Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Managing integration of organizational culture within acquisitions

The amount of acquisitions has been increasing over the last decades and has been used as a growth strategy by firms all over the world. However, more than fifty percent of all acquisitions never deliver the initially expected value, which in many cases is due to poor integration management of the organizational culture in the post-acquisition phase. Where, in contrast, acquisitions which are integrated into the organizational culture of the acquirer, can see a decrease in social conflicts and receive a higher employee commitment. Which in turn can help the acquisition to provide and remain its human capital and value. With the support of a Swedish business consulting firm, this study hopes to shed light upon how firms integrate organizational culture in the post-acquisition phase, and which integration management tools are used in the process. This study uses a single opportunistic case study combined with a qualitative and an inductive approach, to gather and handle the data. Where the empirical data was mainly collected through interviews. The results of this thesis show that integration of organizational culture in the post-acquisition phase, is mainly managed through supportive leadership and training, in the business consulting firm. Where those main management activities consist of several different integration management tools.
Flaxseed Consumption Inhibits Chemically Induced Lung Tumorigenesis and Modulates Expression of Phase II Enzymes and Inflammatory Cytokines in A/J Mice

Flaxseed consumption is associated with reduced oxidative stress and inflammation in lung injury models and has shown anticancer effects for breast and prostate tissues. However, the chemopreventive potential of flaxseed remains unexplored for lung cancer. In this study, we investigated the effect of flaxseed on tobacco smoke carcinogen (NNK)–induced lung tumorigenesis in an A/J mouse model. Mice exposed to NNK were fed a control diet or a 10% flaxseed-supplemented diet for 26 weeks. Flaxseed-fed mice showed reduced lung tumor incidence (78%) and multiplicity, with an average of 2.7 ± 2.3 surface lung tumor nodules and 1.0 ± 0.9 H&E cross-section nodules per lung compared with the control group, which had 100% tumor incidence and an average of 10.2 ± 5.7 surface lung tumor nodules and 3.9 ± 2.6 H&E cross-section nodules per lung. Furthermore, flaxseed-fed mice had a lower incidence of adenocarcinomas compared with control-fed mice. Western blotting performed on normal lung tissues showed flaxseed suppressed phosphorylation (activation) of p-AKT, p-ERK, and p-JNK kinases. RNA-Seq data obtained from normal lung and lung tumors of control and flaxseed-fed mice suggested that flaxseed intake resulted in differential expression of genes involved in inflammation-mediated cytokine signaling (IL1, 6, 8, 9, and 12α), xenobiotic metabolism (several CYPs, GSTs, and UGTs), and signaling pathways (AKT and MAPK) involved in tumor cell proliferation. Together, our results indicate that dietary flaxseed supplementation may be an effective chemoprevention strategy for chemically induced lung carcinogenesis by altering signaling pathways, inflammation, and oxidative stress. Cancer Prev Res; 11(1); 27–37. ©2017 AACR.
Total Knee Arthroplasty in the Elderly: Patients’ Self-Appraisal 6 and 12 Months Postoperatively

The objective of this work was to study patients’ self-appraisal of total knee arthroplasty (TKA) 6 and 12 months postoperatively, and to establish which factors determine dissatisfaction from surgery. The study group consisted of 79 patients subjected to TKA who underwent rehabilitation in a specialized institution from which they were discharged home after becoming independently ambulatory and capable of independent home care. Data were collected by interviews and physical examinations which were conducted upon admission to the rehabilitation program and at the patients’ homes 6 and 12 months postoperatively. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression were applied for data analysis. Results of the 1-year follow-up indicated a decrease in the prevalence of pain in the postoperated knee and improvement in ambulatory capacities. The frequency of reliance on a walking aid and the prevalence of pain in the nonoperated knee were not substantially changed, however. In 27% of the subjects pain in the nonoperated knee had worsened at 1 year. One third of the respondents expressed dissatisfaction from the operation. Outcomes of the logistic regression analysis pointed to pain in both the ipsi- and contralateral knee and to the limitations in using stairs as the variables which significantly affected the levels of dissatisfaction 1 year postoperatively. Dissatisfaction could have resulted from inappropriate expectations from either misinterpretations or limited prior knowledge of the likely results of the operation.
Effect of Dietary Fish Oil on Insulin Sensitivity and Metabolic Fate of Glucose in the Skeletal Muscle of Normal Rats

