Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
DSNN: A DenseNet-Based SNN for Explainable Brain Disease Classification

Aims: Brain diseases refer to intracranial tissue and organ inflammation, vascular diseases, tumors, degeneration, malformations, genetic diseases, immune diseases, nutritional and metabolic diseases, poisoning, trauma, parasitic diseases, etc. Taking Alzheimer’s disease (AD) as an example, the number of patients dramatically increases in developed countries. By 2025, the number of elderly patients with AD aged 65 and over will reach 7.1 million, an increase of nearly 29% over the 5.5 million patients of the same age in 2018. Unless medical breakthroughs are made, AD patients may increase from 5.5 million to 13.8 million by 2050, almost three times the original. Researchers have focused on developing complex machine learning (ML) algorithms, i.e., convolutional neural networks (CNNs), containing millions of parameters. However, CNN models need many training samples. A small number of training samples in CNN models may lead to overfitting problems. With the continuous research of CNN, other networks have been proposed, such as randomized neural networks (RNNs). Schmidt neural network (SNN), random vector functional link (RVFL), and extreme learning machine (ELM) are three types of RNNs. Methods: We propose three novel models to classify brain diseases to cope with these problems. The proposed models are DenseNet-based SNN (DSNN), DenseNet-based RVFL (DRVFL), and DenseNet-based ELM (DELM). The backbone of the three proposed models is the pre-trained “customize” DenseNet. The modified DenseNet is fine-tuned on the empirical dataset. Finally, the last five layers of the fine-tuned DenseNet are substituted by SNN, ELM, and RVFL, respectively. Results: Overall, the DSNN gets the best performance among the three proposed models in classification performance. We evaluate the proposed DSNN by five-fold cross-validation. The accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, precision, and F1-score of the proposed DSNN on the test set are 98.46% ± 2.05%, 100.00% ± 0.00%, 85.00% ± 20.00%, 98.36% ± 2.17%, and 99.16% ± 1.11%, respectively. The proposed DSNN is compared with restricted DenseNet, spiking neural network, and other state-of-the-art methods. Finally, our model obtains the best results among all models. Conclusions: DSNN is an effective model for classifying brain diseases.
Versatile CCD‐based spectrometer with field programmable gate array controller core

The design and implementation of a novel room temperature charge-coupled device (CCD) spectrometer is presented. The timing generator and data acquisition circuits driving a 16,020 photodiode linear tricolour CCD detector capable of 24 dots per millimetre are described. Linear detection of ultraviolet, infrared and visible wavelengths over total wavelength range of 300 to 1000 nm of total wavelength range is possible by using three-colour array multiplexing. The field programmable gate array logic processing realises a low-cost, high-speed digital spectrometer with USB interface. A finite state automaton is used to generate low-skew, high-speed complex clocks to drive the system. The output of the instrument is 8 bit array intensity versus wavelength array acquired using semi-flash, 20 Mb/s analogue-to-digital converter, realising a 1.23 Gb/s per colour readout rate on the CCD. The resulting spectrometer is capable of USB 2.0 communication with high-level processing programmes.
Fabrication of Fibrous Materials Based on Cyclodextrin and Egg Shell Waste as an Affordable Composite for Dental Applications

In this study, the fibrous nanostructures based on cyclodextrin from egg shell waste were fabricated using electrospinning technique under optimal conditions. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), thermal stability analysis and abrasion testing were used to characterise the final products. The cyclodextrin nanofibrous products were used as new nanostructures in the field of dental coatings due to the obtained properties such as uniform shape, small particle size distribution, high thermal stability and optimal abrasion resistance. The DFT calculations confirmed the chemical stability of the final products. The MTT test results confirmed that the fibrous nanocoatings of the egg shell have no significant side effects on healthy cells. These fibrous nanostructures could be a promising candidate for use as a dental nanocoating material.
Structural Advances in Voltage-Gated Sodium Channels

