bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Impact of COVID-19 on the hospitalization, treatment, and outcomes of intracerebral and subarachnoid hemorrhage in the United States
Authors: Ravindra Vijay M. , Grandhi Ramesh , Delic Alen , Hohmann Samuel , Shippey Ernie , Tirschwell David , Frontera Jennifer A. , Yaghi Shadi , Majersik Jennifer J. , Anadani Mohammad , de Havenon Adam
Published: April 2021

Objective

To examine the outcomes of adult patients with spontaneous intracranial and subarachnoid hemorrhage diagnosed with comorbid COVID-19 infection in a large, geographically diverse cohort.

Methods

We performed a retrospective analysis using the Vizient Clinical Data Base. We separately compared two cohorts of patients with COVID-19 admitted April 1–October 31, 2020—patients with intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) and those with subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH)—with control patients with ICH or SAH who did not have COVID-19 admitted at the same hospitals in 2019. The primary outcome was in-hospital death. Favorable discharge and length of hospital and intensive-care stay were the secondary outcomes. We fit multivariate mixed-effects logistic regression models to our outcomes.

Results

There were 559 ICH-COVID patients and 23,378 ICH controls from 194 hospitals. In the ICH-COVID cohort versus controls, there was a significantly higher proportion of Hispanic patients (24.5% vs. 8.9%), Black patients (23.3% vs. 20.9%), nonsmokers (11.5% vs. 3.2%), obesity (31.3% vs. 13.5%), and diabetes (43.4% vs. 28.5%), and patients had a longer hospital stay (21.6 vs. 10.5 days), a longer intensive-care stay (16.5 vs. 6.0 days), and a higher in-hospital death rate (46.5% vs. 18.0%). Patients with ICH-COVID had an adjusted odds ratio (aOR) of 2.43 [1.96–3.00] for the outcome of death and an aOR of 0.55 [0.44–0.68] for favorable discharge. There were 212 SAH-COVID patients and 5,029 controls from 119 hospitals. The hospital (26.9 vs. 13.4 days) and intensive-care (21.9 vs. 9.6 days) length of stays and in-hospital death rate (42.9% vs. 14.8%) were higher in the SAH-COVID cohort compared with controls. Patients with SAH-COVID had an aOR of 1.81 [1.26–2.59] for an outcome of death and an aOR of 0.54 [0.37–0.78] for favorable discharge.

Conclusions

Patients with spontaneous ICH or SAH and comorbid COVID infection were more likely to be a racial or ethnic minority, diabetic, and obese and to have higher rates of death and longer hospital length of stay when compared with controls.
A new 3D finite element-based approach for computing cell surface tractions assuming nonlinear conditions
Authors: Hervas-Raluy Silvia , Gomez-Benito Maria Jose , Borau-Zamora Carlos , Cóndor Mar , Garcia-Aznar Jose Manuel
Published: April 2021

Advances in methods for determining the forces exerted by cells while they migrate are essential for attempting to understand important pathological processes, such as cancer or angiogenesis, among others. Precise data from three-dimensional conditions are both difficult to obtain and manipulate. For this purpose, it is critical to develop workflows in which the experiments are closely linked to the subsequent computational postprocessing. The work presented here starts from a traction force microscopy (TFM) experiment carried out on microfluidic chips, and this experiment is automatically joined to an inverse problem solver that allows us to extract the traction forces exerted by the cell from the displacements of fluorescent beads embedded in the extracellular matrix (ECM). Therefore, both the reconstruction of the cell geometry and the recovery of the ECM displacements are used to generate the inputs for the resolution of the inverse problem. The inverse problem is solved iteratively by using the finite element method under the hypothesis of finite deformations and nonlinear material formulation. Finally, after mathematical postprocessing is performed, the traction forces on the surface of the cell in the undeformed configuration are obtained. Therefore, in this work, we demonstrate the robustness of our computational-based methodology by testing it under different conditions in an extreme theoretical load problem and then by applying it to a real case based on experimental results. In summary, we have developed a new procedure that adds value to existing methodologies for solving inverse problems in 3D, mainly by allowing for large deformations and not being restricted to any particular material formulation. In addition, it automatically bridges the gap between experimental images and mechanical computations.
A sexual division of labour at the start of agriculture? A multi-proxy comparison through grave good stone tool technological and use-wear analysis
Authors: Masclans Alba , Hamon Caroline , Jeunesse Christian , Bickle Penny
Published: April 2021

This work demonstrates the importance of integrating sexual division of labour into the research of the transition to the Neolithic and its social implications. During the spread of the Neolithic in Europe, when migration led to the dispersal of domesticated plants and animals, novel tasks and tools, appear in the archaeological record. By examining the use-wear traces from over 400 stone tools from funerary contexts of the earliest Neolithic in central Europe we provide insights into what tasks could have been carried out by women and men. The results of this analysis are then examined for statistically significant correlations with the osteological, isotopic and other grave good data, informing on sexed-based differences in diet, mobility and symbolism. Our data demonstrate males were buried with stone tools used for woodwork, and butchery, hunting or interpersonal violence, while women with those for the working of animal skins, expanding the range of tasks known to have been carried out. The results also show variation along an east-west cline from Slovakia to eastern France, suggesting that the sexual division of labour (or at least its representation in death) changed as farming spread westwards.
Teaching well-being at scale: An intervention study
Authors: Yaden David B. , Claydon Jennifer , Bathgate Meghan , Platt Belinda , Santos Laurie R.
Published: April 2021

