Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Development and Verification of Three-Dimensional Model of Human Foot for Badminton Insole Analysis: A Finite Element Study

The development process of three-dimensional (3D) model of human body parts were rapidly emerged from time to time. The use of 3D model could in various forms such as finite element analysis and 3D printing purpose. The finite element analysis can provide a deep understanding of the models of human parts in which difficult to be experimentally conducted due to some issues. One of the issues is related to the results of an experiment where it more globalized and difficult to focus on a specific location of bones. By having a finite element study, local stress distribution and many virtual surgeries on the patients can be conducted easily. There are many published papers reporting the steps in developing 3D model of bone. All of them have their own method and validation. In this paper, we provide a method in developing 3D models of human ankle-foot bones and verification analysis through finite element analysis. Computed tomography (CT) images were used to develop a total of 17 bones, and skin as soft tissue. To complete the foot and ankle joint, a total of 20 ligaments were modelled. On top of that, other parts such as insole, midsole and outsole were developed in CAD software. For boundary conditions, a face load of 270N was applied on the superior surface of the skin and the von Mises Stress were observed and compared with previous experimental results. The peak stress of the finite element analysis shows a value of 0.196MPa which in agreement with the experimental results showing the value of 0.157MPa. Based on the results, it can be concluded that the current models are verified and reliable to be used for the next analysis.
The Intra-Firm Knowledge Transfer in the Outward M&A of EMNCs: Evidence from Chinese Manufacturing Firms

This paper examines the intra-firm transfer of tacit and explicit knowledge in the post-acquisition integration stage in the outward mergers and acquisitions (M&A) of multinational corporations from emerging economies (EMNCs). It also explores rationales underlying the tacit and explicit knowledge transfer in the cross-cultural context. Drawing from the empirical evidence of three Chinese firms’ outward M&A in three European countries, we argue the Chinese acquiring firms emphasised the transfer of explicit over tacit knowledge in the post-acquisition integration in their outward M&A. This can be attributed to complementarity in explicit knowledge, home market advantage, scarcity of key staff and cultural differences.
The Role of Adding Sodium Chloride in Broiler Chicks Diets to Improve Production Performance and Antioxidant Status during Heat Stress

This study was conducted at the Poultry Research Station in the Livestock Research Department / Agricultural Research office / Ministry of Agriculture, where a 84 sexed chicks that brought from a local hatchery ( AL-Shuker) in Abu Ghraib were used at one day old with initial weight of 40g of the breed (Ross 308). The continuous light method (24 hours/day) and the gas incubators were used to warm the hall in order to reach the required temperature of 38°C until the end of the experiment at 42 days. The chicks were randomly distributed on 2 treatments, where each treatment included three replicates of (14 chicks / rep), the first one was the control treatment, and in the second treatment the chicks were given sodium chloride by 250 mg/kg feed. The findings of this study showed a significant superiority (P <0.05) for sodium chloride treatment over the control treatment in each of life body weight, weight gain, feed consumption, and a significant decreased in the mortality percentage compared to the control treatment. Furthermore, it can be noted from the lipid peroxidation measurements in broiler chicks, the NaCl's treatment was significantly decreased (P <0.05) in the maldehytomdialdehyde level, peroxide value, and free fatty acid percentage compared with the control. Finally, there were no significant differences between control treatment and sodium chloride treatment in enzyme activity of transaminases (Aspartate aminotransferase AST and Alanine aminotransferase ALT).
The Role of the Company’s Size to Profitability and Corporate Value Quality

