Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Bromelain-based chemo-herbal combination effect on human cancer cells: in-vitro study on AGS and MCF7 proliferation and apoptosis

Abstract Aim. Chemo-herbal combinations promise new clinical anticancer therapeutic modalities. The current study investigated and compared the in vitro effects of a bromelain-based chemo-herbal combination to/with cisplatin or 5-FU, with regard to the proliferation and apoptosis of human gastric AGS and breast MCF7 cell lines. Material and methods. AGS and MCF7 cells were either treated with different concentrations of bromelain, cisplatin or 5-FU; or with bromelain-cisplatin and bromelain-5-FU combinations for 48h. Cell proliferative inhibition and inductive apoptosis were appraised using MTT assay and flowcytometry, respectively. Kruskal-Wallis and Dunn’s tests were used to analyze differences in cell groups’ means. Results. AGS proliferation was adversely affected by single treatments of bromelain and cisplatin (p <0.003) or 5-FU (p <0.05). The anti-proliferative impact of single treatments was more pronounced on MCF7 cells. The bromelain-cisplatin combinations displayed synergistic effect on MCF7 cells (CIs ≤1), while being additive or antagonistic with cisplatin IC30 and IC40 to AGS cell proliferation, respectively. In addition, bromelian-5-FU combinations showed synergistic effect on AGS cells, while antagonistic to MCF7 cells. In terms of cell apoptosis induction, bromelain (IC30)-cisplatin (IC20) displayed additive effect on MCF7, compared to cisplatin single treatment (p <0.04), while bromelain (IC40)-5-FU (IC10) and bromelain (IC30)-5-FU (IC20) afforded additive apoptotic effects on AGS (p <0.04) and MCF7 (p <0.05), respectively, in comparison to 5-FU single treatment. Conclusion. A bromelain-based combination using cisplatin showed concordant effects on cell proliferation impediment and apoptotic induction on MCF7, while the same results were noticed with a bromelain-5-FU combination to AGS cells. The bromelain-based chemo-herbal pathways should further be investigated in the frame of multi-chemotherapeutic drugs researches.
The impact of a peer-facilitated discussion initiative on international students’ learning experience in the context of internationalisation at home

Abstract Fostering skills development is one of the tenets of education. For a long time, the traditional binary teacher-student interaction was used as the sole approach to teaching and learning but it is now overwhelmingly regarded as insufficient. The present paper reports on an initiative based on the principles of peer learning. The discussion groups and one-to-one sessions in languages, facilitated by native speakers (NS) who are international students in the institution, were set-up to enable language learners to develop their oral skills. While the advantages of the activity for language learners are clear, it is not as easy to determine the benefits for the NS peer-facilitators. The study presents findings from questionnaires and interviews conducted with some of these NS peer-facilitators and discuss the reported impact of the initiative on these students. While personal growth and development of intercultural awareness feature strongly in the data analysis, an enhanced language learning experience and an influential factor in some participants’ educational and career paths are also revealed. These findings are explained with reference to relevant developments in the study abroad, volunteering and peer learning literature. We will conclude that the initiative is a positive tool for international students’ integration into the host institution and offers a novel way for them to socialise and engage in their new learning environment.
Relative Toxicity of some Insecticides to Coccinellid, Coccinella septempunctata Linn. and Indian Honey Bee, Apis cerana Indica

