Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Association of the Interleukin-10-592C/A Polymorphism and Cervical Cancer Risk: A Meta-Analysis

A literature review showed some discrepancies regarding the association of -592C/A with the risk of cervical cancer. To allow more precise analysis of the data by increasing the number of cases studied and more acceptable generalization by considering results from different sources, the present meta-analysis was performed on available published studies that explored the relationship between SNP-592C/A of the IL-10 gene and the risk of cervical cancer. Eleven available studies, including 4187 cases and 3311 controls, were included in this study investigating the relationship between the -592C/A polymorphism of IL-10 and cervical cancer risk. Fixed-effects or random-effects models were performed with pooled odds ratios (ORs). Heterogeneity and bias tests were performed by the inconsistency test and funnel plot, respectively. The overall analysis showed an increased susceptibility to cervical cancer with the -592C/A polymorphism of the IL-10 gene for the recessive model (OR = 1.30, 95% CI = 1.14–1.49), dominant model (OR = 1.36, 95% CI = 1.09–1.70), and additive model (OR = 1.25, 95% CI = 1.09–1.44). Regarding ethnicity, a significant association of the -592C/A polymorphism of the IL-10 gene was linked to an elevated risk of cervical cancer for all genetic models (recessive, dominant, and additive) in the Asian populations and for the recessive and additive models in Caucasians with P < 0.05. The -592C/A polymorphism of the IL-10 gene may be considered a risk factor for cervical cancer.
Video observations of tiny near-Earth objects with Tomo-e Gozen

We report the results of video observations of tiny (diameter less than 100 m) near-Earth objects (NEOs) with Tomo-e Gozen on the Kiso 105 cm Schmidt telescope. The rotational period of a tiny asteroid reflects its dynamical history and physical properties since smaller objects are sensitive to the Yarkovsky–O’Keefe–Radzievskii–Paddack (YORP) effect. We carried out video observations of 60 tiny NEOs at 2 fps from 2018 to 2021 and successfully derived the rotational periods and axial ratios of 32 NEOs including 13 fast rotators with rotational periods less than 60 s. The fastest rotator found during our survey is 2020 HS$_\mathsf {7}$ with a rotational period of 2.99 s. We statistically confirmed that there is a certain number of tiny fast rotators in the NEO population, which have been missed with all previous surveys. We have discovered that the distribution of the tiny NEOs in a diameter and rotational period (D–P) diagram is truncated around a period of 10 s. The truncation with a flat-top shape is not explained well by either a realistic tensile strength of NEOs or the suppression of YORP by meteoroid impacts. We propose that the dependence of the tangential YORP effect on the rotational period potentially explains the observed pattern in the D–P diagram.
The Association between Biofilm Formation and Antimicrobial Resistance with Possible Ingenious Bio-Remedial Approaches

Biofilm has garnered a lot of interest due to concerns in various sectors such as public health, medicine, and the pharmaceutical industry. Biofilm-producing bacteria show a remarkable drug resistance capability, leading to an increase in morbidity and mortality. This results in enormous economic pressure on the healthcare sector. The development of biofilms is a complex phenomenon governed by multiple factors. Several attempts have been made to unravel the events of biofilm formation; and, such efforts have provided insights into the mechanisms to target for the therapy. Owing to the fact that the biofilm-state makes the bacterial pathogens significantly resistant to antibiotics, targeting pathogens within biofilm is indeed a lucrative prospect. The available drugs can be repurposed to eradicate the pathogen, and as a result, ease the antimicrobial treatment burden. Biofilm formers and their infections have also been found in plants, livestock, and humans. The advent of novel strategies such as bioinformatics tools in treating, as well as preventing, biofilm formation has gained a great deal of attention. Development of newfangled anti-biofilm agents, such as silver nanoparticles, may be accomplished through omics approaches such as transcriptomics, metabolomics, and proteomics. Nanoparticles’ anti-biofilm properties could help to reduce antimicrobial resistance (AMR). This approach may also be integrated for a better understanding of biofilm biology, guided by mechanistic understanding, virtual screening, and machine learning in silico techniques for discovering small molecules in order to inhibit key biofilm regulators. This stimulated research is a rapidly growing field for applicable control measures to prevent biofilm formation. Therefore, the current article discusses the current understanding of biofilm formation, antibiotic resistance mechanisms in bacterial biofilm, and the novel therapeutic strategies to combat biofilm-mediated infections.
Impacts of large-scale land acquisitions on smallholder agriculture and livelihoods in Tanzania