Voltage-gated sodium (NaV) channels are responsible for the rapid rising-phase of action potentials in excitable cells. Over 1,000 mutations in NaV channels are associated with human diseases including epilepsy, periodic paralysis, arrhythmias and pain disorders. Natural toxins and clinically-used small-molecule drugs bind to NaV channels and modulate their functions. Recent advances from cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) structures of NaV channels reveal invaluable insights into the architecture, activation, fast inactivation, electromechanical coupling, ligand modulation and pharmacology of eukaryotic NaV channels. These structural analyses not only demonstrate molecular mechanisms for NaV channel structure and function, but also provide atomic level templates for rational development of potential subtype-selective therapeutics. In this review, we summarize recent structural advances of eukaryotic NaV channels, highlighting the structural features of eukaryotic NaV channels as well as distinct modulation mechanisms by a wide range of modulators from natural toxins to synthetic small-molecules.
Prevalence and Associated Factors of Diabetes Distress, Depression and Anxiety Among Primary Care Patients With Type 2 Diabetes During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Egypt: A Cross-Sectional Study

The prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is growing worldwide. T2DM is often complicated by a range of psychological disorders that interfere with glycemic control and self-care. Previous studies have reported diabetes distress, depression, and anxiety among patients with T2DM; however; little is known about the burden of these comorbid mental disorders in primary care patients with T2DM treated in Egypt during the COVID-19 era. Participants were selected by convenient sampling from eight rural primary healthcare facilities from Ismailia in Egypt. Symptoms of diabetes distress, depression and anxiety were assessed by using the Arabic version of the 20-item Problem Areas in Diabetes (PAID), Patient Health Questionnaire 9, and Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scales, respectively. Multiple hierarchical logistic regression models were used to estimate the significant factors associated with diabetes distress, depression, and anxiety. A total of 403 individuals with T2DM were interviewed. The prevalence of severe diabetes distress was 13.4% (95% CI: 10.1–16.7), while prevalence of depressive and anxiety symptoms was 9.2% (95% CI: 6.4–12.0%), and 4.0% (95% CI: 2.1–5.9), respectively. In a series of hierarchical logistic regression models, significant predictors for diabetes distress were being married, illiterate, not-working, living with insufficient income, and having multi-comorbidities. Likewise, the significant predictors for depression and anxiety were elevated glycated hemoglobin level and the higher PAID total score, while having multi-comorbidities was a significant predictor for anxiety only. Diabetes distress was more prevalent than depressive and anxiety symptoms in this study population. Several sociodemographic and clinical characteristics were identified to be related with psychological problems among patients with T2DM, which necessitate a multidisciplinary team-based approach for optimal screening and management.
Electrocatalytic Reduction of Nitrate via Co3O4/Ti Cathode Prepared by Electrodeposition Paired With IrO2-RuO2 Anode

Nitrate pollution is already a global problem, and the electrocatalytic reduction of nitrate is a promising technology for the remediation of wastewater and polluted water bodies. In this work, Co3O4/Ti electrodes were prepared by electrodeposition for the electrocatalytic reduction of nitrate. The morphology, chemical, and crystal structures of Co3O4/Ti and its catalytic activity were investigated. Then, the electrocatalytic nitrate reduction performance of Co3O4/Ti as the cathode was evaluated by monitoring the removal efficiencies of nitrate (NO3 −-N) and total nitrogen (TN), generation of reduction products, current efficiency (CE), and energy consumption (EC) at different operating conditions. Under the catalysis of Co3O4/Ti, NO3 − was reduced to N2 and NH4 +, while no NO2 − was produced. After the introduction of chloride ions and IrO2-RuO2/Ti as the anode, NH4 + was selectively oxidized to N2. The removal efficiencies of NO3 −-N (at 100 mg/L) and TN after 2 h were 91.12% and 60.25%, respectively (pH 7.0; Cl− concentration, 2000 mg/L; current density, 15 mA/cm2). After 4 h of operation, NO3 −-N and TN were completely removed. However, considering the EC and CE, a 2-h reaction was the most appropriate. The EC and CE were 0.10 kWh/g NO3 −N and 40.3%, respectively, and electrocatalytic performance was maintained after 10 consecutive reduction cycles (2 h each). The cathode Co3O4/Ti, which is prepared by electrodeposition, can effectively remove NO3 −-N, with low EC and high CE.
Acute and Protracted Prenatal Stress Produce Mood Disorder-Like and Ethanol Drinking Behaviors in Male and Female Adult Offspring

