Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
From HIV prevention to reproductive health choices: HIV/AIDS treatment guidelines for women of reproductive age

In South Africa, the private sector has responded to the HIV epidemic by providing treatment in the form of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). The private sector has paved the way for policy and treatment regimens, while the public sector has reviewed health-systems capacity and the political will to provide treatment. The paradigm of prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV (PMTCT) has led the way as a clear evidenced-based method of treatment and prevention in South Africa. In sub-Saharan Africa, the HIV epidemic is feminised as a growing proportion of infections occurs among women or affects women. While access to HIV treatment has been contested in South Africa, women's sexual and reproductive health has been neglected. This paper is a reflection and critical review of current practice. Many HIV-positive women desire to choose to have a child, while the best choice of contraception for women on HAART is not well understood. In some areas there are reports of women being forced to accept injectable contraceptives. Some women who learn of their HIV-positive status during pregnancy may want to choose to terminate their pregnancy. There is a clear absence of HIV/AIDS-treatment guidelines for women of reproductive age, including options for HAART and options regarding fertility intentions. A range of other sexual and reproductive health areas (relevant to both the public and private health sectors) are neglected; these include depression and anxiety, violence against women, HIV-testing practices, screening for cervical cancer, and vaccination. Given the narrow focus of HAART, it is important to expand HIV treatment conceptually, by applying a broader view of the needs of working women (and men), and so contribute to better HIV prevention and treatment practices. There is a need to move from an HIV/AIDS-care maternal-health paradigm to one that embraces women's sexual and reproductive health and rights.
Optimal routing for SIP-based session set up over IMS in mobile environment

The existing session establishment scenario of IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) suffers from triangular routing for a certain period of time when an end IMS user or terminal is mobile. In this paper, the performance of three possible session establishment scenarios in a mobile environment is investigated by using an analytical model. The model is developed based on the expressions of cost functions, which may represent system delay and overhead involved in sessions establishment. Simulation results are demonstrated which provides useful insights into the system behaviour. Finally, a decision algorithm is demonstrated in this paper to select the optimal session set up option.
Discovering last-matching rules in popular open-source and commercial firewalls

Denial of service (DoS) attacks pose a major threat to the smooth operations of critical network resources. Network firewalls act as the first line of defence against unwanted and malicious traffic. Firewalls themselves can become target of DoS attacks. In a prior work (Salah et al., 2009), we studied the resiliency and robustness of open-source network firewalls against the remote discovery of the last-matching rules. If last-matching rules are discovered, an attacker can launch an effective and slow-rate DoS attack which can bring down the firewall to its knees. In this paper, we examine and compare the resiliency of five of the most popular network firewalls, considering both open-source and commercial ones; namely, Linux NetFilter, Linux IPSets and FreeBSD ipfw, Cisco PIX and Cisco ASA. Our results show significant variations in the resiliency of these five firewall technologies, with Cisco ASA being the most resilient and Cisco PIX being the most vulnerable.
Respiratory function in healthy first-degree relatives of asmathic adolescents

Asthma is a complex disease associated with biological and physiological phenotypes. The objective of this study was to compare the respiratory function in healthy first-degree relatives of asthmatic and non-asthmatic adolescents. We used a cross-sectional approach to assess 101 family cases (presence of one or more adolescents classified as asthmatic) and 275 stable families (families without adolescents classified as asthmatic). We obtained a final sample of 822 relatives. The respiratory function was evaluated by the forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV), and the forced vital capacity (FVC), using the Microlab 3300® Spirometer. A self-administered questionnaire was used to record upper and lower airway symptoms, allergic symptoms and medical history. To compare continuous variables, the Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis tests were applied when variables did not follow a Gaussian distribution and the variances were not homogeneous. A linear regression adjusted for age, gender and height was also applied to compare the lung function between asthmatic and non-asthmatic relatives. Parents of asthmatic adolescents had significantly lower values of the lung function than both parents together and mothers of non-asthmatics (84.6 vs. 97.6, p<0.01, for FEV and 84.3 vs. 97.9, p<0.01, for FVC, and 97.3 vs. 109.7, p <0.01, for FEV and 89.5 vs. 105.5, p<0.01, for FVC, respectively). Also, siblings of asthmatic adolescents had lower FEV (98.6 vs. 109.4, p<0.01) and FVC values (85.9 vs. 102.7, p<0.01). The healthy first-degree relatives of asthmatic adolescents have worse respiratory function than those of non-asthmatic adolescents. Asymptomatic relatives of asthmatics can have physiological characteristics that may reveal the phenotypic pattern of the disease.
Effective MRI based Brain Tumor Detection using Modified U-Net Model

