Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Acute splenic sequestration in HbSS: observations from the Jamaican birth cohort

Objective To document the prevalence, clinical features, haematology and outcome of acute splenic sequestration (ASS) in homozygous sickle cell disease (HbSS). Study design A cohort study from birth. Setting The Medical Research Council Laboratories at the University of the West Indies, Kingston, Jamaica. Patients 311 cases of HbSS detected during the screening of 100 000 deliveries at the main government maternity hospital between 1973 and 1981. Interventions Long-term follow-up and free patient care focusing on ASS. Main outcome measure Acute splenic sequestration. Results There were 183 episodes of ASS in 105 patients representing 35% of the cohort. The median age for first event was 1.07 years. During ASS, median values for haemoglobin fell by 32 g/dL, reticulocytes increased by 8% and total nucleated cells increased by 10.5%. ASS recurred in 47 (45%) patients. Conservative therapy in 133 episodes of 85 patients was associated with five deaths and splenectomy in 20 patients with 50 episodes had no deaths. Symptoms were generally non-specific but acute chest syndrome occurred in 17, and blood cultures revealed coagulase negative staphylococci in 5. The ASS case fatality rate was 3.6% and may be higher if autopsy evidence of ASS is included. There was no seasonal pattern but higher levels of fetal haemoglobin predicted patients less prone to ASS and its later occurrence. Conclusions ASS remains an important cause of morbidity and mortality in HbSS in developing societies. ASS appears to be a non-specific response to many possible risk factors including coagulase negative staphylococci.
Metasomatism in the North Qôroq Centre, South Greenland: Apatite Chemistry and Rare-Earth Element Transport

Abstract The North Qôroq syenite centre forms part of the Gardar Province of South Greenland. Extensive metasomatism, associated with the evolution of syenitic magmas, has resulted in redistribution of the rareearth elements (REE), originally concentrated by magmatic processes, in both the syenites and surrounding granite-gneiss and quartzite country rocks. An important host for REE is apatite which can occur irl significant quantities. Metasomatic apatites show complex, concentric, but irregular patterns of zonation, clearly seen using CL and BSE imaging. This zonation is related to successive pulses of metasomatising fluids. Electron microprobe analysis confirms the presence of significant quantities of REE in the apatites. The dominant cation exchange mechanism proposed is Ca2+ P3+⇋ REE3+ Si4+. In contrast to apatites from the nearby Ilímaussaq intrusion, there is no significant Na present in the structure and exchange reactions involving Na+ and REE3+ for Ca2+ have not occurred. Apatites from the quartzite are fluor-apatites, while those from the granite-gneiss are more Cl-rich. These differences reflect the fact that granite-gneiss apatites are original and modified by metasomatism, whereas, those in the quartzite are metasomatic in origin. REE were probably transported as carbonate, fluoride or fluor-carbonate complexes, and reflect the activity of a F−-rich, CO3−2 rich fluid phase.
Up-Down Separation Using Hilbert Transformed Source for Causal Imaging Condition

We show an explicit scheme that separates seismic source and receiver wave-fields individually into upand downgoing components. The main challenge of the work is generating wavefields that correspond to positive or negative temporal frequencies in space-time 4D volume. This difficulty arises because the seismic propagators we typically employ store wave-fields with slowest dimension in time but the Fourier transform operates most efficiently on data that are stored contiguously. We solve this issue by a temporal Hilbert transform of the source term of the wave-equation followed by the conventional propagations. The pair of wave-fields, namely, the wave-field propagated without a Hilbert transformed source and the wave-field generated by the Hilbert transformed source, constitute the desired positive or negative temporal components in real and imaginary parts, respectively and separately. The down-going and up-going wave components can then be conveniently obtained by applying 1D Fourier filters in depth. We pursue a causal imaging condition that correlates the down-going source component with the up-going receiver component for subsurface imaging. We demonstrate that by applying the causal imaging condition certain strong near-salt imaging artifacts are removed.
Yeasts from tropical forests: Biodiversity, ecological interactions, and as sources of bioinnovation

