bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Probiotics mediated gut microbiota diversity shifts are associated with reduction in histopathology and shedding of Lawsonia intracellularis
Authors: Muwonge Adrian , Karuppannan Anbu K. , Opriessnig Tanja
Published: January 2021

Background: Clinical intervention during bacterial infections in farm animals such as pigs commonly consists of antimicrobial use. With the rise of antimicrobial resistance and the attempts to reduce the use of antibiotics in food animals, effective alternatives are urgently needed to reduce or even remove pathogens and disease risk. Improving clinical outcomes and overall pig health by using probiotics appears attractive. However, reliable data sets on the efficacy of probiotics are scarce. The obligate intracellular bacterium Lawsonia intracellularis is widespread in pigs and associated with severe enteropathy, mainly in the ileum, commonly resulting in substantial reduction in weight gain. The impact of three in-feed probiotics and a commercial live L. intracellularis vaccine were compared in a pig challenge model. Probiotic treatment was associated with reduced L. intracellularis fecal shedding and reduced gut lesions. Here, the bacterial microbiota of the ileum of these pigs was characterized with 16S rRNA gene sequencing and was subsequently analyzed with bioinformatics tools. Results: The greatest microbial richness was observed in the probiotic treated group T03-LAW, which accounted for 87% of richness observed in the study. Treatment had a significant impact on both the microbiota structure and taxonomic profile in the ileum, explaining between 26-36% of the structural variation, with the strongest association in the T03-LAW group. Overall, the largest changes were observed for the pigs treated with in-feed Bacillus pumilus; the microbiota of these pigs had the greatest diversity and highest richness. We also observed depleted and enriched core microbiota amongst the groups; however, there was no correlation with clinical characteristics. The results suggest that an increased diversity of the ileal microbiota is associated with a reduction in shedding, i.e. a unit increase in Shannon diversity index resulted in 2.8 log reduction in shedding.Conclusions: Probiotic supplementation of a base feed ration increased ileum microbiota diversity leading to a mitigation of the effects of a pathogenic L. intracellularis challenge. An even and diverse microbiota community benefits pigs infected with L. intracellularis, however, investigations are needed to determine if this is also true for other pathogens. The study unambiguously demonstrates the usefulness of probiotic supplementation in reducing the impact of enteric pathogens and pathogen shedding rates in food animals without the use of antimicrobials.
Predictors of death at home among cancer patients in Israel: A population-based study
Authors: Rottenberg Yakir , Goldzweig Gil , Shaulov Adir
Published: January 2021

Background: Most cancer patients prefer to die at home; however, many die in hospital. The aim of the current study is to elucidate the association between dying at home and various personal factors in the Israeli population of cancer patients.Methods: Data on cancer incidence (2008-2015) and death (2008-2017) was provided by the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics and the Israel National Cancer Registry. Binary logistic regression analyses were performed to assess odds ratios for death at home following cancer diagnosis while controlling for age, sex, ethnicity, years of education, residential socioeconomic score, and time from diagnosis. We also assessed the relation between place of death and specific cancer sites, as well as the time trend from 2008-2017.Results: About one quarter (26.7%) of the study population died at home. Death at home was most frequent among patients diagnosed with brain tumors (37.0%), while it was the lowest among patients with hematologic malignancies (lymphoma and leukemia, 20.3% and 20.0%, respectively). Rates of dying at home among patients with residential socioeconomic scores of 1, 2-9, and 10 were about 15%, 30%, and 42.9%, respectively. In patients from the 4th to the 7th decades of life, rates of death at home increased at a linear rate that increased exponentially from the 8th decade onwards. After controlling for potential confounders, predictive variables for death at home included age (OR=1.020 per year, 95% CI 1.017-1.024), male sex (OR=1.18, , 95% CI 1.077-1.294), years of education (OR=1.029 per year, 95% CI 1.018-1.040), and time from diagnosis (OR=1.003 per month, 95% CI 1.001-1.005 all p<0.001). No trend was seen from 2008-2013, while from 2014-2017 a slight increase in the rate of death at home was seen each year.Conclusions: These results indicate wide variability in death at home exists among patients of different ages, sex, education, socioeconomic status and time from diagnosis. These findings stress the importance of delivering quality palliative care at home, mainly for patients with hematologic malignancies, younger patients, and patients of very low socioeconomic status. Understanding the complex mechanisms whereby patient preferences and the above variables may determine the preferred place of death remains an important research priority.
Anthelmintic efficacy of Fenbendazole and Levamisole in native fowl in northern Iran
Authors: Soudkolaei Saemi , Kalidari Gholam Ali , Borji Hassan
Published: January 2021

