Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Older patients’ autonomy when cared for at emergency departments

Background Older patients in emergency care often have complex needs and may have limited ability to make their voices heard. Hence, there are ethical challenges for healthcare professionals in establishing a trustful relationship to determine the patient’s preferences and then decide and act based on these preferences. With this comes further challenges regarding how the patient’s autonomy can be protected and promoted. Aim To describe nurses’ experiences of dealing with older patients’ autonomy when cared for in emergency departments (EDs). Research design This study adopted reflective lifeworld theory and a phenomenological design. Participants and research context A total of 13 open-ended interviews were performed with nurses working at two EDs in Sweden. Ethical considerations The study was reviewed by the Ethical Advisory Board in South East Sweden and conducted according to the Declaration of Helsinki. All participants gave consent. Findings Nurses’ experiences of dealing with older patients’ autonomy in EDs are characterized by moving in a conflicting uphill struggle, indicating obscure thoughts on how patient autonomy can be protected in an ethically challenging context. The phenomenon is further described with its meaning constituents: ‘Being hampered by prioritization under stress’, ‘Balancing paternalism and patient autonomy’, ‘Making decisions without consent in the patient’s best interests’ and ‘Being trapped by notions of legitimate care needs’. Conclusion Stressful work conditions and lacking organizational strategies in EDs contribute to nurses maintaining unjustified paternalistic care, regardless of the patient’s ability and medical condition, and questioning who has legitimacy for participating in decisions about care. The nurses’ protection and promotion of older patients’ autonomy is dependent on the opportunity, ability and willingness to create a patient relationship where the patient’s voice and preferences are valued as important. Consequently, strategies are needed to improve patient autonomy in EDs based on the idea of ‘relational autonomy’.
Activation of STAT6 by intranasal allergens correlated with the development of eosinophilic chronic rhinosinusitis in a mouse model

Eosinophilic chronic rhinosinusitis (ECRS) is a chronic inflammatory disease characterized by prominent eosinophilic infiltration along with a T-helper-2 (Th2) response. It has been well documented that signal transducer and activator of transcription 6 (STAT6) is a nuclear transcription factor that mediates Th2-type immunity and is implicatory of STAT1 and STAT3 in the pathogenesis of allergic airway diseases. However, little is known about the association between STATs and ECRS. Here, we explored the relationship between STAT1, STAT3, and/or STAT6 and eosinophilic inflammation accompanied by Th2-type immunity in a mouse model of ECRS. An ovalbumin (OVA)-staphylococcal enterotoxin B (SEB)-induced ECRS murine model was first established. The mucosal histological alterations were determined using hematoxylin and eosin staining. The number of eosinophils in peripheral blood was measured using a blood cell analyzer. The cytokine (IL-4, IL-5, IL17 A and IFN-γ) expression levels in the sinonasal mucosa and total and OVA-specific IgE from serum were measured using ELISA. Then, the protein levels of STAT1, STAT3, STAT6, phosphorylated STAT1 (p-STAT1), p-STAT3, p-STAT6, T-box expressed in T-cells (T-bet), GATA binding protein 3 (GATA-3), and retinoic acid receptor-related orphan receptor γ (RORγt) in the sinonasal mucosa were examined by immunohistochemical staining or Western blotting. Local administration of OVA combined with SEB (OVA + SEB) induced multiple polyp-like lesions, accompanied by prominent eosinophilic infiltration in the sinonasal mucosa. The OVA- and OVA+SEB-treated groups showed significantly higher eosinophil counts from peripheral blood and total and OVA-specific IgE levels from serum than those in the PBS- and SEB-treated groups. The levels of p-STAT6 were markedly increased by OVA + SEB exposure, as well as GATA-3, IL-4, and IL-5, but did not affect STAT6, p-STAT1, p-STAT3, T-bet, RORγt, IFN-γ, or IL-17A. Furthermore, an eosinophil count in the sinonasal mucosa showed a positive correlation with the level of p-STAT6 in the ECRS mouse model. Signal transducer and activator of transcription 6 signaling could be activated in the OVA+SEB-induced ECRS model and might be a crucial signal transducer in the development of Th2-skewed ECRS.
Key factors influencing the purchase intention of activewear: an empirical study of US consumers

