Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Congenital Portosystemic Shunts in Dogs and Cats: Treatment, Complications and Prognosis

Simple Summary Congenital portosystemic shunts (CPSS) are anomalous vessels connecting the portal vein, or its tributaries, with the systemic circulation. CPSS permit venous blood, draining from the spleen, pancreas, and major areas of the gastrointestinal tract, to bypass the liver and directly enter the systemic circulation. They are either extrahepatic (ECPSS) or intrahepatic (ICPSS), single or multiple. ECPSS are most common within small breed dogs such as Maltese, Yorkshire terriers, and Poodles, while ICPSS are most common within large breed dogs such as Irish wolfhounds, and Labrador retrievers. However, they are rare in cats. Clinical signs of CPSS are non-specific and may wax and wane, while laboratory findings can raise the clinical suspicion for CPSS, but they are also not specific. Definitive diagnosis will be established by evaluation of liver function tests and diagnostic imaging. Attenuation of the CPSS is the treatment of choice and may be performed by open surgical intervention using ameroid ring constrictors, thin film banding, and partial or complete suture ligation or by percutaneous transvenous coil embolization. Medical management of dogs and cats with CPSS is indicated pre-surgically when stabilization is required, or when surgery is not possible. Medical treatment strategies include administration of non-absorbable disaccharides (i.e., lactulose), antibiotics, and dietary changes. After CPSS attenuation, short- and long-term post-surgical complications may be seen, such as post-operative seizures and recurrence of clinical signs, respectively. Prognosis after surgical attenuation of CPSS is generally favorable for dogs and fair for cats. Abstract Congenital portosystemic shunts (CPSS) are a common vascular anomaly of the liver in dogs and cats. Clinical signs of CPSS are non-specific and may wax and wane, while laboratory findings can raise the clinical suspicion for CPSS, but they are also not specific. Definitive diagnosis will be established by evaluation of liver function tests and diagnostic imaging. The aim of this article is to review the management, both medical and surgical, complications, and prognosis of CPSS in dogs and cats. Attenuation of the CPSS is the treatment of choice and may be performed by open surgical intervention using ameroid ring constrictors, thin film banding, and partial or complete suture ligation or by percutaneous transvenous coil embolization. There is no strong evidence to recommend one surgical technique over another. Medical treatment strategies include administration of non-absorbable disaccharides (i.e., lactulose), antibiotics, and dietary changes, and are indicated for pre-surgical stabilization or when surgical intervention is not feasible. After CPSS attenuation, short- and long-term post-surgical complications may be seen, such as post-operative seizures and recurrence of clinical signs, respectively. Prognosis after surgical attenuation of CPSS is generally favorable for dogs and fair for cats.
State-of-the-art mental tasks classification based on electroencephalograms: a review

Electroencephalograms (EEGs) play an important role in analyzing different mental tasks and neurological disorders. Hence, they are a critical component for designing various applications, such as brain–computer interfaces, neurofeedback, etc. Mental task classification (MTC) is one of the research focuses in these applications. Therefore, numerous MTC techniques have been proposed in literary works. Although various literature reviews exist based on EEG signals for different neurological disorders and behavior analysis, there is a lack of reviews of state-of-the-art MTC techniques. Therefore, this paper presents a detailed review of MTC techniques, including the classification of mental tasks and mental workload. A brief description of EEGs along with their physiological and nonphysiological artifacts is also presented. Furthermore, we include information on several publicly available databases, features, classifiers, and performance metrics used in MTC studies. We implement and evaluate some of the commonly used existing MTC techniques in the presence of different artifacts and subjects, based on which the challenges and directions are highlighted for future research in MTC.
Synergistic Effects of Caffeine in Combination with Conventional Drugs: Perspectives of a Drug That Never Ages

