Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Effect of Coenzyme Q10 on Liver Injury Induced by Valproic Acid and Its Antiepileptic Activity in Rats

Valproic acid (VPA) has toxic metabolites that can elevate oxidative stress markers, and the hepatotoxicity of VPA has been reported. Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) is one of the most widely used antioxidants. The effect of CoQ10 on epileptogenesis and VPA hepatotoxicity were examined. Rats were randomly divided into five groups: the control group received 0.5% methylcellulose by oral gavages daily and saline by intraperitoneal injection three times weekly. The PTZ group received 1% methylcellulose by gavages daily and 30 mg/kg PTZ by intraperitoneal injection three times weekly. The valproic acid group received 500 mg/kg valproic acid by gavage and 30 mg/kg PTZ, as above. The CoQ10 group received 200 mg/kg CoQ10 by gavages daily and 30 mg/kg PTZ, as above. The Valproic acid + CoQ10 group received valproic acid and CoQ10, as above. Results: CoQ10 exhibited anticonvulsant activity and potentiated the anticonvulsant effect of VPA. CoQ10 combined with VPA induced a more significant reduction in oxidative stress and improved the histopathological changes in the brain and liver compared to VPA treatment. In addition, CoQ10 reduced the level of toxic VPA metabolites. These findings suggest that the co-administration of CoQ10 with VPA in epilepsy might have therapeutic potential by increasing antiepileptic activity and reducing the hepatotoxicity of VPA.
ROLE OF WOMEN ENTERPRISE FUND ON IMPROVING FOOD SECURITY OF WOMEN IN KARAPUL SUB LOCATION, SIAYA SUB COUNTY, KENYA

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the role of WEF on food security of women in Karapul Sub-location of Siaya Sub-County. Materials and Methods: The study was guided by the Capability theory by Amartya Sen which emphasizes the importance of considering social and environmental variations in analysis of impact of programs. This study used cross sectional research design. The target population was 551 women from all women groups that received the WEF between the years 2011 to 2014.Simple random sampling was used to select 155 respondents which is 30% of the target population. The Chief Township location and the Constituency Women Enterprise Fund Officer were purposively selected as key informants. The study used triangulation of mixed methods that included questionnaires, focus group discussions, and key informant interviews. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 21 was used to run descriptive statistics such as frequency and percentages so as to present the quantitative data in form of tables, pie charts and bar graphs based on the major research questions. Qualitative data was summarized, grouped and ranked accordingly noting the similarities and differences in the responses from the interviews and presented in narration. Results: Findings of this study showed that an improvement in the food security of women was determined by the social variations and environmental diversity of the individual women. Women in formal employment at 67 per cent reported that they could consume three meals in a day same to those with established businesses at 38 per cent. Delay in release of loans affected women doing farming who depend on seasons similar to those who targeted certain peak periods to sell their products. Women who did group projects at 38.1 per cent reported to have increased food access due to higher returns from their businesses. Findings also indicate a big disparity in the varieties of food eaten to constitute a nutritious diet with more consumption of cereals and food from animal sources. Unique contribution to theory, practice and policy: The study was guided by the Capability theory by Amartya Sen which emphasizes the importance of considering social and environmental variations in analysis of impact of programs. The study recommends that emphasis should be laid on group projects to maximize profits and increase incomes. The WEF secretariat should ensure timely disbursement of funds and the GOK in its Food Security and Nutrition policy should increase farm inputs of women engaged in farming to ensure WEF improves their food security.
Quasi Orthogonal Space Time Block Codes Using Various Sub-Block Matrices

Space-time block codes (STBCs) from Orthogonal designs have attracted attention due to their fast maximum likelihood decoding and full diversity, but the maximum symbol transmission rate for complex signals is only ¾ for four transmit antennas so quasi orthogonal STBC was proposed, in this paper the structure and characteristics of some new type of a Quasi-orthogonal space time block codes (QOSTBC)is analyzed, The error performance for these codes for four transmitted antennas over uncorrelated and spatially correlated MIMO channels is investigated. A maximum likelihood (ML) decoding algorithm for the suggested code is also provided.
Life Stage and Neighborhood-Dependent Survival of Longleaf Pine after Prescribed Fire

