Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
THE LONG-TERM SUSTAINABILITY OF EUROPEAN HEALTH CARE SYSTEMS

Over the past thirty years, health expenditure has grown at a faster rate than the economy in almost every OECD country. The main drivers of public health spending are income growth, insurance coverage, demographics, and, above all, technological change. According to the projections of the major international institutions (European Commission, OECD, International Monetary Fund), public health spending for the of EU-15 countries could significantly increase by 2050. These projections vary in an extremely wide range, between +27% and +84%, depending on the assumptions made. However, the big challenge will be the growth of public spending on long-term care which could more than double over the 2010-2050 period, owing to the sharp rise of frailty and disability at older ages, especially amongst the very old (aged 80+) which will be the fastest growing segment of the EU population in the decades to come. The European countries are facing a common challenge: the need to secure the economic and financial sustainability of their health care systems without undermining the values of universal coverage and solidarity in financing. Command and control policies aimed at expenditure restraints and largely operating through regulatory controls (controls over inputs and wages, budget caps, etc.) are widely used during periods of recession. They can hold expenditures down in the short term. However, they do little or nothing to moderate the underlying pressures which push health spending up over the long-run. Other policies to guarantee both economic and financial sustainability in the long-run should be explored: 1) the adoption of new regulation tools on supply and demand side; 2) a new balanced mix of public and private financing, strengthening the role of supplementary private health insurance, to allow investment and innovation, without imposing unsustainable burdens on public budgets and without denying care to the disadvantaged. The former policies focus on economic sustainability, improving the way health systems address the rise in chronic disease and seek to incentive and reward patients, providers and buyers for healthy behaviour, quality and efficiency of care. The latter policies could ensure long-term financial stability of the health care systems but may determine negative effects in terms of equity and, therefore, they must be carefully designed.
Concepts for Autonomous Command and Control

A preamplifier for amplifying signal voltages from a signal source with high source impedance has a signal input connected to the signal source, a first supply voltage terminal connected to the first power supply voltage potential, a second supply voltage terminal connected to a second power supply voltage potential and a signal output supplying an output signal. In this preamplifier, the first and second power supply voltage potentials can be shifted in parallel depending on the output signal. Alternatively or cumulatively, a known preamplifier may be developed so that the potential of a shield for the signal source can be controlled by the output signal.
Single phase synchronous reference frame power control of grid connected multi string inverters

The objective of this paper is to study the active and reactive power control of multi string nine-level inverters with LCL output filters connected to grid. With the qd synchronous model of the system obtained using the harmonic balance technique, a novel active and reactive power control method with an all pass filter suitable for digital implementation is introduced. A single phase locked loop (PLL) control scheme to synchronize the grid voltage and frequency to the filtered output voltage and frequency is also provided. Computer simulation results of both output filter types verify the effectiveness and utility of the proposed control schemes.
Sensitivity of APSIM/ORYZA model due to estimation errors in solar radiation

Crop models are ideally suited to quantify existing climatic risks. However, they require historic climate data as input. While daily temperature and rainfall data are often available, the lack of observed solar radiation (Rs) data severely limits site-specific crop modelling. The objective of this study was to estimate Rs based on air temperature solar radiation models and to quantify the propagation of errors in simulated radiation on several APSIM/ORYZA crop model seasonal outputs, yield, biomass, leaf area (LAI) and total accumulated solar radiation (SRA) during the crop cycle. The accuracy of the 5 models for estimated daily solar radiation was similar, and it was not substantially different among sites. For water limited environments (no irrigation), crop model outputs yield, biomass and LAI was not sensitive for the uncertainties in radiation models studied here.
Mechanisms underlying the temporal precision of sound coding at the inner hair cell ribbon synapse

Our auditory system is capable of perceiving the azimuthal location of a low frequency sound source with a precision of a few degrees. This requires the auditory system to detect time differences in sound arrival between the two ears down to tens of microseconds. The detection of these interaural time differences relies on network computation by auditory brainstem neurons sharpening the temporal precision of the afferent signals. Nevertheless, the system requires the hair cell synapse to encode sound with the highest possible temporal acuity. In mammals, each auditory nerve fibre receives input from only one inner hair cell (IHC) synapse. Hence, this single synapse determines the temporal precision of the fibre. As if this was not enough of a challenge, the auditory system is also capable of maintaining such high temporal fidelity with acoustic signals that vary greatly in their intensity. Recent research has started to uncover the cellular basis of sound coding. Functional and structural descriptions of synaptic vesicle pools and estimates for the number of Ca2+ channels at the ribbon synapse have been obtained, as have insights into how the receptor potential couples to the release of synaptic vesicles. Here, we review current concepts about the mechanisms that control the timing of transmitter release in inner hair cells of the cochlea.
Biological and morphological effects on the reproductive organ of rats after exposure to electromagnetic field.

