Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
High Prevalence of Hearing Impairment in Primary Congenital Hypothyroidism

Background: An association between hearing impairment (HI) and congenital hypothyroidism (CH) has been reported previously. However, in general, studies were retrospective and had small sample sizes, and the results were variable and inconclusive. The aim of our study was to assess the prevalence of HI among patients with CH and to examine factors potentially predictive of HI including severity of CH, etiology of CH, and timing of treatment initiation. Methods: Audiometry was undertaken prospectively in 66 patients aged 3–21 years diagnosed with primary CH and 49 healthy matched controls. All patients with HI underwent examination by an otolaryngologist, and in patients with sensorineural loss, brainstem evoked response audiometry was performed. A next-generation sequencing (NGS) panel for genes involved in deafness was performed in patients with sensorineural HI to exclude additional genetic etiologies. Results: HI was found in 19 patients (28.7%). Among them, 5 (7.6%) had moderate to severe bilateral sensorineural impairment and 14 (21.2%) had mild conductive HI. Conductive HI was bilateral in 5 of these patients (36%). None of the controls had HI. No specific etiology was found in patients with HI, and no differences were identified in age at diagnosis, age at initiation of levothyroxine (LT4) therapy, gender, or ethnicity between patients with and without HI. A nonsignificant trend toward lower mean screening TT4 levels was found in patients with HI (compared to those without HI) (3.42 vs. 5.34 μg/dL, p = 0.095). No pathogenic variants in genes attributed to HI were identified by NGS in the 5 patients with sensorineural deafness, indicating that HI in these patients was likely attributable to CH rather than other genetic etiologies. Conclusions: Our findings indicate a high prevalence of HI among patients with CH, predominantly of the conductive type. HI was not associated with the etiology of CH or with delayed initiation of LT4 therapy. Audiometry is recommended for children diagnosed with CH and repeat monitoring may be warranted to identify acquired HI and to prevent long-term sequelae of undiagnosed deafness.
Organizational Citizenship Behaviour, Job Satisfaction, Occupational Stress, Organizational Commitment And Work Motivation - A Comparison Between Male And Female College Teachers Of Kolkata

The present study intends to compare male and female college teachers based on five psychological variables, namely, organizational citizenship behaviour, job satisfaction, occupational stress, organizational commitment, and work motivation. 84 teachers, including 40 male and 44 female, employed at different colleges of Kolkata have been selected as sample through purposive sampling technique. The Organizational Citizenship Behaviour Scale, Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire, Occupational Stress Index, Organizational Commitment Scale, and Work Motivation Questionnaire have been administered on the subjects. The findings indicate significant differences between male and female respondents concerning organizational citizenship behaviour, job satisfaction, occupational stress, and work motivation. No significant difference between the two groups is reported in respect of organizational commitment.
Convolutional Neural Networks for Automated PET/CT Detection of Diseased Lymph Node Burden in Patients with Lymphoma.

Purpose To automatically detect lymph nodes involved in lymphoma on fluorine 18 (18F) fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) PET/CT images using convolutional neural networks (CNNs). Materials and Methods In this retrospective study, baseline disease of 90 patients with lymphoma was segmented on 18F-FDG PET/CT images (acquired between 2005 and 2011) by a nuclear medicine physician. An ensemble of three-dimensional patch-based, multiresolution pathway CNNs was trained using fivefold cross-validation. Performance was assessed using the true-positive rate (TPR) and number of false-positive (FP) findings. CNN performance was compared with agreement between physicians by comparing the annotations of a second nuclear medicine physician to the first reader in 20 of the patients. Patient TPR was compared using Wilcoxon signed rank tests. Results Across all 90 patients, a range of 0-61 nodes per patient was detected. At an average of four FP findings per patient, the method achieved a TPR of 85% (923 of 1087 nodes). Performance varied widely across patients (TPR range, 33%-100%; FP range, 0-21 findings). In the 20 patients labeled by both physicians, a range of 1-49 nodes per patient was detected and labeled. The second reader identified 96% (210 of 219) of nodes with an additional 3.7 per patient compared with the first reader. In the same 20 patients, the CNN achieved a 90% (197 of 219) TPR at 3.7 FP findings per patient. Conclusion An ensemble of three-dimensional CNNs detected lymph nodes at a performance nearly comparable to differences between two physicians' annotations. This preliminary study is a first step toward automated PET/CT assessment for lymphoma. © RSNA, 2020.
The Diagnostic Efficacy of MRI Dedicated-Epilepsy Protocol in Evaluation of Seizures

