Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Highly conductive copper nano/microparticles ink via flash light sintering for printed electronics

In this study, the size effect of copper particles on the flash light sintering of copper (Cu) ink was investigated using Cu nanoparticles (20–50 nm diameter) and microparticles (2 μm diameter). Also, the mixed Cu nano-/micro-inks were fabricated, and the synergetic effects between the Cu nano-ink and micro-ink on flash light sintering were assessed. The ratio of nanoparticles to microparticles in Cu ink and the several flash light irradiation conditions (irradiation energy density, pulse number, on-time, and off-time) were optimized to obtain high conductivity of Cu films. In order to precisely monitor the milliseconds-long flash light sintering process, in situ monitoring of electrical resistance and temperature changes of Cu films was conducted during the flash light irradiation using a real-time Wheatstone bridge electrical circuit, thermocouple-based circuit, and a high-rate data acquisition system. Also, several microscopic and spectroscopic characterization techniques such as scanning electron microscopy, x-ray diffraction, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy were used to characterize the flash light sintered Cu nano-/micro-films. In addition, the sheet resistance of Cu film was measured using a four-point probe method. This work revealed that the optimal ratio of nanoparticles to microparticles is 50:50 wt%, and the optimally fabricated and flash light sintered Cu nano-/micro-ink films have the lowest resistivity (80 μΩ cm) among nano-ink, micro-ink, or nano-micro mixed films.
Crisis Management Actions in the Egyptian Travel Agencies: A Managerial Perspective

یعانی المقصد السیاحی المصری من خسائر کبیرة منذ عام 2011. وتعتبر شرکات السیاحة مع غیرها من مقدمى الخدمات والأنشطة السیاحیة من أکثر قطاعات الأعمال تأثرا خلال الأزمات الحالیة. فی ضوء ذلک، تهدف هذه الدراسة إلى التعرف على الإجراءات التی تتخذها الإدارة العلیا فی شرکات السیاحة المصریة خلال الازمات. ومن أجل تحقیق هذا الهدف، تم اتباع المنهج الوصفی التحلیلی من خلال تصمیم استقصاء موجه إلى العاملین فی المستویات الإداریة العلیا فی شرکات السیاحة المصریة بفئاتها المختلفة وقد تم الحصول على 211 استمارة صالحة للتحلیل. تظهر نتائج هذه الدراسة أن أنشطة التسویق ینبغی أن تأتی على راس قائمة الإجراءات التی تتبعها شرکات السیاحة المصریة خلال الأزمات، ومن أهم هذه الأنشطة، تکثیف العمل فی مجال التسویق المشترک مع قطاعات تقدیم الخدمات السیاحیة الأخرى مثل شرکات الطیران والفنادق، وتقدیم عروض خاصة بأسعار مخفضة، وتسویق وترویج منتجات سیاحیة جدیدة مثل سیاحة الأحداث الخاصة. وقد أوضحت النتائج أیضا، أن الإجراءات المرتبطة بدعم الحکومة من بین أهم إجراءات إدارة الازمات التی یمکن الاعتماد علیها؛ مثل طلب مساعدات طویلة الأجل من الحکومة، فضلا عن التفاهم حول اتفاقیة لجدولة المبالغ المستحقة على الشرکات السیاحیة مثل الضرائب والقروض. وعلاوة على ذلک، تظهر النتائج أن الإجراءات التی تتخذ خلال الازمات من قبل شرکات السیاحة فی مصر تختلف باختلاف فئاتها (أ، ب، أو ج) ونوع ملکیتها (رأس مال وطنی، أجنبی، أو مشترک). وقد قدمت هذه الدراسة قائمة بالإجراءات التی یمکن أن تساعد شرکات السیاحة فی مصر على مواجهة الآثار السلبیة للأزمات ودعم وضع خطة عمل فعالة لإدارة الأزمات.
Hospital distribution, persistence, and reintroduction of related gentamicin R plasmids

