Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Imbalances in TCA, Short Fatty Acids and One-Carbon Metabolisms as Important Features of Homeostatic Disruption Evidenced by a Multi-Omics Integrative Approach of LPS-Induced Chronic Inflammation in Male Wistar Rats

Chronic inflammation is an important risk factor in a broad variety of physical and mental disorders leading to highly prevalent non-communicable diseases (NCDs). However, there is a need for a deeper understanding of this condition and its progression to the disease state. For this reason, it is important to define metabolic pathways and complementary biomarkers associated with homeostatic disruption in chronic inflammation. To achieve that, male Wistar rats were subjected to intraperitoneal and intermittent injections with saline solution or increasing lipopolysaccharide (LPS) concentrations (0.5, 5 and 7.5 mg/kg) thrice a week for 31 days. Biochemical and inflammatory parameters were measured at the end of the study. To assess the omics profile, GC-qTOF and UHPLC-qTOF were performed to evaluate plasma metabolome; 1H-NMR was used to evaluate urine metabolome; additionally, shotgun metagenomics sequencing was carried out to characterize the cecum microbiome. The chronicity of inflammation in the study was evaluated by the monitoring of monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) during the different weeks of the experimental process. At the end of the study, together with the increased levels of MCP-1, levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) along with 8-isoprostanes (an indicative of oxidative stress) were significantly increased (p-value < 0.05). The leading features implicated in the current model were tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle intermediates (i.e., alpha-ketoglutarate, aconitic acid, malic acid, fumaric acid and succinic acid); lipids such as specific cholesterol esters (ChoEs), lysophospholipids (LPCs) and phosphatidylcholines (PCs); and glycine, as well as N, N-dimethylglycine, which are related to one-carbon (1C) metabolism. These metabolites point towards mitochondrial metabolism through TCA cycle, β-oxidation of fatty acids and 1C metabolism as interconnected pathways that could reveal the metabolic effects of chronic inflammation induced by LPS administration. These results provide deeper knowledge concerning the impact of chronic inflammation on the disruption of metabolic homeostasis.
Automated Affective Computing Based on Bio-Signals Analysis and Deep Learning Approach

Extensive possibilities of applications have rendered emotion recognition ineluctable and challenging in the fields of computer science as well as in human-machine interaction and affective computing. Fields that, in turn, are increasingly requiring real-time applications or interactions in everyday life scenarios. However, while extremely desirable, an accurate and automated emotion classification approach remains a challenging issue. To this end, this study presents an automated emotion recognition model based on easily accessible physiological signals and deep learning (DL) approaches. As a DL algorithm, a Feedforward Neural Network was employed in this study. The network outcome was further compared with canonical machine learning algorithms such as random forest (RF). The developed DL model relied on the combined use of wearables and contactless technologies, such as thermal infrared imaging. Such a model is able to classify the emotional state into four classes, derived from the linear combination of valence and arousal (referring to the circumplex model of affect’s four-quadrant structure) with an overall accuracy of 70% outperforming the 66% accuracy reached by the RF model. Considering the ecological and agile nature of the technique used the proposed model could lead to innovative applications in the affective computing field.
Planned Out: The Discriminatory Effects of Planning’s Regulation of Small Houses in Multiple Occupation in England

Abstract Some claim that planning has a “dark” side which is expressed in policies and practices that disadvantage minorities and less powerful groups. This article explores how revisions to an aspect of English planning legislation, plus the linked adoption by local planning authorities of “restrictive” development policies, may disproportionately affect the housing choices of young, lower-income adults. Combining documentary research, secondary data analysis and Yiftachel’s conceptual framework of “planning as social control,” it examines how the legislation and policy might limit the supply of an accommodation type popular with this group, and the resulting social, political and economic effects. The implications for planning theory and practice are considered.
An analysis of the clinical profile of patients with uveitis following COVID-19 infection

