Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Role of Liquidity in ADR Mispricing: Evidence from Latin America

This paper examines the role of liquidity in explaining mispricing for American Depository Receipt (ADR) issues from four Latin American countries: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Mexico. The results developed using panel regression with fixed effects indicate that the severe trading infrequency of some Latin American stocks can significantly influence estimates of liquidity’s impact on price deviations. When accounting for trading infrequency and controlling for holding costs and market uncertainty, the results reveal that liquidity of both the ADR and the underlying stock impact ADR mispricing. Furthermore, the evidence suggests the relationship between liquidity and price deviations is not driven by volatile conditions associated with the global financial crisis of 2008. Finally, this paper finds that the impact of liquidity on price deviations is asymmetric with decreases in liquidity exerting a stronger impact on prices than equivalent increases.
The Association of HLA-A Gene Polymorphisms with Chronic Periodontitis in Iraqi patients

Background: There is growing evidence that genetic aspects play a role in the onset and severity of periodontitis. However, numerous studies have pointed to the contribution of the human leukocyte antigens (HLA) alleles as a potential genetic factor in aetiopathogenesis of periodontitis. Objective: To investigate the association of human leukocyte antigens class I genotype (HLA-A) and the susceptibility and severity of chronic periodontitis in Iraqi patients. Patients and Methods: The study groups included 50 patients with chronic periodontitis and 20 healthy controls with clinically healthy periodontium. Periodontal parameters used in this study were plaque index (PI), gingival index (GI), probing pocket depth (PPD), clinical attachment level (CAL) and bleeding on probing (BOP). Five ml of venous blood were collected from each participant. DNA was extracted from blood samples, and HLA-A genotyping was performed by polymerase chain reaction-sequence specific oligonucleotide probes (PCR-SSO). Results : The present data revealed that the frequencies of HLA-A*33 was significantly higher in patients than in healthy controls (P= 0.0268). Conclusion : This study suggests that HLA-A*33allele may contribute to the increased susceptibility to chronic periodontitis.
The in uence of laparoscopy-assisted gastrectomy versus open gastrectomy to long-term survival for early gastric cancer: an updated meta-analysis based on randomized controlled trials

Zhao Zhai Tumor Hospital of Harbin Medical University Shenghan Lou Tumor Hospital of Harbin Medical University Ziyu Zhu Tumor Hospital of Harbin Medical University Xiliang Cong Tumor Hospital of Harbin Medical University Jialiang Gao Tumor Hospital of Harbin Medical University Bangling Han Tumor Hospital of Harbin Medical University Xin Yin Tumor Hospital of Harbin Medical University Yu Zhang Tumor Hospital of Harbin Medical University Yingwei Xue (  xueyingwei@hrbmu.edu.cn ) Tumor Hospital of Harbin Medical University https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8427-9736
Preincubation of Pneumococci with (cid:2) -Lactams Alone or Combined with Levoﬂoxacin Prevents Quinolone-Induced Resistance without Increasing Intracellular Levels of Levoﬂoxacin

Preincubation of pneumococci with sub-MIC concentrations of ceftriaxone (1/16 (cid:1) MIC), cefotaxime (1/8 (cid:1) MIC), and meropenem (1/4 (cid:1) MIC) alone or combined with levoﬂoxacin (1/8 (cid:1) MIC) over 6 h prevents the emergence of levoﬂoxacin-resistant mutants after 96 h of incubation but does not affect the intracellular accumulation of levoﬂoxacin in two penicillin-resistant pneumococcal strains, suggesting a link between the mechanism of action of (cid:2) -lactams and the emergence of quinolone-induced resistance in pneumococci. The treatment of infections due to penicillin-resistant pneumococci remains a major challenge worldwide. Based on a recent study in 242 centers across the United States, penicillin resistance reached 33.6% and erythromycin resistance 41% in children (1). More alarming is
Familial aggregation of V ˙ O 2max response to exercise training: results from the HERITAGE Family Study

