Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Regulatory roles of non-coding RNAs and m6A modification in trophoblast functions and the occurrence of its related adverse pregnancy outcomes

Abstract Adverse pregnancy outcomes, such as preeclampsia, gestational diabetes mellitus, fetal growth restriction, and recurrent miscarriage, occur frequently in pregnant women and might further induce morbidity and mortality for both mother and fetus. Increasing studies have shown that dysfunctions of human trophoblast are related to these adverse pregnancy outcomes. Recent studies also showed that environmental toxicants could induce trophoblast dysfunctions. Moreover, non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) have been reported to play important regulatory roles in various cellular processes. However, the roles of ncRNAs in the regulation of trophoblast dysfunctions and the occurrence of adverse pregnancy outcomes still need to be further investigated, especially with exposure to environmental toxicants. In this review, we analyzed the regulatory mechanisms of ncRNAs and m6A methylation modification in the dysfunctions of trophoblast cells and the occurrence of adverse pregnancy outcomes and also summarized the harmful effects of environmental toxicants. In addition to DNA replication, mRNA transcription, and protein translation, ncRNAs and m6A modification might be considered as the fourth and fifth elements that regulate the genetic central dogma, respectively. Environmental toxicants might also affect these processes. In this review, we expect to provide a deeper scientific understanding of the occurrence of adverse pregnancy outcomes and to discover potential biomarkers for the diagnosis and treatment of these outcomes.
Mediated Online Awareness Among Adolescents With and Without ADHD: Using the Occupational Performance Experience Analysis (OPEA)

Online awareness is essential to learning from one’s experiences, enabling adaptive self-management, often challenged among adolescents with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This study used an online awareness tool, the Occupational Performance Experience Analysis (OPEA), to examine (a) the online awareness of occupational performance of adolescents with ADHD and controls and (b) the potential modifiability of online awareness after a brief mediation redirecting attention to task demands and contextual factors. Seventy adolescents with and without ADHD were administered the OPEA after completing cognitive assessments. The OPEA comprises a verbal description of experiences, scored for representation of main actions, temporal context, and coherence, completed again after mediation. Results point to significantly less coherent descriptions of occupational performance among adolescents with ADHD compared with adolescents without ADHD; modifiability was only examined in the ADHD group and demonstrated significantly more coherent descriptions after mediation. Findings may elucidate online awareness of occupational performance as an occupational therapy intervention target for adolescents with ADHD.
A result on the mean square error obtained using general tracking algorithms

Tracking time-varying properties is of crucial importance in all adaptive algorithms. In this contribution we study a fairly general algorithm for tracking properties of model parameters that can be described in a linear regression form (including AR models and the like). An explicit expression for the mean square error between the estimated and the true (time-varying) parameter is established. For slow adaptation this expression can be arbitrarily well approximated by a much simpler expression. The treatment differs from other related studies using weak convergence theory, averaging, etc. in that the results are not asymptotic in nature and are applicable also to the transient phase as well as over unbounded time intervals.
Breast-Conserving Surgery with or without Irradiation in Early Breast Cancer.

BACKGROUND Limited level 1 evidence is available on the omission of radiotherapy after breast-conserving surgery in older women with hormone receptor-positive early breast cancer receiving adjuvant endocrine therapy. METHODS We performed a phase 3 randomized trial of the omission of irradiation; the trial population included women 65 years of age or older who had hormone receptor-positive, node-negative, T1 or T2 primary breast cancer (with tumors ≤3 cm in the largest dimension) treated with breast-conserving surgery with clear excision margins and adjuvant endocrine therapy. Patients were randomly assigned to receive whole-breast irradiation (40 to 50 Gy) or no irradiation. The primary end point was local breast cancer recurrence. Regional recurrence, breast cancer-specific survival, distant recurrence as the first event, and overall survival were also assessed. RESULTS A total of 1326 women were enrolled; 658 were randomly assigned to receive whole-breast irradiation and 668 to receive no irradiation. The median follow-up was 9.1 years. The cumulative incidence of local breast cancer recurrence within 10 years was 9.5% (95% confidence interval [CI], 6.8 to 12.3) in the no-radiotherapy group and 0.9% (95% CI, 0.1 to 1.7) in the radiotherapy group (hazard ratio, 10.4; 95% CI, 4.1 to 26.1; P<0.001). Although local recurrence was more common in the group that did not receive radiotherapy, the 10-year incidence of distant recurrence as the first event was not higher in the no-radiotherapy group than in the radiotherapy group, at 1.6% (95% CI, 0.4 to 2.8) and 3.0% (95% CI, 1.4 to 4.5), respectively. Overall survival at 10 years was almost identical in the two groups, at 80.8% (95% CI, 77.2 to 84.3) with no radiotherapy and 80.7% (95% CI, 76.9 to 84.3) with radiotherapy. The incidence of regional recurrence and breast cancer-specific survival also did not differ substantially between the two groups. CONCLUSIONS Omission of radiotherapy was associated with an increased incidence of local recurrence but had no detrimental effect on distant recurrence as the first event or overall survival among women 65 years of age or older with low-risk, hormone receptor-positive early breast cancer. (Funded by the Chief Scientist Office of the Scottish Government and the Breast Cancer Institute, Western General Hospital, Edinburgh; ISRCTN number, ISRCTN95889329.).
Tailored fieldwork design to increase representative household survey response: an experiment in the Survey of Consumer Satisfaction

