Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Association between ultra-processed foods frequency of intake and sarcopenia in older adults: a cross-sectional study

Ultra-processed foods (UP) are frequently associated with poor diet quality and lack many nutrients necessary for skeletal muscle health, which could contribute to developing sarcopenia. However, investigations about possible associations between the intake of UP and sarcopenia are missing. This study aimed to describe the magnitude of the exposition to UP (eating frequency) and compare it in older adults with and without sarcopenia. It also described associations between the magnitude of exposition of UP with body composition markers of sarcopenia in all subjects. It was a cross-sectional study with a sample of 118 community-dwelling older adults. Body composition was accessed by Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and UP intake by a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). All foods in the FFQ were categorized into two groups: (1) non-UP and (2) UP. SCORE I (mean score for food group 1) and SCORE II (mean score for food group 2) were calculated. The eating frequency of UP was near 3 to 4x/week and higher for sarcopenic subjects (p<0.05). Subjects consuming UP more than 1-2x/week were more likely to be sarcopenic than those consuming less than 1-2x/week. Therefore, sarcopenic subjects were more exposed to UP. In addition, even at a low exposition, the intake of UP increases the chances of developing sarcopenia in older adults.
Assessment of the Impact of a Firm’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) on its Profitability in Nigeria: A Case Study of Akure Firms in Ondo State

This study critically examined the impact of a firm’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) on its profitability in Nigeria. The specific objective of the study was to assess the effect of customer orientation on the performance of SMEs in South West, Nigeria; examine the effect of competitor orientation on the performance of SMEs in South West, Nigeria and investigate the effect of inter-functional coordination the on the performance of SMEs in Ondo state, Nigeria. A descriptive survey research design was adopted and the population of the study covered all the 23,289 SMEs across all the states in the South West region of Nigeria; out of which, 393 small and medium scale enterprises’ owners were selected using the Yamane model (1967). An adapted questionnaire was used and it was subjected to a validity and reliability test. Data gathered via the questionnaire was analyzed using frequency and percentage for background information of the respondents and items on the questions, Pearson correlation to show the relationship between the predictor and outcome variable and simple linear regression to reveal the effect of all the predictors on the outcome variable. The result of the analysis revealed that customer orientation has a positive and significant effect on the performance of Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs) in South West, Nigeria to the tune of 0.302(p=0.000<0.05), Thus, it was concluded that all the predictors (customer orientation, competitor orientation and inter-functional orientation) have a positive and significant effect on the performance of SMEs in South West, Nigeria.
Bursting dynamics and topological structure of in vitro neuronal networks

The complex relationship between network structure and dynamics is investigated in neuronal networks in vitro. The most prominent dynamics in these cultured networks is synchronous bursting. As the onset of these bursts has recently been shown to be highly non-random, we study this part of the dynamics to understand the extent to which it is determined by the network structure. We find that, in silico, one can predict the expected first firing time of a given neuron relative to the burst onset with high accuracy, by taking its topological neighborhood into account. This highlights the strong impact of network structure on neuronal dynamics and leads to the question to what extent we can determine the network structure based on observing a period of dynamics. The measure of choice is calcium fluorescence imaging, which allows for the simultaneous recording from thousands of neurons. We find that the causal influences between pairs of cells depend on the dynamical state of the network. A very good overlap between structural and effective connectivity, and thus a good reconstruction, can nonetheless be achieved by a novel measure of causality which we propose. We call this measure Generalized Transfer Entropy. We finally demonstrate the self-consistency of our approach by predicting dynamics based on the reconstructed topology.
RESPONSE OF PEARLMILLET CULTIVARS TO DIFFERENT MOISTURE CONSERVATION PRACTICES UNDER RAINFED CONDITION ON LIGHT TEXTURED SOIL OF CENTRAL UTTAR PRADESH, INDIA

A field experiment was conducted during kharif seasons of 2018 and 2019 at Soil Conservation and Water Management Farm of C.S. Azad University of Agriculture and Technology, Kanpur, to study the performance of pearlmillet cultivars under varying moisture conservation practices in terms of production, total water use, water use efficiency and root development under rainfed condition. Results revealed that among cultivars, 'Krishna-834' considered to be the most promising in terms of yield, WUE, root development, net return and B:C ratio. One weeding and hoeing + organic residue mulch @ 4 t ha-1 on soil surface at 25 DAS brought out significantly higher production as compared to ridging and furrowing as well as one weeding and hoeing practices. The roots plant-1 , dry weight of roots plant-1, soil moisture status, WUE and net return were also the highest, where mulching practice was taken as moisture conservation practice.
A Rare Case of Hashimoto’s Encephalopathy With Mosaic Turner Syndrome

