Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
PCR-Based Detection of Cryptosporidium spp. and Enterocytozoon bieneusi in Farm-Raised and Free-Ranging Geese (Anser anser f. domestica) From Hainan Province of China: Natural Infection Rate and the Species or Genotype Distribution

Cryptosporidium spp. and Enterocytozoon bieneusi are two important zoonotic pathogens that can infect humans and a broad range of animal hosts. However, few studies have been conducted to study infection of the two pathogens in domestic geese until now. The aims of the present study were to determine the prevalence of natural infection, and the species or genotype distribution of Cryptosporidium and E. bieneusi in farm-raised and free-ranging geese from Hainan Province of China. In total, 266 fecal samples of geese were collected (142 farm-raised and 124 free-ranging geese). Cryptosporidium spp. and E. bieneusi were identified by nested PCR and sequencing analysis of the SSU rRNA and the ITS region of the rRNA genes. A total of 4.1% (12/226) of the geese were positive for Cryptosporidium spp. , with 0.7% identified in the farm-raised geese and 7.0% in the free-ranging geese. Two bird-adapted species/genotypes were identified: C. baileyi (n = 1) and Cryptosporidium goose genotype I (n = 11). Meanwhile, E. bieneusi was found in 13.9% (37/266) of geese, with 8.9% identified in the farm-raised and 21.8% in the free-ranging geese. Eleven genotypes of E. bieneusi were identified constituted with six known genotypes: D (n = 13), I (n = 5), CHG2 (n = 1), CHG3 (n = 5), and CHG5 (n = 1), and five novel genotypes named HNE-I to V (one each). All of the genotypes identified in the geese here belonged to zoonotic Groups 1 or 2. This study is the first to demonstrate the presence of Cryptosporidium spp. and E. bieneusi in domestic geese from Hainan, China, and provides baseline data that will be useful for controlling and preventing these pathogens in goose farms. The geese infected with E. bieneusi, but not with Cryptosporidium, should be considered potential public health threats.
Effectiveness of a multilevel intervention to reduce violence and increase condom use in intimate partnerships among female sex workers: cluster randomised controlled trial in Karnataka, India

Introduction Samvedana Plus is a multilevel intervention working with sex workers, their intimate partners (IPs) and communities to reduce intimate partner violence (IPV) and to increase condom use within intimate relationships of sex workers in Northern Karnataka, India. Methods A cluster randomised controlled trial in 47 villages. Female sex workers with IPs in the last 6 months were eligible for baseline (2014), midline (2016) and endline (2017) surveys. 24 villages were randomised to Samvedana Plus and 23 to a wait-list control. Primary outcomes among sex workers included experience of physical and/or sexual IPV or severe physical/sexual IPV in the last 6 months and consistent condom use with their IP in past 30 days. Analyses adjusted for clustering and baseline cluster-level means of outcomes. Result Baseline (n=620) imbalance was observed with respect to age (33.9 vs 35.2) and IPV (31.4% vs 45.0%). No differences in physical/sexual IPV (8.1% vs 9.0%), severe physical/sexual IPV (6.9% vs 8.7%) or consistent condom use with IPs (62.5% vs 57.3%) were observed by trial arm at end line (n=547). Samvedana Plus was associated with decreased acceptance of IPV (adjusted OR (AOR)=0.62, 95% CI 0.40 to 0.94, p=0.025), increased awareness of self-protection strategies (AOR=1.73, 95% CI=1.04–2.89, p=0.035) and solidarity of sex workers around issues of IPV (AOR=1.69, 95% CI=1.02–2.82, p=0.042). We observed an increase in IPV between baseline (25.9%) and midline (63.5%) among women in Samvedana Plus villages but lower in comparison villages (41.8%–44.3%) and a sharp decrease at end line in both arms (~8%). Conclusion We found no evidence that Samvedana Plus reduced IPV or increased condom use, but it may impact acceptance of IPV, increase knowledge of self-protection strategies and increase sex worker solidarity. Inconsistencies in reported IPV undermined the ability of the trial to assess effectiveness. Trial registration number NCT02807259.
Thickness of Polyelectrolyte Layers of Separately Confined Bacteria Alters Key Physiological Parameters on a Single Cell Level