Courses that teach evidence-based interventions to enhance well-being are a public health tool that could be used to improve mental health in the population. We compared the well-being of six cohorts of adult students before and after they completed one of two massive open online courses: The Science of Well-Being (N = 581; 441; 1,228) and a control course, Introduction to Psychology (N = 677; 480; 1,480). Baseline well-being levels were equivalent across all six samples. Students in both courses increased in their well-being from baseline to follow-up in all three samples (p < .001); however, at follow-up, students in The Science of Well-Being course had higher subjective well-being than the control course (sample 1: r = .18, d = .37, p < .001; sample 2: r = .21, d = .43, p < .001; sample 3: r = .19, d = .38, p < .001). Overall, across three samples, we found that students who completed either of these online psychology courses increased in their well-being––but that students in The Science of Well-Being course showed greater improvement. These findings suggest that large free online courses that teach evidence-based approaches to well-being could positively impact mental health at large scales.
Asymmetric effects of social and economic incentives on cooperation in real effort based public goods games
Authors: Hackel Jakob , Yamamoto Hitoshi , Okada Isamu , Goto Akira , Taudes Alfred
Published: April 2021

Many practitioners as well as researchers explore promoting environmentally conscious behavior in the context of public goods systems. Numerous experimental studies revealed various types of incentives to increase cooperation on public goods. There is ample evidence that monetary and non-monetary incentives, such as donations, have a positive effect on cooperation in public goods games that exceeds fully rational and optimal economic decision making. Despite an accumulation of these studies, in the typical setting of these experiments participants decide on an allocation of resources to a public pool, but they never exert actual effort. However, in reality, we often observe that players’ real effort is required in these public goods game situations. Therefore, more analysis is needed to draw conclusions for a wider set of incentive possibilities in situations similar to yet deviating from resource allocation games. Here we construct a real effort public goods game in an online experiment and statistically analyze the effect different types of incentives have on cooperation. In our experiment, we examine combinations of monetary and social incentives in a setting aimed closer to practical realities, such as financial costs and real effort forming part of the decision to cooperate on a public good. In our real effort public goods game participants cooperate and defect on image-scoring tasks. We find that in our setting economic and social incentives produce an asymmetric effect. Interestingly economic incentives decreased the share of highly uncooperative participants, while social incentives raised the share of highly cooperative participants.
Physiological and subjective comfort evaluation under different airflow directions in a cooling environment
Authors: Tamura Kaori , Matsumoto Sayaka , Tseng Yu Hsuan , Kobayashi Takayuki , Miwa Jun’ichi , Miyazawa Ken’ichi , Hirao Toyotaka , Matsumoto Soichiro , Hiramatsu Seiji , Otake Hiroyuki , Okamoto Tsuyoshi
Published: April 2021

Indoor comfort is influenced by airflow direction, but subjective evaluations can differ. This study evaluates the airflow comfort with subjective assessments and physiological measurements, including skin temperature, electroencephalograms, and electrocardiograms. Nineteen participants entered a test room at 20°C after staying in a room at 32°C for acclimation. They were exposed to indirect and direct airflow conditions to their faces and performed four tasks under each condition: resting, counting to 10 s following time alerts, counting to 10 s in mind, and mental calculation. Subjective assessments showed relatively higher thermal sensation and pleasantness under indirect airflow. The psychological time calculated from counting behaviors was longer under indirect airflow, indicating suppression of negative emotions. The face temperatures significantly declined during experiments under direct airflow. The beta and gamma bands of electroencephalograms were inhibited under the indirect condition, and these amplitudes were negatively correlated with pleasant feelings. Electrocardiogram parameters indicated that sympathetic nervous activity was predominant during counting, following alerts and mental calculation in indirect airflow. This study supports the comfort of indirect airflow based on reliable evidence.
Marine communities of the newly created Kawésqar National Reserve, Chile: From glaciers to the Pacific Ocean
Authors: Friedlander Alan M. , Ballesteros Enric , Goodell Whitney , Hüne Mathias , Muñoz Alex , Salinas-de-León Pelayo , Velasco-Charpentier Catalina , Sala Enric
Published: April 2021

