Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Characteristics of the paravertebral muscle in adult degenerative scoliosis with PI-LL match or mismatch and risk factors for PI-LL mismatch

Objective Pelvic incidence (PI) minus the lumbar lordosis (LL) angle (PI-LL) correlates with function and disability. It is associated with paravertebral muscle (PVM) degeneration and is a valuable tool for surgical planning of adult degenerative scoliosis (ADS). This study aims to explore the characteristics of PVM in ADS with PI-LL match or mismatch and to identify the risk factors for PI-LL mismatch. Methods A total of 67 patients with ADS were divided into PI-LL match and mismatch groups. The visual analog scale (VAS), symptom duration, and Oswestry disability index (ODI) were used to assess patients’ clinical symptoms and quality of life. The percentage of fat infiltration area (FIA%) of the multifidus muscle at the L1-S1 disc level was measured by using MRI with Image-J software. Sagittal vertical axis, LL, pelvic tilt (PT), PI, sacral slope, and the asymmetric and average degeneration degree of the multifidus were recorded. Logistic regression analysis was done to identify the risk factors for PI-LL mismatch. Results In the PI-LL match and mismatch groups, the average FIA% of the multifidus on the convex side was less than that on the concave side (P < 0.05). There was no statistical difference of asymmetric degeneration degree of the multifidus between the two groups (P > 0.05). In the PI-LL mismatch group, the average degeneration degree of the multifidus, VAS, symptom duration, and ODI were significantly higher than that in the PI-LL match group, respectively (32.22 ± 6.98 vs. 26.28 ± 6.23 (%), 4.33 ± 1.60 vs. 3.52 ± 1.46, 10.81 ± 4.83 vs. 6.58 ± 4.23 (month), 21.06 ± 12.58 vs. 12.97 ± 6.49, P < 0.05). The average degeneration degree of the multifidus muscle was positively correlated with the VAS, symptom duration, and ODI, respectively (r = 0.515, 0.614, and 0.548, P < 0.05). Sagittal plane balance, LL, PT, and the average degeneration degree of the multifidus were the risk factors for PI-LL mismatch (OR: 15.447, 95% CI: 1.274–187.269; OR: 0.001, 95% CI: 0.000–0.099; OR: 107.540, 95% CI: 5.195–2,225.975; OR: 52.531, 95% CI: 1.797–1,535.551, P < 0.05). Conclusion The PVM on the concave side was larger than that on the convex side in ADS irrespective of whether PI-LL matched or not. PI-LL mismatch could aggravate this abnormal change, which is an important cause of pain and disability in ADS. Sagittal plane imbalance, decreased LL, higher PT, and larger average degeneration degree of the multifidus were independent risk factors for PI-LL mismatch.
Bacterial growth and ceftriaxone activity in individual ascitic fluids in an in vitro model of spontaneous bacterial peritonitis

Introduction: The environment of the infection site affects bacterial growth and antibiotic activity. When bacterial growth and antibiotic activity are studied in body fluids, samples of multiple subjects are usually pooled, averaging out potentially relevant differences in composition. The ascitic fluid (AF) environment is frequently associated with spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP) in cirrhotic patients. In this study, bacterial growth and ceftriaxone activity were evaluated in individual AF using an in vitro model of SBP, reflecting the environment and pharmacokinetics at the infection site. Methods: AF was obtained from nine cirrhotic patients with non-infected ascites. Growth of nine bacterial strains (three Escherichia coli, four Staphylococcus aureus, one Enterococcus faecalis, and one Klebsiella pneumoniae) in individual AF was assessed and correlated with biomarkers including potential risk factors for SBP. Ceftriaxone time-kill experiments, in which the pharmacokinetic profile observed in AF following a 1 g intravenous infusion was replicated, were performed with two E. coli and two S. aureus isolates with minimum inhibitory concentrations around the ceftriaxone resistance breakpoint. Results: Significant correlations were found between bacterial growth and AF levels of protein (Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient ρ = −0.35), albumin (ρ = −0.31), and complement C3c (ρ = −0.28), and serum levels of bilirubin (ρ = 0.39) and aspartate aminotransferase (ρ = 0.25). Ceftriaxone was active in AF, even against resistant isolates, generally resulting in ≥2 log reductions in bacterial count within 24 h. Conclusion: Ascites patients may be predisposed to or protected against SBP based on the antimicrobial capacity of their AF. Ceftriaxone at clinical AF concentrations is active in the AF environment.
Genomics combined with UAS data enhances prediction of grain yield in winter wheat