In recent times, image processing is an emerging application, which provides more detailed information about images, especially in the medical field. Image segmentation is an important task in medical image processing. Numerous imaging modalities are used in the medical field such as histopathology, X-ray, etc. In that, the Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) provides precise segmentation results compared to other imaging modalities. The manual segmentation of brain tumor is a tedious and time consumption process, so an automatic detection model is proposed in this manuscript based on deep learning techniques. Firstly, the brain samples are acquired from the BraTS 2020 dataset, and then the quality of the brain image is modified by using color normalization technique. In addition, the data augmentation is performed by using scaling, rotation, and flipping techniques that decreases the overfitting risks and improves the flexibility and variability of the deep learning model. Finally, the brain tumor segmentation is performed using a modified U-net model that includes dice loss function and morphological gradient function for an effective segmentation in the MRI brain images. The modified U-net model attained Dice Similarity Coefficient (DSC) of 93%, 92%, and 95% for different brain tumor types such as Whole Tumor (WT), Enhanced Tumor (ET) and Tumor Core (TC), which are better related to the U-Net model.
Treatment of Diabetic Neuropathy With γ-Linolenic Acid

Objective— To compare the effects of placebo and GLA on the course of mild diabetic neuropathy over 1 yr. Research Design and Methods— We entered 111 patients with mild diabetic neuropathy from seven centers into a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled parallel study of GLA at a dose of 480 mg/day. MNCV, SNAP, CMAP, hot and cold thresholds, sensation, tendon reflexes, and muscle strength were assessed by standard tests in upper and lower limbs. Results— For all 16 parameters, the change over 1 yr in response to GLA was more favorable than the change with placebo, and for 13 parameters, the difference was statistically significant. Sex, age, and type of diabetes did not influence the result, but treatment was more effective in relatively well-controlled than in poorly-controlled diabetic patients. Conclusions— GLA had a beneficial effect on the course of diabetic neuropathy.
Ingestion of Wheat Protein Increases In Vivo Muscle Protein Synthesis Rates in Healthy Older Men in a Randomized Trial.

BACKGROUND Muscle mass maintenance is largely regulated by basal muscle protein synthesis and the capacity to stimulate muscle protein synthesis after food intake. The postprandial muscle protein synthetic response is modulated by the amount, source, and type of protein consumed. It has been suggested that plant-based proteins are less potent in stimulating postprandial muscle protein synthesis than animal-derived proteins. However, few data support this contention. OBJECTIVE We aimed to assess postprandial plasma amino acid concentrations and muscle protein synthesis rates after the ingestion of a substantial 35-g bolus of wheat protein hydrolysate compared with casein and whey protein. METHODS Sixty healthy older men [mean ± SEM age: 71 ± 1 y; body mass index (in kg/m(2)): 25.3 ± 0.3] received a primed continuous infusion of l-[ring-(13)C6]-phenylalanine and ingested 35 g wheat protein (n = 12), 35 g wheat protein hydrolysate (WPH-35; n = 12), 35 g micellar casein (MCas-35; n = 12), 35 g whey protein (Whey-35; n = 12), or 60 g wheat protein hydrolysate (WPH-60; n = 12). Plasma and muscle samples were collected at regular intervals. RESULTS The postprandial increase in plasma essential amino acid concentrations was greater after ingesting Whey-35 (2.23 ± 0.07 mM) than after MCas-35 (1.53 ± 0.08 mM) and WPH-35 (1.50 ± 0.04 mM) (P < 0.01). Myofibrillar protein synthesis rates increased after ingesting MCas-35 (P < 0.01) and were higher after ingesting MCas-35 (0.050% ± 0.005%/h) than after WPH-35 (0.032% ± 0.004%/h) (P = 0.03). The postprandial increase in plasma leucine concentrations was greater after ingesting Whey-35 than after WPH-60 (peak value: 580 ± 18 compared with 378 ± 10 μM, respectively; P < 0.01), despite similar leucine contents (4.4 g leucine). Nevertheless, the ingestion of WPH-60 increased myofibrillar protein synthesis rates above basal rates (0.049% ± 0.007%/h; P = 0.02). CONCLUSIONS The myofibrillar protein synthetic response to the ingestion of 35 g casein is greater than after an equal amount of wheat protein. Ingesting a larger amount of wheat protein (i.e., 60 g) substantially increases myofibrillar protein synthesis rates in healthy older men. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT01952639.
Evolutionary preferences for physical formidability in leaders

