Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Deep Learning-Based Evaluation of Ultrasound Images for Benign Skin Tumors

In this study, a combined convolutional neural network for the diagnosis of three benign skin tumors was designed, and its effectiveness was verified through quantitative and statistical analysis. To this end, 698 sonographic images were taken and diagnosed at the Department of Dermatology at Severance Hospital in Seoul, Korea, between 10 November 2017 and 17 January 2020. Through an empirical process, a convolutional neural network combining two structures, which consist of a residual structure and an attention-gated structure, was designed. Five-fold cross-validation was applied, and the train set for each fold was augmented by the Fast AutoAugment technique. As a result of training, for three benign skin tumors, an average accuracy of 95.87%, an average sensitivity of 90.10%, and an average specificity of 96.23% were derived. Also, through statistical analysis using a class activation map and physicians’ findings, it was found that the judgment criteria of physicians and the trained combined convolutional neural network were similar. This study suggests that the model designed and trained in this study can be a diagnostic aid to assist physicians and enable more efficient and accurate diagnoses.
The effect of low dose nalbuphine or ketamine in the prevention of emergence agitation after sevoflurane anesthesia in children undergoing tonsillectomy with or without adenoidectomy

ABSTRACT Background Children’s agitation increases following sevoflurane anaesthesia. With indefinite results, nalbuphine and midazolam have been used as preventative treatments. Patients and Methods This study involved 90 children with American Society of Anesthesiologists score I-II and aged 4–10 who had sevoflurane-based adenotonsillectomy. Each child was randomly assigned to one of three groups; group N, group K, and group S. Nalbuphine was given to Group N at 0.1 mg/kg, ketamine was given to Group K at 0.25 mg/kg, and saline was given to Group S at equivalent volume. Sevoflurane was discontinued after the procedure, and the study drugs were given. The emergence agitation (EA) scale was used in the post-anesthesia care unit (PACU) to measure agitation upon admission (T0), after 5 min (T5), 10 min (T10), 15 min (T15), 20 min (T20), 25 min (T25), and 30 min (T30). Clinical trials. gov ID: NCT05176119. Results In the PACU, the incidence of EA was significantly lowered in N (6.6%) and K Group (16.6%) compared to S group (33%) with (p = 0.044), the duration in PACU was significantly prolonged in S in comparison to K and N groups (p-value = 0.011), more patients experienced postoperative pain in S group compared to N group and K group (p-value < 0.001). Conclusion Children who had sevoflurane-induced adenotonsillectomy can avoid emergence agitation with ketamine 0.25 mg/kg or nalbuphine 0.1 mg/kg.
Assessing Health and Economic Benefits of Omega-3 Fatty Acid Supplementation on Cardiovascular Disease in the Republic of Korea

Background: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the primary cause of mortality worldwide and imposes a significant social burden on many countries. Methods: This study assessed the health and economic benefits of omega-3 associated with CVD. The meta-analysis estimated the risk ratio (RR) and absolute risk reduction (ARR), and the economic impact was calculated using direct and indirect costs related to CVD treatments in Korean adults. Results: A total of 33 studies were included in the meta-analysis on CVD outcomes, with 80,426 participants in the intervention group and 80,251 participants in the control group. The meta-analysis determined a significant reduction in omega-3 in CVD (RR = 0.92, 95% CI: 0.86~0.97) and ARR (1.48%). Additionally, the subgroup analysis indicated that higher doses and the long-term consumption of omega-3 could further enhance these effects. After applying ARR from meta-analysis to the target population of about 1,167,370 in 2021, the Republic of Korea, it was estimated that omega-3 consumption could result in an economic benefit of KRW 300 billion by subtracting the purchase expenses of omega-3 supplements from the total social cost savings. Conclusion: Omega-3 supplements can help to reduce the risk of CVD and subsequent economic benefits in the Republic of Korea.
Control of a 4-Pole/2-Pole Electronic Pole-Changing Induction Motor for Traction Applications

