Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of a Colorectal Carcinoma Screening Program in Kota Setar and Kuala Muda Districts, Malaysia.

BACKGROUND A colorectal cancer screening program was piloted in two districts of Kedah in 2013. There is scarcity of information on colorectal cancer screening in Malaysia. OBJECTIVE Thus, this research was conducted to evaluate the colorectal cancer screening program in the districts to provide insights intop its efficacy. MATERIALS AND METHODS A cross sectional study was conducted using data on the colorectal cancer screening program in 2013 involving Kota Setar and Kuala Muda districts in Malaysia. We determined the response rate of immunochemical fecal occult blood test (iFOBT), colonoscopy compliance, and detection rates of neoplasia and carcinoma. We also compared the response of FOBT by demographic background. RESULTS The response rate of FOBT for first iFOBT screening was 94.7% while the second iFOBT screening was 90.7%. Participants from Kuala Muda district were 27 times more likely to default while Indians had a 3 times higher risk of default compared to Malays. The colonoscopy compliance was suboptimal among those with positive iFOBT. The most common finding from colonoscopy was hemorrhoids, followed by tubular adenoma. Detection rate of carcinoma and neoplasia for our program was 1.2%. CONCLUSIONS In summary, the response rate of iFOBT was encouraging but the colonoscopy compliance was suboptimal which led to a considerably low detection rate.
Epidemiology of hepatitis C virus in HIV-infected patients

Purpose of reviewThis review will give an update on the prevalence of HIV/hepatitis C virus (HCV) coinfection, and describe recent trends in all-cause and cause-specific mortality. The focus is mainly on patients followed in clinics in high-income countries and their heterogeneity in terms of risk factors and clinical outcomes. Recent findingsIn countries that have introduced comprehensive preventive strategies for injection drug users, the prevalence of HIV/HCV coinfection has declined. Compared with HIV monoinfected patients, the mortality among HCV-coinfected patients remains markedly increased because of multiple risk factors, in particular among drug users. The spectrum of causes of death among coinfected has recently been described in large cohort studies. Around a quarter of all deaths were liver related, and the incidence has decreased in Western Europe and stabilized in Eastern Europe where AIDS remains the dominant cause of death. In North America, the incidence of end-stage liver disease has not decreased despite improvements in HIV care. HCV treatment seems to have had little effect thus far on mortality at the population level. SummaryDespite a decreasing prevalence of HIV/HCV coinfection in many countries, coinfection remains an important clinical problem that requires a multidisciplinary approach including direct-acting antivirals for those at risk of liver-related death.
Increased pliosaurid dental disparity across the Jurassic–Cretaceous transition

Pliosaurid marine reptiles played important roles in marine food chains from the Middle Jurassic to the middle Cretaceous, frequently as apex predators. The evolution of pliosaurids during the later parts of the Early Cretaceous has recently been illuminated by discoveries from Russia (Hauterivian) and Colombia (Barremian). However, knowledge of pliosaurids representing the Jurassic–Cretaceous transition (late Tithonian – Valanginian), is still largely incomplete, especially during the earliest Cretaceous. As such, the effect on pliosaurids of hypothesized faunal turnover during the Jurassic–Cretaceous boundary interval is poorly understood. We report pliosaurid teeth from the upper Volgian (Tithonian, Upper Jurassic) of the Kheta river basin (Eastern Siberia, Russia), to the Berriasian and Valanginian (Lower Cretaceous) of the Volga region (European Russia). These assemblages have yielded a series of distinct tooth morphotypes, including the first reports of conical‐toothed pliosaurids from the latest Jurassic and earliest Cretaceous. This challenges the hypothesis that only one lineage of pliosaurids crossed the Jurassic–Cretaceous boundary. It appears that conical‐toothed pliosaurids co‐existed with their trihedral‐toothed relatives for at least 25 million years during the latest Jurassic and earliest Cretaceous. In fact, our quantitative analyses indicate that pliosaurids reached their maximal dental disparity during this interval, showing little evidence of turnover associated with the Jurassic–Cretaceous transition. Instead, disparity decreased later in the Early Cretaceous, with the disappearance of trihedral‐toothed forms in the Barremian.
Intervention for reducing stigma: Assessing the influence of gender and knowledge.

