Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Indirect Hemagglutination Test in the Detection of Antibodies against Toxoplasma gondii in Venezuelan Felids

Current knowledge of Toxoplasma gondii infection in Venezuelan ecosystems is limited. Mammals and birds are intermediate hosts and felid species are definitive hosts. In most human-altered habitats, the domestic cat is the predominant definitive host. Cats are important in the epidemiology of T. gondii infection because they are the only hosts that can excrete the environmentally resistant oocysts. Other carnivores can be infected by the consumption of tissue cysts when feeding on infected animals and by incidental ingestion of oocysts from environmental contamination. This study aimed to quantify the values of antibodies for T. gondii in blood serum of some felids species employing the technique of indirect hemagglutination. In the present study, seropositivity of T. gondii was determined in serum of 35 animals (22 stray cats and 13 wild cats) from Venezuela, South America. Antibodies to T. gondii were found in 21 of 22 (95,45 %) stray cats’ titers of 1:64 in four, 1:128 in four, 1:256 in one, 1:512 in one, 1:1024 in three, and 1:2048 or higher in eight. In four of six (66,67 %) ocelots’ titers of 1:64 in one, 1:256 in one, 1:1024 in one, and one with titers 1:2048. In three of four (75,00 %) jaguars’ titers of 1:512 in one, and two with titers 1:2048. The Kruskal-Wallis test showed a statistically significant difference between species (H = 8,413, p = 0,015).
Study on the effect of cohesive parameters on the bonding strength of the interface between the skin and 3D-mesh cloth of the automobile dash panel

ABSTRACT The finite element software ABAQUS is used to simulate the traction-separation behavior of the bonding interface between skin and 3D-mesh of the high-end car dash panel. The load displacement curve, the stress nephogram and the damage nephogram of the adhesive layer at a specific time are obtained. Under different displacement loading conditions, by using the cohesive zone model (CZM), the effects of three cohesive parameters, including normal critical stress, normal fracture energy and mode II/III fracture energy on the bonding strength is studied. For the model with Z-direction displacement, the increase of normal critical stress or normal fracture energy increases the ultimate load, but has no obvious effect on the model with Y-direction displacement; for the model with Y-direction displacement, the ultimate load increases with the increase of mode II/III fracture energy, while the model with Z-direction displacement does not change significantly. When the cohesive strength is constant, as the fracture energy increases, the area under the curve representing the overall fracture energy also increases; while the fracture energy remains constant, although the ultimate load increases with the increase of the normal critical stress, the overall fracture energy is almost unchanged.
Comparison of the Efficacy of Dextrose Prolotherapy and Ozone in Patients with Knee Osteoarthritis: A Randomized Cross-Sectional Study

This study aimed to compare the effectiveness of dextrose prolotherapy, ozone therapy, and home exercise programs in patients with knee osteoarthritis. Seventy-five patients with knee osteoarthritis were divided into three groups, with 25 in each group. At week 0 (baseline), week 3, and week 6, 12.5% dextrose (intraarticular and periarticular) was administered to the dextrose prolotherapy group. At week 0 (baseline), week 1, and week 2 15 μg/mL ozone (intraarticular and periarticular) was administered to the ozone therapy group. Both groups were also given a home exercise program. The third group was given a home-based exercise therapy program for 12 weeks. All groups were evaluated for VAS, WOMAC, TUG, ROM-active, and ROM-passive values at weeks 0 (baseline), 6, and 12. Ozone therapy more effectively improved VAS scores than dextrose prolotherapy and VAS and WOMAC scores than home-based exercise therapy in the 6th week. Ozone therapy also more effectively improved VAS and WOMAC-stiffness scores than dextrose prolotherapy and VAS, WOMAC, and ROM-active scores than home-based exercise therapy in the 12th week. Both dextrose prolotherapy and ozone therapy are effective in knee osteoarthritis treatment. Ozone therapy should be used in suitable cases rather than dextrose prolotherapy.
Race and Campaign Resources: Candidate Identification Numbers in Brazil