The condition of the current economy has created a tough competition between industrial companies.The tight competition are demanding the company to further improve performance and innovating with products that are owned, in order to be better known by the public. In highly competitive environments era, companies must choose the cheapest way, in executing investment plans and to maximize the company value in order to survive. The perception of investors on the level of corporate success is reflected through the value of the company. Increased corporate value due to high stock prices will make investors believe the performance of the company and its prospects in the future. The result of this research is company’s size has strong influence to the determination of profitability and value of manufacturing company in Indonesia, while profitability has no effect to value of manufacturing company in Indonesia, nor with company size through profitability to company value have no influence, this proves together the size of the company and profitability have no influence on the value of the company, this is caused by profitability that has no effect on the value of the company.
MiR-126 enhances cisplatin chemosensitivity in hepatocellular carcinoma cells by targeting IRS1

Purpose : To investigate the potential role of miR-126 in regulating the proliferation and cisplatin chemosensitivity of human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells. Methods : The expression of miR-126 was evaluated using clinical HCC specimens. MiR-126-mediated downregulation of Insulin Receptor Substrate 1 (IRS1) was determined by qRT-PCR, western blot and luciferase reporter assay. Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK8) and colony formation assays were performed to examine the proliferation of HCC cells. Results : Decreased expression of miR126 was found in HCC tumors and was correlated with poor survival in HCC patients. In HCC cells, miR-126 targeted IRS1 for downregulation, through which miR- 126 suppressed the growth of HCC cells and desensitized HCC cells to cisplatin treatment. Conclusion : MiR-126a impairs the proliferation and cisplatin chemoresistance of HCC cells by targeting IRS1. Keywords : miR-126, IRS1, HCC, cisplatin, chemosensitivity
Targeting actin-bundling protein L-plastin as an anabolic therapy for bone loss

Targeting L-plastin suppresses bone resorption and promotes bone formation by disrupting preosteoclast fusion. The actin-bundling protein L-plastin (LPL) mediates the resorption activity of osteoclasts, but its therapeutic potential in pathological bone loss remains unexplored. Here, we report that LPL knockout mice show increased bone mass and cortical thickness with more mononuclear tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase–positive cells, osteoblasts, CD31hiEmcnhi endothelial vessels, and fewer multinuclear osteoclasts in the bone marrow and periosteum. LPL deletion impeded preosteoclasts fusion by inhibiting filopodia formation and increased the number of preosteoclasts, which release platelet-derived growth factor-BB to promote CD31hiEmcnhi vessel growth and bone formation. LPL expression is regulated by the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/AKT/specific protein 1 axis in response to receptor activator of nuclear factor–κB ligand. Furthermore, we identified an LPL inhibitor, oroxylin A, that could maintain bone mass in ovariectomy-induced osteoporosis and accelerate bone fracture healing in mice. In conclusion, we showed that LPL regulates osteoclasts fusion, and targeting LPL serves as a novel anabolic therapy for pathological bone loss.
The Association between Shift Work and Health-Related Productivity Loss due to Either Sickness Absence or Reduced Performance at Work: A Cross-Sectional Study of Korea

Background: The purpose of the present study was to investigate the association between shift work and health-related productivity loss (HRPL) due to either sickness absence or reduced performance at work. Methods: From January 2020 to February 2020, data were collected using the web-based questionnaire. Workers in Korea (n = 4197) were selected with the convenience sampling method. To evaluate HRPL, the Korean version of the “Work Productivity and Activity Impairment Questionnaire” was used. The nonparametric association between shift work and HRPL was determined. To estimate productivity loss by shift work, generalised linear models were used, and the productivity loss of workers who did not do shift work was used as the reference. Contrasts between the reference (non-shift work) and shift work, including the shift work subtype, were demonstrated. In the adjusted model, age, gender, and occupation were included as covariates. To test whether there were differences in this association by gender, a gender-stratified analysis was conducted. Results: Shift work significantly reduced productivity (2.5% points; 95% CI: 0.2–4.6). The fixed night shift had the largest productivity loss (7.7% points; 95% CI: 1.8–13.7), and the relationship between HRPL and shift work was more prominent among female workers. Conclusions: Shift work is related to an increase in HRPL, and there are gender differences in this association. Our study further indicated that a fixed night shift is most detrimental to workers’ health and productivity.
First Report of Canine Infection by Leishmania (Viannia) guyanensis in the Brazilian Amazon

