Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Interventions for preventing non-melanoma skin cancers in high-risk groups.

BACKGROUND Some groups of people have a greater risk of developing common non-melanoma skin cancers (NMSC). OBJECTIVES To evaluate interventions for preventing NMSC in people at high risk of developing NMSC. SEARCH STRATEGY We searched the Cochrane Skin Group Specialised Register (March 2007), the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (The Cochrane Library Issue 1, 2007, MEDLINE (from 2003 to March 2007), EMBASE (from 2005 to March 2007), the metaRegister of Controlled Trials (February 2007). References from trials and reviews were also searched. Pharmaceutical companies were contacted for unpublished trials. SELECTION CRITERIA Randomised controlled trials of adults and children at high risk of developing NMSC. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS Two review authors independently selected studies and assessed their methodological quality. MAIN RESULTS We identified 10 trials (7,229 participants) that assessed a variety of interventions. One trial found T4N5 liposome lotion significantly reduced the rate of appearance of new BCCs in people with xeroderma pigmentosum. One of three trials of renal transplant recipients showed a significantly reduced risk of new NMSCs when acitretin was compared to placebo (relative risk (RR) 0.22 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.06 to 0.90) and no significant difference in risk of adverse events in two trials (RR 1.80, 95% CI 0.70 to 4.61). In three trials conducted in people with a history of NMSC, the evidence was inconclusive for the development of BCCs for retinol or isoretinoin. However the risk of a new SCC in one trial (HR 1.79, 95% CI 1.16 to 2.76) and adverse events in another trial (RR 1.76 95% CI 1.57 to 1.97) were significantly increased in the isotretinoin group compared with placebo. In one trial selenium showed a reduced risk of other types of cancer compared with placebo (RR 0.65, 95% CI 0.50 to 0.85) but also a significantly elevated risk of a new NMSC (HR 1.17 95% CI 1.02 to 1.34). The evidence for one trial of beta-carotene was inconclusive; and there was a trend towards fewer new NMSC in a trial of a reduced fat diet (RR 0.16, 95% CI 0.02 to 1.31), p=0.09. AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS Some preventative treatments may benefit people at high risk of developing NMSC, but the ability to draw firm conclusions is limited by small numbers of trials, often with one trial per intervention or with inconsistent results between studies.
A new computation-aware scheme for motion estimation in H.264

In this study, a computation-aware scheme for motion estimation (ME) in H.264 is proposed. The objective of the proposed scheme is to distribute the available ME computation power of H.264 video encoding to get better coding efficiency. In this study, the temporal motion vector prediction technique is used to get the predicted motion vectors (PMVs) of macroblocks. The sum of absolute components of the PMVs of all the macroblocks of a video frame helps to allocate the available computation power (CP_FM) to the frame and then CP_FM is distributed to all the macroblocks of the frame. As compared with some existing schemes, the proposed scheme usually has the better performance in most simulation cases.
Lgl and its phosphorylation by aPKC regulate oocyte polarity formation in Drosophila

Specification of the anteroposterior (AP) axis in Drosophila oocytes requires proper organization of the microtubule and actin cytoskeleton. The establishment and regulation of cytoskeletal polarity remain poorly understood, however. Here, we show important roles for the tumor suppressor Lethal (2) giant larvae (Lgl) and atypical protein kinase C (aPKC) in regulating microtubule polarity and setting up the AP axis of the oocyte. Lgl in the germline cells regulates the localization of axis-specifying morphogens. aPKC phosphorylation of Lgl restricts Lgl activity to the oocyte posterior, thereby dividing the cortex into different domains along the AP axis. Active Lgl promotes the formation of actin-rich projections at the oocyte cortex and the posterior enrichment of the serine/threonine kinase Par-1, a key step for oocyte polarization. Our studies suggest that Lgl and its phosphorylation by aPKC may form a conserved regulatory circuitry in polarization of various cell types.
The Influence of H2S on Palladium and Palladium-Copper Alloy Membranes

