Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Efficacy and Anti-Inflammatory Activity of Ashwagandha Sustained-Release Formulation on Depression and Anxiety Induced by Chronic Unpredictable Stress: in vivo and in vitro Studies

Background Stress is the psychological, physiological, and behavioral response of an individual’s body when they perceive a lack of equilibrium between the demands placed upon them and their ability to meet those demands. Adaptogens are herbs that help with stress management, and Ashwagandha is one such safe and effective adaptogen. Objective We evaluated the anti-neuroinflammatory potential of Ashwagandha sustained-release formulation (AshwaSR) by estimating the in vitro expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines, and its efficacy on anxiety and depression in an in vivo study. Methods Our in vitro study investigated the anti-inflammatory potential of AshwaSR by estimating the expression of tumour necrosis factor [TNF]-α and interleukin [IL]-1β levels in LPS-induced THP-1 human monocytes, and the antioxidant effects by its potential to inhibit the superoxide [SO] generation in PMA-induced HL-60 human monocytic cells. The in vivo study assessed the efficacy of AshwaSR on chronic unpredictable stress (CUS)-induced comorbid anxiety and depression in Sprague Dawley rats. Antidepressant and anxiolytic effects of AshwaSR were evaluated by open field test (OFT), elevated plus maze (EPM), forced swim test (FST), and Morris water maze (MWM) test. Results AshwaSR inhibited TNF-α, IL-1β and superoxide production in a dose-dependent manner in the in vitro study. The in vivo CUS model induced depression-like and anxiety-like behaviour. Treatments with AshwaSR and escitalopram showed improvement in the EPM and MWM models compared to the CUS-group. Conclusion In vitro study demonstrated that AshwaSR inhibits expressions of pro-inflammatory cytokines, IL-1β and TNF-α, and superoxide production. Further, the in vivo study confirmed its anxiolytic and stress-relieving effects in the CUS model that confirmed AshwaSR’s potential in managing stress and stress-related symptoms.
Cardinal functions of the hyperspace of convergent sequences

Abstract The symbol 𝓢c(X) denotes the hyperspace of all nontrivial convergent sequences in a Hausdorff space X. This hyperspace is endowed with the Vietoris topology. In the current paper, we compare the cellularity, the tightness, the extent, the dispersion character, the net weight, the i-weight, the π-weight, the π-character, the pseudocharacter and the Lindelöf number of 𝓢c(X) with the corresponding cardinal function of X. We also answer a question posed by the authors in a previous paper.
Comparative Study of FNAC and Histopathology in Diagnosis of Thyroid Swelling

Background: Neck swelling is a common clinical presentation in ENT practice and it carries significant morbidity and even mortality if not managed properly. Thyroid swelling being the most common type among them. We conducted a study to assess the role of FNAC in diagnosing the nature of thyroid swelling and comparing its result with histopathology finding. The aim and objectives of this study is to observe the correlation between preoperative Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology (FNAC) and post operative histopathology in the diagnosis of thyroid lesions. Materials and methods: A cross sectional study was done in the Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery and Department of Pathology, Chittagong Medical College, Chattogram from January 2018 to December 2020. Eighty (80) patients, both male and female of different age groups were included. The selected patients were subjected to clinical examination, routine hematological investigation, thyroid hormone test, USG, thyroid Scan, FNAC and histopathological examinations of the thyroidectomy specimens. Correlation between FNAC and histopathology reports were done in those patients. Results: In this study, age range of the patients were 11 years to 70 years. Out of 80 patients of thyroid swelling, the most of the patients 28(35%) were 31-40 years of age groups. out of 80 patients of thyroid swelling, 26(26.25%) were male and 59(73.75%) were female and male female ratio was1:2.81. On FNAC 64(80%) were non neoplastic and 16(20%) were neoplastic. Out of 64(80%) of non neoplastic lesions, 62(77.50%) were nodular goitre and 2(2.5%) were lymphocytic thyroiditis and out of 16(20%) neoplastic thyroid swelling, 2(2.50%) were follicular lesion, 12(15%) were papillary carcinoma, 1(1.25%) was follicular carcinoma and 1(1.25%) was suspicious for malignancy. On histopathology, out of 80 patients of thyroid swelling 60(75%) were non neoplastic and 20(25%) were neoplastic. out of 60(75%) non neoplastic, 59 (73.75%) were nodular, 1(1.25%) was Lymphocytic thyroiditis and out of 20(25%) neoplastic lesions, 3(3.75%) were follicular adenoma,13(16.25%) were papillary carcinoma,3(3.75%) were follicular variant of papillary carcinoma and 1(1.25%) was follicular carcinoma. Conclusion: It is concluded from the present study that female are more affected in our region. Non neoplastic lesions of the thyroid were more common (Nodular goitre being the commonest) than neoplastic lesions (Papillary carcinoma being the commonest). FNAC is essential diagnostic tool for thyroid swelling but final diagnosis to rule out thyroid cancer is surgical excision and histopathology. Chatt Maa Shi Hosp Med Coll J; Vol.22 (1); January 2023; Page 19-22
Physical properties of coconut shell nanoparticles

