Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Prevalence and Factors Associated with Cardiovascular Lifestyle Risk Factors among Pregnant Women in Burkina Faso: Evidence from a Cross-Sectional Study

Data on lifestyle risk factors for cardiovascular diseases, such as smoking, alcohol consumption, inadequate physical activity, and insufficient consumption of fruits and vegetables, in pregnant women in Africa, are scarce. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of cardiovascular lifestyle risk factors among pregnant women in Burkina Faso and identify their associated factors. Pregnant women who attended antenatal care services between December 2018 and March 2019 were included in this study. A modified Poisson regression model was used to estimate adjusted prevalence ratios (aPR) with a 95% confidence interval. A total of 1027 pregnant women participated in this study. The prevalence of alcohol consumption, tobacco use, inadequate physical activity, and insufficient consumption of fruits and vegetables were 10.2% [8.5–12.2], 3.0% [2.1–4.3], 79.4% [76.9–81.8], and 53.5% [50.5–56.6], respectively. The prevalence of more than one cardiovascular lifestyle risk factor in pregnant women was 50.9% [48.0–54.0]. The predictors significantly associated with more than one cardiovascular lifestyle risk factor were women over 30 years old aPR 1.26; 95% CI [1.03–1.53]), women living in fourth wealth index households (aPR 1.23; 95% CI [1.06–1.42]), in semi-urban areas (aPR 5.46; 95% CI [4.34–6.88]), and women with no occupation (aPR 1.31; 95% CI [1.18–1.44]). The prevalence of more than one cardiovascular lifestyle risk factor was high during pregnancy in Burkina Faso. Women of childbearing age should be advised on how healthy behaviors can lead to improved pregnancy outcomes.
Hierarchical Cluster Analysis for Multi-Sample Comparisons Based on the Power-Normal Distribution

To make multi-sample comparisons in comparative experimental studies, multiple comparison methods are generally used. The primary aim of these methods is to test hypotheses for pairwise equality of means, but it is often difficult to extract particular features from the data. An alternative approach is to use cluster analysis to group the sample means, and then to categorize the sample means as significantly different if and only if they belong to different groups. This approach does not involve hypothesis tests for pairwise equality of means and provides a useful interpretation of sample difference based on a graphical display. In many clustering methods for multi-sample comparisons, the normality of the observations is assumed. However, real-world observations rarely satisfy this strict assumption. We therefore propose the power-normal multi-samples cluster analysis (PMC) method that assumes the distribution of the observations is power-normal. Here, the power-normal distribution is defined as the distribution before the power-normal transformation (Box and Cox, 1964). We illustrate the usefulness of the PMC method for ordinary cluster analysis for multi-sample comparisons by analyzing an example and by evaluating a small-scale simulation.
The efficacy and safety of ginger supplementation in patients with multiple sclerosis: A rationale and study protocol for a double‐blind randomized controlled trial

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic disease characterized by axonal damage, demyelination, inflammation, oxidative stress, and immune cell infiltration. This disease is the first cause of nontraumatic disability in young adults leading to a decline in patients' quality of life. Patients with MS may also suffer from gastrointestinal symptoms due to the disease or prescription drugs. Unfortunately, no treatment for MS has been discovered yet, and prescribed drugs can only help control its clinical course. Interestingly, recent animal studies have shown positive effects of ginger administration in the MS model. Therefore, we aim to determine the effect of ginger supplementation on neurofilament light chain, matrix metalloproteinase‐9, interleukin‐17, nitric oxide, complete and differential blood counts, disability status, quality of life, gastrointestinal symptoms, and body mass index (BMI) in MS patients.
Rice Growth and Yield Responses to Climate Variabilities and Scenarios

