Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
All-encompassing Review of Biometric Information Protection in Fingerprints Based Steganography

In ascertaining the authenticity of a person's identity, the techniques that utilises Biometric Technology and its vital aspects and attributes are essential in endorsing this endeavour. Transversing the years, identification through biometric means has heightened much attention with regards to its susceptibility to assaults whilst information are being transferred. Thus, there is a dire need for the development for a safeguarding means. Steganography and watermarking methods are adopted towards the enhancement of biometric information secureness. Watermarking entails the embedding of data within file that carries the data, in safeguarding intellectual property rights and copyrights that involves music, video or image files. Meanwhile, steganography entails the concealment of data. This research puts forward an all-encompassing review pertaining the latest steganography methods that has been implemented to protect the biometric fingerprints information up-to-date. This review categorizes the fingerprint system into various sections, inclusive of methods for extracting features and matching procedure.
Extra Virgin Olive Oil Phenols Dilate the Rat Mesenteric Artery by Activation of BKCa2+ Channels in Smooth Muscle Cells

Accumulating evidence has shown the beneficial health effects of extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) consumption in reducing blood pressure and preventing the risk of developing hypertension. Some studies associate the hypotensive activity of EVOO to a minor component—the phenols. This study was designed to investigate the effects of EVOO phenols on the rat resistance mesenteric artery (MA) and to find out the possible vascular pathways involved. The experiments were carried out using a pressurized myograph, which allowed the effects of phenols on isolated MA to be tested under different conditions: (a) with endothelium removed; (b) with inhibition of nitric oxide synthase by Nω-Nitro-l-arginine methyl ester hydrochloride (l-NAME, 10−4 M) + Nω-Nitro-l-arginine (l-NNA, 10−4 M); (c) with inhibition of cyclooxygenase by indomethacin (10−5 M); (d) with inhibition of guanylate cyclase by 1H-[1,2,4]Oxadiazolo[4,3-a]quinoxalin-1-one (ODQ,10−5 M) or adenylate cyclase by 9-(Tetrahydro-2′-furyl)adenine (SQ, 10−5 M); (e) with depolarization by high potassium chloride (40 mM); and (f) with inhibition of the large conductance Ca2+–potassium channels (BKCa2+) with paxilline (10−5 M). EVOO phenols induce vasodilation of the endothelium, mediated by a direct effect on smooth muscle cells (SMC) by activation of BKCa2+ channels, an action by which phenols can regulate the vascular tone of the resistance artery. Phenols can be regarded as bioactive molecules that may contribute to the antihypertensive effects of EVOO.
The Role and the Effect of Magnesium in Mental Disorders: A Systematic Review

Introduction: Magnesium is an essential cation involved in many functions within the central nervous system, including transmission and intracellular signal transduction. Several studies have shown its usefulness in neurological and psychiatric diseases. Furthermore, it seems that magnesium levels are lowered in the course of several mental disorders, especially depression. Objectives: In this study, we wish to evaluate the presence of a relationship between the levels of magnesium and the presence of psychiatric pathology as well as the effectiveness of magnesium as a therapeutic supplementation. Methods: A systematic search of scientific records concerning magnesium in psychiatric disorders published from 2010 up to March 2020 was performed. We collected a total of 32 articles: 18 on Depressive Disorders (DD), four on Anxiety Disorders (AD), four on Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), three on Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), one on Obsessive–Compulsive Disorder (OCD), one on Schizophrenia (SCZ) and one on Eating Disorders (ED). Results: Twelve studies highlighted mainly positive results in depressive symptoms. Seven showed a significant correlation between reduced plasma magnesium values and depression measured with psychometric scales. Two papers reported improved depressive symptoms after magnesium intake, two in association with antidepressants, compared to controls. No significant association between magnesium serum levels and panic or Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) patients, in two distinct papers, was found. In two other papers, a reduced Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAM-A) score in depressed patients correlated with higher levels of magnesium and beneficial levels of magnesium in stressed patients was found. Two papers reported low levels of magnesium in association with ADHD. Only one of three papers showed lower levels of magnesium in ASD. ED and SCZ reported a variation in magnesium levels in some aspects of the disease. Conclusion: The results are not univocal, both in terms of the plasma levels and of therapeutic effects. However, from the available evidence, it emerged that supplementation with magnesium could be beneficial. Therefore, it is necessary to design ad hoc clinical trials to evaluate the efficacy of magnesium alone or together with other drugs (antidepressants) in order to establish the correct use of this cation with potential therapeutic effects.
Numbers of nesting Rooks Corvus frugilegus in the United Kingdom in 1996

