Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Regulatory Performance of Tourist Hunting and Legal Game Meat Trade in Tanzania

Recently, the government of Tanzania has legalized the sale of game meat under special rules namely the Wildlife Conservation (Game Meat Selling) Regulations of 2020 as an effort to curb illegal hunting. The regulations mention tourist hunting as one of the sources of commercial game meat. Other sources include resident hunting; wildlife farms/ranches/zoos; and culling, cropping, and control of problem animals. In this paper we examine the performance of tourist hunting, legal game meat in the country, and its regulatory framework from the perspectives of key stakeholders, including both public and private or non-state stakeholders. We use a variant of Likert’s methods of summated ratings and the cumulative ordinal regression model to analyse and compare the opinions of stakeholders. We found that there are still challenges, especially related to sources of wild animals. Operators of game meat facilities find it difficult to source game meat from tourist hunting companies and the latter are not willing to offer the meat to licensed operators of game meat shops. Our results support the hypothesis that authorization of the game meat trade can serve as one of the boldest conservation tools to mitigate illegal poaching if well-planned and regulated. The results of the cumulative ordinal regression model predict an improvement of 42% in the performance of regulatory framework per unit improvement in the procedures for application and registration of game meat selling facilities (p = 0.010). The paper recommends leveraging stakeholders' active engagement and strengthening cooperation between game meat value chain actors and law-enforcement authorities. An innovative participatory model for enforcing game meat sanitary and safety regulations is also recommended to avoid potential health risks to consumers. It underscores the importance of institutional capacity building, awareness creation, and adequate funding in the fight against illegal hunting and game meat trade. In order for the country to be able to achieve sustainable game meat trade in the country, the challenge of limited wild animal sources has to be addressed, possibly by supporting the establishment of privately owned wild animal farms, ranches, and zoos, this also has its own challenges that need to be addressed too.
Productivity enhancement in Finger millet through Frontline demonstration in Dharmapuri district of Tamil Nadu, India: A case study

Frontline demonstration was taken up in farmers’ holdings of Dharmapuri district, Tamil Nadu, India during kharif 2015 to create awareness among the farmers and demonstrate the improved production technologies in finger millet. The integrated crop management practices including cultivation of drought tolerant and short duration finger millet variety ML 365, integrated nutrient management, integrated pest and disease management practices were demonstrated and compared with the existing farmers practice followed in Finger millet cultivation. Results showed that demonstration of finger millet variety ML 365 with integrated crop management practices recorded higher grain yield of 2100 kg/ha and farmers practice recorded lower yield of 1730 kg/ha. Adoption of integrated crop management practices increased the grain yield of finger millet to the tune of 21.7 per cent compared to farmers practice. Farmers earned higher net income of Rs.14244/ha through the demonstration and Rs.10018/ha with farmers practice. Besides, farmers realized higher benefit cost ratio (1.58) through the demonstration compared to farmers practice (1.46). Thus, the frontline demonstration of improved variety with crop management practices increased the grain yield and net income of the farmers growing finger millet under rainfed condition. In the present study, potential of the improved variety and technologies were demonstrated systematically and scientifically in the farmers field along with farmers practice for further adoption by farming community in large scale.
Internalized Homonegativity and Sexual Quality of Life in Italian Lesbian and Bisexual Women

This study investigates the relationship between sexual quality of life (SQoL) and internalized homonegativity among Italian lesbian and bisexual cisgender women, drawing on the minority stress model. The aim of this study is to compare levels of internalized homonegativity and SQoL between the two groups, exploring the association between these variables. We used a quantitative methodology based on a questionnaire. The data were collected through an online questionnaire from 686 women, including 217 lesbians and 469 bisexuals, using the Lesbian Internalized Homophobia Scale and the Female-Sexual Quality of Life Questionnaire. Statistical analyses, including t-tests and linear regression, were performed to assess group differences and predictors of SQoL. The findings support the hypothesis that bisexual women may experience higher levels of internalized homonegativity. Additionally, the study reveals disparities in SQoL, with lesbian women reporting better outcomes. The linear regression model confirmed a significant negative association between internalized homonegativity and SQoL. The results highlight the need for further research on factors influencing sexual well-being in sexual minority women, and the need to give thorough attention to specific sexual identities in clinical and research practice.
Analysis of Mathematical Problem Solving Ability of XI Class Vocational Students on Composition Function Material

