Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Healthcare workers’ perceptions and attitudes towards the UK’s COVID-19 vaccination programme: a rapid qualitative appraisal

Objectives While there is research relating to perceptions of vaccines among healthcare workers (HCWs), the evidence base in relation to COVID-19 remains limited. The aim of this study was to explore HCWs’ perceptions and attitudes towards vaccines and the COVID-19 vaccination programme in the UK, including their expectations and views on promoting vaccination to others. Design This study was designed as a rapid qualitative appraisal, integrating data from a review of UK policies and guidance on COVID-19 vaccination with data from in-depth semistructured telephone interviews with frontline HCWs in the UK. Data were analysed using framework analysis. Participants Interviews were carried out with a purposive sample of HCWs from two large London-based hospital Trusts (n=24) and 24 government policies, and guidelines on the vaccination programme were reviewed. Results The level of uncertainty about the long-term safety of vaccines and efficacy against mutant strains made it difficult for HCWs to balance the benefits against the risks of vaccination. HCWs felt that government decisions on vaccine rollout had not been supported by evidence-based science, and this impacted their level of trust and confidence in the programme. The spread of misinformation online also impacted HCWs’ attitudes towards vaccination, particularly among junior level and black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) HCWs. Most HCWs felt encouraged to promote vaccination to their patients, and the majority said they would advocate vaccination or engage in conversations about vaccination with others when relevant. Conclusion In order to improve HCWs’ trust and confidence in the UK’s COVID-19 vaccination programme, there needs to be clarity about what is known and not known about the vaccines and transparency around the evidence-base supporting government decisions on vaccine rollout. Effort is also needed to dispel the spread of vaccine-related misinformation online and to address specific concerns, particularly among BAME and junior-level HCWs.
MASTREE+: Time‐series of plant reproductive effort from six continents

Significant gaps remain in understanding the response of plant reproduction to environmental change. This is partly because measuring reproduction in long‐lived plants requires direct observation over many years and such datasets have rarely been made publicly available. Here we introduce MASTREE+, a data set that collates reproductive time‐series data from across the globe and makes these data freely available to the community. MASTREE+ includes 73,828 georeferenced observations of annual reproduction (e.g. seed and fruit counts) in perennial plant populations worldwide. These observations consist of 5971 population‐level time‐series from 974 species in 66 countries. The mean and median time‐series length is 12.4 and 10 years respectively, and the data set includes 1122 series that extend over at least two decades (≥20 years of observations). For a subset of well‐studied species, MASTREE+ includes extensive replication of time‐series across geographical and climatic gradients. Here we describe the open‐access data set, available as a.csv file, and we introduce an associated web‐based app for data exploration. MASTREE+ will provide the basis for improved understanding of the response of long‐lived plant reproduction to environmental change. Additionally, MASTREE+ will enable investigation of the ecology and evolution of reproductive strategies in perennial plants, and the role of plant reproduction as a driver of ecosystem dynamics.
Emulating a target trial of proton pump inhibitors and dementia risk using claims data

Understanding the adverse effects of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) is important due to their widespread use, but the available evidence for an increased dementia risk amongst patients taking PPIs is inconclusive. The present study aimed to estimate the causal effect of PPIs on the risk of dementia by target trial emulation and time‐varying exposure modeling.
Long‐term adherence, safety, and efficacy of repeated onabotulinumtoxinA over five years in chronic migraine prophylaxis

OnabotulinumtoxinA (BoNTA) demonstrated a positive benefit‐risk in chronic migraine (CM) patients in PREEMPT I and II phase III trials and many subsequent real‐world studies. We herein aimed at evaluating the adherence to repeated BoNTA over a period of five years, while secondary objectives included the assessment of its long‐term safety/efficacy and patients’ satisfaction to treatment.
Mood and Anxiety Symptoms in Persons Taking Prescription Opioids: A Systematic Review with Meta-Analyses of Longitudinal Studies

Abstract Objective To review evidence from longitudinal studies on the association between prescription opioid use and common mood and anxiety symptoms. Design We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis according to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Methods We searched PubMed, Embase, and PsycINFO for search terms related to opioids AND (depression OR bipolar OR anxiety OR post-traumatic stress disorder [PTSD]). Findings were summarized narratively, and random-effects meta-analyses were used to pool effect sizes. Results We identified 10,290 records and found 10 articles that met our inclusion criteria. Incidence studies showed that people who used prescription opioids had an elevated risk of any mood outcome (adjusted effect size [aES] = 1.80 [95% confidence interval = 1.40–2.30]) and of an anxiety outcome (aES = 1.40 [1.20–1.80]) compared with those who did not use prescription opioids. Associations with depression were small and not significant after adjustment for potential confounders (aES = 1.18 [0.98–1.41]). However, some studies reported an increased risk of depressive symptoms after increased (aES = 1.58 [1.30–1.93]) or prolonged opioid use (aES = 1.49 [1.19–1.86]). Conclusions Mental health should be considered when opioids are prescribed because some patients could be vulnerable to adverse mental health outcomes.
Process monitoring framework for cross‐flow diafiltration‐based virus‐like particle disassembly: Tracing product properties and filtration performance

