Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Indications for and outcome in patients with the wearable cardioverter-defibrillator in a nurse-based training programme: results of the Austrian WCD Registry

Background: The wearable cardioverter-defibrillator is a treatment option for patients at temporarily high risk of sudden cardiac death or in whom implantation of a cardioverter-defibrillator is temporarily not possible. Objectives: The aim of this study was to provide real-world data on patients receiving this therapy in a nurse-based wearable cardioverter-defibrillator training programme. Methods: A registry including all patients prescribed with a wearable cardioverter-defibrillator in Austria between 2010 and 2016. Overall, 448 patients received a wearable cardioverter-defibrillator in 48 centres. Patients received structured nurse-based wearable cardioverter-defibrillator educational initial training followed by remote monitoring. Results: Main indications were: severe non-ischaemic cardiomyopathy (21%); recent myocardial infarction and percutaneous coronary intervention (20%); and stable coronary artery disease with percutaneous coronary intervention/coronary artery bypass grafting (14%). Eleven patients (2.5%) received 22 appropriate wearable cardioverter-defibrillator shocks. Two patients (0.4%) received three inappropriate shocks. The risk of sudden cardiac death varied between different aetiologies. Eight out of 11 (73%) patients received their first wearable cardioverter-defibrillator shock within 30 days. The main reasons for termination of the wearable cardioverter-defibrillator therapy were implantable cardioverter-defibrillator implantation (55.5%) and improvement of left ventricular ejection fraction to more than 35% (33%). Conclusion: The wearable cardioverter-defibrillator is an effective and safe treatment option in patients at either transiently elevated risk of ventricular tachycardia/ventricular fibrillation or mandated postponed implantable cardioverter-defibrillator implantation, with a 2.5% shock rate over a median 54 days wearable cardioverter-defibrillator treatment period. However, both the wearable cardioverter-defibrillator shock rate and implantable cardioverter-defibrillator implantation rate vary widely depending on the wearable cardioverter-defibrillator indication. Nurse-based wearable cardioverter-defibrillator training is associated with high patient adherence, with a median wearing duration per day of 23.5 (1–24) hours.
Sur deux problèmes d'apprentissage automatique : la détection de communautés et l'appariement adaptatif. (On two problems in machine learning : community detection and adaptive matching)

Dans cette these, nous etudions deux problemes d'apprentissage automatique : (I) la detection des communautes et (II) l'appariement adaptatif. I) Il est bien connu que beaucoup de reseaux ont une structure en communautes. La detection de ces communautes nous aide a comprendre et exploiter des reseaux de tout genre. Cette these considere principalement la detection des communautes par des methodes spectrales utilisant des vecteurs propres associes a des matrices choisiesavec soin. Nous faisons une analyse de leur performance sur des graphes artificiels. Au lieu du modele classique connu sous le nom de « Stochastic Block Model » (dans lequel les degres sont homogenes) nous considerons un modele ou les degres sont plus variables : le « Degree-Corrected Stochastic Block Model » (DC-SBM). Dans ce modele les degres de tous les nœuds sont ponderes - ce qui permet de generer des suites des degres heterogenes. Nous etudions ce modele dans deux regimes: le regime dense et le regime « epars », ou « dilue ». Dans le regime dense, nous prouvons qu'un algorithme base sur une matrice d'adjacence normalisee reussit a classifier correctement tous les nœuds sauf une fraction negligeable. Dans le regime epars il existe un seuil en termes de parametres du modele en-dessous lequel n'importe quel algorithme echoue par manque d'information. En revanche, nous prouvons qu'un algorithme utilisant la matrice « non-backtracking » reussit jusqu'au seuil - cette methode est donc tres robuste. Pour montrer cela nous caracterisons le spectre des graphes qui sont generes selon un DC-SBM dans son regime epars. Nous concluons cette partie par des tests sur des reseaux sociaux. II) Les marches d'intermediation en ligne tels que des plateformes de Question-Reponse et des plateformes de recrutement necessitent un appariement base sur une information incomplete des deux parties. Nous developpons un modele de systeme d'appariement entre tâches et serveurs representant le comportement de telles plateformes. Pour ce modele nous donnons une condition necessaire et suffisante pour que le systeme puisse gerer un certain flux de tâches. Nous introduisons egalement une politique de « back-pressure » sous lequel le debit gerable par le systeme est maximal. Nous prouvons que cette politique atteint un debit strictement plus grand qu'une politique naturelle « gloutonne ». Nous concluons en validant nos resultats theoriques avec des simulations entrainees par des donnees de la plateforme Stack-Overflow.
Global epigenetic analysis of BDNF Val66Met mice hippocampus reveals changes in dendrite and spine remodeling genes