Aims: The aims of this study were to identify the diagnostic efficacy of dedicated epilepsy protocol in detecting possible structural abnormalities that underlie seizure disorders, and compare the diagnostic yields of MRI and electroencephalogram individually and in combination. Study Design: This was a cross-sectional analytic study. Place and Duration of Study: Medical Imaging and Diagnostic Radiology Department at Tishreen University Hospital, Lattakia, Syria; between July 2019 and July 2020. Methodology: Our study included 100 cases (58 females, 41 males, age range 13-77 years) who presented with seizure over 18 months. Patients underwent complete neurological examination, EEG, and MRI with a standard and dedicated epilepsy protocol. Results: We found epileptogenic lesions in MRI in 55.5%. MRI detected epileptogenic lesions in 74.5% patients who had focal onset seizures. Mesial temporal lobe sclerosis was the most common epileptogenic lesion (45.5%). The diagnostic efficacy of MRI had increased with dedicated Original Research Article Saad et al.; AJMAH, 18(9): 62-71, 2020; Article no.AJMAH. 60746 63 epilepsy protocol compared to standard protocol. Abnormal MRI and EEG were compatible in 21%. Conclusion: Dedicated epilepsy protocol increased the diagnostic efficacy of brain MRI in detecting a structural epileptogenic lesion, with 100% of mesial temporal sclerosis, the most common lesion in our study, was detected only in dedicated epilepsy protocol and missed in standard protocol.
Stand Structural Diversity and Species with Leaf Nitrogen Conservation Drive Aboveground Carbon Storage in Tropical Old-Growth Forests

Tropical old-growth forests are essential for global carbon regulation. Although there is increasing evidence that species and functional diversity, stand structural diversity, functional compositions, and elevation play roles in ecosystem functioning, the relative strengths of these drivers and the underlying mechanisms (mass-ratio hypothesis or niche complementarity hypothesis) are not clear. Aboveground carbon storage, species diversity, stand structural diversity, community-weighted mean (CWM), and functional diversity (FDvar) of 12 leaf traits were analyzed using data from 56 old-growth forest communities in the Dawei Mountain area of Southwest China. Multiple regression models were used to test the relative importance of the predictor variables and the structural equation model was used to explore the direct and indirect influences on aboveground carbon storage. High structural diversity moderately enhanced aboveground carbon storage. CWM leaf nitrogen concentration in young leaves weakly affected aboveground carbon storage. Our final multiple regression model showed that aboveground carbon storage is mostly affected by diameter at breast height (DBH) diversity, followed by FDvar of dry matter concentration in mature leaves and CWM nitrogen concentration in young leaves. The structural equation model indicated that elevation negatively affects aboveground carbon storage via diameter at breast height (DBH) diversity. Our results suggest that niche complementarity effects moderately drive aboveground carbon storage in tropical old-growth forests, but do not fully support the importance of the mass-ratio hypothesis.
Impact of bio-inoculation with Bradyrhizobium spp. on yield and Seed quality of forage cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L.) under soil salinity conditions