Pole-changing motors can be very useful for traction applications which require high torque at low speeds and an extended speed range of operation. The dual pole operation can be used to extract high torque during starting with a high pole configuration and an increased constant power region with a lower pole operation. The design and control of a 4-pole/2-pole induction motor is presented in this article where pole-transition can be performed on the fly through electronic control. The electronic pole-changing is augmented through controls that stabilizes the flux of the incoming pole of operation before initializing a change in torque commands. Torque and power characteristics of the pole changing motor are shown to have enhanced performance in the constant power region in comparison to the baseline motor. Appropriate torque and flux commands are used to experimentally demonstrate a smooth electronic pole-changing transition with minimum torque transients.
Methodological Issues in Exposure Assessment for Studies of Childhood Leukemia

This dissertation examined several methodological aspects of case control studies potentially influencing the association of environmental exposures with the risk of childhood leukemia. These aspects included the role of SES and racial distribution on subjects' participation, the role of selection bias on the association between EMF and childhood leukemia, as well as reproducibility of self-reports of household pesticide exposure. The research presented in this dissertation was made possible by the Northern California Childhood Leukemia Study, an ongoing population-based case-control study, which commenced in 1995. Results of meta-analyses suggest that in interview based case-control studies, cases were more likely to be non-White than White with an overall OR of 1.37 (95% CI 1.13, 1.67). In contrast, in the record-based studies cases, compared to controls, were less likely to be non-White than White, with an overall OR of 0.81 (95% CI 0.72,0.91). Results also indicated that SES was inversely associated with childhood leukemia while using interview based study design while positive association was observed while using record based study design. Chapter Four of this dissertation examined the association between childhood leukemia and extremely low frequency of magnetic fields (measured by wire coding) with an emphasis on selection bias. Results indicated that the observed risk estimate depends on the selected control group. The odds ratios (OR) for developing childhood leukemia in the high-current configurations category were 1.43 (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.91, 2.26) compared to the first choice participant controls, while no associations were observed when compared to non-first choice participant controls (OR=1.06, 95% CI: 0.71-1.60) or first choice non-participant controls (OR=1.06, 95% CI: 0.71-1.57). Overall, no association was found between childhood leukemia and EMF as measured by wire configuration codes. Ideal (participating and non-participating) cases assigned to high-current configurations experience a non-significant increased risk of childhood leukemia, when compared to the ideal controls (OR=1.18, 95% CI: 0.85-1.64). Chapter Five assessed the reproducibility of maternal-reported household use of pesticides and potential differential recall between cases and controls. Results indicated that the Kappa statistics ranged from 0.31 to 0.61 (fair to substantial agreement), with 9 out of the 12 tests indicating moderate agreement. The percent positive agreement ranged from 46-80% and the percent negative agreement from 54-95%. Results indicated that the reliability of self-reported exposures for all pesticide categories using the three reliability measures did not differ markedly for cases and controls as confirmed by bootstrap analysis.
Low Molecular Weight Inhibitors Targeting the RNA-Binding Protein HuR

The RNA-binding protein human antigen R (HuR) regulates stability, translation, and nucleus-to-cytoplasm shuttling of its target mRNAs. This protein has been progressively recognized as a relevant therapeutic target for several pathologies, like cancer, neurodegeneration, as well as inflammation. Inhibitors of mRNA binding to HuR might thus be beneficial against a variety of diseases. Here, we present the rational identification of structurally novel HuR inhibitors. In particular, by combining chemoinformatic approaches, high-throughput virtual screening, and RNA–protein pulldown assays, we demonstrate that the 4-(2-(2,4,6-trioxotetrahydropyrimidin-5(2H)-ylidene)hydrazineyl)benzoate ligand exhibits a dose-dependent HuR inhibition effect in binding experiments. Importantly, the chemical scaffold is new with respect to the currently known HuR inhibitors, opening up a new avenue for the design of pharmaceutical agents targeting this important protein.
The Optimal Dosing and Timing of Tranexamic Acid in Reducing Perioperative Bleeding and Transfusion Requirements in Vascular Surgery Patients: A Systematic Review

