Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Biologicaly inspired routing protocol for vehicular adhoc network

In vehicular adhoc network the communication between the nodes is the major issue. Due to high node mobility and fast topology changes devising protocols for Vehicular network may not be successfully accomplished by simple adaptation of protocols designed for wired networks and MANET. In recent years Swarm Intelligence based routing protocol performing very well in wireless sensor network and MANET. The objective of this paper to show that Swarm Intelligence based routing protocol shows promising results in VANET. For this we compared and evaluated the performance of AODV, OLSR, and Swarm Intelligence based routing protocol in terms of throughput, latency and data packet delivery ratio for VANET. Simulation results shows that SWARM Intelligence based routing protocol showed promising results in VANETs as compared to AODV and OLSR.
Jacobi Algorithm for the Best Low Multilinear Rank Approximation of Symmetric Tensors

The problem discussed in this paper is the symmetric best low multilinear rank approximation of third-order symmetric tensors. We propose an algorithm based on Jacobi rotations, for which symmetry is preserved at each iteration. Two numerical examples are provided indicating the need for such algorithms. An important part of the paper consists of proving that our algorithm converges to stationary points of the objective function. This can be considered an advantage of the proposed algorithm over existing symmetry-preserving algorithms in the literature.
Anti‐quorum sensing activity of Psidium guajava L. flavonoids against Chromobacterium violaceum and Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1

Psidium guajava L. , which has been used traditionally as a medicinal plant, was explored for anti‐quorum sensing (QS) activity. The anti‐QS activity of the flavonoid (FL) fraction of P. guajava leaves was determined using a biosensor bioassay with Chromobacterium violaceum CV026. Detailed investigation of the effects of the FL‐fraction on QS‐regulated violacein production in C. violaceum ATCC12472 and pyocyanin production, proteolytic, elastolytic activities, swarming motility and biofilm formation in Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1 was performed using standard methods. Possible mechanisms of QS‐inhibition were studied by assessing violacein production in response to N‐acyl homoserine lactone (AHL) synthesis in the presence of the FL‐fraction in C. violaceum ATCC31532 and by evaluating the induction of violacein in the mutant C. violaceum CV026 by AHL extracted from the culture supernatants of C. violaceum 31532. Active compounds in the FL‐fraction were identified by liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (LC–MS). Inhibition of violacein production by the FL‐fraction in a C. violaceum CV026 biosensor bioassay indicated possible anti‐QS activity. The FL‐fraction showed concentration‐dependent decreases in violacein production in C. violaceum 12472 and inhibited pyocyanin production, proteolytic and elastolytic activities, swarming motility and biofilm formation in P. aeruginosa PAO1. Interestingly, the FL‐fraction did not inhibit AHL synthesis; AHL extracted from cultures of C. violaceum 31532 grown in the presence of the FL‐fraction induced violacein in the mutant C. violaceum CV026. LC–MS analysis revealed the presence of quercetin and quercetin‐3‐O‐arabinoside in the FL‐fraction. Both quercetin and quercetin‐3‐O‐arabinoside inhibited violacein production in C. violaceum 12472, at 50 and 100 μg/mL, respectively. Results of this study provide scope for further research to exploit these active molecules as anti‐QS agents.
Steroid-induced cataract and glaucoma in pediatric patients with nephrotic syndrome

