Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Chemotherapeutic Strategies with Valnemulin, Tilmicosin, and Tulathromycin to Control Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae Infection in Pigs

Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae is the primary agent of Swine Enzootic Pneumonia (SEP). Vaccines reduce the clinical manifestation of the disease but do not prevent infection. The present study aimed to evaluate the use of antimicrobial drugs to minimize the impact of M. hyopneumoniae. For this, 32 pregnant female pigs and their litters were selected and then followed from birth to slaughter. The study involved three experimental groups that received metaphylactic treatment with different protocols involving tilmicosin, valnemulin, tulathromycin, and a control group to compare the effect of treatments against M. hyopneumoniae infection throughout the phases. Performance data were recorded, and the piglets were evaluated for the occurrence of cough. Nasal swab and blood collection was conducted periodically to detect M. hyopneumoniae shedding and anti-M. hyopneumoniae IgG, respectively. At slaughter, the lungs of animals from all groups were evaluated, and samples were collected for histopathological examination and qPCR for M. hyopneumoniae detection. All protocols promoted a reduction in consolidation lung lesions when compared to the control group. Individuals treated with valnemulin showed increased performance results, lower mortality, and low bacterial load in the lung. The results are promising and may indicate an alternative in the strategic control of M. hyopneumoniae infection in pigs.
An End-to-End Traditional Chinese Medicine Constitution Assessment System Based on Multimodal Clinical Feature Representation and Fusion

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) constitution is a fundamental concept in TCM theory. It is determined by multimodal TCM clinical features which, in turn, are obtained from TCM clinical information of image (face, tongue, etc.), audio (pulse and voice), and text (inquiry) modality. The auto assessment of TCM constitution is faced with two major challenges: (1) learning discriminative TCM clinical feature representations; (2) jointly processing the features using multimodal fusion techniques. The TCM Constitution Assessment System (TCM-CAS) is proposed to provide an end-to-end solution to this task, along with auxiliary functions to aid TCM researchers. To improve the results of TCM constitution prediction, the system combines multiple machine learning algorithms such as facial landmark detection, image segmentation, graph neural networks and multimodal fusion. Extensive experiments are conducted on a four-category multimodal TCM constitution dataset, and the proposed method achieves state-of-the-art accuracy. Provided with datasets containing annotations of diseases, the system can also perform automatic disease diagnosis from a TCM perspective.
L-CoDe: Language-Based Colorization Using Color-Object Decoupled Conditions

Colorizing a grayscale image is inherently an ill-posed problem with multi-modal uncertainty. Language-based colorization offers a natural way of interaction to reduce such uncertainty via a user-provided caption. However, the color-object coupling and mismatch issues make the mapping from word to color difficult. In this paper, we propose L-CoDe, a Language-based Colorization network using color-object Decoupled conditions. A predictor for object-color corresponding matrix (OCCM) and a novel attention transfer module (ATM) are introduced to solve the color-object coupling problem. To deal with color-object mismatch that results in incorrect color-object correspondence, we adopt a soft-gated injection module (SIM). We further present a new dataset containing annotated color-object pairs to provide supervisory signals for resolving the coupling problem. Experimental results show that our approach outperforms state-of-the-art methods conditioned on captions.
A Trauma-Informed Parenting Intervention Model for Mothers Parenting Young Children During Residential Treatment for Substance Use Disorder

Abstract Parenting supports are critical for mothers with substance use disorders (SUD) in treatment and recovery. Early intervention is a vital protective factor for children with developmental and behavioral challenges due to prenatal substance exposure and early adversity. We present the Trauma Informed Parenting (TIP) intervention model for mothers parenting young children while in residential SUD treatment. Its design was guided by principles and practices of occupational therapy, trauma-informed care, and relationship-focused early intervention. We describe the development, implementation and short-term outcomes of the intervention, characteristics of the mothers (N = 150) and children (N = 96), and discuss lessons learned.
A Probabilistic Approach for Dynamic Oil-Immersed Transformer Rating Accounting for Current and Temperature Limits