Confinement of bacterial cells in a matrix or in capsules is an integral part of many biotechnological applications. Here, the well-known layer-by-layer method of deposition of a polyelectrolyte film a few nanometers in thickness to confine separated bacterial cells in permeable and physically durable shells has been examined. Due to the physical properties of such a confinement, we found that this method enables investigation of effects of physical barriers against mass gain and cell division. Using the method of time-lapse confocal microscopy, we observed a prolonged lag phase, dependent on the number of polyelectrolyte layers. In the confinement, both the GFP fluorescent signal from the leaking T7 promoter and the cell size were increased by factors of more than five and two, respectively. This creates a paradigm shift that enables use of mechanical entrapment for control of bacterial cell physiology and opens possibilities of controlling the division rate as well as gene expression. These effects can be attributed to the perturbation of the sensing of the cell size, which results in disproportional synthesis of a cell envelope impinging the intracellular material and compels cells to grow rapidly. In addition, the charged surface of cells enables prolonged intercellular physical interaction and results in spherically shaped microcolonies.
Microbially Mediated Ore-Forming Processes and Cell Mineralization

Sedimentary black shale-hosted manganese carbonate and oxide ores were studied by high-resolution in situ detailed optical and cathodoluminescence microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and FTIR spectroscopy to determine microbial contribution in metallogenesis. This study of the Urucum Mn deposit in Brazil is included as a case study for microbially mediated ore-forming processes. The results were compared and interpreted in a comparative way, and the data were elaborated by a complex, structural hierarchical method. The first syngenetic products of microbial enzymatic oxidation were ferrihydrite and lepidocrocite on the Fe side, and vernadite, todorokite, birnessite, and manganite on the Mn side, formed under obligatory oxic (Mn) and suboxic (Fe) conditions and close to neutral pH. Fe- and Mn-oxidizing bacteria played a basic role in metallogenesis based on microtextural features, bioindicator minerals, and embedded variable organic matter. Trace element content is determined by source of elements and microbial activity. The present Urucum (Brazil), Datangpo (China), and Úrkút (Hungary) deposits are the result of complex diagenetic processes, which include the decomposition and mineralization of cell and extracellular polymeric substance (EPS) of Fe and Mn bacteria and cyanobacteria. Heterotrophic cell colonies activated randomly in the microbialite sediment after burial in suboxic neutral/alkaline conditions, forming Mn carbonates and variable cation-bearing oxides side by side with lithification and stabilization of minerals. Deposits of variable geological ages and geographical occurrences show strong similarities and indicate two-step microbial metallogenesis: a primary chemolithoautotrophic, and a diagenetic heterotrophic microbial cycle, influenced strongly by mineralization of cells and EPSs. These processes perform a basic role in controlling major and trace element distribution in sedimentary environments on a global level and place biogeochemical constraints on the element content of natural waters, precipitation of minerals, and water contaminants.
Macrophage transcriptome modification induced by hypoxia and lactate

The production of lactate under hypoxic conditions or by cancer cells was reported to promote the M2 polarization of tumor-associated macrophages. However, the exact effect of lactate on macrophages, particularly under hypoxic conditions, has remained largely elusive. In the present study, an in-depth bioinformatics analysis of previously published transcriptome data of macrophages was performed. A total of 6, 101 and 764 upregulated genes were identified in the lactate, hypoxia and hypoxia-lactate groups, respectively, whereas 4, 41 and 588 genes were downregulated in the same respective groups. Furthermore, differentially expressed genes (DEGs) of the hypoxia and hypoxia-lactate groups were significantly enriched in the hypoxia-inducible factor 1 (HIF-1) signaling pathway and the Hedgehog pathway. Upregulation of the mTOR and Hedgehog pathways in the hypoxia-lactate group was identified by gene set enrichment analysis. Furthermore, a set of HIF-1 pathway-associated genes was identified to be positively correlated with hypoxia using weighted gene co-expression network analysis. Lactate was indicated to inhibit the cell cycle in a hypoxia-independent manner. The DEGs of the hypoxia and hypoxia-lactate groups, including C-C motif chemokine receptor type 1 and 5, were enriched in the cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction pathway. In conclusion, under normoxic conditions, lactate exerted a weak effect on macrophages, while the combination of lactate and hypoxia markedly promoted the M2-polarization of macrophages via the HIF-1, Hedgehog and mTOR pathways. Lactate and hypoxia may also contribute to the formation of the spatial structure of tumor niches by inhibiting the proliferation of resident macrophages and by regulating the recruitment of peripheral macrophages.
Vessel-Associated Immune Cells in Cerebrovascular Diseases: From Perivascular Macrophages to Vessel-Associated Microglia

