Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A single-center pilot study comparing dexmedetomidine continuous infusion versus propofol TCI for drug-induced sleep endoscopy (DISE)

Background: Drug-induced sleep endoscopy (DISE) has become a routine diagnostic tool to assess the upper airway in obstructive sleep apnea patients, enabling effective diagnosis and appropriate treatment of the obstruction site. A number of protocols with different drugs and availability of target-controlled infusion (TCI) systems have been reported and published, making comparisons between studies difficult. In recent years, dexmedetomidine has claimed a role as a potential alternative to propofol for DISE sedation. In a real-life study we compared the effects of dexmedetomidine continuous infusion or propofol-TCI in patients undergoing DISE on time to reach adequate observation conditions, cardio-respiratory parameters, and recovery. Methods: Pilot prospective, randomized not blinded, single center study. A total of 28 patients scheduled to have DISE were randomly assigned to either group P (N=14; propofol-TCI, initial propofol effect-site target concentration 2.0 µg/mL, increased by 0.3 µg/mL every 2 min) or group D (N=14; dexmedetomidine bolus 1 µg/kg over 10 min, followed by infusion at 0.7 µg/kg/h). Hemodynamic and respiratory variables (including SpO2 nadir), time to reach the observation window and overall DISE duration were recorded. Results: A total of 28 patients were enrolled and completed the study: the cohort included 26 males (92.85%) and 2 females (7.14%). The mean age was 45.4±11.1 years [interquartile (IQ), 25.0–65.0], body mass index 30.5±3.4 kg/m2 (IQ, 21.0–36.0), and apnea-hypopnea index 36.9±21.1 events/hour (IQ, 7.8–95.0). There were no statistically significant differences between the 2 groups in baseline apnea-hypopnea index, oxygen desaturation index, Epworth Sleepiness Scale score, preprocedural SpO2 nadir, age, sex, or body mass index. Compared with group P, group D showed significant differences in SpO2 (higher nadir during DISE, 87.09±5.4% vs. 75.0±11.0; P<0.001) and heart rate (80.4±8.9 vs. 62.8±6.6; P<0.001). While group D had longer duration of endoscopic examination times and emergence time from sedation, the grading of site of obstructions were similar in the 2 groups. Conclusions: Dexmedetomidine seems a limited, if viable, clinical alternative for DISE when propofol is contraindicated or not available: while causing higher SpO2 nadirs compared with propofol, it has a slow onset and longer recovery time, increasing total procedural time. Studies with greater patient numbers are needed to confirm these observations.
Patient outcomes after direct capsular closure following hip arthroscopy: a systematic review

Background: Management of the hip capsule after arthroscopy remains controversial, with proponents of capsule repair arguing that this minimizes instability and restores native hip biomechanics. Methods: A systematic review was conducted. PubMed and EmBase were queried for outcomes related to hip arthroscopy. Exclusion criteria included: technique guides, editorials, reviews, biomechanical studies, case reports, studies without full text available, those without patient reported outcomes, and those that focused on high-risk-patient populations. Outcomes and measures of efficacy were collected and analyzed. Results: Six studies met all inclusion criteria, with 1428 patients overall. The majority of patients were female (63%) with mean age of 34.7 yr. Patients who were included underwent capsule repair as a standard of care. At average follow-up of 34 mo, weighted hip outcome scores activities of daily living scores improved from 66.2 preoperatively to 87.4 postoperatively, hip outcome scores sport improved from 43.4 to 75.3, and modified Harris Hip Score improved from 58.7 to 81.4. There was 80% patient satisfaction postoperatively. At last follow-up, there was a 5.0% revision arthroscopy rate, with pain as the most commonly cited indication. Lysis of adhesions was the most commonly performed procedure at revision. Conclusions: Available evidence was promising in regard to the function and durability of capsule closure when utilized on a routine basis. In this situation, revisions and conversion rates to total hip arthroplasty were very low with significant improvements in patient-reported outcomes. However, our data could not definitively support the claim that routine capsule closure leads to improved outcomes compared with leaving the capsulotomy unrepaired. Level of Evidence: Level IV.
The Protein Kinase Receptor Modulates the Innate Immune Response against Tacaribe Virus