Party elites may hinder racial and ethnic minorities from winning public office by withholding resources. Prior studies have explored the distribution of money, media access, and party-list positions. In Brazil, party elites provide each candidate with a unique identification number. Voters must enter their preferred candidate’s identification number into an electronic voting machine to register their support. In this article, we replicate and extend Bueno and Dunning’s (2017) analysis of candidate identification numbers. They conclude that party elites do not provide white candidates with superior identification numbers than non-whites. We contend that assessing intraparty variation is theoretically and methodologically warranted. Using party fixed effects, we find that party elites provide non-white candidates with worse identification numbers than whites. We demonstrate that our findings are generalisable using data from other elections. Moreover, we show that party elites also withhold advantageous numbers from women and political novices.
Aberrant Mitochondrial Dynamics and Exacerbated Response to Neuroinflammation in a Novel Mouse Model of CMT2A

Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease type 2A (CMT2A) is the most common hereditary axonal neuropathy caused by mutations in MFN2 encoding Mitofusin-2, a multifunctional protein located in the outer mitochondrial membrane. In order to study the effects of a novel MFN2K357T mutation associated with early onset, autosomal dominant severe CMT2A, we generated a knock-in mouse model. While Mfn2K357T/K357T mouse pups were postnatally lethal, Mfn2+/K357T heterozygous mice were asymptomatic and had no histopathological changes in their sciatic nerves up to 10 months of age. However, immunofluorescence analysis of Mfn2+/K357T mice revealed aberrant mitochondrial clustering in the sciatic nerves from 6 months of age, in optic nerves from 8 months, and in lumbar spinal cord white matter at 10 months, along with microglia activation. Ultrastructural analyses confirmed dysmorphic mitochondrial aggregates in sciatic and optic nerves. After exposure of 6-month-old mice to lipopolysaccharide, Mfn2+/K357T mice displayed a higher immune response, a more severe motor impairment, and increased CNS inflammation, microglia activation, and macrophage infiltrates. Overall, ubiquitous Mfn2K357T expression renders the CNS and peripheral nerves of Mfn2+/K357T mice more susceptible to mitochondrial clustering, and augments their response to inflammation, modeling some cellular mechanisms that may be relevant for the development of neuropathy in patients with CMT2A.
Barriers and facilitators to engaging in mainstream primary school classrooms: Voices of students who are deaf or hard-of-hearing

ABSTRACT Classroom engagement can be problematic for students who are deaf or hard-of-hearing (DHH), but is essential to ensure that they can reach their best educational and postschool outcomes. This study used semi-structured interviews to explore the self-perceived barriers and facilitators to classroom engagement for 16 DHH students educated in mainstream primary school settings. The interviews consisted of a series of questions and a card-sorting activity. The interviews were audio recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using thematic analysis. Four themes were generated from the thematic analysis. Barriers to engagement were considered as a single theme, while facilitators to engagement were divided into three themes of student strategies, supports to students, and teacher actions. The barriers and facilitators identified demonstrate the range of complex factors that contribute to or impede the engagement of students who are DHH in mainstream classrooms. This information can be used to inform teachers, professionals, students, and their parents about the experiences of these students in mainstream classrooms. In particular, the findings indicate the importance of self-advocacy and the potential benefits of implementing self-advocacy programmes to help students who are DHH manage the challenges to engagement they face in the classroom. The findings also highlight the importance of the consistent use of facilitative teaching strategies by the classroom teacher, and the crucial impact of background noise on engagement along with improvements that could contribute to better noise management.
DETECTION OF ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGES DUE TO WINDTHROWS USING LANDSAT 7 ETM+ SATELLITE IMAGES