This study aims to find out how well vocational students solve mathematical problems based on the composition function material. Mathematical problem solving ability is an ability that must be mastered by students because this ability is the core of mathematics. The location of this research is at SMK TI Garuda Nusantara and the main object of research is class XI students totaling 32 people in one class. The author used a descriptive qualitative approach. Several test questions were used as data collection methods. of 32 students in one class. It can be said that only 9 people were able to complete the test questions and get a good rating on each indicator. The results show that the problem solving ability of students in class XI of SMK TI Garuda Nusantara is classified as sufficient or moderate. This is very clear from the fact that only 28% of students who achieved perfect scores in the good category. 56% were rated medium, and 16% were rated low. The acquisition of the highest indicator value is in problem solving ability, while the lowest indicator is in the indicator of understanding the problem, this is due to the lack of understanding of basic mathematical concepts in students. In order for students' problem-solving skills to improve, researchers suggest that further research should use learning models or media that can help students understand mathematical concepts.
Firm Size and Capital Structure ∗

Firm size has been empirically found to be strongly positively related to capital structure. A number of intuitive explanations can be put forward to account for this stylized fact, but none have been considered theoretically. This paper starts bridging this gap by investigating whether a dynamic capital structure model can explain the cross-sectional sizeleverage relationship. The driving force that we consider is the presence of fixed costs of external financing that lead to infrequent restructuring and create a wedge between small and large firms. We find four firm size effects on leverage. Small firms choose higher leverage at the moment of refinancing to compensate for less frequent rebalancings. But longer waiting times between refinancings lead on average to lower levels of leverage. Within one refinancing cycle the relationship between leverage and firm size is negative. Finally, there is a mass of firms opting for no leverage. The analysis of dynamic economy demonstrates that in cross-section the relationship between leverage and size is positive and thus fixed costs of financing contribute to the explanation of the stylized size-leverage relationship. However, the relationship changes the sign when we control for the presence of unlevered firms.
Firm Size and Capital Structure∗

Firm size has been empirically found to be strongly positively related to capital structure. A number of intuitive explanations can be put forward to account for this stylized fact, but none have been considered theoretically. This paper starts bridging this gap by investigating whether a dynamic capital structure model can explain the cross-sectional sizeleverage relationship. The driving force that we consider is the presence of fixed costs of external financing that lead to infrequent restructuring and create a wedge between small and large firms. We find four firm size effects on leverage. Small firms choose higher leverage at the moment of refinancing to compensate for less frequent rebalancings. But longer waiting times between refinancings lead on average to lower levels of leverage. Within one refinancing cycle the intertemporal relationship between leverage and firm size is negative. Finally, there is a mass of firms opting for no leverage. The analysis of dynamic economy demonstrates that in cross-section the relationship between leverage and size is positive and thus fixed costs of financing contribute to the explanation of the stylized size-leverage relationship. However, the relationship changes the sign when we control for the presence of unlevered firms.
Diagnostic Accuracy of Ultrasonography Using U Classification of Thyroid Nodules in Detection of Malignant Thyroid

