Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Novel Mobile Health Tool for Home-Based Identification of Neonatal Illness in Uganda: Formative Usability Study

Background While early identification of neonatal illness can impact neonatal mortality rates and reduce the burden of treatment, identifying subtle clinical signs and symptoms of possible severe illness is especially challenging in neonates. The World Health Organization and the United Nations Children’s Fund developed the Integrated Management of Neonatal Childhood Illness guidelines, an evidence-based tool highlighting seven danger signs to assess neonatal health. Currently, many mothers in low-resource settings rely on home visits from community health workers (CHWs) to determine if their baby is sick. However, CHWs visit infrequently, and illness is often detected too late to impact survival. Thus, delays in illness identification pose a significant barrier to providing expedient and effective care. Neonatal Monitoring (NeMo), a novel neonatal assessment tool, seeks to increase the frequency of neonatal screening by task-shifting identification of neonatal danger signs from CHWs to mothers. Objective This study aimed to explore the usability and acceptability of the NeMo system among target users and volunteer CHWs by assessing ease of use and learnability. Methods Simulated device use and semistructured interviews were conducted with 32 women in the Iganga-Mayuge districts in eastern Uganda to evaluate the usability of the NeMo system, which involves a smartphone app paired with a low cost, wearable band to aid in identification of neonatal illness. Two versions of the app were evaluated using a mixed methods approach, and version II of the app contained modifications based on observations of the first cohort’s use of the system. During the posed scenario simulations, participants were offered limited guidance from the study team in order to probe the intuitiveness of the NeMo system. The ability to complete a set of tasks with the system was tested and recorded for each participant and closed- and open-ended questions were used to elicit user feedback. Additionally, focus groups with 12 CHWs were conducted to lend additional context and insight to the usability and feasibility assessment. Results A total of 13/22 subjects (59%) using app version I and 9/10 subjects (90%) using app version II were able to use the phone and app with no difficulty, despite varying levels of smartphone experience. Following modifications to the app’s audio instructions in version II, participants’ ability to accurately answer qualitative questions concerning neonatal danger signs improved by at least 200% for each qualitative danger sign. All participants agreed they would trust and use the NeMo system to assess the health of their babies. Furthermore, CHWs emphasized the importance of community sensitization towards the system to encourage its adoption and regular use, as well as the decision to seek care based on its recommendations. Conclusions The NeMo system is an intuitive platform for neonatal assessment in a home setting and was found to be acceptable to women in rural Uganda.
Saving-enhanced performance: saving items after study boosts performance in subsequent cognitively demanding tasks

ABSTRACT By saving and storing information, we use digital devices as our external memory stores, being able to offload and temporarily forget saved contents. Storm and Stone [2015. Saving-enhanced memory: The benefits of saving on the learning and remembering of new information. Psychological Science, 26(2), 182–188] showed that such memory offloading can be beneficial for subsequent memory performance. Saving already encoded items enhanced recall of items encoded after saving. In the present study, we did not only replicate saving-enhanced memory but found saving-enhanced performance for unrelated cognitively demanding tasks. Participants solved more modular arithmetic problems when they were able to offload a previously studied word list, compared to trials without the possibility to offload. Thus, saving of recently encoded items entailed a general benefit on subsequent cognitive performance, beyond encoding and retrieving word lists. We assume that offloading frees participants from the need to maintain offloaded items. Gained resources can then be used for subsequent tasks with high cognitive demands. In a nutshell, memory offloading can help to reduce the amount of information that has to be processed at a given time, efficiently delegating our limited cognitive resources to the most relevant tasks at hand while currently irrelevant information are safely stored outside our own memory.
Ginkgolic acids impairs mitochondrial function by decreasing mitochondrial biogenesis and promoting FUNDC1-dependent mitophagy.