Background: With the increasing number of free-range domestic chickens, helminth parasites have potentially become more of a threat in commercial flocks in recent years, and routine poultry deworming is needed to improve efficiency of chicken products. The present study deals with a field trial to study the efficiency of two generally used anthelmintics, Fenbendazole and Levamisole, against gastrointestinal nematodes of domestic chickens in north of Iran. Methods: Out of 45 domestic chicken flocks involved in the study, 20 flocks were selected to participate in fecal egg count reduction testing based on flock size from April 2017 to September 2018. The infected chickens were randomly divided into three equal groups of 30 each. Ninety chickens in the infected groups received one of the following treatments (d 0 of treatment): Group 1: 5 mg kg−1 body weight (BW) Fenbendazole for three consecutive days, Group 2: 16 mg kg−1 BW Levamisole, and Group 3 control: placebo; water + DMSO [1]. The efficiency of the treatments were evaluated by comparing fecal egg count in the treated and control groups.Results: Examination of 3 herds of chicken from the control group showed that 95.0% of the animals were infected with gastrointestinal nematodes with an average geometric value of 361 eggs per gram of feces. Fenbendazole at a dose of 5 mg kg−1 BW for three days showed an efficiency of 83.7% (P ≥0.05), and Levamisole at a dose of 16 mg kg−1 BW showed 71.8% (P ≥0.05) with geometric mean eggs in a gram of feces 100 and 199.6, respectively. In general, Fenbendazole and Levamisole showed significantly lower activity. The result of this study revealed that Fenbendazole was a better and effective dewormer than Levamisole on the three Iranian domestic chicken flocks, but it is not significant. Capillaria spp., were the most generally resistant nematodes followed by Trichostrongylus spp., and Amidostomum anseris.Conclusion: Our results indicated that Fenbendazole and Levamisole reduced number of nemathodes effectively in three Iranian domestic chicken flocks. Given the results of our study, it is possible that resistance may be expected in the parasitic helminths of poultry. Additional studies with a larger scale are required to determine the prevalence of anthelmintic resistance in the poultry industry.
3D Pointing Gestures as Target Selection Tools: Guiding Monocular UAVs during Window Selection in an Outdoor Environment
Authors: Medeiros Anna C S , Ratsamee Photchara , Orlosky Jason , Uranishi Yuki , Higashida Manabu , Takemura Haruo
Published: January 2021

Firefighters need to gain information from both inside and outside of buildings in first response emergency scenarios. For this purpose, drones are beneficial. This paper presents an elicitation study that showed the firefighters’ desire to collaborate with autonomous drones. We developed a Human-Drone Interaction (HDI) method for indicating a target to a drone using 3D pointing gestures estimated solely from a monocular camera. The participant first points to a window without using any wearable or body-attached device. Through the drone’s front-facing camera, the drone detects the gesture and computes the target window. This work includes a description of the process for choosing the gesture, detecting and localizing objects, and carrying out the transformations between coordinate systems. Our proposed 3D pointing gesture interface improves a 2D pointing gesture interface by integrating depth information with SLAM, solving multiple objects aligned on the same plane ambiguity, in a large-scale outdoor environment. Experimental results showed that our 3D pointing gesture interface obtained a 0.85 and 0.73 F1-Score on average in simulation and real-world experiments and 0.58 F1-Score at the maximum distance of 25 meters between drone and building.
Treatment planning comparison of volumetric modulated arc therapy with Trilogy and Halcyon for bilateral breast cancer
Authors: Sun Tao , Lin Xiutong , Zhang Guifang , Qiu Qingtao , Li Chengqiang , Yin Yong
Published: January 2021

Background: The Halcyon is a new machine from the Varian company. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the dosimetry of the Halcyon in treatment of bilateral breast cancer with volumetric modulated arc therapy. Methods: On CT images of 10 patients with bilateral breast cancer, four Halcyon plans with different setup fields were generated, and dosimetric comparisons using Bonferroni’s multiple comparisons test were conducted among the four plans. Whole and partial arc plans on the Trilogy and the Halcyon, referred to as T-4arc, T-8arc, H-4arc and H-8arc, were designed. The prescription dose was 50 Gy in 2-Gy fractions. All plans were designed with the Eclipse version 15.5 treatment planning system. The dosimetric differences between whole and partial arc plans in the same accelerator were compared using the Mann-Whitney U test. The better Halcyon plan was selected for the further dosimetric comparison of the plan quality and delivery efficiency between the Trilogy and the Halcyon. Results:Halcyon plans with high‐quality megavoltage cone beam CT setup fields increased the Dmean, D2 and V107 of the planning target volume (PTV) and the V5 and Dmean of the heart, left ventricle (LV) and lungs compared with other Halcyon setup plans. The mean dose and low dose volume of the heart, lungs and liver were significantly decreased in T-8arc plans compared to T-4arc plans. In terms of the V5, V20, V30, V40 and Dmean of the heart, the V20, V30, V40 and Dmean of the LV, the V30, V40, Dmax and Dmean of the left anterior descending artery (LAD), and the V5 and V40 of lungs, H-8arc was significantly higher than H-4arc (p<0.05). Compared with the Trilogy’s plans, the Halcyon’s plans reduced the high-dose volume of the heart and LV but increased the mean dose of the heart. For the dose of the LAD and the V20 and V30 of lungs, there was no significant difference between the two accelerators. Compared with the Trilogy, plans on the Halcyon significantly increased the skin dose but also significantly reduced the delivery time. Conclusion: For the Halcyon, the whole-arc plans have more dosimetric advantages than partial-arc plans in bilateral breast cancer radiotherapy. Although the mean dose of the heart and the skin dose are increased, the doses of the cardiac substructure and other OARs are comparable to the Trilogy, and the delivery time is significantly reduced.
Fish predation on corals promotes the dispersal of coral symbionts
Authors: Grupstra Carsten Guillaume Bruno , Rabbitt Kristen M. , Howe-Kerr Lauren I. , Correa Adrienne M.S.
Published: January 2021

