB susceptibility, we examined the genotype frequencies of 5 IL12B polymorphisms (at promoter, intron 2, intron 4, exon 5, and 3' untranslated region [UTR]) in 516 patients with TB and 514 healthy control subjects from the Hong Kong Chinese population. RESULTS Individuals homozygous for the IL12B intron 2-repeat marker (ATT)8 had a 2.1-fold increased risk of developing TB (P < .001) (odds ratio, 2.14 [95% confidence interval, 1.45-3.19]). Estimation of the frequencies of multiple-locus haplotypes composed of IL12B promoter, intron 2, intron 4, and 3' UTR alleles revealed potential risk haplotypes (designated "A" and "K") and protective haplotypes (designated "B") for TB. Furthermore, combining the genotype data of the 4 informative IL12B loci revealed a strong association between a specific genotype pattern, termed "diplotype I" (heterozygous A and K haplotypes), and TB. In contrast, diplotype II (homozygous BB haplotypes) appeared protective against TB. CONCLUSIONS These findings support the association between IL12B intron 2 polymorphism and TB and between specific IL12B haplotypes and TB.
The effect of exhaustion exercise on thyroid hormones and testosterone levels of elite athletes receiving oral zinc.

OBJECTIVES The present study aims to investigate how exhaustion exercise affects thyroid hormones and testosterone levels in elite athletes who are supplemented with oral zinc sulfate for 4 weeks. METHODS The study included 10 male wrestlers, who had been licensed wrestlers for at least 6 years. Mean age of the wrestlers who volunteered in the study was 18.70 +/- 2.4 years. All subjects were supplemented with oral zinc sulfate (3 mg/kg/day) for 4 weeks in addition to their normal diet. Thyroid hormone and testosterone levels of all subjects were determined as resting and exhaustion before and after zinc supplementation. RESULTS Resting TT3, TT4, FT3, FT4 and TSH levels of subjects were higher than the parameters measured after exhaustion exercise before zinc supplementation (p<0.05). Both resting and exhaustion TT3, TT4 and FT3 values after 4-week zinc supplementation were found significantly higher than both of the parameters (resting and exhaustion) measured before zinc supplementation (p<0.05). Resting total testosterone and free testosterone levels before zinc supplementation were significantly higher than exhaustion levels before zinc supplementation (p<0.05). Both resting and exhaustion total and free testosterone levels following 4-week zinc supplementation were found significantly higher than the levels (both resting and exhaustion) measured before zinc supplementation (p<0.05). CONCLUSION Findings of our study demonstrate that exhaustion exercise led to a significant inhibition of both thyroid hormones and testosterone concentrations, but that 4-week zinc supplementation prevented this inhibition in wrestlers. In conclusion, physiological doses of zinc administration may benefit performance.
Porphyromonas gingivalis heat shock protein vaccine reduces the alveolar bone loss induced by multiple periodontopathogenic bacteria.

OBJECTIVES Heat shock protein (HSP) can be utilized as a vaccine to cross-protect against multiple pathogenic species. The present study was performed to evaluate Porphyromonas gingivalis heat shock protein 60 (HSP60) as a vaccine candidate to inhibit multiple bacteria-induced alveolar bone loss. MATERIAL AND METHODS Recombinant P. gingivalis HSP60 was produced and purified from P. gingivalis GroEL gene. Rats were immunized with P. gingivalis HSP60, and experimental alveolar bone loss was induced by infection with multiple periodontopathogenic bacteria. RESULTS There was a very strong inverse relationship between postimmune anti-P. gingivalis HSP immunoglobulin G (IgG) levels and the amount of alveolar bone loss induced by either P. gingivalis or multiple bacterial infection (p=0.007). Polymerase chain reaction data indicated that the vaccine successfully eradicated the multiple pathogenic species. CONCLUSIONS We concluded that P. gingivalis HSP60 could potentially be developed as a vaccine to inhibit periodontal disease induced by multiple pathogenic bacteria.
In vitro antioxidant and radical scavenging of Guinean kinkeliba leaf (Combretum micranthum G. Don) extracts

