Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effects of platelet‐rich plasma on the healing of sternal wounds: A meta‐analysis

Sternal wound infection (SWI) is a devastating complication after cardiac surgery. Platelet‐rich plasma (PRP) may have a positive impact on sternal wound healing. A systematic review with meta‐analyses was performed to evaluate the clinical effectiveness of topical application of autologous PRP for preventing SWI and promoting sternal wound healing compared to placebo or standard treatment without PRP. Relevant studies published in English or Chinese were retrieved from the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (The Cochrane Library), PubMed, Ovid EMBASE, Web of Science, Springer Link, and the WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP) using the search terms “platelet‐rich plasma” and “sternal wound” or “thoracic incision. ” References identified through the electronic search were screened, the data were extracted, and the methodological quality of the included studies was assessed. The meta‐analysis was performed for the following outcomes: incidence of SWI, incidence of deep sternal wound infection (DSWI), postoperative blood loss (PBL), and other risk factors. In the systematic review, totally 10 comparable studies were identified, involving 7879 patients. The meta‐analysis for the subgroup of retrospective cohort studies (RSCs) showed that the incidence of SWI and DSWI in patients treated with PRP was significantly lower than that in patients without PRP treatment. However, for the subgroup of randomized controlled trials (RCTs), there was no significant difference in the incidence of SWI or DSWI after intervention between the PRP and control groups. There was no significant difference in PBL in both RCTs and RSCs subgroups. Neither adverse reactions nor in‐situ recurrences were reported. According to the results, PRP could be considered as a candidate treatment to prevent SWI and DSWI. However, the quality of the evidence is too weak, and high‐quality RCTs are needed to assess its efficacy on preventing SWI and DSWI.
Osmosis-Driven Water Transport through a Nanochannel: A Molecular Dynamics Simulation Study

In this work, we study a chemical method to transfer water molecules from a nanoscale compartment to another initially empty compartment through a nanochannel. Without any external force, water molecules do not spontaneously move to the empty compartment because of the energy barrier for breaking water hydrogen bonds in the transport process and the attraction between water molecules and the compartment walls. To overcome the energy barrier, we put osmolytes into the empty compartment, and to remove the attraction, we weaken the compartment-water interaction. This allows water molecules to spontaneously move to the empty compartment. We find that the initiation and time-transient behavior of water transport depend on the properties of the osmolytes specified by their number and the strength of their interaction with water. Interestingly, when osmolytes strongly interact with water molecules, transport immediately starts and continues until all water molecules are transferred to the initially empty compartment. However, when the osmolyte interaction strength is intermediate, transport initiates stochastically, depending on the number of osmolytes. Surprisingly, because of strong water-water interactions, osmosis-driven water transport through a nanochannel is similar to pulling a string at a constant speed. Our study helps us understand what minimal conditions are needed for complete transfer of water molecules to another compartment through a nanochannel, which may be of general concern in many fields involving molecular transfer.
Thyroid hormone deficiency suppresses fetal pituitary-adrenal function near term: implications for the control of fetal maturation and parturition.

