Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Highly Linear CMOS Baseband Chain for Wideband Wireless Applications

The emergence of wide channel bandwidth wireless standards requires the use of a highly linear, wideband integrated CMOS baseband chain with moderate power consumption. In this paper, we present the design of highly linear, wideband active RC filters and a digitally programmable variable gain amplifier. To achieve a high unity gain bandwidth product with moderate power consumption, the feed‐forward compensation technique is applied for the design of wideband active RC filters. Measured results from a 0.5 µm CMOS prototype baseband chain show a cutoff frequency of 10 MHz, a variable gain range of 33 dB, an in‐band IIP3 of 13 dBV, and an input referred noise of 114 µVrms while dissipating 20 mW from a 3 V supply.
Forensic Facial Reconstruction: A Systematic Review of Nasal Prediction Techniques

Prediction facial features from the skull are recurring theme on the forensic literature. The nose has been investigated since it has a significant role in facial recognition and the literature shows that there is not an universal method for nasal prediction. This study aimed to conduct a systematic review to analyze what are the most consistent techniques of nasal reconstruction. Primary studies describing or validating nasal reconstruction techniques in adults and published in journals of Forensic Sciences were included in this review. Tedeschi‐Oliveira's method positioned nasal tip with acceptable accuracy as Gerasimov's method. The Krogman's and Iscan's technique underestimated nasal projection in North Americans. The Prokopec's and Ubelaker's method obtained accuracy in Caucasoid. George's method presented results similar to reference standard in Caucasoid. In a supplementary way, studies are needed to accurately estimate the nasal width.
State‐of‐the‐art CRISPR/Cas9 Technology for Genome Editing in Trypanosomatids

CRISPR/Cas9 technology has revolutionized biology. This prokaryotic defense system against foreign DNA has been repurposed for genome editing in a broad range of cell tissues and organisms. Trypanosomatids are flagellated protozoa belonging to the order Kinetoplastida. Some of its most representative members cause important human diseases affecting millions of people worldwide, such as Chagas disease, sleeping sickness and different forms of leishmaniases. Trypanosomatid infections represent an enormous burden for public health and there are no effective treatments for most of the diseases they cause. Since the emergence of the CRISPR/Cas9 technology, the genetic manipulation of these parasites has notably improved. As a consequence, genome editing is now playing a key role in the functional study of proteins, in the characterization of metabolic pathways, in the validation of alternative targets for antiparasitic interventions, and in the study of parasite biology and pathogenesis. In this work we review the different strategies that have been used to adapt the CRISPR/Cas9 system to Trypanosoma cruzi, Trypanosoma brucei, and Leishmania spp. , as well as the research progress achieved using these approaches. Thereby, we will present the state‐of‐the‐art molecular tools available for genome editing in trypanosomatids to finally point out the future perspectives in the field.
Simultaneous TE Analysis of 19 Heliconiine Butterflies Yields Novel Insights into Rapid TE-Based Genome Diversification and Multiple SINE Births and Deaths

Abstract Transposable elements (TEs) play major roles in the evolution of genome structure and function. However, because of their repetitive nature, they are difficult to annotate and discovering the specific roles they may play in a lineage can be a daunting task. Heliconiine butterflies are models for the study of multiple evolutionary processes including phenotype evolution and hybridization. We attempted to determine how TEs may play a role in the diversification of genomes within this clade by performing a detailed examination of TE content and accumulation in 19 species whose genomes were recently sequenced. We found that TE content has diverged substantially and rapidly in the time since several subclades shared a common ancestor with each lineage harboring a unique TE repertoire. Several novel SINE lineages have been established that are restricted to a subset of species. Furthermore, the previously described SINE, Metulj, appears to have gone extinct in two subclades while expanding to significant numbers in others. This diversity in TE content and activity has the potential to impact how heliconiine butterflies continue to evolve and diverge.
Pubertal Timing, Parenting Style, and Trajectories of Pornography Use in Adolescence: Peer Pornography Use as the Mediator