AIM To evaluate the effectiveness in reducing social stigma of an intervention and to assess the influence of gender and knowledge. METHODS The program consisted in providing information and contact with users of mental health in order to reduce social stigma in the school environment. A total of 62 secondary school students (age 14-16 years) were evaluated with the Opinions on Mental Illness (OMI) questionnaire before and after the intervention. The subscales of the OMI were: authoritarianism, interpersonal etiology, benevolence, restrictiveness and negativism. The analysis was performed over the total sample, separating by gender and knowledge of someone with a mental disorder. t-test for repeated measures was used in the statistical analysis. RESULTS All the OMI subscales showed a significant change after the intervention (P < 0.001), except for benevolence. Women presented significant changes in the subscales of authoritarianism and restrictiveness, while men presented changes in negativism and interpersonal etiology rather than restrictiveness (P < 0.001-0.003). Students that knew someone with a mental disorder presented significant changes in authoritarianism, interpersonal etiology, and negativism (P < 0.001-0.003) and students that do not know anyone with a mental disorder improved in restrictiveness and authoritarianism (P < 0.001-0.001). In all the subscales of the instrument the students improved their perception of mental disorders, reducing their levels of stigma. CONCLUSION The intervention designed to reduce social stigma was effective, especially in the area of authoritarianism. The whole sample showed improved attitudes towards mental illness, although the areas were different depending on gender and knowledge.
What Is Effective in Malignant Middle Cerebral Artery Infarction: Reperfusion, Craniectomy, or Both?: An Experimental Study in Rats

Background and Purpose— We sought to evaluate the effects of reperfusion and craniectomy treatment at different time points after middle cerebral artery (MCA) occlusion on infarct volume and neurological outcome in MCA infarction in rats. Methods— We used an endovascular technique to obtain MCA occlusion in 182 rats. Thirteen groups with 14 animals each were investigated: control group 1 with no treatment; groups 2 to 7 with only reperfusion or craniectomy at 1, 4, or 12 hours, respectively; and groups 8 to 13 with reperfusion at 1 or 4 hours combined with craniectomy at 1, 4, or 12 hours, respectively. We used infarct volume and neurological performance as study end points in all animals at day 7. Results— Neurological score and infarct volume in animals undergoing early reperfusion at 1 hour were significantly smaller (1.8/79±59 mm3) than those in control animals (3.8/225±26 mm3) (P <0.01). Reperfusion at 4 hours (2.8/182±62 mm3) and 12 hours (3.7/231±69 mm3) did not result in significant improvement. Animals undergoing craniectomy at 1, 4, and 12 hours demonstrated significantly better outcome and significantly reduced infarct volume (1.6/96±30 mm3, 1.9/109±39 mm3, and 2.6/150±34 mm3, respectively) (P <0.05). Compared with 1 treatment at a time, combined reperfusion and craniectomy did not result in a significant additional benefit. Conclusions— Early reperfusion and craniectomy at 1 hour are both effective in large MCA infarction. While reperfusion later than 1 hour was not beneficial, late craniectomy at 4 and 12 hours still resulted in significant improvement of neurological score and reduction of infarction size. Combined treatment at different time points yields no significant additional benefit compared with 1 treatment at a time.
Cardiovascular effects of flavanol-rich chocolate in patients with heart failure.