Background: The microbiomes of foundation (habitat-forming) species such as corals and sponges underpin the biodiversity, productivity, and stability of ecosystems. Consumers shape communities of foundation species through trophic interactions, but the role of consumers in dispersing the microbiomes of such species is rarely examined. For example, stony corals rely on a nutritional symbiosis with single-celled endosymbiotic dinoflagellates (family Symbiodiniaceae) to construct reefs. Most corals acquire Symbiodiniaceae from the environment, but the processes that make Symbiodiniaceae available for uptake are not resolved. Here, we provide the first comprehensive, reef-scale demonstration that predation by diverse coral-eating (corallivorous) fish species promotes the dispersal of Symbiodiniaceae, based on symbiont cell densities and community compositions from the feces of four obligate corallivores, three facultative corallivores, two grazer/detritivores as well as samples of reef sediment and water.Results: Obligate corallivore feces are environmental hotspots of Symbiodiniaceae cells: live symbiont cell concentrations in such feces are 5-7 orders of magnitude higher than sediment and water environmental reservoirs. Symbiodiniaceae community compositions in the feces of obligate corallivores are similar to those in two locally abundant coral genera (Pocillopora and Porites), but differ from Symbiodiniaceae communities in the feces of facultative corallivores and grazer/detritivores as well as sediment and water. Combining our data on live Symbiodiniaceae cell densities in feces with in situ observations of fish, we estimate that some obligate corallivorous fish species release over 100 million Symbiodiniaceae cells per 100 m2 of reef per day. Released corallivore feces came in direct contact with coral colonies in the fore reef zone following 91% of observed egestion events, providing a potential mechanism for the transfer of live Symbiodiniaceae cells among coral colonies. Conclusions: Taken together, our findings show that fish predation on corals may support the maintenance of coral cover on reefs in an unexpected way: through the dispersal of beneficial coral symbionts in corallivore feces. Few studies examine the processes that make symbionts available to foundation species, or how environmental reservoirs of such symbionts are replenished. This work sets the stage for parallel studies of consumer-mediated microbiome dispersal and assembly in other sessile, habitat-forming species.
Fluid Proteomics of CSF and Serum Reveal Important Neuroinflammatory Proteins in Blood-Brain Barrier Disruption and Outcome Prediction following Severe Traumatic Brain Injury: a Prospective, Observational Study
Authors: Lindblad Caroline , Pin Elisa , Just David , Nimer Faiez Al , Nilsson Peter , Bellander Bo-Michael , Svensson Mikael , Piehl Fredrik , Thelin Eric Peter
Published: January 2021

Background: Severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) is associated with blood-brain barrier (BBB) disruption and a subsequent neuroinflammatory process. We aimed to perform a multiplex screening of brain enriched and inflammatory proteins in blood and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in order to study their role in BBB disruption, neuroinflammation and long-term functional outcome in TBI patients and healthy controls. Methods: We conducted a prospective, observational study on 90 severe TBI patients and 15 control subjects. Clinical outcome data, Glasgow Outcome Score, was collected after 6-12 months. We utilized a suspension bead antibody array analyzed on a FlexMap 3D Luminex platform to characterize 177 unique proteins in matched CSF and serum samples. In addition, we assessed BBB disruption using the CSF-serum albumin quotient (QA), and performed Apolipoprotein E-genotyping as the latter has been linked to BBB function in the absence of trauma. We employed pathway-, cluster-, and proportional odds regression analyses. Key findings were validated in blood samples from an independent TBI cohort.Results: TBI patients had an upregulation of structural and neuroinflammatory pathways in both CSF and serum. In total, 114 proteins correlated with QA, among which the top-correlated proteins were complement proteins. A cluster analysis revealed protein levels to be strongly associated with BBB integrity, but not carriage of the Apolipoprotein E4-variant. Among cluster-derived proteins, innate immune pathways were upregulated. Forty unique proteins emanated as novel independent predictors of clinical outcome, that individually explained ~10% additional model variance. Among proteins significantly different between TBI patients with intact or disrupted BBB, complement C9 in CSF (p = 0.014, DR2 = 7.4%) and complement factor B in serum (p = 0.003, DR2 = 9.2%) were independent outcome predictors also following step-down modelling. Conclusions: This represents the largest concomitant CSF and serum proteomic profiling study so far reported in TBI, providing substantial support to the notion that neuroinflammatory markers, including complement activation, predicts BBB disruption and long-term outcome. Individual proteins identified here could potentially serve to refine current biomarker modelling or represent novel treatment targets in severe TBI.
Dietary isoleucine improved flesh quality, muscle antioxidant capacity, and muscle growth associated with AKT/TOR/S6K1 and AKT/FOXO3a signaling in hybrid bagrid catfish (Pelteobagrus vachelli ♀ × Leiocassis longirostris♂)
Authors: Jiang Qin , Yan Ming-Yao , Zhao Ye , Zhou Xiao-Qiu , Yin Long , Feng Lin , Liu Yang , Jiang Wei-Dan , Wu Pei , Wang Yan , Chen De-Fang , Yang Shi-Yong , Huang Xiao-Li , Jiang Jun
Published: January 2021