Background Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is a complex and chronic relapsing brain disease, which is often co-morbid with psychiatric disorders such as anxiety and depression. AUD phenotypes differ in men and women. Although genetic factors play an important role in its pathophysiology, epidemiologic evidence suggests that during prenatal development, individuals are more vulnerable to the negative effects of environmental factors that may predispose them to AUD later in life. We explored the effects of prenatal stress on the development of AUD phenotypes as well as anxiety- and depression-like behaviors using rat model. Methods In this study, timed-pregnant Sprague Dawley dams were used. Dams in the control group were left undisturbed throughout gestation, whereas dams in stress groups were either subjected to protracted or acute restraint stress under bright light. At adulthood, the anxiety-like, ethanol drinking, and sucrose drinking behaviors were measured using the Light/Dark Box test and two-bottle free-choice procedure. Results Compared to the control group, both the male and female offspring in the stress groups exhibited anxiety-like behavior and consumed significantly higher amounts of ethanol in which the acute stress group demonstrated the higher ethanol preference. Moreover, male but not female offspring from the stress groups had decreased sucrose preferences. Conclusion These findings suggest that protracted and acute prenatal stress in late pregnancy can induce in anxiety-, depressive-like behaviors, and excessive ethanol intake in adult offspring.
A Phase I Study of Locoregional High-Dose Autologous Natural Killer Cell Therapy With Hepatic Arterial Infusion Chemotherapy in Patients With Locally Advanced Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Background To explore the feasibility and safety of natural killer (NK) cell therapy in HCC, we performed a prospective, open-label, phase I trial to evaluate the synergistic effect of locoregional high-dose autologous NK cell therapy in combination with hepatic arterial infusion chemotherapy (HAIC). Methods Patients with locally advanced HCC who were refractory to the standard treatment were eligible for this study. Patients received expanded and activated NK cells for 5 consecutive days in a dose-escalating manner (dose 2.5×108, 5×108, 10×108 NK cells/injection) through hepatic arterial infusion following 4 cycles of HAIC with 5-fluorouracil (750 mg/m2) and cisplatin (25 mg/m2). The primary endpoint was the safety of NK cell-based immunotherapy, and the secondary endpoints were objective response rate (ORR), progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), and immunologic responses. Results Of the 11 patients enrolled, the confirmed ORR was 63.6% (complete response [CR]: 36.4%, confirmed partial response [PR]: 27.3%). Stable disease (SD) and progressive disease (PD) were observed in two patients (18.2%) each, resulting in a disease control rate (DCR) of 81.8%. The median PFS and OS were 10.3 and 41.6 months, respectively. There were no incidences of decompensation or severe adverse events during HAIC, and no adverse events related to NK cell infusion were noted. Conclusion The combination of HAIC and locoregional high-dose NK cell therapy is a safe and effective treatment for locally advanced HCC patients who were refractory to the standard treatment. This result warrants further development of this novel treatment to establish its efficacy in HCC. Clinical Trial Registration cris.nih. go.kr, identifier KCT0003973.
The Influence of Media in Purchasing Decisions for Recycled Construction and Demolition Waste Products: An Functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy Study

The increasing hazards caused by construction and demolition (C&D) waste is an inevitable problem in the development of the construction industry. Many countries have successively launched many policies to encourage and guide the recycling of C&D waste, which has greatly improved the recycling rate of C&D waste. However, most of these policies only regulate contractors but do not promote C&D waste recycling products enough. It has led to an increase in the production of C&D waste recycling products while the acceptance in the market is generally low. Consumers believe that products made with “garbage” may have problems such as quality defects. In order to explore a measure that can mitigate this problem, this study uses functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to investigate whether the influence of media can increase consumers’ willingness to purchase products for recycling construction and demolition waste, and thus increase consumers’ choice to purchase products for C&D recycling waste. This experiment consists of two phases. First, a pre-test experiment to obtain pre-intervention brain images characterizing consumers’ original attitudes toward C&D recycling waste products through a functional near-infrared imaging brain technique and a questionnaire. Second, The post-test builds on the pre-test to investigate the effectiveness of the intervention. The activation mechanism of the consumer purchase decision is further investigated by fNIRS data. The behavioral results showed that the choice of recycled C&D waste products was significantly higher after the intervention. The fNIRS results further revealed the significantly higher activation of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC), orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), and medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) after the intervention. These findings suggest that consumers’ purchase willingness is significantly improved after intervention, and their purchase behavior changed substantially. This study also demonstrates the great potential of fNIRS for interdisciplinary research in engineering management and neuroscience.
Nomograms for Predicting the Incidence of Late-Onset Acute Cellular Rejection in Patients After Pediatric Liver Transplantation

