Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Electrical Characteristics of Flowing Blood

Erythrocyte orientation, deformation, and axial accumulation cause differences in resistance between flowing and resting blood. Through theoretical calculations and experimental measurements, we studied the effects of these factors and of sinusoidal and pulsatile flow on blood resistivity. The effect of axial accumulation is least significant. Frequency characteristics of blood resistance under sinusoidal and pulsatile flow showed that erythrocytes cannot orient in response to rapid flow changes of a few pulses per second. From dog aorta investigations, we conclude that the orientation effect on impedance plethysmography pulse waveforms nearly equals that of blood vessel diameter change, and that waveform analysis must consider both effects.
HVCMOS pixel detectors first measurements on the reticle size prototype for the ATLAS pixel layers

High-Voltage CMOS (HVCMOS) pixel sensors are depleted active pixel sensors implemented in standard commercial CMOS processes. Thanks to its radiation hardness and fast signal generation HVCMOS pixel sensors will be used, or are proposed, for several experiments: Mu3e [2], ATLAS [3], CLIC [4]. In 2015, the first reticle size HVCMOS sensor has been fabricated on high resistive substrates as a part of the ATLAS pixel demonstrator project. This article presents a summary of the measurements conducted by KIT ADL group.
Temperature feedback control for improving the stability of a semiconductor-metal-oxide (SMO) gas sensor

Stability is a major concern of semiconductor-metal-oxide (SMO) gas sensors in practical applications, as they may cause false alarm problems. Ambient temperature is a major factor affecting the SMO gas sensor's stability. In this paper, we use a novel way to improve temperature stability of SMO (tin oxide) gas sensors by applying a temperature feedback control circuits which are compatible with our microelectromechanical systems sensor fabrication. A built-in platinum temperature sensor can precisely detect the sensor's working temperature. It provides feedback information to compensate the microheater's current to maintain the sensor's working temperature constant, regardless of ambient temperature change. Test results showed that, with this approach, significant improvement of stability has been achieved compared to SMO gas sensors without temperature compensation under the same ambient variation. The algorithm is realized through a hardware circuit, whose advantages include real time, large feedback gain, and low cost.
Cultural audits as tools for enabling processes of change in the NHS.

The organisations that make up the NHS are subject to frequent change, either as a result of top-down restructuring, or of internal reorganisation. There is considerable evidence that one key to the success of such change lies in understanding the culture of the organisation that is undergoing change, with various authors suggesting that cultural audits be undertaken as a means of achieving this. Cultural audits as described in current literature can be complex, time-consuming and resource-intensive, which may be one reason that, in our experience, they are not often conducted. This paper describes a method of assessing the culture of an organisation rooted in ethnographic principles from Social Anthropology which is relatively simple, can be carried out in a few weeks, and requires a manageable level of resource. The method has been used to good effect in a number of NHS organisations. An example of its successful application is presented. The authors hope that this method might become widely adopted, le.
Evaluation of a Rapid Immunochromatographic Test for Detection of Streptococcus pneumoniae Antigen in Urine Samples from Adults with Community-Acquired Pneumonia

ABSTRACT Streptococcus pneumoniae is the most common cause of community-acquired pneumonia but is undoubtedly underdiagnosed. Isolation of S. pneumoniae from blood is specific but lacks sensitivity, while isolation of S. pneumoniae from sputum may represent colonization. We evaluated a new immunochromatographic test (NOW S. pneumoniae urinary antigen test; Binax, Portland, Maine) that is simple to perform and that can detect S. pneumoniae antigen in urine within 15 min. Urine samples from 420 adults with community-acquired pneumonia and 169 control patients who did not have pneumonia were tested. Urine from 315 (75%) of the pneumonia patients and all controls was tested both before and after 25-fold concentration, while the remaining 105 samples were only tested without concentration. S. pneumoniae urinary antigen tests were positive for 120 (29%) patients with pneumonia and for none of the controls. Of the urine samples tested with and without concentration, 96 were positive, of which 6 were positive only after concentration. S. pneumoniae antigen was detected in the urine from 16 of the 20 (80%) patients with blood cultures positive for S. pneumoniae and from 28 of the 54 (52%) patients with sputum cultures positive for S. pneumoniae. The absence of S. pneumoniae antigen in the urine from controls suggests that the specificity is high. Concentration of urine prior to testing resulted in a small increase in yield. The NOW S. pneumoniae urinary antigen test should be a useful adjunct to culture for determining the etiology of community-acquired pneumonia in adults.
Financial Risk Management Practices in Financial and Non-Financial Firms; Survey of Pakistani Firms

