Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Review and Analysis of Alternatives for the Valorisation of Agro-Industrial Olive Oil By-Products

By-products and waste from olive production (agriculture) and the olive oil industry (mills and refineries) are an important environmental issue in Mediterranean areas. Industrial waste and by-products contain highly valuable components that can also be phytotoxic. This article reviews recent research on the valorisation of olive by-products under the bioeconomy strategy. The alternatives are classified according to the ‘bioeconomy value pyramid’, which prioritises higher value uses over the current energy and compost valorisation. Special attention is paid to the use of these by-products for animal feed that can be improved by reducing the content of saturated fatty acids (SFAs) and increase the polyunsaturated fatty acids amount considered beneficial in response to their use; this makes the food healthier for humans while simultaneously reducing feeding costs and the environmental impact of livestock.
In vitro exchange of fluoroquinolone resistance determinants between Streptococcus pneumoniae and viridans streptococci and genomic organization of the parE-parC region in S. mitis.

Transfer of fluoroquinolone (FQ) resistance determinants between Streptococcus pneumoniae and viridans streptococci was explored by transformation in vitro. One-step FQ-resistant parC mutants were selected, and resistance could be transferred from DNA from S. oralis, S. mitis, S. sanguis, and S. constellatus to S. pneumoniae, with frequencies of 10(-3) to <10(-7) in correlation with the homologies of their quinolone resistance determining region sequences (95%, 91%, 85%, and 81%, respectively). Reciprocal transfers of mutated parC from DNA from S. pneumoniae to S. mitis and S. oralis were also observed. Simultaneous transfer of mutated parC and gyrA genes from S. mitis to S. pneumoniae yielded high-level-resistant pneumococcal transformants in one step at low frequencies. The parE-parC region of the type strain S. mitis 103335T had >90% homology with that of S. pneumoniae. The efficient interspecific transfer of quinolone resistance determinants in vitro leads us to anticipate their dissemination in the clinical setting.
Soil Persistence of Triasulfuron Herbicide as Affected by Biotic and Abiotic Factors

Persistence of triasulfuron [3-(6-methoxy-4methyl-1,3,5-triazin-2-yl)-1-{2-(2-chloroethoxy)-phenylsulfonyl}-urea] in soil was studied under wheat crop and laboratory conditions. Field experiment was conducted in the farms of Agronomy Division, Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), New Delhi. Randomized block design (RBD) was followed with four replicates and two rates of treatments along with control and weedy check. Triasulfuron was applied as post-emergent application to wheat crop at two rates of application viz., 15 g and 20 g a.i. ha−1. Soil samples at 0 (3 h), 1, 3, 5, 7, 10, 15, 20, and 30-day intervals after application were drawn, extracted, cleaned up, and analyzed for herbicide residues by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) using C18 column and methanol: water (8:2) as mobile phase at 242 nm wave length. Effect of microbial activity and soil pH was studied under laboratory conditions. Dissipation of triasulfuron followed a first-order-rate kinetics. Residues dissipated from field soil with half-life of 5.8 and 5.9 days at two rates of application. The study indicated biphasic degradation with faster rate initially (t 1/2 = 3.7 days), followed by a slower dissipation rate at the end (t 1/2 = 9.4 days). Similar trend was observed with non-sterile soil in laboratory with a longer half-life. Acidic pH and microbial activity contributed toward the degradation of triasulfuron in soil.
Lipoprotein lipase uptake by the liver: localization, turnover, and metabolic role.

