Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Influence of Pulmonary Rehabilitation and Counselling on Perceptions of Physical Activity in Individuals with COPD – A Qualitative Study

Objective The aim of this study was to explore to what extent a combined counselling and pulmonary rehabilitation program (PR) influences the perception of physical activity (PA) and motivation for behavioral change in PA in individuals with COPD. The results of previous quantitative trial that investigated the effect of this combined treatment on daily PA were inconclusive. It is conjectured that a more targeted tailoring of the counselling and PR intervention could improve its effectiveness. Patients and Methods Eighteen individuals with COPD (median age 69, 8 females) who had participated in the PneumoReha program were interviewed twice (following PR and at three-month follow-up). These interviews were transcribed and analyzed thematically. Based on the codes thus identified, three categories ‘perception of PA intensity’, ‘quality of motivation to perform PA’, and ‘strategies to cope with barriers’ were used to differentiate ‘types’ of participants. Results Four different types of COPD individuals were distinguished. Study findings indicate that those individuals who participated in the PR program combined with embedded counselling tended to be more active and intrinsically motivated. Conclusion A typology of four types of people with COPD was developed, characterized by their perception of activity, individual motivation and strategies for managing barriers. The patients’ physical activity level might be influenced by their concept of physical activity and the quality of motivation. Recognizing patients’ different activity behaviors is important for improving the quality of outpatient PR programs and developing tailored (according to each type) counselling interventions embedded in outpatient PR programs. Clinical Trial Registration The study was registered on the website of https://www.clinicaltrials. gov/ with the identifier NCT02455206 (27/05/2015), as well as on the Swiss National Trails Portal SNCTP000001426 (05/21/2015).
Does the importance of relevance and faithful representation differ between GAAP and tax reporting? A discussion of the trade-offs between cash-basis, accrual-basis, and fair value accounting methods

This paper explains the trade-offs between the relevance and faithful representation of accounting information analyzed in the contexts of the cash-basis, accrual-basis, and fair value accounting methods used to prepare financial statements for Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and tax reporting. Discussion of the role of the relevance and faithful representation of accounting information is generally separate from any discussion of the trade-offs between cash-basis, accrual-basis, and fair value accounting methods, and the different needs and priorities of the users of GAAP and tax reporting information. The study contributes to the literature by suggesting how the importance of relevance and faithful representation differs between GAAP reporting and tax reporting, and how the allowable accounting methods for GAAP and tax reporting align with the differing emphasis on relevance and faithful representation. We review the reporting requirements established by regulators in light of these trade-offs and discuss how the needs of external users of the reporting information shape the allowable accounting methods for GAAP and tax reporting. Key words: Relevance, faithful representation, cash-basis, accrual-basis, fair value, GAAP, tax reporting.
Conserved Modification of the Eubacterial 50S Subunitt

Methylation of the 50S ribosomal proteins from Bacillus stearothermophilus, Bacillus subtilis, Alteromonas espejiana, and Halobacterium cutirubrum was measured after the cells were grown in the presence of [1-14C]methionine or [methyl-3H]methionine or both. Two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoretic analysis revealed, in general, similar relative electrophoretic mobilities of the methylated proteins from each eubacterium studied. Proteins known to be structurally and functionally homologous in several microorganisms were all methylated. Thus, the following group of proteins, which appear to be involved in peptidyltransferase or in polyphenylalanine-synthesizing activity in B. stearothermophilus (P. E. Auron and S. R. Fahnestock, J. Biol. Chem. 256:10105-10110, 1981), were methylated (possible Escherichia coli methylated homologs are indicated in parentheses): BTL5(EL5), BTL6(EL3), BTL8(EL10), BTL11(EL11), BTL13(EL7L12) and BTL2Ob(EL16). In addition, the pentameric ribosomal complex BTL13 * BTL8, analogous to the complex EL7L12 * EL10 of E. coli, contained methylated proteins. Analysis of the methylated amino acids in the most heavily methylated proteins, BSL11 from B. subtilis and BTL11 from B. stearothermophilus, showed the presence of c-N-trimethyllysine as the major methylated amino acid in both proteins, in agreement with known data for E. coli. In addition, BSL11 appeared to contain trimethylalanine, a characteristic, modified amino acid previously described only in EL11 from E. coli. These results and those previously obtained from other bacteria indicate a high degree of conservation for ribosomal protein methylation and suggest an important, albeit unknown, role for the modification of these components in eubacterial ribosomes.
Efficient, high-performance semantic segmentation using multi-scale feature extraction

