Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of lipid profile and liver function in acute pancreatitis patients: a case control study

Pancreatitis is described as any inflammation that manifests in acute or chronic forms in the pancreas. Acute pancreatitis is a sudden attack that leads to inflammation of the pancreas and affects the peripancreatic tissue and surrounding organ. In this study, liver function and lipid profile tests were evaluated in acute pancreatitis patients in order to find any relationship between liver function and lipid profile impairment and the etiology of acute pancreatitis. A total of 65 patients with acute pancreatitis, mean age 46.81 years, along with 65 healthy volunteers, mean age 43.06 years, were included in this study. Serum levels of T. protein, T. bilirubin, D. bilirubin, blood urea nitrogen, lipid profile, AST, ALT, and ALP were determined and statistical analysis was performed on the collected data. The results obtained indicated a significant decrease in serum levels of BUN and a significant increase in serum levels of AST, ALT, ALP, T. protein, T. Bilirubin, and D. Bilirubin. The results also indicated a highly significant increase in serum levels of triglycerides and VLDL, and a highly significant decrease in HDL levels for patients group when compared with control. The present study concluded that there is a clear relationship between disturbances of liver function and the promotion of acute pancreatitis. Therefore, we can suggest that liver enzymes (AST, ALT, and ALP) are good indicators for pursing acute pancreatitis. Additionally, the results confirm that triglycerides, HDL, and VLDL may be helpful in identifying patients at risk of acute pancreatitis.
QUALITY OF BREAD SUPPLEMENTED WITH POPPED AMARANTHUS CRUENTUS GRAIN

ABSTRACT The addition of popped Amaranthus cruentus grain to wheat bread formulation at 10, 15 and 20% levels (flour basis) was carried out to test the effects on sensory and nutritional characteristics of the supplemented bread samples. The addition of popped amaranth grain increased ash, protein and crude fiber content significantly. Zinc content increased by 42.6–74.6%, manganese content by 51.7–90.8%, magnesium content by 75.7–88.0% and calcium content by 57–171% in the supplementation ranges from 10 to 20% of popped amaranth grain. Bread samples supplemented with popped grains had a significantly higher content of squalene in comparison with the control sample (8–12 times higher). Loaf volume of supplemented bread samples decreased from 3.54 to 2.36 mL/g. Also, a significant increase in crumb hardness and lower crumb elasticity was observed. The supplementation contributed to denser crumb structure, more uniform porosity, improved crust color and flavor. It might be concluded that supplementation levels up to 15% (flour basis) were sensorially acceptable. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS Bread made from refined wheat flour, besides being a good source of energy, is considered to be nutritionally poor. Therefore, the addition of inexpensive staples with superior nutritional quality such as some pulses, cereals or pseudocereals to wheat flour could improve the nutritional quality of wheat products. Amaranth is a pseudocereal that contains high levels of fat, dietary fibers, lysine and minerals, especially calcium and magnesium. The addition of amaranth grain to wheat bread contributes to higher intakes of proteins, fibers, fat and minerals. The usage of popped amaranth grain is advantageous because it excludes the need for grain milling and the necessity for preparative steps before mixing in bakeries. In addition, thermal treatment increases the protein efficiency ratio and gelatinizes starch that affects positively the stability, strength and freshness of the crumb. Popped amaranth grain also contributes to the pleasant taste and overall acceptability of supplemented bread.
Correlations of Fat Content in Human Milk with Fat Droplet Size and Phospholipid Species

Fat globule size and phospholipid (PL) content in human milk (HM) were investigated. HM was classified into three groups depending on fat content (A < B < C). PL content (mg/100 g HM) was significantly higher in the C group (p < 0.05), indicating its positive relationship with HM fat content. When the PL content was normalized (mg/g fat), that of group A was significantly higher (p < 0.05) and fat droplet size in group C was slightly larger, suggesting that HM fat content is affected by fat droplet numbers to a larger extent than by fat droplet size. A correlation between PC and SM content in HM was observed regardless of fat content, while correlation between PE and either PC or SM increased in the order of C > B > A, hence the composition and content of PL species in HM varied according to its fat content.
Engineering Properties of Sewage Sludge in Trinidad