Familial aggregation of V ˙ O 2max response to exercise training: results from the HERITAGE Family Study. J. Appl. Physiol. 87(3): 1003– 1008, 1999. —The aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that individual differences in the response of maximal O 2 uptake (V ˙ O 2max ) to a standardized training program are characterized by familial aggregation. A total of 481 sedentary adult Caucasians from 98 two-generation families was exercise trained for 20 wk and was tested for V ˙ O 2max on a cycle ergometer twice before and twice after the training program. The mean increase in V ˙ O 2max reached , 400 ml/min, but there was considerable heterogeneity in responsiveness, with some individuals experiencing little or no gain, whereas others gained . 1.0 l/min. An ANOVA revealed that there was 2.5 times more variance between families than within families in the V ˙ O 2max response variance. With the use of a model-ﬁtting procedure, the most parsimonious models yielded a maximal heritability estimate of 47% for the V ˙ O 2max response, which was adjusted for age and sex with a maternal transmission of 28% in one of the models. We conclude that the trainability of V ˙ O 2max is highly familial and includes a signiﬁcant genetic component.
Knowledge of The Modifiable Risk Factors of Non Communicable Diseases Among Staff of Tertiary Institutions in Ondo State, Nigeria

: The study examined knowledge of the modifiable risk factors of non-communicable diseases among staff of tertiary institutions in Ondo state, Nigeria. The descriptive research design of the survey type was used in this study. The study population comprised all male and female academic and non-academic staff of tertiary institutions in Ondo state. The sample for this study consisted of 1,437 staff of tertiary institutions in Ondo State which was selected through multi stage sampling procedure. A self-developed questionnaire tagged Knowledge Non-Communicable Disease Modifiable Risk Factors Questionnaire (KNCDMRFQ) was used to collect relevant data for the study. The face and content validity of the instruments were determined by experts in Human Kinetics, Health Education, and Tests, Measurement and Evaluation. The reliability of the instrument was analysed using Cronbach Alpha. A co-efficient value of 0.835 was obtained which was considered high enough to make the instrument reliable. The responses obtained were collated and analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The findings of the study revealed that staff of tertiary institutions have moderate level of knowledge of Non-Communicable Diseases and modifiable risk factors of Non-Communicable Diseases. In addition, knowledge of modifiable risk factors of NCDs differs based on gender while academic staff possessed adequate knowledge of modifiable risk factors of NCDs than non-academic staff. It was recommended among others that a training programme on the modification of the modifiable risk factors of non-communicable diseases should be offered yearly for university workers.
A Portable Microcontrolled Pumping Flow System Developed to In Loco Determination of Diuron at Nanomolar Levels Employing a Disposable Biosensor Analytical Techniques

Microcontrolled systems coupled biosensors have attracted attention. Here, we describe an automated and portable microcontrolled pumping flow system (µC-PFS) developed to biosensing application. The flow system is fully automatic, portable, it works in battery module and it dispenses the use of microcomputer and the manual operations. This device presents mainly a microcontroller as central processing unit (CPU), an aquarium air pump and three-way solenoid valves to propulsion and the volume control of aliquots inserted in the flow system. Once available its performance, this device was used to pump samples and solution towards a compacted and miniaturized electrochemical flow cell (EFC) employing a multicommutated flow procedure. In the EFC, it was used a biosensor based on acetylcholinesterase immobilized on the gold nanoparticles modified-screen printed carbon electrode, which was used in order to perform the determination of diuron by enzymatic inhibition employing a chronoamperometry. Under the best experimental conditions, the calibration curve for diuron determination was linear in the concentration range from 80 to 1400 nmol/L with a detection limit of 50 nmol/L. Moreover, the proposed system was fully automated, showed precise, with low consumption of sample and waste generation with an analytical throughput of 13/h.
Losses in Grain Yield of some Wheat Cultivars Infected with Powdery Mildew

owdery mildew caused by Blumeria graminis f.sp. tritici is one of the most important diseases affecting wheat plants under Egyptian conditions. The relationship between yield reduction and severity of powdery mildew was determined during 2012/13 and 2013/14 growing seasons at Sakha Agricultural Research Station on fourteen wheat cultivars. Powdery mildew disease severity ranged from 7 to 60% in 2012/13, while in 2013/14 ranged from 4 to 60%. Area under disease progress curve (AUDPC) was found to be correlated with powdery mildew severity during the two growing seasons. The yield losses ranged from 2.02% on wheat cultivar Giza 168 to 20% on Sakha 61 during 2012/13. While, at 2013/14 it ranged from 1.56% on the wheat cultivar Giza 168 to 22.52% on the wheat cultivar Sakha 94. Although, the yield losses of the other tested cultivars were depend on the values of powdery mildew severity for each cultivar.
Prevalence of Anemia in a Population with Celiac Disease in Tébessa (Algeria)

