Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
[Analysis of the correlation of prevalence in allergic rhinitis and other allergic diseases].

OBJECTIVE To obtain the prevalence of allergic rhinitis (AR) in different regions of northern China, to analyze the correlation and interaction between AR and bronchial asthma (BA) or atopic dermatitis (AD), and to provide reference for the prevention and treatment of allergic diseases such as AR. METHODS To obtain the indexes including age, occupation, atopic physical fitness, smoking, alcohol, lifestyle and so on. To explore the correlation between AR and BA or AD. From April 2007 to May 2010, the serum specific IgE (sIgE) was investigated in different regions (rural areas of Qingxian, Hebei; coastal fishing village of Bohai Bay, Huanghua; area of Wuling Mountain, Chengde; urban areas of Tianjin) by randomly multi-stage and cluster sampling, with total population of 1524. RESULTS The prevalence of AR, BA and AD were 9.1%, 5.4% and 6.0%. The prevalence of BA and AD were 30.9% and 29.5% in AR patients, but were 2.9% and 3.7% in non-AR, and the differences were of statistical significance (χ(2) values were 192.97 and 148.40, respectively, all P < 0.01). The risk of people with BA suffering from AR was as 8.619 times as those free from BA, the risk of people with AD suffering from AR was as 1.817 times as those free from AD and, the risk of workers suffering from AR was as 2.320 times as farmers in terms of working factor by analysis of Logistic regression for AR and BA, AD, age, occupation, atopic physical fitness and other factors. CONCLUSIONS The prevalence of AR are correlated with BA and AD. It is greater between BA and AR than AD and AR in the strength of correlation.
Public investment in Nigeria

This paper investigates the effects of external debt on public capital investment in Nigeria from 1970 to 2013 using autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) bound testing approach. The empirical results reveal that external debt and debt service exert a negative impact on public capital investment, but the current real GDP is positive. In general, our empirical evidence suggests that external debt does not influence public investment over the period under study. At longer horizon, it is confirmed that the nature of poor domestic savings and investment causes higher debt service payments and crowd out available resources for investment in economic and social sectors. The study, therefore, suggests that the policy makers should adhere strictly to the appropriate use of debt through efficient investment, so that the debt service payments should not exceed the country’s payment capacity.
Can a 15-mm Cervical Length Cutoff Discriminate between Low and High Risk of Preterm Delivery in Women with Threatened Preterm Labor?

Objectives: To investigate if a cervical length (CL) cutoff of 15 mm is relevant to use in women with threatened preterm labor. Methods: From 2006 to 2009, 146 women with singleton pregnancies were admitted with threatened preterm labor between 23 and 33+6 weeks of gestation at Copenhagen University Hospital. Transvaginal sonographic measurement of CL was carried out on admission. Outcome measures were spontaneous delivery within 48 h, within 7 days and delivery before 34 weeks according to a CL cutoff of 15 mm. Results: CL was <15 mm in 36 women (24.7%) and ≧15 mm in 110 women (75.3%). Spontaneous delivery occurred within 48 h or 7 days of presentation and before 34 weeks in 25, 38.9 and 50.0% of women with CL <15 mm and 3.6, 9.1 and 11.8% of women with CL ≧15 mm, respectively. The 15-mm CL cutoff had a sensitivity, false positive rate and negative predictive value for delivery within 48 h of 69.0, 20.3 and 96.4%, and within 7 days of 58.3, 18.1 and 90.9%. Women with CL <15 mm had odds of delivery within 7 days of 6.4 (95% CI 2.5–16.2). Conclusion: Although a 15-mm CL defines a group of women at high risk of spontaneous preterm delivery, 10 out of 110 women (9.1%) with a CL ≧15 mm deliver within 7 days.
Design and experimental evaluation of a compact hybrid excitation claw-pole rotor

This paper focuses on the electromagnetic design and experimental evaluation of an electrically magnetized permanent magnet assisted synchronous machine (EMPMSM). The work is carried out on an existing Lundell alternator where the design of the rotor facilitates features of field strengthening and weakening operation possible including the efficiency improvement. A relatively simple and compact slip ring less rotor with EM and PM excitation is proposed, analysed and tested. A series of 3D FE transient computations are made in order to estimate efficiency at different operation points and with different types of rotor cores: solid iron and powder core. A rotor with the solid iron core is built and tested including different aspects of torque and power loss production.
Optimising EEG-fMRI for Localisation of Focal Epilepsy in Children

