Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome patients exhibit altered T cell metabolism and cytokine associations.

Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) is a complex disease with no known cause or mechanism. There is an increasing appreciation for the role of immune and metabolic dysfunction in the disease. ME/CFS has historically presented in outbreaks, often has a flu-like onset, and results in inflammatory symptoms. Patients suffer from severe fatigue and post-exertional malaise. There is little known about the metabolism of specific immune cells in ME/CFS patients. To investigate immune metabolism in ME/CFS, we isolated CD4+ and CD8+ T cells from 53 ME/CFS patients and 45 healthy controls. We analyzed glycolysis and mitochondrial respiration in resting and activated T cells, along with markers related to cellular metabolism, and plasma cytokines. We found that ME/CFS CD8+ T cells have reduced mitochondrial membrane potential compared to healthy controls. Both CD4+ and CD8+ T cells from ME/CFS patients had reduced glycolysis at rest, while CD8+ T cells also had reduced glycolysis following activation. ME/CFS patients had significant correlations between measures of T cell metabolism and plasma cytokine abundance that differed from healthy control subjects. Our data indicate that patients have impaired T cell metabolism consistent with ongoing immune alterations in ME/CFS that may illuminate the mechanism behind this disease.
Headteachers' and chairs of governors' perspectives on adolescent obesity and its prevention in English secondary school settings.

BACKGROUND Secondary schools are an important setting for preventing obesity in adolescence. Headteachers and chairs of governors are identified in national guidance as crucial stakeholders for school-based preventative action. Despite this, their views remain unexplored and unrepresented. METHODS A sequential mixed method study was conducted. Semi-structured interviews were undertaken with a purposive sample of 22 secondary school headteachers and chairs of governors in England. Data were thematically analysed and informed the development of a descriptive cross-sectional survey, completed by 127 participants from the same population. RESULTS Unhealthy dietary and sedentary behaviours were viewed as a more significant problem than adolescent obesity. Obesity was perceived as complex and multi-causal, and a range of stakeholders were deemed to have responsibility for its prevention, most notably parents. Support was identified for the role of secondary schools, although this was not an explicit priority and extensive internal and external barriers exist, which hinder preventative action. CONCLUSIONS Whilst secondary school settings in England remain an important setting for the prevention of adolescent obesity, it is crucial for policy makers and public health professionals to recognize the factors affecting school leaders' ability and willingness to contribute to this agenda.
Flax rust infection transcriptomics reveals a transcriptional profile that may be indicative for rust Avr genes

Secreted effectors of fungal pathogens are essential elements for disease development. However, lack of sequence conservation among identified effectors has long been a problem for predicting effector complements in fungi. Here we have explored the expression characteristics of avirulence (Avr) genes and candidate effectors of the flax rust fungus, Melampsora lini. We performed transcriptome sequencing and real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR) on RNA extracted from ungerminated spores, germinated spores, isolated haustoria and flax seedlings inoculated with M. lini isolate CH5 during plant infection. Genes encoding two categories of M. lini proteins, namely Avr proteins and plant cell wall degrading enzymes (CWDEs), were investigated in detail. Analysis of the expression profiles of 623 genes encoding predicted secreted proteins in the M. lini transcriptome shows that the six known Avr genes (i.e. AvrM (avrM), AvrM14, AvrL2, AvrL567, AvrP123 (AvrP) and AvrP4) fall within a group of 64 similarly expressed genes that are induced in planta and show a peak of expression early in infection with a subsequent decline towards sporulation. Other genes within this group include two paralogues of AvrL2, an AvrL567 virulence allele, and a number of genes encoding putative effector proteins. By contrast, M. lini genes encoding CWDEs fall into different expression clusters with their distribution often unrelated to their catalytic activity or substrate targets. These results suggest that synthesis of M. lini Avr proteins may be regulated in a coordinated fashion and that the expression profiling-based analysis has significant predictive power for the identification of candidate Avr genes.
Onset of hypothyroidism after total laryngectomy: Effects of thyroid gland surgery and preoperative and postoperative radiotherapy

