Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Estimation of Survival and Associated Factors in Self-Immolation Attempters in Ilam Province of Iran (2011-2015)

BACKGROUND: Self-immolation is the most common method of suicide in Ilam province. AIM: This study aimed to estimate the survival rate in self-immolation attempters in Ilam and identify the associated factors. METHODS: A descriptive-analytic study was conducted based on data collected at Taleghani Hospital in Ilam, Iran. All persons passed away due to self-immolation or those hospitalised in the centre of the self-burned patients located in Ilam during 2011 to 2015 were assessed. Survival rate was calculated based on Kaplan-Meier. To compare the survival rate between groups, Univariate Log Rank and for multivariate analysis, the Cox test of STATA12 software was used. RESULTS: During 2011 to 2015, 236 persons including 168 females and 69 males committed self-immolation. The mean and median of survival time in attempters were 32.2 ± 4.7 and 3 ± 0.33 days, respectively. In Univariate Log-Rank test, the following variables including age, sex, burn degree, Total Body Surface Area (TBSA), and burns in neck and head and lower limbs had a significantly meaningful relation with survival, while in multivariate Cox Regression test only two variables including Total Body Surface Area and age remained in the model. CONCLUSION: The mean and median survival rate in self-attempters are very low. Quickly hospitalisation without waste of time should be considered. Providing prompt treatments and compensating dehydration in early hours especially within the first 24 hours of self-immolation are very vital. Younger persons and those with lower burn surface have more chance for longer survival and recuperation.
Sera selected from national STI surveillance system shows Chlamydia trachomatis PgP3 antibody correlates with time since infection and number of previous infections

Background Seroprevalence surveys of Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) antibodies are promising for estimating age-specific CT cumulative incidence, however accurate estimates require improved understanding of antibody response to CT infection. Methods We used GUMCAD, England’s national sexually transmitted infection (STI) surveillance system, to select sera taken from female STI clinic attendees on the day of or after a chlamydia diagnosis. Serum specimens were collected from laboratories and tested anonymously on an indirect and a double-antigen ELISA, both of which are based on the CT-specific Pgp3 antigen. We used cross-sectional and longitudinal descriptive analyses to explore the relationship between seropositivity and a) cumulative number of chlamydia diagnoses and b) time since most recent chlamydia diagnosis. Results 919 samples were obtained from visits when chlamydia was diagnosed and 812 during subsequent follow-up visits. Pgp3 seropositivity using the indirect ELISA increased from 57.1% (95% confidence interval: 53.2–60.7) on the day of a first-recorded chlamydia diagnosis to 89.6% (95%CI: 79.3–95.0) on the day of a third or higher documented diagnosis. With the double-antigen ELISA, the increase was from 61.1% (95%CI: 53.2–60.7) to 97.0% (95%CI: 88.5–99.3). Seropositivity decreased with time since CT diagnosis on only the indirect assay, to 49.3% (95%CI: 40.9–57.7) two or more years after a first diagnosis and 51.9% (95%CI: 33.2–70.0) after a repeat diagnosis. Conclusion Seropositivity increased with cumulative number of infections, and decreased over time after diagnosis on the indirect ELISA, but not on the double-antigen ELISA. This is the first study to demonstrate the combined impact of number of chlamydia diagnoses, time since diagnosis, and specific ELISA on Pgp3 seropositivity. Our findings are being used to inform models estimating age-specific chlamydia incidence over time using serial population-representative serum sample collections, to enable accurate public health monitoring of chlamydia.
Long noncoding RNA MALAT1 acts as a potential biomarker in cancer diagnosis and detection: a meta-analysis.