A single plasmid clone was predominantly responsible for gentamicin resistance at the Minneapolis Veterans Administration Medical Center (MVAMC) for 9 years, although two unrelated R plasmids were found. Epidemiological data and restriction endonuclease analysis of 25 plasmid isolates suggested that the clonally derived plasmid population had persisted at the hospital. However, one case of reintroduction of the original epidemic plasmid from a hospital in another state was documented 4 years after the introduction of the original plasmid to the MVAMC. Resistance by the clonally derived plasmid population was not localized geographically within the MVAMC but rather was a hospital-wide problem. Furthermore, previously described classes of DNA rearrangement of the original plasmid were also widely disseminated in the hospital, implying that spread of strains bearing index-related plasmids was relatively unimpeded within the MVAMC despite extensive barrier isolation and cohorting measures. Potential environmental reservoirs of the plasmids were identified in hospital sinks and drains, but their relation to continued patient infection is not known.
FCFilter: Feature selection based on clustering and genetic algorithms

The search for patterns in big amounts of textual data, or text mining, can be at once rewarding and challenging. The patterns can reveal tendencies, similarities and predictions, but the information is usually implicit and difficult to be validated. Classification is one of the most relevant research areas in text mining, and it usually consists of predicting the class of a textual document based on a set of documents previously organized into different classes, such as author or topic. Choosing the words to compose the feature set is crucial to a proper classification. A well selected feature set can improve the performance of the classification method and enlighten the interpretation of the classification model adjusted to the data. This paper introduces the Feature Cluster Filter (FCFilter) method for feature selection. FCFilter eliminates the need to input or optimize the number of clusters by grouping the words in a sufficiently high number of clusters. Genetic algorithms are applied to optimize the combination of groups that will provide the final feature set. The method is based on the selection of features that are good predictors for text classification by clustering features and selecting only the suitable clusters. Experiments performed to evaluate the FCFilter with the Reuters-21578, SCY-Genes and SCY-Clusters datasets showed a significant reduction in the feature-value table dimensionality with slight improvements in the classification accuracy when compared to the baselines. The results are very promising, indicating potential improvements in the research on feature selection for text mining.
Perceptions of Genetic Testing for Personalized Nutrition: A Randomized Trial of DNA-Based Dietary Advice

Background/Aims: Direct-to-consumer (DTC) genetic tests have facilitated easy access to personal genetic information related to health and nutrition; however, consumer perceptions of the nutritional information provided by these tests have not been evaluated. The objectives of this study were to assess individual perceptions of personalized nutrition and genetic testing and to determine whether a personalized nutrition intervention modifies perceptions. Methods: A double-blind, parallel-group, randomized controlled trial was conducted among healthy men and women aged 20-35 years (n = 138). Participants in the intervention group (n = 92) were given a report of DNA-based dietary advice and those in the control group (n = 46) were given a general dietary advice report. A survey was completed at baseline and 3 and 12 months after distributing the reports to assess perceptions between the two groups. Results: No significant differences in perceptions of personalized nutrition and genetic testing were observed between the intervention and control group, so responses of both groups were combined. As compared to baseline, participant responses increased significantly toward the positive end of a Likert scale at 3 months for the statement ‘I am interested in the relationship between diet and genetics' (mean change ± SD: 0.28 ± 0.99, p = 0.0002). The majority of participants indicated that a university research lab (47%) or health care professional (41%) were the best sources for obtaining accurate personal genetic information, while a DTC genetic testing company received the fewest selections (12%). Most participants (56%) considered dietitians to be the best source of personalized nutrition followed by medical doctors (27%), naturopaths (8%) and nurses (6%). Conclusions: These results suggest that perceptions of personalized nutrition changed over the course of the intervention. Individuals view a research lab or health care professional as better providers of genetic information than a DTC genetic testing company, and registered dietitians are considered to be the best providers of personalized nutrition advice.
Carrier frequency offset estimation for OFDM systems using null subcarriers

Carrier frequency offset (CFO) in orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing(OFDM) systems, which can induce the loss of orthogonality among subcarriersand result in significant performance degradation, is critical to be estimatedand compensated for. In this paper, a suboptimal scheme is proposed to estimatethe CFO using null subcarriers. In the proposed scheme, the CFO is dividedinto the fractional part and the integer part, with the fractional CFO estimatedfollowed by the integer CFO estimation. Compared with previous work usingnull subcarriers and exhaustive search, the implementation complexity of theproposed scheme is significantly lower due to the fact that the main componentrequired is a simple correlator. Furthermore, with only one trainingOFDM symbol and proper null subcarrier allocation, the estimation range ofthe proposed scheme can be the inverse of the sampling duration. In contrast,conventional schemes with the same estimation range and complexity require two OFDM symbols. To achieve good performance,it will be shown that the null subcarrier allocation should be based uponsome specific binary sequences such as the proposed extended m-sequences. It willalso be shown by simulations that the same null subcarrier allocation criterionshould be employed for optimal maximum-likelihood CFO estimation.
Localization of Interictal Epileptic Spikes With MEG: Optimization of an Automated Beamformer Screening Method (SAMepi) in a Diverse Epilepsy Population