Virus‐like particles (VLPs) are an emerging biopharmaceutical modality with great potential as a platform technology. VLPs can be applied as gene therapy vectors and prophylactic or therapeutic vaccines. For non‐enveloped VLPs, recombinant production of the protein subunits leads to intracellular self‐assembly. The subsequent purification process includes VLP dis‐ and reassembly which aim at removing encapsulated impurities and improving particle properties. Filtration‐based separation and processing has proven successful for VLPs but requires large product quantities and laborious experiments in early development stages. Both challenges can be tackled by implementation of process analytical technology (PAT) to efficiently obtain extensive process information. In this study, an existing PAT setup was extended to comprehensively monitor the diafiltration‐based disassembly of hepatitis B core antigen (HBcAg) VLPs. Process‐related signals were monitored in‐line, while product‐related signals, such as ultraviolet light (UV) spectra as well as static and dynamic light scattering (SLS and DLS), were monitored on‐line. The applicability of the sensors for disassembly monitoring was evaluated under varying processing conditions. HBcAg VLP subunit concentrations were accurately predicted based on UV data using ordinary and partial least squares regression models (Q2 from 0.909 to 0.976). DLS data were used for aggregation monitoring while the SLS intensity qualitatively reflected the disassembly progress.
The effect of hysteroscopy and conventional curretage versus no hysteroscopy on live birth rates in recurrent in vitro fertilisation failure: a retrospective cohort study from a single referral centre experience

Abstract This retrospective cohort study aimed to evaluate the effect of hysteroscopy and endometrial scratching (ES) in patients with recurrent implantation failure (RIF) who do not have an intracavity pathology. The authors retrospectively collected data of patients between 2014 and 2019 from a single centre. The study analysed 350 unexplained RIF patients, of whom, 225 underwent hysteroscopy and endometrial scratching, and 125 did not have a hysteroscopy prior to an IVF cycle. Pregnancy rates among post endometrial scratching and no endometrial scratching cycles were 35.6% versus 27.2%, (p = .048), clinical pregnancy rates were 32.9% versus 21.6% (p = .026) and live birth rates were 26.2% versus 19.2% (p = .039). Although it is not possible to distinguish whether hysteroscopy or injury is effective in improving live birth results, the authors thought that endometrial injury with gentle conventional curettage is effective in patients with recurrent implantation failure. IMPACT STATEMENT What is already known on this subject? Hysteroscopy and endometrial injury improve pregnancy outcomes in IVF cycles, but definitive conclusions have been uncertain. What do the results of this study add? The study showed that endometrial injury with gentle conventional curettage during hysteroscopy significantly improved the pregnancy rates of RIF patients compared to the non-hysteroscopy group. What are the implications of these findings for clinical practice and/or further research? In cases of recurrent implantation failure, even if hysteroscopy findings are normal, endometrial scratching in the follicular phase increases pregnancy rates compared to the non-hysteroscopy group.
Association of Sedentary Behavior and Physical Activity With Hyperuricemia and Sex Differences: Results From the China Multi-Ethnic Cohort Study

Objective To determine the association of physical activity (PA) and sedentary time (ST; leisure and total ST), commuting mode with hyperuricemia in a multiethnic Chinese population, and to analyze the difference between sexes. Methods Baseline data were analyzed from 22,094 participants from the China Multi-Ethnic Cohort study in the Yunnan region, China. PA and sedentary behavior were assessed through questionnaires. Hyperuricemia was defined as serum urate > 7.0 mg/dL among men and > 6.0 mg/dL among women. A restricted cubic spline (RCS) was created to model the possible nonlinear relationship of PA and ST with hyperuricemia. Logistic regression was used to estimate the odds ratio (OR) and 95% CI. Results Hyperuricemia prevalence in the observed population was 15.5% (men 25.5%, women 10.7%). Compared to those with light PA, participants with moderate-to-vigorous PA had lower odds of hyperuricemia (adjusted ORs were 0.85 [95% CI 0.77–0.94] and 0.88 [95% CI 0.79–0.97]). However, RCS showed a U-shaped nonlinear relationship between PA and hyperuricemia, and a linear relationship between hyperuricemia prevalence and increasing ST. Total ST ≥ 4 hours/day increased the risk of hyperuricemia in women but not in men. Mode of transportation revealed that sedentary behavior increased the risk of hyperuricemia, but there were inconsistent results based on sex. Conclusion Moderate PA may be more beneficial in reducing the risk of hyperuricemia. Reducing ST may have a greater effect on preventing hyperuricemia in females than in males.
Granger Causality Analysis of Chignolin Folding