Rice is the essential food crop of An Giang Province. Vietnam and the whole world are facing several problems hindering climate change, such as increased temperature and CO2 concentration that many manufacturers’ companies and managers need to estimate output to make production plans or adjust policies. In this study, the model known as SIMPLE was applied to simulate the biomass and yield of rice in 2 crop seasons Autumn - Winter 2020 (AW) and Winter - Spring 2020 - 2021 (WS), in Cho Moi district, An Giang province, Vietnam (10° 23' 47"N, 105° 27' 41"E) and analyzed the effects of climate variabilities and scenarios on simulation results. Heat stress showed a relatively negative impact on the growth and development of rice in AW more seriously than WS due to climate variabilities. Climate change scenario RCP8.5 (RCP - Representative Concentration Pathway) has predicted that atmosphere temperature may increase above 4 °C and CO2 concentration to reach 900 ppm by the end of the 21st century. As a result, from the model, for every 100 ppm CO2 concentration increase, the cumulative rice biomass increased by 8 and 10 % in AW and WS, respectively. Moreover, conditions assumed from the model that increased 5 °C caused a decrease in cumulative biomass up to 7.2 % in AW season compared to 3.1 % in WS season. However, with responses of 5 °C increasing in the model, rice yield decreased relatively rapidly from 8.5 % in AW and 7 % WS. HIGHLIGHTS The model known as SIMPLE has been used in this study RMSE of our model differs from the observed yield from 4.2 % (Winter-Spring crop-WS) to 5.5 % (Autumn-Winter crop-AW) For every 100-ppm CO2 concentration increased, the cumulative rice biomass increased by 8 and 10 % in AW and WS, respectively Increasing 5 °C, rice yield decreased 8.5 % in AW and 7 % WS Sensitivity analysis showed that RUE (Radiation Use Efficiency) has the most influencing factor on rice yield GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT
EFD and CFD Characterization of a CLT Propeller

In the present paper an experimental and numerical analysis of an unconventional CLT propeller is carried out. Two different numerical approaches, a potential panel method and an RANSE solver, are employed. Cavitation tunnel experiments are carried out in order to measure, as usual, thrust, torque, and cavity extension for different propeller working points. Moreover, LDV measurements are performed to have a deep insight into the complex wake behind the propeller and to analyze the dynamics of generated tip vortexes. The numerical/experimental analysis and comparison of results highlight the peculiarities of this kind of propellers, the possibility to increase efficiency and reduce cavitation risk, in order to exploit the design approaches already well proven for conventional propellers also in the case of these unconventional geometries.
A guiding framework for needs assessment evaluations to embed digital platforms in partnership with Indigenous communities

Introduction In community-based research projects, needs assessments are one of the first steps to identify community priorities. Access-related issues often pose significant barriers to participation in research and evaluation for rural and remote communities, particularly Indigenous communities, which also have a complex relationship with academia due to a history of exploitation. To bridge this gap, work with Indigenous communities requires consistent and meaningful engagement. The prominence of digital devices (i.e., smartphones) offers an unparalleled opportunity for ethical and equitable engagement between researchers and communities across jurisdictions, particularly in remote communities. Methods This paper presents a framework to guide needs assessments which embed digital platforms in partnership with Indigenous communities. Guided by this framework, a qualitative needs assessment was conducted with a subarctic Métis community in Saskatchewan, Canada. This project is governed by an Advisory Council comprised of Knowledge Keepers, Elders, and youth in the community. An environmental scan of relevant programs, three key informant interviews, and two focus groups (n = 4 in each) were conducted to systematically identify community priorities. Results Through discussions with the community, four priorities were identified: (1) the Coronavirus pandemic, (2) climate change impacts on the environment, (3) mental health and wellbeing, and (4) food security and sovereignty. Given the timing of the needs assessment, the community identified the Coronavirus pandemic as a key priority requiring digital initiatives. Conclusion Recommendations for community-based needs assessments to conceptualize and implement digital infrastructure are put forward, with an emphasis on self-governance and data sovereignty.
Clarifying the Implicit Assumptions of Two-Wave Mediation Models via the Latent Change Score Specification: An Evaluation of Model Fit Indices

