Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Norwegian Colorectal Cancer Prevention (NORCCAP) Screening Study

Background: Randomized controlled trials of sufficient power testing the long-term effect of screening for colorectal neoplasia only exist for faecal occult blood testing (FOBT). There is indirect evidence that flexible sigmoidoscopy (FS) may have a greater yield. The aim of this study was to determine the diagnostic yield of screening with FS or a combination of FS and FOBT in an average-risk population in an urban and combined urban and rural population in Norway. Methods: 20,780 men and women (1:1), aged 50-64 years, were invited for once-only screening (FS only or a combination of FS and FOBT (1:1)) by randomization from the population registry. A positive FS was defined as a finding of any neoplasia or any polyp S 10 r mm. A positive FS or FOBT qualified for colonoscopy. Results: Overall attendance was 65%. Forty-one (0.3%) cases of CRC were detected. Any adenoma was found in 2208 (17%) participants and 545 (4.2%) had high-risk adenomas. There was no difference in diagnostic yield between the FS and the FS and FOBT group regarding CRC or high-risk adenoma. Work-up load comprised 2821 colonoscopies in 2524 (20%) screenees and 10% of screenees were recommended later colonoscopy surveillance. There were no severe complications at FS, but six perforations after therapeutic colonoscopy (1:336). Conclusions: The present study bodes well for future management of a national screening programme, provided that follow-up results reflect adequate proof of a net benefit. It is highly questionable whether the addition of once-only FOBT to FS will contribute to this effect.
Demythization of Structural XML Query Processing: Comparison of Holistic and Binary Approaches (Extended Abstract)

Structural XQuery and XPath queries are often modeled by twig pattern queries (TPQs) specifying predicates on XML nodes and structural relationships to be satisfied between them. This paper considers a TPQ model extended by a specification of output and non-output query nodes since it complies with the XQuery and XPath semantics. There are two types of TPQ processing approaches: binary joins and holistic joins. The binary joins utilize a query plan of interconnected binary operators, whereas the holistic joins are based on one complex operator to process the whole query. In the recent years, the holistic joins have been considered as the state-of-the-art TPQ processing method. However, a thorough analytical and experimental comparison of binary and holistic joins has been missing despite an enormous research effort in this area. In this paper, we try to fill this gap. We introduce several improvements of the binary join operators which enable us to build a so-called fully-pipelined (FP) query plan for any TPQ with the specification of output and non-output query nodes. We analytically show that, for a class of queries, the proposed approach has the same time and space complexity as holistic joins, and we experimentally demonstrate that the proposed approach outperforms holistic joins in many cases.
Isolation and characterization of a marine ice-nucleating bacterium, Pseudomonas sp. KUIN-5, which produces cellulose and secretes it in the culture broth

A novel marine ice-nucleating bacterium, KUIN-5, was isolated from a marine algae, Monostroma latissum. Strain KUIN-5 was identified as a Pseudomonas sp. from its characteristics and taxonomies; the optimum temperature and pH for its growth were 25°C and 6.0, respectively. When strain KUIN-5 was aerobically cultured in Carlucci-Pramer medium (pH 6.0) for 50 h at 25°C, the highest ice-nucleating activity of the cells among the media for marine bacteria was obtained, and the ice-nucleating temperature, T50, was indicated to be − 3.2°C. Also, the optimum concentration of NaCl for the growth in this medium, which was prepared with distilled water instead of seawater, was 2.0% (w/v) and then the ice-nucleating activity was inversely proportional to the NaCl concentration. Moreover, when strain KUIN-5 was cultured in Davis medium under optimum conditions, it produced insoluble polysaccharide (IPS) in the culture. The maximum amount of IPS production by strain KUIN-5 was 84.5 mg/ml of medium under optimum condit.
ERAS in minimally invasive hepatectomy

Open hepatectomy is associated with significant post-operative morbidity and mortality profile. The use of minimally invasive approach for hepatectomy can reduce the post-operative complication profile and total length of hospital stay. Enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) programs involve evidence-based multimodal care pathways designed to achieve early recovery for patients undergoing major surgery. This review will discuss the published evidence, challenges and future directions for ERAS in minimally invasive hepatectomy.
Statistical Size Effect in Fatigue Properties for Mini-Specimens