Summary. We used a tailored survey design to obtain a more representative response. Paradata from previous consumer sentiments surveys and register information were used to stratify the sample into groups that differed in contact and co‐operation propensity. We approached an experimental sample of 3000 households with a Web–mail–computer‐assisted telephone interviewing sequential mixed mode strategy. The choice of initial mode and the subsequent computer‐assisted telephone interviewing approach were tailored to the expected contact and co‐operation propensities of the sample units. In the computer‐assisted telephone interviewing follow‐up of non‐respondents, co‐operation was manipulated by assigning specific interviewers to specific sample units. Contact was manipulated by timing, spacing and prioritizing calls. The tailored fieldwork strategy was successful in significantly increasing representativeness, while maintaining the level of response and costs. Representativeness was determined by R‐indicators.
Optimization using response surface methodology of phospholipase C production from Bacillus cereus suitable for soybean oil degumming

Abstract This work deals with the optimization of an extracellular phospholipase C production by Bacillus cereus (PLCBc) using Response Surface Methodology (RMS) and Box-Behnken design. In fact, after optimization, a maximum phospholipase activity (51 U/ml) was obtained after 6 h of cultivation on tryptone (10 g/L), yeast extract (10 g/L), NaCl (8.125 g/L), pH 7.5 with initial OD (0.15). The PLCBc activity, esteemed by the model (51 U) was very approximate to activity gutted experimentally (50 U). The PLCBc can be considered as thermoactive phospholipase since it showed a maximal activity of 50 U/mL at 60 °C using egg yolk or egg phosphatidylcholine (PC) as substrate. In addition, the enzyme was active at pH 7 and is stable after incubation at 55 °C for 30 min. The application of B. cereus phospholipase C in soybean oil degumming was investigated. Our results showed that when using enzymatic degumming, the residual phosphorus decrease more than with water degumming, indeed, it passes from 718 ppm in soybean crude oil to 100 ppm and 52 ppm by degumming using water and enzymatic process, respectively. The diacylgycerol (DAG) yield showed an increase of 1.2% with enzymatic degumming compared to soybean crude oil. This makes our enzyme a potential candidate for food industrial applications such as enzymatic degumming of vegetable oils.
Efficient Calculation of Radiation Heat Transfer in Participating Media

A low-cost computational solution to radiation problems can be obtained by using a simple model, such as the P 1 model, but the accuracy can be very poor. High accuracy can be obtained by solving the radiative transfer equation, but the solution cost can be exorbitant for strongly participating media. The Q L method presented in this paper allows the radiation heat transfer to be computed from a single equation for the average intensity, like the P 1 model, but the Q L equation contains parameters that account for a nonuniform intensity distribution. The method converges to the solution of the radiative transfer equation with grid refinement and will accommodate any scattering phase function. For a given spatial and directional discretization, and for problems involving radiation only, the accuracy of the Q L method is shown to equal or exceed that of the finite volume method. The solution cost of the Q L method is comparable to the finite volume method for weakly participating media, but for strongly participating media the Q L method is much less costly. The Q L method is designed for application in general-purpose codes in which radiation is but one of several important processes, and it is in such applications that the major benefits of the Q L method are expected.
Comparison of Speech Perception Utilizing Monotic and Dichotic Modes of Listening

Two experiments were designed to compare speech perception, as measured by the Revised Peterson‐Lehiste CNC word lists, for individuals with with bilateral approximately symmetrical sensory hearing losses, utilizing monotic and dichotic modes of listening. The monotic modes consisted of a monaural amplifier and an amplifying system of two channels to one ear (monotic V cord). Dichotic modes comprised a binaural system of amplification and a two channel amplifying system to each ear (double V cord). In Expt. 1, randomized word lists were presented through high fidelity amplifiers and earphones; in Expt. 2, commercial hearing aids were used. Statistical analysis of the data supported the following hypotheses for subjects with bilateral approximately symmetrical sensory hearing losses: (1) Dichotic modes were superior for speech perception to monotic modes of amplification; (2) The binaural mode was superior for speech perception to the two‐channel modes (monotic V cord and double V cord systems) of amplific.
A physical optics version of the geometrical theory of diffraction

