Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
‘Distraction Vaginogenesis’: Preliminary Results Using a Novel Method for Vaginal Canal Expansion in Rats

Vaginal atresia is seen in genetic disorders such as Mayer–Rokitansky–Küster–Hauser (MRKH) syndrome, which can cause significant sexual dysfunction. Current treatments include surgical reconstruction or mechanical dilation of the vaginal canal. Mechanical dilation requires patients to be highly motivated and compliant while surgical reconstruction has high rates of complications. This study evaluated a novel vaginal expansion sleeve (VES) method as an alternative treatment for vaginal atresia. The proprietary cylindrical VES is a spring-like device consisting of polyethylene terephthalate helicoid trusses capped at each end with a fixed diameter resin cap for fixation within tissues. Following the development of the VES and mechanical characterization of the force–length relationships within the device, we deployed the VES in Sprague Dawley rat vaginas anchored with nonabsorbable sutures. We measured the VES length–tension relationships and post-implant vaginal canal expansion ex vivo. Vaginal histology was examined before and after implantation of the VES devices. Testing of 30 mm sleeves without caps resulted in an expansion force of 11.7 ± 3.4 N and 2.0 ± 0.1 N at 50% and 40%, respectively. The implanted 20 mm VES resulted in 5.36 mm ± 1.18 expansion of the vaginal canal, a 32.5 ± 23.6% increase (p = 0.004, Student t test). Histological evaluation of the VES implanted tissue showed a significant thinning of the vaginal wall when the VES was implanted. The novel VES device resulted in a significant expansion of the vaginal canal ex vivo. The VES device represents a unique alternative to traditional mechanical dilation therapy in the treatment of vaginal atresia and represents a useful platform for the mechanical distension of hollow compartments, which avoids reconstructive surgeries and progressive dilator approaches.
Pennsylvanian brachiopod faunas from the El Imperial Formation (San Rafael Basin) of central-western Argentina

Abstract While some Upper Paleozoic basins in central-western Argentina have been extensively studied, others have poorly understood biostratigraphy. The current biozone heterogeneity between basins could be an artefact of incompletely sampled invertebrate fossil assemblages preventing precise correlations. Here, we therefore provide a taxonomic assessment of brachiopods recovered from fossil-bearing beds of the El Imperial Formation at Arroyo del Imperial, Quebrada de La Horqueta, and Cañón del Atuel. Two distinct biozones are identified: (1) a conspicuous Moscovian Tivertonia jachalensis–Streptorhynchus inaequiornatus Biozone (TS) from the Cañón del Atuel section; (2) a new early late Bashkirian Saltospirifer guevarai–Pericospira sanjuanensis Biozone (SP) from the Arroyo del Imperial and Quebrada de La Horqueta sections. The TS assemblage includes Argentiella stappenbecki, Oehlertella annae, Orbiculoidea saltensis, Coolkilella aredesi, Calytrixia piersoni, Costatumulus sp. and Septosyringothyris? sp. The SP assemblage comprises cf. Buxtonia riojana, Streptorhynchus inaequiornatus, cf. Septosyringothyris (Precosyringothyris) feruglioi, cf. Septosyringothyris (Precosyringothyris) jaguelensis, ? Spiriferellina sp. , Saltospirifer guevarai and cf. Pericospira sanjuanensis. The El Imperial Formation brachiopod biozones provide a basis for accurate biocorrelation between regional lithostratigraphical units, and clarify the Upper Paleozoic biochronostratigraphical scheme for central-western Argentina during the Pennsylvanian. Cristian Adrián Pardo [pardocr22@gmail.com], Centro de Investigación Esquel de Montaña y Estepa Patagónica (CIEMEP) CONICET-UNPSJB, Roca 780, Esquel (U9200), Chubut, Argentina. Laboratorio de Investigaciones en Evolución y Biodiversidad (LIEB), Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Ciencias de la Salud (FCNyCS), Sede Esquel, Edificio de Aulas, km 16.5, Esquel, Chubut, U9200, Argentina; César Augusto Taboada [ctaboada@mef.org. ar], Museo Paleontológico Egidio Feruglio (MEF)-CONICET, Avenida Fontana N°140, Trelew, Chubut, U9100GYO, Argentina; Arturo César Taboada [taboadaart@gmail.com], Centro de Investigación Esquel de Montaña y Estepa Patagónica (CIEMEP) CONICET-UNPSJB, Roca 780, Esquel (U9200), Chubut, Argentina. Laboratorio de Investigaciones en Evolución y Biodiversidad (LIEB), Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Ciencias de la Salud (FCNyCS), Sede Esquel, Edificio de Aulas, km 16.5, Esquel, Chubut, U9200, Argentina; María Alejandra Pagani [apagani@mef.org. ar], Museo Paleontológico Egidio Feruglio (MEF)-CONICET, Avenida Fontana N°140, Trelew, Chubut, U9100GYO, Argentina.
Protective anti-tumor vaccination against glioblastoma expressing the MHC class II transactivator CIITA