Dense metal membranes have been identified as a promising technology for post-gasifier forward water-gas shift membrane reactors. Unfortunately, the impurities present in the gasifier effluent streams, such as H2S, can have adverse effects on the mechanical and chemical stability of potential metal membranes in the form of corrosion or catalyst deactivation, respectively. Thus, this study has focused on the identification and characterization of dense metal membranes that can tolerate the harsh environments encountered in the gasification process without significant detrimental effects on permeability.Pd-Cu alloys have been of interest in recent years due to its catalytic activity for hydrogen dissociation, high permeability relative to Pd, suppression of the hydride-phase transition and limited reports of stability in the presence of H2S. Initially, the permeability of pure palladium, pure copper and palladium-copper alloys containing 80wt%, 60wt% and 53wt% Pd was evaluated with hydrogen retentate streams at temperatures and pressures ranging from 350 to 900oC and 0.1 to 2.86 MPa, respectively. Results indicate that crystalline phase plays a significant role in membrane performance, with the B2, 60wt%Pd-Cu alloy exhibiting the highest permeability of the alloys tested at temperatures below approximately 500oC. However, at temperatures corresponding to an fcc crystalline temperature for all of the alloys, membrane performance increased with increasing palladium content of the alloy.Additionally, the permeability the above mentioned alloys, along with pure palladium, have been evaluated in a H2S containing retentate gas mixture at temperatures of 350, 450 and 635oC. Permeability measurements coupled with SEM and XRD analysis of post tested membranes indicate that the mechanisms influencing performance is strongly dependent on operating temperature, alloy composition, crystalline structure, and exposure time. Gravimetric analysis of the growth rate of the metals sulfides observed on the palladium-copper alloys and pure palladium during the transient period of flux measurements was conducted. A model of hydrogen transport through a composite membrane with a Pd base and a growing palladium tetra-sulfide film was then developed and fit to the transient flux results and sulfide growth rate. The optimization of the model resulted in the first reported values of the permeability of palladium tetra-sulfide.
Potential harmful correlation between homocysteine and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol in patients with hypothyroidism

Objective:Hypothyroidism (HO) can induce metabolic dysfunctions related to insulin resistance and dyslipidemia. Our previous studies showed that homocysteine (Hcy) impaired the coronary endothelial function and that Hcy can promote chemokine expression and insulin resistance (IR) by inducing endoplasmic reticulum stress in human adipose tissue and hypothyroid patients. The aim of this study was to investigate the potential harmful correlation between plasma Hcy and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) in patients with HO. Methods:A total of 286 subjects were enrolled. All subjects were divided into the following 3 groups: HO group, subclinical hypothyroidism (SHO) group, and control group. Statistical analyses were carried out to evaluate the correlation between the plasma levels of Hcy and LDL-C in HO patients. The changes in the plasma Hcy levels and other metabolic parameters were measured before and after levothyroxine (L-T4) treatment. The relationship between the changes in the plasma Hcy level and the LDL-C level was also evaluated after L-T4 treatment. Results:In the patients with HO, both the plasma Hcy and LDL-C levels were significantly higher than those of the controls. The plasma levels of Hcy were positively correlated with the LDL-C level in the HO group. L-T4 treatment resulted in a significant decrease in the BMI, total cholesterol (TC), LDL-C, triglycerides (TG), apolipoprotein B (ApoB), and Hcy levels. Moreover, the decrease in Hcy (&Dgr;Hcy) was positively correlated with decreased LDL-C (&Dgr;LDL-C) levels after L-T4 treatment in HO patients. Conclusion:Our results suggest that the increased Hcy level was positively correlated with the LDL-C in the HO group. A potential harmful interaction may exist between Hcy and LDL-C under the HO condition. In addition to reducing the plasma levels of Hcy, L-T4 treatment exerts beneficial effects on patients with HO by improving dyslipidemia, including a decrease in the LDL-C level.
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis mutant VAPB transgenic mice develop TDP-43 pathology