Background: Muscle is the complex and heterogeneous tissue, which comprises the primary edible part of the trunk of fish and mammals. Previous studies have shown that dietary isoleucine (Ile) exerts beneficial effects on growth in aquatic animals. However, there were limited studies regarding the benefits of Ile on fish muscle and their effects on flesh quality and muscle growth. Thus, this study was conducted to explore whether dietary Ile had affected flesh quality and muscle growth in hybrid bagrid catfish (Pelteobagrus vachelli♀ × Leiocassis longirostris♂). Methods: A total of 630 hybrid fish, with an initial average body weight of 33.11 ± 0.09 g, were randomly allotted into seven experimental groups with three replicates each, and respectively fed seven diets with 5.0, 7.5, 10.0, 12.5, 15.0, 17.5, and 20.0 g Ile/kg diets for 8 weeks. Results: In the present study, we demonstrated that Ile significantly: (1) increased muscle protein and lipid contents and the frequency distribution of myofibers with ≤ 20 and ≥ 50 µm of diameter; (2) improved pH value, shear force, cathepsin B and L activities, hydroxyproline content, resilience, cohesiveness, and decreased cooking loss, lactate content, hardness, springiness, gumminess, and chewiness; (3) decreased reactive oxygen species (ROS), malondialdehyde (MDA), and protein carbonyl (PC) contents, GCLC and Keap1 mRNA levels, and up-regulated CuZnSOD, CAT, GPX1a, GST, and Nrf2 mRNA levels; (4) up-regulated the insulin-like growth factor 1, 2 (IGF-1, IGF-2), insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor (IGF-1R), proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), Myf5, Myod, Myog, Mrf4, and MyHC mRNA levels, and decreased MSTN mRNA level; (5) increased muscle protein deposition by activating AKT-TOR-S6K1 and AKT-FOXO3a signaling pathways. Conclusion: These results revealed that dietary Ile improved flesh quality, which might be due to increasing nutritional content, physicochemical, texture parameters, and antioxidant ability; promoting muscle growth by affecting myocytes hyperplasia and hypertrophy, and muscle protein deposition associated with protein synthesis and degradation signaling pathways. Finally, the quadratic regression analysis of chewiness, ROS, and protein contents against dietary Ile levels suggested that the optimal dietary Ile levels for hybrid bagrid catfish was estimated to be 14.19, 12.36, and 12.78 g/kg diet, corresponding to 36.59, 31.87, and 32.96 g/kg dietary protein, respectively.
Highly sensitive Terahertz non-destructive testing technology for stone relics deterioration prediction using SVM-based machine learning models
Authors: Meng Tianhua , Huang Rong , Lu Yuhe , Liu Hongmei , Ren Jianguang , Zhao Guozhong , Hu Weidong
Published: January 2021

The hollowing deterioration of stone relics required effective non-destructive testing (NDT) methods for their timely restoration and maintenance. To this end, a new NDT method based on terahertz (THz) technology by using support vector machine (SVM)-based machine learning models was developed to assess and diagnose the hollowing deterioration of the Yungang Grottoes. According to experiment design, a series of hollowing deterioration samples with various thicknesses of hollowing deterioration were prepared and then measured by using THz time-domain spectroscopy (THz-TDS). Based on the THz-TDS results of 30 randomly selected samples, a SVM-based hollowing deterioration prediction model (SVM-HDPM) was established by analyzing the relationship between the hollowing samples and the THz spectral information. The reliability and accuracy of the model was further proved by verified and compared with using the THz spectral data of the remaining 10 samples. The experimental results with the linear kernel function greatly demonstrated that the SVM-HDPM can have superior prediction accuracy, implying that the model is feasible for the prediction the hollowing deterioration of the stone relics. Moreover, one data preprocess was introduced into SVM-HDPM to meet the needs of field-based test. The predicted results of five different hollowing deterioration with different flaked stone thickness revealed good performance with very low mean square error (MSE) value. Therefore, it is believed that the proposed method can be regarded as an effective NDT technique with practical applications in analyzing cultural relics and have promising future prospects in inspection stone relics-like ancient heritage for hidden flaws.
EVOLUTION OF THE USE OF ELECTRONIC PAYMENT INSTRUMENTS: FINANCIAL AND LEGAL ASPECT
Authors: Pozhydaeva M.A.
Published: January 2021