Improving agricultural productivity is a foundational sustainability challenge in the 21st century. Large-scale land acquisitions (LSLAs) have important effects on both well-being and the environment in the Global South. Their impacts on agricultural productivity and subsequent effects on farm incomes, food-security and the distribution of these outcomes across households remain under-investigated. In particular, prior studies do not sufficiently attend to the mechanistic nature of changes in household agricultural practices that affect LSLA outcomes. To address these challenges, we use a novel household dataset and a quasi-experimental design to estimate household-level changes in agricultural productivity and other LSLA outcomes in Tanzania. We use causal mediation analysis to assess how four common mechanisms—contract farming, land loss, market access and technology adoption around LSLAs—influence agricultural productivity. We find that households near LSLAs exhibit 20.2% (95% CI: 3.1%–37.3%) higher agricultural productivity, primarily due to increased crop prices and farmer selection of high-value crops. Importantly, the direction and magnitude of effect sizes associated with the different mechanisms vary. The presence of contract farming explains 18.1% (95% CI: 0.56%, 47%) of the effect size in agricultural productivity, whereas land loss reduces agricultural productivity by 26.8% (95% CI: −71.3%, −4.0%). Market access and technology adoption explain little to no portion of the effect size on agricultural productivity. Despite higher agricultural productivity mediated by contract farming, we do not find increased household incomes or food security. Plausible explanations include limited market access, higher crop prices restricting food access and elite capture of contract farming concentrating income effects to a few households. Our results stand in contrast to assumptions that technological spillovers occur through LSLAs and are the principal drivers of LSLA-induced agricultural transformation. We find instead that access to contract farming and high-value crops lead to greater agricultural productivity, but also that benefits related to these mechanisms are unequally distributed.
Impact of pure laparoscopic surgery on bile duct division of living donor left lateral section procurement

Background Although laparoscopic living donor left lateral section liver procurements represents an established and safe procedure, there remains much discussion on this topic. In particular, the issue of whether laparoscopic living donor liver procurement increases the difficulty of the surgery and potential complications for recipients continue to confound experts in this field. Methods In this report, data from 180 cases of living donor left lateral section liver transplantation patients were analyzed retrospectively. Of these 180 cases, 106 grafts were procured by open surgery and 74 by pure laparoscopic surgery. Results While surgery durations and blood loss were decreased in donors from the laparoscopic surgery group, increased biliary openings of grafts and relatively high peak aspartate aminotransferase (AST) levels were present in both donors and recipients with this procedure. Conclusions Laparoscopic living donor left lateral section liver procurement represents a safe and effective procedure for both donors and recipients. However, laparoscopic surgery can more frequently lead to multiple biliary tracts in the graft and its impact on the prognosis of recipients remains uncertain. Use of routine X-ray based intraoperative cholangiography may help to reduce this problem.
The Role of Thermogenic Fat Tissue in Energy Consumption

Mammalian adipose tissues are broadly divided into white adipose tissue (WAT) and thermogenic fat tissue (brown adipose tissue and beige adipose tissue). Uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1) is the central protein in thermogenesis, and cells that exhibit induced UCP1 expression and appear scattered throughout WAT are called beige adipocytes, and their induction in WAT is referred to as “beiging”. Beige adipocytes can differentiate from preadipocytes or convert from mature adipocytes. UCP1 was thought to contribute to non-shivering thermogenesis; however, recent studies demonstrated the presence of UCP1-independent thermogenic mechanisms. There is evidence that thermogenic fat tissue contributes to systemic energy expenditure even in human beings. This review discusses the roles that thermogenic fat tissue plays in energy consumption and offers insight into the possibility and challenges associated with its application in the treatment of obesity and type 2 diabetes.
Outcomes of Severe Fungal Keratitis Using in vivo Confocal Microscopy and Early Therapeutic Penetrating Keratoplasty

Purpose The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of early diagnosis using in vivo confocal microscopy and early therapeutic penetrating keratoplasty (TPK) on the outcomes of severe cases of fungal keratitis. Methods This retrospective single-center study included 38 patients (40 eyes) with fungal keratitis who presented between December 2013 and February 2020. Preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative parameters were recorded to assess the role of early correct diagnosis and early surgical therapy on visual acuity outcome and enucleation rate during follow-up. Results The mean patient age was 51 years (71% females). The initial external diagnosis was correct in 20 cases (50%). The mean time from symptom onset until admission to our department was 46.8 ± 68.0 (median 28.5) days. The mean time to correct diagnosis after admission to our department was 1 day with in vivo confocal microscopy (IVCM). IVCM was performed in 38 cases, of which 36 (sensitivity: 94.7%) were positive for fungal infection. Twenty-seven out of 40 (67.5%) eyes received a TPK 4.2 ± 3.9 days after admission, with a mean graft size of 8.9 ± 1.9 mm. Three eyes (7.5%) were enucleated. The corrected distance visual acuity of the entire study population increased from 2.0 ± 1.2 LogMAR to 0.96 ± 1.17 LogMAR. Conclusion In vivo confocal microscopy is a powerful tool for the early detection of fungal organisms in infectious keratitis. An early TPK with a large graft helps to eradicate the infection timely and results in a favorable visual acuity outcome and lower enucleation rate, especially when treating filamentous fungi.
Epidemiología de la obesidad