The New World (NW) mammarenavirus group includes several zoonotic highly pathogenic viruses, such as Junin (JUNV) or Machupo (MACV). Contrary to the Old World mammarenavirus group, these viruses are not able to completely suppress the innate immune response and trigger a robust interferon (IFN)-I response via retinoic acid-inducible gene I (RIG-I). Nevertheless, pathogenic NW mammarenaviruses trigger a weaker IFN response than their nonpathogenic relatives do. RIG-I activation leads to upregulation of a plethora of IFN-stimulated genes (ISGs), which exert a characteristic antiviral effect either as lone effectors, or resulting from the combination with other ISGs or cellular factors. The dsRNA sensor protein kinase receptor (PKR) is an ISG that plays a pivotal role in the control of the mammarenavirus infection. In addition to its well-known protein synthesis inhibition, PKR further modulates the overall IFN-I response against different viruses, including mammarenaviruses. For this study, we employed Tacaribe virus (TCRV), the closest relative of the human pathogenic JUNV. Our findings indicate that PKR does not only increase IFN-I expression against TCRV infection, but also affects the kinetic expression and the extent of induction of Mx1 and ISG15 at both levels, mRNA and protein expression. Moreover, TCRV fails to suppress the effect of activated PKR, resulting in the inhibition of a viral titer. Here, we provide original evidence of the specific immunomodulatory role of PKR over selected ISGs, altering the dynamic of the innate immune response course against TCRV. The mechanisms for innate immune evasion are key for the emergence and adaptation of human pathogenic arenaviruses, and highly pathogenic mammarenaviruses, such as JUNV or MACV, trigger a weaker IFN response than nonpathogenic mammarenaviruses. Within the innate immune response context, PKR plays an important role in sensing and restricting the infection of TCRV virus. Although the mechanism of PKR for protein synthesis inhibition is well described, its immunomodulatory role is less understood. Our present findings further characterize the innate immune response in the absence of PKR, unveiling the role of PKR in defining the ISG profile after viral infection. Moreover, TCRV fails to suppress activated PKR, resulting in viral progeny production inhibition.
Probabilistic forecasting of maximum human lifespan by 2100 using Bayesian population projections

BACKGROUND We consider the problem of quantifying the human lifespan using a statistical approach that probabilistically forecasts the maximum reported age at death (MRAD) through 2100. OBJECTIVE We seek to quantify the probability that any person attains various extreme ages, such as those above 120, by the year 2100. METHODS We use the exponential survival model for supercentenarians (people over age 110) of Rootzén and Zholud (2017) but extend the forecasting window, quantify population uncertainty using Bayesian population projections, and incorporate the most recent data from the International Database on Longevity (IDL) to obtain unconditional estimates of the distribution of MRAD this century in a fully Bayesian analysis. RESULTS We find that the exponential survival model for supercentenarians is consistent with the most recent IDL data and that projections of the population aged 110–114 through 2080 are sensible. We integrate over the posterior distributions of the exponential model parameter and uncertainty in the supercentenarian population projections to estimate an unconditional distribution of MRAD by 2100. CONCLUSIONS Based on the Bayesian analysis, there is a greater than 99% probability that the current MRAD of 122 will be broken by 2100. We estimate the probabilities that a person lives to at least age 126, 128, or 130 this century, as 89%, 44%, and 13%, respectively. 1 Departments of Statistics, University of Washington, USA. Email: mpp790@uw.edu. 2 Departments of Statistics and Sociology, University of Washington, USA. http://www.demographic-research.org 1271 Pearce & Raftery: Probabilistic forecasting of maximum human lifespan by 2100 CONTRIBUTION We have updated the supercentenarian survival model of Rootzén and Zholud using the most recent IDL data, incorporated Bayesian population projections, and extended the forecasting window to create the first fully Bayesian and unconditional probabilistic projection of MRAD by 2100.
Research on Self-Balancing System of Autonomous Vehicles Based on Queuing Theory

In order to explore the changes that autonomous vehicles on the road would bring to the current traffic and make full use of the intelligent features of autonomous vehicles, the article defines a self-balancing system of autonomous vehicles. Based on queuing theory and stochastic process, the self-balancing system model with self-balancing characteristics is established to balance the utilization rate of autonomous vehicles under the conditions of ensuring demand and avoiding an uneven distribution of vehicle resources in the road network. The performance indicators of the system are calculated by the MVA (Mean Value Analysis) method. The analysis results show that the self-balancing process could reduce the average waiting time of customers significantly in the system, alleviate the service pressure while ensuring travel demand, fundamentally solve the phenomenon of concentrated idleness after the use of vehicles in the current traffic, maximize the use of the mobile vehicles in the system, and realize the self-balancing of the traffic network while reducing environmental pollution and saving energy.
PhytoAFP: In Silico Approaches for Designing Plant-Derived Antifungal Peptides