The evolution of the use of electronic payment instruments from a finance law position is analyzed in the article. In the context of the latest technology dynamic introduction in the field of payments, the beginning of the history of modern electronic payment instruments can be conditionally linked to the creation of the London Clearing House in 1775 in the United Kingdom and the subsequent active use in the calculation of promissory notes and cheques, as well as other payment documents on the basis of the clearing. At the same time, we propose to periodize the evolution of the use of electronic payment instruments in the calculation of foreign and domestic experience, which includes three main stages: Stage I (end of the XVIII century – end of the XIX century) formation of legal preconditions for the birth of the first electronic payment instruments in the form of promissory notes and cheques, as well as payment documents on the basis of clearing; Stage II (XX century) electrification of payment transactions with the support of their electronic means of payment (bank cards, mobile payment instruments), electronic purses for initiating payments, as well as the use of the first electronic money in order to pay for goods and services. Stage III (XXI Century – nowadays) digitization of payments, characterized by the active use of contactless chipped cards, contactless mobile instruments, electronic money, electronic payment means based on widespread electronic payments in the world of electronic payment ecosystems, such as PayPal (1998), Payoneer (2005), Skrill (2001), Stripe (2009), TransferWise (2010), etc., virtual money in the form of virtual currencies, Quick Response codes, and the introduction of digital currencies of central banks.
The suggested periodization of the evolution of electronic payment instruments is based on historical facts, economic conditions, the introduction of the latest financial technologies, national preferences, and the legislation development in the field of payments. At the same time, the genesis specificity of the use of electronic payment instruments in Ukraine is conditioned by the imperfect special law on payment systems and the transfer of funds, which, unfortunately, does not meet the current international and European Union standards. Therefore, there is an urgent need to reform outdated domestic legislation in the field of payments by adopting a new Law of Ukraine «On Payment Services».
Keywords: electronic payment instrument, electronic means of payment, use of electronic payment instruments, electronic payment instruments evolution, financе law.
THEORETICAL AND LEGAL ANALYSIS OF THE PRINCIPLES OF LAW AS AN INTEGRATING ELEMENT OF THE LEGAL SYSTEM
Authors: Stanko I.Ya.
Published: January 2021

The article is devoted to the study of the principles of law as an integrative element of the legal system. The author examines on the basis integration coherences with various components of the legal system, in particular the integration of the principles of law with the ideological components of the legal system, which further influences the formation and development of the legal system as a doctrinal component. The external orientation of the integrative influence of the principles of law, which is mediated in the interaction of the legal system with the social system (society) due to the integrative properties of the principles of law, is considered The author emphasized the importance of the principles of law and their integrational influence on the development of the legal system of Ukraine, because of the important elements of the legal system, the principles occupy one of the main places. Principles of law represent a system of the most general and stable imperative requirements and express the idea and spirit of the law. The study of law principles as an integrative element of the legal system should also be considered through the lens of their functions, which will explain – how is the integration of the main elements of the legal system, how this system-saving mechanism works. For this purpose, it is proposed to dwell on the most illustrative directions of influence of the principles of law as their functions within the system: system-forming, regulatory, law-enforcement, value, law-making, ideological.
Understanding the principles of law as an integrative element of the legal system is conditioned by the presence in the methodology of modern jurisprudence of a wide range of cognitive tools, including an integrative approach to understanding legal phenomena. Illustration of the unifying role of principles in law and the legal system, in particular, allows us to reemphasize their importance in relation to other phenomena of legal reality, to understand the cause and effect relationships between individual elements in the structure of systemic entities. The integrative role of the principles of law appears in two directions of the functioning of the legal system – external and internal. In the external direction, their role is to provide the integration of the legal system into the higher level of society, which allows asserting the indirect influence of the principles of law. In the internal direction, the role of the principles of law evolves itself both in the facts of ensuring the interaction of individual phenomena and in the fact of the existence of the proper legal system, which combines legal ideas and values, group and individual interests, dynamic and static phenomena of reality.
Keywords: principles of law, the legal system, integrative, functions of law principles.
TO THE QUESTION ON ECONOMIC AND LEGAL SECURITY OF THE USE OF BINARY OPTIONS AS FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS
Authors: Rudenko L. D. , Bavikin A.Yu. , Sokolenko O.P.
Published: January 2021

The article investigates the current state of economic and legal support for the use of binary options as financial instruments. On the basis of the conducted research, the concept of binary option as derivative security and the financial instrument is specified, the main types of binary options are distinguished. Also, the article investigates features of the functioning of the binary options market through online trading platforms. The legal nature of the binary option as a derivative of security and a financial instrument (item 5 of Part 5 of Article 3 of the Law of Ukraine “On Securities and the Stock Market”) is specified. There is no comprehensive list of such securities in the legislation. That is, based on the features of the binary option (timeliness; purchase or sale of any of the financial instruments, including those that provide cash payment; no actual purchase of securities, currency or precious metals, raw materials; availability of a certain fixed condition at the time conclusion of the transaction; short-term and speculative nature of the financial transaction; trading on online platforms). The concept of a binary option has been clarified, namely: this is the type of options contract (contract) under which the payment will depend entirely on the result of the offer, yes or no, usually related to whether the price of a particular asset such as a stock or commodity will rise above or will decrease below the amount indicated. Unlike traditional options, when such an agreement is concluded, no actual purchase of a security, precious metal, raw materials is made, but a bid is made to increase or decrease the price of the asset for a certain time. Based on an analysis of EU law, including the MIFID, it is determined that binary options refer to derivative financial instruments. The peculiarities of economic and legal regulation of the binary options market are investigated by the European Securities Market Supervision Authority (ESMA). There is a lack of proper regulation and control over the binary options market by the state in Ukraine, which in turn led to an outflow of tens of millions of dollars from the Ukrainian economy and causing significant financial losses to traders. The article argues the feasibility of adopting a special law on the market for binary options based on the experience of the Federal Republic of Germany to protect Ukrainian traders.
Keywords: binary option, financial instrument, trader, trading online platforms, ESMA, MIFID.
THE GENESIS OF EDUCATIONAL SERVICES DEFINITION AS A LEGAL CATEGORY
Authors: Pavliuchenko Y.M. , Savchuk Y.Y.
Published: January 2021

