Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The torsional restraint of sandwich panels to resist the lateral torsional buckling of beams

Experimental investigations and parametric finite element analyses show that the moment‐rotation characteristic of sandwich panels providing support against the lateral torsional buckling of beams subjected to gravity loading can be represented as tri‐linear. Formulae for calculating the parameters of this characteristic are given for different types of beam combined with sandwich panels for roofs and walls. According to available design codes, the torsional restraint coefficient for rotational stiffness c&#977; required for design against lateral torsional buckling of beams is governed by the rotational stiffness c&#977;A of the connection, which can be obtained from the characteristic mentioned as the secant stiffness for all common types of sandwich panel and different types of structural arrangement. These values allow the maximum spans of beams to be increased and help to improve the economy of lightweight structures.
Inflammaging in Major Depressive Disorder: Associations between markers of inflammation and brain ageing in depression across two large community-based cohorts

Background: Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is associated with accelerated ageing trajectories including functional markers of ageing, cellular ageing and markers of poor brain health. The biological mechanisms underlying these associations remain poorly understood. Chronic inflammation is also associated with advanced ageing; however, the degree to which long-term inflammation plays a role in ageing in MDD remains unclear, partly due to difficulties differentiating long-term inflammation from acute cross-sectional measures. Methods: Here, we use a longer-term measure of inflammation: a DNA methylation-based marker of C-reactive protein (DNAm CRP), in a large cohort of individuals deeply phenotyped for MDD (Generation Scotland, GS, N=804). We investigate associations between DNAm CRP and serum CRP using linear modelling with two brain ageing neuroimaging-derived phenotypes: (i) a machine learning based measure of brain-predicted age difference (brain-PAD) and (ii) white matter hyperintensities (WMH). We then examine inflammation by depression interaction effects for these brain ageing phenotypes. We sought to replicate findings in an independent sample of older community-dwelling adults (Lothian Birth Cohort 1936, LBC1936; N=615). Results: DNAm CRP was significantly associated with increased brain-PAD ({beta}=0.111, p=0.015), which was replicated in the independent sample with a similar significant effect size ({beta}=0.114, p=0.012). There were no associations between the inflammation markers and WMH phenotypes in the GS-imaging sample, however in the LBC1936 sample, DNAm CRP was significantly associated with both Wahlund infratentorial ({beta}=0.15, PFDR= 0.006) and Fazekas deep white matter hyperintensity scores ({beta}= 0.116, PFDR=0.033). There were no interaction effects between inflammation and MDD in either cohort. Conclusions: This study found robust associations between a longer-term marker of inflammation and brain ageing as measured by brain-PAD, consistent across two large independent samples. However, we found no evidence for interaction effects between inflammation and MDD on any brain ageing phenotype in these community-based cohorts. These findings provide evidence that chronic inflammation is associated with increased brain ageing, which is not specific to MDD. Future work should investigate these relationships in clinical samples including with other inflammatory biomarkers and should furthermore aim to determine causal directionality.
Individualised exercise in chronic non-specific low back pain: a systematic review with meta-analysis on the effects of exercise alone or in combination with psychological interventions on pain and disability

Objective To investigate the effects of individualised exercise interventions consisting with or without combined psychological intervention on pain intensity and disability in patients with chronic non-specific low back pain. Design Systematic review with meta-analysis and meta-regression. Data sources Five databases (PubMed, Cochrane Central, EMBASE, Clarivate Web of Science, and Google Scholar) were searched up to 31 March 2021. Selection criteria Randomised controlled trials were eligible if they included participants with chronic non-specific low back pain, compared at least one individualised/personalised/stratified exercise intervention with or without psychological treatment to any control / comparator group, and if they assessed at least pain intensity or disability as outcome measure. Results Fifty-eight studies (n = 9099 patients, 44.3 years, 56% female) compared individualised to other types of exercise (n = 44; 62%), usual care (n = 16; 23%), advice to stay active, or true controls. The remaining studies had passive controls. At short-term follow-up, low-certainty evidence for pain intensity (SMD -0.33 [95%CI -0.47 to -0.18]) and very low-certainty evidence for disability (-0.16 [-0.30 to -0.02]) indicates effects of individualised exercise compared to other exercises. Very low-certainty evidence for pain intensity (-0.35; [-0.53 to -0.17])) and low-certainty evidence for disability (-0.12; [-0.22 to -0.02]) indicates effects compared to passive controls. At long-term follow-up, moderate-certainty evidence for pain intensity (-0.14 [-0.23 to -0.06]) and disability (-0.23 [-0.33 to -0.12]) indicates effects compared to passive controls exercises. All findings stayed below the threshold for minimal clinically important difference (MCID). Certainty of evidence was downgraded mainly due to evidence of risk of bias, publication bias and inconsistency that could not be explained. Sensitivity analyses indicated that the effects on pain, but not on disability (always short-term and versus active treatments) were robust. Sub-group analysis of pain outcomes suggested that individualised exercise treatment is probably more effective in combination with psychological interventions (-0.32 [-0.51 to -0.14]), a clinically important difference Conclusion We found very low to moderate-certainty evidence that individualised exercise is effective for treatment of chronic non-specific low back pain. Individualised exercise seems superior to other active treatments and sub-group analysis suggests that some forms of individualised exercise (especially motor-control based treatments) combined with behavioural therapy interventions enhances the treatment effect. Certainty of evidence was higher for long-term follow-up. In summary, individualised exercise can be recommended from a clinical point of view.
Dopaminergic Modulation of Local Non-oscillatory Activity and Global-Network Properties in Parkinson’s Disease: An EEG Study

