Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A comparison of intradermal test with recombinant tuberculosis allergen (diaskintest) with other immunologic tests in the diagnosis of tuberculosis infection

Background: The WHO strategy for eradication of tuberculosis (TB) by 2035 (The End TB Strategy) is aimed at an early and precise diagnosis and subsequent effective treatment of TB patients. Currently, there is no gold standard for the diagnosis of latent TB infection. This study evaluated the diagnostic capabilities of a new intradermal test using recombinant TB allergen (Diaskintest) compared with tuberculin skin test (TST) and commercial TB interferon-gamma release assays (IGRAs). Methods: A post-hoc data analysis that involved examining 860 HIV-negative, bacillus Calmette–Guérin (BCG)-vaccinated persons aged 1–65 years who visited the TB health-care institutions of Saint Petersburg to rule out or confirm an active TB was conducted from 2011 to 2016. Results: A high degree of consistency of the Diaskintest results with the enzyme-linked immunospot and QuantiFERON-TB Gold In-Tube test (ELISPOT and QFT) results was observed in the examined pediatric population (n = 696), with a Diaskintest cutoff ≥5 mm: the kappa consistency indices were 1.000 and 0.937, for ELISPOT and QFT, respectively. A high sensitivity of Diaskintest, comparable with the IGRA tests, was observed in patients with a confirmed TB diagnosis in all age groups. The sensitivity of Diaskintest in patients of the TB/MTB + group aged 18 years and older was 88.7%; of ELISPOT, 90.6%; of QFT, 87.0%. The conducted analysis has shown a high concordance of results of the commercial TB tests in adult HIV-negative patients (n = 164) with a Diaskintest cutoff ≥5 mm: the kappa indices were 0.805 and 0.636 (Diaskintest vs. ELISPOT and QFT, respectively) among BCG-vaccinated people. Conclusion: According to the WHO recommendations, replacing the TST by IGRAs is not recommended as a public health intervention in resource-constrained settings because the IGRA tests are more costly and technically complex to conduct than the TST. Diaskintest has comparable complexity to the TST and its performance is close to that of IGRA in a BCG-vaccinated population. Thus, our study demonstrates that replacing the TST by Diaskintest can be recommended as a public health intervention in resource-constrained and universal BCG vaccination settings.
Staphylococcus aureus bloodstream infections in Latin America: results of a multinational prospective cohort study

Background Substantial heterogeneity in the epidemiology and management of Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia (SAB) occurs in Latin America. We conducted a prospective cohort study in 24 hospitals from nine Latin American countries. Objectives To assess the clinical impact of SAB in Latin America. Patients and methods We evaluated differences in the 30 day attributable mortality among patients with SAB due to MRSA compared with MSSA involving 84 days of follow-up. Adjusted relative risks were calculated using a generalized linear model. Results A total of 1030 patients were included. MRSA accounted for 44.7% of cases with a heterogeneous geographical distribution. MRSA infection was associated with higher 30 day attributable mortality [25% (78 of 312) versus 13.2% (48 of 363), adjusted RR: 1.94, 95% CI: 1.38-2.73, P < 0.001] compared with MSSA in the multivariable analysis based on investigators' assessment, but not in a per-protocol analysis [13% (35 of 270) versus 8.1% (28 of 347), adjusted RR: 1.10, 95% CI: 0.75-1.60, P = 0.616] or in a sensitivity analysis using 30 day all-cause mortality [36% (132 of 367) versus 27.8% (123 of 442), adjusted RR: 1.09, 95% CI: 0.96-1.23, P = 0.179]. MRSA infection was not associated with increased length of hospital stay. Only 49% of MSSA bloodstream infections (BSI) received treatment with β-lactams, but appropriate definitive treatment was not associated with lower mortality (adjusted RR: 0.93, 95% CI: 0.70-1.23, P = 0.602). Conclusions MRSA-BSIs in Latin America are not associated with higher 30 day mortality or longer length of stay compared with MSSA. Management of MSSA-BSIs was not optimal, but appropriate definitive therapy did not appear to influence mortality.
RGB-D camera pose estimation using deep neural network

