Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Extracellular matrix turnover: phytochemicals target and modulate the dual role of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) in liver fibrosis

Extracellular matrix (ECM) resolution by matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) is a well‐documented mechanism. MMPs play a dual and complex role in modulating ECM degradation at different stages of liver fibrosis, depending on the timing and levels of their expression. Increased MMP‐1 combats disease progression by cleaving the fibrillar ECM. Activated hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) increase expression of MMP‐2, ‐9, and ‐13 in different chemicals‐induced animal models, which may alleviate or worsen disease progression based on animal models and the stage of liver fibrosis. In the early stage, elevated expression of certain MMPs may damage surrounding tissue and activate HSCs, promoting fibrosis progression. At the later stage, downregulation of MMPs can facilitate ECM accumulation and disease progression. A number of phytochemicals modulate MMP activity and ECM turnover, alleviating disease progression. However, the effects of phytochemicals on the expression of different MMPs are variable and may depend on the disease models and stage, and the dosage, timing and duration of phytochemicals used in each study. Here, we review the most recent advances in the role of MMPs in the effects of phytochemicals on liver fibrogenesis, which indicates that further studies are warranted to confirm and define the potential clinical efficacy of these phytochemicals.
Sur les fonctions de lignes implicites

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A transfusion risk stratification score to facilitate quality management in cardiopulmonary bypass

Our previous showed that a blood management program in the cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) department, reduced red blood cell (RBC) transfusion and complications, but assessing transfusion practice solely based on transfusion rates was insufficient. This study aimed to design a risk stratification score to predict perioperative RBC transfusion to guide targeted measures for on‐pump cardiac surgery patients.
Effect of belimumab on kidney-related outcomes in patients with lupus nephritis: post hoc subgroup analyses of the phase 3 BLISS-LN trial

ABSTRACT Background Data on belimumab efficacy in patients with lupus nephritis (LN) according to diagnosis duration or induction therapy are limited. Post hoc analyses of the phase 3, randomized, double-blind BLISS-LN study (GSK BEL114054; NCT01639339) were performed to assess belimumab efficacy on kidney-related outcomes in newly diagnosed and relapsed LN subgroups and according to the use of glucocorticoid (GC) pulses at induction. Methods BLISS-LN randomized 448 patients with active LN to monthly intravenous belimumab 10 mg/kg or placebo plus standard therapy. Post hoc analyses assessed primary efficacy renal response (PERR) and complete renal response (CRR) at week 104, time to kidney-related event or death and time to first LN flare from week 24 in newly diagnosed and relapsed patients and patients with/without GC pulses at induction. Results A greater proportion of patients achieved a PERR with belimumab versus placebo in the newly diagnosed {69/148 [46.6%] versus 55/148 [37.2%]; odds ratio [OR] 1.36 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.85–2.20]} and relapsed [27/75 (36.0%) versus 17/75 (22.7%); OR 2.31 (95% CI 1.07–5.01)] subgroups. Similarly for CRR [newly diagnosed: 50/148 (33.8%) versus 36/148 (24.3%); OR 1.49 (95% CI 0.88–2.51) and relapsed: 17/75 (22.7%) versus 8/75 (10.7%); OR 3.11 (95% CI 1.16–8.31)]. The probability of kidney-related event or death, or LN flare was lower with belimumab versus placebo in both subgroups. Belimumab was associated with improved kidney outcomes versus placebo with or without GC pulses at induction. Conclusion Data suggest consistent benefits of belimumab on kidney outcomes for newly diagnosed and relapsed patients, and irrespective of GC pulses at induction.
Role of the ocular surface microbiome in allergic eye diseases

Purpose of review The purpose of this review is to provide an update on emerging literature on the role of the ocular surface microbiome (OSM) in allergic eye diseases. Recent findings Findings in the literature suggest that the ocular surface microbiome plays a role in the pathophysiology and course of allergic disease of the ocular surface. Summary Knowledge regarding the role of the ocular surface microbiome in allergic disease is important to guide development of targets for future therapeutic interventions.
An Action Research Study Involving Fifth-grade Students Learning Fractions Through A Situative Perspective With Story Problems

