Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Immunoglobulin A Isotype of Antiphospholipid Antibodies Does Not Provide Added Value for the Diagnosis of Antiphospholipid Syndrome in a Chinese Population

Objective Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) is characterized by the presence of anti-phospholipid (aPL) antibodies. However, the relationship between the immunoglobulin (Ig) A isotype of aPL positivity and its clinical utility in APS diagnosis is controversial. Presently, we determine the clinical utility of IgA–aPL from consecutive patients in a large cohort from the Chinese population and patients with APS whose aPL profiles were obtained. Methods The detection of anticardiolipin (aCL) and anti-β2 glycoprotein-Ⅰ (aβ2GPⅠ) antibodies of the IgA/IgG/IgM isotype by paramagnetic particle chemiluminescent immunoassay was carried out in sera from 7293 subjects. 153 primary APS (PAPS) patients and 59 patients with secondary APS (SAPS) were included in this study. Results In total, 1,082 out of 7,293 (2.55%) subjects had a positive IgA–aPL test, and the prevalence of isolated IgA–aPL was 0.29% (21/7,293) in the general population. The prevalence of IgA–aPL in the PAPS patients was 12.42% (19/153); however, only one patient (0.65%) presented with isolated IgA–aPL. Fifty (25.9%) of the SAPS had IgA–aPL, none of whom lacked IgG/IgM–aPL. The combination of the IgA isotype and the IgG/IgM isotype did not increase the diagnostic performance when compared with the IgG/IgM isotype of aCL or aβ2GPⅠ, respectively. IgA–aPL was not associated with clinical manifestation in patients with APS. Conclusion Isolated IgA–aPL is rare in the general population as well as in patients with APS. Whether in the laboratory or in clinical practice, the presence of IgA–aPL does not provide added value for the diagnosis of APS in the Chinese population.
Effects of Interleukin-1β Inhibition on Incident Hip and Knee Replacement

BACKGROUND Osteoarthritis is a common inflammatory disorder with no disease-modifying therapies. Whether inhibition of interleukin-1β (IL-1β) can reduce the consequences of large joint osteoarthritis is unclear. OBJECTIVE To determine whether IL-1β inhibition with canakinumab reduces incident total hip or knee replacement (THR/TKR). DESIGN Exploratory analysis of a randomized trial. (ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT01327846). SETTING 1091 clinical sites in 39 countries. PARTICIPANTS 10 061 CANTOS (Canakinumab Anti-inflammatory Thrombosis Outcomes Study) participants. INTERVENTION Random allocation to placebo or canakinumab (50, 150, or 300 mg) subcutaneously once every 3 months. MEASUREMENTS The primary and secondary outcomes were time to first incident THR/TKR and time to first occurrence of an osteoarthritis-related adverse event (AE). Data were obtained through blinded ascertainment of trial clinical and safety databases. RESULTS Median follow-up was 3.7 years. For the individual canakinumab dose groups, compared with placebo, hazard ratios (HRs) for incident THR/TKR during follow-up were 0.60 (95% CI, 0.38 to 0.95) for the 50-mg group, 0.53 (CI, 0.33 to 0.84) for the 150-mg group, and 0.60 (CI, 0.38 to 0.93) for the 300-mg group. Thus, in the pooled canakinumab groups, compared with the placebo group, incidence rates for THR/TKR were 0.31 and 0.54 events per 100 person-years (HR, 0.58 [CI, 0.42 to 0.80]; P = 0.001), respectively. The HR for the secondary end point of osteoarthritis-related AEs was 0.73 (CI, 0.61 to 0.87). Similar findings were observed in analyses restricted to participants with a history of osteoarthritis. LIMITATION Because the parent trial was not designed to examine the efficacy of IL-1β inhibitors in osteoarthritis, information on structural joint outcomes was not collected. CONCLUSION Findings from this exploratory analysis of a randomized controlled trial support further investigation of IL-1β inhibition for treatment of large joint osteoarthritis. PRIMARY FUNDING SOURCE Novartis Pharmaceuticals.
Interaction of Alpha-Synuclein With Lipids: Mitochondrial Cardiolipin as a Critical Player in the Pathogenesis of Parkinson’s Disease