This study examined the effect of pubertal timing, parenting style, and peer behaviors on the trajectories of pornography use among adolescents. Data consisted of 1272 boys and 1210 girls, who completed at least three waves of pornography use questions from 7th to 12th grade (the year 2007 to 2012). Group-based trajectory modeling was applied to identify the trajectories of pornography use. Multinomial logistic regression and the Z-mediation method were conducted to examine the influences of pubertal timing, parenting style, and peer behaviors on the trajectories and the mediating effect. The results showed that early puberty was associated with earlier exposure to pornography and more frequent exposure later. Parental monitoring protected adolescents from pornography use, whereas psychological control increased the chance of more exposure. Peer pornography use mediated the relationship between adolescent pornography use, pubertal timing, and parental style. This mediating effect was stronger among boys versus girls. These findings provide insight into the mechanism of pubertal timing, parental style, and peer influence on the trajectory of pornography use in adolescence.
Seasonal adaptations of the hypothalamo-neurohypophyseal system of the dromedary camel

The “ship” of the Arabian and North African deserts, the one-humped dromedary camel (Camelus dromedarius) has a remarkable capacity to survive in conditions of extreme heat without needing to drink water. One of the ways that this is achieved is through the actions of the antidiuretic hormone arginine vasopressin (AVP), which is made in a specialised part of the brain called the hypothalamo-neurohypophyseal system (HNS), but exerts its effects at the level of the kidney to provoke water conservation. Interestingly, our electron microscopy studies have shown that the ultrastructure of the dromedary HNS changes according to season, suggesting that in the arid conditions of summer the HNS is in an activated state, in preparation for the likely prospect of water deprivation. Based on our dromedary genome sequence, we have carried out an RNAseq analysis of the dromedary HNS in summer and winter. Amongst the 171 transcripts found to be significantly differentially regulated (>2 fold change, p value <0.05) there is a significant over-representation of neuropeptide encoding genes, including that encoding AVP, the expression of which appeared to increase in summer. Identification of neuropeptides in the HNS and analysis of neuropeptide profiles in extracts from individual camels using mass spectrometry indicates that overall AVP peptide levels decreased in the HNS during summer compared to winter, perhaps due to increased release during periods of dehydration in the dry season.
AN EXAMINATION OF CITATION INDEXES

In the past few years two methods of information access using the citations given in published papers have been developed. These methods are citation indexing and bibliographic coupling, and although they are closely related it is important clearly to distinguish between them. In essence, bibliographic coupling is a concept developed by M. M. Kessler of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, concerned with the relation existing between two documents by virtue of their joint descent from a third—that is, two documents are said to be coupled if they both cite the same document, and the strength of the coupling is determined by the number of citations they have in common. We are here primarily interested in citation indexing and will therefore only discuss Kessler's work as it becomes immediately relevant to this subject. A citation index is ‘an ordered list of cited articles each of which is accompanied by a list of citing articles. The citing article is identified by a source citation, the cited article by a reference citation. The index is arranged by reference citations. ’ It is helpful at this stage to think of the source citations as descendants, and the reference citations as their ancestors.
Designing and pilot testing of a leadership intervention to improve quality and safety in nursing homes and home care (the SAFE-LEAD intervention)

