Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Is modelling population dynamics useful for anything other than keeping a researcher busy

Understanding and modelling the population dynamics of weeds and/or biological control agents can require large investments of time and money; just what are we getting for our modelling efforts? Here I respond to three persistent critiques of modelling as used in biological control programmes and present new directions for extending and improving our use of models. Complex models have been critiqued as resource-intensive, too narrow in scope and difficult to analyse, whereas simple, strategic models are critiqued as oversimplified and inaccurate in predicting postinvasion population dynamics. I argue that models across this spectrum can be useful and that the dichotomy between simple and complex models can be broken down. Biological control practitioners often operate in systems with a high degree of stochasticity and uncertainty; therefore, the incorporation of stochasticity and uncertainty into population models is essential for the development of robust management strategies. Close dialogue between managers and modellers is essential for the application of modelling studies to management. New directions for modelling in biological control include the incorporation of invader impact and complex ecosystem effects such as habitat heterogeneity and disturbance. The right model used for the right question can bring us insights into the biological control process that would be difficult or impossible to achieve otherwise.
Prevalence and Antibiotic Susceptibility of Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus in Colonized Health Care workers, Farm Workers and Dairy Cattle

The current study focused on determination of the prevalence of Methicillin- resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in health care workers (HCWs), farm workers and dairy cattle (apparently healthy and mastitic) and studied the effects of some demographic factors on the estimated prevalence. Also, the antibiotic sensitivity of the obtained isolates was investigated. A total of 127 human samples were collected including nasal and hand swabs; 89 from HCWs in four hospitals mainly from surgical department and 38 from farm workers in three different dairy cattle farms. In addition, a total of 116 samples were obtained from dairy cattle farms including; 62 nasal swabs of dairy cattle (apparently healthy and mastitic), 26 swabs from cups of milking machine and 28 milk samples. The recorded results clarified that the overall estimated prevalence of MRSA in the examined human and cattle samples was 31.5 and 52.65%, respectively. Fisherâ€™s exact test showed higher prevalence in cattle than in humans (P 40 years) (23.25%). Concerning dairy cattle farms, it was estimated that the prevalence of MRSA was 53.23, 21.43 and 84.62% in the examined samples of nasal swabs, milk and milking machine swabs, respectively. In addition, the prevalence of MRSA in nasal swabs of mastitis free cattle (54.55%) was higher than in mastitis infected cattle (45.45%). On the other side, mastitic milk samples (66.67%) showed higher prevalence that milk samples of mastitis free cattle (33.33%). Finally, antibiotic sensitivity testing showed that human isolates were resistant to cefoxitin (92.5%), vancomycin (12.5%), linezolid 10 (25%) and tetracycline (42%) while those of dairy cattle farms were resistant to cefoxitin (78.7%), vancomycin (24.6%), linezolid (16.4%) and tetracycline (42.6%). On conclusion, detection of MRSA in both cattle and human samples constituted a public hazard as well as the development of antibiotic resistance.
Analysis of complex antibiotics

The emergence of multidrug resistant Gram-negative bacteria such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Acinetobacter baumannii has been recognized worldwide and some clinical isolates of these bacteria are now resistant to most of the antibiotics currently available. Unfortunately, there are at present not enough new antimicrobial drugs being produced by the pharmaceutical industry to keep pace with the continuing development of antibiotic resistance.
Hydrogen

