Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Collateral Policy of Central Banks - An Analysis Focusing on the Eurosystem

Die vorliegende Dissertation wurde von Christopher Weber wahrend seiner Tatigkeit als wissenschaftlicher Mitarbeiter am Center for Economic Studies (CES) an der Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitat (LMU) Munchen verfasst. Sie wurde im Juli 2016 an der volkswirtschaftlichen Fakultat der LMU eingereicht. Ziel der Arbeit ist es, die Ausgestaltung der Pfanderpolitik innerhalb des Zielsystems von Zentralbanken als Instrument der Zentralbankpolitik zu etablieren und praktische Ausgestaltung, Wirkungsweise sowie Auswirkungen darzulegen. Die Arbeit gliedert sich in drei Teile und neun Kapitel. Der erste Teil bespricht die Rolle von Pfandern in der Zentralbankpolitik. Die verschiedenen moglichen Aufgaben und Ziele von Zentralbanken werden historisch abgeleitet. Dann wird die Ausgestaltung der Pfanderpolitik innerhalb dieses Zielsystems besprochen und geschlussfolgert, dass Pfanderpolitik mit Blick auf alle Zentralbankziele von Bedeutung ist. Somit entsteht ein normativer Rahmen fur die Rolle von Pfanderpolitik. Im zweiten Teil werden praktische Pfanderpolitikmasnahmen mit Blick auf diesen Rahmen vorgestellt. Der Fokus liegt dabei auf der Pfanderpolitik des Eurosystems, deren Facetten im Detail erarbeitet werden. Wahrend der Finanz- sowie der Eurokrise hat das Eurosystem seine Pfanderpolitik mit Blick auf verschiedene Zentralbankziele stark intensiviert. Vergleichend werden der historische Einsatz von Pfanderkriterien als Instrument der Zentralbankpolitik und die Ausgestaltung der Pfanderkriterien im Federal Reserve System sowie bei Bank of England und Bank of Japan wahrend der jungsten Krisenjahre gegenubergestellt. Im dritten Teil geht es zunachst darum, die Wirkungsweise von Pfanderpolitik innerhalb des Zielsystems einer Zentralbank theoretisch zu fundieren. Sie wird dazu in Haircut- und Quantitypolicy gegliedert und klassischer Zinspolitik gegenubergestellt. Der optimale Einsatz von Pfanderpolitik, je nach Zentralbankziel, wird hergeleitet. Anschliesend werden Auswirkungen der Ausgestaltung der Pfanderpolitik des Eurosystems aufgedeckt: Ein Kapitel zeigt modelltheoretisch die einseitigen Forderung schlechter Qualitaten durch das Angebot von segmentweise gepoolten Refinanzierungsbedingungen (adverse Selektion der schlechten Pfandqualitaten). Ein weiteres Kapitel geht mit Hilfe eines schematischen Modells auf die Verteilungseffekte innerhalb der Wahrungsunion durch diesen Poolingansatz ein, die sich gegenuber einer Fiskalunion, wie den USA, dem Vereinigten Konigreich oder Japan, wesentlich unterscheiden. Im Ergebnis kann fur die Eurozone auf eine Umverteilung zugunsten der Krisenlander geschlossen werden. Schlieslich widmet sich ein Kapitel der Suche nach Spuren im Marktverhalten, als Reaktion auf die Politik des Eurosystems. Dazu wird der Datensatz der zentralbankfahigen Sicherheiten im Eurosystem von 2007 bis 2013 angereichert und deskriptiv ausgewertet. Besonders fur Pfander aus Krisenlandern und aus dem Bankensektor sind solche Marktreaktionen ableitbar.
A single immediate postoperative instillation of chemotherapy decreases the risk of recurrence in patients with stage Ta T1 bladder cancer: a meta-analysis of published results of randomized clinical trials.