The American cutaneous (CL) and visceral leishmaniasis (VL) are zooanthroponoses transmitted by sand flies. Brazil records thousands of human leishmaniasis cases annually. Dogs are reservoirs of Leishmania infantum, which causes VL, but their role in the transmission cycle of CL is debatable. Wild mammals are considered reservoirs of the aetiological agents of CL (Leishmania spp.). Objective: To describe the aetiology of leishmaniasis in dogs in an endemic area for CL and VL in the Amazon, Brazil. Methods: Clinical evaluation and blood collection of 40 dogs from the villages Ubim (20) and Socorro (20), city of Tomé-Açu, state of Pará, were carried out. The DNA extracted from the blood was used for PCR with Leishmania-specific primers targeting the hsp70-234 gene sequence. Products were sequenced (ABI3500XL), and the sequences were aligned, edited (BioEdit), and analyzed (Blastn). Results: Of the 34 amplified samples, 21 were sequenced, namely Leishmania infantum (12), L. guyanensis (5), L. braziliensis (3), and Leishmania sp. (01). Conclusion: Given the diversity of circulating pathogens, elucidation of the role of the dog in the Leishmania spp. cycle in Amazonian villages is imperative to the surveillance of CL in the region. We present the first report in Brazil, confirmed by sequencing, of canine infection by L. guyanensis, a species highly resistant to treatment in humans, with the drug of first choice (Glucantime®).
UniNE at PAN-CLEF 2020: Author Verification

In our participation in the authorship verification task (small corpus), our main objective is to be able to discriminate between pairs of texts that were written by the same author (denoted “same-author”) and pairs of snippets written by different ones (“different-authors”). The paper describes a simple model that performs this task based on a Labbé similarity. As features, we employed the most frequent tokens (words, and punctuation symbols) from each author after including the most frequent ones of a given language. Such a representation strategy is based on word used frequently by a given author but not belonging to the most frequent in the English language. Evaluation based of authorship verification task with a rather small set of features shows an overall performance with the small dataset of F1= 0.705 and AUC = 0.840.
Medical Students' Reflections on the Recent Changes to the USMLE Step Exams.

The United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) consists of Step 1, Step 2 Clinical Knowledge, Step 2 Clinical Skills, and Step 3. To be licensed to practice medicine in the United States, medical students must pass all parts of the USMLE. However, in addition to that pass/fail grade, students are currently given a numerical score for Step 1, Step 2 Clinical Knowledge, and Step 3. Residency program directors have come to use the Step 1 score to efficiently screen a growing number of residency applicants. As a result, a deleterious environment in undergraduate medical education has been created, given the importance of Step 1 to medical students matching to their preferred residency program. It was announced in February 2020 that the score reporting protocol for Step 1 would be changed from a 3-digit numerical score to pass/fail only, beginning no earlier than January 1, 2022. This decision will undoubtedly impact medical students, medical schools, and residency program directors.Here, the authors discuss the impact that the change to Step 1 scoring will have on these key stakeholder groups, from their perspective as students at MD-granting medical schools in the United States. They also call attention to outstanding issues with the USMLE that must be addressed to improve undergraduate medical education for all stakeholders, and they offer advice for further improvements to the residency application process.
Metabolic Responses to Butyrate Supplementation in LF- and HF-Fed Mice Are Cohort-Dependent and Associated with Changes in Composition and Function of the Gut Microbiota

