Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Pervasive and diffuse muscle activity during REM sleep and non‐REM sleep characterises multiple system atrophy in comparison with Parkinson's disease

Multiple system atrophy (MSA) and Parkinson's disease (PD) may share overlapping features particularly at early disease stage, including sleep alterations, but have profoundly different prognoses. Certain sleep phenomena and disorders of motor control are more prevalent in multiple system atrophy, such as REM sleep behaviour disorder (RBD). We quantitatively tested whether pervasive muscle activity during sleep occurs in subjects with multiple system atrophy versus Parkinson's disease. Laboratory polysomnographic studies were performed in 50 consecutive subjects with Parkinson's disease and 26 age‐ and gender‐matched subjects with multiple system atrophy at <5 years from disease onset. The distributions of normalised electromyographic activity of submentalis, wrist extensor, and tibialis anterior muscles in different wake–sleep states during the night were analysed. Subjects with multiple system atrophy had significantly higher activity of submentalis, wrist extensor, and tibialis anterior muscles than subjects with Parkinson's disease during non‐REM sleep, including separately in stages N1, N2, and N3, and during REM sleep, but not during nocturnal wakefulness. The activity of wrist extensor and tibialis anterior muscles during non‐REM sleep and the activity of tibialis anterior muscles during REM sleep were also significantly higher in subjects with multiple system atrophy and RBD than in subjects with Parkinson's disease and RBD. In conclusion, with respect to Parkinson's disease, multiple system atrophy is characterised by a pervasive and diffuse muscle overactivity that involves axial and limb muscles and occurs not only during REM sleep, but also during non‐REM sleep and between subjects with comorbid RBD.
Hot Deformation Behavior of Alloy AA7003 with Different Zn/Mg Ratios

The hot-deformation behavior of three medium-strength Al-Zn-Mg alloys with different Zn/Mg ratios was studied using isothermal-deformation compression tests; the true strain and true stress were recorded for constructing series-processing maps. A few constitutive equations describe the relationship between flow stress and hot-working parameters. The microstructures were characterized using an electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) detector and transmission electron microscope (TEM). The results show that the optimized deformation parameters for ternary alloy AA7003 are within a temperature range of 653 K to 813 K and with strain rates lower than 0.3 S−1. The microstructures show that materials with a lower Zn/Mg ratio of 6.3 could lead to a problematic hot-deformation capability. Alloys with a higher Zn/Mg ratio of 10.8 exhibited better workability than lower Zn/Mg ratios. The Al3Zr dispersoids are effective in inhibiting the recrystallization for alloy AA7003, and the Zn/Mg ratios could potentially affect the drag force of the dispersoids.
Professionalizing Public Administration and the Impact of Performance Audit on Public Organizations in Tanzania

This article examines the impact of performance audits on public organizations in Tanzania using the Tanzania Public Service College as a case study. The study subscribes to an interpretive research paradigm, which allowed for adopting a qualitative approach to understand participants' perceptions thoroughly. Documentary findings from audit reports between 2010-2017 have collaborated with 32 interviews from the respondents who participated in the auditing process over the study period. The study findings are linked to the independent factors identified in the literature on the quality of the information in audit reports and the impact of audit investigations. The article concludes that the impact of performance audits depends on whether auditees agree with recommendations. Notably, the article argues that fundamental changes can be realized in the presence of strong internal control systems. The role of collaboration and trust, parliament, media, and auditors’ expertise in ensuring the impact of performance audits were also highlighted. Finally, theoretical and practical recommendations are drawn, and study limitations and areas for future research are highlighted.
Herpes Simplex Virus Infection Increases Beta-Amyloid Production and Induces the Development of Alzheimer's Disease