Glioblastoma is the most malignant tumor of the central nervous system. Current treatments based on surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy, and more recently on selected immunological approaches, unfortunately produce dismal outcomes, and less than 2% of patients survive after 5 years. Thus, there is an urgent need for new therapeutic strategies. Here, we report unprecedented positive results in terms of protection from glioblastoma growth in an animal experimental system after vaccination with glioblastoma GL261 cells stably expressing the MHC class II transactivator CIITA. Mice injected with GL261-CIITA express de novo MHC class II molecules and reject or strongly retard tumor growth as a consequence of rapid infiltration with CD4+ and CD8+ T cells. Importantly, mice vaccinated with GL261-CIITA cells by injection in the right brain hemisphere strongly reject parental GL261 tumors injected in the opposite brain hemisphere, indicating not only the acquisition of anti-tumor immune memory but also the capacity of immune T cells to migrate within the brain, overcoming the blood–brain barrier. GL261-CIITA cells are a potent anti-glioblastoma vaccine, stimulating a protective adaptive anti-tumor immune response in vivo as a consequence of CIITA-driven MHC class II expression and consequent acquisition of surrogate antigen-presenting function toward tumor-specific CD4+ Th cells. This unprecedented approach for glioblastoma demonstrates the feasibility of novel immunotherapeutic strategies for potential application in the clinical setting.
Obstetric Violence from a Midwife Perspective

This study examines and determines the prevalence of obstetric violence (OV) as perceived by midwives, as well as their knowledge of it and the professional factors that could be associated with the perception of OV. A cross-sectional study was conducted of 325 midwives in 2021 in Spain. Almost all (92.6%, 301) the midwives knew the term OV, but 74.8% (214) did not believe OV to be the same as malpractice. Moreover, 56.9% (185) stated they had rarely observed OV, and 26.5% (86) regularly observed OV. Most midwives consider physical aggression to be OV, in comparison, not providing information to women was only considered unacceptable treatment. The clinical practice considered the most grave within the context of OV was an instrumental birth or cesarean section without clinical justification. In addition, 97.5% (317) believed that raising awareness on the subject is one of the fundamental points to reducing this problem. Certain factors, such as less work experience, female gender, attendance at home births, and previous training in OV, were associated with an increased perception of situations as OV (p < 0.005). A high percentage of midwives perceived specific clinical practices (e.g., indicate cesarean section without clinical justification or perform the Kristeller maneuver) as OV, and certain characteristics of the professional profile, such as the professional experience or the sex of the midwife, were associated with an increased perception of OV. Most midwives knew the term OV but did not consider that it could pertain to some behaviors included in the international definitions of OV, such as the lack of information provided to a woman or the non-identification of the midwife, among others.
Related party transactions and firm value in an emerging market: Does corporate social responsibility matter?