This is a PDF file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for publication. As a service to our customers we are providing this early version of the manuscript. The manuscript will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and review of the resulting proof before it is published in its final form. Please note that during the production process errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain. Abstract Cytoplasmic ubiquitin-positive inclusions containing TAR-DNA-binding protein-43 (TDP-43) within motor neurons are the hallmark pathology of sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). TDP-43 is a nuclear protein and the mechanisms by which it becomes mislocalised and aggregated in ALS are not properly understood. A mutation in the vesicle-associated membrane protein-associated protein-B (VAPB) involving a proline to serine substitution at position 56 (VAPBP56S) is the cause of familial amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) type-8. To gain insight into the molecular mechanisms by which VAPBP56S induces disease, we created transgenic mice that express either wild-type VAPB (VAPBwt) or VAPBP56S in the nervous system. Analyses of both sets of mice revealed no overt motor phenotype nor alterations in survival. However, VAPBP56S but not VAPBwt transgenic mice develop cytoplasmic TDP-43 accumulations within spinal cord motor neurons that were first detected at 18 months of age. Our results suggest a link between abnormal VAPBP56S function and TDP-43 mislocalisation.
Sentence Boundary Detection in Colloquial Arabic Text: A Preliminary Result

Recently, natural language processing tasks are more frequently conducted over online content. This poses a special problem for applications over Arabic language. Online Arabic content is usually written in informal colloquial Arabic, which is characterized to be ill-structured and lacks specific linguistic standardization. In this paper, we investigate a preliminary step to conduct successful NLP processing which is the problem of sentence boundary detection. As informal Arabic lacks basic linguistic rules, we establish a list of commonly used punctuation marks after extensively studying a large amount of informal Arabic text. Moreover, we evaluated the correct usage of these punctuation marks as sentence delimiters; the result yielded a preliminary accuracy of 70%.
Possible Uses for Animal Tracking and Sensor Data

What other uses are there for animal tracking? We argue that the location data can be made more useful by analyzing it to determine the future position of animals and optimize farming. Other sensors such as temperature and RFID could be added to increase benefit for both farmers and scientists. Adding more sensors is not trivial and major challenges include energy consumption, cost, size and establishing a market. However these obstacles can be dealt with and the possibility of having mobile sensor platforms available to the public is intriguing.
Comparison of adverse events during procedural sedation between specially trained pediatric residents and pediatric emergency physicians in Israel.

OBJECTIVES The aim was to compare the rate of procedural sedation-related adverse events of pediatric residents with specific training in "patient safety during sedation" and pediatric emergency physicians (PEPs) who completed the same course or were teaching faculty for it. METHODS This prospective single-blinded, nonrandomized study was conducted in two university-affiliated pediatric emergency departments (PEDs) in Israel. Pediatric residents who were authorized to perform unsupervised sedations had previously completed a course in patient safety during sedation. Unsupervised sedations by residents were defined as sedations where the entire procedure was performed independently. Study subjects had autonomy in choosing medications for sedation. Adverse events were defined as transient hypoxia (oxygen saturation < or = 90%) or apnea. Adverse outcomes were situations where intubation or hospitalization directly related to sedation complications would occur. Sedations over 12 consecutive months were recorded, and rates of adverse events in each group were compared. RESULTS A total of 984 eligible sedations were recorded, 635 by unsupervised residents and 349 by PEPs. A total of 512 (80.6%) sedations were performed by residents when attending physicians were not in the ED. The total adverse event rate was 24/984 (2.44%). When the two groups used a similar type drugs, residents had 8/635 (1.26%) events, compared to 11/328 (3.35%) by PEPs. There was no statistically significant difference in the rates of hypoxia or apnea between the two groups (p = 0.29 and p = 0.18, respectively). Adverse outcomes did not occur. CONCLUSIONS Unsupervised pediatric residents with training in patient safety during sedation performed procedural sedations with a rate of adverse events similar to that of PEPs.
Online fault detection based on Typicality and Eccentricity Data Analytics