Background The fetal hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis plays a key role in the control of parturition and maturation of organ systems in preparation for birth. In hypothyroid fetuses, gestational length may be prolonged and maturational processes delayed. The extent to which the effects of thyroid hormone deficiency in utero on the timing of fetal maturation and parturition are mediated by changes to the structure and function of the fetal HPA axis is unknown. Methods In twin sheep pregnancies where one fetus was thyroidectomized and the other sham-operated, this study investigated the effect of hypothyroidism on circulating concentrations of adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) and cortisol, and the structure and secretory capacity of the anterior pituitary and adrenal glands. The relative population of pituitary corticotrophs, and the masses of the adrenal zones, were assessed by immunohistochemical and stereological techniques. Adrenal mRNA abundances of key steroidogenic enzymes and growth factors were examined by qPCR. Results Hypothyroidism in utero reduced plasma concentrations of ACTH and cortisol. In thyroid-deficient fetuses, the mass of corticotrophs in the anterior pituitary gland was unexpectedly increased, while the mass of the zona fasciculata and its proportion of the adrenal gland were decreased. These structural changes were associated with lower adrenocortical mRNA abundances of insulin-like growth factor-I (IGFI) and its receptor, and key steroidogenic enzymes responsible for glucocorticoid synthesis. The relative mass of the adrenal medulla and its proportion of the adrenal gland were increased by thyroid hormone deficiency in utero, without any change in expression of phenylethanolamine N-methyltransferase or the IGF system. Conclusions Thyroid hormones are important regulators of the structure and secretory capacity of the pituitary-adrenal axis before birth. In hypothyroid fetuses, low plasma cortisol may be due to impaired adrenocortical growth and steroidogenic enzyme expression, secondary to low circulating ACTH concentration. Greater corticotroph population in the anterior pituitary gland of the hypothyroid fetus indicates compensatory cell proliferation and that there may be abnormal corticotroph capacity for ACTH synthesis and/or impaired hypothalamic input. Suppression of the development of the fetal HPA axis by thyroid hormone deficiency may contribute to the delay in fetal maturation and delivery observed in hypothyroid offspring.
Fisher’s Linear Discriminant Function Analysis and its Potential Utility as a Tool for the Assessment of Health-and-Wellness Programs in Indigenous Communities

Diabetes mellitus is a growing public health problem affecting persons in both developed and developing nations. The prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is reported to be several times higher among Indigenous populations compared to their non-Indigenous counterparts. Discriminant function analysis (DFA) is a potential tool that can be used to quantitatively evaluate the effectiveness of Indigenous health-and-wellness programs (e.g., on-the-land programs, T2DM interventions), by creating a type of pre-and-post-program scoring system. As the communities of the Eeyou Istchee territory, subarctic Quebec, Canada, have varying degrees of isolation, we derived a DFA tool for point-of-contact evaluations to aid in monitoring and assessment of health-and-wellness programs in rural and remote locations. We developed several DFA models to discriminate between those with and without T2DM status using age, fasting blood glucose, body mass index, waist girth, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, high-density lipoprotein, triglycerides, and total cholesterol in participants from the Eeyou Istchee. The models showed a ~97% specificity (i.e., true positives for non-T2DM) in classification. This study highlights how varying risk factor models can be used to discriminate those without T2DM with high specificity among James Bay Cree communities in Canada.
Nongenotoxic mechanisms involved in bromate‐induced cancer in rats

Risk assessments for bromate (BrO3−) in drinking water are based on linear extrapolation from the total incidence of tumors in male rats. The only genotoxic effects that might result from carcinogenic doses of BrO3− in vivo are the formation of 8‐oxodeoxyguanosine (8‐oxoG) in deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and the production of micronuclei. The mutations in tumors are consistent with the 8‐oxoG adduct, and both effects are nonlinear with respect to dose. Treatment of rats with BrO3− resulted in bromination of protein tyrosines. The accumulation of these proteins in the kidney appeared to contribute to kidney cancer in male, but not female, rats. BrO3− increased the rate of apoptosis (programmed cell death) in the kidneys of rats of both sexes, an effect associated with increasing expression of antiapoptotic genes and proteins. Consequently, suppression of apoptosis is a likely mechanism for BrO3−‐induced kidney cancer. More limited data suggest nongenotoxic modes of action for thyroid tumors and mesotheliomas. If these hypotheses are confirmed, linear extrapolation of risk from low doses of BrO3− is inappropriate.
Note to Editor Following the subsequent discussion with Nigel Penna we decided to exclude the mention of the issue related to the “synth_err” parameter and synthetic signal introduction through nominals both from the publication