Brain‐derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a neurotrophin highly expressed in the hippocampus, plays crucial roles in cognition, neuroplasticity, synaptic function, and dendritic remodeling. The common human Val66Met polymorphism of BDNF has been implicated in the pathophysiology of neuropsychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders, and in the outcome of pro‐adaptive and therapeutic treatments. Altered gene‐expression profile has been previously shown in BDNF Val66Met knock‐in mice, which recapitulate the phenotypic hallmarks of individuals carrying the BDNF Met allele. The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of the BDNF Val66Met polymorphism in the knock‐in mouse model on two hippocampal epigenetic marks for transcriptional repression and activation, respectively: trimethylation of lysine 27 on histone H3 (H3K27me3) and acetylation of histone H3 (AcH3), using a genome‐wide approach. Chromatin immunoprecipitation followed by deep sequencing of immunoprecipitated DNA (ChIP‐Seq) was carried out with specific antibodies for H3K27me3 and AcH3. Our results revealed broad alteration of H3K27me3 and AcH3 marks association profiles in BDNFMet/Met, compared to BDNFVal/Val mice. Bioinformatics analysis showed changes in several biological functions and related pathways, affected by the presence of the polymorphism. In particular, a number of networks of functional interaction contained BDNF as central node. Quantitative PCR analysis confirmed epigenetically related significant changes in the expression of five genes: Dvl1, Nos3, Reln, Lypd6, and Sh3gl2. The first three are involved in dendrite and spine remodeling, morphological features altered in BDNFMet/Met mice. This work in homozygous knock‐in mice shows that the human BDNF Val66Met polymorphism induces an array of histone H3 epigenetic modifications, in turn altering the expression of select genes crucial for structural and functional neuronal features.
Runtime quantitative verification of self-adaptive systems

Software systems used in mission- and business-critical applications in domains including defence, healthcare, and finance must comply with strict dependability, performance, and other Quality-of-Service (QoS) requirements. Self-adaptive systems achieve this compliance under changing environmental conditions, evolving requirements and system failures by using closed-loop control to modify their behaviour and structure in response to these events. Runtime quantitative verification (RQV) is a mathematically-based approach that implements the closed-loop control of self-adaptive systems. Using runtime observations of a system and its environment, RQV updates stochastic models whose formal analysis underpins the adaptation decisions made within the control loop. The approach can identify and, under certain conditions, predict violation of QoS requirements, and can drive self-adaptation in ways guaranteed to restore or maintain compliance with these requirements. Despite its merits, RQV has significant computation and memory overheads, which restrict its applicability to small systems and to adaptations affecting only the configuration parameters of the system. In this thesis, we introduce RQV variants that improve the efficiency and scalability of the approach and extend its applicability to larger and more complex self-adaptive software systems, and to adaptations that modify the structure of a system. First, we integrate RQV with established efficiency improvement techniques from other software engineering areas. We use caching of recent analysis results, limited lookahead to precompute suitable adaptations for potential future changes, and nearly-optimal reconfiguration to eliminate the need for an exhaustive analysis of the entire reconfiguration space. Second, we introduce an RQV variant that incorporates evolutionary algorithms into the RQV process facilitating the efficient search through large reconfiguration spaces and enabling adaptations that include structural changes. Third, we propose an RQV-driven approach that decentralises the control loops in distributed self-adaptive systems. Finally, we devise an RQV-based methodology for the engineering of trustworthy self-adaptive systems. We evaluate the proposed RQV variants using prototype self-adaptive systems from several application domains, including an embedded system for unmanned underwater vehicles and a foreign exchange service-based system. Our results, subject to the adaptation scenarios used in the evaluation, demonstrate the effectiveness and generality of the new RQV variants.
Fecal markers in the management of inflammatory bowel disease