The gut microbiota and associated metabolites have emerged as potential modulators of pathophysiological changes in obesity and related metabolic disorders. Butyrate, a product of bacterial fermentation, has been shown to have beneficial effects in obesity and rodent models of diet-induced obesity. Here, we aimed to determine the beneficial effects of butyrate (as glycerol ester of butyrate monobutyrin, MB) supplementation on metabolic phenotype, intestinal permeability and inflammation, feeding behavior, and the gut microbiota in low-fat (LF)- and high-fat (HF)-fed mice. Two cohorts (separated by 2 weeks) of male C57BL/6J mice (n = 24 in each cohort, 6/group/cohort; 6 weeks old) were separated into four weight-matched groups and fed either a LF (10 % fat/kcal) or HF (45% fat/kcal) with or without supplementation of MB (LF/MB or HF/MB) at 0.25% (w/v) in drinking water for 6 weeks. Metabolic phenotypes (body weight and adiposity), intestinal inflammation, feeding behavior, and fecal microbiome and metabolites were measured. Despite identical genetic and experimental conditions, we found marked differences between cohorts in the response (body weight gain, adiposity, and intestinal permeability) to HF-diet and MB. Notably, the composition of the gut microbiota was significantly different between cohorts, characterized by lower species richness and differential abundance of a large number of taxa, including subtaxa from five phyla, including increased abundance of the genera Bacteroides, Proteobacteria, and Parasutterella in cohort 2 compared to cohort 1. These differences may have contributed to the differential response in intestinal permeability to the HF diet in cohort 2. MB supplementation had no significant effect on metabolic phenotype, but there was a trend to protect from HF-induced impairments in intestinal barrier function in cohort 1 and in sensitivity to cholecystokinin (CCK) in both cohorts. These data support the concept that microbiota composition may have a crucial effect on metabolic responses of a host to dietary interventions and highlight the importance of taking steps to ensure reproducibility in rodent studies.
Kondo effect and detection of a spin-polarized current in a quantum point contact

The Kondo effect of these single objects represents a model system to study electron correlations, which are nowadays of importance in relation to the emerging field of spin electronics, also known as spintronics, where chemical elements with partially filled d or f shells play a central role. Also of particular interest to spintronics is the interaction of single Kondo impurities with ferromagnetic leads or with other magnetic impurities. A Kondo impurity is in fact sensitive to its magnetic environment as the ASK resonance is usually split into two resonances in the presence of magnetic interactions. To some extent, the ASK resonance acts as a two-fold degenerate energy level of an atom which undergoes a Zeeman splitting in the presence of an effective magnetic field. Conversely, the detection of a Zeeman splitting indicates the existence of a magnetic field. In a QD, the coupling of the QD to the two leads is very weak in general, and the Kondo resonance is in the range of a few meV. Many studies focusing on magnetic interaction have been carried out on QDs, due to the high control that can be extended to the ASK resonance and its low energy range, allowing to split the resonance with a magnetic field of 10 T. Similar work has also been carried out in single-molecule or lithographically-defined devices. Although STM is an ideal tool to study the Kondo effect of single atoms, there is still a strong lack of experimental studies concerning atoms in the presence of magnetic interactions. This is partly due to the stronger impurity-metal hybridization compared to QDs, which places the ASK width in the range of 10 meV. An effective magnetic field of 100 T would be needed to split the resonance. The present Thesis is devoted precisely at studying the interaction between a single Kondo impurity with its magnetic environment through STM. A new strategy is adopted herecompared to former studies of this kind. Firstly, we contact a single-magnetic atom on a surface with a STM tip thereby eliminating the vacuum barrier. Secondly, we use ferromagnetic tips. The contact with a single atom allows probing the influence of ferromagnetism on the Kondo impurity i. e. its ASK resonance. But most importantly, the contact geometry produces sufficiently high current densities compared to the tunneling regime, so that the ASK resonance becomes sensitive to the presence of a spin-polarized current. This constitutes the first atomic scale detection of a spin-polarized current with a single Kondo impurity.
Factors associated with childhood anaemia in Afro-descendant communities in Alagoas, Brazil

