Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Kidney, limb and ophthalmic complications, and death in patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation and type 2 diabetes prescribed rivaroxaban or warfarin: an electronic health record analysis

Abstract Background Patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF) and type 2 diabetes are at risk of kidney, limb, and ophthalmic complications. We evaluated the rate of these complications and death in patients with NVAF and type 2 diabetes prescribed rivaroxaban or warfarin. Methods We analyzed Optum de-Identified electronic health record (EHR) data from 11/2010–12/2019. We included adults with NVAF and T2D newly initiated on rivaroxaban or warfarin with ≥12 months of prior EHR activity. Patients with another indication for anticoagulation, valve disease, history of end-stage renal disease, major adverse limb events (MALE), diabetic retinopathy or pregnancy were excluded. We evaluated the incidence rate of developing a composite outcome of >40% decrease in estimated glomerular filtration incidence rate (eGFR) from baseline, eGFR < 15 mL/minute/1.73 m2, need for dialysis or kidney transplant, MALE, diabetic retinopathy or death. Overlap weighting was used to balance baseline characteristics between cohorts while preserving sample size. Hazard ratios with 95% confidence intervals were calculated using propensity score-overlap weighted Cox regression. Results We included 24,912 rivaroxaban and 58,270 warfarin users. The mean ± standard deviation (SD) CHA2DS2VASc score was 4.3 ± 1.5 and modified HASBLED score was 1.5 ± 0.8. Thirty percent of rivaroxaban patients were started on 15 mg once daily, with the rest prescribed 20 mg once daily. Warfarin patients had a mean time in therapeutic range of 47 ± 28%. Patients were followed for a mean of 2.89 ± 1.95 years. Rivaroxaban was associated with a reduced hazard of the composite outcome (HR = 0.93, 95%CI = 0.91–0.95; absolute risk reduction = 1.97 events per 1000 patient-years; number needed-to-treat = 51) versus warfarin. Rivaroxaban was also associated with significant reductions in the relative hazard of > 40% decrease in eGFR from baseline (HR = 0.96), need for dialysis or renal transplant (HR = 0.81), and limb revascularization or major amputation (HR = 0.85). Death occurred at a lower incidence rate with rivaroxaban (HR = 0.92, 95%CI = 0.89–0.95). Conclusions Rivaroxaban was associated with reduced incidence rates of kidney and limb complications, and death in NVAF patients with type 2 diabetes compared to warfarin. ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04509193
Paracetamol in the home treatment of early COVID‐19 symptoms: A possible foe rather than a friend for elderly patients?

On October 2020, Sestili and Fimognari reported that acetaminophen (N-aetyl-para-aminophenol), commonly known as paracetamol, induces or worsens glutathione (GSH) consumption in elderly patients affected by early or mild COVID-19 This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
Differential impacts of alternate primary producers on carbon cycling.

Disturbance impacts the spatial distribution of primary producers, which can have cascading effects on ecosystem function. The lower-intertidal zone on the rocky shores of the Pacific Northwest is one such place where wave energy creates a mosaic-like distribution between two assemblages: surfgrass (Phyllospadix scouleri) meadows and macroalgal forests dominated by kelp. We simulated wave disturbance by experimentally removing patches of surfgrass monocultures, resulting in a macroalgal assemblage with increased diversity, biomass, and net primary productivity in the following year. While surfgrass had a higher C:N compared to macroalgal assemblages, macroalgal assemblages achieved a higher biomass, fixed carbon at a faster rate, and released more dissolved organic carbon (DOC) during photosynthesis. Thus, despite similar standing amounts of carbon, macroalgal assemblages have increased carbon turnover - from fixation to DOC release. Comparative photophysiology indicated that surfgrasses have a competitive advantage over other macrophytes at low-light levels, allowing them to persist when disturbance is reduced. Unexpectedly, disturbance in this system increased the potential for carbon sequestration when surfgrass monocultures were replaced by diverse macroalgae.
Transgender and Gender Diverse Community Connection, Help-Seeking, and Mental Health Among Black Transgender Women Who Have Survived Violence: A Mixed-Methods Analysis