By the authors of this scientific article was revealed the evolution of educational services as a legal category since the times when writing have been invented and till the European integration processes in modern Ukraine. In the article was emphasized that the process of providing educational services is now mostly perceived as studying, which is a consequence of the long term use of the irrelevant terminology in the legislation of Ukraine and the lack of a legally defined definition of educational services until the adoption of the Law on Education in 2017. By the authors were determined that the expectations of providers and consumers of educational services can differ significantly in content, completeness, quality, applied efficiency of these services, forms of their provision, etc. The genesis of understanding educational services definition was described and its characteristics due to the historical and legal stages of receiving the status of educational institutions. The ways of providing educational services in terms of their economic and legal nature have been determined. The features inherent in educational services, acquired as a result of long-term development of social relations, are distinguished. The modern Ukrainian educational legislation base and providing the educational services were analyzed. It is determined that most of the legislation governing the process of providing educational services can be characterized by the general declarative norms. The authors suggested improving the conceptual and categorical apparatus and some norms of the national legislation on the providing of educational services in accordance with their current development and emphasize their economic character as a result of economic activity. Also, the article deals with that the legislative definition of the educational services definition and it was noted by the authors the only focus of the educational services on achieving the expected results of studying without the formalization of them, which can make the role of consumers of these services into a passive participant in educational relations.
Keywords: education, studying, educational services, entities providing educational services, economic activity, consumer of educational services.
THE RIGHT OF ACCESS TO PATIENT’S HEALTH DATA: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE CASE LAW OF THE EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS, THE EUROPEAN COURT OF JUSTICE, AND THE PRACTICE OF THE COURTS OF THE UNITED STATES AND SOME EUROPEAN COUNTRIES
Authors: Lytvynenko A.A.
Published: January 2021

The legal relationships between the physician and the patient involve a duty to maintain the confidentiality of information concerning the patient’s health which is based upon the acting legislation and case law. The non-fulfillment of the said duty mostly brings to civil or criminal responsibility. However, both legislation and case law of various states bear a substantial number of exemptions from the duty of medical confidentiality. With the enhancement of the patient’s role in decision-making concerning his treatment, various issues concerning his data privacy arose. Apart from his data privacy maintenance, there is an issue with the patient’s right to access his medical records. The purpose of access may not be as prosaic as it may initially look like, as in various jurisprudence, including the case-law of international courts, plaintiffs frequently applied to courts to obtain an order for medical records productions so as to file an action against hospitals for negligence. Hence, medical records would be used as evidence of negligence at trial. The positions of the United States courts and the courts in Europe (the given paper embraces several trials from Germany and Portugal) may have divergencies concerning direct access to medical data, the proprietary status of the health records, a right to access of third parties, and its conditions, the categories of personal data banned from patient’s access under certain circumstances, etc. The issue of access to medical records in known in the ECJ jurisprudence since the mid-70s, especially in a number of judgments wherein the plaintiffs sued various EEC bodies attempting to impugn the decision of their human resources department concerning their ineligibility of holding a certain position in the structures of EEC – therein, the defendants did not give reasonable justifications for such decisions and didn’t present any medical documentation to the prospective plaintiffs as a proof of their unfitness for office. Since the 1980s, similar actions were filed to the European Court of Human Rights. In some cases, not only the issue of the patient’s right to inspection of the respective health records was risen, but the aspect of accessing the information on the plaintiff’s biological forbearers as well (trials of Odievre v. France and Godelli v. Italy).
Keywords: Medical records, data privacy, a right to access to medical records, medical
confidentiality, medical negligence, the proprietary status of health records.
Evaluation of Cultivars and Spray Programs for Organic Grape Production in Virginia
Authors: Rutto Laban K. , Mersha Zelalem , Nita Mizuho
Published: January 2021

The French American hybrid grape cultivars Corot noir and Arandell (Vitis sp.), and Vidal blanc and Petit Manseng (Vitis vinifera), along with different spray programs, were evaluated for potential organic production in Virginia from 2013 to 2014. Results obtained in the study demonstrate that organic wine grape production in Virginia can be achieved by using select grape cultivars and spray programs. With the exception of Vidal blanc, disease severity and disease incidence were below the threshold for maintaining healthy vines in all organically managed grape cultivars. ‘Vidal blanc’ was not sufficiently resistant to downy mildew (Plasmopara viticola), precluding it from potential organic management in Virginia. The study also demonstrated significant disease resistance in Virginia of the cultivar Arandell, released by Cornell University (Ithaca, NY) in 2013. The results suggest that the organically registered fungicide Bacillus subtilis is effective in reducing the severity and incidence of black rot (Guignardia bidwellii) and phomopsis cane and leaf spot (Phomopsis viticola). The chemistry of organically managed berries harvested in 2014 met minimum requirements for wine production with soluble solids, titratable acidity, and pH ranging from 18.7% to 20.2%, 7.6 to 8.0 g·L−1, and 3.3 to 3.4, respectively, in ‘Arandell’ and ‘Corot noir’; and 21.0% to 24.4%, 7.8 to 9.6 g·L−1, and 2.7 to 2.9, respectively, in ‘Petit Manseng’ and ‘Vidal blanc’ juice.
Transcriptome Analysis Reveals the Procyanidin Treatment-responsive Genes Involved in Regulating Procyanidin Accumulation during Banana Ripening and Senescence
Authors: Zhou Chao , Zhang Haide , Li Yixing , Li Fenfang , Chen Jiao , Yuan Debao , Hong Keqian
Published: January 2021

