Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Role of Sirt1 in Epileptogenesis

Abstract The mechanisms by which brain insults lead to subsequent epilepsy remain unclear. Insults, including trauma, stroke, tumors, infections, and long seizures [status epilepticus (SE)], create a neuronal state of increased metabolic demand or decreased energy supply. Neurons express molecules that monitor their metabolic state, including sirtuins (Sirts). Sirtuins deacetylate cytoplasmic proteins and nuclear histones, and their epigenetic modulation of the chromatin governs the expression of many genes, influencing neuronal properties. Thus, sirtuins are poised to enduringly modulate neuronal properties following SE, potentially contributing to epileptogenesis, a hypothesis supported by the epilepsy-attenuating effects of blocking a downstream target of Sirt1, Neuron-Restrictive Silencer Factor (NRSF) also know as REST (RE1-Silencing Transcription factor). Here we used an adult male rat model of epileptogenesis provoked by kainic acid–induced SE (KA-SE). We assessed KA-SE-provoked Sirt1 activity, infused a Sirt1 inhibitor (EX-527) after KA-SE, and examined for epileptogenesis using continuous digital video–EEG. Sirt1 activity, measured using chromatin immunoprecipitation for Sirt1 binding at a target gene, increased rapidly after SE. Post hoc infusion of the Sirt1 inhibitor prevented Sirt1-mediated repression of a target gene. Blocking Sirt1 activity transiently after KA-SE did not significantly influence the time- course and all of the parameters of epilepsy development. Specifically, latency to first seizure and seizure number, duration, and severity (using the Racine scale and EEG measures) as well as the frequency and duration of interictal spike series, were all unchanged. KA-SE provoked a robust inflammatory response and modest cell loss, yet neither was altered by blocking Sirt1. In conclusion, blocking Sirt1 activity after KA-SE does not abrogate epilepsy development, suggesting that the mechanisms of such acquired epileptogenesis are independent of Sirt1 function.
The Intelligent Voice 2016 Speaker Recognition System

This paper presents the Intelligent Voice (IV) system submitted to the NIST 2016 Speaker Recognition Evaluation (SRE). The primary emphasis of SRE this year was on developing speaker recognition technology which is robust for novel languages that are much more heterogeneous than those used in the current state-of-the-art, using significantly less training data, that does not contain meta-data from those languages. The system is based on the state-of-the-art i-vector/PLDA which is developed on the fixed training condition, and the results are reported on the protocol defined on the development set of the challenge.
Prognostic Role of Survivin in Bladder Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Purpose The objective of the present study was to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis of published literature investigating the survivin expression and its effects on bladder cancer prognosis. Materials and Methods We carefully searched online Pubmed, Cochrane Library and SCOPUS database from August 1997 to May 2013. Results A total of 14 articles met the eligibility criteria for this systematic review. The eligible studies included a total of 2,165 patients with a median number of 155 patients per study (range: 17–726). Of the 14 studies, nine evaluated immunohistochemistry in formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue blocks. In non-muscle invasive bladder tumor, the pooled hazard ratio (HR) was statistically significant for recurrence-free survival (pooled HR, 1.81; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.30–2.52), progression-free survival (pooled HR, 2.12; 95% CI, 1.60–2.82), cancer-specific survival (pooled HR, 2.01; 95% CI, 1.32–3.06), and overall survival (pooled HR, 1.53; 95% CI, 1.02–2.29). The overall HRs by survivin status were robust across advanced stages. When only adjusted survival data were included, statistically significant differences were identified for all survival subgroup analyses. There was no between-study heterogeneity in the effect of survivin status on the majority of meta-analyses. There was no clear evidence of publication bias in this meta-analysis. Conclusions Survivin expression indicates worse prognosis in patients with bladder cancer but the results should be interpreted with caution. It is necessary that better-designed studies with standardized assays need to provide a better conclusion about the relationship between survivin expression and the outcome of patients with bladder cancer.
Emotional Intelligence (EI): A Therapy for Higher Education Students.