Abstract Objective: To investigate factors associated with anaemia in preschool children. Design: A home survey was conducted in 2018. Anaemia in children (capillary blood Hb level < 110 g/l) was the outcome, and socio-economic, demographic and health factors of the mother and child were the independent variables. The measure of association was the prevalence ratio, and its 95 % CI was calculated using Poisson’s regression with robust variance and hierarchical selection of independent variables. Setting: Afro-descendants communities living in the state of Alagoas, northeast Brazil. Participants: Children aged 6–59 months and their mothers (n 428 pairs). Results: The prevalence of child anaemia was 38·1 % (95 % CI 33·5, 42·7). The associated factors with child anaemia were male sex, age < 24 months, larger number of residents at home (> 4), relatively taller mothers (highest tertile) and higher z-score of BMI for age, after further adjustment for wealth index, vitamin A supplementation in the past 6 months and clinical visit in the last 30 d. Conclusions: The high prevalence of anaemia observed reveals a relevant public health problem amongst children under five from the quilombola communities of Alagoas. Considering the damage caused to health and multiplicity of risk factors associated with anaemia, the adoption of intersectoral strategies that act on modifiable risk factors and increase vigilance concerning those that are not modifiable becomes urgent.
Aortic valve replacement: validation of the Toronto Aortic Stenosis Quality of Life Questionnaire

There is no quality of life tool specifically developed for patients with severe aortic stenosis (AS) to assess how this chronic condition and its treatment affect patients. The Toronto Aortic Stenosis Quality of Life Questionnaire (TASQ) has been developed to overcome this gap. The results of the validation of the TASQ in patients undergoing treatment for severe AS are presented.
Performance Evaluation of an Integrated Fuzzy-Based Driving-Support System for Real-Time Risk Management in VANETs

The highly competitive and rapidly advancing autonomous vehicle race has been on for several years now, and it has made the driver-assistance systems a shadow of their former self. Nevertheless, automated vehicles have many obstacles on the way, and until we have them on the roads, promising solutions that can be achievable in the near future should be sought-after. Driving-support technologies have proven themselves to be effective in the battle against car crashes, and with Vehicular Ad hoc Networks (VANETs) supporting them, their efficiency is expected to rise steeply. In this work, we propose and implement a driving-support system which, on the one hand, could immensely benefit from major advancement of VANETs, but on the other hand can effectively be implemented as a stand-alone system. The proposed system consists of a non-intrusive integrated fuzzy-based system able to detect a risky situation in real time and alert the driver about the danger. It makes use of the information acquired from various in-car sensors as well as from communications with other vehicles and infrastructure to evaluate the condition of the considered parameters. The parameters include factors that affect the driver’s ability to drive, such as his/her current health condition and the inside environment in which he/she is driving, the vehicle speed, and factors related to the outside environment such as the weather and road condition. We show the effect of these parameters on the determination of the driving risk level through simulations and experiments and explain how these risk levels are translated into actions that can help the driver to manage certain risky situations, thus improving the driving safety.
A whole‐brain modeling approach to identify individual and group variations in functional connectivity

Resting‐state functional connectivity is an important and widely used measure of individual and group differences. Yet, extant statistical methods are limited to linking covariates with variations in functional connectivity across subjects, especially at the voxel‐wise level of the whole brain. This paper introduces a modeling approach that regresses whole‐brain functional connectivity on covariates. Our approach is a mesoscale approach that enables identification of brain subnetworks. These subnetworks are composite of spatially independent components discovered by a dimension reduction approach (such as whole‐brain group ICA) and covariate‐related projections determined by the covariate‐assisted principal regression, a recently introduced covariance matrix regression method. We demonstrate the efficacy of this approach using a resting‐state fMRI dataset of a medium‐sized cohort of subjects obtained from the Human Connectome Project. The results suggest that the approach may improve statistical power in detecting interaction effects of gender and alcohol on whole‐brain functional connectivity, and in identifying the brain areas contributing significantly to the covariate‐related differences in functional connectivity.