Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Which is the best probiotic treatment strategy to prevent the necrotizing enterocolitis in premature infants

Abstract Background: Previous studies have neglected to report the specific action of different probiotic genera in preterm infants. To evaluate the efficacy and safety of specific probiotic genera, we performed a network meta-analysis (NMA) to identify the best prevention strategy for necrotizing enterocolitis in preterm infants. Methods: MEDLINE, PubMed, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials had been searched for randomized control trials reporting the probiotics strategy for premature infants. Results: We identified 34 eligible studies of 9161 participants. The intervention in the observation group was to add probiotics for feeding: Lactobacilli in 6 studies; Bifidobacterium in 8 studies; Bacillus in 1 study; Saccharomyces in 4 studies and probiotic mixture in 15 studies. This NMA showed a significant advantage of probiotic mixture and Bifidobacterium to prevent the incidence of necrotizing enterocolitis in preterm infants. A probiotic mixture showed effectiveness in reducing mortality in preterm infants. Conclusion: The recent literature has reported a total of 5 probiotic strategies, including Bacillus, Bifidobacterium, Lactobacillus, Saccharomyces, and probiotic mixture. Our thorough review and NMA provided a piece of available evidence to choose optimal probiotics prophylactic strategy for premature infants. The results indicated that probiotic mixture and Bifidobacterium showed a stronger advantage to use in preterm infants; the other probiotic genera failed to show an obvious effect to reduce the incidence of NEC, sepsis and all-cause death. More trials need to be performed to determine the optimal probiotic treatment strategy to prevent preterm related complications.
Estimation of effective imaging dose and excess absolute risk of secondary cancer incidence for four‐dimensional cone‐beam computed tomography acquisition

Abstract This study was conducted to estimate the organ equivalent dose and effective imaging dose for four‐dimensional cone‐beam computed tomography (4D‐CBCT) using a Monte Carlo simulation, and to evaluate the excess absolute risk (EAR) of secondary cancer incidence. The EGSnrc/BEAMnrc were used to simulate the on‐board imager (OBI) from the TrueBeam linear accelerator. Specifically, the OBI was modeled based on the percent depth dose and the off‐center ratio was measured using a three‐dimensional (3D) water phantom. For clinical cases, 15 lung and liver cancer patients were simulated using the EGSnrc/DOSXYZnrc. The mean absorbed doses to the lung, stomach, bone marrow, esophagus, liver, thyroid, bone surface, skin, adrenal glands, gallbladder, heart, intestine, kidney, pancreas and spleen, were quantified using a treatment planning system, and the equivalent doses to each organ were calculated. Subsequently, the effective dose was calculated as the weighted sum of the equivalent dose, and the EAR of the secondary cancer incidence was determined for each organ with the use of the biologic effects of ionizing radiation (BEIR) VII model. The effective doses were 3.9 ± 0.5, 15.7 ± 2.0, and 7.3 ± 0.9 mSv, for the lung, and 4.2 ± 0.6, 16.7 ± 2.4, and 7.8 ± 1.1 mSv, for the liver in the respective cases of the 3D‐CBCT (thorax, pelvis) and 4D‐CBCT modes. The lung EARs for males and females were 7.3 and 10.7 cases per million person‐years, whereas the liver EARs were 9.9 and 4.5 cases per million person‐years. The EAR increased with increasing time since radiation exposure. In clinical studies, we should use 4D‐CBCT based on consideration of the effective dose and EAR of secondary cancer incidence.
The Absence of Pyruvate Kinase Affects Glucose-Dependent Carbon Catabolite Repression in Bacillus subtilis