ABSTRACT In recent years, activewear is no longer contained to the gym. It is visible in places such as grocery store, movie theatre, and classroom. To better understand this phenomenon of activewear purchased to be worn as casualwear, based on an expanded theory of planned behaviour model, using the primary survey data, this study aimed to determine the key factors influencing the US consumers’ intention towards purchasing activewear for casual use. Multiple regression method was utilised for hypothesis testing. Attitude and perceived behavioural control showed significantly positive effects on intent to purchase activewear. Past activewear purchase behaviour and lifestyle orientation towards health and wellness help US consumers gain positive attitude towards shopping activewear for casual purpose. The proposed model exhibits a high explanatory power for US consumer purchase intention towards activewear for casual use, accounting for 52.4% of variance in the purchase intention.
A stable Leifsonia xyli subsp. xyli GFP-tagged strain reveals a new colonization niche in sugarcane tissues

M. C. Quecine*, T. M. Silva, G. Carvalho, S. Saito, M. Mondin, N. S. Teixeira-Silva, L. E. A. Camargo and C. B. Monteiro-Vitorello Department of Genetics, College of Agriculture ‘Luiz de Queiroz’, ESALQ, University of S~ ao Paulo, Av. P adua Dias 11, PO Box 9, Piracicaba, SP 13400-970; and Department of Plant Pathology and Nematology, College of Agriculture ‘Luiz de Queiroz’, ESALQ, University of S~ ao Paulo, Av. P adua Dias 11, Piracicaba, SP 13400-970, Brazil
EFFECT OF PMSG ADMINISTRATION IN RELATION TO FOLLICULAR DIAMETER ON SUPEROVULATORY RESPONSE AND EMBRYO QUALITY IN FRIESIAN COWS

A total of 20 Friesian cows (450-550 Kg LBW, 3.5-5.5 years old and 1-3 parities) were used as donor cows. Cows were divided into 4 groups (5 animals in each) according to time of PMSG injection. Before treatment, cows in all groups were injected with 2 ml PGF2α (Estrumate) to start oestrous cycles. Cows in the 1 st group (Control, n=5) were i.m. injected with a single dose of 2500 IU PMSG on day 10 of the oestrous cycle. However, in the 2 nd , 3 rd and 4 th groups, cows were injected i.m. with a single dose of 2500 IU PMSG when diameter of the dominant follicle reach 5-7.5 mm (G2, n=5), >7.5-10 mm (G3, n=5) and >10 mm (G4, n=5). After 48 h of PMSG injection in each group, cows in all groups were injected with 2 ml Estrumate and artificially inseminated (AI) when excepted estrous. Flushing was conducted 7 days after AI to determine the ovulatory response. Ultrasonography device was used during treatment period to record the number of follicles and CL and diameter of the follicles for PMSG injection. Results showed that day of PMSG treatment averaged 7.2, 9.6 and 8.2 for cows in G2, G3 and G4, respectively. All cows in G1 and G3 (100%) produced CL vs. 60 and 80% of cows in G2 and G4, respectively. Response rate of embryo production was only detected in G1 and G3, being 60 and 80%, respectively. No embryos were recovered from cows in G2 and G4. Average number of CLs/cow was higher (P<0.05) in G1 and G3 (8.0 and 7.4) than in G2 and G4 (1.0 and 3.0), respectively. Cows in G1 and G3 showed the highest (P<0.05) total response (CLs and UOF), being 9.4 and 9.8/cow, respectively. Averages number of total and transferable embryos were higher (P<0.05) in G3 by about 42 and 44% than in G1. Recovery rate of total and transferable embryos were higher in G3 than in G1 (73.0 and 70.0% vs. 47.5 and 45.0%, respectively). Yield of embryos at morula and blastocyst stages was higher in G3 than in G1. Cows in G3 showed the highest distribution of embryos at morula stage (37.0%) versus the highest distribution of compact morula in G1 (42.1%). Cows in G3 increased yield of excellent embryos/cow (2.2 vs. 1.0) and good embryos/cow (3.0 vs. 1.8) as compared to those in G1. Excellent and good embryos represented 40.7 and 55.6% in G3, being higher than 26.3 and 47.4% in G1. The differences in production of embryos at different stages or grades were not significant. In conclusion, the obtained results, indicated that the potentiality of PMSG injection to induce high superovulatory response in cattle is highly related to follicular diameter . Under the experimental conditions of present study, appropriate time for SO in Friesian cows treated with 2500 IU of PMSG was when diameter of the dominant follicle reached a rang from ≤7.5-10 mm to reflect the highest ovulatory response and the best number of transferable embryos of excellent grade.
Deriving managerial implications through SERVQUAL gap elasticity in UAE banking