Mosaicism in Turner syndrome (TS) is a 20%-30% occurrence, with 45, X plus at least another cell line. The haploinsufficiency of the X chromosome is usually responsible for the higher risk of autoimmunity in TS, exhibiting mainly as thyroiditis, type 1 diabetes, etc. Though Hashimoto’s thyroiditis is commonly seen in patients with TS, the concurrence of encephalopathy in these patients is significantly rare and has not been reported. We present a case of a young female with mosaic TS who presented with altered mental status. The initial workup was negative for stroke and pulmonary embolism and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) analysis did not show any infectious etiology. Thyroid peroxidase (TPO) antibodies (Abs) and thyroglobulin Abs were elevated. As the patient’s mental status deteriorated, there was a concern for Hashimoto’s encephalopathy (HE), hence the patient was started on high-dose IV steroids. Within 24 hours, the patient responded to the IV steroids and an improvement in mentation was noted. HE is a rare immune-mediated disorder, characterized by impaired brain function. The onset of which can be rapid or slowly developing over the course of many years but responds effectively to steroids. Turner syndrome is associated with a high incidence of autoimmune disorders, thus in the setting of a negative workup for more obvious causes, HE should be a consideration when encountered in a clinical scenario.
Sexual Debut, Sexual Education, Abortion, Awareness and Prevalence of Contraceptive Among Female Undergraduates Students in Public and Private Universities in Ekiti State, Nigeria

Introduction Of the 182 million annual pregnancies in developing countries, 76 million are unintended and 66% of these are among non-users of contraception. Unintended pregnancy is a risk factor for abortion, disruption of education, future unemployment, and poor socio-economic status. This study aimed to determine the age of sexual debut, sexual education, abortion, awareness, and prevalence of contraceptives among female undergraduate students in public and private universities in Ekiti State. Methods A comparative cross-sectional study was carried out among 418 [public (208) and private (210)] female university undergraduate students in Ekiti State using a multi-stage sampling technique. Data was gathered using a semi-structured questionnaire and analyzed using SPSS (IBM Corp. Released 2015. IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 23.0. Armonk, NY: IBM Corp). Chi-square was used to assess the association between dependent and independent variables at the bivariate level of analysis. P-value<0.05 was taken as significant. Results The mean age of respondents was 21.1±2.5 years in the public univeristy and 19.3±2.1 years in the private university. About 53.8% of students in the public university have been engaged in sexual intercourse as against 30% of students in the private university. The mean age at first sexual debut was lower in the public university (14.2±4.1 years) than in the private university (16.9±3.3 years) while more public university students (87.5%) had access to sexual education than their counterparts at the private university (79.0%). Of those who had ever been pregnant in public university (18.8%), about four-fifth (81.1%) of them had an abortion while all those who ever got pregnant (15.9%) in private university had an abortion. All the respondents in both universities were aware of contraception with the majority getting to know through social media. The prevalence of contraceptive use was lower among public university students (39.3%) than those in the private university (60.3%). Conclusion Mean age at sexual debut and rate of abortion were lower in public university students than in private. While access to sexual education was higher in the public university than in the private university, the prevalence of contraceptive use was lower in the public university. Therefore it is recommended that the government and other relevant stakeholders need to institute continuous awareness campaign programs to increase contraception uptake and reduce the prevalence and effect of unwanted pregnancy as a result of unprotected sexual activities.
Asymmetric Impact of Corporate Tax on Stock Market Development: Evidence from The Nonlinear Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) Approach

ABSTRACT:The stock market and tax policy are widely considered as two core factors for economic growth in any country. A well-developed and functioning stock market provides information on profit-making of successful investment projects, risk diversification, and efficient resource allocation. In addition to domestic resources, the stock market is also considered a crucial part of the global economy. In recent years most OECD countries, including the United States, have substantially reduced their corporate tax rates to stimulate investments, attract foreign capital, and achieve higher economic growth. Corporate tax cuts in a country are expected to positively affect stock market development by encouraging domestic investments and allowing for profit repatriation by multinational companies and foreign firms which will effectively lead to higher stock market development. Despite an extensive literature examining effects of tax policy and the stock market on economic growth, only a few studies have investigated the relationship between corporate tax rate and stock market development, and these studies have shown mixed results. This study investigates the link between corporate tax and stock market development for a group of nine selected OECD countries for the period of 1980-2018 using both long-run and short-run models. In addition to the Pesaran, Shin and Smith (2001) bounds testing approach to cointegration and error correction modeling using the linear ARDL model, we employ the Shin, Yu and Greenwood-Nimmo (2014) nonlinear cointegration approach to investigate the asymmetric impact of corporate tax changes on stock market development. Our findings indicate that, in the linear model in most of countries in this sample, corporate taxing adversely affects stock market development both in the short run and in the long run. In addition, as the first study using the N-ARDL estimation method to investigate this relationship, the robust and strong statistical results show that the effect of corporate tax on stock market development as a major part of financial market development is asymmetric. We show that corporate tax policies in the short run have a nonlinear, asymmetric impact on stock market development. The magnitude of the impact depends on whether the tax policy is a decrease or an increase in corporate tax. Furthermore, this effect changes among the countries in our study. For instance, the stock market's reaction to an increase of corporate taxing in the United States is much more rapid than that of decreases of corporate taxing. Corporate tax increases immediately and strongly affect the stock market, but the stock market takes years to incorporate the effect of tax decreases.
Findings and Ethical Considerations From a Thematic Analysis of Threads Within Tinnitus Online Support Groups