Abstract This study investigates the effect of related party transactions (RPTs) on firm value (FV) with moderating role of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the context of an emerging market. For a sample of 625 listed firms on the Vietnamese Stock Exchange from 2015 to 2019, we do quantitative analysis utilizing the appropriate method for panel data with modification to strengthen the study’s robustness. We design a regression model to test the result. According to the findings of the study, RPTs have an effect on corporate value. This is in keeping with the belief that CSR reporting, which represents a company’s ethical concerns, might act as a deterrent to opportunism by management. Our study makes recommendations to improve transaction transparency with corporate stakeholders, contributing to the growth of the Vietnamese stock exchange.
High school students’ data modeling practices and processes: from modeling unstructured data to evaluating automated decisions

ABSTRACT It’s critical to foster artificial intelligence (AI) literacy for high school students, the first generation to grow up surrounded by AI, to understand working mechanism of data-driven AI technologies and critically evaluate automated decisions from predictive models. While efforts have been made to engage youth in understanding AI through developing machine learning models, few provided in-depth insights into the nuanced learning processes. In this study, we examined high school students’ data modeling practices and processes. Twenty-eight students developed machine learning models with text data for classifying negative and positive reviews of ice cream stores. We identified nine data modeling practices that describe students’ processes of model exploration, development, and testing and two themes about evaluating automated decisions from data technologies. The results provide implications for designing accessible data modeling experiences for students to understand data justice as well as the role and responsibility of data modelers in creating AI technologies.
Challenges and potential solutions in developing community supported agriculture: a literature review

ABSTRACT Community supported agriculture (CSA) is regarded as a model that can show directions for more sustainable food systems. Therefore, the progressing knowledge regarding challenges and ways to cope with these is crucial to sustaining this model. A literature study was conducted from October 2021 to June 2022 to explore these challenges. We found the challenges experienced by farmers are (1) the expense of conversion to and maintenance of more sustainable farming practices, (2) the danger of farmers taking on more than they can handle, (3) complexities in farm management, and (4) labor shortage and limited skills. The challenges for CSA members include (1) time for the working share contribution, (2) the expense of joining a CSA, and (3) changing their food consumption habits according to the CSA harvest. The organizational challenges for a CSA are (1) members recruitment and retention, (2) competition among CSAs and other marketing channels, (3) gender and generational problems, (4) the influence of government intervention, and (5) CSA sustainability. The four potential solutions are (1) Strengthening membership support of CSAs, (2) Improvement of CSA management, (3) Increasing external resources available to CSAs, and (4) Changing laws to support the development and spread of CSAs.
Surgical Site Infections in Patients of Periampullary Carcinoma Undergoing Delayed Bile Duct Division (COMBILAST) in Whipple’s Procedure: A Prospective Cohort Study

Surgical site infections (SSIs) following a pancreaticoduodenectomy have been a significant cause of morbidity and even mortality. A modified sequence of the Whipple procedure, using the COMBILAST technique, may reduce SSIs and the patient’s hospital stay. This prospective cohort study included 42 patients undergoing Whipple’s pancreaticoduodenectomy for a periampullary malignancy. The modified sequence pancreaticoduodenectomy technique, COMBILAST, was used to estimate the incidence of SSI and explore other advantages. Of the 42 patients, seven (16.7%) developed superficial SSIs, and two patients (4.8%) had an additional deep SSI. Positive intraoperative bile culture had the strongest association with SSI (OR: 20.25, 95% CI: 2.12, 193.91). The mean operative duration was 391.28 ± 67.86 min, and the mean blood loss was 705 ± 172 mL. A total of fourteen (33.3%) patients had a Clavien–Dindo grade of III or higher. Three (7.1%) patients died of septicemia. The average length of a hospital stay was 13.00 ± 5.92 days. A modified sequence of the Whipple procedure, using the COMBILAST technique, seems promising in reducing SSIs and the patient’s hospital stay. As the approach is only a modification of the operative sequence, it does not compromise the oncological safety of the patient. Moreover, it has an added surgical advantage in reducing the chance of injury to the aberrant or accessory right hepatic artery.
Combating the Dust Devil: Utilizing Naturally Occurring Soil Microbes in Arizona to Inhibit the Growth of Coccidioides spp., the Causative Agent of Valley Fever