Alpha-Synuclein (α-Syn) is a central protein in the pathogenesis of synucleinopathies, a group of neurodegenerative disorders including Parkinson’s disease (PD). Although its role in neurotransmission is well established, the precise role of this protein in disease pathogenesis is still not fully understood. It is, however, widely regarded to be associated with the misfolding and accumulation of toxic intracellular aggregates. In fact, α-Syn is the most abundant protein component of Lewy bodies and Lewy neurites, which are also characterized by a high lipid content. Lipids, the main constituents of cellular membranes, have been implicated in many aspects of PD-related processes. α-Syn interacts with membrane phospholipids and free fatty acids via its N-terminal domain, and altered lipid-protein complexes might enhance both its binding to synaptic and mitochondrial membranes and its oligomerization. Several studies have highlighted a specific interaction of α-Syn with the phospholipid cardiolipin (CL), a major constituent of mitochondrial membranes. By interacting with CL, α-Syn is able to disrupt mitochondrial membrane integrity, leading to mitochondrial dysfunction. Additionally, externalized CL is able to facilitate the refolding of toxic α-Syn species at the outer mitochondrial membrane. In this review, we discuss how α-Syn/lipid interactions, in particular the α-Syn/CL interaction at the mitochondrial membrane, may affect α-Syn aggregation and mitochondrial dysfunction and may thus represent an important mechanism in the pathogenesis of PD.
Progranulin and TMEM106B: when two become wan

Mutations in GRN, which encodes progranulin, are a common cause of familial frontotemporal dementia (FTD). FTD is a devastating disease characterised by neuronal loss in the frontal and temporal lobes that leads to changes in personality, behaviour and language. There are no effective treatments for this complex condition. TMEM106B is a well‐recognised risk factor for FTD caused by GRN mutation. While the specific relationship between progranulin and TMEM106B is unclear, it is well established that they are both required for correct lysosome function and trafficking. Elegant experiments have suggested that increased risk for FTD is due to elevated levels of TMEM106B (Nicholson et al, 2013; Gallagher et al, 2017). Therefore, recent work has explored the therapeutic potential of reducing TMEM106B levels, with initial results looking encouraging, as crossing a Grn‐deficient mouse to a Tmem106b knockout showed a rescue in FTD‐related behavioural defects and specific aspects of lysosome dysfunction (Klein et al, 2017). However, three independent studies in this issue report that completely removing Tmem106b from Grn knockout mice leads to clear exacerbation of phenotypes, causing severe motor deficits, neurodegeneration and enhanced lysosome abnormalities and gliosis. Remarkably, the double knockout mice also develop TDP‐43 pathology—a hallmark of FTD patients with GRN mutations that have not been consistently observed in either of the single knockouts. These concurrent publications that all reach the same surprising but definitive conclusion are a cautionary tale in the control of TMEM106B levels as a potential therapeutic for FTD. They also re‐ignite the debate as to whether loss or gain of TMEM106B function is critical for altering FTD risk.
Effectively Communicating About HIV and Other Health Disparities: Findings From a Literature Review and Future Directions

Despite significant progress in the prevention and treatment of HIV, disparities in rates of infection remain among key groups in the United States, including blacks and African Americans; Hispanics/Latinos; and men who have sex with men (MSM). The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' initiative, Ending the HIV Epidemic: A Plan for America, calls for addressing HIV-related disparities and reducing stigma and discrimination associated with HIV. The goal of this literature review was to identify approaches for effectively communicating about health disparities across the HIV care continuum. We reviewed the literature to investigate strategies used to communicate health disparities and to identify potential unintended adverse effects resulting from this messaging. Messages about health disparities often target subgroups at higher risk and can be framed in a variety of ways (e.g., social comparison, progress, impact, etiological). Studies have examined the effects of message framing on the risk perceptions, emotional reactions, and behaviors of individuals exposed to the messaging. The evidence points to several potential unintended adverse effects of using social comparison framing and individual responsibility framing to communicate about health disparities, and visual images and exemplars to target messages to higher-risk subgroups. There is not yet a clear evidence-based approach for communicating about health disparities and avoiding potential unintended effects. However, we offer recommendations for communicating about HIV-related disparities based on our findings. Because we found limited literature that addressed our research questions in the context of HIV, we propose a research agenda to build an evidence base for developing effective messages about HIV-related disparities.
Dual Hysteresis Model of MR Dampers

