Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Prevalence and Longevity of SARS-CoV-2 Antibodies in Healthcare Workers: A Single Center Study

Understanding SARS-CoV-2 antibody prevalence as a marker of prior infection in a spectrum of healthcare workers (HCWs) may guide risk stratification and enactment of better health policies and procedures. The present study reported on cross-sectional study to determine the prevalence and longevity of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in HCWs at a regional hospital system in Orange County, California, between May and August, 2020. Data from HCWs (n=3,458) were included in the analysis. Data from first responders (n=226) were also analyzed for comparison. A blood sample was collected at study enrollment and 8-week follow-up. Information on job duties, location, COVID-19 symptoms, polymerase chain reaction test history, travel since January 2020, and household contacts with COVID-19 was collected. Comparisons to estimated community prevalence were also evaluated. Observed antibody prevalence was 0.93% and 2.58% at initial and 8-week follow-up, respectively, for HCWs, and 5.31% and 4.35% for first responders. For HCWs, significant differences (p < .05) between negative vs. positive at initial assessment were found for age, race, fever, and loss of smell, and at 8-week follow-up for age, race, and all symptoms. Antibody positivity persisted at least 8 weeks in this cohort. Among 75 HCWs with self-reported prior PCR-confirmed COVID-19, 35 (46.7%) were antibody negative. Significant differences between negative vs. positive were observed in age and frequency of symptoms. This study found considerably lower SARS-CoV-2 antibody prevalence among HCWs compared with prior published studies. This may be explained by better safety measures in the workplace, heightened awareness inside and outside of the workplace, possibly lower susceptibility due to innate immunity and other biological heterogeneity, and low COVID-19 prevalence in the community itself. HCWs with initial positive results had persistent positive serologies at 8 weeks. Further research is warranted to investigate factors influencing such lower prevalence in our HCWs.
A Preliminary Study on Human Brain Waves Influenced by Volatiles Released from Living Sorbaria kirilowii(Regel)Maxim. in Different Seasons

As one of the most common greenery vegetations in Beijing, Sorbaria kirilowii was investigated on its natural volatiles without damaged from the living plant. Such substances of volatiles were collected by high adsorptive TenaxGR by a portable circular system for lab TCTGC / MS analysis, which could determine most of the sampled chemicals. Variations of components in different seasons were found in the plant volatiles. The test on health volunteers inhaling such volatiles was observed that the trend of human mood changed into anxiety and tension, according to brain wave data simultaneously. Thus much attentions should be paid to the green olfactory environment design of forestry ergonomics with strictly use of Sorbaria kirilowii. 
Estimating epidemiologic dynamics from cross-sectional viral load distributions

Virologic testing for SARS-CoV-2 has been central to the COVID-19 pandemic response, but interpreting changes in incidence and fraction of positive tests towards understanding the epidemic trajectory is confounded by changes in testing practices. Here, we show that the distribution of viral loads, in the form of Cycle thresholds (Ct), from positive surveillance samples at a single point in time can provide accurate estimation of an epidemic's trajectory, subverting the need for repeated case count measurements which are frequently obscured by changes in testing capacity. We identify a relationship between the population-level cross-sectional distribution of Ct values and the growth rate of the epidemic, demonstrating how the skewness and median of detectable Ct values change purely as a mathematical epidemiologic rule without any change in individual level viral load kinetics or testing. Although at the individual level measurement variation can complicate interpretation of Ct values for clinical use, we show that population-level properties reflect underlying epidemic dynamics. In support of these theoretical findings, we observe a strong relationship between the time-varying effective reproductive number, R(t), and the distribution of Cts among positive surveillance specimens, including median and skewness, measured in Massachusetts over time. We use the observed relationships to derive a novel method that allows accurate inference of epidemic growth rate using the distribution of Ct values observed at a single cross-section in time, which, unlike estimates based on case counts, is less susceptible to biases from delays in test results and from changing testing practices. Our findings suggest that instead of discarding individual Ct values from positive specimens, incorporation of viral loads into public health data streams offers a new approach for real-time resource allocation and assessment of outbreak mitigation strategies, even where repeat incidence data is not available. Ct values or similar viral load data should be regularly reported to public health officials by testing centers and incorporated into monitoring programs.
Radiomic and clinical predictors of cachexia in non-small cell lung cancer patients treated with immunotherapy

