Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Catheter ablation in combined procedures is associated with residual leaks

Objectives To compare patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) undergoing left atrial appendage closure (LAAC) with catheter ablation (CA) and those without CA. Background The CA of AF may cause ridge edema, which may affect the safety of LAAC. Methods Patients with AF (N = 98) who underwent LAAC (combined CA + LAAC procedure group; N = 51) or alone (LAAC group; N = 47) received pre-procedural, intra-procedural, and 6 week post-procedural transesophageal echocardiography (TEE). The depth and ostial diameter of LAA, device compression, residual leak, and ridge thickness were evaluated in the patients who had undergone combined and alone procedures, as well as images of LAA and primary clinical characteristics. Results A residual leak was identified in 27 patients at 6 weeks after implantation by TEE (19 in the combined procedures group and eight in the alone group; p = 0.04). The combined procedure group had a significantly higher rate of a new residual leak than the alone group (25.5 vs. 8.5%; p = 0.03). Meanwhile, compared with at the time of implant, a smaller amount of device compression ratio was significant after 6 weeks (22.44 ± 3.90 vs. 19.59 ± 5.39; p = 0.03). There was no significant difference between both groups in all-cause mortality, cardiovascular mortality, and TIA/stroke/system embolism. Conclusion The combined procedures of CA and LAAC for AF are feasible and safe; however, during the follow-up period, we found that the resolution of ridge edema caused by CA might cause an increased residual leak and a smaller device compression ratio.
Analysis of longitudinal ordinal data using semi-parametric mixed model under missingness

Abstract In studies related to social or medical sciences, ordinal responses are often recorded repeatedly over time on a subject. A semi-parametric model with spline smoothing has been considered to capture the temporal trend exhibited in the longitudinal data. In addition, information on covariates and/or responses may not be available in one or more visit. A dynamic model for both missing responses and covariates is considered here. The parameters are estimated by adopting MCNREM methodology. A detailed simulation study has been performed to justify the utility of the proposed model. The model is applied on the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) data.
Incidence and antibiotic susceptibility of Staphylococcus aureus isolated from ready-to-eat meats in the environs of Bolgatanga Municipality of Ghana

Abstract Staphylococcus aureus is one of the major foodborne pathogens in ready-to-eat foods exposed to the environment. This study investigated the microbial load, incidence and antibiotic susceptibility of Staphylococcus aureus in ready-to-eat meats in Bolgatanga Municipality, Ghana. A total of 200 swabs of ready-to-eat meats (50 each of grilled chevon, mutton, pork and guinea fowl) were examined. Analyses for microbial load and Staphylococcus aureus were done using a modified method of the USA-FDA Bacteriological Analytical Manual. Antibiotic susceptibility test was performed using the disc diffusion method. The microbial load of the ready-to-eat meats ranged from 4.02 to 4.85 log cfu/cm2 and averagely 34.0% were positive for Staphylococcus aureus. The highest incidence was seen in grilled guinea fowl (46%) and the lowest was found in grilled chevon and pork (24% each). Of the 16 Staphylococcus aureus examined against 9 different antibiotics, 44.44% 5.56% and 50.00% exhibited susceptibility, intermediate resistance and resistance, respectively. Higher resistances were observed for ceftriaxone (81.25%) and teicoplanin (75.00%). Susceptibility was high for sulfamethoxazole/trimethoprim (87.5%) and gentamicin (81.25%). Resistance to 3 or more different antibiotics occurred for 14 (87.5%) Staphylococcus aureus. Some ready-to-eat meats in the environs of Bolgatanga are contaminated with Staphylococcus aureus which are resistant to antibiotics, posing a health risk to consumers.
Thinking outside the square: Evidence that plot shape and layout in forest inventories can bias estimates of stand metrics

Plot‐based data collection is an important component of quantitative ecological research and is widely used. Some of the most extensive plot‐networks can be found in country‐wide forest inventories, which provide critical information about the state of forest ecosystems. While sampling designs for forest inventories have been well studied, plot design and installation has received less attention. The New Zealand National Forest Inventory of natural forest uses a nested plot design with a 0.126 ha circular plot superimposed concentrically on a 0.04 ha square plot. Stems ≥ 60 cm diameter at breast height (DBH) are measured in the circular plot while stems ≥ 2.5 DBH are measured in the square plot. Stem density of ≥60 cm DBH stems measured in the circular plots were compared with those from square plots. Stem densities estimated from square plot measurements were 23.7% higher than those estimated from circular plot measurements in the 2002–2007 inventory, and 18.4% higher in the 2009–2014 inventory. The main cause of this discrepancy appears to be due to the placement of plot boundaries during establishment of square plots. This effect may have resulted from a subconscious tendency of field teams to include large trees inside plots when laying out these boundaries. It is concluded that estimates from the circular plots are unlikely to be biased while those from the square plots are positively biased. This study highlights the critical importance of plot design and plot placement in forest inventories to ensure that estimates of stand attributes are unbiased. Especially on undulating or uneven terrain, methods of determining whether trees are inside or outside plot boundaries of circular plots are likely to be more accurate than those typically used for square or rectangular plots.
Characterization of Drought Responsive Genes of CIPK Families in Rice, Maize and Sorghum