Background Early surgical intervention in children with drug resistant epilepsy has benefits but requires using tolerable and minimally invasive tests. EEG-fMRI studies have demonstrated good sensitivity for the localization of epileptic focus but a poor yield although the reasons for this have not been systematically addressed. While adults EEG-fMRI studies are performed in the “resting state”; children are commonly sedated however, this has associated risks and potential confounds. In this study, we assessed the impact of the following factors on the tolerability and results of EEG-fMRI in children: viewing a movie inside the scanner; movement; occurrence of interictal epileptiform discharges (IED); scan duration and design efficiency. This work’s motivation is to optimize EEG-fMRI parameters to make this test widely available to paediatric population Methods Forty-six children with focal epilepsy and 20 controls (6–18) underwent EEG-fMRI. For two 10 minutes sessions subjects were told to lie still with eyes closed, as it is classically performed in adult studies (“rest sessions”), for another two sessions, subjects watched a child friendly stimulation i.e. movie (“movie sessions”). IED were mapped with EEG-fMRI for each session and across sessions. The resulting maps were classified as concordant/discordant with the presumed epileptogenic focus for each subject. Findings Movement increased with scan duration, but the movie reduced movement by ~40% when played within the first 20 minutes. There was no effect of movie on the occurrence of IED, nor in the concordance of the test. Ability of EEG-fMRI to map the epileptogenic region was similar for the 20 and 40 minute scan durations. Design efficiency was predictive of concordance. Conclusions A child friendly natural stimulus improves the tolerability of EEG-fMRI and reduces in-scanner movement without having an effect on IED occurrence and quality of EEG-fMRI maps. This allowed us to scan children as young as 6 and obtain localising information without sedation. Our data suggest that ~20 minutes is the optimal length of scanning for EEG-fMRI studies in children with frequent IED. The efficiency of the fMRI design derived from spontaneous IED generation is an important factor for producing concordant results.
The Role of [ 18 F]Fluorodeoxyglucose Positron Emission Tomography Imaging in the Evaluation of Hepatocellular Carcinoma

It has been well established that hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs) accumulate [18F]fluorodeoxy-glucose (FDG) to varying degrees; this is thought to be due to differing amounts of FDG-6-phosphatase activity. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of FDG imaging on the management of patients diagnosed with hepatocellular carcinoma. We conducted a retrospective review of the clinical data of 91 consecutive patients diagnosed with HCC who underwent FDG-positron emission tomography (PET) imaging between August 1993 and March 2001. The patients were divided into two groups. In Group one 67 of 91 (74%) patients were evaluated for proven but untreated hepatic lesions using PET. In Group two the remaining 24 patients (26%) were referred for evaluation of HCC recurrence but did not have prior PET. The FDG images were acquired with two dedicated PET tomographs [Siemens ECAT 933, CTI (Knoxville, TN) and GE Advance, General Electric Medical Systems (Milwaukee, WI)] one hour after the intravenous administration of 10 mCi of FDG. Tumor biopsy or resection specimens were available for review from 34 patients and were evaluated for histologic grade, presence of cirrhosis, tumor necrosis, and intratumoral fibrosis. In group one 43 of 67 (64%) of the HCCs accumulated FDG. Sixteen of the 43 patients in whom FDG was accumulated had multiple subsequent FDG-PET scans either for monitoring therapy or for detection of recurrence. FDG-PET imaging had an impact on the management of 20 of these patients: by guiding the biopsy at the metabolically active site of a large necrotic tumor (one), by identifying distant metastases (five), by monitoring the response to treatment with hepatic chemoembolization and guiding additional regional therapy (12), and by detecting recurrence (two). In group two recurrence and/or metastases were demonstrated with FDG-PET imaging in six of 24 (25%) patients, three of whom had multiple subsequent FDG-PET scans to monitor their treatment. Higher histopathologic grade and intratumoral fibrosis but not necrosis or cirrhosis correlated with PET positivity. In this study only 64 per cent of HCCs accumulated FDG. Despite this limitation FDG-PET imaging remains a useful tool in the diagnosis and treatment of HCC. FDG-PET imaging had a clinically significant impact in 26 of 91 (28%) patients with HCC. This includes detection of unsuspected metastatic disease in high-risk patients—including liver transplant candidates—and monitoring response to hepatic-directed therapy. FDG-PET should be considered as part of the workup and management of selected patients with HCC.
Respiratory changes during initial days of acclimatization to increasing altitudes.