Background: Cachexia is present in up to 50% of patients with cancer and may contribute to primary resistance to immunotherapy. Biomarkers to predict cachexia are urgently required for early intervention. Herein, we test the hypothesis that pre-treatment 18F-FDG-PET/CT-based radiomics can be used to predict cachexia and subsequently associated with clinical outcomes among patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who are treated with immunotherapy. Methods: This retrospective multi-institution study included 210 patients with histologically confirmed stage IIIB-IV NSCLC who were treated with immune checkpoint blockade between June 2011 and August 2019. Baseline (pre-immunotherapy) PET/CT images of 175 patients from Moffitt Cancer Center were used to train (N=123) and test (N=52) a radiomics signature to predict cachexia, which was also used to predict durable clinical benefit (DCB), progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) subsequently. An external cohort that enrolled 35 patients from James A. Haley Veterans' Hospital (VA) was used to further validate the predictive and prognostic value of this signature. Results: A radiomics signature demonstrated cachexia prediction ability with areas under receiver operating characteristics curves (AUC) of 0.77 (95%CI:0.68-0.85), 0.75 (95%CI:0.60-0.86) and of 0.73 (95%CI:0.53-0.92) in the training, test and external VA cohorts, respectively. For the further investigation of prognostic value, this signature could identify the patients with DCB with AUC of 0.67 (95%CI:0.57-0.77), 0.66 (95%CI:0.51-0.81), and 0.72 (95%CI:0.54-0.89) in these three cohorts. Additionally, the PFS and OS were significantly shorter among patients with higher radiomics signature in all the three cohorts (p<0.05). Conclusion: Using PET/CT radiomics analysis, cachexia could be predicted before the start of the immunotherapy, making it possible to monitor the patients with a higher risk of cachexia and identify patients most likely to benefit from immunotherapy.
Cost-effectiveness of Dengue Vaccination in Puerto Rico

An effective and widely used vaccine could reduce the burden of dengue virus (DENV) around the world. DENV is endemic in Puerto Rico, where the dengue vaccine CYD-TDV is currently under consideration as a control measure. CYD-TDV has demonstrated efficacy in clinical trials in vaccinees who had prior dengue infection. However, in vaccinees who had no prior dengue infection, the vaccine had a modestly elevated risk of hospitalization and severe disease. The WHO therefore recommended a strategy of pre-vaccination screening and vaccination of seropositive persons. To estimate the cost-effectiveness and benefits of this intervention (i.e., screening and vaccination of seropositive persons) in Puerto Rico, we simulated 10 years of the intervention in 9-year-olds using an agent-based model. Across the entire population, we found that 5.5% (4.6%-6.3%) of dengue hospitalizations could be averted. However, we also found that 1.6 (1.3 - 2.1) additional hospitalizations could occur for every 1,000 DENV-naive children who were vaccinated following a false-positive test results for prior exposure. The ratio of the averted hospitalizations among all vaccinees to additional hospitalizations among DENV-naive vaccinees was estimated to be 19 (13-24). At a base case cost of vaccination of 382 USD, we found an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of 122,000 USD per QALY gained. Our estimates can provide information for considerations to introduce the CYD-TDV vaccine in Puerto Rico.
Clinical characteristics and outcomes of adult patients admitted with COVID-19 in East London: a retrospective cohort analysis

Background Descriptions of clinical characteristics of patients hospitalised withCOVID-19, their clinical course and short-term inpatient and outpatient outcomes in deprived urban populations in the UK are still relatively sparse. We describe the epidemiology, clinical course, experience of non-invasive ventilation and intensive care, mortality and short-term sequelae of patients admitted to two large District General Hospitals across a large East London National Health Service Trust during the first wave of the pandemic. Methods A retrospective analysis was carried out on a cohort of 1946 patients with a clinical or laboratory diagnosis of COVID-19, including descriptive statistics and survival analysis. A more detailed analysis was undertaken of a subset of patients admitted across three respiratory units in the trust. Results Increasing age, male sex and Asian ethnicity were associated with worse outcomes. Increasing severity of chest X-ray abnormalities trended with mortality. Radiological changes persisted in over 50% of cases at early follow-up (6 weeks). Ongoing symptoms including hair loss, memory impairment, breathlessness, cough and fatigue were reported in 70% of survivors, with 39% of patients unable to return to work due to ongoing symptoms. Conclusions Understanding the acute clinical features, course of illness and outcomes of COVID-19 will be crucial in understanding the effect of differences in risk, as well as the effectiveness of new interventions and vaccination between the successive waves of the pandemic.
Investigating the Relationship Between IGF-I, IGF-II, and IGFBP-3 Concentrations and Later-Life Cognition and Brain Volume