Plants have been known since ancient times for their healing properties, being used as preparations against human diseases of different etiologies. More recently, natural products have been studied and characterized, isolating the phytochemicals responsible for their bioactivity. Most certainly, there are currently numerous active compounds extracted from plants and used as drugs, dietary supplements, or sources of bioactive molecules that are useful in modern drug discovery. Furthermore, phytotherapeutics can modulate the clinical effects of co-administered conventional drugs. In the last few decades, the interest has increased even more in studying the positive synergistic effects between plant-derived bioactives and conventional drugs. Indeed, synergism is a process where multiple compounds act together to exert a merged effect that is greater than that of each of them summed together. The synergistic effects between phytotherapeutics and conventional drugs have been described in different therapeutic areas, and many drugs are based on synergistic interactions with plant derivatives. Among them, caffeine has shown positive synergistic effects with different conventional drugs. Indeed, in addition to their multiple pharmacological activities, a growing body of evidence highlights the synergistic effects of caffeine with different conventional drugs in various therapeutic fields. This review aims to provide an overview of the synergistic therapeutic effects of caffeine and conventional drugs, summarizing the progress reported to date.
Overexpression of microRNA-21-5p and microRNA-221-5p in Monocytes Increases the Risk of Developing Coronary Artery Disease

MicroRNAs (miRs) regulate gene expression at the post-transcriptional level and are found to be present in monocytes. This study aimed to investigate miR-221-5p, miR-21-5p, and miR-155-5p, their expression in monocytes, and their role in coronary arterial disease (CAD). The study population comprised 110 subjects, and RT-qPCR was used to examine the miR-221-5p, miR-21-5p, and miR-155-5p expressions in monocytes. Results: the miR-21-5p (p = 0.001) and miR-221-5p (p < 0.001) expression levels were significantly higher in the CAD group, and the miR-155-5p (p = 0.021) expression levels were significantly lower in the CAD group; only miR-21-5p and miR-221-5p upregulation was found to be associated with an increased CAD risk. The results show significant increases in miR-21-5p in the unmedicated CAD group with the metformin patients vs. the healthy control group (p = 0.001) and vs. the medicated CAD group with metformin (p = 0.022). The same was true for miR-221-5p in the CAD patients unmedicated with metformin vs. the healthy control group (p < 0.001). Our results from Mexican CAD patients show that the overexpression in monocytes of miR-21-5p and miR-221-5p increases the risk of the development of CAD. In addition, in the CAD group, the metformin downregulated the expression of miR-21-5p and miR-221-5p. Also, the expression of endothelial nitric oxide synthase (NOS3) decreased significantly in our patients with CAD, regardless of whether they were medicated. Therefore, our findings allow for the proposal of new therapeutic strategies for the diagnosis and prognosis of CAD and the evaluation of treatment efficacy.
EFL students’ language attitudes toward virtual learning environment: A technology acceptance model

It is widely believed that L2 learners who have positive attitudes towards the target culture and its people are likely to learn the target language more effectively than those who do not possess such attitudes. As technology continues to be increasingly integrated into language learning, this article aims to explore EFL students' attitudes towards technology acceptance via Virtual Learning Environment (VLE), as well as the potential advantages of VLE in the EFL classroom. A quantitative approach was employed in this study, which involved 30 students from English language education departments at a private university in Indonesia. The students' computer attitudes were assessed using a Likert scale questionnaire with four factors, including affective, perceived usefulness, perceived control, and behavioural intention. The Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) developed by Davis (1989) was utilized as the framework to further examine these factors. The results indicated that the students had a positive attitude towards the Computer Attitude Scale (CAS) factors, which were categorized into affective, perceived usefulness, perceived control, and behavioural intention. The implications of each of these categories in the framework are discussed in relation to behaviourism theory.
Application of Bode's Ideal Transfer Function to Fractional Order Control

The Bode’s ideal transfer function is applied to the design of fractional order controller and the parameter tuning of fractional order PID controller.The resulting controllers can make the curve of phase frequency Bode plot for the compen-sated system flat at the given gain crossover frequency,under the premise of ensuring that the given gain crossover frequency and phase margin are fulfilled.Therefore,the closed-loop system is robust to gain variations.The methods proposed can promote the performances of the closed-loop systems and suit for fractional and integral order objects.Simulation results demonstrate the effectiveness and validity of the proposed method.
Towards an Efficient SIMD Virtual Radio Access Network (vRAN) and Edge Cloud System