Emerging infectious diseases (EID) are serious problems caused by fungi in humans and plant species. They are a severe threat to food security worldwide. In our current work, we have developed a support vector machine (SVM)-based model that attempts to design and predict therapeutic plant-derived antifungal peptides (PhytoAFP). The residue composition analysis shows the preference of C, G, K, R, and S amino acids. Position preference analysis shows that residues G, K, R, and A dominate the N-terminal. Similarly, residues N, S, C, and G prefer the C-terminal. Motif analysis reveals the presence of motifs like NYVF, NYVFP, YVFP, NYVFPA, and VFPA. We have developed two models using various input functions such as mono-, di-, and tripeptide composition, as well as binary, hybrid, and physiochemical properties, based on methods that are applied to the main data set. The TPC-based monopeptide composition model achieved more accuracy, 94.4%, with a Matthews correlation coefficient (MCC) of 0.89. Correspondingly, the second-best model based on dipeptides achieved an accuracy of 94.28% under the MCC 0.89 of the training dataset.
PSR_2000101 649..666

doi:10.1017/S000305542000101X © The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the American Political Science Association. This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (http:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Towards Explainable, Compliant and Adaptive Human-Automation Interaction

AI-based systems use trained machine learning models to make important decisions in critical contexts. The EU guidelines for trustworthy AI emphasise the respect for human autonomy, prevention of harm, fairness, and explicability. Many successful machine learning methods, however, deliver opaque models where the reasons for decisions remain unclear to the end user. Hence, accountability and trust are difficult to ascertain. In this position paper, we focus on AI systems that are expected to interact with humans and we propose our visionary architecture, called ECA-HAI (Explainable, Compliant and Adaptive Human-Automation Interaction)-RefArch. ECA-HAI-RefArch allows for building intelligent systems where humans and AIs form teams, able to learn from data but also to learn from each other by playing “serious games”, for a continuous improvement of the overall system. Finally, conclusions are drawn.
The physics of stochastic processes applied to binary options in financial markets

É bem conhecido o paralelo exato entre o problema de um jogador que aposta dinheiro iterativamente em um jogo de azar e o de um caminhante aleatório em uma dimensão com uma parede absorvedora. Essa e outras conexões entre finanças e Física motivaram o surgimento, na década de 1990, da área de Econofísica. Como o assunto ainda é pouco conhecido no âmbito de cursos de graduação em Física, vimos primeiramente revisar alguns conceitos básicos relevantes, tais como martingale, derivativo financeiro e opções de ações. Focaremos em opções binárias (OB), que são derivativos financeiros. Os objetivos desse trabalho são: (i) mostrar como funcionam as OB; (ii) simular estocasticamente o comportamento da curva de saldo para diferentes taxas de acertos; (iii) realização de testes de taxa de sucesso do indicador chamado oscilador estocástico em séries temporais de dados financeiros históricos. Esse indicador é muito usado por operadores de OB, portanto é um exemplo ilustrativo ideal. Nossos resultados evidenciam que é difícil a lucratividade consistente, mesmo que se tente recuperar perdas aplicando estratégias baseadas em martingale ou alavancagem “soros”. Tal caracterização empírica dessa dificuldade ajuda a deixar mais claro a imprevisibilidade e o alto grau de complexidade do comportamento visto em mercados financeiros. Palavras-chave: Martingale, econofísica, opções binárias, processo estocástico.
Extended L-Band InAs/InP Quantum-Dash Laser in Millimeter-Wave Applications

We report on the generation and transmission of a millimeter-wave (MMW) signal with a frequency of 28 GHz by employing an InAs/InP quantum-dash dual-wavelength laser diode (QD-DWL) emitting in the ~1610 nm extended L-band window. The self-injection locking (SIL) technique has been engaged to improve the linewidth and reduce the noise of the optical tone. Besides, the transmission of a 2 Gbits/s quadrature phase-shift keying (QPSK)-modulated 28-GHz MMW beat tone over a hybrid 20-km radio-over-fiber combined with 5-m radio-over-free-space-optics and up to 6-m radio frequency wireless link has been demonstrated. Moreover, comparing the proposed QD-DWL with a commercial laser showcased similar performance characteristics, making the QD-DWL a candidate source for MMW applications.
Alcyonacea, Primnoidae) in the Bay of Biscay (NE