Statistical mediation analysis is used to investigate mechanisms through which a randomized intervention causally affects an outcome variable. Mediation analysis is often carried out in a pretest-posttest control group design because it is a common choice for evaluating experimental manipulations in the behavioral and social sciences. There are four different two-wave (i.e., pretest-posttest) mediation models that can be estimated using either linear regression or a Latent Change Score (LCS) specification in Structural Equation Modeling: Analysis of Covariance, difference and residualized change scores, and a cross-sectional model. Linear regression modeling and the LCS specification of the two-wave mediation models provide identical mediated effect estimates but the two modeling approaches differ in their assumptions of model fit. Linear regression modeling assumes each of the four two-wave mediation models fit the data perfectly whereas the LCS specification allows researchers to evaluate the model constraints implied by the difference score, residualized change score, and cross-sectional models via model fit indices. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to provide a conceptual and statistical comparison of two-wave mediation models. Models were compared on the assumptions they make about time-lags and cross-lagged effects as well as statistically using both standard measures of model fit (χ2, RMSEA, and CFI) and newly proposed T-size measures of model fit for the two-wave mediation models. Overall, the LCS specification makes clear the assumptions that are often implicitly made when fitting two-wave mediation models with regression. In a Monte Carlo simulation, the standard model fit indices and newly proposed T-size measures of model fit generally correctly identified the best fitting two-wave mediation model.
Formulation Development and In Vitro/In Vivo Characterization of Methotrexate-Loaded Nanoemulsion Gel Formulations for Enhanced Topical Delivery

Methotrexate-loaded oil-in-water nanoemulsion formulations were prepared using the high shear homogenization technique. A drug excipient study (ATR-FTIR) was carried out to investigate the compatibility between the drug, the polymers, and its admixtures. The thermal stability of the nanoemulsion formulations was evaluated by subjecting them to a heating and cooling cycle. The prepared nanoemulsion formulations (FNE1 to FNE6) were evaluated for particle size, PDI value, and entrapment efficiency (EE). They were analyzed for morphological information using transmission electron microscopy. The drug (methotrexate)-loaded nanoemulsion formulations (FNE2, FNE4, and FNE6) were then converted into nanoemulsion gel formulations by adding 1% chitosan (polymer) as a gelling agent. The nanoemulsion gel formulations (FNEG2, FNEG4, and FNEG6) were investigated for physicochemical parameters, viscosity, spreadability, extrudability, drug content, and skin irritation. Various penetration enhancers (olive oil, clove, and almond oil) were employed to examine the potency of the prepared nanoemulsion gel formulations. In vitro drug release, ex vivo permeation, skin drug retention, and stability tests were carried out for evaluation of the prepared nanoemulsion gel formulations (FNEG2, FNEG4, and FNEG6). The data obtained from the in vitro study were subjected to the kinetic model, and the Korsemeyer–Peppas model was best fitted to the data. The nanoemulsion gel formulation FNEG6 showed the maximum controlled drug release and followed an anomalous, non-Fickian release mechanism. The use of almond oil in the preparation of the nanoemulsion gel formulation FNEG6 helped the penetration of the drug across stratum corneum and the restructuring of the properties of skin and resulted in a higher penetration and retention of methotrexate in a deeper layer of the skin. The current study concluded that the methotrexate-loaded nanoemulsion gel formulation FNEG6 showed the best optimum release, permeation, and retention results as compared to the available oral tablets’ formulations, followed by a low serum concentration and the maximum drug retention, which is beneficial in treating skin infections and reducing systemic toxicity.
Telephone versus In-Person Pharmacist-Led Medication Reviews in Home Dialysis Patients: Evaluating Quality of Care and Patient Satisfaction

The COVID-19 pandemic required pharmacists in a provincial Home Dialysis Clinic to adapt from in-person to telephone-based medication reviews. Studies have shown that in-person pharmacist interventions in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) lead to a reduction of drug therapy problems (DTPs), however, it’s unknown if telephone interventions provide similar outcomes. The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether differences in quality of care exist between in-person vs. telephone medication reviews in home dialysis patients and to evaluate patient satisfaction with telephone medication reviews. Data from the two most recent in-person medication reviews was compared with the two most recent telephone medication reviews for each patient (n = 46). There were no statistically significant differences in DTPs identified between in-person and telephone medication reviews (p = 0.431). Physician acceptance of pharmacist recommendations was higher for in-person medication reviews (p = 0.009). Patients were satisfied with the care they received with pharmacist-led telephone medication reviews, however, 29% (n = 7) would prefer an in-person medication review once per year with telephone medication reviews the rest of the time. Overall, patients were satisfied with the care they received from telephone medication reviews.
Reasons and solutions for unhealthy food consumption and physical inactivity among school-going adolescents: A sequential mixed-methods study in Puducherry, South India

