Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Language Skill Mediates the Relationship Between Language Load and Articulatory Variability in Children With Language and Speech Sound Disorders.

Purpose The aim of the study was to investigate the relationship between language load and articulatory variability in children with language and speech sound disorders, including childhood apraxia of speech. Method Forty-six children, ages 48-92 months, participated in the current study, including children with speech sound disorder, developmental language disorder (aka specific language impairment), childhood apraxia of speech, and typical development. Children imitated (low language load task) then retrieved (high language load task) agent + action phrases. Articulatory variability was quantified using speech kinematics. We assessed language status and speech status (typical vs. impaired) in relation to articulatory variability. Results All children showed increased articulatory variability in the retrieval task compared with the imitation task. However, only children with language impairment showed a disproportionate increase in articulatory variability in the retrieval task relative to peers with typical language skills. Conclusion Higher-level language processes affect lower-level speech motor control processes, and this relationship appears to be more strongly mediated by language than speech skill.
Basics on the use of acid-sensing ion channels’ inhibitors as therapeutics

Since the discovery of acid-sensing ion channels in 1997, their importance in the health of neurons and other non-neuronal cells has gained significant importance. Acid-sensing ion channels play important roles in mediating pain sensation during diseases such as stroke, inflammation, arthritis, cancer, and recently migraine. More interestingly, acid-sensing ion channels may explain the sex differences in pain between males and females. Also, the ability of acid-sensing ion channel blockers to exert neuroprotective effects in a number of neurodegenerative diseases has added a new dimension to their therapeutic value. The current failure rate of ~45% of new drugs (due to toxicity issues) and saving of up to 7 years in the life span of drug approval makes drug repurposing a high priority. If acid-sensing ion channels’ blockers undergo what is known as “drug repurposing”, there is a great potential to bring them as medications with known safety profiles to new patient populations. However, the route of administration remains a big challenge due to their poor penetration of the blood brain and retinal barriers. In this review, the promise of using acid-sensing ion channel blockers as neuroprotective drugs is discussed.
Spillover Benefits: Emphasizing Different Benefits of Environmental Behavior and Its Effects on Spillover

To reduce environmental problems, people need to consistently engage in pro-environmental behaviors. Many environmentally friendly actions not only benefit the environment, but can also save money. Research suggests that emphasizing monetary benefits of pro-environmental behavior may hinder positive spillover to other pro-environmental behaviors. Yet, it is unclear why and under which circumstances this is the case. We propose that spillover effects depend on how emphasizing different types of benefits affects environmental self-identity, as a stronger environmental self-identity is more likely to lead to other pro-environmental actions. We hypothesize that emphasizing monetary benefits of pro-environmental behavior is less likely to strengthen environmental self-identity than emphasizing environmental benefits, and therefore not likely to lead to positive spillover. We tested our hypotheses in four experiments. In Study 1, we found that emphasizing the environmental benefits of pro-environmental behavior strengthened environmental self-identity, and resulted in positive spillover compared to not emphasizing any benefits or emphasizing monetary benefits. However, these results were not replicated in Study 2 that included a larger student sample. Yet, Study 3, including a large sample of the general population, showed that emphasizing monetary benefits weakens environmental self-identity and thereby leads to less spillover than emphasizing environmental benefits or not emphasizing any benefits. Similarly, Study 4 suggests that emphasizing monetary benefits may weaken environmental self-identity and decrease positive spillover compared to emphasizing environmental benefits or no benefits. Our findings suggest that environmental self-identity is not easily influenced by emphasizing different types of benefits of behavior, and consequently, spillover behavior is not easily promoted or inhibited. Yet, emphasizing monetary benefits may be a risk in some cases, as it may inhibit positive spillover.
Processor Hardware Security Vulnerabilities and their Detection by Unique Program Execution Checking

Recent discovery of security attacks in advanced processors, known as Spectre and Meltdown, has resulted in high public alertness about security of hardware. The root cause of these attacks is information leakage across covert channels that reveal secret data without any explicit information flow between the secret and the attacker. Many sources believe that such covert channels are intrinsic to highly advanced processor architectures based on speculation and out-of-order execution, suggesting that such security risks can be avoided by staying away from high-end processors. This paper, however, shows that the problem is of wider scope: we present new classes of covert channel attacks which are possible in average-complexity processors with in-order pipelining, as they are mainstream in applications ranging from Internet-of-Things to Autonomous Systems.We present a new approach as a foundation for remedy against covert channels: while all previous attacks were found by clever thinking of human attackers, this paper presents a formal method called Unique Program Execution Checking which detects and locates vulnerabilities to covert channels systematically, including those to covert channels unknown so far.
Toward Completion of the Human Proteome Parts List: Progress Uncovering Proteins That Are Missing or Have Unknown Function and Developing Analytical Methods