Pyruvate is a key intermediate of diverse metabolic pathways of central carbon metabolism. In addition to being the end product of glycolysis, pyruvate is an essential carbon distribution point to oxidative metabolism, amino acid and fatty acid syntheses, and overflow metabolite production. Hence, a tight regulation of pyruvate kinase (Pyk) activity is of great importance. This study aimed to analyze targeted metabolites from several pathways and possible changes in Bacillus subtilis lacking Pyk. Wild type and Δpyk cells were cultivated in chemically defined medium with glucose and pyruvate as carbon sources, and the extracted metabolites were analyzed by 1H-NMR, GC-MS, HPLC-MS, and LC-MS/MS. The results showed that the perturbation created in the pyruvate node drove an adaptation to new conditions by altering the nutritional compounds’ consumption. In Δpyk, pyruvate, which is subject to glucose-dependent carbon catabolite repression, did not comply with the hierarchy in carbon source utilization. Other metabolic alterations were observed such as the higher secretion of the overflow metabolites acetoin and 2,3-butanediol by Δpyk. Our results help to elucidate the regulatory transport of glucose and pyruvate in B. subtilis and possible metabolic reroute to alternative pathways in the absence of Pyk.
Flexural Fatigue Performance of Steel Fiber Reinforced Expanded-Shales Lightweight Concrete Superposed Beams with Initial Static-Load Cracks

Concerning the structural applications of steel fiber reinforced expanded-shales lightweight concrete (SFRELC), the present study focuses on the flexural fatigue performance of SFRELC superposed beams with initial static-load cracks. Nine SFRELC superposed beams were fabricated with the SFRELC depth varying from 50% to 70% of the whole sectional depth, and the volume fraction of steel fiber ranged from 0.8% to 1.6%. The fatigue load exerted on the beams was a constant amplitude sinusoid with a frequency of 10 Hz and a fatigue characteristic value of 0.10; the upper limit was taken as the load corresponded to the maximum crack width of 0.20 mm at the barycenter of the longitudinal rebars. The results showed that with the increase of SFRELC depth and the volume fraction of steel fiber, the fatigue life of the test beams was prolonged with three altered failure modes due to the crush of conventional concrete in the compression zone and/or the fracture of the tensile rebar; the failure pattern could be more ductile by the prevention of fatigue fracture by the longitudinal tensile rebar when the volume fraction of steel fiber was 1.6% and the reduction of crack growth and concrete strain in the compression zone; the fatigue life of test beams was sensitive to the upper-limit of the fatigue load, a short fatigue life appeared from the higher stress level and larger stress amplitude of the longitudinal rebar due to the higher upper-limit of the fatigue load. The methods for predicting the stress level, the stress amplitude of the longitudinal tensile rebar, and the degenerated flexural stiffness of SFRELC superposed beams with fatigue life are proposed. With the optimal composites of the SFRELC depth ratio and the volume fraction of steel fiber, the controllable failure of reinforced SFRELC superposed beams could be a good prospect with the trend curves of fatigue flexural stiffness.
Factors Affecting Programming Performance of First Year Students at a University in Botswana

One of the challenges encountered in programming courses offered at first year level is high failure rate, which is a serious concern to lecturers and university management. To address the issue of high failure rate, it is important to have a clear understanding of the factors that may affect performance. This study investigates the effect of gender and prior academic experience on performance in an introductory programming course. These factors have special significance related to the societal and educational context in which the study is conducted. Moreover, prior academic experience is commonly used as an admission criterion and hence its validity needs to be assessed. Data were collected from 146 first year computing students who took an introductory programming course during semester 1 of the 2016/2017 academic year. The study found a statistically significant correlation between high school performance in mathematics and physics (albeit moderate and weak correlations respectively) and performance in an introductory programming course. Surprisingly, the study found no statistically significant correlation between performance in high school computer studies (where programming is taught) and performance in the introductory programming course. A discussion of the potential reasons for this discrepancy and its implications is provided.
Differences in corpus callosum injury between cerebral concussion and diffuse axonal injury