The study verifies the sensitivity of selected construction materials (S235JR structural steel and 1.4301 stainless steel) to the statistical size effect. The P–S–N curves were determined experimentally under high-cycle fatigue conditions for two specimen sizes (mini-specimen and standard specimen). The results were analyzed using a probabilistic model of the three-parameter Weibull cumulative distribution function. The analysis included the evaluation of the technological process effects on the results based on the material microstructure near the surface layer and the macro-fractography. The differences in the susceptibility to the size effect validated the applicability of the test method to mini-specimen and showed different populations of the distribution of critical material defects.
Performance of a CO2 Sorbent for Indoor Air Cleaning Applications: Effects of Environmental Conditions, Sorbent Aging, and Adsorption of Co-occurring Formaldehyde.

Indoor air cleaning systems that incorporate CO2 sorbent materials enable HVAC load shifting and efficiency improvements. This study developed a bench-scale experimental system to evaluate the performance of a sorbent under controlled operation conditions. A thermostatic holder containing 3.15 g sorbent was connected to a manifold that delivered CO2 -enriched air at a known temperature and relative humidity (RH). The air stream was also enriched with 0.8 - 2.1 ppm formaldehyde. The CO2 concentration was monitored in real time upstream and downstream of the sorbent, and integrated formaldehyde samples were collected at different times using DNPH-coated silica cartridges. Sorbent regeneration was carried out by circulating clean air in countercurrent. Almost 200 loading/regeneration cycles were performed in the span of 16 months, from which 104 were carried out at reference test conditions defined by loading with air at 25 °C, 38 % RH, and 1000 ppm CO2 and regenerating with air at 80 °C, 3 % RH and 400 ppm. The working capacity decreased slightly from 43-44 mg CO2 per g sorbent to 39-40 mg per g over the 17 months. The capacity increased with lower loading temperature (in the range 15-35 °C) and higher regeneration temperature, between 40 and 80 °C. The CO2 capacity was not sensitive to the moisture content in the range 6 - 9 g m-3 , and decreased slightly when dry air was used. Loading isothermal breakthrough curves were fitted to three simple adsorption models, verifying that pseudo-first order kinetics appropriately describes the adsorption process. The model predicted equilibrium capacities decreased with increasing temperature from 15 to 35 °C, while adsorption rate constants slightly increased. The formaldehyde adsorption efficiency was 80-99% in different cycles, corresponding to an average capacity of 86 ± 36 µg g-1 . Formaldehyde was not quantitatively released during regeneration, but its accumulation on the sorbent did not affect CO2 adsorption.
New Specimens of a Titanosaur Sauropod from the Maastrichtian of Big Bend National Park, Texas

ABSTRACT New specimens of a titanosaur sauropod from Maastrichtian strata in Big Bend National Park, Texas, include well-preserved dorsal vertebrae in association with pelvic elements. Anterior dorsal vertebrae are characterized by postspinal and centroprezygapophyseal laminae, with spinodiapophyseal laminae convergent on the anterior base of the neural spine. Posterior dorsal vertebrae are characterized by postzygodiapophyseal laminae and divided spinodiapophyseal laminae, with spinoprezygapophyseal laminae contributing to the prespinal lamina. The ilium and pubis differ from specimens previously collected, indicating a greater morphological disparity among titanosaurs in the Maastrichtian of West Texas than previously recognized. This disparity may be attributable to intraspecific variation or to the presence of multiple taxa. The new material is compatible with the only presently known North American titanosaur, Alamosaurus sanjuanensis, but is not formally referred due to lack of overlap with the hypodigm of that species. Comparison with other derived titanosaurs finds the closest affinities to Trigonosaurus pricei, Uberabatitan riberoi, and Baurutitan britoi of the Upper Cretaceous Brazilian Bauru Group, consistent with a South American immigration event at the end of the North American sauropod hiatus.
High-Molecular-Weight PLA-b-PEO-b-PLA Triblock Copolymer Templated Large Mesoporous Carbons for Supercapacitors and CO2 Capture