Nowadays, virtual Radio Access Network (vRAN) plays a vital role in today's mobile edge system for its better support for latency-sensitive applications. However, our characterization of vRAN on modern processors depicts a frustrating picture of Single-Instruction Multi-Data (SIMD) acceleration. Specifically, the existing data arrangement processes cannot efficiently utilize the ports in modern processors, which leads to high backend bound and fails to saturate the memory bandwidth between registers and the L1 cache. To tackle the issue, we thoroughly examine the state-of-the-art CPU architecture and observe the idle ports which could be utilized by the process. Motivated by this observation, we propose an “Arithmetic Ports Consciousness Mechanism” (APCM) utilizing these idle ports to eliminate the backend bound and saturate the memory bandwidth. The APCM decreases the data arrangement's backend bound from 45<inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\%$</tex-math><alternatives><mml:math><mml:mo>%</mml:mo></mml:math><inline-graphic xlink:href="wang-ieq1-3275576.gif"/></alternatives></inline-formula> to 3<inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\%$</tex-math><alternatives><mml:math><mml:mo>%</mml:mo></mml:math><inline-graphic xlink:href="wang-ieq2-3275576.gif"/></alternatives></inline-formula> and promotes its memory bandwidth utilization by 4X-16X. Moreover, we illustrate that the APCM can be utilized to promote the performance of typical mobile edge applications such as network routing, image processing, and AI applications. The CPU time of the data arrangement process time of the selected typical mobile edge applications can be reduced by 55<inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\%$</tex-math><alternatives><mml:math><mml:mo>%</mml:mo></mml:math><inline-graphic xlink:href="wang-ieq3-3275576.gif"/></alternatives></inline-formula> - 95<inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\%$</tex-math><alternatives><mml:math><mml:mo>%</mml:mo></mml:math><inline-graphic xlink:href="wang-ieq4-3275576.gif"/></alternatives></inline-formula> when utilizing the proposed mechanism.
Tailoring Triple Filler Systems for Improved Magneto-Mechanical Performance in Silicone Rubber Composites

The demand for multi-functional elastomers is increasing, as they offer a range of desirable properties such as reinforcement, mechanical stretchability, magnetic sensitivity, strain sensing, and energy harvesting capabilities. The excellent durability of these composites is the key factor behind their promising multi-functionality. In this study, various composites based on multi-wall carbon nanotubes (MWCNT), clay minerals (MT-Clay), electrolyte iron particles (EIP), and their hybrids were used to fabricate these devices using silicone rubber as the elastomeric matrix. The mechanical performance of these composites was evaluated, with their compressive moduli, which was found to be 1.73 MPa for the control sample, 3.9 MPa for MWCNT composites at 3 per hundred parts of rubber (phr), 2.2 MPa for MT-Clay composites (8 phr), 3.2 MPa for EIP composites (80 phr), and 4.1 MPa for hybrid composites (80 phr). After evaluating the mechanical performance, the composites were assessed for industrial use based on their improved properties. The deviation from their experimental performance was studied using various theoretical models such as the Guth–Gold Smallwood model and the Halpin–Tsai model. Finally, a piezo-electric energy harvesting device was fabricated using the aforementioned composites, and their output voltages were measured. The MWCNT composites showed the highest output voltage of approximately 2 milli-volt (mV), indicating their potential for this application. Lastly, magnetic sensitivity and stress relaxation tests were performed on the hybrid and EIP composites, with the hybrid composite demonstrating better magnetic sensitivity and stress relaxation. Overall, this study provides guidance on achieving promising mechanical properties in such materials and their suitability for various applications, such as energy harvesting and magnetic sensitivity.
The RhoA-ROCK1/ROCK2 Pathway Exacerbates Inflammatory Signaling in Immortalized and Primary Microglia