The mechanism regulating procyanidin (PA) accumulation in banana (Musa acuminata) fruit is not understood. During this study, the effects of PA treatment on the activities of banana PA biosynthetic enzymes and transcriptomic profiles were investigated. The results showed that PA treatment delayed the decreases in leucoanthocyanidin reductase and anthocyanidin reductase activities, which affected the accumulation of PA. Furthermore, the peel samples of the control fruit and the PA-treated fruit on day 1 were selected for transcriptomic analysis. The results revealed that PA treatment induced 1086 differentially expressed genes. Twenty-one key genes, including those encoding biosynthetic enzymes and regulatory factors involved in PA biosynthesis, were validated using a quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. The results showed that these genes were upregulated by PA treatment during banana storage. Taken together, our study improves current understanding of the mechanism underlying PA-regulated banana senescence and provide new clues for investigating specific gene functions.
The Application of Design Thinking Methodology in Architectural Education in Ukraine: Case Study
Authors: HOLUBCHAK Kateryna
Published: January 2021

The relationship between different aspects that challenge architectural education in Ukraine and new pedagogical strategies, in particular application of the innovative approach based on Design Thinking, are analysed and described in the paper. The case study illustrated in the article is based on author’s personal experiment held with the 3rd year students at the Institute of Architecture, Construction and Energy (Ivano-Frankivsk National Technical University of Oil and Gas, Ukraine). A qualitative analysis of the Design Thinking methodology, alongside the literature review, has been presented. Particular emphasis is put on the implementation of the Lego® Serious Play® methodology, as an effective tool for facilitating students’ creative potential, self-expression and ability to generate innovative ideas at the conceptual stage of architectural design. The suggested methodology can be successfully applied in other higher educational courses.
Relationship Between the Concentrations Of PM2.5 Indoors Obtained by Using the Optical and Gravimetric Methods: Preliminary Analysis
Authors: PASTUSZKA Jozef S.
Published: January 2021

The paper presents preliminary analysis of measurements of the mass concentrations of PM2.5 in the indoor environment, obtained with the use of two optical instruments: (Grimm device and low-cost sensor) and a sampler based on the gravimetric method (SKC). It was found that the measurement of PM2.5 using an optical device with active sampling underestimates the actual mass concentration of this mode (PM2.5), while measurement using an optical device with passive sampling of air overestimates the concentration of PM2.5. It has been shown that the physical relationship between the mass concentrations of airborne particles obtained with an optical sensor (Csensor
) and concentrations obtained with the gravimetric method (Cgrav
) is not linear. However, for practical reasons, the correct (“true”) concentration levels of PM2.5 in an indoor environment can be estimated by converting sensor data according to a simple linear equation, i.e., Cgrav
= a Csensor
. The coefficient a for the sensor used was estimated at 0.45.
Dari Ilmu Tauhid/Ilmu Kalam ke Teologi: Analisis Epistemologis
Authors: Syafii Syafii
Published: January 2021

Artikel ini membahas tentang paradigma baru dalam kajian ilmu tauhid dan ilmu kalam ke arah teologi dengan mengusung berbagai ke­pen­tingan kehidupan manusia di era kekinian.  Kajian yang ada dalam ilmu tauhid dan ilmu kalam secara epis­te­mologis dapat dijadikan se­bagai modal keaga­ma­an. Namun, dalam se­jarahnya kajian yang ada menjadi sesuatu yang cenderung mengada-ada dan kurang menyen­tuh pada persoalan praktis umat manusia. Apa yang digagas oleh ulama terdahulu merupakan res­pon ke­sejarahan dan konsekuensi logis ter­ha­dap kebutuhan umat saat itu. Pergeseran epis­te­­mo­logis merupakan suatu keharusan dan mut­lak dilakukan untuk menjadikan keagamaan manusia lebih segar dan dinamis.
DECLARATION TOWARD A GLOBAL ETHIC OF THE PARLIAMENT OF THE WORLD’S RELIGIONS AND BUILDING WORLD PEACE
Authors: Sholihan Sholihan
Published: January 2021

Tulisan ini  membahas Etika Global Deklarasi Parlemen Agama-agama Dunia dan signifi­kan­sinya bagi penciptaan dunia yang damai, dalam pengertiannya sebagai  negative peace ataupun positive peace. Ada beberapa nilai yang harus ada dalam dunia yang damai, yaitu: non-keke­rasan, kesejahteraan ekonomi, keadilan sosial, keseimbangan ekologis, dan kesetaraan, khu­sus­­nya keseteraan gender. Nilai- nilai ini pulalah yang dipromosikan oleh Deklarasi Etika Global  yaitu, komitmen pada budaya non-kekerasan dan hormat pada kehidupan,  komitmen pada bu­daya solidaritas dan tata ekonomi yang adil, komitmen pada budaya toleransi dan hidup yang benar, dan komitmen pada budaya per­samaan hak dan kemitrasejajaran antara laki-laki dan perempuan. Dengan demikian jelaslah signifikansi deklarasi etika global bagi upaya penciptaan dunia yang damai
TAFSIR AYAT-AYAT KASIH SAYANG DALAM MASYARAKAT PLURAL
Authors: Irawan Bambang
Published: January 2021