PURPOSE We determined if 1 immediate instillation of chemotherapy after transurethral resection (TUR) decreases the risk of recurrence in patients with stage Ta T1 single and multiple bladder cancer overall and separately. MATERIALS AND METHODS A meta-analysis was performed of the published results of randomized clinical trials comparing TUR alone to TUR plus 1 immediate instillation of chemotherapy. RESULTS Our study included 7 randomized trials with recurrence information on 1476 patients. Based on a median followup of 3.4 years and a maximum of 14.5 years, 267 of 728 patients (36.7%) receiving 1 postoperative instillation of epirubicin, mitomycin C, thiotepa or (2'R)-4'-O-tetrahydropyranyl-doxorubicin (pirarubicin) had recurrence compared to 362 of 748 patients (48.4%) with TUR alone, a decrease of 39% in the odds of recurrence with chemotherapy (OR 0.61, p <0.0001). Patients with a single tumor (OR 0.61) and those with multiple tumors (OR 0.44) benefited. However, after 1 instillation 65.2% of patients with multiple tumors had recurrence compared to 35.8% of patients with single tumors, showing that 1 instillation alone is insufficient treatment for patients with multiple tumors. CONCLUSIONS One immediate intravesical instillation of chemotherapy significantly decreases the risk of recurrence after TUR in patients with stage Ta T1 single and multiple bladder cancer. It is the treatment of choice in patients with a single, low risk papillary tumor and is recommended as the initial treatment after TUR in patients with higher risk tumors.
A fresh view of the cell biology of copper in enterobacteria

Copper ions are essential but also very toxic. Copper resistance in bacteria is based on export of the toxic ion, oxidation from Cu(I) to Cu(II), and sequestration by copper‐binding metal chaperones, which deliver copper ions to efflux systems or metal‐binding sites of copper‐requiring proteins. In their publication in this issue, Osman et al. ( ) demonstrate how tightly copper resistance, homeostasis and delivery pathways are interwoven in Salmonella enterica sv. Typhimurium. Copper is transported from the cytoplasm by the two P‐type ATPases CopA and GolT to the periplasm and transferred to SodCII by CueP, a periplasmic copper chaperone. When copper levels are higher, SodCII is also able to bind copper without the help of CueP. This scheme raises the question as to why copper ions present in the growth medium have to make the detour through the cytoplasm. The data presented in the publication by Osman et al. ( ) change our view of the cell biology of copper in enterobacteria.
Object-Oriented Foreground Image Extraction

This paper proposes a novel foreground image extraction approach, it elaborately combines two kinds of methods (foreground extraction and object detection) to obtain more accurate and more complete foreground object image. The proposed method consists of three main processing modules: frame-based distinct pixel extraction (FDPE), object detection (OD), and region-based foreground object extraction (RFOE). FDPE points out the distinct image pixels which have quite different features from their background models. When one region contains enough distinct pixels, OD then evaluates whether this region contains an instance of one specific interested object or not; and RFOE extracts the foreground pixels from regions containing the interested objects. The effectiveness of our method is demonstrated by means of experiments.
Rapamycin inhibits proteasome activator expression and proteasome activity

Rapamycin (RAPA) is a potent immunosuppressive drug, and certain of its direct or indirect targets might be of vital importance to the regulation of an immune response. In this study, we used differential hybridization to search for human genes whose expression was sensitive to RAPA. Seven RAPA‐sensitive genes were found and one of them encoded a protein with high homology to the α subunit of a proteasome activator (PA28α). This gene was later found to code for the β subunit of the proteasome activator (PA28β). Activated T and B cells had up‐regulated PA28β expression at the mRNA level. Such up‐regulation could be suppressed by RAPA, FK506, and cyclosporin A. RAPA and FK506 also repressed the up‐regulated PA28α messages in phytohemagglutinin (PHA)‐stimulated T cells. At the protein level, RAPA inhibited PA28α and PA28β in the activated T cells according to immunoblotting and confocal microscopy. Probably as a consequence, there was a fourfold increase of proteasome activities in the peripheral blood mononuclear cell lysate after the PHA activation. RAPA could inhibit the enhanced part of the proteasome activity. Considering the critical role played by the proteasome in degrading regulatory proteins, our data suggest that the proteasome activator is a relevant and important downstream target of rapamycin, and that the immune response could be modulated through the activity of the proteasome.
Hypoactive sexual desire disorder in menopausal women: a survey of Western European women.

