Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effects of drug resistance on viral load in patients failing antiretroviral therapy

Previous studies on patients who develop drug resistant HIV‐1 variants have shown that continued use of failing regimens might provide clinical benefit. However, the effect of long‐term exposure to drug resistant variants may lead to emergence of compensatory mutations that may jeopardize this effect. In this study, we assess associations among type and number of drug resistant mutations, viral load and disease progression in patients with long‐term follow up. Patients with genotypic testing performed at the time of treatment failure were enrolled. Comparison of viral load and CD4 cell count between different resistance groups was performed using analysis of variance. Multiple linear regression analysis was performed to assess the simultaneous effects of the presence of particular mutations and their accumulation on viral load. Data from 475 patients who were followed for a median of 43 months from October 1999 to July 2005 were studied. A “V shape” relationship was observed between the number of mutations and viral load. Specifically, in patients harboring up to five mutations, viral load was reduced by 0.8 log/copies when compared to wild‐type variants. However, with more than six mutations viral load progressively increased. Certain reverse transcriptase mutations such as M184V/I, K70R, V108I, and protease mutations such as L33FIV, M84V, and M36I were associated with reduced viral load. Together, these findings suggest that long‐term maintenance of a sub‐optimal antiretroviral regimen may have deleterious consequences for the patient. J. Med. Virol. 78:608–613, 2006. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Kuznets’ Hypothesis and Gender Inequality

The purpose of the paper is to examine whether the Kuznets hypothesis of the inverted U-shape relationship between the level of income inequality and the level of gross domestic product per capita GDP per capita is also applicable on the relationship between gender inequality and the level of GDP per capita. The paper assumes that government intervention in the early stage of economic development is essential to reduce income inequality. The paper also assumes that government intervention and public goods provision help to narrow the gender gap in education and health but not in employment and income. The paper looks for the evidence of Kuznets ‘hypothesis for gender inequality by examining the level of gender inequality in single countries over time and by looking at single points in time in a cross-section of countries with different level of income and economic development.
No . 730 THE KEYNESIAN MULTIPLIER EFFECT RECONSIDERED

The Keynesian multiplier effect is reinterpreted and several issues that may have misled assessments of the effect of fiscal spending are discussed. It is shown that even in the textbook Keynesian framework some transfer policy ‘reduces’ aggregate demand and that public works spending may completely crowd out private consumption. Useless public works are found to be equivalent to transfers although they increase accounting national income more than transfers do. The net effect of fiscal spending on national benefits is explored and shown to equal only the direct benefit created by the spending. JEL classification: E12, E62, E01
The marketplace in health care reform. The demographic limitations of managed competition.

BACKGROUND The theory of managed competition holds that the quality and economy of health care delivery will improve if independent provider groups compete for consumers. In sparsely populated areas where relatively few providers are required, however, it is not feasible to divide the provider community into competing groups. We examined the demographic features of health markets in the United States to see what proportion of the population lives in areas that might successfully support managed competition. METHODS The ratios of physicians to enrollees in large staff-model health maintenance organizations were determined as an indicator of the staffing needs of an efficient health plan. These ratios were used to estimate the populations necessary to support health organizations with various ranges of specialty services. Metropolitan areas with populations large enough to support managed competition were identified. RESULTS We estimated that a health care services market with a population of 1.2 million could support three fully independent plans. A population of 360,000 could support three plans that independently provided most acute care hospital services, but the plans would need to share hospital facilities and contract for tertiary services. A population of 180,000 could support three plans that provided primary care and many basic specialty services but that shared inpatient cardiology and urology services. Health markets with populations greater than 180,000 would include 71 percent of the U.S. population; those with populations greater than 360,000, 63 percent; and those with populations greater than 1.2 million, 42 percent. CONCLUSIONS Reform of the U.S. health care system through expansion of managed competition is feasible in medium-sized or large metropolitan areas. Smaller metropolitan areas and rural areas would require alternative forms of organization and regulation of health care providers in order to improve quality and economy.
Substance P modulates calcium current in retinal bipolar neurons

Abstract Retinal bipolar cells are non-spiking interneurons that relay information from photoreceptors to amacrine and ganglion cells. In turn, bipolar cells receive extensive synaptic feedback from amacrine cells, some of which contain neuropeptides, including substance P. We have examined the effect of substance P on single bipolar neurons isolated from goldfish retina and find that substance P (0.1–1 nM) produced a voltage-dependent inhibition of calcium current in these cells. The inhibition was strongest at negative potentials, with the peak suppression occurring at –20 to –30 mV; at potentials positive to 0 mV, there was little effect on calcium current. Thus, the net effect was to shift the voltage range of activation of calcium current toward more positive potentials. The inhibition of calcium current by substance P required GTP in the patch pipette and was blocked by internal GDP-β-S. Similar effects on calcium current were observed with somatostatin and metenkephalin, which are also found in amacrine cells.
Could Driving Safety be Compromised by Noise Exposure at Work and Noise-Induced Hearing Loss?