AIM it has been reported that metastasis-associated lung adenocarcinoma transcript 1 is abnormally expressed in various cancers. METHODS eligible studies fulfilling the search criteria were selected from the online databases. Statistical analysis was performed based on the platforms of STATA 14.0. RESULTS 12 studies were included in this study comprising 741 cases and 794 controls. The pooled results were shown as follows: sensitivity, 0.74 (95% CI: 0.64-0.82), specificity, 0.83 (95% CI: 0.75-0.88), positive likelihood ratio (PLR), 4.2 (95% CI: 3.00-5.90), negative likelihood, 0.32 (95% CI: 0.23-0.43), diagnostic odds ratio, 13 (95%CI: 8.00-21.00) and area under the curve, 0.85 (95%CI: 0.82-0.88). Deeks' funnel plot asymmetry test (p = 0.70) suggested no potential publication bias. CONCLUSION long noncoding RNA Metastasis-associated lung adenocarcinoma transcript 1 might be a usable biomarker for cancer diagnosis and detection.
Automatic interpretation of otoliths using deep learning

The age structure of a fish population has important implications for recruitment processes and population fluctuations, and is key input to fisheries assessment models. The current method relies on manually reading age from otoliths, and the process is labor intensive and dependent on specialist expertise. Advances in machine learning have recently brought forth methods that have been remarkably successful in a variety of settings, with potential to automate analysis that previously required manual curation. Machine learning models have previously been successfully applied to object recognition and similar image analysis tasks. Here we investigate whether deep learning models can also be used for estimating the age of otoliths from images. We adapt a standard neural network model designed for object recognition to the task of estimating age from otolith images. The model is trained and validated on a large collection of images of Greenland halibut otoliths. We show that the model works well, and that its precision is comparable to and may even surpass that of human experts. Automating this analysis will help to improve consistency, lower cost, and increase scale of age prediction. Similar approaches can likely be used for otoliths from other species as well as for reading fish scales. The method is therefore an important step forward for improving the age structure estimates of fish populations.
Research on Rotor Position Model for Switched Reluctance Motor Using Neural Network

Due to the double-salient structure of the switched reluctance motor (SRM) and highly magnetic saturation, its rotor position shows highly nonlinear function with phase current and flux linkage. Therefore, the establishment of accurate and small-scale SRM rotor position model is crucial to realize SRM position sensorless control. This paper is based on SRM flux characteristics collected by actual measurement, then adopts back-propagation neural network (BPNN) with improved algorithm and radial basis function neural network (RBFNN), respectively, to build SRM rotor position model. It is concluded that the model built by BPNN based on the Levenberg–Marquardt algorithm has smaller network structure and higher accuracy than RBFNN. In order to optimize BPNN model further, two kinds of pretreatment methods are used to study SRM rotor position model, respectively, and the modeling results of these two methods are compared. Adopting pretreatment method could reduce scale and improve accuracy to achieve the model optimization. After initial rotor position was estimated accurately without rotor position sensor, experiments are performed based on a three-phase 12/8 SRM. The experimental results verify that the BPNN model of rotor position for SRM based on a pretreatment method could be applied to SRM position sensorless control.
Pulse pressure is more relevant than systolic and diastolic blood pressure in patients with type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease

Background and aims The parameters evaluated during 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring were reported to be predictors of cardiovascular events. We aimed to investigate mean blood pressure, blood pressure variability and pulse pressure during 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring in type 2 diabetes patients and to establish their relationship with the presence of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (CVD). Methods The observational study included type 2 diabetes patients randomly selected and distributed in 2 study groups depending on the presence of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease: CVD(−), n=90, and CVD(+), n=87. Daytime, nighttime and 24-hour systolic and diastolic blood pressure were monitored and mean blood pressure, blood pressure variability and pulse pressure were calculated. Results The study groups were comparable as age, gender ratio, smoking status, body mass index and abdominal circumference. Diabetes and hypertension duration were significantly higher in the CVD(+) group. Mean systolic and diastolic blood pressure, blood variability, dipper prevalence did not differ between study groups. Pulse pressure was significantly higher in the CVD(+) group compared to CVD(−) group (daytime pulse pressure 56.2±13.1 vs. 50.6±11.3 mmHg, p=0.003; nighttime pulse pressure 56.5±14.2 vs. 50.7±12.4 mmHg, p=0.005; 24-hour pulse pressure 54.7±13.6 vs. 49.0±12.0 mmHg, p=0.003). Conclusions Ambulatory pulse pressure was significantly higher in patients with type 2 diabetes and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease compared to those without cardiovascular disease, although mean systolic and diastolic blood pressure and blood pressure variability were similar.
Candida auris Sternal Osteomyelitis in a Man from Kenya Visiting Australia, 2015