Background Late-onset acute cellular rejection (LACR) is a special type of acute rejection (AR) only rarely studied after pediatric liver transplantation (pLT). Our study aimed to explore the influencing factors of LACR after pLT and establish a nomogram to provide an individualized prediction of LACR after pLT. Materials and Methods Data from 640 children who underwent pLT at Tianjin First Central Hospital from January 2016 to December 2019 were collected as part of this retrospective study. The nomogram was then established through the results of the multivariable analysis. Results Forty-one patients experienced LACR > 1 ≤ 2 years after pLT. Cold ischemia time, donor-specific antibodies (DSAs), and tacrolimus concentration were independent influencing factors, and a nomogram was established with an AUC value of 0.834 (95% confidence interval, 0.755–0.912). Ten-fold cross-validation showed that the accuracy of the nomogram was about 76%. Sixty-three patients experienced LACR > 2 years after pLT. Child–Pugh grade, cold ischemic time, DSAs, early acute cellular rejection, and tacrolimus concentration were independent influencing factors, and a nomogram was established with an AUC value of 0.827 (95% confidence interval, 0.774–0.881). Ten-fold cross-validation showed that the accuracy of the nomogram was about 80.9%. Conclusion We established nomograms to predict the incidence of LACR > 1 ≤ 2 and > 2 years after pLT, respectively. The verification results showed that nomograms had good accuracy and clinical practicability.
Changes in Thoracic Cavity Volume After Bilateral Lung Transplantation

Purpose End-stage lung diseases result in anatomical changes of the thoracic cavity. However, very few studies have assessed changes in the thoracic cavity after lung transplantation (LTx). This study aimed to evaluate the relationships between thoracic cavity volume (TCV) changes after LTx and underlying lung disease. Methods We reviewed 89 patients who underwent a pre-LTx pulmonary function test (PFT), chest computed tomography (CT) scan, and 1-year follow-up CT after LTx. These patients were classified into two groups according to pre-LTx PFT as follows: obstructive group [forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1)/forced vital capacity (FVC) ratio < 70%] and restrictive group (FEV1/FVC ratio > 70%). We measured TCV using CT scan before and at 1 year after LTx and compared the TCV change in the two groups. Results In the restrictive group, TCV increased after LTx (preop: 2,347.8 ± 709.5 mL, 1-year postop: 3,224.4 ± 919.0 mL, p < 0.001). In contrast, in the obstructive group, it decreased after LTx (preop: 4,662.9 ± 1,296.3 mL, 1-year postop: 3,711.1 ± 891.7 mL, p < 0.001). We observed that restrictive lung disease, taller stature, lower body mass index, and larger donor lung were independently associated with increased TCV after LTx. Conclusion The disease-specific chest remodeling caused by restriction and hyperinflation is at least, in part, reversible. After LTx, the chest remodeling appears to occur in the opposite direction to the disease-specific remodeling caused by the underlying lung disease in recipients.
God (≡ Elohim), The First Small World Network

In this article, the approach of network mapping of words in literary texts is extended to “textual factors”: the network nodes are defined as “concepts”; the links are “community connexions. ” Thereafter, the text network properties are investigated along modern statistical physics approaches of networks, thereby relating network topology and algebraic properties to literary text contents. As a practical illustration, the first chapter of Genesis in the Bible is mapped into a 10-node network, as in the Kabbalah approach, mentioning God (≡ Elohim). The characteristics of the network are studied starting from its adjacency matrix and the corresponding Laplacian matrix. Triplets of nodes are particularly examined in order to emphasize the “textual (community) connexions” of each agent “emanation,” through the so-called clustering coefficients and the overlap index, hence measuring the “semantic flow” between the different nodes. It is concluded that this graph is a small world network and weakly dis-assortative, because its average local clustering coefficient is significantly higher than a random graph constructed on the same vertex set.
“Exercise Is My Medicine”: A Qualitative Study Exploring the Experiences of Non-admitted Patients Receiving Physical Activity Promotion From Hospital Surgeons