Cerebral small vessels feed and protect the brain parenchyma thanks to the unique features of the blood–brain barrier. Cerebrovascular dysfunction is therefore seen as a detrimental factor for the initiation of several central nervous system (CNS) disorders, such as stroke, cerebral small vessel disease (cSVD), and Alzheimer’s disease. The main working hypothesis linking cerebrovascular dysfunction to brain disorders includes the contribution of neuroinflammation. While our knowledge on microglia cells – the brain-resident immune cells – has been increasing in the last decades, the specific populations of microglia and macrophages surrounding brain vessels, vessel-associated microglia (VAM), and perivascular macrophages (PVMs), respectively, have been overlooked. This review aims to summarize the knowledge gathered on VAM and PVMs, to discuss existing knowledge gaps of importance for later studies and to summarize evidences for their contribution to cerebrovascular dysfunction.
Modelling and control of dual input boost converter with voltage multiplier cell

A dual input DC-DC converter with dual boost and integrated voltage multiplier cell operating at duty cycles larger than 0.5 is a necessity to achieve a high voltage gain for energy systems possessing two independent renewable energy resources. Output voltage regulation during load changes and input disturbances is the requisite of an energy system, which is achieved by the implementation of a suitable control action, which further requires the dynamic model of the converter. The modelling of this higher order converter with overlapping switching signals is complicated. The small-signal transfer function model based on state-space averaging followed by small-signal linearisation is verified using MATLAB and powersim (PSIM). The output voltage to duty cycle transfer functions significantly contributes to representing the converter dynamics from which its right-half s -plane zero is analysed. Since it is a non-minimum phase system, a dual loop control strategy is adopted. Voltage regulation and active current sharing are ensured from the simulation and experimental responses of the uncompensated and compensated systems. Further, from the derived integer-order converter model a fractional controller is designed and its dynamic response is compared with the traditional controller. A 200 W prototype of the converter is developed, and the control is implemented using field-programmable gate array.
An Abstract Distributed Middleware for Transactions over Heterogeneous Stores

We present an abstract middleware, called Acidify, for the coordination of transactions between distributed processes accessing shared heterogeneous (possibly remote) storage services. Processes can specify transactions by means of a specific abstract language; each transaction is then executed atomically and in isolation, following an “optimistic” strategy. To ensure scalability and reliability, Acidify is peer-to-peer, without relying on any centralized service. Moreover, it is abstract, in the sense that the transaction language is independent from the underlying storage services, and it can be readily ported to any storage service. We provide a formal model of Acidify as a set of interacting automata; this allows us to prove soundness and termination of the algorithms, and to estimate the overhead in terms of exchanged messages and delays. Finally, we provide an implementation of Acidify as an Erlang behaviour, together with the bindings for Riak KV and Amazon S3.
Removing non-signicant regions in hierarchical clustering and segmentation

We propose an e ﬃ cient algorithm that removes unimportant regions from a hierarchical partition tree, while preserving the hierarchical partition structure. Various experiments demonstrate that applying this algorithm on various classiﬁcation or segmentation problems does indeed improve the results by a large margin. Code is available online at https://github.com/higra/Higra .
Simultaneous Implementation Features Extraction and Recognition Using C3D Network for WiFi-based Human Activity Recognition

Human actions recognition has attracted more and more people's attention. Many technology have been developed to express human action's features, such as image, skeleton-based, and channel state information(CSI). Among them, on account of CSI's easy to be equipped and undemanding for light, and it has gained more and more attention in some special scene. However, the relationship between CSI signal and human actions is very complex, and some preliminary work must be done to make CSI features easy to understand for computer. Nowadays, many work departed CSI-based features' action dealing into two parts. One part is for features extraction and dimension reduce, and the other part is for time series problems. Some of them even omitted one of the two part work. Therefore, the accuracies of current recognition systems are far from satisfactory. In this paper, we propose a new deep learning based approach, i.e. C3D network and C3D network with attention mechanism, for human actions recognition using CSI signals. This kind of network can make feature extraction from spatial convolution and temporal convolution simultaneously, and through this network the two part of CSI-based human actions recognition mentioned above can be realized at the same time. The entire algorithm structure is simplified. The experimental results show that our proposed C3D network is able to achieve the best recognition performance for all activities when compared with some benchmark approaches.
OBTENCIÓN Y CARACTERIZACIÓN DE CARBONES ACTIVADOS A PARTIR DE SEMILLAS DE MUCUNA SP