Dopaminergic medication for Parkinson’s disease (PD) modulates neuronal oscillations and functional connectivity (FC) across the basal ganglia-thalamic-cortical circuit. However, the non-oscillatory component of the neuronal activity, potentially indicating a state of excitation/inhibition balance, has not yet been investigated and previous studies have shown inconsistent changes of cortico-cortical connectivity as a response to dopaminergic medication. To further elucidate changes of regional non-oscillatory component of the neuronal power spectra, FC, and to determine which aspects of network organization obtained with graph theory respond to dopaminergic medication, we analyzed a resting-state electroencephalography (EEG) dataset including 15 PD patients during OFF and ON medication conditions. We found that the spectral slope, typically used to quantify the broadband non-oscillatory component of power spectra, steepened particularly in the left central region in the ON compared to OFF condition. In addition, using lagged coherence as a FC measure, we found that the FC in the beta frequency range between centro-parietal and frontal regions was enhanced in the ON compared to the OFF condition. After applying graph theory analysis, we observed that at the lower level of topology the node degree was increased, particularly in the centro-parietal area. Yet, results showed no significant difference in global topological organization between the two conditions: either in global efficiency or clustering coefficient for measuring global and local integration, respectively. Interestingly, we found a close association between local/global spectral slope and functional network global efficiency in the OFF condition, suggesting a crucial role of local non-oscillatory dynamics in forming the functional global integration which characterizes PD. These results provide further evidence and a more complete picture for the engagement of multiple cortical regions at various levels in response to dopaminergic medication in PD.
The quorum sensing com system regulates pneumococcal colonisation and invasive disease in a pseudo-stratified airway tissue model

Streptococcus pneumoniae (Spn) colonises respiratory epithelia but can also invade lung cells causing pneumonia. We developed an ex vivo model with human airway epithelial (HAE) cells harvested from lung biopsies to study Spn colonisation and translocation. Flow-cytometry, confocal imaging and electron microscopy studies identified the epithelial lineage with signs of differentiation (beating cilia, mucus, and tight junctions). HAE cells were challenged with Spn wild-type TIGR4 (wtSpn) or its isogenic {Delta}comC quorum sensing-deficient mutant. {Delta}comC mutant colonised significantly less than wtSpn at 6 h post-inoculation but at significantly higher levels at 19 h and 30 h. Translocation correlated inversely with colonisation density. Transepithelial electric resistance (TEER) decreased after pneumococcal infection and correlated with increased translocation for both strains. Confocal imaging illustrated colocalisation of intracellular Spn with both cilia and zonulin-1 and prominent microcolony formation with wtSpn but disintegration of microcolony structures over time with {Delta}comC mutant. {Delta}comC caused a more pronounced release of both zonulin-1 and lactate dehydrogenase into the supernatant at later time points than wtSpn, suggesting that cytotoxicity is likely not the mechanism leading to translocation. There was a density- and time-dependent increase of inflammatory cytokines from human HAE cells infected with {Delta}comC compared with wtSpn, including increased levels of the NLRP3 inflammasome-related IL-18. In conclusion, our experiments indicate that ComC system allows a higher organisational level of population structure resulting in microcolony formation, increased early colonisation and subsequent translocation. We propose that ComC inactivation unleashes a very different and possibly more virulent phenotype that merits further investigation.
REVOLUTION (Routine EValuatiOn of people LivIng with caNcer)—Protocol for a prospective characterisation study of patients with incurable cancer