Tranexamic acid (TXA) has been widely investigated as an antifibrinolytic agent to minimize perioperative bleeding and transfusion requirements in various surgical settings. This systematic review aims to assess the optimal dosing and timing of TXA administration for reducing perioperative bleeding and transfusion requirements, specifically in vascular surgery patients. A comprehensive search was conducted using multiple databases, and relevant articles were selected based on predefined inclusion criteria. A total of 20 studies were identified and analyzed, including randomized controlled trials (RCTs), systematic reviews, and meta-analyses. Findings from these studies were synthesized to provide a comprehensive overview of the evidence regarding the use of TXA in vascular surgery.
Insight into immune profile associated with vitiligo onset and anti-tumoral response in melanoma patients receiving anti-PD-1 immunotherapy

Introduction Immunotherapy with checkpoint inhibitors is an efficient treatment for metastatic melanoma. Development of vitiligo upon immunotherapy represents a specific immune-related adverse event (irAE) diagnosed in 15% of patients and associated with a positive clinical response. Therefore, a detailed characterization of immune cells during vitiligo onset in melanoma patients would give insight into the immune mechanisms mediating both the irAE and the anti-tumor response. Methods To better understand these aspects, we analyzed T cell subsets from peripheral blood of metastatic melanoma patients undergoing treatment with anti-programmed cell death protein (PD)-1 antibodies. To deeply characterize the antitumoral T cell response concomitant to vitiligo onset, we analyzed T cell content in skin biopsies collected from melanoma patients who developed vitiligo. Moreover, to further characterize T cells in vitiligo skin lesion of melanoma patients, we sequenced T cell receptor (TCR) of cells derived from biopsies of vitiligo and primary melanoma of the same patient. Results and discussion Stratification of patients for developing or not developing vitiligo during anti-PD-1 therapy revealed an association between blood reduction of CD8-mucosal associated invariant T (MAIT), T helper (h) 17, natural killer (NK) CD56bright, and T regulatory (T-reg) cells and vitiligo onset. Consistently with the observed blood reduction of Th17 cells in melanoma patients developing vitiligo during immunotherapy, we found high amount of IL-17A expressing cells in the vitiligo skin biopsy, suggesting a possible migration of Th17 cells from the blood into the autoimmune lesion. Interestingly, except for a few cases, we found different TCR sequences between vitiligo and primary melanoma lesions. In contrast, shared TCR sequences were identified between vitiligo and metastatic tissues of the same patient. These data indicate that T cell response against normal melanocytes, which is involved in vitiligo onset, is not typically mediated by reactivation of specific T cell clones infiltrating primary melanoma but may be elicited by T cell clones targeting metastatic tissues. Altogether, our data indicate that anti-PD-1 therapy induces a de novo immune response, stimulated by the presence of metastatic cells, and composed of different T cell subtypes, which may trigger the development of vitiligo and the response against metastatic tumor.
Visual SLAM Integration With Semantic Segmentation and Deep Learning: A Review

Simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) technology is essential for robots to navigate unfamiliar environments. It utilizes the sensors the robot carries to answer the question “Where am I? ” Of the available sensors, cameras are commonly used. Compared to other sensors like light detection and ranging (LiDARs), the method based on cameras, known as visual SLAM, has been extensively explored by researchers due to the affordability and rich image data cameras provide. Although conventional visual SLAM algorithms have been able to accurately build a map in static environments, dynamic environments present a significant challenge for visual SLAM in practical robotics scenarios. While efforts have been made to address this issue, such as adding semantic segmentation to conventional algorithms, a comprehensive literature review is still lacking. This article discusses the challenges and approaches of visual SLAM with a focus on dynamic objects and their impact on feature extraction and mapping accuracy. First, two classical approaches of conventional visual SLAM are reviewed; then, this article explores the application of deep learning in the front-end and back-end of visual SLAM. Next, visual SLAM in dynamic environments is analyzed and summarized, and insights into future developments are elaborated upon. This article provides effective inspiration for researchers on how to combine deep learning and semantic segmentation with visual SLAM to promote its development.
You Have Never Lived a Day Outside of Your Body: Engaging Racialized and Gendered Positionality in Ethnographic Research