Fault detection is a task of major importance in industry nowadays, since that it can considerably reduce the risk of accidents involving human lives, in addition to production and, consequently, financial losses. Therefore, fault detection systems have been largely studied in the past few years, resulting in many different methods and approaches to solve such problem. This paper presents a detailed study on fault detection on industrial processes based on the recently introduced eccentricity and typicality data analytics (TEDA) approach. TEDA is a recursive and non-parametric method, firstly proposed to the general problem of anomaly detection on data streams. It is based on the measures of data density and proximity from each read data point to the analyzed data set. TEDA is an online autonomous learning algorithm that does not require a priori knowledge about the process, is completely free of user- and problem-defined parameters, requires very low computational effort and, thus, is very suitable for real-time applications. The results further presented were generated by the application of TEDA to a pilot plant for industrial process.
Dipping their big toe into the blogosphere: The use of weblogs by the political parties in the 2005 general election

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the use of weblogs by political parties in the 2005 general election campaign. It seeks to identify why, why not, and how parties used their weblogs during the election campaign.Design/methodology/approach – The weblogs of the five political parties which had a weblog were assessed, and eight party e‐campaigners were interviewed.Findings – The findings contrast with those of studies of the 2004 US presidential campaign where blogs appeared to play a significant campaigning role. Rather, in the UK, party blogs were essentially used as one‐way communication channels which added colour to party web sites. As a result, such weblogs may have encouraged visitors to return because of some form of voyeurism, but they were not either effective conversational, campaigning, or promotional tools.Research limitations/implications – The paper is based on a UK general election of an experimental political communication channel.Practical implications – Suggests the key el.
On The Interannual Variability of Indonesian Monsoon Rainfall (IMR): A Literature Review of The Role of its External Forcing

The IMR variability is notorious for its hydrometeorological disasters. This paper examines recent studies on IMR and the main factors controlling its variability. The focus of this study is to investigate the impact of the atmosphere-ocean interaction that acts as the external forcing of IMR in the tropical Indian and Pacific Oceans. Specifically, the study will examine the influence of two climate phenomena, namely the El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and the Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) and their interdecadal changes associated Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO), on the IMR. The review followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) approach. Furthermore, data sets (such as rainfall, wind field, and SST) spanning 1990-2020 were used to verify the key findings. In general, this study concludes that the majority of the authors coincided with the following conclusion: ENSO and IOD events impact IMR by changing its amplitude, duration, intensity, and frequency of mean and extreme rainfall. Additionally, it has been shown that their impacts on IMR are most substantial during the dry seasons, specifically in June, July, and August (JJA), and not as strong as during the wet seasons, specifically in December, January, and February (DJF). Spatially, the effects of ENSO and IOD on IMR variability are clearly found more eastward and westward of the region, respectively. The expansions towards the east and west directions were facilitated by the displacement of the ascending and descending of Walker circulation patterns in the Indonesian region, respectively. Given the interannual fluctuations in IMR, caused mainly by ocean-atmosphere interactions, the knowledge gap of atmospheric factors like the Quasi-Biennial Oscillation (QBO) must be investigated in the future, as suggested by previous research and our preliminary study.
Predictive Value of Lysophosphatidylcholine for Determining the Disease Severity and Prognosis of Elderly Patients with Community-Acquired Pneumonia