The purpose of this action research study was to investigate the affects of teaching through a situative perspective with story problems on students’ understanding of fraction concepts and operations in my fifth-grade mathematics classroom. Students participated in twelve weeks of instruction. Data was collected in the form of pre and post tests, audiotaped and videotaped recordings of instructional sessions, and student work samples. Data analysis revealed that my students constructed their own knowledge about various fraction concepts and operations because students engaged in discussions, after solving story problems, that developed, extended and restructured their knowledge. One example of this occurred after students had solved an equal-sharing problem. Two students came up with different answers and another student explained why both answers were equivalent. Student work samples and post test results indicated that the one student’s explanation was understood, adopted and extended by all the students in my class. The data also revealed that students’ pictures typically represented the context and action of the story problems. For example, subtraction problems dealing with length were usually represented by number lines or horizontal rectangles with crossed-out markings to show the subtraction operation. Throughout this research study, I discovered that my students were capable of learning from each other and solving problems for which they have no preconceived algorithm. I also learned that analyzing students’ work and listening to their discussions in ways that focused on their thinking, not their answers, provided me with information about what my students were grasping and not grasping.
Impact of sarcopenia on biliary drainage during neoadjuvant therapy for pancreatic cancer

Background/Aims Since the usefulness of neoadjuvant chemo(radiation) therapy (NAT) for pancreatic cancer has been demonstrated, recurrent biliary obstruction (RBO) in patients with pancreatic cancer with a fully covered self-expandable metal stent (FCSEMS) during NAT is expected to increase. This study investigated the impact of sarcopenia on RBO in this setting. Methods Patients were divided into normal and low skeletal muscle index (SMI) groups and retrospectively analyzed. Patient characteristics, overall survival, time to RBO (TRBO), stent-related adverse events, and postoperative complications were compared between the two groups. A Cox proportional hazard model was used to identify the risk factors for short TRBO. Results A few significant differences were observed in patient characteristics, overall survival, stent-related adverse events, and postoperative complications between 38 patients in the normal SMI group and 17 in the low SMI group. The median TRBO was not reached in the normal SMI group and was 112 days in the low SMI group (p=0.004). In multivariate analysis, low SMI was the only risk factor for short TRBO, with a hazard ratio of 5.707 (95% confidence interval, 1.148–28.381; p=0.033). Conclusions Sarcopenia was identified as an independent risk factor for RBO in patients with pancreatic cancer with FCSEMS during NAT.
The altered metabolic pathways of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma not otherwise specified

Abstract Altered metabolic fingerprints of Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, not otherwise specified (DLBCL NOS) may offer novel opportunities to identify new biomarkers and improve the understanding of its pathogenesis. This study aimed to investigate the modified metabolic pathways in extranodal, germinal center B-cell (GCB) and non-GCB DLBCL NOS from the head and neck. Formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissues from eleven DLBCL NOS classified according to Hans’ algorithm using immunohistochemistry, and five normal lymphoid tissues (LT) were analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry-based untargeted metabolomics. Partial Least Squares Discriminant Analysis showed that GCB and non-GCB DLBCL NOS have a distinct metabolomics profile, being the former more similar to normal lymphoid tissues. Metabolite pathway enrichment analysis indicated the following altered pathways: arachidonic acid, tyrosine, xenobiotics, vitamin E metabolism, and vitamin A. Our findings support that GCB and non-GCB DLBCL NOS has a distinct metabolomic profile, in which GCB possibly shares more metabolic similarities with LT than non-GCB DLBCL NOS.
Using Calibration Weighting to Adjust for Nonresponse and Coverage Errors

Calibration weighting can be used to adjust for unit nonresponse and/or coverage errors under appropriate quasi­ randomization models. Alternative calibration adjustments that are asymptotically identical in a purely sampling context can diverge when used in this manner. Introducing instrumental variables into calibration weighting makes it possible for nonresponse (say) to be a function of a set of characteristics other than those in the calibration vector. When the calibration adjustment has a nonlinear form, a variant of the jackknife can remove the need for iteration in variance estimation.
Long-term impacts of an early childhood shock on human capital: Evidence from the 1999 economic crisis in Ecuador.

This paper provides evidence on the lasting effects of the 1999 economic crisis in Ecuador on human capital formation. We show for children born during the crisis that the negative repercussions are still observable more than 10 years after macroeconomic recovery. Taking advantage of micro-level data collected in 2012 and 2014, we assess long-term impacts on health and education. After controlling for age-in-months and survey effects as well as a linear birth year-cohort trend that varies by region, we find that after 12-16 years, the cohorts born during the recession report height-for-age Z-scores that are 0.003 standard deviations (SDs) lower for each month of exposure and have 0.002 fewer years of schooling per month exposed compared to the cohorts born outside the recession years. Children exposed to the entire crisis are 0.063 SDs smaller and have 0.042 years less of schooling. Girls have lower health outcomes than boys. Concomitantly, we show that selective childbearing or excess infant mortality are unlikely to drive our results. The persistence of the negative effects points to the existence of a poverty trap suggesting that policy interventions in response to (economic) crizes should be extended beyond macroeconomic recovery to counteract long-term, micro-level consequences.
Enhanced S-Cone Syndrome: Elevated Cone Counts Confer Supernormal Visual Acuity in the S-Cone Pathway