The fungal disease Valley fever causes a significant medical and financial burden for affected people in the endemic region, and this burden is on the rise. Despite the medical importance of this disease, little is known about ecological factors that influence the geographic point sources of high abundance of the pathogens Coccidioides posadasii and C. immitis, such as competition with co-occurring soil microbes. These “hot spots”, for instance, those in southern Arizona, are areas in which humans are at greater risk of being infected with the fungus due to consistent exposure. The aim of this study was to isolate native microbes from soils collected from Tucson, Arizona (endemic area for C. posadasii) and characterize their relationship (antagonistic, synergistic, or neutral) to the fungal pathogen with in vitro challenge assays. Secreted metabolites from the microbes were extracted and described using analytical techniques including high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and mass spectrometry. Bacteria belonging to the genus Bacillus and fungi in the Fennellomyces and Ovatospora genera were shown to significantly decrease the growth of Coccidioides spp. In vitro. In contrast, other bacteria in the Brevibacillus genus, as well as one species of Bacillus bacteria, were shown to promote growth of Coccidioides when directly challenged. The metabolites secreted from the antagonistic bacteria were described using HPLC and matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS). The microbes identified in this study as antagonists to Coccidioides and/or the metabolites they secrete have the potential to be used as natural biocontrol agents to limit the amount of fungal burden at geographic point sources, and therefore limit the potential for human infection.
Deep Learning Applied to Raman Spectroscopy for the Detection of Microsatellite Instability/MMR Deficient Colorectal Cancer

Simple Summary Colorectal cancer has several disease pathways which have implications for how patients are monitored and treated. One important pathway is caused by deficiencies to genes responsible for repairing pre-cancerous cells. Methods to detect these deficiencies exist, but are not implemented as often as recommended and could be improved. Raman spectroscopy is a technique that could provide such an improvement, having shown potential in other areas of cancer research. The full potential of Raman datasets may be achieved by exploiting modern machine learning models. We evaluated a small colorectal tissue dataset to assess the viability of some common machine learning techniques to detect different colorectal cancer pathways. We find that Raman spectroscopy in conjunction with machine learning could be a viable means of improving screening and potentially diagnostic tools and warrants further research with larger sample sizes. Abstract Defective DNA mismatch repair is one pathogenic pathway to colorectal cancer. It is characterised by microsatellite instability which provides a molecular biomarker for its detection. Clinical guidelines for universal testing of this biomarker are not met due to resource limitations; thus, there is interest in developing novel methods for its detection. Raman spectroscopy (RS) is an analytical tool able to interrogate the molecular vibrations of a sample to provide a unique biochemical fingerprint. The resulting datasets are complex and high-dimensional, making them an ideal candidate for deep learning, though this may be limited by small sample sizes. This study investigates the potential of using RS to distinguish between normal, microsatellite stable (MSS) and microsatellite unstable (MSI-H) adenocarcinoma in human colorectal samples and whether deep learning provides any benefit to this end over traditional machine learning models. A 1D convolutional neural network (CNN) was developed to discriminate between healthy, MSI-H and MSS in human tissue and compared to a principal component analysis–linear discriminant analysis (PCA–LDA) and a support vector machine (SVM) model. A nested cross-validation strategy was used to train 30 samples, 10 from each group, with a total of 1490 Raman spectra. The CNN achieved a sensitivity and specificity of 83% and 45% compared to PCA–LDA, which achieved a sensitivity and specificity of 82% and 51%, respectively. These are competitive with existing guidelines, despite the low sample size, speaking to the molecular discriminative power of RS combined with deep learning. A number of biochemical antecedents responsible for this discrimination are also explored, with Raman peaks associated with nucleic acids and collagen being implicated.
Effect of Rearing in Small-Cell Combs on Activities of Catalase and Superoxide Dismutase and Total Antioxidant Capacity in the Hemolymph of Apis mellifera Workers