Objective. A study was conducted to verify if there is an association between occupational noise exposure, noise-induced hearing loss and driving safety expanding on previous findings by Picard, et al. (2008) that the two factors did increase accident risk in the workplace. Methods. This study was made possible when driving records of all Quebec drivers were made available by the Société de l'assurance automobile du Québec (SAAQ is the state monopoly responsible for the provision of motor vehicle insurance and the compensation of victims of traffic accidents). These records were linked with personal records maintained by the Quebec National Institute of Public Health as part of its mission to prevent noise induced hearing loss in the workplace. Individualized information on occupational noise exposure and hearing sensitivity was available for 46,030 male workers employed in noisy industries who also held a valid driver's permit. The observation period is of five years duration, starting with the most recent audiometric examination. The associations between occupational noise exposure levels, hearing status, and personal driving record were examined by log-binomial regression on data adjusted for age and duration of exposure. Daily noise exposures and bilateral average hearing threshold levels at 3, 4, and 6 kHz were used as independent variables while the dependent variables were 1) the number of motor vehicle accidents experienced by participants during the study period and 2) participants' records of registered traffic violations of the highway safety code. The findings are reported as prevalence ratios (PRs) with their 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Attributable numbers of events were computed with the relevant PRs, lesser-noise, exposed workers and those with normal hearing levels making the group of reference. Results. Adjusting for age confirmed that experienced workers had fewer traffic accidents. The data show that occupational noise exposure and hearing loss have the same effect on driving safety record than that reported on the risk of accident in noisy industrial settings. Specifically, the risk of traffic accident (PR = 1.07 (CI 95% [1.01; 1.15]) is significantly associated with the daily occupational noise exposures ≥ 100 dBA. For participants having a bilateral average hearing loss ranging from 16 to 30 dB, the PR of traffic accident is 1.06 (CI 95% [1.01; 1.11]) and reaches 1.31 (CI 95% [1.2; 1.42]) when the hearing loss exceeds of 50 dB. A reduction in the number of speeding violations occurred among workers occupationally exposed to noise levels ≥ 90 dBA and those with noise-induced hearing loss ≥16 dB. By contrast, the same individuals had an increase in other violations of the Highway safety code. This suggests that noise-exposed workers might be less vigilant to other traffic hazards. Conclusion. Daily occupational noise exposures ≥ 100 dBA and noise-induced hearing losses—even when just barely noticeable—may interfere with the safe operation of motor vehicles.
Purification and Characterization of Termite Endogenous β-1,4-Endoglucanases Produced in Aspergillus oryzae

Although termites are known to have a highly efficient lignocellulose-digesting system, mass production of native endogenous cellulases of termites has failed in Escherchia coli, and in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and it has not been accomplished. Here we report the successful production, purification, and characterization of two termite endogenous β-1,4-endoglucanases, RsEG and NtEG, from the salivary gland of Reticulitermes speratus and the midgut of Nasutitermes takasagoensis respectively, using Aspergillus oryzae as host. Thin-layer chromatography analysis showed that both enzymes hydrolyzed the β-1,4-cellulosic linkage of cellodextrin into cellobiose and glucose. Kinetic studies indicated that the specific activity and Vmax values of the two enzymes were significantly higher than those of previously reported fungal and bacterial endoglucanases.
Comparative Analysis of Infrequent-Restriction-Site PCR and Pulsed-Field Gel Electrophoresis for Epidemiological Typing ofLegionella pneumophila Serogroup 1 Strains

ABSTRACT Two methods were compared for the analysis of 48 unrelated and epidemiologically related Legionella pneumophila serogroup 1 isolates. These are the infrequent-restriction-site PCR (IRS-PCR) assay with adapters designed for XbaI and PstI restriction sites and the pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) analysis determined after DNA restriction with SfiI. Both methods demonstrated a high level of discrimination with a similar capacity for differentiating 23 of the 24 unrelated isolates. PFGE analysis and IRS-PCR assay were both able to identify epidemiologically related isolates of L. pneumophila from three outbreaks. Hence, IRS-PCR assay appears to be a reproducible (intergel reproducibility, 100%) and discriminative (discriminatory index, ≥0.996) tool for typing of Legionella. Compared to PFGE, however, IRS-PCR presented an advantage through ease of performance and with attributes of rapidity and sensitivity of target DNA.
Lösungen für Probleme des Requirements Engineering für Produktlinie

