Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Medical students’ attitudes and wishes towards extending an educational general practice app to be suitable for practice: A cross-sectional survey from Leipzig, Germany

Abstract Background: In medical education and practice, smartphone apps are increasingly becoming popular. In general practice, apps could play an important future role in supporting medical education and practice. Objectives: To explore medical students’ perceptions regarding the potential of a general practice app for training and subsequent work as a physician. Methods: Cross-sectional survey among Leipzig fourth-year medical students who were provided with an app prototype for a mandatory general practice course. Results: Response rate was 99.3% (n = 305/307); 59.0% were female and mean age was 24.5 years. Students certified that the app had a higher potential than textbooks in both education (57.4% vs. 18.0%) and practice (47.1% vs. 22.8%). Students’ most desired possible app extensions when anticipating its use for subsequent work as a physician were looking up information for diagnostics, therapy and prediction (85.1%), access to electronic patient files (48.1%), communication and networking (44.3%), organization of medical training (42.9%) and online monitoring of patients (38.1%). Students experienced with medical smartphone apps were more interested in app extensions. Consideration to use the app to support the opening of their own practice was significantly associated with higher interest in accessing electronic patient files, networking with colleagues and telemedicine. Conclusion: Fourth year medical students from Leipzig see a high potential in smartphone apps for education and practice and are interested in further using the technology after undergraduate education.
POOR RESPONDERS TO BEVACIZUMAB PHARMACOTHERAPY IN AGE-RELATED MACULAR DEGENERATION AND IN DIABETIC MACULAR EDEMA DEMONSTRATE INCREASED RISK FOR OBSTRUCTIVE SLEEP APNEA

Purpose: To investigate the risk for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in patients with exudative age-related macular degeneration (AMD) or diabetic macular edema with poor response to anti-vascular endothelial growth factor therapy with bevacizumab (Avastin). Methods: Age-related macular degeneration group was categorized into nonexudative, exudative, or poor response exudative. Diabetic macular edema group included patients with nonproliferative diabetic retinopathy and cystoid macular edema. Patients were categorized based on the number of intravitreal injections of bevacizumab received. Both groups were compared with age-matched controls. Patients completed a screening questionnaire to assess the risk for OSA, the main outcome measure. Results: Of 103 patients with AMD, 56 (54.37%) had nonexudative AMD and 47 (45.63%) had exudative AMD, of which 14 (29.79%) had poor response exudative AMD and were at a significantly higher risk of OSA (P < 0.05). Of 30 diabetic macular edema patients with cystoid macular edema, 4 (19%) received 1 injection, 18 (81.82%) received 2 or more consecutive injections, and 16 (72.73%) received 3 or more consecutive injections. Risk for OSA increased significantly with increasing number of injections (P < 0.05). Conclusion: Patients with exudative AMD and diabetic macular edema with poor response to anti-vascular endothelial growth factor therapy have a significantly higher risk of OSA compared with age-matched controls and should be screened to assess the risk of OSA.
Genetic effects on baseline values of C-reactive protein and serum amyloid a protein: a comparison of monozygotic and dizygotic twins.

BACKGROUND C-Reactive protein (CRP) and serum amyloid A protein (SAA) are exquisitely sensitive acute-phase reactants, but their baseline values are surprisingly constant in individuals in the general population. These values, especially of CRP, are associated with future atherothrombotic events, and the determinants of baseline CRP and SAA concentration are therefore of considerable interest. METHODS CRP and SAA concentrations were measured by well-validated automated microparticle capture enzyme immunoassays, standardized on the respective WHO International Reference Standards, in serum from 146 monozygotic and 164 dizygotic healthy female UK twin pairs from the general population, with mean (range) ages of 58.0 (40-69.6) and 55.7 (40-70.3) years, respectively, who were also very closely matched for height, weight, body mass index, blood pressure, and lifestyle variables. Statistical modeling based on variance components analysis was used to estimate the genetic contribution to the observed values. RESULTS As reported previously, CRP values were associated with body mass index, smoking, and hormone replacement therapy. After exclusion of the few samples with CRP concentrations >10 mg/L, which indicate an ongoing acute-phase response rather than baseline values, and inclusion of adjustments for all known confounding variables, there was significantly higher correlation of CRP and SAA results among monozygotic than among dizygotic twins. The estimated hereditability (95% confidence interval) of baseline values was 52% (40-62%) for CRP and 59% (49-67%) for SAA. CONCLUSION There is a substantial genetic contribution to baseline serum concentrations of CRP and SAA.
Numerical study and POD snapshot analysis of flow characteristics for pulsating turbulent opposing jets

Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate the coherent structures of pulsed opposing jets by large eddy simulation (LES) model and proper orthogonal decomposition (POD) snapshot method. Flow pulsation as an active flow control method is considered for the enhancement of transport phenomena in impinging jets. The effect of flow pulsation parameters such as pulsation signal shape and frequency on the vortical coherent structures, the energy content of primary modes and their variation are studied numerically. Design/methodology/approach In this study, flow field of turbulent pulsating opposing jets has been simulated using LES. The result of the simulation in different time steps (snapshots) are stored and POD is applied on the snapshots. In this study, the POD method and calculation of spatial modes has been done using OpenFOAM, and time coefficients have been calculated using a MATLAB code. Findings The results of this study show that the flow excitation has a great effect on the coherent structure formation and the energy containment of fundamental modes of the flow. When the flow was excited by a harmonic sinusoidal or step function, the turbulent kinetic energy accumulated in the set of primary modes. On the other hand, the pulsed opposing jets had more regularity compared to the steady jets. The shapes, patterns and energy values of dominant modes depended on the inlet pulsation signal. An increase in pulsation frequency leads to an augmentation in energy content of the primary modes. Research limitations/implications The predictions may be extended to include various pulsation conditions such as: various amplitudes, Reynolds number and aspect ratio. Practical implications The results of this study are a valuable source of information for active control of transport phenomena in opposing jet configurations which is used in different industrial applications such as cooling, combustion, reactors, heating and drying processes. Originality/value In this study, the coherent structures and energy content of primary modes was studied for the first time by LES model and POD snapshot method and a comprehensive discussion on numerical results is provided.
Translational control of maskin mRNA by its 3′ untranslated region

Background information. Maskin is a member of the TACC (transforming acidic coiled‐coil) domain proteins found in Xenopus laevis oocytes and embryos. It has been implicated in the co‐ordination of the spindle and has been reported to mediate translational repression of cyclin B1 mRNA.
Community preferences for recycled water in Sydney

A sample of over 800 Sydney households was surveyed using the internet about their preferences for increased waste water recycling in the context of urban expansion in Western Sydney. The choice modelling approach was used to estimate household willingness to pay for increased volumes of recycled water supply, and for alternative end uses of the recycled water, including industrial, open space irrigation, domestic and environmental flows. The results demonstrate positive community preferences for increasing recycled water supply, and an aversion to household use amongst households not already using recycled water. Respondents’ first preference was for recycled water to replace potable water in industrial uses.
The Vi Capsular Antigen of Salmonella enterica Serotype Typhi Reduces Toll-Like Receptor-Dependent Interleukin-8 Expression in the Intestinal Mucosa

ABSTRACT Human infections with nontyphoidal Salmonella serotypes, such as S. enterica serotype Typhimurium, are characterized by a massive neutrophil influx in the colon and terminal ileum. In contrast, neutrophils are scarce in intestinal infiltrates of typhoid fever patients. Here, we show that in S. enterica serotype Typhi, the causative agent of typhoid fever, expression of the Vi capsular antigen reduced expression of the neutrophil chemoattractant interleukin-8 (IL-8) in host cells. Capsulated bacteria elicited IL-8 expression in polarized human epithelial cells (T84) and human macrophage-like cells (THP-1) in vitro at significantly reduced levels compared to noncapsulated bacteria. Experiments with a human cell line (HEK293) transfected with human Toll-like receptors (TLRs) demonstrated that in the presence of TLR5 or TLR4/MD2/CD14, a noncapsulated serotype Typhi mutant was able to induce the expression of IL-8, while this host response was significantly reduced when cells were infected with the capsulated serotype Typhi wild type. The relevance of these in vitro observations for the interaction of serotype Typhi with its human host was further studied ex vivo using human colonic tissue explants. Expression of IL-8 was detected in human colonic tissue explants infected with serotype Typhimurium or a noncapsulated serotype Typhi mutant. In contrast, infection with the serotype Typhi wild type did not elicit IL-8 expression in colonic tissue explants. Collectively, these data suggest that the scarcity of neutrophils in intestinal infiltrates of typhoid fever patients is due to a capsule-mediated reduction of TLR-dependent IL-8 production in the intestinal mucosa.
Optimisation of a Naviglio-assisted extraction followed by determination of piperine content in Piper longum extracts