This paper presents a study for RGB-D camera pose estimation using deep learning techniques. The proposed network architecture is composed of two components: the convolution neural network (CNN) for exploiting the vision information, and the Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) block for incorporating the temporal information. The CNN, more precisely a RGB-D variant of GoogLeNet, functionalizes as a feature-oriented camera pose estimator, while the LSTM works as a temporal filter to model the pose transition. A modified loss function is also proposed to help regulate the convergence of the pose parameters. Experimental results show that the combination of CNN and LSTM can achieve a higher pose estimation accuracy, while the pipeline structure defined in the network can also provide flexibility for handling different scenarios.
Silicon priming: A potential source to impart abiotic stress tolerance in wheat: A review

Water deficiency adversely affects a number of physiological and metabolic mechanisms in plants and probably, is a major yield limiting factor. This often put into perspectives, the challenge to produce higher crop yields than ever by conserving and efficiently using the depleting underground water and bringing the marginal water deficit lands under cultivation. A possible potential solution is to induce drought tolerance to mitigate this challenge. The drought resistance recently has drawn the future research focus mainly due to exhausting water table and distribution. Silicon priming is known to enhance crop tolerance against various environmental stresses by tailoring the plant water uptake and transport. Drought tolerance could be induced by modified physio-morphic features such as: adjustment for leaf water potential, stomatal frequency, stomatal size, osmotic adjustments. Silicon priming potentially can induce anatomical changes in cell wall with deposition of silica in the form of polymerized silicon dioxide (SiO2) solid particles, alleviating the oxidative damage of functional molecules and improving anti-oxidative defense abilities. Silicon, actually, induces dehydration tolerance at tissue or cellular levels by improving the water status and hence, facilitates the plant to access photosynthates and this modified adaptability mechanism varies among species. In this review, we discuss the plant drought tolerance adjustments and role of silicon priming to withstand drought stress.
Decoration of heparin and bovine serum albumin on polysulfone membrane assisted via polydopamine strategy for hemodialysis

Abstract Renal failure brings about abnormality of waste and toxins and deposition in the body. In clinic, the waste and toxins in vitro are eliminated by hemodialysis device with polysulfone (PSF) porous membranes. In the work, decoration of heparin (Hep) and bovine serum albumin (BSA) on PSF membranes would be beneficial to improve the hemocompatibility and reduce the anaphylatoxin formation during hemodialysis. The PSF porous membranes are surface-modified by simply dipping them into dopamine aqueous solution for 8 h. Then, Hep and BSA are immobilized covalently onto the resultant membrane. Attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectra (ATR-FTIR) confirms that Hep and BSA are successfully introduced onto the surface of PSF membranes. Scanning electronic microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) display the changes of surface morphologies after modification. The result of water contact angle measurement shows that the hydrophilicity of PSF membranes is remarkably improved after coating polydopamine (pDA) and binding Hep and BSA. The experiments of hemocompatibility indicate that Hep and BSA grafted onto membranes suppress the adhesion of platelet and enhance the anticoagulation ability of PSF membranes. Furthermore, the protein adsorption tests reveal that Hep and BSA immobilized onto membranes depress the protein absorption and develop antifouling-protein ability of pristine membrane. This study proves a convenient and simple approach to graft two functional organic polymers which, respectively, play a vital role and then improve the hemocompatibility and biocompatibility of PSF membranes for their biomedical and blood-contacting applications.
Arborisation pattern and postsynaptic targets of physiologically identified thalamocortical afferents in striate cortex of the macaque monkey