Abstract This research uses evolutionary theory to evaluate followers' preferences for physically formidable leaders and to identify conditions that stimulate those preferences. It employs a population-based survey experiment (N ≥ 760), which offers the advantages to internal validity of experiments and external validity of a highly heterogeneous sample drawn from a nationally representative subject pool. The theoretical argument proffered here is followers tend to prefer leaders with greater physical formidability because of evolutionary adaptations derived from humans' violent ancestral environment. In this environment, individuals who allied with and ultimately followed physically powerful partners were more likely to acquire and retain important resources necessary for survival and reproduction because the presence of the physically powerful partner cued opponents to avoid a challenge for the resources or risk a costly confrontation. This argument suggests and the results indicate that threatening (war) and nonthreatening (peace, cooperation, and control) stimuli differentially motivate preferences for physically formidable leaders. In particular, the findings suggest threatening conditions lead to preferences for leaders with more powerful physical attributes, both anthropometric (i.e., weight, height, and body mass index) and perceptual (i.e., attributes of being “physically imposing or intimidating” and “physically strong”). Overall, this research offers a theoretical framework from which to understand this otherwise seemingly irrational phenomenon. Further, it advances the emerging but long-neglected investigation of biological effects on political behavior and has implications for a fundamental process in democratic society, leader selection.
Dietary Iron Deficiency and Oversupplementation Increase Intestinal Permeability, Ion Transport, and Inflammation in Pigs.

BACKGROUND Understanding the influence of dietary iron deficiency and dietary iron oversupplementation on intestinal health is important for both animal production and human health. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to determine whether dietary iron concentration influences intestinal physiology, morphology, and inflammation in the porcine duodenum. METHODS Twenty-four male pigs (21 d old) were fed diets containing either 20 mg Fe/kg [low dietary iron (L-Fe)], 120 mg Fe/kg [adequate dietary iron (A-Fe); control], or 520 mg Fe/kg [high dietary iron (H-Fe)] by FeSO4 supplement (dry matter basis). After 32-36 d, the duodenum was harvested from pigs and mounted in Ussing chambers for the measurement of transepithelial electrical resistance (TER), short-circuit current, and (3)H-mannitol permeability. Intestinal morphology and inflammation were assessed by histologic examination, and proinflammatory gene expression was assessed by real-time polymerase chain reaction. RESULTS Compared with A-Fe-fed pigs, pigs fed L-Fe diets exhibited reduced TER (by 30%; P < 0.05). Compared with that of A-Fe-fed controls, the paracellular flux of (3)H-mannitol across the duodenal mucosa was higher (P < 0.05) in L-Fe-fed (>100%) and H-Fe-fed (∼4-fold) pigs; the L-Fe-fed and H-Fe-fed groups did not differ significantly from one another. Compared with the L-Fe-fed pigs, the A-Fe-fed and H-Fe-fed pigs had malondialdehyde concentrations 1.4- and 2.5-fold higher in the duodenum and 4.4- and 6.6-fold higher in the liver, respectively (P < 0.05). Neutrophil counts were higher in both the L-Fe-fed (by 3-fold) and H-Fe-fed (by 3.3-fold) groups than in the A-Fe-fed group; the L-Fe-fed and H-Fe-fed groups did not significantly differ from one another. Duodenal mucosal tumor necrosis factor α (TNFA), interleukin (IL) 1β, and IL6 relative gene expression was upregulated by 36%, 28%, and 45%, respectively, in H-Fe pigs (P < 0.05), but not in L-Fe pigs, compared with A-Fe pigs. CONCLUSION These data suggest that adequate but not oversupplementation of dietary iron in pigs is required to maintain intestinal barrier health and function.
Rural-Nonrural Disparities in Postsecondary Educational Attainment Revisited