INTRODUCTION The prevalence of hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD) in menopausal women and the frequency of sexual activity, sexual behavior, and relationship or sexual satisfaction associated with HSDD have not been studied using validated instruments to identify women with HSDD. AIMS To determine: (i) the prevalence of HSDD among women who have undergone hysterectomy and bilateral oophorectomy (surgical menopause) with that of premenopausal or naturally menopausal women; (ii) the relationship between low sexual desire and sexual activity and behavior; and (iii) the relationship between low sexual desire and sexual or partner relationship satisfaction. METHODS Cross-sectional survey of 2,467 European women aged 20-70 years, resident in France, Germany, Italy, and the United Kingdom. Measures were the Profile of Female Sexual Function (PFSF), Personal Distress Scale (PDS), and a sexual activities measure. OUTCOME MEASURES Clinically derived cutoff scores for the desire domain of the PFSF and the PDS were used, sequentially, to classify women as having low sexual desire and to further classify these women with low desire as distressed or nondistressed. Thus, women with HSDD had low sexual desire and were distressed by their low desire. The analysis population included 1,356 women who had current sexual partners and were surgically menopausal, regularly menstruating, or naturally postmenopausal. RESULTS A greater proportion of surgically menopausal women had low sexual desire compared with premenopausal or naturally menopausal women (odds ratio [OR] = 1.4; confidence interval [CI] = 1.1, 1.9; P = 0.02). Surgically menopausal women were more likely to have HSDD than premenopausal or naturally menopausal women (OR = 2.1; CI = 1.4, 3.4; P = 0.001). Sexual desire scores and sexual arousal, orgasm, and sexual pleasure were highly correlated (P < 0.001), demonstrating that low sexual desire is frequently associated with decreased functioning in other aspects of sexual response. Women with low sexual desire were less likely to engage in sexual activity and more likely to be dissatisfied with their sex life and partner relationship than women with normal desire (P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS Surgically menopausal women are at increased risk for HSDD. HSDD is associated with diminished sexual and partner relationship satisfaction and negative emotional states.
Enterocytozoon bieneusi in AIDS: symptomatic relief and parasite changes after furazolidone.

AIMS: To investigate changes in morphology of the developmental stages of Enterocytozoon bieneusi and symptomatic relief observed in AIDS patients after treatment with furazolidone. METHODS: Six AIDS patients with symptomatic E bieneusi infection of the small intestine were treated with a course of furazolidone. All patients had a weekly monitoring of parasite shedding in stool by light microscopy during and after treatment. At the end of the treatment, duodenal biopsy specimens obtained from three patients were studied by transmission electron microscopy by two pathologists who were unaware of the patients' treatment. RESULTS: All patients showed both clinical and parasitological response with transient clearance or decrease of spore shedding in stool. After treatment, alterations in faecal spores were observed in all patients by light microscopy, and ultrastructural changes in E bieneusi at all stages of the life cycle were demonstrated in biopsy specimens of the three patients who underwent post-treatment endoscopy. CONCLUSIONS: The clinical benefit seen after treatment with furazolidone in six AIDS patients with E bieneusi intestinal infection may be due to damage to the developmental stages causing a partial inhibition to reproduction of the parasite.
H-shaped microstrip antenna for broadband communications at 60 GHz

A low cost high-efficient microstrip line fed antenna for 60 GHz communications is presented. An investigation for microstrip antenna presently being working at lower microwave frequency has been done for 60 GHz communication. A new geometry has been presented in form of H shaped design with feeding from microstrip line. The results have been simulated using high frequency structural simulator (HFSS). There is a comparison between two antennas one with superstrate and one without superstrate is also presented. The use of superstrate has resulted in improved bandwidth and increased gain. The presented antennas are for broadband communications offering 6.3 GHz and 7.1 GHz bandwidth for one without and one with superstrate respectively.
Resistance of Peptostreptococcus spp. to macrolides and lincosamides: inducible and constitutive phenotypes

The activities of erythromycin and clindamycin against 350 Peptostreptococcus strains were studied during a 5-year period (1986 to 1991). In 5.1% of the Peptostreptococcus strains, which presented dissociated resistance (clindamycin MIC, less than or equal to 1 microgram/ml; erythromycin MIC, greater than 8 micrograms/ml), evidence of inducible macrolide-lincosamide resistance was shown. A total of 17.7% of the strains presented a constitutive phenotype; the clindamycin and erythromycin MICs for these strains were greater than 8 micrograms/ml.
Dipartimento di Scienze Economiche Università degli Studi di Firenze