The study aims to explore risk management practices used by financial and non-financial firms of Pakistan. Self-reported questionnaires were distributed using convenience sampling method among financial and non-financial firms. The results indicate that non-financial firms used risk management practices but the percentage is low as compared to financial firms. Firms engaged in international trade used risk management practices and followed the procedure needed for evaluating and managing risk. Although these firms have a small portion of operating revenue and operating cost in foreign currencies. The financial managers of these firms make risk reports to their top managers as per their policies and requirement. New FASB rules also affect their derivatives usage.
THE EFFECTS OF GREEN HOTEL PRACTICES ON HOTEL IMAGE, VISIT INTENTION, AND WORD-OF-MOUTH: FOCUSING ON THE MODERATING ROLES OF CONSUMER ENVIRONMENTAL WORLDVIEWS

The objective of this study is to empirically examine the effects of hotel green practices on the image of firms, visit intention, and word-of-mouth. In addition, this study examines the moderating effect of an environmental worldview regarding green hotel attributes and image, and visit intention. A self-administrated survey will be conducted to collect data. For data analysis, simple descriptive statistics, factor analysis, and SEM will be utilized to confirm causal relationships among projected constructs. The results of this study will help hoteliers and hotel developers to understand what green hotel attributes are important and necessary to build favorable hotel images, and help researchers to develop future research projects relating to environmental hotel attributes and consumer behaviors. Keywords: Green Hotel, Image, Visit Intention, Word-of-Mouth
Novel amino acid ester-chlorantraniliprole conjugates: design, synthesis, phloem accumulation and bioactivity.

BACKGROUND Conjugating amino acid and glucose fragments with existing pesticide structures has been shown to be an effective way to introduce phloem mobility into non-phloem mobile species. However, the resulting derivatives always suffer from lower bioactivity compared with their parent compound. To solve this problem, we designed and synthesised a series of ester-capped amino-acid-conjugated chlorantraniliproles. RESULTS The systemic test showed that all conjugates exhibited excellent phloem mobility and xylem mobility in a Ricinus communis model. In particular, compounds 7b, 8b and 8c were able to accumulate in phloem tissues in the form of their hydrolysis products, and the concentrations in phloem sap can reach 3 times the concentration in the incubation medium. Although their insecticidal activity (LC50 ) against the beet armyworm (Spodoptera exigua) in vitro was weaker than that of chlorantraniliprole, compounds 7b, 8b and 8c showed similar insecticidal activity in vivo against beet armyworm compared with the parent compound. CONCLUSIONS This work provides a potential strategy to obtain pesticide derivatives that possess both improved uptake and improved mobility in crops while retaining the in vivo insecticidal effect of the parent compound. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.
COORDINATED SENSING OF NETWORKED BODY SENSORS USING MARKOV DECISION PROCESSES

This article describes a Markov decision process (MDP) framework for coordinated sensing between correlated sensors in a body-area network. The technique is designed to extend the life of mobile continuous health-monitoring systems based on energy-constrained wearable sensors. The technique enables distributed sensors in a body-area network to adapt their sampling rates in response to changing criticality of the detected data and the limited energy reserve at each sensor node. The relationship between energy consumption, sampling rates, and utility of coordinated measurements is formulated as an MDP. This MDP is solved to generate a globally optimal policy that specifies the sampling rates for each sensor for all possible states of the system. This policy is computed offline before deployment and only the resulting policy is stored within each sensor node. We also present a method of executing the global policy without requiring continuous communication between the sensors. Each sensor node maintains a local estimate of the global state. Communication occurs only when an information-theoretic model of the uncertainty in the local state estimates exceeds a predefined threshold. We show results on simulated data that demonstrate the efficacy of this distributed-control framework and compare the performance of the proposed controller with other policies.
Dose‐Proportional Intraindividual Single‐ and Repeated‐Dose Pharmacokinetics of Roflumilast, an Oral, Once‐Daily Phosphodiesterase 4 Inhibitor