Summary In excess of 50% of adult population and nearly one third of children in Mexico have overweight and obesity. This accounts for slightly >32,671,000 million persons, excluding children; thus, total numbers are even more significant. These figures are alarming for those responsible for the economic future and well-being of Mexico. Overweight and obesity lead to higher risk of mortality as well as development of multiple diseases, mainly coronary heart disease, diabetes type 2, cancer, and stroke, which are at present the principal causes of mortality in Mexico. The World Health Organization (WHO) announced that there are throughout the world more than one billion adults with overweight, of whom 300 million have obesity. In addition to the obesity epidemic in Mexico, there is high prevalence of diabetes type 2. Coexistence of both epidemics has been denominated the twin epidemic. As many as 80% of cases of type 2 diabetes are linked with overweight or obesity, particularly abdominal obesity. The disease was once thought to be limited to adults, but obese children are now developing the illness. In Mexico, we are able to refer to at least three epidemics, because not only are obesity and type 2 diabetes advancing rapidly in the country, but also cardiovascular disease, linked with high prevalence of both hypertension and metabolic syndrome as reported by scientists based on Mexican National Health Survey 2000 data.
The dynamics of crowdfunding campaigns in the Middle East: Does social capital matter?

The purpose of this study is to analyze the dynamics of crowdfunding campaigns in the Middle East and raise the question of “does social capital matter” in this respect? The study uses the Zoomaal.com platform as a case study for 2019 and 2020. Required data was collected from Zoomaal.com and conducted online semi- structured interviews with key people in control to further explore the crowdfunding practice in the selected Middle Eastern countries (i.e., Turkey, Egypt, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, and UAE). The OLS robust standard error regression and logistic regression techniques were both utilized to test the study model. The findings reveal that social capital in the Middle East countries is very coherent and both structural dimension (DS) as measured by entrepreneurs’ interaction with the social media (such as Facebook and Instagram) and cognitive dimension (DC) as measured by the number of words that are composed by entrepreneurs in the Zoomaal.com platform has significant positive impacts on the crowdfunding campaign success. Moreover, we confirm our results to Zoomaal.com and conclude the main factors that influence the success or failure of a crowdfunding campaign in the Middle East.
Cavernous Sinus Involvement and Near Miss Mediastinitis following Mandibular Tooth Infection Treated during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Clinical Diagnosis and Treatment

Odontogenic infections represent a frequent condition that in some cases, if not treated promptly, can spread quickly to the rest of the body and turn into life-threatening infections. In this work, the case is reported of a 59-year-old woman, diabetic and overweight, who presented to the Odontostomatology and Otolaryngology Section of the Policlinic of Bari with mandibular tooth infection that had developed into a deep neck space infection leading to the involvement of cavernous sinuses and near mediastinum. The diagnosis, the surgical drainage of the phlegmon and removal of infection foci, appropriate control of the airways, and a correct antibiotic therapy made it possible to avoid a potentially fatal condition. Prompt management and early diagnosis of deep space neck infections, such as phlegmon and/or necrotizing fasciitis, with the auxilium of CT scans and tools such as LRINEC (Laboratory Risk Indicator for Necrotizing Fasciitis), NLR (Neutrophil-to-Lymphocyte Ratio), and LRINECxNLR scores (Laboratory Risk Indicator for Necrotizing Fasciitis and Neutrophil to Lymphocyte Ratio), are advised to evade delays and complications that could potentially worsen the patient's outcome.
Development of the prediction model based on clinical-imaging omics: molecular typing and sentinel lymph node metastasis of breast cancer