The idea of a “Hydrogen Economy” is that carbon containing fuels should be replaced by hydrogen, thus eliminating air pollution and growth of CO2 in the atmosphere. However, storage of a gas, its transport and reconversion to electricity doubles the cost of H2 from the electrolyzer. Methanol made with CO2 from the atmosphere is a zero carbon fuel created from inexhaustible components from the atmosphere. Extensive work on the splitting of water by bacteria shows that if wastes are used as the origin of feed for certain bacteria, the cost for hydrogen becomes lower than any yet known. The first creation of hydrogen and electricity from light was carried out in 1976 by Ohashi et al. at Flinders University in Australia. Improvements in knowledge of the structure of the semiconductor-solution system used in a solar breakdown of water has led to the discovery of surface states which take part in giving rise to hydrogen (Khan). Photoelectrocatalysis made a ten times increase in the efficiency of the photo production of hydrogen from water. The use of two electrode cells; p and n semiconductors respectively, was first introduced by Uosaki in 1978. Most photoanodes decompose during the photoelectrolysis. To avoid this, it has been necessary to create a transparent shield between the semiconductor and its electronic properties and the solution. In this way, 8.5% at 25 °C and 9.5% at 50 °C has been reached in the photo dissociation of water (GaP and InAs) by Kainthla and Barbara Zeleney in 1989. A large consortium has been funded by the US government at the California Institute of Technology under the direction of Nathan Lewis. The decomposition of water by light is the main aim of this group. Whether light will be the origin of the post fossil fuel supply of energy may be questionable, but the maximum program in this direction is likely to come from Cal. Tech.
Roles for the Highwire/Wallenda Pathway in Regenerative and Degenerative Responses to Axonal Injury.

Axons allow neurons to communicate over long distances, and their long length makes them vulnerable to injury. Neurons make several important responses to axonal injury. One is that the axons that are still connected to the cell body can initiate new axonal growth. This requires transcriptional reprogramming, and an important question is how this nuclear event can be induced by an injury in a distal site of the axon. Another response is that the distal stump, which is disconnected from the cell body, degenerates through a process called Wallerian degeneration. This self-destruction process is poorly understood, but is misregulated in some neurodegenerative diseases. To study these responses in a model organism, I developed an axonal injury assay in Drosophila. I have characterized the function an axonal signaling pathway, which is regulated by the ubiquitin ligase Hiw, and its conserved axonal target, Wnd. I found that Hiw and Wnd, through a downstream signaling cascade, regulate several important responses to axonal injury. First, the Hiw/Wnd signaling pathway is activated by axonal injury and mediates the transcriptional changes that facilitate new axonal growth from the proximal stump. Second, this signaling pathway also inhibits Wallerian degeneration, allowing for neurons that have been injured once to have increased resilience to a second injury. This demonstrates that Hiw and Wnd control remarkable plasticity in the axonal degeneration process. Third, Hiw performs an additional role in degeneration by regulating the levels and localization of NMNAT. This NAD+ synthesizing enzyme plays an essential role in dramatic inhibition to degeneration when hiw is mutant. Since the Hiw/DLK pathway is highly conserved, these findings may ultimately be of clinical interest for understanding and treating nerve damage in humans.
Assessment of Awareness, Beliefs and Attitude of Mothers Towards Oral Polio Vaccine Immunization in Gwange Ward II, Maiduguri Metropolitan Council

A research study conducted on mothers’ attitude towards Oral Polio Vaccine (OPV) Immunization in Gwange ward II area of Maiduguri Metropolitan Council, Borno State. This study came up out of the persisted upsurge of polio infection in Borno state and Gwange ward in particular after implementation of strategies outlined by the WHO for stopping transmission failed to yield a positive result in this ward and other wards of Northern Nigeria. Mothers or care takers attitude, belief and perception to polio immunization are some of the factors bringing a setback to polio infection eradication that is targeted for extinction throughout the world. Continuous researching, implementation of research findings and sincerity of purpose by government and other stakeholders are some of the powerful weapons that need to be empowered for the eradication of polio in Nigeria and world in general. Since poliovirus is only transmitted through person-to-person contact and the transmission cycle of polio is from one infected person to another person susceptible to the disease, and so on. If the vast majority of the ability of that pathogen to infect another host is reduce; the cycle of transmission is interrupted, and the pathogen cannot reproduce and dies out. This concept called community immunity or hard immunity is important to disease eradiation because if the number of susceptible individuals can be reduced to a small number through vaccination the pathogen itself can be eliminated (poliovirus extinction).
Giemsa C-banded karyotype in Quercus L. (oak).