Physical properties such as apparent density, bulk density, compressibility index and particle sizes of carbonized and uncarbonized coconut shell nanoparticles produced through top down approach have been studied. Percentage composition of the coconut fruit was determined using five different coconut fruit samples. Results revealed that coir occupies the highest percentage; coconut shells account for 15 % while the flesh and liquid occupy 30 % of the whole coconut fruit. The apparent densities of the uncarbonized and carbonized coconut shell nanoparticles obtained at 70 hours of milling are 0.65 g/cm3 and 0.61 g/cm3 respectively. Their respective compressibility indices and average particle sizes are 46.4 % and 69.7 %; 50.01 nm and 14.29 nm. The difference in the particle sizes of the carbonized and uncarbonized coconut shell nanoparticles can be linked with reduction in the moisture content and volatiles of the carbonized coconut shell nanoparticles due to carbonization process. The reduction in the moisture and volatiles results in the enhanced hardness and brittleness of the carbonized coconut shells which facilitate their breakage during the course of milling than that of the uncarbonized coconut shells. Kathmandu University Journal of Science, Engineering and Technology Vol. 12, No. I, June, 2016, Page: 63-79
Computation of {2,4} and {2,3}-inverses based on rank-one updates

Abstract Two finite recurrent procedures for computing and -inverses of a matrix are presented. Each of introduced methods exploits certain matrix product which includes the Moore–Penrose inverse of a symmetric matrix and a generalization of the Sherman-Morrison formula to the case of the Moore–Penrose inverse of a symmetrically rank one modified matrix. The computational complexity of the methods is analysed. In the essence, presented representations investigate dual methods with respect to these introduced in [Stanimirović PS, Katsikis VN, Pappas D, Computing {2,4} and {2,3}-inverses by using the Sherman-Morrison formula, Appl. Math. Comput. 2016;273:584–603].
Clinical Evaluation of Polymerase Chain Reaction Coupled with Quantum Dot Fluorescence Analysis for Diagnosis of Candida Infection in Vulvovaginal Candidiasis Practice