Black transgender women are disproportionately affected by violence and poor care-delivery, contributing to poor mental health. Little is known regarding the effect of transgender and gender diverse (TGD) community connection (TCC) on health. This analysis (a) explores relationships between TCC, polyvictimization, and mental health and (b) analyzes how TCC influenced help-seeking following violent experiences among Black transgender women. Mixed-methods data from 19 Black transgender women were analyzed using correlational and thematic content analyses. Findings suggest that TCC is associated with improved help-seeking and mental health among Black transgender women, highlighting a need for longitudinal research to identify approaches for leveraging TCC.
Targeting the m6A RNA modification pathway blocks SARS-CoV-2 and HCoV-OC43 replication

In this study, Burgess et al. show that replication of SARS-CoV-2, the agent responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic, and a seasonal human β-coronavirus, HCoV-OC43, can be suppressed by depletion of nuclear RNA methyltransferase METTL3 or cytoplasmic m6A reader proteins YTHDF1 and YTHDF3 and by a highly specific small molecule METTL3 inhibitor. Their findings establish that coronavirus RNAs are m6A-modified and host m6A pathway components control β-coronavirus replication, and illustrate the therapeutic potential of inhibiting METTL3 to restrict coronavirus reproduction.
Breast Self-Examination Practice Among Female University Students in Ethiopia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background: Breast self-examination (BSE) is one of the most feasible methods of screening for early stages of breast cancer. However, the practice rate is insufficient in many low and middle-income countries including Ethiopia. Hence, this study aimed to estimate the pooled prevalence of BSE practice among female university students in Ethiopia. Methods: PubMed, Cochrane Library, Scopus, and Google Scholar were searched for studies that assessed BSE practice among female students in Ethiopian universities. The study included articles published from January 1st, 2010 to June 16th, 2020. The Cochran’s Q chi-square and the respective I2 test statistics were used to check heterogeneity among the included studies. To assess publication biases, the funnel plot and Egger’s regression tests were employed. Subgroup analysis was done by using different characteristics of studies. Sensitivity analysis was also run to assess the effect of a single study on the pooled outcome. STATA™ Version 14 software packages were employed for data analysis. Results: Sixteen (n = 16) studies with 5,743 participants were included to estimate the pooled prevalence of BSE practice. The prevalence of regular BSE practice reported in the studies ranges from 0% to 26.4%. The estimated pooled prevalence of regular BSE practice among university students in Ethiopia is 11.23% which is very low. The prevalence of BSE practice was high, 13.6% in studies published before 2015, 12.0% among health science students, and 12.6% in studies with a sample size of 384 participants and above. In addition, the estimated pooled prevalence of irregular self-breast-examination practice was 33.28%. Conclusion: The rate of BSE practice among female university students is low. Thus, awareness strategies need to be designed to increase the practice rate among women in the country as BSE is one of the most feasible strategies in early detection of breast cancer if properly implemented.
Separation of normal and impaired dynamic cerebral autoregulation using deep embedded clustering: a proof-of-concept study

Objective. A previous study has shown that a data-driven approach can significantly improve the discriminative power of transfer function analysis (TFA) used to differentiate between normal and impaired cerebral autoregulation (CA) in two groups of data. The data was collected from both healthy subjects (assumed to have normal CA) and symptomatic patients with severe stenosis (assumed to have impaired CA). However, the sample size of the labeled data was relatively small, owing to the difficulty in data collection. Therefore, in this proof-of-concept study, we investigate the feasibility of using an unsupervised learning model to differentiate between normal and impaired CA on TFA variables without requiring labeled data for learning. Approach. Continuous arterial blood pressure (ABP) and cerebral blood flow velocity (CBFV), which were recorded simultaneously for approximately 10 min, were included from 148 subjects (41 healthy subjects, 31 with mild stenosis, 13 with moderate stenosis, 22 asymptomatic patients with severe stenosis, and 41 symptomatic patients with severe stenosis). Tiecks’ model was used to generate surrogate data with normal and impaired CA. A recently proposed unsupervised learning model was optimized and applied to separate the normal and impaired CA for both the surrogate data and real data. Main results. It achieved 98.9% and 74.1% accuracy for the surrogate and real data, respectively. Significance. To our knowledge, this is the first attempt to employ an unsupervised data-driven approach to assess CA using TFA. This method enables the development of a classifier to determine the status of CA, which is currently lacking.
There and Back Again: Translating Adoptive Cell Therapy to Canine Cancer and Improving Human Treatment.