The changes caused by windthrows regarding spruce stand lead to significant environmental modifications. In this article aspects regarding the detection of environmental changes caused by windthrows in Sanmartin Forest Division within Miercurea Ciuc Forest District of National Forest Administration are covered using Landsat 7 ETM+ satellite images. Two pre and post-event satellite images, from 2001 when massive windthrows occurred, were used in this study. The techniques used in changes detection were univariate image differencing (UID), selective PCA and change vector analysis (CVA). The indices used in changes detection were NDVI, RVI, SAVI and those obtained from Tasseled Cap transformation (TCW, TCG, TCB). The results show that the most appropriate technique for detecting windthrows regarding the studied area is UID applied to TCW, with a classification accuracy of 82.3%. Poor results were obtained by applying the first component to SAVI, the classification accuracy being of 51.3%. With reference to the images obtained as a result of applying the changes detection techniques suitable threshold values were determined, allowing the detection of changes specific to the studied area and the development of binary maps of vegetation. Thus, it turned out that significant changes are detected using TCW by determining the threshold value to <−2s and +>2s in relation to the average, the pixels from the histogram’s tail representing 5−7% out of the total of scene pixels. The use of changes detection techniques together with NDVI, RVI and SAVI vegetation indices allow the detection of changes during the slight interval (average−1s) to moderate (1−2s).
Targeting the immune microenvironment during immunotherapy for solid tumors

ABSTRACT JAK/STAT signaling is a central hub in cancer development, progression, immunosurveillance and response to immunotherapy. We discuss recent advances in the role of the JAK/STAT pathway in immunotherapies. We stress the importance of fully understanding how JAK/STAT modifies the immune response before implementing clinical trials combining JAK/STAT inhibitors with immunotherapy.
Application of multiple factor analysis for the descriptive sensory evaluation and instrumental measurements of bryndza cheese as affected by vacuum packaging

ABSTRACT Multiple factor analysis was used to examine naturally white, mature and spreadable bryndza cheese varieties. Sensory and physiochemical properties were evaluated during storage in vacuum and non-vacuum packed conditions at 4 ± 2°C. The results of statistical method showed similarity in varieties made from pasteurized ewe milk and mixed bryndza cheese before and after storage at both package conditions (p < 0.05). The statistical method used in the study was a suitable tool for assessing differences in food quality and provided an opportunity to visualize and categorize the results with regard to shelf life and packaging.
ASSESSMENT OF HEAVY METALS IN COWS MILK IN RODNEI MOUNTAINS AREA, ROMANIA

The aim of this study was to determine the content of the main essential trace (Co, Cr, Cu, Mn, Se and Zn) and toxic (As, Cd, Hg and Pb) elements in milk by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and cold vapor atomic fluorescence spectrometer (CV-AFS) following priory microwave-assisted digestion with HNO3-H2O2. The milk samples were collected from local small-scale producers of different parts of Rodnei Mountains, Eastern Carpathians, Romania. Mean concentrations in g/L ww were 1.02 (As), 1.09 (Cd), 1.06 (Hg), 6.57 (Pb), 3.54 (Co), 4.56 (Cr), 47.5 (Cu), 23.4 (Mn), 22.3 (Se) and 2985 (Zn). The studied essential trace elements were found to have good and healthy contribution to daily nutrition of consumers in accordance to Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA). The levels of toxic trace elements (As, Cd, Hg and Pb) were found in very low and concentrations and did not represent any risk to consumers. In addition, some element concentrations of raw milk showed a seasonal pattern: Cu and Zn had higher level in the summer, while As and Mn were more abundant in the winter.
The well-being impacts of tourism: Long-term and short-term effects of tourism development on residents’ happiness

Well-being is considered one of the highest values in human life. Although previous studies have discussed the tourists’ well-being outcomes, the impact of tourism on residents’ happiness has received less empirical attention in tourism research. This study aims to explore the effects of tourism development on residents’ happiness in a group of countries by using panel data analysis. The results demonstrate that tourism arrivals negatively influence residents’ happiness in the short term and have positive effects on residents’ happiness in the long term. These findings contribute to describing the well-being impacts of tourism, differentiating between long- and short-term outcomes, and providing recommendations for destination management and tourism authorities.
Coupled exciton-trion spin dynamics in a MoSe2 monolayer