Ginkgolic acids (GA) are found in the leaves, nuts and testa of Ginkgo biloba and have been reported to exhibit anti-tumor, anti-bacterial, and pro-apoptosis acitivities. However, its role in mitochondrial function is still unclear. Our previously study showed that genes related to the mitochondria present significantly changes in GA-treated mouse bone marrow stromal cells. We hypothesize that GA may regulate mitochondrial function. Here, we found that GA treatment induced mitochondrial fragmentation, reduced mtDNA copy nubmers and mitochondrial protein levels, and impaired mitochondrial ATP production and oxygen consumption. The GA induced mitochondrial mass loss maybe due to decreased mitochondrial biogenesis. In addition, abolishing autophagy by Atg7 knockout or the administration of autophagy inhibitor can restore the GA-induced decrease in mitochondrial mass. Furthermore, FUNDC1 knockdown restored the GA-induced changes in mitochondrial mass reduction and mitochondrial membrane potential loss. Together, our studies demonstrated that GA impaired mitochondrial function by decreasing mitochondrial biogenesis and promoting FUNDC1-dependent mitophagy.
Genome-wide analysis of MIKC-type MADS-box genes in wheat: pervasive duplications, functional conservation and putative neofunctionalization.

Wheat (Triticum aestivum) is one of the most important crops worldwide. Given a growing global population coupled with increasingly challenging cultivation conditions, facilitating wheat breeding by fine-tuning important traits is of great importance. MADS-box genes are prime candidates for this, since they are involved in virtually all aspects of plant development. Here, we present a detailed overview of phylogeny and expression of 201 wheat MIKC-type MADS-box genes. Homoeolog retention is significantly above the average genome-wide retention rate for wheat genes, indicating that many MIKC-type homoeologs are functionally important and not redundant. Gene expression is generally in agreement with the expected subfamily-specific expression pattern, indicating broad conservation of function of MIKC-type genes during wheat evolution. We also find extensive expansion of some MIKC-type subfamilies, especially those potentially involved in adaptation to different environmental conditions like flowering time genes. Duplications are especially prominent in distal telomeric regions. A number of MIKC-type genes show novel expression patterns and respond to e.g. biotic stress, pointing towards neofunctionalization. We speculate that conserved, duplicated and neofunctionalized MIKC-type genes may have played an important role in the adaptation of wheat to a diversity of conditions, hence contributing to the importance of wheat as a global staple food. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
Plasmalemma Function is Rapidly Restored in Mdx Muscle after Eccentric Contractions.

PURPOSE Muscle that lacks dystrophin, as in the mdx mouse, has a heightened sensitivity to eccentric (ECC) contraction-induced strength loss, but an enhanced rate of recovery. However, the timeline and mechanisms underlying why mdx muscle recovers quicker has yet to be determined. We used an electromyographic (EMG) approach to analyze plasmalemma electrophysiological function during and following ECC contraction-induced injury to test the hypothesis that loss of plasmalemmal excitability is a transient event in mdx muscle. METHODS Mice were implanted with stimulating electrodes on the common peroneal nerve and EMG electrodes on the tibialis anterior muscle. Anterior crural muscles of anesthetized mice performed 1 or 2 bouts of 50 injurious ECC contractions, and recovery of maximal isometric torque and M-wave root mean square (M-wave RMS) were assessed following each bout. RESULTS Maximal isometric torque and M-wave RMS were equally reduced 62% (P < 0.001) in mdx mice immediately following the initial ECC injury. For these mdx mice, M-wave RMS was still reduced at 2 days post-injury (P = 0.034) but was not different from pre-injury values by 6 days (P = 0.106), while torque took up to 9 days to recover (P = 0.333). M-wave RMS did not change (P = 0.390) in wildtype mice in response to ECC injury while torque decreased 35% (P < 0.001) and recovered by day 2 (P = 0.311). Results from the second bout of ECC contractions were similar to those observed during and after the initial injury. CONCLUSION Functional dystrophin is necessary for excitation to occur at the plasmalemma during ECC contractions but is not essential for complete recovery of plasmalemma electrophysiological function or maximal isometric strength.
Hormonal Replacement Therapy in Menopausal Women with History of Endometriosis: A Review of Literature