ABSTRACT Background: Unhealthy food consumption and physical inactivity in adolescents play a key role in the development of non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Objectives: The study was planned to capture the reasons and solutions for unhealthy food consumption and physical inactivity among school-going adolescents. Methods: A school-based sequential mixed-methods study was conducted in Puducherry for six months. In Phase I, a survey (QUAN) was carried out among 405 representative students from 9th to 12th standards to identify the reasons for unhealthy behaviors. Then, Phase II compromised two focus group discussions (FGDs) (QUAL) with 20 purposively selected school staff, parents, and healthcare professionals to explore the solutions for unhealthy behaviors. In Phase III, the key action points were ranked (QUAL) by 60 teachers. Quantitative data was analyzed in Epi_Info 7.1. 5.0 software (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Atlanta, Georgia, US). Thematic content analysis was done for the qualitative data in Atlas.ti. 9 software (Scientific Software Development GmbH, Berlin). Further, mean rank and Kendall’s concordance coefficient (W) were calculated for the ranked data in SPSS 24 software (SPSS Inc; Chicago, Illinois, USA). Results: About 70.1% of students had unhealthy food consumption and 61% of students lacked physical activity. Notably, 59.9% of males preferred unhealthy foods, and 65.2% of females were physically inactive. The leading reasons for unhealthy eating habits were taste (78.9%), increased online food delivery (75.7%), and attractive advertisements (74.3%). Whereas, the prime reasons for sedentary behaviors were increased study load (81.8%), high-density traffic (74.9%), and insufficient recreational facilities (71.7%). Conclusion: The prioritized feasible action points would help in the development of context-specific behavior change communication strategies for future health promotion interventions in resource-poor settings.
The impact of celebrity politicians perceptions on political party preferences

Political parties usually try to understand the factors that affect a voter’s decision in elections. However, irrespective of voters’ preferences, studies rarely examine how voters’ attitudes toward celebrity politicians affected their party preferences, given the mediating effects of brand affinity and perceived attributes and the moderated mediating role of gender. Therefore, this study considers the effect of parties’ nominations of celebrity politicians on voters’ political party preference. Moreover, it investigates the causal relationship between those perceptions in an uprising nation against political parties. A representative national sample of one thousand two hundred sixty-nine (1269) Lebanese voters was administered via a cross-sectional survey in fifteen Lebanese districts. A stratified proportional random sampling technique was used. Findings showed that attitudes significantly affected political party preferences when nominating celebrity politicians only through brand affinity on a 90% confidence level (probability-value = 0.053 &lt; 0.10) and perceived attributes on a 95% confidence level (0.039 &lt; 0.05), evidencing a lack of a significant direct relationship (0.571 &gt; 0.10). Voters’ gender conditional indirect effect was significant for females’ impact on brand affinity (0.025 &lt; 0.05), whereas gender failed to determine voters’ indirect effect on perceived attributes (0.633 &gt; 0.10). The results have shown that gender disparities in the brand’s emotional component could affect brand preferences.
Learned NIR&VISCAM: multi-spectral fusion for large depth-of-field computational imaging