Received 18/08/2020; Accepted 6/09/2020 DOI: 10.21608/jenvbs.2020. 39713.1102 ©2020 National Information and Documentation Center (NIDOC) A STUDY was carried out to assess the effect of single and/or combined inoculation with Bradyrhizobium spp. isolates on seed yield and quality of forage cowpea (Vigna unguiculata cv. Baladi) under salinity-affected soil conditions. The experiment was conducted in a split plot design for two growing seasons, 2018 and 2019, with two main plot treatments of irrigation water (normal and saline) and four sub-plot inoculation treatments. Results revealed that sub-main plot treatments differed significantly for number of branches, number of pods, pod length, number of seeds pod, pod weight plot (Kg) and seed yield (Kg fed) of forage cowpea plants as affected by the type of irrigation water in the two growing seasons. Also, combination treatment (Bradyrhizobium SARS-Rh3 and Bradyrhizobium SARS-Rh5) significantly minimized the negative effects of saline irrigation water treatment for seed content of elements (N, P, K, Zn, Mn, Fe and Cu). In the same context, inoculation treatments followed the descending order of SARS-Rh3 + SARS-Rh5>SARS-Rh5>SARS-Rh3 > control for total carbohydrate and protein % of cowpea seeds during 2018 and 2019 seasons. For assessment of seed quality viz., seed germination (%), seedling length (cm), seedling weight (g), vigour index I and vigour index II were higher in 2019 than 2018 season. Similar finding was observed in economic evaluation for SARS-Rh3+SARS-Rh5 treatment which enhanced profitability of cowpea during the two growing seasons.
Elasto-thermodiffusive interaction subjected to rectangular thermal pulse and time-dependent chemical shock due to Caputo-Fabrizio heat transfer

This present work is devoted to investigate the transient phenomena for a novel mathematical model of elasto-thermodiffusion in an isotropic three-dimensional thermoelastic medium subjected to permeating gas induced by a rectangular thermal pulse, where the heat conduction equation is defined in an integral form of a common derivative involving a nonsingular kernel interval by incorporating the Caputo-Fabrizio (CF) heat transfer law. The time-dependent chemical potential is also assumed to be known on the bounding plane. Employing the Laplace transform and double-Fourier transform techniques, the problem has been solved analytically in the transformed domain. Numerical inversion of the Laplace transform and double-Fourier transforms are carried out using a Fourier series expansion technique. According to the graphical representations corresponding to the numerical results, conclusions about the new theory is constructed. Excellent predictive capability is demonstrated due to the presence of the CF parameter and thermodiffusion also.
Improvements in estimating the probability of informed trading models

Two advances have been made in the estimation of probability of informed trading (PIN) models. First, an initial-value-setting scheme has been proposed, that sets up a grid for initial values of mixture probabilities and uses the probabilities to divide the sample so as to derive the initial values of Poisson parameters. Second, the mixture bivariate normal distribution can help approximate the compound Poisson distribution in estimating PIN models. This study implements two approaches to simulated and real data for the PIN and Adjusted PIN models and compares their performance with the literature. The new initial-value-setting scheme performs better than those of Yan and Zhang [An improved estimation method and empirical properties of the probability of informed trading. J. Banking Finance, 2012, 36(2), 454–467] and Ersan and Alıcı [An unbiased computation methodology for estimating the probability of informed trading (PIN). J. Int. Financ. Markets, Inst. Money, 2016, 43, 74–94], and using the normal distribution outperforms the Poisson distribution under certain variance specifications.
Synthesis, Crystal Structures and Characterization of Two Nonmetal Cation Tetrafluoroborates

Two new nonmetal cation tetrafluoroborate phases [H3tren](BF4)3 (I) and [H3tren](BF4)3 HF (II) were synthesized by microwave-assisted solvothermal and characterized by single crystal X-ray diffraction, IR spectroscopy and thermal analysis DTA-TGA. [H3tren](BF4)3 is cubic (P213) with unit cell parameter a = 11.688(1) Å. [H3tren](BF4)3•HF is trigonal (R3c) with unit cell parameters a = 15.297(6) Å and c = 12.007(2) Å. Both (I) and (II) structures can be described from isolated tetrafluoroborate BF4- anions, triprotonated tris-(2-aminoethyl)amine (tren) [H3tren]3+. Phase (II) contains disordered BF4- tetrahedron and hydrofluoric acid.
Within‐patient phylogenetic reconstruction reveals early events in Barrett’s Esophagus