The purpose of this paper is to propose the microeconomics concept of elasticity to estimate the SERVQUAL gap elasticity to derive important insights for service providers to develop the right strategies to bridge the overall gap in service. ,The dimensions of SERVQUAL adopted from Parasuraman et al. (1988) and Kumar et al. (2009) are first verified for their unidimensionality using structural equation modeling and reliability in the context of United Arab Emirates banking industry. Furthermore, the technique of dominance analysis is used to derive the relative importance of dimensions for different groups of banks. Finally, the stepwise log-linear regression models are used to estimate the gap elasticity to measure the responsiveness of the overall SERVQUAL gap to a change in customers’ perception on different dimension. ,The results reveal that the dimension which is prioritized as the most important dimension need not to be the one to be targeted under the resource constraint to react faster to the changes of customers’ banking behavior. ,This is probably the first attempt to examine the service quality through gap elasticity. This method is especially useful when the traditional approach to measure relative importance of critical factors fails to clearly discriminate between two or more dimensions, which, in turn, may lead to failure in decision making to choose the right strategies to bridge the overall gap in the service.
Using Retrospective Surveys to Assess the Impact of Participating in an Afterschool Maker Learning Program on Youth (RTP)

As the number of afterschool technology-rich maker learning programs for youth increases, it is important to investigate effective assessment tools that can be used to assess program impact at scale. We studied results from a series of surveys using two deployment modes with 94 youth who participated in programs at an afterschool maker learning center. We found that retrospective surveys that ask youth to reflect on shifts in their attitudes after completing a program are more effective than the same surveys deployed twice, pre-and post-a program. These results confirm input from youth interviews in which they expressed dislike of repeating the same surveys before and after a program and difficulty with answering self-assessment questions without a point of reference
The effect of personal, physical environmental, and socio- economic factors onpreventive behaviour of leprosy transmission among lepers

Leprosy is an infectious disease that requires health behaviour modification to combat the disease and at the same time to prevent thetransmission. This study aimsto determine the relationship between personal, physical environmental, and socio-economic factors andthe preventive behaviour of leprosy transmission. This study was a correlational descriptive analytic study with a cross sectional approach.As many as 60 out of 77 lepers in Surabaya were chosenthrougha purposive sampling technique. The dependent variable was the preventive behaviour of leprosy transmission, while the independent variables were personal, physical environmental, and socio-economic factors. Data was collected using questionnairesand then was analyzedby using Spearman’s Rho and Chi-Square test with α= 0.05. The study revealed that preventive behaviour of leprosy transmission was significantly related with age (p=0.033), gender or sex (p=0.002), education (p=0.016), occupation (p=0.043), knowledge (p=0,000), physical environment (p=0,012), family support (p=0,000), income (p=0,000) and stigma (p=0,043). Age and stigma performed a negative relationship with the preventive behaviour of leprosy transmission. Otherwise, education, knowledge, and physical environment showed a positive relationship. Further researchis expectedto provide intervention to promotethe preventive behaviour of leprosy transmission.
Protective earphones and human hearing system response to the received sound frequency signals