Purpose Time-consuming culture methods and wet-mount microscopy (WMM) with low sensitivity have difficulties in diagnosing Vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC). Rapid and highly sensitive polymerase chain reaction coupled with quantum dot fluorescence analysis (PCR-QDFA) for the diagnosis of VVC has not been reported to date. This study was the first to evaluate the performance of PCR-QDFA for diagnosis of Candida strains in the leukorrhea samples from patients with suspected VVC. Patients and Methods Leukorrhea samples from all visited patients were taken from the vagina using vaginal swabs by clinicians. We evaluated patients admitted with suspected VVC who completed WMM for diagnosis and reported the diagnostic effectiveness of PCR-QDFA and Candida culture (gold standard) when testing leucorrhea samples. Results A total of 720 leukorrhea samples from 387 VVC-positive patients and 333 VVC-negative patients were included in this study. Of the 387 leukorrhea samples from the VVC-positive patients, 391 Candida strains were identified by culture. 99.23% (388/391) Candida strains were included in the PCR-QDFA list. The 388 Candida strains belonged to four different species of Candida, including C. albicans (n = 273, 70.36%), C. glabrata (n = 85, 21.91%), C. tropicalis (n = 16, 4.12%), and C. krusei (n = 14, 3.61%). PCR-QDFA diagnosed Candida strains in 340/384 (88.54%) of the leucorrhea samples with Candida strains infection. The sensitivity of PCR-QDFA for C. albicans, C. glabrata, C. tropicalis, and C. krusei was 89.01%, 85.88%, 81.25% and 92.86%, respectively. The specificity of PCR-QDFA for C. albicans, C. glabrata, C. tropicalis and C. krusei was 93.69%, 99.37%, 99.71%, and 99.57%, respectively. Conclusion The highly sensitive and specific PCR-QDFA technique can be exploited as a rapid (approximately 4 h) diagnostic tool for common Candida strains of leucorrhea samples from patients with suspected VVC.
Une version non commutative des algèbres de Lie : les algèbres de Leibniz

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Nyström type subsampling analyzed as a regularized projection

In the statistical learning theory the Nyström type subsampling methods are considered as tools for dealing with big data. In this paper we consider Nyström subsampling as a special form of the projected Lavrentiev regularization, and study it using the approaches developed in the regularization theory. As a result, we prove that the same capacity independent learning rates that are guaranteed for standard algorithms running with quadratic computational complexity can be obtained with subquadratic complexity by the Nyström subsampling approach, provided that the subsampling size is chosen properly. We propose a priori rule for choosing the subsampling size and a posteriori strategy for dealing with uncertainty in the choice of it. The theoretical results are illustrated by numerical experiments.
Supportive Teacher Talk Features to Promote Students’ Responses ın EFL Classroom

Teacher talk is as important in teaching English as a foreign language as it is in any other subject. Teacher talk is supposed to be the maximum exposure of target language in the classroom setting as a main pedagogic function employed as a medium of imparting metalanguage (Ellis, 2008). Through classroom observation with 32 students, this research investigates supportive teacher talk elements that inspire students to be responsive. They are 1) what kind of supportive teacher talk features to promote students’ responses in EFL Classroom; 2) what is the dominant type of supportive teacher talk features that promote students’ responses in EFL Classroom; and 3) how the students’ responses towards the supportive teacher talk features in EFL Classroom. The study's subject was an excellent English teacher who taught second-year students at a public senior high school in a range of English abilities. Field notes and recordings of classroom interactions on audio and video were used to gather the data. Findings revealed that in terms of classroom organization, the supportive teacher talk in EFL classrooms is in the form of the functions of classroom language, namely organization, interrogation, and interaction. The dominant form of supportive teacher talk that promotes students’ responses in an EFL classroom is interrogation. While the way the students responded to their teacher's talk mostly occurred when the teacher asked them questions.
Design of a next generation synoptic solar observing network: solar physics research integrated network group (SPRING)