We have studied the binding and metabolism of 125I-labeled bovine lipoprotein lipase (LPL) by use of isolated, perfused rat livers. Our data suggest the presence of two types of binding sites, i.e., heparin-sensitive sites that bind primarily the catalytically active form of the lipase and are present at the endothelium in all blood vessels and heparin-insensitive sites that bind both active and inactive forms and are present only within the sinusoids. Forty minutes after uptake by the liver, approximately 50% of the LPL had lost its catalytic activity or been degraded. Three processes were evident: 1) colchicine-sensitive degradation to acid-soluble products, 2) partial proteolysis to fragments similar to those formed by limited digestion with trypsin or plasmin, and 3) a conformational change leading to loss of catalytic activity. Exogenous LPL bound in the liver caused a dramatic increase in the utilization of a perfused triacylglycerol emulsion (Intralipid), with rapid formation of free fatty acids and water-soluble metabolites. When the liver was flushed with heparin, it lost its ability to utilize the fat emulsion. Measurement of the hepatic extraction showed that rat livers take up 100-200 mU endogenous LPL per hour.
Hereditary deficiency of antithrombin III, protein C and protein S: prevalence in patients with a history of venous thrombosis and criteria for rational patient screening

Data in the literature on the prevalence of hereditary deficiency of the natural coagulation inhibitors are conflicting. We conducted a prospective study on 680 consecutive patients with a history of venous thrombosis to determine the prevalence of hereditary deficiency of antithrombin III (AT III), protein C (PC) and protein S (PS) and to establish selection criteria for rational patient screening. The mean age of the patients at investigation was 44.3 ± 15.4 years, while that at the first thrombotic event was 38.5 ± 14.8 years. The total prevalence of inhibitor deficiency states was 48/680 (7.1%). 19/680 patients (2.8%) had AT III-deficiency, 17 (2.5%) PC-deficiency, nine (1.3%) PS-deficiency and three (0.4%) a combined deficiency. In 37/48 deficient patients family studies were performed and the hereditary nature was established in 19 cases (2.8% of total patient population, six with AT III-deficiency, eight with PC-deficiency, four with PS-deficiency and one with a combined deficiency). Family studies in these 19 patients revealed 46 additional individual patients with a hereditary deficiency state. A positive family history was found in 15/19 (79%) with a proven hereditary deficiency state, in 153/619 (25%) of non-deficient patients and in 11/29 (38%) of deficient patients without established hereditary nature. The mean age at the first thrombotic event was significantly lower in patients with a hereditary deficiency state (26.8 years) compared with the other two groups (39.0 and 39.7 years, respectively). In all patients with a hereditary deficiency the first thrombotic event occurred before the age of 45 years. The site of thrombosis and the frequency of spontaneous and recurrent thromboembolic events was similar in patients with and without a deficiency state. We conclude that the prevalence of the hereditary deficiency of AT III, PC or PS in patients with a history of venous thrombosis or pulmonary embolism is low. A positive family history and the occurrence of the first thrombotic event at an early age are of predictive value for the presence of a hereditary deficiency state. These criteria are useful for selecting patients for determination of AT III, PC and PS.
Enhancement of noisy speech based on decision-directed Wiener approach in perceptual wavelet packet domain

In this paper, for enhancement of noisy speech, a method based on decision-directed Wiener approach in perceptual wavelet packet (PWP) domain is presented. The proposed method assumes an additive Gaussian noise model to derive the formulation of estimating the clean speech coefficients. The proposed method also considers the signal to noise ratio (SNR) information of the previous frame to obtain the estimates of the clean speech coefficients of the current frame. By using the speech files available in NOIZEUS database, a number of simulations are performed to evaluate the performance of the proposed method for speech signals in the presence of car, babble and street noises. The proposed method outperforms some of the state-of-the-art speech enhancement methods both at high and low levels of SNRs in terms of standard objective measures and subjective evaluations.
Comparing customer perceptions of hotel and peer-to-peer accommodation advantages and disadvantages