Sound is one of the most important problems in industrial environments, and it causes hearing loss at different frequencies in the workforce. Incorrect fitting of hearing protector has a negative effect on noise reduction. The present study was conducted with the aim of determination of the effective frequencies on hearing loss and variations of the sound level in different frequencies after placing the earplug. A model of ear canal with different materials was simulated. Sound pressure sensors and earplugs were placed in both sides of the ear canal. The rates of sound reduction in octave frequency signals were calculated for the simulated canal of different materials, in different distances between the microphone and the earplug with Labview software. The results of sound simulation in octave frequency signals showed that by increasing the frequency, the rates of sound reduction in different conditions also had an increasing trend. The obtained peak rates for all the situations coincided with each other at fixed frequencies. In most cases, a noise reduction in the frequency of 4000 Hz showed a high number. The maximum sound reduction was observed at 25.5 mm at frequencies below 250 Hz, which was similar to the average of human ear canal length; so the simulated model can be used to determine the performance of the protective earphones and test them at different frequencies and sound pressure levels.
In Vitro Effects of Folate Inhibitors

Three sulfonamides and four dihydrofolate reductase inhibitors were tested alone and in combination to determine their in vitro effects on two strains of Toxoplasma gondii grown in MRC5 fibroblast tissue culture. Toxoplasma growth was quantitated by an enzyme immunoassay performed directly on the fixed cultures, and linear regression models were used to quantify the relationship between the optical density values generated by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and the concentrations of the antimicrobial agents in the culture medium. The cytopathic effects of antimicrobial agents on T. gondii were examined in Giemsa-stained cultures. Sulfonamides and dihydrofolate reductase inhibitors exhibited similar patterns of inhibition, consisting of an important increase of the inhibitory effect within a narrow range of concentrations. Sulfadiazine, sulfamethoxazole, and sulfisoxazole were all found to have important inhibitory effects on T. gondii; the 50% inhibitory concentrations estimated from the regression models were 2.5 ,ug/ml for sulfadiazine, 1.1 ,Lg/ml for sulfamethoxazole, and 6.4 ,ug/ml for sulfisoxazole. This inhibition of growth was associated with a reduction of the number of parasitized cells and intracellular parasites that were morphologically normal. With dihydrofolate reductase inhibitors, including pyrimethamine, trimethoprim, trimetrexate-glycuronate, and piritrexim,
ROLE OF SUGAR IN SUGAR ADDICTION: A REVIEW FOR BIOLOGICAL PLAUSIBLE REASONS

INTRODUCTION Globally, over the years dietary pattern has changed profoundly from consumption of cereals & pulses to highly palatable, rich in sugar products. Sugar is known to naturally occur in all foods that contain carbohydrates, whole grains and dairy products. Sugar is defined as a “Sweet crystalline substance obtained from various plants, especially sugar cane and sugar beet, consisting essentially of sucrose, and used as a sweetener in food and drink. ”
Effects of chamfering, cold expansion, bolt clamping, and their combinations on fatigue life of aluminum–lithium alloy single plate

The objective of this study was to establish the effects of cold expansion, chamfering, bolt clamping, and their combinations on the fatigue life of an aluminum–lithium alloy single plate. Fatigue tests were conducted to quantify the anti-fatigue effects of the different techniques. A scanning electron microscope was used to perform fracture analyses of the used specimens, and the residual stresses were measured using an X-ray diffraction device. In addition, three-dimensional finite element models of the specimens were established and used to characterize their stress states, and the Smith–Watson–Topper method was used to predict the fatigue lives of the specimens. The fatigue test results showed that all the considered processes improved the fatigue life of the pristine specimen. The most effective was a combination of 3.2% cold expansion, 1-mm chamfering, and bolt clamping using a 6.4-N m torque, which improved the fatigue life of the pristine specimen by a factor of 15.5. The finite element method results also revealed that this combination decreased the maximum stress and confirmed its superiority in relation to the other fatigue-life enhancement techniques in terms of the anti-fatigue effect. The Smith–Watson–Topper method underestimated the specimen fatigue life, but the accuracy satisfied engineering requirements.
The Weighty Issue: The Impact of Body Mass Index (BMI) in Asian Trauma Patients