Dynamic Transformer Rating (DTR) allows optimizing the transformer performance under time-varying load and/or environmental conditions. Traditionally, the DTR is applied controlling only the winding Hottest-Spot Temperature (HST). However, the most recent literature evidences that the DTR should simultaneously consider limitations on the current, HST and Top-Oil Temperature (TOT) in the tank. Due to the uncertainties involved in the DTR estimation, the problem should be framed within a probabilistic approach. In this paper, a novel comprehensive probabilistic approach is proposed (i) to predict the probability that TOT, HST and current are below their assigned limits, and (ii) to provide, through a naïve alarm-setting strategy, a warning if the probability is lower than a threshold. Numerical applications on actual data give evidence of the suitability of the proposal and give useful information to understand when, if and how each limit constrains the problem.
Porines bactériennes et sensibilité aux antibiotiques

Dans les bacteries a Gram negatif, les porines bacteriennes sont une des voies principales d’entree pour les antibiotiques usuels comme les β-lactamines et les fluoroquinolones. L’expression de ces proteines, ainsi que les interactions et les acides amines qui organisent la diffusion dans le pore sont des elements majeurs de la permeabilite membranaire. Ainsi, plusieurs isolats cliniques de bacteries resistantes presentant des defauts de porines ou exprimant des porines modifiees ont ete decrits. Les caracterisations de divers represseurs ou activateurs de la synthese des porines, mais aussi de molecules pouvant moduler leur activite «canal», ont montre la complexite et la flexibilite des facteurs controlant l’expression fonctionnelle de ces proteines. Cet article illustre notamment comment la regulation de l’expression des porines et les mecanismes qui organisent la diffusion des solutes peuvent etre des parametres-cles de la resistance bacterienne aux antibiotiques.
Cryptic Marine Diversity in the Northern Arabian Gulf: An Integrative Approach Uncovers a New Species of Oyster (Bivalvia: Ostreidae), Ostrea oleomargarita

Animal biodiversity is greatly underestimated in nontemperate marine regions, especially for intertidal benthic organisms such as oysters. Recent surveys in the northern Arabian Gulf suggest the presence of numerous unidentified species, some of which form shallow reef ecosystems while others are cryptic and found under rocks. In this study, we focused on small oysters from Kuwait, which show typical characteristics in common with the genus Ostrea except for the presence of lophine chomata that would link it to the genera Lopha, Dendostrea, and Alectryonella. Phylogenetic analyses based on mitochondrial and nuclear markers unambiguously placed the Kuwait oyster within the Ostreinae as a sister to the Japanese species Ostrea futamiensis. The hypothesis that the Kuwait oyster represents a new species was assessed with phylogenetic and species delimitation methods combined with a morphological assessment. Results corroborated the Kuwait oysters as a new species herein described as Ostrea oleomargarita Oliver, Salvi, and Al-Kandari, sp. nov. The phylogeny of the Ostreinae shows extensive disagreement between morphology-based genera and phylogenetic clades. The genus Ostrea is polyphyletic, and the form and distribution of taxonomic characters such as chomata are not as definitive as suggested in previous studies. This study, along with other recent investigations, confirmed the Arabian Gulf as a key region for discovering marine animal diversity and suggested a possible biogeographic divide between the Eastern and Western Indo-Pacific. A pattern that has been documented in a growing number of taxa and that warrants further research attention.
On RIS-Assisted Random Access Systems with Successive Interference Cancellation

We consider a large floor that has RIS elements assisting the transmissions from the different terminal devices towards a common access point located at the center. Showing that the near-field model is the appropriate model for this system, we provide an approach to study the improvement in performance when using RIS in a system that utilizes Successive Interference Cancellation (SIC), along with Random Access, like Slotted ALOHA. Without the use of RIS, the possible spatial region where SIC could have been used is very small, and introduction of RIS provides a promising improvement. Partial RIS sharing with SIC is seen to offer a significant further improvement in this region. By finding the optimal channel access probabilities by viewing the end-devices as individual players in a game with a common utility function, we see that the overall average system throughput performance improves with RIS assistance.
The Prognostic Value of Cardiac Troponin I in Patients with or without Three-Vessel Disease Undergoing Complete Percutaneous Coronary Intervention