High-molecular-weight PLA440-b-PEO454-b-PLA440 (LEL) triblock copolymer was synthesized through simple ring-opening polymerization (ROP) by using the commercial homopolymer HO-PEO454-OH as the macro-initiator. The material acted as a single template to prepare the large mesoporous carbons by using resol-type phenolic resin as a carbon source. Self-assembled structures of phenolic/LEL blends mediated by hydrogen bonding interaction were determined by FTIR and SAXS analyses. Through thermal curing and carbonization procedures, large mesoporous carbons (>50 nm) with a cylindrical structure and high surface area (>600 m2/g) were obtained because the OH units of phenolics prefer to interact with PEO block rather than PLA block, as determined by FTIR spectroscopy. Furthermore, higher CO2 capture and good energy storage performance were observed for this large mesoporous carbon, confirming that the proposed approach provides an easy method for the preparation of large mesoporous materials.
A medial axis optimization algorithm for straightening bent chromosomes

Chromosome is an important carrier of genes. Karyotype analysis based on chromosomes state needs to extract distinct striated features. When the chromosome image is processed automatically by computer, the chromosome is often in a highly curly state due to its non-rigidity, which increases the difficulty of chromosomes segmentation and classification. In this paper, the algorithm of automatic straightening chromosome is optimized by pruning and prolonging the medial axis, which improved the robustness with better self-adaptability. For the sub-pixel on the reconstruction image, the target gray value was obtained through bilinear interpolation. Compared with other straightening algorithms, the optimized algorithm avoids gray values loss at both ends of chromosomes and the breakage of chromosomes, being able to deal with highly curved chromosomes or chromosomes with multiple curved point. The experimental are validated on University of Passau chromosome images dataset. The results shows that the similarity of images before and after straightening can reach 92.73% by proposed method, which are superior to current state-of-the-art methods.
Wise Management of Ovarian Cancer: On the Cutting Edge

Epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) is the fifth leading cause of cancer mortality among women. Two-thirds of patients present at advanced stage at diagnosis, and the estimated 5 year survival rate is 20–40%. This heterogeneous group of malignancies has distinguishable etiology and molecular biology. Initially, single-gene sequencing was performed to identify germline DNA variations associated with EOC. However, hereditary EOC syndrome can be explained by germline pathogenic variants (gPVs) in several genes. In this regard, next-generation sequencing (NGS) changed clinical diagnostic testing, allowing assessment of multiple genes simultaneously in a faster and cheaper manner than sequential single gene analysis. As we move into the era of personalized medicine, there is evidence that poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitors exploit homologous recombination (HR) deficiency, especially in breast cancer gene 1 and 2 (BRCA1/2) mutation carriers. Furthermore, extensive preclinical data supported the development of aurora kinase (AURK) inhibitors in specific tumor types, including EOC. Their efficacy may be optimized in combination with chemotherapeutic or other molecular agents. The efficacy of metformin in ovarian cancer prevention is under investigation. Certain mutations, such as ARID1A mutations, and alterations in the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/AKT/mTOR pathway, which are specific in ovarian clear cell carcinoma (OCCC) and endometrioid ovarian carcinoma (EnOC), may offer additional therapeutic targets in these clinical entities. Malignant ovarian germ cell tumors (MOGCTs) are rare and randomized trials are extremely challenging for the improvement of the existing management and development of novel strategies. This review attempts to offer an overview of the main aspects of ovarian cancer, catapulted from the molecular mechanisms to therapeutic considerations.
A Simple Monte Carlo Framework to Assess Suicide Risk in Adolescents: A Study at a High School in Colombia

It is very common to perform statistical tests to obtain insights about populations based on samples. For instance, in the context of psychology, when a set of instruments are applied to individuals, psychologists typically look for an explanation of particular psychological constructs (variables), such as personality, intelligence, or emotional functioning. It is common to cross statistical information from the results of different psychological tests to measure certain variables or to confirm prior beliefs. Here, we estimate the Joint Probability Density Function of suicide-related vulnerability and protective factors to assess suicide risk in adolescents. A Markov Chain Monte Carlo Method is employed to move away from the typical Gaussian assumption on data. This allows us to estimate probabilities of the development of suicidal ideation based on samples (which form a Markov chain). We employ our proposed statistical method at a high school in Colombia. The results reveal that adolescents can develop suicidal ideation as a consequence of the following factors, together with their corresponding probabilities: poor school performance 52%, low academic expectations 27%, school integration problems 68%, risky eating behaviors (binge-purge) 42%, risky eating behaviors (compensatory measurements) 21%, risky eating habits (restriction) 22%, and low family functionality 16%.
Skyline Cohesive Group Queries in Large Road-social Networks