This study concerns the modeling of the hysteretic behavior of magnetorheological (MR) dampers. In general, hysteresis is one of key factors influencing the output of such actuators. So far, more attention has been paid to studying the combined hysteretic behavior of MR actuators by observing the relationships between the output (force/torque) and the inputs (current, velocity, and position). However, these devices feature two distinct hysteretic mechanisms: mechanical/hydraulic and magnetic. The mechanical hysteresis is of different nature than the magnetic hysteresis due to the properties of ferromagnetic materials forming the actuator's electromagnet circuit, and these should be split in the modeling process. In the present study, we separate the magnetic hysteresis from the mechanical/hydraulic one by investigating the magnetic flux vs. exciting current relationship of a commercial flow-mode MR damper subjected to sinusoidal current loading and independently of the mechanical excitations. The resulting behavior of the electromagnetic circuit is then examined using the non-linear inductor approach with hysteresis. Total hysteresis is then modeled using a non-linear inductor model in combination with a phenomenological parametric Maxwell type model of the damper.
A Text Detection Algorithm for Image of Student Exercises Based on CTPN and Enhanced YOLOv3

Intelligent learning system (ILS) has become a popular learning tool for students. It can collect students’ wrong questions in exercises and dig out their unskilled knowledge points so that it can recommend personalized exercises for students. Detecting text accurately from images of students’ exercises is significant and essential in an ILS. However, a big challenge of text detection is that traditional text detection algorithms can not detect complete text lines in an exercise scene, and their detection box always splits between Chinese and mathematical symbols. In this article, we propose a deep-learning-based approach for text detection, which improves You Only Look Once version 3 (YOLOv3) by changing the regression object from a single character to a fixed-width text and applies a stitching strategy to construct text lines based on the relation matrix, which improves the accuracy by 9.8%. Experimental results on both RCTW Chinese text detection dataset and real exercise scenario show that our model can improve detection effectiveness. In addition, we compare our method with two state-of-the-art approaches in applications of exercise text detection, and discuss its capability and limitations. We have also provided a platform which has implemented the proposal for detecting text lines in students’ daily homework or examination papers, which enhances user experience well.
Biodiversity conservation and evolutionary models

Biodiversity conservation requires a framework for prioritising limited resources to the many endangered species. One such framework that has seen much attention and is considered extensively in this thesis, is the Noah’s Ark Problem (NAP). The NAP combines a biodiversity measure (Phylogenetic Diversity; PD) with species survival probabilities and conservation costs. The aim of the NAP is to allocate the limited conservation resources such that the future expected PD is maximised. Obtaining optimal solutions to the NAP is a computationally complex problem to which several efficient algorithms are provided here. An extension to the NAP is also developed which allows uncertainty about the survival probability estimates to be included. Using this extension we show that the NAP is robust to uncertainty in these parameters and that even very poor estimates are beneficial. To justify using or promoting PD, it must produce a significant increase in the amount of biodiversity that is preserved. We show that the increase attainable from the NAP is typically around 20% but may be as high as 150%. An alternative approach to PD and the NAP is to prioritise species using simple species specific indices. The benefit of these indices is that they are easy to calculate, explain and integrate into existing management frameworks. Here we investigate the use of such indices and show that they provide between 60% and 80% of the gains obtainable using PD. To explore the expected behaviours of conservation methods (such as the NAP) a distribution of phylogenetics trees is required. Evolutionary models describe the diversification process by which a single species gives rise to multiple species. Such models induce a probability distribution on trees and can therefore be used to investigate the expected behaviour of conservation methods. Even simple and widely used models, such as the Yule model, remain poorly understood. In this thesis we present some new analytic results and methods for sampling trees from a broad range of evolutionary models. Lastly we introduce a new model that provides a simple biological explanation for a long standing discrepancy between models and trees derived from real data – the tree balance distribution.
Molecular Systematics of the Neotropical Diving Beetle Genus Rugosus García, 2001 (Coleoptera: Dytiscidae: Copelatinae)