AIMS Flavanol-rich chocolate (FRC) is beneficial for vascular and platelet function by increasing nitric oxide bioavailability and decreasing oxidative stress. Congestive heart failure (CHF) is characterized by impaired endothelial and increased platelet reactivity. As statins are ineffective in CHF, alternative therapies are a clinical need. We therefore investigated whether FRC might improve cardiovascular function in patients with CHF. METHODS AND RESULTS Twenty patients with CHF were enrolled in a double-blind, randomized placebo-controlled trial, comparing the effect of commercially available FRC with cocoa-liquor-free control chocolate (CC) on endothelial and platelet function in the short term (2 h after ingestion of a chocolate bar) and long term (4 weeks, two chocolate bars/day). Endothelial function was assessed non-invasively by flow-mediated vasodilatation of the brachial artery. Flow-mediated vasodilatation significantly improved from 4.98 ± 1.95 to 5.98 ± 2.32% (P = 0.045 and 0.02 for between-group changes) 2h after intake of FRC to 6.86 ± 1.76% after 4 weeks of daily intake (P = 0.03 and 0.004 for between groups). No effect on endothelial-independent vasodilatation was observed. Platelet adhesion significantly decreased from 3.9 ± 1.3 to 3.0 ± 1.3% (P = 0.03 and 0.05 for between groups) 2 h after FRC, an effect that was not sustained at 2 and 4 weeks. Cocoa-liquor-free CC had no effect, either on endothelial function or on platelet function. Blood pressure and heart rate did not change in either group. CONCLUSION Flavanol-rich chocolate acutely improves vascular function in patients with CHF. A sustained effect was seen after daily consumption over a 4-week period, even after 12 h abstinence. These beneficial effects were paralleled by an inhibition of platelet function in the presence of FRC only.
Women’s Empowerment in Pakistan–Definitions and Enabling and Disenabling Factors: A Secondary Data Analysis

Purpose: The purpose of the study was to explore Pakistani women’s definition of women’s empowerment, including its enabling and disenabling factors. Through understanding empowerment, interventions may be developed for women to be empowered. Design: Transcriptions of 35 interviews from a previous study were reanalyzed through secondary data analysis. Findings/Results: The themes of economic stability, social acceptability, educational achievement, and family harmony emerged for the concept of definition of empowerment. Themes for enabling factors were strength of personality and openness of mind. Disenabling factors had sociocultural influences, religious misinterpretations, and dominant ideology as themes. Discussion/Conclusions: Pakistani women hold on to their customs, traditions, and religion tenaciously. The views of empowerment leading to the themes were expressed as true for their lives.
New Options in the Treatment of Lipid Disorders in HIV-Infected Patients

Since the introduction of HAART, there was a remarkably change in the natural history of HIV disease, leading to a notable extension of life expectancy, although prolonged metabolic imbalances could significantly act on the longterm prognosis and outcome of HIV-infected persons, and there is an increasing concern about the cardiovascular risk in this population. Current recommendations suggest that HIV-infected perons undergo evaluation and treatment on the basis of the Third National Cholesterol Education Program Expert Panel on Detection, Evaluation and Treatment of High Blood Cholesterol in Adults (NCEP ATP III) guidelines for dyslipidemia, with particular attention to potential drug interactions with antiretroviral agents and maintenance of virologic control of HIV infection. While a hypolipidemic diet and physical activity may certainly improve dyslipidemia, pharmacological treatment becomes indispensable when serum lipid are excessively high for a long time or the patient has a high cardiovascular risk, since the suspension or change of an effective antiretroviral therapy is not recommended. Moreover, the choice of a hypolipidemic drug is often a reason of concern, since expected drug-drug interactions (especially with antiretroviral agents), toxicity, intolerance, effects on concurrent HIV-related disease and decrease patient adherence to multiple pharmacological regimens must be carefully evaluated. Often the lipid goals of patients in this group are not achieved by the therapy recommended in the current lipid guidelines and in this article we describe other possibilities to treat lipid disorders in HIV-infected persons, like rosuvastatin, ezetimibe and fish oil.
The Relationship Between Neuroticism and Inflammatory Markers: A Twin Study