Abstract Background: We investigated differences in corpus callosum (CC) injuries between patients with concussion and those with diffuse axonal injury (DAI) by using diffusion tensor tractography (DTT). Methods: Twenty-nine patients with concussion, 21 patients with DAI, and 25 control subjects were recruited. We reconstructed the whole CC and 5 regions of the CC after applying Hofer classification (I, II, III, IV, and V). The whole CC and each region of the CC were analyzed to measure DTT parameters (fractional anisotropy [FA], apparent diffusion coefficient [ADC], and fiber number [FN]). Results: In the whole CC, significant differences were observed in all DTT parameters between the concussion and control groups and the DAI and control groups (P < .05). Among the 5 regions of the CC, significant differences were observed in FA and ADC between the concussion and control groups and the DAI and control groups (P < .05). Significant differences in FN were observed in CC regions I and II (connected with the prefrontal lobe and secondary motor area) between the concussion and control groups, in CC regions I, II, III, and IV (connected with the frontoparietal lobes) between the DAI and control groups, and in CC regions III, IV (connected with the motor-sensory cortex) between the concussion and DAI groups (P < .05). Conclusion: It was observed that both concussion and DAI patients showed diffuse neural injuries in the whole CC and all 5 regions of the CC. Neural FN results revealed that concussion patients appeared to be specifically injured in the anterior part of the CC connected with the frontal lobe, whereas DAI patients were injured in more diffuse regions connected with whole frontoparietal lobes.
Effects of Sodium Nitrophenolate and its Composition on Germination of Soybean Seed

The effects of sodium nitrophenolate and its composition on germination of soybean seed were studied by soaking soybean seeds with sodium nitrophenolate,sodium ortho-nitrophenol,sodium para-nitrophenol and sodium 5-nitroguaiacolate.Seeds germinating situation,the content of protein,fat and soluble sugar of soybean seed were determined to find the key component of sodium nitrophenolate which affects the germination greatly when soybean seed germinated at 1,3,5 and 7 days,respectively.The results showed that after seeds soaked with 10 mg·L-1 sodium nitrophenolate or 5 mg·L-1 sodium 5-nitroguaiacolate the weight of sprout,germination energy,germination rate,germination index and vigor index significantly increased(P 0.05). Furthermore,transformation of protein was accelerated from the third day;the fat in seed became decreased obviously,and the soluble sugar always was lower than other treatments from the fifth day.These results proved that sodium 5-nitroguaiacolate played an important role in the course of germination of soybean seed.
Topology control optimization of wireless sensor networks for IoT applications

An Internet of Things (IoT) environment usually is composed by sensor nodes connected to the Internet, which constitutes a Wireless Sensor Network (WSN). In this work, the Sensor Allocation Problem (SAP) for a WSN is addressed, which defines the position of sensor nodes according to their different operation modes while pursuing the optimization of network efficiency with respect to performance parameters. An optimization methodology based on a Genetic Algorithm is proposed, in order to solve the SAP. Case studies are performed in order to evaluate the efficiency of the proposed solution method.
Reproducibility of Flow Cytometry Through Standardization: Opportunities and Challenges

There is an agreement in the field that interlaboratory reproducibility of flow cytometry measurements as well as the whole studies might be improved by a consensual use of methodological approach. Typically, a consensus is made on a crucial markers needed in the immunostaining panel, sometimes on the particular fluorochrome conjugates and rarely on a complete set of methods for sample preparation. The term “standardization” is used to describe the complete set of methodical steps, while “harmonization” is used for partial agreement on the method. Standardization can provide a platform for improved reproducibility of cytometry results over prolonged periods of time, across different sites and across different instruments. For the purpose of structured discussion, several desired aims are described: common interpretation of the immunophenotype definition of a target subset, accurate quantification, reproducible pattern of a multicolor immunophenotype, and reproducible intensity of all measured parameters. An overview of how standardization was approached by several large consortia is provided: EuroFlow, The ONE Study, Human Immunology Project Consortium (HIPC), and several other groups. Their particular aims and the tools adopted to reach those aims are noted. How those standardization efforts were adopted in the field and how the resulting outcome was evaluated is reviewed. Multiple challenges in the instrument hardware design, instrument setup tools, reagent design, and quality features need to be addressed to achieve optimal standardization. Furthermore, the aims of different studies vary, and thus, the reasonable requirements for standardization differ. A framework of reference for the reasonable outcomes of different approaches is offered. Finally, it is argued that complete standardization is important not only for the reproducibility of measurements but also for education, for quality assessment and for algorithmic data analysis. The different standardized approaches can and in fact should serve as benchmarking reference tools for the development of future flow cytometry studies. © 2019 International Society for Advancement of Cytometry
A data exploratory methodology to understand the users' interactions in nonlinear web multimedia services