Long-term synoptic observations of the Sun in different wavelength regions are essential to understand its secular behavior. Such observations have proven very important for discovery of 11 year solar activity cycle, 22 year magnetic cycle, polar field reversals, Hale’s polarity law, Joy’s law, that helped Babcock and Leighton to propose famous solar dynamo model. In more recent decades, the societal impact of the secular changes in Sun’s output has been felt in terms of solar inputs to terrestrial climate-change and space-weather hazards. Further, it has been realized that to better understand the activity phenomena such as flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs) one needs synoptic observations in multiple spectral lines to enable tomographic inference of physical parameters. Currently, there are both space and ground based synoptic observatories. However, given the requirements for the long-term stability and reliability of such synoptic datasets, ground-based facilities are more preferable. Also, the ground based observatories are easy to maintain or upgrade while detailed and frequent calibrations are easily possible. The only ground-based facility that currently provides full-disk velocity and magnetic field maps of the Sun around the clock and at good cadence, is the Global Oscillations Network Group (GONG) network of National Solar Observatory (NSO) which is operational since the mid 90s. Due to its aging instrumentation, operating for nearly three decades, and new requirements to obtain multiwavelength observations, a need is felt in the solar community to build a next generation synoptic observatory network. A group of international observatories have come together under the auspices of SOLARNET program, funded by European Union (EU), to carryout a preliminary design study of such a synoptic solar observing facility called “SPRING”, which stands for Solar Physics Research Integrated Network Group. In this article we will present concept of SPRING and the optical design concept of its major instruments.ts.
Improvement in Infection Prevention and Control Compliance at the Three Tertiary Hospitals of Sierra Leone following an Operational Research Study

Implementing infection prevention and control (IPC) programmes in line with the World Health Organization’s (WHO) eight core components has been challenging in Sierra Leone. In 2021, a baseline study found that IPC compliance in three tertiary hospitals was sub-optimal. We aimed to measure the change in IPC compliance and describe recommended actions at these hospitals in 2023. This was a ‘before and after’ observational study using two routine cross-sectional assessments of IPC compliance using the WHO IPC Assessment Framework tool. IPC compliance was graded as inadequate (0–200), basic (201–400), intermediate (401–600), and advanced (601–800). The overall compliance scores for each hospital showed an improvement from ‘Basic’ in 2021 to ‘Intermediate’ in 2023, with a percentage increase in scores of 16.9%, 18.7%, and 26.9% in these hospitals. There was improved compliance in all core components, with the majority in the ‘Intermediate’ level for each hospital IPC programme. Recommended actions including the training of healthcare workers and revision of IPC guidelines were undertaken, but a dedicated IPC budget and healthcare-associated infection surveillance remained as gaps in 2023. Operational research is valuable in monitoring and improving IPC programme implementation. To reach the ‘Advanced’ level, these hospitals should establish a dedicated IPC budget and develop long-term implementation plans.
On the elastic pendulum, parametric resonance and ‘pumping’ swings

The ‘peculiar’ behavior of the spring/elastic pendulum, its parametric resonance, and ‘pumping’ swings are frequently studied phenomena and always exhibit interesting features, but the subject is not taught sufficiently in physics courses. Based on our calculations and physics teaching experience, we try to provide here some new results and judgments on these phenomena. Firstly, we discuss the coupling of the normal modes of the elastic pendulum oscillations. The nonapproximated equations of elastic pendulum motions are solved numerically. We then comment on experiments regarding exciting different normal modes. The ‘pumping’ of swings is treated here as a case of parametric resonance of a pendulum of variable length. A new reasonable model of ‘pumping’ swings is presented and the respective calculations show the oscillation amplitude increasing. In addition, a simple experimental setup for parametric resonance in the physics laboratory is presented.
6 - The Relationship Between Vice-Chancellors’ Leadership Behaviour and the Work Behaviour of Lecturers in Nigerian Universities: Implication for Leadership Training for Vice-Chancellors