Understanding and controlling the spin degree of freedom in two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenides offers the potential for designing functional quantum materials. This work investigates the dynamics of photo- and resident carrier spins in an encapsulated MoSe2 monolayer using non-degenerate time-resolved Kerr-rotation microscopy. The lightly doped monolayer exhibits clear exciton and trion resonances with spin-polarizations that are characterized by a fast (~20 ps) decay attributed to photocarrier relaxation and recombination, followed by a slow (~690 ps) decay associated with resident carrier depolarization. Dual-frequency Kerr-rotation spectra directly reveal exciton-trion coupling on ultrashort timescales and within the spin coherence time of the system. Moreover, the distribution of the exciton-trion coupling features exposes inhomogeneous broadening likely arising from different domains within the excitation spot.
A pan-cancer analysis of the oncogenic role of Keratin 17 (KRT17) in human tumors

Background Although new evidence from cells or animals suggests a relationship between Keratin 17 (KRT17) and cancer, no pan-cancer analysis is currently available. Methods The expression level of KRT17 in generalized carcinoma was detected by the Tumor Immune Estimation Resource, version 2 (TIMER2) database, and then verified the protein expression of KRT17 in different cancer species in UALCAN database, and analyzed the relationship between the expression level of KRT17 and the clinical stage and survival of different cancers. We further explored the genetic variation of KRT17 in different tumor types included in The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and the specific mutations in each domain. The changes of KRT17 protein phosphorylation levels and protein expression levels at different phosphorylation sites in different tumors were explored. TIMER2 database was used to explore the potential relationship between the infiltration level of different immune cells and KRT17 gene expression in different TCGA cancer types. Finally, the protein binding to KRT17 and genes related to KRT17 expression were explored by STRING database and TCGA database. Results KRT17 is overexpressed in most malignancies, and we observed a distinct relationship between KRT17 expression and tumor patient prognosis. Enhanced phosphorylation levels of S13, S24, S32, and S39 were observed in several tumors, such as lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD), colon and ovarian cancers, and uterine corpus endometrial carcinoma (UCEC). Intermediate filament cytoskeleton and keratinization may be simultaneously acting with KRT17 on tumor pathogenesis. Conclusions Our pan-cancer analysis provides relatively complete information on the oncogenic functions of KRT17 in various cancers.
Individual and Contextual Factors Associated with Malaria among Children 6–59 Months in Nigeria: A Multilevel Mixed Effect Logistic Model Approach

Background/Purpose: Over the last two decades, malaria has remained a major public health concern worldwide, especially in developing countries leading to high morbidity and mortality among children. Nigeria is the world most burdened malaria endemic nation, contributing more than a quarter of global malaria cases. This study determined the prevalence of malaria among children at 6–59 months in Nigeria, and the effects of individual and contextual factors. Methods: This study utilized data from 2018 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS) involving a weighted sample size of 10,185 children who were tested for malaria using rapid diagnostic test (RDT). Given the hierarchical structure of the data set, such that children at Level-1 were nested in communities at Level-2, and nested in states and Federal Capital Territory (FCT) at Level-3, multilevel mixed effect logistic regression models were used for the analysis. Results: The proportion of children 6–59 months of age in Nigeria that had malaria fever positive as assessed by RDTs was 35.5% (3418/10,185), (CI: 33.9–37.1). Kebbi State had 77.7%, (CI: 70.2–83.5), which was the highest proportion of 6–59 months who were malaria positive, next in line was Katsina State with 55.5%, (CI: 47.7–63.1). The Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja had the proportion of 29.6%, (CI: 21.6–39.0), malaria positive children of 6–59 months of age. Children between the age of 48 and 59 months were 2.68 times more likely to have malaria fever than children of ages 6–11 months (AOR = 2.68, 95% CI: 2.03–3.54). In addition, children from the rural area (AOR = 2.12, 95% CI: 1.75–2.57), were more likely to suffer from malaria infection compared to children from urban area. Conclusion: The study identified some individual and contextual predictors of malaria among children in Nigeria. These factors identified in this study are potential areas that need to be considered for policy designs and implementations toward control and total elimination of malaria-related morbidity and mortality among children in Nigeria.
Deep Learning-Aided Off-Grid Channel Estimation for Millimeter Wave Cellular Systems