Ultrasonography (US) helps diagnose malignant thyroid nodules based on various characteristics, including echogenicity, margins, microcalcifications, size, form, and aberrant neck lymph nodes. The study aimed to determine the diagnostic accuracy of ultrasonography for cancer diagnosis in thyroid nodules, using Histopathology as the gold standard. To minimize morbidity and death from the condition and the number of solely invasive procedures biopsies, the results of our research will give patients and physicians with a noninvasive, cost-effective, and conveniently accessible diagnostic technique for differentiating cancerous from benign nodules. A cross-sectional analytical study was designed to collect data prospectively from July 2022 to October 2022 in the Department of Radiology at Nuclear Medicine, Oncology and Radiotherapy Institute Islamabad. Patients in the age range of 18-60 years, both genders were enrolled. Th data was entered into SPSS 24. The frequencies and percentages of categorical factors such as sex and malignancy in thyroid nodules were determined using descriptive analysis. For numerical variables such as age, the mean and standard deviation were computed. We evaluated the sensitivity, specificity, PPV, and NPV with a 95% confidence interval for the U-classification of malignant thyroid nodules and represented as Two by Two tables. In addition, Histopathology was used to evaluate U's efficacy as a diagnostic tool for finding malignant thyroid nodules. The study sample comprised 34 (68%) female and 16 (32%) male patients. On Biopsy, cancerous nodules were diagnosed in only 19 (38.5%) patients, and the remaining 31 (62%) had benign lesions. The prevalence of thyroid malignancy in our sample was 38%. On ultrasonography, malignancy was diagnosed in 15(30%) lesions, while the remaining 35(70%) patients were diagnosed with benign lesions. Histopathology confirmed malignant thyroid nodules in 15 (true positive) cases, whereas 6 (false positive) had no malignant lesion on Histopathology. In US negative patients, 27 were true negative, while 2 were false negative. The sensitivity of ultrasound U-score in diagnosing malignant thyroid nodules was 88.2%, specificity was 81.8%, PPV was 71.4%, and NPV was 93% Diagnostic accuracy is high when the US is used to detect thyroid problems, making it the preferred noninvasive technique. We recommend that thyroid lesions be routinely assessed clinically, imaged radiographically, and analyzed histo-pathologically. U Classification system for identifying potentially cancerous thyroid nodules is a valuable tool. It allows for a more prudent choice of nodules to undergo FNAC, reducing the number of needless procedures.
Molecular‐weight‐dependent redox cycling of humic substances of paddy soils over successive anoxic and oxic alternations

Humic substances (HSs) are critical to regulating methane cycling in temporary anoxic systems because their redox‐active functional groups can sustainably shuttle electrons from microorganisms to oxygen (O2) over successive anoxic and oxic alternations. Whether the relative amount of these redox‐active functional groups involved in redox cycles is associated with the overall chemical structures of HS still remains poorly understood. In this study, variations in the reducing capacities (RCs) of HSs extracted from paddy soils were monitored over consecutive cycles of reduction by iron‐reducing microorganisms and oxidation by O2. Our results show that about 10–40% of the microbially reduced redox‐active moieties within HS, which were reoxidised by O2, cannot restore the same redox state as those before microbial reduction. The restoration extents of RCs of HSs after microbial reduction and O2 reoxidation were greatly negatively correlated with average molecular weight (AMW). The microbially reduced HSs having large AMWs (>1,000 Da) were more kinetically difficult to restore by O2 from a reduced state to an oxidised state than were those having small AMWs (<1,000 Da) possibly because the former, which underwent process of microbial reduction and O2 reoxidation, were more easily sheltered by other parts of HS structures than were the latter. Nevertheless, the unsheltered redox‐active groups that accounted for about 50–85% in HSs can be fully reversible and sustainable to switch between a reduced state and an oxidised state over successive redox cycles. Our results can help to understand the redox dynamics of HSs in biogeochemical cycles in environments.
Pan-UK Biobank GWAS improves discovery, analysis of genetic architecture, and resolution into ancestry-enriched effects