Purpose: To describe and optimize an automated beamforming technique followed by identification of locations with excess kurtosis (g2) for efficient detection and localization of interictal spikes in patients with medically refractory epilepsy. Methods: Synthetic aperture magnetometry with g2 averaged over a sliding time window (SAMepi) was performed in seven patients with focal epilepsy and five healthy volunteers. The effect of varied window lengths on detection of spiking activity was evaluated. Results: Sliding window lengths of 0.5 to 10 seconds performed similarly, with 0.5- and 1-second windows detecting spiking activity in 1 of the 3 virtual sensor locations with highest kurtosis. These locations were concordant with the region of eventual surgical resection in these seven patients who remained seizure-free at 1 year. Average g2 values increased with increasing sliding window length in all subjects. In healthy volunteers, kurtosis values stabilized in data sets longer than 2 minutes. Conclusions: SAMepi using g2 averaged over 1-second sliding time windows in data sets of at least 2 minutes of duration reliably identified interictal spiking and the presumed seizure focus in these seven patients. Screening the five locations with highest kurtosis values for spiking activity is an efficient and accurate technique for localizing interictal activity using magnetoencephalography. Significance: SAMepi should be applied using the parameter values and procedure described for optimal detection and localization of interictal spikes. Use of this screening procedure could significantly improve the efficiency of magnetoencephalography analysis if clinically validated.
Salivary proteomic and genomic biomarkers for primary Sjögren's syndrome.

OBJECTIVE To identify a panel of protein and messenger RNA (mRNA) biomarkers in human whole saliva (WS) that may be used in the detection of primary Sjögren's syndrome (SS). METHODS Mass spectrometry and expression microarray profiling were used to identify candidate protein and mRNA biomarkers of primary SS in WS samples. Validation of the discovered mRNA and protein biomarkers was also demonstrated using real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction and immunoblotting techniques. RESULTS Sixteen WS proteins were found to be down-regulated and 25 WS proteins were found to be up-regulated in primary SS patients compared with matched healthy control subjects. These proteins reflected the damage of glandular cells and inflammation of the oral cavity system in patients with primary SS. In addition, 16 WS peptides (10 up-regulated and 6 down-regulated in primary SS) were found at significantly different levels (P < 0.05) in primary SS patients and controls. Using stringent criteria (3-fold change; P < 0.0005), 27 mRNA in saliva samples were found to be significantly up-regulated in the primary SS patients. Strikingly, 19 of 27 genes that were found to be overexpressed were interferon-inducible or were related to lymphocyte filtration and antigen presentation known to be involved in the pathogenesis of primary SS. CONCLUSION Our preliminary study has indicated that WS from patients with primary SS contains molecular signatures that reflect damaged glandular cells and an activated immune response in this autoimmune disease. These candidate proteomic and genomic biomarkers may improve the clinical detection of primary SS once they have been further validated. We also found that WS contains more informative proteins, peptides, and mRNA, as compared with gland-specific saliva, that can be used in generating candidate biomarkers for the detection of primary SS.
Self‐reported lactose intolerance in clinic patients with functional gastrointestinal symptoms: prevalence, risk factors, and impact on food choices

Many patients complain of abdominal symptoms with dairy products; however, clinical and psychosocial factors associated with self‐reported lactose intolerance (SLI) have not been assessed in large studies. In particular, data are lacking from lactase deficient populations. This prospective cohort study assessed the prevalence of, and risk factors for, SLI in Chinese patients attending a gastroenterology clinic.
Simian Immunodeficiency Virus Variants That Differ in Pathogenicity Differ in Fitness under Rapid Cell Turnover Conditions