With the human population continuing to increase worldwide, there is pressure to employ novel technologies to increase genetic gain in plant breeding programs that contribute to nutrition and food security. Genomic selection (GS) has the potential to increase genetic gain because it can accelerate the breeding cycle, increase the accuracy of estimated breeding values, and improve selection accuracy. However, with recent advances in high throughput phenotyping in plant breeding programs, the opportunity to integrate genomic and phenotypic data to increase prediction accuracy is present. In this paper, we applied GS to winter wheat data integrating two types of inputs: genomic and phenotypic. We observed the best accuracy of grain yield when combining both genomic and phenotypic inputs, while only using genomic information fared poorly. In general, the predictions with only phenotypic information were very competitive to using both sources of information, and in many cases using only phenotypic information provided the best accuracy. Our results are encouraging because it is clear we can enhance the prediction accuracy of GS by integrating high quality phenotypic inputs in the models.
Identification of immunodiagnostic blood biomarkers associated with spinal cord injury severity

Blood always shows some immune changes after spinal cord injury (SCI), and detection of such changes in blood may be helpful for diagnosis and treatment of SCI. However, studies to date on blood immune changes after SCI in humans are not comprehensive. Therefore, to obtain the characteristics of blood immune changes and immunodiagnostic blood biomarkers of SCI and its different grades, a human blood transcriptome sequencing dataset was downloaded and analyzed to obtain differentially expressed immune-related genes (DEIGs), related functions and signaling pathways related to SCI and its various grades. Characteristic biomarkers of SCI and its different grades were identified by using weighted gene coexpression network analysis (WGCNA) and least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) logistic regression. Expression of biomarkers was verified through experiments. The area under the curve (AUC) of biomarkers was calculated to evaluate their diagnostic value, and differences in immune cell content were examined. In this study, 17 kinds of immune cells with different contents between the SCI group and healthy control (HC) group were identified, with 7 immune cell types being significantly increased. Differences in the content of immune cells between different grades of SCI and the HC group were also discovered. DEIGs were identified, with alteration in some immune-related signaling pathways, vascular endothelial growth factor signaling pathways, and axon guidance signaling pathways. The SCI biomarkers identified and those of American Spinal Injury Society Impairment Scale (AIS) A and AIS D of SCI have certain diagnostic sensitivity. Analysis of the correlation of immune cells and biomarkers showed that biomarkers of SCI, AIS A grade and AIS D grade correlated positively or negatively with some immune cells. CKLF, EDNRB, FCER1G, SORT1, and TNFSF13B can be used as immune biomarkers for SCI. Additionally, GDF11and HSPA1L can be used as biomarkers of SCI AIS A grade; PRKCA and CMTM2 can be used as biomarkers of the SCI AIS D grade. Detecting expression of these putative biomarkers and changes in related immune cells may be helpful for predicting the severity of SCI.
Private sector antimalarial sales a decade after “test and treat”: A cross-sectional study of drug shop clients in rural Uganda