Zusammenfassung Softwareproduktlinien entstehen wo auch immer Produkte in Varianten entwickelt werden. Dies stellt ein gigantisches Wiederverwendungspotential dar, schafft aber auch Schwierigkeiten, vor allem für den Anforderungsprozess. Daher wurde vor zwei Jahren ein GIArbeitskreis zu diesem Thema gegründet, der sich mit Problemen und Lösungen des Requirements Engineering für Produktlinien beschäftigt.
Heat Shock Factor 2 (HSF2) Contributes to Inducible Expression of hsp Genes through Interplay with HSF1*

The heat shock response is a defense reaction activated by proteotoxic damage induced by physiological or environmental stress. Cells respond to the proteotoxic damage by elevated expression of heat shock proteins (Hsps) that function as molecular chaperones and maintain the vital homeostasis of protein folds. Heat shock factors (HSFs) are the main transcriptional regulators of the stress-induced expression of hsp genes. Mammalian HSF1 was originally identified as the transcriptional regulator of the heat shock response, whereas HSF2 has not been implicated a role in the stress response. Previously, we and others have demonstrated that HSF1 and HSF2 interact through their trimerization domains, but the functional consequence of this interaction remained unclear. We have now demonstrated on chromatin that both HSF1 and HSF2 were able to bind the hsp70 promoter not only in response to heat shock but also during hemin-induced differentiation of K562 erythroleukemia cells. In both cases an intact HSF1 was required in order to reach maximal levels of promoter occupancy, suggesting that HSF1 influences the DNA binding activity of HSF2. The functional consequence of the HSF1-HSF2 interplay was demonstrated by real-time reverse transcription-PCR analyses, which showed that HSF2 was able to modulate the HSF1-mediated expression of major hsp genes. Our results reveal, contrary to the predominant model, that HSF2 indeed participates in the transcriptional regulation of the heat shock response.
Tight Control of Respiration by NADH Dehydrogenase ND5 Subunit Gene Expression in Mouse Mitochondria

ABSTRACT A mouse cell variant carrying in heteroplasmic form a nonsense mutation in the mitochondrial DNA-encoded ND5 subunit of the respiratory NADH dehydrogenase has been isolated and characterized. The derivation from this mutant of a large number of cell lines containing between 4 and 100% of the normal number of wild-type ND5 genes has allowed an analysis of the genetic and functional thresholds operating in mouse mitochondria. In wild-type cells, ∼40% of the ND5 mRNA level was in excess of that required for ND5 subunit synthesis. However, in heteroplasmic cells, the functional mRNA level decreased in proportion to the number of wild-type ND5 genes over a 25-fold range, pointing to the lack of any compensatory increase in rate of transcription and/or stability of mRNA. Most strikingly, the highest ND5 synthesis rate was just sufficient to support the maximum NADH dehydrogenase-dependent respiration rate, with no upregulation of translation occurring with decreasing wild-type mRNA levels. These results indicate that, despite the large excess of genetic potential of the mammalian mitochondrial genome, respiration is tightly regulated by ND5 gene expression.
Content based navigation in multimedia information systems

In this demonstration an open architecture hypermedia system, Microcosm, will be used to author and follow generic links between multimedia documents. Recently we have developed MAVIS, an extension to the Microcosm architecture for video image and sound and the demonstration will show how generic links may be authored on image selections using shape, texture and colour representations. The links may be followed from image selections in different images which give similar feature representations.
Investigating over-the-counter oral analgesics

There is good evidence supporting the efficacy of standard doses of aspirin, paracetamol, ibuprofen, naproxen, and diclofenac, all of which are available as over-the-counter (OTC) medicines in some part of the world. There is no good evidence for most branded combination products, though it is likely that additional analgesic effect is produced by codeine. Combinations of ibuprofen and paracetamol appear to be particularly effective.
The causes of selection on flowering time through male fitness in a hermaphroditic annual plant

Flowering is a key life‐history event whose timing almost certainly affects both male and female fitness, but tests of selection on flowering time through male fitness are few. Such selection may arise from direct effects of flowering time, and indirect effects through covariance between flowering time and the environment experienced during reproduction. To isolate these intrinsically correlated associations, we staggered planting dates of Brassica rapa families with known flowering times, creating populations in which age at flowering (i.e., flowering time genotype) and Julian date of flowering (i.e., flowering time environment) were positively, negatively, or uncorrelated. Genetic paternity analysis revealed that male fitness was not strongly influenced by seasonal environmental changes. Instead, when age and date were uncorrelated, selection through male fitness strongly favored young age at flowering. Strategic sampling offspring for paternity analysis rejected covariance between sire age at flowering and dam quality as the cause of this selection. Results instead suggest a negative association between age at flowering and pollen competitive ability. The manipulation also revealed that, at least in B. rapa, the often‐observed correlation between flowering time and flowering duration is environmental, not genetic, in origin.
Does Principal-Agent Theory Work in Real Life?