The CIPK gene family plays a key role in plant development and in stress signal transduction. The orthologs for experimentally proven drought stress responsive CIPKs from rice was identified in maize and sorghum. A total of 49 genes from the three species were analyzed for their phylogenetic relationship, gene structure, expression level and tissue specificity upon drought stress.
‘Within my work environment I don’t see gender as an issue’: Reflections on gender from a study of criminal justice social workers in Scotland

Community justice professionals operate within deeply gendered territory, yet there has been little attention to how gender is understood and embodied by the workforce. Building on findings from a mixed method study, this article explores professional perceptions of how gender plays out in criminal justice social work (CJSW) in Scotland. Our findings demonstrate that gender is an important but neglected dimension of CJSW. We conclude that advancing gender in this field requires a more inclusive theorising of gender in professional education and research, a more practical commitment to gender equality in policy and practice, and more routine opportunities for dialogue on issues of gender and justice within and across these domains.
A Multinational Pilot Study on the Lived Experiences and Mental Health Impacts from the COVID-19 Pandemic

To conduct a pilot study on the lived experiences of people affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, and the mental health impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on affected people. This mixed methods study used random and snowball techniques to recruit 91 respondents (age range 18–58 years) from 14 countries. Accessing patients with COVID-19 was restricted because of the nature of the disease and the treatment they were receiving which limited their access to being selected for our pilot study. Therefore, our respondents were members of the general population who were directly or indirectly affected by the pandemic. Respondents completed online surveys consisting of the Generalised Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7), Patient Health Questionnaire 9 (PHQ-9) and open-ended questions. Collected data were subjected to IBM SPSS statistics software (v. 22.0) and thematic analysis. Both quantitative and qualitative instruments reported very high feasibility, which is suggestive of an excellent feasibility of our mixed methods design. Second, we identified financial and time resources as major barriers to the recruitment process, and how to avert these in the main study was discussed. Third, COVID-19 pandemic had more anxious than depressive impacts on our respondents. We also found that more than half (58, 63.7%) of the total respondents showed high knowledge level of COVID-19, and the major sources from which they gained knowledge were television, radio, and online academic papers. Our qualitative insight showed five themes from the lived experiences of respondents from the COVID-19 pandemic. These themes were; changes in lifestyles, disruption of schooling activities, impact on options for health services, disruption of works and economy, and anxious and worrisome impacts, in that order. Main study is feasible with minor addition required on our protocol. Given other findings, we recommend the need for adaptive coping skill training, and appropriate information sharing during pandemics. There is also the need for psychosocial preparation due to the uncertainty of pandemics. In addition, averting the likely adverse economic impacts from pandemics should be of concern to governments and other stakeholders during pandemics. Finally, we recommend that governments and other stakeholders should be cautious about the likelihood of limited health service options for the general public during pandemics.
Detection and Classification of Power Quality Disturbances in Power System Using Modified-Combination between the Stockwell Transform and Decision Tree Methods

The detection, mitigation, and classification of power quality (PQ) disturbances have been issues of interest in the power system field. This paper proposes an approach to detect and classify various types of PQ disturbances based on the Stockwell transform (ST) and decision tree (DT) methods. At first, the ST is developed based on the moving, localizing, and scalable Gaussian window to detect five statistical features of PQ disturbances such as the high frequency of oscillatory transient, distinction between stationary and non-stationary, the voltage amplitude oscillation around an average value, the existence of harmonics in a disturbance signal, and the root mean square voltage at the internal period of sag, swell or interruption. Then, these features are classified into nine types, such as normal, sag, swell, interruption, harmonic, flicker, oscillatory transient, harmonic voltage sag, and harmonic voltage swell by using the DT algorithm that is based on a set of rules with the structure “if…then’’. This proposed study is simulated using MATLAB simulation. The IEEE 13-bus system, the recorded real data based on PQube, and the experiment based on the laboratory environment are applied to verify the effectiveness.
Trotting Control of Load-Carrying Quadruped Walking Vehicle with Load Variations Based on the Centroidal Dynamics and Adaptive Sliding Mode Control