The aim of this work was to study the effect of the administration of cod liver oil on the non-oxidative and oxidative fate of glucose metabolism in the skeletal muscle of normal rats. To achieve this goal, the gastrocnemius was examined regarding glucose oxidation, glycogen synthase activity and glycogen storage both at baseline and during euglycemic hyperinsulinemic clamping. The results show that dietary fish oil decreases plasma insulin levels without alteration in glucose homeostasis (at baseline). In addition, the observed enhancement in whole body glucose utilization during clamping suggests an increased peripheral insulin sensitivity. Furthermore, under insulin-stimulated glucose disposal, an enhancement in the glycolytic pathway (increased levels of muscle glucose-6-phosphate and plasma lactate) rather than changes in the oxidation (pyruvate dehydrogenase complex) and storage components of glucose metabolism was observed in the skeletal muscle of rats fed dietary fish oil. These results coupled with the hypolipidemic effects of fish oil may have implications for the prevention and/or management of some pathological states manifested by insulin resistance with or without dyslipidemia.
FAS: Using FPGA to Accelerate and Secure SDN Software Switches

Software-Defined Networking (SDN) promises the vision of more flexible and manageable networks but requires certain level of programmability in the data plane to accommodate different forwarding abstractions. SDN software switches running on commodity multicore platforms are programmable and are with low deployment cost. However, the performance of SDN software switches is not satisfactory due to the complex forwarding operations on packets. Moreover, this may hinder the performance of real-time security on software switch. In this paper, we analyze the forwarding procedure and identify the performance bottleneck of SDN software switches. An FPGA-based mechanism for accelerating and securing SDN switches, named FAS (FPGA-Accelerated SDN software switch), is proposed to take advantage of the reconfigurability and high-performance advantages of FPGA. FAS improves the performance as well as the capacity against malicious traffic attacks of SDN software switches by offloading some functional modules. We validate FAS on an FPGA-based network processing platform. Experiment results demonstrate that the forwarding rate of FAS can be 44% higher than the original SDN software switch. In addition, FAS provides new opportunity to enhance the security of SDN software switches by allowing the deployment of bump-in-the-wire security modules (such as packet detectors and filters) in FPGA.
Aerobactin and other virulence factor genes among strains of Escherichia coli causing urosepsis: association with patient characteristics

To assess the role of aerobactin as a virulence factor among uropathogenic Escherichia coli, we determined the prevalence, location, and phenotypic expression of aerobactin determinants among 58 E. coli strains causing bacteremic urinary tract infections. We correlated the presence of the aerobactin system with antimicrobial-agent resistance, the presence and phenotypic expression of other uropathogenic virulence factor determinants (P fimbriae, hemolysin, and type 1 fimbriae), and characteristics of patients. Colony and Southern hybridization of total and plasmid DNA with DNA probes for each virulence factor showed that aerobactin determinants were present in 78% of the strains and were plasmid associated in 21%, whereas P fimbria, hemolysin, and type 1 fimbria determinants were present in 74, 43, and 98% of the strains, respectively, and were always chromosomal. Chromosomal aerobactin, P fimbria, and hemolysin determinants occurred together on the chromosome more often in strains from patients without predisposing urological or medical conditions (P = 0.04). Strains with plasmid-encoded aerobactin lacked determinants for P fimbriae (P = 0.004) and hemolysin (P = 0.0004), were resistant to multiple antimicrobial agents (P = 0.0001), and were found only in compromised patients. Mating experiments demonstrated that some aerobactin plasmids also encoded antimicrobial-agent resistance. These findings suggest that the determinants for aerobactin, P fimbriae, and hemolysin are conserved on the chromosome of the antimicrobial-agent-susceptible uropathogenic strains of E. coli which invade noncompromised patients. In contrast, these chromosomal virulence factors are often absent from E. coli strains causing urosepsis in compromised hosts; these strains may acquire plasmid aerobactin in conjunction with antimicrobial-agent resistance genes.
Lung pattern classification for interstitial lung diseases using an ANN-back propagation network