We study the agency problem experimentally focusing on two issues that are central to its effectiveness. The first tests whether an incentive compatible direct revelation mechanism performs well when human agents are asked to report probabilistic information. The second addresses the principal’s lack of knowledge as to how types and effort levels relate to the final outcome. Our results reveal several behavioral effects that reduce the efficiency of the principal-agent mechanism. We find out that human agents underestimate low probabilities and overestimate high probabilities, introducing errors into what should be a truth-telling mechanism. Furthermore, principals were observed to underpay their agents by substantial amounts. These behavioral issues may explain why contracts designed through standard principal-agent models are seldom used in practice.
Reproductive responses and calf birth and weaning weights as affected by body condition at parturition and postpartum weight gain in primiparous beef cows.

Effects of body condition score (BCS) at parturition and postpartum weight gain on reproduction and production responses were evaluated using 240 primiparous (21 to 28 mo) beef cows calving in 60-d periods in three states over 3 yr. Cows were randomly allotted 90 d before parturition and fed to achieve BCS of 4, 5, or 6 (1 = emaciated, 9 = obese) at parturition. After parturition, one-half of these cows (within state) were group-fed to gain . 45 kg/d (moderate) or . 90 kg/d (high) until the start of a 60-d breeding season. Cows calving in BCS of 4, 5, or 6, respectively, had calves with progressively heavier (P < .05) birth weights, but dystocia score was not influenced by BCS at calving. Parturient BCS of cows had no effect on actual or 205-d adjusted weaning weights of calves. Birth weights, dystocia score, and actual and 205-d adjusted weaning weights were affected by location (P < .05). Cows with greater weight gains postpartum had calves with heavier (P < .05) actual and 205-d adjusted weaning weights than did cows with moderate weight gains. No significant interactions among location, BCS, or postpartum nutrition-group were observed for any of the production variables described above. Greater BCS at calving resulted in more (P < .05) cows in estrus and more (P < .05) cows pregnant by 40 and 60 d of a breeding season. Luteal activity by start of breeding, as well as estrus responses and pregnancy rates at 20, 40, or 60 d of a breeding season, were affected by location (P < .05). (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Primordial germ cells in the dorsal mesentery of the chicken embryo demonstrate left–right asymmetry and polarized distribution of the EMA1 epitope

Despite the importance of the chicken as a model system, our understanding of the development of chicken primordial germ cells (PGCs) is far from complete. Here we characterized the morphology of PGCs at different developmental stages, their migration pattern in the dorsal mesentery of the chicken embryo, and the distribution of the EMA1 epitope on PGCs. The spatial distribution of PGCs during their migration was characterized by immunofluorescence on whole‐mounted chicken embryos and on paraffin sections, using EMA1 and chicken vasa homolog antibodies. While in the germinal crescent PGCs were rounded and only 25% of them were labeled by EMA1, often seen as a concentrated cluster on the cell surface, following extravasation and migration in the dorsal mesentery PGCs acquired an elongated morphology, and 90% exhibited EMA1 epitope, which was concentrated at the tip of the pseudopodia, at the contact sites between neighboring PGCs. Examination of PGC migration in the dorsal mesentery of Hamburger and Hamilton stage 20–22 embryos demonstrated a left–right asymmetry, as migration of cells toward the genital ridges was usually restricted to the right, rather than the left, side of the mesentery. Moreover, an examination of another group of cells that migrate through the dorsal mesentery, the enteric neural crest cells, revealed a similar preference for the right side of the mesentery, suggesting that the migratory pathway of PGCs is dictated by the mesentery itself. Our findings provide new insights into the migration pathway of PGCs in the dorsal mesentery, and suggest a link between EMA1, PGC migration and cell–cell interactions. These findings may contribute to a better understanding of the mechanism underlying migration of PGCs in avians.
CASIA-CASSIL: a Chinese Telephone Conversation Corpus in Real Scenarios with Multi-leveled Annotation

CASIA-CASSIL is a large-scale corpus base of Chinese human-human naturally-occurring telephone conversations in restricted domains. The first edition consists of 792 90-second conversations belonging to tourism domain, which are selected from 7,639 spontaneous telephone recordings in real scenarios. The corpus is now being annotated with wide range of linguistic and paralinguistic information in multi-levels. The annotations include Turns, Speaker Gender, Orthographic Transcription, Chinese Syllable, Chinese Phonetic Transcription, Prosodic Boundary, Stress of Sentence, Non-Speech Sounds, Voice Quality, Topic, Dialog-act and Adjacency Pairs, Ill-formedness, and Expressive Emotion as well, 13 levels in total. The abundant annotation will be effective especially for studying Chinese spoken language phenomena. This paper describes the whole process to build the conversation corpus, including collecting and selecting the original data, and the follow-up process such as transcribing, annotating, and so on. CASIA-CASSIL is being extended to a large scale corpus base of annotated Chinese dialogs for spoken Chinese study.