Determining mechanisms of plant establishment in ecological communities can be particularly difficult in disturbance-dominated ecosystems. Longleaf pine (Pinus palustris Mill.) and its associated plant community exemplify systems that evolved with disturbances, where frequent, widespread fires alter the population dynamics of longleaf pine within distinct life stages. We identified the primary biotic and environmental conditions that influence the survival of longleaf pine in this disturbance-dominated ecosystem. We combined data from recruitment surveys, tree censuses, dense lidar point clouds, and a forest-wide prescribed fire to examine the response of longleaf pine individuals to fire and biotic neighborhoods. We found that fire temperatures increased with increasing longleaf pine neighborhood basal area and decreased with higher oak densities. There was considerable variation in longleaf pine survival across life stages, with lowest survival probabilities occurring during the bolt stage and not in the earlier, more fire-resistant grass stage. Survival of grass-stage, bolt-stage, and sapling longleaf pines was negatively associated with basal area of neighboring longleaf pine and positively related to neighboring heterospecific tree density, primarily oaks (Quercus spp.). Our findings highlight the vulnerability of longleaf pine across life stages, which suggests optimal fire management strategies for controlling longleaf pine density, and—more broadly—emphasize the importance of fire in mediating species interactions.
Benchmarking taxonomic classifiers with Illumina and Nanopore sequence data for clinical metagenomic diagnostic applications

Culture-independent metagenomic detection of microbial species has the potential to provide rapid and precise real-time diagnostic results. However, it is potentially limited by sequencing and classification errors. We use simulated and real-world data to benchmark rates of species misclassification using 100 reference genomes for each of ten common bloodstream pathogens and six frequent blood culture contaminants (n=1600). Simulating both with and without sequencing error for both the Illumina and Oxford Nanopore platforms, we evaluated commonly used classification tools including Kraken2, Bracken, and Centrifuge, utilising mini (8GB) and standard (30-50GB) databases. Bracken with the standard database performed best, the median percentage of reads across both sequencing platforms identified correctly to the species level was 98.46% (IQR 93.0:99.3) [range 57.1:100]. For Kraken2 with a mini database, a commonly used combination, median species-level identification was 79.3% (IQR 39.1:88.8) [range 11.2:100]. Classification performance varied by species, with E. coli being more challenging to classify correctly (59.4% to 96.4% reads with correct species, varying by tool used). By filtering out shorter Nanopore reads (<3500bp) we found performance similar or superior to Illumina sequencing, despite higher sequencing error rates. Misclassification was more common when the misclassified species had a higher average nucleotide identity to the true species. Our findings highlight taxonomic misclassification of sequencing data occurs and varies by sequencing and analysis workflow. This “bioinformatic contamination” should be accounted for in metagenomic pipelines to ensure accurate results that can support clinical decision making. Importance Metagenomics may transform clinical microbiology by enabling more rapid species detection in a potentially unbiased manner and reducing reliance on culture-based approaches. However, it is still limited by ongoing challenges such as sequencing and classification software errors. In this study, we use simulated and real-world data to define the intrinsic rates of species misclassification that occur using Illumina and Oxford Nanopore sequencing platforms with commonly used taxonomic classification tools and databases. We quantify the extent of “bioinformatic contamination” arising from the classification process. This enables us to identify the best performing tools that maximize classification accuracy, and to suggest how taxonomic misclassification can be formally accounted for in clinical diagnostic workflows. Specifically, we specify thresholds for identifying or excluding polymicrobial infections in metagenomic samples, based on rates of misclassification of similar species, which might have clinical implications when treating infection.
Evaluation of Selected Methods for the Construction of Sustainable Energy Development Index: Application for European Union Member States