Background Alzheimer's disease, a neurodegenerative memory disease, primarily results from the formation of amyloid plaques (Aβ) that gradually inhibit neuron communications. The entire mechanism of Aβ production remains unclear to date, and it is of particular interest among scientists to find out the exact mechanism that leads to amyloid precursor protein (APP) cleavage through the amyloidogenic pathway so that effective treatments can be developed. Method 2 sets of experiments with the use of human H4-N cell lines are proposed to fully investigate the validity of the hypothesis. All of the experiments would involve immunoblotting of Aβ using an anti-Aβ antibody, and the results would be analyzed with the assistance of an image analyzer. A significant amount of Aβ would be expected to be present in the cytoplasm of cells with herpes simplex virus (HSV-1) applied, as APP endocytosis would be induced by HSV-1, which leads to higher Aβ levels inside the cell. Results In this paper, a new hypothesis is presented on how HSV-1 infection initiates APP endocytosis and causes an increase in APP cleavage and Aβ production inside the cells. It is also hypothesized that increased Aβ peptides exit the cell via exocytosis, therefore, leading to the development of Alzheimer's disease. The findings will support the hypothesis if intracellular Aβ concentration is significantly higher after the introduction of dHSV-1 and subsequently if extracellular Aβ concentration becomes higher without TeNT exocytosis inhibition. Conclusion The results of this study would provide valuable insights into the mechanisms underlying Alzheimer's disease and open new scopes of research for its potential treatments. Further studies on virus infection and the development of memory diseases should be conducted to investigate possible correlations.
Prevalence of Escherichia coli ST1193 Causing Intracranial Infection in Changsha, China

ST1193 is an emerging new virulent and resistant clone among Escherichia coli with a tendency to spread rapidly across the globe. However, the prevalence of intracranial infection-causing E. coli ST1193 is rarely reported. This study aimed at determining the prevalence of E. coli ST1193 isolates, causing intracranial infections in Changsha, central China. A total of 28 E. coli isolates were collected from the cerebrospinal fluid of patients with intracranial infection over a four-year period. All isolates were differentiated using multilocus sequence typing (MLST), and phylogenetic grouping, and tested for antibiotic resistance. MLST analysis showed 11 sequence types (ST) among the 28 E. coli isolates. The most prevalent ST was B2-ST1193 (28.6%, 8/28), followed by B2-ST131 (21.4%, 6/28) and F-ST648 (10.7%, 3/28). Of the eight ST1193 isolates, three carried CTX-M-55, and one carried CTX-M-27. All eight ST1193 isolates were resistant to Ciprofloxacin, showing gyrA1AB/parC4A mutations. Two ST1193 isolates carried the aac(6′)-Ib-cr gene. All ST1193 isolates were recovered from infants with meningitis, with a fatal outcome for one three-month-old infant. ST1193 has emerged as the predominant type of E. coli strain causing intracranial infections in Changsha, China. This study highlights the importance of implementing appropriate surveillance measures to prevent the spread of this emerging public health threat.
Perceived stress in patients with inflammatory and non‐inflammatory skin conditions. An observational controlled study among 255 Norwegian dermatological outpatients

Abstract Background Inflammation may increase stress, while stress may promote inflammation. Most dermatological conditions are chronic and inflammatory, while some, such as cancer, naevi and tumours are non‐inflammatory, but may cause stress because of the fear of malignancy and the necessity for surgical and other invasive treatments. Stress among patients with skin diseases is little explored. Objectives To assess perceived stress in patients with inflammatory and non‐inflammatory skin conditions compared to healthy controls. Methods Observational cross‐sectional study. Consecutive outpatients (N = 255) visiting the Department of Dermatology, Stavanger University Hospital, Norway and 148 skin‐healthy controls contributed by answering questionnaires on sociodemographics, stressful life events, economic difficulties, self‐rated health and perceived stress. The validated Perceived Stress Scale10 was used to evaluate stress. A dermatologist examined patients and registered their diagnoses and comorbidities. Controls included in this study were not examined by a dermatologist and self‐reported their comorbidities. Results Patients with an inflammatory skin disease or psoriasis have a tripled risk of reporting moderate to high stress compared with controls when adjusted for relevant confounders, including having experienced a stressful life event recently or having a comorbidity. Patients with a purely non‐inflammatory skin disease perceived stress no differently than controls. Conclusion Patients with inflammatory skin disease perceived higher stress than controls and patients with non‐inflammatory skin conditions. Dermatologists may play a role in awareness of the importance of stress in skin disease.
Proteomic, Metabolomic, and Lipidomic Analyses of Lung Tissue Exposed to Mustard Gas