16 Octocoral species are globally distributed in all oceans and may form dense communities 17 known as vulnerable marine ecosystems. Despite their importance as deep-water habitats , 18 the underlying genetic structure and gene-flow patterns of most deep-water populations 19 remains largely unknown. Here, we evaluated genetic connectivity of the primnoid 20 octocoral Narella versluysi across the continental shelf of Bay of Biscay, spanning 360 km 21 (95 samples from submarine canyons, ranging from 709–1247 m depths). We report 12 22 novel microsatellite markers which were used to genotype 83 samples from six 23 populations. Sixteen samples were sequenced for three mitochondrial DNA regions 24 (Folmer region of COI with an adjacent intergenic region igr1, MT-ND2 gene, and mtMutS 25 homolog 1 region). All sequence haplotypes and genetic clusters were found in multiple 26 sites spanning more than 200 km. Overall, our analyses suggest there is high gene flow 27 between colonies of N. versluysi among all study sites. There is no significant geographic 28
Persistence of Pneumococcal Serotype 3 in Adult Pneumococcal Disease in Hong Kong

The epidemiology of hospitalised pneumococcal disease in adults following the introduction of universal childhood pneumococcal immunisation in 2009 was assessed. Culture-confirmed Streptococcus pneumoniae (SP) from adults hospitalised between 2009 to 2017 were examined. The cases were categorised into invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) and pneumonia (bacteraemic, non-bacteraemic, and that associated with other lung conditions). The isolates were serotyped and antimicrobial susceptibilities were determined by microbroth dilution. Patient characteristics, comorbidities, and outcomes were analysed. Seven hundred and seventy-four patients (mean age, 67.7 years, SD ± 15.6) were identified, and IPD was diagnosed in 110 (14.2%). The most prevalent serotype, 19F, was replaced by serotype 3 over time. Penicillin and cefotaxime non-susceptibilities were high at 54.1% and 39.5% (meningitis breakpoints), 19.9% and 25.5% (non-meningitis breakpoints), respectively. The overall 30-day mortality rate was 7.8% and 20.4% for IPD. Age ≥ 75 years (OR:4.6, CI:1.3–17.0, p < 0.02), presence of any complications (OR:4.1, CI:1.02–16.3, p < 0.05), pleural effusion (OR:6.7, CI:1.2–39.4, p < 0.03) and intensive care unit (ICU) admission (OR:9.0, CI:1.3–63.4, p < 0.03) were independent predictors of 30-day mortality. Pneumococcal disease by PCV 13 covered serotypes; in particular, 19F and 3 are still prominent in adults. Strengthening targeted adult vaccination may be necessary in order to reduce disease burden.
Retrieving the topology of chromatin domains from deep sequencing data with correlation functions

Epigenetic modifications and other chromatin features partition the genome on multiple length scales to control its biological function. Some of them like DNA methylation target single bases, whereas others such as heterochromatic histone modifications span regions of several megabases. It has now become a routine task to map chromatin marks by deep sequencing. However, the quantitative assessment and comparison of the topology of chromatin domains and their spatial relationships across data sets without a priori assumptions remains challenging, especially if broad domains are involved. Here, we introduce multi-scale correlation evaluation (MCORE), which uses the fluctuation spectrum of mapped sequencing reads to quantify and compare spatial patterns on multiple length scales in a model-independent manner. We used MCORE to dissect the chromatin domain topology of embryonic stem cells and neural cells by integrating sequencing data from chromatin immunoprecipitation, RNA expression, DNA methylation and chromosome interaction experiments. Further, we constructed network models that reflect the relationships among these features on different genomic scales. We anticipate that MCORE will complement current sequencing evaluation schemes and aid in the design and validation of mechanistic models for chromatin signaling.
From Jekyll to Hyde: The Yeast-Hyphal Transition of Candida albicans