Celiac disease causes and/or aggravates nutritional deficits. The purpose of this work was to determine the prevalence of anemia in people with celiac disease. This was a cross-sectional descriptive study in subjects with celiac disease followed in two health services in the city of Tebessa (Algeria) and who had a blood count (NFS) during their hospitalization. The results show that strict compliance with the gluten-free diet was reported for only 19% of cases. The prevalence of anemia was 60%. Female celiac patients are more affected by anemia. In 46.87% of anemic celiac patients, hemoglobin was between 9 and 12 g/dl. In 39.06% of cases, hemoglobin was between 7 and 9 g/dl and less than 7 g/dl in 14.06% of cases. The statistical tests show the existence of a significant link (p <0.05) between anemia and the economic level and the level of education of the households of the celiac patients and between the anemia and the compliance with the gluten-free diet.
Background Studies and Machine Learning Methods Applied to the Analysis of Central Exclusive Production Events in ALICE

This master thesis is a report of a survey aimed at understanding and reducing background sources in central exclusive production events measured at the ALICE experiment, located at CERN–LHC. The ALICE experiment consists of a central barrel and a forward muon spectrometer. Additional smaller detectors for global event characterization and triggering are located at small angles outside of the central barrel. Such a geometry allows the investigation of many properties of diffractive reactions at hadron colliders, for example the measurement of single and double diffractive dissociation cross-sections and the study of central exclusive production (CEP). Central diffractive events are defined experimentally by hits in the central barrel and no activity outside of it, creating an activity gap in the observed rapidity of measured particles. The study of Pythia-8 simulations of these processes show a drastic reduction of non-diffractive events (background) by enforcing the rapidity gap condition. The remaining background is largely composed of partially reconstructed CEP events, so called feed-down events. Often feed-down events are accompanied by neutral particles, which are not detected. This missing mass and momentum leads to a shift of the invariant mass spectrum to lower masses. This thesis aims at understanding and suppressing background sources in the two pion invariant mass spectrum in X → π+π− decays of the centrally produced system X. This is done in two ways: First, a feed-down template is constructed by using background events marked by a detected gamma in the main calorimeter of ALICE, and by using events with more than two detected charged tracks. Despite facing possibly tedious efficiency corrections for the sake of complete feed-down descriptions, this method yields promising results. Second, machine learning methods for background suppression of CEP events are employed. The measured variables e.g. the four-momentum of particles, energy loss in the detectors, deduced kinematic quantities, and global event characteristics are generally correlated. To obtain a maximal separation of signal and background it is necessary to treat these observables in a fully multivariate way. Although achieving good results, i. e. the signal purity can be increased by 30% while maintaining a nearly constant signal efficiency, the trained classifiers tend to obtain a strong mass bias which results in a cut-like behavior of the trained model. It can be concluded that multivariate techniques trained on Pythia-8 generated CEP simulations generally suffer from incomplete Monte Carlo descriptions, including only high mass continuum production. However, promising new packages are currently being developed which provide interesting prospects for further studies.
A Practical Simulation Tool for Predicting Spectral Regrowth in Communication Satellite Receivers

— The intermodulation distortion phenomena caused by nonlinear characteristic of active RF equipments is a significant source of system impairment in satellite communications. Telecommunications signals are usually composed of more than one carrier modulated by information signal. When number of carriers passing through a nonlinear medium increases, which is the case in communications satellite receivers, the prediction of the intermodulation distortion becomes more and more complex. Considering the scarcity of frequency spectrum and other resources in orbit, satellite channel performances should delicately be examined in order to ensure efficient and uninterrupted communications through all channels and avoid any channel failure due to intermodulation phenomena. This paper presents a practical tool for calculating and simulating the effect of intermodulation signal distortion and C/I performances of the broadband satellite receivers placed at the communication satellite payload input section. With this tool, the effect of a collocated satellite system operating in an adjacent frequency band can also be easily calculated.
Identiﬁcation of Barriers to Adherence to a Weight Loss Diet in Women Using the Nominal Group Technique