In Australia in 2015, Candida auris sternal osteomyelitis was diagnosed in a 65-year-old man with a history of intensive care treatment in Kenya in 2012 and without a history of cardiac surgery. The isolate was South Africa clade III. Clinicians should note that C. auris can cause low-grade disease years after colonization.
Sterilization protocol for porous dental implants made by Selective Laser Melting

Background and aims Although dental implants are widely and successfully used, failure rates because of bacterial colonization are still high. Adequate fabrication and sterilization techniques as well as proper management of infectious complications represent a constant field of interest and research. In this study, we focused our attention on implants with controlled porosity produced by Selective Laser Melting (SLM). The difficulty to sterilize porous implantable devices is well known and finding an adequate sterilization protocol represents a challenge worldwide. Before testing the biological and mechanical properties of porous implants, a preliminary study in order to determine a correct sterilization protocol must be conducted. Our aim was to establish a valid sterilization protocol for porous titanium alloy dental implants, as such protocols are not officially available yet. Methods Twenty dental implants were fabricated from a titanium alloy by SLM. Ten of them were made using a 150W laser beam (porosity of 1% - group A) and the rest using a 75W laser beam (porosity of 23% - Group B), all of them with a non-defined internal structure. The implants were initially sterilized (5 from group A and 5 from group B, using dry heat - 180°C for 2 hours; the rest using steam sterilization - 121 °C for15 min) and then spent 18 hours in culture media with developing bacteria (Bacillus cereus (ATCC 11778), Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 49444), Enterococcus faecalis (ATCC 29212), Listeria monocytogenes (ATCC 19114), three Gram negative bacteria: Escherichia coli (ATCC 25922), Salmonella typhimurium (ATCC 14028) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (ATCC 27853). The first ten implants (5 from group A and 5 from group B) were then sterilized with dry heat and the others with steam. After sterilization, they were all placed in sterile culture media in order to observe if any bacterial growth were present. Results The culture media was observed 18 hours after the sterilized implants were placed inside. No bacterial growth was observed. Conclusions Our tests reached their aims of defining a protocol to sterilize porous implants. Future tests regarding biological and mechanical aspects of these implants may now follow.
Efficacy and safety of laparoscopic splenectomy and esophagogastric devascularization for portal hypertension

Abstract Many patients in China have portal hypertension secondary to liver cirrhosis. Splenectomy and devascularization have become an efficacious surgical procedure for portal hypertension, and has been recommended in China as the first choice for the treatment of portal hypertension for a long time. As a result of advances in laparoscopic equipment and techniques, splenectomy and esophagogastric devascularization have been carried out with laparoscope. From January 2012 to December 2017, 453 patients who were diagnosed with portal hypertension and serious gastroesophageal varices received surgical management in our institution. 250 patients chose laparoscopic splenectomy and esophagogastric devascularization and 203 underwent open splenectomy and esophagogastric devascularization. We retrospectively analyzed the perioperative data and follow-up data of these patients. The operation time of laparoscopic group was longer than open group (P ⩽ .001). Intraoperative blood loss was less (P ⩽ .001), the passing of flatus was earlier (P = .042), and postoperative hospital stay was shorter (P = .001) in the laparoscopic group. During postoperative follow-up of 4 to 75 months, the incidence of esophagogastric variceal rebleeding, encephalopathy, and secondary liver cancer showed no significant differences. Laparoscopic splenectomy and esophagogastric devascularization were safe and more effective than open surgery for portal hypertension and gastroesophageal varices.
Changing Molecular Markers of Antimalarial Drug Sensitivity across Uganda