The newly created Kawésqar National Park (KNP) and National Reserve (KNR) in southern Chile consists of diverse terrestrial and marine habitats, which includes the southern terminus of the Andes, the Southern Patagonia Ice Fields, sub-Antarctic rainforests, glaciers, fjords, lakes, wetlands, valleys, channels, and islands. The marine environment is influenced by wide ranging hydrological factors such as glacier melt, large terrigenous inputs, high precipitation, strong currents, and open ocean water masses. Owing to the remoteness, rugged terrain, and harsh environmental conditions, little is known about this vast region, particularly the marine realm. To this end, we conducted an integrated ecological assessment using SCUBA and remote cameras down to 600 m to examine this unique and largely unexplored ecosystem. Kelp forests (primarily Macrocystis pyrifera) dominate the nearshore ecosystem and provide habitat for myriad benthic organisms. In the fjords, salinity was low and both turbidity and nutrients from terrigenous sources were high, with benthic communities dominated by active suspension feeders (e.g., Bivalvia, Ascidiacea, and Bryozoa). Areas closer to the Pacific Ocean showed more oceanic conditions with higher salinity and lower turbidity, with benthic communities experiencing more open benthic physical space in which predators (e.g., Malacostraca and Asteroidea) and herbivorous browsers (e.g., Echinoidea and Gastropoda) were more conspicuous components of the community compared to the inner fjords. Hagfish (Myxine sp.) was the most abundant and frequently occurring fish taxa observed on deep-sea cameras (80% of deployments), along with several taxa of sharks (e.g., Squaliformes, Etmopteridae, Somniosidae, Scyliorhinidae), which collectively were also observed on 80% of deep-sea camera deployments. The kelp forests, deep fjords, and other nearshore habitats of the KNR represent a unique ecosystem with minimal human impacts at present. The KNR is part of the ancestral territory of the indigenous Kawésqar people and their traditional knowledge, including the importance of the land-sea connection in structuring the marine communities of this region, is strongly supported by our scientific findings.
miRGTF-net: Integrative miRNA-gene-TF network analysis reveals key drivers of breast cancer recurrence
Authors: Nersisyan Stepan , Galatenko Alexei , Galatenko Vladimir , Shkurnikov Maxim , Tonevitsky Alexander
Published: April 2021

Analysis of regulatory networks is a powerful framework for identification and quantification of intracellular interactions. We introduce miRGTF-net, a novel tool for construction of miRNA-gene-TF networks. We consider multiple transcriptional and post-transcriptional interaction types, including regulation of gene and miRNA expression by transcription factors, gene silencing by miRNAs, and co-expression of host genes with their intronic miRNAs. The underlying algorithm uses information on experimentally validated interactions as well as integrative miRNA/mRNA expression profiles in a given set of samples. The latter ensures simultaneous tissue-specificity and biological validity of interactions. We applied miRGTF-net to paired miRNA/mRNA-sequencing data of breast cancer samples from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). Together with topological analysis of the constructed network we showed that considered players can form reliable prognostic gene signatures for ER-positive breast cancer. A number of signatures demonstrated remarkably high accuracy on transcriptomic data obtained by both microarrays and RNA sequencing from several independent patient cohorts. Furthermore, an essential part of prognostic genes were identified as direct targets of transcription factor E2F1. The putative interplay between estrogen receptor alpha and E2F1 was suggested as a potential recurrence factor in patients treated with tamoxifen. Source codes of miRGTF-net are available at GitHub (https://github.com/s-a-nersisyan/miRGTF-net).
Atmospheric modelling of grass pollen rupturing mechanisms for thunderstorm asthma prediction
Authors: Emmerson Kathryn M. , Silver Jeremy D. , Thatcher Marcus , Wain Alan , Jones Penelope J. , Dowdy Andrew , Newbigin Edward J. , Picking Beau W. , Choi Jason , Ebert Elizabeth , Bannister Tony
Published: April 2021

The world’s most severe thunderstorm asthma event occurred in Melbourne, Australia on 21 November 2016, coinciding with the peak of the grass pollen season. The aetiological role of thunderstorms in these events is thought to cause pollen to rupture in high humidity conditions, releasing large numbers of sub-pollen particles (SPPs) with sizes very easily inhaled deep into the lungs. The humidity hypothesis was implemented into a three-dimensional atmospheric model and driven by inputs from three meteorological models. However, the mechanism could not explain how the Melbourne event occurred as relative humidity was very low throughout the atmosphere, and most available grass pollen remained within 40 m of the surface. Our tests showed humidity induced rupturing occurred frequently at other times and would likely lead to recurrent false alarms if used in a predictive capacity. We used the model to investigate a range of other possible pollen rupturing mechanisms which could have produced high concentrations of SPPs in the atmosphere during the storm. The mechanisms studied involve mechanical friction from wind gusts, electrical build up and discharge incurred during conditions of low relative humidity, and lightning strikes. Our results suggest that these mechanisms likely operated in tandem with one another, but the lightning method was the only mechanism to generate a pattern in SPPs following the path of the storm. If humidity induced rupturing cannot explain the 2016 Melbourne event, then new targeted laboratory studies of alternative pollen rupture mechanisms would be of considerable value to help constrain the parameterisation of the pollen rupturing process.
Optimal surgeon and hospital volume thresholds to reduce mortality and length of stay for CABG
Authors: Chou Ying-Yi , Hwang Juey-Jen , Tung Yu-Chi
Published: April 2021

Objective

We used nationwide population-based data to identify optimal hospital and surgeon volume thresholds and to discover the effects of these volume thresholds on operative mortality and length of stay (LOS) for coronary artery bypass surgery (CABG).