Uncovering Proteins That Are Missing or Have Unknown Function and Developing Analytical Methods F the past 6 years, the Journal of Proteome Research has supported the Human Proteome Organization (HUPO) in dedicating a special issue of the journal to the Chromosomecentric Human Proteome Project (C-HPP); for the past 2 years, it has encompassed the whole HPP with contributions also from the Biology/Disease (B/D)-HPP and the HPP resource pillars. The 32 papers published this month further annotate the human protein parts list or present advances in analytical methods for the identification of proteoforms or new members of the human proteome. This Editorial presents highlights of selected papers that focus on the increasingly difficult task for the C-HPP international teams of identifying the remaining unannotated proteins in the human proteome that lack evidence of existence at the protein level (PE1) but have less direct evidence of their existence (PE2,3,4), the socalled missing proteins (MPs) in neXtProt. In total, 104 MPs have been found that meet the stringent HPP guidelines designed to mitigate against false discovery and incorrect annotation in neXtProt and other public databases (Table 1).
Towards Understanding Language through Perception in Situated Human-Robot Interaction: From Word Grounding to Grammar Induction

Robots are widely collaborating with human users in diferent tasks that require high-level cognitive functions to make them able to discover the surrounding environment. A difcult challenge that we briefy highlight in this short paper is inferring the latent grammatical structure of language, which includes grounding parts of speech (e.g., verbs, nouns, adjectives, and prepositions) through visual perception, and induction of Combinatory Categorial Grammar (CCG) for phrases. This paves the way towards grounding phrases so as to make a robot able to understand human instructions appropriately during interaction.
Psychosocial interventions for pain management in older adults with dementia: A systematic review of randomized controlled trials.

AIM To assess the effectiveness of psychosocial interventions on pain in older adults living with dementia. DESIGN A systematic review with meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. DATA SOURCES Scopus, ProQuest, EBSCO (CINAHL and MEDLINE), PubMed, OVID (PsycINFO), Web of Science, and Cochrane Library were searched from their inception up to 2 May 2018. REVIEW METHODS Risk of bias assessment and meta-analysis were conducted according to the Cochrane methods using RevMan 5.3 and findings were generated using the GRADE profiler software. RESULTS Eight studies met the inclusion criteria, but the quality of the current evidence was low to moderate. Results showed that psychosocial interventions significantly reduced the observational pain score and pain medication. Subgroup analyses indicated that sensory stimulation and individual interventions showed a reduction in observational pain in people with dementia. CONCLUSION Findings suggest that psychosocial interventions may be potentially effective alternatives for pain management in people with dementia. However, caution is needed in interpreting these results due to limited studies, risk of bias and heterogeneity across studies. Furthermore, well-designed research is needed on psychosocial interventions to strengthen quality of pain management in people with dementia. IMPACT This review synthesized current evidence using psychosocial interventions to manage pain in people with dementia. Findings suggest that psychosocial interventions may lead to a potential reduction in pain and pain medication in people with dementia. Healthcare providers may wish to integrate psychosocial interventions as part of the multimodal approach to the management of pain in people living with dementia.
Functional analysis of DNA methylation of the PACSIN1 promoter in pig peripheral blood mononuclear cells

DNA methylation plays essential roles in regulating the activity of genes and may contribute to understanding the potential epigenetic biomarkers response to viruses. To explore the function of DNA methylation of protein kinase C and casein kinase substrate in neurons 1 (PACSNI1) promoter, herein we performed the bisulfite sequencing polymerase chain reaction and Western blot analysis to verify hypermethylation and downregulation of PACSIN1 expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells of pig as the vitro model. Promoter methylation could reduce the transcriptional activity of the PACSIN1 gene potentially by affecting the binding of transcription factor Sp1. In addition, downregulation of the PACSIN1 gene expression could facilitate the production of interleukin‐6 (IL‐6), IL‐8, tumor necrosis factor α, and NECAP2. The comprehensive analysis of PACSIN1 methylation and its function will help us to understand the gene to be served as an important candidate gene in pig for disease resistance breeding and aid in the identification of potential epigenetic biomarkers associated with responsiveness to viruses.
Structural organization of a major neuronal G protein regulator, the RGS7-Gβ5-R7BP complex

Signaling by the G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) plays fundamental role in a vast number of essential physiological functions. Precise control of GPCR signaling requires action of regulators of G protein signaling (RGS) proteins that deactivate heterotrimeric G proteins. RGS proteins are elaborately regulated and comprise multiple domains and subunits, yet structural organization of these assemblies is poorly understood. Here, we report a crystal structure and dynamics analyses of the multisubunit complex of RGS7, a major regulator of neuronal signaling with key roles in controlling a number of drug target GPCRs and links to neuropsychiatric disease, metabolism, and cancer. The crystal structure in combination with molecular dynamics and mass spectrometry analyses reveals unique organizational features of the complex and long-range conformational changes imposed by its constituent subunits during allosteric modulation. Notably, several intermolecular interfaces in the complex work in synergy to provide coordinated modulation of this key GPCR regulator.
Pulmonary , gastrointestinal and urogenital pharmacology Diadzein ameliorates 5-fl uorouracil-induced intestinal mucositis by suppressing oxidative stress and in fl ammatory mediators in rodents