: Background: At any given time, a majority of women are engaged in some type of weight loss diet; however, these e ﬀ orts are di ﬃ cult to sustain for long-term weight control. Because women are more likely to develop obesity and su ﬀ er a greater severity of obesity-related health and economic consequences, we sought to identify the key factors that make adhering to a weight loss diet di ﬃ cult for overweight / obese women. Methods: Ten nominal group technique (NGT) sessions aimed at identifying perceived barriers to adherence to a weight loss diet were conducted as part of a weight loss study for overweight / obese women ( n = 33) during the controlled feeding weight loss phase. Results: Individual-level barriers to emerge from the sessions included knowing when to stop eating, being able to control cravings and emotional eating, and sustaining healthier dietary habits. Environmental-level barriers included family / social events that bring people together, especially those centered around food and drink, eating out, cost, and busy schedules. Conclusions: These ﬁndings o ﬀ er a deeper understanding of barriers women ﬁnd most salient to adhering to a weight loss diet, providing direction for the clinical application of weight loss programs.
Supporting Information for Machine Learning-Assisted Protein Evolution with Combinatorial Libraries

I. General procedures a. Plasmid construction b. Protein expression c. Biocatalytic reaction d. Model training e. Model predictions f. Experimental validation of predictions II. Tables a. Table 1: Starting activity b. Table 2: Modeling statistics c. Table 3: Prediction frequency tables* (page 7) d. Table 4: Relative activity compared to starting sequence III. Figures a. Figure 1: Highest fitnesses found with less accurate models b. Figure 2: Predicted vs measured values in position Set II IV. Input sequences versus encoded predictions a. Figure 3a: Input versus predicted sequences for modeling position Set I b. Figure 3b: Input versus predicted sequences for modeling Set II from GSSG c. Figure 3c: Input versus predicted sequences for modeling Set II from VCHV V. Library coverage VI. Chiral SFC traces for racemic and enzymatically synthesized organosilicon products VII. Experimental uncertainty in best variants VIII. Model performance and selection IX. Supplemental references
Aickelin, Uwe (2004) Artificial immune systems (AIS) - a new paradigm for heuristic decision making. In: OR 46 (

Over the last few years, more and more heuristic decision making techniques have been inspired by nature, e.g. evolutionary algorithms, ant colony optimisation and simulated annealing. More recently, a novel computational intelligence technique inspired by immunology has emerged, called Artificial Immune Systems (AIS). This immune system inspired technique has already been useful in solving some computational problems. In this keynote, we will very briefly describe the immune system metaphors that are relevant to AIS. We will then give some illustrative real-world problems suitable for AIS use and show a step-by-step algorithm walkthrough. A comparison of AIS to other well-known algorithms and areas for future work will round this keynote off. It should be noted that as AIS is still a young and evolving field, there is not yet a fixed algorithm template and hence actual implementations might differ somewhat from the examples given here.
Reconstruction of Sea Surface Wind Fields over the North Pacific using Sea Level Pressure Fields dur

