Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Critical Analysis of the First Latin American Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Treatment of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus.

P atients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in Latin America differ to a certain extent from lupus patients in other parts of the world, particularly those from developed countries as reported over the last several years by the GLADEL group (Grupo Latino Americano De Estudio de Lupus or Latin American Group for the Study of Lupus). In the early 2000s, GLADEL constituted a Latin American cohort of SLE patients; in the initial publication in 2004, 1214 patients were included; since then, the group has reported on the presentation and course of the disease, paying particular attention to the impact of ethnic (Amerindian vs. non-Amerindian ancestry), socioeconomic status (SES), and demographic features (lower SES, younger age at onset) on the expression of the disease (higher frequency of renal involvement and lymphopenia), its outcome (higher degrees and more rapid development of damage accrual), and its heterogeneity (different degrees of disease severity among the Latin American population). These findings contrast with data from white SLE patients from Europe and North America. However, disease features among the Mestizo (mixed European and Amerindian ancestry) patients are comparable to the Hispanic patients described in the US-based LUMINA (for Lupus in Minorities: Nature vs. Nurture) cohort. GLADEL, under the sponsorship of PANLAR (Pan American League of Associations of Rheumatology), has developed guidelines for the treatment of SLE tailored to these Latin American patients. To this end, 2 preliminary meetings took place, 1 in Panama (PANLAR, 2016) and 1 in
MRI Vessel Wall Enhancement and Other Imaging Biomarkers in Pediatric Focal Cerebral Arteriopathy-Inflammatory Subtype

Background and Purpose— Focal cerebral arteriopathy-inflammatory type (FCA-i) is a common cause of pediatric arterial ischemic stroke characterized angiographically by unifocal and unilateral stenosis/irregularity of the large anterior circulation arteries with a presumed inflammatory cause. Arterial vessel wall enhancement (VWE) on vessel wall magnetic resonance imaging is a potential biomarker of inflammation that may improve diagnosis, guide treatment, and predict outcomes in patients with FCA-i. We hypothesized that patients with FCA-i with more severe or extensive VWE would have worse arteriopathy, larger infarcts, worse clinical outcome, and increased risk for infarct progression/recurrence. Methods— Pediatric patients with arterial ischemic stroke, classified as FCA-i, and who underwent vessel wall imaging were retrospectively identified at our institution. Clinical data were reviewed and the Pediatric Stroke Outcome Measure at 1 year was determined as the primary clinical end point. Neuroimaging studies were assessed for infarct size, arteriopathy severity (Focal Cerebral Arteriopathy Severity Score), and VWE. Results— Nine cases of FCA-i with vessel wall imaging were evaluated, and there was a strong correlation between clinical outcome at 1-year with initial infarct volume (Spearman correlation coefficient rho=0.84; P<0.01) and arteriopathy severity (Focal Cerebral Arteriopathy Severity Score; rho=0.85; P<0.01). Patients with infarct progression/recurrence had worse Focal Cerebral Arteriopathy Severity Score at presentation compared with those without progression/recurrence (median [IQR]; 9.0 [8.0–11.8] and 5.0 [4.0–7.0], respectively; P<0.05). On the contrary, measures of VWE were not correlated with arteriopathy severity, infarct size, clinical outcome, or risk of infarct progression/recurrence. Moreover, not all patients with FCA-i demonstrated VWE. Conclusions— VWE may not be a reliable biomarker for the diagnosis or assessment of FCA-i, and future work is needed to assess the utility of vessel wall imaging in pediatric arterial ischemic stroke and FCA-i.
Isolated & Combined Wearable Technology Underestimate the Total Energy Expenditure of Professional Young Rugby League Players; A Doubly Labelled Water Validation Study