Background: The insulin/insulin-like signalling (IIS) pathways, including Insulin-like Growth Factors (IGFs), varies with age. However, their association with late-life cognition and neuroimaging parameters is not well characterised. Methods: Using data from the British 1946 birth cohort we investigated associations of IGF-I, -II and IGFBP-3 (measured at 53 and 60-64 years) with cognitive performance (word learning test (WLT) and visual letter search (VLS) - at 60-64y and 69y) and cognitive state (Addenbrooke's Cognitive Exam-III (ACE-III) - at 69-71y), and in a proportion, quantified neuroimaging measures (whole brain volume (WBV); white matter hyperintensity volume (WMHV); hippocampal volume (HV)). Regression models included adjustments for demographic, lifestyle and health factors. Results: Higher IGF-I and IGF-II at 53y was associated with higher ACE-III scores (B 0.07 95%CI [0.02,0.12]; scoreACE-III 89.48 [88.86,90.1], respectively). IGF-II at age 53y was additionally associated with higher WLT scores (scoreWLT 20 [19.35,20.65]). IGFBP-3 at 60-64y was associated with favourable VLS score at 60-64y and 69y (B 0.07 [0.01,0.12]; B 0.07 [0.02,0.12], respectively), higher memory and cognitive state at 69y (B 0.07 [0.01,0.12]; B 0.07 [0.01,0.13], respectively) and reduced WMHV (B -0.1, [-0.21,-0.00]). IGF-I/IGFBP-3 at 60-64y was associated with slower VLS scores at 69y (B -0.08, [-0.15,-0.02]). Conclusions: Increased measure in IIS parameters (IGF-I, -II and IGFBP-3) relate to better cognitive state in later life. Furthermore, there were apparent associations with specific cognitive domains (IGF-II relating to memory; IGFBP-3 to memory, processing speed and WMHV; and IGF-I/IGFBP-3 molar ratio with slower processing speed). IGFs and IGFBP-3 are associated with favourable cognitive function outcomes.
Duration of Oxygen Requirement and Predictors in Severe COVID-19 Patients in Ethiopia: A Survival Analysis

Aim: To estimate time to getting off supplemental oxygen therapy and identify predictors among COVID-19 patients admitted to Millennium COVID-19 Care Center in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Methods: A prospective observational study was conducted among 244 consecutively admitted COVID-19 patients from July to September, 2020. Frequency tables, KM plots, median survival times and Log-rank test were used to describe the data and compare survival distribution between groups. Cox proportional hazard survival model was used to assess the presence of a statistically significant association between time to getting off supplemental oxygen therapy and the independent variables, where hazard ratio, P-value and 95% CI for hazard ratio were used for testing significance and interpretation of results. Results: Median time to getting off supplemental oxygen therapy among the studied population was 6 days. Factors that affect time to getting off supplemental oxygen therapy were age group (HR= 0.522, 95% CI= 0.323, 0.844, p-value=0.008 for [≥] 70 years) and shortness of breath (HR= 0.705, 95% CI= 0.519, 0.959, p-value=0.026). Conclusions: Average duration of supplemental oxygen therapy requirement among COVID-19 patients was 6 days and being 70 years and older and having shortness of breath were found to be associated with prolonged duration of supplemental oxygen therapy requirement. This result can be used as a guide in planning institutional resource allocation and patient management to provide a well equipped care to prevent complications and death from the disease.
Rationale and prognosis of repurposed drugs with risk stratification of patients in oxygen support in COVID-19: A systematic review and meta-analysis