Nowadays, streaming companies, such as YouTube and Netflix, have prospered in Web multimedia market. In addition to presenting creative and engaging content, these companies have attracted users with a new standard to watch videos. Contrary to the traditional model, these services have used a nonlinear model, which users decide what, when and where to watch contents. Unconsciously, this user autonomy has required more quality of service for Content-Producers (CPs) and Management-Content Providers (MCPs) companies. While CPs have to produce more relevant contents and match them with users' tastes, the MCPs aim to ensure these contents reach the users with the highest quality. However, the dynamic behavior of end-users makes techniques inefficient over time. Thus, we present a data exploratory methodology in order to improve their services with the information extracted. It is organized into User Analysis, Content Analysis, and User-Content Interaction Analysis. We apply our methodology in real data from Samba Tech, the leader MCP in Latin America, and observe several possibilities to raise CPs' revenue by acquiring new customers and also to MCPs to improve mechanisms to reduce their costs.
Cognitive Stimulation as a Mechanism Linking Socioeconomic Status With Executive Function: A Longitudinal Investigation.

Executive functions (EF), including working memory, inhibition, and cognitive flexibility, vary as a function of socioeconomic status (SES), with children from economically disadvantaged backgrounds having poorer performance than their higher SES peers. Using observational methods, we investigated cognitive stimulation in the home as a mechanism linking SES with EF. In a sample of 101 children aged 60-75 months, cognitive stimulation fully mediated SES-related differences in EF. Critically, cognitive stimulation was positively associated with the development of inhibition and cognitive flexibility across an 18-month follow-up period. Furthermore, EF at T1 explained SES-related differences in academic achievement at T2. Early cognitive stimulation-a modifiable factor-may be a desirable target for interventions designed to ameliorate SES-related differences in cognitive development and academic achievement.
Will My Program Break on This Faulty Processor?

Formal verification is approaching a point where it will be reliably applicable to embedded software. Even though formal verification can efficiently analyze multi-threaded applications, multi-core processors are often considered too dangerous to use in critical systems, despite the many benefits they can offer. One reason is the advanced memory consistency model of such CPUs. Nowadays, most software verifiers assume strict sequential consistency, which is also the naïve view of programmers. Modern multi-core processors, however, rarely guarantee this assumption by default. In addition, complex processor architectures may easily contain design faults. Thanks to the recent advances in hardware verification, these faults are increasingly visible and can be detected even in existing processors, giving an opportunity to compensate for the problem in software. In this paper, we propose a generic approach to consider inconsistent behavior of the hardware in the analysis of software. Our approach is based on formal methods and can be used to detect the activation of existing hardware faults on the application level and facilitate their mitigation in software. The approach relies heavily on recent results of model checking and hardware verification and offers new, integrative research directions. We propose a partial solution based on existing model checking tools to demonstrate feasibility and evaluate their performance in this context.
Olfactory connectivity mediates sleep-dependent food choices in humans

Sleep deprivation has marked effects on food intake, shifting food choices toward energy-dense options. Here we test the hypothesis that neural processing in central olfactory circuits, in tandem with the endocannabinoid system (ECS), plays a key role in mediating this relationship. We combined a partial sleep-deprivation protocol, pattern-based olfactory neuroimaging, and ad libitum food intake to test how central olfactory mechanisms alter food intake after sleep deprivation. We found that sleep restriction increased levels of the ECS compound 2-oleoylglycerol (2-OG), enhanced encoding of food odors in piriform cortex, and shifted food choices toward energy-dense food items. Importantly, the relationship between changes in 2-OG and food choices was formally mediated by odor-evoked connectivity between the piriform cortex and insula, a region involved in integrating feeding-related signals. These findings describe a potential neurobiological pathway by which state-dependent changes in the ECS may modulate chemosensory processing to regulate food choices.
Microbial Symbionts of Parasitoids.