Given a network with social and spatial information, cohesive group queries aim at finding a group of users, which are strongly connected and closely co-located. Most existing studies limit to finding groups either with the strongest social ties under certain spatial constraint or minimum spatial distance under certain social constraints. It is difficult for users to decide which constraints they need to choose and how to decide the priority of the constraints to meet their real requirements since the social constraint and spatial constraint are different in nature. In this paper, we take a new approach to consider the constraints equally and study a skyline query. Specifically, given a road-social network consisting of a road network Gr and a location-based social network Gs, we aim to find a set of skyline cohesive groups, in which each group cannot be dominated by any other group in terms of social cohesiveness and spatial cohesiveness. We find a group of users using social cohesiveness based on (k, c)-core (a k-core of size c) and spatial cohesiveness based on travel cost to a meeting point from group members. Such skyline problem is NP-hard as we need to explore the combinations of c vertices to check whether it is a qualified (k, c)-core. In this paper, we first provide exact solutions by developing efficient pruning strategies to filter out a large number of combinations which cannot form a (k, c)-core, and then propose highly efficient greedy solutions based on a newly designed cd-tree to keep the distance on the road network and social structural information simultaneously. Experimental results show that our exact methods run faster than the brute-force methods by 2-4 orders of magnitude in general, and our cd-tree based greedy methods can significantly reduce the computation cost by 1-4 order of magnitude while the extra travel cost is less than 5% compared to the exact method on multiple real road-social networks.
Genetic molecular markers to accelerate genetic gains in crops.

The advent of molecular marker technology changed methods of plant breeding in a positive direction. Since the boom of the genomic sequencing era, several advancements and innovations originating in the ﬁeld of molecular markers are enhancing the pace of crop improvement. Over the decades, many reviews on molecular markers have been published, especially pertaining to their application in plant breeding. Here we provide an update on the evolution of marker technologies and their applications for accelerating genetic gains in crops. Genetic markers can be described as genetic differences between individual organisms or species. We have previously provided an account of the concept, methods and applications for easy understanding by early career researchers [ 1 ] . The markers do not represent the target genes themselves essentially but act as ‘signs’ or ‘ﬂags’ and can be classiﬁed into three major types: morphological, biochem-ical and DNA markers. Classiﬁcation is based on the allelic variation caused by phenotypic traits, isozymes and sites of variation in DNA, respectively [ 2 ] . To select an efﬁcient marker system, several criteria are considered. For instance, Gupta et al. suggested a set of criteria for an efﬁcient marker system applicable to crop improvement: primarily the markers should be highly polymorphic, evenly distributed, preferably codominant, distinctly allelic, single-copy, cost-efﬁcient and amenable to automation [ 3 ] . Different types of molecular marker systems such as restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RFLPs), random-ampliﬁed poly-morphic DNAs (RAPDs), ampliﬁed fragment length polymorphisms (AFLPs), Diversity Arrays Technology (DArT)
The Impact of Seed Mix Weight on Diversity and Species Composition in a Tallgrass Prairie Restoration Planting, Nachusa Grasslands, Illinois, USA