In spring 1996, a nationwide census of nesting Rooks was carried out by the British Trust for Ornithology, under contract to the Department of the Environment (now the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions). Volunteers were asked to count Rook nests in 1997 2 × 2-km tetrads selected randomly throughout the UK. Full coverage or a valid nil return was reported for 96% of the sample tetrads, allowing the data to be treated as representative of the UK. Extrapolation from the survey's 3% sample allowed estimation, with confidence limits, of national and regional population sizes. The UK Rook population in 1996 was estimated at 1.27 million nesting pairs. This is about 40% higher than was estimated from a survey in 1975–77, but there were fewer Rooks nesting in Britain than in 1944–46. Both the direction and the scale of recent increase were supported by an analysis of change in 644 tetrads surveyed both in 1975–77 and in 1996. National data and those from local surveys suggested that populat.
HipHop.js: (A)Synchronous reactive web programming

We present HipHop.js, a synchronous reactive language that adds synchronous concurrency and preemption to JavaScript. Inspired from Esterel, HipHop.js simplifies the programming of non-trivial temporal behaviors as found in complex web interfaces or IoT controllers and the cooperation between synchronous and asynchronous activities. HipHop.js is compiled into plain sequential JavaScript and executes on unmodified runtime environments. We use three examples to present and discuss HipHop.js: a simple web login form to introduce the language and show how it differs from JavaScript, and two real life examples, a medical prescription pillbox and an interactive music system that show why concurrency and preemption help programming such temporal applications.
Folic acid and folates: the feasibility for nutritional enhancement in plant foods

In mammalian and plant cells the folates play a key role in the methylation cycle and in the DNA biosynthesis cycle (in the de novo biosynthesis of purines and pyrimidines). Deficiency of folate in the diet is likely to result in a reduction in the capacity to synthesise DNA and maintain the usual rate of cell division. This most evidently results in the production of anaemia from folate deficiency due to a reduction in the biosynthesis of cells in the bone marrow. In addition it has been shown that high levels of plasma homocysteine occur which is an important risk factor in cardiovascular disease. Furthermore it has been shown that reduced maternal folate status is associated with the progressive increase in neural tube defects in infants. There is good evidence for folate deficiency in a considerable number of the population in developed countries, even where folate supplementation of foods is practised, and for a level of intake in excess of the recommended dietary allowance. This paper reviews the principal routes of folate biosynthesis in plants and the potential for increasing the levels of natural folates through conventional plant breeding and biotechnological means. The effect of the major food preservation processes on the levels of folates in plants is also reviewed. The current information about the bioavailability of folates from plant food sources, and how this might be improved, is also summarised. The important health benefits that would arise from increasing folate intake in the diet provide a strong incentive for considering how this might be achieved. © 2000 Society of Chemical Industry
Video modelling as a tool to evaluate self-perception of strategies used by adolescents during daily tasks

Abstract Introduction Metacognition is defined as the process of regulating behavior and having self-perception of own performance. An application of video modeling (VM) was used as a technological solution for assessing self-perception in daily situations among typical adolescents, compared to parental reports and to an objective performance-based assessment. Method One hundred and three adolescents (30 boys, 73 girls, mean age =15.1, SD = 1.9), viewed five clusters of videotaped scenarios of teen actors performing daily activities entailing strategy use. Half of the scenarios were classified as “Type A” indicating a more organized approach to accomplishing a task, the other half were “Type B” scenarios indicated a less organized approach to accomplishing the same tasks. Participants were asked to choose the scenarios that best represent their own daily performance using the VM application. The participants then completed the WCPA, an executive function (EF) performance-based assessment. Their parents completed the BRIEF as an indication of EF behaviors in the home environment. Results 46% of the adolescents associated their performance with a less organized approach yet parental reports indicated adaptive daily performance and their ability to complete the WCPA was as correct as it was for the 56% of participants who associated their performance with a more organized approach. Conclusions Unexpectedly, the participants who associated their ability as less organized presented successful behaviors in the home environment and successfully performed the WCPA. Therapists should be aware that clients may achieve success in daily tasks even though they may cope with cognitive challenges in unexpected ways. Implication for rehabilitation Therapists may expect adolescent clients to approach tasks in a variety of ways, using different strategies for coping with everyday cognitive challenge. Therapists need to acknowledge that there is no ideal strategy that provides a solution for all individuals. Mediating a guided discovery of strategies through use of VM technology may customize intervention for each client’s needs, assuring a client-centered approach and may encourage a collaboration of therapists and clients in search for the strategies that work best for them.
Growth and physiological responses of canola (Brassica napus) to UV-B and CO2 under controlled environment conditions