Hormonal replacement therapy (HRT) is effective in treating the symptoms of menopause. Endometriosis is defined as the presence of functional endometrial tissue outside the uterine cavity with a tendency towards invasion and infiltration. Being an estrogen-dependent disease, it tends to regress after menopause. Nevertheless, it affects up to 2.2% of postmenopausal women. Conclusive data are not available in the literature on the appropriateness of HRT in women with endometriosis or a past history of the disease. The hypothesis that exogenous estrogen stimulation could reactivate endometriotic foci has been proposed. The aim of this state-of-the-art review was to revise the current literature about endometriosis in perimenopause and menopause and to investigate the possible role of HRT in this setting of patients. An electronic databases search (MEDLINE, Scopus, ClinicalTrials.gov, EMBASE, Sciencedirect, the Cochrane Library at the CENTRAL Register of Controlled Trials, Scielo) was performed, with the date range of from each database’s inception until May 2019. All of the studies evaluating the impact of different HRT regimens in patients with a history of endometriosis were selected. 45 articles were found: one Cochrane systematic review, one systematic review, five narrative reviews, two clinical trials, two retrospective cohort studies, 34 case reports and case series. Some authors reported an increased risk of malignant transformation of endometriomas after menopause in patients assuming HRT with unopposed estrogen. Low-quality evidence suggests that HRT can be prescribed to symptomatic women with a history of endometriosis, especially in young patients with premature menopause. Continuous or cyclic combined preparations or tibolone are the best choices. HRT improves quality of life in symptomatic post-menopausal women, who should not be denied the replacement therapy only due to their history of endometriosis. Based on low-grade literature evidence, we recommend to prescribe combined HRT schemes; tibolone could be considered.
Hurry up and get out of the way!: Exploring the limits of muscle-based latch systems for power amplification.

Animals can amplify the mechanical power output of their muscles as they jump to escape predators or strike to capture prey. One mechanism for amplification involves muscle-tendon unit (MT) systems in which a spring element (SEE) is pre-stretched while held in place by a 'latch' that prevents immediate transmission of muscle (or contractile element, CE) power to the load. In principle, this storage phase is followed by a triggered release of the latch, and elastic energy released from the SEE enables power amplification (PRATIO=PLOAD/PCE,max >1.0), whereby the peak power delivered from MT to the load exceeds the maximum power limit of the CE in isolation. Latches enable power amplification by increasing the muscle work generated during storage and reducing the duration over which that stored energy is released to power a movement. Previously described biological 'latches' include: skeletal levers, anatomical triggers, accessory appendages and even antagonist muscles. In fact, many species that rely on high-powered movements also have a large number of muscles arranged in antagonist pairs. Here, we examine whether a decaying antagonist force (e.g., from a muscle) could be useful as an active latch to achieve controlled energy transmission and modulate peak output power. We developed a computer model of a frog hindlimb driven by a compliant MT. We simulated MT power generated against an inertial load in the presence of an antagonist force 'latch' (AFL) with relaxation time varying from very fast (10ms) to very slow (1000ms) to mirror physiological ranges of antagonist muscle. The fastest AFL produced power amplification (PRATIO =5.0) while the slowest AFL produced power attenuation (PRATIO =0.43). Notably, AFLs with relaxation times shorter than ∼300ms also yielded greater power amplification (PRATIO>1.20) than the system driving the same inertial load using only an agonist MT without any AFL. Thus, animals that utilize a sufficiently fast relaxing AFL ought to be capable of achieving greater power output than systems confined to a single agonist MT tuned for maximum PRATIO against the same load.
Feasibility of Core Antimicrobial Stewardship Interventions in Community Hospitals

Key Points Question Are 2 core Infectious Diseases Society of America–recommended antimicrobial stewardship strategies, preauthorization (PA) and postprescription audit and review (PPR), feasible in community hospitals? Findings Among 2692 patients in this multicenter nonrandomized clinical trial with crossover design, PPR and a modified PA strategy were feasible; strict PA was not feasible. Postprescription audit and review decreased antimicrobial use and identified more inappropriate antimicrobial therapy, led to more direct interactions with clinicians, and resulted in more antimicrobial de-escalation than the modified PA strategy. Meaning Postprescription audit and review is a feasible and effective strategy for antimicrobial stewardship in settings with limited resources and expertise.
SPATIAL DISTRIBUTION OF CHORIOCAPILLARIS IMPAIRMENT IN EYES WITH CHOROIDAL NEOVASCULARIZATION SECONDARY TO AGE-RELATED MACULAR DEGENERATION: A Quantitative OCT Angiography Study.