It is challenging to acquire accurate channel knowledge for sufficient beamforming gain because of the large number of antennas. In this paper, a deep learning aided channel estimation algorithm is proposed for mmWave cellular systems, in which both the base station (BS) and mobile station (MS) gain directional beamforming by employing large antenna arrays. We consider the off-grid (OG) mmWave channel estimation and propose a deep network architecture for solving this problem, which is different from most existing works concerning the compressed sensing (CS)-based channel estimation. Firstly, the off-grid channel model is used to relieve the basis mismatch issue by exploiting first-order Taylor-series approximation of the array manifold taken on a fixed grid of both BS and MS. Secondly, a new formulation of this off-grid channel estimation problem is solved by using a low computational complexity alternating direction method of multipliers (ADMM)-based algorithm, dubbed ADMM-OG algorithm. Thirdly, the idea of algorithm unrolling guides us to design a deep network architecture ADMM-OGChannelNet corresponding to the ADMM-OG algorithm for the mmWave channel estimation. Based on the interpretability of this deep network architecture, the optimal parameters of this network can be learned without tuning in a hand-crafted way. The Cramér-Rao bound (CRB) of the off-grid channel model is derived for performance comparison as well. Finally, from the simulation results, we can verify that the ADMM-OGChannelNet has better estimation accuracy and relatively low computational complexity compared with the state-of-the-art algorithms.
Climatology and Formation Environments of Severe Convective Windstorms and Tornadoes in the Perm Region (Russia) in 1984–2020

Severe convective windstorms and tornadoes regularly hit the territory of Russia causing substantial damage and fatalities. An analysis of the climatology and formation environments of these events is essential for risk assessments, forecast improvements and identifying of links with the observed climate change. In this paper, we present an analysis of severe convective windstorms, i.e., squalls and tornadoes reported between 1984 and 2020 in the Perm region (northeast of European Russia), where a local maximum in the frequency of such events was previously found. The analysed database consists of 165 events and includes 100 squalls (convective windstorms), 59 tornadoes, and six cases with both tornadoes and squalls. We used various information to compile the database including weather station reports, damage surveys, media reports, previously presented databases, and satellite images for windthrow. We found that the satellite images of damaged forests are the main data source on tornadoes, but their role is substantially lower for windstorm events due to the larger spatial and temporal scale of such events. Synoptic-scale environments and associated values of convective indices were determined for each event with a known date and time. Similarities and differences for the formation conditions of tornadoes and windstorms were revealed. Both squalls and tornadoes occur mostly on rapidly moving cold fronts or on waving quasi-stationary fronts, associated with low-pressure systems. Analyses of 72-h air parcel backward trajectories shows that the Caspian and Aral Seas are important sources of near-surface moisture for the formation of both squalls and tornadoes. Most of these events are formed within high CAPE and high shear environments, but tornadic storms are generally characterised by a higher wind shear and helicity. We also differentiated convective storms that caused forest damage and those did not. We found the composite parameter WMAXSHEAR is the best discriminator between these two groups. In general, storm events causing windthrow mainly occur under conditions more favourable for deep well-organised convection. Thus, forest damage can be considered as an indicator of the storm severity in the Perm region and in adjacent regions with forest-covered area exceeding 50%.