Anthropology's well‐known history of racist and colonial practices continues to inform which bodies go (un)marked with regard to researcher and researched subjectivities, with consequences for methodology and analysis. The imagined unmarked body of the researcher in the ethnographic context disallows consideration of any interaction between their subject position, its attendant histories, and how researchers interact with the community under study. And when the researcher's positionality is made explicit, it is rare to find discussions of how the researcher's positionality informed how and what they could observe. This article argues that overtly engaging, not just noting, research positionality in ethnographic texts illuminates underexplored, analytically rich, and pedagogically valuable aspects of the ethnographic process. By highlighting three ethnographic encounters as a Black male ethnographer of young white conservative students, this article explores some of the benefits and challenges of engaging researcher positionality, and how doing so benefited the ethnographic process. This article contains references to sexual assault and sexual violence.
Continuous Late Pleistocene Paleoclimate Record from the Southwest African Margin: A Multi-Proxy Approach

Late Pleistocene sediments recovered from ODP Leg 175, Site 1085 are used to generate a high-resolution (500 yr) record of continental climate change in Southern Africa. The location of Site 1085, the SW African continental slope, provides a continuous hemipelagic section with a significant terrigenous component. Terrigenous sediments are transported via fluvial and/or eolian transport mechanisms with MIS 1 being dominated by eolian transport. Analyses, including grain-size, color reflectance, biogenic sediment geochemistry (%CaCO 3, %TOC, and C/N), bulk sediment geochemistry, and clay mineralogy, are used to identify continental climate conditions in southern Africa. Analyses indicate glacial/interglacial variation. Median grain-size peaks are associated with changes in transport. Clay mineralogy indicates the presence of kaolinite, smectite, and illite in varying percentages. Smectite and illite dominate the clay mineral assemblages except during MIS 2. Maximum kaolinite was found during MIS 2 and is associated with poleward transport by the Angola Counter Current.
Rb-Sr AND U-Pb AGE DETERMINATIONS ON THE PEGMATITE OF I MONDEI (PENNINIC CAMUGHERA-MONCUCCO-COMPLEX, ITALIAN ALPS AND SOME GNEISSES FROM THE NEIGHBORHOOD)

Results are given concerning the formation of the Camughera-Moncucco complex (Val d'Ossola, Northern ltaly). Large crystals of Muscovite from a beryl pegmatite from the cava di mica I Mondei and biotite samples and muscovite samples of gneisses of the neighborhoods were measured with the Rb/Sr method. On the pegmatite, traces of the alpine metamorphism are evident. Biotites give quite young ages (18-26 MY); those of muscovites are a little higher (32 MY). Results obtained on muscovites samples from the pegmatite 1200 MY) show that the muscovites with large crystals retain their radiogenic strontium even if undergone to a metamorphic action. Samples of uraninite coming from the pegmatite were also measured. Results (140-170 MY) show a loss of Pb. It was concluded that beryl pegmatite from I Mondei intruded in a pre-tertiary time. (auth)
Drought, its impacts and management: scenario in India.