The success of deep learning in recent years has arguably been driven by the availability of large datasets for training powerful predictive algorithms. In medical applications however, the sensitive nature of the data limits the collection and exchange of large-scale datasets. Privacy-preserving and collaborative learning systems can enable the successful application of machine learning in medicine. However, collaborative protocols such as federated learning require the frequent transfer of parameter updates over a network. To enable the deployment of such protocols to a wide range of systems with varying computational performance, efficient deep learning architectures for resource-constrained environments are required. Here we present MoNet, a small, highly optimized neural-network-based segmentation algorithm leveraging efficient multi-scale image features. MoNet is a shallow, U-Net-like architecture based on repeated, dilated convolutions with decreasing dilation rates. We apply and test our architecture on the challenging clinical tasks of pancreatic segmentation in computed tomography (CT) images as well as brain tumor segmentation in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data. We assess our model’s segmentation performance and demonstrate that it provides performance on par with compared architectures while providing superior out-of-sample generalization performance, outperforming larger architectures on an independent validation set, while utilizing significantly fewer parameters. We furthermore confirm the suitability of our architecture for federated learning applications by demonstrating a substantial reduction in serialized model storage requirement as a surrogate for network data transfer. Finally, we evaluate MoNet’s inference latency on the central processing unit (CPU) to determine its utility in environments without access to graphics processing units. Our implementation is publicly available as free and open-source software.
The relationship between smoking cigarettes and metabolic syndrome: A cross-sectional study with non-single residents of Seoul under 40 years old

Introduction Young adults receive health screenings at lower rates than other age groups, and it may be difficult to detect diseases in the early stages for this group. We examined differences in health status relative to smoking in a young age group using the results of health screenings conducted in engaged and newly married couples in a cross-sectional database. Methods The participants in this study were 808 young adults who visited a municipal hospital health screening center from July 2017 to March 2019. They completed a self-administered questionnaire, and physical measurements and a blood test were taken. They were classified into non-cigarette smokers, past cigarette smokers, and current cigarette smokers according to smoking behavior. In this study, we compared metabolic syndrome, the main components of which include obesity, high blood pressure, high blood triglycerides, low levels of HDL cholesterol and insulin resistance, with smoking behavior. Results The mean age of the participants was 30.9±3.3 years (males 32.0±3.2, females 29.8±3.1), and 13.9% were current cigarette smokers (males 22.8%, females 5.1%). The proportion of men in their 30s was 76.6% for male group and 50.0% for female group, indicating that the male group had a relatively higher proportion of older and current smokers. Significant differences were found in age, sex, blood pressure, metabolic abnormalities, and drinking status according to smoking status. Cigarette smokers had a 2.4-fold greater risk of metabolic syndrome (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.43–3.96) than non-cigarette smokers; in particular, they had a 2.6-fold (95% CI, 1.44–4.55) greater risk of hypertriglyceridemia and a three-fold (95% CI, 1.45–6.35) greater risk of low HDL cholesterol. Conclusions In comparison with non-single, young and generally healthy city dwellers, the risk of metabolic syndrome was significantly higher in smokers than in non-smokers, and in particular, it was confirmed that the risk of hypertriglyceridemia and low HDL cholesterolemia was higher. Smoking cessation is necessary, even for the young, because smoking may cause changes in blood lipids even if the smoking duration is short.
Antimalarial drug resistance in the Central and Adamawa regions of Cameroon: Prevalence of mutations in P. falciparum crt, Pfmdr1, Pfdhfr and Pfdhps genes