ABSTRACT Simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) has been shown to progress through a number of changes that lead to the emergence of pathogenic viral variants in macaques initially infected with a mildly cytopathic variant, SIVMneCL8. One of these late-stage isolates, SIVMne170, replicates to high levels in vivo and causes a rapid disease course when reintroduced into naïve macaques, resulting in a viral set point up to 3,000-fold higher than the set point of the parental virus, SIVMneCL8. However, in cell culture both viruses replicate with similar kinetics. One major difference between in vivo and in vitro cultures is the life span of the infected cells. Here, we manipulated the life span of infected cells in vitro, and we show that the fitness of SIVMne170 in cultures with a limited cell life span dramatically increased compared to its fitness in cultures with a nonlimited life span of cells. The increase in fitness was at least partially due to the fact that the rapid turnover system eliminates the negative influence of the cytopathic effects associated with replication of SIVMne170. Because the relative fitness of SIVMneCL8 and SIVMne170 observed in the rapid turnover system more accurately reflects their fitness in vivo, the system represents an improved approach to comparing relative fitness of viruses.
Haplotypes in CCR5-CCR2, CCL3 and CCL5 are associated with natural resistance to HIV-1 infection in a Colombian cohort.

INTRODUCTION Variants in genes encoding for HIV-1 co-receptors and their natural ligands have been individually associated to natural resistance to HIV-1 infection. However, the simultaneous presence of these variants has been poorly studied. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the association of single and multilocus haplotypes in genes coding for the viral co-receptors CCR5 and CCR2, and their ligands CCL3 and CCL5, with resistance or susceptibility to HIV-1 infection. MATERIALS AND METHODS Nine variants in CCR5-CCR2, two SNPs in CCL3 and two in CCL5 were genotyped by PCR-RFLP in 35 seropositive (cases) and 49 HIV-1-exposed seronegative Colombian individuals (controls). Haplotypes were inferred using the Arlequin software, and their frequency in individual or combined loci was compared between cases and controls by the chi-square test. A p' value ;0.05 after Bonferroni correction was considered significant. RESULTS Homozygosis of the human haplogroup (HH) E was absent in controls and frequent in cases, showing a tendency to susceptibility. The haplotypes C-C and T-T in CCL3 were associated with susceptibility (p'=0.016) and resistance (p';0.0001) to HIV-1 infection, respectively. Finally, in multilocus analysis, the haplotype combinations formed by HHC in CCR5-CCR2, T-T in CCL3 and G-C in CCL5 were associated with resistance (p'=0.006). CONCLUSION Our results suggest that specific combinations of variants in genes from the same signaling pathway can define an HIV-1 resistant phenotype. Despite our small sample size, our statistically significant associations suggest strong effects; however, these results should be further validated in larger cohorts.
Prospective Evaluation of Intestinal Homing Memory T Cells in Ulcerative Colitis

Background:Intestinal homing (β7+) memory T cells reflect the mucosal environment in which they were primed. We hypothesized that prospective assessment of cytokine production by intestinal homing (β7+) memory T cells in ulcerative colitis patients followed from remission to early relapse may elucidate shifts in cytokine production relevant to the mucosal environment associated with the early phase of inflammation. Methods:Twelve patients with frequently relapsing ulcerative colitis (≥2 relapses in the previous 12 months) were recruited in remission and followed prospectively until relapse. Antibody labeling of whole blood and flow cytometry were used to identify β7+ cells and β7− populations within CD3+CD45RA− leukocytes. Production of cytokines (IFN-γ, TNF-&agr;, IL-2, IL-10, TGF-β, and IL-4) was determined by intracellular labeling. Results:Early relapse of ulcerative colitis was associated with a shift of T cells from the naive to the memory T cell pool, and further the ratio of β7+:β7− memory T cells was significantly reduced at relapse (p < 0.01). A greater proportion of intestinal homing β7+ memory T cells produced IL-4 (p < 0.02) and TNF-&agr; (p < 0.05) at disease relapse compared with remission. Non-intestinal homing β7−memory T cells also showed a tendency toward an increased production of TH1 and TH2 cytokines. Conclusions:The earliest phase of intestinal inflammation in ulcerative colitis patients is associated with an increase in both TH1 (TNF-&agr; and TH2 (IL-4) cytokines by intestinal homing β7+ memory T cells. These data support the principles of targeting lymphocyte trafficking as therapies in ulcerative colitis.
Evidence by calorimetry for an activation of sodium‐hydrogen exchange of young rat skeletal muscle in hypertonic media.