The monosynaptic targets of different functional types of geniculocortical axons were compared in the primary visual cortex of monkeys. Single thalamocortical axons were recorded extracellularly in the white matter by using horseradish‐peroxidase‐filled pipettes. Their receptive fields were mapped and classified as corresponding to those of parvi‐ or magnocellular neurons in the lateral geniculate nucleus. The axons were then impaled and injected intraaxonally with horseradish peroxidase. Two magnocellular (MA) and two parvicellular (PA) axons were successfully recovered and reconstructed in three dimensions. The two MA axons arborised mainly in layer 4Cβ, as did the two PA axons in layer 4Cβ. Few collaterals formed varicosities in layer 6. Both MA axons had two large, elongated clumps of bouton (approx. 300–500 × 600–1,200 μm each) and a small clump. One PA axon had two clumps (each with a core appr. 200 μm in diameter); the other had only one (appr. 150–200 μm in diameter). The PA axon with two clumps had 1,520 boutons; the other PA axon had 1,380; one MA axon had 3,200 boutons; and those of the more extensive MA axon were not counted. The distribution of postsynaptic targets as well as the number of synapses per bouton has been established for a sample of 150 PA boutons and 173 MA boutons from serial ultrathin sections. The MA axons made on average 2.1 synapses per bouton compared to 1.79 for one PA axon and 2.6 for the other. The sample of boutons taken from the two physiological types of axons contacted similar proportions of dendritic spines (52–68%), shafts (33–47%), and somata (0–3%). The postsynaptic elements were further characterized by immunostaining for GABA. All postsynaptic perikarya and some of the dendrites (4.5–9.5% of all targets) were positive for the amino acid. Near the thalamic synapse GABA‐negative dendritic shafts frequently contained lamellar bodies, an organelle identical in structure to spine apparatus. Dendritic shafts and spines postsynaptic to the thalamocortical boutons frequently received an adjacent synapse from GABA‐immunoreactive boutons.
Relationships among exercise beliefs, physical exercise, and subjective well-being: Evidence from Korean middle-aged adults

ABSTRACT Physically active leisure plays a key role in successful aging. Exercise beliefs are one of the key predictors of exercise behavior. We used structural equation modeling to assess the plausibility of a conceptual model specifying hypothesized linkages among middle-aged adults' perceptions of (a) exercise beliefs, (b) physical exercise behavior, and (c) subjective well-being. Four hundred two adults in South Korea responded to survey questions designed to capture the above constructs. We found that physically active leisure participation leads to subjective well-being for both middle-aged men and women. However, men and women exercised for different reasons. Women exercised for the sake of their physical appearance and mental and emotional functioning, whereas men exercised for the sake of their social desirability and vulnerability to disease and aging. Based on our results, we suggest that men tend to show higher social face sensitivity, while women show more appearance management behavior. Based on these findings, we discussed the implications and future research directions.
Improving average ranking precision in user searches for biomedical research datasets

Abstract Availability of research datasets is keystone for health and life science study reproducibility and scientific progress. Due to the heterogeneity and complexity of these data, a main challenge to be overcome by research data management systems is to provide users with the best answers for their search queries. In the context of the 2016 bioCADDIE Dataset Retrieval Challenge, we investigate a novel ranking pipeline to improve the search of datasets used in biomedical experiments. Our system comprises a query expansion model based on word embeddings, a similarity measure algorithm that takes into consideration the relevance of the query terms, and a dataset categorization method that boosts the rank of datasets matching query constraints. The system was evaluated using a corpus with 800k datasets and 21 annotated user queries, and provided competitive results when compared to the other challenge participants. In the official run, it achieved the highest infAP, being +22.3% higher than the median infAP of the participant’s best submissions. Overall, it is ranked at top 2 if an aggregated metric using the best official measures per participant is considered. The query expansion method showed positive impact on the system’s performance increasing our baseline up to +5.0% and +3.4% for the infAP and infNDCG metrics, respectively. The similarity measure algorithm showed robust performance in different training conditions, with small performance variations compared to the Divergence from Randomness framework. Finally, the result categorization did not have significant impact on the system’s performance. We believe that our solution could be used to enhance biomedical dataset management systems. The use of data driven expansion methods, such as those based on word embeddings, could be an alternative to the complexity of biomedical terminologies. Nevertheless, due to the limited size of the assessment set, further experiments need to be performed to draw conclusive results. Database URL: https://biocaddie.org/benchmark-data
Stress Analysis and Failure Prediction of Adhesively Bonded Single-lap Laminates Joints Subjected to the Tensile Loading