ABSTRACT Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is characterized by periods of symptomatic remission and relapse. Diagnosis and assessment of IBD are based on clinical evaluation, serum parameters, radiology, and endoscopy. Fecal markers have emerged as new diagnostic tools to detect and monitor intestinal inflammation. Fecal calprotectin (FC) and lactoferrin (FL) were identified decades ago as potentially revolutionary markers for IBD. Following these discoveries numerous additional markers, including S100A12, M2-PK, metalloproteinases, hemoglobin, myeloperoxidase, lysozyme, polymorphonuclear elastase, neopterin, and nitric oxide, have also been suggested as novel markers of IBD. But only FC and FL are used for the management of clinical IBD patients. The objective of this review is to introduce the clinical applications of fecal markers in the diagnosis, monitoring and prediction of outcomes of inflammatory bowel disease.
Hierarchical decision model for throughput maximization in D2D‐enabled LTE‐WiFi HetNets

This paper proposes a hierarchical decision model for efficient and fair coexistence of Wireless Fidelity (WiFi) and heterogeneous cellular networks with device‐to‐device (D2D) communications. The first submodel is an allocation game formulated to model the data rate gain possible through the deployment of D2D communication in cellular networks. This is to guarantee that the Long‐Term Evolution (LTE) network is optimally utilized before offloading traffic to WiFi small cells. The second submodel is a Markovian model proposed as an optimal spectrum sharing scheme that guarantees efficient spectrum utilization and interference reduction in LTE‐WiFi heterogeneous networks (HetNets). Simulation results verify that the proposed decision model not only provides a more spectrum efficient sharing scheme but also shows better network throughput while ensuring fairness in spectrum access for WiFi users.
Cloning and Functional Characterisation of the Duplicated RDL Subunits from the Pea Aphid, Acyrthosiphon pisum

The insect GABA receptor, RDL (resistance to dieldrin), is a cys-loop ligand-gated ion channel (cysLGIC) that plays a central role in neuronal signaling, and is the target of several classes of insecticides. Many insects studied to date possess one Rdl gene; however, there is evidence of two Rdls in aphids. To characterise further this insecticide target from pests that cause millions of dollars’ worth of crop damage each year, we identified the complete cysLGIC gene superfamily of the pea aphid, Acyrthosiphon pisum, using BLAST analysis. This confirmed the presence of two Rdl-like genes (RDL1 and RDL2) that likely arose from a recent gene duplication. When expressed individually in Xenopus laevis oocytes, both subunits formed functional ion channels gated by GABA. Alternative splicing of RDL1 influenced the potency of GABA, and the potency of fipronil was different on the RDL1bd splice variant and RDL2. Imidacloprid and clothianidin showed no antagonistic activity on RDL1, whilst 100 μM thiacloprid reduced the GABA responses of RDL1 and RDL2 to 55% and 62%, respectively. It was concluded that gene duplication of Rdl may have conferred increased tolerance to natural insecticides, and played a role in the evolution of insect cysLGICs.
Prediction of microalbuminuria by analysing total urine protein-to-creatinine ratio in diabetic nephropathy patients in rural Sri Lanka