Purpose: Tinnitus is the perception of noise without a corresponding external stimulus. Current management typically aims to moderate associated psychosocial stressors and allow sufferers to retain an adequate quality of life. With the increasing recognition of the Internet as a repository for health advice, information, and support, the online support group has become a popular coping strategy for those living with chronic conditions such as tinnitus. Patients find that communicating with each other, providing encouragement, and sharing information in the absence of physical and temporal boundaries are invaluable ways of managing their condition. The purpose of this study was to explore the potential positive and negative consequences of participating in online support groups for tinnitus. Method: Discussion forum threads were collated from across 4 public online support group websites. All threads were initiated between February and April 2016. Texts from these threads were coded by 3 separate analysts using both inductive and deductive thematic analysis, until data saturation was reached. Results: Analysis of 75 threads (641 individual posts) found 9 independent themes pertaining to aspects of participation in tinnitus online support groups. The results revealed that using the forums allowed users to exchange knowledge and experiences, express complex emotions, profit from a network of support, and engage in everyday conversation away from the burden of their tinnitus. However, some experiences appeared to be compromised by negative messages, limited communication, and informational issues such as conflicting advice or information overload. Conclusions: This study represents the 1st research into discussion forums in tinnitus online support groups. A nonintrusive (passive) analysis method was used, whereby messages comprising the dataset were retrieved without direct interaction with the discussion forum. Individuals and the community of tinnitus online support groups are deemed to be at low risk from potential harm in this study. Most tinnitus patients likely benefit from accessing online support groups, for example, they discover they are not alone, and they find new coping strategies. However, for those who are particularly vulnerable or prone to psychological stress, accessing these groups could be detrimental.
Low STI Knowledge, Risk Perception, and Concern about Infection among Men Who Have Sex with Men and Transgender Women at High Risk of Infection

Background: Amidst an increase in STI rates among men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgender women (TGW), there is little research on STI knowledge, risk perception, and concern about infection in these populations. Methods: This mixed-methods study explored these constructs among sixty racially-and ethnically diverse MSM and TGW who regularly engage in condomless anal intercourse with multiple partners. Results: Participants had a mean age of 40.63 years. Most (95%) identified as a man and as gay/ homosexual (73%); 55% were college graduates. Almost half of respondents reported a prior STI. Participants correctly answered a mean of 55.36% STI- and 76.90% HIV-knowledge items. STI knowledge was positively correlated with education and prior HIV tests, and was higher among those with a prior STI. During in-depth interviews, some participants expressed concerns about limited knowledge of STIs and syphilis. Half reported low concern about syphilis infection, due to prior treatment that was perceived as relatively simple, lack of STI infection in the past, erroneous information about transmission routes, or simply not thinking about it. Conclusions: Among this high risk sample who perceived themselves to be at low risk of infection, knowledge was primarily gained through being diagnosed and treated for an STI, rather than from acquiring knowledge to prevent STI infection. Participants expressed interest in increasing their STI knowledge and recognized the importance of regular STI testing. Dissemination of targeted information about STI prevention, routinizing of STI testing, and STI self-testing might contribute to decreasing STI infection rates among this population. Abstract Amidst a sharp increase in rates of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), there is little research on STI knowledge, risk perception, and concern about infection among men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgender women (TGW) at high risk of infection. Participants had limited knowledge of STIs, perceived themselves to be at low risk of infection, and many expressed low concern about infection. Dissemination of targeted information about STI prevention, routinizing of STI testing, and STI self-testing might contribute to decreasing STI infection rates among this population.
Piezoelectric and ferroelectric properties of Cu-doped K0.5Na0.5NbO3 lead-free ceramics