Abstract In recent years, several new genera have been erected in the subfamily Copelatinae, including the description of endemic taxa from Madagascar, New Guinea, South Africa, and Venezuela. Here we build upon a recent molecular phylogeny of this subfamily to investigate the phylogenetic placement of Rugosus García, 2001, a genus comprising two species from the Guiana Shield region of Venezuela. We sequenced one mitochondrial and one nuclear gene fragment of Rugosus emarginatus García, as well as a specimen of Aglymbus leprieurii Aubé from Guyana in order to reassess the phylogenetic placement of the genus in the subfamily Copelatinae. Bayesian Inference analyses unambiguously indicate that Rugosus is nested within Aglymbus Sharp, 1880. As a result, Rugosus is synonymized with Aglymbus. Based on these results and on recent collecting data, the distribution of Aglymbus now includes Guyana, Suriname, and Venezuela. High-resolution images of the holotype specimens and labels of Aglymbus emarginatus (García), new combination and Aglymbus pubis (García), new combination are provided, as well as comments on the habitat of species in the “A. leprieurii species-group” of Aglymbus.
Water Quality Detection Based on FCN and Embedded System

ABSTRACT Yan, Y. ; Han, Y. ; Zhang, P.H. , and Wang, H.F. , 2020. Water quality detection based on FCN and embedded system. In: Guido Aldana, P.A. and Kantamaneni, K. (eds.), Advances in Water Resources, Coastal Management, and Marine Science Technology. Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue No. 104, pp. 72–76. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208. In this paper, the convolutional neural network (CNN) based on deep learning is applied to embedded systems. After summarizing the shortcomings of traditional algorithms, the image processing technology of full convolutional neural network (FCN) is adopted to study a method for online water quality measurement, which solves the key problem of image recognition. In view of the complex nonlinear characteristics of water quality related data, the full convolutional neural network is used to train water quality data, determine the mapping relationship between input and output, and input the obtained relationship into the embedded system to form a water quality detection system, so as to quickly and efficiently detect water pollution. The experimental results show that the accuracy of the predicted grade and the measured grade of water quality in the test area can be as high as 90%.
Coping with recruiter stress: Hardiness, performance and well-being in US Army recruiters

ABSTRACT Recruiting for military service can be a highly stressful job, but it is one that is essential for success in the all-volunteer force. Military recruiters face a number of job stressors, including pressure to meet monthly production quotas, long work hours and time away from family. They also work in relative isolation, with limited work social support networks. These factors make recruiters vulnerable to burnout and early attrition. The present study examines psychological hardiness and active, problem focused coping as potential stress resilience resources in US Army recruiters. In a stratified random sample of N = 817 recruiters, hardiness was found to predict supervisor-rated performance and psychological well-being. Hardiness also interacted with problem focused coping to predict psychological well-being, suggesting a mediating role for coping. These results can be applied to help improve policy for selecting and training military recruiters.
Temporal variation of the gammaridean fauna (Crustacea, Amphipoda) associated with the sponge Mycale angulosa (Porifera, Demospongiae) in southeastern Brazil