Purpose To measure photoreceptor packing density and S-cone spatial resolution as a function of retinal eccentricity in patients with enhanced S-cone syndrome (ESCS) and to discuss the possible mechanisms supporting their supernormal S-cone acuity. Methods We used an adaptive optics scanning laser ophthalmoscope (AOSLO) to characterize photoreceptor packing. A custom non-AO display channel was used to measure L/M- and S-cone–mediated visual acuity during AOSLO imaging. Acuity measurements were obtained using a four-alternative, forced-choice, tumbling E paradigm along the temporal meridian between the fovea and 4° eccentricity in five of six patients and in seven control subjects. L/M acuity was tested by presenting long-pass–filtered optotypes on a black background, excluding wavelengths to which S-cones are sensitive. S-cone isolation was achieved using a two-color, blue-on-yellow chromatic adaptation method that was validated on three control subjects. Results Inter-cone spacing measurements revealed a near-uniform cone density profile (ranging from 0.9–1.5 arcmin spacing) throughout the macula in ESCS. For comparison, normal cone density decreases by a factor of 14 from the fovea to 6°. Cone spacing of ESCS subjects was higher than normal in the fovea and subnormal beyond 2°. Compared to the control subjects (n = 7), S-cone–mediated acuities in patients with ESCS were normal near the fovea and became increasingly supernormal with retinal eccentricity. Beyond 2°, S-cone acuities were superior to L/M-cone–mediated acuity in the ESCS cohort, a reversal of the trend observed in normal retinas. Conclusions Higher than normal parafoveal cone densities (presumably dominated by S-cones) confer better than normal S-cone–mediated acuity in ESCS subjects.
Factors influencing surgical performance and learning progress in minimally invasive surgery – results of an interdisciplinary multicenter study

Background: Advancing surgical techniques require a high level of adaptation and learning skills on the part of surgeons. The authors need selection procedures and decision support systems for the recruitment of medical students and young surgeons. The authors aimed to investigate factors influencing the surgical performance and learning abilities of surgeons and medical students. Materials and methods: The training scores of persons attending 16 standardized training courses (at three training centers) of the German Working Group for Gynecological Endoscopy (AGE e.V.) from 2017 to 2020, individual characteristics, and the results of psychomotor tests of three-dimensional imagination and hand–eye coordination were correlated. Similar analyses were performed for medical students in their final clinical year from 2019 to 2020. The training concept was evaluated in a prospective, multicenter, interdisciplinary, multinational setting. Results: In all, 180 of 206 physicians (response rate 87.4%) and 261 medical students (response rate 100%) completed the multistage training concept successfully. Of personal characteristics, the strongest correlation was noted for good surgical performance and learning success, and the absolute number of performed laparoscopic surgeries (r=0.28–0.45, P<0.001/r=0.1–0.28, P<0.05). A high score on the spatial visualization ability test was also correlated with good surgical performance (r=0.18–0.27, P<0.01). Among medical students with no surgical experience, however, age was negatively correlated with surgical performance, that is the higher the age, the lower the surgical performance (r=0.13/r=0.22, P<0.05/P<0.001). Conclusion: Individual factors (e.g. surgical experience, self-assessment, spatial visualization ability, eye–hand coordination, age) influence surgical performance and learning. Further research will be needed to create better decision support systems and selection procedures for prospective physicians. The possibilities of surgical training should be improved, promoted, and made accessible to a maximum number of surgical trainees because individual learning curves can be overcome even by less talented surgeons. Training options should be institutionalized for those attending medical school.
: Applying the

In an attempt to discover the facial action units for affective states that occur during complex learning, this study adopted an emote-aloud procedure in which participants were recorded as they verbalized their affective states while interacting with an intelligent tutoring system (AutoTutor). Participants’ facial expressions were coded by two expert raters using Ekman’s Facial Action Coding System and analyzed using association rule mining techniques. The two expert raters received an overall Kappa that ranged between . 76 to . 84. The association rule mining analysis uncovered facial actions associated with confusion, frustration, and boredom. We discuss these rules and the prospects of enhancing AutoTutor with non-intrusive affect-sensitive capabilities.
Plasmons and Polaritons in Low Dimensional Systems