A detailed karyotypic investigation by Giemsa C-banding in three species of Quercus: Q. robur, Q. petraea and Q. rubra has revealed a general interspecific uniformity with respect to C-banded patterns and karyomorphology. However, the different chromosomes can be identified and paired on the basis of C-bands. A similar constancy in nuclear DNA amounts is also noticed. One B-chromosome has been found in all the three species of oak investigated. (.)
Leishmania tropica au Maroc. IV — Diversité isozymique intrafocale

L’analyse ecoepidemiologique d’un foyer marocain de leishmaniose cutanee a Leishmania tropica a permis d’observer un important polymorphisme enzymatique. Sept zymodemes, appartenant a ce complexe, ont ete identifies sur la base de 149 souches, isolees de l’Homme, du Chien et du vecteur Phlebotomus sergenti. Les parasites se repartissent en trois sous-groupes dont deux composes de trois zymodemes « petits variants ». Cette diversite parait en rapport avec l’anciennete de l’infestation qui aurait permis la colonisation d’un meme foyer par des zymodemes d’origines geographiques differentes. La diversification en « petits variants » serait due a des mutations recentes, eventuellement assorties d’echanges genetiques.
The Significance of Coronary Artery Calcification Found on Non-ECG-Gated Computed Tomography During Pre-Operative Evaluation for Liver Transplant

Author(s): West, Brian | Advisor(s): Sinsheimer, Janet S | Abstract: Guidelines to evaluate patients for underlying coronary artery disease (CAD) during pre-operative evaluation for orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) are conflicting. Cardiac catheterization is not without risk in end-stage liver disease patients. No study to date has looked at the utility of non-ECG-gated chest CT scans in the pre-liver transplant population. Our hypothesis was that by calculating coronary artery calcium scores (CACS) from chest CT scans ordered during the liver transplant workup, it may be possible to more accurately identify patients who would benefit from invasive angiography. 953 patients who underwent coronary angiography as part of their OLT workup from 2006 to 2015 at a single academic medical center were considered. Charts were randomly selected and reviewed for the presence of a chest CT performed prior to coronary angiography during the OLT workup. Agatston and Weston scores were calculated for each vessel and summed for each patient. CACS results were compared to coronary angiography findings. 9 out of 54 patients were found to have obstructive coronary artery disease by angiography. ROC analysis demonstrated that an Agatston score of 251 and a Weston score of 6 maximized sensitivity and specificity for detection of obstructive coronary disease. An Agatston score l 4 or Weston score l 2 excluded the presence of obstructive CAD; using these thresholds, 13 patients (24%) or 15 patients (28%), respectively, could have avoided catheterization without missing significant CAD. Our data identify the strength of calcium scoring in ruling out coronary disease in patients being evaluated for OLT. Calcium scoring from non-ECG gated CT studies may be integrated into preoperative algorithms to rule out obstructive CAD and help avoid invasive angiography in high risk patients.
Outcome of retroviral screening among patients undergoing ear, nose, throat, head and neck surgery, at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital, Nigeria

Background: In Nigeria it has been estimated that 3.6% of the population are living with HIV/AIDS. Patients with different social, family, occupational and epidemiological background present for ear, nose, throat, head and neck (ENTH&N) surgeries in our hospital. The aims of the study were to determine the prevalence of HIV infection among patients for ENTH&N surgeries and to document the ENTH&N conditions that were associated with HIV infection.Methods: This was a prospective study that was carried out in the ENTH&N Surgery department of UBTH, Benin City, Nigeria, between January, 2009 and December, 2010. All patients that were worked up for surgeries were enrolled into the study. Appropriate data were retrieved from the patients who gave informed consent for surgery and had retroviral screening and confirmatory tests by ELISA and Western blot methods respectively. The retroviral status of all the patients and the indications for the surgical procedures done were documented. Results: There were 173 patients; 100 males and 73 females, with a male to female ratio of 1.37:1. Ages ranged from 0.83 years to 72 years, with an average age of 26.82 years. Out of a total of 168 patients screened for HIV infection in this study, 6 patients were retroviral positive. This gives a prevalence of 0.036%. Out of the 6 patients that were retroviral positive, 3 patients had chronic tonsillitis, 1 patient had chronic tonsillitis and otitis media with effusion, while the other 2 patients had submandibular gland and nasopharyngeal tumours respectively.Conclusions: A prevalence of 0.036% of HIV infection was found in patients for ENTH&N surgeries. Chronic tonsillitis was the commonest presentation of HIV infection, equally followed by OME, nasopharyngeal and submandibular gland tumours.
Phytochemical and antioxidant evaluation of Moringa oleifera (Moringaceae) leaf and seed