Constantly advancing computer simulations of biomolecules provide huge amounts of data that are difficult to interpret. In particular, obtaining insights into functional aspects of macromolecular dynamics, often related to cascades of transient events, calls for methodologies that depart from the well-grounded framework of equilibrium statistical physics. One of the approaches toward the analysis of complex temporal data which has found applications in the fields of neuroscience and econometrics is Granger causality analysis. It allows determining which components of multidimensional time series are most influential for the evolution of the entire system, thus providing insights into causal relations within the dynamic structure of interest. In this work, we apply Granger analysis to a long molecular dynamics trajectory depicting repetitive folding and unfolding of a mini β-hairpin protein, CLN025. We find objective, quantitative evidence indicating that rearrangements within the hairpin turn region are determinant for protein folding and unfolding. On the contrary, interactions between hairpin arms score low on the causality scale. Taken together, these findings clearly favor the concept of zipperlike folding, which is one of two postulated β-hairpin folding mechanisms. More importantly, the results demonstrate the possibility of a conclusive application of Granger causality analysis to a biomolecular system.
Potentiating the Anti-Tuberculosis Efficacy of Peptide Nucleic Acids through Combinations with Permeabilizing Drugs

Peptide nucleic acids have great potential in therapeutics as anti-gene/anti-sense agents. However, their limited uptake in cells has curtailed their widespread application. ABSTRACT The emergence of antimicrobial resistance warrants for the development of improved treatment approaches. In this regard, peptide nucleic acids (PNAs) have shown great promise, exhibiting antibiotic properties through the targeting of cellular nucleic acids. We aimed to study the efficacy of PNA as an anti-tuberculosis agent. Since the efficacy of PNA is limited by its low penetration into the cell, we also investigated combinatorial treatments using permeabilizing drugs to improve PNA efficacy. Various concentrations of anti-inhA PNA, permeabilizing drugs, and their combinations were screened against extracellular and intracellular mycobacteria.0. 625 to 5 μM anti-inhA PNA was observed to merely inhibit the growth of extracellular M. smegmatis, while low intracellular bacterial load was reduced by 2 or 2.5 log-fold when treated with 2.5 or 5 μM PNA, respectively. Anti-inhA PNA against M. tuberculosis H37Ra exhibited bactericidal properties at 2.5 and 5 μM and enabled a slight reduction in intracellular M. tuberculosis at concentrations from 2.5 to 20 μM. Of the permeabilizing drugs tested, ethambutol showed the most permeabilizing potential and ultimately potentiated anti-inhA PNA to the greatest extent, reducing its efficacious concentration to 1.25 μM against both M. smegmatis and M. tuberculosis. Furthermore, an enhanced clearance of 1.3 log-fold was observed for ethambutol-anti-inhA PNA combinations against intracellular M. tuberculosis. Thus, permeabilizing drug-PNA combinations indeed exhibit improved efficacies. We therefore propose that anti-inhA PNA could improve therapy even when applied in minute doses as an addition to the current anti-tuberculosis drug regimen. IMPORTANCE Peptide nucleic acids have great potential in therapeutics as anti-gene/anti-sense agents. However, their limited uptake in cells has curtailed their widespread application. Through this study, we explore a PNA-drug combinatorial strategy to improve the efficacy of PNAs and reduce their effective concentrations. This work also focuses on improving tuberculosis treatment, which is hindered by the emergence of antimicrobial-resistant strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. It is observed that the antibacterial efficacy of anti-inhA PNA is enhanced when it is combined with permeabilizing drugs, particularly ethambutol. This indicates that the addition of even small concentrations of anti-inhA PNA to the current TB regimen could potentiate their therapeutic efficiency. We hypothesize that this system would also overcome isoniazid resistance, since the resistance mutations lie outside the designed anti-inhA PNA target site.
Suppression of stochastically placed, straight toolmarks to enhance objects and defects / Unterdrückung von stochastisch plazierten, geraden Riefen zur Hervorhebung von Objekten und Defekten