Contact toxicity of 9 insecticides were evaluated against grubs and adults of Coccinella septempunctata and adults of Indian honey bee Apis cerana indica. Cyperrnethrin was found to be the most toxic to grubs and adults of the predator followed by dirnethoate in comparison to endosulfan. Ethofenprox, malathion and imidacloprid existed in moderate group of toxicity to grubs and beetles, whereas, acephate, cartap hydrochloride and neem extract as less toxic Cypermethrin was observed most toxic, dirnethoate, imidacloprid arx. : acephate as moderately toxic and cartap hydrochloride, malathion, neem extract and ethofenprox as less toxic to bee adults as against standard endosulfan. The order of toxicity to grubs: Cypermethrin > dirnethoate > ethofenprox > malathion > imidacloprid > acephate > cartap hydrochloride > endosulfan > neem extract and adult of predator: Cyperrnethrin > dimethoate > imidacloprid > ethofenprox > malathion> acephate > cartap hydrochloride> endosulfan > neem extract and honey bee: Cypermethrin > dimethoate > imidacloprid > acephate > cartap hydrochloride > malathion > neem extract> ethofenprox > endosulfan was found.
Attitudes of the General Public and Hunters Towards Wolves in Latvia; Its Predictors and Changes Over Time

Abstract A survey was carried out to determine the attitudes of the general public and of hunters towards wolves (Canis lupus) in Latvia. Today wildlife conservation depends on effective management practices; however, these are often influenced by public opinions and attitudes. Our aim was to understand the causes behind these attitudes and to compare our results with previous research done in Latvia. Questionnaires were distributed through schools and hunter organisations. The attitudes of both the general public and hunters were mostly neutral or positive. Older people and women were generally less positive. Respondents with less positive attitudes were more likely to say that wolf numbers in the country should be decreased. Significant associations between attitudes, beliefs of wolves causing damage and financial losses and what should be done with wolf numbers in Latvia were found. Three attitude predictors were established.
More Monitoring, Less Coordination: Twitter and Facebook Use between Emergency Management Agencies

Abstract Social media applications facilitate information sharing between agencies, yet scholarship primarily focuses on government-to-citizen communication. This article explores how agencies use social networking applications and microblogs such as Twitter and Facebook to share information and interact with each other. Public information officers (PIOs) from 35 state emergency management agencies were interviewed, and transcripts were analyzed using a grounded theory approach. Findings demonstrate that PIOs employ Twitter and Facebook to monitor content for situational awareness, post training opportunities, network with other agencies, and share and reuse content in different ways. Fewer agencies directly coordinate preparedness information campaigns during nonthreat periods and risk communication during emergency response operations. General impediments to those practices include lack of personnel, insufficient technical knowledge, and preferences for other channels. In all, Twitter and Facebook complement—but do not take the place of—other information and communications technology (ICTs) that facilitate operational coordination.
Correlation of axillary lymph nodes involvement and Nottingham prognostic index with various histopathologic prognostic factors in invasive breast carcinoma

Background: Breast cancer is the commonest cancer of urban Indian women and the second commonest in the rural women. The clinical management of this tumor relies on various prognostic factors, most importantly lymph node stage, tumor size and histologic grade. There have been attempts at integration of these factors into meaningful indices. The most widely used of these is the Nottingham prognostic index (NPI), this study was aimed to evaluate the NPI in a group of breast cancer patients and to correlate NPI with other clinical and histo-morphological features.Methods: This was a two-year prospective, observational study was done in the Department of Surgery, Tertiary Care Teaching Hospital of Maharashtra, India. A total of 50 patients who presented with invasive carcinoma of breast from October 2016 to October 2018 were enrolled.Results: Most of the patients belonged to the age group of 41 to 50 years (34%) and the mean age of patients in study was 51.18±11.93 years. Left breast was more affected (62%) than the right breast (38%). Majority of the cases had tumor size of <5 cm (70%) and the mean size of was 4.65±1.89 cms. Majority of the patients (62%) belonged to Bloom Richardson (BR) Grade II and 24% of the patients were ER and PR positive. Lymphovascular invasion was present in 74% of the patients. There was significant positive correlation between tumor size and lymph node involvement. Significant correlation was noted between NPI score and tumor size, positive lymph nodes and BR grade. The mean NPI scores in patients with lymphovascular invasion were noted as 4.92±1.05, compared to 4.83±0.93 among the patients in whom lymphovascular invasion was absent (p=0.779). The mean NPI scores in patients with ER-, PR- were slightly high (4.91±0.94) compared to ER+, PR+ patients (4.76±1.19) (p=0.778). Conclusions: NPI is an essential and valuable prognostic indicator, which should be incorporated in breast cancer reporting by the histopathologists and also primary tumor size, lymph node stage and histological grade which provides further guideline to treating clinicians to choose treatment modalities for the patient and in deciding to follow up plan as well.
Critical Risks to Construction Cost Estimation