Adoptive cell transfer (ACT) is a burgeoning therapeutic modality within human immuno-oncology. Novel approaches toward ACT are being developed in the pre-clinical setting faster than they can be evaluated in human clinical trials. Many of the therapeutic approaches used in human medicine have already been evaluated to some degree in canine patients. While this form of immunotherapy in veterinary medicine is still in its infancy, as these approaches develop, canine ACT will become a tool for both the veterinary oncologist and the translational researcher. This review details canine ACT trials to date, with attention given to the precedents provided by human oncology. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
Aging and Health of American Indians and Alaska Natives: Contributions from the Native Investigator Development Program

Objectives: To describe recent advances in our knowledge regarding the health and illness of older American Indians and Alaska Natives, and factors underlying why this special population lives 5.5 years less than the 78.5 years of U.S. all races. Methods: The articles in this supplemental issue, authored by participants in a National Institutes of Health-sponsored early research career development program, examine high priority health concerns that contribute to the increased risk of Native elders for chronic disease and resulting impairment that compromise their life expectancy. Results: Important insights into the roles that racial discrimination, food security, hypertension, alcohol consumption, memory problems, and military service play in the health and well-being of older American Indians and Alaska Natives. Discussion: Early career faculty development programs focused on increasing the diversity of the scientific workforce not only promote greater racial and ethnic minority representation in the field of aging, but can simultaneously add to the knowledge base regarding the health status and function of often ignored, vulnerable older members of communities that suffer significant health disparities.
Multi-strain probiotic supplement attenuates streptozotocin-induced type-2 diabetes by reducing inflammation and β-cell death in rats

Probiotics are health beneficial bacterial populations colonizing the human gut and skin. Probiotics are believed to be involved in immune system regulation, gut microbiota stabilization, prevention of infectious diseases, and adjustments of host metabolic activities. Probiotics such as Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium affect glycemic levels, blood lipids, and protein metabolism. However, the interactions between probiotics and metabolic diseases as well as the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. We used streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic animal models to study the effect of ProbiogluTM, a multi-strain probiotic supplement including Lactobaccilus salivarius subsp. salicinius AP-32, L. johnsonii MH-68, L. reuteri GL-104, and Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis CP-9, on the regulation of physiochemical parameters related to type-2 diabetes. Experimental rats were randomly assigned into five groups, control group, streptozotocin (STZ)-treated rats (STZ group), STZ + 1× ProbiogluTM group, STZ + 5× ProbiogluTM group, and STZ + 10× ProbiogluTM group, and physiological data were measured at weeks 0, 2, 4, 6, and 8. Our results indicate that supplementation with ProbiogluTM significantly improved glucose tolerance, glycemic levels, insulin levels, and insulin resistance (HOMA-IR). Furthermore, we observed reduction in urea and blood lipid levels, including low-density lipoprotein (LDL), triglycerides (TG), and total cholesterol (TC). ProbiogluTM administration increased the β-cell mass in STZ-induced diabetic animal models, whereas it reduced the levels of proinflammatory cytokines TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-1β. In addition, the enhancement of oxidative stress biomarkers and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activities was associated with a decrease in malondialdehyde (MDA) levels. We conclude that ProbiogluTM attenuates STZ-induced type-2 diabetes by protecting β-cells, stabilizing glycemic levels, and reducing inflammation. Among all probiotic treating groups, the 10×ProbiogluTM treatment revealed the best results. However, these experimental results still need to be validated by different animal models of type-2 diabetes and human clinical trials in the future.
Real-Time EEG-Based Cognitive Workload Monitoring on Wearable Devices