Objective This study investigated ocular complications, such as cataract and glaucoma, arising from prolonged corticosteroid therapy in children. Methods A cross-sectional study involving pediatric patients with nephrotic syndrome was conducted in a tertiary hospital. Comprehensive ophthalmic assessments including best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), intraocular pressure (IOP), slitlamp and fundus examination were performed. Standard automated perimetry (SAP) was also performed on patients suspected of having glaucoma. Information on renal histological diagnosis and treatment regimen in each patient was noted. Data were analyzed statistically. Results A total of 22 patients were evaluated. The median age at the time of examination was 9.5 years (range, 2 to 17 years). The mean age of onset was 6.9 ± 4.3 years. Twelve of the 22 patients had relapses with a mean of 1.86. The mean duration of steroid use was 28 ± 28.9 months. Eleven patients (50%) were given combined therapy (prednisone with either cyclosporine or cyclophosphamide) and 11 were given oral prednisone alone. The mean dose of steroid at the time of examination was 27 ± 26.2 mg/m 2 /day. Among the 22 patients, 3 (13.6%) developed posterior subcapsular cataracts. One patient developed steroidinduced glaucoma with a scotoma encroaching the central 10 o visual field. There was a significant association between the duration of corticosteroid treatment and cataract formation (p = 0.04), but no significant association between the duration of therapy and development of glaucoma (p = 0.45). Conclusions Cataract formation was a more common complication of prolonged oral corticosteroid therapy with a prevalence rate of 13.6%. Pediatric patients with a longer duration of steroid therapy are at greater risk of cataract formation. Hence, pediatricians are advised to refer these patients to ophthalmologists for proper evaluation.
Deficient membrane integration of the novel p.N14D‐GJB2 mutant associated with non‐syndromic hearing impairment

Mutations in GJB2, the gene encoding for the Gap Junction protein Connexin 26 (Cx26), have been established as the major cause of hereditary, non‐syndromic hearing impairment (HI). We report here the identification of a novel point mutation in GJB2, c.40A>G [p.N14D], detected in compound heterozygosity with the c.35delG mutation in two brothers with moderate non‐syndromic sensorineural HI. The mother who carried one wildtype and a p.N14D allele displayed normal hearing. The mutation leads to substitution of the neutral amino acid asparagine (N) by the negatively charged aspartic acid (D) at amino acid number 14, a position that is conserved among Cx26 of different organisms and among many other connexin isoforms. To investigate the impact of this mutation on protein function, Cx26 activity was measured by depolarization activated hemichannel conductance in non‐coupled Xenopus laevis oocytes. Oocytes injected with the p.N14D mutant cRNA showed strongly reduced currents compared to wildtype. Coinjection of wildtype and mutant cRNA at equimolar levels restored the conductive properties supporting the recessive character of this mutation. Total Cx26 protein expression and cell surface abundance examined by western blotting and by quantitative immunoassays revealed that the hemichannel was properly synthesized but not integrated into the plasma membrane. In this study we have shown that the GJB2 mutation p.N14D is associated with recessively inherited HI and exhibits a defective phenotype due to diminished expression at the cell surface. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Cytochrome c folds through foldon-dependent native-like intermediates in an ordered pathway

Significance The energy landscape model pictures that proteins fold through many alternative pathways. The landscape contains all possible intermediates and pathways, and folding is driven only by the downhill energy gradient, with no way to choose any particular folding step against the vast number of alternatives. On the contrary, the present experiments demonstrate that Cytochrome c folds through distinct intermediates in a reproducible pathway, adding one native-like foldon after another down a defined energy ladder. This behavior is dictated by the cooperative foldon construction of the native protein. Two other proteins are known to do the same. Previous hydrogen exchange (HX) studies of the spontaneous reversible unfolding of Cytochrome c (Cyt c) under native conditions have led to the following conclusions. Native Cyt c (104 residues) is composed of five cooperative folding units, called foldons. The high-energy landscape is dominated by an energy ladder of partially folded forms that differ from each other by one cooperative foldon unit. The reversible equilibrium unfolding of native Cyt c steps up through these intermediate forms to the unfolded state in an energy-ordered sequence, one foldon unit at a time. To more directly study Cyt c intermediates and pathways during normal energetically downhill kinetic folding, the present work used HX pulse labeling analyzed by a fragment separation–mass spectrometry method. The results show that 95% or more of the Cyt c population folds by stepping down through the same set of foldon-dependent pathway intermediates as in energetically uphill equilibrium unfolding. These results add to growing evidence that proteins fold through a classical pathway sequence of native-like intermediates rather than through a vast number of undefinable intermediates and pathways. The present results also emphasize the condition-dependent nature of kinetic barriers, which, with less informative experimental methods (fluorescence, etc.), are often confused with variability in intermediates and pathways.
Contrary Regulation of Bladder Cancer Cell Proliferation and Invasion by Dexamethasone-Mediated Glucocorticoid Receptor Signals