OBJECTIVE The biological effect of electromagnetic field (EMF) emitted from mobile phones is a current debate and still a controversial issue. Therefore, little is known on the possible adverse effects on reproduction as mobile phone bio-effects are only a very recent concern. The aim of this experimental study was to determine the biological and morphological effects of 900 MHz radiofrequency (RF) EMF on rat testes. METHODS The study was performed in the Physiology and Histology Research Laboratories of Süleyman Demirel University, Faculty of Medicine, Isparta, Turkey in May 2004. Twenty adult male Sprague-Dawley rats weighing 270-320 gm were randomized into 2 groups of 10 animals: Group I (control group) was not exposed to EMF and Group II (EMF group) was exposed to 30 minutes per day, 5 days a week for 4 weeks to 900 MHz EMF. Testes tissues were submitted for histologic and morphologic examination. Testicular biopsy score count and the percentage of interstitial tissue to the entire testicular tissue were registered. Serum testosterone, plasma luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) levels were assayed biochemically. RESULTS The weight of testes, testicular biopsy score count and the percentage of interstitial tissue to the entire testicular tissue were not significantly different in EMF group compared to the control group. However, the diameter of the seminiferous tubules and the mean height of the germinal epithelium were significantly decreased in EMF group (p<0.05). There was a significant decrease in serum total testosterone level in EMF group (p<0.05). Therefore, there was an insignificant decrease in plasma LH and FSH levels in EMF group compared to the control group (p>0.05). CONCLUSION The biological and morphological effects resulting from 900 MHz RF EMF exposure lends no support to suggestions of adverse effect on spermatogenesis, and on germinal epithelium. Therefore, testicular morphologic alterations may possibly be due to hormonal changes.
Triple band miniaturized patch antenna loaded with metamaterial unit cell for defense applications

An optimal triple band miniaturized microstrip patch antenna loaded with planer metamaterial unit cell is proposed. Planar metamaterial unit cell consist of inter digital capacitor back slotted with novel modified circular split ring resonator. The proposed prototype patch antenna have measured gain of 1.5 dB at first center frequency 5.28 GHz, 3.5 dB at second center frequency 5.78 GHz and 3.80 dB at third center frequency 6.98 GHz. The proposed patch antenna has electrical size of 0. 334λ × 0. 334λ (19 mm × 19 mm). Conventional patch antenna size is miniaturized by 49.42%. The proposed prototype patch antenna can be used for defense applications.
Absence of MYD88 gene mutation in acute leukemias and multiple myelomas

To the Editor: Myeloid differentiation primary response gene 88 (MYD88), a myeloid differentiation marker, plays a role in the early genetic responses of myeloid cells to various differentiation and growth inhibitory stimuli (1). MYD88 is an adapter protein for Toll-like receptors that activates NF-jB signaling (2). Recently, Ngo et al. (3) sequenced MYD88 gene in diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL) and detected somatic mutations of MYD88 gene in 39% of activated B cell-like (ABC) DLBCL. The MYD88 mutations were rare or absent in other DLBCL subtypes, but were detected in 9% of mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue lymphomas (3). Of note, 29% of ABC DLBCL harbored a recurrent mutation (p.L265P) in the MYD88 Toll receptor domain (3). Experimentally, the p.L265P mutant enhanced cell survival by assembling a protein complex of IRAKs, leading to activation of IRAK and NF-jB signaling (3). Other studies also identified the p.L265P mutation in ABC DLBCL and chronic lymphocytic leukemia (4, 5). These data suggest that the MYD88 mutation may be causally implicated in human lymphoid malignancies. However, MYD88 mutation has not been studied in other lymphoid malignancies, including acute lymphoblastic leukemias. As the nomenclature for MYD88 is originated from its functions in myeloid differentiation, it is also possible that MYD88 mutation is related to myeloid-lineage malignancies. For this, we analyzed somatic mutations of MYD88 gene in fresh bone marrow aspirates of 220 acute leukemias (146 acute adulthood leukemias and 74 acute childhood leukemias) and 31 multiple myelomas by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) with specific primers (Table 1) and single-strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP) assay. The adulthood leukemias consisted of 106 AML and 40 acute lymphoblastic leukemias (ALL; 36 pre-B-ALL and 4 T-ALL). The childhood leukemias consisted of 21 AML and 53 ALL (43 pre-B-ALL and 10 T-ALL) (Table 2). The DNA samples from the same patients were extracted from the bone marrows after
Lost in Transcription: Molecular Mechanisms that Control HIV Latency

Highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) has limited the replication and spread of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). However, despite treatment, HIV infection persists in latently infected reservoirs, and once therapy is interrupted, viral replication rebounds quickly. Extensive efforts are being directed at eliminating these cell reservoirs. This feat can be achieved by reactivating latent HIV while administering drugs that prevent new rounds of infection and allow the immune system to clear the virus. However, current approaches to HIV eradication have not been effective. Moreover, as HIV latency is multifactorial, the significance of each of its molecular mechanisms is still under debate. Among these, transcriptional repression as a result of reduced levels and activity of the positive transcription elongation factor b (P-TEFb: CDK9/cyclin T) plays a significant role. Therefore, increasing levels of P-TEFb expression and activity is an excellent strategy to stimulate viral gene expression. This review summarizes the multiple steps that cause HIV to enter into latency. It positions the interplay between transcriptionally active and inactive host transcriptional activators and their viral partner Tat as valid targets for the development of new strategies to reactivate latent viral gene expression and eradicate HIV.
On the radar: Lyme neuroborreliosis, an infectious cause of cerebral vasculitis.

Dear Sir Spath et al . describe a case report of a 52 year old woman with rheumatoid arthritis and cerebral vasculitis where possible infectious causes, including syphilis and HIV, were excluded prior to commencing immunosuppressant therapy.1 We suggest that it is advisable to consider …
Une approche probabiliste pour l'identification de structures de communautés

Resume. Dans cet article, nous valorisons et defendons l’idee que les modeles generatifs sont une approche prometteuse pour l’identification de structures de communautes (ISC). Nous proposons un nouveau modele probabiliste pour l’identification de structures de communautes qui utilise le lissage afin de pallier le petit nombre de liens entre les nœuds. Notre modele etant tres sensible aux parametres de lissage, nous proposons egalement une methode basee sur la modularite pour leur estimation. Les resultats experimentaux obtenus sur trois jeux de donnees montrent que notre modele SPCE est largement meilleur que le modele PHITS
Essential Role for the BacA Protein in the Uptake of a Truncated Eukaryotic Peptide in Sinorhizobium meliloti

ABSTRACT The inner membrane BacA protein is essential for the establishment of chronic intracellular infections by Sinorhizobium meliloti and Brucella abortus within plant and mammalian hosts, respectively. In their free-living state, S. meliloti and B. abortus mutants lacking BacA have reductions in their outer membrane lipid A very-long-chain fatty acid (VLCFA) contents and exhibit low-level resistance to the glycopeptide bleomycin in comparison to their respective parent strains. In this paper we investigate the hypothesis that BacA is involved in peptide uptake in S. meliloti. We determined that an S. meliloti ΔbacA mutant is completely resistant to a truncated form of the eukaryotic peptide Bac7, Bac7(1-16), and this phenotype appears to be independent of its lipid A alteration. Subsequently, we discovered that BacA and/or Escherichia coli SbmA is essential for fluorescently labeled Bac7(1-16) uptake in S. meliloti. Given that there are hundreds of root nodule-specific peptides within the legume host, our data suggest that BacA-mediated peptide uptake could play a central role in the chronic infection process of S. meliloti. However, since we determined that two symbiotically defective S. meliloti bacA site-directed mutants (with the Q193G and R389G mutations, respectively) with known reductions in their lipid A VLCFA contents are still capable of peptide uptake, these findings suggest that BacA-dependent peptide uptake cannot fully account for the essential role of BacA in the legume symbiosis. Further, they provide evidence that the BacA function that leads to the S. meliloti lipid A VLCFA modification plays a key role in the chronic infection of legumes.
The stereoselectivity of the 'single drug binding site' of human alpha 1-acid glycoprotein (orosomucoid).

The stereoselective binding of six pairs of basic, one pair of acidic drug enantiomers, and one pair of diastereomers for human alpha 1-acid glycoprotein was investigated by means of competition experiments against [3H]propranolol- or [14C]nicardipine-labelled binding sites using equilibrium dialysis to separate free from bound marker ligand. The affinity constants (Ka) for association of [3H]propranolol and [14C]nicardipine with alpha 1-AGP were 1.2 +/- 0.6 X 10(5) M-1 and 3.4 +/- 1.4 X 10(5) M-1, respectively, and control binding amounted to 57 +/- 7 and 91 +/- 2%, respectively. The following selectivity factors, calculated as the ratio of the higher over the lower enantiomer concentrations displacing 15% of control radiomarker binding (IC15-value), were obtained against propranolol and nicardipine: (-)/(+) propranolol: 1.9 and 1.7. ; (+)-/(-)-disopyramide: 2.8 and 1.4; (+)-/(-)-verapamil: 1.6 and 1.9; (+)-(S)-/(-)-(R)-202-791, a dihydropyridine derivative: 2.6 and 2.0; (-)-/(+)-asocainol: 1.7 and 3.0; (+)-/(-)-tilidine: 1.1 and approximately equal to 2; (-)-(S)-/(+)-(R)- warfarin: 1.6 and 2.4; (+/-)-cis/(+/-)-trans-trans-tilidine: 1.7 and 1.8. When the calculation of radioligand-free fractions is also taken into account, it is apparent that only the tilidine isomers show no selectivity at propranolol-marked, and the disopyramide isomers at nicardipine-marked alpha 1-AGP-binding sites, in all other cases, a weak selectivity is detectable, which is, however, far below the values obtained for most neurotransmitter receptors. It is concluded that the single drug binding site of alpha 1-AGP is only slightly stereoselective and that the stereoselective binding of the drugs investigated is probably of no clinical consequence.
FPGA-based High-speed True Random Number Generator for Cryptographic Applications