Neuroinflammation is a unifying factor among all acute central nervous system (CNS) injuries and chronic neurodegenerative disorders. Here, we used immortalized microglial (IMG) cells and primary microglia (PMg) to understand the roles of the GTPase Ras homolog gene family member A (RhoA) and its downstream targets Rho-associated coiled-coil-containing protein kinases 1 and 2 (ROCK1 and ROCK2) in neuroinflammation. We used a pan-kinase inhibitor (Y27632) and a ROCK1- and ROCK2-specific inhibitor (RKI1447) to mitigate a lipopolysaccharide (LPS) challenge. In both the IMG cells and PMg, each drug significantly inhibited pro-inflammatory protein production detected in media (TNF-α, IL-6, KC/GRO, and IL-12p70). In the IMG cells, this resulted from the inhibition of NF-κB nuclear translocation and the blocking of neuroinflammatory gene transcription (iNOS, TNF-α, and IL-6). Additionally, we demonstrated the ability of both compounds to block the dephosphorylation and activation of cofilin. In the IMG cells, RhoA activation with Nogo-P4 or narciclasine (Narc) exacerbated the inflammatory response to the LPS challenge. We utilized a siRNA approach to differentiate ROCK1 and ROCK2 activity during the LPS challenges and showed that the blockade of both proteins may mediate the anti-inflammatory effects of Y27632 and RKI1447. Using previously published data, we show that genes in the RhoA/ROCK signaling cascade are highly upregulated in the neurodegenerative microglia (MGnD) from APP/PS-1 transgenic Alzheimer’s disease (AD) mice. In addition to illuminating the specific roles of RhoA/ROCK signaling in neuroinflammation, we demonstrate the utility of using IMG cells as a model for primary microglia in cellular studies.
Double-hit and double-expressor primary central nervous system lymphoma: Experience from North India of an infrequent but aggressive variant

Background: High-grade non-Hodgkin B-cell lymphoma is an aggressive mature B-cell lymphoma that depicts poor treatment response and worse prognosis. The presence of MYC and B-cell lymphoma 2 (BCL2) and/or B-cell lymphoma 6 (BCL6) rearrangements qualifies for triple-hit and double-hit lymphomas (THL/DHL), respectively. We attempted to explore the incidence, distribution, and clinical characteristics of the primary high-grade B-cell lymphoma of the central nervous system (CNS) in our cohort from North India. Methods: All the histologically confirmed cases of primary CNS diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (PCNS-DLBCL) over a period of 8 years were included. Cases showing MYC and BCL2 and/or BCL6 expression on immunohistochemistry (IHC) (double- or triple-expressor) were further analyzed by fluorescence in situ hybridization for MYC, BCL2 and /or BCL6 rearrangements. The results were correlated with other clinical and pathological parameters, and outcome. Results: Of total 117 cases of PCNS-DLBCL, there were seven (5.9%) cases of double/triple-expressor lymphomas (DEL/TEL) (six double- and one triple-expressor) with median age of 51 years (age range: 31–77 years) and slight female predilection. All were located supratentorially and were of non-geminal center B-cell phenotype. Only triple-expressor case (MYC+/BCL2+/BCL6+) demonstrated concurrent rearrangements for MYC and BCL6 genes indicating DHL (n = 1, 0.85%), while none of the double-expressors (n = 6) showed MYC, BCL2, or BCL6 rearrangements. The mean overall survival of the DEL/TEL was 48.2 days. Conclusion: DEL/TEL and DHL are uncommon in CNS; mostly located supratentorially and are associated with poor outcome. MYC, BCL2, and BCL6 IHC can be used as an effective screening strategy for ruling out double/ triple-expressor PCNS-DLBCLs.
Progress on Electron Cyclotron Heating and Electron Cyclotron Current Drive Experiments in LHD

Abstract The electron cyclotron resonance heating (ECH) system in the Large Helical Device consists of nine gyrotrons: two that are 82.7 GHz, 0.45 MW, and 2 s; two that are 84 GHz, 0.8 MW, and 3 s; one that is 84 GHz, 0.2 MW, and 1000 s; and four that are 168 GHz, 0.5 MW, and 1 s. ECH and electron cyclotron current drive (ECCD) experiments using this system have been conducted not only for plasma heating and current drive experiments but also for transport and power deposition studies with power modulation. The configuration of the recent ECH system including gyrotrons, high-voltage power supplies, and the transmission system is overviewed. The outstanding progress on the ECH/ECCD experimental results is described in detail, which includes an electron transport study in the plasma with an electron internal transport barrier, electron Bernstein wave heating through the mode conversion process, preliminary current drive experiments, and a steady-state plasma sustainment >1 h by only ECH.
Age-Graded Heterogeneity in the Relationship Between Hours of Work and Crime