Background Hospital clinicians are increasingly encouraged to use outpatient consultations as an avenue to deliver opportunistic health promotion. There is a dearth of evidence regarding the acceptance of health promotion initiatives from hospital patients themselves. Methods We explored the experiences of non-admitted patients who, during a routine consultation with a hospital surgeon received a recommendation to increase physical activity (PA) and a recommendation to engage in a PA telephone coaching program. Twenty-two semi-structured interviews were conducted with individuals who had received the recommendation and proceeded to enroll in a telephone coaching intervention to identify factors that influenced behavior change. Data were analyzed thematically. Results Participants' age ranged between 42 and 66 years, with the average age being 54 years. Of the participants, 15 (68%) were women and 7 (32%) were men. Three major themes were identified: (1) the hospital visit represented an opportunity for behavior change that is not to be missed; (2) surgeons were influential in promoting PA change contemplation; and (3) patients welcomed a communication style that promoted autonomy. Conclusions Almost all patients considered receiving the recommendation to engage with the telephone coaching as acceptable and helpful toward PA change. Although working in time-restricted consultations, surgeons delivered the recommendation in a patient-centered, autonomy-supportive way, which influenced behavior change. Hospitals should explore avenues to integrate health promotion into routine care, confident of the acceptability and appropriateness of health promotion practice to hospital patients.
Insulin Degludec Versus Insulin Glargine on Glycemic Variability in Diabetic Patients: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

Background/Aims Currently, glycemic variability has more deleterious effects than sustained hyperglycemia and is closely associated with acute and chronic complications of diabetes. Reducing glycemic excursion is becoming another vital goal of glycemic control in clinical practice. This study aimed to determine whether insulin degludec (IDeg) or insulin glargine (IGla) was more beneficial for reducing glycemic fluctuations. Materials and Methods This research was constructed according to the PRISMA guidelines. We searched eight databases and ClinicalTrials.gov from their inception to 30 November 2021. All randomized controlled trials comparing the efficacy of glucose variability between IDeg and IGla in diabetic patients were included. Results Fourteen trials with 8,683 participants were included. In patients with T1DM, IDeg was associated with a lower mean (MD: −16.25, 95% CI −29.02 to −3.07, P = 0.01) and standard deviation (P = 0.03) compared to IGla in fasting blood glucose (FBG); in people with T2DM, IDeg was related to a lower mean of FBG versus insulin glargine 100 U/ml (IGla100) (P <0.001) and had a more extended time in the range (TIR) than IGla100 (SMD: 0.15, 95% CI 0.02 to 0.27, P = 0.02) but not longer than insulin glargine 300 U/ml (IGla300). Moreover, IDeg had a lower coefficient of variation of FBG than IGla (P = 0.0254). For other indicators of glycemic variability, namely, standard deviation of blood glucose for 24 h, the mean of 24-h blood glucose, mean amplitude of glycemic excursion, the coefficient of variation for 24 h, the mean of daily differences, area under the glucose curve, and M-value, no significant differences were identified between IDeg and IGla, regardless of T1DM or T2DM. Conclusions Based on the current studies, there was comparable efficacy between IDeg and IGla from multiple aspects of glycemic variability, regardless of T1DM or T2DM. However, IDeg may be superior to IGla in reducing FBG variability in T1DM and T2DM. Nonetheless, due to the limitations of the original studies, it is still unclear whether IDeg is superior to both IGla100 and IGla300. In T2DM, IDeg had more extended TIR than IGla100 but not longer than IGla300. Additionally, more well-designed randomized controlled trials comparing IDeg with IGla300 for different indicators of glycemic variability are still warranted. Systematic Review Registration PROSPERO, CRD42021283203.