This study investigates the need to design and develop emotional intelligence curriculum for students in higher education. Emotional intelligence curriculum may be used as a therapy that provides skills to manage high emotions faced by generation “Y”, on a day to day basis. Generation “Y” is emotionally challenged with: drug abuse, family abuse, sexual abuse, and relationship problems and other challenges. This curriculum assists students to boost their own emotional intelligence by learning how to cope with stresses. The module intends to promote emotional intelligence quotient in future graduates. The skills and techniques for emotional intelligence may be developed throughout someone’s life as part of lifelong learning and would form the foundation for a balanced lifestyle. This study investigates to what extend students in higher education are presently exposed to emotional intelligence techniques as part of their curriculum. A survey and a qualitative approach were used to gather data from the students at Botho University who are enrolled in the Bsc Hons in Accounting. The results informed the researchers whether higher education should introduce a curriculum for emotional intelligence.
Estimated 24-Hour Urine Sodium Excretion Is Correlated with Blood Pressure in Korean Population: 2009-2011 Korean National Health and Nutritional Examination Survey

No large-scale studies have investigated the association between salt intake and hypertension in Korean population. To investigate the relationship of blood pressure to salt consumption, we analyzed data from 19,476 participants in the 2009-2011 Korean National Health and Nutritional Examination Survey (KNHANES). Urinary sodium excretion over 24-hr (24HUNa) was estimated from spot urine tests using Tanaka's equation. The study subjects were stratified into hypertensive and normotensive groups. Hypertensive participants (n=6,552, 33.6%) had higher estimated 24HUNa, 150.4±38.8 mEq/day, than normotensive participants, 140.5±34.6 mEq/day (P<0.001). The association between 24HUNa and blood pressure outcomes was not affected by adjustment for other risk factors for hypertension (odds ratio 0.001; 95% confidence interval 0.001-0.003; P<0.001). Increases in 24HUNa of 100 mEq/day were associated with a 6.1±0.3/2.9±0.2 mmHg increase in systolic/diastolic blood pressure in all participants. This effect was stronger in hypertensive participants (increase of 8.1±0.5/3.4±0.3 mmHg per 100 mEq/day) and smaller in normotensive participants (2.9±0.3/1.3±0.2 mmHg). These results support recommendations for low salt intake in Korean population to prevent and control adverse blood pressure levels. Graphical Abstract
Risk of Stroke after Herpes Zoster – Evidence from a German Self-Controlled Case-Series Study

Background Herpes zoster (HZ) is caused by reactivation of the latent varicella-zoster virus (VZV). A severe complication of HZ is VZV vasculopathy which can result in ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke. The aims of our study were to assess the risk of stroke after the onset of HZ and to investigate the roles of stroke subtype, HZ location and the time interval between HZ onset and stroke. Methods A self-controlled case-series study was performed on a cohort of patients with incident stroke recorded in the German Pharmacoepidemiological Research Database (GePaRD), which covers about 20 million persons throughout Germany. We estimated adjusted incidence rate ratios (IRR) by comparing the rate of stroke in risk periods (i.e., periods following HZ) with the rate of stroke in control periods (i.e., periods without HZ) in the same individuals, controlling for both time-invariant and major potentially time-variant confounders. Results The cohort included 124,462 stroke patients, of whom 6,035 (5%) had at least one HZ diagnosis identified in GePaRD either as main hospital discharge diagnosis or as HZ treated with antivirals. The risk of stroke was about 1.3 times higher in the risk periods 3 months after HZ onset, than in the control periods (IRR: 1.29; 95% confidence interval: 1.16–1.44). An elevated risk of similar magnitude was observed for ischemic and unspecified stroke, but a 1.5-fold higher risk was observed for hemorrhagic stroke. A slightly stronger effect on the risk of stroke was also observed during the 3 months after HZ ophthalmicus (HZO) onset (1.59; 1.10–2.32). The risk was highest 3 and 4 weeks after HZ onset and decreased thereafter. Conclusions Our study corroborates an increased risk of stroke after HZ, which is highest 3 to 4 weeks after HZ onset. The results suggest that the risk is more pronounced after HZO and is numerically higher for hemorrhagic than for ischemic stroke.
Material-Aware Mesh Deformations