Purpose: The composite sustainable energy index could prove useful to evaluate both the state of the art and the progress of national energy towards sustainable development. However, different methods and procedures of selection and aggregation of variables can produce different results of index values and the ranking of objects. The objective of the paper is to evaluate different methods of data aggregation. Design/Methodology/Approach: We choose three methods, SAW, TOPSIS and VIKOR in order to obtain the Sustainable Energy Development Aggregated Index (SEDAI) to rank the EU Member States. We apply 47 variables and also test the need to reduce variables due to their collinearity. We apply some measures of the quality of indexes and rankings based on linear correlation of the index with the diagnostic variables, as well as the up ratio based on ranks comparison and our modification of up measure (u’p). Findings: We found that it is not possible to clearly indicate the method of selection and aggregation of variables that gives optimal ranking, however SAW method is most often indicated as the best method, according to evaluation measures applied in our research. Practical Implications: In this situation, one opportunity is to use the most intuitive SAW method, or we recommend using a set of rankings in order to aggregate the results of different methods as it is used in many machine learning methods. Originality/Value: The added value of the article is the indication of the SAW method as the best one, according to most analyzed quality measures for creating indexes and rankings. Additionally, we propose a measure of the quality of rankings and a method of aggregating indexes obtained with the use of various methods.
Making the Modern: Industry, Art, and Design in America by Terry Smith (review)

In this ambitious book, Terry Smith chronicles the modernist revolution in American art and design between the world wars--from its origins in the new industrial age of mass production, automation, and corporate culture to its powerful and transforming effects on the way Americans came to see themselves and their world. From Ford Motor's first assembly line in 1913 to the New York World's Fair of 1939, Smith traces the evolution of visual imagery in the first half of America's century of progress.
Ion Dynamics at the Magnetopause of Ganymede

We study the dynamics of the thermal O+ and H+ ions at Ganymede's magnetopause when Ganymede is inside and outside of the Jovian plasma sheet using a three‐dimensional hybrid model of plasma (kinetic ions, fluid electrons). We present the global structure of the electric fields and power density (E ⋅ J) in the magnetosphere of Ganymede and show that the power density at the magnetopause is mainly positive and on average is +0.95 and +0.75 nW/m3 when Ganymede is inside and outside the Jovian plasma sheet, respectively, but locally it reaches over +20 nW/m3. Our kinetic simulations show that ion velocity distributions at the vicinity of the upstream magnetopause of Ganymede are highly non‐Maxwellian. We investigate the energization of the ions interacting with the magnetopause and find that the energy of those particles on average increases by a factor of 8 and 30 for the O+ and H+ ions, respectively. The energy of these ions is mostly within 1–100 keV for both species after interaction with the magnetopause, but a few percentages reach to 0.1–1 MeV. Our kinetic simulations show that a small fraction ( < $< $ 25%) of the corotating Jovian plasma reach the magnetopause, but among those >50% cross the high‐power density regions at the magnetopause and gain energy. Finally, we compare our simulation results with Galileo observations of Ganymede's magnetopause crossings (i.e., G8 and G28 flybys). There is an excellent agreement between our simulations and observations, particularly our simulations fully capture the size and structure of the magnetosphere.
Central Vein Sign Profile of Newly Developing Lesions in Multiple Sclerosis