Purpose: To describe the clinical profile of patients presenting with uveitis following COVID-19 infection at a tertiary care eye hospital in South India. Methods: In this retrospective chart review, all consecutive cases presenting with an acute episode of intraocular inflammation and a history of COVID-19 infection diagnosed within the preceding 6 weeks, between March 2020 and September 2021, were included. Data retrieved and analyzed included age, sex, laterality of uveitis, and site of inflammation. The diagnosis was categorized based on the SUN working group classification criteria for uveitis. Details regarding clinical features, investigations, ophthalmic treatment given, response to treatment, ocular complications, and status at last visit were also accessed. Statistical analysis of demographical data was done using Microsoft Excel 2019. Results: Twenty-one eyes of 13 patients were included in this hospital-based retrospective observational study. The study included six male and seven female patients. The mean age was 38 ± 16.8 years. Eight patients had bilateral involvement. Seven patients were diagnosed with anterior uveitis, three with intermediate uveitis, one with posterior uveitis, and two with panuveitis. All patients responded well to treatment and were doing well at their last visit. Two patients had complications that necessitated surgical treatment, following which they recovered good visual outcomes. Conclusion: With prompt diagnosis and appropriate management, all the patients with uveitis post-COVID-19 infection recovered with good visual outcomes. Thus, ophthalmologists must be aware of the possible uveitic manifestations following even uneventful COVID-19 infection.
Spatiotemporal Variation in Gross Primary Productivity and Their Responses to Climate in the Great Lakes Region of Sub-Saharan Africa during 2001–2020

The impacts of climate on spatiotemporal variations of eco-physiological and bio-physical factors have been widely explored in previous research, especially in dry areas. However, the understanding of gross primary productivity (GPP) variations and its interactions with climate in humid and semi-humid areas remains unclear. Based on hyperspectral satellite remotely sensed vegetation phenology processes and related indices and the re-analysed climate datasets, we investigated the seasonal and inter-annual variability of GPP by using different light-use efficiency (LUE) models including the Carnegie-Ames-Stanford Approaches (CASA) model, vegetation photosynthesis models (VPMChl and VPMCanopy) and Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) GPP products (MOD17A2H) during 2001–2020 over the Great Lakes region of Sub-Saharan Africa (GLR-SSA). The models’ validation against the in situ GPP-based upscaled observations (GPP-EC) indicated that these three models can explain 82%, 79% and 80% of GPP variations with root mean square error (RMSE) values of 5.7, 8.82 and 10.12 g C·m−2·yr−1, respectively. The spatiotemporal variations of GPP showed that the GLR-SSA experienced: (i) high GPP values during December-May; (ii) high annual GPP increase during 2002–2003, 2011–2013 and 2015–2016 and annual decreasing with a marked alternation in other years; (iii) evergreen broadleaf forests having the highest GPP values while grasslands and croplands showing lower GPP values. The spatial correlation between GPP and climate factors indicated 60% relative correlation between precipitation and GPP and 65% correction between surface air temperature and GPP. The results also showed high GPP values under wet conditions (in rainy seasons and humid areas) that significantly fell by the rise of dry conditions (in long dry season and arid areas). Therefore, these results showed that climate factors have potential impact on GPP variability in this region. However, these findings may provide a better understanding of climate implications on GPP variability in the GLR-SSA and other tropical climate zones.
Obesity Risk-Factor Variation Based on Island Clusters: A Secondary Analysis of Indonesian Basic Health Research 2018