Design

Retrospective cohort study.

Setting

General acute care hospitals throughout Taiwan.

Participants

A total of 12,892 CABG patients admitted between 2011 and 2015 were extracted from Taiwan National Health Insurance claims data.

Main Outcome Measures

Operative mortality and LOS. Restricted cubic splines were applied to discover the optimal hospital and surgeon volume thresholds needed to reduce operative mortality. Generalized estimating equation regression modeling, Cox proportional-hazards modeling and instrumental variables analysis were employed to examine the effects of hospital and surgeon volume thresholds on the operative mortality and LOS.

Results

The volume thresholds for hospitals and surgeons were 55 cases and 5 cases per year, respectively. Patients who underwent CABG from hospitals that did not reach the volume threshold had higher operative mortality than those who received CABG from hospitals that did reach the volume threshold. Patients who underwent CABG with surgeons who did not reach the volume threshold had higher operative mortality and LOS than those who underwent CABG with surgeons who did reach the volume threshold.

Conclusions

This is the first study to identify the optimal hospital and surgeon volume thresholds for reducing operative mortality and LOS. This supports policies regionalizing CABG at high-volume hospitals. Identifying volume thresholds could help patients, providers, and policymakers provide optimal care.
Having versus not having social interactions in patients diagnosed with depression or social phobia and controls
Authors: Villanueva Jeanette , Meyer Andrea H. , Mikoteit Thorsten , Hoyer Jürgen , Imboden Christian , Bader Klaus , Hatzinger Martin , Lieb Roselind , Gloster Andrew T.
Published: April 2021

Humans need meaningful social interactions, but little is known about the consequences of not having them. We examined meaningful social interactions and the lack thereof in patients diagnosed with major depressive disorder (MDD) or social phobia (SP) and compared them to a control group (CG). Using event-sampling methodology, we sampled participants’ everyday social behavior 6 times per day for 1 week in participants’ natural environment. We investigated the quality and the proportion of meaningful social interactions (when they had meaningful social interactions) and degree of wishing for and avoidance of meaningful social interactions (when they didnothave meaningful social interactions). Groups differed on the quality and avoidance of meaningful social interactions: Participants with MDD and SP reported perceiving their meaningful social interactions as lower quality (in terms of subjective meaningfulness) than the CG, with SP patients reporting even lower quality than the MDD patients. Further, both MDD and SP patients reported avoiding meaningful social interactions significantly more often than the CG. Although the proportion of meaningful social interactions was similar in all groups, the subjective quality of meaningful social interactions was perceived to be lower in MDD and SP patients. Future research might further identify what variables influenced the reinforcement of the MDD and SP patients so that they engaged in the same number of meaningful social interactions even though the quality of their meaningful social interactions was lower. Increasing awareness of what happens when patients do or do not have meaningful social interactions will help elucidate a potentially exacerbating or maintaining factor of the disorders.
G2Basy: A framework to improve the RNN language model and ease overfitting problem
Authors: Yuwen Lu , Chen Shuyu , Yuan Xiaohan
Published: April 2021

Recurrent neural networks are efficient ways of training language models, and various RNN networks have been proposed to improve performance. However, with the increase of network scales, the overfitting problem becomes more urgent. In this paper, we propose a framework—G2Basy—to speed up the training process and ease the overfitting problem. Instead of using predefined hyperparameters, we devise a gradient increasing and decreasing technique that changes the parameters training batch size and input dropout simultaneously by a user-defined step size. Together with a pretrained word embedding initialization procedure and the introduction of different optimizers at different learning rates, our framework speeds up the training process dramatically and improves performance compared with a benchmark model of the same scale. For the word embedding initialization, we propose the concept of “artificial features” to describe the characteristics of the obtained word embeddings. We experiment on two of the most often used corpora—the Penn Treebank and WikiText-2 datasets—and both outperform the benchmark results and show potential towards further improvement. Furthermore, our framework shows better results with the larger and more complicated WikiText-2 corpus than with the Penn Treebank. Compared with other state-of-the-art results, we achieve comparable results with network scales hundreds of times smaller and within fewer training epochs.
Mask adherence and rate of COVID-19 across the United States
Authors: Fischer Charlie B. , Adrien Nedghie , Silguero Jeremiah J. , Hopper Julianne J. , Chowdhury Abir I. , Werler Martha M.
Published: April 2021