Few studies have investigated the interaction of ultraviolet (UV)-B radiation and CO 2 concentration on plants. We studied the combined effects of UV-B radiation and CO 2 concentration on canola (Brassica napus cv. 46A65) under four growth conditions - ambient CO 2 with UV-B (control), elevated CO 2 with UV-B, ambient CO 2 without UV-B, and elevated CO 2 without UV-B - to determine whether the adverse effects of UV-B are mitigated by elevated CO 2 . Elevated CO 2 significantly increased plant height and seed yield, whereas UV-B decreased them. Elevated CO 2 ameliorated the adverse effects of UV-B in plant height. UV-B did not affect the physical characteristics of leaf but CO 2 did. Certain flower and fruit characteristics were affected negatively by UV-B and positively by CO 2 . UV-B did not affect net photosynthesis, transpiration and stomatal conductance but decreased water use efficiency (WUE). Elevated CO 2 significantly increased net photosynthesis and WUE. Neither UV-B nor CO 2 affected chlorophyll (Chl) fluorescence. UV-B significantly decreased Chl band increased the ratio of Chl a/b. Elevated CO 2 decreased only the ratio of Chl a/b. UV-B significantly increased UV-absorbing compounds while CO 2 had no effect on them. Both UV-B and CO 2 significantly increased epicuticular wax content. Many significant relationships were found between morphological, physiological, and chemical parameters. This study showed that elevated CO 2 can partially ameliorate some of the adverse effects of UV-B radiation in B. napus.
Molecular Innovations in Lichen Systematics: The Use of Ribosomal and Intron Nucleotide Sequences in the Cladonia chlorophaea Complex

In the mycobiont of the Cladonia chlorophaea complex, length variation in the ribo- somal DNA is explained, in part, by the variable occurrence of multiple group I introns that may have been mobile during the evolution of this group. These potentially mobile introns can serve as a model for examining the variation detected in the ribosomal DNA from other lichens and, perhaps, as a model for examining variation in other genes, genotypes, and phenotypes. Because group I introns have been found also in the ribosomal DNA of some green algae, lichens may provide a good system to search for evidence of intron transfer between distantly related organisms. Not only can molecular systematics change the way we look at lichens, but lichens may change the way we look at molecular evolution.
Nanoformulated Ajwa (Phoenix Dactylifera) Bioactive Compounds Improve the Safety of Doxorubicin without Compromising Its Anticancer Efficacy in Breast Cancer

One of the major causes of women’s death in the world is breast cancer. Consequently, numerous regimens for the control of this severe disease have been created. The chemotherapeutic agent doxorubicin (DOX) is frequently used to treat breast cancer, but DOX can also cause cardiotoxic effects that lead to heart failure. Therefore, many research studies have been done to find a natural product that effectively potentiates or does not interfere with DOX’s anticancer effect and protects against its cardiotoxicity. We studied the impact of combined nanoformulated Ajwa (Phoenix dactylifera) selected bioactive compounds (BAC) rutin (R) and quercetin (Q) in nude mice breast cancer xenografts on DOX-mediated anticancer efficacy. We also studied if this Ajwa BAC could safeguard against DOX-mediated cardiomyopathies by evaluating plasma cardiac troponin-I (cTn-I) levels and cardiac histopathology. Nanoformulated Ajwa BAC effectively alleviated weight loss induced by DOX in mice and significantly decreased the elevated cTn-I. Furthermore, 5 mg RQ-NPs/kg of nude mice that subcutaneously daily injected for 11 days, attenuated the histopathological alterations induced in cardiac muscles due to DOX without any interference with the anticancer effects of DOX against breast cancer.
Lack of EULAR/ERA-EDTA response at 1 year predicts poor long-term renal outcome in patients with lupus nephritis

Objectives Short-term predictive endpoints of chronic kidney disease (CKD) are needed in lupus nephritis (LN). We tested response to therapy at 1 year. Methods We considered patients with LN who underwent renal biopsy followed by induction therapy between January 1970 and December 2016. LN was assessed using the International Society of Nephrology/Renal Pathology Society (2003) criteria and the National Institute of Health (NIH) activity and chronicity index. The renal outcome was CKD. Response was defined according to EULAR/European League Against Rheumatism/European Renal Association-European Dialysis and Transplant Association (EULAR/ERA-EDTA) recommendations: complete: proteinuria <0.5 g/24 hours, (near) normal estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR); partial: ≥50% proteinuria reduction to subnephrotic levels, (near) normal eGFR; and no response: all the other cases. Logistic regression analysis was employed for 12-month response and Cox regression for CKD prediction. Results We studied 381 patients (90.5% Caucasians). After 12-month therapy, 58%, 26% and 16% of patients achieved complete, partial and no response, respectively, according to EULAR/ERA-EDTA. During a median follow-up of 10.7 (IQR: 4.97–18.80) years, 53 patients developed CKD. At 15 years, CKD-free survival rate was 95.2%, 87.6% and 55.4% in patients with complete, partial and no response at 12 months, respectively (p<0.0001). CKD-free survival rates did not differ between complete and partial responders (p=0.067). Serum creatinine (HR: 1.485, 95% CI 1.276 to 1.625), eGFR (HR 0.967, 95% CI 0.957 to 0.977) and proteinuria at 12 months (HR 1.234, 95% CI 1.111 to 1.379) were associated with CKD, yet no reliable cut-offs were identified on the receiver operating characteristic curve. In multivariable analysis, no EULAR/ERA-EDTA response at 12 months (HR 5.165, 95% CI 2.770 to 7.628), low C4 (HR 1.053, 95% CI 1.019 to 1.089) and persistent arterial hypertension (HR 3.154, 95% CI 1.500 to 4.547) independently predicted CKD. Conclusions Lack of EULAR/ERA-EDTA response at 12 months predicts CKD.
Psychometric properties of The Baruth Protective Factors Inventory among nursing students