Background The controversy surrounding the impact of Body Mass Index (BMI) on the outcome of trauma patients has been widely studied in the West. However, no such studies have looked at an Asian trauma population. The aim of our study was to investigate the impact of BMI on mortality, morbidity, severity and pattern of injury in trauma patients of multicultural Singapore. Methods In this prospective study, we recruited all trauma patients admitted to Tan Tock Seng Hospital over a 13 month period. Both the international World Health Organization (WHO) and Asian modified classifications of BMI were used for the purpose of our study. Patient demographics, co-morbidities, mechanism of injury, injury severity score (ISS), body regions injured, morbidity and mortality were collected using inpatient medical records. Results 964 patients with a mean age of 50.5 years were recruited. Majority of injuries sustained were due to falls. There was no association between Asian BMI and ISS. Head, neck and cervical injuries occurred less commonly in the overweight and obese group, but BMI does not confer protection from truncal injury. BMI was not a significant risk factor for morbidity or mortality. Conclusion Being overweight does not appear to increase severity of injury in Asian trauma patients. BMI as an independent risk factor does not contribute to trauma mortality or morbidity. We conclude that BMI is not a significant contributing factor to adverse trauma outcomes in Asians.
CEOR_A_262267 567..577

1Mundipharma Singapore Holding Pte Limited, Singapore; 2Costello Medical Singapore Pte Ltd, Singapore Purpose: Reducing the risk of exacerbation is a long-term goal of managing moderate-tosevere asthma. The use of fluticasone propionate/formoterol fumarate dihydrate (FP/FORM) pressurized metered-dose (pMDI, Flutiform), a type of inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) and long-acting β2 agonist (LABA) fixed-dose combination, has been associated with lower oral corticosteroid-requiring exacerbation rates than other ICS/LABA fixed-dose combinations, fluticasone propionate/salmeterol xinafoate (FP/SAL) and budesonide/formoterol fumarate (BUD/FORM). This study presents the first budget impact analysis of drug and exacerbation management cost savings associated with the increased access to FP/FORM compared to the currently available ICS/LABAs for treating moderate-to-severe asthma in Singapore. Patients and Methods: A budget impact model showed changes to annual drug and exacerbation costs over 5 years for patients with moderate-to-severe asthma in Singapore, following the inclusion of FP/FORM on a government subsidy list. The eligible patient population was identified based on national statistics data. Different treatment costs pertaining to the population were applied according to the usage data (IQVIA Singapore National Sales Data) for different scenarios. Drug costs were obtained from public-sector hospitals. Exacerbation management costs were obtained from literature searches. Results: The analysis showed that increased access to FP/FORM as a result of switching from FP/SAL could help achieve drug (S$1,042,289) and exacerbation management (S $223,550) cost savings over 5 years. In the scenario where patients switched from BUD/ FORM, greater drug (S$2,572,797) and exacerbation management (S$256,781) cost savings were observed over 5 years. Conclusion: The analysis provides a perspective that the increased access to FP/FORM could help achieve drug and exacerbation cost savings for the treatment of moderate-tosevere asthma.
The University of New South Wales

As multiphysics geomechanical models are developed, their increasing complexity and number of parameters make it particularly difficult to calibrate against experimental data. In this contribution, I present a heuristic workflow to invert for parameters of a coupled Thermo-Hydro-Mechanical (THM) model in a way that helps the theoretical modellers refine their definition of the underlying elasto-visco-plastic model itself. I apply this workflow to the calibration of deviatoric and volumetric data for two sets of triaxial experiments on mudstone and sandstone. I show that beyond the calibration of well-defined parameters of the THM model, one or two scaling factors of the experimentally obtained yield surface and two more factors to capture the confinement and pore pressure dependency of the flow law lead to the satisfactory matching of two series of six experiments at varying confinements for two different rock types. Using this physical model, I also show that, for the problem of volumetric pore collapse, tracking the volumetric component of the mechanical power in the numerical simulations might allow reducing the number of experiments required to calibrate the model.