Abstract Some physical and engineering properties of five sewage sludges collected from different locations in Trinidad were measured in the laboratory. The properties assessed were dry bulk density, fibrosity, water content, solids content, the Atterberg limits, saturated hydraulic conductivity, density–water relations, penetration resistance, shear strength and compressibility. Air–dry bulk density of the sludges ranged from 0·37 to 0·83 Mg/m3while the solids content varied from 65·4 to 90·3%. Most of the parameter values differed according to the organic matter content of the sludges. The exception to this general trend was the sludge from Trincity. The sludges exhibited very high liquid limits ranging from 165% for the Valencia sludge with the highest organic matter content of 30·9% to 66% for the Santa Cruz sludge with the lowest organic matter content of 10·8%. Proctor compaction test results showed that mean compaction for 5, 15 and 25 Proctor compaction blows varied from 0·51 Mg/m3for Valencia to 1·19 Mg/m3for Santa Cruz sludge. Mean penetration resistance after compaction also varied from 1·70 MPa in the Valencia sludge to 4·05 MPa for the Santa Cruz sludge. Mean shear strength varied from 59·7 kPa in Valencia to 99·7 kPa in Santa Cruz sludge. The corresponding saturated hydraulic conductivity measured on compacted sewage sludges also varied from 16·6 to 0·11 cm/h for the Valencia and Santa Cruz sludge, respectively. The compressibility of the sludges defined in terms of a compression index increased from 0·50 for the Santa Cruz sludge to 1·02 for the Valencia sludge. Generally, the sewage sludges were found to display an engineering behaviour similar to mineral soils, differing only in the magnitudes of the measured parameters. The implications of the measured parameter values on the choice of method for use or disposal of these sewage sludges are discussed.
Interactions of micro-rods in a thin layer of a nematic liquid crystal

We present an experimental analysis of the topological properties of a nematic liquid crystal in the vicinity of small cylindrical objects (micro-rods), dispersed in the nematic liquid crystal 5CB (4-n-pentyl-4-cyanobiphenyl). Depending on the type of liquid crystal anchoring on the surfaces of micro-rods, we have observed two types of the symmetry in the surrounding liquid crystal molecules: dipolar and quadrupolar. Using the manipulation of micro-rods with laser tweezers, the strength and separation dependencies of various pair interaction potentials have been determined. Our results are in qualitative agreement with previous theoretical predictions for 2D interactions of micro-rods in the nematic liquid crystals.
Mean components for choosing maize populations to extract inbred lines

ABSTRACT The choice of germplasm is one of the most important phases of a genetic improvement program to the fact that it is the initial development stage of superior hybrids. Hence, the objectives of this study were to obtain the estimates of m+a and d, and inbreeding depression for grain yield and plant height traits, for cultivars lacking this information, and thus to predict the potential of maize hybrids for the extraction of lines. The F1 and F2 generations of 12 maize hybrids were tested at two sites, during the crop years of 2017-18 and 2018-19, accounting for four environments. Both the generations were evaluated in contiguous experiments in randomized blocks design with three and two repetitions during the years 2017-18 and 2018-19, respectively. The data on plant height and grain yield were collected, per plot, from both the generations, utilizing which, the m+a and d mean components were estimated. The effects of dominance had greater importance for the character grain yield. The most promising hybrids for extraction of lines were AG1051, AG8025, BG7046, DKB455, and OMEGA due to their greater estimates of m+a. The hybrids AG8025 and BG7046 were associated with high values of m+a and grain yield. For the plant height trait, there was a greater contribution of additive effects. Therefore, greater inbreeding depression was observed for the grain yield trait when compared to the height of the plant.
Influence of concentration and structure of quaternary ammonium salts on their antifouling efficiency tested against a community of marine bacteria