CuO-doped K0.5Na0.5NbO3 (K0.5Na0.5NbO3 + x mol% CuO) lead-free ceramics have been prepared by an ordinary sintering technique. The results of x-ray diffraction patterns show that all the ceramics possess a pure pervoskite structure with orthorhombic symmetry. Based on the symmetry-conforming principle of point defects, defect dipoles are formed by the acceptor dopant ions Cu2+ and O2− vacancies along the polarization direction and remain in the original orientation, providing a restoring force to reverse the switched polarization, which results in double polarization-electric hysteresis loops for the ceramics with x ≥ 0.50 at 100 Hz. That is, the ferroelectric dipoles are back to their original orientation on the removal of electric field due to the strong restoring force generated by defect dipoles. As a result, the ceramics (x ≥ 0.5) become considerably ‘hardened’ and possess an extraordinarily high Qm (825–2523) and simultaneously the other piezoelectric properties remain reasonably good (kp = 39%, kt = 47% and d33 = 82 pC N−1).
Oncolytic Viruses as Antigen Agnostic Tumor Vaccines

Selective destruction of neoplastic tissues by oncolytic viruses (OV) leads to antigen-agnostic boosting of neoantigen-specific cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) responses, making OV ideal companions for checkpoint blockade therapy. Here we discuss the mechanisms whereby OV modulate both adjuvanticity and antigenicity of tumor cells. Suppression of antitumor immunity after OV therapy has not been observed, possibly because viral antigen expression diminishes as the antiviral response matures, thereby progressively honing the CTL response to tumor neoantigens. By combining direct in situ tumor destruction with the ability to boost antitumor immunity, OVs also have the potential to be powerful standalone cancer therapies.
The Effect of Active Learning Strategies on EFL Tenth-Grade Students' Reading Comprehension

This study aimed at investigating the effect of active learning strategies on Jordanian EFL tenth-grade students' reading comprehension. A sample of 50 male students were distributed randomly into an experimental and a control groups of 25 students each. Four active learning strategies (viz., SQ3R, brainstorming scaffolded instruction, and snowball throwing)were used to instruct the experimental group whereas the control group was taught by the teaching strategies in the teacher’s book. The data were collected using a quasi-experimental approach design through a pre-post-test for both control and experimental groups. In terms of data analysis, One-way MANCOVA and One-way ANCOVA were used to answer the research question. The findings revealed significant differences between the two groups' performance in the post-test in favor of the experimental group. Therefore, the researcher recommends using the selected ALSs on different EFL skills and different levels of students.
Meta-atom Micro uidic Sensor for Highly Sensitive Cell Detection

A meta-atom microfluidic-based sensor (MAMS) for detecting, enumerating and differentiating cancer cells is proposed. A microfluidic constriction channel is placed between the gaps of a two-gap split ring resonator (SRR). This two-gap SRR is implemented in a way that is sensitive to the stiffness of the cell which is passing through the constriction channel. With passing a cell through the channel, geometrical features of the SRR changes, and these changes are reflected in the device output. In addition, dielectric properties of the cells passing through the constriction channel, changes the sensor output upon electromagnetic excitation of the SRR. As both stiffness and relative permittivity of the cell, which are biosignatures of a cell, determines the output characteristics of the sensor, this labelfree assay can almost perfectly distinguish between different cancer cells and normal cells with high sensitivity. Sensor function is simulated and analyzed, as proof of concept, to show the effectiveness and high sensitivity of the device in differentiating of cells with different dielectric and stiffness properties.
Pericapsular Nerve Group Block: An Evidence-Based Discussion

local anaesthetic following PENG block. Tran et al performed the PENG block in a cadaveric specimen, injecting methylene and observing the staining pattern within the hip joint. The dye spread in the bursal space between the iliopsoas and anterior hip and stained the anterior hip joint capsule. further research is required to verify these results and determine the optimal volume of local anaesthetic for the block, support that the block successfully captures the articular branches of the femoral, obturator and accessory nerves,
Investigation of Fusion Image Enhancement Methods for Satellite Image

Satellite images are used in various applications. Satellite images acquired are generally blurry and noisy. Thus enhancement of images is a needed process. It is a strong research topic in Image processing. Main motive behind enhancement is to get an image more effective than the original image for different remote sensing applications. Various choices of techniques are available for improving quality of satellite images. Here, enhancement by machine learning methods for image fusion acts a prominent role. It efficiently combines image content and then enhances information present in each datasets. This article provides overviews of the existing fusion enhancement techniques. Till now various techniques have been proposed for enhancing digital images. Some of them can be used for enhancing satellite images. It was found that fusion-based enhancement performs better than non-fusion based enhancement techniques. This review paper will give a survey of various fusion-based enhancement techniques. Based on application best methods among various techniques have been discussed.