Abstract Costello, N, Deighton, K, Cummins, C, Whitehead, S, Preston, T, and Jones, B. Isolated & combined wearable technology underestimate the total energy expenditure of professional young rugby league players; a doubly labelled water validation study. J Strength Cond Res 36(12): 3398–3403, 2022—Accurately determining total energy expenditure (TEE) enables the precise manipulation of energy balance within professional collision-based sports. Therefore, this study investigated the ability of isolated or combined wearable technology to determine the TEE of professional young rugby league players across a typical preseason and in-season period. Total energy expenditure was measured via doubly labelled water, the criterion method, across a fourteen-day preseason (n = 6) and 7-day in-season (n = 7) period. Practical measures of TEE included SenseWear Pro3 Armbands in isolation and combined with metabolic power derived from microtechnology units. SenseWear Pro3 Armbands significantly under-reported preseason (5.00 [2.52] MJ·d−1; p = 0.002) and in-season (2.86 [1.15] MJ·d−1; p < 0.001) TEE, demonstrating a large and extremely large standardized mean bias, and a very large and large typical error, respectively. Combining metabolic power with SenseWear Pro3 Armbands almost certainly improved preseason (0.95 [0.15] MJ·d−1; Effect size = 0.32 ± 0.04; p < 0.001) and in-season (1.01 [0.15] MJ·d−1; ES = 0.88 ± 1.05; p < 0.001) assessment. However, SenseWear Pro3 Armbands combined with metabolic power continued to significantly under-report preseason (4.04 [2.38] MJ·d−1; p = 0.004) and in-season (2.18 [0.96] MJ·d−1; p = 0.002) expenditure, demonstrating a large and very large standardized mean bias, and a very large and large typical error, respectively. These findings demonstrate the limitations of utilizing isolated or combined wearable technology to accurately determine the TEE of professional collision-based sport athletes across different stages of the season.
What lessons it might teach us? Community engagement in HIV research.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW Partnerships between academia and the community led to historic advances in HIV and paved the way for ongoing community engagement in research. Three decades later, we review the state of community engagement in HIV research, discuss best practices as supported by literature, explore innovations, and identify ongoing gaps in knowledge. RECENT FINDINGS The community of people living with and at risk for HIV remains actively involved in the performance of HIV research. However, the extent of participation is highly variable despite long standing and established principles and guidelines of good participatory practices (GPP) and community-based participatory research (CBPR). Current literature reveals that known barriers to successful community engagement continue to exist such as power differences, and poor scientific or cultural competency literacy. Several high-quality studies share their experiences overcoming these barriers and demonstrate the potential of CBPR through reporting of qualitative and quantitative outcomes. SUMMARY Greater time and attention should be placed on the development of community engagement in HIV research. A large body of literature, including innovative cross-cutting approaches, exists to guide and inform best practices and mitigate common barriers. However, we recognize that true growth and expansion of CBPR within HIV and in other fields will require a greater breadth of research reporting qualitative and quantitative outcomes.
Design, synthesis and characterization of a paclitaxel formulation activated by extracellular MMP9.

The concept of triggered drug release offers a possibility to overcome the toxic side effects of chemotherapeutics in cancer treatment by reducing systemic exposure to the active drug. In the present work, the concept forsees the use of the extracellular enzyme MMP9 as an enzymatic trigger for drug release in the proximity of tumor cells. METHODS A paclitaxel-hemisuccinate-peptide conjugate as a building block for self-assembling nanoparticles was synthesized using standard conjugation approaches. The building block was purified via preparative HPLC and analyzed by LC-MS. Nanoparticles were formed using the nanoprecipitation method and characterized. For selection of a suitable in vitro model system, common bioanalytical methods were used to determine mRNA expression, enzyme amount and activity of MMP9. RESULTS The MMP9-labile prodrug was synthesized and characterized. Nanoparticles were formed out of MMP9-labile conjugate-building blocks. The nanoparticle`s diameter averaged at around 120 nm and presented a spherical shape. LN-18 cells - a glioblastoma multiforme derived cell line - were chosen as an in vitro model based on findings in cancer tissue and cell line characterization. The prodrug showed cytotoxicity in LN-18 cells, which was reduced by addition of an MMP9 inhibitor. CONCLUSION Taken together, we confirmed increased MMP9 in several cancer tissues (cervical, esophageal, lung and brain) compared to healthy tissue and showed the effectiveness of MMP9-labile prodrug in in vitro tests.
Tailored Bio-Polymeric Nanomicellar Carriers: A Promising approach for the delivery of poorly water soluble Drugs