The vast Indian landmass, extending from near the equator to the extratropics, is situated between the latitudes 8 deg. 4min. and 37 deg. 6min. north and the longitudes 68 deg. 7min. and 97 deg. 25min. east. It has seas on three sides and the world’s tallest mountain wall (the Himalayas, stretching about 2500 km) in the North. It has a coastline of approximately 6000 km. India receives the major quantity (about 80%) of its annual rainfall during the southwest monsoon season (June–September). Its economy is highly dependent on rainfall, which is essential for agriculture, industry, and energy in addition to its consumption by the large human and cattle population. Since the southwest monsoon season is the main rainy season for India, it is useful to note that there are four important variations in the monsoon rainfall as follows (Kulshreshtha, 1997):
The Morbidity and Associated Factors of Depression in Caregivers of Patients with Depressive Disorder

Objective Depressive disorder significantly impacts patients’ daily living activities and quality of life. Caregivers of patients with depression may also suffer from psychological distress related to the chronic burden of caring for the patient’s mood changes. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the morbidity and associated factors of depression in caregivers of patients with depressive disorder. Methods In this study, we used a cross-sectional design with consecutive sampling. Study subjects were recruited from the psychiatric outpatient clinic of a medical center from August 2021 to June 2022. Caregivers of depressive disorder patients were enrolled and assessed using the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), Suicide Assessment Scale (SAS), Stigma Scale of the Explanatory Model Interview Catalogue (EMIC), and Family APGAR Index. Results Of the 120 caregivers that completed the study, 59.2% (n=71) were females. The most common psychiatric diagnosis was depressive disorders (25.8%), followed by anxiety disorders (17.5%) and insomnia disorder (15.8%); 54.2% of the caregivers had a psychiatric diagnosis. Using logistic regression analysis, we found that anxiolytics/hypnotics use (OR=5.58; 95% CI, 1.84–16.96; p<0.01), higher suicide risk (SAS) (OR=1.10; 95% CI, 1.05–1.16; p<0.001), and lower family support (APGAR scores) (OR=0.82; 95% CI, 0.71–0.94; p<0.01) were three significant associated factors. Conclusion Depression was the most prevalent psychiatric diagnosis in caregivers of patients with depressive disorder. Early psychiatric diagnosis for caregivers of patients with depression is crucial to offering suitable support and treatment and may improve caregivers’ quality of life.
Parental educational support to adolescents: Exploring the role of emotional capital in low-income single-mother families in South Africa

In this article I explore the emotional resources activated by single mothers to support their adolescent children’s educational journeys. Mothers’ emotional work is often regarded as something that mothers must do (Gillies, 2006). However, this view does not recognise the power and influence that mothers exert to create opportunities for educational success. By centring the mother as the head of her family and drawing on the concept of emotional capital as a legitimate and valuable resource within single-mother families, it becomes possible to show how mothers in a low socio-economic community invest in their children’s schooling. This article is based on a qualitative case study of single mother families from a South African community. The findings show that the single mothers maintained strong bonds with their children, which enhanced perceived support and contributed positively to their education. Maintaining open communication channels, demonstrating authoritative parenting, and communicating pride in non-academic qualities were significant emotional practices that served to maintain these strong bonds. By engaging in these practices, these single mothers from low-income contexts activated their emotions strategically to support their adolescent child’s education.
Eculizumab in kidney diseases

The C5 inhibitor monoclonal antibody, eculizumab, has been approved for the treatment of atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome (aHUS) and paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH); however, the efficacy and safety of this drug in treating other complement-related renal diseases has not yet been elucidated. The high cost of eculizumab therapy and the rare adverse effects have created a paradox in conducting large clinical trials. Therefore, there is a need to increase clinicians’ awareness of the available data on the efficacy/safety of this drug in treating renal diseases. Herein, we have reviewed the outcomes of the administration of eculizumab in aHUS, PNH, lupus erythematosus nephritis, C3 glomerulonephritis, IgA nephropathy, and antibody-mediated rejection (AMR) in highly sensitized patients. Initial findings suggest its efficacy in treating acute injuries but lower effectiveness in preventing chronic lesions. Besides, early diagnosis and timely initiation of eculizumab are of particular importance.