Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Prognostic factors for success in the Kangaroo Mother Care method for low birth weight babies

Background Low birth weight (LBW) is closely related to neonatal morbidity and mortality. Management of LBW infants in developing countries remains limited, due to the low availability of incubators. The Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) method has been shown to be effective for newborns, especially LBW infants, in which skin-to-skin contact may be conducive for infants’ weight gain, thermoregulation, and heart rate stability. Objective To determine the prognostic factors for KMC success in LBW babies. Methods This cohort study included LBW infants at Dr. Kariadi General Government Hospital, Semarang, by a consecutive sampling method. Success of KMC was assessed by infant weight gain, as well as stabilization of temperature, heart rate, and respiration. Prognostic factors for KMC success that we assessed were birth weight, gestational age, KMC duration, age at KMC onset and maternal education level. Statistical analyses used were Chi-square and relative risk (RR) tests. Results Of 40 LBW infants, 24 were successful in KMC. Birth weight ≥ 1500 grams (RR 0.4; 95%CI 0.23 to 0.73; P=0.001)], gestational age ≥ 34 weeks (RR 0.94; 95%CI 0.46 to 1.89; P=1.00), KMC duration ≥ 65 minutes (RR 1.44; 95%CI 0.76 to 2.75; P= 0.215), high maternal education level (RR 1.25; 95%CI 0.76 to 2.04; P=0.408), and age at KMC onset >10 days (RR 2.69; 95%CI 1.14 to 6.32; P=0.003), were factors that related to the successful of KMC. Conclusion Age at KMC onset > 10 days was a prognostic factor for KMC success in low birth weight babies.
Transcription levels of a long noncoding RNA orchestrate opposing regulatory and cell fate outcomes in yeast

Many long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) act in cis through transcription-coupled chromatin alterations that drive changes in local gene expression. How some cis-acting lncRNAs promote and others repress gene expression remains poorly understood. Here we report that in S. cerevisiae transcription levels of the lncRNA IRT2, located upstream in the promoter of the inducer of meiosis gene, regulate opposing chromatin and transcription states. Low IRT2 transcription displays enhancer RNA-like features. At these levels, IRT2 promotes histone exchange delivering acetylated histone H3 lysine 56 to chromatin thereby facilitating recruitment of a transcription factor and consequently activating transcription. Conversely, increasing IRT2 transcription enhances chromatin assembly and transcriptional repression. The opposing functions of IRT2 direct a regulatory circuit, which ensures that cells expressing opposite, but not one of either, mating-type loci enter meiosis. Our data demonstrate that the transcription levels of an lncRNA are key to controlling gene expression and cell fate outcomes.
Multiparametric Electromagnetic Inversion of 3-D Biaxial Anisotropic Objects Embedded in Layered Uniaxial Media Using VBIM Enhanced by Structural Consistency Constraint

This article presents the 3-D inversion of biaxial anisotropic objects embedded in layered uniaxial media by the variational Born iterative method (VBIM). Although previously only the isotropic complex permittivity profile was reconstructed, here we retrieve all the six diagonal anisotropic permittivity and conductivity parameters simultaneously. In the forward model, the stabilized biconjugate gradient fast Fourier transform (BCGS-FFT) method is used to solve the volume electric field integral equation (EFIE). In the inversion model, VBIM is employed to minimize the cost function. In order to improve the inversion results, we propose a novel structural consistency constraint (SCC) applied to VBIM. The SCC is based on the Monte Carlo method and reduces the computational domain in the Born iteration. The major new contribution of this work is to combine the deterministic inversion algorithm VBIM with the stochastic Monte Carlo method to reconstruct all the diagonal anisotropic parameters of the scatterers. Several typical numerical models are simulated, and the results validate the efficiency, antinoise ability as well as the accuracy of VBIM-SCC for reconstructing 3-D biaxial anisotropic objects embedded in multilayered uniaxial media.
Gender Budgeting Implementation in Italian Regional Governments: Institutional Behavior for Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment

Gender budgeting has great potential to promote the United Nations 2030 Agenda concerning gender equality and women’s empowerment. This article shares some reflections on the need to implement and institutionalize gender budgeting at the regional level, both by embedding gender issues into the overall regional government budgetary process and by promoting gender equality disclosures. An empirical insight into the institutional behavior of Italian regional governments is provided. The study seeks to understand how the gender perspective is integrated into the governmental strategy that informs the entire budgetary cycle of Italian regional governments, by performing a thematic analysis of the key regional planning documents. The local promotion of gender budgeting implementation through institutional norms and the practice of gender performance reporting in Italian regional governments are also addressed. The results highlight that although there are differing degrees of commitment to gender equality and women’s advancement within the regions, the gender perspective is quite homogeneously integrated into the governmental strategy. Four gendered transversal thematic priorities are identified: the encouragement of women’s employment, the promotion of equal gender opportunities, the enhancement of social inclusion, and the combatting of gender-based violence. Furthermore, although nine regional laws establish gender performance reporting, additional reporting tools integrating non-financial information on gender issues are included solely in a small part of the regional government performance reporting systems. A greater organizational and cultural commitment to the institutionalization of the gender budgeting idea is needed in order to allow stakeholders to appreciate the government’s value outcomes in all their dimensions, including the gender-related social dimension.
Gingival status: An indicator of disease progression and its correlation with the immunologic profile in HIV-infected children on antiretroviral therapy