Moringa oleifera , a plant with a wide range of medicinal, nutritional and economic benefits was examined for phytochemicals and evaluated for antioxidant activities. Phytochemical tests, total phenol and flavonoid contents were determined using standard procedures. Antioxidant activities of the methanol extracts and fractions were evaluated using the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picryl hydrazyl radical scavenging assay. The leaf and seed contained alkaloids, saponins, phenols and flavonoids. The ethyl acetate fraction of the leaf contained significantly (P < 0.05) more phenol (78.67 ± 3.40 mgGAE/g Extract) than the crude extract and petroleum ether fraction with total phenolic content of 58.00 ± 1.00 and 26.17 ± 3.88 mg GAE/g Extract respectively while the seed extract had a total phenol content of 17.67 ± 2.02 mg GAE/g Extract. The petroleum ether fraction of the leaf was found to contain significantly (P < 0.05) more flavonoid (161.33 ± 19.05 mgQE/g Extract) than the other samples (31.73 ± 2.66, 30.20 ± 10.14 and 20.73 ± 4.16 mgQE/g Extract for the crude leaf extract, leaf petroleum ether fraction and seed extract respectively). The leaf and seed extracts exhibited remarkable and concentration-dependent increase in radical scavenging activities with IC50 values ranging from 5.72-42.56 μg/mL. The results therefore support the use of Moringa oleifera as a natural plant antioxidant by preventing free radical damage. Keywords : Moringa oleifera ; Antioxidant; Phytochemical, Free radical
Clinical Value of Core Lenght in Saturation Prostate Biopsy

Öz What’s known on the subject? and What does the study add? To our best knowledge, our study is the first to evaluate the clinical value of total core length in saturation prostate biyopsy. Mean and total core length may not have significant impact on prostate cancer detection in patients receiving saturation prostate biopsy. ORIGINAL RESEARCH Urooncology Correspondence: Cem Yücel MD, University of Health Sciences, İzmir Tepecik Training and Research Hospital, Clinic of Urology, İzmir, Turkiye E-mail: meclecuy@hotmail.com ORCID-ID: orcid.org/0000-0003-0838-9199 Received: 19.11. 2017 Accepted: 26.02. 2018 Cite this article as: Yücel C, Budak S. Clinical Value of Core Lenght in Saturation Prostate Biopsy. J Urol Surg 2018;5(2):93-97. ©Copyright 2018 by the Association of Urological Surgery / Journal of Urological Surgery published by Galenos Publishing House. Cem Yücel1, Salih Budak2
Assessment of the application for renewal of authorisation of selenomethionine produced by Saccharomyces cerevisiae CNCM I‐3060 (selenised yeast inactivated) for all animal species