To determine time of onset and risk of hypothyroidism after total laryngectomy (TL) with and without (hemi)thyroidectomy in relation to treatment regimen, that is, preoperative radiotherapy (RT‐TL), postoperative radiotherapy (TL‐RT), and postoperative re‐irradiation (RT‐TL‐RT).
The Forgotten Second Window: A Pictorial Review of Round Window Pathologies

SUMMARY: The round window serves to decompress acoustic energy that enters the cochlea via stapes movement against the oval window. Any inward motion of the oval window via stapes vibration leads to outward motion of the round window. Occlusion of the round window is a cause of conductive hearing loss because it increases the resistance to sound energy and consequently dampens energy propagation. Because the round window niche is not adequately evaluated by otoscopy and may be incompletely exposed during an operation, otologic surgeons may not always correctly identify associated pathology. Thus, radiologists play an essential role in the identification and classification of diseases affecting the round window. The purpose of this review is to highlight the developmental, acquired, neoplastic, and iatrogenic range of pathologies that can be encountered in round window dysfunction.
A Sub‐10 nm Vertical Organic/Inorganic Hybrid Transistor for Pain‐Perceptual and Sensitization‐Regulated Nociceptor Emulation

Pain‐perceptual nociceptors (PPN) are essential sensory neurons that recognize harmful stimuli and can empower the human body to react appropriately and perceive precisely unusual or dangerous conditions in the real world. Furthermore, the sensitization‐regulated nociceptors (SRN) can greatly assist pain‐sensitive human to reduce pain sensation by normalizing hyperexcitable central neural activity. Therefore, the implementation of PPNs and SRNs in hardware using emerging nanoscale devices can greatly improve the efficiency of bionic medical machines by giving them different sensitivities to external stimuli according to different purposes. However, current most‐normal organic/oxide transistors face a great challenge due to channel scaling, especially in the sub‐10 nm channel technology. Here, a sub‐10 nm indium‐tin‐oxide transistor with an ultrashort vertical channel as low as ≈3 nm, using sodium alginate bio‐polymer electrolyte as gate dielectric, is demonstrated. This device can emulate important characteristics of PPN such as pain threshold, memory of prior injury, and pain sensitization/desensitization. Furthermore, the most intriguing character of SRN can be achieved by tuning the channel thickness. The proposed device can open new avenues for the fascinating applications of next‐generation neuromorphic brain‐like systems, such as bio‐inspired electronic skins and humanoid robots.
M – 12 DEVELOPING AN ASSESSMENT INSTRUMENT OF HIGHER ORDER THINKING SKILL (HOTS) IN MATHEMATICS FOR JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL GRADE VIII SEMESTER 1

This research aims to produce a valid and reliable mathematics assessment instrument in the form of HOTS test items, and describe the quality of HOTS test items to measure the high order thinking skill of grade VIII SMP students. This study was a research and development study adapting Borg & Gall’s development model, including the following steps: research and information collection, planning, the early product development, limited try out, revising the early product, field try out, and revising the final product. The research’s result shows that the HOTS assessment instrument in the form of HOTS test items consists of 24 multiple – choice test items and 19 essay test items, based on the judgement of the materials, construction, and language is valid and appropriate to be used. The reliability coefficients of the instrument are 0.713 for the multiple choice items, and 0.920 for essays. The multiple choice items has the average of item difficulty 0.406 (average), the average of item discrimination 0.330 (good), and the distractors function well. The essay test items has the average of item difficulty 0.373 (average) and the average of item discrimination 0.508 (good).
A smart mannequin system for the pressure performance evaluation of compression garments