Abstract Studies were made to increase the yield of piperine extraction using Naviglio Extractor® solid–liquid dynamic extractor (SLDE) from fruits of Piper longum. The effects of ratio w/v were investigated and optimised for the best method. The maximum yield of piperine (317.7 mg/g) from P. longum fruits was obtained in SLDE 1:50 ethanol extract. Extraction yields of piperine obtained from Soxhlet extraction, decotion (International Organization for Standardization) and conventional maceration extraction methods were found to be 233.7, 231.8 and 143.6 mg/g, respectively. The results of the present study indicated that Naviglio Extractor® is an effective technique for the extraction of piperine from long pepper. Graphical Abstract
IP Packet Loss Prevention Scheme with Bicast and Forwarding for Handover in Mobile Communications

This paper proposes a scheme for hard handover (HO) between base stations (BSs) that combines bicast with forwarding; it realizes packet-lossless HO as well as low HO control delay. The proposed scheme observes the status of the current channel condition and initiates bicasting, the simultaneous transfer of IP packets from the access router to both the old BS and the new BS, when the probability of HO becomes high; this reduces the control delay imposed by hard HO. When HO becomes unavoidable, only those IP packets remaining in the old BS buffer that are not shared with the new BS are forwarded to the MS; this prevents the loss of IP packets. Computer simulations show that the proposed scheme reduces the HO control delay at 95% cumulative distribution function (CDF) by approximately 1700 (300) msec, 340 (320) msec, and 170 (330) msec compared to the conventional forwarding scheme (the conventional bicast scheme) when the number of users is 80 and the maximum Doppler frequency (fdmax) is 5.55Hz and data rate (D) on the wired propagation channel is 10, 50, and 100Mbps, respectively. The results confirm the superiority of the proposed scheme as an IP packet loss prevention scheme for hard HO.
Transformational Leadership and Followers’ Commitment to Mission Changes

ABSTRACT Various public management reform initiatives require public organizations to renew and adjust their mission statements. How public leaders affect the commitment of their followers to changes in an organization’s mission is an under-researched topic. The present empirical study of a semipublic organization reveals that transformational leaders influence positively the commitment of followers to mission changes. Their influence is mediated by the capacity of leaders to build perceived organizational support and motivate subordinates to engage in pro-change behavior. Furthermore, multi-group analysis suggests that union membership and the length of the relationship between leaders and followers influence followers’ commitment to change.
Lumbar Transforaminal Epidural Steroid Injection in Patients with Lumbar Radicular Pain; Outcome Results of 2-Year Follow-Up

Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness of transforaminal lumbar epidural steroid injections (TFESI) in patients with unilateral radiculopathy due to lumbar intervertebral disc protrusion regarding pain intensity, functional disability, current opioid intake and patients’ satisfaction. Methods: The study is conducted in a pain management center (Tehran, Iran), during 2018. Inclusion criteria were age ≥18 years, radiculopathy for more than 6 months due to imagine-proved lumbar intervertebral disc protrusion and no response to conservative treatments. Exclusion criteria were spinal canal stenosis, lumbar surgery, and inability to communicate in Persian language. During a phone call interview, cases were instructed to rate their pain intensity according to the visual analogue scale (VAS), functional ability, satisfaction according to the patient satisfaction score (PSQ) and report current opioid use and additional injection and/or surgery. Results: Forty-three (89.5%) of the 48 subjects were reachable for study with mean age of 59.14 years and 16 subjects were men (37.2 %). Mean VAS after intervention was 4.67 and before the intervention was 6.91 (p=0.002). Mean functional disability before intervention was 47.23 and after intervention was 37 (p<0.001). Mean patient satisfaction score was 3.07 while 18 cases reported a PSQ level ≥4. 10 cases reported using opioid for analgesia, 23 cases reported receiving additional TFESIs and 11 reported having undergone lumbar surgery. Conclusion: Lumbar Epidural steroid injection is an effective non-surgical treatment option with regard to pain relief and improvement in functional ability with an average patients’ satisfaction during 2 years follow up although nearly 25% of patients may need additional injections and half of the patients may finally proceed to surgery.
Detection of fetal duplication 16p11.2q12.1 by next-generation sequencing of maternal plasma and invasive diagnosis

