Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Emergence of morel (Morchella) and pixie cup (Geopyxis carbonaria) ascocarps in response to the intensity of forest floor combustion during a wildfire

We studied the density of ascocarps (mushrooms) of morels (Morchella) and pixie cups (Geopyxis carbonaria) as a function of postfire duff (forest floor organic layer) depth in the first 4 y after a wildfire. The great majority of ascocarps of both species appeared in the first summer (2004) after an Aug 2003 fire in predominantly pine-spruce montane stands in Kootenay National Park, British Columbia. The spatial distribution of the ascocarps of both species was strongly biased toward (i) microsites with thin postfire duff and (ii) proximity to standing burned tree trunks. The bases of ascocarps of both species invariably were found just below the surface of the mineral soil. A field experiment in nearby intact forest showed that complete or partial duff removal in the absence of damage to the roots or crown did not lead to ascocarps of either species. We conclude that for both fungal species an unusually large abundance of ascocarps simultaneously requires damage to the associated trees and major duff reduction.
Validation of the ACGIH TLV for hand activity level in the OCTOPUS cohort: a two-year longitudinal study of carpal tunnel syndrome.

OBJECTIVES This study aimed to evaluate the risk of musculoskeletal disorders to the hand-wrist system. The American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH) proposed threshold limit values (TLV©) based on hand activity level (HAL) and normalized peak force (PF). We validated ACGIH TLV© in OCTOPUS, a large cohort study on carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS). METHODS Industrial and service workers were followed from 2000-2003. We classified subjects with respect to action limit (AL) and TLV. Case definitions were: (i) self-reported symptoms; and (ii) combination of symptoms and positive nerve conduction studies. Poisson regression models including age, gender, body mass index, and presence of predisposing pathologies were conducted to estimate incidence rate ratios (IRR) of CTS. RESULTS There were 4097 eligible workers. Of these, 236 (5.8%) were non-responders, 2194 (53.6%) had a complete follow-up, 728 (17.8%) were lost after intermediate assessment, and 939 (22.9%) were lost after baseline. Among the 3860 subjects with complete information at baseline, 2599 (67.3%) were women [mean age 38.1 [standard deviation (SD) 9.5] years; mean body mass index (BMI) 23.8 (SD 3.9) kg/m2]. ACGIH TLV© classification predicted both CTS symptoms [IRR between AL and TLV 2.43 [95% confidence interval (95% CI) 1.77-3.33]; above TLV 3.32 (95% CI 2.34-4.72)] and CTS confirmed by nerve conduction studies [IRR between AL and TLV 1.95 (95% CI 1.21-3.16); above TLV 2.70 (95% CI 1.48-4.91)]. CONCLUSIONS We found a dose-response relationship between ACGIH TLV© classification and risk of CTS. The increased risk observed for workers exposed between AL and TLV suggests that the current AL and TLV might not be sufficiently protective.
Growth hormone‐releasing hormone (GHRH) and GHRH receptor (GHRH‐R) isoform expression in ectopic acromegaly

Bronchial endocrine neoplasms causing acromegaly due to ectopic production of growth hormone (GH)‐releasing hormone (GHRH) have been reported. We describe the case of a 39‐year‐old man with clinical and biochemical acromegaly. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed an enlarged pituitary, which was confirmed histologically to harbour somatotroph hyperplasia. Further investigations identified a circumscribed central mass in the right lung which was surgically resected and histologically confirmed to be an endocrine tumour with strong immunopositivity for GHRH, synaptophysin and chromogranin; the lesion also exhibited mild positivity for peptide YY, calcitonin gene‐related peptide (CGRP), glucagon‐like peptide (GLP)−1, corticotrophin‐releasing hormone (CRH), tyrosine hydroxylase, vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) and enkephalin. S100 protein was identified in stellate cells surrounding nests of epithelial tumour cells. The MIB‐1 antibody labelled about 10% of the tumour cells. We established that the tumour not only produced GHRH but the GHRH‐receptor (GHRH‐R) as well. GHRH and GHRH‐R mRNA were identified and the latter was characterized as two variants, a full‐length transcript and a truncated splice variant that has been described in human pituitary somatotroph adenomas. We suggest that GHRH expression by this tumour and the presence of its receptor may be responsible for enhanced growth. The expression of a truncated splice variant that is unable to transduce GHRH signalling may be implicated in the less aggressive behaviour of well‐differentiated endocrine tumours that produce GHRH compared with small‐cell lung carcinomas that are very responsive to GHRH growth stimulation.
Could AX J1841.0−0536 be an anti-magnetar?