There has been rapid development of clinical trials conducted on antivirals, immunomodulators, and other therapies against COVID-19. The rising number of trials has led to duplication and a need for curation of available outcomes from treatments that have been followed across the world. The rising number of trials has led to duplication and a need for curation of available outcomes from treatments that have been followed across the world. We have conducted a systematic review and meta analysis that focus on evaluating the clinical outcomes of repurposed drugs against COVID-19 including Tocilizumab, Remdesivir, Dexamethasome, Lopinavir-ritonavir, Favipiravir, Hydroxychloroquine, and Convalescent plasma therapy. Twenty-nine articles were included in this study after thorough literature search and performed subgroup analyses based on disease severity levels. Random effects model was adopted to estimate overall treatment effect and heterogeneity. Subgroup analysis on mortality rate showed significant overall effect in the treatment group of studies having critically ill patients (p<0.01). Overall, our study confirmed that tocilizumab may probably reduce the mortality (<10%) of patients with COVID-19 with faster recovery time and reduce the risk of patients with lung disease in falling into oxygen support (P = 0.02). Patients on remedesivir showed no significant associations of comorbidities with risk of falling into oxygen supports. Hydroxychloroquine was found to be inefficacious in COVID-19 patients (OR 0.64; 95%CI [0.47-0.86]). Dexamethasone had marginal effect on overall mortality rate (OR 1.19; 95%CI [1.05-1.35]), and hence helpful for patients on mechanical ventilation or ECMO. There was also evidence suggesting that combination therapies (serpin + Favipiravir) were helpful in reducing the mortality rate in COVID-19 patients under invasive support.
Nutritional status and its associated factors among HIV positive adolescents on Atazanavir-based regimen attending an urban clinic in Uganda

Background: Adolescents between the ages of 10-19 represent a growing portion of people living with HIV worldwide. A large proportion of adolescents living with HIV suffer from severe malnutrition because of the chronic ill health and this has been associated with increased morbidity and mortality particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa. Little is known about the nutrition status of adolescents living with HIV who are on second line treatment particularly Atazanavir. Therefore, we assessed the nutrition status and associated factors among HIV positive adolescents on Atazanavir-based regimen attending an urban clinic in Uganda. Method: This was a cross-sectional study carried out between December 2017 and July 2018. Using convenience sampling, adolescents aged 10-19 years attending an urban clinic in Kampala on Atazanavir-based regimen were enrolled into the study. Nutritional status was assessed using BMI-for-Age and Height-for-age as measures of thinness and stunting respectively. Standard deviation scores (Z scores) were applied to determine the nutritional status. WHO and CDC Z-score cut offs were used to categorize the nutrition status. Data was entered into an electronic database using REDCap. Statistical analysis was done using STATA version 15.1 (Texas, USA). Results: Data from 132 adolescents were included. We found that 28% were malnourished (composite outcome of stunting and thinness). The prevalence malnutrition of thinness was 7.6% with 2.3% being severely thin. The prevalence of stunting was 23.7% with 1.5% being severely stunted. Adolescents with no parent were more likely to be malnourished than adolescents who had either one or both parents (Adjusted Odds Ratio [AOR]: 3.70 95% Confidence Interval [CI]: 1.20-11.37, p=0.023). In addition, adolescents who had attained at least secondary education were less likely to be malnourished (AOR: 0.40, CI:0.17-0.95, P-value=0.037). Conclusion: There is a high proportion of adolescents with HIV who are malnourished. Low level of education (No education and elementary) and having no parent are important risk factors to malnutrition in this population. There is need for optimizing nutrition care for adolescents on HIV treatment.
Effects of a coal mine effluent on aquatic hyphomycetes. I. Field study

The effect of a discharge from an abandoned coal mine on the structure and functioning of aquatic hyphomycete assemblages colonizing leaf material was investigated. The discharge resulted in elevated concentrations of iron, manganese, magnesium, calcium and nickel in the receiving water. The rate of processing of both alder and sycamore leaves was reduced downstream of the discharge. Measurements of oxygen uptake by microbes associated with leaf material indicated a lower activity at this station. This reduction in activity was particularly marked for the fungal assemblages associated with leaf material. Scanning electron micrographs of leaf surfaces indicated that hyphal cover was also reduced on downstream-incubated leaf material. The observed reduction in fungal activity and hyphal cover below the mine discharge may have resulted from a change in species-specific fungal biomass and/or a change in the number of fungal species present. Surveys indicated that the structure of the fungal assemblage was different below the discharge, with fewer species being recorded. Results from this study therefore suggest that the reduction in leaf decomposition observed downstream of the mine discharge was due to a reduction in fungal activity associated with a change in species composition.
Predicting mortality of individual COVID-19 patients: A multicenter Dutch cohort