In patients with advanced bladder cancer, glucocorticoids are frequently given to reduce acute toxicity, particularly hyperemesis, during chemotherapy, as well as to improve cachectic conditions. However, it remains unclear whether glucocorticoids directly affect the development and progression of bladder cancer through the glucocorticoid receptor pathway. Glucocorticoid receptor expression was first investigated in human bladder cancer lines and tissue microarrays. Then, the effects of dexamethasone on glucocorticoid receptor transcription, cell proliferation, apoptosis/cell cycle, and invasion were examined in bladder cancer lines. Finally, mouse xenograft models for bladder cancer were used to assess the efficacy of dexamethasone on tumor progression. All the cell lines and tissues examined were found to express glucocorticoid receptor. Dexamethasone increased glucocorticoid receptor–mediated reporter activity and cell proliferation, and inhibited apoptosis in the presence or absence of cisplatin. In contrast, dexamethasone suppressed cell invasion, the expression of its related genes [MMP-2/MMP-9, interleukin (IL)-6, VEGF], and the activity of MMP-2/MMP-9, and also induced mesenchymal-to-epithelial transition. In addition, dexamethasone increased IκBα protein levels and cytosolic accumulation of NF-κB. In xenograft-bearing mice, dexamethasone slightly augmented the growth of the inoculated tumors but completely prevented the development of bloody ascites, suggestive of peritoneal dissemination of tumor cells, and actual metastasis. In all these assays, dexamethasone effects were abolished by a glucocorticoid receptor antagonist or glucocorticoid receptor knockdown via RNA interference. Thus, glucocorticoid receptor activation resulted in promotion of cell proliferation via inhibiting apoptosis yet repression of cell invasion and metastasis. These results may provide a basis of developing improved chemotherapy regimens, including or excluding glucocorticoid receptor agonists/antagonists, for urothelial carcinoma. Mol Cancer Ther; 11(12); 2621–32. ©2012 AACR.
Nursing diagnoses in surgical clinic

DOI http://dx.doi. org/10.1590/19820194201500006 Universidade Estadual de Maringá, Maringá, PR, Brazil. Conflicts of interest: no conflicts of interest to declare. Abstract Objective: To identify the frequency of nursing diagnosis in patients in surgical clinic. Methods: A transverse, descriptive and exploratory study of quantitative approach, with data referring to 28 patients. The data collection instrument was developed by the researchers based on health functional patterns. Results: In total, 301 nursing diagnosis were found, with an average of 12 per patient. Only four diagnoses showed frequency above 50 percent. The most frequent were ‘risk for infection’, ‘impaired skin/tissue integrity’, ‘readiness for enhanced spiritual well-being’, ‘sexual dysfunction’ and ‘disturbed sleep pattern’. The diagnoses that fit in domain 13 (Growth/Development) were not documented in this sample. Conclusion: The findings demonstrated a wide variety of diagnoses in the study population, a reflex of the diversity of care provided. Identifying the care needs favors the implantation of specific interventions, contributing to the quality of nursing assistance.
Antibiogram Profile of Uropathogens in a Tertiary Care Hospital in Western Uttar Pradesh, India

Urinary tract infections (UTI) are one of the most common bacterial infections seeking treatment in clinical practice. It is a serious health problem affecting millions of people each year. It is the most important cause of morbidity in the world affecting all age groups. One in five women develops a UTI during her lifetime. UTI in men are less common. Nearly, 20% of women who have a UTI will have another and 30% of those will have yet another episode of UTI. In India, UTIs result in as many as 7 million visits to outpatient clinics, 1 million visits to emergency departments, and 100,000 hospitalizations annually (Razak et al., 2012). Worldwide, about 150 million people are diagnosed with UTI each year, costing the global economy in excess of 6 billion US dollars (Foxman et al., 2000).
An Architecture Combining Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) and Support Vector Machine (SVM) for Image Classification