We evaluated the effects of varying bulk seed mix weight (kg/ha) applications on species diversity and species composition of a tallgrass prairie planting established at Nachusa Grasslands (north-central Illinois). Following the application of five seed sowing weights (0, 11.2, 33.6, 56.0, and 78.5 kg/ha) containing seeds from 128 species, we censused plot species richness, stem density, and percent cover of each species in the treatment and control plots (0 kg/ha). Overall there were significant differences in vegetation composition between seed weight treatments. Low seed density plots had low species evenness, while densities of 56.0 and 78.5 kg/ha showed significantly greater evenness. Based on germination and growth, the floristic quality index (FQI) was significantly lower in the control and lighter seed weight treatments. Detrended Correspondence Analysis (DCA) ordination suggests that 56.0 kg/ha yields compositionally similar results to 78.5 kg/ha. Considering all ecological metrics analyzed, there were few differences between the 56.0 and 78.5 kg/ha treatments. The applications of 33.6 kg/ha and below led to outcomes such as greater weed abundance and lower overall vegetation cover, potentially creating future management concerns. Our findings, two years post-planting, suggest that seed weights of at least 56.0 kg/ha should be used whenever possible to maximize diversity and increase presence of species with high conservation value.
Cyclin D1 Overexpression versus Response to Induction Chemotherapy in Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Head and Neck?Preliminary Report

The aim of this study was to investigate whether there is an association between overexpression of cyclin D1 and response to therapy. Immunohistochemical overexpression of cyclin D1 was determined in paraffin-embedded specimens from diagnostic biopsies of 89 primary cases of squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (SCCHN), using a polyclonal antiserum. The tumor response rates were estimated after curative treatment (i.e. surgery and/or radiotherapy and/or chemotherapy). Patients whose tumors were overexpressing cyclin D1 showed complete or partial response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy with cisplatin/5-FU. In addition, a majority of cyclin D1 negative tumors did not respond at all to this treatment (p = 0.02, Fisher's exact test). This study indicates that immunohistochemical assessment of cyclin D1 expression in SCCHN could be a new predictive marker to select a subgroup of patients that will benefit from neoadjuvant chemotherapy.
A Highly Sensitive Amperometric Glutamate Oxidase Microbiosensor Based on a Reduced Graphene Oxide/Prussian Blue Nanocube/Gold Nanoparticle Composite Film-Modified Pt Electrode

A simple method that relies only on an electrochemical workstation has been investigated to fabricate a highly sensitive glutamate microbiosensor for potential neuroscience applications. In this study, in order to develop the highly sensitive glutamate electrode, a 100 µm platinum wire was modified by the electrochemical deposition of gold nanoparticles, Prussian blue nanocubes, and reduced graphene oxide sheets, which increased the electroactive surface area; and the chitosan layer, which provided a suitable environment to bond the glutamate oxidase. The optimization of the fabrication procedure and analytical conditions is described. The modified electrode was characterized using field emission scanning electron microscopy, impedance spectroscopy, and cyclic voltammetry. The results exhibited its excellent sensitivity for glutamate detection (LOD = 41.33 nM), adequate linearity (50 nM–40 µM), ascendant reproducibility (RSD = 4.44%), and prolonged stability (more than 30 repetitive potential sweeps, two-week lifespan). Because of the important role of glutamate in neurotransmission and brain function, this small-dimension, high-sensitivity glutamate electrode is a promising tool in neuroscience research.
Is Shiga Toxin-Producing Escherichia coli O45 No Longer a Food Safety Threat? The Danger is Still Out There

Many Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) strains, including the serogroups of O157 and most of the top six non-O157 serotypes, are frequently associated with foodborne outbreaks. Therefore, they have been extensively studied using next-generation sequencing technology. However, related information regarding STEC O45 strains is scarce. In this study, three environmental E. coli O45:H16 strains (RM11911, RM13745, and RM13752) and one clinical E. coli O45:H2 strain (SJ7) were sequenced and used to characterize virulence factors using two reference E. coli O45:H2 strains of clinical origin. Subsequently, whole-genome-based phylogenetic analysis was conducted for the six STEC O45 strains and nine other reference STEC genomes, in order to evaluate their evolutionary relationship. The results show that one locus of enterocyte effacement pathogenicity island was found in all three STEC O45:H2 strains, but not in the STEC O45:H16 strains. Additionally, E. coli O45:H2 strains were evolutionarily close to E. coli O103:H2 strains, sharing high homology in terms of virulence factors, such as Stx prophages, but were distinct from E. coli O45:H16 strains. The findings show that E. coli O45:H2 may be as virulent as E. coli O103:H2, which is frequently associated with severe illness and can provide genomic evidence to facilitate STEC surveillance.