Nearly everything relies on the electromagnetic (EM) force to be in its current form. Therefore, light-matter interaction is both a fundamental and a practical subject in physics. Focusing on the electromagnetic field, the matter degrees of freedom can be encoded into its response to the EM field in the form of charge density and urrent. Reshaped by the EM response, the photons in condensed matter systems appear as various collective modes. In this doctoral dissertation, I present our investigation of the linear and nonlinear EM response theory especially in the hydrodynamic regime of electron systems. Electrons in pristine solids behave as a hydrodynamic fluid in a certain range of temperatures and frequencies. We show that the response of such a fluid to electromagnetic field is different from what is predicted by the usual kinetic theory. Certain aspects of this response are universal, for example, a direct relation between the linear and second-order nonlinear optical conductivities. Discovery of this relation enriches our understanding of the light-matter interaction in diverse electron systems and new materials such as graphene. Subsequently, I study the properties of the charged collective modes, the plasmons and demons in 2D Dirac fluids, e.g., the electron-hole system in graphene. Under non-equilibrium situation, the amplitudes of these collective modes could possibly grow due to an effect of adiabatic amplification. I also present our study of the hyperbolic polaritons, the EM modes in hyperbolic materials. When confined in cavities, they develop isolated eigen modes which could be efficiently predicted by applying semi-classical quantization rules to fictitious particles. We demonstrate this Hamiltonian Optics analytically for cavities of spheroidal shapes, and predict novel geometric patterns of the electric field distribution due to classical periodicorbits.
Reproductive phenology is a repeatable, heritable trait linked to the timing of other life-history events in a migratory marine predator

Population-level shifts in reproductive phenology in response to environmental change are common, but whether individual-level responses are modified by demographic and genetic factors remains less well understood. We used mixed models to quantify how reproductive timing varied across 1772 female southern elephant seals (Mirounga leonina) breeding at Marion Island in the Southern Ocean (1989–2019), and to identify the factors that correlate with phenological shifts within and between individuals. We found strong support for covariation in the timing of breeding arrival dates and the timing of the preceding moult. Breeding arrival dates were more repeatable at the individual level, as compared with the population level, even after accounting for individual traits (wean date as a pup, age and breeding experience) associated with phenological variability. Mother–daughter similarities in breeding phenology were also evident, indicating that additive genetic effects may contribute to between-individual variation in breeding phenology. Over 30 years, elephant seal phenology did not change towards earlier or later dates, and we found no correlation between annual fluctuations in phenology and indices of environmental variation. Our results show how maternal genetic (or non-genetic) effects, individual traits and linkages between cyclical life-history events can drive within- and between-individual variation in reproductive phenology.
Current and emerging deep-learning methods for the simulation of fluid dynamics

Over the last decade, deep learning (DL), a branch of machine learning, has experienced rapid progress. Powerful tools for tasks that have been traditionally complex to automate have been developed, such as image synthesis and natural language processing. In the context of simulating fluid dynamics, this has led to a series of novel DL methods for replacing or augmenting conventional numerical solvers. We broadly classify these methods into physics- and data-driven methods. Physics-driven methods, generally, tune a DL model to provide an analytical and differentiable solution to a given fluid dynamics problem by minimizing the residuals of the governing partial differential equations. Data-driven methods provide a fast and approximate solution to any fluid dynamics problem that shares some physical properties with the observations used when tuning the DL model’s parameters. Meanwhile, the symbiosis of numerical solvers and DL has led to promising results in turbulence modelling and accelerating iterative solvers. However, these methods present some challenges. Exclusively data-driven flow simulators often suffer from poor extrapolation, error accumulation in time-dependent simulations, as well as difficulties in training against turbulent flows. Substantial effort is, therefore, being invested into approaches that may improve the current state of the art.
Description of Standardized Planes and Angles for Percutaneous Supra-acetabular Screw Placement

Abstract Background Percutaneous screw fixation for pelvic fractures has become a minimally invasive alternative to an open operation. The complex anatomy of the pelvis renders this procedure challenging. The objective of this study was to assess standardized angles and dimensions of safety zones within a 3 D computed tomography model for optimal supra-acetabular screw placement. Methods Computed tomography scans of 107 patients that suffered major trauma without showing any bone injury of the pelvis were collected. Using a software-based analysis, raw computed tomography data were transformed into 3 D models to set standardized landmarks and determine the possible insertion corridor. Results Screws not exceeding a length of 97 mm in females and 106.4 mm in males were, in 95% of the evaluated cases, insertable without cortical bone penetration. The safety zone was 6.6 mm for females and 7.9 mm for males. Screws not exceeding these diameters were safely insertable in 95% of the cases. For the midsagittal plane, the angle was 36.4 ± 5.1 on the left and 34.7 ± 2.9 on the right (p = 0.008). For the anterior pelvic plane, the angle was 31.3 ± 4.5° on the left and 34.0 ± 4.8° on the right (p = 0.008). Conclusions Percutaneous fixation using supra-acetabular screws is a promising method to treat simple supra-acetabular fractures. These results may improve its safe utilization and could facilitate its broader clinical application.