1. The rate of energy dissipation associated with Na(+)‐H+ exchange in isolated, superfused soleus muscles from young rats was measured with an isothermal microcalorimeter during quasi‐stationary states of oxidative metabolism. 2. Under normal physiological conditions, amiloride, an inhibitor of the Na(+)‐H+ exchange across plasma membranes, had no measurable effect on the specific rate of muscle heat production (E); the ouabain‐suppressible part of E was identical whether amiloride was absent or present. 3. E was increased under hyperosmotic conditions and the difference with respect to control (excess E) was proportional to the degree of hyperosmolarity of the superfusate. It was 48% of basal E during a +100 mosM stress (with no change of extracellular Na+ concentration, Na+o). Inhibition of Ca2+ release into the sarcoplasm with sodium dantrolene (10(‐5) M) or tetracaine (5 x 10(‐5) M) suppressed a substantial part (65 and 53%, respectively) of the steady‐state excess E (1.2 mW (g wet weight)‐1) induced by the +100 mosM stress. Practically 100% of excess E was suppressed in the nominal absence of extracellular sodium (Na+o = 0, Li+ substitution) or under 15 mM‐Na+o, and excess E was enhanced when Na+o was increased (hyperosomolarity by addition of Na2SO4 instead of sucrose). 4. Under hyperosmotic conditions, amiloride at the 5 x 10(‐7) M concentration had no effect on excess E whereas at 10(‐4) M it induced a significant decrease of excess E. The absolute effect of 10(‐4) M‐amiloride was ‐0.34 mW (g wet weight)‐1 (equal to 28% of the excess E due to a +100 mosM‐sucrose stress and to 14% of the excess E due to a +100 mosM‐Na2SO4 stress). It was left unaltered in the presence of dantrolene and was independent of the way the +100 mosM stress was obtained (i.e. 100 mM‐sucrose or 50 mM‐Na2SO4). It was suppressed at Na+o = 0‐15 mM and could be mimicked by guanochlor, another potent inhibitor of Na(+)‐H+ exchange. In the presence of 10(‐4) M‐amiloride, the ouabain‐suppressible E was significantly reduced. In the presence of ouabain, amiloride had no effect. 5. Muscle tissue space available to [3H]inulin was measured in parallel experiments. It was 23.3% under control conditions and 30.6% after a 2 h exposure of the muscle to a +100 mosM‐Na2SO4 stress. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Nosocomial infections in the pediatric intensive care unit: Affecting the impact on safety and outcome

Objective: To define the most common types of nosocomial infections in critically ill children and to summarize the effect of methods to reduce their prevalence. Design: Review of published literature. Results: While in the pediatric intensive care unit, 16% of children develop a nosocomial infection. Processes affecting modifiable factors of care can reduce the prevalence of hospital-acquired infections. Conclusions: The occurrence of a nosocomial infection represents failure and is not an acceptable outcome of treating critically ill children. Evidence-based process improvement can lead to significant reductions in hospital-acquired infections in children. Most of the processes and practices discussed are not novel or intriguing but, when performed routinely and appropriately, can lead to reductions in hospital-acquired infections.
Mitoxantrone-loaded superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles as drug carriers for cancer therapy: Uptake and toxicity in primary human tubular epithelial cells

Abstract Superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) are in use for many clinical diagnostic and experimental therapeutic applications, for example, for targeted drug delivery. To analyze the cellular responses to mitoxantrone-carrying SPIONs (SPION-MTO), and to the drug released from SPIONs, we used an in vitro system that allows comparison of primary human cells with different endocytotic capacities, namely, epithelial cells from proximal and distal parts of the nephron. SPIONs were selectively and rapidly internalized by proximal tubular cells with high endocytotic potential, but not by distal tubular cells. Uptake did not affect cell viability or morphology. In both cell types, free MTO (10–100 nM) induced double-strand DNA breaks and senescence, cell hypertrophy and reduced cell proliferation. However, cadherin-mediated cell–cell adhesion, cytoskeletal structures or polarity of the cells were not affected. Interestingly, a comparable response was also observed upon treatment with SPION-MTO and was independent of uptake of the particles. The effect of SPION-MTO on cells which did not internalize particles was primarily related to the release of MTO from drug-coated particles upon incubation in serum-containing cell growth medium. In conclusion, we show that whereas the uptake of SPIONs does not affect cellular functions or viability, the toxicity of drug-loaded SPIONs depends essentially on the type of drug bound to nanoparticles. Due to the relatively low systemic toxicity of MTO, the effects of MTO-SPIONs on human tubular cells were moderate, but they may become clinically relevant when more nephrotoxic drugs are bound to SPIONs.