Ground displacements due to ocean tide loading have previously been successfully observed using GPS data, and such estimates for the principal lunar M2 constituent have been used to infer the rheology and structure of the asthenosphere. The GPS orbital repeat period is close to ::: that ::: of several other major tidal constituents (K1, K2, S2) thus GPS-estimates of ground displacement at these frequencies is :: are : subject to GPS systematic errors. We assess the addition of GLONASS to increase the accuracy and reliability over : of : eight major ocean tide loading constituents: four semi-diurnal (M2, S2, N2, K2) 5 and four diurnal constituents (K1, O1, P1, Q1). We revisit a previous GPS study, focusing on 21 sites in the UK and Western :::::: western : Europe, expanding it with an assessment of GLONASS and GPS+GLONASS estimates. In the region, both GPS and GLONASS data are abundant since 2010.0. We therefore focus on the period 2010.0-2014.0which is : , : a :::: span : considered long enough to reliably estimate the major constituents. Data were processed with a kinematic PPP strategy to produce site coordinate time series for each of 3 different modes: GPS, GLONASS and GPS+GLONASS. The GPS solution with ambiguities 10 resolved was used as a baseline for performance assessment of the additional modes. GPS+GLONASS shows very close agreement with ambiguity resolved GPS for lunar constituents (M2, N2, O1, Q1) but :::: with substantial differences for solar-related constituents (S2, K2, K1, P1),:::: with:::::::: solutions:::::::: including:::::::::: GLONASS ::::: being ::::::: generally:::::: closer:: to::::: model:::::::: estimates. While no single constellation mode performs best for all constituents and components, we propose to use a combination of constellation modes to recover tidal parameters: GPS+GLONASS for most constituents except for K2 and K1 where GLONASS (north and up) 15 and GPS with ambiguities resolved (east), perform best.
Antidepressant effect of methanol stem bark extract of Adansonia digitata: involvement of monoaminergic, nitric oxide and cholinergic pathways

Introduction: Hausa people of north-western Nigeria were reported to utilize the plant Adansonia digitata for the management of depressive illnesses in an ethnobotanical survey. Thus, this study aimed to establish the mechanism(s) via which methanol stem bark extract of A. digitata (MEAD) exhibits antidepressant activity in mice. Methods: Antidepressant activity of MEAD was evaluated using tail suspension test (TST) at doses of 250, 500 and 1000 mg/kg. For the mechanistic studies, mice were pre-treated with sulpiride (50 mg/kg), prazosin (1 mg/kg), yohimbine (1 mg/kg), metergoline (1 mg/kg), cyproheptadine (3 mg/kg), L-arginine (50 mg/kg), N omega-nitro-L-arginine (L-NNA; 50 mg/kg), atropine (1 mg/kg) and naloxone (2 mg/kg) 15 minutes prior to MEAD (1000 mg/kg) administration, then antidepressant activity was assessed using TST one hour later. Data were analyzed using one-way ANOVA followed by Bonferroni post hoc test. Results: The extract (at doses of 250, 500 and 1000 mg/kg) significantly (P < 0.05) and dose-dependently decreased the duration of immobility in the TST. Sulpiride (D2 receptor antagonist), prazosin and yohimbine (α1 and α2 receptor antagonists, respectively), metergoline and cyproheptadine (5-HT1 and 5-HT2 receptor antagonists, respectively) significantly (P < 0.05) reversed the antidepressant effect of MEAD. On the other hand, L-NNA (NOS inhibitor) augmented the antidepressant effect of MEAD while L-arginine (nitric oxide substrate) had no effect on MEAD. However, atropine (muscarinic receptor antagonist) significantly (P < 0.01) augmented the antidepressant effect of MEAD. Conclusion: The antidepressant activity of methanol stem bark extract of A. digitata was established to be via the monoaminergic, nitric oxide and cholinergic pathways.
A Clinico-pathological study of carcinoma of breast

Introduction: Finding the type and cause of cancer to treat patients appropriately is capturing the attention of clinicians. In this study, we tried to project incidence of various types of carcinoma of breasts in this region and its clinical presentation. Materials and Methods: A total 64 patients presenting with breast lump with or without lymphadenopathy and confirmed as malignancy by Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology were included in this study conducted from February 2018 to November 2019. Results: Majority of carcinoma of breast cases were noted in the age group of 41-60 years i.e., 57.8%. Out of 64 patients, 57 (89.06%) had invasive ductal cell carcinoma (IDCC) and 3 (10.9%) patients had lobular carcinoma. Conclusion: Most of the patients in this study had stage III breast carcinoma. State health authorities need to focus in this community about creating breast cancer awareness and should conduct health campaigns and encourage early screening.
Sensory evaluation of pomegranate fruit wines