To determine the gingival health of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infected children and how it correlates to CD4 percentages in vertically infected children with HIV undergoing combination antiretroviral therapy. Two hundred and fifteen HIV positive children on antiretroviral therapy, of both sexes from seven to fifteen years old were evaluated for their gingival status using the Gingival Index. Children were divided into three groups; mild, advanced and severe depending on their absolute CD4 count and CD4 percentage. Statistically significant association was observed between CD4% category (mild, advanced and severe) and gingivitis (P < 0.001). More number of children in mild CD4% category were found to have mild gingivitis. Based on the results of our study the prevalence and distribution of gingivitis was high, this data will helps us in formulating a preventive as well as therapeutic programme for these children who have untreated oral lesions. Key words: Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), gingivitis, antiretroviral therapy, oral lesions.
Rapid Point-of-Care Influenza Testing for Patients in German Emergency Rooms – A Cost-Benefit Analysis

Background Each year, influenza causes significant morbidity and death worldwide and produces significant economic losses at the expense of the healthcare system. Objective To assess the cost-benefit relationship of implementing a rapid point-of-care (POC) influenza test in emergency rooms (ERs) of German hospitals. Methods A deterministic decision-analytic model simulated the incremental costs of using the Sofia® Influenza A+B test compared to those of using clinical judgement alone to confirm or exclude influenza in adult ILI (influenza-like illness) patients in German ERs prior to hospitalization. Direct costs, with and without subsequent oseltamivir treatment, were evaluated from the hospital perspective as well as indirect costs incurred by nosocomial influenza transmission to hospital employees. Results In base-case analysis, taking the influenza prevalence of 25.9% in the season 2018/2019 and assuming a hospitalization rate among influenza suspects of 21.9%, rapid testing with the Sofia® followed by administering oseltamivir to patients testing positive reduced average costs of hospitalized ILI patients by €52.16 per tested patient. If oseltamivir was not offered, testing with the Sofia® reduced costs by €42.28 in favor of the hospital. In probabilistic sensitivity analysis, under all reasonable assumptions, implementing the Sofia® saved on average €119.89 as compared to applying the clinical-judgement-only strategy. The major part of the cost savings, €113.17 or 94.4%, was due to the POC test’s high specificity, which led to 91% reduction in needless bed-blocking on the first day of hospitalization. However, as the sensitivity of 75.3% was only slightly higher than that of conventional clinical judgement, improved classification of patients with true influenza and a correspondingly lower rate of illness in hospital employees could not be achieved. Conclusions Using highly specific rapid POC influenza tests in ILI patients at German ER, despite their sub-optimal sensitivity, may significantly reduce hospital expenditures.
Impact of Workforce Diversity Management on Employees’ Outcomes: Testing the Mediating Role of a person’s Job Match

The purpose of this study is to (a) investigate the impact of workforce diversity management on job match, job satisfaction, and job performance; (b) test the influencing role of job match on job satisfaction and job performance; and (c) examine the mediating role of a person’s job match on the association between workforce diversity management and employees’ outcomes (job satisfaction and job performance). Structured questionnaires were sent to employees working in five-star hotels in China. In total, 324 valid responses were analyzed through AMOS-SEM to draw the statistical conclusion. Overall, results revealed that workforce diversity management is positively related to a person’s job match, job satisfaction, and job performance. Next, a person’s job match is positively related to job satisfaction and job performance, in particular a person’s job match mediates the relationship between workforce diversity management and employees’ outcomes. Most of the studies in the area of workforce diversity management focused on the management of diversity such as age, gender, race, and ethnicity from American perspective. This could be among rare studies which investigate another aspect of workforce diversity management, such as management of diversity on the basis of skills, knowledge, interest, and preferences of employees from the Chinese perspective.
A shift in cloze procedure usage: A new tool for activating ZPD