The authors derive a diffraction coefficient which is suitable for calculating the filed diffracted by the vertices of perfectly conducting objects. This diffraction coefficient is used to calculate the field scattered by the corner of a metallic sheet. Two diffraction coefficients, one for edges and one for vertices, are derived by solving the appropriate canonical problems using the physical optics (PO) approximation. The diffraction coefficients are calculated by first using the PO approximation which consists of calculating the total field on the surface of an object from the incident field according to the laws of geometrical optics, and then calculating the scattered field by employing this total surface field in a vector diffraction integral. The validity of the diffraction coefficients has been investigated by comparing their predictions with experimental measurements of the scattered field from a single corner of a rectangular metal sheet, and good agreement was found. >
Consonant Perception in Connected Syllables Spoken at a Conversational Syllabic Rate

Closed-set consonant identification, measured using nonsense syllables, has been commonly used to investigate the encoding of speech cues in the human auditory system. Such tasks also evaluate the robustness of speech cues to masking from background noise and their impact on auditory-visual speech integration. However, extending the results of these studies to everyday speech communication has been a major challenge due to acoustic, phonological, lexical, contextual, and visual speech cue differences between consonants in isolated syllables and in conversational speech. In an attempt to isolate and address some of these differences, recognition of consonants spoken in multisyllabic nonsense phrases (e.g., aBaSHaGa spoken as /ɑbɑʃɑɡɑ/) produced at an approximately conversational syllabic rate was measured and compared with consonant recognition using Vowel-Consonant-Vowel bisyllables spoken in isolation. After accounting for differences in stimulus audibility using the Speech Intelligibility Index, consonants spoken in sequence at a conversational syllabic rate were found to be more difficult to recognize than those produced in isolated bisyllables. Specifically, place- and manner-of-articulation information was transmitted better in isolated nonsense syllables than for multisyllabic phrases. The contribution of visual speech cues to place-of-articulation information was also lower for consonants spoken in sequence at a conversational syllabic rate. These data imply that auditory-visual benefit based on models of feature complementarity from isolated syllable productions may over-estimate real-world benefit of integrating auditory and visual speech cues.
Analysing X-ray pulsar profiles Geometry and beam pattern of 4U 0115+63 and V 0332+53

Aims. By analysing the asymmetric pulse profiles of the transient Be/X-ray binaries 4U 0115+63 and V 0332+53 we aim to identify the origin of the pulsed emission to understand the geometry of the accretion onto the neutron star. Methods. We have applied the pulse-profile decomposition method, which enabled us to find two symmetric pulse profiles for the two magnetic poles of the neutron star. We derived beam patterns for different energy bands and luminosity states. This allowed us to identify the components that are responsible for the emission. The analysis and the models used for the interpretation of the results take relativistic light deflection into account. Results. We find that the magnetic field of the neutron star is distorted in both 4U 0115+63 and V 0332+53. The beam patterns are interpreted in terms of a model for an accretion column that includes the formation of a halo at the bottom of the accretion column and scattering in the upper accretion stream. Conclusions. In both systems, an accretion column forms while the accretion rate is high. If the accretion decreases and the sources become fainter, the emission from the halo and the accretion column disappears. In 4U 0115+63 there seems to be significant scattering of photons in the still existing accretion stream even at the end of the outburst. In V 0332+53, the scattering in the upper stream also disappears at the end and we apparently observe the emission from the hot spots on the neutron star.
Ketamine as advanced second‐line treatment in benzodiazepine‐refractory convulsive status epilepticus in children

Status epilepticus (SE) is one of the most common neurological emergencies in children. To date, there is no definitive evidence to guide treatment of SE refractory to benzodiazepines. The main objectives of treatment protocols are to expedite therapeutic decisions and to use fast‐ and short‐acting medications without significant adverse effects. Protocols differ among institutions, and most frequently valproate, phenytoin, and levetiracetam are used as second‐line treatment. After failure of first‐ and second‐line medications, admission to the intensive care unit and continuous infusion of anesthetics are usually indicated. Ketamine is a noncompetitive N‐methyl‐D‐aspartate receptor antagonist that has been safely used for the treatment of refractory SE in adults and children. In animal models of SE, ketamine demonstrated antiepileptic and neuroprotective properties and synergistic effects with other antiseizure medications. We reviewed the literature to demonstrate the potential role of ketamine as an advanced second‐line agent in the treatment of SE. Pharmacological targets, pathophysiology of SE, and the receptor trafficking hypothesis are reviewed and presented. The pharmacology of ketamine is outlined with related properties, advantages, and side effects. We summarize the most recent and relevant publications on experimental and clinical studies on ketamine in SE. Key expert opinion is also reported. Considering the current knowledge on SE pathophysiology, early sequential polytherapy should include ketamine for its wide range of positive assets. Future research and clinical trials on SE pharmacotherapy should focus on the role of ketamine as second‐line medication.
Effects of an Immersive Virtual Reality Intervention on Pain and Anxiety Among Pediatric Patients Undergoing Venipuncture