Abstract Objective: The objective of study is to report the feasibility of non-invasive prenatal screening (NIPS) combined with invasive detection by chromosomal analysis in identifying fetal duplication, providing clinical performance of NIPS on copy number variations (CNVs) detection. Material and methods: NIPS was offered to a 35-year-old pregnant woman. Amniocentesis was performed to confirm the positive screening result. Fetal sample was detected by karyotyping, fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH), and chromosomal microarray (CMA). Parental karyotyping was also conducted. Results: NIPS result was positive for chromosome 16, indicating an extra copy of chromosome 16. FISH and chromosomal karyotyping revealed that the fetus had a marker chromosome derived from chromosome 16. CMA further demonstrated an approximately 19-Mb duplication in chromosome 16. The final fetal karyotype was 47,XY,+mar. ish der (16)(D16Z3+). arr 16p11.2q12. 1 (30 624 186–49 696 337 × 3). Ultrasound scan and MRI showed some structure malformations. Conclusions: A protocol for CNVs detection by combining a series of genetic methods was presented in this study and a novel marker duplication 16p11.2q12. 1 was reported. With the ability to identify subchromosomal deletions and duplications in fetus, NIPS could reduce the possibility of invasive diagnosis. The followed confirmation test for positive sample is necessary and ensures the accuracy of the diagnosis.
Objective measurement of wave aberrations of the human eye with the use of a Hartmann-Shack wave-front sensor.

A Hartmann-Shack wave-front sensor is used to measure the wave aberrations of the human eye by sensing the wave front emerging from the eye produced by the retinal reflection of a focused light spot on the fovea. Since the test involves the measurements of the local slopes of the wave front, the actual wave front is reconstructed by the use of wave-front estimation with Zernike polynomials. From the estimated Zernike coefficients of the tested wave front the aberrations of the eye are evaluated. It is shown that with this method, using a Hartmann-Shack wave-front sensor, one can obtain a fast, precise, and objective measurement of the aberrations of the eye.
Neomycin blood agar as a selective medium for vancomycin resistant Enterococcus faecium.

We read with interest the article by Chadwick and Oppenheim' regarding the selective isolation of Enterococcus faecium and agree that further comparative studies of screening media are required for detection of vancomycin resistant enterococci (VRE) from clinical and environmental sources. Furthermore, we believe that an overall strategy for the isolation ofthese increasingly prevalent nosocomial pathogens should be developed. Using cephalexin aztreonam arabinose agar (CAA),2 a medium developed for the selective isolation of E faecium, in association with a broth enrichment technique, we examined 92 swabs from 70 environmental sites and 22 rectal swabs during the investigation of a nosocomial outbreak on a renal unit. All swabs were plated directly onto CAA, and CAA containing 4 mg/l vancomycin (Eli Lilly). The swab was then placed into cephalexin aztreonam (CA) broth prepared by the addition of cephalexin and aztreonam to one litre of sterile brain heart infusion broth (Unipath). Plates were examined for E faecium, following 24 and 48 hours' incubation at 37°C in air. CA broth was subcultured onto both ofthe above media following enrichment for 24 hours. Thirty eight Efaecium strains were isolated from 92 environmental and patient samples. Ofthese, 28 (74%) were vancomycin sensitive and 10 (26%) were vancomycin resistant. When the isolation of E faecium from direct culture and broth enrichment was compared, 16 strains (42%) were isolated on direct culture, and the remaining 22 strains (58%) were isolated from broth enrichment only. Of the 10 vancomycin resistant strains, only two (20%) were isolated on direct plating. It was interesting to note that vancomycin resistant strains often required 48 hours' incubation to produce typical colonies. This delayed growth
Effects of platelet‐derived growth factor and fibroblast growth factor on free intracellular calcium and mitogenesis