Most real world objects consist of non-uniform materials; as a result, during deformation the bending and shearing are distributed non-uniformly and depend on the local stiffness of the material. In the virtual environment there are three prevalent approaches to model deformation: purely geometric, physically driven, and skeleton based. This paper proposes a new approach to model deformation that incorporates non-uniform materials into the geometric deformation framework. Our approach provides a simple and intuitive method to control the distribution of the bending and shearing throughout the model according to the local material stiffness. Thus, we are able to generate realistic looking, material-aware deformations at interactive rates. Our method works on all types of models, including models with continuous stiffness gradation and non-articulated models such as cloth. The material stiffness across the surface can be specified by the user with an intuitive paint-like interface or it can be learned from a sequence of sample deformations
Analysis of Queueing Network Models with population size constraints and delayed blocked customers

Queueing Network Models - QNM's with population size constraints and delayed blocked customers occur due to MultiProgramming Level - MPL constraints in computer systems and window flow-control mechanisms in Computer Communication Networks - CCN's. The computational cost of existing algorithms is unacceptable for large numbers of chains and high population sizes. A fast approximate solution technique based on load concealment is presented to solve such QNM's. The solution procedure is non-iterative in the case of fixed rate Poisson arrivals, while iteration is required in the case of quasi-random arrivals. Each iteration requires the solution of a single chain network of queues comprised of stations visited by each chain. We then present an algorithm to detect saturated chains and determine their maximum throughput. A fast solution algorithm due to Reiser for closed chains is also extended to the case of quasi-random arrivals. The accuracy of the proposed solution techniques is compared to previous techniques by applying it to a test case, reported in the literature, and a set of randomly generated examples.
Leptanilla hypodracos sp. n., a new species of the cryptic ant genus Leptanilla (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) from Singapore, with new distribution data and an updated key to Oriental Leptanilla species

Abstract A new species of the cryptic and rarely collected ant genus Leptanilla is described. Leptanilla hypodracos sp. n. is the first Leptanilla recorded from Singapore in over a century since Leptanilla havilandi Forel, 1901 and represents the fourth species of Leptanilla known from the Malay Peninsula. An updated key to the Leptanilla of the Oriental region is presented. Taxonomic comparisons between Leptanilla hypodracos sp. n. and four morphologically similar species are provided with particular attention given to Leptanilla clypeata Yamane & Ito, 2001, for which new measurements and indices are presented. The first report is presented for the Leptanillinae subfamily from the southeastern part of China with a worker of the genus Leptanilla collected in Hong Kong. Finally, the potential of subterranean bait to collect Leptanilla species is discussed.
Criminal Pasts, Terrorist Futures: European Jihadists and the New Crime-Terror Nexus

The prevalence of criminal backgrounds amongst European jihadists is remarkable. Whether amongst ‘foreign fighters’ that have travelled to Syria and Iraq, or amongst those involved in terrorism in Europe, criminal pasts are common. Yet, they remain unexamined. This article presents a unique empirical examination of 79 European jihadists with criminal backgrounds, examining the relevancy of their criminal pasts in relation to their terrorist futures. The results fall into four themes. Firstly, jihadism can affect a criminal’s radicalisation process in two ways: it can offer redemption from past sins, or it can legitimise crime. Secondly, prisons offer an environment for radicalisation and networking amongst criminals and extremists. Thirdly, criminals develop skills that can be useful for them as extremists, such as access to weapons and forged documents, as well as the psychological ‘skill’ of familiarity with violence. Finally, white-collar and petty crime is often used to finance extremism. The results challenge conceptions on radicalisation, and can affect counter-terrorism responses.
A Neural Network based Approach to Automatic Post-Editing

We present a neural network based automatic post-editing (APE) system to improve raw machine translation (MT) output. Our neural model of APE (NNAPE) is based on a bidirectional recurrent neural network (RNN) model and consists of an encoder that encodes an MT output into a ﬁxed-length vector from which a de-coder provides a post-edited (PE) translation. APE translations produced by NNAPE show statistically signiﬁcant improvements of 3.96, 2.68 and 1.35 BLEU points absolute over the original MT, phrase-based APE and hierarchical APE outputs, respectively. Furthermore, human evaluation shows that the NNAPE generated PE translations are much better than the original MT output.
A Modified Construction Method of Low-Density Parity-Check Codes Based on PEGPC