With the view of incorporating quaternary ammonium salts (QAs) in marine paints, nineteen of these were tested against a community of marine bacteria, at a temperature and salinity close to those of seawater. The concentration of QAs and the length of the main substituting chain are the main parameters affecting the growth and adhesion of bacteria, but the nature of (i) the other chains, (ii) the counter‐ion and (iii) the rings when inserted in the QA molecule also influenced the bacteria. Increasing the concentration of the QAs decreased the growth rate of the bacteria, the maximum cell density at the plateau and the rate of adhesion. The effect of increasing the length of the main chain depended on the range of carbon numbers. Below 7 carbon atoms, the growth rate was not significantly modified, but the numbers of cells at the plateau increased in contrast with the adhesion rate which decreased rapidly. Increasing the length of the chain to between 7 and 16 carbon atoms resulted in a decrease in the growth rate, a decrease and then a stabilisation in the numbers of cells at the plateau and no further change in the adhesion rate. Possibly an increase in growth rate, adhesion rate and in the numbers of cells at the plateau may occur above 16 carbon atoms. In contrast, the length of the other chains influenced positively the cell concentration at the plateau, and more generally the efficiency of QAs decreased substantially when these chains had the same numbers of carbon atoms. QAs with iodide as counter‐ion were more effective than those with chloride or bromide and phenyl was more effective than benzyl as rings inserted in QAs. The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) were often very high if compared to standard methods with laboratory strains, and this can be tentatively explained by the dominance of Gram— bacteria in the community assayed, the development of resistant strains in the cultures used with time and the presence of organic matter in the culture medium.
Pilot-Scale Compost Media Biofilter Treatment Of Volatile Organic Compounds

The compost media biofilter is one of the most important biological processes applied to treat waste gases. Research on a pilot-scale compost media biofilter treatment of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) was performed. The volume of biofilter media was 4.3 m3 and the biofilter operated for 57 days. Fluctuation of water content in the biofilter media was investigated. With continuous switching of air flow direction, the water content of the biofilter media could be managed without any addition of exterior water. The range of average temperature of each stage measured between 18°C to 73°C. When the air flow direction switched from upward to downward, temperatures of lower stages increased and temperatures of upper stages decreased. Temperatures of one side of the media were usually higher than those of the opposite side at the same depth. Compost has the advantages of different types of nutrients present in the media. With the compost media, the removal efficiency of the biofilter could be maintained at more than 99% for the experimental period.
Influence of vibrations on indentation and compression strength of sea ice

Indentation and compression strengths of floating sea ice subjected to vibrations is discussed. The experiments were performed on the land fast ice of the Van-Mijen Fjord in March of 2018 and 2019. The ice thickness was around 70 cm, and the ice salinity was 4-5 ppt. Vibrations were introduced in the ice by the vibration plate with weight of 400 kg before the tests during 10-15 min. The vibration plate was standing and vibrating on the ice surface. The spectrum of vibrations was recorded with accelerometers. Analysis of thin sections of ice was performed on the place of the field works. Indentation tests were performed with the original hydraulic rig on natural ice and ice subjected to the action of vibrating plate. It was discovered that stroke rates tests were higher in the tests performed on the ice subjected to vibrations. Uniaxial compression tests were also performed on ice cores taken from the natural ice and from the ice subjected to the vibrations. Uniaxial compression strength of ice cores taken from the ice subjected to vibrations was higher than in the tests with natural ice.
Electromyography-Based Gesture Recognition: Is It Time to Change Focus From the Forearm to the Wrist?