Key Points Question Compared with standard care, do distraction and procedural information provided through immersive virtual reality (IVR) improve pain among pediatric patients undergoing venipuncture? Findings In this randomized clinical trial of 149 pediatric patients undergoing venipuncture, an IVR intervention significantly improved patient-reported pain. Meaning These findings suggest that IVR was more effective than standard care in improving pain among pediatric patients undergoing venipuncture.
Using fecal immmunochemical cartridges for gut microbiome analysis within a colorectal cancer screening program

ABSTRACT The colorectal cancer (CRC) screening program B-PREDICT is an invited two-stage screening project using a fecal immunochemical test (FIT) for initial screening followed by a colonoscopy for those with a positive FIT. Since the gut microbiome likely plays a role in the etiology of CRC, microbiome-based biomarkers in combination with FIT could be a promising tool for optimizing CRC screening. Therefore, we evaluated the usability of FIT cartridges for microbiome analysis and compared it to Stool Collection and Preservation Tubes. Corresponding FIT cartridges as well as Stool Collection and Preservation Tubes were collected from participants of the B-PREDICT screening program to perform 16S rRNA gene sequencing. We calculated intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) based on center log ratio transformed abundances and used ALDEx2 to test for significantly differential abundant taxa between the two sample types. Additionally, FIT and Stool Collection and Preservation Tube triplicate samples were obtained from volunteers to estimate variance components of microbial abundances. FIT and Preservation Tube samples produce highly similar microbiome profiles which cluster according to subject. Significant differences between the two sample types can be found for abundances of some bacterial taxa (e.g. 33 genera) but are minor compared to the differences between the subjects. Analysis of triplicate samples revealed slightly worse repeatability of results for FIT than for Preservation Tube samples. Our findings indicate that FIT cartridges are appropriate for gut microbiome analysis nested within CRC screening programs.
HIV-1 prehairpin intermediate inhibitors show efficacy independent of neutralization tier

Significance HIV-1 strains are categorized into three tiers based on their sensitivity to neutralization by patient antisera, but it is poorly understood how these tiers influence the efficacy of inhibitors targeting the prehairpin intermediate (PHI) of HIV-1 glycoprotein Env. Here, we find that a PHI-targeting Ab and protein inhibitor have strikingly consistent neutralization potencies across all three tiers, whereas four broadly neutralizing antibodies (bnAbs) currently used in clinical trials show large variability against these viruses. Although PHI-targeting antibodies identified to date generally have modest neutralization potencies, our results demonstrate that the current system of classifying HIV-1 is not relevant for PHI-targeting HIV-1 vaccine efforts and strongly imply that such strategies can provide an especially broad layer of protection.
‘The wife should do as her husband advises’: Understanding factors influencing contraceptive use decision making among married Pakistani couples—Qualitative study

This paper explores the perceptions and attitudes of married couples which prevent them from using modern contraceptive for purpose of family planning, based on semi-structured interviews with 16 married couples from rural Pakistan. This study, with married couples, not using any modern contraceptives, discussed issues of spousal communication and religious norms using qualitative methods. Despite near universal knowledge of modern contraceptives among married Pakistani women, the use continues to be low, with high unmet need. Understanding the couple context about reproductive decision making, pregnancy and family planning intentions is imperative to helping individuals fulfil their reproductive desires. Married couples may have varying intentions and desires about family size; a lack of alignment between partners may lead to unintended pregnancies and affect uptake and use of contraception. This study specifically explored the factors which prevent married couples from using LARCs for family planning, despite their availability, at affordable prices in the study area of rural Islamabad, Pakistan. Findings show differences between concordant and discordant couples regarding desired family size, contraceptive communication and influence of religious beliefs. Understanding the role that male partners play in family planning and use of contraceptives is important in preventing unintended pregnancies and improving service delivery programmes. This study also helped identify the challenges married couples, particularly men have in understanding family planning and contraceptive use. The results also show that while men’s participation in family planning decision making is limited, there is also a lack of programs and interventions for Pakistani men. The study findings can support development of appropriate strategies and implementation plans.