The spread of Plasmodium falciparum resistant parasites remains one of the major challenges for malaria control and elimination in Sub Saharan Africa. Monitoring of molecular markers conferring resistance to different antimalarials is important to track the spread of resistant parasites and to optimize the therapeutic lifespan of current drugs. This study aimed to evaluate the prevalence of known mutations in the drug resistance genes Pfcrt, Pfmdr1, Pfdhfr and Pfdhps in two different epidemiological settings in Cameroon. Dried blood spots collected in 2018 and 2019 from asymptomatic individuals were used for DNA extraction and then the Plasmodium infection status was determined byPCR. Detection of SNPs was performed by nested PCR followed by allele-specific restriction analysis (ASRA). The prevalence of each genotype was compared between sites using the Chi square and Fisher’s exact tests. A high prevalence of the Pfcrt K76 wild type allele was found in both sites (88.5 and 62.29% respectively; P< 0,0001). The prevalence of Pfmdr1 mutations 86Y and 1246Y was respectively 55.83 and 1.45% in Mfou and 45.87 and 5.97% in Tibati, with significant difference between the studied areas (P<0.0001). Overall, the Pfdhfr triple-mutant genotype (51I/59R/108N) was highly prevalent (> 96%), however no SNP was detected at codon 164. In Pfdhps, the prevalence of the 437G mutation reached (90%) and was at higher frequency in Mfou (P< 0.0001). Overall, the Pfdhps mutations 540E and 581G were less common (0.33 and 3.26%, respectively). The quadruple resistant genotype (Pfdhfr 51I/59R/108N+Pfdhp437G) was found almost 90% of the samples. The wild-type genotype (Pfdhfr N51/C59/S108/164I+Pfdhps A437/K540/A581) was never identified and the sextuple mutant (Pfdhfr 51I/59R/108N+Pfdhp437G/540E/581G), kwon as super resistant appeared in two samples from Tibati. These findings demonstrate declining trends in the prevalence of mutations conferring resistance to 4-aminoquinolines, especially to chloroquine. However, a high level of mutations in P. falciparum genes related to SP resistance was detected and this raises concerns about the future efficacy of IPTp-SP and SMC in Cameroon.
Incidence and predictors of mortality among patients with head injury admitted to Hawassa University Comprehensive Specialized Hospital, Southern Ethiopia: A retrospective follow-up study

Introduction Head injury is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality throughout the world, especially in resource-limited countries including Ethiopia. However, little is known about the mortality rate and its predictors among these patients in Ethiopia. Thus, the study aims to assess the incidence rate of mortality and its predictors among patients with head injury admitted at Hawassa University Comprehensive Specialized Hospital. Methods Institutional based retrospective follow-up study was conducted among 1220 randomly selected head injury patients admitted from July 2017 to July 2019. Bivariable and multivariable Cox regression models were fitted to identify the predictors of mortality. Proportionality assumption was tested by a global test based on the Schoenfeld residuals test. Results The incidence of the mortality rate was 2.26 (95%CI: 1.9–2.6) per 100-person day observation. The independent predictors of time to death were age above 65 years (AHR:3.49, 95%CI:1.63, 7.48), severe TBI (AHR: 8.8, 95%CI:5.13, 15.0), moderate TBI (AHR:3, 95%CI:1.73,5.31), hypotension (AHR:1.72, 95%CI: 1.11,2.66), hypoxia (AHR:1.92, 95%CI: 1.33,2.76), hyperthermia (AHR:1.8, 95%CI: 1.23,2.63) and hypoglycemic (AHR:1.94, 95%CI: 1.34, 2.81) positively associated with mortality, while underwent neurosurgery was negatively associated with mortality (AHR: 0.25, 95% CI: 0.11,0.53). Conclusion The incidence of mortality rate among head injury patients was high. Older age, moderate and severe TBI, hypotension and hypoxia at admission, neurosurgical procedure, and the episode of hyperthermia and hypoglycemia during hospitalization were the independent predictors of mortality among head injury patients. Therefore, intervention to reduce earlier deaths should focus on the prevention of secondary brain insults.
TailTimer: A device for automating data collection in the rodent tail immersion assay