Background The World Health Organization has promoted “test and treat” guidelines for malaria since 2010, recommending all suspected malaria cases be confirmed with a parasitological test, typically a rapid diagnostic test (RDT), prior to treatment with antimalarial medications. However, many fevers at private drug shops in Uganda continue to be treated presumptively as malaria without diagnostic testing. Methods The purpose of this study was to document private sector malaria case management in rural Uganda through a cross-sectional survey of drug shop clients in Bugoye sub-county. Drug shop vendors (n = 46) recorded information about sales interactions with clients reporting fever or requesting antimalarials and collected capillary blood samples from clients who purchased medications without an RDT. We estimated the proportion of clients who purchased an RDT, adhered to the RDT result, and received antimalarials without having laboratory-confirmed malaria. Results Most drug shops were unlicensed (96%) and sold RDTs (98%). Of 934 clients with suspected malaria who visited study drug shops during the data collection period, only 25% bought an RDT. Since some clients reported previous RDTs from the public sector, 40% of clients were aware of their malaria status at the drug shop. Among those with negative tests, 36% still purchased antimalarials. Sixty-five percent of clients who purchased an antimalarial without an RDT subsequently tested negative. Conclusions Despite national guidelines, drug shop clients who purchase antimalarials from drug shops in Bugoye are often not tested to confirm a malaria diagnosis prior to treatment. Most clients treated presumptively with antimalarials did not have malaria. Interventions are needed to improve malaria case management and rational drug use in the private sector.
Reduction of self-phase-modulation induced phase jitter in multiplexing repetition rate of actively mode-locked laser for photonic analog-to-digital converters

We propose a novel method to multiply the pulse repetition rate of actively mode-locked fiber laser (AMLL) by spectrum-slicing and time-division-multiplexing for photonic analog-to-digital converters (PADC). Self-phase modulation (SPM) is employed to broaden the spectrum in order to obtain more parallel channels. The SPM induces additional phase jitter that degrades PADC’s performance. We theoretically and experimentally show phase jitter can be effectively reduced by precise control of the tunable true-time delay array. Sampling clock of 40 GHz or higher with low phase jitter is achieved based on 10-GHz AMLL, which can be used to realize high performance PADC.
MagSound

Wireless earphones are pervasive acoustic sensing platforms that can be used for many applications such as motion tracking and handwriting input. However, wireless earphones suffer clock offset between the connected smart devices, which would accumulate error rapidly over time. Moreover, compared with smartphone and voice assistants, the acoustic signal transmitted by wireless earphone is much weaker due to the poor frequency response. In this paper, we propose MagSound, which uses the built-in magnets to improve the tracking and acoustic sensing performance of Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) earphones. Leveraging magnetic field strength, MagSound can predict the position of wireless earphones free from clock offset, which can be used to re-calibrate the acoustic tracking. Further, the fusion of the two modalities mitigates the accumulated clock offset and multipath effect. Besides, to increase the robustness to noise, MagSound employs finely designed Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiplexing (OFDM) ranging signals. We implement a prototype of MagSound on COTS and perform experiments for tracking and handwriting input. Results demonstrate that MagSound maintains millimeter-level error in 2D tracking, and improves the handwriting recognition accuracy by 49.81%. We believe that MagSound can contribute to practical applications of wireless earphones-based sensing.
Tokamak diagnostics with the 496-μm CH3F laser

Long laser wavelengths are required for Thomson-scattering determination of the ion properties of a moderately dense plasma. Recently, more than 10 kW of coherent radiation at Xo = 496 /um (605 GHz) has been produced from CO2-laser-pumped CH3F [1,2], and extension of this power output to the megawatt level seems feasible. For Thomson scattering from tokamak plasmas, the CH3F laser seems more promising than the 337-/um HCN laser, which also permits large-angle scattering, but is limited to power outputs of the order of a kilowatt, or the CO2 laser, which requires a scattering angle < 1°. Furthermore, the 496-pm radiation should interact with the lower harmonics of the electron cyclotron motion, thus making possible experiments on heat conductivity and cyclotron echoes. The cut-off density of this radiation (ne = 4.5 X 10 15 cm' ) is , at least, a factor of 10 above the maximum density expected for any tokamak, so that in all these applications refraction effects should be unimportant. Thus, as described in the following, the development of the high-power CH3F laser should make possible important diagnostic studies of tokamak plasmas that heretofore were impractical.
On the Local Convergence of Quasi-Newton Methods for Constrained Optimization