METHOD The daily changes in respiratory function were monitored in 16 healthy male road inductees at sea level (SL) and at high altitudes (HA) of 3110 m, 3445 m, and 4177 m. Identical studies were also carried out on acclimatized low landers (ALL) staying at 3110 m and at 4177 m for 2 years. RESULTS Ventilation, tidal volume, and respiratory rate showed significant increases on arrival at HA and remained high during the entire period of observation (p < 0.001). These parameters did not show any appreciable difference between 3110 m and 3445 m. Forced vital capacity (FVC) and forced expiratory volume (L) in 1.0-s (FEC1.0) also did not change on the first day of arrival at HA but decreased significantly (p < 0.001) on the second day at 3110 m. However, both FVC and FEV1.0(L) returned to SL values by day 3 but declined further at 3445 m and at 4177 m. Forced expiratory flow and maximum voluntary ventilation declined on arrival at HA. Peak expiratory flow rate, however, tended to decline during initial days but increased by day 3 and remained elevated during the subsequent residence. Respiratory adaptation to hypoxia in ALL appeared to be different at 3110 m as compared to that at 4177 m. At higher altitude the lung volumes and capacities were markedly decreased, whereas at lower altitudes these parameters were comparable to SL values. CONCLUSION We conclude that initial respiratory adjustments in sojourners occur by day 3 at 3110 m and show further decrement at 4177 m with a cyclic variation on day 6, while ALL manifest variability in respiratory adaptation at different altitudes.
Using hall-effect sensors to add digital recording capability to electromechanical relays

The paper describes the use of Hall-effect sensors for adding digital recording and harmonic analysis capabilities to major substation equipment such as electromechanical relays, circuit breakers, and power transformers. Three case studies are presented describing the use of these sensors as tools for diagnosing problems and identifying root causes of equipment failures. The first case study describes how the sensors were used in a generating plant to identify the cause of a transformer differential relay trip operation. The second study describes how the sensors were used in a switching station to measure harmonic content during capacitor bank switching operations. And, the third case study describes how a potential hazard was inadvertently discovered while using the sensors to capture trip and secondary current signatures in a distribution substation. The paper also describes the unique characteristics of the Hall-effect sensors and the process of preparing them for use in the substation environment. The types of enclosures used and the needed recording requirements are also discussed. The intent of the authors is to present the reader with a novel tool that is truly helpful for identifying problems with major substation equipment.
The Loss of Cytoplasmic Potassium upon Host Cell Breakdown Triggers Egress of Toxoplasma gondii*

The ability of intracellular parasites to monitor the viability of their host cells is essential for their survival. The protozoan parasite Toxoplasma gondii actively invades nucleated animal cells and replicates in their cytoplasm. Two to 3 days after infection, the parasite-filled host cell breaks down and the parasites leave to initiate infection of a new cell. Parasite egress from the host cell is triggered by rupture of the host plasma membrane and the ensuing reduction in the concentration of cytoplasmic potassium. The many other changes in host cell composition do not appear be used as triggers. The reduction in the host cell [K+] appears to activate a phospholipase C activity inToxoplasma that, in turn, causes an increase in cytoplasmic [Ca2+] in the parasite. The latter appears to be necessary and sufficient for inducing egress, as buffering of cytoplasmic Ca2+ blocks egress and calcium ionophores circumvent the need for a reduction of host cell [K+] and parasite phospholipase C activation. The increase in [Ca2+]C brings about egress by the activation of at least two signaling pathways: the protein kinase TgCDPK1 and the calmodulin-dependent protein phosphatase calcineurin.
Phosphorylation and Activation of a cAMP-specific Phosphodiesterase by the cAMP-dependent Protein Kinase