The potential spread of antimalarial drug resistance to Africa, in particular for artemisinins and key partner drugs, is a major concern. We surveyed Plasmodium falciparum genetic markers associated with drug sensitivity on 3 occasions at ∼6-month intervals in 2016 and 2017 at 10 sites representing a range of epidemiological settings in Uganda. ABSTRACT The potential spread of antimalarial drug resistance to Africa, in particular for artemisinins and key partner drugs, is a major concern. We surveyed Plasmodium falciparum genetic markers associated with drug sensitivity on 3 occasions at ∼6-month intervals in 2016 and 2017 at 10 sites representing a range of epidemiological settings in Uganda. For putative drug transporters, we found continued evolution toward wild-type sequences associated with increased sensitivity to chloroquine. For pfcrt K76T, by 2017 the prevalence of the wild type was >60% at all sites and >90% at 6 sites. For the pfmdr1 N86Y and D1246Y alleles, wild type prevalence ranged from 80 to 100%. We found low prevalence of K13 propeller domain mutations, which are associated with artemisinin resistance in Asia, but one mutation previously identified in northern Uganda, 675V, was seen in 2.0% of samples, including 5.5% of those from the 3 northernmost sites. Amplification of the pfmdr1 and plasmepsin2 genes, associated elsewhere with decreased sensitivity to lumefantrine and piperaquine, respectively, was seen in <1% of samples. For the antifolate targets pfdhfr and pfdhps, 5 mutations previously associated with resistance were very common, and the pfdhfr 164L and pfdhps 581G mutations associated with higher-level resistance were seen at multiple sites, although prevalence did not clearly increase over time. Overall, changes were consistent with the selective pressure of the national treatment regimen, artemether-lumefantrine, with increased sensitivity to chloroquine, and with poor efficacy of antifolates. Strong evidence for resistance to artemisinins was not seen. Continued surveillance of markers that predict antimalarial drug sensitivity is warranted.
Outcomes of Operative Management of 96 Cases with Traumatic Retroperitoneal Hematoma: A Single-Institution Experience

AIM: To analyse our experiences in the management of traumatic retroperitoneal hematoma (RPH), highlighting the various challenges faced and to report on the outcome of these patients. METHODS: From May 2014 to May 2017, all patients with traumatic RPH who underwent surgical treatment were retrospectively analysed. The kind of injury, intraoperative findings, sites of hematoma, postoperative morbidity and the overall outcomes were recorded. RESULTS: Ninety-six patients; 53 with blunt trauma and 43 with penetrating injury, were included in this study. The centre-medial hematoma was observed in 24 (25%) patients, lateral hematoma in 46 (47.9%) patients, pelvic hematoma in 19 (19.8%) patients, and multiple zone hematomas in 7 (7.3%) patients. All cases were managed surgically. Exploration of the retroperitoneal space was done in 72 cases. Thirty-three patients died, and the overall death rate was 34.4%. CONCLUSION: Surgical exploration should be done in RPH caused by penetrating injury, but the need for urgent exploration in blunt injury is not so high, and it depends on the anatomical site of hematoma, concomitant organ injury and the hemodynamic status of patients.
HOXB13 interaction with MEIS1 modifies proliferation and gene expression in prostate cancer

The recurrent p.Gly84Glu germline mutation (G84E) in HOXB13 is consistently associated with prostate cancer (PCa), although the mechanisms underlying such linkage remain elusive. The majority of the PCa‐associated HOXB13 mutations identified are localized to two conserved domains in HOXB13 that have been shown to mediate the interaction with MEIS cofactors belonging to the TALE family of homeodomain transcription factors. In this study, we sought to interrogate the biochemical and functional interactions between HOXB13 and MEIS in prostatic cells with a goal of defining how the HOXB13‐MEIS complex impacts PCa pathobiology and define the extent to which the oncogenic activity of G84E is related to its effect on HOXB13‐MEIS interaction/function.
A Hybrid Control with PID–Improved Sliding Mode for Flat-Top of Missile Electromechanical Actuator Systems