Despite a historical focus on prosthetics, the incorporation of electromyography (EMG) sensors into less obtrusive wearable designs has recently gained attention as a potential human–computer interaction scheme for general consumer use. Because consumers are more used to wrist-worn devices, this article presents a comprehensive and systematic investigation of the feasibility of hand gesture recognition using EMG signals recorded at the wrist. A direct comparison of signal and information quality is conducted between concurrently recorded wrist and forearm signals. Both signals were collected simultaneously from 21 subjects while they performed a selection of 17 different single-finger gestures, multifinger gestures, and wrist gestures. Wrist EMG signals yielded consistently higher ($p< 0.05$) signal quality metrics than forearm signals for gestures that involved fine finger movements, while maintaining comparable quality for wrist gestures. Similarly, the performance of both individual state-of-the-art EMG features and a standard feature set was found to be significantly better when using wrist signals for single and multifinger gestures, and comparable for wrist gestures. Classifiers trained and tested using wrist EMG signals achieved average accuracy levels of 92.1% for single-finger gestures, 91.2% for multifinger gestures, and 94.7% for the conventional wrist gestures. In conclusion, this article clearly demonstrates the feasibility of using wrist EMG signals for hand gesture recognition. Results highlight not only the promise of this approach, but also the viability of incorporating prior knowledge from the prosthetics field in the design of wrist-based EMG pattern recognition systems.
Solution Blow Spinning of Polycaprolactone—Rheological Determination of Spinnability and the Effect of Processing Conditions on Fiber Diameter and Alignment

The growing popularity of solution blow spinning as a method for the production of fibrous tissue engineering scaffolds and the vast range of polymer–solvent systems available for the method raises the need to study the effect of processing conditions on fiber morphology and develop a method for its qualitative assessment. Rheological approaches to determine polymer solution spinnability and image analysis approaches to describe fiber diameter and alignment have been previously proposed, although in a separate manner and mostly for the widely known, well-researched electrospinning method. In this study, a series of methods is presented to determine the processing conditions for the development of submicron fibrous scaffolds. Rheological methods are completed with extensive image analysis to determine the spinnability window for a polymer–solvent system and qualitatively establish the influence of polymer solution concentration and collector rotational speed on fiber morphology, diameter, and alignment. Process parameter selection for a tissue engineering scaffold target application is discussed, considering the varying structural properties of the native extracellular matrix of the tissue of interest.
Measuring lichen specimen characteristics to reduce relative local uncertainties for trace element biomonitoring

Abstract Local variation (within sampling sites) affects lichen air pollution biomonitoring of trace element deposition patterns. When comparing between sampling sites, global variation must be greater than local variation, thus reducing local variation is important in biomonitoring studies. To reduce local variability, sampling protocols are introduced, primarily minimum sampling height and less often sampling aspect. This study, introduces further protocols, which can help to reduce within site variation. First, the research design removed spatial variation by sampling a single tree. One–thousand and thirty–seven individual specimens of Usnea subfloridana were collected and aggregated into 97 samples based on similar collection height, aspect and mass. Samples were tested by inductively coupled plasma – atomic emission spectroscopy for total recoverable Al, As, Ba, Be, Cd, Co, Cr Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Mo, Na, Ni, P, Pb, S, Sr, Ti, Tl, V, and Zn. Fifteen of the elements tested were above minimum detection limits and their variation in concentrations were able to be partially explained with linear modeling. When explaining variation in concentrations with linear modeling, aspect was statistically significant for all of the 15 elements, height was statistically significant for 12 elements, and specimen mass was significant for 6 elements. We demonstrate that individually assessing and minimizing specimen collection aspect, height and mass prior to aggregating specimens into samples can reduce local variation, which will improve between site comparisons.
Bacterial Blight Resistance Genes and Strategies for Engineering Broad-spectrum Resistance in Rice