Using data from the National Educational Longitudinal Study, this study revisited rural-nonrural disparities in educational attainment by considering a comprehensive set of factors that constrain and support youth’s college enrollment and degree completion. Results showed that rural students were more advantaged in community social resources compared to nonrural students, and these resources were associated with a significant increase in the likelihood of bachelor’s degree attainment. Yet results confirmed that rural students lagged behind nonrural students in attaining a bachelor’s degree largely due to their lower socioeconomic background. The findings present a more comprehensive picture of the complexity of geographic residence in shaping college enrollment and degree attainment.
Neural Network Coding in Data Compression Systems in Communication Channels

The article describes the use of a neural network implementation of BCH codes encoding and decoding devices for error correction in on-the-fly data compression systems. The user payload vector is encoded in the BCH code with additional redundancy, which provides linear data separability and better convergence when training the autoencoder. On the receiving side, the decoding device operates in the error correction mode, which makes it possible not to impose strict requirements on the accuracy of data recovery when training the autoencoder. Examples of such devices are described in the article.
Complementary Feeding Interventions Have a Small but Significant Impact on Linear and Ponderal Growth of Children in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Background: World Health Assembly member states have committed to ambitious global targets for reductions in stunting and wasting by 2025. Improving complementary diets of children aged 6-23 mo is a recommended approach for reducing stunting in children <5 y old. Less is known about the potential of these interventions to prevent wasting.Objective: The aim of this article was to review and synthesize the current literature for the impact of complementary feeding interventions on linear [length-for-age z score (LAZ)] and ponderal [weight-for-length z score (WLZ)] growth of children aged 6-23 mo, with the specific goal of updating intervention-outcome linkages in the Lives Saved Tool (LiST). Methods: We started our review with studies included in the previous LiST review and searched for articles published since January 2012. We identified longitudinal trials that compared children aged 6-23 mo who received 1 of 2 types of complementary feeding interventions (nutrition education or counseling alone or complementary food supplementation with or without nutrition education or counseling) with a no-intervention control. We assessed study quality and generated pooled estimates of LAZ and WLZ change, as well as length and weight gain, for each category of intervention.Results: Interventions that provided nutrition education or counseling had a small but significant impact on linear growth in food-secure populations [LAZ standardized mean difference (SMD): 0.11; 95% CI: 0.01, 0.22] but not on ponderal growth. Complementary food supplementation interventions with or without nutrition education also had a small, significant effect in food-insecure settings on both LAZ (SMD: 0.08; 95% CI: 0.04, 0.13) and WLZ (SMD: 0.05; 95% CI: 0.01, 0.08). Conclusions: Nutrition education and complementary feeding interventions both had a small but significant impact on linear growth, and complementary feeding interventions also had an impact on ponderal growth of children aged 6-23 mo in low- and middle-income countries. The updated LiST model will support nutrition program planning and evaluation efforts by allowing users to model changes in intervention coverage on both stunting and wasting.
Efficacy of a Decompression Treatment Model in the Clinical Management of Violent Juvenile Offenders

Criminal recidivism was assessed for 10 highly disruptive and aggressive, incarcerated juvenile offenders who received decompression treatment, for 10 matched controls who received mental health treatment services, and for 10 assessment-only controls. Treated participants were matched with controls on a number of demographic, behavioral, and personality variables. Decompression treatment was developed to improve the institutional adjustment of mentally disordered adult offenders and is adapted here for juvenile offenders. Participants in the decompression treatment and usual treatment groups were both significantly less likely to recidivate in the approximately 2-year follow-up period than were assessment-only subjects who received mental health assessment only and received the usual juvenile corrections rehabilitation services (10%, 20%, and 70% recidivism, respectively). The results suggest that decompression treatment may be successfully applied to the most unmanageable and disruptive institutionalized juvenile offenders.
Cruciferous Vegetable Intake Is Inversely Associated with Lung Cancer Risk among Current Nonsmoking Men in the Japan Public Health Center (JPHC) Study.

