Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Rare Etiology of Small Intestinal Obstruction - Solitary Myelogenic Sarcoma of the Small Intestine: CT Findings and a Review of the Literature

Background: Myelocytic sarcoma is a rare extramedullary tumor consisting of immature myeloid cells-granulocytes, mononuclear cells, or both. It usually occurs in patients with acute or chronic myeloid leukemia and is often found in the skin, bone, and lymphatic tissues. Isolated myeloid sarcomas are more uncommon in patients without leukemia in the small intestine. Case presentation: In the present study, a hospitalized case is discussed with intestinal obstruction as the primary symptom. During the CT examination, the local intestinal wall of the jejunum was found to possess ring thickening, intestinal lumen stenosis and proximal intestinal obstruction. The tumor presented with uniform and moderate progressive enhancement. The patient underwent emergency laparoscopic surgery in order to remove the tumor. Immunohistochemical staining on postoperative paraffin sections revealed myelosarcoma. The patient also underwent a bone marrow biopsy to exclude acute and chronic myeloid leukemia and the bone marrow smear indicated normal range. Conclusions: Myeloid sarcoma must be included in the differential diagnosis of small intestinal tumors, although the patient may not have history of leukemia. Radiologists should improve their imaging perception of myelosarcoma.
An Explainable Approach to Deducing Outcomes in European Court of Human Rights Cases Using ADFs

In this paper we present an argumentation-based approach to representing and reasoning about a domain of law that has previously been addressed through a machine learning approach. The domain concerns cases that all fall within the re-mit of a speciﬁc Article within the European Court of Human Rights. We perform a comparison between the approaches, based on two criteria: ability of the model to accurately replicate the decision that was made in the real life legal cases within the particular domain, and the quality of the explanation provided by the models. Our initial results show that the system based on the argumentation approach improves on the machine learning results in terms of accuracy, and can explain its outcomes in terms of the issue on which the case turned, and the factors that were crucial in arriving at the conclusion.
Effects of Botulinum Toxin Type A on Microvessels in Hypertrophic Scar Models on Rabbit Ears

Background Although Botulinum Toxin Type A (BTXA) has been applied to scar prevention and treatment, the mechanisms still require further exploration. Objective To investigate the effects of BTXA on microvessels in the hypertrophic scar models on rabbit ears. Methods Eight big-eared New Zealand rabbits (males or females) were selected to establish scar models. One ear of each rabbit (4 models in each ear) was selected randomly to be injected with BTXA immediately after modeling and included in the treated group, while the opposite ear was untreated and included in the control group. The growth of scars in each group was observed and recorded, and 4 rabbits were sacrificed on days 30 and 45 after modeling. Then, scar height was measured by hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) expression was detected by immunohistochemical (IHC) testing, and microvessel density (MVD) was calculated based on CD34 (human hematopoietic progenitor cell antigen). Results The wounds in each group were well healed and free from infection or necrosis. On days 30 and 45, the scar height, MVD value, and VEGF expression in the treated group were lower than those in the control group (P < 0.05). For the treated group, the above indicators on day 45 were lower than on day 30 (P > 0.05). Besides, there was a positive correlation between the MVD value and the VEGF expression in the treated group (P < 0.05). Conclusion The injection of BTXA immediately after modeling inhibits VEGF expression and reduces angiogenesis, thereby inhibiting hypertrophic scar formation.
Dysregulation of Circulating FGF19 and Bile Acids in Primary Biliary Cholangitis-Autoimmune Hepatitis Overlap Syndrome

Background Primary biliary cholangitis-autoimmune hepatitis overlap syndrome (PBC-AIH OS), which exhibits features between autoimmune hepatitis and cholestasis, is a common condition and usually shows a progressive course toward cirrhosis and liver failure without adequate treatment. Synthesis of bile acids (BAs) plays an important role in liver injury in cholestasis, and the process is regulated by fibroblast growth factor 19 (FGF19). The overall role of circulating FGF19 in BA synthesis and PBC-AIH OS requires further investigation. Methods We analyzed BA synthesis and correlated clinical parameters with serum BAs and FGF19 in 35 patients with PBC-AIH OS. Serum concentrations of 7alpha-hydroxycholest-4-en-3-one (C4) were used to quantify the synthesis of BA directly. Results Serum FGF19 levels were higher, while C4 levels were substantially lower in PBC-AIH OS patients than those in healthy controls. Circulating FGF19 levels strongly correlated with C4 (r = −0.695, p < 0.0001), direct bilirubin (r = 0.598, p = 0.0001), and total bile acids (r = 0.595, p = 0.002). Moreover, circulating FGF19 levels strongly correlated with the model for end-stage liver disease score (r = 0.574, p = 0.0005) and Mayo risk score (r = 0.578, p = 0.001). Conclusions Serum FGF19 is significantly increased in patients with PBC-AIH OS, while BA synthesis is suppressed. Circulating FGF19 primarily controls the regulation of BA synthesis in response to cholestasis and under cholestatic conditions. Therefore, modulation of circulating FGF19 could provide a promising targeted therapy for patients with PBC-AIH OS.
Antimicrobial Activity of Cultivable Endophytic and Rhizosphere Fungi Associated with “Mile-a-Minute,” Mikania cordata (Asteraceae)