Sea surface wind (SSW) fields north of 20°N over the North Pacific are reconstructed using sea level pressure (SLP) fields (Trenberth's Corrected Yearly-Monthly Northern Hemisphere SLP, version 010.1) for the period of 97 years from 1899 to 1995. The reconstruction method is purely empirical as follows. First, since the mean height of anemometers installed on ships in the 1980s is approximately 35 m, values of monthly mean SSW in the 1980s computed using winds of the Comprehensive Ocean-Atmosphere Data Set (GOADS) are adjusted to those at the standard height of 10 m. Then, monthly climatologies of SSW and of SLP fields averaged for the ten years from 1981 through 1990 are computed. Next, monthly anomalies of both SSW and SLP fields during the ten years are calculated. Under the assumption of a geostrophic wind balance, geostrophic wind (GW) anomalies are computed using monthly SLP anomalies. Based on comparison between GW and COADS SSW anomalies, two adjustment factors of the reduction coefficient and correction angle are simultane ously estimated for each of four seasons using a neutral regression analysis. Adopting these adjustment factors for GW anomaly fields, corrected wind anomalies are obtained. Finally, the reconstructed SSW fields are obtained as the sum of corrected wind anomalies and ten-year monthly climatologies. When we regard height-corrected COADS SSW fields as the reference winds, root-mean-square differences of the reconstructed SSW fields can be estimated to be less than 1 m s -1 in magnitude, and less than 15 degrees in wind direction for the winds greater than 2 m s -1 . Comparison of the reconstructed SSWs with NCEP reanalysis SSWs is also made and shows that NCEP reanalysis SSWs are systematically 8 % greater in magnitude than the reconstructed SSWs throughout the comparison period from 1950 to 1995. Time series of magnitudes of the reconstructed SSWs averaged in the wintertime mid-latitude westerlies region shows interannual and decadal/multidecadal time scale variations: from mid-1930s to mid-1940s, westerlies was remarkably strengthened compared with the rest of the period.
Potential Adverse Effects of Alteration of Phytochemical Accumulation in Fruits and Vegetables Potential Adverse Effects of Alteration of Phytochemical Accumulation in Fruits and Vegetables

Alterations in the accumulation of phytochemicals in fruits and vegetables may have adverse effects on the health benefits emanating from their consumption. Plants parts possess secondary metabolites in addition to their primary metabolites. Plants secondary metabolites possess many inherent biological activities that include antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and enzyme inhibitory properties, which are health benefits to humans. Accumulation of phytochemicals in plants is reportedly influenced by environmental factors or growth conditions such as lack of nutrients, pathogens attack, competitive co- habitation plant species, insect predation, and herbivorous attack. Human interventions such as agricultural practices may affect biochemical processes in plants or crops in a manner that may limitations or alterations in the accumulation of phytochemicals. The limitation of phytochemicals accumulation in fruits and vegetables may have the adverse effect on their health benefits in humans that may explain the high prevalence of life style diseases such as diabetes and cancer experienced in today’s world. The proper assess - ment of the influence on phytochemical responses in crops, fruits, and vegetables by modern agricultural practices such as weeding methods, herbicides, insecticides, fertil - izer application, crop rotation, and co-habitation needs to be carried out. Such assessment is important since while crop production may be improved, caution should be exercised not to erode, or negatively alter phytochemical biosynthesis in crops.
The CorA Mg 2 (cid:1) Transporter Is a Homotetramer

CorA is a primary Mg 2 (cid:1) transporter for Bacteria and Archaea . The C-terminal domain of (cid:2) 80 amino acids forms three transmembrane (TM) segments, which suggests that CorA is a homo-oligomer. A Cys residue was added to the cytoplasmic C terminus (C317) of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium CorA with or without mutation of the single periplasmic Cys191 to Ser; each mutant retained function. Oxidation of the Cys191Ser Cys317 CorA gave a dimer. Oxidation of Cys317 CorA showed a dimer plus an additional band, apparently cross-linked via both Cys317 and C191. To determine oligomer order, intact cells or puriﬁed membranes were treated with formaldehyde or carbon disulﬁde. Higher-molecular-mass bands formed, consistent with the presence of a tetramer. Cross-linking of the Bacillus subtilis CorA expressed in Salmonella serovar Typhimurium similarly indicated a tetramer. CorA periplasmic soluble domains from both Salmonella serovar Typhimurium and the archaeon Methanococcus jannaschii were puriﬁed and shown to retain structure. Formaldehyde treatment showed formation of a tetramer. Finally, previous mutagenesis of the CorA membrane domain identiﬁed six intramembrane residues forming an apparent pore that interacts with Mg 2
Particular and unique solutions of DGLAP evolution equations and light sea and valence quark structure functions at low-x

We present particular and unique solutions of Dokshitzer-Gribov-Lipatov- Altarelli-Parisi (DGLAP) evolution equations for light sea and valence quark structure functions in leading order (LO). We obtain t evolutions of sea and valence quark structure functions and x- evolutions of light sea quark structure functions from DGLAP evolution equations. The results are compared with a recent global parameterization.