Se obtiene una serie de carbones activados a partir de un material lignocelulosico por activacion fisica con vapor de agua; m ucuna Sp es el nombre cientifico de las semillas utilizadas como precursor lignocelulosico en este trabajo las cuales se trituran y se tamizan para posterior carbonizado, con el objetivo de obtener carbon granular. Se estudia el efecto de la variacion de la temperatura (600-900° C) y el tiempo (1-10 h) de activacion, y su relacion con las propiedades texturales del carbon. Los carbones activados obtenidos con diferentes porcentajes de quemado ( Burn-off ) se caracterizaron por adsorcion fisica de N 2 a 77K. Se evaluo la capacidad de adsorcion en solucion de los carbones activados por medio del indice de yodo y el indice de azul de metileno. Se encontro una correlacion entre los burn-off y las areas superficiales aparentes calculadas por el metodo BET con valores cercanos a los 1000 m 2 g -1 , asi como con los volumenes de microporo comprendidos entre 0,060 y 0,400 cm 3 g -1 , calculados por el metodo DR y metodo alfa. La capacidad de adsorcion en solucion arroja resultados satisfactorios debido a que presenta una buena correlacion con los datos de porosidad, factor importante este ultimo a la hora de determinar la posible aplicacion del carbon activado.
Estudo epidemiológico retrospectivo das fraturas do terço proximal do fêmur na região de Botucatu

Foram estudados, retrospectivamente, 208 pacientes com 210 fraturas do 1/3 proximal do fêmur (fratura do colo do fêmur, transtrocanteriana e subtrocanteriana), submetidos à cirurgia no Hospital das Clínicas da Faculdade de Medicina de Botucatu (HC-FMB)-UNESP, de 1978 a 1991. Os seguintes atributos foram analisados: idade, sexo, cor, diagnóstico da fratura, lado acometido, mecanismo do trauma, tempo de internação hospitalar e mortalidade. Da observação desses itens, concluímos que essas fraturas são causadas mais frequentemente por traumas banais, sendo que as transtrocanterianas foram as mais comuns. Houve predominância a partir da sétima década e foram raras em negros. A média do tempo de internação foi de 15,69 dias e a taxa de mortalidade após um ano foi de 16,69%. Os pacientes com fraturas do colo do fêmur tiveram maior sobrevida do que os portadores de fraturas transtrocanterianas.
The Maracaibo city metabolic syndrome prevalence study: primary results and agreement level of 3 diagnostic criteria

Objetivo: El proposito de esta investigacion fue determinar la prevalencia de Sindrome Metabolico (SM) y factores asociados en la poblacion adulta del Municipio Maracaibo. Materiales y metodos: Estudio descriptivo, transversal, con muestreo aleatorio multietapico, con 2.230 individuos de ambos sexos, mayores de 18 anos de edad. Para el diagnostico de SM se utilizaron los criterios propuestos por ATPIII-2005, IDF-2005 e IDF-2009, utilizando la prueba kappa de Cohen y la escala de valoracion Landis y Koch para evaluar el nivel de concordancia entre las tres clasificaciones. Se construyeron 3 modelos de regresion logistica para la evaluacion de factores de riesgo relacionados a SM. Resultados: La prevalencia de SM fue de 42,4%, 41,6% y 35,5% segun IDF-2009, IDF-2005 y ATPIII-2005 respectivamente. El grado de concordancia entre IDF-2009 y ATPIII-2005: k=0.86 (p<0,00001); entre IDF-2005 y ATPIII- 2005: k=0.84 (p<0,0001); y entre IDF-2005 e IDF-2009: k=0.98 (p<0,000001). Los componentes mas prevalentes fueron obesidad abdominal con 75,1% (IDF-2005 e IDF- 2009) y 48,9% (ATPIII-2005), HDL-C bajas (57,8%) e HTA (38.8%). En el analisis multivariante se observo que la edad, insulinorresistencia, IMC y PCR-us son factores de riesgo para padecer SM en las tres clasificaciones. HOMA b-cell y actividad fisica en tiempo de ocio son factores protectores. Conclusion: La prevalencia de SM en nuestra poblacion constituye una de las mas elevadas a nivel mundial. Las clasificaciones utilizadas exhiben un nivel casi perfecto de concordancia debido a que 4 de los 5 componentes son iguales, por lo que las diferencias observadas radican en los puntos de corte de circunferencia abdominal. Palabras clave: sindrome metabolico, criterios diagnosticos, inflamacion cronica subaguda, insulinorresistencia, obesidad
Word- and Tree-based Temporal Logics for Operator Precedence Languages