Objective To describe the design of a leadership intervention for nursing home and home care, including a leadership guide for managers to use in their quality and safety improvement work. The paper reports results from the pilot test of the intervention and describes the final intervention programme. Design Qualitative design, using the participation of stakeholders. Methods The leadership guide and intervention were designed in collaboration with researchers, coresearchers and managers in nursing homes and home care organisations, through workshops and focus group interviews. The pilot test consisted of three workshops with managers working on the leadership guide, facilitated and observed by researchers, and evaluated by means of observation and focus group interviews with the participants. The analysis combined the integration of data from interviews and observations with directed content analysis. Setting Norwegian nursing homes and home care services. Participants Managers at different levels in three nursing homes and two home care services, coresearchers, and patient and next-of-kin representatives. Results The managers and coresearchers suggested some revisions to the leadership guide, such as making it shorter, and tailoring the terminology to their setting. Based on their suggestions, we modified the intervention and developed learning resources, such as videos demonstrating the practical use of the guide. Evaluation of the pilot test study showed that all managers supported the use of the guide. They adapted the guide to their organisational needs, but found it difficult to involve patients in the intervention. Conclusions A participatory approach with stakeholders is useful in designing a leadership intervention to improve quality and safety in nursing homes and home care, although patient participation in its implementation remains difficult. The participatory approach made it easier for managers to adapt the intervention to their context and to everyday quality and safety work practice.
Accuracy of Computer-Aided Diagnosis of Melanoma: A Meta-analysis.

Importance The recent advances in the field of machine learning have raised expectations that computer-aided diagnosis will become the standard for the diagnosis of melanoma. Objective To critically review the current literature and compare the diagnostic accuracy of computer-aided diagnosis with that of human experts. Data Sources The MEDLINE, arXiv, and PubMed Central databases were searched to identify eligible studies published between January 1, 2002, and December 31, 2018. Study Selection Studies that reported on the accuracy of automated systems for melanoma were selected. Search terms included melanoma, diagnosis, detection, computer aided, and artificial intelligence. Data Extraction and Synthesis Evaluation of the risk of bias was performed using the QUADAS-2 tool, and quality assessment was based on predefined criteria. Data were analyzed from February 1 to March 10, 2019. Main Outcomes and Measures Summary estimates of sensitivity and specificity and summary receiver operating characteristic curves were the primary outcomes. Results The literature search yielded 1694 potentially eligible studies, of which 132 were included and 70 offered sufficient information for a quantitative analysis. Most studies came from the field of computer science. Prospective clinical studies were rare. Combining the results for automated systems gave a melanoma sensitivity of 0.74 (95% CI, 0.66-0.80) and a specificity of 0.84 (95% CI, 0.79-0.88). Sensitivity was lower in studies that used independent test sets than in those that did not (0.51; 95% CI, 0.34-0.69 vs 0.82; 95% CI, 0.77-0.86; P < .001); however, the specificity was similar (0.83; 95% CI, 0.71-0.91 vs 0.85; 95% CI, 0.80-0.88; P = .67). In comparison with dermatologists' diagnosis, computer-aided diagnosis showed similar sensitivities and a 10 percentage points lower specificity, but the difference was not statistically significant. Studies were heterogeneous and substantial risk of bias was found in all but 4 of the 70 studies included in the quantitative analysis. Conclusions and Relevance Although the accuracy of computer-aided diagnosis for melanoma detection is comparable to that of experts, the real-world applicability of these systems is unknown and potentially limited owing to overfitting and the risk of bias of the studies at hand.
Rotavirus A Infections in Community Childhood Diarrhea in the Brazilian Semiarid Region During Post-Vaccination Era.

BACKGROUND Rotavirus A (RVA) is one of the leading causes of acute gastroenteritis worldwide; however, few studies assessed RVA genetics with community surveillance. OBJECTIVES This study aimed to investigate clinical data, genetic diversity, and coinfection patterns of RVA infections in children from 2-36 months old with or without community childhood diarrhea in the Brazilian semiarid region during post-vaccination era. METHODS We enrolled and collected socioeconomic/clinical information using a standardized questionnaire and fecal samples from 291 children. Viral RNA samples were extracted and analyzed using RT-qPCR to establish the diagnosis of RVA. Sequencing of VP7 and VP4 (VP8*) regions and phylogenetic analysis were performed. RESULTS RVA-negative diagnosis was associated with children 24-36 months old with complete vaccination schedule. Genotype G1P[8] was the most prevalent (57%), while unusual genotypes including G1P[4], G2P[8], G3P[9] were also detected. G1 and P[8] positive samples showed high degrees of similarity with the vaccine strain. RVA coinfections were frequently observed, and enteroaggregative Escherichia coli was the most prevalent copathogen. CONCLUSIONS These results demonstrate that Genotype G1P[8] is the most prevalent strain. VP7 and/or VP8* gene segments arising from RV1 vaccine strain were documented in these children, suggesting shedding or herd vaccination. Moreover, our study indicates full vaccination is important for protection against RVA infections.
Does vitamin E highly-crosslinked polyethylene convey an advantage in primary total hip replacement? A systematic review and meta-analysis