Lung diseases are the maladies that affect the lungs, the organs that allow us to breathe and it is the most common medical conditions worldwide especially in India. The diseases such as pleural effusion and normal lung are detected and classified in this work. This paper introduces a computer aided classification method in Computer Tomography (CT) Images of lungs created utilizing ANN-BPN. The purpose of the work is to detect and classify the lung diseases by effective feature extraction through Dual-Tree Complex Wavelet Transform [9] and GLCM Features. CT Images are used to segment the entire lung and the parameters are calculated from the segmented image. The parameters are calculated using GLCM. We Propose and evaluate the ANN-Back Propagation Network designed for classification of ILD patterns. The parameters give the maximum classification Accuracy. After result we propose the Fuzzy clustering to segment the lesion part from abnormal lung.
Prospective Comparison of Intraductal Ultrasonography-Guided Transpapillary Biopsy and Conventional Biopsy on Fluoroscopy in Suspected Malignant Biliary Strictures

Background/Aims In suspected malignant biliary strictures (MBSs), the diagnostic yield of endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP)-based tissue sampling is limited. Transpapillary forceps biopsy (TPB) under intraductal ultrasonography (IDUS) guidance is expected to improve the diagnostic accuracy in patients with indeterminate biliary strictures. We evaluated the usefulness of IDUS-guided TPB in patients with suspected MBS. Methods Consecutive patients with suspected MBS were prospectively enrolled in the study. ERCP with IDUS was performed in all patients. Both conventional TPB and IDUS-guided TPB on fluoroscopy were performed in each patient. The primary outcome was the diagnostic accuracy of conventional TPB and IDUS-guided TPB. Results The technical success rate of IDUS-guided TPB was 97.0% (65/67 patients). Of these 65 patients, the final diagnosis was malignancy in 61 patients (93.8%). On IDUS, the most common finding of IDUS was an intraductal infiltrating lesion in 29 patients (47.5%). The overall diagnostic accuracy was significantly higher using IDUS-guided TPB than that using conventional TPB (90.8% vs 76.9%, p=0.027). According to the subgroup analysis based on the tumor morphology, IDUS-guided TPB had a significantly higher cancer detection rate than conventional TPB for intraductal infiltrating lesions (89.6% vs 65.5%, p=0.028). Conclusions IDUS-guided TPB appears to improve the accuracy of histological diagnosis in patients with MBS.
Isolation and Characterization of vΔI3 Confirm that Vaccinia Virus SSB Plays an Essential Role in Viral Replication

ABSTRACT Vaccinia virus is unusual among DNA viruses in replicating exclusively in the cytoplasm of infected cells. The single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) binding protein (SSB) I3 is among the replication machinery encoded by the 195-kb genome, although direct genetic analysis of I3 has been lacking. Herein, we describe a complementing cell line (CV1-I3) that fully supports the replication of a null virus (vΔI3) lacking the I3 open reading frame (ORF). In noncomplementing CV1-CAT cells, vΔI3 shows a severe defect in the production of infectious virus (≥200-fold reduction). Early protein synthesis and core disassembly occur normally. However, DNA replication is profoundly impaired (≤0.2% of wild-type [WT] levels), and late proteins do not accumulate. When several other noncomplementing cell lines are infected with vΔI3, the yield of infectious virus is also dramatically reduced (168- to 1,776-fold reduction). Surprisingly, the residual levels of DNA accumulation vary from 1 to 12% in the different cell lines (CV1-CAT < A549 < BSC40 < HeLa); however, any nascent DNA that can be detected is subgenomic in size. Although this subgenomic DNA supports late protein expression, it does not support the production of infectious virions. Electron microscopy (EM) analysis of vΔI3-infected BSC40 cells reveals that immature virions are abundant but no mature virions are observed. Aberrant virions characteristic of a block to genome encapsidation are seen instead. Finally, we demonstrate that a CV1 cell line encoding a previously described I3 variant with impaired ssDNA binding activity is unable to complement vΔI3. This report provides definitive evidence that the vaccinia virus I3 protein is the replicative SSB and is essential for productive viral replication. IMPORTANCE Poxviruses are of historical and contemporary importance as infectious agents, vaccines, and oncolytic therapeutics. The cytoplasmic replication of poxviruses is unique among DNA viruses of mammalian cells and necessitates that the double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) genome encode the viral replication machinery. This study focuses on the I3 protein. As a ssDNA binding protein (SSB), I3 has been presumed to play essential roles in genome replication, recombination, and repair, although genetic analysis has been lacking. Herein, we report the characterization of an I3 deletion virus. In the absence of I3 expression, DNA replication is severely compromised and viral yield profoundly decreased. The production of infectious virus can be restored in a cell line expressing WT I3 but not in a cell line expressing an I3 mutant that is defective in ssDNA binding activity. These data show conclusively that I3 is an essential viral protein and functions as the viral replicative SSB.
A Remote Assay for Measuring Canine Platelet Activation and the Inhibitory Effects of Antiplatelet Agents