Background and Objectives The central vein sign (CVS), a central linear hypointensity within lesions on T2*-weighted imaging, has been established as a sensitive and specific biomarker for the diagnosis of multiple sclerosis (MS). However, the CVS has not yet been comprehensively studied in newly developing MS lesions. We aimed to identify the CVS profiles of new white matter lesions in patients with MS followed over time and investigate demographic and clinical risk factors associated with new CVS+ or CVS− lesion development. Methods In this retrospective longitudinal cohort study, adults from the NIH MS Natural History Study were considered for inclusion. Participants with new T2 or enhancing lesions were identified through review of the radiology report and/or longitudinal subtraction imaging. Each new lesion was evaluated for the CVS. Clinical characteristics were identified through chart review. Results A total of 153 adults (95 relapsing-remitting MS, 27 secondary progressive MS, 16 primary progressive MS, 5 clinically isolated syndrome, and 10 healthy; 67% female) were included. Of this cohort, 96 had at least 1 new T2 or contrast-enhancing lesion during median 3.1 years (Q1–Q3: 0.7–6.3) of follow-up; lesions eligible for CVS evaluation were found in 62 (65%). Of 233 new CVS-eligible lesions, 159 (68%) were CVS+, with 30 (48%) individuals having only CVS+, 12 (19%) only CVS−, and 20 (32%) both CVS+ and CVS− lesions. In gadolinium-enhancing (Gd+) lesions, the CVS+ percentage increased from 102/152 (67%) at the first time point where the lesion was observed, to 92/114 (82%) after a median follow-up of 2.8 years. Younger age (OR = 0.5 per 10-year increase, 95% CI = 0.3–0.8) and higher CVS+ percentage at baseline (OR = 1.4 per 10% increase, 95% CI = 1.1–1.9) were associated with increased likelihood of new CVS+ lesion development. Discussion In a cohort of adults with MS followed over a median duration of 3 years, most newly developing T2 or enhancing lesions were CVS+ (68%), and nearly half (48%) developed new CVS+ lesions only. Importantly, the effects of edema and T2 signal changes can obscure small veins in Gd+ lesions; therefore, caution and follow-up is necessary when determining their CVS status. Trial Registration Information Clinical trial registration number NCT00001248. Classification of Evidence This study provides Class III evidence that younger age and higher CVS+ percentage at baseline are associated with new CVS+ lesion development.
Exploring Long Non-Coding RNAs Associated with IP3/DAG Signaling Pathway as Potential Biomarkers Involved in Mast Cell Degranulation in Chronic Spontaneous Urticaria with 2-Year Follow-Up