Objective: Develop and validate models that predict mortality of SARS-CoV-2 infected patients admitted to the hospital. Design: Retrospective cohort study Setting: A multicenter cohort across ten Dutch hospitals including patients from February 27 to June 8 2020. Participants: SARS-CoV-2 positive patients (age [≥] 18) admitted to the hospital. Main Outcome Measures: 21-day mortality evaluated by the area under the receiver operatory curve (AUC), sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value. The predictive value of age was explored by comparison with age-based rules used in practice and by excluding age from analysis. Results: 2273 patients were included, of whom 516 had died or discharged to palliative care within 21 days after admission. Five feature sets, including premorbid, clinical presentation and laboratory & radiology values, were derived from 80 features. Additionally, an ANOVA-based data-driven feature selection selected the ten features with the highest F-values: age, number of home medications, urea nitrogen, lactate dehydrogenase, albumin, oxygen saturation (%), oxygen saturation is measured on room air, oxygen saturation is measured on oxygen therapy, blood gas pH and history of chronic cardiac disease. A linear logistic regression (LR) and non-linear tree-based gradient boosting (XGB) algorithm fitted the data with an AUC of 0.81 (95% confidence interval 0.77 to 0.85) and 0.82 (0.79 to 0.85), respectively, using the ten selected features. Both models outperformed age-based decision rules used in practice (AUC of 0.69, 0.65 to 0.74 for age > 70). Furthermore, performance remained stable when excluding age as predictor (AUC of 0.78, 0.75 to 0.81) Conclusion: Both models showed excellent performance and had better test characteristics than age-based decision rules, using ten admission features readily available in Dutch hospitals. The models hold promise to aid decision making during a hospital bed shortage.
Onyx™ embolization for an angiographically progressive traumatic pseudoaneurysm of the middle meningeal artery: A case report and literature review

Traumatic pseudoaneurysm of the middle meningeal artery (MMA) is a rare entity that is typically associated with a high risk of rupture and mortality. Only few such cases of pseudoaneurysms have been reported in the medical literature and therefore, the optimal management of this condition remains undetermined. The present study reported on a female patient (age, 20 years) with angiographically progressive pseudoaneurysm of the MMA after head injury. The pseudoaneurysm was successfully embolized with the liquid, non-adhesive embolic agent Onyx™. The mechanism of formation of traumatic pseudoaneurysms, their imaging characteristics and the optimal treatment plan were discussed.
Toxic Metals in Soil-Plant Systems.

Partial table of contents: THEORY AND PROCESSES. Sources and Forms of Potentially Toxic Metals in Soil--Plant Systems (S. Ross). Retention, Transformation and Mobility of Toxic Metals in Soils (S. Ross). Toxic Metals: Fate and Distribution in Contaminated Ecosystems (S. Ross). CASE STUDIES. Mechanisms of Ecosystem Recovery Following 11 Years of Nutrient Enrichment in an Old--Field Community (S. Brewer, et al.). The Impact and Fate of Heavy Metals in an Oak Woodland Ecosystem (M. Martin & R. Bullock). Caesium Cycling in Heather Moorland Ecosystems (A. Horrill & G. Clint). A Metal Budget for a Monsoonal Wetland in Northern Australia (C. Finlayson). Index.
Order Coleoptera, family Dytiscidae

The dytiscid fauna of the territory of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is an almostcompletely unknown component of the fauna of the Arabian Peninsula. Van Harten (2005)listed a single species of Dytiscidae – the cosmopolitan species Eretes sticticus (Linnaeus,1767) from the UAE. Nevertheless, the extensive entomological research of Antonius vanHarten in the years 2004–2007, together with several expeditions of other entomologistsrevealed the presence of 18 species of Dytiscidae, including two species new to science, andenables us to fill this gap in the knowledge of the fauna of the UAE