Introduction: Neuroticism is an important marker of vulnerability for both mental and physical disorders. Its link with multiple etiological pathways has been studied before. Inflammatory markers have been demonstrated to predict similar mental and physical disorders as neuroticism. However, currently no study has focused on the shared genetic background of neuroticism and inflammatory markers. In the present study we will focus on the phenotypic and genetic relationship between neuroticism and three commonly used inflammatory markers: C-reactive protein (CRP), fibrinogen and Immunoglobulin-G (IgG). Material and Methods: The study was conducted in 125 Dutch female twin pairs. For each participant, four different neuroticism scores were available to calculate a neuroticism composite score that was used in the statistical analyses. Blood samples for inflammatory marker determination were taken after an overnight fast. Heritabilities, phenotypic and genetic correlations were estimated using bivariate structural equation modeling. Results: Heritabilities are fair for neuroticism (0.55), CRP (0.52) and fibrinogen (0.67) and moderate for IgG (0.43). No significant phenotypic or genetic correlations were found between neuroticism and the inflammatory markers. Interaction models yielded no moderation of the genetic and environmental pathways in the regulation of inflammatory markers by neuroticism. Conclusion: Substantial heritabilities were observed for all variables. No evidence was found for significant shared (or moderation of) genetic or environmental pathways underlying neuroticism and inflammatory status.
Variability, Heritability and Genetic Advance Analysis for Some Morphological Characters in Oilseed Brassica Breeding Lines

Sixty four Brassica breeding lines were investigated for some morphological characters to identify the extent and nature of genetic variability and determine the heritability and genetic advance during 2014 cropping season. Analysis of variance showed the existence of considerable genetic variation among the lines for further selection and hybridization efforts. The maximum number of secondary branches/plant was observed by the breeding line code≠64. The highest yield/plot was recorded by the breeding line code≠48 followed by the breeding line code≠25 and code≠64. Breeding line code≠53 exhibited the maximum 1 000 seed weight. Cluster analysis categorized the breeding lines into nine clusters. All lines were grouped regardless of their pedigree record which might be the result of selection pressure applied on different morphological characters. 71.1% of the variation was explained by the first three principal components as described by the principal component analysis. Number of secondary branches/plant and yield/plot were among the major positive contributor while 1 000 seed weight had negative contribution in the first principal component in which 32% of the variation was explained. These characters also recorded high heritability values in broad sense along with high genetic advance as percent of mean for which early generation selection would be effective in improvement program.
From stem cells to lymphocytes; biology and transplantation

Summary: We review the development of the hematopoietic system, focusing on the transition from hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) to T cell This includes the isolation of HSCs, and recent progress in understanding their ontogeny, homing properties, and differentiation. HSC transplantation is reviewed, including the kinetics of reconstitution, engraftment across histocompatibility barriers, the facilitation of allogeneic engraftment, and the mechanisms of graft rejection. We describe progress in understanding T‐cell development in the bone marrow and thymus as well as the establishment of lymph nodes. Finally, the role of bcl‐2 in regulating homeostasis in the hematopoietic system is discussed.
Popularity or proclivity? Revisiting agent heterogeneity in network formation

Agent-based modeling (ABM) approach is used to reassess the Barabasi-Albert (BA) model, the classical algorithm used to describe the emergent mechanism of scale-free networks. This approach allows for the incorporation of agent heterogeneity which is rarely considered in BA model and its extended models. The authors argue that, in social networks, people's intention to connect is not only affected by popularity, but also strongly affected by the extent of similarity. The authors propose that in forming social networks, agents are constantly balancing between instrumental and intrinsic preferences. The proposed model allows for varying the weighting of instrumental and intrinsic preferences on the agents attachment choices. The authors also find that changing preferences of individuals can lead to significant deviations from power-law degree distribution. Given the importance of intrinsic consideration in social networking, the findings emerged from this study is conducive to future studies of social networks.
Deficits in facial, body movement and vocal emotional processing in autism spectrum disorders