Marine sponges are advantageous microhabitats because of their complex architecture. The system of internal canals provides circulation of water and deposition of particulate organic matter, ensuring availability of food and shelter. Diminutive amphipods have little difficulty penetrating the spaces of sponges and remain in their aquiferous systems as one of the most abundant taxa in this association. This study evaluated the temporal variation of the gammaridean amphipod species associated with the sponge Mycale angulosa. Sponge samples were collected every three months over one year at Pontal da Cruz Beach, Sao Sebastiao Channel, southeastern Brazil. The amphipod assembly varied over time, while the amphipod density and sponge biomass remained approximately constant. Six species contributed to the temporal variation infaunal composition, highlighting the importance of the natural history of each species.
Understanding the impact of attachment insecurity on PTSD symptoms among male Veterans and military personnel

ABSTRACT Attachment insecurity (i.e., attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance) has been found to contribute to PTSD symptom severity in Veterans. However, little is known of the unique contribution of attachment insecurity on individual PTSD symptom clusters. In a community sample of 106 combat-deployed Veterans, active duty service members, and reservists, this study examined: (1) the relationships between childhood family experience, combat experience, attachment insecurity, and PTSD symptom clusters, and (2) the influence of attachment insecurity on PTSD symptom clusters. Results revealed significant correlations between attachment anxiety and all PTSD symptom clusters (rs = .22 –.43) and attachment avoidance and PTSD symptom clusters, except the avoidance cluster (rs = .21 −.36). Four multiple regression analyses were employed to address the second study aim. Childhood family experiences predicted negative alterations in cognitions and mood (β = –.30) and alterations in arousal and reactivity (β = –.20). Further, combat experience significantly predicted each symptom cluster of PTSD (βs = .03 –.44). In the second step, attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance were added to each model. Attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance predicted negative alterations in cognitions and mood (βs = .22 and .35) and alterations in arousal and reactivity (βs = .27 and .17). Inconsistent with previous research, attachment insecurity did not predict symptoms of avoidance. These results highlight the impact of attachment among a diverse sample of trauma exposed individuals and may provide insights for clinical implications and therapeutic approaches when working with Veterans and military personnel high in attachment insecurity.
Comment on Uses of Homologous-point Measures in Systematics: a Reply to Bookstein Et Al.

In their recent article discussing the use of homologous interpoint distances for the measurement of form, Bookstein et al. (1982:92) summarily dismissed orthogonal decomposition procedures such as the Fourier function representation of biological shapes on the grounds that these procedures make "systematic differences in form . uninterpretable. " One would expect that such a sweeping dismissal would be derived deductively from a theory of biological shape measurement and comparison, not just based on a few artificial examples of shapes, particularly since Bookstein (1978, 1982) has written extensively and informatively about the form such theory should take. The examples presented by Bookstein et al. (1982) do yield coefficients clearly unsuitable for a meaningful biological interpretation, but are not representative of the full range of biological forms. Had the remarks of the authors just been cautionary, then we not only would agree with them, but could provide biological examples in further support of their warnings. However, this is not the case. They want to dismiss the Fourier method as inappropriate in "most morphometric applications" and state that it is "defensible only in the absence of all allometries and all information about biological homology" (p. 92, italics added). Their preferred method consists of homologous-point measures and homologous-point transformations as advocated by Bookstein (1978, 1982). We do not necessarily disagree with Bookstein's and his coworkers' concern with, as well as emphasis upon, homologous points as basic to any system of shape representation. Rather, our disagreement lies with their dismissal of the Fourier function representation, with its goal of recovering biological information expressed in the shape outline (particularly between homologous points), in order to emphasize the biological importance of the homologous points: "There are more data in the outline than the mere curve of its points . " (Bookstein et al., 1982:92, italics added). In contrast to the viewpoint expressed in the article by Bookstein et al. (1982), Bookstein (e.g., 1982:467) elsewhere has made clear the need for a measurement system rich enough to encompass both aspects of the biological shape: the homologous points and the boundary curve. When Bookstein (1984:517) concluded that "We need computational techniques . that take into account the curving of form in-between the landmarks," we could not be more in agreement. We have made a tentative foray in this direction through the vector-representation system given in the Appendix. The goal using this ap-