Tropical rainforests and related biomes are found in Asia, Australia, Africa, Central and South America, Mexico, and many Pacific Islands. These biomes encompass less than 20% of Earth's terrestrial area, may contain about 50% of the planet's biodiversity, and are endangered regions vulnerable to deforestation. Tropical rainforests have a great diversity of substrates that can be colonized by yeasts. These unicellular fungi contribute to the recycling of organic matter, may serve as a food source for other organisms, or have ecological interactions that benefit or harm plants, animals, and other fungi. In this review, we summarize the most important studies of yeast biodiversity carried out in these biomes, as well as new data, and discuss the ecology of yeast genera frequently isolated from tropical forests and the potential of these microorganisms as a source of bioinnovation. We show that tropical forest biomes represent a tremendous source of new yeast species. Although many studies, most using culture‐dependent methods, have already been carried out in Central America, South America, and Asia, the tropical forest biomes of Africa and Australasia remain an underexplored source of novel yeasts. We hope that this review will encourage new researchers to study yeasts in unexplored tropical forest habitats.
In vitro screening technologies for the discovery and development of novel drugs against Toxoplasma gondii

ABSTRACT Introduction Toxoplasmosis constitutes a challenge for public health, animal production and welfare. Since more than 60 years, only a limited panel of drugs has been in use for clinical applications. Areas covered Herein, the authors describe the methodology and the results of library screening approaches to identify inhibitors of Toxoplasma gondii and related strains. The authors then provide the reader with their expert perspectives for the future. Expert opinion Various library screening projects, in particular those using reporter strains, have led to the identification of numerous compounds with good efficacy and specificity in vitro. However, only few compounds are effective in suitable animal models such as rodents. Whereas no novel compound has cleared the hurdle to applications in humans, the few compounds with known indication and application profiles in human patients are of interest for further investigations. Taken together, drug repurposing as well as high-throughput screening of novel compound libraries may shorten the way to novel drugs against toxoplasmosis.
Surface-Based Probabilistic Fiber Tracking in Superficial White Matter

The short association fibers or U-fibers travel in the superficial white matter (SWM) beneath the cortical layer. While the U-fibers play a crucial role in various brain disorders, there is a lack of effective tools to reconstruct their highly curved trajectory from diffusion MRI (dMRI). In this work, we propose a novel surface-based framework for the probabilistic tracking of fibers on the triangular mesh representation of the SWM. By deriving a closed-form solution to transform the spherical harmonics (SPHARM) coefficients of 3D fiber orientation distributions (FODs) to local coordinate systems on each triangle, we develop a novel approach to project the FODs onto the tangent space of the SWM. After that, we utilize parallel transport to realize the intrinsic propagation of streamlines on SWM following probabilistically sampled fiber directions. Our intrinsic and surface-based method eliminates the need to perform the necessary but challenging sharp turns in 3D compared with conventional volume-based tractography methods. Using data from the Human Connectome Project (HCP), we performed quantitative comparisons to demonstrate the proposed algorithm can more effectively reconstruct the U-fibers connecting the precentral and postcentral gyrus than previous methods. Quantitative validations were then performed on post-mortem MRIs to show the reconstructed U-fibers from our method more faithfully follow the SWM than volume-based tractography. Finally, we applied our algorithm to study the parietal U-fiber connectivity changes in autosomal dominant Alzheimer’s disease (ADAD) patients and successfully detected significant associations between U-fiber connectivity and disease severity.
Physiological and anthropometric correlates of metabolic risk factors among selected non obese adults in Zaria, Northern Nigeria