INTRODUCTION The oral bioavailability of drugs is strongly influenced by two important parameters, solubility and permeability. Based on the intestinal permeability and solubility of drugs, the Biopharmaceutical Classification System (BCS) defines four categories of drugs. Many existing and new therapeutic entities are categorized as BCS Class II (low solubility and high permeability) or BCS Class IV (low solubility & low permeability). However, their low solubility limits the drug dissolution rate, consequently results in low oral bioavailability. Several strategies have been proposed including the use of auxiliary solvents, alteration in pH of the drug microenvironment, soluble salt formation, micronization, complexation with β-cyclodextrin, microemulsification, and surfactant micelles. Each of the methods has its own limitations; e.g., the use of surfactant micelles to solubilize hydrophobic drugs pose problems as most of the surfactants are relatively toxic and that precipitation of hydrophobic drugs occurs when subjected to dilution in vivo [1]. The use of organic solvents in the cosolvency approach limits its extensive use. The solubilization of poorly soluble drug candidates sometimes requires extremes of pH which is physiologically incompatible. Due to the relatively smaller cavity of β-cyclodextrin, it can solubilize relatively small amount of drug in aqueous media. The major disadvantages of solid dispersion are related to their instability with aging and lack of suitable manufacturing techniques that could be scaled up to commercial production. Among these approaches, polymeric micelles have gained considerable attention in the last two decades. Due to their nanoscopic size, ability to solubilize hydrophobic drugs in large amounts & achieve site specific delivery, polymeric micelles hold promise to obtain desirable biopharmaceutical and pharmacokinetic properties of drugs and enhance their bioavailability. Review Article
Numerical Study of the Interaction between Level Ice and Wind Turbine Tower for Estimation of Ice Crushing Loads on Structure

In this paper, the interaction between level ice and wind turbine tower is simulated by the explicit nonlinear code LS-DYNA. The isotropic elasto-plastic material model is used for the level ice, in which ice crushing failure is considered. The effects of ice mesh size and ice failure strain on ice forces are investigated. The results indicate that these parameters have a significant effect on the ice crushing loads. To validate and benchmark the numerical simulations, experimental data on level ice-wind turbine tower interactions are used. First, the failure strains of the ice models with different mesh sizes are calibrated using the measured maximum ice force from one test. Next, the calibrated ice models with different mesh sizes are applied for other tests, and the simulated results are compared to corresponding model test data. The effects of the impact speed and the size of wind turbine tower on the comparison between the simulated and measured results are studied. The comparison results show that the numerical simulations can capture the trend of the ice loads with the impact speed and the size of wind turbine tower. When a mesh size of ice model is 1.5 times the ice thickness, the simulations can give more accurate estimations in terms of maximum ice loads for all tests, i.e., good agreement between the simulated and measured results is achieved.
Submitted to the Annals of Statistics ANALYTICAL NONLINEAR SHRINKAGE OF LARGE-DIMENSIONAL COVARIANCE MATRICES By

This paper establishes the first analytical formula for nonlinear shrinkage estimation of large-dimensional covariance matrices. We achieve this by identifying and mathematically exploiting a deep connection between nonlinear shrinkage and nonparametric estimation of the Hilbert transform of the sample spectral density. Previous nonlinear shrinkage methods were of numerical nature: QuEST requires numerical inversion of a complex equation from random matrix theory whereas NERCOME is based on a sample-splitting scheme. The new analytical method is more elegant and also has more potential to accommodate future variations or extensions. Immediate benefits are (i) that it is typically 1,000 times faster with basically the same accuracy as QuEST and (ii) that it accommodates covariance matrices of dimension up to 10, 000 and more. The difficult case where the matrix dimension exceeds the sample size is also covered.
Usefulness of Serum High Sensitivity-CRP Measurement for Differentiating Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis from Simple Steatosis in Patients with Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease Usefulness of Serum High Sensitivity-CRP Measurement for Differentiating Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis from Simple Steatosis in