This paper reviews the decline in income inequality that has taken place over 2002-2007 in most Latin American countries against the background of its steady increase over 1980-2002. The paper analyzes then the factors that could explain this trend reversal. It focuses in particular on favorable external conditions, cyclical factors, improvements in the distribution of educational achievements and the subsequent drop in skill-premium, and changes in macroeconomic and social policies introduced in several countries, particularly by a growing number of left-of-centre governments which have come to power during the last decade. An econometric test for the years 1990-2007 indicate that, in addition to a favorable business cycle and external conditions, a decline in skill premium and the new policy model of fiscally prudent socialdemocracy which is emerging this decade in much of Latin America impacted favorably the distribution of income. If this approach will survive the current crisis, much of the recent inequality decline is likely to become permanent. JEL: D31, E6, H53, I28, I38.
Weeds as Part of Agrobiodiversity

Weeds are part of agrobiodiversity, but they have not usually been considered as plant genetic resources for food and agriculture. Plant genetic resources primarily include crop plants and their wild relatives. But as both crops and weeds have been subjected to the influence of domestication and have co-evolved over a long period of time, they provide a largely untapped reservoir of genetic diversity. Some weed species are utilized plants and some are preadapted to become cultivated plants. They are indicators for biodiversity. They are useful for studying the parallel effects of domestication in cultivated plants, and weeds and their evolution. Several weed species are indicators of the autochthonous (original/native) landraces of crops they accompany. Collections of weeds are also basic material for weed control research. Several weeds with a great similarity to crop plants, so-called convergent weeds, are in danger of becoming extinct, due to the intensification of agriculture and improved methods of seed cleaning (eg Agrostemma githago, Bromus secalinus, Lolium temulentum). Examples of the utilization and conservation of weeds are discussed. Ex situ preservation must also be linked with the reintroduction of weed species into agroecosystems (ie maintenance in situ), so that genetic diversity forms part of actively functioning and continually evolving ecosystems. Thus, it is not right to consider weeds only as crop concurrences as is usually done in an agricultural context.
The influence of formal trade agreements and informal economic cooperation on international tourism flows

This article aims to contribute to the literature on the effects of trade bloc formation and plurilateral economic cooperation on international tourism flows. This research expands previous findings in the number of countries (58) and types of agreements (formal and informal, global and regional) under investigation in order to (i) capture the effect of both formal trade agreements and plurilateral economic integration on bilateral tourism flows; (ii) test the robustness of previous findings through the use of alternative econometric specifications, estimation techniques and measurement of tourism flows. In this respect, an important feature of this research is the introduction of ‘total tourism’, corresponding to the ‘total trade’ variable in trade studies, as an alternative dependent variable in the specification of the gravity model used throughout the article.
Deviation Methods via Social Review Graph in Evaluation Systems of Online Store

Evaluation system is an important issue in data mining. In evaluation system, all reviewers try to assign fair scores on a set of object. We want to obtain fair reviewers for all objects. However, it is the real fact that reviewer may deviate in their score assigned to the same object. Therefore, the deviation is unavoidable in evaluation systems. In this paper we define deviation of evaluation systems. Then, two novel methods are constructed to measure deviation: deviation from Correct-Core viewers and deviation from MaxGap-Coreviewers. The experimental results show that the proposed measure methods are efficient and can be used to solve deviation problem in evaluation systems effectively.
Addressing the disenchantment: universities and regional development in peripheral regions

The paper addresses the rising criticism to innovation policies that have assumed a direct and massive impact of universities in regional economies. It integrates the literature in economics of innovation, higher education, economic geography and regional studies. The paper shows why research excellence is considered a necessary condition for regional impact, why it is not sufficient, and whether there are substitutes. The Additional Material section includes an analysis, based on original data, on research excellence in universities in European peripheral regions. The policy implications call for a new approach to the role of universities.
Galectin‐1 Triggers Epithelial‐Mesenchymal Transition in Human Hepatocellular Carcinoma Cells