Abstract The prevalence of cost overrun in project delivery suggests an acute dearth of inclusive understanding of the effect of risks on construction cost estimation. In aberrant to the generic assumptions, customary to inquiries in construction risk researches, this paper appraised critical construction estimating risks. The study evaluated the sources, frequency and significance of construction estimating risks, using data from a questionnaire survey of 206 quantity surveyors in Nigeria. The data were analysed using factor analysis, Fussy Set Theory, Terrell Transformation Index (TTI), and Kruskal Wallis H tests. The results showed that estimating risks are correlate seven principal sources, namely: estimating resources, construction knowledge, design information, economic condition, the expertise of estimator, geographic factor, cost data, and project factors (λ, > 0.70 <1.0). Twenty-nine risk factors likewise emerged critical construction estimation risks (TTI, 69-87 > 65 percent) and the top three were low construction knowledge, inaccurate cost information and changes in government regulations (factor scores > 0.60 > 0.50). The awareness and accurate assessment of these risks into project cost estimation would reduce cost overrun. The study, therefore, recommends synergies between projects’ internal/ external environments for proper scoping of these risks into project estimates.
Representative Bureaucracy in Emergency Management: Attitudes About Contemporary Emergency Management Policy and Politics in Local Agencies

Abstract This article expounds upon the experiences of local emergency management professionals to determine if there is a pattern in the attitudes that these managers exhibit regarding the centralization of policy and operational control during the George W. Bush and Obama administrations. Responses to a 2016 survey described beneficial and detracting features of the federal requirements, which affected the department's ability to meet their jurisdiction's demands. This article describes these attitudes and determines whether jurisdictions that were favorable to or against policy changes made during Obama's administration represent jurisdictions that voted Democratic or Republican in the five previous presidential elections. Doing so tests the theory of "representative bureaucracy", which suggests local bureaucrats will represent their constituents' background and beliefs in their actions or attitudes. The findings suggest that elements of "representative bureaucracy" exist, but also that disappointment over the actions taken by both administrations persist.
Fitness profiles of professional futsal players: identifying age-related differences

Summary Study aim: The aim of this study was to determine the fitness profiles of senior and junior futsal players and to identify potential differences between the studied age groups. Materials and methods: 44 male futsal players from 5 professional futsal teams participated in this study. Subjects were divided into two age groups (seniors [>18 years; n = 26] vs juniors [<18 years of age; n = 18]). Players were tested for anthropometrics (body mass, body height and body fat percentage), jumping capacity (countermovement jump and standing broad jump), kicking speed (for dominant and non-dominant leg), sprinting capacity (5- and 10-meter sprints), 20-yard test, futsal-specific reactive agility, and futsal-specific change-of-direction speed tests. Results: No significant differences between age groups were apparent for anthropometrics. Seniors achieved better results than juniors in tests of kicking speed, for both the dominant (106.81 ± 6.94 km/h and 100.94 ± 5.33 km/h, respectively, t-test: 3.02 [p < 0.001], Cohen’s d: 1.02) and nondominant leg (95.54 ± 8.57 km/h and 85.28 ± 8.71 km/h, respectively, t-test: 3.88 [p < 0.001], Cohen’s d: 1.25). Conclusions: Seniors did not achieve significantly better results than juniors in most of the observed variables. Since the maximum biological maturity occurs up to 18 years, and studied juniors were in their late adolescence, we can assume that differences between groups are related to other indices (i.e. technical skills, tactical knowledge).
Gaming Musical Instruments Music has to be Hard Work!