Recent publications on clinical definitions have transformed the metabolic syndrome from a physiological curiosity to a major focus of research, clinical and public health interests on non obese adults. The purpose of this study therefore, was to determine the relationship between anthropometrics and cardiometabolic variables that reflect the existence of metabolic syndrome among non obese adults. One hundred and seventy four (174) adults, with mean age of 47.13 ± 8.10 (male) and 44.96 ± 9.58 (female) were recruited for this cross sectional study. Descriptive statistics, partial correlation and multiple regression analysis were used to determine the relationship between anthropometric measurements and cardiometabolic variables after controlling for age. Anthropometric indices, lipid profile, fasting glucose and blood pressure were among the variables assessed using standard procedures. The best correlation among the anthropometrics (p ≤ 0.05) was presented between waist circumference and waist-height ratio (male r = 0.925, female r = 0.916) and body fat (%) and fat mass (male r = 0.956, female r = 0.944). Fat mass, waist-height ratio and waist circumference in male and waist-height ratio in female were found to have the largest correlation relative to at least 3 risk factors. Combination of three components of cardiometabolic risk factors were significantly more in male than female. Regression analysis also showed that waist-height ratio appears optimal for predicting components of cardiometabolic risk factors among non obese adults. Among all obesity measures studied, waist-height ratio, waist circumference and fat mass explained comparatively larger amount of variance of cardiometabolic risk factors among non-obese adults. Non obese male were significantly more likely to have two or more risk factors than female participants. However, the greater risk of developing metabolic syndrome was associated with increasing waist-height ratio, which could be used as simple and non-invasive method for detecting dyslipidemia among non obese adults, and use of this method was suggested in clinical and epidemiological fields. Key words: Metabolic syndrome, non obese adults, anthropometric indices.
A classification of combined homicide–suicide: An update—Part II: Intrafamilial homicide–suicide

This Part II of the three‐part presentation of the updated classification of combined‐homicide published in the Journal of Forensic Sciences addresses intrafamilial homicide–suicides (H–Ss). Intrafamilial H–Ss in this classification includes all close relationships including dating and intimate partners, not just traditional family relationships, in contrast to extrafamilial H–Ss where the victim(s) of homicide are either strangers or in a more formal but nonintimate relationship with the actor. Intrafamilial H–Ss are further divided and classified as intimate partner, filicide, familicide, parricide, and siblicide H–Ss, respectively, and are typically so grouped in the literature.
RANAVIRUS (FROG VIRUS 3) INFECTION IN FREE-LIVING THREE-TOED BOX TURTLES (TERRAPENE MEXICANA TRIUNGUIS) IN MISSOURI, USA

Abstract: Frog virus 3 (FV3) and related ranaviruses are emerging infectious disease threats to ectothermic vertebrate species globally. Although the impact of these viruses on amphibian health is relatively well studied, less is understood about their effects on reptile health. We report two cases of FV3 infection, 11 mo apart, in three-toed box turtles (Terrapene mexicana triunguis) from a wildlife rehabilitation center. Case 1 had upper respiratory signs upon intake but had no clinical signs at the time of euthanasia 1 mo later. Case 2 presented for vehicular trauma, had ulcerative pharyngitis and glossitis, and died overnight. In case 1, we detected FV3 nucleic acid with qPCR in oral swabs, kidney, liver, spleen, and tongue. In case 2, we detected FV3 in an oral swab, an oral plaque, heart, kidney, lung, liver, spleen, and tongue. We also detected FV3 nucleic acid with in situ hybridization for case 2. For both cases, FV3 was isolated in cell culture and identified with DNA sequencing. Histopathologic examination of postmortem tissue from case 1 was unremarkable, whereas acute hemorrhagic pneumonia and splenic necrosis were noted in case 2. The difference in clinical signs between the two cases may have been due to differences in the temporal course of FV3 disease at the time of necropsy. Failure to detect this infection previously in Missouri reptiles may be due to lack of surveillance, although cases may also represent a novel spillover to box turtles in Missouri. Our findings reiterate previous suggestions that the range of FV3 infection may be greater than previously documented and that infection may occur in host species yet to be tested.
What health inequalities exist in access to, outcomes from and experience of treatment for lung cancer? A scoping review