The antioxidant properties of the water and ethanol leaf extracts of kinkeliba (Combretum micranthum) were investigated, including scavenging of the 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical (IC50 values: 8.02 ± 0.34 for the ethanol extract [KE] and 9.1 ± 0.28 for the water extract [KW]), the 2,2′-azinobis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid) (ABTS) radical (IC50 values: 7.4 ± 0.14 for KE and 11.8 ± 0.01 for KW) and the hydroxyl radical (58.1% for KE and 61.1% for KW). The ferric thiocyanate method, reducing power, metal chelating activity, an assay of protein oxidation and the β-carotene–linoleic bleaching assay were also used. Butylated hydroxytoluene and ascorbic acid were used as the reference antioxidant compounds. At 20 mg mL−1 concentration, KW and KE provided 36.8% and 75.1% inhibition of lipid peroxidation of linoleic acid emulsion, respectively. The IC50 values of the ethanol extract in ABTS and DPPH tests were significantly lower than those from the water extract. Furthermore, crude polyphenols were extracted from kinkeliba leaf with 90% ethanol solution using a water bath treatment and then purified by a macroporous resin, AB-8. The polyphenols from kinkeliba leaf were subjected to analyses by RP-HPLC and ESI-MS. The dominant polyphenols in kinkeliba leaf were identified as gallic acid, rutin trihydrate, (+)-catechin and benzoic acid.
What Is the Optimum Duration of Tamoxifen Adjuvant Therapy?

Finally, there are fascinating biologic reasons to address this issue further. In essence, our understanding of the mechanism of action of tamoxifen and other hormonal agents is changing. Initial theories suggested these agent were cytostatic and essentially acted by "freezing" cells in the early G1 phase of the cell cycle. Thus, it was logical to hypothesize that it may be necessary to administer adjuvant tamoxifen indefinitely to keep the breast cancer cell frozen in the early G 1 phase to prevent tumor
Nota Prévia – Características da Carcaça e da Carne de Genótipos de Frangos Caipiras Scientific Note – Carcass and Meat Traits of Free Range Broiler Chicken Genotypes

O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar caracteristicas da carcaca e da carne de frangos caipiras criados no sistema semi-intensivo e verificar a capacidade do consumidor em distinguir a carne dessas aves em relacao a obtida de frangos comerciais criados convencionalmente, denominados de controle. Oito genotipos de frangos caipiras tiveram os rendimentos de carcaca, de file de peito, de pernas e de asas determinados, sendo tambem mensurados os comprimentos longitudinal direito e transversal e espessura do peito, alem da forca de cisalhamento. Consumidores foram solicitados a distinguir entre a carne dos genotipos de frangos caipiras em relacao ao controle quanto aos atributos de maciez e sabor. O genotipo 7 P mostrou maior rendimento de carcaca enquanto que Label Rouge maior rendimento de file de peito. Nao houve diferenca entre genotipos para rendimento de pernas e Carijo Barbado apresentou maior rendimento de asas. Para todas as medidas do peito houve a formacao de dois grupos distintos de genotipos. Houve efeito de sexo para todos rendimentos e medidas do peito. A forca de cisalhamento detectou que somente Caipirao e Embrapa 041 diferenciaram-se do controle, apresentando melhor maciez objetiva. Foi possivel verificar que, apesar de nao treinados, os consumidores conseguiram distinguir quatro (Paraiso Pelado, Label Rouge, Paraiso Pedres e Caipirao) e tres (Paraiso Pelado, Paraiso Pedres e Embrapa 041) genotipos quanto a maciez e ao sabor, respectivamente. Ha diferencas entre os genotipos de frangos caipiras avaliados quanto as caracteristicas da carcaca e da carne e que consumidores sao capazes de distinguir alguns destes genotipos quanto a maciez e ao sabor, porem estes atributos apresentaram-se ligeiramente piores comparados com o controle. Antonio Augusto Domingos COELHO Universidade de Sao Paulo (USP) Escola Superior de Agricultura “Luiz de Queiroz” (ESALQ) Av. Padua Dias, 11 Caixa Postal: 83 CEP: 13400-970 – Piracicaba/SP-Brasil e-mail: aadcoelh@esalq.usp. br
Expression of monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 in delayed type hypersensitivity reactions in the skin.