Sulfur mustard (HD) poses a serious threat due to its relatively simple production process. Exposure to HD in the short-term causes an inflammatory response, while long-term exposure results in DNA and RNA damage. Respiratory tract tissue models were exposed to relatively low concentrations of HD and collected at 3 and 24 h post exposure. Histology, cytokine ELISAs, and mass spectrometric-based analyses were performed. Histology and ELISA data confirmed previously seen lung damage and inflammatory markers from HD exposure. The multi-omic mass spectrometry data showed variation in proteins and metabolites associated with increased inflammation, as well as DNA and RNA damage. HD exposure causes DNA and RNA damage that results in variation of proteins and metabolites that are associated with transcription, translation and cellular energy.
A Study of the Stability Properties of SPH

When using a formulation of Smooth Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) which conserves momentum exactly the motion of the particles is observed to be unstable to negative stress. It is also found that under normal circumstances a lattice of SPH particles is potentially unstable to transverse waves. This document is a summary of a detailed report (Morris 1994) investigating the nature of these and other instabilities in depth. Approaches which may be used to eliminate these instabilities are suggested. It is found that the stability properties of SPH in general improve as higher order spline interpolants, approximating a Gaussian, are used as kernels.
COVID-19 treatments

The race to protect against severe outcomes of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by SARS-CoV-2, has spurred the rapid development and authorization of novel vaccines and treatments worldwide. Individuals infected with SARS-COV-2 may experience a wide spectrum of symptoms, from nil (asymptomatic), mild (fever, cough, and dyspnea), to more severe clinical course (including acute respiratory distress, pneumonia, renal failure, and death). While uptake of the recommended vaccines exceed 83% (fully vaccinated) within the Canadian population, levels of protection vary, especially in patients with PID who have abnormal humoral and cellular immune responses. At present, there are 6 COVID-19 treatments authorized for use in Canada. These include (i) neutralizing antibodies targeting the spike protein of SARS-COV-2 to prevent virus entry into healthy cells, and (ii) antivirals that inhibit the ability of the SARS-CoV-2 virus to replicate. We provide here a brief overview of the indications and dose of the currently available treatments.
Obtaining Ultrafine Dispersions of Silver Particles in Poly(vinyl Alcohol) Matrix Using Mechanical Alloying

Mechanical alloying was performed to obtain a composite material with a homogeneous dispersion of silver particles in a poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) matrix. Silver is a bactericidal material, and PVA is a widely used biocompatible polymer. Therefore, this mix can lead to a potentially functional biomaterial. This study focuses on the combination of both materials, processed by mechanical alloying, which has a promising application potential. The silver (Ag) used was ultrafine, measuring between 200 and 400 nanometers, produced from silver nitrate (AgNO3) redox. The Attritor high–energy, water–cooled ball mill was used to mill PVA for 4 h, at 600 rpm speed rotation and 38:1 power milling. Mechanical alloying was demonstrated to cause particle refinement in PVA with a timespan of 1 h. A slight additional particle decrease occurred for long–time milling. A milling time of 4 h was used to disperse the silver particles in the polymer matrix homogeneously. Hot pressing films were produced from the obtained dispersion powders. The microstructural features were studied using several material characterization techniques. Antimicrobial Susceptibility Tests (AST), conducted in an in–vitro assay, showed a hydrophilic character of the films and a protection against bacterial growth, making the process a promising path for the production of surface protective polymeric films.
The Development of Firm Value Model on Tax Avoidance Activities of Consumer Goods Industry During COVID-19 Pandemic

This study aims to analyze the influence between the implementation of Good Corporate Governance, Financial Leverage, and risk management on company value through Tax Avoidance in the Consumer Goods Industry during the Covid-19 pandemic. The research methodology uses case study quantitative methods. The research sample is 70 consumer goods industries listed on the IDX, which have released their financial statements for the 2019-2020 period. The total sample data is 140 data that will be observed. The data analysis technique uses Path Analysis with E-views and Microsoft Excel 2019. The current research results show that the GCG (X1), Financial Leverage (X2), and Risk Management (X3) variables have a significant effect on Firm Value (Y). at the same time, the Tax Avoidance variable cannot moderate the relationship between GCG and Risk Management on Company Value. However, the Tax Avoidance variable can moderate the relationship between Financial Leverage and Firm Value.
A Survey on IoT Intrusion Detection: Federated Learning, Game Theory, Social Psychology, and Explainable AI as Future Directions