Objectives Lung cancer (LC) continues to be the leading cause of cancer-related deaths and while there have been significant improvements in overall survival, this gain is not equally distributed. To address health inequalities (HIs), it is vital to identify whether and where they exist. This paper reviews existing literature on what HIs impact LC care and where these manifest on the care pathway. Design A systematic scoping review based on Arksey and O’Malley’s five-stage framework. Data sources Multiple databases (EMBASE, HMIC, Medline, PsycINFO, PubMed) were used to retrieve articles. Eligibility criteria Search limits were set to retrieve articles published between January 2012 and April 2022. Papers examining LC along with domains of HI were included. Two authors screened papers and independently assessed full texts. Data extraction and synthesis HIs were categorised according to: (a) HI domains: Protected Characteristics (PC); Socioeconomic and Deprivation Factors (SDF); Geographical Region (GR); Vulnerable or Socially Excluded Groups (VSG); and (b) where on the LC pathway (access to, outcomes from, experience of care) inequalities manifest. Data were extracted by two authors and collated in a spreadsheet for structured analysis and interpretation. Results 41 papers were included. The most studied domain was PC (32/41), followed by SDF (19/41), GR (18/41) and VSG (13/41). Most studies investigated differences in access (31/41) or outcomes (27/41), with few (4/41) exploring experience inequalities. Evidence showed race, rural residence and being part of a VSG impacted the access to LC diagnosis, treatment and supportive care. Additionally, rural residence, older age or male sex negatively impacted survival and mortality. The relationship between outcomes and other factors (eg, race, deprivation) showed mixed results. Conclusions Findings offer an opportunity to reflect on the understanding of HIs in LC care and provide a platform to consider targeted efforts to improve equity of access, outcomes and experience for patients.
' s response to reviews Title : Closing-wedge high tibial osteotomy : survival and risk factor analysis at long-term follow up

Background: Closing-wedge high tibial osteotomy (HTO) is successful for the treatment of medial osteoarthritis with varus malalignment. Preoperative risk factors for HTO failure are still controversial. The aim of this study was to elucidate the outcome and assess the influence of risk factors on long term HTO survival. Methods: 199 patients were retrospectively studied with a mean follow-up period of 9.6 years after HTO. HTO failure was defined as the need for conversion to TKA. Survival was analyzed with the Kaplan-Meier method. Knee function was evaluated by the Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) score. HTO-associated complications were also assessed. Univariate, multivariate, and logistic regression analysis were performed to evaluate the influence of age, gender, BMI, preoperative Kellgren-Lawrence osteoarthritis grade, and varus angle on HTO failure. Results: 39 complications were recorded. Thus far, 36 HTOs were converted to TKA. The survival of HTO was 84% after 9.6 years. Knee function was considered excellent or good in 64% of patients. A significant preoperative risk factor for HTO failure was osteoarthritis, Kellgren-Lawrence grade >2. Conclusion: HTO provides good clinical results in long-term follow-up. Preoperative osteoarthritis Kellgren-Lawrence grade >2 is a significant predictive risk factor for HTO failure. Results of HTO may be improved by careful patient selection. Complications associated with HTO should not be underestimated.
Addressing the challenges of establishing quality wastewater or non-sewered sanitation-based surveillance, including laboratory and epidemiological considerations, in Malawi

Learning from clinical laboratories, wastewater or environmental (including non-sewered sanitation) environmental microbiology laboratories can be established in resource-limited settings that focus on pathogen detection and pandemic prevention. Transparent discussions on the laboratory challenges and adaptations required for this can help meet the future requirements of health research and surveillance. This report aims to describe the challenges encountered when setting up a wastewater or environmental laboratory for multipathogen surveillance in Malawi, a resource-limited setting, as well as the lessons learnt. We identified nine unifying themes: what to monitor, human resource capacity, indicators of data quality, equipment availability, supply of consumable goods, ongoing operation and maintenance of the laboratory, application of localised guidelines for laboratory operations, lack of real-time clinical correlation for calibration and localised ethical considerations. Over our 6-month timeline, only Salmonella typhi, Vibrio cholerae and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 analyses were set-up. However, we were unable to set-up measles and tuberculosis analyses owing largely to supply delays. By establishing this system at a public higher education academic laboratory in Malawi, we have ensured that ongoing capacity building and piloting of public health work is conducted in the country, rather than relying on non-governmental organisations or reference laboratory support beyond national borders. This work is not intended to replace clinical testing but rather demonstrates the potential for adapting higher education academic laboratory infrastructure to add wastewater or environmental (including non-sewered sanitation) samples, where appropriate, as additive epidemiological data for better pandemic preparedness.
Predicting the development of acute‐on‐chronic liver failure