Background Previous behavioural and neuroimaging studies of emotion processing in autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) have focused on the use of facial stimuli. To date, however, no studies have examined emotion processing in autism across a broad range of social signals. Method This study addressed this issue by investigating emotion processing in a group of 23 adults with ASD and 23 age- and gender-matched controls. Recognition of basic emotions (‘happiness’, ‘sadness’, ‘anger’, disgust' and ‘fear’) was assessed from facial, body movement and vocal stimuli. The ability to make social judgements (such as approachability) from facial stimuli was also investigated. Results Significant deficits in emotion recognition were found in the ASD group relative to the control group across all stimulus domains (faces, body movements and voices). These deficits were seen across a range of emotions. The ASD group were also impaired in making social judgements compared to the control group and this correlated with impairments in basic emotion recognition. Conclusions This study demonstrates that there are significant and broad-ranging deficits in emotion processing in ASD present across a range of stimulus domains and in the auditory and visual modality; they cannot therefore be accounted for simply in terms of impairments in face processing or in the visual modality alone. These results identify a core deficit affecting the processing of a wide range of emotional information in ASD, which contributes to the impairments in social function seen in people with this condition.
How Do Households Respond to Income Shocks?

Commonly used consumption/saving models have radically dierent implications for households response to income shocks, ranging from the hands-to-mouth model, where consumption bears all the adjustment, to the complete markets model, where wealth bears all the adjustment. In this paper we use the Italian Survey of Household Income and Wealth, which is the only available micro dataset that contains a panel on income, consumption and wealth, to document how consumption and wealth co-move with short run and long run income changes and to assess which model best captures this response. We nd that households who do not own real estate nor businesses change their consumption and their wealth by about 23 and 17 cents, respectively, in response to a short run 1 Euro change in after-tax labor income. For longer run income changes consumption response becomes stronger and wealth response weaker. We show this response to be quantitatively consistent with a permanent income model with quadratic utility but not with a model in which households have CRRA utility and thus an income and wealth-dependent precautionary saving motive. We nally show that for households
Tonal Activity in Kara, an Austronesian language spoken in New Britain

This paper presents the results of a small phonetic investigation of tonal activity in Kara, a little-known Austronesian language spoken in Papua New Guinea. Sketchy reports of some kind of tonal contrast in this language surfaced in the 1960s and 1970s, only to disappear in later published references to the language. Our auditory and acoustic investigations confirm the existence of contrastive tone in Kara. Native speaker intuitions also support such a conclusion. At least two tonemes (high and low) are identified. A third tone level (mid) is also noted but appears to be a variant of the low toneme.
Deep neural networks for single channel source separation

In this paper, a novel approach for single channel source separation (SCSS) using a deep neural network (DNN) architecture is introduced. Unlike previous studies in which DNN and other classifiers were used for classifying time-frequency bins to obtain hard masks for each source, we use the DNN to classify estimated source spectra to check for their validity during separation. In the training stage, the training data for the source signals are used to train a DNN. In the separation stage, the trained DNN is utilized to aid in estimation of each source in the mixed signal. Single channel source separation problem is formulated as an energy minimization problem where each source spectra estimate is encouraged to fit the trained DNN model and the mixed signal spectrum is encouraged to be written as a weighted sum of the estimated source spectra. The proposed approach works regardless of the energy scale differences between the source signals in the training and separation stages. Nonnegative matrix factorization (NMF) is used to initialize the DNN estimate for each source. The experimental results show that using DNN initialized by NMF for source separation improves the quality of the separated signal compared with using NMF for source separation.
Redundancy in Data Structures: Improving Software Fault Tolerance

The increasing cost of computer system failure has stimulated interest in improving software reliability. One way to do this is by adding redundant structural data to data structures. Such redundancy can be used to detect and correct (structural) errors in instances of a data structure. The intuitive approach of this paper, which makes heavy use of examples, is complemented by the more formal development of the companion paper, "Redundancy in Data Structures: Some Theoretical Results. "