In the past several years, the world has witnessed an acute surge in the production and usage of smart devices which are referred to as the Internet of Things (IoT). These devices interact with each other as well as with their surrounding environments to sense, gather and process data of various kinds. Such devices are now part of our everyday’s life and are being actively used in several verticals, such as transportation, healthcare, and smart homes. IoT devices, which usually are resource-constrained, often need to communicate with other devices, such as fog nodes and/or cloud computing servers to accomplish certain tasks that demand large resource requirements. These communications entail unprecedented security vulnerabilities, where malicious parties find in this heterogeneous and multiparty architecture a compelling platform to launch their attacks. In this work, we conduct an in-depth survey on the existing intrusion detection solutions proposed for the IoT ecosystem which includes the IoT devices as well as the communications between the IoT, fog computing, and cloud computing layers. Although some survey articles already exist, the originality of this work stems from the three following points: 1) discuss the security issues of the IoT ecosystem not only from the perspective of IoT devices but also taking into account the communications between the IoT, fog, and cloud computing layers; 2) propose a novel two-level classification scheme that first categorizes the literature based on the approach used to detect attacks and then classify each approach into a set of subtechniques; and 3) propose a comprehensive cybersecurity framework that combines the concepts of explainable artificial intelligence (XAI), federated learning, game theory, and social psychology to offer future IoT systems a strong protection against cyberattacks.
STACKED REST-FRAME ULTRAVIOLET SPECTRA OF Lyα-EMITTING AND CONTINUUM-SELECTED GALAXIES AT 2 < z < 3.5

We present properties of individual and composite rest-UV spectra of continuum- and narrowband-selected star-forming galaxies (SFGs) at a redshift of 2 < z < 3.5 discovered by the MUSYC collaboration in the Extended Chandra Deep Field-South. Among our sample of 81 UV-bright SFGs, 59 have R < 25.5, of which 32 have rest-frame equivalent widths of WLyα > 20 Å, the canonical limit to be classified as an Lyα-emitting galaxy. We divide our data set into subsamples based on properties that we are able to measure for each individual galaxy: Lyα equivalent width, rest-frame UV colors, and redshift. Among our subsample of galaxies with R < 25.5, those with rest frame WLyα > 20 Å have bluer UV continua, weaker low-ionization interstellar absorption lines, weaker C iv absorption, and stronger Si ii* nebular emission than those with WLyα < 20 Å. We measure a velocity offset of Δv ∼ 600 km s−1 between Lyα emission and low-ionization absorption, which does not vary substantially among any of our subsamples. We find that the interstellar component, as opposed to the stellar component, dominates the high-ionization absorption line profiles. We find that the low- and high-ionization Si ionization states have similar kinematic properties, yet the low-ionization absorption is correlated with Lyα emission and the high-ionization absorption is not. These trends are consistent with outflowing neutral gas being in the form of neutral clouds embedded in ionized gas as previously suggested by Steidel et al. Moreover, our galaxies with bluer UV colors have stronger Lyα emission, weaker low-ionization absorption, and more prominent nebular emission line profiles. From a redshift of 2.7 < z < 3.5 to 2.0 < z < 2.7, our subsample of galaxies with WLyα < 20 Å shows no significant evolution in their physical properties or the nature of their outflows. Among our data set, UV-bright galaxies with WLyα > 20 Å exhibit weaker Lyα emission at lower redshifts, although we caution that this could be caused by spectroscopic confirmation of low Lyα equivalent width galaxies being harder at z ∼ 3 than z ∼ 2.
Comparison of Eye and Face Features on Drowsiness Analysis