A cAMP-specific phosphodiesterase (PDE4D3) is activated in rat thyroid cells by TSH through a cAMP-dependent phosphorylation (Sette, C., Iona, S., and Conti, M. (1994) J. Biol. Chem. 269, 9245-9252). This short term activation may be involved in the termination of the hormonal stimulation and/or in the induction of desensitization. Here, we have further characterized the protein kinase A (PKA)-dependent phosphorylation of this PDE4D3 variant and identified the phosphorylation site involved in the PDE activation. The PKA-dependent incorporation of phosphate in the partially purified, recombinant rat PDE4D3 followed a time course similar to that of activation. Half-maximal activation of the enzyme was obtained with 0.6 μM ATP and 30 nM of the catalytic subunit of PKA. Phosphorylation altered the Vmax of the PDE without affecting the Km for cAMP. Phosphorylation also modified the Mg2+ requirements and the pattern of inhibition by rolipram. Cyanogen bromide cleavage of the 32P-labeled rat PDE4D3 yielded two or three major phosphopeptide bands, providing a first indication that the enzyme may be phosphorylated at multiple sites in a cell-free system. Site-directed mutagenesis was performed on the serine residues present at the amino terminus of this PDE in the context of preferred motifs for PKA phosphorylation. The PKA-dependent incorporation of 32P was reduced to the largest extent in mutants with both Ser13 → Ala and Ser54 → Ala substitutions, confirming the presence of more than one phosphorylation site in rat PDE4D3. While substitution of serine 13 with alanine did not affect the activation by PKA, substitution of Ser54 completely suppressed the kinase activation. Similar conclusions were reached with wild type and mutated PDE4D3 proteins expressed in MA-10 cells, where the endogenous PKA was activated by dibutyryl cAMP. Again, the PDE with the Ser54 → Ala substitution could not be activated by the endogenous PKA in the intact cell. These findings support the hypothesis that the PDE4D3 variant contains a regulatory domain target for phosphorylation at the amino terminus of the protein and that Ser54 in this domain plays a crucial role in activation.
Sources of variability in genetic association studies: Insights from the analysis of hepatic lipase (LIPC)

Genetic association studies have been widely used to identify loci that influence plasma lipoprotein concentrations, but few of the associations reported have proved consistently reproducible across different study populations. This lack of consistency is a widely recognized limitation of association studies, and is often ascribed to inadequate statistical power, population substructure, and population‐specific linkage disequilibrium. However, few studies have assessed the causes of variability underlying a given genotype–phenotype association. We have examined two possible sources of variability in the association between the –514 polymorphism in hepatic lipase (LIPC) and plasma HDL‐C concentrations. First, we compared the association between this polymorphism and hepatic lipase activity in four populations. A single copy of the –514C allele was associated with a 10 mmol.hr–1.l–1 increase in hepatic lipase activity in white American and Turkish men but only ∼5 mmol.hr–1.l–1 in Chinese and African‐American men. Second, we tested the effects of a stanozolol‐induced increase in hepatic lipase activity on plasma HDL‐C concentrations in men with normal (< 150mg/dl) or elevated (150–300mg/dl) levels of plasma triglyceride. The increase in hepatic lipase activity was similar in the two groups, but the resulting decline in HDL‐C levels was significantly greater in normolipidemic men. These data suggest that the effect of a polymorphism on gene expression can vary among individuals, and that the resulting phenotype may be further modified by interactions with other factors. Three novel LIPC polymorphisms were identified in the study (‐1596insC, ‐2740A>G, and ‐2880G>C). Hum Mutat 19:536–542, 2002. © 2002 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Affirmative Action in Law Reviews

Policies designed to increase the diversity of law review editors are being challenged in court. The lawsuits claim that, by "illegally us[ing] race and gender as criteria for selecting law students to staff their most elite academic journals," the law reviews have diminished the quality of the articles they publish. We test this claim by using citations as a measure of article impact and studying changes in diversity policies at the flagship law reviews of the top 20 law schools. Using data on the citations of articles published since 1960, we find no evidence that diversity policies for editor selection meaningfully decrease the impact of published articles. In fact, we find at least some evidence that diversity policies may actually increase the impact of published articles. Note: On December 3, 2018, we posted a version of this paper on SSRN where we pre-committed to the approaches and specifications we use in this paper before we had the final dataset. That version can be assessed at https://papers.ssrn. com/abstract_id=3295334. We then circulated a call for help on social media asking current and former law review editors to share information on the diversity policies that law reviews have adopted. After receiving more information on law reviews' adoption of diversity policies, we re-ran the specifications that we pre-committed to in our initial draft. We have added robustness checks to this draft, but the main approaches and specifications are exactly the same.
KAMPUNG RAMAH ANAH GENDENG SEBAGAI ALTERNATIF PEMENUHAN HAK BERKEMBANG PADA ANAK USIA DINI