Aiming at the control problems for load variations of the load-carrying quadruped walking vehicle, the method combining centroidal dynamics and adaptive sliding mode control is proposed to ensure the weight adaptation and improve the tracking accuracy of forward speed and lateral speed. The motion control of the walking vehicle is divided into two parts: torso motion control and swinging legs motion control. The control methods of centroidal dynamics and task space PD are applied to the motion control of the torso, and the virtual model control method is applied to the motion control of swinging legs. Then, the adaptive sliding mode control algorithm is applied in the height direction of the vehicle to realize the adaptation to weight change and the weight identification, and the tracking accuracy of forward speed and lateral speed is improved by combining the centroidal dynamics. Adams and Simulink are used to simulate the trotting gait on the flat ground and slope when the weight of walking vehicle changes, and comparisons are made with the virtual model control method. The results show that the method combining centroidal dynamics and adaptive sliding mode control can realize the adaptability to load variations and reduce the forward speed and lateral speed tracking error, which proves the effectiveness of the proposed control method.
Morphological redescription and DNA barcoding of Kaluginia lebetiformis Makarchenko, 1987 (Diptera: Chironomidae, Diamesinae) from South Korea

1) Federal Scientific Center of the East Asia Terrestrial Biodiversity, Far East Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Vladivostok 690022, Russia. *Corresponding author, Email: makarchenko@biosoil.ru 2) Far Eastern Federal University, Vladivostok 690950, Russia. 3) Laboratory of Biodiversity and Ecology, College of Life Sciences Korea University, Life Science (WEST) Bldg 145 Anam-ro, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul 136-713, Korea.
PEMBELAJARAN SOMAMUN MELALUI METODE BERNYANYI PADA ANAK USIA DINI DI TK SIMAHATE TAKENGON

ABSTRACT Religious learning is the most important thing to be taught to early childhood, one of them is like learning to pray and eat and drink properly, where early age is the golden age of children, this age is very good for stimulating religious learning in children because children can record all learning is given by kaffah. Cultivation of religious values ? must be given continuously and accustomed to children. Based on observations in the Takengon community, millennial children are now proud to pray in the mosque, and they are also reluctant to sit when eating and drinking, which can be observed when the child has stepped into adolescence, the child will not stop praying and eat irregularly. This all depends on the education experienced at preschool age. There are several factors that influence this are the child's self-factors, and environmental factors. Seeing that, we really hope that teachers can apply religious teachings, especially prayer and eating and drinking (SOMAMUN) right at an early age.
Exaireta spinigera (Wiedemann, 1830) : un Diptère invasif en expansion en Europe (Stratiomyidae)

– Exaireta spinigera (Wiedemann, 1830): an expanding invasive Diptera in Europe (Stratiomyidae). Following a new French observation of Exaireta spinigera (Wiedemann, 1830), Diptera Stratiomyidae, a European and French survey of its expansion is given. Some elements of biology are recalled and morphological characters are added to allow the recognition of the species among other French Stratiomyidae.
The Rhizoctonia solani RsLysM and RsRlpA effector proteins contribute to virulence by suppressing chitin-triggered immunity and hypersensitive response

Rhizoctonia (in Greek “root-killer”) species and particularly R. solani attacks a broad range of plant species and crops. It belongs to Basidiomycota and is a soil-borne pathogen causing mainly damping-off diseases of seedlings and root rot, although it can infect plants in any stage. Despite the severity of this disease, many aspects in R. solani infection biology still remain to be elucidated. Here we investigated the role of two effector candidates, predicted from the genome of a R. solani AG2-2IIIB strain that uses sugar beet as a host. Gene expression analysis showed that genes encoding for a LysM effector and a rare lipoprotein-A-like protein (RsRlpA) were induced upon early infection stages. When heterologous expressed in Cercospora beticola the two genes contributed to virulence. The RsLysM effector showed chitin‐ binding affinity and suppression of chitin-triggered immunity but could not protect hyphae from hydrolysis. The RsRlpA effector suppressed hypersensitive response in Nicotiana benthamiana leaves. Overall, this study provides us with valuable information on R. solani infection biology, implying that this organism relies on mechanisms similar to hemibiotrophic pathogens in order to establish a successful infection.
Online product search using gray level co-occurrence matrix, color moments, and histogram of oriented gradients for content based image retrieval

Usually an information retrieval system uses text as its query for retrieving the results. However, the system can also use images, as opposed to text, for the search query. This technique commonly is called content based image retrieval. In this paper, we explore the retrieval of fashion products such as hats, sneakers, t-shirts, flat shoes, and dresses from images using color, texture, and shape features to represent the characteristics of the query images. The color, texture, and shape features are color moments, gray level co-occurrence matrix, and histogram of oriented gradients, respectively. The feature extraction process produces vectors with statistical feature value which can then be clustered to retrieve images with high degree of similarity. Comparing those feature representations for the retrieval system, it is shown that shape feature is the best representation.
Methyl viologen can affect mitochondrial function in Arabidopsis