Of significant challenges encountered in the field of Foreign Language Acquisition (FLA) is finding efficient procedures to make learning more promising, and at the same time-independent. Along with these attempts, the present study tries to make a shift in the usage of the cloze procedure traditionally used for testing reading comprehension. Our aim was to find out whether using a cloze procedure prior to teaching reading comprehension skills prompts EFL students Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) in learning reading comprehension skills across proficiency levels. To that end, applying quasi-experimental design, 380 B.S. students majoring in engineering were selected based on intact classes and randomly divided into control and experimental groups while their proficiency levels determined through their scores on the Cambridge Quick Placement Test. Then, the participants in the experimental group (N=190) received the prepared cloze procedure, whereas those in the control group received the same procedure for teaching reading skills except the cloze before instruction. Both groups received pre-test, post-test, and delayed post-tests. The obtained data were analyzed by SPSS using independent samples t-test to understand the differences between the groups. The results from the tests revealed that using instructional cloze procedure before teaching reading skills has significant effects on participants’ ZPD in all proficiency levels and can broaden their learning. The finding of the present study implies that instead of adhering to the traditional teaching principles and instruments, instructors can use innovative procedures and manipulate traditional methods and tools to facilitate and lengthen learning processes.
Sustainability of mHealth Effects on Cardiometabolic Risk Factors: Five-Year Results of a Randomized Clinical Trial

Background The long-term effects of mobile health (mHealth) interventions have not been documented, especially in resource-constrained settings. Objective This study aimed to assess the effects of a 1-year mHealth intervention on blood pressure levels and body weight in low-resource urban settings in Peru, 4 years after the completion of the original study. Methods Four years after the original Grupo de Investigación en Salud Móvil en America Latina (GISMAL) study, we attempted to contact the 212 individuals originally enrolled in the study in Peru. The primary outcomes were systolic and diastolic blood pressure levels and hypertension incidence. Secondary outcome measures were body weight, BMI, and self-reported target behaviors. The study personnel collecting the data were masked to the group assignment. Linear mixed models were used to evaluate the effects of the intervention on primary and secondary outcomes in an intention-to-treat analysis. Results Data from 164 (77.4%) of the 212 originally enrolled participants were available and analyzed (80 in the intervention group and 84 in the control group). The intervention did not result in changes in systolic (–2.54 mm Hg, 95% CI –8.23 to 3.15) or diastolic (3.41 mm Hg, 95% CI –0.75 to 7.57) blood pressure compared with the control group. The intervention reduced the risk of developing hypertension, but the result was not significant (risk ratio (RR) 0.76, 95% CI 0.45-1.28). However, those who received the intervention had lower body weight (–5.42 kg, 95% CI –10.4 to –0.48) and BMI (–2.56 kg/m2, 95% CI –4.46 to –0.66). In addition, compared to the control participants, those who received ≥50% of the scheduled calls during the intervention had greater reductions in body weight (–6.23 kg, 95% CI –11.47 to –0.99) and BMI (–2.81 kg/m2, 95% CI –4.77 to –0.85). Conclusions An mHealth intervention comprising motivational interview calls and SMS text messaging appears to have effects on health 4 years after intervention completion. Although there were no effects on blood pressure levels, important reductions in body weight and BMI were seen 5 years after randomization. Thus, mHealth appears to be a promising preventive strategy for noncommunicable diseases in resource-constrained settings. Trial Registration Clinicaltrials.gov NCT01295216; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT01295216
Poly[2,5-bis(3-tetradecylthiophen-2-yl) thieno [3,2-b] thiophene] Organic Polymer Based-Interdigitated Channel Enabled Thin Film Transistor for Detection of Selective Low ppm Ammonia Sensing at 25°C

In the present work, we have developed a solution-processable poly (2,5-bis (3-tetradecylthiophen 2yl) thieno(3,2b) thiophene) (PBTTT-C14) based organic thin film transistor, for possible selective sensing the toxic ammonia (NH3) gas at 25°C. This thin-film transistor based sensor makes use of PBTTT-C14 polymer as an organic channel that exhibits highly responsive (>61%) behavior at different levels of ammonia concentrations, even in presence of a mixture of ethanol and butanol gases in a humid environment. The notable changes are observed in the transistor parameters including channel mobility, threshold voltage and the on-off ratio. Interdigitated channels obtained using shadow masking technique enables the device to respond to a low ammonia concentration (<10 ppm). Better sensing capabilities with a detection limit of 2 ppm, the response time of 30 sec and recovery time of 40 sec of exposed ammonia, butanol and ethanol gases have been recorded. The mechanism of sensing has been explained for a better understanding of electrostatic and chemical interaction between gases and PBTTT-C14 semiconductor. Electrical characterizations of the device for the sensing were carried-out in the ambient condition. The device performance has been tested in humid environmental conditions. The fabricated device exhibited enormous potential for ammonia sensing for real-life applications.
EGFR in Early Non-small Cell Lung Cancer: Tyrosine Kinase Inhibition in a Neoadjuvant Trial