A smart mannequin with the dimension of a standard female body was developed for measuring garment pressure. The mannequin has a rigid internal layer and is covered with a soft surface; it has eight built-in pressure sensors distributed on its surface. The sensors sense pressure imposed by wearing a garment and fed data into an acquisition device simultaneously. The mannequin can extend transversely at the antemedial and postmedial line to the maximum level of 5 cm, which may imitate the dimensions of different human body. Seven compression garments made from elastic fabrics knitted with controlled Spandex feeding rate were tested. Results showed that the pressure distributions exhibited obvious differences among the measuring points. They were also different at each particular measuring point when the mannequin dimensions were varied, and the controlled Spandex feeding rate caused pressure variations among the specimens. This smart mannequin system provides a novel tool for evaluating the pressure performance of compression garments, and gives reliable data for functional product development.
On the Kubelka—Munk Single-Constant/Two-Constant Theories

As the basic theory for color mixing in intensely light-scattering materials, the Kubelka— Munk single-constant/two-constant theories have played an important role in color science and technology. However, in practice there are some shortcomings. This paper checked the theories with a series of systematical experiments, data processing and analyzing, and has revealed several disagreements with the experimental evidence in the case of the additivity color-mixing law for turbid materials. Explanations on some of these problems are given, which are different from the conventional views.
Эконометрический ликбез: волатильность Оценивание мер волатильности на данных высокой частотности

Благодаря всё большей доступности данных высокой частотности, например, внутридневных данных, возникло новое направление в измерении волатильности. Новые методы включают в себя непараметрическое оценивание волатильности с построением её прогнозов, ковариационных матриц, мгновенной волатильности, а также части волатильности, связанной со скачками. Настоящее эссе представляет собой обзор методов измерения волатильности, в том числе для данных ультравысокой частотности с микроструктурными искажениями. Включено также обсуждение проблем, возникающих при оценивании мер волатильности на несинхронизированных данных.
Multiplexed Fiber Optic Twin-sensor Array based on a Combination of Mach-Zehnder and Michelson Interferometers

A multiplexed white light interferometric fiber optic twin-sensor array is designed and demonstrated. In this sensing system, based on a combination of Mach-Zehnder and Michelson interferometers, an optical path matching technique is used to demodulate each twin sensor. The twin-sensor array consists of 2 × N sensing elements linked by a 3 dB coupler. While one of the twin sensors is used to measure strain, the other one compensates the variation caused by the temperature. The multiplexing capacity of the sensing scheme is analyzed and an experimental result with a 2 × 3 twin-sensor array is demonstrated and tested.
Influence of Carbon Black on Properties of PZT-Cement Piezoelectric Composites

A novel piezoelectric composite has been developed using white cement as matrix, lead zirconate titanate as the piezoelectrically active phase, and carbon black (CB) as the conducting additive. By increasing the overall conductivity of the composites, CB facilitates the poling process of the composites so that it can be carried out at room temperature. The influences of CB on the piezoelectric and dielectric properties of the composites are investigated. A percolation threshold is observed with the threshold value for CB in the composites at about 1.4 vol.%. Before the threshold point, piezoelectric activity of the composites increases with increasing CB content. The highest piezoelectric strain factor (d33) is measured to be 28.5 pC/N, obtained by adding 1.0 vol. % CB. This is 148% higher than that of the composite without CB. This enhanced performance makes the composite particularly attractive for practical applications in the field of civil engineering.
Elastic Behavior of Woven Fabric Composites: I—Lamina Analysis

Two-dimensional models are presented for the elastic analysis of a plain weave fabric lamina. These models take into account the actual fabric structure by consid ering the fiber undulation and continuity along both the warp and weft directions, possible presence of gap between adjacent yarns, actual cross-sectional geometry of the yarn and possible unbalanced nature of the plain weave fabric. Typical studies on the effect of fiber undulation and lamina thickness on the in-plane elastic constants are presented. A large discrepancy, similar to that reported in literature, is found between the predicted elastic moduli of plain weave fabric lamina by ID WF models and experimental results. On the other hand, the predictions of 2D WF models are fairly good since the two-dimensional extent of the fabric is considered in these models.
Rejoinder