Introduction Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a major complication of diabetes mellitus and it contributes to increased hospital mortality and morbidity. Microalbumin test is used to identify the first sign of deteriorating kidney function but it is an expensive test. Alternatively, measurement of urine total protein-to-creatinine ratio (TPCR) is a simple and inexpensive method. Objective To find whether the urine TPCR can predict the presence of microalbuminuria in patients with diabetic nephropathy. Method A cross sectional study was performed on 216 patients with diabetes mellitus at General Hospital, Ampara over a period of 4 weeks. Urine albumin, urine creatinine and urine total protein were analysed on first voided urine samples and urine albumin to creatinine ratio (ACR) and total-protein-to-creatinine ratio were calculated. Regression analysis and Spearman’s rank correlation were used to study the linear relationship between two variables. Results Among 216 patients, 56 (26.1%) were males and 160 (73.9%) were females. The mean urine total-protein-to-creatinine ratio was 89.3 ± 231.6 mg/g and albumin to creatinine ratio was 43.1±76.3 mg/g. Sixty four (29%) patients were newly detected as having microalbuminuria (n=61; 28%,) or macroalbuminuria (n=3; 1%,). There was a significant correlation between urine total-protein-to-creatinine ratio and urine albumin to creatinine ratio (R2 = 0.824, ACR = [TPCR + 18.421]/ 2.5026) in the total sample (p < 0.001). The total-protein-to-creatinine ratio showed a significant correlation with urine albumin to creatinine ratio in the range of microalbuminuria (30-300 mg/g creatinine) (R2 = 0.798; p < 0.001). The regression equation was ACR = [TPCR – 5.0491]/1.2633. Conclusion The urine total-protein-to-creatinine ratio showed a positive significant correlation with urine albumin to creatinine ratio, which is clinically important to identify early stage of diabetic nephropathy. This can be used in rural areas as it is inexpensive.
Accurate Collaborative Globally-Referenced Digital Mapping with Standard GNSS

Exchange of location and sensor data among connected and automated vehicles will demand accurate global referencing of the digital maps currently being developed to aid positioning for automated driving. This paper explores the limit of such maps’ globally-referenced position accuracy when the mapping agents are equipped with low-cost Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) receivers performing standard code-phase-based navigation, and presents a globally-referenced electro-optical simultaneous localization and mapping pipeline, called GEOSLAM, designed to achieve this limit. The key accuracy-limiting factor is shown to be the asymptotic average of the error sources that impair standard GNSS positioning. Asymptotic statistics of each GNSS error source are analyzed through both simulation and empirical data to show that sub-50-cm accurate digital mapping is feasible in the horizontal plane after multiple mapping sessions with standard GNSS, but larger biases persist in the vertical direction. GEOSLAM achieves this accuracy by (i) incorporating standard GNSS position estimates in the visual SLAM framework, (ii) merging digital maps from multiple mapping sessions, and (iii) jointly optimizing structure and motion with respect to time-separated GNSS measurements.
Glassy carbon electrode modified with G-MoS2-Nafion acts as an electrochemical biosensor to determine uric acid in human serum

At present, the majority of methods used for uric acid (UA) detection are not able to meet the detection requirements with speed, accuracy, high sensitivity, high specificity, a wide linear range or a low cost. Compared with other methods, the electrochemical method has a high sensitivity and fast detection. The present study aimed to identify an electrochemical sensor with high sensitivity, fast detection and a wide linear range for the detection of UA. A glassy carbon electrode modified with graphene-molybdenum disulfide-Nafion (G-MoS2-Nafion) composites was prepared for use as the working electrode. The morphologies and elemental compositions of the G-MoS2 composites were characterized by field emission scanning electron microscopy, elemental distribution spectrometry and X-ray diffraction, respectively. The electrochemical behaviors were investigated by cyclic voltammetry, linear sweep voltammetry and the amperometric i-t curve (i-t). The interference of glucose, ascorbic acid and dopamine, and the accuracy and precision of the electrochemical method were subsequently evaluated. The present study identified the following: (1) Only the reduction peak of UA was detected in human serum, indicating that the method established in the present study has a high specificity for the determination of UA in human serum; (2) UA concentration has a linear correlation with current intensity (y=0.012×+0.998; R2=0.998), wide linear range and high sensitivity (minimum detectability=13.91 µM; signal-to-noise ratio=3); (3) the values of UA content in human serum were positively proportional to the clinical results (y=0.9802×+11.494; R2=0.978); (4) the average recovery rate of UA (95.28%) and the replicability assay of the i-t electrochemical method (coefficient of variation=2.04%), suggest that the method had a high accuracy and good precision for UA detection. Due to its characteristics of good accuracy, high sensitivity, wide linear range, good anti-interference ability and replicability, G-MoS2-Nafion has good prospects for UA detection in the clinical setting.
Lactoferrin-decorated vs PEGylated zein nanospheres for combined aromatase inhibitor and herbal therapy of breast cancer