Candida albicans is a major fungal pathogen of humans, accounting for 15% of nosocomial infections with an estimated attributable mortality of 47%. C. albicans is usually a benign member of the human microbiome in healthy people. Under constant exposure to highly dynamic environmental cues in diverse host niches, C. albicans has successfully evolved to adapt to both commensal and pathogenic lifestyles. The ability of C. albicans to undergo a reversible morphological transition from yeast to filamentous forms is a well-established virulent trait. Over the past few decades, a significant amount of research has been carried out to understand the underlying regulatory mechanisms, signaling pathways, and transcription factors that govern the C. albicans yeast-to-hyphal transition. This review will summarize our current understanding of well-elucidated signal transduction pathways that activate C. albicans hyphal morphogenesis in response to various environmental cues and the cell cycle machinery involved in the subsequent regulation and maintenance of hyphal morphogenesis.
I don't understand! Evaluation Methods for Natural Language Explanations

Explainability of intelligent systems is key for future adoption. While much work is ongoing with regards to developing methods of explaining complex opaque systems, there is little current work on evaluating how effective these explanations are, in particular with respect to the user’s understanding. Natural language (NL) explanations can be seen as an intuitive channel between humans and artificial intelligence systems, in particular for enhancing transparency. This paper presents existing work on how evaluation methods from the field of Natural Language Generation (NLG) can be mapped onto NL explanations. Also, we present a preliminary investigation into the relationship between linguistic features and human evaluation, using a dataset of NL explanations derived from Bayesian Networks.
ER+ Breast Cancer Strongly Depends on MCL-1 and BCL-xL Anti-Apoptotic Proteins

Breast cancer is the most frequent type of cancer and the major cause of mortality in women. The rapid development of various therapeutic options has led to the improvement of treatment outcomes; nevertheless, one-third of estrogen receptor (ER)-positive patients relapse due to cancer cell acquired resistance. Here, we use dynamic BH3 profiling (DBP), a functional predictive assay that measures net changes in apoptotic priming, to find new effective treatments for ER+ breast cancer. We observed anti-apoptotic adaptations upon treatment that pointed to metronomic therapeutic combinations to enhance cytotoxicity and avoid resistance. Indeed, we found that the anti-apoptotic proteins BCL-xL and MCL-1 are crucial for ER+ breast cancer cells resistance to therapy, as they exert a dual inhibition of the pro-apoptotic protein BIM and compensate for each other. In addition, we identified the AKT inhibitor ipatasertib and two BH3 mimetics targeting these anti-apoptotic proteins, S63845 and A-1331852, as new potential therapies for this type of cancer. Therefore, we postulate the sequential inhibition of both proteins using BH3 mimetics as a new treatment option for refractory and relapsed ER+ breast cancer tumors.
Ocular Surface Failure in Urban Syndrome

Background: Nowadays, the continuous increase in air pollution has significantly changed air quality, leading to the onset of the so-called urban syndrome (US), an allergic-like conjunctivitis triggered by pollutants. These patients are characterized by persistent dysregulation of ocular surface para-inflammation, causing chronic low-grade inflammation and ocular discomfort, with significant consequences for occupational health and job productivity prospects. This study aims to investigate the effects of topical glycerophosphoinositol (GPI) eye drops on the signs and symptoms of US. Methods: A multicenter prospective open interventional study was performed. Patients affected by US, enrolled from occupational medicine clinics, were treated with eye drops containing 0.001% GPI in 0.2% HA vehicle three times a day. Ocular surface disease index (OSDI), tear break-up time (T-BUT), Schirmer test, Oxford score, hyperemia and ocular surface symptoms were recorded at patient enrolment (T0), after 1 week (T1) and after 1 month (T2) of treatment. Results: A total of 113 consecutive patients (226 eyes) were included. OSDI score displayed a significant improvement after one week (T0: 39.9 ± 19, T1: 20.8 ± 17.9, T2: 18.4 ± 15.6, p < 0.0001); T-BUT (T0: 5.2 ± 2, T1: 7.7 ± 2.2, T2: 9.7 ± 1.8, p < 0.0001) and Schirmer Test (T0: 6.6 ± 2.4, T1: 9.7 ± 2.7, T2: 12.6 ± 2.6, p < 0.0001) progressively improved from T0 to T2. Conclusions: trice-daily topic instillation of 0.001% GPI in 0.02% HA vehicle resulted an effective and well tolerated treatment in US patients.