PURPOSE To develop an optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA)-based framework for quantitatively analyzing the spatial distribution of choriocapillaris (CC) impairment around choroidal neovascularization (CNV) secondary to age-related macular degeneration. METHODS In a retrospective, cross-sectional study, 400-kHz swept-source OCTA images from 7 eyes of 6 patients with CNV secondary to age-related macular degeneration were quantitatively analyzed using custom software. A lesion-centered zonal OCTA analysis technique-which portioned the field-of-view into zones relative to CNV boundaries-was developed to quantify the spatial dependence of CC flow deficits. RESULTS Quantitative, lesion-centered zonal analysis of CC OCTA images revealed highest flow-deficit percentages near CNV boundaries, decreasing in zones farther from the boundaries. Optical coherence tomography angiography using shorter (1.5 ms) interscan times revealed more severe flow deficits than OCTA using longer (3.0 ms) interscan times; however, spatial trends were similar for both interscan times. A detailed description of the OCTA processing steps and parameters was provided so as to elucidate their influence on quantitative measurements. CONCLUSION Impairment of the CC, assessed by flow-deficit percentages, was most prominent closest to CNV boundaries. The lesion-centered zonal analysis technique enabled quantitative CC measurements relative to focal lesions. Understanding how processing steps, imaging/processing parameters, and artifacts can affect quantitative CC measurements is important for longitudinal, OCTA-based studies of disease progression, and treatment response.
A significant upsurge of body mass index in patients with chronic hepatitis C successfully treated with direct-acting antiviral regimens.

BACKGROUND/AIMS There is less data regarding the changes in body mass index (BMI) after treating hepatitis C virus (HCV) patients with new direct-acting antiviral agents (DAAs). This study aimed to assess the changes in BMI in chronic HCV patients treated with DAAs in Egypt and to explore other factors influencing this change. MATERIALS AND METHODS The data of chronic HCV patients who received antiviral therapy with new DAAs in one of Egypt's specialized viral hepatitis treatment centers were retrospectively analyzed. In addition to the routine clinical and laboratory workup, changes in body weight during and after treatment were monitored and BMI was calculated. Viral load was measured at 12 weeks post-treatment to assess a sustained virological response. Patients with documented thyroid abnormalities, bariatric surgery, or ensuing special diets were excluded. BMI of >30 was taken as the cutoff for pa¬tients with obesity. RESULTS The study included 162 patients with a mean age of 48.56±11.49 years, of whom 61.1% were males, 16% were treatment-experienced, 12% were diabetic, and 29% were obese. Treatment duration was 12 weeks in 84% of patients and 24 weeks in 16% of patients. There was a significant increase in BMI post-treatment as compared to pretreatment measures (28.68±5.35 vs 28.18±4.55) (p=0.03). BMI changes were constant regardless of cirrhosis or previous treatment experience. CONCLUSION Treatment of chronic HCV with DAAs was associated with increased body mass index. Further studies are needed to explore if this effect is secondary to treatment with DAAs or is an improvement in the liver function and lifestyle of treated patients.
Nutrition‐related interventions targeting childhood overweight and obesity: A narrative review