Mask wearing has been advocated by public health officials as a way to reduce the spread of COVID-19. In the United States, policies on mask wearing have varied from state to state over the course of the pandemic. Even as more and more states encourage or even mandate mask wearing, many citizens still resist the notion. Our research examines mask wearing policy and adherence in association with COVID-19 case rates. We used state-level data on mask wearing policy for the general public and on proportion of residents who stated they always wear masks in public. For all 50 states and the District of Columbia (DC), these data were abstracted by month for April ─ September 2020 to measure their impact on COVID-19 rates in the subsequent month (May ─ October 2020). Monthly COVID-19 case rates (number of cases per capita over two weeks) >200 per 100,000 residents were considered high. Fourteen of the 15 states with no mask wearing policy for the general public through September reported a high COVID-19 rate. Of the 8 states with at least 75% mask adherence, none reported a high COVID-19 rate. States with the lowest levels of mask adherence were most likely to have high COVID-19 rates in the subsequent month, independent of mask policy or demographic factors. Mean COVID-19 rates for states with at least 75% mask adherence in the preceding month was 109.26 per 100,000 compared to 249.99 per 100,000 for those with less adherence. Our analysis suggests high adherence to mask wearing could be a key factor in reducing the spread of COVID-19. This association between high mask adherence and reduced COVID-19 rates should influence policy makers and public health officials to focus on ways to improve mask adherence across the population in order to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.
Evaluation of the antiproliferative effects of the HASPIN inhibitor CHR-6494 in breast cancer cell lines
Authors: Nishida-Fukuda Hisayo , Tokuhiro Keizo , Ando Yukio , Matsushita Hiroaki , Wada Morimasa , Tanaka Hiromitsu
Published: April 2021

HASPIN is a serine/threonine kinase that regulates mitosis by phosphorylating histone H3 at threonine 3. The expression levels of HASPIN in various cancers are associated with tumor malignancy and poor survival, suggesting that HASPIN inhibition may suppress cancer growth. As HASPIN mRNA levels are elevated in human breast cancer tissues compared with adjacent normal tissues, we examined the growth-suppressive effects of CHR-6494, a potent HASPIN inhibitor, in breast cancer cell lines in vitro and in vivo. We found that HASPIN was expressed in breast cancer cells of all molecular subtypes, as well as in immortalized mammary epithelial cells. HASPIN expression levels appeared to be correlated with the cell growth rate but not the molecular subtype of breast cancer. CHR-6494 exhibited potent antiproliferative effects against breast cancer cell lines and immortalized mammary epithelial cells in vitro, but failed to inhibit the growth of MDA-MB-231 xenografted tumors under conditions that have significant effects in a colorectal cancer model. These results imply that CHR-6494 does have antiproliferative effects in some situations, and further drug screening efforts are anticipated to identify more potent and selective HASPIN inhibition for use as an anticancer agent in breast cancer patients.
An unusual case of childhood osteoarticular tuberculosis from the Árpádian Age cemetery of Győrszentiván-Révhegyi tag (Győr-Moson-Sopron county, Hungary)
Authors: Spekker Olga , Kis Luca , Deák Andrea , Makai Eszter , Pálfi György , Váradi Orsolya Anna , Molnár Erika
Published: April 2021

Ancient human remains exhibiting bony changes consistent with osteoarticular tuberculosis (OATB) indicate that the disease has afflicted mankind for millennia. Nonetheless, not many pediatric OATB cases have been published in the paleopathological literature–from Hungary, only three cases have been described up to now. In our paper, we demonstrate a child (S0603) from the Árpádian Age cemetery of Győrszentiván-Révhegyi tag (northwestern Hungary), who represents a unique case of OATB regarding both the pattern and severity of the observed bony changes. During the macromorphological and radiological investigations, the most serious alterations were discovered in the upper thoracic spine–the development of osteolytic lesions led to severe bone loss and consequent collapse and fusion of several adjacent vertebrae. The pathological process terminated in a sharp, rigid angular kyphosis. Disruption of the normal spine curvature resulted in consequent deformation of the whole thoracic wall–it became “rugby-ball-shaped”. The overall nature and pattern of the detected alterations, as well as their resemblance to those of described in previously published archaeological and modern cases from the pre-antibiotic era indicate that they are most consistent with OATB. Based on the severity and extent of the lesions, as well as on the evidence of secondary healing, S0603 suffered from TB for a long time prior to death. Besides body deformation, OATB resulted in consequent disability in daily activities, which would have required regular and significant care from others to survive. It implies that in the Árpádian Age community of Győrszentiván-Révhegyi tag, there was a willingness to care for people in need. Detailed archaeological case studies can give us a unique insight into the natural history and different presentations of OATB. Furthermore, they can provide paleopathologists with a stronger basis for diagnosing TB and consequently, with a more sensitive means of assessing TB frequency in past populations.
Discrimination of SARS-CoV-2 infected patient samples by detection dogs: A proof of concept study
Authors: Essler Jennifer L. , Kane Sarah A. , Nolan Pat , Akaho Elikplim H. , Berna Amalia Z. , DeAngelo Annemarie , Berk Richard A. , Kaynaroglu Patricia , Plymouth Victoria L. , Frank Ian D. , Weiss Susan R. , Odom John Audrey R. , Otto Cynthia M.
Published: April 2021