EGFR TKIs are standard therapy for advanced NSCLC. In order to define their role in early disease, we implemented a phase II trial of neoadjuvant gefitinib in clinical stage I NSCLC. Tumour shrinkage was seen in 43 % of patients, with 11% achieving RECIST partial response (PR). Analysis of molecular markers showed EGFR TKD mutations in 17% of cases, being the only associated with PR. For the first time we defined the histopathological response of NSCLC to these agents, characterized by reduction in tumour cellularity and proliferative index as well as presence of non-mucinous BAC histology. Clinical PR tumours also presented large areas of stromal fibrosis with presence of focal residual tumour. In a characterization of intracellular signalling response, EGFR dephosphorylation in the residues Y1068 and Y1173 was not concordant and only the former was significantly reduced. pAkt Ser473/Akt and Thr308/Akt ratios were significantly reduced but observed among both, clinical responders and resistant patients. Interestingly, reduction in pEGFR Y1068 was significantly associated with increase in tumour cellularity (p=0.047), Ki-67 index (p=0.018) and tumour growth (p=0.019) with a residual perinuclear localization been detected, suggesting a novel mechanism of resistance involving receptor internalization. Finally, we determined that the EGFR protein remains stable up to one hour of post resection ischemia but two to three tumour samples are necessary for an adequate tumour representation. Furthermore, EGFR cytoplasmic compartment presented the best association with clinical response in our cohort. Taking all together, we were able to generate the first clinical trial exploring the use of an EGFR TKI in early NSCLC, characterizing for the first time the histopathological and signalling responses to these agents with an evidence of a potential novel mechanism of resistance. Finally, we observed that multiple samples collection for an adequate tumour representation, and assessment of the cytoplasmic compartment, are warrant.
Value Relevance of Financial and Non-Financial Information: Evidence from the Gaming Industry

Dr. Hong Weng (Lawrence) Lei Assistant Professor, Department of Accountancy, School of Business, The Hang Seng University of Hong Kong, lawrencelei@hsu.edu. hk Abstract Using financial and non-financial data from casino gaming firms listed in the United States from 1999–2017, we explore two research questions: (1) Is financial information value relevant to financial markets in the casino gaming industry? (2) Does non-financial information have incremental explanatory power over financial information? In general, we find that accounting numbers can explain a firm’s market value and stock returns in the casino gaming industry, except for accounting accruals, which may behave differently compared to other industries. We also find that non-financial information, such as the number of table games, number of slot machines, and their relative proportion, have significant value relevance in explaining market valuation. Our findings contribute to a better understanding of the value relevance of financial and non-financial information in the casino gaming industry. We also provide analysis of firms characterized by these nonfinancial attributes.
Audit committee ownership and audit report lag: evidence from Australia

Purpose - This paper aims to examine whether audit committee ownership affects audit report lag. Independent audit committees are responsible for overseeing the financial reporting process, to ensure that financial statements are both credible and released to external stakeholders in a timely manner. To date, however, the extent to which audit committee ownership strengthens or compromises member independence, and hence, influences audit report lag, has remained unexplored. Design/methodology/approach - This paper hypothesizes that audit committee ownership is associated with audit report lag. Further, the author hypothesize that both the financial reporting quality and the going concern opinions of a firm mediate the effect of audit committee ownership on audit report lag. Findings - Using data from Australian listed companies, the author find that audit committee ownership increases audit report lag. The author further document that financial reporting quality and modified audit opinions rendered by external auditors mediate this positive relationship. The results are robust to endogeneity concerns emanating from firms’ deliberate decisions to grant shares to the audit committee members. Originality/value - The study contributes to both the audit report timeliness and the corporate governance literatures, by documenting an adverse effect of audit committee ownership.
3D Human Pose Estimation using Spatio-Temporal Networks with Explicit Occlusion Training

Estimating 3D poses from a monocular video is still a challenging task, despite the significant progress that has been made in the recent years. Generally, the performance of existing methods drops when the target person is too small/large, or the motion is too fast/slow relative to the scale and speed of the training data. Moreover, to our knowledge, many of these methods are not designed or trained under severe occlusion explicitly, making their performance on handling occlusion compromised. Addressing these problems, we introduce a spatio-temporal network for robust 3D human pose estimation. As humans in videos may appear in different scales and have various motion speeds, we apply multi-scale spatial features for 2D joints or keypoints prediction in each individual frame, and multi-stride temporal convolutional networks (TCNs) to estimate 3D joints or keypoints. Furthermore, we design a spatio-temporal discriminator based on body structures as well as limb motions to assess whether the predicted pose forms a valid pose and a valid movement. During training, we explicitly mask out some keypoints to simulate various occlusion cases, from minor to severe occlusion, so that our network can learn better and becomes robust to various degrees of occlusion. As there are limited 3D ground truth data, we further utilize 2D video data to inject a semi-supervised learning capability to our network. Experiments on public data sets validate the effectiveness of our method, and our ablation studies show the strengths of our network's individual submodules.