An algorithm is proposed for the Separation of grooves (foreground) and objects or defects (background) in gray level images of machined surfaces with stochastically placed, straight toolmarks. The magnitude of the Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) of the texture is converted into a polar r, (p-coordinate system. A further two-dimensional DFT concentrates the Information about the grooves dose to the f^-axis of the corresponding frequency domain. The Information on image components with radially Symmetrie magnitudes of the Fourier spectrum is mapped dose to the f-axis. The high degree of Separation of the two texture components in the f,f^-domain allows to suppress the undesiredpart with a notch filter in a robust way. After an inverse DFT and a polar to rectangular coordinate transform one gets a filtered Version of the DFT magnitude of the texture. Comparing the filtered version with the unfiltered DFT magnitude, the DFT of the texture is decomposed into two complementary Fourier spectra. For each discrete frequency a decision is made whether a spectral component belongs more to the foreground or more to the background, depending on the ratio of the filtered and unfiltered magnitude of the DFT of the texture. Inverse DFT of the two complementary Fourier spectra yields one image with enhanced grooves (foreground) and another one with enhanced objects and defects (background). The Performance of the method is demonstrated with pictures of honed surfaces. The application of the presented algorithm is not restricted to groove textures and can also be applied to arbitrary textures with stochastically placed, straight lines.
Burnout and psychological distress among Pakistani nurses providing care to COVID‐19 patients: A cross‐sectional study

Abstract Aim The aim of this study is to assess the burden of burnout and psychological distress and its association among Pakistani nurses providing care to patients with COVID‐19. Background Nurses may experience an elevated risk of burnout and psychological distress during epidemics. Methods A cross‐sectional study was conducted using a convenience sample of 288 nurses. Maslach Burnout Inventory was administered to measure burnout and its domains of emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and personal accomplishment. Screening Tool for Psychological Distress was administered to measure depression, anxiety, stress, anger, and low social support. Results Burnout was present in 48.6% of nurses, severe emotional exhaustion in 37.2%, severe depersonalization in 36.8%, and low personal accomplishment in 46.9% of nurses. Psychological distress was present in 45% of nurses. Burnout and psychological distress were significantly higher in nurses who: were working in public hospitals, did not receive training for COVID‐19 prevention, and were dealing with increased patient load. Burnout and its domains were significantly associated with depression, anxiety, stress, anger, and low social support. Conclusion Nurses are experiencing high levels of burnout and psychological distress during the COVID‐19 pandemic with a significant moderate‐to‐strong association between these conditions. These findings accentuate the need for institution‐based interventions to mitigate burnout and preserve the mental health of nurses. Implications for nursing and health policy Hospitals must screen nurses frequently for the presence of significant burnout and psychological distress and offer supportive interventions to protect their mental health and well‐being.
The Content, Quality, and Behavior Change Techniques in Nutrition-Themed Mobile Apps for Children in Canada: App Review and Evaluation Study

Background Children increasingly use mobile apps. Strategies to increase child engagement with apps include the use of gamification and images that incite fun and interaction, such as food. However, the foods and beverages that children are exposed to while using apps are unknown and may vary by app type. Objective The aim of this study is to identify the app content (ie, types of foods and beverages) included in nutrition-themed apps intended for children, to assess the use of game-like features, and to examine app characteristics such as overall quality and behavior change techniques (BCTs). Methods This analysis used a cross-sectional database of nutrition-themed apps intended for children (≤12 years), collected between May 2018 and June 2019 from the Apple App Store and Google Play Store (n=259). Apps were classified into four types: food games or nongames that included didactic nutrition guides, habit trackers, and other. Food and beverages were identified in apps and classified into 16 food categories, as recommended (8/16, 50%) and as not recommended (8/16, 50%) by dietary guidelines, and quantified by app type. Binomial logistic regression assessed whether game apps were associated with foods and beverages not recommended by guidelines. App quality, overall and by subscales, was determined using the Mobile App Rating Scale. The BCT Taxonomy was used to classify the different behavioral techniques that were identified in a subsample of apps (124/259, 47.9%). Results A total of 259 apps displayed a median of 6 (IQR 3) foods and beverages. Moreover, 62.5% (162/259) of apps were classified as food games, 27.4% (71/259) as didactic nutrition guides, 6.6% (17/259) as habit trackers, and 3.5% (9/259) as other. Most apps (198/259, 76.4%) displayed at least one food or beverage that was not recommended by the dietary guidelines. Food game apps were almost 3 times more likely to display food and beverages not recommended by the guidelines compared with nongame apps (β=2.8; P<.001). The overall app quality was moderate, with a median Mobile App Rating Scale score of 3.6 (IQR 0.7). Functionality was the subscale with the highest score (median 4, IQR 0.3). Nutrition guides were more likely to be educational and contain informative content on healthy eating (score 3.7), compared with the other app types, although they also scored significantly lower in engagement (score 2.3). Most apps (105/124, 84.7%) displayed at least one BCT, with the most common BCT being information about health consequences. Conclusions Findings suggest nutrition-themed apps intended for children displayed food and beverage content not recommended by dietary guidelines, with gaming apps more likely to display not recommended foods than their nongame counterparts. Many apps have a moderate app quality, and the use of consequences (instead of rewards) was the most common BCT.