Endophytic and rhizosphere fungi are understood to be aiding the host plant to overcome a range of biotic and abiotic stresses (nutrition depletion, droughts, etc.) hence, they remain to be reservoirs of plethora of natural products with immense use. Consequently, this investigation of endophytic and rhizosphere fungi isolated from Mikania cordata (a perennial vine that is well established in Sri Lanka) for their antimicrobial properties was performed with the aim of future derivation of potential beneficial pharmaceutical products. Leaves, twigs, and roots of M. cordata were utilized to isolate a total of 9 endophytic fungi out of which the highest amount (44%) accounted was from the twigs. A sample of the immediate layer of soil adhering to the root of M. cordata was utilized to isolate 15 rhizosphere fungi. Fusarium equiseti and Phoma medicaginis were endophytes that were identified based on colony and molecular characteristics. The broad spectrum of antimicrobial activity depicted by F. equiseti (MK517551) was found to be significantly greater (p ≤ 0.05, inhibitory against Bacillus cereus ATCC 11778, Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923, Escherichia coli ATCC 25922, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 25853) than P. medicaginis (MK517550) (inhibitory against Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923, Escherichia coli ATCC 25922, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 25853) as assessed using the Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion method. Trichoderma virens and Trichoderma asperellum were rhizospere fungi that exhibited remarkable antimicrobial properties against the test pathogens chosen for the study. T. asperellum indicated significantly greater bioactivity against all four bacterial pathogens and Candida albicans ATCC 10231 under study. The ranges of minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of the fungi depicting antimicrobial properties were determined. The results obtained suggest that F. equiseti, P. medicaginis, T. asperellum, and T. virens of M. cordata harness bioprospective values as natural drug candidates. This is the first report on isolation and evaluation of the antimicrobial properties of endophytic and rhizosphere fungi of Mikania cordata.
Peer Competitive Threats, Common Customers, and Strategic News Disclosure

We exploit the vast complex network of supplier-customer relationships to examine the strategic news disclosure behavior of a supplier facing intense competition from peers that supply to the same customers. Results show that competitive threats from customer-connected peers are strongly and positively associated with supplier stock price crash risk beyond other sources of competition, including the level of industry competitiveness, general product market competitive pressure, or threats from non-linked peers. The baseline evidence is further substantiated by three quasi-natural experiments associated with exogenous shocks arising from M&A activity of customers, peer bankruptcies, and peer location disruptions by natural disasters. We find strong cross-sectional differences in information asymmetry (as proxied by institutional ownership breadth, analyst forecast dispersion, and news coverage) on the relation between peer competitive threats and supplier crash risk. Furthermore, supplier firms facing greater peer competitive threats are more likely to receive a larger number of SEC comment letters about their mandatory filings and to produce less readable financial reports. Combined, these results are in line with the strategic information disclosure explanation.
Acoustic Black Holes and Superresonance Mechanisms

We study an analogue model of gravity, referred to as acoustic black hole, which is based on the propagation of sound waves in fluids. We discuss the formalism and the 2 + 1-dimensional analogue of rotating black holes. We study geodesic motion in this background, which describes the propagation of high-frequency sound waves in the fluid, and identify the absorption cross-section of the acoustic event horizon in this regime. We show the existence of superradiance in these analogues, and compute numerically the gain factors. Finally we investigate superradiance mechanisms that might lead to instabilities in these systems.
Investigating Influencing Factors of Chinese Elderly Users' Intention to Adopt MHealth Based on the UTAUT2 Model

With an increasingly aging population in China, chronic diseases associated with aging cannot be ignored. Mobile health (mHealth) applications have shown potentials because of their ease of use and convenience. However, mHealth is still in its early stage of development and its adoption rate has not been noticeably improved in China. The growth of is contingent on its adoption by users especially by elderly users, and therefore a study is warranted to investigate factors influencing users' intention to adopt mHealth. This study is based on the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology 2. Wide range of factors from behavior to cultural background to government health policy being considered, this research was carried out among the elderly in China to understand influencing factors on users' intention to adopt mHealth. The research findings will facilitate the development of strategies for mHealth and provide a reference for perfecting medical service system for the elderly by the government, meet the growing demand for medical services by the aging adult, and ultimately improve the health of the aging adult.
Energy-Efficient Distillation Processes by Additional Heat Transfer Derived From the FluxMax Approach