Background Imageology uses high-throughput and automatic computing methods to transform medical image data into quantitative data with feature space, and then makes accurate quantitative analysis, extracts features and builds models, which can intuitively observe the overall features of lesions and the surrounding tissues, and provide rich invisible information. At present, the research on the imaging features of dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE) and diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) to predict the molecular typing value has achieved results, but the imaging model based on DWI and DCE-magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is not enough to predict the molecular subtypes, and the prediction value of the prediction model based on the three-dimensional volume of interest of the lesion to the four molecular subtypes of breast cancer has not been fully studied. Methods The clinical data of 202 breast cancer patients at our hospital from October 2020 to November 2021 were collected. All patients were examined with multimodal MRI before surgery. Base on immunohistochemical recombinant Ki-67 protein (Ki-67), estrogen receptor (ER), human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (HER-2) and progesterone receptor (PR) results, the tumors were divided into four types According to the results of the sentinel lymph node (SLN) biopsies, the patients were divided into SLN (+) and SLN (−) groups. 3-dimensional (3D) Slicer software was used to outline the region of interest (ROI), and AMni-Kinetics software was used for feature extraction. The imaging characteristics were screened using least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO)-Logistic regression model using R statistical software, and the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was drawn using “pROC” software package to evaluate the prediction efficiency of the model. Results The most efficacious model at predicting SLN (+) in breast cancer patients with different molecular subtypes and SLN metastasis was the model based on the imageological characteristics of fat inhibition, and T2-weighted imaging (T2WI), T1-weighted imaging + C (T1WI-C), and DWI combined sequences at the tumor + 2 mm periphery. AUC (sensitivity, specificity) of the validation group were 0.831 (0.856, 0.891), 0.832 (0.660, 0.877), 0.801 (0.772, 0.765), 0.904 (0.769, 0.873), and 0.819 (0.810, 0.500) respectively when the tumor was 2 mm around the tumor. Conclusions The imaging features extracted from multi-parameter DWI, T1WI+C, and T2WI in breast cancer have certain value at predicting different molecular types and SLNs of breast cancer.
Organizational Culture and Learning Organization: An Empirical Study of the Colleges in Bhutan

Aims: The study assessed the learning organization (LO) dimensions, dominant culture, and the relationship between the organizational culture and learning organization dimensions of the colleges of Royal University of Bhutan (RUB). Study Design: It was a correlational study. Place and Duration of Study: The sample consisted of teaching and non-teaching staff of the colleges of RUB. The survey was conducted in Bhutan between February and April 2022. Methodology: The study participants were 201 teaching (161) and non-teaching (40) staff of the colleges of RUB. The Organizational Culture Assessment Instrument (OCAI) was used to analyze the culture of the colleges. The Dimensions of the Learning Organization Questionnaire (DLOQ) was used to examine the LO characteristics of the colleges. IBM SPSS (Statistical Product and Service Solutions) version 21 was used for data analysis. Results: RUB can be considered as a learning organization, as the average (4.051) of the DLOQ dimensions’ ratings by the staff is higher than the DLOQ scale average. The DLOQ dimension, connect the organization to its external environment, achieved the highest score. The DLOQ dimension, foster inquiry and dialogue, achieved the lowest score. The dominant culture of the colleges of RUB is clan culture. Clan culture significantly positively predicted, and hierarchy culture significantly negatively predicted the dimensions of a learning organization – continuous learning, inquiry and dialogue, team learning, strategic leadership for learning, systems to capture learning, empower people, and connect the organization. These predictors predicted 17.86 percent to 25.72 percent of the variance in the learning organization dimensions. Conclusion: The dominant culture of the colleges can promote or act as a barrier to the LO practices in the organization. The colleges need to shift orientation from control to collaboration to promote LO characteristics in the colleges.
Explaining the Success of User-Centered Design - An Empirical Study across German B2C Firms

This study focuses on the widely spread concept of User-Centered Design (UCD) and tries to answer the question why it is so popular. On the one hand, it is of interest to reveal the nature of UCD, especially in terms of the methods used, the types of users involved and the stages the involvement takes place. On the other hand, this paper aims to find out about the success of UCD projects as well as the organizational context that is beneficial for UCD. To do so, several streams of scientific literature in the field of UCD as well as organization theory are reviewed and the results of an empirical study conducted among UCD experts in Germany are analyzed. The theoretically derived characteristics could mainly be confirmed by the insights of the study. Moreover, several hypotheses concerning the influence of the organizational context using established constructs (IT competence, UCD competence, customer orientation, innovativeness, exploration and exploitation as well as the top management team) towards the project success in an UCD setup are proposed and tested by the means of a multiple factor analysis. By analyzing open comments concerning the facilitators and obstacles of UCD activities deeper insight into the daily business of UCD experts can be gained. A comparison between two subsamples split according to their project success score yield interesting results concerning different motives, types of integrated users and the locus of the user integration. This study has been created in collaboration with the user research and user experience (UX) consulting agency ‘Facit Digital’ who are based in Munich, Germany. Keywords: User-Centered Design, User Integration, Exploration, Exploitation, Empirical Investigation
De-snowing LiDAR Point Clouds With Intensity and Spatial-Temporal Features

Point clouds from 3D light detection and ranging (LiDAR) are widely used. Noise caused by falling snow reduces the availability of point clouds. Due to the sparseness of LiDAR point clouds and the fact that the snow point clouds are easily affected by multi factors such as wind or snowfall conditions, it is difficult to accurately remove the snow while preserving the details of the point clouds. To solve the problem, this paper presents a de-snowing approach combining the intensity and spatial-temporal features. An intensity-based filter firstly removes the snow. Then a repairing method restores the non-snow points based on the spatial-temporal features. Experimental results demonstrate that our approach outperforms existing work in the literature and performs the least damage to the point clouds in different snowfall scenarios.