A modified construction method of LDPC (Low-density Parity-check) codes based on polynomial of cycles of PEG (Progressive-Edge-Growth) is proposed according to reaction on the performance of LDPC codes by polynomial of cycles based on PEG and connectivity of cycles. It can reduce the number of the shortest cycles, increase average local girth and improve connectivity of cycles while deleting short cycles by considering girth of check matrix, number of the shortest cycles and ACE (Approximate Cycle EMD), so that it can improve performance of decoding. At the same time, a construction method of QC-LDPC (quasi-cyclic-LDPC) codes based on ACE and polynomial of cycles of PEG is also proposed to deal with the complexity of implementation on hardware of unstructured codes. Simulation results show that the performance of this code is better than unstructured Mackay code and it is easier for implementation on hardware.
Is Opioid Dependency Related to Coping Strategies

Using opioid for recreational purposes has a very long history in Iran. Social influence is a useful framework in understanding how the social environment affects the individual's behavioral choices to use drugs. We compared opioid dependents (n=149) with controls (n=221) on measures of coping strategies using the Jalowiec Coping Scale and some socioeconomic factors. The differences in 10 of 15 coping strategies were significant in the study groups (P<0.05). Although, the combined score of problem-oriented and affective-oriented items did not show any significant difference between the two groups. There was a significant relation between opioid dependence with smoking cigarettes (P<0.001), lower education (P=0.002), being employed (P<0.001), having children (P<0.001), and being married (P<0.001). Educational programs to improve problem solving and coping skills can be helpful to reduce the rate of dependency to opioid and smoking cigarettes.
Health literacy in Europe: comparative results of the European health literacy survey (HLS-EU)

Background: Health literacy concerns the capacities of people to meet the complex demands of health in modern society. In spite of the growing attention for the concept among European health policymakers, researchers and practitioners, information about the status of health literacy in Europe remains scarce. This article presents selected findings from the first European comparative survey on health literacy in populations. Methods: The European health literacy survey (HLS-EU) was conducted in eight countries: Austria, Bulgaria, Germany, Greece, Ireland, the Netherlands, Poland and Spain (n = 1000 per country, n = 8000 total sample). Data collection was based on Eurobarometer standards and the implementation of the HLS-EU-Q (questionnaire) in computer-assisted or paper-assisted personal interviews. Results: The HLS-EU-Q constructed four levels of health literacy: insufficient, problematic, sufficient and excellent. At least 1 in 10 (12%) respondents showed insufficient health literacy and almost 1 in 2 (47%) had limited (insufficient or problematic) health literacy. However, the distribution of levels differed substantially across countries (29–62%). Subgroups within the population, defined by financial deprivation, low social status, low education or old age, had higher proportions of people with limited health literacy, suggesting the presence of a social gradient which was also confirmed by raw bivariate correlations and a multivariate linear regression model. Discussion: Limited health literacy represents an important challenge for health policies and practices across Europe, but to a different degree for different countries. The social gradient in health literacy must be taken into account when developing public health strategies to improve health equity in Europe.
The effect of Bi composition to the optical quality of GaAs1−xBix

GaAs1−xBix alloys grown by molecular beam epitaxy for x up to 0.06 were studied by photoluminescence (PL). The results indicate that dilute fractions of bismuth (Bi) with x < 0.025 improve the material quality of this low temperature growth alloys by reducing the density of gallium (Ga) and/or arsenic related defects. The crystal quality starts to degrade at higher Bi concentration probably due to significant amount of Bi-related defects, BiGa. However, the room temperature PL intensity continues to increase with Bi content for the range studied due to greater band-gap offset between GaAs and GaAs1−xBix. Analysis carried out shows no correlation between localization effects and the room temperature PL enhancement.
Actual Conditions of the Mixing of Antineoplastic Drugs for Injection in Hospitals in Osaka Prefecture, Japan