Background: Cruciferous vegetables, a rich source of isothiocyanates, have been reported to lower the risk of several types of cancer, including lung cancer. However, evidence from prospective observations of populations with a relatively high intake of cruciferous vegetables is sparse.Objective: We investigated the association between cruciferous vegetable intake and lung cancer risk in a large-scale population-based prospective study in Japan.Methods: We studied 82,330 participants (38,663 men; 43,667 women) aged 45-74 y without a past history of cancer. Participants were asked to respond to a validated questionnaire that included 138 food items. The association between cruciferous vegetable intake and lung cancer incidence was assessed with the use of Cox proportional hazard regression analysis to estimate HRs and 95% CIs (with adjustments for potential confounding factors). Results: After 14.9 y of follow-up, a total of 1499 participants (1087 men; 412 women) were diagnosed with lung cancer. After deleting early-diagnosed cancer and adjusting for confounding factors, we observed a nonsignificant inverse trend between cruciferous vegetable intake and lung cancer risk in men in the highest compared with the lowest quartiles (multivariate HR: 0.85; 95% CI: 0.69, 1.06; P-trend = 0.13). Stratified analysis by smoking status revealed a significant inverse association between cruciferous vegetable intake and lung cancer risk among those who were never smokers and those who were past smokers after deleting lung cancer cases in the first 3 y of follow-up [multivariate HR for never smokers: 0.49 (95% CI: 0.27, 0.87; P-trend = 0.04); multivariate HR for past smokers: 0.59 (95% CI: 0.35, 0.99; P-trend = 0.10)]. No association was noted in men who were current smokers and women who were never smokers.Conclusion: This study suggests that cruciferous vegetable intake may be associated with a reduction in lung cancer risk among men who are currently nonsmokers.
Ensayo clínico Prágmatico en trauma: el estudio Crash-2 en el Perú

CRASH-2 is a pragmatic clinical trial which evaluates the efficacy of a widely available, low cost antifibrinolytic for the prevention of mortality and bleeding in patients with trauma. In this article we present some issues related to the magnitude of the problem as well as the need for research in trauma relevant to the Peruvian context. The rationale for the CRASH-2 trial and the Peruvian experience up to date are also discussed.
Perfil eletrocardiográfico e conteúdo glicogênico muscular de ratos tratados com nandrolona

FUNDAMENTO: Considerou-se o uso indiscriminado de esteroides tanto por atletas de elite quanto por praticantes de atividades fisicas. OBJETIVO: Avaliar os efeitos do decanoato de nandrolona sobre o perfil eletrocardiografico, conteudo glicogenico e de proteinas totais dos musculos cardiacos e esqueleticos, bem como as concentracoes plasmatica de albumina. METODOS: Os animais do grupo tratado receberam a droga na concentracao 5 mg/kg pela via subcutânea, duas vezes por semana, durante tres semanas. Uma vez por semana, os ratos foram anestesiados com Pentobarbital sodico (50 mg/kg, ip) e submetidos a avaliacao por meio do eletrocardiograma (ECG). Apos o periodo experimental, amostras dos musculos cardiaco (ventriculo esquerdo - VE), soleo (S), gastrocnemio branco (GB), gastrocnemio vermelho (GV), peitoral (P), intercostal (IC) e diafragma (D) foram prontamente coletadas e analisadas. Os dados (media ± epm) foram avaliados de acordo com ANOVA, segundo teste de Tukey (p>0,05). RESULTADOS: Os ratos do grupo tratado apresentaram alteracoes nos seguintes parâmetros cardiacos: intervalo QRS, intervalo QTc e frequencia cardiaca, caracterizados por um aumento desses, tendo o apice no intervalo da semana de pre-tratamento para a primeira semana. As reservas de glicogenio no VE apresentaram aumento de 127%. Em relacao a quantidade de proteinas totais, a diferenca significativa foi constatada no S, GV e D. Quanto ao perfil bioquimico e ao hematocrito, foi observado um aumento na porcentagem de eritrocitos. CONCLUSAO: O estudo mostra que importantes alteracoes cardiacas sao deflagradas precocemente, sugerindo uma hierarquia na sequencia de modificacoes que comprometem a homeostasia do organismo.