Obesity has become a rising global health problem affecting quality of life for adults. The objective of this study is to describe the prevalence of obesity in Indonesian adults based on the cluster of islands. The study also aims to identify the risk factors of obesity in each island cluster. This study analyzes the secondary data of Indonesian Basic Health Research 2018. Data for this analysis comprised 618,910 adults (≥18 years) randomly selected, proportionate to the population size throughout Indonesia. We included 20 variables for the socio-demographic and obesity-related risk factors for analysis. The obesity status was defined using Body Mass Index (BMI) ≥ 25 kg/m2. Our current study defines 7 major island clusters as the unit analysis consisting of 34 provinces in Indonesia. Descriptive analysis was conducted to determine the characteristics of the population and to calculate the prevalence of obesity within the provinces in each of the island clusters. Multivariate logistic regression analyses to calculate the odds ratios (ORs) was performed using SPSS version 27. The study results show that all the island clusters have at least one province with an obesity prevalence above the national prevalence (35.4%). Six out of twenty variables, comprising four dietary factors (the consumption of sweet food, high-salt food, meat, and carbonated drinks) and one psychological factor (mental health disorders), varied across the island clusters. In conclusion, there was a variation of obesity prevalence of the provinces within and between island clusters. The variation of risk factors found in each island cluster suggests that a government rethink of the current intervention strategies to address obesity is recommended.
More Work for Mother: The Ironies of Household Technology from the Open Hearth to the Microwave by Ruth Schwartz Cowan (review)

* An Introduction: Housework and Its Tools * Housewifery: Household Work and Household Tools under Pre-Industrial Conditions * The Invention of Housework: The Early Stages of Industrialization * Twentieth-Century Changes in Household Technology * The Roads Not Taken: Alternative Social and Technical Approaches to Housework * Household Technology and Household Work between 1900 and 1940 * The Postwar Years * Postscript: Less Work for Mother
Simulations of optical effects in nanostructures

In my work presented in this dissertation, I have focused on simulation studies of light interaction with nanostructures made of metals and dielectrics. Of particular interest have been plasmonic effects. The structures included the wire and coaxial nanowaveguides, as well as periodic arrays of planar quasi-triangles, and periodic arrays of nanoholes in thin metallic films. In the nanowaveguides I focused on plasmon polariton modes which resemble the TEM modes propagating in the corresponding conventional radio transmission lines. This collaborative research, involving an experimental effort, showed how the nanoscopic plasmon polariton modes reduce in the retarded limit to the TEM modes, and in the non-retarded limit to the corresponding surface plasmon modes. My simulations explained details of recent experimental results involving plasmonic waveguiding in metallic nanowires. Similar results have been obtained for nanocoaxial waveguides. My simulations of the optical absorption in the arrays of nano quasi-triangles, recently observed experimentally, helped identify those as due to Mie plasmonic resonances in these nanoparticles. They also explained the peak shifts in terms of the 2D surface plasmon dispersion, and the plasmon momentum quantization. In the study of the arrays evolution from holes to quasi-triangles, my simulations provided the clue to the critical behavior of the peak position for structures approaching the percolation threshold (the transitional structure in the series, for which film resistance diverges), and allowed to identify the series of structures as an analog of the percolation threshold problem. Finally, I have simulated optical performance of nanorod arrays (or multi-core nanocoax), which have been employed as platform for novel solar cells. My simulations have been employed to predict and optimize these cells. My work resulted in 5 publications and 2 manuscripts in preparation.
Choosing Prison over Parole: Factors Associated with Prisoners' Decision to Waive Their Conditional Release Hearing