Recent observations show that supergiant fast X-ray transients (SFXTs) spend most of their lifetime at an intermediate level luminosity of ∼1033–1034 erg−1, and, when a blackbody model for the spectra is adopted, the resulting radii of the emission region are always only a few hundred metres, supporting the idea that during the intermediate state SFXTs are accreting matter from the companion star. From these observational phenomena we derive possible constraints on the magnetic field strengths of the neutron stars in four SFXTs with known spin periods. While IGR J11215−5952, IGR J16465−4507 and IGR J18483−0311 may have magnetic fields (up to a few 1011–1012 G) similar to those of normal X-ray pulsars, the magnetic field of AX J1841.0−0536 is considerably low (≲1010 G). The high-mass companion stars in SFXTs imply that the neutron stars are relatively young objects, with age less than ∼107 yr. Analysis of the spin evolution shows that neutron stars like AX J1841.0−0536 should be born with relatively long spin periods (≲1 s). Considering the fact that among the four SFXTs only AX J1841.0−0536 is a ‘proper’ one, and the other three are either ‘intermediate’ SFXTs or have peculiar characteristics, we suggest that the neutron stars in some of the SFXTs may have similar characteristics as several young central compact objects in supernova remnants called ‘anti-magnetars’. These features, combining with accretion from clumpy winds, could make them distinct from standard supergiant X-ray binaries – the low fields and relatively long spin periods guarantee accretion at a very low level, resulting in a large dynamic range (104–105) of X-ray luminosity.
Adolescent Conscientiousness Predicts Lower Lifetime Unemployment

Existing research on Big Five personality and unemployment has relied on personality measures elicited after the respondents had already spent years in the labor market, an experience that could change personality. We clarify the direction of influence by using the British Cohort Study (N = 4,206) to examine whether conscientiousness and other Big Five personality traits at age 16–17 predict unemployment over age 16–42. Our hypothesis that higher conscientiousness in adolescence would predict lower unemployment was supported. In analyses controlling for intelligence, gender, and parental socioeconomic status, the less conscientious (−1 SD) had a predicted probability of unemployment twice as high (3.4% vs. 1.7%) as the highly conscientious (+1 SD), an effect size comparable to intelligence. Mediation analysis revealed that academic motivation and educational attainment explained only 8.9% of this association. Fostering conscientiousness in early life may be an effective way to reduce unemployment throughout adulthood.
Relationships with Step-parents in the Life Stories of Young Adults of Divorce

Many children spend part of their childhood living in a step-family household. Recent Australian statistics suggest that around one in ten couple families contain resident step-children (Australian Bureau of Statistics [ABS], 2007). In Wave 3 of the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) survey, 13% of households had either residential or non-residential step-children, or both (Qu & Weston, 2005). In the United States, approximately 9% of married couple households, and 11.5% of cohabiting households contain resident step-children (Teachman & Tedrow, 2008). Step-family data is not collected in the New Zealand census; however, results from the longitudinal Christchurch Health and Development Study indicate that 18.6% (or around 1 in 6) of the 1,265 survey participants had lived in a step-family between the ages of 6 and 16 years (Nicholson, Fergusson, & Horwood, 1999).
The correlation of bone scintigraphy and histological findings in patellar tendinitis