This article addresses the relationship between labour and learning a popular musical instrument like the guitar in the specific context of a video game. Most gamification theories promise that using a video game makes it easy to learn (Kapp 2012; Deterding et al. 2011). Even if this holds true, I argue that this kind of playfulness causes some backlash, which I observed during an experiment in which students played the music video game Rocksmith 2014 . Learning and playing the guitar through the medium of a video game comes with diverse experiences as well as expectations that are closely related to the dichotomies between play and work, often discussed in game studies based on the famous texts by Johann Huizinga (2004) and Roger Caillois (1960). Learning any traditional music instrument requires much effort in several skill areas, for example, dexterity, hearing, sight-reading, and performance. In other words, it seems to be hard work and not at all playful like a video game. In this article, the various aspects of playful work and labourious play, found in both music education and guitar games, will be discussed against the backdrop of empirical findings including data from online interviews, research diaries and video recordings. 1
Cryptocurrencies as an asset class in portfolio optimisation

Abstract In this paper, cryptocurrencies are analysed as investment instruments. The study aims to verify whether they can be classified as an asset class and what kind of benefits they may bring to the investor's portfolio. We used 6 indices as proxies for the major asset classes, including the cryptocurrency index CRIX, for all cryptographic assets. Cryptocurrencies relatively fully satisfied 7 asset class requirements, namely stable aggregation, investability, internal homogeneity, external heterogeneity, expected utility, selection skill and cost-effective access. It was found that crypto assets have diversification properties. Portfolio optimisation with the Modern Portfolio Theory showed an increase in the Sharpe ratio of tangency portfolios with the inclusion of CRIX. However, the Post-Modern Portfolio Theory identified significant deterioration of the downside risk and the Sortino ratio.
Conducting Research Work as a Requirement for University Undergraduate Studies: Challenges of Distance Education Students in Ghana

Abstract As a partial condition for the successful completion of school, and for certification reasons, undergraduate distance education students in Ghanaian universities are required to conduct research work. Due to the mode of teaching and learning activities, it appears such students are at a disadvantage. In this study, we examined the challenges distance education students encounter in conducting their research work in two universities in Ghana. A cross-sectional survey was conducted using 866 distance education students sampled from the study centres across the country. Results from a confirmatory factor analysis, using 5,000 bootstrap samples, revealed challenges from the students, supervisors and the institutions. Based on our results, we recommend that there should be structured policies by university management and supervisors to relieve students of the challenges they encounter when conducting their research work. The study also encouraged students to devote the needed time, commitment and motivation to complete their research work on time. Suggestions for further studies were made based on the findings.
Initial-value / Nonlocal Cauchy problems for fractional differential equations involving ψ-Hilfer multivariable operators

Abstract In this paper, we investigate two types of problems (the initial-value problem and nonlocal Cauchy problem) for fractional differential equations involving ψ-Hilfer derivative in multivariable case (ψ-m-Hilfer derivative). First we propose and discuss ψ-fractional integral, ψ-fractional derivative and ψ-Hilfer type fractional derivative of a multivariable function f : ℝm → ℝ (m is a positive integer). Then, using the properties of the ψ-m-Hilfer fractional derivative with m = 1 (the ψ-Hilfer derivative), we derive an equivalent relationship between solutions to the initial-value (Cauchy) problem and solutions to some integral equations, and also present an existence and uniqueness theorem. Based on the equivalency relationship, we establish new and general existence results for the nonlocal Cauchy problem of fractional differential equations involving ψ-Hilfer multivariable operators in the space of weighted continuous functions. Moreover, we obtain a new Gronwall-type inequality with singular kernel, and derive the dependence of the solution on the order and the initial condition for the fractional Cauchy problem with the help of this Gronwall-type inequality. Finally, some examples are given to illustrate our results. Compared with the recent paper [2] and other previous works, the novelties in this paper are in treating the multivariable case of operators (f : ℝm → ℝ, m is a positive integer).
Green composites based on Atriplex halimus fibers and PLA matrix