We consider the application of a general class of quasi-Newton methods to the solution of the classical equality constrained nonlinear optimization problem. Specifically, we develop necessary and sufficient conditions for the Q-superlinear convergence of such methods and present a companion linear convergence theorem. The essential conditions relate to the manner in which the Hessian of the Lagrangian function is approximated.
Statistical diagnosis when basic cases are not classified with certainty

SUMMARY A need is identified for statistical diagnostic techniques based on data sets containing cases which have not been allocated to a single diagnostic type with certainty but for which only an assessment of the probabilities of the types is available. In order to construct a statistical diagnostic system applicable to new cases it is necessary to introduce even more complex diagnostic assessments and a central part of the analysis is concerned with the reduction of such assessments to simpler, more interpretable forms. The theory provides a generalization of current statistical diagnostic techniques, and its relationship to these is discussed.
An ultrasonic X-Y stage using 10 MHz surface acoustic waves

We have succeeded in operation of an ultrasonic linear motor using Rayleigh waves. We used 3 inch 127.8° Y-cut LiNbO3 wafers. Four IDTs were arranged to excite x-propagation waves and y-propagation waves in both directions. The dimensions of the IDTs were 25 mm aperture size, 400 μm pitch, 100 μm strip width and 10 pairs. The operation area was about 25 mm square. The driving frequency was about 9.6 MHz in the x-direction and about 9.1 MHz in the y-direction. The most important point of the success was the shape of the contact surface and the slider material. For the contact materials, small balls about 1 mm in diameter are introduced to obtain high contact pressures around 100 MPa. We tried ruby balls, steel balls and tungsten carbide balls. Each slider has three balls to get stable contact at three points. The maximum transfer speed was about 20 cm/sec. The transfer speed was controllable by changing the driving voltage
Comparisons of Tobit, Linear, and Poisson-Gamma Regression Models

Time use data (TUD) are distinctive, being episodic in nature and consisting of both continuous and discrete (exact zeros) values. TUD is non-negative and generally right skewed. To analyze such data, the Tobit, and to a lesser extent, linear regression models are often used. Tobit models assume the zeros represent censored values of an underlying normally distributed latent variable that theoretically includes negative values. Both the linear regression and Tobit models have normality as a key assumption. The Poisson-gamma distribution is a distribution with both a point mass at zero (corresponding to zero time spent on a given activity) and a continuous component. Using generalized linear models, TUD can be modeled utilizing the Poisson-gamma distribution. Using TUD, Tobit and linear regression models are compared to the Poisson-gamma with respect to the interpretation of the model, the model fit (analysis of residuals), and model performance through the use of a simulated data experiment. The Poisson-gamma is found to be theoretically and empirically more sound in many circumstances.
A Decision-Theoretic Approach to Summarising Posterior Information in a Sample of step Functions

An important task in analysing time series of the current passed by a single ion channel is the restoration of the true signal from the noisy recording. Hodgson [1] devised a reversible jump Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) algorithm to implement fully Bayesian single channel analysis. Noiseless ion channel signals are typically modelled as step functions with a discrete number of levels. As the number of steps is unknown, the joint posterior distribution under the Bayesian paradigm exhibits variable dimensionality, necessitating the use of reversible jump MCMC (Green [2]). This paper addresses the task of summarising posterior knowledge about the step function representing the noiseless channel signal, using Bayesian decision theory and the ideas of Rue [3]. We compute Bayes estimates of the true step function under a selection of loss functions from the same family.
Restauration automatique d'images satellitaires par une méthode MCMC

The problem presented herein is the reconstruction of blurred and noisy satellite images. Image degradations are supposed to be known. We use a regularizing model based on a '-function, avoiding noise ampli cation while preserving the edges of the solution. This variational model has two hyperparameters, which are automatically estimated. This is achieved by the Maximum Likelihood estimator, applied on the observed image. We have developed a MCMC estimation algorithm, which uses a sampling method inspired from [6]. We use a cosine transform instead of the Fourier transform. We propose a new and fast reconstruction algorithm, derived from the sampling method, which ables to simultaneously deblur the degraded image and to estimate the hyperparameters.
Ion extraction from plasma by using a radio frequency resonant electric field