The dose‐proportional, intraindividual, single‐ and repeated‐dose pharmacokinetics of roflumilast, an oral, once‐daily phosphodiesterase 4 inhibitor under investigation for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma, was investigated in healthy subjects. In an open, randomized, 2‐period, 2‐sequence crossover study, 15 subjects received immediate‐release tablets of roflumilast 250 or 500 μg as single (day 1) and as repeated, once‐daily doses for 8 days (days 5–12). Dose‐adjusted point estimates and 90% confidence intervals of test (500 μg)/reference (250 μg) ratios for AUC and Cmax of roflumilast and its pharmacologically active N‐oxide metabolite after single and repeated dosing were all within the standard equivalence acceptance range (0.80, 1.25) indicating dose proportionality. The pharmacokinetic properties of both roflumilast dosage forms provide clinically relevant evidence of predictable, intraindividual total (AUC) and maximum (Cmax) exposure of roflumilast and roflumilast N‐oxide. Repeated oral dosing with roflumilast 250 and 500 μg once daily was well tolerated.
Possible Involvement of Dynorphin A-(1–17) Release via μ1-Opioid Receptors in Spinal Antinociception by Endomorphin-2

The antinociception induced by i.t. or i.c. v. administration of endomorphins is mediated via μ-opioid receptors. However, although endomorphins do not have an appreciable affinity for κ-opioid receptors, pretreatment with the κ-opioid receptor antagonist norbinaltorphimine markedly reduces the antinociceptive response to i.c. v. or i.t. administered endomorphin-2 but not endomorphin-1. These results suggest that endomorphin-2 initially stimulates μ-opioid receptors, which subsequently induce the release of dynorphins that act on κ-opioid receptors to produce antinociception. The present study was performed in mice to determine whether the release of dynorphins by i.t. administered endomorphin-2 is mediated through μ-opioid receptors to produce antinociception. Intrathecal pretreatment with an antiserum against dynorphin A-(1–17), but not against dynorphin B-(1–13) or α-neoendorphin, dose-dependently prevented the paw-withdrawal inhibition by endomorphin-2. The pretreatments with these antisera did not affect the endomorphin-1- or [d-Ala2,MePhe4,Gly(ol)5]enkephalin-induced paw-withdrawal inhibition. The attenuation of endomorphin-2-induced antinociception by i.t. pretreatment with an antiserum against dynorphin A-(1–17) or s.c. pretreatment with norbinaltorphimine was blocked dose-dependently by s.c. pretreatment with the μ-opioid receptor antagonist β-funaltrexamine or the μ1-opioid receptor antagonist naloxonazine at ultra-low doses that are ineffective against μ-opioid receptor agonists. These results suggest that the spinal antinociception induced by endomorphin-2 is mediated through the stimulation of a distinct subtype of μ1-opioid receptor that induces the release of the endogenous κ-opioid peptide dynorphin A-(1–17) in the spinal cord.
Exogenous nucleosides accelerate differentiation of rat intestinal epithelial cells