Abstract This work focuses on the potential use of cellulose fibers extracted from Mediterranean saltbush (Atriplex halimus) as a filler in the polymeric matrix. The fully biodegradable composites were prepared from polylactic acid (PLA) as matrix and microcellulose fibers ranging from 0 to 15 wt. %. The influence of the fiber content on the structure, mechanical, thermal, and water absorption properties was evaluated. Mechanical results indicated that fibers acted effectively as reinforcement, increasing the tensile strength and the Young’s modulus of PLA by 25 and 45%, respectively. This is due to the good stress transfer between fibers and matrix through the strong interactions that have been evidenced by Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The thermogravimetric analysis showed that PLA composites have a slightly lower degradation temperature than the pure PLA, but they still have favorable thermal stability. Water absorption measurements and biodegradability tests showed that the addition of fibers accelerates degradation kinetics and confirm that the prepared composites are an environmentally safe material suited for different applications.
Renal Function is a Major Determinant of ICU-acquired Hypernatremia: A Balance Study on Sodium Handling

Abstract Background and Objectives The development of ICU-acquired hypernatremia (IAH) is almost exclusively attributed to ‘too much salt and too little water’. However, intrinsic mechanisms also have been suggested to play a role. To identify the determinants of IAH, we designed a prospective controlled study. Methods Patients with an anticipated length of stay ICU > 48 hours were included. Patients with hypernatremia on admission and/or on renal replacement therapy were excluded. Patients without IAH were compared with patients with borderline hypernatremia (≥ 143 mmol/L, IAH 143) and more severe hypernatremia (≥ 145 mmol/L, IAH 145). Results We included 89 patients, of which 51% developed IAH 143 and 29% IAH 145. Sodium intake was high in all patients. Fluid balances were slightly positive and comparable between the groups. Patients with IAH 145 were more severely ill on admission, and during admission, their sodium intake, cumulative sodium balances, serum creatinine and copeptin levels were higher. According to the free water clearance, all the patients conserved water. On multivariate analysis, the baseline serum creatinine was an independent risk factor for the development of IAH 143 and IAH 145. Also, the copeptin levels remained significant for IAH 143 and IAH 145. Sodium intake remained only significant for patients with IAH 145. Conclusions Our data support the hypothesis that IAH is due to the combination of higher sodium intake and a urinary concentration deficit, as a manifestation of the renal impairment elicited by severe illness.
Characterization of modified mineral waste material adsorbent as affected by thermal treatment for optimizing its adsorption of lead and methyl orange

Abstract Thermal treatment is one of the most common processes in mineral modification, and this process has been applied to the modification of mineral waste material to improve its adsorption ability of methyl orange (MO) and lead (Pb) in this study. The properties of modified mineral waste material (MMWM) before and after thermal modification were characterized by using the Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) N2 adsorption/desorption measurement, field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM) coupled with energy-dispersive X‑ray (EDX), X‑ray diffraction (XRD), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Phase transformation was investigated related to the change in surface morphology and dehydroxylation that occurred in MMWM samples during the process of thermal treatment. To study adsorption performances of Pb and MO onto the newly modified MMWM, several experiments were carried out under different adsorption conditions and the results were determined using inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) and UV-Vis spectrophotometry. The thermally treated MMWM samples showed morphological transformation and an increasing trend in BET specific surface area (SSA) up to 500 °C followed by a decreasing trend till 1000 °C. Thermal modification of MMWM successfully improved Pb adsorption from 349 to 515 mg/g, corresponding to the MMWM modified at 600 °C, and the methyl orange (MO) adsorption from 68 to 87.6 mg/g at 400 °C. The adsorptions of Pb and MO were mainly chemisorption and monolayer coverage, as the pseudo-second-order model and the Langmuir equation displayed good correlations for Pb and MO adsorption data.