The study examined the relationship between the leadership behaviour of Vice-Chancellors and the work behaviour of lecturers in the universities of South-West Nigeria. The study employed the correlational research design. Twelve out of the 27 universities in the South-West geo-political zone were selected as the study sample, using the stratified sampling technique. Two sets of questionnaires were adapted and used for data collection. The in- struments contain items relating to the leadership behaviour of Vice-Chan- cellors and the work behaviour of lecturers. The second was measured in terms of level of participation in university administration, cooperation, com- mitment and conformity. Lecturers’ perception of the influence of Vice-Chan- cellors’ leadership behaviour on their work behaviour was assessed on a rating scale ranging from 1 to 4. Four null hypotheses were posited and tested using the Pearson Product Moment Correlation. The test revealed varying degrees of association between Vice-Chancellors’ leadership behaviour and lecturers’ work behaviour. Recommendations for enhancing the effectiveness and efficiency of the university system aimed at the development of a culture of high level cooperation, commitment, participation and conformity of lecturers included a proposed leadership training programme for Vice-Chancellors. To facilitate the proposed training programme, sensi- tivity training, T-groups, in-baskets, case studies, business games behaviour modelling and action learning techniques are particularly recommended
Traditional Uses of Medicinal Plants of Tharu Ethnic-community of Banke District, Mid-Western Nepal

The present study had been conducted in the Tharu community of Rapti-Sonari and Duduwa Rural Municipalities of Banke district, which is rich in tradition, culture and ethnobotanical knowledge. The main aim of this study was to document the native medicinal plants and their uses in the treatment of human ailments/problems among the Tharu community of Banke, District. This study was carried out in March, 2021. The ethnomedicinal data were collected using structured and semi-structured questionnaire interview with 20 key informants, older peoples, local healers, and Guruwas. Altogether 28 traditionally used medicinal plants species were recorded belonging to 27 genera and 21 families, among them Fabaceae was the most dominant family. The most frequently used plants parts were leaves and juice which is the most widely preferred mode of remedy. Older peoples, Guruwa and the traditional healers have high knowledge on the medicinal plants and their uses as compared to younger. Different parts of the same plant species were used for the treatment of more than one ailment using a different mode of remedies; it means single plant species was used in the treatment of multiple ailments. Further study should also be carried out on the documented plant species from study area to utilize them in drug development.
A cross-sectional study of the association between circulating sex hormone-binding globulin levels and selected adipokines in women with polycystic ovary syndrome

Introduction Changes in the proportion of pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory adipokines may reflect the accumulation of lipids in the liver and the development of insulin resistance. Both liver steatosis and insulin resistance result in decreased sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) synthesis. This study aimed to analyze associations between circulating SHBG and adipokines levels in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Material and methods A cross-sectional cohort study involved 87 women with phenotype A of PCOS (39 normal weight and 48 obese). Body mass, height, and waist circumference were measured, and BMI was calculated. In addition, body composition was assessed using the bioimpedance method. Serum SHBG levels and plasma apelin-36 and apelin-12, adiponectin, leptin, omentin-1, and RBP-4 were determined by using the ELISA method. The participants were divided into subgroups with SHBG concentrations above and below this lower limit [N = 35 (40.2%) and N = 52 (59.8%), respectively]. Results The median adiponectin, apelin-12, and apelin-36 levels were significantly lower, and leptin levels were significantly higher in the subgroup with low SHBG levels than that in the subgroup above the lower limit of the reference range, while there were no differences in median omentin-1 and RBP-4 between the study subgroups. There were positive correlations between SHBG and omentin-1, adiponectin, apelin-36, and apelin-12 levels, as well as negative correlation with leptin levels. However, after adjustment by BMI, waist circumference, and body fat percentage, only the association between SHBG and omentin-1 remained significant. Conclusion Our results show associations between circulating SHBG and adipokine levels in women with PCOS and support the role of hormonal dysfunction of the adipose tissue in the pathogenesis of PCOS.
Phase measurement of structural modifications created by femtosecond laser pulses in glass with phase-shifting digital holographic microscopy

Abstract. When ultrashort laser pulses are focused inside a glass at a high repetition rate, structural changes occur because of the heat accumulation from the train of laser pulses. This report describes phase measurement of the structural changes induced inside glass by phase-shifting digital holographic microscopy. Two-dimensional phase distribution across the structural change for static exposure is retrieved. By focusing femtosecond laser pulses at the interface between two glass substrates, melted materials can directly weld glass plates. Quantitative phase measurement of welded glass substrates revealed that the refractive index decreased in the laser-irradiated zone.