Drowsiness is one of the leading causes of traffic accidents. For those who operate large machinery or motor vehicles, incidents due to lack of sleep can cause property damage and sometimes lead to grave consequences of injuries and fatality. This study aims to design learning models to recognize drowsiness through human facial features. In addition, this work analyzes the attentions of individual neurons in the learning model to understand how neural networks interpret drowsiness. For this analysis, gradient-weighted class activation mapping (Grad-CAM) is implemented in the neural networks to display the attention of neurons. The eye and face images are processed separately to the model for the training process. The results initially show that better results can be obtained by delivering eye images alone. The effect of Grad-CAM is also more reasonable using eye images alone. Furthermore, this work proposed a feature analysis method, K-nearest neighbors Sigma (KNN-Sigma), to estimate the homogeneous concentration and heterogeneous separation of the extracted features. In the end, we found that the fusion of face and eye signals gave the best results for recognition accuracy and KNN-sigma. The area under the curve (AUC) of using face, eye, and fusion images are 0.814, 0.897, and 0.935, respectively.
Exogenous 3-Iodothyronamine (T1AM) Can Affect Phosphorylation of Proteins Involved on Signal Transduction Pathways in In Vitro Models of Brain Cell Lines, but These Effects Are Not Strengthened by Its Catabolite, 3-Iodothyroacetic Acid (TA1)

T1AM, a derivative of thyroid hormones, and its major catabolite, TA1, produce effects on memory acquisition in rodents. In the present study, we compared the effects of exogenous T1AM and TA1 on protein belonging to signal transduction pathways, assuming that TA1 may strengthen T1AM’s effects in brain tissue. A hybrid line of cancer cells of mouse neuroblastoma and rat glioma (NG 108-15), as well as a human glioblastoma cell line (U-87 MG) were used. We first characterized the in vitro model by analyzing gene expression of proteins involved in the glutamatergic cascade and cellular uptake of T1AM and TA1. Then, cell viability, glucose consumption, and protein expression were assessed. Both cell lines expressed receptors implicated in glutamatergic pathway, namely Nmdar1, Glur2, and EphB2, but only U-87 MG cells expressed TAAR1. At pharmacological concentrations, T1AM was taken up and catabolized to TA1 and resulted in more cytotoxicity compared to TA1. The major effect, highlighted in both cell lines, albeit on different proteins involved in the glutamatergic signaling, was an increase in phosphorylation, exerted by T1AM but not reproduced by TA1. These findings indicate that, in our in vitro models, T1AM can affect proteins involved in the glutamatergic and other signaling pathways, but these effects are not strengthened by TA1.
Natural Antioxidant, Antibacterial, and Antiproliferative Activities of Ethanolic Extracts from Punica granatum L. Tree Barks Mediated by Extracellular Signal-Regulated Kinase

The nonedible parts of the pomegranate plant, such as tree barks and fruit peels, have pharmacological properties that are useful in traditional medicine. To increase their value, this study aimed to compare the antioxidative and antibacterial effects of ethanolic extracts from pomegranate barks (PBE) and peels (PPE). The antiproliferative effects on HeLa and HepG2 cells through the extracellular signal-regulated kinase pathway were also evaluated. The results indicated that the total amounts of phenolics and flavonoids of PBE and PPE were 574.64 and 242.60 mg equivalent gallic acid/g sample and 52.98 and 23.08 mg equivalent quercetin/g sample, respectively. Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry revealed that 5-hdroxymethylfurfural was the major component of both PBE (23.76%) and PPE (33.19%). The 2,2-diphenyl-1-picryl-hydrazyl-hydrate free radical scavenging capacities of PBE and PPE, in terms of the IC50 value, were 4.1 and 9.6 µg/mL, respectively. PBE had a greater potent antibacterial effect against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella Enteritidis, and S. Typhimurium. PBE and PPE (1000 µg/mL) had exhibited no cytotoxic effects on LLC-MK2. PBE and PPE (250 and 1000 µg/mL, respectively) treatments were safe for BHK-21. Both extracts significantly inhibited HepG2 and HeLa cell proliferations at 10 and 50 µg/mL, respectively (p < 0.001). The results indicated that PBE and PPE have remarkable efficiencies as free radical scavengers and antibacterial agents, with PBE exhibiting greater efficiency. The inhibitory effects on HepG2 might be through the modulation of the ERK1/2 expression. PBE and PPE have the potential for use as optional supplementary antioxidative, antibacterial, and anticancer agents.