Systematic reviews of nutritional interventions indicate limited efficacy in reducing childhood obesity, but their blanket conclusions could obscure promising components. This narrative review sought more detail on effective components within nutrition‐related interventions involving children aged 2 to 11 years. In May 2016, the World Health Organization (WHO) searched the Cochrane Library and PubMed for relevant reviews. From 36 reviews, we screened 182 nutrition‐related randomized trials for inclusion. We then reviewed those that reported at least 1 statistically significant (P < 0.05) treatment benefit on body weight and/or composition outcomes at their longest follow‐up assessment. Fourteen trials met inclusion criteria (median n = 554; mean intervention duration = 10.8 mo; follow‐up = 4.4 mo). “Effective” approaches included environmental changes such as school water fountain installations and cafeteria menu changes and possibly less sustainable strategies such as health education lessons. However, effect sizes even of these selected significant treatment benefits were modest—significant body mass index z‐score effects range from −0.1 to −0.2. Each trial was associated with very small improvements in body composition. Because this is a “best‐case” scenario (reflecting our design), trialists should rigorously test these strategies alone and possibly together; be open to novel strategies; and ensure that each strategy is culturally relevant and self‐sustainable.
Oral Care Experiences of Latino Parents/Caregivers with Children with Autism and with Typically Developing Children

As a result of various barriers, several pediatric populations are at risk for poor oral health, including children with disabilities and children from under-represented populations, such as Latinos. To this end, this study aimed to better understand the factors that affect the oral health experiences of 32 Latino parents/caregivers from 18 families (n = 8 with a typically developing child and n = 10 with a child with Autism). Using a qualitative descriptive methodology, each family was interviewed twice. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and coded thematically to identify the individual, social, systemic, and culturally rooted factors contributing to oral health disparities in the families. The three themes that arose were “Why would I want to start trouble? ”: Latino parents’ dissatisfaction with dental treatments, costs, and fear of the dentist and health care providers because of their ethnic minority status as key factors inhibiting receipt of dental care; “We have to put our children first”: prioritizing the oral care activities of their children over their own individual oral care needs; and “We always keep baking soda around”: familial and cultural influences on oral care habits. Understanding the oral health beliefs and experiences of Latino parents and caregivers of children with and without autism is critical for developing targeted prevention and intervention programs and reducing oral health disparities.
Enrichment drives emergence of functional columns and improves sensory coding in the whisker map in L2/3 of mouse S1

Sensory maps in layer (L) 2/3 of rodent cortex lack precise functional column boundaries, and instead exhibit locally heterogeneous (salt-and-pepper) tuning superimposed on smooth global topography. Could this organization be a byproduct of impoverished experience in laboratory housing? We compared whisker map somatotopy in L2/3 and L4 excitatory cells of somatosensory (S1) cortex in normally housed vs. tactile-enriched mice, using GCaMP6s imaging. Normally housed mice had a dispersed, salt-and-pepper whisker map in L2/3, but L4 was more topographically precise. Enrichment (P21 to P46-71) sharpened whisker tuning and decreased, but did not abolish, local tuning heterogeneity. In L2/3, enrichment strengthened and sharpened whisker point representations, and created functional boundaries of tuning similarity and noise correlations at column edges. Thus, enrichment drives emergence of functional columnar topography in S1, and reduces local tuning heterogeneity. These changes predict better touch detection by neural populations within each column.
Occupational swine exposure and Hepatitis E virus, Leptospira, Ascaris suum seropositivity and MRSA colonization in Austrian veterinarians, 2017–2018—A cross‐sectional study

We investigated the prevalence of Hepatitis E Virus (HEV), Leptospira and Ascaris suum (A. suum) seropositivity, and of nasal methicillin‐resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) colonization among Austrian practising veterinarians, and assessed the association with occupational swine livestock exposure. The 261 participants completed a questionnaire on demographics, intensity of occupational swine livestock contact and glove use during handling animals and their secretions. Participants' blood samples were tested for HEV, Leptospira and A. suum seropositivity and nasal swabs cultured for MRSA. We compared swine veterinarians (defined as >3 swine livestock visits/week) to non‐swine veterinarians (≤3 swine livestock visits/week) with regard to the outcomes through calculating prevalence ratio (PR) and 95% confidence interval (CI). Furthermore, the relationship between occupational swine livestock contact and the study outcomes was examined by age (3 occupational swine livestock visits per week is associated with HEV and A. suum seropositivity and nasal MRSA colonization and that glove use may play a putative preventive role in acquiring HEV and A. suum. Further analytical epidemiological studies have to prove the causality of these associations.