Convolutional neural networks (CNNs) are similar to "ordinary" neural networks in the sense that they are made up of hidden layers consisting of neurons with "learnable" parameters. These neurons receive inputs, performs a dot product, and then follows it with a non-linearity. The whole network expresses the mapping between raw image pixels and their class scores. Conventionally, the Softmax function is the classifier used at the last layer of this network. However, there have been studies (Alalshekmubarak and Smith, 2013; Agarap, 2017; Tang, 2013) conducted to challenge this norm. The cited studies introduce the usage of linear support vector machine (SVM) in an artificial neural network architecture. This project is yet another take on the subject, and is inspired by (Tang, 2013). Empirical data has shown that the CNN-SVM model was able to achieve a test accuracy of ~99.04% using the MNIST dataset (LeCun, Cortes, and Burges, 2010). On the other hand, the CNN-Softmax was able to achieve a test accuracy of ~99.23% using the same dataset. Both models were also tested on the recently-published Fashion-MNIST dataset (Xiao, Rasul, and Vollgraf, 2017), which is suppose to be a more difficult image classification dataset than MNIST (Zalandoresearch, 2017). This proved to be the case as CNN-SVM reached a test accuracy of ~90.72%, while the CNN-Softmax reached a test accuracy of ~91.86%. The said results may be improved if data preprocessing techniques were employed on the datasets, and if the base CNN model was a relatively more sophisticated than the one used in this study.
The effect of mitomycin-C on postoperative corneal astigmatism in trabeculectomy and a triple procedure.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE The authors attempted to determine the effect of mitomycin-C (MMC) on postoperative corneal astigmatism in patients who underwent trabeculectomy or a triple procedure (trabeculectomy, extracapsular cataract extraction, and intraocular lens implantation). PATIENTS AND METHODS Using the vector analysis method, the authors measured the postoperative induced astigmatism of 76 eyes in 59 patients who underwent trabeculectomy or a triple procedure with or without the application of MMC. Postoperative induced astigmatism corresponding to the 180 degrees axis was compared between the two groups. RESULTS The patients who underwent trabeculectomy with or without MMC showed a mean induced astigmatism of -1.01 D and -2.63 D, respectively, after 1 month (P < .05), and 0.34 D and -1.42 D after 12 months (P < .05). Those who underwent a triple procedure with or without MMC showed a mean induced astigmatism of -1.81 D and -4.50 D, respectively, after 7 days (P < .05), and 1.73 D and -0.13 D, respectively, after 12 months (P < .05). The entire amount of postoperative against-the-rule astigmatic shift was similar between the with-MMC group and the without-MMC group. The against-the-rule astigmatic shift of the group without MMC reached a plateau after 3 months. However, the group with MMC showed continuous against-the-rule astigmatic shift until 12 months. CONCLUSION This study suggests that MMC induces less with-the-rule astigmatism in early postoperative periods and continuous against-the-rule shift after 3 months following a trabeculectomy or a triple procedure.
An in vitro Study on the Active Conversion of Flucytosine to Fluorouracil by Microorganisms in the Human Intestinal Microflora

Background: Investigation of the rate of active conversion of flucytosine to fluorouracil by microorganisms in the intestinal microflora. Methods: Active conversion of flucytosine was investigated using viable and nonviable Escherichia coli at different flucytosine concentrations. Additionally, flucytosine conversion was studied in fecal specimens from 3 neutropenic patients at the start of the antimicrobial/antifungal prophylaxis (C/A regimen) and 1 week later. Results: Flucytosine levels decreased by an average of 72, 71 and 72% flucytosine after incubation for 48 h of 1010 viable E. coli/ml suspension in broth containing 13, 130 and 1,300 mg/l flucytosine, respectively. The decreasing flucytosine levels corresponded approximately to an identical increase in fluorouracil levels. Also, a 44% decrease of flucytosine levels occurred when nonviable E. coli were used, indicating that bacterial viability is not necessary for this conversion. When fecal specimens of 2 patients were investigated prior to the C/A regimen, significant flucytosine conversion occurred, whereas this conversion was not observed in the corresponding fecal specimens after 1 week of C/A regimen. Conclusion: These in vitro experiments showed that extensive flucytosine conversion can occur in the human intestinal microflora by E. coli. Consequently, fluorouracil exposure and fluorouracil-related toxicity may occur in the flucytosine-treated patient.
Factors Influencing Bacterial Diversity and Community Composition in Municipal Drinking Waters in the Ohio River Basin, USA