5-Fluorouracil (5-FU) is one of the most commonly prescribed anti-cancer agent. However, its use is associated with several debilitating adverse effects such as intestinal mucositis (IM) and myelosuppression. Oxidative stress and inflammation are major contributors in the development of mucositis. Diadzein is known for its potent antiinflammatory and anti-oxidative activities from decades. The present study focused on investigating the effects of diadzein on intestinal mucositis induced by 5-FU by mainly focusing on oxidative stress and inflammatory markers in mice. Mucositis was induced in mice by administration of 5-FU (50mg/kg, i.p.), once daily for three days and diadzein (1, 5, 10mg/kg) was administered once daily for seven days. Diadzein pretreatment was found to reduce the severity of mucosal injury in a dose-dependent manner. Diadzein significantly reversed weight loss, relieved diarrhea, and improved histopathological deformities associated with inflammation. Moreover, diadzein remarkably improved the intestinal wall histopathology by reducing inflammatory mediators infiltration and prevented suppression of antioxidants (glutathione, glutathione sulfo-transferase, and catalase) by 5-FU administration. Furthermore, nitrite production in intestinal tissue was reduced by diadzein consistent with the observed modulation of inflammatory markers. Additionally, diadzein also improved the amended microflora profile, by reducing the number of pathogenic bacteria and increasing the abundance of probiotics. Taken together, the behavioral, biochemical and histological outcomes of the present study demonstrates that diadzein has significant anti-mucositis properties in 5-FU induced mucositis model, and the attenuative potential of diadzein might be due to inhibition of oxidative stress and inflammatory mediators.
Improve word embedding using both writing and pronunciation

Text representation can map text into a vector space for subsequent use in numerical calculations and processing tasks. Word embedding is an important component of text representation. Most existing word embedding models focus on writing and utilize context, weight, dependency, morphology, etc., to optimize the training. However, from the linguistic point of view, spoken language is a more direct expression of semantics; writing has meaning only as a recording of spoken language. Therefore, this paper proposes the concept of a pronunciation-enhanced word embedding model (PWE) that integrates speech information into training to fully apply the roles of both speech and writing to meaning. This paper uses the Chinese language, English language and Spanish language as examples and presents several models that integrate word pronunciation characteristics into word embedding. Word similarity and text classification experiments show that the PWE outperforms the baseline model that does not include speech information. Language is a storehouse of sound-images; therefore, the PWE can be applied to most languages.
Cross-cultural adaptation and validation of Pamela Reed’s Self-Transcendence Scale for the Spanish context*

ABSTRACT Objectives: the current study aimed to adapt the Self-Transcendence Scale (STS) to the Spanish context and analyse its psychometric properties. Method: the STS was administered to a general Spanish population of adults (i.e., older than 20 years; n = 116) through an online platform. The Psychological Well-Being (PWB) and the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy - Spiritual Well-being - modified version for healthy people (FACIT-Sp-Non-Illness) scales were also applied in two moments separated by an interval of 15 days. Results: the results of the validation included the following statistics: αt = 0.772 (test) and αrt = 0.833 (retest); ICC = 0.278 (p = 0.097, intraclass) and 0.932 (p < 0.001, interclass); a Bland-Altman confirmation of the test/re-test (TRT) concordance; global content validity coefficient (S-CVI) = 0.92; r 1 = 0.636 (PWB) and r 2 = 0.687 (FACIT-Non-Illness; both p < 0.001); and three factors explained 42.3% of the variance. The STS showed positive apparent validity and feasibility. Conclusions: the Spanish version of the STS is valid for use in the general population, with updates relative to the Colombian version that include more natural wordings, syntactic corrections, inclusive language, a better definition of the concepts, and an alternative factor model.
Medication dosing for heart failure with reduced ejection fraction — opportunities and challenges

Multiple drug classes have shown incremental benefits in heart failure with reduced ejection fraction. Most of these trials were designed to achieve specific doses of the investigational agent. Clinical practice guidelines recommend using the same target dosing of therapies, as tolerated. However, with the increasing number of available therapies, clinicians face the challenge of simultaneously using several drugs, achieving target doses, and managing side effects that are often overlapping. Blood pressure, renal function, hyperkalaemia, and other factors may impede achieving target doses of all medications, leaving clinicians with dilemmas as to how to sequence and dose these various classes of drugs. The guideline‐directed eligibility for certain drugs and devices requires stability on maximally tolerated doses of background therapies. However, significant variability exists in dosing achieved in clinical practice. We discuss the existing background data regarding the doses of heart failure medications in clinical trials and in practice, and provide recommendations on how to navigate this complex therapeutic decision‐making.
Hysterectomy Uniquely Impacts Spatial Memory in a Rat Model: A Role for the Nonpregnant Uterus in Cognitive Processes