Distillation processes are an essential component of any chemical plant for the separation and purification of condensable mixtures. However, distillation columns account for the largest contribution to the total energy consumption of chemical processes due to their high heat demands. Consequently, there is a strong need for energy efficient column designs to reduce drastically the carbon dioxide emissions and thus to reach the settled climate goals of the chemical industry. In this paper, the FluxMax approach is used to identify energy optimal column designs. The representation of the distillation process by the elementary processes mixing, heating/cooling and phase separation leads to increased degrees of freedom of optimization compared to classical column modeling approaches. In this way, a non-conventional design with minimal energy consumption is identified. The energy-optimized configuration is a column with improved heat transfer between vapor and liquid streams. MESH equations are used for the validation of the FluxMax design, as they are state-of-the-art in process modeling tools. While the new design reduces the energy demand by up to 64% compared to the classical design, additional heat exchange area is required to exploit the energy reduction potential. A multi-objective optimization—energy duty vs. heat exchanger area—is carried out to identify the optimal trade-off between energy demand and heat exchanger area related capital cost. The highly energy-efficient designs identified by the FluxMax approach may be realized in practice by horizontal columns or modularized container solutions.
Strigolactones Interact With Nitric Oxide in Regulating Root System Architecture of Arabidopsis thaliana

Both nitric oxide (NO) and strigolactone (SL) are growth regulating signal components in plants; however, regarding their possible interplay our knowledge is limited. Therefore, this study aims to provide new evidence for the signal interplay between NO and SL in the formation of root system architecture using complementary pharmacological and molecular biological approaches in the model Arabidopsis thaliana grown under stress-free conditions. Deficiency of SL synthesis or signaling (max1-1 and max2-1) resulted in elevated NO and S-nitrosothiol (SNO) levels due to decreased S-nitrosoglutathione (GSNO) reductase (GSNOR) protein abundance and activity indicating that there is a signal interaction between SLs and GSNOR-regulated levels of NO/SNO. This was further supported by the down-regulation of SL biosynthetic genes (CCD7, CCD8 and MAX1) in GSNOR-deficient gsnor1-3. Based on the more pronounced sensitivity of gsnor1-3 to exogenous SL (rac-GR24, 2 µM), we suspected that functional GSNOR is needed to control NO/SNO levels during SL-induced primary root (PR) elongation. Additionally, SLs may be involved in GSNO-regulated PR shortening as suggested by the relative insensitivity of max1-1 and max2-1 mutants to exogenous GSNO (250 µM). Collectively, our results indicate a connection between SL and GSNOR-regulated NO/SNO signals in roots of A. thaliana grown in stress-free environment. As this work used max2-1 mutant and rac-GR24 exerting unspecific effects to both SL and karrikin signaling, it cannot be ruled out that karrikins are partly responsible for the observed effects, and this issue needs further clarification in the future.
Design for Co-responsibility: Connecting Patients, Partners, and Professionals in Bariatric Lifestyle Changes

Most health technologies to support lifestyle changes after bariatric (weight-loss) surgery are aimed at the individual patient. However, lifestyle changes cannot be done in isolation, but are a co-responsibility between patient, Health Care Professionals (HCPs), and the social context; most dominantly the partner. We want to investigate the potential value of an intelligent ecosystem that is designed for this co-responsibility. We present a clinical trial following an explorative data-enabled approach. We deploy an ecosystem consisting of data trackers and personalized coaching interventions with six patients and their partners. Based on various use cases, we identify six ways in which designing for co-responsibility can bring value: by (1) identifying the right intervention, (2) assessing the effectiveness of the intervention, (3) allowing patients to seek support when needed, (4) awareness of co-responsibilities within the couple (5) helping the partner in understanding how to be of help, and (6) preventative care.
Effects of warming on benthic communities in a boreal lake: Implications of climate change

We experimentally warmed a series of shallow enclosures by 4.5°C and measured responses of the epilithon (biofilm on rocky surfaces) and invertebrates. Maximum rates of net photosynthesis increased by 28–115% and rates of dark respiration increased by 29–103% as a result of warming. Long‐term analyses using data from unmanipulated Lake 239 corroborated these findings, showing that rates of light‐saturated photosynthesis and dark respiration were positively correlated with water temperature. Warming effects differed between communities (on natural and tile substrates, as well as well‐developed and early successional communities). Warming consistently led to increased bacterial cell densities, but increases in total algal biovolume and diatom biovolume were seen only in an early successional tile community. Effects on the composition of the invertebrate community (studied only on well‐developed tile biofilms) were small. We observed warming‐related increases in carbon accrual within one community, and late in the experiment observed a change in carbon : phosphorus ratios of another community, possibly indicative of a degradation of food quality. Our study suggests that climate warming effects on epilithic community composition are likely to be heterogeneous and difficult to predict; however, the agreement between long‐term and experimental results suggests that increased temperatures will increase metabolic rates of the epilithon.
Field Identification of Cold Tolerance of High Oleic Acid Peanut at Germination Stage and Verification of Physiological Indices