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are key signalling intermediates in plant metabolism, defence, and stress adaptation. The chloroplast and mitochondria are centres of metabolic control and ROS production, which coordinate stress responses in other cell compartments. The herbicide and experimental tool, methyl viologen (MV) induces ROS generation in the chloroplast under illumination, but is also toxic in non-photosynthetic organisms. We used MV to probe plant ROS signalling in compartments other than the chloroplast. Taking a genetic approach in Arabidopsis thaliana, we used natural variation, QTL mapping, and mutant studies with MV in the light, but also under dark conditions, when the chloroplast electron transport is inactive. These studies revealed a light-independent MV-induced ROS-signalling pathway, suggesting mitochondrial involvement. Mitochondrial Mn SUPEROXIDE DISMUTASE was required for ROS-tolerance and the effect of MV was enhanced by exogenous sugar, providing further evidence for the role of mitochondria. Mutant and hormone feeding assays revealed roles for stress hormones in organellar ROS-responses. The radical-induced cell death1 mutant, which is tolerant to MV-induced ROS and exhibits altered mitochondrial signalling, was used to probe interactions between organelles. Our studies implicate mitochondria in the response to ROS induced by MV.
Investigating progesterone and estrogen receptor crosstalk in breast cancer

ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Progestins are synthetic compounds designed to mimic the natural hormone progesterone (Prog), and are widely used in hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and contraception. These compounds can be divided into four generations, with newer generations increasing in progesterone receptor (PR) specificity. Although progestins have many therapeutic benefits, a number of undesirable side-effects, such as increased risk of breast cancer, have been reported. As a result, many postmenopausal women have sought alternatives for HRT, such as compounded bio-identical hormones like bio-identical Prog (bProg), claimed not to increase breast cancer risk. Progestins, Prog and bProg (collectively referred to as progestogens) elicit their biological effects primarily by binding to the PR, which exists as two predominant isoforms, PR-A and PR-B, with PR-B being the more transcriptionally active and proliferative isoform in breast cancer. Emerging evidence suggest that the PR plays an important role in breast cancer development and progression, and that there is crosstalk between the PR and estrogen receptor (ER)-α, a major etiological factor in breast cancer biology. Moreover, it has been shown that ER-α is required for PR-B-mediated effects of medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA) on activation of gene expression and breast cancer cell proliferation. The latter raised the questions of whether ER-α is needed for PR-B-mediated effects of other progestins, and whether the ERβ subtype would also be required. Given that PR-B has both transactivation and transrepression functions, this study used transactivation and transrepression transcriptional assays to investigate the PR-B-mediated agonist efficacies and potencies of Prog, bProg and select progestins from different generations (MPA, norethisterone acetate (NET-A), levonorgestrel (LNG), gestodene (GES) and drospirenone (DRSP)), and whether these were modulated by ERα and/or ERβ. Furthermore, the effects of the progestogens on breast cancer cell proliferation were evaluated in the absence and presence of ERα- and ERβ-specific antagonists. Results showed that progestins mostly displayed similar agonist efficacies and potencies for transactivation and transrepression via PR-B. The exception was first generation MPA that was less efficacious for transactivation and least potent for transrepression, and third generation GES that was more potent for transactivation. This study is the first to show that ERα and ERβ differentially decreased PR-B-mediated agonist efficacies of progestogens for transactivation and transrepression. However, the ERα-specific antagonist had no effect on progestogen-induced expression of the endogenous PR-B regulated c-myc gene or repression of the interleukin (IL)-8 gene in the T47D breast cancer cell line, while the ERβ-specific antagonist had no effect on progestogen-induced c-myc gene expression, and appeared to abolish repression of the IL-8 gene. Additionally, we showed that all progestogens, except NET-A and DRSP, displayed similar proliferative…
Lattice Fracture Model for Concrete Fracture Revisited: Calibration and Validation

The lattice fracture model is a discrete model that can simulate the fracture process of cementitious materials. In this work, the Delft lattice fracture model is reviewed and utilized for fracture analysis. First, a systematic calibration procedure that relies on the combination of two uniaxial tensile tests is proposed to determine the input parameters of lattice elements—tensile strength, compressive strength and elastic modulus. The procedure is then validated by simulating concrete fracture under complex loading and boundary conditions: Uniaxial compression, three-point bending, tensile splitting, and double-edge-notch beam shear. Simulation results are compared to experimental findings in all cases. The focus of this publication is therefore not only on summarizing existing knowledge and showing the capabilities of the lattice fracture model; but also to fill in an important gap in the field of lattice modeling of concrete fracture; namely, to provide a recommendation for a systematic model calibration using experimental data. Through this research, numerical analyses are performed to fully understand the failure mechanisms of cementitious materials under various loading and boundary conditions. While the model presented herein does not aim to completely reproduce the load-displacement curves, and due to its simplicity results in relatively brittle post-peak behavior, possible solutions for this issue are also discussed in this work.