In summary, both Padua and Padua 2.0 models are accurate predictive models for identifying patients with AD at high risk of developing ACLF. While both need to be validated in external cohorts, their potential and critical benefits include earlier referral to transplant centres and recruitment in future clinical trials, which should focus on the development of preventative therapies for this group of patients.
A late Devensian glaciolacustrine fan-delta at Rhosesmor, Clwyd, North Wales

Glacigenic sediments exposed at Rhosesmor, Clwyd, North Wales, were deposited in a small proglacial lake ponded by the stagnating margin of the Late Devensian Irish Sea icesheet. Three major fades assemblages are identified and show a prograding sequence of topset, foreset, and bottomset deposits associated with two Gilbert-style deltas stacked one above the other. The lower delta is associated with a lake level at c. 180 m OD. A subsequent ice-marginal readvance raised the lake to c. 192 m OD, drowned the lower delta and caused the growth of a second delta by an iceward shift of facies. It is estimated that the life of the lake was of the order of 90 years during which average sediment in-fill amounted to some 4±104 m3 per annum.
Genomics of predictive radiation mutagenesis in oilseed rape: modifying seed oil composition

Summary Rapeseed is a crop of global importance but there is a need to broaden the genetic diversity available to address breeding objectives. Radiation mutagenesis, supported by genomics, has the potential to supersede genome editing for both gene knockout and copy number increase, but detailed knowledge of the molecular outcomes of radiation treatment is lacking. To address this, we produced a genome re‐sequenced panel of 1133 M2 generation rapeseed plants and analysed large‐scale deletions, single nucleotide variants and small insertion–deletion variants affecting gene open reading frames. We show that high radiation doses (2000 Gy) are tolerated, gamma radiation and fast neutron radiation have similar impacts and that segments deleted from the genomes of some plants are inherited as additional copies by their siblings, enabling gene dosage decrease. Of relevance for species with larger genomes, we showed that these large‐scale impacts can also be detected using transcriptome re‐sequencing. To test the utility of the approach for predictive alteration of oil fatty acid composition, we produced lines with both decreased and increased copy numbers of Bna.FAE1 and confirmed the anticipated impacts on erucic acid content. We detected and tested a 21‐base deletion expected to abolish function of Bna.FAD2. A5, for which we confirmed the predicted reduction in seed oil polyunsaturated fatty acid content. Our improved understanding of the molecular effects of radiation mutagenesis will underpin genomics‐led approaches to more efficient introduction of novel genetic variation into the breeding of this crop and provides an exemplar for the predictive improvement of other crops.
Depth Control of Some Concordant Intrusions

Analysis of geologic data from 54 localities, mainly in the western United States, shows that concordant igneous masses intruded zones in nearly flat-lying sedimentary rocks where the thickness of cover was 3000 to 7500 feet. The depth of intrusion was apparently affected by a well-defined parting surface (bedding plane or unconformity), static load of the overburden (lithostatic pressure), and presence of a fluid barrier above the intrusion. Most bodies intruded along well-defined bedding planes in sedimentary rocks and flow surfaces in extrusive igneous rocks; some intruded along unconformities. The range in overburden pressure is about 3000 to 7500 psi for intrusions at depths of 3000 to 7500 feet. Magma pressure for lateral injection at the lower limit of the depth range, therefore, must have exceeded 7500 psi to lift 7500 feet of overburden. A fluid barrier, such as a shale, overlies almost all intrusions studied and tended to retard upward advance of magma. At depths less than 3000 feet, the barrier shales may be brittle and easily ruptured by the fluid pressure, permitting steam and magma to escape to the surface. Below 3000 feet the shales may become ductile.