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to compare customer perceptions of hotel and peer-to-peer (e.g. Airbnb) accommodation advantages and disadvantages and examine their influence on customer satisfaction and repurchase intentions. The advantages of each accommodation type are conceptualized through perceived travel experience authenticity, whereas the disadvantages are evaluated through the risks associated with staying at each accommodation type, including product performance risk, time/convenience risk and safety and security risk. Design/methodology/approach A cross-sectional survey was designed and disseminated to gather the data necessary to fulfill the study objectives. A total of 391 usable responses were collected for a multi-group analysis of the structural model designed to test the proposed relationships. Findings The multi-group comparison revealed similarities between the peer-to-peer (Airbnb) and hotel guest structural models. Model testing revealed a strong positive relationship between satisfaction and repurchase intention. Perceived authenticity was identified as a statistically significant satisfaction predictor for both accommodation types. Time/convenience and product performance risks were found to be insignificant predictors of guest satisfaction, while safety and security risk appeared to be statistically significant only in the Airbnb sample. Research limitations/implications This study’s recruited sample represented a higher concentration of younger travelers, and, therefore, might only be generalized to the corresponding US traveler group population. Additionally, samples recruited via Amazon’s MTurk may be subject to self-selection bias as any other non-probability samples. Consequently, further research with a larger and more diverse sample is recommended. Practical implications It is recommended for both hotels and Airbnb to strengthen the authenticity of their accommodation offerings to provide a better guest experience and increase consumer satisfaction. Social implications To develop the authenticity component, Airbnb hosts and hotels may offer local experiences to their customers, where guests would be able to engage with the community and to see and feel how the city lives. Such partnerships may not only improve the traveler experiences but also support the local community and strengthen the ties between local businesses. Originality/value This study contributes to the literature by advancing understanding of peer-to-peer (Airbnb) versus hotel accommodation consumer preferences. This study offers relevant theoretical constructs for assessing both accommodation types’ advantages and disadvantages.
Sex Reversal in Pairs of Lythrypnus dalli: Behavioral and Morphological Changes

In Lythrypnus dalli, the bluebanded goby, reproductive success is primarily determined by functional sex, and functional sex is determined largely by rank in the dominance hierarchy. In most natural social groups of L. dalli, one male is at the apex of the hierarchy, and 1 to 7 females are lower in rank. When a male exits the group, a female ascends to the top of the hierarchy and becomes a male. We have examined this process in a simplified environment—a pair of females—that allows us to identify behavior associated with the formation of a dominance relationship and any other phenotypic changes associated with dominance, sex change or both. We found that pairs of L. dalli females quickly and readily form stable dominance relationships, with the dominant fish changing sex into a male. This dominant animal also rapidly increases in body size and length of its dorsal fin. In summary, dominant L. dalli females change sex in this simplified environment, providing excellent opportunities to examine the early behavioral and morphological changes associated with dominance and sex change.
Bulk Lateral MEM Resonator on Thin SOI With High $Q$ -Factor

The fabrication, design, and characterization of high-quality factor microelectromechanical (MEM) resonators fabricated on thin-film silicon-on-insulators (SOIs) are addressed in this paper. In particular, we investigate laterally vibrating bulk-mode resonators based on connected parallel beams [parallel beam resonators (PBRs)]. The experimental characteristics of PBRs are compared to disk resonators and rectangular plate resonators. All the reported MEM resonators are fabricated on 1.25-mum SOI substrates by a hard mask and deep reactive-ion etching process, resulting in transduction gaps smaller than 200 nm. Additionally, this fabrication process allows the growth of a thermal silicon dioxide layer on the resonators, which is used to compensate the resonance-frequency dependence on temperature. Quality factors Q, ranging from 20 000 at 32 MHz up to 100 000 at 24.6 MHz, are experimentally demonstrated. The motional resistances R m are compared for different designs, and values as low as 55 kOmega at 18 V of bias voltage are obtained with the thin SOI substrate. The thermal sensitivity of the resonance frequency is investigated from 200 K to 360 K, showing values of -15 ppm/K for the PBRs, with a possible compensation of 2 ppm/K when using 20 nm of SiO2.
Demographic externalities of human capital:evidence from Bangladesh