Electromechanical actuator (EMA) systems are widely employed in missiles. Due to the influence of the nonlinearities, there is a flat-top of about 64 ms when tracking the small-angle sinusoidal signals, which significantly reduces the performance of the EMA system and even causes the missile trajectory to oscillate. Aiming to solve these problems, this paper presents a hybrid control for flat-top situations. In contrast to the traditional PID or sliding mode controllers that missiles usually use, this paper utilizes improved sliding mode control based on a novel reaching law to eliminate the flat-top during the steering of the input signal, and utilizes the PID control to replace discontinuous control and improve the performance of EMA system. In addition, boundary layer and switching function are employed to solve the high-frequency chattering problem caused by traditional sliding mode control. Experiments indicate that the hybrid control can evidently reduce the flat-top time from 64 ms to 12 ms and eliminate the trajectory limit cycle oscillation. Compared with PID controllers, the proposed controller provides better performance—less chattering, less flat-top, higher precision, and no oscillation.
A Graph Resilience Metric Based On Paths: Higher Order Analytics With GPU

Structural resilience is an inherent, paramount property of real world, massive, scale free graphs such as those typically encountered in brain networks, protein-to-protein interaction diagrams, logistics and supply chains, as well as social media among others. This means that in case a small fraction of edges or even vertices with their incident edges are deleted, then alternative, although possibly longer, paths can be found such that the overall graph connectivity remains intact. This durability, which is constantly exhibited in nature, can be attributed to three main reasons. First, almost by construction, scale free graphs have a relatively high density. Moreover, they have a short diameter or at least an effective diameter. Finally, scale free graphs are recursively built on communities. As a consequence, the effect of a few edge or even vertex deletions inside a community remains isolated there as a rule and the effects of deletion are thus negated. Ultimately these properties stem from the degree distribution. In this conference paper is proposed a new, generic, and scalable graph resilience metric which relies on the weighted sum of the number of paths crossing certain vertices of great communication and structural value. Finally, the CUDA implementation is discussed and compared to a serial one in mex. The metric performance is assessed in terms of total computational time and parallelism.
Evaluating Contemporary Physical Activity Self-Monitoring Technology Performance

Encouraging physical activity is becoming an increasingly relevant issue in modern society. Studies have shown that being involved in regular physical activity is essential for individuals' physical, mental and social development. The field of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has been applied in several areas of research. One of the main domains that utilize the applications of ICT is the health domain. The definition of eHealth has appeared in the literature describing this integrated area of research. Health technologies have been increasingly utilized in physical activity promotion and intervention. Physical Activity Self-Monitoring Technologies (PAMTs) are a popular example of such technologies. New wearable activity monitoring technologies, such as fitness bracelets that track everyday activity, provide a technological solution for promoting active lifestyles. This research presents a pilot test that makes a valuable contribution within the area of valid and accurate trackers in terms of distance walked, using a treadmill walking activity, and a manual counting of steps, taken in a stair climbing activity. This study might assist other researchers in their choice of reliable equipment to use in research that involves reliable and accurate distance and steps calculations.
What Do Pictures Want?: The Lives and Loves of Images

Why do we have such extraordinarily powerful responses toward the images and pictures we see in everyday life? Why do we behave as if pictures were alive, possessing the power to influence us, to demand things from us, to persuade us, seduce us, or even lead us astray? According to W. J. T. Mitchell, we need to reckon with images not just as inert objects that convey meaning but as animated beings with desires, needs, appetites, demands, and drives of their own. "What Do Pictures Want? " explores this idea and highlights Mitchell's innovative and profoundly influential thinking on picture theory and the lives and loves of images. Ranging across the visual arts, literature, and mass media, Mitchell applies characteristically brilliant and wry analyses to Byzantine icons and cyberpunk films, racial stereotypes and public monuments, ancient idols and modern clones, offensive images and found objects, American photography and aboriginal painting. Opening new vistas in iconology and the emergent field of visual culture, he also considers the importance of Dolly the Sheep who, as a clone, fulfills the ancient dream of creating a living image and the destruction of the World Trade Center on 9/11, which, among other things, signifies a new and virulent form of iconoclasm. "What Do Pictures Want? " offers an immensely rich and suggestive account of the interplay between the visible and the readable. A work by one of our leading theorists of visual representation, it will be a touchstone for art historians, literary critics, anthropologists, and philosophers alike. A treasury of episodes generally overlooked by art history and visual studies that turn on images that walk by themselves and exert their own power over the living. Norman Bryson, "Artforum ""