Islam sangat menghargai harkat kemanusiaan universal, menganjurkan hidup dengan damai dan saling menyayangi. Melakukan  kekerasan dan pembunuhan terhadap seorang manusia tanpa ada alasan yang benar, sama halnya dengan telah membunuh manusia sejagat. Namun, di tengah riuhnya tuntutan tersebut, muncul para­doks: yaitu intensitas ritual keagamaan menjadi sangat romantik dan marak, namun dalam kehi­dup­an sehari-hari belum mampu melahirkan ke­sa­lehan diri, apalagi kesalehan sosial. Ke­hi­dup­an beragama tampak meriah dalam rutinitasnya, namun tanpa disertai dengan keprihatinan dan tanggung jawab sosial. Tulisan berikut adalah upaya sederhana menggali dan menafsirkan ayat-ayat al-qur’an yang terkait dengan cara hidup yang damai dan kasih sayang dalam masyarakat yang plural
ISLAM RADIKAL VS ISLAM RAHMAH KASUS INDONESIA
Authors: Syukur Suparman
Published: January 2021

Momentum kebebasan demokrasi memberi angin segar bagi kelompok fundamentalis-radi­kal merangsek ke tengah publik untuk menyua­ra­kan aspirasi politis-ideologisnya. Sialnya, cara, gaya, karakter atau pendekatan yang digunakan kerap berseberangan dengan iden­ti­tas dan bangunan budaya bangsa ini. Kekerasan kerap menjadi menu tidak asing lagi yang melekat dalam tubuh kelompok fundamentalis-radikal. Dengan berjubahkan agama dan atas nama agama, Islam sebagai agama  rahmah dan toleran menjadi kabur dibumi Indonesia ini, tertutupi oleh merebaknya fenomena radikali­tas dan ekstrimitas kelompok-kelompok funda­men­talis-radikal. Bukan hanya itu, logika radi­kalitas kelompok fundamentalis-radikal pun berjalan diatas logika demokrasi dan kebebasan menyuarakan pendapat, walau harus mengor­ban­kan keadaban dan keluhuran agama dan bangsa ini
TOLERANSI BERAGAMA DAN MAHABBAH DALAM PERSPEKTIF SUFI
Authors: Muzakkir Muzakkir
Published: January 2021

Dalam kacamata kaum sufi, tidak ada orang lain (the other) di duniaini. Mereka melihat orang lain sebagai sebuah kesatuan makhlukyang bernaung di bawah kasih sayang Tuhan. Landasan cintamerupakan titik berpijak bagi mereka untuk melihat orang lain.Dalam pandangan kaum sufi, semua manusia adalah indah.Keindahan dalam pandangan itulah yang membimbing merekauntuk tidak melihat orang lain secara lebih rendah. Keindahanpandangan itu juga meliputi para penganut agama yang berbedabeda. Ajaran kedamaian, cinta dan kasih sayang yang diususng parasufi, bagian yang cukup menarik untuk disingkap, sekaligus sebagaiupaya membangun hubungan umat beragama yang harmonis.Tulisan ini akan memaparkan kasih sayang dan toleransi beragamadalam persektif tasawuf.
RELASI MISTICAL EXPERIENCE DAN RIYADLAH AN-NAFS
Authors: Arikhah Arikhah
Published: January 2021

Pengalaman beragama merupakan sebuah pencapaian seseorangkondisi yang menggambarkan hubungan antara sang Khaliq danmakhluknya. Kadang kondisi ini dipahami sebagai pencapaian yangsupranatural dan tidak dapat diperoleh secara tiba-tiba. Seseorangyang mengalami kondisi ini biasanya sedang melaksanakan sebuahritaul yang keagaman keagamaan yang sunguh-sungguh dan sangatserius (muja>hadah) yang memfasilitasi pengalaman terebut.Bahkan, banyak ahli tasawuf menyebutkan bahwa muja>hadahatau sering disebut pula dengan riyadah an-nafs adalah jalan satusatunya mendapatkan pengalaman keagamaan dan pencerahan yangsesungguhnya. Oleh karena itu, riyadah tidak lain merupakanmemperoleh pengalaman keberagamaan dengan melalui upayapembenahan, pembinaan dan peningkatan pribadi seseorang menujukehidupan yang baik.
PREVENTING RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION AGAINST AHMADIYAH
Authors: Anshori Afnan
Published: January 2021

As a global phenomenon, religious persecution might occur within all religions as well as nations. In  Indonesia, this phenomenon occurs within Islam. One of the most controversial cases regarding religious persecution is the discrimination experienced by Ahmadiyah. Here, they could not perform religious active­tie­s freely as they are prohibited to do so. In ad­dition, their properties as well as their religious and educational facilities have been destroyed. To resolve this case, there are at least, two approaches that can be used, which include judicial and non-judicial strategies. This resear­ch suggests the use of non-judicial strategies, which aim at eradicating religious persecution experienced by Ahmadis by raising people’s consciousness about religious tolerance and human rights. This includes intra-religious di­alog­ue and multicultural and human rights education. In terms of dialogue, this research suggests the use of intra-religious dialogue within Islam, especially between Ahmadiyah and orthodox Muslims.