Introduction There is a pressing need for a holistic characterisation of people with incurable cancer. In this group, where quality of life and improvement of symptoms are therapeutic priorities, the physical and biochemical manifestations of cancer are often studied separately, giving an incomplete picture. In order to improve care, spur therapeutic innovation, provide meaningful endpoints for trials and set priorities for future research, work must be done to explore how the tumour influences the clinical phenotype. Characterisation of the host-tumour interaction may also provide information regarding prognosis, allowing appropriate planning of investigations, treatment and referral to palliative medicine services. Methods Routine EValuatiOn of people LivIng with caNcer (REVOLUTION) is a prospective observational study that aims to characterise people with incurable cancer around five key areas, namely body composition, physical activity, systemic inflammatory response, symptoms, and quality of life by developing a bio-repository. Participants will initially be recruited from a single centre in the UK and will have assessments of body composition (bio-impedance analysis [BIA] and computed tomography [CT]), assessment of physical activity using a physical activity monitor, measurement of simple markers of inflammation and plasma cytokine proteins and three symptom and quality of life questionnaires. Discussion This study aims to create a comprehensive biochemical and clinical characterisation of people with incurable cancer. Data in this study can be used to give a better understanding of the ‘symptom phenotype’ and quality of life determinants, development of a profile of the systemic inflammatory response and a detailed characterisation of body composition.
Complete mitochondrial genome of the common Pochard (Aythya ferina) from Ningxia Hui autonomous region, China

Abstract We determined the whole mtDNA genome of the Common Pochard (Aythya ferina) in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, China. The complete mitochondrial genome is 16,599 bp in length and consists of 13 protein-coding genes, 22 tRNA genes, 2 rRNA genes, and 1 control region (D-loop). The nucleotide composition is 29.34% A, 22.23% T, 15.66% G, and 32.77% C. Phylogenetic analysis results showed close genetic relationship between A. ferina and Aythya americana.
Psychological symptoms, mental fatigue and behavioural adherence after 72 continuous days of strict lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic in Argentina

Background An early and prolonged lockdown was adopted in Argentina during the first wave of COVID-19. Early reports evidenced elevated psychological symptoms. Aims To explore if the prolonged lockdown was associated with elevated anxiety and depressive symptoms; if mental fatigue was associated with lockdown adherence (a phenomenon called ‘behavioural fatigue’); and if financial concerns were associated with lockdown adherence and emotional symptoms. Method The survey included standardised questionnaires to assess depressive (PHQ-9) and anxious (GAD-7) symptoms, mental fatigue, risk perception, lockdown adherence, financial concerns, daily stress, loneliness, intolerance to uncertainty, negative repetitive thinking and cognitive problems. LASSO regression analyses were carried out to predict depression, anxiety and lockdown adherence Results The survey reached 3617 adults (85.2% female) from all provinces of Argentina after 72 days of lockdown. Data were collected between 21 May 2020 and 4 June 2020. In that period, Argentina had an Oxford stringency index of 85/100. Of those surveyed, 45.6% and 27% met the cut-offs for depression and anxiety, respectively. Mental fatigue, cognitive failures and financial concerns were correlated with psychological symptoms, but not with adherence to lockdown. In regression models, mental fatigue, cognitive failures and loneliness were the most important variables to predict depression, intolerance to uncertainty and lockdown difficulty were the most important for anxiety, and perceived threat was the most important for predicting lockdown adherence. Conclusions During the extended lockdown, psychological symptoms increased, being enhanced by mental fatigue, cognitive difficulties and financial concerns. We found no evidence of behavioural fatigue. Thus, feeling mentally fatigued is not the same as being behaviourally fatigued.
Optimum laboratory radiation source for hardness assurance testing

Silicon-on-insulator (SOI) and bulk-silicon transistors were irradiated using X-ray, Co-60 gamma, and proton radiation sources. Co-60 gamma irradiation generates larger radiation-induced threshold voltage shifts (by a factor of two) in SOI buried oxides and in parasitic field oxides under low-field conditions than X-ray or proton irradiation. For all devices examined, the radiation-induced threshold voltage shifts generated by X-ray irradiation were equal to, within experimental uncertainty, the radiation-induced threshold voltage shifts generated by proton irradiation. The differences in threshold voltage shifts for the different radiation sources are attributed to differences in stopping power and consequently charge yield. The results suggest that for simulating proton-rich space environments, X-ray laboratory radiation sources are better suited for hardness assurance testing than Co-60 gamma radiation sources. Using Co-60 gamma sources for hardness assurance testing will result in more conservative estimates of device failure levels. Thus, our results do not preclude the use of Co-60 gamma radiation sources for hardness assurance testing for proton-rich environments. For electron-rich space environments, Co-60 gamma radiation sources may be better suited for hardness assurance testing.
Whole-genome based strain identification of fowlpox virus directly from cutaneous tissue and propagated virus