Abstract The Panel on Additives and Products or Substances used in Animal Feed (FEEDAP) was asked to deliver a scientific opinion on the application for renewal of authorisation of organic form of selenium produced by Saccharomyces cerevisiae CNCM I‐3060 (selenised yeast inactivated) (Sel‐Plex®) for all animal species. In 2006, the FEEDAP Panel delivered an opinion on the safety and efficacy of the additive; subsequently it was authorised in the EU. The evidence provided indicates that the additive currently in the market complies with the conditions of authorisation. No new evidence was found that would make the FEEDAP Panel reconsidering its previous conclusions in the safety for target species, consumers and environment. In particular, the Panel confirms that the use of Sel‐Plex® in animal nutrition does not pose a risk to consumers provided that the maximum selenium supplementation of 0.2 mg/kg feed from Sel‐Plex® is not exceeded, yet respecting the maximum total selenium in feed of 0.5 mg/kg. In the context of the current application, the Panel reviewed toxicological studies; based on two repeated‐dose studies on rats and dogs, it is concluded that the toxic potential of Sel‐Plex® is only related to its selenium content. New data on characterisation of the additive and studies on effects on skin and eyes led the Panel reconsider the safety for the user. The Panel concluded that the additive is hazardous upon inhalation and a likely respiratory sensitiser; owing to the high dusting potential, persons handling the additive are at risk by inhalation. It is considered not irritant to the eyes and skin. A recommendation regarding the denomination of the additive under assessment was proposed by the Panel.
Mortality After Acute Myocardial Infarction in Hospitals That Disproportionately Treat Black Patients

Background— African Americans are more likely to be seen by physicians with less clinical training or to be treated at hospitals with longer average times to acute reperfusion therapies. Less is known about differences in health outcomes. This report compares risk-adjusted mortality after acute myocardial infarction (AMI) between US hospitals with high and low fractions of elderly black AMI patients. Methods and Results— A prospective cohort study was performed for fee-for-service Medicare patients hospitalized for AMI during 1997 to 2001 (n=1 136 736). Hospitals (n=4289) were classified into approximate deciles depending on the extent to which the hospital served the black population. Decile 1 (12.5% of AMI patients) included hospitals without any black AMI admissions during 1997 to 2001. Decile 10 (10% of AMI patients) included hospitals with the highest fraction of black AMI patients (33.6%). The main outcome measures were 90-day and 30-day mortality after AMI. Patients admitted to hospitals disproport.
Comparison of Transaortic and Subclavian Approaches for Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement in Patients with No Transfemoral Access Options

ABSTRACT Background: To compare outcomes among transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) performed via transaortic (TAo) and subclavian (SCL) approaches. Many patients are not amenable for TAVR via the transfemoral route due to peripheral vascular disease. Limited data exist regarding safety and procedural feasibility of TAVR via TAo and SCL routes. Methods: Single-center study comparing patients treated with CoreValve® and Sapien XT® from May 2013 to August 2015 via subclavian (SCL) or transaortic (TAo) approach. All patients were deemed inappropriate for transfemoral access. Baseline characteristics, procedural feasibility, and outcomes were compared. Results: A total of 27 (53%) patients underwent TAVR via the TAo approach and 24 (47%) via the SCL approach. Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) risk scores and patient age were similar: 11.33 versus 8.66; p = 0.13 and 84.7 years versus 82.6 years; p = 0.3, respectively. All patients in the SCL group received self-expandable valves. Overall vascular complications were low in both groups (SCL = 4.2% vs. TAo = 3.7%). Length of hospital stay was marginally longer in the TAo group (mean 7.25 vs. 6.2 days, p = 0.119). There was a trend towards increased mortality associated with TA access (11.1% vs. 4%, p = 0.36) at 30 days that was significant after 12 months (33.3% vs. 8.3%, p = 0.03). Conclusion: Our data shows a relatively low incidence of complications and comparable outcomes in these two groups. SCL or TAo access can be utilized as alternatives in patients with prohibitive ileofemoral anatomy, however, based on our limited data, subclavian access with self-expanding valves offers better outcomes.
Endoscopic Ultrasound Elastography for Solid Pancreatic Lesions: Ready to Replace Fine‑needle Biopsy?

Iglesias-Garcia et al.,[9] who reported diagnostic accuracy of 97.7% for malignant SPL with a cut-off SR of >6.04 for malignant lesions. Different studies have defined the different cut-off levels of SR with sensitivities varying from 67% to 98% and specificities between 45% and 71%. [10-12] Meta-analyses of studies evaluating EUS-E for pancreatic lesions have shown the sensitivity of 95% and specificity of 67%–69% for differentiating benign versus malignant SPLs. [13,14] In this news and views, we discuss two interesting studies that have further evaluated the role of EUS-E in SPLs.