Purpose To investigate the clinical value of serum lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC) as a predictive biomarker for determining disease severity and mortality risk in hospitalized elderly patients with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). Methods This prospective, single-center study enrolled 208 elderly patients, including 67 patients with severe CAP (SCAP) and 141 with non-SCAP between November 1st, 2020, and November 30th, 2021 at the Qingdao Municipal Hospital, Shandong Province, China. The demographic and clinical parameters were recorded for all the included patients. Serum LPC levels were measured on day 1 and 6 after admission using ELISA. Propensity score matching (PSM) was used to balance the baseline variables between SCAP and non-SCAP patient groups. Receiver operative characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was used to compare the predictive performances of LPC and other clinical parameters in discriminating between SCAP and non-SCAP patients and determining the 30-day mortality risk of the hospitalized CAP patients. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to identify the independent risk factors associated with SCAP. Cox proportional hazard regression analysis was used to determine if serum LPC was an independent risk factor for the 30-day mortality of CAP patients. Results The serum LPC levels at admission were significantly higher in the non-SCAP patients than in the SCAP patients (P = 0.011). Serum LPC level <24.36 ng/mL, and PSI score were independent risk factors for the 30-day mortality in the elderly patients with CAP. The risk of 30-day mortality in the elderly CAP patients with low serum LPC levels (< 24.36ng/mL) was >5-fold higher than in the patients with high serum LPC levels (≥ 24.36ng/mL). Conclusion Low serum LPC levels were associated with significantly higher disease severity and 30-day mortality in the elderly patients with CAP. Therefore, serum LPC is a promising predictive biomarker for the early identification of elderly CAP patients with poor prognosis.
Use of Antithrombotic Medications Among Elderly Ischemic Stroke Patients

Background— The use of antithrombotic medications after ischemic stroke is recommended for deep vein thrombosis prophylaxis and secondary stroke prevention. We assessed the rate of receipt of these therapies among eligible ischemic stroke patients age ≥65 years and determined the effects of age and other patient characteristics on treatment. Methods and Results— The analysis included Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries discharged with ischemic stroke (ICD 433.x1, 434.x1, 436) randomly selected for inclusion in the Medicare Health Care Quality Improvement Program's National Stroke Project 1998 to 1999, 2000 to 2001. Patients discharged from nonacute facilities, transferred, or terminally ill were excluded. Receipt of in-hospital pharmacological deep vein thrombosis prophylaxis, antiplatelet medication, anticoagulants for atrial fibrillation, and antithrombotic medications at discharge were assessed in eligible patients, stratified by age (65 to 74, 75 to 84, and 85+ years). Descriptive models identified characteristics associated with treatment. Among 31 554 patients, 14.9% of those eligible received pharmacological deep vein thrombosis prophylaxis, 83.9% antiplatelet drugs, 82.8% anticoagulants for atrial fibrillation, and 74.2% were discharged on an antithrombotic medication. Rates of treatment decreased with age and were lowest for patients ages 85 years or older. Admission from a skilled nursing facility and functional dependence were associated with lower treatment rates. Conclusions— There was substantial underutilization of antithrombotic therapies among elderly ischemic stroke patients, particularly among the very elderly, those admitted from skilled nursing facilities, and patients with functional dependence. The reasons for low use of antithrombotic therapies, including the apparent underutilization of deep vein thrombosis prophylaxis in otherwise eligible patients, require further investigation.
General dynamical sharp-interface conditions for phase transformations in viscous heat-conducting fluids

We develop a complete set of equations governing the evolution of a sharp interface separating two fluid phases undergoing transformation. In addition to the conventional balances for mass, linear momentum and energy these equations include also a counterpart of the Gibbs–Thomson equation familiar from theories for crystal growth. This additional equation arises from a consideration of configurational forces within a thermodynamical framework. Although the notion of configurational forces is well-developed and understood for the description of materials, such as crystalline solids, that possess natural reference configurations, little has been done regarding their role in materials, such as viscous fluids, that do not possess preferred reference states. We therefore provide a comprehensive discussion of configurational forces, the balance of configurational momentum, and configurational thermodynamics that does not require a choice of reference configuration. The general evolution equations arising from our theory account for the thermodynamic structure of the bulk phases and the interface and for viscous and thermal dissipation in the bulk phases and for viscous dissipation on the interface. Because of the complexity of these equations, we provide a reduced system of equations based on simplified constitutive assumptions and approximations common in the literature on phase transformations. Using these reduced equations, we apply the theory to the radially symmetric problem for the condensation of a liquid drop into the vapour phase.