Barrett's Esophagus is a neoplastic condition which progresses to esophageal adenocarcinoma in 5% of cases. Key events affecting the outcome likely occur before diagnosis of Barrett's and cannot be directly observed; we use phylogenetic analysis to infer such past events. We performed whole‐genome sequencing on 4–6 samples from 40 cancer outcome and 40 noncancer outcome patients with Barrett's Esophagus, and inferred within‐patient phylogenies of deconvoluted clonal lineages. Spatially proximate lineages clustered in the phylogenies, but temporally proximate ones did not. Lineages with inferred loss‐of‐function mutations in both copies of TP53 and CDKN2A showed enhanced spatial spread, whereas lineages with loss‐of‐function mutations in other frequently mutated loci did not. We propose a two‐phase model with expansions of TP53 and CKDN2A mutant lineages during initial growth of the segment, followed by relative stasis. Subsequent to initial expansion, mutations in these loci as well as ARID1A and SMARCA4 may show a local selective advantage but do not expand far: The spatial structure of the Barrett's segment remains stable during surveillance even in patients who go on to cancer. We conclude that the cancer/noncancer outcome is strongly affected by early steps in formation of the Barrett's segment.
Reference-Dependent Preferences and the Labor Supply of Chinese Drivers

This paper takes a comprehensive study of taxi drivers’ labor supply behavior using a new dataset of taxi drivers from China. We find strong evidence that the working hours of drivers are negatively related to the hourly rates, and this effect is both statistically and economically significant. We then conduct a discrete-choice model, showing that the probability of stopping keeps increasing as cumulative working hours increase, but the probability of stopping first increases and then decreases as the cumulative fare increases. Lastly, we use the asymmetric model with the income target and working hour target as dummy variables, and the probability of stopping is significantly positively related to income target but shows no significant relation with cumulative fare.
Enhancement of heat transfer and product quality using jet reattachment nozzles in drying of food products

Abstract In this paper, the drying characteristics of Radial Jet Reattachment (RJR) and Slot Jet Reattachment (SJR) nozzles, with an exit angle of +45∘ for the RJR nozzle and +20∘ and +45∘ for the SJR nozzle, were experimentally investigated in drying potato chip samples and apple slices, respectively. Dry basis moisture content of the samples using these innovative nozzles were compared to those of traditional nozzles, based on three criteria: identical air mass flow rate, identical fluid flow power, and identical exerted peak surface pressure. To appraise the performance of each nozzle, the corresponding local heat transfer coefficients generated by innovative and traditional nozzles for all the tests were measured. Subsequently, the average heat transfer coefficients of reattachment nozzles were calculated and compared against those of traditional nozzles. Moreover, the kinetics of color changes and structure analysis of apple slices, due to the drying by SJ and SJR + 20∘ nozzles were studied. The experimental results revealed that the RJR + 45∘ and SJR + 20∘ nozzles yield significantly higher drying rates, as well as significant improvement in average heat transfer coefficients, compared to those of ILJ and SJ nozzles, respectively, on a stationary basis. Besides, impingement drying with SJR + 20∘ nozzle produced dried apple slices with less color deterioration and fewer nutritional losses compared to drying with the SJ nozzle. Therefore, jet reattachment nozzles can provide faster drying rates and keep the nutritional values at a desirable level.
Visualizations of Uncertainties in Precision Agriculture: Lessons Learned from Farm Machinery

Detailed measurements of yield values are becoming a common practice in precision agriculture. Field harvesters generate point Big Data as they provide yield measurements together with dozens of complex attributes in a frequency of up to one second. Such a flood of data brings uncertainties caused by several factors: accuracy of the positioning system used, trajectory overlaps, raising the cutting bar due to obstacles or unevenness, and so on. This paper deals with 2D and 3D cartographic visualizations of terrain, measured yield, and its uncertainties. Four graphic variables were identified as credible for visualizations of uncertainties in point Big Data. Data from two plots at a fully operational farm were used for this purpose. ISO 19157 was examined for its applicability and a proof-of-concept for selected uncertainty expression was defined. Special attention was paid to spatial pattern interpretations.
One way or another: predictors of wolf poaching in a legally harvested wolf population