Large biobanks, such as the UK Biobank (UKB), enable massive phenome by genome-wide association studies that elucidate genetic etiology of complex traits. However, individuals from diverse genetic ancestry groups are often excluded from association analyses due to concerns about population structure introducing false positive associations. Here, we generate mixed model associations and meta-analyses across genetic ancestry groups, inclusive of a larger fraction of the UKB than previous efforts, to produce freely-available summary statistics for 7,271 traits. We build a quality control and analysis framework informed by genetic architecture. Overall, we identify 14,676 significant loci in the meta-analysis that were not found in the European genetic ancestry group alone, including novel associations for example between CAMK2D and triglycerides. We also highlight associations from ancestry-enriched variation, including a known pleiotropic missense variant in G6PD associated with several biomarker traits. We release these results publicly alongside FAQs that describe caveats for interpretation of results, enhancing available resources for interpretation of risk variants across diverse populations.
Sparse haplotype-based fine-scale local ancestry inference at scale reveals recent selection on immune responses

Increasingly efficient methods for inferring the ancestral origin of genome regions are needed to gain new insights into genetic function and history as biobanks grow in scale. Here we describe two near-linear time algorithms to learn ancestry harnessing the strengths of a Positional Burrows-Wheeler Transform (PBWT). SparsePainter is a faster, sparse replacement of previous model-based `chromosome painting' algorithms to identify recently shared haplotypes, whilst PBWTpaint uses further approximations to obtain lightning-fast estimation optimized for genome-wide relatedness estimation. The computational efficiency gains of these tools for fine-scale local ancestry inference offer the possibility to analyse large-scale genomic datasets in completely novel ways. Application to the UK Biobank shows that haplotypes better represent ancestries than principal components, whilst linkage-disequilibrium of ancestry identifies signals of recent changes to population-specific selection for many genomic regions associated with immune responses, suggesting new avenues for understanding the pathogen-immune system interplay on a historical timescale.
The association between periodontitis and the impact of oral health on the quality of life of individuals with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis

Objective To evaluate the association between psoriasis (PSO), psoriatic arthritis (PsA) and periodontitis (PE), and the Oral Health-Related Quality of Life (OHRQoL) impacts on individuals with psoriatic diseases daily activities compared to the non-psoriatic ones. Materials & Methods 296 individuals with psoriatic disease (PSO n= 210, APS n= 86) (cases) and 359 without these diseases (controls) were included. Complete periodontal examinations and collection of variables of interest were performed. The Brazilian version of the Oral Impacts on Daily Performance (OIDP) instrument was applied. Results The prevalence of PE was higher in PsA (57.0%; OR=2.67 95%CI 1.65-4.32; p<0.001) than in PSO (34.3%; OR=1.05 95% CI 0.73-1.51; p<0.001) compared to controls (33.1%). Both PsA and PSO groups showed more sites and teeth with 4-6mm probing depth (PD) and had higher OIDP scores than controls (p<0.001), thus indicating worse self-reported quality of life. PE, PSO+PE and consumption of alcohol/anxiolytics significantly influenced OHRQoL (p<0.05). The influence of periodontal parameters on OHRQoL was observed for the presence of PE; PD >6 mm; clinical attachment level >6 mm; higher plaque index, % sites and teeth with bleeding on probing (p<0.05). Conclusion Negative impacts of PE on the OHRQoL were demonstrated. The ones having PSO and especially PsA and PE presented significantly worse indicators.
Peri-ictal activation of dorsomedial dorsal raphe serotonin neurons reduces mortality associated with maximal electroshock seizures

Abstract Over one-third of patients with epilepsy will develop refractory epilepsy and continue to experience seizures despite medical treatment. These patients are at the greatest risk for sudden unexpected death in epilepsy. The precise mechanisms underlying sudden unexpected death in epilepsy are unknown, but cardiorespiratory dysfunction and arousal impairment have been implicated. Substantial circumstantial evidence suggests serotonin is relevant to sudden unexpected death in epilepsy as it modulates sleep/wake regulation, breathing and arousal. The dorsal raphe nucleus is a major serotonergic center and a component of the ascending arousal system. Seizures disrupt the firing of dorsal raphe neurons, which may contribute to reduced responsiveness. However, the relevance of the dorsal raphe nucleus and its subnuclei to sudden unexpected death in epilepsy remains unclear. The dorsomedial dorsal raphe may be a salient target due to its role in stress and its connections with structures implicated in sudden unexpected death in epilepsy. We hypothesized that optogenetic activation of dorsomedial dorsal raphe serotonin neurons in TPH2-ChR2-YFP (n = 26) mice and wild-type (n = 27) littermates before induction of a maximal electroshock seizure would reduce mortality. In this study, pre-seizure activation of dorsal raphe nucleus serotonin neurons reduced mortality in TPH2-ChR2-YFP mice with implants aimed at the dorsomedial dorsal raphe. These results implicate the dorsomedial dorsal raphe in this novel circuit influencing seizure-induced mortality. It is our hope that these results and future experiments will define circuit mechanisms that could ultimately reduce sudden unexpected death in epilepsy.
Assessing the Relationship between Obesity and Trigger Point-specific Outcomes after Headache Surgery