BACKGROUND Monocyte chemoattractant Protein-1 (MCP-1) is a potent chemotactic factor for monocytes. Because many inflammatory dermatoses are characterized by mononuclear cell infiltrates, it is reasonable to postulate that MCP-1 might be involved in their pathogenesis. To date, no in vivo studies have been published concerning the expression of MCP-1 in this context. The aim of this study was to elucidate the expression of MCP-1 in human inflammatory skin diseases which are thought to involve delayed type hypersensitivity reactions. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN Expression of MCP-1 was examined in normal skin and three classes of inflammatory skin reactions by immunohistochemistry experiments utilizing a monospecific MCP-1 antiserum. The distribution of monocytes/macrophages and T lymphocytes was determined by immunohistochemistry using antibodies to specific cell surface markers. RESULTS Immunostaining with MCP-1 antiserum demonstrated strong MCP-1 expression in lichenoid dermatitis, dermal hypersensitivity reactions, and spongiotic dermatitis. In contrast, normal skin showed minimal MCP-1 expression in the dermis. The cell types displaying MCP-1 expression were endothelial cells of dermal microvessels that were surrounded by lymphocytic infiltrates and monocytes/macrophages at the periphery of the perivascular infiltrates. Occasionally, MCP-1-positive mononuclear cells were present both in the infiltrates and in a diffuse pattern in the surrounding dermis. Keratinocytes were found to produce MCP-1 constitutively in normal skin and in inflamed conditions. The pattern of MCP-1 expression was similar to the pattern observed for monocyte/macrophage distribution, whereas the pattern of MCP-1 expression was different from the pattern of T lymphocyte distribution. CONCLUSIONS We observed an enhanced expression of MCP-1 in inflammatory skin conditions. The expression of MCP-1 provides a mechanistic explanation for the increased recruitment of monocytes/macrophages in cell-mediated immune response such as delayed type hypersensitivity reactions in the skin.
Cells Producing Low-Molecular-Weight Antibody to Escherichia coli Lipopolysaccharide

CD-1 mice immunized with sheep red blood cells (SRBC) or Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide (LPS), developed splenic plaque-forming cells (PFC) producing low-molecular-weight antibody; these cells were detected by means of purified rabbit antisera to mouse γ1, γ2a, and γ2b immunoglobulins. In contrast to SRBC, the primary γ1 response to LPS was absent and γ2a and γ2b PFC were detected irregularly. Both immunogens elicited a secondary cellular response in all three subclasses without a corresponding increase in “direct” or γM PFC. An increase in serum bactericidal antibody following a second injection of LPS was not parallelled by an increase in splenic γM PFC; it might therefore involve the synthesis of γ2 complement-fixing antibody.
Enzymatic Conversion of D-Glucose to D-Fructose Part I . Identification of Active Bacterial Strain and Confirmation of D-Fructose Formation

Enzymes which catalyze the interconversion of free aldopentose and ketopentose have been demonstrated in several bacterial strains. Concerning the conversion of free hexoses, however, the cases reported are few. Palleroni and Doudoroff1) described mannose isomerase in Pseudomonas saccharophila, which converted mannose to fructose. Marshall and Kooi2) then reported the ability of Pseudomonas hydrophila to isomerise D-glucose to D-fructose. Recently, Bartfay3) suggested the presence of glucose isomerase in barley malt. This report presents the results of investigation on a bacterial strain which also has glucose isomerization activity. METHODS Isolation of Strain. Humus collected from the outskirts of Tokyo and other places were dispersed in sterile water and one drop each of the supernatant was inoculated into 10ml portions of liquid medium in test tubes, which contained D-xylose as sole carbon source (Table I). These tubes were maintained at 30°C for 2~3 days