While the world awaits a widely available COVID-19 vaccine, availability of testing is limited in many regions and can be further compounded by shortages of reagents, prolonged processing time and delayed results. One approach to rapid testing is to leverage the volatile organic compound (VOC) signature of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Detection dogs, a biological sensor of VOCs, were utilized to investigate whether SARS-CoV-2 positive urine and saliva patient samples had a unique odor signature. The virus was inactivated in all training samples with either detergent or heat treatment. Using detergent-inactivated urine samples, dogs were initially trained to find samples collected from hospitalized patients confirmed with SARS-CoV-2 infection, while ignoring samples collected from controls. Dogs were then tested on their ability to spontaneously recognize heat-treated urine samples as well as heat-treated saliva from hospitalized SARS-CoV-2 positive patients. Dogs successfully discriminated between infected and uninfected urine samples, regardless of the inactivation protocol, as well as heat-treated saliva samples. Generalization to novel samples was limited, particularly after intensive training with a restricted sample set. A unique odor associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection present in human urine as well as saliva, provides impetus for the development of odor-based screening, either by electronic, chemical, or biological sensing methods. The use of dogs for screening in an operational setting will require training with a large number of novel SARS-CoV-2 positive and confirmed negative samples.
A Diagnostic Quagmire: PFIC5 Presenting as a Rare Cause of Neonatal Cholestasis
Authors: Giang Sophia , Gordon Ruth Lillian , Haas Kelly B.
Published: April 2021

Progressive familial intrahepatic cholestasis is a heterogeneous group of autosomal recessive disorders defined by defects in bile excretion and transport. We describe a 6-week-old boy from Micronesia presenting with failure to thrive and jaundice. His diagnostic workup was remarkable for direct hyperbilirubinemia, hepatitis, and hepatic ultrasound with possible portosystemic shunting. The presence of toxoplasma IgG initially raised concern for congenital toxoplasmosis. Ultimately, the absence of bile salt export pump staining on liver histology and subsequent genetic studies confirmed a diagnosis of progressive familial intrahepatic cholestasis type 5, an exceedingly rare cause of neonatal cholestasis.
Parsing of Urban Facades from 3D Point Clouds Based on a Novel Multi-View Domain
Authors: Wang Wei , Xu Yuan , Ren Yingchao , Wang Gang
Published: April 2021

Recently, performance improvement in facade parsing from 3D point clouds has been brought about by designing more complex network structures, which cost huge computing resources and do not take full advantage of prior knowledge of facade structure. Instead, from the perspective of data
distribution, we construct a new hierarchical mesh multi-view data domain based on the characteristics of facade objects to achieve fusion of deep-learning models and prior knowledge, thereby significantly improving segmentation accuracy. We comprehensively evaluate the current mainstream
method on the RueMonge 2014 data set and demonstrate the superiority of our method. The mean intersection-over-union index on the facade-parsing task reached 76.41%, which is 2.75% higher than the current best result. In addition, through comparative experiments, the reasons for the performance
improvement of the proposed method are further analyzed.
The Organization of the Judicial System in Italy
Authors: Ferrari Giuseppe Franco
Published: April 2021

This paper provides a complete overview of the organization of the Judicial system in Italy with the aim to examine the relationships between the various organs operating in its field. It analyzes the structure and functions of all the bodies involved in various ways in the administration of justice: the Ministry of Justice, which exercises essentially organizational powers and which has the task of guaranteeing the overall efficiency of the system; the self-governing bodies of the judiciary, which ensure its independence from other State Powers, and the single judicial offices dislocated over the peninsula. Particular attention is dedicated to the complex system governed by the laws set in order to provide for disciplinary procedures and job evaluation, which involve both the efficiency of the judges and their relationship with the bodies involved in the administration of the system.
Os desacordos de moralidade política entre executivo e judiciário: uma análise do recurso extraordinário nº 657.718/MG
Authors: Mourão Lopes Filho Juraci , Cysne Augusto Maia Isabelly , Casimiro Gomes Serafim Matheus
Published: April 2021

O presente trabalho analisa, a partir do RE nº 657.718/MG, a existência de desacordos morais entre o Executivo e o Judiciário, e como esses Poderes têm se posicionado para solucionar essas questões. Busca-se compreender em que consistem os descordos de moralidade entre esses Poderes, elucidando que o Judiciário não tem sido o espaço mais adequado para a solução dessas controvérsias, haja vista a existência de uma cultura institucional em deliberar de forma pragmática e não integrativa, aplicando a teoria da decisão judicial desenvolvida por Ronald Dworkin de forma parcial. Com isso, concluiu-se que para aprimorar a solução de desacordos morais entre Executivo e Judiciário deve-se recorrer à utilização dos diálogos interinstitucionais. O diálogo possibilita a construção de decisões mais integradas ao ordenamento jurídico, bem como permite que se compreenda de forma mais adequada os contornos da divergência moral. No caso do RE nº 657.718/MG, identificou-se que os Ministros apresentaram uma compreensão errônea do desacordo. Para o desenvolvimento do presente trabalho, utilizou-se a metodologia indutiva, qualitativa, com análise bibliográfica e documental, mediante coleta de dados secundários, o que se deu com a degravação da sessão plenária de julgamento do RE nº 657.718/MG.
Potestad normativa en estado de excepción por situaciones de calamidad pública, como el covid-19 en Colombia
Authors: Moreno Luis Ferney
Published: April 2021