Background Antiplatelet medications are increasingly used in dogs. Remote analysis of platelet activity is challenging, limiting assessment of antiplatelet drug efficacy. Hypothesis/Objectives To evaluate a method used in humans for stimulation and remote analysis of canine platelet activity. Animals Forty‐five dogs of various ages without a coagulopathy or thrombocytopenia. Six were receiving antiplatelet medication. Methods Prospective observational study. Platelets were stimulated with combinations of arachidonic acid (AA) and epinephrine (Epi) or adenosine diphosphate (ADP) and the thromboxane A2‐mimetic U46619 (U4). PAMFix was added to the blood samples to facilitate delayed analysis of platelet activity. Activity was assessed by flow cytometric measurement of surface P‐selectin (CD62P) expression. Results Canine platelets could be stimulated with both AA/Epi and ADP/U4. The levels of P‐selectin were significantly greater than paired, unstimulated samples (P < 0.001). Inhibition of P‐selectin expression occurred after this stimulation by adding antiplatelet drugs in vitro. The efficacy of antiplatelet drugs in samples from treated dogs was also measurable ex vivo using this method. Delayed analysis of platelet activity at time points up to 22 days demonstrated excellent correlation between respective mf values at each time point (r2 = 0.92, P < 0.0001). Conclusions and Clinical Importance This study evaluated a new method to remotely assess canine platelet activity. It shows that PAMFix can be used for this purpose. This provides opportunities to interrogate the inhibitory action of antiplatelet drugs in clinical settings.
Crop prediction using predictive analytics

This work is to construct a model for testing the soil fertility. It also suggests the crop which has to be planted depending upon the value obtained from the sensor. It also provides the regional wise information about the crop in the form of graph. We have farmer chat where the farmers can share and get idea from the expert by registering in this application. It also suggests the fertilizer which has to be added to the soil in order to increase the crop productivity. It helps the farmer to analyze the fertility of their yard and plant the better crop to increase their productivity and profit. It also provides the information about the fertilizer to be added in the soil and also provide the information about the nearby fertilizer shop.
Impact of procedure‐related conduction disturbances after transcatheter aortic valve implantation on myocardial performance and survival evaluated by conventional and speckle tracking echocardiography

Although procedure‐related new cardiac conduction disturbances (CCDs) remain an important issue in transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI), their effect on myocardial function and overall patient outcome remains unclear. The goal of this study was to analyze the influence of procedure‐related CCDs on systolic and diastolic LV performance and on patient survival after TAVI.
Bottom‐up Nanoencapsulation from Single Cells to Tunable and Scalable Cellular Spheroids for Hair Follicle Regeneration

Cell surface engineering technology advances cell therapeutics and tissue engineering by accurate micro/nanoscale control in cell–biomaterial ensembles and cell spheroids formation. By tailoring cell surface, microgels can encapsulate cells for versatile uses. However, microgels are coated in a thick layer to house multiple cells together but not a single cell based. Besides, excessive deposition on cell surface is detrimental to cellular functions. Herein, layer‐by‐layer (LbL) self‐assembly to encapsulate single cell using nanogel is reported, owing to its security and tunable thickness at nanoscale, and further forms cell spheroids by physical cross‐linking on nanogel‐coated cells for delivery. A hair follicle (HF) regeneration model where the dermal papilla cells (DPCs) are given a 3D installation to maintain its ability of HF induction during in vitro culture is studied. Dermal papilla (DP) spheroids are optimized and that LbL‐DPCs aggregation is akin to primary DP is demonstrated. The markers ALP, Versican, and NCAM are examined to investigate that high‐passaged (P8) DP spheroids can restore the hair induction potential, which are lost in 2D culture. New HFs are regenerated successfully by implantation of DP spheroids in vivo.
Repeated-sprint performance and plasma responses following beetroot juice supplementation do not differ between recreational, competitive and elite sprint athletes