Background: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a disorder which ranges over a spectrum, extending from simple steatosis to steatohepatitis (NASH). Significant proportion of NASH could progress to cirrhosis. However, it has remained difficult to differentiate between NASH and simple steatosis by clinical examination. Nowadays serum high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) is an inflammatory marker that predicts severity of metabolic syndrome. Aim: To study whether serum hs-CRP including other metabolic parameters could differentiate and predict NASH in patients with NAFLD. Methods: Seventy-six patients with biopsy proven NAFLD (mean age 53 ± 10.5), 15 with simple steatosis (mean age 49.5 ± 11.3) and 61 with NASH (mean age 53.9 ± 10.2) were investigated. Baseline characteristics including BMI and waist-hip ratio of all subjects were evaluated. Serum fasting plasma glucose, lipid, hs-CRP, leptin, adiponectin, TNF-α and Homeostasis Model Assessment Method (HOMA-IR) were measured. Metabolic syndrome was assessed according to National Cholesterol Program’s Adult Treatment Panel III. Liver biopsies were graded according to Brunt criteria. Diagnostic accuracy of predictors of NASH and advance fibrosis was examined prospectively. Results: The median (min-max) of serum hs-CRP was higher in NASH compared with simple steatosis [1.9 (0.2-14.2) vs 0.97 (0.2-12.3) mg/L]. And the optimal cut-off value of serum hs-CRP in differentiating NASH and simple steatosis, assessed by ROC analysis was 0.88 mg/L, with sensitivity of 85.3%, specificity of 46.7%, and accuracy of 88.1%. In univariate analysis, factors associated with NASH were female sex, presence of metabolic syndrome criteria > 2, FPG, HOMA-IR and serum hs-CRP ≥ 0.88 mg/L. In multivariate analysis, serum hs-CRP ≥ 0.88 mg/L (OR 4.9; 95% CI 1.3-18.5 p = 0.02) and presence of metabolic syndrome criteria > 2 (OR 5.0; 95% CI 1.3-19.8 p = 0.02) were independent predictors of NASH. When both factors were concomitantly positive, the accuracy to detect NASH as determined by ROC analysis was 0.7 (95% CI 0.6-0.9) and had an accuracy of 82.9%. Conclusions: Serum hs-CRP is a useful non-invasive marker that differentiates between NASH and simple steatosis in NAFLD patients.
Designs of Experiments for Beginners—A Quick Start Guide for Application to Electrode Formulation

In this paper, we will describe in detail the setting up of a Design of Experiments (DoE) applied to the formulation of electrodes for Li-ion batteries. We will show that, with software guidance, Designs of Experiments are simple yet extremely useful statistical tools to set up and embrace. An Optimal Combined Design was used to identify influential factors and pinpoint the optimal formulation, according to the projected use. Our methodology follows an eight-step workflow adapted from the literature. Once the study objectives are clearly identified, it is necessary to consider the time, cost, and complexity of an experiment before choosing the responses that best describe the system, as well as the factors to vary. By strategically selecting the mixtures to be characterized, it is possible to minimize the number of experiments, and obtain a statistically relevant empirical equation which links responses and design factors.
A Survey on Service Quality Description KYRIAKOS KRITIKOS and BARBARA PERNICI and PIERLUIGI PLEBANI and CINZIA

Quality of service (QoS) can be a critical element for achieving the business goals of a service provider, for the acceptance of a service by the user, or for guaranteeing service characteristics in a composition of services, where a service is defined as either a software or a software-support (i.e., infrastructural) service which is available on any type of network or electronic channel. The goal of this paper is to compare the approaches to QoS description nowadays presented in the literature, where several models and meta-models are included. Our survey is performed by inspecting the characteristics of the available approaches, to reveal which are the consolidated ones and to discuss which are the ones specific to given aspects, and to analyze where the need for further research and investigation is. The approaches here illustrated have been selected based on a systematic review of conference proceedings and journals spanning various research areas in Computer Science and Engineering including: Distributed, Information, and Telecommunication Systems, Networks and Security, and Service-Oriented and Grid Computing.
Effects of microwave electromagnetic radiations emitted from common Wi-Fi routers on rats’ sperm count and motility