Background: Vitamin E highly cross-linked polyethylene (HXLPE) was developed to reduce wear in total hip replacement (THR). This formal systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to provide independent synthesis of wear characteristics of Vitamin E treated HXLPE compared to HXPLE/UHMWPE. Secondary outcome measures were differences in revision rates and functional scores. Methods: We performed a formal systematic review as per PRISMA guidelines; literature searches were conducted on 14 November 2017 (MEDLINE, Embase on Ovid, and the Cochrane Library). We included randomised controlled trials, analyses of joint registries, and case-controlled studies of primary THR comparing cups with a vitamin E HXLPE bearing with bearing surfaces made from other types of polyethylene. Initial screening was performed by 2 independent assessors; disagreement resolved in discussion with a third reviewer. Studies were evaluated using the Cochrane risk of bias tool. Data extraction permitted meta-analysis. Results: 372 studies were identified on initial screening, 5 studies met the eligibility criteria. There was no significant heterogeneity between studies. There was variable risk of bias. At a mean of 35 (range 20–60) months, Vitamin E HXLPE had significant advantages over highly cross-linked polyethylene with regards total femoral head penetration (p = 0.004). Given the RSA measurement errors this may not be clinically significant. There were neither significant differences in revision rates nor Harris Hip Scores (p = 0.06). Conclusion: At a minimum of 3 years follow-up there was reduced total femoral head penetration for vitamin E HXLPE over HXLPE. This bearing surface does not, as yet, have clinically significant advantages in terms of revision rates or patient function over HXLPE.
Personalized tag prediction via social influence in social networks

Currently, social tagging systems have been adopted by many social websites. As tags help users to browse social content effectively, personalized tag prediction problem becomes important in social networks. In this paper, we present a new generative probabilistic model to solve personalized tag prediction problem. Differently with previous methods, we consider social influence between users and friends into this model. We bring two major contributions: 1) We propose a new probabilistic model which considers in social influence to describe users' actual tagging activities; 2) Based on this model, we propose a new approach to perform personalized tag prediction task. Experimental results on a real-world dataset crawled from Last.fm show that our method outperforms other methods.
Assessment of Physical Fitness after Bariatric Surgery and Its Association with Protein Intake and Type of Cholecalciferol Supplementation

Background and objectives: Several studies showed that there is a relationship between vitamin and mineral status and muscle strength. In particular this is the case for handgrip strength (HS) and vitamin D deficiency. In bariatric surgery there is a risk of decrease in muscle strength after surgery and also vitamin and mineral deficiencies are not uncommon. The aim of this study is to assess the effect of low vitamin 25 (OH) cholecalciferol levels, high dose cholecalciferol supplementation regime and protein intake on physical fitness, measured using handgrip strength (HS) and the shuttle walk run test (SWRT). Materials and Methods: For this retrospective study, 100 patients who have had bariatric surgery were included. Group A (n = 50) used 800 IU oral cholecalciferol per day. Group B (n = 50) used 800 IU oral cholecalciferol daily and 50,000 IU liquid cholecalciferol monthly lifelong. Both groups were matched on common variables. To measure physical fitness, we used the HS manometer of Jamar and the Shuttle Walk Run Test (SWRT) to assess physical capacity. Results: No significant differences in HS and SWRT outcomes were found between patients with serum 25 (OH) cholecalciferol < 75 nmol/L or >75 nmol/L. The postoperative HS is significantly influenced by protein intake (p = 0.017) and no significant influence was seen in outcomes of the SWRT (p = 0.447). Conclusion: We have found that serum 25 (OH) cholecalciferol and different cholecalciferol supplementation regimes do not have a significant effect on HS and SWRT before, three and 6 months after surgery. It seems that protein intake plays a more important role in maintaining adequate muscle strength.
The relationship between serum FGF-23 concentration and insulin resistance, prediabetes and dyslipidemia in obese children and adolescents