ABSTRACT Objectives: Herein, we propose combined aromatase inhibitor and herbal therapy of breast cancer as a synergistic therapeutic modality. Methods: Zein nanospheres were prepared by phase separation for co-delivery of exemestane and luteolin. To enhance their tumor-targeting capability, the nanospheres were coated with PEGylated phospholipids and lactoferrin for passive and active targeting, respectively. Results: The developed nanospheres demonstrated a small particle size and controlled drug release. In addition, the nanospheres revealed high serum stability, acceptable hemocompatibility, and good physical stability. Moreover, a 5-fold scale-up of zein nanospheres could be enabled followed by spray-drying using 2.5% mannitol as a drying adjuvant. PEGylated and lactoferrin-targeted nanospheres showed enhanced cytotoxicity against MCF-7 and 4T1 breast cancer cells with higher selectivity to cancer cells rather than normal fibroblasts. The in-vivo pharmacokinetics and anti-tumor efficacy confirmed the superiority of zein nanospheres particularly after PEGylation compared to free drug(s). The enhanced anti-cancer activity of nanocarriers was revealed as prolonged circulation half-life, lower % change in tumor volume, reduced expression of aromatase, Cyclin D1 and VEGF markers as well as amplified apoptosis and necrosis. Conclusion: Overall, combined delivery of aromatase inhibitors and herbal drugs via tumor-targeted zein nanospheres could serve as a promising strategy for breast cancer therapy.
The Effects of Different Oxytetracycline and Copper Treatments on the Performance of Anaerobic Digesters and the Dynamics of Bacterial Communities

Oxytetracycline and copper are the common residues in animal manures. Meanwhile, anaerobic digestion is considered as a clean biotechnology for the disposal of animal manures. In this paper, the performance of anaerobic digesters and the dynamics of bacterial communities under the different treatments of oxytetracycline and copper were discussed. The parameters of methane production and pH values were studied to reflect the performance of anaerobic digester. Results showed that the changes of methane production and pH values were not obvious compared with the control. This means that the treatments of oxytetracycline and copper almost have no effects on the performance of anaerobic digesters. This phenomenon might be due to the chelation reaction between oxytetracycline and copper. This chelation reaction might reduce the toxicity of oxytetracycline. The study on the dynamics of bacterial communities was based on the polymerase chain reaction-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE) method. Results indicated that the bacterial communities had significant differences under the different treatments of oxytetracycline and copper. Uncultured Bacteroidetes bacterium (CU922272.1) and uncultured Bacteroidetes bacterium (AB780945.1) showed adaptability to the different treatments of oxytetracycline and copper and were the dominant bacterial communities.
Extra Dose of Vitamin C Based on a Daily Supplementation Shortens the Common Cold: A Meta-Analysis of 9 Randomized Controlled Trials

Aim To investigate whether vitamin C is effective in the treatment of the common cold. Method After systematically searching the National Library of Medicine (PubMed), Cochrane Library, Elsevier, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), VIP databases, and WANFANG databases, 9 randomized placebo-controlled trials were included in our meta-analysis in RevMan 5.3 software, all of which were in English. Results In the evaluation of vitamin C, administration of extra therapeutic doses at the onset of cold despite routine supplementation was found to help reduce its duration (mean difference (MD) = -0.56, 95% confidence interval (CI) [-1.03, -0.10], and P = 0.02), shorten the time of confinement indoors (MD = -0.41, 95% CI [-0.62, -0.19], and P = 0.0002), and relieve the symptoms associated with it, including chest pain (MD = -0.40, 95% CI [-0.77, -0.03], and P = 0.03), fever (MD = -0.45, 95% CI [-0.78, -0.11], and P = 0.009), and chills (MD = -0.36, 95% CI [-0.65, -0.07], and P = 0.01). Conclusions Extra doses of vitamin C could benefit some patients who contract the common cold despite taking daily vitamin C supplements.