We would like to thank Drs Saville and Meurer for the careful reading of our paper and for their comments, which we think fall broadly into three classes: (1) that an implicit intent of our paper is to highlight problems with OAR (outcome-adaptive randomization) designs in order to discourage their use, (2) that the scenarios we investigated to demonstrate bias and the correction for bias are unrealistic and therefore not useful, and (3) that other biases may exist in retrospective or exploratory analyses that are more important than the bias we are studying. On the first issue, the focus of our paper is not on the controversy of whether OAR trials are better or worse than trials using the conventional fixed-ratio randomization approach, nor did we intend to advocate or criticize the usage of OAR in the design of clinical trials. As Drs Saville and Meurer note, there has been a large literature that has evaluated OAR from various perspectives. Rather, we demonstrated the existence of bias in ancillary or retrospective biomarker studies using data from an OAR trial and proposed and evaluated a methodological solution for correcting this bias. This is the first paper that has demonstrated and reported the existence of bias when analyzing OAR data to assess the effect of a new biomarker with standard statistical methods. We think it is important for investigators who are involved in designing and conducting OAR trials or who utilize data from OAR trials to conduct biomarker analyses to be aware of this issue and consider unbiased statistical methods when performing these analyses. The research question pursued in this paper is important. Biomarker-stratified OAR trials have been and are being conducted, stratification often based on a wellestablished biomarker, denoted B0 in our article. Large collections of specimens and/or data are being, and will be, created for secondary analysis of biomarkers. The marginal effect of a new biomarker, denoted BN in our article, is important and is often a research question an investigator asks using these data. The following are among many scenarios where the research question raised in our paper is relevant:
Лабораторијска дијагностика у ортопедској хирургији

Kao i sva ka ope ra ci ja, ta ko i or to ped ska mo že da iza zo ve kom pli ka ci je, kao što su kr va re we, du bo ka ven ska trom bo za, re spi ra tor ne, re nal ne, va sku lar ne, ga stro in te sti nal ne, uri nar ne, ce rebral ne, he pa tiè ke i kom pli ka ci je ope ra tiv ne rane [1, 2]. Uspe šna or to ped ska ope ra ci ja pred stavqa, iz me ðu osta log, i ade kvat nu funk ci ju si stema za he mo sta zu. He mo sta za je pro ces u ko jem posto ji udru že no de lo va we krv nih æe li ja (trom boci ta), krv nog su da, si ste ma ko a gu la ci je i fi brino li tiè kog si ste ma. Pod pe ri o pe ra ci o nim, odno sno po sto pe ra ci o nim po re me æa jem he mo sta ze raz li ku je mo one èi ji je re zul tat kr va re we i one ko je za po sle di cu ima ju trom bo em bo li zam. Me hani zam na stan ka je ple o mor fan i ukqu èu je oslo baða we tkiv nog fak to ra (TF) i se ro to ni na iz ošteæe nog tki va, po ve æa no stva ra we pro ko a gu lant nih fak to ra ko je je iza zva no akut no fa znim od go vo rom pre ko in ter le u ki na i sma we wem fak to ra ko a gula ci je usled wi ho ve po ve æa ne po tro šwe, gu bitka kr vi ili he mo di lu ci je [3].
Clinical Practice Guideline: Sudden Hearing Loss

Program Description: The miniseminar will consist of a lively panel discussion on the evidence-based recommendations for the diagnosis and treatment of sudden hearing loss. The panel will discuss the newly developed AAO-HNS clinical practice guideline. The primary purpose of the guideline is to improve the diagnosis and management of sudden hearing loss in adults aged 18 years and older. In creating this guideline the AAO-HNSF selected a panel representing the fields of otolaryngology-head and neck surgery, audiology, otology, neurology, neurotology, family medicine, emergency medicine, and consumers. Educational Objectives: 1) Learn diagnostic criteria for sudden sensorineural hearing loss. 2) Plan treatment based on current best evidence from randomized, controlled trials. 3) Identify management and counseling strategies that improve quality of care.
High-Resolution Microendoscope Images of Middle Ear Cholesteatoma and Surrounding Tissue