Abstract Background Obesity is known to cause metabolic disturbances including insulin resistance, dyslipidemia and alters bone mineralization. The effects of obesity on fibroblast growth factor 23 (FGF-23), which is important in bone mineralization, have not yet been clarified. Our aim was to investigate the association between FGF-23 concentration and obesity-associated dysmetabolism. Methods Subjects comprised 46 obese children and adolescents. The same number of age-matched, healthy controls were recruited. Markers of bone mineralization and glucose metabolism were measured. Thyroid function and insulin resistance were investigated in both groups. In obese subjects; an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) was performed and hemoglobin A1c and lipid fractions were measured. Bone mineral density and hepatic steatosis were investigated. Results Serum FGF-23, α-klotho and 1,25(OH)2D3 concentrations were significantly lower while fasting insulin, fasting glucose, C-peptide and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) concentrations and homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) were significantly higher in the obese group compared to controls. A significant negative correlation was observed between free tri-iodothyronine (fT3) and both FGF-23 and α-klotho in the obese group. Significant negative correlation was found between FGF-23 and C-peptide and a positive correlation was found between FGF-23 and high density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-c) in the obese subjects with impaired glucose tolerance (IGT). Significant negative correlations were found between FGF-23 and both fasting insulin levels and C-peptide levels in the obese subjects with hepatic steatosis. Conclusions In our study, insulin resistance-associated hyperinsulinism and/or lower 1,25(OH)2D3 levels, both present in obese children and adolescents, may lead to decreased serum FGF-23 concentrations in obese subjects.
Sexual Dimorphism and Foraging Trips of the Laysan Albatross (Phoebastria immutabilis) on Guadalupe Island

Simple Summary We evaluated the existence of sexual dimorphism in Laysan albatross from Guadalupe Island. Males were larger than females across all the morphological variables analyzed. We created a sex predictor model for Laysan albatross individuals that requires a minimum number of input variables and will considerably reduce the handling times and field costs of future studies. Laysan albatross foraging trips were recorded during their breeding season over multiple years and no significant differences were found between the distances travelled by males versus females. Abstract Sexual dimorphism in the Laysan albatross (Phoebastria immutabilis) on Guadalupe Island was evaluated during the breeding seasons of 2015–2018 by measuring and comparing 10 morphological attributes: cranial length, bill length, nostril length, cranial width, bill height, bill width, tarsus length, closed wing length, opened wing length, and wingspan length in reproductive adults (n = 135). Males were larger than females across all traits (Student’s t-test, p < 0.05, p < 0.05). We created a logistic model using stepwise regression to predict sex based on morphological variables. This model indicated four significant morphological predictor variables (z < 0.05) and was able to successfully predict the sex of P. immutabilis individuals in more than 90% of the cases. Based on these predictor variables, a web app was developed to determine the sex of the Laysan albatross in the field, providing a non-invasive method for rapid data collection that reduces costs and handling times while improving conservation efforts. We tracked Laysan albatross (n = 36) during breeding seasons and found no significant differences between females and males for either trip length (GLMM, F = 0.017, DF = 1, 1, p = 0.917 > 0.05) or maximum trip distance (GLMM, F = 0.374, DF = 1, 1, p = 0.651 > 0.05). Our results suggest that both sexes show a strong preference to travel to highly productive coastal waters northeast of the breeding colony that are influenced by the California Current. The present research will serve to establish a baseline to protect this species on Guadalupe Island and highlights the importance of understanding sexual dimorphism in at-risk seabird species.