In recent years we resumed the study of operator precedence languages (OPL), inspired by their algebraic and parallel parsability properties. OPL significantly generalize visibly pushdown languages in expressive power. We have shown that OPL enjoy a characterization in terms of monadic second order logic in the style of the traditional one for regular languages. We are investigating a characterization of a subclass of OPL in terms of first-order logic, retracing the literature on regular languages. The algebraic properties of OPL naturally suggested a further step, devoted to devising model checking techniques for them. In this communication we briefly report on early steps already moved in this direction and we outline a roadmap for next developments. In doing so, we plan to exploit a distinguishing feature of OPL which allows to manage them both as string languages and as tree-structured languages, thus joining two traditional but different approaches to the study of context-free languages. We expect to achieve a temporal logic-style language that is well suited to express properties of systems in application fields wider than those based on regular languages. We anticipate to obtain model-checking procedures with comparable performances.
Primary cutaneous melanoma: confi rmations and news

Introduction: Cutaneous melanoma is a major disease in terms of morbidity and mortality in Dermatology. The population of south Brazil has characteristics that make them more prone to cutaneous melanoma. The aim of this study was to estimate the frequency and profi le of patients with primary cutaneous melanoma in the Dermatology Reference Center of the Unifi ed Health System in Porto Alegre-RS. Methods: Cross-sectional study based on the medical records of patients from July 2005 to July 2012. Results: We evaluated 85 patients with a mean age of 53.7 years. Females predominated (64.7%), and 55.4% of the subjects were from other cities of the state. The highest frequency of topography was the back (31.3%), and the most common subtype was superfi cial spreading (59.0%). The Breslow’s depth mean was 2.1 mm, with median 0.9 mm. It was found that 47.4% had mitosis, 13.0% ulceration and 40.3% regression. Familial history of skin cancer was 16.7%. From this sample, 18% sought treatment for reasons other than melanoma injury, and 79.8% reported no personal history of skin cancer. Melanoma in situ was associated with the topography of the head, and invasive lesions were related to the back and lower limbs (p <0,05). Conclusion: The analysis of the sample confi rms the current trend to earlier diagnosis, although the majority was not in situ, i.e., there is a need for continued encouragement to early diagnosis. We emphasize the importance of skin examination as a routine in the consultation (as 18% of patients sought care for other reasons).
Diagnosing Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in young adults: A qualitative review of the utility of assessment measures and recommendations for improving the diagnostic process

Abstract Objective: Identify assessment measures that augment the clinical interview and improve the diagnostic accuracy of adult ADHD assessment. Method: The sometimes limited research literatures concerning the diagnostic efficacies of the clinical interview, standard and novel ADHD behavior rating scales, performance and symptom validity testing, and cognitive tests are critically reviewed. Results: Based on this qualitative review, both clinical interviews alone and ADHD behavior rating scales alone have adequate sensitivity but poor specificity in diagnosing ADHD. Response validity and symptom validity tests have reasonably good sensitivity and very good specificity in detecting invalid symptom presentation. Cognitive test batteries have inadequate sensitivity and specificity in identifying ADHD. Using cognitive tests in conjunction with behavior rating scales significantly improves the specificity of an assessment battery. Executive function behavior rating scales and functional impairment rating scales are unlikely to improve the diagnostic accuracy of ADHD assessment. Conclusions: Based on this review, key clinical interview questions, behavior rating scales, symptom validity tests, and cognitive tests that have promise to enhance current assessment practices are recommended. These are the authors’ personal opinions, not consensus standards, or guidelines promulgated by any organization. These measures are incorporated in a practical, somewhat abbreviated, battery that has the potential to improve clinicians’ ability to diagnose adult ADHD.