The Baruth Protective Factors Inventory is an instrument which assesses the risk and protective factors behind resilience. However, there is no valid or reliable Persian instrument for measuring resilience amongst nursing students in Iran. This study aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Persian version of The Baruth Protective Factors Inventory among nursing students. This methodological study was done in 2017. The participants were 200 nursing students who were randomly recruited from Neyshabur city. Construct validity was assessed using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. Reliability was also assessed through the internal consistency assessment method. Exploratory factor analysis indicated a three-factor structure for the Inventory which accounted for 48.21% of its total variance. Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the first-order model. The internal consistency values of the Inventory and its domains were good, confirming its great internal consistency and reliability. The Persian version of the Baruth Protective Factors Inventory was found to have acceptable validity and reliability to assess resilience amongst nursing students. Therefore, the Persian version of The Baruth Protective Factors Inventory can help nursing authorities identify non-resilient students, promote their resilience, and thereby improve their academic and clinical performance. Nursing students’ improved performance can positively affect both the quality of care and patient outcomes.
On the real-time atomistic deformation of nano twinned CrCoFeNi high entropy alloy

High entropy alloys (HEAs) holding several principal elements in high concentration have unprecedented combination properties. The design of strong and highly ductile HEAs has attracted extensive attention from researchers in the last decade, such as in mechanisms for inducing different types of phase and nano-sized precipitates. Since some HEAs have low stacking fault energy, nanotwins can form during the plastic deformation process or magnetron sputtering, resulting in enhanced mechanical properties due to the existence of twin boundaries. The addition of twin boundaries is implied to be a promising method in engineering HEAs. Understanding how these twin boundaries affect the mechanical properties of nanotwinned HEAs is the key to designing strong and ductile examples. In this study, we performed a large-scale molecular dynamic simulation to investigate the mechanical properties of HEAs with different twin boundary spacings at various temperatures. The results show that the strength of HEAs at all tested temperatures increases with decreasing twin boundary spacing until a lower critical value of 1.83 nm is reached, which is close to the experimental value (2 nm). The strength of the HEAs at all tested temperatures decreases as the twin boundary spacing is decreased further. The dislocation motion transitions at the critical twin boundary spacing. In the sample with a twin boundary spacing bigger than 1.83 nm, Shockley dislocations tend to intersect the twin boundaries and glide in the hardening modes; on the other hand, Shockley dislocations travel along the direction parallel to the twin boundaries in samples with a twin boundary spacing smaller than 1.83 nm, leading to detwinning and softening in the HEAs. The dislocation motion and entanglement at 1 K are respectively slower and stronger than those at 300 K; the grain boundary activity is more obvious at a higher temperature. A mechanistic theoretical model together with a Hall–Petch relationship is then proposed to consider the coupled twin boundary and temperature effect on the deformation of nanotwinned HEAs.
RSCAS 2013/73

The institutional setting of open gas networks and markets is revealing considerably diverse and diverging roads taken by the US, the EU or Australia. We will show that this is explained by key choices made in the liberalization process. This liberalization is based on a redefinition of the property rights associated with transmission grid usage. That leads to different systems for the transmission services, as well as for the gas commodity trade, which in turn depends on the network services to get any market deal actually implemented. Not only do those choices depend on the physical architecture of the network, but also the perceived difficulties and costs to coordinate the actual transmission services through certain market arrangements.
Fermented Cereal-based Products: Nutritional Aspects, Possible Impact on Gut Microbiota and Health Implications

Fermentation, as a process to increase the security of food supply, represents an integral part of food culture development worldwide. Nowadays, in the evolving functional food era where new sophisticated technological tools are leading to significant transformations in the field of nutritional sciences and science-driven approaches for new product design, fermentation technology is brought to the forefront again since it provides a solid foundation for the development of safe food products with unique nutritional and functional attributes. Therefore, the objective of the present review is to summarize the most recent advances in the field of fermentation processes related to cereal-based products. More specifically, this paper addresses issues that are relevant to nutritional and health aspects, including their interrelation with intestinal (gut) microbiome diversity and function, although clinical trials and/or in vitro studies testing for cereal-based fermented products are still scarce.