Parasitoids depend on other insects for the development of their offspring. Their eggs are laid in or on a host insect that is consumed during juvenile development. Parasitoids harbor a diversity of microbial symbionts including viruses, bacteria, and fungi. In contrast to symbionts of herbivorous and hematophagous insects, parasitoid symbionts do not provide nutrients. Instead, they are involved in parasitoid reproduction, suppression of host immune responses, and manipulation of the behavior of herbivorous hosts. Moreover, recent research has shown that parasitoid symbionts such as polydnaviruses may also influence plant-mediated interactions among members of plant-associated communities at different trophic levels, such as herbivores, parasitoids, and hyperparasitoids. This implies that these symbionts have a much more extended phenotype than previously thought. This review focuses on the effects of parasitoid symbionts on direct and indirect species interactions and the consequences for community ecology. Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Entomology, Volume 65 is January 7, 2020. Please see http://www.annualreviews. org/page/journal/pubdates for revised estimates.
Trends in the Use and Outcomes of Mechanical Ventilation among Patients Hospitalized with Acute Exacerbations of COPD in Spain, 2001 to 2015

(1) Background: We examine trends (2001–2015) in the use of non-invasive ventilation (NIV) and invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV) among patients hospitalized for acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AE-COPD). (2) Methods: Observational retrospective epidemiological study, using the Spanish National Hospital Discharge Database. (3) Results: We included 1,431,935 hospitalizations (aged ≥40 years) with an AE-COPD. NIV use increased significantly, from 1.82% in 2001–2003 to 8.52% in 2013–2015, while IMV utilization decreased significantly, from 1.39% in 2001–2003 to 0.67% in 2013–2015. The use of NIV + invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV) rose significantly over time (from 0.17% to 0.42%). Despite the worsening of clinical profile of patients, length of stay decreased significantly over time in all types of ventilation. Patients who received only IMV had the highest in-hospital mortality (IHM) (32.63%). IHM decreased significantly in patients with NIV + IMV, but it remained stable in those receiving isolated NIV and isolated IMV. Factors associated with use of any type of ventilatory support included female sex, lower age, and higher comorbidity. (4) Conclusions: We found an increase in NIV use and a decline in IMV utilization to treat AE-COPD among hospitalized patients. The IHM decreased significantly over time in patients who received NIV + IMV, but it remained stable in patients who received NIV or IMV in isolation.
Clinical study of ultrasound-guided transversus abdominis plane block for analgesia after cesarean section

Abstract Background: Patient-controlled intravenous analgesia (PCIA) and patient-controlled epidural analgesia are 2 common methods of maintaining analgesia after cesarean section. In recent years, transversus abdominis plane block (TAPB) has been gradually applied clinically to reduce opioid analgesics and has achieved good results. Therefore, we performed this study to compare the efficacy and side effects of TAPB and PCIA in analgesia after cesarean section. Methods: One hundred patients who underwent cesarean section were randomly classified into 2 groups. Following surgery, one group underwent ultrasound-guided TAPB and the other group underwent PCIA. Pain intensity according to the visual analog scale (VAS; 0 for no pain and 10 for severe intolerable pain) was assessed at 2, 4, 6, 8, 12, and 24-hour postsurgery in both groups. The postoperative complication rate and patient satisfaction were also measured. Results: No significant differences were found in the VAS scores between the groups (P > .05). However, the incidence of postoperative complications in the TAPB group was significantly lower than that in the PCIA group (P < .05). Furthermore, patient satisfaction in the TAPB group was significantly higher than that in the PCIA group (P < .05). Conclusion: This study demonstrated that ultrasound-guided TAPB can achieve the same analgesic effect as PCIA after cesarean section but with even higher patient satisfaction.