Bacterial Blight (BB), caused by gram-negative bacteria Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae (Xoo), is one of the major constraints for rice production across the world. For decades, a series of rice resistance (R) genes against BB have been identified and extensively used in breeding for resistance. However, the existence and emergence of new virulent Xoo populations or strains always make the resistant varieties short-lived. Deep understanding of the molecular mechanisms of R genemediated resistance is important for effective deployment of R genes. In this mini review, we summarized the advances in identification and characterization of BB R genes, molecular interactions between rice and Xoo, and the strategies for developing varieties with Broad-Spectrum Resistance (BSR) to BB. The future challenges are also discussed.
On Detectabilities of Fuzzy Discrete Event Systems

Many biomedical systems and some engineering systems can be modeled as fuzzy discrete event systems. In this article, fuzzy discrete event systems with constraints (FDESwC) are introduced and detectabilities of FDESwC are investigated. While detectabilities of conventional crisp discrete event systems (DES) have been investigated before, detectabilities of FDESwC are much more complex because the state space of FDESwC is infinite, unlike that of crisp DES. To overcome this difficulty, trajectories of FDESwC bounded by <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$N$</tex-math></inline-formula> observations are considered and <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$N$</tex-math></inline-formula>-detectabilities are introduced. <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$N$</tex-math></inline-formula>-detectabilities of crisp DES are first defined and proved to be equivalent to detectabilities if <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$N$</tex-math></inline-formula> is sufficiently large. Fuzzy <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$N$</tex-math></inline-formula>-detectabilities of FDESwC are then defined. An algorithm is derived to check fuzzy <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$N$</tex-math></inline-formula>-detectabilities. While fuzzy detectabilities require to determine which state the system is in, this requirement can be relaxed in some applications. To do so, fuzzy <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$D$</tex-math></inline-formula>-detectabilities are introduced and investigated, where the requirement is to distinguish certain pairs of states.
Multivariate hydrometeorological extreme events and their impacts on vegetation: potential methods and applications

Trockenheiten und Hitzewellen beeinflussen unsere Gesellschaft und die Vegetation. Insbesondere im Zusammenhang mit dem Klimawandel sind die Auswirkungen auf die Vegetation von besonderer Bedeutung. Im globalen Kohlenstoffkreislauf sind terrestrische Okosysteme normalerweise Senken von Kohlenstoffdioxid, konnen sich aber wahrend und nach Klimaextremereignissen in Kohlenstoffquellen verwandeln. Ein entscheidender Aspekt hierbei ist die Rolle verschiedener Pflanzenarten und Vegetationstypen auf verschiedenen Skalen, die die Auswirkungen auf den Kohlenstoffkreislauf beeinflussen. Obwohl durch physiologische Unterschiede zwischen verschiedenen Pflanzenarten unterschiedliche Reaktionen auf Extremereignisse naheliegen, sind diese Unterschiede auf globaler Ebene nicht systematisch ausgewertet und vollstandig verstanden. Ein weiter Aspekt ist, dass Klimaextremereignissen von Natur aus multivariat sind. Beispielsweise kann heise Luft mehr Wasser aufnehmen als kalte Luft. Extremereignisse mit starken Auswirkungen waren in der Vergangenheit haufig multivariat, wie beispielsweise in Europa 2003, Russland 2012, oder den USA 2012. Diese multivariate Natur von Klimaextremen erfordert eine multivariate Perspektive auf diese Ereignisse. Bisher werden meistens einzelne Variablen zu Detektion von Extremereignissen genutzt und keine Kovariation oder Nichtlinearitaten berucksichtigt. Neue generische Workflows, die solche multivariaten Strukturen berucksichtigen, mussen erst entwickelt oder aus anderen Disziplinen ubertragen werden, um uns eine multivariate Perspektive auf Klimaextreme zu bieten. Das ubergeordnete Ziel der Dissertation ist es, die Erkennung und das Verstandnis von Klimaextremen und deren Auswirkungen auf die Vegetation zu verbessern, indem eine breitere multivariate Perspektive ermoglicht wird, die bisherige Ansatze zur Erkennung von Extremereignissen erganzt.