Postprocedural cardiac troponin I (cTnI) elevation commonly occurs in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI); however, its prognostic value remains controversial. This study aimed to investigate the prognostic value of peak postprocedural cTnI in cardiac patients with or without three-vessel disease (TVD) undergoing complete PCI. A total of 1237 consecutive patients (77% males, mean age 58 ± 10 years) with normal baseline cTnI levels were enrolled, 439 patients (77% males, 59 ± 10 years) with TVD, and 798 patients (77% males, 57 ± 10 years) with single- or double-vessel disease (non-TVD). The primary outcome was the occurrence of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE), defined as a composite of non-fatal MI, non-fatal stroke, unplanned revascularization, re-hospitalization due to heart failure or severe arrhythmias, and all-cause death. During the median follow-up of 5.3 years, a total of 169 patients (13.7%) developed MACE, including 73 (16.6%) in the TVD group and 96 (12.0%) in the non-TVD group (p = 0.024). After adjustment, the multivariate Cox analysis showed that hypertension (HR 1.50; 95% CI: 1.01–2.20; p = 0.042), TVD (HR 1.44; 95% CI: 1.03–2.02; p = 0.033), and cTnI ≥ 70× URL (HR 2.47; 95% CI: 1.28–4.78, p = 0.007) were independently associated with increased MACE during long-term follow-up. Further subgroup analyses showed that cTnI ≥ 70× URL was an independent predictor of MACE in TVD patients (HR 3.32, 95% CI: 1.51–7.34, p = 0.003), but not in non-TVD patients (HR 1.01, 95%CI: 0.24–4.32, p = 0.991). In conclusion, elevation of post-PCI cTnI ≥ 70× URL is independently associated with a high risk of MACE during long-term follow-up in patients with TVD, but not in those with non-TVD.
Weighted-QMIX-based Optimization for Maintenance Decision-making of Multi-component Systems

It is well-known that maintenance decision optimization for multi-component systems faces the curse of dimensionality. Specifically, the number of decision variables needed to be optimized grows exponentially in the number of components causing computational expensive for optimization algorithms. To address this issue, we customize a multi-agent deep reinforcement learning algorithm, namely Weighted QMIX, in the case where system states can be fully observed to obtain cost-effective policies. A case study is conducted on a 13- component system to examine the effectiveness of the customized algorithm. The obtained results confirmed its performance.
Economic Analysis for the Players Participating in a Hybrid Solar Virtual Power Plant

Individual distributed energy resources (DER) because of their small capacity is not able to participate in energy trading. A novel concept has been used in this paper wherein Virtual Power Plant (VPP) acts as an aggregator and can provide scheduled dispatch of power and thereby participate in energy trading of the grid. VPP operator (VO) is the authority of transmit power from several sources maintaining their freedom in property and operation. VO conducts energy trading with the grid on behalf of the VPP. In this study an investigation is carried out to determine economic stature of all the players participating in a VPP system.
Effects of neuromuscular electric stimulation during immobilization in the mechanical properties of the skeletal muscle

The neuromuscular electric stimulation (NMES) is an important tool used in sports medicine to accelerate the recovery process. The objective of this study was to analyze the effects of NMES during immobilization of the gastrocnemius muscle, in lengthened (LP) and shortened positions (SP). Sixty young female Wistar rats were distributed into six groups and followed for 7 days: control (C); electric stimulation (ES); immobilized in shortening (ISP); immobilized in lengthening (ILP); immobilized in shortening and electric stimulation (ISP + ES) and immobilized in lengthening and electric stimulation (ILP + ES). For the immobilization, a tubular mesh and cotton rolls together with the plaster were wrapped around the rat’s right posterior paw. NMES in a frequency of 50 Hz was used 10 minutes a day, totaling 20 contractions in each session. After 7 days the animals were sacrificed and their gastrocnemius muscles of the right paw were submitted to a mechanical test of traction in a universal test machine (EMIC®). From the load versus elongation curves the following mechanical properties were obtained: elongation in the yield limit (EPL), load in the yield limit (LPL) and stiffness. The SP and LP immobilizations promoted significant reductions (p < 0.05) in the EPL and LPL properties, being more remarkable in the ISP group. When the NMES was used, there was significant increase (p < 0.05) of these properties only in the ISP group. As for stiffness, significant reduction was observed (p < 0.05) only of the C group for the ISP group. When the NMES was used, the stiffness of the ILP + EE group was significantly (p < 0.05) higher and closer to the C group than of the ISP + EE group. We conclude that in this experimental model the immobilization of the muscles in the lengthened position delayed the atrophy process and the electric stimulation during the immobilization contributed to the maintenance of the mechanical properties during the immobilization period, mainly for the ILP + ES group.
A Reliable Reverse Transcription Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification Assay for Detecting Apple stem grooving virus in Pear