Galectin‐1 (Gal1), a β‐galactoside‐binding protein abundantly expressed in tumor microenvironments, is associated with the development of metastasis in hepatocellular carcinomas (HCC). However, the precise roles of Gal1 in HCC cell invasiveness and dissemination are uncertain. Here, we investigated whether Gal1 mediate epithelial‐mesenchymal transition (EMT) in HCC cells, a key process during cancer progression. We used the well‐differentiated and low invasive HepG2 cells and performed ‘gain‐of‐function' and ‘loss‐function' experiments by transfecting cells with Gal1 cDNA constructs or by siRNA strategies, respectively. Epithelial and mesenchymal markers expression, changes in apico‐basal polarity, independent‐anchorage growth, and activation of specific signaling pathways were studied using Western blot, fluorescence microscopy, soft‐agar assays, and FOP/TOP flash reporter system. Gal1 up‐regulation in HepG2 cells induced down‐regulation of the adherens junction protein E‐cadherin and increased expression of the transcription factor Snail, one of the main inducers of EMT in HCC. Enhanced Gal1 expression facilitated the transition from epithelial cell morphology towards a fibroblastoid phenotype and favored up‐regulation of the mesenchymal marker vimentin in HCC cells. Cells overexpressing Gal1 showed enhanced anchorage‐independent growth and loss of apico‐basal polarity. Remarkably, Gal1 promoted Akt activation, β‐catenin nuclear translocation, TCF4/LEF1 transcriptional activity and increased cyclin D1 and c‐Myc expression, suggesting activation of the Wnt pathway. Furthermore, Gal1 overexpression induced E‐cadherin downregulation through a PI3K/Akt‐dependent mechanism. Our results provide the first evidence of a role of Gal1 as an inducer of EMT in HCC cells, with critical implications in HCC metastasis. J. Cell. Physiol. 230: 1298–1309, 2015. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc., A Wiley Company
Compositional dynamics of multilevel innovation platforms in agricultural research for development

Innovation platforms (IPs) form a popular vehicle in agricultural research for development (AR4D) to facilitate stakeholder interaction, agenda setting, and collective action toward sustainable agricultural development. In this article, we analyze multilevel stakeholder engagement in fulfilling seven key innovation system functions. Data are gathered from experiences with interlinked community and (sub)national IPs established under a global AR4D program aimed at stimulating sustainable agricultural development in Central Africa. Our findings show that all innovation systems functions required multilevel action, but that fulfillment of specific functions demands for strategic involvement of specific stakeholders at specific levels. We observed that a research- and dissemination-oriented sequence in the functions was prioritized in AR4D IPs and argue that such a sequence may be different in other types of (business) IPs. Our findings provide an incentive to think function oriented about compositional dynamics (stakeholder groups * levels) in innovation processes, rather than striving for equal stakeholder participation.
Renal intercalated cells and blood pressure regulation

Type B and non-A, non-B intercalated cells are found within the connecting tubule and the cortical collecting duct. Of these cell types, type B intercalated cells are known to mediate Cl− absorption and HCO3− secretion largely through pendrin-dependent Cl−/HCO3− exchange. This exchange is stimulated by angiotensin II administration and is also stimulated in models of metabolic alkalosis, for instance after aldosterone or NaHCO3 administration. In some rodent models, pendrin-mediated HCO3− secretion modulates acid-base balance. However, the role of pendrin in blood pressure regulation is likely of more physiological or clinical significance. Pendrin regulates blood pressure not only by mediating aldosterone-sensitive Cl− absorption, but also by modulating the aldosterone response for epithelial Na+ channel (ENaC)-mediated Na+ absorption. Pendrin regulates ENaC through changes in open channel of probability, channel surface density, and channels subunit total protein abundance. Thus, aldosterone stimulates ENaC activity through both direct and indirect effects, the latter occurring through its stimulation of pendrin expression and function. Therefore, pendrin contributes to the aldosterone pressor response. Pendrin may also modulate blood pressure in part through its action in the adrenal medulla, where it modulates the release of catecholamines, or through an indirect effect on vascular contractile force. This review describes how aldosterone and angiotensin II-induced signaling regulate pendrin and the contributory role of pendrin in distal nephron function and blood pressure.