In order to raise an ion extraction efficiency from a plasma, a new method using an rf field has been proposed and demonstrated. The resonant frequencies of the rf field were theoretically evaluated to excite the eigenwave of the plasma. The lower frequency of the two plasma‐sheath resonances under the magnetic field was selected because it has hardly any dependence on the plasma density when the density is over a critical value. Verification of this method was carried out using Xe discharge plasma (electron density, 1×1016 m−3; electron temperature, 8 eV) between the parallel plate electrodes (length, 0.5 m). The resonance was found at about 10 MHz, which agreed with the theoretical result. The ion current at the resonance was anisotropic and was twice as large as the ion saturated current, which is the limiting value of the conventional electrostatic method.
On closed support T-Invariants and the traffic equations

The traffic equations are the basis for the exact analysis of product form queueing networks, and the approximate analysis of non-product form queueing networks. Conditions characterising the structure of the network that guarantees the existence of a solution for the traffic equations are therefore of great importance. This note shows that the new condition stating that each transition is covered by a minimal closed support T-invariant, is necessary and sufficient for the existence of a solution for the traffic equations for batch routing queueing networks and stochastic Petri nets.
On non-monotonicity of linear viscoelastic functions

The monotonicity of the linear viscoelastic functions, namely, the shear creep compliance, the Young’s relaxation modulus, the stretch creep compliance, the P-wave relaxation modulus, the Lamé’s first function, and the time-dependent Poisson’s ratio, were examined analytically and numerically. It was shown that both the Lamé’s first function and time-dependent Poisson’s ratio can be non-monotonic. Furthermore, in contrast to the reports by other researchers, the values of the time-dependent Poisson’s ratio were found to be bounded by the limits between −1 and 0.5 after the physical constraints of the bulk and shear relaxation moduli are taken into account.
Improvement and Validation of a Genomic DNA Extraction Method for Human Breastmilk

The human milk microbiota (HMM) of healthy women can vary substantially, as demonstrated by recent advances in DNA sequencing technology. However, the method used to extract genomic DNA (gDNA) from these samples may impact the observed variations and potentially bias the microbiological reconstruction. Therefore, it is important to use a DNA extraction method that is able to effectively isolate gDNA from a diverse range of microorganisms. In this study, we improved and compared a DNA extraction method for gDNA isolation from human milk (HM) samples to commercial and standard protocols. We evaluated the extracted gDNA using spectrophotometric measurements, gel electrophoresis, and PCR amplifications to assess its quantity, quality, and amplifiability. Additionally, we tested the improved method’s ability to isolate amplifiable gDNA from fungi, Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria to validate its potential for reconstructing microbiological profiles. The improved DNA extraction method resulted in a higher quality and quantity of the extracted gDNA compared to the commercial and standard protocols and allowed for polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification of the V3–V4 regions of the 16S ribosomal gene in all the samples and the ITS-1 region of the fungal 18S ribosomal gene in 95% of the samples. These results suggest that the improved DNA extraction method demonstrates better performance for gDNA extraction from complex samples such as HM.
A UAV Localization System Based on Double UWB Tags and IMU for Landing Platform

The successful landing of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) on unmanned vehicle landing platforms is critical for resolving the problem of insufficient range of UAVs in practical missions. Existing localization techniques for autonomous UAV landing are primarily vision-based, but this method is limited due to reliance on external lighting conditions. In this article, we propose a localization system for UAV landing on a mobile platform, which can be conveniently deployed on an unmanned vehicle landing platform. Four ultra wideband (UWB) anchors were deployed on the $0.8\times1.4$ m rectangular unmanned vehicle landing platform. The spacing of the two tags installed on the UAV and the ranging information was used as constraints, and the linear least squares (LLSs) method was used to calculate the iterative initial coordinates of the gradient descent method to solve for the positions of the two UWB tags and fuse them with the inertial measurement unit (IMU) data to provide accurate coordinate for the safe landing of the UAV. By comparing the experiments with the LLSs method in five experiments, it is demonstrated that the average RMSE of the localization system proposed in this article is reduced by 61%.