An appropriate oenological process involves the screening of large numbers of natural yeast isolates to select desirable variants within a population of yeast strains. Therefore, yeast strains collected from different institutions and vineries were evaluated to study their influence on sensory quality of pomegranate wine. Among the eight yeast strains, Saccharomyces cerevisiae var. ellipsoideus with highest sensory score for body (1.69), flavor (1.63) and total score (16.46), considered to be the best viable strain for making pomegranate wine. Further, pomegranate juice was blended with grape, strawberry, plum and watermelon fruit juices in 75:25 and 50:50 ratios to improve various characteristics of wine quality. Wine prepared from blending pomegranate and plum in 75:25 ratios scored maximum for appearance (1.89) and overall quality (3.78) followed by pomegranate and plum in equal proportion. However, the wine samples of pomegranate with strawberry in 50:50 ratios were most liked by the sensory panel for its pleasant flavour.
Assessment of water quality status of river Kopili, in Karbi Anglong district of Assam using water quality index

River Kopili, regarded as one of the most important Southern bank tributaries of the mighty river Brahmaputra, is facing a tremendous pollution threat from its riparian areas, especially in its upper stretches due to anthropogenic activities. The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) in one of its report has placed the Kopili river in 4th rank among the 56 most polluted river of North-East region. The results of the present study showed that water quality index [1] of the river ranges from poor to unsuitable quality of water for drinking in almost all the five sampling stations. The water quality found to be deteriorated during winter season with an average WQI value of 81.88 as compared to pre-monsoon and monsoon season with an average value of 67.13 and 80.12 respectively. According to the water quality index, station 4 and 5 are recorded to be the most polluted stations among the study area. Thus, all the above analysis showed that the riverine ecosystem is moderately polluted, which may degrade further if proper management of the riverine ecosystem is not initiated timely, which is the need of the hour to sustain the environmental integrity of the river Kopili.
POSITIVE IMPLICATIVE HYPER BCK-ALGEBRAS

We introduce the concept of weak positive implicative and positive implicative hyperBCK-algebras, and investigate some related properties. We give a relation between a weak positive implicative hyperBCK-algebra and a positive implicative hyperBCK-algebra. We also introduce the notion of a positive implicative hyperBCK-ideal, and state its characterizations.
Ethylene is required for the ripening of grape

While grapes have been classified as a non-climacteric fruit, we show here that endogenous ethylene production just before veraison is required for an increase in berry size and possibly for anthocyanin accumulation in the ripening berry. Our data also show that the peak of ethylene production just prior to veraison is associated with increased accumulation of ACC oxidase mRNAs, enhanced ACC oxidase activity and higher concentrations of malonyl-ACC. Exposure of clusters to 1-MCP at various times before and after veraison inhibited ripening only in fruit treated at the time of the ethylene peak. Lastly, we observed some feed-back at the ethylene perception level and this response is discussed in relationship to the behaviour of non-climacteric plant tissues.
Optimization of sehac start up phase of municipal solid waste anaerobic digestion

Laboratory studies on dry anaerobic digestion of mixture of organic fraction of municipal solid waste, mainly putrescible fraction selected source (SS-OFMSW), and others organic compounds (garden waste, rice hulls, animalwaste and sludge) demonstrated the optimum efficiency at 35 % total solid and thermophilic conditions (55 °C). Five starts up and stable phase strategies of SEBAC system were compared and a protocol of start up phase elaborated. The mixture of animal waste with SS-OFMSW in the reactor disposed in two layers favored the waste biodegradation and this suppose an important modification in the conventional SEBAC system configuration. However, the treatment strategy using 50 % SS-OFMSW, 15 - 35 % rice hulls or 15 - 35 % garden waste solved the operational problems and favored the star up and stable phase of the process. Following the conclusions of all experiments, a protocol of start up and stable phase was elaborated. A system operating the optimized protocol showed a rapid start up in the 2 days, initial stable phase in 20 days and initial dead phase in 100 days. At these conditions the performance of this system were a gas production of 6.5 L d and the mean methane production of 7.35 per unit mass (1 g) VSS in all experiment; or proximally of 50 % CH 4 in the stable phase.
A comparative study of different treatment outcomes in cases of pilonidal disease