SummaryPatellar tendinitis is a chronic overuse injury causing pain and tenderness over the proximal insertion of the patellar tendon. Its management is usually conservative, but in intractable cases surgery is effective. Bone scintigraphy has been suggested as a useful investigation in these patients, although we are aware of no large series supporting this. Thirty-four patients with intractable symptoms of patellar tendinitis were treated surgically. The operative specimens were graded histologically and compared with preoperative radionuclide bone scans. The histological findings confirmed tendon and or tendon sheath abnormalities in all the samples. The predominant abnormalities were increased vascularity, fibroblast proliferation, acid mucopolysaccharide and haemosiderin deposition. Bone scintigraphy showed 24 (71%) patients to have abnormalities on the delayed images, 8 with diffusely increased activity in the patella and 16 with increased activity localized to the lower pole. Patients with abnormal bone scans had significantly more severe histological changes in their tendons. These findings support the use of radio-nuclide bone scans in the pre-operative assessment of patellar tendinitis correlating well with histopathological severity of the disease process. The 10 false-negative cases (29%), however, suggest that bone scans are unhelpful in the routine diagnosis and management of this condition.
Lentiviral‐mediated silencing of glial fibrillary acidic protein and vimentin promotes anatomical plasticity and functional recovery after spinal cord injury

In spinal cord injury (SCI), absence of functional recovery and lack of spontaneous axonal regeneration are attributed, among other factors, to the formation of a glial scar that forms both physical and chemical barriers. The glial scar is composed mainly of reactive astrocytes that overexpress two intermediate filament proteins, glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) and vimentin (VIM). To promote regeneration and sprouting of spared axons after spinal cord trauma and with the objective of translation to clinics, we designed an original in vivo gene transfer strategy to reduce glial scar formation after SCI, based on the RNA interference (RNAi)‐mediated inhibition of GFAP and VIM. We first show that direct injection of lentiviral vectors expressing short hairpin RNA (shRNA) against GFAP and VIM in a mouse model of SCI allows efficient and specific targeting of astrocytes. We then demonstrate that the lentiviral‐mediated and stable expression of shGFAP and shVIM leads to a strong reduction of astrogliosis, improves functional motor recovery, and promotes axonal regrowth and sprouting of spared axons. This study thus examplifies how the nonneuronal environment might be a major target within the lesioned central nervous system to promote axonal regeneration (and sprouting) and validates the use of lentiviral‐mediated RNAi in SCI. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
White blood cell differential count of maturation stages in bone marrow smear using dual-stage convolutional neural networks

The white blood cell differential count of the bone marrow provides information concerning the distribution of immature and mature cells within maturation stages. The results of such examinations are important for the diagnosis of various diseases and for follow-up care after chemotherapy. However, manual, labor-intensive methods to determine the differential count lead to inter- and intra-variations among the results obtained by hematologists. Therefore, an automated system to conduct the white blood cell differential count is highly desirable, but several difficulties hinder progress. There are variations in the white blood cells of each maturation stage, small inter-class differences within each stage, and variations in images because of the different acquisition and staining processes. Moreover, a large number of classes need to be classified for bone marrow smear analysis, and the high density of touching cells in bone marrow smears renders difficult the segmentation of single cells, which is crucial to traditional image processing and machine learning. Few studies have attempted to discriminate bone marrow cells, and even these have either discriminated only a few classes or yielded insufficient performance. In this study, we propose an automated white blood cell differential counting system from bone marrow smear images using a dual-stage convolutional neural network (CNN). A total of 2,174 patch images were collected for training and testing. The dual-stage CNN classified images into 10 classes of the myeloid and erythroid maturation series, and achieved an accuracy of 97.06%, a precision of 97.13%, a recall of 97.06%, and an F-1 score of 97.1%. The proposed method not only showed high classification performance, but also successfully classified raw images without single cell segmentation and manual feature extraction by implementing CNN. Moreover, it demonstrated rotation and location invariance. These results highlight the promise of the proposed method as an automated white blood cell differential count system.
Retrieval of boundary layer height from lidar using extended Kalman filter approach, classic methods, and backtrajectory cluster analysis