Objective Investigate how accurately otolaryngologists could differentiate between images obtained with high-resolution microendoscopy (HRME) of ex vivo cholesteatoma specimens and surrounding middle ear epithelium. Study Design HRME images of surgically resected cholesteatoma and middle ear epithelium were obtained and otolaryngologists classified these images. Setting Tertiary medical center. Subjects and Methods Resected cholesteatoma and middle ear epithelium were stained with a contrast agent, proflavine, and HRME images were captured. Specimens were sent for standard histopathology and compared with HRME images. Quality-controlled images were used to assemble a training set. After viewing training images, otolaryngologists without prior cholesteatoma HRME experience reviewed and classified test images. Results Ten cholesteatoma and 9 middle ear specimens were collected, of which 17 representative cholesteatoma and 19 middle ear epithelium images were extracted for a testing set. Qualitative analysis for concordance between HRME images and histological images yielded a strong correlation between modalities. The mean accuracy of all reviewers in correctly identifying images was 95% (95% confidence interval [CI], 92%-98%). The sensitivity to correctly detect cholesteatoma images was 98% (95% CI, 93%-100%), and the specificity was 92% (95% CI, 87%-97%). The Fleiss kappa interrater reliability score was 0.83, (95% CI, 0.77-0.89). Conclusions Medical professionals can quickly be trained to accurately distinguish between HRME images of cholesteatoma and normal middle ear epithelium, both of which have distinct imaging characteristics. Real-time HRME optical imaging can potentially improve the results of otologic surgery by allowing for extirpation of cholesteatomas while eliminating residual disease.
Piezoresistive Cement-based Strain Sensors and Self-sensing Concrete Components

A type of embedded piezoresistive cement-based strain sensors (PCSS) is proposed for monitoring local compressive strain of concrete structures. A four-pole arrangement of embedded gauze electrode is used to eliminate the contact resistance between electrodes and piezoresistive cement-based material thereby improving the measuring accuracy of the output signal of PCSS. Both carbon fiber and carbon black are added into cement-based materials to improve the reproducibility of piezoresistivity in PCSS. A compensation circuit in PCSS is incorporated to reduce the effect of temperature and humidity on the output of PCSS. PCSS are embedded in concrete beams and columns to monitor the compressive strain of beams and columns under field conditions. Experimental results indicate that a sensitivity of 0.0138%/με, a resolution of 0.007 με, a linearity of 4.25%, a repeatability of 4.36% and a hysteresis of 3.63% can be achieved using the proposed PCSS. It is therefore concluded that the self-sensing concrete components embedded with PCSS can be used to monitor their compressive strain.
Health status in patients with disturbed sleep and obstructive sleep apnea

The health status of 435 consecutive patients with sleep disturbances necessitating polysomnography was investigated. Patients underwent overnight polysomnography and health status assessment, including the Medical Outcomes Study SF-36 Health Survey and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. Based on a respiratory distress index (RDI) greater than 10 to define apnea, patients with apnea were significantly (P < 0.05) more likely to be male, be older, and have higher body mass index and lower oxygen saturation levels than patients without apnea. Multiple domains of the SF-36 Health Survey and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index were significantly worse (P < 0.05) for this population when normative data were compared. Although few differences were observed between the apneic and nonapneic patients when a cutoff point for apnea was defined as an RDI greater than 10 or 20, increasing RDI was significantly associated with worsening physical functioning scores. Overall, decrements in health status measures were more strongly correlated with the number of oxygen desaturations below 85% than with increasing RDI. We conclude that patients with sleep disturbances demonstrate significant decrements in general and sleep-specific health status, but these decrements are more closely associated with oxygen desaturation than RDI.