The tail immersion assay is a widely used method for measuring acute thermal pain in a way which is quantifiable and reproducible. It is non-invasive and measures response to a stimulus that may be encountered by an animal in its natural environment. However, quantification of tail withdrawal latency relies on manual timing of tail flick using a stopwatch, and precise temperatures of the water at the time of measurement are most often not recorded. These two factors greatly reduce the reproducibility of tail immersion assay data and likely contribute to some of the discrepancies present among relevant literature. We designed a device, TailTimer, which uses a Raspberry Pi single-board computer, a digital temperature sensor, and two electrical wires, to automatically record tail withdrawal latency and water temperature. We programmed TailTimer to continuously display and record water temperature and to only permit the assay to be conducted when the water is within ± 0.25°C of the target temperature. Our software also records the identification of the animals using a radio frequency identification (RFID) system. We further adapted the RFID system to recognize several specific keys as user interface commands, allowing TailTimer to be operated via RFID fobs for increased usability. Data recorded using the TailTimer device showed a negative linear relationship between tail withdrawal latency and water temperature when tested between 47–50°C. We also observed a previously unreported, yet profound, effect of water mixing speed on latency. In one experiment using TailTimer, we observed significantly longer latencies following administration of oral oxycodone versus a distilled water control when measured after 15 mins or 1 h, but not after 4 h. TailTimer also detected significant strain differences in baseline latency. These findings valorize TailTimer in its sensitivity and reliability for measuring thermal pain thresholds.
AMH Is a Good Predictor of Metabolic Risk in Women with PCOS: A Cross-Sectional Study

Objective The relationship between metabolic risk and ovarian function is ambiguous. This retrospective study analyzed the medical records of 461 PCOS patients collected between January 2019 and June 2020 to investigate the relationship between serum anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) and parameters of metabolic risk in the population with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Methods A total of 461 PCOS patients aged 20–40 years were included and stratified into four groups according to the AMH level. The association between AMH and the parameters related to metabolic risk in these groups was compared, and the discrepancies were further explored. Binary logistic regression was performed to examine the risk factors of HOMA-IR. The values of AMH that best predicted the risk of HOMA-IR were also analyzed by ROC curves. Results AMH was negatively associated with HOMA-IR (odds ratio (OR) −0.279, 95% confidence interval (CI) −0.36 to −0.20), fasting insulin (OR −0.282, 95% CI −0.36 to −0.20), 1-hour postprandial insulin (OR −0.184, 95% CI −0.28 to −0.11), 2-hour postprandial insulin (−0.180, 95%CI −0.28 to −0.11), 3-hour postprandial insulin (OR −0.198, 95% CI –0.30 to −0.13), waist-hip ratio (OR −0.235, 95% CI −0.31 to −0.14), and body mass index (OR −0.350, 95% CI −0.43 to −0.27). There was no statistically significant relationship between blood pressure, serum glucose profile, or lipid levels and AMH. Binary logistic regression showed that AMH protected against the occurrence of PCOS patients (OR: 0.835, 0.776, and 0.898). For the prediction of HOMA-IR, AMH had an AUC-ROC of 0.704 (95% CI 0.652–0.755) with a cutoff value of 7.81 mmol/L, a sensitivity of 70.3%, and a specificity of 70.1%. Conclusions Higher AMH levels were significantly associated with a lower insulin profile and might be a useful predictor for HOMA-IR in PCOS patients.
Managing risk in ski resorts: Environmental factors affecting actual and estimated speed on signposted groomed slopes in a cohort of adult recreational alpine skiers