Background: Pilonidal sinus (PS) is a common disease of the natal cleft in the sacrococcygeal region with weak hair accumulation occurring in the hair follicles, which can be chronic and undergo acute exacerbation. The incidence of PS is approximately 26/100,000; it is a benign disease that commonly occurs in young men. Aim: The objective of this study is to have a comparative study of different treatment outcome in case of Pilonidal disease been treated at Pacific Medical College and Hospital, Udaipur from January 2018 to January 2020. Materials and Methods: A prospective study of Pilonidal disease management was carried in a medical college between Jan 2018 and Jan 2020. A total 90 cases of Pilonidal disease were selected for the study. Information on clinical presentation and management were compared. Results: The mean time for complete healing of the wound after rhomboid excision and Limberg flap was 20±8days. The median VAS pain score was significantly lower in the group B (p0.001). One recurrence occurred in the patient during the follow-up period in group B; group A and C had recurrence of 5 and 3 respectively. When patient satisfaction was compared, the primary closure group received 2.5± 0.5 points and B group received 3.3±0.44; the patients in the open group received 2.8± 0.14. Conclusion: We conclude that Rhomboid excision and Limberg flap closure is preferable to simple excision and excision with primary closure in the treatment for sacrococcygeal pilonidal disease.
Investigation of Factors Associated with Science Literacy Performance of Students by Hierarchical Linear Modeling: PISA 2015 Comparison of Turkey and Singapore

This study aimed to investigate the extent to which variables directly related to science, which are found in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2015 survey predicted the science literacy performance of students in Turkey and Singapore samples and determine the differences and similarities between the samples of the two countries. The study used the relational screening model. The study sample consisted of a total of 9680 students at the age of 15, which included 4643 students from the Turkey sample and 5037 students from the Singapore sample. Also, the sample included 177 schools from Turkey and 163 schools from Singapore. The study used the Hierarchical Linear Modeling (HLM) statistical technique, which is appropriate for hierarchical data because the school and student-level variables were together in the study. According to the findings of the study, science literacy performance indicated a significant difference between schools for both countries. However, approximately 52% of the difference in students' science literacy scores for Turkey sample and 34% for Singapore sample were found to stem from differences between schools. Student-level interest in science, research-based science teaching and learning practices, teacher support in science lessons, science self-efficacy, teacher-centered science teaching variables, and the proportion of science teachers at school level were determined to be a significant predictor of science literacy in both countries. However, the variables which are the significant predictors of science literacy were found to be "the enjoyment of science" for Turkey and "the disciplinary climate in science courses" variable for Singapore. On the other hand, the proportion of science teachers with an undergraduate education of four years or more, which is one of the school-level variables, was found to be not a significant predictor of science literacy performance fro both countries.
Where We Go One, We Go All: QAnon and Violent Rhetoric on Twitter

This study concerns the rhetoric of the QAnon conspiracy theory as it appears on Twitter, and compares that rhetoric to that of mainstream conservatives on the same platform. By coding individual tweets’ content for specific instances of violent, religious, economic, or paranoid rhetoric, and comparing samples of both of these populations, the study aims to determine what differences there are between the QAnon community’s uses of rhetoric, particularly violent rhetoric, and that of the mainstream conservative community. The results demonstrate that the QAnon movement is more likely to use violent terminology in their tweets, but is not able to find strong correlations between violent rhetoric and other forms of speech, such as paranoia or religiosity. Likewise, the QAnon movement frequently focuses on ritualistic cults or on accusations of satanism, but not in sufficient numbers to demonstrate a correlation between such accusations and violence.