This contribution evaluates an approach using an extended Kalman filter (EKF) to estimate the planetary boundary layer height (PBLH) from lidar measurements obtained in the framework of the European Aerosol Research LIdar NETwork (EARLINET) at 12 UTC ± 30-min. for a 7-year period (2007-2013) under different synoptic flows over the complex geographical area of Barcelona, Spain. PBLH diagnosed with the EKF technique are compared with classic lidar methods and radiosounding estimates. Seven unique synoptic flows are identified using cluster analysis of 5756 HYSPLIT (HYbrid Single Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory) three-day backtrajectories for a 16-year period (1998-2013) arriving at 0.5 km, 1.5 km, and 3 km, to represent the lower PBL, upper PBL, and low free troposphere, respectively. Regional recirculations are dominant with 54% of the annual total at 0.5 km and 57% of the total lidar days at 1.5 km, with a clear preference for summertime (0.5 km: 36% and 1.5 km: 29%). PBLH retrievals using the EKF method range from 0.79 - 1.6 km asl. Highest PBLH are observed in southwest flows (15.2% of total) and regional recirculations from the east (34.8% of total), mainly caused by the stagnant synoptic pattern in summertime over the Iberian Peninsula. Lowest PBLH are associated with north (19.6% of total) and northeast (4.3% of total) synoptic flows, when fresh air masses tend to lower PBLH. The adaptive nature of the EKF technique allows retrieval of reliable PBLH without the need for long time averaging or range smoothing, as typical with classic methods.
Effects of dehydroepiandrosterone on growth performance, lipid metabolic hormones and parameters in broilers

One hundred and eighty (180) day-old broiler chickens were used to investigate the effects of dehy - droepiandrosterone (DHEA) on growth performance, carcass composition, and the serum concentrations of several lipid metabolic hormones and metabolic parameters (indicators). The broilers received the same basal diets, with DHEA added at 0 (control), 5 and 20 mg/kg feed. During the experimental period , broilers fed DHEA exhibited lower levels of triglycerides (TG), total serum cholesterol (TC), high density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C) and non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA) as compared to the control animals, but a marked increase in lipoprotein lipase (LPL) activity. Adding DHEA to the diet significantly decreased serum concentrations of thyroxine (T 4 ), serum free triiodothyronine (FT 3 ), and serum free thyroxine (FT 4 ), but significantly increased the serum leptin (LEP) and glucogon (GLU) levels in male broiler chickens. However, female broiler chickens showed pronounced differ - ences in LEP, FT 3 and FT 4 only, while there were no differences in the other three metabolic hormones (T 3 , T 4 and GLU). Overall, these results indicate that DHEA improves lipid metabolism through the regulation of metabolic hormones and metabolic parameters, while not adversely affecting growth performance in broiler chickens.
Measured versus reported parental height

Background: Parental height data are essential in the assessment of linear growth in children. A number of studies have documented inaccuracy in self-reported adult height. Aims: To determine whether there is a tendency for men to overestimate and women to underestimate their height. Methods: Heights of parents of children attending outpatient clinics were measured (MHt) and compared with reported heights (RHt). Results: Two hundred parents (100 males; 100 females), mean (range) age 37.8 (20.8–69.3) years, were measured. Males overestimated height, with mean (SD) RHt–MHt 1.09 (1.96) cm, while females reported height relatively accurately, with RHt–MHt −0.09 (2.37) cm. Conclusions: The hypothesis that males overestimate height is confirmed. While the hypothesis that women underestimate is not supported, we recommend accurate measurement of both parents, given the considerable degree of individual variation in RHt−MHt for both sexes.
A Deep Recurrent Neural Network for Non-Intrusive Load Monitoring Based on Multi-Feature Input Space and Post-Processing