Apple stem grooving virus (ASGV) is a high-risk viral pathogen that infects many types of fruit trees, especially pear and apple, and causes serious economic losses across the globe. Thus, rapid and reliable detection assay is needed to identify ASGV infection and prevent its spread. A reliable reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RT-LAMP) was developed, optimize, and evaluated for the coding region of coat protein of ASGV in pear leaf. The developed RT-LAMP facilitated the simple screening of ASGV using visible fluorescence and electrophoresis. The optimized reaction conditions for the RT-LAMP were 63°C for 50 min, and the results showed high specificity and 100-fold greater sensitivity than the reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. In addition, the reliability of the RT-LAMP was validated using field-collected pear leaves. Furthermore, the potential application of paper-based RNA isolation, combined with RT-LAMP, was also evaluated for detecting ASGV from field-collected samples. These assays could be widely applied to ASGV detection in field conditions and to virus-free certification programs.
Validade relativa de indicadores de práticas alimentares da Pesquisa Nacional de Saúde do Escolar entre adolescentes do Rio de Janeiro, Brasil

Avaliou-se a validade relativa dos indicadores de praticas alimentares do questionario utilizado na Pesquisa Nacional de Saude do Escolar (PeNSE) entre adolescentes da cidade do Rio de Janeiro, Brasil. Foram estudados 174 alunos. Foram avaliados os indicadores: a ingestao regular (≥ 5 vezes/semana) dos alimentos marcadores de alimentacao saudavel, marcadores de alimentacao nao saudavel e as rotinas alimentares: realizar refeicao com responsavel (REFEICAO), realizar o desjejum (DESJEJUM) e comer enquanto estuda ou assiste a TV. Foram comparados os resultados do questionario e dos tres recordatorios de 24 horas. Para todos os marcadores de alimentacao saudavel, nao houve diferenca na proporcao de ingestao regular de acordo com os dois metodos. As frequencias geradas pelo questionario foram superiores para os indicadores salgadinhos de pacote e biscoitos salgados e mais baixas para embutidos e REFEICAO. Os indicadores de consumo regular de marcadores de alimentacao saudavel e aquele referente a DESJEJUM foram os que apresentaram maior acuracia. Os indicadores de praticas alimentares utilizados pela PeNSE apresentaram validade satisfatoria.
Auto-anticorpos anti-β2-glicoproteína I e síndrome metabólica

BACKGROUND: The metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a proatherogenic entity. Autoantibodies to phospholipid cofactors such as beta2-glycoprotein I (beta2-gpI) can influence atheroma appearance. Previous studies confirmed an association of IgA anti-beta2-gpI antibodies with cerebral ischemia, myocardial infarction, peripheral artery disease and carotid disease. OBJECTIVE: This case-control study evaluates a possible association of anti-beta2-gpI and anticardiolipin (aCL) antibodies with non-complicated MetS. METHODS: Cases comprised patients with MetS without history of vascular events; controls included individuals from the Orthopedic Infirmary admitted due to musculoskeletal disorders. Age, sex, race, history of hypertension, smoking, hypercholesterolemia and diabetes mellitus were evaluated as risk factors in both groups. IgG, IgM, and IgA anti-beta2-gpI and aCL antibodies were detected by enzymatic immunoassay. RESULTS: Sixty-eight patients with MetS and 82 controls were studied. Patients with MetS showed mean age higher than controls (P = 0.001), while males (P = 0.003; OR 0.31; 95%CI 0.15-0.16) and Caucasian ethnicity (P = 0.004; OR 0.25; 95%CI 0.10-0.60) predominated in controls. History of hypertension, hypercholesterolemia and diabetes mellitus were more prevalent in cases than in controls (P < 0.05). The frequency of aCL antibodies (all isotypes) and of IgG and IgM anti-beta2 gpI did not significantly differ in cases and controls. IgA anti-beta2-gpI antibodies were significantly more frequent in MetS patients (42.2%) than controls (10.9%) (P < 0.001). The adjusted OR for IgA anti-beta2-gpI antibodies was 3.60 (95%CI 1.55-8.37; P = 0.003). CONCLUSION: The current study shows that elevated levels of IgA autoantibodies to β2-gpI might be independently associated to MetS.
Crop genetic diversity uncovers metabolites, elements, and gene networks predicted to be associated with high plant biomass yields in maize