Objective: Cognitive workload monitoring (CWM) can enhance human-machine interaction by supporting task execution assistance considering the operator's cognitive state. Therefore, we propose a machine learning design methodology and a data processing strategy to enable CWM on resource-constrained wearable devices. Methods: Our CWM solution is built upon edge computing on a simple wearable system, with only four peripheral channels of electroencephalography (EEG). We assess our solution on experimental data from 24 volunteers. Moreover, to overcome the system's memory constraints, we adopt an optimization strategy for model size reduction and a multi-batch data processing scheme for optimizing RAM memory footprint. Finally, we implement our data processing strategy on a state-of-the-art wearable platform and assess its execution and system battery life. Results: We achieve an accuracy of 74.5% and a 74.0% geometric mean between sensitivity and specificity for CWM classification on unseen data. Besides, the proposed model optimization strategy generates a 27.5x smaller model compared to the one generated with default parameters, and the multi-batch data processing scheme reduces RAM memory footprint by 14x compared to a single batch data processing. Finally, our algorithm uses only 1.28% of the available processing time, thus, allowing our system to achieve 28.5 hours of battery life. Conclusion: We provide a reliable and optimized CWM solution using wearable devices, enabling more than a day of operation on a single battery charge. Significance: The proposed methodology enables real-time data processing on resource-constrained devices and supports real-time wearable monitoring based on EEG for applications as CWM in human-machine interaction.
Relevance of Leukocytospermia and Semen Culture and Its True Place in Diagnosing and Treating Male Infertility

The current WHO 2010 manual for human semen analysis defines leukocytospermia as the presence of peroxidase-positive leukocytes at a concentration >1×106/mL of semen. Granular leukocytes when activated are capable of generating high levels of reactive oxygen species in semen resulting in oxidative stress. Oxidative stress has been correlated with poor sperm quality, increased level of sperm DNA fragmentation and low fertility potential. The presence of leukocytes and pathogens in the semen may be a sign of infection and/or localized inflammatory response in the male genital tract and the accessory glands. Common uro-pathogens including Chlamydia trachomatis, Ureaplasma urealyticum, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, Mycoplasma hominis, and Escherichia coli can cause epididymitis, epididymo-orchitis, or prostatitis. The relationship between leukocytospermia and infection is unclear. Therefore, we describe the pathogens responsible for male genital tract infections and their association with leukocytospermia. The review also examines the diagnostic tests available to identify seminal leukocytes. The role of leukocytospermia in male infertility and its management is also discussed.
Graphene‐Based Sulfur Composites for Energy Storage and Conversion in Li‐S Batteries

There are growing research interests in developing high-performance energy storage systems to meet the demands for large-scale and sustainable energy storage. The lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries have drawn numerous attentions due to their exceptionally high energy density compared with other batteries. However, achieving the high capacities with long-term cycle stability and retaining an essentially high sulfur loading remains a tremendous challenge for the designs of Li-S batteries. Graphene is regarded as a very suitable and promising addition to the compositions for Li-S batteries due to its unique two dimensional (2D) structure, high conductivity and superior mechanical flexibility. Besides, the functional groups of graphene surface can be tuned flexibly to immobilize the S/Li2Sx on the graphene surface during the cycling process. In this review, the development of graphene-sulfur composites and their applications in Li-S batteries are discussed. The attempts are also devoted to the synthesis approaches of various graphene-based sulfur composites, the graphene-sulfur interaction and the impacts on the electrochemical performances as well as the major issues of Li-S batteries.
SARS-CoV-2 viral proteins NSP1 and NSP13 inhibit interferon activation through distinct mechanisms