Abstract:Parole review waivers have serious implications on correctional systems, prisoners' rehabilitation, and public safety. However, studies on this topic are scarce, have limited scopes and methodologies, and lack in-depth analysis about women and Indigenous people. The purpose of this study was to examine the characteristics of prisoners who forgo parole review. Quebec's correctional services provided us with the correctional records of all parole-eligible prisoners in the province in 2014–15 (N = 3,675). A sample of men, women, Indigenous people, and non-Indigenous people assessed with the LS/CMI (n = 2,595) was selected. Hierarchical logistic regressions showed that recidivism risk and parole officers' recommendations for release have a strong statistical relationship with waivers. In addition, Indigenous people are more likely to waive a parole hearing. Moderation analyses also showed that sex and Indigenous ethnicity each moderate the effect of one factor. Results suggest that the combination of statistically significant factors, as represented by recidivism risk, explains waivers better than the specific effects of these factors viewed separately. Résumé:La renonciation à une audience de mise en liberté sous condition a des répercussions importantes sur les systèmes correctionnels, la réadaptation des détenus et la sécurité publique. Cependant, il y a peu d'études sur le sujet. Celles qui existent sont d'une portée et d'une méthodologie limitées et ne comportent pas d'analyse approfondie sur les femmes et les Autochtones. L'objectif de la présente étude est d'examiner les caractéristiques des détenus qui renoncent a leur en vue d'une libération conditionnelle. Les services correctionnels du Québec nous ont remis les dossiers correctionnels de tous les détenus admissibles à une libération conditionnelle dans la province pour 2014-2015 (N = 3675). Un échantillon d'hommes, de femmes, de personnes autochtones et de personnes non autochtones évalués avec le LS/CMI (n = 2595) a été sélectionné. Des régressions logistiques hiérarchiques montrent que le risque de récidive et les recommandations de libération des agents de libération conditionnelle ont une importante relation statistique avec les renonciations. De plus, les personnes autochtones sont plus susceptibles de renoncer à une audience de mise en liberté. Les analyses de modération montrent aussi que le sexe et l'ethnicité autochtone ont chacun un effet modérateur sur un facteur. Les résultats suggèrent que la combinaison de facteurs statistiquement significatifs, comme représentée par le risque de récidive, explique mieux les renonciations que les effets particuliers des facteurs pris séparément.
Factors Associated with Attitudes toward Aging among Taiwanese Middle-Aged and Older Adults: Based on Population-Representative National Data

In middle-aged and older adults, attitude toward aging (ATA) exerts significant influences on their current and future health. For health promotion to be successful, participants’ ATA requires health care providers’ attention. Knowing the factors associated with ATA can facilitate future studies to investigate effective interventions. The aim of this study was to identify the factors associated with ATA in middle-aged and older adults. This cross-sectional study analyzed data of a nationally representative sample of adults aged 58 years and older collected in a population-based longitudinal study: the Taiwan Longitudinal Study on Aging (TLSA). To identify the factors associated with ATA, we investigated demographic factors (age, gender, education, marital and cohabitation status, and financial satisfaction status) and health-related factors (number of co-morbidities, depression, physical function dependency) with bivariate analysis and multiple regression analysis. To identify the activities beneficial to ATA over and above demographic and health-related factors, various activities (exercise, volunteer service, and leisure activities) were each examined individually by multiple regression analysis. The factors detrimental to ATA were advanced age, a higher number of co-morbidities, living alone, depression, and dependence on physical function. Those beneficial to ATA were higher education, financial satisfaction, physical exercise, volunteer service, and six leisure activities.
Impact of Variation in Interleaflet Triangle Height Between Fused Leaflets in the Functionally Bicuspid Aortic Valve On Hemodynamics and Tissue Biomechanics

There is fusion between two leaflets in functionally bicuspid (bileaflet) aortic valves with trisinuate aortic root. The degree of fusion inversely correlates with variation in the interleaflet triangle height ("commissural height"). We aimed to determine the hemodynamics and biomechanical response in the thoracic aorta due to variations in the commissural height between fused leaflets in a bicuspid aortic valve with raphe. A 3D aortic valve model was reconstructed using cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMR) from a patient with a normal trileaflet aortic valve. Fluid-Structure Interaction simulations were used to investigate the effect of variation in commissural height between the coronary leaflets with leaflet fusion, and this was contrasted to a case with a normal trileaflet valve. Phase-contrast CMR was used for validation of the simulated hemodynamics. The aorta and leaflet tissues were treated as hyperelastic materials. In the normal trileaftlet aortic valve two counter-rotating vortex cores develop within the root at peak systole and interact with the walls of the ascending aorta. However, in the bicuspid aortic valve with fusion between the coronary leaflets the vortex system becomes more asymmetric. This correlates with more recirculation of flow towards the fusion side of the aortic root. The peak velocity, pressure gradient, wall shear stress, and strain levels increase approximately linear with decreasing commissural height and increasing leaflet fusion. Decreasing interleaflet triangle height between the fused leaflets in bicuspid aortic valves with raphe results in linear elevation of wall shear stress at the sinutubular junction and proximal ascending aorta.
CHEK2p.I157T Mutation Is Associated with Increased Risk of Adult-Type Ovarian Granulosa Cell Tumors