Este artículo tiene por finalidad explicar las razones por las cuales la potestad normativa del Estado prolifera en el estado de excepción, dado que se ha expedido una cantidad normas que se supone que se han dirigido eficazmente a conjurar o evitar la extinción de los efectos de la situación sobreviniente o extraordinaria, como lo es, el covid-19. Poniendo de presente que no se ha podido enfrentar solamente con potestades normativas en uso de las atribuciones ordinarias, sino que también ha sido necesario el ejercicio de potestades normativas en uso de atribuciones extraordinarias, con la declaratoria de estado de excepción.
Software Sensors for Nonlinear Dynamical Systems
Authors: Boutat Driss
Published: April 2021

Modelling a real life system starts with defining its inputs/outputs, where the inputs depend on the nature of the actuator (or to take actions) and the outputs are measurements. In general, some of the outputs are measured using physical sensors, while the unavailable states can be obtained using the so-called software sensors (or observers). For accurate understanding real life system, data about its state are usually measured using physical sensors. This can be expensive and makes the system structure cumbersome. Besides, in many cases, it is simply impossible to measure some system information directly. Due to these drawbacks, a solution may be the introduction of the so-called software sensors or observers. These sensors are based on a well- defined system model and provide an accurate estimation of the missing data from the available physical measurements. Actually, obtaining a well-defined mathematical model is not always possible, or the obtained models do not allow obtaining strategies to drive accurate comprehensive conclusion of our system. Therefore, how we can to overcome those difficulties? Using dynamic models learning.
The Antioxidant Properties of Black Garlic Aqueous Extract in Vero Cell Line
Authors: Marie Amna Mohamed Abdulhafith , Wijayanti Nastiti
Published: April 2021

Oxidative stress has been defined as harmful because oxygen free radical attack biological molecules such as lipids, proteins and DNA. Antioxidants are substances that can prevent or slow damage to cells caused by free radicals, unstable molecules that the body produces as a reaction to environmental and other pressures. Black garlic (BG) is one of the natural resources that has been reported to have antioxidant properties. The aims of this research was to study the potential and effect of BG as antioxidant in LPS induced Vero cells. The methods of this research were used the extraction of BG by maceration method using aqueous solvents, antioxidant activity tested using DPPH assay, cytotoxicity test with WST-1 assay on 96-well plate, and NO level measurement using Griess reagent, after cells induced with LPS. The result showed that in DPPH assays BG showed ability for scavenging free radical activities. The BG aqueous extract did not show cytotoxicity on Vero cells until the concentration of 750µg/ml and NO levels decreased in cells treated with a concentration of 50 µg/mL after LPS induction. This study concluded that the administration of aqueous extract of Black Garlic has the potential as an antioxidant.
The Potential Effect of Gynura Procumbens Aqueous Extract as Anti-Hyperglycaemia, Pro-Fertility and Libido Agent Towards Diabetes-Induced Male Rats
Authors: Akmar Khaidatul , Noor Mahanem Mat
Published: April 2021

Diabetes mellitus is a metabolic disorder that often affected fertility health, specifically in men. Gynura procumbens (G. procumbens) has been used as traditional medicine due to its ability in treating various types of illness. Hence, this study was carried out to determine the potential beneficial effect of G. procumbens as anti-hyperglycaemia, pro-fertility and libido agent towards diabetes-induced male rats. A total of 42 male Sprague Dawley rats were randomly assigned into six groups; normal, negative, and positive control, and three treated groups of different dosages of G. procumbens aqueous extract (GPAE); 150 mg/kg, 300 mg/kg and 450 mg/kg. Each group was given treatment via oral gavage for seven consecutive days. The rats were sacrificed on day eighth for further analysis. The fasting blood glucose (FBG) level in all GPAE treated group showed significant decrease, and 450 mg/kg treated group showed significant reduction to a normal blood glucose level compared to all groups. There were significant increases in the sperm quality of GPAE treated groups after seven days of treatment compared to the negative and positive control group, specifically in 450 mg/kg treated group. Testis histology showed that GPAE treated groups produced a significant result whereby the seminiferous tubules were seen packed with sperm and successive stage of spermatogenesis were shown compared to control groups. Hormone analysis suggested that the luteneizing hormone (LH), follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and testosterone hormone of the treated groups were elevated after seven days of treatment compared to the negative and positive control groups. Libido analysis of seven days treatment showed that GPAE treated groups, significantly improved in 450 mg/kg dose compared to other groups, with the highest number of mounting frequency and shortest mounting latency. Fertility test revealed a significant increase in number of implantation sites produced in GPAE treated groups compared to positive and negative control groups. In conclusion, GPAE exhibited a potential beneficial effect as an anti-diabetic and also as fertility agent in diabetic-induced male rats.
Histological Structure of the Varanus Salvator Kidney
Authors: Khoirunnisa’ Ida
Published: April 2021