Purpose Chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) pathogenesis involves mast cell degranulation induced by the inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate/diacylglycerol (IP3/DAG) pathway, but the condition lacks specific biomarkers. This study was performed to investigate long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) expression profiles, identify those associated with IP3/DAG pathway, and assess their diagnostic and prognostic value for CSU. Methods Ten samples were selected from CSU and control groups, and microarray was performed to screen differentially expressed (DE) lncRNAs and mRNAs. Bioinformatic and co-expression network analyses were used to identify lncRNAs associated with IP3/DAG pathway. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction was used to validate lncRNA expression levels. Combined with disease characteristics and serum indices detected with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays, Spearman analysis and logistic regression were applied to analyze lncRNA-associated disease risk. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves and 2-year follow-up data were applied to evaluate lncRNA diagnostic and prognostic value. Results A total of 678 up- and 573 downregulated DE lncRNAs and 609 up- and 176 downregulated DE mRNAs were identified. Seven lncRNAs (upregulated T264761, T280622, ENST00000587970, T224062, ENST00000562459, and his-1_RNA_dna; downregulated ENST00000417930) were associated with the IP3/DAG pathway. D-dimer and histamine levels were significantly different between the two groups. Correlation analysis showed that his-1_RNA_dna positively correlated with the frequency of symptom appearance, while his-1_RNA_dna, ENST00000417930, T264761, and T280622 negatively correlated with the maximum wheal diameter. Regression analysis showed T264761 was associated with CSU risk. ROC analysis showed that the specificity of T264761 was 90%, with an area under the curve of 0.666. In follow-up, the rate of well-controlled disease in the low T264761 expression group was 82.61%. Conclusion This study established lncRNA and mRNA expression profiles in CSU and identified lncRNAs associated with IP3/DAG pathway, which is mechanistically involved in this disease. T264761 may be a novel biomarker for CSU, but further study is needed to confirm its specific mechanism.
The Effects of High-Intensity Functional Training Compared with Traditional Strength or Endurance Training on Physical Performance in Adolescents: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Abstract Gavanda, S, Isenmann, E, Geisler, S, Faigenbaum, A, and Zinner, C. The effects of high-intensity functional training compared with traditional strength or endurance training on physical performance in adolescents: a randomized controlled trial. J Strength Cond Res 36(3): 624–632, 2022—High-intensity functional training (HIFT) integrates different modes of exercise into training sessions performed at a relatively high intensity. Although HIFT is becoming more popular in youth strength and conditioning programs, research comparing the effects of HIFT with traditional forms of training, such as strength training (ST) or endurance training (ET) in younger populations are limited. Therefore, the aim of this study was to compare the effects of HIFT with those of ST and ET on strength and endurance performance in adolescents. Fifty-two untrained adolescents ( = 26; = 26; 17.3 ± 1.0 years) were randomly assigned to a HIFT, ST, ET, or control group. The intervention groups trained twice a week for 6 weeks with a training duration of 60–75 minutes per session. Performance was assessed before and after the intervention with the countermovement jump (CMJ), 20-m sprint (20 m), 3-repetition maximum back squat (3RM), and Yo-Yo test. The HIFT group made significant improvements in all performance tests (CMJ, +28.5 ± 27.6%; p > 0.001; 20-m time, −3.9 ± 5.0%; p = 0.002; 3RM, +34.3 ± 23.3%; p > 0.001; Yo-Yo, +14.5 ± 15.2%; p = 0.003), whereas the ST group improved in CMJ (+38.3 ± 27.7%; p > 0.001), 3RM (+22.2 ± 11.2%; p > 0.001), and Yo-Yo (+12.2 ± 21.4%; p = 0.013) and the ET group improved in CMJ (+23.4 ± 29.9%; p = 0.001), 20-m time (−5.2 ± 4.6%; p > 0.001), and Yo-Yo (+30.7 ± 37.3%; p > 0.001). No significant differences between the groups were evident when the results were compared for sex. These results indicate that HIFT is an effective training method for eliciting multifaceted improvements in strength, power, and endurance measures as compared with ET or ST alone in untrained adolescents.
LoopNet: Where to Focus? Detecting Loop Closures in Dynamic Scenes

Loop closure detection is essential in visual simultaneous localization and mapping systems to recognize previously visited scenes, reducing pose and map estimates uncertainty. However, loop closure detection is highly challenging due to perceptual aliasing and scene variations in real-world environments caused by dynamic objects, changes in viewpoint, and illumination variations. This paper introduces a novel plug-and-play model, LoopNet, to find similarities between scenes via determining key landmarks to focus on without being distracted by scene variations. This proposed multi-scale attention-based Siamese convolutional model learns feature embeddings that focus on the discriminative objects in the scene instead of holistic features. We show that our method outperforms the state-of-the-art approaches in indoor and outdoor environments while being robust to scene variations and perceptual aliasing.
Fuzzy logic modelling of a transparent and elastic silicone pad for a new and novel optic based tactile sensor

Abstract Tactile sensing usually refers to a transducer that is sensitive to touch, force or pressure like human skin. A tactile-sensing array can be considered as a coordinated group of touch sensors. Recently, there has been an increased interest in tactile sensors, yet, the desired level, compared to the human’s sensing ability still could not be reached for parameters such as the number of receptors at a certain area. A new, novel and also patented design proposes using change in density of light due to the deformation on contact surface. In this design, an elastic silicone pad that mimics the tissue under the skin of human beings is used. An external stimulus excites on this pad; therefore, a relative deformation occurs. This deformation (displacement) is measured optically by this new sensor. In order to quantify the force map on the contact/measurement surface, a mathematical model is needed in which the input is the displacement and the output is the force. In this paper, both an analytical model and a fuzzy logic model are introduced and compared in order to satisfy this mandatory mathematical model of the silicone pad.