Non-intrusive load monitoring (NILM) is a process of estimating operational states and power consumption of individual appliances, which if implemented in real-time, can provide actionable feedback in terms of energy usage and personalized recommendations to consumers. Intelligent disaggregation algorithms such as deep neural networks can fulfill this objective if they possess high estimation accuracy and lowest generalization error. In order to achieve these two goals, this paper presents a disaggregation algorithm based on a deep recurrent neural network using multi-feature input space and post-processing. First, the mutual information method was used to select electrical parameters that had the most influence on the power consumption of each target appliance. Second, selected steady-state parameters based multi-feature input space (MFS) was used to train the 4-layered bidirectional long short-term memory (LSTM) model for each target appliance. Finally, a post-processing technique was used at the disaggregation stage to eliminate irrelevant predicted sequences, enhancing the classification and estimation accuracy of the algorithm. A comprehensive evaluation was conducted on 1-Hz sampled UKDALE and ECO datasets in a noised scenario with seen and unseen test cases. Performance evaluation showed that the MFS-LSTM algorithm is computationally efficient, scalable, and possesses better estimation accuracy in a noised scenario, and generalized to unseen loads as compared to benchmark algorithms. Presented results proved that the proposed algorithm fulfills practical application requirements and can be deployed in real-time.
From Shattered Assumptions to Weakened Worldviews: Trauma Symptoms Signal Anxiety Buffer Disruption

The fundamental assertion of worldview-based models of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is that trauma symptoms result when traumatic experiences cannot be readily assimilated into previously held worldviews. In two studies, we test the anxiety buffer disruption hypothesis, which states that trauma symptoms result from the disruption of normal death anxiety–buffering functions of worldviews. In Study 1, participants with trauma symptoms greater than the cutoff for PTSD evinced greater death thought accessibility than those with subclinical or negligible symptoms after a reminder of death. In Study 2, participants with clinically significant trauma symptoms showed no evidence of worldview defense though death thoughts were accessible. These results support the anxiety buffer disruption hypothesis and suggest an entirely new approach to experimental PTSD research.
Assessing the impact of the National Department of Health’s National Adherence Guidelines for Chronic Diseases in South Africa using routinely collected data: a cluster-randomised evaluation

Introduction In 2016, South Africa’s National Department of Health (NDOH) launched the National Adherence Guidelines for Chronic Diseases for phased implementation throughout South Africa. Early implementation of a ‘minimum package’ of eight interventions in the Adherence Guidelines for patients with HIV is being undertaken at 12 primary health clinics and community health centres in four provinces. NDOH and its partners are evaluating the impact of five of the interventions in four provinces in South Africa. Methods and analysis The minimum package is being delivered at the 12 health facilities under NDOH guidance and through local health authorities. The five evaluation interventions are: (1) fast track initiation counselling for patients eligible for antiretroviral therapy (ART); (2) adherence clubs for stable ART patients; (3) decentralised medication delivery for stable ART patients; (4) enhanced adherence counselling for unstable ART patients; and (5) early tracing of patients who miss an appointment by ≥5 days. For evaluation, NDOH matched the 12 intervention clinics with 12 comparison clinics and randomly allocated one member of each pair to intervention or comparison (standard of care) status within pairs, allowing evaluation of the interventions using a matched cluster-randomised design. The evaluation uses data routinely collected by the clinics, with no study interaction with subjects to prevent influencing the primary outcomes. Enrolment began on 20 June 2016 and was completed on 16 December 2016. A total of 3456 patients were enrolled and will now be followed for 14 months to estimate effects on short-term and final outcomes. Primary outcomes include viral suppression, retention and medication pickups, evaluated at two time points during follow-up. Ethics and dissemination The study received approval from the University of Witwatersrand Human Research Ethics Committee and Boston University Institutional Review Board. Results will be presented to key stakeholders and at international conferences and published in peer-reviewed journals. Trial registration number NCT02536768; Pre-results.