Varanus salvator is known as the monitor lizard. This animal is a subspecies of endemic Indonesian monitor lizards which is only found in Java, Bali and Nusa Tenggara (except Timor Island). This study aims to determine the histological structure of the monitor lizard (Varanus salvator). The research was carried out for two months starting from September 2019 to October 2019 at the Animal Physics Laboratory and Zoology of UIN Sunan Kalijaga. The method used is the paraffin method. The results of the study were analyzed in a comparative descriptive manner by observation through a microscope and then taken using a camera. Based on the results of studies lizards (Varanus salvator) have distal convoluted tubule, proximal convoluted tubule, glomerulus, medullary ray and bowman’s capsule.
Desorption of Naphtol Blue-Black from Humic Acid Modified Magnetite Using NaOH as Desorption Agent
Authors: Putri Nunung Faizah Yosi , Rahmayanti Maya
Published: April 2021

Naphtol blue-black was a waste that is dangerous for the environment. The research aims to determine the effect of varied concentration of the NaOH as desorption agent on the percent of desorption of naphtol blue-black from humic acid modified magnetite (Fe3O4-AH). The result of this study showed that the variation of the NaOH concentration influenced the percent of naphtol blue-black desorption from humic acid modified magnetite. The percent of desorption was 15.71 % with a concentration of NaOH was 1 M.
Steganalysis Using Yedrodj-net net's Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN) Method on Steganography Tools
Authors: Hidayasari Nurmi , Riadi Imam , Prayudi Yudi
Published: April 2021

Steganalysis method is used to detect the presence or absence of steganography files or can be referred to anti-steganography. Steganalysis can be used for positive purposes, which is to know the weaknesses of a steganography method, so that improvements can be made. One category of steganalysis is blind steganalysis, which is a way to detect secret files without knowing what steganography method is used. Blind steganalysis is difficult to implement, but then machine learning techniques emerged that could be used to create a detection model using experimental data, one of which is Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN). A study proposes that the CNN method can detect steganography files using the latest method with a low error probability value compared to other methods, CNN Yedroudj-net. As one of the steganalysis methods with the latest machine learning steganalysis techniques, an experiment is needed to find out whether Yedroudj-net can be a steganalysis for the output of many tools commonly used for steganography applications. Knowing the performance of CNN Yedroudj-net on several steganography tools is very important, to measure the level of ability in terms of steganalysis of some of these tools. Especially so far, machine learning performance is still doubtful in blind steganalysis. Plus some previous research only focused on certain methods to prove the performance of the proposed technique, including Yedroudj-net. This study will use five tools that are Hide In Picture (HIP), OpenStego, SilentEye, Steg and S-Tools, which are not known exactly what steganography methods are used on the tools. Yedroudj-net method will be implemented in the steganography file from the output of the five tools. Then a comparison with the popular steganalysis tool is used, StegSpy. The results show that Yedroudj-net is quite capable of detecting the presence of steganography files, slightly better than StegSpy.
E-Government Service Quality Using E-GovQual Dimensions Case Study Ministry of Law and Human Rights DIY
Authors: Wijatmoko Taufiq Effendy
Published: April 2021

Regional Office of the Ministry of Law and Human Rights DIY organizes a variety of public services using information technology, including correctional services, immigration services, general legal administration services, intellectual property services, communication services, data and information services, and others administrative services. All of these services cannot be separated from the role of information technology to provide services that are fast, cheap, effective and reliable to the public. This study was conducted to assess the quality Ministry of Law and Human Rights DIY e-Government service using e-GovQual dimensional framework as a best practice. This study include quantitative research involving a number of respondents for the survey. This research question based on the dimensions of e-Govqual and represent the attributes of each dimension of e-GovQual to assess the quality of Ministry of Law and Human Rights DIY e-Government service. The question must pass the validation test using Cronbach’s α. The processing of data using confirmatory factor analysis to obtain the main factors that affect each of the dimensions of e-GovQual. The Importance Performance Analysis (IPA) method helps e-Govqual to measure the level of importance and level of performance of each e-Govqual attribute by classifying it in the Cartesian quadrants, which can help ensure the quality of e-Government services according to the needs and expectations of citizens as service user. Values in IPA (concentrating here, continuing to work well, low priority, and possibly overdoing it) will be the value of quality e-Government services. The results of this study are expected to give priority as a recommendation for Information and Communication Technology to the development of e-Government services in order to improve service quality.
Student Perceptions Towards Moodle and Kahoot Based e-Learning in Learning Mathematics
Authors: Abdullah Ahmad Anis , Rochmadi Tri
Published: April 2021

Today's students are digital natives. They grow with digital technology. Universitas Alma Ata is adapting to learning styles in the digital age by integrating e-learning based learning and classroom learning. The e-learning model that is applied is based on moodle and kahoot. This learning model was introduced to students in September 2017. The meaning of this manuscript is to determine whether the use of moodle and kahoot based e-learning will help students in learning mathematics. It also examines the effect of applying e-learning on student perceptions. Twelve mathematics education students were included in this study. A set of questionnaires was specified to evaluate students' attitudes and perceptions of learning. From the findings, conclusions have been drawn about the role of moodle and kahoot based e-learning to support the teaching and learning process. The results show that students show positive perceptions using moodle and kahoot based e-learning.