Poaching is a major threat to large predator populations, but the predictors of poaching are poorly mapped in developed countries where illegal killing is motivated by social reasons. Poaching can be common although the species is legally hunted, such as in the case of the wolf (Canis lupus). Our goal was to identify crucial motives of poaching to find possible solutions to the ongoing wolf conflict. We studied predictors of poaching on two spatial scales – countrywide (76 wolves) and territory [30 Global Positioning System (GPS)‐wolves] – during 2001–2016 in Finland. The countrywide factors predicting illegal kill were as follows: (1) lifestage, with adult wolves showing a remarkably high probability of being illegally killed in comparison with juveniles; (2) the number of wolves killed legally in the local scale, that is, licensed wolf hunting at the local scale decreased the likelihood of illegal killing, as did the total number of legally hunted wolves; (3) total legal bag in the whole country; and (4) density of the local human population, that is, low human density increased the probability of illegal kill. For breeding adult GPS‐collared wolves at the territory level, there was a positive relationship between the tendency to cross roads and likelihood of being illegally killed. Our results provided evidence that poaching is a matter of local intolerance toward wolves and that the problem is mainly related to wolf hunting. Legal hunting might decrease poaching, but seems inefficient as a long‐term solution. To maintain a viable wolf population, the poaching risk of breeding adults should be decreased. Predicted poaching probabilities could be used to tackle poaching in a preventive manner by involving both decision makers and local residents in anti‐poaching actions.
Mechanistic insights into viral clearance during the chromatography steps in antibody processes by using virus surrogates

Viral safety is required for biological products to treat human diseases, and the burden of inactivation and or virus removal lies on the downstream purification process. Minute virus of mice (MVM) is a nonenveloped parvovirus commonly used as the worst‐case model virus in validation studies because of its small size and high chemical stability. In this study, we investigated the use of MVM‐mock virus particle (MVP) and bacteriophage ΦX174 as surrogates for MVM to mimic viral clearance studies, with a focus on chromatography operations. Based on structural models and comparison of log reduction value among MVM, MVP, and ΦX174, it was demonstrated that MVP can be used as a noninfectious surrogate to assess viral clearance during process development in multiple chromatography systems in a biosafety level one (BSL‐1) laboratory. Protein A (ProA) chromatography was investigated to strategically assess the impact of the resin, impurities, and the monoclonal antibody product on virus removal.
Effects of inter-annual temperature variability, including ENSO and post-ENSO events, on reproductive traits in the tunicate Pyura praeputialis

ABSTRACT Reproduction in tunicates is considered to be particularly vulnerable to changes in seawater temperature. In the present study we investigated the effects of sea surface temperature and temperature anomalies on reproductive traits of the non-native sessile tunicate Pyura praeputialis. Reproductive traits of this species were investigated over the course of 67 months, based on samples collected at two localities (eastern and western shorelines) of the Bay of Antofagasta. The study period included years with different oceanic and atmospheric conditions: a warm event, El Niño (June 1997 to July 1998); a cold event, La Niña (August 1998 to December 2000); and post-La Niña (January 2000 to December 2002). We compared two common indices (condition and gonadosomatic) and histological sections to evaluate the maximum reproduction index of this introduced species that dominates a large part of the rocky intertidal habitat in the Bay of Antofagasta. We found sexually mature individuals all year-round and a decrease in both reproductive indices matching the reduction in the sea surface temperature during the austral autumn and winter months. The results suggest that gonad development in this species is sensitive to sea surface temperature and thermal anomalies. We conclude that future thermal anomalies or projected global average sea surface warming associated with climate change might have no negative consequences on these reproductive traits of P. praeputialis. This suggests this species is ecologically resilient and that the ecosystem services that this species provides for other invertebrate and algal species will be maintained.