Honeybee nests constructed without man-made wax foundation have significantly more variability of cell widths/sizes than those in commercially-kept colonies. The effects of this natural variability in comb cell widths on individual and colony traits have not been explained to date. The investigation of this problem can lead to new findings about the biology, physiology, and possibly, the evolution of the honeybee. The aim of the study was to compare the catalase and superoxide dismutase activities and the total antioxidant capacity levels in the hemolymph of honeybee workers reared in small-cell combs and standard-cell combs in colonies kept simultaneously on standard- and small-cell combs. The ratio of the small-cell combs to the standard-cell combs in the nest was 1:1. The workers reared in small-cell combs were characterized by higher antioxidant activities in the hemolymph than those reared in standard-cell combs. Consequently, their hemolymph had a greater antioxidant capacity, which indicates that they may be better predisposed to be foragers than workers reared in standard-cell combs. To describe the physiological differences between worker bees reared in small- and standard-cell combs in the same colony, the role of the considerable variation in the cell width in natural combs built without the use of artificially produced wax foundation is worth elucidating. The comparison of the apiary and cage experiments indicated that changes in antioxidant activities predominantly result from worker activities, especially those requiring the intensification of metabolism, rather than the age of the worker bees. To reduce the impact on the results of random environmental factors potentially present in one-season studies of honeybee research, investigations should preferably be carried out over a few consecutive years.
Development and Evaluation of a Workplace Bullying Cognitive Rehearsal-Based Nursing Simulation Education Program: A Mixed-Methods Study

Bullying makes learning difficult for nursing students, and using real-life scenarios during training can improve the understanding of workplace bullying. Thus, to mitigate bullying experienced by nurses, this study developed and evaluated a cognitive rehearsal education program that constituted training nursing students through role-play simulations. A mixed-method research design was used to evaluate 39 nursing students from two universities. A quasi-experimental research design was applied to assess symptoms, knowledge, and perceptions of bullying, and a focus group interview was conducted with six participants. Quantitative analyses revealed that the program improved participants’ knowledge and perceptions but not their symptoms. The focus group interview revealed that the program improved participants’ coping skills and desire for education. This program could be effective in raising awareness of workplace bullying and increasing relevant coping skills. It can be further developed as part of an overall strategy to manage workplace bullying and its consequences in hospital settings.
An Imperative to Assess Socio-Technical Impact of Algorithms in Online Spaces and Wresting Responsibility from Technology Companies

Today’s information ecosystem has a plethora of tools to support decision-making and cognitive offloading. As this ecosystem has evolved and grown, however, we increasingly rely on recommendation systems, algorithmic curation, and other technologies to make decisions on our behalf and help manage an otherwise-overwhelming information environment. This cognitive offloading comes at a price, as these technologies make decisions that govern the information sources to which we are exposed, the celebrities we are likely follow, the content likely to become popular, the order of information shown to us, and even the state of our emotions. Despite the potential effects of this tradeoff, the true socio-technical impact of this reliance and imbuing these technologies with so much influence over the information space remains both an open and a controversial question. This paper outlines different forms of this question, wherein I summarize the controversies surrounding these technologies and the mixed evidence from academic research on them. I then describe the barriers impeding resolution of these concerns and how the current trajectories of online social platforms and the technology companies that own them are unlikely to provide answers to these issues without external intervention. I close by describing a "socio-technical safety triad" for online social spaces, where the responsibilities and incentives for reducing societal harm are devolved from corporations and spread across academic, governmental, and corporate stakeholders.
Finite-time Dynamic Event-triggered Consensus of Nonlinear Multi-agent Systems

To improve performance and increase usability, we focus on a solution to achieve dynamic event-triggered finite- time consensus for multi-agent systems under undirected graph. A distributed event-triggered algorithm with a dynamic event- triggered condition is presented to meet the above control objectives and reduce some computation overload. Unlike other static trigger schemes, this dynamic law takes on a dynamic threshold value. Only when this dynamic threshold is violated, the agent has access to new data through topology at the current moment. By choosing an appropriate Lyapunov function, we provide a rigorous proof to show that our multi-agent systems reach consistency. In addition, one counterfactual method is used to verify any possible Zeno behavior will not appear. Finally, two simulations expound the superiority of this dynamic algorithm.