Several studies have reported differing data on the effect of exogenous nucleosides and nucleotides on the proliferation and differentiation in various intestinal cell lines and explants. To study whether exogenous nucleosides modulate intestinal cell differentiation, IEC-6 cells were differentiated in the presence or absence of a nucleoside mixture (cytidine, uridine, guanosine and inosine, 30 μm each), and the concentrations of nucleoside derivatives were determined by HPLC. Cell differentiation was assessed by electron microscopy, alkaline phosphatase activity and Rnd3 gene expression. The present results showed that uridine, guanosine and inosine were cleared from culture media (up to 32, 63 and 100 % in proliferating cells, and 31, 80 and 94 % in differentiated cells, respectively) whereas cytidine concentrations increased. Differentiation of IEC-6 cells was associated with a significant increase in intracellular nucleotide concentrations. Clearance of nucleosides correlated with a significant increase in the intracellular nucleotide pool in proliferating and differentiated IEC-6 cells. Intracellular guanosine nucleotides increased 2·5- and 5-fold in nucleoside-supplemented proliferating and differentiated cells, respectively. At 24 h, nucleoside-supplemented differentiated IEC-6 cells had significantly higher energy charge and GTP levels than non-supplemented ones. These modifications paralleled changes in cell differentiation as indicated by increased alkaline phosphatase activity, prolonged microvilli formation and accelerated down-regulation of Rnd3 gene expression. The present findings suggest that exogenous nucleosides were selectively taken up by IEC-6 cells, increased the intracellular nucleotide pool, GTP and energy charge, and favoured cell morphological and functional changes during differentiation.
Empirical Study on the Dynamic Mechanism of Enterprise Information System Growth

This paper developed a dynamic mechanism model of IS growth. Five hypotheses were proposed and were validated based on the data collected from 158 Chinese enterprises. The results indicate that information technology (IT) absorption is a direct impetus that drives IS growth; meanwhile it is impelled by the equilibrium of enterprise demand and technology supply. Trace to the source, it is competition that motivates enterprise demand, and IT advancement guarantees technology supply. Due to the interaction of various forces, IS grows up as a spiral process. Keywords-information system growth; dynamic mechanism; empirical study; information technology absorption
Increased risk for diabetes development in subjects with large variation in total cholesterol levels in 2,827,950 Koreans: A nationwide population-based study

Background Recent studies suggest a role for hyperlipidemia in the development of diabetes. The aim of this study is to analyze the relationship between variations of total cholesterol (TC) levels and the risk for type 2 diabetes development from a Korean nationwide population-based database. Materials and methods We examined the General Health Check-up sub-dataset of the Korean National Health Insurance Service (NHIS) of 2,827,950 participants who had at least three health check-ups between 2002 and 2007, and were not reported to have diabetes during that time. The variations of TC levels between the examinations were calculated as follows: TC−SD=√{∑(xi− x¯)2/(n−1)}. The examinees were divided into 10 groups according to TC variation, and the hazard ratio for diabetes development from 2007 to 2013, were analyzed. Results During the follow-up period, 3.4% of the participants had developed diabetes. The hazard ratio (HR) for diabetes development relative to the overall risk in the whole study population started to be higher than 1.0 from eighth decile of TC variation. The highest decile group showed an increased HR for diabetes development after adjustment for confounding variables (1.139; 95% confidence interval 1.116~1.163). These results were similar regardless of the use of anti-hyperlipidemic medication and baseline TC levels. Conclusions The participants with a large variation in TC levels showed an increased risk for diabetes development, independent of the use of anti-hyperlipidemic medications. These results suggest a relationship between fluctuations in lipid levels and the development of type 2 diabetes.
Growing old(er) with postinfectious bronchiolitis obliterans

Most healthy children shrug off viral respiratory tract infections with little difficulty or assistance and a full recovery is the norm. A small minority, in contrast, are left with serious consequences. Important among these is postinfectious bronchiolitis obliterans (pBO) characterised by persistent—and sometimes severe—airway obstruction with functional and radiological evidence of small airway involvement that is generally unresponsive to bronchodilator or steroid treatment. Diagnosis is usually confirmed by high resolution computed tomography scanning although the images can be confused with asthma1 and clinical context is everything. Lung biopsy is rarely needed, but if it is done, fibrosis and obliteration of the distal airways are the cardinal features. Treatment options are limited and proof of their effectiveness largely anecdotal; there are no relevant randomised controlled trials but asthma therapies, including bronchodilators, and long term azithromycin are often used. Supportive care should be offered, with oxygen as needed, avoidance of indoor and outdoor pollution, especially tobacco smoke, immunisations including pneumococcal and influenza, and good nutrition. In most settings, pBO is undoubtedly rare but in the absence of systematic case registration its incidence is unmeasured. While cases have been reported in many different countries, there has been, for around 30 years, a striking preponderance from the southern ‘cone’ of South America (Chile, Argentina and southern Brazil) where the condition seems to have been more common than elsewhere. For example, 28% of 415 children admitted with an acute lower respiratory infection over a 17-year period to a hospital in Buenos Aires developed pBO (a further 15% died) over an unquantified period of observation. …
The Burden of Childhood Psoriasis