The Industrial Revolution and the Demographic Transition are the two great forces that explain the upward march of modern economy. What is the general effect of increase in Human Capital Intensity (HCI) on major demographic factors? Despite the universal agreement on socio-economic return of Human Capital (HC), much less is known about the demographic return of HC. This study attempts to explore major demographic externalities of overall increase in HCI. This paper mainly utilizes the published data of International Labor Organization and United Nations. In this study, both bivariate and multivariate analyses have been performed. From this study, It is observed that, HCI is robustly associated with the productivity of the country. Our findings reveal that, a negative relation exists between HCI (PWSI) and Population Growth Rate, Total Fertility Rate, Crude Birth Rate and Crude Death Rate, and a positive correlation appears between HCI and Net Migration Rate. Formation of HC is very important in different aspects for a nation, as well as the individual. Every nation should emphasize HC formation for prosperity of the nation. Besides this, HC formation should also be stressed as an indirect measure of population control, which is very important for well-being of all nations.
Schwann cells and oligodendrocytes read distinct signals in establishing myelin sheath thickness

Schwann cells and oligodendrocytes produce myelin sheaths of widely varying sizes. How these cells determine the size of myelin sheath for a particular axon is incompletely understood. Axonal diameter has long been suspected to be a signal in this process. We have analyzed myelin sheath thickness in L5 lumbar root and spinal cord white matter of a series of mouse mutants with diminished axonal calibers resulting from a deficiency of neurofilaments (NFs). In the PNS, average axonal diameters were reduced by 20–37% in the NF mutants. Remarkably, the average myelin sheath thickness remained unchanged from control values, and regression analysis showed sheaths abnormally thick for a given size of axon. These data show that a genetically induced reduction in axonal caliber does not cause a reduction in myelin sheath thickness in PNS and indicate that Schwann cells read some intrinsic signal on axons that can be uncoupled from axonal diameter. Interestingly, myelin sheaths in the spinal cord of these animals were not abnormally thick, arguing that axonal diameter may contribute directly to the regulation of myelination in the CNS and that oligodendrocytes and Schwann cells use different cues to set myelin sheath thickness. J. Neurosci. Res. 65:493–499, 2001. © 2001 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Analysis of expression profile of miRNA in stomach adenocarcinoma.

PURPOSE Stomach adenocarcinoma (STAD) has become the second main cause of cancer death around the world, and accumulated evidence has suggested that micro-RNAs (miRNAs) are likely to be served as indicator for diagnosis and prognosis in a variety of tumors. The purpose of this study was to discover the miRNAs acting as independent prognostic factors of STAD and to provide reference for the STAD diagnosis and prognosis. METHODS In this study, we analyzed the clinical data collected from 393 STAD cases of the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA;USA) and the expression data of 1881 miRNAs to screen miRNAs that were associated with STAD via Cox regression univariate analysis and those miRNAs with independent effect on the prognosis of STAD via Cox regression multivariate analysis. RESULTS We found differential expressions of 218 miRNAs in STAD tumors and normal tissues, and a key role of miR- 7 in STAD. In Cox regression multivariate analysis, miR- 378i (p=0.0010), miR-7-3 (p=0.01), miR-137 (p=0.03) and miR-372 (p=0.04) were independent prognostic factors, for which we performed Kaplan-Meier analysis, and the results showed that there was a statistically significant difference in comparison of the survival duration between the highexpression and low-expression of miR-7-3 groups, but no differences were identified between the groups of miR-378i (p=0.7), miR-137 (p=0.11) and miR-372 (p=0.13). CONCLUSION miR-7-3 is proved to be an independent prognostic indicator for STAD and this study confirmed that tumor-specific miRNA can predict the progression and prognosis of STAD.
Les exceptions au droit d'auteur: évolutions dangereuses

Dans le monde des choses comme dans celui des idées, il existe plusieurs manières de détruire. La première est celle, bien connue, de la soustraction : on prive un être de nourriture, on lui retranche la vie, on abolit une loi ou on prive de liberté. C’est la stratégie ancienne du voilement ou de l’amputation : les puritains crurent se débarrasser du désir en voilant les corps, comme les Révolutionnaires crurent se débarrasser des privilèges en décapitant la noblesse et les bolchéviques en finir avec l’appropriation bourgeoise en abolissant la propriété privée. La première inclination d’une force, en présence d’une idée ou d’un être qui la contrarie, est en effet de tenter la soustraction: retrancher ou oblitérer ce qui gêne.
Secretion, blood levels and cutaneous expression of TL1A in psoriasis patients