Although increased free intracellular calcium (Cai) may be one of the main regulators of cell growth and differentiation, studies in cell populations have implied that not all growth factors produce Cai increases. In order to examine in more detail whether Cai increases were related to mitogenesis, we used digital image analysis of intracellular Fura‐2 fluorescence to measure Cai in individual BALB/c 3T3 cells stimulated with either platelet‐derived growth factor (PDGF) or fibroblast growth factor (FGF). We found that PDGF induced larger and more prolonged Cai increases than FGF did, but that both growth factors induced an initial rapid increase in Cai (< 2 min) followed by a later sustained increase (> 20 min). Only the prolonged Cai increase required extracellular calcium. Following PDGF treatment (1–8 units/ml), the percentage of cells with a large peak Cai increase (> twofold) correlated with the percentage of cells made competent (subsequent growth in 1% platelet‐poor‐plasma). In contrast, purified bovine basic FGF (200–800 pg/ml) and recombinant human acidic FGF (10–300 ng/ml) produced peak Cai increases that were not directly correlated with mitogenesis. In addition, concentrations of intracellular Quin 2 that inhibited Cai transients also inhibited PDGF stimulation but not FGF stimulation of mitogenesis. Thus, Cai increases are necessary for mitogenesis in BALB/c 3T3 cells stimulated by PDGF, but not that stimulated by FGF.
Survey of prototyping solutions utilizing Raspberry Pi

Sensor networks are a highly researched application area in the field of Internet of Things (IoT). A key cost and resource question in the development of IoT network sensor solutions is prototype implementation. In this study, the Raspberry Pi—a widely used single board computer—is investigated as it is one of the most commonly used prototyping devices available and is also widely used in scientific research. In this paper, we address which technologies, the usefulness and what kinds of issues arise when the prototyping of a sensor network solution is done with Raspberry Pi. The extant literature is studied by selecting papers with the systematic literature review method. Based on an extensive survey of the selected studies, we found several sensor-based implementations where Raspberry Pi has been used. In addition, this survey revealed subjects, such as e-health and education, which expanded the research topic in new ways. Further research opportunities have been identified in specifying the usefulness of various technologies with single board computers.
Lumbar bone mineral content and density measured using a Lunar DPX densitometer in healthy full‐term infants during the first year of life

This cross‐sectional study provides values for lumbar spine bone mineral content (BMC) and density (BMD) in 41 healthy full‐term born Finnish infants, 19 boys and 22 girls, during the first year of life measured by dual energy X‐ray absorptiometry (DXA) using the Lunar DPX densitometer. Lumbar BMC correlated with the weight (r=0·733; P=0·000), length (r=0·677; P=0·000), standardized length (r=0·315; r=0·045) and age at examination (r=0·314; P=0·045), and with the bone area (r=0·736; P=0·000). Infants with ≤–1 SD scores for lengths at examination had significantly lower BMC values [mean (SD); 1·79 (0·66) g] than infants with SD scores above –1 SD [2·27 (0·46) g] (P=0·011). Exclusive breast feeding did not correlate with the lumbar BMC values (r=–0·039; P=0·811). No differences were found in lumbar spine BMC (P=0·097), BMD (P=0·254) and bone area (P=0·094) values between boys and girls. In order to determine the predictive value of the anthropometric measurements on lumbar BMC, stepwise multiple regression analysis were performed, bone area and present weight were the only independent variables which explained 67·6% of the variance in the BMC values. The present cross‐sectional data imply that, in healthy term infants, patterns of relative linear growth during the first year of life are related to the lumbar BMC values. In future, careful longitudinal measurements of linear growth are needed to study connections between growth patterns and bone mineral status in infancy.