Actual Conditions of the Mixing of Antineoplastic Drugs for Injection in Hospitals in Osaka Prefecture, Japan: Jin Yoshida, et al. Department of Environmental Health, Osaka Prefectural Institute of Public Health—We conducted a questionnaire survey in order to grasp the actual conditions under which antineoplastic drugs are mixed for injection in hospitals. Questionnaires were sent to all 155 hospitals with 100 or more beds for general patients in Osaka Prefecture, Japan. The response rate was 69.0%. Mixing of antineoplastic drugs was done in 81.3% of the hospitals. The questionnaire was answered by doctors in 17.2% of the hospitals with antineoplastic drugs, nurses in 11.5%, and pharmacists in 70.1%. Mixing of antineoplastic drugs was done by doctors in 58.6% of the hospitals, nurses in 44.8%, and pharmacists in 63.2% (multiple answers). Occupational exposure to antineoplastic drugs was recognized in 97.7% of the hospitals. The mean frequency of the mixing operation was 8.8 d per month per worker. The mean number of antineoplastic drugs handled was 7.4 types. Guidelines for the safe handling of antineoplastic drugs were used in 52.8% of the hospitals and a biological safety cabinet was available in 57.4%. Gloves, mask, gown and goggles were used in 82.7, 69.0, 62.1 and 36.8% of the hospitals, respectively, but no personal protective equipment was used in 10.1%. The safety precautions of the hospitals in which the number of beds was small tended to be fewer than those of the hospitals in which the number of beds was large. Used vials and ampoules were disposed of as clinical, infectious or exclusive antineoplastic drug waste by 74.7% of the hospitals. Safety measures for handling the excrement of patients treated with antineoplastic drugs were performed in 8.0% of the hospitals. In 43.7% of the hospitals, the responders had experienced accidents during antineoplastic drug preparation, such as drugs adhering to hands or eyes, drug leakage, accidental injection and cutting by ampoules. Because of the adverse effects of antineoplastic drugs, all hospitals in which the healthcare workers handle them should promote safety precautions.
The Relationship between Premature Birth and the Size of Expressive Lexicon in18-36-month-old Children

Introduction: The acquisition of speech and language constitutes a dynamic part of two-year-old children’s growth. Expressive lexicon is a key indicator of language ability in these children. Premature birth, birth before gestational week 37, is one of the most common risk factors associated with learning skill development. A review of literature suggests inconsistent results on the relationship between preterm birth and the size of expressive lexicon in children. Objective: The present study was conducted to investigate the relationship between preterm birth and the size of expressive Lexicon in 18-36-month-old Persian-speaking children. Materials and Methods: The present controlled analytical cross-sectional study recruited 18-36-month-old children presenting to 17 Shahrivar Hospital in Rasht, Iran. The study children were divided into the term and preterm groups. Before beginning the sampling, the children were assigned to three age groups of 13 each, including 18-24 months, 24-30 months and 30-36 months. The data collection tools comprised the 688-itemMacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventory (CDI, form II), which was completed by the parents. Moreover, all the words were divided into four groups of social terms, common nouns, grammatical words and predicates, and the scores obtained for each category were compared among the groups. The data obtained were assessed using descriptive statistics of mean and standard deviation, and analytical t-test. P<0.05 was set as the level of statistical significance. Results: The overall mean size of expressive lexicon was found to be 352.48 ± 177.11in the term children and 240.28 ± 135.93 in preterm ones, suggesting significant differences between the two groups (P=0.002). Significant differences were also observed between the term and preterm 18-36-month-old children in terms of common nouns as a dimension of the tool (P=0.01). Conclusion: Parents seem to play a key role in reducing preterm-birth associated lexicon differences at higher age by teaching their children.
Geometrically exact multi-layer beams with a rigid interconnection

In this work, a finite-element formulation for geometrically exact multi-layer beams without considering the interlayer slip and uplift is proposed. Numerical examples indicate that, in comparison with the existing geomet- rically non-linear sandwich beam models, the 2D plane-stress elements and the analytical results from the theory of elasticity, the multi-layer beam model is very efficient for modelling thick beams where warping of cross-sections has to be considered.