Abstract Purpose: There is an ongoing debate whether highly trained athletes are less responsive to the ergogenic properties of nitrate. We assessed the effects of nitrate supplementation on plasma nitrate and nitrite concentrations and repeated-sprint performance in recreational, competitive and elite sprint athletes. Methods: In a randomized double-blinded cross-over design, recreational cyclists (n = 20), national talent speed-skaters (n = 22) and Olympic-level track cyclists (n = 10) underwent two 6-day supplementation periods; 140 mL/d nitrate-rich (BR; ∼800 mg/d) and nitrate-depleted (PLA; ∼0.5 mg/d) beetroot juice. Blood samples were collected and three 30-s Wingate tests were performed. Results: Plasma nitrate and nitrite concentrations were higher following BR vs PLA (P < .001), with no differences between sport levels (all P > .10). Peak power over the three Wingates was not different between BR and PLA (1338 ± 30 vs 1333 ± 30 W; P = .62), and there was no interaction between treatment (BR-PLA) and Wingate number (1-2-3; P = .48). Likewise, mean power did not differ between BR and PLA (P = .86). In contrast, time to peak power improved by ∼2.8% following BR vs PLA (P = .007). This improvement in BR vs PLA was not different between Wingate 1, 2 and 3. Moreover, the effects of BR vs PLA did not differ between sport levels for any Wingate parameter (all P > .30). Conclusion: The plasma and repeated-sprint performance responses to beetroot juice supplementation do not differ between recreational, competitive and elite sprint athletes. Beetroot juice supplementation reduces time to reach peak power, which may improve the capacity to accelerate during high-intensity and sprint tasks in recreational as well as elite athletes.
Celebrating variability and a call to limit systematisation: the example of the Behaviour Change Technique Taxonomy and the Behaviour Change Wheel

ABSTRACT Within any discipline there is always a degree of variability. For medicine it takes the form of Health Professional’s behaviour, for education it’s the style and content of the classroom, and for health psychology, it can be found in patient’s behaviour, the theories used and clinical practice. Over recent years, attempts have been made to reduce this variability through the use of the Behaviour Change Technique Taxonomy, the COM-B and the Behaviour Change Wheel. This paper argues that although the call for better descriptions of what is done is useful for clarity and replication, this systematisation may be neither feasible nor desirable. In particular, it is suggested that the gaps inherent in the translational process from coding a protocol to behaviour will limit the effectiveness of reducing patient variability, that theory variability is necessary for the health and well-being of a discipline and that practice variability is central to the professional status of our practitioners. It is therefore argued that we should celebrate rather than remove this variability in order for our discipline to thrive and for us to remain as professionals rather than as technicians.
Mitochondrial Ca2+ transport and the role of intramitochondrial Ca2+ in the regulation of energy metabolism.

The mitochondrial inner membrane of all mammalian tissues, including brain tissues, has specific active transport systems for the uptake and egress of Ca2+. The primary role of this transport system is to relay changes in cytosolic [Ca2+], which stimulates energy-requiring processes in the cytosol (e.g. secretion), into the mitochondrial matrix where it stimulates several key steps in energy production. Thus using the same second-messenger molecule, the latter events allow energetic homeostasis to be maintained under conditions of cell stimulation. This appears to be brought about by a co-ordinated enhancement of steps throughout the pathways of oxidative phosphorylation, including substrate supply to the respiratory chain by dehydrogenase activation, activation of the respiratory chain itself by a mechanism which appears to involve changes in the matrix volume, and also possibly activation of the ATP synthetase where the release of a specific inhibitory subunit has been proposed.