On the basis of the existing experimental results and considering five kinds of failure modes, failure prediction of adhesively bonded single-lap laminates joints with adherend thickness 3mm, adherend thickness 2mm and defect in the adhesive layer under uniaxial tensile loading is performed by progressive failure analysis method. The numerical analysis of composites adhesive joints is implemented in ANSYS Parametric Design Language (APDL) with commercial finite element codes ANSYS. The error of computaional and experimental failure loads is 3.0%. Evolution of adhesive progressive damage is simulated effectively and the initial position and reason of damage is discovered. Furthermore, a finite element simulation is carried out to analyze the stress distributions in the mid-surface of the adhesive layer and the bonding interface. It is found that stress concentration is all emerged near by 1.25mm on the overlap zone ends, that is the initial point of damage, and it is the main factor that the joint strength is affected by peel/shear stress concentrations at overlap zone ends. The computational results are in good agreement with the experimental values.
Leveraged Quality Assessment using Information Retrieval Techniques

The goal of this research is to apply language processing techniques to extend human judgment into situations where obtaining direct human judgment is impractical due to the volume of information that must be considered. On aspect of this is leveraged quality assessments, which can be used to evaluate third-party coded subsystems, to track quality across the versions of a program, to assess the compression effort (and subsequent cost) required to make a change, and to identify parts of a program in need of preventative maintenance. A description of the QALP tool, its output from just under two million lines of code, and an experiment aimed at evaluating the tool's use in leveraged quality assessment are presented. Statistically significant results from this experiment validate the use of the QALP tool in human leverage quality assessment
Exploiting an Asp-Glu “switch” in glycogen synthase kinase 3 to design paralog-selective inhibitors for use in acute myeloid leukemia

Paralog-selective inhibitors of GSK3 kinases were designed by exploiting a single amino acid difference in their ATP-binding domains and studied in AML. The right GSK for the job The enzyme glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK3) has been proposed as a potential therapeutic target in many diseases, but none of the drugs targeting this enzyme so far have translated to the clinic. A major reason for this failure to translate is the existence of two closely related paralogs of GSK3 such that most drugs target both forms at once and cause unacceptable toxicity. By applying a rational structure-based approach, Wagner et al. were able to design selective inhibitors for the α and β isoforms of this enzyme and then show that selective GSK3α inhibitors specifically show promising activity against acute myeloid leukemia with no detectable effects on healthy hematopoietic cells. Glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK3), a key regulatory kinase in the wingless-type MMTV integration site family (WNT) pathway, is a therapeutic target of interest in many diseases. Although dual GSK3α/β inhibitors have entered clinical trials, none has successfully translated to clinical application. Mechanism-based toxicities, driven in part by the inhibition of both GSK3 paralogs and subsequent β-catenin stabilization, are a concern in the translation of this target class because mutations and overexpression of β-catenin are associated with many cancers. Knockdown of GSK3α or GSK3β individually does not increase β-catenin and offers a conceptual resolution to targeting GSK3: paralog-selective inhibition. However, inadequate chemical tools exist. The design of selective adenosine triphosphate (ATP)–competitive inhibitors poses a drug discovery challenge due to the high homology (95% identity and 100% similarity) in this binding domain. Taking advantage of an Asp133→Glu196 “switch” in their kinase hinge, we present a rational design strategy toward the discovery of paralog-selective GSK3 inhibitors. These GSK3α- and GSK3β-selective inhibitors provide insights into GSK3 targeting in acute myeloid leukemia (AML), where GSK3α was identified as a therapeutic target using genetic approaches. The GSK3α-selective compound BRD0705 inhibits kinase function and does not stabilize β-catenin, mitigating potential neoplastic concerns. BRD0705 induces myeloid differentiation and impairs colony formation in AML cells, with no apparent effect on normal hematopoietic cells. Moreover, BRD0705 impairs leukemia initiation and prolongs survival in AML mouse models. These studies demonstrate feasibility of paralog-selective GSK3α inhibition, offering a promising therapeutic approach in AML.
Reading wild minds: A computational assay of Theory of Mind sophistication across seven primate species