Criminal justice researchers have focused on theoretical thresholds of work and their association with offending—such as “full-time” work among adults or “intense” work among adolescents. Despite the field’s reliance on these thresholds, there has been little empirical inquiry surrounding them. Using individual-level fixed effects and a sample of high-risk individuals, we evaluate age-graded heterogeneity in the relationship between hours of work and crime. Findings suggest that the association between hours of work and offending is negative and mostly linear among adults. However, the relationship is far more complex among adolescents, as it varies greatly by crime type and the specific number of hours worked. We discuss the practical implications of these findings with the suggestion that researchers and policy makers reconsider oversimplified work thresholds, as working more hours is not uniformly criminogenic among high-risk adolescents, whereas more hours worked is generally beneficial for young adults.
The PISS (Prevention, Integrative, Solidarity and Stimulus) Model in Handling COVID-19 in Pekanbaru City

The COVID-19 outbreak has had a very broad impact on the social, economic and health sectors. Therefore, an effective policy model is urgently needed in handling COVID-19. This study seeks to explain how the policy model is in handling COVID-19 in Pekanbaru City. The research method used is a qualitative approach by collecting data through interviews and document searches. The results of this research indicate that there are four basic things in the policy model for handling COVID-19 in Pekanbaru, namely Prevention, Integration, Solidarity and Stimulus. The four approaches in the policy model for handling COVID-19 are carried out simultaneously, not only useful in minimizing the spread of COVID-19 but also useful in dealing with the impact of COVID-19.
Understanding the role of cognitive effort within contextual interference paradigms: Theory, measurement, and tutorial

BACKGROUND:“Contextual interference” (CI) describes a counterintuitive phenomenon related to practice organization when learning multiple tasks that are presented in a non-repetitive order. In CI, the lack of repetitiveness introduces a high level of interference within the learning context such that task performance during initial skill acquisition is frequently poorer than if tasks are practiced in a repetitive fashion. However, these learners often perform better on retention and transfer tasks than individuals who learn within a low CI environment. AIM:We provide a tutorial on several novel ways in which researchers can investigate brain activity in a CI paradigm using functional near-infrared spectroscopy: Relative neural efficiency (RNE), relative neural involvement (RNI), and laterality index (LI). METHOD:RNE integrates measures of cognitive effort and behavioral performance; in high CI learning environments, RNE should initially be poor (high cognitive effort, low behavioral performance), then improve during retention and transfer. RNI provides an index of the relationship among motivation, mental effort, and performance. Finally, LI allows for the exploration of lateralization between the two hemispheres of the cerebral cortex. RESULTS:Significant differences were found for total hemoglobin, RNE and LI for the right and left prefrontal cortex regions. The differences were accompanied by moderate-to-large effect size with random using less effort, better performance and was more oriented to goal orientation and learning processes than blocked who focused more on visuomotor attentional components and used more effort with lower behavioral performance scores. CONCLUSION:RNE, RNI, and LI provide innovative methods to better understand cognitive effort within CI paradigms.
Echocardiography of the aortic root: a practical approach for aortic valve-sparing surgery

Owing to its excellent long-term results, aortic valve-sparing surgery is increasingly used in patients with aortic regurgitation and/or ascending aortic aneurysm. Moreover, in patients with a bicuspid valve who meet the criteria for replacement of the aortic sinuses or aortic regurgitation surgery, valve-sparing surgery may be considered if performed at a comprehensive valve center (Class 2b indication in both the American and European guidelines). Reconstructive valve surgery aims at restoring a normal aortic valve function and a normal aortic root shape as well. Echocardiography plays a central role in defining abnormal valve morphologies, in quantifying aortic regurgitation and mechanisms, and in appreciating tissue valve quality and surgical results. Therefore, despite the emergence of other tomographic techniques, 2D and 3D echocardiography represents the cornerstone for patient selection and prediction of the probability of a reliable repair. The present review focuses on echocardiographic evaluation to detect aortic valve and aortic root abnormalities, to quantify aortic valve regurgitation, to predict aortic valve reparability, and to assess immediate postoperative results in the operating room. Echocardiographic predictors of successful valve and root repair are presented in a practical way.