Background Certain weather conditions are clearly harmful, increasing the risk of injury of winter sports participants substantially. The objective of this study was to investigate actual speeds of skiers on signposted groomed slopes and to measure their skill to accurately estimate them with regard to environmental conditions such as visibility, sky cover, snow quality, wind and temperature. Methods The data were obtained from a sample of 421 adult recreational skiers taking ski courses. The Pearson correlation coefficient was used to explore the relationship between actual and estimated speed for all participants. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to measure the effect of environmental conditions on both the skiers’ actual speeds and their errors of estimation. Values of 0.05 or less were considered to indicate statistical significance. Results The Pearson correlation coefficient between estimated and actual speed was 0.90 (P < 0.001). Skiers underestimated their actual speed on average by 13.06 km/h or 24.1%. Visibility, quality of snow and wind speed were shown to significantly affect both actual maximum speed and estimated speed. Good visibility, grippy snow and calm wind were associated with both the highest actual maximum speed and the lowest ability to estimate it. Conclusion Certain environmental conditions are associated with the actual speed at which skiers travel and with their ability to estimate it. Visibility, quality of snow and wind speed seem to influence both actual speed and the ability to estimate it while sky cover and temperature do not. A reinforced understanding of skiing speed on signposted groomed slopes is useful to gain insight into crashes and the mechanisms of resulting injuries, to evaluate means of protection and to devise successful prevention policies in ski resorts.
Value of ddPCR in the Preoperative Diagnosis of Solitary Pulmonary Nodules Based on the Observation of Virtual Reality Images of Smart Medical Treatment

At present, lung cancer ranks the first cause of tumor death in the world, and malignant tumors in the SPN detected by imaging account for 5–40%, most of which are peripheral lung cancer. The recovery of the solitary nodules in the lung after treatment has also been paid attention to. In order to explore the correlation of solitary pulmonary nodule (SPN) with microvessel density (MVD), vascular parameters, and vascular ratio under virtual reality images of smart medical treatment and evaluate the differentiation of SPN by ddPCR under virtual reality image observation diagnosis value, this article collects relevant information by investigating patients, investigating relevant literature, interviewing professionals, and constructing a case template, using a comprehensive quantitative and qualitative analysis method to create a damage assessment matrix. Experimental results prove that there are significant differences in the microvascular architecture within the SPN in the benign, inflammatory, and malignant groups. The correlation between ddPCR and vascular parameters (especially the ratio of luminal vessels) under the virtual reality image observation of smart medical treatment is better than other detection methods, and its accuracy is about 10% higher. Based on the observation of smart medical virtual reality images, ddPCR can be used as an index for noninvasive evaluation of tumor angiogenesis, which is helpful for the differential diagnosis of SPN.
Characterization and Physical and Biological Properties of Tissue Conditioner Incorporated with Carum copticum L.

Aim One of the main problems in dentistry is the injury caused by the long-term application of an ill-fitting denture. The existence of multiple microorganisms along with the susceptibility of the tissue conditioners to colonize them can lead to denture stomatitis. This study is aimed at developing a tissue conditioner incorporated with Carum copticum L. (C. copticum L.) for the effective treatment of these injuries. Materials and Methods The Carum copticum L. essential oil composition was determined by gas chromatography-mass (GC-mass) spectrometry. The antimicrobial activity of the essential oil against the standard strains of bacterial and fungal species was determined by broth microdilution methods as suggested by the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI). The physical and chemical properties of the prepared tissue conditioner were investigated by viscoelasticity, FTIR assays, and the release study performed. Furthermore, the antibiofilm activity of the Carum copticum L. essential oil-loaded tissue conditioner was evaluated by using the XTT reduction assay and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Results The main component of the essential oil is thymol, which possesses high antimicrobial activity. The broth microdilution assay showed that the essential oil has broad activity as the minimum inhibitory concentration was in the range of 32-128 μg mL−1. The viscoelasticity test showed that the essential oil significantly diminished the viscoelastic modulus on the first day. The FTIR test showed that Carum copticum L. essential oil was preserved as an independent component in the tissue conditioner. The release study showed that the essential oil was released in 3 days following a sustained release and with an ultimate cumulative release of 81%. Finally, the Carum copticum L. essential oil exhibited significant activity in the inhibition of microbial biofilm formation in a dose-dependent manner. Indeed, the lowest and highest amounts of biofilm formation on the tissue conditioner disks are exhibited in the Streptococcus salivarius and Candida albicans by up to 22.4% and 71.4% at the 64 μg mL−1 concentration of C. copticum L. with a statistically significant difference (P < 0.05). Conclusion The obtained results showed that the Carum copticum L. essential oil-loaded tissue conditioner possessed suitable physical, biological, and release properties for use as a novel treatment for denture stomatitis.