Theory of Mind (ToM), i.e. the ability to understand others' mental states, endows humans with highly adaptive social skills such as teaching or deceiving. Candidate evolutionary explanations have been proposed for the unique sophistication of human ToM among primates. For example, the Machiavellian intelligence hypothesis states that the increasing complexity of social networks may have induced a demand for sophisticated ToM. This type of scenario ignores neurocognitive constraints that may eventually be crucial limiting factors for ToM evolution. In contradistinction, the cognitive scaffolding hypothesis asserts that a species' opportunity to develop sophisticated ToM is mostly determined by its general cognitive capacity (on which ToM is scaffolded). However, the actual relationships between ToM sophistication and either brain volume (a proxy for general cognitive capacity) or social group size (a proxy for social network complexity) are unclear. Here, we let 39 individuals sampled from seven non-human primate species (lemurs, macaques, mangabeys, orangutans, gorillas and chimpanzees) engage in simple dyadic games against artificial ToM players (via a familiar human caregiver). Using computational analyses of primates' choice sequences, we found that the probability of exhibiting a ToM-compatible learning style is mainly driven by species' brain volume (rather than by social group size). Moreover, primates' social cognitive sophistication culminates in a precursor form of ToM, which still falls short of human fully-developed ToM abilities.
Octagam® for chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy: results from three observational studies

Aim: To present data from three studies of a Post-Authorization Safety Surveillance (PASS) program for the subset of patients receiving Octagam® 5% or 10% for chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP). Methods: Data on patients with CIDP treated with Octagam were analyzed to assess its safety and tolerability. Results: Of 2314 patients included in the studies, 58 patients (mean age: 64.6 years) received Octagam for CIDP, mean dose of which was 0.8 g/kg bodyweight/course. 81% of observations for clinical appearance since last observation were assessed as stable and 16.6% showed an improved clinical appearance with treatment. Adverse drug reactions were rare (<0.7% of infusions). Conclusion: Octagam was effective and well-tolerated in patients with CIDP.
ACCURACY OF SIZE-SPECIFIC DOSE ESTIMATE CALCULATION FROM CENTER SLICE IN COMPUTED TOMOGRAPHY

To evaluate the accuracy of size-specific dose estimate (SSDE) calculation from center slice with water-equivalent diameter (Dw) and effective diameter (Deff). A total of 1812 CT exams (1583 adult and 229 pediatric) were included in this retrospective study. Dw and Deff were automatically calculated for all slices of each scan. SSDEs were calculated with two methods: (1) from the center slice; and (2) from all slices of the volume, which was regarded as the reference standard. Impact of patient weight, height and body mass index (BMI) on SSDE accuracy was assessed. The mean difference between overall SSDE and the center slice approach ranged from 2.0 ± 1.7% (range: 0-15.5%) for pediatric chest to 5.0 ± 3.2% (0-17.2%) for adult chest CT. Accuracy of the center slice SSDE approach correlated with patient size (BMI: r = 0.15-0.43; weight r = 0.26-0.49) which led to SSDE overestimation in small and underestimation in large patients. SSDE calculation using the center slice leads to an error of 2-5%; however, SSDE is underestimated in large patients and overestimation in small patients.
Differentiating true and false schematic memories in older adults.

Objective While schemas aid memory for schematically related information, the gist induced by the schema can also lead to high rates of false memories, especially in older adults. The neural mechanisms that support and differentiate true and false memories in aging are not well understood. The current study sought to clarify this, using a novel scene paradigm to investigate the role of schemas on true and false memories in older adults. Methods Healthy older adults encoded schematic scenes (e.g., bathroom). At retrieval, participants were tested on their memory for both schematic and non-schematic targets and lures while fMRI data was collected. Results Results indicate that true memories were supported by the typical retrieval network, and activity in this network was greater for true than false memories. Schema specific retrieval was supported by mPFC, extending this common finding to aging. While no region differentiated false memories compared to correct rejections, results showed that individual differences in false memory rates were associated with variability in neural activity. Discussion The findings underscore the importance of elucidating the neural basis of cognition within older adults, as well as the specific contribution of individual differences to the neural basis of memory errors in aging.