Random number generator is a key primitive in cryptographic algorithms and applications. In this paper, we propose an architecture to implement a high-speed and high-quality true random number generator, which can be used as FPGA-based cryptographic hardware cores. By implementing the proposed generator in Xilinx Vertex II Pro FPGA and testing the output random bit stream using NIST and Diehard random number test suites, we prove that the proposed generator can be implemented effectively in FPGA with very high output rate and strong randomness
Regulati by arbuscular ycorrhizae of t e integrated physiological response to salinity in plants : new challenges in physiological and molecular studies

In mammals, cadmium is widely considered as a non-genotoxic carcinogen acting through a methylation-dependent epigenetic mechanism. Here, the effects of Cd treatment on the DNA methylation patten are examined together with its effect on chromatin reconfiguration in Posidonia oceanica. DNA methylation level and pattern were analysed in actively growing organs, under short(6 h) and long(2 d or 4 d) term and low (10 mM) and high (50 mM) doses of Cd, through a Methylation-Sensitive Amplification Polymorphism technique and an immunocytological approach, respectively. The expression of one member of the CHROMOMETHYLASE (CMT) family, a DNA methyltransferase, was also assessed by qRT-PCR. Nuclear chromatin ultrastructure was investigated by transmission electron microscopy. Cd treatment induced a DNA hypermethylation, as well as an up-regulation of CMT, indicating that de novo methylation did indeed occur. Moreover, a high dose of Cd led to a progressive heterochromatinization of interphase nuclei and apoptotic figures were also observed after long-term treatment. The data demonstrate that Cd perturbs the DNA methylation status through the involvement of a specific methyltransferase. Such changes are linked to nuclear chromatin reconfiguration likely to establish a new balance of expressed/repressed chromatin. Overall, the data show an epigenetic basis to the mechanism underlying Cd toxicity in plants.
The antimicrobial activities of some medicinal plants on Escherichia coli as an agent of diarrhea in livestock

This study was carried out to isolate and identify Escherichia coli from diarrheic fecal samples of calves and piglets in Ibadan, Nigeria and to determine the antimicrobial activities of some medicinal plants on these Escherichia coli isolates as an agent of diarrhea in livestock. It also aimed at extracting the therapeutic component of the ethnomedicinal plants using different solvents and determining the efficacy of the plants extracts on E.coli by disc diffusion and minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) methods. E. coli strains showed a high frequency of single or multiple drug resistance (MDR) to ≥3 of the antimicrobial agents tested (3 to 6 antibiotics). The bacteria were found to be resistant to ampicillin, nalidixic acid, nitrofurantoin, co-trimoxazole, streptomycin and tetracycline. Chloroform, methanol and warm water extracts of the leaves of Ageratum conyzoides, Adansonia digitata, Annona muricata, Bryophyllum pinnatum Kuiz, Cassia sieberiana, and Ocimum gratissimum traditionally employed for the treatment of gastrointestinal infections were prepared and evaluated for its antimicrobial activities. Extracts of Adansonia digitata, Bryophyllum pinnatum, Cassia sieberiana and Ricinus communis did not inhibit E. coli at the various concentrations. Only methanol extracts of Ageratum conyzoides, Annona muricata and Ocimum gratissimum showed some degree of inhibition which varies with the E. coli strain tested. The methanol extracts of the plant parts were more potent than the chloroform and water extracts which showed no activity against the test organisms. Neat (100%) concentration of methanol preparation inhibited the growth of Escherichia coli. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) exhibited by Ocimum gratissimum against the E. coli strains was 20,000μg/ml. The presence of these MDR- E. coli strains in these diarrhoeic piglets indicates public health hazard and calls for particular attention and warning signal for the possible occurrence of food borne intoxication. The result suggests that the preparation of these three plants exhibited significant in vitro antimicrobial activity against common gastrointestinal isolates and may be employed for the routine treatment of gastrointestinal infection as an alternative to antibiotics chemotherapy.