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has caused a devastating global pandemic, infecting over 43 million people and claiming over 1 million lives, with these numbers increasing daily. Therefore, there is urgent need to understand the molecular mechanisms governing SARS-CoV-2 pathogenesis, immune evasion, and disease progression. Here, we show that SARS-CoV-2 can block IRF3 and NF-κB activation early during virus infection. We also identify that the SARS-CoV-2 viral proteins NSP1 and NSP13 can block interferon activation via distinct mechanisms. NSP1 antagonizes interferon signaling by suppressing host mRNA translation, while NSP13 downregulates interferon and NF-κB promoter signaling by limiting TBK1 and IRF3 activation, as phospho-TBK1 and phospho-IRF3 protein levels are reduced with increasing levels of NSP13 protein expression. NSP13 can also reduce NF-κB activation by both limiting NF-κB phosphorylation and nuclear translocation. Last, we also show that NSP13 binds to TBK1 and downregulates IFIT1 protein expression. Collectively, these data illustrate that SARS-CoV-2 bypasses multiple innate immune activation pathways through distinct mechanisms.
In vivo delayed clearance of Plasmodium falciparum malaria independent of kelch13 polymorphisms and with escalating malaria in Bangladesh.

The emergence of resistance to artemisinin drugs threatens global malaria control. Resistance is widely seen in South East Asia (SEA) and Myanmar, but not comprehensively assessed in Bangladesh. This is due to lack of measuring parasite clearance times in response to drug treatment, a gold standard used to track artemisinin resistance (AR), in the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT), where >90% of malaria occurs in Bangladesh. Here we report delay in clinical parasite clearance half-lives > 5 h characteristic of AR, in Bandarban, a south-eastern rural, CHT district with escalating malaria and bordering Myanmar. Thirty-one and 68 malaria patients respectively presented in the clinic in 2018 and 2019, and this increase well correlated to the district-level malaria surge and rise in rainfall, humidity and temperature. A total of 27 patients with uncomplicated Plasmodium falciparum malaria mono-infection, after administration of an artemisinin combination therapy (ACT) showed median (range) parasite clearance half-life and time of 5.6 (1.5 --9.6) and 24 (12--48) hours (h) respectively. The frequency distribution of parasite clearance half-life and time was bimodal, with a slower parasite clearance of 8 h in 20% of the participants. There was however, no detectable parasitemia 72 h after initiating ACT. Half-life clearance of > 5h, respectively seen in 35% and 40% of participants in 2018 and 2019, lacked in correlation to initial parasitemia, blood count parameters or resistance mutations of PfKelch13 (K13, the major parasite marker of AR). Culture adapted strains await assessment of in vitro resistance and new parasite determinants of AR.
Uncategorized Indians in Vietnam and questions for diaspora studies

ABSTRACT This research report describes individual Indian descendants in Ho Chi Minh city in the aim of raising research questions for the scholarship of Indian diaspora studies. I focus on the Indian diasporic members who are largely descendants of those who, in the second half of the nineteenth century and before, migrated from French–British India to Vietnam. They are economically and culturally different from the current Indian expats, the members of the capitalized 'Cộng Đồng Người Ấn Độ' (Indian Community) in Vietnam. The current Indian immigrants largely work in Indian companies and multinational groups. In other words, the Indians in Vietnam are not classified either as children of 'Kinh paternalism' or of Vietnamese 'state paternalism' (Salemink, The Ethnography of Vietnam’s Central Highlanders: A Historical Contextualization, 1850–1900. London: Routledge Curzon, 2003, 258, 287). Nor, are they perceptually overseas daughters and sons of 'Hindu paternalism' (Omvedt, Reinventing Revolution: New Social Movements and the Socialist Tradition in India. Armonk: M.E. Sharpe, 1993, 31). The Indian descendants in Vietnam belong nowhere politically. The ambiguity of the Indian descendants in Vietnamese history and society does not suggest that they would be a research subject of the Indian or South Asian diasporas in the field of diaspora studies. Indeed, exploring the Indian diaspora in the dynamic contexts of Vietnamese nationalism offers a new direction in the diaspora studies in general and South Asian diasporas in particular. The report is based on my ethnographic research in Ho Chi Minh City in 2012–2014 at Indian individuals’ houses and at cultural centres.
Correction

By an unfortunate error a line of type was omitted from page 103 of Axel Seeberg's article ‘Hephaestus Rides Again’ in JHS lxxxv (1965). After line 1 of section (3) on that page, the line ‘and stationary pair. In the former, lay figures as on the krater, but bearded’ should be added.