Abstract Rapid population growth and increasing demand for food, feed, and bioenergy in these times of unprecedented climate change require breeding for increased biomass production on the world's croplands. To accelerate breeding programs, knowledge of the relationship between biomass features and underlying gene networks is needed to guide future breeding efforts. To this end, large-scale multiomics datasets were created with genetically diverse maize lines, all grown in long-term organic and conventional cropping systems. Analysis of the datasets, integrated using regression modeling and network analysis revealed key metabolites, elements, gene transcripts, and gene networks, whose contents during vegetative growth substantially influence the build-up of plant biomass in the reproductive phase. We found that S and P content in the source leaf and P content in the root during the vegetative stage contributed the most to predicting plant performance at the reproductive stage. In agreement with the Gene Ontology enrichment analysis, the cis-motifs and identified transcription factors associated with upregulated genes under phosphate deficiency showed great diversity in the molecular response to phosphate deficiency in selected lines. Furthermore, our data demonstrate that genotype-dependent uptake, assimilation, and allocation of essential nutrient elements (especially C and N) during vegetative growth under phosphate starvation plays an important role in determining plant biomass by controlling root traits related to nutrient uptake. These integrative multiomics results revealed key factors underlying maize productivity and open new opportunities for efficient, rapid, and cost-effective plant breeding to increase biomass yield of the cereal crop maize under adverse environmental factors.
Treatment of Odontoid Fractures in Elderly Patients Using C1/C2 Instrumented Fusion Supplemented With Bilateral Atlantoaxial Joint Spacers: A Case Series

Background Spinal fractures are among the most common traumatic injuries in elderly patients, with the odontoid process being frequently affected. As this patient group usually has high rates of comorbidity and chronic diseases, a nonoperative approach may offer a reasonable solution for a favorable fracture pattern. Objective We modified the procedure by implanting a bilateral atlantoaxial joint spacer (model DTRAX) into the joint space and review our experience utilizing this technique for the treatment of patients with a fracture of the odontoid process. Methods A retrospective evaluation was performed on patients treated surgically for unstable traumatic fractures of the odontoid process. The stabilization was performed using a dorsal rod and screw instrumentation of the lateral mass of the atlas and the pars interarticularis of the axis. The procedure was further modified by implanting a bilateral atlantoaxial joint spacer (DTRAX) into the joint space bilaterally after the removal of the articular cartilage. Patients older than 70 years with a traumatic fracture of the odontoid process were included. Pain was assessed pre- and postoperatively using the visual analog scale (VAS). To verify fusion during follow-up, either x-ray imaging of the cervical spine or magnetic resonance imaging or computed tomography were performed. Results A total of 5 patients were included in our study. Four patients had an American Society of Anesthesiology score of 3 and 1 had a score of 4. The average duration of surgery was 187 ± 38.1 minutes. The average blood loss during the procedure was 340 ± 270 mL. The average radiological follow-up period was 21.2 ± 17.5 months. Preoperatively, the average VAS pain score was 2.3 ± 3.3. Postoperatively, the mean VAS decreased to 0.6 ± 0.9. The average follow-up period for pain was 27.2 ± 19 months. No patient showed neurological deficits before or after surgery. Follow-up demonstrated solid fusion in all cases. Conclusion The fusion of the atlantoaxial joint with bilateral atlantoaxial joint spacers represents a suitable and feasible option for achieving high fusion rates in elderly patients with odontoid fractures. Clinical Relevance A significant percentage of patients who are treated non-operatively will experience nonunion, which may cause instability of the atlantoaxial joint. Posterior fixation with screws and rods is a treatment option, but it leaves the cartilaginous joint surface in place, which can be an impediment to the fusion process. In other cases, degenerative collapse of the C1/C2 joint can cause compression of the C2 nerve root. Level of Evidence 4.