Background: Wi-Fi allows electronic devices such as laptops to exchange data or connect to a network resource. The main goal of this study was to assess the bioeffects of short term exposure to 2.4 GHz microwave radia$on emi%ed from a common Wi-Fi router on sperm quality. Materials and Methods: Male Wistar rats were divided into 7 groups; I, sham exposed 4 h/ day for 7days at 30 cm from the router. II, exposed for 2 h/day for 7days at 30 cm and sacrificed a0er 53 days. The exposure protocols for groups III to VII were 2h – 30 cm, 2h – 60 cm, 4 h – 30 cm, 4 h60 cm, 4 h – 30 cm (no data exchange) respec$vely. Rats in all the groups except group II, were sacrificed immediately a0er exposure and basic parameters of tes$cles weight, sperm mo$lity, morphology, count, and DNA fragmenta$on were studied. Nonparametric tests were used to detect sta$s$cally significant differences between different groups. Results: Findings of this study showed sta$s$cally significant differences between the rela$ve frequency of progressive and rapid progressive sperms in sham exposed rats compared to those of exposure groups. The tes$cles weight, DNA fragmenta$on of sperms and the frequency of sperms with normal morphology were not affected by Wi-Fi radia$on. However, sta$s$cally significant differences between sperm count of the sham exposed rats compared to those of exposure group were observed. Conclusion: Exposure to microwave radia$on emi%ed from Wi-Fi routers affects sperm parameters such as count and mo$lity which are among the key parameters determining the chance of conceiving.
Unit Roots in Economic and Financial Time Series: A Re-Evaluation based on Enlightened Judgement

This paper re-evaluates the key past results of unit root test, emphasizing that the use of a conventional level of significance is not in general optimal due to the test having low power. The optimal levels for popular unit root tests, chosen using the line of enlightened judgement under a symmetric loss function, are found to be much higher than conventional ones. We also propose simple calibration rules for the optimal level of significance for a range of unit root tests based on asymptotic local power. At the optimal levels, many time series in the extended Nelson-Plosser data set are judged to be trend-stationary, including real income variables, employment variables and money stock. We also find nearly all real exchange rates covered in the Elliott-Pesavento study to be stationary at the optimal levels, which lends strong support for the purchasing power parity. Additionally, most of the real interest rates covered in the Rapach-Weber study are found to be stationary. JEL codes: C12, E30, F30
A fatal flaw in mortality based disease surveillance

those which contradict currently accepted norms) are not possible or that they cannot evade current surveillance methods. For example, the technology has recently been developed to detect an immune response following exposure to all known 206 species of virus (> 1,000 strains), which infect humans by analysis of a single drop of blood (Xu et al, 2015). As part of the validation process for this technology blood from 569 humans from Peru, South Africa, Thailand, and the USA was screened for the extent of viral exposure. Those with HIV/AIDS registered a higher proportion of exposure to 14 common viruses as did the non-USA countries. Epstein-Barr virus, rhinovirus A & B, adenovirus C, respiratory syncytial virus and herpes simplex 1 being the most commonly detected viruses in non-HIV persons (Xu et al, 2015). Most common exposure was 10 viruses per person; and up to 62 viruses in five individuals; and 84 in two individuals. This is entirely relevant to the concept called the ‘pathogen burden’ where disease severity appears to increase with higher numbers of pathogens, i.e. combinations of pathogens may be more detrimental to health than the single pathogen studies currently indicate (see: Jones, 2015b; 2016a; 2016c). In this respect, cytomegalovirus (CMV), via its huge repertoire of immune evasive and modulating genes, may be acting as an agent provocateur to other pathogens (see Jones 2016a)— despite being widely regarded as largely innocuous. Having briefly established that disease surveillance may be more complex that a few big name pathogens such as influenza—with surprisingly low levels of exposure in the study of Xu et al (2015), confirming a suspicion that influenza alone may not be the feared pathogen that Public Health agencies appear to believe (see wider discussion in: Jones 2016c). However, returning to the issue of disease surveillance, Figure 1 presents a EuroMOMO type of analysis of a series of monthly deaths in England between January 2001 and November 2015, which was obtained from the Office for National Statistics. The raw monthly data was first corrected for the long-term trend in deaths using a second order polynomial, where all monthly deaths were corrected to the December 2015 position. This effectively linearises the time trend. Average deaths for each adjusted month were then determined (an average of 15 years), and the standard deviation for that month also calculated. The difference between the actual and expected deaths in each month was then calculated, and this difference was turned into a standard deviation difference by dividing by the standard deviation for each month. Anything greater than a ± 2 standard deviations difference (STDEV) can be Rod Jones A fatal flaw in mortality based disease surveillance