This article is intented to uncover the importance of environmental explroration for children. One example is child-friendly environment which is also a special effort from government. They set out in minister of women’s empowerment Republic of Indonesia with PP No 2 Tahun 2009 about child-friendly city (CFC). The result shows that Kampung Ramah Anak Gendeng is one of community efforts to fulfill the right of grow and develop on early childhood. Many programs that held on Kampung Ramah Anak Gendeng, such as children community, bimbingan belajar and TPA (Taman Pendidikan AL Qur’an). Factors that support child-friendly environment on Gendeng are Public awareness about the importance of early childhood development and continuity on socializing the importance of early childhood development. Barrier Factors on implementasion of child-friendly environment on Gendeng are lack of fund to held the program of Kampung Ramah Anak on Gendeng and lack of monev (monitoring and evaluation) from government.
Deficiency of low density lipoprotein receptors in liver and adrenal gland of the WHHL rabbit, an animal model of familial hypercholesterolemia.

The WHHL (Watanabe heritable hyperlipidemic) rabbit has been proposed as an animal model for human familial hypercholesterolemia. Homozygous WHHL rabbits have marked increases in the plasma level of low density lipoprotein (LDL), removal of LDL from their plasma is delayed, and LDL receptors are absent from their cultured fibroblasts [Tanzawa, K. , Shimada, Y. , Kuroda, M. , Tsujita, Y. , Arai, M. & Watanabe, Y. (1980) FEBS Lett. 118, 81--84]. We here report that membranes from the liver and adrenal gland of WHHL rabbits lack high-affinity LDL receptors. In normal rabbit membranes, binding of LDL to this receptor required calcium and is inhibited by EDTA. The LDL receptor binds rabbit 125I-labeled beta-migrating very low density lipoprotein (beta-VLDL), which contains apoproteins B and E, as well as rabbit 125I-labeled LDL, which contains only apoprotein B. It does not bind high density lipoprotein or methyl-LDL. All of these properties are identical with those of the LDL receptor of cultured fibroblasts. We conclude that a deficiency of hepatic and adrenal LDL receptors contributes to the hypercholesterolemia of the WHHL rabbits.
Modes of Action of Five Different Endopectate Lyases from Erwinia chrysanthemi 3937

Five endopectate lyases from the phytopathogenic bacterium Erwinia chrysanthemi, PelA, PelB, PelD, PelI, and PelL, were analyzed with respect to their modes of action on polymeric and oligomeric substrates (degree of polymerization, 2 to 8). On polygalacturonate, PelB showed higher reaction rates than PelD, PelI, and PelA, whereas the reaction rates for PelL were extremely low. The product progression during polygalacturonate cleavage showed a typical depolymerization profile for each enzyme and demonstrated their endolytic character. PelA, PelI, and PelL released oligogalacturonates of different sizes, whereas PelD and PelB released mostly unsaturated dimer and unsaturated trimer, respectively. Upon prolonged incubation, all enzymes degraded the primary products further, to unsaturated dimer and trimer, except for PelL, which degraded the primary products to unsaturated tetramer and pentamer in addition to unsaturated dimer and trimer. The bond cleavage frequencies on oligogalacturonates revealed differences in the modes of action of these enzymes that were commensurate with the product progression profiles. The preferential products formed from the oligogalacturonates were unsaturated dimer for PelD, unsaturated trimer for PelB, and unsaturated tetramer for PelI and PelL. For PelA, preferential products were dependent on the sizes of the oligogalacturonates. Whereas PelB and PelD displayed their highest activities on hexagalacturonate and tetragalacturonate, respectively, PelA, PelI, and PelL were most active on the octamer, the largest substrate used. The bond cleavage frequencies and reaction rates were used to estimate the number of subsites of each enzyme.