TL1A is a TNF‐like cytokine which has been shown to co‐stimulate TH1 and TH17 responses during chronic inflammation. The expression of this novel cytokine has been investigated in inflammatory disorders like rheumatoid arthritis and inflammatory bowel disease, but little is known about expression and induction in psoriasis. Indeed, the pathogenesis in psoriasis is still not fully understood and it is speculated that cytokines other than TNF‐α are important in subsets of patients. Also, for patients with severe disease that are treated with systemic anti‐TNF‐α blockade, novel candidates to be used as disease and response biomarkers are of high interest. Here, we demonstrate TL1A expression in biopsies from psoriatic lesions. Also, we investigated spontaneous and induced TL1A secretion from PBMCs and blood levels from a cohort of psoriasis patients. Here, increased spontaneous secretion from PBMCs was observed as compared to healthy controls and a small subset of patients had highly elevated TL1A in the blood. Interestingly, activation of PBMCs with various cytokines showed a decreased sensitivity for TL1A activation in psoriasis patients compared to healthy controls.TL1A levels in blood and biopsies could not be correlated with disease activity with this patient cohort. Thus, additional large‐scale studies are warranted to investigate TL1A as a biomarker.
Dopamine Release is Involved in Antinociceptive Effect of Theophylline

ABSTRACT The methylxanthines, e.g., theophylline, are widely used for the treatment of bronchial asthma. Additionally, a pain relieving effect of theophylline has been reported in patients as well as in experimental animals. The mechanism of this antinociceptive action is not clear. In this study, involvement of dopaminergic system in theophylline-induced antinociception was evaluated using tail flick test model. Swiss albino mice, (either sex, weighing 25–30 g) with base line tail flick latencies (TFL) between 2.0 and 3.5 s, were used. TFL was recorded before and at intervals of 15, 30, 45, and 60 min. after drug treatment. The experimental protocol was duly approved by the Institutional Animal Ethics Committee, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India. To determine the role of dopaminergic system, the mice were pretreated with either D1 or D2 dopaminergic receptor antagonists SCH 23390 and haloperidol, respectively, prior to treatment with theophylline. Another group of animals received apomorphine along with theophylline. The dose of theophylline used, i.e., 10 mg/kg, intraperitoneally (i.p.), had shown a significant increase in TFLs. The theophylline-induced antinociception, 10 mg/kg, i.p., was reversed by pretreatment with both D1 and D2 dopaminergic receptor antagonists SCH 23390 and haloperidol as well as with apomorphine (1 mg/kg) pretreatment. The results suggest that theophylline-induced antinociception is due to release of dopamine.
Transgenic Expression of Numb Inhibits Notch Signaling in Immature Thymocytes But Does Not Alter T Cell Fate Specification1

The conserved adaptor protein Numb is an intrinsic cell fate determinant that functions by antagonizing Notch-mediated signal transduction. The Notch family of membrane receptors controls cell survival and cell fate determination in a variety of organ systems and species. Recent studies have identified a role for mammalian Notch-1 signals at multiple stages of T lymphocyte development. We have examined the role of mammalian Numb (mNumb) as a Notch regulator and cell fate determinant during T cell development. Transgenic overexpression of mNumb under the control of the Lck proximal promoter reduced expression of several Notch-1 target genes, indicating that mNumb antagonizes Notch-1 signaling in vivo. However, thymocyte development, cell cycle, and survival were unperturbed by mNumb overexpression, even though transgenic Numb was expressed at an early stage in thymocyte development (CD4−CD8−CD3− cells that were CD44+CD25+ or CD44−CD25+; double-negative 2/3). Moreover, bone marrow from mNumb transgenic mice showed no defects in thymopoiesis in competitive repopulation experiments. Our results suggest that mNumb functions as a Notch-1 antagonist in immature thymocytes, but that suppression of Notch-1 signaling at this stage does not alter γδ/αβ or CD4/CD8 T cell fate specification.