Fowlpox (FP) is an economically important viral disease of commercial poultry. The fowlpox virus (FPV) is primarily characterised by immunoblotting, restriction enzyme analysis in combination with PCR, and/or nucleotide sequencing of amplicons. Whole-genome sequencing (WGS) of FPV directly from clinical specimens prevents the risk of potential genome modifications associated with in vitro culturing of the virus. Only one study has sequenced FPV genomes directly from clinical samples using Nanopore sequencing, however, the study didn’t compare the sequences against Illumina sequencing or laboratory propagated sequences. Here, the suitability of WGS for strain identification of FPV directly from cutaneous tissue was evaluated, using a combination of Illumina and Nanopore sequencing technologies. Sequencing results were compared with the sequence obtained from FPV grown in chorioallantoic membranes (CAMs) of chicken embryos. Complete genome sequence of FPV was obtained directly from affected comb tissue using a map to reference approach. FPV sequence from cutaneous tissue was highly similar to that of the virus grown in CAMs with a nucleotide identity of 99.8%. Detailed polymorphism analysis revealed the presence of a highly comparable number of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the two sequences when compared to the reference genome, providing essentially the same strain identification information. Comparative genome analysis of the map to reference consensus sequences from the two genomes revealed that this field isolate had the highest nucleotide identity of 99.5% with an FPV strain from the USA (Fowlpox virus isolate, FWPV-MN00.2, MH709124) and 98.8% identity with the Australian FPV vaccine strain (FWPV-S, MW142017). Sequencing results showed that WGS directly from cutaneous tissues is not only rapid and cost-effective but also provides essentially the same strain identification information as in-vitro grown virus, thus circumventing in vitro culturing.
Excitation of low‐profile equilateral‐triangular dielectric resonator antenna using a conducting conformal strip

A new configuration that employs a conducting conformal strip to excite the low‐profile equilaterial‐triangular dielectric resonator antenna (DRA) of very high permittivity is proposed. As compared with the previous aperture‐coupling configuration, the new configuration has a wider impedance bandwidth (∼5.5%) and a higher front‐to‐back radiation ratio. The return loss, radiation patterns, and antenna gain are measured and discussed. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 29: 317–319, 2001.
Protocol: A mixed methods evaluation of an IPS program to increase employment and well-being for people with long-term experience of complex barriers in Vancouver’s downtown and DTES

Background Employment improves mental health and well-being by providing financial security, daily structure, a sense of identity and purpose, and social engagement. However, securing and sustaining employment is exceptionally challenging for vulnerable populations who experience persistent and multiple barriers, such as mental illness, homelessness, food and housing insecurity, and marginalization. Evidence-based supported employment programs, most notably individual placement and support (IPS) are becoming a more common approach for addressing the needs of these high-risk individuals. The aim of this paper is to outline the protocol for evaluating an IPS program in Vancouver’s downtown and Downtown Eastside (DTES). Methods and design This prospective quasi-experimental study of persons with persistent and multiple barriers to employment will use a mixed-methods approach for evaluating a novel IPS program. The evaluation will consist of survey packages and interviews that will capture outcomes related to employment and well-being, as well as the experiential process of receiving individualized and integrated supports through the IPS program. A mixed-methods approach is appropriate for this study as quantitative data will provide an objective assessment of program impacts on employment and well-being outcomes over time, while qualitative data will provide an in-depth understanding of continued barriers and experiences. Discussion The results from this evaluation will contribute evidence within a local British Columbian (BC) context that may increase access to meaningful employment for those with long-term experience of complex barriers to employment. Further, the findings will support continued improvements, and guide decision-making around practices and policy for future implementation of IPS and employment supports across BC.
MHANet: A hybrid attention mechanism for retinal diseases classification

With the increase of patients with retinopathy, retinopathy recognition has become a research hotspot. In this article, we describe the etiology and symptoms of three kinds of retinal diseases, including drusen(DRUSEN), choroidal neovascularization(CNV) and diabetic macular edema(DME). In addition, we also propose a hybrid attention mechanism to classify and recognize different types of retinopathy images. In particular, the hybrid attention mechanism proposed in this paper includes parallel spatial attention mechanism and channel attention mechanism. It can extract the key features in the channel dimension and spatial dimension of retinopathy images, and reduce the negative impact of background information on classification results. The experimental results show that the hybrid attention mechanism proposed in this paper can better assist the network to focus on extracting thr fetures of the retinopathy area and enhance the adaptability to the differences of different data sets. Finally, the hybrid attention mechanism achieved 96.5% and 99.76% classification accuracy on two public OCT data sets of retinopathy, respectively.