Approximately one-third of women experience hysterectomy, or the surgical removal of the uterus, by 60 years of age, with most surgeries occurring prior to the onset of natural menopause. The ovaries are retained in about half of these surgeries, whereas for the other half hysterectomy occurs concurrently with oophorectomy. The dogma is that the nonpregnant uterus is dormant. There have been no preclinical assessments of surgical variations in menopause, including hysterectomy, with and without ovarian conservation, on potential endocrine and cognitive changes. We present a novel rat model of hysterectomy alongside sham, ovariectomy (Ovx), and Ovx-hysterectomy groups to assess effects of surgical menopause variations. Rats without ovaries learned the working memory domain of a complex cognitive task faster than did those with ovaries. Moreover, uterus removal alone had a unique detrimental impact on the ability to handle a high-demand working memory load. The addition of Ovx, that is, Ovx-hysterectomy, prevented this hysterectomy-induced memory deficit. Performance did not differ amongst groups in reference memory-only tasks, suggesting that the working memory domain is particularly sensitive to variations in surgical menopause. Following uterus removal, ovarian histology and estrous cycle monitoring demonstrated that ovaries continued to function, and serum assays indicated altered ovarian hormone and gonadotropin profiles by 2 months after surgery. These results underscore the critical need to further study the contribution of the uterus to the female phenotype, including effects of hysterectomy with and without ovarian conservation, on the trajectory of brain and endocrine aging to decipher the impact of common variations in gynecological surgery in women. Moreover, findings demonstrate that the nonpregnant uterus is not dormant, and indicate that there is an ovarian-uterus-brain system that becomes interrupted when the reproductive tract has been disrupted, leading to alterations in brain functioning.
Are Changes Needed for Therapeutic Recreation Undergraduate Curricula? Perceived Competencies of Therapeutic Recreationists and Recreation Staff Working with Seniors in Long Term Care Homes

RÉSUMÉ L’objectif de cette étude était d’identifier les lacunes dans les compétences gérontologiques autoperçues par le personnel en loisir dans les centres de soins de longue durée en Ontario. Deux séries de compétences gérontologiques ont été présentées dans un sondage en ligne qui a été distribué à du personnel en loisir œuvrant dans 500 centres de soins de longue durée. Parmi eux, 487 membres du personnel ont répondu au sondage. Ce sondage comportait des questions concernant les compétences actuelles du personnel et les compétences dont ils avaient eu connaissance avant d’entrer sur le marché du travail. Les facteurs perçus comme favorables à une plus grande confiance en ces compétences gérontologiques étaient l’expérience, la formation continue et les sessions de formation en cours d’emploi. Une meilleure compréhension des lacunes dans les compétences gérontologiques est nécessaire pour améliorer la formation en loisirs thérapeutiques, dont la formation continue dans ce domaine. ABSTRACT The purpose of the study was to identify self-perceived gaps in gerontological competencies among recreation staff in long-term care homes in Ontario. Two sets of gerontological competencies, in an online survey, were distributed to recreation staff working in 500 long-term care homes. There were 487 recreation staff members who completed the questionnaire. The questionnaire contained questions regarding staff’s current competencies and competencies that they recalled learning prior to entering the workforce. Factors that were perceived to contribute to confidence in gerontological competencies were experience, continuing education, in-service training sessions, and education. Understanding the gaps in gerontological competencies is required for enhancing therapeutic recreation education and continuing education.
A Fast Image Dehazing Algorithm Using Morphological Reconstruction

Outdoor images are used in a vast number of applications, such as surveillance, remote sensing, and autonomous navigation. The greatest issue with these types of images is the effect of environmental pollution: haze, smog, and fog originating from suspended particles in the air, such as dust, carbon, and water drops, which cause degradation to the image. The elimination of this type of degradation is essential for the input of computer vision systems. Most of the state-of-the-art research in dehazing algorithms is focused on improving the estimation of transmission maps, which are also known as depth maps. The transmission maps are relevant because they have a direct relation to the quality of the image restoration. In this paper, a novel restoration algorithm is proposed using a single image to reduce the environmental pollution effects, and it is based on the dark channel prior and the use of morphological reconstruction for fast computing of transmission maps. The obtained experimental results are evaluated and compared qualitatively and quantitatively with other dehazing algorithms using the metrics of the peak signal-to-noise ratio and structural similarity index; based on these metrics, it is found that the proposed algorithm has improved performance compared with recently introduced approaches.