26 high oleic acid peanut (HOAP) varieties were selected for early seeding test, and based on the emergence rate, 4 of them with different cold tolerance were selected: Huayu 662 (tolerant), Huayu 965 (moderately tolerant), Fuhua 27 (sensitive), and Fuhua 22 (sensitive). Constant temperature incubator with 2°C was used to simulate low temperature to research variation of physiological indices of HOAP under chill stress for 2 days, 4 days, and rewarming for 1 day, 2 days during germination. The results showed that activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD), peroxidase (POD), catalase (CAT) and content of proline (PRO) of HOAP were inhibited by chill stress at germination stage, and increased during rewarming period, which indicated that low temperature caused obvious damage to peanut seed, and the cold-resistant peanuts had significantly higher indices than other varieties. Our study was expected to provide theoretical basis for cold tolerance germplasms innovation and breeding of HOAP.
Case Report: Systemic Inflammatory Response and Fast Recovery in a Pediatric Patient With COVID-19

We report a case of an 8-year-old girl who underwent a SARS-CoV-2 infection manifesting with atypical symptoms spearheaded by abdominal discomfort and systemic inflammation and partially mimicking hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) or macrophage activation syndrome (MAS), which however did not fulfill the HLH/MAS diagnostic criteria. In this case of what has since been described as Pediatric Inflammatory Multisystem Syndrome Temporally associated with SARS-COV-2 (PIMS-TS) we documented excellent clinical response to immunosuppression with systemic corticosteroids and intravenous immunoglobulins. We show a detailed longitudinal development of neutrophil immunophenotype which suggests activation and engagement of neutrophils during PIMS-TS with compensatory contraction of the response and contra-regulation of neutrophil phenotype during recovery.
Exploring Potential Scenarios and Design Implications Through a Camera-like Physical Odor Capture Prototype

Recently, researchers have become increasingly interested in finding new input methods for olfactory interfaces. Physical odor capture is a potential solution to this issue and, in order to make it more accessible for users, we designed a portable and fast smell capture prototype based on headspace technology and inspired by point-and-shoot cameras. We conducted a two-week diary study with 13 participants, in which they were allowed to freely use the prototype for odor capture activities. Through diary and interview feedback, we summarized factors such as the motivations of capturing, the collected odor types, and perceptual effects of odor replay. We found that the capture activities can positively affect user emotions, memory, or perception. User preferences on device parameters were also gathered to guide further design iterations. Physical odor capture has many potential applications in daily-life and other implications resulting from the study have been proposed for further research.
The Impact of COVID-19 on Adjusted Mortality Risk in Care Homes for Older Adults in Wales, United Kingdom: A retrospective population-based cohort study for mortality in 2016-2020

Background: Mortality in care homes has had a prominent focus during the COVID-19 outbreak. Multiple and interconnected challenges face the care home sector in the prevention and management of outbreaks of COVID-19, including adequate supply of personal protective equipment, staff shortages, and insufficient or lack of timely COVID-19 testing. Care homes are particularly vulnerable to infectious diseases. Aim: To analyse the mortality of older care home residents in Wales during COVID-19 lockdown and compare this across the population of Wales and the previous 4-years. Study Design and Setting: We used anonymised Electronic Health Records (EHRs) and administrative data from the Secure Anonymised Information Linkage (SAIL) Databank to create a cross-sectional cohort study. We anonymously linked data for Welsh residents to mortality data up to the 14th June 2020. Methods: We calculated survival curves and adjusted Cox proportional hazards models to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) for the risk of mortality. We adjusted hazard ratios for age, gender, social economic status and prior health conditions. Results: Survival curves show an increased proportion of deaths between 23rd March and 14th June 2020 in care homes for older people, with an adjusted HR of 1.72 (1.55, 1.90) compared to 2016. Compared to the general population in 2016-2019, adjusted care home mortality HRs for older adults rose from 2.15 (2.11,2.20) in 2016-2019 to 2.94 (2.81,3.08) in 2020. Conclusions: The survival curves and increased HRs show a significantly increased risk of death in the 2020 study periods.
Die Prüfung forstlicher Baumarten auf Resistenz gegen parasitäre Pilze1

Resistance test against parasitic fungi in forest trees in Sweden. Forest resistance research is carried out at the Department of Forest Botany and Pathology at the Royal College of Forestry in Stockholm in close contact with Forest Genetics research and is performed as a resistance test of plants from seed orchards and tested progenies. Biochemical research concerning the resistance mechanism and an electronmicroscopic investigation is carried out. At present the