Abstract: A pilot study of the effect on quality of life of childhood psoriasis is presented. Of the children interviewed, 65% experienced stigmatization to a certain extent, 71% reported itching, and 43% complained about fatigue. Clinicians should pay attention to these items to initiate patient‐tailored treatment.
Multivalent meningococcal serogroup B vaccines: challenges in predicting protection and measuring effectiveness

Vaccines targeting Neisseria meningitidis serogroup B (MenB) have been attempted for 40 years. Monovalent outer membrane vesicle vaccines targeted at epidemic outbreaks have been successfully developed. Newer vaccines aim to induce antibodies to cross-reactive antigens, such as factor H binding protein (rLP2086) or a mix of outer membrane vesicle, factor H binding protein and other minor antigens (4CMenB). The true protective coverage among circulating MenB isolates afforded by these vaccines is unknown. Carefully conducted Phase IV post-implementation evaluations designed to measure specific effectiveness against major circulating MenB clonal lineages are needed to address the critical question of which antigens are linked to protection. Progress with whole-genome sequencing and bio-informatics may allow the composition of antigen mozaics based on two major outer membrane proteins: PorA and FetA.
Light adaptation and the rising phase of the flash photocurrent of salamander retinal rods.

1. Both theory and analysis of photocurrents in retinal rods show that phosphodiesterase activity after a flash rises initially as a delayed ramp. 2. The effect of light adaptation on the flash‐induced rise in phosphodiesterase activity deduced from photocurrent responses was investigated. 3. Background adaptation reduces the deduced rate of rise of phosphodiesterase activity. The effect is most prominent for bright backgrounds and moderate flashes. There is little reduction for bright flashes, even in bright backgrounds. There is no effect for weak backgrounds. 4. Light adaptation after bleaching visual pigment produces a reduction in the deduced rise of phosphodiesterase activity for all flashes. For bright flashes, the reduction is explained by the reduction in quantum catch. For moderate flashes, there is an extra reduction, similar to the reduction produced by the equivalent background. 5. The results provide support for the idea that a reduction in the amplification step of phototransduction functions as part of the mechanism of light adaptation in rods. The dependence on flash intensity of the background‐induced reduction in phosphodiesterase activation could imply a feedback mechanism on the activation steps of phototransduction.
Visual Impairment and Postural Sway among Older Adults with Glaucoma

Purpose. To investigate the effect of visual impairment on postural sway among older adults with open-angle glaucoma. Methods. This study included 54 community-dwelling participants with open-angle glaucoma, aged 65 and older. Binocular visual field loss was estimated from merged monocular Humphrey Field Analyzer visual field results and retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness was obtained from the Stratus Optical Coherence Tomographer. Postural sway was measured under four conditions: eyes open and closed, on a firm, and a foam surface. Data were collected for additional vision measures (visual acuity and contrast sensitivity), physical performance measures (self-reported physical activity levels and 6-min walk test), and demographic measures (age, gender, body mass index, and medical history). Multivariate linear regressions, adjusting for confounding factors, were performed to determine the association between visual loss and postural sway. Results. Participants with greater binocular visual field loss or thinner RNFL thickness showed increased postural sway, both on firm and foam surfaces, independent of age, gender, body mass index, and physical performance levels. These visual loss measures were significant predictors of postural sway, explaining almost 20% of its variance on the foam surface. Furthermore, participants with greater inferior hemifield visual field loss showed increased postural sway on the foam surface. Increasing glaucomatous visual impairment was accompanied by a steady decrease of the visual contribution to postural control. Conclusion. Among older adults with glaucoma, greater visual field loss or thinner RNFL thickness is associated with reduced postural stability. This postural instability may be a contributing factor in the increased risk of falls among older adults with glaucoma.