The composition and metabolic activities of microbes in drinking water distribution systems can affect water quality and distribution system integrity. In order to understand regional variations in drinking water microbiology in the upper Ohio River watershed, the chemical and microbiological constituents of 17 municipal distribution systems were assessed. While sporadic variations were observed, the microbial diversity was generally dominated by fewer than 10 taxa, and was driven by the amount of disinfectant residual in the water. Overall, Mycobacterium spp. (Actinobacteria), MLE1-12 (phylum Cyanobacteria), Methylobacterium spp. , and sphingomonads were the dominant taxa. Shifts in community composition from Alphaproteobacteria and Betaproteobacteria to Firmicutes and Gammaproteobacteria were associated with higher residual chlorine. Alpha- and beta-diversity were higher in systems with higher chlorine loads, which may reflect changes in the ecological processes structuring the communities under different levels of oxidative stress. These results expand the assessment of microbial diversity in municipal distribution systems and demonstrate the value of considering ecological theory to understand the processes controlling microbial makeup. Such understanding may inform the management of municipal drinking water resources.
Media Selection to Meet Communications Contexts: Comparing E-Mail and Instant Messaging in an Undergraduate Population

Media selection is a complex issue that may involve weighing factors such as media features (richness), user characteristics, and tasks. This study examines user perceptions about instant messengers (IM) compared to email (EM). It compares the relation of eight motivation variables with past experience (desktop and wireless) and future use intention (social interactions and work/coursework). Our results, based on a student survey, show that, for this population, frequency of use may predict the adoption of new technology, such as IM, but results in little or no effect on media that already enjoy widespread adoption. Years of media use did not affect IM or EM adoption. This study finds no evidence of a relationship between the availability of wireless access and user perceptions of IM and EM. IM adopters tend to use IM for both social reasons and work/coursework. These users expressed a strong intention for future use of IM. No significant difference was found in expected EM future use between the IM-adopters and nonadopters.
Undernutrition in the Midst of Plenty: Nutritional Problems of Young Australian Aborigines

Many of us have been mesmerized by the “Lucky Country” image of this country so skilfully portrayed by Donald Horne (1973). Indeed, we are lucky in many ways. Much of Australia is blessed with an equitable climate and, with the help of advanced technology, this country is now one of the world’s major food producing nations. With such an abundance of food it is easy to understand the persistence of the widely accepted vision of Australians being a tall, sun-tanned and healthy lot. But are we? Professor Lewis and Mrs. Coy have raised serious doubts about this question elsewhere in this issue (Lewis and Coy, 1976). They have carefully indicated several directions in which nutritional standards in this country are very suspect, especially amongst children. Because of their own experiences, they have concentrated on the worrying problem of obesity in Tasmanian schoolchildren and hinted at the possible longterm consequences of this disorder in the community, such as ischaemic heart disease (Kannel et al., 1967). So it seems that over-nutrition is an increasingly important nutritional problem in young Australians. But what about under-nutrition? There is gathering a large body of evidence that under-nutrition is a serious problem in at least one segment of the community; that is in infants and children of Aboriginal descent. Over the last few years it has become clear that
Hough Transform-based Road Boundary Localization

The advanced driver-assistance system (ADAS) is designed to help drivers while they are driving. To help the drivers, ADAS first comprehends the situation by analyzing the data obtained from the road surroundings. In this process, the road boundary is one of the most important targets to detect for safe driving, but is frequently misdetected on crowded roads. Therefore, a new method for robustly detecting road boundaries on crowded roads is presented in this paper. First, road-boundary detection using a standard Hough transform is described, and its limitations are shown. Second, the cause of the limitations is explained by the measurement model of a laser scanner. Then, the standard Hough transform is modified to reflect the measurement model of the laser scanner; this change reduces the effect of closed obstacles. Finally, the proposed method is tested in the real-world environment, and it shows better performance than previous works in crowded environments.