Background: Trigger point deactivation surgery is a safe and effective treatment for properly selected patients experiencing migraine, with 68.3%–100% experiencing symptom improvement postoperatively. However, it is still unknown why certain patients do not respond. Obesity has been shown to be associated with worsened migraine symptoms and a decreased response to select pharmacotherapies. This study aimed to determine whether obesity may also be associated with an attenuated response to surgery. Methods: A retrospective chart review was conducted to identify patients who had undergone trigger point deactivation surgery for migraine. Patients were split into obese and nonobese cohorts. Obesity was classified as a body mass index of 30 or higher per Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines. Outcomes and follow-up periods were determined with respect to individual operations. Outcomes included migraine attack frequency, intensity, duration, and the migraine headache index. Differences in demographics, operative characteristics, and operative outcomes were compared. Results: A total of 62 patients were included in the study. The obese cohort comprised 31 patients who underwent 45 total operations, and the nonobese cohort comprised 31 patients who underwent 34 operations. Results from multivariable analysis showed no impact of obesity on the odds of achieving a more than 90% reduction in any individual outcome. The overall rates of improvement (≥50% reduction in any outcome) and elimination (100% reduction in all symptoms) across both cohorts were 89.9% and 65.8%, respectively. Conclusion: Obese patients have outcomes comparable to a nonobese cohort after trigger point deactivation surgery for migraine.
Early nutritional programming in sterlet sturgeon (Acipenser ruthenus) with dietary soybean meal: Assessment of growth performance, body composition, and expression of GH, IGF-I, and Ghrelin genes

This study was performed to assess the impacts of introducing diets containing different levels of soybean meal (SBM) to sterlet sturgeon (Acipenser ruthenus) larvae on growth performance, body composition, and molecular responses in the juvenile stage. The sterlet larvae (57.68 ± 0.66 mg) were weaned onto the formulated diets as follows: a control diet containing 60% fishmeal (FM), and three experimental diets with replacement levels of 15% (SBM15), 30% (SBM30), and 45% (SBM45) of FM with SBM. Then, a total of 260 fish (initial weight: 323.33 ± 11.76 mg) were fed the four different diets for 28 days in triplicates (phase 1, nutritional programming, NP). All treatments were then fed with the FM diet in phase 2 (common phase), and in phase 3 (challenge phase), all experimental groups (6.14 ± 0.08 g) were transitioned to SBM45 for 28 days. At the end of phases 1 and 2, growth performance showed no significant differences among the groups (P > 0.05), while significantly improved in SBM45 than the control at the end of phase 3 (P < 0.05). No significant differences were found among the groups in any phases for whole body composition (P > 0.05). Additionally, the total saturated fatty acids were significantly higher in SBM-based diets than FM at the end of phase 3 (P < 0.05). The mRNA of GH, IGF-I was significantly affected by variation of FM replacement level (P < 0.05). The expression level of Ghrelin was up-regulated in fish fed SBM at the end of phase 3 (P < 0.05). Our findings revealed that NP can positively enhance the adaptation of juvenile sterlet sturgeon to 45% SBM when exposed to the same diets at the larval stage. Further research is being carried out to provide valuable insights into the underlying mechanisms of digestive performance for this species.