Simple Summary Granulosa cell tumors of the ovary represent a distinct subset of ovarian cancers typically characterized by hormonal disbalance, slow disease progression, and late recurrence years after surgical removal of the primary tumor. Risk factors associated with development of these rare tumors have not yet been established. In this study, we identified an association between increased risk of developing adult-type granulosa cell tumors (AGCTs) and a specific germline mutation in the CHEK2 gene. Our findings further support the relevance of this deleterious mutation in the increased risk of various cancer types, and opens a new avenue that can be exploited for future development of CHEK2-targeted preventive and therapeutic interventions directed at AGCTs. Abstract Pathogenic germline mutations c.1100delC and p.I157T in the CHEK2 gene have been associated with increased risk of breast, colon, kidney, prostate, and thyroid cancers; however, no associations have yet been identified between these two most common European founder mutations of the CHEK2 gene and ovarian cancers of any type. Our review of 78 female heterozygous carriers of these mutations (age > 18 years) found strikingly higher proportion of adult-type granulosa cell tumors of the ovary (AGCTs) among ovarian cancers that developed in these women (~36%) compared to women from the general population (1.3%). Based on this finding, we performed a cross-sectional study that included 93 cases previously diagnosed with granulosa cell tumors, refined and validated their AGCT diagnosis through an IHC study, determined their status for the two CHEK2 mutations, and compared the prevalence of these mutations in the AGCT cases and reference populations. The prevalence ratios for the p.I157T mutation in the AGCT group relative to the global (PR = 26.52; CI95: 12.55–56.03) and European non-Finnish populations (PR = 24.55; CI95: 11.60–51.97) support an association between the CHEK2p.I157T mutation and AGCTs. These rare gynecologic tumors have not been previously associated with known risk factors and genetic predispositions. Furthermore, our results support the importance of the determination of the FOXL2p.C134W somatic mutation for accurate diagnosis of AGCTs and suggest a combination of IHC markers that can serve as a surrogate diagnostic marker to infer the mutational status of this FOXL2 allele.
Machine Learning-Based MRI LAVA Dynamic Enhanced Scanning for the Diagnosis of Hilar Lesions

Objective To explore the value of machine learning-based magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) liver acceleration volume acquisition (LAVA) dynamic enhanced scanning for diagnosing hilar lesions. Methods A total of 90 patients with hilar lesions and 130 patients without hilar lesions who underwent multiphase dynamic enhanced MRI LAVA were retrospectively selected as the study subjects. The 10-fold crossover method was used to establish the data set, 7/10 (154 cases) data were used to establish the training set, and 3/10 (66 cases) data were used to establish the validation set to verify the model. The region of interest was extracted from MRI images using radiomics, and the hilar lesion model was constructed based on a convolutional neural network. Results There were significant differences in respiration and pulse frequency between patients with hilar lesions and without hilar lesions (P <0.05). The subjective scores of the images in the first three phases of dynamic enhanced scanning in the training set were higher than those in the validation set (P < 0.05). There was no significant difference between the training and validation set in the last three phases of dynamic enhanced scanning. Conclusion Machine learn-based MRI LAVA dynamic enhanced scanning for diagnosing hilar lesions has high diagnostic efficiency and can be used as an auxiliary diagnostic method.