Large DOF (depth-of-field) with high SNR (signal-noise-ratio) imaging plays an important role in many applications such as unmanned driving to medical imaging. However, there is always a trade-off between DOF and SNR in traditional optical design. In this paper, we propose a NIR&VISCAM (NIR&VIS Camera) that combines multi-spectral optical design and deep learning to realize large DOF and high SNR imaging. Specifically, a multi-spectral optical imaging system based on the HVS (human visual system) is designed to provide colorful but small DOF VIS (visible) image and large DOF NIR (near-infrared) image. To achieve DOF extension, we build a fusion network NIR&VISNet consisting of a VIS encoder for color extraction, a NIR encoder for spatial details extraction and a decoder for information fusion. We establish a prototype to capture real-scene dataset containing 1000 sets and test our method on a variety of test samples. The experimental results demonstrate that our NIR&VISCAM can effectively produce large DOF images with high quality. Moreover, compared to the classic image fusion methods, our designed algorithm achieves the optimal performance in DOF extension and color fidelity. With the prominent performance in large DOF and high SNR imaging, this novel and portable system is promising for vision applications such as smartphone photography, industry detection, and life medical.
Comparative Genomic Analysis of the Hydrocarbon-Oxidizing Dibenzothiophene-Desulfurizing Gordonia Strains

A number of actinobacteria of the genus Gordonia are able to use dibenzothiophene (DBT) and its derivatives as the only source of sulfur, which makes them promising agents for the process of oil biodesulfurization. Actinobacteria assimilate sulfur from condensed thiophenes without breaking the carbon–carbon bonds, using the 4S pathway encoded by the dszABC operon-like structure. The genome of the new dibenzothiophene-degrading hydrocarbon-oxidizing bacterial strain Gordonia amicalis 6-1 was completely sequenced and the genes potentially involved in the pathways of DBT desulfurization, oxidation of alkanes and aromatic compounds, as well as in the osmoprotectant metabolism in strain 6-1 and other members of the genus Gordonia, were analyzed. The genome of G. amicalis strain 6-1 consists of a 5,105,798-bp circular chromosome (67.3% GC content) and an 86,621-bp circular plasmid, pCP86 (65.4% GC content). This paper presents a comparative bioinformatic analysis of complete genomes of strain 6-1 and dibenzothiophene-degrading Gordonia strains 1D and 135 that do not have the dsz operon. The assumption is made about the participation in this process of the region containing the sfnB gene. Genomic analysis supported the results of phenomenological studies of Gordonia strains and the possibility of their application in the bioremediation of oil-contaminated environments and in the purification of oil equipment from oil and asphalt-resin-paraffin deposits.
Thermally Forced Convection over a Mountainous Tropical Island

AbstractObservations from the Dominica Experiment (DOMEX) and cloud-resolving numerical simulations are used to study a thermally forced convection event over the Caribbean island of Dominica on 18 April 2011. A clear diurnal cycle of island thermal forcing and cumulus convection was observed, with cumuli initiating over the southwestern flank of the ridge and deepening as they drifted eastward. Apart from errors in cloud fraction and (notably) precipitation, the simulations verified well against the observations, provided horizontal grid spacings of 500 m or less were used. The simulated flows developed an island-scale solenoidal circulation with an organized and intense updraft over the ridge that focused convective initiation. Sensitivity tests investigated the impacts of topographic forcing, subcloud winds, and cloud–radiative feedbacks on the island-scale horizontal inflow and cloud vertical mass flux. These experiments confirmed that thermal forcing drove the island convection and that the inflow an.
Analysis of the Impact of Rural Human Environment Improvement On Rural Economic Development: Based On the Mediating Effect of Rural Tourism

Improving the rural human environment is essential in the rural revitalization strategy and is significant to rural economic development. The improvement of infrastructure can lead to the development of the local tourism industry, and tourism can also promote the economic level. Therefore, this paper analyzes the influence mechanism of the rural human environment and rural tourism on rural economic development through field research and a questionnaire survey of 205 villagers in Luquan County, Yunnan Province, using SPSS software. The results show that (1) The improvement of the rural human environment is positively related to the development of the rural economy. (2) Rural tourism is positively related to the development of the rural economy. (3) Rural tourism plays an intermediary role between the improvement of rural human environments and the level of rural economic development.
Exact distribution and critical values of a unit root test in the presence of change in variance

This paper, using the Imhof (1961) method, shows the method of evaluating numerically the exact distribution of a unit root test statistic when the error variance changes. Based on the method, the effect of the change in variance on the exact distribution is examined, and we tabulate numerically exact critical values when the sample size is small and moderate.